The Tree on Top of the Hill
One Summer’s Day...
It was a beautiful summer’s day in the magical land of Equestria; the sun was steadily climbing to its peak, and the great blue skies were marked only by stray puffs of cloud, as well as the occasional pegasus shepherding them.
In the middle of a lush green park in the sleepy little village of Ponyville, four ponies were gathered around a spread picnic blanket, while a fifth hovered impatiently above them.
“Gah! What’s taking Applejack so long?” Rainbow Dash whined, checking her wrist to see the time, despite the fact that she wasn’t wearing a watch.
Rarity waved a hoof dismissively at her flying friend while she combed her expertly coiffed mane. “Oh please darling, it took you, what was it? Over an hour? Yes, it took you over an hour for Fluttershy here to get you out of bed.” Fluttershy blushed a shade of pink not dissimilar to the colour of her mane.
“Oh, it’s okay Rarity. It was my fault, for being so quiet, um, I’m sure that Dash would have gotten up just fine on her own. I think.” Fluttershy said, before retreating back behind her mane again.
Pinkie Pie looked up from her staring contest with her toothless pet alligator Gummy and giggled. “Hey, Dashie was busy practising her awesomely fantastical stunts all day yesterday! She needs her beddy-byes if she’s gonna be a Wonderbolt!” Pinkie beamed a cheesy grin before looking back down at Gummy. “Aw, I lost again.”
“See Rarity? And besides, it’s not like I take a thousand years making sure I look fabulous~” Rainbow spoke the last word with a mocking Canterlotian accent. “That’s a bit uh... ironic, dontcha think?”
Twilight Sparkle’s pedanticism kicked in at that exact moment, and she looked up from her book. “Hypocritical, actually.”
“Yeah whatever, egghead.”
The purple alicorn ignored the jibe, instead choosing to look out towards the rolling hills of the Sweet Apple Acres orchards. “Dash does have a point though; shouldn’t Applejack be here by now? It’s not like her to leave her friends waiting...” Her features furrowed into a soft frown.
“Well, um, maybe we should just wait for her? I mean... if that’s okay with you...” Fluttershy squeaked when Dash turned to glare at her, but stopped when Rarity put a comforting hoof on her shoulder. “Thank you Rarity. Anyway, I’m sure she’ll be along soon.”
Rainbow Dash snorted. “Yeah, but waiting is boring. I’ll just go and get her off her lazy rump, it’ll only take a second. Smell ya later!”
“Dash, wait--”
Too late, Rainbow was already off like a rocket, leaving only a rainbow contrail that pointed in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres.
Twilight groaned. “Hang on girls, I’ll follow her and make sure she doesn’t do anything rash...” She trailed off when her words were met with skeptical eyebrows. “...okay, fine, I’m curious too. Besides, it’ll be good to stretch the old wings for a bit!”
And with that, Twilight unfurled her broad wings and, with the unsteady flaps of a newborn, flew off after her friend.
****
BANG BANG BANG
“Applejack? Applejack!”
Rainbow Dash banged on the door to the farmhouse again, this time while shouting her friend’s name. No answer. Rainbow growled in frustration.
Thinking quickly, the pegasus flew up to the second storey window and rapped on it with an impatient hoof. Once again, no answer. Rainbow ground her teeth, then moved to the next window and did the same. And to the one after that. And the one after that.
When she tapped the last window, a frazzled and very tired-looking Granny Smith pushed it open. Rainbow sighed. Finally, she was getting somewhere!
“Hey Granny, have you seen--” She began.
“Clear off, ya varmint! Go on, git!”
The ancient, wrinkly mare walloped the prismatic pegasus over the head with a weathered walking stick, hurling barely-decipherable curses as she did so, and sent her crashing to the ground. By the time Rainbow Dash registered whatever had just happened, the window had clattered shut with a last cry of “Goshdarned thievin’ pegasi. Vandals, the whole lotta ya!”
By this point, the headstrong mare was weighing the pros and cons of breaking and entering, before Big Macintosh arrived on the scene.
“Oh, hey Mac!” Rainbow glided over to the hulking stallion.
Big Mac just nodded his head at her in acknowledgement, then continued to walk towards the house.
“Uh, have you seen Applejack around?”
Big Mac kept trotting, in that lumbering way of his. “Eeyup.”
Mac’s slow thoughtful demeanour coupled with his tendency to say only one word sentences -- or nothing at all -- grated on the fast, outspoken Rainbow Dash’s nerves, but she withheld her irritation.
“So... Where is she?”
This time, Big Mac paused in his trot. Dash stared at him as he just stood there, mulling over something in his mysterious mind. When seconds started becoming minutes, Rainbow Dash was practically vibrating off the ground with nervous energy.
