Iron Anon: Annual Check-Up

>You take off running after her and Gus towards Ponyville
>She hadn't even bothered tying you up...
>This was really bad, wasn’t it?
>You needed answers
>Now.
>You wait until you catch up to Applejack before asking,
“What happened?!”
>AJ: “Apple Bloom and her class went on a field trip today to go see the old pony ruins in the Everfree Forest”
>Oh no…
>Another manticore?
>AJ: “They were supposed to be back at school two hours ago! I was in the market when Gus showed up and starting barking like mad dog”
>You all are approaching the town now
>AJ: “Big Mac and some others followed Gus out to the woods to go find ‘em”
>As soon as you set foot into Ponyville, it was apparent the whole town was on edge too
>Tension was in the air. Every single pony was talking nervously with one another, some even too caught up at the moment to notice you
>The once busy marketplace had come to a complete standstill. You and Applejack continued to run by as you watched more and more ponies moved out from the Town center and towards the bridge that lead to the hospital
>Applejack was leading you there now, too
>AJ: “They found ‘em, all of ‘em… But they were all uncon’shous, stone cold and were breathin’ really fast! Nop0ny knows what’s wrong!”
>She looks over to you in mid gallop, worry and desperation burning in her now watery eyes
>AJ: “Y-you can save ‘em, right!? You can save Apple Bloom!”
>You don’t answer
>Sounded like what that zebra had luckily dodged had taken hold of the others
>Hypothermia
>What the hell was happening in that forest?!

>Soon enough, you make it to Ponyville General
>Before you open the doors to the hospital, you give Gus a whistle to stay outside and wait
>You and Applejack have to push past a mob of distraught ponies that infested the lobby
>There is a nurse urgently instructing everyone to stay back, trying to control the uneasy pony folk but she clearly has never done anything like this before and is quite worried herself
>She lets you two slip by her, however, when she notices your towering figure
>Pushing through, you make your way into the heart of the clinic
>The hospital is completely upside down
>You can hear loud beeping of medical machines ringing out from the rooms as well as the clamor of hooves against the tile floor
>Nurse and doctor ponies rush and dash around the corridors, too busy to even acknowledge you and Applejack. You notice most of them scrambling into a room just up ahead
>You and Applejack burst through the double doors
>And into chaos.
>The room wasn’t like the single bedroom you had seen with Zecora… this place was big and had probably been a lunch room before
>The cafeteria, however, had seemed to have been hastily converted into an emergency room
>There were wheeled hospital beds sprawled all around and about, holding a little more than a dozen foals plus a single mare
>The doctors and nurses that ran to and fro across the room didn’t even try to hide their panic
>They weren’t prepared for something like this… they obviously had NEVER been prepared for anything like this
>The room’s ambience is a buzz of weak moans and the frantic barking orders of doctors

>Applejack takes off to a nearby bed, nearly knocking over two nurses in the process
>You follow her and find Apple Bloom laying on the bed cot
>Her eyes are closed and she is shivering fiercely, despite the bundle of blankets on top of her
>You bring your hand to rest on her coat
>It’s a deadly cold
>And she doesn’t react to your touch
>AJ: “Apple Bloom, talk ta me!”
>Only an unintelligible murmur escapes her trembling lips
>You feel yourself shiver with worry
>This was bad.
>You look up to witness the disarray of these so called ‘doctors’ trying to figure out what was wrong with the others
>You saw some scramble around with cups of steaming brown liquid (most likely hot chocolate by the smell), encouraging the half-lucid foals to drink it
>What the hell were they doing?!
>Sure, they had AT LEAST been able to figure out that the foals needed to be warmed-up but with fucking hot cocoa?
>Is that all they could think of?!
>You manage to spy Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo from across the room in the same, worsening condition
>No. You weren’t going to let them die
>They might be ponies but they were children for Christ's sake
>And God damn adorable ones, too
>You couldn’t let this happen to them…
>You take a quick read of her Apple Bloom’s pulse and breathing
>Both are weak and failing
>As you do so, you unintentional brush up against the blanket
>Its drenched
>…
>A unicorn doctor from the other day notices you and trots over quickly
>Doctor1: “Thank goodness, You're here! We-“
>He’s unable to finish his sentence as you hurl the heavy damp blanket right at his face

