Pinkie Pie was sitting in the hospital’s lobby, she was regretful of what she did. What she didn’t know was how it happened. Even in her mind she was still trying to remember the incident that caused all of her friends ended up in the hospital. She was holding her pet alligator named Gummy to calm herself and she constantly rose from the bench to eat something of the cafeteria and would either get a lily sandwich or a glass of water, she needed some sort of activity to constantly distract her mind, Gummy always held a folder with papers in his mouth. Spike had come early in the morning to attend the rest of the girls in their necessities: feeding them, washing them and giving them their respective medicines and, because of Pinkie’s fears, he said from time to time how they were. For Pinkie the wait was long, the dragon exit Twilight’s room and headed to her. He sat next to Pinkie Pie.
“How are they?” Pinkie was worried.
“They’re fine,” said Spike trying to calm her down. “In fact they’ll be here in a few minutes,” An awkward silence surrounded them. “Almost all of them.”
“...What do you mean by almost?” Pinkie got surprised because she thought all her friends will got out the same day.
“Twilight–” Spike felt a knot in his throat, he knew how delicate Pinkie was with noticed like this.
“What’s wrong with her? Spike, please tell me.”
“...She’s unconscious.”
Pinkie’s mane deflated a little. “No, no it can’t be.”
“The doctors are working really hard to save her. I’m as worried as you Pinkie Pie... I don’t really know what happened because I wasn’t there with you but... I should have been. The rest of the girls are ok and they’re waiting in their rooms for an answer,” Spike paused and sighed, looking up at her. “I’m sorry Pinkie, I really am.”
Pinkie began to breathe heavily and she started to have cramps. Spike told her to relax her and to continuously look at Gummy to focus as he stood on the bench to massage her hooves. “I hadn’t felt like this since I stayed to care for mom a few days ago.”
“Wait,” Spike said. “Your mother is sick or something?”
“Yes. Her health is delicate and everypony takes shifts to take care of her. Dad, Limestone, Marble. Even Maud stopped attending to school to be with her. All the family takes three-hours shifts. But they said to me that mom was in good hooves and that I’ve to spent time with them ‘for my own good.’”
“...Your family is very united, do they?”
“Yes. When one has problems, the rest are there for helping. Like Granny Pie said ‘Until she gets better or die.’”
Spike certainly didn’t want to hear an answer like that. He finished the hooves and went to the back.
“Did the rest knows about this?”
“No,” to bland things and make her feel better, he changed the subject.
“By the way I recently heard about your voice acting project. May I ask why?”
“Let’s start from the beginning,” Pinkie Pie began to explained. “I’d saw this book titled ‘The world’s greatest voice acting book’ in Twilight’s library. I asked her if she could lend it to me and she accepted. I couldn’t resist to this new form of art.”
“For what?”
“It’s another form of entertaining ponies and make them happy. I even auditioned for a role in a show next month,” Pinkie took the folder from Gummy’s mouth and showed it to Spike. Inside there were photos of her alongside the role she asked for. “This is my dancing dress, my fortune-teller outfit, my chicken costume from Nightmare Night and my rapper outfit.”
Spike checked the pictures as Pinkie Pie continued to describe them. Then she bring out the role she auditioned for.
“She’s Andrea, she’s in her 30’s, she speaks English and French and she has a dog for a pet. Isn’t that exciting?!”
“...Sure. I bet you’ll get it. But what happened to the book?”
Pinkie Pie sighed. “Sadly I lost it. Twilight will be furious with me when she knows it,” Pinkie Pie remembered the situation and why she was there instantly. “If she can recover.”
Spike finished his treatment and sat Pinkie, who felt down once more. He grabbed Gummy and put him on her right hoof and the folder on her left one as he finished giving her the massage. “It’s done. You’re better now?”
“I guess so.”
“Well, now it’s time to see Twilight. The rest will be here soon. See you Pinkie Pie,” He was about to leave when Pinkie Pie released Gummy from her hoof and held Spike’s claw, stopping him.
“Can I tell you something?”
Spike turned around and nodded.
