Chapters She had finished clearing an entire orchard. It had taken some time, but the money offered for the commissioned fruits was more than worth the additional effort. Applejack still felt as though she deserved a little treat, so she decided to take a dip in the spa’s hot tub to relax, which she wasn’t usually for but sounded delightful at the moment. As she walked, a group of three energetic fillies scurried into her path. They all turned to her with gleaming smiles on their faces.
“Hey, AJ!” They all shouted in unison. She chuckled at their enthusiasm.
“Well, howdy there, fillies. What ya’ll up to?” Her younger sister, yellow farm filly Apple Bloom, hopped over to her.
“We’re trying ta git our cutie marks in cleanin’ up litter!” Applejack raised a brow.
“Wow. That’s… actually pretty productive. Good idea.” She was sure they wouldn’t get a cutie mark for cleaning up the ecosystem (though she would like to see what such a mark would look like), but at least they’d be contributing to the community instead of destroying it.
“So what’re you doin’, AJ?”
“Jest finished the south orchard, so I’m gonna head up ta the spa an’ hit the hot tub.”
“Ya know, you really shoulda jest turned that job down. Ya look exhausted.”
“Don’t you worry none, filly. I’m jest a lil’ stressed. ‘Sides, with the bits we get fer this batch, we can git the roof re-tiled. Jest before rain season, too. I’ll be fine. Ya’ll go have fun. An’ be careful.”
“Okay, AJ. If yer sure yer alright. Bye.” The three trotted off, slightly less enthusiastically than they came. AJ smiled after them. She appreciated their consideration. But Applejack would never admit that she was having trouble, especially not to ones so young. She preferred to spare their innocent minds the pressures of adulthood.
She waited for them to cross the main street before moving. She looked around, attempting to re-assess her position. When she realized just where she was, she spun on her hooves and made her way to the spa. When she stepped in, she was overwhelmed by the enticing warmth and the fresh smell of bath salts.
________________________________________________________________
Applejack had never felt so refreshed. She was so full of energy and her skin felt as new. It more than made up for the extra apple-bucking. She began her walk home with a spring in her step. Today was a good day.
“APPLE BLOOM!” The cry shattered the blissful silence of the evening, and rang through Applejack’s mind like the most violent of thunder claps. Her eyes darted this way and that searching for the source of the ear-splitting noise. When she at last located it, she was overcome with a fear the likes of which she had never before experienced. In the middle of the main road in Ponyville was a small yellow filly reaching down for a few stray bits, ignorant to the runaway carriage barreling toward her.
Applejack didn't know when she had started moving. She didn't know when her voice had begun to echo through the town. She didn't know when the water had begun encasing her eyes. All she knew in that moment was that her sister was in terrible danger… and she couldn't reach her in time to save her. Applejack pushed her body beyond it’s ordinary limits. She ran faster than she had ever run in her life. But in vain. She watched as the carriage inched closer to the filly, who had at last realized her poor fate but had no time to react.
As the wagon came upon her, she began to see her life flashing before her. At the same moment, something flashed before Applejack. In the blink of an eye, a purple and green blur jumped into the street, snatching the little pony up and pulling her off to the side.
Applejack skidded to a stunned halt, wondering whether what she had just seen was real. Sure enough, when the smoke had cleared, the road was minus one filly. She laughed and cried, only for a moment, as she began running toward her little sister’s hero.
She charged through the front doors of the hospital. She bobbed and weaved through several ponies as she made her way to the entrance desk. Hospital security began moving toward her. Once they saw the icy glare on her face and the injured filly on her cart, they eased slowly away. Spike leaped from the cart onto the desk.
“This filly needs medical attention immediately!” He pointed down as he spoke and the clerk at the desk followed his claw. On seeing the huddled mass strung out on the little wagon, she picked up a nearby phone and called down one of the lead physicians, Dr. Circumpolar Star. He quickly observed the wound on her forehead and signalled for nearby nurses to place her on a gurney. They rolled the gurney to the elevator, the orange mare and dragon following in tow.
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“Rarity and Rainbow Dash are here. They’re gonna take you girls home.” Applejack’s focus remained locked on the direction of the ER as she spoke to the traumatized fillies. The aforementioned mares walked through the door to the waiting area at that very moment.
