27. Oh, he's real vicious.
The Tale of Lord Barleycorn
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Chapter 27: Oh, he's real vicious.
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Dirt roads were something that Applejack was wholly familiar with. They wound about the fields of Sweet Apple Acres and through many of the smaller towns she had visited in the past year. Yet the earth of this particular trail felt unusually hard under her hooves, but Applejack attributed it an over-abundance of clay in the soil.
The variety of open fields were a welcome change from the prevailing atrophy of the town's neglected buildings. For the first time since coming to Hollow Shades Applejack felt a sense of stability as a light breeze blew across the fields, causing the dry cornstalks that stood by the road to rustle.
Both Applejack and Fluttershy had walked in casual silence for a while now as they took in their surroundings. They also made an effort not to speak poorly of the condition of Hollow Shades' only schoolhouse, which they had just passed.
"Do you think we'll be the first ponies at the farm?" Fluttershy asked, having finally found a topic that sounded amiable in her mind. "I mean, out of the six of us."
"Ah reckon we will be." Applejack replied, "Twi' will prolly ask those weather ponies questions till the cows come home and go to bed. An' Ah'm sure we would've seen Rainbow flyin' overhead if she was bored enough to go on without her, and we would've seen Pinkie or Rarity walkin' past us."
"I guess..." Fluttershy's eyes flitted about the countryside as she searched for someway to keep the conversation going. "What are your cousins like? They're nice, I'm sure but you haven't really talked about them."
Applejack looked over to Fluttershy, a polite but apologetic smile forming as she spoke, "Ah'm... sorry but Ah don't rightly know. Ah haven't seen them since Ah was a 'lil filly, an' even then Ah really only remember Leadfoot. He was kind of an ornery blockhead, but most colts are at that age."
Fluttershy chuckled quietly, she knew exactly what Applejack meant.
Applejack turned her attention to the road, "But Ah wonder... Leadfoot's letter said he'd never seen any forest spirits. 'Load'a hooey' he said. Y'think that critter showed up yesterday like he said he did?"
"It's possible. But whatever frightened all those bunnies must have been here much longer than a day." Fluttershy tilted her head up, then quickly returned her gaze back to the road when she remembered what the local clouds were like. "What did you think about the scarecrow?"
"Ah feel like Ah've said 'Ah don't know' a lot lately." Applejack shook her head, "Let's wait at the farm 'til Twi an' the others to show up. Maybe one of the others heard sumthin' 'round town."
"That sounds fine," Fluttershy said, her eyes had continued to wander as they talked, except upward. "Does the corn look a little... tall to you?"
Applejack turned her head to the corn rows that lined on both sides of the path. How she had not noticed their abnormal height before escaped her, but regardless Applejack slowed her pace to examine the stalks more closely.
Normally, stalks of this height would be the sign of a bumper crop and would possess an undeniable virility that even the most cloistered Canterlot noble could not overlook. But while the stalks were tall, each plant had a multitude of defects which Applejack could trace back to their sources. Small holes in the drying leaves were made by insects; grasshoppers being the most likely culprits. Here and there a corn husk had been partially torn open and been feasted upon by crows as evidenced by the small four toed prints in the weathered soil around it. Less obvious signs, ones that could only be learned from a lifetime of farming experience, hinted toward something Equestria had in very short supply: poor soil.
It was that last point that confused Applejack. If the soil was indeed poor, then the plants should have grown stunted with shriveled, small ears. The ears that hung from these stalks were actually larger than the ones her family had picked only a week ago.
It was then that Applejack realized she had not answered Fluttershy's question. "Well, no Ah haven't. But... y'know how ya might see somethin' that might be real familiar to ya but somethin's just... not right but ya can't just put your hoof on it?"
"I think I understand, yes." Fluttershy said, "Is it any more strange than the clouds?"
"Well, Fluttershy, I can't rightly say." Applejack confessed as she brought them both to a complete stop and gestured to the corn stalks, "Ah've seen all kinds of crops, all kinds of farms. Ah even got to see a workin' cranberry farming once when Ah was a filly, they grow underwater y'know? Everythin' Ah know says this corn should be the sickliest corn you or me've ever seen, but Ah’ve never grown corn near-close to this big before."
Applejack then felt a nearby ear of corn with her hoof, then leaned in to sniff it, "An' for poor conditions, the corn seems pretty healthy."
Fluttershy tilted her head, "What does all this mean?"
Applejack pressed her hoof against the field's tilled soil. It felt unusually hard-no, heavy, just like the road. "Ah dunno, but Ah'm startin' to understand what you an' Rainbow are going through with the clouds. Somethin' really ain't right here."
"Yet your family farms this ground." Fluttershy stated plainly.
Applejack blinked, "Yeah... I guess they do."
Fluttershy showed her friend an encouraging smile, "Maybe we'll get some answers when we get to the farm."
Applejack returned the smile, which she continued to wear as she walked beside her friend for the rest of the way. She was confident that her cousin's farm would be a lone island of predictability amid the tangled web of peculiarities woven around this town.
It took only a short five minutes of walking to utterly dash those hopes.
The two story farm house that stood beyond the final corn field reminded Applejack of a barn that Rainbow had helped her demolish last summer. Every imperfection that had been present in the character of the buildings back along the main road could all be found in this one house.
The apple farmer grit her teeth as she thought back to the letter that she had received from Leadfoot. He had not mentioned any financial woes, nor had he spoken of the conditions he and his family lived in.
"An' Ah thought the town was bad..." Applejack quickly clamped a hoof over her mouth, fearing somepony besides Fluttershy might have heard that.
Fluttershy splayed her ears back, not because of Applejack's tactless remark but because she had secretly been thinking similar thoughts.
