There was a song Applejack remembered from the days when she was a filly. Her mother, and once in a blue moon her father, would sing it to her as a lullaby. She liked the way her mother sang it, however. Her voice possessed a soothing power that put her soul at ease. Applejack hummed it to herself while she was on her way to Fluttershy’s cottage, with Winona by her side, but in her mind she could hear her mother’s sweet voice.
It was late in the afternoon when she began her walk across town. Her family and Scootaloo had already ventured into Whitetail Woods at sunrise. Since they weren’t going to see each other again for a few days, Applejack gave a word of wisdom to Apple Bloom and Scootaloo before they went their separate ways.
“Apple Bloom, I want you to keep doing what you’ve been doing,” she said. “Take care of Scootaloo, and listen to Big Mac and Granny.”
Then she turned to Scootaloo. Applejack sensed so much potential when she laid her hooves on her. She gave Scootaloo the best smile she could give. “Scootaloo, I want you to have fun. Don’t worry about the past and don’t think about the future. Apple Bloom, Big Mac, and good ‘ole Granny will be right beside you. Promise me you’ll have a great time, sugarcube.”
Scootaloo nodded, then a tiny smile appeared on her lips. It wasn’t much, but it was the only thing Applejack wanted from her. If Applejack could think of one good thing that came from this, the good thing was that Rainbow Dash’s death had brought Scootaloo into her life. Whenever she looked at her, whenever she heard her speak, Applejack saw much of Rainbow Dash in her. She hoped that one day, Scootaloo can finally have a peace of mind about Rainbow Dash with the passage of time.
Later that afternoon, it was time to go. Applejack decided to bring Winona with her. She never forgot what her father said about dogs: No matter how bad things in life get, dogs will always be loyal to the end. And who was more loyal than Rainbow Dash?
“Come on, Winona,” Applejack said. She set her leash and collar and head out the door. Before taking another step further she realized she forgot her stetson. She remembered she left it on top of her bed. Applejack went back for it, then she stopped.
This time, she thought, she didn’t need it. Applejack nodded. She can go a few days without her trusty hat.
It seemed that all of her friends went ran out of town with their troubles, not that Applejack could blame them. An important piece of them vanished into thin air on that fateful afternoon in May. That day left everypony in a dark place. She had no right to judge them. In fact, she would have joined her family on their camping trip at this point, just to get away as well. But there was one pony who was left behind. Fluttershy desperately needed somepony, and Applejack was the one who answered the call.
Out of her circle of friends, Fluttershy was effected by Rainbow Dash’s death the most. Her world was torn asunder when the mayor made that terrible announcement, as was her other friends. Nopony had seen her for days, and Applejack feared for the worst. She couldn’t stand at the side and leave Fluttershy to wander through the dark, alone. That was not the way true friends treat each other. Something must be done.
Winona barked when Fluttershy’s cottage was in view. There was some kind of eerie presence when Applejack was under the trees. Twilight told her about her own experience just days before Rainbow Dash’s funeral. It could have been Applejack’s imagination, but the sky looked grey and the air sent a chill through her spine. Not too long ago she was under a blue sky, and the sun was bright. Winona must have felt it as well, because she whimpered.
“Don’t be scared, girl,” Applejack said.
Applejack expected to be greeted by a mass of animals, but there no sign of life in Fluttershy’s front yard. They must be inside, she thought. Or in the backyard. Her instinct was to knock on the front door. “Fluttershy? Are you there?” she asked. No answer. She knocked several times until she realized nopony was coming. However, she heard faint rustling from the other side of the cottage. Applejack and Winona followed the sounds to the backyard. From there they found Fluttershy tending to her garden, with Angel by her side.
“Fluttershy?”
The pegasus froze. She turned around and thought of Applejack as a stranger. Her pink mane was untidy, almost covering her eyes, although it still retained its shape. Poor thing, thought Applejack. It’s been so long since she’d seen another pony. “Fluttershy?” she said with a soft, motherly tone. “It’s me, Applejack.”
“... Applejack,” Fluttershy said like an foal.
“That’s right, darling. It’s me. I brought Winona here, too. We came to visit if that’s alright with you.”
