Phyre in Ponyville

My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic © Hasbro & Lauren Faust

Story Written by: TOOS0BER

Chapter 3: The Deepest Appleseed

Weather forecasts were a funny thing in a land like Equestria. It was tirelessly monitored, rigorously maintained, and strictly scheduled in the whole of the land by the fleets of pegasi who chose that as their lifetime career. This included all manner of weather; from sunny days, to rainy evenings, and even massive storms. Though control over the weather was so orderly, care had to be given to the environment. Too many good days could result in a major disaster later, and vice versa for having too many storms or other such occurrences. The schedule was strictly adhered to, but even so, exceptions were always made, as with the situation of life. Meaning that sometimes life does not always agree with what had been planned.

Completely not the case for this fine day as the golden glow of sunshine ran awash over the country fields of Sweet Apple Acres, the glorious sun cresting the eastern horizon. The quiet still giving way as the morning approaches, not a cloud in sight to hamper the beauty. On queue, a nearby rooster makes its shrieking call, signaling to all within earshot that a new day had begun.

Applejack slowly opened her eyes, blinking the vestiges of sleep away. Casually she stretched, reminding the firm muscles in her body that sleeping time was over, yawning mildly. She rubbed her eyes, staring out at the picture-perfect scene before her. Jumping out from under the home-made comforter with hand-stitched apples of all different colors and sizes, Applejack grabbed her ol' stetson hat, rubbing the rim with her hoof from sheer habit.

Boy howdy, Applejack thought as she glanced once more at the day before her. 'Nother b-e-a-utiful day! She headed for the dresser, sporting a modest vanity mirror, a bright smiling version of herself staring back. Then brushing the morning mane from her head before adding the red ribbons that made up her ponytails.

The daylight poured in, illuminating the bright green room decorated with all manner of apple memorabilia. Hand-carved apples lined the trim of the floor and ceiling, matching the stitched, curvaceous fruit in the green drawn curtains. Although apples were indeed the dominant shape, not everything was mackintosh design. The two lamps at either side of Applejack's bed were fairly ordinary, only having a red and green contrasting color scheme – of apples. Okay so maybe everything was apple design...

When the light orange mare finished with her hair – perhaps the only frilly frou frou task she ever undertook during her day – she moved to the bed, the sheets and comforter strewn about. Grabbing the hem of both, Applejack made one quick and violent swing of her head, the sheets coming down – almost – neatly in place; just one wrinkle ruining what would have been a perfectly smooth bed, good enough.

Applejack proceeded downstairs, ready to attend to the next order of business. Breakfast.

The kitchen wasn't much to look at. Stove, a few cabinets, and a simple four-legged table undecorated with ordinary chairs. Certainly not a five-star kitchen in Canterlot, but Applejack wouldn't trade it for the world. She quickly prepared a breakfast decidedly themed of apples. Apple cakes, apple tarts, fresh apple juice, and even some ordinary apple slices.

Applejack scarfed down her fill, leaving a generous amount for her brother Big McIntosh, her sister Applebloom, and Granny Smith. Standing on the porch, she looked out over Sweet Apple Acres, whistling at the abundance of apples in need of bucking.

“Sure got mah work cut out fer me ta-day,” Applejack exclaimed to nopony in particular, heading off towards the nearest tree.

Time breezed by with the occasional gust of fresh air, rewarding the farm mare with it's cooling touch. Out in the country, the best tool for telling the time was the shifting shadows cast by the tall apple trees and how much they've moved since last they were checked. Routines that were short were often the most repeated and monotonous ones; applebucking was certainly among them. Placing the wicker baskets around the base of the trees, and then striking the trunk with her hind legs, the vibrations causing the apples to fall. The real skill here, for which Applejack was practically legend, was being able to clear an entire tree with just one buck. By the time noon had rolled around, the bright orange mare had cleared several acres worth, wiping the glistening sweat from her brow and, again, rubbing the rim of her ol' stetson.

Movement caught Applejack's eye as a cream colored filly with a pink bow in her crimson mane trotted down the main dirt road, following the white fence line. None other than her young sister, with a trio of other fillies wandering by following Applebloom. The farm mare recognized two of the three as Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, which were long time friends of her filly sister. Applejack paused at the fourth mare, not quite placing the pony.

Squinting, Applejack facehooved as she finally recognized the yellow bow in the young pegasus's bright orange mane as Halo Phyre. Applejack smiled with pride, so proud that her sister had made a new friend.

The smile disappeared as Applejack glanced towards the sun, then at the shadows cast by the nearby trees.

“Uh oh,” She said, “Best make mah way into town, the market rush is gonna start.”

In quick succession, Applejack gathered up the day's batch of delicious fruit and made her way into the marketplace to sell. Wearing her white storekeeper apron, Applejack advertised to the crowds of passing ponies, eager to attract some hungry patrons. Shortly after noon was always the best time of day. It was around lunchtime, and not everypony always had time to sit and eat at one of them fancy restaurants, and an apple was the perfect on-the-go snack. The blond pony greeted passersby as they came and went, smiling and nodding, occasionally tipping her stetson. Far more than once the gestures had triggered an impulse buy.

“Y'all come back now, ya hear!” Applejack waved as she shouted the goodbye to her latest customer, depositing his bits in the front pouch of the apron, straightening her hat. Business had been good. The cart was nearly empty, in stark contrast to the bursting pouch of the apron, burdened with many of the solid gold coins used as currency. Packing up the vendor cart, Applejack made her way home, adjusting her ol' hat to keep the sun from her green eyes.

“Did you hear?” Applejack picked up on a nearby conversation between a pair of mares. The one that spoke first she recognized as the earth pony Bon-bon, her dark blue, pink mane and tail standing out. “The pegasi missed another scheduled storm.” The stranger pointed out to her friend.

“Really?” Her friend replied, none other than the unicorn Lyra, minty green coat and matching two-toned hair. “I wonder when they're going to make up for it.”

Applejack picked up the pace, a frown creasing her lips. Storms never brought up good memories for her, preferring the sunshine any day. The pegasi of Ponyville had something of a reputation for missing scheduled events like storms and downpours, crucial for the balance of the climate. Applejack sighed, thinking how she would straighten up them pegasi if she had wings. If anything annoyed her, it was the laziness in the face of responsibility.

By the time she had made it back to the farm, the sun was nearing the mountains, only a few precious hours of daylight left. The first thing she did was proceed into the farmhouse to deposit the day's earnings before attending to the rest of the responsibilities entrusted to her. Bruised, battered, and rotten apples had to be gathered up to be used as food for the animals or compost. The dishes left over from the morning's meal had to be washed and put away. And on top of that, dinner had to be prepared. Applejack never seemed to mind that there was always so much work and not much time for anything else, simply because she felt there was nothing more rewarding than seeing the fruits of your labor. Pun partially intended.

Applejack stands over a black cauldron, wearing a simple white apron, stirring in ingredient this, and spices that; making a savory vegetable stew. The kitchen stinks to the high heavens with the dreamy aroma of cinnamon and apples, a pie baking in the wood fire cast iron oven. Covering the stew with the heavy metal lid, Applejack checks on the pie, as well as the buttery muffins cooking alongside.

Still needs a might more cookin', Examining the pastry with a practiced eye.

Shouts outside the propped open kitchen window catch Applejack's attention. Applebloom's friends were finally leaving for the night after spending the day doing, well, whatever her sister and her friends do during the day. Watching as two fillies, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, walked and the third flying a few feet off the ground. That had to be Halo Phyre, holding herself back to keep pace with the others. Applebloom herself was outside the older mare's line of sight, but the light from inside the house cast her long silhouette, showing that she was waving enthusiastically, and only disappeared once the others had vanished over the horizon.

Smiling warmly as the young fillies said their farewells, Applejack felt that pride for her lovable sister again, then went to make the final adjustments to the stew.

“Soup's on everypony!” Applejack called as she set the last placements at the dining table. Big McIntosh and Applebloom zipped into the room almost before the blond mare had finished her sentence, while Granny Smith tailed behind.

“Boy that sure smells good!” Applebloom commented on the stew.

“Ee'yup!” Came McIntosh's simple response, while Granny Smith mumbled something about being starved half to death.

“Awe shucks,” Applejack said, blushing. “It's just a simple stew, nothin' special.” Being completely modest, belittling the fantastic dinner she had prepared.

Her little sister rolled her eyes. “Don't be so modest Applejack!” Calling out her sister, “You've outdone yerself!”

“Ee'yup.” Big Mac agreed.

“Well,” AJ rolled her own eyes in response. “Dig in then 'fore it gets colder than a shaved sheep in the middle of winter!” Dismissing the argument, if you can call it that, before it could continue.

The Apple's sit down to their family meal, saying grace to the princesses, Celestia and Luna, for blessing them with another perfect day and a beautiful night; with hope that there will be many, many more. They each talk about what they'd done during the day. Applebloom discusses school, and sadly tells Applejack and Big Mac about another failed attempt to gain their cutie marks. Her older siblings stating, yet again, that she simply need be patient. Applebloom huffs, and eats the rest of her meal in silence. Big Mac and Applejack discuss farming and preparations for the applebuck season when there's a frantic knock at the door.

“Who the hay could that be at this hour?” Applejack says, standing up and moving to the door, slightly annoyed at being interrupted from her meal.

She jumped as the door swung open. Just outside stood an adult, gray mare with a light yellow mane and tail. The most outstanding feature was her yellow eyes – which were looking in two directions, and a mild smile plastered on her face.

Applejack blinked, and recognized the mare's cutie mark, a group of about seven bubbles.

“Well howdy Derpy,” Smiling as she tipped her hat. “How is it you always know when Ah'm bakin' muffins?” It was a recurring thing with Derpy Hooves. Somehow she always knew when there were fresh baked muffins about. It was like Pinkie Pie's “pinkie sense”, but far more predictable. All you had to do was say muffins and there was Derpy. The farm mare disappeared into the kitchen and promptly returned, a paper bag full of the delectable breads in her mouth, setting the bag in front of her guest.

“Here ya are Derpy,” Applejack said as Derpy smiled brightly. AJ focused frequently at Derpy's nose, as looking into her crossed eyes seemed very... odd, not knowing which one to look at the most. The gray mare continued to smile for a few moments, making Applejack feel slightly awkward, before taking the bag in her own mouth and prepared to fly off. The farmer tensed, knowing that her guest wasn't the most coordinated flier, bracing for what she believed would be a messy take off followed by a disastrous crash. She sighed as the pegasus managed to take off without so much as scuffing the paint on the house.

With that out of the way, Applejack returned to the dining room and her meal.

Applebloom gave her a quizzical look. “Who was that sis?”

“Oh just Derpy wantin' some of mah muffins,” Applejack said flatly, planting herself in the wooden chair. “'Mazes me how that pony can pick out the smell of muffins like that. Pretty darned close to spooky if'n ya ask me.”

“Ee'yup.” Big McIntosh said, taking another spoonful of the stew.

“Huh,” Replied the young filly, digging into her food with gusto.

The rest of the meal went on in silence, everypony focusing on filling their hungry bellies. Big McIntosh set out to the barn to finish up some carpentry work in preparation for the next day while Applebloom helped her older sister clean up the mess, Granny Smith sound asleep in the rocking chair in the living room. The two of them working together, the dishes were done in no time at all, making the chore into a game like they always did; passing dishes this way and that. They had gotten so good at it that they rarely ever dropped a dish; the last time being nearly four months ago – a personal best.

At that point any trace of the sun or its light had vanished completely, replaced by the cool night sky with hundreds of twinkling stars, a waning moon standing watch over the farm in tranquil silence. Applejack followed her younger sister upstairs to the filly's room. As she rounded the corner, Applebloom clumsily climbed her way into bed, snuggling under the partially made covers, waiting. The orange mare took the comforter in her mouth and covered the filly up to her neck, then used her hoof, tucking her sister in.

“Would ya like a bedtime story sugar cube?” Applejack tenderly asked already knowing the answer.

