A Forbidden Doorway

Reagan knew he could go wherever he wanted, and do whatever he wanted. So many options were open to him, and he was a little overwhelmed with just how many there were. But then, in that intelligent Lawyer mind of his, he cut through the wall of options, narrowing it down to only about three. The other options could wait. He decided to go with the most relevant one first: going back to Berry's for a little while. He began to walk back in the direction they had all come from, clearing his throat as he did. He wasn't heading to Berry's to get drunk again, but instead to try and help her. They had both together drank at least a fourth of her stocks, and she'd have to come up with the money to replace them somehow. That's where he came in.

He hummed a tune to himself, whistling a few parts of it every now and then. It was one of his favourite Reel Big Fish songs. Him and Jack listened to them together every now and then, when they just wanted music they could jam to while playing games or doing things on their laptops together. He chuckled as he remembered those times, having been spent in the lower level of his Dad's house back in the day. After a while, he found himself walking through the part of Ponyville where Berry's bar lay. He saw a few ponies here and there, looking as though they were starting preparations for that night. He nodded at the thought, having seen just how bustling the part of town he was in became at night.

It wasn't long before he found himself pushing open the door to Berry's Bar, which he had heard her tell him was named the Rat Trap, she'd just been having trouble getting a new sign made since the old one had fallen off. He breathed in the familiar smell of alcohol, especially familiar because it was Berry's alcohol. Her stuff smelled different to him than any of the stuff he had back on Earth, and he figured it was due to the magic that Equestria as a land beheld. Magic ingredients made for better drinks, he guessed. He waved hello to Peachtini, the barmaid, as he walked over to her. “Heya Peachtini. Is Berry in the back again?”

The orange and yellow mare shook her head only once, knowing that Reagan would get the message well. He would have been able to read it on her face even if she didn't nod or speak. She looked back at the door to the back room for a second before she did speak. “Yeah... She's crashing pretty hard. She went back there after you and your friends left earlier, saying that she wanted to train herself. I gotta say, I really respect you. Beating Berry in a drinking match is something that not even the toughest stallions in Ponyville can do.” She looked him over for a second, recoiling slightly. “I'm almost afraid of your skill, you know. Where do you learn to drink like that? Is drinking a national sport where you come from?”

Reagan chuckled lightly at her words, surprised that she would have such a reaction to the amount of expertise he beheld in imbibing alcoholic drinks. “Heh, I tried to make it one, believe me. The closest thing is an event that is held annually, in... a different part of our country than the one me and my friends lived in.” He smirked as he thought of the event in question, before he shook his head. “Anyways, you got any blankets or anything around here? I think I'll let Berry rest, and I'll take over for her while she's out of it. And before you ask, yes, I am a certified Mixologist, been one ever since my graduation from the School of Mixology in the town me and my friends used to live in a year ago. You could say that I was preparing for my future alcoholic endeavours.” He chuckled to himself.

Peachtini shrugged as he told her of his graduation from the School of Mixology, taking the information in nonchalantly, almost as if she expected him to say something along those lines. “Alrighty then... Oh, instead of just grabbing her some blankets...” She merely gestured with her head towards a trapdoor on the ceiling near the bar table. “That's where Berry's room is, I've had to carry her up there quite a few times during the time I've been working here, and I've only been here a month. You shouldn't have too much trouble though, seeing as how you have... Hands, I think I heard Lyra call them. That pony knows a strange amount about you Humans... Back on topic, the key to the door is in the cash register, oh, and you might want to watch out for falling bottles when you open that thing. Rookie mistakes hurt real bad.” She shuddered, grimacing lightly, before going back to work.

Reagan did as he said he would do, and what Peachtini suggested. He hopped and slid over the bar table and grabbed the keys first, putting them in his pocket. He then walked over to the backroom door, opening it slowly. With light footsteps like the ones he always did at work and in court, he made his way over to Berry, who was, once again, asleep. He then carefully and gently picked the slumbering mare up, as though she were a princess, and slowly made his way out of the backroom with her. He sat her cautiously at the bar table, before he unlocked the trapdoor on the ceiling. Bottles did indeed fall out, but Reagan was able to catch most of them and set them down softly before they hit the floor, making Peachtini gasp in awe.

