//------------------------------// // Ch4 - Applebuck Season - part 4 // Story: Ponyville's Tiny Librarian // by CommanderX5 //------------------------------// Ponyville’s Tiny Librarian - Chapter 4 Applebuck Season - part 4 Twilight yawned as she spread her forelegs and opened her tired eyes while the face of a nurse she slowly recognized appeared in her sharpening vision. She tried to move, to raise her head, only to find herself covered in bandages. “You can proudly add another hospital visit to your impressive record, Miss Sparkle,” Redheart said sarcastically before rolling her eyes. “I warned you that your lack of magic would leave you very vulnerable, but did you listen? Nooo...” Twilight took a deep breath before asking while giving the nurse a questioning look, “What happened and how long have I been unconscious?” “I think it will be best if your friends tell you as they are visiting frequently.” The nurse paused for a moment before looking at Twilight with pity in her eyes. “As for how long you were out, three days.” Twilight jumped onto her hooves and paced around on the bed despite the bandages all over her body while breathing rapidly. “Three days!?” “That’s correct. It appears that your sleepless nights, which your guards kindly informed me about, caused you to sleep far longer than you needed as your body made a full recovery two days ago,” Redheart said, doing her best to hide the amazement in her voice as she was very impressed by this annoying little unicorn’s endurance and recovery rate, though she would never admit it aloud. “Well... I’m used to getting injured, so I recover fast…” Twilight said while rubbing her back with bandaged hoof, only to pause as her mouth and eyes opened widely. “Wait a moment!” She examined her body and thought deeply for a moment before rolling the bandages off, bouncing and dancing on the bed to the nurse’s amusement in attempt to free herself. Once free, she dumped the soft material to the side and gave Redheart an annoyed glare. “If I recovered two days ago, then what are all those bandages for? You made me look like a mummy!” The nurse just chuckled before straightening her foreleg as only now Twilight could see a cap filled with fresh water on her hoof. Not wasting a moment, she grabbed it between her hooves and drank as the pleasant cold liquid refreshed her dry mouth. Redheart waited for the little mare to wipe her face before speaking, “Would you prefer to look like a mummy so I could convince your friends to let you rest, or have Pinkie Pie trying to wake you up with singing and whatever pops into her chaotic mind?” Twilight, realizing that she just had dodged the bullet, dropped the cap and nodded. “Good point.” “Your friends should be paying you a visit in around ten minutes as they do it regularly, so please be patient and wait for them,” Redheart said calmly before walking towards the exit. “Wait!” Twilight called as the nurse gave her a curious glance. “Just out of curiosity, why are you the only nurse I always bump into, and also why haven’t you tried to ensure that I won’t run away or do something reckless?” Redheart sighed and spoke in defeat, “Would I be able to stop you if you decided to leave or do something reckless?” Twilight shook her head. “I thought so. As for why we always bump to each other… I think it is just our poor luck.” Once the nurse left the room, Twilight examined her surroundings. She could see that she was lying on a normal size bed on a pillow, in front of her was a big watch telling her that it will be twelve o'clock in ten minutes. To her left she could see several gifts and ‘get better’ memos. The moment she noticed some sweets from Pinkie and apples from Applejack, she heard her belly growling as she hadn’t eaten anything for three days. Wasting no time, she levitated an apple and some sweets over while saliva dripped from her mouth, only to lick her lips before digging into the food while reading the memos left by her friends and guards. Each bite and each word filled her spirit with joy. *** “So Twilight finally woke up and is waitin’ for us?” Applejack asked firmly as all of Twilight’s friends and guards were now standing in front of the hospital room where they visited their little unconscious mummy at least five times a day. Noticing Nurse Redheart’s nod, Applejack looked behind her at the rest of the pack and smiled awkwardly. “Maybe Ah should go last. Twilight sure must be as angry as a pack of starving Timberwolves after Ah smacked her like a piece of rotten wood.” Rarity grabbed the farm mare’s foreleg and spoke firmly, “You are not getting away that easy, Applejack.” She pulled the farm mare towards herself until their muzzles collided as she looked at her with a glare that would shrink anypony from shame. “You stained your hooves shamefully and hurt your friend, now you must wash them and regain your