"Did you—?"

"Cleaned the shelves, reorganized the desk, sorted out the card catalog, dusted the books—"

"Even the—"

"Especially the super special rare books—reference only, of course—shelved towards the top so the younger fillies can't get to them."

"Great! So now there's—"

"Breakfast? Toast with daffodil butter and a refreshing grass smoothie to get your brain muscles pumping."

As the plate and glass sailed across the table towards her, Pippi Longstocking couldn't help chuckling a bit to herself. "Wow Applebloom, it's like you don't even need me anymore."

"Nah, I wouldn't go that far," Applebloom grinned proudly before heading back to triple check the morning check list of what needed to get done at the library today. Pippi had slept in a bit that morning after a rather grueling studying session the previous night, which usually meant that her number one assistant took advantage of this and caught a few extra Z's himself. She was surprised when she woke up around ten o'clock to find both her room and the library spotless, clean and organized, all of her books back in their proper places with fresh parchment, quills and ink ready on her desk. Hearing the little dragon humming to himself in the kitchen as he mixed up her smoothie, Pippi felt touched that he had taken it upon himself to wake up early and get everything ready for her for the day, plus make her breakfast. He really is growing up…

"Besides," Applebloom added as he joined her at the table, "it'd get way too boring around here without you going crazy about something every other day." He gave her a joking smile as Pippi frowned down at him. Scratch that—he's still immature as ever, she thought as Applebloom started to laugh at her glare, only for it to be followed by a coughing fit.

"Ooh, that doesn't sound very good," Pippi winced, watching little puffs of smoke fly out of Applebloom mouth each time he coughed. "I hope you're not getting sick. Hearth's Warming Eve is only a few days away and I'd hate for you to miss out on the festivities." She, Applebloom, and the girls planned to head to Canterlot and attend a professional production of the legend of the founding of Equestria, followed by a gift exchange on the train ride back to girlville and a sleepover back at the library so they could all ring in the new year together.

"Aw, don't worry about it," Applebloom said hoarsely as he resurfaced from his fit. "Pretty sure it's just dust from cleaning the super special rare books up top."

"Speaking of which," Pippi said as she polished off her breakfast and trotted towards the high shelf where the reference books rested, examining them carefully, "they're certainly clean—but I don't think they're alphabetized. I think you know by now that Star Swirl's Complete History should go after Here's Some More Star Swirl History."

"Oh shoot, I knew I forgot something!" Applebloom smacked a claw to his forehead, rushing over to push the ladder towards the high shelf. Scampering up to the top, he had to pause to cough some more, concluding with a little gag, "Yep, definitely the dust."

"Look, don't push yourself too hard," Pippi said, a little wary of Applebloom's frequent coughing. "It doesn't need to be done right this instant—"

"No can do, Pippi," Applebloom said in a businesslike fashion, pushing the books around on the top shelf in their correct order. "A true number one assistant works hard, no matter what ails him."

Pippi smiled up at his adorable nobility, "Applebloom, you really are something. I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Aw, thanks," Applebloom blushed a bit at her compliment, just as a loud knocking at the front door interrupted them.

"Pippi!" came a loud, brash voice they both knew belonged to a certain blue pegasus, "You in there?!"

"I suppose this is what I get for sleeping in," Pippi sighed, using her magic to open the door for her friend, who zoomed into the room as if she had planned to break down the door anyway.

"Oh man, Pippi you have to see what I got Sweetie Belle for her Hearth's Warming Eve present!" Scootaloo said excitedly, carrying a cardboard box in her front hooves.

"Scootaloo, this is supposed to be a secret gift exchange!" Pippi cried indignantly up at Scootaloo hovering above her. "You're not supposed to tell which girl you're buying for."

"Lighten up, Pippi, who cares if it's a secret or not? It's the thought that counts anyway," Scootaloo waved her hoof at her dismissively. "Besides, do you actually expect a girl like Annika to keep it secret for long?"

"Touché," Pippi had to admit, "but I'm still keeping the girl I'm giving my gift to a secret."

"Anyways, so remember the other day when Sweetie Belle was totally freaking out 'cause she found a gray hair in her mane?" Scootaloo said, fiddling with the string on the box.

"Vaguely," Pippi said sarcastically—how could she forget? The debutant unicorn's bloodcurdling scream could probably have been heard clear to Fillydelphia.

"Well, I dropped around twenty bits and got this new mane color for her!" Pippi's jaw nearly hit the floor when she saw the bottle Scootaloo withdrew. It was completely encased inside with liquidated faux silver gems.

"Uh…Scootaloo?"

"I know, right?! It's gems, just like she loves! But it's liquid so she can put it in her mane! This has got to be the most awesome gift ever!"

"I uh…" Pippi had half a mind to tell Scootaloo that Sweetie Belle would never put such a cheap, tacky color in her mane, but to spare Scootaloo's feelings she ultimately decided against such blunt honesty. That was Applebloom's department after all. "You know, I've been thinking about getting a new mane color myself…uh…why don't we go back to the store and you can…er…help me pick one out, too?"

"Sure, why not?" Scootaloo said enthusiastically. "Guess I'm becoming quite the expert at this mane stuff, huh?"

"Uh, something like that," Pippi murmured, levitating her scarf around her neck as Scootaloo zoomed out into the snowy girlville air. She called up to her assistant, still perched at the top of the ladder, "Applebloom, I guess I'm going out for a bit!"

