The Twin Apples.

by Sylif Daring Doo

The truth revealed.

______*Sweet Apple Acres, two months later, Saturday, 1:10 PM*_____

Applejack was working hard on the farm, feeding the animals and working on fixing the broken chicken coop, it had broken a few days ago, when a rough storm forced its way through.

As Applejack worked on fixing the coop, she also kept a close watch on Apple Bloom, who was acting strangely as of late, particularly around her.

This behaivor was odd, especially for Apple Bloom, who usually loved spending time with Applejack, but lately, she seemed to be......antsy, while she wasn't avoiding Applejack, she was very nervous whenever they were close.

This had been going on for weeks now, and Applejack was very concerned for her sister, as Apple Bloom had begun to avoid eating.

And when Big Mac took her for her checkup last week, the doctor found absolutely nothing wrong with her, aside from the obvious drop in nutrition, but when he asked Apple Bloom what was wrong, she never answered him, she just seemed to space out.

There was an upside however, Sarah was completely healthy and seemed to be in control now, she also seemed to be back to her old self, which was good and bad.

It was bad because she had her old prankster attitude again, which they had just dealt with before she........killed, Hilde.

But it was good because she was much happier, and much more energetic than she used to be, the only thing that was truly different about her, was the fact that she had wings, and actively talked to her inner personalities.

How Applejack saw it, if it helped her stay calm and helped her cope with everything going on, she was fine with it.

Big Mac however, made his opinion quite clear on that subject, he was NOT happy about it, and insisted that Sarah learn how to deal with reality, without her 'imaginary' friends.

Applejack did agree that Sarah would need to learn to let them go, but she felt that that was best left up to her, not them.

As for Apple Bloom, she never really spoke with Sarah anyway, even when they walk to school, Sarah never tried to start a conversation, so the two were more on a tolerance stage of a relationship.

Applejack smacked a nail into the wall of the chicken coop and sighed, she looked around and saw Big Mac about to leave for the carrot farm. "Hey Big Mac, come on over!" She called out.

Big Mac walked over and waited for Applejack to speak, as he usually did.

"Can you get Sarah to talk with Apple Bloom? maybe she can get through to her." She asked, looking at her brother.

Big Mac nodded and walked off.

Applejack wiped the sweat from her brow and headed to the barn, she needed more nails and hay for the coop.

As she entered the barn, Applejack walked around looking for the nails, as the hay was readily available, she eventually found them and started to walk out when she saw Rarity walking up. 'I hope she isn't here to start a fight.' She thought.

Applejack walked out and approached Rarity. "Howdy! what brings you round here?" She asked.

Rarity looked tired, more so than usual, it was mostly evident in her eyes, she had circles under them that weren't makeup. "Applejack dear, I need your help, I can't find Sweetie Belle, and I've checked everywhere that she prefers to go, but I haven't seen her." She said with a barely any breath.

Applejack was about to speak when she heard running, she looked in the direction of the running and saw Sarah run out from the other side of the barn and run up to them in a panic "AJ......its Apple Bloom, she's hurt!" She said in a frenzied state.

Applejack immediately followed Sarah leaving Rarity behind.

Rarity sighed and started to walk off. "Ugg.....must rest." She then fell to the ground, unconscious.

_____*meanwhile*_____

Sarah led Applejack straight to Apple Bloom, and what they saw was disturbing, Apple Bloom was bleeding from a wound in her left hoof, but she wasn't screaming, just watching it as it dripped.

Apple Bloom was so enthralled by this, she didn't react as Applejack had her put pressure on it and she didn't react as they rushed her home, she didn't even react when her sisters took her to the hospital after discovering that she had a wound in her abdomen.

_____*the hospital, hours after treatment*_____

Sarah waited in the hospital, she had sent Applejack home and had been waiting for a while now, for the doctor to tell her that she could go in.

Eventually the doctor came out and gave her the go ahead, and she entered the room.

Apple Bloom stared blankly at the wall as she lied in bed. "Apple Bloom, are you alright?" Sarah asked.

For once in a while, Apple Bloom turned and looked at Sarah. "No, I am not alright, my arm and my chest have knife wounds and I'm in a hospital." She said blankly.

