//------------------------------//
// Family Problems 
// Story: Seasons Turning 
// by moguera 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 8: Family Problems

"AJ?  Bloom?"  Braeburn shifted his glance from one sister to the other.  "Are ya okay?"
His words snapped the pair out of their terrified daze.  "Uh...yeah," said Applejack.  However, as terrible a liar as she was, her words didn't fool Braeburn one bit.
"What's wrong cous'?" asked Braeburn nervously, "Was it somethin' Ah said?"
"Ya could say that," muttered Apple Bloom.
"Say, you ain't with the Order, are ya?" asked Applejack.
"Naw," said Braeburn, "Pa always said it was an whole bunch of hooey.  They seem like nice enough folk, but all that talk 'o the Princess bein' some kinda goddess is just plain silly.  Ah don't think Little Strongheart would have me if Ah joined 'em."
"Little Strongheart?"  Applejack remembered the young buffalo cow they'd met during the conflict in Appleloosa.  For a moment, their troubles were forgotten as she glanced slyly at Braeburn.  "So ya got yerself a girl huh?"
Braeburn blushed furiously.  "Eeyup...Anyway, she and her tribe ain't exactly too keen on the whole thing about worshipin' Princess Celestia, particularly when they like Princess Luna a whole lot too."
"Really?"  That was a bit of a surprise.  Applejack looked at Braeburn in confusion.  "Ah didn't know the buffalo were such big fans of Luna's."
"She's in a bunch 'o their myths and stories," said Braeburn, "But anyway, like Ah said, them ponies from the Order ain't too bad a bunch.  They're mighty nice really.  They do a lot 'o tradin' with the buffalo, in spite 'o their disagreements."
"Ah see..."  Applejack wasn't sure what to make of that.  She knew nothing about the Cult Solar aside from what her father had taught her or what Twilight had lectured her about.
"Anyways, they've been workin' on some kind 'o construction project," said Braeburn, "Some kind 'o worship space, or so they're sayin'.  Mighty fancy place fer a little town like ours.  Might make a good tourist attraction though.
"That so...?"  Applejack made a mental note to inform Twilight about that particular development...right after she settled the more immediate problem of what to do about Blenheim.  "Say, are Mayweather and the others members 'o the Order too."
"Yup," said Braeburn, as though that should have been obvious.
We've got bigger problems than Ah thought, lamented Applejack.



"You wanted to see me, Holy Father?" asked Terra Heart as he strode into the sanctuary.
"I just received word from Canterlot," said Morning Star, calmly staring out the window of the sparsely furnished space, "Willow has been confirmed as dead."
Terra froze.  "Did she meet her end at the hooves of the demon?"
Morning shook his head slowly.  "We have no confirmation of that.  After all, given the demon's elusive nature, Willow has been forced to take on other contracts while she searched for his whereabouts.  Naturally, she has not shared information about her other targets with us.  It's possible that any one of them could have led to her demise."
Terra's eyes narrowed as he directed his glare at the window.  "I knew that she was not suitable to carry out the task."
"Perhaps not," conceded Morning with a sigh, "At least we have the consolation that we will not have to pay her."
"It is small consolation," retorted Terra, "The demon remains at large.  Do we know where the assassin met her end?"
"That is information our contacts in Canterlot have not yet uncovered," said Morning.
"Then we need them to find that information out," said Terra, "While we can't be certain that the demon was responsible, we also can't rule the possibility out.  As such, the location of Willow's demise may give us a lead on the demon's whereabouts."
"Then I will instruct our contacts to do so," said Morning calmly, "Mayhap this is a sign that our quest will soon be at an end."
"Our quest to dispose of the demon perhaps," said Terra, "But our ultimate foe remains at large and ensconced at the center of Equestria's power, where she continues to ensnare the hearts of ponies."
"Be at ease my friend," said Morning, "Construction proceeds apace, with no foreseeable delays."  He stood up and stretched.  "Once that is finished, we will be prepared to bring an end to Nightmare Moon's machinations once and for all."



