//------------------------------// // If You Wish For Peace // Story: The Untrotted Path // by Luna Aeterna Solutae //------------------------------// Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria… My dear Twilight, there is more to a young pony's life than studying, so I'm sending you to supervise the preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration in this year's location: Ponyville. And, I have an even more essential task for you to complete: make some friends! As the door snapped shut almost on her tail, Twilight’s shoulders slumped grouchily. Spike beamed and gently patted his sister’s shoulder as he climbed onto her back, a checklist unfurled in his talons. “Look on the bright side, Twilight. The Princess arranged for us to stay in a library. Doesn't that make you happy?” Twilight took a deep breath to compose herself, straightening her back out as she rose to her hooves. She tilted her chin up carefully as if attempting to carry a stack of books atop her head. It was important to keep one’s snout lifted just enough to broadcast proud nobility, but not so high as to imply one was snooty. One of the many lessons impressed upon her by Celestia and Sunset in how to carry the burden of the Duchess Everfree title. “Yes, yes it does. You know why? Because I'm right! I'll check on the preparations as fast as I can, then get back to the library to find some proof of Nightmare Moon's return.” Spike shifted his weight slightly, careful not to wrinkle or tear Twilight’s dress with his claws. He tilted his head quizzically as he examined the itinerary. “Then... when will you make friends, like the Princess and Sunset said?” Twilight scoffed and rolled her eyes as she started off, her unshod hooves clicking pleasantly off the cobbles of the sparsely populated town square. “She said to check on preparations. I'll do my duty as Duchess of this settled zone, but the fate of Equestria does not rest on me making friends.” Spike rubbed his face, before pointing to a pink pony that was merrily skipping towards them. Twilight noticed that she wasn’t merely hopping; there was a short flicker of magic when her hooves struck the ground, the cobbles sinking slightly and rebounding upwards on every hop. She was riding this effect, turning the stones where she would land into a springboard to assist her next skip. “Maybe the ponies in Ponyville have interesting things to talk about. Come on, Twilight, just try!” Twilight rolled her eyes again and stopped a polite distance from the approaching pony, who halted her skipping and was staring at her curiously. She cleared her throat and held out a hoof in greeting. “Um... hello?” To the uninitiated, Pinkie Pie was a simple pony. A simple mind, with simple pleasures and simple thoughts. But beneath the veil of boundless energy and spirited enthusiasm lurked secrets. The biggest secret was that she was frightfully intelligent. Nickerlite didn't have a schoolhouse as the only things a pony that lived there had to know could be taught by parents. The old stories, piety for the Mothers and veneration of the Solar Princess. How to cut and quarry stone, how to seek and find gems. How to properly care for a pearl-like Stone Seed and grow it into beautiful crystals. Pinkie had the luxury of her Granny's shelf. Growing up it had seemed like the sum of all knowledge in Equestria was stored there. Surprise Pie had been a Wonderbolt in her previous life, but had settled on the ground when her daughter married into the Plain Pony community. She found Igneous Rock perfectly courteous beneath his stolid exterior and felt him a perfect match for her only daughter. In the ways of Plain Ponies his family holdings had become Cloudy Quartz's upon their marriage, and Surprise had been expected to become the matriarch of the family. Then had come foals, and Surprise had bent her wings to the task of grandmothering. A dictionary, an atlas, a weather-beaten almanac. Books on mathematics, compendiums of myths and legends. When Surprise passed away, much fulfilled in her grandchildren and with a wealth of experience behind her Pinkie had declared her intention to travel for Roamspringa. Friends of her mother's from the life before Nickerlite had settled in the nearby Equestrian town of Ponyville, and so there she went. The first night she’d wept horribly. The second day she decided that since the Cakes were so kind as to board her and help her learn the confusing manners of Equestrians that she would learn their trade. The third morning the Cakes had risen to find the morning chores already completed. Words she hadn't understood had gone over her head, and she'd looked them up in her