Chapter 5
MLP: FiM
The Weight of Responsibility
By: Calm Wind
Chapter 5:
Thunderlane was quick to decide on what to do. They had stopped locking his door at night, so it would be easy, at least he hoped. The Apple Family had a very precise schedule that they followed almost every day of the week. In bed at 8:00 pm, rise at 4:00 am. He could use this to his advantage. It was the middle of summer, so the sun was up longer, and the twilight between day and night kept enough glow for him to see.
He could go out and pull a few apple loads from the orchard for two hours then sneak back and sleep for six hours. He was sacrificing a little bit of sleep, but he had to do SOMETHING to help them fix this mess. He felt inclined to. Even though it was mostly an accident, he was still responsible for their current situation.
He waited until 8:20, confident that they’d all be in bed by then. He slid out of bed and slowly made his way over to the door. He put his ear to it to make sure he wasn’t going deaf, and once silence registered, he quietly opened the door. He peered out and looked left and right in the hallway. Not a single light was on. Perfect.
He took one step and the floorboards released an ungodly creak. He froze in place and his eyes darted to all the doors. Thankfully, there was no reaction to the noise. Just how old was this house anyway? He never noticed the creaking before, but that was probably because more often than not, he was pissed when he rushed up here. This house was a burglar’s nightmare.
He took another step, trying to make it as soft as possible. Even with the lighter steps it still made noise. If only he could use his wings, this would be a breeze.
Because of his super soft walking, it almost took him a whole ten minutes to get to the stairs. He was surprised when the stairs made no noise at all. Perfect, now he could get going.
Applejack rolled over in bed and looked at the clock. It read 8:30. She sighed, grabbing her pillow and pushing it down over her face before releasing a muffled yell. After her rage was released, she flipped the pillow aside and lay with her head on the mattress, facing straight up. She would never get to sleep, not until she could figure this whole thing out. She sat up straight and stared at her hat hanging on the bedpost. The sight of her hat and the thoughts about her family made a decision for her quickly.
She felt a wave of determination rush over her and she hopped out of bed. Why wait to figure it out? The answer was simple. She had to do more work. Maybe two more hours wouldn’t kill her, it would cut back on sleep a little, but she could manage. She grabbed her hat and made her way to the door.
After a quick peek, there was no other pony in sight. Perfect. She lightly balanced herself on the floorboards closest to the right hand side of the wall. The floor upstairs was known for being creaky, but years of shenanigans as a filly taught her that she could sneak quietly on the right side.
She got to the top of the stairs and looked back. She wasn’t sure if she was mistaken, but she thought she saw the door to Thunderlane’s room slightly ajar. She was too far to see it now though, so she let the thought go and made her way down.
Thunderlane felt home free as soon as left the house. He trotted at a steady pace for the barn through the moonlit night. He knew there was little he could do on his own, but he could easily get a few loads of apples from the orchards by himself.
He was relieved to see there was no lock on the barn door as he approached. That alone would have completely thwarted his efforts. He forced the heavy door to slide open and let himself in. The carts were all parked in lines. He examined them as walked through, his eyes landing on the small cart meant for Applebloom. He stopped and stared at it for a moment, then looked between it and the larger carts.
“Screw it.” He mumbled and approached the small cart. No more whining. He knew he couldn’t manage the larger carts on his own. This whole plan of his was about helping them, and he’d be more helpful if he actually made it to and from the fields more than once. He went to the other side of the barn and opened the back sliding door before hooking himself up to the small cart and heading out.
Time to work. He wouldn’t let them lose their home without putting up a fight.
“What the hay?” Applejack blinked as she approached the barn. The front AND back sliding doors were left open? They hadn’t had a thief in years, but Big Mac would get a good talking to for leaving them ajar. She casually trotted inside and pulled two apple carts out from the lines, connecting them together. This was going to be about efficiency. She was faster with two carts and didn’t want to tire herself out too quickly.
As she pulled the clattering carts out toward the back exit, she completely missed the fact that Applebloom’s cart was nowhere to be seen.
