//------------------------------//
// Prologue 
// Story: Twilight's Phobia 
// by Homage 
//------------------------------//


Twilight's Phobia
By Homage



Prologue


It was a nice spring afternoon in Ponyville.  The weather was sunny, the skies were blue, and a cool, refreshing breeze was blowing through the town.  Foals were having some fun after school, playing hoofball and jump-rope in the park.  Mares gathered around the food vendors in the market square, haggling over asparagus, tomatoes, cherries, and a lot of other fine-looking produce.  

Applejack was there too, selling fresh apples from her family's farm as usual.  “Get yer apples here!  Two bits a dozen!  Ya won't find sweeter apples than Sweet Apple Acres' in alla Equestria!”

Passing ponies would toss their bits into a basket and Big Macintosh would fill their saddlebags with some of the reddest, biggest apples anypony had ever seen.  Applejack would follow-up with a smile and a, “Ya'll come back now, ya hear?”

Even Apple Bloom was helping, counting change and smiling at the customers.  Applejack had told her, “Apple Bloom, remember what happened last time ya tried ta help me?  Just leave the salespony business part up ta the big ponies.”

Apple Bloom grumbled and muttered under her breath, “Ah am a big pony,” but she decided to listen to her sister's advice for once.

The Apple family business was doing well, and they so far had managed to avoid an incident, until a brown earth pony with a spiky mane and hourglass cutie mark approached Applejack and asked for a dozen apples.

Applejack replied, “Sure, just give yer two bits to mah sister,” and pointed a hoof at Apple Bloom.

The stallion turned toward the red-maned filly, and his eyes began to widen.  Before Apple Bloom could even open her mouth, the brown stallion turned and started galloping full-speed in the opposite direction.

“What in tarnation?” Applejack exclaimed.  The orange mare turned to her sister.  “Apple Bloom, what did you do?”

“Nothin'!  He just turned and ran!” the youngest Apple protested.

Applejack turned to her older brother.  “Big Macintosh, is this true?”

The red stallion chewed on his grass stem, as if contemplating the question, and finally responded with a simple, “Eyup.”

The drama was over, so the Apple family's attention quickly focused back toward business.  But then the three siblings realized that nopony was in the market anymore.  Applejack noticed that the ponies who were previously wandering about the food vendors were heading in the direction of the Ponyville town square.

Applejack turned to her big brother and said, “Ah'm gonna go see what's up.  Ya'll ok ta watch Apple Bloom while Ah'm gone?”

“Eyup,” replied the red stallion.

The orange mare in the cowpony hat took off, trotting at a brisk pace.  If something bad had happened, she wanted to help in any way possible.  She liked helping the pony folk, after all.