The three watched the apple field. Bucky stood by his mother and uncle, prepared to get to work. Before them was a sea of apples - trees ready for gathering.

Big Mac hissed in pain a little - his damaged torso was covered in bandages.

Applejack, in the meantime, watched with utter delight, grinning ear to ear at the beauty of their Acres. "Boy howdy! I got my work cut out for me. That there are the biggest bumper crop o' apples I ever laid eyes on!"

Big Mac nodded. "Eeyup. Too big for you to handle on your own."

The words immediately set fear into Bucky's heart. He knew how his mother got in moments like this, when she was challenged, even as a remark. Bucky tried to shake his head at his uncle, alarmed. He saw the fire in Applejack's eyes, and this was a bad sign of things to come.

Applejack furrowed her brows at Big Mac. "Come on, big brother! You need to rest up and get yourself better. I haven't met an apple orchard yet that I can't handle." She grinned, nudging him right in the injured spot. He hissed in pain, frowning at her. "...Oops, sorry. I'll take a bite out of this job by day's end!"

"Guys, guys..." Bucky nervously laughed. "Let's just--"

Big Macintosh humphed. "Bitin' off more than you can chew is just what I'm afraid of!"

Applejack almost gasped. "Are you sayin' my mouth is makin' promises my legs can't keep!?"

"Guys..." Bucky coughed.

His uncle nodded. "Eeyup."

Applejack was utterly flabbergasted at the audacity of what he said. "Why of all the...! This is your sister Applejack, remember!? The loyalist of friends and the most dependable of ponies!?"

Bucky was grimacing, feeling as if he was being practically ignored at this point. "Mom, Uncle Mac doesn't mean it. Uncle Mac, come on, she--"

Yet, Big Macintosh was unable to stop, perhaps a little too fired up in this debate. "But still only one pony, and one pony plus hundreds o' apple trees just doesn't add up to--"

Applejack furrowed her brows and got up in his face, snorting air at him. "Don't you use 'yer fancy mathematics to muddy the issue! I said I could handle this harvest and I'm gonna prove it to you! I'm gonna get every last apple out of those trees, this Applebuck Season all by mah' self!"

"Mom, Uncle Mac's right..." Bucky nervously raised his metallic finger. "Look, lemme help! I'll even get those other kids to help us out with all this. I'm sure if we all grouped up, we'd get this whole harvest collected in like, a week tops. Just take it easy and-"

"Nuh uh!" Applejack pointed right at Bucky's face. "Sorry son, but Momma's gonna have to show her neighsayin' brother and all of Ponyville that 'ah'm the hardest workin' pony who'd never take her word's back - cause 'ah am the Element of Honesty and may Celestia smite me if I ain't sayin' the truth! Now er, go get some rest! Y'know, apart from your chores, you got a vacation! Now, shoo - I got a lotta work ahead a' me!"

Applejack took one last look at the Acres...All the apple trees, and all the apples...

She gulped.

***

The ground shook. The ponies screamed in terror. Was it a villain? Was it a natural disaster? What could have been going on?

"STAMPEDEEEE!" Rainbow Dash cried out at the top of her lungs.

A stampede of cows, all of them sprinting like a force of nature...Right into Ponyville, threatening to run right over the bridge.

Shaking up and down, Pinkie Pie couldn't help but giggle. "H-Hey! T-This m-m-makes my v-v-v-voice s-s-s-sound s-s-s-s-sillyyyy!"

"Pinkie Pie!" Natasha watched in complete shock. "What are you doing!? You need to run!"

Mayor Mare panicked, looking around and not knowing what to do in the face of the upcoming torrent of beef. "E-Everypony calm down! There's no need to panic!"

"But Mayor, whatever shall we do!?" Rarity cried out with desperation and drama in her voice, threatening to faint any moment now.

"Well, we can't really do much!" Bruce panicked, trying to gather as many small animals as he could out of harm's way. "Most of us got the powers and skills that hurt villains! We can't do anything to hurt those cows!"

"Indeed..." Thor hissed. "Otherwise, my lightning could have given Ponyville quite the barbeque!"

Tony tried to prevent his mom from falling over from shock. "Animal activism needs to have its limits! What do we do!?"

Peter yelped and shouted. He tried to attach his webs to one of the cows, but it simply took him, and now he was being dragged by them. Steve had no idea what to do, his shield could do nothing against a whole crowd of cows, and Tony's blasters were not an option due to their lethality. Clint tried to fire arrows which exploded into nets, but the cows easily ripped right through them. There was nothing they could do, for they didn't have the right skills to not only prevent the stampede but also do so nonlethally. It's not like Natasha could do much with her pistols.

Then, Rainbow Dash smiled. "Hey, look over there!"

It was however Applejack who ran in-front of the cows with her dog Winona by her side. She yelled at the cows, guiding them away from the town. The dog barked, urging the cows to completely run in the other way, to steer away from the canine.

"Yeeeeehaw!" Applejack shouted, making her presence very well known. "Other side, Winona! Put 'em up, girl!"

With the dog barking and yapping, it was enough to get the cows to start moving away from the bridge.

Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie was eating popcorn. "This is the best rodeo show I've ever seen!"

"Me too..." Steve watched in excitement, sharing it with her.

Using her lasso, Applejack would start pulling the lead cow to the right. The cows would be forced to steer away from the town, and calmed down as Applejack had been able to round them all up. The cows were calming down, though it was clear something had spooked them.

"Hooey! Now what was that all about!?" She quizzed the cows, furrowing her brows with frustration.

The leading cow mooed but then cleared her throat. "Oh my! Begging your pardon, Applejack, but Mooriella here saw one of those nasty snakes...And it just gave us all the willies, don'tcha know!"

Applejack spoke with a big, sympathetic smile. "'Ah completely understand. Just next time, try and steer clear of Ponyville?"

The cow smiled, first at the pony and then at the dog. "We certainly will, Applejack. So long, Winona!" She spoke. Together, the cows left - now calm and no longer destroying everything on the way.

Peter approached with an awkward smile, dusting himself off. "Miss Applejack, you rocked out there! Heh, some heroes we are if we can't get the cows from flattening the town..." Peter muttered.

"Don't worry 'bout it, Parker-Sparkle, m'boy!" Applejack grinned. "Ya ain't exactly the wranglin' type, so it ain't an issue. I got my job, and I do my job better than anyone else! You just sit back and relax, the next time a stampede of cows or goats or whatever comes up here!"

Mayor Mare approached with wide-open eyes and was completely surprised. "Applejack, that was just...just..."

"Appletastic!" Pinkie Pie happily cried out.

"Miss Applejack, that was awesome!" Steve grinned wide.

"Aw shucks Steve, getting a herd 'a cows to go the other way ain't the hardest thing in the world."

