Falling Debris

Chapters

Crumbling Skies
Spiral
Wounded
Battle Scars

Crumbling Skies

Disclaimer: I do not own My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. It belongs to The Hub, Hasbro, Studio B, and Lauren Faust. I do not own any of these characters in any way or how, nor do I claim ownership to the pony franchise. These characters are simply my toys.
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"Out with the old in with the new.”
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Falling Debris
Chapter 1: Crumbling Skies

The blue pegasus felt stared straight ahead once his eyes focused on what was the only object in the room that wasn’t pure white. It wasn't the snow colored walls or the dreadfully dull white floors, but the red trail of the heart monitor that danced rapidly across it's own screen. The room was quiet when he whinnied. His eyes followed the trail of red when it traveled it’s path along the black screen only to smash up against the other end. He could feel himself flinch when that horrible beep of a tone hit his ears. He almost wished he could turn away from the screen. However; the breathtaking pain in his left side shut the thought away quickly. Another flinch overtook his body when the noise whipped his ears.

The pegasus brought his hooves to his lips and felt his teeth sinking gently into his cyan fur. He shifted on the stiff bed as much as he could bare without letting out another weak, pathetic moan that he was prone to these days. He gazed at the window; however the rain splashing against the glass only made his heart sink. A nostalgic memory of rain splashing down on his wings played in his mind. He felt a desire deep in his chest to feel the rain hit his body once more. If he could manage to without pain; he would have reached out his hoof towards the window.

Alas; even moving his hoof sent a sharp pain through his leg and reminded him all to clearly of the needle running through his vein. He tried not to think of the metal inside of him, for it only made his belly ache. The tape covering the needle made him feel a little better, for at least it distracted from the strange lump under his skin that injected a fluid steadily into his veins. He wished more than anything he could lose his leash.

The pegasus breathed in and held his breath when the beep made him flinch once more. The sound drummed in his ear like a hammer. Eventually he simply laid down and covered both ears with his hooves, not exactly in a rough or forceful manner, just something to try to relax himself.

“Mister Soarin…?”

The voice made a rather unmanly noise escape Soarin’s throat. The pegasus breathed in life once more as if he just resurfaced from drowning or had awoken from a horrid nightmare. He instinctively trying to sit up only for his own body to fight against him and snap him back down to the bed. A sharp hiss escaped his throat and he laid back down quickly. With great effort he managed to see a dark coated stallion trotting towards him.

“Oh, hey nurse,” Soarin said and tried to sprawl his body the best he could. He wish he hadn’t been curled up trembling at nothing, he’d probably get a few questions about his psychological state again. The pegasus once again attempted to sit up, though this time he paced himself and learned to work around the pain instead of charging into it like a wall.

“Hello there!” The large steed said with a toothy smile. He brought a cart with him filled with gauze and chemicals that Soarin didn’t know by name. The pegasus only that they hurt like hell. “I came to change your bandages again.”

The pegasus felt awkward when the other’s hooves helped him adjust to sit in the right spot. The nurse's hoof stroked over the fabric that contained his wing. The bandage covered every inch of his wing and even wrapped around his body for good measure. All and all Soarin felt like a big mummy. He wrapped a leg around himself in half a hug and sighed. The nurse began to unravel his bandages.

“So Doc, how’s it look?” Soarin chuckled dryly. He decided he wasn't in the mood to sugar coat things today and soon dropped the chuckle flat on its face.

“Hmm… not for me to say honestly,” The stallion laughed when he finished unraveling the bandages. Soarin felt them fall from his body and leave him exposed. “I just know about changing bandages and fixing little things up and giving shots and what not. I don’t have much of a professional opinion on how long a wing takes to heal in any condition, much less one that was in such bad shape when we brought it in. It certainly looks better than the mess it was the day you came here."

“I guess.” Soarin put a hoof to his forehead and leaned on it. “Sorry for asking, nurse.”

The nurse didn’t say much more after that and simply began applying a new set of gauze to his wing. He began to get a sinking feeling in his gut as it was trapped once more, tightly constricted as he began wrapping it around the front of his body. What scared him more wasn't that he was being contained again, but that he was glad nopony would see.

“Well good news,” The brown unicorn said when he began to trot around the bed to look the pegasus in the eye. He was holding a clipboard before him with his brown tinted magic, his hooves still working on the gauze. “You’re set to be released from here in three days. The doctors decided if you came regularly for the next month, you should be able to at least sleep in your own bed for a while.”

“Heh, who knows how far away that is.” Soarin joked as he avoided the other’s golden eyes. "No travel, huh? I can't just visit the Cloudsdale hospital?"

“I'm afraid not. Traveling with your stomach as weak as it is and your wound still in the condition it is might make it worse. I apologize, I forgot you were a long way fro-” The nurse’s smile faltered and he trailed off. His eyes wandered behind Soarin to the doorway. “Can I help you… miss?”

Soarin felt himself instantly turn to glance behind him. His eyes caught sight of a fiery orange mane with burning yellow fur attached to it. He felt a pain in his side as he turned back quickly, hissing once more.

“Dammit Spitfire, do you have to be so god damn quiet when you come in like that?” He grumbled under his breath and felt the final knot of the nurse’s bandages tighten. He coughed into his hoof. “Hell, thought you were another one of the vultures.”

“I wouldn’t talk about your fans like that…well okay maybe some of them,” She spoke with a stretch of her legs before fluttering in with a brief flap of her wings. “Sorry to interrupt your little operation doc,” She said to the nurse in front of Soarin.

“I was just finishing up actually.” the stallion nodded to Spitfire as he gave Soarin a gently pat on the final knot he tied. He began to move away from the pegasus and to the open hallway. “He’s all yours, visiting hours end at five.”

“Rodger,” Spitfire spoke when the other passed her, giving him a nod before she trotted over to Soarin. “How ya doin’ big guy?”

Soarin didn’t bother trying to smile anymore, instead he just sighed. His sides ached once more and felt a flinch force itself onto his body. He glanced out the closed window, watching a bird land in the middle of a tree, trying to escape the rushing raindrops above. “Fine.”

The mare gave him a strange look when he answered, but didn’t seem to press further. There was a awkward silence between the two where Spitfire dragged her hoof along the ground uncomfortably. Several times she would open her mouth only to close it moments later.

“Oh, reminds me!” Spitfire spoke loudly and fumbled around with the pair of goggles around her neck before pulling them off past her massive mane.

“I didn’t say anything,” Soarin’s lips fought his efforts at a smile with how awkwardly the mare managed to pick up the conversation.

“Shut the buck up,” Spitfire sung the harsh words at him before reaching out her hoof and pressing the goggles into Soarin’s hoof. “I have a present~”

“Wait... These really mine?” Soarin eyed Spitfire suspiciously when he ran his hoof gently over the glass. “I mean, I know you said you knew a guy who could fix em, but they were crushed like hell.”

