//------------------------------// // Impossible // Story: Just This Once // by PropheticProse //------------------------------// Impossible “Thanks again, Twi. Ah can’t tell ya how grateful Ah am that yer doin’ this fer me.” said a smiling Applejack as she unhooked herself from a cart full of buckets of freshly bucked apples. She leaned down and opened the door to her apple cellar with her teeth before turning to her unicorn friend once again: “Ah’d tell her ‘bout all o’ this mahself, but Ah just can’t get away from the farm today--not with all that’s been goin’ on.” “I understand completely, Applejack. Your family needs you, and we all know how important it is to you to be there for them.” said Twilight Sparkle with a warm smile on her face, understanding as always. As she used her magic to empty the buckets of apples one by one into the cellar, she continued by saying “No doubt Pinkie’s probably going to be a little sad that you can’t make it, but once I explain to her and the others what’s going on, I’m sure they’ll all understand.” “Ah hope so. And again, Ah really can’t thank ya enough.” Applejack responded with a warm, grateful smile on her face. She really hated that she was going to be missing Pinkie Pie’s party, especially considering this one was the anniversary of Pinkie moving in with the Cakes and getting her job at Sugar Corner. It was a really big deal to Pinkie, and AJ wanted so badly to be there for her, but the timing was terrible, as her whole family was really counting on her to almost single hoofedly keep Sweet Apple Acres running for the next few weeks, if not more so. “No need, Applejack. Really, it’s no trouble.” Twilight said just before emptying the contents of the last bucket into the apple cellar. Once that was done, she placed the now empty bucket into the cart with the others. “Anyways, I guess now would be a good time to get going. Pinkie wants as much help as possible setting up for this party, and since the rest of our friends will be there, too, that should be the perfect time to let them know you won’t be able to make it.” Applejack nodded in agreement. “Sounds good. Have a good time at the party, Twilight. An’ give Pinkie ‘n’ the Cakes mah best wishes, would ya?” she humbly asks, taking off her treasured Stetson and holding it over her heart as she makes the request. “Of course. And you take it easy. We wouldn’t want a repeat of that one Applebuck Season, now would we?” Twilight asked with a giggle. With that being said, she waved goodbye to AJ and headed back the way she came, treading the same path between Ponyville and Sweet Apple Acres that she had plenty of times in the several months she had been here. Applejack smiled sadly as she watched Twilight leave. She really did want to go to Sugar Cube Corner and help her friends set up for Pinkie’s party, but this time, it just wasn’t an option. Even if all of her friends were available to help her today, she still would have had too much work to do today. If only Big Macintosh wasn’t out of commission for the next month or so… “Applejack!! Hey, Applejack!!” The orange farm pony was suddenly snapped out of her thoughts when a familiar voice started calling to her from a distance. She couldn’t make out the exact face of the pony calling her, but she could clearly see a pale yellow coat, ruby red mane and rose colored bow coming towards her as fast as possible. At first, Applejack was surprised to see her little sister already, but looking up at the sky, she could see that it was somewhere around 3:30 in the afternoon judging by the position of the sun. School must have already ended for the day. Still, though, Apple Bloom would usually be with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo heading towards the treehouse at this time if they decided to come anywhere near the farm this early, and AJ could clearly see that her sister was alone. Was something wrong with her friends? Were they not having their usual Crusaders meeting today? With Applejack standing still as she thought about all of this, Apple Bloom was given ample time to run over to her, and when she did finally reach her, she came to an abrupt stop right in front of her older sister. “Ah’m glad yer still here. A mail pony came by ‘n’ asked me ta give somethin’ to ya.” Oh, so that’s what it was. Yeah, Apple Bloom would get excited over getting a task like that. The youngest Apple liked to do a good job at everything she was asked to do--mostly in the hope that it might earn her a cutie mark. Thinking about all of this was enough to calm AJ down slightly, though not enough to dispel her curiosity about the whereabouts of the remaining Cutie Mark Crusaders. “Oh, alright, then. Let’s see it.” said the second eldest Apple sibling with a smile on her face. Apple Bloom happily nodded and reached into the saddlebag she brought with her to school every day, managing to pull out what seemed to be a postcard. AJ took it and was about to examine it further, but seeing the sudden sadness in Apple Bloom’s face took her attention away from that almost immediately. “What’s wrong, sis?” “Umm...well...Ah was wonderin’... Ah was gonna head back to town to find Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo after Ah gave ya that postcard, but...since Ah’m here anyways…” Apple Bloom trailed off and stared at the ground under her hooves, almost as if she was afraid to ask her question. Applejack smiled and gently patted her little sister on the head. “It’s ok, Apple Bloom. Go on ‘n’ ask me what ya wanna ask me. It’s alright.” she insisted, not wanting her sister to think she had to hide anything from her. After hearing those words, Apple Bloom sighed and tried one more time, this time managing to