A HARD DAYS WORK
by GeodesicDragon
As I looked out over the field before me, I knew that I had made the wrong choice in agreeing to help. The task which lay in store seemed monumental, and I was only one man. But at least I could take solace in the fact I had somepony to help me out. Perhaps then the task wouldn't be as hard as I thought.
"All right John," Big Mac said as he approached me, "y'all know that we had a family of moles move in the other day. Now Fluttershy has done her job and got 'em ta leave, but now we have ta clean up the mess the little critters made. That's where you come in."
He pointed towards the barn, where a shovel and a wheelbarrow were leaning against the side of it. With a nod I went and retrieved the objects, putting the shovel in the barrow and wheeling it back to where Mac was standing.
"All ya gotta do," he continued, "is shovel the dirt from the molehills into the barrow. Once ya have a full load, simply take it over to tha river and dump it nearby. Last rainfall we had destroyed some of the riverbank, which helps ta prevent flooding. But Ah can only fix it if Ah have some dirt to put down."
I nodded again and Mac clapped me on the shoulder with a hoof. I returned the gesture, still working out in my head how long it was going to take me to clear the fifty plus molehills I could count.
"Ah'll let ya get on with it now John," Mac said as he started to walk away, "come an' find me when yer done."
I spun around on the spot, dropping the shovel into the barrow with a loud clang.
"You're not helping me?" I asked, "But... this'll take forever!"
Mac shrugged.
"Sorry pardner," he said sheepishly, "but Ah've got apple trees that need buckin'. Maybe ya can get somepony else ta help? But be quick about it — Rainbow Dash tells me there's more rain comin', and Ah want ta get that riverbank fixed sharpish. If it collapses, then we're gonna get flooded — an' Ah don't think AJ or Granny Smith would like that very much, do you?"
I shook my head and sighed. I had gone to a lot of effort to buy the farm, and I wasn't prepared to let that happen. Applejack was my wife, and I'd be damned if I was going to let our home and livelihood be ruined due to me complaining about having to shift a few poxy molehills.
That said I still couldn't do it on my own, so I tied the laces on my boots and took a quick jog into town. As far as I was concerned, there was only one man who could help me with this.
***
"Remind me again why I'm here?"
"Because Ace was busy, and you weren't." I replied. "Now quit slacking Geo, and pick up a shovel!"
Geo grumbled under his breath and picked up a shovel. We both went to opposite ends of the field and started working. Much to our dismay, the sun had baked the dirt into a hard crust. This made shifting it just that little bit more tedious.
No words were spoken and for a while the only sounds we could hear were the chirping of birds, our own laborious grunting, the occasional whack of hoof on bark and the dull clang of hard dirt hitting the wheelbarrow.
Since I really hate long periods of silence, I decided to engage Geo in conversation. I've often found that hard work is a lot better to bear when you're talking to someone.
"Hey Geo," I said nonchalantly, "do you ever find yourself thinking about death?"
Geo stopped working for a moment and looked at me, a look of sheer bewilderment on his face.
"Not really." he muttered, "I find it hard to contemplate my own mortality. I just focus on life in the here and now. And as long as that life is with Twilight, I have nothing to fear. That way when the Reaper does finally come knocking I'll welcome him with open arms, for I'll know I lived my life to its fullest potential."
"I learned to accept my death while I was in MI6." I replied, "Because I did undercover work with some less-than-savoury individuals, I always ran the risk of being exposed and killed."
"And yet here you are," Geo replied, "fit as a fiddle, living in a land of peace and tranquillity, wondering when you're going to die."
"We all die eventually." I said, "From the moment we are born, we're dying. I know my time will come eventually, but it's what happens afterwards that I think about the most."
"Do you believe in the afterlife?" Geo asked.
I shrugged.
"I have heard some ponies talk of one," I replied, "where you are forever young and can do whatever you want. And get this... apparently Luna is in charge of it."
"I can believe that." Geo said, "I was talking to Dusk Wind the other day and he told me that Luna's Night Court doesn't get a lot of visitors. So it would make sense for her to want something else to do... other than invade everypony's dreams."
