//------------------------------// // March 25: I'm Weary with My Former Toil // Story: 7DSJ: The Apple Tree // by Shinzakura //------------------------------// The Apples, along with Sweetcream Scoops, looked in shock. There, where just days before the northwest field had been filled with just-blooming apple trees, was a wasteland of wrecked and aged wood, shattered and torn up ground and no signs of an apple blossom to be seen. It was as if the trees had withered and died overnight, something that had to be impossible. “What the fuc—” Stayman began. “Manners, son,” Applesmith stated. “There are youngin’s here.” “But Granny!” Apple Bloom countered, “Ah already know how t—” The preteen suddenly found a hand clamped over her mouth. “You don’t want to finish that sentence, sweetie,” Cornflower told her daughter. Bloom bashfully nodded and her mother gave her a comforting smile. “Ah’ve never seen anything like this,” Appleseed said, shocked. “Stay, ya did soil samplin’ recently?” Stayman nodded. “Yeah, nothin’ came up bad. Besides, y’know this is some o’ the best land in the country, bro! It’s why our kin settled here!” Appleseed carefully wandered over to get a closer look at the soil. Crouching down, he didn’t see anything wrong with it, but looks were deceiving. “Unless someone mucked with things.” Stayman bit off a profanity. “Them jerks at Aussie Foods,” he seethed. Braeburn looked at his father. “Could be, Pa. Remember the Cotton family over in Talihina? They were holdin’ out against Australia’s Best, too, and then suddenly their crop died.” “Almost wiped em’ out,” Stayman said, scooping a bit of soil into his hand. For some reason, it burned and felt cool at the same time. “Cotton Gin an’ his family lost what’d been in his family fer generations.” He shook his head. “Ain’t gonna let that shit happen to us, no way.” At that point, a newcomer arrived, an African-American girl wearing a French Navy top and jeans. She had long lavender and mauve hair and gentle gray eyes. She sidled next to Braeburn, put her arm around him and kissed him. “Hey, hon, what’s up?” “Nothin’ much,” Braeburn told her. “So what’s yer plans today?” “Promised I’d take Summer shopping today at the Belle Point mall, then I figured after I bring her back you and I could go to the movies,” she said, “but I see you’ve got company.” “Eyup!” he told her. “Everyone, this is my sweet gal Jade Lily. Jade, honey, this is my family, all the way from Canterlot.” He then introduced them to her individually. “Canterlot, huh? Sounds wild,” Jade said to Scoops, Macintosh and Applejack once the introductions had been made. “I bet you have a bunch of stor—” “JADE!” The teen suddenly found herself tackleglomped by Summerfree, who had literally run over from the house the moment she saw the other girl. “I’m ready to go!” “I won’t be if you broke something!” Jade laughed. “But sure, we can go. In fact, any of you want to go with? Brought my parents’ van.” “Y’know what? Let th’ girls go,” Macintosh suggested. “Ah think yer Pa could use some help here.” “Good idea, Mac!” Braeburn agreed. “Honey, you guys have fun, okay?” She kissed him on the cheek. “Not as much as I do with you, but sure. See you tonight?” “You got it, sugar,” he said to her with a smile. “So, how’d you two meet?” Applejack asked Jade once they got going. Summer was in the back chatting with Apple Bloom, and Scoops was also in the back but listening intensely. “My parents moved here from Tucson when I was thirteen,” Jade began. “I guess they wanted a safe place for me to grow up since they both travel a lot for their business – Dad’s a toxicologist with the Government, while Mom works for our state senator, so she’s down in Oklahoma City most of the time. Anyway, I just started going to Heavener High, when this one bully in class starts picking on me, because, well, I’m black, not that I ever really noticed. Anyway, out of nowhere, this guy with dorky glasses and no fashion sense shows up and starts beating up on the bully, chasing him off. And that was how I met Braeburn. “Now, as to how we ended up as a couple, well, we were friends for a long time, but back then he still looked like a nerd. Some of the girls in our class were teasing him, saying he needed to clean himself up so he didn’t look like a spaz or he’d never get a girl to kiss him. Well, he stuck up for me, so I stuck up for him, and…well….” She blushed. “We got a lot of stares for a while; I don’t think interracial couples are the norm here. But his parents love me and my folks are okay with him, so we’re happy.” “I’m