(Granny Smith's POV)

I had woken up, just a little bit before the rooster crowed, and got ready to start the day. Letting out a stretch, I felt a pop in my back. "God dammit. Every morning I find a new pop or crick." Throwing off the blanket, I got up and dressed for the workday ahead of me.

After putting on the last bit of clothing was on, I went to wake up my son and daughter-in-law. When I passed their room, I gave a hard knock on the door. "Come on, you two. let's get going before Celestia raises the sun!" I went to head downstairs to get breakfast started, but then something caused me to stop in my tracks.

"Waaah!! Waaah!!" I heard a baby crying in their room and alarm bells just went off in mah head.

I raced back to their room and opened the door to find a very odd sight. My son and daughter-in-law, trying to calm down a small baby in Buttercup's arms. "What in tarnation!?"

"Hold on a minute, Ma." Bright got out of bed and came up to me. "Listen, we need to talk."

"Talk about what? The fact that my son is a daddy within the span of two weeks since you two got hitched?" I asked him out of shock, not anger. I let out a sigh before walking into the room. "Well, at least let me look at the little one."

"Uh, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. You see, he's not actually"

"Oooh, a grandson." Now, this was getting exciting. "Let me get a good look at" My voice was caught in my throat when I got a good look at the thing swaddled in blankets, and it wasn't no pony. "The hell is that thing?!"

"Ma!" I heard Bright say.

"He's not a thing! He's our son! His name is John," Pear told me while protecting that thing.

"You named it? Whatever, as soon as you two get dressed, we're heading to the orphanage and dropping that thing on their doorstep." I turned around and waited for them to follow me.

“We ain’t doing nothing of the sort!” Pear snapped at me.

“What’s gotten into you?! How dare ya talk back to me, girl!” I yelled at mah daughter-in-law.

“MA!!” Bright screamed, glaring at me so fiercely, Ah never imagined seeing such a look in his eye. “Fir zap apple's sake! Would ya just take a damn minute to let us explain?!”

“Explain what?!” Ah said, until Bright pulled out a folded piece of paper from his back pocket and held it out to me.

“Read it! And you’ll understand!” My son demanded.

I took the paper from him and read it. While I kept reading, it just ticked me off more. "Just looks like someone left their garbage on our doorstep."

“GARBAGE?!” Pear gasped.

“Ma…” Bright clenched his fists at me, something that shocked me even more as his glare seemed to intensify. “Ah’m only warnin’ ya once, and Ah don’t give a damn how it makes me look, but if you call mah son garbage one more time, Ah’m liable to do somethin’ that’ll be very unpleasant for everypony.”

Not being a stranger to violent behavior and the like, I knew my son was liable to do such things, even to his own mother. Letting out a snort, I turned away from the three of them. "Just get yer asses out of bed and get to work."

"No." That one word stopped me in my tracks and had me wheel back around to my son. "Not until you apologize to your grandson."

"That, thing, is not my grandson, and it ain't your son. Now quit messing around and dress for work. Harvest season is coming in a week and we need to prepare," I told him while getting in his face.

"Well then, I guess you'll have to do it by yourself, 'cause we ain't lifting a finger to help until you say you're sorry," Bright told me with a stern gaze like the ones his Pa used to do.

"Grah! Fine! I don't need you to help with the harvest! I can do it all by myself!" I stormed down the stairs and out the door. "Grah!"

The moment the door was slammed shut, I could hear the little thing start to cry as my son and his wife did their best to calm it down and I could even hear them on the front porch as I tried to enjoy a glass of apple juice before starting today's harvest.

"Ohh there, there Johnny, mama's here." I heard Pear Butter say to the strange little thing as it began to calm down before my son chimed.

"There now see? nothin' to be scared of. Not when your pa's got you."

Pa?!? My son actually thought of himself as that varmints father. Not wanting to hear any more, I went off to the western orchard to begin the harvest along with some visiting relatives and all could tell I was sourer than a rotten apple.

"Hey, Granny. Where's your boy at?" Strudel asked before kicking another tree, letting the apples fall into the baskets below.

"I don't wanna talk about it!" I yelled before kicking a tree so hard, it left a crack along the trunk, damaging the tree for good. "Dammit!"

"Uhh, Granny? You okay?" Gala asked before I furiously kicked another tree that didn't even have any apples.

"Oh of course, why wouldn't I be okay?" I asked aloud with sarcasm as I kicked the tree again. "I mean what mother wouldn't be upset that her son and daughter-in-law just took in a strange-looking baby, adopted it, and expect ME to treat it like it's one of our own?!?" I shouted before accidentally toppling the tree with my last kick before finally calming down. "I MEAN THAT THING ISN'T EVEN A PONY!!"

Strudel and Gala stepped away from me before heading off toward the other side of the orchard. "Hmmph, some help you two are."

(The next day)

“Who’s my special boy?” Bright said as he sat in front of his new son. “Yer gonna be the best dang Apple, that I swear.”

