As we trotted towards Ponyville General Hospital, Rarity asked me to explain to her exactly what had happened and how it had started. We had a back-and-forth about possible strategies, but I insisted that the two of them got the drop on me and that given the fact there were two of them and one of me that I didn't have much of a chance against them. Sweetie Belle was still helping me along and gave me a curious glance as I related my story. She and her sister expressed sympathy for me, given the fact I was still limping along and my right eye had swollen shut.
"So what do you propose to do about it?" asked my "sister." She meant it almost rhetorically, but I chose to answer anyway.
"I want revenge, Rarity -- I want them to suffer as much as I did," I replied darkly. I crinkled my face for added emphasis, but this caused Rarity to chuckle at my expression before she realized I was trying to be serious. Her smile disappeared as she tried to explain pony custom to me. Sweetie Belle seemed to nod her head in agreement with my statement, even going so far as to softly say, "Mm-hmm."
"That's not the way we do things around here, Aurora -- if you seek revenge upon them, they'd want to return the favor. Think about it like this -- you don't want to perpetuate a cycle of escalating violence --"
"But Miss Rarity! They hurt me! What should I do? Where I came from, the only way to deal with ponies like that --"
"Is to what, darling? You don't propose to kill them, do you?" she asked in exasperation. I hung my head at this question. "Aurora! You shouldn't even think such things! Killing them won't solve your problem -- and I'm sure you wouldn't want to be put to death for it, now would you?"
"No, Miss Rarity, I wouldn't," I replied glumly. "But -- but -- how am I supposed to deal with them? Telling their parents probably won't do any good, except to make them angrier with me."
"Why do you say that? What makes you think so?" Rarity asked, worry evident on her face. I was beginning to regret even broaching this subject, but the pain had angered me and I wanted justice -- or perhaps retribution -- they deserved it!
"They'd find out who snitched on them and try to get even -- thus perpetuating even more violence," I replied. "Sometimes the only way a bully can understand the fact that they messed around with the wrong pony is for them to get a very strong taste of their own medicine," I intoned solemnly. "And if that means they get hurt a little, then so be it." My dark statement caused both Rarity and Sweetie Belle to gasp in shock before they shot me a very stern gaze.
"Aurora! I'll not hear such talk any further! We will address their parents and resolve the matter peaceably," the fashionista admonished. We trotted a little further in relative silence, reaching the hospital in short order. As we entered, a nurse spotted me immediately and trotted off to get a doctor. I was amazed by how quickly they addressed my needs, placing me on a gurney and wheeling me to another room for examination. My "sisters" accompanied me, asking if I was going to be all right.
"She'll be fine, Miss Rarity -- her condition is not serious enough to be considered life-threatening. I'm sure just a little magic healing and she'll be good as new in just a few days," the doctor replied cheerfully. He turned to me and scanned my body with his magic, humming and muttering to himself, writing a few notes down on a pad of paper. Shortly he finished his initial evaluation and asked me a few questions.
"So, who did this to you?" he asked, his tone indicating a lack of emotion. I was taken aback by his seeming lack of compassion, but went ahead with my explanation. "Hmm, it's not like those two to do this sort of thing -- from what I've heard, they usually limit their actions to verbal assault, not physical blunt force trauma. I'll be sure to inform our billing department to send the bill for your medical care directly to Filthy Rich and Silver Spoon's father," he commented, adding a dry chuckle to the end of his assessment.
"Can you recommend a good lawyer for me? I want them to pay more than just medical bills," I intoned almost stridently, my anger not having receded in the slightest.
"Aurora, darling, I know of a few good attorneys -- don't be too surprised if Mr. Rich hasn't already retained them for a defense," Rarity stated, preempting a response from the doctor. I hung my head again in disappointment.
"It'd be just like him to do that, wouldn't it?" I asked rhetorically, the words dripping with venom as I pictured the wealthy stallion doing just that, noting that if I were in a similar situation, I'd do the same thing. I tried to think of another strategy while the doctor returned to using some magic to stabilize my condition. I felt the pain beginning to recede, then felt something placed against my right eye.
