Where Are You?: The Sequel

The glowing eyes. The razor sharp teeth. The claws digging into the soil beneath it. These are the images a filly would not like to see. But here stood Apple Bloom, cowering to the ground. The creature she feared the most in her entire life was now standing right above her. The child tried to back away, but the creature pounded her to the ground with a paw.

Pinning her to the ground, the creature began to growl. Apple Bloom tried to loosen the thing's grip, but that just agitated it more. Trapped, the filly could only muster up one word.

"T-timberwolf...." she muttered.

Out of nowhere, it's mouth opened. The creature lashed fowards, landing right on top of the filly. It's mouth agaze, it quickly lowered it's head. Right as it's teeth latched onto Apple Bloom's neck-

"AAAAAHHHH!" Apple Bloom screamed.

She suddenly sat straight up. Shaking, the filly looked around. She was still in her bedroom, tucked into her bed. The blankets, which were neatly folded around the child's body, was now a wrinkled mass that covered the entire bed. It was 3 a.m., according to the clock hanging on the wall.

Apple Bloom cautiously lifted a forehoof to her neck; It was still intact with her body. The filly could feel sweat dripping down the sides of her head down to her stomach. She was breathing heavily, as if she had just come back from participating in the Running Of The Leaves. She could feel her whole body trembling. It was really one scary nightmare. Suddenly, her bedroom door opened.

"Apple Bloom? What happened?" Applejack asked, entering the room with a lantern.

Apple Bloom just stared at her big sister with large eyes, until the tears which had been forming in her eyes finally began to stream down her cheeks. The filly began to cry, closing her eyes and lowering her head.

"Apple Bloom...." Applejack said, walking over to her crying little sister.

The orange mare sat down on the foot of the bed and grabbed Apple Bloom. She then began to cradle the filly in her arms, with the child's forehooves wrapped around her chest.

"Shh, it's okay." Applejack said softly. "It's okay."

Apple Bloom's sobbing began to slowly subside. Big Macintosh and Granny Smith entered the room, seeing Applejack cradling the crying filly in her arms.

"What'n tartnation happened?" Big Mac asked.

"I-I had a.....{sniff} b-bad dream...." Apple Bloom sobbed.

"There, there." Applejack said, rocking the crying child back and forth in her arms.

Granny Smith walked over to Applejack, and began stroking Apple Bloom's red mane.

"It's okay, sweetums." Granny Smith said. "I'm going ta' get a cup of water fer the filly."

Big Mac and Applejack nodded. As Granny Smith left the room and headed downstairs, Applejack came up with an idea.

"Hey Apple Bloom?" she asked, catching the attention of the filly. "Wanna hear a story?"

"S-sure..." Apple Bloom choked out.

Carefully, Applejack set the filly back down on the bed.

"This one's called The Star Controller." Applejack began. "A long time ago, back when Equestria had just barely been created, there was a pony named Star Shine."

"W-was he a nice pony?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Oh yes, definetly. He was probably the nicest pony in all of Equestria at the time. Anyway, everypony thought he was downright useless. He didn't have wings to fly in the air, nor did he have a horn to cast magic spells. No sir'ee. All he had was his four legs."

"J-just like us..." Apple Bloom sniffed, managing to put on a little smile.

"Everypony made fun of here Star Shine because he had nothin'. No wings on his back, or a horn on his forehead. He was a plain Earth pony."

Big Macintosh smiled. He remembered the time when he was a little colt and his mother would tell him the exact same story. Wait......his mother......

"But one night, Star Shine asked himself, 'Why don't I have wings or horns? Why am I so useless?!' That doggarn' stallion kicked the dirt off the ground, and began cryin'. But, as if Celestia herself had heard him, he looked up at the stars."

"W-what did he see?" Apple Bloom asked.

"He saw a shape in the stars! Usin' his mind, he made a mental image of a manticore in the stars."

"Wow!" the filly exclaimed.

"Yep, wow indeed! He showed everypony his special talent, and soon enough, his cutie mark appeared!"

"What was his cutie mark?" asked Apple Bloom.

"Three stars. Each one of them had a line connecting one another."

"Like a triangle?"

"Jus' like a triangle. And that's why he was called a star controller from then on."

