Granny Smith ran as fast as she could across Ponyville with her heart pounding in her chest; she could only hope she could stop Flim and Flam before they did anything stupid. As she reached the center of Ponyville, she came across a bunch of ponies standing before the stage where Flim and Flam were performing. The crowd around her had their eyes all just glued to the stage watching in anticipation as the two colts stood over them.
Flim was standing there, showing he ditched the scout uniform and was now sporting a small straw hat and a red and yellow striped vest. He was twirling a cane with a smile on his face as he proclaimed, "Now! Come one and all and drink the new elixir of youth! See what it's done for us!"
Flam trotted over next to his brother, wearing a similar outfit with his hoof held out. "That's right! Come and enjoy being young again! Only one cup and you will be fit as a filly! Or a colt!"
Many ponies looked at each other nervously as one old stallion raised his hoof. "Would we be turned into foals like you?"
Flim smirked as he hopped over and held out a hoof. "Of course not; these waters will make you only as young as you wish to be; now, how about you come on up and show everypony what you were like in your prime!"
The old stallion slowly walked up the steps of the stage, shaking like a leaf, looking like he would keel over at any minute. Flim smiled at him and then asked, "So? How old are you?"
"O...one hundred and five," The old stallion stammered. Granny Smith blushed, seeing she wasn't much older than him, technically about a hundred and two.
"You don't look a day over fifty!" Flim laughed as he clapped the stallion on the back. "Come now! Don't you wish to be young and fit again!"
The old stallion shouted, "Of course I do!"
Everypony watched in anticipation as Flam brought out a small vial and hoofed it over the old stallion. "Bottoms up!"
Granny Smith watched with her own eyes, wondering if they were using water from the fake pond she and Zecora made or if it was the real deal. She watched the stallion carefully as he started regressing as his old body began to put on mass, with his wrinkly old legs becoming stalker and bulkier. His face became more pronounced and square, with his mane now falling down his body. He then stood on stage with everypony watching in amazement as he trotted forward and exclaimed, "It works! Just look at me now!"
The former old stallion now bounced around the stage as everypony cheered while Granny's eyes lit up, realizing that it was indeed the water from the real pool of life and not the fake one she and Zecora made. She ran across the stage and ran to the two colts; she smashed her hoof into the wooden panels and roared, "You gotta be kidding me! Didn't I warn you two not to do this!"
"We're selling a tonic, of course!" Flim explained triumphantly as he walked over and got into Granny's face. "What, you didn't think we believe your little ghost story and scare us out of using the pool so you can have it to yourself? Classic moves, but it's not something we tried before."
"Until some meddling foals got in the way," Flam grumbled irritably.
The young green-coated filly started to fume as she stomped about and shouted, "Seriously!? I didn't trick you!"
"Oh, yeah! You mean you didn't use a fake pond to turn us into colts!?" Flim asked with a smirk.
The filly closed her eyes and looked downward, seeing that they knew the truth all along. "I...I was trying to keep ya from using the pool. I was trying to save your lives…."
Granny Smith looked down and saw the other ponies rushing the stand drinking down the tonic as many started regressing before her eyes. Many older mares and stallions looked years younger, wrinkles disappearing, and crinkly old frames becoming bulkier. But to the astonishment of the tonic's effects, the many who hadn't taken the tonic yet started actually to fight each other over the last of the stock. The green-coated filly watched the ponies begin to fight each other, pulling at manes and throwing hooves at each other, some shouting that they were hogging it all, tearing tonics from others, and drinking it down. It was becoming quite a horrific scene just as the Spirit warned her what would happen; all the while, Silver Shill stood there raking in all the bits with this evil grin on his face.
As the chaos unfolded, Flim just stood there laughing as he wiped the tears from his eyes and shouted, "What? You thought we were going to just go along with your plan!? Come on, scaring ponies to get them to do what you want is so elementary! My brother and I are going to be rich! Besides, we'll still give you a sh-"
Granny instinctively stomped over, slapped the colt across the face, and shouted, "This isn't about bits!" Flim was now rubbing his cheek as Granny stood there with tears in her eyes. These idiots don't get it; they still think she was trying to trick them and horde the power of the pool of life. They have no idea that they're risking not only their lives but everypony in Ponyville...she had to do something!
The filly then ran to the microphone on stage and shouted at the top of her shrill young voice. "EVERYPONY, STOP!!!!"
