After about ten or so minutes of walking through Cherry’s orchard in silence, Cassy and Applejack eventually left the orchard behind, making their way towards Dodge Junction proper by way of an old dirt road that, from Cassy’s unprofessional opinion, seemed to go rarely used. To their right she could multiple small mounds dotting the terrain, some with small furry heads of prairie dogs poking out, eyeing them warily as they passed.
Cassy kept her hands neatly folded in the small of her back, taking in the scenery in an attempt to focus on anything else besides the mare trotting beside her, the pony’s muzzle contorted in an expression of mild bewilderment that seemed to border on the edge of total disbelief as she quietly mulled over Cassy’s explanation, or at least her attempt at it. Unlike the previous night when Jubilee had granted Cassy her ear, the woman felt no inclination to leave out details pertaining to her situation, seeing no reason to lie to the mare.
Looking at Applejack now however, Cassy was prompted towards wondering if perhaps it would’ve been a better idea to simply make up an explanation for her appearance, and summarily imagined that being a traveler from Klugetown would’ve been an easier pill for Applejack to swallow. At this point Cassy found it be more believable, but this was the bed she made for herself. She may as well lay in it.
Eventually the silence became to too much for Cassy to put up with as it was doing no favors for her anxiety, and she her lungs deflate as she blurted out the first thing that came to her mind.
“Pretty weird right?” she said suddenly, breaking the silence with all the care and grace of an airborne brick.
Applejack flinched at the question, caught off guard by the suddenness of it before quickly regaining her composure and clearing her throat. “Eh, y-yeah. Yeah it really is.” Narrowing her eyes she added, “I mean. . . it ain’t the strangest thing I’ve heard. . . or seen for that matter, but it’s up there. It’s definitely up there.”
Cassy frowned upon hearing the confession, her five blinking in rapid succession. She opened her mouth to ask a question before it became caught in her throat, deciding that it was likely better for the continued preservation of her mental health if she was not made privy to whatever Applejack was alluding to. That was already worn thin as it was. As such, Cassy kept quiet, happy to remain blissfully ignorant.
“So, let me see if I’m followin’ ya so far,” Applejack said. “Ya were out on the road, ridin’ around that big metal thing or whatever, and somehow you got. . . transported, and ya got no way back home. Am I with ya?”
“Well. . .” Cassy began to answer. “I don’t actually know if there’s no way back for me. I got here somehow right? Must mean there’s a way back.”
Cassy didn’t believe a single word that came from her lips, knowing them to be the product of naïve suppositions with little to no basis. She tried to hide the grimness of her thought behind a blank look, hoping Applejack wouldn’t notice, then proceeded to wonder why she even cared.
Applejack shook her head, muttering quietly under her breath, “The girls ain’t gonna believe a word o’ this when I get back.”
Soon afterward the tops of buildings could be seen in the distance, and by some unspoken agreement he two cut the conversation short, sending the remainder of the trek in silence as they approached Dodge Junction. The glint of steel in the distance indicated a set of train tracks leading into and out of the town. Soon they passed a series of empty pens of decayed wood, home to little more than arid weeds. From what Cassy could tell from her initial inspection, at least from a distance, about a third of the buildings in Dodge Junction seemed to be relatively new, albeit in need of some serious Spring cleaning, while other structures looked ready to crumble into tinder at the slightest provocation. One of the houses they passed by while entering the perimeter of the town was in the latter category, yet still had a resident. A solitary mare with a coat of light green, sporting a wide brimmed sun hat while she busily watered a series of potted plants on her porch. Cassy paused, her attention caught by the pair of feathery wings sprouting from the mares back, which she used to carry around the watering can, displaying a level of dexterity that Cassy found to be equal parts fascinating and unsettling. They were almost like hands.
Inevitably the mare’s eyes flicked upward at the two newcomers. She did a double take upon seeing Cassy, and her entire body went rigid as the watering can slipped from her grasp, falling to the ground with clatter. Cassy felt her innards tighten a little at the reaction, and she attempted to assuage any fears the pony was no doubt developing with a greeting in the form a friendly wave of her hands, but did a poor job of disguising her nervousness as she said, “Hey there. How’s it going?”
She never got an answer as the mare backpedaled away, her eyes never leaving the six armed spider woman before disappearing into the structure, the shutting with a hard slam.
For a moment Cassy just stood there, not at all encouraged by the encounter. She looked to Applejack standing beside her, who seemed more embarrassed than put off. Cassy found comfort in this, curiously enough, as it gave her the hope that perhaps the mare was simply skittish around strangers, and that her reaction had nothing to do with the talking spider monster in her vicinity. Surely that was all there was to it.