finally get her point across now: “Since Ah’m home anyway, could Ah maybe see Big Macintosh now? Ah promise not ta cry this time, honest!” Hearing those words managed to catch Applejack off guard, causing a slight pain in her heart as she remembered her injured brother. Looking towards the house where Big Mac was resting, she remembered when Apple Bloom had gone to see him the other day and ended up running out of the room with tears in her eyes. The injury wasn’t anything Big Macintosh wasn’t used to, and Apple Bloom had seen him both walk around and lay in bed while recovering from pulling a muscle or two in his back before. What caused the tears was being there when her brother hurt himself, seeing him actually fall to the ground in pain and being the one to run off and find him some help. She had never actually witnessed any physical harm come to either of her siblings, and seeing Big Mac of all ponies get hurt was a little too much for her to wrap her mind around at the time. Not that the filly had ever admitted such a thing to anyone, but her big sister had been through those same emotions before, both on the same level and levels much more intense than that. Thinking it over, Applejack eventually smiled and turned back to face her sister so she could nod at her. “Ok. Go on ahead ‘n’ say hi ta ‘im. Ah’m sure ya can handle yerself this time.” she said, thinking Apple Bloom must have had plenty of time to recover and accept what had happened by now. It had already been two days since it happened, so surely, the filly was ready this time. An ecstatic grin crossed Apple Bloom’s face, and she showed her gratitude to Applejack by hugging her and simply telling her “Thanks, sis!” before taking off towards the farmhouse. In her excitement, she tripped in the middle of her run, but she simply got up, shook it off and started running again. The determination of the Apple bloodline was showing more and more in her everyday. Applejack chuckled a bit as she watched her sister leave, then looked at the postcard she gave her. The smile immediately dropped from the mare’s face, though, as she realized the card was from Galloping Gorge. “Granny…” Immediately following her realization, Applejack headed inside the house as well, waiting until she knew Apple Bloom was upstairs before looking at the other side of the postcard and reading the message on the other side: ----- “Dear Applejack, Just sending this to let you know Zecora and I got to Galloping Gorge in once piece. Basically, this is to tell you to not be a worry whale and concentrate on taking care of your siblings. We’re doing fine, and I’ll send you a letter or another postcard once your cousin is feeling better and we’re on our way home. I’m not sure how long that’s going to take, but in the meantime, please don’t worry. I promised you everything would be ok, and you of all ponies oughta know you can hold an Apple to her word. Love always, Granny Smith.” ----- Reading this message from Granny made Applejack roll her eyes a few times, but it also made her chuckle and feel better. She had to admit she had been worried since finding out her dear cousin, Curly Cobbler, had fallen sick with an illness that no doctor in her town could cure. She thought her worries would be put to rest when she got Zecora to agree to go to Galloping Gorge to see what she could do, but when Granny Smith said she was going with Zecora to Galloping Gorge and wouldn’t let AJ go since someone needed to stay and take care of Big Macintosh, the freckled farm pony’s concern only doubled from what it was before. This message seemed to help her feel much better, though...at least until she got to the last part of the message: ----- “P.S.: Remember what your mom always used to tell you about what to do in times of trouble and doubt? Just keep that in mind, ok? Something tells me that advice is gonna be really useful to you in these next few weeks.” ----- That was enough to practically make Applejack’s heart stop. She certainly did remember those words of advice her mother had given her all those years ago--it was just such a shock to her or those words mentioned again after all this time. Thinking about Honey Blossom, her, Big Mac and Apple Bloom's mother, was usually too much for her to handle, so she did her best not to, especially when she had something important to do. "Looks like Ah've got no choice but ta think of ya now, huh Momma?" With that thought, Applejack sighed and stood up from the couch, placing the postcard under her hat. That would be the safest possible place for it until she got up to her bedroom. Walking up the stairs, those words, the last words she remembered her mother saying to her and only her with that warm, loving smile on her face, echoed in her mind louder than any echo that had ever bounced off the stone walls of Ghastly Gorge. "In times of trouble and doubt, the best thing you can do is keep your mind and your heart open to all possibilities." Thinking about those words actually made Applejack chuckle as she remembered everything she had been through. It was funny because she hadn't really taken that advice to heart until a certain Applebuck Season came about. The first Applebuck Season with Twilight in town. Before then, she had been so used to taking on more responsibility than most ponies were able to; she had to if she was going to help take care of her family, after all. That day she finally realized she couldn't handle harvesting all of those apples by herself, though, she looked up at Twilight and, for a brief moment, she saw her mother's concerned face looking down at her instead of her unicorn friend's. That's when the advice finally clicked, and she learned it was ok to accept outside