>what you felt like was your happy ending, was short-lived
>after a few days of peace, something came to threaten ponyville
>”TIMBERWOLVES”
>applebloom screamed so loud that the birds flew from out of the trees
…
>no
>that wasn’t it
>those, things
>large beasts storming from out of the woods
>their weight shook the ground terrifying every animal that felt it
>you could feel it shake more and more the closer they got
>applebloom had this terrified look on her 
>you didn’t think something so horrible could exist in Equestria 
>let alone ponyville
>everything in your body reacted to it in some way
>it felt like your blood itself had fainted and pooled down to your legs
>you could feel it rush down your face in an instant bringing with it a cold shiver
>everything in your body was thrashing and begging you to run
>so you did
“APPLEBLOOM WHAT THE HELL ARE THOSE THINGS!”
>”CAN’T … TALK … RUNNINNG!”
>the two of you bolt straight into town
>you had no idea what to do 
>you were just following applebloom in hopes that she had an idea
>”SUGAR … CUBE … CORNER!”
>no explanation needed
>as the two of you persist on applebloom starts falling behind
>on instinct you pick her up and keep heading toward sugar cube corner
>her endless panting implies she’s been running for ages
>and so have they
>these wolves
>magic or something
>their endurance is insane
>when the two of you near sugar cube corner applebloom begins to shout something
>”GET INSIDE PULL THE STAIR RAILING THING!”
“THE WHAT??”
>your nearing sugar cube corner
>you have next to no time to figure out what she’s telling you
>”THE END OF THE STAIR RAILING GRAB IT AND PULL IT DOWN”
>you burst through the door
>”hey! That’s coming out of your- AAAAHHHHHHH”
>pinkie screams when she saw the monsters chasing you
>fuck, where is it where is it-THERE
>in an instant you grab the end of the stairway railing and pull with everything you have
>it clicks down
“APPLEBLOOM WHAT HAPPENS NO-”
“w-AAHHHHHHHHH”
>the two of you slip down into this party-themed basement 
>behind you follows pinkie a few seconds later as she slams into your back 
>pinkie gives you a stern look
>”WHAT THE HAY JUST HAPPENED?”
“I-I-I DON’T KNOW, I JU-”
>applebloom interrupts your explanation
>”TIMBERWOLVES PINKIE, THERE’S TONS OF EM!”
>pinkie gives her an annoyed look
>”again! Uuuuuuuggggghhhh”
>so many thoughts are swirling through your mind 
>something this terrifying lives so close to ponyville?
>Has this happened before?
>PINKIE IS ONLY MILDLY ANNOYED?
>where the hell is applejack and big mac and an-
>”nonny, you there?”
>pinkie waves her hoof in front of your face
>”yeah ‘non, why are you so pale?”
“guh-I-jus-I, I need a moment…”
>that was the most horrifying event of your life
>your new-found friends were in danger
>GRAVE danger
>and they think nothing of it???
>you finally set applebloom down and take some time to process all this
>”well nonny, we're gonna be down here a REAAALY long time so you just make yourself comfortable”
>”yeah ‘non, and I'm sorry you got so scared, I hope ur alright”
>everything about this is so confusing
“Uh, yeah, don’t worry about me I'm fine”
>you’re not fine
>your whole worldview of Equestria is shattered
>you thought this was a place of peace and harmony
>where there was no danger and no violence 
>with how small and defenseless the ponies seemed, you just assumed there was nothing that could possibly be threatening them
>how could they have survived this long with how defenseless they are?
>are they-
>pinkie interrupts your train of thought
>”glad you two got here when you did, you were almost their dinner”
>you can’t believe how lightly pinkie is taking all this
>hell even applebloom seems fine now
>as if this was just some everyday hassle 
>do timber wolves eat ponies?
>would timber wolves eat you?
