//------------------------------// // New beginnings, new troubles. // Story: Rodeo Rumble // by HumanSVD //------------------------------// Arizona woke up from her sleep after Minnesota gently nuzzled her. The motherly cow said softly, “Wake up, my little heifer. You gotta get ready to see Clyde, dontcha know?” The young heifer’s eyes opened wide, and she took notice of her mother’s words. Arizona quickly thanked Minnesota before changing out of her dress. She went to the bathroom, removed all the makeup, and checked her face. The horn polish was removed with gloss remover, and Arizona brushed her hair to her usual style. With some light body mist spray, Arizona went to the kitchen and quickly ate her breakfast. Her mother had made her biscuits with honey, a fried hay patty, and a side of fresh leafy spinach. With a cup of coffee and sweat cream added, the heifer hoped that Clyde enjoyed her dessert. As much as she wanted to run to the bullpen, and grab Clyde before Applejack did anything rash, Arizona remembered her parent’s advice. The young heifer needed to be on her best behavior and show Clyde her true self. A heifer needed to be a good gal, and no self-respecting guy would ever take a cow of poor character for a wife. A part of Arizona wondered if she could be just as pretty as a pony and if she had a chance. Clyde had spent a lot of time with ponies, and the cow was worried if he preferred their company. Arizona had never felt insecure before in her life until she met Applejack. The cow asked her mother, who was still cooking for the rest of the family, “Ma, am I pretty?” Minnesota stopped what she was doing and turned around to sit next to her daughter. The motherly cow asked, “Arizona, why are you asking that? Of course, you’re pretty! And I’m not saying that just because I’m your mother.” Arizona frowned with her ears splaying downward and thought of Applejack. The cowpony mare looked very pretty with her bright orange coat, blonde mane, and tail. Meanwhile, she had a brown spotted coat, which wasn’t as pretty as Applejack. The mare’s muzzle was smaller and shaped perfectly, unlike Arizona’s larger cow muzzle snout. The heifer felt Applejack outclassed her in every way. To top it off, Arizona didn’t have much to offer him back at the Prairie. Even if Clyde would marry her, they’d have to build a home, and the settlement Texas and the elder bulls had planned. She doubted the man would want to work to build something new when he likely had built his life in Appleloosa. Arizona told her mother why she felt she wasn’t good enough for Clyde, Minnesota said, “My little dearie, nothing in life is ever guaranteed. While we’re trying to change our ways for a more stable life instead of roaming for grass, there’s no telling if we’ll succeed. And you know what? I highly doubt these ponies knew they would succeed in making this town. But they pressed on and did just fine. Just like you will.” The young heifer shook her head, not understanding and asked, “Ma, what are you trying to say?” The motherly cow continued, “You don’t know what Clyde prefers. You haven’t tried to find out, and you hardly know him! But that’s the point of courtin’, to get to know him! Every creature has their preferences, and nothing can be done about that. But you can show them the best version of yourself. You aren’t an ugly cow, Arizona. Far from it, and you’re in great shape and your body ain’t much different from these mares walkin’ about. Looks ain’t the only thing, Arizona. Clyde already respects you for cryin’ out loud! You were ready to defend him from harm, and don’t you think he noticed that?? Your father and I can tell he respects you. That mare going on and yelling at him did her no favors. So what I’m saying is.” Her mother got up and walked over to the counter, taking a coffee of her own and rejoining her daughter. Taking a sip, Minnesota finished, “You have everything you need to succeed, my little heifer. Be a lady; show Clyde who you are not just in words but in actions too. If he’s got a lick of sense, he’ll give you a chance if you ask him. And if not? As Daisy-Jo said, he wasn’t cut out for you.” Arizona pondered her mother’s words and took them to heart. Even though she had heard some of it last night, her anger didn’t give her much time to contemplate. Arizona now fully understood and nodded before saying, “Thanks, Ma. I’m gonna do my best today. Wish me luck.” Minnesota nuzzled her daughter and said, “You’ll do great, dontcha know?” As her mother went back to cooking, Arizona walked past her parents’ room and saw the door open. The bull was still sleeping, drooling out his mouth, making her giggle. She whispered, “Love you, Pa.” before walking to the bathroom and brushing her teeth. After putting on a clean red bandana, the young heifer walked out the door and approached the Rodeo grounds. The town was bustling with ponies and other creatures going about their day, making Arizona dodge through traffic. As she approached the Rodeo grounds, she felt her heartbeat pick up. Arizona was getting anxious about meeting Clyde once more and hoped she could impress him with the barrel weave. She had only done it a few times back on the Prairie when she was young, but not