When Apples Fall...

by ET9977

Rating: teen
Tags: Big Macintosh, Gore, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Granny Smith, Sad, Other, Applejack, Apple Bloom
Length: 5605

Have you ever wondered what happened to AppleJacks parents? Why Big Mac always says Eeyup? Why the barn always fall apart? If so, this is the story for you. I've put a lot of hard work into this one story. Please, enjoy and comment if you can.

Many people believe that AppleJacks parents are traveling across Equestria as famous rogue famers or something. That's something i want to believe, but after the new episode, i felt that this story had to be written. I want some people to at least get an idea of way things are the way it is at the farm. This story explains Big Macs attitude, the status of AppleJacks parents and why the barn always gets knocked over.

My other version is on my DeviantArt (ET9977), except FimFic was so much more easier to use so i decided to use this.
http://et9977.deviantart.com/

If you'd like me to write any other stories, just request them on my Tumblr.
http://et9977.tumblr.com/

Published 2012-12-30 05:40:02 UTC
Last updated 2012-12-30 05:40:02 UTC

When Apples Fall

The big red stallion looked at his orchard. This farm meant the world to him. Ever since his father had passed away not too long ago, he had been given the burden as well as the honor of running the farm. His mother, also known to others as Granny Smith, was back in the house, taking care of young AppleBloom. For a newly born foal, she was already causing quite the ruckus. HayStack sighed and trotted to his barn. His wife was already in the barn, tending to the cows and other animals. HayStack looked inside the barn and smiled as he saw CiderSquash soothing an old cow.

“There, there, it’ll be alrite soon.” CiderSquash said in the most sweetest voice he had ever heard.

“These old bones are aching and shaking and rattling e-e-everyday, dearie. My time is nearing.” replied the old cow, her voice creaking and trembling.

“Sh,sh, don’t talk like that. We’ll get you the medicine you need.” CiderSquash comforted as she gently patted the old cow.

HayStack smiled at the whole scene as he had known the old cow since he was a colt. One of the very first cattle to ever be seen on the farm. Sweet Apple Acres is going to be a great farm one day. HayStack felt it in his bones. He walked to the side of the barn and stomped a nail in with his hoof. The sound echoed through the barn and CiderSquash walked outside to see what it was. She grinned as soon as she saw him. Though when she realized a certain red colt wasn’t near, she became worried.

“Wheres Macintosh gone?” she asked him.

“He’s workin’ out on them fields. Ah reckon he’ll be a fine farmer one day.” HayStack replied. CiderSquash sighed and looked at him.

“So what are you doing here?” she questioned him again.

“Lookin’ for AppleJack.” he replied calmly.

“WHAT!?” yelled CiderSquash, panicking, as her eyes shrunk in size.

“Uh... ain’t she with ya? he replied, not so calm as he realized she wasn’t with either of them. “Oh, well this is-” he began to say, until he was interrupted by his screaming wife.

“AppleJack! APPLEJACK! COME OUT NOW YOUNG FILLY!” she yelled, frantically running around, her head jerking from side to side, hoping to catch a glimpse of the young orange filly. HayStack followed in hot pursuit, now beginning to feel worried. Macintosh turned to see what all the commotion was about. The two worried parents galloped across the farm to the house. They saw Granny Smith, holding little AppleBloom whilst sitting on a rocking chair.

“Ma, have ya seen AppleJack anywhere?” HayStack asked urgently.

“The young’n went off to play with her tree house, last ah heard if ah remember rightly.” Granny Smith told him, bottle-feeding the young AppleBloom.

“Did ya hear tha-” HayStack said turning around, only to find his way already galloping towards the treehouse. Galloping after her, he tried to catch up but was too slow. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he looked up. He saw CiderSquash up ahead grabbing the filly by the neck with her mouth, taking her out of the tree house and setting her down on the ground in front of her. HayStack gained second wind and began running up to the two. Running up to them, he had already begun to hear his wife scolding their second child.

