//------------------------------//
// Farmyard Therapist 
// Story: New World, New Beginning 
// by Speven Dillberg 
//------------------------------//

	Why can’t I sleep? Why can’t I sleep!? I spent all night playing games and drinking, for gods’ sake! I should have collapsed by now! Argh! Damn it! Damn it all! 
There’s only one explanation. There has to be. Why did she do that? What was she thinking? I don’t care that she was drunk. I don’t care that she could barely stand. Urgh!





Justin woke up late that morning. He hadn’t gotten much sleep the past few days, and whenever he had it was full of strange dreams.
“Wow,” Twilight Sparkle said as he stomped his way into the main hall of the library. “Good morning?”
Justin simply groaned as he poured himself a cup of coffee. “What time is it?” he asked, scratching himself.
“Nearly eleven. I’m surprised you woke up this early.” Twilight turned back to the stack of notes she had made during Justin’s talk with the princess.
“Bad dreams,” he muttered.
“I might have a few books that could help,” Twilight suggested.
“I am not in the mood to go turning pages, thank you very much. Besides, I’d rather stretch my wings.” Justin stopped where he stood and smacked himself in the head.
Twilight stopped reading and stared at Justin. “What was that for?”
“I’m not going to talk about it.” Despite the mare’s badgering, he refused to give in, eventually leaving with a handful of bits he had found lying on the counter.
He made his way to what looked to be the market, judging by the number of ponies there. He turned out to be right and quickly located Applejack standing behind a cart. “Well, howdy, Justin!” The farm pony stopped and blinked, properly taking in the man’s dishevelled appearance. “Woah. You okay, sugarcube?”
Justin rubbed at the bags under his eyes. “Feel like I got kicked in the head, so all things considering, not that bad.” He pulled some of the bits from his pocket. “I feel like breakfast.”
“It’s nearly lunchtime,” Applejack pointed out in a deadpan.
“I just woke up, okay?”
“Ya’ll been havin’ nightmares?”
“Not nightmares. Not exactly,” Justin replied. “Mind if I sit down?” he asked, gesturing to an empty crate behind the cart.
“Sure thing.” Applejack pushed the crate closer with a hoof so he didn’t need to move as far. 
Justin eased himself onto the crate slowly so as not to lose his balance. He rubbed at his eyes again.“I keep having... dreams.”
“Lemme guess. Rainbow Dash?”
Justin turned to the farmer. “How’d you know?”
Applejack snorted. “It don’t take somepony like Twilight to figure somethin’ like that out.”
“Fair enough.” Justin sighed and slumped down. “I don’t know why, though. I mean, she was drunk out of her mind! That kiss meant nothing!”
“Here, eat this.” Applejack passed an apple fritter to Justin. “Now, the way Ah see it,” she said, leaning against the cart, “ya’ll been tellin’ yaself that it meant nothin’, but until ya hear those words from Rainbow Dash herself ya won’t think otherwise.”
Justin swallowed his mouthful of fritter and stared at the farmer. “That is pretty deep, y’know that?”
“What, just because Ah’m a country gal Ah can’t be all philosophical and stuff?” Applejack asked in mock indignation.
“I never said that,” Justin replied, too tired to see the joke. “Well, if you think I should talk to Rainbow, where can I find her?”
“Knowin’ her, probably sleepin’ in one of mah trees.” Applejack adjusted her hat. “If ya’ll are willin’ ta wait, Ah can help ya check the orchard for her.”
“Well, I haven’t got anything better to do. If I fall asleep, don’t wake me up.”





