I left the car where it had skidded do a halt. It wasn’t exactly in anypony’s way I could always move it later on. Right now I just wanted to see my friends, so I apologised to the ponies in the square and quickly headed off to Sweet Apple Acres.
The sun’s warmth was a beautiful temperature; it was exactly what I needed after the cold of earth. And although my passing through the streets raised a few surprised, or even shocked faces, the general atmosphere of cheeriness and happiness perforated the air and filled me with joy.
The town hadn’t changed much, admittedly there were a few new houses dotted around and that was to be expected after a year. But each corner I turned around brought on a site that brought fond memories flooding back to me. I saw the spot my old car was first revealed to me after Fixit had repaired it. The side streets that me and Dash had raced down. They were all here, they were all the same as I recalled them.
I finally rounded one last corner and before stretched a small dirt track, it wound and moved with the shape of the field it lay on, and up at the top of the hill, lay a place that held a large number of my fond memories. Sweet Apple Acres.
They’d re-painted the barn, it was still red, but it was definitely brighter! The main house seemed to have gone through some slight refurbishing as well. I couldn’t help but feel a pang of misery at the fact that I hadn’t been there to help, they had always wanted to do it and I suppose I had thought I would always be around to help. It’s funny how things change.
At the tip of the hill, heading towards the barn, there strode a large red stallion. “MAC!” I yelled, waving my hand over my head as I broke into a run to catch up with my large friend. He couldn’t hear me, I was quite far away. I reached the gate into the farm, it was shut, and so I took hold of the top plank and threw myself over the white wooden gate.
Big Macintosh was nearly at the barn, once inside I knew you couldn’t hear anything from the outside, so I picked up my pace. I tore my way up the winding path between the orchards trees, still shouting my friend’s name. “MAC! BIG MAC!” He paused just by the door, I saw his ears perk up at the sound of my voice, would he recognise it after a year?
The stallion looked around perplexed for a moment, then I saw his eyes spot me winding through the tree’s. For a moment, his usually blank face was filled with surprise, but only for a moment. Then his face fell back into its usual indifferent expression, and continued into the barn.
“Hey Mac! Hold on a minute!” I panted as I approached the double doors into the large wooden structure. I took a moment to catch my breath, hunched over holding my knees as I gulped down large gasps of air. I didn’t hear anypony, or see anypony inside the barn.
The refurbishing had obviously dealt with the cracks in the wooden roof, because instead of being illuminated by the beautiful beams of sunlight, the room inside was nearly completely dark. I pushed the doors open slightly and passed into the dark room. The iron hinges squeaked horribly. I took no notice of the sounds, I was in Ponyville, so what could possibly happe-
I felt a hoof slam into my chest, not in jest but in honest hostility. I felt myself fall back, my back slammed into the wooden frame of the doors. My elbow knocked a particularly rusty pitchfork off of its hook, as it clanged to the floor I realised how close I had just come to puncturing my back with its sharp tips.
The hoof still lay on my chest, pinning me against the wall and stopping me from moving my body. My arms flapped helplessly, trying to push the strong foreleg off of my chest, their attempts were simply useless. I stared down at the leg, its fur was red, a horribly familiar red. My eyes travelled up the leg and up to the face just above it. His green eyes were fixed on mine, there was no happiness in them, in fact I was sure I saw a hint of resentment in them.
“Mac, let me go man!” I tried yet again to pull his hoof off of me, but it was rooted strongly in my chest. “Mac, it’s me, Tom!” His eyes seemed to flash red at my words, his other fore hoof soared up towards my face. I flinched and closed my eyes, waiting for the contact. There was a huge crunch next to my right ear. I opened one eye to see the other hoof inches from my face, the punch had cracked the wooden frame of the door and yet he still didn’t say anything.
“Macintosh! Quit messing around and let me go!” I ordered him. Without warning, the hoof released my chest. The sudden surprise gave me no time to find my footing, and I crumbled to the floor rubbing my chest. As I looked at the ground, both of his forelegs came into view. He finally spoke, and each word seemed to be filled with venom.
“Twilight said you’d come back...” I opened my mouth to speak, but the stallion stomped his hoof, with it being so close to my face I flinched and shut my mouth again.
“Twilight said you wouldn’ be able to keep your word. To be honest I’m surprised you lasted this long! I expected yah to show up within a week, but a whole year? Well something really ‘portant must have happened to distract the god of chaos for so long!” God of chaos? Did he think I was Discord? Why? ‘Certain events took place...’ He had said he had sworn not to cause a lot of trouble for one hundred years, he had said he had learnt about me, had he BEEN me?! That would explain why my old friend had almost turned me into mulch with his bare hooves!
