//------------------------------// // Same old // Story: Good Vibes // by sunsetsjournal //------------------------------// Chapter 1: Same old "Mmm…".Applejack mumbled, disturbed in her peaceful slumber by the rooster crow. "...Not yet, please". It was the first day of summer vacation and, as it had turned out, even a usually morning person like our dear farm girl was not too keen on waking up at dawn after a long school year. Unluckily for, her the bird had no intention of letting her or the rest of her family rest, in fact it kept crying louder by the minute. Applejack on the other hand was not willing to give up just yet. "I've been waiting to long for this day".She went on thinking, while burying her face under the soft pillow of her bed. "And I am not gonna move from here until 11:00 am at least." "Applejack!". A familiar raspy voice began to shout from the corridor downstairs. "The rooster has already crowded twice, what in tarnation is taking you so long?!". Hearing her grandmother call her, the poor still tired girl sighed, as she was trying to come up with the right excuse that would make the elder woman let her stay in bed a few more hours. "Oh, c'mon Granny, can't I just rest a little bit more? It's the first day of summer vacation after all!". "What are you jabbering about?!". Granny Smith went on, clearly getting nervous, which was anything but good at her age. "You’ve got chores to do and you know that, too! Plus I remember you telling me that you were made a proposition for an afternoon job at the city mall, which means you gotta work double your usual speed to get everything done by midday. Or you won’t be able to make it in time. Now stop wasting time and get down here. Or I am coming upstairs myself!”. As much as she wished to sleep, the farm girl knew too well that when her grandmother made a threat, she needed to be taken seriously. Especially when that threat involved throwing her granddaughter out of bed. Applejack still had a vivid memory of what had happened some years before in similar circumstances. It was Christmas time and everyone was preparing their gift lists, everyone but her. Granny Smith had in fact swore that if she had not waken up early us usual to get her chores done, she would have forced her to do so herself, which she had done without a second thought. The sensation of the elder woman's cold hands pulling her by the arm, making her fall violently on the floor, made her shiver like cold winter breeze. “Okay, Granny!”. The farm girl shouted in response. “I am coming down”. A few seconds after, Applejack left the bed, throwing the blanket on the floor, then rushed to open her closet. It did not take her much to choose what to wear. “Just my usual shirt and a jeans skirt will be enough, I guess”. The girl repeated in her mind, grabbing the clothes she had chosen. As soon as had changed, Applejack ran to the bathroom to wash her face and brush her hair, which took her generally longer than all the other things she needed to do in the morning to get ready for work. Though it’s understandable that combing her hair into her usual long pony tail would require some time. Suddenly a voice came from out of the bathroom. “Sis, are you in there?”. “Applebloom?!”. Applejack answered. “What are doing?! You know I hate being disturbed, while I am in here!”. “I know sis, it’s just that...couldn’t you hurry up a bit? I kinda need to use the washroom, too”. Hearing those things, made the blonde farm girl sighed. If there was anything that could convince her to do something, it was her younger sister Applebloom’s begging act; so without thinking twice, she left the bathroom. As soon as she saw Applejack, opening the door, the little girl ran into room, forgetting even to thank her big sister. “Oh well...”. The farm girl said to herself, while heading back to her room. “I guess we’re just back to the same old stuff”. Having reached her bedroom, Applejack looked around, until she found her hat, left on a clothes hanger. “I guess we’d better be ready to go face the day”. Applejack headed downstairs, passed through the corridor, where she heard Granny Smith, shouting at Big Mac who had apparently had the same idea as his sister to skip his chores for the day, and entered the kitchen. There she found her breakfast, lying on the table. “Eggs...” the farm girl started counting, observing what Granny Smith had prepared for her and her siblings. “...Toasts, bacon, sausages, milk...same food as everyday: what a bore!”. After a few minutes spent wondering why Granny Smith could not come up with a different breakfast from time to time, Applejack decided to ignore the rumbling of her belly and get to work immediately. On the fridge she found a small piece of paper, where her grandmother had written her daily chores, quickly took a look at it, then sighed again. “Same old chores, too. Seems today is getting better by the minute!”