//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Fluttershy and Big Mac's children // by Paintbrush235 //------------------------------// 1 YEAR LATER THUNK! The large apple tree shook when Big Macintosh's hind hooves made contact. With one swift kick, he had knocked all the ripe, red apples from it's branches right into the awaiting barrels. These quickly filled to the brim, with one of them almost overflowing with the bountiful fruit. Big Mac wiped the sweat from his brow and looked behind him. He could see AppleJack bucking more trees in another row with his youngest sister, little Applebloom right behind her sorting out the filled barrels. Meanwhile right behind Big Mac, trotted his wife Fluttershy, who was blissfully humming to herself as she helped to sort out the apples as well. Prancing alongside her were Applewood Jr and Sunflower, who were helping their mother in their task by running and grabbing apples that had fallen from their containers and returning them to the barrels. Big Mac chuckled to himself as little Applewood tumbled back when he tried to place a particularly large apple on the very top of the pile. He turned back to face his task ahead of him. It was quite a large task but the rewards were enormous. This years harvest was turning out to be the best in recent Apple Family history. Very few trees were bearing any rotten fruit and, thanks to Fluttershy's idea to build a separate sanctuary, the vampire fruit bats had not been an issue. The large red pony smiled at this. Fluttershy's kindness and willingness to help others in need is one of the reasons he married the gentle mare. Big Mac's thoughts were interrupted when he felt something prodding his leg. Looking down, he found himself staring into the sky blue eyes of his daughter Sunflower. Her teeth were gritted together in a smile that drew attention to her freckled cheeks. Latched between her teeth was the stem of a bright red apple that had apparently fallen out of one of the barrels. Big Mac smiled. "Go ahead and put it back in the barrel then sugarcube." He said gently. Sunflower nodded, then made her way over to a barrel that was quite full already. She could see that the apple wouldn't fit on the edges, so she tried to reach for the top of the pile. Big Mac chuckled lightly, then bent down to pick up his daughter by the scruff and lifted her up. Once he was sure she could reach the top, he waited until she had placed the fruit on the top of the pile, and then he gently set her down in front of him. "Thank you Papa." Sunflower squeaked. Big Macintosh smiled at his daughter. "Yer welcome sweetie." He said softly, "Thank you fer helpin' Mama and Papa out today." "Your welcome Papa." Sunflower replied. Big Mac's smile grew wider. He then looked at the next tree that awaited to be harvested. It was then that he got an idea. He looked back at his daughter. "Follow me sweetie." He gestured with his head towards the tree and made his way over to it, with Sunflower following close behind. When they reached the tree, Sunflower look up at the top of the tree that seemed to tower over her like her family's house. The tree's branches were also laden with bright red apples that dangled delicately by their stems. Sunflower started to wonder why her Papa had brought her over specifically to this tree. She looked up at him with an excited smile. "Do you want me to help you buck this tree Papa?" She asked giddily. Big Mac shook his head slightly, but held onto his smile. "No sweetie. Yer still a bit small fer that." Sunflower let out a defeated sigh and hung her head in disappointment. Big Mac lifted her chin up though for her to look at him. "But I want you to do somethin' fer yer Papa ok?" He asked. Sunflower nodded. "Go on up an' touch the tree as gentle as you can." Sunflower looked a little confused, but she did what her Papa asked. She walked up to the tree and as gently as she could, placed her hoof on it's trunk. She gasped. "I feel all tingly!" She exclaimed. "That's because yer an earth pony like yer Papa." Big Mac explained. "Us earth ponies have a special kind of place in th' earth's heart." He continued in a soft whisper. He came up to the tree to stand next to Sunflower and placed his hoof right next to hers on the tree. "That tinglin' an' th' harvest we collect is th' tree's way of sayin' 'thank you fer takin' care of me'." Just then, a slight breeze blew through the orchard and whistled through the branches of the apple trees. To Big Mac, Sunflower, and the other earth ponies present, it sounded like the trees themselves were humming their thanks. Sunflower smiled at her Papa. "When I'm older, I want to be a big strong farmer like you Papa." She latched onto his barrel in a big hug. "Maybe I can help out here at Sweet Apple Acres." Big Macintosh smiled and brought his head down to nuzzle his daughter. Behind them both, Fluttershy stood with tears of joy in her eyes at the affectionate sight. ----------------------------------------------------------------- Two Days Later Fluttershy hummed to herself as she trotted through her sanctuaries. It was a task of hers to feed all the animals of the area that flocked to her cottage at the beginning of spring. Humming and singing to herself made the task even more enjoyable, and the animals seemed to appreciate it as well. She had just finished feed a family of jackelopes when she heard a string of giggles come from behind her. Glancing back, she saw a sight that made her heart melt. Her son Applewood Jr. was crouching down near the pond a few yards away, and was playing with a group of goslings that had just arrived from hibernation in Southern Equestria. The goslings were chirping and splashing in glee at having someone new to play with, and Applewood Jr. seemed to be filled with joy. Fluttershy slowly walked up to her son, who was still focused on his new friends and didn't notice her approach. Sidling up silently, she sat down beside Applewood and watched the family of geese play in the water. "They adorable aren't they sweetie?" She said softly. Applewood looked up suddenly to see his mother now sitting beside him, smiling one of her affectionate smiles. He always felt really calm whenever she was around, so he didn't mind her stepping into the situation. "They are nice Mama." He said in his own soft voice. While his sister Sunflower had inherited a strong voice from their Papa, Applewood's voice reflected his Mama's more than anything. "Mama." He said looking up. "Do you like helping animals a lot?" "Why yes honey." Fluttershy replied. "I always enjoy showing kindness to all creatures. Why do you ask sweetie?" Applewood looked down at his hooves in slight embarrassment. "Well, I was wondering if I could help you uh with the rest of the families please?" Fluttershy smile grew wider. "Of course you can honey." She said, nuzzling his face. "Come on you help me bring the food to the fox family right now." And so the mother and son duo trotted off together side by side.