AJ & I
by michellezen
Chapters
Day 1: How I met Applejack
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...I woke up to the damp feeling and smell of soil and grass. I had no idea how I got here or when it happened but I was lying in a small field with some apple trees nearby. The clouds were rolling by in the cyan-blue sky as the sun shined on me. There was a cool breeze in the air and some chirping could be heard nearby.
Then an apple hit me on the head.
"Oh gosh, are ya awright?"
I turned my head and saw an orange pony. Wearing a cowboy hat.
"Lemme see that... aw shucks, it's startin' ta swell like an apple! C'mon, you're comin' with me. I'm gonna get that swellin' down."
With that, it helped me up and started to guide me through the forest of apple trees. I was still a bit groggy from waking up to a completely unfamiliar place, and from being bumped on the head, but I eventually took notice of the fact that I was walking side by side with a talking pony, which was wearing a cowboy hat. The image just made my head spin. I thought to myself; shouldn't its owner be wearing that hat?
The pony by my side was smaller than me. Its head was somewhere around my stomach while its body was a little short of a metre from head to tail. Its yellow mane flowed and curled towards the ends with its tail following the same style. It also had green eyes and somehow had freckles on its cheeks despite the fact that it had a coat which should've made it impossible. It seemed sentient from the way it spoke ear-
"So, what's yer name?"
"uh, who- what? Me?" I stuttered as it broke my concentration.
"Of course you! Then wh'else?"
"Oh, I... uh... don't know." My... name?
"Ya don't know yer own name? Heaven's ta Betsy, that apple must've hit ya real hard. Don't worry, I'll fix ya up when we get ta my place. By the way, mah name's Applejack. Ya don't look like you're from around these parts."
"Yeah, I don't think I am."
We walked for 15 mins or so before reaching a big pink farmhouse. We went inside and it sat me down in a cushioned chair that was a little too small for me.
"Now you just wait here while I go get some ice."
As it turned to walk into the kitchen, I noticed that it had a brand on its behind that ressembled 3 apples. It was a rather strange image to pick for a brand in my opinion. I took the time to observe the interior design of house. It had a very classic wild west look, it reminded me of the design of the saloons from those old cowboy movies but the vibrant colour scheme reminded me of a children's nursery. If that already wasn't strange enough, there was the fact that I had no idea what a cowboy movie was or what a children's nursery looked like. The words just popped into my head for some reason.
The living room had a very warm, welcoming feeling to it, as if the fireplace had been lit except that it wasn't. As I sat down there, I wondered if it was really worth bothering this... sentient pony for my injury. It wasn't as if it was life-threatening or anything like that. Just then, the front door opened.
"Applejack? Where are you? You ran off to get that apple then you disappeared!"
The little yellow... white... sulphur-coloured pony then turned its head towards me.
"Wh-who are ya? What are ya? N' waddaya doin' in our home???" It took a defensive stance in my direction as an intimidated look was painted on its face.
"Felacks, Ap-peboom, he'sh wich me." The orange pony then walked over to me and placed the icepack in its mouth onto my forehead. Wait, doesn't that mean I have pony saliva on my forehead? Ew.
"Wha' happened? Why'ju bring him here?"
"The apple I threw hit him on the head n' bruised him. I think he even lost his memory. It's only right that I take care 'a him till he gets better."
"But you don't know if he's bad or good!"
"Well, I walked him over here, just him and me, and he didn' even touch me. He can't be that bad, are ya sir?"
"Uh, I guess so. Listen, the bump is not that serious, you don't have to go through the trouble."
"Alright, but do you have a place that you can go to from here?"
...home? Do I have a home?
"I... guess I do need some help seeing the fact that I don't know this place at all that that my memory's completely blank."
"I guess that's settled, you're stayin' with us."
"Thanks a lot. Hey, um, I'm a little lost right now, but I assure you I don't mean any harm. It just isn't to my advantage right now anyway because I need some help figuring out my situation. The last thing I want is to make enemies in a foreign place."
The smaller sulphur-coloured pony looked at me speculatingly.
"Awwwright... I suppose if mah big sis' says you're okay, you should be okay."
"Thank you very much, I appreciate that. Gimme awhile, I'll show you that I'm harmless. Um... Applejack, right? Seems that I don't have a choice but to stay here, so instead of me lazing around, why don't I help you out around the place while I'm here? This is a farm, right? There must be tonnes of stuff to be done."
