The Best Medicine
Rainbow Dash flitted over Ponyville one Friday morning, snickering to herself as she headed for Sugarcube Corner. Pinkie Pie was always up for a good prank, and the one Dash had in mind would be right up her alley; not to mention she needed Pinkie’s help in acquiring the flour and food coloring that would be needed. She landed in front of the confectionary shop’s front door, still snickering as she trotted inside. The bell above the door chimed daintily and a familiar blue mare appeared from the kitchen.
“Oh, good morning, Rainbow Dash,” Mrs. Cake greeted pleasantly.
“Hiya, Mrs. Cake! Hey, is Pinkie Pie around? I need her help with something.”
“Sorry, dear, but she’s not here.”
“Oh, she’s making a delivery somewhere?”
Mrs. Cake shook her head, “No, she’s gone out of town to her other job for the day and then she’s going to visit her family for the next week. I don’t expect her to be back until Thursday night.”
Dash tilted her head, very much puzzled, “She has a second job? Since when?”
“Oh, she didn’t tell you about that?” Mrs. Cake asked, her turn to be puzzled, “Yes, every Friday now she goes up to Canterlot for the day, I’m afraid that’s all I know about it.”
“No, she didn’t tell me,” Dash’s face scrunched in annoyance as she tried to understand what she was being told, “When did this start?”
“Two weeks ago. She left only an hour ago; you might still be able to catch up to her if you really need to talk to her.”
Dash nodded slowly while absently turning towards the door, “Yeah…yeah, thanks, Mrs. Cake.”
“You’re welcome, dear,” she called as Dash left the shop.
The pegasus took to the air in a lazy climb, her mind churning over the information she had just received. She was miffed at Pinkie for not telling her – or any of their friends that she knew of – that she would be gone for the weekend, or that she even had another job for that matter. Normally the pink mare would proudly share what she’d had for breakfast that morning, much less new employment. She was also confused: what sort of job would Canterlot have that Ponyville wouldn’t, and why would she go all the way there for it? Why did she get another job? Was she short on money and needed another source of income?
Her mind discarded the last idea. She, or any of their friends, would be more than willing to help Pinkie out if she was having financial difficulties. Besides, the only things Pinkie really bought were party supplies and prank props and, since they were purchased in great bulk, they were not particularly expensive, at least not as far as Dash was aware. She frowned and shook her head; this morning had become rather confusing.
Lost in her thoughts Dash looked around and realized that she had subconsciously flown in the general direction of Canterlot. She could see the palace jutting out from the mountain ahead and just to her left. She banked slowly to the left to align herself with the main road between Ponyville and Canterlot. It was a fairly long trot to Equestria’s capital city from Ponyville, which was why the train was a far more popular mode of transit, and it was even shorter by air. As it was, she was already about a quarter of the way to the city, meaning that she should have caught up to Pinkie by now. The main road appeared amid the trees below her and she began scanning for her friend.
It occurred to her that she really didn’t know why she was looking for Pinkie, at least not consciously anyway. She shrugged it off as simple curiosity. It wasn’t like she had anything planned for the day anyway. She had the day off from Weather Patrol, her first Friday off in a month, in fact. That was probably why she hadn’t previously noticed Pinkie’s absence in the last two weeks so. If nothing else, she at least welcomed the opportunity to stretch her wings in a non-work way.
A distinctive splotch of pink below caught her eye. She grinned, knowing that she had found her quarry. Pinkie had just trotted by the Southeast Road that led to Trottingham and was now approaching the East Road which marked the halfway point between Ponyville and Canterlot. She bounced along happily, seemingly unaware of the Technicolor pegasus slowly flying towards her. Dash snickered, her mischievous side showing through. Her plan was to glide quickly but silently right up behind the pink earth pony and yell “boo!” right in her ear; a simple prank, but still an effective one. She may have been confused by what brought Pinkie out this way, but she sure wasn’t going to pass up an opportunity when it presented itself. She twisted her wings slightly to alter her descent angle as the distance between her and Pinkie steadily dropped. Dash’s grin grew wider. Closer…closer…right turn –
Wait, what?
So lost was she in anticipation that it took Dash a second to realize that Pinkie was no longer in front of her, and another second to realize that the tree in front of her wasn’t going to move out of the way. She flared her wings in a desperate attempt to arrest her speed and twisted her body to shift her flight path enough to avoid the tree. The majestic oak passed to her right, scant millimeters from her wingtip and she heaved a sigh of relief. At that instant, as she later claimed, a bush jumped out and tackled her. After a minute of struggling through the foliage and coughing up a very confused butterfly, Dash extricated herself from the bush, being slightly worse for wear. She shook some twigs and leaves out of her wings before casting a confused glance back toward the West Road where Pinkie had gone.
It didn’t make sense. Mrs. Cake told her that Pinkie was working in Canterlot, but the East Road led to Manehatten, nearly a full day’s trot. Something just didn’t add up. What had started out as a venture to satiate curiosity had now become a true mystery: one that, for reasons not quite clear to her, Rainbow Dash felt driven to solve. She took to the air once again to track down her friend.
Amazingly, Dash’s rough landing hadn’t caught Pinkie’s attention. The pink pony continued hopping along and humming happily to herself, pausing every now and again to say hi to a fellow traveler passing by. Dash, meanwhile, kept watch high above from a cloud she had whipped up. Having her head buried, ostrich-like, in the cloud to see out the bottom awarded her with a number of odd looks from passing pegasi, none of which she paid heed to or even noticed. She followed Pinkie like this for half an hour before the earth pony turned left onto a secondary road, back toward the general direction of Canterlot. Dash wasn’t familiar with this route, and she didn’t know of any other ways to the city from this direction. A few minutes of pursuit later revealed that the road didn’t lead to Canterlot, but to a complex of modern buildings nestled among the foothills. The road ended in a paved lot in the center of the complex where chariots and carriages were parked. From there, several paved walkways led to most of the surrounding buildings.
Dash landed behind a carriage and peeked around it in time to see Pinkie enter what she assumed to be the main building. Her curiosity was further piqued when she read the sign out front.
“‘Greater Equestria Medical Clinic and Research Center’?” she said to herself. “Pinkie Pie, what the hay are you doing here?”
She trotted up to the main doors and entered just as Pinkie finished talking to a receptionist at the service desk and bounced down the hall to the right. Dash followed at a discreet distance, being careful not to lose sight of her among the patients, nurses, and orderlies milling about. Few, if any, of those in the hallways seemed to take notice of the bouncing bubble gum-pink earth pony or the colorful pegasus as they passed by.
Dash tailed Pinkie through the maze of hallways for several minutes, all the while wondering what her friend was doing here. Ok, she thought, Reasons for being in a hospital: 1) she works there, 2) she’s sick, or 3) she’s visiting somepony who’s sick. The first reason she ruled out almost immediately, Pinkie was a baker/party-maker not a doctor. The thought of her trying her hoof at something medical made Dash shudder. As for the other two reasons, she wasn’t aware of Pinkie being sick but neither had Pinkie mentioned a friend or family member being here. Her thought process was interrupted as Pinkie made an abrupt left turn and disappeared from sight, causing the pegasus to quicken her pace. She rounded the corner and quickly came to a stop, a frown creasing her face. She had lost her quarry.
It appeared that she had followed Pinkie into another reception area, this one slightly smaller and less busy than the one where she had entered the building. It featured a pair of glass doors leading to the outside. She craned her neck to try to catch a glimpse of Pinkie but to no avail. It was time for a new approach.
“Excuse me,” she said as she advanced to the service desk.
