It had all happened so suddenly. In the blink of an eye, life was turned upside down for the Apple family. True, the family was itself no stranger to heartbreak. For the Apple siblings in particular, the loss of their parents had always weighed heavily on them even long after they had learned how to live with it.
It wasn't like this recent development came on unexpectedly either. Granny Smith was old, really old. Everypony knew that. After all, her family had been one of the founding families who settled in Ponyville all those years ago. But nopony could live forever (well, except maybe for alicorns, but since little was known about them it was hard to say whether they were truly immortal or just had really long life spans).
Yet even so, nopony in the Apple family had really given much thought to what would happen when the inevitable occurred. Why should they think about death when they had so many wonderful things to look forward to in life, especially with the way times were changing?
Alas, it seemed that just when the Apple family couldn't possibly be happier, the good times came to an end.
It all started innocently enough. No ominous signs anywhere. The day the news broke was just like any other day: The sun was shining, there wasn't a cloud in sight, and everypony was going about their business as usual.
By now, it had been a couple of months since Sugar Belle had married Big Macintosh. And just weeks after that, Twilight Sparkle had ascended to the throne and established her very own friendship council, a council which Applejack served on. As for Apple Bloom, she and her fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders were kept busy as occasional tutors at the School of Friendship, on top of their official club work.
On that day when the Apple family was to receive the unfortunate news, Granny Smith had gone to the doctor for her annual check-up. She had been getting a bit slower as of late, but nopony had suspected a thing. She seemed to be as good as she ever was for a pony her age.
Yet the family started to grow worried when the check-up seemed to take longer than it should. It was starting to get late, the sun was due to set in about an hour or so.
"Somethin' ain't right, here," Applejack spoke up at last. "It ain't like Granny to take all day just to see the doctor. The doctors are always good about seein' her right away. She should've been back by now."
Apple Bloom gulped. "You don't think somethin' happened to her on the way back from the doctor, do ya?"
Applejack immediately stomped a hoof down! "Now don't go thinkin' things like that, Apple Bloom! If anythin' were to happen to Granny Smith, we'd know about it in a heartbeat."
"Then where is she?" Big Macintosh nervously wondered.
"Oh, if only I could teleport like Twilight and Starlight can," Sugar Belle lamented as her lips quivered. "It'd be so easy to check around town for her."
Applejack just adjusted her stetson as she was quick to reassure her family members. "I'm sure Granny Smith just got lost or somethin'. Or she might have decided to do some errands around town before comin' back here, and lost track of the time," Then she let out a long sigh. "Still, if she don't show up soon, I reckon we'll have to go out and start lookin' for her."
Fortunately, there was no need for such drastic measures. Just after Applejack had finished making that statement, the door to the farmhouse swung open. And in trotted Granny Smith, looking just the way she had when she'd left for the doctor this morning. Although, was it her family's imagination, or did it seem like she was wearing a frown on her face for some reason?
"Granny Smith!" Apple Bloom exclaimed with relief as she trotted up and hugged her grandmother tightly. "Oh, thank goodness! We were startin' to get worried sick about ya!"
Sugar Belle, meanwhile, politely asked. "Where exactly have you been all day, Granny Smith? Did the appointment run long or something?"
The elderly earth pony mare let out a long, sad sigh. "Sugarcubes, listen," She spoke in a slow, sad and somber tone. "I'm afraid I got some bad news to share with ya all."
Immediately, the happy relief of having Granny Smith come back safe and sound faded. Now, worry and dread replaced it and filled the air. The Apple family began to get a very bad feeling about whatever it was Granny Smith was going to share with them.
"Can't it wait 'til mornin', Granny?" Applejack questioned with concern. "It's gettin' kind of late."
Granny Smith shook her head from side to side. "No, Applejack. This can't wait. Y'all gotta hear this straight from the horse's mouth as it were. The whole reason why I took so long was 'cause I was thinkin' about how best to tell ya what I found out today," She sighed anew. "You ain't gonna like it."
Motioning for her grandmother to take her seat at the table, Applejack did her best to reassure the elderly earth pony. "Just have a seat and tell it to us straight, Granny Smith. Can't be any worse than when you told Big Mac and I about our parents."
"Or when we learned about the whole feud with the Pears, and how Ma never got to see her Pa again." Apple Bloom pointed out.
