The Human, The Fashionista, and The Milkmare

The Human, The Fashionista, and The Milkmare

Chapter 12

-------------------- two weeks later --------------------

I don't know how long I was out for -- and truthfully, I don't recall making my way into a hospital bed -- which was where I woke up, my head throbbing with pain -- that was nowhere near the sharp stabbing pain in my chest and the shooting pain in my left leg. I had a respirator attached to my face, pumping oxygen into my lungs and removing carbon dioxide from my breath. I tried to move but found myself strapped into the bed. Tears began trickling down my cheeks as I tried to recall what had happened -- all I remember was seeing a couple of big burly stallions grab me and another one rob me of my sack of bits. I could hear the constant beeping of monitors and the gentle rhythmic sound of the respirator. As there was nothing left for me to do, I lay awake until I lost consciousness again. A nurse trotted in to check on me, but since I was asleep, she turned and left.

I drifted in and out of consciousness, losing track of time. I was silently hoping the milkmare would find me and help me and wondered how long it would be before she finally did find me. As I was about to drift off to sleep again, a certain alabaster mare trotted into the room. It appeared that she wore no make-up, but her deep blue eyes and her very short indigo-purple mane gave me a clue as to whom she was. Her coat appeared to be a dirty dull-grey at this point and she had a certain odor about her.

"Michael, darling, I'm so sorry to see what has happened to you," she said softly as she stood by my right side, examining the tubes and electrodes attached to my body. "What happened?"

I looked at her, a tear trickling from my right eye. I tried to speak but couldn't, as the respirator covered my nose and mouth.

"Well, darling, I guess it serves you right for scorning me. I tried to be nice to you, but you refused me -- and look what it's gotten you! But all is not lost, darling -- your feet are still free, and I can boku-maru with you!" she chortled as she found a free gurney and wheeled it to the end of mine, hopping onto it and placing her hind hooves against my feet. Owing to the fact that I had been strapped to the bed, I was helpless to stop her from indulging her desire, though the sensation seemed to ease my pain just a little bit. A soft moan escaped my mouth as my pleasure center was activated, if only for a brief moment.

"Mmmh, darling, I'll be back again soon! I hope you get better for me," she declared before trotting out of the room.

----------------- two weeks earlier ---------------------

The morning arrived to find the milkmare waking up groggily and rubbing sleep from her eyes. Her teats hung heavy with milk, and without access to her milking machine, she cursed aloud at her plight as her teats began to drip with her milk. She trotted into the bathroom and got into the tub and began squeezing her teats as gently as she could, trying to force as much milk from them as she could.

"Discord! Can you help me?" she asked, but received no answer. She called out his name several more times, each time becoming more and more frantic, but each time she waited a few moments for him to show up, she received nothing. She groaned and sighed, resigning herself to milking her teats by herself, the milk running to the drain in the tub. Upon finishing as best she could, she turned on the water and took a shower to clean herself up somewhat. After that, she toweled off and took the room key with her to the front desk of the hotel so she could check out.

"How was your stay last night?" the clerk asked, almost by rote.

"It was okay, thanks," she offered sullenly as she trotted out the front door to start her search for me. She trotted around the hotel again, asking other ponies if they'd seen a human, but everypony she asked replied that they either hadn't seen a human or even knew what one was. She trotted around another block, asking about me, again to no avail. The next block over, she met up with a police pony, so she asked him about me.

"Can't say that I've seen a human -- say, aren't you the mare who was seen with a purple unicorn stallion yesterday? I seem to recall a large building sliding along the ground, the purple stallion guiding it along somehow."

"Umm, well -- he left town yesterday evening and I haven't seen him since, officer. But -- I'm looking for a human -- about twice as tall as me, stands on two long legs -- I think he was wearing dark blue and black clothes," she replied. She gave him a nervous glance as she said this, tipping him off to her dishonesty.

"Ma'am, I'm gonna have to ask you to accompany me -- I've got some more questions for you, and I think you're not telling me the truth about that purple stallion. Moving that builiding like that caused a lot of damage, and somepony's gonna pay for it -- most likely, that purple stallion. The sooner we can track him down, the sooner we can release you," he stated as he pulled a set of hoofcuffs from somewhere and attached one end around the mare's right foreleg, the other to his left.