Applejack sighed and shook her head as she began the short walk up to the house, but her eyes continued to wander around the premises. The barn was almost as bad as the house, but only because it lacked shingles to fall off and had no shutters to hang loose from their hinges.
The old barn that Rainbow had demolished had looked better than this old house, and Applejack could not help but feel a sense of hubris when she looked back on her decision to knock it down. Applejack had referred to that old barn as a 'worn out old shack,' and here were her cousins, her family, living in far worse.
A look over her shoulder confirmed that Fluttershy had followed her up the creaking steps to the front porch. The timid pegasus was proceeding slowly, looking around warily at the forlorn edifice as if some apparition was due to appear in the window or from under the floorboard.
Although Applejack didn't want to admit it, the description Granny Smith made about this town was starting to feel a little too accurate. If looks alone made the town, then Hollow Shades might be the most haunted place in all of Equestria.
With one protracted breath to steady her nerves, Applejack raised her hoof and knocked on the doorframe beside the screen door. If she had tried to actually knock on the door she would have put a hole in the wire mesh, and added another wound to this old house.
"Coming, just a moment!" A mare’s voice called out.
It wasn't long before a mare appeared at the door, with a coat the same color of the clay soil outside in the fields.
"Hello?" The mare asked through the screen door, obviously surprised by the sight of two unexpected visitors on her porch.
"Hi, um, is this the Harvest Family farm?" Applejack asked as she threw on a friendly face.
"Yes it is, I'm Harvest Moon," The mare introduced herself but did not open the screen door, "Are... you selling something?"
Applejack laughed as she shook her head, "Nah, we ain't sellin' nothin. Ah'm yer cousin Applejack from Ponyville, an' this is my friend Fluttershy."
Harvest Moon stood stiff as a board, "I'm um... Applejack was it? Are you part of the Apple family?"
Applejack answered with a proud nod of her head, "Darn tootin'. Sorry fer not sayin' in my letter when Ah'd show up but ya hardly ever need 'reason to swing by an' visit family, right?"
The brown mare raised her hoof and placed it upon the front door, and for a moment Applejack thought Harvest Moon was about to slam the door in her face. Instead, after a moment's hesitation, Harvest Moon grit her teeth and placed her hoof back on the floor.
This was not exactly the hearty greeting that Applejack had expected, and she quickly began to wonder what could have caused such a reaction in the older mare. Applejack easily assumed that it was due to some embarrassment about the state of their farm. She could understand, if anything this just further lent to how hardy her kin were to soldier on despite these circumstances.
Eventually Harvest Moon shook her head and stepped out onto the porch, her attention focused on the field beyond the barn.
"I'm sorry, I'm really not sure now's the best time for you to visit." The corner of Harvest Moon's mouth twitched as she smiled for her guests, "We're all extremely busy with the fields and I can't entertain guests right now."
Applejack turned her head toward the field, but she saw nothing out of the ordinary. There were a few ponies in the distance with baskets and carts, her other relatives plus whatever hired help that had been called in to get the fields picked.
"How many ponies you got workin' these fields?" Applejack asked, eyes still scanning the land past the barn.
Harvest Moon blinked at the unexpected question, "Six, I'd be out there too but I'm a little busy trying to get supper started."
"Well, if yer' still pickin' Ah could lend a helpin' hoof till' mah friends all show up." Applejack tipped her stetson forward, ready for Harvest Moon to point her in the direction she was needed most.
"Does she really not know about the grudge?" Harvest Moon wondered, "Okay... Think, think, think! I can't have her out in the fields with Summer!"
Harvest Moon's eyes returned to the field as her mind raced to come up with some quick-witted words that would make this whole situation vanish. But the longer Harvest Moon's contemplation wore on the more her mind began to form questions instead of answers.
This might be my only chance to talk to an Apple in my own house, and Summer won't be in until I ring the dinner bell... Dare I? Harvest Moon bit her cheek, took a breath, then threw caution to the wind.
"N-no, we're all ahead of schedule really, and I can’t ask you to just jump in when we hired ponies to do that." Harvest Moon faked a cough to give her a few precious seconds to collect her nerves, "Um, why don't we all go inside and we can talk... did you say you were waiting for friends?"
"That's right, our friends are going to meet us here after we all got done exploring Hollow Shades." Fluttershy explained calmly, "I hope that's no inconvenience, we don't want to be a bother."
Harvest Moon shook her head as she turned back to hold the door open for her guests. "It's no bother, I just... really would have liked to know you were coming beforehoof. I hope you didn't have much trouble finding us."
"Nah, no trouble." Applejack said as she stepped across the threshold, "Some nice ol' stallion pointed us yer way. Silver… um… what was his name?"
"Silver Lining?" Harvest Moon's smile became genuine at the mention of the name. "That was our mayor you ran into."
Applejack winced, "That was their mayor? An' here Ah though he was just 'nother ol’ farmer."
The first thing that Applejack noted upon entering the farmhouse was the same musty scent of old wood that clung to the rest of the buildings in town. The small foyer that sat just inside the door was decorated with only one, tattered rug that Applejack had initially mistaken for a discarded rag.
"If you don't mind, we can talk while I cook." Harvest Moon turned and headed through one of the open doorways, "With all the extra mouths I have to feed I'm almost scraping the bottom of the barrel."
"Ah have some apples in mah bag, yer welcome to 'em if you want." Applejack said, "Ah figured it'd be a friendly gesture to show up with somethin' after all this time."
"Apples?" The word in that context felt almost foreign on Harvest Moon's lips. "Apples are a rare commodity out here and I haven't made an Apple pie in years."
Applejack grinned, pleased that she could hear a note of genuine elation from her cousin. It seemed that they had moved beyond the matter of the farm house's current state, as if a little mess was something that would ever upset Applejack. If anything it just made her want to offer any help her cousins would accept and more.
