//------------------------------// // Chapter Two // Story: Promises // by Lynneth //------------------------------// Promises Chapter Two Arranging for them all to meet was more difficult than Twilight had anticipated. There were considerable conflicts in their respective schedules, and the only ones who were able to always find time whenever needed were Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash, as senior coach of the Wonderbolts, needed to carefully delegate the duties she’d be neglecting to the other coaches, a task that wasn’t anywhere as easy as it might seem. Rarity had a veritable fashion empire to look after. A less caring CEO might just have up and taken a vacation, but she wasn’t like that. Meanwhile, Applejack was head of an Equestria-spanning family that had begun to contribute considerably to not only Apple-related products anymore, but industrial production as well. Thus, it was several months before they all had a free week in their schedules. Twilight used that additional time to refine her rituals and ensure that what she had planned was in fact legal, even for a Princess. Despite her plans, she didn’t dare neglect her duties. Some nobles had started to grumble when the youngest of the Princesses started neglecting her duties, but thanks to Luna’s intervention nothing of note happened. Another such episode after so little time was unlikely to be tolerated, even if Celestia deigned to intervene on Twilight’s behalf. Court was serious business for the nation’s higher classes. So the months passed and Twilight found herself getting more and more anxious the closer the date came. Luckily, she had Spike to keep her from obsessing too much over it. He’d gathered plenty of experience by then, and the best cure was to give Twilight something to distract her sufficiently. So he brought her books about a great many subjects, from agriculture to exotic cultures beyond the borders of Equestria and more. Books did the job well regardless of content, even if they weren’t new to her. Eventually, an airship docked at one of Canterlot’s many docking-spires. Nearly simultaneously, a train drove into the city’s main terminal. The ship was carrying an alabaster unicorn whose mane was despite her advancing age a beautiful Byzantine purple. The second important passenger was a butter-coloured pegasus whose pink mane had numerous grey streaks, giving her an air of wisdom. The unicorn was wearing a rose colored hat, just flamboyant enough to compliment her equally outward-going dress laced with white embroidery. The pegasus on the other hand wore a soft green dress akin to one she had worn to her first Grand Galloping Gala, one she deemed stylish for all occasions. ’Empress’ Rarity and her best friend Fluttershy had arrived, the mere sight of the airship sending Canterlot’s fashion elite into one fit after the next. The effects on Equestria’s clothing circles would be felt for weeks. The train on the other hand carried two earth ponies of some renown, though they could not be more different in personality and looks. The orange-furred mare wore an ancient Stetson on her equally ancient-looking, pure white mane. She had minimal clothing by modern Equestrian standards, though half a century ago she might have been considered overdressed for most occasions save the Grand Galloping Gala. Her dress was simple and green, with no embroidery or much of anything else other than a leather belt. It was suitable for visiting orchards and perhaps even applebucking, if need be. The second mare was an embodiment of Pink and Happiness. Her coat - pink. Her mane - pink. Her entire dress - at least 50 Shades of Pink. Even the carriage she’d - officially - been in during the ride was all sorts of pink. The first pony was Applejack, head of the Apple family and by now owner of one of Equestria’s many companies, Apple Co. The second was Pinkie Pie. Everypony loved her products, for everypony loved sugar and sugar-related products. The factories making these were hers. Not all of them, but more than a few. The last arrival was far less overt, despite the pony’s usual attitude. A formerly sky-blue Pegasus with a Rainbow-coloured mane, wearing a Wonderbolts Coach uniform - looking much like that of a colonel - sped above the sprawling city and its many spired, aiming to land directly in or near the new wing of the palace. Her name was Rainbow Dash, and though her coat was greying, her multicoloured mane defied her age stubbornly. She was the only pony in living memory able to create a sonic rainboom and had developed half a dozen manoeuvres that were now in the Wonderbolt’s standard repertoire. Two dozen more were deemed too dangerous to perform in public. She was boastful and a braggart. But she didn’t make a scene upon her arrival; barely anypony in Canterlot even noticed her now being