//------------------------------// // What it Means to Fail // Story: The Sweet Taste of Apple // by Icecane //------------------------------// Applebloom kept herself focused on the task at hand. Gaze never faltering, intently looking across the grassy ground, she trotted along with eyes set on finding the perfect flowers. As they had planned, the CMC all went off in different directions to scour all of Ponyville, wanting the bouquet to be the best it could be before giving it to Applejack. The filly herself decided to check around the farm. In the more secluded areas, near and around their clubhouse for instance, many different kinds of wildflowers grew. Whenever she spotted one from a bunch, one that was just right, she quickly picked it and placed it carefully in her saddlebag. She already had a few that she knew her sister would love, even enough to not be mad at Trader anymore. But the more the little earth pony thought about it, the more she thought how inadequate they were. They were beautiful flowers, certainly, but they were quite common. If they were going to make the perfect bouquet, then they would have to find extra special flowers. Her eyes then moved toward the thick wall of trees that practically set a border for that portion of farmland. The Everfree forest looked as dark and dense as ever, stretching on and on, further than anypony could imagine. But Applebloom knew that there were many wondrous things that are only found in that forest, having seen plenty of vibrant and stunning flowers whilst helping Zecora brew her potions. Excitement bubbled up in her chest as she began to picture what kind of assortment they would be able to put together with such flowers. It would only take a few minutes as well. She could go in, grab a few flowers, then leave without a problem. So with a skip in her step, Applebloom headed toward the forest, eagerly awaiting the moment they succeed in their task and everypony's happy again. It was such a strange sight to watch the blank sky so intently as to see it slowly darken, the telling signs of the day ending and night approaching. Trader's eyes remained skyward as he watched the blue sky do just that. High above the ground, the pegasus rested on his back atop a cloud he had taken for himself. With the day coming to an end, it wouldn't be very long before he could rest and sleep the night away, awaking to his final minutes in Ponyville. Even still, there was still the matter of actually planning out what he would do once he was gone. Having never been to the Crystal Empire before, he wasn't certain what kind of work he'd be able to find there. Becoming a royal guard seemed like the best bet, if there were any openings. There was also a chance at working in the crystal mines. It was no secret that it was dangerous work though, but it paid rather well because of it. Though, considering his luck, a dangerous line of work seemed like tempting fate. If necessary, he figured he could simply find a job when he finally arrived, that being the norm whenever he went to new places. As he planned out his next actions, the pegasus felt a shadow cast over him. Just a simple shift of his vision allowed him to see the cyan mare hovering next to him, wearing a merciless sneer as she glared daggers at him. “There you are!” Rainbow Dash snapped, ready to explode. Trader could actually see her cheeks reddening in fury. “Just what do you think you're doing?!” “Lying here,” the stallion replied flatly. His eyes didn't fully rest on her, much of his gaze returned to looking up into the shifting sky. Though it seemed impossible before, the weathermare became even angrier. There was almost a fire blazing in her eyes, something that no amount of water would put out. “You know what I mean!” she shouted. “What? You've just up and decided you wanted to leave Ponyville now?! Why?! What's going on with you?! You could have at least talked to us about this!” “Why?” the stallion murmured. “So Pinkie Pie can throw me some going away party that I don't want? So I can get bombarded with questions from all of you?” A sudden jolt of pain shot through the stallion as Rainbow Dash truck him across the head with her hoof. Grunting aloud, Trader immediately sat up, rubbing the sore spot on top of his head. In front of him, Rainbow Dash landed on the cloud he was on, ready to hit him again. “What was that for?” he grumbled, wincing as he felt the tender area. “I thought we were all friends here!” the multi-colored mare said. “Did something happen between you and Applejack or something? She's just as upset now, you know! But do you even care?! Just want to run off because something went wrong?! Honestly, you're just like-” She stopped mid-sentence, eyes widening for a moment as she suddenly realized what she was about to say. Trader already knew what name would have escaped her lips. It didn't take much effort to see the similar situation that the pegasus was in. But he ignored it as he looked the mare in the eyes and matched her glare. “It's not just about Applejack!” he shouted back, not about to be told off by somepony who didn't understand. “It's about everything!” Rainbow Dash just looked at him, clearly unaware of what he meant. Knowing that, the stallion's own temper lessened and he sat with a blank stare, ready to explain himself. “Do you know why I've had so many different jobs?” he asked. “I lose them. It's like that with almost every thing I've done. I do something stupid, I mess up, and something horrible always happens. And sometimes... it's not just me who gets hurt because of it...” The mare only shook her head in disagreement. “Trader, you can't think-” she tried to say, but the stallion was quick to interrupt her. “In the short time that I've been here, I've done nothing but mess up,” he said. “I've nearly crippled Big Macintosh, I've cost them thousands with my own problems, and now I can't even face Applejack without thinking how I've practically insulted her in Hoofington! And why?! Because... I-I'm afraid to even think about telling her-” He stopped himself, shaking his head as he regained some of his composure, looking back to the mare dejectedly. “What's next? I set fire to the house? They lose