The next morning, Scootaloo took flight with Sunflower over the city. Their first stop was the hole they escaped from, but it was gone. There was nothing but smooth sand, as if the terrible place had simply never been.
Scootaloo poked around the area, looking for it, but they both had to admit after a while that they just weren't going to get down into the ruins again with anything short of shovels.
Sunflower shrugged a little. "I can think of worse things. That place was dangerous, to everyone!"
Scootaloo gave an uncertain nod in reply, poking the sand. "Yeah, maybe, but I was hoping to look for Shale if nothing else..." She flopped onto her haunches. "That part kind of sucked. She was awesome, and she really came through in the end."
Sunflower moved beside Scootaloo and took the same position, sitting on his haunches. "It was her choice. We should... respect that, Mom said. Come on, let's go to that bar."
They spread their wings and took off. Louis was hidden in the back as usual, and looked up at them as they approached. He spoke before they did. "You look as if you've seen a ghost. Was your dig better than expected, or worse?"
Sunflower wobbled a paw. "A little of both. There's no way we can make that guard assignment tonight."
Scootaloo nodded and gestured towards the manor. "Applejack's hurt real bad, and we're all shook up. We appreciate the work though, thanks!"
Louis sucked air through his teeth. "That's a shame. Fortunately, I had a feeling this might happen and over-hired for the guard job." He pulled the papers before him into a somewhat-orderly stack. "New adventurers often get in over their heads on their first 'true' run. So, how did it go?"
Sunflower smiled as he rocked in place. "Mostly good? We found some valuable things to sell, and more trouble than I even knew existed."
Scootaloo raised a hoof. "Oh! The cat that hired us is kinda dead? He turned into an undead thing and there wasn't much choice about it. The hole's all filled up."
Louis raised a brow. "Well, it's a good thing he paid upfront then. Go, relax. Come back in a week or so when you're feeling better if you want another job." He raised a furry finger towards the bar. "Why don't you get a drink. You've earned it, as true adventurers, and I don't see your matron around to say no."
Sunflower and Scootaloo shared a look. With a silent agreement, they approached the bar.
They returned home an hour later, a little tipsy, but with their self-assigned missions accomplished. When they landed, the butler was in view and approached them. "Little Apple Bloom has been given permission to borrow books from our library and is reading in their room with her friend, Sweetie Belle. Miss Applejack is stable and well. I'm told she woke up. We've secured a buyer for that book you found and your mother should be seen to immediatly."
Scootaloo bobbed her head. "Thanks for the update! I'll go join them." She moved off towards their room as Sunflower discussed matters involving his mother's return.
Earlier, Apple Bloom carefully pulled a vial free from her little workshop and stepped over to the sleeping Applejack. She turned Applejack's head back with her hooves and slowly poured the potion into her mouth, waiting long enough for a swallow between pours. Slowly, the vial was emptied.
Apple Bloom set the vial aside for use later, then hopped up onto the bed. Sweetie Belle watched from the side. "Do you think it'll work?"
Apple Bloom bobbed her head. "We stopped the bleedin', she should be fine. Wake up, sis. Ah miss you."
As if on command, Applejack made a soft groan and stirred under Apple Bloom. Her eyes opened a crack, then snapped open. "Huh? What? How'd we get here?"
Her words were cut a little short as Apple Bloom tackled her and hugged tightly. "Don't ya ever do that again!"
Applejack hugged Apple Bloom back gently, looking a bit confused. The mugginess of sleep slowly faded, and, with it, she seemed to remember how things went. "How'd I live through that?"
Sweetie Belle pointed at the sniffling Apple Bloom. "She saved you. She was like a real doctor and wouldn't give up. You were... bleeding everywhere."
Applejack grimaced at the mental image. "Well shoot. I didn't think ya could make me any prouder, but then ya go and do somethin' like this." She lifted Apple Bloom easily into the air from under her forelegs and kissed over her face. "You wonderful little filly."
Apple Bloom smiled. "Ya can thank me by not dyin' anytime soon. Ah want mah big sister! Are ya feeling alright?"
Applejack nodded. "Feels like ah got run over by somethin', but ah'm alive."
Sweetie hopped up onto the bed, joining the others. She laid a hoof on Applejack and sung of the renewal of spring, chasing away some of the worst hurts in Applejack. Apple Bloom squirmed until she was put down. "Ah'll cook up some more medicine for ya. Just relax." She hopped down and eagerly got to work on her little lab.
