[Sweet Apple Acres]...The More Zap Apples Stay the Same. [PM for invite/Apple family welcome]

[SunsetSombra]

And so the day begins in earnest once again - the approaching apple harvest filling the air with quite the electric atmosphere...a fact not lost on Mac once he noticed the familiar faces of many ponies getting quite excited for many a reason...Presteza, HarshWhinney and AppleBloom all seemed to have quite the boundless leaps of energy!

"So... Mister Mac. sorry again about yer mane yesterday... how it holdin' up? any lingerin' poofiness?" The question came from the young mare who'm had caused his rather unexpected mane deformity a few days ago - luckily, nothing really outlandish had stayed, and the only really residual traces were a small few bunches of tail floofyness he'd been actively ignoring. She seemed a nice enough sort, and he chuckles slightly before responding to her with a small shake of the head.

" Eeeenope, everythin' is jus' fi-... " Mac starts to reply, but is then immediately interrupted by an excited chattering.

"Ah'm so excited Ah could grow wings and fly around like a dang Wonderbolt!" - in came the second source of endless energy, as Applebloom pounced on his back and appeared to start doing a rather unexpected jig...he'd have said something to stop her, but he was so taken aback that he simply had no It wasn't like he wasn't used to the small sister of his being a hyperactive ball of apple pony, so he had learned to mostly shrug it off - but to an outside viewer, it was probably a little odd to see.

And then came Harshwhinney - a mare whom Mac wasn't sure he needed to see right at this given moment, but there was noplace to hide and he just gives a small inaudible sigh. She was talking about romance and the sky and such - sure, it was cute an' all...but he was entirely not the right pony for this whole thing!

Of course, he was surrounded by ponies who were clearly observing his every move - the only thing he dared say was a single 'Eeeeyup' to her question...mentally facehooving at this rather awkward scenario. This wasn't going to make his day ANY easier, and he darn well knew it!

[Mojo]

"Whew! Jist finished with the breakfast shift!" Granny Smith proudly announced.

"Great!" Flam neighed, "now I can go join the others watching outside.."

"Hold yer horses Flam! We gotta clean up this here kitchen, and with you doin' all that magic stuff, it'll go a lot faster!"

"Oh, very well," the lanky unicorn stallion smirked as he began to levitate dishes, pots and pans over to the sink. As Flam and Granny Smith were busy cleaning up, outside Uncle Apple Strudel and Haywire were near Big Mac, a bit behind the place where Presteza stood. After Haywire had asked the big red stallion if she could climb up on his back too, the blank flank filly heard Big Mac say "Eeyup." Not realizing he was saying Eeyup to somepony else, Haywire proceeded to join AppleBloom on Big Mac's back.

"Thanks a heap, Big Mac!" Haywire said as she stood on the huge red stallion's back.

"Hay fraulien Hayvire, vhere are you going?" Uncle Apple Strudel asked,

"It's ok, Big Mac told me I could!" the rust colored filly replied as she finished climbing on Big Mac's back.

Also hearing Big Mac's 'Eeyup' reply, Ms. Harshwhinney nickered with delight! Finally, she had got Big Mac to acknowledge that something was romantic! it was at least a start, a glimmer of hope for the lovestruck blonde earth mare. Not seeing Presteza standing on Big Mac's opposite side, Ms. Harshwhinney felt like she had won the 'battle' for the huge stallion's heart at last, though this assumption was very delusional on her part.

"I'm so glad you agree with me, Big Mac," she said as the orange pelted mare looked up at him.

[Hippo]

Applejack was tucked into Bramble's wet self by his excited side hug. The excitement, although easily understandable, caught Applejack a little off guard. Everypony that was waiting for the event seemed to really be besides themsevles with enthusiasm. Applejack almost forgot what it was like her first time. She had done this several times before, but that anticipation was much less maddening as the years went on. Overall, she couldn't blame a pony for splashing around in the rain, even this early in the morning.

"Oh yes, heh heh. I'm excited. This is going to be the best darn harvest we ever did see!" Applejack kicked her front hoof across her other with charmed confidence, a simple body gesture that illustrated how fool proof the mare could really be.

And then it happened. The rain trickled to a stop. The grass began springing back up its strength. And the clouds above began to part ever so slowly. "Get ready, everypony! Here it comes!" The gray clouds started turning white and as they parted, the first light from the sun could be seen finally giving the morning some identity. It was no longer gloomy. Though the ground was well saturated, it only had minutes to stay wet. The ground burped it's satisfaction from a good drizzle of a good downpour. And the clouds creaked away from each other, the sky parting up like a pack of rodents would once you found them in a dirty closet. The clouds that didn't get away shrunk to nothingness. And all that was left was a bright blue sky, and Celestia's radiant sun shining down on the farm. And then...

There was nothing. No rainbow. No colorful magic. No zap.

