Core of the Apple

by Outlaw Quadrant

Sharing the Harvest

Deep in the fields of Sweet Apple Acres, a brown cowpony hat was lodged within a tree’s branches when a small gust shook it off and sent it upwards. The hat danced in front of the late afternoon sun before its trajectory took it toward a deep well. However, a blurry rainbow streak swooped by, saving it from falling into the damp and dark underground. The Stetson’s new owner blasted above the orchards and landed in front of a little purple dragon who was standing near the entrance to the farm.

“Time?” said Rainbow Dash, putting on the hat.

“Sixty-three seconds!’ answered Spike.

She flared her wings and screeched, “What? No way! You counted way too fast!”

Spike wagged his finger. “You’re just saying that to welch on our little bet. Now, you said you’d find the hat in one minute or I’d get a really fluffy cloud to sleep on tonight.” Spike rubbed his hands. “Now, hand it over.”

“No way! I want a do-over! Okay, you go hide the hat somewhere and—”

The hat glowed blue and it floated away toward the approaching Rarity, accompanied by Twilight, Braeburn, and Fluttershy.

“Hey!” Rainbow repeatedly poked the small dragon. “Fine! But if anypony asks, I did it under sixty seconds, got it, Spike?”

“Your secret’s safe with me!” The small dragon made a zip-the-mouth motion.

Meanwhile, Rarity twisted the hat around in the air while sweeping it with a small brush. “Oh, dear. I wonder when’s the last time this had a proper cleaning.” She brushed harder. “So much filth! Must… get… rid of it!” Her pupils shrank as she found hair strands, bits of rock, and pie crumbs, and powered up her horn to maximum.

Fluttershy reached in and grabbed the hat away. “I think that’s clean enough. If that’s okay...”

Rarity levitated the brush toward the Stetson. “Are you sure? There’s still some traces of dirt on the—”

Twilight took control of the utensil and tossed it over the fence. “I’m sure she won’t notice.”

Rarity raised her muzzle. “Hmmph! Very well!” She found the instrument and tried sneaking in one more swipe of the felt surface, but the purple mare zapped it into ash. The unicorn bawled at her supposed failure, and Fluttershy landed to wrap a comforting hoof around her. Rarity ceased her wailing and grumbled, “You owe me a new brush, Twilight!”

The unicorn bookworm rolled her eyes. “Fine.” She then turned to the Appleloosan and asked, “Hey, Braeburn? You said Big Macintosh asked to bring us here. Do you know exactly what’s going on?”

“I promised cousin Macintosh I’d let him tell ya when we arrive. If you don’t mind, I want to talk to cousin Applejack alone for a few. Haven’t had a chance to see how she’s feelin’ right now.”

The group signaled the okay and they took the short jaunt to the Sweet Apple Acres entrance. All were expecting another arrival.

"Where’s Pinkie Pie?" said Twilight, scratching her head.

Braeburn shrugged. “Pinkie told me she was going to be here with some baked treats.”

The purple unicorn looked toward the road leading to Ponyville. However, all she saw was hoofprints, so she turned back around. “Maybe she’s—”

Pinkie suddenly appeared.

“Ahhhhhhh!” Twilight jumped backwards and fell. She got up, shook off the dust, and her eye began twitching. “Pinkie, will you stop doing that?”

The party pony’s mouth began a marathon of words. “Sorry I’m late but I had trouble deciding between cupcakes and a cake and then I thought, hmm, why do we call cupcakes cupcakes because if it was me, I would call them funcakes ‘cause they’re so much fun to make but so is baking cake and—”

Twilight conjured up tape and quieted the chatterbox’s rambling to a mumble. “Did you bring cupcakes or a cake?” She waited until her friend stopped moving her mouth before pulling off the adhesive.

Pinkie picked up a pink box and opened it. “Neither, I just whipped up some muffins. Fresh out of the oven!”

Twilight and Braeburn stepped in closer, slobbering over the baked treats lined up in rows of five, but the smart unicorn spotted something peculiar.

She counted them up in her mind. “Ummm, Pinkie?” Twilight did a second check, pointing at the individual goods for verification. “Unless you ate one, I think there’s one missing.”

“Huh?” Pinkie turned the box around and saw a spot of nothing except crumbs. She surveyed the landscape while furrowing her brow and slamming the box’s lid tightly shut. “Her again! Stealing my muffins again? Where are you this time?”

