Author Topic: Derivation  (Read 707 times)

Offline Darrus

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #30 on: February 07, 2014, 09:00:58 am »
Darrus only kept up his smile while Apple Bloom seemed to lose some of her spirit for a moment, him not seeing any reason why she should but understanding why a filly her age might anyway. Young ponies like her probably focus solely on the results of her endeavors, always thinking getting her cutie mark is the important part of her club. After all, that's why they were formed right? Well, maybe after she gets hers she'll realize what was really special about these "CMC" s. Having a group of friends to hang out with daily and always have around to help you out sounded, at least to Darrus, like the real reason why that group was special. Was definitely more than what he usually had at least, and he already had a cutie mark... Maybe when she's older and- agh! He was sounding old all of a sudden!

She cheered up right quick as she moved on. Good, will prevent the, still young himself, stallion from feeling like he was beyond his own years. "Sounds like you guys really don't leave anything out!" He commented with a nod at their efforts, "filmmaking, survivalists, water skiing, tattoo artists, flipping ninjas! Heh, sounds like a blast to be a member!" The canon mention caused him to raise an eyebrow, him making note of seeing if she would elaborate in the future. At her question he gave another nod as he stood up and turned while lifting his cloak up enough to show off the light blue and wavy lines forming the bullseye that was his own cutie mark, "Yup, I'm marked. My talents in having really really really good aim. Normally I show it off with ranged stuff, like slingshots and throwing darts at a board. You know, I almost wish I didn't have my cutie mark yet, just so I could join your club myself. You're probably all full up by now anyway though, huh?"

Offline Applejack

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #31 on: February 10, 2014, 07:24:35 pm »
Apple Bloom grinned in pride at Darrus' praise of the club, saying it sounded fun to be a member. Sure was. She couldn't have thought of a better group of ponies to hang out with! Then, Darrus lifted up his cloak to let her see his cutie mark, causing her to lean over a bit so she could inspect it from her spot. "Wow, a mark in  ranged stuff... That sounds like it'd be really fun..." she murmured before perking up slightly when he mentioned wishing he didn't have his cutie mark. "Nope, we're not full at all! 'Course, you gotta have a blank flank to be a member, or else it kinda defeats the purpose... But hey, maybe Ah kin talk the other girls into makin' you an honorary member!" she offered, grinning a bit once more. "An' maybe you kin teach us some o' yer specialty! Ah'd love ta have a cutie mark like yours!"

She paused then, ears perked as she looked out of the window for a moment or two before standing up to go to the door. "AJ's callin', she says soup's on. Let's go eat! Maybe you kin meet Big Mac an' Granny Smith now, too!" she said before stepping outside and waiting for Darrus to join her before leading the way back to the farmhouse.

Offline Darrus

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #32 on: February 10, 2014, 07:59:49 pm »
Darrus made a small dissapointed gesture with his hoof when it was, as one would expect, revealed to be a requirment for a pony to be a blank flank to join a club revolving around acquiring cutie marks, the stallion no longer qualifying for membership of course since he'd long since gotten his mark back when he was a kid. At the idea of possibly becoming an honorary member though, Darrus tapped his chin then nodded in approval. Sure, sounds fun. Heck, he had plenty of space on his cloak for maybe slapping a patch on there, and it seemed like he was making Apple Bloom happy, so why not? "Okay, sure, that sounds cool. Let me know what the other members of your group think and maybe we can think up some kind of supervisory role for me or something. Since I've got my mark, I think is probably just get in the way if I was out crusading with you guys all the time, but I could help out with stuff when you need it or maybe come up with ideas for what you all could try next." The Pegasus smiled when Apple Bloom claimed that having a cutie mark like his would be cool. He played it off as no big deal though, waving a hoof dismissively, "Nah, you'll probably end up with a much cooler mark than me. I mean, sure, being really accurate can be entertaining, but it doesn't come in handy as often as you'd think. I might be able to show you a few things though for the sake of funsies at least." He... wasn't ever gonna let them go anywhere near the throwing knife he usually used to show off his talent of course, but playing catch with a ball requires accuracy too, right? Maybe he could pick up one of those soft dart boards and teach them a few tricks with that..

