//------------------------------// // Big Macintosh's Day Off Part 1 // Story: Big Macintosh's Day Off // by SuperPinkBrony12 //------------------------------// Big Macintosh's Day Off The sun was shining on Sweet Apple Acres, it was another beautiful spring day. "The perfect day for some field work." a certain red stallion thought to himself. He got up and immediately set out for the fields to work. Big Macintosh had grown use to working the fields at Sweet Apple Acres using a somewhat saggy plow. Sure it was hard work but then a little hard work never killed anypony, at least that what's he always thought. Being the oldest active member of the Apple family Big Macintosh had a lot of responsiblity providing for not only himself but for his two sisters Applejack and Apple Bloom, as well as his Granny Smith who had lived on Sweet Apple Acres for her whole life. She had taken up the responsiblity of raising Bic Macintosh and Applejack when their parents had died unexpectedly, and she had also taken to raising Applebloom who was only a baby at the time. It was very hard work and eventually it began to take its toll on Granny Smith. She did her best but when her saggy old hip gave out she was forced to admit she couldn't single handly raise Big Macintosh, Applejack, and Applebloom, as well as keep Sweet Apple Acres in bussiness. So as soon as he was old enough Big Macintosh had taken it upon himself to keep Sweet Apple Acres from going under, a task that proved to exhausting. He was relieved when his sister Applejack finally became old enough to help him out. The two ponies agreed split up the duties, Big Macintosh would work the fields with the plow and Applejack would plant the seeds and tend to the apple trees. But the one duty that the two earth ponies did together was the harvesting of the apples, because it was just too much work for one pony to do alone. A fact Applejack had learned the hard way during the previous Applebuck Season when Big Mac was injured and was unable to help with the harvest. It had been that way for years now and although Granny Smith had recently gotten her hip 'fixed' Big Macintosh and Applejack still decided it was better for the Apple family if they kept working. Big Macintosh eventually found a 'love' of sorts for field work and since then he almost never stopped working, although he did take breaks becuase even he knew better than to keep pushing himself to the point of exhaustion. On occassion when Big Macintosh or 'Big Mac' for short wasn't needed he did other jobs around ponyvillie. And he and Applejack took turns running an apple stand in the town center. Big Mac had earned quite a reputation for being a 'fillies colt' and it soon became easy to tell who was running the apple stand because if there were a lot of mares there it was Big Mac, a fact that Applejack was quick to pick up on. Big Mac hadn't even noticed how much time had past because of his thoughts, before long he had been working for over an hour. Then a familar voice called out to him "Whoa there Big Mac, I know you like hard work but you're gonna wear yourself out if you don't stop. Ya didn't even eat breakfast this morning." It was his sister Applejack. "Applejack's right." Granny Smith replied "You've been working very hard lately you need to take a day off." Big Mac wasn't too happy with the suggestion, he still had a lot of work that he wanted to get done by the end of the day. He was about to protest, but then again he had been working harder then ever before over the past few days and he only now realized how stupid he'd been in forgetting to eat breakfast. "Well I reckon ya'll are right, I have been workin myself into the ground lately." he said. "I suppose it wouldn't hurt if I took a day off." "Don't you worry Big Mac," his sister Applejack reassured him "after all your hard work we're ahead of schedule. You deserve to take a day off." Big Mac hated to admit when his sister was right but deep down he knew that it was for the best. About an hour later the red stallion was heading into Ponyville. This would be the first time he'd be in the town center without doing some sort of odd job wheter it be selling apples or just doing some old fashioned fixing up. "Where should I go first?" he thought to himself. Just then his stomach rumbled loudly and he remebered how hungry he was since he hadn't eatten breakfast this morning. "Guess I'd better get something to eat." he said. Then he remebered the advice his sister Applejack had given him "You should visit Sugarcube Corner, I hear that place has some of the best treats in all of Ponyville.". Big Mac had only been to this 'Sugarcube Corner' twice before, one time he and Cheerilee had been under the effects of a so called 'love potion' and the other time it had been to deliver a very heavy cake, and then having to carry said cake all the way to the train depot, only to have to remove the side of the dessert car, so the cake could be loaded, and then putting the side back up. But from what his sister Applejack had told him it had to be good. So without hesitation the stallion headed towards Sugarcube Corner. Big Mac was always amazed at how detailed Sugarcube Corner looked from the outside, it looked almost exactly like a gingerbread house, but this was nothing compared to how the place looked on the inside, as he had discovered for such a small building it had a lot of space. "Hi, welcome to Suga rcube Corner, what can I get for y-gasp!" an unfamilar voiced called out. Big Mac looked around until he found the source of the voice, a pink earth pony, with a poofy mane almost like cotton candy. The mare was about as