As soon as Applejack opened her eyes, the only color she could see was orange. Correction: The only thing she could see was orange, along with a door that sported her cutie mark on it. She looked around the carrot-orange room, trying to see if there was any windows or hints of where she was. When she didn't see anything, she figured it would be best if she headed towards the door.
"I'll be.." She mumbled into the eerily quiet room, turning her head from left to right, even though she knew it wasn't much use. "Am ah supposed ta camouflage inta this here room?" She didn't think so, but it was nice to get the burning question out of her head. "Is this all part of the test Nightmare Moon sent us to?"
She couldn't quite help but talk to herself; she lived in a house that held an energetic filly, an elder pony that shouted almost everything she said, and a stallion-not that any of her other kin were a problem. She also had all of her extended family over for about a month to prepare food for the Summer Sun Celebration. It was almost never quiet in the Apple house, not even at night. This full sense of silence, though she would never admit it out loud, scared her in ways she couldn't explain.
Maybe there was somepony that would materialize out of the wall and help her on her test. "Hello?" She called, "anypony here?" Her hind stood inches away from the door while she looked all around the room for the tenth time since she appeared there, waiting for somepony to answer her important question.
Nothing.
Her back involuntarily shivered as she turned around and reached her hoof out to open the door, wondering what other fur-raising experiences would be on the other side. She was happy to see what laid out on the other side of the door, though. Her beautiful apple trees- acres and acres of them.
Her home.
"Hoo-ey! Glad that test is over, that there room was givin me the willies." She wondered how her family was doing, and decided to check on them before finding and helping the other five. She started walking towards the familiar bright red barn in the distance, humming a little tune to herself as she walked.
She didn't get far, however, when a scream interrupted her mild melody. "AAAAAA--PULLLL---JAAACK!!!!" The desperate, urgent scream made her stop in her tracks and look around frantically to try and find the source of where the sound was coming from. Her vision went from looking up into the night sky to down low on the ground. From one side of the apple trees that seemed to stretch on for eternity to the other side. She finally caught sight of a tan pony running towards her, pink bow bouncing each time her forelegs touched the ground. Applejack could hardly make out her expression, but she didn't need to see it to know something was wrong. Seriously wrong.
"Ah'm a comin, sugar cube!" She called as she ran through the clearing towards her little sister. As she ran, full grown apple trees sprouted from the earth right in front of her, making it difficult to reach the troubled filly. Applejack had to turn sharply multiple times to avoid running into the wood walls that tried to stop her.
They finally reached each other, Applejack pulling Apple Bloom into a strong yet comforting embrace. They stood like that for quite some time until Applejack broke their loving moment by holing her sister out at arms length. "Now tell me, sugar cube, what is it that's gotcha all rild up?"
Apple Blooms eyes were misty as she tried to hold back her tears. "Somethin's wrong with Granny," she explained, "I came in the kitchen to help her with supper, an she was hackin up somethin fierce. Ah tried ta help her by gettin her a drink of water, but when she took it, she started coughing up blood." Applejack left out a soft gasp, letting her sister continue on afterwards. "Ah called Big Mac an once he saw the whole scene, he told me ta go get you. He sounded serious, Applejack, ah just don't know what ta do!" Apple Bloom then started to hyperventilate, concerning Applejack even more; if that was even possible.
"It's alright, Apple Bloom, just take a deep breath--"
"Ah'm tryin!" The filly cried, the tears that were trapped in her eyes before finally streaming out. "Ah'm tryin real hard to be strong, Applejack, ah just don't think ah can." She started to hyperventilate again, stopped for a moment, then collapsed to the ground.
"Apple Bloom?" Applejack immediately asked, there was no doubt that worry was trapped in her voice. "Apple Bloom, y'all OK?" The farm pony lowered her head down to her sisters mouth to try and hear-or feel-her sisters breath. Each second that ticked by felt like agony, Applejack gaining more and more fear until finally, after ten of those dreaded seconds, she heard a soft exhale and, at the same time, felt a small breeze tickle her ear.
There was absolutely no wind that night, so it must've been Apple Bloom's breath. Her sister was still alive. Thank Celestia.
With some effort, Applejack got her fainted sister onto her back and started off once more towards the barn in the distance. On the outside, she looked calm, cool and collected.
On the inside? She was terrified.