Chapter Seventeen
Maxilla led the group along the road some distance with the town falling behind them and another clearing opening up ahead.
“So how come you didn’t tell us you had family here,” Rainbow Dash said with Applejack glaring at her.
“That joke ain’t funny the firs’ time and it ain’t funny now,” she said disgustedly. “Not every farmer in the world is part of mah family, ya know.”
“Oh really? Name one!”
“Cherry Jubilee.”
Rainbow Dash frowned. “Oh, right.”
Ahead of them, Maxilla looked at Twilight curiously. “Are those two always like that?”
Twilight sighed. “It does seem like they do love to argue at times, but when they work together, they can be an amazing team.”
Rarity nodded. “We do all have our differences at times,” she said. “But what really matters is our ability to work past them and stay friends.” She sighed a bit. “I must admit that some of us are closer than others. I myself rarely spend one-on-one time with Rainbow Dash because our interests lie in different directions, but I still count her as one of my dearest friends.”
“Just like a pack,” Maxilla said with a chuckle, shaking their head. “We are almost at the Big Apple Orchard.”
“Big Apple Orchard,” Rainbow Dash said with a grin on her face with Applejack priming her hat for a thwack.
“One more time, Ah dare ya!” she growled.
“Girls, please!” Fluttershy suddenly imposed herself between the two. “No more fighting!”
At the look on her face, Rainbow Dash sighed and muttered something before backing away, while Applejack looked at her and sighed. “Didn’t mean to upset you there, Fluttershy, but Dash was just pushin’ mah buttons the wrong way, an’ you know how Ah get when that happens,” she said.
Fluttershy ducked her head. “I know,” she said.
“Sorry about that AJ, I was just having a bit too much fun, I guess.” Rainbow Dash shrugged. “I can’t help it if I think your reactions are funny.”
Applejack gave her a stinkeye before pulling her hat back down. “Well, Ah don’t,” she muttered.
Pinkie suddenly poked her face up into Rainbow Dash’s. “Dashie, remember what we talked about way back when?” she said. “About not taking a joke too far and upsetting them with it? Especially if they can get super-cranky over things?”
Rainbow Dash sighed. “Yeah, I remember,” she said.
“Good.” Pinkie leaned in even closer, and pointed a hoof at her face. “Because… I’ll be watching you.”
Rainbow Dash nodded frantically. “I get it, I get it!”
Suddenly, she noticed that Pinkie had suddenly stopped being in her face and was now over at Fluttershy’s side, chatting happily to her, and blinked. “Uh…”
Still up by Twilight, Swift-Pad and Maxilla exchanged confused glances, then looked at Twilight, who shrugged. “She’s Pinkie Pie, she does that, and as I told the good ambassador earlier today, it’s best not to try and understand it.”
“I’ll take your word for it,” Maxilla said.
The nine were quiet for the next while, until finally they reached their destination which was on a higher elevation. The farm seemed to have a gate in a very familiar style that proclaimed it to be the Big Apple Orchard with Rainbow Dash struggling to hold back a grin and Applejack rolling her eyes.
“Don’t say a thing,” she warned her friend with Rainbow Dash squirming before nodding her head with a trio of wolves coming up to the fence. One of them was rather wide, but had a big grin on their face, almost as wide as Pinkie’s usual expression, while the next was far shorter and, from the looks of them, younger, but also just as happy as their companion. The last one was rather lanky, standing a head taller than everyone, but had a calmer expression.
“Hello there and welcome to tha’ Big Apple Orchard,” the tallest wolf said. He sounded remarkably like Applejack.
Hearing his voice, Rainbow Dash promptly fell on the ground laughing.
The tallest wolf tilted his head. “Is something the matter with her?” he asked, a tone of genuine confusion in his voice.
“Of course something’s the matter with her if she is rolling on the ground,” the wide one said.
“Unless rolling on the ground is normal for her,” the short one added with a grin on his face.
“But if that’s what’s normal, then nothing is the matter,” Maxilla added with their tail wagging behind them.