Just as the daredevil flyer was about to explode with built-up tension, Big Mac slowly raised a huge foreleg, and pointed vaguely towards the apple orchards--
And was nearly blown off his hooves as Rainbow Dash took off and flew past him at incredible speed, babbling “kthanksbye” as she vanished into the distance.
Big Macintosh chewed on his sprig of wheat and watched for a little while, before rolling his eyes and trotting into the barn.
He had only just removed his battered yoke when a dishevelled Rainbow Dash re-appeared behind him, covered in scratches and with assorted bits of leafy detritus in her mane and tail.
“Uh... you were saying?” She said, with a sheepish grin.
Big Macintosh smirked.
****
On a gentle sloping hill, there was an apple tree.
This apple tree towered over its neighbours, the branches bowing and sighing gently as they wandered in the wind. On the end of each branch, ripe and red apples hung all year ‘round. In contrast to the soft, sweet fruits, the bark of the tree was rough, gnarled and tough.
At the bottom, an orange earth-pony lay against the trunk, stetson obscuring her features. She was entirely still and silent save for the steady rise and fall of her chest as she breathed, giving off the impression she was sleeping. She was a picture of peace.
Rainbow knew better though. For one, Applejack was an infamous snorer. Big Mac had said that Applejack would be in a delicate mood, and that she should treat her with tact.
Rainbow Dash, as always, had come up with a better solution.
“Hey AJ, you’re late for the picnic!” Rainbow bellowed from the bottom of the hill. Applejack didn’t move or respond, which only made the cyan pegasus more persistent.
She started walking up the hill towards her cowpony friend. “Come on, sleepyhead, everypony’s waiting for ya!” No response. Rainbow kept walking closer until she was standing right next to her.
“Hello, Equestria to Appleja--”
“Leave me alone.”
The acidic interruption from the previously unresponsive Applejack took Rainbow completely by surprise. She stared at her friend for a long moment, before picking her jaw off the ground and saying, “Wh-what? Why?”
“I said, leave me alone.” Applejack stated simply. She didn’t remove her hat to look at her friend, nor did she move any part of her body besides her mouth.
Rainbow Dash bristled. She didn’t like getting ignored and turned away. And Applejack had done both in the space of a few seconds. “Okay, what in the hay is your problem?” She spat.
“Nothin’. Jus’ don’t feel like talking to anypony right now.” Applejack replied, her deliberately neutral tone betrayed by a simmering undercurrent of annoyance. Unfortunately, the Bearer of Honesty wasn’t suited for lying.
“Fine then, I’ll just go and tell Twilight that one of her best friends just “don’t feel like” spending time with her on her first day-off in nearly a month...” Applejack visibly flinched at that. Slowly, she tilted back her hat and glared at Rainbow Dash with white-hot rage.
“I thought I told you to go away.”
“Rainbow? Applejack?” Both mares flinched and jumped back from their battle of wills, then turned to see Twilight trotting up the hill towards them. There was crystal-clear expression of anxious concern on her face. “What’s going on here?”
Applejack looked up at the recently crowned Princess of Magic. The fire in her emerald eyes sputtered and died, leaving a pained sadness where it burned. “I’m sorry Twi. I know you’re probably angry at me for missing your picnic, but I...” she sighed. “I just... really need some time to think.” With that, she smiled sadly, tilted her hat back over her face, then slumped back against the tree.
Rainbow Dash and Twilight Sparkle exchanged a worried glance; this was truly terrifying behaviour for the normally up-and-at-em Applejack, self-proclaimed to be the loyalest of friends and most dependable of ponies.
And worst of all, they had absolutely no idea why.
Reluctantly, the two turned away and trotted back down the hill, in silence. They continued like this until they were sure they were out of earshot.
The pegasus and the alicorn immediately broke out into hushed bickering:
“--We gotta--
“--She’s all--
“--magic spell--”
“--throw a party--”
“--Discord--”
“--In estrus--”
Twilight cut off Rainbow Dash by jamming a purple hoof into her mouth. “Wait! I got it!”
“Mmmpf?” Rainbow inquired, before spitting out Twilight’s royal fetlock and trying again. “What?”
“Oh, sorry.” The Princess smiled sheepishly, then cleared her throat with a soft ‘ahem’. “Okay, so we want to know what’s getting Applejack all upset, right?”
“Uh, yeah? But I tried asking Big Mac about it, he didn’t say anything. I think he’s stumped too.” Dash paused. “Or he was just being really Big Macintoshy about it, I dunno.”
“Well then, it’s simple...” Twilight grinned, and pointed with a hoof dramatically. “We use friendship, of course!”
****
Applejack watched her friends fly away over the treetops, back where the others would be waiting for them. And her.
She sighed. Why couldn’t she just tell them? It’s not like it would have hurt their friendship or anything, but she still stubbornly refused to say what exactly her problem was. She had even lied about it. Applejack shuddered at the thought.
