//------------------------------// // Chapter 64 - Zap Apple Harvest // Story: My Family and Other Equestrians // by Blade Star //------------------------------// The next morning, it was as if Applebuck Season had come early. At five o’clock sharp, AJ roused everypony, in the case of Apple Bloom literally throwing her out of bed, and got us all working. After a quick breakfast that we all pretty much wolfed down, we all headed out to the zap apple orchards. Even in the early morning light, the rainbow coloured fruit was a sight to behold. With a seven day deadline now steadily ticking away, we all got to work quickly, noses to the grindstone and all that. Following what we usually did during Applebuck Season, the orchard was divided up into three segments; one for Applejack, one for Big Mac, and one for me. I’d say each of us probably had around a hundred or so trees each to clear. Now, if it was just bucking them, nothing could be simpler; three hundred trees in seven days was easy, no more than forty or so trees each day. The problem was that we also had to set up the baskets for the trees and haul them to a barn for storage. Each tree took four baskets to catch the falling apples. When the tree was cleared, which in my case usually took three or four solid hits, the baskets had to be taken back to the barns and emptied. This is why Sweet Apple Acres has lots of small barns all over the shop. Nopony wants to have to haul four baskets all the way back to the house every time. Even so, you had to take the baskets to the nearest barn, empty them and then take them all back to the next tree, then do it all over again. How do you fancy doing that forty or so times every day? It took around a week or so to complete Applebuck Season with three ponies working flat out. And even then, we’d only finished so early due to an act of providence. Normally, it would take the better part of a fortnight. Worse still, the barn which we’d had demolished last week had been one of the zap apple barns. Zap apples didn’t usually start to appear until late May or early June. The fact that they’d appeared in April had left everypony confused. Though as Equestria doesn’t have ‘climate change’ everypony was content to chalk it up to the unstable magic the trees possessed. By eight o’clock, we’d been going for roughly four hours. The muscles in my hind legs were burning just as they had done during Applebuck Season, only now I couldn’t afford to ease up. The farm used the massive profits from the zap apple jam sales and our cut from Barnyard Bargains to make a sort of safety net, in case of any sort of crop failure, or lower yield. If we didn’t get these trees harvested, we’d lose that net. “How ya doin’, Bones?” Applejack called from her own line. I’d just finished pulling the baskets back for what felt like the umpteenth time. With that barn not rebuilt yet, we had to go a lot further to get to a storage barn. Sweat was pouring down my face, and it wasn’t even noon on the first day! “Ah’m still alive, ‘Jack. Holdin’ strong,” I replied, in an effort to power through the pain. I certainly wasn’t going to complain; we were all feeling the burn. “How ‘bout you, Big Mac, ya holdin’ up okay?” A wheezing sound followed. “Eeyup.” This was the last few days of Applebuck Season all over again, and we couldn’t count on a rabbit stampede to come and save us this time. We kept at it though, and eventually I began to get a kind of rhythm going. To help things along, AJ had agreed to let me use my magic to haul the baskets to and from the barn too, which meant we had a spare cart just in case. By about ten o’clock we were all starting to hit ‘the wall’ and it was only going to get hotter, so Applejack called a halt to work. The three of us limped our way back to the farmhouse, our muscles constantly twitching from exertion. Granny Smith and Apple Bloom were waiting for us when we got back. We’d be guzzling down gallons of Apple juice to keep ourselves hydrated and eating as much as we could over our fairly short lunch break. Neither the elderly matriarch, nor the young filly could really help with bucking the apples, but they were by no means idle. As soon as the zap apples reached them, the two quickly set to work on turning them into jar after jar of fresh zap apple jam. This meant chopping up and turning the apples into a puree. After that the sugar was added to the mix and stirred together. Then, the whole mixture was poured into the various pots and pans I’d bought a couple of days ago. Placed on the gas cooker, the jam was brought to a rolling boil (it keeps bubbling furiously even when stirred) and the jam quickly became more of a liquid. Due to both the high temperatures in