"Okay, have f—" Applebloom coughed several smoke-filled times before finishing "—have fun!"

"Oh, and Applebloom?" Pippi called up to him, "There's some cough medicine in the pantry, I want you to take some this morning."

"Fine, whatever," Applebloom mumbled disgruntledly as Pippi shut the door behind her. He hated that icky cough medicine—it tasted bad and made him sleepy. And he wouldn't be of any use to Pippi if he was sleepy. "Besides," he said to himself as he pulled out A Mare's Magical Guide to move it to its correct place, "it's just a little cough, nothing to worry about—"

The little dragon's face quickly twisted into that of horror when an unanticipated and very violent sneeze burst from him, sending a shoot of flames from his nose that completely engulfed the leather bound book in his hands.

~
"I'm back, Applebloom!" Pippi called out as she opened the door to the library a few hours later, "And I managed to convince Scootaloo to return that flashy mane color!" Luckily, there had been a deep purple color similar to Sweetie Belle's natural mane that they were able to buy in its place. On the way back, she stopped by Sugar Cube Corner to pick up some holiday baked goods at Annika's "bestest best friend forever" discount price.

"Where do you want these, Pippi?" came the cheerful voice of the pink earth girl, balancing three boxes of freshly baked cookies on her back.

"I'll take them from here, Pinkie," Pippi replied, levitating the boxes off of Pinkie's back, "Follow me into the kitchen and we can—" She gasped the moment her gaze traveled to the floor of her library, letting the boxes fall clumsily as she struggled to take in what she was seeing.

"See, I told you I should've carried them," Pinkie sounded a little annoyed as she went to gather the boxes. "They were too heavy even for your magic to handle, you silly!"

"What the hay…" Pippi managed to squeak out, moving closer to find her suspicions confirmed. A pile of about three or four blackened and burned books was sitting at the foot of the ladder leaning against the shelf—right where the reference books resided at the top.

"Pippi…?" Pinkie asked, finally noticing her friend's distress. "You don't look so good. You okay?"

"No Pinkie, I'm not okay," Pippi snapped at her, causing Pinkie to recoil a bit as the lavender unicorn snorted angrily, calling up the stairs, "Applebloom!"

A clearly audible gasp followed, punctured by a loud sneeze. "Aw great, burned the handkerchief now," came the muttering voice of the little purple dragon as he descended the stairs, slowly and hesitantly to face the long hard lecture from Pippi that was sure to come. In her anger and frustration, Pippi couldn't help noticing that Applebloom did not look well at all.

"Applebloom, you look awfully pale," Pippi said evenly, trying to keep her temper at bay for just a little bit longer. "Did you take the medicine like I asked you to earlier?"

"Yeah," Applebloom sniffled, wiping his nose on the back of his wrist. "I did—I swear I did!" he added hastily upon the glower Pippi gave him.

"Are you sick, Applebloom?" Pinkie asked, cocking her head curiously to the side as she examined the little dragon's paler purple hue, "I better leave then. I don't wanna get the snifflies—"

"No Pinkie stay, please stay!" Applebloom begged desperately, glancing at Pippi out the corner of his eye and hoping that if Pinkie stuck around then his unicorn companion would go easier on him.

"If you took the medicine, then why are you—?"

"Ah-choo!"

"—sneezing," Pippi finished. Pinkie squealed and jumped out of the way as a shot of flames blazed past her, barely grazing her mane as Pippi marched closer to Applebloom, "And what do you have to say for yourself about this, huh?" She indicated the scorched pile of what barely resembled books.

"It was a total accident, Pippi, I didn't mean to," Applebloom tried to explain through a congested nose, but Pippi barely noticed as she used her magic to sift through the ashes.

"Applebloom, how many times have I told you to get away from the books when you feel a sneeze coming on?!"

"They were coming out of nowhere, there wasn't much I could do—!"

"That's no exc—no!" Pippi suddenly cried out as she reached the bottom of the pile. Levitating to her eye level, she saw that it was her now completely destroyed copy of A Mare's Magical Guide.

"Um…no charge for this delivery, okay? Okay!" Pinkie dropped the boxes back on the floor and shot out the door of the library, leaving the two of them alone.

"Applebloom, how could you?" Pippi whispered, futilely looking to see if the book was salvageable in any way. "This was the very first book Captain Longstocking ever gave me when I began my studies with her. It—it was really precious to me, and now it's gone…forever."

"I'm so sorry, Pippi…" Applebloom trailed off, feeling worse from guilt than his physical illness. He would have almost preferred it if she'd yelled at him and punished him—anything would have been better than this bitter disappointment reflected in Pippi's tear-filled eyes.

"Please leave, Applebloom."

"But Pippi—"

"Just go away," Pippi shot at him, turning away as she let the charred book fall at her feet. "I can't talk to you, I—I can't even look at you right now."

Applebloom let out one last sneeze before miserably trudging back up the stairs to the bedroom. The drowsy effects of the cold medicine were starting to take effect as he crawled under the covers inside his basket. But if there was anything Applebloom hated more than taking disgusting medicine, it was seeing Pippi so upset. And the worst part was…he had been the cause of it.

