//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 // Story: Apple Pie // by Sky Strider //------------------------------// Applejack returned to the hospital the next morning. As she walks through the door, she is met by the doctor that she talked to the night before. “Hello Applejack.” he says to her. “Hey.. How’s she doin’” Applejack asks him. His look turns to slight sadness, “She.. Slipped into a Coma, in the night.” he tells her. She puts a hoof over her mouth, speechless for the moment, with tears welling up in her eyes. “I’m sorry..” the doctor says to her, “We’ll be monitoring her for the next few weeks, she may wake up.” Applejack nods sadly “can ah go in t’ see her?” she asks. “Sure.” the doctor says, walking to Pinkie’s room. Applejack follows him. When they get to Pinkie’s room, she trots ahead of him. Applejack looks at Pinkie, laying there, she just looks like she’s asleep. Applejack nuzzles her cheek. “Ah told ya sugar cube.. Ah’m here bright and early.” she says quietly. The doctor walks out of the room to attend to business elsewhere. Applejack stays with Pinkie the entire day, talking to her every so often. A doctor comes in much later on. “Applejack? Its nearly midnight, You should head home.” he tells her. “We’ll keep a watchful eye on her, don’t worry.” “Alright..” she answers him, She nuzzles Pinkie, telling her the same thing she had before. Then leaves, heading home. Applejack has to go out of town the next day to deliver an order of apple pies, fritters, tarts and caramel apples, to Canterlot for a banquet. So she is unable to visit Pinkie in the hospital. That doesn’t stop her from worrying about her through the whole train ride. She paces back and forth in the train car she is assigned, thinking about anything, and nearly everything that could go wrong at the hospital. ‘ah really hope Pinkie is okay..’ she thinks to herself. ‘what if something goes wrong, what if she wakes up and ah’m not there.. What if..’ she stops pacing and sits in one of the seats, starting to cry because of what she just thought. One of the train attendants comes in the car to check on her and sees her crying. “Are you okay miss?” he asks slowly walking up to her. Applejack rubs her eyes with her foreleg, “yeah ah’m alright..” she tells him. “what is wrong? If you don’t mind me asking.” he asks her. “one of my friends is in the hospital..” she tells him. “Oh.. Well I’m sorry to hear that, I hope she does okay” he smiles lightly. “yeah.. Me too.” she says. “Well since everything seems to be alright here, I’ll just be on my way.” he tells her, then starts heading for the door. Applejack sighs when he leaves, just wishing she could be in the hospital visiting Pinkie. About a half hour later, the train starts slowing down, and a voice comes over the loudspeaker in all the cars. “We are now arriving at our destination, Canterlot, Thank you for choosing ETS, the best train service in all of Equestria.” “finally..” Applejack says out loud with a sigh. She pushes her desert cart out of the train and heads toward the castle garden trying to get there as fast as she can without losing any of the deserts. As she is approaching the castle, one of the guards stops her. “Halt” he says “Hello there..” Applejack replies. “What is this cart for.” he asks her. “Ah was asked by the princess herself to provide a selection of sweets for the banquet today.” she tells him reaching into her saddlebag and pulling out a scroll, “here is the letter she sent to me as proof.” He pulls the letter away from her with magic and reads it. “Very well then, follow me please.” he says giving the letter back to her. Applejack lets him get ahead of her so she can push the cart. The guard leads her to the castle ball room which has a door that leads out to the courtyard. “Thanks” Applejack tells the guard, bowing to him slightly. “Not a problem.” he says to her, then leaves. Applejack begins transferring the sweets from her cart to the tables. It takes a couple of hours, but when she’s done she sighs with relief. Taking the cart back to the train station, she leaves it in the main building. And boards the train for Ponyville. By the time the train arrives at Ponyville station, its already dark, but she heads to the hospital anyway to see if they’ll let her see Pinkie. “Can ah please see her.. For just a minute.” she pleads with one of the workers behind the front desk. “I’m sorry miss but I just cant let you- “ she’s stopped by the doctor that Applejack had talked to before. “its fine, let her through.” he says to the mare behind the desk. “Alright, you can go through, Only for a few minutes.” she says. “that’s fine,” Applejack tells her then she looks at the doctor, “thank you..” she says to him. “not a problem, go on through.” he says smiling slightly. Applejack walks passed him, and goes to Pinkie’s room. She smiles warmly, happy to be visiting Pinkie again. She nuzzles Pinkie, “ah’m really sorry Pinkie, ah wasn’t here all day to day, the princess needed me to deliver some sweets to a banquet..Ah’m sure you can understand that right?.. Well ah hope you’re having sweet dreams Pinkie.. Ah have to go now.. Ah’ll see you tomorrow.” she says, nuzzling her again. Then heading out of the room. As she walks passed the front desk she stops, “thanks again for letting me through.” she says to the doctor who was still standing there making idle conversation with the mare behind the desk, “Not a problem Applejack, Not a problem at all.” he tells her. Applejack heads out of the hospital, and towards home again, worrying about Pinkie. ‘ah really hope she wakes up soon..’ she thinks to herself looking up at the stars. The stars seem to form the shape of Pinkie’s smiling face. Applejack starts crying and talking out loud to herself. “please.. Please wake up Pinkie.. Ah just want to see you smile..” she says Picking up her pace a bit she makes it home and goes to bed. Though she has trouble actually sleeping.