>after staying up absurdly late for multiple nights you’ve finished the entire book
>you’ve noticed a few interesting key points
>timberwolves can reassemble themselves though it doesn’t happen every time they are destroyed it’s still frequent to an extent
>accounts of timberwolf removal throughout history show that the most common tactic was throwing something in their mouths as they couldn’t unlodge it themselves
>once done this would cause timberwolves to fall apart
>but on the off chance they would reform back together villages would burn certain essential parts of the timberwolves before it could form back together
>usually the bundled-up vines that somewhat resemble essential organs
>the reformation progress was decently quick, no measurement of time was given but it was described as being fast enough that burning them immediately was essential
>after analyzing it thoroughly you had a rough idea of what to do
>except there was one bit of information that stuck out to you
>it often took the whole village to work together to throw all those rocks at the mouths of the large group of timber wolves 
>and some times many ponies got hurt in the process despite the large numbers 
>you have only yourself to rely on for this project
>and if you told applejack or anyone else about it they would freak out and do everything to keep you from going through with it
>ESPECIALLY applejack
>besides you wouldn’t want to put them in harm's way
>your first instinct is to sit up in a tree with a ton of rocks and just chuck em while the timber wolves surrounded you
>but the timberwolves are far bigger than you and could probably reach you if they jump or even go up on their hind legs
…
>fireworks probably couldn’t do much of anything
>and from what you can tell from the book loud noises were used to scare them off so you can’t afford to be too loud
>scaring them off sounds like an easy solution but like the book said that tactic didn’t work resulting in villages resorting to using rocks and all that
>the timberwolves would just come back after some time on their own
>it’s not a permanent solution
>even culling them isn’t TECHNICALLY permanent but from what the book says they like to stay within their territory and only expand from the borders of their territory and never venture far outside of that
>if you can cull the pack enough you could push them further back into the ever-free for years to come
…
>well if carrying around tons of rocks and sitting up on a tree wouldn’t work what would?
>does it only have to be in their mouths?
>the rock-throwing method is pretty rudimentary 
>what if there was some other way?
…
>for starters you have to make sure you don’t burn down the ever-free
>meaning no reckless use of fire
… 
>what if instead of throwing something in their mouths you went straight for their vine bundles?
…
>it could work
>a spear maybe?
>no
>definitely a no
>get yourself occupied by one of them they would surround you
…
>arrows? Like a bow?
>nah, too slow
>plus you’re not likely to be a good shot with it
>something like that takes training
>although plenty quiet, best to put that to the side but not fully disregard it
… 
>a rifle?
>no that-
…
>it would definitely work…
>but it’s too advanced 
>right?
…
>it would be a challenge…
>and if you solve this problem too fast it would get pretty boring around here…
…
>and sure would be a lot safer than arrows 
…
>you’ll put that as your plan B for now 
>it’s definitely the most fun idea that’s for sure
>but it could be impractical
>hell where would you even get the stuff to make it
>I mean sure you have black powder now but like aren’t bullets mass-produced in factories
>so many tiny parts you can’t even begin to understand
>at least with fireworks you were taught that stuff directly
>you had plenty of background knowledge to work it out from the ground up
>but this is a whole other level…
…
>wouldn’t that make this even more interesting though?
…
>okay you can at least start out with this
>if a better idea comes along switch but for now project timberwolf hunter is a go

>nothing like a trip to the store to jog your mind
>worked last time right?
>on your way to the store you were full of thoughts
>how would you even begin to understand where to start with this
>you generally understand that a bullet works in the sense that an explosion happens it flies out
>but how does it light?
>with next to no idea where to begin you just hope the store gives you some ideas
…
>the only thing you could find that might steer you in the right direction is a can of body spray and a lighter
>you’re not sure how it could help but your gut instinct says it might at least generate ideas
>you used to pretend you were using a flamethrower when you would light the body spray on fire when you were younger
>not necessarily in the same category as a rifle but it could alleviate boredom while you think
>besides maybe dismantling the lighter could give you some more ideas