‘Wait, what am I talking about?’ She thought, ‘They’re the ones with the problem, not me! I didn’t lie at all!’
It was a terrible lie, and she knew it; lying to yourself isn’t any easier than lying to your friends, after all. But she would never admit it.
She would never admit that she was afraid.
Shaking her head wildly to banish the traitorous thoughts, Applejack leaned back against the great tree and closed her eyes.
When she was completely relaxed, she thought of the tree. She imagined its lush leaves, its winding branches, its coarse bark and its perfect fruit. She focused her mind’s eye on its countless diverging roots, hidden under the soil. She looked lower, and lower.
And the song filled her mind.
Applejack listened to the song of the tree, and was lost in her memories.
She remembered his rugged looks. She could imagine him in his treasured hat, and recalled how he’d treat everyone around him roughly. Everyone except his other half and his little Applejack. They were his beautiful blossoms, and Big Mac was his treasured pride.
“Um, Applejack?”
She remembered her long pretty mane, and her ever-cheerful personality. She was never seen without a smile, and the smile reserved for her family was always just that extra bit wider. To her, everyone was a friend, and there was no better friend than an honest one.
“Applejack, can you hear me?”
She remembered how they would support her when she fell, and how they would hold her when she cried. She remembered--
“APPLEJACK!” Fluttershy screamed.
“Arrgh!” Applejack snapped out of her trance, hitting her head on the tree with a loud bonk.
“Oh! Applejack, I’m so sorry! Are you okay?” The yellow pegasus fluttered over to the groaning earth-pony with a panicked expression.
“Nah, nah, ‘sokay Fluttershy, it wasn’t your fault, it was mine for...” She looked up to see her five friends gathered around a picnic spread, backdropped by an afternoon sun. “...Being so out of it. Hey, just how long was I gone for? Was still morning when I was--” She clamped her mouth shut.
“When you were what, AJ?” Pinkie bounced over and cocked an ear exaggeratedly, with a bubbly grin on her face as usual.
“Nothin’.” Applejack automatically scrunched her face up after blurting out the blatant lie. She attempted to cover it by taking on an accusatory tone. “What are you gals doin’ here anyhow? Thought I told you I wanted some time to think.”
“You did.” Twilight confirmed. “And so we decided to move the picnic here, and let you think.”
“We were totally ready to stand our ground too,” Rainbow Dash piped up.
“But when we arrived, you were asleep, so we did the polite thing and waited for you to wake up,” Rarity added. “It started taking so long that we got Fluttershy here to wake you up, isn’t that right dear?”
“Oh, I’m very sorry, Applejack. I didn’t want to disturb your rest, but we thought you might be getting hungry.”
Applejack snorted. “I ain’t--” She was cut off by a suspiciously well-timed complaint from her belly.
“Well, I’ll be. Okay, you win, pass me that apple fritter.”
****
Over the course of the meal, Applejack went from moody unresponsiveness to being more open and talkative, and eventually the cheerful orange farmpony they all knew and loved was back. Any attempts to talk to her about her previously bad-tempered demeanour, though, were met with the cold shoulder and an angry look. Nopony minded, however, because they were just glad to be together again, as friends.
Before anyone knew it, AJ was hoof-wrestling with a tipsy Rainbow Dash with one hoof and stuffing her face with Pinkie’s best cupcakes with the other, yelling out insults as she did so.
“Come on! *chomp* Is that all you’ve got it? *munch munch* My Granny can do better than that, and two of her legs are fake!” With a last heave, Rainbow’s hoof hit the stump, defeated.
“Yeah! Ah win again!”
“Aw no, not again...”
Twilight cleared her throat, and the two ponies turned to listen. ‘Uh, guys? It’s getting late.” Applejack looked up towards the sun, which was now approaching the horizon. Scattered on the hilltop were two sleepy ponies and a slightly less poofy Pinkie Pie, doing their best to clean up the remains of the picnic.
“Oh. Hehe. Woops. Here, lemme help...”
“Actually, can you come over by the tree for a sec, AJ?” Twilight gestured towards the huge apple tree with a wing. Applejack’s mood sobered immediately; she knew what this was about. She nodded.
The two left the other ponies to their cleaning, and trotted side-by-side towards the grove underneath the branches. When they were a comfortable distance away, Twilight turned to her friend and sat down on her haunches. Instead of speaking, she waved with a hoof for Applejack to start.
AJ sighed, and sat down on her haunches as she cleared her head.
“Okay, I guess you, of all ponies, deserve an explanation. Y’see the truth is that I--” Her words caught in her throat. Twilight looked at her with a raised eyebrow, and AJ swallowed audibly.
