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The Preservation of Innocence (Part 4)

By Wall-o-text
Created: 2022-12-24 13:05:09
Expiry: Never

  1. >a week has gone by since that night
  2. >applejack still makes you sleep in her bed to keep an eye on you
  3. >”ya know I like this anon”
  4. “Like what?”
  5. >she snickers
  6. >”bein’ able to keep a close eye on you”
  7. >”lets me keep you outta trouble”
  8. >as she says that she bumps her hoof against your leg
  9. “Haha, very funny AJ”
  10. >you say flatly
  11. >”but seriously ‘non, you worry me sick sometimes”
  12. >”plus i get to make sure you don’t sneak off into the night”
  13. “Oh come on, when have I ever done that?”
  14. >”not sure, but you could have since you used to be in that darn room of yours without supervision”
  15. >”who knows what kind of hijinks you were planning up in there”
  16. >technically she wasn’t wrong
  17. >you sure did a lot of planning up there
  18. >at least you used too
  19. >now that applejack keeps you on a tight leash
  20. >figuratively
  21. >you can’t do as much scheming as you used to
  22. >not that you would now anyways
  23. >you promised to yourself you would never worry her like that again
  24. >and you intend on keeping that promise
  25.  
  26. >with all your newfound spare time left over from what would have been coming up with another project you started to interact more with applejacks other friends
  27. >rainbow was pretty hyper but you enjoyed trying to race her even though she always wins
  28. >fluttershy could talk about plants and animals for hours, surprisingly you enjoyed learning all about it
  29. >you went to return the book you borrowed from twilight and told her some of your favorite parts
  30. >you can tell she already knew every word in that book but she was a very generous listener
  31. >she even congratulated you on your ‘first scholarly activity’ whatever that means
  32. >you hung out with pinkie for a bit
  33. >you asked her why she had a party cave and she went into all the details
  34. >turns out she had files for everyone in case she was going to throw a party for them
  35. >you asked to see your file and she magically pulled it out behind her without even going back to get it
  36. >she really scares you sometimes
  37. >aparently your number 1 favorite thing is apples
  38. >not necessarily wrong, the ones from sweet apple acres are incredible compared to even the best stuff from earth they’re almost addicting
  39. >a lot of other details include random things like the ideal party location and even the color scheme
  40. >the most interesting part was the fine print at the bottom
  41. >’Anonymous must always be within a 6-foot radius of Applejack at any given time'
  42. “Pinkie what’s with the fine print?”
  43. >”oh that? Yeah you get really antsy when you’re in big crowds and she isn’t within eyesight”
  44. >”the 6-foot radius is more of a guideline but you get the point”
  45. >she says this with complete confidence
  46. “Pinkie I'm not a 5-year-old, I don’t need applejack to always be so close”
  47. “How did you even come up with something like this?”
  48. >”uh duh, whenever ur further away from AJ ur antsy when you’re closer ur less antsy”
  49. “Pinkie, when was the last time you updated this list?”
  50. >”uh, I think a few months ago”
  51. >dear lord
  52. “Pinkie I came to Equestria a few months ago”
  53. >an idea popped into your head
  54. “What if I help you with this profile”
  55. >instantly she shakes her head
  56. >”nah”
  57. “What?”
  58. >”that’s what I said, nah”
  59. “but , why?”
  60. >”duh, you never really know what you want sometimes”
  61. >”observation is a far better indicator of how much someone likes something than just asking their opinion”
  62. >wow way to use fancy words pinkie
  63. >”besides I learned that the hard way”
  64. >to be fair being in arms reach of applejack isn’t necessarily a bad thing but to have it on profile feels a little weird
  65. >whatever you don’t really mind enough to even bother with it
  66. >after visiting them all you had one last stop
  67. “Rarity, you home?”
  68. >”yes dear but I’m RAVENOUSLY busy, I'm on mandate right now”
  69. >the fuck is mandate?
  70. “Rarity what do you mean?”
  71. >”look, darling, simply put by orders of Celestia herself I've got tons of work and I REALLY can’t talk right now”
  72. >order of Celestia?
  73. >she must be working up a storm if it’s an order for Celestia
  74. “Alright I’ll leave you be”
  75. >wonder what that’s all about
  76. >what kind of outfit would Celestia even want?
  77.  
  78. >you figure applejack would know more about what rarity was talking about
  79. >as the two of you made your way into bed you asked applejack your question
  80. “Hey, did you hear rarity was making something for Celestia herself?”
  81. >applejack was stunned
  82. >she took a moment before she spoke
