The Rainbow of my Soul

     I'm writing this, and sending it out to the world. My lovely wife thinks I should tell my story, and I have to agree. I've seen and done so much, I've watched empires fall and tyrants lie broken in the dust. I can't just lock away everything I've learned, not share everything I've seen. So, on with the story.

      It was a cloudy, grey day. The sort of day that makes you want to curl up in front of a fire with a book. The sort of day that gets some people depressed.

     I loved it. For the middle of summer, the few cloudy days we got were amazing, cool and comfortable. A nice break from the sweltering heat. The kind of day where it feels great to sit back in a hammock and play your guitar, which was just what I was doing. It was my favorite way to relax, to let everything go. Let out all my troubles, send them away on the notes that I play. Music was my passion, my only real escape.

      I strummed the guitar, thinking. I wasn't really paying attention to what I was playing. I thought of what would happen in the future. Call me a mushy romantic, but all I really wanted was to find a wife, have a bunch of kids, raise a family. Maybe it was because of my own failure of a father, I wanted to be the best dad ever. I wanted to give my kids what I never had.

     It was thoughts like these that filled my head as I sat there, not really paying attention to my surroundings. So I didn't notice when a bright light began to shine from nowhere. Suddenly, a blinding flash of white, then nothing.

    The first thing I thought was that I had fallen asleep, and out of the hammock. Onto my face. The second was that it wasnt my face that was hurting, it was everything. The third was a little more alarming. I couldnt move my fingers. I opened my eyes, panicking. Everything was very, very bright. The colors were vibrant and blinding, and I rose an arm to block the light. It was then I noticed a fourth, even more terrifying thing. My arm was grey. Grey, furry, and distinctly hoofed.

"What the fuck!" I scrambled backward away from my own arm, the back of my head slamming into something. I swore again and reached up instinctively, only to hit myself in the face. Which lead to more swearing and a groan of pain. I rubbed at my eyes with the back of my. . .hoof.

"Its just a dream its just a dream. . ." I mumbled to myself, trying hard not to panic even more. I cracked an eye open and sighed. I was still grey, furry, and in a hospital bed? Yep, very distinctly hospital bed. In a generic hospital room too, with the obligatory depressing plant by the window and recliner in the corner. I looked down at myself, pulling a sheet off my body. I was. . .different. My body was completely changed from what I was used to. I was hurt, apparently, for there were several white bandages around me, a stark contrast to my coat. The grey fur continued down my chest, my stomach, and my. . .well. I was no longer bipedal, my hind legs clearly those of a four legged animal. I even had a. . .

"Holy shit is that a tail?" I reached down and grabbed my tail, running a hoof over it. It was a lighter shade of grey with a silver streak in it, and it was fluffy. Very fluffy. I wanted to, and did, rub my face in it. It was glorious.

"Well, I dont believe I've ever seen somepony that fond of their tail." I heard a female voice say. I didn't think about it for a second, before turning to look. A white horse stood there, watching me with a smile. Well, not horse. The dimensions were off. Huge expressive eyes, short muzzle. . .trimmed mane? And a nurses hat? I blinked, staring at the not-horse. Then it hit me. It. . .she, spoke. I think. And said something about ponies. So I opened my mouth and said the best thing I could think of.

"What?"

It. . .she, giggled. Like, really giggled. Yep, very feminine. So she would be a. . .mare.

"I mean to say, I've never seen a pony admire their tail quite like that." She trotted over, and smiled at me.

"I'm nurse Redheart, whats your name?"

     Well, I couldnt exactly tell her my name. A horse, er, pony, with a human name. Besides, I'm not a fan of my name anyway. But what do they name themselves, besides Redheart?

"Uhh. . ." I looked around, trying to subtly find myself a name. A clock hung on the wall, ticking slowly. A plaque on the far wall had a picture of a mare on it, and a name underneath. Healing Touch, it read. Well, that looks rather normalish. Adjective, and then a verb. Or a noun, I would suppose. I looked around some more, looking for something to use as a name. Only one thing caught my eye. A solitary cloud, floating in the wind.

"Cloud. Cloud Wind." I looked at her, hoping I had not been too obvious about my lack of a name. She didn't seem to notice, and smiled again.

"Lovely. Let me just check up on your injuries and I'll be off." She said, checking my bandages and vitals. I watched her aptly, trying to appear as normal as possible.

"So uh. . .what happened? Why am I in a hospital?" I smiled at her, trying to hide my fear and nervousness.

"You mean you don't remember? My, that fall must have been worse than we thought." Redheart gasped, putting a surprisingly gentle hoof to my face and peering into my eyes.

"You fell, dear. Lucky for you, Rainbow Dash saw you and managed to catch you before you hit, or you probably would have died. As it is, you've got three broken ribs, a broken hind leg, and a concussion."

     I winced at my own injuries. Now that I was thinking about them, they started to hurt. Damn you, Redheart. I rubbed at the bandage around my chest, frowning.

"What about. . .er, Rainbow Dash?" I looked up at the nurse. I really wanted to know, I didnt want anyone to get hurt on my account.

"Oh, she will be fine. She hurt her wing and wont be able to fly for a week or so, but she will be fine otherwise."

      I sighed, sinking back into the remarkably fluffy bed. I always hated it when others had to protect me. I had been weak for so long. . .i hated to be reminded of it.

"Could I go see her?" I asked, looking up at the nurse. She paused, a hoof at her chin as she gazed off into the distance.

"I can't see why not, but not now. Tomorrow at the soonest." she busied herself with the sheets, brushing them off and fluffing them.

      I sighed again, and nodded, staring up at the ceiling. I hadnt been here for an hour yet and I was already bored. I heard hoofsteps and the door shut, and closed my eyes. My tail curled up in front of me, and I pressed my muzzle into it, welcoming the embrace of sleep.