dictionary later that night. They'd called her Prodigy. Autodidact. She was confused; she had simply followed the very easy instructions in the books stored in the kitchen. They explained to her that she wasn't allowed to work for them, as she was too young. She'd countered that she'd done her share of breaking rocks before her Roam. Still, she respected the command of her guardians. So it was that she was pushed into Ponyville's schoolhouse. She ended up being in something of an interval class, between the old marm retiring and Miss Cheerilee taking her place. She'd learned more and even more quickly than before, and when Cheerilee began to encourage the class to interact with one another more often she began to come out of her shell. She’d even befriended an earth pony who lived on the big farm on Ponyville’s outskirts, and a unicorn filly with a cute Whinnyapolis accent. Now five years later, she’d been pushed gently out of the bakery. The Cakes had desired to get her out from underhoof while they prepared for the big Summer Sun Celebration and suggested she spend the day at the park, or her favorite place in all of Ponyville. The library. As she approached the living tree, the door opened and a mare about her age was pushed out. A baby dragon followed, and they began to have a conversation as the other mare started walking in her direction. Her first thought was to notice where makeup had been employed to cover dappling. Her second thought was that the other young mare was cute. Her third thought was of a portrait she'd seen in the front hallway of the Sparkle Home when she'd walked a pegasus filly there from school. All of these occurred more or less simultaneously, and triggered a runaway thought train. From Twilight’s perspective, Pinkie stood and stared blithely for maybe a tenth of a second before gasp-squealing and sprinting off. Inside Pinkie's head however, information clashed together and a plot sprouted. Twilight Sparkle, Duchess Everfree. She doesn't visit often, we should arrange a warm Ponyville welcome and invite as many ponies will come to meet her! If I throw a super fun party then maybe she'll want to stay. She seems so sad and lonely… She raced off. I've got to get the girls together to stall her so I can prepare her surprise party. Twilight cleared her throat awkwardly and blinked. “Well, that was interesting all right.” Spike shook his head and snickered, patting Twilight’s cheek. He unfurled the itinerary and glanced over the contents. “Summer Sun Celebration official overseer's checklist. Number one, banquet preparations: Sweet Apple Acres. Oh, they drew us a map. Looks like it should only be fifteen minutes or so from the village center.” True to his word, it did only take about fifteen minutes for Twilight to canter to the edge of town. Unfortunately, the Acres stretched on out of sight. “Okay, how are we going to find anypony here?” Spike snickered and tapped the back of her head, pointing. She tracked the direction of his claw, and watched an orange Earth mare rear up onto her forehooves and balance for a second, before powerful hindlegs snapped into the bole of a tree. A brief flicker of magic at the point of contact spread across the tree and caused it to shudder, shaking its load of apples from the branches to land into carefully placed bushel baskets. Twilight sighed as she broke into a trot. Her eyes widened and she let out a soft sound of wordless pleasure at the sensation of the good earth beneath her hooves. This land was well-cared for, and well-loved, and this was reflected in the way it happily accepted her presence. “Let's get this over with... Good afternoon. My name is Twilight Sparkle…” The orange pony gasped softly and raced over. Grasping Twilight’s hoof in both of her own and shaking it so vigorously that Twilight felt like she was about to pop it clean from her shoulder. “Well, howdy-doo, Miss Twilight, a pleasure makin' your acquaintance. I'm Applejack. We here at Sweet Apple Acres sure do like makin' new friends!” Twilight tried to regain her balance after she’d been so thoroughly shaken, and get a word in edgewise into the midst of the rapid drawl assaulting her. “Friends? Actually, I—” Spike stifled a snicker behind a claw as Applejack cut over her. “So, what can I do you for?” Twilight cleared her throat and tried to set herself into order. “Well, I am in fact here to supervise preparations for the Summer Sun Celebration, as Duchess Everfree. And you're in charge of the food?” Applejack tilted her worn brown Stetson back on her blonde mane. The hat and her sweet drawl, and the smile that crept across her face as honest as the breaking dawn reminded her