About a month before the Season 4 finale, Applejack challenges Discord to a day of doing physical work around the farm. It goes about as well as you'd expect.
About a month before the Season 4 finale, Applejack challenges Discord to a day of doing physical work around the farm. It goes about as well as you'd expect.
This whole thing started as a silly little RP me and my good chum Castoro Chiaro started one day, which slowly grew into a rather massive story. She wrote all of Discord's parts, and I took control of Applejack. I hope you all like it!
"I'll git yer sorry behind to do some manual labor if'n it kills me." Applejack was sitting on her rump, looking up at the Spirit of Chaos, who had decided to drop in rather unexpectedly as she was working and start lazing around. She swore, he was worse than that Rainbow Dash when it came to getting in her way.
"Is that a threat or a promise, my dear?" His voice nearly drips with smugness, and it made the orange mare even more irritated. One of these days she was gonna buck him into next week.
"Well, 'darlin'', that depends on if'n you actually git to workin' or not."
"You and I have drastically different ideas of what work means. Manual labor?" He waves his paw at her. "Pshhh, no way, no how! But if you think my usual day is passed in indolence, clearly you have never been an all-powerful deity with the ability to manipulate reality on a whim before." He casually tugs an apple from under her hat and munches on it as he talks, bits of apple flying out of his mouth. "You might consider it at some point. It could give you some perspective."
"This might come as a surprise to ya, but that opportunity's never come remotely close ta me. Where I come from, we're raised ta work hard. Makes the reward that much sweeter." She moves next to one of the apple trees before she leans forward on her forelegs, striking the trunk with her powerful hind legs. A single apple falls, and she catches it in her hoof before biting into it. "Quite literally, if'n I do say so myself. Y'all should try it some time." She gives him a smug grin. "Might give ya some perspective."
The draconequus hovers in the air before her, chin perched atop his paw wild he looks over his own apple speculatively, considering her words. "Who's to say I haven't? I've lived a very, very long time. Sometimes I get fancies, you know. Ideas. Bored little notions. Of all the breeds of all the lands, you earth ponies have always been a source of fascination to me. Always working so hard and so tirelessly...to what end, I wonder?"
Applejack takes another bite of her apple. "Well, I jus' told ya part of it. A hard day's work makes the reward a lot better. There's a level of satisfaction from workin' your rump off and then gettin' rewarded for it, 'stead of just snapping yer fingers and havin' it immediately."
Discord cups the apple in his hands, holding it rather like a mug of coffee as he surveys her with a sagely gaze. He even takes a sip of it, the apple shriveling slightly as he drains its juices. "Hm. So what you're saying is, you work hard for so long because it's the WORK you place value in, rather than the pay off?"
She shakes her head. "It ain't jus' that. I place value in bein' able to look out at the orchard at the end of the day and know that I did it all with my own hooves." She looks at said orchard, smiling a little to herself. "All hoof grown, the entire dang thing. 'M proud of pushing myself to keep this place runnin' like a well oiled machine, as hard as it gets. 'M proud of the work I do in a day, as hard as it is, and as easy as it'd be ta just magic it all up." She turns back to face him. "Ain't the way my parents did it, so that ain't the way I'd want it done."
He just grins down at her, carelessly tossing his now-drained apple over his shoulder, where it crawls away once hitting the ground.. "See, Applejack, THAT'S what I'm talking about. It's just so novel to me, that amongst all this magic and flying and such, there's still some room left in the world for ditch diggers and plow pushers to mull about."
He leans over her, poking her in the forehead. "Never changing. Always doing the same thing, day in and day out. Simple, boring, plain ponies. Yep. That's really something special. I'd even call it a rarity. Or I would, except she's got magic, doesn't she? And just how MANY dresses does she make in one day? Maybe if she did things your way, she'd stop to appreciate each and every one more. Might cut productivity in half, but you know, slow and steady and all that."
Applejack looks up at the finger poking her forehead. Her eyes narrow slightly, but she doesn't bother to tell him to move it. "Ain't just us earth ponies that do the same thing, day in, day out. Everypony does. It's a part 'a life. Responsibilities and hobbies and jobs and what have ya."
