When I'm Old and Grey: Chapter Four

Love makes your soul crawl out from its hiding place.

Zora Neale Hurston

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NOTE: I worked VERY hard on this and the others chapters, if you could PLEASE rate, follow, track or spread this, I would be the happiest pony in the world! <3

Big Macintosh felt strangely warm. A soft gentle wind blew through his mane, refreshing him. The soothing midday sun beat down on him in a pleasant way, making him feel alive and ready to start working again. Water babbled in a brook somewhere, giving the very atmosphere a peaceful feeling. He wondered if this was what heaven felt like.

As he opened his eyes, sun shone in like a torrential waterfall, burning his unfocused eyes. He cringed as his eyes fought the sunlight, trying to rebel and close again, but he pushed through. He tried to stand, expecting to feel weary and broken from a journey he couldn't remember very well, but to his surprise, his muscles felt as if they had just been created anew. As he stood, his brain struggled to reboot, his memories like leaves falling from the apple trees. As he looked around, white fog ate at his vision, pulsing with his heartbeat, trying to overtake him and put him back to sleep, but he refused to let it, forcing the fog away slightly with willpower alone.

Something deep inside him felt wrong. Like it was trying to warn him. A sense of foreboding and impending doom came over him very suddenly, nearly making him nauseous.

As he looked over the scene surrounding him, the feeling went away, simply leaving him with an emotion of wonder and magnificence. The garden was perfect.

Birds flitted beneath the thick foliage, looking for seeds or berries to feed on. Water tumbled across a cliff side to his right, creating a beautiful waterfall that seemed to disappear into the ground. Long grass, overgrown and wild, sprung up everywhere, carpeting the forest floor in a massive cushion of flora. Sunbeams danced through the gaps as the wind buffeted the trees lightly, giving the already wonderful garden an even more surreal feel to it. Strangest of all was the small fountain that seemed to spring up in the middle of it all, nestled in the shade of the forest, spewing out water lightly, forming a small stream that had cut its way through the grass and rock below. Big Mac figured that it would have taken thousands of years for such a formation to occur.

He took one hoof and set it in front of the other, testing his steps and walking. Like everything else, his body responded to the steps perfectly, and his legs felt like they could walk on clouds.

As he slowly began his walk to the center of the forest, guided by some strange feeling that rested in his subconscious, a gentle tune began to play in his head, almost like surround sound.

The tune whispered and cooed to him softly, sounding like wind chimes in an unbelievably soft wind. He followed the advice they whispered into his head, and walked deeper into the forest.

How did he get here? Was this heaven? The afterlife? Celestia's final creation?

These thoughts plagued him as he followed the tune, but slowly drained from his mind like water from a canteen.

The shadows of the trees enveloped him, bringing him into the comfortable warm darkness of the garden, protecting him from everything outside this world, keeping him safe. His legs whisked him along, almost against his will as he struggled to place what was actually going on, with what he knew.

The hike up the mountain.

Suddenly, like a train hitting him, Big Mac was jolted, his hooves losing feeling and a cold bitter wind biting at his neck and face. Just as suddenly as it came, it ended, the cold again replaced with that comfortable warmth.

Even though his body was docile and warm, his mind still remembered the jolt like a bullet to his hind-quarters. He struggled to return himself to a fully awake state as his legs resumed their fanciful walk to the garden. The fountain.

THE FOUNTAIN THE FOUNTAIN WATER WATER!

The tune suddenly cheered to him in it's strangely understandable tone.

However, it was too late, Big Macintosh was already forcing himself to remember more of his previous life.

Derpy! His brain screamed at him, knocking him back into the coldness of wherever he came from, the white snow and ice trying to pull him back, with the same result, his docile warm feeling returning once more.

As Mac tried to conjure up more memories, the chimes began to get louder and louder, threatening to deafen him. As he forced himself to remember the past, he felt an increasingly malevolent entity growing in the garden.

Applej- His mind began, but was cut off by a jolt that send him tumbling backwards.

STOP The tune commanded, taking on a completely authoritative tone, Memories mean death.

Big Mac tried to stand up again, but was quickly whipped into the air by invisible hands, carrying him to the fountain.

"What do you want!" He screamed, questioning the tunes motives and feeling afraid for the first real time in the garden.

The tune just continued to carry him like a cloud in the breeze. He felt no pressure of hands, or the tingling of magic, only the air it self levitating him. The tune carried him to the fountain, softly and gently laying him in front of it. He felt relaxed, loose, limp.

Big Macintosh... The air breathed to him, trying to get him to listen, The tune wonders why?

Against all rationality and higher-brain function (both of which he was severely lacking at the moment), he answered "The Tune".

