Just One Wish

by shysage

Ch. 4

Oh my goodness... Jack Apple... and April Bloom... my mom an'... Right there, right then, I fell to the ground, and just cried loudly. I knew where I was, I knew who they was... But I... couldn't, shouldn't say... anything? What a twisted joke this was... I cried pretty hard for a while...

...then I slowly realized...

April was on her belly behind me, sort of curling around me, crying softly with me... I... laid my head back on her neck. She was a little smaller than I was, but I felt... like a yearling all over ag'in... Still, she managed to get one of her front legs around my neck, and was huggin' me... I just cried... Like I said, I don't usually cry much... An' in the past, well, for me, when somethin' really got to me... Maybe it was hopin' Applebloom would make it through the night with whatever sickness... Or somethin' far worse, like that Dark Melvain character; he an' a bunch o' other bad apples, they almost killed all of us... But I couldn't cry, well not much... I would choke all those tears off, and just say quietly, to myself really... "oh, momma...", sometimes addin' "wish you was here..." So many times, I hurt so bad for her, to be... well, for her to be with me... But she was gone, an' that was all I could say... Well, maybe I was storin' it all up, and it... I was leanin' up against my momma... I bawled like a baby for a while. I couldn't stop the cryin'...

A long time later, in a lull in my cryin', April asked quietly "AJ, how can I help you?"

I couldn't think, I didn't think... "Just let me stay here a spell..." And I cried some more... well, a bunch more, a while more...

When the warm, summer sun was high, I think my crying, well maybe I was done, for now anyways, and it was quiet. April mentioned calmly "Let's go back to the house. Jack should be home for lunch soon, and I should be there for that."

I got up right away. Of course, I didn't want to intrude. An' I did try to apologize as April got up too. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cry like such a baby..."

As we started slowly back to the farm house, April chuckled. "Do you feel better?"

I sighed, said "Yup", even though she had no clue. And I didn't either, as these words just dribbled out... "Can you adopt me? ...just for a spell?" That even surprised me. But then, wow... "I think I just need my momma..." Sayin' that made me want to cry a bunch more all over ag'in...

April, well it was so hard to not say "momma", which is who she was, an' how I felt... But she was in thought briefly, then said quietly "Something must have happened to your kin." Oh... wow... Then shortly after, she asked "Can we talk about that?"

Well, I wasn't about to lie, even over somethin' like this. I told her the honest truth. "I... don't think I should talk about it..." then "I don't think I can say anything without bustin' everything..." I think Summer would have agreed with that too.

Momma sighed, smiled, then answered "Well, ok." then after thinkin' some, she added "Well, I do have Jack to take care of... But you are welcome to... We can spend time together when we can. Mornings are usually free. You will quickly find out that afternoons at the farm can be busy." I guess she didn't know I loved chores either. She could find out.

Lunch was good, of course, and Jack (...still wanna say 'daddy...') came home, and talked a bunch about work, town and stuff. Watchin' April and Jack "get along"... that was so amazing to me; they clearly loved each other deeply. I think I sighed a lot, ate little, and said nuthin'... Daddy was soon off, back to town again. Us marefolk did cleanin' chores, well momma and I did, while Granny Bloom took a well earned nap. We tidied up in the guest room where I would stay, and I helped momma with other chores. But with two of us doin', well, it was easier an' didn't take so long. Momma thanked me, we hugged... Oh my goodness, maybe we both had to work at not cryin'. I think she kept pretty busy of a day on the farm. But I did do the apple collection for dinner as she watched, smiling. "AJ you are a farm girl!" she said, laughing. If she only knew. Dinner was a lot like lunch, then we all helped Granny Bloom clean up after dinner, then Granny went to bed. An' I guess daddy, er Jack had a tough day at work, and momma put him to bed soon after. Sun was down by then, so we wandered some down the front path, and laid in the grass next to the road watchin' the stars and stuff for a bit. Little was said. An' I didn't watch for nuthin; I just enjoyed every second I think. I followed momma back to the farmhouse, an' went to sleep when she did. Well, I did a inventory first, and figured I didn't say anything I shouldn't. In fact, I decided to say as little as possible; that was probably the safest. I cried briefly, started to say "oh, momma...", then remembered... sighed... Then I fell asleep.