The receptionist, an older bespectacled green mare, looked over her narrow glasses at her, “Can I help you?”
“Yeah, see, I was trying to, uh,” She paused, searching for the right word. Follow? Yeah, that wouldn’t sound suspicious at all. “…find a friend of mine and I’m pretty sure she came through here. Pink earth pony. Mane and tail look like cotton candy. Bounces along like her legs are made of springs. Seen her?”
“Oh, you mean Miss Pinkie Pie?” asked a voice behind her.
Dash jumped and turned to see a dark brown unicorn wearing a white lab coat and a pair of thick-framed glasses. The stethoscope hanging around his neck denoted him as a doctor.
“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you,” he said with an apologetic smile, “I just overheard what you were saying and your description sounded like Miss Pie.”
Dash regarded the doctor suspiciously, “Yeah, that’s her. How do you know her?”
“I met her several years ago when I was working in the Advanced Medical Treatment wing. She-”
“Doctor Patches?” a nurse carrying a clipboard interrupted, “Here are the medical records you asked for.”
“Oh, thank you, Isabelle,” he said, his horn shimmering as the clipboard levitated before him.
Dash wasn’t sure which shocked her more, the fact that Pinkie had been in that wing or that the doctor just practically forgot about her as he studied the records intensely. She rolled her eyes. Wonderful bedside manner, she thought. An awkward period of silence followed as she waited for Dr. Patches to continue; however, after he flipped through several pages on the clip board, it became apparent that he wasn’t going to.
“So…advanced medical treatment?” Dash finally prodded.
“Hm? Oh! Yes, that’s where I met her, sad time that was.” He paused and flipped a page back and forth a couple of times to check some details. “She came a few weeks ago when she heard I was heading up the new research program and volunteered for it.”
“Research program?” she asked hesitantly.
The doctor levitated a pen out of his pocket and made a notation before answering. “Yes, it’s for patients with severe and terminal illnesses, like cancer.”
Dash felt her blood freeze.
“She’s a very brave young mare,” he continued, talking as he wrote. “Remarkable that she would come back for something like this, given all the hardship she’s been through. Tell me, has she always…” He looked up to find Rainbow Dash nowhere to be found. A confused frown crossed his face. “Huh, how very odd.”
She didn’t feel the wind on her face or the sun shining on her back and her hooves didn’t recognize the grass beneath her. She had bolted out of the building and ran into the courtyard; she didn’t care if anypony saw her, she needed to get away from that building. She finally stopped next to a tree, her breath coming in ragged huffs.
How could this be? It was impossible. She was always so full of life, always spreading smiles and cheer, always making sure everypony was happy. It just wasn’t fair.
“Severe? Terminal?” Dash felt as though she had been punched in the gut. “No…please, Celestia, no…”
She leaned against the tree for support, but she quickly collapsed to the ground as her legs gave out. Curling up in a shuddering ball and pressing her back as far into the trunk of the tree as she could, she let the searing tears come.
*******************
“I just simply cannot believe it, dear.”
“Yeah, ya sure you didn’t inhale somethin’ when you were up there and kinda imagined all this?”
Rainbow Dash had flown back to Ponyville as soon as she had calmed herself enough and gathered the others together at the library. Understandably, they were not very receptive of her news, Rarity and Applejack being the first to speak after she related her story.
“It doesn’t make sense, Rainbow,” Twilight added. “Why wouldn’t Pinkie tell us if she was having medical treatment?”
“I don’t know!” she huffed, irritated that her friends didn’t believe her. “All I know is that is that she went into a hospital for some sort of terminal disease research program that she volunteered for and she was in the ‘advanced medical treatment’ wing a few years ago!” She used her wing tips to accentuate her implied quotation.
“That’s the other thing,” Applejack interjected, “Yer tellin’ us that she went in for treatment but I don’t remember any time ever where I didn’t see her around town or at the farm darn near every day. And that sorta thing takes a lot out of you, don’t it? I’ve never seen her short of energy ‘cept at seven in the mornin’ after an all-night party.”
“Well, that’s not entirely true,” Rarity thought aloud, “I do seem to recall her going to bed unusually early a few times, now that I think about it – well, early for her, I suppose – but I didn’t know her too well at the time and never thought much of it.”
“And besides,” Dash added, “this is Pinkie Pie we’re talking about, AJ, she’s the living embodiment of a sugar rush. I think she’s got plenty to spare.”
“Alright, I’ll give ya that,” the farm pony allowed, “But treatments usually take up a lot of time and yet she was always hangin’ around town. If she did go up for them things, when did she do it?”
“She went up in the evening and spent the night in Canterlot before coming back in the morning,” a quiet voice intoned.
Silence filled the library following the quiet revelation. All eyes turned to Fluttershy, who had remained silent up to that point. The shy pegasus, eyes wide from realization as pieces clicked together in her mind, barely noticed the new attention.
Twilight tilted her slightly in questioning curiosity, “Fluttershy, do you know something about this?”
Startled by the question, she stammered, “N-no, I mean, well, not exactly, it’s just, um…there was a time a few years back where Pinkie would stop by my cottage in the evening and ask if I could watch Gummi for her because she was going to be gone for the night. When I asked her about it, she said she had business in Canterlot. She was always smiling when she came back in the morning to pick up Gummi, but it was that sad, tired sort of smile.” Noting that her four friends were staring at her with wide eyes, she ducked her head with a squeak, “T-that’s all I know. I’m sorry.”
It took a minute for the ponies gathered to digest the new information, a sense of dread filling each of them. At last, Twilight spoke.
“So…this means that she did go to Canterlot several times around the time the doctor said he met her in the treatment wing and that she was unusually exhausted on a few occasions during that time. So, it is possible that she was going for some sort of treatment then…” She swallowed hard, feeling bile well up in her throat at the thought.
Rarity sat heavily on the floor and ran a hoof through her mane. “This simply can’t be. Why her of all ponies?”
“Rares, ya know illnesses are like that,” Applejack said sadly as she laid a hoof on her friend’s shoulder, her own expression being of loss and confusion. “It don’t care who you are.”
Dash threw her hooves in the air, “This is ridiculous! She’s going through all this stuff but she hasn’t told us anything about it, and we’re her closest friends! I don’t know about you guys, but I’m going to get to the bottom of this!” Dash turned to leave, pausing only at the next question.
“And how d’ya reckon on doin’ that?” Applejack asked.
“How else?” Dash narrowed her eyes and lowered her head. “Pin her down and make her tell us.”
“Rainbow Dash!” Twilight scolded, “I know you’re upset but that’s no way to handle this and certainly no way to act towards her in her condition – if she has one – which we still don’t know.”
Exasperated, Dash whirled about to face the unicorn. “Aw come on, Twilight, what more do you need?! She’s been to the hospital in Canterlot a bunch of times years ago where she met some advanced treatment doctor and now she’s gone back as a volunteer for some sort of terminal disease research!” As she railed she advanced on Twilight, forcing her to take a step back. “Heck, the doctor even said that she was brave for coming back given all she’s been through! What do you make of that, huh?!” She poked Twilight forcefully in the chest with her hoof to drive the point home.
Applejack quickly grabbed the pegasus’ withers and pulled her back, turning her away from Twilight and staring down the raging bull of a pegasus with understanding. “Cool it, Rainbow,” she said calmly, “We’re all jus’ as worried about Pinkie as you are, Twilight included. She jus’ handles it differently bein’ all practical-like.”
Applejack’s words were muffled thanks to the pressure Rainbow Dash felt building in her ears. She could feel her heart stabbing at her chest as its pulse echoed in her mind.
