Ah can’t believe Ah got grounded the day of the Summer Sun Celebration. How was Ah supposed to know the hay was that flammable? It’s not like Ah tried to burn down the barn…
Ah just wanted to see if Ah could be a firepony.
The young filly pondered more on her situation, her thoughts preventing any form of rest. The sun had yet to rise, but the moon’s light was strong enough to hinder her efforts to sleep.
Ah’m not even a bit tired… Granny Smith’s probably still asleep…
She lay in bed for many minutes, waiting to be whisked into the realm of the dreaming… only to toss and turn as her mind refused to shut down. After one last feeble attempt, she quietly walked down towards the kitchen.
Maybe some leftover pie will help me sleep…
However, after her second slice, she felt she could no longer eat any more. Boredom once again nipping at her hooves, she walked in and out all the other rooms, searching for anything to do, anything to keep her mind off of that missed opportunity to see the Princess raise the sun…
And find something she did: on the wall in front of her, there hung one of her sister’s lassos.
Hey, maybe Ah can try to use it! Ah can just imagine: Apple Bloom, best lasso pony in Equestria!
After a little difficulty in taking the lasso down from the hook, she picked up the rope with her mouth and galloped to the door.
Ah can’t break anything if Ah do it outside!
She quickly decreased her pace when she remembered Granny Smith. A lack of the sound of hoofsteps, however, confirmed her thought:
Good, she’s still asleep.
After slowly shutting the door behind her, Apple Bloom galloped forward, almost tripping over her own hooves in excitement. Eager to start, she turned her head from side to side…
And the lasso failed to stay in the air.
Maybe Ah’m doing it wrong…
Oh! Ah know what to do!
And that’s when she began to twirl.
Spinning and spinning…
Spinning and spinning…
Spinning as she tried to get the lasso in the air, and she noticed herself quickly becoming dizzy.
Nah, Ah have to keep trying! Ah can do this!
Twirling ever faster, she ignored the dull pain in her head… and then she noticed that the loop of rope was starting to rise, at first only a couple inches off the ground but slowly gaining height. In her excitement, she continued to spin at an increasing speed.
As luck would have it, the rushing air began to tickle her nostrils. Unfortunately for Apple Bloom, her momentum would not let her stop, and the dizziness would not let her front hooves reach her muzzle.
And still, the itch grew with each passing millisecond as she struggled to contain the inevitable…
Ah… ah… ah…
AH-CHOO!
The lasso flew out of her grip with remarkable speed as Apple Bloom crashed down muzzle-first to the ground. As she quickly recovered, she saw the rope travel quite far, and to her dismay it landed on a frantic pony’s cart.
“Oh, no, I’m going to miss the celebration!” the pony cried out as he sped up. Apple Bloom simply stared in disbelief as she watched him gallop away.
Aw, great! Applejack’s gonna ground me even more if she finds out Ah lost one of her lassos!
But wait! What if Ah get it back before she returns?
Apple Bloom quickly glanced around in case anyone was watching before making that final decision.
“Hey, mister, wait up!”
“I want to go to the Summer Sun Celebration! They told me the Wonderbolts are going to be there!”
“You’re not going! It’s too early, and you never know what could happen at this time. I have to go to work now, and I can’t be there with you. Just stay here until I finish my shift.”
“But Moooom! It’s going to start soon! I want t—”
“And I said no! What if something were to happ—”
“You never let me do anything! I’m not a little foal anymore! I can go out on my own, and that’s what I’m going to do!”
With that, the orange filly mounted her scooter and rode away, her tiny wings propelling her forward.
“SCOOTALOO!”
No, she was too far away to hear… not that she would have responded, anyway. The mare hurriedly galloped after her filly, but she was nowhere near fast enough to catch up. Tears welled up in her eyes as the dust cloud slowly began to fade, to disappear into nothingness. On instinct, she opened up her wings… only to be struck by that all-too-familiar searing pain, reminding her of her condition.
I just want you to be safe. Why can’t you understand that, Scootaloo? He would still be here today if he had been more careful…
Even more tears arose as she thought about him, that one stallion she had loved oh so long ago…
He had that same indomitable spirit you have, Scootaloo. I don’t want to lose you like I lost him. Even I couldn’t fix him up…
I just want you to be safe.
She continued to gallop, attempting to follow the tire tracks Scootaloo had left behind. Slowly, the tracks began to fade as the merciless wind picked up, but the mare paid it no heed:
She needed to find her filly, and nothing would stop her.
Scootaloo kept riding as the moon provided just enough light to see the path in front of her. The soft glow of the moonlight and the cool wind began to calm her down, but her thoughts only brought her more despair.
What have I done? I can’t believe I just did that. Why? Why did I do that? She only wants to keep me safe.
But I’m not a foal anymore! I can’t even go outside unless she’s there with me. She’s just too scared about what happened to Dad!
