DISCLAIMER-I do not own MLP FIM.
UNDER THE LASH
The wind was blowing smoothly in the apple orchids of Sweet Apple Acres. The rosy colored fruits shined like the brightness of Princess Celestia's sun. These apples are ready to be bucked by the denizens of Sweet Apple Acres-the Apple family. The Apple Family lived there since Ponyville established. Applejack and Big Macintosh buck the apples from the trees in order for these sweet and tasty fruits to be sold at the marketplace for all the ponies to buy.
However for anyone who tries to get an apple for free be warned, because the Apple family will not tolerate apple thieves. This tale is a cautionary one indeed, as one will find the fate of one thief who tried to escape, but ended up being a victim at the hooves of the family.
One windy afternoon on the farm, a brown coated, orange maned pony galloped towards the trees of the orchid. The pony looked like he never ate in a very long time. Out of desperation for hunger, the brown pony leaped passed the wooden fences that form a barrier between the trees and the land. After making it through the fence, the pony began to look at the delicious apples on the trees. Not just the juicy Red Delicious apples, but also the green apples, the Granny Smith, and the Macintosh apples on the trees lined up in rows.
The pony licked his lips in delight to taste these fruits. The pony began to buck the trees to eat these fruits. As he bucked and ate, bucked and ate, and bucked and ate into red juicy bliss. Little did the hungry thief realized, he is being watched from the horizon. He is not alone, as those who are watching the thief plan to seek him out and punish him for his crime of stealing from the orchids.
The thief began eating more than he could chew, as he heard rustling noises coming in from the north. The noises increased and increased as hoofsteps get louder by the minute. In a panic, the thief ran for safety to escape from whoever is about to peruse him. "Ah heard somethin' from the orchids!" a feminine, but stern voice called out, "Git the rope!" The hoofsteps grew louder and louder as the panicked thief searched for a place to hided.
A deeper, masculine voice shouted, "I found hoofprints, the thief went thataway!" Fearful, the thief runs towards the exit of the orchid. The sound of hooves grew louder and closer as the thief tried to leap over the fence, but the snare of a lasso stopped him from making his grand escape. The thief shook in fear, as his two captors approached him-Applejack and Big Macintosh.
"So, tryin' to to steal our crops, eh? Ah guess we'll teach you not to steal from our farm!" Applejack said with menacing scowl in her Southern accent. "I-I-I-I was hungry, I couldn't wait to eat anything until I get back to Ponyville, honest!" The thief said, shaking in fear. "Ah ain't buyin' it, thief! You ate a fair share of our crop, which was ready for buckin' later on! You cost us 500 bits after you destroyed our crops by eatin' all our apples!" yelled Applejack with fury, "Just for that, we'll teach ya'll a lesson on how we take care of apple thieves!"
With that statement, Big Macintosh bucked the thief to knock him out. Upon impact, the head of the thief slammed into the bark of one of the apple trees that he ruined. The last thing he saw before closing his eyes was the sight of Applejack, Big Macintosh, and a young filly with a red mane, buttercup yellow fur, and a pink bow on her head, Applebloom, approaching him to take him to who knows where.
Later, the thief woke up when Applebloom threw cold water to revive him. "Who, what, where, when, how?" The thief sputtered as he saw himself tied from his front hooves spread eagle style, he is tied up with no means for escape. As it turned out, he is awaken inside one of the Apple Family's many barns. But this barn the thief was in, was never meant for visitors, not even Applejack's friends, Twilight Sparkle, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash, weren't allowed to enter.
And this is for good reason, this is a barn designed for punishing apple thieves and rustlers. "Good, Ya'lls awake. Took ya'll long enough for a thief to face yer punishment." Applejack said, trotting inside the barn, "Yer in the barn where Ah teach thievin' varmits and rustlers how we deal with thievery." The thief shook in fear and said, "Look, I was hungry ok? Can a guy like me get something to eat for free?" Applejack's reply was a hoof slap across the face of the thief.
"YA'LL SHUT YER MOUTH!" screamed the wielder of the Element of Honesty, "Yer a no good, rotten thief who cost us bits! Do ya'll know how lon' it takes fer a new crop to grow?" "Um....", before the thief could answer that burning question, the cowgirl pony bucked him on the stomach. "IT'LL TAKE ANOTHER APPLEBUCK SEASON FOR MORE APPLES TO GROW!" she yelled.