. In the end the girl headed outside to start working with an unusual frown on her face. Of course watering some apple siblings, bucking apples or helping her brother fix the barn roof was no hard task for her but nothing seemed able to lift her spirit that day. In the meantime little Applebloom, who was allowed to skip her chores for the day, being the youngest member of the family, had invited her friends Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle to play at the farm. The three youngsters were playing a game of cards, in the kitchen, when they saw Applejack covered in mud, entering the room. “Hey Applejack!” Scootaloo greeted her, waving her arm. “How’s things?”. Strangely no answer came from the farm girl who instead ignored her and headed outside again, after having picked a broom from closet. “Wow!” the member of the CMCs exclaimed, having remained speechless. “What’s going on with your sister, Applebloom?”. “I have no clue”. Her friend replied, looking anxious herself. “Has it been long...I mean since she started acting...”. “Awkwardly, rudely, like she was completely absent minded? Since this morning”. “She looked really stressed to me” Sweetie Belle suggested, intervening. “I’m just wondering what could be bothering her so much”. The three youngsters spent a few minutes in absolute silence, trying to figure out what was going on with Applejack. “But of course!” the little red headed farm girl shouted all of a sudden. “Of course what?” Scootaloo asked, looking glass eyed and confused. “This morning, when I was coming to the kitchen to have breakfast, I heard my sister complain about how boring and repetitive her chores seemed to her!”. “So, she’s just bored?”. “If that’s the case...”. Sweetie Belle went on. “...Then all we gotta do is find a way to make the day a little more exciting for her!”. “But how?!” Scootaloo questioned. “Do we have a plan?”. “Yes, we do!” Applebloom intervened again. “I’ve heard that she and her friends recently got a job at the mall”. “That’s right” Sweetie Belle continued. “Rarity mentioned something of the sort, too”. “We just need to help her finish her chores a little bit faster, so she can go to the mall early and catch up with the other girls!”. “Brilliant idea, Applebloom” Scootaloo interrupted. “There’s just one small problem”. “And that is?”. “How many chores does your sister take care of every day?”. Hearing that question, the young farm girl gulped, trying to hide her worry. “She’s usually the one doing most of the work every day”. “Yeah, I can see that”. Sweetie Belle added, reading the notes Granny Smith had written for Applejack on the piece of paper attached to the fridge. “Finishing them will take most of our day”. An awkward silence filled the room once more. “You know what? I don’t care!” Scootaloo intervened, breaking that awful atmosphere. “We own Applejack a thousand of favors, don’t we?” Her fellow members of the Canterlot Movie Club nodded. “I’ve personally lost counts of how many times she and the other girls helped us out and forgiven us for the mistakes we made”. “Yeah, we know”. Sweetie Belle and Applebloom sadly uttered at the same time. “Today we have a chance to repay her and, as far as I can remember, the CMCs always pay off their debts. Especially when it come to helping others. Am I right or am I right?” “Yeah!”. “Perfect, now: who else wants to give Applejack an easy day?”. The other two young girls raised their hands immediately. “Very well. Now Applebloom, go tell Granny Smith we’ll take care of Applejack’s chores for the rest of the day. Sweetie Belle and I will stay here to give your sister the gig news”. Shortly after the young red headed farm girl had left the kitchen, Applejack entered from the door to leave the broom where she had taken it. “Applejack!” Sweetie Belle exclaimed excitedly. “We were just about to come and get you: we’ve got something very important to tell you!”. “Uh...me?”. The girl replied, shaking her head confused. “Yes, you” Scootaloo went on.“You have the rest of the day off!”. “What?!”. Applejack exclaimed, even more confused. “But Granny Smith said”. “Bla bla bla, Granny Smith said it’s okay, if we take care of your chores for you”. “Really, girls, I am not sure...”. “Oh come on!”. Sweetie Belle intervened. “We know you’re dying to meet your friends at the mall, so stop talking and just go!”. With these words the CMCs pushed Applejack out of the door which they locked tight so the girl would not be able to get in. “Job well done”. Scootaloo told her friend with a smile of satisfaction on her face. “We’ve got Granny’s permission!” Applebloom shouted, reappearing suddenly. “Cool!” Scootaloo replied, exited. “I was dying to stop playing that boring game of cards anyway. So what do we have to do first?”. “Well...”