Beyond Her Tomb

by 2K Chrome

Rating: teen
Tags: Slice of Life, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Other, Romance, Adventure, Carrot Top
Length: 11591

Carrot Top goes to save a dying town, only to find more problems when she arrives.

In a farm town by the name of Marizona, Carrot Top is called to action from an old friend to be a miracle worker when the crops suddenly stop growing. The prejudiced and close-minded townsponies have grown hostile towards strangers -- and even towards themselves -- as a result from months dealing with a food shortage and the financial collapse of their town that is now looming over their heads. Will the orange mare find a solution to save the town? When worse comes to worst, will the friendship with her old friend hold, or will it perhaps grow into something more? Learn about the tale of Carrot Top and how she was able to live beyond her tomb.

~~~
Cover art image by SpectrumPony.
In collaboration with Lucefudu.
Inspired by the backstory of the song, Beyond Her Tomb, by MictheMicrophoneZero and The Living Tombstone

Published 2012-04-24 16:24:01 UTC
Last updated 2012-04-24 16:24:01 UTC

Prologue

Stormy Acacia lay wearily on his back atop rain clouds, quietly listening to the drops fall aimlessly to the ground below. He wasn’t physically tired, it was a mental fatigue. All of the ponies below demanded him and the other Pegasi to make it rain every day. Later, the same ponies would unappreciatively scold them, accusing the rain of being “tainted”. He and the others on the weather team retrieved the rain clouds from the same place as all the other towns in Equestria: the great city of Cloudsdale. The only way their rain would be “tainted” was if everywhere else in Equestria was experiencing the same problems as where he was, and he certainly hoped not. A famine that consumed all of Equestria? Acacia’s stomach grumbled just at the thought of it.

His stomach had been doing that a lot lately. The Earth ponies in his once fairly prosperous town of Marizona just couldn’t seem to grow their crops anymore. After generations upon generations of plentiful harvests, nopony expected this sudden famine. The farming ponies used their traditional family harvesting techniques year in and year out, nothing of that had changed. So why have the plants suddenly stopped growing?

Pests? No, the mayor had every pony search the fields. Whether it was high in the clouds, under rocks, or ten feet below the surface of the ground, if bugs were destroying this amount of crops, then they might as well have been invisible. Not a single pest was found, other than the common butterflies, bees, and insects that actually helped the crops.

Outside bacteria or disease? Marizona wasn’t exactly like a Las Pegasus hotspot, meaning not too many ponies came there, the town being several miles away from every other town. Apart from that, most of the fields were fenced to keep out any critters that wanted to enjoy a little snack. The Earth ponies regularly checked their crops for any signs of disease, not wanting anything harmful to spread to other farms. Plus, diseases normally took time to spread around the plants, meaning somepony would have noticed if something was wrong a long time ago.

Drought? Acacia rolled his eyes at the thought of this possibility. The weather team brought in so much rain that a lake had begun to form around the edge of the town. If he knew anything for sure, it was definitely not a drought.

So what changed? The planting techniques stayed. The dirt couldn’t simply decide to stop growing as far as he could tell.. The sun was raised everyday by Princess Celestia, and hopefully she hadn’t decided to start moving it around for a “change of scenery”. The seeds came from the plants that were grown during the last harvest, as it had been for as long as the town could remember. What else was there to leave the blame on other than the rain? The rain that came from the same clouds from the same factory in Cloudsdale for years. It didn’t make sense, but the Earth ponies didn't want to say they were wrong, and the Unicorns wouldn’t be so dumb as to starve themselves. Who else was there to blame than the Pegasi?

Why would Pegasi want to starve themselves? The Earth ponies didn’t really have an answer for that, but Acacia wouldn’t scold them for their illogical way of thinking. These times were hard for everypony, and he knew that. The hunger, stress about the future, the frustration of not knowing how to fix this, it was all building up inside them. The only way to channel it was by lashing out amongst each other.

Every day, Acacia saw the virus caused by the famine spread. Ponies were constantly bickering, blaming, and whining amongst themselves. Fights were becoming a common thing in Marizona’s day-to-day life. Acacia tried his best to keep the calm between everypony, to act like the cure, but it was useless. The spite already developed an immunity to kindness and compassion.

The townsponies didn’t simply let this all happen. There were some that tried all they could to find a solution. Several Earth ponies plowed the land ten times over, but to no avail. After trying every method they knew to try and solve it, they went to the Unicorns. The Unicorns threw as many spells as they believed would help, but not one single bud grew from the magical sparks.

Letters were sent to Canterlot seeking assistance and advice. With high hopes that their great princess would respond positively, the Marizonians patiently waited for a reply. However, as the days turned into weeks, and weeks into months, their hopes withered. Perhaps she believed the situation would solve itself. Perhaps she did send help, but if she did, helping hooves never came. Or maybe, she never received one of their pleas for help.

Eventually, several of the townsponies were sent to Canterlot, but none of them returned. Whether it was them not surviving the journey, giving up on the town, or the inability to return to Marizona because they could get assistance from Celestia, the townsponies never knew. All they really knew was that they weren’t expecting help from the royal highness anytime soon.

Just a month ago, another blow was taken when they mayor bailed. To Stormy, it seemed like an overall reasonable decision. The reserved money was becoming threateningly low and being an agricultural town for a hundred years, no crops meant no money. Ponies were coming in daily, almost hourly, with complaints about the same thing: no crops. She was the one in charge, the one that was supposed to take initiative. The mayor did try; she was the one that sent the letters and organized several missions to Canterlot. But seeing as they failed, the townsponies believed she was doing nothing. What seemed to finally bring her over the edge and leave were rumors of a riot. Apparently, dozens of ponies were ready to take arms and storm city hall, foolishly believing it would induce the mayor to take action. The rumors may or may not have been true, but they did take an effect when one night the mayor could be seen galloping away as fast as she could with saddlebags of everything she owned.

Although her attempts to contact the Princess had failed, she did have an important role for the town simply by being there. When she left, whatever attempts to clean up and keep the peace disappeared as well. Nopony bothered to take on the mayor’s role with the fear of having the same kind of success the predecessor had. Thus, no further action was taken to contact Canterlot or another outside town. Everypony living in Marizona had to make the town’s decisions.

“Stormy! Stormy, get off your lazy flank now!” a burly voice yelled, breaking Acacia’s thoughts. Sitting back up, he looked around to find the voice coming from one of his fellow weather team members. “C’mon! The storm’s over, help us move these clouds. I don’t care how comfortable your nap was, just make yourself useful for once!”

Acacia let out a weary sigh. A few weeks ago, he might have retaliated against his team member for the rude wake-up call. However, that was pretty much how everypony was talking to their peers those days. It wouldn’t even be a normal conversation anymore without an insult or a curse word permeating every other sentence. The worst part was that they weren’t even trying to do it anymore; it was almost natural for them now.

Stifling a yawn, Acacia stretched out his beige-coated body. With a shake to get the water off his straight, powder blue mane, the Pegasus began to sluggishly drag the clouds away, making way for the golden rays of the sun to shine down to the land below. Somewhat satisfied with the progress, the other Pegasus glided away with only a grunt.