Seeing Apple Bloom stop to listen to something, Darrus strained his ears himself to listen before hearing the filly explain the meaning behind what shed picked up. Food it seemed. Huh... Maybe that's what Applejack had been doing in the kitchen before they left. Would explain why she didn't chase after them when Apple Bloom took him to this here clubhouse to. Also, holy Celestia did he forget how hungry he was! Darrus' belly grumbled a little, suddenly awake and cranky over how empty it was, as the hunger from his earlier near theft returned in full force. Darrus sincerely hoped they would have apple's out just for munching on during dinner... Either way though, a real meal that didn't consist of nothing but grass would be wonderful. Not only that, but it sounded like he might also get a chance to meet the other members of the Apple family. Two birds one stone, right? Darrus nodded and followed Apple Bloom outside, then allowed her to lead the way as they headed back up to the house, Darrus actually pausing outside the house to try and straighten out his mane and cloak, only to have such efforts be in vain when both the cloak and his hair remained the same as it usually was. Shrugging over how he'd at least tried, Darrus then stepped inside, Apple Bloom showing him the rest of the way to the table waiting for them, Darrus then taking a seat where he waited to see what would be served and who may show up.

Offline Applejack

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #33 on: February 10, 2014, 10:05:24 pm »
After walking back to the farmhouse, Apple Bloom lead Darrus inside and towards the kitchen, where she sat down and tapped the back of a chair beside her to signal to Darrus to sit there. Moments later, Applejack returned to the table and set down a large salad bowl in the middle of it before taking her seat at one end of the table, closest to Apple Bloom. Granny Smith was the first to arrive, apparently having returned from her trip to the market while Apple Bloom and Darrus had gone to her club house. As Granny Smith sat down at the table across from Applejack, she stared intently at Darrus as somepony might if they were trying to place a face to something in their memory.

"Whose cousin are you again? Or are you a nephew? Horse apples, Ah swear this family gets bigger every day," she muttered, each family member waiting for the fourth to arrive. As they did that, Applejack spoke up to correct Granny smith. "Granny Smith, he ain't family. This here's--"

She was cut off by Granny Smith as she said. "Ain't family? Does that mean he's yer coltfriend, Applejack? When did you get a coltfriend? Now listen here, sonny," Granny Smith said as she looked over to Darrus as Applejack rose a hoof to cover her face in embarrassment, moments before Big Macintosh walked into the kitchen and took his place at the table across from Apple Bloom. "Okay! Everypony's here, let's chow down!" Applejack called out, interrupting whatever lecture Granny Smith was giving Darrus about treating Applejack right or some such.

As she began piling some salad onto her plate she'd set out before the meal, just as she'd done for everypony else, she spoke up. "Everypony, this's Darrus. He's gonna be helpin' around the farm, partly 'cause as y'all know when cider season rolls around, Ah'm expectin' a lot more demand this year--and hopin' to get a lot more cider made. Darrus, this is Granny Smith," she said, gesturing with a hoof to the elderly pony across the table, who was still watching Darrus with a critical eye, before gesturing over to Big Mac with the same hoof. "An' Big MacIntosh, mah big brother," she introduced, earning a simple "eeyup" in greeting from the large stallion who was beginning to pour the apple-flavored dressing on offer over his salad.

"So, Darrus, Apple Bloom," Applejack said after preparing her own salad. "How'd visitin' the club house go? What kept y'all out there so long?" She kept her gaze on Apple Bloom after that, trying to use her expressions as a gauge to figure out what might have happened, but she just kept her attention held on the salad in front of her, making that just a little bit difficult for her...

Offline Darrus

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #34 on: February 11, 2014, 01:39:08 pm »
Darrus gave AJ a smile as she entered the room, both out of conveying a greeting and because she was arriving with a big ol bowl of salad. Salad, hm? Darrus had always thought farmponies ate heavier than that. Eh, well, maybe it was just to start with or they were all on some health kick right now. Either way, a salad like that was still miles and miles better than a mouthful of trampeled, and sometimes really gross and dirty, grass, Darrus happily looking forward to his portion of the meal.

