//------------------------------// // Iðunn // Story: Fire & Rain: Applejack and the Queen of Knives // by Limbo Theorem //------------------------------// PONYVILLE, OKLAHOMA 210506SJUL30: Five in the morning, a time when most reasonable people were asleep. However, in a farming community like Ponyville, that was reasonable for most people, and so the civilian population was up, attending to their farms and businesses, and generally readying for the day. They weren’t the only ones. On the other side of town, the makeshift army base was alive with energy as well: on the tarmac, a Navy HV-22C sat, warming up for its flight, alongside two Air Force CV-22Bs and a C-130K. Not too far from them were their escorts: four heavily-armed Army RAH-66 Comanches. The crews of the aircraft were busy working on their equipment, readying for their imminent mission, with support personnel lending as much of a hand as they could. Meanwhile, in another building, a conference was taking place. On a conference table littered with documents, tablets, coffee and breakfast sandwiches, Shining, Spearhead and several other planning officers met. Joining them were Applejack, Bolt, Flash, Tempest and several senior enlisted personnel from the three involved units. Splitdown, representing the pilots, was also present; and finally, several others were piped in via teleconference, one of which was Lightning Dust. “Thanks for everyone’s attention,” Shining, leading the mission, began. “I know this isn’t going to be easy, but we’ll have little time to plan this once we arrive just outside of Canterlot, so we’d better do it now. We’re going to set up our entry into the city limits, as well as set up a distraction so our forces don’t meet heavy resistance. Fortunately, my executive officer’s been working on it.” He turned to look at Lightning’s image on screen. “Colonel?” Onscreen, Lightning gave a terse nod. “The 489th Attack Squadron is going to give us a hand on this one. Once we’re ready to roll, they’ll hit it with every drone they have, as well as a couple of F-22Cs for pinpoint strikes. We should be able to cause enough of a ruckus there for our forces to move in from the south. I’ll also have a couple of units stand by as CAS for our ground forces.” Shining looked at Flash. “I believe that’s your field, Captain.” “Yes, sir. Under cover, we’ll move into the southern neighborhoods, looking for survivors and engage any Octo ground forces. That should leave room for the SEALs and a small group of combat medics to meet up with the Resistance brass, which is located here, in downtown.” He pointed on an old map of Canterlot. “We know they’re concentrated in the three central-most subway stations, so with luck we should be able to lend a hand quickly.” “No,” Applejack cut in. “I don’t think that’s the right call.” Spearhead looked at her. “Is there a reason you think that, Commander?” The blonde looked back at him. “People are people regardless of nationality, race, whatever; culture aside, they have three main concerns, one of which is the safety of their home and hearth. While the subway stations might serve as a unified base and whatnot for the Resistance, I have a feeling we won’t find them there.” “I’ll have to agree with that assessment,” Tempest added. “Every place we have been to, we’ve had to practically force people to evacuate their homes. In a disaster, sure, they’ll leave, but when it comes to fighting tooth and nail against invaders, well, old habits die hard, and humanity’s had those habits since sticks and stones.” “Additionally, looking at these satellite images,” Applejack said, “there’s something about the eastern residential areas that the Octos haven’t touched. Granted, they have a heavy amount of infrastructure there, but there’s not much activity. I think there’s something there, protecting them.” “Like what?” one of the other officers spoke. But Fluttershy figured it out instantly. “CHS! That’s brilliant!” Spearhead looked at her. “Care to fill us in, Major?” “With all due respect, Colonel, I’m not sure everyone in the room is cleared for that,” Shining said. “Commander, would you run it past the base S-2 and see what they can come up with for us?” “Already thinking along those lines, sir,” Applejack answered. “In any case, once we link up with the Resistance, then we can work on coming up with a plan to clear out