//------------------------------// // Intro // Story: Farmhand // by MLP-person //------------------------------// Quill wheeled the chair along himself as Fluttershy walked beside him, heavily laden down with her bags of many foods. He had tried to insist that some of the weight be placed on the chair rather than her back, but she had gently informed him that he was going to Rarity's to get the hair out of his eyes and that she wouldn't hear of giving him any extra strain, in a voice that brooked no argument. He sighed and nodded, knowing that there was no way he would convince her-not the way she got whenever she was in her nurture mode. And, although he still didn't understand her drive to care for seemingly everything, it wasn't like he was going to complain about it either. It had, in and of itself, saved his life. Fluttershy had nodded, satisfied. "Now, Rarity agreed to bring you back when she's done with you, okay? She's really good at this sort of thing, you're in good hooves." She told him kindly, and he couldn't help but believe it. The Carousel Boutique, it was called, and it was a tall, circular shop with an elaborate trim and a sense of fanciness and sophistication. Through the large display Windows, he could see a number of dresses and fine suits and tuxes sitting on mannequins, looking like they belonged on the ponies in the goddesses' court, not on anyone in a small town on this. But hey, no way was it a bad thing, even if it was surprising and fashion would never really be his thing. Fluttershy knocked, leaving the chair at her side for a moment. A few moments passed and nopony answered, somehow. "Well, it's a shop. We can just go in." Fluttershy pushed open the beautifully painted door and wheeled Quill inside the large, richly carpeted display room. He looked around curiously and saw two ponies inside-a beautiful white mare with a curled mane of deep, royal purple. She was lovingly adding scarlet accents to a black flared dress. Then there was a filly of about his age, with the same white coat but a mane of light purple and pink, even more curly than her sister's, with green eyes that matched his own rather than Rarity's blue eyes. Both were unicorns.At least, he assumed that the adult mare was the Rarity Fluttershy had mentioned, but how could she not be? She was just as described. "Rarity! Look!" The filly cried out, waving a hoof excitedly. Rarity turned from the dress, wearing a small pair of Crimson glasses and holding a pincushion in her muzzle-this she leaned and set down on a small table by the mannequin she was building a dress around. "Well, hello there young stallion. What is it Fluttershy? And who is this, I haven't seen him around Ponyville in recent memory.." Fluttershy messed up Quill's mane. He had an urge to swat the hoof but that just wasn't something he could do to the yellow mare. Repay her kindness with a slap? No, she could mess up his hair if she so wished. The filly giggled at the tangle of emotions and thoughts that must have flown across his face in those few seconds. "This is Quill, and Twilight and Applejack brought him into my cottage a few nights ago. I agreed to bring him into town with me on the condition that he would stay in the wheelchair, and we were wondering if you could give him a manecut?" "Well absolutely darlings!! I didn't want to say anything in case this was a fashion choice but this mane is a MESS!!! We'll have it taken care of at once." "Thank you Rarity...How much do I owe you?" Fluttershy asked timidly, and Quill had the faint inkling that she had little or no bits left on her after the food shopping. "Nothing of course dear, if this is for you. But, can I talk to you in the next room for a moment, dear?" "Um, yes.." Fluttershy nodded and walked with Rarity through a door and into another room that he couldn't see past the slowly-shut door. Then he was left alone in the room with the young filly. He looked over at the wall, unsure if to say anything or what to say if he should. She chuckled to herself, rolling her eyes. "Fine, I'll go first. I'm Sweetie Belle. And Fluttershy said that you're Quill. You're new to Ponyville, right?" Quill nodded to her, wishing that he wasn't in a wheelchair with bandages on. This was embarrassing... "Relax, I'm not judging the chair. But if I may ask, what happen that landed you in it?" Her eyes had gone wide in sheer seconds with curiosity. "Um. Ya know...wolves. Everfree." "Wait. Wait a second." She held up a hoof for a moment before laying it back on the carpet. "You battled wolves??" "No! No no not at all! I got attacked." He frowned, his cheeks tinted pink with embarrassment. "And I didn't come out on top. But I don't need this chair either, Fluttershy just didn't want me to break open the cuts." "Oooh!! I bet my friends would love to hear about this. You should meet them! They're all about my age, so a little younger than you. I'm thirteen by the way." "I'm fourteen." She blinked. "You