//------------------------------// // Solutions // Story: The Sweet Taste of Apple // by Icecane //------------------------------// Trader awoke with a start as he looked up to stare at the blank ceiling of his basement bedroom. It was a disorienting place, his sense of time nonexistent. Having arrived back in Ponyville in a late hour of the night, he wasn't given much time to sleep, and the pegasus felt far from being well-rested. Even with his time spent living on the farm, he hadn't yet developed any kind of internal clock for the working hours. Lying there in his bed, staring blankly upward, his mind began to wander. His senses took notice to a lot of things, the quiet state the house was in, the cold chill that clung to the stone walls surrounding him, and just how lonely the simple guest room was. So very few times he had ended up waking on his own, with a familiar friend usually being his alarm for the early morning rises. Though he typically reacted to it poorly, always fighting her back, he suddenly realized how much he had grown accustomed to it. It made the gut-wrenching feeling in the pit of his chest all the worse. He wanted nothing more than to just stay in bed, to pull the covers over his head and hide there until everything felt better again. But he still had a job to do, something he wouldn't allow himself to ignore. It took some doing, but the stallion managed to force himself out of bed and drag himself up the stairs. The sky was a brilliant blue, hardly a cloud marring the otherwise vacant opening. Though the sun shined brightly, Trader could only feel a low gloom upon the world. There was no enthusiasm to his steps, no energy in his movements. All the pegasus did was what he needed to as he began his chores. None of the Apple family could be seen, off doing what they were supposed to as well. Something told him he wouldn't see Applejack either way. Time ticked by at its usual pace while the stallion did his daily routine on the farm. From cleaning up the animals they kept to bucking several more apple trees. The latter was actually much easier than it used to be. Fewer and fewer trees were needed to be picked clean, the signal to the ending season. Normally Trader would wonder what kind of work would follow after applebucking was finished, but his mind was elsewhere. Trader barely knew how much time had gone by when he finished. The sun had moved across the sky, but he couldn't judge time based on that. All he knew was that he wasn't sure what to do next. With a slow, hesitant step, be trotted back from the orchard toward the house. He could only hope that he could find Granny Smith and gain a task from her. Without her, the only other pony he could help would be Applejack, already assuming how that would end. The pegasus hated himself all the more at wanting to avoid his friend as much as she avoided him. He knew she was upset with him. Perhaps not fully aware of the depth, he knew it had to do with him and Trixie to an extent. All he wanted to do was tell her sorry, hope that things would get better. But a cruel fact held his lips closed as he didn't actually know what to say. Even if he tried, he was certain he'd only make things worse, as he always did. Emerging from the grove of trees, Trader caught sight of Applejack and Applebloom passing across the yard. The orange-coated mare held her own head low, eyes set forward almost blankly. There was clearly something plaguing her, slowing her movements as her younger sister bounced around her. The young filly hopped about with an endless energy, chatting up a storm as she picked her sister for information. “So what was Hoofington like?” Applebloom asked. “You got back really late. Did ya sell anythin'? Where there a lot of ponies there? You two won the contest, right? What did you enter into it? Ah bet it was really good! Did you get any kind of prize? Huh, Applejack? Where there-” “That's enough, Applebloom!” Applejack suddenly shouted, glaring down at her sister. “We didn't win the contest, alright? We lost! We lost and then we came home!” Trader stood aghast at the scene. Never before had he ever seen her talk to her little sister that way. Applebloom was equally stunned, looking on the verge of tears as she lowered her head down sullenly. Just as quickly as the spark of anger came, it had left Applejack, the farmpony gaining her own look of surprise as she eyed the little one. “A-Applebloom, Ah'm sorry. It's just-” “No... it's fine...” the bow-wearing filly murmured, turning away from the mare. “Ah shouldn't bother you... Ah'll go play or somethin'...” Applejack watched her sister slowly go, unable to say anything else. It did nothing to help her mood as she was soon lowering her gaze to the ground and began to walk away. Then, for a single moment, the