"Well, actually, we're doin' pretty good, but an extra hand never hurts. We grow n' sell apples here. We plant, garden, pluck, sort, n' sell 'em. Aaan' cook some of 'em. You up for the job?"
"Sure, I can learn if necessary. Um, is there a place that I can stay?"
"We got'a guestroom upstairs that you can use, it's empty right now."
"Ah, okay. So, what is this place anyway?"
"This town's called Ponyville! And this farmhouse includin' the apple trees you saw are called Sweet Apple Acres. It's managed by me n' mah family. This here's Applebloom, mah lil' sis'. And there's Big Macintosh n' Granny Smith."
"Okay... um, I'm assuming that the both of you are girls?"
"'Course we are! What? Ya can't tell a boy from a girl?"
"No, it's just that... I'm not used to seeing your species."
"Wow, you must come from a real far away place there partner. We rarely hear a' places without ponies."
"I'll keep that in mind. So... What's the work for today?"
"Hey, don't sweat it, you can start tomorrow. Today, you rest and relax. I'll give you a tour 'round the place and show you your bedroom first."
"If you don't mind, could I please rest in my room for a moment? At least till the headache goes away."
"Sure! Lemme bring you up."
And so we walked up the staircase and into the hallway where we arrived at a green door. Behind the door was a simple room with an interior design that sported green walls, a window with white sills and a brown parquet floor. The room had a tidied bed, a small bedside table and a wooden wardrobe that sat opposite to the bed. Again, the homeliness from the living room downstairs could be felt in here as well.
"Here ya go! This is where you'll be stayin' for now."
"Wow, nice. For a guestroom, you guys keep it really tidy."
"Well, no one really uses it and we do tidy it up once in a while, so it's hard to get it dirty."
"Hmm, true. You don't mind I take a rest for a moment?"
"No problem, I'll give ya some quiet time. Let me know when that headache of yours goes away."
She turned walked out of the room, using her tail to close the door behind her. I stood there for a moment, realising that it was the first time being alone since waking up. Is this all a dream? Are they real? Where did I come from? I opened the wardrobe and looked at myself in the mirror placed on the inside of the wardrobe door. Why do I look different from the rest? Do I really belong here? Regardless, there would be time to think about all this later. I untucked the blanket and slipped into the soft inviting cotton sheets where I quickly fell asleep...
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Day 4 & 5: Meeting the Cast
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...The first thing I saw were the birds on the branches outside the window. Now that I remember what an alarm clock is, I can appreciate waking up to the chirping of birds.
It's been 3 days since I woke up in Ponyville. I was slowly recovering fragments of my lost memory, like what an alarm clock is or what slippers are were creeping back into my mind. The things I was recalling were mostly generic objects pertaining to whatever daily life I used to have prior to my arrival in Ponyville but nothing as of yet regarding my identity, home or family.
The orange pony I met named Applejack brought me to meet her 5 other friends, Twilight sparkle, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. I was generally welcomed, although Fluttershy was at first as her name implied, shy, but she eventually came to like me as well. Each of them offered to show me a different part of Ponyville.
Twilight brought me to the library, a huge hollowed out tree that was a little bigger than the surrounding buildings. It housed a fantastic collection of encyclopedias on equestrian history and culture, storybooks, poems, cookbooks and much more. Assisting Twilight sparkle was a baby purple dragon named Spike, the only other being I've seen so far that stands on 2 legs. I was happy to find this place as reading the books may remind me of something from my lost memory and might even bring them back. At the same time, studying the encyclopedias here will help to better accustom me to the local culture during my time over here.
Afterwards, Rarity showed me her boutique where she introduced to me the vibrant array of dresses she had for various events and occasions. I also made a deal with her to have my clothes made here as there seemed to be nowhere else that I could get clothes for myself from. I've been wearing the same clothes ever since I woke up and it was getting very uncomfortable to continue doing so. She was very happy to accept the job because my unusual body shape gave her an opportunity to test out unorthodox designs that normally did not fit ponies.
Next was Pinkie Pie's turn as she literally dragged me to Sugarcube Corner and threw me an instant welcome party. The party came as a staggering surprise to me as my arrival in Ponyville was on very short notice and this pink nuclear reactor managed to gather almost everyone in town to the party. I soon understood where she got the energy from as I quickly learned that Sugarcube Corner was her home and tasted the sickeningly sweet pastries she stuffed into my mouth. Did they switch the flour and sugar by mistake?
