Chapter 2
Applejack’s temper had only cooled a little as she reached the outskirts of the town. How could he say that about our little sister, She sniffled as she made a point to wipe some of the tears from her eyes. Still, he’d said one thing that had made her pause.
It don’t matter… she decided with a shake of her head. I know what’s true. And, that ain’t it!
I just gotta prove him wrong! Applejack added as she paused for a second to consider how best to do that. It was an admittedly petty thing to do, but Applejack wanted to rub it in Big Mac’s face. Applejack spent a moment thinking about who had been in Miss. Play Write’s class, because another colt or filly who was in her class could tear Big Mac’s whole argument apart with the most obvious hole in his argument….
Time to see Rarity, Applejack decided with a nod before she set her course to the Carousel Boutique.
It was just after dark by the time Applejack arrived at the doors to the Carousel Boutique. Firmly Applejack knocked on the door a couple of times with her hoof.
“Hello?” Rarity asked as she slowly opened the door.
“Applejack, what’s going on?” Rarity asked with a definite worry as she noticed Applejack at the door. “Is Sweetie Belle, and the girls ok?”
“No. No, the girls are ok,” Applejack assured Rarity, who noticeably relaxed at the admission. “I just had a fight with Big Mac, and I needed somepony to talk to.”
“Yes, it does look like you’ve had it hard,” Rarity admitted as she noticed the obvious signs of crying on her friend’s face.
”Well then, come right in,” Rarity offered as she opened the door wide, and raised a foreleg in a clear offer to enter.
“Thanks, Rarity,” replied Applejack as she tipped her hat, and let herself inside. Carefully she followed Rarity into the dining room.
“Wait here, darling. I’ll just brew us some tea,” Rarity offered with a smile as she pointed at one of the stools sitting next to her dining room table. “It sounds like you might need some.”
“Thanks, Rarity,” Applejack gratefully said as she walked over to the dining room table. While Rarity continued to the other side of the kitchen to reach the stove, Applejack sat down at one of the stools that were in front of the kitchen table.
Normally when Applejack sat down at Rarity’s table, it was clean. But this time, the kitchen table was covered in photos and brochures of a very meticulously maintained school.
Applejack couldn’t help but be a bit curious. “Hey Rarity, what school are all these here papers on?” Applejack asked Rarity from across the room.
Is that St. Wind’s? Applejack pondered as some faint memory tickled the back of her mind.
“Oh Darling, that’s a school in Manehatten that I’ve been researching. Why do you ask?” Rarity asked as she began to warm the teapot sitting on her stove.
“I was just curious because I was gonna go there,” Applejack explained, only to watch Rarity appear in a puff of smoke.
“W-What?!” Rarity stammered as she looked at Applejack with her jaw hanging low enough to nearly scrape the ground.
“You were going to go to St. Wind Whistler's School For Prestigious Foals. The most prestigious, most exclusive, most expensive school in all of equestria?” Rarity shouted in pure shock.
“Sure was,” Applejack casually admitted with a shrug of her withers.
“B-b-but how?” Rarity stuttered as the regal unicorn struggled to understand what she was hearing.
Applejack warmly chuckled as she remembered the whimsical memory. “Aunt and Uncle Orange were going to send me there…” Applejack admitted. After all, Aunt and Uncle Orange’s dinner parties weren’t just to meet interesting ponies.
“It might have been an exclusive school, but they couldn’t seem to make a uniform that fit me,” Applejack said with a giggle.
“All of their uniforms were too tight around the middle of my barrel,” Applejack added with a shrug of her withers.
“It’s a shame you didn’t go there though,” Rarity said with a slight sigh and tinge of jealousy as she carefully poured tea into two empty tea cups. “You see, rumor has it that Prince Blueblood will be coming to Ponyville to ask Twilight about some kind of friendship problem. Several business owners -- myself included -- have been trying to figure out a way to make his visit as enjoyable as possible.”
“What’s that gotta do with St. Wind’s?” Applejack puzzled as she looked to Rarity for some clarification.
