One Trick Ponyby f0xholeChaptersPrologueChapter 1Chapter 2Chapter 3PrologueThe sun shone just above the horizon over the small town of Ponyville. Few ponies were even awake, and those that were were slow and silent with their movements, hoping not to disturb anypony else. All except two… “Rainbow, when ya offered to help out with the harvesting, I took that ta mean that you actually intended ta help out.” A cyan, rainbow-maned pegasus peeked her head over the edge of the low hanging cloud she had been lying on. Looking down, she saw a bright orange earth pony, wearing her trademark Stetson and with three apples adorning her flank. “Chill out, Applejack,” she said, smirking. “I could get this done in five minutes if I wanted to. I’m not in any rush.” “Well, while Ah appreciate your incredible modesty, I would like to get this done preferably before the cows come home!” Applejack said with a slight snarl. One of the cows in the next paddock stuck her head up. “Ooohh, don’t worry about that Applejack,” she drawled. “We’ll take as long as myooou need.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Er, that’s not really what I…” Applejack sighed. “Thanks, Mooriel.” “Aw, come on AJ, relax! You’re not worried about what ponies will say if you mess up the one thing you’re good at, are you?” “No, of course no…” Applejack turned back to Rainbow. “What do you mean, the ‘one thing I’m good at’? Rainbow laughed. “Oh, come on, Applejack, look at yourself! Name one thing you can do that isn’t apples.” Applejack was taken aback. “W-well, I can cook the best darn fritters an’ pies y’all ever tasted! An’ I can outrun and out wrestle anypony, anytime!” she said, silently congratulating herself on her recovery. Rainbow threw her hands up to her face in an exaggerated expression of awe. “Oh, my! So not only can you pick apples, you can also cook apples! Oh, Applejack, you’re my hero!” She laughed. “Oh, wait, you can also run; just like, oh, I don’t know, everypony else?” Applejack brow furrowed deeper than she thought possible. “Now hold on! You’re always goin’ on about how you’re the fastest around, ya hypocritical varmint!” Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “Hey, I’m not a hippo… hipa…that! Besides, of course I can say that stuff; I’m the best remember?” Rainbow laughed. “Face it, Applejack! You’re a one trick pony!” “A one trick pony!?” Applejack was still fuming hours later. “I can’t believe that lazy, good-fer-nothin’ would accuse me of not bein’ a hard worker!” “Oh, come on now, AJ,” Big Mac drawled. “Ah’m sure she never meant it like that.” “Oh? Well, then, why don’t you tell me just how she meant it, since you’re so smart?!” Applejack said, her face pressed up against Big Mac’s own. Big Mac shifted uncomfortably. “Well, ah… ah’m sure she just meant that maybe you’re a little too…” he hesitated as Applejack’s eyebrows lowered. “…too, uh…focused?” he finished, the twitch of a nervous grin starting to appear on his face. “Too focused? How exactly does one go about bein’ ‘too focused’?” “I think what Big Macintosh is sayin’ is, you should try somethin’ new!” squealed a small yellow filly with a red mane, tied in a bow. Applejack looked over to her. “Applebloom, shouldn’t you be in bed by now?” “Don’t change the subject, missy. We’re talkin’ about you here!” Applebloom said, trying her best to look intimidating. Applejack considered telling her off for that, but in the end she decided to humour her. “Alright then, Applebloom. What kind of new things should I try?” “Ah dunno. But me and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle have been trying EVERYTHING we can think of!” Applebloom gasped. “Oh my gosh. Maybe you could come with us, tomorrow! You could be an honorary CUTIE MARK CRUSADER, YAY!” Applejack and Big Macintosh winced, glad that the other members of Applebloom’s little club weren’t there; the yelling would have been even more unbearable that way. “Even supposing Ah did think it was a good idea, Ah can’t just up and leave the farm to take a day off.” Big Macintosh shook his head. “Oh, I wouldn’t say that. Why, with all the work you got done today, I’d say you’ve earned a day or two to yourself.” Applejack grumbled slightly at this. True to her word, Rainbow had taken care of her portion of the orchard in nearly record time, which only added to the sting. She looked up out the window, with a determined look on her face. “Alright, fine! Ah’m gonna take tomorrow off and prove to Rainbow that Ah got plenty of tricks up my hooves!” Chapter 1Applejack woke up bright and early, as usual. Leaping out of bed, she trotted downstairs to grab herself a quick breakfast (apples), and packed a bag for her day out, consisting of a few bits, some lunch (apples), a spare Stetson just in case, and a small snack (oranges. Got to have some variety in diet, you know). Satisfied that she had everything she would need, she headed out the door. It was only a few moments later when she stopped, realising that she had no idea where she should go, or for that matter, what she should do. “Gosh, I sure could use a little help with this.” Applejack muttered to herself. “Wait, help! That’s it! Ah’ll just ask around to see who needs anything, and I’ll be sure to find something Ah can do.” With that, she set off into town, her head held high once again. But when she reached the town square, she realised a tiny flaw in her plan. The entire village was totally silent. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea…” she muttered to herself. “I’ll just come back later.” She turned back towards the farm, when suddenly a huge purple flash, accompanied with a static buzzing caught her eye. As she looked for the source, she realised she could smell smoke as well. “Somepony’s in trouble!” Applejack dashed off to find where the mysterious light had come from, growing horrified as she realised she was heading in the direction of the Golden Oaks library. “TWILIGHT!” Applejack called. A (mostly) violet coated unicorn with a dark mane, complemented with pink and bright purple stripe through it, slowly pushed open the door of the library, blinking soot from her eyes as she did. “Applejack?” she said, brushing some singed hairs from her coat. “Twilight! Oh, thank goodness yer alright. Ah was worried somethin’ terrible had happened!” Twilight giggled a little. “Oh, it’s nothing too serious. Just a little magical mishap in my latest project. There shouldn’t be any permanent damage,” she finished, with a slightly nervous laugh. Applejack breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, as long as everyone’s OK.” Applejack turned to leave, but stopped after taking a moment to think. “Say, Twi, I don’t suppose ya could use some help with that project o’ yours?” Twilight