Chapter Text
Tick…tick…tick…
Twilight grumbled to herself under her breath as the clock rang out, breaking the deafening silence that filled the home. She lifted her head from her knees, purple, long hair flowing down and spilling onto the floor. The woman's gaze lands on the top of her home's bookshelf, where a little boy lay asleep. She sighed wearily at the reminder, rubbing her fingers over her eyes tiredly, feeling the eye bags that had only deepened over this past week.
A week ago. Maybe? Twilight couldn't remember. So much happened so fast. She couldn't keep up. And she hated it. First it was one man, at a local bakery. Bit another woman right in the neck and started eating her as she lay bleeding out in front of the screaming civilians. Twilight scoffed at the memory, how she assumed it was nothing but a psycho in Ponyville. But the attacks just kept happening. And they couldn't stop it anymore. And then it got really bad. A quarter of the town soon turned into half, before finally becoming overrun with those…dead things.
The purple-haired woman swallowed deeply and let her head fall back down. The sleeping boy was named Spike. Twilight saw it written in Sharpie on the hood of his jacket. So that's what she started calling him. He was about twelve years old, Twilight assumed. He was short, darker-skinned, a purple jacket that swallowed him whole covered his small frame at all times. It was a dragon jacket, with a fake tail and everything. Twilight thought is was cute. Too bad the boy wore that same tired, sad expression as he did when she first met him. Poor boy, Twilight thought. The boy hadn't spoken a word since she saved him, so who knew what his real name was? Twilight sure didn't.
"Ughhh…" Twilight sniffles, the dust in the library hitting her nose. Her head jolts up as the stinging sensation hits the bridge, a sneeze approaching. Just as she lets out a loud "achoo-!", three loud knocks rang out against the wooden front door.
"…" Twilight froze, her hand clasping over her mouth tightly.
"Heyy!!" A loud voice rang out from the other side of the door, a heavy southern accent lacing each word. "Anyone there?!"
Twilight remains frozen still, her fingers rubbing nervously against her cheek. "Oh god…" She mumbles, shaking as she scoots onto her knees and starts to slowly crawl towards the ladder leaning against the bookshelf. Her shaking hands reach out to grasp the ladder, hoping she can quietly climb up to where Spike is and hide with him until whoever is out there leaves. You couldn't trust anyone. Twilight knew nothing about the undead people trailing the once happy place that was Ponyville. She never believed in the supernatural. She's always been the type to favor logic above all else, and there was no logic behind the idea of dead people walking around, killing and eating living versions of the same species. It was stupid. Stupid until she witnessed it happening right infront of her. The gorey scene still hasn't left her mind.
The shaking woman gulps that thought down as she slowly lifts herself into a standing position, gripping the ladder tightly. Her gaze drifts down to her feet as she feels the platforms on her shoes drag against the wood before slipping slightly. Twilight falls against the one object she has a steady grip on, the ladder, managing to knock it down with a ringing THUD.
There was an awkward, stretching silence as Twilight winced, the noise a reminder of the people presumably still in place behind the door. Her hand came up to push her glasses back into position, her mind racing a mile a minute.
"Twi…light…?" A small male voice rang out above the thinking girl. Her eyes widened; this was one of the first times the boy had spoken. It was Spike, who was now peering over the bookshelf he was sleeping on top of, his hands firmly grasping the edge. He looked sleepy, the purple hood of his dragon jacket pulled over his head.
"I-It's okay…" Twilight lied, trying to stay calm. She spoke in a whisper, just loud enough that he could hear her from atop the shelf. "Just stay there, okay? Lay back down." She said in a soft voice, trying to sound sincere, but instead coming off as stern.
"…" Spike says nothing, but slowly retreats into a lying position, out of view once more.
"Hey!" Yells the voice outside, the person it belonged to now banging on the door again. "You heard that right-?!" It exclaims.
"E'Yup." Says another voice, this one much deeper and clearly belonging to a man. Both of the people had the same accent. Twilight stared at the door, frozen in place. One sounded angry; the other was a man, and she was alone, essentially. Even worse, she had a child with her. Her mind raced, alert to the fact that they knew she was here.
