The Shattered Remnants of My Mind

by Chivalry

Rating: teen
Tags: Tragedy, Twilight Sparkle, Sad, Gore, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Original Character
Length: 18168

Since the hazing Incident, Leon hasn't been the same. Side Story for BlackSpire's "A New Arrival!"

One night, Leon Christo, a pegasus pony, was walking home from art school. As he made his way home, he was ambushed, and nearly killed by a group of bullies. Since that traumatizing experience, he has never been quite the same; suffering horrific nightmares that blend to reality....

Published 2012-03-06 21:04:01 UTC
Last updated 2012-03-17 05:06:06 UTC

Prelude

Prelude:

Leon Christo had been living in Canterlot for just over a year now studying at the Canterlot's School for Aspiring Artists. In that time, he had gained the respect of many students and teachers at the school for being the one of the best artists they've ever had. However, with this reputation came a great consequence; A number of students began to bully him because of his exceptional talents. He chose to keep the bullying to himself, as he didn't want anybody to worry about him.

He was walking home from school one day, and took his usual route through an alleyway to get to his house. It was his least favorite part of walking home. The alleyway was cold, dark and damp. The putrid and rancid smell of the trash cans lingered in the stale air that seem to permeate around the area. However, that one day would forever change his life...

"Hey Christo! Where are you off to in such a hurry?" asked a white colored pegasus pony with white hair, as he walked out from behind a dumpster, blocking Leon's path.

Rolling his eyes, Leon began to answer back, "Listen Michael! I haven't got time for this. Now if you'd kindly move out of my way, before I-Woah!" he was tackled to the ground from behind and was being restrained as five other ponies proceeded to tie him up.

"Now I need to have a little word with you. See this is how it is; because of you getting the highest marks in the year by a good 20%, my parents are forcing me to take extra classes, and go out less. My pocket money is being cut off AND my Father would rather have some street urchin like you for a son, than me!"

Leon began to respond, "Well maybe if you'd" he was cut off with a kick to the face from Michael. A sickening crunch could he heard as his nasal bone broke under the force of the stallion's kick. He couldn't even clutch his face in pain because his hooves were tied. Blood flowed freely from his broken nose and pooled on the cold cobbled floor.

"You'll speak when I tell you to speak!" an enraged Michael now yelled at the bloody faced Leon. "It's all your fault that everything has gone downhill. Before, you came to the school I was the best in the year. I was able to do whatever I pleased! My family loved me! Then when you came, and all of that was taken from me! But not just me! All of these ponies here have been affected by your presence at the school. So...I think you need to be punished for ruining the lives of so many of us!" Michael finished with a deranged look in his eyes, "Claude, gag this street rat up. I want to make sure no one hears him scream from what we're about to do to him."

As the red unicorn pony named Claude, stuffed Leon's mouth with some cloth and taped his mouth shut. Leon's crimson eyes were now filled with fear. Fear of what these six ponies were going to do to him.

Meanwhile, Twilight and Sunny had both finished a long day at school, and were both walking towards her house for a study session to prepare for an 'Advances in Magical Studies in the Last Century' test tomorrow.

They stopped outside of a market store as Mrs. Sparkle had asked Twilight to get some groceries for her on the way back home. Sunny was waiting outside of the store for Twilight to come out when he heard groans coming from the alleyway next to the store.

Looking into the alleyway he was horrified at the sight before him. There were six ponies two earth, two pegasi and two unicorns all surrounding the bloody body of another pegasus pony. All of their hooves were covered in blood. The horns of the unicorns were also covered and dripping in blood. The groans were coming from the seemingly lifeless carcass on the ground.

He knew he had to do something to stop this crime, but he wasn't about to foolishly go in alone with no plan on how to stop them.

Just then a voice next to him spoke up, "Sunny what are you doing looking in thi-MPPHMM!" her eyes went wide at the sight she saw, but was quickly silenced by Sunny's hoof covering her mouth and pulling her away.

Once he had gotten her to calm down he spoke, "Listen very carefully Twi! You need to go get help! Call an ambulance to come over here quickly! Get the police as well! I'll stay here and think of a way to divert those ponies attention away from that poor guy."

Just when Twilight, was about to open her mouth is disapproval he carried on, "Listen I know you aren't happy with that, but time is really crucial here! There's no knowing how much time that pegasus has left. So every second matters, now please go get help!"

Knowing she wasn't going to win this argument, she quickly hurried off into the store again to find a telephone and call for help.

Meanwhile, Sunny looked back onto the scene in front of him. He scanned the area around him for something, anything that could help him divert their attention. Looking around the alleyway all he could see were trashcans, a few bricks lying on the ground, a few empty glass bottles. The cogs of his brain were working over-time as he thought out all the possible outcomes of the fight and still have it end in his favor. He played out the entire scene in his mind and went through the steps like a flash forward. All of this was done in the space of just a few seconds showing the true cognitive power that he was gifted with.

Putting the first part of his plan into action, he focused his magic on the heads of the six ponies. He began to cast a 'Shadow Blind' spell. Whilst it took a lot of effort to perform just the one spell on multiple ponies, he could tell he was successful just seconds later from all the shouts he heard;

"H-hey what's going on!"
"Why has everything gone dark?"
"Oh Celestia! I'm blind!"

Quickly putting the second part of his plan into action, he got out from his hiding place and using a 'Levitation' spell to pick up two bricks. He then proceeded to smash the bricks into the two unicorn's heads before they could dispel his incantation.

Hearing the sound of the bricks breaking against the skulls of the unicorns followed by the dull thumps the two bodies made when they impacted against the cobbled floor, the white pegasus Sunny pinned as the leader turned towards the direction of the noise, "W-who's there?...C-come out and show yourself!" His voice was laced in timid fear.

As the four ponies made their way blindly towards the source of the sound, Sunny began step three of his plan of action... Using another 'Levitation' spell he threw a bottle in the opposite direction. The sound of the glass shattering caused all of the ponies to turn around. Using this as a distraction, he grabbed a couple more bricks and proceeded to knock out the two earth ponies, while at the same time chucking a few more bottles in different areas to confuse the remaining two pegasi about what exactly was going on.

By this time, the other pegasus started to freak out, "I'm getting outta here! You can fight this guy on your own, Michael!" he said as he took off blindly, smashing himself head-first into a wall and knocked himself unconscious.

Only the white pegasus remained of the six ponies. By this point he was completely terrified. Not being able to see anything around him and not knowing what happened to his friends... he grimaced as he imagined what must have happened to them.

Sunny wiped his brow as he used one last 'Levitation' spell to put the final part of his plan into action. Michael started flailing about as he was suddenly lifted up in to the air.

"H-Hey! Put me down! What are you doing?" he yelled as he was carried towards an open dumpster. With a smirk, Sunny dropped the evil pegasus into it, and then proceeded to use his magic to seal the dumpster preventing Michael from escaping. Now that all six ponies had been taken care of, he quickly, rushed to the beaten pony's side to examine the damage...

It didn't look good.

A lot of the skin on his face had been scrapped off leaving it a bloody mess. His left eye was severely damaged, swollen shut and had turned black. Sunny's stomach started to churn when he noticed the puss already seeping from it. His nose was definitely broken as it was bent inwards. He had several stab wounds across his legs and body, most likely from the unicorn's horns. His wings were also splayed out in awkward positions suggesting they had been broken. The majority of his body was covered in his own blood. Underneath all the blood there were bruises covering his body from the intense beating they gave him. The blood also covered some burns around his legs. He was barely breathing and it was getting weaker and weaker as time moved on. His wounds were still leaking out blood at an alarming rate.

Sunny began to use his magic to the pony's blood platelets clot and slow the bleeding as well as any first aid magic to help prevent a serious infection. He did everything he could to keep the colt breathing until Twilight came with help. Thankfully, it didn't take much longer.

As he was being stretchered off to the hospital, the colt groaned to his saviors, "W-Wha...What are y-your names?

"My name is Sunny and this is Twilight." he said, pointing to the purple unicorn beside him.
"You're safe now. So rest up." he continued with a look of worry. He wondered whether the pegasus was going to make it or not.

"T-tha...Thank...you." he groaned out before losing consciousness.

Recollection

Chapter One. Recollection

'W-where am I?'

Leon tried to open his eyes, only to find something blocking his vision. Was coming out of the haze he awoke in, and realized, his whole body was in agonizing pain. He couldn't help but gasp at the sudden shockwave that surged through him.

'What the hell happened to m... Oh, yea, that...' Leon thought, as the memory of the beating flooded back into memory. 'Well, thank Celestia I can feel anything at all! If it weren't for that stallion... What was his name... Sunny, I think? I'll have to find him and thank him once I get the chance.'

"Hey. I think he's waking up!" Leon heard a voice say, but it sounded far off in the distance for him to be able to tell who it was. "Oh! I-I'll go get the doctor... Watch him." Again, Leon tried to open his eyes, and his response was a pounding headache. "Ugh..." He groaned. He tried to move his hooves to his head to help ease the pain, but checked that motion. 'If just opening my eyes hurt THAT bad, I don't even want to try to move anything else.'

"Hello? Mr. Christo? Can you hear me? Can you speak?" The voices were getting louder and clearer now. He could tell that he was speaking to a mare.

"Y-yes," Leon croaked out,

"Can you tell me your whole name?" the voice asked.

"My name?"

"Yes, hun. I need you to tell me your whole name..."

"My n-name is... Leon Alexander Christo.:

"Ok. Do you know your mother's name?" "Moondancer."

"...and your sister's?"

"Windbreaker"

Leon heard the sound of papers shuffling, then some inaudible whispers being shared be some of the ponies in the room...

'so, there is more than just one person here...'

"Leon, my name is Dr. Grey. You are at the Canterlot General Hospital. You got pretty banged up. How do you feel?" Dr. Grey said. Leon heard the concern in the mare's voice.

"Oh, I'm fine. Still breathing." Leon finished the statement with a wince. He felt a sharp pain in his sides as if there were a knife there.

"Go ahead and give him the pain medication." Dr. Grey said to one of the others in the room.

"Hey, Leon, I have a couple of things that I need you to tell me about what happened today."

Leon recounted all of the events that took place, well, all he could remember. Once he had finished, he heard a group of ponies walking out of the room.

"E-Excuse me, Dr. Grey?" Leon asked in a very quiet, soft tone.

"Yes?" She replied.

"C-can you remove whatever is keeping me from seeing?"

"Well, the bandages are keeping you from bleeding out,"

Leon shook at this. 'bleeding out? what kind of doctor tells their patient that if they remove the bandages, he could bleed out!'

"...but I can cut part of it away so you can see from your right eye. Would that be ok?"

"T-That's fine. Thank you."

"Ok, now I need you to hold very still."