look older than that. Like sixteen-fifteen at the very youngest." Quill gave his own little chuckle now, staring to relax. "I get that a lot. At least, when I get anything at all." At once he regretted those words and clamped his mouth shut. Sweetie Belle noticed and tilted her head, taking a step closer. "What's that mean? Didn't your friends ever mistake your age? When you first met?" "Yeah, well, I've never had a lot of friends." "Oh no. You're not gonna be another twilight are you?" "What do you mean?" He asked in confusion. "Well, I don't remember all that well since I was only eight, but when Twilight first got here she had never really had much of a friend and it took her a long while to truly accept friends into her life and learn that she could rely on ponies, rather than just her wits and textbooks. My question was are you gonna be stubborn and not let any of us get close like she did?" She made it sound like the most basic, the most simple of questions. Yet he knew it carried weight. "Tell me about Twilight. I've heard about her deeds since she became a princess, but what was she like before." "I'm not stupid I know you're distracting me!! But I'll humor you." She pulls up a throw pillow and tossed it down beside his wheelchair, sitting on it and wrapping her tail neatly around her hooves. He was reminded of a house cat, on some level. "This is the story as my sister tells it. Twilight was a quaint little bookworm who studied under Princess Celestia in Canterlot for years and years. She didn't make or keep friends, and the only pony she was truly close to was her brother, Shining Armor." Quill nodded, he'd known that the princess had once been Celestia's pupil. "Shining Armor was made a captain of the royal guard one day, and they saw each other less and less. Meanwhile, the thousandth year of Luna-Nightmare Moon's-imprisonment on the moon had rolled around, which meant that she would be freed by the stars very, very soon. Twilight tried to warn Celestia but the goddess was seemingly indifferent. She told Twilight to stop worrying so much about dusty old books and sent Twilight here, to Ponyville, to oversee the preparations for the summer sun celebration. It was so awesome, I loved it!!! I got to stay up the entire night! And that was a bigger deal as an eight year old." He nodded, talking the sidetrack in stride. "Well, anyway. Twilight wasn't wrong, Nightmare Moon broke free and she attacked here in Ponyville. She kidnapped Celestia, who was supposed to be making an appearance, and had slain two of the Royal guards by knocking them out of the air when they tried to seize her. Twilight fled the scene, terrified, and Rainbow Dash, who realized she seemed to know what was going on, followed her. So did Rarity-my sister-Applejack, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie." Quill listened-she wasn't a bad storyteller, and he could rightly judge that. "Twilight told them that she knew what was going on, yes, and she knew how to take her down-the elements of harmony, which were in the Everfree Forest in the castle where the goddesses had once resided together. So off they went, young mares wanting to save the day!! And their town and princess." Quill sat there, listening intently. "Well Nightmare Moon tried to stop them, but they braved each challenge and as they went, Twilight realized something. Not fully though until the stones in which the elements had been set did nothing, though. She realized, see, that the elements of harmony weren't just gems, for they needed a pony who embodied them, who could channel them." "Yes?" "Yes. And through dumb luck they were all assembled in that castle, and the elements manifested with them, their spirit managing to break down the evil, dark half of Luna into something so small and insignificant that Luna herself was fully back in control of herself. Celestia was freed, and as I'm sure you know this bit, the sisters were reunited. Twilight stayed in Ponyville and became friends with the five ponies and, in time, many more as well. But it took time, before she realized that she wasn't the only trustworthy pony on the planet." Quill absorbed that for a moment. It wasn't the most detailed account ever, but it was certainly more than he had ever expected to know. "No...I don't know if I'll be like that. I haven't had the best experiences with ponies, but if there's any place for a fresh start then it's here, am I wrong?" "Not at all, this is the friendliest place in Equestria!! So that leads us back to my thoughts from before. Where ya from Quill, if not here? Why were you attacked in the forest?" "I don't know why I was attacked, but I think I wandered to close to a Timber Wolf family's den, or something. As for where I'm from...that doesn't matter. I'm not telling ANYpony that." "Oh? And why not?" "Because there's no way I'm going back. But I'm fourteen, so how can I stop it if somepony important like Twilight decided I'm going back? But