"Oh, I'm talking bigger than that. Much MUCH bigger. Did you know that even when I was running the show, it was your types that were the ones managing all this...menial labor type stuff? Not many opportunities on the social ladder for the humble earthfolk, seems. I just wonder why that is. With magic developing with each generation and these new-fangled weather factories sailing about in the sky, I just can't help wondering how much longer all of...this." He gestures to all of Sweet Apple Acres. "Will be necessary."
She gives him a little shrug. "As long as the way we make it is better 'n the way magic and modern gizmos can. Them Flim-Flam Brothers tried to use fancy machinery to do the job us Apples do every day with our own hooves, and they were dang near ran out of town because of how their's jus' couldn't compare." She grins up at him, a proud little grin. "Ain't nothin' sweeter than home-grown, hoof-squeezed Sweet Apple Acres cider, and I reckon there won't be until after I'm long gone."
She watches as his grin fades, becoming an annoyed, somewhat petulant frown when he realizes he can't seem to ruffle her confidence. "Do you really think so, Applejack?"
She can't help but flash a smug smirk. it wasn't often she was able to get at him like this. "I most certainly do, my dear Discord."
He looks down at her, fingers on his chin. "Hmm. How about a little wager, then?" At this, she's mighty tempted to say no, but her competitive side wins out. Plus, she's curious.
"Sure, I'm down fer it. What're we wagerin' on?"
"Why, the most important thing of all, naturally: pride. And you know, life as you know it and all that."
She slightly narrows her eyes at him. "..Alright. Shoot, then. What's yer bet?"
"Oh, it's simple really." His body wraps itself around her as he speaks. "I will prove to you that anypony else could do your valued work just as easily as you can. For one day, I will follow your usual schedule and keep pace with you, without use of my usual chaotic abilities."
At his words, Applejack just barely holds back a scoff. "You tryin' ta keep pace with me with no crazy magic nonsense? Now that's jus' something I gotta see! Alrighty." She spits in her hoof before holding it out to him, as if the spit will seal the deal. "You got yerself a bet, Discord."
His rather long tongue flicks up to dig into a nostril, then spits into his palm and shakes her hoof, his usual smug grin splitting across his face as he chuckles to himself. "I most certainly do."
She grins right back at him, entirely certain she's got this in the bag. "Ya can stop on by tomorrow mornin', 'fore the rooster even gets ta crow. Then we can get ta workin'. Sound good?"
"Very well. But before I go." He claps his hands together, rubbing his palms. "We must discuss the matter of what's at stake. What are you willing to give up, in the event of my victory, hm?"
She holds back a snort. "That's assumin' you have a better chance 'n a snowball in a bonfire. But I s'pose I'll give up..." She pauses, trying to think of something. While entirely sure she'd win with little to no problem, she didn't want to wager anything of extreme importance. "Um...well, what'd you give up, if'n I win?"
"Ohhh I don't know..." He reaches behind his back, pulling out a cardboard box full of useless junk. "I can't imagine there's anything in my collection a pony would want...lets seeeeee here..." He digs in, throwing out old tires, various animals, an old half-melted piece of candy that he throws into his mouth, a priceless vase that shatters against a tree when he tosses it, and other seemingly random things. Applejack watches him with a slightly raised eyebrow, itching at one of her forelegs.
Eventually, he seems to have emptied the contents of the box, and it bottoms out, depositing him to the ground. "OOF--! Well, that's a bit of a trick, isn't it? Seems we'll need to." He pauses to snigger at his own joke. "Think outside the box a bit on this one." He snaps his fingers, and the box is gone, replaced by a yoke around his neck. He extends a rope out to her, which she takes in her hoof. "If I somehow were to lose, I will grant you an hour of my time each and every day, that I will spend in a manner of your choosing. No tricks. No spells. I would follow your every whim, no matter how BORING those whims would undoubtedly be."
She looks down the rope before looking up at him. "An hour a day with you doin' whatever I want ya to?" She smirks a little. "Golly, Discord, I'd hafta be a fool to not like that sound of havin' the almighty Spirit of Chaos at my disposal."
"Seems only fair that, should I win, you will offer the same. That's fair, isn't it?"
She nods. "Yeah, I reckon that's fair."
