The Giving Mare
I ain't used to Sun in my eyes being the thing to wake me up. Pretty much every day on the farm is a work day, and our days begin even before Princess Twilight Sparkle lifts that giant flashlight up into the Heavens.
Unfortunately, it takes longer for my addled noodle to remember I'm taking the day off than it does for Kicks and Bucky to panic and send me flying out of bed like a pegasus in a catapult. The dresser at the side of my room says howdy to my ribs, and the sound of furniture smashing against the wall makes for quite a ruckus.
Little Mac starts crying, what with his crib being on the other side of the wall. I wince—not from the pain but from waking the little guy up. He rarely gets tuckered out and it ain't easy to calm him down. Just like his Daddy, in other words.
"AJ? You alright?" comes that particular Daddy's voice from downstairs as he heads up to check on the small one. I'm kinda surprised he's not in the garden or the orchard by now... no, wait. I remember they're doing preserves today, hence the day off.
I stand and stretch, rearing up on two and running my hooves along the ol' bod. I still got a nice, smooth pelt, even with all these miles on it. Ribs don't hurt enough to be broke, but my tail's missing. There's not even a bump back there, just a smooth cleft. Ain't no surprise, though. I worked the dang thing clean off yesterday.
You see, these days pretty much everything I do takes way more effort than it should. There's a limited amount of spunk I can toss around, and when I overdo it, I end up paying for it on the following day. At present, medicine and magic can't do a thing to help. Fortunately it's easy enough to hide, so only my closest friends have to know the truth. Plus, between teaching and bucking and helping out with the foal, there just aren't enough hours in the day. (I asked Twilight if she could make them a little longer, but she just said she'd think about it.)
As for the farm, Sugar Belle picks up a lot of the slack, and whenever Rainbow's home from her station she pitches in like nopony's business. The farmwork, I mean—rarely the household chores, but that's Dash for you. Apple output is still down with Granny gone, rest her soul, and with my body betraying me. It'll be several seasons before Little Mac is able to buck a tree for effect, other than the effect of looking downright adorable. Until then, we just have to make do.
Somehow all that goes through my head quick enough that I can respond before my brother gets nervous. "I'm fine, just dumb," I shout back loud enough to echo through the door, and then I stand myself down onto all four hooves.
"Well I already knew that," Mac joshes loudly from the hallway as he walks by my room on the way to comfort his son. I know he's just teasing, but getting hitched really put a mouth on him... for the better, I reckon.
I stretch my sore back, and then I start working on the braids in my mane. Might as well take extra care there, since I don't have the tail. While I'm braiding, I get a nagging feeling in my haunches that it's gonna be another one of those days. You know, the kind that takes a lot out of you. I don't mind, though. I'm fixing to visit all my close friends today—except Twi of course, bless her royal heart—and friends are always worth the trouble.
I don't have to shower because I do that before bed these days to save time, so I eat a quick and hearty breakfast and giddy-up. Fluttershy's sanctuary is way on the yonder side of Ponyville, so she'll be my first stop. I can take a load off at her place if I need to, then bump into the rest of my friends as I make my way back home.
The walk is nice, though being out and about without a tail feels mighty strange. As I walk through the market, plenty of ponies stop and wave, but I'm sure none of them notice it. Most ponies aren't super perceptive, especially when it comes to yours truly. Plus, I keep a magic shield up at all times to obscure the details, almost like a bubble I can hide inside. That's a talent I learned way back when I lost Ma and Pa. It doesn't make good sense to let folks worry for no reason.
Shy's not usually at her sanctuary this early in the day, so I stop by her cottage first. To my surprise, she opens the door before I even get a chance to knock.
"Applejack! It's so nice to see you," says Fluttershy, charming and coy as ever. Everypony with working eyes and ears can tell what Discord sees in her, even if some of us'll never understand quite what she sees in him. She looks a little weary at the moment, though.
"Hay there, Shy. I had a little time off so I wanted to visit my friends," I tell her. "At least to say howdy, if you're too busy to chat."
"Oh, you know me, always doing something," she says. Although Shy spends a ton of time tending to her critters, I tend to think of her as the least busy of my friends (now that Pinkie's a momma, anyway). I'm sure there's a lot more to what she does than meets the eye, though. I just smile and nod to be polite.
