Chapter 5

“Come on, mister, please?”

“Y’know, you’re like a damn broken record. When I say no, I mean no! Now shut yer yap!”

After successfully capturing the thief and hogtying him him up, Arthur neared his way back to where he left the foals and where the mare were still waiting. All the while, even after Arthur’s constant warnings, the thief wouldn’t stop pleading for his release.

“But I don’t wanna go to prison!” The thief complained.”

“Does it look like I give two shits? You made yer decision and so have I.” Arthur huffed.

Before the thief could say anymore, Arthur finally returned to the scene of the crime. The CMC, Pipsqueak, the mare with the stetson, and a couple stallion ponies wearing light armor stood around each other. Pipsqueak was the first to notice the gunslinger’s return and smiled wide as he pointed at Arthur.

“Look! He’s back!” Pip said happily.

All the ponies turned to see Arthur and the thief over his shoulder. The guards were surprised to see the tall stallion had managed to capture the thief, let alone manage to return with the money he had stolen. As for the mare with the stetson, she was busy gazing at Arthur and couldn’t seem to look away. He was tall, very tall, probably the tallest stallion she’d ever seen, aside from another stallion she knew. He looked like a cowcolt, judging by his outfit, and his hat was an interesting piece that looked similarly to hers. But what really caught her eye was the stallion’s own eyes. They were a deep sky blue, probably the bluest pair of eyes on anyone. And although the stallion had a smile and tipped his hat to the group, the mare could tell that there was something about his eyes, they looked sad and lost.

“Holy moly, Mr. Morgan, you took off so quick, we thought you’d never stop!” Apple Bloom said.

“Well it’s not thanks to this little scamp.” Arthur said as he slung the thief over and plopped him on the ground. The guards took the opportunity to walk over and one cleared his throat.

“So you actually caught him, sir?” One of the guards asked.

“Yep indeed, officer.” Arthur said with a nod.

“And the stolen goods?” The other questioned.

“Got’em right here.” Arthur said as he held up the starches.

“That’s surprising, I honestly thought you’d keep it for yourself.” The guard said as he reached over to grab it, only for Arthur to scowl and pull the satchel back.

“And just what do ya mean by that?” Arthur asked a little irritated.

“I’m just saying, you don’t exactly look like a law abiding pony. Now please hand over the satchel.” The guard requested. For a brief moment, Arthur caught a glimpse in the guard’s eye that he had seen plenty of times on multiple men. This guard was dirty, and Arthur knew he was going to try and swindle the mare out of her bits.

“No.” He said, shoving the guards aside. “I think I’ll give it to the one it actually belongs to myself.”

“That isn’t necessary, we are more than capable.” The guard snapped, grabbing his shoulder but Arthur pulled his shoulder away and glared at the guard.

“Touch me again, loose the hand.” Arthur growled.

“You dare threaten me? I’m a guard, I can have you arrested!” The guard said.

“Go for it then, if ya got the balls.” Arthur snorted as he walked over to the mare. Once he was standing before her, Arthur smiled and held out the satchel full of bits. “I do believe this belongs to you, ma’am.”

The country mare looked up at Arthur once more and was able to get a proper examination of the gunslinger. Truth be told…this stallion was a stud, and she knew it. Though she didn’t show it, she was practically drooling as she gawked at the stallion. She smiled a little, as to keep up the act, but she couldn’t help but feel her cheeks warm up a bit as she reached out for her satchel.

Sweet Celestia, who is this stud? Not only did he get back mah earnings, but managed to wrangle up the one who took ’em? She thought as she grasped the satchel as she glanced down at the hogtied thief. And his tying skills, Ah ain’t never seen anypony hogtie so well.

“Well, erm, thank ya kindly fer doin’ this, mister.” The mare said a little bashfully. “Mah name’s Applejack.”

“Think nothin’ of it.” Arthur said with a wave of his hand. “I’m Arthur, by the way, Arthur Morgan.”

SHING

Everyone gasped and backed away in utter shock. When Arthur looked over his shoulder, he saw one of the guards had drawn his sword and pointed it straight at the gunslinger.

“Put up your hands where I can see them.” The guard ordered.

“Rocky Edge, what are you doing?!” The other guard demanded.

