Affection
Second floor, going left from the stairs, down the corridor, second to last door on the right. Scootaloo had only heard the directions once, yet they burned in her mind as she and Apple Bloom raced through the hallways. They had already wasted hours upon hours at school, now there was no second to lose.
A seeming eternity later, they had finally reached the hall's end. Without slowing down, they pushed through the door, almost crashing into the unicorn behind it; That she managed to avoid them had to have been a feat of magic. "Ah, apple and dodo. Lovely of you to come visit your friend to miraculously speed up her recovery." She pulled Apple Bloom's ribbon straight with a spark of magic, then moved back to the door and said, "Right now, she's caught in the in-between. In other words, she's really missing some sleep, but can't get it due to pain. She didn't exactly pick a gentle one to get. I've already given her the cure, of course, but it'll take some time to work. She's safe to approach, though. Probably. Not that I'd know. Enjoy yourselves and don't stress out my patients too much, fillies." She disappeared into the hallway.
"Uuh? Oh, hey Scoots, Apple Bloom." Sweetie Belle's head rose off the pearl white pillow, only for her eyes to clench shut and force her to drop back down. "Ngh, why did it have to be me, why now."
"It's gotta hit everypony sometime." Scootaloo scanned the room. It was in immaculate order, with all of the equipment and furniture scattered around it forming a grid she couldn't discern, yet there were disruptive splotches of colour all around; A card from Rarity sitting on the night stand, what looked like hoof-drawn pictures hanging on the walls, and of course Sweetie Belle herself. She had already taken a visible hit, her pale lips, ruffled mane, and baggy eyes testified that. Still the glimmer of life burned bright within the darkness that the emerald rings around it failed to cover up. "Could have it worse, I think."
"Tell that to my head. I think it's trying to convince me of the opposite. Have a seat, please." Sweetie indicated towards the lower end of the bed. Since it was built for adult ponies and she was sitting up, there was plenty of space for two fillies there. "You don't have to be suffering when I am. Anything new in school?"
Once she and Scootaloo were lying on the bed, Apple Bloom reached into her bag and pulled out a few sheets of paper. Most of them were covered in fillies' writing, notes that they had taken for her, while one held Cheerilee's clear, sharp lines, forming an exercise sheet. "Nothin' much, we kept goin' on algebra and Equestrian history 'bout the princesses. Miss Cheerilee told us to give you that one and Twilight said you should keep practicin' yer magic. She wants ta come by later today to check on ya. Better'n that" – Apple Bloom took three tiny buckets out of her bag – "we gotcha some ice cream."
"Great." The green aura of Sweetie's magic surrounded one of the cups of ice cream, though it refused to move. Eventually, she gave off an annoyed moan and let the energy disperse. "Provided that I don't die in here. Why did this have to happen to me, right–" She was silenced by Scootaloo forcing a spoon full of sweet goodness into her mouth. "Thanks. I needed that."
"Everypony at school is hoping that you'll come back soon," said Scootaloo, pushing the opened can of ice cream towards Sweetie. "Even Silver Spoon said she's worried about you. Somehow. Wouldn't have expected it, but I guess she does care about you after all." If there had appeared a sparkle in Scootaloo's eyes, she was quick to hide them and turn her head away. "You're stronger than this, Sweet. Just come back to us."
Sweetie Belle attempted magic once more. This time, the spoon even obeyed her commands, though it was only thanks to a quick hoof reaction that its contents didn't spill onto her face. "I'm trying, but I don't really have a say in this matter. I'll have to stay here until" – Sweetie shifted into a deeper voice, at least what of it her young throat was able to produce – "she's satisfied with my looks and vitals." She released a high squeak, out of annoyance or perhaps to flush her vocal chords. "Who knows how long that'll take. Honestly, I'd be happy just to catch a break and get some sleep."
"She's a lovely pony, isn't she," said Scootaloo, rolling her eyes as she dared show them again. "Anyways, hang on in there, I know you'll manage. We're literally just waiting for you to get out." Despair gave way to hope as a faint smile reclaimed her face.
"Yeah, and once ya do, we're gonna do triple shifts crusadin'!" Apple Bloom hopped off the bed and threw away her ice cream packaging. "Applejack's comin' back soon, and she promised ta help us make over the club house. Ya know, fix the floorboards, clean out everything, that sorta thing." She jumped back up and took Sweetie into a deep hug, which Scootaloo soon joined. "It's gonna be the crusadiest crusadin' we've ever done! We'll get our cutie marks for sure!"
Once given room to breathe, Sweetie Belle said, "Thanks girls, don't know what I'd do without you. You're the..." She didn't have time to finish her sentence as sleep took her, once and for all. Careful as not to wake her up again, the remaining Crusaders snuck away under the sounds of her gentle breathing, turned off the light, and left.