A bat flit across the face of a monstrous harvest moon, its leathery wings sweeping through the chill autumn mist, leaving swirls and spirals in its wake. The creature of the night flew back and forth, eating the last bugs of the season. Fat as it was, the bat would need every scrap of weight it could put on before the harsh winter months. Already a few of its fellows had secluded themselves in caves and hollow trees, snug and plump, lost in the half sleep that would last until spring. A moth stirred from the grass, its gossamer wings making it a pale ghost in the moonlight. A quick snap of tiny jaws and the mouthful was gobbled down. With a surge of its wings, the bat flew on into the night. As it neared a barn blazing with light, the creature became somewhat curious. Usually at this time of night the barn would be empty, dark and inviting for one of its kind. Instead the bat could hear the sounds of ponies busily at work inside.

It would’ve flown closer for a better look, but a sudden chill down its spine made it think twice. An instinct, that even it barely understood, screamed loud and clear in the bats tiny head. Danger! Best to move on and find more prey. Best to find a safe spot and sleep the deep, dreamless sleep of hibernation. Best to go far, far from here to do it. There was nothing here for a tiny bat. Nothing but death.

“Applebloom!” called Applejack, putting the last batch of caramel apples on a tray lined with waxed paper to cool. Benches set up in the barn lined the walls, half filled with the sugar coated fruit. “Where has that filly gotten off to?” she muttered to herself. A cauldron, half empty but for a hissing puddle of sweet brown syrup, cooled over a pile of smoldering coals just outside the barn door. The barn itself was warm and snug, filled with lantern light and the sweet scent of sugary treats. Quite the contrast to the chill night outside. Even so, Applejack couldn’t help drawing the cool air into her lungs with a satisfied smile as she stepped out to look for her sister. She loved this time of year. Winter would be here soon enough it was true, and that had its own work and worry, just like spring and summer. But the autumn months, after the harvest, were a time of relaxation and fun for the Apple Family. With the crops in, safe and sound, money would come rolling into Sweet Apple Acres before too long. It was a tradition in their family to share the wealth, and what better way than to provide all kinds of apple themed treats and games for the kiddies for Nightmare Night?

Nightmare Night. It was the first holiday to come after the harvest, so the Apple Family always did it big! Of course, the holiday had always been more about treats than tricks at Sweet Apple Acres. Every year Granny Smith would have tubs set up in Ponyville for the townsfolk to bob for apples. She had taken to turning in early and letting Applejack make sure they stayed full of crisp, delicious apples. Even so, Granny Smith was still an important part of the festival. Every year, since Big Mac was old enough to pull a plow, he’d offer hay rides for the community as well. Even Apple Bloom seemed to be taking more of an interest in the festivities. Last year she’d gone around with Pinkie Pie collecting candy with her friends, but this year she seemed to be really interested in helping Applejack make up a few homemade treats to pass out at the festival in town. A few of the recipes Apple Bloom was trying out seemed a mite odd, but Applejack didn’t mind trying new things so long as they were able to finish making their batch of usual treats as well. The only problem was, after helping Applejack spear a few apples and dip them in the bubbling caramel, Apple Bloom seemed to have quickly lost interest and wandered off to do her own thing.

Really, Applejack shouldn’t have been surprised. Apple Bloom had a habit of getting distracted by the least little thing. They should have been done making treats hours ago, but as it was, she still had about half the apples left to dip. Worse, she was running low on caramel and firewood. “Apple Bloom!” called Applejack again as she went to the side of the barn where the wood pile was kept to get a few fresh sticks, “Wherever ya’ve run off to, get yer flank back over here missy! We got a lot of apples left ta dip a'fore we store 'em in the barn to dry, and we’re gonna be burnin' the midnight oil with all yer dilly dally’in!” The country pony paused and listened. The fog that curled through the orchard tonight did strange things to the familiar sounds of the farm, muffling noises that Applejack would normally find comforting and amplifying those she couldn’t identify. She didn’t hear the sound of any tiny hooves coming her way, nor did she hear her little sister’s voice calling out in response. What she thought she heard was giggling. High, girlish giggling just on the edge of her hearing. It wasn’t something anypony wanted to hear all alone on a dark night. “Easy girl, yer just spookin' yerself,” Applejack reassured herself under her breath as she quickly piled a few dry branches on her back for the fire.