He could hear the sound of cloth being cut and feel the light tug on the bandages as Dr. Grey removed the small portion.

As he opened his eye, the light flooded in, causing him to shut it abruptly. After a while, he tried again. This time, he was ready for it, and began to look around. the room he was in was rather large. There were three white walls and one large window. The furniture is just what you'd expect to see in any hospital room. A couple chairs were next to the bed, a wooden desk sat in the corner out of the way, and on it was a simple reading lamp.

When Leon looked down, he instantly wished he hadn't. He saw that he was completely covered in blood soaked bandages, and anything that wasn't covered by a bandage was had tubes protruding out of it. Again, he said his prayers.

As he looked left, he saw the green curtain that separated his bed from the others in the room and his bed's T.V. Then he saw Dr. Grey. She was a Peach colored unicorn with green eyes. She wore her dark blonde mane up in a bun to keep it out of the way, small lensed glasses, and a white lab coat. After seeing her, Leon blushed a bit. 'Wow. She looks beautiful... '

"Leon, you have some guests, would you like to see them?" She asked, looking him dead in the eye. Leon froze a bit, unable to answer her. 'Why am I so dang shy around mares?'

"Uh, Leon? Are you ok?"

"Y-y-yes! Please, s-send them in..."

Reunion

Chapter 2. Reunion:

"BROTHER!" He heard his little sister Windbreaker rush into the room. He noticed the hurt that laced her voice, and knew she had been crying. At this time, Leon wished he hadn't had the bandages removed. He hated seeing his little sister crying...

"H-Hey there, lil' sis." Windbreaker gasped, her breath shook as she drew it in. Leon knew that he was a ghastly sight to behold, but there was nothing he could do. "Sorry I look like such a wreck. If I'd known that you would be the first one in, I would have had the doctor change my bandages," Leon said rather weakly, trying to make light of the situation.

"W-wha... W-why did this happen?" Windbreaker whispered. She couldn't believe that somepony could do something like this to another, let alone her big brother.

Leon was just barely able to hear her, but he felt her inner pain. 'The world is a much darker place than we remember,' Leon thought. Trying to comfort her he asked, "Would you come over here..." ignoring the pain, he patted the right side of the bed that she could lay on. "I would like to see my little sister."

Slowly, Windbreaker flew over and gently landed on the bed lying beside her brother. Leon looked at her with loving eyes. 'I can't believe how much she's grown since just this last year, and she's making excellent progress with her physical therapy.'

When she was born, there was a complication in the delivery that caused Windbreaker and her mother Moondancer to become extremely ill. Due to the nature of her illness, Windbreaker's muscular and nervous systems became warped and inconsistent. While she could still use her wings, she could not walk or stand without assistance. As she grew older, she was able to rebuild the damaged muscle in her legs making them strong enough to be able to walk on the clouds but not on the ground just yet. Since Leon got his job working for the Community Improvement Division of Canterlot, he was able to afford to have physical therapy sessions to help Windbreaker get stronger and stronger not only with her legs, but her large, gorgeous wings.

The white filly gently nuzzled his arm and looked up at him. Her long, light-pink mane was disheveled with long strands covering her face. Her eyes were still their same beautiful, heart-melting blue, but it was clear that she had been crying recently. She was wearing a large, black trench coat and the red scarf that their mom knitted for her. 'Mom...'

"Hey, sis. Where's Mom? Is she alright?" Leon asked concerned. He knew that Windbreaker couldn't have come to the hospital all alone, but his mom was supposed to be resting. The same illness that plagued his sister had also affected his mother, but in a different way. Although she could still walk and fly, her immune system was completely ravaged. If she went outside without being bundled up, she would catch a terrible cold, or worse. Due to her condition, Leon had to take care of both his mom and sister while still working and attending school.

"She left to use the bathroom right before the doctor came out. She'll be here shortly," Windbreaker said, a tint of humor in her voice.

"What's so funny?" Leon asked.

"You're in a hospital bed cocooned in bandages, and yet your first thoughts are of me and ma."

Both Leon and Windbreaker laughed at this, until he gasped in pain. One of his broken ribs had been aggravated by the sudden intake of air. Then the room was dead silent until some of the other visitors walked into the room, led by Dr. Grey.

The first through the door after the doctor was their mother, Moondancer. She was covered head to hoof in burly, winter apparel even though it was only fall. The only thing that Leon could see of her was her dark blue eyes. Following his mother, there were two unicorns. One was a stunning lavender mare with dark purple eyes; her mane was blue-purple with streaks of pink and magenta. A tall yellow stallion with brown eyes and a spiky red and orange mane accompanied her.

"Leon! Thank Celestia you're all right," Moondancer said after she moved the coat away from her mouth. She started to cry when she saw the condition of her son. 'My beautiful baby boy... What has happened to you?' She ran to her son's bedside and sat in the chair. With one hoof on her daughter and the other on her son's leg and started to cry her eyes out.

Leon looked down at the two of them and also began weeping, but he did so quietly. 'No need to make them feel any worse than they already do.'

Sunny and Twilight just stood there, dumbstruck. Twi looked up at Sunny, her eyes full of hurt, pleading, "How could they do this to him... to them. What did he do to deserve this?" Sunny could only nuzzle her and whispered, "I don't know, but it isn't right..."

Leon stopped crying and looked up at the two standing by the door.

"I-I'm sorry, b-but who are y-you two?" Leon asked, fearful that they were friends of Clyde and the others who nearly beat him to death.

Sunny and Twilight jumped a little as all of the attention in the room was turned to them. This is when Dr. Grey stepped in.

"Leon, this is Sunny and Twilight. These two are the ones who rescued you," she explained.

"Oh my!" Moondancer brought a hoof up to her mouth. "So you two saved my boy from those... Monsters?"

"Yes Ma-am," Sunny said looking down regretfully. "I'm just sorry that I couldn't have done anything sooner."

"You saved my big brother. We owe both of you a huge debt," Windbreaker said, looking from Sunny to Twilight.

"Yes, thank you both. We are forever in your debt for saving his life. Without him, I wouldn't know what to do," Moondancer said.

Dr. Grey was studying Leon as they all talked. She noticed that he was becoming sluggish and detached from the room. 'The medicine must be kicking in.' She walked over to Moondancer.

"I'm sorry for interrupting, but we should leave now. Leon needs his rest and I'm sure it would be easier for him to sleep if we continued this conversation outside.", she whispered in her ear.

"All right, I understand... but I have a few questions for you when we are outside. Windbreaker, honey, we need to go out to the waiting room. Leon needs his rest."

"Ok, mommy," she replied. Sunny and Twilight turned to head out of the room with Leon's family.

"W-wait…" Everyone turned to the bed. Leon was lying there, looking at Sunny. "Why did you help me?" he whispered. Sunny was completely dumbfounded.

"Why? Because it was the right thing to do. I would expect anypony else to do the same for me, regardless if they knew me or not."

"Th-thank you," Leon said. "You're an amazing person because I know not just anypony would have helped me out there." His voice was shaking as he spoke. "Thank you so much."

Sunny couldn't help but tear up. "You're welcome."

As they walked out of the room, Leon closed his eye and slept. Dr. Grey gently closed the door and huddled in the hallway with Moondancer to talk. Meanwhile Sunny and Twilight were left with Windbreaker.

Windbreaker spoke first, " Thank you again for helping my brother. You saved our whole family when you saved him." Sunny blushed deeply and murmured a quiet "It was nothing."

Sunny wanted to change the subject by asking, "So… Where do you go to school?"

"Oh, I don't. Leon home schools me every day. Due to my condition it's better for me not to try to maneuver around a large school campus. He's a great teacher."

Sunny and Twilight exchanged glances.

"What does your mom do?" Twilight asked, concerned.

"Well, she's sick most of the time, and Leon takes care of her too. He is always working… I wish I could help him," she said, looking disappointed in herself. "…But that is why I am working extra hard in therapy. I want to help." She looked up smiling at the two of them.

Sunny thought, 'Oh Celestia. He does all of this on top of his normal life? How can he manage it?' He kept quiet now, feeling like he never said the right thing.

Just as Twilight was about to say something Windbreaker asked, "So how long have you two been together?" Seeing the stunned expressions on their faces, it was Windbreaker's turn to be embarrassed. "We… we're just friends," stuttered Twi.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I'm always sticking my hoof in my mouth. It's just that you seem so… perfect together. I can see the connection the two of you have… it's very special."

Just then, Moondancer appeared next to Windbreaker, "Come on, love, we need to go now." She then turned to Twi and Sunny, "Bless you both. I can't thank you enough for what you did. Please come by to see Leon. He could use friends—especially ones like you." Both ponies replied, "Of course" and "it would be our pleasure."

As Moondancer and Windbreaker walked away, Sunny stared after them and then glanced up at the clock. 10:00 pm…

"Oh horseapples… We need to hurry up and get home," Sunny said, pointing at the clock so Twi could see.

"OHMYGOSH! MY PARENTS ARE GONNA KILL ME!" Twilight gasped, and sprinted down the hall.

"H-hey! Wait up!"

Meanwhile, in Leon's room

Leon was writhing on the bed, not in pain, but from his dreams…

"N-no… No more… Please… Leave her alone… N-no… Stop… Stop! NO! MOM!"

Into the Depths

Chapter 3. Into the Depths:

Part 1: Another Sleepless Night

Dr. Grey was sitting in her office late at night. Since Leon had come to the hospital, she found herself spending more and more time working, trying to help him recover faster. However, she found herself running into a brick wall. Leon was becoming jumpy and timid...well, more so than he already was. She also noticed that the sound of laughter made him tense up and look around in fear.

'There is only one thing that can be wrong. He must have…' but her thoughts were interrupted be the sound of a blood-curdling scream coming from just down the hall, followed by a group of nurses and orderlies galloping down the hall. Since this was her wing of the hospital, she too joined the herd and made for where the noise was coming from. The screams were growing louder and louder, getting more and more painful to hear as time droned on.

'Room 301… 302… 303…' Dr. Grey noted as she ran, checking her charts to know which patient was where. As she rounded the corner, she saw a nurse helping his friend get to their offices. He was missing a large chunk of skin on his neck and he was bleeding profusely. She could see the tendons and muscles in his neck through the gaping wound.

"Wh-what happened?" She asked, trying to keep her composure.

"We were just changing the patient's bandages, when he attacked us. He kicked me and bit Solstice. I've never been so scared in my life," The nurse replied, his voice shaking as they continued to walk past her. She watched the two for a bit as they stumbled down the hallway, then turned and continued to run after the others.

'Please Celestia, don't let this noise be coming from 307. Please…'

"We need some help in here!" She could hear one of the orderlies yelling down the hall.