Granny Smith slowly but surely trotted over to the table in the kitchen and sat down. All eyes fell upon her at that moment. But for a moment or two, she said nothing and remained in silence. At last, however, she broke the abrupt spell of silence as she said. "My time has come."
Several gasps split the air, and Big Macintosh nervously asked the question on everypony's minds! "Ya mean-?"
"Eeyup," Granny Smith replied as she seemed to be struggling to hold back tears. "I'm dyin'. I wish it weren't so, but it is."
"No, it can't be!" Apple Bloom immediately protested as she burst into tears! "Ya can't die, Granny! Not now!"
And Sugar Belle added with sobs of her own! "I haven't even been part of the family that long! I feel like I've only just started to get to know you! How can you leave us now?!"
The elderly earth pony with a light green coat simply waited for the crying and sobbing to cease, shushing everypony with a hoof. "Now now, there's no need for long faces. Save the tears for when I'm gone and y'all are buryin' me. I've lived a good, long life. And I know I'm goin' to a better place."
"But... but..." Applejack struggled to get out the words she wanted to say.
Granny Smith replied in a soft whisper. "It ain't gonna be for a while, still. I won't give up my life without a fight, you can be sure of that! But the doctors say I've only got a short time left. Eventually, I'm goin' to die and that's just how it's gonna be. There ain't anythin' any of you can do about it, and even if there were I wouldn't ya to. I know y'all will get by, just as ya always have in times of trouble or crisis."
Applejack then stood up, wiping away her tears and firmly vowing. "Then I guess it's up to all of us to make sure your last days are as memorable as possible, Granny Smith! And we'll all be there for ya when the end comes, just as you've always been there for us!"
The news spread pretty quickly after that. All of the Apple siblings (and Sugar Belle too) were quick to share the news with everypony they knew. And with a pony as big a part of life in Ponyville as Granny Smith, her absence was quickly noticed. When ponies inquired, they learned the hard truth.
Despite the news and despite the inevitable, the Apple family as a whole did their best to soldier on. Even though they limited their activities around town so as to be close to Granny Smith in her final days, they still went out as needed. Apple Bloom still had school and Cutie Mark Crusaders business to keep her busy, and Applejack and Big Macintosh had their chores to do. Even Sugar Belle found ways to keep herself busy around Sweet Apple Acres, cooking, cleaning and doing whatever else she could to keep things from falling apart.
The days stretched into weeks. Just as everypony expected, the end did not come suddenly or swiftly. Granny Smith fought to hang on for as long as she could. But gradually, with each passing day, more and more of her strength left her. Going up and down the stairs, or even just trotting along through the hallways started to become harder and harder for her to do. Eventually, she found one day that she could no longer muster up the strength to get out of bed.
When that happened, the entire Apple family pitched in to help out. Big Macintosh was especially helpful in moving Granny Smith downstairs and getting a special bed set up for her, making sure his grandmother was as comfortable as could be.
Sugar Belle would often keep Granny Smith company during the day while the Apple siblings were busy with their various responsibilities. She enjoyed listening to Granny Smith's stories about the old days, from a time when Ponyville had been little more than unsettled wilderness at the edge of the Everfree Forest. And her eyes could not remain dry when Granny Smith shared with the unicorn the story of having to break the news of the deaths of Bright Macintosh and Pear Butter to their children.
"No parent should ever have to bury their own child," Granny Smith told Sugar Belle even as her eyes remained dry. "I wanted nothin' more than to cry along with the kids. But I had to force myself to be strong and carry on. After all, Apple Bloom was still just a youngin', an itty bitty foal. For her sake especially, I had to basically be a mother all over again. Wasn't easy, but I found a way. And Big Mac and Applejack, bless their souls, they pitched in and did more than their fair share too."
Sugar Belle held Granny Smith's hoof as she sweetly and sympathetically replied. "You raised them well. I'm proud to be part of their family. And I'm sure their parents would've welcomed me in with open hooves if they had lived to see Big Mac and I get married. He really is the spitting image of his father, but he has his mother's heart."
Granny Smith nodded back quite slowly. "They all do, Sugar Belle. They have the strength of the Apples, and the heart of the Pears. Or at least one Pear. Still, even Grand Pear eventually came 'round. Never imagined I'd see the day when he'd come back to be with his grandkids, or see the family his daughter married into."
And many more stories would be shared by the elderly earth pony as the days passed, frequently in Sugar Belle's company but also with her grandchildren whenever they could spare the time.
