I Once Was Lost, But Now Am Found

A nasty storm had come in since the events on the farm about 4 hours earlier. At that point Apple Bloom was running as fast as she could through the streets of Ponyville with tears streaming down her face that mixed with the rain water.

She sped down a residential lane before seeing her destination in front of her: A two story white house at the end of the street. She took a deep breath before sprinting with all of her remaining strength to get there………..

Paul was sitting peacefully inside his home, enjoying a bowl of popcorn while he watched an old Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner cartoon. He laughed at how the coyote’s continued efforts to capture the Road Runner were met with implausible failure and plummeting off a cliff.

All of a sudden he heard a loud banging noise on the front door. He immediately looked over at the door and spoke aloud, “Who the hell could that be at this hour?” He muttered as he picked the bowl of popcorn up off of his lap and set it to the side. He grumbled to himself before getting up off the couch and walking over to a nearby closet.

He opened the closet door and reached in for a box with a combination pad lock on it and spun the lock wheels until the read “665” and the lock gave way. ‘Neighbor of the beast’ Paul thought to himself as he opened the box and pulled out a Heckler & Koch VP70. He pressed the mag release button on it, causing the magazine to pop out in order to check the ammunition level.

‘18 rounds, full mag’ He thought before slapping the mag back into the pistol. He racked the slide chambered a round. He walked to the door making sure to keep his gun just out of sight. He quickly grabbed the doorknob and opened the door to be greeted to the sight of Apple Bloom, soaked to the bone with eyes red from crying.

“Jesus Christ! Apple Bloom what the hell happened?” He gasped as he quickly tucked his gun into the back of his pants and led her inside. “What are you doing running around in this weather? You’re gonna catch your death of pneumonia.” He expressed fear for her well-being as he went to the bathroom and brought back a towel to start drying her off with.

“Ah...Ah got into it with Applejack.” She informed him tearfully just as he finished drying her off.

“Shit.” Paul mumbled to himself before he saw Apple Bloom getting worked up some more.

“Hey, hey, hey, it’s alright. I’m here.” He cooed her softly, hugging her while slowly rocking her back and forth, causing her sobbing to settle. “Everything’s going to be fine. Listen, I’m going to make some coffee to warm you up? That sound good?” He asked comfortingly to her. She silently and slowly nodded at his suggestion.

“Alright, I’ll be right back.” He told her with a smile as he got up and went to the kitchen. He pulled out can of coffee grounds and put some in his coffee maker before adding the water and turning on the machine.

About 5 minutes past before he came back to the living room with two mugs of hot coffee and handed one to Apple Bloom.
Apple Bloom sniffled briefly as she spoke, “Thanks Paul.” She thanked him before taking the cup and sipping from the hot beverage.

“No problem. Just call me Jaun Valdez.” He said with a smirk. “Now what exactly happened?” he asked sitting down next to her.

“After yah left the farm, after that explosion….”

“Explosions.” He smiled, correcting her.

“Yeah. Applejack and ah started arguing about what yah were doin’. She said that yah were a bad influence on me. Ah told her she had no right tah be making you do five times the work that everypony else does on the farm and it went back and forth from there. Ah don’t remember specifically but at some point ah ran out of there and towards town. Until ah got here that is.” She informed him.

Paul sighed deeply, “I told you not to confront her about that. This is exactly why.” He said to her.

“Ah know, but the way she was going on about you just got muh blood boilin’.” She replied as tears started to return to her eyes.

“I know Applejack is being unreasonable about all this, and as much as I would like to paint her with broad strokes, I know she’s doing this because she cares about you and doesn't want you to get hurt.” He replied, patting her back.

“The only one who’s hurting me is her.” She wept.

“Look…...This’ll work itself out at some point. I’ll admit I haven’t been helping the situation.”

“That’s puttin’ it mildly.” She said with small smile coming to her face.

“ANYWAY……” he said redirecting the conversation. “This is gonna sort itself out. Now….Fight or no fight, your family’s probably worried sick about you. I’m going to give ‘em a call and let them know you’re alright.” He told her, getting off of the couch and starting to walk to the kitchen.

“What if Applejack answers?” She said worriedly.

“Then I’ll handle it….PROPERLY.” He said, making sure to emphasize the last word.

