All Aboard

Chapters

Departure
Picking Sides in a Pig's Eye
The Zebra in the Library
Books of Memories
Fire and Earth

Departure

The train wasn’t particularly menacing, quiet the opposite in fact as it is very hard to be menacing while being brightly colored, very well lit and full of smiling ponies. None the less as Applebloom stood there, in the station, looking at the brightly colored, well lit train train full of smiling ponies, only one thought came to mind.

Menacing.

She stood on the platform, watching as it pulled to a stop. It was one of the newer stations, installed by order of Celestia a few years ago. It still had that new train station smell, which is much like new horseshoe smell only with a great deal more coal. It must at this point be said that there was nothing wholly remarkable about the train station, or for that matter its rather cheerily painted trains. But at exactly one in the afternoon something wholly remarkable was set to occur.

By the small clock in Appleblooms bag it was seven minutes past noon.

Applebloom turned to Applejack, still finding it odd that they were almost the same height now. She was exactly as tall as her sister, if you counted in the large red bow. But, since red bows do not count under any known system of measurement she would have to wait a while longer. Still, the way things were going she would probably be taller when it was all said and done.

During the time it had taken her to become this tall she had begun to notice that growing up is an altogether unpleasant thing that should be avoided at all costs, but alas time is a hard, stubborn thing, so Applebloom had no choice but to face the fact that she was no longer a filly, though she could not rightly be called a mare. She was in that odd place everypony ends up at at one point or another, inbetween places, and therefore nowhere at all.

“Have you got your lunch?” asked Applejack, biting her bottom lip.

“Yes.”

“Have you got your apples seeds?”

“Yes.”

“Have you got your water?”

“Yes.” Applebloom nodded a final time. Her sister patted her on the side, her face tense in that happy kind of way only older ponies seemed to be able to manage.

Applebloom knew she was worried and she’d probably stay worried for quite a while, but it was time. All fillies went through it, with colts tossed in for good measure. For some it was a small change, one day they walked down the street and, with little or no warning, it happened. They crossed from one side to the other, or came to realize they’d arrived at their destination quite a long time ago, and had only just realized it. They were the lucky ones, for the rest of the ponies in-between it takes a bit more. They remain nowhere, unsure of where they’re going. This can be a scary thing, everypony wants to be somewhere. Wherever ‘there’ is.

Applebloom looked at her flank, still as blank as the day she was born, and hoped that ‘there’ would be on the other side of the tracks stretching into the horizon.

The ticket in her saddlebag suddenly felt very heavy. The weight of the words ‘One Way’ threatening to send her tumbling to the ground. But, she was an Apple, and Apple’s were a strong, hearty breed. She was honest, she was brave, she was smart and looking back at her sister she knew she was also loved. Back at home she had a brother and a grandmother waiting, they would see her off, and welcome her home, no matter what happened.

Applebloom would certainly need to remember this, but doubly so in about sixty-five minutes.

The clock read ten minutes past noon.

This whole thing had been Scootaloo’s idea. Applebloom mused, her impulsive pegasus friend had told her, if she couldn’t find ‘somewhere’ here, then ‘somewhere’ must rightly be somewhere else. It only made sense.

This was of course, very solid logic, or at least in the mind of Scootaloo, to whom logic was a tenuous friend at best. Still, she’d tried everything else. Sweetie Belle hadn’t thought it was a very good idea, but Sweetie Belle had recently found her way to the other side, a microphone adorning her flank. She was currently the prime act at the local theater several times a week. Applebloom did not want to be jealous of her friend, but had to admit she did feel a slight twinge of anger at not receiving hers. She knew it was wrong to feel that way, but feelings are seldom obedient things, always doing the opposite of what we may want them to. Like a particularly haughty cat who only wants you to pet it when you’re busy doing something else.

So, driven a bit by pride, a bit by jealousy and perhaps, more than she wanted to admit, a bit by fear, she’d purchased the ticket, packed her bags, and told her family she was heading out to find that ‘somewhere’. She would return when she found it. But until then she would be away.

Applejack had done the same in her youth, so they couldn’t rightly object. Not to say this stopped them from doing so. But, being an Apple, in addition to all the other things the title carried, she was stubborn. It was her aging Grandmother who’d relented first, after that her siblings had little choice but to agree and help her pack. So, with the ticket in her bag, and a slight dread in her stomach, she’d set off.

Applejack, like many ponies was not very good at goodbyes, which is an irony considering the name. Applebloom, knowing this, kindly initiated with a hug. Her sister’s hooves were strong as always and felt terribly safe. For a moment she considered abandoning the whole thing and heading back home for a bit of cider and perhaps a cookie. But Apples don’t do anything halfway. If they did, they wouldn’t be Apples, and as sure as her tail was red she was an Apple.

“Good luck, little sister.” said Applejack softly.

Applebloom managed a small smile. “Thanks, I’ll see you soon.”

Applejack managed a small one in return.“You’d better.”

“All aboard!” called the porter, a rather wiry unicorn in a blue hat.

“That’s my cue.” she said, turning towards the train. “Tell Big Mac and Granny Smith I’ll send a letter when I get there.”

“I sure will.” said Applejack. “..Goodbye Applebloom.”

Applebloom was stuck for a moment. The words seemed so final. She instantly decided that the term ‘Goodbye’ was terribly named.

“Goodbye Applejack.”

So, Applebloom gave her ticket to the porter, who punched a little hole in it, and ushered her onto the train. She could just see over the heads of the ponies milling about the car as they packed up their luggage, directed foals and generally did busy things. They payed her little attention as she found her room in a car at the back of the caboose. A small window let in the sun, illuminating a very small bed and an even smaller nightstand. She couldn’t help but think the bed looked terribly uncomfortable, compared to her much larger, much softer one back home. Though the train had not yet left the station, it suddenly felt terribly far away.

The clock read half past noon.

Applebloom sat her saddlebag on the floor next to the bed. It should now be noted that this saddlebag contained several things, but most importantly her lunch, which consisted of a hay sandwich apples slices and some water, along with what was always carried by Apples, a bag of apple seeds. Applejack was quite right to make sure Applebloom did not forget these items in particular, and she would do well to keep them in mind.

The train’s whistle blared shrilly through the air signaling their departure from the station. She felt the floor shudder a bit as the conductor coaxed the engine to life. Applebloom looked out her window as they pulled forwards, and saw ponyville slowly getting smaller in the distance. There was no turning back now.

It has been stated, round about one thousand one hundred and two words ago that there was nothing remarkable about the station which Applebloom just left, nor the trains it housed, while this is technically true there was indeed something remarkable about the tracks. This remarkable thing is that they lead through the Everfree forest, which is a wholly remarkable place.

