> A Timber Wolf's Benevolence
>  by MLP Warrior Cats
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> Chapter 1
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AppleJack and Big Mac watched the sky as the sun rose over the dawn horizon. The sky looked ablaze in a fire of crimson and orange, fading to a soft pink and finally blue as the sun ascended into the morning sky. The two ponies knew this sunrise was special. It marked the beginning of Applebucking season. The orange mare looked over at her brother with a look of glee, as if she were a little filly who had just gotten a great birthday present. "We better start bucking", AppleJack cheerfully said to Big Mac, who simply replied with a "Yup".
Apple Bloom was finally allowed to help out now, although she didn't think that her job was as fun as kicking the trees and sending the apples plummeting to the ground. AppleJack still didn't trust her with stuff like that sometimes, and Big Mac agreed that she shouldn't do anything that could hurt her without learning how first. AppleBloom had been told to bring the apples to the barn, so they could be washed off and put in a cart to be sold. She all too obviously hated doing that, but she did it usually without complaint. 
"AppleJack, it's no fun simply bringing the apples to the barn! Why can't I help you and Big Mac?", AppleBloom grunted as she stepped over to a basket of red, ripe apples. She proceeded to grab an apple out of the basket, biting into it. "AppleBloom, ya already know why Big Mac and I aren't lettin' you buck apples yet. It's just too hard for a lil' filly like you. Anyway, isn't helpin' us out by takin' the apples to the barn better than doing nothin' at all?"  AppleJack asked as she noticed the upset look on her sister's face. AppleBloom picked up the basket, setting it on her back to make it easy to carry it. "I guess it's better to have some way to help than to just do nothing at all. I just wish i had a more important job".
The filly turned around and headed back towards to barn before AppleJack had a chance to say anything to her sister. She knew that AppleBloom would rather have been bucking apples with her and Big Mac. But the filly sometimes, and usually, had a hard time at doing it. There was always the chance to hurt yourself doing it, of course. AppleBloom had attempted bucking a tree one time, and got a splinter in her hoof because she hadn't been cautious about where her hooves would hit the tree. The filly still limped once in a while, claiming her hoof was sore and hurt every time she took a step. 
That had been the day that AppleBloom learned she should listen when she was told not to do something. Maybe it might not have even been the first time, for there were a quite few times that she had done something she was told not to do and got into some sort of trouble. If she hadn't gotten hurt by doing something, she was usually repayed by being grounded at the worst, and at the least, not allowed something for a day. At least she hadn't gotten grounded or anything for trying to buck the apple tree.
AppleJack knew that getting a splinter of wood stuck in your hoof was definitely all the punishment needed for not listening. It hurt badly to get a splinter in your hoof. The hardest part about it was getting it unstuck from your hoof, which AppleBloom had struggled to do so for an hour straight. Finally she had gotten it out, and was upset to find that even when you get out the splinter itself, the pain tends to remain for a few days sometimes. AppleBloom had nearly been driven crazy by the annoying pain every time she took a step.
AppleBloom was feeling better lately, and the pain that had been bothering her so much had seemed to have gone away. AppleJack hoped she could help get her little sis to feel better about helping out them with the apples. Personally, AJ had to admit that carrying the apples to the barn didn't exactly sound like the best job ever during AppleBuck season. Her sister's upset feelings about doing that instead of bucking the trees could easily be understood, thinking hard about how boring a job like taking apples to the barn would be. There was always the possibility of turning it into some sort of game, but that was only fun if someone else was there to do it with. 
"Never mind that", AppleJack murmured to herself, seeing that she was supposed to go get the apples off of the trees in the furthest field. For some odd reason, being in a field on the edge of the everfree forest felt somewhat creepy. Especially being out there all alone. The everfree forest was feared by alot of ponies, mostly because of the creatures that inhabited the forest. The most well know of all the everfree animals were the Timber Wolves. Even the thought of those creatures sent a chill down most ponie's spines. An awful lot of timber wolves lived in the forests around Sweet Apple Acres.
AppleJack cautiously walked to the edge of the field, looking out at the forest that stretched for the whole field length and into the distance. For a second, a flash of movement in the bushes caught her attention, but she looked over to the bush to see nothing. She shrugged, turning to the trees in the field behind her. At the same time, she could have sworn something, out there in the shadows of the forest, was watching her every move.