“Indeed,” Rarity added as she approached Rainbow Dash, speaking in a very metered tone and locking eyes with Dash to ensure her point was made clear, “and I must say that I’m inclined to agree with Applejack in this case.” Dash blinked and passed her gaze from Rarity to the rest of her friends. She became less wild-eyed with each face she met, and each word started to become clearer again. Rarity continued, “We don’t have any solid proof that our dear Pinkie is ill or has had any sort treatment, only assumptions based on bits of information that seem to correspond with each other; which, I must admit, makes for a rather strong case in favor of your assumptions, Rainbow.”
Applejack nodded, drawing Dash’s attention back to her. “Ain’t often this happens, but I agree with Rarity: I believe your story an’ all, but we need some proper proof that Pinkie’s sick before we go off half-cocked.”
“I vote for the calm and reasonable approach,” Fluttershy said quietly.
Dash glanced about the room again, meeting the eyes of each of her friends. Taking a few calming breaths, she sighed and hung her head.
“I’m sorry, girls, I didn’t mean to go off like that. It’s just…this whole thing’s really thrown me for a loop, ya know?” She lifted her eyes to Twilight. “I’m really sorry for snapping at you, Twi. You’re right; I don’t have any proof that anything’s wrong with her but everything that I’ve found out seems to fit.”
Twilight rested a hoof on her friend’s withers with an understanding smile.
“It’s okay Rainbow,” the unicorn spoke, “I think most of us would react like that if we were in your hooves. I believe everything you’ve said and I agree that there’s something going on here, but just what I don’t know. Maybe Pinkie would hide something like this from us just so we wouldn’t worry, but I’d rather talk to her first before jumping to that conclusion.”
Dash nodded. “Yeah, I guess that’d be the best thing to do.”
“That settles it, then,” Applejack said as she started for the door, “We’ll head on over to Sugarcube Corner an’ have ourselves a nice, calm conversation with her about what’s goin’ on.”
“Uh, Mrs. Cake said Pinkie was also going to visit her family and wouldn’t get back until next Thursday,” Dash interjected. Applejack froze in front of the door, her hoof halfway to the door handle; Dash rubbed the back of her neck self-consciously. “Heh, I uh, guess I forgot to mention that, didn’t I?”
The farm pony pursed her lips at the new information. “…Like I said, we’ll have ourselves a nice, calm conversation with her about what’s goin’ on when she gets back.”
***************
Little mention was made among the five ponies of Pinkie’s supposed situation over the next week, though it was at the forefront of the thoughts of each of them. What if Dash was right and Pinkie really did have a terminal illness? How would that change their friendship knowing that time for the pink party pony was slowly ticking away? Even with unicorn magic, illness was still a very real thing, and still not fully understood by Equestrian physicians. Would they be able to handle watching her become increasingly less energetic until she could no longer even leave her bed? How would Pinkie herself handle it when she’d be unable to throw the parties she loved so dear? The questions and uncertainty tore at each of them as the week progressed, but they could know nothing for certain until Pinkie returned and they were able to get the full story from her.
At last, Thursday came. They had all agreed to be at Sugarcube Corner that night so they could talk to Pinkie as soon as she returned. The Cakes did not object to the group staying in the shop after closing time. After all, it was common for Pinkie to invite them over for parties; the couple only asked that they keep the noise to a minimum to avoid waking the twins.
“How do ya think we oughta go about this, Twi?” Applejack asked after the Cakes had gone upstairs.
“I’m really not sure,” she answered with a frown. “I’ve been trying to figure that out all week and I haven’t been able to come up with anything that would allow us to segue into asking her about what’s going on.”
Dash groaned. “Seriously? We can’t just ask her straight up if she’s sick? What’s the point in beating around the bush about it?”
“Something of this nature requires a certain amount of delicacy and finesse, dear,” Rarity replied as she sipped from a cup of tea, eager for its calming effects. “If we’re too forceful about it, it may cause her to withdraw from us and hide her problem more deeply. I personally can’t imagine our dear Pinkie doing such a thing, but I would rather approach her in a calm, easy manner, a way in which she knows we care about her and lets her know that she can trust us.”
The prismatic pegasus sat down at the table with a sigh. “Yeah, I get that and all, it’s just,” she paused, collecting her thoughts. “Ever since Gilda visited, we’ve gotten to be really close, you know? Like, closer than any other friend I’ve had. You didn’t see what I saw when we threw her that surprise birthday party and I had to go get her; I won’t lie, it scared me. I mean, she was talking to rocks and a bag of flour. But I got her to the barn and we brought her out of it. Then she had that nightmare not too long ago and I ended up staying up with her until she went to sleep.”
Fluttershy nodded. “I remember; you asked us the next morning to come and help her so the shop didn’t fall behind on sales while she slept.”
“Right, but my point is that, during those times, I was there for her…I could help her.” Her eyes drifted to the table top, her next words weighing heavily on her. “But I can’t do that now. This is something else entirely. I can do a sonic rainboom, I can dodge quarry eels, I can whip up a thunderstorm in ten seconds flat!” Tears pooled at the corners of her eyes as she laid her head on the table. “But this…I can’t do anything to help her. I can’t make it go away. I’d trade places with her in a second if I could.”
Applejack leaned over and nuzzled her friend. “We know ya would, sugarcube. They don’t call ya Loyalty for nothin’.”
Twilight laid her hoof on the pegasus’ withers and hugged her. “I know it’s difficult, Rainbow,” she said, “And we all care for Pinkie very much, too. But like I said before, we still don’t have the full picture of what’s going on. We need to get her side of the story.”
“A story? Ooh! Is it a mystery? Or an adventure? Or is it an adventure mystery like Daring Do?”
Everypony’s head whipped around to see Pinkie Pie standing in the doorway. Her head tilted to one side when she saw Dash.
“Was it a sad Daring Do story? Is that why Dashie’s crying?”
“Pinkie!” cried a yellow blur as it tackled the pink party pony. Fluttershy’s uncharacteristic behavior had become a sort of running gag between her and Pinkie after their first trip to Appleloosa and was now their traditional greeting if they hadn’t seen each other for a while.
Dash used the distraction to quickly dry her eyes and join the others in welcoming back their friend. Hugs were exchanged all around before Rarity spoke up.
“How was your trip, darling?”
Pinkie beamed as she happily hopped to the table where they had been sitting. “Fabulously fantastic fun!” she chirped as she snarfed down a cupcake that had been left sitting out. “The family reunion was a blast! Everypony was there: Mom, Dad, Inkie and Blinkie, Grampy Pie, Aunt Rhubarb, Cousin It – no, wait, wrong family – Aunt Merengue, Second-cousin-twice-removed Kiwi, and even Uncle Alfalfa but most ponies call him ‘Weird Alfalfa’. I don’t know why though. Did you know he’s the one who taught me how to come up with all my songs? He’s super awesome! And then we had cake and pie and games and I got to decorate the barn just like I did for my very first party ever when I got my cutie mark!” Her narrative was interrupted by a huge yawn.
“Are you feeling tired, Pinkie?” Twilight asked, her brow creased with concern.
“Yuppers,” she replied cheerfully, “But it’s a good kind of tired, ya know? Like when you spend a whole week having fun and catching up with family and forgetting to get some sleep…which is exactly what happened!” She giggled and grabbed another cupcake as she sat at the table. “What about you guys? Did you do anything fun while I was gone?”