She continues, "You can come in, if you like, but I can't leave the cottage for now. I'm a little preoccupied with Cherub—the poor girl has the snuffles! That's serious in bunnies, but she has medicine so she should be okay. Keeping her isolated from the rest of my animal friends is really taking a toll on her wellbeing, though." Fluttershy sighs, and the tiredness in her voice is enough to stop a stampede. "Discord is away on business right now. I could really use a break, or anything that might help comfort her..."
Cherub's one of Angel's kin, of course, and she's Fluttershy's favorite. That little ball of fluff is Angel's great-great-granddoe, with maybe another two or three 'greats' in there. I see my friend's eyes fall onto my back, figuratively speaking that is. I have a pretty good idea what's coming next, but with Shy being Shy, I'm gonna have to be the one to advocate for her.
"I'd love to help out," I volunteer, taking my hat off my head and holding it against my chest for a reverent moment before returning it back where it belongs.
She shakes her head. "Oh, I can't. I'd be taking too much of y—"
"Think nothing of it. It's my free time, and my body, and I want to spend some of it helping you," I tell her. Yeah, the interruption is a touch rude, but sometimes you gotta put your hoof down, and the smile on my muzzle is genuine because what I said is a hundred percent true. Helping out friends really is the best way to spend your time. Besides, this one in particular taught me just what kindness is all about. I'd like to think I was a good student, so she isn't getting rid of me without a piece of Applejack.
"Well... I could really use another warm blanket for her, but..." she says, and that sweet voice of hers trails off into silence.
"Take whatever you like," I insist, standing to the side. I pull my braided ponytail over one shoulder to get it out of the way (the one in my mane, I mean—I don't have the other kind today).
Fluttershy strokes the withers of my back with a hoof, then pushes into the flesh with her hooftip and gently pulls up a large rectangle of pelt, inch by inch. She tears it off carefully at the end, and looks at it approvingly. "Oh, this will be just perfect. Thank you so much, Applejack."
I smile and nod. "My pleasure to help out a friend in need," I say, then I glance up at the Sun as it sharply rises by a good forty degrees or so. Time sure flies when you spend it with friends, doesn't it?
Folding up the pelt, Fluttershy places it onto her back and trots back inside. "I'll see you tomorrow evening with the others," she says, then shuts the door so she can go back to being a nurse for an ornery varmint.
As for me, I turn myself around and head toward the Carousel Boutique, since Rarity's visiting from Canterlot this weekend. It's just a hop, skip, and a jump, but there's some flies buzzing around me on the way there and it's enough to drive me batty. I don't have a tail to swing at 'em, so it's a challenge to keep 'em from landing on the exposed muscles of my back. My best solution is to swing my head from side to side now and again so my mane does the work instead. Not a bad idea if I do say so, but I probably look a bit silly, especially since anypony watching me won't be able to see why I'm doing it.
When I get to the Boutique, I notice the 'Open' sign so I head on in. The bell above the door tinkles.
"I'll be right there," says Rarity, in a voice that suggests it's asking a lot from her. I trot over to the back room so she won't have to meet me out front. I suppose there might be a privacy issue, but Rares and me know each other pretty well and poking my nose into her business never seems to upset her. At the moment, she's studying a passel of fabric rolls that all look like the color pink, far as I can tell. She moves from roll to roll, comparing them like there's a difference.
"Hope you don't mind if I meet you halfway?" I say, stopping at the entrance to the back area.
Rarity turns her head and looks over to me, then her pretty face lights up like a warm Winter fireplace. "Applejack! Oh, you are precisely the pony I wanted to see," she coos, trotting over to where I stand.
I notice she's missing an eyeball. The lid is sunken in, despite being carefully painted a soft blue. "Looks like you've been pushing yourself a little too hard there, young miss," I say. The 'young' elicits a blush—never fails.
"Misses, though I prefer Miz," she corrects me. "How are things in Ponyville, dear?" She studies my body with a narrowed eye.
"Well, we stay busy, and the nephew's a hoofful, but you know me, I can't complain," I say, nervously flexing my back. "Spike good?"