The thief shook in fear and asked, "Wh-wh-wh-what are you gonna do with m-m-m-me?" The orange mare said to him, "We're gonna make sure that thieves like ya will think twice before stealin' from our farm again..." With that quote, Applejack motioned for Applebloom and Big Macintosh to come into the barn to watch. The thief saw with horror in his face cages that are reserved for anypony who stole from the Apple family.
Some of the cages even had pony blood on the bars and beds, it is an indicator that some ponies who stole from the Apple family survived whatever torture the Apples dished out, while others either died from exhaustion from leaving the farm or bled to death during the punishment. "These cages are for thieves and rustlers like ya, and while some did survive, others coudn't handle the torture.
"Those who did survive mah lessons git a warnin' not to steal from us again, others never came out alive!" explained the Earth Pony, "As for ya, your lesson will begin now!" The writing was on the wall-the punishment phase of this lesson has begun. Applejack galloped to her saddlebag, pulling out an instrument of torture that gave the thief a frightened look-a 10 ft. leather bullwhip.
"Ah used this whip to make thieves break down and submit, like ah said before, some survived, others did not. Now, it is time for yer punishment, thief!" said Applejack, uncoiling the whip, "We're gonna git some answers from ya, one fib from ya, the lashes will increase!" Applejack began to crack her hooves, ready to carry out the sentence. She did this on many occasions to punish thieves.
"Now then, did ya buck mah apples?" asked Applejack. "No, I didn't!" replied the thief. "WRON' ANSWER!" yelled the orange mare, as she whipped the thief on the back. "GAH! IT HURTS!" screamed the thief with recoil. "DID YA BUCK MAH APPLES?" Applejack screamed, as she whipped the thief two more times.
"YES! I ADMIT! I had to..." the thief said, wincing from the pain from the two lashes. "Why did ya do it? Why did ya steal from us? ANSWER ME!" barked Applejack, whipping the thief some more. "I-I-I-I-I had to, because I was hungry and I had no bits on me..." answered the thief, still reeling from the painful whiplashes.
"So, stealin' fer yer own hunger, eh? That's mighty nobile of ya, but it is still wron' fer ya to steal from us!" snapped Applejack, as she continued to whip him some more, until she began to feel exhausted. "All this whippin's makin' me tired, Big Mac, can ya take over for me until Ah git mah strength back?" she asked her older brother. The big stallion then replied with a simple word, "E'up."
With that said, Big Mac began his form of punishment to dish out-bucking the thief. "Stealin' from us, do ya?" shouted the huge red stallion, bucking the thief on his back. It was bad enough for Applejack to whip him, but it's equally painful for the thief to get bucked by one of the strongest ponies in all of Ponyville.
The thief coughed up blood from his throat, the impact of the hooves is like a rock hitting somepony on the back, a heavy one. "You should be ashamed of yourself for stealin' from us!" said Big Mac, bucking the thief on the stomach this time. He coughed and coughed out more blood from the impact. "I-I-I-I wasn't thinking...I was too hungry, I needed food..." the thief said weakly. "Then, you shouldn't be stealin' from us in the first place!" Big Mac shouted, as he swung a hoof to the face of the thief.
"Now, are you gonna steal from us again or aren't ya? TALK!" said Big Mac, bucking the thief once again. "No...no...I...will...never...steal...from...you....again...." panted the thief, as each blow is tiring him out. "AJ's not ready to continue yet, but ah am exhausted. Can you take over for me, Applebloom?" asked Big Mac, as even his mighty hooves were wearing him out.
The little filly replied, "Sure, Big Mac!" The leader of the Cutie Mark Crusaders then walked out of the barn to fetch something. Whatever the little filly might use, could be three times worse than the whipping and beatings he suffered. But in all honesty, what can a little filly do anyway?
"Heh, a baby pony trying to punish me... Ha...ha...ha...." the thief laughed, trying to get something humorous about Applebloom participating in the the torture. And it is true, how can a young filly like Applebloom punish an apple thief if she cannot use a whip, let alone bucking and/or punching a thief.
