Scootaloo woke up the next morning and yawned and stretched, she looked and saw Apex was gone,
"Apex?" Scootaloo asked, she got out of bed and took her pajamas off,
"Apex?" Scootaloo asked as she walked around her home,
"Apex, where are you?" Scootaloo asked as she continued to search her home, she soon walked outside,
"Apex?" Scootaloo asked as she walked around her front yard, she looked and screamed when she saw Apex,
"Apex!" Scootaloo said, Apex woke up and looked at her,
"What are you doing in the tree?!" Scootaloo asked,
"I'm not comfortable in a bed." Apex replied,
"Why not?" Scootaloo asked,
"It's not high enough off the ground." Apex replied, the two heard walking and Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty walked out of their home,
"What's the matter, Scootaloo?" Aunt Holiday asked, Aunt Holiday was wearing a yellow long-sleeve shirt and a yellow night hat while Auntie Lofty was wearing a light pink long-sleeve nightgown, the two saw Apex in the tree, Aunt Holiday exclaimed and put her hoof over her own mouth,
"Oh, my goodness." Auntie Lofty said,
"Come down here, Apex, everypony will freak out if you sleep in the tree every night." Scootaloo said,
"I can't sleep up here?" Apex asked,
"No, now come on, Apex, come on down." Auntie Lofty said as she flew up to get him, she grabbed him and flew down,
"We have to get ready for the day, Apex, so feel free to look around the yard, and go explore Ponyville, since Scootaloo has to go to school today, so go out and try to make some friends." Aunt Holiday said, and she went into her home with Auntie Lofty and Scootaloo.
Apex took his trash bags out of the ground and took out fish, he began eating them and spat out any fat and bones in his mouth, he ate loudly and chewed with some of the meat hanging out of his mouth, he finished and began eating his roasted locusts next, Apex smiled while he chewed them and enjoyed hearing the crunches, he got full and soon finished having breakfast. Apex walked around and was reeled up on his hind legs, he walked like a bipedal creature while carrying his trash bags in his front hoofs,
"Wait, is that?" Apex asked as he ran to it,
"Sweet, a toothbrush tree." Apex said, and he took a knife out of one of his trash bags and cut off a piece of it, he trimmed the bark off of one end and held it in his mouth. Apex put the knife back in his trash bag and carried them back to Scootaloo's home, he sat and began rubbing the stick on his teeth, Scootaloo came out of her home shortly afterwards,
"Breakfast's ready..." Scootaloo said before she exclaimed at seeing what Apex was doing, Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty walked wearing their regular attire to see what was going on,
"What are you doing now?" Scootaloo asked,
"This stick is from that tree over there, that's a toothbrush tree, you can use it to strengthen and clean your teeth." Apex replied,
"But we just made breakfast." Aunt Holiday said,
"I already ate." Apex replied,
"Oh, well, you still shouldn't go around with that stick in your mouth, you'll gross out a lot of ponies." Auntie Lofty said, Apex looked down,
"Come on, Scootaloo, eat your breakfast, you'll be late for school." Auntie Lofty said, and they entered the house. Apex opened one of his trash bags and put on an outfit, he heard the door open about twenty minutes later and he saw Scootaloo walking out with a saddlebag, Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty said bye to her while Scootaloo waved at them, she stopped and looked at Apex's outfit, he was wearing a black trash bag over his upper body, a jacket with the upper part having white fur on it, the lower part being made from black leather, the upper half of the right sleeve was made out of red cotton, while the lower half was made out of dark purple cotton, the upper half of the left sleeve was made out of blue cotton, while the lower half was made out of dark orange cotton, the top part of his pants were made out of blue denim, and the trouser legs down from his knees to his hoofs were dark red cotton sleeves of a blazer hoof sewn onto the pants, he was also wearing the four bottom parts of his plastic bottles on his hoofs as shoes that were secured on with rope, and the silver cooking pot on his head as a hat. Scootaloo and her aunts looked at him with dropped jaws,