"Someone get the doctor!" she heard a mare scream.

"I'm here!" Dr. Grey replied, readying herself for what she was about to see. Soon, she arrived at her destination…

Room 307. Leon Christo.

'Dammit…'

"GET AWAY! GET AWAY!" Leon screamed, lashing out at anyone who got close enough.

As Dr. Grey entered the room, she saw several nurses and orderlies surrounding the patient's bed with restraints and fast acting sedatives at the ready. A large pool of crimson red blood by the door with a trail leading to the bed, and on the bed she saw the most terrifying thing she could ever think of.

The kind-hearted Leon was standing on the bloodstained bed. His wings were both extended in a show of dominance and warning for anyone who dared attempt to attack him. His head was lowered like a lion ready to pounce on its prey, but Dr. Grey also noticed that he had blood dripping from his mouth, and his eye seemed to glow an evil red… Even the shadows cast from his figure seemed almost demonic as they cascaded over all of them.

Dr. Grey was completely stunned. She knew Leon, she cared for Leon, but this was not him…No, it couldn't be him. it had to be somepony else. Nopony could go from being so kind to being ready to kill whomever he deemed a threat. She froze in place, unable to think, unable to feel anything... but fear.

But she was brought back to reality when one of the nurses asked, "Ma-am, what should we do now?"

"We need to try to calm him down enough so we can give him the medicine. Brute force won't work." She replied, regaining her composure.

"Leon? Leon, this is Dr. Grey," she started to step forward into the light so he could get a good look at her. He turned abruptly, studying her; making sure that she was whom she said she was.

When he looked at her, she noticed he had a glazed look in his eye. Then, it hit her…

'Oh my gosh… He's not even awake!'

The only thing she could think was to try and wake him up.

"L-Leon!" she yelled. "I need you to WAKE UP! WAKE UP NOW!"

Part 2: The Blurred Line of Dreams and Reality

Leon was lying awake in bed, having just awoken from yet another terrible nightmare. Knowing he needed his rest if he were ever to see home again, he tried to turn to his side and close his eyes. Dr. Grey had prescribed powerful medicine for his insomnia, but in the end he had to be willing to fall asleep. Willing to put himself into the living hell that was his mind…

Or what was left of it.

Every night in his dreams, he was fighting. Fighting to stay alive and protect the ones closest to him. When he awoke, he merely paused the dream for when he returned to it. As he closed his eyes, he prepared for the fight…

"Hey Christo! Where are you off to in such a hurry?" asked a white colored pegasus pony with white hair as he walked out from behind a dumpster, blocking Leon's path.

Rolling his eyes, Leon began to answer back, "Listen Michael! I haven't got time for this. Now if you'd kindly move out of my way, before I-Woah!" he was tackled to the ground from behind, and was being restrained as five other ponies proceeded to tie him up.

"Now I need to have a little word with you. See this is how it is, because of you getting the highest marks in the year by a good 20%, my parents are forcing me to take extra classes, go out less, my pocket money is being cut off AND my Father would rather have some street urchin like you for a son, than me!"

A pony whose face was shrouded in darkness was holding Leon down. Suddenly, Michael reached for one of the crates in the alleyway and pulled out a syringe. "I'm gonna teach you the true meaning of pain, Christo! And I promise you, you're never going to forget this!" After he had finished saying this, Leon broke free of the restraints and bit the pony that was holding him down.

"ARGH!" he yelled, stumbling back into the wall. Following this, Leon heard somepony screaming. He could only imagine that they had seen what had happened from the street.

Michael dropped the syringe. At this point, his voice changed to one that he couldn't recognize.

"St-stay back!" Michael squealed. Leon heard the fear in his voice and stood up, expanding his wings. He turned so he had all of the ponies in front of him. One moved to assist the one Leon had attacked.

"GET AWAY! GET AWAY!" he barked. He lowered his head, glaring at everyone he saw. He noticed that Michael and the mystery bully had left the alleyway, but others had filed in right after. He felt trapped.

There was a bunch of yelling, but he couldn't understand any of it. His heart was pounding so violently that it shook his entire being. As he continued to scan the crowd, he noticed someone approaching him. A small female pegasus flying towards him. It looked like Windbreaker

"L-Leon!" she yelled. "I need you to WAKE UP! WAKE UP NOW!"

He then realized it was just a dream, and tried to wake…

Part 3: Breaking Free

Dr. Grey noticed him trying to shake out of his dream, but he was struggling. Needing that last push to bring him back to reality. She did the only thing she thought to do… She ran up, hugged him and whispered in his ear…

Leon was trying his hardest to shake himself from the nightmare, but he couldn't. The darkness had a firm grasp of his consciousness and it wasn't letting go. Suddenly, he noticed the young mare charge at him. His instincts told him to defend against this possible attacker, but seeing the face of his sister made him resist the urge. As the mare got closer, it was becoming apparent that this wasn't his sister, but another mare. Her mane was shorter than Windbreaker's, and she smelled like the flower garden in the hospital's main courtyard. It was Dr. Grey.

She tightly embraced him and whispered…

"Calm down. Please. Do you want your sister to see you like this?"

At this, Leon's body went completely limp in her arms, and he began to shake and sob uncontrollably.

"There, there. Shhhh. It's ok. You're safe now… you're safe," Dr. Grey whispered as she stroked his mane. She sat on the bed with him in her arms, trying to calm him down enough to talk. While Dr. Grey had made it a personal point to not grow emotionally attached to her patients, she couldn't help but weep for Leon. Sometime later, both Leon and Dr. Grey had fallen asleep, and this time Leon did not stir at all. Instead, he enjoyed the most peaceful dream in the arms of the doctor.

The next morning

Sunlight had crept through the shades, flooding the room with light and warmth. A lone ray of light crept onto the face of a sleeping mare. She squinted, trying to keep the light from disturbing her rest. It was a losing battle, and she eventually opened her eyes. As she peered around, she noticed that she was not in her own bed or even her office. She was sitting against the headboard of one of the hospital beds with a young stallion's head in her lap.

'Leon…' She got up, being very careful to not disturb him. He was finally getting some much-deserved rest, and she couldn't be happier. After the events of last night, she knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that Leon was afflicted with PTSD. It would be hell to try and explain exactly what it meant for him and how he would never completely recover but this conversation could wait until he awoke.

Part 4: Explanations

"M-Mr. Christo? Sir? I-I-I need you to g-get up," a nurse stated, her voice shaking. As Leon turned to face her, he was smiling, having just awoken from one of the best dreams he had ever had. As he looked around, he saw mops, towels, and his bed; all stained with blood…

As he remembered what happened last night, he jumped.

'By Celestia. What have I done?'

His gaze then turned to the nurse, who was shaking in fear. He wanted to say something, but then decided against it.

"Where is Dr. Grey?" Leon asked the frightened nurse in the most calming voice he could muster.

"She is in her office with some of the other nurses," she answered, a little more relaxed than she was before.

"Thank you. May I go see her?"

"Sure, but I need you to get outta the bed. The sheets kinda need to be changed…"

"Oh, right... Well, I'll be on my way then."

As he climbed out of bed, the nurse stepped back.

"Y-you might want to wash first." She whispered, looking away from him.

He understood. 'I need to try and wash the blood off my face so nopony gets the wrong idea.' As he stepped into the lavatory, he dare not look at the mirror. He didn't want to see what he looked like with the blood covering his face. He just began washing his face with warm water and soap. The soap stung his still open wounds, but he didn't care. He had to wash himself of the marks.

He looked up at the mirror, disgusted with what he saw. He no longer saw his own reflection, but the reflection of a monster. A monster that had nearly killed somepony who was trying to help him. Thinking of this made Leon vomit, but he refused to let the pain of his convulsion keep him from doing what must be done. He cleaned up, again, and left for Dr. Grey's office.

When he left his room, there was a janitor trying to clean the blood off of the floor. As he walked by, he heard the janitor whisper; "I haven't seen this much blood since the war…" Leon hung his head even lower as he trotted through the halls. When he rounded the corner, he peered into the room next to Dr. Grey's office. Inside he saw the nurse whom he had attacked. The nurse was fast asleep under the covers, but Leon could see the bandage on the left side of his neck. He wanted to go in the room. He wanted to apologize for everything he had done. As he started to reach for the door, a hoof reached out and stopped him.

"Don't you think you've already done enough?" A large male Earth Pony hissed. His voice filled with spite.

"How could you do something like this? Do you like to hurt people? Maybe I should teach you the true meaning of pain!" the stallion said as he began to step towards Leon. At this point, Leon had begun to have another flashback. That was how Michael had spoken to him right before the beating…

But his panic attack was interrupted by a very distraught Dr. Grey. "Arthur, STOP!" She barked with hurt and anger in her voice.

"I told you why it happened and that it is not his fault. Solstice is fine, now let it go." At this, the large stallion backed down.

"Now get out of my sight!"

"Y-yes Ma'am!" Arthur replied, and ran down the hall.

"Leon? We need to talk…" Dr. Grey said, her voice like that of a mother; stern, yet caring. He nodded his head.

"Step into my office, and close the door behind you," she said as she walked into the room.

"Y-yes ma'am." Leon did as he was told. Once he had closed the door; he turned to see Dr. Grey, sitting at her desk levitating a medical file.

"Leon, do you know the theory behind dreams and nightmares?"

Leon felt blindsided. 'Why would I know something like that?'

"Based off of your expression, I'd have to say that you don't," Dr. Grey stood as she continued.

"Although we think of sleep as a means of rest for us, our brains never rest. We are always thinking, always reminiscing. A dream is simply a memory or fantasy that our mind plays out while we sleep. Sometimes those dreams are of happy moments or sensations that we have felt; a good dream, but other times, they are based off of a horrifying event or feeling one has experienced. These are called nightmares. Sometimes, these dark memories are so traumatic that they begin to affect the body and mind as one; making the afflicted pony live life as that memory, and treat everypony around them as part of the dream. Many of them never can get their minds where they used to be and some of these ponies go completely insane. Doctors have come to call this Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or PTSD."

When she said that last sentence, Leon's heart stopped. 'Oh no! Don't tell me…'

"Leon, the ordeal you went through was so terrifying that it has left you with PTSD. Now, I don't know how deeply it affected your thought process while you are awake, but if your nightmares go unchecked, you could completely lose your mind to those memories," she finished, her voice was full of hurt and tears were welling up in her eyes. Leon felt the power behind those last words.

'Lose my mind,' he thought. 'I can't lose myself again. Last night was perhaps the worst thing that I have ever experienced. I had no control of myself. I was all instinct and stuck in the moment. I need to fix this for not only myself, but also my family. I can't take care of either mom or little sis like this.'

Having reached his resolution, Leon looked up at the doctor with a stern look in his eyes.

