Lorial (Closed: Applejack)

[SteelEagle]

 

Normally it didn't go like this, not at all. Hunting a critter down who was sneaky enough to evade her at the farm was by no means a usual circumstance. She knew the farm like the back of her hoof and rare was the occasion when something could slip out of her hooves multiple times before escaping. Even rarer were the events where something could evade her at the farm while getting away with some produce. In fact, it had only happened once. Today. Today of all days, when the vaunted and expensive Lorialberries were coming in. One day a year the most beautiful and succulent berry in all of middle Equestria was ripe and ready for the picking. Just one of them produced an explosion of flavor and taste unlike anything tasted before or since. Mix one of the Lorials into anything and it was improved tremendously. Well, except for apples. That would be heretical. Point being, they were rare and she could use them in both her cooking as well as a raw ingredient. For a pound of Lorials some markets would charge north of eighty bits and ponies were still more than willing to pay that price.

 

So of course Applejack would go ahead and try to get involved in that. Everypony and their grandmare rustled up some blackberries around Ponyville and they weren't worth much to her anyway. She reworked the soil and got herself some nice Lorial seeds. Every day she worked at it as the instructions were precise as to the amount of sunlight and water they had to have daily, and it even had specific times it needed to BE watered. Day in, day out, for ten straight months she had spent a considerable amount of her time concerned about these berries. By the time they started to peek out of the ground she was more than happy to see the possibility of a nine-hundred bit investment plus the cost of covering, water, and not using it for her other berries to start to have a return on it. She watched them grow and grow and grow and look better and better until one day they started to turn green. She gathered up her baskets and woke up early the next day, ready to pick them and have the most glorious day of business in her life. The Lorials were coming in, prime cider was on sale, and the apple crop was coming in and was extra special this year. Everything was turning up Applejack.

 

Until it no longer did.

 

She woke up and ventured out to her berry patch and behald a massacre the likes of which would shake a lesser pony to the core with sobbing. Her Lorials- gone. All of them taken in the night. Their tiny little stalks nude and unforgiving in the theft of their produce. Her produce. She had loved and cared for them and here they were, robbed of the gift they were going to bequeath to her. And the culprit in all of its greed had returned to snatch the very last Lorial. A jet black ferret looking critter but bigger by about seven or right times, half as big as a pony, beady blue eyes poking out of sunken gray sockets. It held the lorial between sharp teeth but did not bit down. In fact, there was no sign of any juice on its outrageous lips at all. The precision and the size would be enough to frighten most ponies, but Applejack didn't frighten easily. No, instead she kicked flank easily. And she got angry easily when she saw almost a full year's worth of work flushed down the drain.

 

So she charged...and charged...and charged. And chased and dove and tried to lasso and got her family involved. For five and a half hours the animal toyed with her as a cat toys with a mouse, ducking under her and around her, running on top of her when she was down and jumping from branch to branch when she gained on the ground. It darted behind a tree and then dug a hole, appearing across the orchard to use the bathroom before it gave a fiendish little squeal of laughter before it ran around some more. It jumped through her lasso in mid-air and landed oj her face, and in a quick reaction Applejack punched herself as it kicked off her hat and ran away. When it was all said and done for her family, everypony was left in a tired heap. Applejack had to admit defeat...for a time, at least. Under no condition would she allow this to go unpunished, but it was time to stop playing missus nice pony. Oh, her family told her not to, but she started preparing. She had taken care of critters threatening the farm before and she would do so again.

 

Eight hours after it started, Applejack left the barn with a full saddlebag of gear to capture the little beasty. She started tracking it. The beast had distinctive fur and it was shedding easy enough to track. Up and down trees, hills, roads, ponds even- ponds!- she tracked it. It wasn't hard at all even as the terrain started to change from Ponyville to open grassland. The whole world seemed to revolve her anger at this critter but she had to say that this thing had endurance. the way the fur fell was thin as if it was shedding at speed rather than waddling around aimlessly. Finally, Applejack came to a cave that stuck out like a sore thumb in the grassland, a rocky outcropping serving as its calling card. Applejack stopped at the mouth of the cave and dropped her saddlebag, leafing through it successfully and smiling. After a minute she pulled out a small cylinder and shook it for a few seconds.

She then twisted it a few times and it produced a light, the geode crystals inside reacting to the layered earth pony magic. She then slathered it in tree sap and put it between her ear and her head, giving her good light ahead of her. She then put her saddlebag back on and stepped into the cave, pushing a rock in between her and the exit.

 

"All right you little screw-up, Ah'm comin' ta get mah berries an' thar ain't a thing ya can do about it!"

[Hippo]

Applejack raced straight into the cave with no regard for her safety. Should a grizzly bear be inside, she felt confident this good-for-nothin varmint would warn the approach of something bigger than them anyway. And if it attacked her? Well, she had a rope, a rope that for any other pony would just be a casual lace that you could use to pull up a curtain, or tie a dog outside the cafe made for high society. But to Applejack, it was her tool, her lifeline, her weapon. And it was sitting peacefully in her saddlebag waiting for the next moment to make Applejack look good yet again. But she was only by herself. It's too bad no pony was here to watch her.

