As the elderly farmpony finished her tale, her three grandchildren snapped back to reality from their trip to yesteryear. Big Mac never moved from his position and never so much as felt any comforting tug from Applejack. Apple Bloom meanwhile shuffled away from her big sister and let go of her hoof. Applejack did not let her get away that easily, giving her a gentle noogie to calm her nerves.
"Poor Apple Bud," Apple Bloom sighed. "I reckon he couldn't see the poisoned apples since it was so dark."
"That's what he gets for snackin' on the job." Applejack rolled her eyes.
"Between you and me," Granny Smith's voice softened to a near whisper, "Apple Bud wasn't the brightest firefly in the lantern. He couldn't tell apple juice from apple cider."
"Kinda like you, Big Mac," Applejack chuckled.
"Ee-uh, excuse me?" Big Mac shot back as the three females giggled.
"I reckon you and Apple Rose had to work extra hard during apple bucking season since he was out for so long," Applejack guessed.
"We lost him for three weeks," her grandmother continued. "Some good came out of that, though. It only took me a few days to work off the pie I ate that night. Wish I could do that these days."
"What did y'all do to that tree anyhow?" Apple Bloom asked.
"Didn't do no good keepin' it around," Granny Smith explained. "When morning came, the first thing we did was gather its lumber and apples. We didn't want to get any other ponies sick so we threw it all away."
"Thanks, Granny, I liked that story," Applejack hoisted herself back on all fours. "Well, we best be headin' home now."
"Not so fast, big sis," Apple Bloom interrupted. "I reckon I can tell a scarier story than you, Granny Smith."
"Ooh," Granny Smith cooed, kicking back on her rocker, "let's see what ya got."
"This oughta be good." Applejack sat back down.
"Just you wait, Applejack," Apple Bloom warned her. "This'll scare the hat clear off ya..."