“Isn't it fabulous?” Sweetie Bell asked.

Apple Bloom wasn't sure. She couldn't figure out why Sweetie Bell thought it was special. It just looked like a regular dress. Sweetie Bell must of had a million of them.

“Yeah!” cheered Scootaloo. Apple Bloom just went with it.

“I think it looks just great.” Sweetie Bell gave her a contagious smile, and they giggled together.

“But why are you wearing it at Apple Bloom's farm?” Scootaloo asked. The thought hadn't occurred to Apple Bloom yet, and apparently it hadn't occurred to Sweetie Bell either.

Sweetie Bell picked up the bottom of the dress and examined the part that had been dragging on the ground. “Oh no!” she squeaked. The bottom of the dress was turning brown, and there was one clear hoof print from where Sweetie Bell had obviously stepped in some mud. “Rarity is going to kill me! This was a souvenir from Canterlot, and now it's ruined.” Sweetie Bell threw the part of the dress that she had been holding down towards the ground angrily.

“I'm sorry Sweetie Bell,” Apple Bloom said to comfort her.

“Yeah, that's bad,” Scootaloo agreed.

“Thanks,” Sweetie Bell said in a low voice, “but you guys don't need to apologize. You didn't ruin it.”

“Apple Bloom's farm did,” Scootaloo said in a playful way.

Apple Bloom didn't like that comment at all. She immediately bucked Scootaloo with all of her strength and set her flying, but a moment later Scootaloo was on the offensive; She jumped on Apple Bloom's back and started fighting.

“Girls!” Sweetie Bell shouted at them, and they both stopped. “Why are you two always fighting? It's like I'm the only one here who knows how to be civilized.”

Apple Bloom looked up at Scootaloo, and Scootaloo looked down at her. The message was clear. They both attacked Sweetie Bell together.

“Stop!” Sweetie Bell shouted in an ear splitting voice. Apple Bloom clenched her ears and ceased the assault. “You're going to ruin my dress!” Sweetie Bell shouted while backing away.

“It's already ruined,” Scootaloo reminded her.

“No it ain't. Granny Smith could get out those stains like they were brand new.”

“Really?” Sweetie Bell's asked, her voice cracking as she did.

“Well yeah. If her cutiemark wasn't an apple pie, it'd be laundry detergent,” Apple Bloom said with a smile. She had become so proud of her granny, and it felt good every time she was able to talk about her.

***

“What? A stain?” The shout was so loud that it nearly burst Apple Bloom's eardrums. “On that?” Granny Smith pointed to the tattered dress Sweetie Bell was holding. She nodded. “Don't you little pickle pears worry none. I'll get those stains out.”

Granny Smith quickly turned around and started searching through a drawer. She turned back a moment later dawning a hockey mask and a mop. Then she quickly snatched the dress from Sweetie Bell's hoof.

“Be careful with it!” Sweetie Bell moaned. “It's a souvenir from Canterlot.”

“What?” Granny smith asked. “It doesn't look like a suit to me.”

“Souvenir,” Sweetie Bell repeated in a somewhat pompous tone.

Souvenir? Apple Bloom repeated the word to herself a couple of times, but she couldn't quite figure out what it meant. Maybe that's what they call dresses in Canterlot.

---

“Finished!” Granny Smith shouted with an unnatural enthusiasm several minutes later. She gave the dress to Sweetie Bell with a big smile on her face.

Sweetie Bell inspected the dress thoroughly. Then she gave Granny Smith a big hug and said, “Thank you!” about fifteen times.

“I'm going to go home and put this away right now,” Sweetie Bell said.

“Aw, can't you stay for a little bit?” Scootaloo asked.

“No,” Sweetie Bell said plainly as she opened the door. “I'll come by later though. Right now I have to get this thing home.”

Both Scootaloo and Apple Bloom said good-bye. Then they looked at each other.

“Well what do you want to do now?” Apple Bloom asked.

“I know what I want to do,” Scootaloo said slyly.

Apple Bloom cocked her head to the side. “What?”

“It's a secret.”

Apple Bloom suddenly didn't care about anything else in her life. Learning a secret from a friend was like learning the meaning of life itself. “You're gonna tell me, right?”

Scootaloo smirked. “Nope.” Then she ran out the door of house and onto the farm. Apple Bloom impulsively followed her. She had to, she had to know the secret.