“...and what would have happened if you hurt yourself? You would have been too far for anypony to hear you. Don’t you remember the last time you played on this tree house? Didn’t you learn your lesson when you fell of and hurt your hoof? Ah told you not to run off too far now, didn’t I?” AppleJacks mother said, bombarding AppleJack with questions with a stern frown on her face. The little filly was already bawling by now, her eyes wet with tears. Their little AppleJack always did hate it when she had made a mistake or failed her parents. HayStack couldn’t bear watching her cry and decided to step in.

“Now sweetie, ah’m sure she just wanted to have some fun. It’s ain’t like she’s tryin’ ta disappoint us.” HayStack said, in the calm voice which their son had adopted. CiderSquash turned around with glaring eyes, intent on teaching their daughter a lesson. “Uh... never mind...” he said, looking towards the young filly. AppleJack looked back up, tears soaking her face. He couldn’t help but nuzzle her with his snout and told her “It’s alrite.”. He looked at his wife, who was now also looking at the face of their daughter.

“Oh... I’m sorry honey.” she said, also nuzzling AppleJack on the nose. “You know how much I get worried.” she said, sweetness now filled in her voice. “Cmon’ lets get away from this rickety old treehouse.” she told AppleJack, who was now drying her tears and hugging her mother.

“Hey, ah built that treehouse maself ya know.” HayStack said with a bit of anger in voice, due to the lack of appreciation for his work.

“I know, we all are proud of your amazing craftsponyship.” CiderSquash said mockingly. With a chuckle, HayStack began to walk towards the barn and with his head, motioned for them to follow him. “So... ya work all done for today?” he asked.

“Eeyup. We’re all prepared for tonight. The weather pegasi told me I had to check the farm for any loose objects and to make sure the animals are all prepared. They said it’s going to be one big storm.” she said, looking up at the sky. Dark clouds in the distance approached the farm. A far off rumble indicated thunder and lightning were to be expected tonight.

“Get inside. Ah’ll help Macintosh finish off and we’ll meet inside the house.” HayStack told them, whilst trotting off towards Macintosh. “It’s going to be a big storm, ah feel it.” he said to them as he trotted away.

“Macintosh, shut the windows for me, will you honey?” CiderSquash told Macintosh, shivering slightly from the cold air that was now hanging over the farm. The red colt closed the window and as soon as he did, the soft tapping of raindrops splattering on the window echoed across the room.

“So, how longs this storm going last pa?” asked Macintosh.

“Ah don’t know son. Ah just don’t know.” HayStack replied. Looking out the window, the rain seemed like it was only just beginning. He looked at his daughters. AppleJack was playing peek-a-boo with AppleBloom. AppleJack, using the hat her mother had given her, covered her face, then revealed a silly face to AppleBloom, who giggled uncontrollably. The crackle of the fire was hypnotic as they gathered around it, absorbing its warmth. It bright radiance casted shadows across the room and as the fire danced, so too did the shadows. Their house was a quiet sanctuary compared to the raging storm outside.

CiderSquash was lying by the rocking chair Granny Smith was sitting on. Mac sat by the window, staring out at the sky. HayStack was sitting in front of the fire, chucking logs in every now and then. Granny Smith was sitting on the rocking chair, knitting a blanket with apples covered on it. AppleJack and AppleBloom were playing in the corner, completely oblivious to the world outside them. HayStack looked at his daughter, remembering the events earlier that day and feeling he that needed to address them.

“AppleJack, darlin, ah need to talk to ya.” HayStack told his daughter. “Don’t go runnin’ off by yaself like that again, ya hear?” he told her gently. “We were very worried... ya ma was about to go insane.” he said, laughing a bit as his wife slightly frowned at him.

“We love you very much and we don’t want you to get hurt again.” CiderSquash said.