While others continued fighting, some of the ponies in the crowd turned towards her as the little green-coated filly was now standing there at the center of attention. She took a second to gather herself before she held up her hooves. Granny knew she was in the thick of it now, and there was no turning back; she gave one last breath before she proclaimed, "I'm Granny Smith! And yes, what you're gonna drink will make you younger and may even give you your youth back! But...this isn't a gift, it's a curse!"
Everypony had now stopped fighting, and the crowd was now all staring at the little filly. Granny Smith was still somewhat nervous, shaking a little as she continued her speech. "When I was younger, I spent most of my adult life hating the Pears, and helped me ruin my son's marriage! On top of that, I never made amends with my daughter-in-law's family before she passed...I spent so many years wallowing in anger and self-pity, and I thought this new youth would give me a second chance."
She had to pause then, and she took the time to wipe her face with tears now streaming down her cheeks; she then took another deep breath and continued, "I understand why yall are fighting over this tonic. Do you know how tempted I was to act like some random cousin to Apple Bloom, act like nothing was wrong, and relive my life again!? But over time, I realized that no matter how much I apologize or try to forgive myself, I will always have that weight of guilt around my neck. Turning younger isn't going to make that guilt vanish or go away."
Everypony started to tear up as Granny Smith stood there quivering; she had no idea what she was saying; all of this was pouring out. She was trying to save them, the Flim Flam brothers, and herself. She had to do whatever it took to fix her mistakes; the young filly then continued her speech, "All I'm saying is that turning younger isn't going to solve your problems or make you better. If you drink that potion and all you think about is yourself, all you're doing will end up the same way you are now or worse off. Look at yall now and tell me, are ya willing to sacrifice your souls for a few more years?"
The ponies paused, then came a loud crack as ponies started tossing the vials to the ground one by one as they marched to Silver Shill and demanded their bits back.
Silver Shill squeaked, trying to tell ponies to drink the potion and how the little filly was crazy. Still, they weren't listening as they took their bits back, and the stallion desperately tried to tell them to stop. The colts just looked down into the crowd in shock at what was happening. Seeing that she had stopped the madness, Granny Smith stomped down from the stage, tears in her eyes as she looked over at Flim and Flam, then snapped, "Ya happy now!?"
Flim lowered his head, seeming to be looking guilty and apologetic as he stammered, "W... we're sorry...we….we didn't me…."
But Granny Smith honestly didn't care, having shared her darkest secrets and feelings with many strangers. She shoved a hoof into his chest and cried out. "Just shut up! Go to Zecora, take the cure, and never come back, ya hear?" She then walked off down the road, still crying as she headed to the pool, hoping that she did enough to save everypony.
Granny Smith eventually found herself at the true pool again, looking down at her reflection in the water. The small chubby face of a young school filly stared back with a tear-stricken face and looked somewhat defeated. She just stood there crying and still feeling miserable. How could she forgive herself? Did she fail to keep the secret of the pool?
The filly threw her head back and exclaimed, "Spirit, I'm sorry! I failed and ruined everything! I put my selfish desires first, and now everypony knows about the pool!"
The Spirit sprung forth from the pool in its pure majesty, with its dozens of heads now looking downward as they spoke in unison. "Granny Smith, we must apologize for our behavior; you not only proved that we were wrong, but we must hold trust with ponies."
"Huh? I... I'm confused!" Granny asked, looking baffled as the Spirit bowed their heads, "We no longer feel that taking the lives of those you call the Flim Flam brothers is necessary. Your words on how this pool will curse those who drink from it ensured that nopony will fall victim to it, and you even put your own heart on the line. In turn, you were willing to sacrifice your own life. You have proven we were wrong not to trust you."
"I don't deserve this! I have destroyed everything! I ruined the chance to stop the rivalry between the Apples and Pears! I swindled ponies and lied! I did it all because I want to believe I'm making it up for how I almost destroyed my son's marriage! How could I ever forgive myself!" Granny shouted, standing there with her chest heaving. The words came out like a stream of hot coals from her mouth. The whole truth of how she felt now lay to bear in front of this god-like being.
The Spirit paused, looking down at all the faces having a confused expressions on them as they continued to explain, "You have done more in the last few days than we have in the last ten thousand years. You are starting the healing process and have made new friends. Be proud of your accomplishments."
"I…I don't feel accomplished; despite everything, the ponies of Ponyville are gonna go crazy seeking these waters!?" Granny Smith responded rather frantically, knowing her little speech only bought them time to find a way to stop the ponies of Ponyville from going crazy.