When at last the end did come for the oldest member of the Apple family, her grandkids and her granddaughter-in-law were all on hoof to share in her last moments.
Granny Smith's breaths became shallowed and labored, her eyes looked faded and ready to close for good. Still, the earth pony mare had a smile on her face as she brought up a hoof to each member of her family. "I'm proud of ya all," She sincerely told them. "Y'all are gonna do just fine without me, I know it. I only have one request for after I'm gone. I don't want a whole lot of fuss, cryin', poutin' and all that. I just wanna be buried beneath that tree that grew from the seeds my son and his wife planted together. It's where I laid them to rest, and it's where I too want my body to be placed."
Applejack, with tears in her eyes, removed her signature stetson as she promised. "We'll see to it, Granny Smith. And we'll always remember you. Thanks for everythin' you did for us."
"And I'll make sure to pass on your secrets of makin' zap apple jam," Apple Bloom added. "In all their craziness and everythin'."
"Say hi to Ma and Pa for us." Big Macintosh chimed in as he found himself getting choked up despite his best efforts.
And Sugar Belle saw fit to add her own two bits to the subject. "I'll always cherish all the knowledge you shared with me. Even though I wasn't an earth pony, you welcomed me into your family with open hooves. You were a wonderful mother, grandmother and grandmother-in-law. Ponyville and Sweet Apple Acres won't be the same without you." Then she used her magic to bring up a tissue, using it to wipe away the tears forming in her own eyes.
Granny Smith didn't say anything in reply. She just maintained that smile on her face as she drew in one final breath, shut her eyes and lay her head back upon the pillow it was resting on. And then... silence. Just like that, Granny Smith was dead. After all her time fighting against the inevitable, she had put up very little resistance in her final moments. She had been at peace, and would remain that way forever.
The entire Apple family could hold back their grief no longer. All of them cried to their hearts' content: Big Macintosh even burying his head into his wife's chest as she gently stroked his mane with a hoof.
The funeral was held just a few days later. In accordance with Granny Smith's wishes, the attendees were restricted to only a hoofful or so of guests: Apple Bloom's fellow Cutie Mark Crusaders, Twilight and her friendship council (as well as Spike and Starlight), Mrs. Cake, the Golden Horseshoe Gals, Grand Pear, Filthy Rich (along with Diamond Tiara) and of course Mayor Mare.
The entire funeral took place within the orchard grounds of Sweet Apple Acres. It was just like the day when Granny Smith had informed her family that she was dying. The sun shone brightly and birds sang, yet there was not a dry eye or a smile to be seen on any of the attendees.
The entire Apple family all stood in solidarity, speaking not a word as the funeral unfolded. Aside from a few brief remarks by Mayor Mare, nopony said a word. And not a word needed to be said. The remarks by Mayor Mare conveyed Granny Smith's life well enough, and the memories of all the attendees spoke better than words about the kind of mare Granny Smith had been.
Eventually, the casket in which Granny Smith resided was removed from its podium. Following a short procession, it was carried to the heart of the orchard, where the combination apple and pear tree stood: Two trees whose trunks were intertwined with one another: A symbol of the legacy that Bright Macintosh and Pear Butter had left behind.
The casket was lowered into a prepared plot of land beneath the trunks of the tree, then dirt was shoveled on top of it until it was buried fully. Everypony lingered in silence by the grave for a while, maintaining solemn faces and expressions. Then, slowly, all the funeral attendees went their separate ways. Just like that, the immediate family of Granny Smith was left alone in their collective grief.
Eventually, Applejack, Apple Bloom, Big Macintosh and Sugar Belle all left the grave site as well. Life would go on for them despite their loss.
Yet that night, just before going to bed, Applejack looked out from her bedroom window. To her surprise, she saw a trio of shooting stars pass overhead! She knew at once what they meant: Granny Smith was up there with Bright Mac and Buttercup, watching over the family as she would for all time.
Author's Note
I know I'm not the first to write a story like this since "The Last Problem" came out. The implications are pretty clear that Granny Smith is dead by the time of the time skip.
If you're wondering, the reason why this doesn't have a tragedy tag is that I don't think there's anything tragic about someone dying of old age after living a long life. Plus, given the implications about the Apple siblings' parents (which I have intentionally not ellaborated on here), this is not the first time the family has been exposed to death.