“In fact, AJ, come over here.” HayStack said. Little AppleJack put her hat on and walked towards her father. She sat down in front of him and as she did, her hat fell over her eyes. Her father pushed the hat back into place with his hoof. She smiled at him, her eyes twinkling within the light of the fireplace. “Ah’m sorry we couldn’t trust ya before. When you lied about it last time, we couldn’t trust ya anymore. Ya could have hurt yaself again, and then we’d hafta take the tree house away. Ya wouldn't want that, now, would ya?” he lectured. She shook her head. “Good. From now on, ah want ya to be the most honest pony in ponyville. Understand?” he said.

“Okay, pa.” she said, adjusting her hat. For a filly born only 8 years ago, she already understood how to take care of the farm and would help out around the farm, milking cows and bucking apple trees. ‘She learnt well.’ HayStack thought, smiling to himself.

“Good filly.” her mother told her. Macintosh couldn’t help but laugh at the whole scene.

“Ya’ll gettin so worked up over nothin.” he told them, snickering.

“Quiet boy, that loud mouth of yers ain’t gonna get ya nowhere. Ya watch what ya say from now, on ya hear?” he told his son. His son looked back with a blank stare and then quickly looked away.

“Eeeyup, ah hear ya.” he replied.

“Good. Now everyone get to bed, we have a big day of cleaning up tomorrow, judging by the ruckus outside.” CiderSquash said, looking out the window. A pile of leaves flew by, the wind getting stronger by the night. The whistling of the wind echoed around the house, surrounding them in noise, then calming once again. CiderSquash looked around at her family and stood up. “Cmon’ everypony, it’s time to go to bed.” she said.

The whole family got up, all except HayStack and CiderSquash. CiderSquash walked over to her husband, watching the family get up and get ready to sleep. AppleJack got up and walked over to her mother, who gave her a goodnight kiss on the head. CiderSquash walked over to where AppleBloom was sitting and also kissed her on the head. Granny Smith lowered her knitting needles and her half made blanket. She picked up AppleBloom and waddled upstairs, carrying the young AppleBloom with her. AppleJack hopped up the stairs behind them, the half finished blanket in her mouth. Macintosh looked out the window one more time, studying the storm. After a brief moment, he turned his head and followed his siblings and grandmother up the stairs.

“It’s been a long day hasn’t it?” CiderSquash commented.

“Eeyup.” he replied, as he stared at the fireplace.

“That old cow needs help you know... she’s not going to last long if we don’t get her medicine soon.” she told him.

“Don’t ya worry, StinkingRich will take care of us.” he replied. The old stallion, the richest in Ponyville, had not forgotten the debt he owed to the Apple family. If it weren’t for their Zap Apple Jam, he wouldn’t have any business and would never have become as rich as he was today. HayStack also became good friends with him after his father had introduced him to StinkingRich. If they ever needed anything, all they had to do was ask. But that was rarely ever the case.

“Lets go buy some tomorrow, shall we?” CiderSquash asked.

“Eeyup.” he replied.

“Oh... and AppleJacks been playing with the lasso a lot. I think she wants to become as good as you are. Maybe you could help her?” she asked. He thought back... he hadn’t been seeing her a much as he used to. In fact, he had barely spent any time with her at all. The only reason he was looking for he today was to actually spend time with her. Unfortunately, that whole mess had to occur and the time just passed by, leaving him once again without time to spend with his daughter.

“I’ll teach her tomorrow.” he told her after some thought, making sure he didn’t have anything planned for the next day.

“Let’s get some sleep now, eh?” she asked.

“Eeyup.” he replied.

“Could you say anything besides that?” she asked, slighty irritated.

“Nope.” he said, a grin on his face. She rolled her eyes and smiled. She walked up the stairs, HayStack following. The storm slightly shook the house. A flash of lightning brightened the house for a second, followed by the loud rumble thunder. They ignored it and continued to their room.

A loud crash woke her up. CiderSquash was just about to drift off to sleep when a noise and the sound of a explosion had made her body jolt.