“Putting this flankhole in his place. We’re the ones who keep this town in check, not him. He also failed to follow my directions when I told him to hand the damn bag over.” Rocky sneered.

“Hey! Mr. Morgan didn’t do anything wrong!” Scootaloo snapped.

“Yeah! Leave him alone!” Pip added.

“Shut it you brats! This is adult business! Go play somewhere else!” Rocky barked, making Arthur narrow his eyes.

“That ain’t no way to speak to kids like that, boy.” Arthur growled.

“Oh yeah? Then maybe they should listen to what they’re told! Same with you! I want to see those hands up right now!” Rocky ordered as he neared the gunslinger with his sword still raised.

“You wanna use that there butter knife, boy? Then by all means.” Arthur challenged as he raised his arms out to his sides. “Take yer damn shot.”

“Rocky please stand down. We don’t pull weapons on the townsfolk.” His partner implored.

“You better shut your muzzle as well, Marble Amor, or else.” Rocky warned. “And as for you, you brought this on yourself!” Rocky charged forward with his sword raised and proceeded to slash at Arthur. Arthur just stood there as the sword came down, unfazed and undeterred. At the last second, Arthur shot his arm forward and grabbed Rocky’s wrist, just as the blade was about to cut through his jacket.

“Let me go! Get your filthy hands off me, you motherbucker!” Rocky barked.

“Ya got a dirty mouth.” Arthur hissed as he squeezed Rocky’s wrist, making Rocky grunt in pain. “You kiss yer momma with it?”

“Rocky, Celestia damnit, let’s just go! I don’t care what you do, I won’t let you do whatever you damn well please!” Marble demanded.

Rocky looked over at his partner and cursed under his breath and nodded reluctantly. Arthur scoffed as he pushed the guard away, making him fall backwards and to the ground.

“You best get along now, before I do somethin’ that most would deem unwise against someone who works fer the law.” Arthur warned.

While Marble nodded and helped his partner up, Rocky glared at the gunslinger as he sheathed his sword.

“You’re gonna regret this, you have no idea what trouble awaits you.” Rocky sneered.

“I look forward to it.” Arthur smirked as he tipped his hat. “Now go and do yer duty properly and take this one away.” Arthur kneeled down to hoist the thief up from the ground. Marble stepped forward as Arthur undid his rope and the guard cuffed him and the three walked away. “Damn rat.” Arthur said under his breath as he clipped his rope back on his belt.

“Woah…”

Arthur looked down to the side to see all four foals gazing up at him in complete awe. Pip had stars in his eyes, Scootaloo’s little wings flapped excitedly, Apple Bloom’s tail wagged from side to side, and Sweetie Belle smiled the widest smile she ever had.

“THAT WAS SO COOL!” The foals cheered together as they surrounded the gunslinger.

“I’ve never seen anypony say stuff like that to the guards!” Pip said.

“You’re so awesome, Mr. Morgan!” Scootaloo said.

“Kids, kids please.” Arthur protested with his hands raised. “Ya shouldn’t tell me such kind words when I don’t deserve ’em.”

“But they were gonna arrest you for no reason!” Sweetie said.

“Under false allegations, yes, but ya shouldn’t disobey folks, such as the law, as I just did. I resisted because I knew that stallion was no good and would make me look like a criminal.” Arthur explained.

“Are ya sayin’ ya shouldn’t have talked back to that mean pony?” Apple Bloom asked.

“I’m saying that I did what was necessary to avoid gettin’ into a more complicated situation than the one I found myself in. Take it from me, kids, don’t do what I did. It’s fer the best.”

“Ok, Mr. Morgan.” The foals said all together.

“Well I’ll be, ya sure have a way with words, Mr. Arthur.” Applejack said with a smile.

“I’m just tryin’ to educate them properly, is all.” Arthur shrugged. “Gotta keep the good apples away from the bad, after all.”

“Ya know, Ah couldn’t have said it better mahself.” Applejack nodded. “Thank ya again fer gettin’ back mah earnin’s, Ah really appreciate it.”

Huh, she’s got a nice smile…wait, what am I thinkin’? She a horse girl, and I’m a…well I may look like them but I ain’t one on the inside. Arthur argued with himself internally.