"What are you wearing?" Scootaloo asked,
"I always wear this outside." Apex replied,
"But... what is with your shirt and pants?" Scootaloo asked,
"They're trash from the woods I lived in, I just found them, sewn them together with the fur of the animals I hunted, and made them." Apex replied,
"Is that a trash bag you're wearing?" Scootaloo asked,
"It's a poncho, trash bags are waterproof." Apex replied,
"What about that pot on your head?" Scootaloo asked,
"It's to keep my head cool, protects me in the rain, too." Apex replied,
"But... what about those plastic bottles on your hoofs?" Scootaloo asked,
"Makeshift shoes, the town near the woods didn't have any to protect my hoofs from stepping on sharp objects." Apex replied,
"You can't go into Ponyville wearing that, you look ridiculous." Auntie Lofty said,
"As I said, I had to improvise." Apex replied,
"*sigh* Head on to school, Scootaloo, you're going to be late, and as for you, Apex, try not to cause trouble, Holiday and I have work to do, too, so we won't be available for some time." Auntie Lofty said, and she and Aunt Holiday went into the house while Scootaloo walked to the school. Apex picked up his trash bags and walked around, he looked and saw the Everfree Forest,
"Sweet, a forest." Apex said, and he ran to it.
Scootaloo was in school and working, she had trouble focusing on her work while she worked in class as she remembered what her parents said,
"Scootaloo, don't take Apex to school, his behavior will get him in a lot of trouble." Mane Allgood said in Scootaloo's mind, she worked on her assignment while thinking about Apex,
"Scootaloo?" Cheerilee asked, Scootaloo became startled and looked up,
"Are you okay?" Cheerilee asked,
"Yeah, I'm just a little tired." Scootaloo replied,
"Really? Ya don't seem tired." Apple Bloom said,
"Yeah, you've been shaking a bit while you write." Sweetie Belle said,
"Sorry, a lot's been on my mind recently." Scootaloo replied,
"Did something happen yesterday?" Cheerilee asked,
"My mom and dad came home to visit me, and they talked about how they met these foals that are homeless and have no parents." Scootaloo replied,
"Oh, I see, well, it's unfortunate, but yes, there are some areas in Equestria where foals have no home nor any parents, Princess Celestia is trying to the best of her ability to have them taken care of." Cheerilee said,
"Well, my parents were talking about helping them, so they'll be gone again to tend to them." Scootaloo said,
"I'm sorry to hear that, but try to focus, Scootaloo, you still have to do your class work as homework if you don't finish." Cheerilee replied, and Scootaloo tried to work. Scootaloo worked and sweated while thoughts about Apex in Ponyville rushed through her head, she saw Apex eating the pages in Twilight Sparkle's books, digging through other ponies' trash for items for him to use as tools, eating flowers from other ponies' gardens, sleeping on roofs, and taking apart clothes to make his own custom-made outfits, Scootaloo shook her head and focused on her work. Recess came and Scootaloo played with her class while having fun and she had trouble focusing a few times while thinking about Apex,
"Scootaloo, the ball." Sweetie Belle said, she snapped back into reality and saw the ball, she caught it and threw it, the foals cheered and Scootaloo ran while she looked at Ponyville and wondered what Apex was doing.