~
Pippi opened her eyes the following morning, staring up at the oak ceiling of her bedroom as she gathered her thoughts, recalling everything that had happened the previous day: Applebloom catching a cold and his constant diligence which led to the destruction of four of the rarest books in her reference section, including the Princess' gift to her from back when she was just a filly. After she had gotten over the initial shock of losing A Mare's Magical Guide, she realized that—in retrospect—she had already mastered all of the spells in that book and didn't really have a need for it anymore. She sighed as she rolled over, squeezing her eyes shut tight against her pillow. Sleeping on this had made Pippi realize that her emotional attachment to that book had made her react to her assistant far more harshly than she intended to.

Poor Applebloom…she thought unhappily, opening her eyes to gaze down at Applebloom, sleeping with his back to her in his little basket at the foot of her bed. I should wake him up and apologize—tell him I was just angry and didn't mean to sound so cruel. Getting up out of bed, she crept over to Applebloom's basket and reached out a hoof to gently shake him awake.

She gasped and withdrew her hoof as if she'd been burned, which wasn't far from the truth. Applebloom's scaly body felt like it was on fire, and Pippi could just barely make out his shallow breathing patterns over the sound of her own pounding heart.

"Applebloom?" she asked in a tone just over a whisper, shaking him a bit harder than she meant to, "Applebloom, are you alright? Answer me." A wave of relief washed over her when Applebloom moaned a little—at least he was responsive. However, the panic came back full force when Applebloom rolled over to meet her gaze. He was far paler than yesterday with beads of sweat rolling off of his forehead as Pippi yanked the blanket away from him.

"No…"Applebloom muttered, reaching out for the blanket, "C-cold…"

"What?" Pippi pondered in a hushed voice, throwing the blanket back over him. "How can you be cold and sweating at the same time?" Applebloom yawned widely and Pippi nearly jumped backward. His tongue was swollen and parched with little red and white spots dotting all the way back to his throat as he gave a slight dry cough.

"This is not good," Pippi shook her head as she bit her lip. Taking mental inventory of all of his symptoms, she dashed down the stairs to the library. Pulling out book after book, she flipped through every mention of illnesses and their indicators, including several books Zecora had recommended to her. When nothing she read appeared to completely match Applebloom's symptoms, Pippi was forced to conclude fearfully that this was not some girl illness—this was a dragon illness.

"No, no, no, no, no…" she repeated continually under her breath. Her library contained hardly any dragon lore, let alone a complete record of their known illnesses. After a quick look through the books she knew had references to dragons in them, Pippi sank to the ground on her haunches and buried her face in her hooves.

What could she do? The girlville pediatricians wouldn't know how to help; she learned that not long ago during Applebloom's sudden growth spurt. Zecora was gone on a trip to add more herbs to her collection, plus a trek through the Everfree Forest to her hut would take far too long. And there was no way Pippi could get a letter to Captain Longstocking with Applebloom in such awful condition. Resigning herself to a dead end, she stood to head back upstairs and check on the little dragon when a sudden knock at the door made her heart leap hopefully.

"Pippi darling, are you awake?"

"Sweetie Belle," Pippi breathed, flinging the door open with her magic to reveal the pristine white unicorn, "Am I glad to see you."

"I was just talking to Silver Shimmer—you remember her, she used to work at the spa and now she's at Mane-ingful Color—and she told me you and Scootaloo intended to buy me a 'gag gift' for Hearth's Warming Eve," Sweetie Belle recounted in one breath as she trotted into Pippi's main room with her nose in the air. "And frankly I'm a bit upset that you would stoop to Scootaloo's childish level of practical joking for a celebration as sacred as Hearth's Warming Eve—"

"Sweetie Belle I'm sorry, but this is a bad time," Pippi interrupted her, trying to keep the quiver out of her voice. "Applebloom is sick and I don't have time to—"

"Applebloom?" Sweetie Belle whirled around to face her, concern evident in her sapphire eyes, "He's ill? How badly?"

"It started out as a cold yesterday. This morning he has a fever but he also feels like he's freezing, and there are spots on his tongue and throat," Pippi paced the floor, recounting the symptoms to her posh friend. "I've never seen anything like this before, and it's not in any of my books. It's some sort of dragon thing and I know next to nothing about their ailments and Applebloom's upstairs all—" She gasped, realizing it had been at least a half an hour since she left Applebloom alone.

"Applebloomy-wikey, I'm coming!" Sweetie Belle called dramatically, galloping up the stairs with Pippi at her heels.

"Shh Sweetie Belle, don't wake him!" Pippi hissed as loudly as she dared when they reached the landing to Pippi's room.

"R-Sweetie Belle?" Applebloom groaned as the little dragon rolled over to face them. He cracked his eyes open and Pippi's heart tightened when she saw how bloodshot they were. "Is that you?"

"Oh you poor little thing," Sweetie Belle cooed, running a hoof over his sweaty forehead before pulling back suddenly, glancing back at Pippi. "He's not contagious is he?"

"Not to children, I've gathered that much," Pippi replied softly, and Sweetie Belle resumed stroking his scaly head while Pippi's mind worked frantically, "Think, Pippi, think think think…" There had to be some girl who knew something about dragons; a girl with experience dealing with various sicknesses, of all types of creatures…and the answer hit her like a ton of bricks.