"Wow!" Apple Bloom said, her sobbing stopped a long time ago. "That's the best story I've ever heard!"

"Glad ya'll liked it." Applejack smiled.

Apple Bloom crawled over to her big sister and leaped into her arms, giving her a tight hug.

"Thank you for telling me that story!" she said. "That really helped!"

"Don't even mention it!" Applejack chuckled. The two stayed in their positions for quite a while.

"Hey, Applejack?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Yeah?" Applejack replied.

"Can I sleep with you tonight?"

"Sure, why not?"

Right as the two sisters got up, Applejack noticed the missing Big Macintosh.

"Go get in mah bed, I'll be there in a minute." the orange mare said.

Apple Bloom nodded and head downstairs towards her big sister's room. Applejack began to search for Big Mac. She heard the sound of sniffling, and followed it. Soon, she found herself in the bathroom, wher the stallion was wiping his eyes. He took notice of the orange pony.

"Ya'll had to tell her the story Ma' told us when we were young, didn't you?" he strictly asked.

"Sorry, Big Mac." Applejack apoligized. "But Apple Bloom needed to hear that story eventually."

"Then why don't we tell her about our parents, while we're at it?! Huh?!" Big Macintosh lashed out.

Applejack took a step back. "Look, once she gets old enough, we can tell her."

Big Mac began gritting his teeth. "We were younger than Apple Bloom when Ma and Pa keeled over!"

"Big Macintosh!" Applejack yelled.

The red stallion began breathing heavily.

"Sorry. It's just that...." he paused, tears starting to form in his eyes. "...After the 'incident'..."

"Ah know, Big Mac." Applejack sighed, wrapping a forehoof around her crying brother. "Ah miss them too."

"How do you think lil' AB's gonna react when she finds out?" the stallion asked.

"Ah don't know. But ah sure don't wanna think about it right now." Applejack said.

The two siblings embraced each other before they finally heard the calling of an impatient Apple Bloom from downstairs.

"Applejack!" the filly yelled. "You coming?"

Applejack chuckled and looked at Big Mac. "Ah. Those darn impatient fillies."

Big Mac chuckled as well. "Eeyup."

The two said their goodnights and Applejack head downstairs, where Apple Bloom was sitting up in the older sibling's bed.

"What took ya'll so long?" she asked.

"Sorry, AB. Big Mac was just a lil' down."

"About what?"

Applejack suddenly paused. She had already given a little too much information away. "You'll know when you're older."

"Aww." Apple Bloom complained. "Why does everything that ah want to know hav'ta wait until I'm older?"

"Because," Applejack sternly protested. "There are some things a filly like yerself doesn't need to know till' their older."

"Fiiiiiiine." Apple Bloom moaned.

"Now get some sleep." Applejack said. "Ya'll got school tomorrow."

"Kay." Apple Bloom responded.

Soon, Apple Bloom's snoring filled the entire room. Applejack wondered why she had let her sleep in the room again. But that was until another subject popped into her mind.

Her parents.

An nostalgic memory entered her mind.

"Blank Flank! Blank Flank!" the group of bullies yelled. They circled around a filly Applejack, who was crying her eyes out.

"Oh, what's the matter?" one of them asked. "Crybaby!"

The bullies began laughing extremely hard.

"I-it's not funny!" Applejack sobbed.

"Ah, look at her guys, we should totally stop..." another one said, catching Applejack's attention. "NOT!"

The bullies laughed one again, causing Applejack to cry even harder.

"J-just leave me alone." she cried, trying to ward them off.

"Or what?" another one asked. "You gonna tell your mommy and daddy?"

"That won't be neccassary." a deep voice was heard.

Right as the bully turned to see who it was, a red hoof came flying towards him. He tried to dodge, but it was too late. A loud SMACK was heard, and the bully went flying against the wall, blood streaming from his nose down his face. The other bullies turned to see who it was.

"Because I'M here." he said, gritting his teeth and snorting.

"Big Mac...." Applejack whispered, her frown turning into a smile of relief.

"Leave....my....sis'....alone." he muttered, his teeth grinding.

The bullies panicked, and the all fled, even the one whose nose was most likely broken. Once the bullies were out of sight, Big Mac lend out a hoof.

"You kay'?" he asked.

"Yeah." Applejack replied.

