So Take Your Cup and Raise It High
“What're ya doin' over here by yer lonesome Dash? I figured you'd be workin' the crowd around the bonfire.” Applejack walked up to where I was sitting on top of a snow bank, carrying a tray on her back. Her only protection from the cold was her hoodie.
I shrugged. “I dunno, I kind of overdid it last New Year's Eve. I figured I should tone it down this year. Besides, I've kinda been lost in my own thoughts today.”
“Wanna tell me all about it over a cup o' hot cider?” AJ reached for the tray balanced on her back and lifted a steaming mug.
“Aw yeah!” I grabbed the mug carefully with my front hooves and took a sip. The drink burned my tongue, but it was worth it for that sweet, spicy, apple-y goodness.
“So, what are ya thinkin' about?” asked AJ, setting down the tray in the snow and picking up a mug. “New Year's resolution?” She sat down next to me, wrapping her tail around her legs.
I laughed. “Come on AJ. I don't do resolutions. Everypony breaks theirs in a week or two anyway. I've always thought that if you want to improve yourself, just do it any time of year.”
Applejack took a sip of cider. “I reckon that makes sense.”
“Of course it does. No, I was just thinking about what a crazy year it's been. We saved Equestria, like, four times. That's an academy record!”
She blinked at me. “What?”
I waved my foreleg. “Sergeant Spitfire kept saying that in the Wonderbolts Academy. I guess you had to be there.”
“Well, that's another big thing that happened this year, you bein' on reserve for the Wonderbolts.” AJ winked at me.
“Yeah.” I looked up at the stars sprinkled through the dark sky. “Though, I'm kinda thinking that if I do join full time, I'm gonna reform it from the inside.”
“Really?” She tilted her head.
I glanced back at her and nodded. “Between Spitfire letting Lightening Dust get away with her reckless behavior until I called her on it, and one of my heroes using an underhooved trick to keep me from breaking his record, I realized that they've got a ton of problems. They keep failing to live up to the standards I thought they had. They used to be the best military branch in the world, and they could still be great. I'd like to be the one to help them change, but...” I looked down at my cider. “Sometimes I don't even live up to my own standards.”
“'Sall right sugar cube. Happens to the best of us.”
“Yeah, except for you.” I rolled my eyes.
AJ glanced at me out of the corners of her eyes and furrowed her brow. “Didn't I tell ya 'bout how I almost ruined Hearth's Warmin' Eve for both my family and Pinkie's family?”
“Uh, yeah, but that's not the way I heard it. Between you and me, the Pies' way of celebrating Hearth's Warming sounded really boring. You were trying to do them a favor.”
She sighed through her nose, blowing out a tiny cloud in the freezing air. “It felt more weird and frustratin' than boring. But that's no excuse for imposin' my traditions on 'em without even askin' first.”
“Trust me, you were practically an angel compared to the way I would've reacted.” I held my hoof to my chest.
Looking away, she said, “If ya mean an angel like that lil' white varmint, then yes, I was.”
I shook my head. “Oh no, you don't even deserve to be mentioned in the same sentence as that Angel.”
Her ears flattened. “I appreciate ya tryin' to make me feel better, but you weren't there.”
“No, but I do know that you never sabotaged a factory just to keep a tortoise from hibernating.”
“Y'know, I talked to Thunderlane about that the other day, and he told me that the damage wasn't as bad as it looked from the ground. Evidently the machines just needed minor repairs.” Applejack's ears flicked forward as she took a sip from her mug.
I gazed at the snow apple trees glistening in the light of the full moon. “Even so, the truth is that if I knew for sure it would've stopped winter, I would've destroyed the factory.” It was shocking to admit, but if I was going to confess to anypony, it had to be Applejack.
She opened her mouth like she was about to say something, but I kept talking, rushing through my confession before she could convince me it wasn't that bad.
“Tank was the first and only pet I ever had, and I couldn't ask for a more loyal and faithful pet. He deserves the best. It was really hard to watch him slow down more and more and not be able to do anything about it. He should've spent Hearth's Warming Eve with me. He should be in my big empty house.”
“Aw sugar cube...” She reached her hoof toward me.
“I miss feeding him and getting him ready for bed and waking him up in the morning.” I smiled wistfully as I continued, “he always wakes up so slowly. And I'm kinda worried that this time he won't wake up again.”
“That's...”
I held up my hoof to stop her. “I know you think I'm being silly. He's just a turtle – I mean, tortoise. It's not like I've lost ponies like you have. And it's not like I'll never see him again. At least I hope. But I just can't help feeling really lonely sometimes.”
My ears drooped as I took a deep breath and drank from my mug. The cider was getting to that temperature that I felt I had to gulp before it got too cold.
“Are you finished?” asked AJ.
I swallowed. “For now.”
Applejack looked up at the sky, and as I followed her gaze, two shooting stars flashed through the night.
“You know the song 'Days Gone By'?”
I shrugged one shoulder. “Of course. Ponies sing it every New Year's.”
Keeping her eyes on the stars, AJ started to sing.
“When family cannot be here, havin' journeyed far and wide,
We sing a song to honor them, and days gone by.
So take yer cup and raise it high, just as surely I'll do mine,
And laugh we will at stories told, as we smile at days gone by.”
I froze. I'd heard her sing before, but not like this. Her voice was much softer and gentler than usual, and she put so much emotion into each syllable.
“For family not here, my dear, havin' journeyed far and wide,
For loyalty and kindness both, we smile at days gone by.”