The yellow mare shrugged as she landed gently on the floor, her hooves giving a quiet click. “You looked like you were gonna cry when you found out your fat ass crushed them in the accident. I thought you’d be a little more happy.”

“I am, I am,” Soarin reassured the mare as he raised his hoof on his good side. “Just kinda hard to…Y’know.” The pegasus looked down at his hooves as he fumbled with the goggles. “Thanks Spitty, nice to know everything wasn’t ruined.”

“C’mon, I know you haven’t eaten anything today.” Spitfire cocked her head to the door. “Gotta force feed you this junk every day till you get out.”

Soarin started to groan; however, Spitfire held up her hoof in front of his mouth, shaking her head before walking closer, letting his rest on her weight before she pulled him to the ground.

“You doing okay? Don’t need me to get a wheelchair or anything do ya?”

“My ribs are fine now, it’s the damn wing that’s buggin me,” Soarin grumbled as he moved his right leg and felt the bandages restrict his movements. He was glad he was past the days of being wheeled around, walking was at least a sign he had regained some of his strength.

“That’s a hell of a lot of stitches though,” Spitfire snickered as she looked at the pegasi’s back, hoof carefully stroking the area just below the bandages. “How many did they staple you with?”

“Lost count,” Soarin grumbled as he shrugged Spitfire off his shoulder with a grunt. “Too damn many…hate to see that crap in me when I look in the mirror.”

Spitfire nodded, seeming unsure herself as he looked to the bandaged wing. “Scars are sexy though, I’ll say that. Gives you a nice war story. Think all those stitches will show through your fur?”

“Only the girls like scars Spitty.” Soarin rolled his eyes at the mare as they began trotting into the hallway. There weren’t too many ponies in this section of the hospital, aside from doctors and nurses with a few patients tagging along with them. “Men usually just want to show you their own.” Soarin ran his hoof through his mane before he felt the goggles down around his neck. “And yeah, pretty sure I’ll be a rugged war hero.”

“Look, the doc said you can be flying in a few months. Rapidfire’s a hell of a flier but he sure as Celestia isn’t anything like you,” Spitfire spoke as she stepped forward to look him in the eye. “Nopony is gonna replace you on the front line for good…I know you told Rapidfire to stop visiting you. And I know you did it because he could barely stay awake with learning all the routines you used to do and visiting you. He can’t juggle all those tasks like you used to, a lot is up to him and it stresses him out more than it ever did to you.”

Soarin’s eyes traveled down to his hooves as he trotted along. The mumbling of doctors and their conversations about operations and medical procedures began to make his stomach turn.

“They used to try to visit every day,” Soarin’s voice came up when he looked away from Spitfire. “I mean, a lot of my fans. There were a lot of gifts and flowers and crap like that…I threw them all away and thought most of them were annoying even without seeing them,” He halted in the hallway, giving Spitfire a glance, unable to look in her eyes.

“They got bored of me pretty fast… I kind of miss being annoyed every hour because some mare wanted to visit me.” He let out a nervous laugh when he grabbed his mane to pull on it gently. Spitfire stared at him, unsure of what to say

“They want me to have physical therapy,” Soarin grumbled under his breath as he bit into the inside of his cheek. “That’s supposed to hurt like hell. I mean, I know how to bucking fly, I don’t need...”

“Soarin.” Spitfire’s words fell on deaf ears as Soarin looked to the rain outside from a passing window. He looked to the sky from the window once more. “We should go get you some food. I’m sure you didn’t eat today.”

Soarin paused for a long time before looking to Spitfire again, his mind deep in thought. Before he realized his voice would crack he already began to speak, “S-Spitty… do you think ponies are gonna forget about me?”

“I’m sure that you…” Spitfire began, but her words grew quiet when she looked the other in his eyes. The bags under them seemed more present than ever. She looked down a passing hallway briefly, lips forming a frown. “I don’t know Soarin.”

The two walked in silence for a few minutes, Soarin swallowing hard as his wing began to cry out when he took a misstep. He could tell Spitfire was watching him more than usual as he closed his eyes, afraid of the ponies in the hallway around them seeing him like this.

“Does it look bad?” Soarin asked suddenly, his voice barely above a whisper. “I mean I kind of don’t want to look at it. I tried but my eyes blur up and... d-does it look like it’s heal soon?” He forced the words out. “I know you saw some of it last time you were here… you barged in when all the bandages were gone.”

Spitfire paused with words on her lips that she wanted to speak as they stopped in the hallway, nearing the food court, eyes yearning to enter it and avoid this point of the conversation.

“Where it isn’t bandaged it’s a little pink, there’s a ton of stitches, that’s gotta sting,” She mumbled on as she shook her head. “It…yeah I’m not gonna kid you it looks bad.”

“When do you think I can fly. I-I don’t want some stupid Doctor’s opinion, I want…” He couldn’t finish. He could feel his body trembling as he closed his eyes. “Lie to me, dammit.”

Spitfire was silent for a long time, Soarin struggling to stay quiet as well despite knowing his breath was beginning to speed up the more he forced himself to stay calm.

“You’ll be flying within the week.” She started, pressing her hoof gently against the center of his chest.

Soarin closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before letting it out as slowly as possible. He looked into Spitfire’s burning orange eyes, forcing a smile that ached the moment he put it on his face. Just for a moment, he wanted to believe a peaceful lie.

“Okay…let’s go get something to eat…”

It was sudden when the yellow stallion felt his chin hit his chest as he felt himself dozing off. The mood of the room around him was rather quiet and calm before it happened, much like a dream. But all too suddenly the stallion felt himself jump, his hoof instinctively clutching itself to his chest over his brown leather vest. He felt his hat fall from atop his head at the sudden jerking motion as his eyes blurred the room around him.

There was a moment where the earth pony felt disorientated, the white walls with little color seeming foreign to him as he glanced around, seeing a hallway through the glass in the doorway. Ponies in labcoats were walking past, along with sickly looking characters. It wasn’t until the stallion’s eyes wandered to the bed in front of him did he see the pale yellow stallion with his locks of a bright red mane. His lower leg held a thick cast that was elevated with the help of a support rope tied to the ceiling.

“Ya wake yet, Braeburn.” The other’s voice was rough as he spoke. Though his eyes held a warmth as he looked up and down the other, one hoof running down his hospital gown.

“A-Ah’m sorry, Daddy,” Braeburn looked down to the tiled floor before pressing both hooves to his eyes, groaning quietly as he shook his head, trying to suppress a yawn to prevent the pink on his cheeks from growing in size. “H-How long was Ah out?”

