[Gift] Apple Juice

It had started when Lemon had managed to squeeze their way into Matthias' burrow again, using an entrance that Matthias had never been able to find to block, a scuffed blender held over their head. It still had a piece of printer paper taped on to it that read "FREE".

"We're going apple picking!" he had proclaimed, hoisting the appliance up onto Matthias' worn tabletop, before hopping to grab the lip of the doll-sized table to hoist themself up.

Matthias, staring at the now-spilled bottle of nail polish that he had set down moments before to investigate what the clattering noise was, hadn't known what the make of the suggestion. Mannie, his hand outstretched and resting on the table top, fingers splayed to allow Matthias easy access to paint them, had his usual blank look as he observed the incoming chaos.

Lemon, finally able to hook one hoof over the table to haul their small bun form towards the tabletop, seemed proud of himself. Matthias processed the information that had been presented for a moment longer, before sighing and accepting that he would just have to give in. If he were to deny Lemon's flight of fancy, he'd never hear the end of it, and the bun would continuously break into his burrow, disrupting his delicate work, until they got their way.

Voice heavy with resignation, Matthias finally accepted that he was going to have to ask the question that Lemon seemed to have been waiting for all along.

"Why?"

Finally with both hooves under them on the table, Lemon grinned before leaning a tad too close to Matthias' face, placing a hoof into the pooled nail polish without noticing. "Because," they started, voice hushed with amazement, "did you know that if you put apples into this thing," he paused, reaching over to tap the lid of the blender with a paw, "it turns them into something you can drink?"

Matthias blinked. Looked at the blender, swept his gaze back to Lemon, then back to the blender. He blinked again. It wasn't uncommon for the excitable bun to begin rambling, something that always ended in nonsensical statements that Matthias usually tuned out, but this one had started at an inexplicable point.

"Apple juice?" he asks, voice heavy with skepticism, "You're this excited about making apple juice?"

While it hadn't seemed possible before, Lemon managed to brighten even further, their voice pitching up in his delight. "Is that what the apple water is called?"

Matthias took refuge in the following silence, Lemon's eager gaze on him, as he tried to process that once more.

"Have you..." he begins, hesitancy pausing his words for just a moment before he continues, "never heard of fruit juice before?" Lemon, unperturbed by the idea that he could be lacking in any sort of common knowledge, shook their head hard enough for his long ears to hit him in the face.

"That's why we're going to make some!"

Matthias couldn't help but wince, thinking of how much time this whole thing was going to take. He cast a pleading look towards Mannie, trying to maintain hope that his other friend would be able to distract Lemon enough that he wouldn't have to leave his burrow to spend the rest of his day in the orchard. As always, though, Mannie had remained completely unaffected by both Lemon's energy and Matthias' growing despair. 

Matthias was beginning to see how this would end - with Mannie blithely agreeing to the orchard trip, in the same manner he acquiesced to nearly everything asked of him, with Matthias himself in tow, whether today or after multiple days of harassment by Lemon until he finally caved and agreed. Wincing in anticipation of the reaction, Matthias resigned himself to what would be coming next.

"Fine. What type of apples do you want?"

Lemon Thicket had cheered in response, throwing their arms back that he nearly lost his balance, his momentum just enough to make the unstable table wobble, sending the already sad-looking blender crashing to the floor. As Matthias stared, trying to come to terms with how badly his peaceful afternoon was being disrupted, the forgotten nail polish bottle followed, leaving a trail of polish as it rolled across the table, and landing with a clink! on the blender, the last remaining bit of polish splashing out onto the appliance and floor.

With another long-suffering sigh, Matthias hauls himself to his feet to look for a rag to clean up with, and perhaps a block of wood or piece of cardboard to try and keep his table in usable condition for just a while longer.

--

It had been a fight to stay within his burrow long enough to get the worst of the nail polish off the floor and table, but Lemon had eventually relented, already having won his victory. It was going to stain, at least a little, but a bit of spilled polish wasn't going to be the worst damage that either surface had ever seen.

As soon as he had finished the brief clean-up, Lemon had done their best to hustle both Mannie and Matthias out of the burrow, shooing them down the road. They had been walking for a while, following the excited bun, and Matthias was starting to have a dawning realization.

The two of them were letting Lemon lead the way. Lemon, who could get lost walking around the block. Lemon, who had never heard of any sort of fruit juice, and had probably never been to an orchard. That was who Mannie and Matthias were following behind. Swallowing back the sudden wave of despair clogging his throat, Matthias looked to the side at Mannie.

