//------------------------------// // Chapter 5: Ditched! // Story: Once Bitten, Twice Shy // by Locomotion //------------------------------// As the two ponies made their way over to the picnic site, Apple Bloom finally found Big Macintosh grafting some of the trees over in another part of the orchard. She quickly galloped towards her brother, picturing the romantic moment that awaited him and Fluttershy as she went – but in her excitement, she had completely forgotten about the ditch that lay between them. Worse still, she had also forgotten that the heavy rain had left the ground rather muddy in itself, and therefore very slippery. As the yellow-furred filly approached the grove, she noticed the ditch ahead of her and attempted to redirect her course towards a bridge further along. “Big Mac!” she called eagerly. “We've got the picnic all...WHOA!!!” she shrieked the next minute, as one of her front hooves slipped on a particularly muddy patch and caused her to lose her footing. Unable to keep her balance, Apple Bloom keeled over and bumped head over tail down the embankment, only just managing to grab hold of a small shrub a little way down. But to her horror, when she finally gathered her awareness, the yellow farm filly found that she was already waist-deep in mud. Frantically, she tried to pull herself out using the shrub, but only succeeded in pulling it a little way out of the ground. “HELP!!” she yelled at the top of her voice. “BIG MAC, HELP!!!” Luckily, Big Macintosh had seen everything from where he was working, and was already racing over to the ditch. “APPLE BLOOM!” he shouted, launching himself down the embankment and reaching out to her as far as he could. “GRAB ONTO MAH HOOF!” Carefully, so as not to lose grip of her shrub altogether, Apple Bloom held out her hoof to try and grab that of her brother. But to add to her alarm, it wasn't far enough. “AH CAN'T REACH!” she wailed, flailing her hoof in vain. “Hang on then, sis!” instructed Big Macintosh. “Ah'll try an' pull you out from the other side!” He hauled himself back up the embankment and turned towards the bridge, leaving Apple Bloom to hang onto the shrub for dear life. But even as the red-furred draft pony hurried to try and reach the other side of the ditch, he could barely avoid panicking for one of the few times in his life. The bridge was so far away that there was a risk of Apple Bloom having gone under by the time he reached her, but there was no other way; if he was to save her, he would have to get a move on, or that would be another member of the Apple family lost forever. As chance would have it, Sweetie-Belle and Fluttershy, who were on their way to where the picnic had been set up, had overheard Apple Bloom's terrified cries for help, and were racing to the rescue. They reached the ditch to find Apple Bloom up to her chest in the mud, still clinging to the shrub which was almost completely uprooted. Bravely, Fluttershy set her wings into motion and carefully descended towards the bottom of the ditch. At that split second, the shrub finally broke free, but the canary-yellow Pegasus only just managed to grab onto Apple Bloom before she disappeared beneath the surface. “Don't panic, Apple Bloom!” she grunted, flapping her wings vigorously. “I've got you!” and slowly but surely, she hauled the terrified filly further and further out of the mud. At last, with a loud squelching noise, Fluttershy managed to lift Apple Bloom clear of the ditch and rested her back onto firm ground, just as Big Macintosh came galloping up to them. Apple Bloom opened her mouth to say something to him, but she was in such a state of shock that all she could manage was a tiny whimper before bolting towards her brother, flinging her forelegs around him and crying loudly into his shoulder. Big Macintosh, equally shaken by the turn of events, wrapped his own forelegs protectively round his little sister, trying hard not to shed tears himself. But try as he might, even he couldn't help but emit a small sob as he and Apple Bloom embraced; as much as he hated to admit it, he had never been so terrified in all his life, even when his parents had died or he had gotten lost shortly before meeting Fluttershy. So traumatic was the whole ordeal that, even with the trembling yellow-furred filly in his arms, he had to keep reminding himself again and again that it was all over, and that she was very much alive and safe. After what felt like ages, Big Macintosh and Apple Bloom finally separated, at which point Sweetie-Belle, who up to that point had been watching anxiously from a distance, scurried over to her yellow-coated friend. “You okay, Apple Bloom?” Even now, Apple Bloom could hardly speak without bringing fresh tears to her eyes. “Ah...Ah nearly went under,” she whimpered, still sobbing feverishly. “Ah could'a drowned!” “Take it easy, Apple Bloom,” soothed Fluttershy, gently running a hoof along the distraught filly's back. “You're safe now; everything's going to be okay.” To say she had been calm throughout Apple Bloom's deadly predicament wouldn't have been altogether true, but as befitted the Element of Kindness, now that the yellow farm filly was back on firm ground, all she could think to do at this moment was to try and help her over the shock of what might well have been her end. Still trying to pull himself together, Big Macintosh watched as Apple Bloom nuzzled the canary-yellow Pegasus mare gratefully. Such was his own gratitude for Fluttershy's heroism just a few moments ago that he felt he had to express it to her somehow; but he couldn't think of anything to say, so instead he gently picked up his sister and rested her on his back with little more than a solemn murmur of, “C'mon, li'l sis; let's get ya home.” Apple Bloom didn't reply. She just snuggled against her brother's mane as the red-coated draft pony plodded back to the farmhouse, with Fluttershy and Sweetie-Belle close behind. Needless to say, Applejack and Granny Smith were most surprised to see Big Macintosh back so soon; but when they saw a muddy, shaky Apple Bloom perched on his back, they immediately realised that something bad must have happened earlier that day. Fluttershy told them about the fiasco with the ditch, and how she had had to pull her out. Apple Bloom stared guiltily at the floor as she listened to the canary-yellow mare's