~Chapter 11: An Unfortunate Incident~
So the new day began. I still felt just as chipper as when crashing on my bed the night before; nothing seemed to be going wrong.
Buck, I was mistaken.
This day would hammer that point home; nothing perfect stays that way for long, and every world has it's drama.
I grabbed the rent from my bag for the week and went downstairs to Mr. Ledger, paying it off. He thanked me, and I went off for the day, beginning my trek to Sweet Apple Acres to get to work. I arrived to see Applejack and Big Mac just leaving the house, about to get started on their work for the day. "Hey there, Ink! That party sure was a good 'un last night, wasn't it?" The mare said, big bright smile on her face.
I grinned right back. "Absolutely. All the hype about Pinkie Parties is not unfounded." Her and I share a quick laugh, and we proceeded to the barn. Everything had been cleaned up the night before just prior to everyone leaving, so it looked like nothing had transpired.
Applejack turned to me. "Alright, so heres the deal. We need yah' tah' help us get them there apples," she gestured to a series of barrels loaded with them, "up there. Sure, we got that there lift now, but that won't be able handle all he buckets. We still need yah to fly some barrels up there. Think yah' can handle it sugarcube?"
I smile and trot over to one of the barrels. I look around it for a second, seeing the handles. I then glance around the barn and saw a saddle on the wall and a length of rope. I smiled more. "Well, do you mind if I borrow that saddle and rope for it? I can rig a barrel to me with the rope and not have to worry about specifically carrying it."
Applejack smiled, a gleam in her eye. "You seem tah' be pretty darn smart when it comes tah' makin' things easier an every pony. Yeah, I'll help get the saddle on yah and run the rope through it. We can use a couple a hooks I got around here tah' make letting go of the barrel easier on yah' tah' boot." She trotted over to the wall with the equipment, myself on her heels. She picked up the saddle and deposited it on my back, hitching it to me and running the rope through it as well. She then walked over to a workbench, rooting through a couple of drawers. She exclaimed triumphantly, returning with two cast iron hooks. We tied the rope to them and test rigged a barrel. There was just enough room left for me flap my wings and gain flight, and despite the burden of the apples, it wasn't too hard to get airborne. I took the first barrel up, detached myself, and flew back down. AJ, Big Mac and I all grin. "That ought tah' do it, hun. Ah'm gonna git back tah buckin' then. You two can git goin' with the loadin' apples up top. Back in a bit with a wagon, alright?" We nodded to her and she trotted off.
Big Mac and I got to work straight away, him pulling apple buckets over to the lift. I would take barrels up with my harness while he did this, and then when he filled the lift, I would work the winch to take him and the load up top. While he unloaded the elevator, I would ferry more apples up as well. We got a rhythm going, and were starting to make a fair dent in the load. Every time AJ came back with more apples, we would simply tug the cart onto the lift and unload them directly off it at the top.
We worked for about five hours and decided it was a good idea to take a break. We sat outside the barn in the sun, drinking some lemonade and eating daisy sandwiches that Applebloom prepared for us- it was the weekend, so she didn't have to worry about school. After about a half hour break of relaxing and letting our pretesting muscles rest for a period we got right back to it. After about another six hours we called it quits. We managed to fill roughly a fifth of the top floor by days end, and that was a surprisingly incredible feat.
We started walking towards the main house. Applejack turned to me at the door. "Hey Ink, yah' wanna stay fer' dinner? I would be happy to have some company fer' it, at least some that we ain't used to havin', like the other girls."
I smiled. "I would be delighted. Thank you." Rather than saying goodbye and walking home then, I followed the mare into the house. Granny Smith was apparently visiting Breaburn down in Appaloosa, so it would just be Applejack, Big Mac, Applebloom, and myself.
The orange mare gave me a quick tour of the main floor of the house and we finished in the dining room. "If'n yah' don't mind, ya'll can relax in here while ah prepare dinner."
I shook my head. "Thats alright, I can offer my assistance in the kitchen."
She shook her head back. "Ah'm sorry hun, but it don't sit well with me havin' a guest help; it don't seem right."
I smiled. "It is quite alright; I was always one to help clean up before and after meals, no matter who it was, when I visited others. Besides, it would be nice to have the company, rather than sit at the table talking to you through a door."
