The Lost Cousin

“It all began 22 years ago” Granny Smith began.

It was a dark and stormy night. The wind was blowing the trees at Sweet Apple Acres this way and that way. A dark figure ran through the fields towards the wooden house that sat alone on the farm. Inside the house a green earth pony with a blond braided mane sat in a rocking chair with a fire roaring in the fireplace. A red earth pony colt walked up to the mare with a worried look in his eyes.

“Granny, why are you still up? Shouldn’t you go to bed?” Asked the colt.

“Shouldn’t you be in bed yourself Lil Mac?” Asked his Granny.

“I couldn’t sleep. I came down here to get a glass of water when I saw the fire going.” Lil Mac said.

“Go back to bed deary. I’ll be up momentarily to bring you a drink and to tuck you in.” Said Granny Smith.

“Ok Granny.” Lil Mac said.

The young colt went back upstairs to wait for his Granny. Granny Smith got out of her chair to get her grandson his drink when she heard the door slam open. She looked towards the door and saw the pony she had been waiting for. Immediately she felt anger welling up inside her but she put it aside so she could question her wayward son. He threw off his hood to reveal a rather built earth pony stallion with a red mane and brown coat. Granny Smith stormed right up to him and began questioning him.

“Where the HELL have you been?” She said with anger seeping from her once reserved expression.

“Don’t worry about it old women. Where I go is none of your business.” He said.

“Spartan Apple, you are my son and anything you do is MY business just like this apple farm is.” Granny said “Now i’m going to ask you again. Where. The. Hell. Were. You.”

Before Spartan could answer he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He and Granny Smith both looked to see Spartans younger brother Jonagold coming down the stairs.

“Hey Spartan where’ve you been?” Jonagold asked his older brother.

“Alright. I was out scoring if you must know.” Spartan said with obvious pride in his voice. “I found this hot pegasus mare and we started chatting. I used my rugged good looks and told her things she wanted to hear. While doing so I kept buying her drinks to get her really drunk. Then I took her to this hotel where I destroyed her. After I was done I got up and left without saying another word. I didn’t need to since i’m...well...me.”

This infuriated Granny Smith. Here she was listening to her own flesh and blood tell a story about how he took an unsuspecting pegasus mare and put her through a one night stand. She would wake up expecting to see her knight in shining armor, only to be distraught that the pony she thought was a decent individual was really a con artist in disguise. Granny was about to lift her hoof to smack some sense into her oldest son when all of a sudden another hoof came out and decked Spartan in the jaw. She turned her eyes to see her youngest son, who idolized his elder brother, had done the deed for her. She looked at Jonagold and saw something she thought she’d never see. Hatred. Pure hatred. The look of anger in her youngest sons eyes froze her on the spot.

“You bastard.” He said quietly still seething from the story he just heard. “How could you do that to a poor innocent mare. You LIED to her.” his voice quickly escalating in volume “YOU TOOK AN INNOCENT MARE TO BED WITH HER THINKING THAT IT WAS GOING TO BE SOMETHING MORE. WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!"

Spartan picked himself back up, blood trickling from his busted lip, with a look of fury in his eyes. "Did you just hit me LITTLE brother?” he asked with anger dripping from his mouth like the blood from his lip.

“Ya damn right I did. How could you do that? We’re supposed to be honest folk and here you go-shitting on the Apple Family's reputation and morales!" Jonagold shouted at his brother.

“Ya know what little brother? I did it BECAUSE thats what Equestria thinks of us. I knew it would allow me access to any mare I wanted, and you know what, I was right.” Spartan said with a malicious grin on his face.

This was too much for Jonagold. He leaped towards his brother and began to beat the tar out of him. However Spartan was waiting for it and began fighting back. The two full grown stallions began fighting in the house and managed to make their way outside. While the two brothers were fighting a light pink mare with a green mane and a peach blossom cutie mark came running down the stairs to see what all the commotion was about. When she got to her destination she saw that her husband and brother-in-law were both duking it out. She looked towards the helpless Matriarch for an explanation but only saw the shocked look on her face.

“Ma, what’s going on? Why are Spartan and Jonagold fighting?” She asked her mother-in-law frantically.

Hearing the words of her daughter-in-law, Granny Smith snapped out of her daze and looked at her daughter-in-law with an emotionless expression. She turned her head towards the fight outside.

“He has shit on the apple name and is being punished for it.” She said

The two mares went outside to stop the two of them from fighting. As they ran outside a small red colt was watching the commotion from upstairs with horror in his eyes. He ran back to his room and hid under his blankets.

Jonagold and Spartan had been fighting for a few minutes but to them it seemed like an eternity. Most of the fight Spartan had been dominate but as the fight dragged on he began losing steam. Jonagold noticed this and began pushing the fight into his favor. Then Jonagold, with all his strength, bucked his brother into the nearest apple tree. Spartan laid there disoriented. Jonagold walked up to his brother and raised his hoof for one final strike. Just as he was about to strike he felt a tender hoof grab his. He turned to see that his wife, Pink Lady, was the one who stopped him. He looked into her eyes and saw that she was concerned for him and his well being. He turned to look at the crumpled heap that was his brother and put his hoof down. Granny Smith had walked past Jonagold to look at her eldest son.

“Spartan. You know that I don’t approve of what you done. You have brought dishonor upon the Apple Family and for that you will be punished.” Granny said with no remorse. “So from this day forward you are no longer apart of this family. You are disowned from the Apple Family and will no longer be welcome here and any other apple farm in equestria. You will be known for the dishonest pony that you are and will looked upon with disgust. The entire family will know what you have done and will see you the same way myself and your brother see you. As a Monster.”

Granny finished her speech and turned to walk away. Spartan was shocked beyond all belief. He lost everything and his own mother showed no remorse for her words. He looked towards his brother and his sister-in-law and saw the same look from them as he saw from his mother. They both turned away and walked back into the farmhouse. The last thing they saw was the shocked look on Spartans face.

Granny Smith finished her story with a tear in her eye.

Apple Risotto, Applejack, and Applebloom stared at their granny. Shock etched into their faces. Risotto couldn’t believe what he heard. His father was a scumbag. He had utterly humiliated his mother and left her to basically fend for herself like a common animal.

“After that day I never heard from him again. All this happened right after Applejack was born so naturally Jonagold focused all his attention to his son and daughter. Not a day goes by where I wonder if I did the right thing by disowning him.” Granny said more to herself than to anypony present.

“You did the right thing Granny.” Risotto said “If I were in your position I would’ve done the same thing. He’s a disgusting monster and i’m glad that I was raised by my Ma and not by a animal like him.”

“I’m just glad to know that my long lost grandson is such a gentlecolt.” The elderly matriarch said with a smile. “It does my old heart good knowing your Ma raised you right.”

“Thanks Granny.” Risotto said sounding depressed “I’m sorry Granny but i’m going to go out for a bit.”

Risotto got up from his seat and walked out the door. Applejack moved to go after him but Granny Smith stopped her.

“Leave him be for now. It’s a lot of information that he needs to process so give him some space.” Said the elderly mare

“If you think it’s a good idea Granny.”

They both looked out the door hoping that he’d return.