Canterlot while Chrysalis here does her dirty work.” That was Chrysalis’ cue. “As I said, I already have personnel in town, staying clear of both the Octos and the Resistance. They’ve already been doing some scouting, but once we’re in town we can start doing what we do best: sabotage, planting bombs, all that good asymmetrical warfare stuff.” She looked at Shining. “Once we’re given the word, we can pop the party favors.” “Fair enough. What then?” Applejack smiled. “Then we do what we do best…and those sons of bitches are going to pay.” “Okay, finish up everything you need and get ready to roll,” Shining said. “I want us to be airborne no later than 0615 hours, got that?” Immediately after the meeting was over, Applejack went and paid a visit to the base S-2 officer. While he hadn’t been able to attend the meeting due to other issues, he had already been briefed somewhat on what was going on. Even still, the naval officer’s question came out of left field for him. “Uh, sure I can do that for you, Commander,” the intelligence officer told her, “but this is a little out of my league. I don’t have those kinds of assets available to me.” “I know. I’m asking you to get a hold of Lt. Col. Dust at the FAR Group on the Mountain,” Applejack explained. “You’re an intelligence officer, Captain, and you can probably explain what we need better than I can. She’ll do the rest.” He looked at her skeptically. “This is going to take some time, you know.” “No it won’t. She’s got the authority to clear everything and get it as fast as possible – but I need you to work with her on that. Clear the decks for us and get me that information, got it? I need it before we have boots on deck.” “I’ll do my best, ma’am,” he told her. He then turned to the soldiers under his command. “Okay, you heard the lady! Start digging up this info! I want it all and I want it now! Get moving, people!” Finally the moment came and Applejack, carrying all her gear and walking towards her aircraft, found Fluttershy waiting for her. “AJ, do you have a moment?” Applejack sighed. “Really not the time for this, Major,” she chided. “As the medical officer on this mission, I’m making it the time,” Fluttershy told her with a frown. Her countenance then softened as she asked, “Are you ready for this? Ready to go home?” “When I left Sweet Apple Acres, I never looked back and home’s been where I put my seabag,” Applejack responded. “But I get what you mean. Are you ready?” “I’m not sure. I mean, the last time I saw the place Flash and I lived in was the day before, when Zephyr came by to try to borrow a few hundred from us for his latest crackpot plan.” Her face contorted into a frown of sorrow. “I mean, my brother was a lazyass and always had his head in the clouds, but I hope he made it out okay.” Applejack placed a hand on Fluttershy’s shoulder. “I’m sure she did.” Fluttershy nodded, then asked, “Do you…um…still have your ‘abilities’?” “No. I thought I did – at least I thought they came back when I was in Rome when I met up with the Queen – but no, I probably was imagining that. You?” “Mine vanished shortly after Sunset left.” “I suspect that happened to all of us. That’s part of the reason I started lifting weights; I mean, I’ve always been stronger than the average girl, but when you’re one of the first female SEALS, merely being ‘stronger than the average girl’ isn’t going to cut it. So I’m a mass of muscles now – I think I have more muscles than your husband.” Fluttershy grinned. “Don’t tell Flash that – he’ll be jealous.” A thought then crossed her mind. “Speaking of which, do you have someone?” “What’s with the question and answer session? We need to get in the air.” “Sorry, I’m just…well, I want things to be back as they were,” Fluttershy told her. “We were friends once, AJ. I’d like that again.” “Well…yes, I’m actually engaged,” Applejack admitted. She then reached under her shirt and withdrew an engagement ring attached to her dogtag chain. “Wildstyle and I hit it off, and I absolutely love him.” “That’s great! When’s the wedding?” In the distance, Applejack noted as Chrysalis waved to her, a sign that they needed to wrap up their impromptu conversation and report to their stations. “There’s never going to be one,” she said sadly. As she walked away, she added, “He died six years ago while we were fighting ISIS.” As she approached the Osprey, Chrysalis