To Be a Pear or Not to Be
Buttercup woke up one morning groaning as she was feeling rather groggy. For almost no reason, she was feeling angry and annoyed at anything in particular, but something felt off nonetheless. It was just another typical day, and there wasn’t anything wrong; in fact, things couldn't be better. She peered out the window, seeing that the sun wasn’t even up yet. She then turned to see her husband still fast asleep. A massive yellow stallion in her bed. His shiny red mane was now greying a bit from age with wrinkles under his eyes. They had been together for over twenty years, and she could tell that age was finally catching up to them. It was something that made her ponder for a bit, seeing how they managed to keep this orchard and their marriage together for so long.
She continued downstairs and came out to see her daughter Applejack outside, already getting to work. applebucking, she sighed, seeing her workaholic daughter was up already. She thought her friends had put a stop to this behavior, but like they say, you can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. She then continued to her, and Applejack was abit stunned hearing her approach. She then cried, “Hey, Mom didn’t see you there!"
“It’s fine, sweetheart. I just couldn’t sleep.” She started buckling the trees alongside her daughter, and Applejack eyed her and asked, “So, um, is something bothering you?”
Buttercup paused. Nothing in particular was bothering her, but she still couldn't shake off the feeling something was wrong, then admitted, “No, not really; nothing really. I just feel something is off; it's just a gut feeling.”
“Hmpfh, like how you had that feeling when Flim and Flam came by?”
“Those hooligans, please, you could see how scummy they were from a mile away; we sure showed them not to mess with us,” Buttercup laughed and ruffled her daughter’s mane. She then sighed, “I just…need time to think is all.”
She continued to buck alongside her daughter, and they did so until the sun rose. Her husband and her son came out from the house, and they were both in high spirits as they came over to help. They were soon all bucking the rest of the harvest together as a family, with the last few apples packed and stored to be used for Cider later in the season. Granny Smith made them all breakfast, and they sat around and talked as they ate together.
“So, is anypony doing anything interesting today?”
Granny Smith replied, “No, not really. We ran out of jam, so I sent Apple Bloom to the market.”
Buttercup nodded as she said, “Sounds good. We need more jam.”
She then patted her lips with a napkin as she finished her meal. “Seeing that apple-bucking season is finished early, I’ll go to the market with her make sure she's ok.”
The mare then trotted off out the door and into the streets of Ponyville. It was a beautiful day, the sun shining and ponies trotting about waving as she went, and then she spotted a crowd of ponies around a stand. Usually, it wasn’t that odd; if somepony new was in town they could attract a large crowd. Curious, she came close and immediately froze, seeing her father, much older than the last time she saw him, shrunken and wrinkled with a balding head and white mane. She then noticed her daughter purchasing a jar of pear jam from him.
As the little filly skipped over to her, she chirped, “Hey, Mom! I got some pear jam!”
Buttercup immediately had a sudden reaction: she took a hoof and slapped it out of her daughter’s hooves, smashing the jar onto the ground, with jam and glass splattering across the dirt road as her daughter cried, “Why did you do that!?”
Buttercup paused, realizing what she had just done and seeing how hurt her daughter was. “I... I'm sorry.” She then hoofed out some bits and gave them to her daughter. “Go, please buy some more if you want. I didn’t mean to do that.”
Apple Bloom reluctantly took the bits and then asked, “Ok. Was something wrong with it?”
Buttercup still regretted her action but didn’t know how to explain to her daughter why she struck out as she did. She said, “No, I was startled, was all. Please forgive me.”
“Um, ok…do you want me to get more?”
“Yes, it’s fine, just…please, I’m sorry,” Buttercup choked as emotions started to boil over as she slowly stepped back and ran off before anypony noticed her, and she ran straight back home.
Buttercup spent the rest of the afternoon crying in her bed, remembering her father’s last words to her and how much pain he’d caused her since she was estranged from her family, unable to keep these emotions in any longer. From her sobbing, she heard a knock on the door and cried, "Who is it?"