As the light from outside the cave failed to reach deeper into the cave, Applejack's light geode placed on her head peaked through her hat and illuminated directly where she was facing. She could only see in front of her, and the sounds of the cave echoed throughout. She wondered how bats even hear how deep a cave is, knowing how the sound can be deceiving.

And then she heard something quite familiar, but odd for its moment. She heard hoof steps. Although they sounded like they matched hers to a tee. It was probably just the walls next to her, although the moment the cave got really dark, and her geode was the only thing illuminating her path for vengeance, she noticed something strange about her light. There were two light sources.

She halted, her hooves scraping to a stop, the dust picking up lightly underneath her. When it cleared, she walked towards the light, and it got towards her as well. And then she saw it. An exact copy of herself. The geode, the saddlebag, the hat, the muscular haunches, the whole shebang. Applejack looked stunned for a moment, but then sighed with relief. "Wheew! It's just a mirror." Her reflection copied her movements both legs and mouth motion. Although her voice seemingly echoed off the walls. "But what's a mirror this clear doin' in a cave like this?" Applejack reached out to touch her reflection, the reflection reaching with her. And then her hoof touched the other hoof.

Within a blink of an eye, Applejack's reflexes knew exactly what she was dealing with. Despite having a lack of sensory in her hooves, she knew exactly what textures feel like. Several years of labor on the farm taught her exactly what things sound like when you hit them, and what kind of pressure they cause when you touched them. Applejack knew what she was touching. She was touching another hoof.

Immediately, Applejack paced quickly backwards, her hooves stumbling on small rocks and imperfections on the cave floor, until her panic mode threw her against the wall, looking at herself with confusion and fear. "What in tarnation!" Applejack breathed heavily, as if she was having a panic attack. "Who the hay are you!"

​

[SteelEagle]

 

The cave would have been unbearably dark had it not been for the light. It was just a bit of good old fashioned Earth Pony creativity that had brought her geode light to life. She had found herself in caves spelunking about more times than she would care to count and had always been hampered by the dark. She had unicorn friends and that took care of most cases but it was a bit disconcerting that she had been forced to be led around like a dog on a leash by her friend and light source. Other times you had to bring in a torch and while that required only yourself, the chance of dropping it and having that light snuffed out was too dang high. Geodes were bright and beautiful but what you didn't know until you worked with them a bit was how amazingly malleable they were in the proper hooves. A nice little cylinder was made and for a week's worth of effort you could mold a geode to fit in it. Little divots on the inside of the geode kept them protected from the air and thus dark. Twist the cylinder and crack open the divots and you had it hit by subtle Earth pony magic that flowed around every earth pony. Then use sap to stick it in and keep it close and you had a long-lasting light source to toy around with! She had made a few of them. Enough for the whole family and then some. The cave would have been unbearably dark had it not been for the lights.

 

Wait. Lights?

 

The other one approached opposite her, the two geodes intermingling chaotically as the two ponies approached one another. As the light started to die and dim out of her view, she started to get a better look at this other pony. Wait. That couldn't be right. Not a pony because it was the same as her! The same cute freckles and eyes washed over a rugged but face hidden under a brilliant blonde mane and the greatest hat this side of existence. Her taut, toned form was reflected in this other one, each farm tough muscle packed in behind wiry and stringy tissue hardened by a thousand aches and pains yet as soft and silky to the touch as anypony could dream. A little pot-belly full of Apple family goodness couldn't hide the six pack of powerful abs that gave the same story as the legs, each home to a certain firmness of form that drove the stallions wild with desire. Yep, this was definitely Applejack. Must have been a mirror!

 

"Wheew! It's just a mirror," her reflection copied every movement she made piece by piece even as her voice oddly echoed off the walls. It shouldn't have done that but then again there shouldn't have been a mirror in the middle of a cave... "but what's a mirror this clear doin' in a cave like this?" Applejack reached out to touch her reflection, the reflection reaching with her. And then her hoof touched the other hoof.

 

Hoof on hoof!

 

It didn't take her but a fraction of a moment to pull back from the touch. That was real. Not the tough and cold touch of glass she had come to know, but warm and tender with a ring of hard tissue followed by the softest clop of hoof on hoof that may as well have been the crashing and yelling of thunder and fury. This was a hoof. This was not a mirror.

 

This was real!

 

Applejack leapt back like a cat frightened by something yet alert, landing on all four hooves several paces behind where she had started even as the impostor staggered backwards. Applejack had recently had more than a few run-ins with changelings. She had fought some in open war and been deceived by the Queen. That incident had left her weak and drained and a shell of her former self for far too long to not feel the cold fear that preceded overwhelming dread as it traveled throughout her body. In years past this terrifying feeling would have sent her fleeing or at least cowering. She was never a coward and always brave but even a brave pony has her breaking point. Applejack had been forced past hers already though and the dark held no more terror for her. Coupled that with a bit of hoof fighting experience with Suntrot and she fell back into a bit of a cold stare to hide her encroaching terror, slowly backing up as she slipped her hoof into the saddlebag.

 

"Ah ain't sure what YOU are, but Ah'm Applejack," she started up before pulling out her lasso and twirling it, "and if you know what's good for you, yer gonna start tellin' me why ya led me here!"