>when you got home you immediately dismantled the lighter
>well most of it, you aren’t an expert at dismantling so some of the metal was bent but it was good enough
>looking at all the materials taken out gave you next to nothing in terms of ideas
>just as you predicted, boredom came about
>you began to play with the body spray and your spare lighter from the fireworks project
>big tufts of flame spewed out amusing you slightly
>then a funny idea came
>you grabbed some of the spare black powder left over from the fireworks project
>in hopes that it didn’t get contaminated you laid it out on a rock and started flaming it with body spray 
>lighting black powder on fire is pretty underwhelming
>unlike the body spray
>lighting that stuff up is tons more fun
…
>unlike the body spray…
>you’re starting to get something out of this…
>with how unknowledgeable you are regarding bullets you might as well test this avenue first

>your first instinct is to head to the store and grab a few more cans of that spray
>when you get back a few ideas pop into your mind
>first you gotta dismantle one
>second, if you’re out with timberwolves and something fucks up your gonna need a backup plan
>that means a firecracker and one of the cans
>if the book said pots and pans clanking can scare away timber wolves this shit will give em trauma
>third
…
>how in the hell are you gonna make everything else
…
>there’s gotta be a hardware store or something
>best bet is to casually ask applejack where she gets her tools
>a place like that would have a decent selection

>you make your way downstairs
>it seems applejack is reading some papers
>whether it’s the newspaper or something else you can’t tell
>but that’s not important
>okay just act casual
“Hey applejack where do you get your tools from?”
“Like is it a store or something?”
>way too direct arguably retarded
>”naw, we just get em from the blacksmith guy”
>”why, you need somethin’?”
“Nah, I was just curious”
>no suspicion, perfect 
>a blacksmith?
>hmm
>that could be a blessing and a curse
>good because your range of options is split WIDE open
>bad because it means you would have to be really specific and know your shit to ask for what you want
>sure, you don’t have to literally make it yourself
>but if it’s something custom then you would need to come up with the measurements all on your own
>and you know damn well you’re going to be running through prototypes like a madman
…
>this is gonna get expensive quickly
>but you’ve got the funds saved up


>before anything you needed to see what your options were
>you made your way through the center of ponyville 
>you asked a pony where the blacksmith was and they pointed you in the right direction
>upon entering you saw a lone blacksmith hammering at a bright piece of metal
>took you a moment, but you worked up the courage to interrupt him
“Um, excuse me”
>he turns his head slightly eyes still focused on the work
>”yeah, yeah, whaddya need?”
“I was just wondering if you could make custom parts”
“You know, like, out of metal n stuff”
>he thinks to himself for a moment
>”are you one of them ‘special folk’?”
>oh god damn it
>”look, buddy, that’s all we do here alright”
>”if you got something ya need gimme a design and ill do it”
>before you make your way back home you notice he pumps this bag causing a bed of coals to burn brightly
“hey, what’s that you're doing right there?”
>he does the same thing as before eyes focused on the project
>”look kid you know how fire works?”
“Uh, not really”
>he sighs
>”look, fire is hot, more air means more hot got it?”
>”I’m pumping air into the burnin’ coals and it gets hotter alright”
>”now if you-”
>he finally turns to look at you
>”no way, you’re that new guy”
“Yeah that’s m-”
>”the uh, what is it, biped right?”
>ffuuuuuUUUUUUUCCCKKING RAINBOW
>you let out a strong breath through your nose
“Yes, that’s me…”
>”HA, no wonder you were askin’ so many questions”
>”so what can I do ya for?”
“At the moment nothing really, I just wanted to check and see if you did custom stuff”
“I’ll probably be back quite a few times”
>his face lightens up with a smile
>”alright, just make sure to have the proper measurements for your designs”
>”and draw it out good, none of that sloppy stuff okay?”
“Got it, thanks”
>more air means more hot
>despite being such a simple explanation, it’s swarming your brain with ideas