The Appleloosan chuckled. “Oh, I’m sure cousin Applejack won’t notice, Pinkie.”

Braeburn led the group across the rolling hills to the small red barn, where he slowly put his hoof up, indicating for them to wait.

He walked to the barn door and gave it a few small taps. “It’s just me, cousin Braeburn. Anypony in there?”

For a few seconds, there was nothing but silence, and when the yellow stallion raised his hoof for another knock, the door creaked open. Big Macintosh craned his head through the space.

“You bring ‘em here, cousin?” he whispered.

Braeburn murmured back, “They’re a bit behind me. You mind if I spend a few minutes alone with cousin Applejack?”

“Eeyup.” Big Macintosh opened the door wide enough to let his relative inside as he slipped out. "I'll be waitin' for you two by the rockin' chair."

Inside the barn, the Appleloosan saw Applejack placing the last of the mementos back into the box. When his hoofsteps caught her attention, the Appleloosan flashed the same welcoming smile from the prior day. “Howdy, cuz.”

“Braeburn,” she said in restrained joy. Applejack ran up and squeezed him tightly, and her cousin returned the gesture in kind. Her eyes dripped out some anguish. “I’m might sorry for yesterday. I knew you meant well but I just couldn’t—”

“It’s all right. I understand.” He pulled away to look at his cousin’s face. “So, are you feelin’ any better?”

Applejack rubbed moisture off her cheek. “Not quite, but… at least I’m on the right trail.”

“I’m glad to hear that. Hey, your friends are waiting outside. They were able to find your hat.”

The orange mare shook her cousin as the corners of her mouth inched up. “They’re here? They did? Oh, we shouldn’t keep ‘em waitin’, then. You mind takin’ that box over there?”

“Sure, cuz!” replied Braeburn with a grin.

Applejack grabbed the box and placed it on the stallion’s back, securing it with string. She then held the door open, allowing him to go outside. “Say, Braeburn. How are you holdin’ up?”

The Appleloosan took heavy steps toward the outside world. “It’s a bit heavy but… nothing I can’t manage.”

Applejack chuckled as she followed Braeburn. “Actually, that’s not what I meant. I’m talkin’ about Granny. It’d be might rude of me if I didn’t ask if you’re feeling okay.”

The stallion glanced at Granny’s hill, and his demeanor headed south. “I wish I had more time to see her when she was with us. I was so busy helping the settler ponies with building Appleloosa, there weren’t many chances to take a break and pay y’all a visit.”

“Don’t worry ‘bout it, Braeburn.” Applejack wiped off a tear from her cousin’s cheek. “Granny was always proud of ya for what you did out there.”

He allowed his mouth to curl up. “I know she was, cuz. When I got the news, I flooded half the town with my tears, but after whipping up Granny’s vegetable soup and sharing it with some of my compadres, I started feeling better. In fact, I made some this mornin’ too, and it was the best batch I’ve ever made.”

“Oh?” Applejack conjured up the broth’s image and smacked her lips. “Any left for me?”

“Plenty enough for you. That is, if your sis don’t eat it all up first.”

Applejack frowned and lowered her tone. “Oh, gosh. Apple Bloom. I should have set a better example for her. You think she’ll forgive me?”

“I’m sure of it, cuz.”

The pair arrived at the rocking chair where Big Macintosh and crew were quietly waiting, sitting on the grass. As Big Macintosh helped Braeburn get the box off his back, Applejack looked at each one of her friends, and even though she prepared some introductory words, they slipped from her mind as her emotions took over.

Fresh tears fell from Applejack eyes. “I’m… might’ sorry if I… ummm, put y’all off yesterday.” She paused few seconds to gather herself.

Twilight motioned for the others to get up. “Hey, Applejack? We can come back later if you wish.”

The orange mare wiped her face. “Naw, naw. Please, I need to go through with this, but before I do, you think I could get a hug?”

All her friends allowed their hooves to express their sympathy. Braeburn and Big Macintosh stood back, sniffling amongst themselves until a few minutes passed, and the group separated.

“Thanks. I needed that,” said the orange mare, rubbing her eyelids.

The Appleloosan snuck over and placed the beloved Stetson back on the owner’s head.