  83. >”uh, yeah, she’s got this big order going on right now”
  84. >”look let's get some rest alright?”
  85. >applejack seemed to be avoiding it
  86. >your curiosity was too much
  87. “Hey AJ, why did rarity call it a mandate? Can’t Celestia just order a dress like normal?”
  88. >applejack gets fidgety
  89. >”anon, you’re thinking too deeply about this”
  90. >you could tell something wasn’t right
  91. “AJ, what’s going on? Look if it bothers you I promise i’ll stop talking about it but I don’t understand you’re so anxious about this”
  92. >applejack collects herself before responding
  93. >”anon, we need to have a talk”
  94. >this sounded serious
  95. >”i wasn’t going to tell you yet, but, well”
  96. >”i, no, we, the elements of harmony, we gotta go up near the crystal empire soon”
  97. >”somethin’ about ‘standby’ once rarity finishes her order we’re gonna head out immediately”
  98. “How come? Another villain of some sort?”
  99. >applejack starts to lose her composure again
  100. >”it’s different, it’s really different this time ‘non, I'm not sure how to make sense of it but all i know is the elements of harmony ain’t gonna cut it this time”
  101. >what is she going on about?
  102. >”twilights got a big role in this but the rest of us need to be on standby in case we can help somehow”
  103. >”im not filled in entirely about the details but all i know is if we take twilight out of her role so we can use the elements of harmony somethin’s gonna go wrong and we can’t risk it”
  104. >”like I said, I don’t fully understand it but I gotta go with em”
  105. >christ what the hell is she talking about…
  106. >”anon, I need you to make me a BIG promise alright”
  107. >with how serious her tone is you listen intently
  108. >”don’t you dare go runnin’ off after me for some stupid reason, if you go, hay, i don’t even know what kind of danger there’s gonna be”
  109. >”when I say this I truly mean it, do NOT follow me you understand”
  110. >despite your concerns for her you agree fully
  111. >you nod your head in agreement
  112. >you can’t fully comprehend what was going to happen but what you did know is that she can take care of it better than you ever could
  113.  
  114. >within a few days time rarity finished her work and applejack and the gang had everything packed and ready to head out
  115. >”now anon, you make sure to stay put alright?”
  116. “Of course AJ”
  117. >”look, with the money we have saved up, don’t go worryin about how sweet apple acres is gonna perform, we’ve got enough money too keep us runnin’ for at least a year without a single sale”
  118. >”this means no need to stress yourself over anything big”
  119. >”I’ll be back soon”
  120. >”remember what you promised me?”
  121. “No following you and all that jazz”
  122. >”PRECISLY”
  123. >”now I've got to get goin’ trains leavin’ soon, I'll see ya soon”
  124. “Alright, stay safe AJ”
  125.  
  126. >a week has passed since then and you’ve followed applejacks orders perfectly
  127. >you trust her instincts
  128. >”c’mon anon, one more lap around the barn!!!”
  129. >the one thing you weren’t prepared for was applebloom
  130. >being an absolute bundle of energy with no one else to play with besides the cutie mark crusaders leaves you to handle that all by yourself
  131. >and when the rest of the crusaders come over, what you would think would give you a break ends up being even more work
  132. >”yeah anon, get to running!”
  133. >the three of them put together could easily power a whole city
  134. >and boy is it hard work
  135. “Hah… hah… ok… give me… a minute…”
  136. >the three of them groan in unison
  137. >”anoooOOOOOOOooooon, you’re so easily tired”
  138. >gut punch to the ego
  139. “Well… you’re… so… FAST…”
  140. >after dealing with those rascals for a while you had a moment to yourself
  141. >it sure was boring without applejack or her friends around
  142. >sure playing with applebloom was fun
  143. >but it just didn’t feel the same
  144. >of course your not going to try and find applejack, that’s just irresponsible
  145. >but a whole week?
  146. >this is taking ages
  147. >out of boredom you make your way around town
  148. >you figure you could stop by the blacksmith just to see the look on his face when his number one customer shows up
  149. >you don’t plan on buying anything, but the look on his face would be priceless
  150. >as you enter you notice something is off
  151. >”oh, um, hey mister, how can i help you?”
  152. >HE SHRUNK TO HALF HIS SIZE
  153. >no that’s not it
  154. “Uh, who are you?”
  155. >the little guy looks at the ground
  156. >”oh, my dad’s the guy who owns this shop, he’s off to the crystal empire right now so I’m managing for right now”
  157. >”i’m not so great at this, I'm really sorry, I'm not sure if I can do much”
  158. >off to the crystal empire?
  159. “Uh, well, look that isn’t your fault don’t worry I'm not here for an order anyways”