still having a hard time believing that hunk was a dork,” Scoops admitted. From where she sat, Summerfree laughed. “Oh, please – he still is! If it wasn’t for Jade’s golden fashion sense, Brae would probably dress in stripes and polkadots!” “He’s not that bad, Summer,” Jade called towards the back. “Besides, your brother’s the gentlest, kindest man I’ve ever known. And I’ve known a lot of jerks. There’s a reason I’m totally in love with your brother!” “Sounds sweet, Jade. You planning to go with him to UH Hilo?” She shook her head. “Nope. I’m actually studying archeology, so I’ll be attending Michigan Tech. But there’s nobody else I want in my life, I’m sure of it. What about you? You seem like the kind of girl that has a pretty decent life.” Applejack shrugged. “Nothing to tell, really. No boyfriend, just hang with my friends and we tend to get into a mess or two as of late.” “Oh, that’s right – I remember hearing in the news about that rape club out in Canterlot,” Jade asked, a distasteful grimace forming on her face. “You weren’t involved, were you?” “Nope, but Ah know a few girls who were taken advantage of, sadly.” Out of the corner of her eye, she looked in Summerfree’s direction. “And Ah know some girls who went looking for trouble and shouldn’t have.” Jade nodded. “Yeah…I know a girl like that, too.” The minute they arrived at the mall, Apple Bloom immediately wanted to see if they had an Apple Store so she could look at the newest Macs. Summerfree, who was also interested in that sort of thing, wanted to go as well. However, Jade said she’d skipped breakfast and she wanted to get something from the food court. As Bloom was insistent, Scoops offered to usher both younger teens to Best Buy, since no Apple Store was present. Meanwhile, Applejack accompanied Jade for food. After grabbing something quick, Jade looked at her boyfriend’s cousin and sighed. “I take it Brae’s told you about our problems with Summer?” Applejack nodded. “We all promised to do whatever we could. Summer’s an Apple…and Apples, I’m sure you know, are all about family.” Jade gave a soft smile. “Thanks. I’m out of my league here,” she admitted. “Don’t get me wrong: I adore Summer, and having her in my life makes me feel like a kid again sometimes. But I’m an only child, so I really don’t know what more I can do, especially with her losing her friends and getting into fights at school.” “Brae didn’t mention that,” Applejack noted, “but Ah guess Ah shouldn’t be surprised. But if you’re both going to college, she’s going to have to learn to stand on her own. Trust me, Ah know from experience that you can’t hide behind your big brother forever.” “Yeah, and with the problems your aunt and uncle are having with the apple orchards, I can’t imagine that’s any easier.” “Problems? As in, plural?” Jade nodded. “That apple grove from this morning wasn’t the only one. Last week, they had the cornfield completely burnt down, and two days before that, another apple grove had been completely flooded. I don’t know what’s going on, but I’ve been trying to help whenever I can.” “Sounds like sabotage,” Applejack stated. “It could be,” Jade admitted. “That Australian company’s been a bit pushy about buying up all the land around here for some industrial poultry farm, and a lot of families have been selling. They tried to get my family to sell, but we told them no, that we were looking into building a getaway resort on the land as soon as we got the permits. Needless to say, the rep from Australia’s Best wasn’t happy, but that’s not my problem. Still, given the number of families that have sold as of late, I don’t doubt that one or two of them might have been, ahem, ‘coerced.’” “Yeah, I don’t doubt tha—” Applejack’s phone went off, and she fished it out of her pocket. It was Scoops. “Lemme guess, Bloomie found a PC and started writing code?” “AJ!” Scoops shouted, sounding panicked. “Help!” In a fighting posture, Apple Bloom was breathing heavily. However, she was doing much better than the girl that was lying down on the ground. Behind her, practically panicked, was both Scoops and Summerfree, both shielded by the younger girl. The trio were in the back portions of the mall, where normally employees only went, but given the relatively empty state of malls in general and this one in particular, it tended to be yet another hangout area for teenagers. Standing before them all were several other girls, all of them doing their best to be menacing…or at least as menacing as teenage girls could pull off. “C’mon, Summer,” one of the girls in