"No! Okay, he turned into a human! But he can change from human into a pony! And back into a human! We were at the Stallion's Retreat yesterday when it happened! Ask Guinness, the pub owner!" she protested as she tried to remove the cuff.

"Hmm. That's about two miles from here -- why would you go there? Oh, that's right -- you had him with you. C'mon, I've gotta tell my supervisor about this. Looks like we've got a good lead -- if you cooperate more with us, we can talk about extenuating circumstances," he grinned, forcing the mare to trot along with him. The two of them trotted for what seemed like a mile and a half until they returned to the crime scene.

"Umm, can I get my milking machine out of there?" she asked, giving the officer her best puppy-dog eyes look.

"Sorry, ma'am, but I can't do that. This is still a crime scene, but now that we know who's responsible for moving the building, we can allow tenants to return to their apartments. By the way, do you know where the stallion is?"

"We were trying to get to the Horse-shoe Road Inn -- but I was scared and lost sight of him. I have no idea where he is -- please don't look at me like that! I'm sorry! If I knew, I would tell you! He was following me yesterday, but I guess I must have -- I remember seeing him follow me, but -- he was so far behind me! I tried to wait, but -- I panicked! I know where that inn is -- damn! He didn't! He got lost! There must be another hotel nearby or not too far from that inn," she said as she tried to recollect the events of the previous evening.

"The only other hotel anywhere near that one is -- The Whorse's Plot," he stated with disgust.

"Damn! He can't read Equish! I should never have left him behind!" she shouted in anguish. "He must have thought that hotel was the Horse-shoe Road Inn!"

"I wish you had told me that earlier when we were still near that place -- here, I'll remove the cuffs. I'll have my partner accompany you to the -- ugh -- sex hotel. I can't stand that place," he shuddered. He called out to his partner, a lime-green stallion with a shock of dirty blonde mane and tail.

"Officer Rap Sheet, at your service," he announced. "Officer Slip Knot is my partner, but I'll be with you to check out this lead. I certainly hope we can find him -- he's not going to be very happy when he gets hit with the clean-up and restoration bill -- and about a year in prison as well," the stallion noted dryly. "So, he went to the Whorse's Plot, eh?" he chuckled.

"He can't read Equish!" she reiterated more forcefully. "He didn't know!"

"Yeah, but -- he didn't leave the place to try to find another hotel, now, did he?"

"Well, uhh, no, but -- he can't read Equish! How was he supposed to know? He's not from around here! And I need my milking machine!"

"Where is it?"

"It's in my apartment! Please, let me go get it and use it -- ugh! My shop!"

"Oh, that's right -- you're the local milkmare! My marefriend swears by your milk, says it's the best she's ever had. Okay, you run in there and get your machine --"

"I'm not taking it with me -- I just need to use it," she declared.

"You might not be staying in your apartment much longer, miss -- the landlord's already been informed, and your stuff is most likely going to be set by the curb."

"NOOO! I need to --" she began before she caught sight of the dark blue unicorn mare, trotting over to her. "Slum Lord! Please! Let me stay in my apartment!"

"Let me have that sack of bits you got and you can," she grinned. The milkmare raced into the building and returned just two minutes later, hefting the sack of bits on her back and dropping it at the landlord's forehooves. "Excellent, Milky Way! Thank you for your generosity!"

The landlord then trotted over to a pair of burly stallions and whispered something in their ears, eliciting big grins on their faces. They trotted into the building, though the milkmare paid them no attention as she returned to the lime-green police stallion's side.

"Okay, let's get going! I need to find him!" she exclaimed. Rap Sheet nodded his head and began trotting back towards the north edge of town where the two hotels were located. While they were making their way there, the two burly stallions, who were in the employ of Slum Lord began carting Milky's belongings to the curb nearest the entrance of the building. Ponies who passed by helped themselves to whatever caught their interest and before long, the only thing left was the milking machine, though it ended up getting destroyed by other ponies who saw fit to damage it.