“He’s an alumnus,” Rarity passively explained as she passed one of the two teacups to Applejack. “And, if you’d gone there, then you could tell me a bit about the culture there. Maybe then I could use it to make something familiar to him.”
“Sorry, I can’t help you there,” Applejack admitted as she took three spoonfuls of sugar, and dumped them into her teacup.
“It’s not that important,” Rarity offered.
“Now, about your question: I’m all ears,” Rarity added as she waited patiently for Applejack to explain what had brought here all the way to the boutique.
“Well, this evening Big Mac said Apple Bloom is my daughter. I think it’s some kind of prank,” Applejack grumbled before she retold the entire story to Rarity.
“If this is a prank, then that is certainly not within good taste,” Rarity considered with a disgusted look as she took a dainty sip of her tea.
“Right. So, I wanted you to help me tell him off,” Applejack continued as she took a sip of her tea. Her lips then curled down in an expression of disgust. The tea wasn’t bad, but there was an odd taste of something in the tea that she didn’t recognize… It tasted a little like Pumpkin Pie.
“Oh dear, did you not like that bit of nutmeg I added to the tea?” Rarity asked with an apologetic expression.
“The sales pony assured me that it was the perfect addition to the tea,” Rarity added as she pondered whether she should get a refund or not.
“It’s fine,” Applejack mumbled.
“I just wanted to ask you this: do you remember how long I was in Manehatten?” Applejack asked as she eagerly waited for her friend to say the one thing that would prove Big Mac wrong.
“I’m not really sure,” Rarity admitted with a definite regret in her tone. “We weren’t friends at the time, so I wasn’t too concerned with where, and when you were gone. But, I remember you missed the end of school about three or four years in a row… I’m sorry if that isn’t helpful”
Applejack could feel another headache building as she pondered where she had been. However, she intentionally ignored the headache, and smirked instead, because she could remember the answer to the question.
“No, it’s fine. I went to Aunt and Uncle Oranges in the summer for a couple’a months,” Applejack explained as she rubbed her chin.
“And the next year, I think I left early for Camp Friendship. And, that final year I was grounded for that hospital stunt where Granny Smith almost sawed off Big Mac’s leg. So, that proves there ain’t no way I would’a had time to foal Apple Bloom,” Applejack exclaimed Triumphantly, as she pounded the table slightly with one hoof.
“I’m glad I could be of help,” Rarity agreed with a warm smile.
“But, I don’t feel like this will be enough to really make your point,” Rarity cautioned. ”if you really want to prove him wrong, I suggest you ask Twilight about memory erasing spells. I believe I remember Miss. Play Write had a lesson about them. I believe she said they were impossible.”
“Didn’t Sombra erase everyponies’ memory?” Applejack pointed out with a slight frown.
“Considering they remembered, Sombra couldn’t have erased their memories, per se,” Rarity corrected.
“So, basically If she says it’s impossible, then that’ll show him who’s right” Rarity explained with a victorious smirk. One that Applejack couldn’t help but return.
It was pushing nine at night by the time Applejack had gotten close enough to see the library. I hope Twilight doesn’t mind me coming late… But, I gotta show Mac. It ain’t funny sayin’ stuff like that about our little sister, Applejack thought with a bitter huff.
Much to Applejack’s surprise, though. Applejack saw a royal carriage riding out of town from the direction of the library. I guess Twilight’s awake? Applejack considered as she decided not to think too hard about which of Equestria’s three other princesses had been visiting Twilight Sparkle. Instead, she trotted the distance from herself to the library. Once there, she gave the door a couple of hard knocks with her hoof.
A very tired looking Spike opened the door. “Hey Spike,” Applejack greeted with a bow of her hat.
“Can I talk to Twilight for just a minute or two?” she requested politely.
“Might as well, she’s going to be burning the midnight oil on Prince Blueblood’s friendship problem,” Spike grumbled as he opened the door wider to let Applejack have plenty of room to enter the library with.