She really wished that Granny Smith didn’t go to sleep so early and that Big Macintosh wasn’t off in town helping set up for tomorrows celebrations. More than anything she wished Apple Bloom would stop wandering off on her own. A farm was no place for a young filly to go exploring by herself, especially at night. Applejack had heard too many horror stories of colts playing around on farm equipment and hurting themselves. Perhaps more dreadful were the stories of fillies falling into old sink holes or boarded up wells and nopony finding them until months later, if they found them at all. A thought suddenly occurred to Applejack as she headed back towards the front of the barn. “Apple Bloom ya better not be'a plannin’ on trickin’ me! It ain't Nightmare Night just yet!" When there was no answer she tried, "Ah’ll tell Big Macintosh on yew!” There was still no answer. At least no answer she wanted to acknowledge as being more than a figment of her imagination.

As she rounded the side of the barn, a sudden burst of flame whooshed into life, painting the fog bright orange. Applejack jumped back, the firewood she carried on her back scattering at her hooves. She almost bolted, there and then, but calmed down when she realized the flames were under the cauldron. Somepony had gotten the fire going again while she’d been out back at the woodpile. Had Apple Bloom gone to fetch more wood and she’d just missed her going around the other side of the barn? As Applejack drew closer she saw that whomever had built up the fire had used too much fuel. The flames were licking up the side of the cauldron, bright and hungry. Already she could see that the caramel that had been left in the pot was bubbling up. At this rate it would burn and blacken, going completely to waste. “Oh Apple Bloom, sweetie, ya can’t use that much wood! Ya need a low heat for this kind'a treat.”

She went to drag the cauldron out of the fire and save what she could of the caramel, careful to avoid the leaping, flickering flames, but found the old pot wouldn’t budge. It was usually only this heavy when it was full, not half empty like it was. Applejack did the best she could, tugging the cauldron inch by inch away from the barn. Once it was on a patch of damp dirt she went about kicking sand over what flames she could, trying to tame the wild fire. The flames subdued a bit, so Applejack decided she’d try to get her sister's help to get the cauldron back in place. “Apple Bloom, you in here?” asked Applejack as she cantered into the barn. The lanterns had all been blown out. By the light from the fire, Applejack could tell that the barn was empty on the inside. Empty that is, save for a pile of sticky Popsicle sticks that used to have caramel apples on the end, sitting boldly on the benches. Even the apples that hadn't been dipped yet were missing. A tiny voice, a girls voice, whispered “hungry,” and then giggled sweetly. So that was what was going on!

“Apple Bloom, Ah can’t believe ya! Those treats were for tomorrow, to share with all the fillies and colts that came lookin' for sweets ta bite! How could ya and yer friends be so selfish as ta eat the lot a'fore they even had a chance ta dry!?” Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo had to be in on this. Sweet Apple Acres produce might be good enough that a filly would like to try to eat a whole bushel in one go, but one filly couldn’t have eaten all the apples Applejack had dipped. Even three managing it was a stretch, but that was the only logical conclusion she could come to. “Apple Bloom get out here young missy! You and yer friends! Or Ah swear, Ah’ll be writing Celestia a letter about how Ah learned how ta break a fillies rump with mah bare hooves!”

