//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: One Trick Pony // by f0xhole //------------------------------// “Ok, ok, somepony in this town must need help with somethin’,” Applejack muttered. Applejack’s search since leaving Rarity’s had been less than fruitful. Nearly everypony was taking the hour off for lunch, which didn’t leave much work that needed immediate attention. “Well…I suppose it couldn’t hurt ta take a lil’ break…” Applejack started munching on her apples, sighing as she lay down against the wall of the nearest building. Her eyelids drooped in the afternoon sun; it was so peaceful here… Applejack was about to fall asleep when she felt something start to shake her. When she looked down, she saw a familiar white bunny impatiently poking her chest. “Well, howdy there, Angel,” Applejack said. “What can I do fer ya?” Angel glared at her, stamping his foot and pointing off into the distance. Applejack cocked her head in confusion. “Fluttershy’s fallen down a well in the Everfree? Ah didn’t even think we had wells in there…” Angel slapped his forehead in frustration. He began jumping and running in small circles on the ground, sending dust flying as he did so. “Oh!” Applejack exclaimed. “She’s havin’ problems with her critters? Well, why didn’t ya jus’ say so?” Angel’s paw grew ever more intimate with his skull as he turned and hopped down the road, Applejack following close behind. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- “Oh, oh please stop,” the yellow pegasus stuttered. “Ow!” she cried as a small scarlet tanner tugged at her pale pink mane. “Howdy there, Fluttershy!” a cheery voice called. “Heard ya needed a hoof with things from Angel over here!” The orange farm pony nodded her head towards the scowling bunny hopping alongside her. “Oh, thank you Applejack. And thank you, too, Angel,” she added as the white bunny glared at her, thumping his foot on the dirt path. “So, um, if you could just…OW!...just help me round up these birds back into their roosts, before they…OW!...before they hurt themselves.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “Ya sure it’s them ya need ta worry about?” “Oh, they don’t mean to hurt anypony, they’re just…OW!...nervous.” “Well, okay, if you say so…” “So, um, just take a little of their seed, and drop it in their nests- leave a little trail if you can- and then just… OWOWOWOWOW!...just nudge them over carefully,” she said, a slight squeal punctuating the end of her sentence. “Alright; I can do that…” Applejack said. ‘This is it, AJ. You’ve got this. There’s no way this can go wrong!’ ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- “Sweet Celestia, how could this go so WRONG?!!” It was only partially a rhetorical question; no one had quite figured out just how an attempt at coaxing birds into their nests less than two metres away had led to the roost collapsing, the birds escaping and subsequently causing havoc all over town. Newspapers the next day would report that the only two eyewitnesses to the event were a yellow pegasus and an orange earth pony, who both claimed that the event was ‘a total blur’. “Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear…” Fluttershy mewled as she tried to keep up with the determined cowpony. “This is no time to panic, ‘shy! We’ve gotta catch them critters!” The two ponies rushed off into town, following the trail of easily horrified ponies. “The horror! THE HOOORRRRRRRROORRRR!!” cried Ponyville’s most neurotic earth pony, Lily. “Eeyup, that’ll be it,” Applejack said dryly. “Should be one o’ them right around…there!” She pointed her hoof towards the large, gingerbread house shaped sweet shop, Sugarcube Corner. Sure enough, a brightly plumed bird was aggressively pecking at the ‘icing’ of the store. The two ponies snuck up to the building, trying not to disturb the creature. Fluttershy flew up towards the bird as Applejack pulled back to keep an eye on them in case Fluttershy needed any help. “Hey there, little birdy,” Fluttershy near whispered to the animal. It turned towards her, looking grumpy at having been interrupted. “Um, I know you’re a bit busy right now, but would it be okay if you came back down to the house?” The creature continued to hover for a moment, its head twitching between the smiling pegasus and its prey. It began to hover over towards Fluttershy, and her encouraging smile grew slightly wider in response. Suddenly, and seemingly unprovoked, the bird snapped its beak angrily and dived sharply towards the ground, pulling up at the last second and soaring over the town square. “Wait!” Fluttershy cried out as she made to give chase. “Ah got it!” Applejack yelled out over her shoulder as she dashed away from the building, keeping the bird in her sight. “Hey!” She whistled sharply, catching its attention. “Down here, lil’ critter!” The bird glared at the irritant and plunged after it in an attempt to scare it off. Applejack kept running, keeping