“But matter is that she is known for flying, not rolling,” Swift-Pad chimed in with an excited voice.
“Regardless if she’s meant to be flyin’ or not, having a guest in front of ou’ farm ain’t right,” a voice hollered, seeming to come from the farmhouse behind them. “As ain’t right as ya’ll yipping about instead of greetin’ our guests!”
“We’re just havin’ fun, S ‘N’ D,” the lanky wolf hollered before ducking a launched apple. Rainbow Dash, who had just managed to get back to her hooves promptly started laughing again at the sight of the apple. “That was a miss-GAh!”
The trio of wolves began to yip loudly as more apples began to pelt them with the female voice yelling as she got closer, “I weren’t aiming for ya the first time, ya gallocks, I was just getting a bead on y’all!”
Turning around the bend, an Earth pony mare with a coat nearly the same color as Applejack’s, though a little darker, and a mane that was an equally lighter shade of yellow. Her eyes were a dark blue, though and she had a strange knife with an apple as its hilt as her cutie mark. Her face dropped into something of a relaxed nature before tensing up at the sight of their group with Twilight curious to what was making this mare worried before realizing that it was her.
“Hello there my-” Twilight began only for the mare to snort at her.
“I ain’t your pon-” the mare began before all three wolves coughed loudly with the mare shaking her head with a blush on her face. “Sorry, mah manners done got away from me, ya highness. I don’t know that there was another one of you out there. Thought it was people flapping their gums to impress the ladies.”
“Please, Swifty here doesn’t need to flap his lips to impress me,” Maxilla cooed, running her tail along his with the wolf blushing and squirming.
“I am working, Maxilla,” he whispered at them in a pleading tone.
“I didn’t hear you say stop,” she whispered back with Swift-Pad grumbling playfully as the other wolves snickered.
“It is alright, miss, I forgive you,” Twilight said, focusing back on the other mare. “I am fairly new to this whole princess thing. I just hope you can forgive me for being a bit presumptuous there.”
“We’ll see,” the mare said a bit tensely, staring past her and straight at Applejack. “Ah haven’t yet introduced myself. Tha name’s Slice n’ Dice Apple.” The mare held out her hoof to Applejack and Twilight was suddenly aware that all three of the other wolves were suddenly on their paws and staring intently at the two. Twilight couldn’t help but feel the need to spread out her wings, paw the ground and light her horn.
“Nice ta meet ya, Slice n’ Dice,” Applejack said seemingly unaware of the building tension, shaking the mare’s hoof. “Ah didn’t know we had kin out here.” She tilted her head towards Rainbow Dash, who was also being shifty on her hooves like Twilight was. “Ah guess you were right, RD.”
“Ah…” the mare took a step backwards before turning around and walking back towards the farmhouse.
Applejack looked confused. “Was it somethin’ Ah said?”
The tallest wolf looked at her before at the other wolves to silence them. “It is complicated,” he said carefully. “Slice n’ Dice has… not the easiest of relations with the rest of your family.”
“What exactly did ya mean by mah family there, partner?” Applejack asked with a raised eyebrow. “Ifn’ she’s an Apple, doesn’t that mean she’s part of mah family?”
The other wolves shared guilty looks before the short one looked up at her. “You really don’t know, do you?”
“Before today, Ah’d never heard of her, an’ Ah didn’t know Ah had family out here,” Applejack said.
The wide wolf scratched the ground with his paw before replying. “This really isn’t something we can tell you without betraying our pack member’s trust. If you want to know the full story, you’ll have to ask Slice n’ Dice herself.”
“What da ya mean by yer pack?” Applejack asked sharply, turning to Swift-Pad for answers.
“It means that she is part of Strong-Defend’s pack and a citizen of our country,” Swift-Pad answered, gesturing towards the other wolves present. “And perhaps we should move on, and try to find another-”
Before he could finish his sentence, Maxilla grabbed his ear with their teeth and began tugging hard. “Give her the chance to talk to Slice n’ Dice, Swift-Pad,” they said sharply. “Think of the good it could do.”