I woke with the sun again, and headed to the kitchen first thing, to find Granny Bloom. "Oh good, its you. Come collect more apples for me. Think I need the help!" Then she laughed. Of course, I would help, and did. As she watched, well I had to scout further in the orchard for fresh apples, but I didn't mind. I often had to do that... Nevermind... We was soon back in the kitchen, and Granny cooked up different stuff, but the aroma seemed to draw daddy an' momma out. Daddy said soon after he was in the kitchen "AJ sounds like you are a big help. On behalf of my marefolk, thank you." Then he hugged me, an' I wanted to cry a bunch ag'in... An' of course breakfast was good.

And watchin' daddy get ready for work that mornin', it didn't take me long to realize... Momma helped him tie his mane up ever mornin', a few different places, just like I usually do... Guess he needed that for his job; a flyin' mane and chores, hard work, they don't mix well. And he always tipped his hat from the stand, just right, so it fell into place on his head before he walked out the door. I think my jaw was on the floor as I watched all that happen... After daddy left for work, I spent a bunch of the mornin' with momma huggin' me. I cried a bunch ag'in, but was maybe finished with that a bit earlier, and just enjoyed where I was, who I was with... Still, I kept thinkin' of those scary "oh, momma" times, and would cry a bit more. I figured workin' through 'em all might take a while...

Momma and I barely made it back to the farmhouse as daddy walked up the road for lunch. He hugged his Mare, then me, and we was eatin' lunch soon after. Daddy mentioned "Ladies, I'm taking tomorrow off, and we will start the north orchard." Momma smiled, but I think I smiled bigger. Oh, my goodness, gettin' to help with that! After a minute maybe, daddy volunteered "Well, things are quiet enough at work, and we need to get those trees planted before first cold." Yeah, I was on the same page with all of that.

Daddy was soon off an' back to work, and momma and I did chores together most of the afternoon. We even collected apples together for dinner. That was just a lot of fun. And when we was done, she hugged me again. "AJ you are such a big help. Thank you so much!" Well, we both cried, probably for far different reasons. An' dinner was very good again, but I realized... I wasn't workin' as much as I usually do, well back ho--... I looked down and shook my head just a bit thinkin' that. But I needed to not eat so much, even though the food was so good... I tried to work on that...

After Granny went to sleep, daddy, momma an' I went for a long, slow walk around the farm, through oat fields mostly. An' why did I end up in the middle? Daddy loved to talk, an' talked about a lot of different things, the Apple family, the Bloom family, Ponyville, goings on in the kingdom... Momma chimed in a bit, but she and I mostly listened, although I was learnin' a lot about kin that I didn't know. Some I knew, but a bunch... An' we got back at the farm house near dusk. It was a clear night, the first stars were out... I was tempted to watch for... But I had spent the evenin' with my momma an' daddy... I went to sleep when they did, still workin' at not cryin' buckets.

Think we was all excited about expandin' the orchard, and were up with the sun the next mornin'. Granny and I left momma and daddy talkin' in the kitchen, while we fetched some apples for breakfast. That didn't take long. An' I think I might'a ate breakfast a little fast, but maybe I wasn't the only one. Granny started into clean-up and daddy led us to the barn. Well, first, momma helped him get his mane tied back. Well, it was still tied from yesterday, but momma checked 'em all. Then momma and daddy tied my mane back too! That made me want to cry buckets all over ag'in. Well, at least my mane was finally out of my face for a spell. And I realized that momma's mane was pretty short, well compared to mine and daddy's. Momma's mane really didn't need to be tied back I guess. Next stop was the barn, and daddy helped us all get these bucket harnesses on, bucket on each side... I use 'em for apples, but I didn't think... Daddy set the schedule. "First stop library, then to Bernies to get some seed." Well, the library, I don't know, but we would need seeds to plant trees. This country girl knew that much! An' I guess me helpin' with haulin' seed meant they could get a lot more trees planted today. I didn't mind. But wow... Me realizin' that a few days ago I was kickin' apples out o' trees I would help plant today... That thought fried my brain... just as daddy walked over with another hat just like his, and plopped it down on my head just right... ...then said "just like my little philly!" Momma and daddy both laughed, but I wanted to run... no wait... But I did want to cry buckets ag'in... Still, ok... mane tied up, hat on... That felt so much better... Daddy explained that flaxin hair, he called it, like his and mine, that meant a lighter complexion, whatever that was. Well, guess we can get sun burned easier. Guess the hat helped with that. Oh, so that was why...

