Upon that day...

by TLSpark

Chapter 4

How could I have lost it? HOW?

Knowing that I had lost the necklace was distressing. Somehow, between leaving the city and coming here, the necklace was lost. My only connection left to her was gone. And it was all my fault.

I closed my tired eyes and breathed. Breathing usually helped calm me down, helped me to think of something else when I needed to. No use crying over spilt water. What’s done is done. While taking in another breath of clean air, I caught a whiff of something…sweet.

In the growing darkness, I could smell sweet scents all around me. Despite myself, I tried to discern the different smells, if only to distract myself some more. There was a strong scent of hay in the air, but behind that, I could smell something fresh and...alive. I could even smell what appeared to be... "Apples?"

I lifted my head and looked at Applejack, who asked, "What about them?" She seemed to be glad of the change of topic.

"I can smell apples... As a kid, I loved to eat the apples the teachers served at mealtimes. They were usually overcooked, but they tasted delicious to me..."

"Glad you like em!" Applejack proclaimed with a smile, a hint of pride edging into her voice, "My family's been growing them since before I was born. Our apples are even considered the best in the whole country!" I couldn't help but smile at that, but something she said didn't seem...

"You have a family here?" Applejack stopped smiling then, quickly looking away from me. "I asked you a question,"

"Yeah? so?" She mumbled.

"So answer it. And look me in the eye when you do," Applejack seemed to be debating with herself about what to do, but ended up looking at me any way. In the light of the lantern, I saw her green eyes looking right at me once more.

"I do, but they're not here," She said.

"Where are they then?" I asked.

"Visiting other family,"

"Without you?"

"Somepony's got to look after the farm,"

"Then you're alone here,"

"I'm not entirely alone. I've got Winona, my dog, to keep me company." I suddenly thought of a colorful dog talking to the pony in front of me, advising her on what to do next. The image made me laugh.

"Does this 'Winona' talk too?" I asked with a smirk.

"Of course she doesn't! She's a dog!" She shot back at me.

"Talking ponies are normal here, but talking dogs aren't?"

"Ponies talk all the time. It's you that isn't normal around here,"

"Me? You're the one alone on a farm talking to a complete stranger who's dying!"

Applejack began to get annoyed at me, "I said I wasn't alone. And besides, my own family only left this afternoon. They'll be back tomorrow evening."

"That doesn't seem all that long to visit some family..."

"Well it is for the family they’re seeing!" She lashed out at me, "They have to go and visit them now, and I would have come too, but my parents wouldn't have-"

"Parents?" I asked her. Her moment of anger passed then when she realized what she just said. Sweat began to run down her face. I figured this was a tricky topic for her, so I tried to tell her that she didn't need to tell me, but it was too late. She was hyperventilating now, her gasping echoing around the building. Her eyes were shooting all over the place seeing images that I couldn't even imagine...

***

Why won't these memories just leave me alone?! Thought Applejack, but they came anyway, forcing themselves upon her once more. Even after years of coping with the memories, she still found it hard to think of them.

The first to come was when she was five or six-years-old. It was the night that Applebloom had been born. She could hear her little wails coming from the room next door. The rest of the Apples and nurse Redheart were gathered in the large living room. A younger Granny Smith was holding onto her grandchildren, while her son stood by with a shocked expression on his face. Nurse Redheart was explaining to them that although the foal is alive and well, there were...complications...with her mother. The mother couldn't take the pressure in the end, but before she went, she was able to say she wanted the foal to be named Applebloom.

Tears were shed. Accusations were made. Apologies came soon after.

Soon, when the foal had been left in the care of an old friend, the rest of the family was taking a train out to the old ranch. The ranch had been the place of the Apple's founding, and was ultimately where each family member went when they...passed. Other family members had come as well. They may have been spread out across the entire country, but news travels fast when a relative is lost.

The ceremony was short. They got back onto another train shortly after it was over. After all, they had a farm and a new foal to take care of.

Sweet Celestia...make it stop...

The next memory came just as quickly as the first.

Now Applejack was eight-years-old. She was playing with Applebloom in the west fields. The little pink bow that had once belonged to their mother, and then to Applejack for a time, was now carefully tied in Applebloom's bright red hair. They had been bouncing a ball back and forth to each other, when Big Macintosh stormed over to them from the house, a panicked look on his face.

Their father had been slowly falling ill since the death of their mother. He went into a critical state a few weeks ago, so a nurse was dispatched to watch over his condition. Moments before, he started to have a heart attack, and Granny Smith told Big Mac to get his sisters. Big Mac carefully placed Applebloom in a carrier strap he had brought and told the older sister to follow him. The two of them ran as fast as they could, but it was too late. By the time that they had gotten to the house, their father had passed away. They were told that the grief he had felt from the loss of their mother was what was causing his illness. They could heal a great deal of wounds and mend broken bones, but nothing can heal a broken heart.

More tears were shed. A foal’s wails were eminent. Grief covered the house.

Like before, they soon traveled to the ranch. Applebloom came with them that time, although she didn't really understand what was happening. They went back to the ranch the next year too, and the year after that. It became a tradition of theirs to go out to the ranch, to visit their graves, and to remember...

...make it stop...

***

"Make it stop...please..."