When Granny Smith arrived and began to stare at him, Darrus offered another smile, this one of slight discomfort over the elder pony's attempt to figure something out about him. What exactly that was was a mystery to the pegasus up until she spoke up with a question as to how he was related to their family. Before he could correct this misunderstanding, Applejack beat him to the punch with an explanation of his lack of a relation to these ponies, Granny apparently then taking that as a revelation of how Darrus and Applejack were then apparently a couple instead. Darrus glanced down at the table at that, giving a quiet laugh more out of not expecting the old mare to jump to such a conclusion so quickly, but he couldn't help letting his eyes briefly flick over toward AJ as well, Darrus also not being able to help the slight hint of an amused smile pulling at his lips when he saw her hiding her face with her hoof. Darrus then braced himself for whatever the mare was about to tell him, but was fortunately saved by the new arrival of a rather sizable stallion which prompted Applejack to cut her grandmother off with the announcment that the time to eat was nigh.

Darrus, having been struggling with his stomachs grumbling and attitude, wasted little time in taking a big bite out of his salad just as Applejack introduced him, probably not displaying the best manners at the moment as he wasn't very used to showing them and his hunger was being a jerk. Cider season was comiiiiing~! The vagrant Pegasus hadn't forgotten his original reason for seeking work here, and the idea of them working to make even more cider than was apparantly normal was a pleasant one. Darrus paused for a moment after thinking that actually... hmm... what of he doesn't even like the cider?

Bleh, shaking that thought off and finishing his mouthful of salad, Darrus looked to each of the ponies as they were introduced. To Granny he was going to smile and say 'hello', however, the critical edge to her gaze kinda made him rethink that, him instead opting for clearing his throat and straightening his posture a bit before simply nodding with a quick, "Ma'am". That's what you did, right? Round tables with other ponies family's? Been a while since he'd done this kind of stuff now that he thought about it... Big Mac was different. Stallion of few words this one, but Darrus was prepared for that after speaking with Apple Bloom. For him Darrus gave a nod, though the stallion seemed to be distracted by his salad dressing at the moment. Mmm... Salad dressing... Hadn't had that in a while either...

Blinking himself back to the present, and realizing he probably should say something, Darrus cleared his throat once the introductions were complete. "Uh, thank you, everypony, for all this. Its very kind of you, the food and everything. I look forward to earning this and the rest of my keep here." ... Yeah, that'll do. He guessed. Normally he just showed up at a shop or work site for bits. Wasn't very used to being welcomed into an employer's home for a meal or anything, so, he was treading new ground here and was expecting to make slips here and there. Just have to make up for any in the fields it seemed.

The inquiry as to what kept both himself and Apple Bloom so busy at the club house was met with a simple shrug as Darrus began to return to his usual attitude and tone as he kept things light and jokey, "Eh, you know, AB here was just telling me about the farm and that club of hers. Gave me a heads up on who I might bump into around here, what I can expect, that kind of thing. Real helpful, this filly. Made me all jealous of her cool group and their shenanigans though. But! She might be able to find a way for me to even be a crusader myself. Isn't that right?" he asked Apple Bloom before smiling at Applejack and gesturing towards his cloak with a hoof, "can't you just imagine that patch on my back? Awesome."

Offline Applejack

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #35 on: February 12, 2014, 08:33:24 am »
As Darrus began to explain what they had been doing, Applejack kept her gaze on Apple Bloom to try and gauge her reactions and see if what was being said was the truth. Though Apple Bloom just held her attention on the salad in front of her as she ate it, it gave Applejack some suspicion that something had happened that Apple Bloom didn't want Applejack knowing about. Trying to guess what though would be near impossible without making things awkward for everypony... So, despite obviously being a little suspicious, Applejack turned her attention to her salad and began eating some of it for a little bit as Apple Bloom responded to Darrus' request of confirmation from her.