[Hippo]

"You're Applejack!? Are you jokin'? Is this some kinda Pinkie Pie prank? Ah'm Applejack!" Applejack saw her reflection reach into her bag. After a short suspicion on what she might pull out, it was confirmed that exactly what Applejack would normally have in her saddlebag herself, this reflection, seemingly evil, would pull out one just like it. So in return, she decided to do the same. "And if YOU know what's good fer you, you'll start telling me that this is all a prank and that someone is really good at making costumes of me somewhere in Ponyville." The thought of such a great costume creeped Applejack out a little.

She started twirling her lasso in the air shortly after the other pony did the same. Applejack was confident that she would not let her rope her without her getting a piece of her leg as well. But since this was a prank anyway, probably, this pony in costume could not possibly have the rodeo skills that ten time Ponyville champion Applejack has. "And if you don't tell me, I'll show you what ten years as rodeo champion can do with a rope."

After a few seconds of slack twirling lassos, Applejack decided she could not wait any longer, and made a executing jerk of the head, throwing the lasso at the costumed pony. With a well-timed tug, Applejack caught her leg, and began to pull her in to tied her legs up.

​

[SteelEagle]

 

"You're Applejack!? Are you jokin'? Is this some kinda Pinkie Pie prank? Ah'm Applejack! And if YOU know what's good fer you, you'll start telling me that this is all a prank and that someone is really good at making costumes of me somewhere in Ponyville.”

 

The imposter couldn't help but land a few blows as it spoke, somehow either playing the part of Applejack so well it could almost be mistaken for the real thing or close enough by a passerby. It acted real indignant when Applejack stood up for herself and demanded answers. So close together and with nothing to hide, a bit unusual for say a Changeling to do so. In fact it was really very weird all together if it was a Changeling. They often loved to gloat or separate and attack you after a bit of divide and conquer. So maybe not a Changeling...or maybe it was worse: One of the Changeling leaders on an important mission. It didn't have the inclination to engage Applejack...but then the imposter brought out its own lasso. Okay, this was getting weird. And insulting. It thought it could replicate what Applejack did?!

 

“Y'all are messin' with tha wrong pony if ya think ya can fool me. Ah've had too many dang Changelings hurt me real fierce lately ta fall for something like this again. If you didn't lead me here, weren't in charge of that Lorialberry stealing critter, then what brought you 'ere?” Applejack began to step backwards, lasso slackening ever so slightly as her thoughts were overwhelmed with the possibilities. Changeling or not, this imposter must have meant business and she needed to keep her focus or else-

 

-"And if you don't tell me, I'll show you what ten years as rodeo champion can do with a rope." -

 

-or else this happened. In a snap and a crack her back left leg was pulled out from under her, sending Applejack on her back with a bit of a concussed head. It took a second or two to realize what had happened and was happening. That rope movement was so fast- only four ponies in all of Equestria could use a rope like that. Three of them had been in front of her at Calamity Mane's rodeo show, neutering her rodeo show career for the time being. The fourth had been herself. This imposter had done her homework AND her work if she was able to use a rope like that. Sadly for her, there was only one ten time rodeo champion of Ponyville and Calamity Mane jack of all trades and she was currently on the ground. As she was pulled, Applejack bit her own lasso and strung it out a few feet. Then with a mighty snap of her head she launched it forward, grabbing ahold of the imposter's front right hoof. She jerked, hopefully pulling it down.

 

“Ten years as rodeo champion AND professional rodeo pony! Do your homework better next time!” She seethed through the rope in her mouth, grabbing ahold of it as she spat it out and pulling the other Applejack in roughly.

[Hippo]

Applejack fell as the mare she lasso'd lasso'd her as well. Pretty good at attacking while laying on the ground, she had to admit for a split second. And there she pulled the other Applejack in closer and closer, their bodies just dragging each other in on the floor. Applejack wasn't even sure how she would go about tying her up, herself being on the ground, but she was optimistic anyways. Applejack never gave up during a scuffle. To gain better leverage, she started tugging with her hooves. "I tell ya what, you give up now, and I'll promise I wont tie you up so tight it leaves a mark. And if you continue to play nice, I'll make sure they give you the good jail-cell in the Ponyville slammer. And if you don't, well, you better hope the Princess' banish you to somewhere within the general vicinity of Equestria."

Closer and closer, the two ponies dragged each other to the center of their ropes. Once Applejack got there, she quickly tried to reach for the fake's hoof to get her turned around to tie.

​

[SteelEagle]

 

"I tell ya what, you give up now, and I'll promise I wont tie you up so tight it leaves a mark. And if you continue to play nice, I'll make sure they give you the good jail-cell in the Ponyville slammer. And if you don't, well, you better hope the Princess' banish you to somewhere within the general vicinity of Equestria."