“I’m not leaving. Not until I know she’s okay,” rang the stubborn voice of Scootaloo as she simultaneously held a defiant glare at the older pony. Rainbow walked up to her and threw a foreleg around her.
“C’mon, kid. I’ll help you practice flying.” She gave a slick smile and looked toward her adopted sister. The filly in question paid her no mind, her gaze still latched onto the orange mare in front of her. The white filly sitting next to her, finally composing herself after twenty minutes of crying, placed her hoof on Scootaloo’s, who was at last pulled from her trance.
“We should go, Scoots. There’s nothing we can do for her right now.” Scootaloo clenched her eyes shut in an intense scowl. Sweetie Belle was right, and Scootaloo hated it. She once more felt a comforting hoof on her shoulder. She turned to see the sweetly smiling face of her mentor, Rainbow Dash.
“Hey. She’ll be out in no time. And you know what she’d do to you if she found out you girls were depriving yourselves of sleep and food on her account.” Scootaloo looked to the clock on the nearby wall. It was almost nine o’clock. If she didn’t get home soon, her parents would never let her hear the end of it.
“Fine,” she breathed out. Her scowl had not dissipated. The four turned and began walking toward the main doorway. When the other three had stepped through, Applejack called to Scootaloo.
“Scootaloo. Why was she in the road?” The filly cast her eyes to the ground.
“She saw a few bits lying in the road. She wanted to get you something for working so hard.” Applejack flinched subtly at the small pony’s words. Scootaloo didn’t notice as she turned to walk through the door.
______________________________________________________________
Her eyes eased open, and snapped shut again. The light was so intense she couldn’t bear to look beyond her lids. She groaned and attempted once more to open them, this time giving them time to adjust to the light.
“Bloom!” she heard a nearby voice call, “Spike, she’s wakin’ up. Go git the doc.” Footsteps sounded in the room and she looked to the source. She saw a small purple figure dashing out of the room.
“Huh? I-” She attempted to speak, but was cut-off by a stray hoof.
“Yer still groggy. Ya shouldn’t try talkin’ yet.” Apple Bloom looked to the voice. An orange earth mare was smiling down at her.
“What happened?” She whispered out weakly.
“Ya hit yer head on a rock. Been out fer three days now.”
“THREE DAYS?!” She tried to scream, which threw her into a fit of coughs. Applejack picked up a glass of water and lifted it to the choking filly’s mouth. After drowning her cough, she eased back onto her pillow.
“Sorry,' I was just foolin'. Only been a few hours. There, better?”
“Much. Thanks.”
“Don’t think on it. Anythin’ else ya need?”
“Actually, I do have a question.”
“Shoot.” Apple Bloom looked to the older pony with curiosity.
“Who are you?”
Author's Note
Just noticed a MAJOR inconsistency. Correcting!
Applejack gave a slight chuckle.
“Heh. Good one, Bloom. Nice ta know ya ain’t lost yer sense o’ humor.” The little filly she was speaking to simply stared. Applejack’s playful expression quickly fell. She looked over the little pony, and her eyes began feeling wet.
“Are you alright?” the filly asked innocently. Applejack tried to compose herself, but seeing the look of unfamiliarity on her sister’s face made it impossible.
“I… I’m sorry. I need ta go.” She turned and darted through the door as two figures entered.
“Applejack, what’s-” Spike didn’t have time to finish his question as the distraught mare ran by. He turned to Apple Bloom, who seemed just as confused as he was.
“What’s wrong with Applejack?”
“All I did was ask her name. I didn’t mean ta upset her.”
“But… don’t you know her name?” She placed a hoof on her chin, pondering.
“... I don’t think so. But, hay, what do I know? I can’t even think of my own name right now.”
“Apple Bloom?” The little filly gasped.
“Is that it? I like it. Got a nice ring to it.”
Spike turned to the doctor, utterly dumbfounded. Dr. Star walked to the side of the small pony and more closely inspected her wound. He sighed as he reached a particularly speedy diagnosis.
“Trauma from the impact has instigated a case of retrograde amnesia, not very common. Her brain is currently incapable of accessing her stored memories.”
“What can we do?”
“Not much we can do. We’ll just have to wait it out. Eventually her memories should be accessible again. Until that time, she should go about life as normal.”
“All right. When can she leave?”