He swiftly but softly picked up Berry again, and slowly climbed up the ladder, taking extra care in being sure that Berry was comfortable. He relaxed with her in his arms as he reached her room, built into the alcove that the roof seemed to have underneath it, bottles in different places of her room. He took a deep breath, and began to put Berry in her bed, again carrying her slowly, and set her down softly on her bed, covering her up. He gave her a kiss on the cheek, and grabbed a full bottle of a light ale he found under her bed up to her mouth, which she started to sip from every then and again as she slept, holding it like a teddy bear. Reagan smiled at how cute she looked in a drunkard kind of way, petting her gently on the head.

He descended the ladder as quietly as he could, being just as careful with closing and locking up the trap door. He turned around to Peachtini, striking a determined expression on his face and through his bodily position. “Let's sell some drinks!” The barmaid stood there silently for a moment, but then chuckled at just how enthusiastic he was, nodding to him. Reagan then ran over to the small radio the bar table had, fiddling around with it until he found an Equestrian Radio Station that played what sounded like Classic Rock, until he found it, through hearing a few lyrical lines that he knew oh so well, and sang along to.

“It was the heat of the moment,
telling me what your heart meant.
Heat of the moment shone in your eyes.”

~AAA~

~When day has turned to dusk...~

“Come on in, the drinks are cold and the sugar cubes are plenty!”

The sentence was kindly yelled forth from Reagan's lips whenever a new customer trotted in the door. Things were seeming to go pretty great ever since the first time he said it. His voice attracted crowds, their attention turning to him and the bar. It was the voice of a true bartender. And the music: what he called the Equestrian versions of AC/DC and Led Zeppelin; helped just as well. Peachtini trotted up to him and fist/hoof bumped him shortly after their sixteenth customer came in. “You're just as good as Berry when she's sober!” She seemed much more excited than she had been when he first awoke in the bar, and he was glad to see his positive attitude was spreading to others. She spoke again after fixing her mane a little. “Keep this up, and we might just sell twice what you and her drank!” She grinned as she turned around to get back to work.

Reagan had to admit, he was having a pretty good time himself. He was helping Berry out and having fun while he was at it. Everything was going swimmingly. He began to sing along a little to the radio, something Jack would have called him out on. He chuckled as he thought of it. It was about an hour or so later when something different and interesting happened. Of all the ponies that were coming through the door to the Rat Trap, the last thing he expected was one of the mane six. Applejack strutted into the bar on her hooves, arching her eyebrows a little peevishly from fatigue as she slowly made her way towards one of the corner tables, one nopony else had sat at the entire time before, as if they knew it was hers.

She leaned back in her chair, putting her aching hind hooves on the table. It was obvious she had showered before coming however, for those back hooves of hers were not very dirty at all. Reagan was not only surprised greatly at her appearance, but the way she acted, as well. He laughed a little to himself, shocked that he was meeting AJ sooner than he'd planned to, but shrugged his shoulders, not particularly minding at all. He walked around the bar table, and patted Peachtini on the back. “I've got the gamboge one in the corner, wearing the hat.” Peachtini looked rather surprised when he said that, but raised her brows and nodded, curious to see how he'd approach the farm pony. Reagan smiled at the interest he could see upon the barmaid's face, and then, with a deep breath, he continued on his way towards AJ.

The temporary bartender cleared his throat as he stopped before Applejack, looking at her with a smile. The farm pony smirked lightly, in a way she thought unnoticeable, but Reagan was just barely able to catch it. That was when she spoke, her voice as flush and creamy as he always thought it would sound in person, but flavoured with that southern accent it beheld. “Whiskey, Caramel flavoured, and if you could shake it instead of stirring it, I'd appreciate it much.” He had to admit that the way she pronounced her 'I's and 'you's in her southern way always made him feel a little light inside. Her order made him raise a brow in interest. Shaken not stirred... Heh, Jacob and Jack will flip when I tell them about this.

He nodded to her, quickly heading back to the bar and pouring up a glass for her, adding just a bit more, such as dropping a couple sugar cubes in the mixer, and sprinkling a little cinnamon upon it as well. He shook it well, making sure the ingredients flourished in the way he wanted them to whilst also making sure it was shaken good enough for Applejack's tastes. It felt a little quiet in the bar whilst he made AJ's order in his own special way, the music more audible than the hushed voices of the drinking ponies that sat about the place. He gathered that Applejack was sort of a big deal in the bar from the way everypony was watching him. It didn't bother him much. He was a lawyer, he was used to being paid attention to.