…
>probably…
>how are they so calm about this
>applebloom and pinkie
>they just seem to brush it off like it’s nothing
>they were in danger
>and they don’t even see the significance of it
>if you didn’t pick up applebloom she surely would have been caught by them
… 
>you don’t even want to imagine what would happen
…
…
…
>out of the corner of your eye you see something sliding down into the basement
>just as quick as it came down its momentum lead it straight to applebloom
>in less than half a second its jaws envelop applebloom as she screams silently
“NO!”
…
>your breathing is fast and labored 
>both applebloom and pinkie are looking at you worried
>”did ya have a nightmare ‘non?”
>”yeah what’s wrong nonny? You scared us for a second”
>it was just a nightmare
>it felt so real but it must have just been a dream
“I, uh, I’m sorry, really I didn’t mean to startle you”
“Just a bad dream is all”
>just a bad dream
>”uh, ‘non? You feelin alright? You’re breathing kinda, a lot n such”
>applebloom looks at you with concern
“No, it’s, nothing”
>not only are you still hyper-fixated on the timber wolf incident but you’re worried that your reaction to it is starting to worry applebloom and pinkie too
>applebloom trots up to you real slow like
>”ya know, I think you’re a real hero gettin us all the way here just in time”
>”I’d probably be a goner if it weren’t for you”
>applebloom gives you a genuine smile
>but you really want to keep your mind off the whole ‘goner’ part of her little speech
>besides  your thoughts are in a whole other world right now
>where in the hell is applejack and the rest?
>are they in danger too?
“Pinkie, are the others safe?”
“You know, like twilight and the others?”
>pinkie looks at you casually
>”meh, they’re probably fine, they’re a little out of the way for the timberwolves to bother them”
“But what about applejack, and-and big mac and-”
>”nonny, they’re fiiiiine relax a little”
>you guess that the timber wolves didn’t really go towards sweet apple acres 
>the group chased you all the way here anyways
…
>it’s been over an hour of just sitting here
>applebloom looks to pinkie
>”um, ya think it’s safe to head out now?”
>pinkie gives the ceiling a quizzical look
>”I don’t know, let's check!”
>pinkie manages to make her way back up the slide as if sliding down but in reverse
>you and applebloom sit in anticipation for a moment 
>”CLEEEEAAAAAARRRR!!!”
>pinkie shouts unnecessarily loud 
>the two of you make your way to the slide
“Uh, pinkie how do we get back up?”
>”JUST SIT DOWN”
>pinkie shouts from above
>well, alright
>you take a seat and applebloom quickly hops up onto you
“Uh, pinkie I-”
“AHH”
>the slide pulls you back up to the surface and fall flat on your butt
>while you're getting up and brushing yourself off applebloom turns to pinkie
>”thanks for the help pinkie!”
“Yeah, we really owe you for that”
>she gives you two a big smile 
>”don’t mention it”
>”but I'm gonna need someone to help with replacing the door”
>applebloom gives a nervous smile
>”guh, well I better head on out, y’know, gotta check on applejack and big mac and all that”
>she bolts out in an instant
>pinkie turns to you
>”so how’d your little project go?”
>you completely forgot about that fireworks project of yours for a while
“Oh yeah, it ended up being amazing”
>pinkie gets all excited
>”REALLY? C’MON SHOW ME SHOWMESHOWMESHOWMESHOWME!!!”
>a little too excited
“Well, I mean, i don’t have any finished ones on me bu-”
>pinkie gives you a suspicious look
>”how can you say you finished the project but not HAVE THE PROJECT?”
“Uh, well it’s not just one thing really, here why don’t we head over to sweet apple acres I can grab a few of the spare ones I had made before making the final models”
>pinkie looks at you full of anticipation
>”I CANT WAIT CMON LETS GO RIGHT NOW!”
>pinkie bolts to sweet apple acres like roadrunner
>you’re completely stunned 
“Aw man…”
>you run over to at least TRY not to keep pinkie waiting too long

>when you finally get there, all you can see is pinkie hopping up and down asking applejack every question imaginable
>next to her is applebloom making all sorts of movements trying to explain something you can barely understand
>”SHOWMESHOWMESHOWMEWHEREISITWHEREISIT????”