~~~~~~~~~

Half an hour later, the beige Pegasus found himself trudging his way back home. The sun was shining high in the afternoon sky, drying up the remnants of the shower. Normally, a large crowd of ponies would be outside enjoying the weather. Instead, only a few roamed the streets. Then again, Acacia reasoned, there wasn’t much of a reason to come out. Almost all of the flora had long since withered away, and the few that remained were turning sickeningly brown as they stooped lower and lower to the ground. The only things that stood were a few trees in town, but even they seemed listless and weakened from the famine. It wasn’t the optimal scenery for an afternoon stroll, even with the sun shining. With only a few crops to take care of, the farm ponies either took to their homes to anxiously think of their problems or to the bar to drown them away with liquor. And with all of the hostilities, the ponies preferred to stay away from each other.

Paying more attention to his thoughts than where he was going, Acacia didn’t notice he was walking straight at another stallion until he bumped right into him.

“Hay! Watch where you’re going!” yelled the stallion.

“Sorry miste-”

“I go out for two seconds to get some peace and quiet, and I can’t even get that. What’s wrong with you? You’re a Pegasus, aren’t you? Then again, you’re too stupid to see anything in front of you, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you forgot how to fly,” the stallion ranted, glaring at Stormy.

“I said I was sorry…” Acacia muttered through gritted teeth. He was used to the bad-mannered conversations around him, but any slights directed towards him still made his temper rise. In the back of his mind, a voice was telling him to lash back, but his morals told him to keep his cool.

“You’re sorry? Oh no, I’m sorry,” the stallion continued, “I’m sorry you get paid to move those heavy clouds all day, while I can’t make two bits anymore with the crops not growing. I’m sorry all you Pegasi fly around acting so high and mighty when the rain you get can’t even make a single sprout. It must be so hard for you guys.”

Not wanting to continue the conversation, Acacia turned to walk away, but the stallion stuck out his hoof to block him.

“Hay, I’m talking to you. Didn’t your parents ever teach you it was rude to leave while somepony is talking? I almost feel bad your parents were stuck with an idiotic foal like you. Then again, I guess there was nopony to get the smarts from.”

Acacia gave a little jerk as his body began to shake. He was fine with some ponies complaining about their lives and receiving hate for being a Pegasus, he was accustomed to it at that point. But that stallion hit Acacia’s soft spot when he mentioned his parents. Hovering above the ground to give himself height leverage, the Pegasus stared down the stallion right in the eyes and stated, “Listen buddy, I don’t give a rat’s flank who you are, but nopony, and I mean no pony talks about my parents like that. Now you go back to whatever slime hole you came from before I do something I might regret.” Acacia’s eyes shot daggers as the stallion stared right back. Breathing deeply, heart racing, he deeply wanted the stallion to retaliate so Acacia could could give him his just desserts. But after a long moment with tension thick enough to cut with a butterknife, the stallion simply turned with a huff and continued his way. Acacia glared at the stallion until he was out of sight, hoping that if he stared long enough, the stallion would spontaneously combust.

Taking a deep breath, Acacia closed his eyes and tried to calm back down. It was ridiculous getting so angry just for bumping into somepony. Sometimes he just wanted to give up all of his moralities and go hoof-to-hoof in a-—

“Fight!” a voice cried.

Turning his head towards the cry, he noticed a large crowd was beginning to form. The Pegasus took a step towards the group, but hesitated for a moment before unfurling his wings and taking off. Fights could be exciting to watch, but they helped nopony. Two or more fellow ponies got injured, yet the problem still persisted.

Biting his lip, Acacia uncertainly flew towards the brawl. Hovering above a circle of onlookers, Acacia looked in the center to see two ponies slugging it out. The pair was already breathing heavily, and one was limping severely, but it looked like they weren’t planning on stopping until one stayed down. The onlookers weren’t doing anything except making bets on who would win or giving an occasional gasp at a particularly powerful buck from one of the fighters. He landed near the circle of ponies to break up the fighting when a voice called from behind.

“Hiya Stormy. Come to enjoy the show too?” Turning around, Acacia saw one of the friendlier townsponies, Sky High, a Pegasus.

“Why isn’t anypony stopping them?!” inquired Acacia with a waver of worry in his voice, turning around in order to approach the fighting ponies and try to make them see reason.

“What, and stop all the fun?” Sky High said, placing a hoof on his shoulder as if she sensed Acacia wanted to ruin the only fun she was having that day. “C’mon, don’t be such a spoilsport, Stormy.”

“I’m not being a spoilsport, Sky. There’s a fight almost every day now, and no one ever steps in to stop them,” he said, swiping at Sky’s hoof and knocking it with perhaps a bit too much force, but she didn’t seem to mind.

“Stormy, listen. This is the only excitement most of these ponies get in their miserable lives these days, why would anypony want to stop them?” Acacia opened his mouth to lecture her, but Sky interrupted him just as quickly. “Look! The fight’s over anyhow.”

Looking behind him, he saw that Sky was correct; the fight really had ended. One pony lay motionless on the ground, covered in bruises and bleeding profusely from a large cut underneath his eye. The other limped away, the circle of ponies separating to give him an exit. With the show over, the crowd began to disperse. Just as quickly as the streets were filled, they were emptied, the only ones left being stragglers exchanging their bets for picking the winning fighter.

“Well, that was fun. See ya later Stormy, I’m off to bed,” Sky said, already heading back to her home.

“Bed? It’s only three in the afternoon.”

“Stormy, I wouldn’t have gotten out of my bed at all today if I didn’t hear there was a fight. And I don’t think I’m the only one that decided to do this either,” explained Sky as she shrugged.

Acacia paused for a moment, pondering her statement. “Is that really what this has come to, Sky?”

The Pegasus halted mid-step. After a moment of deep thought, she muttered, “I don’t know Stormy, I just don’t know. These are hard times we’re going through. When it comes right down to it, I guess it’s equine nature.”

Acacia simply blinked in response. “I don’t quite get what you mean.”

“I...I guess it’s just equine nature to enjoy watching others suffer in a way that we almost feel better about ourselves. It seems the only reason to have friends is to take advantage of them, just so we get what we want. And there’s only three real things we want. Power, wealth, and fame,” Sky mused.

“No... no, it can’t be. There’s no way ponies can be like that!” Acacia retaliated, shocked to hear such a cruel thing from the pony he considered one of the friendliest in town.

“I see it every day now, and I know you see it too. It’s all around us, you know?” Acacia remained silent, unable to find any counterargument. “Well, I better go now, I hear my bed calling me. It was nice talking to you, I’ll be seeing you around.” With that, the Pegasus soared away.

Acacia drifted his way to his own home: a two-story house on the ground, instead of a cloud-made one. Clouds were cozier, but he was used to an Earth pony house, having lived in one for so long when he was growing up. Entering his house, the beige Pegasus frowned at the compounding dust on the floor, the pile of dishes in the kitchen, and the overall dreariness of the area. But worst of all for him was the torturing silence.

The conversation with Sky, although a bit dark, was the highlight of his day. There was no one around to have a friendly chat with anymore. All of his friends have turned bitter, just like every other townspony. He didn’t have any siblings either: the curse of an only foal. He wasn’t exactly a social butterfly, per se, but not having anyone at all to talk to would drive anyone insane.

