I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)

by A Hoof-ful of Dust

I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)

‘I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)’

“C’mon, sugarcube. Let’s get you home.”

Applejack hoisted Fluttershy onto her back. She was no help at all, sliding forward and burying her face into Applejack’s mane. Still, she wasn’t much heavier than a full barrel of apples, and those were easy to haul around.

Apple barrels didn’t tend to roll about and giggle, however. Applejack slowed her pace to something a mite slower than a casual stroll. The moon was full and bright, the air warm, the breeze cool. It would have been a nice evening for a long night walk.

“Applejack,” Fluttershy mumbled, lengthening the l-sound so the name came out sounding like Aplll-jack, “thank you for holding my mane for me.”

“T’weren’t nothin’,” she replied. “You’d’ve done the same for me.”

“You’re nice, Aplll-jack.” Applejack could feel Fluttershy shifting around again. She was likely to go flank over forelegs and spill all on the ground if she wiggled about any more. “You’re so nice to everypony.” Everypony came out as evrrpony.

“Well, you’re mighty nice too, hun.”

“Do you really think so?” Fluttershy perked up beyond what time-passing chitchat should warrant.

Applejack paused before speaking, giving her answer some gravity. “Of course I do,” she said with all sincerity, “of course you’re nice.”

“That’s good,” Fluttershy said, relaxing back into Applejack’s mane. “We are two nice ponies.”

A few long moments passed in quiet. Insects sang their creaking humming songs to the night. Applejack’s hoofsteps provided a steady beat.

“Hey Applejack,” Fluttershy asked without warning, “can I wear your hat?”

She took it without waiting for a response. Applejack craned her head around to see Fluttershy place the stetson askew on her own head, which brought forth a fresh burst of giggling. She tried to adjust the hat and nearly overbalanced, making Applejack perform a rapid side-step to keep Fluttershy in place.

“Careful now,” she cautioned, returning to the path that led to Fluttershy’s cottage. “Y’almost went’n upset the whole applecart there.”

“I wonder,” Fluttershy mused. Iii… wunnr. “If I have your hat, will I talk like you do?”

“You jes’ might,” Applejack said with a wry smile, purposely adding extra twang to her voice.

“Ah jes’ maht,” Fluttershy mimicked in a hopelessly exaggerated Appleloosan accent. “How’m ah doin’?”

“I reckon yer doin’ fine, pardner.”

“Aw shucks,” Fluttershy said, and started giggling.

To stop herself falling, Fluttershy held on around Applejack’s neck. Pressed close, Applejack could feel her light laughter as well as hear it.

“Mm, I like how you talk,” Fluttershy said. “It’s warm, and nice, and cozy, and you call ponies sugarcube. I like when you call me sugarcube.”

“Why’s that,” Applejack asked, grinning, “sugarcube?”

“Because it’s cute.” Cute dipped and wavered, becoming two separate words: cuu-uute. “It’s cute and sweet, like a little cube of… sugar.”

“I suppose it is something similar to a cube of sugar,” Applejack said with the straightest face she could manage. A single escaping laugh was enough to set Fluttershy off again.

Applejack walked for a distance without anything said after Fluttershy lapsed into silence once more. “Sugar,” she asked in a low voice after a moment, “you fall asleep back there?”

“Uh-uh, I’m awake,” Fluttershy murmured. “Why don’t you have your mane out more, Applejack?”

“I don’t rightly know,” she said, which was the truth. “I guess I got used to havin’ my mane outta the way when I’m workin’ on the farm.”

“But you’re not working on the farm now,” Fluttershy observed.

“No, I ain’t.”

“No, you ain’t.” Applejack could hear the smile in Fluttershy’s voice as she tried again to copy her accent. Then she could feel a tugging on her mane; Fluttershy was stealing the band that kept it in place.

Typically, the only time Applejack had her mane down and her hat off was in her bedroom, having just dried her mane after a bath. In the middle of the night on a road that went by the Everfree Forest, however, it wasn’t like there was anypony around to see her.

Well, nopony but Fluttershy.

“How do I look?” she asked.

“Your mane’s really nice,” Fluttershy said. “It’s mighty fine.”

“I think your accent’s gettin’ better.”

“Really?”

“It must be the hat.”

Applejack rounded a corner and Fluttershy’s cottage came into view, the surrounding trees and gardens filled with a menagerie of sleeping animals.

“That was fast.” Fluttershy sounded awed. Amazed, and possibly a little disappointed the trip had been so swift.

“You alright to walk?”

“I think I am.” Fluttershy slid to the ground in a single liquid movement. She leaned against Applejack for a brief moment before finding her balance.

“Well,” Applejack said, suddenly feeling unable to find the right words to say, “g’night.”

“Um, Applejack…” Fluttershy glanced at her front door, and then down at the ground. Applejack’s hat tipped, covering her eyes.

“Yeah?”

“Would you mind spending the night?”

Applejack gave a warm smile. “I reckon I can do that.”

“You’re a nice pony, Applejack,” Fluttershy said from underneath the stetson. “We have to be quiet now,” she said in a theatrical whisper, “because we don’t want to wake anyone who’s asleep.”

“No,” Applejack agreed with a hushed voice.

The two ponies crept into the cottage and up the stairs to the bedroom. Fluttershy collapsed onto her bed.

“I really like you, Applejack,” Fluttershy whispered. “You’re a nice pony,” she repeated, and leaned in towards her.

