"Good heavens, what happened to her?"
"I don't know, Apple Bloom just burst through my door, telling me to come here."
"Gee, sorry 'bout that."
"Will she be alright?"
"Eeyup."
"Yeah, the nurse says she jus' needs some rest."
"Well that's good."
"Um...girls, I don't mean to trouble you, but it seems that she is um...waking up."
Opening her eyes, Applejack was subjected to unfamiliar surroundings. Jolting up, she glanced across the foreign backgroud, trying to discern her location. The bright lighting of the room allowed her to clearly see the dark green ceiling and teal wallpaper. Other than that, there was not much to find. After another moment of taking in the situation, the farm mare's eyes met with an oddly familiar white unicorn.
"Applejack, are you alright, darling?"
Rubbing her hooves over her eyes, the unicorn's face came into focus. "Rarity," she asked, "is that really you?"
"It is I. Enough about me, though. How are you? You had us all pretty worried."
"Yeah, Applejack. You really should learn when to take a break."
"Eeyup."
Glancing to her right, Applejack saw another of her best friends, as well as her brother. "Twilight and Big Mac? Ya'll're here, too?"
"Of course we are, silly. Big Mac came here with you, and I can running as soon as I heard the news."
"Yeah, sis! We really do care 'bout ya.
Liquid emotion welling in her eyes, the farm mare tried to tilt her Stetson hat over her face, only to realize that it was nowhere to be found. She frantically scanned the room, looking for a sign of her favorite article of clothing.
"I believe that you are looking for this," a voice uttered coyly. Looking to the pony, Applejack noticed Rarity playfully holding the brown Stetson with her magic. "You know, this hat has really been through a lot, you should let me design you a new one. It would certainly add new flair."
Snatching the hat from its suspended state, Applejack quickly placed it atop her head, covering her watering eyes. "No deal Rarity. That hat an' I have been through thick 'n' thin together. I reckon I'll wear it 'til the day I croak."
Slightly upset, the white mare conceded to her friends wishes. "I understand. Sentiment takes priority over fashion; that is just like you."
Twilight stared at her orange friend with the face of a mother: concerned, yet disappointed. "What were you thinking, Applejack? You can't possibly have expected to buck that entire orchard in one day. Don't get me wrong, you're a strong pony, but you're still just ONE pony. One pony and hundreds of apple trees just don't add up. Isn't that right, Big Mac?"
"Eeyup," the red stallion chimed in.
Silence filled the room as the words resonated within the farm mare. She had heard her brother say the same thing before, to a similar effect. Her fatigue got the better of her last time, and her friends were there to help. It looked as though this time was no different. "If only I weren't so darn stubborn, this wouldn't've happened. I'm such a fool."
"What's with all boring sob story? The Applejack I know would get up and say she's fine!"
"Huh? Who was that?" Applejack looked up and around trying to find that familiar voice.
"Umm...Hello! I'm over here!"
Just then, a rainbow colored blur entered through the door. It's sheer presence made a mess of the hospital room, skewing everything out of place and throwing it to the floor. After it abruptly stopped, the dust cloud it left slowly began to dissipate. There stood a sky blue pegasus with her signature rainbow-colored mane.
Surprised by the identity of her new visitor, Applejack quickly blurted out her greeting. "Why if it ain't Rainbow Dash! It's about time ya showed up."
"Well excuse me. Somepony had to go find Discord."
". . ."
". . ."
"Well?" Twilight asked.
"Well, what?"
Rarity finished the question. "Well, did you find him?"
Caught off guard by the sudden question, the pegasus struggled to change the subject. "Well, it's not like it mattered, anyway."
"So in other words," Applejack retorted, "ya didn't find him."
". . ."
"Yep, I reckon I'm right."
"So what I didn't find him? You couldn't have found him either."
"I wasn't the one lookin' for him, now was I?" Giving a slight smirk, the farm mare gave her rival a triumphant glance that ended the conversation in its tracks.
Unwilling to see the pointless conversation flare back up, Twilight Sparkle redirected everypony's attention to the eminent future. "Sorry, girls, but let's not forget that Fluttershy is coming back tomorrow. Also, we've got Discord's party to deal with the day after that."