> Chapter 2
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With a loud thud, the tree shook as the mare kicked it with all her strength. The golden apples landed in the wooden baskets below the tree. Of course , you'd think they would all get bruised after landing on top of one another so hard. It was odd nopony ever questioned as to how in the hay the apples didn't get bruises all over them, considering that if you let a ton of apples fall on one another it was undeniable they wouldn't have gotten bruised. But yet they never did; It was well worth questioning that, but nopony really ever seemed to care or notice. 
Of course, AppleJack, Big Mac, and AppleBloom did notice that. They all lived and worked at Sweet Apple Acres. Things like that couldn't get past the very ponies who farmed at Sweet Apple Acres. Of course, there were many many other things just just didn't seem right, yet nopony ever payed much attention to those things either. And the only ponies who did always had something to do with it, like how only the Apple Family ever questioned why the apples never got bruised from landing on each other. 
AppleJack shook her head, realizing with a jolt that she had become lost in thought. The only thing that mattered right now was getting all the apples before applebuck season ended, and the apples were no good for bucking anymore. After all, applebuck season was how the Apple Family got through the winter, and sometimes that was a challenge considering that during the winter time they couldn't plant or harvest crops at all.
AppleJack turned towards the forest as a sudden noise caught her attention. She still didn't feel safe being so close to the everfree forest, even though she had been there time and time again. And even though she had been near a timber wolf before, it didn't mean that the timberwolves wanted to befriend ponies. If anything, they wanted a snack. The mare thought of all the times she had been near a timberwolf, or seen one. She could barely remember any of those times. Except, of course, the time she had saved Spike from the timber wolves. She began to wish that Spike had never gone after that hot air balloon in the first place.
She certainly was happy that she had saved the baby dragon, but when he had begun to follow her everywhere and do stuff like chores for her, she had nearly been killed after trying to get him to stop helping her. The plan had seemed like it would have worked, yet Spike had known that the fake timber wolf was, well...Fake. Except for when the real timberwolves had shown up had AJ really gotten her hoof stuck under a bunch of rocks. And that huge timber wolf nearly got her, if it weren't for Spike destroying it by throwing a rock into it's mouth. AppleJack hoped nothing like that would ever happen again. Never, Ever again. 
It was ever since then that she had become slightly more fearful of the timberwolves. They were helpful sometimes, when they howled to mark the beginning of the time during which the Zap Apple harvest began. When Granny Smith was younger, she had scared away a pack of timber wolves who were chasing her by banging pots and pans together. But usually, the timber wolves were a feared animal that most ponies wanted to stay clear and away from. They would no doubt attack any pony that even dared to go near one. 
Suddenly AppleJack stopped in her tracks as something ran past her, swift as a cat, and darted towards the apples that were towering and falling over the edge of the basket they were in. The mare's green eyes searched they area where she had just seen the creature, walking around until she had spotted it. A small, brown rabbit, or some ponies would say bunny, had snuck behind the basket of golden and red apples. The bunny's white tail stuck out from behind the basket, giving away its hiding spot. slowly the little rabbit hopped forward, grabbing an apple in it's mouth and darting into the forest. 
AppleJack immediately took off after the rabbit, her hat getting blown off as wind whipped against her. She skidded for a second, grabbing her hat, which had gotten stuck on a deep brown colored tree branch that stuck out from the ground. She quickly resumed her chase to get the rabbit, which she could find which way it was going because of the leaves and branches that swayed and rustled as the rabbit darted through the brush and undergrowth of the everfree forest floor. AppleJack nearly fell over as she stopped herself from running into a patch of poison joke. She doubted that she wanted to become tiny, and that wouldn't help much if she was trying to catch a rabbit.
She swiftly leaped over the patch of blue flowers, her hooves making barely a sound as she landed on the dusty forest floor and saw the tail of the rabbit disappear underneath a thorn bush."Get back here, ya lil' thief!" The orange mare darted around the bush, bursting through a thicket of leaves into a huge, open clearing. The ground was frosted with dew, the blue sky above reflecting on every drop, as clouds drifted above. Grass waved in the breeze like an ocean, as the mare slowed herself and stepped into the clearing. AppleJack nearly forgot about the rabbit as she stood in the middle of the forest clearing. It was such a peaceful place that she began to wonder why so many ponies were afraid to enter the forest.