"Splendid!" He snaps his fingers again, the yoke and rope disappearing as he grins down at her. "I'll see you in the morrow, my little pony." And with that, he vanishes in a white flash, leaving Applejack alone in the orchard.
Very early the following morning, after waking up at the break of dawn and eating a quick breakfast, Applejack is already out in the fields, specifically an empty one that they need to plant more apple trees in. She's currently fastening herself to one of the plows, rather focused on getting the old harness to close properly.
Suddenly, in typical Discordian fashion, the Spirit of Chaos shows up precisely when he wants to. Which is to say, rather late and at an inconvenient time. He appears on her plow, gripping the bindings and grinning to himself. "So, one tug means go and two means stop, right?"
As quiet as it was before he came, and as focused she was on getting herself set up, she really doesn't expect him to just suddenly BE there. She lets out a yelp and jumps, whirling to face him. "Consarnit, don't do that!" She lets out a huff, busying herself with hooking herself up to the plow, which she finally manages to do. "An' yer late."
"My dear little pony. Spirits are never late. Neither are they early. They arrive precisely when they mean to."
She rolls her eyes at his response. "Yeah, sure." She faces forward, about to move ahead when she pauses, glancing back at him. "Ahem. Wouldja mind gettin' off?"
"I don't know. Would I~?" He reclines lazily, folding his arms behind his head, closing his eyes as a smug grin appears on his face.
Applejack narrows her eyes. "Discord, this early in the day ain't the time for yer nonsense." She stamps a hoof into the dirt. "Git off or I'll buck you off."
Discord rolls his eyes, slithering off of the plow. "Fine, fine. It was awfully uncomfortable anyhow."
"Thank you kindly." She turns her head to look forward again, walking ahead. The plow pushes into the dirt behind her, and she hesitates before looking back at him. "Look, 'm sorry for snappin' at ya, Discord. I jus' didn't get much sleep last night, is all."
He blinks, the apology actually rather...unexpected. "That so? Head too full of visions of apples dancing in your head?"
"I wish that's all it was." She huffs again before she looks ahead again, keeping a nice, steady pace as she plows. "Ya probably don't care anyhow, so I won't bother ya with it."
He walks alongside her, plucking an apple from a tree as they pass it. "Try me. I'll have you know I'm an exceptional listener. Of course, that might have had something to do with the fact I was encased in stone for several thousand years..." He shrugs, downing the apple in a single bite.
Applejack looks up at him. She still hesitates, biting her lip before she speaks. "...Well, if'n you must know. I kept thinkin' 'bout my folks all night."
He quirks a brow. "What, they dropping by for a visit or something? I could dress up a bit nicer if you're worried about me embarrassing you in front of them." In a flash, he's in an incredibly stereotypical "cowboy" outfit, with his signature garish, unusual flair. "I'll have to work on the accent a bit, though." He clears his throat before he dives into a bad impression of her drawl. "Howdy, y'all! Mighty fine seein' you here in these parts. Git along, little pony! Yeehaw!" He grins, obviously pleased with his decidedly terrible interpretation of western culture. "How was that? Do be honest, now."
She stares at him, entirely unamused. "It could use a bit of work." They get to the end of the field, and she turns the plow around, walking back towards the other side. "An' no, that's not it. It'd be nothin' short of a miracle if they could show up."
"Then what's the fuss? Whatever they're up to, it's not your problem, right?"
As hilariously as he's missing what she's getting at, it's starting to grate on her already soured mood. Her lack of social grace makes itself known as her bluntness forces her to stop walking and blurt it out. "The fuss is that they're dead."
This actually gives the draconequus pause. He stops in his tracks, expression rather dumbfounded at her outburst. "...oh. Well. I can see why that would, ah, be an issue then."
The scowl that's crept onto her face slowly fades as she realized she snapped at him again. She lets out a frustrated sigh as she resumes her work, not waiting up for him to follow her again.
Discord, meanwhile, doesn't follow her right away. He's never had friends before. So death has never really been an issue he's had to worry about or talk about or even give much thought about at all. Ponies are born. They die. It happens so fast, he usually doesn't care much about it. How do friends talk about these things exactly? Do you...annoy them until they forget about how upset they are? Or do you try to...do the feelings thing? Like Fluttershy does with him when he expresses frustration in his letters?
