"Okay...a little to the left...up a little more..." directed Applejack to Adam as he was putting up the banner on the entrance way to the farm. "And...perfect!" the mare said once satisified with how the banner was placed.

"Your family will feel very welcomed...how many did you say was coming?" he asked as he got off the stepladder.

"Ah well ya know us Apple folk, we breed like rabbits we do." awkwardly joked the apple mare. A small blush of embarrassed formed.

"Well...I really have nothing else planned for today, except maybe helping Dash move out of my home, but I prefer to take in as much sun and sanity as possible."

Applejack laughed. "Ah hear ya, Dash can get a little to much to handle sometimes." they both started their walk to the farmhouse to wait for the many members of the Apple clan to arrive.

"Ah don't know Babs, ah did everything ah could to get his attention, but he has Fluttershy now and ah'm just a filly." explained Apple Bloom to her cousin Babs Seed, who arrived the day before. They were both in Apple Bloom's room.

"Because he's so nice, friendly, patient, wise and ah just feel so safe and loved around him...ah wish there were more colts like him." sighed the yellow filly.

"Me too...but you have to remember AB...you're a filly and he's an adult...your relationship with him will be illegal." the other filly explained.

"But by the time ah'm old enough he'll probably be back to his home world, opportunity wasted."

At the same time in the skies over Ponyville, Rainbow Dash sat on a cloud as she thought about the designed of her new cloud home. "Hmmm....more rainbows and storm clouds would be a lot cooler than the last one."

"Miss Rainbow Dash?" asked a voice from behind. Dash turned around to see a very amazing sight; Soarin' floating in front of her, she was in awe. "Rainbow Dash?" he asked again.

Dash quickly snapped out of it to talk to the stallion. "Oh right...how can I help you?" she nervously chuckled.

"Just came here to see how the house building is coming along and I'm looking for potential recruits to join the Wonderbolt reserves.' the pegasus stallion explained.

Dash gasped. "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh this is so awesome...I will gladly sign-up for the reserves!" she exclaimed with excitement.

"Great!" said pleased Soarin. "All you need to do is to show up at the Wonderbolt offices in Cloudsdale to sign-up."

"Maybe help me moving my things...Adam would've helped me, but I bet he's having fun down at Sweet Apple Acres helping out with the family reunion there."

"I'll tell you what...you stay here and work on your home, I'll go down and get Adam for you, so which way is Sweet Apple Acres?"

"Go straight on south until see a lot of apple trees on the ground." directed the cyan mare.

"Soarin is so dreamy...." she swooned as she watched him fly off to the horizon.

Adam had just finished setting up the picnic tables where the big family feast will take place. "There we go...now on to th-"

"HOWDY THERE!" exclaimed a voice out of nowhere, it caused the human to jump from getting startled.

"What the?" Adam turned around, he clutched his chest to slowdown his heart rate. He saw a yellow stallion with an orange mane, he wore a vest and hat.

He was suddenly wrapped into a tight hug by the stallion. "That was a mighty fine thing ya did savin' Apple Bloom, ya deserve to be an honorary Apple family member." he congratulated as he then broke the hug.

"Cousin Braeburn?" asked Applejack as she walked out of the farmhouse to see her cousin.

Applejack nervously blushed. "Ya know only my birth certificate calls me by that Brae!"

"But ever since ah've been born, ah always been called Jackie, sometimes Applejack as a joke, but it wasn't until ah got my cutie mark that I started usin' Applejack full time." explained the mare. "Don't ya dare tell my friends about it, especially Rarity." she then walked away to finish the set-up.

"Well...ah have more embarrassing AJ stories to tell ya!" Braeburn announced to Adam as he started to tell some stories. Adam had no say in the matter.

Pretty soon the reunion was well underway as the rest of the family finally arrived.

"OH I SEE YOU ARE EMPTY!" completed that audience who got the joke, some members of the Apple family were listening to Adam share some jokes. They all laughed.

Everyone quickly dispersed to go see it until only Apple Bloom was left. "You're family is pretty fun Apple Blood." complimented the human.

"They can be...uh...want to go on a walk with me for a bit Adam?" asked Apple Bloom, she really wanted to spend some alone time with him.

Soarin finally arrived at Sweet Apple Acres and landed in front of the barn. "Now to find that human." he said to himself as he trotted over to a table to see a mare there. "Maybe she knows where he is."

"Howdy there...what can ah do for ya?" asked the orange mare with yellow hair and freckles. She looked familiar to the Wonderbolt.

Soarin finally had an epiphany. "HEY! You're the pony who sold me that pie at the Gala! Oh my goodness I completely forgot to thank you afterwards for the pie!"

"It did get a little crazy at the end there...but ya really thought it was good?" asked a thankful Applejack.

Applejack was touched, she worked hard to bake those goods for the gala. "Ah..ah'm glad ya think so...ah worked really hard on them."

Applejack blushed slightly. "He's a pretty nice colt." she started to feel strange. "Anything to help my family and farm."

"Maybe you should cater for the Wonderbolts someday...they're missing out." the stallion smiled.

"Why do ah feel strange? Don't tell me it is heat week coming...but that's three months away! Calm a calm head there AJ.". Applejack kept a calm face. "Ah'll think about it...anyways...want some cider while ya here?"

"So...I have been meaning to ask, but I was afraid to, but, what happened to your parents?" asked Adam to Apple Bloom as they walked around the orchid.