Sarah walked up and sat next to her. "Apple Bloom.....what's bothering you? really, you didn't react to us at all today, and you've been growing very distant at home, and to be honest, Applejack is very concerned, and so are Big Mac and myself." She asked.

Apple Bloom looked at Sarah. "And how am I supposed to react when the sister you never knew, turns out to be a psychopathic murderer?" She replied.

Sarah stiffened, she felt her heart stop for a few beats and she bit her tongue. "I.......how did you find out?" She asked quietly.

"The mail came one day." Apple Bloom looked away. "My curiosity got the better of me when I saw that one of the letters was open." She looked back at Sarah. "You weren't released from prison, you were let out, weren't you." She said.

Sarah looked behind her and then at Apple Bloom. "I was let out, but you have to understand......that place.....where I was.......it was like Tartarus itself." She replied.

Apple Bloom focused. "Who was it?" She asked firmly.

Sarah looked into Apple Blooms eyes. "I can't tell you." She said.

"Can't?.....or won't." Apple Bloom wondered.

"I know what you want, you want me to tell you who I........." She paused. "No, I'm not saying it, you need to let this go Apple Bloom, I have my own demons to face, there is absolutely no reason for you to have to deal with them." She said as she stood and began to walk out.

"You mean like Hilde had to suffer?"

Sarah felt herself completely stop, she felt the blood drain from her face, she felt a cold chill run along her spine, and most of all, she felt fear, she slowly turned to face Apple Bloom and looked at the filly's eyes, the normally happy feeling they gave off was replaced by one of dread. "I know you killed our cousin, that wasn't hard to figure out once I put two and two together." Apple Bloom stated.

Sarah breathed and looked away. "I never forgave myself for that Apple Bloom, and I don't think Applejack has either, we may be sisters, but I messed up something special, I took it and I ruined it," she looked at her younger sister. "Don't make the same mistake, treasure what you have Apple Bloom, you have a much better chance than I do." She said.

"You aren't my sister Sarah, no sister of mine would kill, and I think Applejack and Big Mac feel the same way, they just won't say it." Apple Bloom rolled over to look away.

Sarah bit her lip and walked out, feeling that the child was correct.

_____*the farm, 2:00 PM three days later*_____

Sarah was working with Applejack to feed the animals, they were glad to have Apple Bloom home again, and on the up side, she was eating again, and wasn't as distant, but on the down side, she completely avoided Sarah, even when she was walking to school with the Pegasus.

"Do you think Apple Bloom is alright?" Applejack asked.

Sarah sighed and stopped. "To be honest Applejack, no, she's going through a lot right now especially with what she found out." She replied.

Applejack paused, she looked at Sarah with a grim expression. "She knows doesn't she?" She asked fearfully.

Sarah nodded sadly and walked to the barn with Applejack, on the way, she told her what she had said, about how she found out.

"There's more." Sarah said.

Applejack and Sarah both stood in the barn and looked at each other. "Applejack......I wasn't released from prison, in fact, I wasn't even in a prison, and Star?......she doesn't exist." Sarah stated.

Applejack was surprised and shocked, but she was going to let Sarah finish. "I was actually in a secret facility called the Lab, I was given that pendant and jacket as proof of my cover." She continued.

"I was released for a secret mission, and once it's done, I'm free, if I fail, I get sent back." Sarah said.

Applejack sighed. "And what exactly ARE you supposed to do?" She asked.

Sarah shook her head. "THAT I can't tell you, EVER, as in, I die, you die, we all die, they cover it up to look like a serial killing." She replied firmly.

Applejack paced around a little bit and then looked at Sarah. "So what am I supposed to do?" She asked.

Sarah shook her head. "Go about your life, don't think about what I need to do, just don't let anyone know that I told you this stuff." She replied.

Applejack looked outside and sighed, she looked at her sister. "No way." She said.

Sarah blinked. "Did you really not hear what I said, the last thing I need on my mind is the deaths of my family......at least, the ones that are still alive." She muttered the last part.