>You use so much force that he rears up on his hind legs, falling onto his back
“What the hell are you trying to do!? Give them trench foot!?”
>Everyone in the room stops to look at your outburst as if noticing you for the first time
>The unicorn pony stumbles to get to his feet, clearly traumatized to have just been attacked by a monster
>They had done what you had told them to do before with Zecroa, using blankets heated by warm water
>But they had been so stupid as to let them get cold and damp
>The worst thing for the given situation
>Did they know nothing?!
>Doctor1: “W-W-We were just doing what yo-“
“That was different; you would have let these foals die if I wasn’t here!”
>He shrinks at your booming voice
>Ok. Calm down, Anon
>You need them to help you
>You sigh in frustration
“Get rid of these blankets and get them some DRY ones… NOW!”
>Nurses scurry out of the room at your request
>You use a hand to stop one that passes near you
>Nurse1[frightened]: “W-wha-t-t?”
“I need you and some others to go to lobby and find 1 pony, a family member, for each foal”
>Nurse1: “But-t we can’t have them here while we’re trying t-“
“Blankets aren’t going to cut it. Only another pers-… pony sharing their body heat is going to be enough to keep them from freezing to death”
>The Nurse hesitates and opens her mouth again to ask something
“Get out there, find a pony for each foal, tell them to get bundled up next to their respected foal and their own body heat will gradually get the little one’s temperature back up to normal. Got it?”
>She nods and goes over to inform two more nurses before heading out back to the lobby

>By that time, doctors were already starting to replace the blankets
>Good, at least they weren’t completely useless
>You aren’t a doctor… you shouldn’t be telling THEM what to do
“Applejack, I need y-“
>You turn back to Apple Bloom’s bed to see Applejack had already heard you talking to the nurse and had curled up beside her sister, pulling her close into her body
>She had since taken off her Stetson and now rested her head on Apple Bloom, eye clamped shut as she tried to keep her sister alive
>A doctor comes by and throws a blanket over them both, but Applejack doesn’t seem to even notice
>This was all you could do for Apple Bloom at the moment
>Now, you needed to worry about the rest
>You take down moving down the aisle of beds, checking each foal’s pulse to make sure they were alive
>Occasionally, you had to cradle and rub a few in your arms. Primarily the ones that were close to fading away …
>You give extra attention to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo
>While you were doing your checkups, ponies began filing in a rushing over to their respected foals
>Some of them you recognize, but you’re too busy to acknowledge to them
>Twilight is there and after speaking to a nurse, begins helping the doctors retrieve new blankets
>Rarity nearly bulldozes a pony trying to get to Sweetie Belle
>Pinkie Pie tries to desperately cheer everyone up at first, but quickly succumbs to the gloomy scenario and bursts into dramatic display of tears before some nurse took her away

>Rainbow Dash enters the room just as you are checking on Scootaloo
>She trots over anxiously to the bed you are at
>You leave her standing there without a word until you finish taking the filly’s pulse
“Ok, she’s still with us… You here to help her?”
>She nods her head
“But you aren’t family”
>Rainbow: “She doesn’t have any…”
>Oh… shit
>That explained a lot
“It doesn’t matter. The nurses told you what to do?”
>She nods again, obviously not wanting to talk to you and hops in bed next to Scootaloo
>You leave them be and move onto the last of the patients, a dark pink mare
>Her fur felt like ice
>As if she was still getting progressively colder
>You look around desperately for someone
>Everyone in the room seemed to be either a mother or father, looking for their foal
>This had to be their teacher and no one seemed to be coming for her
>And she wasn’t going to last much longer by herself
“Hey! Nurse!”
>A nearby nurse turns to you
“I need another pony or she isn’t going to make it!”
>The nurse struggles to hear you over all the noise and instead runs over to a doctor who's apparently calling her name
>You curse under your breath
>Looks like you’ll have to do it
>Before you can do so, a red hoof is placed on your shoulder
>Its Big Mac
“You know her?”
>He nods, and for the first you can see actual emotion on his face
>He’s worried sick about her…
>Normally, letting a grown man in bed with a helpless woman without knowing their relation would be out of the question
>But then again, these were ponies and you honestly didn’t think Big Mac was going to try anything in a time like this

