Fairy Tales of Equestria

by VioletRose13

Hansel Mac and Apple-Gretel

Once upon a time in a large forest outside the village, there lived a brother and sister named Hansel Mac and Apple-Gretel. They lived in a small cottage sitting on the edge of the thick forest near their village. Their mother had died when they were very young and their father remarried years later, but their new stepmother was very harsh and spiteful towards the two of them and they didn’t know why.

Even though things seemed fine and dandy for everypony at first, the family was dirt poor and they were starting to run out of food. The stepmother was growing very worried, but only for herself, not for the children. After a while, she came up with a plan so that she and her husband wouldn’t starve to death.

She decided to leave the two siblings out in the forest the next day so that they wouldn’t be able to find their way back home and she and her husband would only have themselves to worry about. That night, Hansel Mac overheard his stepmother talking to herself about her evil plan and decided to do something about it.

The next morning, the group of four went out for a walk in the forest, just as the stepmother had planned. But Mac was prepared; he gathered up some sparkling stones from outside the house the night before and hidden them in his pockets. As they walked, Mac kept leaving more stones on the forest path one at a time. And soon, they stopped and made a small fire.

“Alright Hansel Mac, Apple-Gretel. Your father and I are going to go chop some wood somewhere over there and when we’re ready to go home, we’ll come back and fetch you. So don’t leave this area, understand?” The stepmother said.

“Yes, ma’am.” Gretel said.

“Eeyup.” Mac added.

“Good. We’ll be back.”

And with that, the wicked mare and her clueless husband walked off into the trees in a different direction, leaving the children behind. A few hours past; it was almost sundown and their father and stepmother hadn’t returned. Apple-Gretel was beginning to worry. She sat close to her brother near the dying fire.

“I’m gettin’ a little freaked out, big brother. Ma and Pa are pretty darn late.” Apple-Gretel said.

“Sis, ma left us out here on purpose.” Mac began. “I overheard her plan last night.”

“What?! Oh no! What are we gonna do?”

Gretel began to cry, but her older brother comforted her by wrapping his foreleg around her shoulder.

“Don’t worry, lil’ sis. Look at the path. I gathered up those stones on the path last night, and I dropped them on our way in here.”

“So, what you’re sayin’ is that if we follow these rocks on the path, we’ll get back home?”

“Eeyup!”

“Well, what are we waitin’ for then? Let’s go!”

The two siblings stood up and followed the stones left on the forest path and just when the moon had risen high in the clear night sky, they were back home and with their father again. He had been worried sick about them and he greeted them with warm open hooves.

“Pa!” They shouted with joy.

“Hansel Mac! Apple-Gretel! You’re okay! I was so worried about ya’ll!” Their father cried with joy as he hugged them. “Your stepmother told me she lost track of you while we were in the forest! But I’m just so glad to see that you’re both okay!”

“We’re kinda glad too, pa.” Gretel smiled.

“Eeyup.” Hansel Mac nodded his head.

On the outside, she appeared to be happy that the two ponies safely found their way home. But on the inside, their stepmother was furious and shocked at them. She decided to play out the same nasty scheme the next morning. Hansel Mac couldn’t gather any stones again, but he had a backup plan.

Mac used a small piece of bread he was given to make a path back to the little house, but little did he know that his plan was going to backfire, horribly. As the two sat down by another fire further in the forest this time, they fell asleep and by the time they woke up, the sun was almost completely under the horizon.

“Come on, Gretel. It’s gettin’ late.” He said to his sister as they stood up.

“But how? You didn’t leave any rocks on the path this time, did ya?” Apple-Gretel asked.

“Nope, not this time, but don’t worry ‘bout that. I left a trail of— Oh no!” Mac gasped in shock as he looked back at the path.

“What is it?” Gretel looked to what her brother was seeing and she saw it. The path was bare and the bread crumbs were gone.

“The bread, no!”

“Oh no! The birds must’ve gotten the crumbs while we were sleepin’! What’ll we do, big brother? Now we can’t find our way home. We’re completely lost out here.”