“I’d say ‘bout ten minutes or so. Ah didn’t think it was worth wakin’ ya up ta watch me complain’ ‘bout my medicine.” Magnum Gala responded, his older features softening as he reached out his hoof to gently tap the yellow pony on his cheek. “C’mon, stop blushin’ over nothin’.”

“Hush up,” Braeburn spoke softly as he pushed his father’s hoof away with a laugh in his tone, trying his best not to redden his cheeks further as the older began chuckling. He scooped up his hat that fell from atop his head as he put it back in it’s rightful place, looking the other in the eye. He could briefly recall a nurse coming in, finding his own eyes closing as he was ignored from the conversation between the two.

“Yes, Ah took my medicine,” His father’s voice spoke up, causing Braeburn to open his eyes wide as he glanced to the other.

“W-What?” Braeburn questioned with a tilt of his head. He sat up on the small couch he rested on, trying to look as attentive as possible.

“My medicine, ya always bug me ‘bout it if ya don’t see me take it,” Magmus smiled at Braeburn, giving him a short nod. “Look, Ah know yer tired from workin all day, if ya stay till five the train ain’t gonna get ya home till it’s dark.”

“No, No Ah’m fine!” Braeburn insisted, his belly turning as he thought about falling asleep at a time like this. “Ah just… tired.”

“Am I that boring?” Magmus laughed at him. There was a long silence between the two as Braeburn fidgeted nervously. He began rolling his hooves over each other, glancing to his father who waited patiently for him.

“Applejack and Granny were sad ya didn’t make it. Ta the reunion Ah mean.” Braeburn finally spoke up, watching his father’s eyes light up at the mention of family. “Ah mean, so was Mac and AB and all the other’s, but AJ was a little sad everypony couldn’t make it like last year. But Ah got ta see everypony Ah needed ta see.”

“Ya didn’t sleep well last night.” The stallion stated, not really allowing the words to be a question. “Look, Ah know ya came home early and ya’ve barely slept well since. A real man knows how ta balance out his feelin’s so he can focus on more important things than his stupid old man. Ah still worry that ya ain’t takin good enough care of yerself.”

“But I…” Braeburn’s words trailed off as he let out a brief sigh. He twisted the skin on his leg briefly as he bit the inside of his cheek, glancing away from his father. He didn’t have much to say, but he stood up and put his hooves on his fathers. “I… I worry about you too… I’m fine.”

There was a grumble from under Magnum’s breath as he shook his head. Braeburn felt himself frown as he stared at the older stallion, who dropped the conversation the way he filled the room with silence that began to get under Braeburn’s skin.

“Is yer hip hurtin’ Daddy?” Braeburn asked as he tapped his hoof softly on the hard blue cast encasing the stallions leg from his hip to the bottom, the end of his hoof sticking out. “Ah know ya been drowsy as heck since the surgery, still dopin’ ya up on all those meds?”

“Not too much today.” The older snorted as he looked to the other, raising a hoof to his mouth and away from the doorway. “Stuff makes me want ta drill my head in it makes me so dizzy, Ah ain’t tellin’ them somethin’ hurts less it’s worse than the meds.”

The yellow stallion frowned at that, which must have made the other sense the disappointment and worry in the air, for he lifted both his hooves and shook them in front of Braeburn as if to say he were joking.

“Ah paid off Doctor Browncoat today.” Braeburn spoke up as he took off his hat as pulled on either end with his hooves, resting the upper half of his body on his father’s bed. “He let some of it slide since Ah helped him a lot when we were all settlin’ inta town. Good thing too, we’re running short on bits with the hospital fees an all. He’s a real nice guy, dontcha think?”

“That idiot’s the one who tried to make a poor helpless old man like me lift twice as much as Ah could handle by myself.” Magnum snorted a laugh when he spoke, shaking his head with a dumb smile on his face. “Ah should charge his ass.”

“Yeah, he said he shoulda expected ya ta be a weaklin compared ta my work.” Braeburn couldn’t help but laugh as he relayed the message with a smirk on his face. “But Daddy, ya gotta be nice ta people who treat ya well.”

Braeburn watched his father began to laugh too, however he clutched his hip with a pained look on his face. He closed his eyes firmly as he grabbed the cast. “Bad laugh, bad laugh.” He groaned under his breath, Braeburn chuckling as he watched him only to feel his ear be pulled by the other for a brief moment.

“When yer in pain and hurt Ah’m gonna laugh at ya.” His father threatened, Braeburn still giggling as he pushed the other off of him. He watched his father’s smile fade slightly over the next few moments as he continued to rub at his cast. “Damn thing split right off, gonna hurt like hell ta start walkin’ again with this new plate in here.”

“Ah’m sure ya can do it Daddy,” Braeburn spoke confidently as he smiled at the other. “We only gotta pay off yer bills fer this place then we can focus on ya gettin’ better… Ah worked overtime today and got ten more bits, if Ah do it again tomorrow Ah…”

The stallion felt himself trailing off as the other looked to him, a stern look growing behind his warm eyes the longer Braeburn spoke, the yellow stallion’s mouth hanging open for the moment before he shook his head, closing it and clearing his throat. “Ah mean well Ah’ll… It’s my fault yer in here an Ah...”

“What’d Ah just tell ya?” The stern voice spoke, from the tone it had it didn’t really expect an answer. “Ya need sleep and rest, Ah don’t want all of this on ya.”

Braeburn felt smaller than before as he frowned, biting his tongue as he looked to his father. “Ah know… Ah know.” He began pulling gently on a lock of his long golden mane as he let out a deep sigh from within. “Ya ain’t gotta ramble on an on, we gotta do this together, Ah know. Ya need ta take care of yerself.”

Magnum may have began to sense a hint of mild irritation in his son’s tone when he spoke, however if he did, he didn’t show so, simply put his hoof onto the other’s head and rubbed it gently, a blush rising from his cheeks once again. Braeburn put both hooves over his stomach as he frowned, feeling small once more.

“Y-Yeah, Ah uh...” The older spoke as he scratched his cheek with his hoof. He let a whinny past his lips as he shook his head before looking at his son. “Did ya eat anythin’ today at least? Ya got here real early.”

“Course Ah di-” But Braeburn’s words trailed off, the question catching him a bit off guard with how obvious the answer his father wanted him to have was. However he shook his head. “No.”

“We can talk when ya do,” The pale yellow stallion spoke to him as he lifted his hoof from off of the other’s golden mane. “Ya gotta take care of yerself.” He looked into Braeburn’s emerald green eyes briefly before smiling gently, smirking briefly.

“D-Daddy Ah…” Braeburn tried to speak up, pausing briefly as he bit his lip, staring at his hooves before he shut his eyes like two curtains. “Ah’m sorry… that it’s my fault ya got hurt… Ah just wanna make sure Ah ain’t slackin’ off in helpin ya get well.”

