Apple Family Business

Applejack woke to the crowing of the rooster. She rolled onto her back and looked at the window. The curtains were golden with the first rays of the sun. Shucks, I slept in.

She yawned and stretched, then blinked at her hoof. It was smeared with blood. The tingle of alarm buzzing in the back of her neck chased the last tatters of sleep from her system. She pushed aside the sheets, showing her flanks covered in red liquid and releasing its copper scent in the room.

A final push of the sheets revealed a severed pony's head at the foot of the bed, his final expression one of dull surprise.

Applejack's screams shook the walls.

"I'm really sorry about that, Applejack." Pinkie said, rubbing her hoof on the kitchen table. "I went to your room to report in, but you'd already gone to sleep. You looked so peaceful," Pinkie smiled a little, "that I didn't want to wake you up. So I tucked you in, and I guess I accidentally tucked the head in there..."

"S'alright, Pinkie," Applejack replied in between bites of apple waffles. "Just be more careful. Ah almost can't eat breakfast."

"On the plus side, none of us are going to need coffee this morning." Twilight wryly commented, while she stacked waffles on her plate. "We're all wide awake now."

"And a good thing, too." Applejack lapped a smear of syrup off her plate. "Ah wanna go check out this here tip Pinkie got. See if the Brothers are there, what kinda setup they got, check their security, n' all of that."

"Just tell us what you want us to do, Applejack."

"Well, what in tarnation are ya going to do about this? Two dead so far, and the rest have gotten their teeth knocked loose!" Hank yelled, looking from one brother to the other.

Flim and Flam looked at him mildly. Each was seated behind a desk, both of which were pushed side-to-side and took up half the cramped warehouse office.

"Maybe we should be asking you that." Flam responded.

"Your muscle ain'tt looking too muscular." Flim added.

"Well shoot, what can we do when ya got us spread thin as paint on an outhouse?"

"Well, here's what you can do." Flam answered. "You can head to the train station, meet some extra muscle we got coming in, and bring them here. Think that's something you can handle?"

Hank bit back a hot retort. "Yeah, Ah can handle that. But Ah doubt these bucks rollin' in are any better than my crew."

"That a fact now?" Flim gave him a flat stare. "On your way back, maybe you can give him some pointers. Tell 'em how its done, eh?"

"Looks like they only opened two stalls today." Rainbow Dash reported. She, Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie were huddled by the window of a small furniture warehouse. A sack of bits had convinced the two workers inside to take an extended lunch break. "Both with four ponies."

Applejack nodded. "Good. That should be a big chunk of their crew." She turned to Rarity and Pinkie, who were staring out the window. "How's it lookin'?"

"Well darling, its daylight out and there's a spotter on the roof." Rarity answered with a frown. "Not exactly ideal conditions."

"Yeah, but there ain't no helpin' it. Can y'all still get in?"

"Well, the building next door has a fire escape. I can get up to the roof and jump across with no problem." Rarity huffed. "But there's no cover to hide from that guard..."

Pinkie rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "What if he was distracted?"

"Well yes darling, that would certainly help. What did you have in mind?" Rarity looked sideways at Pinkie.

The hitmare gave one of her faint smiles. "You'll see. Just get on the fire escape and wait for my signal."

"C'mon, Dash," Applejack said, taking a step towards the door. "While they're doing that, we can scout around on the outside."

The four mares stepped out into the street, keeping a wary eye out. Pinkie and Rarity circled around through the alleys to keep out of sight of the guards. Rarity stopped a moment to slip on some fashionable dark purple slippers. Pinkie nodded her head towards the targeted fire escape the quietly scurried away in the other direction.

Rarity trotted to the ladder, keeping against the wall of the warehouse. She pulled the stair down with her magic and climbed up. Her slippers muffled the sound of her hooves. She stopped below the edge of the roof, and risked a peek over it at the next building. A brown, unkempt mane and tan head marked where the guard stood. Well now, darling. Where's this signal of yours?

Jim Rustle paced around the rooftop, trying to keep boredom and fatigue at bay. Flim and Flam had been on everypony's case lately about security. He gave his head a vigorous shake to get his blood moving, and resumed his slow walk.

Suddenly, his ears swiveled to the side. A medley of odd sounds was audible from down the street. Jim trotted to the ledge and peered along the line of warehouses. There was nothing in sight, save the plume of a train pulling in to the station, but the sounds grew closer.

He blinked as he recognized the sounds. What the heck is a marching band doing out here? He saw a single pony in full uniform march out from one of the alleys down the street. Wait a cotton-pickin' minute. That ain't a band. That's one pony playin' a buncha instruments. He could pick out an accordion, a trombone, and cymbals among those being played.

As Jim stared in stunned wonder, Rarity gracefully leaped from the neighboring building, landed behind him, and quickly slipped through the door leading inside.

Jim shook his head. "Don't that beat all..."

Hank eyed the ponies coming off the off train. There was no mistaking the ones he was here to meet. Ten ponies (two pegasi, one unicorn, and the rest earth ponies) wearing black hats with red bands stepped onto the platform as a group. Hank figured them for Detrot toughs. Manehattan thugs chatter constantly, and Cob-Towners always had a smug grin or greasy smile. But like the other Detrotters he'd met, these ones were somber and serious.

"Reckon y'all are here to see the Brothers." Hank said as he walked up to them.

