Author's Note

Hello there and welcome back to yet another chapter of my fanfic that goes beyond the typical oneshots made from before which I've given you since inception; suffice to say, the past chapter from before was going to end on a strong note for you all though I had decided against it altogether .

As usual, My Little Pony, or rather Friendship Is Magic, including its settings and characters belong to Lauren Faust and Hasbro; however, this concept of my fanfic still belongs to me so I will say this one time only: please do not steal this story or I will sue.

Lastly, let me also say that I dedicate this chapter to my half-brother Gary who died in the summer from the CCP virus: the sibling dynamic therein was inevitable despite and because of it but it'll be a nice break of sunlight to shine through all the same; as such, I hope you all enjoy this chapter.

Bushel

If there was one thing which had proven to be noticeable, then it would be the many things which were keeping things on the lighter side as of this moment in time. For starters, the rather big blue sky was clear enough to see the very same gaseous giant already shining about over the log horizon with flocks of birds flying on. Within a large dream drop distance was a civilization defined in such various materials, most of which having been ones fit for the likes of even three little pigs. The calm gentle breeze surfed across the grassy knolls, the brilliant green now surrounding it all on a solid lower plane of existence to the point of being uniform. Even the dirt road which had guided its way over from a nearby forest, a curvilinear line worth holding as much as it is crossing did little to make a difference. In the background, a valley and ridge of mountains had raged on with growth and erosion in the process of their trying times as the burning star hovered overhead. The town had bustled about with an utter abundance of lifeforms all from various demographics: age, gender, finances, and social standing all coexisting within.

Out of many buildings in this rather quiet place, there was one that had stood out amongst others: a large homestead in the very outskirts remained within the long distance by the sidelines overall. Rather than the amber waves of grain that shined onward thanks to the rays of sunlight bouncing off, leaving behind sparkles of glory in the process, an abundance of carrots surrounded the barn. The encamping white fences around the premises had served as the borders to the open hillside where its lines had been drawn inside the very dirt, each of them home to plants sprouting freely. Three barrels were found to be nestled up against a small stack of haybales, the same number in which was found on the other side where a pile of the same material was discovered so to speak. A thin trail of dirt was found to be curving inward away from the rest of the roads out therein, providing an entranceway to the farm as it’d avoided the crops and other free spaces altogether. It was enough to show a tall orange house not on the lone prairie sitting at the top of the terrain, round as the barrels for some parts yet larger all the same with its own balconies and railings.

Anyways, one of the rays of sunlight had managed to go and pierce on throughout the looking glass deep within its framework, illuminating a rather diminutive area with some distinctiveness. In that very location thereof, it had instantaneously stopped itself against a long singular wall; as a result, its color was sparkling about in a faint hue of blue with a hint of goldenrod accents too. Beyond the small space which had lit up in the process, there had remained an entire area already exposed to light, thanks to a ceiling fan above it spinning about with its wooden panels at once. In what had seemed to be brimming with life, the whole place was decorated with a set of furniture: a singular wooden table with matching chairs stood out in the middle of the same floor. Lined up were a set of cabinets and shelves lacquered with varnishing as they’d displayed all sorts of plates on display, a fraction of which was lounging about in a lake of frothy dishwater. Edging right nearby the far left corner was an empty rack with a photo taking up the surface area: it’d consisted of a predominately ginger family smiling about with the same house further away.
No more than two windows to the outside world beyond the single area where communications remained probable, despite being hidden away by the plum curtains thin yet opaque all the same. Establishing itself inside the otherwise naked space was a deep aroma cloaking the wispy smoke, reeking of the savory goodness telling of a sale set off on the course to provision and pleasure.

Stuck in the middle of it all was a lonely woman out and about, staring off into the long and cold walking distance through the glass space. Her skin was bright enough to light the way within her area of influence, tinted with a hint of goldenrod but without the glittering as is. Much like the vegetables growing outside, the lonely woman’s long curly locks were orange, all fresh with vitamins and minerals therein. Both pupils trapped within the calcium sea were encrusted with but an emerald splash capable of being unleashed by a redhead schoolboy. Cloaked over her integuments were a hot pink dress with matching slippers; in addition, a blue apron and headscarf combo made way.

“Ten minutes to go until this dessert’s ready: my brother’s will be here shortly just to check up on me; as for Dinky, I’ll have to pay her a visit later on today…” the ginger woman had said to herself softly as she’d turned her very eyes downward to the liquid underneath her chin, both hands resting firmly onto a tableware.