play and the corrosive nature of the mixture, even the toughest pans would only last about two or three batches before they cracked or corroded. The scum then had to be removed from the surface and the mixture cooled. When that step is completed, only Granny Smith knows what happens. She sent Apple Bloom out of the kitchen each time for a minute or so, whilst she added the secret ingredient to the mixture. When that is fully mixed in the fresh and still hot jam is ladled into the specially selected jars and left to cool. Then, just like us, the process starts all over again. By the time we got in for our first break, the kitchen was like a sauna, even with all the windows open and every fan in the house going full chaff. So nopony was getting it easy over the harvest. We all pulled ourselves into the living room and collapsed on whatever seating we could lay our hooves on. “How in the name of Celestia do ya do this every year, ‘Jack?” I asked as my sides heaved painfully. After breathing heavily for a moment, she replied. “Just think how tough it is when it was just me and Big Macintosh doin’ the harvest, Bones,” she replied. “Don’t worry, first day or two’s the toughest. Once we get into the swing of things it’ll get easier. And once we get ‘bout a third of the way through, it’ll be easier to walk to the barns; we’re workin’ our way towards ‘em remember.” I took what she had said on board, nodding my head as best I could. Around a half hour later, we were back at it again. And I’ll be damned if it wasn’t summer in April. The sun beat down mercilessly upon us, causing us to sweat and pant. I was reminded of that old phrase ‘mad dogs and Englishmen stay out in the noon day sun’. We continued to toil away, striking the trees and hauling the baskets becoming increasingly difficult. Even my own magic was starting to strain with the sheer amount of demand being put upon it. About two hours in, Applejack called over to me again. “Hey, Bones!” I paused to wipe the steaming sweat from my face before replying. “Yeah, AJ?” “Ya always said ya liked to sing to take your mind off work. Got any songs to keep us goin’?” I thought for a moment, the slightly insane Lunar zealot half of me offering up the perfect tune. “Alright, sure,” I replied, and with that I began to sing. The tune was dark and somewhat depressed, but it had a spark of brightness to it, and I think it suited our current displeasure with the sun quite well. Oh, I’m a good ol’ rebel, now that's just what I am, And for Celestia's nation, I do not care a damn. I'm glad I fought against her; I only wish we'd won. An’ I don’t want no pardon for anythin’ I've done. I hate Celestia's nation and everything they do. I hate those bloody Elements of Harmony too. I hate the rising sunlight, t'is dripping with our blood. And I hate their Solar banner, I fought it all I could. I marched with Princess Luna from the day she called my name. Got wounded in four places but fought on, just the same. I caught the rheumatism a'campin' in the snow. But I killed a chance of Bright Lights and I'd like to kill some more. Three hundred thousand Bright Lights are stiff in Equestrian dust. We got three hundred thousand before they conquered us They died of Lunar magic and Lunar steel and shot, I wish they were three million instead of what we got. I cannot draw my sabre and fight 'em now no more, But I ain't gonna love 'em, now that is certain sure. And I don't want no pardon for what I was and am, Send me up there with her 'cause I don’t care a damn. The song certainly fitted with our current dislike for the nuclear reactor in the sky that seemed to be doing its upmost to kill us. But to be honest, in spite of my preference for the coolness of the night over the burning day, I do not bear any animosity toward Celestia. In fact, one of the many reasons I loathe and despise Chrysalis is because of what the evil witch did to the benevolent, maternal diarch. Today, there is still a fair bit of infighting between the two sections of the Royal Guard over who was right and wrong; there probably always will be. And while it is true I stand with Luna, I will not decry Celestia as a criminal for what she did. As far as I am concerned, she banished a thing, which wrongfully took Luna’s name and title. Still, would it really kill her to turn down the heat? Or maybe let us work through an extra-long night? We worked on until midday and we all steadily began to break into our second wind, the work steadily becoming easier as we neared the barn. Mind you, we were still exhausted every time we returned to the farmhouse to rest and hydrate. Eventually though, we hit our mark, going up to a total of fifty trees harvested. Having reached