Apex was in the Everfree Forest and sitting on the ground,
"Okay, let's see what we have here." Apex said as he sat and looked around, he walked around carefully and examined the trees and plants in the forest,
"Okay, got some new trees I've never seen before, a few berries, and creatures hiding in the shadows." Apex said, he took a knife out of one of his trash bags and cut a piece of bark off of each tree to mark his path in case he got lost. Apex walked forward and saw a beehive in a tree, he examined it,
"Okay, we got some honeybees in this forest." Apex said, he walked around and cut off a branch of every tree, he stopped at one tree,
"Ooh, a gum tree." Apex said, and he cut some of the sap off and began to chew on it, he explored the Everfree Forest, he cut the tree bark off of one tree and stopped when he saw yellow ants with lemon shaped bodies on his knife,
"Sweet, lemon ants." Apex said, and he began to eat them, he ate a few and continued exploring the Everfree Forest. Apex walked forward and soon came across a small cave, he ducked his head under and looked up,
"Ooh, honey ants." Apex said, and he took some of them and bit into their abdomens to eat the honey, he ate five honey ants and continued onward. Apex cut off a part of the tree bark of every tree he came across and went farther into the forest, he came to an area with nothing around,
"Okay, this looks like a good spot." Apex said, and he sat and rested, he looked around the forest and saw many eyes watching him from the shadows, he took a spear out of one of his trash bags while sweating, the creatures hid away and Apex heard walking, he put his spear back in the trash bag and took his bow and an arrow out. Apex aimed the bow and arrow as he heard the walking get closer, he saw a zebra come forward,
"My, what have we here, I have followed the marks on the trees from all the way back there." the zebra said,
"Ally or enemy?" Apex asked as he aimed his bow at her,
"I am Zecora, I am a friend, because out here, people tend to meet their ends." the zebra replied,
"Um, I marked my way back in case I get lost." Apex said,
"Indeed, but you still just a foal, this forest is an area where you will probably let loose your bowels." Zecora replied,
"I've lived in the woods all my life." Apex said,
"While you have lived in the woods for many years in a row, how many of these plants and animals do you know?" Zecora asked,
"Not much, actually." Apex replied,
"Surely, you have a name, since some of you ponies look the same." Zecora said,
"I'm Apex." Apex replied,
"I live in a hut close to here, if you wish, I can take you there." Zecora said,
"Okay." Apex replied, and he walked on his hind legs while he put his trash bags in his front hoofs, Zecora had an uncomfortable face at seeing Apex walk like a bipedal creature, she led him to her home while Apex kept his guard up. Apex arrived at Zecora's hut and he saw her herbal medicines and potions,
"Wow, my mom taught me about medicine, but never this." Apex said,
"Making medicines is one of my traits, it is not the only thing I create." Zecora replied,
"My mom taught me how to use plants, animals, and bugs as medicine." Apex said,
"While they have healing properties, I understand, but it is something most people cannot stand." Zecora replied,
"Oh." Apex said, he looked around and saw Zecora's potions, they were unlabeled, so he did not touch them,
"You seem busy." Apex said,
"That I am, and I promise you that I am not a sham." Zecora replied, Apex smiled,
"What do you say, would you like to stay?" Zecora asked,
"No, I should head home." Apex replied, and he went outside. Apex walked down the path and went to where he was at before Zecora found him, he looked at the sky and saw the sun going down a little bit, he followed the marks he put on the trees to find his way out and headed back to Scootaloo's home.
Scootaloo finished school and walked with Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle,
"What do y'all wanna do today?" Apple Bloom asked,
"Why don't we go see Pinkie Pie and see if she has any new candy?" Sweetie Belle asked,
"That sounds good, but I have stuff to do at home today." Scootaloo replied,
"Oh, really?" Apple Bloom asked, Scootaloo nodded,
"Bye, then, we'll buy some candy for you." Sweetie Belle said,