It didn’t take much for her to wash away whatever microorganisms clinging to the flat surface of the object in question so to speak: the heat and foam around the solution was soothing to the fingers as they’d pressed themselves against a sponge intently no less; as far as she was currently concerned, they were becoming a nonissue to those naked eyes, within and beyond eventually.

As soon as the ginger woman was done, she’d soon heard a knock on the door nearby followed by a sound off immediately, “little sis, you there?”

“Carrot Cake, is that you already?!” she’d exclaimed in shock and awe as her eyes were facing the other windowpane where the aforementioned caller’s silhouette stood on the other side, “well, speak of the devil, I wasn’t expecting you to be here so fast; I’ll be right over here soon enough, big brother…”

Almost instantly, the ginger woman had walked over to the very door in question and opened it at once; afterwards, she was greeted by the sight of another bright skinned ginger with jade eyes. Unlike her, Carrot Cake had so many significant differences to compare and contrast with as is: his shorter hair, angular face, some freckles, and saturated tones were close enough as they were. Much of the man’s attire was cyan, save for some brown boots along with a red and white hat and bowtie combo; apparently, she could see his own apron being more cleaner than hers alone.

“Hey there, Carrot Top, how are you today: pleased to find that I’d made my acquaintance now; by the way, what’s in the oven…?” he’d said to the titular tenant tersely as possible, smiling about faintly in the meantime for her to notice rather immediately.

In any case, the ginger woman wasted no time giving her brother a hug as she’d answered freely, “fine as usual, I still haven’t gotten used to your punctuality after all these years: I was just making some cake for the Hooves family to eat along with some other stuff; I know that Derpy prefers muffins but I’m pretty sure they’d appreciate my services all the same, like friends do…”

“I’m pretty sure they would: you two used to be real close together before the you–know–what; Derpy may as well be willing…” he’d chuckled lightly as she broke away from the embrace to focus in onto the oven within the very same kitchen they remained, “I still can’t believe what had happened to her daughter Sparkler though: she was so pure and innocent, gone in a heartbeat…”

“I know, it’s actually sad having to think about what’s going on inside her mother’s mind since; as a matter of fact, I couldn’t help myself but to think of what kind of world we’re living in…” Cake said to Top whom was now starting to wear a pair of oven mitts before attempting to open the appliance afore herself all the same no less.

It wasn’t long until the ginger woman stopped herself in place and felt the heat rush over the face as she’d struggled to speak back, “you’re not the only one here: I’d never imagined I lose her and grandma too in the same year; perhaps, this is how Applejack felt when she’d lost her brother, Big Mac, as well as her Granny Smith too, amongst other things. As a matter of fact, I had no idea of how on earth she would end up in the hospital no less when the dust had settled: even though this farm of ours had been right next to Sweet Apple Acres, I was too far away to see what had been done to them at large; to think this would even happen to her of all people no less. Nonetheless, I’m too afraid to even think about leaving Ponyville, much less this farm so to speak of; even if I end up awaking to the night of the living dead, I’d rather stay and fight all the same no matter what: at the very least, Noi and our grandma wouldn’t have to die so pointlessly like them…”

“Then stop talking about it; it’s bad enough that this war has changed us for both better and worse just because they’d died…” her brother had interjected rather instantaneously, quickly bringing her out of the trance and back to reality where the food cooked, “I miss the both of them too and they’re the reason why Cup and I had gotten married in the first place many years ago.
It hurts me enough to hear you saying those things at such an age, especially when you have so much more to live for right now: you used to be the happy–go–lucky kind of gal any man would’ve had the decency to go out on a date night with you all the same; now, it seems that you’re suggesting that this war of ours would’ve rather killed you if it’d meant they live instead. Nobody normal, not even me, would ever want to go through the pain of losing their loved ones all the same, wartime and peace; Grandma Amber would’ve wanted us to be happy just as much as we’d wanted her to live long to see that very happiness bloom: it’s natural for homes to have families like this and you of all people should know that by now, even after what had happened.”

“At least your employees and apprentices have been clean as a whistle since youth; I, on the other hand, have a traitorous host from up north as a farmboy living upstairs…” Top gasped briefly as she’d pulled out a metal tray wrapped in foil from the heated confines afore herself almost effortlessly so to speak of.

He’d closed the door right behind them and said, “yeah, I heard of Eugene few years ago: never thought he’d end up in here of all places, let alone be allowed to leave Peachtree; how come I’d never heard of him anyway…?”

