Chapters “YES!” Twilight exclaimed. She was floating and flying around , almost hovering, but she had no wings.
“Finally! Now I can make ponies fly without wings!” she exclaimed again. She had figured out a way to lift ponies with her Levitation now, it was a lot harder and not nearly as agile in the air as a pegasus but it was a start. She gave herself a burst of magic to send herself higher into the air to look at ponyville, but before she reached the altitude she desired she felt an impact that hit her like a truck. She was out cold instantly, didn't even feel the pain.
“Come on Dash...you got this!” Rainbow Dash growled to herself as she hovered low in the sky. She had been trying for hours to get her Sonic Rainboom to work again, but to no avail. She had finally figured out how to do it regularly, she just couldn't gather enough speed by the time the sound barrier pushed her back.
“I only got one more in me, C'mon Dash!” she yelled and shot forward as fast as her wings could take her. As she felt the sound barrier bending in front of her, she realized she wasn't going fast enough again. Determined to finally achieve her goal, she put on a last ditch burst of speed.
She would have yelled out in joy as the barrier broke around her, but she suddenly saw a flash of Lavender and felt a jarring pain all over her body. She slowed to a much slower speed, but still fast enough for it to hurt when she smashed into the ground.
She groaned as she sat up, shaking the daze from her head.
“What the buck was that?” she asked herself. She looked at her hoof and saw red, it was blood. Terrified, she quickly looked herself over and found a bit more...but it wasn't her own. Dash looked around and recognized that she was in a field just outside of Ponyville. She locked her gaze on the huge skid mark indented into the earth where she slid, she saw a second one branch off right at the end.
Following it, she saw a splatter of blood that lead up to a colorful form. She froze as she recognized the flash of Lavender she saw, or rather crashed into. It was Twilight Sparkle. She quickly rushed over, ignoring a bruised leg, and looked the unicorn over.
A leg looked sprained but luckily not broken, blood was spilling from her nose and mouth. Oh no, that means a rib or two must have broken and punctured something. Her gaze froze as she saw Twilight's horn. Three quarters of it were missing. She suddenly became away of a round bruise on her chest, she poked at it with a hoof and realized it was the same size as said horn.
“T-Twilight?!” Dash yelled. No response, knocked out cold. “J-just hang in there Twi...I'll get you safe!” she said, more to reassure herself than anything.
Fluttering her wings to make sure they worked right, they did, Dash put the light Unicorn on her back and took to the air. She sped towards Ponyville, aiming straight for the Hospital.
“I've got a terrible feeling all of a sudden...” Nurse Red Heart said lowly as she sat next to her assistant at the Hospital.
“Like the kind of terrible feeling you get after you eat too much? Or the kind of terrible feeling that I should be concerned about...” First Aid asked.
“The Latter...” Red Heart replied.
“Last time you had that feeling somepony burst in here with a broken wing...” First Aid said lowly. As if on Que, Dash burst in and skid a few feet.
“P-Please help!” she exclaimed, tears pouring down her face as she showed Twilight to the two Nurses.
“Oh Hell...” Red Heart muttered as she vaulted over the table.
Five minutes later, Red Heart and two doctors had Twilight in another room while First Aid was looking over Dash.
“Now Rainbow Dash...tell me what happened please.” the Yellow Mare said soothingly to the still sobbing Pegasus.
“I-I don't know...I w-was practicing...I finally figured out how to do the sonic rainboom again!...b-but when I finally managed to do it, I-I hit something...I hit the ground a-and I looked around and saw Twi lying there unconscious...oh Celestia there was blood coming out of her nose and her m-mouth a-and it's because I hit her!” Dash said, tears coming back in full force.
“It wasn't your fault Rainbow Dash. It was just an accident, you couldn't possibly have known she was there when you were going so fast.” First Aid said, trying to soothe the shocked Pegasus.
“I DON'T CARE IF IT WAS AN ACCIDENT I STILL NEARLY KILLED MY BEST FRIEND!” Dash yelled. First Aid, startled by the sudden outburst, backed away a few steps. Dash was breathing heavily, nearly hyperventilating, as the Nurse stepped back next to the Pegasus.
“I'm not going to start this with you Dash...just know that the Twilight Sparkle I know wouldn't blame you and that she'd forgive you.” the Nurse said.
“I know she would...but that doesn't help me at all...” Dash said weakly.
“What's this? Did you hit a rock?” Aid asked after a moment of silence, indicating the small round bruise on Dash's chest. Dash looked down. When she remembered what it was from she gasped and put her hooves to her mouth.
“Oh...Oh Celestia...I think when I smashed into her, I hit her horn and...and...and it shattered...” Dash said, mortified. “S-She'd hate me if she can't use magic because of me!” she sobbed.
“Alright Dash, stop it right now...Twilight Sparkle wouldn't hate somepony because of something not under their control!” Aid snapped. “I know you feel really guilty, but there is nothing you could have done! It's not your fault, not in the least!” Aid huffed.
Dash just kind of looked at the Nurse for a moment before drooping her head and sighing.
“You're right...thanks Nurse...but I can't agree with that last part...even though it's an accident, it's still my fault...” Dash said lowly.
“Argh you're impossible...” Aid grumbled. Dash's gaze snapped to Nurse Red Heart, who had just walked through the door.
