Chapter 10: A Wonderful Hearth's Warming (Part 1)
Chapter 10: A Wonderful Hearth’s Warming (Part 1)
The Ponyville train station was alive with noise and activity. Passengers boarded and exited the train that had just stopped at the platform. The early December winds whipped and howled, causing Soarin’ and Applejack to bundle their respective green and red scarves tighter around themselves to preserve warmth. A few snowflakes drifted through the air, having nary any time to settle before being whipped away in the wind. Apple Bloom bounced excitedly, her orange eyes darting from sight to sight as Applejack tried to make sure her scarf and hat were on tightly enough.
“Is this Babs’ train from Manehattan?” the filly asked excitedly.
Applejack placed a hoof on her sister’s back in an attempt to keep her still. “Sorry, Apple Bloom, that train ain’t due for a little while yet. This is the train that Braeburn and the rest of the family from Appleoosa’s comin’ on.”
“Ooh,” the filly whined in frustration. “Ah hope it gets here soon. Ah wanna see Babs! Maybe she got her cutie mark since the last time Ah saw her.”
“Ah reckon she would’a written to you if she had,” Applejack replied, adjusting her own scarf again. “Ah’m sure you can both get some crusadin’ done while she’s here. Just remember to spend some time with yer other relatives at the Hearth’s Warmin’ get together, too. Oh! There they are!” She began waving to a group of ponies with cowpony hats. “Braeburn! Everypony! Over here!”
“Hey there, cuz,” an amber-maned stallion greeted as he approached, followed by at least a train car’s worth of other ponies. Applejack and Apple Bloom hugged and greeted their relatives and pointed them in the direction of the farm, telling them that Macintosh and Granny were waiting with hot cider. The only one to stay behind was the stallion that had first greeted them.
“Well shoot! Is that you, Apple Bloom?” the amber stallion asked. “I swear you’ll be bigger than me if you keep growin’ like that.”
“Howdy, cousin Braeburn. Welcome to Poooooonyville!” the filly exclaimed, rearing up on her hind legs and howling the greeting as loud as she could.
The amber-maned stallion laughed, a hearty laugh that can only be brought about by a really good joke, the corners of his eyes crinkling with how wide his grin became.
“Well, with a welcomin’ committee like that, I’m real happy to be here.” Braeburn smiled at Soarin. “Who’s your compadre, cousin Applejack?”
“This is Soarin’,” Applejack introduced.
“Hey,” the pegasus greeted Braeburn, offering a hoof.
Braeburn returned the gesture in a hoof bump.
“Why don’t you head on down to the farm, Braeburn?” asked Applejack. “We gotta wait for more of the family on the Manehattan train, but when we all get back to the farm, Ah’ll be sure to catch up with you.”
“I don’t mind waitin’ none,” the Appleoosan said. He gestured to the door of the train station. If they were going to wait, they might as well be warm.
“So, cousin,” Braeburn asked when they had taken a seat on a bench in the station. “What’s been happenin’ with you?”
Applejack proceeded to tell her cousin several stories about life on the farm. Braeburn exchanged these for stories about his life at the orchard in Appleoosa. The two cousins chatted and talked and eventually Soarin’s mind drifted away from their conversation. Noticing a newsstand nearby, he decided to look at the newspaper for any news of the Wonderbolts after his retirement.
His stomach still got a little queasy when he thought of his quitting as a retirement. It had been Spitfire’s idea to not officially announce his quitting to the public. Instead, Fire Streak had come up with the idea to explain Soarin’s absence as a sabbatical he was taking due to a family emergency, but only if the press actually asked. No one had been able to come up with a solution for what to say when Soarin’s sabbatical wouldn’t end, however. Spitfire had promised that she would talk to Boss and try to work something out, but Soarin’ didn’t find it very likely that her efforts would bear any fruit.
He glanced back over to Applejack, chatting and laughing with Braeburn. The thing that he hated most about this situation was lying to her. What would she say if she knew what he’d done? The last thing that he had wanted was to hurt her or betray her trust. He knew that he would have to tell her eventually. But, seeing as the papers and tabloids were more focused on pictures of the now visibly pregnant Fleur-de-Lis, he figured he had a little more time.
His perusal of the press was interrupted when he heard a joyous cry from Braeburn.
“You’re havin’ a baby?!”
Chuckling to himself, Soarin’ put the paper away and went back to the bench.
“Yup, that’s right, Braeburn,” Applejack confirmed. “Yer gonna be a second cousin.”