 

Pulled towards each other with all the strength they could muster, which was might indeed. The imposter pulled off quite the amazing feat if Applejack was being entirely honest- and she was nothing if not entirely honest. Despite having a rope around her hooves all tight like, the imposter still used it to pull towards Applejack. Impressive if a bit dumb. It would only tire her out more and give Applejack the advantage when they got close, so Applejack didn't feel like stopping her much. Instead, the two pulled closer and closer together, each one eying up the other. For Applejack's case, she was already planning what to do when they got close. Whatever this imposter thought she was going to do, there were only a few possible outcomes and they all involved Applejack kicking the imposter's flank up and down this cave until she got her Celestia deserved answers. The imposter could either cooperate now or cooperate after she was absolutely exhausted, but she was going to cooperate either way.

 

They pulled close together finally and the imposter went to go make good on its threats, attempting to tie Applejack's hooves. This was a silly move! With the imposter's hooves covered with Applejack's rope, all Applejack had to do was pull hard. The imposter was unable to do anything for a second as she lurched forwards, directly into Applejack's chest. The mare moved quick and bearhugged the imposter around the neck and head, pulling her into an open clinch around the neck, locking it in and giving her control. It wouldn't hurt too bad- well, a bit for sure- but not until she applied pressure.

 

“Now, how about AH tell YOU what- yer gonna TELL ME what the hay is goin' on here and yer gonna tell me right the hay NOW!”

[Hippo]

Applejack swung a loop in her rope at the other pony's legs. But as she did, a small rock she didn't see made her slip as she hurled it sideways over her dragged body, and she lost a little balance. And with that lost balance, the look-a-like tugged her in with her legs, bringing Applejack to her grasps. Before Applejack could flinch, she was in a headlock, with a signature move she only used in desperate situations was placed pinching on her neck, waiting for the moment to execute. Applejack struggled for a second, attempting to wrap her own hooves around the other ponies neck to continue the stalemate, but the other one's shoulders were firmly placed blocking her ability to reach. So, she stopped struggling, understanding that the death grip she was in was intended to do exactly what it said it does. Regretfully, Applejack dropped her rope out of her mouth and yielded her hooves, all with a very angry expression plastered across her face and eyebrows.

The pony asked her a question. Applejack breathed heavily through her nose and responded. "All I did was come casually into this here cave on account of some creepy good-fer-nothin' varmint stealin' some precious crop when all of uh sudden," Applejack wiggled fiercely, "A pony that looks like me, talks like me, and ropes like me, is tryin' to death grip me, steal my identity and steal my friends and family!" In a intense moment like this, all Applejack could really think about is how she let herself down. When this look-a-like, assuming deadly, finished her job, she would be able to carry on like she was the real Applejack, even though Applejack knew in her mind that she was the real Applejack. All of the regrets of her life were suddenly bundled into one. The only difference from a real tragedy would be that she knew she would not have a funeral after she died.

​

[SteelEagle]

 

"All I did was come casually into this here cave on account of some creepy good-fer-nothin' varmint stealin' some precious crop when all of uh sudden. A pony that looks like me, talks like me, and ropes like me, is tryin' to death grip me, steal my identity and steal my friends and family!"

Applejack couldn't believe a lick of what she was hearing, but she was hearing it. This..imposter...had to be an imposter...was really pushing hard, doubling down on making Applejack doubt what was going on. She seemed awfully sure of herself even when she was cinched in and unable to move, being slowly squeezed out. Slowly because Applejack didn't want to hurt the imposter that bad in the end. All she wanted were answers. Answers she wasn't getting because either this imposter was really committed to the act or...well, she wasn't going to consider the opposite possibility. The whole realm of identity had proven to be a real nasty bugger lately to Applejack and she wasn't about to give In to the temptation of curiosity too much just yet. Just a little.

 

She loosened the hold just a little, bringing her bottom legs up and around the imposter. The hold was more secure now, stronger even, but less painful. It could be held for a while. It gave Applejack enough space to pull out and take a deep look at the other Applejack's face. This close, she could examine the tiniest little detail. The freckles were the same. The eyes were the same. The way the barest hint of a tear formed under the lidded eye as it squinted in pain, she knew that look. She'd worn that mask a few times too often lately. The way she moved, coiled muscle groups flexing and contracting as she tried to wiggle out. The beaded sweat of a hard day's work layered thick with the dirt mask of a hard day's work thickly strung along, as if she had been active the whole day without rest and couldn't even shower before setting off. A hard working work horse, just like...

“...No...it can't be...Ah came in here, huntin' down some critter that stole mah lorialberries...Ah spent all day chasin' it around...Ah...Ah created my geode light, Ah worked my tail off trackin...AH'm the real...Applejack...” she squinted, “land's sakes...YER ME TOO!”

[Hippo]

Applejack stopped wiggling violently as the other Applejack seemed to go easy on her with a less painful hold. And then there was that look in her eye, the same look the other pony had. It was like looking into a mirror that followed you wherever you looked. The sight of it seemed deceiving and unbelievable, but it was there. Applejack could not trust the reality, but she trusted all of her senses regardless. This could all just be a mean prank, or it could be the real deal. Another pony just like her. Exactly like her.

