Race to Ponyville Hospital

As Applejack raced through Ponyville she couldn’t stop replaying that scene over and over in her mind. Big Macintosh got stuck, she told him how to get free, and he took her advice. Somehow he came unhitched and couldn’t grab the cart and it went sailing down the hill at the fillies. Her own shriek echoed in her head, fearing they’d both be hit by it. But then Scootaloo acted. She could’ve saved herself, but she didn’t. She saved Apple Bloom. Applejack was grateful beyond words. If she hadn’t Apple Bloom would’ve been, been-

She shook her head to clear it. No, it was too horrible to contemplate. But realization struck her hard and fast. She realized her potential nightmare would be Rainbow Dash’s reality. She couldn’t fathom the horror of seeing her little sister crushed, but her friend would have to do more than imagine it. She felt a tremor of guilt rip through her, but couldn’t deal with that right now. Right now she had to get to the hospital pronto. Unfortunately she was stopped by a pink party pony bouncing in her way.

“Heya Applejack, where’re you going? You sure were going fast, fast enough to give Rainbow Dash a run for her bits! Ooh, are you going to race her?” She talked while bouncing right in Applejack’s way, seeming to shift just enough to be a perfect roadblock whenever the farm mare tried to get around her. She groaned loudly; this was the worst possible thing she could have to deal with right now. “If you’re racing I could bring cupcakes for the winner, and the loser! Oh, and a picnic blanket too! But how’ll it be fair if you have to dodge obstacles while she doesn’t? Oh I know! We could get pegasi to throw stuff at her while she’s in the air!”

She groaned internally and externally. She was racing against time, and there was much more than pride on the line. “PINKIE!” Applejack shouted, and it did the trick. Pinkie Pie stopped midair, hovering off the ground for a fraction of a second before she landed again. “Pinkie, Ah don't have time for this! It's a matter of life and death and you're in my way so move your flank before I buck you aside!" She threatened. She didn’t wait for any response, running around Pinkie while she had the chance.

As she sprinted she heard the telltale bouncing of her friend and turned her head to see Pinkie Pie, bouncing far and fast enough to keep up with her. “What do you need me to do?” She asked looking straight ahead. Applejack was touched. She’d just told Pinkie move it or lose it, and here the party pony was to lend her help. “C’mon Applejack, talk to me here!”

“Right. My brother’s coming this way and he’s carrying Scootaloo. I need to get to the hospital to have them ready when he gets there. You need to help clear the way.” She expected her to launch into another barrage of questions, but instead she giggled. How she was laughing in such a dire situation she would never know.

“Oh that’ll be easy, just leave it to me!” She said before turning on a dime and bouncing the other direction. Applejack grinned, knowing she could count on her. With that she continued to blaze a trail towards the hospital.

Applejack soon burst through the doors of the hospital, nearly trampling Nurse Redheart in the process. “What’s the rush? Is someone hurt?”

“Yes, there’s a badly hurt filly being brought here, and I mean very badly. You need to be ready to treat her as soon as Big Mac gets here with her.” Applejack told her, looking Redheart dead in the eye. Upon hearing this the nurse started to get the medical staff ready to help.

Pinkie Pie giggled as she bounced into the marketplace, it bustling with ponies of all kinds. She bounced through it and put an extra spring in her step whenever she needed to bounce over a pony. “Hey everypony, it’s Bon-Bon’s birthday! Party for her at Sugarcube Corner!” She grinned at the perfectness of the situation. She knew everypony in Ponyville, and a lot about all of them too.

She had already been planning to throw Bon-Bon a surprise party, but she had to spoil the surprise to help her friend. Pinkie already had it set up, ponies were going there to party, and it was clearing the most direct route to the hospital. It was like squishing two parasprites with one rock, or however that saying went. Pinkie grinned at how well her task had gone, bouncing toward Sugarcube Corner to entertain her guests.

Apple Bloom held onto Scootaloo as her older brother galloped like a bat out of Tartarus. She was holding her friend tight, making sure she didn’t fall off. Looking at Scootaloo’s bloody face made her want to vomit, and she did everything she could not to look at her shattered body. The earth pony cursed herself.

When that wagon came at her she froze up in fear, she was helpless. But Scootaloo wasn’t. With more force than Apple Bloom thought her capable of she shoved her aside, one thing led to another, and then she got hit. It wasn’t fair, Scootaloo’s bravery and concern for her got her hurt. Apple Bloom gave a cry of anguish and slammed her hoof down in frustration. A pony was supposed to be rewarded for bravery, not have it be the thing that gets them hurt.

Her brother grunted in pain as her hoof struck him, looking back at her with a sympathetic expression. He couldn’t understand how she felt, but he would be here for it every step of the way. He exited Sweet Apple Acres and began to head into town.

Apple Bloom watched Scootaloo closely, but something didn’t seem right. She watched her chest and put a hoof near friend’s nose and mouth. She expected to feel some sort of heat from an exhale, but there wasn’t anything. She gasped realizing what this meant. “Kick it into high gear Big Macintosh! She’s not breathing!” She grabbed her by the shoulders, seeing as they seemed to be intact. “Don’t you dare leave us, Scootaloo! Move away from the light or whatever it is you’re seeing!” She teared up. “Please don’t go!” She begged.

Big Macintosh grit his teeth when he heard she wasn’t breathing, trying to go faster. He sped through Ponyville, noticing a conspicuous absence of ponies. He wasn’t complaining, just meant he didn’t need to slow down on his way to the hospital. He burst through the doors, Apple Bloom hopping off his back. He saw his sister with Nurse Redheart and a group of hospital staff and felt a sense of relief. She got them ready just in time. “The filly on my back, help her! She ain’t breathing!” He urged.

Dr. Horse lit his horn and carefully levitated Scootaloo onto a gurney. He felt her neck and instantly became worried, beginning to perform CPR. “Help me rush this filly to the operating room immediately.” At his direction the staff began rushing off with Scootaloo.

Apple Bloom was about to follow after but her older brother put a hoof in front of her and shook his head. She looked at him shocked. “Scootaloo needs our help!”

Applejack made her presence known. “You can help her by staying right where you are. Scootaloo is in the care of professionals; ponies who do this for a living. We’re doing what’s best for her right now by staying out of their way so they can get her fixed up.” She gave a sad nuzzle into Apple Bloom’s side, and after she was done the eldest sibling held his younger sister close. “Look, Ah need to go tell Rainbow Dash what’s happened, she has a right to know. Ah hope you two will stay here for when Scootaloo gets out of surgery.

As she left she remembered the crash and the state she saw the filly in. If she gets out of surgery. She thought with a grimace.