I just had to go and screw things up, Twilight thought to herself, feeling tears well up in her eyes involuntarily.
The banging on the door only got louder; the person was clearly angry and trying to force the door open.
Until finally, it stopped. Twilight swallowed nervously, her eyes still not leaving the weak, wooden door that she was sure would inevitably break open if the intruders tried just a little harder. That thought racing through Twilight's mind soon became a reality when the door flung open with a loud crash.
On the other side stood a man who seemed to have pushed the door open with sheer force. He stood with one shoulder turned more towards where the door used to be, regaining his balance as he stumbled slightly. His face remained unchanged, emotionless at the moment. He had dirty blonde hair that fell past his ears in a shaggier cut. Lying atop the white tank top pressed against his muscular body was a red flannel shirt, the sleeves rolled up on both sides. He pushed his hair out of his face with a quick exhale of breath and a slight tilt of the head as his relaxed eyes landed on Twilight, who was still unmoving.
The other person now standing a few steps behind him outside the home was a woman. She looked like him: tanned, freckled, muscular, with dirty blonde hair; only hers was tied into a loose braid that fell onto her left shoulder. She wore a cowboy hat, casting an ominous shadow over the woman's unimpressed face. Her green eyes glared a hole through Twilight's.
Nobody said anything for a moment, with the two intruders looking between Twilight and each other.
"…You alone?" The woman asked, pushing past the taller man and finally stepping into the home of Twilight Sparkle. Twilight watched nervously as the woman looked around the home, slowly walking around it. She was holding a revolver in one hand, putting Twilight even more on edge.
"…" Twilight gulped and glanced up to where Spike was hidden, quickly centering her gaze back at the ground. "Yes." She lies.
"…" The woman keeps looking around, inhaling deeply and sighing. She pushes her hat up a few inches, the shadow disappearing and revealing the detail of her focused face. A small creak and thump echoed out from on top of the bookshelf as she observed Twilight's home; what she was looking for, the girl didn't know. The country woman immediately looked up at the bookshelf, noticing the ladder lying on the ground in front of it. "Who's up there?"
Twilight freezes and inhales sharply, feeling the air put pressure on her lungs, an oddly calming sensation given the stress of the moment. "…My kid." She mumbles, not knowing what else to do.
The woman raises an eyebrow and shoots a glance towards the man, who gives a small shrug. "A little young for a kid." The woman says with a shrug of the shoulders. "Ya ain't gotta lie. I ain't gonna hurt no kid." The girl says with a scoff, her eyebrows furrowing in irritation.
"…Sorry." Twilight mumbles. She fidgets with the sleeve of her sweater.
"…You and the kid? That's all?" The woman asks, approaching Twilight. "Don't go lyin' to me again, ya hear?? I ain't gonna hurt nobody." She says, stopping directly in front of Twilight and looking her up and down.
"…Just us. Just-" Twilight gulps, finally finding her voice. She looks at the woman, frowning nervously as she speaks. "Just leave us alone-! We've been through enough this week!"
"…" The woman stares at Twilight with a slightly dumbfounded expression. A grin slowly spreads across her face before she lets out a chuckle and looks at the man, motioning a hand towards Twilight. "She thinks we're gonna rob her."
"…Nope." The man says after a minute, looking at Twilight.
"I mean-" The woman starts, letting her hand fall to her hip as she shakes her head gently. "We were just huntin'. Saw this place and figured it wouldn't hurt to check." She explains. "We got people, plenty, held up at our farm. Just trying to gather as much as we can. But this here stuff's yours…so we'll be on our way."
Twilight's eyebrows shoot up, her lips pursing slightly. "Really?" She asks, not expecting them to peacefully leave. She didn't trust it at all.
"Yeah." The woman says, walking back over to the man and patting his shoulder. He walks out the door, watching the woman as she walks behind him. The woman stops after putting one foot out the door, hesitating. Her eyes glance back towards the bookshelf before her mouth opens to speak again.
"I don't like the idea of leaving them here." She says in a quieter tone, shaking her head and looking at the man.
"…" He stares back at her, not responding.