Swift-Pad growled at Maxilla with the changeling rolling their eyes. Twilight blinked for a moment before turning to Fluttershy who whispered, “He’s saying the danger of them having a blowout could be a real diplomatic incident with wide-ranging effects.”
“How can that be?” Applejack asked, sticking her nose into Swift-Pad’s face with the wolf glaring at Fluttershy before the lanky wolf placed a paw on her shoulder.
“Yer an Apple,” he said sternly. “Your pack is all over and it would just take one of the most famous of your pack to cause issues for our pack member.”
Applejack snorted loudly at this. “Look mister,” she trailed off, waiting for the wolf to introduce himself.
“Thin-Tall,” he said stiffly.
“Thin-Tall,” Applejack repeated with a raised eyebrow.
“I was always taller and thinner than my littermates so that’s what my elder called me,” Thin-Tall replied with a shrug of his shoulders. “He is Big-Cheer and he is Little-Growl,” he added, gesturing to the wide wolf and the short wolf.
“Pleasure to meet y’all,” Applejack replied. “Ah’m Applejack, of Sweet Apple Acres in Ponyville.” Her frown deepened when Little-Growl snorted dismissively. “Ah don’t know what the matter is with Slice n’ Dice and Ah don’t know why she doesn't consider herself an Apple no more but as an Apple, it’s mah duty to find out why because she’s mah kin.”
“You’re welcomed to try, but I can’t guarantee that she’ll be willing,” Thin-Tall said, walking alongside Applejack towards the farmhouse.
“So….” Rainbow Dash asked as she floated alongside Big-Cheer. “What kind of apples do you guys grow down here?”
As soon as she asked, Big-Cheer and Little-Growl shared a look and shook their heads in disappointment before Thin-Tall spoke up. “She’s just an Equestrian, she doesn’t know better,” he said.
“Excuse me‽” Rainbow Dash suddenly looked very angry. “What’s that supposed to mean‽”
“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight was suddenly in her face. “Stand. Down.” Rainbow Dash gave one more glare before moving to the back of the group, still clearly irritated. Twilight nodded at her friend before giving a look at Swift-Pad, demanding an answer.
The wolf in question sighed, shaking his head sadly. “As you recall, Equestrians are not beloved by all. You are just seeing some of the… more opinionated beings voicing their thoughts.” He gave a flat look at the shorter wolf who held his glare before Tall-Thin smacked him across the head roughly.
“And you should remember these are our guests, so show proper respect and stop dishonouring our pack like this,” he growled with Big-Cheer whimpering before giving Rainbow Dash an apologetic look. The shorter wolf seemed more reluctant, but finally did the same.
Fluttershy walked up to the wolves and began to growl, causing all three wolves to stare at her before nodding their heads and looking sheepish.
“What did you tell them?” Pinkie asked after Fluttershy had finished speaking.
“I was pointing out that I think she was just making the obvious conclusion,” Fluttershy said. “I mean, they dohave the word Apple in their farm’s name…”
Big-Cheer shook his head, but with a smile. “The name actually comes from me and from miss Slice’s names,” he said. “We were the first ones to start this place before my brothers here joined a few days later.” He chuckled a bit louder. “I was actually faster than these two for once, if you can believe it.”
“Only because you wanted a chance to scare her awahehe,” Little-Growl chuckled awkwardly, trailing off with Tall-Thin swatting him with his tail to get him to be quiet.
“Perhaps you should go see if Slice n’ Dice will talk to you before these two tell you her story,” Tall-Thin said, gesturing towards the wooden door. As Applejack walked towards the door, he placed a paw on her shoulder. “Just let her tell you everything before you judge her. Please.”
Applejack nodded. “Ah’ll do mah best,” she said.
As she went ahead, she could hear Little-Growl asking, “Um, miss? How in the world did you ever learn our language?”
Once she was inside, Applejack headed in the direction she thought the other mare had gone. Walking towards where she suspected the kitchen was, she was rewarded with running water. When she finally saw her, she coughed quietly and said, “Erm, miss Slice n’ Dice?”