Applejack’s jaw dropped as her hoof went up to touch the felt. “My hat! Which one of y’all found it?”

Rainbow boasted, “Who else? No, no! No need to thank me! You’re…”

Her friend pressed against the cyan pegasus’s ribcage.

“…quite welcome,” Rainbow murmured.

Pinkie appeared with the box of muffins. “I made these just for you! First dibs!”

Applejack dropped Rainbow, who crawled back, gasping for air. “Thanks, Pinkie. I’ll wait until… Wait, isn’t there one missing?”

The pink pony let out a snort. “Yeah! That muffin thief’s around—” Pinkie saw the tape coming up to her mouth and voluntarily stopped, but not before sticking her tongue out at the purple unicorn.

Twilight ignored the insult. “So, Applejack, your brother said you were going to share something with all of us?”

“Yeah, Twi. How ‘bout y’all sit up close?”

Her friends complied, placing the open box of muffins between them. Applejack sat down on the rocking chair while Braeburn and Big Macintosh stood on both sides of her, ready to help.

Applejack cleared her throat and took a few deep breaths. “Thank y’all for coming. I needed to say a few things ‘bout Granny. Actually, more like… show you what she meant to me since I didn’t do so well yesterday. You see, she’s always been with us on the farm but to tell ya the truth, I didn’t know her like I should have until she started tellin’ me her life stories. The thing is, though, she had such an excitin’ life that it’s hard to fully believe in them, at least until you see something that proves ‘em true. I picked a couple of mementos I have here that might interest all y’all.”

Big Macintosh passed over the old string instrument.

Pinkie bounced up with sparkling eyes. “Sally Hootenpony’s banjo!”

Applejack nodded. “That’s right, Pinkie. So you know the story behind it, right?”

“Uh-huh. I couldn’t call myself a party pony if I didn’t know who Hootenpony was! Your Granny actually got to meet her, then?”

"Yep. Partied all night with her too! In fact, when Granny told me the story, she got up, grabbed the banjo, and shook her rump around. Well, at least, tried to.”

“Oh, you mean like this?” Pinkie borrowed the instrument and she swerved all around the grass, plucking a disjointed tune, and wriggling her head, eliciting raucous laughter.

“Gosh, Pinkie.” The orange pony gasped for air. “Now I… see why Granny loved her so much. You… sure you ain’t related to Hootenpony?”

Pinkie gave Applejack a big hug. “Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, for saying that!”

Braeburn placed the banjo back in the box, and next up was a gold-and-rose-colored gemstone. Rarity gazed at her reflection in the shiny jewel, and bit her hoof with an enamored grin.

Spike squirmed and stuck out his tongue. “Oh, that’s the one flavor I don’t like!”

“Well, you may not know this, but one of Granny’s hobbies was hikin’.” Applejack held up the stone. “This glossy thing is somethin’ she found on her trip to Gemstone Canyon, but had to climb all the way down a cliff face to get it. She took it home, but never had it looked at for value. Now, I ain’t no expert, so what do you think, Rarity?”

The white unicorn rushed forward and spun the gemstone around in midair. She bit her lip, withholding a squeal. “Yes, that’s quite a rare, unique and magnificent gemstone, one usually seen only in the finest of clothing from Manehattan! I’ve never had the privilege of finding something like this before! I’m so grateful you shared such a marvelous treasure with us!” Rarity trembled, the urge to take the jewel overtaking her, but with a self-inflicted slap, she regained composure. “Oh, but please take very good care of this, Applejack. Don’t throw it in that dusty old box.”

“I will, Rarity.” She handed the gemstone over to Braeburn, who wrapped it in a silk kerchief.

Big Macintosh brought out an old photo bearing a signature and handed it over.

Applejack began to chuckle. “Rainbow, you’re going to love this. I don’t think I even need to tell ya who the gal is in this picture, so here. Take a look for yourself.”

The cyan Pegasus hovered over and grabbed the photo. Her hooves began shaking. “Ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh, ohmygosh.”

“Ehhh, you all right Rainbow?” asked a spooked Twilight.

Rainbow shoved the photo in front of the purple unicorn like a prized treasure. “Do you know who this is?”

The unicorn furrowed her brow and rubbed her chin. “It’s just a signed picture of some Wonderbolt. You already have one, so I don’t see what the big deal—”

“Not JUST any Wonderbolt! It’s Firebolt Flash, one of the original Wonderbolts!”