Leaning over slightly, he spoke in hushed tones, praying to Murmur that Lemon wouldn't overhear. "Is this the way to the orchard?"

Mannie considered the question for a moment, slightly tilting his head to the side as he thought through it. Matthias wasn't sure how, but he could swear that the other doll had the entire map of Burrowgatory seared into his retina.

As Mannie shook his head, Matthias took a long breathe, and carefully let it out. It was the expected result, but it was still such a waste of time. They should both know better by now, but in the hurry they had forgotten to think about it for even a moment.

"Lemon," Matthias calls, "where are we going?"

"To the orchard!" the bun answers, cheery as ever, without looking back.

"Have you been there before?"

"No!" Matthias couldn't see it, but he could hear the grin in Lemon's voice.

As Matthias tried to reign in his building frustration, they passed a familiar burrow. Too familiar.

With a smile, he took a few long strides, before reaching down and grasping the top of Lemon's head with one hand. He forced a small amount of false cheer into his voice, trying not the grit his teeth. "I'm going to kill you."

They had left Matthias' home over an hour ago, and Lemon had managed to lead them in one massive circle. The group could have stayed within his comfortable, if sparse, kitchen for that entire time and still made the same amount of progress. Matthias could have finished the coat of nail polish that Lemon had interrupted, and put a layer of top coat on so that Mannie's manicure would last a little longer. But they had to leave right then.

Taking another deliberate breath, frustration still evident in his tone, Matthias turned his attention back to his other companion. "I hope that you know a fast way to get to the orchard."

As he always did when asked if he knows something, Mannie simply nodded. He considered the question for a moment, before starting off in the direction they had originally left in. Lifting his hand from Lemon's furred head, Matthias followed close behind.

"Hey, that's not fair!" Lemon whines from behind them, their quick hoofsteps struggling to catch up with Mannie and Matthias' longer legs, "you can't just leave me behind!"

--

When they finally arrived at the orchard, it was late afternoon. Burrowgatory's false sun was directly overhead, the crystals embedded in the ceiling outputting an uncomfortable amount of heat. Matthias had tried to push back his sleeves more than they already were, in a desperate attempt to feel cooler, to little success. Both Lemon and Mannie seemed unaffected by the heat, letting Matthias lag behind as they approached the succubun attending a small booth next to a large sign.

"U-PICK APPLES" it reads in large red letters. The doll behind the booth had a large sunhat shading their face, and was wearing little more than could generously be called a bikini. A tall water bottle rested in front of them, alongside a collection of differently sized baskets, each lined with a burlap sack.

"If you're here for the apples," they start, voice dull with boredom, "pick a basket and get started. Our sweeter apples have red on the trunk, and the tart ones have white. Bring the fruit back for a weigh-in before leaving." Job finished, they returned their attention to the phone held in their hands.

Without a trace of hesitation, Lemon hopped up on a nearby step stool, then hauled themself up onto the booth’s countertop. They quickly snagged the water bottle, upending it over their open mouth as he attempted to down as much fluid as possible before the orchard employee snatched it away. They threw Lemon a dirty look, before retreating further back. 

“Pick a basket,” they repeat, through gritted teeth, “and get started. Bring the fruit for a weigh-in before you leave.”

Unrepentant, Lemon Thicket makes a beeline towards the largest basket prepared, nearly tumbling off the countertop as they attempt to lift a container as large as they are. With unadulterated enthusiasm, they beckoned Mannie over before doing his best to foist the large basket upon him. It doesn’t move very far, but Mannie’s placid expression didn't change as he reached to lift the basket. With some excited scrambling, the basket suddenly gains several pounds of weight as Lemon manages to fling themself into it. 

They stand up on their hooves, causing the basket to wobble dangerously for a moment before Mannie manages to stabilize it. Lemon props one paw up on a hip, the thrusts the other out in front of himself. “Onward!” he proclaims with an elaborate, but ultimately meaningless, gesture. “The apples await!”

With the same exhausted acceptance as before, Matthias trails behind his two friends as Lemon chatters excitedly about what they’re going to do with a basket of apples. Notably, all the items on his list happen to consist of the newly discovered apple juice. 

As they get away from the gravel path they had been traveling on, and entered the orchard itself, the shade offered by the surprisingly dense canopy was a welcome relief. Matthias was miserable, the damp soil of the orchard sticking unpleasantly to his loafers as he trudged on. He lifted a hand to swat at one of the pesky bugs that had been following the trio since they reached the first apple tree, the pests thriving in the damp environment. 

“Higher!” came the call from Lemon, and Matthias looked over to see Mannie lifting the basket containing the excitable bun into the air. 

