Seeds of Redemption

Chapters

Prologue - Finding the Lost Rainbow
Chapter 1- Raining Cats and Cowgirls
Chapter 2 - How Awkward Can This Get?
Chapter 3 - She's My Cousin, I Swear!
Chapter 4 - I Did Not See That Coming...
Chapter 5 - Discoveries Made At The Food Court
Chapter 6- Shots Fired
Chapter 7 - Fears and Plane Trips
Chapter 8 - The Calm Before the Storm
In The End, There Were Tears
(Optional) Epilogue- Still Here

Prologue - Finding the Lost Rainbow

Twilight paced around her library, lost in thought and filled with fear and worry. It had been a few days since she misfired the spell that caused Rainbow Dash to vanish from Equestria. Everyone was beyond distraught. It seemed that when word got out that Rainbow had disappeared, chaos erupted from Ponyville to Cloudsdale. The news even impacted the citizens of Canterlot in an unforeseen way. It got so out of hand ponies started to fear Discord's escape from his stone prison. But if it wasn't for the Princesses combining their power to cast a mass calming spell, that may have been the case.

As Twilight continued to pace feverishly, Spike walked into their home, a look of fatigue sketched upon his face. In his claw was a scroll bearing the seal of Canterlot. He approached the distressed mare and cleared his throat to draw her attention.

"Twilight," Spike started."I just got a letter from Princess Celestia."

"And what did she say?" Asked the lavender unicorn, her features darkening at the thought of what the letter might say.

"The Princess wrote that after countless hours of working with her best unicorn scholars, they finally found out where Rainbow Dash is!"

"That's great Spike! Where is she? Did she say?" Twilight exclaimed, her mood lifting upon hearing the news.

However, now it was the little dragon's turn to display signs of sorrow.

"She said that they found out that Rainbow was sent to another universe."

Twilight's excitement now vanished as fast as Rainbow had that terrible day.

"Another universe? How is that possible? Do other universes even exist?"

"I don't know. The last thing that she wrote was that she will be coming to Ponyville to speak with you and the rest orf the gang."

"Princess Celestia Is coming HERE!" Twilight shrieked, officially entering full panic mode."Quick Spike. Go get the girls and bring them back here.I need to clean up before the Princess arrives!

For the next half hour Twilight rushed around the library, frantically cleaning while Spike set out to gather the remaining Elements of Harmony.

*The following is what Spike went through to round up the mares.*

The first pony Spike went to get was Fluttershy. He figured she would be at her cottage, tending to her animal friends. When he arrived however, Spike was greeted by something very unexpected. Fluttershy was indeed at home, but that wasn't the unexpected part. What was unexpected was that Fluttershy was locked in a starring contest with a Cockatrice. And she was winning, thanks to "The Stare". It seemed that the Cockatrice had petrified a few of the animals, as well as Angel Bunny.Eventually, the Cockatrice submitted, and released all the animals from their stone prisons. After a quick lecture from Fluttershy, It turned tail feather and disappeared into the near by entrance to the Everfree Forest. Spike then took this opportunity to relay his message to once again timid pegasus. Once he had finish telling Fluttershy to head over to Twilight's, head headed for the next mare, and the love of his life, Rarity.

Rarity was also where she was expected, at Carousel Boutique. Spike entered the fashionista's shop and was immediately assaulted by a terrified Sweetie Bell. It seemed Rarity had been using her sister to model her newest oufits and designs. Spike promised Sweetie he would get Rarity to stop for a while, since Twilight needed her at the library. So because of how urgent Spike needed to speak to her sister, Sweetie lead the baby dragon to where his heart throb was working. As soon as they opened the door, the two were swept up and immediately bombarded with fabrics and feathers and gems. It took several minutes for Spike to get the alabaster unicorn to stop and listen to him. Having recieved the message from Spike, Rarity apologized and headed off to the library.

Next on the list was Pinkie. Now she was throwing a huge party for Lyra and Bonbon, who had just announced their engagement a few days prior to Rainbow vanishing. Everypony was there. Cloudchaser and Flitter were talking by the snacks. Berry Punch was in the corner, wasted and shit faced as usual. Derpy was even invited. Vinyl Scratch was hired to DJ the party, and Octavia sat close by, watching the wub loving unicorn lustfully. Pinkie wasn't really all that hard to track down, all Spike had to do was follow the insane amount of laughter till he found Pinkie playing a game of pin the tail on the pony with Wildfire. But as Spike approached the party pony, She stiffened up, bounced in place a few times, and disappeared into thin air. After walking around the party a few times, Spike was eventually approached by Time Turner, who informed him that Pinkie had already left for Twilight's library. And then he started to ramble on about Darleks and Cybermen and somepony named Rose Tyler. Spike just walked away, returning his focus to finding the last mare on his list- Applejack.

The Element of Honesty was the easiest to locate and talk to. It just so happened that she was taking a nap after bucking trees for the majority of the day. Spike simply walked up th the sleeping cow mare and gently shook her awake. After hearing Spike's message, AJ told Spike to hop on her back, and together, they raced off back to Ponyville to join the others.

By the time they reached the library, Princess Celetia had already arrived and was waiting for the to join the group. Now with Applejack present, the Sun Goddess began the meeting.

"Now, you are all probably wondering why I have asked you all here to speak with you five ponies today." The Princess began. The five friends looked at each other, and with out saying a word, shook their heads no. But aside from Twilight, none of the others knew what was discovered. But they did have a feeling as to the reason they where all in the presence of the co-ruler of their home. However none of them wanted to speak.

After minutes began to drag on for eternity, Applejack finally broke the silence.

"Yer here about what happened to RD, aren't cha, Princess?"

"That is correct Applejack. And I have good news. Rainbow Dash is alive."

Everyone that didn't already know this perked up at the news of their friend.

"But, my little ponies, she is in a universe far different than that of our own."

The mares began to ramble among themselves. After a few minutes, Twilight stepped forward.

"What can you tell us about this universe, Princess?"

"Well, Its not the universe itself that your friend arrived in, but more where in it she did. And to answer that, she is on a world called Earth. Earth Is inhabited by bipedal being called humans. Humans are the superior life form on Earth. Animals can not talk as you and I can. We know that to allow her to fit in, the powers of the universe transformed her into a human, which means finding her will not be as easy as asking somepony if they have see a talking pony with wings and a cutie mark. Also, Magic does not exist in this world. To compensate, humans have advanced technologies, such as motorized vehicles, boats, and flying metal birds known as airplanes."

"So Why ya tellin' us all this yer Majesty?" AJ asked.

"Because I will be sending one of you to hopefully find Rainbow Dash and keep each other safe till we can find a spell to build a temporary bridge between the universes, as to bring you home safely. The last thing we know for sure is that Rainbow Dash is somewhere in the country of the United States of America. Now that you ponies know all there is to tell, which one of you will be brave enough to go on this journey?"

Once again the mares began to talk among themselves, until AJ stepped away from the group.

"I'll go Princess. As an Earth Pony, I've never needed more than my strength and bravery to accomplish anything. I'm sorry girls, but ya'll just not cut out for something as tough as this. So Princess, I accept this journey to save Rainbow Dash and return home together."

"If that is your wish, then I wish you the best of luck Applejack. I hope to see you and Rainbow Dash soon."

And with that, The library filled with a light brighter than the now setting sun, and when the flash subsided, the orange cow mare was gone.

Chapter 1- Raining Cats and Cowgirls

"Jason Marston! This is the FBI. We have the building surrounded. A SWAT team has been called in and will be arriving in just a few minutes. Please, surrender now and come out peacefully. We don't want to open fire, but we will if we must. Just come out with the girl and be done with this."

'What the fuck.' I thought to myself, glancing over at the girl that had gotten me into this mess. She was looking back at me, tears in her eyes, shaking her head mouthing the words "We can't give up." 'Damn it! Why is it that everytime a chick comes into my life, do I end up being hunted down by some kind of agency.'

"Thanks a lot Gramps, you just had to be famous." I muttered, cursing the night I learned about my Great Great Great Grandfather, a hero in the wild west, and the scourge to bandits everywhere. As those word leave my mouth, I stood up, aim my favorite sniper rifle at one of the feds, and I fired.

But wait, I'm getting a little a head of myself, so lets add some filler to this tale. My name, is Jason Marston, 22, and I live in Brockton, MA. I live alone and pass my time outside of work playing video games, dicking around on the internet, and drawing, which I suck at by the way. I was born in San Antonio, Texas, but following my mother's death on Valentine's Day of the year I turned 15, I was sent to live with my aunt on the other side of the country in a city called Brockton in Massachusetts. I would have stayed with my father, but my new stepmother was a total bitch and convinced my father to send me away. I stayed with my aunt till I turned 20, then moved out to live in a house I would be renting for cheap on the other side of the city. I've lived alone of two years now, just letting life pass me by. But that all changed one stormy night.

*Time becomes past-present from this point forward.*

"Finally caught up." I proclaimed, logging out of my favorite online MMO 'AdventureQuest Worlds'. "Now what? Should I find a good porn vid and rub one out? Or screw around on 'StumbleUpon'?" I was honestly leaning towards the porn, but per usual, whenever I had to decide between two different things, I had to flip a coin. And due to the regularity in which this happened, I always had a coin at the ready. My favorite coin to use was a prop coin I got when I bought 'The Dark Knight' DVD from my old eviction job. It was Two-Face's twin headed dollar, with one side pristine, and the other hohorribly defaced. "Clean side- Web searching. Fucked up side- Porn."

I flicked the coin into the air, and caught it on the back of my right hand, my left covering the coin. I removed my hand to reveal the results. Fucked up side up.

"That's one for porn," I say to myself, a little smile creeping its way across my face. I reset the coin and flick it back into the air. I catch it and reveal the second outcome. It's clean side up this time, the smile vanishing from my face. "Tie-breaker time." I say, resetting the coin one last time, flicking it into the air and catching it. "Please be fucked up. Please be fucked up!" I pleaded, but fate was cruel. I moved my hand and my excitement vanished as fast as my hard-on. "Fine, I'll do 'StumbleUpon for an hour, then I'll go to bed." I whimpered, setting my ground rules for my activity.

Upon opening the home page to the random result search engine, I was suddenly struck with the desire to look up stuff on my family tree. But I didn't want to randomly find the info I needed, I wanted it now. So I did what any person these days would do, I Googled myself, with the words 'Marston Family Tree' tacked onto the end. Several links popped up. I started to view some of them, but quickly got pissed when the all gave me pretty much the same shit. So after a few failed links, I scrolled all the way to the bottom of the list, actually praying to find something, And I did. The final link on the page was for a detailed Family Tree for the Marston name, put together by a genealogy class out of Texas A&M.

"Finally, something straight from my old stomping grounds."

I opened the link and was greeted by a single web page, with each name listed linking to a different site with the info on it. It had my whole lineage, but not just my father's but my blood mother's as well. From her name, I traced the branches back through the years, right till I found a relative that lived during the time of the US's Manifest Destiny period. The name I found was that of John Marston. He was described as a thief, and a murderer. But it also read that he was a hero to the helpless and who's name alone struck fear in the hearts of the wicked. It said that following a heist he and his gang of bandits had just pulled off, they turned on him, shooting him and leaving him for dead. He survived however, and vowed to hunt them down one by one. While on his personal vendetta, he helped countless people in need. Now, not by any means were all of the jobs he did 'Good' on any moral compass, but they needed to be done to help him find the bastards that left him for the buzzards. In truth, many of the jobs he did entailed hunting down some dumb ass person and putting a bullet through their skull.