“She’s up in her room,” Spike added, which Applejack acknowledged with a grateful nod.
Driven by the strength of her purpose, Applejack trotted up the stairs to Twilight Sparkle’s bedroom. “Hey Twi, can I have a moment of your time?” Applejack called out as she entered Twilight’s bedroom.
The large bedroom was full of several stacks of a multitude of books with several different topics. But, all topics seemed to be in the range of: betrayal, regret, reconciliation, and — oddly enough — several school yearbooks.
Twilight didn’t respond at first. Instead, she continued to feverishly shift the order of the books in her mountainous stack. “Hey TWI!” Applejack shouted with a hint of petulance. She didn’t mean to do it, but she was already tired of running around town trying to prove Big Mac definitively wrong.
This time Twilight Sparkle actually flinched. Her magic inadvertently broke, causing every book in its hold to pummel the oak floor below them. “Sorry Twilight, but I needed to ask you about memory erasing spells,” Applejack explained in a much softer tone.
“No, I’m sorry,” Twilight apologized as she rubbed the ridge of her nose.
“Prince Blueblood was just here, and he’s got one doozy of a problem he’s hoping I can help him with. Needless to say, I’m not sure he came to the right pony. I’ve been a princess for less than a year, and I’m not even sure if friendship is my dominion,” Twilight added as she pointed a hoof at the still unopened magic crystal box.
“You know you can always count on us to help you,” Applejack offered as she gave Twilight a sympathetic look.
“I know,” Twilight admitted before she turned to face Applejack directly. “But, what was this you were asking about? Memory erasing spells?”
“Rarity thinks it’s impossible. I wanted to know if that’s true,” Applejack explained as she skipped the longer details of her search, and got straight to the point with her busy friend.
“Strictly speaking: it’s not impossible. Although, it is an extremely difficult spell. It is a high level spell, after all,” Twilight Sparkle lectured. Applejack could feel disappointment creeping into her heart already.
“But, it is impossible to do safely. The spell will either suppress the memories -- and thus fail --, or it will leave brain damage,” Twilight Sparkle continued as she pulled a book off of one of the library’s shelves, and floated it over to Applejack.
“So if a pony don’t have brain damage, then she couldn’t have had her memories erased?” Applejack asked as she resisted the urge to rub her hooves together in delight. She finally had something she could throw in Big Mac’s face.
“That, or they would have repressed memories. Which, any memory spell can bring back. In fact, the spell I used on you after Discord’s mind magic is just such a spell,” Twilight eagerly explained as she flipped the book floating in front of Applejack to a specific page.
“Thanks Twi, this is what I needed,” Applejack agreed with a big smile.
“Now, I can tell Mac that I don’t have erased memories!” Applejack finished as she gave Twilight Sparkle a grateful hoof shake.
“Why would he even say that?” Twilight couldn’t help but ask.
“It’s some kind of dumb prank. He says Apple Bloom is my daughter, but I don’t know it cause somepony erased my memories,” Applejack grumbled with a bitter huff.
“That’s not a very funny joke,” Twilight contemplated before she paused for a moment so that she could consider if somepony might actually find it funny.
“That’s what I told him, but he just wasn’t listening!” Applejack grumbled.
“Well, I hope that book helps,” Twilight offered sympathetically.
“I know it will,” Applejack countered with a wide smile as she saw herself out of the library.
The door to the Apple Family barn creaked open as Applejack let herself in. She carefully entered as quietly as possible. She didn’t want to wake Apple Bloom or her friends upstairs. She, also, didn’t want to gain Big Mac’s attention. She didn’t want to deal with the stallion, and his dumb joke at the moment. Instead, Applejack just wanted to sneak upstairs and say goodnight to her baby sister.
Sneakily Applejack crept into the family room. Her plan then came completely unraveled as she noticed the small yellow filly sitting on the family couch. Apple Bloom’s eyes were red and puffy. The obvious bags under the filly’s eyes were a clear indicator the Apple Bloom had been crying.