"…Ya' think Granny'll be upset if we bring folks back?" The woman asks the man. Before he can answer, which, from past interactions, Twilight doubted he would, she speaks again, her tone filled with frustration. "Eh, who cares what Granny'll say. I'll be damned if I leave a child and a woman by themselves out here."
"…E-Yup." The man responds, nodding in casual agreement.
Twilight couldn't keep her mouth shut. Why were they talking like they were taking her somewhere?? Didn't she have a say in it? Those thoughts raced through her mind as her mouth opened. "Wait, wait-…I am FINE here. Just fine."
The two stared at the girl, both of them raising an eyebrow, their expressions feigning amusement and surprise. Everyone always told Twilight that she had a big mouth. It was probably why she didn't have any friends.
"No, you ain't." The woman laughs and approaches Twilight again. She releases a small puff of air to blow her hair away from her face. "How old is yer kid?"
"…Twelve," Twilight says uncertainly.
"Boy or girl?" She asks and then rolls her eyes. "Doesn't matter much. Ya ever fight one of those things?" She scoffs.
"The…" Twilight starts. The dead people. She didn't know what to call them.
"Yeah, them." The woman laughs. "Or everybody out there actin' crazy, ignoring the laws." She says, putting a hand back on her hip. "And you sure ain't ugly."
Twilight's eyes narrowed at the implication. "I can take care of myself, for your information."
"…" The other woman made a small "pfft" noise. "Can ya hunt? Light a fire? Kill the walkers?"
Twilight raised an eyebrow at the term walkers, assuming the blonde woman was talking about the dead people.
Not very creative, Twilight thought, internally rolling her eyes.
Her lack of an answer was answer enough for the other girl. She took a few steps towards Twilight, who instinctively took a step back from the taller woman. The lady smiles and raises a hand to her mouth, spitting on the palm and then holding it out, as if asking for a handshake. Twilight grimaced, her gaze on the woman's hand.
"Look. Name's Applejack. This is my brother, Big Macintosh, er just Mac. He don't mind any which way." The woman says, nodding her head towards the taller man, who gives a small nod, the corner of his lips finally twitching into a calm smile. "Y'all folks can stay here if ya' really want. But if ya want some helping hands…Feel free to come with us. We got a farm, lotta people, we all do our part. As long as ya' help out here and there, we really don't mind much."
Twilight stared at the woman, her eyes flicking to the man as he said his usual, "E-Yup.", in agreement. She thought about Spike. About how she wasn't fit to raise a kid; she'd never even had a real conversation with a kid, except for when she was one herself. She could use the help, and she knew it.
Still, she huffs, looking away.
"And how do I know you're telling the truth?" She says finally with a sideways glare towards the woman who revealed her name as Applejack.
"…Ya' don't." Applejack chuckles. "But I would never tell a lie. Promise." She says with a grin, throwing a playful wink at Twilight. She lifts the hand she has extended for Twilight to shake and pats her shoulder after realizing the stubborn girl wasn't going to.
Twilight's face wrinkles up in disgust, her shoulders tensing. "So I'm just supposed to mindlessly follow anybody who breaks into my house?" She rolls her eyes sarcastically.
"God, you're a feisty girl." Applejack laughs. "That's up to yer own judgment. Since yer so smart, trust that mind of yers." She smirks and taps Twilight's forehead. Twilight jumps back and adjusts her glasses, her eyes narrowing.
"…" Finally, Twilight sighs and swallows her pride. She knows what's best for Spike. She knows what's best for her even. As much as she hated to admit it, Applejack was right. She couldn't hunt, fish, or sew; she'd never even been camping before. And now life was a campground with predators around every corner, dead or alive. "…Fine. Let us get our things…" She mumbles, clearly irritated that she had to give up on her stubborn attempt at saving her dignity.
Applejack nods and kicks the door back shut. "Take yer time. We ain't in no rush." She says, and with that, she takes a seat on a chair in the corner of the room, Mac sitting on the floor next to her. Twilight watches as Applejack talks to Mac, scoffing as she notices he remains silently nodding along.