"This is terrible!" exclaimed Twilight, pacing back and forth frantically.  Applejack and Spike watched her nervously, their heads turning in time to match the agitated unicorn's movements as she tread from one end of the room to the other and back again.  "It's bad enough that we have confirmed members of the Cult Solar in Ponyville, but they're your relatives.  If they find out Dawn is here, who knows what they might do."
"Twilight!" protested Spike, "Don't go freaking out!  The last thing we need is for you to start panicking."
Twilight rounded on him, her eyes wide.  "But-!"
"Look," said Spike, "It's not as bad as you think.  We know who they are, so we know who to definitely avoid.  What's more, they're Applejack's workers."
Twilight paused, her demeanor calming as Spike's words hit home.  "You're right!" she said, rounding on Applejack now, "They're your relatives and workers.  That means you have some control over where they can and can't go."
Applejack tapped her chin, nodding in agreement.  "Ah suppose so," she said, "They don't have much reason to be goin' near the school anyhow.  And Uncle Blenheim ain't the type fer tea, so Ah don't think we need to worry much 'bout him bumpin' into Dawn at the teashop."
"And besides," added Spike, "Most of the time, they'll be working on the harvest.  They obviously didn't come here because they thought Dawn was here.  So it's not as though they'll be actively looking for him."
Twilight nodded in agreement with her dragon's assessment.  "Then the only real problem will be the Harvest Festival.  We won't exactly be able to keep track of them once it starts and it wouldn't make any sense to try and restrict their actions during the party.  That would make them suspicious."
Spike and Applejack nodded.  However, Spike didn't seem too worried.  "It's not as though Dawn likes big parties anyway," he pointed out, "He probably won't be anyplace where he can attract their attention."
"True enough," agreed Twilight, "In any case, we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."
"What should Ah do then?" asked Applejack.
"Nothing," said Twilight, "We can't give them any reason to pry or even shift their thoughts in that direction.  I'd say don't even discuss the Cult Solar around or with Blenheim or the others, unless they bring it up.  Whatever you do, don't let them try and steer the conversation in any direction where they might start suspecting that Dawn lives here.  You know how bad you are at lying Applejack."
Nodding solemnly, Applejack nodded.  "Ah'll do mah best."
"Good," said Twilight, "I'm going over to the teashop to warn Dawn.  After that, we'll go tell Fluttershy about the situation and see what she wants to do.  It may be that he'll just have to lay low until the harvest is over."



Red River unstrapped himself from the wagon and stretched, his back popping.  Stepping outside, he slid the barn door closed and headed towards the farmhouse to get cleaned up for dinner.  With the harvest preparations stepping up, trips to the market were less frequent.  The big push would come when Cider Season began.  Ever since the affair with the Flim Flam brothers, Applejack had looked into increasing the family's cider yield.  With her friends helping out, they'd made enough to satisfy the entire town.  Red suspected that, with the help of the new hooves from Appleloosa, they could make still more cider and even possibly sell the extra to other sources for additional funds.
The Apples weren't the only ones making fewer appearances at the market.  Depending on their workloads, stalls from other farms weren't open as often either.  However, since each farm had a different crop, which necessitated different preparations and schedules, they had different days where they could or couldn't come to the market.  So, while the market was never fully occupied during the harvest season, it was also never fully unoccupied.
"Ah don't recall seein' you 'round these parts before," commented a gruff voice.
Red looked over and noted the older green stallion approaching him.  This would be Blenheim then, he thought, remembering that Applejack and Apple Bloom had gone to the station to meet him and the other new arrivals.  "I'm a fairly recent hire," admitted Red.
"Ya here fer the harvest too?" asked Blenheim, falling into step next to him.
"Actually, I'm here for a longer term," said Red.
"How long?"
"Indefinitely...with a firm possibility of permanently."
Blenheim's steps faltered as the older stallion started.  "That so," he said speculatively, "There ain't much call fer a worker to be here so long.  This here's a family business."  His eyes narrowed.
Red shrugged.  "So it is."  He stopped and turned to regard Blenheim carefully.
"What's yer name?" asked Blenheim.
"Red River," replied the azure stallion calmly.
Blenheim's eyes continued to scrutinize Red, as though he were examining the other stallion for weaknesses.  His eyes zeroed in on the sash that ran over Red's shoulder and diagonally over his back before coming back diagonally up his chest, as well as the form of the sheathed spear, its handle collapsed, that rested over the same shoulder.