“Time’s a-wastin’!” She cracked her neck and forced the carts moving, inadvertently following a very faint trail of cart tracks that were freshly pressed into the dirt path.
Thunderlane came to a halt near the section of the orchard they had been recently working on. Determination? Check. Resolve? Check. Motivation? Check. Still tired and stiff from his work already earlier that day? Checkmate.
He shook his head out between panting and smacked his hooves against his head. Power through it, don’t give up so easily. He had to do this no matter what. He unhooked himself and wandered slightly into the orchard. Each one had a basket nearby meant for loading apples. Some of the trees had been bucked clean, but there were still plenty to be worked on. Now a new challenged approached.
Was he strong enough to knock these apples out of the trees? He had seen Braeburn and Applejack do it. It looked like it took a lot of leg strength and a particular form. Again, if he had use of his wings he’d just fly up and pluck them, but he still suffered the rope tied around him.
“Come on Thunderlane!” He snorted and coached himself. “Stop doubting! Start kicking!” He firmly turned his flank towards one of the trees and gave it a hard, but sloppy double kick. The vibration shuddered through him. “Ow.” He said simply as he staggered forward and turned around. Not a single apple had fallen from the tree.
This was going to be rough.
Applejack kept a steady pace along the path while contemplating a few things. This was going to be a huge undertaking. She almost wondered if it was the best idea, seeing as how her workload and responsibilities were already running her ragged and making her act differently.
Maybe she could ask Mac to help her out. No, he has enough to do already, trying to put the storage unit back together. Braeburn? Maybe, but he wasn’t quiet as resilient as her. The lack of sleep was sure to catch up to him quick. Applebloom, out of the question. Growing ponies need their sleep.
Thunderlane? Yeah, that’ll be the day. Despite her view on him steadily improving, she wasn’t about to rely on him for extra work. He’d probably start whining again or get moody. She didn’t know why the hell he was so angry at dinner earlier, but she didn’t need that attitude out here.
This was just something she’d have to do herself. The realization weighed heavy upon her, as if she wasn’t being weighed down enough as is. There was so much at stake and so very little she could do about it. Her only thin ray of hope was to forget an important lesson she learned a long time ago and take on more work than she could probably handle. It was likely to have negative effects on her, but she would throw herself to the Timberwolves if it were the only way to pick her family up from the ashes.
“Huh?!” She came to a sudden halt near the area of the orchard they’d recently begun picking. Applebloom’s cart was parked on the side of the path. “Who?” She looked back down the path, then back at the cart. Only two ponies used the small cart: Applebloom and Thunderlane.
There was NO WAY Thunderlane was out here doing extra work. Hell would freeze over first. Did Applebloom sneak out and try to do some extra work? Applejack knew Applebloom was worried sick after hearing all the arguing after dinner. Knowing her little sister well, Applejack quickly assumed Applebloom snuck out, wanting nothing more than to make things better for the family she loved. It was cute and endearing, but she was still just a filly.
Applejack’s ears picked up the sound of light, clumsy, tree bucking noises. It was definitely Applebloom. Applejack unhooked herself from her carts with a heavy sigh, and made her way out into the orchard. She put on her best smile and readied herself to comfort her little sister before bringing her back to the house.
She approached the tree that the noise was coming from. It was shaking slightly, but not nearly hard enough to make any of the apples fall. Applebloom was definitely behind it.
“Applebloom what are y—” Applejack froze as she came around the trunk. She stared directly into the eyes of Thunderlane, whose pupils shrank as he heard her voice and stared up at her. He was panting and covered in sweat, and the tree had multiple spots with chipped bark, suggesting he had been at it for a while.
“Uh—” Thunderlane’s mouth hung slightly ajar. So much for his secret idea. He was going to be locked up tight every night for this. Applejack’s initial shock finally faded, the blinked a couple times before her eyes turned down into a glare.
“THUNDERLANE?!” Her booming voice blew his mane back, “WHAT’R YOU DOIN’ OUT HERE?!” She yelled furiously.
“I—I was…” He stammered while looking back and forth, his ears completely folded back.
“Are you stealin’ apples? How long have you been at it?” She stuck a hoof into his chest. He quickly shook his head.
