//------------------------------//
// From Shame to Glory 
// Story: Apples Don't Fall Far from the Tree 
// by BronyDad 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 6


From Shame to Glory
                                                     

Apple Bloom slowly made her way to the picnic table as the other foals prepared for their lunch.  As she drew near, her eyes landed on the empty space on the bench beside Sweetie Belle.  She took a deep breath and silently recited her apology.  	

The decision to make up with Sweetie Belle had been a long time coming, and had dominated the first half of Apple Bloom's day.  	

Apple Bloom had awoken with a sense of purpose, and had risen and began her chores before the rooster had crowed.  While she poured the seeds for the chickens and filled the trough for the pigs, Apple Bloom's mind had continuously returned to Sweetie Belle, despite her best efforts to prevent it.  Soon, she was finding it more and more difficult to find reasons to stay mad at the young Unicorn.       

About a half hour after Apple Bloom had started her chores, Big McIntosh had come out and distracted her from her thoughts.  It wasn't long before the two of them were in a heated argument.  

Apple Bloom wanted to do all her chores, as well as take on all of Applejack's, but Big McIntosh wouldn't let her.  She then pointed out that he was working too hard, and that she deserved more responsibility, but he disagreed.  After several minutes of this, Big McIntosh had lost his temper and begun to yell, and that's when Apple Bloom had leaped forward and embraced him.

Stunned, Big McIntosh had trailed off in mid-sentence as Apple Bloom told him that she was worried about him.  She said that it was time for her to step up and be an Apple, that she needed to take Applejack's place and help keep the farm running.  She told him that he couldn't do it all on his own, and that she would always be there to share the burden.

When she had released him, she had been surprised to see her older brother's eyes brimming with tears.  

Blinking them away, Big McIntosh had smiled and ruffled her mane.  "It's just like Pa always used to say.  'Apples don't fall far from the tree,' and I reckon he was right."

Apple Bloom had felt a surge of pride as she watched her brother head back inside, understanding that she had just gotten what she had wanted.  

She had swiftly returned to her chores, more determined than ever to do her part on the farm, but thoughts of Sweetie Belle kept invading.  They had done so many crazy things together, and had shared so many fun memories.  Could their friendship really be over?  Before she knew it, it was time for school, and Apple Bloom had headed for class full of doubt. 

The first thing she had noticed upon entering the schoolhouse was that Sweetie Belle lowered her head to the desk and stared at the floor.  She swallowed hard, and then returned Scootaloo's enthusiastic wave before making her way to her desk.  As she crossed the room, Silver Spoon had caught her eye and gave her a small wave as well before returning to her conversation with Diamond Tiara.  

Just as she had the day before, Apple Bloom completely ignored Sweetie Belle as she sat down, but this time, she had felt a stab of remorse as she watched her friend's sad features out of the corner of her eye.

Why was she still mad at Sweetie Belle anyway?  Was what she did really that terrible?

Apple Bloom had spent Cheerilee's entire lecture thinking back to the night of the accident.  It had been dark and the rain had been falling in sheets, and Apple Bloom realized now that they would have definitely gotten lost within the forest.  She knew that Sweetie Belle had saved them from making a huge mistake, and that she really had done it because they were friends.

So why couldn't she tell Sweetie Belle that she was sorry?

Apple Bloom slowly came to realize that there wasn't any reason, and that the only thing holding her back was herself.  

Now, she shot Scootaloo a small smile as she approached the picnic table and took a seat right next to a surprised Sweetie Belle.  As she watched her friend remove the bow from her paper bag and eat the small piece of parsley that Rarity always placed inside, Apple Bloom suddenly realized that the apology that she had prepared was insufficient.  

Silently opening her own lunch as Scootaloo gazed at her expectantly, Apple Bloom desperately tried to think of something, anything, that she could say.

Without warning, Sweetie Belle quietly said, "I've missed you."

At that very moment, Apple Bloom felt like the most despicable pony in Equestria.  "I know."

