> Mothers and Fathers
>  by 20thCentury Brony
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> My Little Mommy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

C’mon, silly filly, ya can do this. If ya can raise three little foals and help with Applebuck Season and the Confluence, ya can talk to yar father after all these years.

This was eating Pear Butter up for a while now. Ever since she and her honest stallion, Bright Mcintosh married, she’d figured she would be happy with everything she’s got. Why not? She’d had a family of farmers that were all willing to not mind the fact that she was Pear just to make her feel welcomed; she had the honor of being mother to a colt and two fillies who she believes will undoubtingly take after their parents when they’re older; and she had the best stallion that any mare would be lucky to have. But it wasn’t so.

Grand Pear was always stubborn and narrow-minded, she wouldn’t deny. He wouldn’t approve of her making “goo-goo eyes” at an Apple, and he’d be willing to move the whole Pear family to Vanhoover just to expand the business and get away from the Apples. It always bothered her how he never came for her take on such things or never considered her feelings over them, just doing something without anypony else’s say in the matters and putting the business before all else. But she had saw the worst of it on her wedding night, when he and Granny Smith caught their children marrying. At first, they were both in agreement to disagree over the wedding. But when Grand Pear told her she had to stick with her family, she tearily countered with the Apples being family now. What followed was perhaps the most disappointment she’d seen in her father’s eyes as he made her choose between the Pears and Apples. She loved her father, but she loved Bright Mac more. And when she stood by her husband, Grand Pear stormed off, clearly sounding like he’d never wanted to her ever again.

She was fortunate to have her husband and family keep her from being completely miserable. Bright Mac was always a gentlecolt, being there when she needed him and giving her a shoulder to cry on, and Granny Smith was the mother she’d wished to have known before she died of childbirth, taking her in after Grand Pear left Ponyville and protecting her when some Apples initially gave her the cold shoulder for her Pear bloodlines. Even her three children, Bright Mcintosh, Applejack, and Apple Bloom, were what made her happy to be a mother as she showered them with her love, and they returned with their own. And yet, she felt empty.

It started a month ago when the newspapers detailed the Pear business in Vanhoover skyrocketing a couple of months after they first moved into the city. When Pear Butter first saw it, she was happy for her father making out all right and dismissed it without much sorrow. However, Bright Mac and Granny were no fools to lies and they kept an eye on her as she slowly grew a bit more distant and downhearted until the only Pear in a basket of Apples finally cracked and poured her heart out on them, telling them how she wished to earn some closure between her and her father. After she let it all out, Bright and Granny left her to sleep for the night.

While they understood her pain, the two Apples were initially unwilling to cause an episode between them and the Pears after their years apart. Not wanting to let this go further, Bright Mac decided to give her a very special surprise for their anniversary together. After a night of dining and enjoying each other’s warm company, Bright presented to Pear his surprise: two tickets for a train ride all the way to Vanhoover so she could talk to Grand Pear with hopes of burying the hatchet. Once seeing them, Pear tackled her husband to the ground in tearful joy for his consideration, declaring her love for him over and over. That night, both parties rested easy with each other’s happiness.

Two days after that, the perfect pair were packed and ready to leave the farm for the Ponyville Train Station. In their saddle bags, they had enough snacks for the train ride to and back from Vanhoover, Pear’s guitar to keep them entertained and from falling under mind-numbing boredom, and “Granny Smith’s essentials,” which comprised of a crude map of Vanhoover, a hoof-made dictionary by her to help them understand some of the “hoity-toity language” they might hear, and plenty of apple-pear themed quilts and blankets “in case y’all wanna be more warm,” as she had doubly put it, much to the kids’ confusion and her son and daughter-in-law’s embarrassment. After saying their goodbyes to their family, they made their way to the station, leaving to catch the 2 PM train by nearly a half-hour. 

And what a good idea. When they arrived, the station was jampacked with ponies as the Summer Sun Celebration had recently passed and Ponyville was the second most popular place after Canterlot during that time. Trains were coming and going filling and emptying with ponies faster than one can keep track of. Within the tsunami of colorful manes and coats were Bright and Pear able to find an open space on a bench for them to wait for their train to arrive. To their right was a pale amber Pegasus with cerise eyes and a moderate raspberry mane curled from the flowing end and three flowers embedded onto her flank.

After a while, Bright decided to make out the easiest route to Grand Pear’s barn once they arrived at Vanhoover, leaving Pear Butter on her own. As she remained alone, Pear had been plagued by possibilities and worries of how her reunion with her father would turn out to be. Scenario after scenario, she tried to think of a positive outcome, only to come up blank, leaving nothing but a somber expression on herself. She was now considering the whole idea a waste of time if grand pear was simply going to be no different than last time and, realizing how lost a cause it was shaping to be, broke her dam and unleashed the tsunami upon her freckled cheeks softly.

“Oh my goodness, are you okay, dearie?” a voice called from Pear’s right. The farm mare turned her head to see the Pegasus looking at her with a concerning tone and expression. 

“Yah. Ah’m-.” Pear was about say before she made full eye contact with the mare. She scanned the Pegasus over completely and, judging from both her soft-spoken voice and the kindly-shy look into her eyes, she could easily tell that the mare was somehow interested in her well-being with some concern. Why wouldn’t she? She certainly just saw Pear crying her eyes out a few moments. But then she noticed something in those eyes that was anything but apathy. She honestly looked sympathetic over her well-being. Deciding to appease the Pegasus, Pear finally answered with the honest truth: “No, ma’am, Ah’m something of scared.”

“Oh no, what’s wrong?” cooed the mare as she cautiously scooted closer to Pear, extending a comforting hoof. When she connected with Pear’s coat, the latter flinched slightly and made the Pegasus squeak.

“Oh, Ah didn’t mean to scare ya. Ah just didn’t expect it.” Pear quickly defended. She looked to see the mare’s concerned face slowly turn to a warm smile. Now given the all-clear, the Pegasus moved in for a comforting feel onto the Earth mare’s shoulder.

“If it’s alright with you,” the mare offered, “would you like to tell me what’s wrong?” This earned yet another look from Pear, whose face conveyed confusion. Seeing this, the mare quickly regretted her offer and was about to remove her hoof from Pear. However, she didn’t get far when the farmer wrapped a hoof around her own. The mares locked eyes with each other, and the other mare saw but insistent warmth within Pear’s turquoise eyes. Matching that warmth, the mare returned her hoof to Pear’s shoulder.

A few seconds of silence passed between the mare before Pear Butter decided to break the ice and come clean with the mare. She went on to tell her how she been feeling the want to make amends with her father after all these years and how Bright Mac arranged to have a train straight for Vanhoover.

At the end of her summary, Pear broke down and cried softly. The very thought of her father still furious with her was heart-wrenching beyond the farm pony’s imagination. Soon enough, Pear felt a pair of hooves wrap around her and stroking her coat softly. She sobbed on, shaking in the mare’s embrace.

“That’s it. Let it all out, dearie,” the Pegasus said as she continued stroking. Shortly afterwards, Pear had finally stopped shaking and looked into the mare’s face, and all she saw was comfort and kindness. “Feeling better?”

“Much,” Pear acknowledged as she wiped some stray tears and sniffled a bit. “Thank you,…uh, Ah’m sorry, we’ve haven’t had proper introductions. Ah’m Pear Butter.”

She waited for her comforter to share her name, but all she got was the mare looking down and making circles on the bench, darting her eyes away from her. Finally, she opened her mouth to speak. “I’m Timid Blossom.”

Pear maintained a smile as she tried to catch any of that but caught none of it. She cleared her ears of any wax before leaning in more. “I’m sorry. Could you repeat that?”

“Um… My name is… Timid Blossom.”

“Emmet Opossum?”

“Timid Blossom!” Timid corrected rather loudly than she wanted, as she caught the attention of some ponies passing by or those who were just standing and heard her shout. Seeing their directed attention, she covered her mouth with her hooves, blushing profusely.

“A shy one, ain’t ya?” Pear Butter noted as she broke into a small laughing fit. “Ah didn’t mean to make you shout like that.”

“It’s alright,” Timid assured the farm pony. “I’m mostly that quiet, especially with the little one.” 

“You have a child?” Pear asked, feeling some relief at trying to change the subject about her father to that of children. “I have three: one son and two daughters. They’re back at Sweet Apple Acres with my husband’s mother.” 

Timid looked away slightly before replying. “Well, I have an older daughter and an infant son.”

“You must be proud of yourself, being mother of two children, watching them, protecting them, being there for them as they grow older and eventually find themselves in our hooves.”

“And when they do, they’ll only look back to see how brave they were back then than when they are older, such as brave my daughter was for going to Summer Flight Camp up in Cloudsdale.”

“Summer Flight Camp!?!” a voice squealed from behind the two mares, causing Pear to jump slightly and Timid to scream…well, at least tried to. It was more out-of-breath and barely above an audible whisper. The two mares looked behind their bench to see a pale cornflower blue Pegasus mare with a light scarlet and orange mane that looked unkempt and slightly spiked, with eyes that matched Timid’s in color, a small cloud blowing wind engraved onto her flank, and plastered on her face was an excited expression. She traded looks with the two bench mares before locking excited eyes on Timid. 

“Did you just say your daughter was at Summer Flight Camp?!” the second Pegasus questioned Timid, who, while scared senselessly, merely nodded her with a timid smile. Upon that acknowledgement, the cornflower mare squeaked in loud excitement before taking Timid’s hoof and shaking it vigorously and breaking off on a high-speed rant. “My name is Windy Whistles, and my daughter is at the same camp as your daughter! I’m a huge fan of my daughter because she is meant for amazing things in the future, but I can say the same about your daughter, not that I’m playing favorites! My daughter is a huge fan of winning, the Wonderbolts, looking awesome while winning-!”

