Separated

by ItalianMugshot

Chapter 3 - A Day at the Boutique

I recently found out that the changelings were attacking not just Fillydelphia, but in another location as well. The evidence was being held in Applejack's hooves: A newspaper called, "Equestria Daily" with one of the headlines that read, "The Changelings Strike Again". The story didn't seem to say anything about my little sister, Set, but then again, why would the newspaper say anything about one pony in particular, unless you were a celebrity, that was in danger? "Maybe this was published a while ago," I thought to myself, but then when I saw the date, I realized it was just published today. I didn't know what to do but to just hope and pray that Set was safe.

"Omigosh, omigosh, omigosh!" I said worryingly. "Where are the changelings attacking?"

"It says they're attackin' Baltimare," said Applejack. "Where was that train headed when ya sent yer sis away?"

"I don't know!" I yelled with anxiety. "I panicked!"

"Calm down Steady," Applejack said as she tried to calm me down. "Yer sister is gonna be just fine."

"How can I?" I exclaimed, as AJ's method of calming me down clearly did not work. "I sent my sister away on a train that leads to Celestia knows where it could be and that she could be...I don't even wanna think about it!"

There was a moment of silence where Applejack let me have my freak-out. All she could do was nothing but let me blow my top. Moments later, I broke the silence with an apology.

"I'm sorry," I started. "It's just...my sister means much to me. We had this special bond that let us knew we were more than sisters, we were best friends. And now, look at me. I've lost everything because I put her on that stupid train that may or may not have led her to where those...monsters are currently invading. If I hadn't had put her on that train to begin with, I wouldn't be in this situation I'm stuck in."

"Ah feel ya," Applejack said, trying to calm me down again. "My sis means a lot to me too. There've been many times Ah've worried about her. Sure, Ah've babied her one too many times, but she's my little sis, Ah wanna protect her."

"This is different, with everypony that is," I objected. "Yes I do wanna protect her, but it's hard for me to do that when I have no idea where she could be. At least you still have your sister, I don't even know if I'll even find her before the changelings do. I shouldn't have put her on that train; put her in harm's way. It's all my fault."

"Don't say that," Applejack said.

"But it is," I objected once again. "She should've been with me this whole time." I then started to cry.

"Ya can't blame yerself," Applejack stated. "Y'all were just thinkin' a little too fast. It happens to everypony."

After constantly fighting back and forth about the situation, I realized she wasn't going to stop at anything to make me feel better, and I finally decided to give up. But the one thing that will always be running through my head, until I find Set, was that this whole thing was my fault.

"I guess you're right Applejack," I said. "There was just nothing else I could do."

"Y'all did yer best," said Applejack. "Wanna head back to the barn?"

"Do I have to sleep on the hay again?" I complained as we walked back to the farm.

"Trust me," stated Applejack. "If Ah had an extra bed, Ah would've let y'all have it. Ah probably would've let y'all sleep in the house, but it think it might've been a little too cold for ya."

"Sleeping in the living room by the furnace would've been a little more preferable," I negotiated.

"Probably wouldn't do y'all any good," Applejack told me. "Granny Smith's rule, lights out at midnight. It's been that was since Ah was a filly."

"Even the furnace?" I complained.

"Even the furnace," said Applejack as we arrived to the orchard. "Good night."

"Good night, Applejack," I said to her. "Good night, Set. I hope you're okay," I said to myself as I walked inside the barn.

---

I woke up a little earlier than usual because I wanted to go through town without having anypony be my tour guide; to prove I could fit in with the rest of this town, I even left a note for Applejack telling her why I was missing if she was ever wondering, but I found it a little too hard to blend in only being here for a week. I was still a little tired and cranky when I woke up, but I tried to hide that when I promenaded through town. Not many ponies were up by then, but that didn't stop my walk. Once again, I started to feel hungry, and my stomach was as loud as my alarm clock back in Fillydelphia. With the sleepiness and the addition of hunger setting into me, I felt a little light-headed. Then, I had come across this colorful building that had a sign that read, "Carousel Boutique". It was at that moment that I realized, I was about to pass out.