“She should be set to go tomorrow at noon.” Spike over-looked the filly, non-verbally apologizing for her current predicament.
“‘Kay. I’ll go tell her family. Thanks, doc.” The doctor nodded and returned to his patient as the dragon exited the room.
______________________________________________________________
Spike drudged through the small town of Ponyville, paying no attention to the many passersby giving their greetings. He entered the gate to the massive orchard run by the farming family. After a few more minutes of walking, he came to the door of the main house. Raising a claw, he sounded three relatively loud knocks through the house. A large stallion answered.
“Oh. Howdy, Spike,” Big Macintosh greeted, “Sorry, it’s not a great time right now. Bloom hasn’t come home yet and AJ’s actin’ like her voice has been stolen.” This took Spike by surprise.
“You… don’t know?”
“Know what?”
He simply sat watching the ponies in the room, reading them. The orange mare practically shaking. The large red stallion glaring at no particular point on the floor. Primarily his attention locked onto the elderly green mare, who seemed to be entirely vacant, no emotion or sense of awareness to be seen. Spike just stared at them, waiting for some sort of reaction. When he knew none was coming, he felt it time to leave.
“Anyway, the doctor said you could pick her up tomorrow at noon. Just thought you should know.”
Spike’s words were met with silence. He stood and walked to the door, ultimately deciding that now wasn’t an entirely appropriate time to speak with them. He bid them a quiet farewell before stepping through the door to the Apple house, beginning the long trek back to the library.
______________________________________________________________
“Spike! I just heard what happened. Are you alright?” His spiritual caretaker dashed toward him and began inspecting him from top to bottom, taking note of several patches of dirt and minor scratches. He would ordinarily try pushing her away, but today he appreciated the thought.
“I’m fine, Twilight,” he groaned out, “It’s Apple Bloom you should be worried about. When I pulled her out of the road, she hit her head on a large rock.” Twilight scooped the dragon into the biggest hug he had ever received.
“I know. The girls and I were about to meet up at the hospital to see her. Before I left, I wanted to tell you something.”
“What’s that?” She pulled out of the hug and gave him a quick peck on the forehead
“I am so proud of you,” he chuckled, rubbing the back of his head before a seriously harsh glare crossed her face, “But if you ever do something that stupid and reckless again, I’ll… I’ll… I don’t even know what I’ll do, but it will be bad! Got it?” Spike gulped and nodded. “Good!”
She gave him one more hug before walking to the door.
“And don’t stay up too late. After the day you've had, I’m sure you could do with some sleep.” He was considerably tired. So much so that he completely neglected, without immediately realizing it, to inform his friend of the filly's unusual condition.
He grunted and walked upstairs as he heard the door close. He hopped into his basket and pulled the covers over himself, though he knew he wasn’t going to be sleeping tonight.
“But we want to see her!” Rainbow Dash nodded and ruffled the little orange filly’s mane.
“I know, squirt. But the doc said it would be best if you two didn’t see her in this condition. She’s going home tomorrow. You can go visit her at the farm.” Scootaloo glared at Rainbow, which she had never even considered doing before. The look she was receiving from the little pony pierced Rainbow’s heart. She wrapped her foreleg around the filly and pulled her into the most loving hug she had ever given.
“I’m sorry, Scoots. I’m just telling you what the doctor told us. It sucks, I know. But look on the bright side: she’s awake and doing perfectly fine, and you three will be back to ruining events, getting on your sisters’ nerves,” she cast a playfully irritated look at the pony, who giggled in retort, “and terrorizing the town before you know it.”
“Promise?” Rainbow nuzzled her adopted sister affectionately.
“Promise. Now you girls should get outta here before it gets too dark. Your parents would kill me if I let you stay out too late.”
Scootaloo hugged her sister one last time as Sweetie Belle finished with hers. They met at the door and exited together as a lavender unicorn passed them. Twilight barely had time to acknowledge them as the moved by her, their pace quickening as they realized just how late it was. Yelling their brief hellos and goodbyes, they continued trudging on their way. Twilight chuckled toward them and returned to the door, easing it open with one of her hooves.
The four mares standing together in the lobby of the hospital turned as the bell above the door began to chime. Twilight smiled at the friendly faces whilst trotting into a waiting hug. As she looked around, she noticed that one set of hooves was missing from the group.