Applejack smiled to me. "Well, ah appreciate it then, sugarcube. Thanks a heap; we can git to eaten all the faster with more hands at the counter." We entered the kitchen, and Applejack pulled out a recipe for a good, hearty chilli, made with tomatoes, apples, beans, and various other ingredients. She also added a slight bit of honey rather than straight sugar to sweeten the food slightly. It was prepared fast, but still required a couple of hours to cook. We all went into the living room and sat around the fire, talking lightly and laughing and carrying on. We shared stories, jokes, and had just plain intelligent conversations. Finally the food was finished and we sat around the table to eat, continuing our previous conversation and moving on to new topics.
When we finished eating I helped clean up as I promised and took my leave, now that it was late, and went to return to the hotel. AJ gave me some of the leftover chill first, sealed in a metal pot and wrapped in a towel, then deposited in a small saddlebag. I thanked her and finally got out. Something caught my eye on the way to the hotel though; after passing the farm and reaching general forest, I noticed something among the trees off the main road a bit. I walked towards it, curious, and found myself completely shocked.
Lying still on the ground on it's left side was a pegasus pony, right wing bent at an incredibly awkward angle and obviously broken, and a small puddle of blood under the pony's head. I rushed over to see if the poor mare was alive- I could tell it was a mare when I got close enough, based on the shape of the pony's physique. When I reached a certain distance I noticed her shoulders shaking, and could hear soft crying. I quickened my pace.
She obviously heard me, because she called out quietly. "H-hello? Is any pony there? P-Please, help me. . . I. . . I think my leg is broken. . ."
Things were worse than I first thought. I reached her and immediately went around to the front of her so she could see me. I crouched down in front of her, and also got a closer look at her. She had a pale green coat and orange mane, matted and dripping blood. Her cutie mark was of an easel with a paintbrush laying a broad line of orange paint. "Hey, it's alright. What happened?"
She continued to cry softly. She opened her eyes, bright purple in colour, and looked at me, complete anguish visible in her expression. "I. . . I was flying, and then a stray wind current caught me- there is supposed to be a storm tomorrow, but someone must have lost control somewhere. It snapped against my wing, breaking it, and I fell the rest of the way- oh Celestia, it hurts-" She fell into more sobbing.
I gulped and looked around; it was getting really late, and dark. No other ponies were around. I looked back to her. "Which leg is broken?"
She glanced down to her lead left leg, sprawled across a rock also at a horrible angle. "I hit my head on a tree trunk as well."
I sighed; at least it was the leg on the opposite side of the wing. I took the saddlebag off my back and pulled out the chilli. "Here, I have some food here. Go ahead and eat it; you will need the energy." I took the cloth and saddlebag and looked at them. They were of a fairly easy to rip material, and I decided I would pay Applejack back for the items later. I picked the cloth up in my teeth and pinned an edge on the ground with a hoof, ripping it in half. I then took the main strap from the saddlebag for going around your body. "Okay, this is going to hurt, but I need to splint your leg and wing to take you to the hospital. I don't want to leave you alone while getting help." I gingerly slid the strap under her, being careful not to jar her too much. When I got it around I looked at her wing. I would need to set it first. I took another strap off the bag and gave it to her. "Stop eating for a minute, I need to set your wing. Bite down on this." She took the strap in her teeth, with a look of panic on her face. "Okay, four. . . three. . . two. . ." I suddenly popped the wing back into place before the final count so she wouldn't tense up before I had a chance to do what I needed.
She screamed into the strap, biting down hard on the it. Tears flowed freely down her face. "I'm sorry." I took the ripped up cloth and spread part of it over her wing, and the other part I put next to the break. I picked up the strap under her and pulled it over the top, doing it up and gingerly cinching it tight enough hold the cloth and wing in place, plus tourniquet the wound, but I tried to leave it loose enough to not cause any more pain than necessary. I looked down at her leg, then up to her eyes. She nodded, knowing I needed to set that as well. I ripped another strap off the bag and slid it through the strap around her torso and ripped the cover off of the bag. I took a few moments and set her leg, accompanied by another scream, and she seemed to almost pass out this time. I started stroking her mane, trying to calm her down, and spoke softly to her. "It's alright, you can get through this, I'm going to take you to the hospital were you can get looked after and made more comfortable, just hang in there. . ." I continued reassuring her, and she whimpered as I wrapped her leg in the cover of the backpack. I wrapped the strap around that now, keeping it up and tucked against her body to prevent too much movement of it. I slowly helped her up to her other three hooves, letting her lean against my side. I draped a wing over her back to keep her against me, and we slowly made our way back to ponyville main.