“Yes please.”Applebloom replied softly as the adult mare made her way towards the nearby bookshelf. Glancing this way and that, Applejack read each of the titles, trying to pick out one she hadn't already read a billion times.

“How 'bout Daring Do and the quest for the Sigil Stone?” Applejack suggested, looking over her shoulder. Applebloom nodded slightly, her face partially sunken into the feathery pillow. Applejack smiled as she plucked the book from its resting place, pulling up a stool next to the bed, and began to read.

“Daring Do trekked through the scorching desert, nothing but sand and desolation as far as the eye could see. The sun bearing down on her from what felt like every conceivable angle. She looked up, a circling ring of vultures hovering high in the sky, waiting in anticipation for their next meal...” Applejack read line for line, changing her voice whenever Daring Do or another of the book's characters spoke. She read on for several minutes, glancing up to see Applebloom struggling to stay awake to hear the story. Applejack read further.

“...the pitch black stone glowed bright red from Daring Do's touch, sending reverberating shock waves throughout the chamber. Fire seemed to appear from nowhere, streaming in a spiral pattern as it was sucked deep within the sphere. The tower itself was being torn apart by what seemed like hurricane strength winds, yet the heroine felt no tug or pull. She hoped the ebony armor she wore would be enough to protect her from harm, and as the violence seemed to reach its apex, all sound stopped. Every ember of flame had been sucked into the sphere...

“And at that moment...” Applejack paused again, peaking up over the book's rim at the tired filly. She was still awake, but fatigue was getting to her, the drooping eyelids gave clear evidence that Applebloom was close to falling asleep. Continuing on further...

“And at that moment everything went white. For just a few moments, there was nothing except Daring Do and the object of her intense search: the Sigil Stone. She desperately wanted to reach for it, but the disorientation got the better of her. As quickly as it came, the whiteness disappeared. Replaced by the dense trees of the forest she had been in only hours before. Unfortunately, gravity also returned; and Daring found herself plummeting into the ground with a crunching thump,snapping several twigs and crunching old, dried leaves. Daring struggled to her feet, trying to orient herself in case there was more danger. All was still within the forest, not a creature stirred in the quiet night air. The dark maned pegasus checked herself over, nothing more serious than a few cuts and a bruised ego. She searched around for the Sigil Stone, and found it resting on the grass but a few yards away...”

Applejack stopped reading as she heard the soft, rhythmic breathing. The young filly had finally fallen asleep. The farm pony smiled, gently closing the book and depositing it back on the shelf before quietly exiting the room. At some point Big McIntosh had gone to bed as well, his door closed.

The earth pony yawned, deciding it was now her turn to hit the hay. She made her way to the bathroom, readying herself for the sleep to come. Moments later, she was crawling under the covers, placing her beloved stetson on the dresser before blowing out the nearby lantern, engulfing herself in darkness, inviting the oblivion of sleep.

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

Cold. It just feels cold, and very very wet. Darkness everywhere, not a ray of sunlight to be found as Applejack looked out the farm window. The shrieking wind beat against the walls as heavy rainfall pattered the glass, as though it were trying to get to her. Lightning strikes off in the distance, followed shortly by the thunderous boom, making the mare jump.

She turned around, eager to move away from the storm raging just outside. The living room was unlit, the shapes of the furniture barely visible amongst the darkness. Applejack moves around the house, taking care not to stub herself against the furnishings. Occasionally the room would light up for just a moment as more lightning periodically struck outside, casting long, fleeting shadows everywhere the bright light touched.

Applejack made her way to the back door in the kitchen, bathed in the same shadow as the room prior. She waited for another lightning flash to reveal the obstacles; time went by, and when finally one did not appear, she tried to recall the layout from memory, and decided to try her luck.

Thump.

Applejack tripped, falling for what seemed like an eternity before finally striking the hard wooden floor. She lay there,seeing stars and wondering why everything had suddenly grown fuzz. Out of nowhere, two blackened silhouettes stood over her. The young filly snapped to, sitting upright abruptly. Frantically she swung her head back and forth, searching for the figures that only moments ago were right next to her.

Gone without a trace, Applejack realized, staring around the creepy darkness. Alone with just the constant pitter patter of the rain, nothing else stirred. The farm mare felt a cold sweat develop on her brow, barely comprehending what she had seen... or if it had been anything at all. It was a powerful feeling, the eeriness that made goosebumps form under her orange coat, darkness enshrouding every corner distorting reality, and the sheer lack of sound; minus that constant downpour outside.

For a moment the room lit up as lightning flashed behind the farmhouse, two heads momentarily visible through the screen door. Applejack gasped, backing away from the door. Although it was difficult to tell in the dark, she could feel the chilling fear. Strangely, it was because she recognized at least some aspects of the mysterious specters. The heads of the creatures appeared to be pony in origin; they both wore a form of headgear. The first seemed like it was wearing an old rimmed hat, while the second had the familiar silhouette of a bow tied in its mane. Their maws were shaped different as well. The one with the bow had a small petite maw while the other a large square set jaw; meaning one was a mare, and the other a stallion. Applejack's heart skipped a beat, and against all logic, she headed for the door with the intention of going outside.

Crack. The door slammed against the side of the back porch, forced open by the howling gale outside. Applejack shielded her eyes, searching for any sign of the pair in the sheet of water falling from the gray sky above. Minutes passed bearing no fruit for the search.

The whole of Sweet Apple Acres lit up for the briefest of moments.

Near the tree line Applejack spotted the mysterious duo. They had somehow made their way some distance to the apple orchard in a very short amount of time. The rain seemed to let up a bit, becoming less of a torrential downpour and more of a heavy drizzle. The wind practically died and there didn't seem to be anymore lightning for now.

Timidly Applejack tread out onto the muddy dirt path, once she was sure of her footing, she broke out into a gallop, trying to close the distance. Doing so took much longer than memory served, having trotted that same path countless times before to buck apples, but finally she reached the tree line, entering the maze of wooden trunks.

Clop, clop, clop. Moving through the forest, the dawning realization struck that everything felt... wrong. Every branch seemed twisted and malformed, even gnarled. The leaves, normally bright and green, were darker than the night sky. Even the apples, from the farm and family's namesake, looked completely different than usual. They seemed sunken, malnourished if such a thing were possible for fruit. The lack of sound drove Applejack's ears far behind her head, and she nearly tip-toed through the dank forest, keeping her head bent down and eyes forward; looking this way and that, expecting something to jump out and scare the living daylights out of her.

After what felt like hours of searching and miles of marching, Applejack began to think she should turn back when an unusual pair of shapes appeared nearly as dots on the horizon. Against all reason, and ignoring the warning forming in her brain, she continued onward. In short succession, Applejack had closed the distance by nearly half, evident by the silhouettes growing larger. The forest lit up for the fourth time, and finally she could make out that they were a pair of ponies – more specially, she recognized who they were.

The farm mare broke out into a run, desperate to get close to them, desperate to embrace. The background and foreground seemed to fade away, replaced by absolute darkness. The figures, while their limbs remained still, slowly moved farther away despite how fast Applejack ran. At some point, her cowpony hat had fallen off and disappeared into the forest floor. She didn't slow down, she couldn't, trying to catch up to those two had taken all of Applejack's concentration.

She yelled out, begging the ponies to let her catch up. Her own voice sounded alien to her, squeakier, and far far younger. She took a moment to look down at her hard working legs as they ran. Staring in shock, realizing that the ground was much closer to her than before. The perplexing thought was banished from her mind, refocusing on the task at hand: she had to catch up somehow! She called out several more times in her strange voice. For every step she took towards them, they moved three away until finally they began to fade from sight. Applejack, already at her maximum, tried to pick up the pace even more, straining against the fatigue burning deep within her muscles.

The muddy ground rushed up to meet her as Applejack tripped over a well hidden rock, face planting into the ground, skidding for several feet. She coughed and sputtered, expelling the gritty mud from her mouth. Looking up, the silhouettes of the ponies were still moving away rapidly, and Applejack called out again.

“Ma! Pa! Don't leave me!” Applejack called out, desperately trying to scramble to her feet. The figures moved into the darkness, gone forever. “No!”

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

“No!” Applejack jarred herself awake, immediately sitting upright. The sheets familiarly soaked in sweat. She had that dream again – she didn't have it every night, but it was often enough to keep reminding her. Looking around the room as if to verify that she was indeed in the real world now. Ugh, she groaned, rubbing the bridge of her nose with her hoof – somewhat awkwardly.

“Ev'rythin' all right Applejack?” Came Big McIntosh's deep voice from the open doorway.

“Uh,” She was caught by surprise, removing her hoof from her face to look at Big Mac. “Ya, Ah'm fine Big McIntosh. Just... uh... small bad dream.” She smiled big... maybe a little too big. The larger stallion just blinked a couple times before proceeding downstairs, leaving his younger sister alone.

Applejack sighed. She didn't like lying to Big Mac, even if it was only a minor lie, honesty and all was golden after all. This time she didn't bother making her bed, letting the sheets dry a little while she went to brush her mane like every morning. Though no smile greeted her in the quaint vanity mirror, like it did every time she had that same dream.

Must've been all that talk about the bad weather yesterday. Applejack reasoned, trying to make herself feel better. She looked at herself in the mirror, her sad visage staring back. Closing her eyes a moment and taking a big breath, letting her thoughts clear so as to focus on the day ahead. When Applejack opened them again, she was welcomed by that warm country smile that she gave to everypony, already forgetting the previous night's events.

Trotting back over to her bed and making it in one smooth motion for the millionth time. Applejack reached over to the dresser, ready to don her trusty ol' stetson, not bothering to look as it was always in the same exact spot every single day where she had left it.

The farm mare's hoof touched wood instead of fabric.

She tried again, a little further down. Nope, still wood.

Well ain't that somethin', Applejack thought, a frown creasing on her face as she reached so far over that she lost her balance and landed on the floor with an oomf. Blinking, not once but twice, as she slowly scooped herself off the floor, staring blankly at the top of the empty table, not quite comprehending what was happening. Denial and imagination delayed Applejack from seeing that the ol' stetson hat was missing for the longest time as one minute ticked by, then two...

Finally after three, the realization began to wash over her; accompanied by a chill running down her spine. Applejack gasped aloud, her gaze unwavering over the blank tabletop.

“W'ere is it.” She searched each individual drawer.

“W'ere is it!” She searched the whole of the closet.

“W'ERE IS IT!?” She searched under the bed and behind the rest of the furniture.

The cold sweat returned as Applejack began breathing very rapidly; hyperventilating. Knees growing weak from the shock. Her reaction mimicking that of Rarity whenever she thought she had lost an item of only minor importance. The only difference being Applejack didn't pull out a sofa from nowhere to fall on... just slumping into the cold wooden floor for the second time.

“Mah... mah...” The pony muttered, not able to come to terms with the facts that faced her. “Mah... mah hat is missin'...” The words came out like a book slapping her across the face. Applejack fought back the tears forming in her misty eyes, actually being successful this time; and just in time too, as she heard somepony coming up the stairs. From the light but relatively close hoof falls, she guessed it was Applebloom.

“Sis'!” The filly stated as she rounded the corner. “Yer gonna miss breakfast if ya don't hur – why are ya on the floor?” Applejack must have put on a good face to hide her panic, as her younger sister didn't seem to notice the turmoil – or the fact that she didn't have her hat on.

“Ah... ahem...” Applejack cleared her throat. “Ah'll be down lickity split Applebloom. Ah promise.” She smiled widely again. The filly stared at her a moment longer before shrugging and headed back downstairs. As soon as the coast was clear, she wiped the insipid smile from her face.

For the next half hour Applejack checked and re-checked every corner of her bedroom. Closet, drawers, stripping the sheets off the bed. About the only thing she didn't do was tear apart the floor boards, walls and ceiling – which she briefly considered until common sense kicked in, telling her that it was impossible for the ol' stetson to be inside the walls.