She stops studying me and smiles. I don't think she saw through my bubble, but she gets so close sometimes I have to wonder. Rarity and I have one thing in common, and boy howdy do we ever: hard, honest work in which we both take a deep and abiding pride. Despite all our differences, that one thing is enough for a heaping dose of kinship. We almost had more, but... the connection never quite formed. Now we're both happily married, just not to each other. Maybe in another life, though, as Twilight likes to say.
"He's marvelous, as always. I'm the envy of Canterlot, you know," she brags. I wish her self-esteem were a little higher than that, but Rares is a too much of a perfectionist, especially when it comes to her image. She still doesn't look a day over thirty-five, if you can believe it. "I do wish I had an update on Twilight, but she's been terribly busy lately."
"That's our Twilight, alright. Just like the rest of us, only worse," I say, shaking my head.
"Well, I hear she's been planning some time off, so that should be lovely. Perhaps if you're lucky, she'll stop by Ponyville soon. She misses being here every bit as much as I do," she says. "Right now, I'm the only one ponying the store; Yona and Sandbar are taking the day off. I was thinking of inviting them to Pinkie's soiree tomorrow evening. Do you suppose anypony would mind?"
"Course not, but I'll let Pinkie know when I bump into her later today," I say. "Right now I'm here to spend some of my time with you, if you're not too busy for it."
"That would be such a treat! I am dreadfully busy, but perhaps we could spend a little time doing something productive?" she asks. "As I already mentioned, you're just the pony I was hoping to see. I need another critical eye for an important dress I'm designing, and your opinion is always an honest one."
"You sure about that, hon? I'm always open to help, but you know I can't see the same stuff you can," I say.
"I'm certain of it! Although... you know I wouldn't dream of asking you if it's too much trouble. Given, you know, your condition," she says, as she smiles in vain to mask the small dose of pity I can hear in her voice. It's something I can pick up on after knowing her for so many years. "I suppose I could take a short break instead, and we could simply chat for a while. I'm really under the clock on this one, though, so it can't be for very long. Any juicy gossip might need to wait until tomorrow." I can tell she's stressed, what with the missing eye. Few ponies can hide their feelings as well as me.
"Why, it's no trouble at all. Besides, what kind of pal would I be if I didn't offer my most generous friend an orchard-sized dose of her own medicine?" I say with a smile. "Go on and take your pick, I only need one to steer by."
"Splendid! I am most grateful," says Rarity, and she plucks out my left eye with her telekinetic magic. She lifts her sunken lid and pops it into the empty socket. A few blinks to get them straight, and she's right as a Summer's rain. My emerald iris doesn't match up with her other eye or her mane, but she looks almost good as new.
I try to adjust my saggy eyelid so it doesn't look too creepy, even though it isn't like anypony's gonna notice. Then I rear up and give Rarity a big hug. "See you at the party," I say, and head for the door.
Stepping outside, I see the Sun suddenly swing way up to the top of the Heavens. "High noon already? I'd better mosey," I say to myself. My next stop is Sugarcube Corner.
I pass through the market again, and unfortunately I bump into at least three ponies along the way—partly because it's crowded, and partly because my depth perception isn't so hot right now. But my legs still work fine, so I get where I'm headed in no time at all.
Right as I'm walking up the steps to Sugarcube Corner, I hear somepony shout, "Incoming!" My ears quickly pinpoint the sound: it's right over my hat, so I brace for impact. Pinkie Pie lands right on the saddle area of my back and bowls me over into a tumbling hug.
"Whoa, now!" I say, finally coming to a stop with a crazy mare parked on top of me. By some miracle I don't feel roughed up, even with her landing on my exposed muscles, but Pinkie has a knack for getting away with stuff that would spell bad news for almost anypony else. Apparently that applies to her friends as well.
"It's so good to see you, AJ!" she says, standing up and helping me to my hooves. Then she gives me a big hug, as though the tackle wasn't enough. Her boundless energy makes me a mite envious, to be perfectly frank. But despite it all, her antics get a big laugh out of me. You can't just help it when you're around her.
"Thanks Pinkie. The feeling is mutual, though I should point out we're both getting on in years," I say, "especially me." I ain't too sure it applies in her case, though. She might be nearing the Autumn years, but Pinkie's still a looker. Cheese Sandwich is one lucky buckaroo.
She grimaces. "Oh no! I keep forgetting that," she says, and then the smile comes back home to roost. "But, you're coming to the party tomorrow, right?"
