The hilltop offered what was probably the best view of the surrounding land for miles. Countless rows of trees stretched far in the distance, branches ready to grow heavy with fruits of all shades in but a couple seasons, less if they were lucky. And once it started it would be one harvest after the other until the last rays of autumn gave way to less favourable weather. Couldn’t forget the fields either, not as large as the orchards but they too covered considerable ground. They were ready for tilling now that winter had softened its grip on the earth. The farmhouse, the animal pens and an assortment of tool shacks, storage-houses and any sort of structure one could find on a farm stood smack in between them.
It was good land, no, a good home, and any other time such sight would’ve brought a smile on their faces knowing that it was also because of their hard work day after day over the years that it flourished. It was unusual then that the three of them wore their own shade of frowns as they contemplated their current situation.
Applejack let out a sigh, she’d been lost in contemplation for the best part of an hour now. Being a pony who always managed to find something useful to do with her time it started grating at her nerves and it showed as her hooves shuffled nervously on the grass of the breeze-swept hilltop, surrounded by the noisy silence of spring. “I reckon that’s enough beating ‘round the bush then, time’s wasting.” She tore her gaze from the scenery to look at the other two ponies that stood with her. “The well needs a deeper dig if not a new one entirely or soon enough we’ll be pulling up rocks.” It was a fact that the water vein they drew from as of late was starting to dry up, and if one were to drop the bucket down the shaft it wouldn’t be unusual to hear a dull thud as it hit the solid bottom under the water level.
“Eeyup” Big Mac’s voice didn’t sound any different than usual serene self, but a glance from those who knew him better did give them an inkling of his inner turmoil. “Plow needs replacing too.” he added, his longest sentence of the week. They all knew that. Strong as he may be, tilling the soil of the fields was an endeavour that took an ever increasing amount of time, keeping him from other chores that needed tending.
Granny Smith let out a grunt. “I reckon the roof is a good shingling too, them leaks are making the attic damper than a beaver’s den.” That too was true, and while the fact that the cold seasons were behind them lessened the problem somewhat, it would do no good to sleep on the issue until it rose its ugly head at the most inconvenient of times.
Suddenly Applejack slapped a hoof to her face. “Drat! Granny, we need to book your doctor’s appointment soon too, can’t have it postponed any longer.” The older mare response consisted in a groan and an eyeroll. “Applebash! Don’t you go worrying about them fancy shmanzy doctors for me deary, I’m fit as a fiddle and could still teach you two upstart young’uns one or two things about applebucking!” Their grandmother flare of pride in always made her grandkids chuckle, this time would be no different as a timid curl rolled up their lips, yet Applejack persisted. “I ain’t saying you couldn’t, but I don’t think any of us has forgotten how your hips locked up this winter because you were too stubborn for your own good.”
Big Mac let out a chuckle and a trademark ‘nnope’ at the memory while the elder mare retorted with a jab of her own. “Too stubborn for my own good am I? Now ain’t that the pot calling the kettle black!” She said with a glint in her eye “I do believe I know me one bull-headed mare who never listens to others and ends up with too much on her plate whenever she gets the chance. Rings any bells, mhh?” Applejack’s cheeks suddenly tinted a rosy colour at the remark, highlighting her freckles while a sheepish smile crept on her features as they all shared in the momentary levity, content that her point, and Granny’s, had been made. There’s nothing like the comfort of good natured back-and-forth of family banter.
But as it’s in its nature, the moment passed bringing them back to the sobering reality. It isn’t as if the family business was hurting, or that any single task was too great for them to tackle in due time. But by some mean trick of fate all that needed repairs, maintenance or any unforeseen expense had decided to manifest on this one year in particular as if they’d received a formal invitation to attend a great gathering.
Big Mac let a long-drawn breath as he turned a thousand-miles stare over the orchards. “Too much work for our hooves.” They knew what he meant, everything they’d voiced over so far was but a part of all that needed doing. Granny, despite her old-timer’s pride insisting she could still contribute some during bucking season, was no longer fit for the gruelling strain of a whole day of farm work, she mostly managed whatever concerned the house itself. And what to say of Applebloom? Celestia bless her tiny heart, she complained louder than their grandmother, insisting that she was ready for farm-work: the young filly lived for the appreciation of her family and to prove herself working side by side with them, but it would do her no good to push herself before her time, not to mention that a filly still needed to attend school and that was that.
So in the end it all fell down to just the two elder siblings to pull the farm through.