"Ah'm not to sure...Applejack, Granny and Big Mac always dodge the subject every time I ask...but ah do know that they died when ah was just three months old." answered the filly.

"That's all they tell me...that they passed on...but how is still a mystery to me, but ah do hear Applejack get nightmares about it sometimes...she tends to talk in her sleep at times."

"So I am guessing Applejack had to learn to grow-up quickly." the human said, he now had a lot more respect for the mare.

"Well...dad was an emotionally absent drunk and mom was very pious." explained the human. "Not exactly the best of childhoods...especially after dad died when I was just ten years old...I had to work the family orchid and balance school as well."

"I luckily managed to leave the farm at the first opportunity after I was accepted into university."

"It's great that you did...you are very smart." complimented Apple Bloom. "Adam...can I confess something to you?"

"Sure, go ahead." the human knelled down so he can talk to the filly more easily.

"ADAM!" yelled a voice that interrupted Apple Bloom. Adam turned to see Granny. "There ya are, mind goin' to my room and grabbin' the family photo albums for me...ah'm too old to be climbin' up and down stairs all day."

"Oh...certainly." he turned to Apple Bloom. "We'll talk some more later." he smiled at her before he got up and ran to the house.

Apple Bloom was once again upset that she couldn't tell Adam how she feels about him.

"It's a very nice family reunion you have here." said Soarin as he drank another mug of cider.

"It is..." Applejack smiled, but she always felt that something important was missing.

"Oh nothin', just been so busy is all." luckily Soarin did not know Applejack long enough to tell when she was lying. The truth was that Applejack missed her parents badly, she still wished to this day that should have done a lot more to save them.

Adam walked into Granny's room and quickly saw the bookshelf. He went over to it and pulled any book with the title "Album" in it from the shelf and stacked them on the bed, although he did find something interesting; a Playcolt magazine from many decades ago. "Hmmm...this is interesting..." he flipped to the centerfold of the magazine to see a photo of a very young and attractive Granny Smith lounged erotically on white satin sheets, her mane and tail were completely free and loose. "So Granny was quite the looker in her younger days...who knew." he placed the magazine back where he found it.

He then picked up the stack of seven photo albums from the bed, but the top books accidentally slipped out of the stack and landed beside the bed, some photos came out. "My bad." he quickly got to the floor to pick up the fallen photos, he then looked under the bed to make sure he did not miss any only to find a strange sight; a metal box with a Equestrian coat of arms on it. "What's this?"

The human took out the box from under the bed and placed it on top. Adam unhinged the latches, surprised that it didn't have a lock on it, and opened it, only to find a serious of photos and papers that defiantly have nothing to do with the farm.

He looked through them until he came across a photo that made his heart skip , he saw a large group photo with Granny Smith with other mares surrounding a large marble statue of a human foot. "What the?" he did not know what he found more disturbing; the fact the the rest of the statue is missing, or the fact that they're Equestrian ponies surrounding it. He flipped the photo over to see a caption: Female members of the Brotherhood

He found various more photos like that and a letter from Princess Celestia herself.

Dear Ann Smith,

You have been a valuable member of the Fourth Sphere and I would like to personally congratulate you on your years of service in maintaining the status-quo for the sake of the citizens of Equestria.

Keep the human coin all members are given as a souvenir for your patriotic service.

Sincerely,

HRH Princess Celestia

Tapped to the bottom of the letter was an actual human era coin; an American quarter. "What the? This can't be right?!" Adam was in shock.

"PUT THAT LETTER DOWN ADAM!" yelled Granny Smith as she angrily walked into the room. "And forget ya ever saw that!"

"What's going on here? Why is there a human artifact in your possession?!" Adam desperately asked the old mare.

"My past and what ah did for my kingdom is none of yer concern!" spat Granny. "Now get the photo albums and leave my room!" she ordered.

Adam knew that he just uncovered a vast conspiracy involving the Princess herself, but the human decided not to upset the old mare further and put all the items from the box back inside it. "Good...now grab the albums and let's go." instructed the old mare as she walked out of the room.

The human pushed the box back under the bed, grabbed the photo albums and began to walk out of the room.

"MY HEAD!" he heard Granny yell, suddenly followed by the sounds of loud tumbling down the stairs.

"GRANNY!" Adam quickly dropped the albums and ran out to see what was happening. He reached the top of the stairs to see a sight that he will never forget; an unconscious Granny at the bottom, not responsive. "GRANNY!"

He ran down the stairs. "What's going on? Granny? Can hear me?" tried to shake her awake, but still no response, he could not hear her breathe. "Granny...not now...please not now...SOMEONE HELP ME!!!" yelled Adam as he cradled the old mare in his arms. He had no idea what to do, and he felt responsible from what happened. "HELP ME!!!" he yelled again. "Come on...everything will be okay Ann...everything will be okay...please pull through..."

"I now believe that you are ready for your next task Trixie." ominously said Celestia to her secret student as she levitated an amulet to her.

"What's this?" asked the blue mare. It looked like the Alicorn Amulet, only the jewel was gray.

"A portal to a pocket dimension, an eternal prison...where not even death will let you escape."

"The sooner you catch him, the less likely he'll disrupt the status-quo..the more likely possible unwanted change will occur...officially he shouldn't be here since humans never existed."

"Hopefully this plan will work and I won't have to resort to Plan B." the princess said to herself.

The Machine

by ADRNEL

Chapter XXI~The Reunion~