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MadMaxtheBlack


Too much to write; too little time

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Sep
28th
2014

Your Human and You: Beast of Burden · 11:10pm Sep 28th, 2014

As stated in the previous blog, this is a incomplete prologue to a YHaY-verse side story (kinda). It was written sometime last summer and is in the rough, rough draft stage, and probably won't be worked on for a while, but I'll share it nonetheless.

It's told from Applejack's perspective.


        I hummed happily to myself as water trickled down my face and onto my back, slowly washing away the dirt that had accumulated on my body over the course of the workday. Applebucking could always cause a gal to work up a sweat, but I didn’t mind. I was always happy when I came home sore, tired, and with the apple trees a little lighter than they were earlier in the morning.

        Picking up the shampoo bottle, I squeezed some onto my hoof and absentmindedly began to scrub the stuff into my mane, working up a good lather. The smell of citrus slowly filled the bath room; the scent coming from my shampoo. I couldn’t help but inhale deeply, enjoying the smell.

        I smirked as the smell reminded me of when I had bought the shampoo earlier in the month. Rarity had looked at me like I was crazy. I had calmly and patiently explained to her that even though my family’s entire livelihood revolved around apples, it doesn’t mean that everything I buy had to as well. I like a little variety in my aromas. Several weeks of smelling nothing but apples could drive a mare crazy.

        Moving my hooves down from my mane, I slowly began to work the shampoo into my coat, massaging my muscles in small circular motions. I winced slightly as I hit a particularly sore spot. I had got it earlier when an apple had fallen out of the tree and hit me in the shoulder. It wasn’t a big bruise, but it was tender nonetheless.

        Rubbing the spot slowly, I let my mind slowly drift back to the activities of the day. Applebucking season was in full swing, and we had a bigger crop this year than any other year before. We had all of our able-bodied humans out working the field, yet we were barely making a dent. We had been bucking for over a week now, and we weren’t even nearing the halfway mark. The very thought brought a smile to my face.

This is going to be a good year, I thought as the soapy suds were washed off my coat. We’re not only going to make a profit, but we’ll have enough apples left over to double our cider supplies! Yes, we were going to have a bumper crop this year, and we owed everything to, get this, a human!

That’s right, you heard me. A human was the reason we were having such a bountiful year.

He wasn’t like any human I’ve ever seen before, no sir. Max was actually very smart; just as smart as a pony! I could barely believe it myself when I first found out about it from Twilight. Everypony knows that humans aren’t that intelligent. The only reason that we can even use humans effectively in Equestria was because they were easy to train.

But Max is different. You can see it in his eyes if you look hard enough.

The first time that I truly met him as an individual instead of an animal was when we were in the hospital visiting him. He had just gotten caught up in a massive human-fighting ring and had just barely gotten away with his life. It was during that visit that Twilight finally revealed the truth to everypony. I thought she had be full of horse apples, but when Max had started to converse with us, using a notebook and quill to write out his messages, I was hard-pressed not to believe what Twilight was saying.

We had later found out from Twi that Max was actually from a different world; one where humans are actually intelligent creatures instead of mindless beasts like they are in Equestria. He had been taken from his own world by some unknown means and thrown into ours.

I wasn’t to sure what to think about him when I first found out, but after he saved my sister’s life from a pack of manticores… well, I warmed up to him pretty quickly after that. Turns out, he’s not such a bad stallion after all. He’s actually a very nice human male. A very healthy human male…

...

...I’m getting distracted, aren’t I? Well shoot, hold on a second. What was I talking about?

...oh yeah, Max helping us out with our apples. As I was saying, it was thanks to Max that we were having such a large crop this year. Thanks to his otherworldly knowledge from his old home, he had managed to solve several of our problems. He had informed us of several plants that would help repel bugs from our apples, as well as different ways to keep our fruit healthy.

Did you know that certain bugs that are attracted to apples live on the dead leaves from the trees? To get rid of them, we simply needed to rack up the dead leaves every now and then.

With his help, we were not only growing more apples, but they were bigger as well. When I asked him later how he knew so much about growing apples, he just shrugged and told me that before his grandparents had passed away, they use to own a farm and he would help out every summer when he was younger. I was sorry for his loss, but the time spent with his family had given him the information needed to help mine, and for that I was thankful.

I didn’t believe my eyes when I first saw all the apples growing on the trees. Some of the branches were covered with so many apples that they were beginning to sag under the weight.

I had jokingly told Max that since it was his fault that my family had all this extra work around the farm, he should lend a hand. I wasn’t being serious and thought that he would just laugh and drop the subject. That wasn’t the case, however.

On the first day of the applebucking season, both him and Twilight showed up at the farm, bright and early, ready to work. Even with their help over the last week, there was still a lot of work left to do.

