Applejack leaned against one of the fence posts that separated the Apple family Orchard from the rest of Ponyville, letting the mechanical sinews of her replacement legs rest. The exhaust pipe slowly vented steam from the overworked motors, and she could hear it quietly ticking as it slowly cooled down. She stretched her back, the metal spine that helped her support her legs made light scraping noises as she did so. With that she was ready to get back to work, though the persistent tick tick tick coming from her hindquarters told her that her legs weren't. The day was shockingly warm for autumn, especially since the weather brigade had just given the town its last storm for the season. It was on days like these that Applejack frequently regarded her replacement legs as a mixed blessing. During these all too frequent breaks that she often found herself daydreaming of her old flesh and blood kickers, or at least a better model of mechanical kickers. Perhaps a pair that didn't overheat every fifteen minutes, or didn't drink down more oil than she did water, or even a pair that didn't chaff after the first two bucks.
She sighed and lightly chastised herself for thinking that way. After all she lucky to have a pair of legs that could buck at all, and while they might be a bit cumbersome at times, they still got the job done. She sighed again and as she began to settle in on her fence post to wait out the ticking, she heard something else from down the road. It was the steady cantering of at least four different ponies, that much she could tell, but just who would be walking along some muddy dirt path on a day like today? Big Mac and Applebloom were already out in the fields, Granny Smith would be cooking lunch for the lot of them, and she didn't remember nopony saying they were going to drop by for a quick howdy-do.
As the group of ponies came around the bend and into view and once Applejack realized just who it was her eyes grew wide, and she quickly adverted her gaze, stealing only fleeting glances at the mare and her entourage. The mare was Lady Rarity, one of the daughters of Hondo Flanks, owner of Marechanical Marvels Unlimited, and the wealthiest business pony in central Equestria. While MMU was mainly a manufacturing company it has several other undertakings, from building homes to selling produce. In fact they were Sweet Apple Acre’s biggest buyer, buying over half of their crop every year for the last decade. Every now and again Applejack would catch a glimpse of Lady Rarity when Big Mac brought Applejack along to the negotiations with Mr. Hondo. While her brother and the business stallion haggled, she would only be half listening to them, the rest of her attention would be on trying to catch another glimpse of mare that she had become rather smitten with.
Now as she walked down the dirt path that passed by the Apple family orchards, Applejack had to wonder what she was doing so far away from the hustle and bustle of Ponyville proper. 'Maybe she's out enjoying the day, it is a beautiful day after all,' Applejack thought to herself. 'Beautiful, just like her,' a small voice in the back of her mind added. It was at that moment that Lady Rarity turned her gaze on the farmer, who was now openly staring at the mare. Applejack quickly adverted her gaze and began blushing like a school filly.
She took to staring at a cloud as it slowly began to drift across sky, her gaze only briefly turning back to Lady Rarity to see if she and her entourage had passed by yet. Once they had passed out of sight, Applejack let out a breath that she hadn't noticed she had been holding, and she realized that her legs had finally stopped ticking. “Alright, enough of that Applejack, if Ma and Pa knew that that you were staring at pretty mares instead of finishing your chores, why they would give you two earfuls,” Applejack chastised herself.
“And if your brother knew,” she started saying, as she turned to go back to work and found found herself muzzle to muzzle with Big Macintosh. “Big Mac!” she said startled and nearly fell back onto the fence, her expression for all the world like a foal's with their hoof caught in the cookie jar. “Ah was just letting my legs cool down,” she said, her voice loud and full of bluster as if by being louder her words would sound truer. "And well, just how long have you been standing there?”
Big Mac just gave her a knowing look.
Applejack sighed, “Alright, alright, Ah'll get back to work.”
He shook his head, “Eenope.”
Now she was confused, “Well why the hay not? Ah wanted to finish the east orchard before supper tonight.”
“We have company,” and with that Big Mac started making his way back to the house.
“Well why didn'cha say that in the first place?” Applejack asked trotting along behind him. Sometimes she felt like her brother said a whole lot of nothing before he would get to the something.
Lady Rarity sat in what she had been told was the parlor, although she wasn't quite sure it deserved that name. It was hardly large enough to fit her and her entire entourage, let alone seat them all, and everything was covered in a thin layer of dirt. Not to mention that she had been kept waiting for far too long, it had been almost ten minutes since she had been left in this room by the elderly mare. She had been hoping that she could conduct her business with these farm ponies and be on her way. She was in the middle of a dress design for the fall season that would take Canterlot by storm.