much more. Constantly moving from one place to another in search of grass meant she couldn’t stay in one place very long. That meant few barrels to play with, among other games. The young cow hoped their settlement plans would usher in a new era while maintaining their pride as Cattlefolk. And she hoped to start a family with a guy she loved since it was the perfect time to do so. Taking another deep breath, the cow made her way to the Rodeo grounds and searched the area for Clyde. Several ponies and other participants were in formerly empty bullpens preparing for their events. She spotted a few doing the Ropin’ event, others doing rodeo clown acts, and others practicing the high striker kicking. Arizona knew her kicks weren’t a joke, but she had to wonder if she was up to par compared to the others. She wanted to beat Applejack at a minimum, even if she couldn’t win first place. Arizona hoped to also win 1st place in a single event simply for her coin bag and bragging rights. Impressing Clyde would be a bonus to her and another tool to win his attention and, hopefully, a chance to court him. Eventually, she found the right bullpen and spotted Clyde drinking coffee from a tin cup and leaning against the bullpen fence. The cowboy wore a different colored scarf, which was a dark blue, along with a simple unbleached t-shirt. He replaced his brass buckle with a worn bronze buckle, and his jeans were more worn than the pair he had worn last night. This made sense as Clyde had mentioned he’d be working most of the day and chose not to wear his nicer clothing. Arizona wondered if she should change her usual scarf color for something nice. As she made a mental note about her potential clothing choices, Arizona walked over to the man who seemed worried. This disturbed Arizona as she had never seen Clyde unsure about anything. Although they had only spent little together, she could read him like an open book. This meant he wasn’t deceptive, making Arizona even more confident he was honest. Clyde turned his attention to Arizona, replacing his worried look with a genuine smile. Arizona’s heart fluttered as she locked eyes with him and blushed. She smiled and asked, “Hey, partner, what’s on your mind? You want to talk about it?” Clyde frowned slightly before returning to his smile. Arizona was not deeply concerned because she could tell he wanted to choose not to share. The cowboy took another sip and said, “Ah don’t want to talk about it now. Maybe...well, let’s get you ready for the barrel weave, then we’ll talk if we have time. The officials told me the barrel weave would be the first event. So Ah wanna see how you can do.” "Darn, he didn’t tell me anything. Hopefully, he will because I never wanna see him upset.” After another sip, Clyde put his coffee down and set up the barrel weave. While Clyde’s attention was turned away, Arizona was curious how the man took his coffee. She was surprised to see it was ordinary black coffee. No creamer, milk, nor sugar was present in the coffee after smelling and inspecting it. Clyde noticed what Arizona was doing and said, “Ah got a spare cup over on that barrel. Pour yourself coffee if you want.” Arizona blushed before pouring herself a cup. Sadly, he didn’t have any creamer or milk, but she chose to drink it anyway. She had to admit, the blend was very good, better than the one she had drunk earlier. Curious, Arizona asked, “Clyde, why don’t you use cream or milk in your coffee? Is that how you prefer it?” The man set the last barrel down and pondered for a moment. He shrugged and said, “Ah, guess it’s how Ah always took mah coffee. Ah was always working outside, and since Ah was always away from town, it was easier to go without. Can’t have milk or creamer if it spoils real quick. I certainly don’t mind it in my coffee though.” Arizona beamed happy and knew she had to make him a special flavored cream coffee. It was a very rare treat for the Cattlefolk due to a lack of refrigeration and therefore had to be made fresh to order. She was certain her Aunt or Mother had a special recipe and would be thrilled to make him a cup. This also reminded Arizona about her dessert loaf; she wondered if he had a piece. “Clyde, did you have my dessert loaf by chance? And if so, did you like it?” As Clyde approached, he genuinely seemed happy and said, “Hell yes, Ah did! Ah didn’t know something so simple could taste so darn good! Ah don’t think it’s gonna last more than a few days if I keep eating it. I had a slice with some scrambled eggs with onion and peppers. A good start to the day, if Ah say so mahself.” ”He loved it! By my lucky sweet bluegrass, he loves it!” The young heifer couldn’t help resist hoof clapping and femininely cheered with joy. The man smiled while pouring a cup of coffee for the cow and gave it to her. She took it and locked eyes with the man, who did so in return. The two smiled at each other, with neither breaking it for anything. Arizona felt her heart beat faster as she took in the handsome man’s features. She loved seeing his blue eyes and could smell a faint cologne coming from him. The moment didn’t last long as Clyde looked at his coffee and said, “Yeah, it was really good. How’s your little cousin Kansas