Orange, Lemon, Lime

Part 5

It took quite a lot of stones tossed against Applejack's windowpane to wake her up. Twilight thought it must have been an almost evil act to wake her, nestled in bed after a hard day's work. Still necessary...probably. The window eventually creaked open, but Twilight couldn't bring herself to look at Applejack's pillow-creased face for more than a second. She looked down at the wildflowers growing along the foundation.

"Twilight?" The unicorn immediately looked back up at Applejack, forlornly. Applejack didn't notice, she rubbed her eyes. It made Twilight feel all the worse. "Whuh-what's wrong? Are ya' all right? What's goin' on?"

Twilight, as quietly as possible, begged, "Applejack, I really need your help. Please come down here."

"A-alright, just you hold on."

Spike slept leaning against Applejack's house by the front door, his claw protectively resting on the basket. Twilight paced, thinking of how tired Applejack had sounded, and how deeply in trouble she had gotten herself into.

Stars twinkled overhead.

Applejack toed open the creaking front door. Twilight whipped her head to the sound. She bent until her bangs covered her guilty eyes, and went under Applejack's porch-light shadow.

"Twilight, if you wanted to have a sleep-over, you should have asked before we was all asleep." Applejack cocked her head at the sorceress playfully.

Twilight hummed briefly, sweetly, but chided herself. "I wish that was all I was here for. Um..."

"What is it, Twilight?" Applejack yawned. Twilight watched as she brought her hoof to her mouth and down again to rub at her other foreleg. She couldn't bring herself to speak. Applejack leaned forward, putting that same hoof on Twilight's shoulder. "C'mon, sugarcube, I can't help you unless I know what's wrong."

Twilight let out a long sigh. "Applejack, I can always count on you. You're always there for-for everypony." Her eyes wandered to the basket. She strained her ears, but couldn't hear anything under Spike's snoring. Dew dripped down the basket's weaving. "I - I...please, just..."

"Twilight, you're startin' to freak me out."

"Maybe that will prepare you for what's coming." Applejack gave Twilight a face. "I was practicing transmogrification spells using the apples I bought from you earlier today."

"I think you mean yesterday."

"It feels like a long time ago, now. Anyway, I know it's...sort of...maybe, morally dubious, but I had the idea to attempt to transmogrify an apple into a bluebird." Applejack's face shifted from searching to suspicious. "I know, I know...it...I wasn't thinking clearly. I suppose I'd better just show you."

She looks again at the basket, long enough for Applejack to notice it and think about what could be in there. She couldn't hide her disgusted awe, thinking of what it could possibly be.

Twilight dragged her hooves going over to Spike and the basket. She nosed his claw off, picking the basket up gingerly. She set it in front of Applejack and pulled away the checkered blanket covering the infant foal sleeping inside.

Applejack gasped and took a step back. Twilight felt slapped when she saw genuine fear in her eyes.

"Now, Twilight, I - I don't find this very funny!"

"It's not a joke!" Twilight yelled, getting the better of herself. The little pink infant in the basket stirred before she began fussing. Then, she began to caterwaul. "Oh, no..." Spike immediately awoke. Lights came on in the house.

"Why is it cryin' like that?!" Applejack covered her ears like a child, "It's freakin' me out!"

"Applejack!" Twilight hissed, "Babies cry!" She magicked the foal out of the basket and held it close to herself, rocking her. "You helped raise your little sister, didn't you?"

Applejack wasn't listening, though, she was looking down at the foal, who had stopped crying the second she had touched Twilight's fur. She still whimpered. Twilight wiped the infant's tears and snot away with the checkered blanket.

Someone called Applejack's name.

"Let's get over to the Golden Oak," She said to Twilight.