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// Twilight's worries // Story: Adventures of Jax, Wandering soul// by Nero_Nova//------------------------------//
Chapter 10 Twilight's Worries
“Almost done,” she said to herself as the smell of pancakes filled the kitchen and ran into the hall. “Where are those two?”
A gentle yawn paired with the sound of little footsteps answered Twilight's question as a sleepy purple dragon came around the corner holding a tattered blanket and rubbing his eyes. “Morning Twilight...” The baby dragon said sluggishly.
“Spike, good morning, have you seen Jax yet?” Her little assistant slowly shook his head no. “Can you go wake him up? Breakfast is almost ready.” At her request Spike spins around and heads back into the hall.
After heading up the stairs and down the hall he comes to their guest’s room, three knocks are greeted with nothing but silence. “Jax?” Another three were given, “Jax, wake up, it's time for breakfast.” Again three knocks from the growing impatient and hungry dragon. Still met with silence, Spike takes hold of the door knob and enters the room. “Jax come on, you’re going to be...” The little dragon stops mid-sentence confused. Could he have gone to the wrong door in his drowsy state? No, he was certain he knew his way around the castle after living there for a year. And yet the bed was made seemingly untouched, the curtains closed, and the room spotless. The only indication that Jax was there at all was his saddle bag still sitting on the desk in the corner.
Scratching his head, Spike returns to the kitchen where Twilight was finishing setting up the table. Seeing him walk in alone she was compelled to ask the obvious, “Where's Jax?”
Hoping up to his seat spike shrugs his shoulders, “I don't know, his stuff is still in his room, but he's not.” With that said Spike picks up his fork and starts digging in.
“That's strange, could he have left for the Apple farm?”
“Dose he even know where it is?” The little dragon asked after roughly swallowing his mouthful before speaking.
“I'm sure Applejack told him last night at the party, but I didn't take him for an early riser.” Another shrug from her little friend before he continues eating, pouring maple syrup over his stack, not waiting for it to cover his pancakes before taking the next few bites. “Spike?” Twilight forced herself to say, suddenly looking concerned. “Do you find anything strange about Jax?”
The sudden question did not faze Spike at all. “No, why do you ask?” he asks still eating and talking with his mouth full.
“Well, it seems as if he's purposely keeping himself distant from everyone. I know he was nice at the party and everything, but he still didn't talk much.”
“I bet he's just nervous about being in a new place, not to mention staying in a castle, I'm sure he'll come around.”
Twilight takes a moment to think over Spike's words despite how halfhearted they were about her concerns. In the end she concluded that he might be right, “Yeah I suppose that could be part of it, I'll ask him about it later.” Gripping a fork in her magic Twilight sits ready to eat until she finds that her hungry little dragon had finished his plate and had started eating her pancakes. “Hey!” A glare at Spike was all it took for him to stop and give an Innocent little smile. Luckily Twilight had intended Jax to be joining them and had extra. She gives an exhausted grunt and passes Spike her already half-finished plate as she digs into Jax’s would have been breakfast.
Jax had been standing in front of the apple farm for some time now, questioning himself again if what he was doing was okay. “Come on, I already thought all this through,” he thought to himself having come up with no new reason to leave and not look back. After shaking his head free of any negative thoughts, the green stallion finally forces himself beyond the threshold onto the apple farm.
The walk to the barn in the distance was short but pleasant, and with each step Jax took in the sight of the apple orchard stretching far as the eye could see. Leaves rustled in the gentle breeze and sounded like a symphony to the young stallion, the sound of nature was all it took to put him at ease. Finally at the barn Jax could see his new boss talking with a big red stallion as they moved small wooden tubs onto a cart.
Just as Jax was halfway between the trees and the barn Applejack spotted him and started eagerly waving to him. The sudden hello from so far away made him a little uncomfortable seeing as with his wrapped up leg he could not wave back without stopping and sitting down. When he finally comes face to face with his employer and who he assumes is his co-worker, he finally gives a proper greeting.
“Hey there Applejack. I'm not late, am I?”
“Not at all sugar cube, right on time,” the orange mare said as if Jax had just walked into another party. “To be honest, I didn't expect you so early.” Seeing her new friend tilt his head in response made the moment a little unsettling, Applejack feeling she may have offended him somehow and attempted to break the silence. “Oh, this here's my older brother Big McIntosh, he works here on the farm too.”
Jax looks at the large red stallion again and notices what he recognizes as a yoke around his neck. Paired with the short mane and tail, it was clear Big McIntosh was a hard worker. Jax nodded his head with a smile and turned back to Applejack, “So where do we start?”