"Even then!" Mayor Mare clapped her hooves together. "We must do something to thank Applejack for single-hoofedly saving the town!"

"Oh, I know!" Pinkie grinned. Clint immediately ran up to her, having to do so to close the distance he had made while trying to stop the cows. Once he was close, he and his mom hugged with one arm, both grinning wide.

"A party!"

Bucky sighed, watching from the distance. He wanted to help and handle the stampede together with her, but she didn't let him get involved. He sighed. Maybe she'd get tired and realize she wasn't able to do so much responsibility. At-least she'd relax later once she'd realize she needed the rest.

So, he'd hoped.

***

Steve, Tony, and Fluttershy entered the coffee shop together. There was an award ceremony, but the time wasn't quite right. They had half an hour to kill, so they opted to enjoy the time they had until then.

"Steve, are you sure you're not sure what pet you and Rainbow Dash would like?" Fluttershy asked as they approached the counter.

"Mom hasn't brought the issue up yet." Steve shrugged. "She'll likely just pick some kinda eagle or fast animal. I thought of getting a tortoise or something, seeing as I'm a big fan of shields, heh. Mom would probably laugh if I told her that idea though."

"Don't get a cat. Just don't." Tony muttered. "Opal is a demon. I gotta catproof all of my tools. Honestly, it's a pain in the--"

"Tony." Fluttershy frowned. "Opal is a sweet cat! She just likes her space and privacy, and she can be quite affectionate! A-Anyways, shall we get something? I'd love to drink some coffee, but we also need to be on time for Twilight. They'll be handing an award to Applejack!"

The two males nodded. Steve tapped the counter to the worker who had his back turned to them. "Hey, Barista - I'll have a cup of joe - that's "a cup of Equestriano" in fancy talk."

Tony smirked. "I'll have a cappuccino." He said, knowing that the Baristas would have to make foam art on it, which he always loved to erase with a spoon in-front of the workers just for fun.

"Medium iced latte for me, please." Fluttershy kindly and softly said, not wanting to make the Barista's job any harder.

The Barista sighed. "...Right."

Then, they saw the metal hand that reached for the machines and cups. All three felt their eyes pop open.

"Wait, Bucky!?" Steve exclaimed.

"Bucky!?" Tony lowered his shades, shocked.

"Oh hi, Bucky!" Fluttershy waved.

"...Yep." Bucky muttered, turning around. "Is that gonna be a large or medium cappuccino?"

The question was not registered by anyone. Tony couldn't hold back his laughter. "Hey careful with the Porcelain cups, big guy. I don't know if that custom-made super enhanced arm can handle this kinda boring job."

"Bucky, what are you even doing here?" Steve asked with concern. "Aren't you supposed to be on the farm!? Is this some kinda act of rebellion? Do you need money? Did you get into debt? Is the farm in trouble? Is--"

"No, Steve, listen, ugh..." Bucky facepalmed. "Look, it's my mom. She uh...Well, Uncle Mac decided to imply "she can't harvest the entire Acres by herself", which is true - though apparently mom takes EVERYTHING to heart. She told me I'm "on vacation" and that I should do something else while she gathers everything. So, guess I'm here..."

"This is gold..." Tony suppressed his laughter. "Really? A coffee shop?"

"Oh dear..." Fluttershy frowned. "That's alarming. I hope it's still okay for her to do our Bunny Census..."

Bucky muttered. "Oh no. Mom agreed to help with more things, didn't she?"

"...More?" Fluttershy's eyes widened.

***

On the podium in-front of the town hall, Twilight Sparkle stood with a few papers in her hooves, smiling and reading the lines. They were here to celebrate the feats of their friend, for Applejack was going to receive a reward. The entire town gathered, eager to cheer the hardworking Earth Pony.

Twilight softly coughed. "Welcome, everypony! Today we are here to honor a pony we can always count on to help in matters great and small. A pony whose contributions to---"

She was rudely interrupted as Rainbow Dash flew right in-front of her. "Did you see Applejack's slick moves out there? What an athlete. This week, she's gonna help me with my new flying trick, and I know it's gonna be so awesome!"

Steve happily flexed a bicep. "And she'll be helping me perfect my parachute jump to get it right in the center of Ponyville!"

Twilight nervously chuckled. "Eeeexactly...And--"

Pinkie Pie happily placed herself on the stage too, completely sing-song with her words. "This week, I get to run Sugarcube Corner for the first time!"

"...And how's that related to Applejack?" Twilight murmured.

"Oh. Applejack, one of the best bakers ever, is gonna help me! Applejack makes everything great - so free samples for everypony!"

Through the cheers, Clint was able to raise his bow to the sky. "Oh, I'm gonna get Applejack's help decorating Sugarcube Corner to attract more ponies and humans for mom's debut running the store!"

"...Okay, grrreat." Twilight groaned. "Now, if I could just make a point without being interrupted, I--"

From the side, she was approached by a rather shy and anxious Fluttershy. Having returned from her trip to the coffee shop, she gently came closer to the Unicorn. "Uhm, actually, Twilight, I'm so sorry, but I just wanted to mention that Applejack is also helping me, this week with the official Bunny Census, where we count up all the new baby bunnies that were born, this season. She's gonna help gather them, using her wonderful herding skills!"

Bruce Banner Shy immediately raised an arm from the crowd with a grin. "And she's gonna be helping me run experiments on some apples to see if we can create a new sort of apples that can be harvested in the winter!"

By this point, Twilight was showing a great deal of annoyance. She looked around to see if there was anyone else intent on interrupting her. "Anyone else? Anyone? No? Well then, as I was trying to say..."

It was then when Mayor Mare was eagerly awaiting her chance to speak to the crowd. With no chance to speak, Twilight merely threw her papers aside and walked off the stage.

"Urgh! Never mind."

Mayor Mare coughed into the microphone, putting on her big politician smile, more than happy to take the spotlight from the Unicorn. "Ahem! And so, with no further ado, it is my privilege to give the prize of the Pony of Ponyville Award to our beloved guest of honor, a pony of the utmost trustworthiness, reliability, and integrity. Ponyville's most capable and dependable friend... Applejack!"

Though the cheering of the crowd came in full force, there was a strange lack of Applejack on the stage, that was supposed to celebrate said Applejack. Spike looked left and right, but there was no sign of Applejack in any direction.

"...Well." Tony folded his arms and looked around, raising both brows with a mildly surprised look. "Look at that. I had no idea that Miss Applejack learned how to turn invisible too. That's pretty impressive."

"Awkward..." The Baby Dragon murmured.

Then, through the crowd, there was a commotion. Walking through was Applejack, who was being helped by her son.