particular, barked, “ya gonna hide behind this little shit all day?” She then picked up a hard-plastic tube, slapping it in the palm of her hand. “Er are y’ gonna pay fer what ya done?” “Ah think Ah’ll just stay right here, thanks!” Summerfree shouted back. “Besides, Bluegrass, y’suck anyway!” Bluegrass narrowed her eyes. “Y’ slept with mah boyfriend, stole mah weed, an’ ya want me just t’ forgive ya? Are you fuckin’ nuts?” Summerfree couldn’t help but grin at that. “No, just fuckin’. And frankly, Oaktree says Ah get him off better’n you.” “You,” Bluegrass said to Summerfree, “are dead meat, bitch.” She then looked at the younger girl. “No idea who y’ are or why y’re protecting this whore, but ya better think twice, li’l girl.” “She’s in trouble – it’s all the answer Ah need,” Bloom replied. Bluegrass laughed. “Look, ya may think yer Darin’ Do, but ya think ya can take us all on?” “Ah just put down one of your friends, right? Should be answer enough.” A girl behind Bluegrass spat, “She’s just a kid, Blu. Just spank ‘er and send ‘er to bed!” The girl on the other side nodded. “Ain’t that right, Riverbend. She might’ve put down Cornstalk, but she can’t get all of us.” Bluegrass got off the railing she was sitting on and grinned. “Gonna be a shame t’ put this kid in th’ hospital, Thorn, but that bitch—” she said, pointing at Summerfree, “—is going to pay.” She got in front of Bloom. “Move or end up like Cornstalk here. Last chance.” Bloom narrowed her eyes and flexed her hands. “Make me,” she snarled. “Your funeral,” Bluegrass said as she swung the tube down. Bloom managed to push the blow away, but wasn’t ready for the other girl’s response: with her other fist, she hit Bloom’s stomach, making the younger teen gasp for air. Bluegrass then swung the plastic tube hard, slamming it against Bloom’s head as if it were a baseball bat. Bloom crumpled instantly, falling to the ground and grabbing her head. “BLOOMIE!” Scoops raced to the younger girl’s side, but was suddenly shoved against a wall by Riverbend, who pulled a knife. “You don’t want me to ruin that pretty little face of yours, do you?” the armed teenager asked. Bluegrass looked at Rosethorn. “Thorn, get Cornstalk out of the way, then if’n that karate kid moves again, hit her with this again.” She threw the battered makeshift club at the other teen before turning her full attention to Summerfree. “All these girls are gonna get hurt ‘cause y’ couldn’t keep yer pants on or yer hands where they belonged,” Bluegrass said, “but y’all get yer due. In blood.” Summerfree backed up against the wall as close as she could. “Couldn’t we talk about this like civilized types?” she begged. “You? Civilized?” Bluegrass reached in her pocket and pulled out a switchblade. “Ya done gave up that right when ya got that little girl t’ do yer fightin’ for ya. Honestly, Ah got more respect fer her than Ah ever got fer ya.” “Goes the same, Bluegrass,” Summerfree responded, then got a punch across the face from Bluegrass for it. “Just keep flappin’ them lips,” Bluegrass said as she brought her switchblade up close. “Ya ain’t gonna need them soon enough.” “Maybe not,” a new voice added, “but you’re gonna need that knife!” Bluegrass turned in the direction of the new voice and her jaw dropped. A blonde girl who looked similar to the red head casually walked in, and as she did, Rosethorn stepped away from the younger girl and engaged. The newcomer, on the other hand, easily stepped towards the attacker, minimizing the blow, then turned the tables by sweeping Rosethorn’s feet out from under her, and as she lost balance, the girl threw Rosethorn to the ground, where she then finished off the local teen with an axe kick to the stomach, knocking the air out of her. Riverbend then charged Applejack with the knife, and as she got close, Applejack grabbed Riverbend’s wrist and squeezed. The teenager yelped in pain and dropped the knife. “Don’t use a sticker if you don’t know how to use it, sugar,” Applejack replied smoothly and then brought her fist right into Riverbend’s face to end that round. The teenager, nose bleeding, dropped to one knee, screaming in pain. Forcing herself to her feet, Rosethorn grabbed the bat again and roared, “I’m gonna cave your head in, Blondie!” Unfortunately, for her, she made the mistake of screaming out her attack. “This ain’t Street Fighter,” Applejack said, spinning to face her opponent, “and you ain’t got a chance.” She dashed forward, and as the girl swung the makeshift club again, Applejack threw multiple quick blows at Rosethorn’s stomach, and then finally