Spike stood at the foot of a hospital bed. Another child had been born. This time, it was Applejack's. The orange Earth Pony was lying in the bed holding her second child; a little filly named Apple Seed. The other members of their close-nit circle of friends and family were also present, yet no one smiled. This should have been a joyous occasion, but everypony was too preoccupied with worrying over Applejack's black eye and bruises on her face.
Her elder child, Sour Apple, didn't look too much better either. The colt stood off to the side, his body trembling. He too looked worse for wear. Dry blood covered his muzzle and he had his own shiner. His Aunt Fluttershy had taken him into her fore legs and was doing her best to console him. The members of the group didn't know what to say and stared at each other in awkward silence. Since it was the middle of the night, the other children were back at their homes asleep, but news spreads quickly in a small town like Ponyville. They would surely know what happened by the next day.
Rainbow Dash, who was one of Applejack's oldest friends, paced back and forth restlessly. She was torn between staying by her friend's side or pursuing the one responsible for her and Sour's condition. Rarity was at Applejack's side along with a heavily pregnant Pinkie Pie. Twilight Sparkle was just outside the hospital room, talking to the doctor and nurses. Spike looked up and panned around the room, making eye contact with Big Macintosh, Cheese Sandwich, Soarin, and Flash Sentry. The five males looked between each other and came to a silent agreement. One by one, they filed out of the room and out of the hospital.
Smoke rose from the slumbering dragon's nostrils. He growled at the memory and green flames seethed from his clenched fangs. There were consequences for harming his family, honorary members or otherwise.
*****
Celestia had just barely raised the sun and a bright green young stallion named Sour Apple was already up and about as per the norm at Sweet Apple Acres. Since the Apple Family were farmers, it was early to bed and early to rise for them. The stallion was walking out the barn where the cows resided with filled milk canisters.
“Have a good morning, dearie,” one of the cows called after him as the earth pony made his exit. He turned and gave them a nod before heading back to his own home. He had the typical looks of a member of the Apple Family. His coat was lime green like his late great-grandmother, Granny Smith, his eyes were orange like his Aunt Apple Bloom, and he had his mother's blond mane. His build was that of his Uncle Big Macintosh and he had a cutie mark of a dark green apple.
As he walked back to the farmhouse that was shaped like a barn, he glanced over to the east to see the sun rising over the orchard. A small smile briefly graced his lips. This was his favorite part of the day. To him, nothing was a beautiful as the sun rising over the orchard and the dew covered grass and leaves sparkling in the morning light. It was one of the few things that actually made him smile. As quickly as his smile appeared, it vanished and faded back to his typical, uninterested look.
Back in the kitchen, his mother was busy preparing breakfast. Out of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony, Applejack had definitely aged the most. That's not to say she looked old, just matured. She was still in shape and in good health. A life of bucking apple trees everyday will do that for you. However, she had a few wrinkles around her eyes and her mane had plenty of gray hairs. Unlike Rarity's, whose silver streak looked natural, her gray hairs gave her mane a weathered look. The fact she wore a tattered old Stetson probably didn't help her image as well. She had a lot of stress in her life and it was apparent in her looks.
“Good mornin', sugar cube,” she greeted her son as she saw him walk in with the fresh milk. He simply nodded in response. She internally sighed at his nonverbal greeting. He was even less talkative that her older brother. “So, what do you want for breakfast?”
Sour just shrugged dismissively, which was his way of saying “I'll have whatever you're making.” From down the hall, they could hear little hoofsteps running down the stairs and a light orange filly appeared in the kitchen a moment later.
“Good mornin' Ma, good mornin' Sour!” the cheery filly said as she made her entrance. Unlike Sour, she resembled their father more with her light orange coat and brown mane. Her green eyes, however, she inherited from her mother.
“Good morning, Apple Seed. Could you help set the table?” Applejack asked.
“Sure!” she ecclesiastically answered. In a flash, she opened the drawer containing the silverware and the cabinet with the plates and quickly prepared the table for three ponies. After finishing, she looked down to her flanks to see that they were still blank. “Shoot.”
Apple Seed was the president of the local chapter of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. After the founding members, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Babs Seed, had earned their cutie marks many years ago, they successfully formed an official organization. Though the four went on to pursue their careers, they remained the heads of the now nationwide foal organization.
Apple Seed was very much like Apple Bloom before her. She was the ringleader of the rambunctious band of blank flanks and was constantly in search of new ways to earn hers and her fellow Crusaders' cutie marks. Apparently, table setting wasn't her special talent.
“Ah was certain that if Ah did it fast enough it would work,” the disappointed ten year old filly said.