While Fluttershy followed close behind, Applejack couldn't help but gawk at the living room as Harvest Moon lead them toward the kitchen. The scuffed hardwood floors and the plain, simple rugs reminded Applejack of her own farmhouse back in Ponyville. These similarities however were only cursory, as everything else in the living room seemed to have been worn far past the point where most ponies would have replaced the item in question. Applejack shuddered at the fuss Rarity would make over her relative's estate, if she already wasn't making a scene elsewhere in Hollow Shades.
A few faded and crooked pictures hung here and there, but instead of making the room seem more hospitable they only made the room's dreary atmosphere worse. One picture in particular that caught Applejack's eye was a large family photograph that hung above the sofa. Most of the pictures were just of one or two ponies, this was clearly one from a family reunion.
Applejack paused in the room to stare at it, hoping to find some familiar face staring back at her. The age of the picture, Applejack guessed twenty-or-so years, proved to be a problem. The older ponies had likely passed on, and the foals in it were now grown ponies, the only thing she might recognize were the cutie marks.
Upon realizing she was standing alone in the living room, Applejack gave up on the photo and joined Fluttershy in the kitchen. She could come back and inspect the picture in more detail later.
The kitchen was just like the living room, except there was a definite cleanliness that was expected of a place where food was prepared. There on an aging stove sat several pots, clean and ready for use. Lying on the countertop were an assortment of pears, and a menagerie of ingredients that looked more at home in an old remedy book that Granny Smith loved to drag out once in a while.
Despite the variety of crops in the fields, very little appeared to be on the menu that would be sold in the Ponyville market. A variety of wild mushrooms that Applejack was only vaguely aware were edible, chives, wild potatoes, a pile of fresh dandelions, and various other odds and ends that looked more at home in Zecora's cauldron than in a proper cook-pot.
"Are those plantains?" Fluttershy said as she stepped forward to inspect to what to Applejack looked like a bunch of weeds. "And burdock roots?"
Harvest Moon turned her full attention to Fluttershy, "You know your plants. Do you live near the Everfree?"
"Yes, some of my animal friends got me in the habit of trying some of the things that grow in there." Fluttershy said with modest pride, "Did you pick all of this?"
"You bet. I feel like a foal on a treasure hunt each time I go foraging, and the forest provides so much more than most ponies think." Harvest Moon said as she took the lid off a pot, revealing that it was filled with water.
"Oh I know what you mean. Once in a while when the market is closed I'll just peek inside the thicket and find chicory and wild carrots."
Applejack still wasn't convinced that this would make a proper supper for anypony, but wisely said nothing that would insult Harvest Moon. She did think it strange that Fluttershy would know these things. Granted the timid pegasus lived closer to the Everfree than anypony else in Ponyville, (a fact that had always puzzled her) but Applejack had great difficulty in imagining her friend traipsing through the thick undergrowth looking for weeds.
"You know your stuff, I know my family's sick to death of my foraging but we can't eat our crops, especially this year." Harvest Moon grinned as she began to wash the burdock roots in the sink, "Of course, I'm very certain that things will be taking a turn for the better soon."
Fluttershy tilted her head at the cryptic remark, but she did step closer to Harvest Moon. "I've prepared lots of this before, can I help?"
"Sure, I could have you grate these roots after I'm done cleaning them and put them in the pot." Harvest Moon nodded to a steel cheese grater, "While I'm doing this you could tell me some news about Ponyville. Getting a newspaper around here is like getting ahold of the wind."
The next few minutes were spent regaling Harvest Moon with some of the events that Applejack and Fluttershy had been part of. Applejack made the attempt to be humble, but it was difficult to play down meeting Princess Celestia, being a bridesmaid at Princess Cadence's wedding, going to the Grand Galloping Gala, and having lead roles in Canterlot's Hearth's Warming Eve pageant all in the scope of a year. Instead, Applejack stuck to more earthly events, such as the admitted mistakes made during the latest Apple family reunion and what the Crystal Empire was like nowadays.
"Sounds like you girls get around. I'd like a chance to see the empire. I'm not one for travel, but it sounds beautiful." Harvest Moon laughed as she stirred the contents of the pot, a stew made from much of her findings in the forest.
"It is, but I wouldn't want to live there." Fluttershy sighed, "Ponyville's where I feel the most comfortable."
"No place like home, huh? I can understand that." Harvest Moon turned the heat down to let the pot simmer, "I suppose you've seen the sorry state Hollow Shades is in at the moment."
Both mares bit their lips, trying to be polite while at the same acknowledge Harvest Moon's question with silent, hinting gesticulations.
At this, Harvest Moon laughed. "You don't have to be like that, I'm not blind. I know the town looks... well, looks horrible. It used to look rough and proud, and there was a time it was going to become a fine town like Ponyville. 'Course all it took was one shady Canterlot hotshot to close down the lumber mill an' near put us all out on the street."
Harvest Moon snorted before continuing, "I still remember thinking for a long time they'd have it reopened and things would be back to normal. Instead nearly all of the loggers left, leaving mostly just us farmers."
The mare shook her head, a little ashamed of herself for letting her story get away from her. "Sorry, it's the first time I've had visitors in years and I here I go and start monologuing."
"Don't worry, you actually answered a few questions we had about the town." Fluttershy said, "I'm a little shocked that nopony else has heard that Hollow Shades was in such a bad way."
Harvest Moon shrugged her shoulders, as if she had heard this a hundred times. "It's because very few ponies stay in town for long. The last stallion who was traveling through here saw something that spooked him so bad he was in our Doctor's care for a few days. I heard he was completely hysterical."
"You mean he saw something like... a monster?" Fluttershy gulped.
