//------------------------------// // 114. Apple Family Reunion - Part 2 (Re-Edited) // Story: Blaze the Pony Tale // by Wolven5 //------------------------------// “Wakey-wakey, eggs & hay-backy!!” “Eyaugh” the rude awakening Twinken got was highly effective as he fell out of bed and saw Midnight looking down at him with a devious smile. “C’mon, little brother, lot’s to do!” The whole family got to it – Applejack, Apple Bloom, Midnight, Big Macintosh, and Twinken apple-bucked left and right, gathering as many apples as they could get from the orchard. To save time, Applejack and Midnight split the errands to run in town. Applejack got some fabric rolls from Rarity, Midnight got some honey from Pinkie Pie (and erected a barrier to protect himself from the complimentary glitter), Applejack set up rows of buckets for Rainbow Dash to fill up with rainwater on her request (and got her keister zapped by an errant lightning bolt), Big Mac chopped enough wood to last the winter, Twinken tried an ignition spell Midnight taught him to fire up the pots for fritter-making, and before long things came together. The decorations were all set up, the pop-up canopies shielding some of the activities from the sun, and Midnight did the finishing touch hanging up a streamer. “That about does it,” he declared proudly. “An’ just in time too,” Granny Smith agreed as their ears picked up the sound of a fast-approaching stampede, and they looked towards the hill to see a dust cloud build up and from it galloped Apples galore, cheering, calling hellos, pulling wagons, just running alongside them, some even arrived by pedal-powered airship! Granny Smith scanned the arrivals and the moment she saw her, she hurried up to welcome her cousin, “Apple Rose!” The two old cousins hugged warmly, happy to see each other again, and everywhere everypony chatted up to catch up, to say hello, to show just how much everypony had missed everypony! “Wow…! So many Apples,” Twinken shied to between his brother’s forelegs that Midnight stepped back and scooted his little brother, bumping his snoot to the colt’s rump. “Go on, go say hello!” he encouraged. “Just be yourself, and you’ll be okay.” Twinken looked up nervously at Midnight but found a little courage in the older unicorn’s smile. Even so, Twinken felt out of place, not just because of his horn but also his electric indigo coat and light blue mane. Everypony else had coats and manes in varying shades of reds, yellows, greens, oranges, pinks here and there, only a few were in the blue or purple areas of color. though there were a few unicorns and pegasi here and there, the vast majority of the Apple Family were indeed earth ponies. Chuckling, Midnight looked around and soon found himself facing an all-too familiar invasive smile with big green eyes beneath a big cowboy hat. “Hey there, Midnight, how ya doin’?” Braeburn was as bright and cheerful as ever that Midnight quickly accepted his hoof-bump. “Hey Brae, how are things in…” Midnight reared up and hollered, “A-a-ppleloosa!” Seeing the irony, Braeburn laughed it off, and replied, “Just dandy, an’ where’ve you been? Ain’t seen you since ya helped out with the buffalo troubles!” “No hiccups since then, I hope,” Midnight inquired, piqued that Braeburn brought it up. “Naw, Lil’ Strongheart and ol’ Chief Thunderhooves are mighty fine,” Braeburn assured him, “the buffalo and Appleloosans have gotten along smoother than butter on an’ apple pie!” “That’s grand,” Midnight smiled in relief. “Well, talk to you later, AJ and I have-” The sound of a feedback (which made no sense since it was a non-electric bullhorn) sounded and they heard Applejack, everypony gathering in front of the podium set up where Applejack stood, eagerly facing them all. “Howdy y’all! An’ welcome to th’ Apple Fam’ly Reunion!” Everypony cheered and whooped, and Applejack continued, “Mah name’s Applejack-” *FLASH* Midnight had teleported onto the podium with her, and took the bullhorn from her, announcing, “And I’m Midnight Blaze! And I’m sure you’ll all be happy to hear that yer all in for a real treat!” Applejack grabbed the bullhorn from him back, giving him the stink eye but Midnight was giving it back, secretly rubbed the wrong way that she’d gotten started without him. Don’t tell me she forgot Granny Smith gave us this job together… “Wer’ gonna start off with an obstacle course fer th’ young’uns,” Applejack listed, “an’ some fritter-makin’ an’ quiltin’ for th’ not-so-young’uns.” “But I can promise you that you can expect a whole lot more, everypony!” Midnight had conjured his own bullhorn so he wouldn’t have to fight with Applejack. “Have a good time and again welcome to the Apple Family Reunion!” “WHOO! “Yee-haw!” “Hurray!” Among the crowd, Twinken kept trying to introduce himself but kept wimping out. He saw Apple Bloom had just run into Babs and was happy to see them together. But right as they appeared to start talking, Applejack appeared and