"Yang, wake up...Yaanng, rise and shine....YANG GET YOUR LAZY BOTTOM UP!"
"Hnngng-aaaaah!"
"You're a heavy sleeper, ain't ya?" asked AJ.
"Well, I haven't done manual labor in a very long while. Guess my body wasn't ready for it," he groaned, his body still reeling from the pain.
Yang yawned again, his entire body stretching and cracking with each movement of his joints. AJ merely chuckled, her hoof covering her mouth to stifle her giggles. A rooster could be heard off in the distance, the morning sun creeping its way into the open barn. After Yang finished stretching, AJ gave Yang the directions to Sugar Cube Corner.
"Now remember, have patience. Pinkie can be ummmm assertive."
"A giant cake on the building? Well, it shouldn't be that hard I suppose. I just hope today will be a little bit easier," he yawned waving goodbye to AJ. With Yang disappearing from her vision, AJ made her departure towards Twilight's house. Frankly, Yang wasn't all that bad of a pony, but she still had to give Twilight the daily report of Yang.
"AGAIN! DO IT AGAIN! No, not like that. HARDER, FASTER! YOU LOUSY MAGGOTS! I SHOULD HAVE KILLED ALL OF YOU BEFORE YOU WERE BORN!"
"But mother, we are exhausted. We-"
"DO NOT CALL ME THAT! I AM YOUR QUEEN! IS THAT UNDERSTOOD?!"
"Y-Yes my queen, forgive me. But please, my queen. We have been at this for hours. Please let us rest."
"Very well," Queen Chrysalis replied with a heavy sigh, "We shall continue in the evening. For now, eat and rest up. I shall see you later."
With heavy panting behind her, Chrysalis made her way through the Everfree Forest. A slight chuckle escaped her throat. "With this training, it should be a cinch to take over Canterlot. Sigh There is the matter of Celestia and Alicorn Twilight. That little twat! Unbelievable! How could she become a princess? Well, it does not matter. With "them" under my command, she will be completely useless. The only factor that's missing from complete annihilation is that rumored Discord. Nightmare Moon better fulfill her end of the bargain," she groaned, the house coming into view. During this time, AJ was giving Twilight the daily report as Yang approached Sugar Cube Corner.
"So this is Sugar Cube Corner huh?" Yang asked out loud. "Well it does have a giant cake on it. Applejack wasn't lying. Well, guess I better get this over with."
Yang entered the establishment, the light clacking of his hooves dissipating from the pavement. The bell of the shop rang, signaling the beginning of Yang's work. Mr. an Mrs. Cake exchanged greetings, their smiles helping ease the discomfort in his torso. With a shriek from upstairs, a pink blur zoomed past everyone, a small gust of wind blowing past Yang's muzzle.
"OhmygoshOhmygoshOhmygoshOhmygoshOhmygosh! You're here!" shouted Pnikie. She inhaled sharply before continuing her rant. "Areyouasexcitedasme? Butofcourseyouare! Ican'twaittogetstarted! Canyou? Huh? Canyou?!?!"
"Uhhhhhh-"
"Pinkie please, inhale. Excuse my daughter, she can be a bit eccentric at times. May I take your order?" asked Mrs. Cake.
"Oh no, I'm here to help," laughed Yang, "My name is Yang and I am working for food, more or less."
"Oh well, that's not right. How about this? You can have lunch here for free and we can spare a few bits," said Mr. Cake.
"You would do that for a complete stranger?" asked Yang.
"Well any friend of Pinkie's is a friend of ours. You don't seem like the type to cause any harm or trouble, after all."
Yang nervously chuckled, a small bead of sweat slowly dripping down the back of his neck. "Well, where should I start?"
"You can help make the cupcakes with Pinkie or you can wash the pans and utensils," replied Mrs. Cake.
"I will be obliged to help make the cupcakes."
"Hooray! I'll make the super duper chocolate ones today!" Pinkie stated boldly, a pink outline fading away into the air.
"How did she? I mean," Yang stammered. "Whatever, I just need to help her bake these cupcakes. Shouldn't be too hard right...right?" he whimpered.
Twilight's planning of keeping Yang occupied was starting to pay off. Monday was a busy day for sales, orders, and the lunch rush of hungry customers satisfying their sweet tooth. Throughout the day, customers entered and left the store, fresh batches of baked goods being sold by the dozen. This pattern dragged on for hours until the final customer left the store, the bell ringing for a final time. While the cakes were excited about the amount of sales they had, Yang was desperately trying again to catch his breath. For the second day in a row he was worked down to the bone. His body moaned and screamed in agony at the continuous strain of his muscles. The tendons in his heels were swollen, his shoulders aching, and his knees stiff. Every step was a fight to stay upright, but in the end it was all worth it.
"Here's your pay for the day, 15 bits. We truly appreciate your hard work, Yang. In addition, we wrapped up some of the leftovers from today. It's not much, but it's a token of our gratitude for your help," said Mr. Cake.
"Oh...thank you, Mr. Cake. I....ow....really am grateful for not only the work, but the gift and the money. It really...ow...is greatly appreciated," said Yang.
"Oh, not at all dear! Feel free to come back at any time! I'm sure we could use the extra help," Mrs. Cake chimed in.
"Ah, well...ow...thanks again! Have a good night!" Yang smiled, small streaks of white emerging on his coat.
Yang bid them farewell and headed home, the cakes tidying up the place. Pinkie realized she still had a mission to accomplish. With careful timing, she sprinted out of the house and towards Twilight.
"Where do you think she's going dear?" asked Mrs. Cake.
"With that girl, anything is possible. As long as she opens up tomorrow I'm okay with whatever she's up to," Mr. Cake replied.
Pinkie knocked rapidly on the tree door, her knocks increasing in speed. A pair of purple stern eyes greeted Pinkie.
"Oops, sorry Twi," apologized PInkie.
"It's fine," Twilight sighed, "Please come in."
"So, what have you learned? Is he evil, cynical, a no good troublemaker?" asked Twilight.
"No, not at all Twi! Actually, he was quite helpful. I made sure he was constantly working. At the end of it all, he was grateful for the help. I even saw more white enter his coat!"
"Besides the white in his coat, Applejack almost said the same thing. She believes he's not harmful, but actually a hard worker that's trying to fit in with everypony else. She believes that he can be trusted a little bit. But let me tell you Pinkie, we've both experienced trusting the wrong party. After that wedding, it's been hard for me to trust anypony that I've just met. And as far as Yang goes, I trust him about as far as I can throw him."
"Well, you can throw him pretty far with your magic."
"Without magic, Pinkie."
"Oohhhhhhh, gotcha!"
"Anything else, Pinkie?"
"Nope!"
"Did you let him know that Rarity needs his help tomorrow?"
"Ummmm, nope!"
"Pinkie, can you please let him know in the morning?"
"Okie-dokie-lokie! I'm on it! You can count on me!" Pinkie smiled. She turned around and ran out of the house, the door slamming shut behind her.
"SOOOOOOORRRRRRRRRY!" she shouted, her voice echoing in the night sky.
"Confound my friends, they drive me to drink."