Pink Apple Seeds

by The1Ryu

Chapter Five: Big Macintosh’s Decision

Chapter Five
Big Macintosh’s Decision

“So, Big Macintosh how are you feeling?” Unistra asked looking up at the colt, a notebook floating in front of her. It had only been a few days since he had woken up from the void and while he had not slipped back into it, he was still reluctant to leave his room let alone the house.

Valencia had told her, Granny Smith and Great Graven what Big Macintosh had said that first night. They were careful to keep it from Applejack afraid the rather brash and straight forward little filly would not understand. For her part Applejack had been thrilled to see her big brother had finally woken up, but when he told her he could not play with her for her own good she did not take it well. Since then she had lapsed back into her old therapeutic treatment of jumping on and shouting at Big Macintosh, which earned her about the same reaction out of him as it had when he was catatonic.

Great Graven and Granny Smith had both tried talking to him but he would not relent. He was dangerous and the only way to protect other ponies from him was to stay away from them. So the family once again turned to Unistra hoping that she, an outsider, would have more luck talking to him.

Unistra agreed and was at least able to coax Big Macintosh down into the living room and out of his ‘safe’ room as she called it. As she set up for their counseling session Big Macintosh became more and more concerned about what the, as his sister called her, Witchy Mare was exactly trying to do.

“Are ya really qualified ta be doin’ this sorta thing?” Big Macintosh asked in reply to her first question.

The floating pencil tapped the pad with irritation as the Witchy Mare glared at the red colt across from her. “Big Macintosh, it is not very productive for you to answer a question with a question is it?”

Big Macintosh recoiled a little from her intense glare, realizing just why his sister called her the Witchy Mare. “Umm... No, ma'am, it isn’t, ah’m sorry. Ah’m fine, ah’m not really feelin’ much of anything ah guess.”

The pencil scribbled something across the notebook, which caused Big Macintosh to glance over at it nervously. He was just about to ask what she had just written when she spoke. “You were in a deep catatonic state for some time and you only came out of it when your ability to stay in it was taken away. It is hard to believe that you would be ‘fine’ after that, especially since you refuse to leave the house.”

Big Macintosh glanced at the Witchy Mare nervously; it was much easier to refuse to answer his mother or father then the old mare. It was almost as though if he refused to say anything she would make him speak. “Ah umm, ah don’t really understand how ah did that anyways. Ah, mean you explained that ah gather energy from movin’ around and doin’ physical stuff, so how could ah be gettin’ energy from just layin’ there?”

Big Macintosh looked up to find the Witchy Mare glaring at him again. “Big Macintosh I already told you it is not helpful to answer a question with a question.” Unistra said then shuffled herself forward into a relaxed laying position one foreleg over the other, “But if it will ease your mind I’ll explain. First of all, you gain energy not just from your own physical output of energy but from other’s physical output that comes into contact with you. That means you gather energy from the smallest nuzzle goodnight from your mother to the biggest jump on you from Applejack. Besides that, even at rest, your body performs physical tasks, a single beat of your heart alone pushes blood across your whole body releasing all the energy you need to survive. You are basically a perpetual motion machine; does that answer your question?”

Big Macintosh tilted his head in confusion, some of the Witchy Mare’s explanation went over his head. He had no idea what a perpetual motion machine was but he got the basic idea. He nodded to the Witchy Mare, “Ya, ah get it, ah guess.”

Unistra smiled and gave a nod, “Good now that I answered your question you can answer mine.”

Big Macintosh nodded, then paused and frowned, “What was the question again?”

Unistra sighed, “Maybe we should start at the beginning, how about you tell me what happened between you and the pony that started all this. Who was he and what did he do to make you want to hurt him?”

Big Macintosh’s face became grim at that question and he looked away from the Witchy Mare, “Ah don’t wanna talk about that.” His nervousness seemed to suddenly fade.

The pencil scribbled something down on the pad drawing Unistra’s attention for a moment. “Big Macintosh your family, and I as well, just want to help you deal the anger and fear you are feeling. There is nothing wrong with getting angry so long as you control it like you did. You did nothing wrong, but you keep punishing yourself and hiding away. Do you not want to go back to school and see your friends?”

“Y'all wouldn’t know anythin’ about mah school,” Big Macintosh scoffed and looked at the floor, “And ah don’t have any friends.”