"What do I have to do?"

Dr. Grey just sat there completely stunned.

'I can't believe it! I was expecting some kind of fight discussing the treatment options, but he has already decided that he will do whatever it takes. This one is full of surprises…' she thought to herself. Then, with renewed confidence, she replied.

"The only true cure is therapy, but it will be a long and grueling process. I can never rid you of the memories, but I can help you come to terms with them."

"Anything it takes. I need to be able to take care of Mom and Windbreaker."

Preparations

Chapter 4. Preparation:

Part 1: Recovery

Leon is sitting on the beach at dawn… the sea is almost motionless as the last bright stars fade away… he feels the freshness and the purity of the air…he's watching the water…the stars…the dark sky… loving the silence before sunrise, the stillness is filled with all possibilities… slowly, the darkness melts and the colors change…the sky over the horizon becomes red…then golden… Then the first rays of Celestia's sun reach him…and he watches it slowly emerging from the water….

With half the sun's disk visible and the rest still below the horizon…he sees that its reflection in the water is creating a path of golden shimmering light …

The warmth of the sun is pleasant…and he decides to fly… slowly…with joy…he feels the light-filled clouds touching his body…he experiences himself floating effortlessly and moving pleasurably in the sky…

The more he flies toward the sun, the less aware he is of the clouds, and the more the light around him increases…he feels enveloped in a beneficent, golden light which permeates him completely… his body is bathing now in the vitality of the sun…his feelings are pervaded by its warmth…his mind is illuminated by its light.

In the deep background, Leon hears an angel gently whispering his name… "Leon… come this way, Leon…" Leon flies toward the voice. "Come sit with me on the beach…" Leon lands noiselessly on the beach, sits back and looks out to the horizon. "Remember this moment…" the angel's voice is next to him, louder…stronger. "Take a deep breath…now, another…slowly open your eyes…"

Leon opens his eyes, to find himself staring into the kind face of Dr. Grey. They are sitting in her office at the hospital. It had been six months since his first panic attack, and he had been participating in these sessions every week since.

"Now, how do you feel?" Dr. Grey asked.

"Peaceful…" Leon said, still in a state of euphoria from the dream. He had the goofiest smile on his face.

"I can see that." Dr. Grey said, giggling. "How have you slept?"

"I still have nightmares, but they aren't as intense or constant as before," he replied. While it wasn't what either of them wanted to hear, Leon knew that he needed to be truthful. Anything but the truth could set them back as far as the beginning.

"Well, either way, you have been making great progress, both physically and mentally. I am so proud of you," Dr. Grey declared as they walked out of her office back towards his room.

"What else do we have to do today?" Leon asked.

"Well, I need to check your bandages and see how much has healed, but after that, nothing."

"How long do you think that will take?"

"About a half an hour."

"…And what time is it now?"
"'Bout a quarter to three. Why?" she asked, puzzled by Leon's strange behavior.

"Well… you see… It's… um…" Leon stuttered out.

Dr. Grey rolled her eyes. She had become a costumed to his timid behavior. t wa"Spit it out!"

"Well, Windbreaker's school is having their play tonight… and she's playing the lead role."

Dr. Grey gasped, "Oh my gosh! She must be so excited!"

"More nervous than excited, and I can't blame her. It's the biggest play they've ever held. She's counting on my to be there for support."

"What time is the play?"

"Five, but I still need to get home and pick up Mom."

"Well, I'm not supposed to let you leave the hospital unsupervised for another week of therapy…"

When she said this, Leon stopped, his heart dropped like a lead balloon. 'No. I needed to be there for her…'

"Oh well," she continued. "I guess I'll have to accompany you to the play."

Leon looked up at her, completely shocked. "D-do you r-r-really mean it? What about your fiancé?"

"Luther and I hadn't planned on doing anything tonight anyway. We might as well go out and support your sister."

"Th-that's great! Thank you so much!" Leon replied, fighting the urge to hug her till she exploded.

"Well, let's hurry up. After I check the bandages, I have to hurry home and get dressed!"

Half an hour later…

"Leon, after seeing your wounds, I can actually remove most of the bandages, but you will need to keep your eye patch on for another month or so."

"Will I always have these scars?"

"Well, yes. While we can fix many things, no amount of surgery or magic will be able to remove those without causing more damage. Why? Do you not like them?"

"N-no. I don't. Every time I see them, I think about what happened…"

"Aw, but they make you look rough and tough… and don't forget 'sexy', if you don't mind me saying."

Leon's face turned as red as his mane at that moment. "Wh-what?"

"Take it from me, Leon! Young mares love a stallion with a few scars," she finished, winking at him. This only made Leon's face turn an even brighter shade of red. She laughed when she saw him try to hide it.

"Um… D-Dr. Grey?" Leon tried say, but his voice was overshadowed by the sound of the doctor's laughs.

"Dr. Grey?" He repeated, this time a little louder, but was still unheard.

"DR. GREY!"

"Huh?" she turned to face Leon, her eyes filled with tears form laughing so hard.

"We should get going. Don't want to be late," he stated, pointing up at the clock.

4:10

Dr. Grey gasped. "OH MY GOSH! I need to let Luther know to get ready!"

As she ran out the door, Leon started to get ready. When they had come to visit him, Moondancer and Windbreaker had brought some of his things with them. Among them was his nicest, white collar shirt, a black tie, cologne, and his father's wristwatch.

Seeing the watch brought back memories of he and his father, and the incident that took him away...

Part 2: Heart of a Leon

Ten years ago…

It was a dark and stormy night. Leon had wandered off from his campsite to get some firewood and had fallen off of a small cliff. His leg was broken, and he was too weak to fly. All he could do was call out for help, but you never know what will find you in the Everfree forest…

Suddenly, Leon heard a rustling in the bushes.

"Wh-who's there?" he asked, but there was no response. "h-hel…"

Then, the brush began to decay, and a large snake-like creature appeared. It's maw dripped with saliva, it's pale skin shown in the little light provided by the moon, and it looked hungry.

"LEON! Close your eyes!" He heard a stallion yelling. When he turned to the voice, he discovered that his father was flying towards him as fast as he could. Being the captain of the Wonderbolts, he was perhaps the fastest pony in all of Equestria. He was closely followed by his mother and uncle.

"Dammit, boy, look away! That is a Basilisk!" his father commanded.

Leon knew that a Basilisk was a remnant from the age of Discord. It was a large snake whose poison is so strong that merely touching it would kill a full-grown dragon. It also had another dangerous trait that turns whatever looks at it into stone.

Leon didn't shut his eyes, but instead watched his family move between him and the beast;

"Moondancer! Get him behind cover, and keep yourself safe!" his father commanded.

She replied with a small kiss on his cheek. "Please, be safe," she whispered. Then she turned, picked up Leon, and darted out of the forest as fast as she could.

"Alright, Dawnstar, we need to get rid of this thing…"

Moondancer reached the edge of the forest with Leon in her arms. She was out of breath, and tired beyond all belief, but she needed to tend to her son. All Leon could hear were the roars of the snake and the falling of the trees around it. Eventually, the noise stopped, and he watched Dawnstar emerging from the forest with Leon's father on his back. Even from here, Leon could see the large tear in his father's flesh…

"Bolt!" Moondancer cried out, running towards her lover.

"M-Moondancer…" Bolt said as Dawnstar laid him gently on the ground.

"Baby, baby, stay with me!"

"I-is he safe?" Bolt asked.

"... Y-yes… Leon's safe…"

"Please… br-bring him over."

Dawnstar went over to where Leon was laying, and helped him over to his dying father.

"Leon? I-is that you?"

Leon just was completely paralyzed with fear. He knew that these were his father's last moments, and he was terrified of losing him. However, he still answered:

"Y-yes, dad, I-I'm here."

"Come closer, my son."

Bolt pulled his son closer to tell him his final request. As he whispered, Leon nodded his head and replied, "I will, father… I will."

"Good boy. H-here. T-take this." Bolt removed his wristwatch and put it on Leon. The watch belonged to his great-grandfather, and has been passed down from

generation to generation. Leon didn't want it…

"It's not my turn to have it yet. Please don't go, Dad."

"T-take c-ca…" At that moment, the Basilisk venom filled his heart, and he was dead.

"I will take care of them, dad. I will."

Leon sat on the hospital bed crying. That memory was always painful to revisit, but he did it to remember the promise he made his father that day…

Part 3: Shades of Grey

Dr. Grey ran toward her house as fast as she could, aware of the dire situation she needed to deal with. Her next move would be perhaps her most challenging one yet: having to wash, get dressed, and get her fiancé ready for Windbreaker's play in less than an hour.

She raced through her home up to her bedroom to wake her beloved, but instead found her best dress, her jewelry box, and her shoes all laid out on the bed. As she sat there wondering where Luther was, she looked on his side of the bed to find a note on his pillow. It read:

Lucy,

I had a feeling that you might need these and I drew a bath. I already have my uniform on, and I just ran to the store to get some things. Be back in ten.

Love,

Luther

After she finished reading, she just smiled and laughed. 'I am a lucky girl. He always knows just what I need. I wonder how he does it… Ah, what am I doing? I have to get ready!'

She dashed into the bathroom, jumped into the tub, and instantly began washing.

Some time later…

Dr. Grey emerged from the bath with a satisfied and relaxed smile on her face. This all changed when she looked at the clock, however.

4:30 PM

"AH! OHMYGOSH! I'M GONNA BE LATE!" she shrieked, running for the bed.

As she got dressed, Luther walked in their bedroom.

"Lucy, I'm home!" he announced, with a smile on his face.

'He has way too much fun with that line…'

"Good! Can you zip me up?"

"Sure thing, hun. So, I was right to assume that we are going somewhere?"

"Yea," she grunted as Luther zipped the dress. "We are going to see a play with a patient of mine."

"The one who was attacked by those bullies?"

Being reminded of that made Lucy lose her chipper attitude. "Y-yes. He wanted to go see his sister's play, and he needs a medical escort because of his latest condition," she finished.

"What's happened?"

"The hazing left him with PTSD, and he is not out of the thick yet."

"PTSD? You mean, like what Todd?"

Thinking of her brother made the pain in her heart greater.

"Yes… Just like Todd…"

Todd Winterbreeze was her brother and used to be in Luther's regiment, but he saw some terrible things in the war with the Diamond Dogs and couldn't go into combat anymore. He was now a desk jockey, but thanks to Lucy he has come a long way and can actively serve if the need ever arose.

Lucy shook her head of those thoughts. 'No need to go down that road right now.'

When she finished getting dressed, she turned to Luther and asked, "What were you getting at the store?"

"Oh! I almost forgot…" he left the room and grabbed the flowers from the kitchen.