"Mom, listen..." Bucky muttered under his breath. "Seriously, you need to get some rest. You're suffering from sleep deprivation, and this is not gonna end up healthy. You have to give it a rest, okay? Listen, after this ceremony, let's just get you to bed, alright? I'll take up some of the harvest and help Fluttershy with her bunny counting thing. We'll just tell the others that we'll be there later and--"

"Bucky, that ain't gonna be necessary...Now, lemme get that award so 'ah can get back to business! N-Now, ah'm here, everypony! Comin' through! Ah'm here!" Applejack sleeplily said, nearly falling asleep while being half-carried by her son. Bucky cringed from second-hand embarrassment, noticing how tired she was and how the others paid attention to her exhaustion. He was unable to stop her as she broke out and kept walking right up to the stage, approaching the microphone and grabbing the award with one hoof, waving to the ponies with a tired wave.

"...Uhm, is that Miss Applejack?" Bruce tilted his head, quietly whispering to Fluttershy. "Mom, she looks seriously sleep deprived."

"...Oh my." Fluttershy muttered. "You might be right. Bucky wasn't lying at all...Oh dear, I hope she's going to be alright..."

"Thank ya for this award thingy!" Applejack said while the others were discussing her sleepiness. She looked at the metal on the trophy, smiling with a wavy and immensely tired smile. "Whoaa, it's so bright and shiny, heh! I sure do look funny..."

Clint and Bruce looked at one another curiously. "...Do you think she's also trying to do a comedy act to make us laugh? Maybe this is some kinda farmgirl humor?" Clint muttered.

"...I just feel sad to be honest." Bruce sighed. "She's definitely disoriented. I should really talk to her. If she doesn't sleep, then it can cause serious damage to her brain and heart!"

"Not like you'll be able to get through this crowd." Clint murmured.

Twilight scrunched her muzzle with uncertainty. She approached Applejack with her uneasy look. This was not the best ceremony she's ever had to lead. "Okay. Well, thank you Applejack for saving us from that scary stampede, and always being there for everypony!"

Applejack blinked tiredly as she started to walk off-stage, dragging the trophy with her as she practically started to sleep on her way off the stage. "Yep-yep! 'Ah sure love helpin' ponies...yaaaawn..."

Twilight muttered, slinking back to the rest of her friends as they looked at applejack. "Is it me, or does Applejack seem a little..."

"Tired?" Rainbow Dash scratched her chin with a hoof.

"Exhausted." Steve added confidently.

"Dizzy?" Fluttershy asked with worry.

"Practically stunned." Bruce sighed.

"Messy?" Rarity asked, earning odd looks from the others. She rolled her eyes. "Well, did you see her mane?"

"Honestly..." Tony murmured. "I would never get on a podium without my best suit. Can't imagine how much of a PR disaster this would've been if there were cameras and stuff."

"She's horribly sleep deprived." Bruce observed. "When was the last time she went to bed?"

Bucky had suddenly appeared, having snuck into the crowd, still in his Barista's apron. "...I haven't even seen her enter her room." He said, unexpectedly and startling the others. Tony looked at him, and then back at Applejack, who stumbled off of the podium.

"She seemed perfectly fine to me!" Pinkie Pie excitedly said. "Woo woo!"

Although her son always supported her, Clint raised an excited finger that curled back in. "...To be honest? I don't think so. Mom, Applejack is definitely tired."

"Oh, don't be a silly filly. Or, silly humanilly." Pinkie Pie waved a hoof with a giggle. "Applejack is just having a bit of public speaking anxiety!"

"I sure have been there before..." Fluttershy quietly muttered - all of them cringing as Applejack fell right off of the podium as she missed the stepps.

***

Twilight, concerned with the health of her friend, ventured into the Acres. By her side was Peter and Bruce, the latter coming as a doctor with genuine concerns over the Earth Pony's health.

"...Huh, the Apples really got to work on the harvest." Peter commented. "I mean, they've already gotten most of the apples near the way in."

"Well, Applejack and Big Mac always made easy work of the harvest." Bruce muttered. "Perhaps he's covering for her, and she's finally getting some sleep?"

"I'd really hope so..." Said Twilight. They walked further into the Acres, until they saw the orange pony. She bucked her hooves, striking the bark and allowing the apples to fall into the baskets.

"Hey, Appleja..." Peter waved, but immediately, he frowned upon seeing the sight. "...Oh."

Much to their shock however, many of the trees were harvested. Without Big Macintosh inside, the three began to fear the worst.

"She's not...all by herself, is she?" Bruce gulped. By the time they approached Applejack, she began to doze off. In the middle of bucking the tree, she slowed down. Instead, she began to lean against the bark and began to sleep, snoring obnoxiously.

Worried, the three approached her. "...Applejack?" Twilight whispered, trying to lean in to get the sleeping pony's attention. Yet, her words went nowhere. The Earth Pony continued to just snore.

Peter leaned in. "...Hello? Equestria to Applejack...?"

"...Miss Applejack?"

The sleeping pony did not relent, still snoring as her drool ran along the bark. With annoyance, Twilight leaned in. "Applejack!? APPLEJACK!?"

The Earth Pony gasped, completely caught off-guard.

Allowed to give a lecture about her family and the traditions, the pony felt a small spark of energy to return to her. "It's what the Apple Family calls harvestin' time. We gather all the apples from the trees so we can sell 'em!"

"...And you're doing this alone?" Bruce asked. "Oh! You're just taking turns with someone, right?"

"Why in Equestria would 'ah do that?" Applejack waved a hoof dismissively. "'Ah'm managing on mah own!"

"But why do it by yourself?" Peter asked. "It seems really counterproductive. If you finish now, you'll have a buncha time to yourself later, won't you?"

"Nuh-uh." The pony shook her head, determined in her stubbornness. "Big Macintosh hurt himself, so ah'll take care of tha' rest."

Bruce scratched his head, puzzled. "Didn't you have like a whole giant family helping you out? All the ponies with apple-related names? Like, Apple Fritter, Apple Tater, Braeburn..."

Applejack shook her head, sighing. "Naw, they were just here for the Apple Family Reunion. They actually live all over Equestria, and they're all busy harvestin' their own orchards. So ah'm on 'mah own, which means... "Ah should really get back to work. Ahem. Hint hint? Get back to work?"

"Miss Applejack..." Bruce tensely said. "I feel like this is probably not a good idea. Why not get some help? I'm sure there's lots of kind souls who would love to help you out with the harvest-er, "Applebuck Season"?"

"Why would 'ah need any?" Applejack rolled her eyes. "'Ah got all this handled with 'mah four hooves!"

"But doing all of this on your own looks...really tough." Peter said. "Come on, Miss Applejack, I kinda think this is not a good idea."

Applejack gave her inquisitors the stinky eye, looking a little surprised and angry with her tired eye. "Hey! Are you challengin' me!?"