"But that doesn't make sense," Applejack huffed as hard as she could while being pinned. "If I'm you, too, then who am I supposed to be? And if I am you, then that means that I would be myself on account of you also being me who is being you being me." It made sense in her head, but when she said it out loud it was confusing as day old pear slices. "I see me when I look at you. But I'm pretty sure I'm me." Applejack blinked and looked up at the Applejack who had a hold of her. "Except, when I look at you, I see myself looking back at me, and I don't know who I am anymore." It wasn't like Applejack to have an identity crisis. She always knew who she was. She was the friendliest pony anyone visiting Sweet Apple Acres would ever meet. She was the roughest toughest earth pony to swing a bale of hay. And she was the boldest, most attractive orange pelted mare in all of Equestria. And this new pony. This other Applejack. Despite all impossibilities, she seemed to be that pony, too.

Applejack wasn't exactly comfortable, but she was willing to play along with the guessing of identity, since the pony she was with seemed to react the same emotionally. "I tell ya wut. You take this hold off me and I'll ask you some questions about who you are and how well it matches up with me, and then we can know for sure who the real Applejack is. I wont attack you, I promise."

​

[SteelEagle]

 

All Applejack could do was hold this other one limp in her forelegs. As true as it was that she still held her in a lock, it had almost no force applies. She couldn't do anything but have a certain slack-jawed fascination with whatever madness had come over them or her or whatever it was that she was experiencing. The other one spoke with equal confusion as Applejack felt, her words twisting and turning upon themselves like a delirious cannibal searching for sustenance in a cannibal. Slowly but surely Applejack acquiesced to the demands of the other, though they were demands and more pleas, and released her from the hold. Applejack backed up slowly, her hooves clacking against the ground and kicking rocks that made her check her surroundings in a quick burst of panic once in a while.

 

What had happened? What had happened? Was this real or were they dead? If it was real, was it the cave or some strange magic? Were they trapped or under attack by something? Was this a ploy by somepony to try and take Applejack out for some strange reason? That was a little less disturbing than the other possibility. What if she was dead? How'd she die? Was this the afterlife? Was it a reward or a punishment? Maybe she wasn't dead but in some strange coma. Maybe this Applejack was the Applejack that was meant to go wake up and live the life. She was different. The same but different, like everypony who went through such an experience. If that Applejack left, would this Applejack move on? Sweet Celestia this was hurting her head.

 

“Is the only me, me? Are you sure the only you is you? Is this real or are we dead or is this some sort...uggh, this is makin' mah brain hurt,” Applejack muttered, shaking her head free of the thoughts clouding it, “okay, okay, you, me, us, Ah...let's...uhh...okay, what led you-me- I here? That seems like a fine enough place to start...right?”

[Hippo]

It was all too confusing. So confusing, that both Applejacks seemed to be forced to take a back seat to the process. They were both each other as the initial suggestion would flow, but niether them would want to believe that to be true. So, Applejack would ask herself the simple question on how they both got there. "There was a thievin' scoundrel that took all of mah newly planted lorials. I don't even know what it was. It was like an overgrown badger of some sort. I follow it here and when I ran inside, I saw myself and fought with her. This crystal here helped me see. I got it from Twilight, she found this special geode that works with earth pony magic. You have one just like it. In fact, from here, the shape looks near identical. Do you remember when and where you got it?"

​

[SteelEagle]

 

The other Applejack's story played all the same notes of Applejack's sad melody. A nice bumper crop of Lorials wasted because of some critter that was similar in either account. Applejack Prime would say that her description was a bit closer but Applejack Two wasn't far off. Either it was the exact same or it was close enough to not be a coincidence. Did it lead them here on purpose? If there was some grander design at play here than the designer needed to stop cross-stitching their lives into this confused mess. Applejack had a lot of patience but it was going to be a bit much to deal with if she was expected to play a part in some cross-dimensional shenanigans. Only Twilight with her mirror adventures dealt with that.

 

“That's exactly what happened to me too! Ah tried ta catch that varmint all day long, but it just kept on squeaking through my hooves. Finally decided ta track it to its den and it led me here. Huh, at least that's sorta nice ta know- Ah wasn't the only pony who was havin' trouble with that creature! Well, Ah guess Ah was since we're the same pony...probably. Maybe. Ah mean not tha same but we're...uhh, the same. This is mighty confusin',” She rubbed her forehead as the subject of the Applejack-made flashlight came up. Good to hear that the Twilight in their universe was the same as the Twilight in the real Prime universe. Applejack chuckled, briefly rubbing up against the cylinder that contained the geode.

 

“Twilight likes ta help me sometimes with tha harvest, but Sweet Apple Acres' south orchard has been having so much trouble with tha vampire bats lately that Ah had to fertilize the ground and trees something fierce, caused a bit of an overgrowth in the branches that blocked out the light from tha ground. Needed some sort of light to see so she gave me this here geode and several more like it just in case she ain't there ta light the way. Ah guess yer Twilight is as nice as mine is, right?” Applejack nodded pleasantly, the common ground making it less awkward. She still had a lot of worry, but a sudden lightness and giddiness was starting to bubble forth. She had a great many friends and family but was balancing so many things that she often felt as if hr experiences were solitary. Now she had somepony who understood all too well what she was thinking and it was liberating- perhaps too much so.