“Honey, are you ok?”
Hearing her husband's voice, she instantly cried, “Bright Mac, please come in!"
The massive light yellow stallion came striding inside and said, “Um…Apple Bloom told me what happened at the market.”
She wiped the tears and cried, “I’m sorry, the moment I saw him and that jam I…I snapped. I didn’t mean to do that. It’s just been so long, and he suddenly showed up!? Why! Is it to come back and try to restart the feud!? Or force me to move with him to Vanhoover!?”
“Oh, come on, there’s no way it’s been decades.”
“Then why now!? He missed the birth of all of our foals, so why did he decide to talk to Apple Bloom now?”
Bright Mac stood there scratching his mane, then said, “Maybe he’s come back to restart the peach orchard here… Is that the only reason I can think of? I doubt he’ll try forcing you to move back with him; even if he tries, we have a family now; he has nothing over you.”
Buttercup cursed herself as her husband might be right and said, “You're right, I'm overreacting. Even if he just came to sell jam, it's just that I don't know how to talk to him. I don’t even know how I can explain to my kids why I can’t talk to him!”
“Honey, maybe just take a minute to think; you don’t have to do anything; you don’t have to talk to him, and we can tell our kids the truth about you being a Pear when you feel it's right.”
“I know, I’m sorry.”
Bright Mac then wrapped his hooves around his wife, nuzzled her mane, and whispered, “There’s no reason to be sorry; you don’t think I still harbor resentment against my mother? She is also partly to blame as well.”
“At least she came around after we got married. My father never once even tried speaking with me and basiclly banished me from my family.”
“Even so, my mother never bothered making amends with him. They both started this pointless feud. They’re the ones who should be making up, not me, not you.”
Bright Mac was right, and she should have Granny go talk to him instead, but she was still feeling anxious and couldn't think straight. Then she said, “As I said, maybe take some time to think things through before making a decision," She then slowly trotted out of her home and headed towards Sugarcube Corner.
“So, he’s back?” the chubby blue-coated mare asked as the two sat down at a booth with two cups of coffee present between the two. Pear butter held her friend’s son, Pound Cake, nuzzling his belly with her muzzle as he giggled and squirmed in her hooves. She smiled down at him and sighed, “Sadly, yes, he came out of nowhere, and I’m not sure how to deal with this?”
“I think you should just talk to him? I mean, he hasn’t tried doing anything.”
“I know, but I’m still nervous about how things will turn out. What if he's still resentful? What if this just some ploy to get me to return to Vanhoover?”
Mrs. Cake chuckled, “Kind of late for that, don’t ya think?”
Buttercup paused, seeing how much she saw herself as an Apple rather than a Pear, and giggled, “Yes, that would be absurd if that was his plan.”
“Darling, I think you're overthinking things. I’m sure if you talk to him, things may not be as bad as they seem.”
Pear Butter placed Pound down and then picked up Pumpkin Cake and started to give her some attention by nuzzling her mane and poking her nose, then said, “Even if they aren’t, I can’t just seem to find it in my heart to forgive him. Not after he tried to make me choose between him and my husband."
“I understand, but maybe you don’t have to forgive him. I think it might help if you just talk to him.”
Tears filled Buttercup’s eyes as she wanted to talk to him for so long. But the thought made her want to ask so many questions, the first being, why now!? She then placed the filly down alongside her brother and said, “I'm not sure if I can do that either. Grandpear not only cut me off as his daughter but cut me off from all my family, my cousins, other ponies who were once my best friends!” she then shouted, “My wedding was both the happiest day of my life and the worst!”
Her shout shocked the foals, who started to cry. Mrs. Cake rushed over and gathered them and her motherly instincts as she plopped bottles into their mouths and gently rocked them to sleep, then said, “I'm sorry, I…I forget how much this feud has affected you.”
Buttercup once again felt guilty for her sudden outburst and quickly cried, " No, I'm the one who should be apologizing for shouting and scaring your children.”