"Are you ok?"

Applejack jumped at the sound of One Shot's voice. She found herself curled up on the ground. Her face was wet from her crying earlier, and her throat felt tight and closed. She slowly got back up and looked over at One Shot with puffy red eyes. One Shot frowned at the sight, so he offered her the bucket of water. Applejack gratefully accepted and, instead of picking it up and drinking the water, she dunked her head into it. The cool water on her face calmed her down greatly. When she couldn't breathe anymore, she pulled out her head and let out a long gasp. One Shot watched her for a bit before taking back the bucket.

"Are you ok now?" he asked again. Applejack nodded and lay down again, not looking up at One Shot. "I'm...I'm sorry..."

"Sorry for what? You didn't..."

"I'm sorry for mentioning...them. I didn't know you had lost them,"

Applejack didn't respond at first. She simply lay there with her head in her hooves. One Shot waited until she said, "Is it that obvious?"

"I might not have known my own parents, but I know grief when I see it. I know how it feels," Applejack sat back up and rubbed the tears from her face.

"I'll be fine. I just need to go work in the fields and-"

"You can't keep doing that you know," Applejack stopped rubbing her face and looked One Shot in his own. He looked sad.

"Doing what?" She asked.

"Lying to yourself like that. I can see it in your eyes," The orange pony looked shocked, once again, at that.

"You can...see it? In my eyes?"

"Like I said earlier, you have green eyes, like hers. I can tell from just looking in them that you're lying,"

"Not possible. You can't-"

"I can, and I did, and you know it," Applejack looked away, not wanting One Shot to read her face again.

"I'm not lying," she states, "I just need to...not..." She stopped talking and closed her eyes before yelling, "I don't have to explain myself to you!"

"I know you don't have to," One Shot tells her, "but you need to tell someone. Even I know that keeping your emotions bottled up for too long is bad for you, and I'm a soldier." Applejack lay still for a moment, not moving an inch. Eventually, she looked back up into One Shot's eyes.

"Have you ever had to do something all by yourself?" She started.

"Over and over again,. One Shot told her.

"Then you know how I felt when my parents died," One Shot didn't know how to respond to that, so he let her continue, "My family and I have been working this farm since the day we were born. My parents knew every trick in the book to make sure the apples were harvested at just the right time. They knew how to keep an old tree from rotting away before its time. Heck, they even knew how to keep all the local critters away from the orchards. They were the smartest farm ponies in our whole family, but..." Applejack looked at the ground then, "Mom passed away when she gave birth to Applebloom, my little sister. Her passing was a shock to all of us, especially my father," She took off her stetson and stared at it before continuing, "My father gave me his hat after he got sick with some nasty cold. When he finally passed himself, we were told that he had been sick with grief from my mother's passing. They're both buried in the family cemetery now, along with all the other Apples in the Apple clan,"

"Is that where your family went? To visit their graves?" One Shot asked.

"That's right," Applejack answered.

"Why didn't you go with them?"

"I have to stay here to watch the apple orchards because of the upcoming Summer Sun Celebration," One Shot gave her a confused look, "We normally go in about two months," She started to explain, "But there's this big event happening that we agreed to cater. The rest of our extended family is coming to help with harvesting the apples and to help prepare the food. I said I would stay here on the farm to keep an eye on the coming crops, cause, well, somepony's gotta do it,"

"That was very nice of you to do that, but why? It's not like someone is going to steal them, I mean, they're just apples..." He regretted saying that the moment the words left his mouth. Applejack glared at him with a look that almost seemed to burn through his skull. Her earlier sadness erased in that one moment.

"Just apples?" She asked as she stood up, "Just apples?" She walked over and put her face close to his, leaving only a few inches between their noses, "For generations, my family have traveled all across the country, finding different seeds and growing a great many crops, but we've been growing apples since our founding ancestors, and any Apple in the family will gladly tell you that growing our trade name is the highest honor in the world. I doubt that any of them think that we grow just apples," She stood back from him to examine his reaction, but frowned when she saw him smiling.

"Now THAT'S what I'm talking about..." He said in a quiet voice. Applejack frowned even more and sat back on her flank, waiting for him to explain, "You really believe that?"

"Of course I do!" Applejack said indignantly. She stared straight into his tired looking face.

"I can see it in your eyes..." He continued, slowly lifting his hand to point at her face. Applejack blushed, but didn't look away, "You're telling me what you really believe... what you truly think is the truth..." She didn't dare move from her spot, resolute in keeping to what she said. "You speak the honest truth..." Applejack broke her stern look at this, "Honesty is a rare trait you know...very rare indeed..."

"Honesty? You must be jok-"

"I'm not...I'm telling you the truth as well when I say that it is a rare quality...a quality that I only saw in one person...and you have her eyes..." One Shot licked his dry lips a little before placing his hand in the bucket to draw out some of the water within. He lifted his palm and splashed the liquid across his face, "You have her eyes..." He moaned.

"Are you ok?" Asked Applejack, her face now full of concern.

"I'm fine...hey...could you do me a favor?"

"Depends on what it is,"

One Shot chuckled before asking, "Could you go get me an apple?"

Comments

[Godiswithus3]

This chapter was great. I'm loving it.