When they reached the Apple house, Sunset was almost overwhelmed with the thick smells coming from the house. It smelled like one of the feasts back in Equestria that Sunset had always tried to sneak away from. Apples, dough, meat... Okay, that last one was different, but not altogether unpleasant.

"Cheerilee!" Rainbow ran ahead into the dining room while Applejack set Sunset in a sitting position on the floor, in front of a roaring fire, and wrapped a large quilt around her. Both girls' clothes were wet, causing them both to shiver, but Applejack didn't stop until Cheerilee took over.

Sunset was shivering so bad that her teeth chattered. She realized numbly that she still had Applejack's jacket clutched to her chest, the only completely warm thing on her body.

"Oh, you poor things!" Cheerilee sat next to Sunset and looked her over. "Big Mac, go start a hot bath. Rainbow, Applejack, change into some different clothes and then come back and help me in here." The teacher turned to Sunset when the others were gone. "We need to get you out of those clothes."

Any other time and I would have made a 'teacher on student' joke. Sunset thought to herself, but at that moment she could barely breathe, let alone be snarky.

The next thing she knew, Cheerilee had stripped her down to her underwear and wrapped the quilt back around her. Cheerilee seemed more distraught then than she had at the beginning, but Sunset couldn't understand why. She didn't have the strength to ask.

"Whaddya need help with now?" Applejack was back, dressed in her pajamas. Rainbow wasn't far behind wearing an over-sized T-shirt of Big Mac's and basketball shorts.

"We need to get her upstairs. Big Mac! That bath ready?"

"Eeyup!"

"Applejack, can you carry her upstairs?"

The blonde teen nodded, picking up Sunset once again and maneuvering her through the living room and to the stairs.

"M-m-my hero." Sunset smiled weakly, causing Applejack to laugh. The others hadn't heard her. Cheerilee leaned over and whispered something in Applejack's ear, causing the blonde girl's eyes to widen. Applejack nodded, and Sunset had no idea what the teacher had said but was too tired to care.

When they got to the top of the stairs Applejack swapped places with Big Mac, who politely left the room and shut the door behind him.

"Cheerilee says ya need a hot bath ta keep yer temperature up." Applejack stood Sunset on her feet, but the other girl had a hard time staying up.

B-bath?Sunset thought, her mind growing fuzzy again, a-as in w-water? Despite her original feelings towards drowning, Sunset began to fear the possibility of going near water again. Drowning had hurt, God dammit! That, and now she was beginning to doubt the credibility of her original motives.

Applejack must have seen the worried look on her face because she wrapped her arms around the shorter girl and looked her in the eyes. "Hey, no need to worry. I've got ya." She smiled, and Sunset smiled back. Tentatively, Applejack took the blanket from Sunset and helped her into the bath, keeping her underwear on.

Sunset hissed as the hot water hit her skin, but after a moment she leaned back into the water. Her breathing became easier and she finally stopped shivering. She crossed her arms over her stomach and closed her eyes with a grimace. At the time she had done it, she was so sure that ending her life was the best solution to her problem. She thought that no one would miss her, especially not Applejack and Rainbow of all people. Now, however, she saw that she was wrong. She was surprised that they had cared enough to fish her out of the lake. Add on to the fact that Cheerilee had helped her without batting an eye...

How did I screw up again? She wondered, exasperated, There really isn't anything I can do right, is there?

A knock at the door made her open her tired eyes. Applejack jumped up and answered the knock. Sunset heard Cheerilee's voice, but couldn't quite make out the words. After a moment Applejack left, and Cheerilee walked in, looking uncertain.

"Sunset Shimmer," She asked gently, "When was the last time you ate?"

As in, food? Sunset blinked at the question. "T-taco Tuesday." She she said simply. Cheerilee's eyes widened, and Sunset was confused. What was so bad about Taco Tuesday?

"It's Friday, Sunset. Are you telling me you haven't eaten in three days?"

"Uh, yeah." Sunset's hoarse voice was barely above a whisper, "That's not that long, is it? I've gone longer." She couldn't understand why Cheerilee seemed so upset about this. Maybe it was because she was still suffering from lack of oxygen, but Cheerilee's worry seemed so misplaced directed at her.

"Sunset, most people eat three meals a day."

Well, shit. Yup. Lack of oxygen to the brain. Sunset's eyebrows drew together.

"Oh." Was all she said in response. She looked down at her crossed arms and realized why Cheerilee looked so concerned. Her stomach looked hallow, and her ribs and collar bone stuck out sharply. It was obvious she didn't eat well. She hadn't really noticed herself, especially not since looking in a mirror began to terrify her...

Too bad therapy was so expensive.

"Well, when you're done in here we're get you some fresh clothes and some food." She seemed to want to say more, but shook her head.

Sunset sighed. Once again she was being a burden on others. She began to remember why she wanted to die. It seemed that this whole night was just an echo of all the reasons she believed she was worthless. A knock at the door interrupted her thoughts, and Applejack stepped in with a change of clothes. Several moments later Sunset found herself at a table covered in leftovers. Apple pies, salads, soups... They all looked delicious and made her stomach growl.

"These are all of the vegetarian dishes we had." Applejack seemed apologetic, which made Sunset laugh. With a glance at the table, the others began to laugh as well. "Maybe it'll be enough." Applejack teased.

As Sunset began to eat, the others were in and out of the kitchen, never leaving her alone. Which made sense, all things considered. Applejack and Cheerilee kept disappearing together, which made her think they were up to something.

For the moment, though, she didn't care. She had a full belly and a warm place to be. If this is what friendship is... It's not so bad... She laid her head down on the table with these thoughts, and soon drifted off to sleep.

Author's Notes:

I'm thinking a slow build up to AppleSet. I haven't seen it yet, and with this story it would make sense :3