Foal's Gold

by flutterboom64

Rating: everyone
Tags: My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Comedy, Cutie Mark Crusaders
Length: 3052

When the apple family isn't making enough profit they may loose the farm! To save the farm the cutie mark Crusaders try their hooves in alchemy.

Oh no! The Apple family is at risk of losing their farm! They need to make money and fast! They owe 1,500 bits to the landlord of the property! How can a farm pony come up with that kind of money? The cutie mark crusaders have a plan. In this comedic story the CMCs try their hands in alchemy (turning base metals into gold) to get the money the Apple family needs. need. Will they be able to do it in time?

Published 2013-03-27 05:30:02 UTC
Last updated 2013-03-28 13:05:30 UTC

The letter

This story is taking place from Apple Bloom's prospective.

Today was a day like any other, I woke up before the rooster, (once again,) and made my way downstairs. The air was a bit chilly, but it's always that way during the end of winter. I made my way downstairs when the all too familiar aroma of apples filled my nostrils. Call me crazy, but no matter how many times I get a whiff of apples, I get goosebumps. Upon arriving in the kitchen I saw Granny Smith and Applejack stomping on, and crushing a few of the apples we keep for ourselves.
"Howdy Sugar cube!" Greeted Applejack.
"HELLO SLEEPY HEAD!" Shouted Granny Smith, unable to tell how loud she was.
"Uh'm Granny?" Started Applejack
"WHAT?" Granny Smith yelled.
Obviously Granny couldn't hear Applejack, but that has never stopped my sister before, and wouldn't stop her now.
"YOU ARE TALKING TOO LOUD!" shouted Applejack.
"I AM NOT TOO OLD! YOU BETTER LEARN YOUR PLACE HERE MISSY! YOU MAY BE AN ADULT BUT I'M IN CHARGE HERE!" Granny Smith yelled before trotting off angrily mumbling a few words that no filly should ever hear.
"But I-" Applejack began.
"Applejack," I started "She can't hear you anymore."
Applejack sighed. "I know..."

Together Applejack and I scooped up the crushed apples from the gigantic wooden bucket into a bowl, and ran the apples through a bowl with lots of holes. I still don't remember what it's called but my family just calls it "The Applesauce Maker," because that's all we do with it. Make applesauce. After the peels are all out Applejack and I set out four bowls on the table.
"Can I do it this time sis?" I asked.
" 'Course ya' can sis!"
I jumped up the table and into the windowsill, grabbed the bell, and began rattling it frantically.
"SSSSOOOOUUUUUPSSSSS OOOONNNNNNNN!" I bellowed.

My big brother (Big Macintosh) slammed open the door and ran inside. The door swung open and hit my flank so hard I flew outside from the open window where I was standing, and into the pig's mud pit.
"Apple Bloom!" yelled Applejack. Applejack raced through the open door over to the mud pit with the speed of 4 ponies.
"Y'all right sis?" Applejack asked worriedly.
"A'hm fine!" I said walking over to the hose.
"Jeez Big Mac, calm down it's only breakfast." I scolded.
"Sorry Apple Bloom, but that's not why I'm in a hurry." Explained Big Mac.
"I needed to show y'all this here letter from the mail machine." Said Big Macintosh holding out a long white parchment, stained with a few small spots of mud from my fall (I didn't know I made a splash THAT big.) I jumped up and snatched the letter from my brother and began reading.
"Your painment for this mother is... overdone!" I said proudly.
"Ms. Cheerilee's been teachin' us how to read books!" I explained
"What a strange letter." I thought out loud.
"A'hm not sure if that's correct sugar cube." Said Applejack
"Of course it's correct!" I protested! Before I knew it Applejack had the letter.
"Hey!" I began.
"Let's see here..." Started Applejack.
"Your payment for this month is... OVERDUE?" Applejack said with great shock.
"WHAT?" I said with the same amount of shock that Applejack had just demonstrated.
"Eeyup." Said Big Macintosh, except this wasn't his usual "Eeyup" it was filled to the brim with sadness.

