It was just a stick, Sis...
"Wah!" Apple Bloom shrieked as a brown and white mass of fur collided with her face. A sheepdog known as Winona, to be exact. Winona had been Applejack's sidekick in herding animals for many years now, but she would often wrestle with Apple Bloom.
Which she was doing now. Muzzles connected, paw and hoof clashed, one long red tail wrapped around one short white one. Bright orange eyes made contact with brown ones, with two pairs of green eyes watching from the other side of the room, two warm smiles graced the deep red and soft orange faces that gazed at their younger sister. Applejack and Big Macintosh observed the scene that had taken place so many other times in that cozy living room.
"Just look at 'er, Mac. Brings back memories, don't it?" She knew what the answer would be....
"Eeyup!" And she was right. But though it was a short answer, it let both mare and stallion remember when Applejack had been that young. She had been eight, and Big Mac twelve, and being the hardheaded pony she was, Applejack had insisted on jumping on the already broken couch. Big Macintosh had refused, telling her to go to bed, but the saucy filly had ignored him. A threat to tell Granny followed, with a sneer of "Ya'll gonna be a tattletale, are ya?" close by. As the stallion, well, colt at that point, had turned to tell on his sister, Applejack had leapt onto his back, sending him to the ground. The minutes that followed involved lots of playful pouncing and laughter and attempts to keep quiet for the sleeping Apple Bloom down the hall. It had been a happier time.
A time that she was glad her sister could enjoy now. Apple Bloom was still a filly, and while she did have her fair share of chores, nopony expected her to handle larger jobs. After chores, homework, and dinner, the family could relax. Applejack often used this time to think over her day, or plan for the next. Right now she was thinking of Scootaloo and Rainbow Dash, more the latter than the former. She was thinking how proud of Rainbow she was for taking Scoot in and making her life so much better....
"Hey, sis?"
The voice snapped her out of her daydream. " Huh? Oh, sorry. What is it, Bloom?"
"Can Ah go play fetch with Winona?"
Applejack considered this. It was growing darker, and it was a school night. But five or ten minutes in the open air never hurt nopony.
"Alright. But come in when it starts gettin dark, okay? And stay by the kitchen window where I can see you."
Apple Bloom frowned. " Can Ah at least go out back to get a stick? Winona popped her bouncy ball last week and we ain't got anything else ta throw."
"Okay, but ya'll come right back 'round front when ya got yer stick, ya hear?" Apple Bloom nodded and flew out the door, Winona close at her heels. Applejack shook her head, grinning to herself. She turned to the stallion at her side. "Can ya gimme a hoof with the kitchen, Big Mac?" she asked, starting into the kitchen to wipe down the plates and keep an eye on Apple Bloom. Big Macintosh nodded and looked around for the broom. Snagging it from its place in the far corner, he guided it along the hardwood floor.
"Aw, shoot. Apple Bloom used the dish sponge to clean the water bucket today. " The orange mare pushed out on the glass windowpane and leaned out. "Bloom, where's that sponge you used earlier?"
The pale yellow filly was glancing around the small yard. "Uh, Ah put it on the coffee table, AJ..." she replied absentmindedly, clearly more concerned with whatever she was looking for. Winona was nowhere to be seen.
"Bloom, ya okay? Where's Winona?"
Apple Bloom shrugged. "That's just it! I just threw it and she took off running in the other direction! Ah don't know where she is."
Applejack frowned at this. "AB, what in tarnation did ya throw to spook her that bad?"
"It was just a stick, sis..."
Facehoof. "Well don't just stand there! Let's find that dog!"
.
It wasn't long before the three siblings were fanned out to all corners of the farmyard, digging through straw stacks, looking in carts, and poking around in all corners of the barn, behind every tree, and everywhere else a dog could be. Every once in awhile a brown and white blur would race past, but it was rare, and the source was lost every time.
"Consarn it! If only Ah hadn't pushed that dog so hard at runnin'! Maybe then she wouldn't be so speedy! If'n this keeps up, we ain't never gonna find her!" Applejack swore, whipping off her hat and clutching it to her heart. She stared into the trees above as the wind began to blow, causing the scent of the ripening apples to waft across the land, and the golden and red leaves that were falling to create small twisters all over the farm. This situation seemed familiar to her, too familiar. She turned to her siblings, replacing her Stetson on top of her head. "We are NOT losin' another member of this family. She may not be a pony, but Winona has been a lil' sis to all of us, and I ain't lettin' the same thing happen to her that happened to Ma and Pa!"
Big Macintosh understood this. He nodded and raced off, keeping a sharp eye out for the pup.
Applejack sighed. "We're gonna find you, Winona!" she called, her voice echoing across the farm.
.
They had been searching for nearly an hour, tracking pawsteps. The only thing they noticed was that the tracks they were following always steered at least 10 feet from the barn. No one could put a hoof on it.
Until something clicked in Applejack's mind.
"I've got it! Bloom, you said you threw a stick right? And then she ran away, right?"
"Uh, yeah?"
Applejack whacked herself in the face. "Of course! Avoiding the barn, the stick, the runnin'! It all makes sense! Winona's seen us getting sticks and headin' to the barn with them, and then when we're inside, there's crying' and screamin'! So, when you threw the stick, Winona was afraid SHE was gonna have to go inside the barn!
It clicked in Big Mac's mind too, and he chuckled. "Well whadaya know. A dog afraid of a switchin'." The two older siblings laughed as Winona skidded to a halt in front of them. Applejack tackled her immediately.
"Oh, Winona. You are so random, ya know that?" And suddenly it was an apple sandwich, all three children piling on top of one dog.
If real life could zoom in on things, it would have, because right at that point, Winona winked.