“Easy, ya energetic filly! Ya might take her hoof off!” Pear Butter pleaded, using both hooves to keep Windy’s from moving any further. Windy looked at Pear with a bewildered look before turning to see the petrified look on the shy mare’s face. Now knowing what she was doing, Windy removed her hooves from Timid’s and blushed upon knowing her mistake.

“I’m sorry for that,” the excitable Pegasus apologized. “My daughter just went on board the train to meet up with the other campers before going to the actual camp. I’m also her biggest fans!! Alongside my husband.”

“Yeah, ya kinda made that clear,” Pear cautiously restated as her eyes slowly turned away from Windy. Eventually, her eyes returned to Windy with her zeal for proper intros. “Anyway, hello, we’re Pear Butter and Timid Blossom,” she introduced as she gestured respectively to her and Timid. “And your name was Windy what again?”

“Whistles. Windy Whistles is my name. And I didn’t mean to act like I’m terrorizing you two.”

“Oh, it’s no trouble at all, Mrs. Whistles.” Timid assured as she rubbed her stomach. “We just didn’t expect you. So your daughter is in the same camp as my own?”

“Indeed she is! My husband and I can see it all so clear! Someday, she’s going to be the greatest and most awesome flyer to ever soar across Equestria and everypony will know her name!” Windy then let out a squeal of ecstasy as she flew in tiny circles up in the air, nearly ramming into other Pegasi taking off.

“Now now, Mrs. Whistles,” Pear Butter cautioned the excited mare down, who descended to station herself behind the bench. “I wouldn’t go praising every little good thing my kids do. They may think the world revolves around them and develop insufferable egos.”

“Oh, believe me, Pear, my daughter may grow up to be those things, but her loyalty will always come out on top of it all. It’s her best trait.”

“Plus,” chimed Timid, “I believe we should always support our children no matter what they set their hearts and minds to.”

“I know that.” Pear acknowledged. “I can’t imagine what my son and two daughters would turn out to be if something were to happen to me and my husband. I mean, they’d still have my mother-in-law to look to for guidance.”

“Just in-laws?” asked Windy incredulously. “Don’t you have relatives on your family side?”

That last question sent Pear Butter to stare bug-eyed for a moment before turning away and slumping her head down in shame. Seeing this, Wendy quickly reached out to comfort Pear, only to stop herself midway in regret and looked at Timid for help.

“Uh, you might need to refrain from that subject,” Timid told the uninformed Pegasus. “She and her husband are meeting her dad in Vanhoover to patch up… some old wounds.”

Upon hearing this, Windy winced in self-hate before turning to the downhearted mare again. “I’m sorry about that, Pear. I didn’t know.”

“Nonono, it’s okay,” Pear quickly reassured the frantic Pegasus as she looked up to face her. “You didn’t know. It’s all right.” She couldn’t help but release a small chuckle to herself, knowing that her family drama is ruining a good moment she is sharing with the unbeknownst mothers of Equestria’s greatest heroes in the modern age and future. Suddenly, she was throwing a small giggling fit that shocked the two Pegasi. “Sorry, girls. It’s just…I didn’t expect to be bonding with you two over daughters and family drama.”

Windy and Timid merely looked at each for a small bit before giggling shortly afterwards. Once they stopped, the three mares took a moment of silence, watching as train after train leave the station and ponies continued to make their way on and offboard said trains. As the silence stretched on, Pear Butter turned to face the station clock to find it eighteen minutes before the Vanhoover Express arrived. As much as she enjoyed Windy and Timid’s company, she couldn’t help but wonder where Bright Mac was currently. He wouldn’t take so long to plot out their way around a big city, but nopony ever knows. Regardless, she was rather concerned for him, thinking out possible, yet ridiculous scenarios to delay him. She even shot down the moronic idea of him running to meet another mare, knowing just how stupid it would be to think such a thing to happen to such a loyal married stallion like him. Either way, she wanted to look around the station to try and catch him in her sights.

“I’ll be right back,” she told Windy and Timid as she got down off the bench and stretched herself out before turning to her two newly made friends. “I’m just gonna look around for my husba-OOF!”

Her thoughts were interrupted when she felt the sudden impact of a pony ramming into her at a furious speed, sending her tumbling to the hardwood and causing Timid to gasp in shock and Windy to wince. As her legs rang into pain at the unexpected collision, she looked up with annoyance to tell the culprit off for ramming her down like that. Once she did, however, she found two mares instead of one.

One of them, a Unicorn with a mark of three cookies, two of which bitten out of, was coated in a full body color of pale fuchsia with a mane and tail of grayish indigo and persian blue. She worn a yellow ascot around her neck and earrings that matched that color. Her horn glistened in light blue magic as she levitated two suitcases that were the same color as her mane. Her eyes were glistened with cornflower blue like Windy’s coat, and yet they were mixed with annoyance, possibly over her ramming into somepony within the crowd jampacked within the station. Still, Pear could see that from the accessories found upon the mare, the Unicorn was sophisticated, just not in an extravagant sense.

The second mare, with three pebbles marked, was an Earth pony embedded in what the farm mare could describe to be “three possible shades of gray, minus her ensemble.” Her coat was light cobalt bluish gray with a grayish opal mane in a bun and her eyes, probably the brightest color to be found on this mare, were light arctic blue. She wore a black bib similar to Granny Smith’s and a pair of chained eyeglasses. And unlike the Unicorn, her face gave way to no emotions at all. She just looked down at Pear with the blankest look one could have ever seen.

Pear scanned the two mares up and down, waiting for either one of them to help her up. Eventually the emotionless mare did the honors by offering her hoof and extending it to the downed mare. Pear accepted it and was pulled back up onto her four legs.

“I’m sorry for that, ma’am,” the Unicorn spoke up in an aggravated tone as she rubbed the bridge of her muzzle with her hoof. “I didn’t see you there and I was eager to get as far away from her as possible.”

“It’s okay,” Pear sincerely assured the annoyed mare, “Ah just didn’t think ya’d be coming up so fast.”

The Unicorn offered a small and sincere smile. “Thank you. I-. Wait, don’t I know you from somewhere?” Hoof to the chin, she then looked Pear over for a few moments with a puzzled expression that never faded from her face for short. Pear turned slightly to face her new Pegasi friends, only for them to be as skeptical as she was. While noting how unhelpful it would have been to go to her, she then turned to the emotionless Earth pony, who merely looked in slight confusion at her companion’s curiosity. Finally, the Unicorn broke her face and replaced it with a realization.

“Oh, wait, now I remember. You’re that mare I saw helping that Granny Smith mare during Zap Apple Season, aren’t you?”

“That’s me, every year actually,” Pear Butter cautioned with a worried edge in her tone.

“Good, I promised myself no more memory lapses this month, and I’d curses myself to Tartarus if I didn’t recognized your face. It must be something of a hassle to help that poor old mare with all of those chores and stops she makes just for another season for apple products.”

“Zap apples?!” Windy exclaimed suddenly. “You mean you help with the production of all of those zap apple products, especially the jam itself!?”

Pear, along with the other mares, was taken aback by Windy’s outburst as she broke out of her excited stature and looked at Pear with such an expression. Unable to find the right words to answer, the farm mare simply nodded. This only made the excitable Pegasus squeal in high pitched tones as she engaged in another high-speed rant as she elevated herself off the ground. “Oh my Celestia! What do you and her mom do to make the jam so tasty? How do you know if the apples are ripe? How do you even make the rainbow apples? Why are they called zap apples? Where do those apples come from?”

The born Pear was so overwhelmed by the questions Windy shot at her that she was flabbergasted. She looked to see the other three mares, even the stone-faced mare herself, calmly intrigued in contrast to Windy’s interest. She wanted to answer Windy, but she couldn’t. Reason being was that it was a long-time Apple family secret, and she was sworn into secrecy when she first helped with the season that she’d never share it with anypony besides family.

So, looking Windy in the eyes, Pear offered a small smile and gave her answer: “Sorry, Windy, but it’s an old family secret and I can’t share it unless any of y’all are Apple family.”

“Oh, come on,” groaned Windy as she brought herself back to the ground. “Can’t you make an exception here and spill? Please?” She then proceeded to stick out her bottom lip and whimper like a dog while her eyes went wide as dinner plates.

Pear snorted in laughter for a brief moment. “If Ah told y’all about the family secret about the why of those apples, Ah’d be neck-deep in trouble.”

“Well, whyever the reason,” spoke up Timid, “I find it very sweet to help your mother like that.”

“I think it proper of us to respect her family secret,” a voice suddenly requested behind the farm pony. Her eyes widened, Pear herself was familiar with all of the mares’ voices except for one: that of the gray Earth pony herself. She looked behind her to see said mare looking at her with a pair of confused eyes. “What? As a farm pony myself, it is only wise to respect such a thing.”

“Oh, ya work on a farm too,” Pear questioned the rock-hard mare a smile. “Where and what’s your product?”

“The Earth pony only gave a quizzical look, causing Pear’s smile to grimace into a cringe before she replied. “With my four daughters and husband, I, Cloudy Quartz Pie, run a small rock farm in Rockville, Western Equestria.”

A small beat of silence passed between the mares before Windy broke it.