Slice n’ Dice turned to face her, a cool look on her face. “If you’re going to insist on sticking around, just call me Slice,” the other mare said. “Is there somethin’ I can do fer ya?”
Applejack took off her hat and lowered her head. “Look, Ah’d never even heard of you before today, and Ah don’t know or understand what happened between you and the rest of the clan,” she said. “But Ah want to know. Ah want to understand. Can ya help me with that?”
Slice stared at her for a moment, before shaking her head. “Ya really mean that, don’t ya,” she said. “Ya actually care.”
Applejack smiled. “Family’s family, no matter what,” she said. “And right now, Ah can’t see any reason to think of ya any differently.”
“Tell that to the rest of the Apple Clan,” Slice muttered, raising a hoof to stop Applejack from talking. “Let me start at the beginning, Applejack. It was about six or seven years ago Ah left Tall Tale upon getting the Apple Itch; have ya got it yet?”
“Not yet,” she answered, feeling a bit awkward to admit it. The Apple Itch was a big moment for any member of the Apple Clan, after all; it was when they felt the urge to go out in the world and create their own farm. She shrugged. “Leavin’ for Manehatten was the closest I ever felt to it. But… Ah’m part of the fourth generation to help run the family farm back in Ponyville, an’ Ah eventually realized the big city just didn’t feel like home. Then Ah got mah Cutie Mark for comin’ back and realizin’ that’s where Ah belonged.”
“Coul’ be, Applejay’,” the mare said as she moved to sit across of her. “Still time for ya ta get yer flanks out there and find where the Itch takes ya. But in any case, I got the Itch and began to look for mah farm,” she said with a faint blush and a roll of her eyes. “Like an Equestrian, I done wandered over the border and found this land without too much though of who was here first.” She let out another a sigh, trailing a hoof along the tale. “Ah was pretty damn arrogant; thinking this land was here for the taking and that them villagers were being enslaved or some such nonsense.”
“Come again?” Applejack asked, frowning.
“When Ah got here, Ah had no idea that this was the Packlands or none of their customs, so Ah thought like an Equestrian and that they were bein’ forced ta work for the wolves. Ah couldn’t get why they were laughin’ at me before some of the nastier critters began to chase me back to mah farm where I was still struggling ta build everythin’,” Slice let out a sigh. “And that’s when Wise-Mind came in with a hundred of his fiercest warriors and nearly a dozen runewolves. He was furious with me and Ah felt Ah was done fer when he explained the whole matter, but, then he showed how he became the pack leader and gave me a chance ta prove mahself. He didn’t have no crops for the more herbivorous pack members and he thought Ah could pull mah weight by creating a farm ta his terms.”
Applejack’s eyes went wide at that and Slice had to hold out her hoof to calm her down. “Ah know, Ah know. Someone else telling an Apple how to do their farm? But Wise-Mind had a vision for what he wanted and Ah had no real chance ta make a deal back then.”
“So what kind of deal did ya have ta make?” Applejack asked, leaning in.
“Ah had ta make a farm fer everyone,” Slice said with Applejack frowning in confusion. “Ah was confused too, but he explained that he had always wanted ta have a farm that could attend ta his wolves. He didn't explain more than that but told me he’d send a trio of workers along with mah ‘crop’.” She scoffed, shaking her head. “Ah said that just three wolves weren’t enough ta make a farm and I’d need some ponies ta help me.” She let out a loud sigh, resting her head along the table. “Ah guess ya didn’t know that Wise-Mind was not only a father but grandpappy and a great-grandpappy too so he knew how ta teach ya a lesson.”
“What you mean there partner?” Applejack as she leaned in. “He said no?”
