40. Apple Picking

"Come on, Marth!" Roy called as he ran towards a large apple tree, a basket hanging on his arm. Eliwood had sent Marth and Roy out to pick some apples off an apple tree near the Pherae castle. Eliwood also promised that when they returned with enough apples, he'd be willing to share some apple pie with them that his maids were planning to make for dessert.

Marth was running after Roy, panting for breath with a basket tucked under his arm as well. I forgot that Roy's faster than me, especially after his training for the Melee tournament, he thought as he walked up the hill. Up there, a huge apple tree sat on top of the hill, with Roy waiting beside it.

"Come on, slowpoke!" Roy called.

Marth chuckled as he finally reached the top of the hill. Placing the basket down on the ground, he looked up at the tree. Hanging on the branches were ripe, juicy red apples. There wasn't a single apple that was rotten or unripe. Staring at them made Marth's mouth water, imagining the sweet taste of the fruit.

Roy approached the tree. Marth stared at Roy as the red-head wrapped his arms and legs around the tree.

"What are you doing?" Marth asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Climbing the tree," Roy replied. "How else could we pick the apples?"

Marth shook his head as he looked up at the tree. Judging by how tall it was, Marth grew worried. "But it's so high up. I'm worried that you'll fall off, especially with you holding that basket."

Roy laughed. "No need to worry, Marth. I can take care of myself." With that, Roy climbed up the tree. The bark scratched up his arms a bit, but Roy ignored the pain as he finally reached one branch containing the apples.

"Roy!" Marth called out. "Are you sure this is safe?! You could get hurt!"

Roy looked down at Marth, and when he saw how high up he was, he suddenly felt dizzy. The redhead shook his head before he called back, "I'm okay! I'll just pick some apples and then I'll get down!"

He turned towards the hanging apples and he reached his hand out to pick one. When he was successful, he placed the picked apple in his basket. After picking a few more nearby apples, he realized that the rest were farther away.

When Roy looked down again, he felt lightheaded once more, but he gulped and continued climbing towards the rest of the apples. As he picked one after the other, the last one was hanging at the tip of the branch. Roy reached out to grab the last apple, not noticing that the branch was breaking.

Marth gasped, his eyes widening when he saw the branch about to snap in half. "ROY! GET OFF OF THERE!" he screamed.

"WHA—?!" Before Roy could react, the branch broke, and Roy fell towards the ground. However, Marth acted fast and he ran under Roy's body, his arms out to catch Roy.

Comically, Roy landed on Marth's body instead, and the two fell to the ground with a thud. The two groaned before Marth spoke up, "I told you so."

Roy, despite being in a bit of pain, chuckled. "Sorry, Marth…"

Roy got off of Marth, and he helped him off the ground. Nearby, Roy's basket was on its side, the apples having spilled everywhere. Roy picked up the basket and gathered all of the apples.

Marth rubbed the back of his aching head, the pain stemming from Roy landing on him. He looked up at the tree again, trying to figure out a way to pick the apples without resorting to dangerous actions.

When Roy was done placing the picked apples back in his basket, he turned to Marth. "Thanks for breaking my fall, by the way," he said with a small chuckle.

Marth chuckled alongside him. "Next time, listen to my advice."

As the two stared up at the tree, Marth spoke, "We need to find a way to get them."

"Yeah," Roy agreed.

That was when an idea popped into Marth's head. With a mischievous smirk, he turned to Roy. "Want a piggyback ride?"

Roy stared at Marth, his eyes wide. "Wh-what?"

"If we work together, we could pick enough apples for the apple pie recipe," Marth pointed out.

Roy nodded. "Yeah...you're right. But a piggyback ride?"

Marth chuckled. "Come on. It's not that bad. Plus, I promise that I won't drop you."

Roy hesitated before he sighed. "All right."

With that, Roy climbed on Marth's shoulders, and he wrapped his legs around Marth's waist. Marth held his friend's legs tightly to make sure that he wouldn't fall off.

Marth walked towards the tree, and Roy managed to pick the apples with ease. In fact, there were so many apples in the lower part of the tree that Roy's basket was full, so Marth had to give him his basket to fill up next.

After a few minutes, the lower part of the tree no longer had apples on its branches. Marth placed Roy back down on the ground, and Roy placed Marth's basket near his.

"Whew…" Marth sighed as he sat down under the tree. "That was hard work, holding you up."

Roy glared at him. "Are you saying I'm fat?"

Marth looked at Roy and smiled. "Of course not," he teased.

Roy chuckled as he sat beside Marth under the tree. The two friends looked up at the apples in the higher part of the tree. Roy felt his mouth watering, thinking about the taste of the apples. In fact, he craved the apple pie that the maids at the castle would make with their bounty.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt his stomach rumble. Marth heard it and he laughed. "Hungry?" he asked.

Roy nodded. "Yeah...all that picking worked up an appetite."

That was when Marth's stomach also growled. Roy smiled. "Sounds like you're hungry as well," he laughed.

Marth smiled as he got up to grab one of the baskets. Pulling out two apples, he offered, "Want to eat some of these?"

Roy raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure? We need to save some for the recipe."

Marth nodded. "We'll just eat a couple."

Marth then returned to the spot he had been sitting in, and he gave Roy one of the apples. Roy took it and bit into it. The taste of the ripe and juicy fruit made the redhead groan. As he took more bites of the apple, he felt his stomach filling up quickly.

Marth smiled as he also bit into his apple. "This tree bears the best apples," Marth commented.

"Yeah," Roy agreed. "When I was younger, my father and I always got them off of this tree. That's why our apple pies were, and are, the best!"

Marth smiled as he took another bite of his apple. "Oh yes. Your apple pies would definitely win against mine in Altea."

Roy smirked and he nudged Marth with his shoulder. "Hey, your apple pies are great!"

"Just 'great'?" Marth asked with a smirk of his own.

The two friends laughed as they continued to eat their apples.

Once they were full from eating a couple more apples, the two grabbed their baskets. "Let's go home. Though I'm not sure if I'll be able to eat supper and dessert after eating those apples," Roy joked.

Marth smiled as the two walked down the hill to return to the castle.

Not only was the apple picking fun for the two, but their friendship also grew stronger.

Constructive criticism is welcomed!

Beta reader: h34rt1lly