“I’m s-scared, Twilight. Scared of the future. I mean, you wouldn’t know, since you weren’t here before you showed up, obviously. But...” She paused. “Before you arrived here in Ponyville, everything was much simpler.
“I know Rainbow definitely won’t agree with me, but I like things being simple. I’m a farmer. My job is to farm. I enjoy farming. Not hard to guess what I was going to do for the rest of my life, honestly. But then you showed up, all those years ago on the Summer Sun Celebration.”
Twilight interrupted her before she could continue. “Wait, are you saying that I... I r-ruined your life?” She looked like she was about to burst into tears, and AJ frantically waved her hooves to placate her.
“No, no, no, nothing like that! Horseapples, I knew this would be hard to explain...” Applejack sighed and re-ordered her thoughts. “What I’m saying is that, before I met you, I didn’t have to worry about no corrupted moon goddesses, or crazy trickster gods, or magicky necklaces that fire rainbow lasers or nuthin’. It was just me, my brother, my granny and my farm. But...”
Applejack looked at Twilight and smiled wistfully. “I also never had the bestest friends a gal could ever have.” That put a smile on her friend’s face, if only for a moment.
“So what’s the problem?” Twilight frowned and tilted her head quizzically.
“The problem is that things are changing so darned fast. I hardly knew the others and I only met you a few years ago, and we’ve already all become lifelong friends. In a day! And then just as quickly, one of those friends, the one that brought and kept us all together, becomes a princess and busier than a busy beaver businessman all the goshdarned time!” Applejack gulped down air at a breakneck pace, allowing Twilight some time to catch up.
“If I’m honest, I was getting a little overwhelmed. And afraid. Terrified, actually,” Twilight put a reassuring hoof on her shoulder, and Applejack smiled at her gratefully before continuing, “If things can change this quickly in a few years, imagine a decade. Or a century! Heck, you’re an alicorn, you could live for way longer than that.
“But my point is, what if...” She hesitated. “What if we stop being friends? What if we all go our separate ways, or start fighting or something? The idea scares me. It scared me the first time we met Discord, and it scares me now. I needed somewhere to think, so I came here.” She gestured towards the tree.
Twilight put a hoof to her chin as she regarded the tree. “But... why here? It’s just a tree.”
Applejack smiled mysteriously. “That’s where you’re wrong.”
“What?”
“Look at the tree again.” Twilight looks.
“Now, really look at it. See it in your oklo mantis.”
Twilight quirked an eyebrow, but didn’t stop staring at the tree. “You mean oculo mentis, right?”
“Yeah, that.” Twilight nodded, then closed her eyes and focused. Slowly, a vision of the tree appeared in her mind’s eye, along with the countless lines of magicka that infused the world.
What she saw took her breath away.
Deep beneath them, buried in the soil, two brilliant orbs of light shone. Numerous threads of pure magic spread out from them like arteries from a heart, intertwining with and feeding up into the tree.
These threads coiled and danced around inside the tree, spreading life-giving energy throughout the staunch defender of the hilltop. Each fruit was another, smaller ball of iridescent light to her metaphysical sight.
It was beautiful. The most beautiful thing Twilight had ever seen.
Entranced by the beautiful sight, Twilight unconsciously stumbled closer until she touched it. When she did, a soothing ethereal melody played inside her head, showing her visions of a rugged, handsome stallion and a beautiful, graceful mare.
Twilight opened her tear-filled eyes, jaw dropped in astonishment. “What... what was that? It looked like it was... growing out of something. Something made of magic. It’s impossible, but... well, there it is.”
“It’s my past. That’s why I come here when things start changing...” Twilight heard a shuddering sob. Applejack was crying. “I didn’t plant this tree. Nopony did. It just... grew, all on its own.”
“AJ... were those your--” Twilight swallowed. “Your parents?”
“...Yeah...”
Twilight wrapped a comforting wing around her friend. “Applejack, do you want to know what I think?”
Applejack sniffled and looked up at Twilight, who was smiling sadly. “What?”
“I think that this tree isn’t just here to represent your parents... I think it’s a symbol of something else, too.” Twilight glanced down the hill to see their friends waiting, smiling at them.
“When change starts overwhelming you, you come here, to this tree. It’s unmoving, unchanging, an island in a sea of chaos. Just like our friendship.” Twilight waved a hoof at their friends, who waved back, somewhat impatiently.
“Our friendship will be as unchanging as this tree. For as long as the tree that your parents left behind remains a reminder of the past, so will our bond. One that transcends time itself.”
Twilight and Applejack shared one last smile.
“Friendship is magic. Just like this tree.”
****
As the sun set over Equestria, an orange earth-pony lay in bed...
Dreaming of the past, and looking forward to the future.
Author's Note
Yeah, wrote pretty much all of this in one night. Probably pretty terrible, but I needed to get it out of my head.