She then remembered why the forest was so feared, as a dark shadow loomed over her. A terrible smell filled the once great smell of flowers, and a growl sounded from behind the mare. It wasn't just the shadow's shape that gave away the creature, but the darkness of the shadow as well. The darkness of something evil. She slowly turned around, her eyes locking with the gaze of the animal... A Timber Wolf
> Chapter 3
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		AppleJack fretfully backed away as the timber wolf stood almost over her, a growl rumbling in it's throat as it stared down at the mare with a look of hunger in it's glowing, green eyes. The wolf's snout scrunched up in a snarl, licking it's lips as it stalked closer towards the pony. AppleJack's whole body shook with fright as she crouched on the grass, trying to back away from the Timber Wolf. She knew in her head that she should run or defend herself, but her mind clouded with memories of spike saving her from the huge timber wolf. It felt to her as if they same exact thing were happening all over again. Only this time, there was nopony to save her. She was alone, and knew that she would have to save herself. But her whole body felt stiff, frozen with fear at the everfree creature that stood in front of her.
She felt a swift realization that she had to run. It was her only hope, her only way to escape the dreaded creature that stood inches away from her. And as swiftly as the realization came to her mind, she got to her feet and ran. Faster than she had ever run in her life, the ground a blur underneath her hooves as she galloped towards the cover of trees and bushes. She could see the way out of the forest in her mind, the fields of apple trees and freedom and safety. 
Everything blurred suddenly as she was thrown onto her side by a huge paw. The timber wolf loomed over her, snapping at her with strong jaws and teeth as sharp as knives. She dodged the attacks of the wolf, rolling onto her back. She had one idea in mind, and if she could just get the timber wolf to stand slightly taller, it would work.
Just as she had hoped, the timber wolf rose up into the air, attempting to lunge down at the earth pony. She pulled back her legs, kicking them out at the wolf with enough force to break a limb. The timber wolf yelped in pain as it backed off of AppleJack, falling onto the ground sorely as it tried to recover from the sharp blow to it's stomach. 
AppleJack once again ran to escape the wolf. She had ran so much that day that she was practically out of breath, but she knew that if she intended on being safe from the wolf then she had to run. With all her remaining energy she charged towards safety, every bone in her body aching. She felt she could barely move, yet her mind pushed her on as she sprinted over the grass, which had been wet and slippery from all of the dew droplets that had formed on each grass blade's tip from the moist morning air. It was only then that she had realized the red drops that scattered the ground. 
She flinched at the feeling of claws raking her, and found that when the timber wolf had knocked her to the ground with it's paw, it had scraped it's claws on her side. Luckily it was only scratches; It would heal quickly, hopefully. The mare had begun to become lost in thoughts about how she would explain scratch marks to her friends. She couldn't come up with any excuse for it... Maybe her friends would never notice? 
Yet AppleJack hadn't noticed until the last second the tree roots in front of her, as she tripped on them and fell. She hit the ground with a thud, knocking the breath out of her. She lay on the ground for a few seconds, dazed, as she felt like she was completely limp. She couldn't find even an ounce of strength left to get up, as she lay on the ground helplessly. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted the timber wolf prowling towards her. It's eyes were ablaze with hunger now, as well as a look of satisfaction that the earth pony was doing nothing to defend herself. With a growl the timber wolf leaped at AppleJack, pinning her under it's paws and snarling. She struggled underneath the wolf, trembling with fear. 
Before the timber wolf could land a final blow, a howl echoed from the forest. A gleaming creature tore out of the brush, lunging at the timber wolf that had pinned down the orange pony. Teeth met teeth and claw met claw as AppleJack realized that the other creature was a timber wolf as well. It was the same size and shape as a normal Timber wolf, but was different at the same time. Vines twisted around every log and stick that made up the wolf's body, small blue flowers dotted the wolf's paws and ears, and a patch of moss ran down the wolf's back.
The two timber wolves leaped at each other, clamping jaws around the other's paws, legs and tail. They sank their needle sharp teeth into each other, thrashing out with huge claws pointy as thorns. All the while, AppleJack stood frozen with fear and awe as she watched the battle rage between the two wolves. The first timber wolf seemed to pull ahead, as it was much stronger than the second one. But the second timber wolf had an advantage of speed, darting out and away from each blow the other wolf aimed. The first wolf lashed out an unexpected attack at the other wolf, who wasn't quick enough to dodge it. The timber wolf fell in pain, managing to scramble back up onto it's paws.
It stood still, watching as the first wolf began to charge. The first timber wolf leaped at the other wolf, trying to finally get it. But the second timber wolf was quick. Despite it's injuries, it charged forward, diving underneath the leaping timber wolf. The wolf leaped up, clamping it's jaws around the other wolf's neck and throwing it to the ground. The first timber wolf was immediately shattered into nothing but sticks and logs. The second timber wolf sniffed the sticks that scattered the ground, and collapsed onto the soft grass with a grunt of pain.