It was interesting to watch Max work. Normally all the humans we have working on the farm just pick the apples one by one and place them in the baskets provided (although some of them tend to eat some of the product, but that’s why we always lowball everything). Max found that this was slow going. Taking a coil of rope, he tied a group of four baskets across his back and would move from tree to tree, picking the apples off the branches and throwing them over his shoulder into the baskets. When the baskets were full, he’d replace them with empty ones.

        He was doing the work of ten humans by himself. That, coupled with Twilight using her magic to get the apples off of the higher branches, the two of them made an impressive team. Everyday they would work as long as we did, and they would always say that they would be back the next day. I told them that it wasn’t necessary, but they would be standing by the barn the next morning, ready to work.

I wonder if there is someway that I could thank Max? I thought as I stood under the stream of water, my eyes closed. Maybe I could send him a barrel of cider? Or maybe a barrel of hard cider. A large smirk spread across my face at that. I’m sure we have an old barrel of hard cider somewhere in the cellar that would knock him right off his feet. It might even get things rolling between him and Twilight as well. Of course, if she’s not interested in him…

I could feel my face heating up as a blush slowly spread across it, and it wasn’t because of the steam. That Max was one good looking human. The things I would do to him. My body shivered as certain ideas started to cross my mind. I wonder if he’s ever been with a cowmare before? I would be happy to break him in...

“Applejack! Are ya almost done it there?” The sound of my brother’s hoof banging on the bathroom door snapped me out of my thoughts. Opening my eyes, I glared through the shower curtain at the closed door. Of all the times to interrupt…

“Yeah, yeah, keep your horseshoes on,” I shouted back, wiping wet mane from my face. “I’ll be out in a sec!” Grumbling to myself at the interruption, I glanced back at my body, seeing if there was any shampoo left to wash out. Seeing none, I let the water wash over me for several more seconds before reaching a hoof up and turning the knob.

As the stream of water slowly died down to a trickle, I slide the shower curtain open before grabbing a nearby towel. Burrowing my face into its fluffy depth, I began to dry myself off. With my face still buried in the towel, I lift a hoof up and stepped out of the bathtub.  Leaning forward, I went to place my hoof on the bathmat, only to meet nothing.

“What the hay?!” I yelped as my hoof fell through air. I scrambled backwards, trying to regain my balance, but the tub was too slippery. With one finally shout, I fell forward into the darkness.

There was a blinding flash of light and I felt as if a fire had erupted in my belly. My throat burned and my eyes watered as I fell through the air. It felt like I had eaten one of Pinkie’s special hot sauce cupcakes.

There was another flash of light before I saw the ground rushing up to meet me. I barely had a chance for my brain to register what had happened before my body hit the muddy ground with a thud and I knew no more.

Your Human and You: Beast of Burden

– by MadMaxtheBlack –

~ Prelude ~

Into the Wild Blue Yonder

~ ~ ~ ~ > > < < ~ ~ ~ ~

        As I slowly regained consciousness, I groaned in pain. My entire body ached as though I had been bucked halfway across Equestria by Cerberus. I hurt in places I didn’t even know existed.

I’m not sure how long I laid there, swimming in and out of consciousness, but eventually I felt my mind slowly begin to clear. As feeling slowly returned to my limbs, I became aware of the fact that it was raining; the tiny drops of water striking my sides as I lay there in the mud.

        What the buck happened? I thought groggily as my mind slowly became less foggy. How the buck did I end up outside? Cracking open an eye, I squinted up at the darkened sky, confused. There weren’t any storms scheduled for days. What’s going on? Lightning streaked across the sky as I continued to stare up at the stormclouds above me. The thunder that followed shook the very ground I laid upon.

        My eye slowly traveled around my surroundings. I was out in the middle of a field of tall grass. A few meters from me was a small grove of trees, their crooked branches sticking out in all directions. I noted with some apprehension that none of them had apples on them.

        I’m not on the farm anymore, I thought, dread rising up in my stomach. Where the buck am I? Lightning flashed across the sky again, and the storm seemed to pick up, the rain starting to come down in sheets of freezing water. I didn’t know where I was, and I didn’t know how I got where I was, but I knew one thing, and one thing only.

        I’ve gotta get up and get back home, I growled. Gritting my teeth, I began to struggle to my hooves, heaving myself out of the mud. I made it about halfway up when a huge lance of pain tore through my body, causing my eyes to open wide and my mouth to fly open. I let out a loud whinny of pain as I collapsed back into the mud.

        As I lay there, gasping for breath, I heard a voice call out, barely audible above the noise of the storm.

        “I think it came from over here!” Despite the pain I was in, I couldn’t help the small grin that spread across my muzzle. Somepony’s coming tah help me, I thought, closing my eyes. Whoever was coming, maybe they could help me get back home. Hopefully I wasn’t too far away, like in the Griffon Empire or something like that.

