*SMACK!*
"Ow!" a younger Vignette cried, rubbing her arm as she snapped at a pair of shadowy figures, "What was that for?!"
"Uncle's telling us how to run the business!" the figures spoke in unison. "You should pay attention!"
"I was paying attention!"
"Is that so?"
The younger Vignette froze, and she looked up fearfully, a larger shadowy figure looking down at her with red, glowing eyes.
"Mind telling me what I was talking about?"
Vignette took a couple steps back, and mumbled her words as she desperately tried to keep eye contact.
Eventually, she broke said contact, making the taller shadowy figure raise an arm and exclaimed:
"DON'T GET DISTRACTED!"
The rooster crowed as Vignette shot awake, catching her breath and clutching her chest.
"G'Mornin', Vignette!" Applejack chirped after kicking the door open. "Ready fer yer first day at ta farm?"
"No."
"Eh, ye'll be ready 'fore ya know it. For now, head downstairs for breakfast."
Applejack left Vignette to her own devices, and she decided to check on her phone. Surprisingly enough, her cousins hadn't called her after yesterday, but she figured they were busy with something else.
She didn't have time to waste with them, anyway, she had to get breakfast. So she got off her bed, walked to the bathroom, and halfway there, realized something kind of important.
"My clothes are dirty!"
"Ah got ya covered!" Applejack said from downstairs. "Ya just take a bath and ah'll have yer clothes ready in a minute!"
Vignette raised an eyebrow, but remembered her self-imposed agreement to trust the Apple Family. Even so, she couldn't help but wonder just what would Applejack pick for her..
Vignette had to admit, it could've been much worse.
As she looked at the mirror in her room, she was wearing a white shirt, silver pants, brown shoes, and a cowboy hat tilted to the side. And the more she looked at her reflection, the more it seemed like a slight variation of her usual outfit.
And before you ask, no, the cowboy hat didn't come with the outfit, she grabbed it herself.
"When ya feel ready, be sure t' go downstairs, Vignette!" Applejack called.
"Got it!" Vignette shouted back. "I'm on my way!"
Vignette adjusted the hat and took a deep breath. She walked downstairs, mentally preparing herself for whatever breakfast the Apple family was going to have.
Whatever it was, she expected something rural like-
...Eggs and bacon?
"'Bout time ya arrived, Vignette!" Applejack said. "Apple Bloom was 'bout to steal one of yer eggs!"
"That's not true!" Apple Bloom whined, while in the middle of stealing one of Big Mac's eggs.
"Eggs... and... bacon?" Vignette said as she walked to the table, and sat down at one of the empty chairs.
Applejack raised an eyebrow. "Somethin' wrong?"
"No, It's just, I thought you guys would have something else for breakfast," Vignette grabbed a fork and eyed the food. "I mean, eggs and bacon is one of the most common city breakfast."
"It's a common breakfast anywhere, Vignette," Applejack pointed out. "Besides, I thought you'd be more curious 'bout where we got the eggs and bacon from."
"You pique my curiosity, but I'm sure the answer's simple," Vignette sliced her egg in half. "You bought them, didn't you?"
"Ha! Ya think we only raise animals t' sell their stuff?" Granny Smith spoke as she sat down. "We cannot be picky like dat! If we buy, we buy! If we can't, we raise!"
Vignette eyed her food with horror. "So the eggs and bacon we're eating right now..."
"Fresh from ta house!" Granny Smith exclaimed. "Ya like it?"
Vignette dropped her fork as her expression turned into one of horrified, if cartoony, shock. Her eyes being as wide as dinner plates probably didn't help.
"Vignette?" Applejack asked, growing worried. "Are you alright?"
"Yes, I just..." Vignette closed her eyes and shook her head, slightly returning to normal as she rubbed her forehead. "I thought farmers didn't eat their own stocks?"
"Listen, Vignette, ah know it might seem crazy that we eat the stuff we're supposed to sell, but ta harsh truth is, things get tricky for those picky."
Vignette tilted her head. "T.G.T.F.T.P.?"
"Yeah, dat; we don't got ta luxury t' be picky 'bout what we eat," Granny Smith said. "If we gotta eat our stocks, then there's no way 'round it!"
"Yeah, what Granny Smith said," Applejack remarked before eating one of her bacons. "Now, let's get eating. We got a long day ahead of us, Vignette."
Vignette raised an eyebrow. "We?"
Applejack nodded. "We."
Vignette found herself at the same fruit market she first met Applejack, standing behind the oranges. She was wearing the same uniform as Applejack; that is to say, white gloves, and a green apron over her regular clothes.
