The morning sunrise dazzled Pear Butter's eyes, and she wished that there was something - anything that could distract her from what was going on in front of her.
Walking in a long line down the dirt path in front of Sweet Apple Acres were about a dozen earth ponies, carrying bags and pulling carts and scolding young fillies for running off or slowing them down. At the front of the line, Pear Butter could see a pony with a pear-colored coat and a chocolate-brown mane with a single gray streak that probably came from years and years and years of yelling insensitive insults at his biggest rival.
Pear Butter's father.
Grand Pear was generally a nice pony when the subject at hand wasn't concerning the Apple family, his pear farm's biggest rival. Whenever the Apple family came up in a conversation, even if it wasn't one he was engaged in at all, he froze up and a heated glare of anger rose in his eyes. He became snappish and cold, and it usually lasted for an hour before he returned to normal. Pear Butter didn't see what the huge deal was. In her experience, the Apple family was kind and just like the Pear family. She didn't see why her father hated them so much.
And now, hated her so much.
Last night's events were still fresh in Pear Butter's mind, but she could still see her father's heated glare and scowl as he snapped, "Fine!" and ran off. Her father hated her because she chose the love of her life over her family.
Even now, she still couldn't believe she'd made that decision. Having to chose between one family and another - Pear Butter hoped that nopony else would have to go through the same thing. The aching pain lodged in her heart was too painful to ignore, except when he was there.
A Pear foal stumbled and fell, his small pack on his back tumbling over his bright green mane and landing on the dirt path in front of him. In a second, Grand Pear was there, helping him up, and handing him back his bag. Pear Butter felt the tears rising in her eyes, blurring her vision, and she shakily took a deep breath and closed her eyes, clenching her jaw and forcing herself to calm down until they went away.
When she opened her eyes again, the procession of ponies had left the front of Sweet Apple Acres and was now heading through town, towards the train station. Steam rolled up from the tracks as the engine inched closer and closer to Ponyville. Pear Butter wished she could set it back a couple of miles, so her family would be trapped here for just a while longer - just long enough for her to pluck up the courage to say goodbye to them.
She heard hoofsteps behind her, but didn't turn around; there was only one pony it could be. As the hoofsteps stopped, without taking her eyes off the horizon, Pear Butter leaned into her husband, Bright Mac. The reason she was here and not down there. The reason her father hated her.
Stop that! she mentally scolded herself. It's not Bright Mac's fault that your father doesn't care about you anymore. It's yours. You were the one who abandoned your family and chose him over them. This is all your fault.
"You alright, Buttercup?" Bright Mac asked gently, pulling her into a hug. Despite everything, Pear Butter couldn't help but smile as he wrapped his hoof around her. The big earth pony just made her so happy... something she wished her father understood.
"I'm fine," she insisted, though she didn't pull away. "Just... watching them. There seems to be something so... final about it. Like I'll... never see them again."
"It's not too late if you still want to go with them," Bright Mac insisted, trying to cheer her up. The obvious love and care he had for her completely masked the heartbreak and fear that she would take off after them and leave him behind that Pear Butter knew was there. She felt a swell of affection for her new husband. Even after everything the Pear family had done to him and his family, he still loved her enough to let her go, if that would make her happy.
"No," she whispered, burying her face in his bright red mane. "My place is with you."
Bright Mac let out a sigh, and Pear Butter could sense some relief in it. She opened her eyes just a little bit and saw him looking after the Pears, too.
"I'm sorry," he said after a few moments of silence. "I feel like... all of this is my fault."
"Don't you start," Pear Butter snapped, pulling herself away so that she could look him in the eye. "None of this is because of you. It's because of me. I take full responsibility, and there is no way in all of Equestria that I will let you take the blame, and if you even try to, then Celestia as my witness I will send you to the moon, Bright Macintosh."
He hastily bent down into a bow. "Yes, Your Majesty," he said, his voice trembling.
Pear Butter surprised herself by laughing. She felt a huge weight lift off her shoulders as she dove into his arms. No cruel words from her father or painful memories could take this away from her.
"We can see them again," Bright Mac suggested, looking at her questioningly to see if that would be all right. "Maybe we can visit them in Vanhoover."
She smiled at him, thankful that he was willing to give something like that a try. "Maybe," she said, leaning into him. "One day."
The two of them watched as the Pear family boarded onto the train at last, and watched as it puffed away, towards Vanhoover, where they would start their new lives, leaving Pear Butter behind to start hers. But it didn't hurt quite as much as she thought it would. I'll be fine, she thought, turning towards Bright Mac beside her. Forever and ever, I'll be fine.
Grand Pear scanned the train car, making sure everypony was aboard. Once he was sure they were, he climbed aboard himself and took a private seat. He wanted to be alone for a bit.
The train started moving, and he felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, like he was forgetting something... something important. He knew what it was, of course, but that wasn't his fault. She hadn't come to say goodbye. She knew they were leaving and chose to stay with her brand new high-and-mighty good-for-nothing husband.
Grand Pear growled to himself in frustration, but he mainly felt guilt. He wondered if something could have been done differently, so that he wouldn't have had to leave Pear Butter behind. His poor daughter...
He shook himself. She made her choice, and he made his.
Deciding that he should find something to distract himself, Grand Pear pulled over one of the trunks sitting on the seat across from him and opened it, hoping that would cheer him up. Instead, it only made him feel worse.
Sitting on the top of the heap of family heirlooms and mementos and priceless antiques that had been in the family for ages was a photograph of the entire Pear family, taken during the last Pear Family Reunion. Grand Pear stood in the center of the crowd of earth ponies, and beside him...
A sob built up in his throat, and he had to firmly squash it down.
Beside him was Pear Butter, his sweet, sweet daughter, who had chosen an Apple, for Celestia's sake, over her own family.
Throwing the picture back into the trunk so hard that the glass broke and slamming the lid down, Grand Pear collapsed back into his seat, staring out the window to avoid the alarmed looks other ponies were giving him. He missed her already. He bet she didn't miss him. Not after what he had said.
This is all your fault.
Taking a deep breath, Grand Pear shoved open the window and poked his head out, ignoring the shouts of a pony who was reading the newspaper, as it had suddenly decided that it could fly. Ponyville was still a small town, but the Apple farm rose high above everything else from its position on a hill. The barn gleamed bright red in the sunrise, and against the bright light, two ponies stood, embraced, looking at the train as it left.
A single, forbidden thought appeared in Grand Pear's head: I love you, Pear Butter. And I'm sorry. I'm so very sorry.
Author's Note
I know it isn't Friday, but I was bored, and I wanted to write this, so I did. What do you think?
Constructive criticism is appreciated. Thank you for reading!