Harvest Moon remained nonchalant as she gave the soup a stir, "It's possible, but that stallion has a regular visitor to our town for a long time. I met him once while I was out shopping a few months ago, he was nice enough, but he always acted like Nightmare Moon was going to come charging out of the woods on the back of a dragon. In his state he could have just seen a coyote or a bear."
Harvest Moon then looked over her shoulder at Fluttershy, "Besides, if something as scary as he claimed was lurking about I'd have heard something about it. "
"You're sure?" Fluttershy asked.
"Positive, I wouldn't let my son or daughter out of my sight if I thought some monster was lurking in the fields." Harvest Moon said.
"Um, that daughter of yers wouldn't happen to be named Corn Crib would she?" Applejack inquired.
Harvest Moon blinked, "Yes indeed, you know her?"
"We saw her in town..." Fluttershy gritted her teeth, wanting to put this delicately but she was quickly cut off.
"Oh, you must have seen her with the other foals helping Lord Barleycorn building his stage. He gave us quite a show last night. Even had my Summer completely speechless." The brown mare laughed, "You should have seen it, heck you should have heard it. I've never heard a violin sing like that."
Applejack blinked. She knew? And she wasn't worried that the scarecrow would do anything funny?
"You know him?" Fluttershy asked, sounding just as shocked as Applejack was.
"I've met him a few times, he's odd but he's every bit the gentlecolt you'd expect the King of Autumn to be." Harvest Moon looked at her guests with a delighted smile, "I was scared when I saw him for the first time too. He's so tall and it looks impossible for him to walk on those spindly legs but he's very nice, if a little odd. Don't you think so?"
Applejack sat down on the kitchen floor, she felt like she had to rub her forehead before she got a migraine. "Truthfully, Ah ain't sure what to think. Ah've seen all kinda strange critters, but a scarecrow that makes pumpkin lanterns, plays a fiddle, an' tells foals stories? It sounds like somethin' a foal would make up."
"I know what you mean, but he's done many good things for us. So try to avoid offending him, he might have promised to help but he's still a spirit." Harvest Moon warned, "In many of the old tales ponies would speak poorly of spirits when they thought they weren't listening."
"An' they get the ponies back in some clever way or they lure them into the forest where they’d disappear forever." Applejack said, parroting her grandmother word-for-word. "Ah've heard 'em all ah think, but Ah never saw one."
"I've seen several, Lord Barleycorn of course, but I've also seen a Willow Wisp in the forest." Harvest Moon beamed proudly, "Then of course there's Lord Barleycorn's spirit-court that helps us by picking crops at night. There are more spirits roaming this farm than most of Equestria I bet."
Out of the corner of her eye, Applejack could see Fluttershy recoil.
"So... this place really is haunted?" Fluttershy squeaked.
Harvest Moon cleared her throat, having realized what she might have implied. "Oh no dear, not a haunting. Only bad spirits do that sort of thing. We-"
The sound of the screen door opening and closing silenced their hostess, whose head instantly shot in the direction of the sound of hooves on the hardwood floor. The brown mare had her jaw clenched tight as she hurried to the open doorway that lead back into the living room. Applejack only saw it for a moment when Harvest Moon passed her, but the older mare wore a look that could best be described as ‘apprehension.’
Why Harvest Moon would be upset, Applejack wasn’t sure.
Upon reaching the doorframe this sudden anxiety fell away from Harvest Moon. Applejack couldn't account for this change, like a lot of things in Hollow Shades, but it was clear that whoever it was, it wasn't whom she expected. Harvest Moon's tense muscles relaxed as she let out a relieved groan, and Applejack could almost swear that she heard a mumbled "Thank Celestia..."
"Are they still here?" A whispered voice asked, to which Harvest Moon nodded. "Don't worry, I saw them come in but he didn't. Leadfoot and the others will make sure he doesn't come near the house for now."
It had taken a while, but Applejack was able to put a face to the voice in the other room, but this realization only served to confuse Applejack further. Why was Carrot Top of all ponies here? She had no connection to the Harvests, at least none that Applejack knew of.
Applejack was ready to accept that she was completely mistaken, that Carrot Top was someplace else and this pony just happened to sound like her. It would make much more sense this way.
That's when Carrot Top walked into the kitchen and her eyes locked on Applejack. "Hey, um, fancy meeting you here, huh?"
"Carrot Top?" Fluttershy sounded just as surprised as Applejack was. "What are you doing here?"
"Thank Celestia I had some time to think on the way up here..." Carrot Top cleared her throat, "I planted a little late in the season and my crops won't be ready for a while longer, I'll be missing the festival but I'll manage."
"That... didn't really answer my question." Fluttershy stated, a hint of disappointment in her docile voice.
"I was getting to that, and it's actually really simple." Carrot Top replied smoothly, "Harvest Moon gave me carrot seeds when I started out in Ponyville, so once a year I come out to visit. Since they're harvesting I chose to give them a little help while I spend time with them."
There was a glimmer of truth in what Carrot Top said, Harvest Moon had given her carrot seeds long before she had come to Ponyville. It was when Carrot Top was still just a filly and was finding herself, not unlike most fillies who didn't have their cutie marks.
Applejack shared a quick glance with Fluttershy before speaking, "Ah hate to tell ya this, but we got one real big mess of trouble back in Ponyville."
Carrot Top rolled her eyes, "Same song every week Applejack. What is it this time?"
"Well, ain't nothin' too outta the ordinary but it's bad fer ponies like you an' me." Applejack explained, "There's a small army of rabbits all over Ponyville, real ornery ones."
Fluttershy frowned at her friend, "They aren't that bad."
"They were eatin' near every apple they could get their paws on." Applejack shot back, clearly annoyed.
"They were hungry." Fluttershy insisted, "I won't defend what they did, but maybe you can understand why they were on your farm."
