Candy Apples are Always a Little Tart
The summer sun celebration was always a reminder to me that I’d done something horribly wrong just under a millennium ago. My sister, how dearly I loved her, yet…
“Princess?”
My ears flared. I checked left, I checked right, saw that nopony was staring, then grabbed the filly with my wings and darted behind an empty cart.
“Sunset, sweetie dear, we talked about this, didn’t we?”
The child prodigy furrowed her brows. “Talked about what?”
I groaned. My last outing in raising children was… nearly two millennia ago, and getting back in the swing of things just hadn’t settled in yet. “My name, Sunset, what did I tell you to call me?”
“Sunny. But you didn’t respond when I did, so…”
Smart alec. “Well… don’t do it again. If I space out, just grab my tail or something. It wouldn’t do to blow my cover, alright?”
Clear teal eyes nodded. “Yes ma’am.”
“Good. Now then… what is it that you wanted?”
“Can we get candy apples?”
Candy apples? Who brought a candy apple stall? Kibitz didn’t say anything about that… As if I were doing recon, I turned my neck to see just above the cart we were hiding behind, and sure enough, there was a stall with bright red, perfectly glazed, candy apples. I didn’t recognize the mare running the stall, nor the foal she had with her. What a young child. Twenties, maybe? Who are you?
Intrigued, I scooped up Sunset and placed her on my back. “Why not? I haven’t had a candy apple in… oh, goodness, how old are you?”
“Seven,” she stated in her ‘bemused’ tone. “Come on.”
I blew a raspberry at her. “Don’t you get snarky with me, young lady. I happen to be the one with the bits here. Your apple relies on my good will.”
She turned her head and pouted. “Hmph. You know how old I am, don’t make jokes.”
I giggled and booped her snout. “Oh, don’t be sour! Today is supposed to be special! The 984th Summer Sun Celebration!” I couldn’t help but feel the hollowness behind my own words. These were never a happy occasion for me.
Rolling her eyes, Sunset curled her legs up and lay down on my back. “I don’t like it when you pretend to forget. Of all ponies, you’re supposed to remember.”
Ouch. “Geez, dig the dagger in deeper, why don’t you. Fine, fine, let’s go talk to the nice mare and get you your apple.”
Sunset didn’t respond, but did wag her tail, if only once. Satisfied with that, I made my way across the bustling plaza to the apple stall. Ponies everywhere, fireworks and sparklers aligned and prepared as twilight was setting into the sky, and my sullen, upset, and quite possibly hurt little charge was desperately trying to hide any interest in anything around her.
I suppose she had reason to be angry with me. I should remember. Nopony else she was close to ever did. The strange circumstances that brought us together were something of fate, luck, and possibly even a need for each other. She needed a mother, and I needed a successor, or at least somepony who could help me.
For a thousand years, my sister and I built a country for our ponies and defended it together. There was nothing we couldn’t stop, and there was no enemy that could stand before us. Then, the day came when I realized that she’d lost herself to her darker emotions. The closer one gets to the sun, the darker the shadow they cast. Whether or not I deserved the moniker, ponies often find themselves blinded by me, or… I find myself blinded to others.
Sunset, as luck would have it, happened to share a cutiemark with me, a little sun of her own. She has talent beyond her imagination, and one day, she will become a mage unlike any other. So long as she has a decent teacher, anyways. I had thousands of years to fumble around in the science of magic before losing Starswirl, so this time, I’ll keep her out of my mistakes. I’ll do it differently. I’ll do it better. No more losses. No more dark shadows, no more… losing family…
“Ma’am?” called a southern accent.
Before I could respond, I was smacked across the back of the head by a tiny hoof. “Hey! What the hell!?”
Indignant teal eyes burned right back at mine. “You’ve been standing here for five minutes! Get a grip!”
I finally noticed that none of the ponies around me were the same ponies who had been here when I started on my trek over, so Sunset was likely telling the truth. All the same, she hit me to get my attention instead of tugging on my tail like I asked, and that deserved a justified punishment.