"Ya ain't from around these parts," said Blenheim, "Ya an outlander?"
"Yes," replied Red, not feeling particularly threatened just yet.  Outlander was slang in some of the more rural regions of the nation for extra-Equestrian immigrants.  However, the word had no inherent negative connotations, which meant that there was no way to determine Blenheim's opinion of Red's status as an immigrant from its usage.
"Thought so," said Blenheim, resuming his walk, now with Red falling into step with him, "Where ya hail from then?"
"Guoxia."
Blenheim let out an impressed whistle.  "Now that's a fair trot from here.  Might as well be on the other side 'o the world."
"It's not that far," said Red, "Though I admit it is a substantial distance."
"And what brings ya to this here farm?"
Red shrugged.  "Work.  Even though I came to Equestria, I didn't have much impetus to actually settle down until recently."
"Ah see," said Blenheim, his tone switching to a sly one, "Maybe ya've found someplace that caught yer eye...or maybe, somepony."
Red smiled.  "Perhaps."
To his surprise, Blenheim smiled and his manners softened as the older stallion began to chuckle.  "So ya've got yer eye on mah niece then."
"We've actually moved past that," said Red, "Last I checked she was my fillyfriend."
"That so?"  Blenheim gave Red one last hard look.  "Ya be good to her or Ah'll have yer hide mounted on mah wall."
"I will keep that in mind," said Red, smirking, "You don't seem to take issue with an outlander like me courting your niece."
"Ah ain't her pa," said Blenheim, "Applejack's old enough to maker her own decisions.  Besides, there ain't nothin' wrong with bein from another country.  We're all brothers and sisters under the same sun."
Red's ear twitched.  "That's an impressively inclusive view to take.  How did you come by it?"
Blenheim chuckled.  "That's a long story.  Ya've got better things to do than listen to an old coot like me prattlin' on."
"The words of those older than us are worth heeding," said Red, "Even if it is something that we might not agree with."
That elicited a laugh from the older stallion.  "Maybe someday then," said Blenheim, "But not now."  They both looked up, seeing that they had reached the farmhouse.  "Ah gotta pay mah respects."
They were about to head in when the sound of galloping hooves caught their attention.  Looking over, they saw Applejack rushing up the path towards them.  When she saw Blenheim standing with Red River, her eyes widened.  She came skidding to a stop a few feet away, panting for breath.
"Everything alright?" asked Red.
"Yeah...everythin's...fine..." gasped Applejack between breaths.  She took a few more to steady herself.  "Red, can Ah talk to ya fer a minute?"
"Ah'll head on in," said Blenheim, "Give ya two lovebirds some space."
Blenheim headed up and gently nudged the door open to let himself inside while Red led Applejack away from the house and out among the trees.  "What is it?" he asked her gently.
Applejack swayed a little before settling to lean against Red.  "We've got trouble..."  She quickly filled him in about the situation, telling the stallion all she knew about the situation.  When she finished, Applejack was shaking with barely suppressed nerves.
Red River stopped.  Settling onto his haunches, he pulled Applejack into a gentle hug, which she was soon returning.  He began to rub his forehooves up and down her back, doing his best to help her calm down, pressing his neck against hers, letting her feel his breath stir her mane as her shaking slowly subsided.  Pulling away a little, Red looked Applejack in the eyes.  "Feel better?"
"Yeah," said Applejack tension still evident in her tone, "A little."
Leaning in, Red kissed her lightly on the lips.  "How about now."
That finally earned a smile from Applejack.  "Much better," she admitted.
Red leaned in and pressed his forehead against hers pushing the brim of her hat up and out of the way.  "Now then, I understand the situation.  But we clearly have everything under control right now.  What has you so upset?"
"It's..."  Applejack squeezed her eyes shut, failing to stop some tears from leaking through.  "Ah'm not sure Ah can do it.  This ain't just some bunch of nuts threatenin' Dawn.  These are mah kin.  Blen's mah uncle, one 'o the ponies closest to mah pa.  How can Ah look him in the eye, knowin' what he might do if he finds out Dawn's in town."