“She's Fine. Well, as fine as one in her situation can be. Her leg isn't Broken or Sprained, just dislocated but it's fine now. We stopped the bleeding from her nose and the blood from her mouth was coming from inside of her body. She has one broken and one fractured rib, luckily they didn't puncture her lungs...though it came close. Lastly, her horn is Broken off cleanly and won't cause any additional harm. If nothing else happens unexpectedly, she should be well enough to return home under supervision in three days. She should wake up between two days from now and then.” Red Heart said before Dash could ask.
“Will...Will her horn grow back?” Rainbow asked.
“Sorry Rainbow but that's one thing I don't know...we've never had a Unicorn Doctor here and we're only taught the anatomy...” the nurse replied apologetically. Dash sighed.
“You're going to have to stay here overnight by the way, you have fractured ribs yourself, though the fractures are only hairline fractures they're still serious.” First Aid said as she got out a roll of bandages.
“If I have to stay overnight then I want to be in the same room as Twilight.” Dash said, it sounded like a demand, as Aid began wrapping her abdomen with the bandages.
“That shouldn't be a problem, though don't beat yourself up when you see her...trust me when I say she looks so much worse than it actually is.” Red Heart said as she pushed Dash, who she had pushed into a wheel chair, into a room. There was a constant beep sounding through the room, she hated that sound. But right now, she was never in her life more glad to hear the sound of a steady heart beat on a heart rate monitor...it meant Twilight was alive and well.
She froze when she saw Twilight. She clearly had a black eye, her lip had a scabbed cut on it and there was a bit of dried blood under her nose. There were bandages around her head and her right foreleg, as well as her abdomen.
“Luckily when her rib broke, it simply broke instead of poking in or out. It could have damaged the lungs or another organ, or went out and poked through her chest...she is a bit bruised up but not as much as you.” Red Heart said, snapping Dash out of her mini trance.
Now that she was looking, she saw that some of the injuries looked very minor. But she looked at the odd stump on her forehead that used to be her horn. What used to be nearly a foot in length barely topped three inches. Looking at the thing you would the stump of a tree, she saw something she wasn't expecting. Well she didn't know what to expect, but what she saw surprised her a bit more than something else would have. The inside of the horn looked almost like glass with a thin shell of the bone-like around it.
“We think the exterior of the horn is made of a very strong and thick bone, like what makes up the skull. We think the interior, that glassy stuff, is pure solidified magic...we don't know how we would tell but that's what makes the most sense.” Red Heart continued as she had Dash get into the bed a few feet away from Twilight's.
“I-I see. Hey um...what about everypony else?” Dash said.
“You can go and tell your friends tomorrow, you'll be free to go by then. Just make sure you only come visit during visiting hours.” Aid said.
“R-Right...” Dash replied.
“Well...if you need anything just ask,” Red Heart said.
“Um...do you have any books here? I'd ask for something on Daring Do again...but uh...I finished the series...” Dash said rubbing the back of her head.
“Oh that's right, you secretly love to read. I might know something you might like.” Red Heart said as the two left. Red Heart came back with a red book. It had a black dragon wrapped around a circle that had a Navy Frigate on it.
“His Majesty's Dragon? Temeraire?” Dash said inquisitively.
“It Takes place in an alternate reality back a few hundred years in Equestrian history way before electricity and stuff like that. It's about the time of the Napoleonic war between the Fancies and the Trottinghamians. It's really good and full of action.” the Nurse explained.
“Huh...” Dash said as she read the back. It didn't seem very appealing to her adventurous tastes but she decided to give it a try.
“Thanks Nurse Red Heart...” Dash said as she opened the book.
“No problem. Get some rest, and press the button if something happens.” the Nurse said. Dash nodded in response and the Nurse left.
“Wow...you got pretty far...” Red Heart mumbled to herself as she checked on the two the next morning, the book she had given Dash was face down about halfway through the novel on the nightstand.
“I can't sleep...” she heard Dash's voice rattle out.
“Oh Dash...you really should try and sleep...” Red Heart said as she came around to look at the Pegasus.
“I tried...but I keep having nightmares...and every time I close my eyes I see her bleeding...” Dash said weakly.
“Well you're free to go...maybe you can sleep better once you're back in your own home.” Red Heart said.
“Maybe...I'll be back soon to check on her...” Dash said as she slowly crept out of the room. The Nurse said something, but she wasn't paying attention anymore .
As she exited the hospital, she opened her wings and fluttered them to prepare for takeoff. As she was about to jump into the air, something stopped her. She had caused Twilight to lose her magical abilities, she shouldn't be able to fly. She flattened her wings back around her sides and walked towards nowhere in particular.
After a few minutes she found herself on the outside of Sugarcube corner. She looked inside and saw all of her friends sitting there discussing something seriously. She trudged over and quietly said “Hey”.
“Rainbow! Whoa there Nelly what happened tuh you?” Applejack exclaimed.
“Yeah we heard a sonic rainboom and neither you or Twilight came back last night, she was out practicing Levitation on herself...” Spike said.
“She...she's in the hospital...” Dash said.
“W-What?!” Spike exclaimed.
“What happened?” Fluttershy asked.
