Scootaloo was wandering through Sweet Apple Acres when she heard the sound of somepony rustling some leaves. It was faint, but she could definitely hear it. So, deciding that she had nothing better to do, Scootaloo trotted along through the orchard until she came across a huge earth pony facing away from a tree. She watched him for a moment as he reared up on his front legs and then kicked the tree with all his strength. Apples fell like raindrops, only much more cleanly as they all landed in a couple of buckets which had been strategically placed.
She figured there was no point in just standing there watching him, so Scootaloo approached the stallion, waving cheerily to him. “Hey there,” she said with a big grin on her face.
He smiled back at her, but said nothing.
Scootaloo came up to the buckets of apples and inspected them. She picked up a particularly juicy-looking one and took a bite out of it. Savoring the taste of the apple juices, she looked up at the large stallion and said, “Are these yours?”
He frowned at her. “Eeyup.”
She nodded. “Cool, cool. Mind if I have some?” she asked, already reaching for another apple.
His frown deepened. “Eeyup.”
Scootaloo picked up an apple and buffed it against her chest. Once she was satisfied by the sheen, she shoved the fruit in her mouth and took a loud crunching bite. Her mouth full of apple, she said, “Aw, come on. It’s just one or two little apples. Who’s gonna miss ‘em? Can’t you just let me have a few more?”
His frown deepened to the point where Scootaloo was sure he’d look like that permanently. “Eenope.”
Scootaloo sighed. “All right, all right. I’ll have just one more, then.”
He rolled his eyes and turned away from her. With a heavy grunt, he got back on his forelegs and readied himself to buck again. Scootaloo, meanwhile, was bent over the bucket picking out a few more apples for herself, completely unaware of the hooves being leveled at her head.
She had only just managed to scoop up a few more apples when she happened to look up and see a pair of hooves careening towards her face at an absolutely terrifying speed. The one thought that managed to flash through her mind before his hooves collided with her face and turned it into unrecognizable mush was that she really didn’t like apples all that much. A split second later, she stopped thinking about apples.
Falling to the ground, the stallion collapsed in pain, hugging his leg to his chest. Just then, a mare came over the hill and approached him. She had a bored expression on her face.
“What’s the matter, Big Mac?” she asked. “Wait, don’t tell me. Y’all busted your leg again, huh?”
Big Mac wheezed out, “Eeyup…”
“Hit a knot on the tree?”
“Eenope…”
She raised an eyebrow. “It wasn’t a knot? Well, what was—Oh…” She had just noticed the filly slumped up against the tree behind Big Mac. She sighed. “I’ll get the shovel.”