Going with the Grain

by Bronyxy

3 Big Sky Country

Applejack awoke as dawn was beginning to break. She stirred and pushed her hat back to give herself an unobstructed view of the palate of colours forming on the eastern horizon. They were as beautiful as those she was used to seeing at sweet Apple Acres, but there was so much more of them, painted generously across the wide-open expanse of sky. The vibrant orchestra of purples, oranges and pinks reacted as if startled to see the sunrise, and after a brief but glorious display, melted away to leave the sun alone in an azure blue sky.

The first rays of sun revealed the extent of the featureless flat plains the train was travelling over, the only shadow that she could see anywhere being that cast by the train itself, and at the moment, that was long indeed, like a series of black rectangles shadowing the dark side of the train.

She hadn’t woken due to any discomfort, in fact she had enjoyed a particularly good night’s sleep after the night before, but had automatically woken at around the same time as she would have on the farm. How that Rainbow Dash managed to lay in was a talent she hadn’t grasped, being a hardworking country pony always with plenty to do.

The scenery soon became monotonous and Applejack opened up her saddle bags for one of the apples she had packed. She knew the conductor would be coming round a while later on, probably reflecting the demands of ponies who ran to a schedule governed by city time, rather than one preferred by country ponies who had to be up and ready to go before first light. He would doubtless come round and pamper her again as he had yesterday and arrange a magnificent breakfast, but since she was used to gathering round the kitchen table with her kinfolk about now, an apple seemed a good way of taking the edge off her appetite as well as sharing some kind of communion with them, at least in spirit if not in body.

The taste of the apple brought back to her everything that was good about home and she took her time eating it, calling to mind all manner of pleasant memories that fortified her spirit as well as her stomach and prepared her for the day ahead.

She stared outside again looking for any animals of any kind, large or small, and saw nothing, not even a bird, only the mesmeric flash of telegraph poles that had somehow become prominent in the absence of anything else. Applejack rummaged through the other side of her saddle bags and dug out the bits of the Apple family tree that Goldie had prepared as a quid pro quo for the excerpt Golden Graham had sent them. She read through it again, even though she knew it off the top of her head, and recalled fondly little anecdotes from each of the family members, bringing a smile to her face.

“Good morning Miss” the conductor greeted warmly when he made his first stop of the day to check up on Applejack, “I trust you slept well?”

“Darned tootin’!” she replied enthusiastically, “Gotta say though, it felt mighty strange not having chores to do when I got up. Say, you want to stop and chat for a while?”

“Sorry, Miss. It wouldn’t do for a company employee to be seen on duty relaxing in the most exclusive seats” said the conductor before presenting her with the breakfast menu.

“Oh right” said Applejack sadly, “I guess I can see that. Sure wouldn’t want you to get in trouble on my account.”

“Thank you; it was a very nice offer” said the conductor, “And I do look forward to serving you again on your way back; I presume you will be making a return journey in the next few weeks?”

“I guess so. Probably in the next few days.”

“OK, I’ll be sure to look out for you” he said, “But in the meantime do make the most of breakfast. We’re on schedule and should be pulling in to Branding at 11 am, which is just before we serve lunch. As there are two places here, I don’t see why I couldn’t put together a packed lunch to serve as the breakfast for the other passenger if you would like?”

“Why thanks, if it’s not too much bother, that is.”

“It would be my pleasure” he assured and gave her a genuine smile before leaving to see to the next passengers.

***

“Ten minutes to Branding!” came the call over the speaker in the carriage, and Applejack took the opportunity to double check she had everything stowed in her saddle bags; most importantly the family tree information, but also the packed lunch that she had somehow crammed in with the apples. She wanted to write a letter of thanks to the railroad company for the excellent service she had received, but suddenly realised she didn’t even know the name of the conductor who had been so kind to her. Just then, her concentration broke when she felt a slight lurch as the brakes were applied, heralding the start of the deceleration into Branding station.

Applejack looked around; this journey hadn’t been nearly as bad as she had feared, and she felt almost sad to be leaving this little home from home behind. The first few outlying houses and random buildings went past, and she looked at them with more interest than she would have ordinarily, specifically because they were the first features of any note that she had seen all day.

A final quick look at the map suggested strongly that Branding only existed to act as a convenient stop for trains leaving the main railroad and going off to Whinnieapolis, and her initial impression from what she could see of their approach certainly showed a side of the city that was less developed than Canterlot or Vanhoover had been. They continued their deceleration as the buildings went past ever slower, until the train pulled in under a purpose-built roof that she reasoned was part of the platform structure, and came to a stop with a slight jerk.

“Branding, this is Branding. Alight here for connecting trains to Whinnieapolis” announced the speaker in the carriage, “Passengers leaving us here are encouraged to check they have left nothing behind and please be careful when stepping off the train onto the platform. We look forward to seeing you again soon and wish you a pleasant onward journey.”

Applejack recognised the voice immediately and couldn’t suppress a smile at hearing the friendly tones of the conductor one more time, leaving the train with a skip in her step. Her hooves felt a little odd on the first solid ground for a whole day and as she turned to take one last look at the huge metal monster that had brought her safely into the station, she saw him throw a friendly salute to her from behind a window. She stopped to wave her hat and holler a loud “thank you!” that cut through the hustle and bustle of the station, stopping everypony in their tracks as surely as they had been turned to stone. In the silence that followed, she suddenly felt her cheeks turning a bright crimson colour and caught one last look at him as he said something into his microphone, clearly delivering another passenger announcement, and blew him a farewell kiss which he acknowledged with a cheery wave.

As the shocked passengers and railroad employees returned to what they had been doing before the loud shout had rudely cut across them, Applejack took one last look at her friendly conductor, and then set about finding the train to Whinnieapolis, sincerely hoping their paths would cross again.