The clock read a quarter to one in the afternoon.

Applebloom layed her head down as ponyville finally vanished into the horizon. She was right, the bed was terribly uncomfortable, but it would have to do. She thought about where she was heading, and realized she couldn’t even remember the town’s name. It was on the ticket stub in her bag, she hadn’t taken much time to look at it. When she’d gotten home to pack it away she’d put it away in the deepest pocket under the water, the apples seeds and the sandwich, hidden like a secret.

She hadn’t even bothered to give it a look when she’d given it to the porter. Either because she hadn’t thought about it, or because she didn’t want to. If she studied it for too long it might change her mind. She didn’t want that.

Did she?

Applebloom felt terribly unsure. But it was far too late now, far, far too late. She needed to find somewhere to be. She was sick of being somewhere inbetween.

There was a small chiming sound as the clock in Appleblooms bag struck one in the afternoon. The causal observer might note that it sounded slightly off key, and a great deal louder than any small clock has the right to sound. But Applebloom is not the casual observer.

The cabin suddenly grew dark as the train passed beneath the dense foliage of the Everfree Forest. Small flecks of light spilled from in between the leaves, painting the cabin in spots. Applebloom was distracted from her thoughts for a moment by how pretty it looked. They raced by, changing constantly as the train moved.

Despite herself she smiled.

Suddenly Applebloom felt herself being drawn forwards, she stumbled a bit. The train was slowing. She found this odd with good reason, as the station wasn’t do for another few hours. She heard the clicking of plates from the dining car as they shifted around and the heavy thuds of luggage falling from the overhead racks.

Something was wrong.

Applebloom looked around her cabin, wondering what she ought to do.

A mare might wait in their car until the somepony came to alert them that to what was amiss, or the train started up again. But Applebloom was not a mare, not quite yet in anycase. She still had that bit of filly curiosity that led her to peek her head out of the door, and stare into the abandoned car which lay waiting outside.

She gasped. There was nopony anywhere to be seen. Where only minutes ago there had been bustling activity, now there was nothing but silence. Luggage lay in various states of disarray on the floors and chairs, covered in the spots of light from the tree line. The whole car looked like it was trying to dress up as a cheetah for nightmare night. Which is quite a bit more frightening than it sounds when one is facing it alone in the middle of a train which had been fully occupied only moments before.

They must have gone to their rooms, she thought. Yes, that’s got to be it, there’s simply no other explanation.

She nodded to herself, this made quite a lot more sense than what a small panicky voice in the back of her head was saying. Being not quite a filly, she decided to hush this voice, and listen to the sensible option.

She grabbed her saddlebag and walked through the passenger car until she came to a door, she raised a hoof and knocked twice.

“Hello?” she asked, her voice echoing oddly throughout the train. “Is anypony in there? It seems there’s somethin’ wrong.”

She waited, but there was no answer. The silence seemed incredibly loud.

She knocked again. “Hello?”

Still no answer.

She tried the door, to find that it was open, sliding it back she found that the inside was just as empty as out.

“Okay...” she said to herself, as worried ponies are prone to do. “Must just be an unbooked cabin’ yeah..that’s it.”

She walked, then trotted, then galloped around the train, knocking on various doors, only to find the other rooms as empty as the first.

Applebloom was starting to very much doubt that her previous answer was infact ‘it’.

The conductor, she thought. He had to still be here...otherwise who would have stopped the train?

She galloped, quite a bit faster than is classically polite, to the conductors booth. It was behind a large green door, which looked quite a bit less cheerily painted in the light from the forest. Applebloom was quite thoroughly sick of knocking, and ripped the door open as quickly as she could.

Thick moss and foliage spilled out into the car, she fell back onto her rump, pushed back by the sheer mass of it. Flowers sprouted everywhere in ever color, making the train look downright drab by comparison. Applebloom let out a yelp, scooting back quickly.

The inside of of the booth was dark, she couldn’t see past the door, a deep voice, like the sound of pennies dropping on a hollow floor echoed outwards.

“Yes?” it asked politely.

Applebloom opened and closed her mouth a few times.

“Well? What are you bothering me about?”

“I-I....what....how...where are we?”

“Somewhere.” said the voice simply. “That’s where you wanted to go isn’t it? This is your stop.”

“N-no! This isn’t my stop! I’m going...” she realized she had forgotten. “Um...one moment.” she remembered the ticket stubs. Applebloom bucked off her saddlebag, and fished through it until she found the small piece of paper. “Here” she grabbed it in her mouth. “This is where I’m going.”

She resisted the urge to pull back as a large vine curled forward and wrapped around the ticket. It held it up to the darkness for a moment.

“Yep, there it is.” The vine hovered in front of her nose. “Somewhere.”

Sure enough, now embossed in bright gold letters, were the words ‘Somewhere’ printed in fancy type.

“B-but that wasn’t on there when I bought it!”

Applebloom got the strangest impression the collection of vines was shrugging. “Not my problem.”

“Well I reckon it is your problem....whatever you are! Where is everypony anyway? There were other passengers besides’ me. They certainly weren’t headin’ for ‘Somewhere’!”

“Well of course not.” said the darkness. “This is your stop. They’ve all got their own stops. Now, please disembark, be sure to give us a good review, and avoid the Unsure.”

Applebloom was confused. “B-but what happened to them!? Where am I supposed to go!? And what the heck are you!?”

“I’m your conductor,” the darkness said simply. “Have a safe journey.”

The door shut with a decisive click.

“Wait!” Applebloom tried to open the door again, only to find it stuck fast. “You come back here right now! I’m not gettin’ off here I tell you! This isn’t my stop!”

There was no answer.

“Fine!” Applebloom yelled. “I’ll just sit here till you start the train up again. See how you like that!” Applebloom sat down stubbornly.

There was the sound of rattling leaves, or perhaps a sigh from behind the door. Suddenly the floorboard lifted upwards at almost exactly seventy degrees. Applebloom went tumbling end over end as the side of the train opened like it was made of liquid. She was roughly deposited on the mossy ground of the forest.

“Hey!” she yelled.

She was drowned out by the sound of the engines starting again. The train began to move forwards.

Applebloom was on her hooves and chasing it before she even realized.

“Wait! This ain’t my stop! You let me back on right now! You hear!?”

The train did not hear. It sped up, and though she chased it valiantly it soon outpaced her, and she was left staring at the cabose as it pulled off in the darkness of the Forrest.

Soon she was left staring down the tracks. All alone.