Magnum opened his mouth briefly as if he were about to speak, Braeburn rising as he did so as he began to walk to the door, pausing briefly to look at his father. The older looked at his blankets as he gripped them, falling back against the pillow with a sigh as he raised his hoof and waved it at the door.

“Go, we can talk later.”

Braeburn nodded his head, staring at his father’s leg briefly before turning and heading out the door.

“Rapidfire’s doing a lot better than he was last month.” Spitfire spoke, resting her hoof on her chin as she stared at Soarin with a slightly bored expression. The cafeteria was a little busy, as it was closing in on dinnertime, many ponies snagging seats, some alone in their hospital gowns, some with family. Soarin sat at the table, a rough scratchy cushion under his rear as he tried to eat using only his right hoof, as using his left too much caused his wing to send a ripple of pain through his spine.

“He was pretty shaken up about it when he visited me the first few times,” Soarin mumbled as he put a spoonful of carrot and corn in his mouth, chewing quickly to ignore the dull flavorless food. “He was all cryin’ like a baby since that… dumb magazine talked about him sabotaging me for my spot.”

“Oh really?” Spitfire inquired as she ran her hoof around the rim of her glass filled with water. “Rapidfire’s way too soft to do that to you, he likes being in the middle, we both know that.”

“Yeah yeah, I know how much he loves to stare at my ass or whatever,” Soarin waved his hoof with a shrug as he swallowed his mushy food whole. “I believed him, he was just really annoying about it. Idiot saved my life and then cries because he gave me a boo-boo.”

“Well he’s not exactly any better than you ever were,” Spitfire added as she nodded to Soarin, holding her glass in both hooves before sipping at it carefully. “He knows the moves but he just looks so stiff in the sky having to lead everypony.”

“I can’t fly like him either, he’s a lot better at scary head dives than I am,” Soarin chuckled as he thought of his friend. “Crazy ass is gonna get himself killed.”

Spitfire snorted her laugh at Soarin’s choice of words as she leaned into the table. She took a big sip of her drink before setting it back on the cheap looking table. She began stretching one of her legs as Soarin took the moment to look around him, not many stallions giving the two a second glance.

“Normally it’s harder to have a private conversation when you visit.” Soarin mumbled under his breath as he rested his face against his hoof. “Maybe my crappy fame is rubbing off all over you.”

“Doubt it,” Spitfire spoke cockily as she puffed out her chest in a joking show of her confidence. “‘Sides, anypony whose anypony that gives a lick about us is probably waitin’ for the stadium to open.”

“Stadium?” Soarin questioned as he glanced to the yellow mare with a puzzled expression on his face. “Wait, today isn’t the…?”

“That’s right, tonight’s our last show before the tours over. We get a nice long month break before we start looking for new cadets,” Spitfire laughed when she spoke, a sense of excitement in her town only dampered by the frown on Soarin’s face. “After that though, the summer tour’s up and runnin’.”

“You’re out visiting some cripple like me when the other guys are all nervous about tonight?” The blue pegasus questioned, his tone a mixture of annoyance and concern as he lifted his face from his hoof. He began leaning into the table, making sure to favor his right side, to look the other in the eye. “You nuts? You’re always the one riding my ass about being on time and making sure to make everypony not feel so nervous.”

“Excuse me for visiting a friend,” Spitfire grumbled as she looked away from Soarin, annoyance creeping into her tone. She let a whinny past her lips before she leaned against the table. “Little harsh, don’t ya think?”

“Look, I’m not the one who can actually be with the team!” Soarin snapped at her. He was well aware that the ponies who hadn’t given him a second glance a moment prior were now all staring at his outburst. He grinded his teeth together as he grumbled under his breath, feeling the muscles in his right leg tighten as he hit it against the pillow he was sitting on. “This is what ponies are gonna think of us for the next three months until the summer tour… we shouldn’t be so sloppy.”

“H-Hey, Soar, look I’m sorry,” Spitfire lifted both her hooves defensively, looking around with an awkward laugh in her voice as she looked to the ponies already growing bored with staring at the two. “It’s not till midnight if that makes you feel better.”

“No, it doesn’t,” the pegasus grumbled. “You should be with them… you can be with them… I just…”

Soarin gripped his right leg with his left, ignoring the pain in his wing as he stared firmly at the table. He shook his head as he grumbled incoherent nonsense under his breath. He pushed his food away from him before looking to Spitfire.

“I’m just… gonna go back to my room.” Soarin whispered just loud enough for Spitfire to hear, his eyes stinging as he held back the urge to sniffle, his anger melting quickly into a pool of emotions. He stood up quickly, causing ponies to look at him again. He watched Spitfire lift her hoof, as if to stop him from storming off. He closed his eyes, turning away before he could listen to her protests.

The pegasus knew she wasn’t going to follow him, not when he was like this. His eyes stung as he made a beeline for the exit, feeling his emotions toss between frustration and embarrassment at the way he acted. His eyes hurt, along with his wing as he held his breath, turning the corner sharply.

Normally he would have kept going and hoping everypony bolted out of his way, however in no less than ten steps did he find himself crashing into what felt like a wall. He took several steps back, bouncing into the wall on his right side as he let out a hiss of pain, glaring at the pony he had crashed into.

“Oh um… Ah’m sorry.” The yellow stallion before him spoke, quickly standing up as he held his hat to his chest, as it had apparently been knocked clean off his head in the collision of the two, however he still managed to stand strong. He pulled on the end of his leather vest to straighten it out as he felt himself blushing, looking down at the over who wobbled uneasily.

“A-Ah didn’t mean ta…” He started to speak, putting his hoof behind his head to scratch.

“Watch where you’re going.” Soarin snapped at him, lifting his hoof to push him aside, feeling him give little resistance as he towed around him. He could feel his stomach turn as he kept walking firmly.

“Um, hello?”

The pegasus heard the thick accent from behind him. He tried to ignore it for a good five seconds, but could hear the hoofsteps behind him as he stopped in his tracks to turn around. He glared at the other, standing as high as he could so not to feel like he was being looked down upon, nearly tall enough to meet the other’s eyes head on.

“Um… H-Howdy there mister,” the yellow stallion spoke quickly, finding it hard to look the other in the eye, expression looking worried the longer Soarin glared at him. “Ah uh noticed ya ran inta me back there. Fancy that. Well ya see, when ya did ya kind of…”

“Spit it out already.” Soarin stated, letting his expression soften slightly as he could tell it was making the other babble what could be explained in half the time. He watched the other blink a few times before lifting his hoof and pointing at Soarin’s bandaged wing. His own eyes glanced behind him, looking at a long thick string of gauze that had managed to become untied when he had bumped into the wall. He could feel the wing loosening already from it’s hold as it flopped down lower from where it was originally held, a dull pain throbbing at the base.