Twilight rolled her eyes and shrugged.

“Oh, yeah! Like you’d understand!” Rainbow turned to Applejack and stuttered, “How in Celestia did your Granny get something like this?”

Applejack tilted her muzzle upward in triumph. "Well, you see, my Granny was workin' the stand in the Marketplace many years ago the day Firebolt just so happened to stroll through. She was down in the dumps and Granny waved her down to see why she was in a lousy mood. Granny found out she had several rough performances and was in danger of being kicked out of the squad. Granny gave her a free apple fritter to perk up her spirits and her luck turned around right after. Since that day, Firebolt made it her tradition to get some fritters before any performance.”

Rainbow squealed in delight. “I can’t believe your Granny met someone so cool! You think I could borrow this for a while?”

She paused for a few moments, glancing at the innards of the box. "Actually, I got plenty of them pictures already, so you can have that one. Least I can do for finding—"

Rainbow lifted Applejack off the rocking chair, squeezing the air out of her friend. “That’s so awesome of you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

“You’re… welcome,” Applejack panted.

Rainbow dropped her friend back down and laid on the ground, wriggling her hooves in delight.

The orange mare now had a scrapbook and opened it up to the group. “This big ol’ thing is all the pictures my Granny took when she had the chance to go on a safari in some faraway land. She got to see some of the most amazin’ animals.”

Fluttershy raised her vibrating limb. “We’re they… dangerous?”

“A few of ‘em, but most were gentle critters. Here, y’all take a look for yourself.”

The shy pegasus grabbed the photo album and flipped through the pages with all the others, oohing and aahing at the various creatures captured in time, such as the giraffe with three heads, a bird with transparent wings spanning fifty feet, a mouse the size of a house, and finally, a wide-angle shot of a young Granny Smith standing in what looked like a dripping cave.

Fluttershy pointed out what it was. “That’s the inside of a huge slug.”

Rarity squirmed away. "You mean that’s a slug’s mouth? Oh, how utterly disgusting!"

Rainbow thought otherwise and raised her wings. "Disgusting? That’s awesome! She doesn’t even look scared!”

Fluttershy opened her mouth to say that the slug in the picture ate only plants but allowed the compliment to stand.

After they reached the last page, Big Macintosh grabbed a thick book and let it drop on the floor, landing with a thud.

Twilight read the spine of the tome. “Huh. Astronomy. That’s odd. It’s an older edition, and I believe we already have that one in the library, right Spike?”

The small dragon stepped into the catalog within his mind. “Yep. Why would your Granny have something like this, Applejack?”

“Well, the book itself ain’t nothing special, but you might want to look at the inside cover.” She gave the unicorn a wink.

Twilight lifted the thick cover, reading aloud an inscription left inside. “To Grans, Thank you so much for helping me on discovering my cutie mark and my purpose in life: to look up at the sky searching for stars. Friends forever, Carina Moondew.” The purple unicorn gasped and covered her mouth. “She was… only one of the most famous astronomers in all of Equestria.”

“That’s right, Twilight. Carina was Granny’s childhood friend, and they stuck together like glue until she moved away. However, Carina felt like she owed a lifelong debt to Granny, so every once in a while, she sent out gifts, and that just happens to be one of ‘em. Course, Granny wasn’t much for lookin’ at the stars herself, so it didn’t get much use.”

The bookworm pawed the lettering, stammering, “I just… I never knew your Granny knew a pony like Carina… or met other wonderful ponies… or had such great adventures.” Her ears dropped. “I just wish I could have heard all this before from Granny herself.”

All of Applejack’s friends murmured in agreement.

Twilight continued, “Listen, you got anything more to share with us, Applejack? We’d… really like to know more about her.”

The orange mare nodded. “Sure… but how ‘bout we wait ‘til tomorrow? I’m gettin’ kinda hungry, and Braeburn cooked up some of Granny’s famous soup!”

The Appleloosan nudged his mare cousin and winked. “You know, I still have plenty to make another pot. Big Macintosh, how ‘bout we have all our compadres join us for dinner?”

“Eeyup!” he replied with a smile.