We both shuddered, remembering occasions when Luna had intruded on some... rather personal dreams we'd been having. Even now, several months after it happened, she still can't bring herself to look me in the face without giggling like a little filly.
"Anyway," Geo said, "back on track. Why are you asking me this all of a sudden? I had no idea you were so... philosophical."
I chuckled heartily.
"I dunno," I replied, "I guess I just wanted to see how others thought about the subject. But if everypony believes in an afterlife, then I guess I can start believing too. At least then I'll have something to look forward to when I go."
Geo nodded.
"Me too," he said, "because I hate the thought of 'eyes closed and that's it for eternity'. Hell, if an afterlife means I get to spend more time with my friends and family, then I say bring it on."
"Don't jinx yourself," I muttered as I gestured towards the remaining molehills, "because you still need to help me clean up this lot. So don't go dying on me just yet."
We both laughed and resumed our work.
***
The sun was beginning its slow descent into the horizon by the time we had finished. Our bodies screamed in agony, but we had completed the task we had been given. The grass was now free of molehills, and a sizeable mound of dirt had accumulated next to the riverbank, ready for Mac to fix it.
Putting the tools back, I thanked Geo for his help and watched him hobble back into town. I went back to the farmhouse and removed my boots, which I could have sworn had been black when I started instead of the dark brown they now were.
I left them by the door and went inside, my nose filling with the smell of a freshly-baked apple pie. Entering the kitchen, I saw that the table had been set for dinner, and Applejack was putting down plates for everyone. I walked up to her and laid a hand on her head, running my fingers through her mane.
"Howdy darlin'," she said cheerfully, "Ah saw the mighty fine work you an' Geo did on the field. Mac reckons he's got more than enough dirt there ta repair the damage to the riverbank, an' Ah reckon ya have earned a slap-up feed."
I smiled and sat down at the table.
"Ah saw the two of you talkin' while ya worked." Applejack said, "Were ya discussin' anything interestin'?"
"We were discussing the possibility of an afterlife," I replied, "and what happens when we die."
Applejack turned around and looked at me.
"There is an afterlife," she said sternly, "there ain't no 'possibility' about it. Both mah folks are there."
"I never said I didn't believe in it," I said defensively, "I said that we were discussing the possibility of one existing. On our world, the afterlife is usually something associated with religion. Some people believe in it and others don't. But here in Equestria it would seem that such an afterlife does exist."
Applejack nodded.
"Ah know it exists," she said, "because Ah've seen it in mah dreams. The other night, I was dreamin' about our folks, and how much Ah missed them. Then Princess Luna appeared and said that I could tell them that myself."
I nodded in understanding and took one of Applejack's forehooves in my hands.
"Ah thought she was part of the dream but she told me she wasn't, and that she could see into everypony's dreams. Heck, she told me about the dreams you had. Now Ah know why she keeps laughin' every time she sees ya."
She giggled at the volcanic blush which had crept onto my cheeks.
"Anyway," she continued, "she took a hold of me and whisked me away in a flash of light. When it faded, Ah found mahself here, at the farm... and then Ah saw my parents."
She wiped her eyes with her other forehoof.
"At first they though Ah'd died, and that Luna was bringing my spirit to the afterlife. But she told them I was actually dreaming. We spent the rest of the night reminiscing about old times. Ah woke up feelin' happier than Ah'd ever felt before."
I couldn't help but grin at the adorable smile she was wearing.
"If I had heard this from anypony but the Element of Honesty," I said, "I'd have thought they were crazy. But hearing you say it means that it has to be true."
Applejack nodded again and I brought her in for a hug.
"In that case," I whispered, "I would be more than happy to spend both this life and the next with you by my side."
"Likewise darlin'," Applejack whispered back, "likewise."
A comfortable silence fell across the kitchen as we remained in each others embrace. But at least I had closure.
I also had the knowledge that I'd be spending all of eternity with the mare I loved more than anything in the world.
Not a bad end to a hard days work...