An earth pony stallion with a blue coat and brown mane stepped forward. He gave Hank a nod, then smoothed his pencil-thin mustache. "Cherry Jubilee sends her regards, and hopes this will be a mutually beneficial arrangement."

"Well, c'mon then." he said glumly, and turned to head back.

High above, two pegasi in guard uniforms watched the group head for the warehouse district.

"Chief is gonna love this..."

"Yeah..."

Rarity silently padded her way through the dimly lit warehouse. Her nose was crinkled in distaste, and she tried not to think about what the dirty flooring was doing to her slippers. I'm suddenly remembering why I stopped doing burglary...

All she could find, was row after row, and floor after floor, of tubs filled with apples. She headed for the center of the building, guessing that any mill they had would be there. A mechanical hum tickled her ear, which grew louder as she slipped farther in.

Finally, she came to a open space which stretched floor to ceiling. Rarity carefully peered down from her third story perch. A strange machine resembling a locomotive was on the ground floor, manned by two unicorns she assumed were Flim and Flam. As she watched, a funnel on a hose extended over a tub of apples across the gap from her and sucked them up. The machine hissed, lights blinking and glass tubes filling with liquid. Finally, a barrel flew out of the contraption, landing with a solid thump among a stack of others. A pair of ponies wheeled the tub back, to replace it with a full one.

"So that's how they make so much cider."

Rarity's teeth clicked as she clamped them together to keep from yelping. She threw a reproachful glare at Pinkie, who was standing next to her. "Yes, darling." she hissed. "Their numbers are a lot smaller than Applejack thought. I bet she'll be glad to hear that."

Pinkie rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Maybe we can take them out right now."

Rarity carefully scanned the ground floor. "Hmmm... There's not much cover near that thing; just those barrels. And there's no angle where we can hide from both the unicorns and the ponies working the bins." Her face suddenly brightened. "I have a wonderful idea! Let's find Applejack and Rainbow Dash. That will make the numbers almost even, and we can take them down with a surprise attack!"

Pinkie nodded in approval. "Okie dokie loki."

Applejack peered at the warehouse from around a corner. "How ya think they're doin' in there?"

"I'm sure they're fine." Dash answered. She was standing on her hind legs so she could see over Applejack's hat. "Whatever they find, I bet it'll be more interesting than what's out here..."

Applejack gave her easily bored friend a small grin. "Let's head back in and wait for 'em. Learned all we can out here."

"Yeah." Dash sighed inwardly. The idea of waiting inside a sawdust-smelling warehouse instead of the open air wasn't very appealing.

As they walked in the shadows of the buildings, Rainbow Dash saw Applejack throwing glances towards the Brothers' warehouse, her lips pressed together in concern.

"Relax, AJ." Dash said while turning a corner. "I'm sure they're doing as well in there as we are out here."

"Well butter my butt and call me a biscuit!" said a third voice. The mares looked forward and saw Hank Ketchup, leading nearly a dozen toughs in hats. "Looks like Ah got mah birthday present early!"

Pinkie stopped her silent stride. Her knee felt like someone pinched it, and her left ear flopped. "Uh oh."

Rarity blinked. "Uh oh?"

"C'mon!" Pinkie quickly and quietly through the rows of tubs. They soon came to the wall of the warehouse, and followed it until they saw a window.

Pinkie undid the latch and pushed it open. The view was of one of the alleys that flanked the building, which held little except a dumpster and a small cart. She looked towards the front of the building. Her sight was reduced to a narrow strip by the two buildings, but it was enough to get a glimpse of Applejack and Rainbow Dash being fought and herded towards the building by a group of ponies.

"Uh oh indeed!" exclaimed Rarity, when she looked as well. "What are we going to do?"

Pinkie passed her a rope. "Can you get down to that cart?"

"Certainly, darling." Rarity tied the rope to a column, too worried about her friends to notice it was oily and dirty. But what about that gang of ponies?"

"I have a plan."

Applejack rolled on the ground from a buck to the chin. Her body was hot and numb from all the blows she'd given and received. She felt a pair or hooves pull her head up, and a blue blur filled her sight.

"Look at me. Look at me!" the blur yelled in her face. She blinked her one unswollen eye until his mustache came into focus. "I did this to you!"

Applejack grinned and spat a mouthful of blood in his face. The stallion cursed and pushed her back to the ground.

"Aw, sheep dip!" Hank pointed a hoof at the warehouse. Trails of smoke were seeping from the windows. "C'mon colts, she's on fire!"

The mustached pony pointed to two of his troops. "You. You. Get these two out of sight. The rest of you, inside now."

Jim Rustle blinked at the black wisp that seeped from the rooftop door. "Ah heck!" He ran to the door, threw it open, and froze in surprise.

There was a pink pony right in front of him. Black smoke wreathed her, as though she had come up from Tartarus.

"Hi!" she said cheerfully, and swung out her hoof. Something cool sliced through Jim's neck. For one brief instant, he felt the tingle of open air inside it. Then he started choking on his own blood.

Rainbow Dash, hovering near unconsciousness, felt herself lifted up and dragged. Her body clenched as her injured leg was jostled. Suddenly, the limbs carrying her let her go, and she heard a confused jumble of grunts and thuds. Then she felt herself enveloped in something gentle, which picked her up and carefully set her down on something wooden.

"You're both safe now, darlings." she heard a voice say. "Let's get you home."