Apple Bloom followed her hastily. There's no way she can out run me. I've beaten her in every race we've ever had, and she can't fly, she thought as she ran outside. She scanned the landscape to look for her friend, but the farm was empty. The trees were too far for her to reach in such a short time, and the courtyard was empty. She couldn't be... Apple Bloom looked towards the sky.

Suddenly the sound of a familiar engine roared from the side of Apple Bloom's house, and Scootaloo raced out into the open courtyard.

“Hey!” Apple Bloom shouted. “That ain't fair!” She chased her anyway.

---

Apple Bloom held Scootaloo down against the mud. “Alright, now tell me.”

“Okay. Okay. Can you get off me though? It's getting hard to breath.” Apple Bloom did, and as soon as she did Scootaloo took off again.

---

“Alright!” Apple Bloom shouted. “This time I gotcha, and I ain't letting go until you tell me your secret.” Scootaloo giggled. “Tell me,” Apple Bloom repeated angrily.

“Okay... The secrete is...” Apple Bloom's eyes stared intensely at her Scootaloo's. Whatever the secret was, she really wanted to know it, and she felt like she was about to find out. “The Secret is...” Scootaloo repeated.

“Tell me!” Apple Bloom shouted while grinding a hoof into her friend's chest.

“It's that I have a secret!”

Apple Bloom was confused, but that quickly turned to anger. “Scootaloo!” Apple Bloom punched her friend in her front leg.

“Ow!” Scootaloo shouted. “I mean... didn't hurt!” Apple Bloom punched her again.

“That's not fair. You gotta tell me a secret. I caught you,” Apple Bloom reminded her.

“Okay. Okay. Fine. Let me up and I'll tell you.”

“You think I'm stupid or something?”

“No. It's not that... It's just that I have to show you this secret.”

Apple Bloom thought about this for a second. I ain't letting her up. Unless....

“Do you Pinkie Pie Swear?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Uh! I hate Pinkie Pie Promises.”

“I know, but you have to. Otherwise it's just not fair.” Apple Bloom released one arm, and Scootaloo sighed.

“Fine.” Raising a hoof up to her chest. “Cross my heart and hope to fly stick a cupcake in my eye.” Scootaloo snorted. “There. Happy?”

Apple Bloom was.

---

Scootaloo took them inside of Apple Bloom's house. “There it is.” She was pointing to an object on the top shelf of a display case. Apple Bloom had seen it before, but she never really noticed it until now. It was scattered in a collection of other trinkets that she had never cared about before.

“What is it?”

“It's a pegasus music box. I noticed when we were in your house earlier. It's the only thing that's not apple related and... well it's a pegasus thing. Why do you think she has it?”

The idea struck Apple Bloom as odd. Why did Granny Smith keep a pegasus music box in her collection of apple... thingies. After some more thought she came to a conclusion. “Well maybe she likes pegasus music.”

“We should get it,” Scootaloo suggested.

“I don't know. It's awfully high.”

“We got that rainbow that one time, didn't we? It'll be easy. Besides I'm getting better at flying. Just let me get on your shoulders.”

She had a point. “Alright.” Apple Bloom ran up close to the display case where the music box was sitting, and she motioned for Scootaloo to climb on. It was no use though. The music box was still just out of reach.

“Almost... there!” Scootaloo shouted as she furiously flapped her wings to keep balance. “Just a little more.” Apple Bloom was already standing on her hind legs to get Scootaloo an additional boost.

“If only we had Sweetie Bell here with us,” Apple Bloom said.

“Just what in tarnations are you fillies doing?” Applejack shouted.

Apple Bloom quickly turned around, which caused Scootaloo to fall to the floor. The entire display case shook, and all of the trinkets rocked back and forth.

Applejack brought her hoof to her face. “You two almost broke everything in the display case!”

“We had it under control,” Scootaloo retorted, but her challenge was quickly met with a powerful stare. “I mean... we're sorry.”

“Yeah, we're sorry,” Apple Bloom echoed.

“What were you two trying to get anyway?”

“That!” Scootaloo shouted.

Apple Bloom punched her friend in the foreleg again. “I thought it was supposed to be a secret.” She said in a dramatic way under her breath.

“Well it's in your house...”

Applejack cleared her throat to grab their attention. “I don't want any of you fillies playing with that. Do you understand me?”

“Yes ma'am,” they both said in unison. It caused Applejack to wince a little.

“You fillies don't need to know about that stuff anyways. So get out of here.”

“Yes ma'am,” they said again.

Scootaloo grabbed her and they both ran out the door, but once they got outside Scootaloo didn't stop. She kept pulling her until they were on the side of the farm house.

