"Ya'll promised"
It was night time in Ponyville and every pony was asleep. The moon shone brightly upon Sweet Apple Acres, the night air was cool and crisp, very quiet and peaceful. Nothing could be heard throughout the fields except for quiet sobs that were made by a little filly who was sitting atop a hill next to the biggest apple tree in the orchard.
"H-hey mom and dad." Applebloom whispered, she silently hoped for a reply, but all she heard was the same old response.
Silence.
Applebloom gently touched the tombstones that lay in front of her as if they were the most precious things in the world. Written on both tombstones was 'Beloved Mother/Father of Big Macintosh, Applejacqueline, and Applebloom. May they Rest in Peace.'
"I g-got mah' Cutie Mark t-today. A-Applejack said ya'll would be proud of me if ya'll w-were here." Applebloom choked on the very last sentence.
If ya'll were here.
If. But they weren't.
Seven years.
Seven years since the tragic accident that took the lives of Appleblooms' parents happened. Even though it was such a long time ago it was still fresh in Appleblooms' mind, what had happened on that fateful night. She was in the living room playing with her toys when somepony knocked on the door. Granny Smith went to open it, it was a stallion who by the looks of it had been rushing to get to the barn. He said he wanted to talk to Granny Smith in private so she sent Applebloom to her room. Applebloom peeked through the crack in her door, she didn't see much but she did hear some things like, " walking home","gun", and " found them by", then Granny Smith started crying. Next thing Applebloom knew she was at her Mom and Dads' funeral.
"Ya'll p-promised me that ya'll would a-always be there for me. But ya'll a-ain't." Applebloom broke down in sobs, not caring if anyone heard her. She just wished for one day that her parents could come back and she could see her Mother and Fathers' faces one last time. She wished she could feel her Mothers' strong but soft hooves gently caress her cheeks. She wished she could feel her strong Father lift her off the ground and swing her around. But wishes don't come true, or at least that's what Applebloom thought. In her mind wishes were things you hoped for but they would never come true.
Applebloom felt a slight pressure on her shoulder removing her from her thoughts.
"You ok sugarcube?" Applejack asked, concern in her voice.
"Kind of." Applebloom cast her eyes downwards trying to avoid looking into her sisters' green eyes.
Applejack sat down beside Applebloom putting a hoof around her shoulder. "You wanna talk about it."
"Not really...y-you wouldn't understand, even if I told ya."
"Now why in tarnation do you think ah' wouldn't understand." Applejack asked giving a quizzical look to her younger sister.
"Well it's just...it's just that Ma and Pa are gonna miss everything in mah' life. They've already missed how I got mah' cutie mark, and they're going to miss mah' graduation from little filly's school and they're going to miss everything else in mah' life." Applebloom started to sob on her sisters' shoulder, trying to somehow find comfort from her.
" I know how you feel Applebloom, I felt the same way when Ma and Pa passed. It felt so different and uncomfortable livin' here without Ma and Pa so I decided to leave and go live with Aunt and Uncle Orange in Manehatten. But life over there wasn't the same as over here, I felt like I betrayed Ma and Pa by leavin' the farm, so I came back. And now I know where I belong." Applejack gently smiled, looking over the many rows of apple trees.
They sat there for a few minutes in silence. The only sound that could be heard was the gentle rustling of the leaves caused by the Fall wind.
Finally Applejack was the one to speak. "Look, Applebloom, what ah'm tryin' tuh' say is that you may feel like Ma and Pa are never gonna be with you physically, but just remember that they will always be your side in good times and bad."
"What do you mean by that?" Applebloom asked, confusion clearly in her voice.
Applejack looked around the farm for a moment, then turned to the sky and smiled. "Look up at the sky, Applebloom, what do you see?"
"All ah' see is a dark-blank sky." Applebloom replied with a hint of sadness.
"But when you look up to the sky, what do you expect tuh' see?"
"Well, when ah' look up at the sky ah' expect tuh' see some stars."
"Exactly."
"What?" Applebloom said confusion clearly in her voice.
"Look, Applebloom, think of Ma and Pa as stars, you may not see them but you know their always there." Applejack explained while giving a gentle smile to her little sister.
They both looked up into the sky. Far off in the distance they could see two twinkling stars.
"Well, ah'm gonna go hit the hay, come inside whenever you feel like it Bloom." Applejack yawned while getting up and heading to the barn.
Applebloom watched her sister trot off to the house and she was left with just her own company. 'What if Applejack was right, what if Ma and Pa are still here and watchin' over me?' Applebloom thought. Applebloom started recalling all the times she had gotten chills for no reason during class. She also recalled feeling like she was being embraced whenever she accomplished something special.
Applebloom looked from the tombstones to the two stars above. She smiled, humming to herself a lullaby that her mother would always sing to her before bedtime. Applebloom turned back to the tombstones, whispered " I love you," and headed back to the barn to get some rest.
Applebloom wasn't sure if it was the rustling of the leaves or if it was just her imagination but she could have sworn she heard two voices whisper, "we love you too," back.