Reagan made his way back over to Applejack with the large mug he'd made for her, wanting to give her a good amount. The farm pony looked up at him then, showing him her sap green eyes, which then darted towards the mug he'd prepared for her. It looked damn good to her, especially because she had been hard at work the whole day. She took her hooves off the table and watched him set it down, raising a brow at the human, and then smiled kindly. She grabbed the mug with a hoof, and took a considerable swig from it. Her expression changed from the smug one it had been before, to one of true surprise. “Well I'll be, this is just fantastic!” Every other pony in the bar, including Peachtini cheered and clapped for a moment, before shortly returning to the volume they had been at before, the tension that the bar beheld before then completely gone.

The human took a seat at Applejack's table, nodding to Peachtini to take over bar tending duties for a bit, having taught her a thing or two about how to handle the drinks in better ways. He looked back at the farm pony, who was leaning against the table a little, the mug in both her hooves. He smiled. “Name's Reagan, if you haven't been informed by now. I'm taking over for a little while during Berry's resting time. I kinda beat her at a drinking contest, so I figured I'd help her out to make it up to her for basically knocking her out. You're Applejack, right? I've heard some stories about you, you seem to hold a great amount of renown around here.” He grinned as he finished his sentence, beaming at her in a way.

Applejack hummed in interest at the lawyer. She could size him up easily by looking at him. It came with being the Element of Honesty, she was able to tell when someone was lying, and when they weren't, as well as the way they held themselves, and other bodily motions that told her different things about him. She could tell he liked having his beard from how well cared for it was, and that he was no stranger to being clean cut, his beard line evidence of that. She could already tell she was going to like him. She had listened carefully to his words, finding that they were smooth and flowing, like the kind that came from a man who organized his thoughts well, and spoke quickly about important subjects and enquiries.

“So let me get this straight. You beat Berry at a drinking contest, temporarily became a bartender in Berry's time of weakness, and introduce yourself to me fearlessly, impressing me with a drink and kind, polite, charming words. All of which being honest ones? Well shoot, I'd say you're definitely out for my respect.” She laughed, and drank some of her whiskey once again. “Well, you've earned it.” He held out a hoof, and smiled as he shook it firmly. “My name is Applejack yeah, but my friends: that includes you now; call me AJ. It's nice to meet you.” Her eyes looked into his, and the human looked back into hers unabashedly, still kindly smiling, but the farm pony blushed after a moment or two, just barely however.

Reagan nodded to her, relaxing in his chair, but with a straight back, remaining formal and polite for her. “It's nice to meet you as well, AJ. And please, do not take my charm in any negative light, I assure you I have no nefarious intentions. I am a lawyer, following the law is part of who I am. I merely wanted to make sure I made a good first impression.” He looked around at the other ponies in the bar then. “I've definitely made up what I had to for Berry, and much more, which I am glad about. Whatever extra bits I can make for Berry are damn good things.” He nodded to himself, swallowing hard as he looked at the table. “Sorry if the curse I uttered was inappropriate to you, AJ.” He quickly spoke the words as he looked back to her.

“Reagan, I've said worse things before, don't worry. Just gotta be careful where you say them. In a bar like the one we're in, cursing is as normal as going for a trot through the orchard in the middle of a warm summer afternoon.” AJ chuckled, thinking of the way that Rarity was when they came to the Rat Trap together before. The marshmallow unicorn flinched ever so slightly at the rudest curses she heard, the normal ones making her act a little nervous. Applejack smiled kindly at Reagan then thinking about him for a moment. Hm, he said he's a lawyer... Granny Smith said a lawyer would be good to have on our side with the small land conflict we are having with Golden Harvest... But I should make sure he's not ruthless, Golden Harvest is a good friend...