After about half an hour of trotting, the two reached the sex hotel, the sign dangling by a single chain from its mast, the wind casually flipping it about. As the police stallion entered, a bunch of mares ran out the front door screaming, the desk clerk hiding behind his desk. Rap Sheet reared up on his hind legs, resting his forehooves on the desk and glared at the clerk. The milkmare stood by his side, though she chose to remain standing on all fours.

"Have you seen a human around here?" asked the police pony, noting the tan stallion cowering in a corner of the booth.

"Ummm -- no, no, I, uhh, can't say that I have -- I, uhh, I don't even know what a human is!" he offered meekly.

"You're lying -- Miss Milky Way, is he taller than me when I'm standing?"

"Yes, but only just a little -- he was wearing dark colored clothing and had a large sack of coins on his back," the mare noted. "He is not familiar with Equestrian coinage and its value -- how much did he pay for a room in here?"

"Five hundred bits," the clerk said before covering his muzzle with his forehooves.

"So, he was here! Which room did he get?" asked the officer, who now glared even more harshly at the clerk, who silently thanked the chicken-wire from keeping the officer from grabbing him.

"Uhh, 517 -- but -- he never made it up there," the clerk said, covering his muzzle again.

"WHAT HAPPENED TO HIM!!??" the milkmare screeched as she practically lunged over the counter, the chicken wire nearly giving way as she put a great deal of force behind her attempt.

"Uhh -- I dunno," the clerk replied, cowering again and covering his head with his forehooves. At his point, a trio of big burly stallions entered the lobby, but upon seeing the police officer, they turned tail and trotted quickly up a staircase. The milkmare caught sight of them retreating before turning her attention back to the clerk.

"Who are those stallions? Did they do something to my human?" she asked, glaring daggers at the clerk, who pushed a button under the counter. Shortly after that, the owner of the hotel came in, relieving the clerk.

"Not so fast, Scooter! I've got some more questions for you!" the police stallion growled.

"Umm, you'll have to ask my boss -- I'm on break now!" he chortled as he scurried away.

"Yes, officer, may I help you?" asked a pudgy middle-aged cream-colored mare who wore her red mane styled up in a double-bouffant.

"Miss Milky Way is looking for a human stallion -- and so are we," the officer stated flatly. The tan desk clerk returned and grinned.

"Oh, he's wanted by you guys as well? Why didn't you say so? Yeah, our goons took his money and beat him up -- he's probably in the hospital," the clerk chuckled.

"That -- that was MY money! They took MY money!" Milky Way screeched, her face going red with rage as she trotted with extreme deliberation towards the clerk.

"Miss Milky Way, we'll get your money back to you. Let's go to the hospital to see if we can find our stallion," Rap Sheet mused as he trotted towards the door.

"I want my money back!" she shouted at the owner as she caught up to the police officer. "The hospital is on the south end of town! It's going to take us two hours to get there!" she complained.

"How important is he to you?" Rap Sheet asked, giving her a sidelong glance.

"He's -- he's my stallion! I -- I love him!" she averred almost stridently.

"If you love him as much as you say you do, I should think a two hour trot would be nothing in the face of true love," the stallion mused. "I will have another officer accompany you there -- we're going to have to take him into custody if he's not too badly injured."

Once again, the pair trotted back to her apartment building, the tape cordon finally having been removed. Upon seeing her milking machine damaged beyond repair, the milkmare screamed.

"NOOOO! My milking machine! What's it doing out here?! Who did this?!" she wailed. "I'm going to my apartment!" she exclaimed as she rushed into the building and up the stairs to her apartment. The door had been locked shut, so she took out her key and tried it in the lock. To her shock and dismay, she discovered her key no longer worked, so she frantically shook the knob and the door in an attempt to enter what used to be her apartment. She noticed Duck Tape in the hallway and trotted quickly to meet him.

"Why won't my key work? I paid Slum Lord enough money to cover a year's worth of rent!"

"Hmm, I don't recall her saying anything about that -- she told me to change the lock on 8 fargle -- oh, that's your apartment! Well, not anymore it ain't!" he chuckled. "You got a problem with that? Take it up with Slum Lord."

The mare broke down and began sobbing and wailing. "NOOOO! My home! My stuff! NOOOO! Where am I going to stay now?"