looked at her. “You okay, Jackie?” “Yeah. Was just reminded about my fiancé,” she said to her friend. “I told you about what happened to him, right?” “No, but we’ve got a flight ahead of us and I’m willing to listen,” the older woman told her. “That’s what friends are for, you know.” “Thanks, Chryssie.” Chrysalis merely gave a silent grin as she gestured towards their aircraft. Meanwhile, Fluttershy jogged over to the C-130, where her unit was. She heard a voice call out, “Think fast!” and barely managed to catch the pack thrown at her in time. “Seriously, Major, you’ve got to think faster,” Bolt laughed. “I should make you ride on the outside of the plane for that, Lieutenant,” was Fluttershy’s semi-humorous response. “Well, that would be awkward. In any case, hope you kissed your husband goodbye before you got on the plane.” “Did that before we left our place,” Fluttershy responded. “He complained about PDA in uniform and fraternization, but I told him I’d let it slide as long as he made a habit of it.” “Don’t you mean ‘Don’t make a habit of it’?” An impish smile came to Fluttershy’s lips. “I know what I said.” Bolt nodded with approval. “Gotcha.” SOMEWHERE OVER SOUTHWESTERN KANSAS 210802SJUL30: Seated towards the frontmost of the aircraft, three women had as much of a private chat as they could, given the environs and the other people on the aircraft. Given that Shining rode in the C-130 in order to talk to Fluttershy and Flash, it left Chrysalis, Tempest and Applejack to their own devices. “I’m sorry to hear about that,” the spymaster said once Applejack had finished her tragic tale. “It’s never easy losing loved ones. Though I’m surprised you didn’t tell me about it earlier.” “It’s not something I like to remind myself about,” Applejack told her. “My parents’ deaths are far enough in the past that it doesn’t bother me as much, but Wildstyle’s? Still a little too close to the bone, if you get what I mean.” “What about you, Temp?” Tempest grinned. “Haven’t found anyone who’s tied me down yet. Not for lack of trying, anyway.” At this point, Splitdown called back from the cockpit, “Hey, hate to break up your impromptu Ladies Night, but we have Ponyville S-2 on the line for you, Jackie. We’re getting an encrypted broadcast now, if you want to take a look at it.” Applejack got up from her seat and popped into the spare seat in the cockpit, where an open terminal sat. She then sat down at the console, turning on the screen. “It’s encrypted, so it’s going to take a few seconds to go back and forth like an old radio,” he told her. “They’re using the callsign Orchard. Ours is Calico Four. Everyone else is set for the standard ones.” “Thanks,” she said, slipping on the headset. The noise filters on the headset kicked in, decreasing the cacophony in the cockpit. “Orchard, this is Calico Four. You got something for me? Over.” “Calico Four, this is Orchard. We got you loud and clear, over.” “Okay, gimme what you have, over.” “Roger that. Standby for S-2 Actual.” There was a pause and a different voice came online. “Commander? This is Cpt. Digdeep. We got that information you wanted, and I have no idea how you came up with it, but you were completely correct, over.” She gave herself a congratulatory smile. I knew it. “Thanks for confirming the info, over.” “Not a problem, Calico Four. Also, Orchard Actual has informed us of what’s going down, so we’ll be on standby at all hours until further notice. Best of luck and good hunting, over.” “Thanks for the help, Captain. Calico Four, over and out.” She looked at Splitdown. “Can you put me in touch with the C-130? I have some info I have to pass to the Colonel. Also, if there’s a way for you, Chrysalis and Temp to listen in, you’re going to want this info, Splitdown.” Splitdown looked at his copilot to indicate that he needed to take over. “Sure thing; let me dig up two more headsets for your folks and we can get this conversation underway. Callsign for the C-130 is Blackcat Seven.” “Roger that,” Applejack said, while waiting for everyone else to be patched in. FIREBASE APPLE CORNERS, COLORADO 210837TJUL30: The aircraft group soared over Hunts Peak, the farthest north anyone was allowed to travel without permission, before making their descent to the landing strip, once a part of US Route 285, but now the main landing strip for Firebase Apple Corners. A few miles