Sweetie Belle looked at Apple Bloom hopefully.  "Can...we be friends again?"

Upon hearing the plea in Sweetie Belle's voice, Apple Bloom found that she couldn't speak.  Instead, her mind went back to the talk she'd had with Scootaloo the previous afternoon.  

Scootaloo had made the comment that they had been best friends, and something like this shouldn't have ruined that.  Apple Bloom then thought back to Scootaloo accusing her of betraying Sweetie Belle, and realized that she was right.       

Filled with guilt, Apple Bloom had turned on Sweetie Belle, and as a result, she had hurt her friend considerably.  Worse, she had then treated her with disrespect and loathing, and had even refused the lunch she had offered as if it had meant nothing.

Suddenly, Apple Bloom knew that she couldn't make up with Sweetie Belle, not because she was still angry, but because she now understood that she had never deserved to have such a special friend.

Overwhelmed with regret and grief, Apple Bloom stammered, "I-I..."  Without warning, she burst into tears, fled the table, and ran back toward the schoolhouse.

As she barged into the classroom, a startled Cheerilee set her lunch aside and approached her.  "Apple Bloom, what's wrong?"

Sobbing, Apple Bloom just shook her head.

"Is it about Sweetie Belle?" Cheerilee inquired.  After Apple Bloom nodded, she added, "You know, I had a long talk with her yesterday after school."  She gathered several tissues from her desk and offered them to her.  "I really think you two need to sit down and talk."	

"I...I can't," Apple Bloom gasped as she accepted the tissues.

Cheerilee rubbed the young filly's back reassuringly.  "I know that it's hard to deal with these conflicting emotions, but sometimes you have to.  The longer you wait, the worse it will get.  It's best to get it over with as quickly as possible."

Waiting for Apple Bloom to get herself under control and seated, Cheerilee called the rest of the foals inside to resume class.  When Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle entered, she saw their confused expressions, but refused to meet their gazes.

For the rest of Cheerilee's lecture, Apple Bloom dwelled on the newfound knowledge that she was a horrible friend.  Sweetie Belle deserved much better than she, she deserved somepony who wouldn't turn on her the instant that something went wrong.

Once class had ended, Apple Bloom left the schoolhouse without a single word and trotted off toward home.  

Suddenly, Scootaloo bolted out in front of her and asked, "Apple Bloom, what's wrong?"

"I don't want to talk about it," she replied gloomily as she began walking once more.

Walking backward, Scootaloo glanced around Apple Bloom.  "Well, would you mind if Sweetie Belle and I came up to the farm with you?"

Apple Bloom shook her head.  "I want you to stay with her, Scoot.  You're the kind of friend she deserves, a real friend.  I don't deserve either of you."

"Apple Bloom..."  Scootaloo trailed off as her friend trotted away, leaving her to exchange worried looks with Sweetie Belle.

As soon as Apple Bloom arrived on the farm, she immediately went to work on her chores.  For the next several hours, she focused solely on her work, losing herself in the mundane tasks.  

Finishing in the stables, Apple Bloom was stepping outside when she caught sight of Rarity.  Wondering what she was doing on the farm, Apple Bloom hid behind a tree as the Unicorn approached Big McIntosh.  

"Hello, Big McIntosh," Rarity greeted pleasantly.  "I was hoping to have a word with you." 

Carefully placing several barrels around one of the zap apple trees, Big McIntosh stated, "I'm a mite busy preparing for the zap apples."  He turned to her and wiped the sweat from his brow.  "But I can spare a minute."

Rarity smiled her thanks.  "I wanted to speak to you about Apple Bloom."

"What about her," Big McIntosh asked, suddenly sounding defensive.

"Well...I'm sure you're aware of her fight with Sweetie Belle," Rarity replied.  "And I'm positive that you agree that she made the right decision by telling you of Apple Bloom's intentions."  

"Eeyup," Big McIntosh agreed.

Suddenly looking less sure of herself, Rarity continued.  "Sweetie Belle has been an absolute wreck since that dreadful accident, and I was hoping that you could get Apple Bloom to visit my shop and talk to her."