Upon finishing the article, a lot of the things I was good at made sense to me. For example, put any kind of firearm in my hand that can fire something other than bird shot, and I can hit a bulls eye from 250 yards out. Also, I loved riding horseback. Never have I felt so free except for when I'm playing a good game. But even that's not the same. And finally, I seem to always get myself mixed up in other peoples bullshit.

By the time I finished reading all I could find on my grandfather, it was almost two in the morning. Being a closet bookworm had its drawbacks. But not only was it really late, but it had started to rain.

"Shit," I said to the empty house. "I hope this storm clears up by morning, I hate the rain. Nothing but trouble happens when it rains."

I shut down the computer and walked out into my kitchen to grab a glass of juice before heading up to my bed, depression beginning to fill me as I walk around my empty home.

I had never had a problem finding a girl to date me. But I always ended up dating some chick with a bad habit or some personal baggage they refused to let me in on till it was too late. I just wish to find a normal, honest, down to earth girl that wants to truly be with me, not to use me as a scape goat when the police or some collection agency comes looking for them.

Still deep in though, I turn on a TV I put in the kitchen and flip through the channel till I come across the local news. It seems that the storm that was going on was only over Brockton, no where else. This story was so big, that it made headline news. I turned the volume up as the anchor woman began to go over what was know about the rain storm.

'Scientists are baffled by the bizarre storm sitting over the city of Brockton this morning. This abnormality seemed to just appear out of no where and is not following any predicted weather patterns that have been observed in the previous days.'

"Holy fuck." I said upon hearing the news cast. "I am not going out in this shit. I'm texting Jose in the morning and calling in sick."

With that, I finished my glass of juice, placed it in my dish washer, and turned off the TV. But just as I went to go up to my bedroom, I heard someone screaming from off in the distance. And it was getting closer, and from my backyard. I ran to my back door, opened it and stood beneath the overhang I built to shield my door from the weather. I looked around, confused as to where the screams were emitting from, until I looked up. There, falling from the sky, was a naked girl, about my age, screaming, and falling to the earth. All she had was a cowboy hat, held to her head with one hand, the other covering her chest. I stood there in awe, unable to move due to the sight of the girl literally falling out of the sky. But I quickly snapped back to reality when she landed in my pool with a load crack. She had hit the water flat on her back, which means she must have flattened herself while I was in lala land, hopping it would soften the landing. But instead, she was knocked out by the force of the impact, and was sinking to the bottom of the deep end.

"Oh fuck!" I cried, running out into the storm, and diving into the water, not giving a damn about my clothes, just caring about saving this chick that fell out of the sky.I dove right into the pool and hooked one arm around the chick. She was heavier than she let on, I swam upwards and tossed her on the poolside, amazingly, her stetson stayed on. I dragged my own dripping wet body out of the pool and onto the tiles. The girl looked unconscious, and pretty darn good looking. I checked her pulse. She was still alive, thank god. I breathed a sigh of relief. Then my mind made the transition from "panicked" to "horny".

"Goddamit boner stay down!"

I gave her a couple of light slaps to the face. She woke up and crawled backwards into my fence, but I kept up with her.

"Hey, hey, hey, easy. What's your name?" I asked

"Applejack. Name's Applejack." She answered, gasping for air.

"I'm Jason. You do realize you're damn lucky to be alive." I said, a smug look on my face. I pointed off to the other side of the pool and added," a few more feet and I would have had me a damn fine looking pancake next to my pool."

"Well thank ya kindly, But, a, would you mind telling me where I am? I'm not from here, hence the whole falling out of the sky thing."

"Not a problem. But first, let's get you dried off, warmed up and in my bed first, what do you say?"

Author's Note

There it is guys. The last half is all free form, since i didn't intend for this to drag on like it did. I hope you guys like this, and please leave a comment below with anything I may have fucked up on. I have ZERO first hand experience with RDR, so please correct me on that as well. The next part will be out in due time, so please be patient. TTUL. Later!

Chapter 2 - How Awkward Can This Get?

"Pardon?" Applejack asked,unsure of what she heard me say.

I looked square into her eyes, somehow feeling myself getting lost in their emerald depths. I shook myself free of my self induced trance, and calmly replied.

"I think you heard me just fine." Feeling my smirk returning to my face, I continued. "I said let's go inside, dry you off, warm you up, and get you in my bed."

"What makes you believe that I wanna sleep with you. A) We just met. B) You're a human. And C) Never in a million years." She snapped, rage burning bright in her eyes.

I held eye contact for a few more seconds before I busted out laughing.

"What in the hay is so funny?"

"You!" I said, barely controlling the volume of me laughter. "I never said we'd be in bed together! Man, I didn't actually believe you would think that. I just said that we needed to get you into my bed. I have no idea where you came from, or if you even know where you are, but its like two in the morning. And figuring I just saved your ass from drowning after you fell out of the sky, I feel I need to give you a place to sleep"

Upon hearing this, she instantly turned red in the face a looked at the ground next to where she was still sitting.

"Hey, now, I was only joking with you. Don't look so sad." I said, now changing to a kinder, softer tone of voice. "Come on, lets get you inside and settled in."

I rose to my feet and reached down to her, offering her my hand so I could help her to her own feet. Applejack started to reach out for my out stretched hand when she suddenly withdrew and began to examine it, almost like she had never seen a hand before.

"So these are hands? These sure do look like what Lyra described them as. I'm gonna need to say sorry to her for telling her hands weren't real."

I stood and watched as she continued to look examine her body, almost as if she was familiarizing herself with it for the first time. I watched her run her fingers through her golden blonde hair, run her hands along her tanned, toned body. She even squeezed her own breasts and put her hand between her legs. All the while, I felt my face getting hot and my pants get tighter than they already were from jumping into the pool.

"Can we please go inside?" I said quickly, trying to stop her from inspecting herself further. "It's bad enough that I'm soaked from saving you, but I really don't want to get sick."

"Oh, sorry 'bout that sugarcube" Applejack apologized and finally took my still outstretched hand and let me help her up. As I slung her arm around my shoulder to help her inside, a sudden chill sprinted down my spine. Which was weird because even though I was soaking wet, my body heat had returned to normal from watching Applejack 'inspect' herself.

'Fuck.' I thought to myself.

Something bad was gonna happen, something really bad. That was no ordinary chill. That was my 'I'm screwed' sense going off. The only problem is that it has a time frame, and if something doesn't happen immediately, then I have to watch my ass for the next twenty four hours, before I can call it a false alarm. But that never happens. Every time some one came looking for any of my previous girlfriends, that chill had happened sometime within a day of my girlfriend taking off and leaving me to deal with their shit.

"Something wrong?" Applejack asked me, noticing my demeanor change,

"Ha, what? Oh, no. I'm fine." I responded hastily, shaking my head and continuing to walk inside.

Finally inside, I brought my naked house guest into my living room and helped her down onto a couch. I started up the stairs before turning back to her.

"Don't go anywhere. Stay right there, I will be right back. I need to grab you a towel to dry off with. Stay put, please."

She just looked up at me and nodded. I continued on and grabbed a towel from the closet and ran back downstairs. When I stepped of the stairs, I found my guest fast asleep. I had no idea what to do, just a few seconds ago she was wide awake. Now shes out cold, and still naked!

"Usually a hot chick asleep on my couch is a pleasant sight." I said into the quietness of my home. "But this is just ridiculous. Not to mention I just saved her from drowning after she fell out of the fucking sky! And what was up with her inspecting herself? And why is she not wearing anything? What the fuck!"My mind was going a hundred miles an hour, all in the vain attempt to figure all this out. But then I remembered something she had said. "Who was this Lyra she mentioned? Why would she talking about hands, and why would Applejack-."

I stopped mid sentence and quickly made two decisions. Number one, I'm not saying Applejack every damn time I refer to her, I'm calling her AJ and she can kiss my ass if she don't like it. Number two, AJ has to be from some other world, how else could I explain her memory of people she knew as well as her interest in her form.

"Well, no point dwelling on anything right now. She's the only one who can answer all my questions, but she's asleep where I'm gonna be sleeping, and I need to get her into a real bed. She is my guest after all, right?"

No answer came, as was usually the case when I would start to think aloud. So, also in typical fashion, I answered myself.

"Right, but she's still soaking wet, not to mention she'll need clothes. We can hit the mall tomorrow and have her pick some stuff out for herself. Till then she can borrow something your exs always seemed to leave behind before taking off."

"Good plan." I said, agreeing with myself

I softly walked over to the couch and crouched down in front of the sleeping AJ. I don't know why, but her hat was still on her head, and with her still wet and all, my mind took yet another dive into the gutter.Blocking the images in my brain from causing my body to react, I gently place a hand on her shoulder and gave her a few light shakes. After a few seconds of rocking her, her eyes began to flutter open lazily. And I immediately punch myself in the chest because of how cute she looked doing that.

"What's up partner?" She asked, half awake. Then her body was rocked by a shiver that rivaled that of my sixth sense. "Oh wee, I'm freezing."

I recovered from my self induced pain and stood up, holding out the towel.

"That's why I woke you up. You're still wet from outside, plus you'll be better off in a real bed. Just dry off and I'll take you to my room, you can sleep in there. And while you're getting comfy, I'll find you some clothes to wear for later, ok?"

She sat up, nodded and took the towel from my hand. As she stood, she stumbled and fell right into me, knocking us both to the ground. And because she was on top of me, I could not stop my face from turning beet red and my body finally joining my mind in the gutter.

"Oh," AJ exclaimed as she laid on my chest. "Sorry bout that. Still need to get use to walking on two legs."

She then shifted and lifted herself from laying on me. But now my face was a deep crimson, and still getting redder, since she was now straddling me, and I had an eyeful of her luscious chest. Thank god she wasn't just a few inches further back. With the color of my face still getting darker, I shifted my sight to her face, which wore a look of confusion.

"You alright? Yer face is redder than an apple."

"I'm fine, just please, can you get off. You have no idea how awkward this is right now."

"Ah shoot," AJ said, rolling off of me. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. Its like I said, just not use to walking on two legs is all."

"It's ok, lets get you upstairs and in bed. I have a lot to do before I can get any sleep myself."

"Alright."

As I watched her try and stand up, it was clear she was gonna fall again. I quickly got to my feet, stepped behind her, and gently held her steady. She looked over her shoulder at me, and I gave her a slight grin.

"I got you. Just lean on me and I'll help you up."

I then Threw her arm around my neck once more and proceeded to help her up the stairs and down the hall to my room. Now my room was really nothing special. A large queen sized bed was positioned opposite the door, its headboard against the middle of the wall. The bed was flanked by a nightstand to the right, and a six drawer dresser on the left. Along the walls hung posters from all my favorite video games, like Legend of Zelda - Skyward Sword, and the original Fable. A few collectible figures from AQW sat one top of the dresser, along with some of my favorite Bionicals, from before they fell out of production. Next to the door was a 72'' LCD Flatscreen TV, hung on the wall with all my favorite retro gaming systems sitting below it on a shelf I had built for them. There was a PS1 and 2, an N64, Gamecube, and the original Xbox.