“HayStack - WAKE UP!” she yelled, moving his body with her hoof. She looked outside of her window to see a dark pillar of smoke, rising into the air, just barely visible in the dark night. At the base of that pillar of smoke was a bright orange fire, burning and fighting against the rain that poured down upon it. Yet the fire grew ever so slowly, but surely, across the roof of the barn. The metal weathervane atop of the barn must have attracted the lightning and set the roof on fire. HayStack was now staring at the whole scene along with her.

“We gotta go get the animals outta there!” he said as he took of the bed sheets and began running out the room. His wife was panicking. She ran out of the room behind him, surprised the rest of the family hadn’t been woken up by the sounds. They must be thinking it was just more thunder. She ran into Granny Smiths room and woke her up.

“Granny! Wake up!” she yelled. Granny Smith awoke, blinking away the sleepiness from her eyes. “Get everypony awake, now!” she yelled and ran out of the house, following HayStack. Granny Smith looked around, wondering what was going on. Then she saw a bright glow in the distance, instantly realizing the situation. She got up, ignoring the crackle of her bones and tried her best to run to Macs room. The pain coursed through her body as depravity of sleep and old age had taken it’s toll on her body. Yet she began to run, ignoring it all.

“Mac... Mac! Get up!” she yelled at him and the colt turned in his bed, facing his grandmother. “Go help your mother and father!” she yelled as he sat up in his bed. He didn’t understand what was going on but he obeyed. He jumped out of his bed, jogging past Granny Smith and down the stairs. As he ran out the door, which was already opened by his frantic parents, the situation dawned on him. The barn was on fire and his parents were already galloping towards it. Without thinking, he ran after them, hoping he could help save the family and aid in any way possible. Granny Smith did not want to put AppleJack or AppleBloom in danger, as they were too young. She ran into their room, waking them up with a gentle but urgent nudge with her nose.

“Wake up you two, we need to be ready in case anything happens.” she told them both. AppleBloom began to cry, being the little foal she was. AppleJack didn’t know what was going on and was confused.

“Granny, why are ya waking me up like this?” she asked. Granny Smith did not want to make the filly scared, neither did she want to lie to her.

“Theres something dangerous on the farm. We gotta stay here till it’s over.” she replied. Anxiety and fear were now seeping from the back of Granny Smiths mind. ‘Were they going to be ok? Would they need our help, if any?’. Questions like these plagued her mind, making her worry even more. She wanted to help, she wanted to take care of her son and her step-daughter. But taking care of the youngest of the family was her main duty, if anything, her son would want her to take care of his children. Then another thought hit her. ‘What about Macintosh?’.

The fire was blazing by now, the roof completely on fire. HayStack heard the screams of the cows inside the barn. The barn was where they kept all the oldest of animals, especially the old cows. Amongst those old cows was Annie, the oldest of them all. HayStack knew she was too old to get out by herself. CiderSquash caught up to him shortly. They approached the door of the barn together, soaked from the rain. HayStack kicked open the doors, using his powerful hind legs. As soon as the doors opened, all the fit animals ran out. The younger cows had left along with the rest of the animals, leaving the old ones behind. CiderSquash ran into the barn, instantly running towards the old cows. They would need the most help of all. The old cows began to get up, their bodies shaking in fear. CiderSquash helped Annie and the rest up, whilst HayStack was freeing the pigs.

“I’ll be fine, you go help your husband darling.” Annie told CiderSquash. The old cow began to slowly make her way out of the barn, using all the strength she had regardless of her sickness. CiderSquash obeyed, running over to HayStack and helping him lift the doors to the pigs rooms. A loud creaking noise filled the barn. HayStack and CiderSquash turned around towards the sources of the sound. The fire had burnt through the roof of the barn and was now engulfing the support beams across the ceiling. One beam had already been burnt through and was hanging over the group of old cows. The beam began to fall.