"And how exactly am I suppose to do that?" Big McIntosh inquired, beginning to grow annoyed.

"I don't know, you're her big brother," Rarity answered.  "Talk some sense into her.  She'll listen to you."

"Ya know," Big McIntosh retorted angrily.  "I don't really appreciate you comin' up here and tryin' to tell me how to run the family.  Why don't you just mind your own business."

Seemingly hurt by his words, Rarity slowly retreated.  "Of course."  She turned away and glanced over her shoulder at him.  "I can't even imagine what it must be like for your family right now.  I just thought that it would be best for Apple Bloom if she had all of her friends to comfort her."

As she began to walk away, Big McIntosh relented.  "You're right, Rarity.  I'm sorry I snapped at you."	

Rarity flipped her mane and favored him with a beautiful smile.  "Oh, there's no need to apologize.  I understand that you've been under a lot of stress."  

"I'll have a talk with her and see if I can't get her to stop by your place this evening," Big McIntosh promised.

"Thank you ever so much, darling," Rarity replied.  As she started back the way she had come, she added, "Please give my best regards to Granny Smith."  

As Big McIntosh turned back to his work, Apple Bloom stepped out from behind the tree.  "Apple Bloom," he said sternly, "were you eavesdropping?"

"Sort of...yeah," Apple Bloom replied, lowering her gaze to the ground.  She knew that Big McIntosh felt that it was dishonest to listen in on other pony's conversations, and it was a surefire way to anger him.

Instead of reprimanding her, however, he stated, "Then you know why you need to go to Rarity's place."

"Yeah..." Apple Bloom said gloomily, "but I really don't want to."

"Well, you need to," Big McIntosh told her.  "It's the right thing to do.  Sweetie Belle has always been a good friend to you.  You owe it to her."

Apple Bloom poked at the dirt with her hoof.  "I know..."

"Go on inside and eat your supper," Big McIntosh commanded, "and you can head on over there when you're done."	

Downhearted, Apple Bloom returned to the farmhouse and entered the kitchen.  With a small smile, she accepted her food from Granny Smith, then left her to her work and slowly ate her meal.  

Finished, she reluctantly left the farm and made her way to the Carousel Boutique. 

She really wasn't looking forward to this.  How was she supposed to face Sweetie Belle after everything that she had done?  More than anything, she wished that she could run away and hide, but knew that this had to be done.

Coming to a halt on the bridge, Apple Bloom looked over its edge at her reflection below.  

What happened to me, Apple Bloom wondered as she studied her features mirrored on the water's surface.  When did I become so horrible?

With a loud sigh, Apple Bloom continued toward the shop.  For several minutes, she stood and simply stared at the door, dreading what awaited her inside.  Finally, taking a deep, shaky breath, she pushed it open and entered.

Inside, she found Rarity and Fluttershy with their backs to the door, talking quietly.

Approaching the two of them, she heard Rarity say, "I do hope she will listen to you.  She hasn't listened to anypony else."

"Don't worry, she will," Fluttershy assured her.

"Um, hello," Apple Bloom hesitantly said.

With a start, the two ponies whipped around and seemed relieved to see it was her.  "Oh, Apple Bloom!" Rarity exclaimed.  "You frightened us!  I didn't expect you until later."

"Sorry."  Apple Bloom grinned sheepishly.

"Don't be, darling."  Rarity smiled as she pointed a hoof toward the kitchen.  "Sweetie Belle isn't here just yet.  Why don't we get you something to drink while we wait?"

With a shrug, Apple Bloom followed Rarity into the kitchen, but was startled when somepony suddenly said, "Hey, Rare, Twilight said you had something you wanted to talk to me about."

Surprised, the two of them turned to find Rainbow Dash hovering outside of Rarity's window.  "Uh...w...why yes," Rarity stammered.  "Won't you come inside?"

"Just make it quick," Rainbow Dash replied, climbing in through the window.  "I just finished a quick meal and I wanna get back out over the Everfree."