doing?” The two talked for the next few minutes and simply enjoyed the morning together. She found out a little bit more about Clyde and was happy to learn more details. He was the only son of a family of three sisters from a place called “The United States of America.” And the territory he was from was called Oklahoma. Arizona thought it was a nice name and found out he worked on a few farms and fields doing various jobs, though he didn't specify what the field work was about. She also found out Clyde briefly worked in construction and had luck learning a lot from other men. The man was used to working with his hands and working outside and hated being locked inside for too long. Arizona felt the same way and loved what she learned about Clyde. After 25 minutes of talking, Clyde checked his watch and said, “Shoot, we’ve done a lot of talking, and you’re missing out on your practice. Let’s get you started.” Arizona frowned, her ears splayed downward, but she refocused on the barrel weave. She got into position and waited for Clyde to give her the signal. Clyde gave her the rules and was surprised to hear about the 7-second penalty. The man could only give her an apologetic look as he said, “Sorry, it’s higher stakes this time. But this is practice, so don’t sweat it.” Out of curiosity, the young heifer asked the cowboy, “What was Applejack’s time? Just wondering, for reference, the time I need to beat.” Clyde tapped his chin, clearly trying his best to remember. He snapped his fingers and replied, “12.234 seconds. She had no penalties. Darn good time, but remember, this is just a straight pattern. It increases in difficulty by patterns, and you can’t get out of order. You also get only one redo for the entire event, so don’t use them if you have to.” The cow narrowed her eyes at the barrels and focused on beating Applejack. She imagined the mare standing at the end of the barrels, mocking her Cattlefolk’s ways. She snorted before grinning with confidence and pawed the ground before saying, “Ready!” Clyde held up the watch, clicked the start button, and said, “GO!”. With a blur, the cow ran as fast as she could and weaved through the barrels with ease. She imagined herself being surrounded by predators and dodging every one of them. The time she spent fighting enemies in salt mines, in ruins, and across all of Foenum had given her honed dodging skills. It showed that Arizona possessed an edge most creatures never would achieve. After clearing the last barrel, she imagined a shocked Applejack who couldn’t believe a cow beat her. Clyde shouted, “Time!” as she passed the finish line. Arizona dug up some of the dirt as she stopped and tried to catch her breath. She approached Clyde and asked, “How did Ah do?”. The man looked at her and frowned, making Arizona worried. A look of worry was plastered on her face as she asked, “Well, how did I do? Was it bad? Did I hit a barrel? I’ll do it again if I have to.” Clyde removed his hat and said, “Ah’m afraid so, sadly. Ah ain’t ever seen anything like it.” The cowboy shook his head, and Arizona continued, “How bad?! Am I even going to be able to win a ribbon? Oh no, what will I tell Ma and Pa?! Clyde, please help me get better; I just want-” The man laughed as he showed her the time and said, “Ah’m afraid you’re gonna have to do it again to beat the top record. Because yours is the best Ah’ve seen so far.” Arizona’s fears were washed away as she saw the stopwatch. It showed 10.573 seconds, nearly 2 seconds better than Applejack’s time. And since she didn’t hit a barrel, that meant the cow didn’t hit a barrel either. The young heifer cheered in a high-pitched girly scream before grabbing Clyde and hugging him. This took the man by surprise, but Clyde didn’t mind it at all. He returned the hug and said, “Ah take it you’re happy?” She only hugged him tighter and didn’t want to let go. The man started rubbing her hair and she felt like she was in paradise. Eventually, she had to let go, and Arizona was blushing. The cowboy asked, “Well, feel good about your time?” ”Oh dear, I got carried away. But dang, that was the best moment of my love life so far!” She rubbed the back of her head with a hoof and said, “Sorry, I wasn’t expecting to do so well. I kinda got carried away.” Clyde chuckled and said, “No harm, Ma’am. No harm at all. Ah want you to do a couple more so we can get an average going.” The young heifer nodded and said, “Okay, no problem.” As she trotted back to the starting point, Arizona skipped a few steps and hummed a happy tune. Clyde just shook his head before resetting the clock. Once she was back in position, Arizona shouted, “Ready!” Clyde held the watch in the air and shouted, “GO!” ”This event is mine Applejack. Your apples ain’t got nothin’ on me!” Arizona ran as fast as she could and would not stop until her time improved. She had never felt more confident since being chosen as the Champion of the Prairie. And nothing would stop her, because if it tried to, it would get the horns. Applejack awoke and enjoyed her breakfast that Braeburn and Little Strongheart had made. Her dreams last night eased her fears and helped her refocus her efforts on being a better mare. Applejack hadn’t felt so much shame in a long while and was saddened by how she acted last night. Life threw a complete curveball at her, and she failed it miserably. ”If Ah had just walked calmly to Clyde and not said a word to Arizona, Ah could have avoided making mahself look stupid. Ah hope he won’t be cold to me when Ah see him. If he is, then Ah know Ah’m toast.” “Feeling better, cousin?” asked Braeburn. Applejack nodded and said, “Ah am. Thank you both for being there for me and stopping me from doing something worse than Ah already did.” The engaged couple beamed with happiness before returning to their breakfast. Applejack spent the morning talking to both of them and enjoying their company. It was another reminder that family mattered and that she could always rely on them. Once the clock was 15 minutes til noon, Applejack grabbed her stetson hat and took Clyde’s leftovers in containers. The two wished her luck before closing the door. The day was busy, and many ponies and creatures were moving about. Most likely buying food, supplies, and hotel rooms for the Rodeo. Applejack smiled that the town was flourishing and wished it would continue to do so. Even though she had only been gone for two days, Applejack missed her family back at the farm. She knew Big Macintosh, Sugar Belle, and Apple Bloom were doing fine without her but felt guilty for not helping out. Granny Smith had little time left, but the mare was tough and wanted to live as long as possible. The country mare laughed and figured that’s how she inherited her stubbornness. The temperature wasn’t hot, and a cool breeze flew through the town. Even a few families were out and about, enjoying the day together. Applejack hoped to one day walk with her foals and husband as a family. She imagined being married to Clyde and having two foals follow them around. It was a silly fantasy that might never happen unless he married her and bought the expensive cross-breeding potion. As she refocused back to reality, the country mare saw the Rodeo grounds ahead. Her anticipation of seeing Clyde again started to rise just as she heard a voice. “Well, if it ain’t Applejack, the Element of Honesty herself. Been a long time comin’, wouldn’t you say?” Applejack froze in place as she felt her blood turn to ice. Her heart started beating faster as the voice registered in her head. She knew exactly who it was and slowly turned to confirm it. And to her fear, the voice matched who she was afraid it belonged to. Facing Applejack was an enemy she had hoped to never see again, but luck wasn’t on her side. “King Longhorn.” said Applejack. The bull laughed loudly and caught the attention of ponies and other creatures walking by. Some started backing away from the two standing against each in the middle of the street, while others carried on. That didn’t remain long as they figured out what was happening, and the town quickly emptied the streets. The bull grinned at Applejack and said, “Ah, so you remember. Did you think I would forget about you and simply just move on with my life? Must’ve thought that, but it makes no difference to me.” Applejack put Clyde’s food on the ground and said, “Yeah, Ah expected you would because Ah didn’t think you’d be stupid to continue your ways. They let you out on parole, didn’t they?” King Longhorn nodded and said, “Yeah, they did, and they shouldn’t have. But you ponies are too damn soft and weak. And when I’m done stompin’ you into the ground, Princess Celestia will cry her heart out and have a difficult time replacing you. I knew you couldn’t resist showing up to a Rodeo and I was right. So easy to predict.” As the bull started to advance, Applejack got into a fighting stance. King Longhorn seemed amused and further added insults, “Ha! Is that supposed to scare me? I think you remember the last time we wrestled.” ”He’s gonna charge me. Ah gotta-” Her thoughts were cut short as the bull charged as predicted. Applejack was prepared and easily dodged out of the way. The same couldn’t be said about Clyde’s food as King Longhorn kicked and stomped the containers out of pettiness. He laughed and taunted, “Whoops! Made a mess of your lunch, didn’t I? Wait...is this meat? Oh...you’re dating one of them bird cats, ain’t you? Against tradition, isn’t it? What would your Ma and Pa say? Oh, they’re dead, I forgot.” ”You’re dead, you beef bitch!” Applejack snorted in anger and charged. King Longhorn didn’t see it coming as the country mare sprinted with a speed that could rival Rainbow Dash. He took a solid hit to the snout, and recoiled. Applejack ran by, and regained safe distance between her and her enemy. King Longhorn wiped the blood off his nose and snorted before saying, “Well, looks like this will be fun! Enough blabbing, now die!” ”Buck! Where the hay is the Sheriff!? Ah gotta get Clyde or Braeburn to help. I can’t take him on alone unless I get a lucky hit!” Applejack prepared herself and mentally scolded herself for not having her lasso. If she could rope him, she’d be able to beat him to death or at least make him crippled for life. This wasn’t an ordinary brawl but a fight to the death. King Longhorn charged again, and Applejack reacted. She had never had to fight harder for her life before and wished she wasn’t alone.