honor with an honest apology.” “That’s right sis, ya mess up, ya clean up,” Big Mac added. “That, and you’d only be delaying the inevitable by waiting,” Steel Blade said calmly. “Twilight wouldn’t be one to—” “You get three strikes, Applejack,” Overwatch butted in, her voice low and her eyes narrowed at the farm mare. “You’ve already used two of them. Twilight may care about you and you may be an Element Bearer, but if you strike out one more time, I will haunt you like a demon out of Tartarus; I will suck out every single positive emotion you will ever feel for the rest of your life.” The pegasus guard quickly cleared his throat, bumping his partner with his flank. “Ignoring the threats of soul draining, Overwatch is right about one thing,” he said with a quick glare at the charcoal mare before turning back to Applejack. “Twilight probably does care about you—she’s forgiven others for way worse—and even if she doesn’t, she’s the type of pony to find you anyways. You might as well go in now, before she confronts you on her own terms.” The farm mare gulped as she wasn’t given any choice and turned towards the door, only to be pushed by Spike the moment the door opened so her face was about to make contact with the clean floor. *** Twilight took another bite of the chocolate cube she held between her forehooves as she tore away another fragment of it, leaving a small bite mark with her tiny teeth. Her savoring was interrupted by a loud thump the moment the door swung open and Applejack slid along the floor. She swallowed the chocolate in her throat and levitated what was left back on the gifts-filled table, focusing her attention on her friend who in a moment stood up from the floor. “Hello Applejack!” Twilight shouted as her startled friend flinched to the left, before looking at her. She waved her hoof at Applejack who was now looking at her with an awkward smile while rubbing back of her neck. “H-howdy... partner… s-sugarcube,” Applejack said as if something was stuck in her throat. Twilight’s attention shifted to her guards, baby dragon and Applejack’s brother who entered the room before closing the door. It didn’t take long before the farm mare was flanked from three sides. “Hello everypony… and Spike, how nice of you to visit!” She watched as Big Mac pushed Applejack lightly towards her, giving his sister a glare she translated as; ‘ya have a lot of explaining to do’. “Twilight… Ah have somethin’ to tell ya…” Applejack said, rubbing her forelegs nervously. Having Twilight’s full attention, she looked at her small friend in sorrow. “Ah w-wanted to… wanted to…” Before she could finish, her friend immediately stood on her hooves and ran towards her before jumping from the edge of the bed right onto her nose. “Yes?” Applejack was stunned by Twilight’s bravery, wondering how the little mare can so casually jump towards her muzzle considering how painful it was the last time. “You seems worried. Is something wrong?” Twilight asked. Applejack’s mouth fell agape as she crossed her eyes. “W-wha’?” escaped her mouth as she started to fear that she caused her friend to have an amnesia. Twilight glanced at Big Mac and her guards, confused by their hostile glare directed towards the farm mare. “Did you have an argument with your brother?” “Ah bucked ya!” Applejack shouted as Twilight, who hung onto her nose, was pushed away by the strength of her voice, though Overwatch’s magical aura caught her in mid air before she hit the side of the bed. “When ya tried to help, Ah bucked ya into a tree more than once. Ah sent ya to hospital with cracked bones!” The farm mare pointed at her with trembling foreleg. Twilight shook her head as she was placed on the bed by Overwatch’s magic. “You did?” she asked in confusion. She lowered her head, now staring down at her hospital bed, the memory of being smashed against the tree like a common bug flashed in her mind. She felt shiver in her spine and massaged the back of her neck. “That explains it.” When she decided to help Applejack before she would end up in the hospital or send somepony there, she wasn’t expecting it would happen to her. Spike stomped and spoke hastily, “Twilight, she just smashed you against a tree and fractured most of your bones, how can you say that she doesn’t deserve a punch in the face!” He frowned before adding, “Can’t you get angry at somepony for hurting you, at least once?” Twilight shook her head and pointed at Applejack who still had her mouth open as ‘waaaaaaaa’ came out of it. “Applejack was in a bad state of mind when she did it. lack of sleep and exhaustion made her temporarily insane; I cannot be angry at somepony who wasn’t fully aware of their actions.” Spike and Steel Blade wanted to respond, but the view of Applejack rushing towards the bed and grabbing the tiny mare cut them off while Twilight could see tears running down Applejack’s