That last part, however, struck a nerve inside the filly. She began to recall her own loneliness… how, for the longest time, the only pony she had was her mother…
Is that how Mom is feeling now? Did I make her feel lonely?
That’s it. I have to go b—
“Mom, Dad, where are you? Rarity!” The small unicorn couldn’t spot the rest of her family with all the ponies scrambling to get away. Maybe she shouldn’t have begged her parents to take her to the Summer Sun Celebration.
Argh! I just had to go to the little fillies room. Why does this always happen to me? Can’t I have a br—
THUD
Right before her eyes, a creature unlike any other dropped from the sky and hit the ground in front of her.
“WATCH OUT!”
In that same moment, a pegasus filly on a scooter skidded to avoid this newcomer, crashing instead into the young unicorn.
“Owww…”
“I’m so sorry! I wasn’t paying attention. Are you okay?”
Fortunately, neither filly was injured, but the ruckus had been enough to almost wake this unidentified being. What did wake him up, however, occurred only seconds later.
“Yes, Ah got the lasso!”
The pony hauling the cart swerved hastily to evade the unnamed figure on the ground, and unfortunately, the filly on top of the vehicle was not prepared.
“AAAAHHHHHHHHH!” Apple Bloom shot out with substantial speed, hurtling towards the ground…
But instead, she landed on something soft, something alive, something… that rose up not a second later.
“Wha– Who’s there?” The creature looked around for the cause of the pain in his chest. The three fillies, startled to witness such a reaction from this unknown “animal,” all leapt in fright and held themselves close together.
“Wh-Where is this?” All of a sudden, a searing pain shot through the creature’s head as he struggled to remember.
After a couple of tense seconds, Sweetie Belle worked up the courage to talk to this new type of animal. “E-Excuse me, mister? Are you alright?”
A talking… pony? A kid? I don’t… But it’s impolite not to respond.
“I… I think I’m okay, I just… I’m lost, maybe…”
He doesn’t seem so bad, the unicorn filly thought, her confidence slowly rising.
“Well, mister, my name is Sweetie Belle, and this is…” She nudged Scootaloo and Apple Bloom, who broke their blank stares and introduced themselves.
“Nice to meet you, girls,” the creature replied as he stretched out his right arm. “My name is T… Topo…Toko…” Instinctively, his arms once again rose to his head as the splitting headache returned.
“Mister, are you okay?”
“Yeah… Yeah, my head just hurts a bit…”
“If you don’t mind me asking,” Apple Bloom interjected, “what type of pony are you?”
“I’m not a pony. I’m a human.”
A human, that much I know. But who am I? What is my name?
“If only… my name… I can’t remember…”
“Hyoo-man. I haven’t heard that type of pony before,” responded Sweetie Belle. “I know, how about we give you a new name until you remember?”
“That sounds like a great idea! How about Super McAwesome?”
Crickets chirped in the background as Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom silently rejected Scootaloo’s suggestion.
“What about Tom? It’s a simple name, and Ah’m sure you’ll get used to it in no time!”
“That’s a great idea, Apple Bloom! What do you think?”
“I… I guess that would work. Now, I d—”
GRUMBLE
“Wow, was that your stomach? You must be really hungry! Here, let’s go find you something to eat! I know this pla—” Sweetie Belle began to lead the way out of the bustle when Apple Bloom blocked her path.
“No store’ll be open with all this happening. Why don’t we go to my place at Sweet Apple Acres? Ah know we’ve got some leftover pie!”
“That sounds good,” Tom replied sheepishly as he slowly stood up, towering over the fillies. “Hey, why is everybody running around like this, anyway?”
“Oh, it’s just that some evil pony has come and is going to make the night last forever,” the unicorn responded.
“Oh… wait, how is that possible?” Tom pointed his head towards the sky, and indeed it was a dark night with the moon as the only source of light.
“I don’t know. She must have powerful magic, I guess, but she looks very scary.” Sweetie Belle began to shiver slightly as she remembered the demonic image of Nightmare Moon. Tom took no notice, lost in his own thoughts as he processed the new information.
A pony with magical powers? Powers… Why does that sound so familiar?
“Ah know a shortcut! Come on, quit dilly-dallying!”
Apple Bloom hastily galloped towards a thick grove of trees, adeptly dodging several low branches in succession.
“So, where exactly are we going again?” Scootaloo was having little trouble keeping up on her scooter despite the uneven surface, but Sweetie Belle and the human seemed to be struggling to keep up the pace.
“You’ve never heard of Sweet Apple Acres? It’s where Ah live with Applejack, Big Mac, and Gr—”
GRUMBLE
“Wow, your stomach sure likes to growl, Tom!”
“That… wasn’t me.”