Reagan took her silence as she thought about him as a passing over to him, and spoke again. “You know, back where I come from, I used to have to get my best friend Shay out of trouble. He's not a bad guy, he just sometimes acts pretty strange and loopy. Being a Lawyer came in handy quite a few times when I was helping Shay out, because I could prove his innocence flawlessly.” He grinned for a bit as the memories came back to him. “I also used it to help me solve arguments between the guys. I think that's the reason those knuckleheads think I'm like a dad to them, heh.” He rubbed his eyes, groaning lightly. “It is my fault, damn it.” He laughed then, finding the circumstance funny in a way. “Ugh, those three idjits must think they got me good.”

Applejack smirked at first, but slowly began to chuckle and laugh at Reagan's complaining about being like a dad, it reminded her of how her brother sometimes complains about the exact same thing. “You just made me trust you even more, you... Human, I think Twilight called you? Either way, I've got a job for you if you want it.” She cleared her throat, and leaned in closer, Reagan doing the same, and she spoke once again, a little quietly. “Granny Smith and Golden Harvest are arguing about a patch of land, and for the life of me I have not been able to figure out how to get them to calm down about it and just share. Granny Smith is set in her ways, and Golden Harvest is just doing as she was taught to deal with such things.” She held out a hoof then. “If you help me out with this, you can consider yourself always welcome at the farmhouse.”

The lawyer didn't have to think twice before he shook her hoof.

~AAA~

Reagan arrived at the farmhouse shortly after the Apples had finished having breakfast, looking as alive as ever, not seeming groggy at all. It surprised Applejack to see him in such a state. Usually even Twilight yawned when she visited as early as Applejack woke up. She nodded with a grin at his enthusiasm, but then swallowed hard, taking a deep breath. “Alright, I sure hope you're ready. Granny Smith and Golden Harvest are meeting again in thirty minutes. That should give you enough time to talk to both of them about it and go over whatever they tell you, right?” She hoped he would say yes to her. She wanted to be absolutely sure she picked the right human for the job.

“Oh, definitely enough time. I'll meet with you again after I talk to them, and then we'll both attend their meeting.” He smiled at her and nodded. “Don't worry Applejack, I'll figure out a happy resolution to this situation, you have my word.” He gave her a thumbs up before slowly beginning to walk away, towards Granny Smith first. It took him a little bit, as he forgot that the size of Sweet Apple Acres was much larger in person. But he did not waste too much time away. He walked up slowly and carefully to Granny Smith after he had found her. “Good morning, Miss Smith. I am a Lawyer under Applejack's employ, I'm here to help you out.” He nodded to her respectfully. “I assure you, you'll get your land.”

Granny Smith hummed as she looked him over before she spoke. “You'll do.” She then looked out towards the patch of land. “And it's not completely my land. Half of it belongs to Golden Harvest. The young farm mare wants it all to herself, however. That's my side of it. I just want this to be over already. If there's anyone you're going to try to persuade, it's the carrot farm girl.” She looked back at him. “You're a handsome one, whatever you are, I'll bet you can get through to her. And do not take that as a compliment, I'm happily single.” She laughed then, finished with her joking. “Maybe if you can talk Golden Harvest into sharing that land, I'll let you try to flirt with my grand-daughter.” She laughed again, coughing a couple times lightly.

Reagan was quite baffled at just how Granny Smith answered. Blown away, he'd called it. He was not expecting Granny Smith to be the one that wanted both sides to have a fair share of the land. He went over all the information she told him in a sketchbook he carried around with him, and blushed lightly and laughed with her when he was able to tell she was joking. He wondered if some of it was true. He nodded respectfully to her once again. “Well, that would be an honour.” He gave her a kind smile before bowing slightly. “If you'll excuse me, I'm going to go talk to Golden Harvest and... persuade her, like you said, heh.” He laughed nervously as he walked away, turning to Golden Harvest's land, making a comment upon reaching it.

“Bugs Bunny would love it here.”

It once again took him a little while, especially because he knew near nothing about Golden Harvest's farm, but he didn't get too lost. He eventually found the farmgirl shooing away a couple of rabbits. He walked up to her, chuckling. “You ever think that maybe they just like being chased?” He held up his hands a little defensively as she looked at him a little angrily. “Just kidding!” He relaxed and smiled at her. “Name's Reagan, I'm the lawyer hired to oversee this situation.” He cleared his throat, and gave her a look of interest. “Now I apologize in advance for being a little forward, but why do you not want to share the patch of land evenly?” He opened to a blank page in his sketchbook.

