However, before the ponies even had a chance to think of anything, the sound of humming was picked up by their ears, causing the two fillies to quickly about face and see a cheerful Sweetie Belle returning to the clubhouse, now carrying with her a bucket full of water. Immediate panic struck Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, as their time for planning had so promptly been cut short. Now it was time to face their friend with this tragic news hanging over their heads—a task much easier said than done.
"I'm back!" the high-spirited filly shouted after stopping and placing the bucket on the ground. "How is Lester doing?"
"How's he doin'??" Apple Bloom responded nervously. "Is that what yer askin'? Well...he he...uhh...he's doin'..."
"...well!" Scootaloo blurted out.
"Yeah, well! Just as well as well could be!"
"Couldn't be any weller!" Both ponies smiled as big as they could to hide their deceit—but this odd speech and awkward facial expressions only had Sweetie Belle bemused by the way her friends are acting.
"Uhh, okay..." Sweetie responded in a puzzled manner. She then picked the bucket back up and brought it over to Lester—before abruptly being blocked by her friends. "What are you guys doing?" she said with the bucket handle still in her mouth.
"Uhh...Lester doesn't need water anymore!"
"Yeah! He's feelin' much better!"
"Really?"
"Yep! But now he just wants to sleep some more, so you should just...go someplace else while he's sleeping!"
"A—and then you can come back...and he'll be...awake!" There was a long pause of silence following these words.
"...you guys aren't making a whole lot of sense."
"Ah know..." Apple Bloom said with a bit of despair as she put her hoof on her face.
"Well, anyway, even if Lester is tired, I know seeing me will cheer him right back up!" Sweetie hurriedly pushed her friends to the side and went right up to Lester. "Hey there, Lester! I'm glad to hear you're feeling better! I brought you a bunch of water like you wanted! I hope it's enough!" Sweetie waited for Lester to wake up and greet her, but he remained silent and motionless, which puzzled Sweetie Belle. "Come on, Lester! Rise and shine!" she said as she nudged the still porcupine. While Sweetie remained unaware of the current situation, Apple Bloom and Scootaloo looked on, growing more tense with each passing second.
Still not getting any kind of response out of Lester, Sweetie Belle was now getting worried for her pet. She turned her attention back towards her friends. "Hey, what's wrong with Lester? Why won't he wake up?" It was clear there was no way around it now—Scootaloo and Apple Bloom were going to have to suck it up and tell Sweetie what needed to be said.
"Umm, Sweetie Belle, we have some bad news about Lester..."
"What?! What is it?? He's not more sick, is he?? I thought you said he was better!!" Sweetie Belle was in great distress as she shouted back at her friends.
"Ah know that's what we said, but we only did that because we were too afraid tuh tell yuh the truth."
"Truth?? What truth?? What's going on?!"
So much it pained Apple Bloom of her obligation to reveal unto Sweetie Belle the hapless fate of her beloved pet and friend, and she found it extremely difficult to express these words to her dear, sensitive friend. Somepony who shared such a firm bond with their pet as Sweetie did would clearly not take such hearsay with a pleasant smile and move on quickly—no, would be an arduous task unlike any other she has had to endure, but, being Sweetie's friend meant she had to do it, and do it she would. After taking a gloomy sigh, she began her dialogue, "Well...umm...gee, ah don't know how tuh start this...hmm...well, it all started not too long after you left. That was when we noticed that Lester had, well...stopped breathin'..."
"Stopped breathing?!? What do you mean 'stopped breathing'?! Lester!" Sweetie jostled Lester as she pleaded for him to respond. This distressing display made Apple Bloom feel entirely incapable of continuing. The courage she had used to explain to Sweetie Belle about Lester had faded. She became immobilized by fear and uncertainty, unable to continue speaking or respond to anypony in any way.
While Apple Bloom was dealing with her own inner dilemma, Sweetie Belle's moderate distress had grown more rampantly distraught, having not brought any manner of reaction out of Lester, no matter how much she pleaded with him. "What's wrong??" she shouted to her friends. "Why won't he say or do anything??"
Apple Bloom could not get herself to answer Sweetie Belle. She could barely even force a response out of herself now, and even then, she could only manage a meager number of words. "Lester's, well..." her stuttering turned into a lengthy mumble, and she couldn't get herself to stop.