There was a round of half-mumbled replies as each of her friends spoke before realizing they had nothing to report. In the awkward silence, Pinkie glanced at each of them with an expectant smile on her face that never seemed to fade. She just sat there, innocent, oblivious. Doesn't she realize what we've been going through? Dash thought. Why was it so hard to form the words they were all thinking? ‘Are you sick?’ Three little words. Pinkie was still sitting there, gaze slowly passing from one friend to the next, unerring, unyielding. Eventually, the gaze returned to Dash.
“Gah, enough of this!” Dash shouted. “Listen, Pinkie Pie-”
“Yes?”
Pinkie’s cheerful smile and sunny disposition sucked the wind out of Dash’s sail as she turned her attention to the pegasus. How could she dredge up a topic that could bring pain to her friend? Her original motivation lost, Dash glanced to the others for help, their own eyes filled with concern and worry. She decided that perhaps the delicate approach really was the best way to get to the bottom of things.
“Look,” she said at last, “Um, last week I swung by here to talk to you but you weren’t here. Mrs. Cake said that you had just left to go to your second job in Canterlot, but I’d never heard of you having a second job, so-”
She was cut off by Pinkie jumping into the air with an enormous gasp.
“I never told you girls about my other job! Omigosh, I can’t believe I forgot!” She gasped again. “You should totally come with me tomorrow!”
“Go…go with you?” Fluttershy stuttered.
Pinkie nodded excitedly. “Uh huh! Trust me, it’ll be so much fun!”
Fun? Applejack mouthed her confusion to Twilight who could only shrug in response.
“Well of course we’ll come with you, darling,” Rarity said soothingly, “That is, if you’re certain you want us to.”
“Of course I want you to,” Pinkie giggled, “I wouldn’t have asked you if I didn’t want you to come with me; that just would’ve been silly!” Her giggle was interrupted by another huge yawn. “Wowie, I guess I’m a lot more tired than I thought.” Bags that hadn’t been there moments before rapidly developed under Pinkie’s eyes. She sat there, uncharacteristically quiet for a moment, staring at nothing in particular.
With a thump, the party pony’s face hit the table top and a soft snore followed. Her friends gathered around, each with perplexed but unsurprised expressions at Pinkie’s behavior. Rainbow Dash was the first to speak.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” she grumbled, “We’ve waited a whole week to get an answer from her and she falls asleep before we get it!”
“I know you’re frustrated, Rainbow,” Twilight said. “But she did invite us to go with her so we’ll find out tomorrow what exactly is going on.”
Dash sighed in discouragement, “I know, I know. All this waiting is just,” she paused before grunting out an irritated moan. She stared at Pinkie’s snoozing form and sighed again. “Guess I’ll take her up to bed,” she said as she walked over to the pink pony.
“Would you like some help?” Fluttershy offered.
Dash nodded. “Sure.”
As the two carried the unconscious, snoring lump that was Pinkie up the stairs, Twilight, Rarity, and Applejack quietly started clearing off the table.
“So what do you think?” Twilight asked at length as Rarity carried the dirty dishes into the kitchen.
“Rainbow’s jus’ frustrated is all,” Applejack answered, “This whole thing’s gotten her wound up pretty tight.”
The unicorn nodded. “I figured that much, but I was referring to Pinkie Pie.”
“Oh. Right, sorry,” she chuckled sheepishly. “I honestly can’t say, Twi. Any other time I’d say she was jus’ bein’ herself, but with everything that RD told us? Either Pinkie’s not tellin’ us ‘cause she don’t want us to worry…”
“…Or you think it’s possible there might not be anything wrong with her at all?” Twilight asked, a tinge of hope in her voice. Applejack simply shrugged, drawing a sigh from the scholar, “I guess we’ll find out tomorrow.”
“Reckon we will.”
Morning came and found the five friends outside Sugarcube Corner readying themselves for the trip to Canterlot. They had only been waiting a few minutes when Pinkie Pie bounced out the front door, her usual wide smile on her face and her saddlebags across her back.
“Hiya, everypony! Are you all set to go?” she asked cheerfully.
Rather than waiting for any of them to answer, she bounced off down the road. They briefly exchanged confused looks over the sudden departure before galloping off to catch up.
For a while they walked in silence. Well, mostly in silence. The only sound came from Pinkie, and most of that was some happy tune that seemingly only she knew. After around an hour’s time, they made it to the forested area where Dash had been tackled by a bush.
Up to this point of their walk Dash made quiet motions to Twilight in an effort to get her to talk to Pinkie and see if she’d spill the beans. Twilight would always respond with a shake of her head and mouth “just wait”. Initially, Rainbow Dash would throw her hooves up in exasperation but keep her peace just the same. This time, however, she slowed her pace, motioning Twilight to fall back with her. The road ahead was curving, and the trees surrounding them would provide a bit of cover. Once the rest of their group had moved ahead Rainbow released her irritation.
“What’ve you been waiting for Twilight?” she complained, dragging the lower eyelids down her face with her hooves in exasperation. “I thought we were going to find out what this was all about.”
“I know, Rainbow Dash,” she apologized. “It’s just that this is a delicate topic, and I don’t want her to close herself off from us just when she’s getting ready to talk about it. I mean, I’ve never known Pinkie to not want to talk about something,” she remarked, in defense of her logic, “but then she hasn’t exactly told us anything about this yet either.”
Their pace slowed to a stop as Twilight continued. “I’ve been hoping Pinkie would say something about where we’re going or something to get the conversation started. That way I could start picking apart her story and she wouldn’t be able to hide it the way Applejack tried to at the cherry orchard.”
Dash stood there staring at her friend. She wrestled with a feeling in her gut that questioned how manipulative that approach would be. “Pinkie’s never been one to run from her problems, Twilight.”
“We never thought that of Applejack either,” she reminded Rainbow. “I just don’t want a repeat of that.” Twilight sighed, “If you really want to ask her, then ask her.”
“Ask me what?” a familiar voice chimed in. Twilight and Rainbow Dash turned simultaneously to regard the third participant in their conversation.
“Pinkie?” Twilight nearly choked on the word before she could compose herself to for an actual sentence. “I thought you were up ahead.”
“Well, I was, silly, until I looked back and realized there were only four of us,” she explained, hardly pausing for breath. “I wanted to make sure none of us got lost on our way. Now what was it you wanted to ask about?” She looked expectantly at Twilight and Rainbow Dash with such innocence in her eyes that would put a puppy to shame.
“I, uh,” Rainbow stammered. Her words died on her tongue. She looked to Twilight for help.
“We were just wondering how far along we were on the trip,” Twilight quickly explained.
“Well why didn’t you just ask?” Pinkie replied, completely accepting the statement. “We’re just about there.”
The knowledge that they were only about halfway to Canterlot was not lost on either of them. Dash remembered the turn Pinkie had taken the last time they were out this way, and Twilight’s quiet hope that maybe there wasn’t a hospital quickly faded. Exchanging a nervous smile to attempt to convince Pinkie that everything was fine, they followed her as she pranced back to the rest of the group up the road.
Eventually they arrived at the intersection with the West Road and, just as Dash had said in her recounting a week before, Pinkie turned right off the road to Canterlot. Finally sensing the opportunity, Twilight spoke up.
“Pinkie Pie, this is the road to Manehattan. Didn’t you say your job was in Canterlot?”
Pinkie paused and turned to answer, “Weellllll…technically it’s in Canterlot, just not in the city with the palace and everything.” Her face bore the expression of a foal who had just been caught with her hoof in the cookie jar and it gave Twilight the opening she’d been looking for to press for more information.
“Pinkie Pie, what exactly is this new job of yours? You haven’t told us anything about it and it’s really unlike you to act like this.”
“Yeah,” Dash joined in forcefully, eager to try to get her to explain. “You’ve been doing this for three weeks now and you never told us about it! You’re acting all cagey and everything and it’s not making any sense!”