>2 months
>2 fucking miserable months
>well, miserable isn’t the right word
>the frustration of the project was almost fun in a way
>almost
>surprisingly the first week was the easiest
>there were two ideas you had
>conventional bullets or combustion
>and boy did your bullets fucking suck
>not only was it difficult to make but the hassle of dealing with the casing afterward was brutal
>on multiple occasions the casing would stay inside and fuck everything up after firing
>and that’s not even to mention how difficult it was to figure out out to light the powder inside
>with all that happening you just gave up on the idea of conventional ammo
>the good news was you had an idea on the back burner
>and boy did it work
>originally you thought it would be as simple as hooking up a fuel source to the chamber of the gun and pulling the trigger to spark it all
>but it wasn’t enough
>of course you remembered to add some air to it
>thank god Fluttershy asked you to water her plants
>her little pressured water sprayer thing gave you the idea
>thought it ended up making the final design look a little, funky, it sure as hell worked
>being able to pressurize the fuel and air mixtures made it far easier
>the only bad part was you originally underestimated the amount of fuel and air needed
>after endless frustration you increased the chamber size to an absurd amount just to see if it would even be strong enough
>it was amusing to watch the trial runs at least
>thank god you watched that old video about suppressors a few weeks before you got to Equestria
>you only watched it out of boredom but boy did that information come in handy 
>your ears were thanking you
>of course, naturally distrusting your prototypes you would pull the trigger from afar with a string
>the boulder you had the rifle tied down to flipped over due to the recoil
>that thing would have broken your shoulder for sure
>it worked and it worked a little too well
>the little steel ball you had inside, shot straight through the tree
>you better hope applebloom doesn’t notice if she ever wanders through the ever-free forest again
With confirmation that it was possible, you kept tweaking the design for the rifle
>near the end you made lots of little improvements making it either look nicer or function better
>hell you even found out that the recoil can be used to repressurize the thing when you didn’t have the strength to pump it anymore
>by turning the pump into the stock and moving the chamber to a more convenient spot you made the repressurization process almost automated
>with a smaller than normal stock you can pull the pump out o a comfortable length and it stays put due to the pressure in the chamber, when you shoot the power from the recoil pumps it down on its own
>and with some spring magic reloading is a breeze
>conventional ammunition be damned, without needing a case, the rifle fits an absurd amount of ammunition under the barrel
>springs do the reloading stuff and the fuel and air make the steel ball launch
>the good news is you haven’t found a real big difference in the fuel types you use
>oils are all essentially the same but probably nothing compared to the higher quality fuels you could have had on earth
>although alcohol, which was already an inconvenient fuel source wasn’t as great
>this thing had a few bad traits like how heavy it was, though you didn’t have an authentic firearm to compare it too
>it looked a bit wonky but you can fix that later
>one major downside is the soot buildup
>go without cleaning for too long and it will jam
>funny thing is, your safety switch on the gun doesn’t prevent firing
>it just prevents reloading
>so when you go to clean it you switch on the safety and pop the last round through the ground so you can reach your cleaning stick all the way back to get the soot out
>with everything in order the only things left to do were durability test and add some decals
>the durability testing didn’t last real long
>of course, without anything flammable or explosive inside, you beat the shit out of it against a rock and did loads of other savageries to your glorious invention
 >with its necessary components confirmed to be absurdly durable you could finalize the project
>”man am I going to miss getting business from you”
>the blacksmith guy always had the biggest shit-eating grin whenever you walked in
>”so what’s the final design?”
>you quietly showed him the design
>”ahhh, fancy, an engraving too?”
“Eyup!”
>”well, I’ll make sure to do you proud with these last parts”
>and ever since then you’ve had your very own rifle
>it wasn’t until you were staring in awe at the final model that you realized something was off
>Wolf fucker 3000 
>you know, it didn’t come out like you had in your head but it’s got character in its own way
>but the combination of fatigue and shrunken money pool urged you to leave it as is
>and with the fuel efficiency of this combined with the absurd ammo capacity you could spend days in the ever-free without anything besides your fully loaded rifle and some food
…
>oh yeah
>the whole point of the project was to go to the ever-free and go
>well
>time fuck up some timber wolves
…
>UUGGGGHHHH but I reallllllyyy don’t wannnaaaaa
…
>your already over the fact of what happened with the timber wolves
>honestly the whole project started mostly because you were over reacting
…
>plus it’s probably dangerous and all
…
>okay you can procrastinate a LITTLE, but then you gotta go next thing tomorrow
…
>no the day after tomorrow 