She was in the middle of daydreaming about said dress, when she was interrupted by the opening of a door, and in trotted a large red stallion, and a slightly shorter orange mare with two mechanical hind legs. Both of them were wearing very simple brown vests, and the mare was wearing a white undershirt, tied up at the sleeves. 'Finally, it took them long enough', Rarity thought to herself, though she didn't let the thought show on her face. “Good day, you must be Macintosh Apple, is that correct?” she asked, simply being polite. She knew full well that he was, as she had seen him talking with her father often enough about apple prices to recognize him.
“Eeyup,” was his simple reply.
“Well then, I assume you got the letter from my father, about me visiting this afternoon?” she inquired.
“Eeyup.”
“Splendid, then let us get down to business, and... and...” it was at that moment that Rarity realized that she was quite sure as to what her business here exactly was. She has simply been told by her father to come down to this farm today, saying that he had already sent a letter ahead of her and nothing more. “Excuse me,” she said after a moment of silence, “but may I see the letter that my father sent to you?”
Big Mac nodded, and reached into his coat pocket with his mouth, pulled out a letter, and offered it to Lady Rarity. She daintily removed the parchment from his mouth with her magic, and read it aloud. “Dear Macintosh, I hope this letter finds you, your family, and your farm in good health. I have sent this missive to you in the hope that I might be able to humbly indulge in your generosity and ask of you a favor. Not as business partners, but as friends. Over the years of our partnership I have gotten to know you and your family quite well, I have seen that you are some of the hardest working ponies in all of Equestria, and I would like for you to try to impact some of that Earth pony down-to-earth attitude unto my daughter, Rarity. I would like to ask that you have her work along side you and your family as an extra farm hoof for the next three weeks.” At that point Rarity's calm mask slipped, and her mouth turned into a severe frown.
The letter continued on, but Rarity couldn't bring herself to continue to reading it. She was trying to wrap her mind around the idea of working in the dirt and the mud and the filth of a farm for the next three weeks.
While Rarity processed this predicament, Applejack's smile grew wider and wider. Lady Rarity would be working along side her and her family for three whole weeks. Three glorious weeks during which she would get to work side by side with the mare she had admired from afar for years.
“Well then,” Rarity finally said after recomposing herself. “It would seem that I came here rather, under-prepared. Why, I'm not even dressed properly, I mean who ever hear of a mare, ehh, bucking apples, in a gown and frock?” Then as if to demonstrate how absurd a notion it was she gave a few half-hearted bucks, and in doing so nearly tripping on said gown. “You see? It just wouldn't be practical for me to do any farm work in these cloths.” 'In fact a lady like myself shouldn't even have to consider such a preposterous ideas as doing farm work at all,' Rarity thought to herself.
“Uh huh, I reckon it would be much easier if y'all just weren't wearing anything,” Applejack said, still daydreaming about working with Rarity for the next three weeks. Then a few seconds later she realized that she had said that out loud, and her face burned a deep shade of red that put Big Mac's coat to shame.
“Yyyyyeeess,” Rarity said, eyebrow raised. “Why that's exactly my point, I simply can't work in this outfit. So I'll say au revoir for today, and if I, erm I mean when I come back tomorrow, I shall be much more appropriately attired. Come come,” gathering herself and her entourage, Rarity gave the Apples a small nod and was on her way.
Applejack took a moment to recompose herself and then as she was just about to wave and say good-bye, the door had slammed closed. She took a second, sighed, and then rounded on Big Mac, “Why didn't y'all tell me that Rarity was coming to visit the farm, and work here for three whole weeks?”
Big Mac just shrugged his head, and flashed a look that was somewhere between a knowing smirk and genuine amusement. “Well Ah just felt that y'all were due for a bit of sunshine. Ya haven't quite been yourself lately sugar cube.”
“Aww, hush you, Ah'm fine,” Applejack said, lightly slugging him in the shoulder. “And if'n y’all don't mind, there is an orchard that needs bucking,” and with that Applejack left with a small spring in her step, in anticipation of a whole three weeks working alongside Lady Rarity.