“Oh erm,” The pegasus found his expression softening to one of sheepishness, feeling his face grow warm as he looked back at the other, who was still staring at him with those wide eyes, his body squirming as if he wanted to hurry along the conversation, or was simply impatient with the Pegasi’s reaction time. It was beginning to make him a bit wary. “T-Thanks. I’ll go find a doctor or a nurse or something, let me just…”

“Don’t be silly!” The yellow earth pony smiled at him as he took a few hesitant steps forward in the crowded hallway full of ponies going to and leaving the food court. He stepped to the side of the pegasus, who made an uncomfortable noise as he tried to squirm away from the other, however a strong yellow leg tapped his ear.

“W-Wait, get off of me!” Soarin whined in a hushed tone, not meaning to start anything and cause doctors to come rushing because it seemed like the other was honestly trying to help him. “Haven’t you heard of personal space at all?”

“Stop Squirmin’, yer wing looks real bad, better ta get it tied up fast as possible rather than lettin it drag ‘round an get dirty. Don’t worry, Old Doc in Appleloosa had me help him out when we was buildin up the town and bunch of ponies got busted up.” Braeburn giggled at the end of his words, making Soarin feel silly for squirming like a child the way he had.

“Look, I’m fine, I just…” Soarin looked down to his hooves, opening his mouth briefly to put up some kind of protest at the other’s hands grabbing his wing. Honestly he would feel much better having a doctor take care of his wing over some stranger; however, his eyes kept stinging as he grumbled under his breath in frustration. He didn’t feel like arguing right now, or snapping at somebody who was only trying to be nice to him, even if his mood wasn’t exactly in high spirits. “Just… hurry up.”

The pegasus sighed as the other held his wing firmly, careful not to squeeze too hard near the base where it was the most heavily bandaged. He felt the wing be tied back in it’s spot very slowly and carefully, hooves gliding across to make sure it wasn’t loosened in areas as he managed to tie them back into place.

“Name’s Braeburn by the way,” The stallion spoke, his voice bubbly and excited despite how slow his hooves were moving. “Ah sure am sorry I bumped inta ya back there, wasn’t payin no good mind ta where Ah was headin’. Probably a good thing Ah bumped inta ya too, woulda been bad if thing wing of yers got all unraveled. Then again it might have been my fault since ya bounced up ‘gainst the wall… er, am I ramblin’ too much mister?” The over laughed again as if there was something funny, though when Soarin looked to his face he saw the hints of an embarrassed blush

“You talk a lot, Braeburn.” Soarin stated, it being the only thing that could come to his mind in this moment. He felt a smile come to his lips when the other spoke to him, though there was a hint of annoyance in him about the other’s blind cheeriness after being rammed into. He watched as Braeburn brought his hat briefly down past his eyes as he shook his head, that same smile on his face he had held since the start of their conversation.

“It’d be awfully rude if I kept my mouth shut while I groped yer wing like that.” Braeburn smiled at Soarin, a hint of sheepishness in his tone. “Ah… Ah er babble when Ah’m nervous. Forget Ah said that… and that.”

“It’s also a little rude to grab injured people’s injured parts.” Soarin put his good hoof against his forehead as he moved the shoulder on his bad side, feeling Braeburn’s eyes bore into him. At least his wing was beginning to feel better. He saw the other look to the floor, a briefly defeated look on his face before he lifted his eyes back up, a new and fresh warm smile on his face.

“Can Ah walk ya ta yer room at least, Mister?” Braeburn asked as he looked at the other’s wing. Soarin turned to look at it as well. Braeburn had done a good job patching it up as far as he could tell, it didn’t exactly look any different from when a proper nurse did it for him. “Ah’d feel real sore if it came undone cause Ah screwed up.”

“Fine, I guess,” Soarin looked at the other. “Do you have to call me mister though? It’s…weird.”

“Ah don’t exactly know what ta call ya.” Braeburn spoke loudly as he tied a final knot in the other’s bandages, letting the wing down gently with a smile on his face as he nodded at his work. Soarin began walking, the other scurrying briefly to walk beside him.

“You don’t know me?” The pegasus questioned as he turned to face the earth pony properly. He couldn’t help but grumble as he shook his head, looking to his hooves. Just how fast did word about him fade away?

“W-Why, should Ah?” Braeburn spoke in a mildly panicky tone, the wheels in his head turning to think of whoever this pegasus in front of him was when he laughed once more. “Ah’m real sorry if Ah know ya. It’s on the tip of my tongue, Ah promise.”

Soarin noticed the other for the first time wasn’t looking him in the eye, his laugh much more forced and nervous this time around as he began pulling on his mane, biting the inside of his cheek.

“Well, you’re a bad liar.” Soarin spoke, a smile almost reaching his lips. “Don’t worry, I’m just… My name is Soarin, People usually recognize me, didn’t think you’d get worried over it.”

“Oh, that’s real good.” Braeburn spoke up with the same enthusiasm as before. “Not that Ah didn’t know ya, but that Ah didn’t forget ya and now that Ah know ya, even though ya say a lot of people know ya and… know what Ah’ll shut up.”

Soarin couldn’t help but smile, for the first time in what felt like eons it didn’t feel forced. He felt himself starting to chuckle as the other began to grow frustrated, lifting his hooves to push on his front gently.

“Now ya hush! Ah just told ya Ah babble!” The yellow stallion watched as other ponies glanced to them as they passed to see what was making all the noise. His tone turned to a grumble as he shook his head. “Daddy was right, Ah talk too loud.”

“You make me feel really quiet, blabbermouth,” Soarin teased the other, who gave another nervous giggle. “It’s cute though.”

“It uh… it is?” Braeburn asked just as the time it occurred to Soarin that he hadn’t actually seen Braeburn when his face wasn’t at least partially engulfed in the fire of his blush. It was obvious he wasn’t used to being complimented like that, because his earlier nervous babbling grew silent, near awkward as his words came out slowly. “Nopony ever called it that before… annoyin’ is usually it… thanks Ah think.”

“Mmm.” Soarin nodded as the two began trotting, suddenly feeling strange for saying such a thing. The silence between them nice for the time being as they listened to the snippets over doctor’s conversations as they passed by. Their hooves tapped against the floor for a few minutes before they passed by a window, the evening sun bright, near the point where it would set and cover Equestria in night before Luna rose the moon.

“Oh…” Soarin spoke under his breath.

“Somethin’ wrong there, Soarin?” Braeburn asked, stopping abruptly in front of the other to look out the window as well. “Do ya see somethin’?”

“It just stopped raining.” Soarin mumbled, half to himself. The tree outside of the hospital that obstructed most of the view of the town was still dripping with the aftermath of the downpour. “I like the rain, it’s easier to fall asleep if it’s raining.”

