//------------------------------// // Chapter 4: Applebucking... Is a lot harder than it looks (edited June 15th, 2021) // Story: Broken Family, Healed Family // by Amos Anon //------------------------------// THUMP! “OW! WHY DOESN’T THIS WORK?!?” I stifled a laugh at my brother’s expense. Well, now he knows what applebucking is. “Ya gotta find the sweet spot.” Applejack, who was teaching a group of us how to applebuck, turned her back to one of the apple trees situated at Sweet Apple Acres, and kicked up her rear legs, delivering a powerful kick to the intended tree. Apples rained down from the tree, and Applebloom- Applejack’s younger sister- quickly darted around with a basket on her head, catching the falling apples with expert precision. It had been a few days since our sudden exodus from Earth, and after having spoken to Twilight about getting us jobs during our stay in Ponyville, I suggested that perhaps we could help out at Sweet Apple Acres in return for food and lodging. Our family was not one for burdening someone- Monarch or otherwise- without some way of paying said person back, and Twilight agreed to speak with Applejack about it. Needless to say, Applejack had agreed, and all of us had congregated at the farm to help with the fall harvest in any way we could. “I hate to break it to you, Applejack.” Otto spoke, gesturing to the tree. “But as much as we want to help, I don’t think we can all do that.” Applejack wiped sweat from her brow, and turned to face my father. “That’s quite alright, sir. Ah know some ‘o’ y’all might not be able to applebuck, but y’all were farmin’ folk in your world at one point or another, so ah know y’all will be able to find something around here worth doin’.” She smiled, and re-adjusted her hat before lining up for another tree. “The reason ah’m showin’ ya this is so that everyone knows everythin’ that goes on at this here farm so that everyone’s on the same page.” She swiftly delivered another kick, and Applebloom once again darted into action. Yeah, that makes sense. If everyone knows what everyone is supposed to do, it makes it easier to predict what needs to be done, therefore helping the farm run smoother. I wish some of my employers had done that back on earth... Memories of that place flooded in, and anger threatened to overtake my consciousness, but I pushed it down. Focus, Moto. There will be time for that later. “Now, I know some of y’all won’t be able to do this, and that’s fine, but maybe by watching mah sister and mahself, ya can see our teamwork. If any ya wanna give catchin’ a shot, you can grab any 'o' the empty buckets layin’ hereabout and give it a whirl; Some of ya might be better at doin’ that than the buckin’.” She shot a glance at Hawk and I. ... Is she implying what I think she's implying? “Thanks for doing this, Applejack.” Maelstrom stepped forward, preparing himself to try applebucking. “You didn’t have to do this for us. Housing and feeding 16 peo... I mean ponies can’t be easy.” Applejack smiled and waved him off. “Well, y’all seem like decent ponies, and ah just can’t leave fellow farmin’ folk to starve. Besides...” She hugged her grinning sister closely. “Y’all remind me of mah own family in some ways. When Twilight came to me about your request for some way to earn a living, ah couldn’t turn it down. To be quite frank, It’ll be nice to have a little help durin’ this fall’s harvest... But don’t think ah’m doin’ this for free. Y’all are gonna earn your keep around here.” Percy took another kick at a tree, and this time missed completely. “Oof! Darn it... Applejack, We wouldn’t have it any other way. We’d hate to impose on someone without some sort of compensation. I don't think we could have felt comfortable staying at the castle for any longer.” He picked himself up from the ground, and took his stance in front of the tree again, preparing for another swing. Applejack quickly trotted over, and made some adjustments to his position before gesturing for him to continue. Percy kicked, and was rewarded with a shower of apples, one of them bouncing off my head. Ow. “YES! Finally!” “Ya have a similar build to mah brother Big Mac, so ya need to stand a little further from the tree than ah do.” My brother smiled gratefully, and lined up at another tree. “Alright. Who’s next?” My turn. I stepped forward. “I’ll give it a shot.” Applejack raised an eyebrow. “You?” “Um... yeah...?” “Well, okay, if you’re sure.” “I am.” I backed up to a nearby tree, and Applejack trotted over. “Now, you pegasi don’t have as strong a build as us earth ponies, so don’t expect to get all the apples out of the tree in one go.” I merely nodded, and listened patiently as Applejack went through the instructions one more time. I’d already heard them when she’d explained to Percy, but I made sure to ask more questions. I liked to have a good understanding of something before trying to attempt it myself. Applejack made some adjustments to my stance, and stood back. “Alright... Whenever you’re ready, give it a shot.” Whew... Okay... I lunged forward, lifting my hind hooves off the ground, thereby placing all my weight on my front hooves, and jerked my rear hooves toward the tree. Needless to say, I failed miserably, and I heard a snicker from Ixisten. “It’s alright, nopony gets it on the first try.” Applejack helped me up to my hooves, and I checked myself over for any injuries. That hurt a lot more than I was expecting it to. I shook my head, and rubbed my sore hindquarters. “Ow.” “You alright?” I nodded hesitantly. “I think so. What did I do wrong?” Applejack