“It probably would have helped if everythin' wasn't crooked,” Applejack chuckled as she looked at the utensils and dishes that were haphazardly placed on the table. Apple Seed sheepishly grinned at her sloppy job and Sour Apple shook his head as he tidied up the scattered dishes. Once the table was presentable, Applejack served up a helping of pancakes onto each plate with a side of fresh fruit. Mealtimes were important to the Apple Family. They were opportunities for the three of them to get together and talk, or rather, for Applejack and Apple Seed to talk with an occasional grunt from Sour Apple.
“So, how did your crusadin' go yesterday?” asked Applejack.
“It was great! We helped Old Pony Jenkins cross the street!” Apple Seed reported.
“That's nice. Did anypony get their cutie marks for it?”
“No. He said he had just came from that way and had to cross it again.” Apple Seed's ears drooped and she looked down at her plate before she immediately perked back up. “But today, we're gonna get our cutie marks in archery!”
This caused Applejack to nearly choke on the juice she was drinking. She coughed and sputtered before saying, “Archery? Land sakes, Apple Seed! Where didja get the idea for somethin' like that?”
“Cherry Pie. She says she knows a colt who got his cutie mark in archery and could borrow his bow and arrows from him.”
“No. Just, no,” Applejack denied with a shake of her head.
“Aaawww, why not?” the filly moaned, disappointed.
“Remember the catapult?” Yes, she remembered the catapult incident. So did half the town for that matter. Why on earth did Cheese Sandwich lent it to a bunch of underage ponies was beyond them. At least it wasn't the Super Party Panzer 9000 that he, Pinkie, and Discord built. That was truly a dark day in Ponyville history. It made Applejack shudder just thinking about. So much frosting...
“But it'll be different this time, Ah promise!”
“No projectiles.”
“But...”
“No sharp object either.”
“Aaawww...But what are we supposed to do today then?”
“How about you and yer friends try helpin' around the farm or help Posey with her gardenin'? You're awfully good at it,” Applejack suggested, trying to give her daughter a push in the right direction. Apple Seed was rather good at gardening, but she didn't have the patience for it.
“But that easy stuff is too borin'. Ah can do that any day. Ah want a cool cutie mark, like Thunderbolt's or Evening Star's.”
“What about your Aunt Apple Bloom? She got her cutie mark for helpin' other ponies to understand their cutie marks and that was 'easy stuff' to her,” pointed out Applejack.
“How did you get yours, Ma?” Apple Seed asked while pointing to the three red apples on her mother's flank.
“Ah told ya that story, remember? It was when Ah was visitin' mah Aunt and Uncle Orange in Manehattan...”
“Were mah Pa is from,” Apple Seed innocently added. A hush fell upon the room. Sour Apple looked up from his breakfast and stared at his little sister. Applejack looked to her son and then back to her daughter before continuing.
“Um, yes...That's right,” she said uncomfortably. It was a touchy subject and she hadn't told Apple Seed all of the details yet. “Ah was in Manehattan because Ah wanted to see and try new things, but in the end, Ah realized what Ah really wanted was back here all along. So while it's important to try new things, it's important to remember to try the things you're familiar with. Understand, Apple Seed?”
“Sure, Ma,” Apple Seed nodded along. However, she was secretly hoping she could get that archery cutie mark. She then turned to her brother and asked, “When did you get your cutie mark, Sour Apple?”
“Ah got it the day you were born,” the stallion told her. Applejack snapped her head in his direction. It was rare treat to hear his voice. He hasn't said more than a few words at a time ever since that day he was eight years old; the day Apple Seed was born.
“Really? How did you get it?” Apple Seed asked curiously.
“Why don't you ask your Pa if you want to know so much!” he harshly snapped at her, causing the little filly to shrink in fear. Seeing the frightened look in his sister's face that he caused, his heart ached with a pain.
“Sour Apple!” Applejack scolded, outraged that he would yell at his little sister.
“Ah've got chores to do,” he said, dismissing himself from the table. Without another word, he exited the door and went outside.
“Sour? Sour!” she called after him to no avail. She sat back down in a huff and looked to Apple Seed, whose bottom lip was quivering while her green eyes welled up with tears. “Sugar cube, are you okay?”
“Ah've never understood why he's so...sour. And Ah've never understood why you and him get all weird when Ah ask you about mah Pa,” she whispered.
“Apple Seed,” Applejack said with a heavy sigh. “Ah think it's time Ah told you what happened on the day you were born.”
“Ma, is everythin' alright?” the filly asked worriedly from seeing her mother's distressed state. “What about Sour?”