“Really?” The yellow stallion questioned him, cocking his head to look at Soarin with a puzzled expression. “Why’s that?”

“I used to nap on a nest of clouds when I was a kid near my house.” Soarin snickered at the memory. He was a little surprised that Braeburn was still staring at him, as if expecting him to go on. “Then again the rain was always under me up in Cloudsdale, so I guess I just like the sound.”

“Cloudsdale, huh?” Braeburn questioned as his eyes fell to the goggles around Soarin’s neck. “Yer a long way from home then… Ah shouldn’t say that though, few years back and Ah felt the same, new home with nothin’ in it an all cept my family.”

“I’ve been around,” Soarin smirked at the other when he spoke, lifting his hoof to point out the window. “I should be out there tonight though, flying up high in the sky with my friends… Pegasi don’t really know how much they love their wings till they do something stupid like me.”

“That’s how ya got hurt?” Braeburn asked as he looked to Soarin’s bandaged wing. “Well, guess there ain’t many other ways it coulda been busted up like that. Ya were with yer friends?”

“Mmm.” Soarin nodded as he felt his smile begin to ache once more. He scratched his mane as he grumbled under his breath. “I yelled at one of my best friends and she’s gone by now, out with them I mean.” He looked down to his hooves as he softly kicked at the wall below the window.

“That ain’t very nice.” Braeburn spoke up, that same cheery voice he had managed to keep for most of their conversation somehow still breaking through. “Though Ah’m sure she knew why if ya felt strong ‘bout it… ya seemed upset when Ah ran inta ya.”

Soarin shrugged at those words, glancing out the window at the buildings around. He could almost feel the wind through his mane if he thought hard enough… if only it didn’t end in him crashing down each time.

“I miss flying… nothing makes you feel alive like that rush,” Soarin gave off a bittersweet smile as he stood there staring out the window. “I wish it would rain again… damn meds don’t help if I move too much.”

The silence was brief before Braeburn took a step towards him, his voice a tad panicky, though still holding that friendliness that it had from his first words. “H-Hey, Ah ain’t from this town either.”

“I guessed that already,” Soarin told the other with a roll of his eyes. “Only a few doctors have that accent… and nopony dresses like that Ah’ve seen.”

“What’s wrong with my outfit?” Braeburn spoke, his tone pouty as he frowned, feeling his leather vest and hat with a tap from each hoof. “A-Ah thought Ah looked fine.”

“You do, just a little stereotypical I guess.” Soarin chuckled as he started walking again down the hallway. “I take it you like working on fields more than watching sports?”

“Er, no, Ah ain’t too big on sports these days, why ya ask?” Braeburn tilted his head at Soarin when he asked the question, keeping up a steady pace beside him.

“No reason.” Soarin shrugged in response, keeping a smirk on his face as if he knew something, only to begin receiving a confused look from the farmpony.

“Er, anyway,” Braeburn turned his thoughts back to himself when he began speaking again. “Daddy got in a little accident and hurt his leg. Ah’ve been tryin’ ta visit him when Ah can.”

“Sounds like you love your dad,” Soarin told the other in a quiet voice. “Do you blabber to him as much as you did to me, country boy?”

“D-Don’t call me that.” Braeburn spoke in a voice that tried to sound annoyed, however he was a very bad actor.

“What’d you rather I call you? Braeby?” Soarin chuckled at that one, seeing Braeburn’s face actually look annoyed as well as sheepish at that one. His lips curled when he saw that expression.

“Oh come on, stop teasin’ me!” Braeburn whined at Soarin’s choice. However Soarin simply looked ahead and ignored the whining, his smile soon fading as he realized they were approaching the door to his room.

“Oh… uh… this is actually my room.” Soarin spoke as he trotted up two doors ahead. The room was as bare as ever, white and uninviting, not to mention growing dim with Celestia’s sun setting on the other side of the building.

“Oh.” Braeburn’s voice for the first time contained a hint of melancholy at their arrival. He looked to Soarin’s wing, staring at his handiwork with a chuckle. “Looks like Ah worried ‘bout nothin’, wing’s fine… might wanna get a doctor ta change it since it was draggin’ fer a few feet.”

“I’m glad you walked with me.” Soarin spoke quickly, a little unsure of why it came out so fast. However Braeburn blinked at him before closing his eyes and smiling, showing off his white teeth with a giggle.

“Ah… Ah could always see ya ‘round, Ah’m visitin’ Daddy again when Ah get an off day.” Braeburn spoke up, a hint of excitement which never seemed to fade in his voice.

“I’m actually set to leave the hospital in three days.” Soarin spoke as he scratched behind his ear. Strange, he didn’t think those words would sound as disappointed as they came out to me.

“Oh… Well, Ah’m sure we’ll see each other again.” Braeburn smiled at Soarin, giving the other a sense of hope where before there was doubt. He wasn’t sure how the other did that.

“Yeah, maybe.” Soarin nodded.

“Ah hope it rains.” Braeburn spoke up when Soarin reached for the door handle to his room. He raised a brow at the yellow stallion when the words came from his mouth. “Ah mean, so ya can sleep well.”

“Actually…” Soarin began as he looked to the window, the silence in the room not as overbearing as it had been before. He looked back to Braeburn, giving a chuckle that surprised himself.

“I think I’m going to sleep fine for a change.”

Spiral

Disclaimer: I do not own My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. It belongs to The Hub, Hasbro, Studio B, and Lauren Faust. I do not own any of these characters in any way or how, nor do I claim ownership to the pony franchise. These characters are simply my toys.
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"It’s hard to get a good fit on your own skin.”
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Falling Debris
Chapter 2: Spiral

“It’s a pretty sweet view, don’t ya think dude?”

Soarin let himself look to the gray stallion, his face pressed up against the window like a small foal near Hearths Warming Eve looking into gift shops. His large white mane was puffed up as usual, though not as thin and neatly managed as Soarin kept his own. He looked back to Soarin before hopping over a small coffee table with the help of his wings next to the blue pegasus.

“Yes Rapidfire, it is a nice view.” Soarin rolled his eyes briefly before he began looking around the room, the large king sized bed with pure white sheets looking much better than the thin scratchy hospital bed. The golden walls gave life, maybe not the kind he would have hoped for, but it was a small freedom from the pure white he had been trapped in. He glanced to the rather large patio outside the window, as it held a patio that wasn’t going to be much use very soon, as the skies were clouding up once more.

“It rains a lot around here.” Soarin voiced as he placed his pair of goggles carefully on the pillow of his temporary bed. “Wish I could at least take a damn shower without gift wrapping my stupid wing… I bet it feels nice to fly out there right now.”

“Nopony has your stupid rain fascination but you.” Rapidfire laughed as he stretched his legs, smiling as he walked around the room. “But, man, your hotel is a lot nicer than the ones Spitty has us in; what gives?”