"No, no!" The three said at the same time, attempting to not fan the flames of stubbornness in the pony's heart. "I'm just saying..." Twilight said. "Doing the whole harvest by yourself doesn't seem like the best idea, so I really think it'd be better if we gave you a hoof or a hand!"

"No way, and no hay!" Applejack mumbled. "I'm gonna prove to y'all that 'ah can do it! Now if y'all excuse me, ah've got apples to buck!" She barked, blowing her nose through her nostrils as she stormed off to continue bucking more apples.

The three watched in disbelief as Applejack completely rejected all of their help. As they stood there, they noticed the sound of footsteps. Bucky had approached, dressed as if he was headed for war. "Hey, I see you guys are seeing the issue I'm dealing with, huh?"

"Oh, hey Bucky." Twilight smiled. "Yeah, uh...What's the situation? Applejack looks a little bit...Off?"

"Yeah. She and Uncle Mac had some kind of argument. So, she's doing this whole thing on her own. She's not letting me help." Bucky grunted, preparing his tactical vest. Instead of bullets and grenades however, he had baby bottles and diaper packs. This earned a look from Peter, who looked him up and down.

"...Are you like, preparing for Foal War Two?" Peter said, trying hard not to laugh, but being unable to stop himself from doing so. Bruce tried to hide his chuckle, trying to do so with a cough.

Bucky rolled his eyes. "...No. Babysitting. Got hired for the evening to help out a family, who's going to Las Pegasus for the weekend, and they got triplets."

"...You're still bringing that though?" Twilight murmured with concern, pointing at a syringe. He looked at it and nodded at her.

"Yeah." Bucky said. "Some battlefield meds."

"...What kind of foals are you going to babysit?" Bruce asked, feeling the statement to be bizarre. Yet, Bucky rolled his eyes.

"Not for me. For myself." Bucky muttered. "Kids are scary. Aunt Applebloom's already a mischievous kid when she's bored, so I'm gonna need this if they decide to get rid of me so they can do whatever they want."

"I don't think the foals are gonna try to kill you, Bucky." Bruce chuckled.

"...Not taking chances. If the parents are taking a break from parenting this soon, then I gotta be ready for trouble."

"Man, we really gotta get Applejack to get you your job back." Peter remarked. "Is she actually not paying you? I mean, is it gonna be like a salary or...an allowance?"

"It's not about the money." Bucky said, starting to walk off. "I hate not having anything to do. And as long as I can't work at the Acres because my mom is being stubborn, then I'm gonna go crazy. Now, I'm gonna go into the hornet's nest...If I don't get back, tell my mom that I loved her. And that she should get some sleep."

As he walked off, Twilight looked at Bruce, and then at her son. Peter shrugged, looking around in utter confusion. "Is he always this dramatic?" He asked Bruce.

Bruce couldn't help but chuckle. "He's got a soldier's spirit, y'know? He came to the hospital with a sprained wrist, while I was helping Nurse Redheart. First thing he asked is how much his trigger finger is gonna delay."

Twilight tilted her head curiously. "What'd you tell him?"

"If I said "zero", he wouldn't be satisfied, so..." Bruce blushed. "I lied and made up that it'd be like, 0.3 seconds. He grunted but seemed okay with the answer."

"...Let's get back to the elephant in the room." Peter said, turning to Applejack in the distance, who still kept bucking apples. "Is she gonna be okay?"

"..." Twilight pursed her lips. "Let her do her thing. I'm sure she's gonna realize that she's gotta hit the hay sooner or later. Right?"

***

Applejack tiredly walked over to Rainbow Dash and Steve. Her eyes were not focused, her vision was a blur, and she did not understand how she was able to go from Point A to Point B. Yet, here she was, having arrived to help her friends, though at this point, she had no idea with what.

Rainbow Dash scoffed. "There you are!"

Steve was too busy doing burpees, pushing up and hopping up to box with the air. He was hyping himself up for the difficult trick ahead.

"Sorry!" Applejack murmured. "Mighty serious! "Ah was applebuckin' and dozed off, and when 'ah woke off, it was already late!"

"That's fine." Steve smirked. "Gives us more prep time. Right, mom?"

"Right." Rainbow Dash coughed, pointing her hoof at a massive seesaw, with a diving board above the raised end. "See that? You're gonna jump and launch me up in the air! I'm gonna do some tricks - flips, all that kinda stuff that the Wonderbolts are sure to notice if I have a chance to do it in-front of 'em!"

"And I got a role in this, too." Steve grinned. He donned the parachute, slipping his arms into it. "I'm gonna be on the same end as mom, and when we go up into the air, I'm gonna 'chute myself on the way down. Then I'm gonna land exactly in the town center, already painted a target there! I just hope the sweepers haven't removed it."

Applejack heard a bunch of noise - but she got one part right. She had to jump on the other end of the seesaw to launch the two up into the air. "...Ain't that a bit dangerous?"

"Nope." Steve waved his arm. "Mom and I thought of this all the way. We got this in the bag. Just don't fall down too hard, cause then I'll just be parachuting into farmland."

"Yeah, I don't wanna go into space either." Rainbow Dash remarked. "C'mon AJ, let's get this show on the road! Ready, Steve?"

"Yeah! Ready when you are, Applejack!" The lad said. He and his mother stood on the grounded end of the massive seesaw, eagerly looking at Applejack to climb the diving board.

Applejack needed a moment to even understand what was happening. She blinked again, tiredly and heavily. Yet, she made her way over to the diving board. She made her way to the top, and upon looking down at the ground to see her landing zone, her eyes began to spin and blur. She swayed side-to-side, dazed and confused as her vision doubled and tripled.

"...A'ight, here 'ah go...Whoa..." She was still unable to make heads or tails of the landing but decided to go right for it. She leaned forward and prepared to go into freefall.

WHACK!

Steve immediately cringed from second-hand pain, holding onto his own head as he watched Applejack fall right down on the ground. "Oooooh! Miss Applejack!? Are you alright!?"

The Earth Pony raised herself immediately, wobbling left and right from exhaustion. "A'hm fine! A'hm fine, eheh..."

Steve and Rainbow Dash looked at one another with confusion, the pony shrugging. Once again, she climbed the diving board. Once more, she jumped. The landing was botched once again and she fell down onto the ground, the dust kicking up into the air. And again, she went up. And again, she crashed down.

"Hey, Miss Applejack..." Steve muttered. "You don't look so goo--"

"What the hay!?" Rainbow Dash barked. "Urgh, I thought I was working with Ponyville's best athlete!?"

The shouting had managed to give Applejack a smidgeon of awareness, having her climb up the board once again. "You are! Just gimme a moment, I'll uh...There! 'Ah got an idea!" She said, rising on her legs to then pushing down with her front hooves on the seesaw. Slowly, the other side rose with Steve and Rainbow Dash. They both looked unimpressed, looking at her with confusion.

