//------------------------------// // Walking Again // Story: Zap Apple Jam // by TheBronyRun //------------------------------// A month had passed since the dragon attack. The Cutie Mark Crusaders confessed to everything, how they had followed Big Mac and Twilight into the Everfree Forest for the fun of it. How they got sidetracked by a cave in a large hill on the trail the couple had taken. How they had gone into the cave and accidently awoken the dragon, who quickly attacked them. Twilight had heard the attack and ran to find out what was going on, only to find the Crusaders running for their lives out of the cave with the dragon following closely. The dragon noticed Twilight and in the end Twilight found herself running side by side with the terrified Crusaders. An then there was the story of how Princess Celestia herself had shown up and stopped the dragon, who was furious at having been thrown to the ground. Princess Celestia had apparently used her magic so powerfully that the dragon had been thrown almost to the other side of Equestria. And then in turn Zecora had also heard the commotion of the dragon attack and had rushed to Ponyville only to find Twilight about to bleed out from her nearly lethal injuries. Zecora had poored a concoction on Twilight that help her blood in so she could survive. And then how Big Mac and carried Twilight and Applejack all the way to the hospital, which was at least two miles away in only about five minutes, a record time. Twilight, despite her terrible pain and lack of the ability to move, had enjoyed being in the hospital. She had gotten to talk to Applejack, and they had truly overcome the incident between them. Big Mac had come to visit every day after they had harvested the Zap Apples, which Applebloom and Granny Smith had eagerly turned into one of their best batches of jam ever. But now, today was the day. The day Twilight could finally get the stiff casts off and walk. She would still have to have cloth bandages, of course, but she would get to walk! To move! It was going to be wonderful! “You ready?” Applejack asked. She was now only wearing a bandage around her stomach, and she would be out in two weeks. “Very, very much.” Twilight replied as she used her magic to give Applejack back her hat. Twilight had used her magic to patch up what little remained of the farmers beloved headwear. Applejack stood up. She still loved being back on her hoofs, since she hadn’t been allowed to walk for the first week either. It wasn’t until after the week that she really appreciated the simple things in life like that. Finally the nursepony came in. “Ready, Ms. Twilight?” “Definitely.” About a half hour later, Twilight was out of her plaster prison and her burnt flesh finally exposed to air. She winced as she say where skin graph after skin graph had been done and where the smaller wounds were beginning to mend. She wished she had the strength to use a healing spell so she could get out of the hospital, but she was just happy she was going to be fine. There was one part Twilight was nervous about, however. Today was the day she was going to take off the bandage over her eye. What was she going to look like? Would she even be able to recognize herself? She glanced uneasily at the small mirror she would look in and see what remained after the bandage was removed. “Alright, Ms. Twilight, I’m going to take the bandage off your face now.” The nursepony announced. “Okay.” Twilight said nervously. Twilight closed her one good eye. The bandage came off. Applejack gasped. For an instant there was a flash of white and blue, and then…it was gone. Carefully Twilight opened her bad eye. Nothing. It was dark. Her bad eye saw….nothing. Twilight swallowed hard at this, and opened her good eye just in time to see the nursepony hold the mirror to her face. The sight Twilight saw was unbelievable. In the mirror, she saw that only small patches of her purple fur remained. She had bald patches all through her mane, and several burns running down the side of her face. Scars were forming all over her. But that all could be fixed with her magic. What couldn’t be fixed, was her grey right eye. She swallowed again as she looked into her lifeless, useless right eye and thought it ironic when a tear came from it. Twilight, you saw this coming. Pull it together. She thought to herself. “Could be worse.” She told her friend. “Twilight I know you. It’s okay to be scared.” Applejack comforted her friend. “I-I know.” Twilight sighed. “What if I start getting funny looks? I really don’t want that.” “Then I will beat up whoever hurts you.” Big Mac said from the doorway. Twilight smiled in surprise. “Hey honey!” Big Mac waved, smiling his sympathy. “Okay, now are you ready to walk?” The nursepony said kindly, setting down the mirror. Twilight sighed again. “Yes.” Slowly she rolled right side up. One cloth bandaged leg after another, she stepped onto the cold plate floor. She stumbled a bit. As she found out, a pony really can lose the ability to walk. She stumbled several times, but every time she regained her balance. It didn’t bother her that she was so clumsy, she could walk again! And though it hurt a bit because the cloth rubbed her stitches, she was still able to flex her muscles and move! It was wonderful! As Applejack watched her friend’s joy at walking, she noticed Big Mac’s eyes. She saw a sight she had never seen in them, a true love. Not a family love, but a true, honoring, adoring love. She saw this and smiled. But at the same time, it confused her. Big Mac and Twilight were complete opposites! How could they be so…perfect for each other? She walked past Twilight to Big Mac. She wanted to hear his opinion on this. “Big Mac, can I talk to you for a minute?” Applejack asked. “Sure thing, sis.” He said. They walked into the hall and Applejack explained her confusion. “I don’t see how you two are so perfect for each other, I mean she’s so bookish and you can barely read!” Big Mac smiled. “Well first of all, sis, I can read very well, thank you. But as to your confusion, look at it like this.” He pulled a jar of the Zap Apple Jam from his saddlebag. “We are like Zap Apple Jam, me and Twilight. Zap apples on their own have too much static electricity on the inside to eat. The other ingredients in the Jam are…well, disgusting without the Zap apples. Twilight is the Zap apples, and I’m the ingredients. Twilight is so wonderful on the inside, but without some help she can’t show the true wonders of her personality. She’s scared and self conscious. As for me, I would still be that failure of a stallion I was two months ago. If I hadn’t had Twilight to help me, I would still be just plain ol’ sugar and stuff. Without me, Twilight would never show her true potential. Together, when we mix, we create a wonderful bond that helps us both be our true selves. We become something worth knowing about. I know that sounds prideful, but Twilight has truly changed my life. We truly are like the ingredients and the Zap apples. In an odd way, we really are Zap Apple Jam.”He finished with a happy grin. “huh.” Applejack said. “That’s something I hope to have one day. If I find a stallion that treats me half as good as you treat Twilight, I will have found a great pony.” She nudged him. “Now, I think it’s about time you answer something for me.” Big Mac said. “How did Twilight know where you were in the Everfree forest?” Applejack smiled. “Do you remember when Twilight and I first really started getting close?” Big Mac nodded. “Well, if you remember, we typically would disappear for hours at a time on the weekends. We discovered that place, while we were being stupid one day and taking a dare from Pinkie Pie to spend an entire three hours in the Everfree. Obviously we did, and we found that beautiful clearing with its pond and stream and spent most of the three hours there. It was a blast! After that it became a spot for us, where we would go quite often. Our friendship grew there as we talked and hung out. The secrets we told there….well…let’s just say they are staying there. It was there that we really became best friends.” Applejack smiled. “We always will be best friends. Which is why I will kill you if you break her heart.” Big Mac smiled. “I certainly won’t be the one to end it if it ever ends, but I somehow doubt it will.” They were interrupted as Twilight stumbled out of the room. I feel like this is a whole new beginning for all three of us. Applejack and Big Mac looked at each other for a second, and then Big back looked over to Twilight. “Yeeeup.”