"Because you know that it's wrong," replied Red, "Your uncle is a good pony.  I can see that.  I suspect many of the ponies in the Cult Solar are essentially good ponies.  The danger of the Cult Solar lies in that they seek to saddle others with the burden of their own evil, to blame someone who has done nothing to them for the harm that befalls them.  They seek to push responsibility for their own lives away from themselves and cling to fervor and fanaticism in its place.  That is a harmful path to tread upon.  We need to show your uncle just how dangerous it is...just as your friends did for you."
Applejack nodded and pulled herself away from Red's embrace.  "What can we do?"
"It's difficult to say," said Red, "The easiest thing would be to simply steer things so that your uncle and those that came with him do not meet Dawn.  However, that is simply avoiding the problem.  If we want to truly help both your uncle and Dawn...some degree of risk may be required."
"Risk...?"  Applejack gulped.  "Ya don't mean..."
"It may be that we will have to allow him and Dawn to meet," said Red, "Then your uncle will be able to see for himself, just what this so-called 'demon' truly is."
A snort burst from Applejack's muzzle.  "Yeah," she said sarcastically, "'Cause that went so well when Ah did it."
"But you can trust Dawn," Red pointed out, "If anything, he's grown since the time you first met him."  A grin broke across the azure stallion's face.  "I know he's grown since I first met him..."



"No."
"What?" gasped Twilight, "What do you mean, 'no?'"
Dawn looked up from the table he was wiping down.  "I meant 'no.'  There's nothing else to say really.  In this situation, hiding away won't do me much good.  We shouldn't try to restrict this Blenheim stallion's activities either."
"But what about the plan?" demanded Twilight, a sheaf of paper appearing in her magic, "We weren't going to do this until after the harvest."
Dawn merely shrugged.  "They say no plan survives contact with the enemy.  Besides, I think it will be less disruptive in the long term than you think."
"Why's that?" asked Twilight, calming slightly.
Dawn shrugged.  "I've been a bit leery of hiding away from the Cult Solar.  It's true that we agreed to leave matters until after the harvest has been completed.  But all the ponies that have come to town lately have been here for the harvest.  What that means is that, even with my presence, they are unlikely to leave before the harvest is over."
"Can you be sure of that?" inquired Twilight.
"I would say so," said Arkenstone, coming from the back after finishing with the kitchen, "Having worked as a migrant myself, I know a bit about the situation.  The autumn harvest is the last big harvest season before winter sets in.  After that, it will be a full season before most of these ponies will be able to find work again.  They simply can't afford to abandon their job to try and send word to the Cult Solar of Dawn's presence.  Furthermore, I highly doubt that they trust or even rely upon regular post to keep in contact with other members of the Cult.
"And even if they did send word to someone else within the Cult by regular post the disparate nature of the group means it would be weeks before the information makes it into the hooves of ponies who would be able to marshall others and action would be taken..."
"By which time, the harvest would be complete and we would have already put our own plan into action," finished Dawn.
"But if Blenheim or one of his workers sees you, he could go after you the way Applejack did," said Twilight nervously.  It wasn't simply the physical threat to Dawn she was worried about.
"That's a possibility," admitted Dawn, "But I can defend myself."  His draconic gaze met Twilight's own.  "More importantly, I am not as I was when I fought with Applejack."
Not waiting to hear Twilight's response, Dawn turned and headed towards the back of the teahouse to put away the rag he'd been cleaning with.  He and Arkenstone had been the only ponies remaining in the teahouse.  Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo had already gone home, while Apple Bloom hadn't been there to begin with, having gone with Applejack to greet their relatives at the train station.
"What does he mean?" asked Twilight, turning to her coltfriend.
Arkenstone smiled and gently leaned in to nuzzle Twilight's cheek.  "He's grown," observed the beige stallion, "When you first met him, when he first confronted Applejack, he was little more than a scarred child, still fresh from having lived a life on the run.  He had nothing to live for, nothing to fight for, but himself.  He was used to the idea that he would have to stand on his own and that the consequences of his actions would fall upon no one else but himself and the ones who tried to do him harm.