here. Just like what Twilight had asked for - keeping their presence largely unknown for the time being. Because of that, she was the only one who got to meet Twilight that evening. The others were ushered into their respective rooms, each with a big book on the values and finer intricacies of covert action to rule a nation on the bed. Dash barely held her laughter back as Twilight told her about the books. Then they talked and reminisced. The next day, Twilight invited all five into her private quarters, greeting them happily, though with a mischievous smile, for upon opening the books had been enchanted to read part of their contents out loud for several hours. Pinkie claimed it to be a great prank, while Applejack and Fluttershy were apologetic, promising to be more aware and careful the next time. After some nudging by Fluttershy, Pinkie promised the same. Rarity huffed and puffed for as long as servants were in earshot, trying her hardest to show utter outrage. Then she nearly broke down and apologised as well, swearing to never again let her vanity override common sense like that and do something so highly silly and counter-productive as the previous day. Twilight happily accepted the apologies and thanked her friends for simply making time in their busy schedules, coming to visit. In the next hours the six spoke at length about what had happened since their last gathering. Among others, Pinkie Pie regaled a story about a cousin of hers who had embarrassed himself somehow, though she refused to reveal the cause of embarrassment until the end of her story. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The following day, they met only around 10 pm. Once more, the others were greeted by Twilight."Good morning, girls," she chirped from a comfortable bed of pillows as the others filed into the room, then scattered and sat or lay where they believed it most comfortable. Rarity on a one-pony couch, Applejack and Pinkie on two piles of pillows, Fluttershy on a cloud Dash had made for her yesterday and Dash herself on an armchair. Once they all were comfortable, Twilight continued. "Right, so-..." She hesitated a moment, ordering her thoughts, "you all remember that I wrote about something I wanted to show you girls?" They nodded, though Pinkie spoke up, grinning, "I’m dying to finally find out! I was wondering who I’d need to throw a party, you know?" Twilight blinked. "Um, what?" "Well, who the lucky stallion is! Took you long enough," her pink friend exclaimed loudly and happily, making Twilight reel with a blush. "What?! No, it’s, just. No! Pinkie, it’s not about a coltfriend, not at all!" She hoped that the multitude of ’aww’s were only an echo. The drooping ears weren’t, unfortunately, explainable by wonky sound physics. "Good heavens, girls. I wouldn’t make a coltfriend such a big secret. I think..." Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, she then continued again. "Anyways, um. I developed a new spell, ritual actually. I wanted to talk to you about what it might do for a short while." The others’ ears were a little perkier now, at least somewhat curious. Undeterred, Twilight continued by bringing a lizard into the room with her magic. It was covered by a visible orange sheen and didn’t move, even blink while the alicorn set it down on the central table. Before a question could be asked, she spoke, "Stasis. It’s a ritual that appears to freeze anything in a certain area determined by some runes, in the case of the lizard making it look stiff and immovable and unmoving. In reality, it decouples the creature from ’proper’ time and slows everything down, the speed at which they then move depending on how much power is put into the ritual. In short, you could put a bunch of apples into stasis, wait a century and they’d still taste, look and, really, be the same, as if it had been only a day. You could preserve anything nearly indefinitely, provided you have a unicorn able to remove the ritual’s effects again down the line. Though that’s an easy spell." With the example, the magical babble begun making sense for the non-unicorns. They all nodded. Applejack was leaning forward, evidently more than a little interested. Rarity, however, raised an eyebrow after a few moments, raising a hoof to politely interrupt Twilight as the alicorn prepared to continue. "This is all very nice, dear. But other than Applejack and perhaps Pinkie we would have no real use for this spell. You didn’t call us all here for a full week just to catch up some and showcase a new spell, did you?" The fashionista had tried to not sound accusatory, but Twilight nevertheless deflated nearly instantly, nodding slowly. She shuddered a little and in the blink of an eye was surrounded by five smaller bodies hugging her, two nuzzling her neck gently. The alicorn closed her eyes, staying