Unistra scribbled something else down, “You are right I do not know anything about your school. I only know what you tell me, but I want to help and I can only do that if you tell me what it was like.”

Big Macintosh stared at the floor for several long moments, the room lapsed into silence the only real sound coming from the tick of the clock. Unistra was about to try and encourage him to speak again when he spoke. “They only whispered about meh at first and stared at me as ah passed by. Nopony talked to me and they ran away if ah tried talkin’ to them. Ah started gettin’ nervous everypony actin’ like that and all and accidently broke some things and that just made everythin’ worse. Then Blueblood came and he had a word for me, monster. He would ‘stand up’ to me and the others thought he was so cool for doin’ it...” Big Macintosh’s face twitched with anger as he continued to glare at the floor, it seemed like there was more he wanted to say, to shout. Instead, however, his face just became blank again, “Like ah told ya, ah don’t have any friends.”

Unistra scribbled down a few things one of which she stopped and considered for a moment before asking, “What changed?”

Big Macintosh looked up at her with confusion; nothing had changed that was the point. Seeing his confusion Unistra decided to explain, “For months of school nothing changed. Your parent told me you were depressed after your first day of school, but they thought it would pass and when it did not pass they started to worry. Each day you came and went from school they said it never changed until the first day you came home late, after running away from school. That day you came home and you were happy for the first time. I was just wondering what changed?”

“Nothin’,” Big Macintosh said quickly, he suddenly seemed nervous his eyes remaining locked on the floor. “Ah was just glad ah skipped that day.”

“Really,” Unistra asked scribbling something down, “Your mother said that you said made a friend that day, but you would not tell her or anypony anything else who it was.”

Big Macintosh jumped at that, but did not reply and continued to just stare at the floor.

“I can imagine it being hard for them, your friend I mean. As much as they liked a truly good pony like yourself, they could face the teasing it would bring. That is why they asked you to keep it a secret, no?”

Big Macintosh shifted uncomfortably in his seat and Unistra knew she was getting close to the truth. She knew as well that facing it would be painful it was imperative that they push through to the truth. “But things like that do not stay secret long in a town like this do they? It must have been hard for them, but that does not make it right for them to side with somepony else against you.”

Big Macintosh was shaking his head now as if to deny her words, but Unistra knew he could not and that he had to face this before he could move on. “It was not your fault they abandoned you like that. I...”

“SHUT UP, SHUT UP!” Big Macintosh roared to life slamming his hooves on the floor too angry to even worry that they might have gone straight through the floor. “Don’t ya talk about her like that! Ya don’t know anythin’ about it!”

Big Macintosh’s hard breathing was all that could be heard for the next several long moments. He stared hard at the Witchy Mare who stared back calmly waiting for the angry colt to calm down. Big Macintosh waited for her reply, ready for any snide point she might try and make, but when none came the fire inside of him quickly burnt out and the red colt calmed back down.

“Ah... ah’m sorry, ah didn’t mean to get so angry,” He shuffled his hooves around nervously. That was when he saw the damage to the floor, a few cracked and splintered boards stared back up at him accusingly. It was nothing compared to what would have happened if he had not been wearing the yoke, but it showed that he still had more strength then he should. “Ya see though how dangerous ah am, ah have too much anger and too much power to be around other ponies.”

“It is normal to get angry, everypony gets angry. No everypony, especially young ones, have as much control as you do. You are too hard on yourself Big Macintosh, you are angry because other ponies tease you then you feel wrong for getting mad. Other ponies do not have the right to say those things and you have the right to be angry, but you do not have to hide away from such things.”

Big Macintosh looked sorrowfully up at the Witchy Mare and for a moment he was not sure what was right. Finally, he shook his head and stood up, “Yer wrong. Ah’m dangerous, too many things could happen if ah got angry at somepony.” Big Macintosh walked from the living room to the stairs, “Ah’m sorry but ah’m never gonna leave the farm again. Ah can help out around here so ah won’t be a burden. That’s enough for me.”

Big Macintosh disappeared up the stairs and Unistra’s pencil twitched as if it wished to make another note as she mournfully watched the red colt leave. She sighed in defeat, there did not seem to be much more she could do here, and as much as she hated the idea of leaving her old friend’s family in such a state she really needed to report her findings.

---

Applejack was the most upset to see Unistra go, and in truth, the old unicorn was sorry to have to leave the brash, forthright little filly. The two had grown close over the week Applejack had played assistant to the old mare. Applejack came to respect the worldly wisdom of the Witchy Mare and enjoyed her subtle mischievous streak. Unistra found Applejack’s fierce devotion to her family enduring and had even grown fond of the nickname the filly had given her.

Applejack’s parents were very grateful for all the Witchy Mare had done for them and said their goodbyes with a little less formality than they had greeted her with, much to her relief. She tried to say how she wished she could have done more to help, but the Apples would not hear of it, they could not have asked her to do more.

Granny Smith told Unistra once again how good it had been to see her old friend. The two had spent many evenings talking about things that had come and gone since the last time they had seen each other. The light-heartedness of such conversations were eventually stolen by talk of Big Macintosh and his hardships.

Even Big Macintosh came out of his room to see the old mare off and thank her for all she had done for him. Unistra would have liked to left the colt with words of encouragement to return to school and to forgive himself for what had happened, but she knew he would not listen and she didn't want to spoil their goodbyes with such things. Instead, she simply wished him good luck.

The goodbyes finished Unistra took her leave walking slowly up the same path she had met Applejack on when she first arrived. Once she was out of sight of the farm she decided it was time to really get moving. Unistra began the less-than-familiar chant she had looked over that morning and her horn started to glow. The light quickly began to spread over her whole body and by the time she stopped chanting she the light covered her from horn tip to tail tip then slowly faded away. The spell in place, she tentatively took a step up into the air, her hooves seemed to find something solid in the air and she stepped into the air.

Unistra never much liked using the spell, the sky was the dominion of the pegasi and she was content to leave it to those crazed bird-brained ponies. However, times like this called for swiftness and there was no doubt she’d get to Canterlot as soon as possible going, ‘as the pegasus’ flies’. She ran through the sky with all the speed and energy of a young mare, another effect of the spell, reaching a height that put her well above the trees leaving nothing between her and Canterlot but empty air.

Unistra had used the spell several times over the course of her life, but the wind and height still gave her an uncomfortable sense of vertigo. She shook it off and focused all of her senses on the distant city, she found that it helped to keep her eyes on a fixed point. The naturally flying pegasus never had such problems, of course, and could let their eyes wander taking the sights all around them as they flew. Perhaps if she were a pegasus she would have seen the large three headed monster making its way towards Sweet Apple Acers.

---

“Thank ya darlin’, that was a great breakfast,” Great Graven said giving Valencia a kiss on her cheek as he put his dish into the sink. Unistra had declined to have breakfast before she left saying that it did not agree with her travel arrangements. That did not make much sense to the Apple family, but they shrugged it off as a ‘Witchy Mare’ thing. “Ah can’t wait for lunch.”

Valencia rolled her eyes as she turned on the water, food was all the red stallion ever seemed to think about. She could swear that Granny Smith must have coaxed him through life from one meal to the next, which was what she did after all. “You’ll get your lunch at lunch time so don’t you worry about it till then, there’s plenty of other things to be done in the meantime.”

“Yer right, ah better get started,” he said moving back to the table where Granny Smith was feeding Apple Bloom and gave them both a kiss on the head. Applejack had long since wolfed down her breakfast and ran off to do something, probably chase after The Witchy Mare, who she already missed dearly. Big Macintosh had declined to come down from his room for breakfast claiming he was not hungry, prompting Applejack to very pointedly make sure the sprig of wheat was still in his mouth. They could hardly make him do anything he did not want to, and so left him be for the time, but as Great Graven started towards the door the red colt reappeared.

“Ahhh, finally got hungry did ya?” Great Graven said with a smile, glad to see his son up again.

“Actually pah, ah was gonna ask if ah could go out applebuckin’ with ya.” Big Macintosh said and looked down with embarrassment, “Ah don’t want t’ be a burden on y'all. Now that ah have this yoke ah can applebuck with no chance o’ accidently bucking one down, so...”

Great Graven looked his son over and gave a slight smile that could have been taken as a sad smile. He thought it was a great idea, something to ease Big Macintosh back into a normal life. Work would be good for the colt; it would help him work through all that stuff he was keeping inside, “Well ah-”

“No,” Valencia cut in and gave her answer before Great Graven could finish. The two red pony’s looked over to her and seeing the stern on her face, the older knew that meant the conversation was over. Great Graven might have disagreed with his wife, but he respected her too much to contradict her in front of others, the younger was not so wise.