He walked over to the phone in the kitchen and picked up the receiver. He promptly dialed the number for Sweet Apple Acres. The phone rang for a few moments before the other side picked up.

“Apple Residence.” A masculine voice answered.

‘Thank god, it’s Mac.’ Paul thought before speaking. “Hey Mac? It’s me, Paul. Listen, Apple Bloom just showed up on doorstep about 10 minutes ago. Said she had a fight with Applejack not too long after I left.”

“Eeyup. It was quite an argument. Applejack’s been worried sick since Apple Bloom took off. Looks like she’s really regretting what she said.” The red stallion on the line said.

“Yeah, well I know I’m the source of the problem in this case. I told Apple Bloom not to confront AJ about making me work every day of the week and then I go and blow up half of the orchard in attempt to subconsciously get back at her. I really need to learn to pick my battles.” Paul replied.

“Eeyup.” Mac replied.

“By the way, sorry about all that. Though you gotta admit it was kind of cool.” Paul said.

“Eeyup.” Mac replied.

“Listen…….I think AJ and Apple Bloom could stand to spend the night apart. Let them cool down a bit before they see each other again. She can stay over here for the night and I’ll take her to school in the morning.”

“Ah was thinkin’ the same thing.” Mac replied. “Make sure you take care of her, yah hear?”

“Aye aye, skipper.” Paul replied.

“Well ah gotta tend to AJ. Ah suppose ah’ll be seein’ yah tomorrow.” Mac replied with a chuckle.

“Yeah, and everyday afterwards.” Paul replied in the same manner. “Night Mac.” Paul said.

“Night Paul.” Mac replied before he hung up.

Paul put the receiver back on the phone before walking back over to where Apple Bloom was sitting.

"So who was it?" She asked after taking a sip of her coffee.

"Your brother. Apparently Applejack's been feeling real bad about whatever was said between you two."

"Yeah. Well, Ah'm not feelin' too good about what ah said to her as well." She said remorsefully.

"Well I talked to Mac. He and I agreed that you should stay over here tonight. That sound good?" He asked.

"Yeah......yeah Ah'd like that." She said with a small smile.

"Good. Well… you hungry? I have some macaroni and cheese I made up yesterday?" He offered.

"Yes, please." She replied with a smile.

"I guess we can get that book report done while we eat." He added in, going into the kitchen to get the food.

"Aw shoot! Ah totally forgot about that! How we gonna get it done in time!?" She said.

"It's alright. I've read the book I've chosen already. It'll be fun to read it with you. Won't be a problem to get done."

"What's the book?" She asked.

One of my favorite: Neuromancer. It'll have a lot of unfamiliar stuff in it but I'll guide you through it." He replied going to his bookshelf and retrieving the copy. “Which is good because it has a lot of tech-speak in it.”

“Tech-speak?” Apple Bloom inquired.

“Terminology about human technology. Not to mention the references to the Cold War.”

“What’s that?” She asked

“I’ll tell you when we get to it. Don’t forget we still need to write a summary paper on this.” He said with a grin

“Alright….” She replied, accepting his reasoning.

“Well let’s get reading and writing.” He said with a smile, sitting down next to her with the book as the two began to read………

2 and a half hours later……..

“Well…...that was certainly an interesting book.” Apple Bloom expressed her thoughts of the book as they put the finishing touches on the report.

“Now you can see why it’s one of my all-time favorites.” Paul said with a grin.

“Is your world anything like the book?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Not to the degree presented. I mean my world is highly interconnected through cyberspace via the internet but you can’t actually go inside cyberspace like in the book and you can’t save your mind onto a hard disk….at least not yet. Science Fiction has the funny habit of turning into reality in some form or another back home.” Paul said.

“Wow. Your world sounds really interesting.” Apple Bloom said with a sense of awe.

“Yeah, it is. I wish you could see it…...I wish I could see it again.” He said with pause as a look of slight sadness spread over his face for a moment.

“Paul? You okay?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Hmmm?” He broke from his thoughts for a moment then nodded. “Oh yeah, I’m fine...just a little reflection.” He replied before deeply inhaling. “So! Now that’s done with, how ‘bout a movie?” Paul said masking his previous feelings with a wide smile.