“NO! Nonononono! I was just—” He kept hesitating.
“You’ve got three seconds to tell me before I consider beltin’ ya again!” She threatened. Thunderlane crouched down and covered his head.
“NO! PLEASE DON’T! I WAS—, I was doing—extra work.” He said quietly. Applejack’s eyes widened and her ears flattened outward.
“Pardon?” She said, narrowing one eye and lifting the eyebrow above it. She didn’t hear that correctly did she?
“I was trying to do more work.” Thunderlane repeated, shivering beneath her gaze.
A very long, strange silence extended between them. Thunderlane was worried she was about to berate him, but in reality, Applejack was at a loss for words. Her first thought was that Thunderlane was lying through his teeth, but he brought the cart out, and had a few baskets gathered. It gave every indication he was trying to gather up more than just a few apples.
“Really?” Applejack was still skeptical.
“Really.” Thunderlane answered while slowly standing. Applejack looked slightly up at him as he looked away.
“Why?” She asked simply. Thunderlane kept looking away. How would he explain this? It was a family matter, and he knew she’d say that to him. But he had to help. He HAD to convince her he was being sincere.
“I—,” he swallowed and looked her directly in the eyes, “I heard the conversation with your family after dinner.” He admitted. He watched as Applejack’s expression changed from skeptical to alarm. She backed up a step and looked about a two or three different spots on the ground as the info hit her. “And I felt—”
“It ain’t none of yer business!” She suddenly snapped. Thunderlane winced, expecting some sort of physical retort, but when he got nothing, he slowly opened his eyes to see her turned to the side. She had her hat pulled down slightly more and her bottom lip was slightly quivering. She quickly turned the rest of the way, facing her back to him. “Sorry.” She choked out, “I appreciate the concern, but it ain’t nuthin’ you should worry about. Go back and git some sleep.” She started walking, but didn’t get far.
“WAIT!!!” Thunderlane ran up and got in front of her, “You came out here to do more work too right?!” He guessed. She didn’t look at him and walked around. He stepped with her and got in front of her again. “Let me help you!”
“No.” She said simply, tipping her head down so her hat blocked her eyes. She tried getting around him again.
“Applejack!” He pleaded. She just turned aside again. He put himself in front of her one last time, dropped down on his legs and grabbed one of her front hooves, “PLEASE!” He yelled while clutching her hoof. She stopped with her hoof being held in place. Thunderlane had his head down in submission, he had to convince her. But then he felt something small and wet land on his face. He blinked and looked up slowly. Applejack had her eyes shut and tears were slowly falling down her face. “Applejack?” He quickly stood up as she let her flank fall into a sit. Thunderlane was not expecting that at all, not from a pony as tough as her.
“What am I doin’?” Applejack yanked her hat down over her face. Thunderlane tried to bend down to see her eyes, but she had them completely covered. “I came out here to do extra work, but it ain’t gonna mean nuthin’.” She sniffled and shook her head. “Even a random pony we got helpin’ us can see how bad things are. It’s over, mah family is screwed.” She sobbed lightly into her hat.
“Applejack…” Thunderlane suddenly felt an extreme wave of sympathy rush over him. He must’ve set a new record for how quickly one’s perception and approach to things can change. He was dragged in here kicking and screaming a week ago, now here he was looking to solve everything in any way he could. He sat down beside her.
“I’mma failure!” Applejack yelled, muffled by her hat. She felt like her life was in shambles. She had put way too much on her shoulders. The work was overwhelming her, she never saw her friends anymore, she was bitter and quick to snap at her own family, and now it all came crashing down on top of her. “I take on all these new jobs on the farm, one thing goes sour and it’s all GONE!” She shook her head back and forth, spraying droplets of tears about. “I’m a DAMN FAILURE!”
“No. You’re not!” Thunderlane sat down beside her. She heard him, but she didn’t answer. “Applejack, the farm isn’t gone yet.” He began, and continued regardless of if she was listening or not. “You came out here tonight to do extra work right? To help save the farm right?” Again no answer. He put a hoof on her shoulder. “Applejack PLEASE let me help you.”