with them like this for a time, until she’d calmed down at least a little. Finally, Twilight was again able to speak reasonably. "I suppose I should tell you girls why I really asked you to come..." She took a deep breath, but was interrupted again. "You could use this to keep ponies suspended in time as well, couldn’t you?" Dash sounded surprisingly morose. The room was silent for some time before Twilight began speaking again. "I... Ah, first: please let me just speak for a while, girls. Okay? No interrupting for a bit?" When the others agreed, she continued. "Right, so. It boils down to two things, really. The first is that Celestia... broke a promise she’d made to me. She lied about it, though I cannot even begin to understand why she did it. The second is.. I, I love you girls. And I don’t want to lose you, any of you. So I made this spell, with, well, the explicit intention of casting it on you all. The end goal was to give me time" She paused, trying to think of how to say the next bit. This time, Fluttershy spoke her thoughts out loud. "But you wouldn’t want us to be like that forever, would you?" The alicorn shook her head. "No. The plan is to try and find a way to make you girls immortal. Like me and Luna and Cadance. That was the basic thought behind everything. Make you immortal, don’t have to deal with watching my.... my best friends age and wither and, and..." She choked up again, unable to properly speak any further. Again, warm and comforting bodies pressed against hers. They stayed like this for a little longer than before as five had to digest this rather unexpected and perhaps slightly disturbing information, one trying her best not to think of worst-case scenarios and just stay calm. After some time of silence and contemplation, Fluttershy spoke, "Twi? Is that what you really want? I mean, I understand that you don’t want to see your loved ones, your family die. That’s only natural. But then we’d watch our families age and die, while being denied a natural part of ourselves. You probably thought about that, though..." Twilight nodded. "I understand that, and I know it. I thought about it for a long time. But I’m not Celestia or Luna, I wasn’t born with this. I’m not Cadance either, who can dedicate herself to her people and be loved and love and drown the grief like that. I’m me, and I’m honestly not sure I could take losing any of you. It’s, I know that it’s incredibly selfish of me. But you guys would at least know - beforehand - that you’d survive many other ponies. You wouldn’t be lied to, ma-manipulated, puh-pla," the alicorn managed before the tears came again and she wailed, showing her friends how she felt. Fitting her emotions, a rainstorm brewed above Canterlot, the first drops already falling. Within moments, the floodgates opened and a deluge not seen in decades poured down upon the Equestrian capital from above. Within the chambers, Twilight’s face was buried in Fluttershy’s neck and mane, while a light blue wing covered barely half of her body. The other three were there besides her, trying to comfort Twilight in their way. Perhaps half an hour later, maybe a full one, the purple pony’s tears had slowed to a dribble, only dry sobs coming from her. It was some more time until Twilight calmed once more, though still looking and sounding despondent. It was Pinkie who opened her mouth next. "Twilight?" Purple eyes were looking at her, reddened and tired. "This spell, it makes you reaaal sloooooow, right?" Pinkie smiled upon her friend making a choked giggle. Twilight nodded. "So everything around us is really fast and years pass without us actually noticing until we’re back out of it and normal-fast again and then we’re suddenly in the future and everything’s changed and everypony’s new and there’s new sweets and so on and on~?" The speed of her speech made following it a little difficult, but Twilight understood it, nodding again. Pinkie grinned, continuing. "So we don’t watch anypony die, just then though our old friends will be gone but there’ll be so many new ones we could make though I’ll miss a lot of our friends in Ponyville but we can remember the good times with them and I’ll throw a huuuuuge party for all of them and we can have a big party for all of them every year and I’m in, I’m okay with the consequences, even if there’s unforeseen ones." Five flabbergasted pairs of eyes suddenly stared at a happy blue pair. Uncertain, Twilight asked, "You are?" She nodded happily, "Yes! I’m one hundred percent fine with it!" Twi nodded, starting to smile. "Thank you, Pinkie. Thank you so much." Feeling her friends’ hesitance to ask, Pinkie decided to answer the questions they surely had, "I had a great life. My family is terrific, they love me, I love them back, all of them. I love my second family, the Cakes. I love all of my friends, especially