“What did I tell you about hitting ponies, huh?” I whipped around, making Sunset fall off, only to catch her in my hooves and start tickling her with my wings.
“N-no! Stop it! Ha— You— you can’t do this! Ha ha! Th-there are ponies watching!”
“I can do whatever I please! You’re the one who seems to think the world revolves around you!” Thousands of years of fine control with my feathers, even with her magic working as best it could under pressure, Sunset was no match for my advanced tickling arts. With no hope left and giggling uncontrollably, Sunset tried to run away, but I was too quick. I tackled her before she could get too far, and now she was trapped in my forelegs, unable to escape my wiggly wings.
“Y-you’re the worst! Ha ha ha! Let me go, let me go!”
“Never! It’s about time I got a smile out of you today!” Struggle though she might, Sunset simply wasn’t strong enough to free herself of my clutches, even while I was in my pegasus form. By the time our little pile had been joined by an even younger filly, I figured she’d had enough and let her go.
Sunset backed away gasping for air, “T-touch me with those… awful wings again, and I’ll…” Then she noticed the foal as well. “Uh… did you kidnap somepony else too, or…?”
I sent her a sour glare, then returned my attention to the baby. The beginnings of a blonde mane, an orange coat, freckles all over her little face, and the purest green eyes I’d seen since… so, so very long ago…
“Oh! Goodness, Ah’m sorry, ma’am. C’mere Applejack, ya shouldn’t wander around like that! Ah hope she didn’t bother ya.”
Standing up and dusting myself off a bit to appear like the adult I was supposed to be, I shook my head. “Oh, no, not at all. I’m certain she just wanted in the fun. Isn’t that right, little one?” I took a single feather and tickled the baby, only for her to giggle with delight and kick her tiny hooves at me.
“Yeah, if you can call that fun,” Sunset shot.
I clicked my tongue in irritation. “Will you get over yourself already? Lighten up!”
She stuck her tongue out at me. “Bleh! You lighten up! You’re the one that keeps getting stuck in your own head!”
I narrowed my eyes at her. “Why you little…”
I’d flared my wings out, ready to go for round two, but the stall mare intervened and gave Sunset a candy apple, the very thing we’d come here for in the first place. “Sugarcube, would you like one of these?”
For the first time today, at least without external provocation, Sunset’s eyes grew with a genuine smile at the sight of the glossy red treat. “Yes! Yes, yes, yes! Please!”
The curly orange-maned mare smiled gently and passed it to her. The moment it was in her little teal aura, Sunset greedily started to lick at her apple as all the rest of the world evaporated around her. Perhaps I should look into getting some candy? That might make lessons go smoother if it’s that easy to placate her. Why have I never tried this before? I know she likes sweets. Sigh. I should remember. I quickly searched my bag for my bits and passed a few to the stall mare.
“Thank you. I probably should’ve started with that.”
She pushed the bits back and shook her head. “Aw, don’t worry about it, miss. Ah was… just like that when Ah was her age. As it turns out, Ah don’t think Ah ever really grew out of that phase…” Her eyes trailed off into the violet sky, and I could only wonder… For somepony so young, what past do you lose yourself to?
“Well, I thank you all the same. She… has never been the most cooperative with me.” Which is the hardest truth I’ve ever endured. Ornery little filly.
“Some fillies just are, Ah’m afraid. Pa and Ah never really got along all that well, so Ah understand. Ah just pray that Applejack and Ah don’t end up that way.”
Dismissively, I shook my head. “No, no, that foal is a very happy little thing. I can assure you, she’s not likely to worry you like that.” Having been one and seeing mothers and foals over the generations gave me a sort of insight to what a pony would become later on in life, so long as certain conditions were met. Bouncing little bundles like her were bound to end up fine later on. Sunset missed out on the whole ‘caring mother’ part of early childhood.
“Well, what makes ya say that, if ya don’t mind me askin’, ma’am?”