The girl moves to the bookshelf she was at earlier, lifting the ladder on the floor and propping it against the surface. She climbs it quickly, reaching the top and pulling herself onto the bookshelf that connects to the second floor. Her bedroom. And Spike's for a little bit.
She looks down at the boy, who was still sleeping. Her hand extended until her palm landed on and grasped his shoulder, shaking it gently.
"Spike." She says sternly. "Wake up."
The boy grunts, his small snores coming to a halt, getting stuck in his throat. He gives a small cough as he opens his eyes, looking around the area. He slowly sits up, the hood of his jacket still over his head.
"We gotta go," Twilight says, looking him directly in the eyes. "Someone…stopped by. They have a place for us. With food." She says sternly, her eyebrows furrowed.
"…Food??" Spike sat up straighter, his eyes widening, a little shine reflecting in his brown irises. She could hear his stomach give a deep rumble, causing her to cringe. Self-doubt flooded her mind, her grip tightening on Spike's shoulder.
He winces and raises an eyebrow. "We really have food…?" The boy exclaims excitedly. This was the first time in the past few days that Twilight had seen a smile on his face.
"…We will. Just get up, go downstairs. There are people there, a man and a woman. Be. Careful." She accentuates the last two words. She stands up, releasing the boy's shoulder, and walks deeper onto the second floor, looking around her bedroom.
The small noises of rustling behind her served as a gentle reminder of Spike's involvement in her life. She felt like a bad person saying it, but it frustrated her. How she's stuck with a child she didn't ask for just because her morality wouldn't let her leave him there. Her teeth gritted together as she grabbed the brown satchel lying loosely on her bed.
Twilight barely remembers even packing the items she did by the time she was done. She grabbed some clothes, a book, some personal belongings that served as reminders of her family that she could only hope were okay. She threw the satchel over her shoulder and began her descent down the ladder again.
"All packed up?" Applejack asks as Twilight's feet hit the floor. Twilight shoots her an unamused expression, glancing at Spike, who seemed to be talking to Mac. She rolls her eyes and shuts her eyes for a few seconds as she answers, giving a sharp inhale at the beginning of her sentence.
"Looks that way, yeah." She responds sarcastically.
Applejack laughs. She looks towards Spike. "Yer momma's got a real temper on her."
The strong woman stands, walking to the door and holding it open.
"Lead the way." She says to Mac as he exits the building, mumbling a few "e-yups" to Spike as the child hurriedly followed the siblings, asking about food. Twilight feels her teeth grinding again. Her left eye twitched slightly. Her hands were balled up into fists at her sides, the fingers clutching the end of her skirt, nearly tearing through the fabric.
"Ya comin'-…er…What'd you say yer name was?" Applejack laughs and looks back at Twilight, her smile faltering into confusion at the look on Twilight's face.
"…I didn't." The irritated Twilight grumbles, pushing herself to start following the group.
"…Well…ya gonna tell me?" Applejack asks, walking alongside her. Twilight stares forward, her eyes locked on Spike and Big Mac. He never talked to me that much, Twilight thought. What's so special about these two? "Only fair, considerin' I told ya' mine."
"…Twilight." She says finally. A big sigh escapes her lips.
"…Twilight." The woman repeats with a nod. "Pretty name." She says, in a weak attempt at making conversation with the distant woman.
Twilight says nothing, continuing to walk with the group. A few minutes pass in silence.
"…So…Just a friendly lil' warnin'." Applejack starts, drawing an internal sigh from Twilight. "Lotta people at our farm. Ya' know, it's me, Mac, and our whole family. And we got a big family."
Twilight pauses, gritting her teeth. "How big?"
"…Well," AppleJack starts, staring forward in focus. "We got a lil' sister, our granny, papa, aunt, uncle, cousins, and a friend."
"…" Twilight says nothing. That sounded like a headache. Twilight's been alone almost her whole life. The only people she had growing up were her big brother and her babysitter. She hasn't seen either of them in a while. Her last visit with them was riddled with irritation. An invite to a wedding when she didn't even know they were together. Didn’t make an effort to tell her or reappear in her life.
She grits her teeth just thinking about it. The only two people she ever had didn't care to re-enter her life. Her parents were distant, shipped her off to a private school with dorms. She didn't even have a roommate, let alone friends. People always told her she was rude, awkward. She didn't even mean to be; she just enjoyed her peace.