Applejack walked up to Sarah and placed a hoof on her shoulder. "I'm not just going to abandon you, I know you won't admit it, but you need my help, I can see it in your eyes, your losing it piece by piece." She said.

Sarah sighed and walked around a little. "Assassination, I need to kill someone for my freedom, I finish this mission, and they leave me alone forever." She replied.

Applejack thought on this for a while and then shook her head. "Doesn't seem right, I mean, I don't know who you are talking about, but if they have such a handle on your life, why would they just leave you alone?" She said.

Sarah chuckled. "I have no way to know if they will hold up their end of the bargain, but I'm willing to see it through." She said before walking towards the exit.

The Pegasus stopped walking and looked back at her sister. "Applejack....do you hate me?" Sarah asked.

Applejack found herself stunned by the question, she quickly recovered. "Why would I hate you?......your my sister, nothing will change that." She replied.

Sarah shook her head, as though expecting that answer. "AJ, I mean do you hate me for what I did, are you hiding any resentment towards me?" She asked.

Applejack could not answer that question, she simply stood there in a stunned silence and said nothing as Sarah looked away, stepped outside and flew off without a word, she eventually just sighed quietly and started walking.

It wasn't that Applejack didn't know the answer, it was the fact that she didn't WANT to answer it, the Apple Family was stressed enough, the last thing that Applejack thought they needed was an internal feud.

So Applejack simply went about her day, business as usual, but she found herself unable to take any joy or satisfaction in her work, so she did the best thing she could do, she buried her feelings, and resolved to handle them when able.

After all, it isn't easy to answer a question like that, especially when you yourself don't know the answer.

_____*Ponyville, on the way home from school, a week later.*_____

Sarah sighed internally, she was walking Apple Bloom home from school, but Applejack forgot to mention she would be bringing her friends, her younger sister was enough trouble when she was energetic, but throwing the other two into the mix was a powder keg waiting for a match.

Sarah and the three fillies walked by Bon Bon's Sweet Shop, and she felt a sudden craving, she looked at the fillies and spoke. "You three up for some sweets? My treat?" She offered, pointing at the sweet shop.

A few minutes later and the three were back to walking, apparently, the shop was under assault by a bunch of bugs and such, and was unable to serve at that time, much to the dismay of the group.

Sarah sighed and looked up at the sky as the three fillies talked behind her, she was glad that Apple Bloom seemed to be normal around her friends, but she had a theory that it was a way to keep them from getting caught up in her personal issues.

She did hear something interesting though, but she seemed to just hear the end of the conversation. "Go on, just ask her." She heard Sweetie Belle say quietly.

Sarah soon heard Scootaloo speak. "Hey Sarah, do you mind if I ask you something?" She started.

Sarah looked back at the filly. "Sure." She replied.

"Uh.......is there something going on between you and my sister?" Scootaloo asked.

Sarah blinked and stopped walking, she scratched the back of her head. "Refresh my memory would you, who was your sister?" She asked.

"Rainbow Dash." Scootaloo said.

Sarah chuckled and rolled her eyes. "No, she's in a relationship already, I'm not going to get in between that." She said before continuing to walk, still chuckling a little.

She then heard more whispering behind her and she grew curious so she decided to listen in. "I know him by now, he isn't exactly good at lying." Scootaloo whispered.

"And you don't think that he might just be faking it?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Why would he? he has no reason to lie." Scootaloo replied.

"Aren't you two overthinking this?" Sweetie Belle muttered.

"No! we are not! if anything, you aren't thinking ENOUGH on this!" Apple Bloom sniped.

"Just ask him, he told me just last night, he has absolutely nothing to do, and he's bored." Scootaloo said.

Sweetie Belle sighed. "I'm not so sure, what if he gets mad?" She asked.

"He doesn't usually get mad, unless you intentionally poke at his past, he's usually docile." Scootaloo pointed out.

"And if he says no, he says no, and you'll know that he's not available." Apple Bloom added.

Sarah was curious, so she decided to be clueless as she spoke. "So, what's so secret that you need to whisper?" Sarah asked.

At this point, the group was near the Sweet Apple Acres gate, and they were almost at the farmhouse. "Well.....I uh." Sweetie Belle started but was unable to finish on the count of being nervous.

