Author's Note

First off - welcome! Thank you all for joining me on this adventure!

I have been watching this weird little show for about a year now. I never imagined that I would get so sucked in as to begin writing fanfiction about it. However, I have long wanted to share my stories on an open stage, and I believe this could be it.

This is not only my first fanfiction; this is my first story ever. I often sit outside and dream up large worlds or dramatic scenarios, but I have never attempted to stitch them together into a coherent story. I very much appreciate any and all comments and critique.

Now, there are two points I'd like to make before the story begins. First of all: the "countryisms." I live in Texas, so I'm no stranger to this kind of talk, but in every story I've read involving Applejack, I've found her dialogue to be very slow and confusing. We don't have a specific dialect or accent we follow. We simply have lazy tongues. We'll pronounce "our" like "are," "it's" like "i's," "what you" like "wha'choo," and so on. Trying to translate this into writing is very difficult, and people who don't speak like it every day won't be able to follow the story (read Tom Sawyer, and you'll see what I mean). I've eased up on this sort of writing so that readers will (hopefully) be able to read their own way while still getting that country vibe.

Second of all, the pacing in this chapter is very inconsistent. I wanted to establish the Apples as I saw them, not as the show describes them. Unfortunately, I wasn't sure how to handle this without rewriting the whole chapter several times over. I hope I'll be able to fix this with future characters.

I have a lot planned for this story, so please enjoy!

A Secret

The bond of love is stronger than any chain, for it is a bond of both heart and soul.

Applejack awoke to the familiar feeling of quilted cotton on fur. The smell of chocolate and syrup spiraling up from the kitchen downstairs told her that Granny was already working on breakfast.

It's a special day - her sister's special day. None of the Apples could really believe it. Their little Applebloom had finally blossomed. It was her 16th birthday; she was now a legal adult. It felt surreal that her once baby sister had grown up. The cute, little filly was neither cute nor little anymore; she had grown to become a beautiful young mare.

Applejack thought these things through the haze of morning lethargy. She lifted herself up and down from the old bed and donned her iconic Stetson hat. She stepped into the hall to head downstairs. The trumpeting sound of somepony’s nose being blown gave her a double-take.

She followed her ears to the source of the disturbance: her big brother’s room. Slipping behind the door, she began, "Big Mac, what're you..." She stopped when she saw what her older brother held between his hooves. There, he had a framed picture of their late parents.

The mother and father in the portrait smiled lazily up from Big Mac's hooves. The mare boasted a freely flowing blonde mane that clashed with a mangy, yellow coat. She leaned against the side of an exceptionally large, red-coated stallion with a low-cut, orange mane. He was the spitting image of Big Mac, whose younger self stood between the two in the frame, working a sheepish smile. Applejack's mother held her infant self in one hoof.

Big Mac himself wasn’t crying – he hardly ever did – but something had unhinged him. He sat up in his bed and looked at his sister. Applejack fixed her eyes on her brother's and hopped up beside him. "Oh Mac, Ah haven't seen you like this in years." She would have wrapped a foreleg around him, but she probably wouldn't reach even halfway around. "Ah miss ‘em too, but you're too old for this now. Did somethin’ happen?"

Big Mac still wouldn't look at her. "Nope." To any other pony, even the other Apples, that one word would have betrayed none of the emotion Applejack’s brother had been feeling. Fortunately, Applejack was as close to her brother as caramel on a candy apple.

"Big Mac, Ah ain't leaving till I hear what you're really thinkin’."

Her brother took a deep breath, and smiled, "Ah never told ya, did I? When Pa was close to.. ya know.. he had me promise somethin’. He had me promise that Ah would look out for y'all two - you and Applebloom, Ah mean. He told me Ah was the stallion of the house, and I had to be strong. He said that.. that Ah had to be the stallion that he couldn't be." His smile shook, and he squinted his eyes, keeping them focused on the empty ceiling. “Mom was already gone, but we had Granny. I guess Pa thought Ah was the only one who could take his place. With Applebloom all grown up now, Ah figure I made it.”

Applejack laid her hat on the bed in front of her and arched her head over her brother's shoulder. "He must've been the proudest father in the world," she said. He closed his eyes as they glossed over with overdue tears, turning away from his sister. She continued, "I’d say you made it. Our baby sis is all grown up. The farm is expanding, and our parents' dreams live on through us." Despite himself, Big Mac cracked another smile.

"You're the one running everythin’, though," He said. "We would fall apart without you."

"And Ah would fall apart without you." She stretched up on her back-legs and pecked her brother on the cheek. "Buck up, big bro. We still gotta give Applebloom sixteen years of birthday blessings," She winked. Big Mac faced his sister and grinned. She hopped down and grabbed her hat. "I'll see ya downstairs, Mac." She slipped back through the doorway, closing it behind her. Smiling to herself, Applejack donned her hat once again.

As she headed for the stairs in front of her, Applejack thought back to just how much Applebloom had grown in the past few years. She was now nearly the same height as Applejack, though she was a little leaner near her rear; she hadn't had quite as much time to build up her bucking muscles as Applejack had. Her cherry mane had grown so long, she had forgone her big bow in favor of a thin, yellow ribbon that held her hair to the side much like Applejack's.

Applejack left the last few stairs behind and came into view of the kitchen. Granny was hobbling along as fast as her old hips would take her. Chocolate chip pancakes were piling up in a steamy pile on the table. A pitcher of apple juice was loaded and at the ready.