“Trust me, as far as the courts were concerned, he was a minor at the time but so were plenty of his friends and his neighbors…” the ginger woman had answered Cake without any hesitation, unwrapping the container to find something golden brown beneath, “if they were, at most a decade, younger, then this would’ve been a nonissue all the same no less, nothing more if at all. I’d never understood why in the world would people do something like this and think they could get away with it all the same: I’d heard of stuff like this happening in the Old World in the time of our ancestors, especially the most extreme of events as is; now, to have something like this right here in Equestria, perhaps even without the war, it still would’ve happened nevertheless. Needless to say, I can’t ever imagine what would drive a teenager to pull such dastardly schemes like this and still not go to jail: I know for a fact Eugene would’ve still gotten a pass, rich dad or not, but now everyone thinks that Peachtree’s full of crooks; even the ones who haven’t been a part of his schemes are look down on with suspicion, just like the folks at Hilltop and Cirrus…”

“It’d not have mattered all the same, sis: whatever went on in their mind was obviously due to their parents; even if their relationships were good, suburban life wouldn’t be as crystal clear…” her brother sighed as he’d approached her already in the middle of removing her oven mitts after being presented with the pleasant aromas therein.

Top turned back around to face him and reply, “tell that to Lyra and her friends: I know for a fact that most of them were there on the day of what should’ve been Cadance’s wedding; even Moondancer’s sister, Morning Roast was there when the bomb went off. No one had imagined what would happen afterwards when they’d seen the Princesses’ niece getting splattered with acid; I can still remember how putrid the smell was for all of us and every which direction we’d all ended up running off to in the mad dash of an escape plan. To be honest, I don’t even want to think what would’ve happened if it weren’t for Time Turner saving me somehow: all the pain that Derpy had went through, alongside the likes of the bridesmaids, Lyra and Minuette, at the hands of the invaders; even Bon–Bon’s been hush–hush about the whole ordeal ever since that day in Canterlot. Speaking of which, I could never forget the aftermath when Princess Celestia had confirmed suspicions regarding our attackers: to think that they were waiting for the signal from a queen who’s not even alive so to speak, only to lash out all the same no less; I still have nightmares about it all, especially with how Cadance’s still carrying on like it never happened whatsoever.”

“Yeah, I’d known about what happened at Canterlot too; come to think of it, I’d remembered that Twilight Sparkle was there also…” Cake whispered gently as his sister took a seat at the table, her emerald eyes focused in upon the ligneous surface area underneath, “I’d even learned about her brother Shining Armor and how devastated he was about this turn of events altogether then.”

“Emphasis on the word ‘devastated’ now that you’d mentioned it: I couldn’t imagine anyone wishing such a fate on anyone else, especially Written Script of all people; I just couldn’t at all!” she’d sniffled about softly, both orbs becoming more fluid than before as her viewpoint became distorted eventually.

The ginger man sat down nearby Top and sighed all the same, “same here: I can understand how hard we had to fight against the invaders yet the acid bomb thing seems a bit much, even for me; I don’t even think I could ever live with myself if I happen to be throwing the darn concoction myself…”

“Would it even matter if you didn’t; I’m more worried about these changeling: how many more are still living among us here…?” the ginger woman had sniveled about steadily, raising an eyebrow from him almost immediately after what he’d heard of her as is, “up until that special day, all I’d even think about was finally getting to see Canterlot before that day so to speak of. Even before they’d cancelled the rodeo, I’d wanted to go to the Grand Galloping Gala as much as everyone else in Ponyville; the fact that Twilight had gotten invited to the event wasn’t the only reason I’d been interested in all of the very festivities alone: I knew for a fact that Lyra and her friends at their old hometown, Lemon Hearts, Twinkleshine, and Minuette, were going to go. Everyone seems to have gotten so used to these parties, it’d have been at least a foregone conclusion, especially with Pinkie; as a matter of fact, I’d figured that given a few years’ time, Noi would’ve been able to go there for her first time instead of home: I’d never imagined how precious these memories would be when we start to lose someone closest to us in so little time. Keeping up with work has been a real pain even since the war had ended, but I’m pretty sure you would’ve known that already, bro: much like my grandma’s farm, our family is smaller compared to the Apples and they’d taken a lot of damage, especially right here; I still can’t help myself but to think what it was like to survive long enough and watch what was left over since. Looking back on it all, if I could do it again, then the least I could do was keep a closer eye on my family more than I’d done: Noi wouldn’t ever have to get sick and die nor would Granny Amber pass away in her sleep, like all the others her age would; it’d be even better if I’d given up my life to fight these changelings if it’d meant they’d live instead of me, poor old Carrot Top. You know, you seemed to be the most successful guy in this generation of carrot farmers and bakers alike, now that we’re alive: you have a great wife, two beautiful children, an adept apprentice, some great friends, and a successful business in spite of it all; as for me, all I have is this farm and a worker who should’ve been in prison instead of his victim but isn’t nevertheless.”