account of what had happened, too ashamed to even acknowledge her big sister's presence. Only when Fluttershy had finished did she manage to find her voice. “Ah'm sorry, Applejack,” she murmured unhappily. “Ah din' mean to endanger mahself la'k that...” “Hey,” interrupted Applejack softly, “don't y'all worry none, Apple Bloom. At least yo' safe; that's the main thing.” She paused and smiled appreciatively to the canary-yellow Pegasus; “Thanks fo' makin' sure o' that, Fluttershy.” “Oh my...um...it wasn't anything really,” replied Fluttershy, blushing modestly. “I'm just glad Apple Bloom's okay.” “Aren't we all?” chortled Granny Smith. “Still, if it hadn't been fo' y'all, that'd be yet another member o' this family gone.” Applejack nodded in agreement; “Darn tootin' it would,” she mused. “Still, it don't do much about the fact that somepony needs a good bath after all that. C'mon, Apple Bloom, let's get y'all cleaned up.” Still feeling rather ashamed of herself for what had happened, Apple Bloom followed her sister up to the bathroom without another word. “Ah well,” sighed Big Macintosh, turning to leave, “Ah guess Ah better get back to work.” But before he even had the chance to open the door, Granny Smith stepped forward and barred his way. “Oh no ya don't, Macintosh,” she objected. “Yo' in no fit state ta be workin' right now, not after what nearly happened with Apple Bloom.” The red-coated stallion cocked his head in confusion. “What are ya talkin' about?” he protested. “Ah feel fine.” “Oh, ya do, do ya?” retorted Granny Smith sternly, pointing beneath her grandson. “Then how do you explain that?!” Big Macintosh looked down at his legs to see his knees quivering, something he had neither seen nor felt until now. It was only a very slight quiver, barely noticeable at that, but now that he had picked it up, he couldn't help but wonder whether Granny Smith might be right. Granny Smith's face assumed an expression of satisfaction. “Ah rest mah case,” she said bluntly. “But...who's gonna deal with the farm while Ah'm off work?” asked Big Macintosh uncertainly. “Applejack can't manage the whole orchard by herself...” “She can with Caramel's help,” interrupted Granny Smith firmly. “Ah know Caramel can be a bit clumsy at times, but what'd really hold us back is if y'all keep uprootin' them 'cause ya can't concentrate properly.” “But...” “No buts, Big Mac – an' before ya ask, no ifs either!” ordered Granny Smith. “Yo' takin' the day off, an' that's final, ya hear?” Big Macintosh lowered his head in dismay. He had been hoping that a few hours of hard graft would take his mind off what had happened earlier, but he knew it was no use arguing over it with Granny Smith. “Okay, Granny,” he mumbled unhappily. “Thought you'd see it mah way,” his grandmother replied. She then turned and headed into the kitchen. There was a long silence as Fluttershy and Sweetie-Belle tried to think of something to say that would smooth out his crumpled feelings. It was Sweetie-Belle who spoke first; “I'm sorry, Big Mac,” she apologised meekly. “I didn't mean for any of that to happen. None of us did.” “It's okay, li'l 'un,” sighed Big Macintosh morosely. “At least y'all tried.” He didn't even bother to mention what Sweetie-Belle and her friends had been trying to do all this time, but somehow Fluttershy seemed to understand what he was implying. “Ah guess Ah should'a known this'd end in tears – somehow.” “It's not so bad, Big Macintosh,” soothed Fluttershy, directing a shy but nevertheless comforting smile towards the downtrodden draft pony. “So perhaps you nearly lost Apple Bloom, but it all turned out alright in the end, didn't it?” Big Macintosh paused – and eventually nodded. “Ah guess so,” he agreed with a small, grateful smile. “Thanks fo' savin' mah li'l sis.” “That's alright,” replied Fluttershy softly. Then she turned her head away slightly, the smile seeming to fade from her expression in the process as if she were about to say something else – something she seemed rather uneasy about. “Um...actually, Big Mac,” she stammered shyly, “I was just wondering...well...seeing as Granny Smith won't let you get back to work...I wondered if......if you're okay, that is...” “Yes, Fluttershy?” prompted Big Macintosh patiently. “...well...earlier today, Sweetie-Belle had been saying something about a flock of a rare birds overflying Sweet Apple Acres, so she and Apple Bloom and Scootaloo had set up a picnic for me to share with them. I've probably missed them by now,” Fluttershy went on, pawing at the wooden floorboards in disappointment at the thought, but also in uncertainty regarding what she was about to say, “but...well, even if I hadn't, I...I wanted to know...” She paused, a nervous expression spreading across her reddening face. “...how would you like to join me?” Big Macintosh's heart skipped a beat, and he stared at the shy yellow Pegasus in awe, unable to believe what he had just heard. Had she seriously just asked him out on a date? No, this couldn't possibly be true, he thought. After all, this was Fluttershy he was thinking of, almost certainly the shyest pony in the whole of Equestria; since when would she have had the courage to ask anypony out on a date? But that was when he remembered just how affectionately she had behaved towards him when they had first met. So perhaps she may have been shy around him at first – just as she was with any other pony – but when her mother had come to bring her home, it hadn't been a simple exchange of farewells between them; no, she had actually given him a grateful, meaningful nuzzle before her mother took her away. Only a simple and somewhat impulsive action it may have been to some, but it had stayed with Big Macintosh ever since. If she was brave enough to do such a thing back when she was still just a foal, he realised, then she was just about brave enough to ask him out – and mean it too. “Would Ah?” he replied eagerly. “Aw, Fluttershy, ya din' need to ask; of course Ah'd......” but he quickly remembered himself and ruefully subsided, a barely noticeable blush spreading right across his face at his overreaction. Seeing the look of awkwardness on Big Macintosh's face, Fluttershy forgot to be nervous and giggled lightly at his sudden shyness. “Okay then,” she conceded, and turned to Sweetie-Belle; “So where did you say this picnic was?”