//------------------------------// // Back in Ponyville // Story: AJ and the Dragon // by MiraculousDragonMaster //------------------------------// AJ and the Dragon Chapter 9 Back in Ponyville Winter had arrived in full blast back in Ponyville. Snow was flying now, in all directions, and the ground and all the trees were blanketed in the white powder. Icicles were already forming on the edges of roofs, and slush and snow had covered most of the dirt paths. But, the wind was dying down a bit, however it seemed like it would start back up soon. Over at Sweet Apple Acres, all of the trees were painted silver with frost, their bare branches were covered with white snow, and not a single leaf or apple was on them. Inside the warm farmhouse, Granny Smith was sitting on a stool, watching over Apple Bloom, who was in her bed with a bad cold. She placed a wet towel on her youngest granddaughter's forehead, which was beading with cold sweat. AB slowly breathed in heavy but quiet breaths, before erupting into coughing. Big Mac entered into the room, carrying another bowl of water. His little sister opened her feverish hazel eyes. "Applejack." She muttered quietly. "We need to bring her back." Already too tired to keep her eyes open, she closed them shut again. Granny Smith turned to her grandson. "Now, let's go over again what y'all told me." She then began to recap what they had said to him when Big Mac had barged in through the front door, freezing cold and with a shivering and sick Apple Bloom in his arms a few hours before. "Y'all got lost in the woods, found refuge in a castle, and became captive to a dragon?" "Eeyup." Big Mac confirmed. "Then, when Applejack went to free y'all, she took yer place, and now is trapped there?" She asked. Apple Bloom nodded feebly. "Well, come on, y'all!" Granny Smith called, standing up. "We gotta save her from that beast!" "No, Granny." Big Mac placed a hand on his granny's arm, and sat her back down on the stool. "Apple Bloom ain't in no condition to go anywhere. She needs to rest, and all the help she oughta get." Granny Smith sighed. "I know that little whippersnapper is tough enough to take on any man or monster twice her size." She said, slightly chuckling at her elder granddaughter's bravery towards almost anything. "If I know AJ, she'll be okay." Big Mac assured her. Apple Bloom gave a soft smile, before Granny Smith pulled a quilt over her. "Get some rest, sugarcube." She nodded, before closing her eyes in a peaceful sleep. But what the Apple family didn't know was that Snips and Snails were eavesdropping on them from outside. When they heard what was going on and what had happened to Applejack, they quietly went back into town. In his hunting cabin, just on the other part of the outskirts of Ponyville, Brandy Bar was ranting out about the day's events. He definitely wasn't happy when Applejack flat-out rejected his proposal. "Who does she think she is?!" He shouted. "That girl is messing with the wrong man! No one says "no" to Brandy Bar!" He roughly sat down at a table. "Dismissed. Rejected. Humiliated!" He angrily flipped over the table. A knock came on the door, and Snips and Snails entered inside the cabin. Brandy took a deep breath to compose himself, and turned to them. "So, what did you find out? Is Applejack reconsidering?" Snips shook his head. "Applejack was not at Sweet Apple Acres." Brandy blinked in confusion and anger. "What do you mean, she's not there?" He asked, trying to keep his anger in check. "Her brother said that she was trapped in a castle in the Everfree Forest by a dragon." Snails informed. The hunter scoffed. "Please, boys." Brandy said. "Dragons don't come this far in Equestria." "We know what we heard." Snips insisted, crossing his arms. "What else do you two know?" He demanded, changing the subject. "Uh, Apple Bloom is sick." Snails informed. "She didn't sound so good." Brandy raised an intrigued eyebrow. "Her little sister is ill." He said to himself. His face then slowly curled up into a devious grin. Snips and Snails saw that smirk and felt a chill go up their spines. The hunter was planning something; something not good. "What are you thinking, Brandy?" Snails asked cautiously. Brandy then gave them a coy shrug. "Well, if I know Applejack, she'll do almost anything for her family. So, if her sister is dreadfully sick, and if she's not getting any better, she will do whatever it takes to save her." "Even marry you?" Snips questioned. "Precisely." His dastardly smirk curled up even more. The two boys froze. They didn't like where this was going. "But, but maybe it's just a simple cold." Snails nervously suggested, putting on an equally nervous grin. "She'll be better soon." Brandy reached into one of his jacket pockets and pulled out a small vial of blue liquid that was glowing brightly in the firelight coming from the hearth. "What if she doesn't?" He asked rhetorically, his grin even more sinister. The boys gulped. This is not going good. But, what can they do to get out of this before it's too late, for them and for their friend? Whatever they think of, it has to come fast, or else Apple Bloom might suffer the price of whatever heinous plan Brandy is plotting.