"Boy howdy!" said Applejack. "We got our work cut out fer us. That there is the biggest bumper crop o' apples Ah ever laid eyes on."

"You say that every year," her little sister Apple Bloom commented. "They cain't all be the biggest. By definition, there kin only be one 'biggest' anythang!"

"Well, it's certainly the biggest crop of apples I've ever seen," said Janglur Swifteye. Janglur was a squirrel. He and his family- his mother Ellayo, his wife Rimrose, and his daughter Songbreeze- had emigrated up from Mossflower Woods recently, and now they lived with the Apple family and worked on their apple farm. The squirrels were a big help because they could actually climb up the trees to pick the apples. And young Songbreeze had become fast friends with Apple Bloom and the other Cutie Mark Crusaders.

"Come on. We better git kickin'!" said Applejack. "These apples aren't gonna shake themselves outta the trees."

They set to work, splitting into teams. Applejack paired up with Janglur, Apple Bloom went with Songbreeze, their brother Big Mac went with Rimrose, and their grandmother Granny Smith with Ellayo. The ponies began kicking the trees with their powerful hooves, sending the apples falling to the ground. Then they gathered the apples up into sacks. Meanwhile, the squirrels climbed up into the trees and harvested the apples that wouldn't shake loose when the ponies kicked them.

As she worked, Songbreeze sang a song to herself. She was fond of singing, which was why she was nicknamed "Song."

"Flowers of the forest

Are bright in the spring,

Wake with the dawn,

Hear a lone skylark sing.

Brooks gaily babble

O'er hillsides so green,

Streams ripple secrets

Of what they have seen,

Small birds give voice

Mid the leaves of great trees,

Which rustle softly

In time with the breeze.

I'll add my music

For what it is worth,

And sing just for you, love,

The song of the earth."

Nearby, in the Everfree Forest, two white foxes prowled through the undergrowth. When they heard the sweet plaintive melody floating on the air, they stopped to listen. One of the foxes, Ascrod, muttered to his sister Vannan, "That singer warbles more sweetly than any bird I ever heard!"

Vannan's pale eyes glimmered. "Aye, brother, and would trill even better at the court of our mother Queen Silth. Come on! Let's see who's making that sound."

The two of them headed in the direction of the music. Soon enough they reached the edge of the forest, which bordered the Apple farm. They sneaked over to the fence and crouched down in the grass, peering through it.

Song was just about to toss another apple down into Apple Bloom's bag when she looked down and saw the two foxes staring at her. Instantly she stopped singing and froze.

Apple Bloom hadn't noticed the foxes. She looked up at Song inquiringly. "What's up? Why'd ya stop singin'? Did ya see somethin'?"

Silently, Song pointed at the foxes. Apple Bloom turned round and saw them. "Who are you two an' why are ya hidin' in our woods? Quit sneakin' around an' come out an' show yoreselves like decent critters!"

Ascrod climbed over the fence and began walking over to them. "Which one of you was singing a short while ago?"

"Why do you wanna know?" Apple Bloom asked suspiciously.

Ascrod bared his teeth. "You're very insolent for a little filly. Shall I show you what we Marlfoxes do to beasts with insulting tongues?"

He reached into his cloak and pulled out a battleax! Apple Bloom screamed!

Songbreeze Swifteye acted quickly. She hurled the apple she was holding down at Ascrod. It hit him on the nose. He screeched with pain and dropped his ax on the ground.

The voice of Grandma Ellayo rang out. "Tails 'n' scuts preserve us all! Who's kickin' up that awful din?"

Apple Bloom and Song turned to see the other members of their families approaching: Applejack, Granny Smith, Big Mac, Janglur, Rimrose, and Ellayo. Ascrod realized he and his sister were outnumbered. He scooped his ax back up and hurried back over the fence. He and Vannan vanished into the woods.

"What happened?" Applejack asked.

"We saw those two foxes spying on us," said Song. "When Apple Bloom asked them what they were doing, one of 'em pulled an ax on us!"

"You're not hurt, are you?" her mother Rimrose asked.

Apple Bloom shook her head. "Naw, they ran off when they saw y'all comin'."

"Marlfoxes!" Janglur spat.

Applejack looked curiously at him. "Did you know them two foxes? Did ya meet 'em back when ya lived in Mossflower?"

"I don't know them personally, but I know of them," Janglur explained. "It's said that strange blood runs in the veins of Marlfoxes. They can disappear like no other livin' creature."

Granny Smith looked over the fence to where the two foxes had been standing. There was no sign of them now. "They shore did quite the disappearin' act jest now."

"Ee-yup," Big Mac agreed.

"There ain't bin no foxes sighted in Equestria fer a long time," said Applejack. "This could mean trouble fer Ponyville. Ah shore hope there ain't gonna be a war. We need t'go to Twilight Sparkle's castle an' warn 'er that there are Marlfoxes roamin' the land."