you girls. I’ve had a really, really good life. There’s not much I’d do differently and most of all, I’m content with what I’ve done and achieved. I have a famous chain of bakeries with sweets and goods that even stuffy nobles like to eat! There’s really no life I’d rather have lived than mine. And that’s why I’m okay with Twi casting her silly spell on me. I’ll say my goodbyes to them all, sure, but this way or another, I’m going to be gone some day. And I’d rather have it be on my terms, with a huge party instead of croaking almost unexpectedly! Ribbit!" She giggled and smiled, hugging all five of them at once. "And there’s no other ponies I’d rather get a new life with than you all. Y’alls~." Gigglesnort. "So I’m okay with Twilight’s plan." The others nodded in understanding. Twilight’s smile was a little brighter now, looking to Pinkie like the immortal Princess she ought to be. Sadness so didn’t suit Twilight! She looked a lot prettier with a smile - everypony did, really. Regardless, it was Applejack who spoke next, fidgeting a little. "Ah’d like to think some more ’bout it. Everything Pinkie mentioned, ’specially the bit ’bout bein’ content with yer life. You alright with this, Twi?" Twilight nodded, now looking almost serene. "That’s fine, AJ. I sort of expected that, actually. Take all the time you need. You others, too." Three mares acknowledged this and the six slowly began to rise and part from each other. "Are you all okay with meeting again tomorrow? Or would you like more time?" They all were fine with it, not asking for more. Thinking on one’s own, they all knew, didn’t turn out well if done for too long without outside contact and others to talk to. Something a purple pony sometimes forgot. "Until tomorrow then, girls. Good night." And they went to their respective quarters. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * The next day started slowly, with breakfast in the big dining hall with all Princesses and some nobles as well as a few entrepreneurs seated along the tables. Rarity was quick to find some potential new contacts, though the others largely kept to themselves, even Pinkie being uncharacteristically silent - tense, even. Though Celestia and Luna noticed this, one forced herself with a heavy heart not to ask questions while the second found little interest in the unusual demeanour. She figured that it might have something to do with the nobles making the Elements a little uneasy. She never could remember how good or bad their experiences with them had been in the past. Thus, little of note happened during breakfast and it was only near midday that Twilight asked her friends to come to her room. "Hello, girls." Unlike the previous day, Twilight didn’t try faking being happy or relaxed. She smiled, but otherwise appeared rather serious. "I trust everypony’s well?" She barely waited for confirmation before proceeding, "Good. Then I’d like to know what you decided upon, one after another. Though we can do it one-on-one, if any of you would prefer that?" No hooves were raised. "Alright, then. Who’ll be the first?" She looked at her friends with the same genuine but serious smile. For a time, none of them said anything, appearing lost in their thoughts. It was Rainbow who broke the silence. "Might as well start." Dash took one, two calming breaths. They all were a little tense and nervous right now. "I thought a lot about what Pinkie said and, ah, even more about what she implied, intentionally or not. But, yeah. I did live a pretty sweet life. One of the best fliers in Equestria from early on, weatherwork always came sort of easy to me. Maybe a bit too easily, I got kiiinda lazy somewhere along the line before most of you showed up. You all probably remember what I was like when Twi arrived in Ponyville: a lazy, good-for-nothing slacker too content with herself. But after we became friends, with all the adventures we had, I suppose that shook me out of that stupor? Kind of, anyways. But being friends with you all really gave me motivation to improve myself. Soon enough I was on my way to joining the ’Bolt academy, even got accepted after some serious, heh, mishaps. I still remember Spitfire’s face when I decided to walk out at first." Rainbow grinned to herself, laying on a cloud a metre and a half above the ground, forcing her friends to crane their necks up, if not by much. They knew about all this of course, the Pegasus was recounting these things for herself more than for her friends. "I think her respect for me grew a lot that day. Then again, being partnered with a pony even more reckless than me taught me a thing or ten about carelessness and humility... Honestly, without Spitfire partnering me with Lightning Dust, I probably would’ve kept overestimating myself, underestimating the dangers I was confronted with. I would not