I helped AJ get under the covers and walked over to the left of the bed and opened a smaller dresser that was hidden just under the bed frame. I opened up the single drawer to reveal all the clothes that my past girlfriends had left behind when they took off to hide from the police or debt collectors. I reached inside and pulled out a orange tee shirt, a pair of solid black panties, a matching black bra, and a pair of skinny jeans. I then threw them onto a chair that was at a desk along the same wall and turn toward AJ, who was finally covered up thanks to my bed spread.

"Alright, Lets go over what's going down. First off, When I knock on the door later, I need you up and dressed quick. These are what you can wear tomorrow, everything should fit no problem. When you're done, go over to the door, open it and call my name. You do remember what I said my name is, right?"

"Tyson, right?" AJ guessed.

"Close, but its Jason You can also call me Jay. Its easier to remember. Which brings me to my next point. From this point, I'm going to refer to you as AJ. Reason one, Applejack is too long to say all the time. And second, its a weird name, even for someone like myself. Alright?"

"Not a problem. As a matter of fact, everypony calls me AJ,"

"There is another thing. Tomorrow during breakfast, you're telling me why you came falling out of the sky, where you are from, why you can't walk normal, and most important, why the hell you where naked. Cool?"

"Sure thing. If you wanna know something, I have no intent of lying to you. After all, I am the Element of Honesty."

Good, I think. And finally, We are going to the local mall tomorrow to get you some clothes of your own. I can't have you constantly wearing the left overs from my past girlfriends. It just wouldn't be right. Ok?"

"Gotcha."

"Good, Now get some sleep. Like I said, I've got something I need to do before I turn in myself. I'm gonna be right down stairs on the couch. If you need anything, just call for me."

As I walked back to the door to the bedroom, I could feel her watching me. I raised my hand and turned back toward the beauty now laying in my bed.

"Goodnight AJ." I said quietly.

"Goodnight Jay, and thank you for all this." Said AJ.

And with a smile, I nodded my head in acknowledgment, and snapped my fingers, turning off the light. I then closed the door and proceed down the hall to my computer room, only stopping for a second to open my towel closet again to grab a box of tissues. I quickly entered the room and closed the door behind me.

Author's Note

Thanks for the patience everybody. Chapter 3 is already in the works, so if the huge storm that will be baring down on New England tomorrow keeps me out of work tomorrow and Saturday, and leaves the power on, I hope to have it up by late Sunday, maybe Monday. But no guarantees. Ttul. Later! /)

Chapter 3 - She's My Cousin, I Swear!

Thirty minutes after entering the room, I finally emerged, a feeling of relief spread across my face. I then sauntered down the stairs and into the living room.

"With that out of the way, I need to get some sleep. If not, there is no way in hell I'm gonna make it through today." I deadpanned.

And so I flopped down on my cough and grabbed the remote for another flat screen. This one sitting on a second entertainment stand that housed even more gaming systems. The only difference between this setup and the one in my room was that this one had all the latest consoles. The best of the versions too. So I had the newest slims for PS3 and Xbox 360, as well as the new Wii U. I even had a fully tricked out CPU Tower that I had my cousin build for me so I could play League of Legends, Elsword, Diablo 3, and Guild Wars 2 with him and his friends hooked up to it. But alas, I was just way too tired for any of that at the moment. The only thought in my mind right now was to get some sleep. And so I simply hit the power button and put on the Speed channel. I was no big fan of racing, but I figured that if I had something I didn't really like on, I'd fall asleep faster watching something outside my preferences.

Twenty minutes later, I had become drowsy. But before I slipped into full unconsciousness, I though that I saw that one of the racers had a passenger. And the passenger had rainbow colored hair. Before my mind could begin to ponder what I saw any more, sleep finally took hold and wrapped me in it's eternal embrace.

Just as I felt myself enter REM sleep, my alarm went off, forcing me out of my dreams.

'Damn it' I cussed to myself as I rolled over my temporary bed so I could pull my phone out of my pocket. 'Why the hell do I have that set to the damn rooster caw again, I forget? oh yeah, it's so damn annoying, I want to just shut it the fuck off.'

Just as I was finally able to force my cell from my pocket, I heard my name being called from my room. If I didn't remember what had happened what had transpired the previous night, I would have been pissed, but luckily I did remember.

"Yeah, I hear ya, give me a moment!" I shouted up to my guest.

I then proceeded to fight the fatigue brought on by my lack of sleep. I finally succeeded in getting up by rolling myself off of the couch and crashing onto the carpeted floor below. I then got up with a pop and ascended to the second floor.

"You know I said to be up and ready after I knocked once and before I knocked again." I said as I walked down the hall to my bedroom door.

"I know what ya said, but I heard the rooster a crowing. That's how I usually know when it's time to get out of bed. Apples ain't gonna buck themselves, ya know." AJ replied through the door.

Her comment made me stop just outside my room, my hand reaching for the knob. Suddenly a flood of new questions washed over me.' Where is she from? Why is she unfamiliar with the human anatomy? Why doesn't she walk on two legs? Where apples and roosters still exist and are the same as here? And what the fuck did she mean by 'Apples ain't gonna buck themselves?"' The overflow of questions began to make my head hurt. I quickly shook my head, trying to get myself to focus.

"Ok, alrighty then, I'm gonna pretend that made sense and say sure." I said, turning the doorknob and pushing the door open. And there on the floor, wearing nothing more than the stetson that she 'arrived' with on, was Applejack, on all fours with her ass pointing right at me. I swore I felt my nose start to bleed. "What the hell are you doing? You look like a porn star!" I shouted, quickly averting my eyes.

"I couldn't figure out how to put on those confounded clothes, so I gave up. And I fell down and decided that this is how I'm gonna get around when I leave here." She replied, glancing over her shoulder to look back at me.

"I don't think so. I maybe a little fuzzy on the details, but you're clearly not from here, and by that, I mean this planet. Maybe even this universe." By this time, AJ had managed to climb back on top of the bed, looking saddened by my remark. Noticing this, I continued.

"But I don't care about all that." I said with a smile. "I don't know why you're here, but whatever the reason is, I wanna help you. So don't look so glum. Got it?"

She looked up, a smile upon her face.

"But today we need to get a few things done. First of all, we need you dressed. Unfortunately, beautiful women walking around naked is illegal here. So just this once, and I mean that, I will help you get dressed. Then I'm gonna help you downstairs and into the kitchen. There, I'm gonna call my boss and tell him I can't make it to work today. Then, we eat and we play Twenty Questions, because if you're gonna be staying here, you better tell me what I want to know, got it?"

"No problem, sugar cube." She said beaming.

"Good, cause once all that is done, we're going to the mall. So you better learn to walk ASAP. When we're done at the mall, we'll come back here and figure out our next move. Good?"

"Yessir'" She responded with a salute.

With that, I helped her get dressed and showed her how to put everything on. Once we finished, I helped her out of the room and had her lean on the railing that prevented anyone from careening off the ledge and falling down onto my couch. As she waited, I returned to my room and I got dressed myself. I didn't like flashy, fancy attire. The most I did was throw on a tee shirt that had a phrase ironed onto it. Today my shirt was black and it read 'All my ideas tend to get me into trouble.' Which tended to be just the case. I never bought a shirt that didn't relate to me in someway. But aside from the tee, I threw on a black hoodie and a pair of light blue jeans that I had cut the bottoms a little along the inseam. then I put on my accessories. I put on a black watch that I my father had sent me for my 21st birthday, and a black rubber and metal bracelet that had my initials engraved into the top and the phase 'Forever in my heart, 2/14/06' on the inside. The date was a solemn reminder of the day my mother died and my life began its spiral downward. I wore two rings, one on each hand, both identical, bearing one though twelve in roman numerals around the bands. They held no significance to my life, unlike my bracelet did, but I did use them to help people remember my age after I finish bashing their faces in should they decide to cross me. And for my final piece of jewelry, I put on my favorite necklace, a red cat's eye marble with a black piece of material strung through a hole I drilled through it myself. Finally, I put on a pair of black and white sneakers that I had got from my boss at work, grabbed one of the many fedora's I had collected, black of course, and began to leave the room. But before I reached the door, I just remembered my most important accessory, the 9mm pistol I kept in the nightstand on the right side of my bed. I did have a licence to carry it everywhere, but for some reason, I hardly took it out besides to go to the local gun range to practice and to clean it. As I pondered whether to grab it or not, Applejack called my name though the door, reminding me that she still needed help downstairs. And with that distraction, I quickly grabbed only a hip-chain, clipped it to my belt loops, grabbed my cell holster, and walked out without my gun. It wasn't like I'd be needing it today anyways.

"What took you so long partner?" I was asked as I stepped out of my room. It seemed that while I was getting dressed, AJ had been using the railing to help her walk on her own.

"Nothing. It looks like you're doing alright, I see."

"Yeah, I think I got the hang of this here walking thing."

"Oh yeah? Well let's see you make it downstairs without my help."

With that, I walked right past her, sat down on the railing, and slid all the way down.

"Hey now! That ain't fair!" AJ yelled down at me.

Upon landing, I spun around on my heel and shouted back up to her, laughing.

"Hay is for horses, greens are for cows. Pigs would eat them, but they don't know how!"

With that, Applejack glared down at me, her eyes burning with a look that screamed 'I hate you so much right now.'

"What the hay did you just say?"

"'What the hay?' What, do you not have proper vulgarity where you come from?"

I was disparately fighting to keep myself from dropping to the floor and start rolling around laughing.

"Don't you try and muddy the situation with your fancy talk and get up here and help me down!"

"No." I said plainly, no longer fighting back laughter, because now it was time to be serious. "You said that you got this. I wanna see you walk down on you're own. If you start to fall, I'll catch you, but only if you fall. Now come on down. We have a lot to do with little room to screw around with."

"Fine, be like that. I'm a get down there, on my own, and when I do, I'm a gonna buck you so hard that you're gonna be hurting for a week."

Applejack then began her descent. She took the first step cautiously, but when she found that she had kept her balance, she continued down one step at a time.

"Looking good, almost here. And because I didn't want to distract you during your first step, here is a retort to you're comment. Let's get to know each other more before you start making sex threats, ok baby?"

Just as I finished my delayed comeback, AJ had stepped off the final step. In which she then immediately walked right up to me and kicked me right in the one place no man should feel pain.

As I crumbled to the floor, she began to walk into the kitchen, only stopping to glance back at my withered form curled up on the ground, a smile on her face.

"I wouldn't sleep with you in a million years, Jay." She said as she walked into the kitchen, not taking a moment to make sure I was ok.

A few minutes passed as I slowly recovered from the 'Kick Felt Around the World'. After enough of the pain had subsided, I returned to my feet and staggered into the kitchen. As I entered, I was greeted with the the sight of AJ once again on the floor, only this time she was sitting like a dog waiting for a bone next to my table.

"What are you doing sitting on the floor, again." I asked. "There are chairs all around the table, pick one and sit in it."

She turned her head in the direction that I was now pointing in, and upon see in the chair, looked like she just had an epiphany.