Though she knew she didn’t need solemn peace, she needed a social life. But that possibly was deadlier than half the people in Ponyville now. Not like she would jump at the opportunity, which was obvious with the way she treated the country people.
"…It'll be a little crowded, but hey, the more the merrier, right?" The woman chuckles. "Plenty of people who got your back."
"…pfft." Twilight couldn't hold in the sarcastic scoff that escaped her. She highly doubted they would all keep her in mind. She was a stranger. Even if they were good people, even if AppleJack's intentions were honest, Twilight knew if it came down to it, they'd leave her for dead to save themselves. At least Spike had the benefit of being a kid; people pitied him for it.
Applejack's eyebrows furrowed. "You can say whatever ya' want about me, but don't go doubting my family." She grumbled, the irritation with Twilight's attitude leaking through her words.
"…" Twilight shuts up immediately. She had a big mouth, sure, but even she knew not to argue with this woman about her family. She seemed serious, and Twilight did notice how strong she looked upon their first meeting back at Twilight's home.
The rest of the walk was silent, at least from the two girls. Eventually, fencing and a big red barn came into sight, the purple trim atop it standing out.
Twilight sighed to herself softly as Applejack opened the front gate. She takes in the large area the barn sat in, the trees that extended even over the gate, leading into a large forest full of apple trees. It looked like Heaven in a situation like this. So much food. A nice big barn.
Outside of the red building were three little girls, seemingly playing in mud. A tan, freckled redheaded girl was giggling, splashing mud at a girl with long gray hair, her pale skin a contrast to the other. In between the two was another little girl with pastel purple hair and pale white skin, grimacing at the muddy mess her friends were making. Her hands came up to shield her face from the splats of mess.
Watching the girls play was a skinny woman, her eyes narrow, yet soft. She had an unnaturally striking beauty to her, her hair curled like a model from the 60's, the dark purple color to it a nice contrast against the whiteness of her skin. The woman looks away from the children and towards the group as they enter the farm, her eyebrows raising.
Applejack attempts to walk right past her, but the woman speaks up.
"Apple." She says firmly, raising an eyebrow. She had a cigarette in one hand, though she seemed to be hiding it now that the group was present, letting it rest next to her thigh. A small bit of ash got on her white dress.
"…Yep?" Applejack responded, her feet coming to a halt and a large inhale ringing out from her nostrils. She wouldn't even look at the other woman. Twilight raised an eyebrow at the speculation, wondering who this woman was.
"…Who are these…people?" The woman said, bringing her free hand off of her thigh to brush her hair away from her face.
"New guests," Applejack said firmly, tilting her hat slightly. Her gaze was fixed on the grass, then the playing children, then Twilight, before landing back on the grass below her feet once more.
"…Look at me when I'm speaking to you, Applejack." The woman says firmly, standing up and flicking the cigarette out. She quickly stomps it into the ground with her heel. "Take that slimy attitude out of your system and answer me. I am a resident here as well."
Twilight watches the interaction with a blank face, her lip only slightly twitched upwards in disgust. These girls were annoying.
Applejack immediately locks eyes with the woman, swallowing before avoiding her gaze again. She stands up straighter before forcing herself to make eye contact again, eliciting a small laugh from her brother.
Applejack shoots Mac a glare before looking again at the woman, a nervous hint in her eyes. Twilight couldn't help but notice how odd that was. All this arguing, and never has she seen the woman before her break her confident persona. Not until this lady showed up.
"It's a girl and a kid, mkay?" Applejack grunts. "They're gonna stay here."
"…I see." The woman says before glancing towards Twilight, pushing a smile onto her face that Twilight was convinced was fake. "Nice to meet you. My name is Rarity."
"…Twilight," Twilight responds hesitantly, carefully extending a hand to meet the lady's, as it seemed much cleaner than Applejack's, and shaking it.
"…I hope you find this place to be pleasant." The lady smiles, releasing Twilight's hand.
"…" Twilight doesn't respond to that, instead glancing towards Applejack, who looked just as annoyed by this interaction as she felt.