have ended up where I did in the ’Bolts, leading the support flight and later getting into coaching, raising a new generation. But for all the fun I’ve had in the ’Bolts, I think it might be time to step aside for other, younger trainers, less, ha, conservative. I don’t think I ever expected to call myself ’conservative’ in any way." Dash chuckled happily, shaking her head a little. "Oh goodness. Well." She turned to look at Twilight. "There’s not much keeping me once I quit as coach. Scoots will probably be devastated, but she’s an amazing pony, even if she never made it in. I think she’ll understand, and I don’t have any other family left. Well, by blood. I’d say you girls are as good as, if not better than any family I could’ve had if I settled down. I’m with Pinkie here, once all my loose ends are taken care of. I guess my life could somehow have been better, but I can’t think of how. So, just zap me whenever, Twi." Dash let herself fall through the cloud, unfurling her wings to smoothly glide to lay on some pillows besides Pinkie. "Yeah. I’m in." Twilight and Pinkie both smiled happily. "Thank you, Rainbow." Dash nonchalantly waved it off, "Yeah, whatever. Just don’t get too mushy on me, okay?" She chuckled. The alicorn rolled her eyes, but nodded. "Right. So, who wants to go next?" Twilight’s question hung in the air for a minute. Then Fluttershy found her courage and raised her head a little - enough for the others to understand the intent. "I suppose I don’t have as much to look back to as you girls. I almost always kept to my cottage after all, though the occasional photoshoots with Mrs. Finish with Rarity’s latest collection was nice, I suppose. It helped that I always got such a nice compensation for them..." She blushed a little, smiling. "But even though I didn’t go out much, I did find a great stallion eventually, and had three amazing little foals." She sighed happily at the thought of them. "Though he’s now gone and my little babies are all grown up. I’m sure they’ll miss me when I’m gone, but... Pinkie mentioned it yesterday. This might give me a chance to let them say a goodbye on our terms and move on more easily. I’ll have to find somepony to take care of Ponyville’s little and large critters, though. " She sighed mightily, almost disturbing the cloud she was sitting on and exhaling air into. "None of my children are all that good with animals, unfortunately. But they’re all great at their own things, and I’m really happy for them." She smiled, apparently done. Twilight tilted her head, "Um, Fluttershy? What did you decide?" Fluttershy stiffened a little. "Oh! I’m so sorry, I forgot to say. It was so nice just talking a little like that. I hope you’re not mad." She hesitated for a moment, but continued when the alicorn smiled. "Right, ah. Well, I’ll do it, I think. But only if everypony else does, too. If that’s alright with you all. I wouldn’t want to do this without knowing you’re all with me." She blushed a little, smiling at the other five ponies, all of whom seemed fine with this arrangement. "So, yes. I think I’m done now." For a moment, Applejack straightened herself as if to talk, but before she or anypony else could say even a thing, Rarity silenced the attempts, standing with grace that would’ve sent several journalists scrambling to write an article about the mere act - something very possible, these days. "Applejack, darling, I do hope that you won’t mind me regaling my thoughts on all this?" The farmer shrugged, alright with that. "Most excellent. Now, let’s see..." She put a manicured hoof to her chin. "Really, I don’t rightly know where to start! You all have been such a good, positive influence on me and Sweetie Belle, from the very beginning. Starting with Applejack lending me money to get the Boutique off the gro-," several confused faces stared at her. Rarity gasped. "Oh! I never told you about that? Well, it wasn’t much, really. Applejack and I had already been acquaintances, long before I met you four. Even back then we never quite got along, but when she heard of my wish to have my own store instead of working as apprentice in another town, she gave me a most generous loan despite all opposition on my part. I suppose this act of hers inspired me a little. Ever since then, the Apple family’s had a special discount in my Boutique - and, well, any other store under my name nowadays. Of course I paid it back as soon as I could, with interest, even though she didn’t ask for any more than she gave me originally. Well, that’s how I got started. You all of course know what happened after dear Twilight arrived, with Photo Phinish, Fancy Pants, Copper Gear and so many others. After her ascension, things got a little stressful of course. Twilight was wearing one of my gowns on her coronation and that brought an inordinate amount of business