I shrugged. “Oh, I’m just older than I look, I suppose. I’ve seen a few things, learned a little over time. It comes with age.”
She frowned. “Oh, well ya certainly don’t look it.”
If that wasn’t the understatement of the century. “I’ll take that as a compliment. Miss…”
“Oh! You can call me Buttercup. My husband and his mother had urgent business ta attend ta, so Ah’m fillin’ in fer the apple stand this year.”
Ah, that would be why. The elder green earthpony mare and her son usually sell pies here. “Of course. I’m… Sunny, and this is Sunset.”
She sat herself down and stuck her free foreleg out to be shaken. “Well, ain’t y’all just a pair? Nice ta meet ya!”
I took it and shook, remembering very quickly how I appeared and how strong that shake was supposed to be. “The pleasure is mine. But, I do have to ask… does this stand not usually sell pies?”
She looked over her little rows of red treats and shrugged. “It does, but, Ah figured Ah’d try somethin’ a bit easier ta transport this time around. My husband’s just a bit stronger than most and Ah can’t quite carry the cart by myself when it’s all loaded up.”
I nodded. I do remember that stallion being particularly large. “Ah, I see. Well, I hope I see you here next year. If it’s this easy to placate Sunset, then I may need a recipe in the future.”
The mare giggled and shook her head. “Oh, it’s nothin’ special. Just simple syrup and a bit of cinnamon, and cherry and cranberry juice fer flavor and color.”
I’ll be making a note of that… maybe one day… I could have Luna try one too? Did you… used to like apples, Sister? That is… something else I should remember…
“Well, would ya like ta try one, Miss Sunny?”
I was caught off guard by the red orb that suddenly appeared in front of my face. “Oh! Um… I suppose… however, I must insist that you let me pay for this one.”
She sighed. “If ya feel ya have ta. Ah don’t mind sharin’ with somepony who makes my baby smile.”
I took a generous hoofful of bits and dropped them in her hoof before she could deny me. “Well, for making my ornery little baby smile, I’d say that is more than worth the money. Now then… let’s see how this tastes.”
I couldn’t refute the fact that looking at these did make me salivate. Hard candies were ‘new’ in comparison to the cakes and more delicate sweets that always found themselves in my chambers over the years, and I don’t remember if I’ve ever had a candy apple before. It must’ve been later than I remembered because just as I managed to sink my teeth into the glazed fruit, the fireworks for the celebration started to shoot into the sky.
It was like an explosion of colors and flavors just from the first bite. The crackle of the candy shell letting sweet crystals shatter over my tongue, the gushing juice of the apple spilling out as my teeth cleaved through its tender flesh. A coating of pure, unsullied sugar followed by a torrent of sour apple, making for a sharp and warm taste of absolute joy.
I couldn’t help but let out a little moan. “Oh, goddess! How have I never had one of these? Surely I would have remembered a flavor like that!”
Buttercup chuckled. “Well, Ah’m glad ya like it.”
I wagged my largest primary feather. “‘Like it’ is most certainly not enough to cover it. I may need a few more of these…”
“That can be arranged, Ah’d say.” Buttercup let out a deep sigh and went to grab another pair of apples for me. As pleased as she looked, the tone of that sigh betrayed her. After I’d set more bits on her counter, I grabbed Sunset and went to sit on a bench and motioned for her to follow suit. Once she’d snagged an extra apple for herself and a candy dipped pacifier for her foal, she joined me to watch the sky.
“So… I get the feeling that there’s a bit more to these candy apples than just an excuse to not make pies, hmm?”
Buttercup shrugged and lightly licked the outer shell of hers. “What makes ya say that, Miss Sunny?”
I finished off the first apple and tossed the stick in the receptacle to my side. “Call it intuition. How about it?”
Her smile fell flat, and she watched the colors bloom in the sky with weary eyes. “My pa taught me how ta make the glaze back when Ah was probably Sunset’s age.”
“Is that so?”
“It is. We would always make candy pears together fer the Celebration every year.”