“Can you believe that?” Scootaloo asked.

“Believe what?”

“That we're not old enough?”

“For the music box?”

“Yeah, like we're going to break it or something.” Apple Bloom considered this for a second.

“Uh...” she started, “I don't think that's what she meant.”

“What do you mean?” Scootaloo asked.

“Well...” Apple Bloom hesitated, wondering if the conversation was really something that she should be having. “I guess it's a secret.”

Scootaloo instantly tackled her and drove her into the ground. “There! Now you have to tell me.”

“I didn't mean it like that,” Apple Bloom pleaded. “I mean it's a secret I shouldn't tell you.”

“You have to. It's not fair if you don't!”

The logic was infallible. Apple Bloom knew she shouldn't talk about such things, but she also felt bad since it wasn't fair. “Alright....” she started, unsure of her decision, “You better not tell anyone about it.”

“Alright,” Scootaloo said happily.

“No, I mean you gotta Pinkie Pie Swear.”

“What?” Scootaloo sighed. “Fine.”

After the second promise was complete, Apple Bloom started, “Well whenever Applejack says something like, 'fillies don't need to know about this stuff' she's usually talking about the cows and the sheep.”

“That's it?”

“Well no... not really. It's more about what they're doing.”

“Well what are they doing?”

“You know... that?”

“That?” Scootaloo asked. For a second Apple Bloom thought she would have to explain, but Scootaloo's face slowly formed an o shape. “Oh... that.”

“Yeah... so I don't think-” Apple Bloom was cut off.

“Doesn't that make you want to see it more?” Scootaloo was right. It kind of did.

“I don't think we should thought.”

“What if there are pictures in there or something?” Scootaloo suggested.

“Ew! I don't want to see pictures of that!”

“What if they're pictures of Big Mac?” Scootaloo knew her too well; she knew exactly where to hit her.

“Scootaloo, why are you being so gross?” Apple Bloom started. “I might have a crush on Big Mac, and we're gonna get married, but I don't want to see pictures of that, especially if they're of him...”

“But what if they are?” Scootaloo was right. Apple Bloom had to find out. It was like an obligation. Something was being kept secret in that box, something important to the Apple Family, and she was a member of the Apple Family. I have a right to know.

“Okay...” she said hesitantly, “we're going to do this, but you're going to look first, and if it's anything like that then you're not going to show me, okay?”

“Okay.”

---

Their plan was foolproof. They had acquired some rope and set up a pulley system. They made sure to do this the next day, too, during Granny's nap. Big Mac and Applejack would be working the farm, so there would be no interference.

“You ready?” Apple Bloom asked.

Scootaloo nodded.

“Alright, me and Sweetie Bell will pull you up, and you grab it.”

“I know. We went over the plan already. Just hurry up and lift me,” Scootaloo demanded.

“Alright, on three,” Sweetie Bell instructed.

“One! Two! Three!” Apple Bloom shouted as she yanked on the rope. It sent Scootaloo higher, but the fast yank caused her to swing into the display case. One of the apple figurines fell to the floor and broke with a loud crash.

“Apple Bloom! Be careful!” Sweetie Bell shouted.

“Girls!” Scootaloo said in a loud whisper as she pointed towards Granny Smith, who was still sound asleep. “Do you want to wake her?”

“Don't worry,” Apple Bloom said, “she never wakes up from her nap.”

“She did that one time,” Sweetie Bell reminded her.

“Oh yeah... well... okay I guess we should be quieter,” Apple Bloom agreed.

Apple Bloom and Sweetie Bell counted more slowly this time, and then they hoisted Scootaloo together.

“Almost got it...” she said. Then she grabbed it. “Okay, lower me down.”

They reveled at the music box.

“Let's open it already!” Scootaloo whispered.

Apple Bloom took the top off of the music box, which was heavier than she had expected. Beneath the top was the musical component. She examined it for a couple of moments while her friends dug inside of the box. She was impressed by its intricate workings. She could see that a cylinder with metal spokes spun around and strummed a bunch of metal keys. Isn't that clever, she thought.

“Who's that?” Scootaloo asked.

Apple Bloom looked down at the picture that she was holding. It was an old black and white picture of a mare with braided hair and a bonnet. On her flank was clearly a picture of an apple pie.

“Is that Granny Smith?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Probably,” said Sweetie Bell.

