My Little Pony Friendship is Magic: The Last Roundup
A/N: Hey, MLP fans! So, here as promised is the first update with another update tomorrow, and I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas yesterday. I got to spend some time with my family and open presents before going to work for an four-hour shift at the movie theater. It was busy and they had me cleaning theaters, which isn't easy with a toe that was worked on nine weeks ago as of today. Yeah, it's still healing, and I won't go into detail of why it was worked on, but it had to do with the toenail.
Anyhow, time for our favorite ponies to figure out why Applejack is refusing to return to Ponyville.
Read, review, and enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own anything from My Little Pony: Magic is Friendship. I just own any and all characters that I just happen create.
CHAPTER THREE: CHERRY MAYHAM!
The next day, Applejack was at the cherry factory, wearing a white uniform with a cherry symbol on it, and she was getting ready to use a circular treadmill to run a conveyor belt to moving red and yellow cherries when Cherry Jubilee came into the factory room.
"You ready to put your back into it, Applejack?" she asked cheerfully.
Applejack nodded and stepped onto the circular treadmill. "Sure am, Miss Jubilee."
Cherry Jubilee beamed. "Terr-ific," she said and called to the doorway. "Come on in, girls!"
Applejack stared in shock when her six friends, all wearing the same uniform she was wearing, entered and took their places at the conveyor belt. "What are you all doing here?" she demanded.
"We're your cherry sorters," Twilight Sparkle answered cheerfully. "Shall we get started?"
"Fine," Applejack grumbled with a scowl.
Cherry Jubilee was obvious to the negative reaction and pointed to the two containers they were to fill. "Haha, red cherries go in one bin, and yellow cherries go in the other," she instructed with her usual smile. "Simple as cherry pie. Uh, just one teensy thing to remember – have fun!" And she left the room to take care of other business.
Once she was gone, Applejack poked her head out of the treadmill to look at her friends. "What are you six up to?" she demanded.
"Well, uh, you made working on a cherry orchard sound… so delightful," Rarity replied.
"And we decided to try it out," Sunrise Blossom added.
Applejack wasn't convinced. "Uh-huh," she said. "Well, just remember: No talking about Ponyville."
"Fine!" said Rainbow Dash. "Why don't you quit talking and get walking?"
Still suspicious of her friends, Applejack began walking on the treadmill, the gears started turning, and soon red and yellow cherries began appearing on the conveyor belt. For several minutes, the ponies worked in silence with the six sorting the cherries into their proper containers while Applejack kept the conveyor belt moving.
The blue pegasus glanced at the orange pony and then she look over at Twilight Sparkle, who winked and broke the silence.
"So, AJ, how was Canterlot?" she inquired and her friend shot her a look. "Not talking about Ponyville, talking about Canterlot, totally different town."
Applejack looked away, but she did answer. "Canterlot was fine."
"Was the rodeo fun?" the purple unicorn asked.
Applejack nodded. "Yes."
Twilight Sparkle moved away from the conveyor belt, forcing the five ponies to work harder on sorting the cherries, and walked over to the treadmill. "Did you meet some nice ponies there?" she inquired.
"Some," said Applejack shortly.
Rainbow Dash flew over and hovered in front of the orange pony. "Really?" she asked eagerly. "Did you see Wild Bull Hickok? What about Calamity Mane?"
"Yes, I saw 'em both," Applejack answered shortly and ignored the blue pegasus, who was trying to encourage her to say more.
Now Rarity left the conveyor belt, forcing Sunrise Blossom, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie to work even harder to make sure the cherries went into the correct containers. "And how did you meet Miss Jubilee?" she questioned.
"Um, well, Miss Jubilee had a cherry stand at the rodeo," Applejack answered, moving faster and so the conveyor belt started moving faster, bringing out more cherries. "Real good treats."
"Um, excuse me?" Fluttershy called out, mildly alarmed as they tried to keep up with the cherries.
Applejack ignored her. "Cherry winks, cherry cheesecake, cherry tarts," she continued. "We struck up a conversation, being orchard folk and all."
"So you told her about Sweet Apple Acres?" Twilight Sparkle asked.
Applejack nodded, increasing her speed. "Yes."
"Did you tell her why you weren't going back?" Rainbow Dash questioned.
"No, 'cuz it was none of her business!" Applejack shouted, now outright running.
Like the episode from I Love Lucy, Sunrise Blossom, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie were struggling to keep the cherries under control, but they were moving so fast, that they were getting overwhelmed.
"Help!" Sunrise Blossom screamed.
"Ooh… Can you please slow down?" Fluttershy pleaded frantically.
Rainbow Dash ignored the cries for help, focusing entirely on her friend. "Is it because I made it rain on you that one time?" she demanded.
"No!" Applejack snapped, still running.
"Help!" Fluttershy and Sunrise Blossom both screamed, getting buried by the cherries, which Pinkie Pie was now trying to eat.
"Is it because you were insulted when I gave you that book on organized orchards?" Twilight Sparkle questioned.
"NO!" Applejack shouted.
"Is it because you were insulted when I insulted your hair?" asked Rarity.
"No, no, NO!" Applejack screamed, her face going red. "I'm not telling you why, so just-"
"STOP!" Sunrise Blossom screamed.
Applejack came to a screeching halt and the cherries went flying off the conveyor belt and they splattered all over the room and the ponies. The orange pony stood frozen for a moment, and then she stormed out of the room.
An hour later, the six ponies were still cleaning up the mess and were nearly done. Twilight Sparkle was using her magic to mop up cheery juice. "Well, girls, we seem to be striking out," she remarked sadly.
"And in more ways then one," Sunrise Blossom agreed glumly.
"That's 'cause we're playing too nice," Rainbow Dash grumbled.
"Yes," Rarity agreed, neatly cleaning juice off the conveyor belt. "Desperate times do call for desperate measures."
The blue pegasus nodded and turned to look at Pinkie Pie, who was happily licking red cherry juice off the conveyor belt. "It's time to call in the big guns," she agreed with a grin.
A/N: Danger, Will Robinson, danger! What is Rainbow Dash going to have Pinkie Pie do to Applejack? Post your guesses in the reviews and find out tomorrow if you're right. R&R everyone!