our target, Applejack called a final halt to our labours and the three of us simply sank down where we stood. After summoning the energy to put all of our kit back in the nearby barn ready for tomorrow, we all headed back to the farmhouse. Luckily, with all the cookers now off, and all the zap apple jam cooled, it was far more tolerable than it was on our previous short visits. Granny Smith and Apple Bloom, whilst not as exhausted as us, were still more than glad that the day was over. All we had to do was repeat it six more times. Dinner was a simple, quiet affair. Granny had pretty much run out of puff to cook anything too complex, so we settled on sandwiches and some leftover stew. After that, we all, as one, headed off to bed. Above all else, the one thing I craved now was rest. I ‘awoke’ to find myself on that familiar hillside, bathed in the light of the silver moon. At least here my muscles no longer ached from overwork. Luna, her horn still glowing slightly, settled herself down beside me. “A pony who dreams of going to bed and falling asleep, Blade Star, is one of two things. Either he has lost his grip on reality, and is no longer able to tell when he is dreaming, or he is exceedingly tired.” I chuckled at her comment. “Tired doesn’t even begin to dent it, Luna. Zap apples came early this year, so we’re workin’ flat out over the next week. An’ for some reason your sister seems intent on cookin’ us.” The dark blue alicorn placed a comforting wing around me. “The idea behind these little excursions is to provide rest and relief, Blade Star. Do not think yourself an exception to that role. These nights are supposed to relax you as well. Come, choose a locale for us to travel to.” I thought for a moment, at this point I wanted something where I could just sit back and relax and just rest my mind. I also quite fancied going somewhere cool, with snow maybe. An idea quickly came to me. Doing my best to concentrate on the dream world I intended to form, I watched as the hillside we sat upon once again vanished. The same effect as last time occurred; the world to begin with was distorted and blurred. But as Luna worked her literal magic, it quickly stabilised. We found ourselves standing on the platform of a busy railway station. From end to end, attendants were loading bags and supplies, passengers were boarding, passes were checked by officials. Luna and I had once again had costumes applied. While not quite as opulent as our visit to the Sands, our outfits would have been sufficient to garner approval from Rarity. The style was clearly something from an earlier period and in this instance denoted Luna’s lineage of royal blood. As the dream stabilised, Luna turned to me. “And where have you brought us this time, Blade Star?” she enquired, raising her voice slightly to be heard over the cacophony of noises that filled the station. “Istanbul, on the European side. Sometime in either the late 1920’s or the early 30’s Ah’d say. This is the main railway station. Head to that conductor, the guy in the black and red suit; he’ll get us on board.” “You are taking me on a train ride, Blade Star?” I cracked a smile. “Not just any old train, Luna. Take a look at the name on the carriage.” Luna turned to examine one of the passenger cars. Even the simple Pullman was quite opulent in design, and it ought to have been, given the famous name and seal that adorned each coach. “Orient Express?” Luna asked, examining the artistry on the coach. “Yes. It starts here at Istanbul, goes through Sofia and Belgrade in the Balkans, then up to Venice and Milan, through the Simplon tunnel toward Lausanne in Switzerland, and finally Paris and Calais. It’s regarded as one of the best train journeys in the world. We’ll only travel as far as Venice, but Ah assure you, you’ll enjoy it.” The two of us headed over to the conductor to board the coach that would take us as far as Venice. It was a sleeper car, just two cars down from the dining car and in front of the Pullman. Waiting for us was one of the train’s conductors. “Evening,” I said, as we trotted up to the conductor. “Ah take it my usual compartment number 6 is free?” The conductor went pale for a moment, before responding in a French accent. “Oh, pardon Monsieur Star. But I’m afraid the Venice coach is full. It seems as if the entire world seeks to travel tonight.” He promptly bowed his head in an apology. This was odd, considering it was a dream. “What?” I exclaimed. Before the attendant could reply, I continued. “Has Bulgaria declared war on Turkey? Are the aristocracy fleeing the country? Ah am a director of the line, and Princess Luna is not only a lady of great distinction, but she is also my personal friend.” “I