We was soon walking into town together. Daddy wanted to be in the middle, "to take care of his mares" he said with a chuckle. I had to shake away a few tears at that... But the walk was nice; it was a warm summer morning, and the birds were singin'... I sighed... Too early to look for Rainbow... An' walkin' towards Ponyville, well it looked like it always did... Well, no Castle spire yet, but still. And the detour to the library didn't take long, and the three of us walked in. Still, lookin' at it from outside as we walked up... took my breath away...

Same older Unicorn mare, same glasses, same slow raising of her head from her book... She smiled though, "Hello Jack and April--" an' by then, she was lookin' at me. "I see you found your long lost kin" the older mare said, then she smiled.

I didn't have a clue what to say, couldn't think o' something that wouldn't break everything, but I guess momma had trouble comin' up with the answer too. "Well, Jack and I haven't... don't... Well, I mean we have, and could, but..." Momma stopped at that point and just blushed.

Daddy smiled. "Beatrice, meet AJ, a new arrival at our farm. We don't know of her kinfolk yet, but she is every bit a farm girl at heart." I smiled while wantin' to cry buckets ag'in... But at least I didn't break anything...

Beatrice smiled. "Well, she does have your mane Jack, and her coat is only a few shades from April's." Tears came at this... I couldn't help it...

Jack (daddy) sighed. "Well, when AJ is ready to talk, we will listen. Until then, we will make her feel at home. And she is such a hard worker!"

It was quiet briefly, then the librarian... "Well Jack, you know the rules; we sometimes need to charge extra for non-Unicorn use of our books." Well, I had no clue why daddy even brought us here.

But daddy spoke up right away. "That's fine Beatrice. I was actually hoping you could help us." I guess this was the right thing to say. Beatrice smiled, and put her book down. Daddy kept going. "We are starting another apple orchard today, and I just wanted to know if there was anything in your books that might suggest the best spacing for the trees." Well, I could'a told him that, but I'd probably break everything if I said anything.

Beatrice was in thought briefly, then, using her magic, and without even moving, she pulled a book off a shelf from behind us, laid it on her desk, then opened it in front of her. She read the title "Equestria cultivated Fruit Tree basics" Then she said "let me have a look." After maybe a minute she said, probably read authoritatively "most feel 17 paces to be the optimum tree to tree distance for apple trees."

Daddy said thoughtfully "Ok, so 17 paces it is." Then he smiled and said "Thank you Beatrice, you have been a big help."

Beatrice smiled, then said "Any time, Jack." After a brief delay, she said "And nice to meet you AJ." Then we filed back out of the library. Except that, on the way out, I saw the shiny bucket that would become Princess Twilight's scrap paper pale... That was...

We was soon back out in the morning sun, walking into Ponyville. And we did stop at the fountain for a drink. Bernies Barn Stuff was next, and it was just very different for me to go inside that building and not see any Pinkie, or any cupcakes, or anything to eat, really. Well, there was oat seed, but that... After daddy made the arrangements, we went through the door to the back, and they filled all six of our buckets with apple seeds. Daddy pointed out the buckets were full, so we had to be careful about jostlin' 'em around as we walked. We took our time, and we was soon back to the farm. Daddy walked us straight out to where he wanted us to start the new orchard. Still, he explained. "Our plan is to expand each orchard from the apple seeds from the previous year's apples. We have been doing that with the orchard at the house. I want to start another orchard though, so I just bought some seeds for that. But once we get this orchard going, we will do the same thing, expanding the orchard with last year's seeds." An' I could have told him about where the key tree should be, well where it was, would-- Oh, nevermind... All the rows would be based on the first tree planted. Daddy had to decide that, or I would surely break somethin'...

Well, how did my Equestria Girls Twin say it: "plantin' trees ain't rocket science", even though I don't know what a rocket even is. Use y'ur hoof to work soil open, grab a few seeds from somepony else's bucket, spit them out in the hole, cover it back up... We did that, the three of us across, and we let daddy mark off the 17 paces. Well, I would have said 18 paces, and that's what they are, but daddy's pony paces are a little bigger than mine. But he paced the orchard out, and I figured it had to be that way. Still, layin' down seeds, the three of us walkin' a line, 17 paces apart, plantin every 17 paces, well we was out o' seeds in about 3 hours, and had planted an orchard twice the size as the small orchard we... they had. The winter rains would come, and the earth, the sun, the seeds would do the rest. An' we all huddled together and cried after we was done, but probably for far different reasons... Momma said "Thank you for your help AJ... Jack and I would have been out here past supper..." She and I hugged a bit, then daddy hugged me too.

