Chapter 7

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I groan as consciousness returns to me.

Man, why does my body feel so sluggish?

What the hell happened?

I remain where I am, trying to get my slowly waking up brain to process what information it can.

I remember being in the Apple’s orchard, escaping the CMC, talking with Applejack and… something.

After the something it’s blank, but while I know something happened after I spoke with Applejack, I can’t figure out what the something was.

Hmm? Oh, thank God, you’re awake.

I know that voice. Leaning my head to my left I slightly open my eyes, able to make out the blurry image of a red and blue smudge.

“Hey, Scarab,” I say quietly, my voice sounding a little hoarse. My throat feels a little sore too. “Where… what’s going on?”

“You’ve been asleep fer almost sixteen hours,” a familiar male voice says.

Turning my head to my right, I see Big Mac walk in through a green door.

I glance around where I am, a bit slowly.

I’m in a room with green painted walls with flowers dotted here and there. There’s a single wooden bar on the ceiling above the door with apples lined in a row.

There’s a large dresser on the wall the end of the bed I’m in is facing, made of blue wood, with a mirror reflecting the other side of the room, myself included… and BOY do I look rough.

My hairs messed up, my eyes look a bit sunken in and my skin’s a little green.

What in the world happened to me?

I’m so, so sorry, Peni! I glance over to Scarab, who’s got his front legs pressed together as if praying, his head bent to the wood of the dresser next to the bed. It’s my fault you’re like this!

I just blink back at him. “How?”

“We’d like t’ know how as well,” Applejack’s voice is proceeded by the mare walking in behind her brother. “Fluttershy’s been busy with her animals this morning, so we’ve had to wait fer you t’ wake up an’ translate fer yer spider friend here.”

It’s only now I register that I’m wearing something that is clearly not the uniform I was wearing when I arrived in this world.

It feels like I’m wearing winter pajamas.

Finding it harder to move than expected, I push myself up, the apple themed bed covers sliding away to reveal a long-sleeve green pajama and pants with red apple patterns.

If I wasn’t feeling so sluggish, I’d probably have an abrupt reaction to the fact this means someone undressed me and put these on me.

“So… why’s any of this your fault, Scarab?” I ask, deciding to deal with that first.

He sprawls himself against the wood. While you passed out after whatever our Spider Sense was warning us about, I was a bit stunned and able to stay conscious, but I was stunned for a while and I fell onto you, my fangs piercing you. I put Venom in you for so long it said you had 36.18%. I am so sorry, Peni!

I blink at him for several moments, before what he’s saying properly sinks in.

“Well, that explains why I feel so sluggish… I think,” I slowly shake my head, before noticing my web shooters are missing. “Where’re my web shooters?”

“If’n ya means those bands that were on yer wrists, they’re here,” Applejack walks over to the large dresser and opens the top draw, pulling out the bands.

I indicate to them and she brings them over. I, with a little more difficulty than I’d like to admit, get them on.

At once, a loud beeping goes off and “VENOM LEVELS: 22.5% Estimated Recovery Time: 22 Hours, 5 minutes” is displayed on the screen.

I stare at the numbers for a few moments, confused, before what Scarab said actually clicks in my head.

Sighing, I fall back onto the bed. “Well, guess I’ve just over a day before it’s all outta my system.”

“Wha—? How’re ya so calm?” Applejack gapes at me. “That thing says ya got venom in ya. That tain’t good, Sugarcube.”

I sluggishly glance at Big Mac. “Guessing she didn’t understand when you explained, Mac?”

The buff red stallion sighs, folding his arms. “Ah blame mahself. Didn’t really understand too well mahself, t’ be honest, so Ah prob’bly made it sound even more confusing.”

Recovering from over twenty-two percent Venom certainly doesn’t make it easier, but I do my best to explain what my Venom Levels mean and why it’s not nearly as bad as it would sound in passing.

“But, why do ya need to do it?” Applejack asks, glancing at Scarab as he scuttles onto my palm, which is laying flat atop the covers. “If’n ya don’t need t’ other than changin’ yer webs and getting a bit stronger, why do it at all?”

I look down at Scarab who slumps a little. “Because, whatever the case is, Scarab can only feed on my blood. Only way he can really do that is by biting me. No matter the case now, he needs me or he’d starve to death.”

Death is ironic for you to say, the spider shudders. That white devil nearly made me a spider smudge.

I cock an eyebrow at him. “White devil? Smudge?” My eyes widen. “Wait, someone tried to squash you?!”

“Uh. While Ah don’t know what exactly was just said there, Ah’m guessin’ yer talkin’ ’bout Sweetie Belle,” Applejack gives a nervous laugh. “That filly got so scared when she first saw yer Scarab friend there, she still tried t’ swat him, despite bein’ as tired as all the rest.”

I’m horrified. Sweetie Belle almost killed Scarab?

“Only way we stopped her tryin’ was pointing out you’d be upset the same way Fluttershy would be in somepony swatted a bug in her cottage,” Applejack says apologetically.

I scowl at the end Sweetie needed to be guilt tripped in order to understand something… before something else she said clicks.

“Wait. What did you mean when you said “despite being as tired as all the rest”?”

Applejack blinks, before frowning and folding her arms as Mac leaves the room. “Well, Sweetie was stayin’ fer dinner, but around the same time you passed out, she’d collapsed from a horrible headache and fatigue.”

I blink, cocking my head to the side. “Huh?”