“Oh, I get it. You live on a rock farm in Rockville and you’re as hard as a rock!” The excitable Pegasus went on to laugh in hysterical fits as she toppled off the bench railing. She proceeded to pound on the wood in her fits, clearly seeing no end in the joke that she herself only found funny while the other four mares merely stare at her in annoyance or telling her to quit it. She soon opened her eyes to see the mares faces and her laughter trailed off as she wheezed big breaths of air, trying to speak. “You know… because… she’s…” Pear and the Unicorn both gestured Windy to stop now as they could see a scowl forming onto Cloudy’s face. Finally empty of laughs, Windy wiped some stray tears and cleared her throat before blushing with a simple: “Sorry.”

A few moments of uncomfortable silence between the five mares.

“So, anyway,” Timid spoke up, breaking the ice between them, “I couldn’t help but wonder how your know of Pear Butter helping her mother-in-law, Miss…”

“Mrs. Cookie Crumbles,” the Unicorn finally introduced herself to be as she lowered her suitcases and lifted her magic on them before sitting on the bigger case. “I know Mrs. Butter here because I live here in Ponyville with my husband and daughter,” she stopped for a moment to rub her tummy before patting it slightly a bit, “another one on the way.”

Every mare, minus Cloudy, gasped upon hearing the news and gathered around Cookie as they voiced their praise and congratulations for the soon-to-be-mother-of-two. Eventually, the praise died down and Cookie continued her tale.

“Anyway, my husband, daughter, and I just got off the train from Canterlot after the Summer Sun Celebration and then I ran into Mrs. Pie here on the way off the train. My family decided to go ahead without me so we mares could talk interests of the sorts-.”

“Until a stuck-up mare with a face that anypony would kill to have a good hit at came up to us and mocked us for being ‘lowly ponies,’” Cloudy finished for Cookie with an annoyed edge in her voice.

The others were shocked to hear such a reaction from the rather stone-faced mare. It may have been brief, but the short time the mares spent together was clearly enough they needed to know so much about them. And they never expected anger from Cloudy, but hey, when you get to know ponies, you know some things that aren’t part of your initial image of them.

“Uh, excuse me,” a mare broke yet another silence between the mares. 

They all looked behind Cloudy and Cookie to see a light gray Unicorn mare. She had a moderate purple mane and tail with two streaks of white going down on end, her eyes were the same color as Cloudy’s, and her flank bared a trio of purple stars, the same symbol matching those on the saddle bags on her back. She spoke in a polite voice and looked to be interested in the mares and their little circle.

“Um…,” she trailed off before regaining her wordings, “I didn’t mean to pry, but that ‘stuck-up mare’ sounds an awful lot like that Spoiled Milk my husband and I ran into.”

“Ya know that mare,” asked the curious Pear.

“And as much as, for lack of a better word, a hater as you ladies seem to be.”

“Oh, well, I’ve only seen her around here when I’m either with my mother-in-law or husband, but she’s never heckled me or caused me any trouble.”

“Good,” proclaimed Cookie. “A nice mare such as yourself shouldn’t have to deal with that high-standard, egocentric mare. Speaking of which, what’d she do to you, Mrs. …?” She then trailed off, waiting for the unknown mare to introduced herself to the rest of them.

“Oh, my name’s Twilight Velvet,” introduced the sixth mare to join Pear Butter. “And she didn’t do anything exactly to me, but she just insulted a married pair of mares over there.” Velvet then gestured to the two mares walking together hoof-in-hoof, throwing clearly disgusted looks at the oh-so punchable face of Spoiled Milk as she walked off the station with an equally disgusting grin.

Cookie gagged in disgust at the sight of that mare. “Just the mere sight of that mare makes me sick.”

“Indeed,” Pear concurred. “I don’t normally say this sort of stuff, but Celestia help the colt that falls for that shallow piece of manure.”

She could hear Timid and Windy gasping in surprise for her language, Cookie and Velvet breaking into small giggles after a few moments of silence, and Cloudy was seen nodding her head in approval of that burn.

“I’ll count us all surprised if she has children,” commented Velvet, giving a sly look to her acquaintances, Windy and Cookie oohing at that burn. After some final laughs out of her systems, Velvet turned away from the mares and started to make her way back into the crowd of mares.

“Wait!” Pear Butter called out before Velvet could completely vanish. The gray mare turned back to see Pear with a small smile on her face. “Don’t you want to sit down and talk with us, if you want?” She then scooted over to the center of the bench and patted the empty seat with her hoof, offering it to Velvet. The Unicorn looked rather uncertain at the offer until she looked at the other mares faces. They were all willing to have her join their little circle of friends. A few more seconds passed before Velvet walked back towards them and the offered spot from Pear Butter.

“Well, I suppose talking to some ponies until my husband comes back won’t kill anypony,” Velvet voiced as she sat down onto the bench.

“Of course not,” agreed Pear as she gestured to the others while calling their names. “Me, Pear Butter, Windy Whistles, Cookie Crumbles, Timid Blossom, and Cloudy Quartz Pie, we’re all friends here, aren’t we, ladies?” She turned to see the other mares either nodding or voicing their agreements.

“So, um,” stammered Timid as she hid behind her mane, “what brings you and your husband to Ponyville? Only if that’s not a problem with you, Mrs. Velvet.”

“Oh, it’s no problem at all, Mrs. Blossom. This is the week of our anniversary and we’re spending it on a week-long cruise across Equestria via a zeppelin.”

“A zeppelin,” Cookie cooed. “I’ve always wanted to be on one of those. The view they offer is just amazing and the service, from what I hear, is spectacular.”

“They are, indeed. But they are very hard to book and pay for. Fortunately for me and my husband, our son and daughter and her foalsitter managed to pile enough bits for us to pay for the cruise.”

“The kids and a foalsitter paying for an anniversary week for the parents?” Cloudy summarizes, putting a hoof to her chin. “How old are your kids, Velvet?”

“My son’s the oldest and my daughter’s in elementary,” Velvet responded. This then caused Quartz to do something of the unthinkable: she cracked a smile. She literally cracked a smile in front of the five other mothers, much to their surprise. They’d never thought to have seen such a thing from the deadpan mare and it wasn’t a full smile; it was just a crack on the side. Regardless, it was… rather pleasant to see. Shaking herself out of the shock, Velvet openly pondered: “What’s the crack for?”

“Oh, nothing bad,” trailed Cloudy awkwardly. “It’s just that I find the older son setting up the anniversary cruise not just for you guys,” she then gave a teasing smirk that only shocked the mares further before finishing with: “but just to have some alone time with the foalsitter.”

Upon hearing this, Velvet’s face went from a dark gray to a darkened shade of red as she blushed profusely at the innuendo her fellow mother just made in front of the others. It didn’t drop their notice as well, but they simply found the circumstances to be funny, in its own sense, as they broke into yet another helpless fit of giggles and oohs at the notion.

Once the comical noises died down, Velvet regained her composure. “As possible as that might be,” she explained, clearing her throat while darting her eyes away, “I told him and my daughter not to do anything stupid and/or dangerous while we were gone.”

“Or…?” Timid trailed off, hoping there was more after that.

“Or nothing,” simply replied Velvet. “They usually listen and they’re so well-behaved.”

“Uh huh,” “Yeah, sure,” and “If you say so,” were among the statements made by the mares who still remained skeptical at Velvet’s assurances.

“Okay, make your little jokes, ladies,” the gray Unicorn allowed as she remained rather steadfast in her beliefs. “Anyway, we’re stopping here for a bathroom break before catching the 2:45 train in twenty-six minutes.”

Pear Buter’s eyes shot open in surprise. In all the talking and meeting up with new mares, she’ve neglected to check the time for the train to Vanhoover. Darting her head towards the clock, she found the time to be 2:19, leaving her with only eleven minutes before the Vanhoover train arrived and she and Bright Mac had to leave.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of Windy Cheering at the top of her lungs as she thrusted her hooves into the air.

“Woo-oo! That means we got till then to chat it up!” She cried, earning herself a round of laughs from everypony, even Cloudy in yet another moment of open cheerfulness, as they were clearly not gonna argue with enjoying each other’s company, except for Pear Butter who had to leave for the 2:30 train. She looked around to see all of five mares happy to be spending more time with each other and was rather hesitant to tell about her upcoming train. But she had to let them know that she was due to leave very soon. She looked back to the clock just in time to see the minute hand strike further, giving her only ten minutes left before her departure from Ponyville. Another look around the mares’ faces, she decided to wait until her train came.

For the final ten minutes, all six mothers were in nothing but pleasant spirits with each other. They all compared their lives and occupations, shared some dark personal secrets, and told some very funny stories that drew the attention of some passing ponies. They even talked some bit about their families and how they met their stallions. Windy met hers within the weather factory he worked in, Timid and hers when she went shopping for gardening supplies, Cloudy when her family visited the Pie Rock Farm, Velvet back when she was in high school, and Cookie during a football game. When it was Pear Butter’s turn to share her love story, she was rather reluctant to share some key details with the others, but she went through with it. At the end, she had Timid and Velvet in tears by the end of the story…

…just as the train for Vanhoover pulled into the station. Once it screeched to a complete stop, fresh ponies came pouring out of it, carrying suitcases and adding more chatter into the cluster of babel among the Ponyville station. One of the last few ponies to come out was the conductor himself as he hollered, “All aboard for Vanhoover!!!”

Well, this is it, Pear thought to herself as she got off the bench and adjusted the straps on her saddle bags before turning to the friends she’ve made in a short period of time. She could barely flinch when she saw her newest friends’ happy expressions diminished into those of disappointment and she knew she didn’t have to tell them what happens next. She internally cursing herself for spoiling the moment. But as much as it pained her to say it, she had to stay true to her mission to her family.

A couple moments of silence had passed before it was broken.

“Ah guess Ah shoulda told y’all sooner,” Pear confessed, “but this is where we part ways… for now, at least.”

“For now,” piped Timid suddenly before her downed face turned upward. “You mean-?”