Author's Note

I apologize for the grammatical errors currently present in the first two chapters. I have friendly proof-readers working on it. Thank you and I will fix the errors as soon as possible. Thanks for reading! :)

Scrap Metal

The air outside is chilly, but it's warmer than the recent nights, a sign of winter's impending end. I made my way to the hill that was bare of apple trees like we agreed. The moon and stars shone brightly, and there were no clouds in sight. It was the perfect night for our mission to get the scrap metal from the barn. I made my way up the hill but no sign of either Sweetie Belle or Scootaloo yet. I stand around for a while watching the fire flies repeatedly light up and go dark. Soon after I hear the crunch of the grass. I look over to see two small figures approaching me from the darkness.
"Caw!" Sweetie Belle called.
"Cockadoodledoo!" Scootaloo whispered.
"Hey, we agreed on bird calls!" Complained Sweetie Belle.
"A chicken is a bird!" Argued Scootaloo.
"Is not!" Sweetie Belle retorted.
"Guys! Seriously?" I scolded
"Sorry!" Chimed Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo.
"Are y'all ready?" I asked.
"Yep!" replied Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.

We set off from the tiny hill and trotted quietly to the barn. We came up to the big red door of the barn. It was looming over us like a giant.
"On three," Scootaloo ordered. "One, two, three!" We all began pushing with all the might three fillies could possibly muster. "Hey why won't the stupid door open?" Complained Scootaloo.
"Push harder!" I commanded.
"If I could push harder wouldn't I have already tried tha-" The crunching sound of grass stopped us dead in our tracks.
"Everypony hide!" I whispered. We all bounded into a nearby barrel. We were stack on top of one another like a totem pole. Scootaloo on the bottom, me in the middle, and Sweetie Belle on the top.
"Ow!" whined Scootaloo.
"Shush!" I ordered, sticking a hoof into Scootaloo's mouth. I peeked out of a hole in the middle of the barrel while Scootaloo spat out my hoof. I saw a tall stallion making his way to the barn. As he got closer I realized who it was. It was my big brother, Big Macintosh. He trotted up to the barn door and pushed it open as if it were nothing. We waited in silence while Big Macintosh was in there. He came out a minute later munching on some hay, heading back towards the house. "So that's where the hay's been going..." I thought.
"Hey he left the barn open!" Sweetie Belle pointed out. "What luck!" We made our way from the barrel into the barn. The only light inside was the moonshine peering in from the top window. I grabbed one of the old cow blankets and set it on the ground.
"Help me load on the scrap metal." I ordered.
"Right!" Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle chimed. We began loading what little bit of spare iron and copper we had in the barn, onto the blanket. After all the scrap metal had been loaded onto the blanket we began dragging the blanket over to the treehouse.
"Now how do we get it inside..." I wondered out loud.
"Uh oh..." said Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.

