//------------------------------// // March 24: The Trees of Nature Fruitless Be // Story: 7DSJ: The Apple Tree // by Shinzakura //------------------------------// Though she barely remembered it, Belle Point-Heavener Regional Airport hadn’t really grown in size. That was to be expected; in this part of the country, there wasn’t really much call for anything large, because between Belle Point here in Arkansas and Heavener on the other side of the Oklahoma state line, there wasn’t enough people to fill even a small town in California, much less something like Canterlot or bigger. As a result, the airport never grew any larger than its days when it was known as Poteau River Airfield, an Army Air Corps training airfield back in World War II, even before her grandmother had been born. Life out here moved definitely slower than what she was accustomed to. She was instantly reminded of when Pinkie had gone home, relatively not far from here, back during Christmastime. She never quite admitted the truth, but she knew her curly-haired friend had felt well out of place whenever she visited her parents over in Bentonville. And right now, Applejack surely sympathized with that sentiment. “Penny for your thoughts?” The blonde turned to look at the smiling face of Sweetcream Scoops, the girlfriend of Applejack’s older brother Macintosh and the closest thing Applejack had to an older sister. It helped that Scoops and Macintosh had been together for so long, people were already seeing the wedding bells even though neither had graduated from high school yet. As it was, she’d come because she didn’t feel like sitting around the house for spring break and it was much more entertaining to spend it with her boyfriend and family. “Was just thinking that Ah’m much different than Ah used to be when Ah was younger,” Applejack admitted. “Oh, Ah’d be inclined to disagree,” drawled Scoops as she teased the younger teen. Applejack rolled her eyes. “You would think that. Fortunately, I have had plenty of years to suffer with you around.” Scoops put her arm around her future sister-in-law. “That you have,” she agreed. “So, nervous about coming home?” “Yeah.” Applejack nodded her head. “Ah can barely remember the place as is, and what I do remember is faint. About how Pa hated himself for sellin’ the orchard, an’ how that Australian company came this close to buyin’ it. Just glad that Uncle Stayman an’ Aunt Studious were able to pony up the cash t’ buy it. At least it stayed in family hands that way.” “Yeah, and I’m going to enjoy every moment of this vacation!” the sherbert-haired girl cheered. “No idea what I’m going to do to goof off, but there’s gotta be something.” “Nope! You came along, you get roped in to help, Scoops. Part of being in the family, you know.” “Awwww, but I’m a delicate little flower, AJ, you know that!” “Who died and made you Rarity?” “AJ, stop teasin’ mah gal.” Macintosh approached them, carrying everyone’s luggage over his shoulder as if it were nothing. Built like a linebacker, it shocked most that the gentle teen was more interested in the arts than in the gridiron, and more than one college football scout was dismayed to find that Macintosh’s interests lay more in graphic design than in anything else. “Else she might just done keel over from th’ shock!” Scoops pouted. “Maaaaaaaaaaaaaac! And I thought you loved me!” “What, darlin’, not in th’ relationship fer th’ sex?” he teased. “Let me know when I’ll actually get some and we’ll talk,” she responded back. “So where’s the rest of the fams?” “Ma, Pa, Granny and Bloomie are getting’ th’ van from th’ rental place,” Macintosh explained. “Ah got th’ rest o’ th’ luggage, so we should be fine.” “Do you remember about how far it is from here to the orchard?” Applejack asked her brother. “If’n Ah remember right, it’s ‘bout a thirty-minute drive on th’ other side of Heavener, so…bout little over an hour, give er take.” Applejack watched as a beige van pulled up to the white zone, while a cheerful voice from the loudspeakers above reminded them said zone was for loading and unloading only. “Seedy! Ma! Welcome home!” Stayman Apple crowed as he hugged his older brother, followed by his mother. Unlike Appleseed, who still looked like a farmer even if he hadn’t done it in ages, Stayman looked more like a biker, with his beard and his long dark-brown hair being held in place behind a faded bandana. Both men looked muscular, though Stayman had the edge given that he worked a farm on a daily basis, and the weathered, sky-ridden look on his face showed it. “Good t’ see ya, sonny boy!” Applesmith replied, hugging both her boys. The only way this moment would’ve been perfect was if her daughter Dabinett and her family had been here, but each thing came in time. Still, it was good to see family in their place at home. Maybe next Christmas they could arrange something. Meanwhile, from her wheelchair, Cornflower hugged her sister-in-law. “Hi, Studious,” she said, embracing the woman with the apple-green eyes and short, light-blue hair. “How are things going?” “Good to see you, Flower,” Studious said as she bent down. “Work is busy as always; after all these years