 

“First learned how ta make it though from Big Mac! He's a bit more hooves-on than ponies give him credit for, though Ah guess you know that. Now Ah've made a few. Hopefully Ah can teach Apple Bloom how ta string it together right, though Ah worry it'll just send her deeper into tha Everfree. Ah swear Ah need to keep bells on her sometimes...no matter, though. Purple Haze'd keep her in line. Ah knew Ah was datin' Carrot Fields for some reason!” She joked, turning back to the other Applejack and apparently feeling as free as a bird in terms of subject matter, “how'd ya get those lorials?”

[Hippo]

Applejack was having an out of body experience. It was maddening to her to hear all of her thoughts, her history, her previous exchanges, her friends, and her family all being uttered as she can think it by the pony with her that looked, talked, and acted just like herself. It was like someone made an exact copy of Applejack right here and now.

But then she mentioned Carrot Fields, and the fact that they were dating. "Wait, hold on. You're dating Carrot Fields!? Wha-wha, ho- how long has that been going on?" In her won reality, Carrot Fields was pretty much a coltfriend to Applejack, but it had only just begun. It begun fast and hard, too. But the other Applejack spoke as if it had been a thing for a while. Though it be a personal matter between what seemed like the same pony, this might have been the first difference Applejack could point out.

​

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack perked her eyebrow up at the other Applejack's disbelief...if that was it was. Or incredulous, was it that? Surely the Carrot Fields in her reality was the fine upstanding stallion like he was in the real Applejack's reality. That would be an inssne change for sure! Nah, he'd have to be the same. Which made the shock relating more likely to the aspect of the relationship. Were they not together in the other reality? It'd make a sort of weird sense. He could be a shy stallion at times and maybe in that reality he hadn't made a move of two yet. Or maybe they were dating and it was just so weird to see another mare, even if it was yourself, talking about him like she was. That would be one heck of a trip. Applejack didn't know if she'd fight a pony or not because of it but she was leaning towards probably, which meant this other Applejack may be a little off put by the whole ordeal and on the fight 'probably' side of the spectrum. Applejack was sure she could take Applejack, though.

 

“Yep! Been datin' him for 'round a year now. Started during last Running of the Leaves. Poor thing was left in the dust! Or maybe he just wanted a looksee of the rear of Ponyville's repeat champion! Hehehe, he does have good taste, Ah'd say. If yer gonna go after tha winner ya may as well wait 'till it's an Apple pony. Ah reckon y'all aren't dating in yer universe?” Applejack asked bluntly. If this Applejack was anything like her she would appreciate the forthrightness, especially in the midst of all the zaniness that they were in the middle. Speaking of being in the middle of something, what had happened to that critter? Applejack had almost forgotten about that varmint and its thieving ways. No matter though. Once they had Applejack Prime and the other all squared away they could hunt down both of the critters and get back to being the best ponies in their respective worlds.

[Hippo]

It was strange to Applejack to hear the other Applejack talks to plainly about her relationship with Carrot Fields. If this Carrot was any similar to the Carrot Applejack knows, and by the looks of similarities these two orange mares had, he probably was, it made her think hardly about two things. First, what happened in Applejack's universe that made them get together so well and quickly, and second, Applejack was a little turned on to the idea that Carrot and her could be together without it being so strange, even with herself! Well, her other self, that is. In fact, she wondered what kind of conversations she could have with her self to figure out the stallion more than she already knows. Maybe she could get that relationship going in her world, she always considered it a valid possibility. And unless she was dreaming, it was a reality somewhere.

"No we ain't datin' yet. But, our families see each other all the time. I always thought there might be something there, but Carrot doesn't often make the first move. I thought about making it myself soon. Is that how it started with ya'll?"

​

[SteelEagle]

 

This Applejack must've been knocked for one heck of a loop. Applejack had just explained how it all started and there she went asking how it all went started. Well, it was a story that was nice twice as it was once or thrice and she was happy to repeat it. “Err, Ah guess Ah can repeat it. We were competin' in tha Running of tha Leaves. He was behind me in eighth place at the time, Ah was seventh. He took a nasty tumble. Ah went back ta help'm out. It made for a much harder race but near tha end Ah really turned it and won for the third time in four years, yee-haw! Hehehe, after tha race we started talkin' and one thing led ta another. Ah don't right recall who made the first move per se. Ah suggested tha date and he suggested tha place. Sorry if that don't help ya. Hehehe, maybe make sure y'all run together in the Runnin' of tha Leaves. Do ya have that race?” Applejack asked. It only now occurred to her that this Applejack may not have ever heard of such a thing, which would make the whole thing moot. Back to the Carrot talk which was pretty dang easy.

 

“Maybe y'all should give it a try. We have so much in common it makes spending time together easy as pie. Can't ever say Ah would have thought a stallion would make me feel this way after Rarity, but there it is. His little kilt is a bit odd, but heck, that accent is entertainment enough on its own. He did make a few jokes on account of what I was hiredta do at Calamity Mane's traveling show but after Ah joined the REA an' war Ah think he learned his place, hehehe...” Applejack ended lowly, trying to clear her head. Now that was a subject- a subject she would rather not discuss, at least not now. Hopefully it wouldn't come up. “So...tell me more about you. Ah'm interested in what's goin' on in the other me-you's world!”