"Wild stallions couldn't keep me away, sugarlump," I tell her. "Anyhow, the reason I'm stopping by is because I got the day off. I wanted to spend some quality time with each of my friends."
"Aww! That's so sweet. Wait, Twilight's in town already?" she asks, eyes wide.
I shake my head sadly. "Neigh. I meant except for her, naturally. But... what do you mean by already in town?"
Pinkie rears up and covers her mouth with both hooves. "Eep! Well, I guess the cat's out of the bag, but in this case the cat isn't an actual cat with claws and fur and a cute little button nose. It's the fact that Princess Twilight Sparkle will be coming to the party tomorrow! Don't tell anypony else, though, because it's a surprise."
"Well, I'll be," I say, and warmth floods my innards all nice and cozy-like. Even though we all get to see Twi one evening a month, it ain't enough to cure the hankering. "Did she say anything about, um, any of us?"
"Yes! She wants to spend some time with you and Dashie at the farm tomorrow. I know you've been hoping for that, so hurray!" she says.
I grin like a fox in a henhouse, which is a country expression I make a particular point to avoid using around Fluttershy. "Now that's wonderful news. How's the family doing?"
Pinkie's smile fades a little. "Great, but Li'l Cheese is having an awful time with preschool. Even with the medication he takes, he can't sit still, not even for a minute! The other foals tease him about it, which is kind of a bad omen considering how young they are. We've been tempted to take him out of school, but that only kicks the candy apple further down the road, you know?" she says, and sighs. "But it always helps him to talk about it, even if it's just with his parents."
"Well, I know for a fact his 'Auntie AJ' loves listening to him jabber on, even if I can't always follow what he's saying. I'm pretty sure the little fella knows bigger words than I do," I say, only half-joking. Li'l Cheese isn't even four yet, but he's sharp as the horns on an angry bull. "You think that sounds like a nice way for you and me to spend some time together?"
"That would be awesome! It'll be wonderful having another pair of ears," says Pinkie. "May I?"
"It'd be my pleasure," I say, because it very much would. Pinkie reaches up, pulls off my ears, and places them on her head. As she does, the sun quickly dips lower in the sky. Now she has two sets, and I'm sure as sugar that isn't the weirdest thing she's done today.
"Thanks so much for stopping by and helping out with family," she says, though without my ears on my head the only way I know which direction the sound is coming from is by watching her mouth.
"You bet. Ain't nothing more important than family," I say. "Well, maybe friendship, but good kin gives you all that and more."
"You said it, cuz," she says. "We'll have so much fun at the party tomorrow, too!"
I give my friend yet another hug. You can't have too many of those, especially if your name is Pinkie Pie. "Oh, and that reminds me. Rares wanted to know if she could invite Sandy and Yona to the party. I figured it was fine, but I told her I'd pass the message along."
"I was already planning to, silly!" she tells me. Always two steps ahead, that one.
My mission accomplished, I bow politely and take off toward the School of Friendship. As I'm trotting away she calls out, "Enjoy the rest of your allegorical day!" I chuckle, turn, and wave to her. Of course I ain't got an applebucking clue what she meant by that, but what matters is the spirit of the thing, and that comes through loud and clear even if I ain't got the ears to swivel no more.
I slow down to a walk once I get out of range because I'll need to save some earth pony mojo for the return trip. When I visit Starlight Glimmer it usually takes the best of me. She's a hard worker and a lot of fun to be with, but I repeat myself.
I arrive at the School and walk through the big double-doors. I only teach on Fridays anymore, and today there aren't any classes at all, so the hush feels funny. Still, I'll bet bits to biscuits she's in here playing catch-up on her workload. Like all my horn-headed friends, Starlight's obsessed with perfection. She still lives her life to make up for lost time, and I worry about her a little because compared to the rest of us she's got a dozen or so extra years under her saddle. But even if she hasn't mellowed out yet, her wife has, which is good news because I can actually stomach being in the same room with her now. Matter of fact, sometimes I even enjoy Trixie's company. After all, she can't be a bad apple if she makes Starlight a happy mare.
As I walk into the foyer, Starlight's voice calls out my name. "Applejack, hay there! What are you up to?"