“Look ou-” one cow yelled, but sadly never finished the sentence. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. CiderSquash looked into the eyes of Annie and all that could be seen in Annies eyes was fear. A flaming wooden beam fell from the ceiling, crushing the cows under its weight. Annie was far enough from the rest of the cows to survive, but was unfortunately too close to the beam to avoid being hit. The gaze between Annie and CiderSquash was broken, as her head was brought down along with the rest of her body from the force of the impact. HayStack had been looking at another cow, but did not for long, as the cow had been completely crushed under the wooden beam. His eyes slowly looked down and fear had filled him as all he saw that remained of the cow was her snout, which was poking out from under the wreckage.

“No...” CiderSquash said, sobbing as she ran towards Annie. The blood of the crushed cows soaked the hay covered ground. What was loud screams just a few seconds ago became silence. There was nothing, no more crying, no more yelling, no more squeals of fear from animals, nothing. All that could be heard was the crackling fire and the sound of more creaking wood. In the blink of an eye, all these animals had died. Annie looked up at the two ponies she had known since they were fillies and blinked.

“I’m sorry...dearie...” she said with what breath she had left in her lungs. She felt the steady beating of her heart begin to slow and felt the pulsating pain course through her upper body. Her eyes rolled into her head and she closed her eyes for what would be the last time after so many years. As the life left what was left of her body, her head tilted to the side and rested on the ground. CiderSquash was still trying to grasp the concept of what had just happened. HayStack stood there, not sure what to do. A tear left his eye and rolled down his neck. His wife was lying by Annie, sobbing uncontrollably.

“We need to get out of here!” he yelled, with sudden realization of the still burning barn. The back wall collapsed, blocking the back entrance of the barn in a pile of flaming wooden debris. They couldn’t possibly get out that way. HayStack heard more creaking. He looked above him and saw the ceiling start to fall off in tiny pieces. Suddenly, a large piece of burning ceiling fell down besides them. The roof was collapsing on them. CiderSquash turned around, tears soaking her cheek. HayStack was struck by pieces of burning wood, which bounced of him. Then, another piece of wood struck him, this time on his head. It was not a wooden beam, but was strong enough to knock out the stallion. Wreckage, debris and dust began powdering them, raining down all around them.

“Ma! Pa! Where are you!?” said a voice from outside the barn. CiderSquash looked out the door to see a little red colt outside the barn. He was about to run in until his mother stopped him.

“STAY OUT! Stay away from here!” she screamed, hoping he would not have to see the corpses of all the dead cows.

“Where's pa? Is he ok?” he said, panic evident in his voice. “I’m coming in!” he yelled and began to run towards the door. CiderSquash ran to the door and locked it. She knew that he would still run in and try to help them, no matter what she said. Even for a colt his age, he was still quite strong and she knew she could not hold him back by herself. Locking the door was the only way to keep him safe. She turned to her husband, now covered in debris and still lying on the ground unconscious. A loud banging on the door indicated Mac was still trying his best to get in. He had no idea of the dangers in the barn and was too headstrong to heed the warnings anyway.

“HayStack... get up!” she said, in between sobs. More ceiling debris collapsed on them. She still stood strong, withstanding the force of the falling roof. She slowly made her way towards her husband, each hoof she took now becoming a major pain. The pain from the debris she withstood with the combined heat from the fire had taken its toll, not to mention the mental strength she needed to keep going. She now knew there was no way out, they had run into a deathtrap only to save a few animals. But neither of them could have foreseen something like this to happen to such a nice, peaceful farm. A second wave of ceiling debris hit her, now bringing her to the ground.

“MA! WHY!?” Macintosh yelled, still banging on the door. CiderSquash thought back and wondered why they didn’t call the firefighter pegasus in the first place. Well, they were to far away to even contact for one. By the time they would have gotten here, the barn would already be destroyed. CiderSquash began to lose her vision, each blink feeling heavier then the rest. The weight of all the debris on her was bringing her down. But her fierce will had kicked in, forcing her body to keep moving. Using her front hooves, she pushed herself up, her back legs following shortly after. She took one step, pain shooting up her legs and making her knee give in, causing her to fall once again. But this time she caught herself, recovering quickly. A dark haze began to seep in from the edges of her vision. With every blink, it grew slowly, beginning to black out the world she loved. She took another step, this time dragging her hooves on the ground.