Applejack has a worried expression. “It’s the weirdest thing. She wasn’t the only one either. After Big Mac got you inta bed after Ah washed ya down—” my face goes red at the thought of AJ washing my unconscious naked body and dressing me, “Ah headed fer Twi’s t’ let her know you were here and out cold, but, as Ah went through Ponyville, every unicorn was actin’ just like Sweetie was. They all were slumped over, seemin’ t’ have headache an’ fatigue. Even Twi was like that when Ah got to her castle.”

My eyes widen and I meet Scarab’s eyes, knowing we’re thinking the same thing.

All the unicorns and even Twilight, all the same reaction, all at the same time, moments after I’d passed out?

That can’t be a coincidence.

That means, whatever was setting of my Spider Sense was magical in nature and huge, huge enough that all magic users in Ponyville felt it.

Now I’m even more worried about whatever it could’ve been, but…

I sigh, slumping against my pillow. “If I weren’t stuck in recovery for the next twenty-two plus hours, I could look into that, but, as is…”

Applejack gives me a warm smile. “Ah get it, Sugarcube. But, like ya said, ya gotta wait. Til then, trust Twilight an’ the princesses t’ figure it out. Between them all, it should work out.”

I close my eyes, before opening them and look back to Applejack, frowning. “Wait. You guys could see Scarab biting me, but you didn’t try pulling him off me before I got to thirty-six percent?”

“Oh, we tried,” Applejack folds her arms, looking a little miffed. “But, it was like he had a vice-grip on ya. After a few tries, Ah stopped cause Ah was scared Ah’d either squash him tryin’ pull harder or break his fangs off an’ knew ya wouldn’t like that.”

Ha. No kidding. Scarab losing his fangs would end very badly for the both of us.

“That’s honestly how Sweetie got the wrong idea, Ah think,” Applejack shakes her head. “Took a moment after she started swatting t’ get her t’ calm down.”

“So, what am I going to do now?” I ask, looking up at the ceiling. “Is Twilight going to drag me back to her castle for questioning, now I can’t get away?”

I know I’m not so bad off that I’d be stuck in bed the next twenty-two hours, but I’m certainly not going to be able to jump around or anything, so getting away from the purple pony would be impossible.

Applejack shakes her head, coming over and adjusts the covers. “Just rest fer now, Peni. If’n yer feelin’ up to it, Ah’ll take ya t’ Twi’s later this afternoon.”

She walks to the door and looks back.

“Just rest fer now. Ah’ll bring ya some food fer later. If’n ya feel like it, come down, too. Granny’s pretty interested t’ learn about ya. Mentioned something about what Mac said about ya soundin’ familiar to her, but couldn’t remember why. Maybe chattin’ with ya will jog whatever memory that is.”

With that she closes the door, leaving Scarab and I alone.

Should we be worried about that last part? Scarab asks, resting on the top of my hand.

“Granny Smith saying something about us sounded familiar to her?” I ask, closing my eyes. “Yeah, probably. But worrying about it while I’m like this probably isn’t going to help any.”

Hard to believe over thirty-six percent Venom did this to you, Scarab says as I feel him settling down on my hand, likely planning to nap like I am.

I slightly shake my head. “I don’t think it’s all that did it. Whatever we sensed before was so huge, even all the unicorns and Twilight sensed it, too. something that intense followed by thirty-six percent Venom on the other hand? Yeah. Doubt even the real Peni Parker could’ve faired any better there.”

We go quiet after that, just resting.

At least with all the Venom I got pumped into me, I should’ve unlocked some new web types, right?

Once I’m Venom free, I’ll check to see what new types I got.

Still, it’s hard not to think about what Applejack revealed.

We sensed a huge magical force right before all the unicorns and Twilight did.

For them all to have sensed it too… the size and power of it is worrying to think about.

What in the world was that?

I yawn, feeling sleep taking hold again. Hopefully I’ll be able to figure it out once I can think more clearly.

Author's Note

This is long overdue... and not much, for all that, really.

I've been meaning to get back to this for at least a chapter or two, but fate and drive to write have constantly been the bane of my plans for that.

So, while this chapter isn't much, it is good for setting a few things up for later, thus making it easier for me to get back to it later.

Next, if i can't get the drive to do another chapter for this sooner, my plans are to update Fury of the Dragon Princess and Unexpected Aftermath.

So, is Scarab going to give Sweetie the stink eye for ages for nearly killing him? What new webbing might Peni have unintentionally unlocked? Will she repay the Apples by doing some chores once she's back to normal? Will Sweetie apologize to Scarab? Will Apple Bloom and Scootaloo wanna chat with her while she's recovering?

And what Applejack said. Does Peni need to worry about how it wasn't just her and Scarab who sensed whatever it was they sensed before passing out?

All the unicorns AND Twilight sensed it too?

Is this a warning of danger to come... or something else entirely with a much better outcome, especially for Peni when she learns going home is completely out of the question?

Find out next time.

I'd say more, honestly, but i've been at this since 11 this morning, including spending over an hour googling mlp info to remind myself of the timing of the show Peni's in (year time wise, not season wise) and looking for specific visual details you only easily remember when you see them in the show itself and, I'm kinda hungry, so might have an early dinner and then i gotta try finding the shiny from the latest raid den event in Pokemon Violet.

Plus, I need to edit a few chapters as, rereading through this over the last two days, i've noticed a ton of errors i need to fix.

You also might've noticed a change to the prologue regarding Peni's webbing powers. I felt that change made it better. let the special webs be the extra stuff so she can have webbing even without the shooters and their magical core.

will certainly be better for her come a certain bug getting too big for her carapace later on.

Hope, regardless how short this chapter was compared to all the others, it was enough to tied you over until i can really get back into writing this proper.

Til next time, see you later everybody