Doing the Dirty Work [Open!]

[appletastic]

How did Applejack stand working so hard around the farm? Her secret was simple: combining work and play. She'd brought the same styl to Hydroponics, where she'd sectioned off a small patch of the ground to be a place for some of the animals to play. The grass was dug up and seeds were planted elsewhere, water was poured, and Applejack herself was pounding her legs into the dirt. Making mud! Her bright orange coat was now coated in brown, and the longer she worked, the further she sank.

But this wasn't very fun. Back home, she'd done---yeah, that was what was missing! She hopped out of her little mud pit, tracked dirt across the grass, and set off at a fast trot. "Yee-haw!"

If anypony happened to be hanging about, they'd be splattered when the large pony came crashing down, rolling in her little pit of dirt. Her hat sat some distance to the side, miraculously untouched by the splattering of mud. Surely most would know to stay away from such a display.

Comments

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

Atom peered down at the little grubmole, curious. "Wow, I've never seen anything like 'em before. So they're your friends?"

[appletastic]

"Well they're gonna be livin' here, so might as well make 'em comfortable," Applejack explained, looking fondly at them. "Can't let anypony get too hot. It's all sticky up here on this ship. I don't like it much."

Yes, the mudpit was partially for her too.

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"Yeah," said Atom, frowning a little. "I guess I'm lucky I don't really feel it much. Hey, maybe you can come to my house sometime! It's got trees and stuff, so it's not as hot. Maybe you could bring some of these guys, too."

[appletastic]

"You've got trees at your house?" Applejack's interest was rising. "Where'd you find a little place like that, anyway? I've been looking all over."

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

Atom smiled. "Yeah, a couple. It's my house from back home. Um, on Earth, I mean. I found it while I was wandering around the City, and it looks almost like it did before I left."

[appletastic]

"Your whole house?" Now that was interesting. "How'd it get here? Must be a nice place."

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"It is," said Atom, grinning. "I don't know how it got here, though. Probably the same way that Grand Central did. Maybe the ship just lifts up a bunch of places and puts them down in the City. There's all kinds of buildings there."

[appletastic]

"Must be tough to move a whole building." But Stacy had done it anyway, that was weird. "Well alright! We'll be over to play sometime. It'll be another pet playdate."

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"Maybe. But this ship has a bunch of buildings, so maybe not." Atom smiled. "Okay! It's a deal. Say, are your trees around here?"

[appletastic]

"Just the one, and these little sprouts." Applejack started leading the way to her trees, motioning for Atom to follow her. "Morgan used his magic on one of my seeds. That's why that little guy's growing so fast. I'm gonna try the apples when they grow, and if they're good we can use magic on the other trees. I don't like it, but we haven't got years and years to sit around growing trees."

Her old orchard had been there for generations. Familiar and sweet. This new business wasn't quite right.

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"Yeah, that's too bad. It's not quite the same when you grow them with magic." Or that was Atom's opinion, anyway. He patted a little tree sprout with one hand.

"You couldn't find any bigger trees to start with?"

[appletastic]

"There's a few, but I'm keeping 'em safe for now. Can't go picking all the apples right away." She crouched down next to her little sprouts, nudging one with her nose.

"But that's all right. They're just fine as they are. Ain't that right, Bloombell?"

Yes, she was addressing the tree.

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"You name all your trees?" Wow, that had to be a lot of work if Applejack was used to taking care of an orchard.

"That's pretty neat. How long do you think it's going to be before you can pick some apples?"

[appletastic]

"Just the ones that are special to me. These little ones are all special to me, they'll be the first apple trees we've got!"

She tapped her hoof on the ground. "Oh, I'd say...maybe a few weeks for the first magic ones, give or take. It's a bit hard to tell up here."

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"Oh yeah? Well, I hope they grow up big and strong. Uran says plants grow better when you talk to them and give them names."

He frowned a little. "Time does seem to be a little weird here, doesn't it? It interferes with my chronometer..."

[appletastic]

"They sure do!" Applejack fully believed it too. "Y'all heard him, now you grow up nice and strong, 'kay?"

When the plants were addressed, she looked back up at Atom. "What's a chronometer?"

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"Well, uh..." Atom scratched his head. "I guess it's sort of like a clock. It tells me what time it is and when I should be waking up. But it's been acting all screwy ever since I got here."

[appletastic]

"Like you don't know which way's up or down," Applejack sighed. She was all too familiar with that feeling. "I tried watching the sun and moon in the city, but it's not right either. Felt like it was going too fast."

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

Atom nodded. "Pretty much. I mean, I guess it's okay; it's not like it changes to night every five minutes or anything, but... I sure would like it if everything worked right."

Then he seemed to put that concern aside; no point dwelling on what he couldn't change. For now, anyway. "So, where are you from, anyway? Earth?"

[appletastic]

"Equestria! Great place for a pony to live," she reminisced. "We had big cities and small towns. I'm from the little town of Ponyville, living on the farm on the outskirts of town."

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"Oh yeah? Uh, is Equestria a planet? Or a country? Is everyone there a pony?"

[appletastic]

"Country, I think," she tried her best to remember. "It's a big place. And we're not all ponies! We've got zebras, lions, turtles, dogs, cats...just none of you human folk."

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

Atom laughed. "I'm not a human! I'm a robot! I kind of get what you mean, though. But lions? You're not scared of them?"

[appletastic]

"Right, o'course," she remembered, shaking her head. "Easy to forget. But maybe I'm a little scared---just don't tell anypony! Nothing we can't handle, though."

Nope. Applejack was just fine.

[tetsuwan-atom.livejournal.com]

"Maybe if my sister ever shows up here, you can ask her how she does it," Atom suggested. "Lions really like her. She rescued a couple one time, back on Earth."

And Uran wasn't scared at all, but that was Uran.