"Keep that patch in place for a few days, your eye should be healed by then. Rarity, you should take her to see the dentist -- I'm believe she may be able to help her with her broken and missing teeth. Miss Aurora, I'm sorry there isn't more I can do to help, but please feel free to return for a follow-up," he offered warmly.
"Thank you, doctor," I said as I got onto my hooves. "Miss Rarity, I wonder if the dentist can fix my teeth," I added as I ran my tongue along the gap where the missing ones were. My anger began to build again as I tasted the saltiness of the wound.
"She's quite talented, Aurora -- just trust me on that," the doctor stated with an air of confidence. "I don't trust my dental care to anypony else."
"Thank you for putting my mind at ease, doctor," I stated much more cheerfully. My "sisters" turned to leave at this point.
"Doctor Stable, thank you once again for your help," Rarity offered warmly. "Aurora, darling, let's get going -- I'm sure we can catch Minuette if we hurry."
"I thought she was called Colgate," I noted softly, eliciting surprised looks from the others. My eyes widened a little as I realized my mistake. "Um, sorry, forget what I just said," I offered as I struck a sheepish grin. The fashionista gave me a sidelong glance before motioning me to follow her. As we entered the main hallway, another medical team rushed by us, wheeling a gurney very swiftly and shouting for everypony to give way. A frazzled-looking stallion rushed by, but it was what he was wearing that caught my attention. He appeared to be smartly dressed, his suit looking like something a serious designer would create.
"Um, Miss Rarity, is that who I think it is?" I asked as I did a double-take to make sure my eyes weren't deceiving me.
"Filthy Rich, yes," she answered. Another nurse trotted by swiftly, but I was able to catch her attention. I just had to make sure.
"Um, nurse, who's on that gurney?" I asked.
"Diamond Tiara, I believe, why?" she asked in response, causing us to gasp.
"What happened to her?" I asked, my tone registering disbelief. Before the answer could come, another medical team rushed by us, followed by a distraught mare.
"My baby! Please help!" she practically wailed.
"What happened?" I asked aloud, perhaps rhetorically, perhaps not. As if to answer before anypony else could, Silver Spoon's mother practically wailed the answer to any who cared to listen. It broke my heart to hear such sadness in her voice, though.
"My baby! A piano fell on top of my baby!" she cried as she hurriedly followed the team wheeling the gurney with said filly into the ICU. This exclamation caused both me and my doppelganger to gasp audibly -- Rarity gasped as well, though more silently than us. She recovered her composure quickly, much to my surprise.
"Are you happy, now, Aurora, darling?" Rarity asked coldly, glaring harshly at me, though my expression of shock was mute answer to that particular question. It took me a moment or two to gather my wits enough to force out an answer.
"Um, Miss Rarity, I wasn't expecting that -- and no, I'm not happy, even though I suppose I could take a small degree of comfort in the schadenfreude of the situation," I mumbled. The fashionista's reaction to my statement told me all I needed to know. "Um, I'm sorry to say that, but -- let me put it this way, Miss Rarity: if they had attacked Sweetie Belle like that, how would you feel right about now?"
The mare heaved a deep sigh of resignation before striking a more pensive pose. "Your point is taken, Aurora, darling. If they had caused as much damage to my sister as they did you, I believe my anger would have gotten the better of me."
"So you see where I'm coming from, Miss Rarity -- though it gives me no pleasure to know they suffered from their bad karma," I opined matter-of-factly.
"I would hope you're willing to change your attitude towards them, dear," she answered.
"I think Aurora's got a point, though," Sweetie chimed in. "Don't you remember how they used to tease us all the time? You know they still do, don't you, Rarity?"
"It's still not right to wish harm to befall them, but since it would appear that fate has played its part this time, I guess I can't be too upset with you, Aurora. Just don't rub it in -- now's not a good time for that."
"Agreed, Miss Rarity," I replied flatly. More activity flurried past us as the condition of the two fillies seemed to be getting desperate. "Jeez, I hope they don't die because of that," I offered. "Anyway, let's get going to the dentist -- I want my teeth back," I added as I began to grow a little impatient. Rarity held me back with a hoof and shushed me.