>”ANDTHENANDTHENANONPICKEDMEUPANDWEWERERUNNINANDANDAND-”
>applejack was completely overwhelmed by the two of them
>”JUST WHAT IN THE HAY IS GOIN ON HERE?”
>pinkie and applebloom quiet down immediately
>they look at each other before pinkie explains it
>”well, applebloom and anon were running from some timber wolves and-”
>applejack swiftly cuts her off 
>”THEY WHAT?”
>pinkie was shocked by applejack shouting
>”I-I mean they’re fine now, and anon said he was gonna show me this cool project and-”
>applejack cuts her off again
>”just where is anon?”
>you heard their argument right as you finally got there
“H-hey, sorry im lat-“
>”ANON!”
>applejack shouts and runs straight to you
>”PINKIE TOLD ME EVERYTHING!”
>she circles around you multiple times
>”are you hurt? You ok? No splinters? You-”
“Im fine AJ don’t worry”
>”I know I know, it’s just that you’ve never been around something so scary before and i didn’t want you to, you know, well, I don’t know”
>”just, JUST GET INSIDE A MOMENT”
>applejack orders you inside with a push from her head
>as you make your way inside you can hear the last bits of their conversation
>”and as for you applebloom, why in the hay did you have so many timber wolves after you and why did you get anon involved?”
>you can’t see any of the three ponies outside but you can hear applebloom stutter a bit
>”well, i-i mean he, he was there and-”
>applejack wasn’t feeling very patient
>”AW HAY, lets just have pinkie explain”
>”OKIE DOKIE LOKIE!”
>there’s a brief moment of silence while you can hear pinkie take a deep breath in
>”so applebloom and anon were running to sugar cube corner and the timber wolves were REAAAAALLLY close behind them so we jumped into the party planning room and anon was REAL SCARED”
>you could almost hear applebloom gulp out of nervousness
>”and we were waiting down there and it was SOOOO boring and anon fell asleep and had a nightmare and then he woke up and screamed like NOOOO and then we went here AND NOW ANONS GONNA SHOW ME HIS COOL PROJECT AN-”
>applejack slams her hoof down
>”NO HE AIN’T!!!”
>for split second it was dead silent
>”applebloom get inside I need to have a talk with anon”
>”pinkie im sorry but you need to go home for now, I ain’t mad at you but I've got somethin really important to take care of right now”
>”AAWWWWWWW, fiiine”
>”I’LL BE BACK TOMORROW NONNY”
>you can hear pinkie say that as she makes her way down back to sugar cube corner
…
>you’re sitting up in your room just thinking about everything that happened
>just as you’re about to get back into deep thought applejack storms in
>”ANON, I am so so SO sorry you had to go through all that”
>”you saved appleblooms LIFE”
>despite how horrified you were about it all you tried to play it off
“Nah, it was nothing AJ, don’t even worry about it”
>applejack gives you a sour look
>”NOTHIN’? Are you kiddin me? You’ve never seen a timber wolf in ur entire life and applebloom leads em right to ya and you have to take responsibility?”
>”that must have been just awful ‘non, apologies ain’t enough, is there ANYTHIN’ i can do to make up for it?”
“Look AJ, it’s really not a big deal, no one got hurt an-”
>applejack cuts you off
>man what’s with people cutting everyone’s sentences short recently
>”’non… I heard you were havin nightmares…”
“Oh cmon AJ it’s no big deal, seriously”
>applejack looks to the side all worried like she’s trying to think of something 
>she whips her head back toward you to announce something
>”why don’t we have uh, a little sleepover?”
“Huh, AJ what are you talking about?”
>applejack taps her hoof against the ground repeatedly
>”it’s just that… why don’t you bunk with me tonight, i can’t stand the idea of lettin’ you sleep all on your lonesome with how hard of a day you just had”
…
>holy fuck it's happening
…
>okay maybe IT is not happening but this isn’t an opportunity you want to pass up 
>but you have to play it cool
“Look, if it makes you feel better i’ll go along with it”
>applejack jumps around with excitement 
>”YEEHAW im havin’ a sleep over with a-NON!”