Applejack watched Apple Bloom curiously, one hoof grabbing Sweetie and hugging her gently. "So what happened after ah blacked out? Did Shale leave?"
Sweetie tilted her head. "Sort of...? She stayed behind while we ran with you and we barely got out in time."
"In time fer what?" Applejack raised a brow, turning her gaze onto the nervous-looking Sweetie Belle.
Sweetie shook her head. "I don't know! It was like a thousand shadows! We ran off with you back to here as quick as we could. Uh, Scoots and Sunflower are looking it over right now, to see if it's as serious as it looked yesterday."
Apple Bloom called out from her workshop. "They're also reporting we won't be making it ta guard duty. Today, we relax."
Applejack nodded at that, releasing Sweetie Belle. "Well, ah can't disagree wit' that." She sat up in bed and stretched towards the ceiling. "Ah'm gonna get up now. Ya made me good enough fer that, ah reckon."
Scootaloo pushed the door open to find Applejack nursing a drink of something. Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle were seated side-by-side, reading a book together. Scootaloo waved at all three. "I'm back! Looking good, AJ. How're you feeling?"
Applejack smiled warmly. "With a little sister like Apple Bloom, how can ah feel anything but great?"
Apple Bloom went red, but looked pleased at the words. Applejack went on. "Ah hear we got more than enough ta fix up Sunflower's mom good as new. Shoot, the way the butler was goin' on about it, maybe there'll be some left over fer us."
Scootaloo clopped her hooves together joyfully. "That's great! Sunflower will be so jazzed up when that's done." She moved over to sit with the other Crusaders. "Do you think he'll stay here?"
Sweetie tilted her head thoughtfully. "He might. I doubt his mom wants him adventuring any more than his grandmother did."
Apple Bloom waggled her brows. "Why? Are ya waitin' for him?"
Scootaloo went quickly red. "What? No! He's just cool. He's a part of the team now, right?"
Sweetie giggled softly. "It's OK if you like him."
Scootaloo shook her head furiously. "Stop that! I can like a colt without like liking a colt, sheesh! We're friends, not colt and marefriends." She crossed her forelegs in a pout. "What are you reading anyway?"
Sweetie tapped the book in front of her and Bloom. "A book about monsters that like the taste of ponies."
Apple Bloom nodded. "We're brushin' up on things we might run inta, so we'll be prepared next time."
Applejack frowned a bit. "I'd rather there not be a next time, if ya know what ah mean?"
Scootaloo looked around. "Well, if you know how to get home, I'm all ears."
Sweetie nodded. "As long as we're stuck here in this world, we should be prepared." She tapped the book. "Which means knowing what wants to eat you and how to not get eaten."
A soft knock came from the door before Lady Longtail peeked inside. She smiled as she slipped in. "I hope I'm not disturbing. I wanted to thank you all. I'm told you went through great pains to secure that tome. It's hard to believe a single book could be worth so much."
Applejack nodded a little. "How valuable are we talkin' here?"
She looked thoughtful a moment. "If I remember correctly, we could easily get at least thirteen thousand for it. Adding in the gems little Sunflower retrieved and we can get his mother up and restored easily."
Apple Bloom raised a hoof. "What's ta stop somepony from doin' that all over again?"
Lady Longtail frowned at the notion. "The rats have agreed to guard the house. They've learned all the ins and outs and will patrol during the night. They're darlings once you get to know them. They won't let anyone hurt my kin again."
Applejack tilted her head. "Well, that's mighty fine. Ah guess that did work out then. Ah gather that covers their room and keep, right?"
"And an allowance to spend as they please." Longtail nodded. "Thank you for rescuing them, and me, from each other. How are you feeling? You were quite hurt yesterday."
Applejack stretched a little. There were still pains and aches, but nothing she'd let keep her down. "Ah got the care of two skilled doctors right here. They pieced me togetha better than new. Reckon we're ready fer round two."
Apple Bloom snorted softly. "Stop joking around, AJ. You have to rest up, 'doctor's' orders."
"Yes ma'am." Applejack saluted with a soft snicker. "When's dinner served?"