south of the Canterlot city limits, Apple Corners had been a sleepy bedroom suburb for the state capitol, and where most of the rurally-inclined folks of Canterlot County resided. Now, however, it was the last stop before the huge terra nullius that lay between the former city limits and the southernmost ruins of what had once been Canterlot. The huge cargo aircraft touched down on the ground and landed with ease, rolling along a quarter of a mile before coming to a crawl in the heavy rain, following the aircraft directors as they ushered it towards the other craft present. Elsewhere, the Comanches pulled away, headed towards a different location on the sprawling tarmac. Finally, the two Ospreys came to a landing, alighting vertically like great birds coming towards a roost. As Applejack looked out the window, she saw how much things had changed from when she’d last been here. Makeshift buildings and various structures were on either side of the facility, covering a wide swath of what had once been relatively empty roadway cut into the mountain pass between Apple Corners proper and Canterlot. As she stepped off the Osprey, she could see the lettering painted onto the newly-built terminal building: WELCOME TO FIREBASE APPLE CORNERS with Pomum Ligni Quod Est Fortis in smaller type beneath it. “‘Strong as an Apple Tree’,” Tempest quoted as she stepped off behind her. “Wasn’t aware you knew Latin, Temp,” Applejack told her. “I learned once back in high school because I was a total nerd back then,” she admitted with a shrug. “Kept it up because it generally screws with people.” “Well, home sweet home,” Applejack commented, gesturing towards everything. “My family’s farm is what Apple Corners is named after. Though I don’t know if I’ll want to visit.” “Then you should go home, see if there’s something still there, assuming that’s still your family’s farm.” Applejack turned to see Chrysalis as she stepped off the plane. “Oh, you can bet your bucks it is, unless it’s been declared part of the DMZ. Apples don’t give up the land unless there’s no choice.” “Then what are you waiting for? Family’s important – they deserve to see you again.” “I haven’t spoken to any of them in ages,” she admitted. “I dunno. I left home on bad terms with my family and stopped speaking to them over a decade ago when my grandmother died. My brother called me an ungrateful cunt who couldn’t bother to come home to see the woman that had raised us after our parents died, and…. Well, I never answered the letter, and nothing’s been said since.” “Then it’s even more important that you do so,” Chrysalis said jabbing a finger on Applejack’s chest. “Go see your Grandma’s grave – I’m sure that’s bothering you. Don’t let way late become too late. This is your chance to make things right, so don’t blow it, Jackie. Trust me, you don’t want the guilt on your shoulders” “Hey, while we’re at it, I can see if your brother’s single,” Tempest added. Chrysalis merely gave the blonde a look that said, See? Applejack gave her friend and subordinate a glare and Tempest laughed. “Like you wouldn’t say the same thing if the situation was reversed.” Meanwhile, as Fluttershy and the others stepped off the C-130 and onto the asphalt, Fluttershy looked around. “Never thought I’d find myself here again,” she said to herself. Bolt joined her. “Home sweet home for you?” Fluttershy shook her head. “Not for me. Flash and I went to the Cloudsdale U., and stayed in the area. But this is someone’s home.” She pointed into the distance. “Cmdr. Apple’s family home is just a few miles south of here.” “Think she’ll go home?” “I don’t see why she wouldn’t; family has always been important to the Apples,” she said wistfully. “Well, you should go with her, then. If you two are old friends, her family would probably enjoy seeing you again as well,” Bolt suggested. “But if you go, I wouldn’t recommend leaving your husband behind.” “Why’s that?” “Because he’s got a hot ass and I’m sorely tempted,” Bolt said with a wink. “I suspect that one lieutenant was thinking the same thing.” “No, Temp has the hots for my brother.” Both turned to see Applejack walking towards them. “Well, I remember when I had a thing for him,” Fluttershy admitted with a slight blush. “Too bad it didn’t work out.” She then saw her husband approaching and added, “Not giving you up though, even if you were the runner