“Where’s Applejack?” she asked. Rarity looked sadly toward the entrance door.
“Poor dear. She’s probably curled up in bed. I don’t think she slept a wink the entire time Apple Bloom was under. I can’t imagine what she’s going through. Just considering Sweetie in such a state threatens to bring tears to my eyes.” Twilight thought about Spike again. She started thinking, that if that carriage had been a bit faster…
She bit her lip, trying to direct her brain to anything but that thought. She couldn’t even consider a hypothetical situation in which her oldest best friend could be in so much pain.
“Yeah, it’s probably best if we give her some time to herself.” Pinkie jumped at Twilight as she said this.
“No, it is NOT! She’s gonna miss the ‘Happy Waking-Up-After-A-Three-Day-Coma Day’ party! For her own sister, too.”
“Pinkie, Bloom just woke up. I doubt she’s ready for a party just yet. Why don’t we hold off on that for a week or two, hmm? I think helping her recover from this traumatic experience should be our priority.” Pinkie contemplated her friend’s words for a moment.
“You’re probably right,” she sighed, disappointed. She immediately perked up, however, as a thought crossed her mind, “Well, this way, I’ll have even MORE time to plan the perfect waking up party.” She began hopping in the direction of the filly’s room, the others following close, letting out random spurts of giggles at their pink friend’s fillyish antics.
_______________________________________________________________
The door creaked slowly ajar, and a brown stallion’s head slipped in.
“Good evening, Apple Bloom.” The little pony across the room looked to the source of the sound, a gentle smile gracing her lips.
“Well, howdy, doc. What’s up?” He opened the door entirely, allowing several figures to pass through.
“You have some visitors. This is Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity.” Twilight turned to the doctor and raised a brow.
“Not to question you, doctor, but why the introduction? She knows us.” He looked to her as equally confused.
“Oh? I expected someone would tell all of you. When Apple Bloom was injured, her connection with her declarative memory, in which general knowledge and experiences are stored, was broken. This is known as retrograde amnesia, the inability to access stored memories. Her usual dialects and behavioral patterns remain intact, but she has no knowledge of who any of you are.” They returned their gaze to the aforementioned filly, who was still sporting that sweet ignorant smile. Twilight began feeling a pain that she couldn’t pinpoint. But it was much stronger than any physical pain she had endured. She couldn’t even begin imagining how her family must be feeling.
“So that’s why AJ isn’t here,” Twilight theorized. Rainbow nodded, her mind drifting back to another topic.
“And why the doctor didn’t want the girls to see her. It would break their hearts. I promised Scootaloo everything would go back to normal.” Fluttershy rubbed the distraught pony’s back comfortingly.
“You couldn’t have expected this. Besides, she’ll be too happy to have her friend back to be angry." Twilight addressed the doctor once more.
"Well, I know a memory spell. I could-"
"NO! Miss Sparkle, I'm afraid I cannot allow such action."
"Why not?"
"Apple Bloom's mind is in an incredibly fragile state. The blunt physical trauma of the blow matched with the psychological trauma of her brief brush with death has left it shattered, broken. She is lucky to be capable of coherent speech at the moment. If we attempt to force her memories back, we could completely disconnect her brain's link to the nerves. She wouldn't be able to so much as twist her tail."
"Well, there must be something we can do," Twilight groaned. Fluttershy began to walk past her.
"We’ll discuss all of that later. We’re here for Apple Bloom right now.” She sat down next to the bed and placed her hoof on Apple Bloom’s. “Hello, Apple Bloom. I’m Fluttershy. How are you feeling?”
“Evenin’, miss Fluttershy. I’m doing alright, far as I can tell. Yet, everyone keeps acting like there’s somethin’ wrong with me. It’s kinda makin’ me feel bad.”
“Oh, don’t mind anyone. We’re all still a little upset about your accident. But we’re not here to talk about that. We want to talk about you. How have you been getting along since you woke up?”
“Oh, well I was a bit confused at first, but then…”
The mares huddled around the bed and, for near an hour, simply listened. Occasionally, they would throw in small tidbits of information to fill in blanks for her, but otherwise remained quiet.
______________________________________________________________
After some time, it became evident that the filly was simply too tired to continue. The older ponies in the room took their time saying their goodbyes. The small figure’s eyelids began falling slowly, which the others took as their cue to leave. They stepped out into the cool night air, bidding each other farewell before heading to their homes.