the farm because of me?” Heaving a sigh, Trader's gaze looked up into the sky. There was almost something comforting about looking into the bleakness of it. “I can't even bake a pie to help win some stupid baking contest,” he murmured. Looking to Rainbow Dash again, he held a bit of curious wonder in his eyes. “What did it feel like after Stormchase had left? Knowing how you hurt somepony you cared about and drove them away...” “H-how did you...” the weathermare began, surprise worn well enough on her expression. But her voice trailed off, her gaze drifting away as her previous torrent of rage subsided, if only for a short time. “Look, Trader, ponies mess up. It's something that happens that you can't control. You should've seen all the times Twilight's messed up with some spell of hers. Even I mess up all the time, and not just with different tricks I'm trying to do. Like you said, I know what it's like to screw-up worse than ever, to want to take back every mistake. I understand how you-” “Oh, don't give me that,” Trader said, eyes again set into an angered look as he stood up to face the mare. “Just... please! Don't try to lie and say something like that!” Though she was shocked by the sudden outburst, it wasn't enough so to prevent Rainbow Dash's own anger from resurfacing. “Hey, I'm just trying to-” “That's the thing, you're trying because you don't understand!” the stallion went on. “What do you know about failure?! To fall so far that you've hit the very bottom?! To go on like that year after year, unable to escape the inevitability of it! To understand, deep down, the hard truth that it's all your own fault! T-To know... that it's never been because of things like bad luck or freak accidents... That it's just you...” Years of pent up anger finally burning out of him, the pegasus slumped down, staring aimlessly away. “To know that you're just not good enough, for anything... or anypony...” A short time passed in utter silence, Trader not saying a word while Rainbow Dash was at a complete loss for them. When he finally looked back to the mare, his face was practically made of stone. “I've made peace with that a long time ago,” he murmured. “But I'd never be able to live with myself if I dragged them down too.” The cyan mare looked at the pegasus with sympathetic eyes. Perhaps what made her feel the worst was how right he was, how she really didn't understand what he might be going through. But she also knew that it didn't excuse his behavior, that there was a better way they could try and resolve everything. “Trader...” mare said softly, wanting to coax him out of his stupor. But she was surprised as her ears caught a sudden echo, the pegasus' name sounding off again. Trader's own ears twitched as he caught it too. But it wasn't Rainbow Dash's voice that called his name again. It wasn't an echo either, simply sounding off from a distance below. The two ponies looked over the side of the cloud to see Twilight standing before the door to his room, knocking against it as she called out his name. But she wasn't alone, with the unicorn was an even more familiar face, Applejack standing by her side. “I think they want you,” Rainbow Dash pointed out, looking to the stallion expectantly, but Trader made no signs of moving. All the white-coated pegasus did was stare down at them, heart and mind racing, unsure of what he'd say, or what he'd even do for that matter. He was perfectly content with staying there, waiting for the two mares to give up and leave. Rainbow Dash on the other hand only regained her glare as she looked between him and her friends down below, ready to fly down there herself and drag the stallion with her if necessary. Ready to act on that, Rainbow Dash paused for a moment as Twilight continued to knock on the door. “Trader, please, are you there?” she asked. “We just want to know if you've seen Applebloom.” Both pegasi looked to one another with looks of surprise. With a great deal of reluctance, Trader unfurled his wings and dove down toward the ground, Rainbow Dash following close behind. Twilight and Applejack were nearly startled as the pegasi came down on top of them. Trader looked to them questioningly for a moment before saying, “Twilight, Applejack... What's going on?” “We don't know where Applebloom is,” Twilight replied, wearing a clear look of concern. “She's gone?” Rainbow Dash breathed, having just heard it herself. Applejack looked the most distraught. “Ah needed to talk to her about somethin',” she murmured. “But Ah haven’t been able to find her.” “She was with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle earlier,” Twilight continued, “but they went off to work on some sort of project. Applebloom was supposed to meet up with them earlier, but she never did. There's no sign of her anywhere in Ponyville, we've all been searching everywhere.” “Ah thought she might've come to see you, Trader,” Applejack then said, almost sounding hopeful. The pegasus had a hard time meeting her gaze. He could still sense the anger in her for what he had done, but it was also very subdued. Shaking away such thoughts, the stallion was quick to focus on what was more important. “N-no, I haven't,” he managed to say. “Last time I saw her was in the morning... at the farm...” “Then where else would she be?” Rainbow Dash questioned, growing more worried herself as the gravity of the situation began to weigh down on her. “What about the forest?” Trader then asked. “Is there a chance she'd wander in?” Applejack simply stood there, looking down at the ground as she tried to think. “Ah.... Ah don't know,” she murmured. “She goes there sometimes to help Zecora. But she always takes the safe paths, and she tells me before she goes into that place!” “It's better if we know for sure, right?” Trader said, nodding toward the cyan pegasus with them. “We can get an aerial view of the area and see if she's there. Rainbow Dash, take the northern half, I'll take the southern half near the farm.” “Got it,” the weathermare said before bolting up into the air and heading in the direction of the forest. Trader stared at Applejack for a moment, mind wandering as to what to do next. Against his better judgment, he approached the