cheeks. “Why do ya have to be such a big pony, Twiligh’, so f-forgivin’, never angry or demandin’ that ponies that smashed ya flat should be punished?” Applejack put the little unicorn back on the bed as she wiped tears from one of her cheeks. “Ah hurt ya when ya tried to help and get some brain into mah petrified skull. Ah repaid yer kindness by buckin’ ya like a tree. Why do you have to be so forgivin’?” Twilight looked at Applejack in pity as the farm mare couldn’t stop the flow of her tears. “For three reasons:” she said proudly, puffing her chest and catching Applejack’s attention. “First, I’m trying to become a strong and brave pony, and a strong pony can endure when other ponies hurt her and forgive them.” She paused and took deep breath before continuing, “Second, everypony makes mistakes, I make them a lot.” Twilight gave Spike, Steel Blade and Overwatch an apologetic glance, who just nodded with uncertain expressions. “But friends can forgive those mistakes and it’s important to learn the lesson from them so you don’t repeat them again.” She looked to the side. “I admit, learning from my mistakes is something I’m not good at.” Twilight sat and smiled warmly. “As for the last reason, I already told you, I cannot be angry for something what wasn’t your fault; I have caused a lot of trouble with my mess ups regarding my training, more often than I would care to admit, and the only reason that the damage I caused was minimal is because I’m small and such.” “But Ah knew that Ah bit off more than Ah could chew, Ah knew that ponies wanted to help, Ah knew that Ah hurt others more that stampede of cows would, but Ah was so darn stubborn to get everythin’ done by mahself that Ah stuck to it. It was mah fault, mah decision,” Applejack said and put her hooves together in a pleading gesture. “First Ah hurt ya when Ah thought ya to be just a prank, and now this… at least let me repay ya somehow!” Twilight shook her head and shrugged. “What’s done is done, if you want to repay me for this mistake, how about you let me and our friends help out at Sweet Apple Acres?” She stood on her rear hooves and stretched her legs as a few quiet snapping sounds in her bones followed. Once she regained some of her flexibility lost from her three day nap, she added, “I am fully recovered and ready to go.” “There’s no need for that,” Applejack said with a proud smile. “Our friends already helped and so have yer guards.” Twilight thought deeply with a quiet “mmmm…” for a moment before she cast a scanning spell on Applejack, only to cast it again on herself. “There, you repaid me.” “W-what?” Applejack said with an open mouth while taking a step back. Twilight giggled. “For the past few days you worked restlessly while I endured an incredibly strong hit. My scanning spell detected a slight increase of earth pony magic inside both of us, even your pegasus magic improved a little.” She beamed from excitement. “How about you let me watch you work at your farm and study earth pony magic? In exchange I will assist you with your chores. Does this sound like a fair deal to you?” Applejack shook her head. “Ya want to help on mah farm everyday?” Twilight nodded. “I sure do. When you told me why you wanted a ticket to the ‘Grand Galloping Gala’, you complained about how little you earn to improve the farm… At first, I was considering investing in your farm with the bits I earned working for the Wonderbolts,” she said as Applejack reared up on her hind legs in shock before losing her balance as a surprised “whaaa” escaped her mouth, only to land on Spike with a loud thump who ended up right under her flank. After shaking her head while ignoring Spike’s growl and his sharp scales as the little drake pushed himself from under her. She looked at Twilight and wondered if she hit her so hard that the little mare had finally lost it. ”Twilight! Ah bucked ya twice ever since we’ve meet, and ya not only forgive me but even offer to help on the farm for free?” “Anything for a friend.” Applejack’s felt as if something in her head snapped while her pupils shrank and went to the side. After staring at the window for a few seconds, she murmured, “Yer gettin’ everythin’ wron’, Twiligh’.” She massaged her forehead before continuing, “Ah’m supposed to apologize and repay ya to redeem mahself, like servin’ ya, cookin’ for ya, bein’ yer punchin’ bag or let ya test magic on me. Would it takes days, weeks or even a month.” The farm mare pointed at her little friend. “Yer supposed to be angry, hold a grudge, yell at me, tell the princess how Ah messed up. Yer supposed decide mah punishment or send me on a dangerous quest, somethin’ to let me make up for what Ah did.” “Why would I ever do that?” Twilight asked before standing on her rear hooves and holding forehoof against her own chest. “Who do you think I am? I would never make a friend do something so silly and