Following that was a trip to Cloudsdale accompanied by Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash offered me a chance to ride on her back to get there and I gladly accepted. As if Ponyville wasn't fantastical enough, Cloudsdale proved to blow my imagination to pieces as the entire place was made completely out of clouds. The clouds, which I recalled to be made out of water vapour, seemed to behave like pillows when the ponies stepped on it. However, soon after attempting to get off Rainbow Dash's back to step onto Cloudsdale, I realised why there were only Pegasi over here. seems that the Pegasi are the only ones who can physically interact with the clouds. Even though it was a disappointment that I did not have a chance to live in the clouds, it was nevertheless amazing to see Cloudsdale.
My tour of Ponyville took up my entire day, so Applejack allowed me to rest yet another day before I got started on work on the farm. As I laid down in bed, I started to wonder about where I was going to go. I had no true home to go back to, no family of my own and no memories of my true identity to depend on. The only things I had right now were this town, the ponies I've met... and Applejack. I really have to thank Applejack. If it wasn't for her, I don't know how it would've turned out. The entire town may have turned its back on me, leaving me to fend for myself. The only thing I can do now is to work hard on the farm,so that I don't drag her down. I rested my head on the pillow, pulled the sheets over myself, closed my eyes and allowed my fatigue to take over me...
...I was expecting the sound of birds chirping or the warmth of sunlight in my room, but instead, I felt a nudging on my shoulder and the veil of the night at my window when I opened my eyes. When I turned over to see who it was, a pair of green eyes back at me with a smile.
"C'mon partner, it's time ta start the day."
It was about five o'clock at that time. I got out of bed and Applejack went downstairs first. She waited in the living room as I changed into the first set of clothes Rarity made for me and went down to meet her. We walked out to the field where Big Macintosh and Applebloom were waiting and we started with planting seeds. Due to the fact that I was closer in physique to Big Macintosh than the girls, I was tasked with ploughing the land with Big Mac while the girls sowed the seeds.
Big Mac was an interesting character. His size coupled with his lack of words gave him the surface personality of a boulder, someone who had a lot of strength and could even scare a few strangers upon first sight. However, underneath the quietness laid a soft heart, someone who had a fierce love for his family and all things innocent. It is probably this love that seems to give him that strength.
It went on for about a strenuous two and a half hours but it felt really good as I exerted and exercised my body. It was my first workout here in Ponyville and it was enjoyable as the air smelt so clean.
Next was apple harvesting. We split into 2 groups to cover the fields of apple trees, Big Mac and Applebloom, and Applejack and I. The harvesting gave Applejack and I an opportunity to know each other better.
"So, how d'you like it here in Ponyville so far?"
"It's great, the ponies are nice, the greenery is a pleasure to look at and there's always seems to be something new going on everyday to keep life interesting around here."
"Good ta hear. Since yer stuck here, wouldn't want ya to be miserable durin' your stay."
"Actually regarding that, I might not be staying here... I might be living here."
"Whadaya mean?"
"Looking at the rate at which my memories are coming back to me and the pattern of the things I've been remembering, I may never recall who I was, who my family are or where my home is. For all we know, I might be staying here for good."
"Well... do ya like stayin' here?"
"Yes, I do, and to be honest, I have you to thank for. If you hadn't found me that day and introduced me to the town, I might have become an outcast. I don't think I could've made it. All the friends I've made and the life I've had so far, I owe you for that,"
"Aw shucks, it's nothin'. I was just helping out someone in need. Listen, if you need a place ta live, you're more than welcome to keep on stayin' with us. That room's as good as yours. Those funny-lookin' hooves of yours have a lot of use and could come in handy around the farm. We could use someone like you in the long run, you'll be a great help in Sweet Apple Acres."
"Again, you're being so kind to me. Thank you Applejack, assuming that my memory really isn't coming back, I'll gladly take you up on that offer."
"It's a deal partner, welcome to the Apple family."
The words kept running through my mind as I rested my head on my pillow. Things have happened so fast. Now, I'm going of be part of this family I've only just met and it's just been less than a week since coming here.
Applejack... if I work hard and help them raise a bit more money, maybe I can treat her to a meal to show her my appreciation. I wonder where I will take her...
...Ah was glad that he was willin' to join us. He would be a real help 'round the farm. He's nice, dependable and gets da job done. Heh, ah almost don't want him tah go home! Hmmm... ah wonder if there's any cider left fer us tah celebrate his comin'...