Heart of Destruction: Part 11

Part 11: Consequences
>You sit outside the barn, waiting. It’s been hours since Applejack and Big Macintosh carried Twilight off to the hospital. Since then, you’ve been going crazy with worry. You’ve already managed to pick all the splinters out of your hands, but still, you rub and scratch at your scabbing knuckles, trying to find any distraction you can. Finally, you see AJ and her brother walking up the path. Big Mac heads back to the house, while Applejack peels off and makes her way to your barn.
“How is she? Is she going to be alright?” you ask as soon as she gets within earshot.
> “Calm down, Anon,” says Applejack, “the doctors say she’s gonna be fine. The damage looked worse than it was and they were able to heal it up quickly, but they want her to stay at the hospital for a couple o’ days just to be sure.” She glances at your hands and winces.
“Oh, yeah,” you say, looking at your bleeding knuckles, “Sorry. It’s a nervous habit.”
>Applejack sighs.
> “Ah’ll get ya some bandages from the house.”

>She returns a few minutes later with bandages and a bottle of strong grain alcohol. You hiss as you pour a small amount of it over your hands, and then wrap them up as best as you can.
> “Alright, now take off yer shirt.”
“What?”
> “Yer back’s all scratched up, Anon. We gotta get that taken care of.”
>You remove your shirt and she surveys the damage.
> “Wow. Ya really do care about Twilight, don’t ya.”
“She is…unique. Different from anyone I’ve met before.”
> “Welp, it doesn’t look like you’ll need stitches, thank Celestia. Takin’ ya to the hospital aint exactly an option. Now hold still, this is gonna sting.”
>You grunt as she pours more of the alcohol over your back.
> “Quit yer whinin’ and hold still,” she commands as she dries your back. She proceeds to apply the bandages, a difficult feat to accomplish with hooves and mouth. While she works, you make conversation.
“So Twilight’s going to be okay?”
> “Yesh,” says AJ, fumbling a bandage out of its wrapper. She finally gets it out and applies it to a cut. “The doctors were worried about the bleeding, but apparently it was just a nosebleed. No permanent brain damage. She actually woke up about half an hour after we got to the hospital. Good thing, too, we weren’t sure how to explain her injuries without mentioning you.”
“You didn’t tell them about me?”
> “Nah, Twilight’s been trying to keep your existence a secret. She told the doctors that she had a spell backfire on her. But that aint what happened, right?”
“…No. It wasn’t a spell. She…she tried to approach me.”
> “Why’d she do a fool thing like that?”
“It’s my fault. We had an argument. She told Princess Celestia some personal things about me, and I accused her of not caring about me.”
>Your head erupts in pain as her front hoof slams into the back of your head, causing you to yelp.
> “Yer an idiot, ya know that? Of course she cares about you! Do you have any idea how hard she’s been workin’ to keep you a secret? How many favors she’s had to do to keep everypony who knows about you quiet? She even told the Princess that you were just a new species of monkey! Do you know how hard it is for her to keep lying to her mentor?”
“I had no idea…Wait, did you say monkey?”
> “Yeah, she was worried that if it got out that you were a magic-nullifying human, you’d get locked up in some lab or even killed. She didn’t want you to be taken away. She hasn’t just been studyin’ ya. She’s been worryin’ about ya and protectin’ ya. Now get up so’s I can finish puttin’ on these bandages.”
>As Applejack continues to apply the bandages to the scratches on your back, you think about Twilight. You hadn’t realized just how much she was sacrificing for you. How much of a burden you had been upon her. It makes you feel even worse about what you said to her. She very nearly died yesterday, and one of the last things you said to her was that she didn’t care about you.
> “There, all done,” says Applejack, pressing on the final bandage, “don’t pick at ‘em.”
“Thanks for first aid,” you say, blinking back the tears that had begun to form, “and I’m sorry about the wall.”
> “Don’t worry ‘bout it,” she says, “You did it to save Twilight. I’da been more pissed if ya hadn’t busted it down.”
>As she packs up her first aid supplies, she keeps looking up at you, as if she has something to say. Finally, she speaks.
> “Look, Anon, Ah think we got off on the wrong hoof,” she says, “Ah usually trust my gut, and everything about you  seemed bad. But, Ah reckon Ah may’ve misjudged ya, and Ah’m sorry about that. Whaddya say we start over?”
>You smile at her.
“It’s nice to meet you. My name’s Anonymous.”
> “Pleased ta make yer acquaintance, Anon. Ah’m Applejack,” she says, as she turns to leave, “oh, and if you want to feel useful, yer welcome to help out with some of the farm work tomorrow.”