“There ain’t no point.” She answered abruptly.
“YES THERE IS!” Thunderlane stomped his free hoof down. Applejack flinched and finally shifted her hat down just enough to expose her eyes. They were completely red and still very wet. “Yeah alone maybe it wouldn’t make much of a difference, but if you let me help we can get a lot done!” He said vigorously. “I beg you, Applejack. Your family is in a bind because of ME!” He pounded his hoof to his chest.
“Huh?” Applejack couldn’t believe it. Thunderlane just admitted he had done wrong. He claimed total innocence up to this point. He got up and stood in front of her, grasping one of her hoofs by her hat with his.
“Please, Applejack. I need to make up for what I’ve done. Don’t deny me this chance!”
“Thunderlane…” She glanced down at his hooves holding hers. His grip was firm, his voice sincere, and his eyes determined. He really truly wanted to help her. He wanted to help them all. He acknowledged his blunders and was vowing to pay them back. She looked away briefly, finally removing the hat from her face entirely with her free hoof and putting it back on her head. “I don’t know what t’say.” She flashed him a weak, tear stained smile. She wiped her tears and stood up. “I guess you leave me no choice. I ain’t gonna turn down such a generous offer.”
“So yes?” Thunderlane smiled hopefully. Applejack nodded.
“Yeah, you c’n help me. Two extra hours every night after everypony else goes to bed. C’n ya manage that and still work during the day?” She suddenly felt a wave of hope wash over her. She was taking on extra work despite how much she already had. But now that she had somepony to share the load with, she felt much lighter. Maybe this was her problem from the start. It just took somepony from outside her family for her to truly see the difference a little extra help could make. The weight of responsibility is incredibly heavy, she should never have been afraid to share the load.
“I will. I promise. I won’t let your farm close.” He said sincerely. Seeing somepony care so much about her work and family made her feel warm on the inside. Maybe this would all work out after all. Applejack looked to the rope around Thunderlane’s body.
This was it. Time to see if he really meant it.
“C’mere.” She approached him and reached for the rope binding his wings. “If we’re gonna do this, we’re gonna need all of our strengths. We’re gonna need clockwork to git everything done, and these wings o’yours will help us git it.”
Thunderlane watched with anticipation as she tugged on the knot and the rope came loose. The rope slowly slid off his body and he exhaled while slowly extending his wings out. A few cracks and pops sounded from them as the stiff joints loosened. He straightened and bent them a couple times to work out all the kinks before flapping them twice and refolding them.
“Thanks.” He said while smiling happily.
He didn’t fly off. He was still standing in front of her. He meant it. He meant every word. Applejack looked down and grinned briefly, before getting into professional mode.
“Alright! We still have a good hour an’ a half before we should git back.” She pointed at the trees, “You fly up and get as many apples out’o the trees as you can and load up my cart. I’ll take Applebloom’s cart back to the barn first.”
“Alright.” Thunderlane nodded and gently flapped his wings until he rose to tree height.
“And Thunderlane?” She called up to him.
“Yeah?” He asked, looking back down.
“Thanks… for caring so much.” She said while looking away slightly embarrassed. Thunderlane smiled back down and gave a salute.
“It’s the least I can do.” He said, before they turned and began their first secret night of work.
Boy it felt great to fly again. Thunderlane never felt a stronger natural high in his life. Even if he was working, the freedom of flight made him feel fantastic. He zipped around the trees, plucking apples from the branches quickly as he went, dropping them in the baskets below and moving them to the path.
Applejack couldn’t help but be amazed at how efficiently Thunderlane was getting the apples down. Sure he wasn’t doing it the traditional way, but tradition didn’t matter in the face of a crisis. He had a full set of apple baskets waiting to fill both of her carts each time she came back. She was almost breaking a sweat trying to keep up with him.
When their two hours had been used up, they managed to bring almost as many apples they had brought in the five hours that morning. If they could get this efficiency around the clock, they might just have what it takes to save the farm.