        The sound of hoofsteps grew louder as the pony approached. I frowned slightly, my ear twitching at the sound; it didn’t sound right. The closer the pony came, the more I became sure of it. No pony sounds like that when they run. What are they; griffon, minotaur?

        The sound of steps stopped and a light fell upon me. I felt somepony move to stand behind me, their form blocking the rain from falling on my head. I cracked open my eyes, and slowly turned my head, glancing back at the pony. I squinted, blinking tears from my eyes as they tried to adjust to the light.

        When the spots in my vision finally cleared, I looked over at my savior. What I saw made my eyes widen, and my heart skip a beat.

        Standing there, staring down at my limp body with an astonished look on its face, was a human. It was dressed in strange clothing: its shirt was red in color and plaid, its pants were made of a strange blue material, and covered in dirt. One of its arms were raised, and it was holding something in its hand that was casting light down upon me. Its brown hair, streaked with gray, was plastered against its head thanks to the rain.

        We stared at each other for several seconds, neither blinking. What it did next caused my eyes to widen further, and my jaw to drop. The human glanced back over its shoulder, opened its mouth, and spoke!

        “Hey Al, you gotta come see this!” From somewhere behind the human, a second voice sounded.

        “What is it, Paul? We gotta get outta here before the storm gets worse!”

        “It’s a horse,” the human said, returning its attention back to me. I bristled instantly at the insult, gritting my teeth. Ignoring the pain, I lifted my head up and tried to yell at this insulant human. However, instead of words, the only sound that came out was a low, pain-filled whinny. I was so shocked that my head fell back into the mud with a splat.

        W-what the buck, I thought as a burning sensation tore through my throat. Why can’t I speak?!

        “A horse?” Through my pain, I could just make out the second voice replying, sounding confused. “You aren’t pullin’ my leg, are ya? What in the Sam Hill is a horse doin’ out here?”

        “Don’t know. She look’s tah be in bad shape though.” There was the sound of something sloshing through the mud before another figure loomed over me.

        “Well, shit…” the figure said, scratching its head. “Would ya look at that.” It paused for several seconds, in which another boom of thunder shook the earth. “Okay, let’s get her onto the trailer quickly.” That was the last thing I remembered before the pain grew too much, and I lost consciousness again.

~ ~ ~ ~ > > < < ~ ~ ~ ~

        As I came to, I became aware of the fact that I was someplace warm. There was something wrapped around my chest and stomach, keeping me from lying down. Groaning, I tried lifting my head up, but it felt like it was filled with lead weights. A sound nearby caused my ear to flick, and I cracked my eyes open. Everything was out of focus.

        The sound of a door opening caught my attention, and with great effort, I lifted my slightly, taking in my surroundings.

        I was in a small wooden room, just large enough that I could walk around comfortable if I want to. It kinda looked like one of the stables we had back home where we kept our sick humans; there was even a stable door in one of the walls. The floor was covered in a deep layer of short-cut straw, and was surprisingly comfortable underneath my hooves.

        As I moved my head, there came a clinking sound behind me. Gritting my teeth, I strained the tense muscles in my neck and glanced over my shoulder. There was a pulley attached to the ceiling, leading to a length of thick rope. The rope then lead to a metal bar that ran parallel to my back. Several straps were connected to the bar, and ran down to a strange vest-like harness that was wrapped around my body. The whole thing kept me from laying down, but allowed for my hooves to touch the floor.

...


And there you have it.

Report MadMaxtheBlack · 912 views · Story: Your Human and You ·
Comments ( 38 )

Holy crap, Max. That is super, super interesting. As long as it doesn't parallel to Max's story, it should be very fun to read. Man, that was such a plot twist, and not even at the end.

He had informed us of several planets that would help repel bugs from our apples

Although the concept is really interesting, I personally think it shouldn't be canon to the YHaY-verse. :applejackunsure: If it was, AJ would be pulled outside of the main YHaY storyline, and wouldn't have the luxury of an easy way back home (comparatively to Max's situation).

2491592 It's in the universe, but isn't part of the main story. It's a substory, if you will. A 'could-have-been'.

You should try continuing with this story when you finish with the original YHaY or when your are having trouble coming up with ideas for it.

2491616 That's what I meant by 'shouldn't be canon to the YHaY-verse'. :derpytongue2: Good to know, though! :twilightsmile:

I'd read the heck out of it. :twilightsmile:

I understand that this isn't canon, but it would still be very interesting if Max's pomology (I had to look the word up; it's the science of growing fruit) lesson and his subsequent help on the farm would find it's way into one of the canon chapters; in particular, the Apple family's reactions to a /human/ giving /them/ tips on apple growing.