>you sleep in the same house as her, nothings gonna change except where you sleep
>right?

>before you make your way to applejacks room there’s a light knock on your door
>you open it and look down to see applebloom with her head hung low
>”um, ‘non, im REAL sorry about all that stuff today, I didn’t mean to scare you so much honest…”
>what’s the deal with everyone thinking your such a scaredy cat?
…
>oh right, nightmare… 
>you bend down to be more face level with her
“Hey, it’s alright, it’s not your fault they came for you”
>applebloom looks up at you 
>”that’s where ur wrong, anon ah, ah shouldn’t have been muckin’ around in the everfree so carelessly…”
>”I should’ve been more careful and then maybe you wouldn’t have gotten all wrapped up in this mess and you wouldn’t have been so scared and all that...”
…
>god you hate that applebloom feels so bad about all this
“Applebloom I promise you it’s not your fault in the slightest”
“Please don’t ever feel bad about this, i promise I'm perfectly fine”
>despite your confident words applebloom gives you a curious look
>”but i thought applejack said u were super sensitive n stuff?”
…
>what?
“Applebloom im not sure what AJ is talking about but I can promise you I'm fine”
“Don’t overthink it okay, I'm fine your fine, even pinkies fine”
>she giggles a bit
>”yeah but her front door ain’t”
>the both of you let out a small laugh
“Yeah, yeah it didn’t look too good did it”
>the both of you laugh a little harder
>applejack walks up the stairs and sees the two of you
>”what's so funny?”
>applejack stares at the two of you while you both go silent for a moment
>after giving each other a quick glance you and applebloom roar with laughter
>”WHAT, WHAT IS IT, IS THERE SOMETHIN’ ON MAH FACE?”
>both you and applebloom start gasping for air after laughing so hard
>applebloom speaks up 
>”naw, me and anon were just laughin’ about somethin that happened earlier today”
>applejack looks to the side with an angry expression
>she gives a relieved sigh
>”I'm just glad the both of you are alright”
>”but anons got to get his rest soon”
>”best you head to bed yourself applebloom”
>applebloom gets up off the floor
>”alright, well goodnight AJ goodnight anon!”
>Both you and applejack wish her goodnight in unison

>as you enter applejack's room you notice something
…
>there’s only one bed
>you’re probably just gonna sleep on the floo-
>”you take the bed tonight anon, i wantcha to feel as comfortable as possible after everything that happened”
…
“AJ it’s fine, it’s your bed anyways, ive even brought some blankets to sleep on”
>applejack looks at you sternly
>”anon it is my bed and I get to choose what to do with it”
>”and tonight i choose to have you sleep on it for the night”
“AJ cmon, i can’t let you sleep on the floor in your own room”
>”whats with you and always speakin’ nonsense, you had a rough day and you need all the help you can get”
>you really don’t understand what she’s getting at 
>then you remember what applebloom told you
“Hey AJ, can we talk for a second?”
>applejack sits on the floor and tilts her head to one side
>”yeah, whats up anon?”
>you try to think about how you’re going to word this
…
>okay here goes nothing
“AJ…”
>fuck you really have nothing
>whatever go big or go home i guess
“Did you tell applebloom i was sensitive, like, super sensitive?”
>applejack gives an embarrassed look 
>”guh, well i, uh”
>you sit on the floor with her
“Hey, hey, i promise im not mad”
>she regains her confidence and looks you right in the eye but with a softer more concerned face
>”it’s just that, when we first met… you were so scared of everything so i just kinda, you know, coddled you a bit”
>she lets out a slightly awkward laugh
>”i, i didn’t wanna tell you about stuff like timber wolves and such cuz, well, i didn’t wanna make you scared”
>you can’t tell whether to be embarrassed or confused
>”i just didn’t want you to be so worried about all that stuff anyways”
>she hangs her head down but looks up at you
>”i just didn’t want you to run off”

>https://youtu.be/IzwJlWZRwNA (you’re all I ever wanted but I'm scared to tell you)

…
>this woman… 
“AJ, i would never run off on you no matter how scary things were”
“Honestly if i knew about all that before hand i promise i would have been more prepared”
>she looks like she’s almost ashamed
“It’s alright AJ, what im saying is that you can trust me, i won’t run off just because the woods around here has some weird stuff in it”
>she looks back up at you
>”you promise?”