"Ah'm back, Big Macintosh!" a smiling Applebloom said, smiling and carrying a basket of apples on her back. "Ah had to git these ready for my turn, Big Mac! Ah got the rotten apples for me to throw at that no good thief!" the young filly is ready for her form of punishment-throwing rotten apples at the thief.
"R-R-R-R-Rotten apples?" gulped the thief, looking at the sight of smelly, disgusting, rotten apples that the little filly plans to use to punish him. The thief knew all about rotting apples, they smell like trash, very smelly trash. The thief was already getting tired from his beating, and this part of the punishment is about to get worse, much worse.
"It's time to take yer medicine, thief!" Applebloom shouted, as she threw the first rotten apple at the thief. "HEY!" screamed the thief after being pelted, "That...stings...!" The impact from the rotten apples collided with the bruises and whipmarks the thief had to endure.
All these days playing catch with Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle paid off, as Applebloom continued to throw rotten apples at the thief. "So, ya like apples, eh? Now, ya can have these rotten apples, ya thief!" said Applebloom. The rotten apples made the thief smell very bad, plus it increased the pain in the wounds and bruises he suffered earlier.
The pain was too much for him to handle, and he is about to have more pain coming for him, as Applejack and Big Macintosh returned to the barn, feeling energetic and recharged. "Ok Applebloom, we're back, and we're gonna do this together!" Applejack said, as she and Big Macintosh prepared themselves to dish out more punishment. This time, she's joined by both Big Macintosh and Applebloom in dishing out the punishment.
Applejack whipped the thief on the front, while Big Macintosh bucked him on the back, and Applebloom threw the rotten apples at him. "STOP! PLEASE! I WON'T STEAL FROM YOU ALL AGAIN! FOR THE LOVE OF CELESTIA! PLEASE, STOP THE PAIN! I BEG YOU!" screamed the thief, as his body could not take the pain anymore. Each member of the Apple family nodded to each other, they agreed to stop the torture.
"Applebloom, cut him down." said Applejack to Applebloom. "Got it, big sis." replied Applebloom, as she untied the thief down. The thief was covered in whipmarks, bruises, and rotting apple juice. The smell from the rotten apples did not do any favors either, due to the fact that the thief was smelling like a big rotten apple. "Now, did ya learn yer lesson, thief?" asked the orange mare with a glare.
"Y-y-y-y-yes, ma'mn..." said the already weakened thief. "Now before ya leave our farm, we got one more warnin' for ya." Applejack replied, as Big Macintosh trotted towards the thief with a branding iron that has the letter "T" as the brand. The "T" stood for "thief", as a reminder for anypony who dare stole from the Apple Family will get branded.
Applejack and Applebloom held the thief by restraining his hooves for Big Macintosh to brand him on his front. As the brand sunk to the front, the thief screamed in pain, collapsing afterwards. "Ah think that he has enough pain for one day." said Applejack.
"Applebloom, get the cream for his lashes." Applejack told her younger sister to get some medicine for the whipmarks the thief suffered. The young filly returned with the medicine, and Applejack began to bathe him to get rid of the stench of rotten apples. After the bath, she began to apply the cream to the lashes. The thief winced after the hoof filled with the medicine was rubbed against the lashes.
"There, now ya can git goin'. Remember, if we catch ya stealin' from our orchid again, we'll do worse!" Applejack told the departing thief, who struggled to leave the barn. But due to the loss of blood from the whippings, and the beatings and bruisings he took from the bucking and rotten apples thrown at him, it was a struggle.
The thief crawled and crawled and crawled out of Sweet Apple Acres and into the road to Ponyville. Still reeling from the pain and torture he endured, the thief still had a hard time walking on all hooves. Finally, the thief returned to his home in Ponyville. It took about whatever strength the thief had to get him back home. However, he collapsed before entering his house, and several ponies gasped and called for Nurse Redheart to get him for treatment.
Later, the thief woke up in a hospital bed inside Ponyville Hospital. "W..w..where am I?" he asked. Nurse Redheart walked up and said, "You're in Ponyville Hospital. It seemed that you had blood loss, exhaustion, and some bruising all over your body." "How bad is it?" the thief asked.