"You seemed pretty sad. Are ya'll sure you're fine?" Mac asked.

"Yes!" she replied.

"Okay, just checkin'." he smiled.

The two walked proceeded to walk home, where their parents stood there waiting.

"Where were ya'll?" their mother asked sternly.

"Lil' AJ here was being bullied, so ah...." Big Mac paused, not wanting to be punished for his action.

"So ya did what?" she asked.

"Beat one up, scared the rest of them away." he said.

"WHAT?!" the two parents yelled at the same time.

Big Mac flinched. Applejack watched in horror. The two were expecting an extreme meltdown from their parents, but as the seconds went by, nothing happened.

"Big Mac, thank ya'll for helping out AJ, but next time, please try not to pick any fights." their mother said.

"So I'm not in trouble?" Big Mac asked.

"Why should ya be? Those doggarn bullies deserved it." their father said smiling.

"Thanks ma and pa." Big Mac said, hugging his peers.

"Don't mention it." their father replied. "Now let's cook up some tasty pie for dessert! I'm more starvin' than a snake in a hospital!"

The four ponies laughed, as they went inside the barn.

Applejack smiled at the fond memory, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. That's what she loved best about her parents. They were funny, kind-hearted, forgiving, and they certainly made the most delicious pies she had ever eaten, next to Granny Smith's. She rolled over and looked at the sleeping Apple Bloom. The way she was curled up, her back legs touching her forehooves, and the red bow that lay in her fluffy hair; it was a sight that would make anypony smile, even the grumpiest of ones. Then a shocking realization hit Applejack like a slap to the face.

How would Apple Bloom react when she found out the truth?

Would she be mad?

Would she hate them for not telling her?

Or, would she feel at fault?

Applejack shook her head. Don't think about it., Applejack said in her mind. Jus' try to get some good night sleep.

She closed her eyes, and soon, she fell alseep as well.

Applejack awoke after a good night's sleep. She yawned and stretched her forehooves into the air. She turned to see that Apple Bloom wasn't in the bed anymore. The smell of something cooking from downstairs didn't surprise her, as Apple Bloom had constantly tried to make a suitible, rarily edible, breakfast. As Applejack got up from the bed, the thoughts of last night came back.

How would Apple Bloom react to the situation involving their parents? Applejack shook her head.

No! Bad brain!, she cursed in her thoughts. Don't think about it! She can learn when she's older!

After a quick stretch and a bathroom break, the farmer headed downstairs. But her vision was soon blurred by the extensive amount of smoke coming from the kitchen.

What has this filly concured up this time?

After making her way through the gray fumes, she found Apple Bloom gently moving a cooking pan back and forth on a flame from the oven. It seemed as if the filly was completely oblivious to the smoke eminating from the pan.

"What in tarnations have you dun' now, Apple Bloom?" she asked.

"Oh, hey sis!" Apple Bloom replied with a smile. "Ah was jus' cookin' some breakfast fer ya'll!"

"What breakfast?" Applejack asked, holding back a chuckle.

"Huh?" Apple Bloom looked confused, before she looked into the burning pan.

Sure enough, the bacon that was sizzling in there before were now bit-sized charcoal crisps, as were the sunny side up eggs. The orange juice was now a dried up substance that stook to the pan. And worse of all, the oranges Apple Bloom had used (which were stacked into a sloppy pile on the clean counter surface) were the most disgusting, wrinkled up oranges that Applejack had ever seen.

"Awwww." Apple Bloom moaned. "The bacon was goin' to be the best part!"

Applejack's mouth turned into a twisted line, and her left eye twitched. The mess would take forever to clean up.

"You kay', sis?" Apple Bloom asked, taking notice of Applejack's irritation.

Get a hold of yerself!, the orange mare said in her mind. She's had a rough night after all.

Applejack shook her head. "I'm fine, but....what in tarnation happened in here?!"

"Ah told you, ah was makin' some breakfast fer you guys."

"Did you git' some cooking tutorials from Rarity like ah asked you?"

"No, she was too busy. So ah got some from Sweetie Belle!"

Well that explains everything.....

"How about ah make breakfast fer ya'll today?" Applejack asked, trying her best not to turn the tables on her little sister.