"I had a strange feeling that we might need these later, so I picked them up. What do you think?"

Lucy looked at the beautiful bouquet before her. Twelve red roses held together by white wrappings and gold twine. Perfect for throwing on a stage after a performance.
"I don't know how you do it, honey, but you always get exactly what I need."

"It's just cause I love you," he pecked her on the cheek.

"Now, we shouldn't keep your patient waiting too long. Let's go."

"Alright. This should be an interesting night."

Performance

Chapter 5: Performance

Part 1: Coming Together

As Leon finished reminiscing, the phone in his room rang.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Leon. Are you still going to the play?" his mother asked.

"Of course I am. In fact, I was just getting ready to pick you up."

"Oh, you're so sweet. I'll see you in a few then."

"Yea, see you in a few… I love you, mom."

"I love you too. Goodbye."

"Goodbye."

He hung up the phone and walked out towards home. He hasn't been to the house since he was injured and was anxious to get back home. He looked around at the world around him as he walked. Canterlot had always been a sight to see, but he was awestruck as he looked around. Many of the old houses were torn down and replaced by these extravagant mansions, the stores had all been expanded and refurbished, and the roadways were now lit by some sort of candle on a pole.

'Wow… Canterlot sure has changed in the last couple of months.'

As he continued to walk, he came across the alleyway he had nearly lost his life in. Instantly, fear began to creep into his mind. His head was screaming, 'Get away from here! Get away!' but Dr. Grey had said that he must confront his past in order to put it behind him. He examined the alleyway very carefully, making sure that he was prepared if somepony tried to jump him. As he looked down, he noticed the blood stained cobblestone where everything had taken place. As the memory began to play out in front of him, he watched himself being beaten, Michael and the others laughing at his anguish. As he began to walk out of the alleyway, he saw another figure entering the alley. It was Sunny, well, the memory of him anyway, saving his life. At this, the memory ended, and Leon found himself crying silently yet again.

He sat there for a few minutes until her heard familiar voices just outside. He peeked out and noticed a purple unicorn with magenta streaks in her hair walking with a tall, yellow unicorn with a red and orange mane; his friends, Twilight and Sunny.

"Hey guys," he said trying to sound cheerful.

"Oh, hey Leon. What are you doing out here?" Sunny asked.

"Well, Windbreaker's play is tonight, and…"

"Oh my gosh! Was that tonight?" Twilight interrupted, clearly distressed.

"Y-yes. It is tonight. Why?" Leon responded nervously. If there was one thing he learned from being Twilight's friend, it was never a good thing when she was caught off guard.

"I can't believe that I forgot! And I have a big test tomorrow! Oh, but I really really want to go…"

"Twilight!" Sunny put his hoof to her lips. "We've studied enough for this week. I think that we deserve a break, and what better way to spend the evening than watching a play."

Sunny turned back to Leon. "What time should we be there?"

"Oh, uh… The play starts at five, but you should show up earlier to get the seats you want."

"Alright, we'll see you there, Leon."

"Yea, see you there."

Sunny and Twilight started to walk away, and as they left, Leon watched them. 'They really do look like a perfect couple. Shame they haven't noticed it themselves.' He chuckled as he thought about it. 'I wonder if I should say something tonight just to screw with them.' Before he knew it, he was just down the road from his house.

Compared to the houses he had passed on the way there, his home was out of place. His family lived in an old sod home next to a large oak tree. The outside covered by stucco and painted an earthy brown with two to three windows on each wall. The yard was a wide-open field with a tile path leading to and from the road.

When Bolt formed the Wonderbolts, they had to leave their old home in Ponyville to live in Canterlot. When they arrived, Bolt built them a new home to live in. It was just like their old home in almost every way, accept for the abundance of trees that Canterlot seemed to lack.

The thoughts of being in his home again filled him with joy, and he ran as fast as he could.

"Mom, I'm home!" he announced, and looked around the room for Moondancer. While she was nowhere to be seen, he did notice another pony sitting in one of the large chair near the fireplace reading a book.

"Well well. It's been a long time, Leon."

Leon recognized the stallion immediately "Uncle Star!"

Dawnstar put the book down as Leon charged him.

"What are you doing here?" Leon asked embracing his beloved uncle.

"Do you think I would miss little Windbreaker's play?" Dawnstar and Leon sat down. "So, how are you doing? Getting better, I hope."

"Yea, Dr. Grey just took off some of the bandages. She says that I'm healing really fast for a pegasus. What's new with you?"

"Well, I was promoted to Captain of the Royal Guard a month ago, which is why I haven't seen you guys sooner."

Leon's eyes widened. "Wait. You're Captain of the Guard? No way!"

"Yea, I didn't believe it either, but I am." Dawnstar sat back in the chair with a smug smile plastered on his face.
Over the years, Leon knew just how t push his uncle's buttons. "Yea, how could they let a scrub like you be a Captain?"
ding-ding*
"Hey, what do you mean by that? I'm no scrub! I worked hard for that position!" Leon just rolled his eyes and laughed. After realizing what he was doing, Dawnstar joined him.

Looking over at the clock, Leon was reminded of the play...

"Hey, is mom ready?"

"She was just getting dressed when you walked in." Dawnstar stood and started walking toward Moondancer's bedroom.

He knocked twice, "Hey you ready, Dancer?"

In response, the door opened slowly, revealing the stunning mare. She wore a midnight blue and white dress with earrings that glistened like the stars, and her necklace that bore four different colored birthstone gems; a blue sapphire representing her, turquoise representing her late spouse, rose pink garnet representing Windbreaker, and finally the fire red ruby which represented Leon.

"I am now," she replied. As she walked out into the main room, she did so with royal elegance, almost gliding on the floor, but as soon as she saw her son, all of this disappeared.

"LEON!" she cried, running and embracing her son.

Leon shared a similar conversation with his mother as he did with Dawnstar, and soon the three set off to get the doctor and head for the school, where Windbreaker was preparing for perhaps the biggest night of her life…

"Christo? Christo? Where could that filly be?" the play director asked. "We need to do one last runthrough before showtime. Somepony please find her!"

Windbreaker was in the bathroom stall, a nervous wreck. She had studied the part for months and months, practicing with whomever she could get a hold of, even being so bold as to ask Sunny and Twilight for help one day. Even with all of this preparation, she was shaking, and terrified of what was to come. When she heard somepony enter the room, she stiffened.

"Hey, Windbreaker? It's Ivy, are you in here?" Ivy was a light pink colored earth filly with a green and blue mane. She has been Windbreaker's best friend since they moved to Canterlot, and they could turn to each other for anything. Ivy walked down the row of stalls, looking for her friend.

"Well, if you're in here, Ms. Querade is looking for yooOUUU!"

As the stall door flew open, Windbreaker grabbed her friend and pulled her in like a trapdoor spider. Ivy was caught completely off guard and stumbled into the wall.

"Ow! Warn me next time you're gonna do that!" Ivy complained rubbing the top of her head. As she was preparing to scold Windbreaker and tell her all the possible ways she could have done that better, she saw her friend's face filled with tears.

"I… I can't do it! I can't go out there!" Windbreaker burst into tears. "I… I don't e-even know why sniff* I agreed to pl-play this paaart!"

As she watched her friend cry, Ivy couldn't help but feel somewhat responsible. She had been the one who pushed Winbreaker into trying out for the part. She sat next to her friend, trying to comfort her.

"Hey, hey. Don't cry now. You're makeup will run." She wiped the tears off of her friend's face.

"You'll do fine, trust me. There's a reason you got the lead. Besides, I'll be out there with you every step of the way."

Windbreaker looked at her friend, eyes bloodshot and filled with tears, "Promise?"

Ivy rolled her eyes and smiled. 'So childish.'

"I promise. Now, we should get going. Ms. Querade has been looking for you," Ivy got up and opened the door. As soon as Windbreaker walked out into the hallway, she was spotted by none other than their teacher.

"Christo!" the distraught mare shouted. "Where have you been? It's half an hour till curtain! Get to your flank back in the dressing room!"

Windbreaker swallowed hard, "Y-yes ma'am!"

As Leon and the others entered the auditorium, they were handed the playbill and a ticket for a free drink. Leon looked around, stunned by how large and extravagant the room seemed. There were large tapestries hanging on the walls, gold tinsel elegantly lining the ceilings like the web of a spider, and finally a large chandelier illuminating the whole room. After taking in all of the beautiful furnishings, Leon snapped out of he star-stricken state and started trying to find his friends Sunny and Twilight.

'Oh come on! How hard can it be to find a purple mare and a sun-gold stallion?' Leon thought, frustrated that he couldn't find them. Just as he was about to fly up for a better view, he spotted Sunny walking down the aisle. Sunny was wearing a black vest with a white undershirt and tie. As Leon watched him, he also noticed all of the eyes that were following him.

Leon chuckled, 'If those girls turn around any faster, their necks are gonna break!'

"Hey, Leon!" Sunny walked up to his friend.

"How are you Sunny?" Leon went to shake his friend's hoof, but was instead brohoofed.

'I don't think I'll ever get used to that…'

"I'm pretty good, Leon. I saved you a seat up front if you want."

"Yea, sure. I'll be down in a second."

"Alright, well hurry up. The play is about to start," Sunny said, smiling as he returned to his seat.

Leon walked over to where his mother and the others were sitting to see everypony laughing.

"What's so funny guys?" Leon checked himself over to make sure that they weren't laughing at him.

When Moondancer finally caught her breath, she said, "Oh, it's just that Dawnstar was telling us about one of the new recruits. Did he really do that?"

Dawnstar replied, "Yea. He couldn't stop yelling for twenty minutes!" he said crying as he continued laughing. Seeing his uncle in such hysteria made Leon smile.

"So," Leon started, "Do you mind if I sit with my friends?"

"Oh you mean Sunny and Twilight? Are those two going out yet?"

"No, they're not, but I hope they realize how perfect they are together soon."

"They will. Trust me," she said, with the same smug smile her brother uses.

Leon rolled his eyes. "Alright, I'll see you guys after the show." He walked back down the aisle to join his friends.

As he sat down, he noticed that their party was short one member…

"Hey, where's Twilight?" Leon asked looking for the purple mare.

Sunny checked his watch and frowned. "She was supposed to be here awhile ago. I'll go look for her…" and just as he stood up, the doors to the auditorium opened. They looked over, and their jaws dropped…

Twilight was wearing an extravagant red dress that sparkled in the light. She wore a simple maroon colored cloak around her and a diamond necklace. Leon couldn't help but blush when she looked their way.

'By Celestia, she looks amazing!'
He turned to see Sunny frozen in time, his face burning red and his jaw completely slack.

Twilight saw the two of them instantly and began to walk over to where they were seated.