"Oh!" She exclaimed, "THOSE are chairs. Shoot, I wonder how Lyra learned all that stuff about humans she's always mentionin'?"

"Are you shitting me?" I shouted in disbelief.

"What's wrong, sugar cube?" AJ asked, turning to look at me after staring the the chair, trying to figure out just HOW to sit in it.

Becoming even more frustrated from watching her gawk at the chair like she was trying to solve a Rubix Cube, I walked up to her, held my index finger in front of her face. Then I gently grabbed her by the shoulders and 'placed' her in the chair the right way. Next, I held my palm in front of her, just like you would to tell a dog to stay. She got the message and nodded. Finally, I took my own seat on the opposite side of the table, pulled out my phone and brought up my boss' cell number and hit dial. While it rang, I glared across at the source of my anger. She had a saddened look on her face, but I didn't care. On the forth ring, my boss picked up.

"Yo, what's up Jay?"

"Hey Jose, I hate to do this, but I wont be able to make it in today. Sorry."

"Why, what's up?"

Before answering, I looked over at the reason I was making this call. A few seconds passed when I finally thought of something.

"You see," I began, "An unexpected guest arrived at my house early this morning. She's not in good sorts right now and she really needs me."

Hearing this caused AJ to look at me and she gave me a weak smile. My boss, However, was unusually quiet, but then her spoke up again.

"Old girlfriend?" He asked.

Now I told Jose a lot, especially about all the girls that ditched me over and over again. But I never thought he'd think I would skip out on work for one.

"Not at all." I said defensively. "It's my cousin, actually. She arrived during the storm this morning. So now she's sick and I can't just leave her here alone. Not to mention that she showed up with nothing for clothes for herself. So once she starts feeling better, I need to take her to the mall so she can pick out some stuff to wear. And before you suggest it, I refuse to let her wear all the shit my Exes have left behind since I moved in here."

"Send me a pic and you can take all the time you need to. I'll just pay you half you're weekly pay. Cool?"

"Sweet, thanks boss, You're the best. Ttul. Later."

After that, I hung up and opened my camera app.

"Yo, Applejack." I said. As she looked at me, I snapped a picture with a click. "Thanks"

"Yer welcome?"

I quickly sent the picture to my Jose. Luckily, AJ was a visual mess, so saying she was sick was a damn good idea. A few seconds past when my phone beeped. I just got a reply from Jose.

The message read -

'I find it hard to believe that a girl that hot is related to you Jay.'

I quickly replied -

'Well, believe it. And you're funny.'

Another beep, another text.

'I know I am. Just let me know if you need anything alright? And tell your cousin I said to get well soon.'

I sent a thank you text and put my phone away, turning my attention to Applejack.

"What in tarnation did you just do with that thing-a-ma-jig?"

"I took your picture with my phone. But that's not what's important right now."

A look of confusion graced AJ's face, "What is important then?"

Rage suddenly filled my being, fueled by the shear amount of questions I had welling up in my mind.

"What is important is that you tell me where the hell you came from! That and the thousand of other questions that I have amassed since you fell out of the fucking sky this fucking morning. How 'bout we start there!"

My outburst had caught Applejack by completely by surprise. Seconds past and she just stared at me.

'Why am I so angry all of a sudden? She hasn't done nothing, so why am I so mad? Wasn't I just laughing a few minutes ago? Sure they were at her expense, and sure, she hit me below the belt. But I did deserve it.'

As I was getting lost in my own thoughts, Applejack just sat there in complete silence. The silence was so profound that it derailed my train of though, drawing my attention to her. Together, we sat in the seemingly eternal quiet. Then she spoke up.

"I sorry fer all the trouble I've caused you so far sugar cube. I never ment to be such a burden to anyone that I met here." She then looked up and our eyes locked on to each other. Her's were filled with sadness and concern. "If answering all yer questions is the only way for me to stay here, then ask me anything ya need ta. I promise to answer them truthfully."

"Alright," I sighed, releasing all my random rage. "Then let's get started."

Author's Note

Hey guys and gals. Sorry about the half assed chapter earlier. I hope you enjoyed the finished version. Ttul. Later!

Chapter 4 - I Did Not See That Coming...

I raised an eyebrow as I locked eyes with AJ, thinking about just how this little conversation is gonna go. I then twisted myself in my chair and i placed my elbow on the table and extend my pinkie finger.

“Pinkie Promise?” I ask with my ever present smirk on my face.

“Beg pardon?” AJ asks in rebysponse.

“Pinkie Promise. It’s like-”

“I know what a Pinkie Promise is. I just didn’t think could have it here.” Applejack said, cutting off my explanation.

“Is that so? So tell me why that’s so surprising?”

“Well,” she began, “back home its kind of something that only me and my friends did. But since we don’t have fingers we do it a little differently.”

“Alright then.” I said, intrigued as to just how this was gonna go, “Then why don’t you tell me just how you did it back home.”

“Ok.” AJ said, her face beginning to redden as she slide out of her chair and stood up. After a few moments of steadying herself, she look at me and added “Promise not to laugh at me?”

“I make no guarantees.” I replied.

“Fine, I bet that’s the best I’ll get, huh?”

“Yup.”

“Alright I guess. It goes like this. ‘ I cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”

As she spoke she accompanied each line with an awkward motion, made even more so by her desperate attempt to not fall over. Once it was over she plopped herself back in her chair and flashed a sheepish smile at me. I, on the other hand merely cocked my head to the side and raised an eyebrow.

“So what did ya think?”

“What did I think? You want to know what I thought, about that?” I deadpanned, my face taunt, not a sign of emotion to be seen.

“Yeah, I do.” She said, now visibly perturbed by my stoicness. “ Whatcha think?”

I held my composure for a few more moments, milking the tension before I bursted into laughter.

“Hey, I said not to laugh!”

“I’m not laughing at your performance or the rhyme, I swear.” I replied, casually wiping an invisible tear from my eye.

“Then what in tarnation are you laughing at?”

“I’m laughing at you-”

“And that makes it any better?” She snapped.

“Let me finish. I’m laughing at you and how you seriously didn’t think I, or anybody for that matter, wouldn’t find that entertaining.” I said, calming down from my laughing fit. “You know, we have a similar rhyme here. Except you just replace ‘cupcake and fly’ with ‘needle and die.’”

“Is that so?”

“Yup. But that brings us back to the reason we’re having this little sit down.” I said, returning to a more serious and stoic disposition.

“Oh.” AJ said. As I looked into the depths of her emerald eyes i could see a maelstrom of differing emotions begin to surge to the surface, but the one that shown the clearest was that of sheer, unbridled fear.

“Applejack” I said calmly, hoping to ease her worry. “I can tell you’re scared. But I promise that there is no need for you to be. You’re here for a reason and I wanna help.”

I slowly reached across the table and gently placed my hand on top of hers. She looked up at me, her eyes meeting mine, seemingly searching for a reason to either trust me or not. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, she sighed, and with a shaky voice, she spoke.

“So, what do ya wanna know?”

“Well,” I began. “A good start would be the beginning, no?”

“Ya wanna know where I’m from huh?”

“That’s as good a place as any.”

“Okay,” she said, sliding her hand out from underneath mine, dropping her gaze to the floor. “I did promise to tell you the truth. Just don’t go writing me off as crazy, ok?”

“I promise,” I said mimicking the exact motions she had demonstrated earlier while going over her version of a Pinkie Promise.

At that she let out a quiet giggle before taking a deep breath.

“Ok, I’m from a world called Equestria.”

“Equestria?” I asked, as if for some reason that name should sound familiar. However, I let that thought go as I asked my next question. “How did you get here from Equestria? And more so are you here for a reason or was your skydive an accident?”

“Ya see, I’m here looking for a friend of mine. Her name's Rainbow Dash. Our princess was able to track her whereabouts to this world and my other friend Twilight opened a portal that took me here.”

“So you mean to tell me you world has magic?” I questioned in amazement.

“Yeah, but only unicorns and alicorns can cast spells like what brought me here.”

“Unicorns? Alicorns? What kind of world do you live in?”

“Well, ya see,” Applejack began nervously,” back in Equestria, I’m an Earth pony. And the friend I’m here looking for, Rainbow Dash. Well, she’s a Pegasus. There’s also-.”

“Hold on a sec!” I interrupted.

“What’s wrong sugarcube?” AJ said with a start, surprised by my interjection.

“Did you just say that you’re a pony?!”

“Yes, I’m a pony. Most of the life in Equestria in made up of pony folk.”

“So you mean to tell me that you’re from a world entirely comprised of little tiny horses that stuck up rich people buy their sniveling, spoiled, snot nosed, brats when they start throwing a tantrum over a visit to the petting zoo?” I asked, slack jawed.

“Yeah, I guess. But why would ponies in this world be in a petting zoo?”

“You don’t wanna know. Anyways, you said ponies only make up a portion of life in your world? What else do you have where you’re from?”

“Well aside from the three pony races there are hydras, manticores, chimera, minotaurs, and zebras. And those are just the ones that can either think or talk.” Applejack said matter-of-factly.

‘Hydras? Manticores? Chimera and Minotaurs? Its like a smorgasbord of mythological creatures.’ I thought to myself but then I was slapped in the brain by the last one she listed. ”Did you just say zebras?”

“Yeah, so?”

I was so taken aback that I had nothing to say. Of all the things she listed, the only truly weird one zebra.

‘How are there zebras in an alternate world? What else could there be there? Birds, bees, squirrels? What the actual hell?’

“Hello? Earth to Jay? Are ya in there?” AJ said, waving a hand in front of my face.

“What?” I said, shaking my head, trying to regain my composure.

“Ya kinda went out of it a second ago. You alright?” she asked, a look of concern on her face.

“Yeah, I’m good. Sorry but that. Didn’t mean to worry like that.” I replied, scratching the back of my head, rather embarrassed of moment if brain deadness.

“Its alright hun. Any other questions you got for me?”

“Ya, one more,” I said, choosing to ignore all the others begging to be asked, with about 90% of the being completely inappropriate for the moment. “If your friend is a unicorn, and has the power to teleport you to another plane of existence, why the hell did you come crashing down from the sky?”

“Ya know, that’s a good question.” AJ said pensively. “There must be more than just the obvious differences between Equestria and this world. But do you happen to have anymore questions, cause I would kind of ask you a few myself.”

I sat there for a few moments, hoping to sift through all the dirty questions my brain was pumping out, trying desperately to pull out one that actually barred any relevance to AJ as a person, er pony, being. Hopelessly, I let out a sigh of defeat and shook my head.

“I got nothing, so shoot. What do you want to know?” I ask.

“Ok, question number one. What’s the name of this place, and by that I mean, world, town, that type of stuff.”

“Well, I guess the answer to that would be that you are in the Milky Way galaxy, on the planet Earth, on the continent of North America, in the country of the United States of America, in the state of Massachusetts, in the city of Brockton. Then again how can I expect you to remember me telling you the important part of that last night after you fell into my pool out back. Oh, which reminds me. You’re welcome. Again.”

Applejack’s face suddenly became flush red, and her gaze fell the table.

“Hehe,” she began, clearly embarrassed by my remark. “I suppose ya did happen to mention something along those lines last night, didn’t ya?” She then looked back up at me and said, “Thanks for saving me.”