Mimicking her brother Applejack exhaled voicing more of their shared concerns. “...And not enough bits to hire more.” Tiny, measured but unmistakeable, a note of defeat had slipped in her voice. It was so uncharacteristic of the young mare that that it shook her out of her funk rousing her usual driven and persistent spirit. And yes, perhaps stubborn to a fault, sometimes, but only maybe. She still considered the point open for debate.
Her eyes lit up with determination as she adjusted her stetson. “Welp, if this here is the song then gosh darn it we’re gonna dance! We’re Apples, we’re as strong as our trees and tough as their roots! It might be a tight year but we’ll figure it out, we always do!” Her optimism was contagious, she could see the effect it had on her relatives at it spread to them, rekindling her own to grow stronger. “So, unless y’all got anything else to add I say we better stop moping around, get back to work and give this day what it got coming.”
Already Big Mac was about to make his way down the hill determined to show that old plow who’s in charge in this farm when he stopped, fore-hoof half-raised. It was an odd moment to recall a particularly odd piece of gossip he’d overheard a while back when he was manning their stall at the town market; at the time he’d though of it as nothing more than a bizarrely exaggerated piece of gibberish, but what if wasn’t? The idea did gave him pause for sure: if these were normal circumstances he’d ever even only bring it up as a conversation topic on one of the rare few times he initiated it, but they weren’t, and they gave pause for additional though and perhaps some more careful consideration. Plus it was only a suggestion, a decision like this wouldn’t be for him alone to take but for the whole family to take together.
“Big Mac? What‘s got you standing stiffer than the scarecrow there?” He broke out of his reverie at his sister’s call, his thoughtful stillness hadn’t gone unnoticed as he was being stared at by two pairs of curious eyes. It was with no little surprise that they grew wider: by all means it seemed as if he was about to speak for the second time in the same day.
The road that led from Sweet Apple acres to Ponyville offered many perks to whoever took it: scenic view, fresh air, a chance to stretch one’s legs on a run, time to thoroughly freak out about a questionable and most likely disastrous decision one last time, close contact with nature and so and so on. The real deal.
But as Applejack pulled along the cart filled with the goods that were to be sold today at the stall it would’ve been clear to any observer which aforementioned perk she was taking full advantage off. She was so deep in her thoughts in fact, that she hadn’t noticed when a trio of critters had started tailing her cart and only managed to spare a disheartened, yet quite colourful, grumble when the furry bandits made away with the rich bounty of one apple each, promising herself to have good stern talk with Fluttershy on the matter one of these days.
The distraction though was short lived, soon her mind flew back to the previous day when her brother had shared his hearsay from the market. At first she had wondered if he’d decided to give bad jokes a try, see if he’d developed a taste of sorts, but the fact he was having as much trouble presenting the idea as she was contemplating it as a serious proposal told her otherwise. If one were to look at it under a particularly twisted and purely conceptual exercise of the mind, it actually presented more than its share of benefits: potentially it solved their problems while preserving the farm. Too bad the Apple family wasn’t usually too keen in partaking in convoluted mental gymnastic, not to brag but they were considered a simple family with a simple way of thinking, and they liked it that way.
‘Usually’, funny word that one was, it had been showing up much too often last months for her liking. Usually they didn’t have any issue with managing their workload. Expenses weren’t usually a matter of concern. They never went to bed at after a workday worrying about how they’d be able to handle all their ordeals, usually. Which was why, if only because he was the one to come out with it, Big Mac was willing to give plan a shot, but to say he wasn’t too happy about was an understatement. Granny couldn’t decide split as she was between the own principles and the objective need of help they found themselves into.
So in the end it all came down to her voice on the matter. Reject the plan, grit their teeth and carry on their own as they always had at the risk of burning themselves out and sealing quite a grim fate for them all, or take a leap of faith not knowing where they’d land hoping to avoid a worse outcome down the line? It should’ve been a simple, obvious choice: she was the most dependable mare in town and her brother was the strongest stallion from here to the horizon twice over. While who in their right mind would risk having a pony on their land, in their home even, with fillies around, who was a.. a.. a-
“Ow! What in tarnation... Terribly sorry partner, had my head lost in...” She’d brought up a hoof to rub the sore spot where she’d hit her nose only to realize moments later that she was being exquisitely apologetic to the support beam of her market stand. She’d been so lost in though that her body had found the way on its own, with the added courtesy of giving her a wake-up call upon arrival, free of charge. Truly the most dependable mare in town to a fault.