“What’s wrong little sis,” Applejack asked as she trotted over, took a seat next to Apple Bloom, and placed a hoof on one of her sister’s withers.
“I-is it true? A-Am I adopted, or are you really my Ma?” Apple Bloom sniffled as she looked up to Applejack with tear filled eyes.
“Neither. I ain’t your Ma, and you ain’t adopted” Applejack answered as she tried to figure out where this came from.
“Apple Bloom, where did this come from? Is this ‘cause of something Big Mac said?” Applejack gently, but carefully asked.
Apple Bloom nodded with another sniffle. “I didn’t believe it at first, either,” Apple Bloom admitted. “He said your parents died years before I was born.”
Applejack could feel her headache return. It was the perfect accompaniment to the growing look of skepticism on her face. Apple Bloom took a look at Applejack’s face, and then let off a long sigh. “He said that you wouldn’t remember,” Apple Bloom added.
“Bloom, I know that’s impossible. I remember exactly when they died,” Applejack asserted.
“Are you sure?” Apple Bloom sniffled. However, even before Applejack could respond the filly continued, “He told me that if I needed proof, then I should look at the photo albums.”
Applejack opened her mouth to make a denial, only to close it right back again. Applejack could see it: Apple Bloom needed to get this off of her chest.
“Well, I didn’t believe any of it. So, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and I -- and then just me, when Granny sent us to bed -- looked through all of the photo albums,” Apple Bloom explained. It was about this moment that Applejack noticed that every photo album from the barn had been piled up in one small mountain in the middle of the room.
“I found pictures of Ma being pregnant with you. I found pictures of her being pregnant with Big Mac. But I couldn’t find one of her with me,” Apple Bloom explained as she pointed a hoof at the pile of photo albums.
“I mean it. I checked every last one. I really did. But, I did find something, Applejack,” Apple Bloom lamented.
“What did you find little sis?” Applejack gently asked.
“He was right. He was right,” Apple Bloom continued.
“No, he can’t have been,” Applejack objected.
“No, he was,” Apple Bloom insisted. “There isn’t one of me Applejack. There isn’t a single photo of me. The last photo of my parents was dated in 989. I was born in 992.”
Applejack could see Apple Bloom slowly descend into depression. Slowly her tears returned with a vengeance, and a look of pain cross her small face. “I’m so confused. Who am I? Am I even an apple?” Apple Bloom wailed.
“Now listen here, and listen well,” Applejack commanded.
“I am your sister. And by that, I do mean your sister by blood,” Applejack sternly stated with absolute certainty.
“But…” Apple Bloom countered, but Applejack interrupted her before she could finish her thought.
“Listen, I know you’re too young to remember, but I do. And, see this here book that Twilight gave me,” Applejack stated as she made a point to show Apple Bloom the book that she’d borrowed from Twilight’s library.
“It says that memory erasing spells are nearly impossible to cast,” Applejack asserted as thumped the book a couple of times with one of her hooves.
“But the photos...” Apple Bloom countered.
Applejack fought the return of her headache. She was starting to get sick of these. But, it seemed this was going to be her week for headaches. It seemed that all of the stress was exasperating her condition.
“Did Big Mac ever tell you about the termites that ate half of the barn? The albums probably got lost, or destroyed,” Applejack explained calmly, but firmly.
“But, I remember. I remember feeling the kicks coming from our Ma’s belly. You’re an apple, and my sister,” Applejack stated. She could remember the pure joy of feeling that firm kick, reminding her that a new life was awaiting its birth into this world.
Apple Bloom actually hesitated as she considered Applejack’s explanation. It sounded like a plausible explanation. And, although Applejack would have been young, she should have been old enough to be able to recall such an event.
Applejack couldn’t help but smile as Apple Bloom’s tears gave way to a tiny little smile. “There you go. That’s much better,” Applejack explained with a warm smile. She then gave Apple Bloom that warm hug she had planned to give earlier.
“Now go back to bed. And, I don’t want to hear anymore of this nonsense, you hear,” Applejack gently commanded.