As she emerged from the window, Rainbow Dash stepped lightly on the table, and knocked over a vase of flowers before dropping to the floor.

Rarity rolled her eyes.  "Heaven forbid you use the front door like any other pony."	

"What's up?" Rainbow Dash inquired.

"I'm just worried about something," Rarity said with an uneasy smile.  "Would you mind stepping out here with me?"

Rainbow Dash cocked an eyebrow.  "Sure..."

Having no idea what was going on, Apple Bloom followed the two mares back out into the shop.  

"Fluttershy?"  Rainbow Dash paused in confusion.  "What are you doing here?" 

"I'm here to talk to you," Fluttershy answered softly.

Clearly annoyed, Rainbow Dash threw Rarity a dirty look.  

Rarity flipped her mane indignantly.  "We're worried for you and you won't listen to us.  What were we supposed to do?"

"You need to rest, Rainbow," Fluttershy stated.  "You've barely slept in the last three nights.  It's not healthy."

"There's no time, Fluttershy," Rainbow Dash argued.  "Applejack needs my help.  I can't just leave her out there."

Fluttershy straightened her back and raised her head slightly.  "You're not abandoning Applejack by taking a few hours rest."  Meeting her friend's gaze, she added, "And you know Applejack would never want you to search until you dropped from exhaustion."

With a snort of irritation, Rainbow Dash leaned forward.  "I get that you're all worried about me, and I appreciate it, but I need to get back out there."  She gently pushed Fluttershy out of her way.  "Now."

Rainbow Dash started forward, but came to a hesitant halt as Fluttershy sidestepped to block her path.

Studying the shy Pegasus's stance and the gleam in her eye, Apple Bloom recognized the stern pony that she and her friends had learned to obey.

Fluttershy stomped a hoof on the floor and glared at her friend.  "Now you listen here, Rainbow Dash.  I've had enough of this foolishness.  You are going to listen to what I have to say."  With a commanding tone, she concluded, "So sit down!"

Blinking, Rainbow Dash sat down obediently.

"You have to rest, Rainbow.  You won't do anypony any good if you get hurt or make yourself sick," Fluttershy said firmly.  "Your friends only want what's best for you, so I suggest that you listen to them."

"But-" Rainbow Dash began.

"No buts," Fluttershy quickly countered.  "Now, Rarity has prepared the bed in her inspiration room for you, and you are going to march right on in there and get some sleep."

"There's too much on my mind, Fluttershy," Rainbow Dash contested.  "I can't just go to sleep."

"We've got that covered," Fluttershy said with a sly smile.  Holding out her hoof, she accepted a book that Rarity had pulled out of a nearby drawer.  "This is the Daring Do book Twilight said you're currently reading.  You are going to lie down, and I'm going to read to you."

"Seriously?" Rainbow Dash asked, sounding embarrassed.

"Seriously," Fluttershy confirmed sternly.  Waving her toward the inspiration room, she ordered, "Get in bed."

Still looking shocked, Rainbow Dash stood up and disappeared through the doorway.  Fluttershy turned to Rarity and smiled triumphantly.  "I told you she'd listen to me," she said before shutting the door behind her.

"Oh, thank goodness," Rarity commented.  "I feel so much better knowing that Rainbow is getting some rest."  She gave Apple Bloom a small smile.  "I'm sorry, Apple Bloom.  I meant to spare you that confrontation, but that lout Rainbow Dash just had to come in through the window."

Staring at the closed door, Apple Bloom said quietly, "She's trying so hard..."

Rarity tenderly stroked Apple Bloom' mane.  "She knows that Applejack would do the same for her.  We all do."  She gazed out the window toward the distant trees.  "I'd be out there searching as well, if I didn't think that I would get hopelessly lost.  Then what would Sweetie Belle do?"

Apple Bloom's ears drooped at Rarity's words.  She could see how worried Rarity was for her sister, and it made her feel awful.  Suddenly, she had a crazy urge to just run, to gallop out of the store, straight back to the farm and never show her face in town again.