“Well, boy howdy, Applejack, if that ain’t the best news I’ve ever heard,” the gold stallion exclaimed. Noticing Soarin’s return to the bench, he grabbed the blue stallion’s hoof and vigorously shook it. “Congratulations, partner, looks like we’re gonna be cousins-in-law.”
Applejack sputtered. “Uh, Braeburn…”
“Do you know if it’s a filly or colt yet?” Braeburn continued, still shaking Soarin’s hoof. “Thought of any names? Is it a pegasus or an earth pony?”
“Braeburn.”
“When’s the weddin’? How did you propose? How did the two of you meet? Never had a pegasus in the family before…”
“Braeburn!” Applejack shouted.
“Yes, cuz?” the cowpony replied.
“He ain’t the father. Soarin’s just a friend who’s helpin’ out while Ah’m getting’ ready to foal.”
“Can I have my hoof back now?” Soarin’ asked sheepishly, feeling pain begin to flare up in the appendage.”
The frontier pony blushed and released Soarin’s hoof. “Oops. Sorry, Soarin’. Didn’t mean to embarrass you or nothin’. Well, you know what they say about assumin’ things.”
Soarin’ rubbed his hoof. “It’s OK, Braeburn.”
A tense silence fell over the bench area, only punctuated by Apple Bloom snickering and trying to hide it with a hoof over her mouth.
“Well, now that I’ve gone and made a fool of myself, am I gonna get to meet my future cousin-in-law?” Braeburn asked, breaking the tension.
Applejack looked sullenly down at the floor. “Braeburn…he…Ah…we…”
Her voice started to crack and her eyes moistened a little. Soarin’ placed a hoof on her shoulder and gave her a reassuring smile. She looked back at him, smiling and blinking her tears away. Her confidence renewed, she morosely told Braeburn the story of the previous few months. As she told her story, her cousin’s ever-present smile slowly faded. When she had finished, he wordlessly pulled her into a hug. He looked straight into her eyes.
“I’m so sorry, Applejack,” he said softly. “If I’d known, I would’ve come up here to help.”
The orange mare placed a hoof over his, which was still on her shoulder. “Don’t you worry none. Ah got plenty of help from mah friends and family already.”
The sound of a shrill train whistle echoed through the station and Apple Bloom leapt excitedly off the bench.
“She’s here! Babs is here!”
The three adults rushed to catch up to the filly as she bounded out the door and back onto the platform. Apple Bloom bounced from hoof to hoof excitedly as the train slowly came to a stop and its passengers made their departure. The three Apples scanned the faces of the bustling train passengers.
“There she is!” shouted Apple Bloom, dashing into the crowd and colliding in a tackle hug with a light brown earth filly.
“Aright, aright, ‘Bloom. I missed you too. Now would ya get offa me?”
Apple Bloom released her cousin and the two of them caught up while Braeburn and Applejack greeted relatives and introduced Soarin’. When the group had gathered their bags, they all began the short trek to the farm.
As the group walked down the path, Soarin’ stared up at the sky in surprise as a couple of dirigibles flew overhead and landed at the farm. From the look of things, the Apples had family coming from all around the world.
“Hey,” said a voice to his right. Breaking from his thoughts, he turned to acknowledge the mare that had greeted him. The names of all the relatives he had been introduced to started swimming together and he struggled to remember which one was hers.
“Hey, uh…”
She smiled as she fell into step alongside him. “Apple Leaves,” she reminded him, pushing a lock of her green and white mane behind her ear. “I’m Babs’ big sister.”
Soarin’ returned her smile. “Sorry. Applejack ran through the names pretty quick and they got a little jumbled.”
“That’s a’right,” the orange mare replied, her Manehattan accent sounding very much like her sister, her voice only a little higher. “I’ll reintroduce ya to everypony if ya like. So, how long ya been helpin’ on my cousin’s farm?”
“A few months,” Soarin’ replied, “but I started about four months ago when she let me stay because I’d hurt my wing and couldn’t fly back to Cloudsdale.”
“Well, I’m glad it all worked out. So you flew all the way here from Cloudsdale? You must be pretty strong,” she said, batting her eyelashes. Her eyes were green, much like Appejack’s but a little lighter and Soarin’ wondered if it was a family trait, much like the freckles adorning many of the Apple’s faces.
“Uh, sure I guess. I mean I have to do a lot of flying for the Wonderbolts, so flying long distances is pretty easy.” The blue stallion felt a feeling of uneasiness creep back up talking about his former career in the present tense.
“Well that must be exciting. Flying all over the place and- whoops!”
Apple Leaves’ right front hoof stumbled suddenly, and she fell into the dirt.