“I was practicing my rainboom and I finally got it...but I didn't even see her...I smashed into her...she...she's pretty banged up but Nurse Red Heart took good care of her...I'm going back to make sure she's alright in a little bit...wanna come with me?” Dash asked. The five nodded.
“Now Rainbow, don't go blamein' yerself fer this. Twi wouldn't want that.” Applejack said as they walked.
“I know but it's still my fault...I can't change that...” Dash said weakly.
“You couldn't have known she was there, and you were flying so fast it wasn't in your control.” Spike said.
“Hey Speaking of flying...why aren't yuh in thuh air?” Applejack asked.
“I'm not going to fly until Twilight can do magic like before...” Dash said lowly.
“Wait what?” the others blurted out. Dash explained what happened exactly and how Twilight's horn was shattered. Surprisingly, Fluttershy knew a bit about this.
“Rainbow Dash, she didn't loose her magic completely. Her horn isn't even what gives her the magic, it just amplifies it. That glassy stuff is solidified magic, the longer the horn is the stronger the magic. It grows to represent the power...that's why the Princess' are so long.” the shy mare said.
“I didn't even know that Darling.” Rarity said.
“Um...after the thing with um...Discord...I asked the princess about it and she told me.” Fluttershy said.
“Wait so...so it'll grow back?” Dash asked.
“Of course it will. The only thing that would stop the horn from growing back is if their magic was completely sealed. In fact, you can repair the horn if you had all of the pieces.” Fluttershy started. “But I don't know the spell or exactly how you'd do it...” she continued.
“That's alright Fluttershy...” Dash said.
“...”
Nopony said anything as they looked at their injured friend.
“Man I'm exhausted...” Dash said.
“You need to sleep. Go on, get up on that bed and try to sleep.” Red Heart said, suddenly appearing in the room.
“Don't worry Dashie! We'll be extra quiet so we don't wake you up!” Pinkie exclaimed softly. Dash smiled and managed to fall asleep almost instantly.
“Ah thought she looked tired...” Applejack said with a concerned face.
“She didn't sleep at all last night...She said she keeps having nightmares...maybe having all of you here is comforting enough to let her mind be at ease.” Red Heart hypothesized.
“Well Ah'm just glad they're both ok...It'd break mah heart if either one of them, or any of y'all fer that matter, got seriously hurt.” Applejack said.
“The Feeling is Mutual...I should tell Celestia.” Spike said as he somehow acquired a quill and scroll.
“Ah, Hello sister.” Celestia said as Luna entered her chambers.
“Hello Tia.” Luna said.
“What brings you here?” Celestia asked.
“You seem a bit off. Almost as if you are worried about something. I wanted to make sure you are alright.” Luna said softly.
“Oh it's nothing really. It's just that normally Twilight would only ever be a day or two late with her reports- that is if she was late ever- and would have sent something explaining why she hadn't sent it yet by now...” Celestia replied.
“Well when was her last report? They are on average weekly are they not?”
“Nearly two weeks ago and yes they are usually weekly...she told me she was doing experiments with complete pony levitation so that might explain the tardiness of the report...but-” Celestia started but was cut off as a puff of green came in through the window and what looked like an envelope materialized.
“Well that fixes that crisis.” Luna said. Celestia smiled and curiously opened the envelope. A clipboard with what looked like the results of a medical examination was pulled out, along with a picture and a letter. Her curiosity peaking she decided to read the letter first. For Luna's sake she decided to read it aloud.
“Dear Princess Celestia- oh this looks like Spike's claw writing...- I'm sorry to contact you with bad news...but you should know as soon as possible...Twilight and Rainbow Dash had a big accident while the two of them were practicing and they both got hurt, but Twilight...almost died?!” Celestia read, horrified. She read on through the explanation of what happened.
“She's alright now, Nurse Red Heart insisted I send her medical information to prove that and Applejack made me send the picture so you know exactly how she is. Fluttershy said her horn will grow back...I hope it's true...Spike.” Celestia finished reading. She quickly looked over the medical chart.
“How bad is it?” Luna asked.
“Luckily not nearly as bad as it could have been...it says here a broken rib and a fractured limb, some heavy bruising and her shattered horn among other things...the only potentially lethal injury she received were the broken ribs this chart says and that blood loss was an issue but it's no longer a problem...I need to remember to send some unicorn doctors there...nurses alone can't do magical procedures and don't know the more advanced medical terminology...” Celestia said as she held the picture up.
Luna saw the pained expression on her sister's face and looked at the picture herself. It showed Twilight unconscious and wrapped in bandages, some of them stained red, and that her horn was indeed Shattered.
“Do you blame her?” Luna asked.
“What?”
“Do you blame Rainbow Dash?”
“No, of course not...if it is anypony's fault it is both of theirs...not just a single pony to blame. I'm sorry sister I can't stay here while she is like this...I-I need to see her with my own eyes...” Celestia said as she quickly got up.
“Sister wait. I know you want to see her...I want to make sure she is alright as well, she was very kind to me, but you can't just leave suddenly and turn up at Ponyville just as suddenly. Not to mention it would stress everypony out more than they need be...” Luna said. “I can take over here for you but not on such short notice.” she continued.
“...how long until you can?” Celestia asked.