worried mare, placing a comforting hoof on her. “Don't worry,” he said reassuringly. “We'll find her in no time. I promise you that.” Without waiting for a response, Trader flew up, the forest in his sights. Applebloom could hardly believe the luck she was having. Again and again, she found such beautiful flowers growing on the forest floor. They were nothing like the ones she had already picked in Ponyville, having such exotic looking colors and shapes to them. They all held their own wondrous smell to them as well, making her want to sniff each and every one. She had already filled her saddlebag, each new flower added more than likely smashing the first few she had found before. But the little filly couldn't help herself. As soon as she was done picking one flower, thinking she was ready to head back, she would spot an even better one, heading deeper into the forest as she went to take it. There was no doubt in her mind that Applejack would love them. In fact, she was certain that her big sister would be so happy, she'd never get mad at Trader again. Just the thought propelled her forward even further, already picturing the look on her face. Of course, there was the matter of Trader himself knowing that he had nothing to do with it, but she figured he wouldn't care, so long as his old friend was happy with him again. The forest itself was so shady, with so many trees growing around it, a thick canopy of leaves blocked out much of the sunlight. Only the occasional chirp of a bird or buzz of a bug could be heard, the forest was otherwise silent. It was a pleasant experience for the filly, happily going about her task without a care. As Applebloom continued to look for flowers, she broke through the veil of trees into a clearing. It was a large opening or land that gave a clear view of the sky. Such a sight was lost on the young earth pony however, her eyes immediately locking onto a brightly colored assortment of yellow and orange flowers far ahead of her. Their stems were long, like vines, tangling together into a mass a bush, with petals that were shaped like flames. Heading toward it, she then noticed the precarious position they grew. Not too far into the clearing, the ground suddenly dropped, leading far down into even more forest. Looking over the edge, she could see a sea of green stretching onward. The fiery flowers themselves grew just on the edge, waving in the breeze like little flags. Though she felt a small tinge of nervous fear from the sudden plunge, Applebloom's desire to add such lovely flowers to her collection was all she needed to find the courage to press on. Slowly, she inched herself closer, taking care not to step too far and slip off the side. It nearly strained her neck to stretch out and nip at the stems of the flowers. She took two for good measure, immediately taking a step back and gingerly placing them in her bag. Scanning the area for more, Applebloom's ears twitched as she could have sworn she heard her name being called. Of course, thinking nopony would be nearby, she ignored it. That was until she turned to see a white and black shape flying through the air toward her. In moments, Trader landed in front of her, a look of relief washing over his face. “Applebloom, there you are,” the pegasus said happily. But in a matter of moments, his expression changed into one the filly recognized as one worn when she was about to be scolded. “What are you doing out here? Do you have any idea how worried your sister is? Everypony has been out looking for you.” “W-what?” Applebloom questioned, unaware of what had been going on back in town. Her eyes then looked up to take her first clear look at the sky, seeing how late it was. “Oh... Ah'm sorry... Ah didn't mean to be out here for so long, Ah guess Ah just lost track of time...” Though he should be more upset, ready to scold her further for what she had caused. But the pegasus just didn't have it in him, mostly just being glad that the filly was safe and sound. Taking a deep breath, he stood there and calmly asked, “Why are you even out here?” Applebloom did little to hide the look of reluctance on her face, eyes shifting to the saddlebags she wore. “Ah was lookin' for flowers,” she admitted, realizing that she wouldn't be able to get out of telling him. Opening the bag up, they could see the different colorful plants. “We were gonna give them to Applejack for you so she wouldn't be mad and you wouldn't have to leave...” “What?” Trader murmured, staring at the filly in confusion. “That's why... Applebloom, thanks but... that's not how it works.” Taking a step toward her, he held out his hoof. “Come on, we need to get back to town.” Frowning, Applebloom took an immediate step back, shaking her head. “No,” she said defiantly. “Ah won't go unless you promise to talk to Applejack and not leave Ponyville!” “Applebloom,” Trader said, becoming stern now. “This isn't the time or the place to argue about this. Everypony is worried sick and it's dangerous out here.” “Ah said no!” she shouted, taking another step back, forgetting about the cliff behind her. Applebloom's hoof slipped, the filly falling backward as she cried out in a startled gasp. Before Trader could even blink she was gone, fallen off the side. Without wasting a moment, he dove after her, wings out and flapping hard. Flying faster than she was falling, he managed to catch up in an instant, grabbing onto her Though saved, it did nothing to stop Applebloom's panic. Eyes still wide and fearful, heart beating powerfully, her hooves continued to flail wildly. One swung up and struck the base of Trader's right wing. The pegasus grunted in pain as the feathered appendage suddenly locked up, unable to flap with the other. They plummeted like stones, the ground rushing toward them at great speeds. With only a few split-seconds to think, the stallion wrapped his legs tightly around the filly and pressed her to his chest. Doing the best he could, he managed to turn himself in mid-air, so his own back faced the ground and keeping her away from it. His eyes shut tight as he knew their landing was coming, only able to hear Applebloom's screams, then feeling the sudden jolt of agony as they struck the forest floor.