Whatever. He's going with the first one because it's what he knows. He catches up to her, leaning over her so he can look her in the face. "So, would you say this is the highlight of your day? Feeling that work satisfaction yet? Or does that come later?"
Something in the back of her head is saying this is his attempt at actually trying to help her feel better, even though it was like he usually was. She looks up at him, pushing her hat back to wipe her brow with a fore hoof. Instead of ignoring him like usual, she feels bad enough about yelling at him that she decided to humor him. "Nah. That comes at the end of the day when all the work's done."
"Never was fond of delayed gratification. But, a deal's a deal." He folds his arms behind his back. "What else IS there to do around this dull little patch of dirt, anyhow? I'm bored."
Applejack stops walking. "You wanna do the plowin' instead? This whole bet WAS to see if you could do what I do in a day, after all."
"Hmm." He looks it over with a critical eye. "You sure this thing is up to regulations? It looks a bit. Well, it looks awful, to be entirely frank. When you said you did things the same way your ancestors did, I wasn't aware that included using the same ancient artifacts as well."
She actually allows herself to chuckle at his joking. "Well, bits have always been a might tight 'round here, so we haven't bothered ta get a newer one. Don't worry, it ain't gonna break an' kill ya or anything."
His hand goes to his chin, as if he's thinking. "How is it you manage to pal around with one of the most successful protegies in Equestrian history -- who happens to be a PRINCESS now, no less -- and you're still living in squalor? One would assume there would be some perks to such a situation. Some gains to be made, you know?"
"Well, I ain't one to accept handouts, even from friends. 'Sides." She pats the plow behind her. "This plow works jus' fine, ain't a need to replace it."
She looks up at him. His expression suggests he clearly isn't getting it, and he looks the plow over and privately decides after the no-magic rule is up, he'll be doing a bit of fixing up around this place. Because he's embarrassed to even LOOK at this thing, so naturally he feels it's his place to fix it. "Whatever. Let's just get to it, shall we?" He drops down to all fours so he can pull the plow, clearly not as comfortable on his forelimbs as the ponies are judging by his posture.
Applejack unhooks herself from it before moving over to him. She notices his odd posture, but doesn't say anything as she straps him into the harness. "Now, plowin' is simple enough of a task, ya just gotta have the endurance to finish it." She starts ahead, looking back as she talks. "We gotta plow this whole empty field here. Shouldn't take us more 'n a few hours, and that's if we take our good time with it."
Discord sputters. "HOURS??"
She almost laughs at his reaction. "Y'all see how big the field is, don't ya? If you dilly dally, it'll take a while." She grins, clearly enjoying this a little. "So come on, Discord, let's see if'n you got it in ya."
His brow furrows, and he huffs, steeling himself to pull. The weight of the plow surprises him, and he damn near falls face flat in his first efforts to pull it. When he finally DOES start to move, it's pretty obvious this is a lot harder than he was expecting it to be. He's going pretty slowly. Applejack doesn't say a word about his pace and just walks along with him for a while, making sure he won't hurt himself from the new chore.
When they get back to the other side, she trots over to some saddlebags lying on the ground, putting them on her back. "Now while you're doin' all the manual labor, I'll be followin' behind ya, puttin' seeds in where ya plowed." She starts from where she originally started, tossing seeds into the ground before covering them up with dirt again. "An' yes, if'n you get tuckered out, we can switch places, no harm, no foul."
He growls. "Well--of course you--say that /now/--you--stand to win--a considerable--sum of my--time--if I fold--" Quietly, he wills the plow to be a bit lighter. He figures that's still within the rules; after all, it's not his usual brand of chaos. And that was all he promised not to do. It's a basic spell at best, subtle enough that he hopes she doesn't notice. His pace picks up a bit, and he seems to have an easier time of it. "See? Already getting my second wind."
"No, I say that because I don't want you gettin' yerself hurt. Even when Big Mac and I do this, we switch so we don't strain ourselves." She keeps tossing seeds down, and she notices he's suddenly going a bit faster, and doesn't look like he wants to die. "Hmm." She trails after him, keeping a nice pace as she keeps at her task.
