//------------------------------// // Technical Difficulties // Story: Ghosts of Whitetail Wood // by Biochi //------------------------------// "What?" Apple Bloom replied. "Um...you have a lot of bugs...on you." Twilight smiled in a broad and unnatural manner trying to sell the fiction to the yellow filly. The effort was totally wasted as Apple Bloom had her mind on other things. "Miss Twilight, that don't matter none! I saw a ghost! Or a monster! Or the ghost of a monster!" The unicorn's smile fell at hearing this. "A ghost-monster," she repeated flatly. "That's right, I saw a ghost-monster thing!" she confirmed. "Like that time we went into the Everfree together, when you saw those 'blank' ponies." "Yeah! Or...not really." Apple Bloom paused to think of how to proceed in her description. "Not a bunch of ghost ponies, this was just one ghost of... something else." Twilight sat up, having given up on the hope of resuming her nap. She rubbed her aching head as she looked over the agitated filly. Worry lines appeared around her eyes as she contemplated her friend's young sister. "Come with me, let's get you cleaned up." "But...but what about the ghost-monster?" She asked, confused at the sudden turn in the conversation. "We can talk while I get you cleaned up. You've got...stuff all over you." Twilight stood and headed up the stairs to her living quarters. She turned her head back when she was halfway up the flight to make sure the filly followed. Prompted by her glance Apple Bloom huffed in frustration but followed the purple mare up the stairs and on to the bathroom. Once there, Twilight guided the young earth pony into her tub and grabbed a heavy bristled brush with her aura. "But we don't got time for this. We gotta look this thing up in your books and get a net or something." Twilight gently shushed the girl and started pulling the bush through the tangled mats of hair. Twigs, dirt, and a representative collection of the insect fauna common to the Ponyville area began raining down onto the floor of Twilight's tub. After a couple minutes of this treatment, she spoke in a quiet voice full of concern and understanding. "Apple Bloom, it everything alright at home? Are there any problems you want to talk about? I promise I won't be mad or tell anyone if you don't want me to." Apple Bloom turned her head to look at Twilight, aghast. "What're you saying?" "I'm not saying anything dear. I just want you to know that if your stories are a way to get me or others to pay attention to you, its OK. You have my attention and I'm hear to listen to you." "Are you calling me a liar?!?" Twilight paused to compose a diplomatic response in the face of the filly's sudden flash of anger. Unfortunately, the pause was enough of a tell for Apple Bloom. "You are!" "No, no, I'm not calling you a liar. It's just that I think you might be exaggerating a bit." The filly's little body trembled with suppressed rage while Twilight resumed brushing out the burrs and snarls. "I ain't no liar, not this time nor the last. I saw ghosts both times and there ain't nothing going on at home that I need 'attention' for. And now I'm thinking that coming to you was a mistake." Twilight continued with the brushing. "I'm sorry Apple Bloom, its just that this is the second time you come to me with a far-fetched story about ghosts. I care about you and this behavior is starting to make me worry ab..." Twilight trailed off suddenly in her explanation and paused in her brushing. Apple Bloom was too irritated by this betrayal to notice. Twilight resumed brushing but instead of a general and wandering application of the instrument she applied it to Apple Bloom's left flank alone for several moments. Instead of continuing on to the rest of the filly's coat on her left side Twilight walked around the tub to Apple Bloom's right and brushed at the coat on her right flank. This behavior was odd enough to draw the filly back out. "What're you doing back there?" The young mare's response was flat and strange. "Apple Bloom? Tell me about the ghost-monster you saw in the woods. Tell me everything you can remember." The filly could tell that something was wrong but she took advantage of her hard won invitation to tell her tale. "It was shaped kinda like a pony but all wrong. It had really long legs with hooves split in half like a goat. Its face was long and it had two horns on its head but they weren't like unicorn horns at all, they were like tree branches. It had a short little tail like a bunny and it hopped like one too." "Deer." "Yeah?" "No, I mean the ghost you saw; it was a deer." "Don't you mean 'thought I saw'?" the filly sassed. Twilight used a shaking hoof to turn Apple Bloom's head towards the mirror above the bathroom sink. In the mirror, she could see the reflection of her flank. It was cleared of all the debris and muck she had dragged with her during her run from the forest, except for one dead leaf from an apple tree clinging to her bottom. It was brown and decomposed, really only consisting of the intricate lacework of the leaf veins. Apple Bloom reached up and tried to brush the dead thing from her body but she only encountered fur. With confusion she looked up at Twilight, who she now saw was pale and shaken. The young mare then turned the filly around so she could see her other flank in the mirror. An identical leaf skeleton was on her other flank. "No, Apple Bloom. I completely believe you." --------------------------------------- Twilight had walked side by side with Apple Bloom all the way out to Sweet Apple