"Hungry enough to go straight for my apples?" Applejack sighed, she knew that she couldn't really win when it came to Fluttershy and critters. "Look, I... the point Ah was tryin' ta make, Carrot Top, is that you've prolly had rabbits runnin' rampant around your farm fer a few days."
Carrot Top's mouth fell open. Already her mind began to fabricate images of her small field filled with fat, lazy rabbits and discarded carrot tops. Panic however quickly gave way to hope as Carrot Top latched onto a keyword that Applejack had used.
"Had? What do you mean?" Carrot Top cautiously inquired.
"I spent a three days rounding up all the new bunnies in town and got them to stay at my cottage until we could figure out why they showed up in Ponyville." Fluttershy's ears folded back as she continued, "They kept talking about some tall monster that ate some of their friends."
"Ate them?" Carrot Top blinked, "That doesn't sound right."
"Not right at all; Lord Barleycorn told the rabbits stories that made them leave." Harvest Moon frowned, "Besides, those rabbits were eating everything in sight, and not just on this farm. You won't find anypony in Hollow Shades who'll want them back."
Applejack snorted, "They started doin' the same thing when they came to Sweet Apple Acres. It's startin' to sound to me like they just wanted to find a new place to mooch after gettin' kicked outta town."
"I don't know, but... maybe they could have been exaggerating..." Fluttershy turned her eyes to the ground, no longer sounding as sure of herself as before.
"Fluttershy, sometimes you're too darn nice. Hopefully they'll be gone before I get back to Ponyville." Carrot Top thought to herself.
Harvest Moon returned to the stew to give it another stir, "Well, he's done more than that. Leadfoot's told me since Lord Barleycorn's come the mice have all left the farm, and the crows are actually terrified of the scarecrows in the fields."
Carrot Top grinned, "And I've met him a few times. He's about as dangerous as Winona."
Harvest Moon turned to Carrot Top, "Who's Winona?"
"One of the friendliest farm dogs you'd ever met." Applejack smiled. Maybe it was hearing this from a fellow resident of Ponyville, but Applejack felt she was ready to take a tentative stance on the scarecrow. "I guess that doc was just full of hot air when he told us that Ol' Barleycorn was up to no good."
Harvest Moon recoiled as if she was told the house was on fire, "He said that? Doesn't he know forest spirits are very easy to offend! The last thing we need is for Lord Barleycorn to leave and the pests to come back."
"The stories say that, but I doubt Lord Barleycorn is the type that’s easily offended.” Carrot Top then looked to Applejack, "If it's okay AJ, I really should get back to working out in the fields. I do know a few things about Lord Barleycorn though, maybe I could tell you them over something to eat later?"
Applejack looked back at the pot, and the various roots and weeds that was soaking inside. If this was an excuse to get out of eating that, then Applejack couldn't blame her.
"Maybe later, we sorta ate when we got here." Applejack smiled, "But ya sure ya couldn't use some more help 'round here? Ah could lend a hoof while we wait fer mah friends to show up."
"Of course the rest of them would tag along..." Carrot Top groaned inwardly. "Nah, we've got things in order. You wouldn't want to be out in the fields when your friends show up, you might be out there all day and keep them waiting. Where are they anyway?"
Applejack thought for a moment, but while she would have rather been useful to her relatives, Carrot Top did make a good point. "Twilight and Rainbow went to visit the local weather ponies and Rarity and Pinkie are just looking around, Ah think. Ah'm not sure when they'll be 'round."
"Eh, there's not much to see. I'm sure a pony like Rarity's bored out of her mind." Carrot Top laughed, "Poor Lord Barleycorn, I hope she doesn't run into him. If she doesn't scream because of a walking scarecrow she might start going on about his old clothing. He'll probably just laugh it off, but Rarity will make a scene."
Applejack let out a tired sigh, "That's Rarity."
"Is he really that easy going?" Fluttershy asked.
Carrot Top snickered, "Oh, he's real vicious. The bites he keeps taking out of Corn Crib are just horrible."
"Ahem," Harvest Moon cleared her throat, "I know Lord Barleycorn might not be offended by jokes like that, but his spirit court could be anywhere. I wouldn't want to hear about you disappearing one night."
Fluttershy bit her lip, "Thanks for the warning..."
Applejack showed her friend a reassuring smile, "I don't think you or me gotta worry about that Fluttershy. It's Rainbow that can't check her tongue at the door."
"Oh the fun I could have with Rainbow Dash..." Carrot Top thought quietly to herself, "It might be funny to see her trying to apologize to one of Jack's pumpkins."
"I’ll be sure to remind her." Fluttershy smiled. "I wouldn’t want her making ponies here nervous, if they all believe in spirits like Harvest Moon does."
"Some do. ’Lotta ponies around here are probably believing in them now more than ever after Lord Barleycorn appeared. Summer an’ Leadfoot used to say they didn’t think much of the ol’ stories." Harvest Moon gave a knowing laugh, "Since yesterday I keep seeing Summer looking out at the pumpkin patch with this nervous look on his face."
Summer Harvest, the name quickly peeked Applejack's interest. Granny had mentioned how Summer had been reclusive from the Apple Family for nearly all his life. The way she had spoken about Apple Harvest had left her curious about Summer Harvest and the ways this strange farm worked.
"Speakin’ of Summer, Ah'd like to get a chance ta meet him n’ Leadfoot after all this time. Also, Ah'd love to know how ya got such good-lookin' corn considerin' ya been havin' crow problems." Applejack scratched the back of her head.
"Truth be told, I'm not sure. We ran short on barley seed this year so we used corn where we normally put barley. Shot up like a rocket and grew strong." Harvest Moon said as she pulled a bag of flour out and began to dust the counter with it, "I don't see how that made a difference, but Leadfoot thinks it did."