Meanwhile, he's confident she doesn't notice the spell and picks up his pace, willing the plow even lighter. The problem is, as it becomes lighter, it actually starts to lift up from the ground a slight. But he's too busy showing off to notice. As Applejack glances up at him to see how he's doing, she stops in her tracks as she sees the plow lifting into the air. She opens her mouth to yell at him, but instead, she lets it be, silently hoping that maybe the plow will take off and lift him into the sky. That would learn 'im. Probably.
"I don't see why you make such a big fuss about this. It's hardly a challenge at all. Why, I could probably do this in my sleEEP --" And lift off he does, the plow floating up into the air and yanking him up with it. He briefly forgets he's a very talented magic user and flails ineffectually in the reigns in a vain attempt to pull free. The plow floats on. Like a beautiful metallic rusty balloon of death.
All the self control she's used so far to keep from laughing at him doesn't work here. She absolutely loses it, falling over onto her back as her loud laughter cuts through the quiet morning air. In a hurry to salvage the scraps of his pride, Discord wills the plow back to its normal weight. It crashes to the ground, dragging him down with it. He lays in a heap, little winged apples literally flying around his head.
Applejack's forehooves hold her stomach, and her lungs hurt from how hard she was laughing at the ridiculous display. However, when she hears him land with a crash, she gets back to her hooves and gallops over to the heap that is the Spirit of Chaos. "Hey, are ya alright there, sugarcube?"
He answers her rather dizzily, his eyes spinning around cartoonishly. "I assure you, ladies, I'm absolutely peachy..." He shakes his head hard, gaze coming back into focus. He sits up, rubbing his head and pulling a broken piece of the plow from his back. "...can't say the same about your old plow though."
She looks back at said plow, confirming what he said: the plow was a wreck, and there was no way they could fix it to be any kind of useful. She sighs, rubbing at her eyes with a hoof. "Yep, ya sure can't."
He produces a handkerchief, dabbing at his eyes and sniffling dramatically. "Alas, the poor thing. Taken well after its time. Its noble sacrifice shall not be forgotten." He blows his nose before snaps the handkerchief out of existence. "WELP. I suppose that means that's it for plowing, eh?"
"Yer powers of observation are frightenin'." She trots away from him before stopping and looking back. "C'mon, I got a few morre things we gotta do."
He follows after, giving the plow one last spiteful kick before he catches up to her. "Will THOSE take hours too?"
"Again, depends on if you dilly dally with 'em." She looks at the barn as they walk along. "We gotta fix the roof on the barn, and we could work on repaintin' it but that ain't needed. Besides that, there's always apple buckin' ta do."
"Oh yes, we mustn't forget about that." He scratches his chin thoughtfully, muttering to himself. "I wonder if breaking something else will cut down on work time..."
"ALSO." She whirls around to face him, jabbing his chest with a hoof. "If'n ya break anything else, or use any of yer magic powers ta cheat again, I'm callin' it a win fer me right there. Got it?"
The draconequus holds his hands up peacibly. "Alright, alright. No need to go into conniptions, my dear."
She nods. "Good. Glad we're both on the same page." She turns and trots towards the orchard. "We'll go with buckin' apples. Nothin' much you can break if we're doin' that."
He glances down at his itty bitty legs. "Not so sure on that one."
Discord gives a loud sigh, clearly not pleased with the direction this competition has taken, because it looks like he'll lose at this rate. Applejack glances back at him as she stops under an apple tree. "Don't fret none. If'n buckin' isn't your thing, you can jus' pick 'em right off the tree. It'll be slower, but easier."
He sighs, crossing his arms. "How much slower?"
"Oh, it won't be that much slower." She smirks back at him. "We'll be done in no time."
He briefly muses on the idea of making Applejack lighter so she floats away. It wouldn't involve breaking anything, so it might be within the rules. But instead, he merely huffs, folding his arms. "Time, time, time. Does everything you do take forever?"
"If ya don't stop yer whining, it might." She trots up to one of the trees, which already has baskets under it, her brother having set them up already. "'Sides, all this manual labor might help you git some muscle on them bones of yers." She lifts her hind legs, striking the tree with a loud thud. All the apples fall from thee branches, landing in the baskets.