The two siblings slept on the cold, hard ground of the forest the entire night and in the morning, they were back on their way trying to get home again. But they were really hungry and they didn’t have enough strength to keep going.

“Hey, what’s that smell? Smells good.” Apple-Gretel said with her muzzle high in the air.

“You’re right. Smells hoof-lickin’ good. Wonder what it is.” Mac said, sniffing the air as well.

“Come on! Let’s check it out!”

The duo followed the smell further down the path and they soon came upon a house and their eyes widened in awe and surprise. This was no ordinary house; it was made entirely out of sweets! The walls were gingerbread, the roof was peanut brittle, the walkway was rock candy, and so much more delicious things were seen all over the building along with a sweet aroma filling the two ponies’ noses.

“Hoo-wee! Would ya look at this?!” Apple-Gretel said as she galloped toward the candy house. “I’ve never seen anythin’ like it before. Have you, big brother?”

“Nope, never!” Hansel Mac said as he joined his sister.

“Whose house do ya think it is?”

“Who cares? It’s food! I’m starved!”

“Aw, the hay with it! I’m hungry, too!”

The two ponies were overcome with excitement when they saw it and they immediately started to eat parts of the house. Hansel Mac was trying some of the roof while Apple-Gretel was eating part of the window pane.

“Taste good?” Gretel asked with her mouth full.

“Eeyup! You?” Mac answered after swallowing.

“You bet your boots it does!”

“Nibble, nibble, like a mouse. Who is eating up my house?” A new voice said from inside.

The two ponies froze in place, unaware of where the voice came from or who it belonged to. Then, out of the candy-coated house, came a strange-looking unicorn mare with deep raspberry pink hair and a lighter pink coat and she was dressed in rags and a hat with a large brim. Hansel Mac and Apple-Gretel backed away from the stranger in fright; they didn’t know what to expect from her.

“Hello, children.” The mare said kindly.

“Oh, is this your house? We’re really sorry to have disturbed you, ma’am.” Gretel apologized.

“Not at all, not at all. Look at you poor little ponies. You two are welcome to stay with me as long as you need to.” The mare offered.

“Wha’? Oh no, we couldn’t. We don’t want to impose.” Gretel said.

“Oh, no, no, no. Really, I insist. It’s no problem at all. Come with me and I’ll make you both something proper to eat.” The unicorn said as she activated her magic, lifting the two ponies off of the ground and into her candy house.

So, the two Earth ponies stayed with the mare for dinner that night and she even let them sleep in her bed for the night as well.

“Thanks for bein’ so nice to us, ma’am.” Gretel said.

“Eeyup.” Hansel Mac agreed.

“Oh, you’re welcome, little ones. It’s the least I could do. See you two in the morning.” The unicorn said sweetly as she walked out the door and turned off the lights.

The two ponies soon fell fast asleep in the mare’s soft bed. But soon, Hansel Mac and Apple-Gretel were in for a horrific surprise. The next morning, the unicorn mare had transformed herself into a tall disfigured pony-like creature with holes in her hooves, a teal mane, tattered insect wings and a gnarled horn.

She took Hansel Mac out of bed and locked him up in a large cage, just like a captured animal in a zoo. This evil, grotesque creature was really a horrid witch named Chrysalis who wanted to eat Hansel Mac and Apple-Gretel for her supper. When Apple-Gretel woke up, she saw her brother gone and the tall creature standing before her; she screamed.

“Oh, Apple-Gretel. Don’t you recognize me?” The Witch asked as she levitated the mare off of the bed and dropping her onto the floor.

“You?! Wha… What’s goin’ on here?! What are ya doin’, ya rotten, disgustin’ old crow?!” Gretel demanded. “Where’s my brother?!”

“Not to worry, child. Hansel Mac is fine, just incarcerated.” Witch Chrysalis answered, revealing the cage with Hansel Mac sitting inside.

“Apple-Gretel!” He cried, reaching his hoof through the cage bars.

“Hansel Mac! Let him go!” The Earth mare cried as she tried to grab her brother’s hoof, but Chrysalis quickly stopped her. “What do you want him for?!”

“Is it not obvious, my dear? I’m starving and your brother is going to be my next feast!” The Witch said, looking the orange Earth mare in the eye.