if she doesn't even know where I'm from, then she can't exactly send me back there, see?" Sweetie nodded. "But why don't you want to go back?" Goddesses she was a curious filly, wasn't she. It was alright though, she'd told him a story and treated him kindly-what could he complain about? "Bad ponies, and that's all I'm saying." Sweetie groaned exasperatedly. "But whyyyyyyyy???? You can tell meeeeee!!!" "Becaaaaaaauseeeee I don't wannnnnnt toooooo!!!" They both broke down in a fit of giggles even though nothing was really funny-childish innocence. Quill recovered first and watched as Sweetie Belle composed herself more slowly than he had. Before she could open her mouth to speak again, Rarity cut her off. "Sorry I took so long, dears! Quill, Fluttershy's left, I'll be taking you home after a manecut. So, how do you like it?" "Just short enough that it's not in my eyes, please. I don't want anything fancy or anything to short." Rarity walked around to the front of him, beside Sweetie Belle on her pillow. "Of course. Now, I'm gonna help you out of the chair, and we're going to take you to another room where I do the cuts. I'll let you walk but I want you to Lean on me darling-itd be a shame if you got blood on the carpet or broke open your wounds again." Quill nodded as a light blue sheath of magic wrapped around him-he was suddenly incredibly eager to get out of the chair and walk. Running or flying would be preferable, of course. Being as gentle as possible when you weren't actually doing the touching, Rarity helped him up and out of the chair, down to the ridiculously thick and plush carpet underhoof. Sweetie Belle stood and moved out of the way, taking the pillow in her teeth and tossing it over onto a decorative sofa that was one of the many posh decorations of this display room. Aches seeped into Quill immediately, but it was bearable, and he could stand, at least for now. Without taking her up on her offer to lean for support, he walked along beside her as she led the way to a room at the back of the building, shop, whatever;through a few plush hallways. Once out of the main room that was intended for the shop, many personal effects became obvious. The most obvious and most noticed during his short trek through the boutique were the pictures. Pictures of Rarity with two ponies who could be only her parents-though she definitely hadn't gotten her looks directly from either of them. Then there was a younger Rarity holding a baby Sweetie Belle, the whole family together, the sisters standing on a hill while Twilight and her friends looked through a telescope at a starshower. In this one Rarity looked just as young as she did now, as did Sweetie except for the fact that she was somewhat shorter. The room Rarity was taking him to was tiled and walled with mirrors, it really did look like something directly from a barber shop. Just being in the room with its protected chairs and counters willed with mane care supplies made him self-consciously brush the hair back out of his eyes. Not that he cared, but he really was due for a cut, by now. "Now now, no need to be self conscious. Everypony needs a cut now and then, yes?" Quill nodded and climbed into the chair that the adult mare gestured to, taking care not to aggravate his side. This was where the majority of the pain was emanating from, anyway. He'd probably need fresh bandages by the time he was taken back to Fluttershy's little cottage. "Now, this will keep the loose mane from getting caught up in your fur." She told him as she drape a black fabric over him, some sort of cloak that covered the front rather than the back. It was a funny sort of thing, he thought to himeself, as Rarity set about getting some of the length off his hair. Sweetie Belle threw herself up into the next chair over like she was expecting a cut as well. Quill guessed she hadn't been done talking when Rarity had returned. "Quill. When you're walking again-if you stay in Ponyville that is-you'll probably be enrolled in our school. When you're good to go around town, you should come meet my friends!!! Of course, Twilight already told us about you since you might be coming to our school but we're all excited to meet the new guy, even Rumble. And he normally doesn't care. I think he's just excited because Twilight said you had an accident in the forest and he's cuious. Oh-no offense." "Um, okay. I guess that would be fun." Sweetie nodded confidently. "It will be. There's Button. He and I dated but he's obsessed with video games so it kind of fell apart. Then there's Apple Bloom, she lives at Sweet Apple Acres a ways out of town. There's Rumble, whose a bit of a perv and a little obnoxious but still a good guy. Dinky, she's nice, if a tiny bit slow, bless her. There's Pipsqueak and he's an awesome colt but he is suuuuper short. Still awesome though. If there's anypony else you're gonne meet then you'll meet them when you get to the school." "They all sound nice." Quill