tapped her chin. “Well…I suppose so…I never really took you for the science-y type, Applejack.” Applejack laughed. “Oh, well, you know…Ah just thought I’d try something a little different today. Expand the horizon, an’ all that?” She grinned, a little too widely. Twilight smiled. “Well, that’s great, Applejack! Come on, I’ll show you what I’ve been doing.” Twilight led Applejack into her basement, where she saw a weird, helmet like object with electrodes attached. “I’ve been trying to find a way to amplify teleportation magic. As you know, teleportation is a relatively simple spell that creates a miniature wormhole in space that can be used to bla bla bla, bla bla bla bla bla, bluh…” Applejack stared, not quite knowing how to respond. In the end, she settled for ‘smile and nod’. “…and so in order to overcome the limitations of distance, I decided to take a technological approach rather than a magical one. However, the machine calculates based on distance, not location, so we need to find a way to take the movement of the planet through space into consideration…” “Uh, so Twilight?” Applejack interrupted. “…by installing a compass and enchanted calendar into the dev…hmm, sorry Applejack?” “Uh, what is it that you actually need me to do?” “Oh! Well, I was hoping that you could be a test subject for me.” Seeing the look in Applejack’s eyes, Twilight added “Don’t worry, it’s perfectly safe. We’ll only do some short range work to calibrate the direction.” Twilight shivered a little, a giddy smile on her face. “Oooh, this is so exciting!” Applejack grimaced. She could feel in her bones that this was going to end badly. “Okay,” Twilight said. Applejack was feeling somewhat ridiculous with Twilight’s contraption now strapped to her head, but she gritted her teeth and reminded herself it was for a good cause; proving that Rainbow was wrong. “We’re just going to try to get you upstairs for now. So, just close your eyes and imagine yourself standing on the balcony.” “Are you sure about this, Twi? Ah mean, I’ve never tried using magic before…” “Don’t worry about it, Applejack. Just concentrate, and I’ll take care of the rest.” “Well, alright, if you say so…” Applejack closed her eyes and tensed herself, envisioning herself in the room where she had slept during their sleepover. A bright light pierced her eyelids, and floor became soft and bouncy. When she opened her eyes, she found herself standing on Twilight’s bed, just as Twilight herself burst into the room. “Hmmm. You didn’t imagine yourself on my bed, did you?” Applejack shrugged. “I was meaning to end up just over there, actually,” she said, pointing to far corner. “Not too far off.” Twilight nodded. “Okay. Just a little fine tuning should do it.” Twilight hopped onto the bed and started adjusting a few dials. Applejack sighed. As much as she was happy to be helping out, she wished she was back on the farm in her own element. She smiled as she thought of her home and workplace; the huge apple orchard, the barnyard, Winona running around chasing birds, the clear open sky… A bright flash and a scream interrupted Applejack’s thoughts, as Applejack looked over to Twilight and realised that they were suddenly falling through the clouds, the ground approaching a lot faster than she felt it had the right to. “What did you do!?” Applejack asked, panicking. “ME!? I didn’t do anything! What did you?” “I didn’t do nothin’! I was just thinking about how nice it would be to get home!” “WHILE WEARING THE TELEPORTATION DEVICE!?” Twilight screamed. “…oh….” They grabbed onto each other, screaming as the wind blew past them. Applejack shut her eyes, waiting for the impact to come. Chapter 2Applejack felt a thud, but it wasn’t how she had expected it to be. She could still feel herself moving, and there was barely any pain. Opening one eye, she peeked out and saw… “Rainbow!” she yelled. The cyan pegasus, wearing her usual smirk, was carrying the two previously falling pony through the air over the orchard. “Looked like you two could use ride,” she joked, setting them down in a small clearing near the barn. “Oh, Celestia, sweet, sweet land!” Twilight bent down and starting kissing the ground, until Applejack forced her up. “Not that I’m complaining about being given another chance to prove how awesome I am…” Rainbow struck a pose. “but how exactly did you two end up…you know,” she said, pointing a hoof skyward. Applejack suddenly became very interested in the dirt between her hooves. “Well, Applejack was helping me with some experiments and…well, we had a bit of accident,” Twilight said, trying not to sound too accusatory. Rainbow snickered “You know, Applejack, I don’t know how you usually do things out in the country, but where I come from helping people generally doesn’t involve almost putting them in hospital.” Applejack just grumbled. She knew Rainbow was right, that she had screwed up badly. “Ah’m really sorry about that Twilight. Ah jus’ don’t know what Ah was thinkin’…” “You were thinking about the sky above your farm,” Twilight said, deadpan. “Well, yeah, I just meant…” “Relax, AJ. I suppose I should have been more careful with such sensitive equipment. Speaking of which…” Twilight reached over to Applejack and removed the helmet from her head. “It wouldn’t do to have any more accidents.” Applejack just kept looking at the ground. Once Twilight was out of earshot, Rainbow looked down at Applejack, smiling smugly. “I guess we can add ‘sciencing’ and ‘flying’ to the list of ‘things AJ can’t do’.” “Oh, come off it, RD! Like you’ve never messed anything up!” Rainbow Dash tapped a hoof against her chin, apparently deep in thought; she raised her head, smiling proudly. “Nope!” “Why you…!” Applejack stammered “He he. Gotta fly!” And with that, Rainbow took off into the sky. Applejack growled. “Alright, alright, don’t let ‘er get to ya. It’s early days, yet,” she muttered, trotting back into town. By this time, the town square had transformed into a bustling (for a small town) marketplace; Applejack found herself bumping into ponies left and right. She could have sworn she saw Big Mac and Applebloom waving at her from their usual stall, but by the time she had managed to find some space amidst the crowds she had lost sight of them. ‘Ah’m not gettin’ anywhere like this,’ she thought to herself. ‘I gotta get outta here.’ Seeing a break in the crowd, she darted off into side alley, not really caring where it led. As she stepped out into the sunlight, she recognised the pink and blue monument that was Carousel Boutique. “I bet Rarity’s got plenty of work to get done; there must be somethin’ Ah can help with.” Applejack hesitated as she approached Rarity’s store; as much as she wanted to find a new talent, this was a little far outside her comfort zone. “Doggonit, nothin’ ventured, nothin’ gained.” Taking a deep breath, she pushed the door and trotted inside. “Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where everything is…oh! Applejack, darling, how wonderful to see you today,” a voice called with a familiar British accent. A white unicorn with a deep purple curly mane and tail trotted down the stairs, sheets of fabric and thread held aloft with her magic. “Howdy, Rarity. I was jus’ wondering…” Applejack paused in a moment of uncertainty, but ploughed on ahead. “I was jus’ wondering if ya’ll needed any help around here?” she asked, a nervous smile across her face. “Oh! Well, as it so happens, I just finished some new orders for a new client who…” Rarity stepped carefully around Applejack, looking her up and down as she did so. “Yes, I would say they’re about your size, and I just need to make a few last minute adjustments to the ensemble. I don’t suppose I could maybe convince you to model for me?” Applejack struggled to keep her face from falling. “Sure, Rarity. I’d love to.” “OW!” “Sorry about that, dear. Just a little more…” ‘A little more’ sounded like a little too much to Applejack after an hour standing around, but she held her tongue. She had agreed to help out, and she was going to see it through if it killed her. “And…done!” “Oh, thank Celestia!” Applejack tossed off the dress as fast as she could, happy to finally be able to stretch. “Oh, come now, Applejack, you looked gorgeous! You should really consider wearing formal attire more often.” “Ah heh heh,” Applejack laughed nervously. “I’ll take that into consideration. But Ah don’t suppose you would have anything more…hands on I could help ya out with?” “Well… I suppose I do have some old works that need a little patching up… but are you sure you can really handle something like that? You’ve never really struck as being particularly…” “Particularly what?” Applejack asked with a hard look in her eye. “Oh, well, just, you know…um, I think they’re just upstairs, actually, if you wanted to give it a go, aheh heh.” This time it was Rarity’s turn to have an uneasy smile on her face. She led Applejack up to her private study, with absolute confidence that there was no way that this could all go terribly wrong. “AAAAARRGGGHH!” “Come on now, Applejack darling, just hold still and I’ll be able to get this out in a...oof!” Rarity let out a gasp of pain as Applejack accidently head butted her in the muzzle. “Be CAREFUL. Honestly, how exactly did you even manage to stitch a dress to your mane in five places?” “Jus’ help me get it out of…AARRGGHH!” “Got it! There, see now, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Although the state of your mane is rather distressing…” Applejack got up off the floor, shaking her hair loose and collecting her hat from the bench. “It’ll be fine, Rares. Ah’m real sorry about all the trouble Ah caused ya.” “Oh, please, darling. It hasn’t been…” Rarity hesitated. “It hasn’t been that much trouble. And you really did help me out a lot.” Applejack bowed her head, sadly. “Well, thank ya kindly for sayin’ that, but I think Ah’m gonna look to see who needs help elsewhere.” The door to Carousel Boutique opened, and the orange farm pony trotted out, eyeing the midday sun. “Gosh, it’s gettin’ later than Ah thought. Maybe Ah should just head home…” A sudden rainbow blur in the sky caught her eye, and her eyes glinted at the reminder of the source of her quest. “Doggonit, no! Ah promised mahself Ah would do this, and by Luna nothin’ is goin’ ta stop me!” A loud growling suddenly interrupted her thoughts. “Ah, heh heh…Ah guess it wouldn’t hurt ta stop fer lunch, though.” Chapter 3“Ok, ok, somepony in this town must need help with somethin’,” Applejack muttered. Applejack’s search since leaving Rarity’s had been less than fruitful. Nearly everypony was taking the hour off for lunch, which didn’t leave much work that needed immediate attention. “Well…I suppose it couldn’t hurt ta take a lil’ break…” Applejack started munching on her apples, sighing as she lay down against the wall of the nearest building. Her eyelids drooped in the afternoon sun; it was so peaceful here… Applejack was about to fall asleep when she felt something start to shake her. When she looked down, she saw a familiar white bunny impatiently poking her chest. “Well, howdy there, Angel,” Applejack said. “What can I do fer ya?” Angel glared at her, stamping his foot and pointing off into the distance. Applejack cocked her head in confusion. “Fluttershy’s fallen down a well in the Everfree? Ah didn’t even think we had wells in there…” Angel slapped his forehead in frustration. He began jumping and running in small circles on the ground, sending dust flying as he did so. “Oh!” Applejack exclaimed. “She’s havin’ problems with her critters? Well, why didn’t ya jus’ say so?” Angel’s paw grew ever more intimate with his skull as he turned and hopped down the road, Applejack following close behind. “Oh, oh please stop,” the yellow pegasus stuttered. “Ow!” she cried as a small scarlet tanner tugged at her pale pink mane. “Howdy there, Fluttershy!” a cheery voice called. “Heard ya needed a hoof with things from Angel over here!” The orange farm pony nodded her head towards the scowling bunny hopping alongside her. “Oh, thank you Applejack. And thank you, too, Angel,” she added as the white bunny glared at her, thumping his foot on the dirt path. “So, um, if you could just…OW!...just help me round up these birds back into their roosts, before they…OW!...before they hurt themselves.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Ya sure it’s them ya need ta worry about?” “Oh, they don’t mean to hurt anypony, they’re just…OW!...nervous.” “Well, okay, if you say so…” “So, um, just take a little of their seed, and drop it in their nests- leave a little trail if you can- and then just… OWOWOWOWOW!...just nudge them over carefully,” she said, a slight squeal punctuating the end of her sentence. “Alright; I can do that…” Applejack said. ‘This is it, AJ. You’ve got this. There’s no way this can go wrong!’ “Sweet Celestia, how could this go so WRONG?!!” It was only partially a rhetorical question; no one had quite figured out just how an attempt at coaxing birds into their nests less than two metres away had led to the roost collapsing, the birds escaping and subsequently causing havoc all over town. Newspapers the next day would report that the only two eyewitnesses to the event were a yellow pegasus and an orange earth pony, who both claimed that the event was ‘a total blur’. “Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear…” Fluttershy mewled as she tried to keep up with the determined cowpony. “This is no time to panic, ‘shy! We’ve gotta catch them critters!” The two ponies rushed off into town, following the trail of easily horrified ponies. “The horror! THE HOOORRRRRRRROORRRR!!” cried Ponyville’s most neurotic earth pony, Lily. “Eeyup, that’ll be it,” Applejack said dryly. “Should be one o’ them right around…there!” She pointed her hoof towards the large, gingerbread house shaped sweet shop, Sugarcube Corner. Sure enough, a brightly plumed bird was aggressively pecking at the ‘icing’ of the store. The two ponies snuck up to the building, trying not to disturb the creature. Fluttershy flew up towards the bird as Applejack pulled back to keep an eye on them in case Fluttershy needed any help. “Hey there, little birdy,” Fluttershy near whispered to the animal. It turned towards her, looking grumpy at having been interrupted. “Um, I know you’re a bit busy right now, but would it be okay if you came back down to the house?” The creature continued to hover for a moment, its head twitching between the smiling pegasus and its prey. It began to hover over towards Fluttershy, and her encouraging smile grew slightly wider in response. Suddenly, and seemingly unprovoked, the bird snapped its beak angrily and dived sharply towards the ground, pulling up at the last second and soaring over the town square. “Wait!” Fluttershy cried out as she made to give chase. “Ah got it!” Applejack yelled out over her shoulder as she dashed away from the building, keeping the bird in her sight. “Hey!” She whistled sharply, catching its attention. “Down here, lil’ critter!” The bird glared at the irritant and plunged after it in an attempt to scare it off. Applejack kept running, keeping herself aligned with the creature’s flight path, waiting for it to be in reach. “…and…GOTCHA!” Applejack leapt into the air, lifting the Stetson from her head and bringing it down over the squawking bird. She slammed the hat to the ground, trapping the struggling creature. “HaHA!” “Oh, please be careful not to hurt her, Applejack,” Fluttershy cried out. “Don’t worry, its fine. You wanna do yer thing?” Applejack replied as she pulled out her spare hat, feeling the satisfying weight of it against her mane. “Um, alright.” Fluttershy stepped towards Applejack’s hat lying on the ground as Applejack stepped back to give her some room. She knelt down next to the bird’s temporary home and began to whisper. “Excuse me, miss? I was just wondering if, just maybe, you’d be able to come back home with us?” ‘Chirp, chirp chirp chirp, chirp!’ “Oh, come on now, it’s not so bad, is it?” ‘Chirpchirp, chichirp chirp; chirp chirp chirp.” “Well, yes, okay. But we can fix that if we have to, okay? Applejack started to zone out as she stared at the two conversing (or at least, that’s what she assumed they were doing), until she noticed a yellow hoof waving in front of her eyes. “Um, Applejack? She says she’s okay to go back now.” The two ponies made their way back to Fluttershy’s house, the haughty bird glaring at Applejack while perched in Fluttershy’s hair. “Okay, little birdy, you stay here until I get back, alright?” Fluttershy nudged the door open and moved her head to push the bird partway through the doorframe, whereupon it leapt from her hair and perched itself on the nearby table. Applejack grinned as Fluttershy gently closed the door. “Whelp, that’s one down.” She paused for a moment. “Just how many of them there critters got loose, anyway?” “Well…” the pegasus said, tilting her head to the side, “I think there were about…fourteen? Maybe?” “FOURTEEN!?” Applejack yelped, her eye twitching. “Um…more or less,” Fluttershy said, recoiling into her bangs at the Applejack hung her head low, and sighed. “…Well. Let’s get to it, then.” Luna’s moon had already begun to rise by the time the last of the birds were herded back to Fluttershy’s home. “Thanks for all your help today, Applejack. I don’t think I ever would have been able to find them all myself.” Fluttershy smiled at the cowpony. “Well, ya probably wouldn’ve need my help if Ah hadn’t messed up for ya to start with.” Fluttershy frowned. “Oh, Applejack, that wasn’t your fault. That could have happened to anypony. Applejack sighed as she looked down at the ground near her hooves. “It’s nice of you to say so, ‘shy.” “Applejack…” “Ah’d best be headin’ off now, alright? Maybe I’ll…Maybe I’ll see ya tomorrow.” Applejack turned and starting walking to her farm, barely even looking where she was going. Applejack trudged down the road, her eyes low, barely aware of the presence above her shoulder. “So where ya going, now, AJ?” called down a smug voice. “Hey, Rainbow,” Applejack replied, still not taking her eyes off the ground. “Saw you running all over town with Fluttershy today. Wanna tell me what that was all about?” “...Just cleaning up a mess.” Rainbow raised an eyebrow at Applejack’s response. “Hey, what’s up, Applejack? You feelin’ a little out of it?” “Ah’m fine, Rainbow,” Applejack said, her voice empty of feeling. Rainbow dropped to the ground and started walking by Applejack’s side. “Hey, come on, Applejack? What’s up?” Rainbow moved in front of Applejack, blocking her movement. She placed her hoof on Applejack’s muzzle and gently lifted her head, making sure that they made eye contact. “C’mon, AJ, spit it out. What’s going on with you today?” Applejack tried to look away, but Rainbow gently forced her chin up with her hoof. “Applejack,” she said firmly. “What. Happened?” A breath of air escaped Applejack’s lips. “It’s nothing, Rainbow. You knew it all along, and I should’a listened.” “What are you talking about?” Rainbow asked confused. Applejack continued in her previous monotone. “Yesterday? Field? Apples?” Her eyes stared dead ahead and unfocused as she continued plodding, leaving Rainbow to try and figure it out. “Wait, this isn’t about the whole ‘one trick pony’ thing, is it? Is that it?” Applejack stopped, turning her head back towards the pegasus, still not making eye contact. “Rainbow…” Rainbow flew over to Applejack before she could run off. “That’s it?! AJ, I wasn’t being serious,” she said with a concerned look. “I was just kiddi…” “It’s fine, Rainbow,” Applejack replied, still walking forward at the same, slow pace, refusing to look up. “You were right.” “AJ, wait…” “Please Rainbow, Ah…” Applejack stopped and sighed, turning back one last time. “Ah just wanna be alone right now.” “AJ…” The orange pony barely heard Rainbow’s last plea, walking off into the darkness of the night, her head hung low to the muddy ground. Author's Note WOO! Finally got this up after...what, a year? Well, between edits, rewrites, and whatnot, this chapter is finally...okay-ish. Yeah, still don't like the Fluttershy bit, but f**k it, it's up. You will be forgiven for believing that I have been feasting on Taeshi's soul energy for the purposes of this chapter Only one chapter and an epilogue to go.