“Are you OK?” Soarin’ asked, offering a hoof to help her up.
“Yes, I’m fine. Darn, must’a tripped on a rock,” she said, blushing as she took the pegasus’ hoof and he helped her up.
Soarin’ looked at the part of the road where she had just been walking. While he didn’t see any rocks or pebbles, the road was a bit uneven. Maybe she had stepped on a patch of black ice or something.
“Oh wow,” the orange mare cooed as she got back on her hooves, looking at the contracting muscles in his foreleg. “You are strong.”
Soarin’ quirked an eyebrow at the mare’s strange reaction as they continued walking, Apple Leaves now much closer to him. Shrugging it off, he continued the conversation.
“So, where in Manehattan does the Manehattan branch of the Apple family come from?”
“Oh, we’re all ova’ Manehattan. My Aunt and Uncle Orange over there live in the upper district on the North side’a the city. Me and my family live near the bridge.”
“Do they still have the community center over there?”
“Yeah, how’d you know?”
“I used to live in Manehattan and we went there a lot. My mom and I lived in an apartment building near the southeast docks.”
“A stallion of humble beginnings, huh?” Apple Leaves commented, her eyes half closed.
“Yep. My friends and I used to play hide and seek around the shipping crates. My mom always warned us to be careful or we’d get shipped off to Zebrabwe.”
Apple Leaves laughed daintily, covering her mouth with a hoof. She lightly touched Soarin’s shoulder. “You’re so funny.”
Soarin’ was about to make a reply when a multi-hued streak zipped past the company of ponies. The blue stallion grinned as the rainbow trail zipped ahead of them before slowly inclining until it went straight up and looped around back toward them. When it was directly above them, it stopped and began to plummet directly toward the group. Many of the Apples watched in awe, the awe beginning to become concern as the pony performing wasn’t pulling up.
“Look out!” shouted Apple Leaves, diving out of the way as the distance between the diving pony and the ground where she stood approached zero.
At the front and middle of the group, Applejack and Soarin’ both rolled their eyes.
At the last possible second, there was the sound of the ruffling of feathers and a stiff displacement of the cold air as two cyan wings were unfurled. Rainbow Dash landed just about where Apple Leaves had been standing, stuck out her chest and struck a pose as the small flurry of dust and snow from the road settled and many of the Apple family members stamped their hooves and cheered.
“Hey, Rainbow,” Soarin’ greeted her. “How are-”
“Rainbow!” Applejack chided, interrupting Soarin’s greeting.
“What?” the cyan pegasus asked in a somewhat irritated tone. “I thought your family might wanna see Ponyville’s most awesome stunt flyer in action.” She struck another pose, her wings wide open behind her. Several of Applejack’s family members smiled, murmuring their confirmation that Rainbow’s display had indeed been impressive.
“Ah’m sure they appreciated it. But you ‘bout gave Apple Leaves a heart attack.” Applejack’s glare at her friend remained unrelenting as she gestured to her cousin, who stood wide-eyed, gasping and coughing from the dust cloud Rainbow had kicked up.
Rainbow’s eyes guiltily glanced from side to side and her right forehoof rubbed her left front leg. “Uh, sorry. Didn’t see ya there.”
The green and white maned mare cleared her throat and began to dust herself off. “S’all right.”
“Awesome.” The pegasus turned suddenly to Soarin’. “Hey, you wanna hang out? I got the day off.”
“Uh, I was gonna spend the day helping Applejack with the reunion,” Soarin’ replied. Rainbow had dropped by the farm quite frequently over the past few months, usually to ask Soarin’ if he wanted to hang out. As much as Soarin’ wanted to, he knew Applejack would need help with the reunion more.
Rainbow gave Applejack a pleading look. The orange mare looked puzzled at her friend before a look of realization crossed her face.
“Oh! Uh, actually, Soarin’, you can go and hang out with Rainbow if ya want.”
Soarin’ quirked an eyebrow. “Are you sure, AJ? There’s gonna be a lot of ponies there. Won’t you need some help?”
She waved a dismissive hoof. “Nah. We’ve been doin’ reunions for years. Everypony in the family helps set up, so we should be fine.”
Rainbow returned to looking at Soarin’, giving him a pleading smile. “Come on, I’ll race ya.”
Soarin’ smiled, shook his head and sighed. “Fine.” He crouched into a more ready stance. “On your mark. Get set. Go!”
The two pegasi shot into the air, twin trails of rainbow and blue following them eastward. The earth ponies gathered on the ground watched them go and began to resume their walk to the reunion. Apple Leaves watched longer than her other relatives, sighing longingly.