Again Applejack feels a hint of tension but was slowly seeing it was not as bad as she thought. “Well, we are going to be bucking apples of course. Since you can't really carry the apple tubs with your leg wrapped up like that, Big Mac here will be picking them up and hauling them back here to the barn while you and I buck the trees.”
Jax looks out to the trees and tries to estimate how much they can get done in an afternoon. “Seems simple enough, mind if I ask how long we will be working for the day?”
“We normally call it a day around three or four in the afternoon.” Seeing Jax’s confidence finally helped Applejack calm down, but was still compelled to ask the obvious question. “Now I know you said you'd be fine to work... but are you sure you're ready to buck apple trees with your leg still healing? I know you’re strong and all, but you did just break it a few days ago, and even Big Mac and I know to take it easy when we get hurt.”
The concern in Applejack's voice was foreign but refreshing to Jax. He thought briefly, trying to remember the last time anyone was worried about his safety. And why over something so small he thought, it was just one leg, no big deal. After a moment, he realized he had withheld his answer for too long and brought back the awkward tension. “Thanks for the concern Applejack,” he said quickly trying not to sound rude or big headed. “But I promise I'll be fine.”
The two siblings eyed one another for a moment questioning the statement. Big Mac, who was not as willing as his sister to let an injured stallion work on his family's farm, motioned for Applejack to press on the matter. Applejack stood there and shrugged her shoulders having full knowledge that Jax was capable of completing the task in spite of his damaged leg. Not convinced, the red stallion speaks up. “I can understand you're confident in your strength, and I can respect that, one stallion t’ another. But I'm sure you can understand when I say, I'd rather not see a new friend get hurt on his first day on the farm. If you're sure you can do the work I won't stop you, but I just want to make sure you're ready for it. Like Applejack said, even we don't work when we get hurt. And with all due respect...” Big Mac pauses as he looks over the average sized stallion standing in front of him about only an inch or two higher than his sister. “You don't exactly look as strong as Applejack said you are.”
“Big McIntosh!”
The sound of his sister's disapproving, and fairly loud tone made him jump. “Well, I'm just being honest.”
Applejack was ready to tear her brother's ear off for being so rude but was cut off by Jax. “It's no problem, Applejack. He's right, for my size, you wouldn't expect me to be as strong as I am. I've heard the same thing in my travels more times than I can count.” In the corner of his eye hanging in the barn, Jax spotted a large red bag swaying side to side. “Is that a practice bag by chance?” He asked sitting down and pointing into the barn.
The two farm hands turn to the open door, “Oh yeah, I use it to stay in shape when there's not as many apples to buck.”
“May I?” Jax asks politely as he stood up.
“Umm, sure...” The blond mare said unsure if she should say no either for the safety of her friend, or the safety or her bucking bag.
Big Mac rolls his eyes knowing full well what was about to happen as the cloaked pony walks into the barn. Jax takes a moment to look over the beaten old bag covered in tape from being broken. Each mark and scuff a testament to Applejack's strength and dedication to her work. He leaps up on his hind legs and bunts the bag for a moment making it sway slightly more than before. He turns back to his employer to see them looking at each other in confusion, until Big Mac, who expected more, asked, “Is that...” Just before the last word was uttered Jax's raises one hind leg and kicks the bag sending it whipping back and hitting a support beam with a significant thud. Any other pony would have moved out of the way when the bag came swinging back down, Jax however just stood still and stopped it with his still stretched out leg, bringing it to an abrupt halt.
Big Mac knew a strong pony when he saw one, having been known for his own slightly abnormal strength for most his life, but now he found himself with a gaping mouth baffled. It was not so much how strong Jax was, after all, hitting the bag so hard was the reason Applejack never let him use it. What was shocking was how such a small pony could have such strength. The confused stallion stood there for several seconds trying to comprehend what he had just seen, all the while Applejack was looking at him with a look that said, “I told you so.”
“I think we can take that as a yes Big Mac,” she said patting her brother on the shoulder and moving over to Jax. “But even still, Big Mac is right about us not wanting you to get hurt. So feel free to take it easy if you think you need a break.”
Nodding his head in agreement the three head out to get to work. Apple Jack walks Jax through the orchard pointing out small markers that will help him stay in the area of the orchard he will be working in. The markers were small ribbons wrapped around certain trees to make the boundary between trees that were ready to harvest, and trees that would not be until another part of the year, signified by a color coding and date. All the while Big Mac was setting up the apple tubs around the trees for Jax and would help do the same for his sister later. His new boss bucks a tree to show him what apples are bad and should be left alone, it took a few tries seeing as bad apples were rare on the Apple Farm. Just before she was done, Jax was told to help himself to some of the apples if he got hungry.