Of course, Pippi slapped a hoof to her forehead, why didn't I think of it before?! "Sweetie Belle, could you stay here with Applebloom just for a little while?" she asked, turning to dash back down the stairs, "I've had an idea. If he wakes up, just—"

"I'll be fine, Pippi, I took care of Sweetie Belle when she had the girl pox a few years back," Sweetie Belle assured her. Pippi barely bit back the retort that this was more severe than the girl pox, but since it was pure luck that Sweetie Belle just happened to show up at her door this morning, beggars couldn't be choosers.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Pippi nodded, galloping down the stairs three at a time and out into the chilly morning air towards Tommy's cottage.

~
"You're sure those are all the symptoms?" Tommy confirmed as she flew beside Pippi back to the library, carrying a large first aid kit in her front hoofs. Not only was Pippi fortunate enough to find Tommy at home, but also found a few books in her collection with a substantial amount of information on creature illnesses—dragons among them—and stuffed a few into her saddlebag.

"Positive—unless anything's changed since I left," Pippi mused mostly to herself as the front door to the library came closer in sight. Banging it open, Tommy moved faster than Pippi had ever seen her fly up the stairs to the bedroom. Then she remembered that Tommy tended to fly at her full potential whenever a helpless creature needed her aid.

"Tommy! Oh good thinking, Pippi!" Sweetie Belle sighed in relief as she stepped aside so the timid yellow pegasus could examine Applebloom.

"Any changes?" Pippi panted, completely out of breath from running to the edge of the Everfree Forest and back in a matter of minutes.

"He asked for you, he could barely speak," Sweetie Belle said in a mournful tone, "I told him you'd be right back and to just rest until then."

"Pippi, how long has his breathing been this rough?" Tommy asked quietly, glancing at the spots in his mouth.

"Since I woke him this morning—he was fine yesterday," Pippi voiced aloud the phrase that had been cropping up in her thoughts from the start. He was fine yesterday…

"I'm going to get the others," Sweetie Belle announced, racing down the stairs to the front door.

"Sweetie Belle, stop!" Pippi called from the top of the stairs, "They're all getting ready for the holiday, don't bother them with this—"

"Applebloom is part of this family, Pippi," Sweetie Belle stated in a firm, scolding tone that took Pippi aback. "They would want to be bothered by it." Without another word, she turned tail and galloped out the door as Pippi closed her eyes and breathed deeply to calm her racing heart.

"Pippi, open that book with the leather cover," Tommy finally said after several moments of silent inspection, "and find the chapter called Fire Spores."

Pippi levitated the book out of her bag and flipped to the section Tommy mentioned, "Fire Spores: a common illness among dragons that often begins with what appears to be a common cold, followed by an intense fever and internal spots along the oral cavity. No known cause of Fire Spores has been determined."

"That's what I thought," Tommy nodded, running a cool cloth over Applebloom's head as Pippi began to relax a bit—it was a common dragon illness. "I did a bit of reading up on dragons after you and Applebloom first came to girlville and I kept the books I thought would come in handy someday."

"Tommy, you're a lifesaver," Pippi sighed, "I'm indebted to you for this."

"Not at all, Pippi," Tommy shook her head. "Now, the cure should be on the following page."

Pippi was about to flip the page when a footnote caught her eye: "Fire Spores are ultimately harmless to full grown dragons; like a virus, it will pass in a matter of days with proper care. For a baby dragon—" Pippi froze, rereading the line several times as Tommy looked on in anxiety. Drawing a shaking breath, she finished: "For a baby dragon, it can be potentially fatal."

She barely heard the door open downstairs, hardly heard Applebloom call, "Hang in there, Applebloom, we're comin'!" as three sets of hooves pounded up the stairs with Scootaloo flying above them. All she heard over this commotion was the small weak voice coming from the little basket on the floor calling her name pleadingly, "Pippi…"

Dropping the book, Pippi rushed to Applebloom's side, reaching out to hold his claw tightly in her hoof. "Tommy, what do we do?" she asked in a low trembling voice as Tommy rushed to retrieve the fallen book.

"It's a potion," Tommy recited calmly from the book, bound and determined to keep her head now that Pippi looked positively sick with worry. "It looks like all of the ingredients can be found here in the girlville shops…um…except…silkworm vines."

"There's only one place those grow," Pippi recalled from one of Zecora's herbal books, "Near the summit of Mount Canter, the second largest mountain in Equestria."

"Pippi, Sweetie Belle told us everything," Scootaloo said solemnly as the rest of her friends arrived, looking down at Applebloom from where she hovered. "Is there anything we can do?"

For a moment Pippi said nothing, her eyes focused solely on Applebloom whose face was contorted in pain. Swallowing the hard lump in her throat, she looked up at her five friends with determined purpose, "Applebloom's condition is only going to worsen if we just stand here worrying, so listen up. Sweetie Belle, you're going to stay at Applebloom's side and watch him. I'm going to compose a letter to Captain Longstocking and tell her what's going on. Scootaloo, I need you to fly to Canterlot and deliver that message, and don't come back until she's written a reply. Applebloom and Annika, I need you both to start brewing this remedy for Fire Spores in the kitchen."

"Let's move, Pinkie," Applebloom ordered to Pinkie as she picked up the book with her mouth and they both trotted down stairs.

"But Pippi, we still don't have the silkworm vines," Tommy reminded her hesitantly.

"And that's where you come in," Pippi said, levitating an aged roll of parchment from her bookshelf and spreading it out on the floor—a map of Equestria. "On foot, Mount Canter is a day and a half from here. But in flight, that can easily be shortened to less than a day. Tommy, I need you to retrieve the silkworm vines from the summit."

