Tags: [Slice of Life] [Alternative Universe]

Characters: [OC] [Applejack] [Troubleshoes]

Written By: Rockdude

Note: Partially set within the universe of "Fledgling Emporium" on Infinite Story by Rockdude2

When Applejack had first found out about a place called Fledgling's Emporium that operated within Ponyville, she had thought little of it. Never did she suspect it would be the place where she would find true love: A stallion to settle down with and ultimately start a family of her own with.

Yet such would be the case when Applejack stumbled upon none other than Troubleshoes whilst getting lost in all the eccentricities that the emporium had to offer. As it turned out, the store catered to a very specific clientele: What was known as adult foals. That's not to say it didn't have stuff for ordinary foals, because it did.

And Troubleshoes just so happened to be there during Applejack's first visit, showing up in the most embarrassing way imaginable: Clad in a thick diaper, wearing a bonnet and a onesie, and all in all looking very fillyish.

Applejack couldn't resist laughing hysterically. "Now why in the hay are you all dolled up like that, Troubleshoes?" She questioned once her laughing fit ceased and she wiped the tears from her eyes.

The rather massive stallion sighed. "I needed a little extra money to make ends meet, so I signed up to be the mascot for this emporium," He frowned and sat on his padded posture. "Just my luck I'd do it without bothering to read what it was all about. With a title like 'Fledgling's Emporium', how did I know they wanted a great big foal to model all their clothes?"

"Hey now, there ain't nothin' wrong with that. You look mighty cute dressed up like that." Applejack commented with a smile.

Troubleshoes was taken aback by the statement. "Really? You think I'm…" He couldn't help but blush. "Cute?"

The stetson wearing earth pony nodded as she trotted up towards Troubleshoes. "Of course I do. Why, you look as cute as Apple Bloom did the day she was born," Then she asked him. "But you probably don't like bein' stuck like this, do you?"

Troubleshoes shook his head from side to side. "Of course I don't. I look completely ridiculous and I just want to get out of these frilly things. I can use a bathroom just fine, I don't need to be wearing one."

"Then come on, sugarcube," Applejack said as she helped the massive stallion to stand. "Let's go see who we gotta talk to about gettin' ya out of all that."

From that first encounter, Applejack found that she couldn't stop thinking about Troubleshoes. She already knew him to be a pony who meant no trouble, a pony willing to fess up when he did wrong, and a pony who was arguably as strong as she was (maybe even stronger). So she started coming to Fledgeling's Emporium more and more often, frequently just to see Troubleshoes. It didn't take long for her to realize that she was in love with him, something that surprised her given that she hadn't given love much thought at all.

Yet when the farm mare finally worked up the nerve to tell Troubleshoes how she felt about him, she quickly learned that he was starting to feel the same way. So it was that the two agreed to be married, Troubleshoes delighted at the prospect of settling down on a farm where he could put his strength and massive size to good use.

Of course, Applejack wasn't content just to have Troubleshoes as a partner and a husband. It didn't take long before she told him in no uncertain terms that she wanted foals. Troubleshoes couldn't think of a good reason to say no. And within a year of him and Applejack having married, their first born child arrived. It took the form of a son: Lucky, who was actually kind of on the scrawny side at first. He had a light brown coat, but inherited the same blonde locks as his mother, and had his father's eyes.

Time seemed to fly by in the blink of an eye, as Lucky grew rather quickly. Soon, he was almost as tall as his father. With the child naturally resembling his father more than his mother, it was no surprise that Lucky looked up to Troubleshoes a lot more than he did Applejack. He loved both his parents, but he seemed to have an especially close attachment to his father and seemed to always want to be just like him.

So it was that Applejack made a decision when an important milestone began to approach. One evening, she pulled Troubleshoes aside and said to him. "I want you to take the lead on helping to get Lucky potty trained. We Apples always start the trainin' as soon as the foal turns two and a half years old.

Troubleshoes sighed, he didn't really want to. "You've got way more experience with it than I do. I barely even remember my own training." He told his wife.

The stetson wearing earth pony protested with a shake of her head. "You gotta take the lead on this one, Troubleshoes," She reached out a hoof to reassure him. "We're gonna have to get him trained if we ever wanna get him into kindergarten, or even preschool. I'll try to help you as much as I can, but you know somepony's gotta keep the farm in workin' order. What are you so worried about? You've done a fine job raisin' Lucky with me so far. You're not gonna mess this up."

Reluctantly, Troubleshoes folded. "Fine, I guess I'll try," He was quick to warn. "But if he doesn't wanna potty train, I ain't gonna force him to do it. Reckon it ain't the end of Equestria if he doesn't get out of diapers before he turns three."

"Just try, okay, that's all I'm askin'." Applejack pleaded. And with that, the argument was settled.

The night before the training had begun, Applejack got everything all set up in the bathroom. But when the next day came, she was up with the sun and heading out to work in the fields with the rest of her family. That meant it was up to Troubleshoes to take the initiative and make an honest attempt to start Lucky's potty training.

Sighing deeply, Troubleshoes took a few deep breaths to steady his nerves before trotting into his son's nursery. Sure enough, Lucky was sitting up in his playpen, happily swishing his tail when he saw his father approach. "Hi Daddy!" He greeted.

Troubleshoes didn't even need to bend down to grab his son, effortlessly lifting him up and holding him close. "Hello, son," He spoke slowly. This was it, no turning back now. "Listen, Lucky, there's… somethin' I wanna show you. Somethin' very important. And it's somethin' everypony has to learn."