“Ponyfeathers,” she cursed under her breath. “Why are the good ones always taken?”
-SWA-
Rainbow landed at Sweet Apple Acres’ front gate a good few seconds before Soarin’ did. The blue stallion didn’t even have the strength to fold his wings against himself and they drooped to the ground as he panted, trying to catch his breath, his gasps clearly seen in the steam his breath made in the cold air.
“Dude, you OK?” Rainbow asked.
“Yeah,” he wheezed. He regretted pushing himself so hard, the minor chores around the farm not being anywhere near strenuous enough to keep him in shape. In addition he wasn’t flying as much and was quite well-fed by the Apples’ cooking. Glancing down, he noted with a scowl that he had gained a few pounds in his time on the farm. “Just gotta lay off the pie a little more.”
At the mention of food, Rainbow’s stomach rumbled. She chuckled. “Speaking of food, I’m starving. Come on. Applejack has a ton of food at the reunion. We can grab a quick bite and then I can kick your butt some more.”
“Sounds…sounds good,” Soarin’ replied, still heaving for breath.
The two pegasi walked up the front path of the farm amidst a throng of Apple relatives. The majority of the family was in the barn chatting, laughing and dancing with each other. In one corner, some of the foals were gathered in a circle playing duck-duck-goose. A large table was set up in the middle of the barn and piled high with enough apple desserts to put an army into a coma. Soarin’ couldn’t help but smile and marvel at such a scene.
The blue stallion turned to see that Rainbow had already made a beeline for the snack table and was munching away at an apple fritter. Soarin’ decided to look for Applejack before he dug into the food. Glancing around, he saw her talking to a pudgy, light brown mare with a green, curly mane tied at the end and some kind of apple dessert as a cutie mark.
“Hey. How’d your race go with Rainbow?” Applejack asked as he approached.
“She, uh, kicked my flank. Pretty bad, too.”
The mare Applejack had been talking to turned and beamed when she saw Soarin’. “Well, kick mah flank an’ call me a apple tree. You didn’t say nothin’ about Clover bein’ a pegasus, honey.”
The smile slowly fell from Applejack’s face and she cleared her throat. “This, uh, this ain’t Clover, Aunt Brown Betty. This here’s Soarin’. He’s been helpin’ around the farm while Ah’m getting’ ready ta have the baby.”
Soarin’ could almost hear the next question Applejack’s aunt would ask before it even crossed her lips. He could see that Applejack saw it coming too and saw how uncomfortable she was becoming.
“And it’s been the coolest job I’ve had so far,” he said, changing the subject before the question could be asked. “I’m hoping winter goes by fast so I can get some exercise, though. I think I’ve gained a few pounds with how well they feed me here.”
Brown Betty chuckled. “Yup, if there’s one thing we Apples are good at, it’s food. Have ya had a chance to try some of mah homemade apple brown betty, yet?” Turning, slightly, she glanced at the mark on her flank. “It’s mah specialty.”
“No, I haven’t, but I’ll make sure to grab some when I go over there.”
“Well, you be sure and let me know what you think of it.” Glancing to a corner of the barn, the brown mare excused herself. “It was real nice catchin’ up, Applejack.”
When her aunt had left, Applejack breathed a small sigh of relief.
“Whew. If Ah have to explain about Clover one more time... Thanks. All this tellin’ mah family about what’s goin’ on is makin’ me all nervous. It’s a good thing Ah ain’t showin’ yet or Ah’d have to deal with everypony rubbin’ me like Ah’m one’a them Chineighse statues, too.”
Soarin’ laughed at the image. “I’m guessing Braeburn told everypony?”
“Uh-huh. Ah told a few, but most of ‘em are comin’ up to me askin’ if what he told ‘em is true. Ah’m kinda glad, though. Now everypony knows and it’s all over, like rippin’ off a bandage.” She looked down sadly at the floor. “Wish they’d quit askin’ when the weddin’ is, though.”
The pegasus tried to cheer her up by changing the subject. “Hey, you hungry? Getting my flank kicked by Rainbow really worked up my appetite.”
Applejack looked around the barn. “Where is Rainbow anyway?”
“She was at the food table the last time I saw her,” Soarin’ replied, looking in that direction.
“C’mon. We can get some food and go look for her.”
They made their way to the food table, picking out a few things to eat as they went along. Soarin’, remembering to cut down on the sweets, grabbed a few apples and a plate of the apple brown betty that Applejack’s aunt had made, plus an apple turnover. Applejack went down the line of food as if she hadn’t eaten in weeks. Fritters, slices of pie, candy apples, none were spared as the orange mare piled her plate high with food. Much of it was eaten in whole or in part on its way to the plate. Soarin’ could only stare as Applejack packed the food away.