"Oh I don't know, Pippi—"

"Please, Tommy," Pippi implored her, taking her face in both of her front hooves, "You know these remedies, you've worked with them before. You've cured so many sick animals with your incredible gift and you've gone to great lengths to help them—lengths I didn't even know you were capable of. I'm prepared to go to any length it takes to save Applebloom…and as your best friend, I know you can do this."

"Okay," Tommy whispered, nodding vigorously, "You're right Pippi, I'll…I'll do it."

"Do be careful, dear," Sweetie Belle called to her as Tommy stood on the sill of Pippi's window, ready to take off. The yellow pegasus smiled in a rare show of confidence before spreading her wings and soaring gracefully off into the sunlight.

~
"Scootaloo just left," Pippi told Sweetie Belle as the rays of the sunset painted the sky in an orange hue, "Hopefully she gets to Canterlot before the sun goes down."

"And Applebloom and Pinkie?" Sweetie Belle asked, throwing an extra blanket over Applebloom, who was shivering violently.

"They got back from the market a little while ago, I told them to let us know if they needed our help," Pippi answered, then smiled a little. "I doubt it though—they're the two best cooks in girlville."

"Indeed," Sweetie Belle agreed. Applebloom had been moved into Pippi's bed so he would have more room, and since then his body temperature seemed to be stable. It was still very high, but didn't seem to be getting any worse—it was the internal chilliness eating away at Applebloom that worried them now, plus his stomach seemed to be aching which caused him to inhale sharply every now and then.

"Pippi?"

"Yes?"

"How are you?"

"Don't worry about me Sweetie Belle, I'm fine," Pippi attempted to brush her off, but Sweetie Belle would not stop gazing at her intently, as if she was trying to read her mind. The ivory unicorn finally looked back down at Applebloom, whose head was in her lap as she gently stroked his head.

"I've always felt guilty," Sweetie Belle said softly so as not to wake him. "You know…that I could never truly return Applebloom's feelings for me. He's sweet and hardworking, and when he comes to help me out the boutique I feel like I take advantage of him, which is awful because I genuinely do care for him. Like a child I want to shelter and protect from harm, not unlike my own younger sister. Do you know what I mean?"

"I…know exactly what you mean," Pippi said, propping her forelegs up on the edge of her bed pensively. "I hatched Applebloom, I—I helped raise him from that moment on with the Princess watching over us both. He ruined a lot of my books back then because he'd have these spurts of fire breath before he could control them. But as he grew he proved to be useful, so useful in fact that…well…before I made any real friends, he…he was just there. He was just my assistant, the little dragon I ordered around when I couldn't find a book or needed my desk organized or some other stupid chore that needed to get done. No girl's taken more advantage of him…than me."

"But Pippi, he loves being your assistant," Sweetie Belle said soothingly, covering Pippi's hoof with her own.

"That doesn't excuse how I treat him," Pippi shook her head. "Yesterday I got mad at him for accidentally burning a few of my rare books. I just expect him to be perfect all of the time, to pick me up when I fall short and be the voice of reason when I can't be. We've been in eachother's lives for so long that I've never once even considered the fact that one day he might not be there at all." Pippi pressed a hoof to her mouth as she choked back tears, Sweetie Belle moving a bit closer to wrap her foreleg around her. "When I met you girls and learned about the importance of friendship, I realized that Applebloom is probably the closest friend I've ever had. He's literally always been there for me, and now…I can't do a thing for him."

"That's not true," Sweetie Belle said quietly, wiping a stray tear from Pippi's cheek, "You've done more for him than any girl ever has. He's a little dragon all alone in this world, and Pippi…you've given him a family. And that's something he can cherish forever, despite the bad times you two have had. Regardless, good always comes from the most troubling of times."

Pippi sniffled as she shared a meaningful smile with Sweetie Belle. Truthfully, she hadn't always seen eye to eye with her fashionista friend, but every day she seemed to discover something new about her—and how she continued to stay true to her generous nature. Sweetie Belle cared for Applebloom just as much as she did, and they were both willing to see this through to its end.

Whatever end that might be, Pippi's smile faded as she looked down at her pale sleeping assistant, holding his claw in both of her hooves. "This could kill him, Sweetie Belle," she said aloud without thinking.

Thankfully, Sweetie Belle didn't gasp dramatically or faint in fear, but kept her comforting foreleg firmly around Pippi's shoulders. "He'll pull through this, Pippi…I promise you he will."

Princess Luna's moon was just beginning to rise into the starry sky when Scootaloo returned, flying at full speed towards Pippi's window, which she managed to open just in time before Scootaloo crashed into it. "Mission accomplished," the blue pegasus declared proudly, holding out a scroll that Pippi immediately levitated from her grasp and unrolled, scanning it hurriedly as Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo both listened intently.

"She says we're doing everything right," Pippi paraphrased, rolling the parchment back up, "and now it's a matter of waiting it out and keeping Applebloom's condition stabilized until Tommy returns."

"I hate to think about poor Tommy flying around in the dark out there," Sweetie Belle mused with a glance out the window. "Do you think she's alright?"

"Don't worry about her," Scootaloo said, "She may be a scaredy girl, but she always pulls through when the going gets tough."