Pear giggled slightly at the expression. “Yes, Timid. We can always come together and hang out more whenever we have the chance. This isn’t goodbye. It’s just-.”

“Goodbye until next time,” Cloudy finished. Before anything else, she walked towards Pear and did yet another unexpected thing: giving her a hug. Pear’s eyes widened at the sudden display of affection, but returned it, nonetheless.

Once the two Earth Ponies parted, Windy and Timid walked up and both leaned in for their own hugs, which Pear recuperated. After Velvet had her turn to hug, Cookie was all that was left. Pear readied herself for hug, only for Cookie to her magic to fish a handful of bits out of her suitcase before levitating them into the farm pony’s hand.

“It’s just a little generous gift to you,” explained Cookie. “A little something needed more for you than for me.”

“Thank you,” Pear thanked as she moved in a hug and was pleased to feel Cookie return it. 

The mares soon pulled apart just in time for Pear to see Bright trotting his way for the train. She quickly joined her husband’s side as they made for the train car. Before she fully entered the car, she looked back to see her five new friends and spared them one last wave goodbye until next time, to which they returned. She climbed into the car and found Bright stationed not far from the car doors. After joining her husband in the empty seat, the train immediately started up again and the perfect pair only managed a small glance of the station before they pulled away completely.

Pear Butter came to the station for a reason: travel to Vanhoover, find her dad, and try to bury the burning hatchet that started on the night of their wedding. When she first sat down onto that bench, she felt both nervous and scared at confronting her father after years of not seeing each other. Then she made her acquaintance with a shy Pegasus, which then set off a gathering of other mares who bonded with her over experiences as both a wife and a mother. Mares who would later have the knowledge of being mothers to Equestria’s greatest heroes in the future. She walked onboard that train feeling more confident in meeting her father again and making amends. 

With her husband by her side and the time spent with the other mares, Pear Butter was standing tall, ready for anything.
> My Little Daddy
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Get a hold of yerself, Bright Mac! This’ gonna work. It just has to! For Buttercup’s sake.

Family can often be a pain for whatever reasons. It can be over some handling over money; it can be over how one member does something that doesn’t sit well with another member or the rest of the family; it could even be over bad blood. Which was something of the third case for Bright McIntosh.

He was never one for holding grudges and carrying a torch of hate for anypony ever in his life. He was always very friendly with everypony he ran into, but he was smart enough to avoid being taken advantage of and be cautious about those who’d be anything but nice. Such an example would include Filthy Rich himself. He held no animosity towards him, but Granny Smith didn’t raise him to let the Riches decide how to do business between the two families. And, of course, despite being so far apart from most of them and having some disagreements over harvest and business, Bright Mac always treated each of his relatives with the utmost love and respect, especially for “his Buttercup.” No family drama has ever plagued his little slice of life.

That is, until he married Pear Butter.

Any interactions between him and Grand Pear was often met with hostility from the latter. He often saw Grand Pear before on occasion while he was working the apple fields and he could see the Pears doing their own chores and responsibilities. But the first time he ever had an up-close-and-personal encounter with the head of the Pear family was that day of the water silo incident. Unwilling to let his future wife take the fall for his mistake, Bright Mac rushed over and let his honesty do the rest. It earned him both one of Buttercup’s lovely smiles and Grand Pear’s scolding for another silo. A second and final interaction between the stallions was the wedding night. When Pear tried to split him and her apart for Vanhoover, Buttercup stood her ground, standing by her new husband’s side rather than leaving with her father. He could only watch in silence as the Pears argued amongst themselves until Grand Pear finally snapped and left Ponyville for good that night.

Since then, Bright Mac harbored responsibility for not doing more that night. He wanted to do more than stand in the wings, but he felt it was respectful of him to let Buttercup fight her own battles. But a day hasn’t gone by when he doesn’t think about reaching out to Grand Pear and hoping to convince the stubborn old colt to drop the bad blood and get with the new blood. Seeing Buttercup cry sorrowful waterfalls on her wedding night was a felony in Bright’s eyes. Heck, seeing her cry sorrow ever was a felony of gargantuan proportions. Felonies that Bright would never let go unpunished, especially when Buttercup showed signs of depression, forcing him into action.

After stacking and saving enough bits, Bright Mac introduced to his darling wife quite possibly the best anniversary gift he would ever give her: two tickets for a train ride all the way to Vanhoover to make amends with Grand Pear. And he was rewarded most affectionately.

Two days later, after packing their essentials, plus extra precautions from his own mother, and saying goodbye to her and their three children, the perfect pair made their way to the Ponyville station for the 2 PM train to Vanhoover, finding the station jampacked with ponies of all kind making their ways in and out. Not surprising since the Summer Sun Celebration in Ponyville was just recent. By some miracle, the two of them were able to finally find an open bench space for them to rest their hooves upon and wait, next to a pale amber Pegasus mare. Some minutes of silence passed before Bright decided to make out the easiest route to Grand Pear’s barn, leaving Pear Butter on her own.

However, it wasn’t the entire truth.

As much as he hated himself for lying to Pear, he really needed to be alone. He did need to figure something out; it just wasn’t a route around Vanhoover, but instead how to approach his father-in-law. He looked behind him for Pear, only to see that he was completely submerged in the ocean of bustling ponies and out of her vision, which he used to get out of the station and work out his plan for Grand. Once squeezing his way out, the cowcolt immediately found himself a small space behind the station that was secluded enough for him to process his thoughts.

He looked around his surrounding to see remnants of the Celebration still in play for other ponies to enjoy. Not far from his current spot, he could even see and hear some kids laughing and chasing each other, which only served to remind the stallion of the times he spent playing around with Big Mac and Applejack before they were old enough to start helping around the farm. Before he could get lost long in his nostalgia, Bright shook his thoughts back into the department of Grand Pear.

He remained in silence as he thought of the ways to approach his father-in-law. Would he call him sir? Dad? Just by his name? How would he break the infinitely thick ice between him and Pear? Would he manage to keep his cool if Grand proved to be rather too stubborn for his own good? All there blaring questions did nothing but frustrate Bright as he banged his head against the wall in rhythm with the word “Danggit.” He banged his head again but didn’t retract as he looked down on the ground with forlorn eyes. He honestly never had much experience of a father-son relationship with his own father since he died in a plowing accident at an age Bright was too young to remember. How could he make peace with a father if he has never spent time with his own?

Whatever he thought, Bright Mac couldn’t turn away from this opportunity. He was doing this for the sake of making peace, but above of all, for Buttercup’s happiness. If everything goes well and ends well, he can-

“Uh, you okay there, buddy?”

Bright Mac’s head straightened and stiffened faster as a Vampire Fruit Bat diving for an apple at the sound of somepony’s voice, his neck going 90 degrees clockwise just as fast. His mind raced with thoughts on how to get himself out of his predicament, in fear of his wife’s reaction. She would clearly be upset for him lying to her and she would demand an explanation. Bright hated to see her upset and was prepared to comfort her and be more honest than he was at first. 

All preemptive alerts were silence when he gazed upon the source of the voice. His body slackened when he saw that it was somepony completely foreign to him. It was instead a Pegasus stallion exactly of his build: strong legs, firm neck, and eyes once so young turned bagged in battles of child-caring with a five o’clock shadow in development. His fur was dimmed into a pale grayish blue in comparison to his creamy-yellow hooves, while his polychromatic mane and tail was fashioned as if he served time in an infantry not long ago, and his flank bared that of a horseshoe marked in front of a rainbow shooting through a cloud. The only article of wardrobe was a small light green shirt that could slip on the stallion effortlessly. Most would feel rather intimated by such a stallion upon initial glance unless they let him get the first word, which Bright did. And his voice revealed to be tired yet warm.

Bright Mac breathed sharply as his heart eased in pace. He was relieved to see that he was confronted by a pony he was completely new to and not the very special somepony he had recently lied to. A few moments more ticked by as his body returned to its normal pace before the foreign stallion questioned again: “Hello? Anypony in there?”

“Oh, who-what?” the farm colt stammered as he shook his head back to the ground. He then blankly looked at the stallion’s puzzled expression before realizing his mistake. “Oh, right. Uh,…Ah’m okay, thanks.”

“You sure? You seemed lost in La La Land a few moments ago.”

“Positive. Ah just had some things in mind. Don’t worry about me.”

Bright was hoping that the polychromatic colt would buy it, but one scan around the colt’s face snuffed that hope out as he only raised an unconvinced eyebrow. He opened his mouth to respond but failed to find the right words to say. Bullets sweated down the honest pony’s fur as he could practically feel the Pegasus’ gaze piercing him straight into the heart. Hoping for a way out, he could only think of two ways out: come clean and tell the Pegasus the truth or lie his-.

His mind halted when he thought of that three-letter L word he hated. To some ponies, it’s just an escape to avoid any uncomfortable situation or spare somepony’s feelings, but to others like Bright, it was just a betrayal of trust and understanding. Heck, he probably risked those two things right when he lied to Buttercup. He could still remember the one time he lied to Granny Smith when he was younger and made a business mistake with the Riches transaction and the scolding he was rewarded with once she found out. From that day on, he always came clean with any problem he had until now.

So he used his trademark.

“Actually, Ah’m rather stressed over some family dynamics,” he confessed. “My wife and Ah are waitin’ for a Vanhoover train to talk to my estranged father-in-law.”

“Oh,” simply replied the Pegasus. Bright could see him practically darting his eyes away as if he pressed on a sore wound, which he sorta did. “I’m sorry; I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable.”

“Nah, it’s fine, Mr. …?” 

“Oh, Bow Hothoof is my name,” self-introduced the Pegasus as he extended his hoof for Bright, to which the farmer accepted. 

