Three, little fillies stood in the dark, wondering what this place would bring. But they were blind to the dark, trapped in a vision of lucid wonder. It wasn't anything like they were expecting. And when they were able to tell each other about it later on, the incident seemed to have a three-way path, one for each of them to experience.

To Applebloom, she could feel the soft brush of farm grass against her hooves. A distinct aroma of morning dew, hay, and the stables filled her with a sense of familiarity. And she could see and hear all this experience had to offer her.

She cantered through the fields, freshly coated with just the right amount of dew on each tiny blade of grass and leaf, as the wind blew through her mane. The sun was high in the sky, beaming down on her back and hugging her in warmth. She cantered over to the other side of the field where there was a fair-sized hill with a tree on top as well as two figures.

"Applebloom!" a pair of voices called out to her from atop the hill.

Though she had never heard such voices before, her heart filled with joy when their words hit her ears. They were ponies who she never had met, but they were familiar to her.

"Momma? Papa!" she squealed as her eyes filled with joyful tears.
"Yer alive!"

In an almost overwhelming joy, she rushed to the top of the hill and threw herself onto them into a hug. The trio laughed as they rolled around and tickled one another.

"Hey there! Wait fer us!" Applejack called out.

She, Big Mac, and Granny Smith were all rushing to the top as well. As soon as they reached the top, Applebloom called out "Pig pile" and the whole family jumped on top of each other in a cuddle. The warmth of her father and the smell of the straw coming from his dusty Stetson as she laid her head on his chest was absolutely soothing and common, as if it was something she felt and smelled everyday.

Next thing she knew, he grabbed her and tickled her. Applebloom laughed in shock and happiness as they rolled on top of each other. By a mishap, the two found themselves rolling down the hill. Now she had her papa and the grass tickling her as she barreled on downwards, giggling all the while.

The rest of the family followed on down and they all tumbled in peels of laughter and tears. After a few moments, Applebloom stood up. Her back was covered in grass and dirt, but she didn't care. Everyone was enjoying themselves and that was all that mattered to her right now.

The rest of the day was the best day that she had had in ages. She got to bake apple pies with her momma, Apple Song, as she told her little sugar cube stories about when she was just an even tinier filly and of when she herself was a filly. Apple Song was a ruffian much like Applebloom and wasn't one to give up when it came to getting her cutie mark, which turned out to be an apple cut in half with a quarter note carved into it.

"Every night, when ah came in for supper," Apple Song told Applebloom as they rolled out the dough for the pies.
"Momma Smith would tell me 'Apple Song, yeh little riff-raff rebel, what am ah gonna do with yeh? Aw well. Y'all beytter git yerself cleaned up.' Ah often came in with burrs in mah mane and tail er tree sap and pine needles on mah hooves and flank.

"'How are yeh gonna git a nice stallion fer a husband if all yeh do is tumble round in the mud all day?' she would ask me. And once ah became a mare, ah found out she had raised enough bits to send me to a finishin' school. Ah threw such a fuss bout it, didn't ah, Momma?" she asked turning to Granny Smith.

"Yeh sure did," she replied.
"Took me ages to git yeh in the train. Ah told yeh 'it's fer yeh own good, Song. It's fer yeh own good.'"

Applebloom snickered at the thought of her mother throwing a fuss in public.

"The school didn't change me though," Apple Song giggled.
"Ah was still a country rabble-rouser at heart."

"Jist like Manon a the Springs?" Applebloom asked her.

"Ah guess yeh could say that. Ah caused a bit a trouble up at the finishin' school so ah could git mah cutie mark."

"Yeh nearly got expelled is what yeh did," Granny Smith chimed in.

"What did yeh do there?" Applebloom asked.

"Ah don't wanna say much, but one a the stunts ah pulled involved a porcupine, couple-a chickens, and some dense glue."

Applebloom snickered and shook her head at her mother's antics, not so different from her own.

She and her papa, Apple Slice, went far out into the forest and collected so many zap apples that they wouldn't run out for several seasons and he taught her the best way and location to buck the trunk. With a little help and practice, Applebloom was able to buck every single apple off of the largest apple tree in the forest in one swift kick.