“If it were up to me you'd be halfway there by now...but first we need to deal with the politics of simply leaving the palace, let alone the city...you know how long it would take to set everything up better htan I sister...” Luna replied.
“...two days. That is how long I suspect it will take...” Celestia said after some thought.
“Shorter than I expected...I know it will be hell for you, knowing your favorite student is hurt and you can't see her right away...” Luna said.
“...You can't possibly know...she is more than just a student...more than just a friend..I had never thought of children before her...she is as close to me as you are...” Celestia said. Luna didn't quite understand what her sister had said until she really thought about it.
“She is like a Daughter to you?” Luna asked. Celestia nodded. “But doesn't she already have parents?” she asked, confused.
“They are her foster parents, she is an Orphan...she has a brother but he is her foster brother as well...” Celestia said, plopping back on the ground where she had been laying previously.
“So you really do think of her as your foal?” Luna asked softly.
“How could I not?...I practically raised her from a little foal of five to the Mare she is today...I just want to see her alright with my own eyes...Remind me to thank Applejack for sending the picture though, it helps a great deal to see her even if it's not physically...” Celestia said.
“Alright Sister...shall we head to dinner now then and assemble the politicians?” Luna asked.
“Yes, I think so...” Celestia said as they got up together and walked out of the room.
“Ugh...” Red Heart heard as she was checking on Twilight early the next morning. She looked over to Rainbow Dash, who she assumed was stirring, but found the Pegasus was still deeply asleep. She heard it again and looked down to see Twilight trying to open her eyes.
“N-Nurse Red Heart?...ugh...it feels like I got hit by a sonic Rainboom... why am I in the hospital?” Twilight asked weakly.
“You and Rainbow Dash had an accident about two nights ago. And that's actually what happened, you got hit by a Rainboom.” Red Heart said.
“W-what?!” Twilight said. “W-where's Dash? Did she get hurt too?!” Twilight asked.
“Yes she did, but not nearly as bad as you did. You have a fractured, and a broken, rib...a heavily bruised back left foreleg, and a shattered horn.” Red Heart said.
“S-shattered...Horn?” Twilight asked in disbelief. She looked up and noticed the absence of her horn and attempted to lift a mirror with her magic. What was once a trivial task took great concentration, but she still managed to do it. She froze and almost lost control over what little magic she still controlled as she saw the remains of her horn.
“I-I can work with this...all I need to do is just...practice...all the time...to speed along the regrowing process...” Twilight said, slipping into something that seemed a combination of paranoia and shock.
“I-I can just s-stay in the Library and go over Everything I've ever done!” she continued, getting more and more flustered. Suddenly she calmed down and put a hoof to her head.
“Ugh...sorry about that...um...where is Dash?” Twilight said. Red Heart moved aside to show the sleeping Pegasus. “Is she Unconscious?” she asked.
“No, just asleep...you should have seen how absolutely scared she was when she burst in here with you unconscious on her back...she was barely conscious herself and could barely stand on one leg...but she made sure you were safe before she let herself pass out...” Red Heart explained.
“R-really?...wow...just what you'd expect from the Element of Loyalty.” Twilight said with a grin. She noticed Rainbow Flinch, must be dreaming of something weird.
“Well now that you're awake you can tell me how you feel, any lingering pains or something I should know?” the Nurse asked.
“Not really, my leg is numb but that's going away...my chest feels like it's got something pushing on it though...but I guess that's my ribs healing.” Twilight said.
“Only like it has a pressure? Most Ponies who even only fracture a rib feel pains for weeks...and you even broke one...” Red Heart said, curious.
“Well I've always been a fast healer...Unicorn Magic doesn't originate from their horn, it just acts as a catalyst to build up and cast the magic...the raw magic in our bodies can do a lot of things...for instance, healing injuries. Princess Celestia always said I was really good with that so I guess it's true.” Twilight said.
“Magic is Magic...I can accept that. Is there anything you need? Food or drink wise?” the Nurse asked.
“I could go for an Applejack Daniels.” Twilight said with a straight face, but they both laughed softly. “I'm joking, just a normal apple cider would be fine...though I'm not hungry right now, thank you.” Twilight said.
The Nurse got the drink, performed a few more examinations as Twilight parched her thirst and left to let the Lavender Mare to get some rest.
“I don't know if I would have done it like that for Anypony else...” Twilight heard. The voice crackled and sounded sad, but she recognized it as Rainbow Dash's voice.
“Dash? You're up?” Twilight asked, sitting up.
“Maybe one of the other four...maybe...but not just anypony...” Dash continued, almost like she hadn't heard Twilight.
“Huh? What are you talking about Dash?” Twilight asked.
“You said 'Just as you'd expect from the Element of Loyalty'... I may be loyal to all of my friends...but I don't think I'd do something that stupid for any of them...I would have gotten help I think, looking back at it...” Dash said.
“...Then why did you do that for me? Is it because you don't think I could have lasted?” Twilight asked.
“N-no it's not that...I mean sure, Applejack or Pinkie probably could have just gotten up like nothing had happened but I don't hold that against you...I dunno...We were really good friends before...but lately we've been spending lots of time together, I think you've become a better friend than Applejack or Pinkie even...” Dash said, sitting upright as well.
“Dash...are...are you trying to say what I think you are?” Twilight asked.