“Bright McIntosh,” the farmer copied as the colts shook hooves. “Ya wanted the truth, and one lie is enough for one day in mah life.”

“Ah, you hate lying?”

“One lie eventually leads to a mess, and Ah’ve practically sworn off the concept.”

“Practically?” Bow repeated with mild surprise as they departed hooves. “You lied on occasion?” Upon hearing it, Bright’s yellow fur tinged pink, and his face slightly turned away from Bow as he tilted his head down onto his face to hide its brightening face. He didn’t want to admit it, but Bow clearly asked, evident when he saw Bow intrigued. So he was left no choice but to answer.

“Just twice in mah life,” admitted Bright, “Once in mah childhood when Ah tried to reverse the zap apple jam Ah gave to the Riches by mistake with misplaced cider and just today to get away from mah wife and sort personal things out.”

“Oh. Well, I know this is rather abrupt, but you wouldn’t like to join me and some other colts for a few drinks and some support, would you?”

Bright blinked in surprise once Bow’s offer drilled its way into his brain entirely. He stared at his newest companion with rather quizzical eyes. The offer was sudden undoubtedly, but it was kind regardless. What would it apply though? On one hoof, it wouldn’t be smart to have “a few drinks” with a colt and a couple of his friends when he’s under a half-hour away from leaving for Vanhoover. Buttercup has seen him have more than Bright would admit, but the last thing she would want from him was to be so knocked off his flank on cider while they went to visit her father. Still, on the other hoof, he still had those paternal problems of his to think over, and Bow was willing to give support. He turned back to the station to see the clock read one-thirty-seven PM, just twenty-three minutes before the Vanhoover Express.

He turned back to face Bow’s nervous with his answer: “Ah can stick around for twenty-three minutes till mah train arrives.”

Upon hearing his answer, Bow’s face brightened with a smile as he turned his back on Bright and went on his way, Bright Mac not far behind.

The two stallions trotted in silence as they made their way through the more spacious roads of Ponyville. Ponies were still bustling to and out of the station, but it was only six feet of distance when the crowds split up and became more open for ponies to walk freely without feeling cramped in a small closet or opening in a fence. Fillies and colts were running around, nearly crashing into one of the wandering colts as they made their way towards wherever Bow came from. Bright couldn’t tell exactly, but he could see some Earth Pony colt standing by and watching the rambunctious little ponies scramble around and shouting out safety orders to them. As a father himself, Bright could tell that that colt were parents to those little ones. Seeing it just made Bright sigh in nostalgic forlorn, as it just reminded him of watching over his children when they were younger and how he never experienced that kind of protective talk from his father other than his mother.

Bow heard a sigh from behind and looked back to see Bright dividing his attention between the ground and his direction ahead. He couldn’t help but feel a little perplexed about what was going on with the farm pony. His “family dynamics” aside, what was going on in that stallion’s head that was making him rather difficult to get? Did something happen to affect his family so deep? What wasn’t Bright telling him? He may not know right now, but he hoped that he and his drinking buddies could help soften Bright’s shell.

Speaking of buddies, Bow saw his destination in sight and stopped in his tracks with Bright just a hair away from bumping into his newest friend. The farm pony looked ahead to see what Bow was seeing.

Before his harlequin eyes was one of the least likely places Bright Mac would want to associate himself with in his life: The Ponyville Hole. A public bar in early years, the Hole was once one of the most popular landmarks of the small town of Ponyville known for only serving the finest refreshments in all of Equestria from Canterlot to Fillydelphia, mostly on account of the mysteriously persuasive methods of the owner. Bright only heard of Mr. Watering Hole, the owner of the bar, when Granny Smith reminisced on how her father accepted an irrefusable offer that provided Hole with ten years of cider, an offer that didn’t last long when Watering demanded the cider recipe and cut ties with the Apple family after they caught him trying to sneak off with the recipe itself.

And what a mistake it was. As soon as that deal went south, so did business at the Ponyville Hole. Prices were forced to gradually go down, product shipments were frequently delayed, and Watering was acting up so much that he was deemed “too aggressive” to be running his business anymore, so he left town as he wasn’t gonna “take any more of Mayor Mane’s manure,” leaving the Hole in his apprentice’s hooves.

Bright was honestly surprised to know that some ponies continued to go to the Hole even after all that, especially with how the joint looked at initial glance. The walls were ripped and decaying, with holes in the ceilings that haven’t been patched in Celestia-knows-how-long and the front windows were cracked. The only thing Bright noticed unchanged were the saloon doors as he and Bow made their way inside the bar.

Once inside, Bright was nowhere near surprise to see that the interior was no different than the exterior. It was just as cracked and decayed as outside, it looked as if a bar fight erupted inside. The floorboards were fragile to the point one could bust through them, tables were turned over and broken, and chairs were standing around onto tables or shattered. Atmosphere wasn’t all. Dust had collected all over. Run a hoof over anything that bar and one couldn’t see their natural color under months to probably years’ worth of dust. Cobwebs were quilted into high into the supports and low into the unused chairs. One can even smell the noticeable smudges and spills found across the bar as much as they can feel them either dried or fresh. The only thing that seemed to really sparkle and stay that way 24/7 out of the bar was the bar itself, as Watering Joe, the owner/bartender, is constantly cleaning and wiping it down, while he is rumored to only clean the bar entirely once a year.

How ponies still come here I’ll never understand, Bright exclaimed to himself as he scanned the bar again for occupants. He found Including himself, Bow, and Joe, he counted eleven ponies in the bar: two colts kissing it off in the far left corner, a down-on-her-luck mare chugging her sorrows down on probably her seventh mug, a unicorn stallion playing darts to the right without his magic, and four occupants sitting up front as Joe obsessively polished the bar yet again. Bright wiped away sweat off his head since the interior wasn’t greatly air conditioned before following Bow up to the bar.

As they moved up, the honest farmer looked to see the four gentlecolts thoroughly. From left to right were a Unicorn, an Earth Pony, a second Unicorn, and a Pegasus. The first Unicorn, baring a mark of a football thrice, was coated in light gray in contrast to his dark brown mane and brilliant cerulean eyes and was built in the same strong and firm body as Bright and Bow themselves. The Earth Pony was gift-wrapped in quite possibly the dimmest colors imagined to match his pilgrim hat and tie collar, his amber eyes and coat colorized from brilliant to moderate, his gray mane and sideburns fused from light and medium, and his single pickax cutie mark and his dry, stoic face acting as the bow on top. Coated in azure, the second Unicorn was sporting two waning crescent moons, a big yellow moon and a smaller white one, as his amber eyes were the brightest trait about him in comparison with his dark phthalo mane. And lastly was the Pegasus, recoiling slightly behind his pale grayish malachite green-coated wings and barely covering his grayish turquoise eyes and with his curled light-amaranthish-gray cloud-like mane while marked with three clouds. And they were all looking at him and Bow.

“I’m back, guys,” Bow announced to the quartet of bar occupants, “with a friend.”

Bright felt his face burning up at the sudden attention directed to him. He looked around and saw the colts’ expressions directed to him. Both Unicorns looked rather pleasant enough, not having much an issue to have him around. The Pegasus was still recoiling in his chair, as if his mere presence were frightening. Finally, the Earth Pony still held onto his rock-hard face, no other emotion than stoicism present on his features. Standing stiff for some seconds, Bright freed his immobilized hoof and greeted them with a simple wave.

“Howdy, everypony,” he greeted, his confidence slowly coming back to him. “Ah’m Bright McIntosh of the Apple Family.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” responded the bigger Unicorn as he extended his hoof, which Bright accepted. “Name’s Hondo Flanks.” 

Once Bright and Hondo released themselves, the former turned to the faceless pony himself. He’d be lying (again) if he’d said this colt scared him. The colt just had a blank, pale, emotionless face, with only his amber eyes the brightest feature. He simply cringed a smile for show.

“It is pleasant to meet another pony in the farming business, as one myself,” dryly stated the Earth Pony. “Only mine farms rocks instead of fruit. Mister Igneous Rock Pie in your presence.”

After explaining his profession to him, Bright felt somewhat more comfortable around the other Earth Pony as somepony he could relate to. Heck, farming is a profession taken on by most Earth Ponies, so it wasn’t so surprising. “Ah, it’s nice to see somepony who understands the fine labor of farming,” Bright chuckled slightly as the two colts take each other’s hooves.

Next on the greeting list was the second Unicorn who went right for the shake, grabbing Bright’s hoof and shaking it rather vibrantly. “My name’s Night Light and it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Likewise,” replied the still-shaken farmer after Night released his hoof, trying to stabilize his body. Lastly was the second Pegasus himself who was now itching away in his chair as Bright turned to face him. He could tell that he was going to have to break the ice with this final colt, so he did with: “Um, you okay there, sir?”

He could only watch as the Pegasus opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came through. The farmer pony stood there in wait for something to happen, biding his time by looking around the other colts, seeing if they were going to say or do something. Instead, he was met with their waiting faces while Bow had a big, toothy grin plastered on. Bright could only wait as the Pegasus finally mustered the courage to speak loud and clear.

“I’m Fluffy Breeze,” the Pegasus introduced himself with a timid smile as he shakily followed the others’ gesture and breathed deep as Bright shortly accepted it with his own smile.

“So, where did you come from, Bright,” questioned Night as he turned back to face the bar. Bright looked around and found an empty seat between Igneous’ and the one Bow has recently taken. He waited for his newest friend to be situated before taking the empty chair for himself. Once that was over, he turned to answer Night’s question. Before he could talk, however, Bow beat him to the punch.