“No need; I feel so dense for telling you to forgive someone who hurt you in such a way.”
Buttercup once again felt even more guilty for dumping her “daddy issues” on her best friend and making her feel guilty for just giving her advice. “I'm sorry for bringing this all up on you,” she said.
“Come now, what are best friends for? You were there for me when I was having problems with my husband. If we can’t trust each other to lean on each other, I would say I was a pretty bad friend.”
Buttercup paused, and she agreed that they had shared many private conversations about their family; her marriage wasn’t perfect either, with Bright Mac being rather aloof and could be which can be frustrating, Applejack’s stubbornness and overworking herself, Big Mac being so silent, which could be quite aggravating, Granny Smith’s constant nagging, Apple Bloom obsession with getting a cutie mark and driving her up a wall in trying to deal with her antics. She shared all of her feelings with her friend. Yet, none of it compared to the emotional pain she felt about her father, and she admitted, “Yes, but it's not fair to just dump all of my family drama on your lap. I should get going I need some time alone.”
“Buttercup!” her friend shouted back, but the light-tan coated earth pony quickly trotted off out of her friend’s bakery with a somewhat downtrodden face and that burning rage filling inside her.
Buttercup continued her trot towards the apple orchard and decided to buck some trees despite not having any apples on them. The rage…the burning rage was still in her. She wanted nothing more than to buck her father in the face! After all these years, he decides to show up, missing the birth of all of her foals and them earning their cutie marks! He wasn’t here when the Flim Flam brothers tried stealing her farm! Missing every one of Applejack’s rodeo competitions! Big Mac’s concerts! Why does he get to show up now and be a grandfather!? And act like nothing in the last twenty-five years never happened! She then sent one final kick and heard a crack. As she turned to see, the tree she was kicking was split in half, with part collapsing towards the ground. She stood there heaving angrily, wiping the sweat from her brow all this anger. The mare let out a scream and collapsed next to the tree and started to cry, not knowing what else to do, heaving until she turned to see Big Macintosh coming over and, without a word, sat down next to her.
“I’m sorry, Big Mac. I didn’t mean to scare you, I…I just don’t know what else to do.”
Big Mac stood there silent but gave a nod of his head.
“It’s just my father he…he’s back, and I don’t know how to say this, but he stood me off for years, and now it’s just he came back into my life, and I’m terrified and angry! I can’t explain it…’”
Her son once more sat there and nodded.
“It’s just that I need to finally tell you and your sisters the truth about me and who I was. I…I kept so much from you because I’ve harbored so much resentment toward my family. Maybe by telling you the truth about what’s happened, I can finally relieve myself of this burden.”
Big Mac gave another full nod, she then looked back, and laughed. Her son has been quiet and a good listener since she was a teen. It was astonishing to realize she just wanted to talk and needed to express herself, and it was time to finally tell her kids the truth about her being a Pear. “Thank you, Big Mac.”
He came over, gave one “ey'yup.” and hugged her. She hugged her son back, nestled her head into his blonde mane, stayed there in his embrace, and then said, “Come, let’s gather the rest of the family. It's time I finally explain everything.”
So, Big Mac gathered the family to the kitchen. Buttercup told the sad story of how Granny Smith and her father, Grandpear, started a stupid feud that tore the families apart. Still, despite all of it, she told the love story of how she and their father fell in love despite all of the hate. But the truth was it wasn’t enough, as, during their secret wedding, her father came looking for her and forced her to choose between Bright Mac and her family. Her children were silent and rather astonished at her story; Granny Smith looked guilty throughout the entire tale, and Bright Mac stood by her side, filling in when she seemed unable to continue, pause to collect her thoughts, or simply regain her composure.
“So that is everything. My real name is Pear Butter, but I changed it after the wedding,” Buttercup explained.
Applejack spoke up first and asked, “I see, but why keep this a secret?”
