*Knock knock* The twin raps on her door startled Rarity awake, and brought her head up from the soft fabric she had been resting it on. She opened her mouth to ask who was, but a noise that sounded more like “Hm mm uh?”
However, the pony on the other end of the door understood her perfectly. “An old friend,” Replied a voice she knew immediately. “Could you open the door?”
Rarity was free of her tired mumbling at this point. “Yes, absolutely!” She shot up and trotted over to the door. Before she opened it, she stopped by the mirror, and fixed as much of her mane as she could in a few seconds, and pulled the door open with a little magic. “Come in!”
The gray unicorn in the doorway nodded slowly, and entered, stopping a short moment, and gesturing inwards. She was then followed by the transparent form of Rainbow Dash, although Rarity could not see her.
“Umm, Twilight? I don’t believe I can see Dash,”
“Oh right, that spell was temporary. One second,” Twilight’s horn glowed green, and a beam of energy projected towards Rarity at a very high speed. When it dissipated she looked around until her perception settled on the translucent Pegasus.
“There you are dear. How have you been?”
“I’ve been alright, but not much better than a few months back,” Replied Dash.
“But you have gotten better?”
“Yes we have,” Answered Twilight in Rainbow’s place. “In fact, we’ve found a lead,”
“Oh?” Rarity cocked her head. “Do tell,”
“Have you ever heard of the Sapphire of Ancients?”
“I may have. What is it exactly?”
“A legendary stone with the power to amplify the magic of the pony who possesses it, but it has a limited amount of energy, which, once emptied, causes it to find its next master,”
“Really? That sounds perfect for you two,”
“Only if we find it first. Most ponies who obtain it use up its energy on one spell. I fear that I might too,”
“Then you just have to find it, right?”
“But that’s just it!” Interrupted Rainbow. “We don’t know where to look!”
“Hmm,” All three ponies stopped speaking for a few seconds.
At last, Rarity lit up with excitement. “You said it finds its next master, right?
“Yeah,” Said Rainbow and Twilight in unison.
“Then if you are destined to use it next, it would go somewhere only you or Rainbow could get to!”
Dash and Twilight paused. “You’re right…,” said Twilight. “You’re right!” She ran up and hugged Rarity. “Rarity you’re a genius!”
Rarity pushed away and brushed off her fur. “Well, maybe not a genius, but I do know a thing or two about logic,”
“Thank you so much Rarity!” She turned to Rainbow. “So then, I think I know where to start!”
“Hm?” Rainbow cocked her head.
“It couldn’t be anywhere we’ve already been together, or we’d have seen or heard of it before. So we need to go somewhere we haven’t been to yet, that’s also important to both of us!”
“Which means?”
“Rainbow, it’s time for us to visit your parents!”
“What?!” Rainbow jumped back. “Now hold on, what if they-,”
“Rainbow, we have to try!”
Rainbow sighed. “Damn, I hate it when you’re right,”
“Rainbow, dear, why don’t you want to visit your parents?”
“Because then they’ll ask how Twilight knew me, and then I’ll have to admit to them that I swing that way!”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Rainbow, they’re your parents, for Celestia’s sake. If they were to know that that’s how you are, they would accept it. Besides, they don’t know that Twilight brought you back,”
Rainbow nodded. “But we’d have to tell them eventually. Or else I’ll have to sit back and watch how bad they feel,”
“Well, I would suggest that we check your house for items of significance, but it has been nearly six months since you passed on, it’ll be cleaned out by now,”
Rainbow sighed. “Fine,”
“Now, we shouldn’t take a train. Walking would take too long. Then that leaves…,” Twilight winced.
“Leaves what?” Said Dash and Rarity in unison.
“I don’t like to teleport to somewhere I can’t see, but we have no other choice,” She turned towards the door. “Thank you for your help Rarity, we’ll be back eventually,”
“And when we are, I’ll have my body back!”
Rarity smiled. “Promise?”
“Promise,” Jinxed Twilight and Dash.
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Applejack turned away from the tree, and slammed her back legs into its trunk, causing the loosely held apples to fall right off their stems, and into the baskets she had carefully placed at its base. She grabbed the nearest basket in her teeth, and carried it over to the cart behind her. She returned and grabbed the next basket, repeating the process until she had returned every basket to its rightful place in the cart. She then hooked herself up to the cart, and moved on to the next tree.
She was about to get started when a pair of pegasi armored in gold became visible through the trees. They were led by a unicorn armored in green, who was also much taller than them. They approached briskly, and proudly. In all honesty, they walked around like they owned the place.
It would soon be obvious they did not.
“Can I help ya with anythin’ fellas?”
“Yes, you can. We are looking for a unicorn by the name of Twilight Sparkle,”
“Then ya ain’t alone. Why might ya need from me?”
“Her location,”
“Hay, if’n I knew, I’d have told ya by now. Anythin’ else ya might need?”
“Nothing from a simple ranch-hand,”
If Apple jack was irritated by these ponies when they first showed up, she was enraged by them now. “Ranch-hand?!” She quickly stepped towards them. “I’ll have ya know that I’m Applejack. Means that I’m not employed by these here acres, I own ‘em” She glared at them. “It also means that I’m a close personal friend of all three princesses. I could say one sentence, and get ya’ll fired, ya hear?”
The three pegasi gulped, stood up (Applejack wasn’t actually originally aware that they were sitting), brushed themselves off, and bowed. “My sincere apologies, miss Applejack,”
“Thank ya kindly. Now git movin’,” They all turned around and ran.
Applejack turned back to the tree and smiled. “I jus’ love doin’ that,” She slammed her back hooves against the tree trunk, but the apples didn’t fall. “Wha- but they shoulda ripened by now!”
She looked up at the apples, and squinted. They sure looked ripe, but if they didn’t fall when she bucked the tree, then they weren’t ripe. She climbed up the tree, selected the nearest apple, and plucked it from the branch. She examined it carefully, and gave up.
She dropped to the ground, and tried again to buck the tree, this time harder. And, sure enough, the apples didn’t fall.
Applejack exhaled audibly from her nostrils. Why, out of all the trees in this orchard, was this one refusing to let go of its fruit?
“Somethin’ the matter, sis’?” Asked a deep and gentle voice from behind the earth-pony.
“Nah, its just that this here tree won’t give up its apples,” Applejack replied to Big Mac
“What? Are they ripe?”
“Yea, see?” Applejack gave her brother the apple she had just picked.
“Maybe its just stubborn this year,”
“Yeah,” Applejack looked off into the distance, her eyes focusing on the horizon. “Maybe,”