>with the next morning at hand you make your way to rarity’s place
>you’ve got an idea 
>a nerdy one but an idea nonetheless

>you knock on rarity’s door
>”come in!”
>as you enter you see rarity working her hooves to the bone
>”sorry, I've been busy all week, I’ve got this insane order for the SAME EXACT OUTFIT hundreds of times over”
>”but don’t worry darling I can easily fit in whatever you need, as long as it isn’t another large order”
>she looks over to you and her eyes widen
>”GOODNESS, anon, I haven’t seen you in ages, how have you been?”
“I’m alright, so, you sure you can fit in another order?”
>”as long as it’s a small one I can definitely still hit my deadline”
“Alright well take a look at this”
>you hand rarity a crudely drawn image of the outfit you had in mind, colors labeled where necessary and everything
>she gives it an odd look
>”well, it’s certainly… out there…”
>”but I can easily get something like this done as long as it’s only a single outfit”
“Of course, how much for it?”
>”don’t you speak another word, you’re still wearing those same clothes you came here with”
>”I would be honored to finally give you something, er, proper isn’t the right word”
>”but I would be honored to give you your first piece of HIGH-QUALITY clothing”
>”no payment necessary darling, just let me get those measurements and I’ll be on it before you know it”
>”besides, I'm quite late on the whole welcoming gift thing aren’t I?”
>with that settled rarity takes your measurements and your off to enjoy the rest of your day

>when you wake up the next day you go off to organize everything for the ‘camping trip’
>at least that’s what you’re going to tell applejack 
>with your little invention stowed away just near the entrance of the ever-free you won’t have to worry about applejack or anyone else seeing it
>just as you finish packing there’s a knock on the door
>it’s rarity and she’s not looking so well
>”hah, hah, special… delivery… for… anon…”
>she’s holding your outfit you requested
“Rarity im so sorry, you didn’t have to deliver it yourself especially with how busy you are”
>she continues panting
>”nonsense… here… take… GOODBYE”
>and with that, she’s off
>taking your outfit upstairs you go to try it on
…
>you absolutely LOVE IT
>definitely fits your tastes 
>it is your design after all
>well, YOUR design isn’t the right wording for it
>more of an earth thing
>after that’s settled you take care of the remaining things before you make your way out
>”’non are you absolutely sure this is a good idea?”
“Yes, AJ, I'm sure”
>”look, I believe you're a smart fella, but just make sure you don’t go too deep into those woods alright?”
>”you’ve already got a history with timber wolves”
>damn right
>”and I just, I want you to be safe okay?”
>”if anything happens you just run and yell for help ill be there as quick as I can okay?”
“Alright alright, don’t worry about me so much i’ll be perfectly fine”
>”if you say so, but don’t feel bad if you wanna come back home for sleeping and all”
>”there ain’t no shame in it and I can make you somethin’ nice and warm too”
>there’s that applejack you love so much
…
>just fucking go already or your gonna want to stay too much
“Alright, I’ll see you in a three days”
>”THREE DAYS??? I THOUGHT IT WAS GONNA-”
>and you're off…

>with everything packed and settled you slowly make your way deeper into the ever-free forest
>always watching your surroundings 
>you can’t risk being so deep that you get yourself in a bad situation
>at certain points you stop and wait to see if anything lurks around
>you listen quietly
…
>nothing yet
>you continue on until you hear something
>a crunching in the distance
>you stop in your tracks and prepare for anything sudden
…
>nothing again…
>but you know for sure you heard something
>and so you continue to wait

>https://youtu.be/-nJ9tGTdBnY (cool, calm, and collected)