of her childhood friend Betty. Twilight decided that despite their introduction she could like this mare. “We sure as sugar are! Would you care to sample some?” Twilight smiled despite herself and rubbed the back of her head with a hoof. “Well… as long as it doesn’t take too long.” Quick as a blink, Applejack rushed to the farmhouse and shouted from the porch. Her voice echoed and rolled across the verdant fields and tree-studded hills of the Acres, the land carrying her words farther than they should have reached. ”Soup’s on, everypony! Hurrup, we’ve got guests!” Twilight squeaked in surprise as one of the biggest stallions she’d ever seen lifted her off the ground and sat her in a chair. The clearing rapidly filled with ponies, and just as rapidly a trestle table was set up and covered with a tablecloth, before an assortment of dishes were piled up. Applejack beamed sunnily and sat next to her. “Now, why don't I introduce y'all to the Apple family?” Twilight vaguely recognized that she’d been sat on one end of the table, directly across from a seat that seemed reserved. Her lessons in decorum had taught her that when two important ponies were present for a meal they would be placed at opposite ends, with the most important members of their retinue lined up on the right and left hooves. “Thanks, but I really need to hurry…” Applejack waved her off and began rapid-fire pointing out the ponies setting up dishes and cutlery as they filled the seats around the table. “This here's Apple Fritter. Apple Bumpkin. Red Gala. Red Delicious, Golden Delicious, Caramel Apple, Apple Strudel, Apple Tart, Baked Apples, Apple Brioche, Apple Cinnamon Crisp…” The huge stallion from earlier sat at the other end of the table on the right-hoof side. “Big McIntosh…” A small yellow filly took the seat on the other side, waving cheerfully to her and Spike. “Applebloom, aaaaand… Granny Smith. Up'n'attem, Granny Smith, we got guests.” The oldest mare Twilight had ever seen shook herself awake from where she’d been napping in a rocking chair on the porch. She popped her neck and grumbled to herself as she puttered towards the other end of the table. “Wha..? Soup's on? I'm up, here I come, ahm comin'...” The wizened green mare settled into her seat with the air of royalty taking up her throne. Her eyes slowly opened and stared in the direction of Twilight and Spike, before glancing myopically towards Applejack. “What’s your name again? Speak up, child. Blast my eyes if’n y’all don’t look familiar.” Twilight scuffed a hoof on the cushion of her seat. “T-Twilight Sparkle, ma’am. Duchess Everfree of House Sparkle.” A small spark of recognition flared in the older mare’s eyes. “Shoot, AJ, these ain’t guests. These is family. Young Twi here owns all the land in these here parts, and the big house up over yonder.” Twilight nodded shyly. Her entire life had been marked by ponies either snorting derisively or trying to suck up to her based on the relative positions of their families in the hierarchy of Canterlot. She managed to mumble out “Yes’m…” She tapped her hooves together awkwardly, glancing around and edging her chair backward and preparing to rise from her seat. She could feel the eyes of the gathered ponies, her nominal tenants, pinning her in place. “W-Well, I can see the food situation is handled, so we'll be on our way…” Applebloom’s eyes grew watery and she leaned forward, pouting. “Aren't you gonna stay for brunch?” Twilight felt a part of her die. “Sorry, but we have an awful lot to do…” The collective ponies sighed and slumped slightly, and she felt even worse. They weren’t trying to entertain her out of responsibility or duty, but because she was considered a part of their family. Granny Smith’s eyes narrowed, and she leaned over her plate. “Child, it has been nigh onto five years since a Sparkle sat down at my table.” She smiled softly. “Y’all look just like yer ma. I knew her when she was your age too, sitting in that same chair all stiff an’ proper like. I hope y’all an my AJ can grow as close as she an’ our Bright Mac did.” Twilight’s eyes widened a little bit, and she blinked back a tear. Even five years later the loss of her parents still haunted her, and her eagerness to get on with the itinerary was quickly overshadowed by her desire to hear about her mother from this mare. She felt a sense of belonging here that she’d only felt in the presence of her birth parents, or in quiet study watched over by Sunset. “I’ll stay.” The Acres shook with the cheers of the gathered ponies. Hooves were linked together, and Applejack cleared her throat. “Twi, would you like to say grace?” Twilight’s voice cracked slightly. “I-I would.”