“Oh, and don’t wake your friends when you get there,” Applejack added as her commanding expression, faded to a more jovial expression.
Apple Bloom nodded and trotted back towards the staircase.
Now, I gotta get a drink, Applejack decided with a sigh as she backtracked back to the kitchen. On the other hoof, at least her headache had begun to fade.
Applejack tossed and turned in her bed. She knew her bedroom by heart. She knew where both hooks were on the walls. She knew the lassos hanging from said hooks. She knew the hat rack sitting on the wall next to one of the lasso pegs. She knew the painting that sat on the wall above her bed’s headboard. She even knew the end table that sat between the left side of her bed and the window.
And yet, Applejack couldn’t help but feel like the room looked so unfamiliar that evening. Dang it, Applejack! Applejack cursed as she rubbed her forehead, and tried to stop worrying about it all.
You know when your parents died. You know Apple Bloom made a mistake on the date. So, why are you worrying about this? Applejack complained to herself as it turned a pinch past midnight.
That does it. I’m gonna answer this question right now! Applejack decided as she rolled out of bed, grabbed a lantern, and made her way down the stairs, out of the old farmhouse, and down to a specific grove hidden amongst the trees of the apple orchard.
“This here question ends here and now!” Applejack growled as she trotted over to the dual graves of her beloved parents Bright Mac and Buttercup.
“Please forgive me Ma, and Pa. But, I got to prove Big Mac wrong once and for all!” Applejack announced as she trotted over to the graves. Carefully she laid down on the grass so that she could get at eye level with the graves.
It ain’t possible!” Applejack whispered in utter horror and dismay. Tears swelled as the word “no” escaped her lips. Below the inscriptions read:
Here lies Pear Butter.
Loving Mother, and beloved wife.
You will be missed.
May you sleep well in Celestia’s grace.
May 950 ANM - Feb 989 ANM
Here lies Bright Mac.
Loving Father, and beloved husband.
You will be missed.
May you sleep well next to your beloved pear.
Aug 949 ANM - Apr 989 ANM
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8814434
As you wish. Shazam! The chapter cometh.
Dun. DUUUUUUUN! O_O
I believe this speaks for itself.
ow my feels
Oh god. Blueblood is the father, isn't he?
Is that because of the birth years?
For a moment I thought Blueblood would ask/force Twilight to marry him again, that already happened in a story.
Anyway I kind of hope Blueblood isn't the father, honestly I want this to be between Applebloom and Applejack, them getting better before the story even thinks about introducing a father, at least that is what I would prefer.
I'm not sure anyway, for some reason it looked more like she was deeply depressed and rape looks like it would make more sense.
Anyway, I noticed in this chapter how much I need the true to come out.
I can't wait and while I like this troubled feeling of the story, I kind of hope it's not an unlikeable option, I can't exactly predict which outcome I would prefer.
I guess I don't care for who the father is as long as he isn't kind of joining the family in the middle of the story. I mean I don't mind if they do something against him, but I really want the focus to be on mother and daughter at the moment.
edit: Now that I think about it, I would love it when because of an headace or memories coming back, Applejack would break down and only Applebloom could really do something to make her feel better about it, maybe ....I don't know cuddling and talking to Applejack, making sure she understands that Applebloom at least doesn't hate the fact of her being her mother or something bittersweet like that.
8814808
It's because of the death years. Apple Bloom was born 992; this matches Applejack's memory, so it's reasonable to assume that this is correct. When dealing with children/foals, 3 years makes a huge difference, and it would be immediately obvious if Apple Bloom was three years older than her friends. So, she was born 992.
Bright Mac and Pear Butter died 989. This is what's inscribed on their headstones, so it's reasonable to assume that this is correct. This would be an enormous mistake for the mason to make, especially in a small town like Ponyville where they almost certainly knew Bright Mac and Pear Butter. So, they both died 989.
Therefore, they could not possibly be Apple Bloom's parents.