“Candy pears?”
Her eyes fell. “Yep. Ah… haven’t made a candy pear in half a decade.”
I frowned. “Why is that?”
She finished off her own apple, and then took her filly in both hooves. Carefully stroking her little mane, rocking her ever so gently. I caught what I could only imagine was the look of envy on Sunset’s face, so I ran my hoof through her mane. She refused to smile, certainly still upset with me, but again, that tail of hers betrayed her.
“Ya remember how Ah said Ah was like yer daughter once?”
“My…? Right, of course.” Hmm. Way to nearly blow your cover. Far, far too out of practice, I’d say.
“Well, Ah hope that she’s not quite like me later on in life. Ah got in a fight with Pa over what Ah wanted ta do with my life and… Ah haven’t seen him since.”
Celestia, you are the nosiest pony in the world. Now look what you’ve done. “Oh. I… didn’t mean to bring back bad memories.”
She shook her head and let herself relax on the bench’s back. “Don’t’cha worry none, they’re… not all bad, Ah’d say. Candy Apples are… often just as sweet as they are sour, ya know? If they’re too sweet, nopony wants ta ever have more than one. Too much sugar all at once, makes the fillies and colts all crazy, and the mares and stallions complain about their teeth hurtin’ afterward. Make ’em too sour and only the ponies who can bite down inta a lemon will ever buy ’em.
“There’s always got ta be a balance between the two flavors, otherwise yer customer base is too small and yer niche product won’t survive. But… once ya do find that perfect harmony in the center, candy apples can bring a smile ta anypony. Even a pony who… doesn’t want nothin’ ta do with apples. At least… that what Ah hope.”
I did everything in my power not to flinch. Geez! Way to step right on a land mine! You should have been this nosy when it came to Luna, and you should not have been this nosy today!
“Geez, Mom, way to make the candy apple mare sad,” Sunset quipped.
Now that was a smile, if I’ve ever seen one. I forced the politest smile I could to my lips and clamped Sunset’s muzzle closed. “Don’t chew with your mouth open, sweetie, it’s rude.” Buttercup snorted and fell to laughter, and I could only wonder what she found so funny.
“Y’all are one heck of a pair, ya know that? If Ah didn’t know any better, Ah’d think you’re sisters.”
Sunset and I shared a suspicious glance, then we both shook our heads. “Couldn’t be. I’m not as forgetful as she is,” Sunset mouthed.
“And I know how to show respect to others, unlike some ponies,” I shot back.
Buttercup shook her head. “Yeah, ya sure are an interestin’ little pair. Just… don’t forget ta make up later, alright? Ah… Ah miss him, but Pa just… ain’t a part of my life anymore. Ah was hopin’ Ah might run inta him today so he could at least meet his second grandfoal, but he was… never really fond of Canterlot, so there wasn’t much of a chance of that happenin’ anyways.”
Second!? How old is she? She can’t be more than a couple decades old. Oh, goodness. What have you done, Celestia? You need to do something to make it up to her.
“What um… your father, what does he look like? And his name. I… know some ponies around this area, maybe I could help you out?”
She sighed and waved the question away. “Aww, that’s real sweet of ya, Miss Sunny, but Ah don’t think he’d ever show up here. Pa’s never been much of a socialite.”
“Oh, come now, I feel bad about making you spill your story here, at least let me try to repay you.”
She looked me over, then Sunset, and finally, she leaned back and sighed. “Ah… suppose it wouldn’t hurt.”
“There we go. A name and a description, simple, no?”
Longingly, she watched the sky as the stars started to filter in, Kibitz no doubt trying his hardest to work the amulet I gave him to set the night sky right.
“His name is Heirloom Pear, but ponies started callin’ him ‘Grand Pear’ ever since he got that silver streak in his mane. He’s got a yellow coat and brown eyes, and when Ah was younger, his mane was this coppery brown…” She sniffed. “And he’s got is namesake on his flanks of course. Stubborn as a weed and willin’ ta grow anywhere, that’s Pa…”
“Well… I’ll keep an eye out for him. It would be… such a shame to not have these candy apples here again next year. I’m sure the Princess would love to try one.”
