Pinkamena set the shovel temporarily on the ground, coughing up the dirt that had found its way in her mouth. It had already been three hours since she'd started working in the fields, and she was now beginning to grow tired. I just don't have the stamina it takes to keep going without any breaks...
She looked around at her sisters, Maudalina and Marble, who were still hard at work digging up and collecting the rocks needed for an order their father had taken. Maud expertly uncovered several rocks at a time, placing them in the wagon that was strapped to Marble's back. The younger sister worked slower, albeit with efficiency.
Pinkamena stared at her with a well-known admiration, wondering how and why Maud was so strong compared to the rest of the family. She looked down at her own hooves, matted and scratched from the constant work, and sighed. Perhaps it was just her that was weak.
Feeling useless, she picked the shovel back up. If her sisters were still going, then she owed it to them to continue helping without wasting any time. She knew she was still breathing heavily, but it didn't matter. Their father needed these rocks tomorrow.
Using her teeth, she pushed against the handle to burrow the shovel blade under a decently sized rock. She kept pushing until it felt like her jaw would break, then crouched down to try and scoop the rock out of its sturdy dirt prison. When it still wouldn't come up, she reached and pressed down on the handle with her hooves. Unfortunately, her limbs were too tired and flimsy, and she was forced to let go of the shovel. She winced, rubbing her cheeks to try and alliviate the pain putting pressure on her teeth had caused her.
Not wanting to take too many breaks, she tried to push down on it again, but the tool wouldn't budge. She growled in frustration, glaring at the rock with the intensity of a pony who'd just spent three hours working out in the fields. That is to say; not very intense. But inside of her delirious mind, Pinkamena thought that she could somehow magically dig up the rock from the ground - simultaneously unlodging the shovel and being useful - if she just looked at it really hard.
"Do you need help?" Maud asked in her monotone voice.
Pinkamena whipped her head around upon hearing the sudden question. It wasn't that her sister had surprised her, but with the shy Marble and Maud being the way she was, very minimal conversation had gone on between them during the last couple hours. Hearing her elder sister offer assistance wasn't very rare though. As a result, the pink mare looked away from her, a pointed "No thanks," given as a response. She could do this without any help.
This time, she attempted to move the shovel around. She figured if pushing down on it didn't work, then digging a bigger hole so she could take the tool out would. She wiggled it from side to side until it was loose enough to potentially be extracted. Narrowing her eyes, she held onto it even tighter and prepared to pull it out...
Maud stomped down on the shovel, the handle slamming to the ground underneath her hoof. In an instant, the previously stuck rock flew out of the ground and straight into the wagon, causing Marble to let out a startled squeak. The other end of the shovel was still under the dirt, but it could now be easily pulled out. Maud did just that, grabbing the shovel with her mouth and spitting it back on the ground beside her sister.
Pinkamena gaped. She'd pulled away her hooves before Maud had stomped on the shovel, so she wasn't hurt. Instead, she was confused, annoyed, and most importantly, angry. I just told her I didn't want any help, so why did Maud just do that?! Why isn't she using her energy to dig her own rocks?
Seeing the glare the younger mare was sending her way, Maud sighed. "Pinkie, you need to know your limits. I saw how much you were struggling with that one, so I came to help. Now I can see why you've been dwindling in performance for the past couple days. Your teeth hurt, right?"
Pinkamena vehemently shook her head, but the aching pain in her molars said otherwise. She clenched her teeth just then, hoping Maud wouldn't notice. She didn't want her sister to start scolding her again. Maud did notice, but refrained from lecturing her. "Why don't you go back inside, Pinkie? I'm sure mom and dad won't mind."
She looked down, "But dad needs these rocks tomorrow... Also, I asked you to stop calling me that."
Maud pushed, "No, you have to stop for now. Anypony could see how exhausted you are. I'm almost done here, so I'll meet you later for dinner."
Pinkamena looked into her sister's eyes, seeing the dull, but firm resolution in them. She was serious. Her anger dwindling away, she nodded her head and went back to the shovel. "Then I'll just put this away."
Maud softened her expression slightly, "Alright. Get some rest, okay Pinkie?"
The pink mare gave a tiny noise of affirmation, ignoring the age old nickname she hated so much. She trotted her way toward the shed, which was only a few metres away from the front door of their house. She gazed at the entrance with a guilty sense of relief. She wanted to help more, but at the same time she was so tired. I guess I'll have to double my work intake tomorrow.
She hung the shovel up on one of the hooks, and then closed the shed without locking it. She knew Marble had the key, so she would lock it later. Traveling along the path to the door, she paused to steel herself. Maud had said that their parents wouldn't mind - but was that really the case? She'd heard her father stress before how important it was that they complete the order by tomorrow. Realizing how much work that meant her sisters would have to do, she started feeling a nagging urge to go back and continue working. She was about to, too - if it weren't for her mother opening the door first.
Cloudy Quartz looked down at her daughter, an expression of emerging indignation on her face. "Pinkamena, what are you doing?"
Her mind raced through several possible answers she could give, trying to choose one that wouldn't make her mom angry. What excuse could she possibly use that would justify her reasons for coming back inside? She narrowed it down to two possibilities - tell her the truth, or come up with a lie. Slowly, she raised her head to look back at her mother. "Um, I wanted to come inside so I could help Limestone with c-cleaning..." A lie it was, but maybe she could turn it into a half-truth. "Maud said I could!"
The older mare stared down at her, making Pinkamena sweat with nervousness. What would happen if she didn't believe her? Would she have to go out and do farm work again? It would be nice to help with the order, but she didn't know how much more her teeth and hooves could take.