She didn’t respond immediately, but after a moment of silence she muttered “Okay.” Applejack removed her saddlebag and joined Fluttershy on the grass. Winona wagged her tail excitedly when she saw Angel. She playfully poked him repeatedly to the rabbit’s annoyance, but Angel paid her no mind. “You doing some gardening?” Applejack asked.
“Yes,” muttered Fluttershy.
“You know, I’m little bit of a gardener myself. May I join you?”
Fluttershy nodded. Angel took Winona to another area in the backyard. Applejack noticed there were dirt holes on the soil, and some that were already filled with seeds. Beside her was an open bag of flower seeds, in which she grabbed with her mouth and poured some in the holes. “Are these azalea seeds?”
Fluttershy nodded. “I love azaleas,” Applejack said. “They’re so pretty when they bloom. I’m sure they’re gonna look wonderful, sugarcube.” Fluttershy nodded again, then filled the soil holes. Afterward, she grabbed a watering can and poured a small amount on each of them. Applejack did the same with her’s. “Anything else you want me to help you with, hun?”
“... I have to feed them,” Fluttershy said in a low voice. She pointed to a small pool full of fish and birds standing on wires and tree branches.
“How about I feed the birds and you can take care of the fish,” suggested Applejack, “if that’s okay with you.”
Fluttershy nodded after taking a moment to think. While feeding the fish she watched Applejack as birds surrounded her hooves. She couldn’t remember how long it has been since she seen another living pony until Applejack came to visit. Fluttershy also forgot she even had friends. After feeding the last of the flakes to the fish, she approached Applejack, who was now finished feeding the birds.
“... Thank you for helping me,” she muttered.
“You’re quite welcome, sugarcube.”
The silence was very awkward. Fluttershy was trying to find anything to get her attention away from Applejack. She began to say something, but closed her mouth. Applejack felt that spending the night with Fluttershy might not be a good idea. She sighed, then called for Winona. “Well… I just wanted to check on you, that’s all. See how you were. I’m glad you’re doing alright,” she said in a somber tone. “I best be going now.”
“No,” Fluttershy said. They stared at each other, one waiting for the other to make a move. Fluttershy rubbed her forearm while Applejack waited. “Um, would you like to come inside?”
“Are you sure?”
“I… I don’t want to be alone.”
Applejack nodded. “That’s why I’m here, so we won’t have to be.”
Angel wondered how much energy can one dog have. He had no idea Winona liked him so much. She spent the entire day playing with him by pushing the rabbit playfully, jumping around, and occasionally running circles around him. Angel found it particularly annoying, but he endured her behavior for both Fluttershy and Applejack. Although Fluttershy hardly noticed it herself, she was very pleased to see them play together. Most of the time she would give Winona rubs on her stomach and back, something that made Angel slightly jealous. However, he was glad to see Fluttershy coming around.
“I was going to make tea for me and Angel,” said Fluttershy. “Um, would you like any?”
“That’ll be nice. Thank you.”
Fluttershy walked into the kitchen and prepared the tea. While looking around Applejack discovered a box beside the couch. When she opened the box she found them to be photographs of their friends Fluttershy had kept. Rainbow Dash was featured in many of them. Two of them she found recalled favorite memories; her winning first place at the Young Flyer Competition and the wedding of Shining Armor and Princess Cadance where they were bridesmaids. The memories of the good times they had together rushed through Applejack. In just a span of a few years they’ve gone through many high in low points, and always stuck together, as real sisters. It was a bond that was unbroken, until recently. She quickly purge the last thought at of her head. It will never be broken, as long as they stay together. As Applejack looked through more of the photographs Fluttershy entered the room with a teapot and teacups on a serving tray. “Oh… the pictures,” she said awkwardly.
“I’m sorry, I just wanted to look through them if that was alright with you.”
“That’s okay, I was just… organizing.”
Applejack looked through more photos while Fluttershy poured tea. Some of them brought smiles to her face, others caused her lips to quiver. So much lost time, she said to herself. “... Would you like any sugar?” Fluttershy asked.
“No, thank you.”