Pinkie stepped back shamefaced, her ears folded against her head at Dash’s not undeserved onslaught. Dash paused and took a deep breath to rein in her emotions.
“Look, we just want to know what’s up with all this. Is there something wrong?” Her voice cracked, “We’re your friends, Pinkie, just tell us.” The last words leaving her mouth left Rainbow Dash on the edge of tears.
Pinkie bit her lower lip as her eyes fell to the ground. “I’m sorry, everypony, I didn’t mean to leave you out like that, honest. This thing came up all of a sudden and I’ve been so busy with it that,” she paused, searching for the right words. “It’s something very personal and important to me. I didn’t want anypony to know about it until I knew I was ready to share it. You understand, right?”
Applejack stepped forward and nuzzled her. “’Course we do, sugarcube, we’re jus’ worried about ya is all. ‘Specially makes us worried when you’ve been acting the way you have.” The others nodded in agreement.
Tears formed in the corners of Pinkie’s eyes as she looked happily upon each of her friends. “Thank you, girls, you’re the bestest best friends anypony could ever ask for. I’ll tell you everything, promise. Pinkie Promise,” she added, performing her usual ritual. “But there’s something I have to show you first. It’s really important.”
They stood there, expectantly, waiting for Pinkie to continue. Only the odd song of a flitting bird and the leaves rustling in the trees at the crossroads produced any sort of noise. As each of the mares exchanged glances with one another Pinkie just stood there silently. At last, Twilight sighed and nodded.
“Alright, Pinkie, lead on.”
“Okey dokey!” she gleefully replied before swiveling and continuing her prance down the road.
The others followed, but Dash and Twilight hung back.
“Every time!” Dash blurted. “We get her this far and that’s what we end up with?”
“We’re a lot further than where we started,” Twilight replied, watching their friends progress down the path. “I’m still not sure what we’re in for, but judging from how she reacted there maybe it will be better than we thought.”
“Maybe,” Dash muttered, refusing to allow herself that optimism, though conceding that Twilight had a point.
“After all, she did make a Pinkie Promise to tell us when we get there,” Twilight added.
They continued on, still without the information they wanted but Pinkie’s promise left them far less tense than they had been. Pinkie seemed calmer, almost subdued, from what she had been when they had first started out in Ponyville. Perhaps, they thought, it was from the knowledge that soon she would have others to help shoulder her burden. Her smile wasn’t the wide, hyperactive grin that usually wore, the one for which everypony knew her, but it was one of contentment and true appreciation. The smile grew when Rainbow Dash alighted beside her, deciding to hoof it for the rest of the journey. Dash gently rubbed her head against Pinkie’s as they walked and Pinkie responded in kind, an unspoken apology accepted and forgiven in a simple motion.
Following the route Dash had recounted a week earlier, they arrived at the clinic late in the morning. Pinkie led them into the main building and through the labyrinth of hallways. Tension and unease returned to the others as they wound through the building, the bland sterility and lackluster design of the place seemed unnatural. Eventually they arrived at the reception area. Pinkie halted the group and approached the reception desk.
“Hiya, Miss Honeydew!”
The green mare looked up from her paperwork, her face brightening immediately.
“Oh, good morning, Pinkie Pie; Dr. Patches should be out shortly for your session. Feel free to wait here.”
At the word ‘session’ the rest of the group exchanged concerned glances. Thoughts of there being an alternate explanation quickly slipped away.
“Thanks, Miss Honeydew!” She turned back to her friends. “Shouldn’t be too long of a wait, girls. Dr. Patches will be able to give you the low down on what’s going on.”
Fluttershy couldn’t take the suspense anymore and launched herself at Pinkie, wrapping her hooves around the pink pony and burying her face in the cotton candy mane amid her sobs. Pinkie just stood there, uncharacteristically confused and at a loss for words at her friend’s sudden outburst.
“Um…it’s okay, Fluttershy,” she said uncertainly, wrapping a hoof over her friend’s withers. “I know hospitals aren’t all that fun, but it’s not something to get upset over…Unless you have a phobia of hospitals. That could do it. Oh, or doctors! Just like Rainbow Dash is scared of dentists.”
“Pinkie!” Dash hissed.
Rarity intervened, “I think it’s because she’s worried about you, Darling, as we all are.”
Pinkie smiled sadly and hugged Fluttershy. “Aww, I’m sorry, girls, I didn’t realize I made you worry that badly. Guess I better tell you all what I’ve been doing here, huh?”
Dash nodded emphatically. “Yes please already!”
Pinkie giggled as she separated from Fluttershy. “Okay. See, it started when-”
“Ah, Miss Pie, there you are.”
Dash nearly screamed in frustration as she rounded on the interrupting voice. Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped as soon as she recognized the stallion and immediately pointed at him.
“You!”
“Me!”
“You’re him!”
“I should certainly hope so,” he chuckled, “It’d be very disconcerting for me to wake up one day as anyone else.”
“Hiya, Doctor Patches!” Pinkie greeted brightly.
“Good morning, Miss Pie,” Dr. Patches returned.
Applejack sidled up to Dash. “Ya alright there, RD?”
“That’s him!” she exclaimed, continuing to point at the doctor. “He’s the one I talked to last week!”
Dr. Patches tilted his head, curiosity creasing his features as he examined Dash. His eyes quickly lit up with recognition.
“That’s right, I remember you. You were here last Friday looking for Miss Pie.”
“You were here looking for me, Rainbow?” Pinkie asked in confusion.
Dash rubbed the back of her neck self-consciously. “Yeah…see, last Friday I went to Sugarcube Corner to see you but Mrs. Cake said that you had gone to Canterlot for your other job. Well, I had no idea what this other job was so I went off to find you but when you didn’t go straight to Canterlot I got suspicious and followed you here and I bumped into this guy,” she blurted, barely pausing for breath, “And that’s when I found out you were here for some sort of medical treatment and I went back to tell the girls here and we’ve been freaking out about you being sick all week.”
There was an uncomfortable silence in the room as Pinkie and Dr. Patches stared at her blankly. At last they both spoke.
“I’m not sick.”
“I never said she was sick.”
It was Dash’s turn to stare blankly. “But you told me that you’d met her at the advanced medical treatment wing and that she was back here for some experimental program.”
Pinkie and Dr. Patches exchanged a glance and tried their best to resist chuckling. A growing sense of dread filled Dash as it dawned on her that she may have made a very grave error.
“Hoo boy, I think we’ve had a bit of miscommunication,” Dr. Patches said with a chortle. “Yes, I met Miss Pie while working in the treatment wing several years ago, but it wasn’t her that was being treated.”
“And I am part of a new research program,” Pinkie added, “But only because I’m helping out with it.”
Dash’s face and wings drooped pathetically. Realizing the worry she’d produced in everypony over the past several days, there was only one thing she could do.
“I’m gonna go find a rock to hide under for a while.”
“It’s okay, Dashie!” Pinkie giggled, pouncing on her with a hug, “I know it was a mistake and everything, but I’m really glad that you guys cared that much for me to get worried like that and now everyone’s here so I can show you what I’ve been doing!”
“I admit that I’m curious, Pinkie,” said Twilight, “Immensely relieved but still curious. What is this project of yours?”
Pinkie turned to Dr. Patches with a huge grin. “Can I show them?”
He nodded, his own face creased with a wide smile. “Go ahead.”