pegasus felt her gaze shift up to him. Just for that brief second, their eyes met. But the mare was quick to look away, returning to her own duties and leaving the stallion alone once again. Only a sigh left Trader as he too was about to set off to do what was needed of him. He stopped himself quickly as Applebloom slowly passed him by, hardly noticing the pegasus until she nearly bumped into him. “Oh, Trader... Sorry, didn't see ya there,” she muttered in apology, looking at him as though he might snap at her as well. Hardly able to see her in such a state, Trader leaned down and gave her a light pat on the head. “Hey, what happened isn't your fault, okay? Applejack's just having a tough time with a few things.” Nodding her head, seemingly in understanding, Applebloom gaze quickly lifted. With a sudden gasp of surprise, she gave the stallion an expectant look as she said, “So... what's my treat anyway?” “Huh?” The filly's mood suddenly shifted, she jumped up and down in place excitedly. “You said you'd give me a treat after you got back from Hoofington if Ah was good. And Ah didn't get into any trouble. You can ask anypony.” “Oh,” Trader breathed, suddenly remembering what he had said, “that's okay... I'll take your word for it...” He paused, it taking him a short moment to fully realize what the filly was expecting as well as what he'd give her. It soon came to him, and though he didn't really feel up to it, he forced a smile as he eyed her. “Come one, let's go to town.” Applebloom sat down happily at their table in Sugarcube Corner, eying the so called treat that Trader had gotten for it. A milkshake in a glass that was almost as big as her head, with two scoops of ice cream atop it, then a dollop of whipped cream, and finished with a plump cherry at its peak. It took her no time at all to begin slurping it down from the straw stuck into it, a look of greedy joy on her face. A similar milkshake was in front of Trader as well as he sat there and watched the little earth pony go. Eventually, his gaze fell onto the table itself, ignoring the sweet treat nearby. Even if he was hungry, the churning sickness in his stomach wouldn't allow him such a concoction. All the pegasus did was sit there dejectedly, mind elsewhere. The delighted slurping soon stopped as Applebloom noticed Trader's mood for herself. A clear look of worry etched onto her face, never liking to see somepony so down. “You look like Applejack,” she murmured, catching the stallion's attention. “It's... it's nothing,” he quickly said. Applebloom's gaze hardened as she glared at him. “No lyin'!” she said heatedly, making it clear that the little sister of the Element of Honesty would accept only that. “You two have been actin' weird ever since ya got back.” A tired sigh escaped the pegasus, accepting that the filly had him beat. “I did something... stupid, and now your sister's upset with me. I'm... still not even sure what exactly, but it was bad.” Leaning down, he rested his chin on the table as he stared blankly at the melting milkshake he had yet to touch. “Even when we were young, I'd always manage to do something to get her mad. But it never lasted that long... This just seems so much worse.” “Did ya say you're sorry?” Applebloom asked. Trader shook his head, chin rubbing against the wooden surface of the table. “It's not that simple,” he muttered offhandedly. “Things get more complicated when you're older.” The filly huffed at that, never liking when older ponies talked like that around her. But she could only frown as she could see the sadness on the stallion's face clear enough. It was clear that whatever upset her sister also bothered him. “Applejack's always said that when somethin's wrong, you find the problem and fix it.” “Not bad advice,” Trader replied, sounding as though he hardly heard it. But her words did echo through his mind, reverberating in his skull. The thing was, he already knew what, or who, the problem was. How to fix it was another matter entirely. With that said, silence once again befell the two ponies. Applebloom continued to consume her treat, at a much slower pace as her gaze continuously trailed toward the pegasus with her. But Trader still made no move for his milkshake, wasting the tasting treat as well as the bits he had spent on it. Eventually, the filly finished her own and the two left the bakery, heading back toward the farm. The two parted as soon as they reached Sweet Apple Acres. Though Trader's daily chores were done, there was still plenty of daylight to burn. He soon remembered how they were a pair of hooves short, thanks to his near-maiming of Big Macintosh. Certainly the powerful stallion had a good number of laborious tasks on the farm. Though he was certain Applejack would volunteer to pick up the slack, he knew