am terribly sorry, Monsieur. Madame le Princesse. But there is not a single sleeping berth left on the Venice coach.” The poor fellow seemed more than a little embarrassed by the issue. I wracked my brains for a moment. It wouldn’t do for us to be left standing on the platform now would it? Of course, this whole scenario had already been worked out. “What about the Calais coach? Isn’t the number four compartment always kept free for exactly this kind of situation?” I enquired. After checking, the attendant promptly escorted us a little ways down the train to just behind the dining car. We would have to share compartments, but we wouldn’t be here for that long. We quickly boarded the Calais coach and worked our way down the corridor which connected the various compartments to the rest of the train. Directly behind us was the Pullman and in front of us was the dining car. Once the train was underway, we would head up that way for an early dinner. Almost as soon as we were aboard and settled into our compartment, the staff began to bang the doors closed and the whistles blew. In response the train blew its own whistle twice, and from our compartment window, we could see people back away from the train. With a loud hiss the brakes were released and with a steadily increasing rhythm of huffing and puffing, the train began to pull out of the station. Next stop; Sofia, Bulgaria. After watching the countryside roll by at around fifty miles an hour for little while, the two of us headed forward through the train to the dining car. Like everything else about this service it was opulent to the extreme. Even at these speeds, it was easy enough to stay on your feet; though the fact that we were both quadrupeds might have had something to do with it. By my reckoning it was getting on for about six o’clock local time, and it was starting to grow dark. The two of us settled ourselves down at one of the tables, like our time at the Sands, we would be treated to the very best. The staff took personal orders from a wide variety of dishes and did their best to accommodate them. I was again thankful for the advantages the dream state provided; I doubt even the modern Orient Express has the ability to serve up a side order of hay fries. Whilst we waited on dinner, we began to happily chat. Eventually, I moved the discussion towards Applejack. “Say, Luna. Ya know Applejack and me have been sort of goin’ out for a few weeks now.” The Lunar princess nodded as she set her black china tea down. “Well, Ah wanted to ask you; you can stabilise my dreams or anypony else’s, but can ya link dreams together?” Again she nodded. “I have used that particular facet of my skills on a few occasions, Blade Star. What do you have in mind?” Taking this as a sign she would probably agree, I explained. “Well, Ah’ve taken you on a couple of little trips now, and Ah was kinda hoping Ah could maybe do the same with Applejack.” Luna smiled knowingly. “I see how it is. You wish to take your marefriend out on a date, no?” I blushed a little. If only there was a spell that could stop that. “It’s just, what with the farm and all, we don’t have that much free time to go anywhere. You’ve enjoyed these visits to my old world.” “Indeed I have.” “So, Ah just want to do something special for her. Would you be okay helpin’ out?” Luna sat back for a moment and looked out the window at the countryside, as it rushed past in the oncoming twilight. “You wish me to, for your own gain, abandon my royal duties for the night, cease walking the dreams of everypony else and close my Night Court, all so you may woo a pretty mare?” She fixed her eyes, which now held a cold glare on me. Uh oh, not the reaction I had predicted. “No, no, no. Ah didn’t mean that at all. Ah only meant it…” My desperate backpedalling was promptly cut off as Luna burst into laughter. “Oh Blade Star! As if I would be so cruel to you.” She placed a hoof under my chin. “Of course it is not an issue. I’ve done such for many ponies on dozens of occasions. Linking dreams is no more difficult that what I am doing now. I often use it as a way for two disputing ponies in court to settle their problems. Set things up with dear Applejack and then let me know when you are both ready.” I had been surprised by her hostile reaction before, but this was still slightly odd. “What?” she asked as I continued to look on. “Just because our adopted niece is the Princess of Love does not mean I cannot dabble too. With that settled we continued to chat and enjoy the evening. Luna also got into conversation with a number of passengers from the Calais coach including a rather small, portly Belgian gentleman who was travelling to Calais on his way to London. The