up.” “Gee, thanks,” he drawled. “Well, if he’s that good looking, can I come along?” Bolt asked. “No, I’ll need some of you to stay here and actually prepare for the operation.” Shining approached the group. “Jackie, I don’t mind you and Fluttershy attending to some unfinished business here – I’ll probably be doing that myself – but I need those who aren’t local to do the immediate heavy lifting. That means both you and Lt. Shadow will be busy, Lt. Bolt.” “Yes, sir, can do,” Bolt replied. “Jackie, Chryssie told me about your family situation,” he told her. “I can’t order you to go see them, but given that I lost everything myself….” “I’ll go, sir,” Applejack told him. “You’re all probably right that I need to. First, though, we need to check if I can get some wheels for the ride.” “I think I can arrange that,” he said with an affable smile. The operation got everything set for the next day, stowing everything in preparation for what was to come; after that, Shining gave the troops downtime, with orders that liberty would end at 2359 the following day. That gave Applejack enough time to secure a vehicle from the motor pool, as well as to give Shining information as to where they would be in case anything changed. Finally, in the early afternoon, Fluttershy, Applejack and Flash got in and went southbound, off of the base. What they saw surprised them. Driving, Flash commented, “This road wasn’t here before.” “Yeah, I spoke with the light colonel in charge of the base – turns out that they couldn’t keep 285 shut down forever, so they redirected it through the old Rhubarb and Carrot family farms before it goes back north. Ended up having to cut through the mountain, but it is what it is. In fact, they turned the old Carrot family house into a public relations center, so that the base can work with the townsfolk and vice versa. According to Col. Range, it’s worked out pretty well.” “Townsfolk?” Flash asked. “The old Carrot House? Golden Harvest’s old place?” Fluttershy asked. “Yeah. Apparently, the house was abandoned, so you know what that means.” She grunted. “Goldie and I never got along real well, but at least she and her family didn’t deserve it.” They passed a regional vehicle security stop and chatted for a few seconds with the soldiers before continuing on their drive. “Seems so long ago that we used to live just thirty minutes to the north of all this,” Flash said. “Almost feels like a different life – like I never lived any of this.” “When’d you become a poet, Flash?” “I was a musician, AJ, remember? Poetry is in my soul.” He cracked a smile. “Maybe when this is all over, I’ll get out of the Army, open up a music store and be that cool old man who can rock a guitar harder than Purple Haze.” “You presume we’ll live that long,” Applejack told him, “and you also presume kids know what 1960s music sounds like nowadays.” She pointed to the sign. “Well, here we are. You ready to do this?” “That’s what I should be asking you,” Fluttershy told her friend. “Point a gun at my head, shout something in Arabic and threaten to rape and/or kill me,” Applejack muttered. “That would be easier to deal with than this.” Eventually, they reached the town of Apple Corners, proper. Except, it wasn’t a small town anymore, but instead a small city. “When did this grow up?” Applejack wondered. “This is the sort of thing I’ve had to see over the past five years,” Fluttershy told her. “No offense, AJ, but while you were overseas doing what you do, I had to watch the nation melt down from the inside. Places like Ponyville are ghosts of themselves, and the cities are wastelands. Meanwhile, new towns have sprung up – life goes on and people can’t live as refugees in tents forever.” Flash nodded. “Yeah. Not that it matters much anymore but I’ve heard they moved the Canterlot County seat to Leadville shortly after Decimation and the state capitol is now Pueblo. They probably would’ve moved it to Denver, if it was still around.” “What happened to Denver?” Applejack asked, not having heard anything about it. “An Octo ship actually crash-landed there in the middle of town. Since they didn’t want us to capture it, they blew it up – and Denver along with it,” he said in disgust. “No one made it out of there alive, and where it used to be is nothing more than a crater now.” Eventually, so lost for directions due to the city that had (to