[Hippo]

Applejack sunk her head a bit. "Yeah. We got the runnin'. And I've ever participated with Carrot a couple times. I first met him there, too. But then, the one things never lead to the other. I guess I was too focused on winning the race. I never did win. Have you won it?" Applejack would be quite embarrassed if this other Applejack was not only scoring in relationships better than her, but also winning more often. Should she say yes to this, it might prove herself to be the not-as-great Applejack. If this friendly surreal discourse with herself ever turned violent again, she would feel pretty inferior to a look-alike that did and does everything better than she. This had to be a bad dream, consarnit, please wake up!

And then she mentioned Rarity, as if it was on the table for some kind of super friendship. "R-Rarity!?" Applejack shook her head from the confusion. "Wait, you're that, huh, what?" Applejack yielded herself to the lack of information, and perhaps did not want to know more. Rarity was a great friend of hers, but she couldn't think of a situation in which she and her would ever come that close in a relationship. Or Maybe Applejack didn't know Rarity that well, just yet. You think you know a gal.

"Well, my best friend Twilight Sparkle became a Princess not to long ago. Does she exist in yer world like that? Has she ever been in another world?" Applejack struck and idea. "Does your world have a pony who tried to steal her crown? Or something like that? And uh, something about 'hands'?"

​

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack wasn't a mare slaved to her pride like a lot of other winners, but she had no problems being proud of her accomplishments. Of course it was a bit unusual that the other Applejack had missed her clearly saying that she had won three out of four years, but she was willing to chalk it up to oxygen deprivation from the earlier scuffle leading to short term memory loss. Hey, sometimes a pony has to do what a pony has to do but that doesn't mean once the hooves went from clashing to shaking that the long-term effects weren't still there. “Yep! Won three out of four years. Ah had to leave right before the fifth ta join tha REA, missed the sixth on account of tha war. Ah don't reckon Ah'll go this year, too dang bittersweet now with everything that's happened. But...yeah. Ah won. Second most victories in Ponyville history- tied, that is. So that's something,” Applejack ended on a low note, her voice trailing a bit as memories best kept private came back. Luckily, the other Applejack's reactions to the Rarity revelation brought a good smile back.

 

Hehe, they were an odd couple, weren't they? Nopony ever believed the fashionista and the farmpony could make it work and maybe time had shown their detractors right, but they had made a good run of it. They say you never really get over your first love and Applejack would debate that heartily, but she'd also be the first to say there was something about the first time that your heart started to pump like a rabbit's and your body felt like a slowly pumped helium balloon being toyed with. She was happy with Carrot now, but the fact this other Applejack wasn't even to step one made the differences between their worlds a little starker. “Hehe, well'f course Ah am. Why, Rares and Ah were together since we were middle-fillies. Six, seven years? Only broke up a year before Ah met Carrot. Heck, Ah blame her for me not winning four Running of the Leaves in a row! Too dang broke up over a break up to put my all in it. We're still friends, though. Are y'all friends too or is this some random pony Ah'm talkin' about?” Applejack asked, honestly wondering how much more different their worlds were.

 

Everything this other Applejack was mentioning checked out in hers. Hehe, the idea of having hands was so creepy that Applejack wasn't sure how Twilight didn't erase the memory from her over-indulged brain. Though the fact Twi was her best friend was a small difference, at least. “Yep, Twi's an alicorn princess an' all with that odd lookin' castle in tha middle of town. She did go through a mirror and do all that, too. Hands- geez, they're the weirdest thing. Y'all ever see a picture of one? Twi took a 'picture' using a 'phone'- whatever that means- and allowed us to see what they look like. Small little protrusions out of your hoof an' it ain't even collared or nothin', and ya can't even walk 'round on 'em. Makes me feel sorry for hemanes. They don't even have tails!” Applejak emphasized this dilemma by bringing her rough and tumble tail her face and snugglin' it for a second. After being extra adorable, she allowed it to fall back down into the dirt. Rarity she was not.

[Hippo]

It was beginning to sound like both of these Applejacks had separate accounts that compared with each other. That is, of course, unless you leave out the part where the Applejack from the Carrot love interest world succeeds more than double what Applejack in singlehood world was. The ponies in Applejack's world honored as one of the strongest and most dependable. She wondered in the other Applejack was so freakin' amazing, how she wasn't a Princess like their good friend Twilight. And with Rarity, it was clear the other Applejack wasn't familiar with her version. "Oh yeah, we're great friends, see each other almost every day. And we've known each other since we've been fillies, too. She lives as a dress-maker and likes fashion and stuff like that. She's a hard worker. And her little sister is best friends with my little sister, Apple Bloom."

Applejack was very aware of the awkward situation that continued as she talked with herself about her other life. But there was still an interesting mystery to be found out. Where did that creature go with her hard earned crop? "Hey you chased after a black ferret-lookin' thing in here right? It was big ferret, if it was one."