herself aligned with the creature’s flight path, waiting for it to be in reach. “…and…GOTCHA!” Applejack leapt into the air, lifting the Stetson from her head and bringing it down over the squawking bird. She slammed the hat to the ground, trapping the struggling creature. “HaHA!” “Oh, please be careful not to hurt her, Applejack,” Fluttershy cried out. “Don’t worry, its fine. You wanna do yer thing?” Applejack replied as she pulled out her spare hat, feeling the satisfying weight of it against her mane. “Um, alright.” Fluttershy stepped towards Applejack’s hat lying on the ground as Applejack stepped back to give her some room. She knelt down next to the bird’s temporary home and began to whisper. “Excuse me, miss? I was just wondering if, just maybe, you’d be able to come back home with us?” ‘Chirp, chirp chirp chirp, chirp!’ “Oh, come on now, it’s not so bad, is it?” ‘Chirpchirp, chichirp chirp; chirp chirp chirp.” “Well, yes, okay. But we can fix that if we have to, okay? Applejack started to zone out as she stared at the two conversing (or at least, that’s what she assumed they were doing), until she noticed a yellow hoof waving in front of her eyes. “Um, Applejack? She says she’s okay to go back now.” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The two ponies made their way back to Fluttershy’s house, the haughty bird glaring at Applejack while perched in Fluttershy’s hair. “Okay, little birdy, you stay here until I get back, alright?” Fluttershy nudged the door open and moved her head to push the bird partway through the doorframe, whereupon it leapt from her hair and perched itself on the nearby table. Applejack grinned as Fluttershy gently closed the door. “Whelp, that’s one down.” She paused for a moment. “Just how many of them there critters got loose, anyway?” “Well…” the pegasus said, tilting her head to the side, “I think there were about…fourteen? Maybe?” “FOURTEEN!?” Applejack yelped, her eye twitching. “Um…more or less,” Fluttershy said, recoiling into her bangs at the Applejack hung her head low, and sighed. “…Well. Let’s get to it, then.” ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Luna’s moon had already begun to rise by the time the last of the birds were herded back to Fluttershy’s home. “Thanks for all your help today, Applejack. I don’t think I ever would have been able to find them all myself.” Fluttershy smiled at the cowpony. “Well, ya probably wouldn’ve need my help if Ah hadn’t messed up for ya to start with.” Fluttershy frowned. “Oh, Applejack, that wasn’t your fault. That could have happened to anypony. Applejack sighed as she looked down at the ground near her hooves. “It’s nice of you to say so, ‘shy.” “Applejack…” “Ah’d best be headin’ off now, alright? Maybe I’ll…Maybe I’ll see ya tomorrow.” Applejack turned and starting walking to her farm, barely even looking where she was going. Applejack trudged down the road, her eyes low, barely aware of the presence above her shoulder. “So where ya going, now, AJ?” called down a smug voice. “Hey, Rainbow,” Applejack replied, still not taking her eyes off the ground. “Saw you running all over town with Fluttershy today. Wanna tell me what that was all about?” “...Just cleaning up a mess.” Rainbow raised an eyebrow at Applejack’s response. “Hey, what’s up, Applejack? You feelin’ a little out of it?” “Ah’m fine, Rainbow,” Applejack said, her voice empty of feeling. Rainbow dropped to the ground and started walking by Applejack’s side. “Hey, come on, Applejack? What’s up?” Rainbow moved in front of Applejack, blocking her movement. She placed her hoof on Applejack’s muzzle and gently lifted her head, making sure that they made eye contact. “C’mon, AJ, spit it out. What’s going on with you today?” Applejack tried to look away, but Rainbow gently forced her chin up with her hoof. “Applejack,” she said firmly. “What. Happened?” A breath of air escaped Applejack’s lips. “It’s nothing, Rainbow. You knew it all along, and I should’a listened.” “What are you talking about?” Rainbow asked confused. Applejack continued in her previous monotone. “Yesterday? Field? Apples?” Her eyes stared dead ahead and unfocused as she continued plodding, leaving Rainbow to try and figure it out. “Wait, this isn’t about the whole ‘one trick pony’ thing, is it? Is that it?” Applejack stopped, turning her head back towards the pegasus, still not making eye contact. “Rainbow…” Rainbow flew over to Applejack before she could run off. “That’s it?! AJ, I wasn’t being serious,” she said with a concerned look. “I was just kiddi…” “It’s fine, Rainbow,” Applejack replied, still walking forward at the same, slow pace, refusing to look up. “You were right.” “AJ, wait…” “Please Rainbow, Ah…” Applejack stopped and sighed, turning back one last time. “Ah just wanna be alone right now.” “AJ…” The orange pony barely heard Rainbow’s last plea, walking off into the darkness of the night, her head hung low to the muddy ground.