Applejack's smile slowly turned into a pensive frown as the seconds became minutes. "Wha-? What's happening? Where's the rainbow? There's supposed to be a rainbow!" Never before had this ever occurred on zap apple harvest day. There was always a magical rainbow that would appear on the morning of the final day and transform the apples into their final form. But why would it be different now? Within the time it takes for a normal apple to be eaten by a hungry pony, Applejack turned from preparing for the best zap apple harvest in history to feeling the intimidation of what could be the biggest zap apple drought there ever was. Applejack started breathing heavily as she tried to figure out what was a miss.

​

[brianblackberry]

Braeburn

Braeburn gave a snarky smile, as both Big Mac and this Harshwhinny appeared to do their best to ignore his pointed inquiry about how the two of them appeared to be as inseparable as two peas in a pod. That was alright, he’ll find out what is happening sooner or later. The goldenrod stallion walked past them towards Applejack, “Ah’ll give y’all two lovebirds some space; ya know miss, Mac here just thinks sunrises are just romantic!” Truth be told, Braeburn had no idea if that was true, but he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to have some fun with his cousin, who in the goldenrod stallion’s opinion, was being far too coy and shy for his own good.

With his little cousin Apple Pie standing on his back, Braeburn trotted over next to Applejack at the front of the group, waving back to the other foals to come up and join him. Bramble Rose was also up at the front of the group, jumping about as giddy as a filly with new bows in her mane - and that slicked mane didn't keep him from looking like that, either, minus the bows. That was alright though, Braeburn didn't judge.

“Here it comes Apple Pie!” Braeburn neighed in excitement as the rays of the morning sun touched the tops of the zap apple trees, slowly bathing them in its warm embrace. Where was the rainbow though? Wasn’t there supposed to be a rainbow? That what was he remembered from his colthood; a rainbow appearing over the orchard that would spark the first zap apple’s cornucopia of colors, causing a cascade of rainbow to jump from fruit to fruit. Where was it? Maybe he was remembering the harvest wrong; it had been many years.

Applejack’s reaction confirmed Braebrun’s suspicions. “Cuzin? Has, has this happen before? Ah don’t recall ever hearin’ about ah zap apple drought before! Is thar anything we can do about it??” All he could think of was all those zap apple orders for Appleloosa he personally came down to help harvest and collect; what would the townsfolk say if he came back emptyhoofed?!

Cheerilee

The mauve school teacher waited, sitting next to Apple Bumpkin, her camera set up in hopes of catching that special moment; it sure was taking a while. The sun came up and illuminated the orchard, Cheerilee took a few shots of the beautiful morning but the apples themselves still remained their unripened gray. Was something missing or did the sun have to be up for a while? She just turned to Bumpkin with an unsure expression of concern, “does it take some time before they ripen in the morning sun?”

[AlisonRose]

-Apple Bumpkin-

Bumpkin sat there looking out at the orchard almost slack jawed at the fact that the Zap Apples didn't change right away. Here she was telling Cheerilee about how gorgeous they were and how stunning it looked when the light passed over them and turned them into full ripe Zap Apples, and nothing.

" 'Ah don't rightly know. They were supposed to have changed bah now." Bumpkin dropped her head down and looked at the floor boards. All of the hard work that everypony had put into this Zap Apple harvest only to not actually get to harvest any zap apples. A few tears trickled down her muzzle as she sat there thinking that Cheerilee must think she is the biggest joke ever now having dragged her to this Zap Apple Failure.

[SunsetSombra]

Well, didn't this beat all?

Mac blinked once, then again...this was absolutely weird as all heck - how in Equestria could the zap apple harvest not be bearing fruit...all of the routines had been performed meticulously, and Mac was as aware of this as anypony else here was. For whatever reason, the apples had defied logical development and stayed blossoms...much to the annoyance of all present - and without any explanations, it was going to make this situation entirely awkward for all involved...already, he could see AJ getting mighty uncertain..

" Ah've never seen this before! " Macintosh says aloud, rubbing his muzzle in confusion. " This sure as hay ain't ever happened before...we should be rollin' in apples right about now, but...well, ya can see for yerselves, somethin' aint right here. Ah'm absolutely flummoxed, thats fer sure! "

He makes a point of ignoring his cousins playful jab - as much as he wanted to make fun of his goldenrod cousin and set the record straight, it just didn't seem right at the moment considering his sister looked real close to a breakdown of sorts, an' Ponyville was looking at a potentially dry Zap Apple season.

There were simply larger things at stake here than his personal pride and relationship choices.

" What d'we do now, Sis? " Big Mac asks, looking to AppleJack - it was really a rhetorical question...because he already knew she clearly was at the same place he was - No answers to be found, and no idea about what the hay to do next!

[Mojo]

"What's all of this commotion goin' on out here?" Granny Smith asked as she galloped over to the rest of the group with Flam following closely behind.

"ACH UNEEMAL!" Uncle Apple Strudel shouted, "someting has gone wrong vith dee next sign of dee zap apples! Look in dee sky und see for yourself, mein sister!"

