An orange mare sadly trotted down a worn dirt path, her hooves striking up small puffs of dust as she followed the familiar path. The sun was just hitting its highest point in the sky, warming her backside as she walked. A large saddlebag was slung over her back, overflowing with food. As she came to the crest of the hill, she left the dirt path as she trotted over to two gravestones, which were almost as tall as she was.
She stood before them, her eyes slowly tracing the epitaph. With a sigh, she gripped her saddlebag in her teeth and dropped it onto the grass beside her as she sat down. She grabbed her stetson, and gently lowered it onto the grave before her, just like she had done every other time she'd visited.
"Hey Pa... Hey Ma... Ah brought your hat back, Pa. I've been taking good care of it..." She trailed off, scratching her head as she read the words etched into the stone.
"I'm sorry ah didn't get to visit recently... There was a wedding in Canterlot and..." Applejack said, smiling as she talked. "But Twilight was right... Ah should'a listened to her... Why didn't ah trust her?" The mare asked as she gazed off into the distance.
"Applebloom's doing good. That little filly and her friends are always gettin’ into all sorts o' trouble around Ponyville, though. They caused quite a ruckus when they decided to be Cutie Mark Journalists..." She grew silent for a moment.
"You'd be so proud of her Ma... She looks just like you. She's such a happy little runt, but she's hurtin’ real bad. The other night I woke up to the sound of her crying... She's scared she's forgetting ya'll... Shoot, I don't even remember your voices already... and ah had years more with ya'll than Applebloom did." Applejack blinked back tears, and her eyes drifted over to the saddlebag beside her.
"Ah brought ya'll some of this year’s cider. You wouldn't believe your eyes if you saw the farm Pa... The ponies in Canterlot loved our cider and we sold out a month’s worth of stock in just one day."
“Big Mac and I are digging out a new cellar, just so we can hold more cider for next year." Applejack dug into her saddlebag and pulled out two covered mugs of cider. She set a mug down next to each gravestone, and pulled out her own.
She took a sip, smiling as the warmth of cider flooded her mouth.
"Big Mac's doing jus’ fine, too..." She giggled as the Want-it-Need-it spell came to her mind. "My friend Twilight...she freaked out over something real small." She bit back laughter as she remembered the sight of Big Mac fighting over Twilight’s old and worn-out doll.
“That silly mare cast a spell that caused the entire town to fight over this little doll of hers, just so she could help them and send a report to the Princess about her learning about sharing or some such thing. If Princess Celestia hadn't arrived when she did, then the whole town would still be at each other’s throats. But after the Princess lifted Twi's spell, ah saw Big Mac sneak away still clutching that doll between his teeth!" she said, slapping the ground as she laughed.
Her shoulders shook with the force of her laughter, her tail twitching across the grass behind her. Slowly her laughter quieted, her shoulders shaking as sobs racked her body. Tears leaked from the corner of her eyes, slowly running down her muzzle where they fell onto the grass below.
"Ah miss ya'll so much... Everyday ah think of you a little less and that kills me almost as much as thinking of you. Ah don't want to forget ya'll..."
Applejack fell silent as she cried, weeping for her family’s loss. She stood and tossed her saddlebag onto her back. She glanced skyward, and judging by the sun’s position in the sky, she figured that she had been there for three or four hours. She grabbed her Stetson and flipped it onto her head as she turned and started walking towards the exit.
She trotted along mindlessly, blinking back tears as she heard a small cry of despair. Her ears perked up as she tilted her head, listening intently. As she heard the sound again, she stepped off the pathway and started walking in the direction of the sound. She blinked in surprise as she recognized a familiar figure come into view.
Scootaloo sat a couple feet away, staring at a small rock with the words Mom and Dad crudely etched onto the front. Tears were streaming down the filly’s face, and even from this distance Applejack could tell that she was hurting. She stood still for a moment, unsure if she should try to comfort the young filly or sneak away and let her have her moment.
As Applejack stared at the crude gravestone, Scootaloo pawed the ground, anger and sorrow evident on her face. Applejack stepped forward and slid her Stetson off her head as she trotted over to the unsuspecting filly.
Applejack slipped her stetson on Scootaloo's head, giving her a tender smile as she whirled around.
Applejack leaned back, resting on her haunches as she held her arms wide. Scootaloo stared at her for a moment, her eyes watery. She threw herself forward, sobbing into Applejack's fur as she wrapped her forelegs around Scootaloo.
Applejack rubbed her hoof up and down Scootaloo's back, whispering into the filly's ear. Scootaloo's sobs slowly quieted, until the only the sound was the gentle sniffling from the filly in her arms.
"Ah know it hurts..." Applejack said, her gaze shifting to the stone before her. "When they firs'... go. It feels like your waitin' for them to come back... Like they're not gone..." She smiled down at Scootaloo, hugging the filly tightly.
"After a while, ya' have ta face fact's. They wouldn' want ya ta stay here and mope over 'em. They'd want ya to look each day in the face and live happy." She looked down at Scootaloo, cocking her head as the filly's face fell. "Ah'm not sayin' forget them. You'll never be able to forget them."
Scootaloo pushed away from Applejack, her tiny forelegs pushing against the mare's chest.
"I don't wanna remember them. They left me alone..." She wiped at her nose, fresh tears appearing in her eyes. "I hate them... If they loved me so much they wouldn't have lef-" Scootaloo grew silent as Applejack pulled her close.
"Neva' hate them. They didn' wanna leave us... They were jus' called away to a better place." Applejack said, nuzzling Scootaloo under her stetson. Scootaloo stared at her, tears running down her cheek silently before nodding, her eyes closed tightly.
Applejack rubbed the filly's back, a tender smile on her face. Scootaloo buried her face in Applejack's chest, crying into the mare's orange fur. Applejack rocked the filly slowly, stroking her mane as she whispered into her ear.
Applejack looked down as Scootaloo fell silent, a smile on her face as the filly yawned lightly, nuzzling into Applejack's chest. Applejack nuzzled the filly, smiling as the mare let out a weak snore, her wing fluttering ever so slightly.
Applejack smiled, her gaze returning to the tombstone before her.
"Sleep tight Sugarcube. Ol' Applejack's got yah. We'll get yah tah someone who can take good care of yah."