"But he knows better now.  He knows that there are friends who will stand with him, no matter how difficult things become.  He knows that there are ponies who love him, who want to protect him, who want to help him.  Furthermore, he knows that his life is not the only thing that he is fighting to protect now and that his life is not such a simple thing anymore."
"I hope you're right," murmured Twilight as she leaned against Arkenstone, mentally bracing herself for the trouble that was sure to come.



As it turned out, it seemed Twilight and Applejack's worries seemed to be for naught.  While Dawn made no effort to hide himself away, he also made no attempt to seek out and confront Blenheim or any of the other workers directly.  He and Scootaloo continued to meet in the morning to train before going to school.  After school, they alternated between going out to the quarry for more intensive training and working at Arkenstone's teashop.  During the weekend, the two of them would spend half the day doing one, then the other, alternating which one they did first.
With little else to do but wait and see what happened.  Twilight resumed her studies of the wintersilk appleseeds and her tutelage in battle magic.  She and Arkenstone spent many an afternoon out in the quarry, where Twilight would continue to work on streamlining her casting process to reduce the time lag, as well as practicing casting while under a state of extreme duress.  Given her natural talent with magic, Twilight excelled at the former, but was still having a great deal of difficulty with the latter.
Her studies of the wintersilk seeds she'd gathered were proceeding slowly as well.  Next to nothing was known about the wintersilk apple trees themselves, the trees growing wild in difficult and unaccessible regions.  There wasn't even the assurance that, even if the right conditions were met, that the seeds would grow at the same incredible rate that the zap apple trees had when Granny Smith had planted them so many centuries ago.
Applejack's own worries seemed unfounded.  The harvest was proceeding like clockwork...better than that, if she was any judge.  Blenheim and Braeburn were, of course, experts with farms of their own, experienced in managing a harvest, even though the Appleloosan relationship with the buffalo meant that neither of them had needed to put that experience to its full use in quite some time.  On top of that, Mayweather and the other three were disciplined and dedicated workers, never shirking their duties in the slightest as they methodically made their way through the orchards.  If anything, it now looked like the harvest would be completed ahead of schedule.



Red River stood at the door to the bunkhouse, his hoof raised, poised to knock.  However, the murmur of low voices coming from within staid his hoof.  He'd come this morning to make a delivery on Applejack's behalf.  While Blenheim and Braeburn joined the family for dinner and lunches were held communally, the two Apple stallions generally ate their breakfast with the other workers, first thing in the morning, before heading out to the orchards.  It wasn't politeness, but rather curiosity that kept Red from intruding.  Though he wasn't able to pick up the exact words being exchanged, he could still detect the rhythm and cadence of the speech being used on the other side, its rhythmic, almost musical nature, with a low drone that rose and fell in a consistent manner was suggestive of something akin to song...Or prayer, he thought.  Slowly, he turned the knob and opened the door, looking into the common area.
Blenheim, Mayweather, and the other three workers were seated around the table that dominated the common space.  Before them on the table were plates set with a surprisingly meager amount of breakfast, a small mound of uncooked hay sharing space with a whole apple.  Red River raised an eyebrow.  He knew that Big Macintosh and Applejack had made sure that the bunkhouse pantry was well-stocked, ensuring that the workers would be able to supply themselves with a hearty breakfast to fortify them for a day of labor in the orchards.  The meager fare laid out before Blenheim and the other was ridiculously paltry, considering what was available to them.
"...And so, in preparation for the day before us, we commend out souls to our Divine Mistress..." droned Blenheim.
"May the light of Her Radiance preserve and guide us," said Mayweather, Quicksilver, Garnet, and Rivercrest in unison, the response clearly having been memorized to the point that it was delivered almost reflexively.
As Red watched, the whole ritual took on an almost nostalgic quality for him, as though it was something, at once foreign, and yet, at the same time, intimately familiar to his experience.
As one, the five ponies raised their heads.  It was then that Blenheim spotted Red.  "Well now, if it ain't AJ's coltfriend.  Ya here fer somethin' young'un?"
Red River stepped through the door.  "Ah yes, Applejack asked me to make a delivery."  He pulled a fair-sized cloth bag out from where he'd tucked it into his sash and tossed it onto the table, the bag emitting a jingling sound as the coins within shifted about.  "She asked me to suggest that, since everything is moving so quickly, that everypony take the day off and relax a little.  You've all been working so hard that you deserve a day of rest."
