//------------------------------// // Anchored // Story: Appledashery Vol. Two // by Just Essay //------------------------------// "There there, darlin'," Granny Smith said. Standing up, she trotted gently across the living room and rested a hoof on Applejack's quivering shoulder. "No reason for yer fussin'. This here's a strong family. We've fought our way through worse straits, and we'll certainly make it through whatever life's tossin' at us now." "Granny, ya d-don't get it." Applejack spun around, and her eyes were brimming with tears. Night had fallen over the land of Sweet Apple Acres, and a smattering of candles christened this fractured moment as the farm mare trembled and paced about. "I th-thought they were new horseshoes for Big Mac! But it ain't! It was a c-care package from Filthy Rich. It was some unnecessarily f-fancy way of maskin' over wh-what he really wanted to t-tell us!" "We both know about Filthy Rich, Applejack," Granny Smith said calmly. The melancholy was evident in her eyes, but so was the somber acceptance. "We saw this comin' from miles away..." "But it sure don't make it r-right!" Applejack barked. She wheezed at the end of that, struggling for breath. She couldn't remember the last time she had gotten this emotional. Speaking to Rainbow Dash on the weekend of the Gala had gotten close, but this was different. This was deep in her dimly-lit home, with her own beloved kin. It was the closest the mare got to feeling like she was inside herself. She let the tears flow. "What business does he have g-givin' up on us like this?! He's had an agreement with the family for d-decades!" "I'm 'fraid it has everythang to do with business, darlin'," Granny said. "That's just how Mr. Rich thinks. It's just like how his dad fancied doin' things too. Their family joined us for business, and now—I reckon—with things goin' as poorly with the crops n'all, it's a right smart decision for their business to leave us all the same." "But what are we gonna do, Granny?!" Applejack whimpered, continuing to pace about. "Workin' with the Riches is all I've evern known s-since I was a filly! Maybe I can s-save our crops from dyin' or keep this farm afloat—but finding a new business partner?! I c-can't juggle all of that! It's t-takin' every darn breath I have to give to keep our apples growin!" "Shhhhh..." Granny Smith reached out for her again. "It's alright, darlin'..." "No, Granny!" Applejack stomped her hoof. It was all she could afford to do aside from throwing her grandmother clear off her. "It's not alright! We c-can't lose this here farm! It's who I am! It's who we are! Granny, h-how are we g-gonna survive if everythang goes under?!" "We will, Applejack..." Granny Smith stroked her mane, smiling a wrinkled smile. Her eyes twinkled with otherworldly contentment. "We will. You know why? Because we're stronger than anythang. We're stronger than the Riches, we're stronger than Ponyville, and we're even stronger than Sweet Apple Acres. We don't need this here farm to be a swell, rootin' tootin' bunch of dependable apples! Equestria needs us, and Equestria's gonna have us—and all of our sisters and cousins—no matter what, ya hear?" "I... I just can't imagine..." Applejack's breath grew breathier and breathier. She glanced out the window, towards the hill, and she imagined two stones slicing shadows against the starlight. Between each blink, they receded, and the tears filled the void leftover. "All my life, I've wanted to make th-this land prosper. And now... t-to give it all up? It's... it's l-like giving myself up! I hate it, Granny! I hate it somethin' awful!" "Oh, Applejack." Granny reached in and held Applejack entirely. The young mare leaned against her, shuddering. Meanwhile, Granny lovingly stroked her mane and neck. "Reckon it's all my fault. I'm old enough to have seen where the local economy was goin'. I shoulda prepared ya, honey. I shoulda encouraged you to branch out, perhaps taken more than one trip to the Oranges in the big city. Maybe then this wouldn't have been such a plum shocker to ya..." "It's not what I want, Granny..." Applejack sobbed. "It's like I'm losin' everythang I hold dear. I... I don't know what to do." She curled up against her, bawling. "Nnnngh... feel... f-feel so weak... so lost..." "That's fine. That's alright, darlin'. Let it out. We can deal with tomorrow when it comes. As for now, don't be feelin' afraid or nothin'. Just let it out..." Applejack clenched her eyes shut. In the darkness before her, she saw so many things slipping away. Only one thing remained in place. A shade of blue, soft and fragile and so easy to lose. But even that was starting to dwindled under the enormous pressure of everything collapsing around her. She felt foolish. She felt guilty. She felt. There was no more reasoning it out; simply a release. And as much as Applejack felt she was letting go that night... ...she knew the only thing she couldn't release was herself.