EP: Catch me if you can

“I want to be like John Dillinger… Just try and catch me if you can....”

“Dear Cuz,

You would not believe the day I just had. Dunno how fast news travels down there, but maybe y’all have heard about the return of Nightmare Moon. Well, let me tell it from my view. It all started when this purple unicorn came down to the farm…”

Braeburn rolled his eyes and smiled as he read his cousin’s letter. Applejack always had a knack for getting into all sorts of trouble. It was good to see that she was still doing well.

Laying the letter aside, he glanced at a piece of paper he had been writing on. ‘Chapter 1:’ he wrote. He hesitated. It didn’t seem right starting with ‘1.’ He crossed it out and wrote instead, ‘Chapter x.’ Thinking for a minute, he checked the time. ‘Chapter x: 02:09.’

His quill hovered over the sheet for a minute. He dropped it to the table and searched his bookshelf. He pulled out a record and blew the dust off of it. ‘Vinyl Scratch: Brave,’ he read. A knocking at his door caused his ear to twitch. “You in, Brae? Ah need to talk to you,” a voice called.

“Be right out!” responded Braeburn. He grabbed his hat and vest and left the farmhouse.

On the porch, he breathed in the dusty desert air. It had been a hindrance at first, but he got used to it. “Howdy, Brae,” greeted a pony.

“Mornin’, Sheriff. What’s the news today?”

Sheriff Silverstar rolled his eyes. “Buffalo seem to be keepin’ their distance for now.”

“Good to hear,” commented Braeburn as he looked towards the apple orchards. Growing apple trees in the desert had been no easy task, but they made it work.

“By the way… you’ve got a visitor.”

He raised his eyebrow. “Visitor? Now, who in their right mind would want to visit Appleoosa?”

xXx

The pegasus squinted through the dust cloud at the small town. “He actually did it… Unbelievable.” Her companion laughed.

“You sound scared, Daring.”

Daring rolled her eyes. “Of course I’m scared, Soarin. Would I be thinking straight if I wasn’t?”

He shrugged. “Come on, it’s not like you don’t know him.”

She pawed at the dirt. “But that’s just it! We haven’t talked at all since I left! How do I know he hasn’t changed or something?”

Soarin fought off the urge to slap his hoof against his face. “I thought you were Daring Do, fearless adventurer adored by colts and fillies everywhere? The explorer who isn’t afraid of anything?”

“Even if I say it doesn’t scare me… it does, damn it. It does.” She gave a frustrated sigh. “I’d almost rather drown in an ocean somewhere than do this. At least I’d know where I was going.”

“Oh, come on, Daring. We’re all headed somewhere, that’s pretty much the same thing.” Soarin nudged his friend. “Besides, no turning back now.” He pointed down the hill, where a pony in a brown vest and hat was headed their way. “I’m going to see if I can’t track down some pie. Good luck!” With that, the pegasus took off.

Braeburn came into view, nodding at Daring. “Hey, Darin’!”

She smiled at him. “Hey, Brae! It’s been a while.”

“Yeah, it sure has.” He gestured towards the town below them. “S’pose Ah should welcome you to Appleoosa.”

“Doesn’t sound right,” she mused.

“What doesn’t?”

“The name. Maybe if you said it more like…” Daring reared up on her hind legs. “Aaaaaaaaappleoosa!”

Braeburn chuckled. “Heh, maybe. We’ll see.”

“How’d you get all the way out here, Brae? Last I saw you were still living with your cousin.”

“Long story. Ah just liked the thought of bein’ able to run away for once. Besides, my cousins can handle themselves. Ah’ve faith in them.”

“Hey, Brae… Are you still scared of the future?”

“Reckon so. Ah guess Ah always will be. What about you?”

“Me? Well… I’ve always liked the idea of being a runaway. I don’t know… I’ve been feeling kind of nostalgic. Guess that’s why I came back. What if we did the things we used to do, Brae? You think that would take us back to those days before I left?”

He thought for a moment. “Worth a shot, Ah guess.”

As they settled down on the barren hill, he chuckled. “You know… Ah still hear the song. It’s the same one, after all these years.”

“I hear it too, Brae,” she answered. “I guess not much has changed. Still, I want to go back to those days. Life wasn’t so complicated then.”

“Nah, we just thought we understood it. Ah kind of get what you were talkin’ about when we first met. Ah just want to ride off into that sunset, not a care in the world. No plans or anythin’ to hold me back.”

“Plans change a lot,” she replied. “They're overrated anyways. I get what you said too. Nopony ever really knows where they're going, but they love rushing towards it. It feels good to slow down sometimes.”

Braeburn squinted at the sun. “You ever feel like the past keeps changin’? Like every time you think about it, it’s not as good as it used to be?”

Daring nodded. “Yeah, and I hate it. I just want to cherish these memories, but they’re just not golden anymore. I want to change that so, but I can’t.”

“Last time we met… We decided it be best if we took some time to heal. You think we’ve healed yet, Darin’?”

“I guess… It sure doesn’t hurt as much as it used to.” A thought occurred to Daring. “Brae, when we first met… Soarin wanted me to give a package to your cousin. What was in it?”

Braeburn blinked. “You still remember that?” He thought for a second, then grinned. “Oh, you wouldn’t believe me if Ah told you.”

“Try me.”

He laughed. “It was your book, Darin’.” The pegasus blinked. “Soarin was tryin’ to get Mac invested in your series. Thought it be funny if you delivered it yourself.”

The two laughed. The more she thought about those days, the more Daring realized that even though they were scared of the future, they didn’t let it bother them. They had gone and made something.

“Brae… Who says we can’t go back?” She shot up, eyes gleaming.

“What do you mean, Darin’?”

“I mean, who cares if we lose the past? We have today! We have tomorrow! Let’s go make some more memories, if only for today. We lived because we loved it then, so let’s do it now.”

Braeburn smiled at her enthusiasm. “Well… Ah guess it’s worth a shot. Even if it’s only for today.”

“Let’s do it then! I’m going to relive the past!” She spread her wings and smirked at Brae. “Catch me if you can!” She shot to the sky.

The stallion laughed. “You’re on.” He took off running down the hill, leaving a trail of dust behind.

“... Oh, I’m going back, Catch me if you can.”

xXx
end
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