I really don’t know what it was but time and time again I would find myself getting lost in her eyes. I quickly shook myself free of the trance I was falling into over and over again. As my head cleared, I rose from my seat and headed for the archway leading into the living room. As I reached the opening, I turned around.

“Come on, it’s time to get going.”

“Where we going?” My guest asked in bewilderment.

“Shopping.” I replied, grabbing the set of keys from off a hook that was on the wall next to the archway.

The one thing I owned that gave me more pride than my entire video game collection was my car. It was a pitch black fully converted automatic ‘91 Pontiac Firebird. Not only did I get it cheap but I hand painted the Firebird logo on the hood and gave it some nice looking flame decals on the sides. The person I had bought it from was a mutual friend that I happened to share with my brothers. Before he had sold it to me, he managed to some how convert it from a stick shift to an auto, added a killer sound system a voice activated navigation system as well as worked different things into the voice recognition network. As we approached the vehicle, I pressed a button on my keychain.

“Ignition.” I said, and instantly the car roared to life.

Surprised by the sudden awakening of my ride, Applejack let out a shriek of fear and stopped moving.

“What in tarnation it that contraption?” She asked, her body visibly shaking.

“This,” I said as I stretched out my arms and turned towards her, “is my pride and joy. Why?”

“That’s not the answer I’m looking for. I asked what it is.” AJ shouted.

“What do you mean? Its a car. Do you not have cars in your world?”

“No, we don’t! We’re ponies. We walk everywhere and pull carts. The only thing we have that we ride in are trains.”

“Well excuse me for thinking a race of magical talking equines would have come up with the concept of a moving vehicle!”

“Well,” she said in a softer reflective tone of voice, “There was that one contraption that those Flim Flam Brothers rode in on that first time they tried to scam Ponyville and steal my family’s apple orchard, Sweet Apple Acres.”

“Who?What?” I began to ask, but then realized that there was no time for what was going on and threw my hands out in front of me, continuing with, “You know what, I don’t care. Get in the car and let’s get going.”

And with that I pressed another button, which opened the passenger side door. I then walked over to the still shaking Applejack, grabbed her wrist and sat her down in the open car. As I walked away, I press the same button again, closing her door while also opening the driver’s door with another.

Once I was seated, I closed the door and put the key in the ignition. I reached over, pressed a button on the dashboard, and spoke.

“Play music, DJ Pon3 - iPon3”

“Who are you talking to?” AJ asked.

“The computer. It has a voice operating system built in. I just press a button, say a command, and it does it.” I replied. “However, sometimes it doesn’t want to work and it makes me repeat what I just said, which happens to piss me off.”

I press the button again and repeat the command, and the song I requested begins to play. Satisfied, I shift into reverse and pull out of the driveway and on the road heading towards the local mall.

We were about half way there when my passenger suddenly screamed in shock, causing me to immediately pull off to the side of the road.

“What the hells wrong?” I ask, fearing the worst.

“I knew I heard these songs before!” She exclaimed.

“I thought you pissed yourself! And what do you mean you’ve heard these songs before?”

“I thought I was crazy earlier when you said the creator of this songs name was DJ Pon3, but now I’m sure of it! This is Vinyl’s music!”

“Who’s?” I asked, trying to wrap my head around what she just said.

“I know a pony back in Equestria that’s named Vinyl Scratch. She’s a DJ and her stage name is DJ Pon3. But how in Tartarus is her music here in this world?”

“Well i can the you for a fact that this is NOT pony made music. DJ Pon3 is the name of some guy on Youtube.”

“But the songs by my world’s DJ Pon3 are the exact same!”

“Fine.” I said determined to end this, “Besides the first song to play, since I had to say the name twice to get it to play, name all the ones to come on since, and there were five.”

“Alright then,” Applejack said confidently, “Octavia’s Delight, At Dangerous Speed, iRock, Wub and Tolerate, and finally Vinylicious. There.”

My jaw dropped.

‘How is that possible? This has to be a coincidence. It just doesn't make any sense.

A few moments past and I remembered where I was and shook myself from my stupor.

"I refuse to believe but quiet frankly my dear, I just don't give a fuck."

And with that, I threw on the blinker and merged back into the street.

Author's Note

Well. It's been a long time coming. I'm sorry it took so long but I'm back. For you who stayed with me I thank you. Later on I'll be updating my blog and I'll be talking about the future. So I hope you all enjoy this long over due chapter and I'll see you next time. Till then. Ttul. Later. /)

Chapter 5 - Discoveries Made At The Food Court

As we arrived at the mall, AJ studied the structure with a look of awe plastered on her face. Noticing her expression, I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Whatcha laughin’ at?” She snapped.

“Your face.” I replied. You look like you’ve never seen such a place before.”

“Well, I haven’t.” Applejack admitted. “The two biggest buildings I’ve ever been to in all my life have been Canterlot Castle and The Crystal Castle in the Crystal Empire.”

“Alrighty then.” I chuckled as I pulled into an open parking spot and turned the car off. “Well, Miss Workhorse, whenever you’re done gawking, just let me know when we can get going. I don’t want to spend forever here. I want to get you clothes, look around myself real quick, and the go home. If I’m gonna be forced to take the day off, I’m sure as hell gonna enjoy it.”

Moments later, as we stepped into the main section of the mall Applejack let out an audible gasp of wonder.

“This place is just amazing!” She gawked.

“Yeah, well it kind of loses its allure after a while.” I scoffed. “Come on. Follow me.”

As we walked, I pulled a phone from my pocket and handed it to AJ. She takes it from my hand and turns it over in her own, examining it curiously.

“What’s this thing-a-majig?”

“It’s a cellphone. One of many, to be honest. I’ve come to acquire quite a collection. My exs left many in my possession before disappearing. I always keep a spare on me incase I ever need it.”

“Alright, so why you giving it to me?”

“Because you’re going to be doing your own shopping.” As I say this, I take a small notepad from my back pocket, wrote down a few things, ripped the page out and handed it to her. “On that piece of paper is how you’re going to pay for everything, where you can shop, and how to get a hold of me once you’re done. Cool?”

AJ stopped walking so that she could read the paper. As she read, she fiddled with the phone, following the directions as she went. As she operates the device, I watched as she seemingly mastered how to use it instantly. After a few minutes of messing around with the phone, she looked up for it.

“Alright. But how much can I spend?” She asked.

My jaw instantly dropped, but I quickly recovered my composure.

“Good question my friend. And I must say, I wish that every single girl that I had ever taken shopping would have asked that same question. The app that I mentioned on that piece of paper has a spending limit set on it. And once that limit was reached, it locks itself for twenty-four hours, then it resets. That, or I can use a password to unlock it for a single purchase before it locks again and it’ll need the code again. But to get back to the question, you should be able to get three tops, two bottoms, and two pairs of bras and panties.”

“Ok, and when I get ready to pay, go to the cashier and hold the phone up to the, what did ya call it? The pinpad, with the app open.”

“Yup,” I replied in confirmation. “It’ll be a square thing with a screen and buttons on the counter next the register facing towards you.”

“Got it. And once I’m all done I just hold down this button at the bottom of the phone and say ‘Call Jay?’”

“Yeah. I’m surprised that you’re understanding all this so far. For someone who lives in a world of magic and has no sense for technology, you’re getting this faster than my father.” I said. “Anyway, after you say ‘Call Jay’, wait till you hear me say hello, then talk to me. You’ll hear a ringing sound, but don’t freak. Its just connecting to my phone. Alright?”

“I think so.” AJ answered.

“Good. Now don’t talk to anyone but the cashiers. And please, for the love of all things, don’t say anything that has to with you being from another plane of existence. I don’t want to find out you got carted away to the loony bin.”

“I’ll be sure to keep that little detail a secret. Well, I’ll be seeing you in a bit then sugarcube.”

“Till then. Later AJ. And please be careful.”

And with that, we parted ways. Before now I was worried that something bad was gonna happen, but now I had a feeling everything was gonna be just fine.

My plan while AJ was buying what she needed was rather simple. I was gonna stop into a few stores i frequented, buy something for myself, and the wait till she told me she was done. My first stop was GameStop. It had been a while since I bought a new game and I wanted to see if anything would catch my eye. As I walked into the small store on the first floor, I immediately remembered what today was.

“Fuck,” I quietly cursed to myself. “With everything that's happened I forgot what came out today.”

I hopped into line and waited till it was my turn at the counter.

“What’s up?” Greeted the cashier as I walked up. The employee was a male around my age with blue hair and a beige collared shirt. On the lapel was a pin of a shield with a lightning bolt in the center. “What brings you in today?”

“Peachy,” I replied. “Please tell me you guys still have a copy of ‘Majora’s Mask’ in stock.”

The worker shook his head. “Sorry man, we just sold the last one to the customer that left just as you walked in. Sorry.”

My heart sank. I thanked him and walked out of the store. Hoping to make myself feel better, I went next door to a comic book shop. I’m not a huge comics fan but this particular store sold more than just those. It also sold cards from many different games. I walked out with a few packs of yugioh cards, hoping to get some rare cards that maybe I could sell. Unfortunately Lady Luck must have a grudge against me today cause I got jack shit.

Feeling even worse, I made my way to my final stop, Hot Topic. I thought that maybe I could at least pick up a new belt or maybe a hoodie. However, as I entered the store, a new display that was put up after my last visit caught my eye. On it stood a wide assortment of vinyl figures ranging from iconic horror villains to pastel colored ponies. As I walked over to the display, one of the pony figures in particular grabbed my attention. It was an orange pony with a blonde mane and tail, a stetson, and deep, emerald eyes. I picked up the figure, since it was out of its box, and chuckled a little.

“Man,” I said to myself quietly. “I would die if this is what AJ looked like back in her own world.”

Still giggling to myself, is set the figure down. Before leaving, I ended up buying a bracelet and a necklace that was themed after one of my favorite games. As I walked out of the shop, I glanced once more at the orange pony figure, laughed, and continued walking.

Not two minutes after leaving the store, my phone began to buzz. I pulled out my phone and checked the caller ID. As soon as I saw it was phone i given to Applejack I answer it.

“Hello?”

“Jay, is that you?” AJ called loudly from the other line.

“Yes,” I replied, now half deaf “Why the hell are you yelling? I can hear you fine. Are you done shopping?”

“Oh, sorry ‘bout that. But ya, I’m done. Now what?”

“Ok, what’s the name of the store you’re standing in front of?”

There was a pause from the other side of the call, and then Applejack replied, “Victoria’s Secret I think. I just bought some of those under garment things there.”

Upon hearing her say the name of the store, my mind instantly jumped into the gutter.

“Jay, ya still there?” AJ said, saving me from getting lost in my own fantasy.

“Yeah, I’m here.” I replied, my face flushed red from the images that I had just come up with. "Alright. I want you to follow the signs and meet me at the Food Court. Ok?"

"Sure thing sugarcube. But why is there a court for food?"

I facepalm at her response.

"It's not really a court for food. It's just where all the food stalls are located."

"I get it. It's a place where you can buy food and then sit and eat it, right?"

"I'm really glad you learn quick. I want you to know that AJ. We'll meet there, grab a bite and then head back to my place. Cool?"

"Sounds like a plan to me partner. See you there."