“Think nothin’ of it, Miss Applejack, just doin’ the right thing when it counts.” Arthur said.

“Ah’m sure you were, anywho, Ah gotta get back to the farm so Ah best be on mah way. See ya at home, Apple Bloom.” Applejack said as she waved goodbye.

“See ya, sis!” Apple Bloom waved back.

“Yer sister, huh?” Arthur commented.

“Yup, but we’ve waisted enough time already. Let’s get to Sugarcube Corner, Ah’ve got a hankerin’ fer an apple fritter!” Apple Bloom said as she and the foals followed her.

“Heh, these kids, I swear.” Arthur chuckled as he adjusted his hat.

Since there were no more distractions to hinder their trek, Arthur and the foals finally managed to arrive at Sugarcube Corner. However, the gunslinger was having a hard time comprehending the very structure, let alone the very appearance, of the sweet shop since he hadn’t seen anything like it before in his life.

“Good Lord…you tellin’ me that’s a building?” Arthur asked.

“Well sure it is, haven’t you been to sweet shop before Mr. Morgan?” Scootaloo asked.

“Not one this…odd lookin’, that’s for sure.”

“Well come on then! I can already taste those donuts!” Pip said.

Arthur shrugged as he walked up the small steps with the foals. Although as soon as he stepped inside, the room was supposedly dark which made the gunslinger a tad cautious.

“Where’s the light at?” He wondered, and as soon as he did the lights flipped on to reveal several ponies.

“SURPRISE!!!”

“SWEET SIZZLIN’ HELLFIRE!!”

Arthur instinctively reached around to grab his pistol but managed to force himself to stop midway once he realized he wasn’t in any real danger. Instead of a group of enemies ready to ambush him, he saw what looked like most most, if not all, of the townsfolk all in one space. As Arthur caught his breath, a familiar party mare hopped forward with a wide smile as she beamed up to the frazzled gunslinger.

“Hiya, Arty!” Pinkie chirped. “Were you surprised? Huh? Were ya? Were ya surprised?”

“Surprised? I damn near was almost scared to death!” Arthur breathed. “What’s all this even for?”

“It’s for you, silly!” Pinkie said.

“Me?” The gunslinger repeated as he continued to calm himself.

Looking around, Arthur saw that each pony present in the room all had smiling faces and there was an assortment of decorations that hanging around. Arthur also noticed a big banner hanging in the middle that said, “Welcome to Ponyville, Arthur Morgan!” The whole scene was unreal to Arthur since he hadn’t received a welcome like this since...well ever. Back home, whenever Arthur and his gang moved to a new town to camp near, Dutch would always have him and the others scope out the scene for potential hits and ways to make money. There was no time to be all formal and friendly to the townsfolk since no one saw the need to, especially when they would get discovered and had to make a quick escape. But here, in this friendly little town full of pony people, he was the guest of honor and being welcomed in the most friendliest way possible. This gesture towards the gunslinger made his heart warm and humbled, which brought a smile to his face.

“I...don’t know what to say.” Arthur said, scratching his cheek. “Ya didn’t have to throw all this together fer me.”

“Of course I did! I do this for everypony who comes into Ponyville! Especially when I wanna be their friend!” Pinkie said.

“It’s true.”

From the crowd, Rarity, Applejack, and two other ponies stepped forward to greet the gunslinger. Both were mares as one of them had butter yellow fur with a pink mane and tail, she had wings with blue eyes wearing a green sweater and blue jeans. The other mare had lavender fur with a purple and pink streaked mane and tail, she had a horn and magenta eyes wearing a purple skirt with a white under shirt and lavender sweater.

“Pinkie Pie has thrown parties for each of us when we first came to Ponyville, myself included.” The Purple mare said as she extended her hand for a shake. “It’s nice to meet you sir, my name is Twilight Sparkle.”

Arthur smiled as he reached up to take off his hat. He then extended his own and and clasped her hand gently and gave it a small shake. “It’s mighty fine to meet you as well. Arthur Morgan is my name, but I’m sure ya already knew that.” Arthur joked, making Twilight giggle. Arthur’s attention soon drifted to the winged mare, who flinched and hid behind her mane as she fidgeted in place.