“Oh dagnabit!” Applejack cursed, stamping one of her hoofs. “W'ere could that darned hat have flown off to!” The floor was barely recognizable. Clothes and other accessories were strewn about, as though a clothes eating monster had come in, eaten a hay of a lot more than his fill, and barfed it back up. The bed was flipped upside down, the wooden frame propped against the mattress propped against the wall. This time Applejack didn't notice as the same hoof steps approached again.

“Applejack yer breakfast is colder than a flea on a – whoa!” Applebloom stopped mid-scold, wide eyed at the mess she had just trotted into. “What in the hay have ya been doin' up here? Ah've heard of re-modelin' 'n' such, but this is just crazy!” Applebloom stared at her, a combination of annoyance, irritation, and confusion on her face.

If Applejack had had half her wits about her, she would have told her little sister to watch her language, but her mind was far more occupied. In fact, she only heard a portion of what Applebloom was saying to her. Still she was looking in this corner and that, convinced that it had to be somewhere. Only when Applebloom coughed, excessively loud, did the panicked mare finally acknowledge her presence.

“Ah, Applebloom!” She said, shocked. “Uh, how long have ya been standin' there?”

“Long enough,” Applebloom said plainly. “News flash: Yer breakfast is cold.”

As soon as the filly said that, Applejack's stomach grumbled loudly.

“Right,” She said, rubbing her head with a hoof, “right. Ah'll be down in a minute.”

But Applebloom was having none of that. Trotting up behind Applejack, she began pushing the older mare out the door. “Ah don't think so! Ya'll need yer food!” Applejack protested until they reached the stairs, only getting through to Applebloom when she was nearly shoved down the flight of steps.

Breakfast was far from normal this particular morning. Applejack was constantly in motion, getting up after every couple of bites to search various places in the kitchen. When her plate was about half way empty, she expanded her search into the rest of the farmhouse. Applebloom sat quietly with that annoyed look on her face while Granny Smith and Big McIntosh just watched the blond mare zip this way and that, apparently too confused to ask, just deciding to leave her be.

“Ah'll right!” Applebloom slammed her hooves on the tabletop. “Ah've had enough. Ah'm goin' ta school early.” She hitched her saddle bag and left without another word – not that Applejack noticed as she checked the pantry for the fifth time.

Big Mac finished his last few bites of carrot-sauce and apple cakes, “Ee'yup. Ah'd best be gettin' ta work too.” He headed for the front door, pausing to let the frantic Applejack cross, and left. Granny Smith had fallen asleep in her chair, like she normally did after eating.

Several minutes later Applejack slumped in the hallway, her mane frazzled and exhausted. She had searched every corner in the house – even the rest of the family's bedrooms; although she was more considerate with them than her own, being careful to straighten up.

“Oh,” She groaned. “W'ere could it have gone?” Applejack said, choking up slightly. She retreated back to her own room, disheartened when she got there. Not because the room was an absolute pig sty, but because the hat was not sitting in the last place she looked. The curtains wafted as a breeze caressed her cheek.

Wait,Applejack froze. A breeze? She rushed over to the open window, immediately she believed that maybe, just maybe, the wind had blown her hat out the window! Applejack dashed downstairs, through the hall and out the door, not bothering to close it since Big McIntosh would be on the farm all day. There was still hope of finding her beloved stetson, all she had to do was keep looking, and maybe asking for help couldn't hurt either.

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

It was only the second day of her first applebucking season, and still Applejack just couldn't get it right. She examined the brawny tree trunk from all possible angles, tried hitting in different spots, even attempting a head butt; although that last one only earned her a splitting headache and a lump under her blond mane. Sure, a few apples fell, but scores more held fast to the branches. It didn't seem to matter whether the tree was hit with one big kick or several smaller ones, as the result was still the same.

The little orange filly breathed heavily before collapsing on the green grass beneath her, exhausted and disheartened by the lack of success. “Oh, ah'll never get it at this rate!” Applejack despaired, covering her shame with her arms.

Lying down on the ground, she stared intently at each individual blade of grass, unable to come to terms with her failure. Pa was counting on her to harvest these apples, and she was making no headway whatsoever. She sighed again, failing to notice the heavy hoof steps until the shadow was cast over her. Applejack looked up, squinting as the late morning sun only partially eclipsed by the newcomer.

Compared to the filly, the stallion before her was large and muscular, broad shoulders and strong farmer's legs encased in dirty, worn coveralls, standing proud and tall. His head and mane distorted by both the sun in the background, and the outline of a wide rimmed hat. Even though his eyes weren't clearly visible, Applejack knew their gaze. A deep green that matched her own eyes; full of a determination to fulfill the day's deeds. Behind him was a cartload of apples, recently harvested from somewhere else in the fields. Applejack looked away after a moment, embarrassed that the nearby buckets, the ones she meant to fill, were almost completely empty.

“Work ain't gonna git done if ya sit on the ground all day Applejack,” His voice was deep and rich, almost gruff even. Although it contained more than its fair share of fatherly tenderness. “Come now, surely that ain't your best shot?”

If she hadn't have been trying for hours on end since the sun rose, Applejack would have jumped to her feet, proclaiming defiantly that he hasn't seen her best shot. But failure after failure had taken more of a toll on her energy than her confidence; simply believing she didn't have what it took to buck apples like her pa could. “Ah can't do it...” She finally replied.

“Aw now that's just stinkin' thinkin',” The stallion answered back, unconvinced. “Ya can do anything ya set your mind to.” Applejack felt a hoof on her chin, and allowed it to gently lift her head up. She opened her eyes, and was greeted by a warm smile, a long piece of straw sticking out from the mouth.

The honeyed words made her feel better... a little, even so though, the tree was so much bigger than the filly was. “But, Pa Ah...”

The stallion shushed her, “No buts young lady. Give it one more try... for your ol' man.”

Blinking a couple times, Applejack smiled and nodded. She turned to the tree she had been bucking for over an hour and was about to start once more when she was interrupted again by her father.

“Not that one,” He pointed a few yards farther down the path, at a much larger tree. “That one.” Her heart sank. The tree stood a good six feet taller than the previous, and its trunk seemed impossibly thick. How in the hay did he expect her to buck a single apple from that monster?

Applejack gulped, slowly making her way towards the tree as if she were walking to an execution block, apprehension rising in her chest, breathing became nearly impossible. She could hear the stallion marching behind her, the subtle squeaking as the cart strained against its load. Eventually the pair stood next to the tree in question, the stallion unhinged himself from the cart with ease and set up some nearby baskets that had been set aside. When the task was finished, he stood next to the trunk, waiting expectantly.

The tree loomed over her. If she didn't know better, Applejack would have sworn the over grown bush was taunting her. Even though this briefly flared her temper, the chilling fear of failing again, and in front of her pa, quickly sucked away the fire from her anger. Turning around facing the dirt road that divided the grove, the farm filly took her stance. Lowering her front while keeping her hind legs straight, shifting balance forward. Closing her eyes tight, concentrating on the task at hand, trying her best to dismiss the esteemed audience watching her. With all her strength, she lashed out...

Thwump!

It was much louder than it seemed as Applejack's rear hooves made firm contact with the tree's hard trunk. Although, her front hooves slid out from under her, thanks to the morning dew that was still present on the grass, making it slick.

“Whoa!” Applejack yelled out, trying to scramble her legs back under her; but it was too late as her small body plopped firmly on the ground. She braced as a chorus of thumps rained down all around, not daring to open her eyes until it finally stopped. When she finally did, she glanced at the buckets placed around the base of the tree. Every, single, one, was full to the brim with shiny red apples.

The filly gasped in shock and awe. “Ah did it!” She exclaimed with glee, jumping to her feet, repeating it twice more.

“Ya certainly did,” The stallion, silent until now, said with a hint of I-told-you-so. Applejack had been dancing a little celebration when something soft was forced on top of her head, the day light dimming significantly. Pausing, she looked up, half her view occupied by the brown stitch work of an old stetson hat.

She gasped again, happy as can be.

“You are a true apple bucker now, Applejack,” The hatless stallion now said, his messy brown mane now visible in the sun. His daughter smiled wide. The hat, too big for her small head, fell over her eyes. The two shared a laugh as they headed back towards the farmhouse.

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

The hustle and bustle of the marketplace street seemed lesser on this day than on previous ones. Perhaps the pegasi, busy in the upper atmosphere arranging clouds, had something to do with it. Heart Phyre had heard about the missed storm and wondered why it was so easy for them to skip one; as rigidly scheduled as they were. The deep orange pegasus tried to recall if it had ever occurred back in her home city of Buckson, and came up with nothing.

Trotting down the street, looking this way and that, Heart held little attention on the cloudy sky above her. Up ahead was a tree brimming with posters on it, redirecting her body towards it, smiling. When she reached the blossoming tree, she used her wings to remove the necessary tools from her saddle bag. A hammer, a nail, and a curled up piece of parchment. Standing on her hind legs to gain a bit of height, the pony held the top edge of the poster while she fiddled with the nail; eventually holding it in place with the tip of her wing.

Holding the nail, Heart bent her arm back to strike it with the hammer.

“Heart!” Startling the pegasus right as she swung, missing the nail completely. She yelped out in pain as the head of the hammer struck her wing. Surprised, Heart Phyre fell backward onto the dirt ground, holding the injured appendage. Grimacing, she looked up to see a familiar orange mare with a blond mane.

“Oh, Ah'm so sorry there sugar cube!” She immediately apologized.

Heart groaned. “It's okay Applejack, I...” Getting no further as the farm pony jerked Heart to her feet, wincing visibly as her wing throbbed.

“Ah don't have time to explain,” Applejack's voice sounded stressed, like something horrible was happening. “just follow me to Twilight's library. Pronto!” She galloped off, leaving the pegasus with more than just her wing to worry about.

What was that about? Heart blinked as she dusted herself off. She winced again when attempting to fold her left wing, letting it dangle while she made her way to the library. After a few steps, the pain steadily growing, Heart started sucking on the wing, trying to assuage the painful throbbing.

In short order Heart had made it to Twilight's library tree house. It was exactly as it sounded. A massive tree that had been magically, or manually, hallowed out. Sporting many balconies and different shaped windows throughout the green canopy. Inside the largest window, the one closest to ground level, many bookshelves carved directly into the wall could be seen; bursting with many thick books and other things that were right at home on a bookshelf. Heart squinted at the window, seeing what she could. Inside there was a small creature, furiously working at a four-legged table. The purple and green creature grabbed a piece of parchment from a large stack, wrote on it frantically for a couple minutes, and finally slammed it on another, smaller stack before repeating the whole process over and over again.

Still several yards away, Heart Phyre could see a small crowd gathering at the library's entranceway. Recognizing the ones on the ground as Rarity, Pinkie Pie, and Twilight; with Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy hovering several feet above them. There was no sign of Applejack. The five were chatting amongst themselves as Heart strolled up. The purple unicorn, in deep conversation with her white counterpart, stopped when she noticed the orange pegasus approaching.

“Ah!” She said with a smile. “Good! Shes here. Um, why are you sucking your wing?” Twilight blinked as she watched. The area struck by the hammer had turned an angry red, and was starting to bruise.

Heart Phyre removed her wing from her mouth, slightly embarrassed. “Uh, long story. What's Applejack so worked up about?” She glanced around at the group, still not seeing the mare in question. “Matter of fact, where is she?”

Twilight nodded her head in the direction of the library. Taking another look, Heart could see the frantic mare moving this way and that, her lips in constant motion. Likely giving orders to the green and purple creature, who still scribed ceaselessly at the table.

“Uh huh,” Heart said, the confusion still evident on her face, since the scene before her didn't answer any questions.

“Applejack barged in in a panic, saying she desperately needed Spike to make some posters.” Spike, that must have been the creature's name. “Then she told me to assemble the rest of our friends here at the library, just telling me that it was very, very important that I do so, and fast.” Twilight laid down the facts. The story matched up with Heart's own encounter with the orange mare only minutes ago.

At that moment, the double doors to the library swung open, and Applejack stood there staring at everypony. She was a mess, and that's putting it in the mild and over-imaginative way Rarity would describe. Heart smirked as she heard Rarity gasp next to her. But seriously, Applejack was an absolute wreck. Her mane was severely frazzled, looking like it hadn't been brushed for a week, and the tail looked no better; both of them lacking the small red ribbons that she used to tie her hair in.