She motioned excitedly for them to follow her and bounced down the hallway. They trotted down another corridor and passed by a number of rooms, some empty and some with treated and recovering patients. At the end of the corridor they turned left down another, reaching a set of double doors, evidently leading to a larger room than the ones they had passed. They could hear some commotion within the room but it was not apparent as to what was causing it. Pinkie quickly peeked through the small windows and ducked away, giggling to herself. Motioning to the others to be quiet, she stuffed her head into one of her saddlebags and came out wearing a ridiculously over-sized pair of spiral-lensed glasses and a fake arrow strapped onto her head.
“I love this part,” Dr. Patches whispered to the rest of the group gleefully.
Without warning, Pinkie flung the doors open and leapt inside with a merry cry.
“Hiya, fillies and colts! Guess who’s here?”
“Pinkie Pie!” replied a joyous multitude of voices.
Foals. The room was filled with foals of all colors and description: unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies alike. Some were fairly young while others were clearly older as they had their cutie marks and stood a bit taller. The most striking thing about them was that very few of the foals had manes and tails and those that did had theirs closely cropped.
“Wha…what is all this?” Rainbow Dash asked as she stepped into the room.
“This is my project,” Dr. Patches answered, stepping up next to her. “It’s a supplemental program of sorts for the foals being treated here.”
“All of these children have terminal illnesses?” Rarity asked, her voice tinged with sadness.
Dr. Patches nodded. “Some do, yes; some have some sort of immunodeficiency and others we simply haven’t worked out yet.”
“How sad,” said Fluttershy, her eyes glistening as she thought about what the poor young foals were going through.
Twilight turned to Dr. Patches, confusion still etched on her face. “I don’t understand, you said that this is supplemental to their treatment but I don’t see you giving them any sort additional medication.”
She watched as Pinkie attempted to inflate a large balloon only to have it force her breath back and inflate her instead, much to the enjoyment of the foals who now had a large, fluffy, pink volleyball to play with.
“And much as I love Pinkie,” Twilight continued, “she is most definitely not qualified for practicing any sort of medicine.”
“I’d have to agree with you there,” Dr. Patches replied with a chuckle, “But you are quite right, this is rather an unorthodox program and I knew Miss Pie would be the perfect fit for it.” He turned his attention to the foals and Pinkie as they played with a balloon she had finally managed to inflate and twist into the shape of a giraffe and was working on another. “Tell me, Miss…”
“Sparkle, Twilight Sparkle.”
“Ah, Princess Celestia’s protégé! I am most honored to make your acquaintance,” he said with a bow, eliciting a shy blush from her. He stood and motioned to the gaggle of foals. “Tell me, Miss Sparkle, what do you see?”
She glanced at him curiously before looking across the room. “Well…I see various sorts of exercising equipment lined up against the far wall – evidently this is the physical conditioning room – and there is a set of double doors on the far side leading to the outside, the light fixtures are standard industrial fluorescent light tubes, the walls and ceiling are painted an off-white color, and Pinkie and the foals are playing with a bunch of balloons.”
She turned back to him with a smile, very satisfied with her detailed analysis. Her smile faltered when it was met by Dr. Patches’ flat stare. He glanced past her to the other four.
“Is she always like this?”
“You have no idea,” Dash quipped. Twilight grumbled sourly and looked away.
“I meant no offence, Miss Sparkle,” Dr. Patches chortled, “It’s just that you observed all the details in everything you saw – which I should’ve expected from an academic of your caliber. But what I wanted you to observe were Pinkie and the foals; tell me what you see with them.”
Once again she turned her attention to the petite playing ponies their partying pink patron. She scrutinized every detail, her face skewed in concentration. At last she shook her head.
“I don’t know what you want me to look for, Doctor,” she admitted unsurely, “But all I see is Pinkie and a bunch of foals playing and laughing.”
“Exactly!” he said with a clap of his hooves.
Twilight turned to him in confusion.
“I’m not sure I understand,” she said, “How is laughing and playing considered medical treatment…” Her voice trailed off and her eyes lit up as the realization dawned on her. “It’s a psychological method designed to produce a physiological benefit!”
“And she wins the sixty-four thousand bit question!” Dr. Patches cheered enthusiastically.
“And that means what, exactly?” Applejack asked.
“Look at what you just walked through on your way in,” Dr. Patches explained. “Unless you’re of a rare breed I’d wager you weren’t feeling too comfortable with it all,” he glanced quickly at each of them to see if the thought had set in and to make sure they were following him. “Hospitals aren’t exactly the happiest of place for most of the people in them.”
They weren’t sure what it was, but hearing it said that way seemed like a grand revelation.
“See,” Dr. Patches continued, “When you laugh your body releases certain compounds called endorphins, which studies show help decrease the sensation of pain and in general feel better, which is why after you’ve had a good laugh you feel much more relaxed and content, like you’ve had a good workout. Now Equestrian science isn’t sure how, but laughter also helps increase blood flow and boost antibody production, strengthening the immune system. That being said, a stronger body would be more apt to fight a disease and be receptive to the introduction of medication.”
The confusion was evident in Dash’s voice. “So…laughter makes you healthier?”
“In a way, yes,” answered Dr. Patches, “It’s like that old saying: ‘A cheerful heart is good medicine’. As I mentioned, this is a supplemental program to the actual treatments and I’m hoping it’ll make them more effective.”
“Well, that certainly explains why you chose Pinkie for the job,” said Rarity.
“Yeah, but it doesn’t explain how you knew her in the first place,” Dash said thoughtfully. “If it wasn’t her being treated all those years ago, then why was she here at all?”
“I was visiting my cousin Blueberry,” Pinkie said, suddenly appearing next to the stunt flier, a light glow of sweat evident on her face from the energetic performance. Behind her, the foals appeared to be too preoccupied with several balloon animals and a large beach ball to notice that she wandered away from their group.
“Your cousin?” Rarity asked curiously.
Pinkie nodded solemnly. “See, this happened a while back, way before Twilight moved to town. Blueberry and I used to play with each other all the time growing up: pranks, parties, you name it we did it. But even then there was always something wrong with her, she would always get tired a lot more quickly than everypony else and she got sick a lot.
“A little while after I moved to Ponyville, I found out that she had gone to the hospital and been diagnosed with cancer.” She paused, the memories threatening to shatter her composure. “It didn’t look good. It was so hard so see her lying in that hospital bed, just staring outside because she was too weak and sick to move.”
Her face brightened a little. “So I did what Pinkies do best! Every week I’d come up here with balloons and cakes and streamers and all the fun party stuff to cheer her up. And it worked! She laughed and smiled and was happy every time I came and we kept it up for months.” There was another pause and the smile slowly disappeared from her face. “Then one day she was gone. It hurt so much, y’know?” her voice cracked. “Like a part of my heart had been torn away. She had been my super best friend growing up and I could never play with her or make her laugh again.”
She lifted her to face to her friends, a sad but hopeful smile on her lips. “But you know what? Even though she was gone, I knew she was happy right up to the end. I helped make her days brighter, helped make her laugh when everything was dark and gloomy and helped giggle the ghosties away. It was all worth it just to see her smile again.”
Fluttershy was instantly upon her with a bone-crushing hug.
“Oh Pinkie,” she said through her tears, “I’m so sorry you had to go through all that.”
Rarity laid a hoof on her pink friend’s withers. “You’re much stronger than I realized, Pinkie dear, but why didn’t you tell any of us about this when it happened? We would have been there to help you.”
Pinkie sniffed sadly. “I know, but I’d just started out in Ponyville and I didn’t want to make any of my new friends sad with something like this.”
“That’s our Pinkie,” Applejack said with a morose smile, “Always thinkin’ of other folks’ happiness first.”