Once we hung up, I started to head towards the Food Court, trying desperately to forget all the mental images of Applejack both naked and in lingerie. However hard I tried though, I couldn't do it. The battle with my perversion raged until I reached my destination. I posted myself along a railing in front of a sushi bar that stood at the front end of the court, right in a spot that was impossible for AJ to miss me. As I waited, I pulled out my phone and started to surf the internet, checking all the updates on my most frequented websites. Luckily I didn't have to wait long. Moments after I arrived at my position, Applejack walked into the area.

"Hey, AJ!" I called out, raising my hand and waved. While she walked up I couldn't help but notice how few bags she was carrying. When she came to stand in front of me I asked, "Did you get everything you needed?"

"Ya. At first I was having trouble figuring out how to read the prices for things. A kind girl little girl with blonde hair a big red bow noticed and helped me out. After that I bought the least expensive clothes I could and moved on. To tell the truth, the little girl reminded me a lot of my lil sis back home."

"Well," I started, "I don't know what to tell you. But what I can tell you is that I'm starving. What do you want to eat?"

"I don't know? What do you eat for food in this world? Cause back home we eat what we can grow."

"Hmm. So of course with you being ponies you would stray away from eating any form of meat. Understandable, but a sad way to live. However we can get you a veggie sub from the Subway over there. I however want some sushi."

"What's sushi?" Applejack asked.

"Raw fish wrapped in seaweed a white rice with a few other things mixed in as well."

"Well, then we'll get yours first then mine?" She suggested.

"Sounds good. I'll place my order and while they're making it we'll go get yours. Give me one moment and I'll be right back."

A minute later I returned to her and we walked over the where we were gonna get Applejacks food. As we approached the counter a wolf howl rang out from behind us followed by a man's voice.

"Hey there pretty lady, how are you doing today?"

''Damn it,' I thought. ''Not this asshole.'

"What the hell do you want Jackson?" I asked, turning around.

Jackson Clint was an old bully of mine from my school days who was spoon fed everything he ever got in life.

"Cool it Gay. I only wanna talk to the hottie here that clearly has poor taste if she's here with a gimp like you. So what do ya say babe. Wanna ditch this little pussy and come hang with a real man?"

At this my rage began to flare. However, before I even had a chance to react there was a blur of motion and the next thing I knew Clint was on his ass holding his jaw. I looked to my side and say AJ straighten back up, her fist clenched and red.

"I don't know who you are but there's more of that for ya if you ever insult my friend again? Got it?"

All Clint could do was nod his head and run off, crying like a baby as he ran. As I looked back to my defender, I feel an immense sense awe well up inside me. I talked. Few seconds more before breaking the silence.

"Damn AJ! You knocked him the fuck out! I swear every second that passes I become more and more glad I saved you this morning."

Applejack turned towards me, her face red, scratching the back of her head.

"It was nothing really. I just hate it when somebody thinks it's fun to pick on my friends is all."

"Nevertheless. Thanks for that. I could have done that myself but I feel like It's actually better this way. Come on. Lets get our food and eat."

"Alright." She replied, a smile plastered on her face.

After we grabbed our food, we found an empty table and sat down. Not far away was a tv that hung from the ceiling. On it often played music videos and celebrity news. Applejack must have been watching it when suddenly she spit out a bite of her sub and gasped.

"What is it?" I asked.

"Look at the tv." She replied, pointing at the monitor.

I looked up and on showed a girl with rainbow colored hair standing next to some guy in front of a sports car.

"Ok?" I asked, noticeably confused. "What am I looking at?"

"It's her Jay! It's Rainbow Dash!"

Author's Note

Sup. I just learned I can export goggle docs from my phone so hopefully this will mean quicker updates but we will just have to wait and see. I hope this chapter is enjoyed and I'll see you guys next time. Till then. Ttul. Later. /)

Chapter 6- Shots Fired

For the second time today she managed to surprise me.

“Say that one me time. I thought I just heard you say your friend was on the tv.”

“That’s exactly what I said!” Applejack retorted, her voice shaky with a mix of fear and surprise. “It said she’s with some guy that won a race in a place called ‘California’ I think? Is that around here?”

“Sorry AJ. But California is on the other side of the country. If we were gonna go out there it would take some time. We could drive, that being the cheaper option, which would take a week max. Or we could fly,-”

But before I could finish AJ cut me off.

“You humans can fly? But I thought you didn’t have magic and I haven’t seen a single person here with a pair of wings on their backs.”

“We fly in planes” I answered. “And even then we would need to book the flight in advance and have to wait for our scheduled date to arrive. which again could take as long as a week.”

The country girl dropped her head in dismay, tears beginning to run down her face. Once again I’m left without a clue as to what to say or do to make her feel better. However, before I could do anything, my phone began to ring. I let it go straight to voicemail, but it immediately starts ringing again. I look over at the sobbing Applejack, mouth the words ‘I’m sorry’ and walk away to answer the call.

As I reach the spot where me and AJ had met up only moments ago, I pull out my phone and answer.

“If you’re trying to pitch some bullshit timeshare to me just be aware that I am in no more for this type of shit. So please tell me what the hell is so damn important that you feel the need to blow up my FUCKING PHONE?!”

“Well, that surely is one way to answer a ‘life changing’ phone call, now is it Mister Marston? By the way, how are you today?”

The voice on the other line didn’t sound like a typical salesperson. Instead it sounded more like a poor impersonation of Hugo Weaving when he played Agent Smith in the Matrix movies. I was so taken aback by this that I instantly forgot that I was suppose to angry.

“I’m good. Who-” but once again, I’m cut off.

“You are probably wondering who I am and just how I have come to posses your number, correct, Mister Marston? Well, that is just not important.”

“Alright. Well then could you please give me a good reason why I shouldn’t just hang up and get on with my day?”

“How does the safety of your lady friend sound, hmm Mister Marston?”

Upon hearing this my temper flared once more. “Leave her the hell out of this!”

“Well then, I suppose that you just have no choice then, do you Mister Marston?”

“Talk.” I snapped.

“Please don’t be so cross with me. I mean to only make your life. If you happen to act upon it.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“As you just learned last night, your distant grandfather, John Marston, was a notorious bank robber. Correct?”

“How do you know that? Do you have my computer bugs?”

“I do believe that that point is mute. However, we now arrive at the purpose of this phone call. Within the next hour, you will receive a text message. In that message you will see an address in California. At that address you will be able to dig up something that some have searched for for numerous generations. You will also receive an email that will help you and your friend get there. Have a good day Mister Marston. Happy hunting.”

And with that the call ended. I was left speechless. Stunned,and awestruck, I walked back to the table, where Applejack was still distraught but had actually calmed done. As I sat down, AJ looked over at me, quietly trying to get a read on me. I looked up at her and spoke.

“AJ, I don’t know how credible this will be, but I think we may have a way to get us to California.”

“What do you mean?”

“Like I said. I don’t know how trustworthy this is but that phone call I just got, yeah, it had to do with my great-great-great-great grandfather. Let’s just say he wasn’t the greatest person in the world. But long story short I can get a lot of money, hoping this is real, as well as get you reunited with your friend. But I want your opinion. Should we trust this or would you be prepared to live with me until everything works itself out?”

“To be honest sugarcube, I think we should follow this lead. At least that way, even if this treasure is already gone, then we figure something else out. Ok?”

Despite having only know her for less than a day, I felt like Applejack was the only person in the world I could trust to not steer me wrong. I don’t know what it is but having her say that makes me confident that everything will be alright, regardless of the outcome. I took a deep breath and slowly let it out while locking eyes with her. I reached across the table and placed my hand on hers.

“Thanks AJ.” I said with a smile. “Come on, lets get out of here. I have to pack for whatever great adventure we’re about to get into.”

Applejack simply nodded, grabbed her bags and together we left the mall.

As we exited the building, my phone went off. When it did, AJ and I stopped, looked at each other, and I took it out of my pocket. I unlocked it and saw that I had just got a text message. The message read ‘go to the Race Of Death in Death Valley. Look for a warehouse with a giant cross on the roof. Enter and dig in the center. You inheritance lies buried there.’

“We have our location.” I said, looking up at AJ once I finished reading the message. However, before she could respond, I received an email as well. I opened the email and almost lost my balance as my whole body shook as a bone rattling shiver flowed through me.

See me almost fall to the ground, Applejack caught me.

“You ok?” She asked, fear written on her face. “What’s wrong?”

“I got an email with a plane ticket for two from Logan to LAX. And it leaves in 5 hours.”

“Ok. That sounds like good news. So why'd you almost fall over?”

“I just got a ‘Shits about to hit the fan’ level premonition shiver.”

Suddenly, from seemingly nowhere, several men dressed in black with sunglasses on began to come out of the woodworks. Seeing this, I immediately reached to the small of my back. However I cursed the moment I realized how screwed we were.

Hearing me cuss, AJ asked, “What’s wrong Jay?”

“When I say run, we sprint for my car.”

“What?! What’s going on?”

With that I looked her square in her emerald eyes.

“Do you trust me?” I asked, fear and rage mixing as I spoke. Without hesitation, she nodded. “Alright, ready?” Again the belle nodded. I pulled out my keys and hit the voice command button and whisper ‘Ignition.’ The moment I heard my car start up, I looked back up at my friend, and said the magic word.

“RUN!”

The moment we took off, the men drew guns from their waists. The fired as we ran for my car. As we went, I quickly hit the door buttons on the remote.

We reach the car, slamming the doors shut. I threw the vehicle into drive and floored the gas pedal, aiming to run some of them down as we drove off.

“Holy shit! I just had to leave my fuck pistol at home! I just FUCKING HAD TO!”

Author's Note

Hey everyone. I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please do tell me what you think of the story so far and how you feel about this latest chapter. I wanna hear what you have to say, but just don't be complete ass. Have tact when you tell me I suck. Please and thank you. Till next time, ttul. Later. /)

Chapter 7 - Fears and Plane Trips

Author's Note

Sorry for the long delay. Last week I didn't have access to a computer since the college in which I go to type was closed for spring break. I hope you all enjoy this one and though I've said it before but I'll say it again. Please tell me what you though of this chapter or on the story as a whole so far. All I ask is that you're respectful. Thanks and I think I'll be writing the rest of this from the top of my head from now on. So till next time, ttul. Later!/)

Chapter 7 - Fears and Plane Trips

As we sped off, Applejack sat in the passenger seat, tears rolling down her face. Besides her sobbing, the drive back to my house was silent.

Once we pulled into the driveway, I could bare it no longer. I threw open the door and went around to the other side of the car. Ripping open the passenger door, I reached down, unbuckled AJ and lifted her out of the vehicle. I then carried her inside, only putting her done when I reached the couch I had slept on the previous night. Sitting down next to her, I finally broke the fettering silence.

“Applejack,” I began, but was quickly cut off by my weeping guest as turned on me, wrapping me tight in her arms.

“I am so sorry Jay. I really am.”

“Why?” I asked, shocked by this sudden apology.

“It’s my fault Jay. Everything that’s happened is because of me.”

Pulling away slowly, I look at her face, trying to make eye contact, however she avoids my gaze.

“AJ, what makes you think this is all because of you?”

She took a deep breath and finally made eye contact.