Poor thing looks as delicate as a lamb. Arthur thought. Not wanting to scare the timid mare, Arthur kneeled down to come more at eye level with her so he didn’t seem too intimidating for her.

“Hello.” Was all Arthur said. This seemed to relax the mare as she slowly stepped forward, still hiding behind her mane.

“Um...hello.” She whispered.

“What’s yer name, miss?” Arthur asked.

“My name’s...Fluttershy.” The mare said quietly.

“Fluttershy, huh? Well that sure is a sweet name.” Arthur complimented as he raised his hand a bit to shake hers. Seeing how gentle and calm the gunslinger was, Fluttershy raised her own hand and lightly took his. Arthur kept his smile as he gave it a little shake, which made Fluttershy smile back.

“Now then.” Arthur said as he stood back up. “Ya say this is a shindig, right? So how exactly does it begin?”

“That’s easy!” Pinkie said as she turned to face the crowd. “LET’S PARTY!”

The ponies of Ponyville sure didn’t disappoint to keep the gunslinger entertained during his welcome party. Arthur’s cheeks sometimes hurt because of all the smiling he had on his face as he mingled and laughed with the ponies around him. He played party games, danced a little to the strange, yet catchy, music from the mysterious black boxes in the corner, and was making small talk with almost every pony who approached him. However, unbeknownst to the gunslinger, there were a handful of mares who always had their eyes on Arthur from afar. They didn’t need to approach him and talk to him since all they wanted to do was stare at him. Whenever Arthur smiled, they would giggle. Whenever he bent down to pick up something he accidentally dropped, they would stare at his toned flank. To put it simply, everything Arthur did was a treat for mares cause they all swooned and licked their lips at the handsome stallion.

Arthur was sitting at a nearby table with a few other stallions he had made friends with with a cup of cider in his hand. The beverage tasted like a beer, flavored with apples, which Arthur seemed to enjoy. Despite the fact that it would take a whole lot more than this to get his motor running. Arthur had his jacket, hat, and satchel off and hung them on the chair he was sitting on. Just as a precaution to not cause any unwanted attention, Arthur managed to slip his pistol and knife in his satchel. The reason being is that he felt it was necessary since he felt as though they wouldn’t understand what they were for and why he had them. More so, he was worried about his pistol since no one would probably even know what it was. So for the time being, he would keep his weapons in his satchel until further notice. At least until it became absolutely necessary to use them, in which case he hoped, he wouldn’t have to.

Arthur soon saw Applejack walking over to him with a stallion by her side. The stallion had red fur with an orange mane and tail, large muscles, a plain red button up shirt with half an apple picture on it and blue jeans. To Arthur’s surprise, this stallion was pretty tall compared to the rest of the ponies. When Arthur stood up to greet them, he noticed that he was a little over half a head taller than the red furred stallion.

“Howdy Arthur, how’re you enjoying yer party?” Applejack asked.

“It’s a helluva shindig, I’ll tell you what.” Arthur nodded.

“Well that’s swell to hear, I’d like to introduce ya to mah big brother. This here’s Big Macintosh, but everypony calls him Big Mac.” Applejack said, gesturing to her sibling.

“Pleasure to meet ya, Mac.” Arthur said with his hand raised.

“Eeyup.” Mac said as he gripped Arthur’s hand. Unlike the previous handshakes, Mac didn’t shy away from gripping Arthur’s hand tight so he could shake it properly. Arthur responded in kind by gripping right back as both stallions shook hands with vigor.

“Quite a grip ya got there, Mac.” Arthur said with a smirk.

“Eeyup, you too.” Mac said with his own smirk as they let go.

“How’re you enjoying the cider, Arthur? It’s our family’s own brew.” Applejack said proudly.

“It’s not bad, got a sweet taste and sits in yer belly pretty well.” Arthur said. “I just wonder how it would taste with a chaser.”

Both ponies looked at each other, confused, then looked back at Arthur. “Chaser? What’s a chaser?” Applejack wondered.