>You step aside and allow him to get to her
>By now, every filly and colt had a pony to care for them
>Doctors and nurses kept approaching you to ask permission for even the simplest thing, like scooting a bed over a few inches or which way to lay down a blanket
>You continue going around doing brief checks-up on everyone
>All the hypothermia victims were still unconscious but their vital signs were improving
>Most of the adults don’t even seem to mind or notice you checking their foals
>Almost all their eyes were shut in concentration, trying to force the heat out of their bodies and into their lifeless children
>Eventually, you feel a tug on your shirt from behind and turn to see Twilight
“Yes?”
>Twilight: “Are they going to be alright?”
>You get down to a knee and whisper to her so no one else hears
“I don’t know. Hypothermia can be very deadly where I come from… but we are doing all we can.”
>Twilight: “Hypothermia… I’ve never heard of that. Is there anything else we can do?”
>Some nurses and doctors had gathered around Twilight, waiting for you to speak
>Right now, you were the man of the hour
“Well… do you guys have hot soup?”
>They all nod
“It’d probably be best to give them something warm after they’ve woken up…”
>And just like that, they were off to brew up some stew
>Twilight shouts back a ‘thanks’ as they trot out the door and towards the kitchen
>Without missing a beat, you went back to monitoring your patients’ conditions

>About half an hour passes before the foals began waking up
>That’s when the room erupted into a sea of raw emotion
>There was crying, laughter and snuggling all around
>The explosion of sound is so loud that you have to go out in the hallway and wait for it to quiet down
>You lean up against a wall, nurses and doctors quickly thanking you as they passed by
>After about a dozen ‘you’re welcome’s, you can’t help but grin
>You had just helped saved more than dozen lives
>It felt good
>Eventually, the noise inside dies down to a more reasonable level and you reenter
>Every pony is too busy embracing and crying with one another to notice you
>Most parents by now had gotten out of the beds and were either reading the pony equivalent of children books to their foals or doing anything else to comfort them for that matter
>The little ones would have to stay here at the hospital for at least a day or two. Till they were in more of a stable condition
>They were only children after all
>You make your way over to Apple Bloom, whose sister is still tightly nestled up beside her
>Bloom[weakly]: “Hello A-Anon”
>As you approach, Applejack turns momentarily to look at you before returning to nurse her little sister
>Her eyes express a silent, but deep message of thanks
>You get to side of the bed nearest to Applejack (who no longer withdraws from you) and gently caress the little filly’s mane
“How you holding up Apple Bloom?”
>Bloom: “I’m fine, ah’ just- *coughs*”
“Shh. Don’t talk, Save your strength”
>She silently nods as Applejack moves to nuzzle her face, still a bit teary eyed

>You continue on to Scootaloo
>Rainbow as usual ignores you but Scootaloo on the other hand looks up when she sees you
>She manages (even in her groggy state) to extend a hoof to you, to which you instinctively bump with your fist
>You didn’t know what it was, but it felt right
>What do you even call that?
>Hoof-bump? Hoof-Fist? Hand-bump?”
>Whatever it was, it wasn’t too taboo because she smiles back at you
>Next up, Sweetie Belle
>You cautiously make your way over to the bed, going to the opposite of Rarity’s side
>She doesn’t seem to care about your presence, too focused on Sweetie Belle
>You swore she could have been her mother
>Again, the filly is the first to see you
>Belle[sickly]: “H-Hey Anon”
“Hey Sweetie Belle, you feeling ok?”
>The little unicorn filly is able to muster a smile as you mess with her mane
>You can feel Rarity staring at you, but she doesn’t do anything
>In fact, when you stopped and turn to face her, she was completely calm
>Well, ‘Calm’ in the sense that she didn’t look like she about to pounce on you for touching Sweetie Belle
>She had kind of blank expression, as if in numb shock
“Hi Rarity”
>She is at first startled at you using her name, but still manages to reply
>Rarity: “Oh… Hello Anon”
“Keep an eye on her, ok? She still looks a bit pale”
>Rarity: “Of course”
>She moves up closer to the bed as you depart
>You take a good look around the room