“Good! Yer all here!” The mare announced.

“What's going on AJ?” The first to speak up was Rainbow Dash, who had zipped down closer to Applejack. “I was in the middle of practicing a new stunt for the Wonderbolts.” Emphasizing her annoyance by swinging her hooves.

“Is um... everything okay Applejack?” The timid voice of Fluttershy asked quietly, but the concern was still evident in her voice.

“Is it a surprise? Oh, I love surprises!” Pinkie ran on, hopping repeatedly. “Except for that surprise where you had left Ponyville and said you weren't coming back. That surprise wasn't so nice! It's not a surprise like that is it? Oh! If it has an epic and fun cart chase again, I wouldn't mind that so much!” The pink earth pony smiled big, oblivious of the angry look Rarity was shooting at her.

“No, not quite like that Pinkie,” Applejack waited several seconds after Pinkie finished babbling. “Uh, Ah...” She gulped, apparently whatever happened must have been serious. “Ah lost mah hat.”

Everypony went silent. Only now did Heart bother to glance atop the mare's head, finally noticing that she was indeed, hatless. Nearby, she heard Rarity gasp once more, Rainbow and Heart herself rolling their eyes in response. Although, it became apparent that the cyan pegasus's reaction was from something other than Rarity's tendency to overreact.

“You mean to tell me that you interrupted my practice because you lot your hat?” Rainbow questioned.

“Don't be so inconsiderate Rainbow Dash!” Rarity cut her down. “Losing one's repertoire is nothing short of the worst... possible... thing!” The unicorn emphasized her claim with a stomp of her hoof.

“Oh, that's just terrible,” Fluttershy chimed in, covering her mouth with her hooves.

Heart listened as Rarity and Rainbow continued their argument.

“I'm not trying to be inconsiderate! It just seems like nothing to get so worked up about.” Rarity flinched at Dash's statement. “The way it sounded, I thought somepony was hurt or Ponyville was under attack! Besides, I mean, can't she just buy a new hat? What's the big deal?”

Rarity was about to make a comeback when Applejack spoke up, stopping the unicorn in her tracks. “It's more than just a hat Rainbow Dash!” She all but spat the words, the pegasus visibly recoiled at that. “It's a piece of who Ah am, it means more than y'all could possibly know, ever!” Applejack looked very upset, the redness in her face evidence of barely controlled rage. Subconsciously, Heart rubbed the bracelets on her arm, thinking she would likely act the same as Applejack was if she ever lost them; they were precious to her, irreplaceable even. Not because they were fairly expensive, they cost a fair bit to purchase, but their sentimental value made that difference. To any other pony, they were just another ordinary pair, but to her they were much more.

“Ah can't tell y'all why, but it just is,” Applejack continued. “So if'n y'all aren't gonna help me, then ah'll look for it mahself.” Applejack began to trot off when Twilight stopped her.

“We know this is important to you AJ,” Twilight put her hoof on Applejack's shoulder. “We will help you search for your hat.” Rainbow Dash landed next to her.

“Yes,” She said, an apologetic smile on her face. “I will too. I didn't mean to upset you.”

Heart Phyre moved with the rest of the ponies, closing in on the farm mare, offering their support. The orange pony's expression softened, feeling the support from all her friends. She sighed deeply as she spoke again, “Thank ya all kindly.”

“Okay then,” Twilight announced. “If we're going to find Applejack's hat, this search needs to be organized!” Heart couldn't see twilight from behind the rest of the ponies, but she somehow rose up a few feet, looking down at everypony. “Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, you two will patrol the air, check every rooftop. Pinkie Pie, Rarity, and Applejack will look around town, look in every conceivable corner. Heart Phyre and I will put up lost and found posters, which Spike has been working feverishly on, all around Ponyville. If we can't find it, maybe somepony else has.”

Everypony cheered and immediately set off to their task at hoof; revealing that Twilight had been standing on a soap box. Before Heart Phyre could talk to Twilight, Applejack rode up and gave thanks before galloping off to join the others.

The deep orange mare followed the purple unicorn into the library. Defying common sense, the inside of the tree house seemed much larger than the outside indicated. The inside was very well organized, every book was perfectly straight on its shelf, the portraits on the walls were eerily centered, and even the papers, quills and ink were orderly. Heart felt her eye twitch at the level of detail and cleanliness.

“Spike works hard to keep the place tidy,” Twilight said, the look of amazement must have been evident on the pegasus's face. “He is, after all, my number one assistant.” She finished with a bright smile. At that point the purple and green creature named Spike, who Heart realized was a baby dragon, looked up from his intense work. Briefly pausing to greet them.

“Twilight!” Spike said, trying to catch his breath. “Please tell me this is enough?” He gestured with a claw at an enormous pile of finished posters, standing more than twice his diminutive height on the table. “Applejack is convinced this wouldn't cover it, but... ” He shrugged, unable to find the words.

Twilight laughed, “This is fine Spike.” As she levitated a generous portion of the posters into Heart's saddle bag, then retrieved one for herself. “These should be more than enough to get the word out.”

Should be? Heart's jaw dropped. That's enough posters to decorate the whole city of Canterlot! And he did all this in just a few hours!? The thought boggled her.

“Good...” Spike let himself droop in the chair, the exhaustion undoubtedly settling in, repeatedly making fists with his writing claw; trying to soothe some aching fire.

“You go rest now,” Twilight commanded. “we'll handle the rest.” Turning towards the door. Heart followed, briefly waving goodbye to the distracted dragon.

The search went on at a fairly fast pace. Twilight and Heart had put up dozens of fliers around the residential area of the city and were making their way towards the marketplace. Occasionally they would hear Rainbow or Fluttershy soar overhead, their heads swiveling back and forth, scanning the ground below them. Every now and then, Pinkie or Rarity would come into sight, asking nearby ponies if they had seen the lost hat. The crazy-maned earth pony was wearing an odd looking cap, and had a bubble-blowing, ornate pipe in her mouth. When Heart gave a questioning look at Twilight, she rolled her eyes and shook her head, saying without words: don't ask. Shrugging, she continued on with the unicorn, stopping every few minutes to hang up a new poster.

In short time, they had put up more than half of the parchment sheets they had brought with them, the marketplace being the last area they needed to cover. The two decided they could finish faster  if they split up, so that's what they did. Heart went one direction, and Twilight the other. Scanning the area, Heart found several promising spots, only to be disappointed when they were already covered by other signs. Advertisements of many kinds, from shop ads to help wanted forms, along with, unsurprisingly, other lost item posters. She had been here before; made apparent that one of her own signs were here, announcing the grand opening of her long-awaited hobbyist shop.

Disheartened, Heart had made her way to the tree where Applejack had frantically recruited her for the search. Scanning the tree, any good spot that somepony would see the poster was already occupied by another sign. There wasn't so much as an inch of available space. Holding the poster in one hoof, she stared back and forth, switching from the picture of the lost hat and the ad that would bring business to the grand opening.

After standing there for several minutes, Heart made her decision.

Carefully she placed the lost poster in front of the shop advertisement, tentatively nailing the poster into the tree trunk. Every strike of the hammer on the nail made her aching wing twitch, the recent injury still present.

When she took a step back to make sure the picture was straight, Heart nearly bumped into a smiling Twilight. “Oh, sorry Twilight. I didn't see you there.” She apologized, even though she hadn't actually bumped into the unicorn.

“That was nice of you,” Twilight said, still smiling.

“Huh?” Heart blinked, unsure what her friend meant.

“The poster,” She gestured to the tree. “you put it over the advertisement for your shop's grand opening. Correct?” Asking a rhetorical question.

“Well,” Heart explained. “I just figured this was more important...” Again she rubbed the two bracelets on her arm. Heart could tell from the way Applejack was talking and acting that the hat was indeed more important than just the opening of her shop. That could wait, but the longer the search for the lost hat took, the less likely they were to find it.

“Still,” Twilight put a hoof on her shoulder. “That was very nice of you.”

“You know Twilight,” The question had been bothering Heart for a little bit. “It seems like this is bigger than just looking for a hat that she's had for a long time. I can't explain it, but I just know this goes deeper...” She paused, taking off the bracelets she wore almost constantly. “Much deeper...”

“I know what you mean,” Twilight said. “If it wasn't, then why would Rainbow Dash's suggestion at buying a new hat make Applejack so upset?” It was a valid question. If the hat was indeed just that, a hat, then there would be no reason to call up a huge search across the whole town. Such a hat would cost, at most, several bits to purchase a brand new one; which Applejack could easily afford.

“I also think it must be more than a simple gift too,” Twilight continued. “I think we should go to Sweet Apple Acres and see what we can find.” The unicorn stepped in front of the pegasus, emphasizing her point.

“Um,” Heart wasn't as convinced. “I'm not sure about this Twilight. How is that going to help us find Applejack's hat?”

“Because,” Twilight explained. “It would give us a better idea of why it's so important; and also, what if we can't find Applejack's hat? What if it is gone forever? Knowing why it's so important will help us comfort her.”

Heart smiled, “Yeah, that would be useful huh.”

Twilight nodded, looking around the marketplace. “I think we have enough posters up for now; and I'm not saying that to be lazy.” She laughed kind of nervously. Heart looked throughout the marketplace – there were posters everywhere.

“Hehe, right.” Smiling sheepishly. “Lets head off then.” The two galloped off to the farmstead.

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

It was mid afternoon as Twilight and Heart Phyre reached Sweet Apple acres; even though it was hard to tell with the blanket of cloud cover slowly being formed by the teams of pegasi in the sky. Ponyville was almost completely covered while there were still patches of blue left over the apple orchards. Heart looked up at the sky, worried.

“Something wrong?” Twilight turned to ask her, breaking the thought.

“Oh, no Twilight.” Heart replied, still galloping down the dirt path between the rows of trees.

The unicorn didn't seem convinced that everything was okay, but let the subject drop for now. Heart breathed a sigh of relief; she was concerned about this storm, worrying about whether or not they should even be out here with the torrent about to hit in just a matter of hours. Undoubtedly they would continue the search until the old hat was finally found, but even still...

Shaking her head, Heart banished the thought from her mind. They were going to find that hat, come fire or high water. Applejack depended on her and the others to do it, and that's just what they were going to do. Invigorated by the thought, Heart picked up the pace, catching up with Twilight as she had been falling behind slightly. Before they knew it, the apple fields had given way to the farm proper. Numerous buildings popped up as the pair crested the last hilltop. Dominating the center was a huge red barn, a chicken coup off to the left, and various pens holding sheep and cattle. A short distance behind the barn was the house itself.

The farm was ominously silent as they ran up to the boundaries. The pens were empty, likely that the animals had been put into the barn for shelter some time ago. Farm equipment that would have been scattered about was also stored away in preparation.

“Hmm, I don't see Big McIntosh anywhere...” Twilight stated, looking around the deserted area.

“McIntosh?” Heart asked, who hadn't been introduced to the Apple Family beyond Applejack, and has only heard about Applebloom.

“Applejack's older brother,” Twilight said plainly, still looking for the stallion in question. “They live with their grandmother, Granny Smith, too. But I don't see her either.”

Heart split off from Twilight to look elsewhere, but also to look at the farm itself. She had never been on a real farm ever, being from a big city like Buckson and all. The volume of space was what appealed to her the most, having the opportunity to just run, wherever you wanted to, and not worry about bumping into somepony or something around every corner. Buckson had crowded streets pretty much at all times of day and night; hay, even Ponyville was at times crowded, during high times when everypony was shopping or just off from work on weekends. For a moment, she felt envious of the farm mare.

Heart paused and snapped her neck around as she heard a distant voice call out to her. Twilight, now standing next to a large, muscular stallion was waving frantically to get her attention. Oh good, she found him. She was some distance away, even running at top speed it would take a minute to cross the open expanse of field. Slowly but surely the workhorse came into focus. He was tall, a good several inches taller than Heart or Twilight. His tail was short, and was the same brown-orange color as his mane, going nicely with his crimson coat. The expression gave off was that of a pony that was content with his life, his eyes having a dreamy droop to them. He must have been much stronger than he appeared, dragging not one, but two carts of apples; plus a pair of baskets slung over his back.