“I don't know, I can't read minds...” Dash retorted.
“...Fair Enough...are you trying to say you've...fallen for me or something?” Twilight asked.
“I don't know that's what's scaring me! I've never been this conflicted about something! Argh!...” she said, plopping back down onto her pillows. Twilight was Silent, Dash had indirectly said that she thought she was falling for her and that it scared her that she didn't know what to do about it. The thing that scared Twilight though, was that she didn't know what to do about it either.
“I'll be back...I need to go for a walk.” Dash said weakly as she rolled off of her bed and plodded out of the door. Twilight stared after the Cyan Pegasus for a moment before she realized it was still pretty early so she went back to sleep.
“Dash?!” Twilight yelled as she bolted upright as she heard a yell of pain. She looked around the room and realized somepony was banging on the door and yelling something. She heard sniffling and suppressed cries of pain as she looked over to Dash's bed and nearly vomited.
Sitting on the bed, was Dash. She was covered in blood and one wing was completely severed, lying on the floor between them. Dash held a bone saw in her mouth as she began sawing the other off.
“Dash?! What the hell are you doing?!” Twilight screamed. Rainbow Dash looked over to her when she had finished her other wing, blood pouring from the gaping holes in her back, and grinned.
“It's all better now...I took away your magic...so I don't deserve to fly anymore...” Dash said very weakly, almost maniacally.
“But Dash! My horn will grow back!” Twilight yelled in tears now.
“That would take much too long...you need your magic like I need my flying...without it immediately it's not the same...now we both suffer for what I have done...” Dash said, her voice getting weaker and weaker until she finally curled up on the bed.
“So sleepy...g'nite Twi...” Dash said, barely above a whisper, as she closed her eyes and stopped breathing.
Twilight bolted upright with a gasp and was panting very hard as she looked around the room. The door was open, Nurse Red Heart was looking at her with a worried expression from the doorway. She saw Dash right in front of her, holding her shoulders. She must have woken Twilight up from that terrible nightmare. Twilight instantly pulled Dash into an embrace and began sobbing as visions of her dream flashed through her mind.
“Whoa there Twi, what happened?” Dash asked. Twilight explained what happened in her dream and Dash looked down trodden.
“I contemplated that...but even I'm not that stupid...” Dash said lowly. “But that was a Nightmare, I'm here and I'm fine.” she continued. Twilight continued to sob into her shoulder, but gradually calmed down to a light sniffle.
“I'll be in the other room if you need me.” the Nurse said and closed the door behind her.
“T-Thank y-you...Dash...” Twilight said.
“Well Duh...I'd never leave the Mare I love so sad.” Dash said Soothingly.
“So you figured out your feelings?” Twilight asked. Dash's cheeks went red and she looked down bashfully, but she nodded. Twilight smiled, pulled Dash's face back up, and kissed the Cyan Mare. Dash's eyes went wide for a moment, but she melted into the Kiss and returned it.
“Whoa...” Dash said.
“Yeah...” Twilight agreed. She giggled as she saw Dash's wings slightly extended.
“So what now?” Dash asked.
“Now?...We get some sleep. After I get out, we should tell our friends.” Twilight said.
“But what if they think it's weird?” Dash asked.
“The only weird thing about it is that it happened because you almost killed me.” Twilight said with a grin.
“But isn't it kinda weird for two Mares to like each other?” Dash asked.
“Dash I never thought I'd have this conversation with you...Unicorn Magic can Replace a Stallion, so there's nothing wrong with it...and even if not then Adoption works just as well- but that's way in the future for us...we're just starting.” Twilight said, her face going red. Dash did an awkward grin.
“G'nite Twi.” Dash said.
“Nite Dash.” Twi replied, kissed her again and fell back to sleep almost instantly. When dash snapped out of the daze she was in due to the second kiss, she grinned and went into her own bed.
C.4 just some more development
Dash woke up with a big grin on her face. She looked over to Twilight, who was still fast asleep, and got up.
“So are you finally going home then?” Nurse Red Heart asked without looking up as Dash exited the room.
“Nah, just for another walk. But don't worry, I'll only sleep over again if Twi wants me to.” Dash replied.
“Alrighty then, be careful.” the Nurse said. Dash waved a hoof as she walked out of the doors. She thought back to last night, how she had figured out her feelings.
“Argh! Why is this so hard?!” Dash exclaimed from her spot on a park bench.
“Well hey there Sugarcube.” Das heard and instantly recognized the voice as Applejack's.
“Hey AJ...” Dash said.
“What's thuh matter?” Applejack asked.
“There's something I'm thinking about...but I don't know what to do about it...” Dash replied.
“Well what is it?” AJ asked.
“It's uh...kinda private...” Dash said, looking down.
“Hm...fine, if'n Ah tell yuh one uh mah secrets you tell me whats botherin' yuh. Deal?” Aj said.
“...Deal.” Dash replied.
“Alrigh' let's see here...one time at one of Pinkie's parties, We was both real drunk and uh...well...let's jus' say it made the next week awkward.” AJ said. She grinned as Dash rolled on the ground laughing.
“Oh man that's rich...you and Pinkie?! I'd always thought she was too much fun for you!” Dash exclaimed.
