//------------------------------// // Trouble on the Farm // Story: Just an Everyday Princess // by Wages of Sin //------------------------------// As they left the bakery, Twilight's guards clamped around her, not wanting to fail their charge again. they had already let too much happen to disgrace their proud title of royal guards, they didn't need anything else happening on their second day on the job. Twilight paid them no mind as she led the group in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.  The trot to the Acres was nothing new, but the pony-made forest seemed especially calm for the middle of a work day.  As they walked towards the farmhouse Twilight didn't notice when the guard in front of her stopped. Pmf- "Ow! Sorry!" she said as she rubbed her nose where it impacted stallion backside. "Why'd we stop?" she asked looking around. She quickly noticed that the guards were eyeing a stallion who was approaching from the side. "Halt!" the forward guard shouted to the stallion. The large stallion apparently paid them no mind as he continued forward. The guard tensed at the the stallion's boldness. The guard stallions took defensive stances as the stallion continued toward the group. "Halt!" The leading guard shouted again. Applejack was sitting in her room attempting to sleep, but unable to even close her eyes. The image of Twilight laying there with all those pony's scattered around her burned in her mind...  She was unexpectedly torn from her musings by the sound of Applebloom bounding up the stairs to her room. She burst through the door panting. "What's the hurry lil' sis" she asked, finding a little joy in her sister's exasperated expression. "The royal guard are comin' and when Big Mac went to 'em they jumped him!" the little Apple said. Applejack jumped out of bed, "Stay here, I'll go see what they want. If they want trouble I'll show them how hard country folk can buck." Applejack quickly re-bound her mane into her signature ponytail, and made her tail match, finally putting on her stetson near the end.  "I'll go tell 'em off, jus' stay here for now, I'll be back in a minute." she said as she left the room. When she reached the porch she saw that Apple bloom hadn't been kidding; there was a pair of royal guard approaching the old farmhouse, no sign of Big Mac with them. When the small squad reached the front porch Applejack was the first to speak, "Now what's this all about?" The lead of the two guards responded sternly, "The Princess is coming to the establishment 'Sweet Apple Acres'. We are here to inspect the premises before her arrival." "Well that's nice and all, but we ain't up for tours, and we got a lot to do today, so I'll have to be askin' you to leave." "I'm confident you can make time for the princess, the princess and her source specifically said you would."  "That's mighty presumptuous of the 'princess,' you can tell your 'princess' that those of us who work for a living have better things to do than to waste time goin' around harassing the common folk." "Were sorry, but we are not in a position where we can take no for an answer right now."  The guard tried to walk around Applejack, but when he did, she turned and bucked him off the porch.  The other guard leapt from the formation and dragged her to the ground as the first entered the house. "Applebloom run! Go find Rainbow Dash!" Applejack yelled as she tried to fight off the guards on top of her. Eventually, the guard came back out of the house. "Just a filly and an old mare inside, no apparent threats sir." he said as he exited the home. "Good, go get the captain and the princess." one of the guards on top of Applejack said as he began to get off. He cautiously released her and backed away from the violent mare. The home invading stallion ran off into the trees, returning from the trees a moment later. "Announcing Her Royal Highness Princess Twilight Sparkle of Equestria!" he yelled in an apparently well-rehearsed proclamation. She watched as out of the trees came two guards, Twilight, and, as Applebloom had said, her brother. More specifically, out came Twilight ON her brother.  Twilight was riding on top of Big Macintosh as the guards stood on either side. The guards held ropes that were draped around Mac's neck, at points interlacing with his signature plowing collar. Applejack's blood boiled at the sight. She sprinted for the group, making a running leap and tackling Twilight off of her bound brother. "I thought more of you! You become a princess and suddenly you're just like those Canterlot unicorns! Buck! You're worse!"  The guard pried the farm mare off of the princess. "What the hay are you doin' AJ!" Big Mac yelled. AJ was in shock. Her brother had yelled at her. As far as she knew, Big Mac had never yelled before at all, let alone at her! "Wha~" AJ began, her mouth refusing to make any more sound. "Twilight, are you alright?" he asked, concern clear in his voice. "Yeah, I really think that I~" she said as she tried to stand. "Nope." Big Mac said before she could push herself up, bending down and with the aid of the guards worked to gently put Twilight back up to Big Mac's back. Mac and the two guard quickly made their way inside the house. Applejack watched the scene unfold in shock as the remaining guard not-so-gently escorted her away from the house and back to Ponyville.