PrologueThe sun shone just above the horizon over the small town of Ponyville. Few ponies were even awake, and those that were were slow and silent with their movements, hoping not to disturb anypony else. All except two… “Rainbow, when ya offered to help out with the harvesting, I took that ta mean that you actually intended ta help out.” A cyan, rainbow-maned pegasus peeked her head over the edge of the low hanging cloud she had been lying on. Looking down, she saw a bright orange earth pony, wearing her trademark Stetson and with three apples adorning her flank. “Chill out, Applejack,” she said, smirking. “I could get this done in five minutes if I wanted to. I’m not in any rush.” “Well, while Ah appreciate your incredible modesty, I would like to get this done preferably before the cows come home!” Applejack said with a slight snarl. One of the cows in the next paddock stuck her head up. “Ooohh, don’t worry about that Applejack,” she drawled. “We’ll take as long as myooou need.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Er, that’s not really what I…” Applejack sighed. “Thanks, Mooriel.” “Aw, come on AJ, relax! You’re not worried about what ponies will say if you mess up the one thing you’re good at, are you?” “No, of course no…” Applejack turned back to Rainbow. “What do you mean, the ‘one thing I’m good at’? Rainbow laughed. “Oh, come on, Applejack, look at yourself! Name one thing you can do that isn’t apples.” Applejack was taken aback. “W-well, I can cook the best darn fritters an’ pies y’all ever tasted! An’ I can outrun and out wrestle anypony, anytime!” she said, silently congratulating herself on her recovery. Rainbow threw her hands up to her face in an exaggerated expression of awe. “Oh, my! So not only can you pick apples, you can also cook apples! Oh, Applejack, you’re my hero!” She laughed. “Oh, wait, you can also run; just like, oh, I don’t know, everypony else?” Applejack brow furrowed deeper than she thought possible. “Now hold on! You’re always goin’ on about how you’re the fastest around, ya hypocritical varmint!” Rainbow raised an eyebrow. “Hey, I’m not a hippo… hipa…that! Besides, of course I can say that stuff; I’m the best remember?” Rainbow laughed. “Face it, Applejack! You’re a one trick pony!” “A one trick pony!?” Applejack was still fuming hours later. “I can’t believe that lazy, good-fer-nothin’ would accuse me of not bein’ a hard worker!” “Oh, come on now, AJ,” Big Mac drawled. “Ah’m sure she never meant it like that.” “Oh? Well, then, why don’t you tell me just how she meant it, since you’re so smart?!” Applejack said, her face pressed up against Big Mac’s own. Big Mac shifted uncomfortably. “Well, ah… ah’m sure she just meant that maybe you’re a little too…” he hesitated as Applejack’s eyebrows lowered. “…too, uh…focused?” he finished, the twitch of a nervous grin starting to appear on his face. “Too focused? How exactly does one go about bein’ ‘too focused’?” “I think what Big Macintosh is sayin’ is, you should try somethin’ new!” squealed a small yellow filly with a red mane, tied in a bow. Applejack looked over to her. “Applebloom, shouldn’t you be in bed by now?” “Don’t change the subject, missy. We’re talkin’ about you here!” Applebloom said, trying her best to look intimidating. Applejack considered telling her off for that, but in the end she decided to humour her. “Alright then, Applebloom. What kind of new things should I try?” “Ah dunno. But me and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle have been trying EVERYTHING we can think of!” Applebloom gasped. “Oh my gosh. Maybe you could come with us, tomorrow! You could be an honorary CUTIE MARK CRUSADER, YAY!” Applejack and Big Macintosh winced, glad that the other members of Applebloom’s little club weren’t there; the yelling would have been even more unbearable that way. “Even supposing Ah did think it was a good idea, Ah can’t just up and leave the farm to take a day off.” Big Macintosh shook his head. “Oh, I wouldn’t say that. Why, with all the work you got done today, I’d say you’ve earned a day or two to yourself.” Applejack grumbled slightly at this. True to her word, Rainbow had taken care of her portion of the orchard in nearly record time, which only added to the sting. She looked up out the window, with a determined look on her face. “Alright, fine! Ah’m gonna take tomorrow off and prove to Rainbow that Ah got plenty of tricks up my hooves!”
Chapter 1Applejack woke up bright and early, as usual. Leaping out of bed, she trotted downstairs to grab herself a quick breakfast (apples), and packed a bag for her day out, consisting of a few bits, some lunch (apples), a spare Stetson just in case, and a small snack (oranges. Got to have some variety in diet, you know). Satisfied that she had everything she would need, she headed out the door. It was only a few moments later when she stopped, realising that she had no idea where she should go, or for that matter, what she should do. “Gosh, I sure could use a little help with this.” Applejack muttered to herself. “Wait, help! That’s it! Ah’ll just ask around to see who needs anything, and I’ll be sure to find something Ah can do.” With that, she set off into town, her head held high once again. But when she reached the town square, she realised a tiny flaw in her plan. The entire village was totally silent. “Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea…” she muttered to herself. “I’ll just come back later.” She turned back towards the farm, when suddenly a huge purple flash, accompanied with a static buzzing caught her eye. As she looked for the source, she realised she could smell smoke as well. “Somepony’s in trouble!” Applejack dashed off to find where the mysterious light had come from, growing horrified as she realised she was heading in the direction of the Golden Oaks library. “TWILIGHT!” Applejack called. A (mostly) violet coated unicorn with a dark mane, complemented with pink and bright purple stripe through it, slowly pushed open the door of the library, blinking soot from her eyes as she did. “Applejack?” she said, brushing some singed hairs from her coat. “Twilight! Oh, thank goodness yer alright. Ah was worried somethin’ terrible had happened!” Twilight giggled a little. “Oh, it’s nothing too serious. Just a little magical mishap in my latest project. There shouldn’t be any permanent damage,” she finished, with a slightly nervous laugh. Applejack breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, as long as everyone’s OK.” Applejack turned to leave, but stopped after taking a moment to think. “Say, Twi, I don’t suppose ya could use some help with that project o’ yours?” Twilight tapped her chin. “Well…I