Little Johnny cooed and giggled up at his Pa while reaching up for his hair, like the bright color of his pa's hair.

"Still calling that thing yer son, are ya?" I asked while making breakfast.

"A father should call his boy, son." Bright turned to me while Pear took the kid in her arms. "Ma, what do you have against John? He hasn't done anything to ya, and there ain't no real reason to hate him."

"It's-it's-it's just wrong! A pony should raise a pony. You wouldn't see a cow raise a chicken, a snake raise a mouse or a manticore look after a deer, would you?" I asked before pouring the coffee.

"Funny, I seem to remember you saying an Apple and Pear would always despise each other." Mac's words struck a chord with me.

I thought about all the years I've hated Grand Pear and his kin, and how it almost cost me, my own son. I looked back at the little boy in Pear's arms and my hatred melted. I still had reservations about him being here, but I suppose if he doesn't cause trouble. "Sigh I guess I just need time." I took my coffee and went over to the living room. When I passed by Pear, I gave the little tyke a pat on the head.

(The next day)

Pear and Bright finally caved and started working out in the field. Of course, they only agreed if I watched their son. I would object, but my back has been giving me problems and I needed the break. After fixing some iced tea, I sat down and opened up the old family album.

After drinking a third of my tea and looking through my long-lost teenage years, I felt a tug on my dress. When I looked down, I saw that John was looking to get my attention. "Not now," I told him before sipping my tea. When I felt him pull even harder, I got a little irritated. "I said not now!" I yelled at him before giving him a small kick, off me.

When he fell on his rump, he stared blankly at me before tears welled up in his eyes and he started bawling. "Waaaahahaha! Waaaaaa!" Realizing what I had done, I got up and picked him up.

"Shhh, shhh. I'm sorry little one." I did my best to calm him down with him in my arms. "Alright. Buck up. You don't your ma and pa to see you cry, do ya?" When he kept crying, I thought back to the days when Bright would get all fussy. "Here, let's look at some pictures."

As I carried him in my arms, I couldn't help but admit that this little feller was cute in his own way even as he was crying. After wiping his face clean I sat him on my lap and opened the family photo album to show him some pictures of my youth.

"Now see here? This is our last family reunion and everypony was gathered at the table for a big feast." I explained while pointing at the picture as John stared and saw a familiar-looking face.

"Ah!"

"That's right, that's your pa!" I smiled at the little fella before turning to the pages of Bright Mac and Pear Butter. "This is when your Ma moved in with us, Oh your pa was so happy that he couldn't contain his excitement."

"Ohhh." John cooed at the photos of my son and Pear Butter and the moment I saw his eyes light up I felt happy for some reason. For the rest of the afternoon, we continued to look through the album until the little fella fell asleep on my shoulders and both of us were snoozing on the couch like there was no tomorrow.

"John?" Pear called out for her little one after finishing the harvest. "John? Granny have you see-Oh." She stopped to see both of us asleep on the couch with John curled up in my arms as I held him tight so he wouldn't fall.

"Buttercup did you find-"

"Shh. Look."

Bright looked where his wife was pointing and he nearly choked at the sight. "Aww, looks like Ma's ready to be a grandma after all." Off to the other end of the room, Pear grabbed the camera off the shelf. "And what are you doing?"

"Capturing the moment." Pear winded the film before taking her son's first picture with his grandma. "So cute."

Click

Kra-kroom!!

I awoke with a start when the lightning cracked outside my window. "Ugh. That weather team needs to calm down with those storms." I was about to go back to sleep, but I heard a cry going off in Bright's room and I just bolted out of my room with my bathrobe.

"Waaaaa! Waaaahaaa!" I kept hearing John cry and I felt like a new mother again as I burst through the door and picked the little guy up from Bright's old crib.

"Don't worry, Granny has you. Shh, shh, it's only lightning. Nothing to be scared off."

"Mmm..." John was so frightened that I could feel him shaking like a leaf when Pear and Bright Mac rushed over to check on him.

"Ma! How's John, is he okay?!?" Bright Mac shouted when another thunderbolt boomed and shook the house.

"Shhh! For fucks sake Bright Mac, it's bad enough we got thunder scaring the youngin'!" I lectured my son who immediately covered his mouth while Pear Butter just giggled and came to check on her son.

"Aww did the thunder scare you?" She asked as John clung to me.

"Why don't you come to mama?" Pear said while holding out her arms.

I gave my grandson a kiss on the cheek before handing him to Pear, who started cuddling and kissing him to keep him calm. While she was doing that, I patted my son's back. "You were right, son. That boy is your son, and he is my grandson."

"I'm glad you see that, mom." Bright gave me a hug just as John started to calm down. For the next five minutes, we moms held our sons before going back to bed.

Author's Note

I thought about how Granny would react to John. Given her past with the Pears, she gives off a kind of racist vibe. Not completely set in her ways, but goes on first reactions. If that makes sense.

Anyway, I would Like to thank Wurky, Valiant, and Red Hood for helping me with this one.