As the clock chimed 11:30, Big Macintosh opened one eye and checked around. He was in his room, and no noise came from the Apple residence save for the occasional snore. Satisfied, the red stallion got up and opened the door to look in the hallway. Nopony else seemed to be awake. Gingerly, he walked towards Applebloom's bedroom door, edging along the wall and avoiding any spots which may creak.

After some time, Big Mac felt safe to enter his little sister's room and tap her gently on the shoulder. On any other day, Applebloom would've woken with a start or a yell of surprise, but the amount of practice that had gone into their act was enough to remove the fear of intrusion. Applebloom slid out of bed as quietly as she could manage. She smiled thankfully up at her big brother, but Big Mac was too worried about something going wrong to indulge himself in smiling back. He merely nodded his understanding before setting off with his little sister trotting behind him.

Most of their escape was uneventful, much to their relief, but Applebloom had forgotten to jump the squeaky stair. The two had to wait a full minute, straining to hear any noises from Applejack's room, before daring to continue their silent journey. They took a detour to the main dustbin, where they'd stored their saddlebags the day before, and then left the house in a hurry.

Once outside, the two ponies breathed sighs of relief. Applebloom looked up to her big brother. "Thank you." Big Mac knew it wasn't only the safe escape she was thanking him for. He had taken care of Applebloom since she was a little filly. He had even been there for her when she had finally earned her cutie mark.

Big Macintosh stared up at the house, and more importantly, the livelihood they were leaving behind. "We're not safe here," he muttered. He saw Applebloom gaze from the house to him, but neither Apple elaborated. Instead, they hugged before setting out towards the forest. They knew they had to reach the Everfree Forest undetected, but this was no small feat with the sun still blazing as if it were high noon.

Big Macintosh gestured for Applebloom to follow his lead, then set out through the orchard. He was not heading directly towards the Everfree Forest, and as he walked he occasionally bucked an apple tree. When he did this, he sorted the fruit into the baskets set at the tree trunks, then moved on. Applebloom stayed close by and mimicked her brother's actions until they were clear of Apple Acres.

Their journey between where Apple Acres ended and Everfree Forest began was short yet hard. Twice they had to dart past a pony looking the other way with barely seconds to spare. It was with great relief that the two ponies burst into the forest.

"Hoi, Apples. Over here, the meeting's about to start." Big Mac looked around to see Lyra waving at him and appearing to be quite cheerful. She had situated herself in a growth of vines and flowers where she had been quite invisible. Once Big Macintosh got a good look at her, though, he noticed she was paler than usual and looked very worried about something, but she smiled invitingly as they approached.

"Hi, Lyra!" Applebloom said as she came level to the unicorn. "You're in on this too?"

She nodded stiffly. "I'm making sure nopony gets lost on the way to Zecora's hut. I'm assuming you'll want directions?"

"Eeyup," Big Mac replied, but his sister shook her head.

"I know how to get there. I know Zecora, remember?" Applebloom pointed in the direction where Big Mac could only assume Zecora's hut was.

"Suit yourself." Lyra shrugged and peered through the tangle of vines to look for more ponies.

As he followed his sister through the dimly lit paths of the forests, Big Mac heard voices up ahead and sped up to hear whom they were from.

"-could've been found! I'm sure they heard something and you know we weren't that well hidden!"

"But they didn't find us, did they? We're still free, we still have it, and nopony will notice it went missing until we've all left for who knows where!"

"But that's not the point! The point is-"

Big Macintosh was startled by an impatient little cough behind him. He turned to see Applebloom pacing at the last path intersection he'd taken. "When you're done with your hike, it's this way to Zecora's."

"Eeyup," he mumbled as he rejoined his sister. He decided not to mention the argument he'd been eavesdropping on.

For the rest of the way there, Big Macintosh wondered who else was going on this journey. If Lyra was coming there would be no doubt Bonbon would tag along. The two were inseparable. Trixie and Zecora had organized the event, so obviously they would want to see it through to the end. Mr. and Mrs. Cake would probably be there if they had the chance. Their lives had taken a turn for the worse since the reorganization of Sugarcube Corner. Berry Punch had expressed an interest, but Big Mac seriously doubted her ability to bypass the guards without outside help.

As Zecora's hut came into view, Big Macintosh could see Derpy Hooves and the zebra herself talking outside the entrance. Mr. and Mrs. Cake were making very forced conversation with a griffin whom he'd never seen before but had heard of from Applejack way back when.

As they filed into the small hut, Zecora and the rest of the ponies followed suit. Apparently they were the last to be accounted for. Lyra and Bonbon were the last to enter the hut. Lyre looked a lot more at ease than when she had greeted Big Macintosh and was chatting animatedly with Bonbon as they sat together. Big Macintosh turned to Applebloom. "You're welcome," he said, smiling.

Applebloom laughed and hugged him again. The hug lasted only a few seconds, yet time seemed to stand still as they embraced, relieved to finally be safe among friends and with each other. For that moment, the years of galloping after Applebloom and keeping her safe were all worth it.

Suddenly, the door swung open. The conversations and laughter died as if all air had been sucked from the room. The two Apples broke apart, glanced in the doorway's direction, and received a shock. There stood three ponies who Big Macintosh knew hadn't been invited. One was a unicorn with a pure white coat, the second was a pegasus with a blue mane, and in the center was a fire-coloured pegasus with a hardened, business-like expression. This third pegasus stepped forward and spoke with authority behind her voice.

"So, what's this about abandoning Equestria?"