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// Interlude: Back Home 
// Story: Forbidden Fruit 
// by Vargras 
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Coffee. He had always disliked coffee - found it much too bitter for his tastes. As of late, however, he had been drinking more and more of it, if only to compensate for the lack of sleep he had been getting. Big Macintosh sighed and pulled the spoon out of the mug, giving it a cautionary sip. "Ahh, much better. Two cubes. Gotta remember that." The stallion took another sip and set the mug down, making his way over to the kitchen window. Even with Apple Bloom's help, he still struggled to get more than three or four hours of sleep a night. With the moon still making its flight across the sky, he knew it would still be a few hours until dawn.

"...Big Macintosh? What are ya doin' up?"

"'spose I should ask th' same fer you, Apple Bloom." The red stallion glanced over his shoulder and smiled at the filly. "Yer probably up for th' same reason as me, though. Couldn' sleep?"

"Nope." Apple Bloom rubbed her eyes and slowly walked over towards her older brother. "Did ya have a bad dream or somethin'?"

He shrugged and grabbed his mug, taking another quick drink. "...somethin' like that."

"Ya miss AJ, don' ya?" Despite her age, the filly had a great deal of common sense and an uncanny knack for figuring things out on her own. Slowly, Big Macintosh nodded - he knew he couldn't hide it from her.

"Yeah... I do. I know her an' Miss Twilight are doin' jus' fine, though. They'll be home soon enough, an' when they do get back, we can get Granny Smith back on her hooves. Everythin' is gonna be a-okay, lil' sister."

She frowned and trotted up beside him, peering up at her brother. "Big Mac, what happened down in th' cellar a few days back?"

"I... really don' think I ought ta be tellin' you, Apple Bloom." Big Macintosh idly rubbed at his face and took another sip, setting the mug down upon the kitchen table. "Applejack keeps things between me an' her fer a reason."

"C'mon, Big Mac. You can tell me! I'm old enough, right?" She flashed him a grin, and the stallion couldn't help but laugh upon seeing it. He nodded again and took another quick sip of coffee before replying to her.

"I 'spose you are. I ain't gonna give ya the full story, though - yer not gettin' that until yer a lil' bit older." He reached down and placed a hoof at the filly's side, pulling her in a bit. "Let's jus' say that... some ponies can handle bad news better than others. Now AJ, she's a mighty strong girl - can take a whole lot of punishment. But everypony has a breakin' point, and she hit it. She had ta turn ta other stuff, jus' so she could vent her frustrations an' keep herself from blowin' up."

"What kind of stuff?"

Big Macintosh sighed. "Applejack is gonna kill me fer sayin' this, but... she started drinkin', Apple Bloom. With everythin' she was dealin' with, it was probably th' only thin' she thought would help her feel better."

At that, the filly frowned and looked down at the floor. "She... she's not gonna yell at us no more, right?"

"Nah, she won'. She was jus' havin' a hard time is all. Deep down, she's still the loyalest an' most dependable pony in Equestria - an' she's our sister. Now get back ta bed." He grinned and ruffled her mane, and the filly soon ran back up the stairs and to her room. With her gone, Big Macintosh finished up the last of his coffee and placed the mug in the kitchen sink. The stallion idly paced about, unsure of what to even do. He felt restless, and he wanted nothing more than to simply see Applejack running back home, just like she had when she was a filly. Big Macintosh returned to the kitchen window and glanced up at the moon, sighing as he watched it.

"Love ya, AJ. Come home soon."