"My curiosity has gotten the better of me, Aurora -- we can go to the dentist later. Let's stay and see what happens," she said softly.
"C'mon, sis, I don't wanna stay here any longer! I don't wanna see either of them die!" Sweetie complained, the sadness in her voice quite telling. She gave her best puppy-dog eyes look to her sister in an attempt to persuade her to leave. My expression was one of worry while we continued to wait, listening to the sounds of the medical teams as they worked to save the lives of the fillies.
"I wonder just how badly they got hurt," I mused, almost under my breath as my morbid curiosity took hold. I felt the situation eerily similar to that of watching a train wreck -- unable to look away, but horrified by the result. I watched as Filthy Rich and Silver Spoon's mother came trotting slowly into the waiting room, though relief showed on their faces.
"Are they gonna be all right?" I asked of the two. Both nodded their heads, though their expressions also showed how serious it was. "Um, will they make a full recovery?" I added, receiving a questioning gaze from them.
"And who might you be, to ask such a personal question?" asked the stallion, his gaze hardening at me.
"Your daughter assaulted me without provocation, Mr. Rich," I replied firmly, returning his stare with one of my own.
"My little princess would never do such a horrible thing! You take that back right now!" he demanded stridently. Tears started to well up in the corners of his eyes, but I remained unflinching, hardening my gaze at him.
"It pains me to say this, sir, but yes, she did," I retorted almost angrily. I lifted my eye patch with my right fore-hoof to illustrate my point, causing the stallion to flinch uncomfortably. "I can't believe it myself -- I couldn't believe she would attack me -- sure, she insulted me, but --"
"Look -- I don't know who you are -- you look like her," he stated, pointing at my doppelganger. "If you look so much like somepony else, perhaps she mistook you for her," he offered as I released my patch, letting it return to cover my right eye. I glowered at him momentarily.
"She knows full well who I am -- I am Aurora Belle, twin sister of Sweetie Belle. Surely your daughter has told you about some ponies she might have called the 'Cutie Mark Losers' or something like that?" I asked, checking his expression, noting he chose not to answer. I expounded a bit further with my explanation, drawing a shocked gasp from him.
"I'm -- I'm terribly sorry that happened -- but -- my daughter is in pain herself! She and her friend were on their way back home when a piano fell from the sky and landed on top of them! Please, show a little sympathy for them!"
"Indeed I am, sir -- and I am terribly sorry to hear about what happened to them. As for me, I now need to go to the dentist to have my missing teeth restored, if such a thing is possible," I replied, trying to maintain a respectful tone towards the stallion. "But how would a piano fall from the sky?"
"I don't know -- but I will find out -- and take them for every bit they own!" he growled. He seemed to stare directly at me, though, almost insinuating I had something to do with it. I returned his gaze with a look of shock, then shook my head quickly to answer his unspoken query.
"Miss Rarity, shall we be off now?" I asked as I turned my attention to her. She nodded her head in response, as did Sweetie Belle. "You have my sympathy, Mr. Rich -- I hope your daughter and her friend recover swiftly," I offered before bowing slightly to him.
"Thank you, Aurora -- if there's anything you need, don't hesitate to stop by my house and ask," he responded, flashing a warm smile. I trotted over to my "sisters" and gave the stallion another glance over my shoulder before we left the waiting room and exited the hospital.
"I'm pleased with how you behaved yourself, darling," Rarity offered, flashing me a warm smile. "I'm also pleased he seemed so genuinely interested in your well-being."
"I just hope his sincerity is as genuine as it appeared to be," I opined as a hint of disappointment crept into my voice. My "sister" raised an eyebrow at me at this.
"I've known Filthy Rich for quite some time, Aurora -- and trust me, his word is as good as his bond. He would never make a statement like that if he didn't mean it, darling!" she said, her words offering me a little relief.
The proof is in the pudding, Rarity...
I kept my thoughts to myself as we trotted a bit further to meet up with the dentist. I wasn't exactly sure what to expect of pony dentists, but I hoped she'd be able to help me with my current predicament.