overly complicated because of a… slightly painful misunderstanding,” Twilight said as Applejack’s ears drooped. “As you can see, I’m fine and tougher than before, no harm done.” She smiled warmly. “Let’s just forget what happened and focus on being productive, like helping your farm get in shape. There’s no need for you to feel sad or guilty anymore.” Steel Blade looked between his little boss and the trembling farm mare and spoke up, “Umm… Twilight, I think you’re missing the point. You’re only making her feel more guilty by not allowing her to make it up to you.” Twilight flinched and fell over at Applejack’s stomp that hit the the floor with full force, cracking it a little. “Ah’m tired of ya forgivin’ and givin’. Ah am goin' to accept yer help if ya insist, but not for free, Ah will pay fairly for yer work!” “Applejack,” Twilight said in disappointment as she perched herself on the hospital pillow. “There’s no need for you to pay me. The data I get from my research is payment enough. I can be your intern.” “Ahem,” Spike interrupted. “Interns get paid.” “Hush Spike.” Twilight added, “Besides, interns don’t always get paid, it depends.” Steel Blade interrupted, “I believe this is the case where you should accept payment before your friend loses her sanity.” Overwatch rubbed at her forehead with a hoof. “This is the whole Celestia problem all over again.” “Ah’ll let ya help, but Ah will pay ya for yer work. No free labor!” Applejack said as she raised her forehoof towards Twilight who thought for a moment. With a job in Ponyville, I won’t have to depend on the Princess’s scholarships or savings from my previous job. On another side, my friend’s farm is in trouble, and helping while getting paid isn’t really helping. She looked at Applejack’s waiting hoof. Still, it seems that she can be very stubborn and prideful. I doubt I will convince her to let me work for free. Twilight shook her head. “I cannot accept bits when your farm has financial problems,” she said as the farm mare frowned, “but I can work for food.” Applejack blinked in confusion. “Ya want to work on mah farm while Ah provide catering?” Noticing a nod, she said, “Well, it seems like a fair deal, and it won’t hurt mah profits… wait a darn minute.” Applejack paused as she looked at the tiny mare suspiciously. “With yer size, ya’ll probably eat an apple at best. One apple for entire day of labor?” Noticing an awkward smile, she smirked, “Ah’ll provide catering fer ya, yer guards and that baby dragon of yers in exchange for yer labor. Ah’ll add a few bits as bonus for hard work from time to time if sales go well and if ya need any favour, big or small, just ask. Ya want it or not, Ah owe ya a big debt, it’s a matter of mah honor and pride to repay it. Deal?” Twilight felt conflicted. She wanted to help her friend without receiving any payment or hurting farm’s profit, a way of rewarding Applejack for always helping everypony and being dependable when Ponyville was in trouble. Getting a free food supply for herself, Spike and her guards wasn’t part of the plan. Still, it was better for the farm than if she was being paid with bits regularly. “Deal,” Twilight said before turning towards Spike and her guards as she lowered her head in shame, almost bowing. “I’m sorry.” The guards and Spike looked at her with confusion and asked in unison. “For what?” “For not listening to you and ignoring your feelings. Three days ago I was really worried when Applejack was hurting herself and refused help or to take a break… do you feel the same way about me everyday?” Twilight asked in a low voice filled with shame as they all nodded, causing her to bow deeply while her ears and tail drooped. “I’m sorry and I swear that there will be no more sleepless nights… can you forgive me, please?” “Sure.” “Of course.” “No biggy.” Twilight stood up from her bow and looked at her adoptive son and personal guards in disbelief. “Just like that?” “Twilight,” Spike said firmly as he sat on the bed next to his adoptive mother and placed his hand on her tiny shoulder. “First off, we got used to your recklessness, and second, how can we not forgive you anything if you forgive everything that everypony does to you just as easily?” “And to be fair, we’ve gotten pretty used to it back in Canterlot,” Steel Blade said, shrugging. “Honestly, I get jaded enough to random inconveniences from dealing with Overwatch.” The guard mare gasped, scandalized. “Hey, I’ve been acting completely normal these past few days!” “Trying to make your armor implode into a knot is normal?” Steel Blade said, an expression of mock shock on his face. “Sweet Celestia, I’ve been wrong my entire life.” “Well, when you put it that way,” Twilight started hesitantly but then smiled and jumped onto Spike’s head, only to bounce towards Overwatch and climb up her horn. “I think there’s a lot of research data I should