Twilight walked into the library and drifted upstairs. As the bedroom door opened, a small figure rose from the basket on the floor. Spike rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
“I know what you’re gonna say, but I just couldn’t sleep. I’m sorry.” She walked toward him and wrapped her forelegs around him tightly.
“Twi?”
Her sobs grew in volume and intensity with every moment. He understood after a bit, and returned the embrace with greater force as her emotion leaked out.
Author's Note
Sorry for the delay on this. There's been a lot going on in my family.
Knock, knock, knock sounded at the door. With a slight creak it eased open. A swirling-maned unicorn stallion popped his head through the crack.
“Ready to go home, Apple Bloom?”
“As I’ll ever be,” she replied apprehensively. A nurse followed the doctor in and began to, one by one, disconnect the medical equipment attached to the little filly. Once the small pony was successfully extracted from the assortment of gadgets and gizmos, she stepped slowly off of the bed. Her legs buckled beneath her on connecting with the floor.
“Easy now, Apple Bloom. You’ve been bed-ridden for four days. Your days of inactivity have made your legs weak. Take it slow. You may also experience slight pain in them for a moment.”
He assisted the filly back to her hooves and escorted her to the lobby.
Three ponies were awaiting them. The doctor directed the filly toward the trio.
“Apple Bloom, your family has come to pick you up. This is your brother, Big Macintosh,” the red stallion forced a smile to his lips, “your Granny Smith,” he next pointed to a green mare who seemed not to even acknowledge him, “and I believe you remember your sister, Applejack?” The mare in question stepped forward and smiled tenderly at her little sister.
Apple Bloom looked to the orange mare before her sorrowfully.
“Sister? So that’s why you got so upset yesterday. I’m sorry, I wish I could say I remember ya, but… I just can’t.” The mare pulled the smaller pony close.
“Ain’t yer fault, Bloom. ‘Sides, I’m just glad to know we’ll have ya back home. It’s been hard not having you around lately.” She gave Apple Bloom a tender peck on her forehead, to which the filly subtly groaned. “Oh, sorry, sugarcube. I’m probably making you uncomfortable, seein’ as ya don’t remember me.”
“No,” the filly sighed out contently as she gripped the pony in her forehooves tighter, “this feels right.” The two held together for a moment before the sound of hooves caught their ears. Apple Bloom looked up to see the large red stallion standing before her. Unsure, she turned her gaze up to her sister, who smiled and nodded back.
The filly stood and extended one foreleg, inviting the stallion. He didn’t need to be asked twice, crashing to the floor and swooping his beloved baby sister into a firm but loving embrace.
“I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for ya, Apple Bloom,” he practically screamed between his random sniffles, “I’m yer big brother, I’m supposed ta protect you. If I had just been around that day, you-” He was interrupted by a little hoof pressing over his mouth. He blinked the water from his eyes and glanced to the filly still wrapped in his forelegs, who responded with an understanding, comforting grin.
“Wasn’t anypony’s fault, what happened ta me,” she stated, attempting to reassure the emotional stallion, “The doc filled me in on all the details. Ya shouldn’t beat yerself up over it. It was an accident. If you had been there, ya prolly woulda got yerself hurt, too. I’d rarher have ya here fer me now. I still don’t remember much, but I do remember that I can trust y’all, and I’m gonna need yer help gettin’ re-adjusted ta everything. Okay?” He pulled a hoof across his eyes and nodded. She then directed her attention to the final occupant in the room. She eased closer to the old mare, who merely watched her out of the corner of her eye. The filly stopped within a foreleg’s reach of her elder, nervously meeting her gaze. Without warning, the little pony was swooped up and pulled tightly into the other, who let out a cackle of amusement.
“Don’t be so uppity, filly,” Granny Smith joked with a ruffle of her prisoner’s mane, “Yer ol’ granny ain’t gonna shut out just cuz ya don’t remember ‘er. We’re Apples. Through thick an’ thin, we’ll always stick tagether.” The filly beamed at her Granny’s words and returned her grip with equal force. A few moments later, the small yellow pony broke the embrace and returned to her caretaker of late.
“Thanks fer everything, doc,” she extended her hoof as she spoke. He shook with a polite smile.
