Big Mac's hind hoof twists underneath him as he slams down, his front hooves hitting the platform a split second later. The crowd gasps as he yowls in pain; he rolls to the side, flopping off and hitting the ground hard. He cradles his hoof as he clenches his eyes shut, grimacing as he rocks back and forth. A few pegasi take off towards the hospital though many stand rooted in place, others cautiously creeping closer.
"Big Mac!" Applejack's agonized yell resounds through the town as she dashes over to her fallen brother. "How bad is it?"
"Big Mac!" Rainbow Dash echoes from the air, a hairpin turn immediately spinning her launch around and zooming back to the ground. "You okay?"
Big Mac grunts as he stops shaking, slowing his breathing to a deep, measured pace. "Ah'll live," he forces out, gingerly rolling to his barrel as many of the spectators gather close. He winces as he pushes his forelegs up, dropping back down as he rubs the side he fell on. The pain there hurts, and he doesn't want to put any weight on his hind hoof if he can help it.
"Ya sure you don't need any help?" Applejack asks tenderly, her hoof wavering before resting on Big Mac's withers. "Do we need to get you to the hospital right away?"
"I'm sorry!" Rainbow Dash bawls, tears streaming out of her eyes as she stares at Big Mac's twisted hoof. She wraps her forelegs around Big Mac's neck, soaking his mane as she sobs, "I'm so sorry! Please, I'll do anything to make it up to you!"
Big Mac winces as Rainbow hugs him, awkwardly patting her on the back, "Ain't your fault, Rainbow, Ah just landed wrong on it. It'll be okay."
"But, Mac, what are we gonna do about the orchard? Ah'll barely be able to keep up with my half, and everypony's going to be busy on their own farms to come and help us." Applejack pitifully sighs as she finally tears her gaze away from her brother to look at the hundreds and hundreds of apple trees, all heavily laden with fruit. "Ah... Ah can't-"
"Applejack, it'll be okay," Big Mac repeats himself as he pulls her close, now sandwiched between two mares. "It ain't the first time we've had to leave a bit of fruit on the trees." He sighs as Applejack bursts into tears, a slight eye roll that his sister seems more concerned about leaving fruit to rot than his own injury. Well, he'd be a bit overwhelmed at the thought too, come to think of it, if the situation was reversed.
"I can help!" Rainbow exclaims, pushing slightly away from Big Mac, though she shies down a little at his questioning gaze. Rainbow Dash solemnly nods, her hoof crossing her chest before landing on her eye, "I will make sure all of Big Mac's harvesting gets done by the end of the week!"
"Don't ya think you're biting off a bit more than you can chew?" Applejack says, raising an eyebrow at Rainbow Dash.
"Are you saying that my mouth is making promises my legs can't keep?" Rainbow Dash grunts out through clenched teeth, pawing at the ground as she glares at Applejack. Her voice mimic's Applejack's drawl, "This is your herdmate Rainbow Dash! The loyalest of friends? And Ah can buck an apple tree as good as any earth pony, and twice as fast!"
"No," Applejack says as patiently as she can manage, stifling her comment that the only time Rainbow Dash has 'harvested' apples is either when she crashes into a tree or when she wakes up from a nap in one and gets a quick snack. "Ah'm saying there's more to bucking trees than just picking the fruit clean. They ain't gonna be rejuvenated for next harvest, and it'll be more work for me than Ah'm able to spare!" Applejack sighs to herself, her voice much quieter but still audible, "Ah was gonna go to each tree, before the harvest starts and the fruit ripens, and try to pause their growth 'till Ah'm able to get around to it, or Big Mac is better."
"Well, Sis, maybe Ah can help there," Big Mac says, trying to put a little weight on his hind leg. His stifled scream of pain doesn't go unnoticed by anypony, the two mares looking up with worry, though he continues to try to get his point across regardless.
