A Tale of Two Minds

by AcesCalifornia

Chapter 2 - Coming Home

Chapter 2

Coming Home

Lobo Apple had laid herself down next to Turnover, on her belly, with both fore-legs and rear-legs folded in, Melissa reckoned just like how a cat would sit. As Lobo took her place, Melissa was able to stutter out a “Hey... Lobo”, feeling like getting use to Turnover's masculine voice was a long-journey ahead, as well as coming to any level of comfort with the situation she had somehow found herself in.

Lobo had leaned down, the body which had belonged to Turnover still laid flat on it's side where Melissa had placed it, and the sister of this foreign body to Melissa gave a short nuzzle on the neck with an accompanying statement of “Oh Celestia, Ah'm just glad ya still 'ere with us. What Madam Beets said got me right scared! You don't got right to do that to ya big sister!”

Lobo appeared to be a similar shade of red to Turnover, but more vibrant and darker in shade, and matched it with short cut, straight hair that ran half way down her neck that was orange on the outside, but quickly faded into a shade of silver in steps, the same pattern existing on her tail. Her cutie mark was an apple, a brighter shade of red than her coat, which held a silver paw-print right in the center. Noticing the mark, Melissa made a note to herself to ask, if Turnover's mark meant he was good at cooking, what did Lobo's mark mean? This was added to the growing list of questions Melissa eventually wanted to get answers too, but most of them would probably betray her intentions of masking that she wasn't of this mythical universe.

The cataloguing of the questions piling up inside of Melissa's mind was interrupted by the intruding, calm voice of Apple Turnover gently ordering “Now, copy me.”

“Uhh... Ah apologize for scaring you there... big sis. That... there... explosion took the wind out of me. Ah'm sorry to ask, but could ya cart us back to the house... Ah' don't think Ah' can walk right 'bout now.” Melissa copied from Apple Turnover's dictation in her mind, trying her best to copy Turnover's distinct southern twang, over her own city-living accent she still had.

It had seemed to have worked the best it could, as with just a flicker of one of Lobo's ears, obviously picking up something different about the tone of her close family member, Lobo smiled warmly and responded saying “Sure thang lil' bro, you get yourself rested up, right?” with the 'right?' the end seemingly more an order than a question.

Melissa attempted again to get herself into a standing position, this time understanding that her new bodily experience was meant to be quadrupedal, rather than attempting to stand on their two rear-legs as she had last time which resulted in that undignified face-plant into the grass. This time, with small injections of encouragement courtesy of the mental-voice of Turnover; Melissa managed a standing position, legs splayed wider than they should, and a wobbly foundation, ending up looking like a new-born deer-foal, but successfully stood on all fours either way. “Now hol' it Melissa. This ain't like your dragon tootsies. Let me say, take your first step with your front left, an' pair that with your back right.” Turnover instructed to Melissa, who followed the steps in turn as Turnover continued “Now, close yourself back up by taking your front right and back left forward. Think you got that?” And with that, Melissa had somewhat successfully taken her first step in this body. A singular step, her final positioning not set to propel her a further step as her legs returned to a standing position.

Her congratulatory feelings to this were interrupted by Lobo, who watched the slow, unsure first step forward with a look of concern on her. “That explosion must'a knocked right sense out of ya! 'Ere, let me give ya a hoof” and with that, Lobo took a position beside Melissa, wrapped one of her brighter-red hoofs around Turnover's faded-red torso, and held Melissa in a way to provide support.

“Ahh that's my sis', bless her. Wish Ah' can thank her myself... Umm... just do those same steps, an'... try an' follow her lead.” Apple Turnover's comments trailed off into a tone of sadness towards the end, but the instruction was clear, and Melissa tried her best with her new found skill in walking on all fours, matching the slow canter of Lobo towards the cart she brought with her.

“Uhh... Thank you, big sis” Melissa stated with a sad hesitancy, the least she could on behalf of Turnover.

The entry into the cart had to be aided by Lobo, who pushed her brother up from the rear with her head and neck, as Melissa could not find a way to position herself in this new body to help climb up the ledge. But now they were inside the cart, and the rear flap had been shut behind them by Lobo. Melissa laid Turnover's body back down the way she had before. The cart had just enough room to splay herself out like before, but not much room for further movement. She also made an attempt to elevate her head to look over the side of the cart, following how she perceived Lobo being able to move her head as she was laid on her belly, settling down to look out towards the farmland, confirming rows and rows of apple trees as what she saw stretching out into the horizon. She swivelled her head to watch as Lobo attached the harness for the cart back up to her back and torso, before turning back to meet the eyes of her little brother with a weary smile “Jus' setting off, Ah'll try ta be gentle for ya... No promises.”