"Howdy Granny!" said Applejack.

"Mornin' Applejack. Won't you c'mere and gimme a break from all this cake-makin’? I’m gettin’ too old for this…"

"Sure thing, Granny." Applejack came over to relieve the old mare right as the remaining Apples came trotting in.

Applebloom staggered in behind Big Mac, obviously exhausted. "Sigh - I feel old already." Apparently, she had decided to stay up late to observe her birthday early. She, Big Mac, and Granny sat around the table as Applejack finished the last of the pancakes, launching them directly from the skillet to the table. She then took her place between Applebloom and Granny.

Big Mac caught her eye with a mischievous grin. She winked back, returning the expression. Applebloom had her eyes shut throughout this exchange, as she was putting all her energy into staying awake.

Suddenly, Big Mac reached around Applebloom and held her forelegs to her sides.

"H-hey! What’re you doin'?!"

"Sorry Applebloom," said Applejack. "It's just tradition." She snickered evilly.

"GRANNY! HELP ME!" Applebloom pleaded.

"Sorry child. Ya can't mess with tradition," said a rather aloof Granny.

Laughing manically, Applejack sauntered over to her sister. "It's time for yer birthday noogies!"

"NO!" Applebloom was in hysterics, yet her older sister showed no mercy. She lifted her right hoof to Applebloom’s head and proceeded to torture the mare with sixteen long seconds of bombarding head noogies.

"One, two..." Applejack counted. She lifted her hoof for a moment at the end of each second. "Five, six, sevennn..." She started to slow down.

"APPLEJACK," Applebloom yelled. "Don't you dare!"

Applejack laughed and continued at normal speed. "... fifteen, sixteen!" She stopped the torture and leaned back in her chair. Big Mac let Applebloom go and snickered at her mutinous expression.

"I hate that stupid tradition..." Applebloom’s eyes were attempting to bore through her siblings’ jovial faces.

"Ya never seem to think so when it's one of our birthdays," Applejack said.

Applebloom gave the most fleeting smile. "Only cause y'all deserve it."

"Enough of that!" Granny exclaimed. "Let's get to eatin’ already!"

"Now we're talking!" Applebloom said. She dropped her grumpy facade and grabbed as many pancakes as she could get her hooves around. The mountain of cakes swayed in her hooves as she maneuvered them onto her plate.

"Eep!" Applebloom squeaked, and a dozen cakes flopped onto the table. Winona barked from her newfound position in Applebloom's lap. She pounced on a pancake and scurried off with it between her teeth.

Big Mac burst out laughing at the fleeing thief. Applejack's voice shook as she tried to retain her own laughter. "Winona - n-no! Bad dog! Go to jail!" Winona whined and dragged her sorry tail to jail - the kennel in the corner. She still had her prize from the table.

"Honestly," Applejack said, "you'd expect an old dog like her to lay around bein’ lazy, not jumpin’ on us and our food."

"Ya can't teach and old dog new tricks," Applebloom smiled. "You never taught her how to relax."

"Yeah, Ah guess I can't teach her what Ah don't know myself."

The Apples smiled knowingly. "Ya got that right," Applebloom said.

With Winona in jail and the sun leaving the horizon, the Apple family made short work of the remaining pancakes. Big Mac was given dish duty for the day. The girls moved to the living room next door. Granny left through the front door to get a head start on her gardening, but Applejack and Applebloom sat on the sofa.

"So sis," Applejack said, "ya made it. You're all grown up now."

"Woo-hoo.." Applebloom grinned.

Applejack shuffled uncomfortably. "Sigh - well, Ah guess I can't hide it any longer. I've been keeping a secret. You won't like it."

Applebloom lifted an eyebrow and dropped her smile. "O-okay."

Applejack turned away from her sister. She didn't want Applebloom to see her face just then.

"Ah waited this long so that you would have a choice. You can live on your own now, so I figure..." Her voice cracked. Her body seemed to shiver with anticipation. Applebloom's throat was dry.

"You're adopted."

Applebloom seemed to shrink. "I - no... that can't be true..." Her whole world was shattered. She had lived on the farm her entire life. She had grown up alongside her brother and sister... or so she thought. Had she been living a lie?

Applejack snorted and rolled off the couch in uncontrollable fits of laughter. "Hahaha! Ah got you good! Hahahaha! You should see your face right now!"

Oh yes, Applebloom had an expression of undeniable fury. Unfortunately, it served only to fuel her sister's cruel hysteria.

"You... you... you..." Applebloom could not seem to find harsh enough words. She compensated by expressing herself through physical means.

"I'll teach you to laugh at me..." Applebloom grinned devilishly. Applejack had just begun calming down before Applebloom executed a relentless barrage of tickles on her exposed belly.

"Haha - Apple - ha - BLOOM! STOP!"

"Nuh uh. Ah wanna make sure ya get it out of your system."

Applejack writhed in agony, yet her sister would not let up.

"Uh..."

Applebloom froze and looked up. Big Mac had just walked in. He stood in the doorway and gave a look that quite plainly asked 'What in the world are you two doing?'

Applejack and Applebloom looked at each other for a moment. Then, they started laughing.

"Haha - ow - I'm getting stitches from laughing so much!" She took a few deep breaths and staggered onto her hooves. Big Mac was being unusually quiet for the situation. "What's up, bro? Is someone here?"

"Eeyup."

That figures. He always clams up when other ponies are around.

"Alright. Give me a minute." She took a few more moments to relax and headed for the backdoor.