“Wha?” she said around a mouthful of food when she noticed him staring. “Ahm eeing fer phoo.” She swallowed and took another large bite out of a fritter, moaning. “Mmmmmm, oh vashs good.”
Soarin’ chuckled, then asked jokingly, “Do you want any onions on that?”
After swallowing, the orange mare replied. “Very funny. Actually Ah ain’t had much cravin’ for onions. Mostly A’ve been wantin’ spicy food. Though, a little while back Ah had some jalapeños in ice cream. That was pretty tasty.”
Soarin’ wrinkled his nose.
“Hey,” Applejack defended. “Don’t knock it till ya tried it. Oh look, there’s Rainbow.”
The pegasus and the earth pony moved to meet with their mutual friend, who had finished eating and was talking with Braeburn near where the older mares were quilting. From the look of things, Braeburn was telling a rather funny story.
“Then…then Princess Celestia went to greet Chief Thunderhooves,” the amber stallion said, telling his tale between bouts of laughter. “When she did, she kinda bend her head down, like she was givin’ him a little bow or somethin’. Well, he thought she was tryin’ ta give him a more traditional buffalo greetin’, so he headbutted her!”
Rainbow’s jaw dropped and her eyes boggled. “No way!”
“That ain’t the funniest part, though. His greetin’ caught her off guard a bit and she stumbled. Everypony watchin’ got real quiet, like they thought she was gonna send him to the moon or somethin’.”
“What happened?” asked Rainbow, completely enthralled with the story.
Braeburn snickered a few times before replying. “She headbutted him right back! I swear ‘bout half the crowd fainted.”
Rainbow burst out laughing. “Yeah, that sounds like the Princess!”
“Hey, cuz,” Braeburn greeted. “I was just tellin’ Miss Dash about the time the Princess came to welcome the buffalo to Equestria.”
Applejack chuckled. “Yeah, Ah remember readin’ your letter about it.”
Braeburn noticed Soarin’s plate. “Oh, hey, I see you grabbed one’a my ma’s turnovers. Would you mind doin’ me a favor and tellin’ her what you think of it? My little sister just left the house, so she’s been feelin’ a little depressed and I think that’d cheer her up.”
“Sure thing,” said Soarin’.
“Speakin’ of your family, Braeburn, how’s Promontory doin’? Ah haven’t seen him yet.”
“Big bro’s back at the orchard,” Braeburn replied. “We had lil’ bit’a root rot this season. He’s makin’ sure all the dead trees are taken care of so it doesn’t spread.”
Applejack looked concerned. “Ah’m sorry to hear that, Braeburn.”
“Aw, don’t you worry none, cuz. Other than the root rot, we’ve had us a fine year this year. We’ll even be plantin’ some saplin’s that came from Bloomburg in the spring.”
Applejack beamed. “Well ain’t that somethin’! Mah little Bloomburg’s a daddy!”
Soarin’ gave the Apple cousins a curious look. Rainbow leaned in and whispered in his ear.
“They really love their trees. Just roll with it.”
“We’ve had to hire some help this year, too,” Braeburn continued. “Hired a real nice mare named Maraschino. Lemme tell you, that mare is amazin’. She does just about everythin’. Got a little one of her own comin’ sometime next year, too.”
“Braeburn!” Applejack exclaimed angrily. “Yer makin’ a pregnant mare work out in the orchard for ya? For shame!”
“Now, now, calm down, AJ. I won’t have it said that I ain’t nothin’ but a gentlecolt. She just moved out there and didn’t have any work or a place to stay, so I offered her the guest house. I tried to find her a nice, easy job in town, but she wouldn’t have any of it. She was very…persuasive.”
Soarin’ chuckled, knowing what Braeburn was talking about after having been around Applejack the past few months. When the orange mare glared at him, he quickly turned it into a cough and then nonchalantly went back to munching one of his apples.
“Anyway, with her around, all Pro and I have to worry about is the orchard. Don’t worry, though, when she gets closer to her due date, I’ll make sure she slows down. And in the meantime, I make sure she gets plenty of time to rest.” The amber stallion smiled mischievously. “I think Sheriff Silverstar’s sweet on her. He seems to stop by askin’ about her more and more.”
“Sounds like a real nice mare, cuz. Maybe you can introduce me next time Ah come to visit.”