“Ah Darn it Rainbow it was just one drunken night! Anyways, what was botherin' yuh?” AJ asked, expertly changing the topic.
“Oh...uh...well...I kinda have feelings for somepony and I don't know what to do with them...” Dash said.
“Do ah know 'em?” Applejack asked,
“Uh...yeah...we kinda all know her...” Dash said.
“So it's Twilight then?” AJ asked.
“H-How'd you figure that out so fast?” Dash exclaimed.
“Well Shoot, you two have been spendin' a lot more time together. Even Pinkie thought yuh two were an Item at one point.” AJ said matter of factly.
“Well Sorry but she's the only one I can stand to be around when I read, she actually reads with me and doesn't annoy the buck outta me...” Dash retorted.
“We're off topic, why don't you know what to do about it? Tell her.” AJ said.
“I kinda already did but...she didn't give me a readable reaction...she wasn't accepting or rejecting...she just sorta...looked at me...but I'm not even sure if I really have these feelings or if it's just a filly's crush...” Dash said with a frustrated tone.
“Well let's see here, what's the one thing you love the most?” Applejack asked.
“Flying, obviously.” Dash said.
“Well, aren't yuh not flyin' until she's better?” she asked.
“Well yeah but...I'd do the same if I hurt any of you like that...” Dash said.
“Probably, but yer keepin' sane and this is thuh first tiem Ah've seen yuh frustrated. That either means yer good at hiding yer discomfort, or She's doin' somethin' to make yuh happy. And if she makes yuh happy like that, I'd say that's love.” Applejack said.
“I'll bet Pinkie makes you happy like that.” Dash said slyly.
“Pinkie makes everypony happy like that.” Applejack said. “...wait...what?” she continued, realizing what she just said as Dash continued to roll on the ground laughing.
“Darn it Rainbow! Why do yuh always gotta do that!” AJ exclaimed.
“Because it's Hilarious to see you, little miss tough flank, all flustered up! But really, thanks a lot...you really helped me out.” Dash said. They high hooved.
“No Problem.” Applejack replied.
“Hey.” Rainbow heard. She realized she was in the exact same place she had met with Applejack, and it was said pony that had spoken.
“Hey.” Dash said back.
“How'd it go?” Applejack asked.
“Well...Twilight had a pretty bad nightmare involving me and something creepily accurate...I calmed her down and we kinda kissed.” Dash said, her face going a bit red at the last part.
“What do yuh mean by 'Creepily accurate?' “ Applejack asked.
“I mean that nightmare almost happened...I'd rather not get into it.” Dash said.
“Alrigh'...say, yuh didn't go right back last night...where'd yuh go?” the Orange Mare asked.
“Oh I just kept walking...got a few things off my mind...I gotta go now and finish something I started. See you later.” Dash said.
“Uh...Alrighty then. Good luck with whatever it is.” AJ said. Dash waved a hoof as she walked away from her.
The rest of the day went by quickly, but Twilight was surprised to see Rainbow had left.
“Where's Dash?” Twilight asked the Nurse.
“She went for a walk a few hours ago, she told me she'll be back though.” the Nurse replied.
“Ok.” Twilight said.
“Now even if you aren't hungry, you're going to eat this. And Spike came by earlier with this.” the Nurse said, putting a tray of food and a letter on the night stand. She cautiously picked up the food, and with great concentration to not miss her mouth, proceeded to eat.
“I always thought that without a horn a Unicorn's magic would be useless...” the Nurse commented.
“Well normally it would be, but I have enough practice so that even if I had no horn at all I could probably still pick something up with magic, though it'd have to be light as a quill or parchment...and even to get that far took weeks of private lessons with the Princess...” Twilight explained as she grabbed the letter.
“Wait...so ponies don't even need a horn to do magic?” the Nurse asked.
“Well...in theory, that would be true since everypony has magic in them...but it's like telling an Earth Pony to jump off a cliff and try to fly with wings they don't have...it's an instinct thing...” she said, stopped as she read the letter. Her face lit up instantly as she read through it.
“What's it say?” Red Heart asked.
“the Princess is going to visit tomorrow!” Twilight exclaimed.
“Really? To be honest when Spike sent the letter telling her about what happened I wouldn't have been surprised if she teleported to the room right there...but obviously she couldn't just disappear...but this soon?” Red Heart said to herself.
“Well Princess Luna could cover for Princess Celestia, so that'd reduce the time...I'm just worried about Rainbow Dash...” Twilight said.
“Why?”
“Because...even if it was an accident, and I definitely don't blame Dash for it, technically it was her who hurt me...I can't imagine the Princess seeing it differently...but what if?” Twilight asked.
“Hey now what about me?” they heard as Dash entered the room.
“Princess Celestia is going to be here around mid afternoon tomorrow!” Twilight Exclaimed.
Dash smiled, but it dropped into a line as she thought about it.
“What do we tell her? Isn't she practically like your mom?” Dash asked. Sensing the conversation's private Nature, Red Heart left the room with a viable excuse.
“Well...I don't know if it's that far but...I think we should just tell her. I can't imagine her spiting either of us for it...” Twilight said.
“But what about the fact that I'm the one that put you in here?” Dash asked seriously.
“Oh Dash...I forgive you a million times over...” Twilight said reassuringly.