“Not her,” Scootaloo said, “him.” She pointed to the pegasus who was right next to the mare. It looked like a stallion. His hair was long and straight. He was wearing overalls, and he had a bit of straw in his mouth.

“How am I supposed to know?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Well he's in a lot of pictures with her,” Scootaloo said as she shuffled through the photographs. “And look...” Apple Bloom passed off the music box to Sweetie Bell so she could examine the picture Scootaloo was showing her.

It was of the same mare and the same stallion, only they were both older, and the mare was holding a small foal in her hooves, a small pegasus foal in her hooves. She looked towards Granny Smith, who was still sleeping, and she tried to compare the face on the photograph with her granny's. It seemed to match.

Apple Bloom turned to Scootaloo. “Do you think that...” she didn't finish her sentence. She just pointed to the picture and then she pointed at Granny Smith.

Scootaloo shrugged. “Maybe.”

Suddenly some music started to play, seemingly from out of Sweetie Bell's hooves. “What sweet music,” Sweetie Bell commented.

“Yeah, it's lovely,” Apple Bloom agreed.

“Yeah it is, but...” Scootaloo started, “I don't really know why any of this stuff was such a big secret. It's just a bunch of pictures and stuff.”

Apple Bloom couldn't disagree more. These pictures are a part of the Apple Family history, a part of the history I don't know about.

“Apple Bloom!” somepony shouted, but Apple Bloom couldn't quite make out who it was. It seemed familiar, but she rarely heard that voice speaking to her in that tone, and she certainly never heard that voice use her full name. Apple Bloom looked up in disbelief at Granny Smith who, for the first time, was looking angrily down at her.

“I-I-I'm sorry Granny,” she desperately tried to think of an explanation, but she couldn't; she was too stunned by her granny's tone of voice.

“I think it's time you girls left,” Granny Smith said to Sweetie Bell and Scootaloo. They both looked back at her with sad faces.

“Sorry Apple Bloom...” Sweetie Bell said.

“Yeah... We didn't mean to get you in trouble,” Scootaloo added.

Apple Bloom watched them walk out the door. Then she looked up, guilty, at her granny, wondering what sort of punishment would be in store for her. They were always strange. She figured it was best to confess and apologize. Maybe then she'll go easier on me

“Applejack told me not to look in there. I'm sorry. I really am, Granny,” Apple Bloom pleaded.

“Candy Crisp,” Granny Smith said.

“What?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Your mother, Candy Crisp. It's that foal.”

Apple Bloom looked down at the picture that she was still holding. She stared at it very intensely very intensely. My mother?

“Come with me, pipsqueak.” Granny Smith took a hold of her hoof and took her outside. She was upset though. She wanted to see more pictures of her mother. She had so many questions all of a sudden, but she didn't dare ask them, so felt like it was something that should wait.

They walked into the orchard and over some hills. They passed a stream, and they went to a spot far away, farther than Apple Bloom had ever ventured. She wasn't even sure if this was part of the farm anymore. All of the trees had dead apples scattered all around the ground, like this part of the orchard hadn't been bucked in years.

“Buck these trees,” Granny Smith said plainly.

Is she kidding? I haven't bucked one tree in my life, and she expects me to buck all of these trees? Apple Bloom wanted to complain, but when she showed her disapproving face to Granny Smith she was met with a hoof to the back of her head.

“You're getting old enough there, pipsqueak. It's about time you learned some things, and bucking trees is one of them.” Granny Smith pushed a bucket towards her. “And I'm going to sit her until you're done.”

---

By the third day Apple Bloom could barely buck at all. What her brother and sister could do in two or three kicks, it would take her almost an hour. The first day she was only able to buck four trees before it was time to go, and on the second day she was able to knock out twelve, but by the third day she felt like she couldn't move, and even though she only had one tree left, the sun was already starting to go down.

I wonder if Granny is going to let me stop, she thought as she looked at the setting sun. She peaked around to see whether or not her granny was going to take her back, but Granny Smith had fallen asleep. Well, I'd better just get this over with. There's only one left.

She looked at the last tree. It was on the edge of the grove and it was by far the largest tree in the group. The tree was also growing on a steep hill. She backed up to it and tried to buck it, but she missed and feel flat on her belly with an agonizing thud.

Stupid trees. Stupid hill! She walked to the other side of the tree and tried to keep her balance.

Then she saw it.

Embedded in the large tree was a large mossy stone that read,

“Candy Crisp
April 972 – July 994
She burned brightly
And never gave up.”

Apple Bloom looked in horror at the date. July 994 was when she was born.