"Just changin' the fields did that?" Applejack's attention flew to the corn outside the kitchen window. "Maybe Ah could give it a try next year."
"You sure Granny would approve?" Carrot Top asked, "I thought she was pretty hard up on Earth Pony traditions."
"Some of'em." Applejack replied, "But Ah think if Ah told Granny about your corn she might just give this a try."
"How is Granny by the way? I haven't seen her in ages." Harvest Moon asked, already at work mixing together a simple pie crust on the counter.
Applejack smiled at the question, "Still spry enough to work out in the fields. Work keeps her young Ah think."
"That sounds like her." Harvest Moon grinned, "Did they ever finish that family quilt at the family reunions?"
"Nope, Ah reckon Granny an' the rest of her friends just get together to jaw." Applejack's smile faded, "So um... why did y'all stop comin' to the family reunions? Ponyville's only a short few hours walk away."
Harvest Moon's flour-coated hooves came to a halt, "It's complicated. Does... Granny talk about us much?"
Applejack hesitated, she wanted to lessen the impact as much as possible but there was no avoiding this bad news. "No, she ain't talked about you or yer family much that Ah can recall."
"I see." Harvest Moon's ears fell against her skull as she let out a sigh, "I guess she still thinks poorly of us."
Applejack's ears perked up, "What do you mean?"
Fluttershy looked to Carrot Top, feeling a little embarrassed to be overhearing something that was an internal, family matter. She flashed an apologetic look at the other yellow mare but Carrot Top silently shook her head and smiled, signalling that it was okay.
Harvest Moon turned to lock eye with the orange mare, "Applejack, how much do you know about our side of the family?"
"Well, Ah can't really tell ya that. Ah thought I knew just about everypony in the family, an' here Ah find we got some just a stone's throw from home that Ah never visit. Granny mentioned somethin' 'bout Apple Harvest bein' sorta... funny." Applejack took a step back, hoping she hadn't offended her hostess.
The corner of Harvest Moon’s mouth formed into a short-lived sneer, but it was directed down at the sink rather than at Applejack. "Funny? I'm not sure that's accurate; bull-headed is more like it."
The element of honesty was so focused on Harvest Moon’s story that she didn’t notice that Carrot Top was watching her closely. Carrot Top had been wondering how Applejack would react to hearing any version of what happened between their families, but had not wanted to give herself away. Now, right here she was going to eat her cake and have it too.
Harvest Moon moved to the sink to washed her hooves clean, the pie crust could wait until she was done talking. "I only knew Apple Harvest for a short while when I was dating Summer, and he was growing old at that point, but Slim Harvest, my father-in-law used to tell me stories about him."
"What kind of stories?" Applejack again sat down on the kitchen floor.
Harvest Moon studied Applejack's face in silence for a moment. The younger mare had said that her grandmother hadn't talked about them much, and had demonstrated only a simple ignorance of what had occurred, admittedly, before her time. If Applejack didn't know, then maybe most of the Apple family didn't know either?
"Okay, this won't be very pleasant to hear, but if you really don't know then I'll have to be the one to tell you." Harvest Moon cleared her throat before she began; "Slim Harvest, my father-in-law tried to not to say anything bad about his dad, but he couldn't deny that his father had a temper, especially when anypony brought up the Apple family. As long as you avoided that topic, Apple Harvest can be a very a sociable and polite pony."
It took an incredible amount of effort to swallow the uncomfortable lump that had spontaneously formed in Applejack's throat. This was not what she expected to find waiting for her in Hollow Shades.
Fluttershy tilted her head, "What could make a stallion act that way about his family?"
Harvest Moon's attention turned to the window again, and for a moment she did nothing as she collected herself. "Well, he came to Hollow Shades when it was still in its memorial days and bought this land while the trees were still being cleared. 'Was really cheap from what I heard."
"His family, the Apple family mind you, kept trying to come in to help but he didn't want them to linger in town and do all his work. Apple Harvest wanted to have his own reputation apart from the Apple Family's but nopony listened. The Apples stayed in town long enough to make a great impression on the townsponies, then left Apple Harvest with a farm he had barely helped to build. After that he just wanted the Apples to just forget about him, and he went so far to to trade all the apple seeds they gave him to start his orchard for anything else that he could grow."
Applejack's mouth hung open as she tried to follow along with Harvest Moon's story. She had experienced a few bad situations concerning her family, ranging from misunderstandings to irritation, but she had never heard of a member of the Apple family going this far out of spite. Sure, the Oranges no longer grew apples but it had less to do with animosity and more to do with the fact that for whatever reason Manehatteners prefered oranges to apples.
"An' nopony ever came 'round to try an' smooth things over?" Applejack managed to say with a slight tremor in her voice.
Harvest Moon shook her head, "I don't know all the details, sorry. I think they might have, but you know how strange our town is compared to the rest of Equestria. Combined with Apple Harvest's stubborn pride I think he did eventually get what he wanted: to be left alone."
Applejack lowered her head, "So that why Ah ain't seen none of y'all at the family reunions."
It was then that Harvest Moon smiled, "I'm sorry Applejack, but I don't have anything against you and neither does anypony here, I think."
Applejack blinked, "What do you mean?"
"We're in a real bad way, have been for years. I know my Summer's got a hard head, but nopony knows him like I do. He's really ashamed of himself right now, and he feels he can't ask for help, so he just vents his anger on an old family grudge. It's petty and childish, but it keeps him moving. I-"
The sound of the screen door creaking open again caused Harvest Moon to freeze in place.
---
To be continued
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Brace for impact. T-Minus 10 until it all hits the fan.
Glad to hear you're doing better, mate!
And omigosh we finally know what the Apple/Harvest feud is about! I didn't even know the suspense was killing me until I thought you were gonna end the chapter WITHOUT telling us! My day is now complete!
shitstorm in thre, two, one.
shit, may i introduce fan? im sure you will make great friends
*runs for shelter*
im ready!