"Yup, Ah said Ah could talk to Scootaloo an' Sweetie Belle ta see if they'd be alright with him bein' an honorary member! Since he's already got his cutie mark an' all. Either way, it's gonna be a lotta fun havin' him around the farm!" she said with a beaming smile on her face, directed toward Applejack, who only glanced to Apple Bloom mid-bite underneath her brows before raising one of those brows slightly as she finished taking the bite. "Uh-huh. Ah didn't hire him fer fun, Half-Pint," Applejack replied after swallowing the lettuce. "Ah don't mind y'all buddyin' up, but keep in mind he's got a job around here. Ah don't need you distractin' him, alright?" Applejack asked in a stern tone, resulting in Apple Bloom giving a half-hearted nod.

"Good. Anyway, Darrus," she continued after looking over to him, finally remembering the hat on her head and removing it to set it on the back of the chair she sat on. "You an' Ah'll move a bed out to the barn after dinner for ya. Then you'll need ta get a good night's sleep 'cause Ah'll be gettin' you up at the crack o' dawn so we kin get started with trainin' you 'round here. Fair warnin' now, if Ah gotta tell ya more than twice ta get up, Ah got a bucket fer fillin' with ice water that's ready an' waitin' ta be used."

"And she ain't afraid to use it either," Apple Bloom murmured after, seeming to shiver a little bit in recollection. Applejack just smiled a little bit at that as she took another bite of her salad, then continued. "Anyway, mister vagabond, how much of Equestria have you been to? Any favorite places?"

Offline Darrus

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #36 on: February 12, 2014, 12:25:13 pm »
Well, wasn't much arguing anypony could have over that. Darrus was looking forward to whatever shenanigans Apple Bloom might throw him into during his time here on the farm, but she herself had warned him about slacking off. Not that he had intended to in the first place, but work was always going to come first. That's how he was going to earn the cider after all. Darrus looked up from his most recent bite of his salad when Applejack addressed him again, him then noticing how shed removed her hat and finding the new visual interesting. "Sounds like a plan," he agreed with a nod at moving the bed after dinner, him then trying to keep both his mind and mouth from thinking or saying some inappropriate flirtatious joke about how they'd be alone with a mattress in the barn. The idea of a chilled bucket of water dowsing him should he be difficult to spur into activity in the early morn almost brought a slight shiver to him as well, the thought not being very appealing, just as it probably wouldn't to any sane pony who didn't want to have being chilled to the core the first event of their day.

The question of how much of Equestria he'd seen brought a smile to his lips as he answered with, "most of the big places, plenty of the smaller ones. Cloudsdale, Canterlot, Manehatten, I've been traveling for years now so its hard to pick a direction I haven't flown in. As for favorites... Hmm... Hard to decide. Depends on the type of place. Bigger cities of course have more activity, so they often have plenty of interesting things happening all the time, but these smaller towns like Ponyville can sometimes be more memorable... If I had to choose a fun spot I wouldn't mind seeing again... There's this small developing town further west called Backstretch that I think only recently managed to make it onto readily available maps. Every year they have a festival celebrating the acts of a local hero from a separate town that most of the current settlers came from. The festival is pretty much one big week long party, and it should be coming up again pretty soon. Would be fun to go back there and join in on the festivities one of these years. Archery competition was a real highlight.

"Oh! About getting that good night's sleep..." He will not follow this up with a flirty joke, he will not follow this up with a flirty joke, he will not follow this up with a flirty joke... "I may not be able to go to bed quite so soon. See, I made plans with somepony in town to meet up with them tomorrow morning, but now since I've been hired on here I won't be able to make it. I'll need to make a quick run back after were finished moving the bed to let them know we need to reschedule so they won't be waiting for me to show up. That shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Offline Applejack

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #37 on: February 13, 2014, 07:52:30 am »
Splitting her attention between Darrus and the salad in front of her, Applejack munched away while he talked about some of the places he'd been before, Apple Bloom also looking over to Darrus with interest. At the mention of Backstretch and the annual festival, intrigue colored some of Applejack's expression, wondering for a moment who this hero was, and what kind of activities they had at this party-like celebration. She nodded in agreement at his sentiments that it would be fun to join in on the festivities, but not quite so when the archery competition was mentioned. Then, as Darrus told her about not being able to go to bed so soon, Applejack raised her brow at him in question as she continued munching on the salad before her.