"Alright, thanks, bye." Scootaloo replied, and she trotted home. Scootaloo arrived home and Apex was nowhere to be found, so she entered her home and saw Aunt Holiday and Auntie Lofty working on a quilt,
"Welcome home, Scootaloo." Aunt Holiday said,
"Is Apex around?" Scootaloo asked,
"Nope, he left to go explore, and he hasn't come back, yet." Auntie Lofty replied,
"I didn't see him in Ponyville, either, I was worried he was eating other pony's stuff and digging through their trash." Scootaloo said,
"Well, it's good he isn't, anyway, I'm sure he'll be back soon." Aunt Holiday said as she sat and drank coffee, Scootaloo did her homework and groaned while clutching her head since the homework was hard for her. The door opened and Scootaloo's attention was caught,
"Welcome home, Apex." Aunt Holiday said,
"Thanks." Apex replied, and he walked into Scootaloo's room, he put his trash bags down and took his outfit off, he walked to Scootaloo to see what she was working on,
"What are you doing?" Apex asked,
"Homework, it's work from school, any class work I don't finish becomes homework, too." Scootaloo replied, Apex looked at her homework and saw it,
"Can you help me?" Scootaloo asked,
"Sorry, but I'm completely illiterate." Apex replied,
"I figured you would be." Scootaloo said, and Apex watched Scootaloo write,
"How are you doing in school?" Apex asked,
"I'm failing, I have trouble focusing cause it's so boring." Scootaloo replied,
"Do you like school?" Apex asked,
"It's alright." Scootaloo replied, and she continued working on her homework while Apex watched, Scootaloo groaned and put her head down,
"You finished?" Apex asked,
"No, I'm resting, my eyes are tired." Scootaloo replied, and Apex watched her,
"Scootaloo, cookies are ready." Auntie Lofty said, Scootaloo got out of her chair and trotted, she came back with cookies,
"Here, Apex, try one." Scootaloo said, and he did,
"Hmm, it's not what I usually eat, but I like it." Apex said,
"Like I said, Auntie Lofty makes the best cookies ever." Scootaloo replied, and the two ate them, Scootaloo went back to her homework while Apex went into her trash bin,
"What the? Apex." Scootaloo said, Apex looked at her,
"What are you doing in my trash?" Scootaloo asked,
"Trash bins and trash cans were often sources of food for me back when I lived in the woods." Apex replied,
"Eww. No, don't go into other ponies' trash, Apex, you'll make them mad if you dump them all over the ground." Scootaloo said, Apex looked and saw a lot of paper balls in her trash,
"There's nothing but paper in my trash." Scootaloo said,
"I eat paper sometimes." Apex replied, Scootaloo gagged while he held her mouth closed when she felt herself about to vomit, but it went back down,
"Don't eat paper, Apex, it grosses out ponies." Scootaloo said,
"It's only if I have nothing else." Apex replied,
"Don't eat paper, period." Scootaloo said, Apex became speechless and Scootaloo continued doing her homework and finished,
"*sigh* It's finally done." Scootaloo said,
"Scootaloo, Apex, dinner's ready." Aunt Holiday said, and the two went to the dining room.
Apex sat and saw dinner was spaghetti with tomato sauce and a side dish of tomatoes marinated in tomato sauce, Apex ate the tomatoes with his hoofs while Scootaloo and her aunts looked at him with dropped jaws, he then bent over and slurped noodles into his mouth without using his hoofs,
"Apex." Scootaloo said, Apex looked at her,
"You're supposed to eat it like this." Scootaloo said, and she spun her fork around to get a few noodles on it and ate it,
"What's wrong with eating this way?" Apex asked in a muffled voice with noodles hanging out of his mouth,
"Apex, don't talk with your mouth full, that's bad manner." Auntie Lofty said,
"But my parents did it all the time." Apex replied with the noodles still hanging out of his mouth,
"Well, don't do it in public, it's very bad manner." Aunt Holiday said, and Apex slurped the rest of the noodles and chewed and swallowed them,
"What do you know about civilization, Apex?" Auntie Lofty asked,
"Some, I know what a school is, I know what a store is, too, and my dad kept money in case he needed to use it to buy me and my mom supplies in case we ran out." Apex replied,
"Where did you go today, Apex?" Aunt Holiday asked,