"Oh my, dear, please do not fear," Granny Smith looked around and saw Zecora slowly trotting over and pulling her into a hug. The young filly nuzzled into her girlfriend's body, loving the warmth and security washing over her. Granny Smith then looked upward with tears still streaming down her face. The zebra then smiled as she whispered, "Hush now, my dear, there's no reason to shed a tear."
The filly whimpered as she nuzzled into Zecora's lap; she just wanted to lay there for as long as she possibly could with only the sounds of crickets chirping and wind hitting the water. The little filly looked upward and whispered, "Hey, Zecora, did ya turn those idiot brothers back to normal?"
"Yes, they have been given the cure, and they did feel bad for their deceit, I can assure you," Zecora responded with a smug grin.
"And the ponies who took their tonic?" Granny Smith asked, starting to feel a bit better, seeing things were returning to normal.
"Yes, and you did good, giving them a good talking, too," The zebra explained. "Many agree, they may have felt better physically, but deep down, they were in agony."
Seeing that she did save the souls of everypony in Ponyville, Granny got up on all fours; feeling more confident, she decided it was time to finish her conversation with the Spirit. She trotted to the pool's bank and asked, "So...what now?"
The Spirit raised itself over the waters once more and said, "Now, we will return you to your old age once more before you touch these waters. However, due to your bravery, we decided to bestow you with a choice: you can stay as you are now or turn back into a young adult. Whatever you desire will be yours."
Granny Smith paused so she could stay as a foal and restart her life as she was previously thinking, or relive her life as a young adult and maybe try having a real relationship with Zecora...or should she return to her old age? And live out her days humbled? Granny Smith wasn't sure as she looked upward with a blush on her cheeks and admitted, "I don't know…."
Zecora walked up next to the filly and suggested, "if I can object, make your decision without all that past regret. You can't absolve the past; that's true, but what happens now and in the future is up to you."
The temptation to stay as a young filly, a young adult, started to well up within Granny Smith. But she paused to reflect on everypony else...ponies like Golden Delicious or the hundreds of other old ponies in Ponyville that she knew. "But what about my other friends? What about everypony else? It wouldn't be fair…." She looked down at the reflection of the water and sighed, "as much as I would love to restart my life or try again as a young adult…. I wouldn't feel right being the only one to have been given a second chance."
Zecora stood over her with a gentle smile, "this is a second chance, you see, to heal the wounds between the Pears and Apples; believe me."
The zebra hugged the filly close to her chest, with Granny now smothered by the striped coat of her marefriend. She then felt her mane being brushed gently as Zecora whispered, "I'm afraid I'm not thinking straight as of late. If you become old again, my dear, I fear our time together will be cut short."
Granny Smith took a deep breath and realized what she wanted; she looked up at Zecora with a smile. "Hey, I ain't going anywhere fast! But I get your points...and I think I know what I want!"
She then took off the cute little scout uniform she was wearing and hoofed it over to her marefriend. She took a few steps into the water as the water rushed around her, and she started to age, her young body growing taller, her mane growing outward again. Granny Smith closed her eyes and winced as her mussels and body grew up and more pronounced, but it hurt like hell, with her entire body feeling like it was on fire. When she opened her eyes, she looked downward at her reflection, seeing a young mare no older than twenty-five with her lush mane now all over her head and her tail dripping into the pool.
Granny Smith slowly trotted out of the pool, and seeing Zecora's bedroom eyes; she couldn't help but blush, knowing she was a young sexy mare again. She then whispered, "S...so...um...Guess who's back?"
Zecora then rushed her, placing a kiss on her lips, and the two held each other close in their embrace. They stood there making out, and Granny Smith held Zecora close. She fell in love with her husband before he died, and this felt exactly like that. A second chance…
Granny Smith came off from the embrace with a playful smile. "So, that's it, huh? We're gonna make a real miracle tonic?"
"That's right, you see, I have a plan to make a true miracle tonic, and it will be free!" Zecora explained as she and Granny Smith walked away from the pool, chatting about the future like excited school fillies.
The Spirit watching the pool with all its heads, smiled at the couple and whispered, "Thank...you...Granny Smith and Zecora, we leave you with the pool in your hooves." Then the creature dissipated in a mist and disappeared.
Granny Smith felt a chill go down her spine as she looked back towards the pool but saw only the sun's rays reflecting off the surface. She smiled, seeing the spirits held bondage there, and finally moved on to the afterlife as she whispered, "don't worry, we'll keep your pool safe. Scouts honor."