suppose so…I never really took you for the science-y type, Applejack.” Applejack laughed. “Oh, well, you know…Ah just thought I’d try something a little different today. Expand the horizon, an’ all that?” She grinned, a little too widely. Twilight smiled. “Well, that’s great, Applejack! Come on, I’ll show you what I’ve been doing.” Twilight led Applejack into her basement, where she saw a weird, helmet like object with electrodes attached. “I’ve been trying to find a way to amplify teleportation magic. As you know, teleportation is a relatively simple spell that creates a miniature wormhole in space that can be used to bla bla bla, bla bla bla bla bla, bluh…” Applejack stared, not quite knowing how to respond. In the end, she settled for ‘smile and nod’. “…and so in order to overcome the limitations of distance, I decided to take a technological approach rather than a magical one. However, the machine calculates based on distance, not location, so we need to find a way to take the movement of the planet through space into consideration…” “Uh, so Twilight?” Applejack interrupted. “…by installing a compass and enchanted calendar into the dev…hmm, sorry Applejack?” “Uh, what is it that you actually need me to do?” “Oh! Well, I was hoping that you could be a test subject for me.” Seeing the look in Applejack’s eyes, Twilight added “Don’t worry, it’s perfectly safe. We’ll only do some short range work to calibrate the direction.” Twilight shivered a little, a giddy smile on her face. “Oooh, this is so exciting!” Applejack grimaced. She could feel in her bones that this was going to end badly. “Okay,” Twilight said. Applejack was feeling somewhat ridiculous with Twilight’s contraption now strapped to her head, but she gritted her teeth and reminded herself it was for a good cause; proving that Rainbow was wrong. “We’re just going to try to get you upstairs for now. So, just close your eyes and imagine yourself standing on the balcony.” “Are you sure about this, Twi? Ah mean, I’ve never tried using magic before…” “Don’t worry about it, Applejack. Just concentrate, and I’ll take care of the rest.” “Well, alright, if you say so…” Applejack closed her eyes and tensed herself, envisioning herself in the room where she had slept during their sleepover. A bright light pierced her eyelids, and floor became soft and bouncy. When she opened her eyes, she found herself standing on Twilight’s bed, just as Twilight herself burst into the room. “Hmmm. You didn’t imagine yourself on my bed, did you?” Applejack shrugged. “I was meaning to end up just over there, actually,” she said, pointing to far corner. “Not too far off.” Twilight nodded. “Okay. Just a little fine tuning should do it.” Twilight hopped onto the bed and started adjusting a few dials. Applejack sighed. As much as she was happy to be helping out, she wished she was back on the farm in her own element. She smiled as she thought of her home and workplace; the huge apple orchard, the barnyard, Winona running around chasing birds, the clear open sky… A bright flash and a scream interrupted Applejack’s thoughts, as Applejack looked over to Twilight and realised that they were suddenly falling through the clouds, the ground approaching a lot faster than she felt it had the right to. “What did you do!?” Applejack asked, panicking. “ME!? I didn’t do anything! What did you?” “I didn’t do nothin’! I was just thinking about how nice it would be to get home!” “WHILE WEARING THE TELEPORTATION DEVICE!?” Twilight screamed. “…oh….” They grabbed onto each other, screaming as the wind blew past them. Applejack shut her eyes, waiting for the impact to come.
Chapter 2Applejack felt a thud, but it wasn’t how she had expected it to be. She could still feel herself moving, and there was barely any pain. Opening one eye, she peeked out and saw… “Rainbow!” she yelled. The cyan pegasus, wearing her usual smirk, was carrying the two previously falling pony through the air over the orchard. “Looked like you two could use ride,” she joked, setting them down in a small clearing near the barn. “Oh, Celestia, sweet, sweet land!” Twilight bent down and starting kissing the ground, until Applejack forced her up. “Not that I’m complaining about being given another chance to prove how awesome I am…” Rainbow struck a pose. “but how exactly did you two end up…you know,” she said, pointing a hoof skyward. Applejack suddenly became very interested in the dirt between her hooves. “Well, Applejack was helping me with some experiments and…well, we had a bit of accident,” Twilight said, trying not to sound too accusatory. Rainbow snickered “You know, Applejack, I don’t know how you usually do things out in the country, but where I come from helping people generally doesn’t involve almost putting them in hospital.” Applejack just grumbled. She knew Rainbow was right, that she had screwed up badly. “Ah’m really sorry about that Twilight. Ah jus’ don’t know what Ah was thinkin’…” “You were thinking about the sky above your farm,” Twilight said, deadpan. “Well, yeah, I just meant…” “Relax, AJ. I suppose I should have been more careful with such sensitive equipment. Speaking of which…” Twilight reached over to Applejack and removed the helmet from her head. “It wouldn’t do to have any more accidents.” Applejack just kept looking at the ground. Once Twilight was out of earshot, Rainbow looked down at Applejack, smiling smugly. “I guess we can add ‘sciencing’ and ‘flying’ to the list of ‘things AJ can’t do’.” “Oh, come off it, RD! Like you’ve never messed anything up!” Rainbow Dash tapped a hoof against her chin, apparently deep in thought; she raised her head, smiling proudly. “Nope!” “Why you…!” Applejack stammered “He he. Gotta fly!” And with that, Rainbow took off into the sky. Applejack growled. “Alright, alright, don’t let ‘er get to ya. It’s early days, yet,” she muttered, trotting back into town. By this time, the town square had transformed into a bustling (for a small town) marketplace; Applejack found herself bumping into ponies left and right. She could have sworn she saw Big Mac and Applebloom waving at her from their usual stall, but by the time she had managed to find some space amidst the crowds she had lost sight of them. ‘Ah’m not gettin’ anywhere like this,’ she thought to herself. ‘I gotta get outta here.’ Seeing a break in the crowd, she darted off into side alley, not really caring where it led. As she stepped out into the sunlight, she recognised the pink and blue monument that was Carousel Boutique. “I bet Rarity’s got plenty of work to get done; there must be somethin’ Ah can help with.” Applejack hesitated as she approached Rarity’s store; as much as she wanted to find a new talent, this was a little far outside her comfort zone. “Doggonit, nothin’ ventured, nothin’ gained.” Taking a deep breath, she pushed the door and trotted inside. “Welcome to Carousel Boutique, where everything is…oh! Applejack, darling, how wonderful to see you today,” a voice called with a familiar British accent. A white unicorn with a deep purple curly mane and tail trotted down the stairs, sheets of fabric and thread held aloft with her magic. “Howdy, Rarity. I was jus’ wondering…” Applejack paused in a moment of uncertainty, but ploughed on ahead. “I was jus’ wondering if ya’ll needed any help around here?” she asked, a nervous smile across her face. “Oh! Well, as it so happens, I just finished some new orders for a new client who…” Rarity stepped carefully around Applejack, looking her up and down as she did so. “Yes, I would say they’re about your size, and I just need to make a few last minute adjustments to the ensemble. I don’t suppose I could maybe convince you to model for me?” Applejack struggled to keep her face from falling. “Sure, Rarity. I’d love to.” “OW!” “Sorry about that, dear. Just a little more…” ‘A little more’ sounded like a little too much to Applejack after an hour standing around, but she held her tongue. She had agreed to help out, and she was going to see it through if it killed her. “And…done!” “Oh, thank Celestia!” Applejack tossed off the dress as fast as she could, happy to finally be able to stretch. “Oh, come now, Applejack, you looked gorgeous! You should really consider wearing formal attire more often.” “Ah heh heh,” Applejack laughed nervously. “I’ll take that into consideration. But Ah don’t suppose you would have anything more…hands on I could help ya out with?” “Well… I suppose I do have some old works that need a little patching up… but are you sure you can really handle something like that? You’ve never really struck as being particularly…” “Particularly what?” Applejack asked with a hard look in her eye. “Oh, well, just, you know…um, I think they’re just upstairs, actually, if you wanted to give it a go, aheh heh.” This time it was Rarity’s turn to have an uneasy smile on her face. She led Applejack up to her private study, with absolute confidence that there was no way that this could all go terribly wrong. “AAAAARRGGGHH!” “Come on now, Applejack darling, just hold still and I’ll be able to get this out in a...oof!” Rarity let out a gasp of pain as Applejack accidently head butted her in the muzzle. “Be CAREFUL. Honestly, how exactly did you even manage to stitch a dress to your mane in five places?” “Jus’ help me get it out of…AARRGGHH!” “Got it! There, see now, that wasn’t so bad, was it? Although the state of your mane is rather distressing…” Applejack got up off the floor, shaking her hair loose and collecting her hat from the bench. “It’ll be fine, Rares. Ah’m real sorry about all the trouble Ah caused ya.” “Oh, please, darling. It hasn’t been…” Rarity hesitated. “It hasn’t been that much trouble. And you really did help me out a lot.” Applejack bowed her head, sadly. “Well, thank ya kindly for sayin’ that, but I think Ah’m gonna look to see who needs help elsewhere.” The door to Carousel Boutique opened, and the orange farm pony trotted out, eyeing the midday sun. “Gosh, it’s gettin’ later than Ah thought. Maybe Ah should just head home…” A sudden rainbow blur in the sky caught her eye, and her eyes glinted at the reminder of the source of her quest. “Doggonit, no! Ah promised mahself Ah would do this, and by Luna nothin’ is goin’ ta stop me!” A loud growling suddenly interrupted her thoughts. “Ah, heh heh…Ah guess it wouldn’t hurt ta stop fer lunch, though.”
Chapter 3“Ok, ok, somepony in this town must need help with somethin’,” Applejack muttered. Applejack’s search since leaving Rarity’s had been less than fruitful. Nearly everypony was taking the hour off for lunch, which didn’t leave much work that needed immediate attention. “Well…I suppose it couldn’t hurt ta take a lil’ break…” Applejack started munching on her apples, sighing as she lay down against the wall of the nearest building. Her eyelids drooped in the afternoon sun; it was so peaceful here… Applejack was about to fall asleep when she felt something start to shake her. When she looked down, she saw a familiar white bunny impatiently poking her chest. “Well, howdy there, Angel,” Applejack said. “What can I do fer ya?” Angel glared at her, stamping his foot and pointing off into the distance. Applejack cocked her head in confusion. “Fluttershy’s fallen down a well in the Everfree? Ah didn’t even think we had wells in there…” Angel slapped his forehead in frustration. He began jumping and running in small circles on the ground, sending dust flying as he did so. “Oh!” Applejack exclaimed. “She’s havin’ problems with her critters? Well, why didn’t ya jus’ say so?” Angel’s paw grew ever more intimate with his skull as he turned and hopped down the road, Applejack following close behind. “Oh, oh please stop,” the yellow pegasus stuttered. “Ow!” she cried as a small scarlet tanner tugged at her pale pink mane. “Howdy there, Fluttershy!” a cheery voice called. “Heard ya needed a hoof with things from Angel over here!” The orange farm pony nodded her head towards the scowling bunny hopping alongside her. “Oh, thank you Applejack. And thank you, too, Angel,” she added as the white bunny glared at her, thumping his foot on the dirt path. “So, um, if you could just…OW!...just help me round up these birds back into their roosts, before they…OW!...before they hurt themselves.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Ya sure it’s them ya need ta worry about?” “Oh, they don’t mean to hurt anypony, they’re just…OW!...nervous.” “Well, okay, if you say so…” “So, um, just take a little of their seed, and drop it in their nests- leave a little trail if you can- and then just… OWOWOWOWOW!...just nudge them over carefully,” she said, a slight squeal punctuating the end of her sentence. “Alright; I can do that…” Applejack said. ‘This is it, AJ. You’ve got this. There’s no way this can go wrong!’ “Sweet Celestia, how could this go so WRONG?!!” It was only partially a rhetorical question; no one had quite figured out just how an attempt at coaxing birds into their nests less than two metres away had led to the roost collapsing, the birds escaping and subsequently causing havoc all over town. Newspapers the next day would report that the only two eyewitnesses to the event were a yellow pegasus and an orange earth pony, who both claimed that the event was ‘a total blur’. “Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear…” Fluttershy mewled as she tried to keep up with the determined cowpony. “This is no time to panic, ‘shy! We’ve gotta catch them critters!” The two ponies rushed off into town, following the trail of easily horrified ponies. “The horror! THE HOOORRRRRRRROORRRR!!” cried Ponyville’s most neurotic earth pony, Lily. “Eeyup, that’ll be it,” Applejack said dryly. “Should be one o’ them right around…there!” She pointed her hoof towards the large, gingerbread house shaped sweet shop, Sugarcube Corner. Sure enough, a brightly plumed bird was aggressively pecking at the ‘icing’ of the store. The two ponies snuck up to the building, trying not to disturb the creature. Fluttershy flew up towards the bird as Applejack pulled back to keep an eye on them in case Fluttershy needed any help. “Hey there, little birdy,” Fluttershy near whispered to the animal. It turned towards her, looking grumpy at having been interrupted. “Um, I know you’re a bit busy right now, but would it be okay if you came back down to the house?” The creature continued to hover for a moment, its head twitching between the smiling pegasus and its prey. It began to hover over towards Fluttershy, and her encouraging smile grew slightly wider in response. Suddenly, and seemingly unprovoked, the bird snapped its beak angrily and dived sharply towards the ground, pulling up at the last second and soaring over the town square. “Wait!” Fluttershy cried out as she made to give chase. “Ah got it!” Applejack yelled out over her shoulder as she dashed away from the building, keeping the bird in her sight. “Hey!” She whistled sharply, catching its attention. “Down here, lil’ critter!” The bird glared at the irritant and plunged after it in an attempt to scare it off. Applejack kept running, keeping herself aligned with the creature’s flight path, waiting for it to be in reach. “…and…GOTCHA!” Applejack leapt into the air, lifting the Stetson from her head and bringing it down over the squawking bird. She slammed the hat to the ground, trapping the struggling creature. “HaHA!” “Oh, please be careful not to hurt her, Applejack,” Fluttershy cried out. “Don’t worry, its fine. You wanna do yer thing?” Applejack replied as she pulled out her spare hat, feeling the satisfying weight of it against her mane. “Um, alright.” Fluttershy stepped towards Applejack’s hat lying on the ground as Applejack stepped back to give her some room. She knelt down next to the bird’s temporary home and began to whisper. “Excuse me, miss? I was just wondering if, just maybe, you’d be able to come back home with us?” ‘Chirp, chirp chirp chirp, chirp!’ “Oh, come on now, it’s not so bad, is it?” ‘Chirpchirp, chichirp chirp; chirp chirp chirp.” “Well, yes, okay. But we can fix that if we have to, okay? Applejack started to zone out as she stared at the two conversing (or at least, that’s what she assumed they were doing), until she noticed a yellow hoof waving in front of her eyes. “Um, Applejack? She says she’s okay to go back now.” The two ponies made their way back to Fluttershy’s house, the haughty bird glaring at Applejack while perched in Fluttershy’s hair. “Okay, little birdy, you stay here until I get back, alright?” Fluttershy nudged the door open and moved her head to push the bird partway through the doorframe, whereupon it leapt from her hair and perched itself on the nearby table. Applejack grinned as Fluttershy gently closed the door. “Whelp, that’s one down.” She paused for a moment. “Just how many of them there critters got loose, anyway?” “Well…” the pegasus said, tilting her head to the side, “I think there were about…fourteen? Maybe?” “FOURTEEN!?” Applejack yelped, her eye twitching. “Um…more or less,” Fluttershy said, recoiling into her bangs at the Applejack hung her head low, and sighed. “…Well. Let’s get to it, then.” Luna’s moon had already begun to rise by the time the last of the birds were herded back to Fluttershy’s home. “Thanks for all your help today, Applejack. I don’t think I ever would have been able to find them all myself.” Fluttershy smiled at the cowpony. “Well, ya probably wouldn’ve need my help if Ah hadn’t messed up for ya to start with.” Fluttershy frowned. “Oh, Applejack, that wasn’t your fault. That could have happened to anypony. Applejack sighed as she looked down at the ground near her hooves. “It’s nice of you to say so, ‘shy.” “Applejack…” “Ah’d best be headin’ off now, alright? Maybe I’ll…Maybe I’ll see ya tomorrow.” Applejack turned and starting walking to her farm, barely even looking where she was going. Applejack trudged down the road, her eyes low, barely aware of the presence above her shoulder. “So where ya going, now, AJ?” called down a smug voice. “Hey, Rainbow,” Applejack replied, still not taking her eyes off the ground. “Saw you running all over town with Fluttershy today. Wanna tell me what that was all about?” “...Just cleaning up a mess.” Rainbow raised an eyebrow at Applejack’s response. “Hey, what’s up, Applejack? You feelin’ a little out of it?” “Ah’m fine, Rainbow,” Applejack said, her voice empty of feeling. Rainbow dropped to the ground and started walking by Applejack’s side. “Hey, come on, Applejack? What’s up?” Rainbow moved in front of Applejack, blocking her movement. She placed her hoof on Applejack’s muzzle and gently lifted her head, making sure that they made eye contact. “C’mon, AJ, spit it out. What’s going on with you today?” Applejack tried to look away, but Rainbow gently forced her chin up with her hoof. “Applejack,” she said firmly. “What. Happened?” A breath of air escaped Applejack’s lips. “It’s nothing, Rainbow. You knew it all along, and I should’a listened.” “What are you talking about?” Rainbow asked confused. Applejack continued in her previous monotone. “Yesterday? Field? Apples?” Her eyes stared dead ahead and unfocused as she continued plodding, leaving Rainbow to try and figure it out. “Wait, this isn’t about the whole ‘one trick pony’ thing, is it? Is that it?” Applejack stopped, turning her head back towards the pegasus, still not making eye contact. “Rainbow…” Rainbow flew over to Applejack before she could run off. “That’s it?! AJ, I wasn’t being serious,” she said with a concerned look. “I was just kiddi…” “It’s fine, Rainbow,” Applejack replied, still walking forward at the same, slow pace, refusing to look up. “You were right.” “AJ, wait…” “Please Rainbow, Ah…” Applejack stopped and sighed, turning back one last time. “Ah just wanna be alone right now.” “AJ…” The orange pony barely heard Rainbow’s last plea, walking off into the darkness of the night, her head hung low to the muddy ground. Author's Note WOO! Finally got this up after...what, a year? Well, between edits, rewrites, and whatnot, this chapter is finally...okay-ish. Yeah, still don't like the Fluttershy bit, but f**k it, it's up. You will be forgiven for believing that I have been feasting on Taeshi's soul energy for the purposes of this chapter Only one chapter and an epilogue to go.