insisted they go race with all the other foals. Not in the mood, Twinken quickly made himself scarce. At the moment, Braeburn had introduced Midnight to Aunt n’ Uncle Orange, their relatives from Manehatten and Babs’ parents. “I must say, Midnight, you’re quite a surprise this turn around,” Mosely Orange said in a sophisticated accent. “Absolutely," agreed his wife, Auntie Orange, "Don’t get me wrong, I love our in-laws, but it’s actually quite refreshing to see somepony from outside the family circle.” “Well, Miss Orange,” Midnight said, not liking that subtle implication, “AJ, Mac, Granny Smith, and Apple Bloom are truly everything Twinken could want in a family and more. Sure we’re not blood-related but it’s how much we love each other what matters.” “Tha’s wuh Ah like t’ hear, cousin!” Braeburn said, holding up a mug of apple cider. “Tha’s exactly wha’ fam’ly’s all about!” “I must say, I agree,” Mosely Orange nodded with a smile. “And might I say, Midnight, you and Applejack, along with Apple Bloom and those Cutie-Mark Crusaders had a real effect on our Babs.” “Oh, our poor baby, broke my heart to see her come home crying from all those nasty little ponies who teased her for not having her cutie-mark yet,” Aunt Orange fussed before she brightened. “But now she’s not letting those bullies get to her and even standing up for herself.” “That’s good to hear,” Midnight smiled, glad Babs was doing better. “Where is she, by the way?” “I’d venture a guess she’s spending time with Apple Bloom,” Mosely Orange suggested. “Talked about her all the time, kept saying she couldn’t wait to see her again.” “Hey, Night, ain’t that Twink over there?” Braeburn pointed the little colt out, who was shyly being a wallflower, unsure of what to do. “Hey Twinken!” Midnight waved him over. As Twinken approached, Midnight said, “Mr. & Mrs. Orange, this is my little brother Twinken, I guess you could call us your unofficial nephews.” “Oh aren’t you just the most handsome little colt?” Aunt Orange cooed as she pinched Twinken’s cheek, making him blush in discomfort. “Why aren’t you with all the other foals at the 7-Legged Race?” “I… wanted to meet everypony but…” Twinken shyly avoided the older ponies’ eyes but perked when he felt his brother’s aura levitate him onto his back. He felt a little better, being more-or-less eye-level with the Oranges and said, “I’m just nervous about meeting so many Apples at once, I don’t know what to say.” “Oh pshaw, son,” Mosely waved off, “this family is a great one and mine is glad to be a part of it.” “If you don’t mind my asking, sir,” Midnight spoke up, “exactly how are you related to the Apply Family.” “My sister Buttercup, was Applejack’s mother,” Aunt Orange explained, sighing in nostalgia. “Bless her heart. She was born, I suppose you could say, the oddball of our family. Due to... extenuating circumstances when we were all little, Buttercup and Applejack's father, Bright Macintosh, had the sweetest crushes on each other! But... at some point we moved away to Vanhoover and she was just never the same afterwards. That is... until Bright Mac showed up out of the blue, making a delivery in Vanhoover. As if fate had led them back to each other, the moment their eyes met they recognized each other immediately and the spark returned stronger than ever!" “So then what happened after?" asked Midnight, deeply interested. "Oh, I'm afraid it was rather bittersweet..." Aunt Orange sighed at the memories. "My sister defied our father and ran away with Bright Mac. They had a private ceremony, married, and... our father was so angry and felt betrayed he severed all ties with her. But my sister inspired me to follow my own heart and... It gave me the strength I needed to pursue my own love in Mosely." "While I wish things had worked out better for my wife's family and the Apples," Mosely nuzzled his wife warmly, "I am grateful to Buttercup for inspiring her sister to find her own special somepony, even if her father didn't harbor as much animosity towards me." “So then, you’re related to the Apples by your sister’s marriage,” Midnight ascertained. “Yes, but even though we live very different lives, family is family,” Aunt Orange said sagely, “and although dear Applejack chose to remain here, I think she made the right choice. She’s so much like her mother that way.” Midnight nodded, remembering how Applejack told him how she once went to live with her uncle and aunt when once upon a time she thought she wanted life in the big city until a certain rainbow inspired her to go back home where she belonged. And it was for that reason, she earned her cutie-mark. “Well, I’m gonna walk around, see how everypony’s doing,” Midnight politely excused himself. “Twink, would you like to come along?” “Actually… I wanna talk with my uncle and Auntie Orange,” Twinken said with a smile, much to the Orange’s joy. “Okay, enjoy yourselves, everypony,” Midnight chuckled as he stepped into the festivities.