Still there was nothing but silence. Well... almost. There was that high, girlish giggling again. It sounded like... It sounded like it was coming from the cauldron, but that couldn't be right. It didn’t make any sense. How could the girls be hiding in that bubbling hot mess? Applejack moved tentatively towards the cauldron, her eyes darting back and forth. Beyond the glow of the fire, there was nothing but darkness, mist, and fading moonlight. The smoke from the partially quenched fire burned her eyes as she looked into the big black pot, ready to jump back at the first sign of a trick. She froze. Her eyes locked on to the sad, shriveled up figure curled into a ball at the bottom of the pot. She was completely covered in bubbling brown sugar, but even so, Applejack could tell right away the tiny figure was her sister.

She screamed. Applejack reached into the cauldron with her bare hooves, burning her limbs on the still hot metal as she closed them around Apple Bloom’s unmoving form, the pain of her seared flesh nothing compared to the agony that tore at her heart. How had this happened!? Had her sister somehow fallen in!? Why hadn’t she cried out!? Why hadn’t she screamed!? Applejack ran into the barn where there was a trough of water and quickly dunked Apple Bloom’s body into the cold liquid. The caramel was already starting to set and the sticky gunk wouldn’t come off. Applejack did the best she could, but a part of her knew it was already too late. Her sister wasn’t breathing. She tried hammering on her tiny chest, put her mouth to her sister's and breathed air into her lungs. It did nothing but leave a sickly sweet taste in her mouth, pieces of half dried caramel sticking to her lips. That was too much for her. She fell back on her haunches, wiping at her mouth with her hoof, trying to get rid of the taste... The taste of death and candy. She felt her gorge rise as tears pricked the corners of her eyes. How could this have happened? She blamed herself. What kind of a horrible sister was she?

That’s when she heard the laughter again. It filled the barn, vibrating through the straw beneath her flank, and seemed to echo inside her chest. Inside her head. There were words too, in a childish sing song voice, “Nightmare Night! What a Fright!”

Applejack got up, backed away, wildly turning her head back and forth, trying to find the source of the song and that horrible mocking laughter. “Where are y'all!? Who are y'all!? Did ya do this!? Did ya do this to Apple Bloom?"Applejack howled, tears of anger and sadness spilling from her eyes. "What did mah sister ever do ta deserve this!?” She backed slowly out of the barn, away from her sister’s body, whipping her head around to try and fidn the source of laughter. Where was the laughter coming from? She stumbled out into the cool night air, still reeling from what had happened to her sister, still haunted by the laughter of children she couldn’t see. If she had watched where she was going, she might not have tripped over a well placed hoof. She didn’t realize she had stumbled into the fire until the flames were chasing themselves through her tail and flickering up into her mane. Panicked beyond all reason, she reared back on her hind legs, and fell right into the still cooling cauldron.

She screamed then, loud enough to wake the dead, as her flesh burst and blistered from the heat and the sticky caramel seeped into her wounds. Everywhere the metal of the pot touched, a layer of skin stuck, sizzling and smoking as it parted from the rest of her body. Blinded by the smoke of her own flesh burning, the stench choking her even as she fought for more air with which to scream, she tried desperately to climb out of the cauldron. The sides, slick with her own blood, slipped beneath her painful fumbling. The giggling rose all around her, the laughter loud and menacing. A face peered out of the smoke. It was huge, its eyes pinwheels of madness, its teeth sharp and pointed. “Give Us Something Sweet to Bite!” it sang gleefully as it lunged forward. Applejack felt those sharp teeth close around half of her face. One eye went dark as it popped between a pair of sharp fangs. Her shriek faded to a gurgle as the monster ripped away part of her face and throat, chewed and then swallowed the bloody wad of flesh.

With a burst of adrenaline, Applejack managed to scamper out of the cauldron and crumble to the earth. She felt something crack as she hit the dirt, but that didn’t matter. She just had to run, she had to get away! She couldn’t get up properly, but still she dragged herself through the dirt. A mad idea seized her. If she could get to the barn... Just get to the barn and close the door, she could buy herself some time to think. Just to think. Tears spilling from her one remaining eye, she labored over the earth, the few feet between fire and possible safety now seeming miles. Any moment she expected the monster’s teeth to find her again.