“Everythin' is fine, sugar cube,” she reassured her with a weary smile. “Just follow me to the livin' room and let's have a seat on the couch, alright? Ah'll talk to him in a bit.”
Apple Seed nodded in response to Applejack's request and followed her to the other room. She had a feeling that whatever her mother was about to tell her wasn't going to be happy story. After she sat down on the sofa, Applejack wrapped a hoof around her shoulder and took a moment to compose herself.
“It's hard bein' the Element of Honesty sometimes,”Applejack began slowly. “Ponies always expect me to tell the hundred percent truth all the time, even when the truth can hurt at sometimes. Some say that not saying the whole truth or not sayin' anythin' at all is the same as lyin'. Ah never intended for not tellin' you what really happened for so long. Ah just didn't want you to be hurt. But Ah guess it wouldn't be fair to you if Ah never told you. Apple Seed, this isn't gonna be easy for either of us. If you don't want to...”
“No. Ah want to know,” she urged her mother to continue, but she was still scared of what she may learn. Applejack nodded and proceeded to tell her daughter the whole story of the day of her birth.
Meanwhile, Sour Apple was out in the orchard. A solid thud could be heard as he bucked a tree with his hind legs, causing the apples to fall the tree's branches and land into an awaiting basket. He grunted as he kicked another tree, it too dropping its apples. He hadn't planned on apple bucking until a little later into the morning, but Apple Seed just had to go and open her big mouth. He really did love his baby sister, but her ignorance irritated him sometimes. According to his mother, the current generation of Cutie Mark Crusaders were just as wild as the original. In their defense, Applejack said that they were just eager to find their special talents. Sour believed that they were ignorant foals that couldn't sit still long enough to see what was right in front of them.
Ma practically told her exactly what her special talent was and she didn't even notice! he thought, annoyed as he bucked another tree. He stopped to wipe the sweat from his brow. As he took a breather, he looked back to the farmhouse inside. He then remembered the look on Apple Seed's face before he had stormed out. He yelled at her. He had yelled at his little sister, the same little sister he promised himself to look after. That same uncomfortably feeling from earlier stuck his heart again and he knew it was guilt. He knew he had no right to be angry at her. She didn't know, and now he made her cry. With a frustrated shout, he bucked a tree so hard that he could feel the wood crack. A second later, there was a creaking sound and then he heard the rustling of leaves followed by a loud crash. He didn't need to turn around to know that the tree was knocked over. He was in trouble for sure, but he didn't care. He sat his haunches down on the grass as his anger continued to brew inside of him. He wasn't angry at Apple Seed. He was angry at himself for losing control, but that wasn't the main source of his rage. Instead, his anger was focused on another stallion as he thought back to that accursed night ten years ago:
An eight year old Sour Apple awoke after he heard a noise coming down the hall. Wearily, he wiped his eyes and looked around his room. From his bedroom window, he could see that the moon was still high in the night sky, indicating it was still far too early to get up. As his senses cleared, he heard the noise again. It was the sound of two ponies arguing. He couldn't hear exactly what they were saying due to the walls muffling their voices, but he could tell that it was his parents. He tried to ignore it and go back to sleep, but the sounds of his mother and father yelling at each other were too distracting.
He didn't know for how long he waited before he finally got out of bed and crept out of his room. One part of him screamed for him to return to his room and forget the whole thing, but another part pulled him down the hall towards his parents' bedroom. He just had to know what they were fighting over this time. He had a rising suspicion that it had something to do with his father staying out late almost every night. Though it was only a few feet from his own room, the walk down the hall felt like an eternity. With each step, the words of the argument became more clear.
“I don't have to take this,” a surly voice said from the other side of the door.
“Yes you do! Unless you forgot, Ah am your wife!” Sour Apple slowly pushed the cracked open door an inch to peek inside. He could see his mother speaking to his father, Cider Barrel, who had his back turned to her. He was tan Earth Pony with a brown mane and amber eyes. His cutie mark was a barrel, which represented his occupation. He had worked in a brewery in Manehattan and was introduced to Applejack by her relatives, the Oranges. Not only was he skilled in making hard ciders, but he was too fond of drinking it himself.
“I was just out having a drink,” he grumbled, barely containing his anger.
“Ah think we both know that's not the only thing you were doin' tonight,” Applejack retorted. “That's it, isn't it? You were with her.”