"Alright, Vignette, what ya gotta do's easy; when people ask for oranges, ya grab a couple, weigh them on that machine next to ya, verify they weigh what ta customer wants, then put them in a bag, hand them over, and take ta money," Applejack explained while she stretched. "Ya got it?"
"O.Q.: One Question," Vignette threw a raised eyebrow at Applejack, "How do you know me working here won't make you lose customers?"
"Why would ya working here do that?"
Vignette lowered her eyelids. "I'm pretty sure I teleported half the people here during the Equestrialand fiasco."
"You're letting that whole fiasco get to yer head," Applejack bluntly responded. "Worse things have happened, and ta perpetrators have always been forgiven and moved on."
Vignette closed her eyes and trembled, shortly before a familiar face appeared in front of her: Micro Chips.
"O-Oh, Vignette," he remarked. "I didn't expect to see you here."
"I.C.S.T.S.T.: I Could Say The Same Thing." Vignette tilted her head. "What brings you to the fruit market?"
"Um, I was hoping to get 3kg of oranges and apples."
"Yer first customer, Vignette!" Applejack remarked, gently jabbing Vignette's shoulder. "Ya get ta oranges, ah get ta apples!"
And as Applejack went to get the apples, Vignette rubbed her shoulder, throwing an upset look at the green-eyed blonde before she got the oranges.
The procedure was over before Vignette or Applejack knew it, and once the purchase was made, Micro Chips left the market, waving goodbye with a nervous expression.
"Well, that wasn't bad for a first purchase!" Applejack blurted, startling Vignette. "So, how did it feel?"
Vignette turned to Applejack, though she quickly diverted her eyes when she answered:
"We'll talk at the farm, Apple... Jazz?"
"Jack."
Vignette simply nodded, and went back to work, her sour expression staying with her the whole way through.
Once work was finished at 11 AM, Vignette and Applejack walked back home together and went to her bedroom, the former's expression softening slightly as Applejack spoke:
"Ya know, Vignette? Ah think this shift went pretty well all things considered. Even yer grumpy face didn't drive away as many customers as ah thought."
Vignette lowered her head. "You think so?"
"Don't get me wrong, that's a pretty scary glare ya got there, but yeah, it wasn't as bad as ah thought," Applejack put her arms behind her head. "And how do ya feel, Vignette? How did yer first job feel?"
Vignette raised an eyebrow. "You mean, that short shift was it?"
"For us, anyway. Big Mac's gonna take ta evening shift."
"Well... I guess it was..." Vignette rubbed her arm. "Fine..."
Applejack eyed Vignette's arm. "Somethin' wrong?"
"Well, It's up to you whether It's because I'm weak or you're too strong," Vignette paused. "But when you jabbed me during the shift... it actually hurt."
"It hurt?!" Applejack exclaimed. "Ah hit ya in a joking manner!"
"I know, I didn't mean that it hurt physically."
Applejack frowned and put a hand on Vignette's shoulder as she explained:
"When I was younger, and being taught how to follow the family business, my cousins would jab my arms every time I got distracted. And I got distracted constantly."
"Ya grew up with yer cousins?" was Applejack's response.
Vignette flatly sighed. "Yes, and it was the worst time of my life."
"And when I jabbed ya during work," Applejack frowned. "It reminded ya of those times, didn't it?"
Vignette silently nodded and looked elsewhere.
"I'm sorry, Vignette, I didn't mean to upset you."
Vignette flinched and turned back to the country girl. "You dropped the accent?! I didn't know you could do that!"
"Took me years to figure out how to do it," Applejack snickered. "Anyway, that's mah way of telling ya I'm serious."
"Well, you're not the only one at fault here," Vignette scratched her head. "I haven't really told you anything about my past, so how could you have known?"
"Well, ah won't pry 'bout it, don't worry. But ah'll need to find out eventually, otherwise I'm gonna be upsetting ya all ta time while being none the wiser."
Vignette chuckled. "Noted."
"Applejack! Vignette!" Apple Bloom called downstairs. "Granny Smith says It's time for dinner!"
"We're comin'!" Applejack exclaimed. "Or do ya plan to eat later, Vignette?"
As if on cue, Vignette's phone rang, and opening it revealed it was a message sent by her cousins. However, glancing between the message and Applejack caused her to quickly answer:
"Nope, I'm starving!"
"That's ta spirit!"
Vignette left her phone on her bed, and followed Applejack downstairs, leaving the phone with the message uncovered:
"Vignette, sweetie! We may have discovered a magical artifact!"