"Well, that's very kind of her," said Mayweather, smiling as she looked at the bag.  However, she refrained from touching it without leave from her employer.
Blenheim frowned speculatively at the bag.  "Ah ain't the kinda pony who likes leavin' work undone.  But mah niece has a point.  A day off ain't gonna hurt no one, especially with how much we already have done."
"Sounds like a plan to me," said Braeburn from within the kitchen.  A few seconds later, he trotted out, his own plate clenched between his teeth.  As he set the plate on the table, Red noted that Braeburn had opted for a more substantial and more robust breakfast; scrambled eggs, a side of hash browns, all sharing space with a glob of applesauce that had been mixed with so much cinnamon its color was more like that of syrup.
"Ya wanna whip somethin' up fer yerself?" asked Blenheim, "Or did ya eat already."
"I've already had some," said Red as he took a seat at an empty space.  He looked from Braeburn's heaped plate to the sparse rations occupying the plates of everypony else.  "May I ask why your breakfasts are all so meager?  I know that there isn't a shortage of food."
"It ain't about the food," said Blenheim before pausing to snatch a mouthful of hay.  After chewing and swallowing, he turned back to Red.  "Breakfast ain't just a meal, it's where we prepare our souls and steady our hearts fer the day before us."
"Spiritual sustenance is just as important as material sustenance," added Mayweather, having already finished her portion of hay.  She was now holding her apple ready for its first bite.
"That is indeed familiar to me," said Red River, looking pensively at the table.  At once, he realized where his sense of nostalgia had come from.  This was similar to the meals he had taken at the temple during his foalhood and adolescence.  The monks had the means to provide much more substantial meals, but contented themselves with lighter, simpler fare.  Meals were as much a time of communion with oneself and each other as they were a time for eating.  Now that he recalled, Red remembered his meals at the temple not being all that different from what was here before the cultists, little more than a bowl of rice porridge and some greens.
"Well, Ah always felt it's better to have somethin' real in yer stomach than tryin' to run on nothin' more than a bit 'o hay and some spiritual hoodoo," commented Braeburn before he tucked into his own meal.
Blenheim cackled.  "Just ya wait youngster.  Ah'll shape ya up yet."
The unconcealed smiles and titters from around the table told Red that this was not an uncommon exchange between the two Apple stallions, which surprised him somewhat.  Red realized that his personal experience with the Cult Solar was limited primarily to the brief exchange he'd had with the stallion, Bedrock, who had accosted Fluttershy during the summer.  Even though Applejack had told him about her own issues and how she'd reacted to any challenge to her beliefs, Red couldn't count her as a source of experience either.  He supposed that, within such a group, it would only be natural for ponies to have differing levels of belief and tolerance of outside opinions.
It made him all the more curious just how these ponies in particular would react to Dawn.



Caramel hummed cheerfully as he slid another tray of his trademark caramel apples into the display case, ready to be sold.  All around him, the scents of sugar, spices, and fruit swirled together.  Nearby, Bon Bon was at the register, ringing out the purchase of their latest customer who'd bought a bag of cinnamon-roasted almonds.
The two of them had been doing a brisk business as of late.  The influx of ponies coming in for the harvest had brought them a whole slew of new customers, many of them farmhooves looking for a quick treat after a hard day's work.  It helped that the local farmers were generally generous employers, happy to hoof out a few extra bits to promote just that sort of business in town, so long as their workers didn't blow it all on alcohol at the local pub.  Nopony wanted their workers coming back stumbling drunk or too hungover to work the next day.
Because of that, the harvest season meant a major boom in business for their store, as well as Sugarcube Corner and a few of the other small sweet and snack shops that operated in town.  However, it was ironic that their biggest customer for the season worked for their biggest competitor.  Pinkie Pie had already made a massive order for sweets to be supplied for the annual Harvest Festival.  Caramel would have wondered where she'd gotten the money to pay for everything if he hadn't known that Mayor Mare had given Pinkie some funding from Town Hall.