“Remember beware the Unsure!” echoed back after a few minutes.

Picking Sides in a Pig's Eye

Applebloom stood there for several minutes staring in disbelief. She was now all by herself, in the middle of the Everfree forest. She’d been inside before, but never farther than her friend Zecora’s house, and always on the designated path. Now the small hut the old zebra lived in, or any kind of path seemed terribly far away.

Then an idea occurred to her.

“I’ll just follow the tracks!” she said aloud. “They’ve got to lead out of here at some point.”

So, feeling very proud of herself, she situated her hooves right down the middle of the metal railings, and started walking.

Sadly, things are rarely ever this simple.

After walking for what seemed like an hour, Applebloom’s hooves were aching fiercely, but still she soldiered on continuing forwards to what she was sure would be a break in the forest.

Until she came upon a green saddlebag.

“Huh?...” she looked at it closely, there was an apple on the side, along with the letters ‘AB’. It was hers. She’d dropped it when the train dumped her out.

She was going in circles.

The mare side of her brain railed against this. How was that possible? The tracks had come from ponyville, they couldn’t go in a circle or she would have ended up back there, or at least run into the train again. That was logic.

The mare side of her brain continued to say that it must have been some kind of mistake, perhaps her bag had gotten caught on the side of the train and dragged along to this point before it had fallen off. This was by all rights a sound theory. The filly side jumped up and down and waved it’s forehooves telling her that something was amiss. She waved it away and nodded, that must be it. It had gotten caught on the train.

“It’s about time you got back,” said a voice.

Applebloom’s head whipped around to find a small pig with a missing ear sitting a few feet away. It crinkled its snout at her.

She looked around a bit more.

“Yeah, it was me. It’s about time you got back sweetheart.”

Applebloom’s mind registered two things. The mare side registered that a pig was talking to her, while the filly side very much wanted to buck it for calling her ‘Sweetheart’.

The filly side won out.

“Sweetheart?” Applebloom advanced on the small thing. “Who are you calling sweetheart?”

“That’d be you.” The pig crinkled its nose again. “Sweetheart. It took you long enough.” Its voice sounded a bit like somepony had put Big Macintosh inside of a helium balloon.

Applebloom glared down at the pig. “If you don’t want to find yourself bucked halfway across the forest I’d loose the nickname.”

It squeled a bit. “Fine ‘AB’. No need to be so violent.”

“AB?”

“That’s what it says on your back ain’t it?”

“That’s Applebloom,” she said. As her anger drained, the mare side of her brain took over. “How are you talking anyway? And what do you mean ‘It’s about time you got back?”

The pig raised a stubby cloven hoof. “One, I could ask you the same question. Just ‘cause we’re quiet doesn’t mean we pigs can’t talk. Two, the track goes in a circle, if you keep that up you’ll just go around till you drop.”

The filly side of Applebloom’s brain gave a little halfhearted cheer for being correct, and briefly noted it was lucky the pig only had two things to list. Its hoof only had two points.

“Well,” said Applebloom in a huff. “How do you suggest I get out of here? And where is ‘here’ anyway?”

“Here?” repeated the pig. “One,” it held up its hoof again. “This is Somewhere. Two, you’d have to ask the Unsure.”

Applebloom opened her mouth to ask another question, but the pig headed her off.

“Let me guess, more questions? Let me save you some breath sweethea-”

At Applebloom’s glare the word died in his throat.

“I mean...AB.” He held up his hoof a third time. “One, Somewhere is everywhere, everywhere is Somewhere, Somewhere ain’t Nowhere. Two the Unsure knows everything. It’ll know how to get you out of here.”

Applebloom considered this. The filly side of her brain accepted it readily, it was just like the fairy stories she’d read as a foal, but the mare side of her brain balked. None of this made sense, she should just keep following the tracks.

Once again the filly side won out.

“Fine, I don’t rightly understand all this, but if this ‘Unsure’ knows how to get me out of here, I sure as heck mean to ask him about it.”

“It,” the pig corrected.

“It?”

The pig nodded. “It ain’t sure if it’s a boy or a girl, so it’s an ‘it’ til further notice.”

“Fine,” said Applebloom. “Whatever ‘it’ is. I’ve got a couple of word for it.” she looked down at the small pink pig. “Take me.”

The pig made a snorting sound, which may have been a laugh. “And why would I do that sweethea-....I mean AB?”

Applebloom floundered for a moment. “Uh...”

Exactly. “I gave you the info, that’s my good deed for the day. You’re on your own.” The Pig turned to leave.

“Wait!” Applebloom held out a hoof. “I don’t know which way to go!”

The pig squealed irritably. “Not my problem. Good luck AB.”

Applebloom’s mind raced, the last thing she needed to do was get lost in the forest again. The filly side of her brain told her to chase the pig down and make it tell her, but the mare side of her brain politely suggested she try something else.

Applebloom decided to listen to what the mare side had to say.

It suggested that she give the pig something in return for helping her. ‘You get more pigs with slop than with vinegar’ it supplied.

This made sense to Applebloom, she decided to listen to the mare side.

It gloated over its win while the filly side sulked in the corner.

Applebloom yelled one more time. “Hey pig! What if I had something to trade?”

The pig stopped, cocking his good ear in her direction. “I’m listening.”

She reached into her saddlebag, pulling out the sandwich, setting it on the ground. “How’s this?”

The pig eyed the sandwich warily. “This ain’t no trick?”

Applebloom shook her head. “I swear on the Apple Family it ain’t. And you can take that to the bank.”

The pig eyed her for a moment. The dived into the sandwich like a ravenous lion.

It was gone in a matter of seconds, the pig smacked happily, rolling back and forth on the breadcrumbs that had fallen during the massacre.

“Alright, AB, you got yourself a deal.”

Applebloom smiled. “Great! There’s some apple slices in it for you at the end as well.”

“There’s more!?” asked the Pig, sounding, for the first time since Applebloom had met him, happy or for that matter anything that wasn’t surly.

“Yep.” She nodded. “Now,have you got a name?”

“Sty,” the pig said simply. “The name’s Sty.” he turned and walked towards the forest. “Now, we’d best get a move on.”

Applebloom followed close behind. “Agreed.”

Sty was faster than he looked, she had to keep up a trot in order not to loose him. “Good,” he said. “Because if you’re here when the sun goes down, you might not be gettin’ out. This is a dangerous place. Keep your wits about you...”

The Zebra in the Library

Applebloom wanted to ask what he meant by this, but he simply sped up. Her hooves still hurt from walking along the train tracks for so long. But her years of helping in the fields of her family’s orchard had made her strong. She kept up despite their complaints.