in. You all saw how things just snowballed from there. All of a sudden, I truly was known by all of Equestria’s fashion elite, orders coming in from all over the country. Even from some foreign nations! Oh, but even with 36 hours in a day I couldn’t possibly have managed all this and still have time for my dear friends and myself. I had to cut back on sewing things myself, hiring a few talented young mares instead and concentrating on designing things. Then came that deal with Golden Glamour and Fancy Pants, and suddenly I had my own label! Oh, I almost fainted when the two approached me about that." She paused for a moment, smiling at the widely grinning Pinkie Pie. "And then I threw one of the biggest, and I must say, least elegant parties of my life. With Pinkie as the organiser and very nearly all of Ponyville being invited... ’Twas a blast, to say the least. Unfortunately, that probably was the last time I could truly let loose like that. After I registered the label, there was so much work, all these meetings and 16 or 18-hour days." She sighed dramatically. "Oh, but it was so worth it. Fleeting though it may be, my name is known throughout and beyond Equestria, even a household name! That was my dream, all those years ago when I opened the Boutique. Naturally, if I mysteriously go missing, I might even be immortalised in fashion history. My darling son and daughter will of course inherit most of it. They’re both so talented with design and fashion, they wouldn’t even need to get anything - they could turn Equestria’s heads with even the earliest of their creations. Though perhaps that’s the mother in me speaking... Ah, I still cannot believe that they’ve grown so quickly. And they turned out so well, I can scarcely believe that my darling husband and I found the time to raise them so well." She sighed happily. By now, Rarity had procured a worn but cared-for couch to lay upon. "But whether they will inherit prematurely, that is undeniably the question. I admit that immortality sounds very appealing, not to mention the boost to sales and fame my label would get from my sudden disappearance. Oh, it is tempting to say the least. But it’s also the work of my life. I’m afraid that a single day simply isn’t enough for me to decide, Twilight, dearest. I simply cannot decide on something of this magnitude with so little time before the due-date. I’m terribly, terribly sorry, but you’ll have to give me just a few more days, dear." Twilight nodded understandingly. "Don’t worry about it, Rarity. This is why I asked you all to make a full week free. Honestly, I didn’t expect so many of you to decide so quickly, so... Take your time, Rarity." Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. "Why’d you give us only one day initially, Twilight? Isn’t that a little unfair?" The alicorn shook her head. "The way I figured it, Dash, is that if you had a week initially, you’d probably over-think everything too hard. That’s what I’d probably do, anyways. But if you’re already certain after the first meeting, you wouldn’t need that much time and decide much earlier. This way, we don’t waste the week with thinking too much if we don’t need to, while those who are unsure get the time they need. I think it’s fairer and more efficient this way." Dash seemed to relent, nodding and planting her head on the cloud she’d returned to from Pinkie’s side. "Alright, I get it." Twilight smiled, then turned to the last pony who hadn’t spoken their thoughts yet. "Applejack, what about you?" The farmer looked a little uneasy, fidgeting with her hat. "It’s a bit weird, to be listenin’ to y’all talk about this all as if t’weren’t mightily serious. We’re talkin’ about upsetting the natural order here. Ponies are, well, supposed to die. I understand that you’re really upset about this whole thing Twi, but I can’t help but think it’s kind of supposed to be like this. I bet Princess Celestia and Princess Luna had to deal with the loss of a lot of friends. They look like they turned out alright to me. I’m sure you could handle things just fine without us. Really, I’d rather have lived this one life well and not need another. It’s how I think it’s supposed to be, and I hope you understand that, Twi." "I... Applejack." Twilight suddenly looked devastated, though the others stayed silent, whether by choice or due to being surprised by Applejack’s bluntness. Twilight managed to continue speaking, "Applejack, Celestia lied to me. She admitted to it! And, and, ’turned out alright’? Did you already forget what happened to Luna when she was lonely and without any perceived emotional support? She turned in-, into a m-, a creature of evil! Celestia didn’t fare all that much better, she was nearly driven insane by her sister’s loss! Equestria suffered in the years and decades after Luna turned - and you all