Twilight smiled with contentment as she tucked Spike into bed. The young drake needed his rest, if only to help fight off that brief cold he’d found himself dealing with. Between staying up through the night to help with Winter Wrap-Up and falling asleep on a chunk of ice, it was no surprise he was under the weather.

She also tried her best not to think about how she was inevitably going to be blamed for Spike falling asleep where he did as she went back down to the library proper. Something told her the only reason Spike wasn’t blaming her, at least not out loud, was because of the inevitable comeback that she’d make regarding his flip-flopping on using her magic.

A knock sounded on the door, and Twilight quickly moved to answer. “Applejack?”

“Howdy, Twilight. Got a minute?” The unicorn stepped outside the library and closed the door behind her as her friend collected herself. “Came by to see how you were doin’. An’ apologize fer that outburst yesterday.”

Twilight gave a reassuring smile. “Applejack, you don’t have to apologize for that. You were under a lot of stress trying to get everything done.”

“Ain’t no excuse, though. You were tryin’ to help, an’ a certain someone went an’ pushed ya in a way that made things worse.” At her friend’s surprised expression, the farmpony explained, “Ah encouraged Spike to give me the full story after you ran off. Ah’d’ve called him a weasel, but somethin’ tells me Fluttershy would’ve protested on behalf of the weasels.”

Twilight nodded in agreement. This conversation, however, was leading her towards very uncomfortable territory. “Applejack, as much as I can forgive what you did, I have to ask something. Is there…” She turned uneasy, as if she were unsure of how to proceed.

“Do Ah have an issue with unicorns an’ magic?”

The unicorn sighed. “Yes. Sorry, I didn’t want to accuse you of something you aren’t.”

“Ah know, an’ Ah appreciate the gesture, but Ah’m a big mare an’ Ah can handle havin’ mah feelin’s hurt, ‘specially when it’s unintentional.” Applejack sat down on her rear to get comfortable. “Ah don’t have issue with unicorns in general, or magic in general. That reaction of mine came from a lotta diff’rent places, an’ not just the fact that it’d been ages since we got the job done anywhere near on time an’ Ah had that hangin’ over me.” She took off her hat and asked, “Ya remember the Hearth’s Warmin’ story?”

“I’m going to assume that’s a rhetorical question.”

The farmpony nodded. “Ah got this relative, an old great-uncle Maker knows how many places removed. Tends to say a lotta stuff that most ponies would dismiss as tribist, ‘specially concernin’ that time’a year. Talk about how unicorns an’ pegasi had unfair advantages over us earth ponies. Asked Granny once why she didn’t stop him from sayin’ that stuff, an’ ya’ know what she said?”

“That he wasn’t wrong?” At Applejack’s surprised expression, Twilight explained, “There’s more than a few unicorns who’ve discussed the Hearth’s Warming story, and brought up how contemporary attitudes among the unicorn nobles contributed to unjust conditions for the earth pony tribes. Those attitudes didn’t really fade after everything happened with the Windigoes, but they were dealt pretty hard blows.”

“No kiddin’.” Applejack shook her head and continued her story. “Granny continued on with her life experiences, how she had to work hard an’ survive dealin’ with all sorts’a dangers both before an’ after settlin’ down an’ foundin’ Sweet Apple Acres. An’ how a lot’ve ‘em involved magic in some way. Taught her that magic was somethin’ to be wary of at best, an’ if’n a pony can avoid usin’ it, then they should.” She shrugged and admitted, “Colored mah viewpoint a bit. All the stuff Ah do ‘round the farm, plus everythin’ for Winter Wrap-Up an' the Runnin’ of the Leaves an’ other stuff, Ah do it with my own four hooves. No wings, no horn, jus’ old-fashioned pony-power. Point of pride for me, too.”

“And there’s nothing wrong with that.”

“Ain’t sayin’ there is, an’ Ah’m glad you agree.” She lifted a hoof and explained, “Ah ain’t stupid, Twilight. Ah know earth ponies have magic too. That what we do ain’t nearly as flashy or impressive as movin’ stuff without touchin’ it or makin’ lightnin’ bolts or whatever, but what we do is plenty important. A farm run by an earth pony is gonna out-perform a farm run by a unicorn or a pegasus, everythin’ else bein’ equal, simply because our magic works better ‘fer farmin’. An’ seein’ that get put down…”

“It hurts.”

“An’ like Ah said, Ah know you weren’t tryin’ to do that. Ah lashed out on instinct, an’ that was wrong.”

“Especially considering there are ponies out there who would put you down just because you’re an earth pony, Hearth’s Warming or no Hearth’s Warming.” Applejack nodded, and Twilight smiled. “I’m glad that you know I’m not one of them.”

The farmpony grinned. “Sugarcube, you got yer flaws, but arrogance ain’t one of ‘em. Buck, even Rainbow Dash ain’t got a head that big.” The two shared a short giggle before she continued, “Anyway, you got us organized. No magic, jus’ you usin’ yer head and playin’ to yer strengths. That ain’t somethin’ to sneeze at.”

“Thanks.” Twilight relaxed, glad to have that weight lifted. “Anyway, now that’s out of the way, there’s something I’d like to talk with you about concerning Winter Wrap-Up. I might have some ideas for streamlining things next year. No magic, just working smarter rather than harder.”

That got Applejack’s attention. “Streamlinin’, huh? Tell me more.”

Winter Wrap Up, as originally written by Cindy Morrow, was not a bad episode in the slightest, and this was written up less because of my issues with it and more because of reaction to the works of other authors.

Firstly, there was a story - can't remember if I found it here or on DeviantArt - where Twilight got chewed out for leaving Spike floating on a chunk of ice and leading to him inevitably getting sick. I agree, she shouldn't have left him there or joked about it.

Second, this owes a lot to the works of Reality Check, and his comments defending Granny Smith and her portrayal in some of the works by Pen Stroke regarding Nyx. Maybe it's just a little hero worship, but the man does present a logical viewpoint, and it's one that I was happy to expand upon here. As for Twilight's idea to streamline Winter Wrap-Up, that's more nodding to Reality Check.

Third, I once saw a fanfic recommendation on TVTropes discussing the reasons for why Winter Wrap-Up was done the way it was done. Didn't read the story, as the description discouraged me. I figured tradition was a simpler reason.

Finally, I had my own little things that I wanted to bring up. We all know that prejudices exist, and that they can be subtle, but people can also be aware of those prejudices and work to overcome them. Having them doesn't make you a bad person, especially if you acknowledge them and work to overcome them.

Anyway, enough soapboxing. Hope everyone enjoyed this installment.