The mare side of her brain was still on the fence about following a talking pig deep into a dangerous forest, but it was starting to come around. The filly side bounced along happily, enjoying the adventure.

Sty said nothing more as they headed forwards to meet the Unsure. The conductor’s warning rose up in Applebloom’s mind. The filly side ignored it out of stubborn anger at being dumped out of a train. The mare side told her she ought to be careful, conductors were respectable citizens of society that should be heeded, even if they were made of vines.

Applebloom studied her surroundings, wondering just how many ponies had been this

far into the Everfree on hoof. It probably wasn’t many, but then she wasn’t counting those who hadn’t managed to come back out. She thought back to this morning, standing at the train station, trying to figure out what had gone so wrong between then and now to lead her to, wherever it was she was now. She could find nothing of any importance that she had done in the hours leading up to her ‘arrival’ nor could she think of any possible reason for her sudden stop.

Applebloom thought about magic. It was everywhere in the Everfree, and therefore must have something to do with her predicament. She remembered the time only a few years back, when Sweetie Belle had tried her hoof at being a magician. Scootaloo, being Scootaloo had found this dreadfully boring as being a magician had a lot more book reading and far fewer card tricks than she’d imagined. As a result she spent the majority of this time laying around and moaning. Applebloom meanwhile had helped her friend study in hopes that she might earn a study-buddy mark out of the deal. Neither of them had come away with a marked flank, but she’d learned a thing or two about magic. Namely that it hardly ever quite as straight forwards as it seemed to be and could be a disagreeable thing. She’d been proven doubly right when after Scootaloo had spent the day as a rabbit do to a miss-aimed spell. Applebloom wondered if perhaps she were the victim of a similar accident. Perhaps some wayward spell had hit the train sending her here. The mare side of her brain accepted this, the filly side was too busy laughing at the memory of Scootaloo twitching her nose for a week and half after the fact.

Sty slowed as they came into a clearing.

“Are we there?” Applebloom asked.

“No.” Sty sniffed the air, his little piggy nose crinkling. “There’s something on the path.”

Applebloom peered around the clearing, it appeared to be empty from what she could tell.

The only thing she could see were flowers and the occasional stray twig.

“I don’t see anything.”

Sty snorted. “Of course you don’t. You don’t see it, you read it.”

Applebloom was now thoroughly confused. “What?”

“It’s a library.” Sty said simply

“A library?”

“Yeah,” Sty sighed. “Whenever there’s a storm they end up everywhere.”

“Do they?...” Applebloom asked. She was starting to get the impression she was getting her leg pulled. “I still don’t see anything.”

“Stop looking start reading. Follow me.”

Applebloom started after the little pig. Now questioning whether or not he was completely sane. She was interrupted from questioning her own sanity-which was very much up in the air since she was to the point where she could question the mental health of a talking pig- When her head smacked into something hard.

“Ow!” She yelled, rubbing the sore spot on her forehead.

“You’re not reading,” said Sty, his voice far from sympathetic. “You do know how, don’t you?”

Applebloom stomped a hoof. “Of course I do! My grandma read to me every night!”

Sty looked her up and down. “Did she do it right?”

“What do you mean did she do it right? You ain’t making sense.”

The small pig snorted again. “Well if she did it right then read. Go on.” Sty pointed an insistent hoof at towards the middle of the clearing.

“There’s nothing there!”

Sty pointed again. “Look closer!”

“Fine!” Applebloom squinted at the air in front of her, trying to see something, anything that might have been there. Still she saw nothing except the green grass and occasional flower. She was about to give up when a stray ‘The’ floated by her nose.

“What in the....”

Sty clicked a hoof on the ground. “There you go. Now read it.”

Ignoring the mare side of her brain, which was having a minor breakdown, Applebloom read the words in front of her out loud.

“The small pony with the red mane squinted at the words floating through the air. As she read them they organized themselves into a larger structure, which was magnificent in its splendor...”

Indeed this exact thing happened. Though Applebloom could tell by the library’s actual condition that it was simply bragging. Far from being ‘Magnificent in its splendor’ it was in fact rather run down. It was a what appeared to a be brick building. Though it looked as though a great number of ponies had taken chisels to the walls. Several of its windows were cracked, or gone altogether. In front of her was a sign which read ‘Wcom’ as most of its letters had fallen off, most recently the E after a collision with her head. She noted that the whole thing smelled terribly of wet books

The part Applebloom was was amazed about though, was what it was actually made of. If she held her eyes close to any part of the building she could see a running report of what was currently happening scrolling by in fancy type.

Sty scoffed. “There’s nothing I hate more than a library with an ego.” He hopped up the first step with a bit of effort. “Well, let’s get a move on, there’s no way around, we’ll have to go through.”

Applebloom looked up at the dilapidated building. “Through?”

“Yes, now come on. I can’t push this door open on my own.”

Applebloom, decided it was better to just go with it and stop asking questions. The mare side of her brain, along with the filly side heartily agreed and followed Sty up the stairs.

The door was heavier than it looked, this is mostly do to the fact that words are a lot heavier than most people give them credit for. But they finally managed to get it open with a classic creaking noise.

The interior was just as unkempt as the exterior. The shelves were almost entirely empty as most of the books had taken up residence on the floor. Stray pages lay in every nook and cranny of the main room, some even stuck to the ceiling with damp. The mare side of Applebloom’s mind wept at the sheer destruction of literature.

“Wow, the storm hit this place hard.” Sty remarked. “It’ll take a while for it to regroup without a good librarian.”

He started forwards, his tiny hooves clicking lightly on the wooden floor. Applebloom was briefly reminded of the library back in Ponyville. Though that one was a lot neater and a great deal dryer.

“Come on then, we won’t get closer if we stand around gawking.”

Applebloom thought this was sensible advice. They progressed through the damp halls of the library, avoiding soaking books and overturned shelves. The canopy of the forest let very little light in through the old cracked and shattered windows above them, it gave the whole place the feeling of a graveyard. Applebloom’s curiosity, and fear, grew steadily as they wore on.

“Hey Sty, can I ask you a question?” she asked as they pased the remains of the foal’s section.

He snorted. “You’re going to anyway.”

“Well, everypony keeps telling me I’m somewhere...but I’m not rightly sure where somewhere is.”

Sty looked at her over his shoulder, somehow managing to look down on her though he was little bigger than a soccer ball.

“It’s here of course,” he said simply. “Any more obvious questions?”

Applebloom bristled, she didn’t like being talked down to. “No! You know what I mean. I ain’t never heard of a placed called ‘Somewhere’. I’ll tell you it ain’t on any map!”