he should do his best to help. Heading back toward the house, he set his sights on finding the still injured stallion to see what still needed to be done. What he found elicited a sudden gasp from him, seeing the red-coated earth pony lying on the floor, struggling to stand up. “Big Mac,” Trader breathed, rushing to his side. With some effort, the much smaller stallion managed to hoist the burly Big Macintosh up and back into his chair, his red face looking somewhat redder with his look of embarrassment. “You need to be careful. You're still too weak to be moving around.” It was easy enough to see that the stallion wasn't happy with being so confined, a hard worker at heart. All he could do was hold an expression of begrudged acceptance as he nodded to the pegasus. “Thirsty,” he tried saying, his voice coming out hoarse. Trader understood and was quick to getting to the kitchen and returning with a glass of water. The stallion drank it greedily, breathing a sigh of satisfaction before he set the glass aside. Seeing him like that brought another pang of guilt to the pegasus, head drooping down as he looked up at him. “You know... sorry again for pretty much crippling you.” “It's fine,” he murmured, clearing his throat loudly as it still sounded gravelly. As he stood there in the room, having already forgotten why he was there, Trader's gave moved toward a small shelf against the wall. It was mostly filled with an assortment of random knick-knacks, many being apple themed in one way or another. One object in particular was what caught his eye however. An old photo in an even older frame, covered in a thin layer of dust. Two familiar-looking foals stood dominate in it. A white-coated pegasus stood there as an orange-coated filly was on top of him, a small rope in her mouth as she struggled to wrap it around him. Trader couldn't help but smile, remembering how Applejack always wanted to test her lasso skills on him. He wasn't entirely sure when the picture was taken, or who even did it for that matter. To think that they still had such a thing standing out. It made Trader think though, just how long he and Applejack had known each other. Looking back, he wasn't quite sure. Had they met one day in school? Did their families know each other first? Or was it just a random day that the two crossed paths? As far back as he could remember, they had always been friends. But all the memories did was make it even more heart-wrenching as he thought of all the trouble he had been causing the Apples since he returned to his hometown. Dragging them into his own problems with his debt, injuring Big Mac due to his own carelessness, even costing them the contest in Hoofington and hurting Applejack all at once. What made it all worse was how he expected something like this to happen. No matter what he did, whatever job he had, he'd always do something wrong to ruin everything. It was inevitable. Maybe he had hoped things would be different, that he could better himself for his friend and her home. Such a thing was just wishful thinking. What Applebloom had said earlier in the bakery returned to him, playing through his mind. There certain was a problem. And if he didn't fix it, he feared he would lose his friendship with Applejack because of it. So he had to do what he needed to, even if it meant losing everything else. The following morning, it was an early start for the pegasus. Dawn hadn't even broken by the time Trader was up and about, getting his daily chores finished as quickly as possible. He moved about the farm as fast as he could, finishing up everything that the Apples would need of him. It was hard work, but a fierce determination propelled him forward throughout it all. It was still rather early by the time he was finished, midday coming at a slow pace. After all of his work on the farm was finished, he sought out Granny Smith. In a matter of moments, the elder mare sat beside Big Mac as they awaited for what Trader had to say. Applejack was already gone, having left for her own tasks, the pegasus almost felt relief for it. In her place however was Applebloom. Though he didn't want her to be there either, he knew that the filly didn't have school and he wouldn't be able to send her away. The three simply waited there quietly, uncertainty worn on their faces. They could see how tired the stallion looked, the thick lines underneath his saddened eyes. It looked as though he hadn't caught a wink of sleep. “I've been giving this a lot of thought,” Trader began, forcing himself to meet their gazes, “and I figured this was for the best.” He paused for a moment, heaving a sigh before looking straight at them. “I'm leaving Ponyville.” As to be expected, the Apple family all speechlessly stared at him with looks of confusion and utter shock.