Thankfully, Scootaloo stepped in. "She wants to ask a boy out, but she's afraid he'll say no." She stated.

"Oh, what's his name?" Sarah asked.

"His name is Storm, he's an old friend of my sister." Scootaloo replied.

Sarah was now cautious, she didn't like that kid, but that was just because he gave her goosebumps. "Huh, well, you might as well get it over with, holding it in will only make it worse." She said.

Apple Bloom for once spoke openly to Sarah, albeit after the three discussed something. "How did you figure that out?" She asked.

Sarah shrugged. "Eh, psychiatrist." She replied casually.

If it wasn't for a keen eye, Sarah wouldn't have noticed the feint twitch in Apple Bloom's left eye. "You went to a psychiatrist?" Sweetie Belle said in confusion. "For what?" She asked.

Sarah was not willing to tell the truth at that exact moment, so she gave a small misdirection. "I had anger problems when I was younger, I later discovered that it stemmed from a repressed memory......lets just say I don't like talking about it." She said before flying up a little, so that she was hovering next to the group.

Apple Bloom grumbled, she herself wasn't happy with how the situation was, as Applejack and Sarah were now distant, so she resolved to talk to Sarah tonight, no matter what.

______*that night, 10:00 PM*______

Apple Bloom opened her left eye and looked around, she saw no signs of anypony awake, so she carefully got off her bed and quietly walked up to the door, while most of the house was asleep by now, she knew that Sarah preferred this time to walk around and clear her head, she put her ear up to the door and listened, she heard something going down the stairs, so Apple Bloom quietly opened the door, and closed it just as quietly when she left the room.

Apple Bloom headed towards the stairs and saw the light from a small candle move downstairs, she went down the stairs quietly and looked around for Sarah, seeing nothing.

Apple Bloom did not like this house at night, not one bit, but she was willing to work past it as she headed into the living room, there she saw the candle sitting in its brass holder, just sitting on the side table, just before she could move she heard a voice behind her. "Why are you still awake?" Sarah's voice was strangely horrifying when she was quiet.

Apple Bloom looked behind her and saw Sarah standing there with a neutral look on her face. "Well?" She asked.

She swallowed her pride, and mustered her courage and spoke. "We need to talk." Apple Bloom said quietly.

Sarah closed her eyes and shook her head, she sighed and placed Apple Bloom on her back and flew up the stairs, landing without a sound.

"You could have chosen a better time kid, but whatever." Sarah said as she opened her bedroom door and allowed Apple Bloom inside.

As the two sat down, Sarah spoke. "Look kid, I'm just going to get this out of the way, I know I hid the truth from you, and for that I'm sorry, and I know your upset that Applejack and Big Mac hid this from you, but can you seriously blame them, they thought they were doing the right thing for you." She said.

Apple Bloom nodded. "I know that, and your apology is accepted, it's just, oh boy.....its hard to explain." She said.

Sarah chuckled. "I got a bunch of personalities living inside of me, each with their own thoughts, I think I can understand." She joked.

Apple Bloom grit her teeth and spoke. "That right there is one of the things that's making me mad, you killed somepony, and your able to completely ignore and laugh about stupid things." She said.

Sarah sighed and lowered herself and talked quietly. "Listen, Apple Bloom, you have every right to be angry at me, killing somepony......its a horrible thing, and there are times when I wonder if I deserve to be free......and sometimes, I think I don't." She paused and looked at her younger sister.

"But then I start feeling normal again, how good it feels to be able to do basic things, when I first got here, I was so excited to be using shower because of my crappy living conditions before, I'm not saying we need to immediately like each other, but we should at least try to get along, if only for Applejack's sake." Sarah finished.

Apple Bloom nodded slowly. "Fine, but you need to promise me something." She said.

"What?" Sarah asked.

"When I'm older, I want you to tell me everything, I deserve to know." Apple Bloom said.

Sarah sighed, she reached out and patted Apple Bloom on the back. "You have my word, but......when I tell you, you keep it secret, no one needs to know that horror." She said before going quiet.