"And ruin my perfectly sleek physique? It would be an absolute crime. I've already got all the muscle I need right here." He taps the side of his head.
She looks at him and raises an eyebrow. "Uh-huh. Is that why ya almost floated off ta Cloudsdale with my plow a few minutes ago? Because the muscle in your noggin thought cheatin' would work so well?"
He grins. "I'm not pulling that awful scrap of metal you call a plow anymore, am I?"
"Heh, I guess that's a fair point." Applejack walks over to the next tree, bucking it like she did the first one. While most of the apples fall, some are left on the branches. she nods up to them, silently telling him to get them. "Maybe I'll make ya fix it when I win this silly bet."
Discord follows the hint, reaching up into the tree to pull them down. "My, my, such presumption. It'll be a pity to make a liar out of you. Again." He tosses the apples into the basket with a smirk.
"Dang, that was a low blow, even for you." She smiles a bit as she moves to the next tree, repeating her bucking and leaving a few more for him again.
"I really must be reformed. That was hardly the lowest I could manage, on a good day." He picks the apples, though he's not really as careful about it as he should be. He's in a bit of a hurry to get this done.
"Oh yeah, yer such a Colt Scout now." She notices him in a bit of a rush, but doesn't say anything as she continues to buck the apple trees. She's got a nice pace going.
"Believe me, Applejack. You've not seen me at peek form. Compared to that? I'm practically a goody two-hooves." He tosses a few more apples down to her.
"Well, I guess you ain't wrong." She catches them, putting them in the baskets. "I mean, up until pretty recently, you were jus' a big stone bird perch. I didn't even think I'd ever be talkin' to ya in the first place."
"Oh ha, ha. I'll have you know Sombra's little boot camp up North was /nothing/ compared to--" He probably should have been paying attention, because when he carelessly tugs the next apple free, the branch snaps. He realizes his mistake and tries to just kind of. Put the branch back. At the snap, she turns around and looks up at him.
"...You just broke the branch right off."
"I think you must be working too hard. Heat exhaustion, awful thing. Really messes up the mind. Because clearly the branch is just fine." He sticks it in with a bundle of branches so it stays put.
She puts a hoof up to her head, looking as if she suddenly has a headache. it's a wonder where that could've come from. "Uh-huh. That must be it."
The draconequus pats the tree. "Mmyep. That's precisely what it is. Say! Why don't you go inside and lie down, and let me take care of the rest of your chores? Clearly I'm doing just fine with apple picking. Shouldn't be too much work."
Applejack goes to the next tree, bucking all the apples out of it with one whack. She barely wants to leave even apples for him to pick now, lest he rips the whole damn tree out of the ground or some other ridiculousness. "No, I'm sure it'll go away in a spell, don't you worry yer pretty little head."
He shrugs. "Suit yourself." He trots over to the next tree and starts to pick more apples by hand, occasionally taking a bite of one and tossing them into the basket. Applejack moves past him to buck the next tree in the row, the apples tumbling down into the baskets.
They make their way down the row, actually making good progress, and nothing starts to float away this time. "Y'know, Discord, I'm actually a might surprised you're stickin' with it fer this long."
He scoffs in mock offense. "You wound me! Such lack of confidence."
"Couldja really blame me for it? You ain't exactly been the most reliable..." She waves her hoof around as she tries to find the word. "Er. Whatever ya are."
"Draconequus. Spirit of chaos. The most handsome face in Equestria. Really, there's plenty to choose from."
"Right, right, how silly of me ta forget all them." She sits on her rump under the next tree, taking her hat off to fan herself off a bit. The heat's picked up, and her bucking all day hasn't cooled her down any. Discord slips over and winds around the tree she sits under, conjuring a large, garish feather fan and fanning her with it.
"My, my. You're working far too hard."
Applejack puts her hat back on, looking up at him. She really doesn't want to admit that she could use a break, so she waves a hoof at him. "Don't be silly, 'm fit as a fiddle."
He quirks a brow. "Really now? Very well then, hop to it! No time to waste."
The farmhorse huffs a little, not really at him, more like to try to push aside how sore she is. "Right, 'm up, let's git to it." She moves to the next tree, bucking the trunk. Around 2/3 of the apples fall into the baskets, and she has to buck it again to get the rest.