"But I don't see anything! I don't undestand," Flam added before Granny kicked the lanky unicorn in his side with her hind legs.

"You WOULDN'T understand, bean pole! This here's really strange! Ain't seen nutin' like it in all mah natural born days! What's holdin' up that thar rainbow?"

The sudden panic in Granny's voice prompted Haywire to jump off Big Mac's back and rush over to her.

"Granny Smith, what are ya sayin'?" the blank flank filly asked.

"I'm sayin' if'n thar ain't no third sign of the zap apples, thar might not be any crop at all!"

Overhearing all the chatter going on around her, Ms. Harhswhinney was soon in a state of panic herself. If there was no zap apple crop, then there'd be no more working together with her, dream stallion! This was a disaster in the making!

"There must be some mistake, Miss Smith! There has to be a valid reason for this unfortunate development! Zap Apple trees are magical, correct? Then perhaps we need to consult an expert in magic or the Everfree Forest to discover the reason for this calamity! Quickly! Somepony send for Zecora or perhaps, one of the Princesses! We simply MUST have a Zap Apple crop this season! WE MUST! WE MUST!!! WE MUST!!!!!"

"Y'know squirt, I think that filly's three hay bales short of a load," Granny Smith whispered to Haywire.

[Pretzelparty]

" Eeeenope, everythin' is jus' fi-... " Mac starts to reply, but is then immediately interrupted by an excited chattering.

"Ah'm so excited Ah could grow wings and fly around like a dang Wonderbolt!"

As applebloom made her presence known on big mac's person, Presteza couldn't help but give a little chuckle at the excited filly. The silver maned unicorn smiled playfully at Mac and Abby,"Well li'l filly, if ya do that I'll be sure ta paint such a historic and incredible moment! Anyway I'm glad yer mane's doin' okay mate." Before the young artist could continue the conversation any further she heard Applejack's announcement.

Get ready, everypony! Here it comes!"

​

This was so exciting! Soon that rainbow as gonna come up and be just about one of the most awesome things Presteza had ever seen! her eyes widened with anticipated almost as if she wanted them to grow larger so she could get an even better view of this incredible spectacle once it came. There was a huge ecstatic grin on her face as she waited for the show to begin... any minute now... Really soon for sure!... Seconds had passed and then minutes came by and still nothing! She was about to turn to ask Mac whether it normally took this long but once again Applejack's words caught her attention.

Wha-? What's happening? Where's the rainbow? There's supposed to be a rainbow!"

​

The mare's smile quickly dissolved into a look of terror. What in Equestria was happening?! Even Applejack didn't know why this rainbow wasn't showing up. Was there something wrong with the zap apples? Were the magical disturbances yesterday to blame? The freckled pony gulped in fear as she began to imagine that her mishap and the events that followeed yesterday may have somehow affected the harvest.

EVerypony else was crowding around Applejack and Brambles for the moment, everyone asking what was going on and why it might be happening. That was an excellent question but there was no way there were gonna find out while sitting on their plots in the barn. The mare's thoughts changed form those of anxiety to feelings of determination as she remembered what she came here for and how important this harvest was to Ponyville. Getting up to her hooves she got a head-start and galloped towards the orchard. Before She was out of earshot the mare took a deep breath and shouted to the ponies back at the barn,"OI, EVerypony! Wot're ya sittin' there for? If there's somethin' wrong with the harvest we're sure as hay not gonna find out without investigatin'!"

pressy is only trying to find out whats going on, you still should look to river and aj as to what to do in this situation.

[Bellosh]

Well here was a big bother if ever was one. With Ingrid Marie’s luck, the very first zap apple harvest she participated in was swiftly turning into a major catastrophe. What a peculiar crop, not being able to fully ripen without a rainbow appearing overhead. Personally, Ingrid didn’t really get what was going on. Just why did zap apple harvests rely on the appearance of rainbows anyway? Has the phenomenon of this peculiar form of harvest ever been studied prior to Mr. Rose’s current attempts?

It couldn’t hurt to start asking around; maybe something could be implemented with just a little bit more knowledge of how the zap apples worked. “Pardon,” Ingrid galloped up to Applejack and Bramble with a serene urgency; “But do you two know anything about what role the rainbow plays in ripening zap apples?”

[Twitter]

Apple Susie was relaxing up in the barn with Babs when she noticed the sun was starting to come up. She leaped up in pure happiness and stood at a window to look out at the baby blue morning sky Apple Susie trotted over tpwarss he cousin, "Babs come look the sun is comin' up, the rainbow fo' the apples won't be to far behind!". She then proceeded to trot back over towards the window and saw that the rainbow had actually never arrived with the sun as planned which left the apples looking a dull dirty grey. Susie rubbed her eyes with her hooves hoping that she was just seeing things but pnce she stopped rubbing her eyes she saw that nothing had changed. She noticed that other ponies below were noticing the same thing and a lot of them looked really worried, she even noticed that what seemed to be Braeburn was leading a group of ponies to look closer at the trees. Apple Susie looked back towards Babs and frowned, "Babs what do ya think is goin on?".

[Bramble Rose]

Bramble's smile began to wane as Applejack tensed up ... "Isn't there ... supposed to be-" he started to ask, and then all Tartarus broke loose amongst the apple family.

Quite evidently, something DID go wrong.

He gaped a bit. How ... how could it go wrong? These were expert apple farmers! Performing their family's quite exacting ritual! Bramble had observed every portion of it carefully! He was a little torn. This was obviously a horrible event - the Apple family depended on these apples for their livelihood! He knew from his time with his father's side of the family just how badly a harvest gone wrong could be ... and these were more important than most harvests, both financially and for morale! On the other hoof, a small, scholarly portion of his brain whispered, observing a failed harvest could yield fantastic data... but still bad! Silver lining or no, this was horrible!

"Let me check my notes!" he said, putting the umbrella away now that the rain was gone, and flipping through his notebook. "Ummmm... there was some water being poured on the trees that I never verified for certain was jumped over while wearing bunny costumes and reciting ABCs... we could investigate into that ... perhaps the pig delay on getting the trees all watered created a problem? I'll have to look over the data to know for certain. Could we artificially induce a rainbow by recruiting one of the local pegasus ponies? Has that ever been tried?"

​

[Bellosh]

"Babs what do ya think is goin on?"

Like all the other Apples on the scene, Babs Seed had no clue about what was going on. To have been constantly told that the each sign of the Zap Apple harvest had always come to pass without incident, to see the rainbow not show up made zero sense at all. Where was the stinking rainbow? Without a good answer to give to Apple Susie, all that Babs could say was; “Beats me, let’s try to find out.” Promptly, the filly started weaving her way into the crowd of gawkers.

"Could we artificially induce a rainbow by recruiting one of the local pegasus ponies? Has that ever been tried?"

Out of all of Bramble Rose’s hypotheticals, Ingrid Marie felt that she could only comment on the last one. She wasn’t an expert in weather magic by any stretch of the imagination, but the unicorn knew about some of the more basic concepts. “Well, perhaps it-”

“Rainbows don’t work like thet, hun!”

Flying onto the scene came the resident pegasus of the Apple family, Sugar Apple, who pretty much had stayed out of the limelight throughout the last couple of days. Her ears finely attuned towards any mention of the weather, the mare brought it upon herself to interject into the serious conversation between Ingrid and Bramble with her expert insight; “Ya’ gotta’ brew rainbows in a weather factory like ‘th one ah work at in Cloudsdale, an’ then we ship et t’ ev’ry weather team in Equestria. But we’ve lately drastically cut down on rainbow production, an’ ah don’t know ef th’ local weather crew hyar has enough rainbow t’ go ‘round.”

[SteelEagle]

Apple Bloom could scarcely remember the first time she saw the Zap Apple trees in full bloom. She had been just a little tiny foal who pecked and cooed at the sky as her family went about working the fields for the harvest eying up the zaniest apples she had ever seen as they burst into the world with such vibrancy and energy that it forced the littlest apple to giggle uncontrollably. She grew older and the next harvest was just as breathtaking as she was able to see what came of the most magical of the Apple's produce, the jams and salads and pies and whatever else they could stuff them into. She was hooked just as bad as everypony else with the added stipulation that she wasn't allowed to hog out on it all! And last time she had finally matured to the stage where she understood how important it was to the family and their history. She had become a bigger part of the season and she had earned her keep.

This year, a certain element of the magic was gone. She wasn't sure why. Maybe it was because of the odd timing and the huge numbers of ponies that had come to help the family out, getting everything finished and prepped. It lost a certain familial element, a certain bonding between close family. It wasn't anypony's fault and this year the Apples had needed their help something fierce because of some circumstances but she'd be lying if she said it had been the best zap apple season ever. She hoped that in full bloom the season would once again capture the magic of her youngest days and maybe, just maybe, rekindle a little part of her that had been kept stabled this whole time. It was almost here- almost time- the sun...!

...

Nothing happened. Nothing at all! Apple Bloom stared with mute disbelief, the realization of what happened striking her in small but swift ways that tore down her defenses visibly. In the span of a few moments that stretched on for years she went from bouncing on her big brother to standing slack jawed in horror at what was happening. How- why? Why did this happen!? Everything had gone well enough she thought, all the tasks were done and everypony was feeling really good. Had this ever happened before? Did Granny know? No, Granny didn't know. Nopony knew because it had never happened and it happened during one of her very first harvests! She was sure it wasn't because of her but what if it was? What had happened? In the absence of anything from any of her elders whom she respected, all Apple Bloom could do was feel something grow in the pit of her little belly. A pain, a fear, that this wasn't just a bad roll of the dice, it was an ill omen and she was there to witness it! She hopped off of her brother's back just in time for Harshwhinney to go all cuckoo, but to Apple Bloom it made sense.

"...Yer right! Somethin' magical must be off! But...it's never happened bfore...round up everypony who wasn't here for tha other harvests and get'm out one by one until the rainbow shows up!" She yelled to nopony in particular, shaking her hoof similarly at nopony in particular in a fit of panic.

[Hippo]

The nightmare started to settle in. Applejack's emotions ran higher and higher. The gravity of the situation pulled ponies together all asking the same questions. 'Where are the apples?' 'Isn't there supposed to be a rainbow?' 'Has this ever happened before?' At this time, it all ran together, and Applejack would not have enough composure to address everypony. Instead, she would have to resort to talking to the more intellectual ponies in the bunch in an attempt to solve the problem. Applejack valued all the ponies ability to help the situation should they have an idea. But until that idea came, Applejack required an escape from the bombardment of questions.

Bramble Rose and Ingrid started talking to each other about potential issues and simple steps of figuring out the problem. Bramble would attempt looking at some data he collected. And Ingrid would help in finding a practical solution. Applejack wasn't really as smart as these ponies, but she loved being practical. If only Twilight Sparkle was here, too. "No, this has never happened before, and I'm not sure an artificial rainbow would do any good. We always figured the rainbow came from the Everfree Forest, since everything else involving the zap apples comes from the forest." And she came to join the conversation, Applejack's pegasus cousin who she hadn't really seen all week until now. And she said rainbows don't work that way and that there is a shortage. "Sugar, do you know if any of the rainbows that come from the Everfree take from Cloudsdale's reserves? Is it possible the hold-back on rainbows is causing this issue now?"

Meanwhile, Presteza decided to help in the form of a investigation. It's possible a detail was left out of preparations that prevented the rainbow from appearing. Applejack gave only a slight nod of approval to her as she started to gather ponies for problem solving. Hopefully, between Presteza's investigation team and Applejack's circle of intellectuals, that rainbow can appear and the harvest will being.

​

[Mojo]

"We gotta do somethin' bout this!" Granny Smith neighed, "if'n the cycle of Zap Apple harvests is disturbed, they may disappear from Equestria, furever!"

"Oh no!" Haywire shouted, "we can't let that happen!"

"For once, I agree with Haywire," added Flam, "Surely there must be something we can do about this."

"But VHAT?" Uncle Apple Strudel asked.

"I gotta idear!" Haywire neighed as the blank flank filly pulled out a box from her saddlebags. "I jist whipped up a bunch of mah new rainbow flare firecracker rockets, brung'm with me ta use fer our celebration later on, but maybe we kin use'm ta kinda git the magic ta work agin! Y'know, kinda like the way ya prime a pump ta git water from a well."

"No little filly, I don't think that'd work, but it's nice yur tryin' ta think of a solution like that," Granny Smith said with a smile.

Once again, overhearing the conversation, the panicked Ms. Harshwhinney decided to take matters into her own hooves.

"We MUST save the Zap Apple crop! I say let's do this! I'll do it myself!" the orange pelted mare neighed as she snatched the box of rockets from Haywire and took a gallop up towards a tall hill.

"HAY! COME BACK HERE! THEM'S MINE!" Haywire protested.

The frantic Ms. Harshwhineey reached the top of the hill, opened the box, and quickly lined up the eight firecracker rockets inside, aiming them at the sky and preparing to light them up for launching.

"Somepony must've put some loco weed in her feed today!" Granny Smith yelled out.

"ACH! UNEEMAL! Somepony stop her!" added Uncle Apple Strudel.

"Gimme back mah rockets, ya thief!" yelled Haywire as the delerious Ms. Harshwhinney struck a match.

[brianblackberry]

Cheerilee

Cheerilee was initially at a loss to why the zap apples have failed to ripen, other than it required a rainbow that should have appeared naturally from what Apple Bumpkin and others have told her. The only conclusion she could come up with is that something prevented the rainbow from appearing. What though? The other ponies mentioned a rainbow shortage at Cloudsdale, and indeed it was something the locals in Ponyville have gossiped about a few times lately, but those were pegasus made rainbows meant for parts of Equestria that ponies inhabit. This rainbow was supposed to be from the Everfree, a place where weather phenomenon was beyond pony control, just like the previous weather that preceded each stage of growth of the magical apples.

Cheerilee sat there and re-ran all the previous events in her mind; the signs the others pointed out to her each day. "Well, from what I remember, nothing was amiss weather wise before now. We had the winds and clouds on the second and third day that made the leaves and flowers form, and a meteor shower yesterday morning. Even the storm you all told me would occur this morning happened. Of course no pegasus makes those, right? It is all Everfree magic isn't it? Something must have happened just now that kept that same magic from making the rainbow after the storm; something has to be blocking the rainbow right now, we just need to figure out what it is!"

What, or who. Hopefully the former, the idea there was some consciousness behind the missing rainbow was more scary then just some random circumstance of magic; and it had to be something to do with magic, right? The mysterious forest seems to be permeated with it, and what else could explain how zap apples worked? Cheerilee though wasn't versed in such matters, but some of the others were. "Hopefully it won't be too difficult to find out. We have a skilled weather peagsus with us, and two powerful unicorns who specialize in studying and understanding magic! I am sure we can do this with their expertise!" With her huge smile and cheerful proclamation, Cheerilee sounded like she was attempting to inspire a classroom of foals, but it was all she could think of at the moment, and if worked for her students, surely it will work here.

At least that is what the purple school mare hoped.

She turned to Apple Bumpkin with that same encouraging beam, lifting the downtrodden apple mare's chin with her forehoof to reassure her, "don't worry hon, there has to be an reason, and once we figure it out, we'll figure out a solution, you'll see!" Cheerilee gave an affectionate nose rub before hugging the red maned Apple mare, "we may be able to help too, just have to see what Sugar Apple, Bramble, and Ingrid figure out for us." Zap apples were flora after all, and who better at flora than earth ponies?

Braeburn

The goldenrod stallion ran through his mind all the various rituals the ponies at the farm went through the previous days in an attempt to figure out what went wrong. It quickly dawned on him the various rites such as talking to the bees, jumping over the ate ring cans, and inspiring the jars were really for the jam and didn't affect the growing portion. This left him at a frustrating loss, other than somehow a rainbow was needed to appear to initiate to zap apple ripening.

His cousin, Sugar Apple, mentioned a shortage of rainbows, "cuzin', don't y'all have a few spare, just in case? maybe y'all can convince Cloudsdale to give us one because it's an emergency an' all. Zap apples are ah Equestria treasure, surely they'll see that!" Makes sense didn't it? Of course if that didn't work it meant having to go into the Everfree itself to find out what is wrong! Well if going into the forest is what it would take to fulfill his promise to Appleloosa, then that is what he would do!

A spare Cloudsdale rainbow would be better though, and safer!

[AlisonRose]

-Apple Bumpkin-

Bumpkin took the nuzzles from Cheerilee and turned her frown upside down quick fast and in a hurry. The huge made her feel as if she had hit a second wind or something as she sat straight up and beamed right back at her special somepony.

" 'Ah agree, we'll finda reason fer this fersher." Bumpkin nodded her head as she looked over to the three ponies that Cheerilee had pointed out. She was sizing them up, for what she didn't know. But for some reason she knew that these three would be the key to solving this zap apple conundrum. She nodded her head in agreement with everything that Cheerilee had said, it was a good thing that she had brought Cheerilee with her, her voice and ways of getting anypony off their slump and back at it would also be very important to help keep everyone in good spirits.

"Let's just keep our heads up and we should surely be able to solve this!" Bumpkin almost shouted as she thrust her hoof high into the air as if leading a cheer for the highschool hoof-ball team.

[SunsetSombra]

Well, everypony was officially on edge - the rainbow was missing, zap apples had failed to bloom, and for the briefest of moments, Mac had seen what was tantamount to true fear on his sisters features...the very notion that this could ever happen under her careful watch was clearly something that had never truly occurred to her before/

It seemed as though somepony had brought their own unique brand of crazy with them in addition to the weirdness of the apple mystery - Harshwhinney had apparently lost all sense of reason and stolen a box of firecrackers...intending on lighting them for what probably was the silliest display he had seen of the old mare. Still, he didn't really want to stick his hoof near that situation if he could avoid it, she was difficult enough to handle on her own when she was in a NORMAL state of mind...dealing with her and a box of firecrackers wasnt exactly the best idea, and it seemed as though she was already being seen to by others nearby, which gave Mac a sense of relief - he really, really didn't wanna have to go and handle her one on one, not in this situation and certainly not whilst she was so stubbornly awkward!

He headed over to approach Braeburn and the others to see just how things with them were holding up...braeburn seemed to be trying his best at figuring out solutions, but it seemed a little half baked to simply bring any old rainbow in for this - Mac had no idea for sure, but it did seem like the rainbow that was seen with the zap apples had it's own unique influence, and macintosh wasn't fully certain if he was really aware of the potential of that fact.

For now, though, all he could do was remain the calmest he could be and keep eyes on his sister - for now, AJ seemed like she was holding it together, but he knew that she was probably jus' about as scared as anypony who had had a plan simply fall apart for no reason in the middle of an important event. He couldn't really do a whole lot right now, since it did seem as though everypony was just as clueless as the other...but he was still just as anxious and as concerned as anypony could be, and was keeping his hooves crossed that SOMETHING good came of this sooner rather than later.

[Bellosh]

"Sugar, do you know if any of the rainbows that come from the Everfree take from Cloudsdale's reserves? Is it possible the hold-back on rainbows is causing this issue now?"