Upon the mountain of photos, Applejack found some that were taken when Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash were fillies. She had a guess that the two had history together because of how close they were. Several of them were taken during flight camp. Applejack shook her head light-heartedly, remembering how Rainbow would always gush about her days at the camp. However, one photo took her by surprise. There was Rainbow and Fluttershy, plus a third - a young griffon. All three of them were smiling together.
“I didn’t know you knew Gilda.”
Fluttershy put down her teacup and inspected the photo with her own eyes. There she was as clear as day, Gilda along with herself and Rainbow Dash. “Y’all three went to flight camp together?”
“Yes, but I wouldn’t say me and Gilda were friends.”
“What do you mean?”
“At flight camp I had very few friends. Honestly, I never had any friends ever. Rainbow Dash was my first true friend. She stood up for me when nopony else did. Then I met Gilda through Rainbow, but I didn’t think she liked me very much. She thought I was weak and a terrible flyer. I guess she was in the photo out of obligation.”
“Did you know that Gilda came to Rainbow’s funeral?” asked Applejack.
“Really?”
She nodded. “When the funeral was over, Pinkie brought her to Sugarcube Corner where the rest of us went.”
“What happened?”
“Well, most of us wasn’t sure why she came, then the strangest thing happened… we made peace. She apologized, we forgave her.” There was a smile on her face. “Gilda wanted to apologize to you too, but you weren’t there.”
Fluttershy took another sip from her teacup, then she let out a remorseful sigh. “Applejack, I’m sorry for not going to the funeral. I know it was horrible thing to do, but I wasn’t strong enough. I couldn’t say goodbye to her.”
She began to weep, and Applejack held her hoof while wiping her tears with the other. “Don’t you apologize for anything, dear. Nopony likes going to funerals. In fact, I was thinking of skipping the whole thing myself.”
“You did?”
“Absolutely. When Rainbow Dash took her last flight, I couldn’t stop crying for days. I hadn’t cried so much since my parents died.”
“Your parents?”
Applejack said nothing. She gazed at nothing. Later, she closed her eyes and exhaled a small amount of breath.
“My ma and pa. They died when I was nearly twelve. I think Apple Bloom was just born. Mighty proud Apples they were. They taught me and Mac everything we know. Hard working folks they were, too. They never missed a day of farm work, no matter what.”
“What happened to them?” Applejack was silent again. “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to ask that.”
“No, that’s alright. You see, Ma and Pa had to do a little business in Marbletown. They had a huge wagon of cider, and the town was a four day trip - to and from. They left Big Mac in charge of me and Apple Bloom.” She took another sip of tea. “Well, we found out that the wagon never made it to Marbletown. We don’t know how it happened.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s fine. I mostly gotten over it, but… it still hurts inside, you know?”
Fluttershy’s eyes were glued to the box of photos. Applejack’s story reminded her of something very personal. “Can I show you something?”
“Sure.”
Fluttershy dug through the box until she found what she had been searching for. She pulled out a photo which was taken at another time during her fillyhood and present it to Applejack. There was Fluttershy, and standing next to her was a white pegasus mare with a pink mane that looked just like her own.
“Who is that?” asked Applejack.
“That’s my mother.”
“She’s very beautiful.”
“My mother was the kindest pony in the world. Whenever I made a mistake she never got angry or screamed at me. Anytime I was sad she would cheer me up by taking me to my favorite places. One summer she decided to sign me up for flight camp. I didn’t like it at first, and everypony kept making fun of me. But thinking about it now, if she hadn’t done that… then I wouldn’t have met Rainbow Dash.”
“And then,” Applejack said.
“Years later, she became very sick. One day she became so ill that she fainted. I was living in Ponyville when it happened. The doctors didn’t know what was happening to her, but I visited her everyday, hoping she will get better. The next day I got a letter from the hospital…”
She covered her face to hide herself. Applejack, the only friend she had, pulled Fluttershy close to her. Applejack let the tears fall on her shoulder. She thought about the song her mother used to sing to her and McIntosh when they were young. Her voice rang in her mind as Applejack hummed it to Fluttershy.