“Will do, AJ,” Braeburn replied with a nod of his head. “I think you’d really like her. Anyway, Miss Dash. You were about to tell me about how you fought off an army of changelings all by yourself.”
Applejack gave Rainbow a look. “Was she now? Go on, Rainbow. Ah’d love to hear that story.”
The rainbow mare began to sweat and stammer. “Well, uh, y’know my friends were there, too and they kinda helped. But it was definitely an army we fought! There must have been hundreds of them.” She wrapped a hoof over Applejack’s withers. “I even had to keep a few of them off some of the girls. It was brutal.”
Applejack shrugged her friend’s hoof off. “S’cuse me, Ah was handlin’ mahself just fine. Even without your hel-“
“Applejack,” called Granny from the quilting circle.
“What is it, Granny?” the orange mare replied, still glaring at Rainbow. “You need some more sewin’ supplies?”
“Naw. Ah was jus’ wonderin’ if you wanted to add a square to the quilt. We got plenty’a room,” the older mare replied, patting a spot next to her.
Applejack’s eyes widened and she turned to look at her grandmother. “B-but Ah’m not…Ah mean…”
“Go on, cuz,” Braeburn urged her.
“After all, yer gonna be a mother soon,” said Granny. “Trust me, ya might as well learn.”
The orange mare grinned like a foal that had just been given the keys to the candy store. She took a seat next to Granny and the mothers and grandmothers of the family began teaching her to quilt.
“Wow,” Braeburn breathed, watching his cousin. “Seems like just yesterday Applejack was learnin’ to change Apple Bloom’s diapers. And now she’s sittin’ in the sewin’ circle and about to be a ma herself.” He shook his head wistfully. “Amazing how the time’ll get away from ya.”
Rainbow quirked an eyebrow at him. “Um, it’s just sewing.”
Braeburn looked mildly offended. “It ain’t just sewin’, Miss Dash. Workin’ on the quilt is an Apple family tradition goin’ back since the first Apple reunion. The ma’s and granny’s get together to start a quilt at every reunion.”
“He’s right, Rainbow,” Soarin’ piped in, having heard about the tradition when he was helping the family prepare for the reunion. “It’s sort of like a rite of passage kind of thing, like your first flight with your parents.”
Braeburn nodded. “You hit the nail on the head there, amigo. They don’t usually finish the quilts, so somepony’ll just take it home to finish. My ma’s still workin’ on one for my sister’s hope chest.”
Soarin’ smiled. “Cool tradition, huh?”
The other pegasus shrugged. “Yeah, I guess so. Hey, you wanna head back out? I’ve got some tricks I want to show you.”
“OK,” Soarin’ replied. “We’ll see you later, Braeburn.”
The Appleoosan tipped his hat. “See ya round, partner.”
The pegasi left the reunion and took to the skies again, flying out over an open field at the edge of Ponyville. They alighted on a cloud and Rainbow demonstrated a series of tricks, asking for Soarin’ to give her his opinion.
It was nightfall when they returned to the farm. The snow that had been lightly falling all day had accumulated with what was already on the ground. This coupled with the wind made for quite a few snow drifts against the various walls of the farm’s buildings. The two pegasi landed at the front door and stepped inside.
“Everypony probably went to bed already,” Soarin’ observed. “Do you want something warm to drink, Rainbow?”
“Sure.”
Soarin’ prepared a couple of warm ciders for the two of them and they sat at the table to talk.
“Soarin’, can I ask you something?”
“Technically, you just did,” Soarin’ replied, giving Rainbow a playful smirk.
“I’m serious,” she said, trying not to chuckle.
“Sure. Shoot.”
The rainbow mare idly twirled a hoof around the rim of her mug for a few moments. “How come I haven’t gotten an audition invitation yet?”
Soarin’ sighed and hung his head. “Look, Rainbow, I’m sorry, but I can’t talk about that.”
“Why not? You said I was good. Why don’t they want me on the team?”
“It’s not that, Rainbow, I just can’t talk about it. Having somepony telling you those kind of things would give you an unfair advantage over other ponies that want to try out. Besides, I don’t really handle recruiting, so I wouldn’t be of much help to you.”
The rainbow mare gave an impatient sigh and leaned her head on a forehoof. “OK. But you can still help me with my routine, right?”
“To a certain extent, yes.”
She gave him a quizzical look, so he decided to clarify.
“I can tell you if a certain trick looked OK, but I can’t tell you what kinds of tricks would work better or look more impressive in your audition.”
“Oh,” she said, looking crestfallen.
“Don’t worry,” Soarin’ assured her, giving her an encouraging smile. I’m sure you’ll do awesome when your audition time comes.”