"I dunno, but you can't stay here -- you'd best get going, or I'm gonna have to ask the cops to arrest you for trespassing. You're no longer a tenant here," the stallion stated flatly. He trotted over to her and tapped her on her shoulder to get her attention. "C'mon, I don't wanna have to call the cops on you."

"UGH! Leave me alone!" she yelled, rising to her hooves and trudging angrily down the stairs. She met up with Rap Sheet, who assigned yet another officer to escort her to the hospital. This time it was a pegasus mare, light green in color with a pink and orange mane and tail.

"Sorry to hear about your loss, Miss Milky Way -- hopefully we can get everything straightened out for you. I'm Officer Pepper Spray -- I'll be your escort to the hospital," she offered warmly. Tears continued to trickle from the milkmare's eyes as she sniffled a little.

"I hope so -- I don't have anywhere to stay now," she noted dejectedly. "All my stuff is gone...and my milking machine has been destroyed. Where is Discord when I need him?"

"Umm, Miss Milky Way, it's not a good idea to go around calling on him for help," the police mare mused. "I've heard he's nothing but bad news. I remember being taught the legends about him when I was in school."

"Yes, but -- he's changed! He's doing good things now!"

"Hmm, I find that hard to believe. Let's get going, please," the police mare implored almost stiffly. "We've got a bit of a hike ahead of us and I hope to get something to eat after we get there."

Almost to emphasize her point, Milky Way's stomach growled in protest over the fact she hadn't eaten anything in about 20 hours.

"Sounds like you're hungry, too. I'll buy you something when we get to the cafeteria."

"Thank you, officer," she replied warmly as the two began their trek to the hospital. The two mares attracted attention from various other ponies, though occasionally one would throw one of the milkmare's uniforms at them, said uniform being dirtied up in an unspeakable way.

"I can't believe she would do that to me! And even after I had paid her!" the milkmare wailed as her favorite uniform, the red one, was hurled at her. It had been cut nearly to shreds and stained with fecal matter as she watched it hit the ground in front of her. She picked it up, noticing all the rips and tears, then flung it away when she caught the sight and scent of another pony's excrement on it. "Ugh! My favorite uniform! Damn her!"

"We'll straighten it out for you, Milky Way. We'll address the issue of your landlord and resolve it to your satisfaction."

"Thank you so much -- I certainly hope you can. I want Slum Lord to pay for what she's done to me!"

"She's not the only one who's going to be paying -- your stallion is looking at a pretty steep bill for the damage he's caused," the police mare replied in a dull monotone.

"I'm sorry! I didn't know!"

"I know -- Earth Ponies can't wield magic like that -- he must be a really powerful stallion if he can move an entire building like that!" the officer exclaimed, a broad smile on her face. "Hmm, if he's that powerful, I wonder how good he is at other things..."

"Please! He's my stallion!"

"Sorry about that -- it's just that stallions are in pretty short supply around here -- and I've been pretty lonely for awhile," the police mare mused pensively.

"I'm sorry to hear that -- but -- I just can't let my stallion go like that. I need him -- I love him," the milkmare declared, a hopeful note to her voice.

"I'm glad you found a special somepony -- although I'm curious to see what he looks like."

"I think he's still looking like a human."

"Hmm, I wonder what those look like -- I've never seen a human before."

"Most ponies haven't! I was amazed to see him in Ponyville -- he mentioned something about Twilight Sparkle, but -- I can't let him see her again. I'm worried she might try to take him away from me. I hear the things he says when he's asleep, what he says about her. It makes me angry when he talks about her in his sleep."

"I've heard about her -- she helped defeat Nightmare Moon about three years ago! If he's as powerful as her -- he must be! Nopony could move a building like that if he -- I think he might be even more powerful than Twilight! WOW!" the police mare exclaimed excitedly. "I definitely want to see him now!"

"Officer Pepper Spray! Michael's MY stallion! Umm, if you want to see him, I guess that's all right -- but nothing more than that!"

"What a rather odd name for a unicorn stallion. Michael. Hmm," the police mare mused.

"He has two names! As a unicorn, his name's Amethyst Flame," Milky Way explained.

"Ah, so that's his name! We were wondering who he was. So -- why is he a human? How does he change back and forth?"