Alchemy

"Well this metal ain't gonna carry itself," I sighed.
"This is gonna take forever!" complained Scootaloo "I know there isn't much but it's a bunch of small piece!"
"It wont take nearly as long if you shut your trap and start carrying," I retorted as I bent over to pick up some metal." Scootaloo sighed and started carrying, as did Sweetie Belle. We made the short trip up and down the tree house ramp several times before we finally finished. We had the metal stacked up in a small pile in the corner of the tree house.
"Now what?" Questioned Sweetie Belle.
"Now, we read!" I replied as I pulled down the book about alchemy off of a shelf. I flipped open to the first page.
"Scootaloo." I called.
"Yeah?" She asked.
"I got all the supplies you said the book called for, now I need you to read what we do," Scootaloo bounded over in excitement.
"Alright!" She said cheerfully. "This is gonna be awesome!" She bent over and began reading the book. "Take a piece of chalk and draw this figure on the floor." She said holding up the book so Sweetie Belle and I could copy the drawing. "It's called a transmutation circle," She explained. It took a good five minutes to re-create the drawing, it was very complex. There were smaller details but mostly it was a circle with two triangles. "Now you take the metal you want to change to gold, and put it in the middle." Sweetie Belle and I walked back and forth placing the metal in the circle little by little. "All that's left is to put our hooves into the circle, focus on the goal we wish to accomplish with this alchemy, keep your eyes closed, and focus all your energy into your hooves,"
"That's easy!" I cheered.
"Wait there's a warning on here." Warned Scootaloo. "If you don't do exactly as the book says to perfection..."
"What happens?" I asked impatiently.
"It doesn't say." Answered Scootaloo. We shot each other nervous glares before nodding our heads in silent agreement to keep sight of our mission. Scootaloo walked over then we all placed our hooves in the circle. I put the thought of saving the farm into my head. I imagined my family being so proud in me. I focused my energy into my hooves, then closed my eyes. I felt the magic of alchemy taking place, my hair rose up and even though my eyes were closed, I could tell the circle began glowing. I felt a surge of energy fill my body, then rush out along with some of my original energy. I felt tired and worn out but I didn't give up. I couldn't give up. The thought of saving my farm started to fade. Fear that we might lose the farm took hold. I imagined us getting kicked out and forced to leave. I tried to keep my mind on saving the farm but I couldn't. The next thing I know a deafening screeching noise filled the air. I felt the tree house rumble as if there were an earthquake. My eyes shot open. The things in the tree house, pictures, flower pots, and everything else began falling and smashing on the floor. The smell of burning filled the air, smoke arose from the pile of metal, and then I heard a loud KABOOM!

I opened my eyes to see Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle lying on the ground in front of me. Our tree house was shattered. Pieces of broken wood and glass lay all around me and the other Cutie Mark Crusaders. I was dizzy and confused. I looked around and saw it was still nighttime. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo's heads popped up and began looking around also. Despite the big amount of wreckage, none of us were hurt. I looked around again and saw three figures running towards us from the darkness. A stallion and two mares. Uh oh. I thought before blacking out... again.

Author's Note

I didn't want to steal someone's transmutation circle drawing so if you would like to know what one looks like feel free to goolge it. :)

Epilogue

I woke up the next morning and I walked downstairs. Once again the aroma of apples filled my nostrils giving me goosebumps. I trotted into the kitchen to see a note and applesauce on the kitchen table. I made my way over and took note of how the weather was much warmer than it's been the past few days and nights. I hopped up onto the table and looked at the parchment on the table. The ink was still wet letting me know it was written recently. I stared at it a minute trying to work out the words in my head. Apple Bloom, clean tree house, love Applejack, is all I could understand, but, it was enough for me to tell what I needed to do. I looked out the window to see my big brother and sister working on the farm. I wish I was working on the farm. I thought to myself. I left without eating breakfast to get a quick start on cleaning the rubble, so I could get back to the farm as soon as possible.

I made my way to the tree house and felt my stomach rumble. This was a bad idea. I thought. I felt the dew under my hooves, and heard birds chirping, and finally took in the warm air. When I saw the tree house my eyes began to tear up. I never thought about how I we'd have to rebuild the whole tree house, at least, not until now. I began sifting through the rubble hoping to find something, anything not broken. A picture, a vase, anything, to keep as memory of the first Cutie Mark Crusader's clubhouse. No such luck. The only thing still intact I could find was the old blanket from the barn. I held back my tears and began cleaning up the rubble. I set stack after stack of broken wood and glass on the blanket and dragged it back to the house for the garbage ponies to get. When I was almost done I sat on the stump that used to hold our tree house to rest. I began reminiscing about spending time in the tree house. It was sad, but nice to think about. I was deep in thought when something in the rubble caught my eye. I made my way to the shiny spot that was peering from the rubble.

I sifted the rubble over trying to dig up what I saw earlier. I dug up what I thought at the time to be wood shavings. I looked closely and saw that it wasn't wood shavings, but gold shavings! This is amazing.
"We did it! We did it!" I cheered. It wasn't perfect, they weren't gold bars but it was good enough for me to say it worked. The alchemy worked.
I've got to tell Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo! I thought before trotting off. Sorry Granny Smith, but I've got to break the rules this time.