>Everything was finally settling down now and for the first time the diversity of the ponies here hits you
>There were some stall ponies you recognized before from the market place but there were others that you had never seen before
>Farmers, Businessponies, Bakers…
>The poor and the rich, the lower and higher class, were all gathered together in one room
>But they didn’t even seem to mind each other; all too caught up in being thankful for the lives of their cherished children
>Or maybe they were always this accepting of each other
>Guess it didn’t really matter
>Just then, your eye spies an… acoustic guitar?
>Perched up next to Apple Bloom’s bed
>Curiosity gets the best of you, so you head over to the two Apples
>This time Applejack is the first to spot you
>AJ: “What is it?”
“Oh nothing's a matter, I was just wondering what *points* that was.”
>AJ: “It’s mah’ father’s old guitar, Big Mac dropped it off when he got here… Pa' gave it ta Apple bloom when she was real little”
“Ponies can play guitar?”
>AJ: “…ah Yeah. Any pony can learn how to play”
>Ponies. Playing guitar
>What would they think of next?
“Are you going to play it?”
>AJ: “Not exactly, ah’ don’t know how to”
“Apple Bloom?”
>Bloom[embarrassed]: “Ah’ don’t know how ta play it either…”
>AJ: “She just likes to have it around, ya know?”
“Oh…”
>You stand there awkwardly for a few seconds before getting an idea

“Would you mind if I played something?”
>Bloom[surprised]: “Ya’ll can play?”
“I know a song or two, but mostly just a few tunes”
>AJ: “Ah’ don’t think that's a good ide-“
>Bloom: “Could ya play me one, Anon?”
“Sure, but only if it’s ok with your sister”
>You look up to Applejack, who subtly nods her head
>Luckily, there is a big enough stool nearby and you pull it over to take a spot next to the bed
>Applejack looks at you skeptically, not really believing you could play it, as you gently strum the strings to make sure it was tuned
>That's wasn't a lie when you said you only knew a song or two
>Music was never really your passion, but it was something your father enjoyed
>He naturally taught you a thing or two about a guitar. Enough at least to be able to pick up one on the spot and play a simple melody
>You didn’t know if it was appropriate to play it in a hospital
>But you were going to do it anyway
>Taking a deep breath, you close your eyes
>Lightly tapping your foot against the ground, you drown out of the surrounding sound while establishing an internal rhythm in your head
>Finally, you begin to play

>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMmuTfMaWVE
>The riff sings off the guitar gracefully
>You never played before an audience before, so you're a bit nervous
>You decided to keep your eyes shut in order to block out the surrounding ponies, playing in your own imaginary world
>Your relaxed fingers slip back and forth over the strings as you play
>Each note comes instinctively, like you weren't even playing at all
>Just flowing with the sound of music
>It wasn't too powerful nor was it too soft
>Just the right kind of quiet melody for moment
>Gradually, the place begins to quiet down as the ponies take notice to you playing
>None of the doctors or nurses try to stop you
>So you just keep playing
>Eventually, the little stage fright you had subsides and you feel at peace
>Everyone remains quiet as they listen to your little song

>When you finish and open your eyes, the place is dead silent
>You look up to see every mare, stallion and foal staring at you
>Suddenly some pony starts lightly stomping their hooves on the floor which is followed shortly by a cascade of controlled clapping from all around the room
>You stand up and gently rest the guitar next bed frame
>Applejack is at a complete loss of words
>She really didn't think you could do it
>Bloom: “Wow Anon, that was amaz- *cough*”
>The orange mare is on her like a hound at cough but she allows you to rustle the filly’s mane again
“Thanks. You get some rest now and maybe I’ll teach you how to play sometime”
>Despite her hypothermia-induced fatigue, she’s able to beam a huge smile at you
>You return it
>You didn’t know if you COULD teach her but now that you had said it, you were going to have to try someday
>The clopping of hooves dies down as quickly as it started and everyone goes back to what they were doing
>You’re surprised when you overhear a pale magenta colored filly talking to her father about ‘buying you’, like you were some sort of exotic pet
>Well, you’re job was pretty much done here and because you didn’t want to disturb the ponies any further, you decide to go wait out in the lobby
>You pass by Big Macintosh, who was sitting attentively next to the recovering mare
>He gives you what looks like a simple nod, but you know it speaks more volume than that
>As you pass through the door, Twilight and others come back with the soup for the foals
>Took them long enough