"Ah'm..." He struggled to move his mouth as the relaxation became too much and he began to think of home, "Ah'm here for... a wish... er... I think..."

Another cold jolt brought him to his senses, shocking him into the upright position.

The tune is keeping you here. Don't let the past take you home. To death. The Tune said to him, somehow warning him of the dangers of his memories, Tune knows you want wish, and Tune will grant you wish.

There was a dark pause as the tune quieted to a small chime and deep hum.

Tune wants to give you wish, but Tune wants you to know trade. It breathed to him again, its melody soothing his troubled mind, Does Macintosh accept trade? Tune must know...

Big Mac just stood there in a daze. His brain felt fuzzy and slow, like after he had too many mugs of Grannies SPECIAL apple cider. Suddenly waking himself up (at least partially) from his daze, he addressed "Tune" half-consciously.

"Hay yes I accept!" He said with a passion, letting his heart open to a beast or entity that he had met moments before, but who seemed to know all about him, "Ah love her! Ah love her! Ah really do love that mare!"

As Mac babbled like a baby, the tunes tone changed, something darker and more evil than before.

Tune is sad. Tune would have liked to keep you here with Tune right now, to live together with Tune, but unfinished business Macintosh does have that Tune can not follow. So Tune will give you wish. The Tune said with a deep bass vibrating through Big Mac.

As Macs world began to crumble, white breaking through the foliage, ice raining from the sky, wiping away any trace of the Garden, he heard the tune chime out one final "sentence".

Tune awaits Big Macintosh returning to Garden

With those final cryptic words, the green world gave away to a hell of ice, snow and cold, shocking his body and mind back into unconsciousness.

= = =

Derpy couldn't breath, her body locked up in a stare of disbelief and pain. Applejack had brought her into another room, trying to explain to Derpy exactly what happened to Macintosh.

She explained how Big Mac had told her all about their relationship, and how he bragged about what a wonderful marefriend he had managed to find. About how he would lay with Derpy all night, just so she could feel safe. About how he didn't talk much, but when he did, he talked about her. Derpy just sat and listened in silence as the information sunk in, forming a deep layer of emotional sediment.

"One day he jus' randomly said he couldn't take it anymore." Applejack had gone on, "About how he couldn't handle his beloved marefriend sad any longer."

She explained that he searched day and night to find something, a miracle even, to make you happy. As Derpy's tear hung heavy in her eyes, and heavier in her heart, Applejack went on, no sign of stopping.

"When he said he wanted to find this crazy "Wishblossom" Ah told him he had lost his marbles! That he had gone completely loco!"

Applejack had tried to stop him from doing something stupid, but his heart was set on trying to cure Derpy's unhappiness, and nothing seemed to deter him from that task. Not cold, nor heights or distances.

"Ah sent him up there with enough food to last two days, some bedding and a super-warm coat that Rarity had worked up for him, but Ah'm starting to worry." Applejack went on before pausing to think, "Awh hay, who am I kidding, Ah AM worried about him! Probably as worried as you are!"

Derpy just stood there, her tears not quite falling yet, but as she thought of what Big Mac looked like right now, eyes lifeless, mouth frozen in a freakish sneer of death, her head began to bob ever so slightly, betraying her control. Her face remained the same, her mouth wide open, but her eyes squinted shut as tears began to flow from her convulsing form. Unable to move, but every bit able to cry, Derpy stood there.

"Now, you listen to me Derpy..." Applejack said in her strongest voice, "He's mah brother too, and..and Ah love him SO much...and..."

Applejack's tears began to flow as freely as Derpy's, betraying her normally strong and capable demeanor for that of a small filly who had lost her best friend.

"We're going...going to find him Derpy!" She said between sobs, "I promise you that! We ALL are going to find him!"

As Derpy kept her eyes tightly shut, tears and emotions seeping through like water through a crack in a dam, she felt a warm pair of forelegs around her, trying to comfort her and hold her tight. Applejack was embracing her in a moment of co-loss, seeking comfort from Derpy as much as Derpy was seeking comfort from her.

As Derpy wrapped her forelegs around her, she stuttered out a few teary words.

"I'm so sorry Applejack," Derpy began, sobs racking her body again, "it's all my fault!"

"No, no no no Derpy..." Applejack shuddered, trying to speak Derpy away from that those thoughts, "None of us saw it coming, we never-"

Suddenly a blue head shot around the edge of the door. Rainbow Dash peeked in on their intimate moment.

"Hey, we really don't have time for this!" She informed them, a hint of desperation in her voice, bringing it up an octave at "this", "I mean, every second we spend here is another second he's up there!"

Applejack let go of Derpy, wiping away her tears and replacing them with drops of pure anger.