The trick behind all of this was the short term apple storage in the barn. They took inventory every morning, and if they had a certain amount, that day was dedicated to pulling carts into town or elsewhere to make sales. If they could make it mostly full every night, then they would have more chances to make bits.
“Alright, we should git back.” Applejack waved to Thunderlane as he loaded up more apples. He nodded and hovered beside her as she began pulling the cart. She smirked and chuckled as he flew beside her. “Missed your wings that much huh?” She joked.
“More than you can imagine,” Thunderlane replied, “I don’t think I’m gonna walk for a few days.
“Keep up that quick work you just showed me and I guarantee we won’t make you do much walkin’. With you AND Soarin helpin’, we’ll be harvestin’ a record crop this year, and we’re gonna need it bad.”
“I’ll do whatever I can.” He assured her. She liked this new Thunderlane that suddenly appeared on their farm. Just this morning it was the same Thunderlane that wasn’t sure what to do with himself, whining every second, and occasionally being nice. Now Applejack had a partner that could help turn the tables. If they made it through this little crisis, SHE would owe HIM big time. It was almost as if the whole scenario had turned on itself. Talk about irony.
“So you heard our little scuffle huh?” She suddenly asked, looking down slightly. Thunderlane blinked and looked at her.
“Yeah, I was actually about to come down the stairs to complain.” He confessed. This gave Applejack a good laugh.
“Wow, that would’a been HORRIBLE timin’” She chuckled.
“I know right, but I’m glad I listened in. I had no idea I had made things so bad for you guys. When I realized what it meant for you and your family, everything just changed.”
“Ya can’t blame yerself for it all.” Said Applejack, “it was an accident, I’m not gonna accuse you of lookin’ down from the sky an’ sayin’ ‘hey! I’m gonna break that!’”
“I’m still a part of it though.” He nodded, “and I just couldn’t bear it when I heard your little sister crying, I think that was the real part that kicked my ass into gear.”
“Applebloom…” Applejack glanced at Thunderlane. He had been a nuisance, but he was slowly proving to Applejack right now that when things got serious, his maturity finally showed through. Sometimes it takes a something major for a pony to realize what’s important and what they have to do. It was becoming clear that Thunderlane had a good heart after all. Applejack was glad he did, and she was glad he understood them.
They reached the barn and unloaded the carts one last time. Applejack and Thunderlane headed for the front door of the barn.
“We should go back separately.” Suggested Applejack as she slid the barn door shut behind them, “we’ll make less noise, and they won’t be likely to think somethin’s up if just one of us is caught sneakin’ around.”
“Why all the secrecy anyway?” Thunderlane asked. “I know I was trying to do it too, but what are your reasons?”
“I don’t want anypony else in mah family t’be more burdened than they already are.” Applejack quickly responded as she walked up beside him.
“How am I different?” He questioned. Applejack tipped her hat to him.
“You ain’t family, for some reason, I feel fine having you help. Besides, by not flyin’ away on me, you proved you really wanna help.” She suddenly came up and hugged him tightly. Thunderlane flinched and his eyes widened. “Look, I really, truly am happy ya wanna help me out so bad. It means more to me than you’d think.” She released him and gave him a wink. “Thanks.” She turned and left the barn.
Thunderlane watched her go. As she slowly moved out of sight, his face heated up slightly and his wings ruffled. He was used to a much more casual type of affection from the pegasus sisters. That was much different, and it felt pretty good. Maybe it was a mix of feeling good about helping and that she was so thankful for him. It was giving him a new sense of satisfaction.
Or was it…?
---To be Continued---
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Aren't the Apple Family set for life since Granny Smith and her family responsible of Ponyville's birth?
4285697
apparently they got monopolism on apples and apple cider and still are dirt poor, maybe they´re just terrible at saving Money?
4285756
I'm trying to go for:
-it costs a TON to run a farm the size of theirs
-Mac spent a lot on the storage unit knowing it would pay out quintuple once it was added to the farm.
-whoops thunderlane broke it, now they are in deep shit cause of all the money spent.
I think people are thinking a little too hard about it. It's a plot i'm trying to work with that's all
4285777 Sweet Apple Acres is simultaneously the richest and poorest farm in the world, apparently. They're well off until something goes wrong, and then they're screwed.