“This one is closest to the hospital,” Soarin sighed, knowing that Spitfire hadn’t wanted to say that outright, fearing that it would only make him feel worse having to travel by carriage every time he needed to return. “Guess this is my halfway house.”

“Probation, on the road to recovery,” the grey pegasus chimed in when he walked back to the window, staring at the large garden from the second floor. The fountain in the center of the building streamed high, water reaching at least the second floor. “Dunno why they put you on the second floor though; ain’t they got a special place for injured ponies?”

“Spitfire told me that this was the lowest room they had that looked this nice.” Soarin told his friend as he looked around the spacious room, strolling past the bathroom with the luxurious looking tub and offering many varieties of fancy soap. “Oh look, I have “Divine Beauty” products in here.”

“Oh goodie, just the perfect thing for my mane to look luscious and fashionable.” Rapidfire spoke as he glanced to the side, bouncing his mane with his hoof as he put on a sly grin in jest. He couldn’t keep the look for long before he started giggling, and Soarin smirked in his direction. “Hey, let’s unload your crap so I can get all the heavy stuff for you.”

Rapidfire lifted Soarin’s heavy looking suitcase to his bed and unzipped it as Soarin came over as well, watching him pull out a personal belongings ranging from blue sweaters to small books he never got around to reading. He lifted up a rather trashy looking novel, holding back laughter as he showed it to Soarin. Soarin grabbed it back, trying to ignore the oddly posed stallions on the cover.

“Some of us like to get our kicks from books instead of magazines.” He snapped at grey pegasus, only being half serious with his irritation before he stuffed his book under the pillow.

“So it’s stallions now?” Rapidfire wiggled his eyebrows when he spoke, knowing that if he kept going he would eventually get a rise out of Soarin. Soarin looked to the stallion, raising his own brow in response as he pulled aside several books.

“What do you mean, ‘stallions now’?” Soarin asked the other as he took a small notebook which he kept his flying strategies, frowning when he looked upon it before stuffing it into the drawer with the rest. “It’s always been stallions,
mares, for that matter.”

“Yeah,” Rapidfire shrugged when he spoke again, folding a rather balled up and crumbled sweater neatly. “I mean, yeah I get you like both, but it seems like you stick to one for a while and I never really knew why. You talked about how cute one of the mare nurses were, last time I saw you.”

“I do that?” Soarin questioned, looking down blankly at the items he was holding. “Never really thought about it that way.”

“Also, the book’s new - I saw the sticker.” Rapidfire teased, this time making Soarin feel red in the face, if only a little. “Did you, like, buy the book when you waited for me to pick you up near that little plaza?”

“Yeah, I figured I might as well pick up a trashy novel because I can’t exactly do… it… in the hospital.” Soarin found himself actually growing annoyed at this point, though he couldn’t tell if it was from the invasion of privacy or Rapidfire’s prodding. He raised his hoof and pressed it to the grey stallion’s mouth regardless. “Shut up.”

“Dude, I really don’t care what trashy novels you’re buying.” Rapidfire pushed his friend’s hoof away from his mouth. “Hell, if you’re getting any kind of sexual energy back maybe it means you aren’t drugged up as much, or getting better, or whatever. It’d be good for you to get a date or two.”

“Who the heck would I ask on a date? I don’t even live around here.” Soarin rolled his eyes again at his friend. Rapidfire shrugged at him, letting out a whinny to break the silence as he glanced to the door.

“You’d get anypony you want, if you tried hard enough.” Rapidfire looked into the empty suitcase, a small smirk on his face. “You’re the famous Wonderbolt who's on every poster, you tell me.”

“Wonder if I’ll be on them next tour…” Soarin glanced down when he spoke, seeing Rapidfire’s eyes grow big with a brief moment of panic before he lifted both of his hooves, shaking them furiously in front of Soarin’s face.

“Dude of course you’re gonna get better by then!” Rapidfire spoke in quick succession when the blue pegasus raised his brow at the one in question. “You’ve broken your wings five times and bounced back every time. This time’s just taking a little longer!”

“They want me to start physical therapy tomorrow.” Soarin found his hoof traveling back to his wing, feeling the large scar that took up most of his back. He breathed slowly as he shook his head, giving a shrug with his good half. He looked in the direction of the window, not wanting to look Rapidfire in the eye. “I never knew I wasn’t as strong as I thought I was… Did you know I can barely move my wing?”

“N-No, I didn’t.” Rapidfire scratched his ear, feeling awkward the longer the two kept speaking. He closed his eyes briefly before he swallowed hard, looking Soarin in the eye. “I...I know you told me to shut the hell up, but I’m sorry.”

Soarin gave one brief laugh that he himself wasn’t able to tell if it was sincere or not. “You saved my life, Rapidfire. You caught me because you practiced all those suicidal dives, and were the only one who was quick enough to catch me. You saved my life, and all I did was fall. It’s not your fault the only thing to grab onto was…y’know.”

The pegasus pressed his hoof to his forehead as he shook his head he let out a growl of frustration at himself as he took a step away from the bed.

“I don’t wanna go back there.”

He expected Rapidfire to argue with his statement, to tell him that the only way he would get better is if he forced himself to go. However he didn’t say anything, and when Soarin looked to the grey stallion he simply got a nod of understanding. Soarin’s stomach felt like it had an icy hand on it, scratching and clawing him from the inside.

“I always bounce back from stuff like this, don’t I?” Soarin questioned Rapidfire, turning away from him. “I mean… I’ve gotten hurt plenty of times and by now I’m always… business as usual.”

“Spitfire wanted to come today,” Rapidfire’s voice spoke up as he walked over to the other stallion, looking down on him. “She had to look at a lot of the new candidates. Camp starts up pretty soon and she needs to know who’s cut out for it.”

“Yeah, she mentioned that.” Soarin sighed as he trotted over the few steps back to the large bed, carefully managing to lift himself up on top of it. “She’s probably still upset at me anyway.”

“You bitched her out, right?” Rapidfire asked as if it were perfectly normal. He must have seen Soarin roll his eyes because his goofy grin returned. “She actually looked pretty guilty when I asked about you our last show.”

“Yeah…” Soarin grabbed his arm as he hunched over with a groan of annoyance before speaking again. “This whole thing just… really sucks, dude… I yelled at one of my best friends over nothing.”

“So,” Rapidfire walked over to the bed and picked up the empty suitcase, trotting over to the closet before he put it in neatly, keeping one eye on the frowning pegasus the entire time. “Are you going tomorrow?”

“Huh?” Soarin’s eyes ran to his friend, confusion on his face. “Going to what?”