"...Uh, okay, "ah got it!" One more time, Applejack attempted to calculate the jump. However, she decided that the best way to go about it, would be to cover as much ground as possible so as to not miss the other side of the seesaw. And so, she jumped - spreading her limbs wide as she cannonballed right onto it.

The amount of velocity and weight Applejack brought down upon the seesaw caused Rainbow and Steve to fly up into the air, but it was more than the Pegasus intended. The intense force sent both Rainbow Dash and Steve high into the clouds. As Rainbow Dash flew away, a rainbow trail followed her over the entire town, and Steve went up into the air alongside her.

"AAAPLEEEEJAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACK!" They both shouted, their shouts fading into the distance, flying somewhere into the clouds.

"...You're welcome!" Applejack smiled. She stumbled on, for she knew she had more chores to take care of.

***

Twilight happily read the book on the balcony of her library. Yet, she heard a soft crash. She looked forward to seeing Rainbow Dash, who had made the balcony her landing zone. The impact was only softened, thanks to the flapping of her wings. Twilight immediately put two and two together, sighing.

"Can I help you...?" Twilight tensely asked, knowing that Rainbow Dash wouldn't crash unless something was totally wrong.

"I think somepony needs your help..." Rainbow Dash muttered.

Twilight sighed softly. "Let me guess...Applejack?"

"...Yep." Rainbow Dash groaned. Exhausted, she closed her eyes and took a rest, needing to recover after the intense jump.

Closing her book with frustration, Twilight felt herself groan. Yet, while she looked away in annoyance, she saw a shadow cast above her. She let out a yelp, barely reacting when the world went dark, once the parachute draped all over her. In the total darkness underneath the fabric, she could hear a shaken male voice.

"...Hi, Miss Sparkle." Steve softly said. "...I think I missed the landing a bit, huh?"

Twilight murmured with mild annoyance. "Yeah...Just a bit. I'm gonna have to get that pony to see reason, one way or another."

"Good luck." Said Steve, helping her out of the parachute that tangled them both. "She couldn't even see the landing zone, like a meter ahead of her..."

***

Applejack bumped her head against the apples that fell on her head, wincing in pain. She was dizzy, but not because of the concussion. Tiredly, she swayed and stumbled to the next tree, almost as if she was drunk.

On their way to help Applejack, Twilight walked alongside Tony, who whistled a tune on their way. Bruce followed them, hoping again that some medical expertise could help. Tony rolled his eyes as the scientist listed the different hazards of sleep deprivation.

"I don't get what's the big deal. We can get her some energy drinks and coffee and get her on her way." Tony said.

"Bad idea." Twilight said. "The answer is not to have her get full of sugar and caffeine. We just need to convince her to at-least take a nap. Or maybe we can get her to accept some help...Speaking of which, let me talk to her. Alone." Twilight said, noticing that Applejack was struggling to buck the trees, bumping her head into branches.

"You sure?" Bruce asked. "I was thinking of telling her that there is a certain threshold before the brain starts to develop permanent damage and--"

"I don't think she's going to process that right now, Bruce." Twilight said. "Listen, just wait for me here."

"Suits me." Tony said. "You wanna explore the Acres, Bruce? See if we can get you to find an apple that you can turn into an orange?"

"You're very charming, Stark." Bruce muttered. The two lads walked around the Acres, until a red shape caught their attention. The red Stallion leaning against the tree nodded at them, and the two took the cue to come close.

"Hey, Big Mac." Bruce smiled. "Good day, huh?"

Before Big Mac could say anything, Tony smirked mischievously. "Gullible says eeyup."

Despite the trap, the Stallion shook his head at Tony, though smiled at the scientist. "The day's alright. Watchin' sis try to have a go at the entire Acres has been probably more fun than Buckball."

"...Wow, he actually said something other than eeyup." Tony whispered.

Bruce looked at the injury on the Stallion's side. "...And how's that? I mean, the uh...The injury?"

"Just a few days, it'll be alright." Big Mac responded. "'Ah overheard what you were sayin' 'bout the brain damage. 'Ah hope AJ knows when to quit. I dunno if I can handle her bein' like this all the time."

"...Why is he so talkative all this time?" Tony whispered to Bruce. The scientist grimaced at Tony and nudged him in the chest, causing him to twitch.

"Sorry about that." Bruce said. "Tony's uhm...Tony."

"Tony Stark." Tony insisted.

"...Ain't your surname going to be Belle?" Bruce asked.

"Tony Stark's got a ring to it. When I make my company, it's gonna catch on. C'mon, that guy, Filthy Rich? That's the kinda name of a rich prick who runs the town."

Big Macintosh frowned. "Mayor Mare runs the town. Filthy's just the type to spend money out of his problems."

"You don't seem to like him." Tony remarked.

"...He's part of the reason I stopped bein' talkative." Big Macintosh said. "But, if y'really gotta know, a'hm talkative cause 'ah worry about sis. Get her to take a break. A'hm not goin' through her either way."

"You can count on us." Bruce smiled. "I heard she wants to help out at Sugarcube Corner next, so, I'm sure she'll probably realize how tired she is by the time she gets to the kitchen counter."

***

"Mom, are you sure you need Applejack to help?" Clint nervously asked as he watched the apple farmer tiredly stumble around the kitchen, her eyes constantly going cross from sheer tiredness. "I feel like she could use a nap..."

"But Ponyville's expecting these muffins any minute now!" Pinkie Pie gasped.

"...But you could ask me to help out instead." Clint nudged her. "You know, your favorite arrow-slinging son who's been taught in the ways of party-making and baking and arrow-shooting?"

"Clint, y'know I love baking with you." Pinkie grinned - wincing at the sound of pots and pans falling over as Applejack fell onto the floor.

"A'hm okay!" Applejack exclaimed, resisting the urge to fall asleep on the floor as she got back on her hooves.

Pinkie Pie returned to the conversation. "But I really need your help on the decorations for Sugarcube Corner! And I'm gonna need those wacky things you call opposable things to get the job done! You get a head start, and I'll send AJ your way by the time we finish baking these muffins!"

Clint sighed. "Okay mom. If ya say so...I guess Applejack can help me set up that huge candy cane we wanted to put up near the entrance."

***

Twilight Sparkle ran to the hospital alongside Bruce, Spike and Peter. They were in a mad rush, for things were bad. Worse than bad, based on what they heard. Bruce took the initiative, quickly running to Nurse Redheart.

"We heard there's trouble!" He exclaimed, not even hesitating as he put on a doctor's mask. "What are we dealing with!?"

"We need all the help we can get..." The nurse frowned. She opened the flap to the medical tent - and inside was sheer horror. Ponies were sick, all throwing up or sick, moaning and groaning in sheer misery. "There's been a mishap with baked goods..."