The rest of the day passed in peace. They were informed Sunflower's mother would be raised with the coming of the dawn the next day, a fortuitous time for such rituals. Some of the diamonds Sunflower had pried free from the trap would be used directly for the spell, a fact that seemed to please Sunflower greatly.
Dinner was delicious and shared with all the residents of the manor, rats included. There was no animosity to be found at the table that day as everypony, cat, and rat, talked freely and happily. The future seemed bright.
Applejack raised a hoof. "Say. If we wanted ta get to Viljatown, what'd be the best way fer that?"
The butler replied first, pointing northerly. "The most direct way is to board a caravan headed in that direction. It's a long journey from here to there, and not one without more than a little danger..."
Scootaloo thrust a hoof upwards. "We can handle it! It can't be worse than a hole full of shadow things."
Apple Bloom nodded. "Not much choice, is there?"
Lady Longtail shook her head. "If you paid enough, a wizard could transport you across Everglow to the pony capital." She looked over the ponies thoughtfully. "But that would be thousands of coin for the wizard to transport a few of you, come back, teleport the rest, and get himself back."
The butler cautioned as he brought out dessert on a large tray. "That assumes you find a skilled enough wizard. Such tricks are not commonplace."
Sweetie cycled her hooves in the air lightly. "Sounds like we're hoofing it."
Sweetie?
~Crystalline Electrostatic~
The papers were in a "somewhat-orderly" stack.
Apple Bloom "has" been given permission to borrow books.
She slowly poured the potion "into her mouth."
The use of "drown" is awkward there, maybe it should be "cut" instead?
There are two spaces between "that" and "tome."
Punctuation is needed, there.
5924281
5924300 The typo nation will rue this day! Rue!
5924327 BURN THE TYPOS! BURN THEM AT THE STAKE! MAKE THEM RUE THE DAY THEY DECIDED TO SHOW THEIR UGLY FACES IN DAVID SILVER'S FANFICTION ABOUT MAGICAL TALKING PONIES!!!
~Crystalline Electrostatic~
'Drown' should be 'drowned' but that still doesn't make sense. Did you mean 'cut off'?
any more
extra space
5924350 You caught one that slipped past the others. Take THAT typo scum!
5924356 Then, everything stayed mostly the same when the typo nation attacked.
"Applejack nodded at that, releasing Sweetie Bloom. "
It's Sweetie Belle. BELLE!
Seriously, I think it's the 3rd time you do this
5924327 Reading this chapter over, it felt like a lot of minor, but necessary, plot points were dealt with. This was slightly frustrating for me, as it felt very much like having to eat your vegetables before you can move on to dessert. That is, while I do recognize - and appreciate - that the aftermath of their adventure was being dealt with (something that's too often glossed over in other fics), I was eager to get back to the romantic shenanigans.
Before going any further with regards to that, however, I have to express my delight that Willow is soon to return! I quite like her character, and I expect that it will be a powerful scene when she and her son are reunited. More interesting is that I don't think that this will be a one-and-done use of her character; I think that she's going to join the party. Consider how she was the last time she and her son were rescued, where she gave a single platinum piece to everypony involved. But just before she died, she was admitting that she was perhaps too much like the greedy, amoral cats that populate Murrage - what better way to act on that new-found sense of altruism than by helping her pony friends, who came so close to dying to help her son bring her back, than by escorting them to Viljatown?
After all, the group needs more high-level adventurers to fill out its ranks. The only question is, what class will Willow be?
The disappearance of the dungeon complex is ominous, but at least pushes back the presumption that an army of the dead is about to conquer Murrage. Whatever was down there, it clearly doesn't want to draw further attention to itself; that makes sense, given that the CMC were the ones that were stomping through its lair uninvited to begin with. Far better for it to simply seal up the entrance and resume whatever it was doing before they interrupted it. Of course, it'll be back some day, but for the moment the problem is one that's out of sight, and thusly out of mind.
The reunion between Applejack and Apple Bloom was sweet, but was perhaps the most obligatory part of the chapter. I feel bad complaining about this, since it was a scene that deserved to be written purely on its own merits, but there was no new ground to be broken here. Everything they said to each other was unsurprising, or even expected. Perhaps we're supposed to come away from this scene with the idea that the two sisters are now treating each other more as equals, the way sisters should, and less like parent and child? That's about the only thing I can take away from that exchange, and even then it feels like I'm reaching.