Applejack planted a kiss on Fluttershy’s forehead. “You get some sleep, sugarcube,” she told her.

Fluttershy fell back into her pillow, eyes closed. “I will,” she said with a smile.

Applejack backed out of the room and made her way to the couch downstairs. She sighed, and closed her eyes to try to find some sleep of her own.

Comments

[A Hoof-ful of Dust]

Have some fluff. There's not much to say about this... do you call it a story? It's really more of just a scene. Anyway, I wanted to play around with Applejack's accent and have somepony else wear her hat, as well as write a bit of a palate-cleanser. It also turns out it's surprisingly difficult to write to an exact word-count.

[fracture012]

D'aaawww, that was adorable, I don't know if it was shipping or not but it was still really cute :3, and was Fluttershy drunk or something?

[A Hoof-ful of Dust]

881880
It's a very real possibility that she was.

[Arkensaw Pinkerton]

Well that's adorable.

[A Hoof-ful of Dust]

881965
Forgive me for geeking out for a moment, but you wrote the story that got me into MLP fanfiction, and that's the exact reaction I wanted people to have with this story. You've totally made my day.

[Mally]

I really, REALLY like this. It's labeled as romance, but the shipping is so very subtle that you could easily take it as friendshipping. Bravo, Hoof. I approve wholeheartedly. You didn't overdo the accent, either, except to show just how badly 'shy was mimicking it, and 'jack was certainly in character; I would say the same for a certain Pegasus, but it's difficult to write her drunk, for obvious reasons. Still, it seems like a pretty accurate assessment of what our fair pony would be like if inebriated.

[Arkensaw Pinkerton]

882040 Really? That totally makes my day too! It is always weird and pleasant when I find out people have read my stuff. I'm glad you got into the fanfic- your writing here is extremely sweet. I may have to try the limited-scope writing; it really does sound like a challenge.

[14squarefeet]

I wish this was longer, but it was really good and adorable

[fwe]

So ADOOORRRAAABLLLEEEEEEEEEEE

[Twilicorn]

D'aww. You don't see a lot of Appleshy these days, but it's adorable when you do. I'd personally like to see more of this, but it's an excellent oneshot as well. Either way, I'm watching.

[ThePwnzorMuffin]

Are you a fan of this pairing, or something?

I'm watching you...

[A Hoof-ful of Dust]

886274
You could say that. My mind's fairly open when it comes to shipping, though.

[Wise Cracker]

The close contact is well described, the affection passes for realistic, and you resisted the urge to have someone drunk go 'hiccup' like so many cartoons are wont to do.

A job well done, I say.

[Donnys Boy]

This is an adorable vignette. I love the easy, breezy feel to it--the dramatic tension is very light, almost nonexistent. Drunk Fluttershy was depicted very well, I think, funny without being overdone. And the hints that Applejack might be sweet on 'Shy were lovely.

[10000 B_C]

This is adorable. Just... adorable. Props to ^^ for recommending it. I also really like that the whole 'staying over for the night' didn't turn into them sharing a bed with sloppy make outs, but more like AJ dodging Fluttershy's straight on kiss to give her a kiss on the forehead and sleep on the couch. It'd be like AJ to respect Fluttershy like that. I doubt any of the ponies would take advantage of her anyways, but it's good that's they're all in character and stuff.
Also, when she grabbed onto AJ, I couldn't help but break out in a smile. It's just so flippin' adorable

[Twinkletail]

I absolutely loved this, though I will admit that I'm strongly biased towards anything Appleshy. Fluttershy wearing AJ's hat and imitating her accent was just adorable, and I too loved the hints that AJ's interested in Flutters, but wants to take it easy and not take the easy way by sharing the bed with her when she's drunk like that.

[fallen starr]

It was cute. :) I don't see to much romance in it, personally, but more like friendship, which is awesome in itself. I love it though! :D Good job!

[Book]

For some reason drunk fluttershy is adorable. Well done!

[animeyasha66]

this is soo fluffy i want it to be my pillow

[Lurks-no-More]

Drunk 'shy is remarkably cute and amusing.

I like the ambiguity of the story; it can read either as Fluttershy having a crush on AJ, or just opening up a bit more to a good friend, as you like. Either way, it's very nice.

[Cloudy Skies]

I could read Applejack like this all day long. I already love her to bits, but you basically manage to make her sound like the nicest pony ever. Nicest-er. Even nicester. That's a word. Hush.

[JerryQWERTY]

It's super cute and I like the ambiguity. Greenthumbed!

[Lloxie]

EEEE! So freaking CUTE! <3 Why is drunk Flutters so adorable? X3 I love this. Well done!

[x0jackie0x]

I was enjoying it, but when Flutters grabbed her hat, I lost it. It's so cute imagining that happening. It's such a simple story, the perfect length for what's going on and I have a feeling that drunk Flutters would act just like this.

Fave'd for a great read.

[Karrakaz]

Grrr!

GRRRRR!!!!

This is too short, I want to know what happens, I want to know how Fluttershy reacts after she's sobered up, I want to know how the shipping happens!

[DiscipleOfPein]

I found this little fic last night, read it, and favourited it as soon as I was done. Today I proceeded to read it twice more. The perfect length to get across such an adorable piece I reckon. Thank you for entertaining me with just 1000 words three times over!

[The Rarispy]

That was a nice fic. Very sweet. :)

[keulan742]

Drunk Fluttershy is super adorable and funny. This story is also super adorable and funny. And now I've got that song stuck in my head, which is good because I like the song.