Hours later, I had felt rejuvenated. I was inside this place that looked to be a tailoring room, but I was still curious as to what happened.

"Oh, you're awake," said a little unicorn filly with a white coat and a lavender and pink mane. "I thought you were dead or something like that."

"What?" I said, wondering where I was and what was going on. "Where am I? And who are you?"

"You're in my sister's shop, and I'm Sweetie Belle," she responded. "You're not from here are you."

"No I'm not," I replied. "I'm Ready Steady, but you can just call me Steady."

"Okay Steady," said Sweetie Belle. "So, if you're not from here, then where did you come from?"

I did not want to remind myself of what happened, especially since me and AJ were arguing about it just last night. "You're Sweetie Belle, right? Are you by any chance a Cutie Mark Crusader?"

"So you've heard of us," said the enthusiastic filly. "We're on a quest to find our cutie marks. We've tried so hard to find our cutie marks but..."

I cut her off. "No cigar," I finished her sentence. "Don't give up hope, were there's a will, there's a way." Then I thought to myself, "What I'm telling her is what I should be telling myself."

"You still didn't answer my question," Sweetie Belle said.

I was afraid she'd remember sooner or later. I had no choice; I had to tell her the truth. "I'm from..."

"I'm back Sweetie Belle," said a noise from downstairs, cutting me off from responding. The pony came upstairs to check on me to see if I was awake. "Nice to see you're awake. I see you've already met Sweetie Belle."

"I'm actually glad you came, now somepony can tell me what happened to me," I said with relief. "The name's Ready Steady by the way, Steady for short."

"I'm Rarity," said the white-coated unicorn with her curly, purple mane. "So you see, when I was coming home to get the finishing pieces for my ensemble, I saw a passed out pony by the side of my boutique. I couldn't just simply leave you there, so I let you rest in my tailoring room. I even left you a glass of water and a couple of cookies on the table next to you since your stomach was making so much noise."

"Yeah," I said embarrassingly. "My um..." I cleared my throat, "...parents told me that I have a very uh...unique...digestive system."

"She's not from Ponyville," said Sweetie Belle. "She told me she was from...where again?"

"I recently left from Sweet Apple Acres," I said with truth, but not the whole truth. "Does that answer your question?"

Sweetie Belle glared at me, knowing I was hiding something.

"Okay, okay, I'm really from Fillydelphia." I said as I saw the shocked looks on both the pony's faces. "I'm not surprised by your reactions. But, I really don't wanna talk about it right now."

"Aw," complained Sweetie Belle. "I wanna know what happened."

"Sweetie Belle," said Rarity. "She just said she's just not comfortable talking about it."

"I'll tell you what," I negotiated with Sweetie Belle. "I'll tell you all about it tomorrow, can we agree on that?"

"I guess," said Sweetie Belle.

"Steady," said Rarity. "Would you mind come talk with me in private?"

"Okay, sure," I said as I quickly took a sip of water and a bite of my cookie.

When we were in Rarity's bedroom, to chat alone, she asked, "What do you mean you just left from Sweet Apple Acres?"

I responded, "I mean, I've been staying there since the outbreak occurred. I've only been here a week and my 'mattress' was compiled of nothing but a bunch of hay, uncomfortable but better than flat ground."

"What?" Rarity exclaimed with surprise. "You should've come to me for a place to stay, I had an extra bed I could've let you borrowed."

"Well that's very generous of you Rarity," I started. "But I probably couldn't afford it for rent, I don't even have any money."

Rarity went over to one of her drawers to hand me something. "Here, take this," she said handing me a bag that contained about 500 bits. "It's all the money I've made within my last ensemble."

"Rarity," I said with surprise. "I appreciate for all that you're doing, but you don't have to do this."

"Don't worry, I insist," she said. "And as far as the bed goes, it's all yours."

"Thanks Rarity," I said as I was about to leave. "I'm gonna head into town and see what I can do. First thing on my list, find a job."

"Wait," Rarity said, causing me to stop where I was. "Is the outbreak as bad as the papers said it was?"

"Take this from one of the survivors," I responded. "It's much worse than they say."

---

While I was out, I headed back to Applejack's farm. I decided to see what the family was up to. I glanced over at the treehouse, the door said, "Do Not Enter" which probably meant the Cutie Mark Crusaders were having a meeting. Then I approached the house and knocked on the door to see if anypony was home. Applejack answered the door.

"Howdy Steady," said Applejack. "Ah got yer note, it's all good, but next time just come over and tell me, please."

"I'll remember that for next time," I noted.

"How was yer mornin'?" asked Applejack.

"It was a little crazy," I responded. "I ended up passing out by Carousel Boutique. There I met Rarity and Sweetie Belle where I was being taken care of. Rarity even got me a place to sleep and some bits to help me settle down while I'm here."

"Well, that's Rarity," said Applejack. "One of the most generous ponies Ah know. Well, Ah'm gonna get dinner ready, wanna join us?"

"You know it," I said with enthusiasm.

When I stayed for dinner, I saw some different foods for a change like chicken and pork, but the table still had a nice fruit bowl filled with, take a wild guess, apples. It was nice to see something else on the table for a change, but nothing to sneeze at. After dinner, I went over to the Carousel Boutique to spend the night. When I knocked the door, I was introduced to Rarity who was wearing a sleeping mask, a sleeping gown, and slippers.

"I'm sorry," I apologized. "Did I wake you up?"

"No, but I was getting ready for bed," Rarity said. "I take it you're spending the night."

"Well you offered me a bed for a reason," I said stating the facts.

"Alright then, come on in," said Rarity with a little grogginess. "Have a good night, Steady."

"Good night, Rarity," I said, making my way to my new room.

As I was asleep, I heard a voice in my head. It called out my name that sounded oddly familiar. Then the voice had come to me. "Steady, Steady," it kept calling. It then said, "It's me, Set!"

Comments

[Danthebronyman]

A good read! Quite touching in fact! A thumb up and a smile from me :)

[ItalianMugshot]

5472817 Aw, thanks for the support. For my first story, I put a lot of effort in it.

[Danthebronyman]

5473728 any time!

[Crystal Wishes]

As an older sibling myself, I can totally relate to Steady's desire to protect her little sister, even at the cost of her own safety (such as Steady sending her on the train ahead of her). When she fought with Applejack about Baltimare in this most recent chapter, I was right there with her emotionally. It's scary thinking that by trying to save someone you care about, you may have ended up sending them somewhere dangerous.

Since we've seen more of her than Rarity, I can speak more to my enjoyment of Applejack's portrayal here. I especially giggled at the playful tease of "how dare you insult my family's apple love... just kidding!" Of the main six, I think you made the right choice in bringing Applejack into Steady's life first. She and the whole Apple family's welcoming, loving nature is just what Steady needed after such an ordeal.

So far, the darker part of the story - the zombie-like apocalypse - is an eeriely creeping nightmare... in a good way. Already, it's spreading, and the quietly lurking larger-scale invasion gives me goosebumps. The idyllic setting of Ponyville, every pony there going on with their lives like normal, is drastically at odds with what we know, as readers, is happening elsewhere. It makes the impending darkness that much scarier!

Steady is a strong gal; I hope with all my heart that she eventually finds Set safe and sound. I can't even imagine what she'll do if she finds out otherwise.

Keep up the good work!

[ItalianMugshot]

5483810 Thanks for the encouraging words, if only the like-dislike ratio would say the same. Not that I'm complaining or anything.

[Crystal Wishes]

5493054 I know it's hard, but try not to let the likes/dislikes bother you! Some people will downvote for the silliest reasons. Having an OC character tag seems to be a big downvote magnet. It's a risk we writers take to tell the story we want to share!