Yay. New chapter. Good as always. Some day I'll have to read it from the beginning again, because I have forgotten details. For example concerning the crop rotation. You did hint at that previously didn't you? And man, I am stupidly pleased with that crop rotation.
Man, it's kinda weird to see AJ think it a bad thing that the mayor looks like a farmer. I kinda would have expected her to think it was just fine that the mayor looked like someone who works the land. In general, though I know there is a big difference between rustic and decrepit, it is generally just weird to see AJ think "Man, that needs work."
Now: Frazzled Uses Barrage of Nitpicks:
"Most of the pictures were just of one or two ponies, this was clearly a one from a family reunion." Think the latest "a" should go.
" Laying on the countertop were an assortment of pears, and a menagerie of ingredients that looked more at home in an old remedy book that Granny Smith loved to drag out once in a while." I think it's "lying". Pretty sure it goes "something/someone is lying on something", when they are stationary, but "someone is laying down" or "someone is laying something on something" when something is being put down. But I might be wrong, I think those two words are really hard.
"Applejack blinked, she knew? " Think it should be a full stop.
"Upon reaching the doorframe this sudden anxiety fell away from Harvest Moon. Applejack was couldn't account for this change," That "was" should go.
"Applejack smiled, maybe it was hearing this from a fellow resident of Ponyville, but Applejack felt she was ready to take a tentative stance on the scarecrow." Think the first comma should be a full stop.
"The element of honesty was so gripped by Harvest Moon’s story that she didn’t notice that Carrot Top was watching her closely. Carrot Top had been wondering how Applejack would react to hearing any version of what happened between their families, but had not wanted to give herself away. Now, right here she was going to eat her cake and have it too." Considering you continue with the story itself just after and that Harvest Moon hasn't really got that far into the story, it sounds a little weird to say AJ is already gripped by the story. I think something less specific would be better, something along the lines of "so focused on Harvest Moon" or the like. But that might just be me.
"As long as you avoided that topic he said that Apple Harvest was otherwise a sociable and polite pony." Sounds like it's the teller and not Apple Harvest that was affected by the topic. It should be "He said that as long as you avoided that topic, Apple harvest was a sociable and polite pony." I hope you can see what I mean?
"Well, when he came to Hollow Shades when it was still in its memorial days and bought this land when the trees were still being cleared. 'Was really cheap from what I heard." Too many "whens" here. Lose either the first or the second.
I don't expect this to be a critical hit, but I hope the nitpicks are helpful and not just annoyances.
Again, great chapter. Looking forward to the next one. I'm kinda wondering turns catatonic from the incessant assault against her aesthetic sense.
Happy writing.
Take cover
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I am quite happy that you are still continuing the story, thank you for the great update.
Finally, Applejack gets to see the house and the poor state the family is in. Plus, we get to learn what the feud was about. Eh, Apple Harvest must really have been stubborn. I can understand wanting to go your own way without family interference, but I don't think I would ever have burned bridges like he did (though I get the impression that he truly got his wish and most Apples don't even know who he was).
Can't wait until Applejack learns about Carrot Top, meets Summer Harvest, and the rest of the main six meets Lord Barleycorn.
Prediction - it isn't Summer coming through the door like everyone is worrying about, but the rest (or at least some) of the main six. Summer will show up when everyone's guard was dropped (at least that's usually how it seems to work in tv and other shows when trying to avoid someone >.>).
5935916 Welp, I'm out of the job thanks to you. *fistshakes* No, but that'll teach me to say "preliminary stuff complete," and sending the PM as opposed to, "Let me re-read it when I'm not running on 2 hours of sleep."
I guess crop rotation was never needed by earth ponies in the rest of equestria, since their passive magic allows them to grow crops without it.
Being right up against the edge of the everfree must disrupt that magic, and force 'real' farming methods to be used instead of 'pony magic'.
Don't you mean "to walk"?
5936257 yes I did. Fixed.
5936209 Part of my headcanon. I mean, if the weather's controlled who's to say the soil in Equestria isn't just as controlled. Plants growing on their own is considered very odd in episode 1.
Maybe "more" missing here?
5935916 I'll be a little slow to fix these mistakes this time, but they'll get changed for sure. thanks for pointing them out for me. =3
5936279 Correct again. x3
Yay, new chapter!
I kind of get why Apple Harvest developed such a grudge, actually. Here he is, hoping to make a fresh start in this new settlement, where he isn't just an Apple from the Apple family doing Apple family things, but his own man with his own farm, that he'll build with his own hooves and make successful with his own hooves.
But then the whole family shows up and turns his farm into just another part of the Apple Dynasty; another farm built by the Apple Family, FOR the Apple Family. And even worse, they spend a whole lot of time with his new neighbors and now everyone in Hollow Shades is going to think of Apple Harvest as another Apple; they'll always be comparing him to the rest of his family. He came to Hollow Shades to be his own stallion for once, and no matter how much he asked them not to, his family just couldn't help but butt in and ruin that for him.
It's not really something worth cutting his entire family out of his life, but I can definitely understand why he'd have been bitter about it. Summer Harvest doesn't really have that excuse though; he just hangs onto his family's grudge because he doesn't have much else left.
5936994 That's exactly the reaction I was shooting for when I started this arc. I've tried to be careful about not painting anypony as too much of an arse. But that's one mystery explained. Two more to reveal. =3
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I appreciate that you've developed the grudge into something more meaningful. For a bit there I thought you were just going to have the grudge be deus ex machina for not getting outside help, thus creating the conflict needed to introduce Jack to the ponies. Good job on fleshing the plot point out.