"No, it won't be a problem," she said after swallowing a bite of her food. "Ah've already warned you what's gonna happen if ya don't get up in time, so it ain't on me anymore. So Ah ain't gonna stop ya from doin' what ya think you gotta do," she said with a shrug before resuming her meal, her gaze moving briefly to Apple Bloom when she spoke up after. "Archery competition, huh? Ah bet ya left the competition in the dust, considerin' yer talent in accuracy! Sure would be nice ta go to that festival," she said longingly with a sigh before going back to eating herself, her thoughts focused on what a festival like that might be like.

When all ponies had gotten their fill of the salad, Applejack stood up from her seat and returned her hat back to her head before gesturing for Darrus to follow. "C'mon. Let's move yer bed. Big Mac, if you feel like helpin', yer welcome to," she told the large stallion before turning to lead Darrus upstairs and into a bedroom with simple decorations--quite possibly a guest room for when relatives visited. She moved to the mattress and pulled off the sheets, before lifting it off the bed spring before turning it on its side. She then lifted up the corner closest to the door as she rose up on her back hooves, then with Darrus' help, began walking the mattress out of the bedroom, down the stairs and out of the house, only to be greeted by a waiting Big Macintosh.

"Oh, good. Here, Big Mac," Applejack said as she moved over to turn the mattress over and gently set it on his back. "Take this to the barn, we'll get the rest." After his "eeyup", Applejack went back into the bedroom to begin the same process with the bed spring so she could bring it to the barn with Darrus' help, the weight of the furniture not really seeming to be a problem at all for Applejack.

Offline Darrus

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #38 on: February 13, 2014, 08:11:44 pm »
The chill of the bucket seemed likely in his future... "Alright. Hopefully ill get enough rest to avoid that. Should be quick though as long as I...' He shifted his wings beneath his cloak as he spoke, the pegasus getting a feel for their condition and how ready they were for quick speedy flights to and fro. They were... just as achy as they'd been earlier in the day, his momentary hopes of them magically recovering over dinner being dashed as it became clear he'd have to travel to town flightless... On hooves... There and back... The chill of the bucket seemed very likely indeed...

Darrus took another bite of his salad as Apple Bloom spoke up about the festival, him finishing his mouthful and then giving a small shrug and smirk in response. "Eh... Second place," he admitted, "was a close competition, but a local favorite was able to best me at the last target." Darrus had also been... a little out of it during that competition... One few too many ciders had found their way into his system, and while he'd still managed to do better than simply hold his own against the more sober ponies through out most of the competition that he'd thought was scheduled to take place the day after, he could barely even see straight towards the end. That was a detail he doubted the young filly needed to know though, so he left it out and simply accepted the event as a near success. "Next time though, first place, no doubt about it. And, hey, festival comes and goes every single year with no sign of that changing anytime soon, so I'm sure you'll have a chance to go someday."

Once finished with his meal, Darrus gave AJ a nod as he stood up to follow, him pausing for a moment so as to give another nod to the rest of the family present, the Pegasus adding a quick and simple "thanks for the chow" to it as he figured that it was probably normal to thank people after eating their food. Probably. Following the mare through her home, Darrus was expecting a brief trip to a closet or perhaps a basement to fetch some kind of simple bedding for his use during his time in the barn, but to his surprise he was led upstairs to an actual full bed that he then assisted with removing the sheets of, occassionally casting unsure glances her way as he wasn't entirely convinced she wasn't messing with him or something. However, he was proven wrong as he found himself carrying the mattress downstairs, the stallion taking note of the mares strength as his wings occasional unfolded to keep his balance on the stairs, the two eventually passing off the  mattress to applejacks large brother, him again taking note of the strength being out on display as the stallion seemed to carry it all on his own with no trouble. He wondered briefly if strength ran in the family, or if it was simply just all that Apple bucking around the farm. Maybe he'd walk in her one day and see little Apple Bloom carrying a couch by herself? The mental image cause him to chuckle a little as he followed AJ back upstairs to fetch the next section of the bed.