Discord grins, seeing an opportunity to win the bet at hand. He pops over to the next tree, curling up in the branches and picking an apple. He wills the apples to stick to the branches, so they'll be harder to knock down. "Come now, Applejack, pick up the pace a bit!"
She nods, moving to the next one and bucking it. Barely any of the apples fall this time, and she holds back a curse as she bucks it again, getting about a third to fall. "Consarnit!" With a growl, she puts everything she has into her next kick, and she manages to overdo it. The entire tree shakes hard enough that almost threatens to uproot itself, and all the apples besides a handful fall into the baskets. Her hind legs burn fiercely, but with her frustration making adrenaline course through her, it barely registers.
Meanwhile, the corners of Discord's mouth twitch up in a rather smug smirk, slipping from the tree and heading to the next one, pulling the same trick. He's got this one in the bag.
Applejack moves to the next tree, her expression one of intense anger, and she intends to keep bucking until she literally can't anymore. She lashes her hind legs out at the trunk, a few apples tumbling down. "This blasted-" Her frustration gets a tight hold on her, and she kicks furiously in a tired flurry. One of the strikes doesn't land how it's supposed to, and pain shoots through her hind leg. She yelps and falls to the ground.
In a flash, the draconequus is at her side, putting on a concerned face. "Oh dear! Whatever is the matter, Applejack?"
She tries to stand up, clenching her teeth as her hind leg protests her attempts. "Hurt my stupid hoof tryin' ta buck."
"Oh, how dreadful! You really mustn't strain yourself so much."
"I don't understand why those apples wouldn't fall." Although, now that she's thinking about it, years of experience with applebucking tells her that apples should've NEVER been that hard to buck. She looks up at Discord in suspicion. "Ya wouldn't have any kind of an inklin' of an answer, would ya?"
He shrugs. "Haven't the foggiest clue. Apples are your expertise, not mine."
"Yeah, an' in my experience, apples have never been that hard ta buck, even when I was a young 'un." She tries to fiercely turn her body to face him, but her limp takes some of the fierceness away. Luckily, the look she has on her face is still plenty fierce. "Ya couldn't have just gone fer the rest of the day without tryin' ta pull something, could ya? Now look! I won't be able to work for at least a few days now! We could be backed up fer the next month from this!"
"Wha--?? You think this was MY fault?" He feigns innocence, sounding hurt. "Why, Applejack, here I thought we'd built up some kind of repoire!" He folds his arms, turning his head as if greatly offended.
Applejack growls at him before she speaks. "Discord, I know apples like the back of my hoof, my flank even says so! I know this was at least partly yer fault." She stops standing, sitting down on her rump again, some of her fury leaving her. "Consarnit, I was even startin' ta have a good time just workin' and shootin' the breeze with ya out here. I usually have ta do all this alone." However, not all of said fury is gone. "But then ya had to go and focus on tryin' to win that blasted bet, an' get me hurt in the process! Don't you even feel the least bit guilty about it?" Soon after asking that outloud, she almost snorts at her own question. "Silly me, I forgot, ya only care about YERSELF!"
"You act as if that's a bad thing. Everypony is out for number one, no matter how nicely they dress it up in things like "friendship" or what have you. At least I have the decency to be forward about it. You know. Hypothetically speaking, in the off-chance this is my fault."
The orange mare is about to yell at him more, but his words give her a bit of pause. "...Do you really think that's how things work?"
"I don't think so, my dear. I know so. I've been around for a very, very long time. I've seen what ponies are like when their back is against the wall. When it comes right down to it, all that really matters is looking out for yourself. You're all you've got, when it comes down to it."
Most of the anger has left Applejack's face at this point. "Discord, I know for a fact that the ponies I know would drop dang near everything ta help a friend in need. Heck, I've been on both ends of it before." She glances down at her hurt leg, wincing as she shifts it into a more comfortable position. "You've been around a while, sure, but things have changed in the last few thousand years."
For once, he actually looks rather serious. "Not as much as you'd think." And just like that, the moment is done, and he's got that old familiar smile on his face. "Speaking of our little bargain. Where precisely DOES this put us, hm?"