Arthur smirked as he turned around and grabbed his satchel. He opened the flap and fished around in it until her pulled out a bottle that read Fine Brandy on the label. “This here’s a special drink, back where I’m from.” Arthur said as he pulled out two small glasses. “If ya ever wanna put some hair on yer chest, this is the beverage to do the job.” Arthur placed the glasses on the table and uncorked the bottle and filled each glass up with the rust colored liquid. “Here, Mac, take a swig. But make sure you’re quick about it, this stuff will kick yer ass good.” Arthur said as he handed Mac the glass.

Mac gazed at the strange liquid with an arched brow but shrugged his shoulders as he brought the glass to his lips. Doing as he was told to do, Mac quickly downed the drink in one fluid motion. At first Mac just stood there, unfazed, until his entire face became more red than his very coat as he leaned back and fell on his back.

“Mac?!” Applejack yelped as she knelt down to check on her brother. Mac was unresponsive as his eyes were swirling in circles and he had a dumb grin on his face.

“Wheee~. Thass a ghood ‘n. Buuuhhaaa~!” Mac slurred.

“Pffft hahahahahahaha! Guess it was too much of kick, huh ol’ boy?!” Arthur laughed as he slapped his knee.

“What’s that stuff even made of?! He’s completely smashed!” Applejack asked as she fanned her brother with her hand.

“Only the best stuff around ma’am.” Arthur smirked. “He’ll be fine, in case you’re wonderin’. He just needs some cold water and he’ll be right as rain.” Arthur grabbed his own drink and downed the beverage himself. Only instead of passing out like Mac, Arthur merely grunted in satisfaction as the liquor burned down his throat.

“Why’re you not face down on the floor?” Applejack questioned.

“Cause I’ve been drinkin’ this stuff most of my life.” Arthur said. “Takes more than just one of these to bring this stallion down.”

SLAM!

All ponies turned to the entrance to see a winged mare had swung the doors open with a confident smirk. She had cyan blue fur and a rainbow mane and tail and magenta coloured eyes, she was wearing a white tank top and blue jacket and black pants that hugged her athletic curves.

“Sorry I’m late, everypony!” The mare said as she strode in.

“Rainbow Dash!” The ponies said as they greeted the mare.

“So what’d I miss? I heard there’s a new guy in town.” Rainbow said as she grabbed a cup and poured herself some cider.

“Yup, his name’s Arthur Morgan, and he’s already very popular after what he did!” Pinkie said as she hopped along next to her friend.

“Arthur Morgan? That’s a weird name. What exactly did he do?” Rainbow wondered, not sounding impressed.

“He helped Rarity out when a few stallions were harassing her and chased down a thief that stole from Applejack.” Twilight said.

“He did, did he? Well maybe I’d like meet this-”

THUMP!

“Oof! Hey, watch it pal! I’m trying to...walk...here...”

Rainbow trailed off when she looked up to who she ran into. Arthur looked down at the mare who was starring at him wide eyed and her cup slipped out of her hand. As the stallion arched a brow at the frozen mare, Rainbow couldn’t find the words since she had none to say. His sky blue eyes, his chiseled muzzle, his muscular torso and arms, and his dirty blond mane were all jumbled up into probably the most attractive stallion Rainbow Dash has ever met.

“You ok, miss?” Arthur asked, making Rainbow’s wings twitch at the sound of his rough voice.

“Rainbow? Are you ok?” Fluttershy asked as she approached her friend.

“Wh...who...he...huh?” Rainbow muttered.

“Oh yeah! This is Arthur Morgan, Rainbow!” Pinkie chirped.

“It’s uh, a pleasure to meet ya.” Arthur said as he offered his hand out to the bewildered pegasus.

FWOOMP!

Out of nowhere, Rainbow’s wings shot open as her body went ridged and her face turned completely red. At this, most of the mares blushed at the display while some giggled to themselves, trying not to laugh.

“Oh my...” Fluttershy whispered as her cheeks reddened.

“Rainbow! Here?! Seriously?!” Applejack deadpanned.

“Ehehehehehe...” Rainbow muttered in her dazed state.

“Would someone explain to me why she’s actin’ all loopy like that?” Arthur asked.

“I believe it’s best we bring her somewhere to calm herself down, dear.” Rarity sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Oh, I can take her to my cottage, if that’s ok with all of you.” Fluttershy said.

“Are you sure, Fluttershy?” Twilight asked.