. Her red headed friend uttered, picking Applejack’s to do list. “You pick”. As soon as they laid their eyes on that list, the three youngsters gulped at the sight of the load of things they would have to do by the end of the day. “Remember: anything for a friend”. They repeated to themselves, gulping. “Anything for a friend”. Later that afternoon Applejack reached the mall, walking slowly, constantly turning back, still unsure if leaving the Canterlot Movie Club girls to do her chores had been a good idea. Sometimes she thought of going back, yet, when she stared at her watch, she realized it was almost time for her new job. “I wonder if it will be any fun for me. I could really use some of that today”. The girl thought, while entering the shopping center. The place was particularly crowded that day, which seemed to be no surprise to the farm girl. After all everyone in town were looking forward for summer just for the sales. Passing by, Applejack often stopped to take a look at the window display of the various shops. Some of them showed really pretty dresses, at least in Applejack's opinion; but the girl knew very well that her knowledge of fashion was equal to zero. That reflection brought up her dear friend Rarity who, too, had taken a job at the mall. So without worrying too much about being late at her first day of work, the blond farm girl decided to pay her old pall a visit. The place where Rarity was to work during summer was of course a boutique: a property of a certain Prim Hemline, apparently another woman important in the fashion industry Applejack did not know and did not want to know much about. The place looked incredibly chic even at distance thanks to the exquisite way it was decorated. Furthermore the bright purple curtains around the windows, made it simply outstanding among that river of shops. Upon entering, the farm girl noticed Rarity behind the counter: she was wearing a black silk dress full of sequin and some pink ribbon in her hair. Applejack greeted the girl, waving her right arm, and with a big smile, the first of the day for that matter. “Applejack, darling!”. Rarity exclaimed happily, as soon as she recognized her friend. “A pleasure to see you!”. The youngster added, nearing the farm girl and placing two long kisses on each of her cheeks. “Hi, Rare!”. Applejack replied, gazing upon her friend’s dress. “Nice outfit”. The farm girl went on saying.“Take you designed it yourself?”. “Oh, this? No!”Her friend answered, blushing, leaving Applejack confused. “It’s an outfit my new boss, Prim, gave me for the job”. “Oh!”. Applejack uttered, fearing she had hurt Rarity’s sense of fashion. “I am sorry, Rare, I just thought...”. Seeing her friend’s reaction, the second girl started giggling, which was suddenly a relief to the farm girl. “No need to worry, dear Applejack, I am not offended. It may be true that I have not designed this outfit myself, yet I still find it gorgeous, just like you said”. Hearing those words Applejack sighed, visibly calmer, right before bursting into laughter, shortly followed by her friend, Rarity. “So”. The farm girl said, once she had stopped laughing and giggling. “How’s your new job, so far, Rare?”. “Mmm...”. Rarity whispered in response, which Applejack guessed was not a good sign. “Let’s jut say it could be better”. “And why is that?”. The blond farm girl asked, placing a hand on her friend’s shoulder in an attempt to cheer her up. “Oh, Applejack, I have been here an hour already, but no client has shown up, yet!”. “What?!”. Applejack, exclaimed surprised. “How is that even possible, when there’s such a huge crowd all over the mall?!”. “That’s just it, darling, I don’t know. It seems that people here are interested in every store but mine and it’s frustrating. Especially because Prim told me that if I make enough sales, she’ll be considering supporting my boutique in town! Do you have any idea how important that is to me?!”. “Of course I do, Rare”. The farm girl replied, smiling. “What kind of friend would I be if I didn’t?”. “Oh, Applejack, I am desperate to find a solution, desperate!”. Rarity went on, before falling on a red couch just next to the counter. “Don’t fret Rarity, it’s no good for you; plus crying will ruin your makeup. Listen here: what would you say if I helped you gather up some people here?”. “Could you?!”. “Well...not exactly”. Applejack answered, blushing. “Then what do you mean?”. “I have DJ Pon-3’s number. I bet my boots she would love to give you a hand. Plus nobody like her knows how to draw people’s attention. So, Rare, what do you say?”. “Alright...I guess I can give it a try”. Rarity replied, after thinking it through. "Give me her number”. The farm girl took her phone from the pocket of her skirt and gave her friend DJ Pon-3’s contact. “I only hope she will be be able to make it today”. “Don’t worry!”. Applejack said, trying to reassure her friend. “I am certain she will”. Rarity made the call and agreed a time with DJ who sounded excited to help the girl out. “What did she say?” Applejack questioned curiously. “We have a deal: she’ll be here in an hour”. “Awesome! So, was I right or not?”. The farm girl asked with a smirk on her face. “You were, darling. I am sorry I doubted you”. “Oh, shucks! Shortly you will see what kind of magic that girl can work to gather up folk!”