I also like the way you've been handling the whole pony/human relations here. Not the same old "It's something weird, kill it!" or "It's something weird, let's capture it for science!" approach. The ponies recognize an intelligent being, but something far removed from what they know. Not something inherently dangerous, but something to be approached with caution.
Though I bet hard cash that Ol' Rainbow Crash will be trying at least one divebomb on him before the fic is through.
I spent the day reading this story but now my next chapter button has gone missing.
I'm scared and confused.
5936155 We're on a site for MLP fanfiction. Helping each other and covering for what someone else missed seems fitting doesn't it?
5938244 Only if you provide plenty of hugs, and think happy happy thoughts, and don't mind feeling tired afterwards.
5938311 All the hugs and happy thoughts! And I'm always tired. So all boxes are checked
5938328 *Belch* Thanks!
5937725 Nah, I've been thinking of the grudge for a while now, and I wanted a real reason why a rift like this would form. It's too easy for it to just be a ex machina like you said, like its too easy to say that Apple Harvest split from the family because of a woman. I've seen those plots enough to know they're as predicable as a paint-by-numbers kit, and that's boring to write and boring to read.
And yeah, let's face it, Rainbow's almost always the pony that gets confrontation with the human. AJ usually just kicks him off her land, but Twi? Science demands she hound him with far worse than violence... questionnaires. x3
Can't blame Apple Harvest for being resentful. I like to be able to stand on my own two feet, too, and if overbearing relatives kept me from that, bridges would burn for sure. Though I can't say I really sympathize with Summer on that, he's overextending the hatred far beyond any reasonable time frame.
Also it's official: ponies don't know what crop rotation is.
Nice to see you back. Wonder if Carrot Top is going to question Barleycorn about the rabbits. Amused to see that Earth Pony Magic can't beat real farming techniques, even if it's been stumbled upon than anything else. Maybe Barleycorn will assist in spreading the knowledge. Wondering what would happen should you combine the two techniques. Supercrops? Seems to me that Summer is only hating due to 'tradition' set by Apple Harvest. Understandable on why Apple Harvest felt that way, as he wanted to be recognized as his own person, rather than another product of the benevolent Apple Dynasty. Reminds me of the son of General/CEO/SuperSuccessful person plots. Not entirely sure though; if they had continued helping even after Harvest told them to let him be, then the blame falls on the Apples, trying to be help where none exactly was needed. It's hard to tell them to go away without sounding like an arse though, so I'd understand if he just couldn't bring himself to kick them out. With the loggers moved out and nothing else to his name, Summer clings to the grudge to motivate himself to keep on moving.
5939217
Surplus = prices plummet = the farmers go broke = government farm subsidy/paying farmers to grow less = tax hike =
REVOLUTION!!!!!
But then... none of the unicorns remember how to raise the sun these days do they?
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5942719 Farmers are always broke. x3
Crops do poorly, farmers can't pay bills, government helps them out.
Crops do well, surplus, prices fall, farmers can't pay bills, government helps them out.
Also, whenever I think about revolution against Celestia I think of this: http://ahrimatt.deviantart.com/art/The-price-of-freedom-415494909
"To have your cake and eat it" is misunderstood due to the way that the English language has changed the meanings of words. In the sense used within this old saying, 'have' is to 'have possession of'.
Thus if you eat your cake, you no longer have possession of it. It is gone. Therefore you cannot both have your cake and eat it as well.
5974618 Huh, I did not know that. That said, there might not be lice at all in Equestria. Still, Jack may not know that.
5975409 only if you can find me a cowardly lion.
5975409
5975740
Does that make me the King of Oz in the sequel?
My first act as king will be to replace the sign outside the city gates so that it reads "Welcome to Oz, bitch!"
My second act as king will be to deport all the Flying Monkeys back to the Middle East, and pull all Oz troops back home. If the Red Monkeys can't get along with the Blue Monkeys, that's their problem.
My third act as king will be to actually read OzpinCare now that I have a brain.
5976774
And what would you do with the yellow brick road?
5980640
Give Elton John a cookie cause I love that song.
If it weren't for the fact this is all just a fanfic, I would've readily taken this as part of canon. Then again, I felt the same thing about MLD...
I really appreciate how realistic you portrayed it, among other things. Also, it's refreshing to know this HiE is happening in Hollow Shades, and with the backstory and interesting plot to go with it as well. Sure, it may sound like the town was the proverbial arse-end of Equestria compared to Ponyville, but for a supposedly decripit town you made it like it's hiding a lot of gems under all that age-old dirt.
Then there's Corn Crib. There aren't many things that make my HNNNG-o-meter go haywire.
Alas, sadly, after ages of searching of this page of the ever-elusive button for the next chapter, I have just realized that I've been instead left with a cliffhanger. Curses!
-edit-
5994934 Aw, this is the highest praise ever.
You needn't worry. I'm taking my time with this next chapter, carefully assembling what could be one of the biggest blow-up scenes I've ever written.
What what a different, refreshing take. I like it!
Wow, read all of this in one go. What an excellent story so far, really unique, love the blend of OCs and show characters, just an all round good story, I really look forward to more.
This might be late but harvest should be with a capital H and can should be could since it's past tense.
I wonder how Applejack is going to react when she learns that Carrot Top's name is actually Golden Harvest. The Perfect Pear makes it only more plausible that Granny Smith wouldn't mention the feud since she kept quiet about the reasons for the feud with the Pears as well.
10019695
Thanks, I fixed the mistake.
I was very pleased how well that The Perfect Pear aligned as well as it did with what I wrote. And yes, I admit the bit in chapter 2 with the shoes is the weakest excuse for Jack not to be wandering around barefoot. That was when I was totally winging the story without much thought. Now I have a bad habit of overthinking every step xD
Hmm... sounds like the apples were too pushy, and Harvest was too stubborn and prideful. Really hope things can get better.