Heart unconsciously slowed her pace as she stared at the stallion, jaw dropping, feeling butterflies in her stomach. Then as the blush began to form on her face, she slowed down even more, desperate to buy time to hide it. The effort only proved to develop a nervous sweat instead. Deciding quickly that she would just blame the heat of the day – even though it was rapidly cooling due to the cloud cover. Things became more complicated as she felt her wings stiffen with the thought of the handsome stallion, concentrating hard to fold them back at her sides. If the others, especially the stallion, weren't watching her, she would have facehooved at the thought.

Twilight cocked an eyebrow as the pegasus finally came within a few feet of the pair, and began to look slightly impatient. Heart conjured up a fake innocent smile, and turned her gaze again at Big McIntosh.

“Big McIntosh,” Twilight began the introductions. “This is Heart Phyre, she just moved into Ponyville recently.” Heart kind of tuned out the latter part of the unicorn's introduction, just staring at him.

Twilight must have said something about Big McIntosh working the farm all day, as he replied, “Ee'yup.” Heart felt her wings twitch a bit, hearing McIntosh's deep voice for the first time.

“Hello,” Heart barely managed.

Big McIntosh smiled at her, “Howdy. What brings y'all to Sweet Apple Acres?”

“Well,” Twilight began. “We were hoping you could...”

“We wanted to know more about Applejack's hat, Big Mac.” Heart interrupted Twilight, taking one step towards the stallion; also immediately reverting to using the nickname.

At that moment the warm smile turned into a frown, and McIntosh looked up at the sky, a look of longing permeated his face, sighing as he closed his eyes. The pegasus's heart jumped, not enjoying the thought that she had upset him.

“Exactly,” Twilight said cautiously.

“Well,” Big McIntosh glanced between the two. “It's pretty personal there girls. I'm not comfortable talkin' about it. I need to get back to work.” The stallion began dragging the heavy carts passed the two mares, moving surprisingly quick given the

load he bore.

Twilight and Heart stared at each other, not quite sure what had happened. Right now the pegasus felt like she had needles in her heart, the mere thought of upsetting the handsome stallion hurt more than she expected.

“That didn't go too well.” Twilight said, moving closer to Heart.

“He looks so sad...” Heart muttered under her breath, continuing to gaze at Big McIntosh as he left them behind. She wanted to gallop up and comfort him, but she kept in mind the reason for their being at the farm. They needed to help Applejack, and that's what they were going to do.

“Maybe we can find some clues in the farmhouse.” Twilight suggested.

Heart broke off from her previous thoughts, and turned to follow the lavender unicorn.

On the front porch sat a much older mare, the color long gone from her mane and tail. She was slumped over in her chair, apparently deep in sleep with a cane resting on the wooden patio. The two younger mares approached quietly, not yet sure if they wanted to wake up the old mare, whom Heart assumed was Granny Smith.

“I assume that's...?” Heart asked.

“Granny Smith? Yes,” Twilight answered. “We shouldn't wake her. Let's go up into Applejack's room and look for clues...” Just then the old mare stirred, jumping into consciousness.

“Who the what now!?” She said in a half panic, before recognizing Twilight. “Well howdy darlin'.” Granny Smith stared at the startled Twilight Sparkle, who was frozen stiff from the sudden shock.

Twilight laughed nervously, finally recovering. “Hello Granny Smith, how are you?”

“Ah'm just dandy youngin'.” She attempted to jump to her hoofs, only managing to slowly crawl out of the chair. Granny Smith had been trying to reach for her cane, the walking stick just out of reach. Heart trotted up and picked the cane up for her, graciously offering it to the old mare.

“Thank ya kindly deary,” Granny stared at Heart, trying to focus on the new mare, invading her personal space. “Rarity? You dyed your mane again?”

Heart blinked, and looked over at Twilight, who was attempting to stifle a laugh. “No, no. My name is Heart Phyre. I'm new here.”

“Ohhh!” Granny backed away a little bit. “Well why di'n't'cha say so Fluttershy!”

Twilight snickered at that, Heart only smiled and rolled her eyes.

Granny moved on into the house, muttering something about the weather and inviting the whipper snappers to come in and get comfortable. The two moved right on in, accepting the invitation. The living room was simply decorated. Wooden couch, wooden chairs, a large wooden coffee table in the middle. Stone fireplace off in the corner, the entranceway to the kitchen and the stairs leading up next to them. Twilight and Heart Phyre took a seat on the couch while Granny climbed up on a wooden rocking chair, sighing in relief.

“Now,” She began. “How can I help you youngins' today?”

“Well,” Twilight glanced at Heart, seemingly expecting her to interrupt again. When it became clear that she wouldn't, the unicorn continued. “We were hoping you could tell us a little more about Applejack.”

They almost regretted asking that question, as Granny Smith started telling the story... from the very beginning. She started from Applejack's birth, and agonizingly, slowly, describing every single even in what must have been perfect order, it was almost spooky that the old mare could recall so much when she could easily mistake Heart Phyre for Rarity, and then mistake her as Fluttershy. The pegasus could feel her own eyelids drooping down as Granny droned on about Applejack this and Applejack that, trying her best to stay awake just to be polite. Twilight on the other hoof, seemed to fairing well. In fact, she seemed very interested in Granny's tale. Not that Heart Phyre wasn't interested, it was just more than she bargained for.

Finally though, it seemed Twilight had had enough, interrupting with a question. “And what about Applejack's parents? Come to think of it, I haven't seen them once since I moved here from Canterlot.

At that point the old mare stopped talking, staring at Twilight for a moment.

“Oh,” She simply said.

Heart had a suspicion that this would go the same way as the conversation with Big McIntosh. She shared a nervous glance with Twilight, unsure whether to apologize or to simply drop the question or change the subject.

“Sorry if we're being intrusive ma'am.” Heart Phyre apologized, gesturing with a hoof.

“No,” Granny said quickly. “No, it's okay Rainbow Dash, it's just...” Her old lips quivered, trying to find the words. “It's just a sore subject amongst my youngsters, and Ah'd be a fibbin' if'n Ah said it wasn't sore for me too.” Now she turned her gaze to the empty fireplace.

“But y'all must have a reason for askin',” She turned back to the two mares.

“Yes, we do Granny Smith.” Twilight confirmed, Heart nodding in agreement.

“Ah'll right then...” Granny took a deep breath and began a new tale.

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

A real gully-washer of a storm beat against the cold glass, resonating throughout the room, constantly reminding everypony it was still raining furiously outside. Long ago the sun had gone down, and a pitch blackness had replaced the gray that shown through the clouds only hours before.

Granny Smith grumbled under her breath, “Dern pegasi. Today was supposed to be sunnier than the smile on a filly in a candy store, but noooo; they had to miss yet another storm.” As she continued weaving thread in and out, knitting together a pair of foal's booties.

Her anger and annoyance cooled as she thought about the little red-headed newborn foal she was making them for. The newest grand daughter: Applebloom. Deciding to take a break and rest her hooves, Granny stole a peak at the newborn. Applejack, her older grand daughter, was holding her sister, feeding her with a bottle of cow's milk. Occasionally, the over sized stetson hat would clamp down over her eyes, but like always, the orange filly just shoved it back on top of her head. She had worn it every day since the last applebucking season.

They'll be good to one another, the aging mare beamed at the thought, watching them bond.

Applebloom pushed the bottle away from her mouth, she laughed and began shaking her short, stubby legs.

“Looks like somepony wants to play,” Applejack said, setting the bottle aside for later.

“Not too rough now ya' hear?” Granny Smith reminded the rough-housing filly. Numerous times Applejack had gotten in trouble for playing a bit too rough with the other fillies in school. “Applebloom's still just a foal.”

Applejack rolled her eyes, but kept the smile on her face. “Yes Granny Smith...” She went in search for their favorite red ball, and returned moments later, bouncing it gently between them; laughing and in general having a good time. Stopping only to readjust the stetson.

“Come on dear,” A melodious voice started from the kitchen, a full grown mare emerged. “We're gonna be late if'n we stall any longer.” She wore her dark pink mane in a hair braid, her face covered in freckles that matched the young Applejack's.

“I'm coming,” A tall and proud stallion entered the room just moments later. “I'm coming, just had to grab a last few things.” He said in his gruff, deep voice.

“Sonny boy!” Granny exasperated. “Ya can't seriously be considerin' goin' out in this kind of weather!” She gestured toward the darkened window, the only evidence of anything beyond it was the water falling down in rivulets.

Applejack and Applebloom had stopped their playing and stared back and forth as the adult ponies argued.

The masculine stallion sighed deeply. “I know ma, but if we don't get a move on now, our spot at the apple convention will be taken.” He explained, even though he knew she was right. “Also, it would be a huge boost to the family business.”

During that conversation, the female mare had scooped up Applebloom and sat on the nearby couch, slowly rocking the foal back and forth, easing her to sleep. The older filly also joined her mother, nestling her head on her lap, the sheer size of the stetson now obscured all but the happy smile.

Granny Smith had that aching in her bones. She knew that this wasn't a good idea, but her son could be a real stubborn mule sometimes. He and his wife would go even if she forbid him from going. But their interests seemed in the right place. They wanted to earn money so their children could live a happy life. After all, isn't that what all parents wanted for their children?

The eldest mare sighed, closing her eyes, concentrating. “All right sonny boy.” She opened her  wrinkly eyes, gazing sternly at her boy. “You come back safe 'n' sound ya hear?” She said, gesturing a hoof at him. “And you too missy!” Switching that gesture to the mother on the couch, Applebloom had fallen asleep, the little foal's cream colored chest rising and falling slowly.

The mother smiled, nodding instead of speaking, not wishing to disturb her daughter's restful sleep. For some reason, Granny Smith couldn't return that smile. She wanted to, but just couldn't. The mother gently got up, laying Applejack's head gently on the couch. She moved across the room and placed the sleeping foal in her crib by the fireplace, landing a gentle kiss on her cheek. The motion hadn't worked as Applejack yawned and sat back up, looking around and finally finding her mother, jumping off the couch to follow.

“So y'all are leaving?” Applejack said, the warm smile turning upside down, her big green eyes staring up at her mother.

“Yes hon,” The mother bent down to nuzzle her nose with Applejack's. “But only for a little while, I promise.”

The two headed for the door, the howling wind rushed by the entrance, and speckles of water began dotting the wood. Granny Smith moved up from her chair to shield the sleeping Applebloom, still gazing sadly at her son and daughter-in-law.

The stallion proceeded first, shackling himself to the waiting wagon just outside the house. His wife was just about to go when she paused and looked down at her rear leg. Applejack had galloped up and was hugging tightly to her, begging with her eyes for her mother not to leave her.

After a moment, the filly let go and the mother turned to face her.

“May I?” She gestured towards the old stetson on Applejack's head.

The filly nodded, and gave the hat to her. The cream colored mare proceeded upstairs and did not return for several minutes. When she did, she handed the hat back to Applejack. At first, the filly was confused, looking back and forth between the smiling mare and the hat, which seemed completely unchanged.

When this became evident, she ran her hoof over the top rim of the hat and read, “Be strong, Love Mom and Dad.” Reading off the words just now stitched on the old stetson, but the mother wasn't done yet. “Take good care of Applebloom and Big McIntosh. Keep Sweet Apple Acres safe, help Granny Smith when she needs it. We'll be back soon.”

And with that, she turned towards the door, proceeding into the howling darkness.

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

Applebloom stared off at the setting sun, only partially visible through the growing cloud layer as it cast a collage of beautiful colors across the evening sky. The tree selected for the old tree house was perfect for watching the sun since it was one of the largest trees on Sweet Apple Acres. The cream colored filly had renovated the tree house herself, turning from a death trap into a genuine work of art, sturdy and safe.