Letting the gravity of the situation set in, everypony in room stared off into a different direction.
"Gee, I guess yer right, Twi. Let me just git on up outta mah bed an-"
"Oh no you don't!" A voice bellowed from behind the door. "You're going to stay right there until you get your rest."
"Fluttershy is right, you know." The purple mare lectured. She paused for a moment, hoping that her farm pony friend would understand her friends' concerns. Almost as if on cue, the Princess of Friendship blurted out a sudden realization. "Wait, Fluttershy?!?"
The door swung open as a petite, light gold pegasus trotted in, her long, flowing, rose mane reflecting the soft sunlight entering through the window.. Although the three butterflies on her flank represented her kindness, her face was filled with disbelief, disappointment, and concern. "Really, Applejack? You should learn to not do everything with brute force. You're almost as bad as Rainbow Dash."
"Hey! What's that suppo-" Before the cerulean pegasus could finish her complaint, she met the cold, unnerving glare that Fluttershy's cyan eyes were know for. A look that chills through to the bone with its piercing gaze and unwavering conviction, the Stare was enough force to deter an adult dragon let alone her current pegasus receipt. "Nevermind!" The rainbow maned pegasus quickly squealed sinking to the floor.
"Gee, I'm mighty sorry, Fluttershy. Ah won't let it happen again no time soon."
Seeing her friend's apology, the golden pegasus let her teal eyes rest. All of the intense emotions contained within the glare subsided almost instantly. As the rose maned mare settled back down, she quickly realized that they were not alone, quickly causing her to squeak out a quick response. "Uh...I'm sorry everypony."
". . ."
". . ."
In an effort to reconcile her loud outburst, Fluttershy continued her statement. "I didn't mean to interrupt anything. I'll just be getting out of the way, I mean...if that's okay."
As the mare made her way towards the exit, every mare and stallion in the room collectively broke the silence that lingered.
"Fluttershy!"
Jumping in reaction to the sudden outburst, the pegasus responded to her friends from her solace on the ceiling. "...Yes...?"
"Good heavens, what are you doing here?" Rarity inquired.
Twilight continued the thought. "Yeah, We thought you were supposed to come back tomorrow. What happened?"
"It's a bit of long story, actually." Fluttershy finally replied, "I don't think you would want to hear it."
"Nonsense, dear. You simply have to tell us all about it. I say we return to the castle and talk about it over lunch."
"Good idea, Rarity. I reckon it'll git our minds off of everythin' else."
"I don't mean to be rude, girls," the meek pegasus uttered, "but where is Pinkie Pie? I thought she would be here throwing some kind of party."
Hearing the name of their beloved friend, the four other mares all looked to the ground with a slightly solemn attitude. Finally, Apple Bloom stepped up to answer the question. "I don't know too much 'bout what's happenin' mahself, but Sis has told me that Pinkie's helpin' Discord with some kinda party. Nopony's seen her in a couple o' days."
"What? I'm sorry I brought it up, everypony."
"It's fine, Fluttershy," Twilight replied, "we were going to have to tell you at some point. We can talk about it at the castle."
"Well, we best be movin' along now. I'm antsier than a barrel of cider in the summer heat." Applejack, ready to leave her current resting place, hopped out of bed and trotted out the door with her friends in tow.
"Oh no you, don't," Big Mac said. "Yer comin' back home with me, young filly." He placed his hoof on Apple Bloom's tail as she tried to leave with her sister.
"But-"
"No buts, missy. Yer comin' home with me this instant. We've still got chores to do." He picked up the young filly and placed her on his back before exiting the hospital and heading back towards Sweet Apple Acres.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
"...and that's all that happened."
"So nopony has seen or heard from Pinkie or Discord since?" Flutershy cocked her head sideways, contemplating the situation.
"I'm tellin' ya, somethin' seems off about the hold gosh darned thing."
"I told you already, we should go find Discord!"
"You have tried that already, or have you forgotten so soon?"
"Eugh! Forget it!"
While Rainbow Dash tries to convince her friends to take up action, Twilight spoke to Fluttershy. "So, what happened that made you return so soon. Also, no that I think of it, where is Spike?"
"Well..." the shy pony started, "that's a long story."