“Higher!” Lemon insists again, causing Mannie to rise to his tiptoes in an attempt to comply. Seemingly satisfied, Lemon stretched their paws above their head, grasping at an apple. Matthias frowns as he looks at it. He’s not very familiar with any sort of produce, preferring the type of food that wouldn’t go bad if you forgot about it for a mere week, but weren’t apples supposed to be red?

The fruit that Lemon was attempting to pick was small, and an odd shade of pale green that blended in with the leaves around it. He looked around the nearby branches, taking note of the red blush some were developing, while others were already a beautiful red. Assessment complete, he turned his attention back to his friends.

“I don’t think that’s ripe,” he informed them, matter-of-fact. Mannie turned to look at Matthias when he began to speak, and in doing so, missed Lemon prepping for a big tug. With that moment of distraction, the force of the pull manages to unbalance Mannie enough that he needed to let the basket drop to catch himself, leaving Lemon grasping onto an apple and following the bobbing branch through the air. 

Mannie turned to watch, his blank expression mirrored on Matthias’ face as the pair watch the slender branch bend under Lemon’s weight before finally snapping. 

The bun bounces off the ground as they fall, but quickly clamber to their hooves, unharmed. He proudly lifts the apple, piece of the branch and a few leaves still attached, above their head proudly. “I got one!” he announces, before heading over to Mannie to place the fruit into the basket they had just been in. 

Bending to allow Lemon easy access to the basket, Mannie turns his attention back to Matthias. “It’s not.” he says, voice as even as always. It took a moment before Matthias remembered what he had said before. 

“It’s not what?” Lemon asks, having been so preoccupied with their apple that he hadn’t even noticed that they had been spoken to. 

“Ripe,” Mannie supplies.

Lemon scrunches their face in confusion for a moment, before Mannie elaborates. “It won’t be as sweet as the red ones,” he says, gently tugging on a nearby fruit that easily comes free of the branch. “You can tell by the color, size, scent, and how easily it comes off the tree.”

Curious, both Lemon and Matthias step closer to Mannie, scrutinizing the apple in his hand. This time, it’s Matthias that poses the question.

“What is it supposed to smell like?”

Mannie tilts his head again, examining Matthias a moment before answering. “Apples,” he supplies. 

“Wouldn’t all apples smell like apples, though?” Lemon asks, using the basket’s spot on Mannie’s arm to try and pull his hand closer to them. “If it’s an apple, and it smells like that, then that’s what an apple smells like.”

Mannie easily lets Lemon pull his arm down, offering the fruit in his hand to the bun for inspection. Lemon leans in, trying to smell the apple as best as they could. “Just because it’s an apple, doesn’t mean it smells like apples,” he says, attempting to clarify the matter. 

Lemon reached into the basket, hauling their apple out by the stick before sniffing that one as well. “But they’re both apples.”

With a sigh, trying to stifle his growing frustration, Matthias cuts in. They were never going to be able to fill that stupidly big basket any time soon at the rate they were going. “Just because it’s an apple, doesn’t mean that it smells like what people think of when they imagine what an apple smells like.” His words are clipped, and come out quickly. He had already wandered a few feet away, attempting to reach a pleasingly symmetrical fruit. 

“But it’s still an apple! It’s always going to-” 

“If it’s bothering you that much, just ignore it.” Matthias cuts Lemon off, attempting to dismiss the conversation. “Look for the other things from Mannie’s list.”

With an aggrieved huff, Lemon crosses their arms before turning towards a tree. As they traipse toward it, eyeing the trunk for a good way to climb into it, they mutter to himself under their breath.

Free from lifting Lemon to reach the fruit, Mannie also turns his attention towards the apple trees. It doesn’t take long before he’s plucking ripe fruit from the branches, beginning to line the overly large baskets with them. 

—

Nearly two hours later, Matthias is sprawled on the ground, gazing up towards the orchard canopy. They had been working without a break this entire time, and Lemon’s ridiculous basket still wasn’t full enough that the bun was willing to call it a day. They were going to be hauling home more apples than they could ever eat at the rate they were going. Matthias lifted his hands to scrub at his eyes in growing frustration. All of his newest projects were going to be behind schedule because of this. 

With this much time in the orchard and late summer heat, Matthias was miserable. He had done his best to roll his long sleeves up all the way, the bulk of the material eventually making it no longer feasible. There was no good way to make his slacks stay up, meaning that his entire lower half was underneath a layer of thick, dark fabric. He has shoved his glasses into an apron pocket since the sweat had been causing them to slip down his nose, and then deposited the apron across one low branch.