“It was my pleasure, Apple Bloom. You are pretty good company.” Apple Bloom, not wanting the pony who had watched over her to feel unappreciated, pulled the hoof in her grip until her forelegs were wrapped around the doctor’s neck. Chuckling slightly, the stallion brought a hoof around and patted the filly gently on her back.
“Ready ta go, Bloom?” Apple Bloom turned to regard her sister.
“You bet! I can’t wait ta see what my home looks like.”
Big Macintosh and Granny Smith trotted through the main entryway, Applejack and Apple Bloom close behind. As they left the hospital, Applejack received an inquiry from the filly. It was a question that made her cringe. A question she had answered once, and was thankful to never have to answer again.
“So, where’re our parents?”
Apple Bloom inhaled deeply, taking in the sweet, enticing smell of fresh apples. She seated herself in the soft soil that surrounded the family’s barn, feeling the wind blowing through her hair. She closed her eyes and allowed the sounds of branches rustling and birds chirping to drift through her ears. It was a blissful sound, one which wiped the rest of the world away.
Everything around her stopped. Everything, save for one, distinct sound. It was a rough, deep thumping, which seemed to be growing in volume with each passing instant. Slowly, her eyes drifted open, allowing her to take in the inspiring light of Celestia’s grace. Her eyes shot back in forth in search of the sound’s source. She turned just in time to catch an orange shape as it came down on her.
“Argh!” Apple Bloom squealed. She struggled under the weight of the filly that had pounced on her.
“Apple Bloom!” The little orange pony lept up and down above her, a truly ecstatic grin plastered on her face.
“We were so worried about you. How ya holdin’ up?”
Apple Bloom’s head was spinning for a moment, making the world around her shake. When she had recomposed herself, she looked up to the the figure standing over her.
“Um, not ta sound rude, but… could ya get off me, please?” The captor’s face gained a subtle hint of red as she stepped away, allowing her prisoner to lift herself into a standing position.
“Thanks. I see ya already know my name. Who’re you?” She pointed between her attacker and a white filly standing next to her.
They paused a moment, clearly stricken by this comment. The uncomfortable silence that followed was broken with the orange filly’s forced laughter.
“Ha, ha. Very funny, Bloom. We’ve only been worrying ourselves half to death about you these past four days. No big deal, right?” She broke into a glare as she walked slowly towards the pony in front of her.
“I really don’t know what yer-”
“Ya know, for a while, we were sure you weren’t gonna make it.”
“But-”
“AJ had completely forgotten that we were there, right across the street.”
“Scoots,” the white filly finally cut in, attempting to calm her friend, who now had liquid forming in her eyes.
“I watched the blood pour out of your head! And you have the nerve to make stupid jokes right now?!” By this point, she was practically nose-to-nose with Apple Bloom, forcing the little yellow pony back to the ground.
“Just who the hay do you think you ar-”
“SCOOTALOO!” The white filly shouted as loud as her small vocal chords would permit. “Look at her. Do you really think this is a joke?”
Scootaloo turned back to a heart wrenching sight. The filly huddled beneath her had water leaking from her eye sockets and was shaking violently.
“I’m sorry,” Bloom said as she covered her head with her forelegs, “Whatever I did, I’m sorry.”
Scootaloo seated herself next to her terrified friend and wrapped her foreleg around her.
“No, Bloom, I’m sorry. I thought you were just messing around, and joking about something like that…” She raised a hoof up, and Apple Bloom lifted her head to inspect it. There was a dark stain, with a slight reddish hue.
“When we saw Spike and Applejack starting to cart you off, we tried chasing. I stepped in your blood and I just kinda froze. It splashed, and landed on Sweetie Belle’s,” she motioned to the other filly, who replied with a wide smile and an overly-energetic wave, revealing a similar stain on her shoulder, “shoulder. She helped me get home. I got into the bath, and… It was like it was sown into my fur. No matter how hard I scrubbed, it just wouldn’t come off. Sweetie Belle had to take a bottle of hair-dye from Rarity’s before we could go out anywhere.”
Sweetie Belle smiled and walked over, taking her place in front of them.
“But,” Sweetie opened, “I started thinking about it differently. It’s not just blood, it’s a link between you and us. A stronger bond. I read about an old tradition shared between the best of friends.” She curled her tail up to her mouth, locking her teeth around something and pulling it out. A small sewing needle glistened in sunlight. Apple Bloom eyed the utensil with curiosity.