finished it off with another blow to the face. “And stay down!” she ordered. She then turned to the girl by Summerfree. “You got two seconds to let go of Summer there, sugar. Then, you’d better tell me who hurt mah sister, because if not, Ah’m hospitalizing all three of you!” In response, Bluegrass pulled Summer in front of her and held a knife to her throat. “You wouldn’t dare.” At this point, Jade busted in. “Bluegrass – should’ve known. I just called the local cops, Bluegrass. You got seconds before they get here.” “Make your call,” Applejack said softly, “but one of you idiots hurt mah sister and Ah’m not gonna let that slide.” “Ah did, Blondie,” Bluegrass said. “She’s good. Took out Cornstalk, and Corny knows some kung-fu.” “Thanks,” Applejack replied. “You gonna surrender?” Bluegrass nodded and dropped the knife just as the police arrived. The paramedic looked at Bloom one last time. “Ya sure y’ don’t need it?” Bloom felt the bandages around her head. “Yeah, Ah’m sure,” she said. “Thanks, tho—” “Oh no you’re not!” Applejack ordered. “You get that EMT to doublecheck your vitals, ya hear?” “But AJ, Ah—” “Please, Bloomie,” Scoops insisted. She’d survived with nothing more than a scratch and some humiliation. “For me?” “Oh, all right,” the younger teen grumbled. Satisfied, Scoops looked at Applejack. “I called Mac and told him what happened. Told him I’ll take care of everything on this end, but that he needs to get the family over there prepared for what’s gonna come out.” “Great,” Applejack said as she looked over to where Summerfree was giving a statement to the police, with Jade sitting next to her for comfort. “You want to tell me what the fuck’s going on?” “Yeah. It’s shitloads worse than what Brae thinks. Honestly, it reached critical mass even before we got here.” Scoops recounted Bluegrass’ accusations to Applejack and the teen groaned. “You know, part of me wishes Ah’d brought Sunny with us instead of you, Scoops. No offense, but mah friend probably would know how to handle this sort of shit. Frankly, Ah think we’re in over our heads.” “Oh, you think?” Scoops asked. “You’re just lucky I’m eighteen and can play legal adult to get us out of this mess. Imagine how bad it would be if I wasn’t.” “I don’t want to even think about it,” Applejack grunted. Stayman, needless to say, was livid. “Y’ go on and get yer butt upstairs, young lady. You are in so much trouble right now, Ah can’t even begin t’ think of the punishment yer gonna get for all this!” Summerfree flipped her father off. “FUCK YOU! YOU WANNA STAY HERE IN THIS SHITHOLE WHEN WE COULD LIVE IN A REAL PLACE!” She stormed up the stairs towards her room, and Stayman watched as she did. Once she was gone, he deflated. “Sorry, all. Ah don’t know where Ah went wrong,” he said. He then looked at Bloom, who looked all the worse for wear and lying down on the couch. “An’ Ah know it coulda been much worse if’n you an’ yer sister hadn’t intervened,” he said to his niece. “Ah owe ya one like Ah can’t ever say.” “Ain’t no biggie, Uncle Stayman,” Bloom said woosily from her spot. “She’s an Apple, and Apples always take care of one another, right?” “Ah wish that were true, Bloomie, else we wouldn’t be in this fix we’re in.” “Sir? Let me go talk to her,” Jade offered. “I feel it’s my fault that I haven’t done enough to be there for her.” Stayman gave Jade a smile. “Darlin’, ya done more than yer fair share and it warms mah heart that you still care. But don’t worry, honey, you just get yerself on home.” He looked at his son. “Brae, see ‘er off, wouldja?” “As if Ah wouldn’t, Pa,” Braeburn said with a smile. “C’mon, honey, let’s get you goin’.” “Maybe I should talk to her,” Cornflower offered. “You all know how I ended up like this,” she said as she gestured to her wheelchair. “Maybe if I talk to her, things will improve.” “I’d appreciate that, Flower,” Studious replied. Meanwhile, Macintosh updated Applejack and Scoops. “Hell of a day,” Macintosh added. “While you gals were runnin’ ‘round Belle Point, we menfolk were workin’ on that field. Two other fields are down as well and we can’t understand why.” “Could it be that Aussie firm?” “Turns out it’s not. We looked into it, and did some soil samplin’. Soil’s perfectly fine in all three fields; furthermore, one of the neighbors is startin’ t’ complain about some issues with his land, and a rep from the company came by askin’ about it as well. Turns out they had a huge cave in their northern field an’ destroyed part o’ that fact’ry they’re buildin’. So, someone from the government is comin’ by tomorrow