Orange, Lemon, Lime

Part 3

When she awoke, there were still stars in her eyes. She was being shaken by little, piercing claws - Spike was hysteric and hovering over her. It sounded like he might have been crying but Twilight was non-functional. She was fading in and out for several minutes, but was eventually able to mumble his name. She turned over off her back like a boulder rolling over.

All the fruit and vegetables had gone, she noticed immediately. The produce had once been bright and colorful in that earthy, underground space. Only Twilight, Spike, and Applejack's overturned crate remained. Well, besides her research equipment, which she didn't have it in her to inspect.

Twilight was overwhelmed by the smell of herself as she tried to stand on wobbly legs. Spike helped her up, doing plenty of the leg-work. Sweat and...something she couldn't place. She became worried she had done something...really bad.

"Spike...are you okay?" She asked most sincerely.

"Am I okay?!" He asked back, incredulously, "Are you okay, Twilight?"

He sniffled. Twilight looked at him, propping her up, looking so small. A child, he was a little boy, and she had woken him in the middle of the night and terrified him to tears.

She put a hoof around his shoulders, pulling him to her. He squeezed her, one of his claws brushing her mane.

"I'm okay, thanks to you, Spike." She pressed her cheek against the cold scales on his head. "I'm so sorry. I never meant to scare you."

He pulled away after a few moments, smiling helplessly. Spike remembered himself, and Twilight watched him turn to the turned-over Sweet Apple Acres crate. She looked to him, again, as he turned back to her, his face worried.

Twilight approached the crate, her mind running. She felt very awake, then, although not quite fresh. She felt something slithering through her veins.

A little noise came from beneath the box. They both watched it. They both listened.