“I really popped the piñata this time. It’s always the regret, the regret! I know I do silly things many times but... I never thought I could hurt somepony with them. Until now, and I’ll tell you what... the biggest regret of my life... I don’t know what to do if they don’t make it or worse: reject my friendship,” she sniffled. “What if they don’t want to see me again after this? I’m ashamed. Don’t ever let anyone ever say to you Spike you shouldn’t regret anything. Don’t do that. Don’t! You regret whatever you want! Use that. Use that. Use that regret for anything, any way you want. You can use it, OK?” she sighed. “This is a dance party with no end. A little moral story, I should say... Friendship. Friendship. Friendship. This life... it’s so hard. So long. Life isn’t short, it’s long,” she started to sob, murmur and to close her eyes, Spike and Gummy only could watch her. “What did I do wrong? What did I do wrong? What did I do wrong? What did I do wrong?”
Pinkie Pie let him go. The rest of the Mane 6 got out of their respective rooms while Spike went to Twilight’s, they ran straight into each other.
“Girls, I’m glad you’re ok. But Pinkie seems a bit...drear about everything. Can you be a little gentle to her?”
They remained unexpressive but their eyes nodded with a spark in them. Once he entered the friends headed to Pinkie Pie, who wiped her tears to pretend she was fine. Once they approached her Pinkie noticed them: Applejack was limping, Fluttershy had a collar and Rainbow Dash was pushing a wheelchair. Pinkie did a slight smiled to them but all were mad at her, no words were spoken, they just glare at her. They were going outside to have peace for a moment and, after being inside for about two days they needed to stretch their legs, it was like that until Pinkie Pie interrupted them.
“Are you ok?”
Fluttershy stopped the gang and turned around. She stared at Pinkie angrily and approached her. Normally Fluttershy was the most calm of the group and kind of a pacifist, her friends knew about her rants but she never got furious with Pinkie. This time was different.
“Am I ok? Do I look ok?! I hurt my neck, I’ve three cracked ribs and I’ve got stitches stitches in my armpit!” Both were face to face. “Do I look ok to you?! No, I’m not,” she separated from her.
“...I’m terribly sorry.”
“It doesn’t seem like it,” said Rainbow Dash. All the girls approached Pinkie.
“Well, if you can remember what happened I’ll be glad to listen.”
Rarity was the one who explained the story, thanks to her attention to details she knew what happened.
“We were at the Grand Galloping Gala, you arrived late for some reason and we understoodd that. I recall all of us got drunk and you offered to drive a chariot to help us to come back to our homes. You even decided that Rainbow Dash should stay at yours. During our way the chariot bumped into a hole that woke up Twilight. She got out of the chariot by the driver’s window and was about to tell you to watch out for those features, but instead she found that you fell asleep! Her worrying screams woke us up and we tried to go to the driver’s window but then you got out of the way and the chariot did some somersaults, every single one of us got expelled from it before it crashed into a tree. We bumped into each other, I still can remember our cries of pain.”
“Mah leg hurts!”
“Help me, please, I’m stuck!”
“I don’t feel my wings. Girls, I don’t feel my wings!”
“But Twilight got the worst: she hit her head against the tree. It wasn’t until the neighbors heard our cries of pain that they rescued us and took us to the hospital. I can recall you went to an emergency room along with us but you stayed free from the hospital crew when they found you all-around, one by one we got the results... and here we are,” Rarity finished.
Pinkie’s mane deflated a little more.
“But I swear I’m sorry.”
“Oh really? Fluttershy’s banged up, Applejack has a broken leg, Rainbow Dash can’t fly because she has both wings injured, I’m tied to this wheelchair for the next eight weeks, Twilight’s unconscious for Celestia’s sake! And you... you don’t even have a scratch.”
“I’m a deep sleeper, you already know that. I sleep like a rock.”
“Did you also know that it isn’t advisable to fall asleep when you’re driving in the middle of the road?!”
“It was just a nap. Next time try to not tense up.”
“If you can’t take this seriously, then you shouldn’t keep him!” Fluttershy snatched Gummy from her hooves. Pinkie Pie was heartbroken.
“Fluttershy, that’s my Gummy!”
“I fear for him. If you treat your friends like that I don’t want to imagine how you treat him. An alligator needs fish, no candy or pastries like the ones you give to him, this is for his own good.”