"No, not baked goods..." Came the voice of Pinkie as she sat up, green in the face. "More like...baked bads!"

"What happened!?" Peter exclaimed. "Did someone put Earthworms into the muffins or something!?" He said, covering Spike's eyes in face of the terrible sight.

"I think you're onto something..." said the voice of Clint sitting in the tent, whose face was becoming very familiar with a bucket. He also had a massive bruise in his forehead, which wasn't helping as he occasionally threw up into the bucket.

"Clint!?" Bruce approached him. "What happened!? And... what's with the head trauma?"

"...Applejack." Clint said, gagging into the bucket. "After she helped mom bake, she helped me set up decor. We had a huge candy cane, and I guess Applejack didn't tie it up right, cause the thing fell right on me... Too bad I already tried the muffins after Applejack made them, cause I'm getting a double wha--" He interrupted himself to throw up once more.

"...Applejack..." Twilight felt her face blush with anger. She heard crunching to her side, grimacing when she saw Spike happily eat the poisoned muffins.

"Want one?" Spike smiled.

"...I guess if you eat gems, you can eat Earthworms." Peter muttered.

***

Applejack tiredly went through the Acres, bucking tree after tree. She was unfocused, hitting a tree but needing more than one buck to get the apples to fall into the cart. She would keep on walking, not able to pay attention. She started walking backwards, believing that's where she approximately left the larger basket behind. It was the reason that one step resulted in the cart she carried to topple and end up with her suspended in the air, the cart going vertical.

She wondered why she was seeing Twilight and Bucky upside down.

"Applejack..." Twilight sighed.

"Mom." Bucky grunted. "We need to talk now. This is serious."

"...Oh, Twi. Bucky." Applejack blinked, realizing who she was looking at. "...'Ah know what y'all wanna say - but the answer is still no!" She exclaimed.

"Mom, this is serious!" Bucky exclaimed. Not even giving his mom a chance to take care of the problem herself, his metal hand grabbed the cart and forced it to be upright, planting Applejack's hooves onto the ground.

"Hey! 'Ah said 'ah don't need any help!" Applejack grunted.

"Applejack." Twilight took a deep breath. "We just got back from Ponyville Urgent Care, and--"

"'Ah'm too busy to be lectured right now!" The orange pony huffed, walking forward towards another apple tree. Yet, the two followed her.

"We're here to help!" Twilight exclaimed.

"Mom..." Bucky grits his teeth. "You need to understand right now that helping others while being tired is causing others to get hurt."

"I ain't hurt." Applejack shook her head to shake off the sleepiness, barely able to correctly hear him past her foggy mind.

"No, I said you're hurting others..." Bucky repeated.

"Listen, 'ah'm sure the lecture you two are givin' me is mighty fascinatin', but I ain't here to discuss anythin' - not until I've finished all 'mah chores and wrapped up the harvest!" She exclaimed, bucking one of the trees. Yet, no apples came.

"AJ..." Twilight sighed. "Look, you're beating a dead..."

Buck! Yet, no apples came. Applejack tried again, and nothing.

"...Tree." Bucky and Twilight said at the same time.

"...I knew that." Applejack mumbled. "Bucky - Twi, y'all gotta understand two words. 'Ah got it."

"...Three." Bucky and Twilight said once again.

Applejack instead walked off, leaving the two behind. The two looked at one another, both exhaling through their nostrils.

"That pony's as stubborn as a mule..." She said - just noticing a nearby mule, who stood nearby. She blushed. "No offense."

"None taken." The mule smiled. Yet...Bucky did not like strangers at the farm.

"Hey, who are you? What're you doing here?" He muttered, becoming defensive. Twilight could not be bothered with it much; however, as other things were on her mind entirely.

***

Fluttershy and Bruce happily tended to the bunnies. Bruce would pick them up and give them quick medical checks, making sure that each bunny was safe and born healthy. He petted them each, showing the kind of affection that his mother would. They happily frolicked and bounced around. Then, they were approached by the orange pony.

Bruce was naive and oblivious - so certain that Applejack must have gotten some sleep, because otherwise, there was no way she'd even be standing. He convinced himself she'd taken a nap at some point.

Fluttershy smiled, walking up to Applejack eagerly. "Oh, Applejack! Thank you so much for offering your herding skills for the annual rabbit roundup!"

Applejack tiredly looked at all the bunnies, so sleepy that she even forgot why she was here and what she was doing. "Uh, why are we doin' this..."

Bruce chuckled, feeding one of the mother bunnies a carrot as he held her softly, petting her. "Well, Miss Applejack, we're gonna have to have a census for our bunny population! It's good to know how many bunny families we've got around Ponyville. It helps us keep an eye on the local ecology and such!"

"...Fine. Can we just get on with it?"

Fluttershy nodded cutely. "Certainly! But remember, these are bunnies we're dealing with, not cows. They're a timid bunch and need to be treated gently..."

"Indeed!" Bruce raised a finger. "Bunnies and all of their Leporidae brethren have evolved to be very reactive to threats, and they're some of the most difficult-to-catch animals! That's why if they see the slightest bit of danger, they're likely to let loose, their--"

Applejack snapped, gritting her teeth. "'Ah appreciate the lecture, but 'ah do NOT need any direction on corrallin' critters! Right, Winona?"

Applejack's trusty dog ran up to her, happily barking by her side. Bruce and Fluttershy looked at one another uncertainly, but they knew it was rude to reject her help, considering the way she'd come to help them. Fluttershy softly instructed the bunnies. "Okay little bunnies, I need you all to gather here in the middle." She softly said.

Bruce and Fluttershy both yelped however, when Applejack suddenly began to walk about with almost intense energy, waving her hooves in a circular motion around herself, before stomping her hoof in-front of a family of bunnies. "That's right, let's go bunnies! In tha' center, hop to it!" She barked out. "Put 'em up, Winona!"

Fluttershy squeaked. "Applejack, Winona, stop! You're scaring them!"

"Miss Applejack!" Bruce exclaimed, the mother bunny in his arms suddenly jumped out and started to hop away in panic. "Y-You gotta be a little easier on them! Please? They're--"

Yet, the dog and the Earth Pony were beyond convincing. The two began to immensely handle the census job. In-fact, they began to run around, bark, and shout at the rabbits, thinking that they would be easy to round up in one place. Yet, unlike cows, the bunnies were not so easy to manage. They were certainly not very obedient, for the shouting did not round them in the same spot. The bunnies would scatter and would begin to bounce and hop right through the perimeter. Applejack squeaked as a bunny managed to run past in-between her hooves.

"Miss Applejack..." Bruce felt himself shudder a little with annoyance, a vein popping on his forehead. "Please...Calm...Down. The bunnies need...to be handled with care and..."