Without warning, the shop door opened and she heard Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo say together, "Apple Bloom?"

Swallowing hard, Apple Bloom turned to face her friends.

Just then, the door to the inspiration room swung open and Fluttershy stepped out.  "She's already asleep," she announced with a smile.  As she closed the door, Apple Bloom heard Rainbow Dash's loud snoring emit from the room.

"Fluttershy, why don't you and I take a little walk outside?" Rarity suggested as she hastily led her friend toward the door.   

Watching Sweetie Belle approach, Apple Bloom's heart began to race and she felt as though she couldn't breathe.  What was she going to say?

"What are you doing here?" Sweetie Belle asked, her head cocked to one side.

"Your sister convinced me into coming here...to talk to you," Apple Bloom told her.

Suddenly, as if a dam had broken, all of Sweetie Belle's thoughts and emotions came pouring out.  "Apple Bloom, I'm so sorry that I upset you.  I was only trying to protect you from yourself.  I know that you feel betrayed because I went and got Big Mac, and maybe you should, but I love you.  You're my best friend.  How could I live with myself if I had let you go into the Everfree Forest and get lost, or hurt, or worse?  And now I'm worried about you.  Your sister is gone, and I know that you blame yourself, but I can't help because you keep pushing me away.  But...but you need me, Apple Bloom."

Apple Bloom felt as though somepony had just ripped her heart out of her chest, threw it on the ground, and was in the process of stomping on it.  The pain inside was so unbearable, her chest felt so constricted, that she feared she would stop breathing.

"You're right, Sweetie Belle," Apple Bloom replied after a long moment.  "I do need you...but I don't deserve you."

Sweetie Belle shared a look with Scootaloo.  "Huh?"

"Scootaloo was right.  You haven't betrayed me.  I've betrayed you."

"What? No!" Scootaloo exclaimed, dismayed.  "I didn't mean that...I was just upset."

Apple Bloom shook her head.  "It doesn't matter, it's the truth.  I've been treating you terribly, Sweetie Belle.  All you've done was show me love and support, and I hated you for it."

"It's all right, Apple Bloom," Sweetie Belle assured her hurriedly.  "You have a lot going on.  What you did is totally understandable."

"No, it's not," Apple Bloom retorted, closing her eyes and fighting back the tears.  How could she make them understand?  They were better off without her.  

"Apple Bloom..." Scootaloo began.

"I have to go," Apple Bloom blurted out abruptly.  "Just...just stay away from me.  It's for the best, for both of you."  Seeing that her former friends were about to speak, she quickly cut them off.  "Don't come up to the farm anymore, you're not welcome there.  Neither of you."

Before they could utter another word, Apple Bloom pushed past them and bolted out of the shop.  As soon as she was outside, her emotions overwhelmed her and she started to sob.  

"Oh my.."  Rarity sighed.  "That didn't go well at all."  She paused long enough to give Apple Bloom a quick hug, and then hurried into her shop, calling for Sweetie Belle. 	

Fluttershy knelt down in front of her.  "Would you like to talk about it?"  When Apple Bloom simply shook her head, Fluttershy said, "Well, I'm on my way home too.  So I'll walk with you that far.

Wordlessly, Apple Bloom trotted side by side with Fluttershy, but after a moment, she mumbled, "I'm nothing but a phony pony."

"What?"  Fluttershy gasped.  "Why would you say that?"

Even though she had thought that she didn't want to talk about her feelings, as she looked up at Fluttershy's kind expression, she suddenly realized that she needed to let them out.

"I always counted Sweetie Belle as one of my best friends," Apple Bloom explained.  "But as soon as something bad happened, I turned on her.  I wasn't the friend that I thought I was.  She deserves a better friend than me."

Fluttershy smiled sweetly at her.  "You know, when I was in Summer Flight Camp, I never understood why Rainbow Dash stood up for me.  I couldn't figure out what I had done to deserve such a friend.  And when I first moved to Ponyville, I found the town and all it's ponyfolk very intimidating, but Rarity took a liking to me for some reason and let me help her with her work.  That always helped me relax.  I never actually did anything to deserve either of them, but they both came to me when I needed them, and offered me friendship.    