them) literally popped up out of nowhere, they were reduced to using GPS via the maps function on Flash’s phone. After a few more minutes, they found their bearing and ended up driving onto the grounds of Sweet Apple Acres, the address of which was no longer 3447 County Road 57, but 100 Founding Family Road. As they pulled up, they noted a paved parking lot and a whole bunch of other trucks. “There’s…a lot of vehicles here,” Fluttershy mused. “Did we arrive during a party?” “Yeah, sure more than I ever expected to see here,” Applejack commented, only for Fluttershy to get her attention, tapping her on the shoulder. “No, look,” Fluttershy told the blonde. “Farmhands.” Applejack looked in shock. “But that’s…that’s impossible! We never had that kind of money; that’s why Granny had to take the day job at CHS, so we could pay the mortgage on the place! That’s why we had to have friends and family over all the time to help us take care of the orchards, because we barely had anything after burying Ma and Pa!” “I think you’re going to find that a lot of things have changed since you were last here,” Flash told her as they all got out of the vehicle. The door to the house then swung open, and a gravelly voice said, “Ah, sorry – didn’t know Ah had a meetin’ with Col. Range t’day. Now what can Ah do fer y—” The voice gulped and said, “Applejack?” Applejack flinched, then with a look of fear on her visage, she turned to look at the person who had just spoken to her. “Hi, Mac,” she said in a soft voice. Fluttershy and Flash looked at the man as well, seeing how different Macintosh Apple had become. The years had changed him much. Dressed in a red flannel shirt, blue jeans and wearing a stained baseball cap, he looked at the trio with deep green eyes, poking out from sandy blonde hair occasionally threaded with lines of gray. His face looked worn and aged, the look of a man who had known farm work all of his life, and from the neatly-trimmed beard he had, adulthood had given him a refined layer. But he looked at the blonde standing there in the camouflage, wondering if it was a dream. “Yeah,” Applejack said softly. “It’s me.” A trigger went off and he immediately burst forward, taking her in a huge bear hug and bawling; a second later, so was she. Their words devolved into incoherent blubbering, but Fluttershy swore she heard the words “I’m sorry” come from either person at one point or another. She wiped her own eyes and smiled, happy for this moment. “Long time coming?” Flash said, blinking and wondering where the sand in his eyes had suddenly come from. “Too long,” she said as she leaned against him. The house looked different, much different than what Applejack recalled. Maybe it had been so long, or maybe the passing of time allowed Macintosh to put his imprint on the house, but she recalled the old place looking more homespun and less IKEA. Still, some signs remained: Granny’s collection of old souvenir plates. Her mother’s valuable collection of Pocket Dragons. Her father’s hunting rifles, mounted on the wall, though they looked as though they never saw any use. “Army gave me a couple o’ surplus M4s in case o’ trouble,” the man admitted, then looked at her. “So, all grown up an’ in th’ Army?” “Navy,” Applejack clarified. “I’m a Navy SEAL, one of the first women SEALs. I’m also an officer.” He patted her on the shoulder. “Looks like y’ done good fer yerself. An’ Ah remember Fluttershy,” he said to the aforementioned woman. “Hi, Mac,” Fluttershy said, hugging him. “Actually, I’m in the Army – Medical Corps.” “Which one o’ them y’ with?” Macintosh asked Flash, offering his hand. “An’ Ah remember ya – y’ used t’ date Sunset, right?” “Well, officially I’m here as part of my own unit in the mission,” he replied, shaking the other man’s hand. “But as for personally? Fluttershy and I have been married for seven years.” “Well, looks like you’ve done well for yourself too, Mac,” Applejack said. It was then that he realized…. “What happened t’ yer voice?” “Long story, bro, long story. Why don’t you tell me about yourself?” “Nothing much t’ say, really,” Macintosh replied as he stroked his beard in thought. “You left, Ah took over th’ farm when Granny passed away, Bloom graduated from college—” “Where is she?” Applejack asked. “I know out of all of us, she was the one who didn’t want the farm life most of all, but….” “—got