As it was, they'd laid in massive orders for ingredients, even going to the local farms and buying from their latest crops to supplement their supply.  It was going to be a lot of work, but it would be worth it.  Caramel just wished that he'd be able to go to the festival with Dawn and Fluttershy.
In the past, Fluttershy had been much to timid to visit the noisy affair, particularly when there were so many unfamiliar ponies from out of town partaking, more than a few of whom would have taken notice of such an attractive pegasus.  It was unlikely that any of them had ill intentions, but Fluttershy was reluctant enough to engage with ponies she was already acquainted with if they didn't fall within her small circle of intimate friends.  She'd be positively terrified by complete strangers approaching her.
Of course, said circle of close friends had been making great strides in helping Fluttershy come out of her shell.  She'd gotten much better at bartering whenever she'd gone to the market and was even willing to engage in conversation with stallholders other than Applejack on occasion.  On top of that, taking a colt as her son had apparently served to boost Fluttershy's self-confidence even further, now that she had a pony looking to her as a mother.  It might have even gotten to the point where Caramel could imagine Fluttershy would be willing to attend the festival, if she was with him.
However, the problem lay with Dawn.  While not timid, at least not in the same sense as Fluttershy, Dawn was cautious with other ponies.  Even though he'd grown comfortable with moving about town on his own and was no longer leery of other ponies in Ponyville, Dawn tended to dislike sizable social gatherings like the Harvest Festival, preferring peace and quiet to the general cacophony of a festival's atmosphere.  He had extra reason to avoid the Harvest Festival, given the concerns everypony close to him had been expressing about the Cult Solar.  Fluttershy had stopped by to warn Caramel about Applejack's relative and workers, but they were uncertain of just who else might be with the shadowy group that had been harassing Dawn for most of his life.
Caramel was certain that Dawn would have no objections to Caramel taking Fluttershy to the festival.  He might even approve of it.  However, Caramel would have liked for the three of them to go together, like a family.  As he'd spent time with Fluttershy and Dawn, Caramel had grown more and more comfortable with being a part of their life as something more than Fluttershy's coltfriend.  Part of the reason he'd proposed the idea of having Fluttershy and Dawn spend the winter with him was because he wanted to see if they were ready for a life with all three of them sharing a home...an experiment of sorts.  Caramel briefly entertained the question of whether or not Twilight Sparkle's mad scientist tendencies were rubbing off on him just through general osmosis.
What if it works? he wondered, What if we can be a family?  I suppose that means we could opt for something more permanent.  I couldn't ask Fluttershy and Dawn to move in with me year-round.  Fluttershy would never abandon her animals.  I guess I'd be moving into her home then.  That would make the commute to work a little more difficult.  But it would be worth it...
"Caramel!"
The tan stallion yelped, his jump nearly clearing the height of the countertop.  When he landed, he whirled about to stare in shock at the cream-colored mare giving him a deadpan look as she waited for him to get his composure back.
"Ah...what?" gasped Caramel.
"You were zoned out again," said Bon Bon, smiling slightly, "Were you getting all dreamy-eyed about Fluttershy again?"
"Uh..."  Caramel rubbed the back of his mane, blushing.  "I guess.  I've just been thinking about where things would go if her and Dawn staying the winter worked out with us...You know...long term stuff."
"Geez," groaned Bon Bon, turning away, "You always got so starry-eyed back when you were just pining after her that I was practically begging you to ask her out.  I at least figured that if you actually started going through with it, you wouldn't waste so much time dreaming about it.  But now that the two of you are actually together, you're getting all dazed about what comes next"
Caramel's cheeks were getting brighter by the second.  Bon Bon didn't fail to notice and giggled lightly at his embarrassment.  "If you're this bad when you're just dating her, what's it going to be like when you two start living together?  Will you finally snap out of it when you two bang?"
The shuddering stallion barely managed a strangled noise of protest as the blush on his cheeks spread across the rest of his face.  Bon Bon's smile widened as she supposed was beginning to pick up the faint whistle of steam escaping Caramel's ears.  "Oh..." she continued adopting a more wistful expression, "What about when the two of you have a bundle on the way.  I wonder how Dawn'll handle being a big brother."