Applejack says as she watches Big Mac struggle with the words, "Ah think we should get you to the doctor, regardless." Big Mac grunts before he nods; Applejack grabs the wagon she had used to haul the wood earlier, two of the unicorns levitating Big Mac up. Applebaum struggles to climb into the wagon, Rainbow lending a wing to lift the young mare inside.
Big Mac continues as Applejack straps herself in, Rainbow Dash riding along with him and helping stabilize his leg, "Ah won't be able to buck trees, not like this. But, Ah should be able to rejuvenate them after Rainbow is done harvesting."
"Maybe Ah can help, Rainbow!" Applebaum says, beaming up at Rainbow and Big Mac. "And Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo too!"
"Yeah, but you all have school. And, I hate to say this, probably homework. You can't devote every minute to fixing this like I can!" Rainbow Dash nods, though it turns to a gulp as she catches a glimpse of the apple orchards to the west. Maybe she would need all the help she can get.
"You have a job, too, Rainbow," Applejack calls from the front of the wagon over the sounds of the wheels.
Rainbow snorts in derision, "I can finish that in ten seconds flat! It's all waiting around for the right time, anyway. Easy peasy."
The wagon rolls up to Ponyville General, Nurse Redheart waiting for them outside. She sighs exasperatedly, "Alright, Rainbow, what happened this time?"
"To me? Nothing this time," Rainbow says with a bit of a frown, motioning towards Big Mac. "I think we're looking at some suspensory ligament damage on the right hind hoof, likely a fracture as well, but I haven't done any serious diagnosing. Some bruising on the ribs on his right side, but nothing too serious there." She glances at Big Mac, "Anything else?"
"Nnope."
"Wow, Rainbow, you get injured a lot or something?" Applejack says with a smirk, unhitching herself and helping Nurse Redheart as she wheels a stretcher over.
"Well, yes, but, it's part of the search and rescue training for weathermares. Basic first aid and diagnosing, in case we spot a pony in distress and need to help them out. Since not many ponies can lift another pony by themselves, and, um, I'm not built for that, we have to know how to figure out how much they can help without injuring themselves further." Rainbow Dash helps Big Mac shift to the stretcher, "Why?"
"Just something Ah didn't know about you, that's all," Applejack says. "Ah guess Ah'm glad it hasn't come up more often."
"Heh, me too," Rainbow Dash lightly chuckles, rubbing her mane. "So, why do you have so many apples to harvest all at once, anyway?"
"Just a bit of an earth pony tradition is all," Applejack says, pushing the stretcher for Nurse Redheart and glad for some sort of distraction from the reason they are at the hospital. "Every year we try to see who can harvest the most apples in one week. You've got eight hours each day, for seven days, to buck as many apples down as you can. And you have to bring them out of the orchard and to the barn as well, though other ponies can help with the sortin' and cratin' if that's what you're gonna do with 'em."
Rainbow says, puzzled, "Why eight hours? And is there no oversight? How can you tell if somepony got help or not?"
Applejack glares at Rainbow Dash, "Ah'm offended you would even think that! Ah mean, are you saying one of my kin would cheat on a friendly competition like this? We Apples ain't like pegasi, Rainbow Dash!"
"Hey!" Rainbow Dash exclaims, pushing forward to return the glare, "Just bec-"
"No arguing in my hospital!" Nurse Redheart calmly commands, her quiet tone immediately silencing the two. She takes over from Applejack, pushing Big Mac into one of the x-ray examination rooms. Nurse Redheart whispers to Big Mac as the two take seats inside, "Now, is there anything wrong you would like to tell me that you don't want those two fine mares to know about?" She drops down, batting her eyelashes, "Or am I going to need to do a full examination?"
"N-Nnope," Big Mac stammers, shyly looking to the side.
"Cognitive function is normal," Nurse Redheart says, her professional tone immediately returning. "Does your side hurt, or your hoof? Any pain you would like us to help with?"
"Ah can manage," Big Mac says, shaking his head, though the motion causes him to wince.