married, an’ had two kids, an’ after this all started and th’ town started buildin’ up, people picked me t’ be the new mayor o’ Apple Corners. Ah do that more’n th’ farm nowdays, but fortunately the wife helped t’ figure that whole mess out,” Macintosh finished, as if he had never stopped. “You’re married, Mac?” Fluttershy asked. “Eyup, an’ you know her, too,” he said, as they heard a car pull into the parking lot. “In fact, here she comes.” Walking in the door was a woman not much younger than Mac, with coffee-brown skin, soft violet eyes and short white-and-blue hair. She was in a business suit and at the moment she was taking off her heels by the front door. “Mac, honey, we need to talk about the farm’s cider press. Old Man Doodle wants to raise a complaint again and he’s talking about going to the County over you because you own the farm and so ‘abuse of mayoral authority’, yadda yadda yadda.” She sighed. “And I thought I was the only one around here who was overdramatic in performance.” She then looked up. “Oh, I see you’re already talking to the Army.” Macintosh smiled. “Not what y’ think, honey, not what y’ think.” It was then that Applejack got her first look at her sister-in-law… …Trixie Lulamoon. “And so after college, I realized I really wasn’t good enough to do my magic act professionally, as much as I wanted to – believe me, it was a sobering reality check. I mean, I still perform on holidays and special occasions, but otherwise, not really. So I decided to go into law instead, and I’m much better at that – it certainly pays the bills, in any case,” she said with a grin. “Anyway, one day I get a call from my aunt Cheerilee, who tells me about a potential client, the grandson of one of her co-workers that had recently passed away. Being a CHS grad myself, I should’ve put two and two together, but I was more focused on the ‘new business’ part and less on the ‘do I know him?’ part. So I’m thinking, ‘Great, some dork who probably screwed things up worse after using one of those pre-made legal form websites’. So when this absolute hunk walks in the door and has these…eyes!...that are just…wow, and I spend the rest of the meeting literally trying not to reach over the table and kiss him!” Macintosh laughed his ass off. “Meanwhile, Ah’m too busy tryin’ t’ save the farm t’ notice the gal across th’ table from me, makin’ googly eyes.” He put his arm around her and smiled. “Fortunately fer me, we hadta put a lot o’ time together, an’ Ah eventually got the hint, as well as realizin’ she’d been in th’ same grade as y’all.” “Hey, I didn’t bill you for those hours!” Trixie told him. “Just through t’ dates,” he said with a smile. “Which, you, as a gentleman, insisted on!” She kissed him on the cheek, then continued, looking at Applejack. “So technically I run the farm now, and it’s a fairly profitable business. As for our personal lives, well, that’s been absolutely, well…magical, pun intended,” she said with a wink. “We have two lovely children: Toffee Apple, and Golden Star. They’re the sweetest little kids, AJ. I hope you get the chance to meet them. They could certainly use more family in their life.” “Honey….” Macintosh started. “No. Knowing you, you didn’t say anything, did you? Your sister is home for the first time in a dozen years, and you haven’t told her.” She sighed. “Macintosh, I love you more than words can say, and I am thrilled and proud to be your wife. But that means I know the good and the bad about you. And the way you shut down whenever there’s bad news?” “What are you trying to say, Trixie?” Applejack asked. She was still trying to wrap her mind around how the egomaniac she knew back in high school now being well-adjusted and her sister-in-law. “She’s gone! She’s gone, okay? She’s gone an’ it’s mah fault!” Macintosh shouted, catching everyone else off-guard. Looking into his sister’s eyes, he said, “After ya left, Bloom…she done got her degree in engineerin’, but by that time, Granny was gone, an’ well, she was an adult. We fought a lot. An’ when th’ Decimation occurred, she yelled at me fer bein a coward. Maybe Ah was, but mah focus was on savin’ th’ farm, not t’ mention that Ah was still more than a mite sore at her fer what she did t’ Sunset, so Ah told her t’ get out. She did – an’ Ah haven’t seen her since in th’ past five years.” “So you’re saying…?” “Our children were born after