"I went to a forest near the town." Apex replied, Scootaloo and her aunts jump back in their chairs,
"You went into the Everfree Forest?!" Scootaloo asked,
"Yeah. Why?" Apex asked,
"That place is dangerous." Scootaloo replied,
"Really? I didn't have any problems there, I found some interesting things in there, too." Apex said,
"Like what?" Auntie Lofty asked,
"Well, I found some lemon ants, you can eat those, I found some honey ants, you can eat those, too, and I found a gum tree." Apex replied,
"A what tree?" Aunt Holiday asked,
"A gum tree, you can eat and chew its sap like it's chewing gum." Apex replied,
"How is it?" Scootaloo asked,
"Well, it's chewy and sticky, not much taste, though, but it's good for cleaning and strengthening your teeth." Apex replied,
"Did you make any friends today?" Aunt Holiday asked,
"Well, I did meet a zebra in the forest today." Apex replied,
"That's Zecora, we go to her for potions to cure sicknesses and diseases, she comes to town every once in a while." Scootaloo said,
"Did she show you the way out?" Auntie Lofty asked,
"No, I found the exit on my own." Apex replied,
"How did you find your way out?" Scootaloo asked,
"Let's just say I have my methods." Apex replied,
"Okay, anyway, why were you sleeping in the tree last night?" Auntie Lofty asked,
"It's from my experiences in the woods I used to live in, those who didn't sleep in high grounds would get attacked and eaten by the bears." Apex replied,
"Oh, no wonder why you went into the trees." Aunt Holiday said,
"Trees are not always safe, either, my parents and I had to check the tree to make sure there were no snakes in it." Apex replied,
"They weren't friendly?" Scootaloo asked,
"No, they'd bite and eat anything in the tree, they were poisonous, too." Apex replied,
"Oh." Scootaloo said,
"What were your parents' names and jobs?" Aunt Holiday asked,
"My mom's name was Nature Lover, she didn't have a job and lived in the woods all of her life, my dad worked in the nearby town as a taxi pony, that's how I learned about money." Apex replied,
"What was your dad's name?" Scootaloo asked,
"Bickle." Apex replied,
"That's a strange name, well, go on and finish your meal before it gets cold, Apex." Aunt Holiday said, and they had dinner, washed the dishes together, and went into bed. Apex could not sleep and he was about to go back outside,
"Apex." Scootaloo said, he turned back and saw she was still awake,
"Are you going outside?" Scootaloo asked,
"Yeah. Why?" Apex asked,
"Well, I can't sleep, so if you want to, I can show you around Ponyville." Scootaloo replied, Apex thought about it for a minute,
"Sure." Apex replied,
"Hold on, I'm going to go get my scooter." Scootaloo said, and she got out of bed and took her pajamas off, the two headed outside and Scootaloo drove out her scooter and wagon,
"Get on, Apex, I'll give you a quick tour of the town." Scootaloo said, and he went into the wagon and Scootaloo drove her scooter.
Scootaloo drove her scooter into Ponyville while Apex sat in the wagon, she stopped at the train station,
"This is the train station, we go here when we want to leave Ponyville and go elsewhere." Scootaloo said,
"The town near the woods I lived in didn't have a train station." Apex said,
"How many visitors did the town get?" Scootaloo asked,
"Not many, mostly hikers." Apex replied,
"Hold on tight, Apex." Scootaloo said, and she drove to the next area,
"This is the post office, we send our mail here and the mailpony will deliver it to the receiver." Scootaloo said,
"How far does it deliver?" Apex asked,
"All over Equestria." Scootaloo replied,
"The town near me didn't have a post office, either, so if you had to give something to someone, you had to walk and hand it to them directly." Apex said,
"What if they live out of town?" Scootaloo asked,
"You still have to walk." Apex replied,
"Wow." Scootaloo said, and she drove to the market area,
"This is the market area, this is where you buy your things." Scootaloo said,
"No stores?" Apex asked,
"There's a few, hold on." Scootaloo replied, and she drove to the next area,
"This is Sugarcube Corner, this is where you buy all of your sweets and candies." Scootaloo said,
"What kind of sweets?" Apex asked,
"Anything, pies, cakes, lollipops, cupcakes, you name it, it's a popular place for kids to go to after school." Scootaloo replied,