>In the darkness of the night, a large creature makes its way across Sweet Apple Acres. It moves stealthily, sticking close to the shadows cast by the orchard’s many trees. It leaves the farm, and heads towards Ponyville, staying off the path but keeping it in sight. It’s careful to make as little noise as possible, and indeed is surprisingly quiet for a creature of its size. It is, however, noticed by the occasional nocturnal creature. Those who get close enough to it immediately dart away in terror. One rabbit makes its way to a cottage, to alert a friendly pony of the strange creature.
>As it enters Ponyville, the creature continues to move from shadow to shadow, but strangely, it gives the buildings a wide berth, sticking to the shadows of the trees instead. Now and then, it stops to observe a sign. Finally, it finds its destination: Ponyville General Hospital. It stops in the shade of a large tree, and sits down. For the longest time, it does nothing but sit and stare at the lit windows of the hospital.
>Its vigil is interrupted by the arrival of a yellow Pegasus.
>A-Anonymous? Is that you?” Fluttershy softly calls out. At the sound of her voice, you jump slightly, then relax.
“Fluttershy, you scared me” you say, trying to calm your racing heart.
> “What are you doing out here? You aren’t supposed to leave the barn!” she hisses.
“I know, I know,” you say, looking back at the hospital, “It’s just…”
> “You wanted to see Twilight.”
>You nod your head.
“I know I can’t actually see her, but this is the closest I can come to visiting her,” you sigh, “I know it’s stupid, but I couldn’t sleep. I just…I couldn’t sit in the barn and do nothing. Not after putting her in the hospital.”
> “It’s not your fault,” says Fluttershy.
“It was my magic nullification that hurt her.”
> “She walked into it.”
“Because I yelled at her!” you say, raising your voice slightly. Remembering where you are, you return to a whisper. “Fluttershy, I appreciate you trying to make me feel better, but it’s my fault Twilight got hurt. If there was any justice in the world, it’d be me in there instead of her.”
> “Don’t say that,” she says with surprising firmness, “I saw Twilight earlier today. Her only regret about what happened was that it might have scared you. She doesn’t blame you, and I’m sure she doesn’t want you blaming yourself.” Her voice returns to her usual softness. “Anon, go home. Get some rest. Twilight wouldn’t want you out here, worrying about her and risking discovery.”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” you say. “Thank you, Fluttershy.”
> She nods her head and takes off towards her cottage. “Good night, Anon.”
“Good night, Fluttershy.”

>The next morning, you’re awoken early by the sound of Applejack noisily dragging a cart filled with wooden boards and tools.
> “Rise an’ shine, Anon!” she shouts, despite your groans. “Ah got ya some things to fix up that hole you put in the wall. When yer done with that, come on over to the south fields and we’ll put ya to work.”
>It doesn’t take long to nail up some boards to cover the hole, and before long, you’re in the south fields, hauling apples to another barn, where Granny Smith is sorting them out for different uses. The rest of the day is spent doing this. It’s exhausting and difficult, but you’re glad for it. For one, Applejack finally accepted that you’re not going to ruin her apples. Secondly, it feels good to contribute. For the first time since you arrived in Equestria, you didn’t feel like a useless layabout. Most importantly, however, it distracts you from worrying about Twilight, which is why it was such a surprise to see her as evening began to fall.
“Twilight! You’re back!” you shout excitedly, jogging over to her.
>Your joy dissolves as you get closer, however, and see the gravity in her face.
> “Anon, we have a problem. I need to talk to you in the barn.”

>After finding Applejack to excuse yourself from work, you head back to your barn to talk to Twilight. She waits outside, for you to enter, then follows you in, maintaining a safe distance. Sitting down in your usual places, you look at each other and say nothing for a moment. You have a lot to say, and apparently, so does she.
“Twilight,” you say, breaking the silence, “how are you feeling?”
> “I’m fine, Anon. The doctors said there’s no serious damage.”
“Good, good. Look, about what I said. It was thoughtless and mean. I…I don’t ever want to hurt you again. Twilight, I’ll do anything. Just, please, promise me you’ll never do anything like that again. Promise me that.”
> “I promise,” says Twilight, “and I’m sorry I scared you. I just wanted to show you that I care about you.”
“I know. I care about you too. I thought I lost, and it scared me more than anything. I don’t want to lose you.”
> “I don’t want to lose you either,” she says, starting to cry.
“Twilight, what’s wrong?”
“When I went to the hospital, it scared Spike. He was really worried about me.”
“Everyone was worried about you.”
> “Yes, but he sent a letter to Princess Celestia asking for help. He told her that you’re a human, that you nullify magic. Anon, she’s coming and I don’t know what she’s going to do to you.”