“HayStack... please wake up...” she pleaded. A few more steps and she was beside him, standing over him. The pain in her bones was too much, and she wavered for a bit, finally falling to the ground for the last time. Using the strength she had left, she lifted her head and rested it across the stallions neck. She felt the breaths he took on her own neck and could feel his heartbeat flow through his neck. He was still alive.

“I guess... AppleJack will have to learn how to lasso... by herself then.” she said, coughing and taking slow breaths in between. The dark haze began to cloud her vision even more, as each breath became painful. The smoke had begun to affect their lungs and they both had begun to wheeze. “I hope... AppleBloom... grows up... good... without...” she said, not able to finish the sentence due to her failing lungs.

“She has a good... family... don’t ya worry... sweetie...” he said, moving moving his neck around his wife. Drops of sweat now covered them both, smoke and ash covering their faces, scratches and blood marking their bodies. This was the end for them.

“What... about the... far-?” she tried to say, her voice now turning into just croaks and whispers.

“The farm will be fine... don’t ya worry...” he said to her. He wanted her to be quiet, to save her breath so they could spend as much time as they could together before their lives end.

“MA! PLEASE! PA!” Macintosh kept on yelling. The banging on the door began to slow, but became louder with each knock.

“This farm... will become the best... in all of Equestria...” he promised her.

“What about... the ...” she coughed, blood splattering on the ground and across his back.

“The family will grow... big... and strong... you’ll see...” he told her, nuzzling her neck and speaking as elegantly and gentle as possible. “We’ll watch over... this farm... from the stars from now on... OK? Sweetie?” he said, nudging her slightly with his snout. No response. She began to stop moving and he looked at her for the final time. His own eyes began to close and his consciousness began to drift away from his body. He could not feel his hind legs or his forelegs.

“I love you...” she said with her eyes closed. The haze had taken over her vision completely and she could not see even with her eyes open.

“I love you too...” he replied. He was praying to Celestia now, hoping he would outlive his wife. At least she will not have to bear the pain of losing her love first. He felt the blood drip from his wives mouth down his back and roll onto the ground. Her body grew colder, and he felt her shake slightly. Then she stopped shaking, moving and breathing all together. Tears streamed from his eyes, cooling his burnt cheeks, turning the ash into a wet muck. The barn was now shaking, barely standing up.

“BUCK! PA! MA! DON’T DIE!” Macintosh screamed, his voice breaking. As the barn collapsed, HayStack looked at the source of the noise. Through cracks in the barns walls, he saw a red shape outside, illuminated by the light from the fire. As the barn collapsed, the wall of the barn gave away. As the wall fell apart, a gap appeared in the wall, a gap big enough to see clearly out of. For a split second, HayStack saw his son, standing outside in the rain, his face twisted in anger and sadness. For just a split second, their eyes connected, and they saw each other for one final moment. Then, the whole roof collapsed completely, crushing anything underneath it. The barn fell down on itself, burning brightly and crackling loudly. Macintosh stood in the rain, the fire lighting his face up, his body freezing yet warm from the fire. His parents had died, right before him. He saw with his own eyes, his mother and father get crushed. It was over.

Granny Smith looked out the door and her mind began to process the possibilities. A orange haze lit the horizon as smoke joined the stormy clouds. AppleBloom was sleeping once again and AppleJack was rubbing her sleepy eyes. Granny Smith sat down on the doorsteps, crying softly. In the distance she could see Macintosh, sitting on the ground, staring at the wreckage of what was once known as a barn. Her heart sank. She knew that her worse fears had come true. Granny Smith began to cry ever more, muffling her sobs so she wouldn't wake the sleeping AppleBloom. Having heard the cries from her grandmother, Applejack tried to comfort her. She hugged her granny and sat down next to her. She did not know what had just happened, she did not know that her parents were gone and are never coming back. Her mind still innocent from the grief of death, she began to fall asleep. Granny Smith saw her begin to drift off to sleep and decided to save her from the horrors of what had happened.