. While Applejack was giggling, proud of the brilliant idea she had to assist her dear friend, Rarity took one last look at her phone, more specifically at the time. “Oh, my!” she shouted, worried. “What now?”. “It’s already 3:30 pm”. “So, what?”. Went on the farm girl who had yet to understand the gravity of the situation. “Darling, weren’t you supposed to be at the fruit stage by 3:00pm?”. “Oh, shoot!”. Applejack exclaimed, clearing her throat, feeling fear growing inside her. “I gotta go. Thanks for the chat rare, see ya later!”. And she rushed out of the clothes shop without even letting Rarity thank her for her help. It took at least 15 minutes for the farm girl to reach the stage where she was supposed to be working. The crowd that had gathered up at the mall that day was truly impressive: too bad for Applejack. As soon as she arrived in front of her wooden stage, she saw a tall ginger-haired man with an angry expression on his face. “Oh boy!” The farm girl thought, imagining who that person was. “Something tells me this is gonna be a long afternoon”. After having listened to her new boss, yelling at her being late on her first day of work, Applejack was sent to get ready. “What do you mean?” The youngster asked, confused to the man before her who had a pair of evil vulture-like eyes. “I mean wear your costume. It’s in the supply room. We made sure to find one you would fit in.” As soon as she saw her working uniform, the farm girl’s jaw dropped: it looked at least too sizes larger than what it was supposed to be. Not to mention the it’s flashing green color which reminded her of moss. In a few words it was so horrible that even somebody like Applejack, whose knowledge in fashion was equal to zero, would hate it. For a moment the girl thought of complaining, but then remembered her boss’s spooky gaze and the tone he had used with her which had made her shiver like a sheep. On second thought she could have always thrown the towel, but again something inside her reminded the reason why her friends and she had decided to look for a summer job in the first place. “Oh, shoot, the trip to the beach site next month, right!”. Sighing, the girl gave up at the prospective of walking away from that cursed place, gathered all the courage she had inside and put on the costume. The job Applejack had been given was not hard. After all anybody in the farm girl’s opinion would be able to simply cut some fruits and mix them into a milkshake. The hardest part for her was in fact doing so, while wearing that ridiculous suit. Every time somebody walked by, Applejack had the strange impression that she was being observed. All those evil stares were shortly followed in her mind by grins and sinister giggles. “Oh, gosh”. The farm girl thought, clearing her throat. “Now I’ve become a true laughing stock!”. Right at that moment, when she felt like she could not handle it anymore and was about to run away, Applejack heard a familiar cheerful voice, calling for her. “Hey, AJ! What are you doing?”. “Ah, Pinkie!”. The blonde farm girl exclaimed, recognizing her cheerful friend. “You scared me!”. “Oh, c’mon!”. Pinkie went on, giggling. “It’s fun to get spooked from time to time”. “Not to me it isn’t!”. Applejack replied, clearly bothered by her friend’s prank. “Ah, fine. Anyway how’s things on your first day of work?”. “Not good”. The farm girl sighed sadly. “What about you?”. “Oh, I don’t know yet. I still need to get to the restaurant I am supposed to be working in. Do you like my new uniform?”. Applejack stared at Pinkie for a moment. Only now did she realize her friend was wearing an azure and black waitress dress. “Pretty, isn’t it? I like yours, too!”. “No, don’t look!”. The farm girl answered, hiding under the counter of the fruit stage. “Today has brought me nothing but bad luck. I don’t want you to see me like this!”. Worried by Applejack’s behavior, Pinkie asked what was going on. Having left her hiding spot, her friend told her the whole story. “Wow!”. Pinkie exclaimed, once Applejack had finished talking. “That sounds really awful!”. “I know: there’s no way it could get any worse!”. “Applejack!”. Her boss called for her right at that moment. “A client has spilled fruit juice on the floor: get to work!”. Hearing those words, the farm girl sighed. “Well, Pinkie I guess I need to go. Head to the restaurant or you will be late on your first day like I was. I really would not want you to get in the trouble because of me”. “Oh, Applejack don’t worry”. Pinkie replied, hugging her tight. “Just think about the beach!”. “I sincerely hope it will be worth it”. A second call from her boss made the farm girl that understand she needed to get to cleaning the dirty floor immediately. So she and her friend said goodbye to each other. “See you later Applejack”. Pinkie exclaimed, turning around to leave. “And anyway your uniform isn’t all that bad”. “Thanks, but I know it is. See you later Pinkie. I hope you’ll be luckier with your new job than I was!”.