Sty stopped walked at turned around, taking on the expression of a particularly impatient teacher talking to a particularly slow student. “If course it is. Everyone who uses a map is trying to get Somewhere right?”

Applebloom opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again.

Sty turned away and continued walking. “Exactly. Now we haven’t got time for thi-”

He was interrupted as something black, white, green and very loud came barreling out of the dark. It tripped over the small pig and went sprawling into the opposite wall where it continued to spout gibberish.

“What was that!?” Applebloom yelled.

Sty groaned, picking himself up from the floor. “That,” he said. “Is the librarian...”

As the thing got up Applebloom saw it was not a thing at all, but in fact a rather tall zebra. He was perfectly normal in all respects except that there seemed to be a large green sprout growing out of the top of his head.

He looked at Applebloom, smiled manically, then frowned, then smiled again before giving up and just looking confused.

“Hello?...” Applebloom attempted.

“Words!” He exclaimed.

Applebloom took a step back.

“I like words! Words are good, words mean I can’t be an end table.” He looked around warily as though waiting for the universe to correct him somehow. “Right?”

“Um...no...” Applebloom started, pointing to a puddle of water on the floor. “You’re a zebra. See?”

The zebra looked at the puddle. “So that’s what a zebra is...” he said curiously. “I thought they’d be a lot dryer.” He stuck his tongue into the water and made a face. “They taste awful.”

Applebloom felt thoroughly confused at this point.

“Um...no....I mean you’re a zebra...that’s a puddle. Look at your reflectio-”

“Reflection!” he yelled.

Sty sidled up next to Applebloom. “Looks like this one ran afoul of the Unsure. Must have been in a bad mood. The poor mook.

The zebra studied himself in the puddle. “I’m a zebra...that means I taste awful and am very wet...”

Applebloom opened her mouth to say something, but the zebra beat her to it.

“Wait! I’m not wet at all! So in that case I can’t be a zebra!”

“No!” she shouted stomping a hoof. “You’ve got it all inside out. You are a zebra, the wet bad tasting thing is a puddle, and the thing that looks like you is your reflection.” she paused for a moment, studying him. “Got it?”

The zebra considered this, smiled, frowned, then looked at the puddle again. “So...I am a zebra, and therefor not a puddle. That means that I must be very dry and taste delicious.” He put a hoof to his chin, looking up at the slowly rotting ceiling.

“Not exactl-”

“I’m delicious!” He turned and began to viciously bite his own leg.

Sty tapped Applebloom. “Come on. There’s no helping him, he doesn’t even know what he is anymore.”

Applebloom looked at the zebra, who was contemplating the flavor of his leg. “What did he do to him? The Unsure I mean?”

“It, kid, it,” Sty corrected. He frowned at the zebra. “You know that little bit of doubt in your head? That tiny little voice that says “Hey, maybe everything’s not what I think it is?”

Applebloom nodded. “I think so...”

“The Unsure is that. It takes that feeling and makes it...bigger...sometimes for fun. The result-”

The zebra yelped as he attempted to eat his own tail.

“Isn’t good.”

In Applebloom’s head two emotions fought with one another. On the mare side there was fear and apprehension. She very much wanted to get back to the train, to get away from this nonsense and back to the sensible world she knew. Where libraries were made of brick, pigs didn’t talk and ponies rarely ever drove other ponies insane. On the filly side she felt anger, anger at the Unsure, who she was now certain had something to do with her arrival. It only made sense, that’s how it would’ve gone in the stories she’d read as a kid. It’s always the unseen obviously evil thing that causes the main conflict. This, added to the fact that everypony she’d met since she’d arrived seemed terrified of it, made her even more angry. There’s nothing an Apple hates more than a bully, and as it’s been said she was an Apple through and through.

The anger won out.

“We have to help him.” She took a step forwards. Somewhere during her conversation with Sty the zebra had decided he was a dinner plate. He lay curled in a ball asking every now and again that someone put some salad on him.

Sty jumped out of her way. “There’s nothing you can do to help! He’s gone loopy, off the deep end! Let him rave in his library alone.”

She ignored the small pig. “What’s your name? she asked, kneeling down to eye level with the zebra.

“Dinner plates don’t have names,” he answered, trying to sound plate-like.

“Dinner plates don’t talk either,” said Applebloom.

The zebra looked blankly at her for a moment, then grimaced. “Curse it all! I thought I had it this time.”

Applebloom put a hoof on his side. “How about I call you....” she looked around the library at all the disintegrating books. “Tome.”

“Tome,” he tired the name out on his tongue. “Tome, Tome, Tome...” The zebra smiled. “I like it! I am Tome.”

“Yes.” Applebloom nodded. “Yes you are. Now, tell me, Tome, what happened?”

Tome’s face clouded. “I...I don’t know...I....” He looked confusedly around the library. “Books...”

“What about books?”

“I....did I?....Yes...wait...no....maybe? Did I shelve books?”

Applebloom nodded. “Yes, you were the librarian. Right Sty?”

The little pig snorted and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, that’s right. Not a very good one either by the looks of this pla-” He grunted as Appleblooms left hoof hit his leg.

“Librarian...” said Tome. “Yes...I’m a Librarian!” the small sprout on the top of his head suddenly grew a few inches, a small bud formed at the top. “Now...remember...remember what happened...I’m...I’m not sure...” He looked imploringly at Applebloom. “Why am I not sure?”

“Because you met the Unsure, it kind of goes with the title.” said Sty.

All the color drained from Tomes face. “I remember that....I remember that! Wait...” he looked at the ceiling. “No. Yes....wait...wait again...Yes! The unsure...oh Celestia the unsure. That’s bad. That’s bad isn’t it? Or was it good? No...no it can’t be good, because if it were good I would have remembered it, so it must be bad. Yes, bad, not good at all, awful awful!” he began to shake. “It was awful...so awful...my mind....it was...awful! Bad! Terrible!”

The sprout on his head grew a bit taller.

“Back up kid!” yelled Sty.

“I was...I was cleaning...shelving...yes...my library...because I’m a....yes ...librarian ...awful.. no...yes....you!” he turned to Applebloom. “What is your name?”

The not quite mare took Sty’s advice bad backed up a few feet. “Applebloom...” she said slowly. “Are you alright?”

“Applebloom!” he yelled. “Alright?” He cocked his head to the side, the leaves on his head shaking as he did. “Yes I’m alright! I’ve got memories!” He smiled, then frowned. “Awful....awful memories...”

Applelebloom jumped as the shelf next to her righted itself violently, slamming against the wall.