He was going to be stuck here forever. This was going to be where he was doomed to spend the rest of his life. Here, in the orchard, as Lemon enthusiastically filled an overly large basket with unripe fruit and Mannie dutifully harvested what he could reach. As time went on, Mannie seemed to be straying closer to Lemon's harvesting preferences, beginning to mirror the bun's preference for the small, hard fruit.

Matthias tried not to think about how the basket would take even longer to fill if the other two were exclusively the smallest apples in the entire orchard.

Rustling above him alerted him to something in the branches above, where he had still been staring blankly up at the sky. The creature soon revealed itself, the pale orange flower on Lemon's tail draping down from the branch. They snickered for a moment, please with himself.

And suddenly, there was an apple falling towards Matthias' face.

Alarm flooded through him, causing him to do his best to scramble out of the way. The fruit managed to narrowly avoid hitting any part of him, and instead hitting the ground with an audible thud, bouncing back into the air and rolling a couple feet away. Matthias stares in disbelief at the original site of the impact, at the hole in the soft ground that it had left behind.

He's still processing the fact that Lemon had apparently just tried to kill him when their cheery voice comes from the branches of a nearby tree. "You can't lay there forever!" Lemon shouts down, "We need more apples!"

Matthias turns, looking to see if he can still spot Mannie through the rows of trees around him. The other succubun is beginning to struggle to lift the basket, having to set it down and take frequent breaks.

He doesn't think that they really need more apples.

--

When the afternoon finally drew to a close and evening approached, the trio were finally working their way back to the small booth at the front of the orchard. Mannie and Matthias held the almost overflowing basket of apples between them, trying to split the weight. While Matthias had done his best to contribute, there was still overwhelmingly more small, hard, unripe apples visible within the basket than ripe, red ones.

Lemon walked in front, proud of their hard won apples and excitedly babbling about the amount of juice that he would be able to make. Probably. Matthias was too tired to try and follow Lemon's erratic train of thought, leaving it to Mannie to make small noises of acknowledgement in response to the small bun.

When they were finally within eyesight of the booth, the orchard employee blatantly reached for their water bottle, stowing it somewhere out of sight. Mannie and Matthias hoisted the large basket to the countertop, which was soon followed by Lemon clambering up to push it further towards the worker and stand behind the basket, preening.

The employee stared at the basket, opening their mouth to say something before closing it with an audible click of their teeth, obviously deciding that whatever they had to say wasn't going to be worth it.

With a heavy sigh, they slid the basket to their side of the booth, staggering at the weight as they lifted it to set it on the ground. With a grunt of effort, they hauled the bag lining the basket out, setting the apples on a nearby scale. It, finally, was almost over. Carats exchanged hands, Mannie and Matthias hoisted the burlap bag between them once more, having to readjust their grip as the weight made the string at the top cut into their hands uncomfortably.

It would be a long, awkward walk back home. And, predictably, Lemon did not offer a paw to try and haul the apples back.

When they finally did make it back to Matthias' burrow, finally returning to the scuffed, and now nail polish stained blender that was set on a countertop, Matthias finally remembered that he didn't know how to make juice. Lemon seemed unaware of the issue, simply tearing the bag open at the bottom and packing the blender as full of fruit as they could manage.

When he finally flipped the switch, the blender made unpleasant noises, straining against the bulk of fruit as it attempted to whir to life. Without any sort of alarm at the sounds their valued new appliance was making, Lemon simply attempted to turn up the blender speed. The following cacophony made Matthias wince, flinching away.

With a little patient instruction from Mannie, including taking more than half the apples out of the blender, it finally began to turn the apples into a watery pulp.

It was, quite possibly, the worst tasting apple juice that Matthias had ever had the displeasure of trying. 

Beyond just the flavor, it had grainy bits of seed in it, alongside having the amount of pulp he usually associated with orange juice. He glanced over to Mannie, seeing the other drink his glass without a single change of expression. Lemon, standing on the countertop, had upended the blender over themself, chugging all the juice that had been left behind after Matthias had poured some into small glasses after Lemon's insistence that they had to try it.

Delighted, Lemon finished what was left in the blender, before starting to fill the pitcher with apples once more. "We have to do this again!" he said, cheery. It's was evident that, like most liquids that Lemon had come into contact with, such as the water Matthias used to clean his paintbrushes, that they had thoroughly enjoyed the experience of consuming it. Out of the corner of his eye, Matthias could see Mannie giving a small nod of agreement.

And, truly, there was only one answer that Matthias could possibly have to such a suggestion.

"No."