Also, having the perspective of one of the Mane 6 other than Twilight was a refreshing change; I've always wondered what the others thought of our favorite human. Words and actions can only convey so much.

it seems really good but im not a fan of applejack but it looks amazing but not my cup of tea or what ever but i do like the one with max that one is definitly my cup of tea:derpytongue2:

2491742 I think something I would like is to read the integration of technology that isn't electronic. After all, that's been force fed into every HIE discovery. Simple stuff.

So. . . Would this be considered Pony on Earth or Reverse YHaY? Or both?

its definitely a new perspective, something fresh, i say go for it, i'm gonna miss twilight but i''ll survive lol

2491896 Exactly. Maybe some new recipes for Pinkie, new fashions for Rarity to design, or something he could teach the foals at the schoolhouse, like math or basic science.

(Speaking foals, but it wouldn't surprise me If Diamond Tiara had a human as a pseudo-pet-slave, and would be terrified of Max being intelligent; it also wouldn't surprise me if she used her human to terrify Sweetie Belle after she was attacked)

One thing that in hoping for in the main story is an eventual confrontation with both Mrs. Cake, and Cheerilee, where Max demonstrates beyond a doubt his intelligence, as well as telling Mrs. Cake (and the other mares who want him, by extension) "NO."

2491926 Ah, the latter point sounds fun.

However, there is something notable how you said Max could teach math. It's probably not special in any way. Math is the same everywhere. Actually, scratch that. Some formulas that ponies may not have simplified or discovered, ect.

2491978 Well, I've read fics that have different math systems (generally base 4, since ponies lack fingers)

Even if the math systems are the same, he could still probably explain the concepts

2491997 Oh my goodness. Base four sounds terrifying. Imagine what it would be like to drop into a base four society.

Well, I am quite intrigued.

2492031 By my understanding, our number ten would look like 22 in base 4

2492046
2492031
Oh god, fuck base four. Fuck it with a dragon dildo spiked with nails. So much of our modern math is literally impossible to translate over to base four, not to mention that some of the alpha numerical shit that uses the Latin alphabet is impossible to comprehend if you've grown up using base four, and its essentially all you know. Base ten is right around the middle of the line, because of how well it translates to binary, or so I'm told by my computer engineering bud. Base four is just one of those things that just shouldn't exist, and I have a completely rational hate for it.

2492195 Wait, what do you mean it exists? Do people actually "use" it? Like I know base 12 was used, but I'm not following your suggestion of fucking it with a spiky dildo.

2492210
I had an calculus teacher in HS who for no fucking reason at all, decided to try her hand at teaching different base number systems, like I said, for no fucking reason. Base four was the absolute worst, and we were fucking tested on all of them. It was fucking Geometry proofs all fucking over again.

This would be a interesting contrast to see if it continued.

I've got to say, intriguing! Go for it, but please focus on the main story.

2491515 you can do some great things if you have a few spare planets. like repel bugs.

I too would read the heck out of this side-story, too bad we aren't going to be seing any of it soon:applejackunsure:.

2492228

It was fucking Geometry proofs all fucking over again.

I hated those. I really did. It wasn't that I didn't understand them, it was like I couldn't bring myself to find them useful and to learn them.

2492195
2492210
If I were to expect a numbering system that would be used in Equestria that wasn't base 10, I'd be more inclined to think it would be a hexadecimal* (AKA Base 16) system. It's complex enough for it to be a reasonably useful number base, and also is a multiple of four, which would make sense for ponies. :ajsmug:

*Hexadecimal is used pretty often in programming, for the uninformed.

A nice side story. I hope you find the time to continue this AND the main story^^

Meh. Not a huge fan of human world crossovers. I get enough of our world every day. I read stories for a little escapism.

I dig it. I'd like one of this style of story to actually go to completion for once. There's one, I think called 'Servant of Man' where it's Big Mac that is sent, but it is completely unaffiliated with YHaY. It died out a medium time ago I think. If this were to go into production, I'd not say no to it.

I'd read that. Also, can AJ talk? Because she hasn't yet and stuff. If she can't then prepare for a lot of somewhat enjoyable cringe-worthy failures. If she can then those guys are going to have a fun time. At least AJ will probably get a better time than Max though, unless she's really unlucky.

Like seriously, make this a thing :pinkiehappy:

Definitely go for it, show those ponies how compassionate and kind humans are (not!).

I'm strangely reminded of Absolution 2, only this being written decidedly better with a more likable Applejack. :twilightblush:

2491616 I would read such a story. Something tells me Applejack is going to find herself working on someone else's farm...without any apples on it...:ajbemused:

Its seems a little cliché...
But I would be lying if I didn't say this peeked some interest.

continue please :yay:

Your Pony and You. Seems there was speculationi about 35 weeks ago but not much came of it.
Sounds like a fun idea, preview is pretty solid, and I would expect the plot to differ quite quickly from YHaY simply because it's Applejack and she has foreknowledge of someone who is in her situation.
Keep going! ;)

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