Picking up a small photo, his thoughts wandered back to his childhood, back when everything was cheery most of the time. The photo was him as a foal. A wide smile was plastered across his face as he hugged his loving parents. It was the same day he received his cutie mark, a pure white daisy with raindrops falling on it. It was strange to wake up with a flower on his flank every morning, considering he hadn’t grown anything since his parents split.

~~~

“But Mom, do we have to go? Can’t you just make up with Dad?"

“I’m sorry Stormy, but this is just the way it has to be,” Mrs. Acacia replied. “I know it may be hard, but you’ll just have to accept it.”

“What about all of my friends I have here? I’m never going to see them again!” Acacia retaliated. However, he was thinking of one pony in particular.

“We might visit sometime later. But for now, pack your things. We’re leaving soon.”

The colt’s blue eyes lit up with hope. “Really? Where are we moving to?”

“To Marizona, back to my hometown,” responded his mother.

“M-Marizona?! Mom, that’s halfway across Equestria! It would take at least eight hours just to get here from all the way over there!”

“I said we might visit, Stormy. Now I don’t want to hear any more arguments, my mind is made up. Go upstairs and pack up.”

Her son just stood there, mouth agape. He looked to give one final stab to stay, but decided against it. Head hanging low in disappointment, the colt grudgingly began to make his way towards the staircase. Suddenly, his ears perked up, and he made a dash out the door.

“Stormy! Stormy Acacia! Where do you think you’re going?!” Mrs. Acacia yelled out. “You better get back here right now, mister!”

Acacia heard her, but he didn’t care. Only one thing mattered and that was getting one final moment with her again, at least to say goodbye. He could take any punishment his mother dealt, not that she was too harsh on him anyways.

Taking to the sky, the Pegasus flew the rest of the way to his destination. A large house coming into his sight, Acacia drifted his way to one of the windows and knocked.

“Oh please, oh please be home...” Acacia pleaded quietly. No response. Knocking once more, he pressed his face across the cool glass, trying to see any moving shadows through the curtains. Again, no response. He was leaving in a mere few hours, and he couldn’t even say farewell to his best friend. He bit down on his lip so hard to stop himself from screaming that it started to bleed, the red fluid flowing freely down his chin.

“Stormy? Is that you?” a familiar voice called out.

Peering below him, he could see a mane of bright amber. “Topsy!” Acacia squealed, being so relieved to see her. “I’m so glad you’re home!” He flew down in front of her, only to find her olive green eyes filled with concern rather than joy.

“You’re bleeding Stormy...” Carrot Top said worriedly, examining the cut from different angles.

“It’s just a tiny scratch. Listen, Topsy, we need to-—”

“Come on inside. I’ll have that fixed up in a jiffy,” interrupted the orange mare as she grabbed his hoof and dragged him inside.

Inside the Earth pony’s dining room, Stormy continued his conversation as Carrot Top took out the family medikit.

“Topsy, I don’t know how to say this...” started the beige Pegasus.

“Just go out with it, it can’t be all that bad,” Carrot replied, her hooves tenderly wiping off the blood with a wet tissue.

“O-Okay then.” Taking a deep breath, Acacia quickly uttered, “I’m moving to Marizona in a few hours.”

“What?!” the orange mare yelled, accidentally hitting the Pegasus square in the jaw in her surprise.

“Ow...” he whined in response.

“Sorry. I mean, why? Why are you leaving?”

“Ugh, my parents are having some issues, so now they’re splitting up. My mom wants to go out to Marizona, and I have to go with her.”

“But... but...” she stammered, unwilling to believe what the little colt was telling her. “But that means we won’t be able to see each other anymore!” she said, stomping a hoof to the ground before looking at him pleadingly. “I don’t want you to go, Stormy!”

“I don’t want to go either, but Mom seems pretty certain about her decision,” answered Acacia disappointedly. “It’s not fair! I mean, don’t they even care about me at all?”

“You know how parents can be, Storm. They can be selfish at times, not really thinking about their children,” she said, her face drooping.

“Yeah, I know what you mean... and the worst part is not being able to see anypony again.”

Carrot Top stopped, her eyes widening. “What?! You’re not even coming back to visit?”

“Topsy, you know how far away Marizona is from here. Do you really think my mom is going to let me visit?” Acacia said, annoyance prevalent in his voice.

“But.... but...” stuttered the orange filly. “That’s not right. She can’t just make you leave all your friends here.”

“Like I said, it’s not fair...” A moment of silence passed, the only noise coming from some rummaging through the medikit. Acacia took the time to gaze at Carrot Top, like he had done so many times in the past. Her mane and coat always reminded him of the morning sun, beautiful and something he always wanted to see. The best part about her was her mood; she was always so cheery, at least whenever he was around. Her eyes were so full of life and interest when the two spoke, and she smiled almost the entire time. This conversation, however, was different with the topic being so serious.

“You know, Topsy, I’m going to miss you the most.”

Carrot Top could feel the heat in her cheeks rise and was relieved to see some red showing clearly on Acacia’s beige cheeks as well. Unsure of how to respond, she complied with a “I’ll miss you too.”

“You are my best friend,” added Acacia.

“Stormy, stop it! You’re making me blush!” Carrot exclaimed. Acacia simply laughed in response, pressing his hooves on his cheeks to cool off his own redness. And the best part, he was able to see Carrot Top smile one more time.

But the smile soon faded as the mare muttered, “Umm... I think your lip is all cleaned up now.” Tilting her head upward, her olive green eyes met the intense blue ones of Stormy.

He flinched slightly from the sudden eye contact with the mare, but she didn’t notice. She just kept looking right at him, a small smile on her soft lips. He didn’t want to break the eye contact, but his eyes simply wouldn’t listen to him. They would just keep dropping to her smile, as if trying to tell him something.

All of a sudden, she seemed a lot closer than before. Did she lean forward or did I just imagine it? Acacia thought. Not only that, but there was a different expression on her face. It looked the same, her eyes open wide and a small smile, but there was something that made it different. Instead of a friendly look, now it just looked expectant, as if she was waiting. Waiting for him to make the first move. Look, she wants it too! a voice said in his mind. But if she does, then why doesn’t she do something first or say something?

His cheeks were on fire, heart was racing, thoughts becoming a blur as she simply sat there and smiled. His gaze kept switching between her beautiful green eyes and her tender lips. He barely even noticed he was inching closer to her until their noses were only a few centimeters apart.

Not wanting to turn back now that he was so close, the Pegasus willed himself through the last couple of inches until his warm lips finally met hers. He pulled back slightly, planning only for a small peck, but was surprised to have the mare’s lips follow. Quickly overcoming the shock, he pushed forward a second time, her lips pressing forward as well, locking them in a deep embrace. Acacia could feel her lips part slightly, allowing his tongue access into her mouth. She tasted sweet, like fresh blueberries in spring. After a long minute of passionate embrace, the two finally broke apart, gasping for air and cheeks as red as roses.

Breath returning to normal, Acacia looked at Carrot Top’s face once more. He couldn’t really tell what she was feeling at the moment. Happy, embarrassed, overjoyed? There was only one word that explained how he was feeling.

“Wow.”