“But what if she doesn't?” Dash asked. That same question was the one buzzing through Twilight's head. She sighed and plopped onto her back.
“I don't know...” she said, her mind getting dangerously close to her paranoia induced insanity. Suddenly she was warm and Dash was hugging her.
“Well I don't care if she is the Princess, she can't break us apart...if she really thinks so highly of you she should respect your choices...” Dash said. Twilight was smiling at this, she had never seen this side of Dash. She frowned as she realized something.
“Dash...what about my magic? How would she react to me losing most of it like that?” Twilight asked.
“...Don't worry about that...I'll make sure it won't be a problem...” Dash said confidently. Twilight smiled and pulled the Cyan Mare into a Kiss, which the other happily returned. They fell asleep holding each other as the moon shone high in the sky.
Nurse Red Heart walked in to check on Twilight, and smiled at the scene.
“About time...” she mumbled as she pulled the curtains around the bed and left the room.
Rainbow Dash was gone when Twilight woke up, but the Nurse said she went on another walk.
“She's been doing that a lot for some reason...I wonder what she does...” Twilight commented.
“Yeah...well Today is the last day you have to stay at the hospital, but you'll still need to spend a few days bedridden to recover completely, even with your accelerated recovery.” Red Heart said.
“Yeah and the Princess is coming...she sent me another letter saying she'll be here around four...it's eleven now.” Twilight said, glancing at the clock.
“I know...hungry?” the Nurse asked.
“Starving.” Twilight replied as the tray was placed in front of her.
Celestia was flying over the large expanse of land between Canterlot and Ponyville. She had chosen to forgo the Chariot, in favor of her own wings. Her captain was a few feet to the side of her as she flew.
“What's that?” her Captain asked himself, but Celestia heard him and she looked down. She saw a crater with a gouge in the earth skidding along that broke into two different paths. She noticed some of the grass was a bit browned unusually and the dirt in some places looked reddish, she realized it was blood that had dried.
She landed to get a closer look and confirmed that it was dried blood. She realized this must have been where Twilight and her friend crashed, it hadn't rained since then. She felt an oddly familiar power close by so she reached out to it and pulled it towards her.
From under a small layer of upturned dirt, a small purple fragment came covered in the veil of Celestia's magic. Celestia examined the piece and realized it was a piece of Twilight's horn.
“Captain, take this and look for more in the area. These pieces are very important.” Celestia said. The Captain nodded and took it and walked the other direction while Celestia scanned the ground with her magic.
“That's strange...there is only this one piece in the entire area...” Celestia said twenty minutes later as she held the piece again.
“P-Princess?! Hey you found it!” she heard a familiar voice call. As she noticed the Cyan Mare, she also felt the aura of the rest of Twilight's horn in her saddlebags.
“That explains a lot.” Celestia said with a smile as she placed the horn fragment in the bags suddenly. “You have been collecting the pieces haven't you?” Celestia asked.
“Um...yeah...” Dash replied cautiously.
“You don't need to fear me Rainbow Dash. I do not hold you accountable at all.” Celestia said. Rainbow smiled and sighed in relief.
“Well...I think Twilight is expecting both of us back there so let's go.” Celestia continued. Dash nodded and they began walking.
“By the way Rainbow Dash. Twilight tells me more than just events relating to Friendship...sometimes I'll set up a magical connection so she doesn't need to keep spike awake if we get into a long distance conversation late at night.” Celestia started as they neared Ponyville.
“That's cool, it's nice she gets to talk to you all the time.” Dash said.
“It is. I want you to realize something...I think of her as my own Child, so Naturally that would give me motherly vibes.” the Princess continued.
“...Where is this going?” Rainbow asked.
“One night, not too long ago, she spoke of you. She told me the two of you have been spending lots of time together. She said she was developing a crush on you, but she thought it was wrong for a Mare to like another Mare...I explained to her why it wasn't wrong and she told me she would find some way to tell you...Has she done so already?” Celestia asked.
“Uh...well...sorta...Truth is I like her too and I kinda told her that the other day...” Dash replied, looking at the ground.
“Oh so you two are an Item?” Celestia asked with a grin. Dash looked up to her. Her cheeks went red but she nodded. “Excellent. She needs somepony like you in her life. I don't think I need to tell you to take care of her...am I correct?” she continued.
“Right.” Dash replied.
They reached the hospital rather quickly after that. Celestia was worried for her student while she was flying to Ponyville earlier, but Rainbow Dash had made her feel like Twilight was alright. She had even collected the pieces of Twilight's horn, which would help with what she had planned to do greatly.
“Right on time Princess.” Red Heart said with a smile as Celestia entered the Hospital. Celestia nodded and entered Twilight's room quietly, the Lavender Mare was reading.
“Princess!” Twilight exclaimed happily as Celestia neared. They hugged and Celestia took a seat next to the bed, next to Rainbow Dash.
“Hello Twilight Sparkle. How are you feeling?” Celestia asked.
“Really good actually...it's weird...a few days ago I was nearly dead...but now I feel better than ever, the only thing wrong is that I need to concentrate really hard to do magic.” Twilight said.
“So you can still do magic with so little of your horn left, exactly how much?” Celestia asked, curious.