She finally stopped her little tirade when she saw that Caramel had practically been reduced to a quivering lump on the floor.  "Oh 'Mel," she sighed, "You are just too easy to tease."  Leaning down, she nuzzled Caramel's cheek, slowly bringing him out of his stupor.  "But I guess that's what makes you such a good match for Fluttershy.  We all love that about you."
Letting the tension drain out of him, Caramel let out a sigh and directed a slight glare at Bon Bon.  "You drive me crazy sometimes."
The cream-colored mare tossed a playful wink at her employee.  "Call it payback for all the times I have to make you snap out of daydreaming," she retorted.
"Right, right," grumbled Caramel, smiling in spite of everything.
Their attention was drawn by the light tinkling of the bell over the door.  Looking over, Caramel noticed a yellow earth pony mare with a tricolored mane making her way into the store.  He flinched when her burgundy eyes met his, a sly smile spreading across her face.  Still, Caramel kept his composure as she approached.
"Hi there ma'am.  Welcome to Bon Bon's Bon Bons.  Can I help you find anything?"
The mare's smile widened in a way that made Caramel start to sweat.  He'd never had anypony stare at him that way before, certainly not in Ponyville.  "Well," she said, "You could start by telling me your name Sugarcube, 'cause I'm guessing that it sure isn't Bon Bon."
"C-Caramel," stammered the stallion nervously.
"Well now Caramel..."  Her eyes slid over to the fresh tray of caramel apples he'd just put out.  "...I'd like one of those.  And then..."  She favored him with a look that was downright sultry.  "...I don't suppose you'd be interested in hanging around with me after you get off work.  I have a lot of free time today."
"Ah..."  Caramel gulped nervously.  "Thank you very much for the offer miss.  But I'm afraid I'll have to decline.  I already have a fillyfriend."
The mare's seductive expression immediately faded and her eyes widened.  "Oh!  I'm so sorry.  I guess I came on too strong there."  She ducked her head in apology before looking up at him with a more normal, albeit somewhat mortified, expression, her cheeks slightly flushed.  "I hope you don't mind."
"Not at all," said Caramel, a little relieved now that this mare was no longer openly flirting with him, "There wasn't anyway for you to know.  You from out of town?"
The mare nodded.  "Yes.  My name's Mayweather.  I'm really sorry for getting so pushy there."
"Don't worry about it," said Caramel, slipping her apple into a small paper bag, "You working the farm?"
"That's right," replied Mayweather, recovering her good humor, "I'm working up at Sweet Apple Acres."
"Oh...Applejack said some of her relatives were coming to help out with the harvest.  So you're one of her family too?"
"Not really...Wait!  Too?"  She eyed him confusedly.  "You don't strike me as an Apple stallion."
"Well, I don't think we're related by blood exactly," said Caramel, grinning sheepishly, "At least, I don't think so.  It's hard to tell.  The Apples'll go to some pretty great lengths to call you a family member."
"Oh," said Mayweather, nodding, "Well, I'm not one of her relatives.  Blenheim, her uncle, is my employer and offered us a bonus to come down and help out."
"I see," said Caramel, leading the two of them over to the register, "So have you been to Ponyville before?"
"Nope," said Mayweather.  Her tone made him raise an eyebrow, as it was suspiciously similar to Big Macintosh's.  She might not have been an Apple, but she'd clearly hung around them long enough to absorb their mannerisms, though not their accent.
"Well," said Caramel, "If you don't mind waiting for about an hour, I'd be happy to show you around after I get off shift.  I'll be meeting my fillyfriend later and we could take you around town."
"Are you sure?" asked Mayweather, "I wouldn't want to intrude."
"It's no problem," assured Caramel, "I'm guessing you already know where Sugarcube Corner is."  It was a fairly safe guess.  Pinkie didn't let a pony stay long in town without making sure they knew exactly where to find Ponyville's favorite bakery.
As he expected, Mayweather nodded.  "Then I'll see you in an hour," said Caramel, accepting her bits before ringing her out.
"See you later then," said Mayweather before trotting out with her purchase.
Caramel chuckled and turned away...only to freeze as his brain finally connected the dots.  Wait!  She works at Sweet Apple Acres...she came with Applejack's uncle who's supposed to be...Oh horseapples!