Pippi sighed, "I thought the Princess would be able to help us out more than that. That maybe she knew something we didn't."

"Pippi, she's a princess, not a miracle worker," Scootaloo said sternly, folding her forelegs across her chest, "I saw her when she read your letter—she looked really worried. Kinda like you do right now."

"I'm sorry, I don't know what's come over me," Pippi buried her face in her bedspread, her hooves gripping her mane. "I'm just expecting everything to fall into place, when in reality I feel more lost than ever."

"You hear that, kid?" Scootaloo said to Applebloom's sleeping form, still curled up against Sweetie Belle, "You got every girl here worrying about you, especially Pippi. You—you need to get better, alright?" Applebloom rolled over and moaned agonizingly, one claw clutching his stomach as his face contorted in pain. "Aw geez…" Scootaloo muttered under her breath, turning away to wipe her eyes on the back of her hoof.

"Pinkie, I cain't believe ya'll would do somethin' that senseless," came the angry voice of the southern earth girl as two sets of hooves trotted up the stairs.

"I just wanted to sweeten up the potion to make it taste better—duh!" Pinkie retorted with an air of attitude. "You know what they say: A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine—"

"That ain't the point, sugar cube!" Applebloom cut her off, turning to glare at her once they reached the landing. "Our little Applebloom's life is hangin' by a thread, and if we don't git this right he could d—"

"Applebloom, shut up," Scootaloo hissed at her as Pippi moved sadly away from the group to sit by herself in a corner of the room. Applebloom sighed deeply and hung her head.

"I'm sorry, Twi—every girl," she added to the rest of the room, "This whole thing is plum stressin' me out and when I'm stressed, every little thing gits on mah nerves." She turned to Pinkie, whose mane had flattened just a bit, "I'm sure the sugar ain't gonna hurt the medicine none."

"Course it won't, silly," Pinkie said, ruffling Applebloom's mane a little, "Besides, I'm nervous about Applebloom too."

"We all are," Sweetie Belle nodded as Applebloom groaned again. For a few moments every girl was silent, watching Applebloom closely for any alarming changes—all except Pippi, who continued to sit with her back to them.

Scootaloo was the first to speak, "Pippi? You okay?"

"It's getting late," the lavender unicorn finally responded tiredly, still not looking directly at them, "You should probably all be heading home."

"Are you nuts?" Scootaloo said indignantly, "We're not leaving you alone."

"How could you even suggest such a thing?" Sweetie Belle asked, sounding genuinely offended, "We'll all sleep downstairs in the library tonight, right girls?"

"A 'Get Well Soon, Applebloom' sleepover party!" Pinkie exclaimed happily, bouncing into the air excitedly.

"No, Pinkie," three voices chorused at once, returning Pinkie slowly back down to earth.

"Come on, ya'll," Applebloom motioned all of them towards the stairs, "I'll git the extra blankets and pillows." Sweetie Belle gently lifted Applebloom off of her lap and settled him into Pippi's bed, giving him a small kiss on the cheek before following Pinkie, Scootaloo and Applebloom towards the stairs.

"Wait," Pippi whirled around to face her friends. "Thank you…thank you all so much for everything you've done today."

"Aw, Pippi," Applebloom breathed, trotting over and hugging her tightly, "He's gonna be alright…we're all in this together." After a few moments she pulled away, leaving with the others so Pippi could be alone with Applebloom.

She started suddenly at the raspy voice that came from her bed, "Wh…what time is it?"

"Applebloom," Pippi rushed over, peering down at him anxiously. Still pale, still achy, his speech still muffled due to his swollen tongue. "It's nine thirty at night—you slept all day."

"Oh," was all he said, rolling his head to the side to gaze at her. "You look awful."

"I could say the same to you," Pippi scoffed a bit, then ran a hoof over his forehead, "How are you feeling?"

"Lousy," Applebloom replied, "Really lousy." Pippi's heart broke with every ragged breath he drew, but was determined to remain strong now that Applebloom was awake, looking up at her with pleading eyes. "Were you and Sweetie Belle talking earlier?"

Pippi nodded, "You heard all of that?"

"Heard something about…how Sweetie Belle cared about me," Applebloom managed a small wistful smile. "Then you talking about…taking advantage of me?"

"Applebloom, I'm so sorry about yesterday!" Pippi blurted out as she climbed into the bed, laying her head dejectedly on the pillow next to his. "I get so wrapped up in my books that I forget about you and how important you are to me. I don't need A Mare's Magical Guide, I don't need any of those books—but I need you. Not just as the greatest assistant a girl could ever have, but as the most special friend I've ever had."

"You really…mean that?" Applebloom whispered, his eyes welling with tears.

"Yes," Pippi said, "I…don't know what I would do without you." Moving at the same time, they reached across the bed and latched onto eachother, hoof in claw, and held on tightly. Their silent communication of assurance in one another's eyes was enough for both of them to eventually drift off into a decent night's sleep.

~
"Tommy should be back by now," was the first thing Pippi heard when she awoke the next morning—the day before Hearth's Warming Eve. She cracked her eyes open to find the four friends of hers who spent the night sitting at the foot of her bed, talking softly.

"You know Tommy, she doesn't fly as fast as I do," Scootaloo replied to Sweetie Belle, for once not hovering in the air but sitting quietly with the others. "She'll get here when she gets here."