then went through a rather embarrassing list of all the things I’d done incorrectly, and then watched as I tried again. I actually connected the second time, though I only managed to drop about a quarter of the apples from the tree. “It seems you pretty well got it figured out. You keep on practicin’. Ah’m gonna go and help some of your kin learn how to do this.” She began to trot away, but stopped and yelled over her shoulder: “Don’t overdo it, alright? If ya start hurtin’, ah’d prefer it if ya stopped before ya go an’ injure yourself.” I waved, and lined up with the tree once more. This is a lot harder than it looked on the show. The morning passed with all of us trying our han... I mean hooves at applebucking, with varying levels of success. Percy, Ixisten, and Maelstrom took to it fairly easily, but I had to admit after having bucked my fourth tree that I just wasn’t physically fit enough for the strenuous task, and I contented myself- along with Hawk and Blaze- with catching the apples that fell from the trees, though with not nearly the precision of Applebloom. Ente held Tumak while watching over the foals with Karra, and Otto, having tried applebucking, understandibly stated that he’d only manage to hurt himself if he continued any further. He instead took up the task of collecting any apples that Hawk, Applebloom, and myself had missed, placing them in a few buckets that had been placed around the trees. Applejack and Big Macintosh proved themselves to be formidably strong, easily clearing over double the trees that my family had, though they assured us that we would become better at it over time. Percy and Bic Mac seemed to hit it off, and the two worked side by side, the former chatting to the big red stallion about the differences between the farms of Equestria and Earth, though Big Mac seemed content to just listen, with just the odd “eeyup” or “nope” whenever my bro asked him a question. I smiled to see the interactions between the two. It’s good to see them getting along. I took a short break from my toil, and wiped the sweat from my brow, taking the opportunity to observe the rest of my family at work. A content smile made its way onto my muzzle. This is what home feels like. My dad noticed my expression, and moved to stand next to me, a hoof rubbing a shoulder. “I gotta be honest. When we first ended up in this world, I thought it would take a lot longer for us to find happiness again... Especially after everything that happened.” My smile disappeared as I thought of all the relatives and friends we’d lost, a stabbing sensation disrupting the peace that had filled my heart. “It's nice, isn't it? I'll admit, I wasn't expecting us to get back on our feet... or hooves so quickly." We observed the orchard in silence for a moment, before he turned to me. "Moto... Thank you." I blinked. "... For what?" "For doing what you did back in the basement." I shrugged. "I just did what any one of us would have done, had they heard what I heard." He smiled. "That may be true, but they weren't the ones to do it, you were." "Dad... it doesn't feel right to be accepting thanks for something that basically amounted to chance." Otto hummed. "I suppose that's true. Still, without you around, I doubt that we'd be working on the farm here." I snorted. "Yeah, right. It may have taken a little longer, but I guarantee you that you would have ended up here, anyways. It's just common sense, given our farming background and the way ponies are in general." Otto smirked. "That, right there. Why do you do that to yourself? Why not just take the compliment for what it is?" "Because I don't feel like I deserve it. I did what I did because it was right. No more, no less." Otto patted my shoulder. "You're too hard on yourself, son. You have knowledge of this place that none of us do. Sure, it may be incomplete, but at least we're not flying completely blind here. It's because of you that we have a sense of security. Sure, we may have ended up in the same situation, but we would be without our guide in this world; someone who has knowledge of this world, but also can relate to the people he grew up with. Maybe Twibright..." "...Twilight, Dad." "...see? That's what I mean! Anyways, as I was saying, maybe TWILIGHT could have been our guide in this world, but she doesn't understand where we come from. She doesn't know who we are or what our world was like. She doesn't understand the horrors of war, or the sadness of watching people die that you love." Otto sat down beside me, and pulled me into a hug. "Moto, right now we need you. Not only as a guide, but as a sort of anchor. You represent hope to us, and that's more precious than any knowledge you might have. All I can say is that, as a father, I am proud of you." I sniffled. “Thanks, Dad. I needed to hear that.” The hug continued for a while, until we sensed that the moment had passed. We pulled apart, and Otto patted my shoulder. "I love you, son." I smiled. "I know. I love you, too." “Well, it’s mighty fine seein' family like yers.” The two of us turned to see Applejack trot up. The farm mare smiled, and gestured with a hoof. “C’mon, yer kinfolk have lunch waitin’ fer us. I hope y’all don’t mind if a few guests join us.” Otto and I turned to look at each other, and then shrugged. "I don't mind" "Me neither. Hey, just out of curiosity, who is it, exactly?" “Well, a good friend ‘o’ mine happened ta be in town, so invited her along. Twilight and her friends know her, so they'll be joinin' us, too.” “Is she someone we know?” “I highly doubt that, sugarcube.” “Try me.”