"Sure....that's sounds fun." She replied.

"Alrighty then." He said as he got up and walked over to the entertainment center. He promptly opened a cabinet and brought out a Blu-Ray container labelled "Pulp Fiction".

"What's the movie?" She inquired.

"Pulp Fiction." He replied. "It's an anthology of stories surrounding a group of people over the course of a couple of days." He said as he turned on the TV and inserted the disc into his player.

"Sounds interesting." She replied

"You don't know the half of it. You're in for quite a ride." He said as he sat down next to her as the movie began to play.

"Marvin..What do you make of all this?"

"Man I don't even have an opinion."

"Well you gotta have an opinion! I mean do you think that God came down from heaven and stopped..." *BANG!*

At that moment Apple Bloom's eyes were wide with horror while Paul was laughing his head off at Marvin's unfortunate fate.

"OHH! What the fuck's happening!? Oh shit!"

"Oh man I shot Marvin in the face."

"Why the fuck did you do that!?"

"How can you find this funny!?" Apple Bloom yelled as she shook. "Ah mean some pony just had their head blown off!"

"I'm guessing Equestria isn't big on dark comedy." Paul said as he continued to laugh.

"What's that?" She asked.

"It means you find humor in situations that normally would not be considered funny. Like this." He said

"Ah don't get it." She said

"Just keep watching, it'll come to you." He said as they settled back down and continued watching.

"Oh you ready to blow?"

"Yeah I'm ready to blow."

"Well I'm a mushroom cloud laying motherfucka, Motherfucka! Every time my fingers touch brain, I'm superfly TNT! I'm the Guns of the Navarone! In fact! What the fuck am I doing back here!? You the motherfucka that should be on brain detail! We fucking switchin'! I'm washing the windows and you pickin' up this nigga's skull!"

At that Apple Bloom gave a stifled laugh.

"Was that a chuckle I heard?" Paul said playfully while nudging her.

Apple Bloom blushed bright red at this. "N..No!" She stuttered.

"God you Apples are terrible liars." He said with a grin before nuzzling her cheek and giving her little kisses.

“Ah am not!...Stop that!" She giggled as she got more flustered from his teasing.

"Admit it. You found it funny." He said playfully as he continued to tease her.

"No! Ah.......don't...hmm.." Her voice fell to a whisper.

"Say it.....you like dark humor don't you?" He said with a low voice.

"N.....yes. Yes!" She said with a squeak.

"Told you." He said his voice going back to his normal tone as he backed away from here with a smile on his face.

"Wh...wha?" It was like she was coming out of a trance.

"Knew I'd weasel it out of you. I always make 'em talk." He said with a smirk.

"Yah're such a tease!" She suddenly yelled while beginning to push him.

'Uh oh. Looks like I pissed her off. Gotta pull damage control.' He thought before coming to a snap decision.
He immediately pressed his lips to hers. In that instant her eyes grew wide as she saw him kiss her with his eyes closed before her own eyes shut themselves.

The two felt the electricity flow between them as their tongues intertwined. Apple Bloom quietly moaned into the kiss as they continued their waltz of the tongues.

Paul slowly pulled his lips away as their eyes slowly opened. "Better?” He asked with a smile.

"Yeah.....never better." She whispered, her irritation completely vanished along with her worries about herself and Applejack. "Never better."

"Good..." Paul said softly with a smile. "Well, we should finish the movie." He said with an awkward chuckle.

"Yeah..." She responded with the same awkward chuckle.

"Now Yolanda! Yolanda! He ain't gonna do a goddamn motherfucking thing! Vince, SHUT THE FUCK UP!"

"So.....what do you think?" Paul asked as he shut off the TV.

"Ah'll admit....it was… kind of funny." She replied with a small smirk.

"There we go.” Paul said with a smile before he looked at his watch. “11:28 P.M.” the digital watch read. “Whelp…” he said as he stood up with a yawn. “Time to hit the sack. Got to get up for school tomorrow.”

“Oh…..where should ah sleep?” she said

“I have a guest room down that short hallway. In my old house it was my older brother’s room until he moved away.” He said as he led her towards it. He opened the door and turned on the light. The room looked just like it did the day he left his home, the bed in the middle, dresser to the left, bookshelf in the back with all his old books that he left behind, and rack of CDs filled with old games and music long forgotten by Kyle.