“Memories!” Tome yelled. “Such memories! Of my Library!”

Books flew from the ground, shaking themselves off like wet dogs. Pages, torn from their bindings repaired themselves, flying like birds to their shelves, the sound of crinkling paper was deafening.

“My library!” he yelled again. “My library shouldn’t look like this!”

Glass flew backwards into cracked and shattered windows, fusing in place like pieces of a puzzle. Applebloom took another step back as a mighty wind started blowing, the water on the ground and in the air swirled through it like a tornado, the doors slammed open sending it whirling out into the forest. The rot crawled away, leaving new wood in its place as the library once again attained it’s former glory.

The sprout on Tome’s head grew another inch before it’s bud burst open, a large yellow sun flower blooming outwards like a small sun.

Then everything was quiet.

Tome got up calmly and waked behind a desk that hadn’t been there a moment before. From one its many drawers he pulled a pair of glasses, which he placed on the tip of his nose.

He looked down at Sty who was cowering behind a bookcase, then to Applebloom.

“May I help you?” He asked.

Books of Memories

After waiting several minutes and adjusting his glasses he asked again.
“How may I help you?”
Applebloom sat on the floor, staring open mouthed at the newly restored library. Where there had once been damp and decay now lay a beautiful interior. The shelves were lined with golden vines, climbing all the way to the roof, there were chairs, deeply padded and very comfortable looking, spaced everywhere around the building. Beneath her hooves was a plush carpet designed to look like the spine of a gigantic book leading up the hallway. Applebloom stared at the nearest shelf, looking closely she read the words: “The small pony retracted her statement about the library simply bragging, feeling rather foolish.”
Applebloom quickly closed her mouth, blushing slightly. “Oh...um...sorry.”
Tome tapped a hoof against the desk, and asked a third time.
“May I help you?
She looked up at him. The flower on his head was still in full bloom, bending slightly in a non-existent breeze. Other than this oddity he looked every bit the librarian, a stark change from the raving zebra she’d met a few minutes earlier.
“Yes?...” she hazarded.
“Very good, how may I assist you today?”
Applebloom thought for a moment. “Well...could you explain what just happened? I ain’t rightly sure.”
“Of course,” he said. “Which part of ‘What Just Happened’ would you like an explanation on?”

Sty came out from his hiding place and stood next to Applebloom.

“Well whatd’ya know. You fixed him.”

Applebloom looked down at the small pig. “I think I liked him better when he was a dinner plate...”

“Please state which part of ‘What Just Happened’, you would like an explanation on.”

Sty snorted. “Librarians, always so literal.”

“All of it?” Applebloom attempted.

“Very good,” said Tome. “In the beginning there was nothing. Then, around fourteen billion years ago the great Princess of Nothing decided there ought to be Something and thus there was the universe. The universe was rather boring until around four billion years ago when the Princess of the sun came into existence, and decided it would be a lot nicer if she gave some light to a small rock floating in the milky wa-”

“Not all of it!” Applebloom yelled. “I mean everything that just happened in the last few minutes.”

“Last few minutes?” Tome cocked his head to one side. “What part of the last few minutes?”

Applebloom sighed, exasperated. “All of that!”

“Very good.” He took a breath. “In ‘The Last Few Minutes’, a small pony, not quite a mare but not quite a filly, in a red bow bumped into the library sign, read the building into visibility, walked inside with a disagreeable talking pig, met a zebra who was sure he wasn’t an end table, then thought he was a puddle, then thought he was a dinner plate before getting his memory jogged by said kind small filly. In this act of jogging he repaired the library and asked her if she needed any help. She said she did then asked ‘What Just Happened’ the librarian, now named Tome sa-”

“Um...that’s enough.” said Applebloom. “Can you explain...how you fixed the library?”

“How?” Tome momentarily looked a up and to the left. The flower on top of his head jiggled slightly. “Well, I am a part of the library, when I was fixed, it followed suit. A library cannot be fixed without a librarian.”

Applebloom thought this didn’t explain anything at all, but decided to let it drop.

“All right then...Well, glad we could help. Now, we probably ought’a mosey on. Right Sty?”

“Yeah, the faster the better.”

Tome looked down his glasses at them. “Might I enquire as to where it is you are ‘Moseying On’ to?”

Sty wiggled his ears. “None of your busines-”

“I’m going to see the Unsure,” said Applebloom.

Sty slapped his forehead with a tiny hoof.

The zebra pulled back a bit. “Now why would you want to do that? Did you not see what he did to me?”

Applebloom puffed out her chest a bit, trying to appear confident. “He sent me here, and I plan on finding out why. Not to mention I think he needs to have a word with my back hooves.”

Tome looked confused. “You back hooves cannot talk. And it is not a ‘He’ as gender specific pronouns are not grammatically correct.”

Applebloom’s ears twitched. “Huh?”

Tome sighed. “If you are going on such a foolish errand, let me at least equip you properly.” He stepped back from behind his desk, sunflower bobbing in a way that somehow managed to be orderly and serious. “Follow me.”

Applebloom fell in step behind him, while Sty busied himself sniffing the newly restored carpet.

“Equip me?” she asked. “You mean with some kind of weapon?”

“The best weapon of all, young filly.” Tome nodded.

This intrested Applebloom. “Really!?”

“Yes.” Tome nodded again. “Knowledge.”

Applebloom deflated. “Oh.”

“Never underestimate the power of a good book.”

Applebloom tried not to stare as the twin leaves of Tome’s sunflower reached out and grabbed a dusty book from its shelf. He held it like it was precious, carefully setting it on the ground next to Applebloom. It was almost as thick as her foreleg, and appeared to Applebloom to be the kind of book that one doesn’t actually read, so much as let sit on the bookself and claim to have read.

“There you go,” he said expectantly.

Applebloom waited for him to say something else, but he did not.

“Well....aren’t you going to tell me what’s in it?”

Tome shook his head. “I am a librarian, it is my job to catalog books, and keep them safe. It is your job as the reader, to find out what’s in them.”

Applebloom resisted the urge to roll her eyes, and attempted to open the book, only to find it was sealed shut.

“Well how am I supposed to do that if it’s stuck!?” she asked, getting slightly annoyed.

Tome cocked his head to the side once more. Applebloom was beginning to grow tired of the gesture.

“This is a library,” he said simply. “If you want to read it, you have to check it out.” He began to walk back towards the desk at a brisk pace, leaving her staring at large book at her hoof.

“How am I supposed to carry this!?” she asked.

“Read it smaller,” Tome replied.