“Well I can write almost normally, but that's just using the quill with magic so it's not a big deal. If I'm not exhausted I can eat with magic too and read. I haven't tried anything besides Levitation.” Twilight said, putting a hoof to her chin in thought.
Celestia was surprised.
“Twilight, most unicorns can't even do basic levitation with half of their horn...you only have a third.” Celestia said.
“Really?” Twilight asked.
“Hey hold on...wait...a third? It was a quarter before...” Dash said.
“...are you sure?” Celestia asked.
“I have the charts here, it is recorded that it was indeed a quarter.” Red Heart said.
“Wait...are you saying my horn grew back so much so quickly? I thought it took much longer for the horn to grow back.” Twilight said.
“Normally the growth you have would have taken up to two weeks...it would appear your gift with magic accelerated it...that may change things a bit...” Celestia said as she nudged Dash. Twilight had a confused face, but her eyes widened as she saw what Dash took out of her bag.
“Y-you got the pieces?” Twilight asked.
“Every single last one.” Dash replied.
“I know the spell to repair your horn Twilight, but I am curious to see what will happen if we try it now, when the total will be more than the original.” Celestia said.
“Wait...am I going to be a guinea pig in a experiment?” Twilight asked.
“I guess you can say that, but just in case prepare yourself for anything. Magic, especially as powerful as yours, is quite random. Anything could happen with the extra burst of power.” Celestia said as she levitated the horn fragments above Twilight's head.
She closed her eyes and Twilight felt very weird, her head felt warm and a slight tingle went through her entire body in a wave. She looked up and saw the fragments literally dissolve into a sort of purple mist that swirled to her broken horn and began reforming it. When it was complete there was a surprisingly large amount of horn fragments remaining.
The spell having no clue what to do with the horn fragments, it dissolved the fragments into the magical mist and instead of reforming the horn, was absorbed into Twilight's body. She bared her teeth in a silent hiss as the magic began gathering up in random places, creating small tumors of magic. When they filled, they burst and Twilight gasped in pain as it felt like her entire body exploded.
“Oh no...no no no...Twilight are you Alright?” Celestia said, suddenly very worried.
“I-I t-think so...i-it hurts though...” Twilight got out. “What's happening?” she asked.
“I don't know...these tumors of magic are still going and for some reason I can't cut off the spell...I'm so sorry, but you're just going to have to be strong.” Celestia said.
“Don't worry Princess...she's stronger than anypony else...” Dash said.
The bubbles of magic burst one after another as the last fragment dissolved and was absorbed into Twilight's body, the pain peaked as her back felt like it exploded. The three other ponies in the room gasped in horror as her back almost literally exploded. There was no spray of blood, just slick red dripping onto the bed and floor from slick red feathers.
“Ugh...w-what happened?” Twilight asked weakly. Suddenly Celestia was standing over her, seemingly scanning the Lavender Mare with her magic.
“The magic reconstructed your horn, but the extra magic was far greater than I predicted...the spell took reference from the nearest thing, me, and recreated that...” Celestia said.
“wait...so I'm a winged Unicorn now?” Twilight asked.
“no...you're an Alicorn.” Celestia replied.
“what's the difference?” Dash asked.
“A winged Unicorn is just that...a unicorn with wings.” Celestia started. “An Alicorn though...how could I describe this...” She continued.
“An Alicorn has a very important role in every day life. Celestia and Luna guide the Son and the Moon...what would I be in charge of then?” Twilight finished with a question.
“...From what I know of you, and what I have perceived from the magical scan...Magic, the magical plane, the ability to use magic...everything.” Celestia said.
“W-What?! All of that just from that bit of extra magic?” Twilight asked.
“No...let me explain something. An Alicorn is made when a pony is born with enough magical powers to allow it to do what it is meant to do. My mother and father passed the sun and moon onto Luna and I, so we inherited the powers...we were born Unicorns. I was not aware a pony could get enough power by themselves...but you just proved it can be done...the power was within you all along, that is why you are the element of Magic in the elements of harmony. The extra magic may have just accelerated your power and granted you the wings...but your true power has awakened...” Celestia explained.
“Whoa...this...this is just too much...I-I...I don't know how to handle this...does...does this mean I'm royalty now or what?” Twilight stammered.
“I guess it does...but I won't make you do anything you don't want to do...it's just now, like I have my duty to bring day to the lands, you have your duty to keep Magic safe and pure.” Celestia said.
“What do you mean by that?” Twilight asked.
“from the looks of it...you'll be sort of a magical police, protecting magic and stopping Disuse of it. Of course I could be wrong but I tend to have a good sense of judgment.” Celesta continued. The room was Silent, and Twilight suddenly realized something.
“Dash...what do you make of all of this?” Twilight asked. She looked at the Cyan Mare, who seemed to be down trodden. “Dash?” Twilight asked. Dash sniffed and looked up, she looked like she was barely holding back tears.
“All this new stuff about royalty and magic police and stuff...why do I matter? You can't possibly have time for me now...” she said lowly. She got up off of her chair and made to exit the room, but found herself lifted into the air and brought backwards into Twilight's embrace.
“you Idiot, if I do end up being all of that stuff you'd be by my side...I'd always have time for you...and you matter because you do. “ Twilight said. Dash smiled and wiped her eyes and returned the embrace.