“Ah doubt et,” Sugar Apple answered Applejack’s question with authority; “Th’ Everfree Forest has always made ets own weather. Everypony who’s ever tried t’ mess around with th’ climate thar’ has always failed. Believe me, thet forest can make ets own rainbows, just like how et forms ets own storms. But th’ thin’ is, an Everfree storm is still made out of th’ same stuff as regular storms we make. Th’ same principle applies t’ rainbows too-”

“None of that’s going to matter anyway as long as rainbows are in short supply,” Ingrid Marie interjected; “At least, not unless can get all the equipment and supplies to produce our own rainbows in time.” Something Cheerilee said about some unpredicted event happening made the magic counselor think some more, turning her back on the others so the unicorn could concentrate better... and then suddenly, a light bulb turned on her noggin. “Something... must have happened?” Ingrid narrowed her eyes at nothing in particular; “But of course something did happen.”

Ms. Marie dramatically turned back to the group to explain her hypothesis. “The Everfree Forest is a magical place, along with everything else that it implies. For ponies with a background in aetherology like Mister Rose and I, we know that researchers have documented plenty of evidence, that the geography of a certain area affects how magic flows. If you do something like say, change the course of a river, that is enough to change the course of natural magic flows too. Something, something recently, must have disturbed the forest in such a way that it can’t provide any magic for the usual rainbow. If we found out what changed, and then undo it, that rainbow of ours should come back in time to ripen the zap apples.”

Over by the foals, things got pretty testy when Apple Bloom insinuated that it was everypony not in her immediate family unit who were responsible for the crisis. Babs Seed particularly took great offense, as she considered Abby her favorite cousin. The Manehattan filly obviously didn’t cause the rainbow to vanish, and she’d eat dirt before letting other ponies get away with blindly accusing her of wrongdoing. “What makes yah ‘dink us did it? I didn't do nothin' wrong!” Babs stormed in front of Apple Bloom, before pointing an accusatory hoof at her cousin; “What makes yah ‘dink ‘dat it wasn’t you instead?!” The childish way to counter fighting words; well, more fighting words.

[Bramble Rose]

"All right!" Bramble shouted, but his soft voice couldn't get over the babble of arguing ponies. "Quiet down! This isn't helping!" he tried some more, but everyone's volume was rising, and he just couldn't compete. He couldn't even hear everypony - he heard his name a few times, but only snippets of context. Especially with the accents, he couldn't help think of summers with his father's side of the family, and the arguments they could get into. It was one of the most important tasks Granny Añejo had for him, back then... making sure she could get her say in during the fights.

His horn glowed, and a green triangle and striker appeared in the air, ringing loud enough to drown out everypony's voice, so that they couldn't even hear themselves shout, and he kept it up till everypony's eyes were on him.

CLANGA CLANGA CLANGA CLANGA CLANGA CLANGA CLANGA CLANGA CLANGA CLANGA

"Right, gotcher attention, then? This innit helpin'! Y'all stop yer jawin' an' feudin', right now! Put down yer fireworks an' close yer yaps! Mah Granny Añejo used t'say - time enough fer panickin' once th' work's done! What we need now's some experience an' knowledge! SO!"

He turned to Granny Smith. "Granny, y'all've seen more harvests than anypony. What do we do?"

​

[SteelEagle]

Admittedly, Apple Bloom may have overstepped her boundaries but who could blame her? The Zap Apple harvest wasn't just part of the harvest, it was part of what made Sweet Apple Acres...Sweet Apple Acres! Without it, everything felt odd and misshaped like food that was rotting in the grueling sun. The thought that this harvest would be barren and all that delicious zap apple harvest wasted didn't just strike at her pride as an Apple, it tore at her soul as Apple Bloom. It was worse than being eaten by a sapient thorny bramble patch in the Everfree and considering that event had only recently occurred and the nightmares were still fresh, that was saying something. So maybe she was out of line for accusing everypony who hadn't been here the previous harvest and maybe she should calm down. After all, it wasn't like getting some ponies off the land could magically make things better, right?

And then Babs opened her mouth and Apple Bloom wanted to bite her head off just as much! The nerve! She was FROM Sweet Apple Acres! She knew what went on during the Zap Apple season and she wasn't some street wise pony from the big city who probably couldn't farm to save her life, which if she insinuated Apple Bloom was the cause of this she might just have to start doing! Apple Bloom stood mute for a second as the anger rolled over her before it clicked in her brain that life was just not worth living passively all the time. Maybe, sometines, it was okay to be bad. Within a moment she was eye to eye with Babs, forehead to forehead as she bore deep holes through her 'favorite cousin' with a stare with the intensity of Celestia's sun.

"What did you say!?" She barked, an animalistic growl escaping from her. Just before things could get worse though, Bramble took everyone's attention. That momentary pause prevented a fight from breaking out as Apple Bloom hung her hopes on her Granny saving the day...well, at least telling them how to, anyway.

[Hippo]

Applejack huddled lightly with Bramble, Ingrid, and Sugar Apple. Although it seemed good enough that several other ponies were trying to come up with solutions too. What bothered her was that there seemed to be a little bit of reluctance coming from the idea department. They way Applejack saw it, the more solutions you try as fast as possible, the sooner the harvest can begin. If the harvest can begin. Applejack swallowed nervously. "Sugar, you sure you can't spare even the tahniest of tahny rainbows real quick? It might be just enough to turn these apples ripe."