"'Ah KNOW what ah'm doin', Bruce!" Applejack exclaimed, trying to jump and tackle one of the larger bunnies, but it simply bounced and forced her to faceplant. She grits her teeth. The whole time, Winona ran circles around Bruce, barking and yapping at a group of scared bunnies, many of which kicked Bruce to use him as a springboard to jump farther away, causing him to fall on one knee. Bruce was now anxious but also frustrated. His fingers dug into the soil, his teeth gritting.

"Winona!" Bruce cried out. "You need to...need to..."

Applejack grunted, trying to lasso one of the bunnies, but instead getting the rope around the lad's neck. "Bruce, don't get in tha' way, you ain't helping! Keep to the science, ah'm on the rodeo job!"

This comment made the vein on Bruce's head glow green. He grunted.

"Applejack...You...Need...To..."

Winona was practically barking in his ear.

And that was enough.

"You need to STOP!" Bruce shouted. Yet, his voice was not a mere human's. His voice came out as a lion's roar, the wave of sound causing nearby leaves to brush and sway. His shirt was ripped as his body began to grow, and his skin started to glow green. His muscles were now the same width as the trees Applejack had been bucking all day - each finger as large as the bunnies themselves.

"RAAAAGH!" The Hulk roared, his lungs producing a sound so loud that the birds sitting on the roofs of the houses in Ponyville flew away in fear.

There was deafening silence - the bunnies freezing in place as they stared at the massive, green monster. Even Winona began to whimper, immediately scurrying behind Applejack.

For a moment, realizing what had happened, the Hulk regained some humanity - and the immediate shock made him calm down. The Hulk stopped his roar and realized what he'd done. He quickly shut his mouth with his massive palms. "...Hulk says uh-oh..."

The bunnies each let out a loud, loud squeak of terror. Immediately, they turned tail and ran towards a random location. They indeed bunched up into one army of bunnies, but they were now on the fast, fast move away from the scary pony, dog, and green giant.

And much to Fluttershy's horror, she saw as the bunnies started to run towards the town.

"...Oh no..." Fluttershy whimpered.

***

"STAMPEEEDEEEE!" Rainbow Dash shouted loudly, warning the ponies as panic settled in. The wave of bunnies would run through the streets, kicking up dust and trampling over flowers - some taking a break to snack on them to calm their anxiety.

"I got this!" Steve said, quickly jumping onto the street to crouch and hold his shield, having not even asked what animal was stampeding this time. He shut his eyes, bracing for impact. However, when he saw the bunnies jumping past him, he blinked in confusion. "...Huh?" He let his shield down, which proved to be a mistake as a bunny jumped onto his head and kicked off of him, giving him a nasty whack on the head.

Meanwhile, a little further from the chaos, Thor and Natasha had been walking around the street, the both of them seemingly idle and not having much to do.

"You know..." Natasha said. "I'm feeling like we're not gonna be in Ponyville for too long." She spoke. Thor raised a brow at her.

"How do you figure?" He asked her. "I mean, our mothers seemed rather sure that we need to be here to assist Twilight in her quest for understanding Friendship. I do not think that call is ours to make."

"Oh please." Natasha waved a hand. "Think about it. Absolutely nothing happens in this town! Apart from Nightmare Moon's arrival and that little standoff everyone had over some tickets, what kind of action even happens around this town? This place is just quiet and not very active."

"So?" Thor asked. "You're not hoping that danger comes to Ponyville, are you?"

"Eh..." Natasha shrugged. "I just think that I'd be better off working for Canterlot's security, keeping an eye on anything that's going to endanger us. The way I see it - once our mothers see just how idle this town is, we'll be let go home. Just a few more days of absolutely nothing happening and--"

The two's quiet time was interrupted as the rumble shook the Earth, an army of rabbits having run right at them and past them, trampling grass and plants on their way. They both stood in the middle of the road in complete confusion, looking at how the critters made their way like a fuzzy tsunami. After the rumble, the street was dusty, with most flora either crumpled on the ground or partly bitten.

Thor and Natasha looked at one another. Thor couldn't help but chuckle at her. "Well then, I suppose some things do happen after all, don't they?"

Natasha grits her teeth, walking off and leaving Thor by himself. "Me and my big mouth..."

Further down the city, ponies began to scream - many starting to faint from horror. Not the stampede itself - but the sight of the flowers being trampled and eaten. Clint ran out of the medical tent and tried to hastily prepare an arrow with a net, but he could not aim past his nausea, which caused him to miss. The net-tipped arrow bounced off one of the store signs and hit him, ending up with him stuck in a sturdy net.

It was in the meantime that Twilight happily hummed along as she walked with Spike and Peter - but they turned the corner to see the myriads of fainted ponies and the kicked-up dust. Twilight gasped, running over to the terrified ponies of the flower shop. Peter ran up to them first. immediately preparing to take down any threats.

"Hey, what's going on!?" Peter cried out.

"The horror! The horror!" Cried out the red-maned Mare, Rose, as she fell into Peter's arm and fainted.

"It was awful! Awful!" A blonde Mare cried out, gasping in terror and horror as she waltzed over to Peter to fall into his other arm - the lad starting to shake a little as he held both unconscious Mares.

A lime maned-Mare then approached with a stumble to her steps. "A disaster, a horrible - horrible disaster!" She cried out, and fell on top of Peter, causing him to finally collapse with the three fainted ponies, pinning him to the ground, leaving Spike to try and help him.

Twilight looked at the flower shop to see Fluttershy and Bruce, who both tried to calm down the bunnies that were feasting on the several flowers. Fluttershy did not want to be intimidating nor assertive, and Bruce tried to help her. Yet, for whatever reason, he was shirtless, gasping as one of the bunnies bit his finger when he attempted to get it to stop biting a rose. He took a deep breath, knowing that if he went green now, then things would just start all over again.

Twilight watched with utter disbelief, blowing air out of her nose with frustration.

"Alright...enough is enough!"

***

Bucky and Big Mac stood on the hill watching Applejack work. They were observing her, not allowed to intervene as tree after tree was bucked. They both watched as Twilight and Peter entered the Acres, once again on their way to try and convince the stubborn Mare to stop.

"Hey, Miss Applejack..." Peter nervously chuckled. "Heeyy, so we're not saying we wanna help you, but we just wanted to let you know that there's a bit of trouble back in town. Y'know, the uh..."

Twilight did not have patience for her son's pacifistic approach. "Applejack! You've over-propelled both Pegasi and humans, poisoned ponies, dropped a huge candy cane on Clint's head, terrorized brand new bouncing baby bunnies, and got Bruce going green again! You. Need. Help!"

"I-I mean, I did say we're not here to insist!" Peter reminded. "We just think it'd be a really, really good idea!"