As for Blueblood being the father, this seems unlikely to me. It's a bit too obvious a plot point. You ask me, I would say that Blueblood isn't Apple Bloom's father, but that he knows what happened, or at least knows that something happened with a friend of his from St. Wind's, and either knows or can figure out who her father is.
Heck, maybe his friendship problem is related to this, like he's tired of keeping the secret and wants his friend to do the right thing, but can't figure out how to convince him.
Speculation!
I love/hate how Applejack screwed up her magic consultation. The moment she gets an answer she likes she ends the conversation, when a more detailed description of the situation would have revealed that this is exactly what you would expect from a failed Erasure.
8814808
Apple Bloom was born three years after Applejack's parents died. So the death years are the problem.
The only reason this is a thing is because the show writers have done such a HORRIBLE job with the show's timeline.
Seriously, the whole history is a friggin' disastrous mess. Try writing out all the events sometime, you'll find contradictions GALORE!
Anyway, Big Mac and AJ had incest because hillbillies and rednecks. The End.
8814874
I kind of like the idea that maybe Blueblood knows the one that raped Applejack if that should be what happened, I'm kind of sure that was not what you meant but you made me think about that. That kind of makes it look like two stories or two sides working on the same problem but from to different uhhmm standpoints?
Well thank you for the explanation, I can pretty much understand much in english but some hidden meanings or something maybe slipp my mind sometimes. Which is why it can happen that I haven't understood everything you meant, but I think I did.
8814883
yeah I made a small mistake, I should have noticed that them being dead wasn't exactly being about when they were born, I mean the thing with when Applebloom was born and when they died.
8814878
To be honest not sure if that was what Twilight said, but to me it looked like Applejack should have noticed something with her having those headaches, then maybe with what Big Mac said, but maybe her brain won't work that way because that isn't even what she wants to believe right now.
8814927
My pleasure.
It doesn't even need to be as dark as rape, in fact. It could well be that Applejack did, in fact, get accepted to the school, and while there met a young colt/stallion that she got along well with, and there was no actual problem until she became pregnant. It's possible and maybe even likely this would have created a scandal, so the Oranges and whatever other party decided to hush it up, had both their memories adjusted, and then sent Applejack home with an explanation for Granny and Mac, and a payout to keep them quiet. This could still put Blueblood working to solve the same problem, if he knows what happened but is trying to figure out how to convince his friend of the truth.
Like I said, though, speculation, which I am going to stop doing now because any more and I'll just be confusing the issue.
8815027
that would be okay, but I just don't want that stallion to play a role in this story because I like to get an newly introduced and good introduced character if she should need to have a partner in this story. I just hade those dummies they sometimes throw at us and say "like them" despite them having not much to like.
I think I like that too, I'm maybe a bit mean there, but I like the thought of Big Mac and Granny smith being one of the villains here.
I like the possibilite for Applejack maybe starting a new life, taking the bold approach of letting her not be an apple farmer anymore and helping at some other acre in a future sequel or doing something else, I love stuff like that most of the time.
okay but I started to really like the ideas your giving me.
In complete honesty I didn't expect this to be as good as it is. I'm glad I started reading it. Just curious but is this going to be a really long series or like a five chapter type of deal? If you can't let anyone know it's fine. Just wondering.
8815246
Thank you, and I'm glad you like it.
The story itself is fairly short (4 chapters which I've actually already written). This story is focused on Applejack and her problem. Further stories may be written down the road if my muse wills it -- or if someone else decides to write one.
Ive been releasing the chapters slowly for a couple of reasons:
1) I have time to consider the chapters before I release them from the light of the comments I'm getting.
2) I don't want to make the story feel too daunting by releasing too much too fast. (E.G. it's easier to read a 4K chapters every other day for a week, then one 15K story in a day.)
So not only did Bright Mac and Pear Butter (shouldn't that say Buttercup?) die two years before Apple Bloom was born, but Bright Mac died two months later than his wife.
Something is very wrong with these graves.
I get the feeling that the gravestones were tampered with...