"Unless somethin' happened to her," Applebloom said worriedly. "Ya know this winter weather—it can change to somethin' nasty in the blink of an eye."

"I'm already worried so much about Applebloom, I can't be worried about Tommy, too," Pinkie fretted, burying her face in her hooves. "Too much worrying makes my tummy ache."

Pippi sat up in bed and the four of them jumped at her abrupt movement. "Pippi, I'm sorry," Sweetie Belle said timidly, "Did we wake you?"

"It's fine, I should be up from time to time to check on Applebloom anyway," Pippi answered, shifting around to where Applebloom lay sleeping next to her, gently reaching to feel his warm forehead.

"Applebloom?" Pippi said in alarm, all grogginess from her sleep evaporating in an instant.

"What is it?" Sweetie Belle shoved past the others to get to the bed as Pippi pressed her ear to Applebloom's chest.

"He's so cold…and his heartbeat is really weak."

"No," Applebloom said firmly, moving towards the bed herself. "Don't you do this, Applebloom…don't you dare do this to us. Not after all we've tried to do for you."

"Don't do what?" Pinkie asked as she and Scootaloo gathered next to them, "What's happening?"

"Pinkie, get Tommy's leather book from downstairs—now," Pippi ordered the pink earth girl, who raced downstairs as Sweetie Belle cupped Applebloom's unresponsive face in her hooves. "Applebloom, look at me," the white unicorn begged, "Please look at me, wake up darling."

"I got it!" Pinkie called through her teeth, carrying the book in her mouth. Tripping on the landing, the book went flying across the room—which Pippi caught with her magic before it smashed through the window.

"Here," Pippi flipped open to the page that had the potion recipe and scanned to the bottom. "'This potion MUST be completed and administered in a timely fashion. Especially in the case of a younger dragon, any delay could result in a severe decline in body temperature, loss of consciousness, or even…'" She couldn't say the final word aloud, but she didn't need to—they were all thinking it nonetheless. A decision needed to be made and fast.

"Applebloom," Pippi looked up at her blonde friend, sweat beading her brow, "Get the potion and give it to Applebloom."

"There's still an important ingredient missing," Applebloom explained, "I cain't do that—"

"Yes you can, because I'm ordering you to," Pippi glared at her, her desperation beginning to reach unhealthy levels.

"Pippi, calm down. Tommy will be back any minute."

"We don't have time to wait for Tommy!" Pippi shouted at Scootaloo, "Give him the potion now!"

"Do as she says," Sweetie Belle said sternly to Applebloom, who shook her head as she turned and ran down to the kitchen.

"Applebloom?" Pippi said as evenly as possible to the nearly still form of the little dragon, "we're going to give you this drink and it's going to help you feel better. But you need to wake up so we can give it to you, alright?" She was in the process of propping Applebloom's head up on the pillow when Applebloom returned, carrying a vial in her teeth.

"I'm warnin' you, Pippi," Applebloom said crossly, yet there was a hint of anxiety in her tone, "Without the silkworm vines, I dunno what this'll do to him."

"That's just a chance I'll have to take," Pippi said, levitating the vial over to Applebloom and unstopping it, "It's our only hope." Sweetie Belle was able to pry Applebloom's mouth open once they got him sitting upright. Pippi held her breath as she very slowly used her magic to tip the vial into Applebloom's mouth, the liquid just moments away from touching his tongue…

"Tommy!" Scootaloo cried out in cracked voice, pointing a hoof at the bedroom window. Pippi let the vial drop in surprise, caught in an instant by Sweetie Belle's magic as Scootaloo opened the window to let Tommy in. The poor pegasus looked like she'd had a rough trip: there was snow and ice sticking out of her matted pink mane, and she had dirt and small cuts on her legs and face.

"It was so high up," Tommy panted heavily, collapsing to the floor in exhaustion, "and I got caught in an ice storm on the way back, but—" She smiled triumphantly as she held up a small sack from around her neck, "I got them."

"Quick, crush these and put them in the potion!" Pippi cried out, tossing the sack to Applebloom.

"Darn it Tommy, what took you so long?!" Scootaloo landed beside her weary childhood friend, "Don't scare us like that again!"

"Ah, ha!" Pinkie said, pointing a hoof at Scootaloo, "so you were worried about her!"

"No!" Scootaloo said indignantly, then deflated with a glance at Tommy's sweet smile. "Okay, maybe a little…"

"This is it, girls," Pippi said as she levitated the now completed potion back towards Applebloom, "Let's make it count." Gathering around the bed, Pippi saw her five friends holding onto eachother out the corner of her eye as—at last—she tipped the vial into Applebloom's mouth, sending the slimy liquid down his throat.

There was utter silence as every girl waited, watching with baited breath for Applebloom to move, to sit up, to speak—anything. Several minutes passed, and still nothing. Applebloom remained motionless.

"He's…" Scootaloo said in a hushed tone, making the first dent in the quietness, "he's not moving."

"This cain't be right," Applebloom's voice trembled, "Pinkie and I mixed that potion perfectly, we—we followed the instructions."

Pippi bit her quivering lip as she gathered Applebloom's cold little body into her forelegs, pressing her ear to his chest once more. "His heart…it's getting fainter."

"It's my fault," Tommy whimpered into her hooves, tears beginning to spill out of her eyes, "It's all my fault. I flew as fast as I could, I swear I did, but I was still too late." She burst into sobs as Scootaloo moved to comfort her. "I'm sorry, Pippi—I'm—I'm so sorry!"