The journey back for a short while was silent. Melissa could tell that Apple Turnover was still sorrowful about the position he now found himself in, and guessed that Lobo was still worried sick about her little brother. But she still had questions to ask, to dig her a bit further out from the sense of anxiety she still held, but pushed down for the moment to put on a brave face for the siblings. 'So, Apple Turnover...' Melissa began, before being hit with another pang of realization at how absurd this situation was, these beings, these ponies, it seemed at least from the three ponies she had met so far, didn't have names like hers, human names she was accustomed to saying. This was naming people after items... it must have been the same feeling Turnover had when he had his first taste of saying Melissa's very different human name.

The directed thought calling on Apple Turnover woke him from his unfocused state with a responding “hmm?”. Melissa decided to continue off of this response, somewhat confident that though Turnover was in a sorry state, he'd still do his best to talk to his new guest, or new host?

'Sorry Turnover... I just wanted to ask... where exactly are we?'

“You've wound up at Willow Springs farm... hmm, where might'en a Dragon have heard of before? You heard ah Mareyland? Baltimare?”

You gotta be kidding, Melissa internalized, she couldn't be sure that this wasn't just a different version of Earth, but if it was, even though this wasn't anything like the Maryland she had heard of, how did she end up somewhere 180 miles, give or take, from her home? If this was Earth, how could she be so sure?

Great, more questions spawning from the answering of a simple question. At least now she could locate herself in this reality. Willow Springs, what she presumed was Mareyland. She had recalled from her memory that when Turnover was boasting about the fame of the Apple family, that he had mentioned Equestria. Was this the country? The continent? The name of the world? The least that she knew was that she could greater locate herself to Equestria as well.

Silence fell again as the journey continued, before Lobo turned her head to look back towards her little brother “How ya doin' back there bro? Ya resting ah know, but ya also awful quiet.” Melissa waited on Turnover to dictate what she should say to his big sister, but the longer she waited, the more awkward the silence... maybe things weren't as okay as she expected from Turnover.

None-the-less, his sister awaited an answer, so Melissa stumbled out a “We're okay back here...” wait, she just accidentally said WE'RE okay? She watched Lobo closely, as she flicked the same ear as before, and turned her head back to focus on the trail ahead. 'Oh jeez, that was a close one... I got to be careful with what I say now'... although now she thought of it, how many more ponies will she be needing to mask speaking to as Apple Turnover? It'd be near enough impossible to speak to a whole family unit of Apples as a fake rendition of their little brother, their son, their grandson if they still had...their father if Turnover had somebody special in his life...and if he did, that would be another being she'd need to fake being Turnover as to, she'd have to fake being in love, fake being a male in this relationship! She needed to wake Apple Turnover from his stupor, and if she can, also get him to inform her of how many other family members she could expect to see when they arrived at their final destination. Without questioning if this line of enquiry was a good idea, she ploughed ahead.

'Turnover, I'm gonna need your help here. Speaking to your family, whoever is there when we finally arrive. I know right now you are hurting... um... if it helps, tonight we can share stories about our families, our friends? But right now, you need to tell me about who we're gonna see when we get back to your house, and who they are to you. If I'm gonna be you, it's best they not think you've gone crazy or got yourself amnesia or something! So please, come and help me.'

It was a short time after that Melissa heard a response back. “A'right, suppose if you're bein' strong for yourself... Ah should try an' be strong too. Apologies ma'am.” another short break happened, with Melissa worried that Turnover had already gone against his rally to himself to be strong, but those fears were quelled when Turnover continued. “You already met ma big sister, Lobo. You see the type'ah character she is by how she's helping an' all. She looks strong, an' has a stubborn head to boot, but there's a very gentle heart under there. She raises the dogs in the Apple family, an' beyond too!”

As Turnover continued regaling the different family members who lived at Willow Springs farm, Melissa settled in place to look out over the orchard as the rows of trees passed, little to take her attention away from the thoughts Turnover was relaying to her.

“There's our ma' Carnation, and our pa' Champlain Apple. Beautiful parents they are. Pa's a hard-working stallion, farm's his still, me an' Lobo help when we can. Ma's actually from a family of flower growers, a mighty name too, like the Apples are. Part of the farm is her's for growin' her flowers... We ain't allowed in there however. An' finally, there's Pappy Pippin, grand-pappy on pa's side, retired as all though now. An' that's us all living together, well 'part from Lobo's pups.”

---

The lines of trees faded out soon after Turnover finished explaining the family dynamic of the farm, and gave way to a somewhat grand farmhouse, and to the side a set of barns and sheds. The farmhouse seemed to be a story of two buildings; where one was a square building, with exposed dusty-coloured bricks with little for ornamentation in the design apart from blue shutters on the upper windows, and a roof of what seemed to be hay? However, beside this square face of the building was a neatly painted white tower, rectangular in shape and jutting out further than the square farmhouse directly joining it to it's side. The front was decorated with thick, round, white pillars which stretched from ground to roof to hold it up, as well as a second floor balcony guarded by an ornate white fence.