Nurse Redheart smiles, "Well, let me know if that changes." She takes Big Mac's hind leg, tenderly pressing from the top and working her way down. She frowns as she gets close to his hoof, noting the swelling. "Well, I'm going to take an x-ray before I say for sure, but from the looks of this you're looking at the two, three weeks of recovery. More if there is a break and not just a fracture."
"Three weeks?" Big Mac forces out, his mind going to the orchards and all the work that needs to be done around the farm.
Nurse Redheart turns to Big Mac, "And if I didn't know exactly how well you'd take it, I'd recommend confining you to bed rest."
Big Mac violently shakes his head, ignoring the resulting pain, "Nnope."
"Hey, a week in traction can't be that bad," Rainbow Dash says from the sidelines. "It'd be like a vacation!"
"Oh, really?" Applejack snarks back. "Ah'd like to see you sit still for an hour, much less a week. They'd have to strap you down or you'd be pinging off the walls."
Nurse Redheart snorts, "Look. I know how important the next two weeks are, being an earth pony myself. So, I'll make you a deal." She moves over, looking Big Mac in the eyes, "You stay off that leg, and I won't confine you to a hospital bed. We'll put the leg in a cast, but you won't be able to put any weight on it. And you especially can't buck any trees. Not even with just one leg. The chance of you losing your balance and falling over and worsening the injury is too much. Got it?"
"Eeyup."
"Good." Nurse Redheart smiles, "That reminds me. There was a journal article about a new wheelchair design. Let's see, let's see..." She sets up the x-ray as she tries to recall the article, motioning for Applejack and Rainbow to get behind the lead screen. One black and white image posted to the wall later and Nurse Redheart leaves the room, quickly returning with the magazine in question. She displays the image, a fairly simply strap around the waist connected to a pair of wheels with two bars, one an axle and the other a bar to rest hooves on. "Here we go. I know how active you can be, so this particular design will help you get around the farm quickly while staying off those hooves of yours. We'll have to see about getting one in your size sent here, but we should have it in two or three days or so."
"And if Ah just want to walk around?" Big Mac says, peering at the picture. He could see himself in the wheelchair, moseying around the farm, but it might be difficult to imbue the trees. Especially if he has to touch the trunks; he might roll right away from it as he stands up!
Nurse Redheart shrugs as she packs away the equipment. Those Apples could be so stubborn if they wanted to! "Well, nopony's forcing you to use it." She motions to one of the nearby hospital rooms, "But I will force you into one of those beds myself if you aren't careful out there!"
"Eeyup!"
"It'll be a little while before the doctor is ready to examine the x-rays," Nurse Redheart says, "So you are free to keep Big Mac company if you'd like. Or, I can send someone to Sweet Apple Acres when we know more, if Big Mac isn't able to make the trip himself."
Rainbow Dash steps forward, resolutely saying, "I'll stay with him." She glances over to Big Mac with a smile, "I owe him that much, at least."
Applejack's worried look is replaced by relief, the internal debate between family and the necessary work solved by Rainbow's declaration. "Thank you, Rainbow," Applejack says, "Ah'll be real busy over at the farm, especially if Ah'm doing this big lug's chores, too."
Rainbow Dash's face falls at the reminder, "Thanks, Applejack. Thanks."
"Aww, don't you get your mane in a twist. Ah'll be fine." Applejack smirks as she heads to the door, "Ah reckon it'll be harder keeping up with Big Mac once he's hankering for hard work."
"Well, it still doesn't make me feel any better about this." Rainbow Dash pouts as Nurse Redheart and Applejack leave the room. Her pout quickly fades, proclaiming, "This will be the easiest Applebuck Season you've ever had!"
Big Mac deadpan stares at Rainbow Dash for several seconds. "You have no idea what you're doing, do you?"
Rainbow Dash snorts, "Please! I got this!" before she looks out the window, trying to hide her grimace from Big Mac.