//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1 
// Story: Winona 
// by CloudRunner 
//------------------------------//

	Most days, if someone were to walk by Sweet Apple Acres, it would be business as usual. Applejack and Macintosh would be apple bucking, Apple Bloom would be out crusading, Granny Smith would be resting in her rocking chair; and if caught on break, they would be playing with their favorite pup Winona. But not today.
Today was a sad day for the Apple family. They'd lost the dog.
They should have seen it coming. And now that Applejack thought about it, they probably did. Last week Winona had been eating less, and there were times she didn't answer to their calls. The last time Apple Bloom told her to sit, she acted like she heard “shake”. It had worried AJ for about two days before the dog started acting like herself again. For the moment, she felt relieved.
Yesterday was a day of rest for the Apples; and after all the work they did the rest of the week, the family decided to do their own thing. AJ went to hang out with her friends, Mac took Apple Bloom out for some fun, and Granny slept in.
It was around ten that Apple Bloom went out to feed Winona, and didn't see her anywhere. She went to Mac's room to ask about her, and he realized he hadn't seen the dog all day. He looked around the house and never found her, and they didn't have anything to help them see in the dark. So he had told her he would look for Winona in the morning. Everyone went to sleep after that.
When Applejack woke up, Apple Bloom had come into her room for a hug. She didn't even know what was wrong until Mac told her. He had found Winona outside one of the old barns, completely stiff. Rigor mortis had already taken effect on her eyes and mouth, keeping them from closing. Blood and fluid were leaking from her throat.
But the worst part was the smell. Apparently, she had been dead for most of yesterday. Pieces of skin had rotted away and left a horrible, gagging stench. It took a lot of willpower before Mac could stand to move her into a bag and take her further away from where someone could see her.
The morning was spent moping. Not from everyone, since Applejack and Macintosh decided to focus on work, but Apple Bloom wasn't in the mood to go to school. AJ was on lunch break when she heard her sister talking out loud about Winona.
“She never got ta play with us before she died,” – her voice cracked a bit – “She must've been lonely 'cause we didn't do anything with her yesterday.”
She turned toward Applejack, still looking pretty sad.
“Sis?” she asked. “How come she didn't know what I was sayin' last time I told her to sit?”
Applejack thought for a moment.
“Well, animals start to lose their hearing when they get older. Least that's what Fluttershy told me once,” she answered. “Winona was pretty old when she passed. We had her 'bout fourteen years.”
“...Did we have any other pets?”
“Not sure. You'd have to ask Mac or Granny.”
There was about a minute of silence while Applejack ate her sandwich.
“If we ever get another pet, we should get 'em a friend. Maybe they won't be so lonely when we aren't around.”
Applejack didn't have anything to say after that, so the conversation ended. The cowgirl finished her lunch in a few minutes and went back outside. Macintosh came up to her not long after.
“Hey sis.”
“Hey,” she said. “You talk to Fluttershy?”
“Yeah,” he answered. “We have a couple choices: Bury her out in the field or cremate her.”
“Alright. You go on ahead and tell Apple Bloom and Granny. I'm gonna do some more work.”
In the end, it was unanimous. They were going to cremate her. It was probably for the best. Applejack didn't think her sister should have to go through burying Winona while she looked like a taxidermy gone wrong. Just keeping her in the bag Mac put her in was cruel, at least to her. Soon, the family all went to Fluttershy's cottage. She had a chamber ready just in case.
“The chamber's been heated to 1500 degrees,” Fluttershy announced. “That should be enough for a dog about her size.”
Macintosh looked to his family.
“It's best we do it now, so she doesn't have to stay in this bag any longer,” he suggested. “Y'all ready?”
The rest of the family nodded.
“Alright. Fluttershy, you mind helping me?”
The moment they opened the bag they regretted it. The smell had built up, causing nearly everyone to gag. Apple Bloom couldn't take it anymore, and ran out with Applejack in tow. She wrapped her sister with another hug as she started crying.
“T-that was h-horrible!” Apple Bloom exclaimed between hiccups. “I don't wanna remember that s-stupid smell!"
“It's okay,” AJ said. “You don't have to go back in. You shouldn't have had to experience that, sugarcube. I'm sorry.”
After a few minutes, Apple Bloom's crying began to die down. She'd only had a few sniffles when Fluttershy came out.
“I'm so sorry about that,” she said. “The smell is gone now. She's in the chamber. You can come back in if you want to.”
“Thanks Flutters,” Applejack said before turning to Apple Bloom. “You okay to go back in, sis?”
Apple Bloom wiped her eyes one more time before nodding. They stayed in the cottage until the process was done. Fluttershy contained the ashes in a box the Apples had brought, and gave it to Mac. The family planned to pour it out in the field where she usually liked to play.
“Are you going to be okay, Applejack?” Fluttershy asked.
“It'll take some getting used to,” Applejack said. “But I'll be fine. Thanks for doing this for us, Fluttershy.”
The girls hugged for a few seconds before Macintosh called her, and she went with her family to spread the ashes of her little companion.
Half a year later, Applejack was feeling much better. Sure, she occasionally thought about Winona while she was working out in the field where they spread her ashes, but she knew the dog was in a much better place; probably playing fetch with Mom and Dad. Apple Bloom was getting better too. She was playing with her friends and had gone back to school the week after it happened. The Apple family was happy again.
One summer day, Applejack had taken her sister out for some ice cream and grocery shopping when she ran up to her out of nowhere.
“Hey sis, you gotta see this!” she shouted, pulling her along.
“Whoa, whoa, hold up sugarcube! What in tarnation-”
And in a moment she saw what her sister was talking about, and started to grin. A few feet away from where they stopped, in a little cardboard box with a sign, were two of the most adorable Shepherd puppies they'd ever seen.