we haven’t found the reason why those runes are there. Latest theory we have is that it wasn’t Vikings that created them, but some mysterious traveler who was here for reason we don’t know.” That caught Applejack’s attention. “Runes?” “Yeah! She’s workin’ on some sorta weird rocks,” a male voice added. “Some archeological dig out in Poteau with Vikin’ runes, old swords an’ weapons o’ war, an’ all that kinda stuff.” The younger ones turned to see a boy about the same build and height as Macintosh, but with long, two-tone hair and apple-green eyes. At the moment, he was wearing a tight-fitting t-shirt and jeans. Both Scoops and Applejack looked at the boy, and then both looked at each other. “Who’s the hunk?” Scoops asked, feeling just slightly guilty that she was checking out another guy in front of her boyfriend. “Hell if Ah know, but between me and you, sugarcube, Ah’m wishing he were back in Canterlot right now, because Ah’m sorely in need of him taking me out on a date, got it?” Applejack was about to say something else when she heard tittering laughter behind her. She turned around to see a girl with short hot pink-and-chiffon hair and deep blue eyes. She was wearing a haltertop and cut-off jean shorts, and there was something about her that irked Applejack for some reason. There was also something familiar about her as well. The girl walked over and popped next to the hot boy. She looked at him and said, “Ya owe me ten bucks, big brother,” she crowed. “Fer what?” “Lookit them!” she said, pointing at Applejack and Scoops. “They want in yer pants so bad, y’ could actually get another girlfriend, Brae!” “Braeburn?” Applejack blinked. Once. Twice. Then her eyes went wide as realization sank in. “Somebody kill me now,” she whispered as she started turning a shade of red approaching her friend Sunset Shimmer’s haircolor. “Did I miss something?” Scoops asked. “Yeah,” Macintosh said, a wide grin on our face. “The guy y’all been droolin’ over is mine an’ AJ’s cousin, Braeburn. An’ the little scamp there’s his kid sister, Summerfree.” He went over and fistbumped Braeburn. “So, when’d ya get rid o’ the glasses?” “Started wearin’ contacts a few years back,” Braeburn explained. “Glad they make ‘em in mah prescription, er else Ah’d still be wearin’ them Cokebottle glasses.” Macintosh then looked at his younger cousin. “Looks like y’ done grown up, Summer. Ah just remember when y’all were knee-high t’ a grasshopper!” She leaned against him. “Ditch th’ girl, an’ Ah’ll show ya just how grown up Ah am, sugarcube,” she flirted. This time it was Macintosh’s time to blush, but thankfully he recovered with grace. Scoops looked at Applejack. “AJ, your cousins are weird.” Applejack continued to say nothing, as she was still utterly caught up in her mortification. After all the introductions had been done and everyone had been settled, Applejack and Scoops went off to where they’d be sleeping, a guest room set up right next to the boathouse. As the pair walked away from the main house, the older teen looked around. “This place looks huge,” she voiced. Applejack nodded. “And to think, Ah could’ve grown up around here,” she commented. “Wonder what mah life would’ve turned out like if Ah had t’ live here?” She looked at Scoops. “Ah barely have any of the Ozark twang in mah voice and that’s only because Ah’m around Pa, Granny and Mac. As it is, Bloomie pretty much don’t have it at all. Ah know Pa’s wanted to move back here more than a few times, but we’re growing the business, and we’re happy where we are, all things considered.” “Well, for one, I’m glad you guys haven’t, else I wouldn’t have me a hot boyfriend and a good friend like you,” Scoops said with a smile as they approached the boathouse. “Question, though: What’s the boathouse for?” “Oh, Ma needs it fer her work.” Both turned around and saw Summerfree walking towards them. In addition to her normal attire, she was wearing shades. “They’re findin’ all sorts o’ runestones in th’ Poteau River, so Ma keeps her Zodiac in there as well as some divin’ gear.” She then held up a key. “Pa fergot t’ give ya th’ keys to th’ boathouse.” “Thanks, Summer,” Applejack said as she took them. “So, what’s it like livin’ in The Big Stable?” Summerfree asked. “Well, for one, nobody in Canterlot calls it ‘The Big Stable’, though you might run into the occasional gangster down in Sunnytown who might just call it C-town or some bullshit. Other than that, no biggie, it’s just like any other city, why?” “Ain’t been to no big city before. Biggest Ah been is Belle Point o’er in Arkansas, an’ you probably got more people livin’ in yer neighborhood than there are in Belle Point.” “Summer, Canterlot isn’t that big,” Scoops told her. “It’s what, the 35th largest city in the US?” She pulled out her phone and looked it up on Wikipedia. “Yeah, 35th, about 494, 231 as of the last census.” Summerfree rolled her eyes. “Heavener’s got maybe four thousand people, tops, and maybe on a good day, Belle Point’s got forty, maybe fifty thousand? Seriously, ain’t shit to do around here ‘cept go to school, work the farm, get drunk on moonshine or liquor ya stole from yer parents, fuck yer