Laying between the farmhouse and the largest of barns was a penned off area made of chicken-wire fence, where inside a scattering of pups that were running around the pen halted, and in quick succession gathered around the closest side of the fence and began barking for their care-giver's return. Turnover interjected here as Melissa took in the sights of the farm-stead. “That there is where Lobo raises her pups. And that white part of the house is ma's new bedroom. Ma's been trying to get Lobo to move her pups elsewhere. Ma'...” Turnover halted there, deciding not to air the family's drama to his new guest, despite Melissa sensing a turn of frustration entering his tone. “Our bedroom... is up on the second floor in the other side of the house”

“A'right lazy-flank, time ta get out and lets get cha to bed. Ah'd reckon pa' 'as gone out to fetch a doc, just in case.” Lobo stated after the cart stopped it's roll in front of the grand farmhouse, and began uncoupling from the cart's harness. Attention was then spun towards the front door of the house, as a new voice chimed in.

“Ahh! My baby! Are you okay? Wild Beets came over all a-flutter saying you got injured!?” Standing there was a white female pony, a slim, tall, and graceful figure, a vast contrast to Madam Beets who was standing behind her. This white pony was Turnover's mother Carnation, who sported a lengthy mane that was a mix of Lobo's pastel red coat, with Turnover's two stripes of silver running down her mane. But the stripes of silver in her mane weren't the only similarities with the body of Turnover. Turnover's figure seemed to be more similar to his mother's body, in being tall and slim, than Lobo's was. Melissa considered the possibility without seeing their father, that Lobo's body shape would to be discovered to be more like her father. On this white mare's flank her cutie mark consisted of three red blooming flowers, Melissa presumed them to be carnations, judging from what she had gleamed about cutie marks from Turnover, though she had only heard of carnations and never seen them.

As if to confirm Melissa's suspicions, Turnover announced in her head “Yup, that's ma', that's Carnation... Hmm, just say...”

“Hey ma', Ah'll be okay, just need some rest... I reckon... OH... ahh... thanks for goin' to get help Madam Beets.”

To this, Madam Beets approached closer to the doorway, but still not passing in front of Carnation, and responded with a simple “Oh it wasn't an issue deary!”

“Well, I'm just glad you're back home safe darling. Get yourself rested, and we can talk about what injured you when you're better, m'kay? 'Cause I swear, if it was one of those weather-mares again...” Carnation trailed off at the end of that thought in her own grumbling complaint, but she had ordered her son rest, or what she knew as her son at least; for Melissa she'd need to ask Lobo to help her get to the room Melissa and Turnover would in a way have to share as much as their shared mind-space.

But without even needing to ask, Lobo was at the rear flap of the cart, awaiting Melissa's response. The movement Melissa did to once again get into a standing position was again wobbly, but she managed to stumble forward to catch Lobo's stubby existence of a hoof that Melissa was still getting use to seeing, and complete with a clumsy fumble down from the cart, Turnover's body was standing upright in front of the doorway to the house. Carnation and Madam Beets had retreated further into the house to allow Turnover and his guide in Lobo through and up the stairs beyond them in the hallway. As they passed Carnation and Madam Beets, Melissa was able to quickly catch the mother talking with Madam Beets. “I really cannot thank you enough Wild. It looks like my darling Turnover will be okay, but we'll see what the doctor says...”

Melissa did not stick around for more of the conversation however, ushered down the hallway and up the stairs, not allowed the opportunity to slow and look around the house on her journey through, where they ended up at a bedroom at the furthest end of the house from Carnation's comparative mansion of a bedroom. The lack of any statement from Apple Turnover was enough to confirm that this bedroom was indeed his. Lobo left her brother past the threshold to the room, and turned tail to return downstairs to their mother.

“Pardon, Melissa?” Turnover called once they were alone in the bedroom. “With pa' goin' to fetch a doc for us. Ah think it'd be best we keep this whole... two of us in ma noggin, from him.”

'I'm inclined to agree with you Turnover, somehow I don't think this is your average illness that a doctor can fix' Melissa continued in conversation as wobbly steps were taken towards the bed in the room.

“Yah right on that one ma'am. Reckon we may need a mighty strong magic user” Turnover reasoned. Okay, another question to internalize in trying to understand this new universe, Melissa just put the fact that magic existed in this world with the ever-growing pile of things she needed more understanding of here. But Turnover was correct that they had to prepare for whatever this coming doctor would have to examine, so as Melissa climbed onto the bed, whose mattress sunk under the pressure of their legs, making an uncomfortable attempt to lay on their belly like she saw Lobo doing when they first met; the two creatures who shared this same body's mind-space got to planning.

Author's Note:

Chapter 2 has arrived, huzzah! I'm glad for the otherwise positive response from the first chapter. I just want to say a thank you for everybody who read the last chapter and has returned to read this new chapter.

Comments

[Aiwhisper]

Short but sweet.

[AvoidingFever17]

Aww

[GreenLion]

Like it:3