Applejack got up from the rocking chair. “Before we go, I wanted to thank y’all for listenin’ to me.” A few drops fell as her voice buckled under the mare’s emotions. “I couldn’t ask for a better group of friends.” She gave each of them a long embrace, whispering her appreciation for their support.

The orange mare then turned to Braeburn and gently squeezed him. “Oh, and big thanks to you.”

“Of course, cuz.”

She left the longest hug to the large red stallion. “I am so, so lucky to have you, big brother.”

Big Macintosh gave her a hearty pat.

“What about me, sis?” yelled a distant voice.

They all turned around, spotting a filly with red mane.

Applejack galloped over until she stood face to face with the small yellow pony. She squeaked out, “Apple Bloom,” before a trickle of liquid regret silenced the orange mare.

The filly’s jaw shook before she jumped on top of the older sibling and embraced her.

“I’m so ashamed,” Applejack blubbered. “Can ya ever forgive me for… being a bad sister?”

“You’re not a bad sister.” Apple Bloom squeezed harder. “Just a stubborn one.”

She gave a playful poke. “Hey, now. Don’t ruin the moment here.” Applejack got up and grabbed her young sister by the shoulders. “Listen, how about you and I start a new tradition. I’ll tell you Granny’s stories once a week, before you head off to school.”

The filly grinned while nodding.

“Who knows? Maybe that will help with your grades.”

“But my grades are just fine,” Apple Bloom moaned.

The older sibling raised her brow and inched her face closer. “Are they?”

The younger sister looked down and her hoof played with the grass. “Ok, maybe I need to get them up.”

Applejack tousled Apple Bloom’s mane. “Ex-actly!” Then her stomach grumbled and she immediately blushed. “Ok. Enough chitchat. C’mon, everypony. Time to eat.”

The two stallions placed the leftover items back in the box and the big red stallion volunteered to carry it back to the ranch.

As they left, Twilight turned to Applejack. “Hey, do you think I could write a friendship report on this experience? I won’t be offended if you say no.”

Applejack replied with a warm smile. “Sure, Twi, but you think I could provide the words for ya?”

“Oh, sure!” She turned to Spike. “We’ll memorize the words together, okay?”

Spike gave her a thumbs-up.

The orange mare stopped and turned to face the tallest hill at Sweet Apple Acres, and soon the other Apple family members joined her side. It took only a few seconds before the words came to Applejack. “Sometimes, when you lose a loved one, you may not understand what you feel inside and nopony expects you to do so alone. Don’t ever be afraid to reach out to your family and friends ‘cause no matter when or where, they will always be there for ya.”

Then, a warm, gentle breeze coming from the direction of Granny Smith’s grave came down and touched Applejack’s mane, making it sway along with the green ribbon holding the blonde strands together.

“Also, although you may not see your loved one anymore, that don’t mean they are gone forever. If you remember who they were and think fondly of them, they are never truly gone. Yours truly, Applejack.”

The last of the clouds disappeared in front of the glowing sun, which dropped below Granny Smith’s grave.

Applejack closed her eyes and placed her hoof on her chest as the presence of her departed grandmother danced around in joy. "Love ya with all my heart, Granny, and that's where you’ll always be.”

Comments

[Cloudhammer]

A very touching story, made a few manly tears well up. 5 stars and a fav.

[ArcaneTrex]

daaaaaaaaaaaaaaw, that was so awesome.....here, hold some of my stars, its actually getting pretty heavy

[chlochlocola]

awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! how wonderful!

[UltraCombo]

I don't know why I hate myself so much that I keep reading this and bawling my eyes out.

[Outlaw Quadrant]

Just a quick note. This is an edited version of my first story on FIM. I hope you folks like the changes.

[Rainy Meadows]

Man, this was deep. Cool story, bro!

[Arcanix_Firemane]

rather reminds me of when my grandmother passed on. so many memories..

[Outlaw Quadrant]

1987464
Based on the comment's context and where you posted it, I have to assume you haven't read the whole story yet, so I'll avoid spoilers here. What I can tell you was that I wrote this fic between Season 1 and 2. Therefore, I deliberately kept the time frame of this narrative out for reasons I can elaborate on once you're done.

[IwuvWoona]

I don't know why, but I'm attracted to these "Aj is sad" fics.

[Outlaw Quadrant]

5555112 Maybe because she's the most grounded character (no pun intended) in the series.