There was a rush of adrenaline as all the apples fell right into the baskets below. It made her feel absolutely unstoppable. The strength and courage she felt propelled her to carry every single basket of apples on her back without any struggle. On the way back, he told her about his childhood.

"Ah wasn't like yer momma. Ah was a pretty good colt, though yer momma'd say otherwise."

"How'd yeh meet her?"

"Met her at that finishin' school she was sent to. Ah found her outside the school, cryin' her eyes out. Turns out she had somethin' stuck inside a her flank. Er a lot a somethins. So ah went over and offered teh pull them out. But it was tough teh git them all. Seemed teh be glued teh her flank."

"What was inside-a her flank?"

Apple Slice snickered at the memory.

"She had a whole 3 dozen porcupine quills stuck in her flank. She couldn't sit on her bottom fer weeks afterwards!" he hooted with laughter.

And just when Applebloom thought the whole day couldn't get any better, sure enough, it did; a bazillion times better. When she and Apple Slice returned from the orchard that evening, she found the rest of the Apple family setting up for what looked like a party. As she got closer to the farm, thousands upon thousands of familiar foods wafted their scents into her nostrils in an instant; apple pies, apple fritters, fried apple slices, apple cakes, apple cider, apple tea; deep-fried, honey-glazed, mini apple doughnuts; apple butter, apple jams and jellies, applesauce, apple bread, brown sugar-coated apple slices, apple pancakes, apple waffles, apple syrup, apple ice cream, apple juice, apple sugar, chocolate-covered apple slices, apple soda, apple candy canes, apple drops, apple shaved ice, apple lemonade, apple limeade, apple-glazed bacon, apples slices coated with syrup and bacon, and even more foods she couldn't name.

After a feast fit for an alicorn, the family gathered for the hoedown of a lifetime. The music was radiating with wholesome family energy. Applebloom found herself to be queen of the hoedown as her feet moved in such a graceful way that she couldn't believe. The family hooted and hollered with excitement as she completed the Apple Two-time kick, a dance move past down through generations of Apples in hopes some pony could do it once again, on the very first try.

And to close it off, a fireworks show headed by her Uncle Apple Blast. She managed to snag a front row seat with Babs. As the fireworks blasted over Sweet Apple Acres, she could smell the strong hint of zap apple. She held her tongue out and, sure enough, she could taste the flames without being burnt.

She closed her eyes in satisfaction. This had truly been the perfect day.

What Applebloom didn't know, however, was that her whole day was only a few minutes back in the real Equestria. As she came to from her trance, she shook her head.

"What the buck just happened?" she asked.

Dazed and confused, Applebloom silently stumbled about in the dark for sometime, looking for a way out, when a voice broke her silence.

"Remember what I told you and obey me," it purred.

Immediately her eyes went blank and her jaw slacked a touch.

"Yes, my master," she droned.
"I remember and I shall obey."

"Very good, my little pet. Now you shall not remember me talking to you. You shall only remember the wonderful day you had and the commands you were given. Is that clear, my dear?"

"Yes, my master. I shall not remember talking to you. I shall only remember the wonderful day I had and the commands I was given."

"You shall continue to think of me as your master, as your leader, as your God, as your maker, as your creator, as your everything, as your life; you shall continue to think of yourself as my pet, as my puppet, as my slave, as my toy, as my follower, as my robot, as my drone, as my doll, as my humble, loyal, and ever-obedient servant."

"You are my master, my leader, my God, my maker, my creator, my everything, my life. I am but your pet, your puppet, your slave, your toy, your follower, your robot, your drone, your doll, your humble, loyal, and ever-obedient servant."

"You like to obey. You live to please your master."

"I like to obey. I live to please my master."

"Without your master, you are nothing."

"Without my master, I am nothing."

"Very good. If you continue to serve your master, your master shall reward you with fantasies and pleasures beyond your wildest imagination. Now when you hear a snap, you will walk back to the door. Once you reach the door, you will return to your normal self. Is that clear?"

"Yes, my master."

"Very good, my slave."

She heard a snap and walked to the door, leaving the other two Crusaders in total darkness.

Author's Note

This was a long chapter to write, but kind of a fun one. I even kinda got caught up in Applebloom's fantasy. I'm gonna take the next two chapters for each of the CMC.