“Now if can excuse us, we need to go outside for a breath of fresh air,” said Rainbow Dash. “And by the way it was a fucking pleasure. And just to clean my conscience let me tell you fatty why you’re not coming with us,” the cyan pony started to point out the annoying behaviors of her past actions. “It’s not because you didn’t tell us how to get rid of the parasprites, it’s not because you scared children from Princess Luna for fun on Nightmare Night, it’s not because you didn’t stop scaring Fluttershy when she tried to get into The Ponytones and we’re certainly not leaving you because you almost killed us. We’re leaving you here for a more fundamental reason: I always despised who you are on a cellular level.”
Pinkie Pie was dying internally just by hearing her friend’s feelings, all she could do was pretending they didn’t hurt her that much. “...I... I’ll work on that.”
“And by the way you forgot this,” Rarity pull out from one of her bandages the missing book from Twilight and gave it to her.
“How did you–?”
“Nurse Redheart thought it was mine. Now hear this. Beware, I’m warning you, don’t do voice acting. The cabins are not built with gold, they’re built with the carcasses of imbecile ponies like you who think they’re going to be famous just because they lend their voice to an animated character. Nopony who calls himself ‘acting’ has ever made it in voice acting.”
They retired to the hospital entrance but Rainbow Dash returned to Pinkie. “One last thing,” she put her hoof and commanded Pinkie to follow it.
“Up. Down. Side to side and–”
Suddenly the pegasus punched the pink pony’s face.
“Now we’re even.”
Applejack dropped her jaw surprised, her pupils shrank. Now Pinkie’s mane deflated totally, returning her to her Pinkamena state. The tears watered from her eyes continuously, her worst fear became true. The mares left her and exit to the hospital’s garden: Rainbow Dash walked slowly throughout it before leaving Rarity under a tree’s shadow and Fluttershy sat on a bench near the main door caressing Gummy, everypony felt relaxed... except for one. After thinking and reflecting about what occurred inside the lobby Applejack, who never talked during the attack to Pinkie Pie due to her remaining silent to express her anger and hassle, put a stop to the others.
“These are not ourselves. Come here y’all,” the mares’ attention was caught, they walked to her and approached the orange pony.
“Excuse me darling?”
“What ya do there wasn’t right,” she ranted. “Pinkie has helped us before. How could ya slight her in that way?!”
“Are you nuts AJ?!” Rainbow Dash was pissed off. “She nearly killed us!”
“That doesn’t matter, she’s still our friend!”
“So let me get this straight,” Fluttershy interrupted her. “You’re not mad with her?”
“Listen carefully, Ah’m as mad as ya, Ah’ve mah front leg injured. It was Pinkie’s fault? Maybe, but Ah’d never snatch her pet or tell her to give up her dreams and definitively punch her in the face!” Applejack glared to Rainbow Dash while she said it. “Besides, have ya already forgotten ‘bout the good things Pinkie has done for us?” she directed, one by one, telling them the truth and recalling the good moments. “Rainbow Dash, ya told me ‘bout yer trip to Grifonstone and how she helped ya and Gilda to reconcile. Also, ya’re probably the best pranksters in all Ponyville. Fluttershy, she always cheer ya up when yer animals can’t. Plus ya’re the only one in all Ponyville she doesn’t prank. Ah don’t know what happened in that desert but... Ah’m sure both of ya have a lot of fun and tons of things to talk about.”
“I understand what you’re saying, but what about you Applejack?” asked Rarity.
“She’s mah cousin, she’s part of mah family. Sometimes we discuss but that isn’t enough to disjoin us. Ya maybe see a pony who nearly killed ya in an accident, but what Ah see is a filly in a mare’s body who’s in a hard moment right now ‘cause she’s dealin’ with somethin’ this big for the first time in her life and only her closest friends can support her.”
A silence was kept for a moment. Cyan, yellow and white saw each other.
“You just say that to make us feel bad,” replied Rainbow Dash.
“Ya think Ah’m jokin’?!” Applejack approached her, took her to the main entrance and made her look to Pinkie Pie. “Just look at her, look at her. She’s talkin’ to a tree right now!”