Cider Barrel didn't say anything to deny her claim and there was silence as Applejack looked away from her husband in disgust. Her eyes filled with tears of anger, humiliation, and heartbreak. Sour Apple didn't know all the details or who exactly “she” was, but he knew that his parents have been arguing over it for awhile now. What he knew was that “she” was supposedly an old friend of Cider's that had moved to Ponyville from Manehattan not to long ago. Apparently, the two went way back and hadn't seen each other since he married Applejack and moved to Ponyville. At first, Applejack didn't mind him going to visit an old friend, but she started to become suspicious when he kept on going out at night and coming home very late. One night, Sour Apple was still awake when he came home and noticed that his breath smelt worse than it normally did. Though nopony said anything to him, Sour had a feeling that he knew what was really going on.
“How could you do this to us, to your family?” Applejack questioned. She looked at her swollen belly and then back to him. “We're 'bout to have another foal in a couple of weeks, and you're runnin' around with another mare. Don't we mean anythin' to you? What about your son? Does he mean anythin' to you?!”
Cider Barrel finally turned around and smacked his wife across her face with back of his hoof while yelling, “Shut up!”
“Y-you...” Applejack stammered in a mixture of shock and rage. There was the sound of another strike and Applejack cried out in pain.
“I said shut up!” the drunken stallion roared. Sour Apple watch in horror at the scene. He hit her! His father actually hit his mother, twice! “I never wanted foals! You did! I never wanted to get married! You did! I only married you because that's what you wanted!”
In his drunken rage, Cider Barrel struck Applejack again sending her to the floor. The pregnant mare winced in pain as she tried to raise herself off of the bedroom floor. As Cider Barrel stormed over to her, she cried, “No! Think of the foal!”
Her words were meaningless to him now. His judgment had been compromised, he had been found out, and the truth had been revealed. He raised his hoof to strike her again. Applejack was no pushover and was one of Ponyville's top athletes, but she was in no condition to defend herself at this point. Cider Barrel brought his hoof down, but before it could make contact, something bright green rammed into his side. The blow knocked him off balance and he staggered about, trying to regain his balance. He looked up to see the scrawny colt standing between him and the mare on the floor.
“Don't you hit mah Ma ever again!” Sour Apple screamed up at Cider Barrel.
“Out of my way!” the grown stallion ordered as he also struck his own son. Sour Apple was rattled by the blow, but stood his ground.
“We don't want you here anymore!” Another blow struck him across the face and his nose began to bleed.
“Stop hitting him!” Applejack cried, but her words fell on deaf ears.
“Ah'll take care of her now and the foal and the farm!” Sour Apple declared. Before Cider could swing at him again, the colt charged him and ran into his chest, pushing him back. “Get out of here! We don't want you here anymore and we don't need you! You're a bad pony and you're not mah father anymore! Go away and never come back!”
Cider snorted at the colt with the bleeding face before him and then looked down at the mare he was shielding. He could overpower the foal if he wanted to, but there was no longer a point. He wasn't welcomed there and he didn't want to be there anymore either. In his callous mind, he felt liberated. He didn't need to hide his secret affair anymore and he could now do as he pleased. Without a word, he left Sweet Apple Acres, never to return.
“Sour...” Applejack quietly said to her son, whose body was shaking from the adrenaline rush and the overwhelming emotions that he was feeling. “Sour...Come here, baby.”
The bright green colt slowly walked over to his mother with shaking legs. Overcome by the situation, his legs gave out from underneath him and he collapsed by his mother. She grabbed her son and pulled him close to her body. They laid there in silence for an untold amount of time as she softly shushed him. While gently stoking his mane, she happened to look back and see that a dark green apple had appeared on his flank. What should have been an important event in a young pony's life was marred such an ugly encounter. Despite the circumstances, she was proud of her son and how brave he had been. However, the moment was ended when her eyes shot open and she cried out in surprise. Sour Apple looked up to his mother to see the shock on her face.
“The foal is coming!” she exclaimed.
“Ah...But...W-What do Ah...Ah'll go and get Uncle Mac!” he stammered, completely at a loss.
“No time, you're gonna have to help me,” she told him as she started to pant. He was terrified. They both were, but he had to step up and deal with the situation.
Apple Seed was born in that very room. After the filly had been delivered, Sour rushed to his Aunt Fluttershy and Uncle Big Macintosh's cottage. The couple were startled when they saw the state their nephew was in, but rushed to the farm when he told them what happened to find Applejack and the filly waiting for them. The large red stallion carried his sister to the hospital while the yellow Pegasus carried the filly as Sour Apple followed closely behind them. When both mother and child were safely settled in, their friends were notified and immediately rushed to the hospital.