Sunset chuckled, and I jabbed her in the side with my elbow. Miss Buttercup gave us an off-color look, but shrugged it off. “Well… Ah suppose if Granny doesn’t mind Ah could make ’em again. Y’all… know the princess?”
“Fairly well, I’d say.”
“Eh. She’s nothing special. She’s just bigger and more annoying than everypony else.” I tried my hardest, and failed, not to glare at Sunset, who only reveled in it.
Buttercup, thankfully, laughed it away. “Well, Ah’ll take yer word fer it.” She took one more gaze at the night sky and then stood up. “It’s later than Ah wanted it ta be. Ah should pack up and get outta here before the last train leaves. If y’all ever find yerselves in Ponyville, make sure ya visit the Acres, and don’t be a stranger, alright? It was nice meetin’ y’all.”
The baby gurgled happily and waved her hooves at us. Unable to resist, I got up and played with her with my feathers before saying my goodbyes. “Of course. Goodbye little Applejack! I’ll see you again one day.”
“Bye, Miss Buttercup! I hope you bring your candy apples back next year! They were great!”
“Ah’ll try, sugarcube.”
With that, Buttercup packed up what was left of her stall into the cart we’d hid behind earlier, and disappeared down the main road of Canterlot.
“Are you really gonna try to find her dad?” Sunset asked.
It’d been a few hours since the Celebration closed, and Sunset owed me lessons for all of the crap she made me put up with today.
Still a little irritated with her, I rolled my eyes and huffed. “Yes, I am. I do keep my promises, you know? What had you in such a mood today, anyways? I know you’re… well, you, but this was above and beyond your usual abhorrent behavior.”
She glared at me. “Uh-huh. I sure am me. Like I said, you were the one who was acting weird all day. I finally got you to take a day off, I finally got you to come to the Celebration with me, and you spend half the day wandering around stuck in your own head like you weren’t even there! I know you’re, well, you, but I don’t understand why you couldn’t keep it together on the one day all you had to do was have fun with me.”
Ouch. She did say something like that earlier, didn’t she? Was I… even paying attention before the candy apples? I suppose… because there wasn’t enough to distract myself with, all I could do was… focus on the past…
“I’m… sorry, Sunset.”
Her ears perked up and her face contorted in confusion. “Huh?”
“I’m sorry. You’re right, I… I should’ve been paying more attention to you.”
It looked as if Sunset wasn’t quite sure what to do with that. There was a genuine chance that she had never heard a sincere apology. And that fact was… more than enough to justify me taking her in. “Well… good. Don’t… don’t screw it up next time, okay?”
I let out a little laugh and bowed. “Of course, my little princess.”
Sunset gagged. “Eww. Little princess? I don’t want to turn out gigantic, unattentive and forgetful. Count me out.”
I sucked in air with through my teeth. “You know…” I got up out of my chair, and very quickly, Sunset got out of hers. “I think…”
“T-too much! You should probably just go to sleep! It’s late, isn’t it? The morning only comes when you do, right?”
I took a step closer, and Sunset bolted for the door. Unfortunately for her, I’d already locked it.
“That I’ve had quite enough…”
“S-sugar! Too much sugar for one day!”
“Of that attitude.”
Sunset swallowed.
“C’mere, you little brat!”
“Noooo!”
With no route for escape and my full powers back at my hooves, Sunset was quickly caught in my grasp, and she was furiously tickled until finally, she submitted. A bath, brushed teeth and pajamas put on later, Sunset was finally tuckered out and fast asleep. As this… surrogate daughter, replacement sister, prodigy protégée slept soundly beside me, I lay awake wondering just why I felt so lost today.
Am I… lonely? Did I see myself in her? Do I see you in Sunset? Oh, Luna… where did I go wrong?