said truthfully. "Is there anypony I should be careful around?" Sweetie Belle nodded gravely. "Two ponies named Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, they will do anything they can to get under your skin, if they don't like you. If they do like you, they'll try to make you do everything with them, their wau. And if you don't then they switch to not liking you. There's no real win-win situation in that one because they don't know when they aren't wanted. Or if they do, then they don't give a flying buck." "Language, Sweetie." Rarity said as she spun the chair around and set to work on Quill's bangs. "You don't need to show off to your new friend." "I'm not showing off! I just forgot not to say it!" Sweetie spluttered indignantly. "Okay okay, darling don't fret. I believe you." Rarity's tone said anything but-she whispered into Quill's ear as she pretended to inspect the area just behind his ear. "She shows off to all her new friends, tries to act grown. Don't be fooled." Sweetie Belle was frowning deeply, knowing a fake when she saw one but unable to accuse for a lack of knowing what was said. Rarity gave a short little laugh and spun Quill back to face the mirror. "Done!" He looked;His hair was still messy and a bit spiky in places but it was shorter now, with all of it's messiness intact. And it wasn't in his eyes, either. Quite frankly he loved it. "Thanks, Rarity!! And especially for agreeing to do it for free." "What do you think, Sweetie Belle?" Rarity adjusted the chair so he was facing her instead. "Looks good." She shrugged indifferently. "Oh come on sister, I need an opinion of my work! And you're right here!" Sweetie sucked in a breath and Quill raised an eyebrow. "It's so good Rarity!!! I really really love it!!" Rarity gave a warning glare. "Okay, sorry. It looks good, it really does. Although not everypony can pull off the whole messy hair thing." "That's better." Rarity said, sounding pleased with herself. "Couldn't be better, you did so well. Thanks a ton, Rarity." Rarity blinked in slight surprise. "My my, you're a smooth talker, are you? I'll have to be careful of that, though there's no such thing as to much praise for a lady. Now, I promised Fluttershy I'd bring you home, didn't I. Maybe that wasn't so wise-I'll have to close down the boutique for the day." Sweetie's ears perked up where she stood. "I can do it! It's still early, I can introduce him to the girls and then take him back to Fluttershy!" Rarity paused, seeming to weigh the pros and cons long and hard before she answered. "Alright Sweetie Belle, but you're to be home by dinnertime, understand?" "Yeah yeah." Sweetie Belle rolled her eyes and turned to Quill expectantly. "Do you need help back to the wheelchair, Quill?" That was Rarity. Quill shook his head and gingerly stood up, wings starting to feel stiff and uncomfortable from being pinned down underneath the bandages. He really, really needed to fly again. Even before he'd been hurt he hadn't had the strength for a while, but at least then he had been able to stretch them, keep them loosened up. Now they were literally pinned. "Alright, darling, if you're sure, I'll let you go yourself. I've got to get back to the dresses and the customers. Bye!" Rarity gave him a small grin and walked herself back out of the room. Without looking at Sweetie Belle he walked slowly through the halls again, remembering his way just fine, and back to the wheelchair. Even more the dull aches from each step had faded, now. Still he hurt but he was so much better he could say he was totally fine, relative to anything he had felt before. "Come on, in the chair." Sweetie Belle said gently. Quill glared at the chair like it had killed his dog. If he'd had a dog-you get the point. "Come on Quill. If it means this much to you then you can get up and walk around when we get to the clubhouse." Quill tilted his head. "It's at the Sweet Apple Acres that I think I mentioned. My best friend Apple Bloom and I hang out there. We had another close friend, too, but she doesn't live in Ponyville anymore." Quill nodded. "I'm sorry to hear that." He told her as he climbed into the damned chair. "Don't worry about it. I mean, yes, I miss her and wish she were back. But it hurt a whole lot more when she first left, you know what I mean?" Quill nodded. "Yeah, I guess time heals a broken heart, doesn't it." "Funny way of putting it, but yeah it does. And like I said, I still miss her, but it's manageable." Quill nodded and he didn't say anything else about it. Before he could reach for the wheels, they lit up a pale green and he was rolling to the door. Past Rarity and outside with Sweetie Belle in tow. Fluttershy was nowhere in sight by now, and he didn't see her as Sweetie Belle steered him through the town and out, talking about little, offhanded things. At first she tried to talk about him and find out a bit more, but as time wore on she realized that she wasn't going to discern any