"And that's what makes friendship so wonderful.  It's not about what you deserve, it's about what others are willing to give.  It doesn't matter if you think that you're a 'phony pony,' if your friends believe in you and love you, how bad can you be?  Rarity and Rainbow both could have chosen to make friends with somepony that wasn't afraid of her own shadow.  Somepony much less difficult to deal with, but they chose me.  And because of that, I love them fiercely and would do anything for them." 

Apple Bloom found that she couldn't speak around the lump in her throat.  Was Fluttershy right?  Was that really how friendship worked?  Had she been wrong all along?

"Sweetie Belle loves you, as much as I love my friends," Fluttershy concluded.  "And that love isn't going to just go away because you think you don't deserve it."

Unsure what to think, Apple Bloom said, "But Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo will be better off without me.  All I've done over the last three days was hurt them."

"I know that feeling."  Fluttershy nodded.  "When we had to climb that mountain in order to wake up that sleeping dragon, I was nothing but a liability.  All I did was frustrate my friends and slow them down, and I believed that they would be better off without me.  But I stuck with them, against my better judgment, and in the end, I proved to myself that I was wrong."  Winking at Apple Bloom, she added, "And if you stick with your friends, I just know that you'll prove yourself wrong as well."

"You really think so?" Apple Bloom asked softly.

"I do," Fluttershy confirmed with a bright smile.

"Wow."  Apple Bloom shook her head.  "I've really been stupid lately."

"Not stupid," Fluttershy said with a small chuckle.  "Let's just say silly."  Coming to a halt, she nuzzled Apple Bloom's cheek.  "And anyway, you were hurting.  We ponies tend to do some pretty silly things when we hurt."

Deeply touched by Fluttershy's words, Apple Bloom embraced the Pegasus as her eyes welled up with tears.  "Thank you, Fluttershy.  I can see now just how wrong I was.  From now on, I'm going to try to be as good of a friend as you are."

Fluttershy's face slowly turned red.  "I'm glad I could help."

When they arrived at Fluttershy's cottage, Apple Bloom gave her another hug.   With a smile and a wave, she continued on to Sweet Apple Acres alone.

As she trotted along, she thought about what she would say to her friends.  

She couldn't wait to apologize to them so things could go back to the way they were before the accident, but unfortunately, it had to wait.  There was just too much that they needed to do to prepare for the arrival of the zap apples, especially now that Applejack wasn't with them.  She simply couldn't spare the time to talk to her friends.

I'll go talk to them tomorrow.  As soon as the zap apples disappear.

By the time she had reached the farm, the sun was descending behind the distant trees, and looking around, she spotted Big McIntosh and Granny Smith both standing near the zap apple trees.

Big McIntosh waved her over.  "It's time for the fourth sign!" he hollered.

As if on cue, a large meteor shower abruptly appeared directly overhead.  

Watching as hundreds of shooting stars streaked by, Apple Bloom couldn't help but smile.  Feeling as though her spirits were up there soaring with the stars, she suddenly felt certain that, somehow, everything was going to work out.     	    

Without warning, the blue, star-shaped flowers began to pulse with energy.  Stepping back as small arcs of lightning began sparking from the flowers, Apple Bloom gazed on in awe as they all simultaneously imploded, and left large, gray squarish apples in their wake.

After the meteor shower had faded from view, Big McIntosh turned to her.  "Do you need to talk to Granny Smith or me about anything?"

"Nope," Apple Bloom answered with a wide grin, feeling better than she had all week.

Big McIntosh ruffled her mane.  "That's great, now get on inside and get ready for bed.  We've got  a busy day tomorrow, so you're gonna need your rest."

As she headed up to the farmhouse, Apple Bloom's thoughts strayed to her sister, and she hoped with all her might that she was doing all right without them.