Applejack was impressed with Ingrid and Bramble's intellect and desire to solve the issue. Ingrid in particular, began alluding to the Everfree's magical nature, and suggested that the issue might come from there. "So you think something stopped that rainbow from shining? Do you think we could figure it out?"

Applejack turned to Bramble. "You're the scientific expert. I know there ain't much knowin' about the Everfree Forest, as unpredictable it can be. But is there anything you know about that might be able to help. Any clues that could possibly point us in the right direction of bucking zap apples and making jam for the nation?"

​

[Bramble Rose]

Bramble waited a moment for Granny to come up with a solution ... but at her continued quiet, and Applejack's question, and Ingrid's suggestion, he rubbed at his chin. "Well," he mused softly, his scholarly nature pulling him back to his Canterlot accent, "Well, Rainblooms spring to mind, I suppose. They're rare flowers in the Everfree that sprout sometimes when a rainbow touches down on a specific type of flower. Their inherent nature mixes with the Everfree's chaotic magic to absorb the magic of the rainbow. Once imbued, their phenotypical aspect shifts to a six-petalled blossom, one with each of the traditional colors of the rainbow. Fascinating life cycle, really, but sadly short lived. Good for alchemical potion work, since it's a substitute for rainbows that earth ponies and unicorn ponies can manipulate without requiring special spells or equipment. I actually have several in my greenhouse. Very difficult to keep alive, I had to trade for some liquid rainbows to use as fertilizer, but with the rainbow shortage, I haven't been able to renew my supply, and I've been worrying about losing them..."

​

[Mojo]

"We gotta stop that crazy mare!" Haywire shouted as she, Flam, Uncle Apple Strudel and Granny Smith ran up the hill after Ms. Harshwhinney. The orange pelted Earth mare belted out an evil laugh as she lit all of the wicks on Haywire's firecracker rocket that were aimed straight up into the sky. The fleet rust colored filly reached the top of the hill first, tackling the crazed Ms. Harshwhinney to the ground as all of the rockets launched. "Uh oh!"

"Hey bean pole! Kin ya magic them things back down ta earth?" a galloping Granny Smith asked Flam, who was trotting ahead of her.

"Too late, Granny!" Flam shouted back, "those rockets are already out of range for my own magic!"

"Dat is bad, very bad!" added Uncle Apple Strudel as all of the group now surrounded Ms. Harshwhinney, who was still being held down to the ground by a furious Haywire.

"Them wuz MAH rockets, ya big galoot! You stoled'm from me!" Haywire screamed.

"But now I've solved our problem!" Ms. Harshwhinney yelled out. "Now the Zap Apples will come and I'll get to help harvest them and get to be with Big Mac and NOTHING WILL STOP ME!!"

Instantly, the usually calm and 'professional' jacket wearing mare broke out into manicle non-stop laughter.

"This mare's plumb crazy!" Haywire neighed.

"ACH! UNEEMAL!!!" added Uncle Apple Strudel.

"This poor lady needs professional psychiatric care!" Flam suggested.

"Nonsense! I'll fix'r up with mah old time remedy! Stand her up and hold'r still!" Granny Smith orders as Haywire, Flam and Uncle Apple Strudel stood Ms. Harshwhinney up and held her in place as the orange pelted mare continued her laughing and rambling. Suddenly, the elderly mare put on her Army helmet and then reared back, swinging her right front hoof and slapping Ms. Harshwhinney surprisingly hard on her face. "SNAP OUTTA IT, YA CRAZY IGIT!"

The hard slap instantly brought the blonde mare back to reality. She now wore her usual serious expression.

"Thank you, I needed that!" Ms. Harshwhinney neighed in a very calm, dignified manner.

"Can't believe that worked!"

"Granny knows vhat she is doing."

"Egad! Never knew the old gal had it in her!"

"That was the easy part, everypony. Now we gotta wonder how them thar rockets is gonna effect the Zap Apple magic! That crazy stunt might jist finish all hope we had fir a harvest this season..."

[Bellosh]

“Ah don’t think ah’ll be able to reach Cloudsdale fast enough,” Sugar Apple answered Applejack’s question; “But just maybe ah can convince th’ local weather team hyar to give up what little remaining rainbow they have. Eff them folks knew what was going on, they might be understandin’.” With not much time to waste, Sugar flew off in the direction of where she could find nearby weather pegasi.

Meanwhile, Ingrid Marie believed that Bramble’s guess was as good a guess as any. “You’re inferring that too few rainblooms may have been growing in the Everfree Forest lately, right Bramble? So if we planted some of your rainblooms into the woods, that could bring back the natural rainbows needed for the harvest?” If this theory was correct, then Sugar better hurry up in bringing liquid prism back.....