A gentle but unquestionably amused chuckle rang from her side. “Well, don’t you look fresh and rested this morning. Oh and don’t worry, I’m pretty sure that you’ve been forgiven.” Applejack turned a not as amused stare to a giggling mare while she slipped out of the cart’s harness. “Hardy har har Roseluck, ain’t you yourself a barrel of laughs this morning. How about you take care of setting up your flowers instead of making fun of hard working ponies.” The other mare simply gave her a grin. “Well, unlike a certain slowpoke I could name, I’m already all set. Actually almost everybody is except for you.” Any other day being called a ‘slowpoke’ would’ve sent Applejack on a rant about blatant slander of her work ethics and gratuitous lies. Any other day Roseluck would’ve been wrong, but not this one: a quick glance around did in fact reveal that Applejack was the last one who still needed to set her produce on display. Apparently her reverie had had her take her sweet time to get here.
The next few hours came and went in a blur of monotony as she went through the motions: client, greet, pay, client, greet, pay... Whenever she had a moment of her own she found herself eyeing the town hall. She’d never cared much for it, other than town events taking place in front of it and the occasional permit required for the farm it wasn’t really part of her daily life, it was just there, a taller building among others. Safe to say then that she wasn’t so appreciative of the sense of dread that now roiled through her when she gazed at it, the answer to her doubts lied inside those walls, what she didn’t know was if she’d like what she’d find. Or even if she wanted to find out at all.
She let her head drop on the counter, letting out a muffled groan dripping with frustration. “What’s with you and hitting your head today? I mean, don’t get me wrong: still funny, but there is too much of a good thing you know?” Head still on the counter, she turned it to look at Roseluck once more and again her frown made it clear that only one of them was partaking in the hilarity of the situation. She sighed, closed her register and brought it to the other pony for safe keeping. “Glad you’re enjoying your day more than I. Anyway do me a favour and keep an eye on my stuff will ya? I have some business to take care at town hall.” The other mare shrugged “Yeah sure, have fun I guess?” Applejack gave her a nod in thanks and crossed the town square towards the looming building, the knot in her stomach twisted the closer she got, growing thicker with every step. As she was climbing the stairs a teasing voice reached her from across the market place “And watch out for the door!” She gave the other merchant the stink-eye as she kept going, and promptly hit her face for the third time that morning. A far away cackle accompanied her until she the door closed behind her.
She wouldn’t have to wait long, the receptionist had assured her that Mayor Mare would be with her shortly before directing her to the bench outside her office. Time seemed to stretch, giving ample opportunity to the unease worming in her to gnaw at her resolve. At least out at the market she'd mostly been able to keep herself busy, but now she was left to stew in her spiralling thoughts and the longer she sat there the more they coalesced in the unfamiliar yet piercing sensation that was panic. ‘Applejack girl, what are you doing here? This whole thing here don’t make one lick of sense. C’mon, back to the stall with you and this evening you grab Big Mac and ya figure out something else.’
She had just hopped off her seat when the door of the office opened. “Applejack dear! So good to see you, sorry for the wait. Come in come in, what can I do for Ponyville’s favourite apple farmers today?” As irrational as it was, Applejack felt like the filly caught with the hoof in the cookie jar. Under the curious stare of Mayor Mare she recomposed herself as best she could, although now she couldn’t help but sport a light blush of embarrassment.
“Uhm he-hello Mayor Mare! You see.. the thing is that it’s nothing a.. actually it is something but we’re taking care of it! Well not actually as in right now, but we will as soon as we find.. find.. find the thing that’ll solve it! Yes! So yes, no need for y’all to get to worrying ‘bout us because there’s no reason for any of that you see? It’s all good and dandy!” Mayor Mare expression progressively furrowed in confusion as she tried to make sense of Applejack’s incoherent rambling which kept on coming out, but she wasn’t surprised when she couldn’t make any: the poor girl couldn’t lie to save her tail. Her face softened in a reassuring smile when the young farmer was running out both of breath and nonsense to slap together haphazardly. “Well I can’t say I really understand, but would you like to talk about it in my office?”
Applejack’s mouth opened and closed as she tried to find a plausible reason to refuse after the spectacle she’d just put up, but only ended up with nothing, ears drooping low in defeat. “Uhm yes actually, thank you kindly ma’am.” Her tone as timid as her gait as she followed the older mare into her office. Once settled she found herself holding her Stetson nervously in her fore-hooves, her eyes flickering between the desk and the patiently waiting pony in front of her. She closed them just the time to make sure that they’d stopped darting all over the place and to take a deep, deep breath to steady herself. She’d have to eat a big portion of humble pie before she even managed to get to the point.