Applebloom stared at it for a moment. The mare side of her brain regected the idea that a zebra librarian with a bit of flora growing out of his head and just instructed her to change the size of a book by ‘Reading it smaller’. The filly side shrugged and did as it was told.

The book responded immediately as it was quite obedient. It shrunk until it was about the size of a candy bar, sprouting a long red bookmark to match her bow.

Applebloom smiled at this despite herself, picked up the book, and headed to the desk. She found Tome waiting as though he had never moved. He nodded to her, and she sat the book on the desk.

“Excellent selection.” Tome bowed his head. The Sunflower on his head bent over, its petals enveloping the book for a moment before releasing it. “Please return it on time.”

“When’s that?” asked Applebloom.

“Within the next three billion years.”

“Oh...” Applebloom paused. “What happens then?”

“The end of the world.”

Applebloom blinked. She thought about replying, but she felt a familiar hoof on the side of her leg. She looked down to find Sty brooding impatiently.

“Kid, we gotta go. It’ll be sundown soon, and if you’re set on doing this we gotta do it soon.”

Applebloom nodded, taking another look at the Zebra librarian, who regarded her passively. “Um...thanks...”

For the first time since the flower on his head had opened, Tome smiled.

“You’re welcome, Applebloom. And thank you for helping me. I shall offer you two last bits of advice.”

“What are they?”

“One, do not open the book until you need to. You will know when that is. Two Remember your kindness, because something horrible is going to happen about seven hundred and eighty words from now.”

Applebloom stared at him for a moment.

“Um...thanks...” she attempted.

“You’re welcome,” he said, still smiling.

Feeling Sty’s hoof once again at her leg, Applebloom turned and left. The library vanished behind her the second her hoof left the stairs.

Fire and Earth

Sty was a lot faster than any pig who is less than a foot tall had any right to be. He his walking pace almost required Applebloom to trot in order to keep up. They passed trees that were far taller than than any Applebloom had ever seen, and flowers more strange and intricate than she could have ever imagined. Still they did not stop. She attempted ask Sly where they were going, but he did not answer. He just kept going at the same pace, ignoring her as though she’d said nothing.

Applebloom looked at the sky. The sun was more than halfway across the sky, heading towards the treeline. She inwardly wondered what might happen to her if she were here at night.

Suddenly Sty came to a stop. He suddenly looked very afraid.

“What is it?” asked Applebloom.

“It’s not good, that’s what it is.” He pushed his snout against her leg. “Quick! Quick! Under that bush.”

Applebloom allowed him to push her under a small cluster of bushes, she crouched down next to him and waited.

“What’s going on?” she whispered.

“My nose tells me somethin’s goin’ down. Don’t move, AB.”

“Alright,” Applebloom said.

So they waited.

The Everfree Forrest is a place of many oddities unknown to modern magic, science or any mixture therein. Everything imaginable, and perhaps a bit more may or may not exist there. And while something may or may not exist, it certainly may be able to harm a small pig and a not quite mare. The main reason that a small pig had been able to survive in this place for long enough to develop a surly disposition was that he was very skilled at hiding. Applebloom did not know much about Sty beyond what she’d encountered in the total of thirty some odd minutes she had known him. So, now that there was a moment of rest, she decided to ask him.

“Sty?” she whispered.

“What is it?”

“Well....I wanted to ask, what’s a pig doing in the Everfree forest?”

Sty snorted. “Is now really the time to ask this, AB?”

“Well, we’ve been sitting here for a few minutes now and nothing’s happened, I might as well learn a bit about my tour guide.”

Sty sighed. “Fine, but whisper softer.”

“Okay,” Applebloom whispered at a slightly lower volume.

“Well, it’s like this. The world isn’t a very fair place sweetheart.”

Applebloom decided to let this one slide.

“I started out as a piglet, same as anyone, small pink, rolling in the mud. You know? Anyhow, I was the runt of the litter. Too small to be of much use to anyone. Pigs are supposed to find truffles for ponies, that’s the deal. But, if I was too small and weak to keep up with the other pigs, what good was I? Well apparently the farmer had the same idea.”

Applebloom opened her mouth, but Sty held up a hoof for silence.

“Save it, I was useless and I know that. Still am useless, and don’t try to tell me no different.” He snorted. “Anywho, one day the farmer comes in with his daily slop, and what’s he do? Does he put it in the trough? Nope, he waves a bit in front of me. Leads me away from my mother, my brothers, my sisters, and into the forest.”

Applebloom put a hoof to her mouth. “That’s awful!”

“Shhhh!” Sty stared at her. “I know it, but that’s life. He tossed the slop into he trees and no more Sty. Or at least that’s what he thought. I lived you see? I didn’t just get eaten or zapped, or changed into some monster. I’m here, and I looked out for myself. I may be useless to everyone else, but at least I can manage that. You asked me how I could talk? Well I was all alone in the forest, so, why stay quiet? I ain’t doin’ nothin’ no one tells me to do. I do what I want when I want. I look out for me.”

Applebloom was silent for a moment.

“Then...why did you tell me about the train tracks?” she asked finally.

Sty looked at her, his small piggy eyes examining her face.

“You’re just a filly. I ain’t heartless alright?”

Applebloom smilled a bit, tossing a hoof around his side. “And you’re not useless either.”

The small pig struggled. “Let go’a me!”

Then from both Applebloom and Sty’s perspective the world exploded.

Fire was everywhere, the heat hit the pair of them fiercely, singeing the tip of Applebloom’s mane and tail, and causing Sty to squeal out in pain.

“Elemental!” he yelled.

Applebloom grabbed him by the scruff of the neck. The bush Sty had chosen offered no protection as what seemed to be a pony made of fire came kicking and bucking wildly out of the brush. It let out a horrible sound, like a neigh and scream mixed into one. Everything within five feet of it burst into flames.

Applebloom jumped clear as the bush and all surrounding greenery went up in flames.

“Run!” yelled Sty “Just run!”

The filly and mare sides of Applebloom’s brain agreed with this advice.

Applebloom galloped hard, the heat at her back getting more intense as the elemental grew closer. It let out another hideous scream, which drowned out Applebloom’s own.

She dashed through the forrest, over branches and crackling leaves trying desperately to outrun the creature.

Alas, not quite fillies, who aren’t quite mares are prone to trip.

A branch caught her hoof, and sent her sprawling onto the ground. Her rear hoof twisted oddly as she fell. Pain shot up her leg, causing her to cry out. Sty went flying into the air landing several feet away.

He yelled something but Applebloom couldn’t hear it as the thing screamed again. It was approaching her fast, the forest ablaze around it. She tired to get up, but her rear leg buckled under her weight. She fell to the ground, looking back as the creature closed the gap. She closed her eyes.

