//------------------------------// // This is so Exciting! // Story: Rarity and Applejack Stuck in Manehattan // by InkieMarblePieIsLife //------------------------------// "I just can't wait!" Applejack could barely keep still as she spotted the faded view of buildings on the horizon. "We are not here to have fun, Applejack. The reason we're here is because I, out of all the fashion designers in Equestria, have been chosen to design the costumes for Manehattan's newest musical, 'Apple of my Eye'!" Rarity felt a small tinge of excitement in her chest. It wasn't everyday that she got to design costumes for Manehattan. This truly was an exciting opportunity. "Attention all passengers, we will be arriving in Manehattan in 5 minutes." "Quick, Applejack, get your bags!" Rarity's horn glittered as she used her magic to gain her bags from the overhead compartment. Applejack got up on her hind hooves and grabbed the handle of her bag with her teeth. "Rarity, if we're only gonna be gone for two days, whyd'ya bring so much stuff?" Rarity lowered her eyelids and sighed. "Dearest AJ, when you're a jetsetting travel pony such as myself, you know that anything can happen. Being prepared for the unexpected is the first rule of travel." "Pfft, everypony knows that you only gotta pack the bare essentials: snacks, and cowpony hats." "Let's just say that my bare essentials differ from your bare essentials." The sun seemed brighter than ever as the train entered the station. Applejack and Rarity hopped out of their seats and through the open doors of the train. As the ponies tried to gather their sense of direction, they spotted a cream-colored mare with aqua-striped mane and a purple collar holding a piece of cardboard with the names Rarity and Applejack scrawled on it with purple ink. "Coco! Why in Equestria are you meeting us at the train station?" Rarity dropped her bags and gave the mare a hug. "A little bird told me you two were coming, so I'm here to show you the way to your hotel." "Nice to see ya again, Miss Pommel," Applejack said whilst gathering Rarity's bags. Rarity seemed to altogether forget about them as she and Coco trotted forward, unaware that they left Applejack dragging behind with her own bag in her mouth and Rarity's luggage on her back. Luckily, she had the strength for it, and she was able to gain speed. Of course Rarity would leave her behind to handle the heavy lifting. It's not like she didn't have her own things to take care of. While walking, Applejack was able to gawk at the magnificent scenery: The buildings were tall and almost translucent, and the streets shone in the light. Ponies could be seen rushing through the streets and chattering, and yellow taxi carriages were being lugged about by stallions everywhere you looked. Her mouth watered as she saw the street carts with warm pretzels and oatburgers, and she managed to pull an apple out of her bag to combat her afternoon munchies. Coco stopped the mares in front of a monumental white building with golden pony statues on either side of the door. A red carpet led the way to the entrance, and was blocked with velvet rope on both sides. A large stallion stood near the glass door, and was opening it for everypony that needed to walk through. "This...this is absolutely to die for!" Rarity moved about her hooves excitedly. "Yep, this is the Grand Hoofington Palace Hotel. It's one of the fanciest hotels in Equestria, and there's only one right here in Manehattan. You should consider yourselves lucky, not many ponies get to stay here for free." Coco Pommel waved at the stallion near the door and mouthed something to him. Instantly, he perked up and smiled widely. "I'm just too lucky to have such a generous employer, am I not, Applejack?" Applejack shifted about, trying to find a comfortable placement for all of her luggage. "Uh...yeah Rarity. Sure." Rarity immediately noticed Applejack's discomfort and used her magic to grab her bags. "Oh my goodness, look at the time. Sorry girls, I've got to get moving. I have an important show tonight that I need to prepare for!" Coco waved goodbye, hollered a cab and rode away. "See you!" Rarity waved back. "You do realize I had to carry yer things all the way here?" Applejack squinted menacingly. "I'm terribly sorry, Applejack. It won't happen again. Here, let me carry everything to the room." Rarity smiled kindly and took Applejack's bag with hers. Applejack gave her a forgiving glance and trotted forward to the door. "Welcome Miss Rarity, glad to have you here. Enjoy your stay!" Applejack grumbled under her breath as Rarity gave a melodic 'thank you' and walked through the door. "Sweet mother of cowbells, wouldya look at this fancy getup?" Applejack stared at the large crystal chandelier and gold decorations everywhere. The wallpaper was red with gold trim, the cushioned seats had gold legs, the front desk was made entirely of gold encrusted diamond. "Yes, darling. Gold is the most in style thing right now." Rarity went straight to the front desk where a neat mare with her mane in a tight bun was standing. "Welcome to the Grand Hoofington Palace Hotel. Rarity, I presume?" Rarity presented herself, "In the flesh." Applejack rolled her eyes. "We've got some stuff we gotta do, can we skip the introductions and get to our room, please?" The mare grimaced. "Well then. Your room is on the 7th floor, number 38. Turned right out of the elevator and you'll see it." She gave the ponies a key for each of them and Applejack grabbed Rarity and galloped to the elevator. Once they arrived at the front of their room, Rarity lifted her key and inserted it into the lock. The door didn't budge. "Whoa there, let me handle it. You've probably just got a faulty key." Applejack tried with her key, but nothing happened. "Applejack, would you be a dear and go downstair-" Applejack had already bucked the door down. "Yes, well...that should suffice." Rarity used her horn to place the door back on its hinges. The room looked spectacular. It had a panoramic view of Manehattan, a king sized bed, a couch, a small kitchen, a large bathroom with a hot tub and a bookshelf. "Wow. This is definitively gonna be an amazing trip." Applejack jumped on the bed and began to fall asleep. Rarity placed her under the sheets and gave her a little forehead nuzzle. "You may take a nap, we'll start work a bit later." The marshmallow mare went to the bathroom and drew herself a bath when there was a knock at the door. "Oh, it's just the newspaper." Rarity picked up the paper and brought it to the bathroom. As she poured the bubbles into the tub, she glanced at some of the articles in the paper. She turned the page and got to a section titled 'Closures and Delays'. One part of it caught her attention: "All ponies en route to Ponyville, we regret to inform you that there has been technical problems with the train. The repair will take about a week, and then passengers will be welcome aboard. Our apologies." "WHAT?!" Rarity tipped over and fell in the tub. The sound of the aggressive splashing woke Applejack up, and she rushed to Rarity's side. "What's wrong sugarcube?" "The train back home won't be running for a week!" It was hard for Applejack to take her seriously with her mascara dripping all over her face, but she held in her giggles. "Well, that won't be our only problem. I found this little guy wanting some cuddles, and I think he came from one of your bags." "THE FABRIC!" Rarity jumped out of the tub, shook herself furiously and galloped to her bag of fabrics, which was shaking. The unicorn opened the bag to find a swarm of parasprites fly out and all over the room. She let out a bloodcurdling scream and ran around in despair. "I'll get my lasso." Applejack let out a sigh. This was gonna be one long week.