Bright Mac seemed to have the words caught in his throat as Buttercup cleared hers and said, “Because I still harbor resentment for the Pears, the Apples accepted me, your cousins and extended family, while mine seemed to have forgotten about me, so I decided to forget about them. The truth is the feud may have died, but I've secretly been continuing it myself. Even now, I can’t forgive my father for trying to force me to choose my family on my wedding night.”
“You can’t take all the blame; I'm also responsible for what happened,” Granny admitted, barely under a whisper.
Applejack was next to speak up, staring at her and saying, " Mom, I understand why you're angry and frustrated, but maybe talking with him and trying to mend old wounds might be the best course.”
Apple Bloom nodded and said, “Yeah, Mom, he didn’t seem like the pony you're describing; maybe he’s changed?"
Pear Butter turned to face her son, who flashed a smile on her and gave her a subtle nod.
She couldn't help but chuckle. Her son was silent, yes, but it was like he could read her thoughts and said, “You're right. I think it’s about time I finally faced him and see if he’s changed.”
With that, Buttercup gave a long, deep sigh and then set off into the streets of Ponyville to finally face her father.
The sun was setting as Buttercup was trotting through the streets of Ponyville, heading towards her father’s stand. She could feel the tension inside her building; talking things out with her family helped alleviate it quite abit, but she could feel it deep in her bones. The feeling was unlike anything she could describe as she was finally going to confront him. It's been almost twenty-five years since she last saw him. Then, as she came up to the stand, she was still surprised to see her father and how old he was. She saw the old stallion in his shorter, wrinkled form compared to the musclebound stout body he had when she last saw him. He was just packing up the few jars of jam he couldn’t sell, and luckily for her, nopony was around. It irritated her that he could be selling pear jam without caring in the world, considering what he had tried to do to her. But Buttercup had to let go of this anger and slowly approached the stallion and cleared her throat, “Grandpear.”
He looked up and locked eyes with her as they just stared at each other for a minute. “Pear, is that you?”
She stepped back, hearing her old name come out of his mouth, and quickly said, “It’s Buttercup now.”
“Right, you changed your name, and it makes perfect sense why.”
Buttercup glared at him, “Twenty-five years, it’s been twenty-five years.”
“I know, It’s been too long.”
The mare threw her head in the air and scoffed, “That's an understatement. I had three kids, grew this farm with my family, and almost lost it. We endured Discord and Tirek, so why are you coming here now? Why haven’t you come sooner!?”
Grandpear stood there abit stunned by their daughter’s outburst and then said, “I wanted to come…I really did! I…I just couldn’t.”
“Why not!? Why couldn’t you and Granny Smith just end this stupid feud years ago!”
Grandpear stood there, being abit surprised at her sudden outburst, then choked back tears and said, “I, I know…I just…I couldn’t, for some reason, bring myself to do it. But hearing how your daughter saved Equestria so many times, I just…I finally realized that I was wrong to cut you out of the Pear Family.”
Buttercup’s eyes filled with tears, and at that moment, she decided to finally say what she had wanted to say for so long: “Dad, I am willing to let the past go. I want to see my cousins again. I want my foals to meet my side of the family. I want them to be friends with my nieces and nephews that I haven’t even met. I’m not going to forgive you because I want to... I’m not sure if I can do that yet.”
She stifled back her resentment, then added, “I want to because I want to see a future where we can be a family.”
Grandpear started to get excited and cried, “Th…that’s wonderful! You won’t regret this! I’ll be the best grandfather ever you’ll see!”
Buttercup was astonished. After all this time, she thought her father would still be resentful, yet he was an utterly changed pony. She didn’t know how this was possible, and it was astonishing. She was happy and relieved, feeling the pressure and tension built up throughout the day suddenly alleviated. The mare said, “Ok, well, how about you start by coming over for dinner?”
“Of course,” Grandpear replied with a sullen smile. Then the stallion and his daughter, who, despite harboring so much anger, could see that she almost fell into the same cycle that she and her husband’s family fell into. Learning to let go of that pain helped her finally see that, and she could only hope that her children would never have to go through the pain she felt for all these years.