“Of course AJ”
>with the two of you on the floor, applejack makes her way up to you
>she bumps her head into your chest and keeps it there
>you sit there for a moment
>the pressure of her head against your chest feels amazing
>you don’t even think there’s a drug on earth OR equestria that could recreate this blissful feeling
>the two of you sit there like that for a while until you quietly speak up again
“Hey, AJ…”
>”yeah ‘non…”
“I wanna ask you something but you gotta promise not to be embarrassed ok?”
>”of course ‘non, what’s up?”
>you think for a moment
“I know you said you thought i was sensitive when we first met?”
“But, do you still think im like that?”
>she stays quiet while she thought it through
>”if im bein’ totally honest, yeah”
>”not cuz your weird or somethin’, i don’t know, i kinda see you like i see fluttershy a bit”
>that’s embarrassing 
>REALLY embarrassing 
>having her see you as confident as fluttershy must really make her look down on you
>especially since you’re not as special as fluttershy
>”if im being truly honest, i think your more sensitive than even fluttershy”
>OH COME ON!
>despite being calm and collected on the outside your thoughts are running in circles
>just as you’re about to say something applejack perks up
>”but there ain’t nothin’ wrong with it anon”
>”stallions like you are like that sometimes, and i promise you there isn’t a single thing about it that makes me look down on you”
…
>fuck what?
>what’s with ponies and being mind readers
>trying to come up with a coherent response was difficult
>all you could manage to do was wrap your arms around applejack and hold onto her
>initially she was surprised but after she realized what had happened she let her guard down
>she embraced you back
>”anon…”
>she whispered in your ear 
>you could feel her breathe gently as she talked
>”if you ever feel scared, worried, or like anythings wrong”
>”you just come to me okay, i’ll take care of you, understand?”
>you can barely handle the weight of what she told you 
>all you can manage to do is bury your face deeper into her embrace
>”there there, it’ll be alright”
>after holding on for a while you felt a renewed sense of relief
>once it ended you gently let go as did she
>when you pull back you notice there’s a small wet spot where your face was
>you wipe your eyes in hopes that she doesn’t notice
>”lets get you some sleep now, you must be tuckered out after today”
>you really were
>reluctantly you make your way into her bed
…
>dear god it smells amazing…
>after covertly huffing the scent like a pervert for a few seconds you turn to applejack
“Hey AJ”
“Correct me if im wrong, but didn’t you say some stallions are pretty sensitive?”
>she turns over to you and looks up from the floor
>”yeah?”
“Well, what about big mac?”
>she giggles a little
>”big mac ain’t as sensitive as you”
>as much as you enjoy talking to applejack, being described as sensitive constantly isn’t your favorite but you let it go
>”but he’s kinda got a sensitive side”
>”makes em easy to pull pranks on”
>she giggles even more as if remembering a myriad of evil pranks she’s pulled
>”yeah, he’s easy to startle”
>she continues to giggle until she settles down
>”alright ‘non, you get some good rest okay, if you have any nightmares, don’t hesitate to wake me up, i’ll be there for you i promise”
“Goodnight AJ”
>”goodnight sugar cube”
>once you turn back over to sleep you think about all those times you talked to big mac
>he wasn’t really talkative at first, originally you thought he didn’t like you but then he told you about his “boys night” thing
>when he described it, it sounded exactly like Dungeons and dragons from back on earth
>you knew a little bit about it so you asked him some basic questions about his character and how the game was going so far
>that’s when he really lit up
>he would talk for ages about his character and how he was having a tough time deciding what he should specialize in
>and then he went on and on about the story
>you never realized how passionate someone could be about a game like that
>you sort of understood but with big mac, it was a whole other level
>big mac is about the only other boy in equestria you talk too
>kind of makes him your best friend 
>he seems to really understand you in a way that apple jack and her friends don’t
>not that they were ignorant 
>it was just a boys thing
…

>when you woke up the next day you felt absolutely amazing
>but you had something on your mind 
>what if you could get rid of those timber wolves?