“I found him in front of the train station. He was beating himself up over… ,” explained the polychromic Pegasus before he trailed off once he looked to see Bright’s downcasted expression. Glancing up with a small blush, he refused to continue with his explanation with the truth. “Anyway, I stumbled upon and offered him to come here and think about those problems over a few drinks.”

“That so?” questioned a melancholy deadpan voice in front of the colts. Bright shot up to see Hole’s apprentice Joe standing behind the counter in front of him with a disheveled face of dead eyes and non-shaven face. “Well then, how would you like a Manehattan?”

“Uh, no thanks, Joe,” Bright quickly denied with a panicked edge in his tone. He looked to see Bow and his posse staring with surprised faces before turning back to Joe who kept on to his deadpan. Fighting back against his blush, Bright spoke again with a weak smile: “Ah mean, Ah’ll just take mah family cider if y’all still have it.”

Not saying a word, Joe went or work. He grabbed a glass mug underneath the counter and made for the barrel barely marked with the Apple crest, mostly due to ages. The bartender held the glass underneath the valve, pulled the switch down, and held onto it until the glass was filled to the brim of overflowing. Placing it down, Joe grabbed a small scraper from a drawer with his teeth and used it to scrap the foam of the mug into the sink. Finally, the cider was brought before Bright Mac who had exchanged three bits for it, which Joe systemically accepted before walking off.

After looking around at his cohorts for some moments, Bright then took a small swig of his drink, smacking his lips slightly for the aftertaste. His face morphed into a slight cringe at the taste of the aged cider.

“Not that good?” questioned Hondo.

Bright turned to the white Unicorn with an answer of disgruntlement. “Not completely terrible, but Ah’ve honestly tasted cider better aged than this.”

“Complained the farmer who sells apple products,” mused Igneous, a muse that earned a round of chuckles and laughs from the colts while Bright looked at the Pie with a playfully unamused smirk and chuckle.

“Well, now that we’re all covered,” Bright gestured to all of them, mug in hoof, “what do ya gentlecolts want ta talk about?” He looked to his sides at all five colts who exchanged wonderment, waiting for somepony to suggest a subject for discussion. Eventually, one came of interest.

“On the subject of apples,” Hondo brought up, “I’ve been in Ponyville all my life and I’ve wondered what life is like up there?”

“Oh,” simply mustered the farm pony. A small silent stretch passed over the colts before Bright finally found something to say. “Well, it’s just a simple farmer’s life, ya know. We buck trees for apples, we make treats and cider out of them all four seasons around, we make a living out of them, we start over all year around. It’s not much of a complicated life.”

“Really, that’s it?”

“Pretty much, yeah.”

“So, no drama? No tensions? No nothing?”

“Nnnope,” replied Bright in a manner that will be taken up by his eldest child years later. “First thing y’all need to know ‘bout me is that Ah’m honest. So when Ah say what Ah say, Ah tell the Celestia-dang truth.”

Moving at blink-and-miss speed, Night Light clutched Bright’s face in his glistering glitter of pale cornflower. Before Bright could free himself, he was brought up close and personal towards Night, who had a concrete concentration within his eyes. He scanned the much larger stallion for any deceptive detail, his eyes darting faster as a parasprite, while Bright merely stood still in total discomfort as his space was disregarded without a care.

Finally after what felt like minutes, Night released Bright and turned to the others with a smile while somehow failing to notice their uncomfortable expressions for his most recent act. “He’s telling the truth.”

Doing his dangest to brush off what just happened, McIntosh violently shook his head back straight before speaking: “So um, anything else?”

“Unless you know how to mentally prepare yourself for the arrival of another foal in nine months,” offered the unenthusiastic Hondo as he took a big swig of his mug before talking again, “not much else to talk about.”

Bright looked at the Unicorn with some concern. “You don’t sound excited for it.”

“Oh no, I am. It just wasn’t planned. Raising one little filly was work enough, but now with a second coming, I’m not sure if I can keep up.” After airing his fears, the Unicorn hung his head low in uncertainty.

Upon hearing his concerns, the other five colts looked around each other for any of them to say anything regarding this matter. Being a father is one of the greatest achievements in a colt’s life, but it does undoubtingly have its downsides as many of its upsides. It’d take a strong, strong stallion to bear the pressure and responsibilities of caring for just a foal; an even stronger stallion to care for more than one. The five colts continued exchanging looks until Igneous got out of his chair and calmly walked over to Hondo who looked up to face the emotionless colt. Without speaking one word, he placed one hoof onto Hondo’s shoulder and finally broke the silence.

“From an experienced father of four,” he explained to the ill-confident stallion, “I’ll assure you that it’s no cakewalk at all, but it’s all worth it in the end. More children means the more of a legacy you’ll leave behind when you’re gone. You’ll be teaching them everything you know to make it through life. And you’ll love them both as much as you love your own wife. It is scary at first, but it isworth it. You can either brush it off and run away or be a stallion and stand by your family. Whatever you do is your call, but it will hugely impact your family.”

Hondo looked down again, but this time in thought upon Igneous’ words as he continued. They radiated within his head as he took the full meaning behind them. He never considered the role of a father being of such magnitude until now.

“You even need to be patient with them. They may not understand most of the things you do when they get older, such as grounding them, making them do work, or feeding wisdom to them. With time and being pushed in the right direction, they’ll come around and appreciate all that you’ve done for them, no matter what.”

With that, Igneous waited in patient for his words to fully sink into his Unicorn whose face now conveyed more confidence than it did before.

“I never really thought of it that way,” admitted the bigger Unicorn. “I just thought being a father was mandatory in life.”

“Being a father means way more than you think,” Night confirmed. “It’s more than a responsibility; it’s a gift. We are given the chance to be something more for those ponies we leave behind, just Igneous’ daughters or my son and daughter.”

“Or my own children,” Fluffy quietly yet confidently added.

“Or my own awesome daughter,” chimed in Bow with a raised hoof and proudful grin.

Hondo watched on with a smile. All of his friends gave their utmost confidence to him and his abilities as a father, using their own children as examples of what it really means to be a father. Minus one. Everypony waited, a tender silence hovering between them, in anticipation for Bright Mac to say something that would support Hondo, but nothing came with the recent addition to their pack. The silence stretched enough for them to get curious and turn heads to see Bright mimicking Hondo’s previous forlorn, deep in thought on something.

The silence stretched on until it was finally broken by the quietest colt among the sextet.

“Is there something wrong, Bright McIntosh?” questioned Fluffy as he looked at the farm pony with some discomfort in his eyes, hoping not to have gone far. Bright looked at Fluffy with some distraught of his own, a blush forming onto his cheeks for being jolted out of his near-vegetated state. 

“Oh, dear,” gasped Fluffy as he held his his mouth in hoof, “I am so sorry for asking.”

“No, ya were just curious,” Bright quickly assured the fragile Pegasus, “It’s nopony’s fault, but…” He looked around to see the other colts, minus Bow, looking with equal curiosity. He didn’t want to ruin whatever pleasant moment the colts were enjoying before his addition, but now they were rapt with attention towards him. And they were in mood for an answer. Any other option out of his unwanted attention would be ineffective. Well, all except for… 

No, not a chance in Tartarus! Lying was definitely out the window. Bright cursed himself for even considering the concept, even after doing so himself towards his own wife. Why was lying dominating his mind so much today? Is he trying to avoid something, or is he scared to face the hard reality of something? Whatever the reason, his most recent friends wanted an answer. And he’d kept them waiting long enough.

Sighing in submission, he finally spoke.

“Well…,” he started before biting his lips. 

Bullets began pouring down his face as his inability to come clean became overbearing. That is, until he looked at Bow who offered the encouraging smirk and nod Bright needed. “The truth is that mah wife and Ah are bound for Vanhoover to visit mah estranged father-in-law, but after hearing Hondo talk about his problems and Igneous giving him new insight on being a father, Ah’m just nervous to meet him again. He left his own daughter behind ‘cause she chose me over her family. Can any of y’all imagine another father just upping and leaving his own foal behind for something rather stupid?” 

He waited in rhetorical anticipation for any of the other colts to say something empathic, something even remotely familiar to what Grand Pear did that night. Their faces, however, were all the answer he needed. They all conveyed expressions of shock, sadness, and lack of thought on his question. Even Igneous was able to convey an emotion rather than deadpan. Another second passed before Bright continued: “Exactly what Ah’d thought. Ah don’t know what the Tartarus Ah’m doing asking y’all such a stupid question. Heck, Ah don’t know why Ah’m judging my pa-in-law! Ah haven’t had experience with fathers since mine died in a plowing accident when Ah was too young. Ah’ve pretty much learned anything paternal from both Grand Pear and on the job!”

“‘On the job?’” Night repeated after a small sip, too intent on Bright’s tirade. “So you’re a father yourself?”

“Of a son and two daughters,” answered Bright. “They’ve each taken after me and mah Buttercup. And they’re as hardworking and stubborn as us.” He then chuckled to himself as the thought of his children taking up much of his traits as their mother. His joyous smile died down shortly afterwards, however, when his demons came back to his mind. “But Ah don’t know what ta do with Grand Pear. Ah want everyone ta be happy in the end; Ah just don’t know how.”

Bow looked as his latest friend stared down at his drink with forlorn. He couldn’t sympathize with Bright’s situation. Heck, none of the colts surrounding the farm pony could. The Summer Sun Celebration was known for bringing different types of ponies from different parts of Equestria together in the most obscure means conceivable, whether any of those ponies like it or not. Such was the case for Bow when he first entered the Hole. He wasn’t expecting to meet up with any of his new colt friends as he bought a few drinks before preparing to leave until he met with Night Light and bonded with the Unicorn over paternal struggles and benefits. Shortly after came Igneous and Hondo who were respectively “passing the time” and “wanting to taste-test the finest beverage the Hole had.” Fluffy joined them with the short-lived fear of being surrounded with strangers after they reassured him.