“If it weren’t for me dropping into your life like I did earlier, none of this would have happened. I know how these things work. Somepony - someone - saw me fall last night. They called the people that handle that type of stuff and now they're after you because you’re protecting me. That’s got to be it. What else could it be?”

I let out a small chuckle, immediately garnering a look of annoyance from AJ.

“What’s so funny?” She snapped. “This is serious! They could show up any moment.”

“I doubt that.” I replied, squaring myself on the couch so that I was sitting on it properly. “I can tell you with 100% certainty that you are NOT the target here. And I can also tell you why then won’t try anything while we’re here.”

“Is that so? The do tell Mr. Smart Guy.”

“With pleasure my dear equine turned human. There not after you because I’m the one they want. Think about it, when did they show up?”

“As we were leaving the mall.”

“Exactly my dear AJ. And what happened of significance just prior to us leaving the mall?”

“You got that phone call. And those messages.”

“Precisely. The guy I spoke to told me that certain people had been searching for this loot for generations. And judging by the dress of those guys that shot at us, it either the government or some dirty organization.”

“Ok, so what’s stopping them from coming after us here?”

“Simple, the neighbors, and the high risk of collateral damage. Better to attack in an empty parking lot where only a few cars can get shot than on a public street where a little kid might get killed in the process. Not to mention we’re not exdefenseless here. And on that note, I have some stuff I need to put together before we go catch that flight to California.”

“What do you mean?”

“I need to pack a suitcase and find out what this ‘Race of Death’ thing is. So you just sit tight, and relax as I go get my stuff together. Ok?”

“Are you sure that we can trust the person that called you?”

“Nope,” I shrugged. “But what choice do we have but to run with it, right?”

AJ simply nodded, looking back to the floor. Before getting up, I gave her another quick hug, and left her side to go pack. According to the email containing the tickets we would be using for the flight, it would be on a private jet and that there would be no need for security to check our luggage upon departure or arrive. Hoping that the info was in fact legit, I began my packing. Figuring how the people chasing me and AJ had fired the first shots, then there was no point in holding back. It was time to serious.

Once I packed my clothes, I moved onto the firepower. I walked into my closet and removed a false wall, revealing a hidden gun safe. Inside housed everything from peashooters to automatic shotguns. Looking over my repertoire I came to a decision. I didn’t want loud, I wanted accuracy, and efficiency. So out of all my options I reached for my favorite. It was no other than a bolt action S&W rifle. Even without a scope, I could nail bullseye after bullseye.

I packed the rifle and almost a dozen fully loaded clips, as well as a dozen handgun clips into a duffle bag with a few more articles of clothing. As soon as the bag was packed, I walked over to my nightstand and opened it. I looked down at the handgun sitting the drawer, silently cursing at myself.

“If only I hadn’t left this behind. I could have protected her. Kept her safe. I’m such an idiot.” I said, reaching in and lifting it out. I inspected the firearm, opened the chamber. I had forgotten to unload it the last time I had taken it to the firing range, so it was still loaded. “But not again. I will protect her. I will help her. I promise you, Mom, I will.”

With that I tucked the gun in between my pants and the small of my back. Finally done with the packing, I walked out of my room and piled the bags up at the top of the staircase. Before I headed back down to see Applejack, I entered my computer room. I turned on the tower and waited for it to boot up. Once ready I searched for info on the “Race of Death” that the text message with the location in it mentioned. Turned out it was an annual professional street race that was held in the heart of Death Valley. One of the stars that would be attending was a previously retired racer by the name of Ryan Cooper. In his bio it was also mentioning that since his return to the pro street racing circuit, he’d been driving with a girl with rainbow colored hair and was simply noted as RD.

“That must the girl that AJ is looking for.” I thought out loud. Suddenly there was a knock from behind me. I turned to see my guest standing in the doorway, her face covered in dried tears. Looking at her now, in the state she was in, hardened my resolve to follow this to the end. No matter what. I once again I'm drawn to her eyes, their bright emerald hue that keeps sucking me in. But this time I don’t look away. Instead I get up and walk over to the girl, and wrap her in a tight embrace.

“I promise you AJ, I won’t stop till you find her. Even if it costs me my life.”

We separate, and as I look her in the face she simply nods, and with that, we leave the room. As we head down the stairs, I grab my luggage and we head downstairs. I add Applejack's clothes to the bag that doesn’t have my rifle, and with that done, we head out the door. Before I opened the doors to the vehicle, I couldn’t help but turn back toward my home. I had a feeling that this was the last time that I would see the place I’ve lived in for so many years. After a few moments of silence, I hit the button to open the doors. With the bags in the back seat and myself and AJ in the front, I backed out of the driveway and took off towards the airport.

Thankfully the drive to Logan Airport was uneventful. No suspicious cars followed us, no phone calls, nothing, just the music I had put on to help us clear our heads and calm us down. On the way there, AJ had fallen asleep in her seat, peacefully snoring quietly. For the first time since we had left the mall, she had a smile on her face. Seeing this, I couldn’t help but silently vow again to see this whole ordeal till the end. No matter what happened to me, she had to reunite with her friend. I don’t know why it had become so important me, but I couldn’t help it. There was something about this girl. Something that I had never experienced before with anyone else. All I know was that since she fell into my life, something suddenly clicked. I somehow felt complete with her around.

‘What the hell is wrong with me’ I thought. ‘I just met this girl less than twenty-four hours ago! Granted she fell from the sky. Naked. And I did have to save her before drowning. But I just don’t know why I feel so protective of her. It makes no goddamn sense! FUCK!’

I finally shook the thoughts out of my head for now and focused on the road. It wasn’t long after we arrived at the airport. Once I parked, I reached beside me and softly shook Applejack awake.

“What’s up sugarcube?” She asked sleepily.

“We’re here.” I replied, a stoic expression plastered on my face, fighting to not think on what I was pondering during the drive. I quickly shut the car off and reached into the back to grab one of the bags. As I got out, AJ grabbed the other one and followed suit. Once again, before walking away from the vehicle, I got the feeling that I was never gonna see it again. So I pulled the notepad I still had in my pocket and quickly wrote a note. Finished, I opened the drivers door once more and placed it on the dashboard, the text facing down. Walking away I locked the doors and just kept going.

“What did you write?” AJ asked as I walked past her.

“I wrote to have it delivered to my father’s house in Texas if I don’t make it back in a few weeks to claim it.”

“Why wouldn’t you be back?” She also asked, but I didn't reply. I just kept walking. Realizing I wasn’t gonna answer, she hurried back to my side, and out of no where, hooked my arm with her own. In silence, we entered the terminal, arm in arm, heading towards the unknown conclusion of this adventure.

Chapter 8 - The Calm Before the Storm

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

In The End, There Were Tears

Security had the terminal on lockdown as we landed in LAX. If it wasn’t for Coulson, Applejack and I may not have been able to sneak out. Luckily Coulson knew what was happening and had planned an escape route for us before we had even entered Californian air space. The moment the plane touched down, he hurried us out of the craft and into the car that he had waiting for us. From there, we were escorted off the property. We then drove away, unnoticed, out the back of the airport.

Tension was high as AJ and I followed Coulson’s escort that led the way to the hotel. Silence was all there was to listen to as we drove, sweat covering our bodies. All we could do was pray we were left alone as we drove.

We arrived at the hotel within a half hour. Coulson instructed us to head up to our room while he dealt with the staff. One we entered our room, which was luckily on the first floor and without windows, the noiseless atmosphere was broken. The moment I closed the door, Applejack wrapped me in a tight embrace.

“Jay,” She said, letting go of me and walking over to the single bed in the room and taking a seat, “I don’t know what in the hay is going on, but I’m scared.”

“I know AJ.” I replied, trying desperately to relax my own mind. “Coulson’s handling things at the front desk. All we can do now is wait for him to come back and tell us what the next move is.”
As I said this I remembered something Coulson had said prior to leaving Massachusetts. Quickly I scanned the room, frantically searching for the one thing that would help more than anything in the world right now. Finally I saw it resting in a corner on a counter. Surprised that it took me so long to find it as it stood out in the open like it was, I slapped myself if the forehead, which caught Applejack’s attention.

“What are you doing sugarcube?”

“Getting us some liquid relaxation.” I answered as I opened the mini fridge.

“How do you get ‘liquid relaxation’ from a box?”

“It’s a mini fridge, and I’m talking about booze.”

“Booze?”

I slap myself again. “You mean to tell me you don’t have alcohol in your world too?”

“Oh! Of course we do. But It’s mainly spiked apple cider.”

“Well how convenient, that’s exactly what we have to drink.” I say, pulling out four tall bottles of the golden fluid. “Want some?”

“You better believe I do!” AJ shouts, jumping off the bed and walking over to stand next to me as I open a cabinet and find a few freshly cleaned wine glasses. I take two of them out and fill them to the top. Handing her on, I lift mine into the air.

“A toast.” I proclaim, forcing a smile. My comrade looked puzzled at first but quickly understood and followed suit. “To friends that never should have met but fate and circumstance said ‘Fuck that!’ and to the imminent reunion of two friends that were separated by that same exact decision.”

And with that, AJ tapped my glass with her own and swallowed the liquid in a single gulp.

“Woo Wee, that’s some good cider!”

“Slow down AJ.” I said, taking a small, controlled sip from my own glass. “This isn’t a contest to see who can get plastered first.”

“Well who says it can’t?”

As she said this, a fire seemed to have been lit in her eyes, their emerald rings glowing brighter than ever before. I got trapped in those eyes, and after a few seconds, I shrugged and gave in.

“Ah what the hell.” I relented, downing the rest of my own glass before putting it in the sink and grabbing the open bottle by the neck and chugging a few mouthfuls.

From there, everything went black. The last thing I remembered upon waking up was that Coulson hadn’t checked in with us once.

I awoke to the sound of laughter. I was in the bed alone, with AJ sitting at the foot, watching TV. My eyes were way too clouded by tears and light to make out what was on the screen. Instead, I rolled out of the bed and walked into the bathroom, in which is where I made a heart stopping discovery.

“WHY THE FUCK AM I NAKED!” I shouted at the top of my lungs, quickly wrapping myself in a towel, and walking back out of the bathroom. At the sound of my scream, AJ had stopped laughing and met me halfway. That was when I realised something else. She was also wearing nothing at all. “Why the hell are we undressed?” I asked, then quickly I thought of why. “AJ, we didn’t? Did we?”

“Did we what sugarcube?”

“Did we fuck last night?” I said bluntly, trying my best to keep my eyes focused on her face and not her exposed body.

“I’ve got no clue Jay. All I know is that I woke up this morning wrapped in your arms. I wanted you to sleep more so I slipped out of your embrace, took a shower, and started watching TV.”

“You know what?” I said, my face red with embarrassment. “If we did, I don’t remember. And that’s good.”

“What’s that suppose to mean?” Applejack snapped, putting her hands on her hips. “You don’t think I would be a good lay? Am I not good enough for you?”

My face reddened further. “I’m not saying that at all! All I’m saying is that today may be goodbye and I don’t want to make it harder by having sex before that happens. So I’m gonna pretend that if it did happen, that it didn’t. That way there are no attachments, no feelings.”

At this AJ lost her angry look, instead she dropped her eyes and turned away from me.

“Oh,” she whispered, “I guess that makes sense.”