~~~

“Carrot Top...” Acacia mumbled. “Carrot Top.” Scrambling upstairs, the Pegasus searched his room for a quill and some paper, all the while muttering, “Carrot Top”. After several minutes of searching, he sat down at his desk and began to write out a letter.

Dear Carrot Top,

It’s been a long time since we last saw...

A Letter Filled with Memories

“Come on out. Easy now...” whispered Carrot Top as she adjusted the dirt to smoothly pull out another carrot. Today, she was to harvest her orange treats from the east field. Then, just as always, dispose of any bad ones, wash the rest, and bundle them for selling. It was slow, tedious work, but she didn’t mind. It was always quality over quantity, and she was happy doing her job most of the time.

For now, though, it just seemed like hard work. The sun was beating down on her, causing her to sweat profusely as she toiled under its heat. In addition, the ground was wet from the slight drizzle scheduled that morning. She was used to getting dirty, but the mud soaked her to the bone, and the frequent slips and falls weren’t helping her mood. Whenever she brought a hoof to her forehead to rid herself of the salty sweat, she would douse her mane in mud.

It was times like these when she questioned her life. Year in and year out, the orange mare successfully harvested and sold hundreds of what were claimed to be “high quality” carrots, but she couldn’t help but feel she had lost the passion for gardening. The same passion that burned so fervently inside of her just a few years ago. It was all becoming so automatic, and apparently it had been showing. Recently, she had been receiving complaints through the mail about the quality of her produce. Nothing about her techniques changed, but some of her buyers noticed a clear difference.

Speaking of mail, Carrot glanced upward to see a familiar blonde-maned Pegasus flying her way. Picking herself up, the Earth pony wiped off as much mud as she could and tried to put on a happy face to greet her friend. Seeing Derpy was becoming more and more bittersweet as of late. The wall-eyed Pegasus was always a treat to have a chat with, and Carrot gladly offered her some carrot muffins whenever she came by. However, when Derpy came by with the mail, it meant one of two things: junk mail from random companies or complaints from her clients. All of her friends lived in Ponyville, so there was no need for the mail service to her.

“Hiya Carrot Top!” Derpy called, smiling as she landed in front of Carrot Top. Her happy demeanor quickly changed to a more hesitant one once she got a good look at her friend. “You uh..
. you want me to come back later? You seem to have your hooves full.”

“Full of mud, right?” said Carrot Top, giving a hearty chuckle. “It’s fine, my mail doesn’t need to be clean. Who’s it from this time, Derpy?”

“Says here it’s from Marizona,” answered the gray Pegasus, handing the envelope to its intended recipient.

“Marizona, huh?” Carrot inquired, examining the address on the letter. “I don’t think I’ve sent anything their way before.” By process of elimination, Carrot immediately assumed the letter was junk mail sent from businesses to persuade her to buy whatever cheap product they were selling. Normally, those envelopes were emblazoned with the company’s logo in big, colorful letters. This one, on the other hoof, just had the sender’s address and a small stamp in the corner. Upon further inspection, the mare espied the sender’s name.

“Storm... Acacia?” she murmured to herself. The name sounded familiar, but she couldn’t quite place where she knew it from.

“Something wrong?” Derpy asked, breaking Carrot’s thoughts.

“Oh um... no, everything’s fine. Is this all?” the orange mare asked, breaking her quizzical gaze from the small letter to look at her friend.

“I believe so,” Derpy replied, checking the contents of her mailbag once more. “Yep, that’s it.”

“Thanks Derpy. Do you want a carrot muffin before you take off?”

“I’d love one, but I’m in a bit of a hurry today,” said Derpy as she turned around and began to trot away, building speed to take off. “Thanks anyways!” she yelled just before she leapt into the air, allowing her unfurled wings to carry her through the cerulean sky.

“See you around!” exclaimed Carrot, waving her friend off as she watched the gray Pegasus quickly beat her wings in order to keep herself airborne.

After the Pegasus flew out of sight, Carrot Top turned her attention back to the mysterious letter. Perhaps she did send something to Marizona and simply forgot about it. Curiosity getting the better of her, the Earth pony ripped the envelope open, revealing the message inside. This isn’t junk mail, she thought. She tried to clean her hooves once more before proceeding to unfold the letter. Her eyes scanned the paper quickly. Upon she acknowledging it wasn’t a complaint letter, she went back to the top to read it thoroughly.

Dear Carrot Top,

It has been a long time since we last saw. It’s me, Storm Acacia. I know you may be thinking, “Who is this stallion?” Well, let me try and refresh your memory. Remember that beige-coated Pegasus that moved to your town when you were just a filly? The one with the powder-blue mane that would always help with your gardening? That’s me... Stormy. We used to hang out together a lot before my parents divorced, and my mom took me back to her hometown, Marizona. I hope this helps you out... but if not, then I’ve included a photograph of myself as a colt inside the envelope.

Taking a pause from reading, Carrot looked to the envelope once more. Rummaging through the inside, the mare pulled out the mentioned photo. It depicted a small beige Pegasus, smiling as he hugged what Carrot Top assumed to be his parents. Slowly, the memories started flooding back. She remembered a cheery young Pegasus always helping her garden, always smiling when he was around her, always staring at her when he thought she wasn’t looking. But when she recalled those days of her fillyhood, her heart lurched as old feelings returned.

“Now I remember... Stormy,” she muttered to herself. “Stormy, I remember him. He was the colt that left me right after he...” A light blush appeared on her cheeks as the memory of their last moments together came flooding back. “No, I was just a foolish little filly back then, looking for silly filly relationships. It was just too bad he left me...” The last recollection she had of him didn’t even include him; they were about the gloomy times she experienced after he had left.

She remembered crying for several days after he moved away. Heartbroken, that was the only word to describe it. She begged her parents to visit him in Marizona, but they said it was simply too far away. She wrote and sent letters to him, it must have been dozens of times, but after some time, she stopped receiving his replies. Even with this, she kept on writing to him, but the complete lack of replies dropped her to hopelessness a short time later.

I guess he just found somepony else... somepony better-looking than me... Well, I guess it’s not hard to find one. It was almost expected, but we could still have kept in touch. Maybe he just doesn’t want to bother with me anymore.

Those were pretty much her last thoughts of him before he was long-forgotten to her. Those last feelings still remained fresh in Carrot’s mind after recalling her memories of him. She considered just crumpling up the message right there and then, not wanting to dwell on those old times. But for some reason, she couldn’t stop herself from reading the second part of it.

Anyways, I’m writing to you to ask for some help. The crops in my town, Marizona, aren’t growing anymore, and nopony can find out why. The money reserves are running really low, and we’re becoming desperate. We tried messaging Princess Celestia, but she hasn’t responded. A lot of ponies here have long family connections to this town, so they don’t want to leave.

As far as I remember, when it came to planting and gardening and such, nopony was better than you. So I ask of you, I beg of you, please come here to Marizona and use your expertise to get us out of this mess. There’s no one here to lead us, we still can’t figure out why the crops aren’t growing, and everypony is turning against themselves. I know this may seem out of the blue, since we haven’t talked in ages, but I would forever be in your debt if you could come by to help. Please, please, please find it in your heart to save my entire town. If you choose to help, send a reply about when you can come by.