send to the princesses,” she said before smirking. “Also, a letter with the valuable lesson Applejack and I learned today wouldn’t hurt.” Overwatch smiled as she walked to the exit while Twilight hoof-stood on her horn, and soon a big group of friends was surrounding her. Much to Twilight’s surprise, even Mr. Cake was among her friends in order to thank her for healing Pinkie Pie and many other ponies in town, only to add his gratitude for protecting his business as fear of poisonous cupcakes would ruin it. “Thou hast called for us, sister?” Luna asked curiously as she walked into her sister’s bedchamber, passing two bowing Royal Guards, who trembled in fear. After a closer look, she noticed several bruises still present on their fur, as they learned to never get between the princesses, especially when one of them is very angry. Feeling pity for the poor guards, Luna made a mental note to apologise later and go easy on them next time if it comes to it, only to abandon that notion a moment later as she frowned at their pathetic display of skills. Those two Royal Guards were meant to protect her sister, to put their life on the line if necessary, and to think that they would become that soft after a millennium of her absence? Luna shot them an angry glare, as the guards flinched and returned to their posts in an instant. There was no doubt that she was going to erase this absolute disgrace by getting their sorry flanks back in line, even if she would need to train them into true warriors personally. “Yes, Luna. I thought you may be interested in a letter from my beloved student alongside the progress she has made in studying your blessing,” Celestia said cheerfully as she levitated the ten kilogram heavy stack of papers towards her along with the scroll. “The letter is directed to both of us.” Luna rolled her eyes, wondering if Celestia would have withheld this information if the letter had not been addressed to both princesses. Wasting no time, she unrolled the scroll and read. “Dear Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. I am sending this letter alongside all the research data I gathered over the past few days as it turns out that I posses all three types of magic after the Nightmare Moon event. Luna’s eyes opened widely as she looked at her sister, only to see her smile at her with indescribable joy. “Yes, sister; it seems that the Elements may one day turn Twilight into an alicorn just like they did with us. Isn’t that wonderful?” Luna nodded and continued reading. My friends on the other hoof possess magic of two races, for example: Rainbow Dash and Applejack seem to be earth ponies and pegasi at the same time, though there are no wings on Applejack, I assure you. Pinkie Pie however is a special case as she seems to have more pegasus magic despite being an earth pony. Can you believe it? I wonder if she had only pegasus magic to begin with before we used the Elements, though there is also a law breaking magic inside of her that I do not recognise as it is too chaotic for any research to be done on it...Yet. Luna raised an eyebrow. “Two types of magic in the other bearers? ‘Tis odd; what dost thou make of this? Will they turn into alicorns as well?” Celestia shook her head. “I am not sure as this is something that had never occurred before. We must wait to see for ourselves. Even after two millennia, the Elements of Harmony are still a big mystery.” Maybe if you haven’t not used all the Elements against us, they would not have been but mere rocks for millennia but instead free to be researched? She bit her lip at the thought that surfaced in her mind, deciding against speaking it aloud. “Still, the pink one does worry us.” Celestia raised her head. “You mean that chaotic magic?” “Yes, for it sounds exactly like a specific dreadful creature who had scattered the Elements all over the land we now call Equestria, and stole our wings and thy horn.” Luna frowned at the very memory of her biggest foe even after two millennia had passed. “It took us five years to gather them again as Discord took away all of our magic and prevented any pony from helping us. ‘Tis thanks to the Elements that not just our wings returned to us. As alicorns filled with harmony, we were resistant to his chaotic magic during our second encounter.” “I know, but it is impossible for the Element Bearers to possess chaotic magic. Harmony and chaos cannot mix, sister; the Element of Laughter cannot posses both.” Luna sighed and decided not to give it any further thought as she continued reading. I must also apologize as I will not perform any research on Fluttershy’s magic. Oh, that reminds me, if there is anything that I learned from Overwatch and Fluttershy, it is that sometime your friends have secrets that they will keep hidden even from you, but as a good friend one must respect other’s privacy and trust them. “Secrets?” Luna