Applejack: Stare Master Extraordinaire

by Indeliblink

The Stare?

An orange earth pony trotted leisurely across the lush green fields surrounding Ponyville. Applejack had been told--ordered, as a matter of fact--by Granmy Smith to take the day off, and after some vehement protests, she had finally given in. Actually, no, that didn't sound quite right. She grimaced as she searched for a better word.

Agreed, she eventually thought with a satisfied smile. Yes, Applejack had agreed to take a break from applebucking for the day. One. Day. She reminded herself with a firm nod.

Her attitude soon reverted back to its former state: lost. What was she supposed to do now? She hadn't planned out anything for a day off, and she knew her friends had their own schedules to follow as well.

Great, now I'm turning into Twilight, she thought, rolling her eyes. As she weaved around a small cluster of trees, she came into view of a small cottage in the distance. Recognizing it immediately, she grinned as she finally settled on something with which to pass the time. Well hay, why not? I'm sure Fluttershy'd appreciate some sentient company for once. She hastened her trot and was soon crossing the small bridge and trekking the path that led to the lone pegasus' humble abode.

A few succinct knocks on the door were followed by a long period of silence. Applejack moved to look through the window, but before she could leave the doorstep, a quiet creak stopped her in her tracks. Applejack smiled at the small sliver of a face peering out at her through the slightly-open door of the cottage. "Howdy, Fluttershy!"

"Oh, um, hello Applejack," Fluttershy replied, opening the door enough so that her entire form was visible. "How are you today?"

"Not too bad." Applejack dipped her head as Fluttershy moved out of the doorway and motioned her inside. "How about you? What're y'all up to?"

"I was feeding the birds when you knocked." Applejack followed her gaze to the open bird cage, where several birds peeked out and chirped merrily at them. "Did you need help with something?"

"Nah, just thought I'd drop by for a visit. Ah got the day off," she half-grumbled.

Fluttershy nodded, a warm smile growing on her face. "Would you like some tea?"

"Thank ya kindly," Applejack answered, tipping her hat. She watched the pegasus disappear into the kitchen, and after a moment's pause she turned to observe the noisy birds chowing down on their meal. Moving closer, she felt a tingly happiness upon seeing several chicks scattering seeds practically everywhere that wasn't into their own mouths.

"Adorable little critters, ain't they?" She quietly asked herself. She watched a few seconds longer, then scanned the rest of the birds in the cage until her eyes came to rest on one that was perched upon a small (and fake, if Applejack were to guess) tree branch protruding from the center of the small area.

The bird was of average size, was not particularly loud, and had a very moderately-colored plumage. All in all, it wasn't much to look at--no more special than any other creature--and Applejack was stumped on why she was suddenly so drawn to it. Just as that thought firmly planted itself in her mind, the bird turned its head toward her and stared into her eyes, and her thoughts withered into nothing.

For a long time, Applejack couldn't move. Her vision tunneled, though barely noticeably, and her ears slowly splayed back under her hat. The bird's small black eyes flashed, bored into her soul, an image of her own stunned demeanor reflected back in them. A sudden twinge in the joints of her forehooves sent a searing heat racing down her spine, and her muzzle scrunched slightly as she bit back a yelp. The pair remained like this for nearly a minute until the sharp whistle of a tea kettle pierced the veil of concentration, and the farmpony let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. The bird blinked.

And then it fell.

Time seemed to slow down as the limp body tumbled through the air, feathers fluttering wildly until it hit the floor of the cage with a mighty crash.

Everything stopped. Applejack couldn't blink, breathe, or close her mouth, which had inadvertently dropped wide open, though exactly when she couldn't remember. Her heartbeat rang dully in her ears, what felt like seconds stretching out between each rhythmic pulse. She briefly wondered if time had frozen, but after slowly trailing her eyes along the rest of the cage, she realized that all noise in the room had ceased, as Fluttershy's other animals appeared equally shocked. The entire atmosphere seemed to scream out, What in Celestia's name just happened?

Applejack's knees wobbled as the flow of time rushed past her once again, resuming its regular pace. She hesitantly leaned forward into the cage and nosed the mysterious bird onto its back; its chest no longer rose and fell. Applejack, now thoroughly mortified, leaned back and fell onto her rump with a hard thud.