were there when Celestia and Luna told us that story! I, I don’t want to end up like them, Applejack. I don’t want to turn into a nightmare or a half-crazed, depressed Alicorn. I want to be normal, but, but, I need you girls for that. Please..." Applejack trotted up to Twilight, nuzzling the Alicorn’s cheek gently. "Twi, I think you’re much, much stronger than that. You’re not a lonely pony like Luna was all her life, and you’re certainly not Princess Celestia, either. She’s aloof, likes to keep an overly polite distance from most ponies. You’re not like that. Ponies can relate to you much more easily. Hay, I’d be willing to be that you’ll be everypony’s favourite Princess in no time!" Twilight choked up now, though the tears were of happiness rather than grief. She nodded slowly, smiling as she used a wing to carefully brush the tears off her face. "I... Thank you for your faith in me, Applejack. It means a lot to me. But, are you sure about your decision..?" The farmer nodded. "Yup. Feelin’ mighty sure here. Ah know that you don’t like that very much, Twi, but I don’t feel very comfortable living beyond what’s been given to me. I might not have the time to do everything I’d like to do, but if I’m happy with what I’ve accomplished, then that’s alright with me. I’ll be happy to see y’all off during that fancy ritual of yours, but I don’t think I’ll be participatin’ in it." By now she was sitting roughly in the centre of a circle made of the other five ponies. Then something blue tackled her, moments later joined by a pink something. Both turned out to be ponies. Dash spoke first, "AJ, you can’t do that to me! Whose apple trees am I gonna nap in only to be shooed out of them? Who’ll I run the Running of the Leaves with, or compete against during the Iron Pony competition?!" Pinkie interrupted Dash there, pushing her off the Farmer and taking her place. "It’s not a pony party unless all invited guests RSVP, Jackie! You’re an important part of our team, you know! Nothing would be the same without you, we might as well not do anything if you don’t wanna come along." Suddenly, Pinkie and Rainbow were engulfed by a purple aura and lifted off the orange pony, who in turn got up again, returning her hat onto her head. "Girls! Applejack’s made her decision. I’d appreciate if you didn’t try to-, uh?" She stopped herself as Applejack raised a hoof, asking for an interruption. "Applejack?" The farmer shook her head a little with a small smile. “’s alright, Twi. They do have a point. A big one, even. I mean, look at all that we’ve done in our time, how often we saved Equestria. We do have a group dynamic going, don’t we?” She slumped down for a moment before continuing. “That’s what makes it even harder for me. I don’t like going against my personal beliefs. Y’all understand that, don’t you?” She looked up at her friends, a hint of a smile returning. “’course you do. That’s why I love you girls so much. You’d all understand if I didn’t want to go through with this stuff. But…” Applejack paused and took the time to look at each of her friends for a few moments. They looked expectantly at her, resulting in a chuckle escaping from the farmer. “Sometimes, I suppose you gotta jump over your own shadow? And y’all would be stranded without me. I couldn’t rightly leave y’all hanging, could I? That’d be just plain dumb and stubborn. Doesn’t mean I’m gonna like living so long, but it’s gonna be okay if I have you all with me.” Applejack took a deep breath, now finally smiling. She nodded to the still-floating ponies. "Thanks for snapping me out of that, you two." Then her head turned towards Twilight. "I may not like living that long, but I’m gonna be there for you and the others, Twi. I can promise you that." "Applejack..." the alicorn responded, tears of happiness glistening in her eyes again. She was sure she’d run out of tears today, but somehow not. "Thank you so, so much. You don’t know just how much that means to me." "It’s alright, Twi, really. I just, you know, oughta learn to jump over mah own shadow. I don’t think I’ll reminisce as much as y’all, though. I mean, the farm’s healthy and Bloom’s been taking care of most things for the last few years now, together with my two kids and her half a dozen." She chuckled. "Never thought my sister would want or have that many little ones. But, there’s really not much more to talk about. Things are pretty good these days for Sweet Apple Acres and the Apple family." Having finished, Applejack returned to her pillow, sitting on it. "Well," Twilight started, "I suppose we have the week for ourselves now. Not completely unexpected, but it’s still a pleasant surprise." She smiled happily. The next days would be a nice vacation from her endless duties. Only when Rarity had finally decided would they need to gather like this in Twilight’s room again.