"C'mon y'all." Applejack motions, opening the front door to the barn and hurrying inside. "Nice chattin' with ya' Rarity." She mumbles awkwardly, her face flushing slightly as she rushes into the barn, slamming the door shut by accident.
Twilight takes in the homey feel of the clearly older barn. The floor creaked under her and the others' feet as they walked further into the sanctuary.
"Me and Mac grew up 'ere," Applejack says proudly, exhaling a quick and heavy breath. "With our grandma. And our lil' sister."
"What about your mom and dad?" Twilight scoffs, the question slipping out with no negative intentions, despite her tone seeming as such. She really was just curious.
Applejack shoots the girl a glare. "Why d'ya ask?"
"Just curious! Jeez." Twilight says in a rather annoyed tone. In her mind, she didn't understand why that seemed rude. Even given her previous actions. Was she not allowed to ask questions? Or be concerned for her safety? She grits her teeth, a bad habit, irritated with the woman.
The farmer sighs in response, her shoulders relaxing. "They're gone."
"…From the dead? The dead got them!?" Twilight exclaims, her eyes widening.
"No!" The girls' eyebrows furrow. "Wolves got 'em. Far before this mess. Y'know Everfree? Never go to that damn forest."
Twilight had heard of the place. Mostly from other ponies she assumed were just being paranoid. Or little kids. She thought it was a rumor, that Everfree was just a normal forest that somebody explored at night and scared themselves into creating a rumor.
She was clearly wrong about that.
"Anywho-" The woman uncomfortably changed the subject; the talk with Rarity and the topic of her parents clearly changed her mood for the worse. "Lemme show ya' to yer room."
Twilight follows the girl, watching Big Mac head into the kitchen. Spike watched him for a moment. He then looked at Twilight.
"C'mon, Spike-" Twilight extends a hand impatiently.
"I'm hungry." He whines. "I thought there was gonna be food-" The boy grumbles, frowning deeply.
"Go 'head on in there with Mac; he'll fix ya up a snack." AppleJack intervenes, shooting a glance towards Twilight. The little boy runs straight into the kitchen. Twilight feels the corner of her mouth tug into a small smile as she watches him yell out for the bigger man. Twilight's attention turns back towards the other woman.
She leads Twilight down a long hallway lined with doors. She stops at one near the end of the hallway and opens it. A small creaking noise rings out as the bedroom comes into view. There was already a mattress on the floor, blankets thrown messily across it. A small unicorn plush lies against the pillow. Twilight raises an eyebrow and looks at the other woman.
"Rarity and her lil' sister are using this room, but there's space for another bed. We can get ya' set up." Applejack says with a friendly smile. "Ya' don't mind sharin' a room, right?"
Twilight did mind. Instead of vocalizing that, she remained silent, shaking her head gently. Her gaze was fixed on the empty room, the children's toys, the creak of the floorboards under her feet. This place has to be old, she thought. Her family, despite not being very present, definitely gave her the best living situations she could have. She's never not had a meal ready for her; she's never not had nice, clean rooms with long, decorated hallways right outside. Being in this derelict barn was abnormal for the girl.
Twilight was so caught up in her own thoughts that she didn't even realize Applejack leaving the room and coming back with a basket full of blankets. Twilight mumbles a quick thanks as the other woman brushes shoulders with her, entering the room with the basket. She sighs and walks to the other, helping her put together a makeshift bed out of the blankets.
Once it's done, Applejack gives a deep exhale and a smile, lifting her hat slightly. "Hope it ain't too un-comfy." She chuckles.
Twilight gives a weak and unenthusiastic smile back before lowering herself onto the floor and sitting on their makeshift bed. Despite the flat discomfort, she couldn't help but feel at peace as she leaned back into a lying position.
"…Talk to ya' after ya' get some rest." Applejack mumbles after noticing the exhaustion in the other girl's movements.
Twilight doesn't respond, not even noticing the quiet shut of the door as Applejack leaves. Her mind clears, focusing on the small, relaxed breaths trailing through her before her eyes slowly drift closed, her consciousness fading out as she slowly falls asleep.