‘Is she upset?’ I thought to myself. ‘Why would she be upset by that? Unless…’

I slowly walked up behind the sad beauty, who was quietly crying, and wrapped my arms around her.

“AJ, I’m sorry. I didn’t think about that.”

She pushed me off with her elbows and turned back towards me.

“We’ve been through so much. I don’t want to think about a goodbye. Instead, I want you to come with me back to my world. Then you’ll never need to worry about anything ever again. You can help out on my family’s farm. We can pay you. You can even live with us until you earn enough to buy a place of your own. You can meet my friends. I know that y’all get along instantly! I just know it.”

“Applejack. As awesome as that sounds, my place is in this world. My friends, my family, everyone I ever knew and loved. I can’t just ditch them to go on a magical adventure to a mythical land of ponies and magic. I just-”

Suddenly a loud knock rang out from the door.

“Mr. Marston.” Coulson called through the door. ”You need to leave. The police just got a tip that you were spending the night here and are on the way. You have twenty minutes before they arrive. Hurry, get to the location in that text and get what’s yours. I wish you luck.”

With that, he was gone, footsteps quickly disappearing down the hall. AJ and I quickly shared a look at each other and instantly rushed to get dressed.

Within minute we were clothed and running for the stairs. Applejack was empty handed, however I had grabbed the bag with my rifle in it. I had also managed to secure my pistol in its home on the small of my back.

We sprinted down the stairs, bursting through a set of emergency doors at the bottom. The moment we were in the sunlight, a gun fired. Luckily, it hit the door. On instinct, I grabbed my handgun, identified who fired at us, and put him down with a shot to the heart. The gunner was dressed in the same clothes as the people that attacked back at the mall just days before.

“Jay!” AJ called, standing beside our car.

“Ya, right.” I answered, running over, opening the vehicle and hopping in, AJ jumping in as well.

I quickly threw the car into reverse and whipped out of the parking space. Once I was in the middle of the road, I slammed the car into drive and floored it. The moment we got on to the open road, four black sedans pulled behind us.

“Shit,” I cursed under my breath.

“Jay.” Applejack said, her eyes glowing like they did the night before. But before she could speak, a green flash filled the car, and in her lap laid a scroll. Before saying anything else, she ripped off the ribbon keeping it rolled up. She quickly read it, and once she finished she let out a quiet gasp.

“What’s that?” I asked, both trying to focus on the road and looking at her out of the corner of my eye.

“It’s from Princess Celestia! She’s gonna open a portal for me to go home through! Jay, I know you said no, but please come back to Equestria with me.”

“AJ, I-”

Before I could answer I saw a sign that read ‘Race of Death’ on it, and it read that to get there to take the next exit.

“Where is she opening the portal?”

“The first place we stop at.”

“Good, then hold on.” And with that I floored it, racing towards the location of the stash.

Suddenly there was a bright flash of yellow light and time stopped. A ring of gold energy floated in the air behind us, and out stepped a woman clad in brilliant white armor with gold trim, a sun emblazoned on her chestplate.

“Princess!” AJ shouted, running out from our hiding place.

“Hello Applejack. I wish we could talk but we need to go, now.”

“Right.” The cowgirl said. “Jay, this is your last chance. Please come with me.”

“You know AJ, I’d love to, but,” I replied, standing up, my hand over my chest. “However, I don’t think I’ve got very long left.” And with that, I stumbled out from our cover, and fell to the ground. Everything suddenly went dark, and all I could hear was Applejack screaming my name.

‘I’m sorry AJ. I really am.”

And with that, everything went silent, and all that was left was a single tear hitting the ground.

Author's Note

And with that, I conclude 'Seeds of Redemption'. I hope you all enjoyed. Let me know in the comment below. And till next time. Ttul. Later! /)

(Optional) Epilogue- Still Here

Author's Note

This chapter is for those who wanted a happier ending. I hope you enjoy it and please tell me how you liked it. Thanks guys. Whether you loved the old ending or not, thank you for reading and i hope you enjoy my future works. I love you all. Ttul. Later/)

(Optional) Epilogue- Still Here

‘I wonder how long it will take for AJ to forget about me?’ I thought as my body floated around in an empty abyss of silence and nothingness. ‘I really do wish I had taken her up on her offer and gone with her. Life back home sucked anyway. Really, no one would miss me anyway. Sure, I owned everything I could have ever wanted, and I had the means to get whatever came around that I would want as well. But I never got what I needed. The intangible things. No real friends, no family. And, no real love.’

As this thought crossed my mind, I was overcome by a deep, overwhelming feeling of sadness and loneliness.

‘I was never anything more than a toy.’ I continued to think, tears beginning to well up in my eyes. ‘Granted it was always fun while it lasted, but that’s just it. It never lasted. Then she came into my life…’

The moment I thought of that night Applejack and I first met, an emerald flash filled the void. And there, off in the distance floated the girl that fell into my life, changing it forever, even if I hadn’t realized it till it was too late.

I tried calling out to her, but the words caught in my throat. I tried reaching out, but my ethereal limbs refused to move.

“Applejack!’ I thought, tears now flowing freely down my face. ‘I don’t want to die. I don’t want to be forgotten. I want to come with you! I want to meet your friends, your family! I don’t care if I’m the only human living in a world populated by magical, talking ponies! I want, no. I NEED YOU IN MY LIFE!’

As if I spoke some magic phrase, I was suddenly enveloped in the brilliant green light. Moments passed, and the light slowly gave way to the darkness once more. However the perpetual silence that once prevailed began to give way to the rise of random noise. But as it grew louder, I quickly realized the noise wasn’t random. They were voices.

I tried to open my eyes and have a look around, but when the darkness didn’t give way, I began to panic.

‘Am I alive?’ I thought as I began to thrash around a bit. However I suddenly felt a light pressure being placed on my shoulder. But it couldn’t have been a hand, there were no fingers. Yet I began to relax all the same. The feeling was pleasant, comforting even. I felt at ease. I tried to speak again, this time managing little more than a muffled mumble.

“Twi!” Shouted a voice from right next to me. “Twilight! Get in here, ah think he’s comin’ round.”

For some odd reason the voice seemed familiar, but I just couldn’t put my finger on who it could belong to. I tried to speak once more, this time I was able to get out a low whisper.

“I can’t see. Why can’t I see.’

“Oh,” said a different voice, this one coming from the opposite side of the first. “That’s because we put a sleeping mask on you so that you could get some rest while you recovered.”

“Recovered?” I asked, my voice gradually growing stronger as I relaxed more and more. “So, I’m not dead?”

“Nope,” said the familiar voice. “We were able to get you to the hospital fast enough to get ya all fixed up. You’re as good as new.”

“Bringing you here was made easier after you had finished changing. I was afraid the spell wasn’t gonna work but I’m relieved it did.” Announced the other voice.

“Changing?! Spell?! Just what happened to me?” I shouted as I began to panic again.

“Calm down there partner, it’ll be easier to show ya rather than to tell ya.” The familiar voice said, which now sounded like she was right in front of me, filling my nose with the smell of...apples? “Just let me get this here blindfold off ya.”

As the mask was removed, my eyes were blinded by a flood of fluorescent light. Seconds passed, and after much blinking, my eyes had fully adjusted. As soon as I didn’t need to squint, I took in my surroundings.

It was as the voices had said. there I was, lying in a hospital bed, the sheets pulled up to my chin. As I glanced to my sides, I finally came face to face with my visitors. One of them was lavender colored unicorn. The other was an orange pony wearing a cowboy hat. I thought that the hat wearing one looked familiar, but I dismissed it.

“Are you, ponies?” I asked, looking for confirmation that I wasn’t imagining what I was seeing.

“Well duh sugarcube. I did say that that’s what I was when we first met.” Replied the normal pony.

‘Sugarcube?!’

“AJ?” I asked the orange one, my voice shaking in disbelief. “Is that, is that really you?”

“Sure is.” Applejack answered, tipping her stetson in confirmation.

At this point my mind was running a mile a minute as I tried to process everything. However, my train of thought derailed just as fast as I recalled a detail that was forgotten by me and AJ's reunion.

“You said that you used a spell to change me? What did you mean by that?”

“It’s like Applejack said, it would be much easier to show than to tell.” The unicorn replied.

With that, a purple aura appeared around her horn and out of no where, a mirror popped into existence. She then hovered it in front of me, and what I saw staring back at me left me speechless. My reflection wasn’t that of a human anymore. Instead, it was a light brown pony with a darker brown mane with black tips. I quickly threw off the blanket further revealing I had a pony body as well.

'Earth pony?' I thought to myself.

“You turned me into a pony?”

“Yup.” AJ chimed in. “Twilight here is a real wiz when it comes to magic, more so than any other unicorn in all of Equestria. Ah wouldn’t be surprised if she became as good as either Princess Luna or even Princess Celestia!”

“Now I wouldn’t go that far Applejack.” Twilight said, her face growing darker with embarrassment. “It’s like I said. I wasn’t even sure if the spell would work. I was changing the genetic and physical properties of a living being.”

“When none of that fancy science stuff matters cause it work!” AJ retorted, a smile splitting her face as she looked at me. “Ah do wish that ya didn’t take so long to wake up though.”

I turned my head towards the cowpony and cocked an eyebrow at her.

“Whatcha talking about Applejack? Just how long was I out for?”

“‘Bout five months. Give or take a day or two.”

“FIVE MONTHS!” I shouted, stopping a pony it their tracks as they walked passed my room’s open door.

“Yeah,” Twilight said, raising a hoof to scratch the back of her head. “You passed out from blood loss just before Princess Celestia transported you through the portal. Once on this side, we tried to heal your wounds, but our magic wasn’t working. We believed that it was because you weren’t a pony. So I cast a transformation spell on you. Once you changed, we were able to stop the bleeding and brought you here to recover.”

“I see.” I said as I went back to processing everything. “Twilight was it? I’m feeling a bit tired and I was wondering if it would it be alright if I spoke to AJ alone? I want to talk to just her before I go back to sleep.”

“Of course.” Twilight said with a smile. “You two talk, and I’ll see you in the morning. Now that you’re conscious I would like to run some tests on you just to make sure everything is working the way it should before you get discharged. Have a good night I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Alright, see you in the morning Twilight.”

“Night Twi!”

As Twilight left the room, she closed the door behind her, leaving me alone with Applejack.

“AJ,” I began, “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

“I left you alone, for five months. And we didn’t even find your friend.”

“Ah, its alright sugarcube. As a matter of fact, a few weeks after we got here, the Princess was able to find RD and bring her home. And on top of that, a month or so after, the human that was taking care of her somehow managed to make his way here too. Even turned into a pony without the use of a spell. Twilight’s even more curious ‘bout that. So in the end, everything turned out alright. Ok sugarcube?”

“Yeah,” I said as I felt my eyelids grow heavy. “Hey, AJ?”

“What’s up?”

“Thank you, for coming into my life.”

“No problem Jay. Now you go ahead and close your eyes and get some sleep. We have a long day tomorrow. We need to come up with a new name for ya.”

‘Ha, a new name?’ I thought as my eyes closed once more. ‘A new name for a new start. I think I might just come to love it here sooner than later. As long as she’s by my side.’

And just as I was taken by sleep’s welcoming embrace, I felt Applejack rest her head on my chest, and I never felt more at home.