“You see ma’am, the thing is that... the thing is that this year at Sweet Apple Acres we might be in a bit over our heads.” The older mare widened her eyes ever so slightly, the Apples were notoriously proud, the fact that Applejack was opening with something like this already told tales of just how delicate the upcoming discussion would be.
Tentatively at first, through broken sentences and with her voice tight over the course of long minutes, Applejack illustrated their current predicament in a mostly understandable way while her audience patiently listened not interrupting once. “Goodness Applejack, I had no idea. What are you going to do? Did you manage to get a hold of some of your relatives perhaps?” The young mare shook her blonde mane. “Afraid we can’t bother them on this here matter, I’m sure they’d come rushing if we asked but they got their own farms to tend to. It just wouldn’t sit right with us if they were to put them at risk on our account. Besides, even if they could lend us a hoof it just wouldn’t be right for them to work for free, a farmer’s entitled to an honest pay after all and well.. we don’t have much to spare as is.”
Mayor Mare nodded slowly in understanding, grasping a clearer picture not only of the material limitations that rendered the situations a mess to deal with, but also of the moral ones. Try as she might to come up with potential solutions on the spot, anything that came to mind was either not feasible or would probably be rejected. “Tell me Applejack, have your considered organizing a fund raiser? All of you are much beloved in town, not to mention respected members of the community, I’m sure that everypony would gladly pitch in to help. And it goes without saying that if Sweet Apple Acres were to-” At the mere mention of ‘fundraiser’ Applejack straightened up on her fore-hooves in shock as if splashed in the face with a bucked of ice cold water first and hit with said bucket in question second.
“I’m sorry ma’am but I’m gonna have to stop you right there! We can’t possibly have others give out of their own pockets just because we got ourselves stuck in some quagmire of bad luck! That’s.. that’s..” Applejack form sagged a little letting out a tired sigh “I’m sorry, we couldn’t possibly accept that.” Mayor Mare wasn’t surprised by her refusal, she knew that while curbed by circumstances, Apple pride ran deep and wouldn’t bend further that it already had. She had the sensibility not to point out that it was precisely when one was ‘stuck in some quagmire of bad luck ’ that they should be relying on the goodwill of others, it would not sway the young farmer anyway.
These and other ways to help came up and where promptly shut down by Applejack as the afternoon passed by them, to the point where silence reigned unchallenged, punctuated only by the mechanical ticking of an old clock. “Is there any other way I help you?” More silence, more ticking. Then a barely audible mumble rose from somewhere below the cowpony’s prone head. “I beg your pardon Applejack, but I didn’t quite catch that.” A deep breath for courage later and the mare in question fixed her eyes on the ones behind the desk. “I was wondering if you could.. perhaps.. tell me about the royal reintegration program.”
It took Mayor Mare a moment to fully register what had been asked, but when it did her astonishment was quick to show. “Oh. Ooh! OOOH!” Applejack could see how the other mare’s demeanour shifted from attentive to shocked as her words sank in. To her however that could only mean that the worries she’d been nursing since this morning were justified. “Oh horseapples, I knew it! It’s that bad isn’t it? What was I even thinking of course it is! I knew I shouldn’t’ve even asked, it’s plain ridiculous! Who in their right mind would even consider housing convicts and have them working under their own roof? They’d be bound to ransack the place the first chance they get, or run for the hills to get up to no good or even hurt the others just for the heck of it!” Applejack jumped off her seat, pacing the office in a frantic back and forth all the while still spewing a river of nervous rambling as her spiralling mind kept conjuring ever worsening images, deaf to the voice repeatedly calling to her.
It took a pair of beige hooves squished on her cheeks to yank her head back to the world of the mentally sane by force for her to remembered that she wasn’t alone in the room. “Applejack dear, calm down. You just surprised me is all. I can assure you that none of your fears have no reason to be if you give a moment to explain.” Applejack, her face still in the grasp of the other mare blinked repeatedly in a conscious effort to focus, slowly resurfacing from her panic fuelled mental escapade. “You mean they wouldn’t pluck Bloomberg’s leaves one by one and dance around it like a pack of wild diamond dogs after setting him on fire?” Try as she may, Mayor Mare couldn’t make head over tales of the question. “What? Who? I don- oh never mind, if you’ll just sit back down I’m sure we can clarify some points, I assure you it’s not as bad as you believe it to be. Come on Applejack, what do you say?” A tentative nod later and they made their way back to their seats.