we lost her,” Trixie replied. “At least they’ll know one of their aunts.” Applejack stood up from the table. “Excuse me….” she said in a sick tone. “I have to….” She immediately ran out of the house. Fluttershy looked at the grieving man and his supportive wife, then to her own husband. “I’m going after her,” the woman announced as she followed her friend out the door. “I’ll hold the fort,” Flash told her retreating form. Applejack stood in a rose garden that faced the orchard. Nearly a separate plot on the grounds, this one was tended year-round, and cared for just as much as the apple trees were. After all, roses and apples come from the same family – and those that are here loved them both, Applejack looked at the Apple Family Graveyard. Generations of her family had been buried here, dating back from Admiral Apple, the man who had moved to America after years at sea under the nation of his homeland. He’d settled here in the then-American frontier, anglicized his name to “Apple”, married a gal and started a family whose name was as American as apple pie. And I’ve been the first to return to the other family trade, one we’d forgotten, Applejack thought to herself. The life of a Sailor, born to battle. She sat down in front of the newest graves: that of Buttercup and Bright Mac Apple, and next to them, Granny Smith. There was also a blank one; Applejack knew who that one belonged to as well. “Ah don’t know whut t’ say,” she began, sitting down in front of the graves and using her natural voice for the first time in a while. “Ah had t’ leave. Ah probably shouldn’t’ve. Ah know that this all falls on me – it’s mah fault. Ah chased away Sunset when she needed me. Ah ran away when mah family needed me. An’ now, mah baby sister’s dead, b’cause Ah wasn’t here t’ talk sense inta her. “Ah just wanna say: Ah’m sorry fer failin’ ya. Ah wuz a damn liar an’ selfish, an’ now Ah’ve lost jest about everyone Ah love. Ah don’t know how t’ make it right, save that Ah’m followin’ Flutters. Somehow, Sunset’s still alive an’ out there an’ needs us, even with all this. An’ Ah need t’ find her. Mah last sister left.” She reached over and hugged her grandmother’s tombstone. “You were right, Granny. Sunset was family, even if she wasn’t an Apple. An’ Ah ruined that. An’ now Ah have t’ make it right.” “They know.” Applejack turned to see her friend standing there. “They know you’re trying to make this right.” “I…lost both my sisters, my grandmothers, my parents. I lost everything. I have a brother, a sister-in-law, a niece and a nephew,” the naval officer said, switching back to her daily speech. “I don’t want to lose anything else anymore, Flutters.” Fluttershy offered her a hand. “You haven’t lost me.” Applejack smiled. “And I appreciate that. But tomorrow’s going to be the hardest thing you’ve ever done. Are you ready?” Fluttershy shook her head. “Going into battle? No, not the hardest thing I’ve ever done.” “Losing a patient?” “Very hard, but not that either,” Fluttershy said. “No, the hardest thing I’d ever done was to look inside and see the kind of person that drove Sunset away – the person I’d become then and didn’t like. The person I’ve spent years trying not to be. And I hope when we see her again – really see her – that she knows I didn’t mean to be that person.” “Yeah,” Applejack admitted in a sad tone. “I know what you mean. I gave up on myself. Took Wild to bring me back from the brink, and when I lost him, I went straight back to the edge, because it was the only thing that made me feel alive. But since I came across you again, I’ve realized something: I’m lying to myself by being there, even though I want to be. It wasn’t what I should be doing.” “And now?” Applejack felt something on her cheek and as she wiped at it, she hadn’t even realized she was crying. “Time to be honest with myself. And maybe then I can forgive myself for the woman I’ve become.” Applejack and Fluttershy hugged, holding each other for the longest time. After a few minutes, the two released each other. “So what now?” Fluttershy asked. Applejack grinned. “I’m going to go in the house and bake the biggest apple pie I can. Need to flex them old Apple muscles, you know.” Fluttershy giggled. “I want the first slice.” The two women laughed away their pain into the night, and for the first time in a while, green and orange reached towards the sky.