“But why not?” Big Macintosh said taking a step past his father to face his mother properly.

“You can’t just pick and choose what you’re going and not going to do Mackie. You have obligations just like any pony and if you want to work on the farm you’re going to have to go to school first.” Valencia said firmly, she had already heard Big Macintosh’s plan from Unistra and knew that she could not let him do it; it was just another way for him to run away from the things he did not want to deal with.

“Ah can’t go, ah can’t be ‘round normal ponies,” Big Macintosh protested.

“Then you can’t work on the farm either, that’s final,” Valencia said firmly, Big Macintosh wanted to argue further but he could see that it would do him no good. He looked to his father for support but Great Graven just shook his head. He very much wanted Big Macintosh to come out with him, but he knew Valencia was right to a degree and any arguments he might want to voice would have to wait until they could talk about it alone.

Big Macintosh started to speak several times, but each argument died on his tongue before he could speak it. In the end, the only response he could muster was an angry snort before turning and trudging up to his room.

---

Unistra entered Celestia’s throne room only a few short minutes after arriving in Canterlot, the princess of all Equestria sat on a raised dais. White pegasus guards flanked either side of the stairs outfitted in golden armor. The room was grand and reeked of power and authority that fitted the beautiful unicorn pegasus that proceeded over it all. However, Celestia did not radiate the power and authority one might expect, instead, there was a warmth around her that remained most ponies of their mother. There was not a pony in the nation that would not throw themselves between the princess and danger and no simple air of authority could match that kind of power.

“Welcome my old friend,” Princess Celestia said softly as the old unicorn bowed to the princess.

“I take it you are trying to be funny Celestia considering how old you are and how old I look,” Unistra said up to the princess who was now only a foot above her. Whether the dais was an illusion that made the princess look out of reach to those who entered the throne room or it really altered its height according to Princess Celestia’s will was something no pony, including Unistra, knew. She had learned to ignore it, just like she had learned to speak with the princess like she was just like any of her other ‘old’ friends. It was something that Princess Celestia rarely enjoyed and Unistra loved to see her princess happy.

Celestia laughed softly, “Of course not Unistra. I actually think that time is starting to take its toll on me, but it has only refined you beauty. I doubt I will be so lucky in the future.”

Unistra shook her head with a smile, “Oh yes my dear princess, I dare say it should not be less than another millennium before you start developing a wrinkle.”

They shared a laugh at that, but it quickly died as more sobering thoughts began to spread through the air. “By the urgency of your arrival and your request to see me I take it you confirmed that young Big Macintosh is a Titan earth pony.”

Unistra’s eyes dipped to the floor as she sat down and wondered how exactly to explain what she had discovered. She looked back up at the princess whose eyes betrayed an eagerness that Unistra had never seen from the princess. “I am afraid that it is more complicated than that Celestia. He is definitely a Titan earth pony, even with a maximum power strength draining spell on him he is still stronger than any pony his age.”

The princess nodded at this it sounded like an accurate assessment based on her experience, but what was this complication? Princess Celestia looked to the old mare not pushing for an answer but waiting for her to find the right words. With no better way to break the news, Unistra simply let out a sigh, “It appears that he is a Kinetisis pony as well.”

The princess’ eyes shot open with surprise, something else Unistra had never seen on Princess Celestia’s face, and the princess stood up and quickly trotted down the dais to stand in front of the chocolate mare. “You are sure about this Unistra, he truly has both abilities?”

“Yes Princess I am sure,” Unistra looked to a stain glass window that depicted the legendary clash between Titan and Shooting Star, the world threatening to be torn apart by the power of the two ponies. “I know that the legend says that Shooting Star power could grant him the strength to rival that of Titan, but Big Macintosh is not practiced enough to do such a thing. He can use his kinetic abilities to discharge energy blasts, but that is about all he can do voluntarily.”

She looked back at the Princess, “I did not see him use that ability myself, but his sister has on numerous occasions and I saw some conclusive evidence myself. It seems his abilities have caused him a great deal of social isolation, when I arrived he had slipped into a catatonic state not sleeping, eating or even drinking for weeks. He was feeding off his kinetic energy by reflex, it was the only way he could have survived. Even in the presences of a strong energy draining spell, he continued to operate normally...”