Sincerely,
Stormy Acacia

A hesitant chuckle emanated from Carrot Top upon finishing the letter. “All these years pass and now he writes to me,” the mare muttered to herself. “I’m not all too sure I can go all the way out there just to see him again. And I have enough trouble already with my stuff alone. I don’t want to have to deal with this riff-raff.”

“Then again, I can finally find out why he stopped writing to me and catch up on old times. Not to mention all those poor starving ponies out there,” Carrot argued with herself, biting her lip to make a decision. I’ll wait until the girls see this; they’ll help me out. Folding up the letter, the mare placed it into her basket, saving it to show her friends for their thoughts. Fun time over, the Earth pony returned tending to her carrots.

~~~~~~~

It was strange looking back and reminiscing the fun-filled days of her fillyhood. Having been born into a family of traditional farmers, she was raised to continue the family business once her parents became too old. Yet, she didn’t want to be a farm pony. A future filled with growing and selling vegetables didn’t sound too exciting.

Then Acacia came to town. At first, she thought him a meek little Pegasus, but with time, Carrot Top did take some interest to him. She had plenty of other friends, her being the simple, easy to get along with, and apparently “pretty” Earth Pony. Acacia, on the other hoof, was very different. Being the “new kid” of the town, most of the other foals strayed away from him, like he was carrying some kind of disease. So when Carrot lent out a helping hoof, Acacia gladly, yet hesitantly, accepted.

She being the Pegasus’s first and only friend for awhile, the colt spent quite a lot of time with her, but mostly when her other friends weren’t around. Whenever he was around, he would always help around the farm, from harvesting the crops to bringing tufts of rainclouds to water them. With him lending a helping hoof, a sudden spark ignited her interest in farming. With another pony around to talk to and help, gardening became more enjoyable, almost fun. From then on, she started her own garden with the assistance of Acacia.

“Carrot...”

From roses to lilies, grapes to carrots,

“Carrot Top...”

Roots to berries, and a bunch more in between, it was only a matter of time before she earned her cutie mark and became an expert in gardening. Without him...

“Carrot Top!”

The orange mare blinked repeatedly, realizing she had been absorbed in her own thoughts for quite some time.

“You okay, Carrot Top? You’ve been zoning out a lot lately,” a mint-green unicorn asked from across the table, looking at her quizzically.

“I’m fine, Lyra. Just some work issues. Anyway, those daisy sandwiches look delicious!” answered Carrot with a bright smile.

But Lyra could see through her friend’s facade. Taking the seat opposite her, she pressed on a bit further. “And what, exactly, are these ‘issues’?”

“Nothing too big. Some more complaints about carrot quality. The work is becoming a little bit... tedious, I guess,” she said, shrugging.

“Nothing too big, but still enough to make you keep on losing yourself in your thoughts? Really?” inquired Lyra with a skeptical look.

“I-It’s complicated.” Wanting to drop the topic, Carrot quickly took a bite out of her sandwich.

Lyra bit her lip, uncertain whether to continue trying to make Carrot explain her predicament or just letting it pass. However, before she could get another question out, a mare trotted over to their table.

“Hey girls! Mind if I join you two?” Bonbon asked.

“What about the café, Bonbon?” Lyra asked. She wished for her marefriend to join them for their snack, but she still felt unsure about it. Seeing as they were eating at her café, Lyra didn’t want her friend to ignore the other customers that needed to be tended to.

“Hey Twist!” Bonbon called out. A cream-coated filly with bright red mane rushed to her principal, eagerly waiting instruction. “I’m going to take a short break. Do you think you can handle the customers on your own for a bit?”

The filly’s pink eyes widened in excitement. “A-All on my own?” Bonbon nodded her head in response, eliciting a joyful squee from her avid apprentice. “Would I?!” cheered Twist, who quickly moved to the other tables to see if the customers needed anything.

“Are you sure about that?” asked Carrot, watching as the little filly prance happily from table to table about the new responsibility. “She’s still pretty new to this, isn’t she?”

“Yes, but she has to do this eventually. She’s going to grow up working with customers everyday. Anyways, look around. There aren’t that many ponies here to tend to. I’m sure she can handle it,” Bonbon replied confidently before seating herself next to Lyra.

“Alright then,” Lyra complied. “Ooh wait, now that I remember, didn’t you tell me on the way here that you had something to show me, Carrot Top?”

“Oh right!” answered Carrot, taking a break from her meal to pull out a letter. “Here, read this.”

Carrot Top waited eagerly as her friends read over the note.

“Wait, so you’re going to leave Ponyville?” asked Bonbon, eyeing her quizzically.

“Wha-what? No! I mean, yes. I mean... I don’t know!” exclaimed Carrot with a confused expression.

“Well, why did you want to show us this?” Bonbon gestured towards the small written letter that laid lazily over the tablecloth.

“Because I’m not sure if I’m going,” Carrot replied with uncertainty.

“Why not?” asked Lyra. “Sounds like this guy really needs your help. Plus, you really are good with gardening. I mean, your nickname is Golden Harvest.”

“Don’t call me that!” Carrot said with more force than she intended. “Sorry, but I don’t deserve a name like that. I’m not that good. There are so many others that are better, like Applejack or Daisy or Junebug or...”

“Quit being so modest, Carrot,” Lyra interrupted. “You know whenever they have problems, they turn to you for help.”

“Yes, but...” mumbled Carrot. She knew Lyra was right, but that didn’t mean she believed she was any better than them.

“Anyways,” chimed Bonbon, “don’t you want to help out your old friend?”

“Well I do, but I don’t know if I want to see him again. Listen to this...” Carrot began to tell her two friends about Acacia, receiving several ‘Aww...’s as she reached her last moments with him. Finally finishing her story, Lyra and Bonbon sneered at each other.

“Carrot Top! We didn’t know you were the romantic type!” Lyra exclaimed.

“Lyra, that’s not the point-”

“You’re right. The point is bringing you,” Lyra continued, holding up her left hoof, “and Stormy” --holding up her right hoof-- “back together.” The unicorn proceeded to clasp her hooves together, rubbing them against each other.

“Like this,” added Bonbon. Grabbing hold of Lyra, she locked herself in deep embrace with the Unicorn, nuzzling her lovingly right before Carrot’s eyes.

The orange mare’s jaw dropped in shock. She didn’t expect this at all. Her two friends were so blatantly joking about her young relationship. This was a serious decision for her, and she hoped her friends would be more helpful. Face red from embarrassment and annoyance, Carrot sputtered, “Wha- Lyra! Bonbon! Why... Stop it!”

The two pulled away from each other, snickering loudly. “Sorry about that, Carrot, just messing with you,” Lyra said after getting out the last of her giggles. “So he stopped responding to your letters. Maybe he just found somepony else.”

“That’s what I was thinking. But why wouldn’t he tell me about it?”

“Think about it this way, Carrot. If you found another ‘special somepony’, would you have told Stormy about it?” reasoned Lyra.

“Well... I still would have answered the letter and just left out the part of finding another stallion,” Carrot replied with a shrug.

“You can go to Marizona and find out why,” Lyra said, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively to Carrot.

“I’m not going just for that!” Carrot Top protested, trying to ignore her friend’s foalish mindset.

“Well, why not-—”

“Now that I think about it,” Bonbon joined suddenly, cutting her marefriend mid-sentence, “when was the last time you left Ponyville?”

“Just a few months ago,” Carrot answered.

“I mean for yourself, not just to sell carrots.”

“I guess... maybe” mumbled Carrot, trying to remember the last time she gave herself relaxation time outside of Ponyville. “Four years ago? Back when I left for Haywaii.”

“Four years!?” Bonbon exclaimed in disbelief. “Carrot, you have to go out and explore. You can’t just live cooped up here in Ponyville.”

“But I travel to my clients’ towns...”

“Which aren’t too far away. Manehatten, Canterlot, Baltimare, they’re all within an hour’s train ride from here.”

The orange Earth Pony remained silent, unable to find a flaw in her friend’s argument.

“Speaking of clients,” Lyra added, “think about what this could mean for your business. You could totally get more buyers from Marizona and any other neighboring towns.”

Again, Carrot Top had no counterargument. The combination of the mares’ persuasive abilities was making the Earth pony reconsider her decision. However, she gave herself another push to staying where she lived.

“But my farm, I have to stay here for the carrots,” Carrot explained, getting a bit weary from the conversation.

“Carrot Top, you have one of the most successful farms in Ponyville, and it’s renowned for its quality,” Lyra started.

“Well I wouldn’t say it’s one of the most successful farms, but that’s exactly my point. I can’t just leave it.”

“You can’t just leave the farm for a bit? There are a bunch of ponies here in Ponyville that can look over the farm while you’re gone. I mean, look at me. I don’t have anything to do other than practice with my lyre until my next concert. Not saying that I would do it, too much labor for my hooves, but I’m sure there are others who would happily be willing to do so.”

“And while somepony’s working on your farm here, you’ll be off getting more customers in Marizona,” Bonbon said, adding to Lyra’s point.

“I don’t know,” Carrot muttered, uncertainty high in her voice. Her two friends had successfully moved Carrot’s opinion from the middle of the fence to toppling dangerously to one side.

“It’s a win-win situation! You’ll get some free time away from Ponyville, it’s a good business opportunity, you’ll have somepony here to take your place while you’re away, and you can meet your old friend. An old coltfriend at that. Maybe rekindle that fire, hmm?” summarized Lyra, ending with a suggestive look once more.

Carrot Top looked down, heavily reconsidering her decision. All she was hoping for was a small chat at the request for her aid, but she wasn’t actually thinking of leaving Ponyville.. With all the arguing about her situation, the mare was left with one final question.

“Wait, so you girls want me to leave?” she asked, a bit hurt.

“Carrot Top, we love you! Don’t think we’re saying this so we can get rid of you. Staying here would be fine for us too. All we want is what is best for you.”