"Snap out of it Sunny! Here she comes!" Leon said, bumping his friend to help drag him out of the daze.

"Huh? Oh!" Sunny sat down back in his seat thoroughly embarrassed by his behavior.

"Hi, guys. Sorry I'm so late. Whoa, are you alright, Sunny?" Twilight asked, which made Sunny's blush to deepen even further if it were possible. Leon saw him start to sway and wondered if he was going to black out.

Sunny tried to recover, "Uh, yea. Yea! I'm fine. Here, sit down."

"Oh, thank you. Did I miss anything?"

"No, the play is just about to start. You look very nice tonight by the way," Leon said, trying to buy Sunny some time to regain his composure.

Soon, the lights dimmed which gave Sunny the necessary cover to hide his blush. As the audience hushed, a lone spotlight fell on the stage, where a young stallion walked out carrying a large book with him.

"Ladies and Gentlecolts," he began, his velvet voice filled the room, "Thank you all for joining us in the telling of this epic. Before I begin to read the tail of our two heroes, I must remind you that when the exit doors close, they will not open again till the intermission. If you must excuse yourself, this is your very last chance."

He paused, allowing for some of the parents to take their foals out one last time.

After they had returned, he opened the tome and prepared to read. "Now, let us begin!"

His spotlight started to fade and be replaced by a smokescreen, "Our story begins many years ago during the Age of Chaos…"

Intermission:

The gilded doors of the auditorium flew open as a stampede of young ponies flew out in search of a restroom. It took all that Leon had to not be completely trampled or swept away by the flood. After they filed out, Leon, Sunny, and Twilight headed for the concession stand to get some food.

"Leon, I gotta tell you, your sister is doing an amazing job out there," Sunny said patting his friend on the shoulder.

"Yes," Twilight continued. "its amazing considering how shy she is in front of other people."

Leon smiled, "Thanks you guys. I'm so proud of her for following through with it, and I'm sure that she was happy to see the both of you. Especially you," he said pointing at Twilight. "You're her idol."

"R-really?" Twilight blushed. "But why?"

Sunny stepped in, "Well, you're an outstanding student, you help everypony you meet, you stay out of trouble, and your one of the most beautiful mares in all of Canterlot."

When he realized what he said, he blushed and looked down.

"Well thank you, Sunny," she said smiling. "I appreciate the compliment. You're not so bad yourself stud." She threw a seductive glance Sunny's way.

'if it were any colder, I might be able to see steam coming off of his head' Leon thought to himself as he watched the two of them. Being around them always helped Leon feel better about everything. Before he could leave the hospital, they always came over and helped him with the schoolwork he was missing and gave him something to look forward to. Their mere presence lifted his spirit and made all of his problems go away. Thinking about it now, he probably wouldn't have made it this far out of his spiral without there help.

"Leon, where are you going?" Sunny called out.

"Huh?" Leon finally broke out of his train of thought to realize he was on the terrace.

"Oh, I didn't…"

"Ah, never mind that. I need to talk to you anyway."

Leon looked around. "Where's Twilight?"

At this, Sunny's face turned from his normal joyful demeanor to one of stone.

"She had to use the little mares room, but she's actually what I need to talk to you about…."

Part 2: The Cleansing Light…

"Leon, I think I'm in love… With Twilight." Sunny said walking over to the terrace, resting is hooves on the railing.
"…and this is a bad thing?" Leon asked, puzzled.
"No! Maybe… I don't know."
"Why ask me for advice?"
"You are one of my closest friends, pretty much my brother, and I trust you and Twilight more than anypony else. I want to tell her, but I'm terrified of what she will think. Will she hate me, or does she share my feelings?" he put his head in his hooves. "I don't know what to do."

Leon looked up at the night sky, searching for a way to respond to his friend's conundrum, when it finally hit him.
"Do you know the story about The Moon's Love?" he asked, still staring up at the night sky.
Sunny raised his head, "No, I can't say I do."
"Over a thousand years ago, there was a young mare whose job was to raise the moon and create the night sky, and she loved her job so. She put so much time and effort into every night she created, she wanted to show it off to everypony, however, nopony was awake to witness her work."

"Nightmare Moon…" Sunny muttered.

"Yes," Leon sighed. "This is the tail of Nightmare Moon, however, there is something that many ponies don't know. There was one pony who shunned the day, and lived during the night. He spent every night basking in the glow of the moonlight and watching as the stars shot across the sky. He fell in love with the night, but most importantly, he fell in love with its creator." Leon paused, taking in a deep breath before continuing.

"He wanted to confess his feelings to her, but was afraid of what she would say to him. After all, she was a princess and he was but a mere peasant. So he kept his feelings a secret until he could no longer hold it in. He came to the castle seeking her out, to tell her how he felt."

Leon looked over to see Sunny watching him like a little school colt.
"Then what happened?"
Leon chuckled, "Well, he found her in the courtroom, arguing with her sister. As the argument heated, she began to change… Turning into this terrifying monster who felt scorned and unloved. When she finished her transformation, her sister used the Elements of Harmony to banish the Princess of the Night to the Moon for one thousand years. He was crushed. If he had told her sooner, maybe he could have saved her. Maybe she would be with him, but he was far too late. And so, every night, he would look up at his love, but he could never have her."

Sunny understood, "So, you're saying I need to tell her before I lose her, but how do I do that?"
"You've known the answer to that all along, Sunny!"
Leon then pointed to his friend's chest, "You just need to tell her what's in your heart, and you'll be fine."
Sunny heaved a sigh of relief, "Thanks, Leon."
"Anytime, just don't make a habit of it!" Leon replied with a playful pat on the shoulder.

As the two headed back to the main foyer, they were stopped by Dr. Grey.
"Leon, can I talk to you for a minute?" she asked.
"Sure Dr. Grey. I'll see you back in the theatre," he said turning back to Sunny.
Sunny nodded and left, leaving the Dr. and her patient alone.
"Leon, have you experienced any 'episodes' while watching the play up to this point?"
"No Dr. and, please, don't worry. I will let you know if anything happen," he said smiling the biggest grin possible to help put her at ease.
It only seemed to put her more on edge.

"Are you sure? I could give you something to make you fall asleep, or I can grab Luther and we can leave right now, or…"
"Dr. Grey, I'll be fine!"
Dr. Grey eyed him suspiciously, "Okay, but if anything does come up, remember I'm sitting with your folks."
Suddenly, one of the school's loudspeakers began to sound.

"THE PLAY'S INTERMISSION IS JUST ABOUT TO END. PLEASE RETURN TO YOUR SEATS."

Leon seized the opportunity to change the subject, "We should get going. Don't want to get locked out!"

Half an hour later, Leon and the others are watching the play…

"Not so brave now are ya, punk!" a white colt said to a bound pegasus.

Leon began to sweat, he felt his chest getting tighter, and he the room begin to spin. He tried to shake himself out of it, and closed his eyes to stop the spinning. When he did, he was brought back to that horrific nightmare that had been plaguing him:

"I'm gonna teach you the true meaning of pain!"

Leon was now in the theatre of his mind. It was impossibly dark, but he could feel his legs bound once again.

"I'm gonna teach you the true meaning of pain, Christo! And I promise you, you're never going to forget this!" When he finished saying this, Leon lowered his head, and began to chuckle.

Michael was taken aback by this, "Something funny?"

"Yes, there is," Leon started, his anger flaring. "The fact that I am still plagued by such an insignificant, irrelevant memory!"

"Why YOU!" Michael struck out towards Leon, but he was stopped. His arm began to disintegrate as a light began to flow from Leon's being.

The light also burned his bonds away, and he stood to face his terror. The closer he walked to Michael, the more of Michael and the darkness surrounding them began to fade away.

"You are a spiteful, terrible, and evil being, Michael, but I no longer fear you! You have no power over me!" Leon yelled as a wave of light crashed against Michael causing him to reel back and yell in pain. "But I should thank you… If it weren't for what you did to me that day, I would have never met Sunny or Twilight or even Dr. Grey."

His voice was becoming stronger and stronger as he watched Michael's evil aura burning away, "And they all taught me the most important lesson! They taught me that it doesn't matter what has happened in your past, but it is what you do right here, right now that counts! And true friends will do whatever it takes to help you move on!"

The darkness had been completely burned away at this point, and Leon was engulfed in light. It warmed and soothed his very soul, allowing him to be at peace for the very first time since the incident. The feeling was pure bliss, but even in this state, he could hear the cheers and clapping of hundreds of ponies.

Leon snapped open his eyes to see that the play was over, and all of the actors were taking their final bows. Windbreaker stood in the middle of them all with a giddy smile on her face.

"Hey, Leon," Leon felt someone nudging his side. He turned to see Sunny watching him, his eyes full of concern. "Are you alright? You were talking to yourself."

"Wh-what? No! I'm fine. Actually, I'm better than fine." He smiled and waved back at his sister.
"What do you mean?"
He looked back to his friend with a slight smile, "I'll tell you about it later, but tonight is Windbreaker's night."
Sunny looked to the stage and smiled, "You're right. We should celebrate her magnificent performance tonight."

The Beginning of the End

Chapter 6: Beginning of the End

It has been a few years since Leon had seen either Sunny or Twilight. Sunny went off to the music college, Twilight was continuing her studies with the Princess, and so Leon was left alone in Canterlot. Although his friends had left him, there was never a dull moment for Leon. Between trying to start a painting business and caring for his family, he hardly had enough time to breathe anymore. While Windbreaker was getting stronger and stronger, Moondancer was becoming worse with each day that passed. While her being sick was standard operating procedure, there was something different about this time…

Leon and his sister were walking the all too familiar route to the hospital to see their mother.
"I hope mom likes the card I made for her," Windbreaker said, breaking the silence.
Leon ruffled her mane, "I'm sure she will, lil' sis! She always does."
"Big brother?"
"Yes?"
"Do you think she will be ok? This is the longest she's ever been sick and I heard the doctors say that she's not getting any better."

Leon was taken back, 'She knows a lot more than I hoped.' Looking around them, Leon searched for a change in topic.
"H-hey look! A cherry tree, and it's in bloom. You know, I think that those are the most beautiful trees I've ever seen," he said, but when he looked at his sister, he knew that his plan didn't work.
"I just hope mom will be ok," she said, with a sad tone as she looked at the ground.
His fatherly instincts took over, "Now c'mon there little sis. She will be fine, now keep your chin up, and be sure to give her that card you made. Who knows, maybe the card will help her get better."
"You really think so?" she asked, with newfound hope in her eyes.

"Yes. Now let's hurry and get to the hospital. Don't want to keep her waiting too long, now do we?" They took to the sky and continued to head for the hospital.
Despite what he said to his sister, Leon had absolutely no clue as to what was going on with their mother, or if she would get any better. 'I think I'll talk to Dr. Grey when I get there. She probably knows what's going on,' he decided as the hospital came into view through the clouds.