Lucky's eyes went wide with excitement! "Ooh! Are you gonna teach me how to applebuck?"

The tall stallion shook his head from side to side. "Nope, your ma reckons it'll be at least another year or two before you're ready to learn about that," When he saw his son open his mouth again he corrected. "And no, this ain't about where foals come from either. That's a talk that ain't happenin' until you're much, much older."

"Then, what is it you wanna show me, Daddy?" Lucky questioned, suspecting nothing.

Troubleshoes sniffed the air and patted his son's padded posture, then smiled as he removed the diaper and set it aside. "Well, just follow me, and I'll show ya. And I want you to promise me right now that you ain't gonna make a fuss about it."

Lucky nodded, trotting after his father. "Whatever it is, Daddy, I'm sure I'm gonna like it," He followed his father as they trotted together through the farmhouse, before eventually reaching the bathroom. Upon entering it, Lucky was most confused. "Why are we in here, Daddy?" He asked with a puzzled expression.

Troubleshoes sighed again. The moment he'd been dreading had arrived. "Because, son, it's about time you learned how to use the potty." He answered after taking a deep breath

"What's a potty?" The light brown colt questioned with a few curious blinks. He had no idea what a potty was, and looking around the bathroom didn't give him any clues, he couldn't see anything that looked like it might not have been there before.

The tall stallion simply gestured a hoof and directed his son's gaze towards something tall, white, and shiny. It appeared to be roughly bowl shaped, had a shiny silver handle resting off to one side, and was connected to a series of gleaming metal pipes anchored into the ground. "That's a potty. It's what ponies use instead of diapers when they need to do their business."

Lucky eyed the strange contraption with a mix of curiosity, fear, and most of all skepticism. "I have to use that?" He pondered aloud as he hesitantly trotted towards it. It was cold to the touch and seemed rather smelly.

"Eeyup," Troubleshoes declared, imitating his brother-in-law's favorite manner of speaking. "I know it probably doesn't sound invitin', but it's really quite simple. I already took off your diaper, so now you just gotta climb onto the seat and sit down. I reckon you can figure out the rest."

"Do I have to? I like my diapers." Lucky pouted and whined.

Troubleshoes did his best to resist the unhappy look his son was shooting him. He just lifted him up. "You can't stay in diapers forever, son. Like I said, this is somethin' everypony has to learn. Now don't worry, your ma went and got a special seat just for you so you won't fall in." He quickly placed Lucky onto a special child seat that had been fixed to the normal seat of the potty, only letting go when he was sure his son was in the proper sitting position.

Once seated on the potty, Lucky sat there with his legs all but reaching down to the floor despite his elevated position. Beneath him, he could see water and nothing else. For a moment or so there was nothing but silence. Neither he nor Troubleshoes spoke a word. Then, he looked across to his father and asked him. "How long do I have to sit here like this?"

"I reckon a good ten to fifteen minutes should do," Troubleshoes decided. "So get comfortable, sugarcube. If you don't have to do somethin', that's okay. I just want you to sit there and get used to the feelin'. I want this to become a routine for ya, so when you do have to go, you'll understand what you're supposed to do now, instead of goin' in your diapers."

The colt whined. "Ah, but that's boring! I don't like this at all!"

Troubleshoes tried not to laugh. "I know it doesn't sound like fun, son, but you gotta try."

"Probably would help if ya gave him somethin' to pass the time," The familiar voice of Applejack declared as she came trotting into the bathroom at that very moment, looking a bit dusty and sweaty. And on her back were several books. "Gotta give him somethin' to take his mind off things."

Troubleshoes sighed. "I had a feelin' I was forgettin' somethin'. Thanks for coverin' for me, hon."

Applejack smiled as she set the books down and then presented one to Lucky, watching as her son eagerly took up the book and started reading it, flipping through the pages. "No need to thank me, sugarcube. Ya did everythin' right. I reckon Lucky's got a pretty good idea now of what he needs to do when he has to do his business."

Troubleshoes then whispered to his wife. "Ya gonna tell him that there's still the outhouse in the fields in case of emergency?"

Applejack grinned and whispered. "What he doesn't know won't hurt him. After all, he's gotta get used to toilets like these, and Granny Smith refused to let us put one in the outhouse. She says it's fine as it is." As she and her husband were talking, they almost didn't notice when Lucky's tail instinctively lifted upwards. Then there were a few splashes.

Troubleshoes smiled, pulling some toilet paper off from the nearby roll as he drew his son's attention. "Good job, son! You did good. And on your first try too!"

"I went potty?" Lucky blinked in surprise, before looking down at the bowl below and seeing that he had. "Wow, that was easy!"

Applejack nodded. "Yup. Wasn't worth makin' a fuss about it, was it, sugarcube?" And when her son shook his head in disapproval she added. "Exactly! So just do it like that, and you'll have nothin' to worry about. And from now on, whenever you think you have to go potty, just come get either me, your father, or some other grown-up and they'll help you."

Troubleshoes hoofed the toilet paper to his son. "Now, use this to wipe up. When you're finished, just put it in the bowl," He instructed before pointing at the handle. "Then you can press that handle to flush it all away."

Lucky did so, watching in surprise and amazement as the water below him turned into a spinning whirlpool when he flushed. In the blink of an eye, everything swirled down a small hole at the bottom and disappeared. Then the water slowly refilled itself, crystal clear once again. It was so amazing, his diapers could never do something like that! What had he been so skeptical about before? Potty training was easy, and lots of fun.