In an instant, all of the brashness the cyan mare possessed returned full force. “You bet I will,” she exclaimed, rather loudly.
Soarin’ put a hoof up to his lips. “Shh, don’t want to wake anypony up.”
“Too late for that, partner,” a tired voice called from the couch.
The two pegasi looked into the living room to see Braeburn getting up and coming into the kitchen. His hat and vest were absent, both having been hung on the arm of the couch not being occupied by his head. His amber mane was mussed up, rooster tails popping up every which way.
“Sorry,” Soarin’ whispered. “Didn’t mean to wake you.”
The yellow stallion shrugged. “Nah, s’alright. I hadn’t really fallen asleep yet anyway.” Walking over to the stove, he poured himself a mug of cider and took the seat next to Rainbow, opposite Soarin’. “How’d the flyin’ go?”
“Only awesome!” Rainbow bragged. “My routine starts off with some skywriting to demonstrate my agility, then I do some totally wicked stunts and then I top it off with the Buccaneer Blaze.”
Braeburn whistled. “Wow! Sounds like a winner for sure.”
“You bet. Hey, how’s Little Strongheart?”
“She’s fine. She just goes by Strongheart now. Last time the tribe was in Appleoosa, they had this really neat ceremony, kinda a rite of passage or somethin’, so now the tribe considers her an adult.”
Rainbow’s face lit up. “Wow. Did she have to do something like walk across hot coals?”
“Nah, she just wore a pretty headdress. Most’a what they were sayin’ was in the buffalo language and I didn’t understand, but it sorta looked like a weddin’ or a graduation, except she was the only one there.”
Soarin’ slid his mug a little to his right and rested his head in his hooves to listen to the conversation.
“Cool,” said Rainbow. “How long does she stay in Appleoosa?”
“Usually only for a week or two in the summer when her tribe comes through on the stampede, but she’s stayin’ in town for the whole year this time.” He took another swig of his drink. “How about you, Miss Dash? AJ sent a letter tellin’ me you got into a flyin’ academy or somethin’ awhile back?”
“Not just any old flying academy, the Wonderbolts flying academy,” she proudly corrected him.
The amber stallion’s eyes widened. “Whoa, didn’t know I was in the presence’a two Wonderbolts.”
The rainbow mare deflated a little. “I’m not actually on the team yet. I’m waiting to get my invitation to try out for the team.” Her confidence and swagger returned as she continued. “But when I do, I’m gonna show ‘em my stuff and you’ll be looking at their newest member.”
Braeburn smiled and nodded, taking another sip of his cider. “Sounds like a real good plan you got there, Miss Dash. Just don’t forget about us little ponies when you’re a big star.”
Rainbow scoffed. “Are you kidding? I’d never leave my friends hanging. Besides, I’ve been helping Scoots learn to fly. No way I’m up and leaving her in the wind.”
Braeburn put a hoof over his mouth, unsuccessfully trying to stifle his laughter.
Rainbow looked at him indignantly. “Hey, I mean it. What kind of Element of Loyalty would I be if I-“
Braeburn raised a hoof in defense to state that he hadn’t been laughing at the rainbow mare. With his other hoof, he pointed across the table at Soarin’. The blue pegasus had dozed off and was lying with the side of his head on the table, mouth open as he softly snored.
Rainbow giggled. “Hey, you wanna draw on his face?”
The amber stallion frowned. “Miss Dash, I’m surprised at you. You claim to be the Element of Loyalty, but the minute your friend falls asleep your first thought’s to play a prank on him. No, Miss Dash, I’ll have no part of this foolishness.” He turned his nose up in a mock indignant gesture, facing away from her.
“He never told your mom what he thought of her apple turnover before we left,” Rainbow informed him.
“So? He probably just forgot.”
“He only ate half and threw the other half away when we took off.”
“I’ll get the markers.”
-SWA-
“Mail call,” Applejack hollered as she entered the kitchen and tossed a small stack of envelopes on the table. Grabbing a bowl, she served herself some of the soup the family was having for lunch.
Soarin’ ate his soup in silence, trying to think of a revenge prank to play on Rainbow for the mustache and monocle that still could be seen on his face after having washed it several times. The blue stallion glanced over at where Braeburn sat a little ways down the table. If he was lucky, maybe he could find a way to get both of them. He decided not to make playing a revenge prank a huge priority, though. No need to start a prank war with anypony. But, if an opportunity for a prank presented itself…
All activity in Soarin’s mind ceased as Applejack took the seat next to him. With the addition of Rainbow and Braeburn at the table for lunch, the seating became somewhat crowded. Soarin’ could feel the warmth coming off of the orange mare. Trying to contain his blush, he subtly shifted a little further over to the edge of the bench to avoid an awkward situation.