She sighed, once again thinking about her blank flank. Applebloom and her best friends, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle, had formed a club they called the Cutie Mark Crusaders, with the goal of working together to get their cutie marks. Recently they made friends with another filly, Halo Phyre, who also lacked her own cutie mark. That was their purpose today, gathered in the club house on the apple orchard owned by her family, to brainstorm new ideas for getting their marks and finding their special talent.

“Ugh!” Applebloom heard a groan of frustration behind her, not for the first time that day. “I can't think of anything!” As she turned around to join the other three fillies, it became apparent that Scootaloo was the one talking.

“No surprise there,” Sweetie Belle interjected.

Applebloom glanced at their newest member, the orange colored pegasus with a yellow bow in her brick orange mane,

which had been sitting quietly, looking more than a bit bored. The farm filly decided to include her in the conversation.

“Do ya have any ideas Halo?” Turning to face the bored filly.

Halo had snapped out of her stupor, stammering, “Uh...not really.” She sulked.

All four of them sighed. Scootaloo got up and walked towards the window sill, taking her own peak outside. Applebloom looked at the mess of papers and pencils in front of them. The sheets were a colored on mess of ideas and diagrams, some of them they had already tried and were scribbled over furiously. For a moment, she reflected on just how many stunts they had attempted, wondering if maybe they shouldn't try anything else for the day.

“I got it girls!” Scootaloo suddenly shouted from the window, briefly making everypony jump.

“What is it Scootaloo?” Sweetie Belle asked curiously.

“We're going to get our cutie marks in...” Scoots paused for dramatic effect, gesturing outside the window. “White water rafting!” She exclaimed, by then everypony had crowded around the same window. Some distance away was the Ponyville river, its blue waters visible from the vantage point the club house offered.

“Hmm,” Applebloom rubbed her chin. “That sounds like a great idea!” Smiling brightly as she stared back at her companions.

Halo Phyre and Sweetie Belle exchanged worried glances.

“I dunno girls...” The creamy white unicorn shyly said, staring down, gently scraping a hoof on the floor.

“I kind of agree with Sweetie Belle...” Halo supported her. “I mean, look at the weather outside? It's not exactly the best for outside stuff.”

“Pfft,” Scootaloo stuck her tongue out. “Don't be such a scaredy-pony. The weather will make it even more fun! Besides, there's no tree sap involved!” That got a laugh from everypony, except Halo who didn't get the joke; just blinking a couple times.

“Long story,” Applebloom said to her, and Halo shrugged.

“Come on you guys,” Scootaloo said, trying to gain the other's support. “You want your cutie marks right?”

“Yeah...” Sweetie Belle and Halo Phyre said after a moment.

“Ah've been down the Ponyville river before, and it was always a blast!” Applebloom said enthusiastically.

That seemed to warm them up, the other fillies bearing smiles now. Scootaloo and Applebloom held out their hoofs in the center of the group. Sweetie Belle joined in, followed shortly by Halo, and they chanted together.

“Cutie Mark Crusaders!” They said aloud. “River Rafters!”

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

It was difficult to tell how late in the day it actually was as Applejack, not for the first time, looked up and flinched at the gray sky. Cloud cover now encompassed everything as teams of pegasi flew this way and that in final preparations for the coming storm. Almost an artificial night shrouding the entire town.

Ponyville ain't the only one in the dumps, Applejack thought, rubbing her hatless head with a hoof. Including herself, Pinkie Pie and Rarity have been searching the entire town ground side, while Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy scoured the rooftops and sky. Trading hour after hour, the search had yielded no results.

The farm mare sighed deeply, closing her eyes and dipped her head. “It's as good as gone forever...” Her heart felt heavy, like it would plummet from her chest at any moment.

“We will find your hat AJ,” Came a lyrical voice from next to her, Rarity trotting up from behind.

“Yeah!” Pinkie Pie now hopped up, she still wore the detective cap and the bubble-blowing pipe protruding from her mouth. “It's like a scavenger hunt, and that's best done as a team! So we can't just give up.” That smile still ever present.

Applejack wanted to believe that they could find it, desperately she wanted to hold on to that hope. But the fact remained, they've combed the entire town, asked dozens, if not hundreds of ponies, and nopony has so much as seen or heard anything. That, and every minute that turns into an hour meant that their chances were only that much more remote. She takes another look at the sky, trying to make a guess at what time it was.

“The day's 'bout to end girls,” Applejack says solemnly. “Ah really need ta get back to the farm.” It was a weak excuse and she knew it, and judging by their faces, the others knew it too.

“But,” Pinkie started.

“No buts Pinkie,” Applejack lightly cut her off. “Ah've wasted the whole day, and left Big Mac to do everything at the farm. And that just ain't fair to him. Ah have to go back.” She stared at the ground again. If her mood was bad before, it plummeted farther now, knowing that she had indeed left Big Mac to do all the harvesting and the chores. Slowly the orange mare turned and trotted slowly away.

Rarity called out to her, “We won't stop looking darling!” That brought a weak smiled to Applejack's face, and she paused mid-step for a moment. If for nothing else than to let the white unicorn know she acknowledged her comment.

Time slowed to a snail's pace, and what felt like hours later, Applejack finally made it back to Sweet Apple Acres. The first thing she noticed was that the orchards still bore a lot of their fruit; just one of many responsibilities that she shirked

looking for her hat. She sighed, every little thing she saw or did was a reminder that the old stetson was missing.

Taking that familiar position, her flank facing the thick trunk of the nearest tree, the mare bucked the tree like she always had. No difference in technique, everything the exact same way she had done a thousand times before a week. Only...

This time only a hoof full of fruit fell.

Wincing as the sound of falling apples was not as profound as it should have been, Applejack glanced behind her in shock. There were maybe a dozen apples in the baskets arranged around the base of the tree. Turning her gaze up to the canopy, scores of fruit held firm on their stems, mocking her. The  baskets should have been full and the tree empty, but the fact was nearly the opposite. She frowned and tried again, bucking the tree as hard as she could.

Even fewer apples fell this time.

“What in tarnation?” She said aloud.

Applejack ran through the apple bucking technique in her head. Obsessing over every detail of it as it was passed down from Apple to Apple. Pose, balance, the “sweet spot” to hit the tree; hay, she even examined the ground, briefly shifting the blame to the cold hard earth. After several minutes, she came to the conclusion that everything had been done right, so what was the problem?

She tried again, muscle memory reciting perfection.

Even still, maybe dozen apples fell, the tree still holding on to the majority of its bounty.

“What the hay!” Applejack practically yelled, turning to face the tree. Where she had bucked the trunk, square in the middle, were a pair of hoof prints neatly engraved in the thick bark. The near perfect prints were evidence that accuracy wasn't the issue. Experience told her that the spot in question was the best possible spot for the best possible results. Applejack just stood there, mouth agape at what she believed to be impossible.

Then the old hat popped in her mind.

“No,” She shouted, arguing with the defiant tree. “That's just crazy talk! There is no way losin' mah hat could affect my apple bucking!” Applejack may have stated it, may have made it concrete in her head, but the pit rising from her stomach said otherwise. Knowing she was lying to herself, she growled in frustration as her eyes misted over.

If'n Ah can't buck apples, what use am Ah? Applejack chastised herself for her failure. It stung, deeply, more so than anything else. More so than not placing first in the Canterlot rodeo. More so than believing she had lost Sweet Apple Acres to those Flim Flam characters. More so than missing her home when she tried to fit in in Manehatten. The mere thought of being useless. Useless.

“Aaahhhhh!” Applejack screamed, bucking the tree in anger, then again, and again, repeatedly venting her fury; the tree itself beginning to crack and split. Oddly, just as before, the apples stayed firmly in place, wobbling back and forth, but never more than a couple falling. The towering plant listed as the mare halted her assault, breathing hard. Gritting her teeth, the farm pony glared venomously at the old tree, a huge splintering canyon bisecting it horizontally, then at the cursed apples still holding firm.

Hot tears poured down the pony's eyes, reminded again of that word that currently stained her. For a moment she imagined the villain Discord mocking her, his snake like voice teasing her, taunting her.

You're such a failure Applejack, he laughed contemptuously, yet in a bemused way. Frankly, I'm surprised the farm hasn't gone under since you took over; the failure that you are and all. An imaginary claw jabbed at her chest. Mommy and Daddy would be so proud. More laughter.

Applejack's eyes flashed open, alight with their own thunderstorm of self hatred and contempt. One last buck, with all her strength. The weakened tree gave, a sickening snap as the upper part of the trunk flew several yards back, crashing hard into the neighboring tree. Absolutely no apples fell.

“Ah'm not a failure!” The furious orange mare screamed at the gray sky, a light drizzle now started to pour down from above. Holding that skyward gaze a moment longer before she darted off into the woods. Galloping as fast as her hooves would carry, eager to get away from the laughing apples.

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

Heart Phyre listened in stunned silence next to Twilight Sparkle on the couch as Granny Smith told the story of their disappearance, and subsequent events. The deep orange colored mare tried to imagine her own parents in such a fashion. True, Halo and herself had never been that close to their own parents, and the fighting didn't help, but at least they were around. A frown creased on Heart's face as she concentrated on the rug acting as a centerpiece for the floor, a familiar bitterness rising from her chest. Banishing the unpleasant thought from her mind as Twilight spoke.

“That's... horrible. And nopony has heard from them since?” It seemed like a completely unnecessary question. In Heart's mind it seemed like there was only one possible outcome, but she decided to keep that to herself.

Granny Smith solemnly nodded, her tired old eyes staring into the now blazing fireplace.

“You know what this means?” Twilight now turned to the orange pegasus.

It took more effort than it should have, lifting her gaze from the carpet to look the unicorn in the eyes, the frown deepening. This seemed to take Twilight by surprise, but continued on anyways.

“This means that Applejack needs our support more than ever. The hat is important, of that there is no doubt, but we really need to be there for her now.” Thunder broke out, interrupting the conversation. The storm was picking up.

Heart glanced from the, now wet with rainwater, window back to Twilight, who waited for her answer. Receiving a nod and a slight smile from the pegasus.

“Okay then. If you'll find Applejack, I'll go and find the others...” The lavender pony looked at Granny Smith, addressing the aging mare. “They need to know too.”

“Mah little Applejack might not like it,” She said. “But Ah think more good can come from their understanding.” No smile this time. The two mares went for the door, thanking Granny Smith for her hospitality as they departed.

The two shared a quick nod before Twilight ran off in the general direction of Ponyville to gather the others, leaving Heart Phyre by her lonesome without so much as a clue to where Applejack might have been. The pegasus looked up to the sky, it certainly reflected the new mood that had downcast her friend on the farm. Even though she knew better, it seemed like more than coincidence.

A loud, violent knocking caught her attention. Heart perked her ears up, twisting them this way and that, trying to pin down the source. The abundance of apple trees made that task more difficult than it should have been, the echo bouncing this way and that; the sound seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. To make matters worse, the light drizzle was evolving into a full blown rain. Another few minutes and it may upgrade to a downpour; Heart would prefer not to be in the middle of that. Rarity must be in a mad panic right about now, scrambling for any cover that would shield her.

Thump. Followed by a tremendous crash. Several birds flew up from a general area.

Heart Phyre jumped half out of her skin, the sound was so loud and unexpected. Even with it echoing amongst the trees, she picked out the source and headed straight for it at top speed to investigate. In no time at all she arrived at what was supposedly the source.

It was a scene of carnage. A nearby tree had been snapped in two like it were a twig, and the still enormous top half had been thrown several yards away. The strength was mind boggling as she stared at the jagged, splintered wood. The base looked no better, the roots beginning to upright from whatever had struck it. Heart had seen lightning strikes before, and this was definitely not the result of that. The storm didn't appear to be unleashing that fury yet anyways, content with just rain and thunder for now.

Timidly the pegasus examined the corpse of the tree. The hoof prints, carved into the tree's trunk like an angry wound, stuck out like a sore hoof. Then the realization dawned on her.