>sure, it’s probably impossible to completely eradicate them
>hell, you’re sure someone has tried it before
>but with how exciting it was to make your other project another project would just mean another chance at excitement
>but you can’t do much of anything without knowing what you’re up against
>so you head on to twilights place

>making your way to twilights house you see pinkie pie hopping along
>the second she notices you she stops in her tracks
>she ominously shifts her entire body to face you
>suddenly she zooms right up to your face
>”NONNY SHOW ME THAT PROJECT OF YOURS!!!”
>you forgot about that
“Pinkie ill make you a deal”
“If you come with me to pick out some books from twilight ill show you once we get back to sweet apple acres”
>”DEAL!!!”
>she pulls out her party cannon from god knows where and shoots it right at you
>despite surely being given PTSD you slowly brush off the confetti that's all over you
“Alright cmon pinkie, we got a lot of walking to do”
>as the two of you make your way to twilights place pinkie talks your ear off
>”whyareyougettingbooks? Canyouevenread? Dobipedsreadbooks? Doyouevenknowwhatabookis?”
>and she goes on and on 
>you just ignore her until you get to twilights place

>going up to the door pinkie rushes in front of you
>she bangs on the door in an absurdly fast motion
>she bounces up and down continuously as you wait for twilight
>spike opens the door to greet you
>”HEY ANON, long time no see what have you been up to?”
>just as pinkie is taking a deep breath, surely to explain your entire storyline of getting to Equestria and every insignificant detail you grab her muzzle and gently close her mouth
“I just wanted to see if you had any books on timber wolves”
>spike gives you a slightly odd look but doesn’t protest
>”uh, sure we’ve got lots of books, I'm sure twilight won’t mind you borrowing one”
>spike expertly runs off and comes back with the exact kind of book you were looking for 
>”alright, here you go, just make sure to give it back in one piece okay?”
“Got it spike, thanks again”
>”anytime, see ya!”
>and with that out of the way you and pinkie were off to sweet apple acres

>”sononnywhatstheproject? Isitabigoneorasmallone? IsitmultipleprojectswrappedupintapeturnedintoahugehugeHUGEproject?”
>at this point you just tune her out as you make your way there
“Were here pinkie”
>”OH BOY, cmon show me, SHOWMESHOWMESHOWME!!!”
>reaching your limit of her talking you rush to set the book in your room and grab a few of those spare fireworks that didn’t make the final cut
>it was nearing the end of the day anyways so it was just dark enough to make fireworks more visible but not enough to look like it was night out
“Alright pinkie are you ready?”
>”ready as a freddy!”
>you’ll never understand pinkie
>as you light one she sees it shoot off into the air 
>her head is locked on facing directly towards it as it travels upwards till her head is tilted straight up
>with a tiny pop pinkie shows the amazement on her face
>”OHMYGOSH NONNY THAT WAS CUH-CRUH-COOORRRAAAAZYY!”
>”HOW DID YOU DO THAT? IT'S LIKE A PARTY CANNON BUT IN THE WHOLE SKY!!!”
>you didn’t even know where to begin with it so you just tried to give yourself an easy out
“here , I've got quite a few extra that I don’t need I can give you half of them if you want”
>her entire face explodes with joy
>”ANON THAT Is so COOOL!!!”
>she pauses for a moment
>”are you sure you’re okay with this? I would hate to take this from you if it’s something you really want”
“It’s fine pinkie, I don’t really use em anyways so its best I let someone who wants them to have at it, besides that’s only half of what I have”
>”WOW, thanks nonny, i owe you BIG TIME”
>and with that, you finally have pinkie off your back
>now all that is left is for you to study that book on timberwolves and formulate some sort of plan