“Well, if that wasn’t you, then wh—”
CRACK
The sky had been so dark that the group had failed to notice the looming thunderclouds. The ponies and the human did notice, however, when a sudden bolt of lightning crashed down behind them.
“AAAHHHHHHH!”
The fillies scurried forward at incredible speeds, leaving Tom behind as he tried to comprehend how they could gallop so fast.
“Girls, stop! We have to stick tog—”
And then he saw it. The three fillies were frozen in place as they noticed it. A huge tree loomed over Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo.
But no, at first, it wasn’t the tree that had caught all four pairs of eyes. No, the bright flash and the resounding crack was what had drawn their attention.
Only then did terror overtake the three fillies as they watched the trunk break in half…
And as the top part hurtled straight towards them.
“Girls, run away! Don’t just stand there!”
The cry fell upon deaf ears: the three fillies were paralyzed with fear, eyes wide open as they watched the trunk travel closer… and closer… and closer…
And Tom was too far away. Best case scenario, he would reach the spot a split second too late.
But he refused to acknowledge it. It mattered not that he knew nothing about these ponies: they were the first ones who had talked to him, who had offered to help him… and they were only kids.
Kids whose destinies had been written, whose lives were on the verge of an abrupt end.
And still he continued to run, each muscle in his legs burning as his feet struck the mottled grass.
And still he watched as the tree made its way down, almost a couple of feet left before that decisive blow…
When Tom threw himself forward, arm extended, his hand only just reaching Sweetie Belle’s tail…
And a nearly transparent barrier arose around the three fillies as they closed their eyes and braced themselves for the impact.
…
…
“Hey…
“Am Ah dead?”
“I don’t know, Apple Bloom. I’m afraid to open my eyes.”
“You scaredy-foals. I already opened my eyes. Come on, look.”
Sweetie Belle and Apple Bloom obeyed, and they soon began to take in their surroundings:
Half a tree stood in front of them. The other half was nowhere to be seen.
The clouds atop the trio were white and fluffy.
The sun was slowly rising from the horizon, swirls of color painting the sky.
“We’re okay! But h—”
“TOM!”
The human lay still on the ground, unconscious and barely breathing.
“We have to help him!”
“Let’s get him to a house!”
“There’s no houses near here, and the barn’s still too far away! We can’t carry him all the way there!”
“What about that place?” Scootaloo pointed to a nearby dilapidated structure bearing a resemblance to a tree house.
“That’ll have to do. Quickly, does anyone know a doctor?”
“My mom’s a doctor! She’ll be able to help him!” With that, Scootaloo jumped on her scooter and sped away at a phenomenal speed.
“Sweetie Belle, help me pull him up there!”
The two fillies each grabbed a corner of his shirt and began to pull him closer and closer to the treehouse. The human began to slide inch by inch, but they were getting more tired by the second.
“Come on! Put your flank into it!”
Don’t worry, Tom. Help is on the way.
That’s right… my mom.
I just left her back there.
I’m a terrible filly. I don’t d—
No, stop thinking like that! Tom’s in danger, and there’s no time to waste!
Scootaloo directed all her willpower to her wings, flapping them as fast as possible. She was already halfway back when she noticed a pegasus galloping toward her, the orange hue all too familiar to the filly.
“Mom! What are you d—”
“Oh, Scootaloo, you’re safe! I was so scared!” Scootaloo’s mom held her filly close as small tears streamed down her muzzle.
“You’re safe…”
And the filly herself began to cry as she saw that mottled face, as she recognized the damage she had done.
“Mom… I’m… I’m sorry for disobeying. I-I should h—”
“Shhh… I know, Scootaloo. I know you didn’t mean to. I just g-get so scared sometimes that something will happen to you…”
The two ponies held that embrace for what seemed like forever… but no, it couldn’t have lasted that long, because Scootaloo still had a mission. The filly quickly wiped away her tears as her determination was restored.
“Mom, we need to go, quick! There’s somepony who needs your help!”
In less than a second, her mom’s expression hardened, her tone much more professional as she replied.
“Where is this pony?”
“Come on, follow me!”
The filly scooted along as her mom followed. Scootaloo took care not to ride too fast, while her mom made all the effort to not fall behind.
If there is somepony in need of help, I will be there, or my name isn’t Faith Remedy!
“Granny Smith? Apple Bloom? We’re back!”
Applejack and Big Mac had finally returned to Sweet Apple Acres. The Nightmare Moon incident had kept the mare occupied all night, and the stallion had been busy calming down many of the ponies in the same time frame. Upon arrival, they were met by the voice of a stunned old mare.
“W-Wha? Now then, Applejack, don’t ya know better than ta wake yer elders up like that?”
“Oh, sorry, Granny Smith. Ah forgot how early it still is.” Applejack smiled sheepishly before walking up to Apple Bloom’s room, taking care not to wake up the filly. She approached the untidy bed, ready to take a small peek…
Only to notice the lack of a certain pony on it.
