//------------------------------//
// ... not granted. 
// Story: The golden Apple 
// by Verzeih Turncoat 
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The Rich Mansion, this giant, magnificent, beautiful, but cold building. Filthy Rich had spent his entire life to shape this place into a paradise. A place with no burden, no worries, no needs. In this place little Applebloom had found a worried mother longing for the love of her own daugther. Vulnerable and soft - and this mother was Diamond Tiara. The bane of her life, her figurative dragon to slay had turned into a loving and caring mother.
That was hard to process for Applebloom and still - somehow - she had find the right words to comfort her. Live had moved on for Diamond Tiara as well. Only Applebloom was still the same since their foalhood. The yellow filly took a stroll through Ponyville to get her mind right. This was too big of a change to swallow. How did she miss this side of her all those years.



"Hey ol´ pal! How ya beeeen!" It was Discord trying extra hard to surpass the southern dialect as he shouted for Appleblooms attention. The draconequus - a creature with the head of a horse with deer and antelope antler, a slick snake like body, a bat wing and a pegasus wing. He also had an eagle claw and a lion paw for hands and dragon and a goat leg. Overall a very chaotic appearance, what is fitting for the spirit of Chaos that he embodies. - The draconequus had a picnic on top of the local bakery with a old but quirky as ever pink pony, whom drank choclate milk out of a cottoncandy-cloud. As Applebloom did not react to him, Discord stretched in upper body down to her. "Wash ya doing?" Holding a plate in his pawn while flushing it with a towel. Up on the roof you could hear Pinkie Pie giggle.

Applebloom noticed him and said: "Just thinking." 

She did not stop in her track. Discord on the other hand zoomed back like rubber band, up to the roof where he still sat on his stool - floating over the roof tiles. A bewildered look on his face he spoke more to himself than anypony else: "That´s odd."  

Pinkie Pie lied down on the roof holding a donut made out of smaller dounuts in her hoof as she responsed: "Yup, normaly she begs to age her up, make a mare out of her and you response that you can´t do it and she is like, how can you not do it, you can turn the entire world upsidedown."  

"Exactly." 

"You think she noticed?" 

Discord took a bite from the applepie - that he just made appear in his claw - with full mouth he said: "Would not count on that." 

"Do you want to go after her?" 

Discord shook his head: "Nah... I know where to find her later. Let´s talk about you becoming a draconequus. Because you would make a wonderful chaos creature."




The town bell rang four times all over Ponyville colts and fillies ran towards Sweet Apple Acers. Currently the Cutiemark Crusader of this town had fourteen blankflanks of different age but at the meetings where easily twenty or more foals. Depending how many still have friends in the Cutiemark Crusaders. But today the was something different that stopped the foals in their track and made them back away from the club house.

It was Applebloom carring a banner strapped to her back while playing cymbals with her forelegs slowly approaching the town instead. On the banner was written in bright, colored letters "Cutiemark Vault". Catching every foal before they reached the headquarter took some effort but it was worth it .

All the young ponies and some folk whom have seen their pilgrimage have gathered around the giant boulder with the pictograms of former Cutiemark Crusaders. Goldrain flew around the stone to find a place for her cutiemark. But there was none. "I am sorry, Goldrain", Applebloom said, "There is no place left on this one. We have to get a new stone and paint it on it later." The white pegasus looked a little sad but gave a nod. 

"What do you mean there is no room for another Cutiemark?" 

Everypony was able to hear the sound of sudden change. * Snap * The Cutiemark Vault got lifted from the ground. Discord appeared out of thin air and pointed at the bottom of the rock. "Here seems to be plenty." 

The audience gasp: "Discord." The small pegasus grabbed the brush to paint her cutiemark on the rock. In the audience was Diamond Tiara silently thanking Discord.

Applebloom complained about his action. Receiving suprised gazed from the crowd. "Stop it Discord. Ya and Ah know that ya can´t let the vault float. So some of the marks are destined to not been seen!" 

"Oh goody, Applebloom. You think i am not aware of it." With a snap of his paw a second clean version of the boulder appeared. The only picture on it was the one Goldrain just had drawn. The rocks set down on the grass.

Applebloom stood in front of the Cutiemark Vault(s) and began her speach: "My fellow Cutiemark Crusaders today we meet to celebrate that, Goldrain, got her..." Discord listens up, the gears in his head start turning. Gold... Gold... of course. How did he not thought of that? "... we will be there for you. Where ever you might go..." With a flash Discord was by Appleblooms side. Took her under his arm. 

"We go, mate." In another flash they had disappear.





"INTRUDERS!!!" - "Get the princess." Panic was all around Applebloom even before she was able to recognized where they were. The Royal Guards were surprised by the sudden flash of light. "It´s Discord! He betrays us!" One of the guards shouted. Suddenly all the guard are covered in jello. 

"Please, be quit I just want to show my friend something." 

Applebloom look around. This was a small garden, round in shape and surrounded by a single high wall with a curved staircase. Alongside the wall were white rose bushes. Soft grass under their hooves. In the middle of all this - the center of the garden stands - a single tree.
It was an appletree. Its leaves was red even though it was summer. The apples in it were golden. 

This was Princess Celestias golden appletree!

"Discord! What are we doing here?" 

The Chaos God plucked a single apple from the tree and show it to Applebloom. "Do you know what this is?" 

"A golden apple." 

"Well, that is obvious. No Applebloom... may I introduce you to you." He threw the Apple to her. 

"Me?" 

Discord summoned a book and put glasses on: "According to legends; whom ever eats an golden apple becomes immortal and stops aging." 

"Great so ya are telling me..." Appleblooms eyes first widen, but then narrow to an angry gaze: "Ah swear if this has been all a joke by ya, Ah find a way to stomp ya out of existence!!!"

Discord got airborne and laughing his lungs out. "You are as oblivious as Twilight. Priceless." He took the Apple from the ground. "My little price apple. Since when are legends to one hundred percent true? Only immortals can eat them." He took a bite and continued: "Long ago when Celestia was young there was a filly who could not get older. She and Sunbutt were close friends but eventually the filly died. She was not immortal after all. Years later this tree begun to grow from her grave. You Applebloom are a seed of a golden appletree." 

Applebloom looked at Discord and the tree behind him. That was her? A Tree? What? "Discord... Ah don´t know what this is suppose to mean... Ah... Ah wanna go back. Ah have to proceed with the oration. Everypony is waiting." 

Discord had a bewildered look on his face and ask: "Proceed? Help me, Applebloom. What was the meaning of that word again?" 

"Continue! Moving on!" 

Discord ate the rest of the golden apple with a smirked on his lips. After that he slowly repeating her words: "Proceed? Continue? Moving on? Are those word a pony says that has done nothing for more then twenty years." 

Applebloom got angry at Discord: "Ah don´t have time for ya poking in ma wounds! Ah have to keep the farm running! Ah have to... to plan for the Crusaders..." 

Discord boops her nose. "And don´t forget teaching a stupid stallion. Helping Blossom with her foal. My... my... my. You ponies... so on the nose!" Applebloom gave him a soft smile.

"You know I am not allowed to change ponies life's permanently but how about, we shock Scootaloo with an Alicorn update at her wedding?"

The end