questioned, only to feel a hoof rest on her shoulder. “Fluttershy and Overwatch are trustworthy. Whatever Twilight discovered, I will trust her instincts that there is nothing to worry about,” Celestia said calmly as Luna nodded. In addition to my research, I learned another very a valuable lesson. It seems that Applejack tried to work too hard and did not listen to anypony who tried to help. She kind of reminded me of myself. I deeply apologise to you Princess Celestia for worrying you so often as well, and I would be grateful if you would tell Cadence that I apologize for stressing her just as often. From this event I learned that whenever I push myself to my limits, all of my friends are worried about my safety, and even if I can handle the pain and exhaustion, I am still making them worried and sad. Luna gave Celestia a questioning glance while her sister was now sitting next to her and read the letter as well. “Thy student is really determined to push herself. Did she ever worry thee?” Celestia sighed and murmured, “You have no idea.” After taking a deep breath, she looked at Luna in sorrow. “That is why I want to protect her. I know that my student is running into dangers and lessons on her own everyday. Instead of a guide who will push her gently into self improvement, she needs a guardian angel who will save her if she pushes herself too hard,” Celestia said with sadness as Luna smiled, now understanding the relationship between her savior and her sister better. Considering the lesson I have learned and my friends’ feelings, I will need to reduce the amount of research about the blessing that Nightmare Moon gifted me with. Princess Luna, if you are reading this, I am deeply sorry as my progress will be slowed down. Instead of diligently researching it for the entire night everyday, I will spend just two hours at best. Once again, my deepest apologies. Your Little Faithful Student and Loyal Subject, Twilight Sparkle. Luna rolled the letter and placed it on the floor. She raised her eyebrow before facing her sister who was smiling cheerfully at her. One cold glare into her sister’s eyes banished the smile as Celestia looked at her in worry. “Is something wrong?” The night princess coughed. “It is indeed, sister!” Celestia flinched at the loudly spoken ‘sister’ as she felt a shivering in her spine under Luna’s cold and intimidating stare. Then the realization struck her. “Luna, it was you who decided to hide information of your blessing from my student.” “As we followed thy stupid advice. We trusted thee when thou told us that thy student would have fun. We never expected that she would spend sleepless nights researching it, risking a change in her sleeping habits, a mistake we made over a thousand years ago,” Luna snarled, glaring daggers at her sister. Celestia sighed. “Do you wish to punish me, Luna?” She nodded. “We are going to send a letter of apology to thy student and accept the consequences of our actions,” Luna said authoritatively, as if ready to receive any punishment the little unicorn would see fit to put upon her, “and provide her with information about our blessing she so desires to know about. But first, we would like to ask thee a question: art thou willing to accept thy punishment for corrupting us with thy ways?” Celestia didn’t bothered to answer as one action would tell more than a thousand words. Instead she walked in front of her sister and lit her horn, but one weak poke of Luna’s hoof stopped her. “Why dost thou try to shrink thyself?” she asked while giving her sister a curious look. “To receive a proper punishment,” Celestia said firmly as she raised her sister’s foreleg and pointed at the floor under it. Luna frowned, mildly insulted. “Thinkest thou that we would be so unoriginal as to always give thee the same punishment? Thou hast no faith in our imagination.” Celestia blinked a few times as Luna turned around, turning her back to her as she spoke, “Thou shalt receive a suitable punishment in due time, sister.” Luna walked towards the exit as Celestia blinked in confusion and asked, “But how will you punish me?” Luna smirked. “Thou shalt learn soon enough,” she said with a devilish grin. With this final remark, Luna left the room as Celestia looked at the exit for a minute while her guards entered and looked at her in worry. Celestia knew that she could avoid receiving any punishment with a simple refusal, that it was her choice. Just one word and every single mistake she did and will do in the near future would go unpunished as for past millennium. But she didn’t want that, what would her sister think of her, how many more centuries she would wait to receive her trust and forgiveness? The always proud alicorn gulped and thought, I wonder if it would not be easier to just be banished to the sun for a thousand years to earn her forgiveness… rather than this.