>after waiting some time you see something move in the distance
>that’s a timber wolf, no doubt about it
>though you never did a proper range test for your rifle you figured with the distance between it and yourself you might as well try
…
>you take a good breath before taking the shot
>cool, calm and collected
>just as soon as you pull the trigger it’s already over
>you first timberwolf gone
>your forward thinking means you won’t have to run up and burn or destroy a single part of the left over timberwolf
>your rifle takes care of that for you
>with patience a you notice a few more lurking around
>the experience was different than you expected
>the muffled shots were about the loudest thing you heard all day
>each and every one of them collapse the moment their hit
>seems your rifle was a bit overkill
>nothing about it bothers you
>it only serves to fill you with silent accomplishment
…
>the hours went on as you kept up the pace
>there wasn’t any need to move as they kept funneling towards you clueless
>oddly, they never seemed to react when the other timber wolves fell apart
>besides a mild reaction to the noise they wouldn’t hesitate to step over the left over remains
>with this much work being done you should be able to set back the timber wolf population for decades
>that is if you wanted too
>if there’s one thing you know it’s that you shouldn’t fuck with the ecosystem too much
>but timberwolves are an exception
>even if it upsets some sort of environmental balance the ever-free forest looks wretched as it is
>not much loss there
>with all the work you’ve gotten done you could probably head home early and still consider it a complete success
…
>it does get quite boring after a while
>you aim gets better but the excitement of watching them fall to pieces wore off a few hours back
>your plan is to stay until an hour or two after dark and then head home
>the book said that timber wolves are only stay up late when they haven’t had a meal for too long
>another good reason too stay up late
>you could see whether the population is eating enough in the ever-free or if it’s desperate enough to wander outside
…
>with the night hours reigning in you see next to no timberwolves
>a single straggler and that was it
>you’ve lost count of how many you’ve watched turn to dead wood
>the hours blend together after a while
>and when they blend so does your memory
>it doesn’t feel like you’ve done much but the timber piles imply otherwise
>you’ve gotten more done today than you expected for the whole 3 days planned
>with a surprisingly calm success you make your way home

>you stow your rifle back into it’s place in case this isn’t your last trip into the ever-free for something like this
>as you quietly make your way back inside you see applejack nodding off and waking herself up repetitivly 
>somewhere between this cycle she notices you and perks up
>”uh, AH, ANON!”
>she makes her way up to you and rubs her face against your leg
>”oh, ah-non, I was so worried about you”
>despite her hushed tone you can still sense some kind of urgency in her voice
“AJ, what’s going on, why are you up so late?”
>she faces towards you with her eyes half closed
>”ah just, you were out there so long and if yah called for help I needed to be ready”
>sometimes you worry about applejack
>she’s already been staying up so late the only thing you can do now is get her some rest
“Come on AJ, lets get you to bed”
>she hardly even responds as you pick her up gently
>as you make your way into her room you can hear her tiny breaths
>she is completely asleep in your arms
>as you slowly lay her onto her bed she seems to fill with panic
>her breathing escalates as when you slowly let go of her
>before you leave the room you notice her eye lids tighten 
>you can’t leave her like this
>you wake her up in hopes that her nightmare ends
>she shoots up looking around and notices you by her bedside
>in her exhausted state she speaks softly
>”anon, i was so scared you were all alone and i was so worried”
>”i don’t want you ever leaving like that again”
>you feel awful
>you haven’t considered how applejack felt 
>you were so focused that you overlooked how applejack would have felt about all this
“AJ, i’m so sorry”
>she faces towards you with her eyes kept closed
>”I missed you so much, i couldn’t stop thinking about what might happen to you”
>”why”
>tears ran down her muzzle
>”why would you go off like that?”
>you had no idea how much it hurt her to see you go
“AJ, i promise i’ll never run off like that again okay?”
>her quiet sniffles continued
>”I need you to stay here”
>”i can’t let you sleep in your own room no more”
>you stayed silent for a moment
>”I can’t stand the idea of having you out of my line of sight”
>”it hurts so much when I can’t tell where you are”
>”anon, from now on, you sleep in my room okay?”
>at this point there’s no backing out
>not that you wanted too, but you were worried she would change her mind 
>you would hate to make applejack feel distressed if you agreed to a deal she didn’t remember making
>and yet it was an offer you would never refuse
“Alright AJ, but you have to promise me your comfortable with this”
>she starts to cry 
>”it’s the only way i CAN be comfortable”
>she says through sniffles and tears
>she’s on the verge of a full breakdown
>instinctivly, you wrap your arms around her
“I promise i’ll stay right by your side okay”
“I won’t go anywhere”
>she calms down suddenly and opens her eys a little
>you crawl into bed with her and wrap the covers around yourselves
>even with your clothes still on everything about this feels natural 
>for the first second you looked into your eyes
>once she noticed how close you were she leaped into your arms and rubbed her face all over you
>it was adorable 
>once she finished bathing in your warmth she scooched up to rub her face against yours
>you were overwhelmed with joy
>while she went on with it she started sobbing
>”anon, please promise me to never put yourself in danger like that again”
>if she knew exactly what you were doing out there you’re sure she would never let you leave the house again
“It was just a little camping trip AJ, it’s nothing to worry about”
>”all on your own???”
>”ah should have never let you go in the first place”
>she kept nuzzling against you
>she began to calm down 
>”how come you came back so early?”
>”i thought you were going to be gone for three days?”
>in truth you really didn’t want to be out there for a full three days
>and with how overwhelmingly successful it was in such a short amount of time you decided to head home 
“Well, i guess i got a little homesick is all”
>her words became less and less coherent
>”i was so worried”
>”i was so scared i would never see you again”
>”you mean so much to me i couldn’t stand knowing you were alone out there”
>she went on and on as her words began to get softer until it became quiet
>she had fallen asleep nuzzled directly into your face
>you were in heaven 
>you vowed never to distress applejack like that again
>what you’ve been doing has been hurting her
>you hate to see her so upset
>to stay up so late and refuse herself any sleep just because you weren’t within an arms reach
>you can’t imagine the pain you’ve caused her
>you promise to always do as she says
>her comfort matters more than anything to you
…
>https://youtu.be/GLg_wp0IXoI (Insomniac)