Still, daddy felt he should explain a bit more. "I really want a bunch more apple trees in our fields... What we have now is enough for us, but I want to be able to... well, help other folks, those in town. I don't mind makin' a few bits out of it here and there, but most ponies in town don't have room for trees. I want to have enough trees, enough apples to help Ponyville as much as we can." By then we was just standing next to the key tree, looking out across the north orchard. Just looking at it then... well, now... well, at the start... The hair stood up on my neck... Summer never said anything about that...

Well, we talked some but mostly just looked out across 'ar... their new orchard. Momma mentioned that it would still be an hour or two before Granny would wake before dinner, so we helped each other take off the buckets, then we just laid down on our bellies right there in the soft oats, the warm sun. Of course momma laid down first, then daddy sort'a curled around her. I expected that. We just talked on and off. Smack in the middle of that, daddy sighed. "AJ, we don't know about your kin, or what you have been through, but I want to leave you with this. I am convinced that it is so important to tell the truth, to always tell the truth, even in little things, or when it was really hard... or even if nopony can say if its true! You don't need to stick it in ponies' faces or anything, but if the situation requires it... telling the truth... I think that is so important. Well, there are someponies in Equestria who will even resent that! But, well nopony likes to be lied to, so it is just bein' a good neighbor, bein' considerate. I want you to think about that." Wow... an' momma was noddin' in agreement as daddy said this. And as I recollected, this had already popped up a time or two before.

Well, I agreed too, and maybe had a little better idea where... But I didn't think I should say anything so I didn't break everything. Well, I just smiled, said quietly "Yup..."

After a bit, we all hauled our buckets back to the barn, then daddy ran into the house and got the cookin' bucket, and the three of us worked together to fill it up for dinner. That didn't take long. Then it was back to the house, try not to eat too much yummy food, help Granny Bloom with cleanin' up, then send her to bed...

Daddy, momma and I walked the fields some that night. Daddy said we should stay away from today's plantin', and that made sense. I think we was all tired, so we didn't stay up late. But that night as we walked the fields together, talkin', I realized that, at some point, I may just need to leave the farm, Portal or no. I figured I couldn't stay here too long without running into myself one day, and that triggered the rest of Summer's comments. Meddlin' with the past can change the future... And no way did I wanna do that, undo that... Well, right here, I didn't wanna change anything. Spendin' all day with momma and daddy... amazingly... even miraculously... Nope... Didn't wanna change a thing... I went to sleep when they did.

Why couldn't I spend every day with momma an' daddy both? Daddy had to work the next day, so he headed off to work after breakfast. Momma and I spent time in the oats, huggin' an' cryin... We went in to meet daddy for lunch, then we did chores, then collected dinner apples... Days began to slowly unwind that way, one day at a time. I just drank it all in. More often than I think momma was comfortable with, she would put daddy to bed after dinner too, he was that tired. When that happened, she and I would walk the fields near the house for a bit. She explained more than once that, daddy was big and strong, but that other ponies might be takin' advantage of that, of him. Momma sighed, shook some tears away... I guess there wasn't much she could do about it. Still, each passing day was increasingly more like a slow motion dream, 'cept I woke up ever' mornin'! Daddy had to work just about every day, which meant momma and I spent most of every day together. And the following days, it was so clear to me... Our days were pretty much all the same, But I was cryin' less, sighin' more... Maybe I was catching up or somethin'.

But after 2 weeks maybe... Momma would start crying when I wasn't. A few days later, she volunteered. We was walkin' back to the house for lunch. Momma stopped, so I did too. She blushed, then said quietly "Granny thinks I'm expectin'. I don't know if it was you helpin' out or just the right time, but Jack and I... Well, I think we will have a foal soon." We started walking ag'in, and momma smiled and added "Jack is positive it's a filly, and wants to name her Applebloom, a cute name pulling together both our families." Momma was clearly in thought briefly, then she added quietly "But I think it is a colt. And we will name him Jack after his daddy."

Well, her sayin' all that, now I wanted to cry buckets all over ag'in... for a bunch o' spells... I realized that my time to leave; well I had sort of a time-line now. That first foal would be Big Mac, I knew that. But still, I probably shouldn't be here, anywhere near... any o' that... An' I wanted to cry buckets because I didn't want to lose what I had wished for, the only thing I had ever wished for -- for so long... I finally, amazingly even miraculously had that, had them, and I just didn't want... "Not just yet" I said quietly to myself over and over ag'in that night, tryin' not to cry... I finally made it to sleep.

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