4285789
Plotline, conflict, FANFICTION.
4285807 Fair enough.
THIS is gonna get good. And were you implying romance? That last part kinda made me go that way.
oh wait never mind. went back and read it. you weren't implying romance
4285822
You'll see
I feel that your shipping mode is coming on!!
Yeah!! New chapter, awesome!! I'm looking forward to see how it progresses! Amazing work as usual Calm!
4286100
it won't be as EPIC as flying sky high, but i guarantee i'll make you feel warm and fuzzy
4286101
Thanks!
and sorry for the wait, i couldn't pass up the contest for my favorite romance pair
4286129 hey no prob! We all gotta do what we gotta do for our favorite pairs right!? Speaking of Favorite pairs, I need to thank you for showing me mine! I never had a favorite pairing in mlp before coming across the weight of responsibility before, and I've been loving ThunderJack ever since! Thanks for that!
Can't wait.
4286155
haha you're welcome
I wasn't necessarily a fan of it before hand, i needed a storyline for Thunderlane so i put him as a protagonist alongside applejack. I have to admit though, i've enjoyed writing them interact
4286183 why did you need a storyline for Thunderlane? I have to say I love this fix so far for not only the pairing. You were right, character interactions is your strong suit (and that there was no real environmental description but here, it wasn't really nessisary) Still love it! It's actually inspired not only a picture I sketched of the two, but a one shot fic I have in the works
4286214
i've picked six male characters from the show that i wanted to give more personality to
So far i've done big mac Soarin Fancy Pants, Braeburn, and now Thunderlane (the last doesnt need as much, but i want to write for him anyway 
)
Its supposed to lead up to a larger work im planning on writing in the future that includes all six of them
and im glad i inspired you
i'd love to see the sketch if you want to show it (you can pm it if you want)
4286241 it's nothing special, but if love to show it to you! Just give me maybe till tomorrow to give you the link, I'm on my phone and my pc is shitting itself.
4286270
haha alright, no rush
4286125 I love warm and fuzzy!
YEAH I'M SO HAPPY THIS HAS BEEN UPDATED! I love this story so much, and I hope that the next updates come soon because I don't think I can take not being able to read this story as it goes
Well... shit. How am I supposed to correct mistakes if I can't find any!!!
So, what exactly is Thunderlane's relationship with Flitter and Cloudchaser? Because ThunderJack/AppleLane is a rather unique, and adorable, ship, especially the way in which their feelings for one another are slowly emerging.
4287040
yeah, sorry for the long hiatus, spent the last two months on a fic for a soarindash contest.
But now im back to this fic, and updates will be frequent
4287629
The way i'm trying to go about it is Thunderlane sort of has a laid back casually sexual relationship with the cloud chaser and Flitter. Flitter is more girly, less crass. Cloud Chaser is the polar opposite.
Thunderlane is a "lucky guy" that has two mares who hang out with him all the time who consider him to be "their man". So there's nothing serious between any of them, they just have "easy access" to some "fun"
it's supposed to be a heavy contrast between the Apple family's strict way of life and Thunderlane's not giving a damn lifestyle.
And i did a good job editing this time?!?!?!!
Thanks for your continued support
4287629 Thunderjack is my fav shop! Although to be fair, I didn't know it was my fav until I first read this story. Before then I liked the idea of Thunderscratch.
I have to go on a trip and I won't so have wi-fi
so if I don't comment on any new chapters that's why.
4288972
no worries
have a nice trip!
Oh yeah things are sure to really perk up from here!
Well looks like things are turning right pretty well at least a little so thunderlane was waiting for everyone is a sleep so he can do extra work to gatherings the apples and it looks like Applejack got the same idea as well later they finally saw each other and Applejack thinks thunderlane is stealing the apples so accusing him and yelling at him but then he said he was just trying to help to do extra work he even admitted that it was his fault that they are in this situation Applejack felt really appreciate that he was helping and even letting him use his wings and they got the half of the apple orchard done she thank him and hug him for all he's doing aww so sweet