>sometimes you think you’re just selfish
>you stay awake as long as you can to bask in the feeling of applejack pressed against you
>you feel like you’ve taken advantage of her worry to get her to coddle you more
>sure, it wasn’t your original intention, but hearing her words of concern for you is addicting
>maybe you just lacked it so much before that it’s become like a drug to you
>you feel just awful
>applejack has been suffering and throughout all this, you’re relishing in her kindness 
>maybe you’re just emotionally confused
>you love her
>dammit you love her too much
>you wish you could be tied to her somehow and never have a moment to yourself
…
>this isn’t love
>there’s something wrong with you
>applejack is the most caring pony in the world and you’ve done nothing but take advantage of her kindness
>you’ve done exactly what you told yourself you wouldn’t do
>you feel downright horrible
>even now you’re tempted to sneak a kiss while she’s asleep
>you feel bitter
>everything you’ve ever wanted is right in front of you 
>but if you have it you’re a monster
…
>maybe you’re overreacting
>but you know this is how you feel and that guilt is stuck with you
…
>looking back to your so-called ‘camping trip’ as you told applejack
>if you’re being honest with yourself it could have gone far worse
>what if you were surrounded?
>would you have had time to get up off the ground, light that firecracker, and tossed the can in time?
>maybe you were in a lot more danger than you thought
>maybe applejack was right
>you should be more careful
…
>applejack
>you're so desperate for her
>it’s pathetic 
>she’s right
>you’re sensitive
>but sensitive is an understatement
>you’re beyond that
>you’re needy
>you feel so desperate for her that it hurts
>and in your carelessness, all you’ve done is bring her pain
>she’s been suffering for hours on end worrying about you
…
>she’s so caring about you
>but this…
>this desperation is a whole other level
>it’s something your not even sure applejack would cater too
…
>she would find it repulsive
>it hurts so much 
>even if she reciprocated and took care of you in the sweetest of ways you’re worried that in the end it would do nothing but bring her down
>to constantly have to give you reassurance and to be so astoundingly patient with you
>you don’t deserve someone like applejack
>but that’s the least of it
>all that effort needed to build you up emotionally from where you are now would surely weigh her down in the long run
…
>applejack’s nightmare is over with you at home, but you’re in a nightmare of your own
>maybe you’re overreacting again
>but the guilt you have is so real 
>not even guilt
>it’s something new all on its own
>it’s a searing pain
>and you can’t make any sense of it
…
>applejack clearly cares for you
>you’ve never felt so deeply filled with care until you met her
>it can’t be nothing
>she really does care for you
>and she has been taking care of you in ways you never even knew you wanted
…
>she has no idea how much more you need