Scootaloo sighed of disappointment while watching Apple Bloom avoid giving Sweetie Belle a straight answer. She knew that Apple Bloom didn't want to say anything—heck, neither did she. But, Scootaloo was getting sick of all this stalling, and seeing that Apple Bloom wasn't going to get this done and over with, it was up to Scoot, who quickly took hold of the conversation. "Look, Sweetie Belle!" she shouted, grabbing everypony's attention. "Apple Bloom can't come out and say it, so I'm just going to have to: Lester's dead, okay??" Sweetie Belle remained entirely motionless as she stared back at Scootaloo. "I know that's hard for you to believe, but it's true—Lester's really gone, and he's not going to come back. I'm sorry I had to say it like that, but we couldn't keep it from you any longer."
Sweetie Belle's eyes were locked on Scootaloo as she backed away from Lester, knocking over her water bucket in the process and causing all the water to spill out. "W...what?" she looked over to Apple Bloom, who silently and sadly nodded to Scootaloo's statement. Not a single tear did drop from Sweetie's eyes, as she had yet to accept or even fathom the words that had just been laid upon her. How could this have just...happened? Right out of the blue like that? Right when everything was truly perfect for her? It seemed unbelievable—and impossible, more so, that someone whom she had held so close in her heart would just up and pass on like that. As these thoughts drifted throughout Sweetie's head further, tears began to form in the corners of her eyes. Her body was now reacting to her emotions—which made for a seriously heartrending display. The true pain of this heartache set fast upon her mind, and her body expressions showed full well the impact of these harrowing feelings.
With eyes enlarged, lips aquiver, and tears trickling from her face, Sweetie Belle slowly walked back over to Lester. She looked down at his still, lifeless body, unknowing of what to do. Never before in Sweetie's life had she experienced any kind of loss, and having one just thrown upon her was much more than this sensitive little filly could handle. She placed her hooves around Lester, pulling him closer to herself. The tears from her eyes dripped off her cheek and splashed upon the porcupine's body, soaking into his fur. She placed her head against his back, uncaring of getting pricked by any of his needles as she pressed the side of her face closer into his needles and held him tighter simultaneously. Her tears continued to flow from her eyes, soaking even further into Lester's fur, as Sweetie Belle was incapable to stop crying—the severity of her anguish was too great. All she could think about was: why? Why did this have to happen? Why did this happen to her? To Lester? Neither of them did anything to deserve such a cruel punishment...especially not Lester. He was the sweetest, most lovable pet a pony could ask for—and now he's gone, and Sweetie Belle is left an empty shell of a pony, with her heart: broken; her spirit: crushed; and the depths of her anguish: incalculable.
Out of everything Scootaloo and Apple Bloom have had to endure throughout this entire ordeal, Sweetie's tragic display was the most harrowing of all. This was exactly why they didn't want to tell her—why they wished they could have just stayed out of it. Seeing their friend so distraught was horrible, and it felt like a burden to Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, for they felt it was their fault she was feeling this way because they told her about Lester. Could there be anything they could do? And for that matter, would they even want to attempt to help their friend? Or would they just make everything even worse than it already was—if that were even possible? At this point, both Apple Bloom and Scootaloo felt they could be nothing more than onlookers to their friend's exhibition of her feelings of grief and desolation over the loss of her dearly beloved pet. But, these self-outlooks of incompetence would have to pass, as Sweetie Belle would need her friends more than ever now, and since Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were her two closest friends other than Lester, they were the best option in assisting their friend through this terrible hardship.
"We're really sorry about Lester, Sweetie Belle."
"Yeah. We know how much he meant to you."
Sweetie did not respond in any way. She continued her sobbing as her face remained buried within the many quills covering Lester's back.
"But, we wanna let you know that we're gonna help you get through this."
"Yeah, you'll be back to your old self in no time!"
Sweetie's weeping had stopped. She sniffed as she lifted her head upright, though still having it faced away from her friends. "...I don't need your help in getting over anything," she stated in a flat tone.
"What? Why?"
"...because Lester is not dead."
"Huh??"
"What??"
"He isn't! I don't believe it!" she shouted much more sharply as she quickly turned to face her friends, a perceptible ferocity in her eyes. "Lester wouldn't just die like that! He's my best friend!" she grabbed hold of Lester and held him tightly against her body. "You're both lying because you never liked me hanging out with Lester! You're both just jealous!!
"We would never do that!"
"Yeah! We're your friends!" both Apple Bloom and Scootaloo were in dismay as they verbalized their candor.
"No! You're lying! Lester's just like this because he doesn't like being here and being around you two!" Sweetie hurriedly picked up the overturned water bucket and placed Lester inside. "I'm taking Lester away from here and I'm never bringing him back!" she then grabbed the handle with her mouth and ran off, ignoring Apple Bloom's and Scootaloo's pleas to not run away and to believe them. Seeing that Sweetie Belle paid no attention to their supplications, the two fillies gave chase after their friend in hopes that they could get her to listen to reason.