The farmhorse blinks at that serious look on his face, and is about to question is until he asks about the bet. "Ya mean the bet that left my plow in shambles and me basically out of buckin' fer a week? The bet that I should've never made with ya in the first place?"
"That's the one! I'd say this one's looking like a win for me."
She actually just snorts at his words. "Suagrcube, I reckon this day is a tie at the most."
"I told you I'd be able to keep pace with you, and I have."
She gives him a look. "Yeah, by usin' magic ta gain the upper hand or downright sabotage somethin' or other. Pretty sure there was an agreement ta not do that."
He simply shrugs. "Not my fault you decided to change the rules after the bet was made. That's more cheating than anything else in my book."
"I did no such thing." She leans back against the tree they're under, folding her forehooves across her chest. This, combined with the irritated look she has on her face, makes her look like she's pouting.
The Spirit of Chaos winds about the tree she leans against and gets right up in her face, nose inches away from hers. "Ohh, don't be so glum, chum. Today wasn't a total loss."
She looks at him, curiosity and confusion obvious in her expression. "And why is that?"
"Well, for starters, I have come to determine you are NOT completely and totally boring. So congratulations on that. And of course, you got to spend quality one-on-one time with yours truly." He grins, his paw moving up to his chest. "Time spent with me is never time wasted."
Applejack stares at him before she snorts a bit, lightly pushing his face away. "Yeah, I guess ya ain't so bad yerself, even though yer a dirty cheater."
"Oh, Applejack, you're making me blush!" He turns entirely red, adopting a bashful expression, eliciting an eye roll from her, even as she grins.
"Yeah, yeah, ain't I jus' a big dang romantic or whatever." He slowly tries to get back up, but her hind leg buckles from the pain, and she winces as she sits back down. "Hey, couldja help me git to the farmhouse?"
"I would be delighted to!" He picks her up bridal-style and, in the interest of being contrary as usual, starts at a rather casual walk back to the farmhouse. She definitely didn't expect to be carried back like this, and she just huffs and crosses her forelegs again as they walk along through the orchard.
"So then." He looks down at her. "What WILL you do with yourself while that leg of yours heals, hmm?"
"Probably sit around the whole time. Read, maybe. Somethin' like that." She sighs. "So excited fer it, if'n ya can't already tell."
"I had a hunch. It doesn't have to be all bad, you know. Perhaps it could give you a bit of perspective. Can't spend all your time working." He grins. "You should spend time with me, instead! We could have some real fun."
The orange apple mare shifts a bit in his hold, trying not to think about how close she's being held to him. "I ain't sure yer kind of fun is the same as mine."
"Of course not. Because my fun is actually fun. It will take some adjustment, dear Applejack, but you shall come to embrace my ways."
She mulls it over in her head before she answers. As much as the thought of hanging out with Discord didn't exactly tickle her fancy, lazing around and reading was even worse. "Ya know what, sure, why not?"
"Now, there's no need to--wait." He blinks. "...you mean it?"
"Yeah, sure." She shrugs in his arms. "It's either that or sittin' around on my rump the whole time."
"You have made an excellent choice! Oh we'll have the grandest time. Perhaps I might even show you my place. You'll like my thinking tree. Given you spend most of your time around trees."
She cocks her brow at him. "Ya have yer own thinkin' tree?"
"Of course I do." He answers as if the thought of not having one is ludicrous. "Where do you think I get all my most fiendishly clever ideas from? Certainly not any rock or cave would do. The elevation helps me think more clearly."
"Oh yeah, silly me." She shifts in his hold again. "Well shoot, why do we hafta wait 'til tomorrow? Let's go have some fun right now." To be honest, she just really, really doesn't want to be forced to sit around.
"The heat must have really gotten to you. Very well then." He stops walking at this point, looking down at her. "Tell me one place you've always wanted to go, but were never able because you're obsessed with work."
"Hmm..." She taps her chin with a hoof, thinking about it. Honestly, she never felt the desire to really go anywhere else, and she realizes now how boring that is. She struggles to think of an answer. "Shoot, I dunno. I guess jus' someplace far away from here, or far away from most places. Somewhere nice an' quiet where no pony needs me ta do anything."
"Done." He snaps, and they disappear in a white flash.