"You know," he said as they readied the box spring for being carried, the work causing him to start breathing a little heavier now, "when you said I'd be getting a bed out there, I thought you might have meant something more along the lines of a cot of some sort. Wasn't expecting a full mattress and all. Haven't had the real deal in a while. Gonna be nice sleeping on something other than clouds for a change." Yes, he did know that he was going to possibly be alone with Applejack in the barn with this bed they were moving. And, yes, his tongue was starting to ache a little from having been bitten down on to prevent his flirty jokes from escaping. "Thanks again for this. Most employers, from what I understand, don't really let their hired help take up residence on their property. Nor feed them. At least not directly. Which reminds me... Granny Smith down there... Should I be preparing myself for getting an earful from her sometime soon?"

Offline Applejack

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #39 on: February 13, 2014, 10:23:46 pm »
Noticing the heavy breaths coming from Darrus, Applejack examined him from the opposite side of the bed spring, looking a little bit dubious about the whole thing if just this was starting to give him a hard time. She only hoped it was a result of not used to walking on his back hooves, but she couldn't really say for sure...Still, she listened idly to him as she moved the bed spring with him, having only a mild amount of trouble getting it out of the bedroom door before being able to carry it down the stairs. She supposed he was right about the whole 'other employers not treating their employees as good' thing, but she liked to think she was better than that. Even though she'd never hired anypony before.

"Nah. Granny Smith's as likely ta fall asleep in the middle o' any lectures she gives ya as she is ta ferget altogether about givin' you a piece of her mind. Either way, she means well. Ah think. Sometimes Ah think even she don't know what's goin' on in that head o' hers," Applejack sighed, shrugging a little bit before cutting that subject short as they passed through the living room and out of the house. "As fer all Ah'm doin' for ya, Ah wouldn't've felt right if Ah hired ya an' didn't pay ya without doin' somethin' else to make up fer that. Ah wouldn't ever make anypony slave theirselves away like that. But again, it's up ta you to prove yerself around here." With that, Applejack fell silent and focused on getting Darrus' bed set up in the barn, helping him situate the bed spring before slipping the mattress on top of it as well. "So, that's that, then. If ya want, you kin go into town and tell yer friend the change o' plans, an' Ah'll bring the sheets an' stuff out from the house for ya. How's that sound?"

Offline Darrus

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #40 on: February 14, 2014, 01:32:35 am »
"Heh, guess I don't have too much to worry about then," Darrus said, imagining the old mare yelling at him over something only to fall asleep mid sentence then wake back up with no knowledge of what she's been doing. At the reminder of how he'd need to prove himself around the farm, Darrus would have nodded and **** some joke over how he believed he would probably succeed at such a thing over night while he was sleeping, but with the box spring in the way and with his current, still incredibly difficult to maintain, efforts to not say something dumb the Pegasus figured it would just distract from the current task. Was still nice of her to let him have an actual bed instead of just the roof of the barn to hang over him as he snuggles up in a pile of hay or something. He'd have to make this small kindness up to her. Plenty of ways for him to do that. Some involving the very same thing they were putting in the ba-No! Bad, Darrus! If he had a water bottle on hoof, he'd splash himself with it!

Once inside the barn and finished with setting up his new bed, Darrus laid out on the mattress with a satisfied sigh, his legs and wings stretched out as he laid on his back and enjoyed the soft comfort of something actually designed to be slept on. "Ahhhhhh.... That's nice..." He sighed with satisfaction before rolling over to look at AJ.... He would *not* make some kind of joke right now... Ugh... He deserved some kind of special dessert for all this self control... A really speci- No! Bad!