Confident Jax understood the rules and the work Applejack and Big Mac went off to tend to their own duties. The day passed smoothly without a hitch, both Applejack and Jax breezed through their work while Big Mac picked up a cart of full apple tubs from one and dropped them off at the barn before picking up another load from the other. Each time he stopped by to pick up a load from their new farm hand he watched him kick amazed at the trees as if his broken leg had never been needed. Despite how clear it was that Jax was working hard, made perfectly clear by the amount of sweat he had on him, each kick was just as firm as the last one. After a few hours and a headache, he let it go with the conclusion that he just didn't know as much about strength as he thought.
With the sun high over the sky Applejack realized she had come to the last tree she had to buck for the day. She decided to head to the barn and grab the second cart to help her brother gather up the rest of the apple tubs. However, she first wanted to check on the new addition to the farm. Cutting through the orchard, enjoying the cool shade and feel of the fertile soil, Apple Jack was full of a familiar feeling she could only get after a hard day's work. Crossing the marker into Jax’s section of the orchard, she presently discoverers several of tubs full of apples.
Looking down the row of trees she finds him sitting under one of the trees relaxing, a moment after spotting him he looks over.
“Oh hey, I was just waiting for Big Mac to bring the next batch of tubs.” getting up and walking over to greet her.
“Seems like you did a good job,” she say complementing her new friend, looking around at the literal fruit of his labor. “Looks like we're both done for the day. Big Mac and I will take care of the apple tubs seeing as how you can't really lift them. Why don't you head on home?”
Jax looks at his leg as if he forgot it was broke, shrugging his shoulders he nods his head in agreement and heads off waving goodbye to Big Mac as he passes him coming down the row of trees. “I still don't get how such a thin pony could be so strong.” He says walking up to his sister and removing the cart harness.
“I hear you big brother, but then there're a few things we still don't know about that pony. I reckon he'll tell us when he's ready.”
Big Mac was not convinced but let it go and got back to work.
Later in the day, after a meal and shower, the rested farm mare heads off to the park with her faithful canine friend Winona for their weekly “critter play date” as she calls it. Each week was something different with the girls, Spike and all their pets. Today they would all have a relaxing day of play in the park. Winona unable to wait jumped around her owner until she got the picture of what her little friend wanted. Slowly Applejack picked up the pace until the two of them were in full sprint, just as the dog wanted.
Running so fast, the two got there in no time to find the rest of the gang already laying about and playing with their pets. Rainbow Dash laid around in the tree everypony was sitting under while Tank flew around her. Just to the side of her on another limb of the tree was the little purple dragon with his pet phoenix as they took turns blowing little bursts of fire. “Applejack, what took you?” Twilight asked moving her attention from her book while Owlowicious sat lazily on her back. Pinkie also took time away from hopping circles around her motionless baby alligator to wave hello. Angel Bunny's ears perked up at the sound of Winona barking, without even a quick look he turned over on his side and went back to his nap pulling his owner’s wing outward to be used as a blanket. Fluttershy, awoken by the sudden movement of her wing, turned her eyes to her approaching friend.
“Hey y'all, what I...” Apple Jack paused mid-sentence as she noticed Rarity on her fainting couch making her cat try on small articles of clothing she had made for her. “Not much I see.” The blond mare said rolling her eyes at the sight of the clearly annoyed little feline. “And nothing really, I just took a nap before heading over,” she said answering Twilight's question.
All of a sudden everypony was looking back and forth at each other confused. “You did what?” Twilight asked almost shocked.
“Well with Jax help we all got done early today, added I didn't get much sleep last night on account of the party, so I was a might tired.” In spite of the logic of her words, not one pony could believe Applejack of all ponies actually took a nap during the day. The still semi-shocked looks on everypony’s faces slowly became irritating. “Oh come on now, a hard-working pony can't take a nap before seeing her friends?”
The statement snapped everyone back to reality rather fast, “Nothing of the sort darling,” replied the pale- oated mare as she used her magic to change Opal into another sweater. “It's just so rare to see you doing anything other than work hard. Did you really have that much time to spare?”
Applejack then realized that she may have exaggerated the circumstances that lead to her free time. “Well we didn't have too much to get done today, I reckon Big Mac and I could have finished just as fast. And I didn't sleep too long either, maybe an hour or so.” The slight correction to her story seemed to satisfy everypony as that seemed to relax more though it was clear no pony was even aware of any tension.