"No!" Applejack barked. "And 'sides, ah'm almost done! One more and... There!"

With one triumphant buck, she cheered.

"Yes!" Applejack said, a burst of energy returning to her as she waltzed over to Big Mac and Bucky with a big smile on her face. "How do ya like them apples!?"

Big Mac and Bucky glanced at one another and sighed. The red Stallion looked at his sister, then gestured towards the rest of the Acres. "How do ya like them apples?" He asked.

Applejack turned slowly - and her jaw nearly hit the ground. She saw red. Red apples that dotted many, many apple trees. She was not done with her job at the least, still having almost half, if not more of the same work she had already done. She blinked, stumbling in shock as she stumbled back. Bucky gently caught her with his organic and metal arm, holding her steady.

"Where...Where'd all those apples..." She stumbled. Bucky sighed, rubbing his mother's shoulders as if she was a boxer, and he was the coach in the corner, preparing her for Round 12.

"Just for reference..." Bucky said. "We've also got all the storing, the packaging, the processing, writing up manifests to see what's gonna go where, making agreements with our buyers, performing maintenance checks on all the farming equipment...You know. The kinda stuff we all do together." He muttered.

Applejack could not handle it anymore, and she fainted right in Bucky's arms. He easily held her with his strength, almost holding her like a cat.

Twilight galloped up with worry. Bucky gently set her down on a nearby bale of hale as everyone surrounded her with concern and worry. Twilight whispered, anxiously speaking.

"Applejack? Applejack!? Are you okay?"

Applejack's eyes fluttered open. "I...whuh?"

"Oh good, you're okay..." Twilight softly said. "You're okay. Applejack, listen, I completely respect the Apple family ways."

"...Which are doing things together." Bucky reminded his mom.

Twilight nodded to him, then spoke to Applejack again. "You're always there to help anypony in need - but maybe you can put a little of your stubborn pride aside, and allow your friends and family help you?"

Applejack frowned. She felt the plucking on her pride's heartstrings, fighting for herself. Yet, she sighed and gave in, softly sighing. "...Okay, Twi'..."

Twilight humphed. "And I am not taking no for an answer--...What!?"

Pleadingly, Applejack looked up at her with puppy eyes. "Yes, Twilight. Please? 'Ah could really use 'yer help..."

The Unicorn smiled in adoration, and chuckled. Bucky felt his shoulders drop in relief, and he let himself fall into the same bale of hay.

"Bucky!?" Peter yelped. "Dude, you okay?"

"...That's a lot of stress off of my shoulders." He muttered.

His uncle laughed, Big Macintosh shook his head. "Eeee-yup."

***

Twilight dictated the letter to Spike as Applejack's friends were bucking trees. Rainbow Dash bucked a tree, and Pinkie Pie held the cart that they fell into. Bucky and Steve took turns punching the trees, one of which was enough to get the apples to drop. Clint used arrows that had a modest amount of pressurized air that rocked the trees, allowing apples to fall in. Tony nervously approached Bruce with Winona in his arms and got her to bark in his ear - causing Bruce to swell into the Hulk; however, instead of starting to furiously smash things, the Hulk began to gently shake the trees, allowing the trees to fall into a cart that Fluttershy helped carry away.

"Dear Princess Celestia..." Twilight told Spike as he wrote. "My friend Applejack is the best friend a pony could ever have, and she's always there to help anypony! Only trouble is, when she needs help, she finds it hard to accept it. So, while Friendship is about giving of ourselves to friends, it's also about accepting what our friends and family have to offer." She smiled. "Your faithful student - Twilight Sparkle."

Applejack whistled, hollering everyone over to a table beside the barn. "How about y'all take a little break? I got some fine apple juice waitin' for ya!"

Bucky and Steve heard the call and immediately began to race each other, all while they carried full carts of apples. They were running with much intensity, sweating and panting - yet they were overtaken by Peter and Tony, who both raced as Tony used his leg-worn jets, while Peter swung from tree to tree. In the end, by the time they had arrived, everyone was panting from exhaustion, their race making them hungrily grab the ice-cold apple juice. The only one who took his time was the Hulk, who was so large that walking alone had the same speed as a steady jog. On his way, he began to calm down, returning to his human form with each step.

"Miss Applejack, this is awesome!" Peter said, hungrily drinking from the bottle. "Honestly, I never thought I'd be eating and drinking so much apple-flavored stuff since I arrived here, and I think I've been missing out."

"Good." Bucky whispered to him. "Do not let mom catch you having anything strawberry flavored. Just kidding. Mostly."

Applejack sighed, looking at everyone who had gathered around the table. "Girls, guys - 'ah can't thank y'all enough for this. 'Ah was actin' a bit stubborn..."

Bucky and Twilight smirked softly. "A bit?" They said at the same time.

Applejack blushed, sighing. "Okay - mighty stubborn. And 'ahm awfully sorry. 'Ah know the town gave me the Prize Pony award, but the real award is havin' you all as 'mah friends!"

The ponies and humans softly smiled, Rainbow Dash chuckling as she had her ego stroked.

Steve laughed. "C'mon, Miss Applejack, you know I don't do well with corniness and flattery and all that kinda stuff."

Tony smirked. "Okay Steve - you're actually not doing your work fast enough, and you better hurry up if you don't wanna be on quota." He spoke. Steve rolled his eyes, and the two laughed.

Suddenly, came the sound of grumbling. Rainbow Dash blushed. "Phew, that applebucking sure made me hungry!"

Clint felt his stomach rumble as well. "...Not gonna lie, I thought after that whole rotten muffin fiasco, I wouldn't wanna even look at food today, but this is pretty tough work."

"Speaking of which, I got just the thing!" Spike happily exclaimed, producing a handful of the poisonous muffins that had put half of the town into the ER earlier. Everyone looked at the pile of bad goods in disgust, recoiling.

"Ew, Spike, I threw them all away!" Pinkie Pie yelped. "Where'd you get them!?"

"From the trash!"

"Eeewww!" Came the united voice of disgust from everyone at the table.

Bruce shook his head. "Spike, I know that Dragons have their own dietary preferences, but we're gonna have to give you an examination after we're done here. I don't wanna find out you've got a bunch of tapeworms in your stomach!"

"They're Earthworms actually." Spike said, proudly taking a big bite. "Just a nibble? Come on?"

"Gross!" Everyone said at the same time, laughing as they walked towards the sunset, ready to finish the rest of their work.

Author's Note

Hi, everyone! I'm back! I'm so sorry for the 2-3 month (I think) hiatus, but I had a lot of things on my mind throughout the past few months. But with highly anticipation, here is Chapter 4 of the crossover! In the next chapter, Peter will introduce a new group of Avengers that would add more members over time, throughout the series. You might have to stay tuned to see who is going to be the first member of a new group that Peter would introduce!