"Alrighty! Sounds good!" The Pegasus replied to the mare, flapping his wings to hover off the mattress and back to a standing position beside it, him ignoring the protests of his feathery limbs as they ached in response, "sooner I get it done the sooner I'll be getting that rest and avoiding that bucket, right? I'll head off and take care of that now, be back in a bit!" ... He wasn't going to avoid that bucket. Darrus knew this. He was tired and his wings were aching... He knew how he was going to be woken up in the morning... Well, he had time to prepare himself for it at least. Trotting towards the direction of the barn's exit, Darrus paused momentarily to glance back at AJ for a few seconds. He felt a smile come on as he looked her way, him not sure if it was because of her or his pride in himself over not having made any kind of advances on her since his talk with Apple Bloom, but either way he didn't hold his gaze on her for too long, him turning away and trotting off to begin his on hoof trek back towards town to let Lamplight know about their necessary change of plans.

Offline Applejack

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #41 on: February 14, 2014, 06:06:29 am »
Applejack nodded at Darrus' farewell, and gave a simple "uh huh" to him as she glanced idly around the barn, seeming to lose herself in her thoughts for a moment before turning just in time to see Darrus staring at her and smiling. It only lasted for about a split second, but it was just long enough for Applejack to raise her brow at him in question, though him turning and walking fully out of the barn resulted in no answers. Shrugging it off, Applejack exited the barn herself and went into her house to retrieve the sheets for Darrus' bed. After bringing them back to the barn and making Darrus' bed with them and placing a couple of pillows on it, she went back inside and made sure Apple Bloom was set for bed before following suit and getting some rest for the next day to get Darrus up bright and early.

So it was that Applejack began teaching him various things about working on the farm, telling him different errands that had to be managed weekly to keep productivity high, showing him different tricks for how to stay efficient, and other such things to make sure he was as valuable to her and the farm as he could be. Every week she gave him two days off to do whatever he wanted to do, and though she couldn't say what it was he really did to spend his time off on those days, she was able to say that he quickly began to show her that he was as every bit as useful as he told her he'd be. He was a hard worker, a quick learner, and those wings of his very useful around the farm. As such, she quickly began paying him bits for working around the farm and even eventually began to stop rolling her eyes at his flirts, though she never did let him move into the actual house with them.

Roughly one month passed like this, the weather beginning to grow into fall, and apparently only one more month before the start of the festival in Backstretch if what Darrus had told her at one point was any indication. It was late afternoon now, and Applejack and Darrus were doing the final touches of cleaning up around the farm before the end of the night. When it all had been finished, Applejack had retrieved a couple glasses of lemonade for herself and Darrus, and had chosen to sit outside on the porch as she drank it with him. "Talk about a long day... Told you things start ta get harder 'round here closer ta cider season, though." She sipped a bit from her lemonade before continuing. "Whaddya say we get away from the farm fer a bit an' see what's goin' on in town? Ah'd say we earned a lil' bit of a rest."

Offline Darrus

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #42 on: February 14, 2014, 10:57:36 am »
He was only now starting to get used to it really. The familiar feeling he had whenever the days work was done and he was allowed to just relax. It was a good one, a satisfying one, one that brought him a mixture of relief and achy fatigue that made simply sitting down on a porch with a glass of lemonade so much more enjoyable that it would be had he not just spent the entire day laying around on a cloud. He'd taken to this farm work rather well after he'd gotten it into his head to get the right amount of rest every night, a few encounters with a certain bucket hammering that idea into his head, and not only that but he was also enjoying it. He was helpful around here, and it felt good to be able to do something with his hooves everyday instead of wander around hoping to bump into something entertaining. The clinking sound of bits in his bit pouch also tended to bring w smile to his face. He'd promised shed be paying him to work here before too long, and he was a little proud of how he'd been accurate in his prediction.

Applejack herself also helped to make the days not just bearable but pleasant as well. He'd been doing his best since he'd arrived to be a little more careful with what he said around her, his focused efforts on being a valuable farmhand hopefully making up for whatever slip-ups he had with his tongue, but he wasn't perfect, occasionally letting out one of his usual kinds of jokes or flirting almost out of a deeply ingrained reflex that would leave him wincing a little. Thankfully though, his mess ups helped with gauging whether or not he was actually making progress in getting on the mare's good side. While at first shed been just as unimpressed to hear such things coming from him, Darrus had noticed that over the course of the last month she was beginning to become more friendly, his flirty jokes having less of a negative effect as he assumed she either was getting used to them or that he might actually be doing something right around her.