Applejack finally took a seat with Twilight, just under Rainbow Dash as Winona ran over to play with Opal on Rarity's couch. “Hey, so how did Jax do anyway, with his bum leg and all?” asked the little dragon petting his phoenix as he looked down from the tree. His words went unheard at the moment as the blond mare watched as her fashion-obsessed friend started dressing her dog in a blue scarf and gray hat. To her surprise, she couldn't help but agree that it looked good on Winona. “Applejack?”
“Huh?” She uttered as her attention turned to Spike. “Oh, well he did great, why he got them tree's bucked fast enough to keep up with me.”
“Really? On his first day?” replied Fluttershy.
“Oh don't look so surprised darling,” Rarity remarked while placing yet another article of clothing on her cat. “After all, don't you remember how easily he moved that wrecked ship.”
“Moved? More like sent flying!” shouted Dash.
“Darn tootin’,” Apple Jack replied in agreement, “But you gotta wonder, what exactly does a pony have to do to be that strong?” she questioned. “Took me a lifetime of bucking apples to be as strong as I am, can't help but wonder what Jax did before coming to Equestria.”
“Oh oh oh, I bet I know!” Pinkie said as she jumped up and down. “Maybe he was a heavyweight wrestling champion or maybe he's secretly a superhero. Oh, he could be some crazy monster disguised as a pony to get close to us all before devouring the townsponies one by one, or maybe he was part of a science experiment to create super-ponies, and he got scared and escaped vowing to never speak of it again!”
For a moment everypony was quietly looking back and forth at each other again, this time questioning what goes on in Pinkie’s head. “Well I for one am glad you'll have more help around the farm for the time being,” exclaimed the quiet yellow pegasus, to which everyone nodded in agreement.
“But still,” Twilight said with concern in her voice, “Don't you think we should be questioning just what Jax used to do, or where he's from? I mean, we don't really know anything about him.”
“Oh that's ridiculous,” declared Rarity, “We know he's.....” not a single thought would form as she tried to think of something she knew about Jax.
“Yeah,” Rainbow Dash added. “He's.....” But again nothing.
“Well,” The pink mare said taking a deep breath, “He's really quiet, doesn't like to talk about himself, likes to travel around and is somehow strong enough to take on a Kraken and kick the broken piece of a ship like it was a rock.”
“See what I mean?” Twilight said more worried than before, “I know he looks like a good guy, but shouldn't we be just the least bit concerned about this?”
“Ah, fiddle sticks,” Replied Apple Jack before anypony could even consider the question. “I understand what you're saying Twilight, but if we questioned every strange pony we came across, why we would never make any new friends.” The simplicity of those words held more weight than expected as Twilight recalled just how bizarre her own friends seemed to her when she first met them just under three years ago. “Don't forget he risked his own hide to save all those ponies on the beach the second he got here.” Another fact that Twilight just didn't think enough on before-hoof. “Now I'm not saying I'd trust him to run the farm, but he's yet to give us a reason to question if he should be around. It's just like I told Big Mac, we just need to give him some time to settle in around town, I'm sure he'll lighten up.”
Twilight then recalls Spike saying something along those lines this morning. Upon looking up at said purple dragon, she finds his giving her a look that just screams, “I told you so.” Twilight fumbles the thought in her head a little more before nodding her head in agreement, “Yeah I guess you're right.”
That was all that was needed to be said before the mood finally lightened and the play date began.
However, in spite of Applejack's words, Twilight found herself bothered with the same question later that night. “Who was this pony? Where is he from? Why doesn't he like to talk about himself? And why does he look sad when we ask him about his past?” Twilight couldn't let it go, she had always been able to solve any problem that was in her way, answer any question. But now she faced the total enigma that was Jax, the green pony that came from Celestia knows.... No not even Celestia knows where he came from. Her mind too cluttered trying to make connections and come up with possibilities, the exhausted princess decided not to read her Daring Do book tonight, thinking she would not be able to enjoy it with all these thoughts in her head. Yet she took the hallway to her room that passed the library anyway out of pure habit, and from the door, slightly cracked open, she saw the glow of a candle light. Peering inside she saw Jax at one of the tables reading, even from such a distance, Twilight could tell by the red rim of the book he was reading about Griffinstone.
The smile across Jax’s face told her everything she needed, he was enjoying the book as much as she did when she first read it. It could have been the glow of the light or just her eye's dropping from a need to sleep, but Twilight could swear she had yet to see Jax look so happy, as if all the other times were fake or forced. For some explainable reason, the young princes took solace in that smile, the buzz of questions in her head had stopped and she felt a weight be lifted from her. Though she did not realize it, she had decided to do her best, to wait for Jax to talk about himself. With a single calming breath, Twilight took her leave and went off to bed.