Confession

I woke up with water all over my face and my whole family standing over me, with Applejack holding a bucket. COUGH! COUGH!
"Applebloom! Are y'all o.k?" Applejack asked frantically looking at me to find injuries.
"I'm fine," I say." Applejack picked me up and held me close.
"You had us worried sick!" Granny smith scolded.
"Eeyup!" Agreed Big Macintosh.
"What about Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo?" I asked.
"They're here too?" Applejack asked. "You've got a lot of explaining to do!" yelled Applejack. "Big brother,"
"Eeyup?" Asked Big Macintosh.
"Go get some more water." Applejack ordered.
"Alright," Big Macintosh agreed before trotting off.

Later that night my family sat Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo and I at a table and demanded an explanation.
"What in the HAY were y'all doin'?" Applejack asked angrily
"I wanted to save the farm!" I blurted out. "I found a book about alchemy at the library and Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo tried to help me out, needless to say, we messed up."
"That's not your responsibility!" Applejack scolded.
"Families are supposed to help each other!" I retorted.
"Yes but fillies don't hold that type of responsibility," Applejack explained
"BESIDES," started Granny Smith. "WE DON'T NEED MONEY!"
"W-what?" I asked in shock.
"We got loans from my friends." Applejack explained "My friends were happy to help! We just have to work extra hard this year, and YOU need to stop sneaking out. You need your rest to do well on the farm."
"Yes Applejack. I'm sorry." I apologized. "Well I guess I guess Iearned my lesson." I said making my way to my room as fast as my legs could carry me.
"Nope!" Said Big Macintosh stepping in the way.
"No crusading for a week you three!" Granny Smith ordered.
"AWWWWW!" Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and I whined in unison. "Don't worry she'll forget." I whispered to the other two crusaders.
"And I"LL enforce this punishment!" Threatened applejack looking angry.
Darn!
"Now off to bed Apple Bloom!" Ordered applejack. "I'll walk you two home," said Applejack facing Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle.
"Yes Applejack" They sighed in unison. I walked upstairs and hopped into bed and went to sleep. Tonight is a night I just want to forget, I thought to myself before dozing off to sleep.

Cutie Mark Crusaders Alchemists!

I slowly trotted over to the tree house, deep in thought. This book just has to work." CRASH! THUD! My gaze on the ground broke and shot upwards to see a hole in the roof of the tree house! I galloped forward with all the speed I could muster, and never took my eyes off of the gaping hole in the roof.

I stormed into the tree house to see rubble from the roof and my two best friends, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo, on the floor, dazed.
"What in Celestia's name happened here?" I shouted.
"Oh hey Apple Bloom. We tried to do a little crusading of our own, because you were taking too long." Explained Scootaloo.
"I guess we're not bat impersonators." Sweetie Belle pointed out.
"Bat impersonators?" I questioned. "What in the hay kinda idea is that?"
"It's better than being a blank flank forever," Scootaloo justified.
"That's not important right now!" I started "My family's gonna lose the farm!"
"WHAT?" Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle said simultaneously.
"Yes, we're gonna lose the farm! We got a letter saying our payment is overdone or something like that, but I have an idea!" I dropped the book from off my back, onto the floor for Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo to see.
"Studies In Advanced Alchemy?" Read Scootaloo.
Oh sure SHE can read. I thought to myself.
"How's any of this gonna help us out?" Wondered Scootaloo.
"Do you even know what alchemy is?" I asked.
"I'm not a dictionary!" Retorted Scootaloo
"It's turnin' cheap metal into expensive gold!" I explained. "We can save my family's farm and even get our cutie marks! You guys are in right?" Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo looked at each other with big smiles on their faces..
"We're in!" They shouted.
"Alright!" I shouted. Don't worry Applejack, Big Macintosh, Granny Smith. I'm gonna save our farm!
"On three, guys," Scootaloo ordered. We put our hooves in the middle of all three of us. "One, two..., THREE!"
"CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS ALCHEMISTS!"