I can't rightly tell where the sound is coming from, so I turn to my left, then just keep on turning in a big circle until I see her. Starlight looks smart as ever, in both senses, though I can tell she's more frazzled than normal (which is plenty of frazzle). She's walking toward me with what looks like an entire library of books floating around her.
"Not too much, for once. Came by to spend a little time with you, if you're up for it," I say, though I already suspect she's at the end of her lasso.
Starlight groans and sets down all the books into a stack twice the height of my brother. "I would love to, AJ. I just can't spare more than a minute or two to chat, unfortunately. I'm bogged down with way too much work. I have to do it or I'll miss the party tomorrow," she says.
"Well, we can't have that," I say. "Now, is this by any chance the kind of work that four pairs of hooves can make light of better than two?"
She shrugs. "Well, Trixie overdid it and needs to rest, and Sunburst is away on official business until morning," she says. "The work isn't complicated, at least, but there's quite a lot I need to finish."
I clear my throat noisy-like. "Begging your pardon, Star, but you do have another friend you can count on, and she happens to be standing right in front of your horn," I announce, with the tallest posture I can muster to compensate for the missing ears (not that she can tell, of course). "Unless we're talking unicorn stuff or smart stuff I ain't got the chops for."
"Oh, don't be ridiculous. You're very intelligent, and you have the best horse sense of anypony I know. No, it's just manual labor, but it's too much to ask," she said.
"Manual labor? Why, that's my specialty, you silly horse," I say.
"No way, AJ. I'm not going to let you hurt yourself again," she says, but her voice isn't firm enough. This is one of those social-type games, I can tell. She wants to be reassured, and I'm happy to oblige.
"Now, listen here, hon. I may not be getting any younger, but I am a workhorse and I do have a reputation to maintain. I'm quite sure I got enough apple juice left in my veins to help you out for a few hours," I tell her, friendly but firm. "This way, we get to have ourselves some nice one-on-one, and you get to drop some of that load off your saddle at the same time. It's a win-win, as Diamond likes to say."
Starlight smiles with a shimmer in her eyes, and I can tell right away my offer means the world to her. I doubt she'll come out and say it, but that's just good sense. There's no point in making things awkward.
"Thank you," she says. "You are the best friend in the world." Okay, I guess I can handle a little bit of awkward.
"Not counting Twi, of course," I say, with a wink of the one eye I still got.
"Of course," she says, with a bright little laugh. "So, um... I assume you want to be home by Sunset. I want to make sure you have enough time to make it back to Sweet Apple Acres."
"Yep, looking forward to an evening with the Missus," I say. "Don't worry, I can spare one of them and still make it home okay. Bucky, or Kicks?"
She walks around my flank to take a gander at my best assets, and because I ain't that kind of mare, I mean my hind legs. "I'm not sure how to decide. Also, I don't remember which one is which," she says. "Kind of embarrassing, really."
"Bucky McGillicuddy is the one on the left. Go on and take him," I say.
She waits a moment, then pulls my hind leg clean off with her magic. She levitates it in front of her face, staring at it wide-eyed like it's more magical than all the spells and doo-dads she uses every day. "Phenomenal. You have more athletic hind legs than almost anycreature in town, and I'm including the young earth stallions when I say that."
"Heh, well thank you kindly," I say, fighting a blush of my own. I steady my stance carefully, since I don't want her to worry none. "It's always a pleasure, Headmare Starlight." I pronounce her title with just enough sass to let her know the airs are a playful joke. She's a lot like me that way, it turns out: we're both just ponies at the end of the day, and that's how we like it.
"Absolutely. Thank you so much! I'll see you tomorrow night," she says, and returns to her work.
I wait for her to walk off a bit before I test my gait. Being without a foreleg would be more annoying overall, but a lot easier to walk on. On the other hoof, pun not intended, losing a hind leg takes some real patience. Bucky was on my left, so if I lead with my right foreleg and make careful use of Kicks McGee, I should be able to walk at a quarter pace.
I step out into the light in time to see the Sun drop close to the horizon. Starlight was true to her word: I have just enough time to limp back to Sweet Apple Acres while it's still light. If I see ponies I know along the way, I can play it off like I'm taking a real leisurely stroll and nopony'll be the wiser.
The long walk isn't so bad, even though it's a struggle. The great thing about not having a choice in something is it makes it that much easier to do what you gotta. You just hunker down, bite the bit, and go through the motions. Besides, it gives me some personal time to collect my thoughts and take a nice trip down Memory Lane.