“Applebloom!” yelled Sty, but he was too far away to be of any help.

She waited several minutes for the end to come, the sound of the blaze crackling and roaring in her ears, the screams of the thing ringing through the trees. But the end didn’t come.

She found this odd.

Applebloom opened her eyes to find the creature had stopped. It thrashed and beat its hooves against the ground, but it didn’t advance. It screamed again, falling to the ground, its limbs flailing about.

Sty was suddenly at her side. “Come on! We gotta get out of here. Its hurt. This is our chance!” The small pig positioned itself under her hurt leg. She was still just small enough for him to offer some support. But she stopped.

“Are you crazy!? Come on!”

Applebloom looked at the creature. Its head turned towards her, flames licking over its surface. It screamed again.

A scream of pain.

“No...” she said finally.

“What!?” Sty tried to move her forwards on his own, but got nowhere. “We can’t stay here. It’ll kill you! That’s what fire does, that’s what fire elemental’s do. They burn, they destroy, and they do not care about fillies or talking pigs. Now get a move on!!”

“No...” said Applebloom.

She shook the pig away, and limped towards the thing. Its thrashing seemed to ebb as she got closer.

“AB! AB come back!”

Applebloom ignored him. The walking was hard, painful work, as she got closer the heat got more and more intense, her mane may or may not have been on fire, but she didn’t care.

The mare side of her brain screamed at her to take Sty’s advice. The filly side pushed her to keep going.

She was a few feet away from it when her back leg buckled again. She fell forwards, exhausted. The ground was so hot....and she was so tired. But she needed to keep going.

Suddenly she found something supporting her. She looked down to see Sty at her side, pushing against her flank, trying to get her up. Despite the heat she smiled.

“You really aren’t heartless...” she said breathlessly.

Sty didn’t bother with a reply. He pushed her to her hooves. And with a new surge of energy, she made it the rest of the way.

She almost couldn’t keep her eyes open, the air burned on her skin and in her throat, but she had to do something.

The thing screamed again.

The filly side of her brain hadn’t bothered to think this far, but the mare side figured if it’d gotten to this point, it might as well help.

Applebloom reached into her saddlebag, and grabbed the bottle of water sitting near the top. Not bothering with the cap, she threw it at the creature.

The plastic melted instantly as the thing screamed a final time.

There was a whooshing sound a gust of cold air, then Applebloom collapsed unconscious.

There was something poking the side of Applebloom’s head. The filly side of her brain begged for five more minutes. The mare side told her to wake up.

She listened to the filly side up until around the fiftieth poke.

Her eyes opened. They were fuzzy, and incredibly dry. The inside of her mouth felt like a desert, and there was a fierce pain coming from one of her legs. She was laying in a wide circle of ash.

Something brown was laying beside her.

When her eyes focused, she scooted back in shock, gasping.

The thing was terribly burned. It looked as though it were made of wood. Interwoven branches made up its body and face, while thick trunks made up the legs. It reminded her of the timberwolves from her grandmother’s stories, only in more of a pony shape.

It struggled weakly on the ground. Its eyes two dark gaps in the wood. It scooted a bit closer to her. She pulled back farther, until she hit a tree.

The thing cocked its head to the side.

Applebloom just stared back in horror.

It nodded, seeming to understand her fear. There was a great rattling sound from inside of it. The creature’s branches seemed to tighten as it drew what little strength it had. Its wooden mouth opened, and a single drop of water dripped slowly out, and into the ash.

The thing slumped, apparently spent.

A small green sprout burst from the soil beneath its head.

The thing didn’t move.

Applebloom stood very still for a moment. Then dragged herself forwards a little to look at the thing, or what was left of it. The small sprout grew steadily, by the time she got close enough for a good look it was a good hoof high.

Suddenly, she had an idea.

She reached into her saddlebag, quite surprised it still held anything at all after the fire, and pulled out the package of apples seeds her family always carried for luck.

She layed it flat on the ground, held it down with a hoof, and ripped it open with her teeth. Straining immensely, she poured its contents over the creature.

And nothing happened.

She waited for several minutes, but the thing was silent.

Suddenly she remembered Sty. She looked around the remains of the forest, trying to find the small pig, looking over the charred branches and still smoldering leaves.

Her eyes finally landed on him.

He was more red than pink. The burns on his body had already begun to peel, and he wasn’t moving.

She tried to call out to him, but her voice was gone, taken by the heat of the fire. Still she rasped, hoping he would hear.

If he did, he still didn’t move.

She slumped to the ground, defeated.

She’d just closed her eyes when the ground began to rumble.

Applebloom’s head shot up just in time to see the wisps of vines sprouting from the creatures eyes. All at once green surrounded it. Vines tightened around its legs, making them strong and healthy, thick, strong wood replaced the burned husk that had been left by the fire. The thing grew, and grew until it was well over Applebloom’s head, towering to the top of the trees. Its back was full of apple trees.

It looked won at Applebloom, cocking its head to the side. It seemed to be frowning.

It nudged her with its giant head with surprisingly gentleness.

Applebloom looked up in shock.

The thing assessed her when she didn’t get up. Its vines tensing for a moment.

A single apple fell from the ground right in front of her.

The thing sat on its haunches expectantly.

Applebloom looked from it to the apple.

It nodded.

The mare side of her brain was at a complete loss, but her filly side decided to take a bite.

Juice filled her mouth, sweet and pure, quenching her thirst. Her burns stopped hurting, the skin and fur returning, fresh and silky. Her body filled with energy as she chewed, growing stronger. After a while she was able to get to her hooves. She shook her back leg experimentally.

The thing nodded a few times in quick succession. Applebloom took this as a smile.

“Um...thank you...” she said.

It bowed deeply.

Applebloom looked around until she saw Sty again. The creature looked in the same direction, and pointed to the rest of the apple.

Applebloom nodded. “I understand. I’m glad I could help.”

The thing nodded a final time, then bounded off into the forest, its wooden hooves shaking the earth in its wake.

Applebloom walked gingerly over to Sty, and placed an ear on his chest. He was still breathing, but it was shallow. She crushed some of the apple under hoof, and gently scooped it into his mouth.

The forest was silent for several minutes, mostly because not even woodland creatures like to talk during the suspenseful bits.

Slowly Sty’s hide turned from red to a healthy shade of pink. When Applebloom looked at his face she noticed he suddenly had two ears.

He coughed a few times.

“Yep,” Applebloom said with a grin. “Definitely not heartless.”

Sty coughed a few more times. “Says you.”