Apple Bloom walked up to the door and looked back at Sarah. "Are you and Applejack going to be alright?" She asked.

Sarah chuckled. "Yea, we'll be fine, we are just dealing with a difficult situation right now." She replied.

_____Sarah's dream*______

Sarah sat with Fear and Anger as they watched a meteor shower. "How long do you think it will be before we have to commit the deed?" Anger asked.

Fear rested her head on Anger's shoulder as she watched the shower. "Come on Anger, don't spoil the night, it's such a nice one this time." She asked.

Anger looked into Fear's eyes and sighed. "Fine, but only because your too damn adorable to refuse." She said.

Sarah laughed quietly and watched the shower, frowning only when she felt a disturbance. "Well well, isn't this a beautiful sight, makes me want to vomit." Said the voice of Insanity.

"Shut up you damn ghost." Sarah said as she stood up.

Anger was about to stand when Fear stopped her, she growled and went back to watching the shower.

Sarah walked up to Insanity and looked at it crossly. "I thought I told you not to disturb us tonight." She said.

Insanity shrugged. "You did, I didn't listen, where's the fun in that?" It wondered.

Sarah raised an eyebrow. "Need I remind you that you are taking refuge in MY mind, if it wasn't for me, you wouldn't be here." She stated.

Insanity held a hoof up and spoke. "Calm down Sarah, I'm just trying to let you in on something you may want to know about." It said.

Sarah blinked and the two of them were in Insanity's domain, a twisting cavern of winding pathways, and spiraling spiral staircases. "You know how I told you that there were more of us?" Insanity asked.

Sarah nodded. "Five others, why?" She asked.

Insanity held a hoof out and a magical orb appeared, and it revealed four familiar faces. "I am detecting two of my brethren amongst these four, so I would be cautious about what you do from this point on." It said with amusement.

Sarah sighed, the faces were that of Storm, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. "You think that these.....Elements of Chaos, are in these four?" She asked.

Insanity held its hooves up. "Hey, I didn't say they ALL had one, just two, I'll leave the actual finding up to you." It said before vanishing.

Sarah sighed to herself as she returned to the meteor shower, content to simply watch.

'Oh I hope my target gets here soon, I don't think I can handle any more waiting.' She thought to herself as she enjoyed the shower.

She looked at Anger and Fear, she smiled as she watched the two. "You two are a cute couple." Sarah said.

This of course, only made Anger......well, you know. "WE ARE NOT DATING!" Anger shouted.

Fear just stifled a laugh.

Author's Note:

Well, I don't know why, but this particular chapter made me have so much writers block, probably because it went off track a little, but hey, might as well TRY to keep it together.

Anyway, this chapter was intended to set ground work, so if it didn't answer any questions, that's fine.

This still is its own story by the way, some of the stuff here may become relevant in a future story.

So, in this chapter, we had some talking, more talking, and a little bit of a talk, but it mostly made more questions, which wasn't intentional at all, so, sorry, but I couldn't bring myself to rewrite this one.

I guess as always, See You Next Time!

Ps....one of these days, I will stop being lazy, and I will find a photo for that damn voice line!.........or not, whichever, I don't know.

Comments

[badninja]

Applejack you need to talk to Twilight now! Your sister has admitted to taking a job to kill someone! I know magic exists here but you may not know everything you need to know about what you sister is going through. I just feel that this will end very badly for your sister and that there is some seriously unusual stuff going down in your life.

[HB_DS2013]

So, a pony with two magical cores makes them become an assassin? That’s effed up. Sarah’s just gonna hafta deal with it her whole life.

[Sylif Daring Doo]

8731549
I uh, fail....to see how Twilight could help in this situation, I mean, yea, magic, but uh.......I'm not sure where I was going with that.

But yea, your right, some unusual stuff be happening, but I don't really feel like giving out any spoilers about the ending, so.......patience?

Oh who am I kidding? There's bound to be someone out there who will want me to explain the entire plot, and then reveal the end.....ah well, as long as I have fun writing, I 'should' be fine.

[Sylif Daring Doo]

8732267

Uh, I just want to clarify, Sarah is the one with two magical cores, but uh, yea, what happened to her WAS messed up.