“Goodnight granny.” AppleJack quietly told her, and drifted off to sleep.

“Goodnight AppleJack.” Granny Smith replied, and continued to sit on the doorstep.

Mac opened the door to the Apple family house and sat on the couch. It had been a long day of school. After the Apple family tragedy a few years ago, he had been sent to a school in the hopes that he would get a job besides that of a farmer. The other colts had been bullying him on his lack of intelligence. Mac would talk back, saying things to prove that he was smart but that didn’t help at all and he was bullied continuously. He did not know how to handle them at first, that is, until he remembered what his father used to say. He remembered his fathers attitude and how no one would ever mess with him. Two simple words, which would answer his problems.

“How was school? Good?” Granny Smith asked as she walked in.

“Nope.” he replied. He was now beginning to sound like his father too.

“So ya really don’t want to go to school anymore?” she asked him.

“Eeyup.” he told her. He was sick of school and wanted to continue working on the farm, just like his father. He looked outside through the door he had opened and saw the barn, rebuilt by him and a few cousins who came over.

“StinkingRich said he’ll pay our taxes and such until we get back on our hooves again. We’ll make a farmer out of ya yet, Mac.” Granny Smith said, adding a bit of positivity into her sentence. “We’ll be fine from now on.” she continued.

“Eeyup.” he replied. It was time to pick up the pieces after what had happened. Now was the time to continue what their great grandparents had started and now was the time to move on. This farm would be the best in Equestria. Macintosh was sure of it.

“Big Mac, why does this barn always break apart?” AppleJack asked. Macintosh, now known to many as Big Mac, stood next to her and stared up at the barn.

“Don’t know.” he replied. Although he knew quite well why. The previous type of support beams they used to hold up the roof were no longer there, instead replaced by smaller and more lighter beams of wood. These were more likely to be destroyed but they would prevent any... accidents that could occur. The entire barn was made smaller and therefore more weaker. Big Mac remembered how he would help fix the barn from time to time with his father. There was really no point since Big Mac didn’t really understand it all, but he did enjoy the time with his father.

“So shall we start building this up again?” AppleJack asked him.

“Eeyup.” he replied. A drop of rain fell on his head and a flash of memories came to him. The look on his fathers face... the smell, the feeling, the heat. It all came back. He looked at the pile of wooden material and tools in front of them. Memories of happy times with his parents and memories of that tragic accident filled him. This place was more then just a building site for a barn. It was a memorial.

“Shoot! It’s startin’ to rain!” AppleJack stated. Big Mac looked up at the dark skies. Another drop fell on his snout. “Guess we’ll have to work another time.” she said.

“Nope.” Big Mac told her. He wanted to build this barn as quickly as possible. “Get back inside. I’ll finish this.” he told her. AppleJack had a look of confusion on her face.

“Big Mac, ya can’t possibly work in the rain!” she told him. He ignored her and walked over to a special spot on the ground. Two hoof marks were embedded into the ground. Some hay covered it and he brushed it off. He put his hoof on the mark and a tear fell down his cheek. Then, he picked up a hammer and began to hammer a nail into the frame of the door. “Fine. I’ll work with you at least.” she said, as she looked up at the sky.

“Thanks.” he said, turning back and looking behind his sister. The big red stallion looked at their orchard. This farm meant the world to him. Ever since his father had passed away not too long ago, they had been given the burden as well as the honor of running the farm. His grandmother, also known to others as Granny Smith, was back in the house, taking care of AppleBloom. The rain began to pour down on them. Big Mac turned around and began to continue the work and ignored the rain. He turned to AppleJack and said to her “Lets raise this barn, eh sis?”