Golden Harvest took a few deep breaths, calming herself down. She sighed. “To be honest, I'm not so sure. It's just, my dad left me the farm, and I don't know if he'd be okay with me sharing it evenly.” She looked down shyly. “I want to make sure I don't do anything he'd disapprove of. In his will, he said I had all of this land to continue on the family duty. I just wonder if he would be okay with me sharing it.” She looked back up at him. “That's all I can say, really. I could show you dad's will, if you want?” She shrugged, still unsure. As Reagan nodded silently and finished writing out his notes, she looked up to the sky momentarily, and spoke under her breath. “I swear, I hope that sneaky pegasus doesn't try to steal from my refrigerator again...”

Reagan cleared his throat to let her know he was finished, and took a deep breath. “Okay, I'd like to see your Dad's will.” The carrot farmer nodded to him, and leaded him over to her farm house. He waited outside whilst she went in and grabbed the will. When she came back out with it, he held it carefully and inspected it thoroughly. “Ah, but you must have not read what comes after that, the smaller piece below it. 'And make sure that the Apples get a fair share as well, Goldie, they are good ponies.'” He looked back over to her, to see shock on her face, and chuckled, right before throwing his last words in. “So, Goldie, huh? That's a pretty cute name, fits you perfectly.” The look on Golden Harvest's face was priceless at that moment. “Don't worry, I give you my solemn vow that I will never speak of it to anypony.” He held his hand in front of his heart as he gave her his promise, and the carrot farmer grumbled.

“Just go back and tell Granny that she gets half of the land, y-you dumb flatterer.”

Reagan left shortly after those words were spoken, mostly because of Golden Harvest pushing him out of the door. He chuckled to himself as he headed back to the Apple farmhouse. I think I did that a bit too well. Oh god, don't let me become a love guru or something... I'd never hear the end of it from Jack, maybe even Jacob. And Shay would ask me to smoke Green Goblin with him more often.

Knowing my luck, that's probably what's going to happen...

~AAA~

Reagan took another decent bite out of his apple pie, loving how it tasted. “I have to say, this tastes amazing! Not joking, this is the best apple pie I've ever had!” The three ponies at the table all laughed at the same time. Big Mac patted the human lightly on the back. He'd been a little cautious around him at first, but as Reagan talked to him and told him things, he'd come to like him, and even think of him as a friend. Apple Bloom, who was sitting next to Applejack, had curiously asked him about being a lawyer earlier that morning after returning, and he told her a few stories of cases he had done. She had found them rather fantastic, and had begun to respect him a lot, saying that he is like Applejack in a way, something that made him chuckle.

Big Mac smiled at Reagan. “You know, at first I wasn't sure why my sister spoke so highly of you, but I can definitely see now just why she thinks of you as a friend. Shoot, if you were a pony, I think you'd definitely be a member of the Apple family.” He raised a mug of cider up a little before drinking some of it. “You're a friend to me.” Reagan smiled back at those words, glad to hear Big Mac's approval of him. After that moment was shared, they finished up their dinner whilst Reagan told them a few of his larger case stories, and Reagan was offered the guestroom to sleep in. He felt really welcome, and that was something that he found awesome. He thought back upon it all as he sat outside, looking up at Luna's moon as night had arrived, and he checked off a few goals he had set in his mind. He took a swig from a bottle of hard cider Big Mac had given him after Apple Bloom went to bed, and turned his head as he swallowed, hearing the front door open. Applejack stood there, stetson off.

The gamboge pony trotted over to him. “I was wondering where you were. I had something to give to you.” She leaned over and nuzzled him on the arm, blushing a little as she backed up. “Thank you for everything, Reagan, really. I'm glad that I picked you for the job. You solved the problem quicker than I thought you would, and Golden Harvest is still a good friend of mine. She gets a little nervous when I mention you though.” She chuckled. “You must have followed Granny's advice too well. Don't feel bad, I used to do it all the time.” She smiled at him with a kind laugh, and nuzzled his arm once again. She blushed once again, obviously not used to nuzzling guys, and turned back around. “Well, I'm off to bed now, see you in the morning.” She trotted back inside the farmhouse a little quickly. Reagan simply sat there on the bench in light shock and dreaminess.

She wanted to give me a nuzzle, and gave me two... That was so cute!