~~~~~~~~~~

Carrot Top found herself lying on her bed, staring intently at the fateful letter. With the help of Lyra and Bonbon, the chance of Stormy receiving his wishes came more clearly into view. The two showed a ray of light of what her future could be. Now it was up to her if she wanted to step out of the haze and fully embrace the light. The possibilities were warm and bright, yet there was something holding her back. She couldn’t quite tell what it was, the thickness of the fog preventing her from getting a full view of it.

Perhaps it was laziness? Who would want to travel all the way out to Marizona? Then again, there wouldn’t be much of a work difference from where she was now, and there would be plenty of benefits.

Maybe she had angst towards Acacia and that was what was making her reluctant to go, but it seemed almost unreasonable now that she thought about it. Acacia didn’t have much of a choice in the matter for leaving, and there was no way their relationship would have held for all these years without them seeing each other. Strange how he suddenly wrote back to her, and how he got her address.

Looking up, Carrot suddenly realized Acacia shouldn’t have known where she lived. Trotting over to her desk, she gave another look at the recipient’s address. All it showed was her name and “Ponyville.” The orange mare chuckled.

“Derpy really does work wonders. So reliable, she doesn’t even need the street numbers. I guess Stormy only knew the town I lived in. Only makes sense since my old letters... my old letters...” she trailed off, thinking of the messages she had received as a filly.

The mare strolled out of her room and headed up to her attic, coughing as she entered the room when dust suddenly invading her lungs. The only light came from the west window, the setting sun making way for Luna’s night. Shuffling through the room overcrowded with boxes and old family belongings, the mare roamed until she found a box full of papers and folders. An inch of dust, compounded after years, scattered into the air as she blew on it. Pushing the box into the sunlight, the mare began to rifle through the files.

All kinds of papers were stored in there: her high school yearbook, Hearth’s Warming cards, school notebooks, and several Hearts and Hooves Day letters, which Carrot was pleasantly shocked to find. However, those weren’t what she was looking for.

Fifteen silent minutes passed as the Earth pony rummaged through the box. She strained her eyes more and more as the sunlight grew dimmer. Finally, just as she was about to give up and say she threw it away, the mare found it lying on the bottom of the dusty box. Chuckling at her luck, Carrot brought the letter up to the faint orange sunlight to get a better look at it.

In her irritation when she was a filly, she had thrown away most of Acacia’s letters after she was certain he had forgotten her. It made sense to her adolescent mind to do everything she could to forget about him, almost as payback. For some reason or another, she wasn’t able to throw this one away, thus she left it here with her old papers. Unfolding the paper, now yellowing with age, she read Acacia’s first letter to her and realized again why she couldn’t simply dispose of it.

Dear Carrot Top,

This is the first of what I hope will be many letters. I arrived here in Marizona just a week ago, and I’m not really liking it already. Most of the ponies here are farmers, which is fine, but they don’t like newcomers very much. I get very sad sometimes... mom’s always saying how she “left that worthless Pegasus of a husband”. I know they didn’t get along sometimes... but she speaks as if she never loved him at all. I can’t tell if she’s being serious or just trying to be accepted again by her friends. I’ve heard her friends telling her they were unsure about me being her foal... I think I even heard her say she was disappointed that I was a Pegasus. It’s like they really hate Pegasi here. Everything’s so confusing right now...

I know I sound like I’m having a horrible time, but deep inside, I have a lot of hope for the future. Once I’m old enough, I’m flying straight back to you. Imagine it, just you and me, no family to get in the way. When we’re together again, we’ll run off somewhere nice and quiet. Get ourselves a house, a big one too, with a large front yard. And a porch too, so we can always watch the sunset together. You’ll have your garden, and every day I’ll bring in the clouds for the rain. It’ll be perfect; with your gardening talent and my rainclouds, our garden will be renowned for its beauty! Roses, daisies, lilies, whatever you want, there’s no limit for us. Every day, I’ll take you on a flight on my back, just like we used to, so we can look down at your garden from the clouds.