Acres. It wasn't a particularly long walk, with each of them having reasons to hurry out of Ponyville, but it was quiet and awkward. Twilight didn't know what to say to the filly. This was supposed to be a time of joy and discovery but Apple Bloom's talent scared them both. As far as Twilight had known, prior to this afternoon, ghosts were no more than story elements useful for adding supernatural horror to a narrative. The implications of a spirit trapped within the world of the living, showing active use of intelligence, perception, and social interaction left her metaphysical theories in shambles. As for Apple Bloom herself, Twilight assessed that the filly had to have gone through a terribly traumatic experience both today and during her encounter with the 'Blanks.' The older mare bit her lip and forced herself to breathe evenly as a wave of shame washed through her. Both times Apple Bloom had come to her and twice she had dismissed the legitimate fears of a filly who needed her help. The thought of how alone Apple Bloom must have felt after she had dismissed the filly's story turned the mare's stomach. Grimacing at the thought, Twilight apologized, "I'm sorry." "I know," the filly replied though she wasn't thinking of Twilight's previous dismissal of her claims, only of the horrible brand on her flank and took Twilight's statement as an expression of sympathy rather than guilt. Not long afterward their walk came to an end. The Apple's farmhouse loomed ahead of them, tall and imposing in the light of Apple Bloom's dread. Twilight slowed up as they approached the door that let to the Apple's kitchen, demurring to the filly's right to enter her own residence first. Apple Bloom nodded to her companion, bit her lip to brace herself for the expected confrontation, and then entered her home. Applejack was standing in front of the stove, working alongside Granny Smith to prepare dinner. Apple Bloom inhaled in preparation to speak with her family but then her eyes fell on her sister's flank. The sibling she most idealized had a trio of shining red apples as her cutie mark declaring her to a an Apple in the truest sense. When she thought of her sister, Apple Bloom thought of her as a farmer, the hardest worker she knew, a staunch friend, the ideal earth pony and everything she had hoped to grow up to be. She stood there silently for a moment, tears gathering in the corners of her eyes as she contrasted herself with the paragon of her clan. Her sister turned around, looking for a potholder, and saw her beloved little sister. "Oh! Hey there, Sugarcube. How did things go with the bugs today?" Apple Bloom responded by running upstairs to her room in a maelstrom of howling misery, leaving her sister standing there speechless. Twilight rescued Applejack from her stunned silence by clearing her throat while standing in the doorway. Eyes wide with shock, Applejack asked her friend, "What the hay was all that about?" --------------------------------------------------- Big Macintosh was called in from the fields and an impromptu family meeting (plus one honorary member) was called to order around the kitchen table. Despite the closed door, the distance, and the thick timbers which comprised the farmhouse Apple Bloom's sobbing could still be heard. The sound of the family's youngest member's misery blanketed the room in profound discomfort. "Apple Bloom got her cutie mark today, " Twilight stated. "Aaaand?" Asked Big Mac with raised brows. "She didn't get the talent she was expecting. She didn't get a talent anyone expected her to develop. Although, I was given information at an earlier date that indicated that this was a possibility. I chose to ignore that information because I thought the whole thing was too far fetched." "I hear a whole lot of gum flapping but I ain't heard you say what her talent or mark is," pointed out the green family elder. "The mark she developed is that of the vascular skeleton of a decomposing leaf." Blank looks were the shared response to her very accurate description. "A dead leaf, with only the veins left," she tried again. "But Twi, what does that mean?" Applejack asked. "I think it means she has some sort of talent with ghosts or the dead in general." Twilight opined in a professorial tone. "She didn't do something unsavory to earn that, did she?" Granny asked with apprehension. "No, no she didn't do anything like-" Twilight countered but was interrupted. "Did we do something wrong?" asked Applejack. "No," Twilight denied firmly. "She didn't do anything wrong, you didn't do anything wrong, nobody did anything wrong, and there's nothing wrong with her. It's just an unusual talent, that's all. Everything I could find on the subject in the library indicates that it is very rare." "Nnnnecromancy?" Big Mac asked. Twilight stared at the big, red farmer for a moment, trying to process the fact that he even knew that word. "Technically, that is the correct term but-" "She can make zombies?!?" Scootaloo's voice rang out from the doorway and all eyes turned to see her and Sweetie Bell peeking around the frame. "Spies! Inquisitors! Witch hunters! Hide the child!" Granny cried, diving for kitchen implements of destruction. "Girls! What are you doing, sneaking around our house!" Applejack shouted. Granny arose from behind the table armed with a cast-iron skillet in her mouth and wearing a colander on her head. She was restrained by the gentle but immovable hoof of Big Mac. "Apple Bloom can raise the dead?" Sweetie Bell asked with a look of shock on her face. "No, she