Winona winced a little as she dropped from Applejack’s hooves, her soft paws hitting the ground without a sound. Now, if only her joints could be so kind as they creaked and groaned under her weight. Not that she’d usually let that stop her in the past. She was a working dog, and nothing could stop her from doing that, not even these past few days. After all, her master told her it was her job to rest right now.
But… Right now, she had to break that, just for tonight. She had a bit of business to do, and if she just stayed where she was, focused only on her and her master… Winona shut her eyes and took a deep breath in before she began to plod out the door. She would need to come back anyways, so… So it was easier this way.
Even the porch was hard for her to stop at. It held too much at the moment. Too much that made her chest swell, and made her want to bounce about like the puppy she’d once been. Bounce around in the same way that usually got her legs to come out from under her nowadays. At least Apple Bloom usually got a laugh out of that.
Oh, Apple Bloom…
The young mare was a sweet soul, but was maybe a little too troublesome for her own good. Not that Winona minded. There were so many days in front of the yard when the young dog had been able to take the even younger filly down like a rodeo cow. As they both got older, she brought her snacks, sometimes intentionally, like an apple or a piece of candy, sometimes not so much, like when she and her friends were covered in sap. Those were the best days she’d found.
She wasn’t normally in town anymore though. Usually she was off working on some stage for one of her friends, or helping another repair their house, and that took her away from the farm. Away from Winona. The fact that she was back now though… That meant a lot to the old dog, and she ran past the front yard with a young filly chasing her.
At least, until she got to the treeline. Then a big, strong stallion was beside her. He was older than her, but Winona always thought that that was a good thing. After all, he tended to be too serious, and didn’t play enough. Didn’t play like she thought he should. No, instead, he was always serious, and always ready to work, just like her master was.
Not that Big Mac was bad. No, she respected him, just like her master did, but he didn’t give many treats, didn’t play many games, but… Winona knew she did something else for him. That when it was dark and he would walk into the woods, he liked her company on his back, even if she didn’t understand his words. Not that she minded. His bass always made her saddlebag thrum, and it was a nice experience, at least before her joints hated any sort of movement. Not that she could even hop into her saddlebag at that point.
The two were also protectors of the farm though. She would keep an ear out for Timberwolves, thieves, and any other sort of bad pony that was trying to hurt her family. Her eyes spotted them, and Big Mac stomped them, at least until master started doing it even better than him. She could even do it without Winona, once her eyes and ears started going.
These were her trees though. Her lands. She had chased sheep, caught apples, and ran with complete control all of her life. Nothing had ever stopped her, except the call of her duty by a voice that always managed to make her tail wag, even now.
A voice that was waiting for her. Waiting for Winona to come home. To be okay with saying goodbye to all of this. How could a dog though? There were miles upon miles of land to run. Prey to catch, rabbits to harass, and ponies to spook. A dog could live a thousand lives and never be done with it.
But with a voice softly calling in her ear, asking her something. Winona knew it didn’t matter. She could have been locked away in a cell, with none of this around her, so long as she’d had her master, and she’d have been happy. After all, the woods didn’t care if she was there, had been there, or would be there.
Her master would be though.
Her master cared the first day she came to the farm. She was a small puppy then, caught in the rain and hiding underneath Granny Smith’s rocking chair. The old pony had wanted somepony to get it to go away, as she wasn’t in a good mood, and Winona had bit her on the ankle. Not that Winona felt bad for that. She’d been hungry, cold, and hadn’t seen her own mom for a week. She just wanted somewhere dry to be.
What she got were two big eyes that invited her in, and a soft pillow right beside that big heart. Within a week, the two were inseparable. She wasn’t allowed into the house most of the time, but her master came out every day, first thing in the morning, and the two slowly began doing chores together. It was the start of something bigger.
Winona stepped through her doggy door, her tail wagging slightly as raised voices nearby called to her, but she was taking her time. After all, she was tired, just like she had been the day before the door was put in. The day when, after a week of sitting on the porch, almost unwilling to eat or drink, Winona finally saw her master come back home. It was the happiest day of her life, followed by the second when she was allowed in the house.
And finally she entered the main room of the house. The room where everypony was gathered. She’d heard talk about a lot of the rest of the family coming for this, but she was happy to see the ones she did. Apple Bloom, Big Mac, Granny Smith, and her master.
Her master who had been crying for hours now.
Her master who hadn’t let her go since she fell down and couldn’t get back up.
Her master who had shouted and screamed at anyone who tried to take her away.
Her master who had made her life the best she could have ever asked for. But now Winona was tired. This wasn’t even the first time they’d been like this, even recently, and she grew more tired each time. If she was honest, she wanted to find somewhere quiet, where her master wouldn’t need to see this, but she hoped she knew everything Winona did.
That while she jumped back into her lap, Applejack knew that her last tail wag was for her. Knew that there was nothing more she could have done to make Winona any happier, and that she’d be waiting for her master on the other side, just as she always had.
Author's Note
In loving memory of Saego, who could have never asked for a better family.
2000-2018