  160. “I was one of your dad's biggest customers for a while”
  161. >his eyes light up
  162. >”oh WOW, you’re THAT guy?”
  163. >that guy?
  164. “Uh, yeah I guess”
  165. >”hey if you ever need anything I can… uh, I mean I MIGHT be able to help”
  166. >with his offer your mind is already stirring with ideas
  167. >you need something to do while applejack’s gone anyways
  168. “Well, i mean i am really bored, my friends are off to the crystal empire too so I’ve got nothing to do”
  169. >he looks remorseful all of a sudden
  170. >”oh, I'm sorry to hear that…”
  171. “Oh they should be fine, applejack and her friends know how to handle themselves”
  172. >”well if you need anything let me know, but… I might not be able to do big things…”
  173. “That’s quite alright, you know, I might be back, I’ll see ya around”
  174. >”alright mister have a good day!”
  175. >he gives a big smile
  176. >he seemed to warm up to you the instant you mentioned your friends were off to the crystal empire too
  177. >man what’s going on up there?
  178.  
  179. >with the boredom in full swing you start thinking
  180. “What could I even DO!!!!!”
  181. >you thoughts run wild until you remember that rifle you made
  182. >although you didn’t have a ton of money left you still had enough to at least pimp that thing out
  183. >operation pimp my rifle is a go
  184. >grabbing your rifle from its previous spot you dust it off and take it inside
  185. >sitting in your old room on the bed with it on the floor you stay silent and stare at it
  186. >what colors could you add to it
  187. >could you make another engraving?
  188. >could that guy fill the old engraving in and make a new one?
  189. >your creativity is endless with the boredom you’ve been dealing with
  190. “I wanna fuckin scope”
  191. “I wanna blast timber wolves like a sniper”
  192. “Pewpewpew”
  193. >evidently your boredom is endless
  194. “I wanna fuckin big sword on the end”
  195. “I want knight armor too”
  196. “I want whip”
  197. “I wanna crack that thing around like a psycho”
  198. >okay think practical
  199. >a scope is a good idea
  200. >a giant ass sword would never be practical against Timberwolves though
  201. >but it would be cool to have a sick bayonet
  202. >you really need a new decal
  203. >something that isn’t so… suggestive about your intentions with the wildlife here
  204. >after some deliberation you jotted up some plans and went to present them to the blacksmith's son
  205. >”oh yeah, glasswork is my specialty!”
  206. >”we don’t get a lot of orders for glasses unless their really special but the practice would work the same for a telescope like this”
  207. >”and I can do the knife at the front as well”
  208. >”uh, the engraving might not be as fancy as the one you have now, if you’re okay with it being a bit bigger then that should be easy”
  209. >”besides that the two little knobs are no problem and that should be set”
  210. >figuring the kids having a rough time with his father being away you give him a more than decent payment for his help
  211. “Here, I got ya a little something”
  212. >he looks in amazement
  213. >”no way, I mean, are sure about this, this is a lot of money just for an order like this”
  214. “Nonsense bro, besides, I'm sure business has been rough without your dad around”
  215. >he looks down
  216. >”uh, yeah, it really has been”
  217. >”you’re too kind mister, I’ll make sure to get your order as best as I can”
  218. “Don’t sweat it, take your time now there ain’t a rush okay”
  219. >”you got it!”
  220. >and with that, you now had at least something to look forward too
  221.  
  222. >as the hours passed you spent a lot more time with big mac and spike
  223. >big mac mostly
  224. >he was always fun to be around
  225. >of course most of your time spent together was doing chores
  226. >but regardless he was an amazing friend
  227. >he would continue talking about his game nights for ages and you loved hearing about it
  228. >the frustrations the tense parts all of it
  229. >he was like a little kid talking about a game he got for Christmas that he was obsessed with
  230.  
  231. >your days of spending time with big mac weren't half bad
  232. >the guy really grew on you
  233. >something about him just felt like you were talking to someone back on earth
  234. >and that was something that interested you a lot
  235. >sure, you still wish applejack was home but you still had some fun

The Preservation of Innocence (Part 1)

by Wall-o-text

The Preservation of Innocence (Part 2)

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The Preservation of Innocence (Part 3)

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The Preservation of Innocence (Part 4)

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The Preservation of Innocence (Part 5)

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