The pink pony was holding a potted cypress near the benches. “You’ll never leave me, right? You’re my best friend, do you?”
“Ah thought we were the best friends, Ah thought we were united despite of the circumstances... Now Ah realize that we need more time together.”
Applejack left them at the entrance and went inside. Pinkie heard the ding of the doors, Applejack approached the tree but Pinkie hid behind it, fearful of her.
“Pinkie, are ya ok?” No answer was given. “Ah want to talk to ya.”
“No.”
“Please–”
“You’re just going to hurt me, like everypony else.”
“No, I won’t. Ya’re mah friend, I promise.”
The pink pony showed her face through the cypress.
“Pinkie promise?”
Applejack sighed. “Cross my heart and hope to fly stick a cupcake in my eye,” she said whilst going through her emotions. Pinkie Pie finally came out of the plant and sat on the bench next to it. Applejack calmly followed her, using her healthy arm as a relief.
“Don’t listen to them, they’re just angry ‘cause of what happened.”
“But... what if they never speak to me ever again?”
“That’s not true,” Applejack hugged her. “Ah already talked to them, Ah just hope they listen... let them think it over. And if they actually against ya, Ah’ll be here.”
Both mares closed their eyes. The ding of the door sounded once more, the rest of the friends entered the hospital and headed to Pinkie and Applejack. The baker hugged the farmer firmly, thinking the worst.
“We’re sorry Pinkie, it’s just... sometimes we think you’re not respectful enough to us. Now we were the disrespectful ones,” said Fluttershy and instantly gave her back Gummy. “He’s yours.”
“And... I you want to be an actress... do it,” Rarity was choked up. “This is hard for me because... I know how harsh the spectacle can be. Seeing other ponies fulfilling your own dreams is difficult and how the jealousy controls your body and...” Rarity sighed. “I’m speechless.”
Rainbow Dash tried to touch her so she could rub the nose, which was bleeding a little. Pinkie Pie refused to being touched. Seeing how her friend was too afraid of her touched the pegasus, a single tear dropped from her right eye and a soft sob was heard. Rainbow Dash couldn’t hide her feelings this time. “I hope there’s a chance you have forgiveness in your heart for me.”
Pinkie raised her face and saw hers, the cyan pony looked and felt sorry about the incident. She was about to leave the place when Pinkie sat up from the bench and gave her a giant hug, like the ones she usually did. Rainbow Dash knew that was the answer she needed, she turned around to look at her.
“One last thing,” both looked face to face. Pinkie prepared her hoof and raised it, Rainbow knew what was going to happen so she closed her eyes. Rarity and Fluttershy were going to stop her but Applejack prevented it. Pinkie prepared her hoof and... booped her nose. Rainbow Dash opened them when she noticed there was no punch, just a simple and inoffensive nose boop.
“Now we’re even.”
Now that everything was like before, pink and cyan joined in one, the rest did the same. Pinkie Pie’s mane partially inflated. From the main room came Spike, who looked very excited. Calmed and relaxed, but very excited.
“Girls,” the ponies turned to the dragon. “She has awakened.”
Sparkles twinkled in her eyes, butterflies formed in their stomachs and their hearts started to beat faster. Pinkie held Gummy, the book and the folder and joined her friends. They entered the room, the light shined, the wind blew softly and the door was closed.
Author's Note
-The original story was about Spike being in a comma and the Mane 6 dealing with it and wondering which one will disconnect him (no pun intended). But after finishing it I realized it was too similar to ilikepie56's "Silence", because it had a similar plot and concept and, retrospectively speaking, I didn't like the final product. So I had no choice but to rewrite everything, this helped the plot further with details like adding Spike in a supporting role and the voice acting stuff.
-Speaking of which, for those of you who think the voice acting stuff was a joke that can feel out of place (you know... because Pinkie is auditioning for the role of her own voice actress), let me explain: when someone is hurt, there are a couple of things the rest can do for making him feel better: giving him space or trying to distract the mind with stuff the user likes. Given that Pinkie Pie has mental disorder the first option can't be a choice because she could run away and "evaporate" so the latter one was added.
-Original cover:
