"Jacky, Part Seven"
By BlondieAnon (https://pastebin.com/u/BlondieAnon)

URL: https://pastebin.com/bxsDkkey
Created on: Sunday 8th of November 2020 08:23:06 PM CDT
Retrieved on: Saturday 14 of November 2020 06:30:20 AM UTC


>You've never really felt like you had a home
>Even when you were too young to do anything, the place where you lived didn't feel like a home
>Homes were happy
>Homes were a place you felt secure
>Homes had people that were happy to see you
>You lean back in your car
>For a while, on and off, you've been sitting in your car for a few minutes longer than you should
>Not because you don't like being... there
>With everyone
>But because you're having a hard time adjusting
>You believe that you have a home
>And you're worried that you could lose it
>You recognize the irony of the situation
>You check your phone again
>You ordered a little something but it's taking longer than you wanted
"God dammit..."
>You can't let it be late
>You have a few days left, but still
"Alright... time to head in."
>You slip out of your car and shake yourself awake
>You don't think you need to go shopping for anything anytime soon
>You've gotten a wider variety of foods, now that you're paying more attention to everyone's wants
>Even down the hallway, you can smell them
>It's kinda like when you realized that your first girlfriend had a unique, distinct scent to her
>You can tell them all apart
>You're really not sure if your neighbors have noticed or cared that your apartment has become a constant party house of sorts
>You don't particularly care, to be honest
>You're outside your door
>You can hear some music going on and some bickering
>You're so used to being alone
>Of having a silent place, outside of what little sounds your computers make
>You would be lying if you said you didn't miss it
>But
>All of these sounds make this hole in the wall your home
>With another hard shake, you open the door
>You recognize that song
>"Come on, Sparky, you're being silly!"
>"Oh can it already! We've been at it since lunch!"
>"You too! You've just been watching us!"
>"Not all of us have your energy, Jacky. Besides, isn't that dance sort of... much?"
>"Is it?"
>"Don't listen to her, Jacky... it's gonna work out really well."
>Oh boy
>You're not sure if you should or shouldn't intrude on that
>To be conveniently present, you clear your throat like an overly-enthusiastic trumpet player
"Boy, I sure hope nothing weird is going on here!"
>You can hear Jacky sputtering
>Shine clearing her throat
>Nothing from Dashie
>You take a few steps into the hallway and poke your head around the corner, looking into the living room
>All of them are sitting on a pillow
>Jacky gives you her best, innocent smile
>It's a little too wide to be normal
>Shine rolls her eyes and gives you a smirk
>Dashie just gives you a shrug with a blank expression
>She's always been a bit spacey, you think
>You take note of how messy Jacky's mane is
"You should definitely get a haircut one of these days."
>You give her a squint and an accusatory finger point
>Her smile widens
>You cross the hallway intersection, your squint fixed on her
>Until you whip away
>You kneel and fall onto your mattress
>It feels nice to finally lay down
>You should at least kick off your boots but you aren't worried too much
>After a few moments, you feel a pony leap onto your back
>With a practiced tempo, said pony pushes down on your shoulders and back, slowly trotting and kneading in place
>With a long, low groan you drag your hand up and give a thumbs up
>"Heh, getting better?"
>You rotate your head, resting on the left side of your face
"Oh yeah... thanks Jack."
>"Heheh, don't worry about it. Were you serious about a haircut?"
"Sure. We have your twin tail style."
>"And that's a crowd pleaser."
"Definitely."
>"How short were you thinking?"
"Short enough so we have one less source clogging the tub drain."
>The slow stepping and massaging melts
>She lays on your back, kicking out her legs
>"True enough... you know, I don't really remember how I cut my mane before. I think Sparky just had a knife or something."
"Yeah?"
>"Iunno. Probably. That excuse makes sense though, right?"
"Sure."
>Over the last while, you've learned a lot about the girls
>About Jacky
>It seems like there really aren't that many more secrets or revelations to discover
>Which is fine
>At least you know that she wasn't some sort of serial killer or something in her past life
>Just a petty criminal that occasionally got into dangerous situations
>And who could honestly say they didn't have that sort of situation in their life at one point or another?
>You can feel her shaking on top of you
>She had let out a long, tired yawn and stretches
>"So... Anon...?"
"What's up?"
>"...are you doing ok?"
>You reply without thinking about it
"Well sure."
>"Really?"
>This time you wait before answering
>Well, of course it's hard to say
>You're losing someone
>You've seen them and just how far it's gone
>But work is going well
>But you're feeling a little awkward about coming back into your own apartment
>But you've never really felt happier, because of what and who you return to every day
"Yeah... I am, Jack. I'm doing ok, thanks to you and the other dorks. I'm doing a lot better than if I were by myself. What's that song... 'I'd rather be with you than be alone'?"
>"I've never heard that song before."
"Yeah, me neither. I think."
>She lays her head right below your left shoulder and nods
>"You really like your weird songs."
"Oh, you don't know the half of it."
>You both lay in silence for a few moments
>The bed smells like her
>Like Shine too
>And you can tell that Dashie's been sleeping here recently, probably when you're at work
>But it smells like Jacky
>It brings you comfort
>"Gonna go to sleep already?"
"Mmm?"
>"I recognize that exhale."
"Is that right?"
>"Mmhmm."
>She rubs her face against your shoulder again
"I'm blaming you."
>"Hey Anon?"
"Mmm?"
>"How long has it been since I've been here?"
"Almost a year."
>"...wanna do something to celebrate it?"
>You've already been planning a way to celebrate it
>You've been planning out some things for almost a month now
>Not that you'd ever tell her
>Or Shine
>Or Dashie
"Well, I was thinking about it... how about this Saturday?"
>"Aw... at the end of the entire week?"
"Yup."
>"It's gonna be forever before Saturday."
"Only three quarters of forever. Sunday would be legit forever."
>She giggles and sighs
>"I don't know where I'd be without you, Anon."
"Me too, Jack. I don't know where I would be right now if I didn't have you. I don't know what I'd be doing. I'm sure both of us would be still breathing."
>"Probably."
"Yeah, probably. But I wouldn't be happy if I didn't have you. Especially with... well, you know."
>"Yeah... you've lost a lot."
>You don't feel particularly inclined to answer that
>You have lost a lot
>And you're in the process of losing more too
>It just isn't happening in front of you
"I've gained a lot."
>"Oh you... I ain't much."
"I wasn't talking about you. I was talking about Shine and Dash."
>You hear a shocked gasp and feel a hoof press into your head
>It's hard enough to push your head into the bed but not so much so that it actually hurts
>"You wanna run that again by me, pardner?"
>Here comes the Applejack southern twang
>She's gotten almost perfect when it comes to imitating her ma
"I said..."
>Your head gets squished into the mattress, your face covered by part of a blanket
>You repeat yourself as well as you can, given the circumstances
>She pulls her hoof away from your head
>And instead puts her head on yours
>Despite her being a fraction of your size, her noggin is pretty sizable
>She blows air through her lips in a hard huff
>"You got some cheek, talking to me like that."
"Yeah, catch me on my back and you'll see me do more than talk."
>Both of you stay quiet and enjoy the new positioning
"Do you really enjoy being here? Do you have any thoughts of wanting to branch out and live on your own or something?"
>"Me?"
"Yeah. Or all of you, as a group or something."
>"Nope."
>That answer was quick
>"This is our home, Anon... you make this a home for us."
>You're not surprised
>But you are happy
>And relieved
"Bold of you to speak for everyone."
>"It's not bold, just honest."
"I'm glad. You make this place a home for me too. Shine, too. Dashie, too. All of you little weirdos."
>"What are you two doing?"
>That's Shine's voice
"I've got a monkey on my back. Send help."
>"Oook ook?"
>Shine scoffs
>"Right... what are we doing for dinner?"
>You feel additional weight on you
>You try to look out of the corner of your eye
>She's laying down on Jacky
>Who's laying down on you
"No clue."
>"Why are you laying on me, Sparky?"
>"Because you can't stop me."
>"Anon, Sparkler's bullying me."
"Good."
>Shine scoffs again
>"Dashie, get in here! Help!"
"Aw crap..."
>"Why do I know where this is heading..."
>You hear light, quiet steps
>"...well this is a weird pyramid."
>"Get on Sparky, quick!"
>"Don't you dare, Prism."
"Yeah, Prism. Don't you not dare."
>"Who's side are you on!?"
"I'm on my front side because you two nerds won't get off of me!"
>You feel the bed yield from yet another intruder
>And more weight landing resting on your torso
>"Freaking unreal..."
>"Oh my... it's quite comfortable up here."
>"Ha ha! How's them apples, Spark?"
>"I'm still laying on top of you at least."
>"Tch..."
"Didn't think that one through, did you."
>"Jacky isn't the best for thinking, you know that..."
>The playful, condescending tone of Dashie leads to Jacky trying, and failing, to thrash about
>"D-don't you say that?!"
>"It's true, Jacky."
>"Dreadfully true, dear..."
>You can hear her flap once
>You can't see the pony pile on you, but you can see that her wings have finally been let out, acting as a sort of blanket
>Those really are some big chicken wings
"...so is everyone just gonna lay here now?"
>"Yeah."
>"Yup."
>"It seems that way."
>All of them reply at once
"...well alrighty then."
>You exhale, feeling parts of your back pop
>The weight feels nice
>The warmth
>The company
>You really believe that you're home
>And you believe that they're home too
>Nothing could ruin this