In the time that passed before he brought Bright along, they had already shared their stories of their lives as fathers and their rewards. Fluffy was blessed with a daughter currently at Cloudsdale’s Summer Flight Camp and a younger son still too young to walk on his own legs. Hondo and his wife were expecting a second filly for their first daughter, who had a knack for fashion-making. Igneous kept his rock farm afloat with the great aid of his wife and four different daughters, the second youngest a stark pink in contrast to her grayer sisters. Night Light was currently supporting a family of three that consisted of his wife, his older son, and his younger daughter. And Bow himself was proud to proclaim his adoration of his own daughter who was also at Flight Camp, much to the brief discomfort of the other patrons in the bar. And they all had their own fathers to thank for how they turned out. And now there was this farm colt who too was a dad himself but deemed himself rather unworthy due to his lack of a dad himself. 

Bow expressed a cringe for his self-loathing when he eyed Bright holding onto his negativity, forlornly chugging down his drink. The rest looked on in concern while desperately directing glares at each other just waiting for one of them to say anything. There had to have been something that Bow could say to make Bright feel confident with himself. What could the prideful Pegasus tell the honest farmer? 

With a deep sigh and a lack of plan, Bow winged it: “Well, Bright, I’m not sure if this can help, but you should go to Vanhoover feeling confident with yourself as a father.”

McIntosh aimed quizzical daggers towards Bow. “How?” he simply asked.

“F-f-for starters,” explained Bow, a stammer of uncertainty in his voice as he spoke, “I think that, father or otherwise, you’d still end up the same stallion today. I mean, in just the fast twelve minutes you met us, you told us how you’ve been busting your rump 2-2-24/7 to keep your family alive and healthy enough after you and your wife are gone. A father’s first duty should always be to his family first and f-f-foremost.” 

He looked at Bright who merely stared at Bow with some confusion. Seeing this made Bow froze in his place before he thought of something else to say. A few tense seconds passed before he broke out and continued with his statement. “Do you think that up until your wedding, Grand Pear was, in any way, a bad father to your wife?”

Bright stared straight at Bow with an expression of shocked realization. It was at that moment the honest farm colt himself developed an epiphany, as if he finally noticed something that was in the clear blue and he was completely oblivious to it. He thought back to all of the interactions he had seen between his wife and Grand Pear. Other than a few tense moments between them, none of them ended with either of them saying “I hate you” or any of the sort. Grand Pear was always fair to his daughter and treated her like she was just her age. They simply had a simple father-daughter relationship until the wedding night.

Once completely analyzing the data, he turned to Bow with his answer: “Nnnope.”

“Then I think you have nothing to worry,” assured the bigger Pegasus. “If anything, he’s probably regretting it up to this point. Any father who regrets his mistakes can’t be that bad, can they? A real father must be generous, kind, honest, loyal, a colt for good laughs, and, above all, magical in good spirits. He must put his family’s thoughts and concerns before his own. He must be hardworking, strong, and compassionate for them. He must be the best self he can be. You and your father-in-law, differences aside, in my opinion, fit that bill to a T. And if nopony can smell those qualifications surrounding a father, then who needs those guys? Do you understand?”

Bright’s ears were up and focused solely on what Bow was telling him. He registered those words to their fullest consent and heeded their gravity. Anypony would easily tell the differences between a good father and a bad father solely on how their children were raised. If Grand Pear were a bad father, Pear Butter would’ve be either miserable or worse than he’d had been. And instead, he was just stuck holding onto a pointless grudge with the Apples. And he was luckily nothing short of a hardworking colt who knew the value of responsibility and business. And half of those traits were passed onto Pear Butter.

His Buttercup turned out to be an amazing mare with a heart of platinum strong enough to support her family to the end of her life. She was compassionate to accept any help that comes her way, she didn’t take manure from anypony who would take advantage of her heart, she was modest enough to admit her own mistakes and shortcomings, and she didn’t care if she fell in love with a colt whom her father considered not right for her. She was patient, considerate, responsible, and, the best of them all, a mare who goes out of her way to put others’ needs before her own. There was no other mare that could compete against Buttercup’s beauty, inside and out. So if any father was good enough to raise a mare of Pear’s persona 

With that in mind, the Earth Pony finally looked at the concern-looking Bow with a sincere smile that showed how much he considered the Pegasus’ statement.

“I do understand,” confirmed the honest father.

Upon hearing his answer, Bow’s concern was instantly replaced with satisfaction at Bright’s newfound perspective on life. Adding to the success more was the collective clopping surrounding the two stallions. McIntosh looked around to see the rest of their posse clopping their hooves together for the moment shared amongst them. The attention and praise directed towards him made Bright mildly blush in embarrassment for something so trivial, but it was comforting, nonetheless. Just for laughs, he took his hat into his right hoof and placed it over his chest as he took a small bow and extended his left foreleg out into the open, much to the other colts’ amusement.

The applauses finally died as Bright readjusted himself onto his chair and set his stetson back onto his red mane. But before he could fully be comfortable in his chair, he heard the creaking of leather on his right. He looked to see Night Light standing straight in his chair and raising his mug of cider in hoof. Why he was doing it he was ready to ask until Night’s next words rang true.

“Gentlecolts,” he proposed as he moved his head side-to-side to face all of his friends, “I propose a toast… to the gift of being a father, the joys of raising our children of the next generation-.”

“And the wisdom we pass down to them,” finished a rather bold Fluffy with his own raised beverage. His green face turned into a deep red when he saw Night’s surprised expression. The shy Pegasus was rather worried that he was rude for interrupting his friend. Luckily, his fear diminished when Night’s face morphed into that of appeasement, clearly showing some pride for Breeze to have finally cut loose out of his shell. Seeing this made Fluffy’s grimace break into a small smile.

During that moment, the other colts rose up from their seats and held their own mugs and drinks high in equal elevation with Night’s mug. With a clink and cheer, they celebrated their happiness.

The fathers of Equestria’s future heroes spent what was left of Bright’s time in Ponyville sharing various stories involving themselves and their time with their children. Igneous shared the tale of how he and his wife left the barn in the hooves of their eldest daughter while they made a quick run for more picks to replace their broken ones, and when they returned, they found it to be in chaos and now under the “rule” of their two youngest. Fluffy’s tale of how he found his daughter hiding under the carpet after breaking one of his newest lamp by accident when she was six while he was out rather too adorable for him to finish. Night Light remembered the one time where his daughter built a book fortress across the entrance to the kitchen and refused to let her brother pass until he gave the password. Even Hothoof himself shared with the colts all of the “momentous” achievements his own daughter was able to do as she grew older from simply speaking her first words to learning to fly.

Outside their exploits as fathers, they even reminisced on stories depicting them and their own fathers. Hondo was always very fond of the Buckball and Football games his father took him to when he was just a young colt, the star athletes he met, and the autographs he received from those athletes. A tour guide for visitors to the Cloudsdale Weather Factory, Fluffy’s father often let him stay with the ponies stationed with cloud sorting where, amazingly one day, he had gotten his cutie mark for his impeccable sorting and identification. Bow’s dad, like his own son, was a stallion who often praised, even the most minute, every good thing that’s ever happened in Hothoof’s life, such as towel hanging, being the first to finish his dinner meal, and proposing to his wife, regardless of what other ponies thought of it. Night Light’s father was a colt who was often stuck in the past, reminiscing on historical figures and events, while, in stark contrast, he was more of a future pony, looking ahead instead of behind, but they always were available for each other in the present. Courtesy of Granny Smith, even Bright Mac, despite his limited time, was able to speak positively about his own father, stating that his was just as hardworking as he is now (the most hardworking of his entire family in his time), had an amazing charm to him which helped him attract the younger Granny, and, apparently running in his family, was just as honest.

Eventually, the time for Bright to leave for Vanhoover has dawned onto the farm pony. While disappointed to just leave his new friends so soon, Bright had a responsibility to be there for his wife when they talked to Grand Pear. After paying for his cider, he said his prolonged goodbyes to each of the colts, promising them that they would meet again before he finally exited the Watering Hole back for the Ponyville Train Station.

Once making it back through the ocean of new ponies from the train, Bright Mac made his way straightforward to the train. On the trot, he smiled at the sight of his wife trotting her way towards him, a smile that he has always loved to see on her face. As he climbed aboard the car, he turned to his side and caught sight of Buttercup sparing a wave goodbye to quintet of mares, including the pale amber Pegasus mare, who happily returned the gesture. He made his way down the car until he found an empty seat in the second booth to the left. As soon as he situated himself into his booth, Pear Butter came trotting in and soon taken the spot next to him. The train doors then shut themselves and the car pulled forward until the chugging of wheels engulfed the air. The perfect pair managed a small glance of the station before they pulled away completely.

Bright McIntosh watched his wife resting her head onto his shoulder as his mind drifted to personal matters. He entered the Station with hopes to reconcile with his estranged in-law and fears of being seen as a bad father. He lied his way out of his wife to hopefully make sense of his situation before hitting a big rock with no hope of escape. That is, until salvation came in the form of a quintet of colts who were like him: ponies unaware of their daughters’ futures as heroes of Equestria, but most importantly, a father. While their time was short, it was worth it, as they gave him a newfound sense of being a father and reminded him that a stallion’s family must come before himself. From that point on, he was determined to always put what’s best for his family before anything else. He also promised himself to tell Buttercup the truth of what he was really doing.

