//------------------------------// // Life as you knew // Story: Differences // by xainkrif //------------------------------// AUTHOR COMMENT: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS A MINOR CLOP SCENE TOWARDS THE END. READER DISCRETION IS ADVISED. My eyes flew open. "I can't breathe." I panted as Fluttershy to stabilize me. "Fluttershy, he's going into shock" yelled Twilight. I felt cold. All I wanted to do was go home. I missed everything that I had left behind. Knowing that wasn't possible right now, I attempted to observe my surroundings. I was in a makeshift room. It wasn't too small, but it wasn't too large. There was a fire in the middle with a mesh hole in the roof to vent the smoke. I could make out the voices of Fluttershy's friends, each of them sounding in a panic. "Rarity, how is that stitch coming?" asked Twilight. "Almost... done" said Rarity dropping what sounded like small handheld tools into a metal plate. "I hope Dashie and Apple Jack get back with those herbs soon." said a worried Pinkie. "He's fading again Fluttershy." said Twilight as she readied her magic. All kinds of noises could be heard. There were beeps from and unknown source that seemed to fluctuate with the tones of their voices. There was the sound of bandages being torn in a rapid motion. There was the sound of tools being dropped into a metallic pan. The was the sound of "crying..." I thought to myself. It was Fluttershy. She was crying. But why would be be crying at a time like this? The sound of a door opening two sets of hooves trotting in and a door closing could be heard. "We grabbed what we could." said Apple Jack. "The town is crawling with guards. Their on a pony hunt." said Rainbow Dash. Pinkie grabbed the herbs from the two and began mixing them to the instructions Fluttershy told her. Within minutes, a concoction was created and the paste was mixed with water. "Bring it here" said Twilight. She took the concoction, and absorbed it into a syringe. "I hope this works." she said as she injected me with it. It burned going in. "Its not working..." said Fluttershy, in a sobbing voice. I felt my body tense up. I started to convulse. "Quick, he's having a seizure. Everypony hold him down." yelled Twilight. They all rushed to me and grabbed on to me. "Jon look at me. Please." said Fluttershy, attempting to hold back her tears. Putting everything I had into it, I managed to look up at her. The shaking stopped. The beeping sound slowed. Everypony slowly let go of me. As I lay there looking at Fluttershy, she couldn't help but let loose. "I'm sorry Jon. Its all my fault." she said over and over. I wanted to talk. I wanted to tell her its ok, but I couldn't speak. I couldn't move my mouth. I closed my eyes. Not knowing how serious everything actually was, I drifted off to sleep. I awoke the next morning to chatter. "Fluttershy, you've been up all night. Get some rest. The medicine is taking effect. He'll be fine. Don't worry" said Pinkie. Yawning, Fluttershy agreed and slowly walked off to a different part of the structure. "You know, you always seem to get hurt." She said to me, then walked in the same direction as Fluttershy. Without opening my eyes, I went to scratch an itch on my nose. There was one problem with that. The hand I was going to use wan't there. Springing up to get a look, my fears were confirmed. Wide eyed, I started to gasp for air. Not knowing what happened, I tried to stand up off of the cot, but got tangled up in tubes on my was down; pulling and grabbing frantically at what ever I could get my hand on. "Jon, ya gotta stay still an rest." said Apple Jack, rushing over to settle me. "Twilight, a little help over here." Feeling a warm sensation fall over my body, I felt my panic dissipating. Slowly being lifted off my feet Twilight set me back down on the cot. A new emotion surfaced. Sadness. Feeling for my other arm, a tear rolled down my eye. "My arm..." I cried. "We did what we had to. No hard feelings right?" said Rainbow Dash. Turning my head, I pulled the blanket over me. "Let me give you a hand with that." Feeling a sense of anger now, I glared at her. "Dashie, why would you say such a thing?" said Rarity with a stern voice. "So what? I had to stitch his arm with the same thread I use for making dresses and clothing." Looking down at the stitch, I noticed pink thread. Being the last straw, I rolled off the cot and slid to the door. I had to get away. I couldn't take the dialog. Even if no one meant harm, I was gonna get away. I managed to get to my knees but before I could inch away, I was stopped by Fluttershy. Looking down with tears of remorse, she said, "I'm sorry we took your arm. It was so badly mangled and twisted that if it were kept on you could have gotten a bad infection. If anything you should be mad at me. Please don't hate them. They did as I told them too..." Balling tight fist, I had thoughts of punching. Thoughts of taking from her what she took from me. Just as the thoughts were going to become action, Pinkie Pie yelled, "STOP!!!" Looking in her direction she happily said, "I'm hungry. How about some cupcakes." Already disgusted and torn apart emotionally, I maneuvered myself back to the cot. "I'm not talking to anypony ever again." I mumbled before laying back down. Sleep came quick. A little too quick. There was a shuffling. A quick blast of coolness. Then the warmth of another body. I opened my eyes to see Fluttershy laying next to me with a nervous smile. Sticking to my words before, I turned my head and closed my eyes. "I was scared to do it." she said nervously. "I don't like the thought of hurting another living creature." Lying there motionless, I tried to ignore her. "When it found us, I got spooked and ran... I didn't know it was going to attack you." Unable to ignore her, I silently listened. "I didn't run far though. I watched from a near by bush. I wanted to help but... I... I... I'm not strong enough." Sighing, I turned my head to see her faced buried into the cot. "It was going to hurt you though, and I went into auto pilot. I had your knife on me. I was going to give it to you when you got better..." now in a full lament. "I'm sorry." That broke me. I turned towards her and grabbed hold of her with my one hand. Looking at me in the eyes with a confused look, I kissed her. Her eyes widened. Not knowing how to react or what to do, she embraced me. What was minutes, felt like hours. Our lips, locked together like someone threw away the key. We continued to kiss and embrace each other. Rolling on her back, I slid on top of her. We stopped. I looked deep into her blue eyes. I could see sincerity. I could feel her heartbeat. I felt- AUTHOR COMMENT: THE CHAPTER WAS MEANT TO END THIS WAY. IT WILL CONTINUE TO THE NEXT CHAPTER.