Leaving the outskirts of Dodge Junction behind them, Cassy followed Applejack up a side street that led between two older looking buildings while the mare presumably kept an eye out for the tavern she mentioned. Doing a little bit of sightseeing of her own, Cassy glanced inside the windows as she passed them by, straining to see past the caked-on layers of dirt and grime, and could barely make out the faint silhouettes of tables, chairs, and bits of rustic machinery with blankets of cobwebs adorning them like delicate tapestry. She could not help but wonder how many other places there were in town like this; abandoned and home to naught but spiders and cobwebs.
Realizing what she’d just thought, Cassy felt a grin gently tug at the corners of her fanged lips.
Progressing further into town, Cassy noticed the distinct clamor of conversation happening ahead of them. Multiple conversations in fact, becoming progressively louder with each step they took. Soon afterward the side street dumped out on what looked to a main road cutting a swath through town.
Cassy poked her head to survey the scene.
Immediately she ducked back into the side street, pressing herself against the wall, become inexplicably lightheaded all of a sudden. There must have been at least a hundred of them; mares and stallions of every different shade and type and age group, gathered in large clusters. It almost seemed as though a little girls’ toy chest had been unceremoniously dumped into an old western, and the sight of so many ponies made her multiple limbs lock up while started to heavily second guess the decision to come here.
Giving her a strange look, Applejack also took a peek around the corner. “Huh. Must be market day,” she stated, snapping her out of torpid state. Risking another glance, seeing that Applejack was correct when she saw various carts and stalls set up along the sides of the road, catching brief glimpses of their wares, mainly vegetables, through the throng. For the most part, many pones seemed content to merely converse with each other in conversations that Cassy could hardly make out, only being able to pick up a random word or sentence every now and again.
Any hope that Cassy had of entering town without too much fuss crumbled into a pitiful mote of dust, and summarily blown away by her increasing trepidation. The moment she stepped out of the relative safety of the side street she would be noticed. Her heart began to tremble within her chest. At least, she thought it was her heart doing that.
Did she even have a heart in the traditional sense anymore?
Something prodded Cassy in the side forcefully. “Ow,” she blurted, casting an annoyed look at Applejack. “What?” She muttered sourly, massaging the sore spot on her torso.
“Ya good?” Applejack asked, one of her eyebrows raised. “Ya kinda zoned out there.” Just then Applejack’s gaze shifted downward, and her dubious expression deepened as she added, “What’re ya doin’?”
Reciprocating the look, Cassy glanced down, only just now realizing she’d been unconsciously rubbing her palms. As soon as she noticed she ceased the act, pulling her hands apart, finding some resistance as a thin veil of silvery thread stretched between her fingertips.
Since when did she develop that habit?
Groaning frustratedly, Cassy brushed away the unwanted material, ignoring Applejack as the mare watched, her vexation not at all helped when the mare stifled a chuckle. As much as she wanted to, Cassy had too much on her mind to come up with a biting remark, turning away to inspect the crowd. Everything in her screamed that this was a bad idea, that anything was better than willingly throwing herself into that, out in the open and with everything looking at her.
Instinctually she reached for the pack of her cigarettes in her right pocket, then remembered she'd left them back in her vehicle. Tentatively she asked over her shoulder, “Um, I hate to be a bother but. . . isn’t there another way we could go that’s less. . . crowded?”
Upon being asked, Applejack’s ears fell slightly, and she nervously massaged her neck. “I gotta be honest with ya,” she began. “I don’t exactly know my around the place just yet.”
“What do you mean?!” Cassy demanded, before realizing her error and quieting down. “You’re telling me you don’t even know where you’re going? Don’t you live here?”
“I never said I did,” Applejack replied heatedly, her tail swishing from side to side. “I told ya before, I only started workin’ for Cherry a couple days ago, an’ I’m only doin’ that until I can. . . ugh, forget it.” Attempting to relax, Applejack took a breath and continued. “Listen. If ya wanna get in good with ponies like Cherry said, yer gonna have to get mingling with ‘em, and the only way yer gonna do that is if ya get your buggy flank out there.”
Again, Cassy tried to come up with a counterargument, remembering the incident with the mare not ten minutes ago. However, as much she heavily disliked being coerced into doing something she didn’t want, Cassy could not deny that Applejack did have something of a point.
She hated that, but could do nothing more than heave an exasperated sigh, not bothering to hide her distaste. “Fine,” she muttered bitterly. “Fine, whatever. Lead the way. Just don’t expect me to be all sunshine and rainbows about it. As soon as it starts to go south, I'm out.”
“As long as you don’t bite anypony, that’s fine by me.” Applejack answered flippantly. Cassy frowned, miffed by the remark as the mare trotted past. “Ya comin’ or what?” she said expectantly, goading Cassy to follow. Sagging her shoulders, Cassy acquiesced, trudging behind Applejack onto the main road, already picturing all the possible ways it could go wrong.