Dash surreptitiously wiped away a tear. “Alright, that explains that, but how do you fit into all of this, Doc?”
“I was Blueberry’s physician,” he explained. “At first, I was annoyed when this pink ball of energy insisted on visiting every week with all her party paraphernalia, but then I noticed that Blueberry was responding positively. She had more energy after her treatments, she was most definitely in higher spirits, and she regained her appetite.
“It was infectious, so to speak,” he chuckled. “The nurses and I quickly noticed we were smiling more and were much more jovial than before. This job can get you down pretty easily if you’re not careful, as you can imagine, and soon we were all looking forward to those Fridays when Miss Pie would come and cheer Blueberry up, and by extension the rest of us.”
His expression fell with a sigh. “Sadly, Blueberry’s condition was far more advanced than we originally thought. It was a hard blow when she passed, all of us here had grown fond of her and we missed her and Miss Pie terribly.” His eyes drifted toward the floor in thought while he spoke. “Perhaps if we had gotten her in earlier we could have saved her, at the very least helped her live a little longer.
“That’s when I had an idea.” His face brightened as the smile returned. “A lot of folks going through these treatments are left drained and have little energy and that, in turn, affects their moods and emotions. Medical treatments alone can help physically, but for the most part they don’t do anything to help the patient’s psyche. You usually need exterior stimuli for that. Blueberry had just that and it helped her. There’s a whole bunch of science mumbo jumbo for this, but basically the body releases hormones and enzymes that help strengthen it when it’s exposed to positive stimuli like laughter. That, and on a psychological level as well, gives them a greater will to live.
“I had to write up formal proposals and do my own research to back them up, but after a few years I came up with a proposal for this program and ran it by the hospital’s board of directors. It took time and no small effort, but they finally agreed to let me try it out.”
“And that’s when he called me and I said yes and now here we are!” Pinkie cheerfully interjected with a hop.
“Indeed! And as you can see, it seems to be working out rather well.”
“Wow…that’s quite the story,” Twilight said, slightly awed with appreciation for their task.
A brown-dappled pegasus colt with a cutie mark resembling a cloud bursting after being kicked came up and tugged on Dr. Patches’ coat.
“Dr. Patches? Can we go outside now? It’s real sunny an’ Pinkie said it was warm out.”
Dr. Patches smiled. “I don’t see why not, Kit. Pinkie, if you would be so kind?”
Pinkie grinned widely and bounced towards the double doors with and called excitedly, “C’mon, kids! We’re going outside!”
As one, the crowd of foals cheered and followed Pinkie outside. Dr. Patches and the mares trailed behind them. Dash paused when a splash of yellow caught her eye. Off to side of the room were a line of pillows, upon one of which rested a yellow unicorn filly. Curious, she made her way over to the little one.
“Hey kid, how come you’re not outside with everypony else?”
The filly lifted her head, her eyes widening as she focused on Dash.
“Oh, um…I’m too tired to go out and play. I had my treatment this morning and it always makes me sleepy.” She smiled tiredly. “But I always have fun when Pinkie comes, even if it’s just watching everypony else play.”
“Ah, I see…I guess.” Dash rubbed the back of her neck self-consciously, feeling very awkward. Hanging around foals was not exactly her thing and it didn’t help that the filly was staring at her. “Something wrong, kid?”
She looked away shyly. “S-sorry, your mane just looks so cool.”
Dash grinned and ran a hoof through her mane with a chuckle. “Yeah, it is kinda awesome, isn’t it? Name’s Rainbow Dash, what’s yours?”
“S-Sun Drop,” she replied, followed by a moment of silence. She looked back up to Dash. “Can I ask you something?”
Dash shrugged. “Sure, what is it?”
“Um…What’s it like to fly?”
She looked at the young filly curiously. “Bit of an odd question; how come you want to know?”
Sun Drop looked at the floor shyly. “My daddy’s a pegasus and I always see him moving clouds and flying everywhere. I…just want to know what it’s like.”
Nodding in understanding, Dash sat next to the pillow and lifted her eyes to the ceiling, a blissful smile crossed her lips.
“It’s like falling: terrifying, exciting; the wind’s rushing by, roaring in your ears, but you’re in control. You flap your wings and feel gravity pull against your gut as you defy it climb toward the sun.” Dash turned from the filly and looked off at a point in the distance, as though watching the events play out. Sun Drop followed her gaze, picturing herself flying alongside as Dash continued. “There’s a moment of weightlessness as you reach the top of your climb and settle on a cloud – the softest, comfiest pillow you could ever imagine. And then you look out and all of Equestria lies in front of you. You can see past Canterlot to the Crystal Mountains and beyond the Whitetail Woods to the glittering lights of Las Pegasus. Look around you; you’re free as a bird. The skies are yours.”
Sun Drop stared wonderingly, mouth agape as Dash turned back to her.
“That’s amazing,” the filly breathed, “It sounds so wonderful. Daddy’s taken me up a couple of times but only up to the treetops. I wish I could fly myself.”
Dash grinned. “Well, my friend Twilight knows some really neat tricks. She got herself and my friends up to Cloudsdale when I was in the Best Young Flyer’s Competition.”
“Really?” The filly’s eyes sparkled.
“Yeah, she really did! Want to hear about it?”
Sun Drop smiled widely and nestled herself comfortably into her pillow.
“Well, see, I’ve always wanted to be a Wonderbolt, ever since I was your age….”
*****************
The courtyard was filled with laughter and the joyful calls of fillies and colts as the gathered friends made their way out into the fresh air and warm sun. Twilight closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, relishing the sweet scents of nature. The sight of Pinkie running everywhere while playing tag with the little ones brought a smile to her face when her eyelids fluttered open.
“We try to let them play outside for an hour or two a day, as long as the weather permits,” Dr. Patches explained, “Sun, exercise, and fresh air are very important for them to stay healthy, but we also have to be careful that they don’t hurt themselves or get too worn out.”
“How successful has this here program been so far?” Applejack asked.
“Well, this is our first group so we don’t have any concrete results yet, but it looks promising,” he answered. “Morale is a huge part of any treatment process, for cancer especially, so seeing them happy like this makes it a success in my book.”
He shook his head sadly. “I’ve seen a few patients come in here and waste away because they lost the will to live. Nopony came to visit them, they never laughed or smiled, they just gave up,” he sighed at the harsh reality of it. “No amount of treatment is going to save somepony like that. But when somepony is shown love and support…well, here, let me show you.”
He led them down the walkway to the crest of a knoll, allowing them to see across the green expanse of the Center’s small park.
“Take that guy for example,” Dr. Patches said as he pointed across the way to a stallion sitting under a tree with a mare leaning against him, a loving gaze upon her face. He was surrounded by a number of other ponies –even a young dragon and giraffe of all things – presumably his friends as all of them were smiling and laughing. “He’s been a real trooper. He came down here a while back and it was kinda hairy at first, but you couldn’t get him down. He’s got spirit, that one. His wife and friends have constantly been by his side helping and encouraging him.”
The PA blared, impassive yet urgent, interrupting him.
“Dr. Patches to ER #3. Code Blue. Dr. Patches to ER #3. Code Blue.”
“Shoot! I’m sorry ladies, but I need to go; it was nice meeting you all!” he called over his shoulder as he galloped away.
“Oh my, I hope it’s not anything serious,” Fluttershy worried.
“Hate to say it, sugarcube, but the way he left makes me think that it probably is,” Applejack voiced with a frown. She didn’t want to think what an announcement like that meant in a hospital.
Twilight, too, frowned and shook her head lightly. “C’mon, girls, let’s see if we can help Pinkie out.”