What in the hay...? She drew in a shuddering breath, not daring to look at the deathly still body resting mere feet away. Was this my fault? What even happened? Animals don't just die, not like that. Especially not Fluttershy's.

That was the second time her heart nearly stopped. Oh Celestia. How was she going to tell Fluttershy that one of her animals had just died? Would she blame Applejack for it? No, she wouldn't, Applejack concluded, though that didn't make the thought of Fluttershy mourning the loss of one of her animals any less depressing. She shook her head to dispell the image from her mind.

The sound of clinking dishware and soft hoofsteps made Applejack sit bolt upright, her eyes shrinking to small dots. Now her heart actually did stop.

Looking around frantically, Applejack looked for some sort of an escape option, fire alarm, or panic button; Fluttershy's cottage contained none of these, however, and as said pegasus' shadow appeared in the entry to the kitchen, Applejack made up her mind.

"Applejack?" Fluttershy raised an eyebrow as her friend turned sharply, a small gasp reaching her sensitive yellow ears. "Oh, are you admiring the birds?" The pegasus set down the tray holding the pair of teacups and approached with a large smile. "They're just so cute, aren't they?"

"Heh... they, uh... they sure are!" Applejack nodded vigorously, stopping short when her hat nearly flew off her head. She quickly straightened it and put on a very noticeably-forced grin.

Fluttershy didn't notice.

"That one's named Jerry," Fluttershy said proudly, pointing to one of the birds, then moved her hoof to another. "That's Tom. Over there is Ben, and that's Darth Vad--wait, where's Chewy?"

Oh, horseapples. Applejack licked her lips. "Ch-Chewy?" She inquired meekly; she didn't like where this was going, not one bit.

"It's short for Chewbacca," Fluttershy told her absently, turning her head left and right. "He was here just a moment ago, and--" She gasped. "Did he fly away? Oh, I leave the cage open one time, and this happens..." Fluttershy began searching every nook and cranny of the cottage, and all the while Applejack sat, her neck threatening to break out in a cold sweat.

Having no luck, it was only a matter of time before Fluttershy grew increasingly panicky. "Applejack, have you seen him?" Fluttershy gazed at her pleadingly, her eyes welling up with tears, and Applejack's heart wrenched as she visibly winced.

"Erm... n-no?" She stammered out, her eyes darting all around the room, looking anywhere and everywhere that wasn't at the soon-to-be-heartbroken pegasus. In any normal situation, her lie would have been easily discovered, but Fluttershy merely assumed that she too was looking for the "lost" bird.

"Ohh..." Fluttershy hummed anxiously, fidgeting as she glanced at her equally-nervous friend. After a short moment of indecision, the shy pony's eyes hardened in determination. "Um, Applejack, I'm very sorry, but tea will have to wait! I must find Chewy as soon as possible!"

Applejack nearly collapsed to the floor, though in dread or relief, she couldn't tell. "Oh, yeah, no worries! Ah'll just, uh..." She began edging closer to the front door, reaching out desperately for the knob that would release her from this madness. "Um... s-start lookin'."

Fluttershy gasped, leaping and gliding across the room to wrap her in a tight hug. "Oh, thank you so much, Applejack!"

Applejack cringed shamefully. Yuck. Coming from Fluttershy of all ponies, the unknowingly undeserved gratitude left a bitter taste in her mouth. Momentarily ignoring the sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach, she shrugged and forced yet another smile. "Heh, heheh... no problem." With a quick tip of the hat in farewell, she slipped out the door and raced away from the cottage.

Nearly a mile away from the cottage, Applejack skidded to a stop. Tearing her hat off, she dumped the frail body of the late Chewy to the ground. She stared blankly at the seemingly young and healthy pigeon, stripped of his vitality with no apparent reason or method.

Tears pricking at the corners of her eyes, Applejack threw back her head and screamed.

Comments

[Pieflower64]

Tom, and Ben. Tom from yuriofwinds reading of sonic.exe, and Ben from Ben drowned? Am I right about this?

[Indeliblink]

3786679
Nope. Tom from Tom & Jerry, and Ben from Ben & Jerry's.
And of course, Jerry from both.