“Worse; he said yes,” Slice stood up and walked over to the fridge and pulled out some cider. Applejack, relying on this being on a house of an Apple, walked over to the cabinet and was greeted by a pair of glasses. Once she had placed them on the table, Slice began to pour drinks for the two of them. “He gave me full permission ta go enlist help from mah town along with some rules. No usin’ magic was the big one, and the wolves rankin’ higher than the ponies was the other, along with the other rules of the land.” She shook her head. “I tried, I really did, but the ponies I brought in wouldn’t cooperate. They insisted on doing things their way, instead of following the wolves’ methods or following orders. Finally, when it came time for the annual slaughter, they threw a big hissy fit and named every creature brought in for that purpose. All that effort put into raising them for food, and they purposely wasted it.”
Applejack shook her head. “Ah heard from Swift-Pad that was one of their rules, never eatin’ any animal that’d been named…”
“I wound up ordering them all off the farm and went to tell Wise-Mind that I’d messed up.” Slice sighed. “He wasn’t willing to give up on me. He ordered me to go back to work, and to handle a whole new batch of animals myself, since the first ones weren’t good for it anymore. I wound up doing the work myself… and the first time I worked up the courage to cut some pig’s throat on my own, I got this.” She gestured to her Cutie Mark.
Applejack looked aghast. “Ah don’t know what to say,” she said. “That’s… those sabotagin’ varmints!”
“It gets worse,” Slice said. “I kept trying ta contact mah folks but they never responded until I got a letter from them sayin’ they just gave birth to their first filly and they would ‘ppreciate if I stopped. Ah wanted to go see them and get ta the bottom of it but Wise-Mind warned me not to. Turns out those varmints had spread lies about me being a real scum of a boss, refusing ta pay any of them for their work and the like.”
“But they didn’t fulfill their contract!” Applejack shouted with Slice snorting.
“Ah know but what really got me in trouble was the mentionin’ of the butchering,” Slice gave her a tired look. “Most aren’t aware that ya need a very pricey license to be one in Equestria as well as all sorts of permissions ta be one and even then it ain’t really legal in most places.”
“I don’t get what yer getting at, though Ah have a hunch,” Applejack said slowly.
“They lied to the Equestrian guards and now Ah get all these letters,” the mare said, pulling out a massive stack of letters that had official seals on them. “Asking me ta go answer some questions.”
“And if ya go answer these questions, ya’ll be arrested, right?”
“Exactly,” Slice said with regret. “And ‘cause of this, the Apple clan has disowned me completely; pretends Ah was never even born. Ah’m sure if ya mention me in the next gathering, ya might get yerself in real trouble with the other Apples.”
Applejack nodded. “That just ain’t right,” she said. “Ah… Ah know Ah ain’t perfect, but Ah can’t imagine throwin’ somepony out ‘cause they were followin’ the local laws. Ah mean, they’re the laws.”
“Well Ah can’t go tell them mahself due to the Equestrian border guards and Ah thought mah family would believe me over others but here we are,” Slice said raising a glass of cider. “Wise-Mind took me in as one of his own after Ah got that letter and Ah’ve been a Packlander ever since.”
“Well that still is not right, miss Slice,” Twilight said, causing the two to see that everyone else had entered the house during their little conversation. “Spike, please take a letter.”
“Got it Twilight,” the dragon said with Slice standing up.
“Now wait just a sec-”
“Dear Princess Celestia, we have recently met with one of Applejack’s relatives, a Slice n’ Dice Apple, in the Packlands who claims to be the victim of misinformation spread by a local group of labourers from the town of Bur Patch and the Equestrian border guards as well as being disowned by her family due to said misinformation. I am hoping that you can help shed some light into this situation,
Yours,
Princess Twilight.”
Spike rolled up the letter, tied it up quickly, and blew his flames at it, sending it off to Celestia. “There.”
Slice stared at her in shock. “You… you’re actually doing this?” She blinked briefly. “Just like that, you’d believe me?”
Twilight gave her a smile. “Applejack believes you,” she said. “And that’s good enough for me.”
The mare stared at her for while before pulling her into a tight hug that began to squeeze the air out of Twilight’s lungs before the air was really forced out of her when the three wolves joined in.
“Thank you,” Slice finally whispered as she started to pull away. “Thank you, so much.”
“You’re very welcome, Slice,” Twilight said.