“Applejack!” She called out, trying to catch the mare's attention. It only made sense that it could have been the country pony. What pony else had that kind of strength? The real question was why did she destroy a perfectly good tree.

“Applejack! Where are you?” She called out again. No response. Instead, Heart turned her attention to the ground, looking for anything that might point out where she had gone. After a few moments of searching, she found a faint trail of hoof steps, preserved in the mud. Trying to recall which area they were headed. Coming up with nothing, she continued on.

Following the trail at a brisk pace, Heart Phyre kept her eyes and ears open, occasionally calling out her friend's name. Some time had gone by and she began to wonder if maybe she was going the wrong way, the trail was becoming more difficult to follow. It was kind of ironic; she was searching for the mare that would likely be the best at following another's trail through the wilderness. The surrounding wasn't helping either. Similar row after row, identical tree after identical tree, Heart was beginning to get a little dizzy; until the sound of rushing water caught her attention.

Just yards away through the thicket of the forest, the crystal clear water of the Ponyville river rushed before her. Already the rainfall made the body of water race down the riverbed, the choppiness ruining what would have been a near perfectly flat surface. There was also evidence of debris from the wind, which grew ever stronger as time went by.

The pegasus's heart jumped, a terrible thought crossing her mind. Applejack wouldn't...

No, Heart Phyre physically shook her head, denying the thought from taking root. Still, she found herself scanning the waters, looking for any sign, an orange leg or a blond maned head. When this proved fruitless, she finally searched up river along the banks.

Heart Phyre sighed in relief as she spotted a flat, light orange lump some distance away with three red dots on it laying down just a few feet from the river's edge: Applejack. Eagerly she made her way over to the farm mare, a satisfied smile creasing her lips. For a moment Heart thought she was asleep, but as she got closer that thought was proven false when she saw that Applejack's eyes were only just barely open; finding incredible interest in the turmoiling waters below, not caring that the rain poured down on her.

By now both mare's manes were plastered to their heads. Heart trotted right up next to the saddened pony, sitting down next to her while preserving personal space. The pegasus extended her wing, providing a makeshift umbrella since she didn't have one in her saddle bag. The posters and paper based supplies were likely ruined, but that hardly mattered; there were more important things to deal with right here, right now.

Applejack's ear perked up, probably as it dawned on her that her head was no longer getting rained on, or maybe why it had suddenly grown a bit darker, and turned her head to take a look. If the earth pony was surprised to see her, she didn't show it as she returned her gaze to the river.

Without looking up she asked, “No luck findin' it huh?”

“No,” Heart sighed. “But we have posters all over town. I'd say it's only a matter of time.”

Applejack huffed, unconvinced.

“If'n ya followed me, you must've seen it then.” It seemed like a bit of an accusation.

Heart blinked, momentarily confused as to what Applejack was referencing, then remembered the mangled tree. “Yeah, I saw the tree.” Being specific, just to be sure they were on the same page.

The mare buried her head in her arms, mumbling. “Then ya know Ah'm a failure too...”

Failure? Huh? Now Heart was really confused. Why in Equestria would she think – oh. The thought cleared up as the pegasus recalled a detail that was nearly missed. There were half full buckets of apples near the stump, and still plenty of the juicy red fruit left on the branches. That explained it.

“You're not a failure,” Heart decided to be blunt.

“Yes Ah am,” Applejack rebounded, burying her head further in the ground. “Ah couldn't buck more than ah fraction a' them apples. Ah've let them both down.” That must have referred to the Apple family parents that Granny Smith told her about.

“Applejack...” Heart tried to console her friend, but she kept going.

“Ah promised them Ah'd keep the farm goin'. Ah promised them ah'd take care of the family. How can Ah do that now if'n Ah can't buck apples?” Slight sobs now intruded, Applejack making an immense effort to hide them. “Ah've let Big McIntosh down by runnin' off on a foal's errand leavin' him ta pick up mah slack. And now Ah'm of no use to him or Applebloom or anypony. Ah'm –” She choked up for a moment. “Useless.” The word completely didn't match up with the pony Heart was talking to.

Even in the short time Heart had known the hard working earth pony, “useless” was the last word on her mind when she thought of Applejack. Hay, it didn't even come close. Suddenly Heart felt inadequate for trying to solve this debacle. In terms of providing examples of why Applejack was wrong about this state of mind, she lacked any kind of memory to fall back on. Except maybe one.

“You weren't useless when you and the others set up the shop for Halo and I,” Heart said gently, reminding the mare of her recent good deed.

It worked a little bit, she now had her head resting on her hooves, looking across the rushing river instead of buried in the mud. “True,” She admitted. The dumps seem to be receding, Heart knew she had to press on if she hoped to help further.

Quickly, she tried to recall some of the things she had heard from Twilight.

“You weren't useless when Ponyville was nearly stampeded by cows,” Heart recalled.

Applejack sighed. That memory may have had a bad note attached to it. She tried again.

“You weren't useless when Dash needed encouragement for that competition,” That seemed to work a bit better.

“You weren't useless when Fluttershy needed help going up that mountain,” Applejack rose her head up a bit more.

“You weren't useless when Night Mare Moon tried to entangle the world in eternal night,” That deed had become legendary, and its news spread quickly. Six ponies that used the revitalized Elements of Harmony to defeat a fearsome foe. Now Applejack sat upright.

“That's all true Ah s'ppose,” The mare didn't sound so sure.

“Of course it's true,” Heart reinforced. “You are far from useless Applejack. Just because you lose an item of importance doesn't change who you are. You are still Applejack. You are the one that completes the hat, not the other way around.”

Now Applejack turned to look her dead in the eye. Heart smiled warmly for assurance.

“Do y'all know why that hat is so important to me?” She asked in a blunt tone. More of a statement than a question.

“Granny Smith,” Heart fessed up. “Told me what happened...” She trailed off, not sure whether she should complete the sentence.

Applejack smiled, but weakly, shaking her head a bit. “That night they disappeared. That is the truth. But the next day we got a letter from the mailpony. It...” Applejack trailed off, sighing before continuing. “It delivered the bad news. They found their cart, and even more, the letter came back with ma's bow. Applebloom wears it now. The stetson belonged to mah pa.” She described the significance of both items. Heart sat quietly and listened.

“Ah made a promise that day,” She continued. “Ta keep this farm alive. In their name. In their memory.” She glanced at the three small apples decorating her flank. “But more than that. For Applebloom, the poor filly. They went when she was just a foal. She has no memory of them Heart.”

Heart paused, not quite knowing what to say, then a thought came to her.

“Did they love her?” Heart asked, bracing for the response.

Applejack gave her a what-the-hay? look. “What kinda question is that ta be askin'?”

“What I mean is, does she know they loved her?” She asked again, changing the question slightly.

“O' course!”

“Then they are not gone,” Heart said. “They're with Applebloom, they're with Big McIntosh, and they're with you,

Applejack. Always and forever.” Applejack's stern expression softened as the message sunk in.

Once more she turned to face Heart. “Thanks,” She said, wearing that old, genuine smile now. “Ah reckon.” Heart returned the smile, happy that Applejack was her old self. Or at least close enough for now.

Crack.

Heart Phyre and Applejack both jumped as a lightning bolt boomed in the distance, shattering the tranquility.

“I think we should get out of this storm now,” Heart suggested, feeling nervous.

Applejack laughed, “Might be a good idear,”

The two stand up, Heart Phyre retracts her wing, as both mares are already fully soaked and couldn't possibly get wetter. Happy that they were finally going to head inside when Applejack pauses, her ears swiveling.

“Do y'all hear that?”

The pegasus tensed, listening. “Vaguely...” It was difficult to make out, sounding like it was coming from some distance away, coming from upriver. It didn't sound like the rushing water, it was too high pitched. The two returned what little distance they had put between themselves and the river bank, searching the sounds for the source.

Something large and made of wood came around the bend upstream. Steadily growing larger as it grew closer to their position. Heart Phyre squinted, as did Applejack, trying to place the mysterious object. There was a multitude of colors other than the typical brown of the wood. A few shades of orange, a crimson red, white and a light purple. Individual shapes became more distinguished, and at the same time the noise grew more distinct.

With mounting horror, the shapes became recognizable as heads; about four of them altogether. The noise – now registered as screams – as four familiar fillies rode in an inadequately sized boat being jostled and jammed down the raging river. Completely at the water's mercy.

“Applebloom?” Applejack said, confused. Then quickly turned into a panicked shout. “Applebloom! What the hay are y'all doin'!”

Heart joined in, recognizing one of the fillies as her own. “Halo!” Her jaw dropped. “Get out of that boat right now!” Protective, motherly instincts kicking in.

“We can't!” Halo retorted, the fear evident as she tried to hang on to the side of the boat. “We lost the ores almost as soon as we started!”

In quick succession, the boat had matched the position of the two mares on the bank, whom gave chase, following alongside the hapless craft.

“We need to do something,” Heart stated the obvious, running alongside Applejack. “Any ideas?”

“Ah don't know,” She replied, the panic rising. “Ah don't know!”

It seemed like the only hope was to wait for the river to move the fillies close enough for them to grab hold. That seemed extremely unlikely however, and the both knew it. Heart tried to think of something... anything. Heart looked up, and overjoyed at the sight before her.

“Applejack!” Pointing the mare in the direction of what she saw. A short distance away came Rainbow Dash, followed closely by Fluttershy, battling against the wind currents, heading straight for them.

“Am Ah glad to see you two!” Applejack stated, relief washing over them both. “Quick!” The orange earth pony pointed at the boat. Rainbow and Fluttershy wasted no time, diving for the boat.

Before they reached it however, the small naval craft suddenly lurched to a sudden halt, spinning around violently before continuing down the river. An ear-splitting scream erupted, and was suddenly cut off by a loud splash. There was one less filly in the boat. Heart had been too busy watching the pegasi in the sky to see who had fallen in, but was relieved that it wasn't Halo. A quick analysis told her that it was Applebloom; the shriek of terror from Applejack confirmed it.

“No!” Applejack shouted. “Applebloom!” She picked up the pace, Heart struggling to keep up.

By then, Rainbow and Fluttershy had a hold of the boat and were struggling against the current to bring it to shore, fighting inch by inch since it was too heavy a load to simply lift out of the choppy waters. Heart gave solace that the rest of them were safe, now focused on trying to spot Applebloom among the murky tides.

No matter how hard she tried, Heart couldn't spot the crimson maned filly or her pink bow. It seemed she had completely been swallowed by the river. Debris began appearing, mixed among the water, like vegetable soup. Branches, leaves, and other hazardous objects permeated the river entirely. The debris, coupled with the turbulent waters, would create an extremely hostile environment. She shuttered, thinking about the filly getting beaten and battered against everything, completely at the mercy of the tides.

“Help!” The distinctive cry rang in Hearts ears, she scanned the surface, trying to find the source. She spotted the filly's head, just for a moment, before she was sucked back down. “Hel –” Another cry as the filly popped up again, cut short.

Heart stole a glance at Applejack. The mare's face was screwed up in absolute horror, utterly terrified that this was happening, maybe even in disbelief as she thought the earth pony looked dazed. Underneath it though, Heart Phyre saw that determination that vividly described the mare in question, deep in her green eyes. Applejack wasn't going to give up, and neither was Heart.

Another sound permeated the chaos, a constant, throaty roar some distance upstream that distinguished itself from everything else. Heart couldn't place it, she didn't know the area, but Applejack certainly did; the panic growing ten fold as she gasped in realization.

“The waterfall!” The farm mare announced.

Despite being soaking wet and very cold, Heart felt a vivid chill run down her spine. Not only did they need to do something, but they had to do it now. Out of the corner of her eye, Heart saw the filly appear again, only this time there was no scream for help accompanying it. Another splash, and it took several seconds for the pegasus to register that her friend had jumped into the river, going after the motionless Applebloom, bobbing up and down in the water.

Great, Heart thought, panic rising in her demeanor. Great! And how are you supposed to get back out Applejack? Did you even think about that? Of course, Heart considered that had things happened differently just moments ago, she would likely have done the exact same thing. Still, the point remained: how the hay was she supposed to help them out now? Soon after Applejack had jumped in, she had a hold of Applebloom, both of them rushing towards the waterfall some distance away.