>A doctor asks you if there was anything else and you told them to make sure the foals were constantly being checked on and that they needed to get a good night’s rest before being able to return home
>He thanks you again before entering the room
>You manage to find the lobby, though it was pretty much deserted at this point
>To your surprise, you find Gus sitting on one of the waiting couchs
>No one seems to care though
>You sit down next to him and wait
>The hospitals here probably had certain visiting hours like the ones back home so the adult ponies would have to leave eventually
>You could leave right now and go back to the farm, but you might as well just wait it out so no pony jumps the gun and says you ran away
>About an hour or two passes until ponies start to leave
>Most of them don’t acknowledge you, too caught up in conversation
>The ones that do at least don’t look at you in disgust anymore, a few even giving you a silent bow with their heads as they leave
>Though they weren’t anywhere near the whole population of Ponyville, it was start
>These ponies at least tolerated you now
>Applejack and Big Mac are the last to leave
>You and Gus get up to follow them out
>They look a bit confused at you
>AJ: “Why did ya'll wait for us?”
“I figured you wouldn’t take kindly to me just wandering off by myself”
>AJ[low]: “Oh yeah… right”
>Your little group makes their way back to the farm house as the Sun is now setting
>It’s nice to walk freely without ropes around your wrists

>AJ: “So… that song”
“Yeah?”
>AJ: “Where did ya learn it? It was …amazin'”
“It’s an old song my father taught me when I was young… You see, back home I live on a farm too and there wasn’t very much to go around at times”
>Her ears pick up at the mention of your farm
“When things got really tough, he’d play us that song… To remind us of the more important things in life”
>Both Big Mac and Applejack seem to take your words to heart and remain quiet for the rest of the trip back
>You get to the barn just when the Sun finishes casting its red hue against the sky, just before disappearing over the hills
>Out of habit, you walk into the barn only to have Applejack follow you inside
>AJ: “…Anon?”
“Yea-?”
>When you turn around, she lunges at you on her hind legs and embraces you
>You’re completely stunned
>She rests her head below your one shoulder, looking down at the ground
>AJ[emotional]: “Thank you. Thank ya for savin’ her… for savin’ everyp0ny”
>Eventually, you regain your composure and return the hug
>Its last for about a good minute before she breaks away, getting back down to her four hooves
>AJ: “Alright * sniffle*, with that out of the way… could you take off those clothes?”
>…
>What.
>What?!
“ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh”
>AJ: “Rarity told me she wants to wash 'em for you, ya know, as thanks”
>Oh dear god, that was close
“Um, sure but what am I going to wear in the meantime?”
>AJ: “What do ya mean?”
“After you take them from me, what am I going to wear?”
>She looks really confused

>AJ: “Ya’ll mean you can’t go for one night without your clothes?
“Well yeah, I can sleep like that but I don’t like anyone seeing me… naked”
>The orange mare cocks her head to one side
>AJ: ”And why in tar’nation is that? Almost all ponies walk ‘round without any clothes”
“I know, it’s just-… It would make me uncomfortable”
>AJ: ”How ‘bout you undress in dat stable over there and throw your clothes over the side so ‘ah I can get ‘em. Then tomorrow, you’ll just get in the stable again and I’ll throw ‘em over for you ta get dress”
>That would work
“That be ok, I guess”
>You get in the stable and (while holding the door shut with one hand) undress till your butt naked
>Just like she had asked, you threw your clothes over and you hear her picking them up off the ground
>AJ: “Ok, I got ‘em. Ah’ll take them over to Rarity’s now so she can hang them out overnight to dry”
>You hear her start to close the barn door but she stops to say one last thing
>AJ: ”The chariot is gonna be here in morning… Now I can’t defend you for doing what ya did to Rainbow, but I’ll make sure that the princess doesn’t go to harsh on you”
“Thanks”
>You hear the door close, but this time without the bolt locking
>Either she had forgot or felt she didn’t need to
>You get out of the stall and look around for Gus
>He wasn’t there…
>Must of ran off with Winona somewhere or something
>Probably for the best too, you being naked and all

>You dive into the hay making sure to cover up yourself, except for your head of course
>It’s a bit itchy but you ignore it for now
>Tomorrow’s the big day. You’d need your rest to be ready when you presented yourself to their princess
>Applejack, in a strange turn of events, had agreed to put in a good word for you
>Don’t know what a farmer’s word would mean for a regal ruler, but it was better than nothing
>You try not to think about it because you know if you do, you’d never get to sleep
>Instead, you wonder about how Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were doing at the hospital
>They could have easily died… but they hadn’t
>They were alive
>You smile as you close your eyes, content with ending the day with that thought
>Sleep takes you within minutes