To my surprise, she kept singing. I raised my eyebrows. There was a second verse?
“Our paths will cross again someday, in time to reunite,
For family is always near, even when the seas are wide.”
I thought about Tank, who was a part of my family as much as anypony I knew. I would see him again soon, and we'd make new memories together. And in the mean time, I would remember the good times we'd already had.
“So take yer cup and raise it high, just as surely I'll do mine,
And make a toast for family, and the tales of days gone by.
For family not here, my dear, havin' journeyed far and wide,
For loyalty and kindness both, take joy at days gone by.”
As the last note faded, I blinked back a tear. I guess the wind must've made my eyes water or something.
“That was really nice.” I shifted my wings. “Did you make up that second verse?”
She stared at me. “No, actually the song has four verses.”
I leaned back. “Really? All my life I've only heard the first 'days gone by' part over and over.”
“Eyup, there's a verse about pickin' daises and one about sailin' cross the sea.”
“Could you teach them to me?”
“Sure thing Dash.” She reached over and patted my foreleg. “I'm glad yer feelin' better.”
I smiled. “I really am. Thanks AJ. But...” I tipped my mug. “If I'm gonna take my cup and raise it high, I'm gonna need more hot cider.”
She chuckled. “Then let's go and get us some.”
And together we stood and walked toward the farmhouse.
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Beautiful.
Aww, Jackie.
This was my favorite song on the album by miles. Thank you for this story it was short and sweet but excellent.
A well written piece this was. This is what it means to write from the heart.
Very well-written fic. I lost my grandad this summer so I have to say, this is probably my favourite song on the album. And incorporated very well into this story.
Aw, geez.
I had to go look up the song. It's touching. :) I lost my brother a few years ago. It sucks, but it's nice to look back and remember the good times.
Thanks for that.
Edit: made me think of this song https://youtu.be/zkoxdd7oN-s
7273246 I'm sorry for your loss. I lost both of my grandfathers and an uncle within a year. Not the same as losing a brother, but it's still really hard.
You should listen to the whole MLP Christmas album sometime. It's really good, with the exception of a couple of songs.
7273569 Damn, that sounds rough. I'm sorry to hear that. I've lost most of my grandparents, but they lived far away so it wasn't a pa blow. Thanks for the sentiment.
I remember hearing the Rainbow Dash version of "Jingle Bells" once, and it seemed pretty fun. I'll have to give the rest of them a listen sometime. Perhaps I'll save it for next Christmas. :P
Thank you for this beautiful story.
Made me think of my grandpa who passed away last year. And that this year's Christmas will be the first one I'll be celebrating only with my brother and parents.
Let's rember the Days Gone By and keep them in our heart, ready to make new memories each coming day.
7644829 You're welcome and thanks for the comment. My condolences.
“It's a Pony Kind of Christmas”? I don't remember seeing that episode. In what season did that episode take place?
8759523
It wasn't an episode, it was an official MLP holiday album of songs.
I really liked the connections made here. After the episode came out, I saw quite a few stories that addressed not just how Rainbow was so heavily impacted by her loss (however temporary) but what the other main gals could've been feeling on the inside when poor RD was bawling her eyes out, including comforting perspectives from 'Shy and existential dread from Twi. The one I probably saw the most, though, was AJ knowing all too well how loss feels, but not understanding Dash being so upset over hibernation when she herself had known a more final one: her parents.
Seeing her connect both her parents and Tank to Rainbow as family, no matter how different, was a sweet subversion - though, not that I have any problem with the 'crying on the inside' kind of approach more stories too. Thanks for sharing!
9730805
Thanks! AJ not understanding why Dash was so upset over the temporary loss of her pet would be a reasonable reaction, but not an emotionally satisfying one for the readers. So instead I took the approach that AJ sympathized with being separated from someone you love, and that RD had enough self-awareness to realize how bad it looked to complain to AJ about her problems, but she still couldn't control her sadness.
9731014
And that's such a good middle-ground, too. I also like how you showed it after the fact, so that Dash's self-awareness can be more obvious, since even if she didn't mean to be, if this had been more central to any of the episode scenes than AJ's song, there would be more raw hurt here.
i keep coming back to this
both the song and the fic
by the by, you catch the animated music video someone put together for the song?
10651252
Thanks! Yeah, that song meant more to me this year than ever. I'll have to look for that video.
10651274
the creator is Artist Creation Studios
Aww, that was just sweet! Honestly, both girls saying they did such horrendous deeds while the other protests and justifies them, is so, so, unheard of, it caught me off guard. I mean, Rainbow and Applejack prefer throwing jabs at each other rather than complementing each other. But, I adore the route you chose to go with for this story. It's unique, and - even though it's not very common in the he show - in character for both girls.
I; a hardcore shipper of these two ponies, was slightly hoping there to be a bit romance involved, but I am still very happy with the story a story as it is
You've gotten a favourite and upvote from me, bud!
Oh and if you want a slight nitpick from me that, frankly, didn't do anything to the story:
It was shocking to admit, no need of the 'a' there.
Yes, I am very, very, nitpicky. How'd you guess?
11136006 It's high praise indeed that you thought the characters' interactions were unexpected, yet still in-character!
Fixed, thanks.
Dear Maran,
I hope this email finds you well. I am writing to ask about a translation. May I translate this story into Japanese and open to the public in OpenChat on LINE? This story made me emotional and I really like AJ and RD depicted by you, so I would like to try translating it. I look forward to hearing from you.
Yours sincerely, Popink