Upon entering the hospital, they were greeted by the bustling waiting room. Everypony was eagerly waiting to sign in so they could visit their sick friends or relatives. Luckily enough for Leon and Windbreaker, they were both regular patients there, so all of the doctors knew them well enough to not request any information. When they reached their mother's room, Leon noticed there were three doctors speaking to their mother in hushed, worried tones. He sent Windbreaker to get some food from the snack machine and then waited outside the door, listening in on their conversation…

"Moondancer, you're condition is… well, it's mind boggling," an elder male doctor said. "In all my years, I've never seen or heard of anything like it."
"What do you mean?" Moondancer asked, and then began to cough.
"Well, your symptoms initially suggested the common cold, but now your internal organs are starting to deteriorate at an extremely rapid rate."

Leon felt his heart sink. 'She's… She's dying? No… She can't be…'

"Dr. Cross," Leon now heard the pained voice of Dr. Grey. "I have been doing some research on her illness, and… well…"
"Spit it out, Grey," the third doctor said. He sounded just a little older than Leon, but his voice was filled with an arrogance that made him sick to his stomach.

"It is called the 'Walking Death.' During Draconian Age, several ponies began to exhibit these same symptoms, but because of the nature of the illness, they continued their daily lives, spreading the disease even further," she said, her voice more collected than before.
"Eventually, everypony infected by the disease died, and their bodies had to be burned to prevent the spread. Before all of pony-kind fell to this disease, King Nightshade and Queen Aurora combined their magic to save those who weren't already infected by making the Walking Death less viral."

"How so?" the elder stallion asked.
"The book didn't say, but my professional opinion is that the king and queen made the bacteria weaker, decreasing their effectability, preventing any normal pony from getting it."
"But than how did Moondancer contract it?" the younger doctor questioned.
Dr. Grey sighed, "Because when she gave birth to Windbreaker, her immune system became very weak, and has never been to a normal level of strength, making her perfectly susceptible to it. It could have been airborne, or perhaps there was a small trace of it in something she ate. There is no sure way of knowing."

Leon buried his head in his hooves and sunk to the floor, silently weeping.
'No. She can't die. I can't lose her…'
As he wallowed in his emotions, he felt somepony nudging his shoulder.
"Big brother?" Windbreaker asked. "Are you alright?"
Leon did his best to hide his pain, but his voice betrayed him, "I'm fine, just stepped on something."

He looked up at her to see that she didn't believe him one bit.
She kicked at the ground, "You know you're a terrible liar…"
Leon was shocked. He knew that he was a terrible liar, but he didn't know his sister could see through his rouse. "Yea, I guess I am." He wiped his eyes and stood up.
"Is it about mom?" she asked, looking towards Moondancer's room.
'It's as if she already knows…' He let out a long sigh, "Yea, but it's nothing you should worry about."
As soon as he said this, she stared at him. 'Right, she can tell when I lie…'

He tried to come up with something to say when the door to their mother's room opened. The first doctor that exited was the elder. His eyes were dark brown, his coat was a faded tan and his mane was silver white. He was much larger than Leon had thought and stood a whole head taller than him. The next to exit was the younger male, who looked just like the elder, but his mane was the same color as his eyes. Leon could only guess they were father and son.

Seeing Leon and Windbreaker, the older of the two walked up to them, "Are you her children?" His voice was soft and sincere.
"Yes, she's our mom," Windbreaker said.
"My name is Dr. Umber Sr. Your mom has told me a lot about you two. She is really fond of the both of you." He said. "Windbreaker, could you go in, I need to talk to Leon for a minute."
"Sure, Dr. Umber."

As she walked inside, Dr. Umber sent his son away. "Mr. Christo, I need you to do something for me."
Leon stiffened, trying to show no sign of his inner turmoil. "What can I help you with?"
"Oh it's not me you're going to be helping." He walked up to Leon and put a hoof on his shoulder, "I can tell you're a good kid, and that you have a strong will. What I need you to do is keep strong."

Leon looked at him quizzically, "I don't understand."
"I know you were listening in to our conversation…" Leon looked down at the ground, "… so you know what is going on. I need you to stay strong for everyone in that room right now." He pointed into the room where Leon saw Dr. Grey, Windbreaker, and his mother, reading the card and sharing a laugh together. His eyes stung with tears, but he fought them back.
"However, don't confuse strength with foolishness. If you bottle all of your emotions up, it will tear you up on the inside until you finally break." Dr. Umber's voice was becoming more and more distant as he spoke. "I want you to vent your feelings, but when you do, make sure it is the right way and don't stop until you have said your piece. Or perhaps you could write some letters, play some music, or paint a new portrait. Whatever it is, you will need to find an outlet."

Leon was tried to respond to the doctor, but he found himself unable to speak. His heart was in his throat, and his eyes were overflowing with tears. He looked away from the room for a moment to gather himself. He took a deep jagged breath, "S-sir?"
"Yes?"
"How long does she have?"
Dr. Umber sighed and looked into the room, "About a month. Maybe less. Depends as much on our medicine as her will."
Leon felt a sharp pain in his chest, 'That isn't much time…' "Is there any possible cure?"
Dr. Umber kept looking into the room. "Nothing shy of a miracle," he confessed.
Leon felt another sharp pain, "Then I have one more question to ask you doctor…"
Turning back to face Leon, Dr. Umber awaited the question.
Leon looked over at the doctor, his eyes bloodshot from fighting back his tears,
"What do I tell my sister?"

Our Pillar of Strength pt 2

Part 2: Our Last Night Together:

It was late in the afternoon, and Windbreaker had just finished her training session.
“Great job today, WB. Keep this up, and you might even be able to out fly the Wonderbolts!” her personal trainer said. He was a lean, green pegasus with a blue mane and yellow eyes.

She collapsed to the ground, completely exhausted.
“Do you really think so?” she asked between breaths. Her training had been getting more and more rigorous, and she really pushed herself today. She found that she had been doing that a lot more lately.

He held his hoof out to help her up, “Of course. Have I ever lied to you before?”
“No -pant*- No, I guess -pant*- you haven’t.”

He dug through one of his saddlebags, “Here, you need to drink more water. Also, get a good night’s sleep tonight. Your body will need time to recover.”

She took the water gratefully and finished the large bottle in a matter of seconds.
“Ten seconds flat! Wow, you must have been thirsty,” he said with a smile.
“You have no idea!” she said, looking at the sun.
“I need to get going. I’ll see you next week, Storm!” She waved goodbye and walked towards the hospital.

The path from the training field to the hospital was not longer than half a mile, but right now, it felt like she was heading all the way to Stalliongrad.
‘My legs hurt, my wings hurt, everything hurts,’ she thought as she dragged herself along.

Along with the aching in he muscles, she felt hungry yet extremely nauseous from over-exerting herself. The two thoughts mixed together like toxic sludge in her stomach. The more she thought about it, the worse she felt. So she looked for things to distract herself with, however she saw something that sent her heart a flutter.

“Leon! Mom! What are you guys doing out here?” she asked with newfound hope.
‘Maybe she’s better. Maybe she’s coming home. Oh Celestia, I am so excited!’
However, the look on her brother’s face told her otherwise. He had that one smile on his face. That smile that said something was wrong.
“What’s wrong, guys?”
Leon was about to speak up when Moondancer put her hoof on his, then turned to her daughter.
“We’ll tell you when we get home, ok honey?”

Later at the house…

“WHAT!?” Windbreaker was crying hysterically, her voice filled with anguish and frustration. To Leon, hearing her like this felt like being cut by a blizzard of razors.
“Mom asked to leave the hospital and is allowed to stay here with us,” he said, fighting back his own pain.
“Not that! The -sniff*- the part where you said mom is d-dying!” Her beautiful mane was disheveled, her eyes were bloodshot, and tears flowed like a river down her face.
Leon swallowed hard, “Yes… She’s dying. Which is why she thought it was important that we spend as much time together as we can. We need to be strong for her. Show her how much we love her, and show her the best time we can.”

“It’s not fair…” she whispered, collapsing on the floor. “It’s not fair. It’s not fair. It’s just not.”
“Celestia, why does this keep happening to us?” she pleaded.
Leon walked over to her and embraced her tightly. He finally let his own pain out as he held her. “I don’t know why these things have been happening to us, but we can’t pity ourselves. We have to move on, stay strong, and show no fear.” He held her tightly as they wept. They stood there for what seemed like an eternity, just crying, and while crying never got rid of the pain, it did help. After Windbreaker had caught her breath, Leon picked her head up and looked into her eyes. “Now, wash up. Dinner will be ready in a few minutes.”
She smiled up at him, “Okay.”

Dinner went by very quickly. The family told each other stories and shared many laughs, but they couldn’t fully enjoy the evening. Moondancer’s ill health caused her to cough and convulse when she laughed. After dinner, they played some of the old board games that were lying around the house. Eventually, Moondancer passed out and her children carried her to the bedroom. As Leon tucked her into bed, Windbreaker spoke up.

“Leon, I want to stay with her tonight,” she said. Leon could tell that she was in a great deal of pain, perhaps even more so than himself. Seeing their proud and beautiful mother in such a state of what can only be described as decay.
“I… I understand, and I’m going to stay too,” he said as he walked out of the room.

‘If this is her last night, I want to be here for her.’

He went to WB’s room to grab some of her things: a pillow, her doll, and her favorite blanket. Next was his room, which he duly noted as a complete mess. The workbench was covered in papers, pencils, and paints, the wastebasket was overflowing with his rejected artwork, and his clothes were thrown about. He chuckled a bit as he noticed his smock hanging from the ceiling fan. He hadn’t been able to spend much time at home recently, and when he was, it was just to sleep.

Almost instinctively, he reached into the disheveled mess, and found his own blanket and pillow. While he didn’t have a doll like his sister, he did have something that helped him sleep. He went the drawer at his workbench and pulled out the dream catcher one of his friends made for him when they lived in Ponyville. Due to how well Leon took care of the precious item, its true age didn’t show. It looked as new as the day she gave it to him.

Tucking it into his shirt pocket, Leon walked back down the hall to his mother’s room to find his sister fast asleep in their mother’s rocking chair.

He smiled a bit, ‘I’m glad she’s getting some rest. It’s been a rough day.’

He put her blanket over her, and then propped her head up with the pillow. Turning back to his mother, he placed the doll by her side. Now that the two of them were taken care of, Leon felt just how tired he was. Kneeling by Moondancer’s bedside, he put his hoof atop of hers, and rested his head on the bedding, not even bothering to cover himself up.
Slowly, he drifted off to sleep, and prayed Celestia for a peaceful memory of the time with his family to play in his mind.