"Ah ought'a sock you right in the mouth for doing that to us!" Applejack screamed as she marched Rainbow Dash out of the room, Derpy following in pursuit, "You little suckling filly, don't you-"

Applejack stopped and looked around at the rest of the group nervously, who had gathered in the main room of Sugercube Corner and were now waiting anxiously to get moving.

"Rainbow Dash is right Applejack," Twilight interjected as Applejack pressed into Rainbow Dash's personal space, causing the cyan mare to recoil, almost hurt, "if we don't go now, we're going to lose the sunlight and get caught in the dark before we can do anything useful."

Applejack knew she was right, so she put her hoof down and sighed, apologizing to Rainbow Dash, who forgave her immediately, stating that she felt what she was going through.

"Ok, Ah'm ready." Applejack finally said, trying to hold back her tears a bit longer, for everyone's sake.

Twilight took change, just like she always did.

"Ok, listen up, here's the plan." She stated, ready to tell everyone her multi-staged plan, just like Twilight was known for.

As Twilight explained her ideas, each one focusing on a specific pony, Derpy considered just staying back and waiting for Big Mac return.

She mentally slapped herself at the thought.

He's YOUR stallion, YOUR lover! Her heart screamed at her, Have some courage!

= = =

Rainbow Dash flew at full speed towards the mountain that was now a swirling vortex of ice and snow, guiding the way for the Weather-Team behind her. The storm circling the mountain seemed to get worse with every passing minute ,as it usually did when winter came around in Equestria.

The air grew colder with every wing-beat, reminding her of the unfortunate fact that she had nothing even remotely useful to wear due to her flying status and wings, all while her best friends were bundled up in massive parkas. SHE was the one up in the cold air!

She risked a look behind her as they approached the mountain, and through the ever growing fog and cloud-cover, she spotted her friends, all strapped in tight to the makeshift metal case they had constructed. The metal case looked more like an over-sized sled with walls than anything, housing 5 strong brave ponies lined up single file in the bay of it. It was cold, it was rustic, but with 6 Weather-Team ponies, rope, and some luck, it flew faster than they could gallop.

Twilight spotted the cyan pony though her thick winter goggles, giving her a short hoof salute before yanking it back in to keep warm. A few other squads of Weather-Team ponies had joined in in the search and rescue, happy to help find Big Mac and bring him home safe and thawed.

As the wind began to pick up, Rainbow Dash figured she should say anything she had to now before the background noise got too rough.

Flying a few meters ahead of the sled, she called back to her friends.

"I want you to know that I'm with you guys as much as I possibly can be on this one," She screeched back, trying to convey legitimate emotion to her friends before they went headfirst into a dangerous situation, "and that I will really REALLY miss you guys if you don't come back!"

Twilight nodded, giving her another quick salute to signal that she had heard.

Rainbow Dash was suspicious.

"And if you don't come back, I'm burning all your books to keep warm this winter!" Rainbow Dash screamed at her, twilight giving her another salute, obviously not knowing a word the pony was saying, "Oh brother..."

As Rainbow Dash neared the swirling tornado that was the mountain, she braced herself for the impact. Flying into a storm was always difficult, and she couldn't afford to mess this up. As she hit the grey rotating wall, she felt as if the wind had been knocked out of her. The storm was stronger than expected, and now Rainbow felt the ever-so-rare feeling of danger in her stomach.

As the other two weather teams took positions in front of the sled, trying to clear a path through the storm, Rainbow Dash could see it was a losing battle. She swooped down nearer to the sled, trying to warn her friends.

"You have to let it down!" She warned the squad carrying her friends frantically, "You need to land! Now!"

Her frantic screaming may have been lost on her friends, but the weather-team heard it just fine. They began to descend to the near invisible ground below, ready to drop the sled off and return to the relative safety of OUTSIDE the storm, where they would wait and attempt to slow it down for the 5 ponies below.

Rainbow Dash took one last look at her friends as her team dropped the sled off on a relatively flat part of the mountain, hoping to Celestia that she wouldn't be the one to recover their bodies in the spring.They soon disappeared into the grey and white mass that was the storm, and she was left alone, attempting to find her way out.

Until Twilight sent the signal spell, she would desperately try to keep the storm in check with the Weather-Team Squads, all the while wondering what horrible fates were befalling her friends down below.

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I know! Cliff hanger after cliffhanger! Don't worry! Resolution comes tomorrow (at least, for a certain while)!

You know the drill! any errors or spelling mistakes, feel free to let me know! Comment on it and rate it pwease :3

Things to look for:

-Plausibility of conversations.

-Grammar

-Plot-holes

-etc

So thank you for reading so much of the story! You have no idea how much it means to me :)

Anyways! 2:04 Am! Bedtime!

<3 Love you guys <3