“Soarin’.”
“Guh!”
Startled by the object of his affection addressing him, Soarin’ toppled off the bench and onto the floor.
“You OK?”
“Uh, yeah,” he replied, getting back up and sitting down again.
“Could you pass the tabasco sauce?”
He passed her the bottle, feeling like an idiot for being so jumpy around her.
“You got a letter, Soarin’,” said Big Macintosh, sliding an envelope across the table.
“I did?” Taking the letter, he opened it and read, a warm smile falling over his face as his eyes scanned the paper.
Dear Soarin’,
I’m glad to hear that your friend in Ponyville is doing better. If you like, you can pass on my address to her and she can let me know if there is anything at all that she needs. Single motherhood is tough and I have more than enough resources to help if she needs it. Ask her if she needs any baby clothes. I think I still have some of yours lying around here. The pajamas with the little duckies were a particular favorite of mine. You were so adorable.
Is everything going well at work? Your last letter was rather vague. Pyro comes by to help around a lot these days and we talk about you and Spitfire quite a bit. I feel a little sorry for him, not being able to hear from his daughter as often as I hear from you. Would you mind seeing if you can get Spitfire to send him a letter every so often? I know he would appreciate it. If not, just let me know how she’s doing and I’ll pass it on.
I’m looking forward to your visit and I know everyone else is, as well. The foals always love it when you come by and I know you love it, too. Feel free to bring some friends if you like. It always gets busy this time of year.
I hope to hear from you soon. Tell all of your teammates I said hello.
Your loving mother.
“Who’s it from, Soarin’?” Applejack asked.
“My mom,” he replied as he folded the letter. He felt a pang of guilt at not telling his mom the whole truth about quitting the Wonderbolts. He felt bad enough lying to Applejack.
“What does she say?”
“Just the usual stuff. Asking how I am, looking forward to my visit and…”
Remembering what else his mother had written, Soarin’ came up with an idea.
“Applejack, how would you like to come to Manehattan and meet my mom?”
Stats
Page generated in 0.025 seconds
Total duration
661 users online
1,255,923 hits today, 2,707,512 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
You know you didn't have to add *MLP is property of hasbro* in the story description.... hell im surprised this whole site hasn't been copyrighted.
Great chapter can't wait for the next one.
Great chapter
2720663
Depending on how long you've been doing this, or what site you came from it's just habit to add a disclaimer.
Man, I really love this story. It's slow and steady, such a nice read.
Don't worry about being late! This ain't a job or anything. We're just happy to read.
I liked the way you've characterized the Apples, and the reunion was an enjoyable read. Poor Apple Leaves, though!
I agree with 2721215 here; the story moves forward slowly but surely. I think that's great. Romance takes a lot of time, and I'm glad we can see the attraction build over the chapters. Thank you for writing!
It's an excellent chapter. Still waiting for Soarin's bomb to drop.
MOAR.
Please type more!
so, my notifications told me you updated this story, but tells me to type the password to read the next chapter...??? any one???
Wait what happened to the update?
3076719
Whoops, sorry. I went to edit something and must have unpublished it. Fixed now. Enjoy!
3072807
Technical difficulty when fixing something after I posted it. It should work now.
PYRO! Wat r u doing here?
4238449
Mmmph, mmmp mmmph mmm mmph!
Good on him. I've seen too many situations where someone swoops in shortly after a breakup. Really messes up the victim's recovery.
img0.derpicdn.net/img/view/2012/10/15/123348.gif
At first I thought this was onomatopoeia. Even though it clearly isn't, I think I'll stick with that interpretation.
If you hadn't already promised us a Soarin' x Applejack story, I'd suspect you were setting up a harem tale at this point.
Suuuuuure.
You have no idea, filly.
It'd be worth having another Appleoosa episode just to see Princess Celestia and Chief Thunderhooves butting heads.
Snrk. At least take a mare out to dinner before inviting her home to meet your mom, Soarin'.
Hey it's very cool to see her again
Oh my goodness lol probably if that could be the same thing for Prince Rutherford
Like I said rainbow just wait in season 6 it will be worth it
Hearths warming eve is here once again and it looks like the Apple family are coming for the holidays and it's always nice to see that and soarin is still at the barn helping out and it looks like he's hanging out with them still feeling guilty for not telling the truth about what happened down at the headquarters and it looks like he got a message from his mother and he decided to take Applejack to visit her