Back at her home, Apple Bloom sat on her bed, looking at her fiddle with a troubled look. She kept staring at it even when the door was open and a small furry creature ran to and lunged at the girl.

The creature was Winona, the family dog, who promptly began assaulting the girl by licking her face.

"Winohohona! Stohohohp!" Apple Bloom cried, her cries for the dog to stop turning into fits of laughter as she kept getting licked.

"Sorry 'bout dat, Apple Bloom," a voice belonging to Applejack spoke as the girl entered the room and grabbed the dog. "ah told Winona not to attack ya with kisses, but ya know 'ow much she loves ya."

"Haha, yeah," Apple Bloom chuckled. "Winona sure knows how t' give someone love, right?"

"Right, hehe, now," Applejack put Winona on the ground and closed the door. "Ah saw ya lookin' sad. Would ya like t' tell me what's goin' on?"

Apple Bloom hesitated as she turned back to her fiddle, and took a deep breath. "When mah friends and ah were at ta park, ah played mah fiddle for 'em, and they enjoyed it, until another melody came outta nowhere."

"'Nother melody, 'uh?" Applejack sat next to her sister. "Care t' keep goin'?"

"Ta melody came from a violin, which was played by one of ta musicians from ta Battle of the Bands. Ah asked her if she gave lessons, just in case Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo wanted t' learn. Then, she asked if ah've played anything before, ah showed her mah fiddle and... ah think ah made her upset."

Applejack rolled her eyes and wrapped her arm around Apple Bloom's shoulder. "And why was dat?"

"Ah dunno! She just took a look at mah fiddle and she didn't seem to like it!" Apple Bloom frowned. "Then Scootaloo mentioned how mah fiddle and her violin looked similar, and dat made her yell. Dat really scared me, but after dat, she kept talkin' with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. Then, something odd happened."

Applejack raised an eyebrow. "What 'appened?"

"Well, ya know how Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo had plans with Rainbow Dash and Rarity?" Apple Bloom inquired, and her sister nodded in response. "Well, at first, it looked like they were gonna do them, but then ta girl played her violin, some weird stuff came outta there, and Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle suddenly decided to go practice the violin with her."

"Sounds like ah magical thingamajig's doin' t' me," Applejack scratched her chin. "Ah'll 'ave t' tell Sunset 'bout this. Was dat it?"

Apple Bloom nodded. "We separated after that."

Applejack hummed. "Well, ya know what ah think? Maybe yer takin' this too seriously."

Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow.

"Listen, Apple Bloom, not everybody's gonna like every instrument: for example, ah don't like ta drums, but Rainbow Dash loves 'em, and dat didn't mean ta end of our friendship. Granted, there was no magic involved, so-"

"Applejack!"

"Right, sorry, got carried away. Point is, don't worry 'bout it," Applejack smiled and gave her sister a thumbs up. "Ah'll tell Sunset and mah friends 'bout this soon, and we'll figure out what's goin' on. And if necessary, we'll fix it."

Apple Bloom turned back to her fiddle and frowned. "Still..."

Slightly bummed by her sister's sudden sadness, Applejack promptly got an idea and grabbed her arm. "Ah know how to cheer ya up!"

Applejack dragged Apple Bloom out of her room and into the kitchen, where Granny Smith was cutting some vegetables... with her eyes closed.

"'Ey, Gramma!" Applejack raised her hand, and Apple Bloom's entire weight. "Apple Bloom's feelin' a little down! Ah think it's got somethin' t' do with 'er fiddle! Mind 'elpin' me cheer 'er up?"

Granny Smith stopping cutting, and her eyes sprung open. "'Er fiddle? What's with 'er fiddle?"

"Nothin', Grandma!" Apple Bloom stated, freeing herself from her sister's grasp. "Ah was just thinking 'bout somethin' dat happened today and-"

"Say no more!"

The elderly woman spun around, and once she stopped in front of her granddaughters, she suddenly had her fiddle

"Take 'er t' ta garden, Applejack! Let's show 'er what made 'er lova ta fiddle in ta first place!"

"Dat's ta spirit, Gramma!"

So the duet went to the garden, dragging Apple Bloom along even as the girl tried desperately to break free.

"Wait! Stop! Ya don't need t' do this!" she cried to deaf ears. "Ah get it, 'kay?! Ah'll cheer up!"

"Ah come on, don't be a crybaby!" Applejack replied as she put Apple Bloom on the ground. "Besides, yer gonna love what comes next!"

Apple Bloom turned around to see she was placed right next to a patch of dirt, and when she turned to raise an eyebrow at Applejack, her sister had her own fiddle at hand. And before she could even ask what was happening, both Granny Smith and Applejack began playing them.

They started with simple tunes that, while nothing extraordinary, still did a good job at convincing Apple Bloom to shut up and enjoy. Then, they sped up a little, with Apple Bloom eventually finding herself tilting her head left and right to the beat.

Then she began clapping as the dirt patch next to her began growing vegetables on certain spots. The growth sped up as Applejack and Granny Smith started tapping the ground. They slowed down a bit, their eyes falling on Apple Bloom as the girl reached for her back and took out her own fiddle.

She glanced at both her relatives, who gave her nods and thumbs up of approval. Then she stood up, eyed the growing patch of vegetables... then promptly resumed where Granny Smith and Applejack had stopped from, a wide smile plastered across her face.

Apple Bloom's solo was joined by Granny Smith and Applejack's duet, and with the three Apples playing, the patch became completely covered in overgrown vegetables, whose growth stopped once the trio performed their final, slowest note.

"That certainly took mah mind off ta fiddle issue," Apple Bloom raised an eyebrow at the vegetables. "And replaced it with somethin' else: why did ta vegetables grow so quickly?"

"Music helps anything grow. Dat's all ta explanation ah got for ya," Applejack chuckled. "Anyhow, if ya feel better now, ah'll go take mah leave."

"Where are ya going?"

"Remember when ah suggested that ah could ask Sunset and our friends if they knew anythin' 'bout magical instruments, well, ah'm gonna test dat theory," Applejack brushed her little sister's head. "Ah'll be back 'fore dinner, a'right?"

With her words spoken, Applejack pocketed her fiddle... somewhere, and took her leave, adjusting her hat as she waved goodbye. Apple Bloom waved back, and Granny Smith grabbed her hand and lead her back to the house.

"Well, dat was a nice brief exercise, wasn't it?" the elderly woman asked. "Ah like these kind of distractions once in a while."

Apple Bloom nodded in agreement, and she glanced at the overgrown vegetables and then her fiddle, her smile growing a little bigger upon seeing the instrument. Even when she remembered what happened at the park, her smile didn't falter.

Whatever was gonna go down with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, she probably didn't need to worry about it too much...

Author's Note

A sweet little chapter with the Apples before we get to see the dark, mechanical truth of Octavia's scheme... okay, it's probably nothing that bad, but you should still keep your eyes peeled. XD