//------------------------------//
// Awaiting Journey 
// Story: Breaking Bonds 
// by lionaxel 
//------------------------------//

Applejack walked, thinking hard on her plans. The rustling of wind through trees helped sooth her mind and blow all of her worries away. Applejack had packed previously and simply had nothing to do and it was about thirty minutes til they were scheduled to be at the hut in the Everfree Forest, yet Applejack still felt as if it was eternities away. Above her, Applejack heard some snoring. It was obvious who it was, yet Applejack still looked up instinctively. Directly above her through the leaves, she spotted familiar cyan fur. How can Rainbow be sleepin' now? Shrugging, Applejack continued and it didn't take her long to get lost in thoughts.
After what seemed like a minute later, Applejack heard a faint clop, clop sound that steadily grew louder. She turned just in time to see yellow and then she was knocked to the ground. 
"Time ta go, sis! Twilight and Rarity are here!" Apple Bloom explained quickly, getting off of Applejack.
Applejack stood up, shaking the dirt from her fur, "All right, ah'm comin'." 
The two sisters only just started walking when Applejack remembered, "Wait! Ah better go get Rainbow Dash!"
"Rainbow Dash? Where is she?" Apple Bloom questioned, but the orange mare was already gone.
Applejack went back to where she found Dash before but saw nothing. There was no sign that the pegasus had been there at all, except for a few leaves on the ground that probably shook off when Rainbow moved. Slightly confused but overall amused, Applejack went back to a waiting Apple Bloom and again they set off. 
They were almost to the barn when a Rainbow blur crashed into Applejack. "Haha! Sis! You must be a pony magnet!"
"Apple Bloom! That's not nice!" Applejack groaned. It was a slightly inappropriate statement as well, but Apple Bloom wouldn't know that. "Oh, and Howdy, Rainbow."
"Hey there, AJ. Whasup?" Rainbow Dash greeted hovering slightly off the ground and picking dirt out of her rainbow mane. “How are you?”
“Fine, after gettin’ over the shock from when you crashed into me!” Applejack scolded.
“Heh heh, sorry about that.” Rainbow couldn’t help but break into laughter.
Frowning, Applejack started walking away, but noticed a familiar purple unicorn followed by a white unicorn. “Howdy Twi! Rarity!”
“Hello, Applejack. What’s Rainbow Dash laughing about?” Twilight asked, noting the pegasus who was still laughing really hard with a concerned Apple Bloom watching.
“Her latest “prank”.  She crashed into me.” Applejack explained.
“However is that supposed to be a prank?” Rarity frowned.
“Beats me.” Applejack confirmed.
Rainbow stood up wiping tear drops off of her eyes then seemed to just noticed that Twilight and Rarity had joined them. “Whoops.”
“Anyone else think we should get goin’?” Apple Bloom spoke.
“Eeyup!” Came a new voice.
Applejack smiled at Big Mcintosh and nodded. They had hardly set off before another new voice joined in. “I knew you guys wouldn’t be here! But I decided to take a look anyway! So here’s what happened, I asked Mrs. Cake if I could go and she said ‘yes’ so I had a hunch to come here but I was like ‘No hunch, they won’t be there!’ but my hunch said ‘Yes Pinkie, they will!’ and we argued a bit but the hunch finally won over and I came here and here you were, so thanks hunch! Where’s Fluttershy?”
“And hello to you too, Pinkie Pie.” Twilight said sarcastically. “We haven’t picked Fluttershy up yet.”
“Oh and where’s Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle?”  The overexcited earth pony asked.
“Not here yet, darling. I believe Sweetie Belle said she was going on some ‘important business’” Rarity answered.
“Important business! Without me? Oh no! They’re goin’ to get their cutie marks without me!” Apple Bloom cried and rushed off.
She didn’t go far before Applejack grabbed the filly’s tail, stopping her in her tracks. “Woah there. Now ah’m sure yer friends won’t get their cutie marks before you. Besides, they better hurry up or ah’m sendin’ Dash to go lookin’ for them.” Applejack wouldn’t risk being late. They were already cutting it close. Besides they needed to get Fluttershy still. But Applejack didn’t worry as she knew the school ponies wouldn’t dare be late.
Sure enough “Maybe we’ll get our cutie marks in whoever finds Apple Bloom first!”
“I’m going to! Wait- What would that even look like? Apple Bloom’s face?”
The two fillies, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo appeared in the distance, but their voices were loud enough to hear from afar.
“Guys! Ah’m right here!” Apple Bloom called and Scootaloo started running towards the ponies, Sweetie Belle following closely behind.
“Apple Bloom!” They yelled in unison. Then Scootaloo asked, “See anything?”
Applejack smiled, these little fillies called themselves The Cutie Mark Crusaders and would stop at nothing to get their cutie marks. Now however, their flanks were blank.
“Nothin’! “ Apple Bloom declared.
The fillies pouted as the group left the farm heading towards the Everfree Forest. On the way they stopped at a familiar cottage on the edge of the forest. Fluttershy’s cottage. Twilight knocked on the door to the cottage and it opened, revealing the yellow pegasus. 
“Oh, hello girls. I’m just putting Angel to bed.” Fluttershy greeted, a white bunny tapping its foot impatiently next to her. “But now it’s too late! We have to go now, Angel. Come on Harry!”
Applejack felt her heart skip a beat as the huge bear walked out the door. Was that one of Fluttershy’s helpers? If it was, Applejack knew she might be in trouble. 
It wasn’t long before they reached Zecora’s Hut in the Everfree Forest. However, it looked completely different. In the front, it was the same. Same old hut. But in the back of the hut, there was no back. Instead there was a giant dome made of what looked like steel. When was it built? Applejack began to feel a bit suspicious. She would have to ask Zecora later when they built the dome. Whatever it was, Applejack knew something was wrong, this was not the same old hut they once knew.