After a lot of thinking—nothing too deep, of course—I spot home, sweet home at the crest of the hill. Looks like Apple Bloom put fresh flowers on the homestead arch, which is nice.
As I'm passing through the archway, I see a motion blur come shooting out of the barn like the thing was on fire. Rainbow Dash is flying low to the ground at a lightning clip to head me off at the pass. She screeches to a stop inches from my face like a world-class hockey player, and slams her hooves down on the path. We hug each other real tight, and all the aches and pains in the world disappear for a moment. It's a little tough to balance just on Kicks, but I do it anyhow.
To tell you the truth, Dash didn't used to flax to public affection like cuddles and hugs. But when we got hitched I told her she's an Apple now, and it's an Apple Family thing so she just has to deal. That let her off what I like to call the 'cool hook' so she can feel good about herself and still do something fun. Most folks think Dash is a simple pony, but there's a lot more beneath the surface. That's also an Apple thing, come to think.
We break the hug. There's no passionate kiss or anything, of course. That'll come later tonight.
"Shucks, Dash. You beat me home," I complain.
"So did AB," she says, rubbing it in. As always, Dash looks right through my bubble and sees everything, but she holds back on being blunt. "How did things go today, AJ?" she asks. She's trying to hide the concern, but it ain't working, because I can see right through her bubble, too.
Since I can't hide it anymore, it's time to face the music. I'm standing in front of my wife with all sorts of pieces missing because I gave a little too much again. I suppose most folks would think with all I've been through I might be in a heap of trouble now, because what do I have left for the mare who means the most? Sure, I'd give her everything I got without a second thought, and yes that even means my hat, but there's still limits to life you can't control no matter how hard you try. There's only so much Applejack to go around. However, as luck would have it, I don't need to worry about that. Dash isn't the kind who needs to take, because that's what it means to be a pardner for life.
So I fess up. "You got me. I'm plum exhausted," I admit. "I spent the day with each of our friends in turn, and maybe things got a little out of hoof."
"You did too much again," she says, looking carefully over my body, and then she does something truly special. Rainbow Dash reaches backwards with her hoof and digs into her own withers, pulling up on the pelt. Except in her case, the pelt doesn't come off. It copies itself, just like magic. When she's done, her back is still whole, and now she's holding a sheet of pelt perfectly sized to fit my missing piece.
"Nah, I did just enough," I counter, as she fixes me up so my withers are now a sky blue color.
"We've gone over this, AJ. You need to hold some back for yourself," she says, popping her eye out without actually losing it in the process. She lifts my lid, pushes it in, and I'm back in stereo. Sporting different colored eyes might sound goofy, but I think it's flattering. Dash has the prettiest eyes in all of Equestria, and ain't nopony can tell me different.
I shrug and smile. "You know we're both too stubborn to make headway with this here line of chatter."
She rolls those beautiful eyes of hers and pulls off copies of her ears. "Yeah, yeah. It better have been worth it." She places them on my head and I give them a wiggle, just to check.
"It was worth every little bit, Dash. I got to comfort a sick bunny with Fluttershy, show Rarity what she already knew was true, talk to Pinkie's little one about his day, and help Starlight sort and move about a bazillion books. I'll tell you all about it tonight," I say, as she yanks off a copy of her hind leg. "You know how special our friends are."
"You're special too, pardner," she says, as she attaches my new leg in place. "Don't ever forget that."
"Nnnope. I'm gonna keep on forgetting, and you're just gonna have to keep on reminding me." That gets her to smile, which earns me a point. We both keep score, of course.
I flex my new leg. It might not be as strong as Bucky, but I'm happy with it. Dash isn't done yet, though. She pulls off a copy of that Heavenly tail of hers and slaps it right on my keyster. I'm complete again, although a big part of me is her, now. Just perfect, in other words.
We walk to the nearest apple tree and collapse in a heap together. Maybe we'll nap here until the supper chime wakes us. We don't need words anymore, and holding each other in silence is fine with us both. As we lie on the soft grass in peace, Rainbow Dash rests her head on my chest. It looks like she's listening to my heart, but that's just silly. There ain't nothing ticking in there.
I gave that one to her ages ago, and I ain't never asking for it back.