boyfriend – or girlfriend, if ya swing that way – and maybe pass around a joint a friend got over in the Point. Best thing about this place is the airport, ‘cause it means yer leavin’.” “Big city life – and Ah hesitate to call Canterlot big, Summer – ain’t that great, y’know. Traffic, high prices…shit, just try taking a drive on the freeway some time; it’ll drive you nuts.” “At least you got a license. Ma an’ Pa don’t let me have one. Hell, they barely just let Brae get one, on account o’ him goin’ t’ college next year!” She groaned. “An’ he’ll be livin’ it up in Hawaii – Ha-fuckin’-waii! – an’ Ah’ll be stuck here ‘till maybe Ah get th’ chance t’ escape.” She then grinned and said, “Fortunately, Ah got other plans. Anyway, Ah’ll let ya two get yer business done. Later!” Finally, after a massive, old-family-style dinner that made the table groan with the weight of all the food, both Scoops and Applejack managed to crawl back to the boathouse. “I am never eating another thing again,” Scoops groaned. “I think I ate enough food tonight to cover the remainder of my life.” “We’ll be working in th’ morning,” Applejack told her friend. “Don’t worry, you’ll be losing that weight.” “No, I’ll never lose it,” Scoops mock-groaned. “I’m going to gain a billion pounds, and it’ll all go to my thighs, just watch! I guess I’ll just have to learn how to be fat and sassy, if I’m going to keep your brother from looking elsewhere.” “Ah hope not,” another voice said. They turned to see Braeburn looking at them, with Macintosh right behind. “‘Cause Ah need yer help.” A few minutes later they were in the guest room, with the girls sitting on the bed, and Braeburn on the chair by the far side of the room and Macintosh leaning against the desk. “So, what’s up, Brae?” Applejack asked. “Look, Ah’m gonna be honest: Ah need ya two t’ look after Summer. She’s up t’ something, an’ Ah know it. She hates livin’ here, an’ if she had her way, we’d be livin’ back in Chicago, where Ma’s from.” “And I guess you moving to Hawaii in the fall ain’t helping?” Scoops asked. Braeburn laughed. “Ah got a scholarship at UH Hilo fer conservation an’ agriculture. An’ that’s Hilo, on the Big Island. Ain’t like Ah’ll be partyin’ in Honolulu or nothin’. But y’ can bet that’s what Summer thinks. Plus, her best friend just moved, too, an’ that took a lot out o’ her. You know ‘bout the Aussie company buyin’ the farms ‘round here, right, AJ?” “Yeah, Ah remember, Australia’s Best or something like that. Why?” “‘Bout three months ago, Mr. Timberline sold their timber farm to Australia’s Best, and he an’ his family moved t’ Ohio. That included Summer’s best bud, Country Rose. And she’s never really been good at makin’ friends. But lately, Ah….” He sighed. “Go on, cuz,” Applejack prodded, seeing the worried look on her cousin’s face. “About a couple o’ months ago, Ah was doin’ th’ laundry, an’ was washin’ a pair o’ her jeans. An’ Ah found a joint. Didn’t want her t’ get in trouble, so Ah tossed it. But then, a couple o’ days later, Ah found….” He shook his head. “Ah swear, Ah find out who touched her an’ Ah’m beating me some ass, got that?” Scoops took the cue and ran with it. “You found condoms, didn’t you?” He nodded. “Me an’ mah girlfriend – Jade Lily, y’ll meet her t’morrow – have been tryin’ to keep Summer on the straight an’ narrow, but it’s only a matter o’ time before Ma and Pa find out an’ Ah don’t want that to happen.” “Maybe it needs to,” Macintosh advised. “Ah’ve known tons o’ kids at school who’ve gotten into shit they can’t handle ‘cause a well-meanin’ friend covered for them. Ah know you’re lookin’ out for her, Brae, but Ah don’t think yer looking out fer her th’ way you should.” “Ah know. But y’all are mah cousins – er close enough in Scoops’ case – and me an’ Jade are at our wits’ end. If’n y’ can find what she’s up to an’ put a stop to it, Ah’d be surely appreciative. But if not,” he said soberly, “then Ah’ll have t’ go to Ma and Pa. And fer Summer’s sake, Ah hope Ah don’t.” “But we’re here to help with the farm, Brae,” Applejack reminded him. “We’re gonna have our hands full.” “Sorry, but Ah got no choice,” Braeburn said, then looked at Macintosh. “Mac, if’n you were in mah shoes, what wouldja do?” Macintosh looked at Braeburn, then right at Applejack. The answer was obvious. “We’ll get this straightened out.” In one of the far fields of Heavener Apple Orchards, the ground split open, emitting a sickly green light. The fissure pulsed with a deep hum that felt akin to a bass-blasting car driving not too far away. In the apple trees surrounding the rent, the apple blossoms began to change from a delicate pink shade to a deep purple, then to black before starting to fall. A trail of green energy began to burn along the branches and trunks of the trees, desiccating and shriveling them until they were nothing more than husks. Glowing eyes opened in the midst of the darkness, and a baleful howl uttered in the air. At that, what was left of the trees fell to matchsticks, as if there was nothing left A hand reached down to pet a furred head; in the other, a glowing runestone sat, flickering with unnatural color. “Good boy,” a voice said.