“Come on Heart,” She said to herself. “Think! There must be something...” Concentrating hard as she continued the chase down the river bank.

A light bulb flashed in her mind's eye.

Reaching into the sobbing wet saddle pack, forgotten up until this point, Heart withdrew a long length of rope with her good wing. It was a long shot, but it could work.

“Applejack!” She called out for her friend's attention. The mare tried to look in the pegasus's direction, with great difficulty due to the raging river, but seemed to get the idea; Heart thought she could make out a nod.

Quickly calculating where she would need to throw it, Heart launched the whole bundle into the air, several feet ahead of where she predicted the pair would be. It wasn't a perfect shot, and Heart feared she had missed their only chance, but at the last second Applejack grasped the bundle with her maw before it could get away from her. Heart watched, standing by as the orange mare frantically untangled the rope. The roar of the waterfall grew louder all the time, and now the mists from it were visible in the distance.

Come on, Heart thought, her eyes glued to Applejack. Come on! There isn't much time left! The mental image of Applejack and Applebloom plummeting to their doom wasn't a pleasant one.

Finally the mare in the river had the rope arranged the way she needed it: a lasso. Demonstrating a great deal of skill, Applejack spun the loop in the air, making eye contact with Heart making sure she was ready. Heart nodded, not wishing to waste more of what little precious time they had left.

Applejack let loose with the lasso. Heart watched it coming directly towards her. When she thought the moment was right, Heart launched herself in the air with her legs, aiming for the lasso. She didn't try to grab it with her mouth, instead aiming for her midsection to use her body as an anchor. There was no way the pegasus could hold on to the rope with just her teeth. Heart winced and felt the wind get knocked out of her chest as the thick rope tightened over her torso, revitalizing the pain from the accident with the hammer.

As soon as Heart hit the ground, she put on the breaks. Hooves leaving four distinct tracks in the mud, the strength of the river dragging her along for the ride. Scrambling, the pegasus tried to reverse, desperately trying to gain a satisfactory foothold. Her left wing felt like it was ablaze with fire, the bruised appendage pinned under the harsh rope, tightening slowly like a snake as the tension held.

Heart ignored the pain the best she could, struggling with every step. The water's edge drew closer to her, threatening to swallow the pegasus whole. Heart enveloped herself in darkness, closing her eyes trying to concentrate further. The rope was far tighter than she imagined, vastly limiting the oxygen she could inhale; Heart felt her face change color and build up heat, a combination of frustration and suffocation. If the river couldn't overpower her outright, it would just have to wait for her to pass out from lack of oxygen... or for her spine to snap in two.

Just as she was starting to see stars, and hope seemed lost, Heart felt the rope lose some of its vice like grip. Despite still being too tight to allow her breath, the pegasus redoubled her efforts, and was rewarded with what felt like a gain. For a moment Heart believed her imagination was playing tricks on her, and forced her eyes open. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy had their backs to her and the rescue line in their mouths, pulling for all they were worth.

She smiled as much as her strained face allowed. “It's about time,” The deep orange pegasus weakly rasped, barely able to mouth the words, half sarcasm and half elation. Dash must have heard her, as the rainbow maned pegasus briefly turned and winked at her.

The struggle against the river, threatening waterfall dead ahead, turned into a one sided contest as the trio of pegasi tugged against the current. Gaining ground by leaps and bounds, they succeeded in pulling out the Apple sisters after only a few short moments. When Heart saw Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash helping the pair out of the river through blackening vision, she collapsed on the muddy earth, without the strength to so much as stand.

Heart wheezed, her breath obviously still miles behind. After several moments the rope was finally removed from around her waist, and the exhausted pony sucked in a great breath of air, greedy for the oxygen. When she opened her eyes next, the concerned face of a certain purple unicorn greeted her.

Heart coughed violently, rising into a sitting position, looking at Twilight. “Are they...?” Heart stopped as her gaze drifted to Applejack, shouting at the unconscious form of Applebloom on the wet earth, a short distance away. They were all there, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, and the rest of the fillies; Heart sighed when she saw Halo safe and sound.

“I...” Twilight hesitated, helping Heart to her feet. “I don't know.”

Confused, Heart looked over at the motionless Applebloom, minor cuts and bruises decorated her small body, as they did Applejack's. Nothing appeared to be broken, no serious injuries. However, the strongest detail was the fact that the little filly's chest wasn't moving, streams of water leading away from her agape maw.

“No!” Applejack was shouting, crying. “No, Applebloom, no!” The mare began pounding on the filly's chest, trying to resuscitate her. Agonizing second after second passed, the whole of the group remained deadly silent, not daring to move a muscle.

The body suddenly jerked, and Applebloom began violently coughing, expelling what seemed like gallons of water from her throat. Everypony sighed in relief, Applejack naturally was ecstatic.

“Maybe,” Applebloom tried to speak, coughing every other word. “Maybe that wasn't such a good idea...” Barely keeping her eyes open. Applebloom, exhaustion overtaking the filly, became still again. Although this time she had simply passed out.

The initial tension broken, other conversations emerged. Rarity turned on Sweetie Belle, chastising her for trying such a foolish stunt; the smaller unicorn squeamishly apologizing. Rainbow Dash and Twilight were lecturing Scootaloo, obviously trying to convince the younger pegasus to be more careful, likely saying how disappointed they were. Heart Phyre herself made eye contact with Halo as she approached. The younger sibling hanging her head, expecting the berating.

Oh did Heart want to scream her head off at her younger sister, scaring her half to death with that little stunt. The filly sat down in front of her, at a loss for words. The building anger in the adult mare showed in a mild scowl, which made Halo wince. However, as quickly as it came, the anger cooled; replaced with a sense of relief that she was safe. Without warning, Heart reached out and embraced the small filly.

“You're not mad at me?” Halo tentatively asked.

“Yes,” Heart replied, pulling away but keeping her hooves on her sister. “Yes I am very mad at you. But...” She let the scowl soften. “I'm also glad you're safe. I don't know what I'd do if anything ever happened to you.” Heart looked over to Applejack. She was sitting on the ground, tightly embracing the unconscious Applebloom.

“I'm sorry,” Halo said. “We were trying to earn our cutie marks.” She confessed.

Heart sighed in annoyance, considering what she was told. “So you thought you'd risk your life?” The pegasus scolded.

“Never mind, I'm just glad you're safe.” She repeated.

_-**-_//(o)\_-**-_

The worst of the storm had passed over faster than expected. The thunder had died down and the lightning was non existent; even the down pouring rain was reduced to little more than a drizzle. Despite the lateness of the day, small cracks formed in the dissipating cloud cover, allowing sparse rays of sunlight to peak through. Gracing the rows of apple trees in the immense orchard.

Heart trotted down the muddy country path alongside the rest of the ponies on their way to the farmhouse at Sweet Apple Acres. Like Rarity, Rainbow Dash, and Applejack, she had an exhausted little filly draped over her back, carrying them.

The pegasus watched the farm mare, picking up the pace until she matched that of Applejack's. She seemed like her old self now, it was time to make sure. Gently, she nudged the mare's neck. The orange earth pony turned to meet Heart's smiling face, graciously returning the gesture.

Applejack mouths her silent thanks. Heart returns with a nod.

Minutes go by and the farmhouse of Sweet Apple Acres comes into view. Everypony picks up the pace, worn down from the day's events and eager for warmth and a chance to dry off. As they approach, Big McIntosh is pacing just outside the door with Granny Smith asleep in an old rocking chair. McIntosh and Applejack exchange a few words, the stallion asks where they had been and inquires what happened to Applebloom. The middle sibling simply replies that it's a long story, and emphasizes that she needs to get everypony inside to warm up, especially the fillies.

Big McIntosh reluctantly lets the subject fall, ushering the group inside. Quickly Heart follows Applejack and the others upstairs, drying off the sleeping fillies and tucking them under the comforter of a large bed to keep warm. They return downstairs to Granny Smith and McIntosh passing out blankets and home made quilts to everypony. Applejack retreats to the kitchen, stating that she's going to prepare some hot food.

After a short while, the fillies come down from the upstairs bedroom and group together with their respective families, and Scootaloo getting close to Rainbow Dash.

“Ugh,” Snorts Rarity. “I simply cannot believe how wet I am. I loathe getting wet.” Casting an irritated look at Sweetie Belle, but cuddles with the smaller unicorn anyways. Heart snickers at Rarity's discomfort, as well as some of the others. Halo warms up next to her own sister, resting her head on her lap.

“Look on the bright side Rarity,” Rainbow says casually, off in the corner of the room, gazing out the window. “At least now you won't need a bath for a while.”

The soaked unicorn shoots Dash a glare, everypony else stifling their own giggles. “I don't find that amusing in the slightest. I mean really...”

Heart glanced at Rainbow Dash in the corner, she seemed anxious, eager to leave and obviously didn't like the idea of huddling under a blanket. She was conversing with Twilight, and based on the looks on their faces, Heart guessed that Rainbow thought she didn't believe she could catch a cold, while the lavender unicorn was likely trying to convince the stubborn mare otherwise. Little Scoots, right next to the older mare, seemed like she thought the exact same.

They'll regret that later, Heart thought, smiling and shaking her head.

“Soup's on everypony!” Applejack emerged from the kitchen doorway, balancing on her back a platter with a steaming cauldron and many spoons and bowls. With practiced ease she nudged the platter on to the coffee table, urging everypony to grab a bowl while it was still hot. Soon thereafter, they were all enjoying the warming feeling of home made country vegetable soup, warming them inside and out. Even Rainbow Dash couldn't resist the savory scent, eager to get a her own.

“Well it seems losin' mah hat didn't affect my ability ta cook!” Applejack said casually, everypony clearly enjoying the stew.

“Wait what was that yer sayin'?” Granny Smith, snoozing up until now, said aloud. “Lost yer hat ya says?”

“Yes, Ah woke up this mornin' and it was gone.” Applejack explained, but effortlessly kept her smile. Seems she has genuinely gotten over it now, not really bothered by it.

Granny laughed out loud, slapping her knee. Everypony was now staring in confusion at Applejack and the aging mare. The younger mare now lost her smile, seemingly annoyed that it appeared to be so funny.

“Well why din't'ya just say so!” Granny got up out of her chair and disappeared into the back of the house. A moment later she returned, the sought after brown old stetson in her mouth.

“Mah hat!” Applejack snatched the hat from Granny Smith, immediately planting it on her head, smiling from ear to ear. “Granny how...?” She started to ask, but the older mare just held up a hoof.

“Ah wash yer hat every now and again while yer asleep!” Granny answered. “Ya see, this whipper snapper here gets real ornery when ya touch her hat. But the darned thing still needs ta be washed like any other clothing. So Ah sneak in real quiet like and give it a good cleanin'. Today though, Ah fell asleep an' forgot to put it back in its restin' place.”

Applejack facehooved, as did everypony else. “Ah reckon Ah put y'all through a real goose chase, havn't Ah?” Granny Smith tried to apologize.

“No, that's mah fault Granny,” Applejack intervened. “Ah'm the one that dragged everypony else into this. Overreactin' the way Ah did. And worst of all, Ah put almost more importance in a material possession than in the family Ah still have.” The mare hung her head in apparent shame.

“There's no need to apologize AJ,” Twilight spoke up now, taking the final sip of her soup.

“She's right,” Heart Phyre chimed in, everypony else nodding in agreement.

“And that sounds like a letter!” The unicorn finished. Heart did a double take at Twilight's last comment, confused as to what the unicorn could possibly mean. “I'll explain later.”

If Applejack wasn't normal before, she certainly was now that the stetson was firmly planted on her head. The group sat around the table chowing down on the soup until not a drop was left, laughing and telling stories, the dreadful events of the day temporarily forgotten. As if emulating the exact mood of the setting, brilliant rays of sun poured through the open window as the ball of fire in the sky began to rest behind the mountains.