Apple Bloom's expression clearly showed some disapointment, but she nodded in approval and went to go get ready for school.

As Apple Bloom walked down the dirt path that led to school, she couldn't help but think about the nightmare she had last night. Usually at this point, the filly would've completely forgotten about it; but it just seemed to real. She really felt as if a timberwolf was standing there. As if it were breathing right in her face. When it had landed on her, she felt as if its foot really was holding her down. And when it latched onto her neck-

"Hey Apple Bloom!" came a sudden, squeaky voice.

"Aah!" Apple Bloom jumped, surprised by the sudden guest. She turned around to see Sweetie Belle standing there.

"Sorry for scaring you." she apoligized.

"It's okay." Apple Bloom replied, smiling. "Ah'm just a lil' jumpy from a nightmare ah had last night."

"You had a nightmare?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Can I hear it?"

Apple Bloom proceeded to tell her friend about the nightmare, going into explicit detail about the wolf, the feelings, the realism, when she woke up, the story told by Applejack, and when she slept in the same bed with her older sibling.

"Wow." Sweetie Belle said. "Sounds like one rough night."

"Ah know," Apple Bloom replied. "But the wierd thing was how realistic it seemed...."

"All nightmares seem realistic at first, but after a while, it'll go away."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive."

"Thanks, Sweetie."

"No problem!"

As the two continued their conversation, a familiar orange pegasus joined them.

"Hey guys!" Scootaloo said. "What you guys talking about?"

"Oh, Apple Bloom was just telling me about a nightmare she had last night." Sweetie Belle replied.

"Ooh! Can I hear it?" Scootaloo eagerly asked.

Apple Bloom sighed. This was going to be a LONG walk to school.

After another full detail explaination about a subject that should've ended 20 minutes ago, the fillies finally made it to school. But they soon regretted stepping into the school yard when two familiar faces came into view.

"Hey look! It's the blank flanks!" Diamond Tiara teased, causing her and Silver Spoon to giggle.

"Ha ha, shove it down your throat." Scootaloo threatened.

"I don't know about you Diamond Tiara," Silver Spoon said. "..But I would absolutely kill myself if I had to become part of the....what are they called.....Cutie Mark Crusaders." The two snickered.

Suddenly, the three fillies stopped dead in their tracks. Scootaloo turned her head around.

"Oh that's it!" the pegasus yelled, pouncing on the two bullies.

Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom watched as the three fillies dueled. Finally, their teacher Cheerilee showed up.

"What's going on here?" she strictly asked.

Diamond Tiara was the first to speak. "Well you see, Miss Cheerilee, me and Silver Spoon were just walking in the playground, minding our own business, when suddenly Scootaloo attacked us for no reason!" The filly tried to put on a sad face, but Cheerilee could see through her disguise.

"I know that's not the truth, Diamond." she said. "Now, all three of you will serve detention during recess today."

"But-" Scootaloo argued.

"No buts. You three decided to fight, and fighting's not a thing we teachers smile upon here on campus."

As Cheerilee walked away, the three fillies stared at each other. Diamond Tiara stuck her tongue out, and she and Silver Spoon walked away. Scootaloo walked back over to Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle.

"What happened, Scoots'?" Apple Bloom asked.

"I got detention because of stupid Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon." she replied.

"Cheer up, Scoots!" Sweetie said. "At least it's not after school!"

"Good point." said Scootaloo.

"So that means we can go Cutie Mark Crusading after school!" Apple Bloom exclaimed.

"CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS! HOORAY!" the three yelled in unison.

Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon watched the fillies from a distance. On the slide to be exact.

"They said they're going to go crusading after school. You know what that means..." Diamond said, an evil smirk on her face.

"I can't wait!" Silver Spoon replied.

The two fillies began laughing out of evil. That was suddenly halted when a filly walked into them.

"Excuse me, can I please go on the slide?" Dinky Do asked.

Diamond Tiara grunted, and scooted over for the dumb filly to go down the stupid slide. Once she was down, Silver Spoon began talking.

"So what are we going to do to those stupid Blank Flanks?" she asked.

"Oh, I won't tell you now..." Diamond smirked. "But I will tell you this: It will send those stupid babies crying all the way back to their homes."

The two began laughing once again. But this time, the laughter was made out of pure evil.