​

[SteelEagle]

 

Yeah, that thing. The whole dang reason they were here. Of course they'd both gone over why they were here, it was the first thing they said to one another after they realized the other version of themselves wasn't a changeling leading them into a trap. Of course the other one hadn't called it a ferret last time, she'd called it a badger. Applejack had just called it a varmint. But heck, that was just the paranoid part of her mind trying to conjure up causes to rage against on account of how confusing a day this was. Applejack shook her head and then nodded. Yeah, they had the same experience, Maybe some small differences but for the life of her they were the same pony with slightly different lives. Slightly. Applejack seemed to have been a bit more worldly than her counterpart was all, but maybe this other Applejack was a few years younger and just hadn't done all that yet. Who knew wha the future held?

 

“Yep. Big 'ol ferret thing got tha dang Lorials Ah've been plantin'. Those things cost a mini fortune and there it was, gobblin' up mah private fund for tha farm,” Applejack noted solemnly, kicking at the ground lightly in shame. “Seemed like a real good investment at tha time! You can make quite a bit off of 'em. Spent all year with it on tha back of mah mind and all of a sudden, bam, that critter got away with it all. Ah can't be held responsible for what Ah'll do when Ah find it...uggh. So, it got something of yours. Probably Lorials as well, right? Huh. Ah wonder...well, we better go an' get 'em something good. Ah don't know how it managed to defeat one Applejack, but no creature can handle two Apples at once,” Applejack said as she started her light back up. Time to go critter hunting.

[Hippo]

"Well let's go get them, then!" Applejack dusted herself off, taking the ropes away from her, and tying her own rope to get ready to wrangle the critter. "As soon as we see 'em, let's try and corner it. There's no way it'll get passed us." Applejack put her hat on, and angled it forward. She started trotting into the cave's deeper end and with the light of the geodes, was able to see where she was going. Eventually, she followed the tunnel to an open cave room, that for all she could see was a dead end and empty. And right in the middle of it, was that black oversides rodent. Looking at it now, Applejack could still not tell what it was. She looked at the other Applejack. "What in tarnation do you think it is?"

​

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack nodded along with her counterpart. No doubt they needed to capture that critter and string him (or her) from the highest flagpole in whichever Ponyville was home to the 'Jack that caught it. Normally she'd be against the harming of any small creature that didn't threaten her with physical harm but at this stage it was a danger to the farm as much as anything could be a danger to Applejack's own ponyhood. She needed to be sure that they got this bugger no matter what and followed in close order behind the other one. They clip clopped down the cave, their hooves sounding off in an echo pattern against the silence that pervaded them in an unusual manner. It was as if every time an echo hit something it doubled, then tripled, then grew silent in a single moment.
 

After a short venture down they ran into the critter that had brought them there, curling up in fear and anger at the two Applejacks approaching it. Yeah, what was it? Applejack took a closer look. Small but curved claws which seemed to retract in a semi-circle fashion, which made it easy for the creature to cange direction quickly. Small, beady eyes of fury and hate stuck out in the blackness, a dull red blinking hiding little else than malice under fur that seemed to end in points so fine they could cut somepony. “Huh. Well, it...it sorta looks like...well...Ah don't quite know. Like a real angry sloth...ferret thing. A...slerret?”

[Hippo]

 

"Ah don't care what it is. As long as we catch it." Applejack pulled her rope out and started swinging it into a header circle. With a quick flick of the neck, the rope shot towards the creature, but the creature jumped away before the rope could grab it. Instead, Applejack's rope got tied to a stalagmite. "Consarnit. It's tryin' to get away!" As Applejack motioned for the other Applejack to cut it off from getting away, she approached the stalagmite to pull the rope off and try again.  It was very meta to have herself as a partner.  It was like having an pony version of Winona to help her wrangle.  But then she thought, what if she was the pony playing the role of Winona?  Applejack stumped herself for a moment, as she attempted to tie herself a new header.

​
 

[SteelEagle]

 

Applejack was more than happy to follow the other one's orders. They were both excellent herders and Applejack for all of her stubborn ability was likely to listen to herself on most matters even if herself wasn't technically “herself”. It was always good to work in teams and that was why she almost always had Winona with her, but the poor mutt had been tuckered out by this thing earlier. That left Applejack to play her role today and she was pretty pleased to do so. As long as it led to this critter being corralled so they could go on with their lives she'd be more than happy. Applejack bounded towards the escape and got into position, cutting off the thing from an easy escape. It stopped in its tracks, for the first time its beady eyes filling with a hint of worry. If this thing had the same sort of emotions as a pony might, Applejack could imagine a twinge of fear starting to trickle up and done its spine.

 

And then something fell on her head and leaped up with such force that it sent her off of her hooves, her hat flittering in the wind. The cornered critter jumped up and grabbed the hat in its evil little mouth and scurried off as Applejack adjusted her sight to...a SECOND one of those critters? It chattered at the one that fled and followed in quick order, the pair absconding with her hat. Applejack leapt up in a mad dash, hooves on her head in a panic. This couldn't be happening. Not here- not now! Not like this! How in the wide wide world of Equestria was this happening to her? There were two of them? Was there more? Where were they coming from? “Wha- mah hat! An' thar's TWO of 'em? HEY YOU COME BACK WITH MAH HAT!” Applejack bellowed and took off after the critters, losing all sense as she barreled down the path.