tall as his sister Applejack and had blue eyes. "I wonder who that is?" Big Mac thought to himself. Then suddenly he remebered having met this pony once before when they were disaster proofing Equestria, he remembered that the pony had told him that her was Pinkie Pie and that they had been in charge of tighting any loose bolts on the bridges, he had felt bad when he accidently let go of the rope and dropped her into the river although she didn't seem to have been upset about it. Again the voice of the pink pony caught his attention. "So who are you, oh wait now I remember you're Big Mac, you and I worked together to help Twilight disaster proof Equestria, we worked together on tighting the bolts on all the bridges and you dropped the rope and I fell into the river, and we laughed about it afterward." she said without inhaling. Big Mac was amazed, nopony he knew could ever talk so fast and without inhaling. "I remember who you are, you're Pinkie Pie, you're one of those friends my sister Applejack keeps talking about." "That's right." Pinkie Pie said "So what brings you to Sugarcube Corner?" "Well I'm actually here on my day off." Big Mac said "I was hungry and I heard that this place has some of the best treats in Ponyvillie." ""You heard right." Pinkie Pie said "So what do you want?" Big Mac thought for a little while as he tried to think of what he wanted, never before did he so many choices to pick from, but it didn't take too long for him to make a decision. "I'd like a few cinnamon rolls." he said. "Will that be all?" Pinkie asked. "Eeyup." Big Mac replied. "Very well then, just wait here for a little bit." Pinkie Pie said before she disappered into the kitchen. She returned a few seconds later with a bag. "Here are your cinnamon rolls, right out of the oven." Pinkie Pie said, setting the bag down on the counter. "That'll be 15 bits." Big Mac quickly pulled out the change, paid for his meal, and departed. He didn't look back but if he had he probably would've noticed a certain pink pony turning red while trying and failing misbearly to hide a blush. "He's so adorable, and he has such a lovely red coat." Pinkie Pie thought to herself. Big Mac returned to Sweet Apple Acres several hours later. He was relieved to see that his day off hadn't caused a set back, everything was still ahead of schedule. Big Mac was surprised at how much his day off had exhausted him, so for the first time he could remember the red stallion went up to his room and went right to sleep although he half-expected either his sister Applejack, his sister Applebloom, or Granny Smith to ask him about his day off. The next day Big Mac was doing his sister Applejack's chores as well as his own since Applejack was attending another one of her weekly get togethers with her friends. These meetings usually took place at either the spa or Sugarcube Corner and provided Applejack and her friends, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie a chance to catch up on what was going on in and around Ponyvillie, and usually there was something going on that needed to be fixed. Today was not one of those days however so the six mares were just chating amongst themselves to pass the time. Applejack was talking to Pinkie Pie, the pink party pony having just now confirmed what Applejack had suspected, Big Mac HAD come to Sugarcube Corner on his day off. "So what did he order from ya?" Applejack asked Pinkie Pie. "Oh he just ordered a few cinnamon rolls, nothing special." Pinkie Pie said. "Well I'm glad you two had the chance to meet each other again." Applejack said "I'll be honest with you, I wasn't sure if he'd still blame himself for accidently dropping you into the river, he might be a strong earth pony on the outside, but on the inside he has a heart of gold, most of the time anyway." "Well I think he's nice." Pinkie Pie said in a dreamy voice "Oh he's so handsome with that bright red coat of his, that slick posture, that impressive form, and that gentle voice of his, oh he's absolutely gorgeous. Oh what I wouldn't give to stroke his mane and give him a peck on the cheek." As soon as those words escaped Pinkie's lips she gasped, then she blushed "Did I just say that out loud?!" she said. "Well I don't think anypony other than me heard that." Applejack said "It's clear to me that ya'll are crushing on Big Mac." "What no I'm not crushing!" Pinkie Pie denied. "Come on now Pinkie Pie" Applejack said "I'm the Element of Honesty, I can tell when other ponies are lying and right now you're obviously lying, now tell me the truth, I promise I won't laugh." Pinkie Pie sighed "Well o.k. I am crushing on Big Mac, just a little bit." Pinkie Pie said. "A little bit?" Applejack said dobutfully. "O.k. a lot." Pinkie Pie "I just can't help it." "Well I don't blame you Pinkie Pie Big Mac has that kind of effect on most mares, he so much as looks at them, and they swoon over him." Applejack said "As a matter of fact just recently I thought he'd managed to attract Cheerilee but turns they were only dating to get back at my sister and her friends for a 'love potion' prank they pulled." "It's embarrassing enough as it, oh please promise me you won't tell the others about this." Pinkie Pie begged. "Don't worry sugar ube." Applejack said with a smile "Your secret's safe with me. If you want I'll even make this a Pinkie Promise and I won't break it this time." "Okie dokie lokie then." Pinkie Pie said "A Pinkie Promise it is." "Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye." Applejack said as she performed the gestures. When she finished Pinkie Pie nodded her head in approval, and so the secret was safe, for now.