t’ look at all the fields.” He looked out the window, to the boathouse and the barn just beyond that. “Maybe then we’ll get some answers.” “Ah surely hope so, Mac,” Applejack agreed. “Ah’d hate t’ see Uncle Stayman an’ Aunt Studious lose th’ family farm.” Outside, a couple of teenagers were doing what came naturally to a couple in love. Fortunately, the van was in the way. Stopping their makeout session briefly, Jade caught her breath before reaching out to caress Braeburn’s face as she looked at him with gray eyes filled with love. “I really don’t want to go home,” she said sadly. “I don’t wantcha to either, honey,” he told her, “but mah parents might just be a little peeved if’n ya stayed th’ night in mah room.” She giggled. “All things considered, given what Summer got in trouble for, I guess you’re right,” she sighed. “But believe me, sweetie, oh, you have no idea how much I want to.” “Oh, Ah have a general reckonin’ of how much you do – ‘cause Ah do too.” He leaned forward, his lips meeting hers, and they kissed in the gentle moonlight again. Finally, they stopped again and she sighed. “We’ll be here all night if I don’t get going,” she said, reluctantly letting go of him, walking over to her van door. “See ya at school tomorrow?” He gave her a smile. “If’n you don’t, Ah’ll have t’ come over an’ make you breakfast.” “In bed?” “You’re really temptin’ me, darlin’.” “Yeah, I guess I shouldn’t push my luck.” She got in the van and blew him a kiss. “I’ll see you tomorrow then, Brae.” “An’ Ah’ll be waiting with all mah heart,” he told her and meant every word of it. He watched as she drove off, feeling his heart tugged along behind the car. “Looks like you’re a man who knows what he wants. Or who,” Applejack said from behind him. He gave his cousin a smile. “Y’ ever find someone who makes your heart go aflutter so fast, y’ don’t know what t’ say when ya first see ‘em?” The look in his eyes was someone completely head over heels. “That’s how Ah feel every moment Ah’m with her.” “Lucky you,” Applejack replied. “Ah have yet to find that special someone.” “Ah’m sure you will, cousin,” he told her. “An’ Ah hope when you do, that person will be as special t’ you as mah Jade is t’ me.” Jade drove down County Road 1493, when she went around the bend that would take her to Conser Road and Hogden Village, where she lived. However, just as she reached the bend, she made a sharp right turn, off the road and behind a stand of pines that blocked the view of anything that tended to park there. The Heavener Police Department came out here occasionally to catch teens on joyrides, but at this time of night they tended to stick closer to downtown, where all the crime – what little existed, anyway – happened. So, her van would be okay there, just in case. She went into the back of the van to change into her work clothing. Time was of the essence and she knew that she still had plenty of things to do before she slid into bed. Unfortunately, there were only so many hours in the day, and even if she wanted to spend them all with Braeburn, she still had things she had to do. How’s the old saying go? “People to kill, places to destroy….” Something like that. A smile crept up over her face as she recalled the line from the movie she and Brae went to last week. The villain was a talkative type, and Jade loved complex characters like that. Plus, they had so many good lines she could work into her daily conversation. Into her clothing, she then got out and hopped the fence, returning to the Apple family farm. There were no animals on this part of the farm, and though there were black bears, bobcats and coyote in this area, they tended to stay clear of any people, including her. In the moonlight, she raced across the field, her deep blue clothing preventing her from being seen. It always amazed her that people thought that black was the perfect color to hide in during the moonlight, but that wasn’t how things worked in reality. Finally, she found what she was looking for in the westernmost field, dangerously close to the residential part of the farm. All it would take was a member of the Apple family, or even Scoops, to come outside and they’d likely spot Jade in an instant. She’d have a whole lot of explaining to do then, she mentally groaned. But for right now, she had to keep her eyes on the prize. Namely, the glowing runestone that lay in the middle of the apple field. She could already start to smell the scent of vinegar in the air as the spell did its job. “It’s too soon,” she said, her mouth a tight line. “Too damn soon.”