"No…" Sweetie Belle choked out, overcome with grief as she collapsed against Annika, weeping openly into her mane, "No—no, he's just a baby! No!"

Pippi could do nothing but stare down at the still form of her little assistant, as if in a trance or daze of some sort. She pulled Applebloom's body closer against her chest as she wiped a bit of potion from the corner of his mouth, his eyes closed and unflinching. It wasn't until Applebloom appeared next to her and nuzzled her softly that the tears silently fell, dripping onto Applebloom's pallid face. This was real. This was completely real and irreversible, and no amount of magic could change it. Applebloom was truly gone.

All of the inner strength left Pippi's body as her head dropped onto Applebloom's chest, unleashing in that moment all of the emotional turmoil she had been holding back, leaving her breathless. No girl attempted to calm her, not one of her friends—all shedding tears of their own—knew what to say to ease her pain. They simply looked on as she bawled loudly for what seemed like ages—only able to control herself to gasp out a single sentence, spoken so softly, yet every one of them heard it.

"Applebloom…I love you." Still holding him tightly against her, Pippi closed her damp eyes and gently kissed his forehead.

"Can I get that in writing?"

Pippi's eyes flew open as the others gasped out loud. The corners of Applebloom's mouth were turned up in a smile as his eyes opened slowly to gaze up at his devoted caretaker, color flooding back into his face.

"He's alive!" Annika cheered with a giant whoop into the air, "He's okay!"

"Oh Applebloom!" Pippi exclaimed through joyful tears, pulling him close as Applebloom wrapped his little arms around her neck, stroking her mane as she cried into his shoulder.

"Applebloomy-wikey!" Sweetie Belle called out as Applebloom pulled away from Pippi to embrace her, "My little gem, you're alright." She covered his face in lipstick-stained kisses as the smitten dragon sighed happily.

Tommy moved forward to feel his forehead, grinning from ear to ear. "His fever's breaking," she confirmed, opening his mouth to check his tongue, "The swelling's gone down and his spots are starting to fade."

"Tommy, you're incredible," Pippi sniffled as she and Sweetie Belle nearly knocked her over with a hug. "You saved his life."

"I knew you'd pull through!" Applebloom crushed the still dazed Applebloom against her as she and the others fussed over him.

"'Cause he's the coolest little dragon ever!" Scootaloo added, rubbing her hoof against the top of his head.

It must have been hours that the six of them hugged, kissed, and laughed with Applebloom—and Applebloom certainly wasn't modest about receiving all of this attention. It was when he started helping himself to bowls of ice cream from the others that Pippi finally put her hoof down. One by one, her friends left for home, promising to return early the next morning for their Hearth's Warming Eve trip to Canterlot.

"Glad I won't have to miss that," Applebloom said as he lay back against the pillows in Pippi's bed, sucking on a gem Sweetie Belle had left for him. Pippi froze in the midst of placing a book back on her shelf, deep in thought. It was a close call today—far too close—and Applebloom hadn't been aware of any of it. In the end, she decided that revealing the entire truth of his illness could wait for another day. For now, Pippi pulled out a box from her closet, wrapped in red and green paper, I have something more important to take care of.

"Applebloom?" she said, trotting back over to the bed. He looked up at her inquiringly as she levitated the box into his lap, "Happy Hearth's Warming Eve."

"Wha—am I the one you bought—?" Pippi beamed and nodded as Applebloom started to rip into the paper, lifting the lid off the box. Inside was a large scrapbook with a picture of himself and Pippi on the cover. "Wow," Applebloom breathed as he opened the cover, sifting through the memories on page after page, "I don't know what to say."

"The book's only half full," Pippi said, "The rest is for you to fill on your own." Applebloom turned the pages until he reached the first blank one in the middle.

"Hey Pippi?" he said, staring thoughtfully at the page.

"Yes?"

Applebloom looked up into her violet eyes and smiled, "I love you, too."

It was all it took for Pippi to dive into the bed, nuzzling Applebloom's cheek as she wrapped him in a warm embrace, the scrapbook sandwiched between them. "Applebloom…"

"You're not gonna cry again, are you?" Applebloom asked, his voice constricted as she cuddled him close.

"Yeah, I probably am," Pippi sniffed, sitting up so she could tuck Applebloom into her bed and shut out the light. She waited until she could hear Applebloom's deep even breathing before she headed down the stairs to her library desk. Dipping her quill in the ink pot, she let it hover for a moment over the blank sheet of parchment before she began writing:

Dear Captain Longstocking,

I am overjoyed to report that all is well with Applebloom. The potion was administered in time and he will make a full recovery. Over the course of the past couple of days, however, I learned probably one of the hardest lessons about friendship.

My relationship to Applebloom has always been difficult for me to describe. My assistant? My best friend? In the end they are forever one and the same, even if my advanced magical studies cause me to put his assistant status over our friendship. But above all else, Applebloom is incredibly precious to me—and often you don't know how precious a friend is to you until you've nearly lost them. I know that no matter where life takes me, this day will always stay in the back of my mind. The day I almost lost Applebloom, and the day I realized his presence in my life has brought about some of the most special and rewarding moments I've ever experienced. I can only hope that on the day when I do have to let him go, our time together will have been well spent.

Your faithful student,
Pippi Longstocking