"Yup," Darrus said in reply after AJ had mentioned this being a rather full day, "its looking like these wings of mine, even with their incredibly steely endurance, won't be carrying me around too much till tomorrow if I want to prevent them from falling off." Ah, yes, cider season was coming up relatively fast here wasn't it? One month less of a wait at least, Darrus briefly thinking back to that small pile of bits he'd set aside after his first payday around the farm and labeled as his 'Sweet Apple cider funds' as he again wondered just how good such a beverage really was compared to the hype. Darrus took another sip of his lemonade, then paused midway and raised his brow a little in surprise at the next thing AJ had said. Did she just invite him to spend time with her away from the farm? Huh... "Why, Miss Applejack, are you asking me out?" Aaaand there was that reflex again, it quickly being met with another counter reflex of having his eyes flick towards the mares to gauge her reaction to what he'd said, him then checking to see if he should awkwardly take it back or let it stay as is. Taking a final and mighty gulp of his drink to finish it off, Darrus cleared his throat then gave a nod. "Sure, would love to go. After all I do enjoy me some rest, and it sounds like it would be an interesting time. Did you have anywhere specific in mind for us to check out, or did you wanna just wander and see where life takes us?"

Offline Applejack

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #43 on: February 14, 2014, 06:37:08 pm »
At Darrus' knee-jerk reaction to Applejack's words, she gave a slight grin as she shook her head a bit. She kind of expected him to say something like that, but she couldn't really figure out any other way to word things. Oh, well, not that his joke really did any harm. She sipped a little bit more as he responded seriously to her question, before shrugging a little bit at his question. She then followed his lead and gulped down the rest of her lemonade before setting the glass down on the porch and standing up to stretch her limbs, including a little arch of her back to try and exercise her tense back a bit.

"Ah guess either one really works, but Ah was thinkin' we could head to the tavern an' get a couple drinks." She then began walking through the orchards towards town before glancing out of the corner of her eye to him. "Unless you just wanted ta wander 'round instead. Ah'm alright with that." She paused for a moment before continuing. "So you an' Apple Bloom're takin' perty well to each other. Ain't many grown ponies she has as friends... Ah hope she hasn't been too much of a hoofful?"

Offline Darrus

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Re: Derivation
« Reply #44 on: February 14, 2014, 07:58:50 pm »
A few drinks, huh? Darrus sure did like him some drinks, and the idea of sharing them with AJ sounded quite nice, the pegasus not letting himself think about how she was inviting him out to a bar and possibly make another one of his jokes. Not really out of trying to censor himself, but mostly because the material given to him would have probably led to a simple repetition of his earlier joke."Why choose one when we can do both? Let's wander, but conveniently wander our way over to the tavern." Now, the tavern was one of the few places Darrus knew the way to by heart, it being the only other real hangout spot for him over the course of this last month other than the farm itself, so he less followed and more fell in step alongside the mare as she mentioned her little sister.

"Heh, Apple Bloom being too much of a hoofful?" He chuckled, shaking his head a little, "Nah, she's been fine. Lots of fun actually. When she's with her friends though, then they can be a bit of a hoofful, but its still nothing too bad. Nothing a couple days rest can't hopefully mend. She's a good kid your sister. Just like the rest of your family actually..." He said, flashing AJ a smile. They didn't have to have let him stay after they started paying him, he knew this. Once he'd been getting bits for his work he could have been asked to look into using them to find his own place to stay instead of hang around in their barn like he was, or asked to spend them on his own food instead of continue to invite him to their own meals. But they didn't ask him to leave, or stop sharing their food. Instead they only continued to welcome him... "... How much longer until cider season starts up proper?" He asked after a few moments of silence, looking forward again as they made their way through the orchard."... Uh... I was wondering when I should start preparing my wings and legs for it."

 


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