As he looked out the window, watching the landscape rush by, he felt a surge of confidence within him that made him feel strong, responsible, and caring; the best traits of more than just a hardworking pony like him and Buttercup.

A parent.
> Epilogue
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rain.

Why does it rain?

Why does it rain, some ponies will often ask. 

The answer has often been debated for Celestia knows how long. Some ponies refused to look beyond the simple reason that it is simply because of the Pegasus weather factory making the rain clouds whenever it is called for. Do a rough estimate and one might end up with a typical half-half scenario. One half may simply think it is just part of the circle of life for the plant life across Equestria; the other half may think of it to symbolize their mood whenever they feel sadness and sorrow.

The latter of which was the settlement across Sweet Apple Acres.

A dark cloud has been casted over its occupants, both young and old, as fate dealt them a tragic hand. Wherever across the acres, be it the miles upon miles of trees stretching beyond the sunset, the little coops and homes to the livestock living amongst the ponies, the Carrot farm just next door, or even the barn itself, the atmosphere was but depressing with no light in sight at the end. Ponies have gathered across Equestria for such an occasion to honor the memories shared, to remember the impact upon their lives.

To mourn very beloved souls.

Bright McIntosh and Pear “Buttercup” Butter.

Four days ago, immediately after their departure from the Ponyville Train Station to Vanhoover, the perfect pair savored the warmth they always enjoyed for whatever time they had left. They both needed a moment to just sit back and let their worries go and not drag them down for the full ride to Vanhoover. They were quiet towards each other for the first seven minutes until Bright Mac asked for Pear's attention. 

She offered him her full attention and waited in anticipation for what her husband had to tell him. Bright was sweating waterfalls when he finally developed the nerve to talk. He warned her not to label him for the rest of his life for just the one-time thing before he finally confessed that he lied. He lied to her back at the train station. But he told her that he wanted to figure out how to approach her father after so many years apart. And he did so with the help of a quintet of fathers like him. 

After pouring his guilt-ridden heart out in front of his wife, he waited in fear for her to be judgmental and hurt for his deception. Seeing her upset over something, even something that he himself had done, was a felony of the highest order in his eyes.

But instead of pain, he only found amusement on her face as she soon burst into a small giggle fit. The confused farm colt waited for his wife to settle down and explain her mirth. Once she finally did, she solely explained that she knew. Upon hearing this, Bright’s face matched his mane’s color as his eyes became saucer-wide, to which his wife only found too adorable. She explained that he was all twitching and sweating and stammering, signs that only a great fool would fail to recognize as signs of a liar.

Even after that, Bright Mac was still shameful for lying to the most important pony in his life for something that he could’ve talked over with her. Luckily, the Pear was able to sympathize with her favorite Apple, It was then she told Bright about her own fears of seeing her father again, thinking that he would be cold and uncaring towards her for her choosing the Apples over the Pears. She even explained how she had her own quintet of mothers that reminded her to remain strong and never stop loving Grand Pear, even if he had stopped.

After convincing her husband that it was all right, Buttercup was rewarded with a passionate kiss that left them both in an ocean of passionate euphoria for a couple more precious moments. Once they pulled away to savor their blissful faces, fate struck.

Their train became yet victim of an unfortunate locomotion accident. The lead pilot car collided headstrong into a fallen hard tree and a horrible mess of metal and fallen branches littered the land.

Once the dust settled, Bright and Buttercup were finally able to escape their turnover car alongside the other occupants. And what they found upon stepping out horrified them. The entirety of the Friendship Express was but a shamble of cars either turned over or sideswiped into trees of the Everfree Forest. Their car was at the very bottom of a piling of two more cars and the luggage hauler itself just balancing on top. One car skidded its way deep into the ground, deep muddy scars riding up to a fallen tree straight into the darkness beyond the trees. More cars were either on their side or just horizontal against the tracks, blocking the rails. From where the pair of farmers stood, they could only count eight other ponies.

What they had just walked away from was a stunt one would only see in the movies. Special effect artists would make it more believable with screeching sparks and puffs of dust and dirt as the train derailed, the cars would only have shattered windows and small dents and scratches that could easily be buffed out, and the lead train car would have taken the least punishment due to its front guard. All of that was total fiction, and reality has exceeded those falsities. The cars were mangled and wrecked beyond simple repair, wheels were ripped off the cars, and the lead train was torn clean off its front guard and crossed over the blocking tree yet was still staring down at the survivors of its derailment.

The remaining ponies were shaken, yet fortunately alive. From where they stood, they were over a half-hour outside of Ponyville, a manageable walk for most of them. A vote was taken, and the survivors agreed to make the trip back instead of waiting for somepony to get them. Bright and Pear refused to go with the others and volunteered to search for survivors among the wreckage.

Nearly eight minutes passed until Bright and Pear found and rescued the last ponies to survive the crash and told them to venture out of the Everfree Forest. Now it was just them. Alone. In the forest. They sat down in silent exhaust for their amateur rescue missions, waiting to catch their breaths in the midst of buzzing and squeaking insects. They could see the last mare they rescue escape their vision as she continued down the squished grass done by the previous ponies. More silent seconds passed until their breaths normalized, and they decided to be on their own as-.

But before they could even move a foreleg, a sound shattered their peaceful, yet traumatized scenery. A sound so haunting; so primitive; so vicious. It resonated across the forest, leaving the perfect pair stiff where they stood. They directed their attention towards the tight deep woods in front of them, waiting for the source of the growl to present itself to them. They could feel their heartbeats accelerate as the seconds passed, scanning for anything. That is, until a rancid smell burnt their nose hairs, and their eyes shrank to pupils.

Their hearts exploded in fear as the tight brushes exploded with Timberwolves!

Their senses overwhelmed with fear, they made a swift 180 and sprinted hard to the other side of the railroad. As they pushed their way pass the shrubbery, the echoes of their galloping hooves and their predators’ scraping claws as they dashed behind them in horrifying speed. They couldn’t believe their situation. They had heard of the ebony canines from Granny Smith’s stories and during Zap Apple Season, but never have they envisioned themselves to be hunted by such creatures. No matter how far they ran, how much they ran, how deep they ran, the nauseating smell of the wolves was hooked onto their noses, warning them that they are not far behind them as they hoped. Even when the farm ponies used a low hanging branch to their advantage, pulling it back and letting go to shatter the dogs, the Timberwolves didn’t stop in their pursuit.

Eventually, it had to end. And it did when the ponies were found caught at the center of a circle of the viciously growling dogs ready to feast. They did nothing as their paralyzing fear kept them still. Their fate was apparent. No way out. No means of escape. Nothing they could think of would have ended with them alive or in one piece. Even Bright cursed himself for failing to pack his rope. This was it. This was the end. Timberwolves mocked the frightened pair as they merely circled around them, savoring the smell of the fear as they engulfed the ponies' noses with their rancidness. There was nothing left for the fear-stricken and tear-streaked Bright McIntosh and Pear “Buttercup” Butter to do except to profess their love one last time, embrace each other, and accept fate.

When a rescue team of Wonderbolts were informed of the situation, they flew overhead of Everfree in search of the wrecked Friendship Express and the “pair of farm ponies who saved the rest of the passengers,” described one of the survivors. They traced the scraped ground of Timberwolf claws deep into the forest once they descended. They went deeper and deeper into the woods until finally they found an unholy sight of ravaged corpses. They were covered in claw marks, their blood dried and in a puddle onto the dark grass, limbs bitten off without precision, and the ponies were holding each other with a vice’s grip. Once they identified and reported the bodies to the Apple Family and Ponyville, the news shattered everyone to the core.

Gathering in Sweet Apple Acres were the ponies closest to the two in their entire lives. Apples all over Equestria had dropped everything and went through Tartarus and back to be at Sweet Apple Acres for Granny Smith and grandkids. Among the relatives were Auntie Applesauce, Braeburn, Goldie Delicious, and Apple Rose, while mourning friends include Burnt Oak, Chiffon Cake with her new husband Carrot, Mayor Mare, and, much to everypony’s surprise, five couples who introduced themselves as ponies who have just met Bright and Pear before they left on the train. Granny Smith was honestly unsure of whether she was surprised and angry or not to not find Grand Pear in sight at all, considering that her children never got to see him. But yet, even if and when the news reached Vanhoover, she figured the “prickly, old Pear” would be too stubborn to even come back and make up for what he’s done. Either way, it was too late for him to make peace with his daughter in person.

Rain continued to pelt down as the dropping of the casket came, dropping onto the faces of multiple ponies, doubling as tears for the sobbing masses. Deep in the ocean of apple trees at the future site of a cross of an apple and pear tree, the mourners either sobbed in grief or stared in silent sorrow as the casket containing the collective remains of Bright McIntosh and Pear Butter was slowly lowered into the deep hole dug up for it. Even more sobs escaped the mourning Apples and friends as the dirt was brought back down into the hole, sealing the perfect pair’s final mortal remains six feet under till time does them dust.

Granny Smith, her grandchildren, her relatives, and friends she considered family remained in silent sorrow for the ceremony’s remaining time as they grieve over a great loss. That day, they didn’t just lose two friends; they didn’t just lose two hardworking ponies; they didn’t just lose two ordinary ponies at all. They just lost two very great friends, two extraordinary examples of hardworking ponies that keep Equestria round or alive, and two amazing parents that left behind a legacy of three ponies who will pass down their unfathomable traits and love and continue on their legacy for generations to come.

From now on, the grief-filled Apple family would walk by and see the tombstone read:




  In Loving Memory



  of



  Bright McIntosh and Buttercup



  of the Apples



  R.I.P.



  Loving Father and Mother



  Magical Friends



  The Perfect Pear