Finally, Cloudy responded, "Then you may go. I was just about to head out and assist them in the digging of the rocks." She walked past her daughter without another word, heading toward the shed to retrieve the shovel Pinkamena had just stored away.
After her mom had disappeared, she relaxed and let out the breath she'd been holding. Having passed that hurdle, she went inside the house, closing the door behind her. She'd been lucky - it seemed like her mother was in a good mood today. She couldn't say the same for her father though. From what she'd seen this morning, he was stressing majorly over the order. Even now, she could hear him upstairs, loudly pacing about.
If I want to go back to my room, I'll have to get past my dad first. Pinkamena took note of the fact that her room was situated at the very back of the hallway. The floorboards did get creaky every now and then, but if she was careful, maybe she could do it.
Checking to see if Limestone was anywhere nearby, she gently began climbing up the stairs, hoping none of them would creak. It was more difficult than she'd expected - she had to climb them quickly, while still taking care not to put too much pressure on any of the steps. It was like running a marathon along an extremely thin trail of cloud. She couldn't press down too hard or it would give way and she'd fall deep, deep down onto the ground, or in this case, the clutches of her strict father. Let's hope that doesn't happen.
She tip-hoofed past her father's door, which thankfully was at the front of the hallway, meaning any noises made after that point could go unheard. She still tried her best to walk without making any noise, but when she stepped on a particular board, a loud squeak travelled along the hall. She cringed and in her panic, ran the rest of the way, rushing into the safety of her room.
Pinkamena quickly closed the door, not bothering to check if her dad had heard that or not. She didn't want to, because if she did, that would mean she'd have to face the wrath of Igneous Rock Pie. She shivered at the thought. He was normally very calm - albeit strict - but when he got angry, it wasn't pretty. Both her parents were quite similar like that.
She sighed. It was pathetic. She was a full grown mare, and yet she still got intimidated by her parents. That can't do. I need to be more independent! This was often something she told herself, but it was hard to keep up. As long as she lived with them, she would always be under the mercy of her parents. But perhaps she could take the first step toward her goal; by checking to see if her father was there.
Hesitantly, she opened her door and peered down the hallway. She zoomed in on his room entrance, watching to see if it would open. When at least a minute passed without anything happening, she closed her door again and sat down. So her father hadn't heard the creak of the floorboard. Either he was going deaf, or he'd assumed it was Limestone. Either way, she was clearly experiencing a lucky streak. This is the happiest I've been in a while, she thought, allowing herself a tiny smile.
She couldn't rest yet though. Getting off from the floor, she trotted over to the full-body mirror that was propped up against the wall. The mirror's outer framing was made out of rocks straight from their farm, and the glass had crystals embedded in it. She'd had it since she was a little filly, and she'd always really liked it. It was a shame that she could only see her own, sad reflection in it, but it was useful for getting ready in the mornings, and it was a pretty mirror. It was one of the only items in her room that was of any importance to her.
Grabbing the water bottle from her nightstand, she poured some of it on a cloth and began wiping down her body. She couldn't use the washroom without making any noise, so this was the next best thing. Of course, she didn't have any soap, so she couldn't get everything cleaned - but it would get the job done, and she would be clean enough to lay down on her bed.
She sat down to scrub at her hooves, which were a big problem area when it came to cleaning. Dirt would constantly find its way underneath the ridges of her hooves. She considered wearing shoes, but she didn't have enough money, and they would get in the way of her efficiency, so she didn't bother. Instead, she committed to scrubbing every single day. It usually worked with warm water and soap, but since she didn't have that right now, she couldn't do anything about it. With a grumble, she tossed the cloth aside and closed the bottle. She'd try again after dinner.
Pinkamena didn't get up immediately. She stayed sitting down, staring at her own reflection in the mirror. When had she become so big? She could remember from a few years ago, when she had just reached halfway up the mirror. She'd been so proud of herself. Zoom back to the future, and now, even while sitting, she nearly reached the top in terms of height. Her parents were still slightly taller, but she sure had grown. I guess time flies by quick when you're... not doing anything... Is that how the saying goes?
Shaking her head, she stood back up. It was time for her to take a nap, and perhaps later she could go and actually help Limestone with cleaning the house, like she'd told her mom. It was only fair after all. She was about to head to bed, but something stopped her. There'd been a stray hair that she'd spotted in the mirror. It usually wouldn't matter, but her hair was always straight, so any stray hairs was an anamoly.
She'd only planned to take a look - check to see if there were any more odd hairs strewn about, but as she'd quickly realize, it was a lot more serious than that. Because staring at her in the mirror, was the reflection of a mare with a whole head of poofy hair.
She stared, wondering for a second if her mirror was broken. Then her jaw dropped as she realized the mare in the mirror was her, and she had a poofy mane! She reached up, frantically making sure her straight mane was still there; and it was. So why did her reflection look so different?
Then, she paused. Her reflection stared back at her, mimicking everything she was doing. She reached toward the mirror, feeling for anything that resembled a scratch or crack. When she found nothing, she closed her eyes. Maybe she was hallucinating from how tired she was, or maybe she was already asleep, and this was just some weird dream she was having. Yes, that's what was going on. There was no way her reflection had a different mane style. It was just impossible.
"Hi there!"
Pinkamena snapped her eyes open. Her reflection was no longer still like her. The other mare waved back, grinning with all the happiness of a pony who'd just eaten three whole cakes.
And Pinkamena screamed, completely disregarding the fact that her father was only a couple rooms down.