It will be the time of our lives! It may seem like a silly fantasy, but I promise you I’ll make it a reality. I don’t care if it takes 5 years, 10 years, or 100, I promise this is how everything will turn out. Just keep on writing to me, and I’ll keep on writing back. If we keep thinking about each other and keep these letters, we can survive this. I just know we can. Nothing will stop me from seeing you again. I still remember the day I had to leave... it was both the best and the worst day of my life. I feel silly to be writing this... but at that time, all I could think of was how beautiful your eyes were. But that doesn’t even compare to the happy, sincere smile you were bearing.

Sometimes I feel a little scared. I think that you will end up forgetting about me and end up finding another stallion. Just promise me you won’t forget me? I know I won’t forget about you. I can be courted by Princess Celestia herself, and I’ll still refuse to! I will start saving up all the bits I can, so when I have enough, I can buy a train ticket and visit you in Ponyville.

I hope you’re doing well over there... and I hope our garden is still growing strong! Looking forward to hearing from you.

Love,
Stormy Acacia

Carrot Top couldn’t help but smile. A bit foalish, but Stormy certainly did have a way with words. Looking out the window as the sun gave off its last shimmers of light, Carrot allowed her imagination to roam.

There she was, laying down on a couch, watching the orange sky change evermore to black night. But then, Carrot Top closed her eyes and suddenly, there was no couch anymore, just the soft touch of the grass against her furry coat. She inhaled deeply, taking the fresh and warming fragrance that was being carried by a gentle breeze, something that seemed to bring a soothing peace that washed through both her body and soul. As she opened her mind's eye, she noticed it: colors. Reds, yellows, pinks and purples. The vibrant flowers bent gently at the wind’s soft touch. It was more dazzling than the most colorful rainbow. She nuzzled her cheek into the belly her head was laying on and looked upward to see Storm, gazing right back at her like he always did. A soft smile lay on his lips with a dreamy look in his eyes. The Pegasus remained silent, but gently began to stroke her mane, eliciting a comfortable sigh from the mare. She turned her head back to the sunset, thinking of the hundreds of blissful times they had done this, and the hundred more times they would do so again.

Carrot snapped back to reality as nighttime took over, leaving her in darkness. She could barely see anything in the black room. Not that it mattered as her eyes began to blur. Her imagination running wild was too much for her aching heart. Rubbing her eyes, fresh tears spread on her forehooves.

“I promise you I’ll make it a reality...” the mare mumbled. All of a sudden, she had a new fire blazing in her. This amazing dream Storm helped build, something told her she couldn’t just let it go away. He promised to make it happen, why not help him try?