“It’s no bother.” Fluttershy said as she picked up Rainbow on her back, which surprised Arthur at how strong she was. “It was nice meeting you Arthur, I hope we speak again, if that’s ok with you.”

“Likewise, Fluttershy, y’all take care now.” Arthur said with a mock wave as both pegasi left.

“Well that sure was funny!” Pinkie giggled, earning a few more laughs here and there from the other ponies.

“Why’d her wings spring up like that?” Arthur wondered.

“I think it’s best we just let it be, Arthur.” Applejack said.

“Yeah! Besides, we still need to finish this party off with a party song!” Pinkie said cheerfully.

“Singin’? Oh, I ain’t much a singer, mind y’all.” Arthur said, smiling sheepishly.

“Aw come on, Arty, everypony has a singing voice. In fact, why don’t you sing a song for us?” Pinkie said.

“Like I said, I ain’t much of a singer.” Arthur protested.

“Please Arthur?” Pip said as he and the other foals looked up at him with pleading eyes. “Just one song?”

These kids and their damn eyes, they’re gonna be real troublesome. Arthur grumbled in his head.

“I guess...I can try.” Arthur sighed in defeat.

“Here!” Pinkie said, shoving a guitar in his arms that seemed to come out of nowhere. “You can use this!”

“Where the hell you get this from?” Arthur deadpanned.

“It’s best not to ask, darling, trust us.” Rarity said, earning nods of agreement from everyone.

“That only makes me even more concerned.” Arthur said. Shaking his head, Arthur looked down a the instrument and thought about what he was to sing. “Got any requests?”

“Just sing from the heart, Arty!” Pinkie cheered.

From the heart, she says. Yeah, easier said than done.

Arthur closed his eyes as he strummed the guitar a few times. He tired to think of lyrics to sing as he began to play a soft tune. Deciding to just go with the flow, Arthur took in a deep breath and sang his heart out as best he could.

As Arthur sang, his voice seemed to cause everyone to stop what they were doing all at once. The way he sang, the tone of his voice, the way he played the guitar, it spoke volumes of his character. Arthur’s eyes were closed as he sang and couldn’t see the faces of his audience. The stallions all smiled and bobbed their heads to the beat of the song. It was a catchy tune that some even hummed along to, even sang along a little with Arthur. As for the mares, nothing could’ve been a greater spectacle than watching the gunslinger sing and perform. Every single mare, the four main mares included, had bright blushes spread across their muzzles. Most of the mares all were very dreamy eyed and swooned at the cowcolt, some had even fainted on the spot.

When Arthur reached the slow part of the song, he lowered his head and thought about his life back home, he thought about the woman he couldn’t run away with because of the life he lived. Mary was a special woman to Arthur, he wanted nothing more than to be with her since she was one of the few women who made him smile. If it wasn’t for the life he lived, her father, how different people they were, perhaps he’d be in a different situation right now. Maybe he’d have a chance to have again what he lost, a family, a future. Once Arthur finished the song and strummed the last notes of his song, he paused as he opened his eyes. Everyone was dead silent as they stared at him which made him a little nervous.

“Uh, how’d I do?” Arthur wondered.

Almost immediately, everyone broke out into an applause and clapped for the gunslinger. Arthur blinked, a little surprised, but smiled as he gave a mock bow to his audience.

“THAT WAS AMAZING, ARTY!” Pinkie cheered.

“It was truly a wonderful song, Arthur.” Twilight said with a warm smile.

“Oh my stars, darling! What a fantastic ensemble! You completely blew us all away!” Rarity said, batting her eyelashes.

“That...was pretty impressive, partner.” Applejack said, blushing a bright red blush.

“I just did what ya told me to do.” Arthur shrugged. “I’m glad y’all enjoyed it.”

“This was one of the best party’s ever!” Pinkie said.

Arthur chuckled to himself as he handed the guitar back to Pinkie, who stuffed it back in her mane. Choosing to ignore how she did that, Arthur looked out the window as he thought of Mary again.

Mary, I’m powerfully sorry I could not be the man you wanted me to be. I hope ya find a good man who treats ya right, wherever ya ended up.

Author's Note

Another successful good impression.

Hope you enjoyed!

~WurkyWilk has left the building...