Looks like she’s awake.
“Apple Bloom!” The mare tried to shout as quietly as possible as she traversed through the living room, the kitchen, the bathroom…
She’s not here, either?
“Hey, Big Mac, did you see Apple Bloom?”
“Nope… Wait, she’s not here?”
Fear began to seep into Applejack’s mind as she continued to search, but it was all in vain: Apple Bloom was not in the barn.
“Granny, did you see Apple Bloom?”
SNORE
This time, the old mare didn’t even respond, locked away in her own dreams. Before Applejack spoke again, however, she noticed one very crucial item missing from the wall opposite her.
She took my lasso?
“Gosh darn it! Winona!”
A brown and white collie playfully rushed up to Applejack, licking her face multiple times before the mare stopped her.
“Winona, Apple Bloom’s gone missing! Can you find her?”
The dog barked in response and began to sniff the air, all as Applejack’s expression morphed from worry to anger and back to worry. Winona lowered her nose to the ground, making small circles and other odd shapes before her entire body stiffened.
RUFF, RUFF!
Big Mac and Applejack galloped right behind the dog as she shot out of the barn, as she continued to run faster and faster…
Until she stopped abruptly. Both ponies skidded to a halt as they noticed the tracks in front of Winona, as if something large had been dragged on the ground. The small set of hoofprints right next to her was all the proof Applejack needed.
“Come on, Winona! Let’s get her!”
Winona followed the trail carved out in the earth, and Applejack had only one thing on her mind as her legs propelled her forward:
I hope you’re okay, sis.
And if you are, then you are so grounded when we return.
It took Applejack and Big Mac less than a couple minutes to reach the dilapidated structure. It took them longer to understand the situation.
“Big sis, Ah can explain. You see, we w—”
“He’s over here!”
“Scootaloo! You’re b—”
“Everypony, get back!” Faith pushed the three fillies away from the human as Applejack and Big Mac stepped aside. In an instant, she touched a hoof onto Tom’s forehead and began mumbling to herself.
“Slight fever…”
She moved her hoof onto his chest as she dug out a small pad from her saddlebag. After several seconds of dragging her hoof on Tom’s skin, she thanked Celestia when she found that familiar beating.
“Heart rate’s slow… Breaths short…
“Tell me, what was he doing before this happened?”
“We were running towards Sweet Apple Acres an-and a lightning bolt struck a tree and it was about to fall on us and then we closed our eyes and when we opened them the tree was gone and he was on the floor an—”
“That’s all I need.”
Seems like magic overexertion, but I don’t see a horn. Faith quickly placed the pad on his forehead, and for a second it seemed like she would get a response. The mare, however, was quickly interrupted.
“Excuse me, Miss, my name is App—”
“Hush! I need to concentrate!”
Well, no need to be rude about it! Applejack gave Faith an exasperated look, but she ignored it for the moment. Tom suddenly started to tremble, slowly at first but pronounced enough to strike fear in the doctor’s mind. Once again, she placed a hoof on his chest, and her expression turned much graver.
He’s in shock. If this continues, he might die! I can’t let that happen!
“Get farther back, everypony!” Faith hastily placed both her hooves on top of his heart, and she closed her eyes as she began to mutter.
I haven’t done this in a while. Let’s hope I have enough strength to fix him up.
“Ex intimo mea anima, excite mea potestatem sanare egentium.”
Instantly, her hooves began to brighten in a white aura that engulfed the human. From where she was standing, Applejack couldn’t help but notice the positive energy that radiated from Faith.
That’s… amazing. It feels so… happy and… warm…
What she didn’t notice was Faith’s pained expression, which she tried to hide as she felt her own energy draining. After a couple seconds, sweat began to trickle down her muzzle, down her forelegs as she struggled to stay awake…
And that was when every pony saw it: a large circle of light, vaguely resembling a clock, appeared below Tom, albeit only for a short second.
Faith suddenly moved her forelegs back, and the light died down as every other pony in the treehouse gazed in awe. Faith was sitting down and panting as if she had galloped a marathon, but Tom looked… different. He was no longer shaking, and his expression seemed… at peace, almost.
“MOM! Are you alright!”
“Y-Yes, Scootaloo, I’m fine. As for y-your friend, he’ll be okay after a while. I’m going to have to check up on him for a couple of days before I can be sure, though. I’m sorry, what was your name again?”
“Applejack.”
“Applejack, and you are?”
“Big Macintosh, but everypony calls me Big Mac.”
“Big Macintosh, Applejack, could you help me bring him back to my place? And Applejack, I’m sorry for cutting you off back then.”
“Oh, it’s no problem, as long as everything’s fixed. This little missy, however, has a lot of explaining to do.”
Apple Bloom wore an uneasy smile as she faced her sister.
Ah’m so grounded, aren’t I?