help. Opening her mind and heart to the idea that her new friends could and happily would help her was one of the best decisions she had ever made. That was actually a very fond memory for Applejack, but as she looked up and realized she had made it to her room, she sighed and opened the door. "This ain't the same, though, Granny... Ah probably will need help...but it's help that'll require me lettin' somepony in more than Ah'm ready to..." she murmured to herself, staring at the hardwood floor beneath her gives as she walked across her room. She thought off all of her friends, knowing she lived each of them dearly--just not enough to let her see a slightly more...emotional side of herself. After all, this wasn't just about the fieldwork this time. The blonde farm pony stopped in front of her nightstand and shook her head. "No. This is a little too much to get even mah friends involved in. Ah'll just have ta handle this on mah own..." As she said that, she took off her hat and reached inside to grab the postcard. Reading Granny Smith's words once again made her smile just a bit. "... As much as Ah can, anyway..." she murmured before opening the drawer of the nightstand next to her bed. She could see some of the other items inside, and looking at them for even a moment was enough to almost make her cry. Before she could get a good look at the contents of the drawer, she put the postcard inside and shoved it closed. She was already feeling a little too emotional at the moment without looking inside that drawer. A knock at the door snapped Applejack clean out of her thoughts. After shaking her head and wiping away the tears she felt staring to form, she took a deep breath and went over to the door, opening it to see none other than Apple Bloom. "Oh, hey, sis. How's Big Mac?" she asked, feeling grateful that she had managed to keep her voice steady and smile as if she was perfectly fine. Seeing both of her older siblings in an especially vulnerable state might end up being too much for the youngest Apple to take. "He says he's feelin' better. He tried to get outta bed to get himself a snack, but Ah got him ta stay put by tellin' him that Ah really wanted ta take care o' it mahself." Apple Bloom said, smiling proudly at the fact that she had gotten her brother to stay in bed and risk hurting himself more. AJ had to admit that was an impressive feat. Everypony in this family was awfully stubborn (she was willing to openly admit that about herself now), so hearing that her little sister got Big Macintosh to change his mind with hardly any struggle was enough to make the freckle-faced farmer proud. There was one thing she had to ask, though. "Ah see... And Ah'm sure ya told him all 'bout how yer supposed ta be meetin' yer friends in a few minutes, right?" That question caught Apple Bloom off guard, and almost immediately afterwords, she stared down at the floor and started shuffling her hooves a bit. "Uhh...well..." "Ah'll take that as a no." Applejack said with a chuckle before patting her sister on the head. "You go on 'n' have fun with yer friends, Apple Bloom. They're probably worried sick 'bout ya by now. Ah'll go fix Big Mac somethin' ta eat." "Ya mean it?" Apple Bloom's question was clearly rhetorical, for she didn't even wait for an answer before jumping onto her sister so she could give her a hug. "Thanks so much, big sis! Ah don't know what we'd do without ya!" And with that, she released her older sister, waved goodbye and ran off to find her Crusader friends. Applejack smiled and waved goodbye as she watched her little sister run off, but once she was out of earshot, the older mare sighed and murmured to herself "Yeah...me either..." A sigh followed those words, but she shook off her uneasy feelings, just as she had been doing for years, and went downstairs to get some food for her brother. Maybe some apple fritters and milk. That was a favorite combo of his--one that had always helped him relax. As much as AJ hated to come off as too proud an individual, she had to admit that her family very heavily depended on her; Big Macintosh, Apple Bloom and even Granny Smith had admitted this on a few different occasions, so it couldn't have possibly been a lie, right? If that was the case, she really was making the right decision. She needed to remain the source of strength, comfort and reliability that she had been in the past--the main thing that had gotten her family through so many rough patches before. Opening up as much as she would need to in order to receive help would me practically abandoning that role for a while, and how could she do that at the time when her family needed her the most? Wandering into the kitchen, Applejack looked up and out the window just over the kitchen sink. She could see the sunlight peeking out from behind a few clouds, and that sunlight automatically made her think of her mother's sunshine colored mane. A deep sigh escaped her before she spoke again, this time as if she was looking straight into her mother's eyes. "Ah hate ta say it, Ma, but Ah just don't know if Ah can open up enough to let in the help Ah need at this point. Ah'll keep mahself open ta all the possibilities like ya said, but acceptin' the kind o' help Ah need this time 'round...Ah just dunno if that's possible fer me..." After that confession, AJ wiped away some tears that had welled up at the mere prospect of disappointing her late mother. She hoped deep in her heart that things would change and she really would be able to open up enough to get the help she really needed, but at that moment, as she started putting together a plate of apple fritters and a glass of milk for Big Macintosh, it just didn't seem like something she could do.