“Say, sugarcube, can ya tell me somethin’?”
“What?”
Justin and Applejack were walking the path to Sweet Apple Acres, the farm pony pulling the cart as though it weighed nothing.
“Why exactly are ya happy stayin’ here?” she asked, a little worried.
Justin looked at the cloudless afternoon sky. “I did say that my life there wasn’t great, didn’t I?” he asked back.
“That ya did,” Applejack replied. “But what about yer friends? Or yer family?”
“All my friends moved away to study.” Justin chuckled. “They wanted to become doctors or lawyers or writers. Before I wound up here, I hadn’t spoken to any of them in two years at least.”
“Two years? Really?” Applejack had trouble believing what he had just said. But thanks to being the Embodiment of Honesty she could tell that every word was truth. “Well, what about yer family? Don’t they miss ya?”
“My father left my mother when she was pregnant. She died three years ago.” The light, almost carefree way he spoke stunned the farmer. “Didn’t have any brothers or sisters, either. Just me.”
“How can ya talk about yer mother’s death so easily?” Applejack asked after finding her voice.
“It was years ago, and she was sick. Inoperable cancer,” he explained.
“Say what now?”
“The doctors couldn’t have done anything even if they tried. If they cut her open to get it out, she would’ve died in days. Instead, she spent the last six months of her life travelling, doing her best to make the most of what she had left,” Justin replied, sighing. “Should’ve gone with her to Egypt,” he muttered.
Applejack didn’t know what Egypt was, nor did she really care. “What did ya say before about ya father? Somethin’ about leavin’ yer mother?”
“Yeah. Never knew him. Don’t want to either.” Justin’s expression became hard at that. “He wanted nothing to do with me, why should I want anything to do with him?” he asked angrily.
“Ah didn’t say anythin’,” Applejack replied warily. “Do ya know why ya father left ya mother like that?”
“I don’t know!” Justin shouted. “I just don’t know! For all I know he got killed and I shouldn’t be hating him. I just...” Justin slumped, his shoulders drooping as he tried to force down his anger.
“Easy there, Justin.” Applejack had stopped pulling the cart to look properly at the human. The way he went from bittersweet reminiscing to anger to confusion was more than a little concerning. “Take a deep breath now.” Justin did as she said. “Keep calm now. Gettin’ angry at that won’t do ya no good now.”
“I know,” Justin muttered. “I thought I got over this years ago. I just...” He sighed.
“That ain’t the kinda thing somepony can get over easily, Ah reckon.” She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Maybe ya’ll worried about being rejected or somethin’?”
“Rejected? What the hay are you talking about?” Justin blinked. “Did I just say ‘hay’?”
“Ya’ll worried about being rejected. Ya think yer father wanted nothin’ ta do with ya, so you have a...” Applejack took a moment to think. “A fear of rejection, maybe?”
“A fear of rejection?” Justin turned to the mare, one eyebrow raised. “Really? That’s the best you can do?”
“Hey, Ah ain’t no fancy psychiatrist now. Ah’m just taking a few guesses. Hay, Ah’m probably completely wrong.” Applejack started walking again. “Maybe Twi knows more about this kinda thing?”
“Well, she knows the princess. Might ask for a pony who knows about this kind of thing,” Justin said as he followed.
“That’s a good idea,” Applejack replied. “Now come on, Big Macintosh expected me back ten minutes ago.”





“Applejack, why were ya late?”
“Sorry, big brother,” Applejack shouted back. “Had to help mah friend here.”
“Did Twilight ask about how we grow our trees again?”
“No, different friend.” She gestured to Justin. “Ya’ll remember this fella, dontcha?”
“Eeyup.” Bug Macintosh approached Justin, the big red stallion’s head level with the man’s neck. “Ah’m Big Macintosh.”
“I’m Justin.” There was an awkward silence as the two simply stared at each other.
“Say, Big Macintosh,” Applejack asked, “ya’ll seen Rainbow around?”
“I saw her sleepin’ in one of the Red Gala trees about half an hour ago,” he replied. He turned to Justin. “Well, it was nice meetin’ ya, but Ah gotta go. Ah promised ta help Applebloom with her math homework.” The stallion walked off slowly back towards the house. Justin couldn’t help but wonder what he was like when he was talkative.
As he disappeared into the building, Applejack went to up to Justin. “Gimme a moment to put the cart back inta the barn, then we can go find Rainbow.”





It didn’t take long to locate Rainbow Dash. Amongst the greens and reds her cyan coat stood out easily. She was lying on a branch, a foreleg dangling as she snored lightly.
“So, ya want ta wake her, or should I?”
“I think I will.” Justin approached the tree and shook it. Rainbow stirred but didn’t wake.
“Hmm,” she moaned in her sleep. She began to giggle and kicked with one of her legs. “That’s good...”
Applejack and Justin looked at each other, eyebrows raised. “Is she dreamin’ about what Ah think she’s dreamin’ about?”
“I hope not,” Justin whispered in response. He shook the tree again.
“Oh, Justin,” the pegasus said happily. “Hmm...”
“Oh god,” Justin muttered.
“Oh Celestia,” Rainbow moaned.
“Oh hay no!” Applejack approached the tree and bucked it hard, knocking the pegasus from her perch. “What in tarnation is wrong with ya, Rainbow!?”
“Huh? Wha?” Rainbow had landed on her head and was looking at them upside down. She righted herself and stared at her friend. “What are you talking about?”
“I think I’m gonna be sick,” Justin muttered.
“We heard ya talkin’ in ya sleep,” Applejack replied.
“You... you did?” Rainbow was suddenly very nervous. “I... I was dreaming that I was getting a massage! Yeah, a massage.”
“Musta been a heck of a massage to get you moaning like that,” Applejack answered, her anger mixed with disgust.
Their argument was interrupted by the sound of Justin retching from behind a different tree. “I’m going back to the library,” they heard Justin say.
“What? Why?” Rainbow asked.
“To see if Twilight can erase my memory,” he replied, still sounding a bit queasy. “And to get me that psychiatrist.”
“What?” Rainbow took flight and followed Justin. “What do you mean, a psychiatrist?
“That’s personal, thank you very much,” Justin replied with more force than he had intended. “And I don’t want to be around you just now. Especially seeing what you were dreaming of...” he muttered as he left Rainbow behind.
“You heard that?”
“I heard enough!” 





Oh god I hope Twilight can get me a psychiatrist. This is not something I want to deal with! God, I thought she didn’t want anything to do with me in that way! Then I hear that! Dammit! I do not need or want those mental images! Get out of my brain! Get out of my brain, dammit!