“Let me ask you something, sis: do you honestly believe with all your heart that your death would change anything; better yet, let’s say you did somehow, would she and Noi be happy…?” Cake asked her sternly, his face becoming cross but otherwise nonthreatening all the same no less.

Top wiped away her tears and quickly replied, “but what am I supposed to do instead…? I’m one disaster away from losing the entire farm and that’s not counting financing but I can’t even think about selling it either knowing how close it is to the graveyard altogether; all that this war did was remind me how powerless I am, so much so I can’t even hire any more workers to help me like Eugene is doing. Even now, I’m nothing more than a drain and a freeloader compared to the prewar; I owe it to the Hooves for saving me from the changelings and your family’s been a big help since the war had ended but how do I end up repaying these debts: do I end up going on some competition to win money, sell my wares in Canterlot like nothing happened, or go off on adventures as them? No and it’s not like that I’m lazy: I can’t afford to sit around and do nothing just because I own the place but I sure as Tartarus can’t keep going on much longer either; somewhere in Ponyville, there are carrots that need to be sold away, be if in part or parcel, and already I don’t know how many need to be sold to break even, let alone turn a profit. Sometimes I ask myself how I’d ended up this way: how is it I lived but they’d died; better yet, maybe it would’ve been better if they’d gotten to me instead so I wouldn’t have to see the life fading away from their eyes…”

“Top…” the ginger man started to speak to his sister more softly that before, “I’m not very good at coming up with the right answers but I’m sure they’d have wanted you to live anyway, just like everyone else. You may think you’re alone in the world and that’s okay to feel this way: there are plenty of people that going through similar situations such as yours; but, don’t forget about the people who love you, friends and family alike so to speak. Even if we weren’t family, we’d not have to go and forget about you had it not been for either granny, Noi, or both; everyone cares about you real much not to let these hard times break you so easily, if at all, and they already know that. You have a long life to go and I’d hate to let you throw it all away after everything has happened, everyone does: even Derpy would probably break at the notion of it all and she’s trying to stay strong in spite what this war did to her; as a matter of fact, Applejack seems to feel sorry for you more since you’d loved them both. As far as anyone sees it, your survival, is a miracle and an opportunity to make something of yourself as I have; no matter how devastating it may seem to you right now, just remember the ones counting on you to press on as you’d be doing too: this farm of yours is proof of that.”

“How can I…?” she’d asked him at once.

Cake had answered in turn, “just take it one day at a time, that’s what our Granny said: we’d already made it past the first step so there’s no going back to the beginning; at the same time, don’t think of these events as the end of the world, at least for yourself – everything you know in the now is not over yet…”

“I know that; I just don’t want more people to die in vain; as a matter of fact, I don’t want my life to be amounting for nothing…” Top countered on, barely finding the strength to look her brother in the eye as she’d turned towards the appliance from before, “besides, the Hooves need me and I don’t know what else I can do for them until Derpy gets out of the hospital someday. Since Sparkler died, Dinky hasn’t been herself if at all but it’s not like the feeling’s unique; I understand how much the others miss her, even the people at Appleloosa had mourned her: Braeburn came by to lend a hand before Eugene came along and I don’t know what else then. Plainly seeing it, his newfound responsibilities as a father means I can’t keep relying on him or his surviving kin to fix it all up; after all, I wouldn’t blame him for not wanting to stay in Ponyville too long after what had happened to Applejack recently: he says it’s because of all the bad memories congregating where their family’s farm used to be before the war had broken out.”

“I know, but I’m not gonna let all of this get to me anyway; besides, we only have one life to live at least so the best we can do is make the most of it: we’re still living and so is everyone else…” he’d soothed his sister, bringing her attention back to him almost instantaneously so to speak of as they both were.

She’d soon slowly stood back up from her seat steadily and said, “of course and right now, Time Turner is going to be expecting a meal from me today; I won’t leave home without it, that’s for sure…!”

“Would you like for me to help you along the way, sis…?” Cake asked as he’d followed suit as well, watching as Top took another look at the foodstuff in question, “I’m pretty sure there should be some loose ends to tie up in the meantime…”

“At least it beats being alone…” the ginger woman had laughed, a simple sentiment shared by her brother as well no less altogether.