By the Light of a Firefly
By: SilentBelle
Ah've seen a lot of things in mah life, plenty of adventures, and Ah'm certain Ah'll see even more before too long. Heck, ya might even've heard of some of 'em.
Me an' mah friends, we helped change Luna back from bein' Nightmare Moon. We came together to stop Discord when he broke free of his stone prison, we helped to stop the changelings from takin' over Canterlot, and we even rescued the Crystal Empire from the wicked ol' king Sombra once it suddenly returned from its thousand year stasis. We've faced dragons, a hydra, a manticore and timber wolves on numerous occasions. Hay, I'd say mah life has been ripe with adventure.
But here's the thing, while those adventures are always goin' to stick out in mah mind as some o' the most memorable days in mah life, they also take a back seat on the wagon to what I truly hold dear.
So let me tell ya a different type of story. It's one that comes to mind every time ah see a sunset like this 'un, a fiery sky filled with the warm passions o' summer. This story ain't no adventure, but if it weren't for what happened, Ah'd certainly not be the mare ah am today.
This is a story 'bout fireflies, sunsets, and a secret of the heart. A secret that, at the time, ah found too embarrassin' to share with anypony. So let me tell ya this story.
* * *
Ah had just gotten mah cutie mark, three shining red apples, and truthfully, whenever ah look at them all Ah ever see is mah family. Three apples: Granny Smith, mah big brother Macintosh, and mah little sister Apple Bloom.
So, Ah hadn't been back to the farm fer long, but Ah was hard at work all the same; hay, I threw mahself into the work. Fer ya see, Ah was feelin' awful guilty. Ah had left mah brother and granny to handle the chores all on their own, and Ah couldn't help feelin' naught but shame fer mah actions. A farm's just too much work fer two ponies, 'specially 'cause they had ta look after mah little sister. By the time Ah had gotten home from Manehattan, the farm had a backlog o' chores that seemed endless.
Ah busted mah rump for two weeks solid and it seemed as though the list o' chores only lengthened. Ah wanted ta help with the harder chores, but ah was told ah wasn't old enough ta buck the apple trees yet. Mah brother and granny were takin' care o' it, but it left a sour taste in mah mouth all the same. Every day, Ah saw them make it home just after sunset, lookin' as ragged as Ah never seen 'em before. It hurt mah heart to see 'em like that.
By the end o' two weeks, I hated it. The non-stop work left me with no time to spend with mah school-mates, they seemed like a distant dream. Not a single one came down ta the farm. It was summer break from school, and Ah knew they would all be out with their families, plannin' vacations and who knows what else. Ah was feelin' a mite jealous of them by then, but then Ah'd shake mah head in shame at those very same feelin's. Ah was almost at mah breakin' point.
One afternoon, maybe a week later, it was some time after Ah stopped carin' 'bout how long it had been since Ah came back ta Sweet Apple Acres, Ah was fixin' up the sheep-pen, while keeping an eye on mah little sister as she waddled 'round in th' field. She leapt 'round on unsteady hooves enjoyin' the summer sunlight. She was just 'bout the only thing that could make me smile, strained though it might have been.
Now the pen ah was workin' on had been neglected fer quite some time. Ah figured it hadn't been fixed up since before mah parents had gone. Lo and behold, in the next moment mah suspicions were proven correct; when ah was pullin' out one of the ol' fenceposts and ah saw, chiseled inta the wood, their cutie marks, encompassed by a heart.
Ah stared venom at that wood. It had been six years since they had abandoned us, even after all that time, Ah could never find it in mah heart ta forgive 'em. Who leaves their family like that? Ah had to wonder. Normally, Ah would have just pitched the thought of mah parents right from mah mind, but on that day Ah was just too frustrated. All this hate and anger at mah situation, it had been eatin' me up for weeks, and out of desperation ah threw the blame at mah parents.
“Why did you leave us?” Ah asked aloud, as if they could hear me. “Who does that? Who leaves their kids ta run a farm all on their own? Apple Bloom wasn't even a year old! How could ya do that?”
Ah could still remember when ah last saw 'em. They were headin' out on a week-long getaway from the farm. It wasn't harvest season, so granny told 'em she'd look after us fer th' week.
Ah remember their packed bags and soft smiles, as they set off down th' road an' waved back at us.
“See y'all in a week.”
“Ah, love ya dears, don't cry, we'll be back sooner than you'll realize.”
Ah, let out an irritated sigh at the memory. “Why did ya'll hafta lie like that?” Ah wondered aloud.
Of course ah got no response as ah leaned on that fence post. Just tears of frustration that came to mah eyes. Was ah expectin' a response? Well, ah still don't quite rightly know. They were gone, Ah knew it, and the harshness of that reality was just one more burden Ah'd have ta bear, but Ah still think Ah was hoping for somethin'. A sign, or whispered word of encouragement, Ah don't know.
“Applejack,” the voice made me nearly jump out mah skin in surprise. Mah heart calmed as ah realized it was just mah little sister, she was pullin' at one o' mah legs. “Are you angry? Who are ya talkin' to?”
“Just the wind,” Ah said absently.
“Why?” she asked, oh so innocently, it nearly broke mah heart.
Ah shook mah head, tryin' ta clear it. “Ah don't know AB, ah don't know. It just helps ta talk sometimes.”
“Want help?” she asked, as she walked over to a wooden board and tried to pick it up.
“No, no, Apple Bloom, you don't need ta help,” Ah said as I rushed over to her. “Yer big sister can handle this here fence. Now go an' play in the field, and remember, Ah brought some apples if yer hungry.”
She seemed a mite dejected, but let go of the plank she had been trying to lift. Ah watched her make her way back into the field to chase 'round some butterflies. Once Ah was certain that she was back to playing contently, Ah turned back to face the fencepost.
“Help isn't goin' to come,” Ah whispered to mahself. With a sharp turn, Ah bucked the old fencepost out of the ground. Its worn wood snapped in a satisfyin' manner and Ah got back ta work.
Time passed as Ah worked; afternoon had turned to evenin', and evenin' was givin' way to dusk by the time Ah had finished.
Ah had been so focused on the task at hoof, Ah suddenly realized that Ah hadn't heard mah sister in a while. In concern, Ah looked out at the field and mah heart settled when Ah saw her, yellow and red, restin' amongst the grass, fast asleep.
Then, from the grasses that she slept upon, Ah saw two fireflies take flight from either side of her. They flew up together and met in the air above her flashing brightly. It was a sight of passion, that effortless dance they traced in the open air. Blinking, on and off again, their lights caught me mesmerized for the moment. Then, without warning, one of their shared flashes was the last, and Ah waited, with baited breath, but they never showed up again. They were gone just as suddenly as they had arrived.
Why had they gone? The thought came to me, but this time it wasn't an angry question, but it was softer, like a whisper of wind across mah mane.
Because they had to.
Yes, that was the answer ah was seekin'. How had ah not realized it before? Mah parents didn't abandon us on purpose. No, it wasn't their fault.
In that moment, Ah felt it all ease away, that tension that had dwelt within me those past six years. It had been replaced with a new feelin', one ah hadn't realized was missin'; it was the feelin' of home.
Ah leaned against the sturdy new fencepost, lettin' out a contented sigh, as Ah watched the open field become as starry as the sky above. Each star shining bright with the light of a firefly.
End