two of them seemed to get along quite well. As the two of us prepared to head back to the compartment to ironically wake up, she wished him well. “Good evening then, Monsieur Poirot. I hope you enjoy your time in London.” It was only then that it dawned on me who she had been conversing with. I would check with Twilight to see if one of Agatha Christie’s most famous of novels had successfully made it to Equestria. As we returned Luna again assured me that she would be happy to help out with my ‘date’ if you want to call it that. Provided of course, that her own excursions continued in the intervening period. Since she seemed to get on well with the detective, I considered a few relevant locales. Hay, perhaps I could mix things up a bit and play out stories in the dreams. With that, and a final farewell, I awoke to the rooster’s call. That morning it was all hands to the pump once again. It was still quite warm outside, although today there were a few clouds lying about, courtesy of the Weather Patrol. Even better, when Rainbow saw what were up to and the effect the sun was having, she promptly moved a few of the larger clouds over the zap apple orchard to give us at least a little shade. She also had Lizzie along with her; my sister had another four days before Discord’s stupid transformation spell would finally pack in. Still, she seemed to be enjoying things at least. That’s what my sister does: she’s very good at simply dealing with problems and not letting them worry her. I on the other hand, can sometimes get like Twilight and stress over every little thing. She certainly seemed to have picked up a few things on weather work, as she helped RD move several of the clouds into position. As for me and the Apples, whilst the work was still hard, it was not as difficult as the previous day. As Applejack had told me, we were steadily moving towards the storage barn where we were keeping the majority of zap apples until they were hauled back to the farm. So whilst each tree still had to be cleared, we didn’t have to haul the heavy carts nearly as far as before. And as we continued, it would only get easier. But it was by no means plain sailing. Things continued in this manner for the next couple of days. Each day we got nearer and nearer to our goal of completing the harvest. We all began to draw ever closer to the barn, which marked the proverbial finishing line. The majority of the orchard was once again bare and the barn was getting full as were the vast numbers of zap apple jars. Granny was already starting to send off the first hundred jars, as per the Apple’s unwritten contract with Filthy Rich. It was as we were coming towards the end of the final day of the harvest that I plucked up the courage to ask Applejack. “Hey, Applejack?” I called as we continued to work our way through the last dozen or so trees. “Yeah, Bones?” she replied. Neither of us were struggling for breath any more. These last few tress were a breeze to get through. Not that I’d desire the alternative. “Ah was thinkin’, we’ve all been working like beavers this past week. How ‘bout a little trip somewhere?” Applejack promptly shook her head. “Sorry, Bones. Ya know we can’t just up and leave the farm like that. Zap apple harvest may be over but there’s still work to do round here.” Time to play my ace in the hole. “Ah never said we’d have to go anywhere now did Ah, ‘Jack,” I replied a little slyly. Applejack paused in her work to look at me in confusion. “Er, don’t the whole idea of a getaway mean, well, gettin’ away, Bones?” I smiled. “And we will, ‘Jack. But Ah can also promise ya we won’t have to leave the farm. And we can have a couple of days away in just a night.” Applejack now looked decidedly concerned. “Sugarcube, ya don’t think, maybe you’ve been workin’ too hard do ya?” she asked, worry clear in her voice. I let myself laugh a little. “No, AJ, nothin’ like that. Ah meant what if we could dream about it.” I explained how I’d managed to strike a deal with Luna and how we would be able to share our dream, doing whatever we wanted to and going wherever we wanted. Her attitude did a quick one eighty. “Land sakes, Bones! That’s sounds amazin’!” she exclaimed. But then though, her expression turned somewhat sly and she came closer to me. “This wouldn’t happen to be, some sort of date now, would it, Sugarcube?” she asked, getting unusually close to me. I could tell she was playing around though. “Would it change your answer if it was?” I asked, mirroring her attitude. In response the orange mare kissed me on the cheek before setting about hauling the last of the zap apples back to the house, leaving me to stand there. I had a date. I had a date with Applejack. Oh boy.