Opening the window, Carrot took in the cool night breeze. The sky’s vast night was all she saw, including the bright stars decorated beautifully by the Princess. Tomorrow, the sun would rise again, but it would shine a different light on her as she stepped out of the fog. Nothing held her back anymore; she knew where she was going, and she knew her reason to go. Somewhere out there, Stormy was waiting for her where hundreds of ponies needed her help. Marizona was calling.

~~~

The brisk morning breeze cooled Carrot Top as she looked down the railroad tracks, waiting for her train to arrive. Only a few other ponies were at the station, mostly businessponies, judging by the fancy suits they were wearing. However, Bonbon and Lyra did decide to accompany her before her departure. She chose to leave right before noon; that way, she would be able to arrive at her destination by late evening. Since Marizona had no station, she would have to go to the closest town and rest for the night. Then, she would hopefully be able to take a carriage the rest of the way. No doubt, she was still a bit nervous about going. The mare turned to her two friends, who were both smiling warmly, and looked for them to help relieve her stress..

“Now don’t miss us too much while you’re gone,” Lyra said with a smirk. “We all know you can’t survive one day without seeing us, but you-—”

“Get outta here,” Carrot replied with a bright smile. The two shared a hearty laugh with each other before giving a warm hug.

“Have a great time, Carrot,” Lyra muttered after breaking the hug. “Oh, and I call being the bridesmaid if anything ‘special’ happens between you and Stormy.”

“Lyra!” Carrot yelled with the slightest blush on her cheeks as the mint green Unicorn let out a loud chuckle. “It’s just a friendly visit. Nothing ‘special’ is going to happen.”

“Or so she thinks...” Bonbon whispered into Lyra’s ear, causing the unicorn to go into another fit of giggles.

“What was that, Bonbon?” Carrot asked, becoming somewhat irritated at their jests. Deep down inside, she did hope for something to happen, but she certainly wasn’t going to show it, especially to these two.

“I said... do you have everything packed up and ready to go?” Bonbon lied, hoping her question would fool the orange mare.

“I think so,” answered Carrot, looking over her multiple bags. “I have my train ticket, gardening tools, some sun hats, 500 bits to spend while I’m there, a few dresses...”

“To wear in case you and Stormy want to spend a romantic night together?” Lyra interrupted with a suggestive wink. Carrot answered simply with a glare, clearly unamused. Faking a cough into her hooves, as though it would erase her comment, the Unicorn said, “Please continue.”

“That should be about it. The farm’s being taken care of so...”

“Let’s just hope Berry Punch and lil’ Ruby are up to the task,” Bonbon commented. “I mean, they-—”

“Don’t...” Carrot interjected, not wanting her imagination run wild at what could happen, “or else I’ll start having second thoughts.”

“It was nice of her to offer to help anyways,” Bonbon added, trying to stick up for the misjudged magenta mare. “It’s not like her job is exciting. Fermenting alcohol is pretty dull and doesn’t need her constant attention. At least now she has something to occupy her time other than drinking half of whatever she makes. And Ruby, of course.”

“She doesn’t have to bring Ruby along,” Carrot muttered, not wanting the little filly to have to suffer working on a farm like she did as a foal.

“Lil’ Ruby? She needs to have some way to release all of her energy. I’m sure she won’t mind at all,” Lyra said, trying to dispel Carrot’s needless worries.

Bonbon nodded in agreement with her marefriend’s words. “Yeah, she’s growing up, and I think it’ll do her a world of good, besides-—”

Train approaching! Please stand back from the tracks! boomed the loudspeaker, interrupting Bonbon’s speech and signaling the upcoming train that slowly approached the station. Carrot Top, startled by the sudden interruption, looked over her shoulder to get a better look at the train. From its chimney erupted a cloud of white smoke, followed by the loud whistle emitted from the furnace when it released its steam. She knew Ponyville was just a connection, and the train wouldn’t linger there for long.

“Here it comes!” yelled Lyra, as the gears on the train’s wheel grinded to a complete halt. “Just look at the size of that thing...” she mused, mesmerized at the brass machinery that was now a few feet away from her. Each wagon consisted of a house-like structure entirely made out of wood, painted with simple colors.

The doors promptly opened, revealing the homely decor inside each cart, welcoming anypony that would climb aboard. Letting out a sigh, Carrot turned to her bags to ready herself to heave them onto her cart. She only wished she could use magic to carry them to the interior compartment.

“Wait just a second,” Lyra said, holding out a hoof before Carrot could grab her first bag, seemingly sensing her friend’s distress. The Unicorn looked around the platform, searching for the perfect target. At last, a sprightly young stallion came dashing to the station. He checked his watch and silently congratulated himself for not missing the train, with a few minutes to spare. Lyra took this opportunity to grab his attention.

“Oh, thank Celestia you’re here!” she exclaimed, trotting towards the stallion. He looked at her quizzically, wondering if he knew the mare from somewhere or if she was just going insane.

“I have these bags here, and they’re just so heavy. But when I saw you come in, I couldn’t help but notice those large muscles you have.”

“Excus- eh... wha-” the stallion stuttered.

“Oh please, wouldn’t a charming gentlecolt like you be willing to help this damsel in distress?” Lyra said, putting on a hurt face and pouting a little. The stallion couldn’t see from that angle, but Carrot Top was trying hard to suppress her giggles whilst Bonbon merely facehoofed in annoyance.

“I... I...” the stallion stammered, prompting the Unicorn to flutter her eyelids to him. “I’d be delighted to,” he said and pushed his torso forwards, trying to look bulkier. A white veil surrounded his horn at what he assumed were Lyra’s bags and, in an instant, the stallion was inside the carriage with bags in tow.

“Oh thank you so much!” exclaimed Lyra, rewarding the stallion with a seductive wink.

“Lyra! You’re terrible!” scoffed Carrot Top, unable to hold back her laughter any longer.

“There’s an entire Equestria out there filled with stallions just like him, Carrot. You got to learn eventually how to handle them. It can be very useful,” Lyra said with a smug. She then acknowledged the grunting Bonbon and turned to face her. “Oh, don’t worry, Bonnie. You’re still my number one mare!” she said, giving her marefriend a light peck on the cheek.

“We’re going to have to talk about this...” muttered Bonbon, unmoved by Lyra’s affection.

“Lighten up!” she exclaimed and proceeded to place a foreleg around her neck. “We wouldn’t want to ruin Carrot Top’s departure, would we?” she asked, to which Bonbon merely sighed.

“THE TRAIN WILL DEPART SOON!” exclaimed the conductor. “ALL PASSENGERS, PLEASE COME ABOARD AND PRESENT YOUR TICKETS!”

Carrot Top turned to her two friends. Bonbon’s demeanor was quick to change and both were beaming at her, yet she could still see traces of the tears they were holding back. She swallowed the lump in her throat, not wanting to be the first to break down. Struggling to find the right words to say, Carrot complied with

“Well, I guess this is it...”

Bonbon approached first to give her a parting hug. Audible sniffles came from the cream-coated mare, at which Carrot continued to fight back against her overwhelming emotions. “Stay strong,” Bonbon whispered into her friend’s ear before tightening the embrace just a bit and breaking away soon after. “Have a great time Carrot Top,” concluded the mare.

“Thank you,” mouthed Carrot, afraid that speaking might break the threshold and cause her to cry. She turned to Lyra, who seemed to have a bit more control over her emotions. Lyra looked everywhere around Carrot, but could not bring herself to look directly into her eyes.

“This is it, Carrot. I guess... I’ll see you soon?” Lyra asked, a little shakiness to her voice.

Carrot simply smiled at Lyra. “I’ll come back as soon as I’m done with the situation in Marizona,” she reassured. The two mares pulled together into a friendly hug, to which Lyra quickly whispered,

“Don’t come back until you have foals.”

Carrot couldn’t help but laugh at Lyra’s statement. She always did seem to know just what to say to lighten up the mood. “Don’t ruin the moment,” the orange mare whispered back.

It was Lyra’s turn to chuckle. “At least give him a chance,” Lyra mumbled, still sticking to jesting about Storm.

“I... won’t disappoint you,” Carrot said, finally deciding that arguing back would do no good.

“Good,” Lyra answered with a satisfied smile. Changing her expression to a more serious one, she declared, “Go show those ponies what you’re made of. I know you can do it!”

“Thanks Lyra, I’ll try my hardest,” Carrot responded, taking her friend’s words to heart.

“Great. Now... now get on that train, you got to leave soon,” Lyra stuttered, unable to find the right words to finally say goodbye. The orange mare gave one last nod to the Unicorn in response, and was about to do the same to Bonbon, but she was nowhere to be found. She climbed aboard the locomotive, giving one last look over her shoulder to see her friend. Taking a seat, Carrot clutched her heart, breathing deeply as she just passed through the most emotional part of the departure.

As soon as the train began to pick up its speed, another loud whistle was heard from the locomotive. Carrot Top looked through the window to see both her friends waving at her. Bonbon was openly crying whilst Lyra held a gloomy smile of acceptance plastered upon her face. The orange mare had to stifle a giggle when she saw the stallion who carried her bags inside the wagon wave frantically towards Lyra, his face practically glued to the window glass.

The train picked up its speed quickly, making it distance itself from the station more and more. Carrot Top lay her head back onto the headrest and looked through her window. The stallion Lyra had tricked was now nowhere to be seen. She shrugged and allowed her mind to wander while she sat back and looked at how beautiful Ponyville looked when bathed by the morning sun. No sound other than the monotonous, metallic creaks of the wheels grinding against tracks could be heard, permeated by the loud whistles provenient from the boiler when it needed to release some steam. Stifling a yawn, the mare stretched out her legs and proceeded to seat herself in a more comfortable position. She looked to the trees, their leaves rustling lazily with the wind that rolled on the outside. The peaceful setting in the distance made her eyes flutter and weigh down, prompting another yawn to come, but she didn’t try to hide it this time. She adjusted herself onto her seat and obliged to the drowsiness that invaded her.

~~~~~~~

“Move!” Carrot Top urged, turning to a herd of sheep that slowly entered the barn behind her. After all of them had entered, she grabbed one of the sliding door’s hinges and began to pull it. The first door was halfway closed when she felt something sharp stab her back. Her muscles refused to comply and she fell limply to the ground, panting heavily. She turned around and saw that a black ooze dripped from the fangs of a mighty serpent, its tail impaling her backside. She covered herself with both forehooves when the beast snapped towards her, wrapping her body and violently constricting it. A surge of pain passed through her body, as if white-hot needles were jammed where she was being constricted. The pain only grew, and Carrot Top felt as if a blazing fire was coursing through her body, burning her coat and the skin from within. The mare could feel the life being squeezed out of her. Through the pain, she managed to open one of her eyes and looked at the one assaulting her. She was shocked to see all the malice gone from its eyes. They were blank, staring emotionless at her. For just a split second, she could have sworn it resembled one of the sheep with her. She reached one of her forehooves to it, trying to reach out for the creature. But as she did so, its eyes glared in a sickening tone of red and the last thing Carrot Top saw was the final glimmers of the sun, glowing in an ominous red.

~~~~~~~

Carrot Top gasped and shot her eyes open, instantly putting a hoof over her racing heart. The loud whistle from the burning engine had startled her awake from the dream. After calming herself for a few moments, she opened her eyes and looked outside the window. A quaint little town was in the distance with houses made of boards and topped with wooden roofs. As she pondered as to why the station was built so far away from the town, something else invaded her mind. The strange dream she just had was still fresh.

Sheep... a burning sensation... what was that...?

The train came to a complete stop as she mulled over her dream, but as the ponies began to disembark from the train, she shifted her attention elsewhere and went to search for her bags. As she began to carry them out of the wagon, she already began to forget the dream, deeming it as just an effect from the jitters of traveling to a new town. Little did she wonder of just how much a dream could reveal.