When Leon opened his eyes, a warm, bright light greeted him. As he looked at the bright light, he felt the same ecstasy that washed over him after he had cleared his mind of Michael. However, he could feel another’s presence in this world…

“Well, well, I’m glad you could join us,” a stallion said, his voice warm and strangely familiar to him.”

“D-dad?”

Our Pillar of Strength pt 3

Part 3: Easier said Than Done…

“You have no idea how happy I am to see you again, my son…” Bolt said, the light fading just enough for Leon to make out his father’s figure, just as he remembered him. Seeing his father brought back the memory of the day he died, and filled him with grief.

Bolt then looked to Leon’s side, “And I am so grateful that I finally get to meet my beautiful daughter.”
Leon was startled a bit when he felt his sister leaning against him. He didn’t realize that she was there as well.
“Hi dad,” she said, her voice soft and timid. She had never gotten to know her father aside from the stories and pictures that mom shared with her.

“Hello, Windbreaker. You are such a lovely young mare,” he said. Leon noticed his father’s stoic posture wane for a moment.

So many questions were flooding through Leon’s mind. ‘What is going on? How is Windbreaker here? Why is Dad here? I guess I should ask…’

“Um, dad? Is this a dream?” Leon asked, completely perplexed. He had never had a dream like this before and was curious if he were speaking to his family, or just their avatars in his own mind.

Bolt let out a warm, hearty laugh, “Does it feel like a dream?”

“Well, I don’t know. None of my dreams have ever been like this one…”

Bolt walked up to his children. Being this close to him reminded Leon what a huge stallion his father was. He stood a full head taller than Leon, and his muscles were completely ripped. However, Leon also noticed something along his left side: a tear in his figure where the Basilisk struck him.

“Sadly, we do not have much time for me to explain so we will just call it a ‘Shared’ dream,” Bolt started, but was interrupted by his daughter,

“But then how can we see you? Where is mom?”

“I am here, honey.”

Both Leon and Windbreaker turned around to see their mother flying up to them. She looked as vibrant and stunning as she did before her illness, her voice was normal and soft, and her smile warmed the vast, empty space they were in.

“Mom!” Windbreaker ran over and nuzzled her mother.

Bolt put a hoof around Leon and led him away from the two mares.

Bolt sighed, “I need to tell you… No, I want to tell you… I have been watching you from this world. Watching you become the stallion you are today. Seeing what you have done to others, and what others have done to you.” He looked down at his son; tears filled his eyes as a smile came across his face.

“After everything you went through, you kept your kind, loving, innocent nature. You didn’t let it change you. Any other pony would have turned spiteful and lost faith, but you kept strong. I have wanted to tell you this every day since I left you: I love you, and I am proud to call you my son.”

Hearing his father say this, Leon felt an extreme weight being lifted off of him. Embracing his father, Leon cried. Streams of tears flowed from his eyes and down his face. Bolt was surprised at first, but then returned the affection.

“I… I love you too, dad! I always have, and always will. It’s been so hard without you, and it’s all my fault!”

Leon’s eyes shot open, realizing what he just said. What he just admitted…

Bolt pulled away from his son, “It was not your fault that a Basilisk was in the forest that night, and it was my choice to stay behind and fight it off. If you or your mother had gotten hurt, I wouldn’t have been able to forgive myself… I can’t forgive myself for missing you two grow up, but I am glad that you turned out to be such a great stallion.”

Bolt took something from around his neck, “Here, I want you to have this…” He then put it around Leon’s neck. Leon looked at it, “A key? What is it to?”

They started to walk back to the rest of their family.

“It is a key to the chest in the old home. I had planned to give you this key and open the chest when you came of age, so I am giving it to you now. Sorry it’s a few years late,” He finished with a laugh.

Leon smiled, “It’s fine, dad. Thank you.”

Bolt stood next to his wife, “Well, it’s time for us to go…”

“Wait, what do you mean ‘us,’” Windbreaker asked.

Moondancer knelt down to her children; “I have to go with dad now, but you two have to go home.”

Now Leon knew what this dream was all about, “So this is goodbye…”

Moondancer was silent.

“No, I don’t want to loose you, mom!” Windbreaker said as she wrapped her hooves around her mother. “Let us come with you!”

“I’m sorry, but you can’t. We are going someplace I hope neither of you two see anytime soon.”

“Windbreaker,” Leon said, putting his hoof on her shoulder. “We have to let them go.”

She looked down and sighed. “W-well. I had to try,” her voice was shaking and weak.

The light behind their parents began to brighten. “We are out of time,” Bolt said.

“Leon, promise me that you will keep your sister safe,” Moondancer said as her figure began to blend with the light.

“I will,” he said as he wiped his eyes of tears and smiled after them.

“And Windbreaker, don’t make is job too difficult,” Bolt said, his voice becoming more resonant.

“No promises,” she said with a little chuckle. She picked herself up and stood next to her brother. “I’m sorry I never met you before.”

“Me too. Perhaps I will visit you in the future. Leon, remember that key.”

Leon looked down to the key around his neck and nodded.

“Oh, and Windbreaker,” Moondancer said, “Here…” She took her necklace off and put it on her daughter. “May it help you through the tough times ahead.”

“I love you, mom,” she said, holding the family heirloom.

“I love you too, honey. Goodbye.”

The light finally engulfed his parents and blinded Leon. He had to shut his eyes…

Opening his eyes, Leon realized he was back in Moondancer’s room. Tears fell freely from his eyes as he realized what had just happened. As he stood, he felt the cool metal from the key his father had given him. Windbreaker also stirred from her sleep, in the same state he was.

They both just stood next to the bed, looking down at their mother’s lifeless body. After what seemed like hours, Windbreaker looked up to her brother and asked,

“What do we do now?”

Our Pillar of Strength pt 1

Part 1: A Mother’s Last Wish

The doctor just stood there, pondering the question he was just asked. “What do I tell my sister?”
“Well, Leon, you need to tell her the truth, and soon,” he said flatly.
Leon was completely broken up. Unable to contain his tears anymore, he began to weep quietly to himself, still refusing to look into the room. As he sat there, he started to think on what to tell Windbreaker.

He stood up and faced the doctor, “Thank you for everything you’ve done, but I need to talk to my mother for a little while…” He wiped his tears and swallowed his emotions.
“Sure, but if anything happens, we will be right outside,” Dr. Umber said as he turned to the room. “Dr. Grey, I need to talk to you.”

As she left, Leon looked at her. She smiled, but her eyes showed extreme emotional pain. Over the years, she had become very close to him. Another part of the family, like the older sister he never had. So she felt the hurt just as much as he did. As she walked past him, she said, “Come along, Windbreaker. Your physical therapy is in a few minutes. I’ll take you over.” Windbreaker followed closely behind her.

Finally, he was alone with his mother. Leon’s heart was pounding, his eyes were stinging, and he found it difficult to breath. ‘The air is so thick…’ Every time he tried to speak to her, he choked up, and couldn’t say anything, so they just sat there for what seemed an eternity.

‘What should I say? Well, what can I even say? She’s dying, and she knows it. Do I tell her everything is all right? Do I tell her the truth? How…’

“Leon?” she said, breaking his inner conflict. “I need to tell you something…”
Leon swallowed hard, fighting back the emotions that tore at his insides like a wild manticore. Still, he was silent.
“I am dying…” Hearing her say it made him nearly vomit. “and I’ve know that for a long time n-“ She began to cough, and as she pulled her hoof away from her face, he saw it covered in blood. Leon jumped to her side and held her as she convulsed again. Being this close to her made him realize how much the illness had already taken out of her.

Her mane was turning grey and thinning like an old mare. She had become so inexplicably thin that her skeletal structure shown through her skin. Her eyes were weary, tired, and surrounded by purple bruising. He couldn’t tell if these were symptoms of the illness, or of all the medicine they were giving her.

‘By Celestia… What has happened to you…'

When she finally calmed down enough, she continued to speak, her voice far more strained than before.
“Since I found out, I took a long look back at my life. Reminiscing on things that I have done… and things that I haven’t,” she said, wheezing. “Sure, there are some things that I wish I could have done differently. I wish I could have saved your father, I wish I could have been a better mother to you and your sister.”

Finally, Leon found the strength to speak, “Mom… You couldn’t have been any better to Windbreaker and I. You provided us with a loving home, food on the table everyday, hah, you even hoof knitted our clothing to make sure that they fit perfectly!” He let his tears flow down his face as he smiled at the memories… When he found her fast asleep over her sewing machine, and having to carry her to her bed when she spent days making them new dress clothes.

“Ever since the day I was born, there was not a moment when I felt unloved, never I time I was truly unhappy, never a day I harbored any anger towards either you or dad. And-*sniff*- and you two always tried to be kind to me, even when I misbehaved. Yes, when dad died, it hurt… It still does… but I still had you.” He looked down at his mother. Her breathing had become more relaxed and peaceful. “And you helped me get past it. You stayed strong, even though I know it hurt you far more than it hurt me. And-and when Windbreaker was born, I remember you telling me that I had a baby sister. That it was my job to help you teach her right from wrong, to show her how to smile, and to protect her from the things that threatened her.”

His heart ached, his entire body felt as if it would fall away bit by bit until there was nothing left. He was finding it more and more difficult to speak.

‘No! No, I need to tell her everything I’m feeling. I don’t know if I will have another chance. Even now, I can feel her slipping away from me.’

He took another jagged breath, “I will always be there for her… and I know you will too. I know that even when you are gone, you will still be watching over us. You and dad will always be there, even if we can’t see you.” Leon stopped; unable to say the words he truly wanted to say.

Suddenly, Moondancer spoke up, “Leon, there is something I need you to do for me.”

“A-anything you need, mom.”

“Come closer.”

Leon leaned down to his mother, listening intently. She whispered in his ear, telling her young boy her last wish…

Closing (Not part of the Fic)

Dear Readers,

Thank you all so much for reading this story and providing such positive feedback. I truly think that this fic was very successful despite the fact that this was my first fanfiction ever! I know that there were some lulls in the story, and I am glad that you all stuck around to the end. Hopefully, nobody will kill me after they read the last chapter, but oh well. I would like to thank both Taz, Spire, and Pinkie for helping me with the story and providing meaningful feedback every week. You guys rock! First round of cider on me! To everyone else,I hope I was able to tide you over while BlackSpire worked on Chapter 8 of "A New Arrival!"

Speaking of which, I have recently read through the chapter and I am happy to say that he will post it soon! We have been working hard to make sure the transition between the stories will go a smooth as possible. However, if there are any gaps, please let us know so we may fill them.

Have a Great Day, and stay tuned for my next fiction!

Sincerely,

MsgtLaborin