"Well, the damage to your body was very bad, but several ponies saved you from dying of total exhaustion by bringing you here." said Nurse Redheart. She then took a clipboard and proceeded to write in it. "Can I get your name? iI's standard procedure." Nurse Redheart asked. The thief then finally gave his name, "Stack Aplenty." The nurse then replied, "Well Mr. Aplenty, judging by your Cutie Mark, you are a stocker?"
"Was a stocker, the shop I was working at closed down two weeks ago, and I spent my last bag of bits on food for our foal. Out of bits and hungry, I had to go get food somewhere. I had to rely on stealing to feed my family, and I got punished for that." said Stack. "Well Mr. Aplenty, I'll notify your family that you are recovering here. Get some rest, you need it to recover." replied the nurse, as Stack nodded. He began to lie down in his bed, ready to sleep and recover.
Two days later, Nurse Redheart came in and told him, "Mr. Aplenty, you have visitors." "Visitors?" said Stack, with a surprise look on his face. His visitors are no other than The Apple Family, the very same family who tortured him two days ago. "Well, howdy Mr. Aplenty!" shouted Applejack in a cheery manor, unlike her harsh tone from a couple of days ago.
Stack than asked, "What are you guys doing here? Didn't you told me not to go to your farm or I might get worse punishment?" "Well, ah told my friend Twilight all about yer ordeal with us, and she was shocked that it was Stack Aplenty, a stocker from that grocery store that closed down two weeks ago!" Applejack replied, "So she told me that what ya did was still wrong, but my family and Ah felt bad for beatin' ya."
"You did?" Stack asked. "E'up, we did feel bad for you. And, we also felt bad for beatin' you, whippin' you, and throwin' rotten apples at you." replied Big Macintosh. "So, we decided to say we're sorry for hurtin' ya badly, and Applejack wanted to help ya find a job so ya won't have to steal from us!" said Applebloom.
"How can you guys help me? I'm broke, and I have a a family to support. And I was going to bring some of the apples I bucked to my starving family until you caught me." Stack said. "After being caught and tortured, and branded that "T", I felt bad that I might end up being locked up in a dungeon for all eternality!"
Applejack then replied, "Well, ya can work for us at the farm to pay us back those bits ya owed us. Then, Twilight and Ah can set up for you to git hired at Rich's Barnyard Bargains, since yer Cutie Mark showcases that ya can stock groceries." "Sounds like a good plan, when do I start working at the farm?" Stack asked.
Big Macintosh then said, "You can start after you get out of the hospital for a few days, then you can start workin'! So that way, you can repay us them 500 bit you owe us for eatin' our crops." "Yeah, that way, we don't have to beat ya, whip ya, and ah won't throw anymore rotten apples at ya!" Applebloom replied.
With smiles in their faces, the Apple family gave him a freshly-baked apple pie, some homemade cornbread, and a jar of Zap Apple jam. A few days later after recovering from his stay in the hospital from home, Stack began to work for the Apples to pay back all the bits he owed after stealing. Aside from doing these tasks, he had to spend each day planting seeds to make up for the ruined trees.
With the debt paid off, Twilight and Applejack helped score Stack a job at Rich's Barnyard Bargains as what else, a stocker! He stocks the items that the store sells, including the famous Zap Apple jam the store is famously known for. With things finally settled, and a new job, Stack has been redeemed and given another chance.
How did anypony know, because, I am Stack Aplenty. my ordeal with the Apple family has been a wild ride, I know, I was there. I was ashamed at my actions on that day I stole from the Apple family, and i totally regret it in the end. But thanks to Princess Twilight and the Apples, I have a new lease on life.
But, not all tales have happy endings, as those who stole from the Apples like me end up either as pariahs, or dead from the tortures they endured. I was one of the lucky ones in the end, and without this second chance, I would still be stealing apples and other things.
As I said before, this tale is a cautionary one, but the outcome is what you decide. Whatever punishment you take, physical or mentally, you have to accept it. The outcomes maybe different, but in the end, we all have the power to learn from our mistakes, or not learn at all. And I close my story with this quote from Big Macintosh himself, "How about them apples?"
The End.
Author's Note
This story is considered a combination of a grimdark fic and a morality tale. It was written during Fiesta Equestria, but finished at home.
EDIT-One year after this fic was rejected, I had to edit it by adding more conversations, more writing, breaking down paragraphs, and so on. I might add a deleted scene from this story if I have time.