While they were gathered in Applejack's hospital room, the adult males left without a word. By the next morning, Cider Barrel had been arrested for assault but didn't immediately go to jail because he had to be admitted into the hospital for the injuries he had mysteriously sustained. Though no one ever said anything, Sour had a good idea as to what really happened. One of the hints to his condition was that his coat was covered in soot, his eyebrows and mane were completely singed off, and he was covered in claw marks and hoof-shaped bruises. A certain mare's home had some damage done to it and she claimed that a wild dragon had dragged Cider Barrel out through her bedroom window. She would later make the wise decision to move back home to Manehattan. Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity all asked their husbands if they knew anything concerning Cider Barrel's condition, but they refused to say anything and their wives never asked them again. Ten years would pass and Cider Barrel would still be serving his sentence in prison and would still be there for quite some time. It was not a bright idea to attack a mare who was a close, personal friend to the four reigning Alicorns, a national hero, and one of the bearers of the Elements of Harmony. It wasn't long after that Applejack and Cider Barrel were divorced.
“Sour Apple?” a calm voice said from behind the young stallion. He quickly wiped his eyes free of the tears that he had shed while reminiscing and looked to see his mother standing there. She looked at the felled tree but didn't appear to be upset about it like he imagined she would had been. “Do you mind if Ah sat with you for awhile?”
He shook his head and she walked over to have a seat beside him. They sat in silence for a minute before she turned to look up at her large son. “Ah told Apple Seed what happened.”
“Hm,” he grunted in response. He never said much. In fact, he barely said a word after the night Cider Barrel left them. Only those closest to him knew that he had been quite the chatterbox when he was younger.
“Ah'm so thankful for everythin' you have done for me and your sister,” Applejack told him. He nodded in understanding. With Cider gone, he had to step up and be the stallion around the farm. He was only eight years old at the time, but he had to shoulder the weight of the responsibility of the farm while his mother recovered from having a foal. He offered to drop out of school so that he could devote all of his time to working on the farm, but Applejack wouldn't allow that. What really helped them was the support of their friends and family. Macintosh lived not far away with Fluttershy and he already divided his time between working on the farm and at his wife's animal sanctuary. Since Granny Smith was longer with them, Apple Bloom, who had already left the nest, came back for a time to help her sister raise the foal so that she could help Sour Apple with the farm once she had recovered. “Son, Ah know things haven't been easy since your father left us, but that's no excuse to yell at her like that. It wasn't her fault.”
“How is she?” he asked.
“A little shaken, but Ah think she'll be fine. She's already gone off to Sugarcube Corner to be with her friends. She's strong, just like you.”
“...Ah'm sorry.”
“Ah know, Son. Ah know. She isn't mad at you, and neither am Ah. Ah'm just concerned. For the past ten years you've been grumpier than a rattlesnake with no rattle. Ah just want you to be happy. You're a good colt, Sour, and Ah don't want what happen between us and your father to change who you really are.” He only grunted in acknowledgment and she paused for a moment. She then looked back at the knocked over apple tree. “Ya know, there's a better way to harvest apples other than to kick the whole tree over.” She started to snicker which in turned made the corners of his mouth twitch in the briefest of hints of a smile.
“Ah hear that Amethyst and Midnight are coming down tomorrow and ya'll and your friends are going camping on Saturday,” she continued. He again nodded in confirmation. “That'll be nice. Just the six of you then? Ah remember back when you and lil' Thunderbolt thought all fillies were icky.”
She laughed again and Sour blushed at the embarrassing memory. When she finally stopped laughing, she took off her dusty old hat and looked at it. She turned to Sour and asked, “Do you know where Ah got this hat?” He nodded, but she told him anyway. “This was my Pa's hat. Ah was around your age when he gave it to me. He and Ma died not too long afterward.”
Applejack's face filled with sadness as she recalled those events, but then she smiled and reached up to place the old hat on her son's head. His eyes widen and he took off the hat to look at it with shock and awe. He then looked to his mother with an unsure look.
“Ah want you to have it. It may be old, but it's still good. You'll need a decent hat when y'all go camping,” she told him as he placed it back on his head. Proud tears filled her green eyes as she took in the sight of her grown boy wearing her father's hat. She reached up with her fore legs and he bent down so that she could wrap them around his neck. She smiled and sighed contently as she hugged him, remembering back to the days where he was just a little pony. Now, he was as big as her brother. She let him go and he looked up to the hat on his head. “Don't worry, Ah have plenty of hats. That's just mah favorite one. Come on, we still have breakfast to clean up.”
He nodded and they walked back to the farmhouse. As they walked back through the orchard, Applejack pulled another Stetson seemingly out of nowhere and placed it on her head.