For the next couple of hours, the five friends played with the foals in each of their own ways. Fluttershy talked about the different plants and animals that were around and showed a few eager foals how to safely catch a butterfly. Applejack showed how to tie knots and regaled them with stories from the farm and of the adventures she’d been on with the others. For some of the unicorns, Twilight taught some simple spells and lectured about a few of the notable unicorns in Equestria’s history. Rarity taught some general points of arts, crafts, and fashion and was pleasantly surprised when a colt managed to make her a bracelet using grass and lilacs.
Sadly, the time came where the nurses had to call the foals back inside, bringing an end to the playtime with Pinkie. The girls said their farewells to the young ones and Pinkie promised to come back the next week with more balloons and games. The friends were all smiles as they walked down the corridor to the main lobby.
“I must admit, Pinkie,” began Rarity, “It never occurred to me that you would become involved in a program such as this. I don’t know why it never did; you’re the perfect mare for it.”
“Darn tootin’ ya are!” Applejack agreed enthusiastically.
Pinkie beamed. “Thanks girls! I’m so glad you think so. I’m really sorry I worried you the way I did, I guess I should’ve told you sooner.”
“It’s okay, we understand why you didn’t say anything and there was no harm done in the end,” said Twilight. “But please remember that we’re your friends and that you can trust us with anything, okay?”
Pinkie smiled sincerely. “I will, Twilight.”
Suddenly Applejack stopped and looked around. “Hold on a tic, where’s Rainbow?”
“I saw her talking to a unicorn filly when we went outside,” Fluttershy answered, “But I haven’t seen her since then.”
“Found her!” They looked down the corridor to see Pinkie at the far end bouncing in place.
They made their way to end of the corridor and turned the corner to find the prismatic-maned pony sitting solemnly next to a set of double doors, staring almost vacantly at the floor. Pinkie was by her side, an uncharacteristic worried frown on her face. It was obvious that there was something very wrong. The farm mare approached gingerly.
“Rainbow? What’s wrong, Sugarcube?”
For a moment she didn’t speak, then her mouth slowly worked itself open and closed.
“I…I thought she just fell asleep. I was just talking to her and she was listening a-and then she closed her eyes, you know, like I do sometimes when Twilight’s explaining something. I didn’t notice at first ‘cause I was really into it and…” She swallowed hard as her words caught in her throat. “I-I tried to wake her up so we could go outside, but when she didn’t move I called the nurse and…and then…I…she wasn’t…”
Tears welled up in her eyes and she choked. Immediately, Applejack and Pinkie embraced her, with the others quickly following suit. For a long while they sat there, none saying a word, just lending strength to their friend. The hospital retained its pace around them, though they took no notice. Time passed in unmarked measure as they all sat silently with their thoughts. Eventually they parted and Dash wiped her eyes.
“Thanks, girls.” Her voice was a little raspy and she coughed to clear it. “Sorry, I guess that took a little more out of me than I thought.”
“There’s no need to apologize, Rainbow, we completely understand,” Rarity soothed. “Perhaps we should go home now.”
“Sounds like a good idea,” Twilight agreed.
They started again down the corridor, this time in solemn silence. When they reached the main lobby, they paused to get their bearings.
Pinkie bit her lip hesitantly and asked quietly, “What was her name, Dashie?”
“Huh? Oh, um…Sun Drop? Yeah, that was it. She asked me what it was like to fly ‘cause her dad’s a pegasus, so I told her what it was like and how we were at the Best Young Fliers Competition and how Twilight got you girls up there. She seemed pretty excited to hear about that.”
“Awww,” Pinkie cooed with a sad smile, “I think you made her really happy.”
“I don’t know,” she said doubtfully, “All I did was just talk to her.”
“Sometimes that’s all somepony needs to help them feel better: just someone to talk to,” Pinkie said as she placed a hoof on Dash’s shoulder.
A thoughtful frown crossed Dash’s face as Doctor Patches stepped out of another set of doors into the lobby. He appeared haggard and his face downcast as he entered, but managed a weak smile upon seeing the gathered mares.
“Hello again. I’m sorry for running off like that, but I had an emergency to attend to; the worst kind, I’m afraid.” He turned to Dash, his smile genuine and grateful. “Thank you for staying with Sun Drop, Miss Dash, I’m certain she was thankful that you took the time to talk to her.” His smile faltered. “And…I’m sorry.”
Still recovering from her emotional roller coaster, Dash could only nod in response.
He sighed and turned to the rest of the group. “I’m glad I was able to see you all before you left. I’m so very glad that you came with Miss Pie today, even if it was for entirely different reasons. The nurses tell me the children very much enjoyed spending the afternoon with you.”
“It was our pleasure. I’m so glad we could brighten up their day and have fun,” Rarity said with a warm smile, though it faltered with her next thought. “It saddens me, though, just how young they are to suffer so. Many of them are hardly older than Sweetie Belle.”
Applejack shivered. “I know what ya mean, Rarity. I couldn’t help but keep thinkin’ of Apple Bloom while I was out there…I can’t imagine what it’d be like for the family if she had to stay here.”
“It must be very difficult for the families who do have foals here…and for the foals to be here away from home. No wonder you started this program, Doctor,” Twilight said solemnly.
He nodded. “Yes, this is incredibly stressful for ones so young. The program is an attempt to help them understand that yes, they’re sick, but they can get better and they can still enjoy their foalhood.”
A moment of silence followed, only broken when Dash turned to Pinkie.
“I’m coming with you next week.”
Pinkie gasped excitedly, “Really? You really want to?”
The pegasus shuffled self-consciously. “Yeah, I mean, I’m not all that great at talking to foals and stuff, but if every little bit helps, then I’d like to. Heck, maybe I can give some of the fliers some pointers.”
“I wouldn’t mind coming back either,” Fluttershy added, “I had fun teaching some of them about nature and little critters.”
“Well shoot, I’d like to come back, too!” Applejack declared. “Maybe I can teach ‘em more about roping and farming and bring some of my family’s famous cider!”
“Ooh! And I can make hair pieces and hats to help keep their heads warm. Oh, and I can teach them how to sew and design!” Rarity gushed.
“I can teach basic magic to the unicorns and come up with a curriculum so they don’t fall behind in their studies,” Twilight contributed thoughtfully.
Pinkie bounced in place, bursting with excitement, and turned to Doctor Patches with a huge smile. Doctor Patches’ eyes sparkled and a small smile tugged at his lips.
“I think we can work something out.”
The End
Author's Note
And so it's finally finished, thank you all for reading it and I apologize that it took so long to complete. It was kind of an emotional thing for me.
See, I started writing this in December 2011, for a friend of mine, Mark, who had just gotten diagnosed with cancer. I had to set it aside right after I started it so I could finish "A Night (to Try) to Remember" and then after that I had to go to USAF basic training. I got to tech school and got bogged down with homework and military stuff so this sat untouched all through the summer. My good friend, Tealove, encouraged me and gave me some inspiration to work on it during the fall. I talked with Mark every now and again over the phone and, while he sounded tired because of his treatments, he was always in good spirits. After I got the first part of this posted in December, I had to focus on final tech school exams followed by Christmas exodus and then getting transferred to a new base. Once I got settled in, I got back to writing and managed to get up to the part of Dash telling the others of Sun Drop.
On March 27, I was told that Mark, my good friend, had passed. That scene with the stallion under the tree with his wife and friends? That was him and his friends in our various ponysonas; it was one of the first scenes I wrote when I started this. I started this for him and now here it is, perhaps a bit too late, but it's here.
In loving memory of Mark Morgan, Jr. 1981-2013