can't raise the dead!" Twilight reassured everyone. "Necromancy just means that you can communicate with the dead in some way. Raising the dead would involve focused application of magic that only a unicorn could manage. As an earth pony her talent is likely much more subtle." "Oh, that's a lot less cool," said Scootaloo, disappointed by the news as only a fan of the horror genre could be. "Y'all still haven't explained how you've come to be sneaking around my doorstep," Applejack interjected. "We were at my sister's with Spike and saw Twilight run by with Apple Bloom. It looked like she was really upset about something so we followed as fast as we could. By the time we got here you were already talking about Apple Bloom but it sounded really serious. I really wanted to know what was wrong but we were afraid that we'd be kicked out." Applejack resigned herself to the fact that Apple Bloom's friends should be some of the first ponies to know about her sister's...condition. However, she wasn't about to let the eavesdroppers get off scott-free. "While I appreciate the concern you have for my little sis', I will not tolerate you sneaking around this farm. Next time you come up here, you better announce yourself or you're gonna earn yourselves some chores." "Yes ma'am," the two fillies responded in unison. "But while you're here, you might as well as go up and see her. She's real upset and could use some company right about now." "Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!" The fillies shouted as they galloped past the adults and up the stairs to Apple Bloom's room. They were confronted by a solidly closed door with the initials "A.B." etched onto an apple-shaped shingle hanging from a nail. "Should we knock?" Sweetie Bell asked Scootaloo. "Guess so." she replied and hit the wood with her hoof three times. "Go away," answered a miserable little voice filtering through the thick wood. "Apple Bloom, it's us, Sweetie and Scootaloo. Let us in." said the unicorn. "No. I'm horrible. I'm a monster." "No you aren't, you're just a necro-thingie." Scootaloo said in an attempt to calm her friend. Silence was their only reply for several moments but then they heard some shuffling noises through the door which finally opened. Apple Bloom looked a terrible mess. Her fur and mane were only partially cleared of dirt and debris by Twilight's interrupted brushing. Her face was dirty and streaked by clean paths left by her tears. "I'm a what?" "A necromancer is what Twilight said." Sweetie Bell replied, remembering the strange term better than her more athletically focused friend. "I can raise zombies?" Apple Bloom asked, incredulous but somewhat excited by the prospect. "See?!?" Scootaloo shouted as she was given proof that others thought the term meant what she thought it should. "Twilight said it was about talking to the dead." Sweetie then turned a glare on Scootaloo, "Not about raising the dead." "Oh, that would have been cooler," Apple Bloom said with mild disappointment. "I know, right?" Scootaloo proclaimed in solidarity with the pro-zombie camp. "Ugh, you two. Can we come in?" Sweetie asked, actually remembering why they were here. Apple Bloom's head disappeared from the opening in the door, looking at something behind her. "I guess, just promise you won't freak out or anything when you see it." "Ok," said the two fillies before pushing their way into her room. The immediately circled their friend, one going left and the other right, examining her new cutie mark without giving her a chance to shy away from either of them. "Oh," said Scootaloo. "I thought they said she had a skeleton on her flank. This is just a dead leaf." "Hey!" she chided Scootaloo. "Its actually kinda pretty," Sweetie Belle added for Apple Bloom's benefit. "Really?" said Apple Bloom. "Isn't it kind of, you know, gross?" "No, it's all lacy and delicate. It's really detailed too. Is it any particular kind of leaf?" "Duh, its an apple leaf," Scootaloo offered. "You know what an apple leaf looks like?" Apple Bloom asked Scootaloo, brows furrowed. "Heck no! You're an Apple. All of your cutie marks have something to do with apples. If that leaf wasn't an apple, I'd have some tough questions to ask your sister if I was you." Sweetie snorted a laugh at the exchange as Apple Bloom's jaw hung open. "How could you say that, Scoots? Are you suggesting I'm adopted or something?" "Well, obviously not," she replied smugly while poking Apple Bloom in the flank. "Come on you two, we're supposed to be making Apple Bloom feel better." "Actually, I kind of do," the yellow filly replied. "You sure its not gross or you aren't scared or anything?" "If I say 'yes' will you sick a zombie on me?" Scootaloo teased. "You better hope I never figure out how!" Apple Bloom replied with a giggle and then punched her friend playfully in the shoulder. The tussle expanded to include Sweetie Belle, all of Apple Bloom's pillows, and several stuffed animals being used as missile weapons. Out of breath from both exertion and laughing, the three girls laid side by side in the wrong direction on the bed. "So, y'all aren't mad?" Apple Bloom asked her friends once she could catch her breath. "About what? Sweetie asked, genuinely confused. "About me getting mine first," she answered. "Are you gonna quit the Crusaders?" Scootaloo said as a riposte. "Not unless you make me," she said with worry. "Then, heck no!" Scootaloo replied with enthusiasm. "No way," Sweetie Belle confirmed. Apple Bloom sniffed back some more tears but this time they were happy ones.