more than Rarity had and changed topics, telling him about the town and the antics that went on at the boutique. He didn't listen very well but if she noticed then she didn't seem to care. She just talked to fill the silence, her magic wheeling him on. A couple times he muttered that he was capable of propelling himself along, but he was ignored. Soon they came to what could only be Sweet Apple Acres. Atop a hill sat a huge-no massive-farmhouse, and all around two edges of it was a wide, yawning apple orchard, while the yard around the farm itself was grassy and well kept. From somewhere a dog could be heard barking excitedly. The farmhouse was huge-two floors and a wrap around porch-and on another hill very nearby he could see what appeared to be a small carrot crop. He looked around curiously and there at the very edge of the orchard was a treehouse with a ramp leading up to it, fairly large for such a treehouse. Sweetie rolled him right up the ramp and inside, shutting the door behind them. It was sparsely furnished but warm and cozy, sunlight streaming in through the windows. On the couch asleep was a yellow filly with a messy red mane and a pink ribbon hanging limply from her mane, snoring softly. "That's Apple Bloom. You can get out of the chair now, by the way. I'm gonna wake her up." Quill grinned and got up from the chair, wheeling it against the wall and standing a few feet back from it, like it was a disease he was afraid to catch. Sweetie, meanwhile, walked over and tapped on her friend's stomach with a hoof. Apple Bloom grunted and stayed fast asleep, swatting at the hoof on a reflex. Sweetie didn't give up, she kept pushing and prodding until the filly had opened one eye to fix her friend with a glare that could kill by the dozens. Probably the most unfriendly face he had seen so far, and it was still shared between friends. "Get up, Apple Bloom. I wanna introduce you to the town's resident new guy." Apple Bloom sighed and slowly sat up against the back of the couch. "It's been a hard day, Sweetie. Ya had to wake me up?" Quill looked down apologetically-he hadn't intended to cause a problem. "Sorry girl, but there's a new guy who's potentially gonna go to school with us. Wanted to introduce him and I was sort of hoping that one or two more of our friends would be here with you." Apple Bloom nodded, her grumpy act starting to fade. She looked Quill over with interest. "What happened to ya sides?" She had the rustic, country voice that he had heard in Applejack, but Applejack had looked a bit to young to have a daughter. Sister, perhaps, then? "Nothing realy." But Sweetie felt like interjecting, apparently. "He had a battle with Timber Wolves! Ravenous, starving-" "No. I'd be dead if they had been ravenous at all. But I wandered into Timber Wolf territory and paid a heavy price." He said gravely. Apple Bloom nodded, looking back and forth between her friend and the newcomer. "Gotcha. So, where ya from?" Sighing, he repeated the information he was willing to give out, which was no more than Rarity, Fluttershy or Sweetie Belle had managed to gather. Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow suspiciously, catching onto his secretiveness. Then again how could anypony not? He wasn't trying to hide the fact that he was avoiding talking, he'd even given a reason for why he was saying so little. Twilight was very, very well connected, and she could have him sent back at a moment's notice. She knew the goddesses, half the townsfolk and many more important and influential ponies around Equestria. And if she knew where a kid like himself should be but wasn't, then how long would it really take before he was back? Exactly. "So. Muh sister found ya, out near the forest? What you say...that doesn't sound like how she'd act." "Well, maybe she doesn't like me." "That's ridiculous, why wouldn't muh sister like ya right off the bat?" "Don't know." Except he did. She knew where he had been, and maybe she didn't want somepony like that getting into the town and rubbing off on her sister, who was his age. And maybe he'd gotten on her bad side in a purposeful way, as well. But he wasn't going to tell Apple Bloonm any of that, not now. If she were going to know, then Applejack would be the one to tell her. "You're right." He pretended to relent. "Maybe I just caught her at a bad moment. Not like I could help it, but that's nopony's fault." Apple Bloom nodded. "Well, welcome to Ponyville. If you've been here a few days then I'm surprised Pinkie hasn't thrown ya some huge party yet." But he was suddenly very tired from all this standing, and he sat down in the wheelchair. Both the fillies frowned in concern. "Well, I'll meet ya proper some time with the rest of our friends." He nodded to Apple Bloom, yawning. The wheelchair wasn't so bad, now. "Don't worry, I'll get you back to the cottage. Get some sleep if you need it." But Quill had fallen asleep even before Sweetie had finished talking.