Of course, my main complaint is the lack of shipping, and once again I need to highlight just how much this is purely my opinion, rather than a critique of the story on its own merits. Simply put, there was so little reaction to Sunflower's announcement of "I want you all to be my wives" that I wanted to cry. True, Sunflower himself wasn't there to deal with the fillies directly, but the sum total of their reaction was to ignore it completely? Other than teasing Scootaloo - whom I'll address more below - I'm honestly shocked at how little Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle seem to care for what was not only a de facto declaration of romantic intent, but of a manner that they're probably completely unfamiliar with (e.g. multiple wives). Are they just not interested? Do they not know how to deal with it, and so are ignoring it? Did they forget? Am I just making way too much of all this? I honestly can't tell.
The exception to this, of course, was Scootaloo. It was nice to see her and Sunflower spend some time together, bonding over the things they have in common (e.g. both flying and acting rashly), and it was adorable to see how Scoots was blushing and protesting (too much) that she doesn't think of him that way. I've mentioned before how they're playing up the whole "childhood friends who fall in love" trope, and this was right out of that playbook...even if that does highlight Scootaloo's odd lack of a reaction to the "pride" announcement.
Ah well, hopefully that will be addressed soon, and hopefully not just to shoot Sunflower down. When in Everglow, do as the purrsians do, after all.
5924457 Fixed.
5924489 You are an impatient little pony. Apple Bloom and Sweetie were quite distracted with other things, and likely have pushed Sunflower's little inappropriately timed statement largely out of mind. Their teasing of Scootaloo is more important than you give credit for, considering it shows the idea of them being together isn't something they're against on principle (But you're a cat!).
Applejack has been humbled by a very resourceful and caring Apple Bloom, and they bonded all the closer for their journey through this very dark path together. She was forced to be the helpless one, and Apple Bloom rose to the task. That can change somepony.
There was a lot of little expositional things scattered about, including the fact that they get to keep their loot, since the book covers the costs on its own. Applejack gets to keep her amulet of flank-kicking, Sweetie keeps her dress of adorableness +5, and they have a ring of grafitti at no extra cost.
Mission accomplished! Several missions, actually: raising resurrection funds, keeping Applejack alive, and getting directions to somewhere where they buy a casting of sending spike. Of course, first Willow needs to get back on her paws, which leads to the question of whether Sunflower will be allowed to stay with the party. But for now? Rest, relaxation, and the warm feeling of a job well done.
It's a good thing so many of your readers seem to have favored enemy (typo):
Needs capitalization.
5924609 Oops! Fixed.
Huh? What?
faded, and, with it, she
dyin'
somethin', but
waitin'
without like liking
brushin'
doin'
5924677 Southernisms repaired!
First we heal the group, and find out what resources we have left. Then we look up what resources are available for purchase, trade, side quests etc.
If Applebloom has Infusion as her first Feat, and preferably avoiding extra limb, tentacle o tumor familiar, which would be he best next Feat?
5924836 You should check her sheet! They're all updated.
this is a rather sweet chapter.
it defiantly looks like things will settle down for a day or three.
but come on no cutie mark for Apple Bloom after saving her sister it is vary clear her talent is brewing potions.
Harts Fire
5924327
That made me think of an old-ish movie quote:
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0089886/quotes?item=qt0435757
5925281 Can ponies earn cutie marks in a universe where they're born with brands of destiny?
5925453 I'm going to say no to that one. You can't earn something that doesn't exist in the world you are on. The girls can certainly get a Brand of Destiny, but it won't be a Cutie Mark until they return to Equestria.
5925453
This is a interesting question and you have a point. but on the other hove AJ and the cmc are not native to Everglow.
so can they get there cutie marks?
will they hold true for if and when they get back to Equestria?
only time and the pen will tell.
Harts Fire
PS no going to even try to guess the odes on this one.
Well, things are going well again...minus almost getting mobbed by wraiths or whatever. And though tragic, hopefully Shale's sacrifice will keep the karma scales balanced enough that nothing else goes wrong at leat until they're well on their way.
6175480 Shale, never forget.
6175500 NO, that unemotional magical unaging creature can't die. at most she is stuck down their with no way to leave and the death incarnint did not want her because she could not pass on anywheir
Was that supposed to be "immediately"?
8751329
Yes