With mild disbelief, Applejack tumbled into the barn and slammed the door behind her. She panted heavily, finding it hard to suck air into lungs while there was a hole in her throat. She started coughing uncontrollably, suffocating on her own blood and terror. Something slammed into the door behind her like a freight train, making her shriek and whimper. The wood splintered as laughter shook the frame of the entire barn. She stood on her hind legs with her back to the barn door, bracing her burnt and melted limbs against the door and the slippery, straw covered floor as best she could. This couldn’t be happening. She couldn’t handle something like this on her own. She needed help. She needed help right now! As she opened her mouth to scream again, this time to yell as loud as she could to call for help, she felt something suddenly thrust between her jaws.

It was as if it happened in slow motion. The wooden door blossomed, opening like a rare red flower, all spines and petals gaping wide as if to entice a lover. Shards and shrapnel shred open Applejack's back, sending a shower of scarlet spurting from her that splashed across the barn door in a pattern that looked almost like wings. She never had time to register the pain as the thing that caused the hole, something large and cylindrical, was forced clean through her back and up through her ribcage and into her mouth from her throat. She couldn’t tell what it was at first, but the taste of dirt on the fence post mixed with her own blood as the sharp end skewered her tongue. The post, that had so recently been buried in the earth, transfixed her as it poked up through her throat from deep inside her guts. She felt her teeth break and her jaw pop loose from the rest of her skull as, with another forceful shove, the post shattered the door behind her and the creature began to force its own body through. She felt parts of her she had never felt before burst within her body as the thick shaft of wood churned her internal organs to mush. The monster, whatever it was, tore through the barn door like it was tissue paper, a look of triumph on what she could see of its twisted face. She didn’t even feel the shards of wood embedded in her back anymore, only the wood that had impaled her. It was almost a relief when her burning lungs collapsed and the rhythm of her heart slowed, stuttering it's final beats.

The last thing that flickered across her consciousness before she finally died was the figure raising her into the air and smiling, giggling all the while... And then taking another bite of the caramel coated Applejack.

Why is it so cold mummy?

It’s been cold like this for the last few years, dear heart, you know that. Those pegasus have been trying to freeze us out, thinkin' we’d give them more food if they made it ‘ard for us. But we’ll show them that Earth Ponies are made of sterner stuff!

The pegasi? Are you harping on about that again sweetie?

Who else, dear? You said yerself when you’re out plowing the fields with my brother that you’ve seen them darting about in the clouds above.

Aye, trying to figure out what those high and mighty unicorn’s have done to make it snow and cold all the time! You mark my words, those pegasi are as stumped as us about all this. It’s magic that’s in those clouds, and magic what’s bringing this unnatural cold upon us.

Could... could the unicorns make them go away, daddy? Could they make it stop being cold?

They can do anything love! Anything at all, them. Why just a fortnight ago, when I and yer uncle went to deliver our tithe, I seen one of them fancy unicorns taking some of our produce and putting it into a box of his. Powered by magic it was! One end went in strawberries, the other end, out popped this strange creamy concoction that was as cold as any snow drift

Oh, you and your tales. You’ll be giving her ideas that those horn heads are all powerful next. Their hooves are in the dirt as much as ours but they act like their even higher in the clouds than the pegasi! Not so different from us earth ponies that lot, but they always have to be putting on airs. We don’t need you spreading their propaganda for them!

But it’s true! He said he ran something called a Sweets Shop. Told me to stop in with my daughter next time I was in town and he’d give her a treat.

Next time you were in town. Do you mean the city daddy? The castle? Oh I’ve never been, you know how much I’ve wanted to go daddy! To see all the high lords and ladies!

Yes, well, your Da and I will have to have a talk about that. You get on with your chores. Step lively, brisk work of the limbs will do wonders to keep the chill out of your bones.