Before she could react, Sweetie Belle poked her own foreleg, followed by Scootaloo’s, and finally hers. The white filly dropped the needle and brought the injured legs together, pressing the wounds tightly against each other.
“This is an oath, that we will always be together. No matter how difficult things become, we will always be there for each other.”
Scootaloo raised her brow at her friend.
“Umm, Sweetie Belle? We pretty much already made that promise. ‘Cutie Mark Crusaders for life’ remember?”
“These past few days have had me thinking. The ‘Cutie Mark Crusaders’ is fun and has been really special, but eventually, it’ll fade. This is a true, honest-to-goodness bond we’re forming.”
“I’m just sayin’, I think I’ve had more than enough blood staining my coat.”
“Don’t worry, I’m prepared.” Sweetie reached into a nearby bag Apple Bloom hadn’t initially noticed, which brought an obvious question to her mind.
“Sweetie Belle, right?” The little white filly smiled with a set of bandage sheets hanging from her mouth.
“If ya had that bag, why didja carry the needle in yer tail?”
Sweetie attempted to respond, but her voice was muffled as her mouth was still occupied. Scootaloo rolled her eyes and snatched the bandages from Sweetie’s mouth, then beginning to wrap them around each wound.
“Thanks. I put it in my tail because, if I put it in the bag, it would have ripped it and everything would have fallen out.”
Apple Bloom looked over to Scootaloo, who merely shrugged. She glanced back over to Sweetie, still donning that goofy grin, and started to laugh for no real reason at all. Not long after, the other two joined in. They fell to the ground, shaking with their uncontrollable cackles.
They sat up in their original positions for a few seconds, allowing their lungs to take in some much needed oxygen, before Scootaloo wrapped her forelegs around the other two and pulled them into a firm embrace, which Sweetie returned happily. Apple Bloom hesitated for an instant, before throwing her hooves around her friends. They turned to her with smiles, their faces practically glowing with their glee.
“There is one little thing I remember,” the yellow farm-pony began, “I remember that bein’ with you girls has been the happiest time of my life.”
“Me, too,” assured Scootaloo, pulling her injured foreleg, now wrapped, around and lifting it into the circle’s center. Apple Bloom followed suit.
“Likewise,” stated the third filly of the group, joining her wrapped wound with the others.
A few moments passed before anypony moved. Sweetie Belle stood and moved closer to Scootaloo, whispering something softly in her ear. When she pulled away, Scootaloo turned to her and nodded, also getting to her hooves. The pair pulled Apple Bloom up and gestured for her to follow them. They began to walk and she kept a steady pace behind. They wandered off of the acres of the farm, and the amnesiac filly began to wonder just where she was being led to. After rounding one tree, she saw it.
It was a particularly small building, painted a shade near peach, resting in a tree. They led her inside, through the little door with a heart painted on it. The floorboards of the interior were some shade of green, the walls a yellowish brown. Windows and pictures adorned the walls, and a hatch rested in the ceiling. It was all brand new to her, but it felt so familiar.
“What is this?”
“It’s the clubhouse for the ‘Cutie Mark Crusaders’,” Sweetie happily replied, “When we’re not scheming to get our cutie marks, we come here and hang out for a while.”
Apple Bloom glanced here and there, taking note of everything. Her eyes rested on a small picture nearby. It was a recent addition, not yet in it’s frame. She walked over to it, lifting it with her hoof and inspecting it. It displayed three small ponies who had seemingly toppled over each other. A small orange filly lie crushed under a white filly, while a yellow filly stretched across the floor nearby.
“We took that a couple of months back,” Scootaloo explained, “trying for our gymnastics cutie marks. After the incident, we felt it belonged in here.”
The two stood beside Apple Bloom, gazing down at the image in her grasp. Even without her memory, the picture and the idea behind it touched her heart. Though she couldn’t remember them, her friends still held tight to their bond, and her family welcomed her back with smiles. Because they knew it wasn’t her fault, and they knew that eventually her memory would be restored. But she couldn’t help but wonder… how would they treat her if it wasn’t?
Author's Note
I'm back! (That is, I finally broke away from Rune Factory 4