"Wow, the town near me at my old home only had bubblegum." Apex said,
"Um... I don't think Sugarcube Corner has that." Scootaloo replied,
"Thought it would, it's quite common, easy to make, too." Apex said,
"Well, anyway, onto the next area." Scootaloo said, and she drove to her next destination,
"This is Carousel Boutique, this is where dresses are made for fashion shows." Scootaloo said,
"My mom hated dresses." Apex said,
"They're alright for me." Scootaloo replied,
"How many more places are there?" Apex asked,
"A few more." Scootaloo replied, and she drove to her next destination,
"This restaurant is famous for its hayburgers, I think you'll like them." Scootaloo said,
"Are they free?" Apex asked,
"No, you have to buy them." Scootaloo replied,
"I can't have any, then." Apex said,
"Well, maybe I'll buy one for you." Scootaloo replied, and she drove to her next destination,
"This is the Castle of Friendship, it's Princess Twilight's home." Scootaloo said,
"Princess Twilight?" Apex asked,
"Twilight Sparkle, Princess of Friendship, she's an alicorn?" Scootaloo asked,
"Never heard of her." Apex replied,
"What about Princess Celestia and Princess Luna?" Scootaloo asked,
"Nope." Apex replied,
"Anyway, the next area's over here." Scootaloo said, and she drove to it,
"This is the School of Friendship, it's focused on spreading friendship to areas outside of Equestria." Scootaloo said,
"I didn't know there were other places outside of Equestria." Apex said,
"There's plenty, we got a dragon, a griffon, a yak, a changeling, and a hippogriff in the school, Twilight's now trying to get kirins to attend." Scootaloo replied,
"I've heard about kirins, my mom said she saw one when she was a kid." Apex said,
"Well, I'll take you to two more places since it's getting late." Scootaloo said, and she drove to her next destination,
"This is where Fluttershy lives, I go to see her sometimes." Scootaloo said, Apex saw the many animals at Fluttershy's sanctuary and his mouth watered,
"No, Apex, don't think about eating them, Fluttershy will be mad." Scootaloo said, Apex tried to stop himself and Scootaloo drove to the last area,
"This is Sweet Apple Acres, it's famous for its apples and cider." Scootaloo said,
"Hmm, this place looks interesting." Apex said,
"Look up above you, Apex." Scootaloo said, and he did,
"Do you see it?" Scootaloo asked,
"Yeah, the cloud city?" Apex asked,
"That's Cloudsdale, only Pegasi can walk on clouds, Rainbow Dash takes me up there sometimes, she lives in that big fancy house you see up there, too." Scootaloo replied,
"Wow, it's a pretty big city." Apex said,
"Well, come on, let's go back home, it's getting late." Scootaloo said, and she drove home. Scootaloo drove home but stopped when she saw Cranky Doodle Donkey and Matilda walking together,
"What are you kids doing up this late at night?" Cranky Doodle asked,
"Sorry, I was just showing Apex around, my parents brought him here yesterday, he lived in the wilderness before they found him." Scootaloo replied,
"Why don't you introduce him to the other ponies?" Matilda asked,
"Because he doesn't act civilized, he sleeps in trees and eats bugs and meat." Scootaloo replied,
"Oh, just like when we were kids." Matilda said,
"Yup, stuff like that was normal back then." Cranky Doodle said,
"Wait, it was?" Scootaloo asked,
"Sure was, we didn't have the things we have now back then, and we lived just like Apex." Cranky Doodle replied,
"I did find a gum tree in the Everfree Forest today." Apex said,
"Oh, I liked gum trees as a kid, we boiled their saps back then." Cranky Doodle replied,
"Yes, that was a fun time, you're welcome to come see us anytime, Apex, I'm sure we can help you with some of the plants you don't know around here." Matilda said, Apex smiled,
"Wow, first, a zebra, and now donkeys, I'm making some strange friends around here." Apex said,
"Well, head on home, you two, we should go, too." Cranky Doodle replied, and he and Matilda headed home,
"What is that there?" Apex asked as he pointed forward,
"Oh, that's the school I attend." Scootaloo replied,
"It's pretty small." Apex said,
"It is, well, let's head home." Scootaloo said, and she drove home and slept in bed while Apex could not sleep.