But then, a thought popped into her head.

‘I can’t eat these ponies yet.’ She said to herself. ‘That stallion has too much muscle, far too tough for my taste. And this mare is too lanky, but just as strong and tough as her brother. They have to be fatter or my meal will be ruined.’

She quickly ordered Apple-Gretel to make a large meal of different kinds of apples, some apple treats, and a barrel of apple cider for her big brother to eat and drink and she ordered her to watch him every minute to make sure that he eats it all up. Mac already had a plan on how he and Gretel can escape the Witch’s clutches and Gretel understood what he was up to.

Many days had passed and Mac’s plan was working so far. He found on old and thick candy cane and he used it to trick Witch Chrysalis thinking it was his hoof, which worked because of the Witch’s horribly poor eyes. But after a few weeks, Witch Chrysalis grew very impatient and decided that today would be the day for her to finally eat.

“That is absolutely, positively it! I can’t wait any longer! I’m eating you first thing in the morning!” Witch Chrysalis shrieked, stomping her hoof on the floor.

“What?! No, no, no, no! You can’t eat Mac now, Chrysalis! He just needs more time, that’s all! Yeah! More time and… more food! That’s it! More food! Just don’t do this! Not now!” Gretel pleaded furiously.

“No! I’ve already made up my mind and there’s nothing you can say to stop me. Go and get some water from the well and some firewood for tomorrow. NOW!” Witch Chrysalis demanded pointing her hoof at the door and glaring at the mare.

Scared out of her wits, Apple-Gretel ran outside to get more water and firewood. As Witch Chrysalis watched the young mare, she said to herself, “I’m so hungry, I can’t stand to wait. Maybe I should try and eat Apple-Gretel first, then Hansel Mac afterwards.”

Apple-Gretel overheard the Witch’s hushed words and she quickly came up with a little hare-brained scheme of her own to save herself and her brother. The next morning, sometime after dawn, the Witch roughly woke Gretel up from her sleep to start her work. She led the young mare to the oven outside and she opened the door, revealing the yellow, bright orange, and red flames dancing against the stone walls inside.

“Now Apple-Gretel, dear, we’ll be baking some bread to soothe my hunger until we cook Hansel Mac, and I need you to climb into the oven and make sure the fire’s hot enough.” She said, pushing the young mare towards the oven door.

“It’s fine, real hot.” Gretel said, feeling the fire with her hooves.

“Climb into the oven and check it properly. You won’t get it done that way.” The Witch said.

“But how am I supposed to get in? I don’t know how.”

“What are you talking about?! You simply get in! Understand now?”

“Really? ‘Cause I don’t think I’ll fit.”

“Of course you’ll fit, you imbecile!”

“Ya sure about that?”

“Even I’ll fit, you fool! Watch!”

So, the Witch unknowingly stuck her entire head and forelegs inside just mere inches the flames. But while she was distracted, Apple-Gretel used her hind legs to buck Witch Chrysalis into the burning oven entirely, the Witch was screaming and cursing at her all the while. Gretel slammed the metal door shut on her and went to rescue her brother.

“Come on outta there, big bro! She’s in the oven! Now we’re free!” She declared as she unlocked Mac’s cage door.

“Oh, thank you so much, lil’ sis!” Hansel Mac cheered as he climbed out of the cage and hugged his younger sister tightly.

“I’m just glad she’s gone.”

“Me, too. I’ve never been so excited in my whole life.”

“That was pretty scary, huh?”

“Eeyup. Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

“Gladly.”

After the magic around the candy cottage vanished and the Witch was gone for good, the two Earth ponies gathered the treasure Witch Chrysalis had stolen before and they went back into the forest to try and find their way back home. And soon enough, after a few hours of walking, they found themselves back at their cottage and with their father again. Their stepmother had passed away during their absence and now it was only Hansel Mac, Apple-Gretel, and their father and they all lived happily ever after.

Comments

[Godslittleprincess]

The Apple siblings are a lot smarter than people give them credit for.

[Foxhelm]

9262851

Why thank you, Sugarcube