“I’m sorry if I gave off the wrong impression but you need to understand that so few ponies have heard about it, especially in a rural town such as ours, and even fewer still ever even consider it that I was simply caught off guard. Greatly so if I may add.” She gave a reassuring chuckle to the nodding pony in front of her.
“Now, I feel it’s very important for me to stress the point: yes, strictly speaking, these ponies are still technically criminals.” She raised a hoof to stop Applejack who was about to run off on an other tirade before patiently continuing. “Yes Applejack, they were, at one point in time, found guilty of crimes that sent to the royal cells for good reason. But I assure you, every pony enrolled in the program is in no way a danger to those around them: they have been judged an apt participant for the program by an examining commission before their candidature was submitted to and approved by both our Royal Princesses.”
The last bit left the farmer with her mouth hanging open. “Well I’ll be… seriously? This goes all the way up to the princesses? You ain’t pulling my tail here just for the sake of reassuring me are you?” The mayor shook her head with a knowing grin. “Impressive isn’t it? But that just goes to show you how seriously the program is taken, nothing is left to chance: everypony’s security is the first concern and it’s an opportunity given only to those who can make the most out of it.” With the fogs of fear clearing from her mind it did start to actually make sense, after all if all the program did was to cause more trouble that it was worth it would’ve been shut down and long forgotten.
“Further more, I don’t know what you were expecting but you wouldn’t be housing a herd of ponies, just the one: reintegration isn’t in the name just for show you know? The host, while receiving labour force, is expected to provide not only a modicum of liveable conditions, but also to help its charge reintegration into society. See it as a give and take arrangement if you will.” As Mayor Mare kept on going, her tone switched to one of reassuring practicality. “You see, sometimes these ponies detach themselves from the outside world to the point that when it’s time for them to re-join society they just don’t know how. As the host, your most important responsibility towards them would be to show them that despite their past they still belong out here with us. This is mostly accomplished by them helping you in whatever work is necessary, show them that they can still contribute, but social experiences are also a very important aspect of the re-education.” This was as good a point to catch her breath and pause her explanation, satisfied that through it all Applejack hadn’t tried to interrupt again but was instead busy absorbing everything she’d just heard.
“Pardon me Mayor mare, but is it me or do you seem a mite too enthusiastic 'bout all this? By the way you speak of it almost seems like you have a personal interest in it.” Applejack just waited as the other mare giggled at her question. “Well, no dear you aren’t wrong. When I first learned of this of this initiative I too was… sceptical, believe me! But in time I’ve been able to change my views, because I’ve seen the good that this program can bring.” She leaned closer on the table to the orange pony before continuing in a whisper “Between you and me Applejack, Ponyville would be a much duller place without it.” Applejack stood there a moment figuring out what she meant with that until realization dawned on her. “You mean, here in Ponyville? For real? Really for real?” A grinning nod was the answer and she got, leaving wide eyed in contemplation. “Well I’ll be darned. I never noticed, actually I don’t think anypony has noticed. Pardon me ma’am bot who are we talking abo-” This time the she was met with a gentle yet firm shake of the head. “I’m sorry Applejack, but I’m sure you can understand why I can’t reveal you their identity. But I’ll gladly tell you why you never noticed: it’s because they’re just like us. Just some ponies who who made a mistake in their life, waiting to be given chance to do good again.”
Applejack eyes were fixed on Mayor Mare. Could it be? Could it be that what just this morning seemed like a fools gambit was actually a legitimate solution? Even as she sat pondering the possibility she could glimpse the new facet that had been hidden to her: the desire to extend a hoof to those in need and do good was one could hardly resist. She had to hand it the mayor, she had a way with words, probably the reason why she’d been leading the town for so long.
Slowly, her heart beating harder than she cared to admit, her lips parted, about to speak the words that would shape her foreseeable future. “Mayor Mare ma’am? Uhm… is there like a -ah- form of sorts that needs filling to apply as a host?”
The beige mare smiled, hopped off her chair and trotted to a nearby cabinet to look for the proper modules so that the two of them could get to work.
Author's Note
Hello there, long time reader, first time poster. I realize that this chapter may be considered slow, but I prefer when stories take their time to develop without rushing.
Nonetheless, I'd be really interested in reading your opinions and any constructive criticism you'd feel like sharing.
Hope you enjoy and hopefully I'll have more posted soon.