“I guess I’m lucky yah came t’ me.” The red earth stallion said coldly, “If Applejack saw you, knowing what tomorrow is, she’d ‘ve fallen apart!” His hoof rose suddenly, realising what was coming I rolled out to the side of the barn. Big Macintosh’s hoof slammed into the spot where my head had just been. Now gratefully submerged in the darkness of the barn, I got to my feet and crept around the perimeter to get towards the door without being spotted.
Mac however had other plans. He stood in front of the two wooden panels blocking my escape from every angle. So sneaking out wasn’t going to do me any good, what now? I guessed all I COULD do was reason with my old work colleague. I stood in one corner and spoke, then scarpering off to a new hiding spot so if he followed my voice he wouldn’t find me.
“It’s really me Mac! I’m not Discord, just one hundred percent human!” As I had thought, Mac looked to where I had been hid, he took a tentative step forward.
“Now we both know that aint true! You posed as Tom once, and we aint gonna fall for it again!” I was hiding behind a hay bale at this point, but I quickly moved behind a barrel on the other side of the barn after asking,
“IT IS ME! What can I do to prove it?” Big Mac looked to the other side of the barn then the one he had been looking at, he was obviously confused by my change of location. He spoke slowly, taking care to listen for any movement.
“You...can’t. We were the ones who had to bury Tom! You can’t just go and pose like him whenever you want Discord.” He passed me in my hiding place, he was only a foot away.
I knew what needed to be done. I slowly stood, and crept behind the Stallion. “Then I guess I need to find a friends who’ll believe me!” Big Mac whirled around just in time to see my foot plough into his flank. I pushed with all my might, and miraculously I made him topple backwards and into a layer of hay on the floor behind him. I turned and ran from the barn, leaving Mac to recuperate. I heard him yell something at me as I passed the doors and ran into the sunlight again, but I didn’t quite understand what he said.
I couldn’t out run him for long, so I needed to make tracks and quick! I pelted down the path as fast as I could, vaulted the fence and continued back to ponyville with all my might! I heard the fast approaching hooves behind me; I glanced over my shoulder to see Big Macintosh in pursuit. He cleared the fences in a single bound, and continued at a speed I’d never seen before on four hooves.
I reached the end of the dirt track, the houses and side streets were just ahead. The hoof steps were gaining on me, but I didn’t dare look back again. The first corner around the side of a cottage was sharp, an idea stuck me! I reached out and grabbed hold of the beams that supported the structure exterior, pushed forward by my momentum I jumped, and curled around the corner without losing any speed. I dropped back to the ground and continued without a pause.
I heard the galloping hooves slow for a moment and grow quieter as Big Mac slowed to make the corner, but he was soon gaining again. For the first time I heard my old friend yell, It was actually a yell coming from the usually quiet stallion! “GET OUT OF HERE DISCORD! YOU’VE CAUSED ENOUGH GRIEF!” Surely he must have noticed that I was running! If I had been discord I could have popped out of existence! I knew Mac, and though he was smart, when he got angry he would quickly lose a lot of his logical thinking, he was a lot like his sister in that respect.
I turned another corner, and there stood a familiar building! Its branches and leaves were still as thick as ever, the glass window’s still shimmered in the noonday sun. The library! Twilight should be there! She may be shocked to see me, but she could hopefully calm down Big Mac! Though in site, the building was still a reasonable distance away, and I was beginning to grow tired. I had to cross through the open market to get there.
As I tore my way through groups of ponies on their daily shopping routine, I thought hard. In my vision, I had been lying next to Twilight, she had rolled over and SEEN ME! So if I had a chance to reason with anypony, it would be the oldest friend I had here. I wouldn’t make it in time. The stallion was fast gaining on me, and my feet screamed at me to stop!
I saw a stand, It had a sign saying “Back in five minutes” So I knew nopony was inside it. Could I do it? I had no choice. I changed my angle of approach ever so slightly, still headed for the library but approaching it so I would have to run through the stall if I moved in a straight line. That’s just what I planned to do. As I reached the stalls supporting beams, I swiped as hard as I could with both my arms, now weakened considerably the structure wobbled. Without a moment’s pause I took a hard kick at the side of the wooden structure as I passed.
My plan worked, because I had already passed most of the stall when it began to collapse, I soon cleared the area before it came tumbling down. Unfortunately my old friend Big Macintosh wasn’t so lucky. The stall collapsed onto his tail, halting him instantly as it pulled him straight to the ground. I was glad he hadn’t been badly hurt, but that was the only chance I would have at escaping. I glanced back to see Mac wrestling with the wreckage, his attention was completely focused on his escape and not on me. So without a knock on the door, or a shout of her name, I simply barged trough the door of Twilights home and slammed the door behind me.
I stood there panting even harder than I had outside the apple family barn. My sides were on fire, my head was swimming, and my pulse pounded loudly in my ears. I heard a gasp from above my bowed head. I looked up slightly to see the floor ahead of me, and saw two magenta forelegs...