"Well, when he's a human, if he drinks my milk, he changes into a unicorn stallion. As a pony, if he drinks tap water, he changes back into a human," the milkmare replied nonchalantly. The police pegasus stopped dead in her tracks at that revelation, her eyes wide as saucers.

"... He's a changeling ..." she muttered just barely above a whisper. The milkmare bopped the police mare over the head with her right fore-hoof.

"No! He's NOT! He told me changelings use magic to alter their forms!"

"If you hit me again, I'll arrest you on the spot for assault. I'll be the judge of whether or not he's a changeling!" she responded indignantly as they finally arrived at the hospital. They approached the information desk and asked about me.

"We were wondering about that. Wait a moment, I'll call a doctor to escort you to his room," the receptionist stated in a flat tone. She pushed a button and called for Doctor Bone Marrow, who took his sweet time getting to them. The two mares had taken seats in the waiting room and nearly fifteen rather tense minutes elapsed before he finally showed up.

"How is he?" asked the milkmare.

"We had him in ICU last night -- he is in critical but stable condition -- multiple compound bone fractures, punctured lung, severe lacerations and contusions -- it's going to be months before he recovers from the injuries," he stated almost sullenly. "We have no idea of who or what did this to him -- but they darn near killed him. He's lucky to be alive," he added.

"I need to see him! I need to know if he's okay!" Milky Way implored, a desperate tone to her voice.

"I'm curious to see him myself -- we have reports that he was a unicorn stallion and moved an eight-story apartment building using his magic," the police mare stated, eliciting a look of wide-eyed shock from the doctor. "He moved that building more than a mile from its foundation," she added.

"That's impossible! Do you have any idea of how much magic it would take to move an object of that size over that distance?" the doctor asked in utter astonishment.

"I was with him when he did it," Milky Way offered. "He created an odd-shaped key using his magic, then inserted it into the front door lock of the building, then something which sounded like a loud roaring noise seemed to come from the building itself."

"That means -- he used magic to enchant the building with a movement spell! AMAZING!" the doctor exclaimed in wide-eyed shock.

"That means we'll have to have him do the same thing to put the building back on its foundation. None of our unicorns are anywhere near that magically powerful -- he must be something truly special!" the police mare grinned.

"Well, right now, he's in pretty bad shape -- but I'll take you to his room," the doctor offered. The trio trotted to an elevator, taking them up to the tenth floor, then trotted down a hallway to room 1017. Two beds had been placed end to end so I could be laid out to my full length. Upon seeing me with the wires, tubes, electrodes, and monitors and respirator hooked up to me, the milkmare began sobbing again. The police mare hung her head sadly and wrapped a foreleg around Milky Way's withers.

"I'm so sorry this happened to him -- we'll find out whomever is responsible and ensure justice is done," Pepper Spray noted firmly.

"He -- he had mistakenly tried to stay overnight at -- the Whorse's Plot -- thinking it was the Horse-shoe Road Inn," the milkmare offered.

"... We're gonna shut that place down. We've been looking for any infractions we could get that place on -- and if ponies working for the owner did this to your, uhh, stallion -- that's all we need."

"Doctor, umm -- how long do you think it'll be before he's able to leave?" asked Milky Way.

"Hmm. Given the extent of the injuries, coupled with the amount of time it will take for physical rehabilitation -- probably about a year or so, I think," he mused. "Maybe longer."

This response elicited a wail of despair from the milkmare, who fell to the floor on her hocks and began sobbing uncontrollably.

"I wish I had better news for you -- but even our most accomplished unicorns can only work so much magic on him -- and even then, they have to be very careful, considering the fact that he's not even a pony."

"My milk can change him back into a pony!" the milkmare declared. "Is there a way to feed him my milk?"

"We have him on an IV -- we have to be extremely cautious about his intake -- so, not right now -- perhaps in several weeks if his condition improves," the doctor noted.

"Miss Milky Way, there doesn't seem to be anything we can do right now. I'm hungry -- let's go to the cafeteria and get something to eat," the police mare offered.

"I want to stay with him!"

"Miss Milky Way, I'm afraid that's not possible. His condition is severe enough that he cannot have visitors -- I'm only allowed to let you see him for a few minutes -- and we have to leave now. I'm sorry, but you cannot stay with him until his condition improves."