“We didn't really get along much when we were kids. Of course what can you expect when you’re both six years apart from each other, you know?” He said with a weak chuckle. “He moved to San Francisco when I was 12. He always loved that place, so it figures that’s where he would want to go to college.”

Apple Bloom continued to listen as Paul spoke. As he did she noticed that the look of sadness from earlier was coming back.

“Been a long time…..very long time….” he said trailing off and sniffing. “Anyway!” He said aloud, going back to his old mood. “It’s all made up and ready to go. So I guess this is good night Angel Face.” He told her with a smile, slightly blushing.

“Yeah…..” Apple Bloom said, blushing as well. “Goodnight.” She said as he began to walk out of the room. “Paul.” She called to him, causing him to halt for a moment before looking back at her. “Are yah sure yer okay?” She asked.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. Just probably got something in my eye. That’s all. I’m good.” He said with a small smile.

“Okay…Night.” She said apprehensively

“Night AB.” He muttered before shutting off the light and walking out of the room.

Apple Bloom sighed for a moment before taking off her shirt and pants which she set on the nightstand. She then got under the blankets on the bed and lay there for a few minutes.

She thought about the sadness that Paul had tried to conceal from her. She still worried about him even though it had been 2 years since he had arrived in Equestria. At the same time she listened to the rain fall outside the window door leading to the deck. The continuous sound of raindrops colliding with the deck and the house slowly but surely caused to fall into slumber……..

Hours Later……….

Apple Bloom flew awake as a flash of lightning tore across the sky followed by a loud ‘CRACK! BOOM!’ of thunder. She looked around for a few moments as she calmed herself down.

Her breathing slowed but she thought she had heard something else beside the thunder and lightning. It almost sounded like… crying?

Apple Bloom got out of bed wearing only her undershirt and panties. She kept quiet as she walked out of the room, down the short hallway and into the entryway where the stairs were. As she listened, the crying she heard was coming from upstairs. ‘Is that...Paul?’ She thought.

Slowly she climbed the stairs and entered the door on her right leading to a bedroom. Within, she walked past a computer desk and a bathroom to see a large bed on which Paul lay, softly sobbing.

“Paul?” She almost whispered.

At that moment Paul quickly looked up and saw her standing at the foot of his bed. “Apple Bloom!” He gasped, trying to quickly compose himself. “What..uhh...what are you doing up here?”

“The bad weather woke me up. Are yah alright?” she asked with concern in her voice.

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine.” He lied.

“Paul, ah’m an Apple. Ah can spot when someone ain’t tellin’ me the truth.” She said with a hint of reprimand before going back to a soft voice. “What’s the matter?” She asked softly as she walked over next to him and sat down.

He quickly dropped the act at that point. “I…..I miss them Apple Bloom. I miss my family. I miss my mom, my dad, my brother, my cousins, my grandparents, my friends. Everybody.” He said, nearly in a whisper, as tears began to roll down his face once again.

“I just wish I could see them again. Everyday feels like a dream that I’m just going to wake up from and be back home in my bed.” He said, sniffing all the while. “But I never do wake up.”

Apple Bloom reached over and pulled him into a hug as she gently rocked him back and forth. “It’s alright Paul.” She said softly. “Ah’m sure the Princesses are gonna find a way tah let yah see yer folks again.” She comforted him before thinking of something. “Yer not alone here. Yah got Joe, yah got muh friends, Big Mac, and the rest of the ponies in town as well.” She said before pausing. “Yah also got me. That’s somethin’ ain’t it?” She asked as she looked into his eyes.

Paul sniffed a bit before a small smile came over his face. “Yeah…….yeah that is something.” He said as he began to feel a bit better.

Apple Bloom smiled at him as she continued to hold him.

“Could you stay here with me tonight?” He asked softly

“Of course sugarcube.” She replied, giving him a small kiss before she climbed into the bed and underneath the blankets.
Moving over she wrapped her hooves around Paul’s waist as she squeezed him and gave him another kiss. “Ah love you, sugarcube.” She whispered softly.

A tired smile came over Paul’s face as he replied. “I love you too Angel Face.” Before the two fell asleep in each other’s embrace.........