“Your physical therapy, idiot.” Rapidfire lifted his hoof to hit gently against Soarin’s arm, as if to snap him out of whatever daze he was in. “I mean, I know you hate it and all but… everypony wants you to get better, even the guys jealous of ya.”

“I’m not really sure about that.” Soarin rested his head on his hoof when he rubbed his temple. “I mean, about physical therapy… I don’t really know how I feel to have doctors watching me sweat and struggle and taking notes. I have a checkup tomorrow... Really not looking forward to it."

“Maybe one of the doctors is cute.” Rapidfire laughed loudly when he spoke, his words were always a little louder than usual. “That’d give you plenty of motivation to show off how strong you are.”

“Your words are
so encouraging.” Soarin said sarcastically, raising his hoof to put it against his chest. “Hell, maybe you’re right, a date could be good for me.”

“Tell you what.” Rapidfire’s eyes held a sort of fire when his voice broke, an excitement buried within as he bounced his upper half on the bed. “Let’s just forget about tomorrow for a while. I can go get us some food from the restaurant downstairs while you take all your gross pills. We can talk more about your trashy novel or whatever; let’s just stop talking about your wing, it’s bumming both of us out.”

Soarin took a moment to stare at that obnoxiously happy face, though somehow couldn’t find it in him to be annoyed at it. He simply nodded, while Rapidfire jumped off the bed with a firm nod.

“All right, Soarin...I leave you to your work.” Rapidfire spoke, reaching out his hoof before putting a bottle of pills in Soarin’s own, the pegasus looking down to it with his face forming a small frown. He watched Rapidfire begin to trot away, as he read the label without really paying close attention to it.

Soarin tried to move his wing, for only a brief second. But the pegasus was only able to get a small twitch before he let out an involuntary hiss from the sudden ache.

“Out of the frying pan, into the fire.” He grumbled, putting two pills into his mouth.

“Ah… excuse me, Sheriff?” Braeburn found himself uncertain as he looked into the blue eyes of the brown stallion before him. He could tell the large stallions passing by were staring at him, and he felt himself shrink, feeling like he was being silently scolded. The dirt road under his hooves began to taint his fur as he kicked it gently, biting the inside of his cheek.

“Braeburn, listen ta me.” Sheriff Silverstar spoke as Braeburn lifted his head to look to the large apple orchard. He heard the stamp hooves as a dozen ponies went in and out of the barn, carrying large empty baskets to start their day. “Ya need a break! Take the day off. Heck, take the
off.”

“But Ah’m fine!” Braeburn insisted, trying to keep his voice quiet to keep from drawing unwanted attention. He felt his stomach turn. He watched Silverstar sigh and shake his head. The sheriff reached out a hoof to place on Braeburn’s shoulder, the yellow stallion resisting the urge to shrug it off. “Ah ain’t got nothin’ wrong with me! Ah can work just as well as the other ponies here...”

“That’s the problem,” the Sheriff sat on his hindquarters as he crossed his front legs, keeping his eyes firmly shut as his mustache shook when he spoke. Braeburn trotted slowly next to the other, his words like fire begging to be released. “Ya’ve worked harder than half the folk in this town since we got here, ya never complain ‘bout the work we get ya ta do even when yer exhausted, and ya worked overtime every day this past week!”

“But Ah…” Braeburn flinched as Sheriff Silverstar’s voice grew louder. He bit his lip, glad the stallions seemed to be heading to the apple field where they wouldn’t stare at the conversation the two were having any longer. “Daddy just…”

Braeburn knew his eyes were close to watering as they began to sting. He forced himself to look at the sighing, brown-coated stallion, almost flinching again.

“Braeburn, yer daddy wouldn’t want ya workin yerself ta death. How much does yer body hurt from this week alone?” Braeburn tried his best to push away the thought of his burning legs. His emerald eyes went to the direction of the rising sun, the sky still orange with morning flare.

Sheriff Silverstar began to fumble around in his blue vest as Braeburn glanced back to him, pulling out a rather plump looking bag that jingled when it moved. He held it out to Braeburn, nearly pressing it against his chest as the yellow stallion hesitantly picked it up. His eyes widened briefly as he opened the bag with both hooves, finding a large number of golden bits.

“S-Sheriff, Ah can’t take all this money.” Braeburn stated firmly as he stared into the Sheriff’s eyes, turning on a dime as he tried to hand it back, shaking his head before he felt it be pushed back against his body. “Ah can work on my own ta earn it, Ah ain’t done nothin’ worth all of that!”

“Ya’ve done more than enough these past few years, Braeburn.” The brown coated stallion chuckled, however Braeburn felt his throat go dry when he tried to respond. He clutched the bag with both hooves, suddenly very aware that the sheriff was taller than him as he felt a hoof planted on top of his hat. “That’s only a week’s pay in advance plus a little outta my own pocket, and if Ah see ya come ‘gain before week’s end Ah’ll make ya earn every last bit and extra, till ya pass out.”

“Ah’m fine, Ah’m telling ya.” Braeburn tried his best to ignore how the other was looking to him, his eyes so kind, yet they treated him like he needed this, like he was doing him a favor. He slowly put the money into his vest pocket with a sigh, feeling only slightly defeated.

“Use some of that money on yerself,” the Sheriff spoke as he lifted a hoof to twirl his mustache. He looked to the apple trees, making sure the stallions were hard at work, not slacking off because he wasn’t close by. “Ah know ya love yer daddy, but ya’ve been workin’ so hard ya should spend some of that on yerself. Ah can’t remember the last time those darn gossipin’ mares near the Salt Lick talked ‘bout seein’ ya with a stallion by yer side.”

“Ah ain’t really thought ‘bout datin’ much lately… A-And there ain’t exactly a lot of ponies around here willin’ ta give me the time of day ‘bout that.” Braeburn felt himself blush at that, scratching his cheek thoughtlessly in a shy wince. The chuckle that came from the other’s throat made it clear he had already seen it. The yellow stallion looked to his hooves once more, running one across the dirt to form a small line.

“Well there’s somethin’ ya could do, mister moneybags.” The brown coated stallion teased before lifting his hoof to give a tip of his hat. “Now ya run ‘long now. Ah have ta go make sure Sunny ain’t lookin’ ta only
buck those trees again.”

Braeburn found himself nodding out of habit, feeling the urge to argue further die out within him as the sheriff trotted away spryly.

He was left alone when he looked to the sky, seeing rainclouds in the distance threatening to come and give the town a much needed shower. He took his first few steps away from the orchard, not exactly looking forward to his long walk back to his home. He felt the bag of bits with his hoof as he slowly came back into town, the beginnings of civilization making way through the small mountains that contained the orchard.

He thought about it briefly as his eyes came to the train station, and in a split second his hooves began trotting in the direction of it, not many ponies coming in or out of it quite yet. It probably wouldn’t be long before he could get a ticket.

“Might as well see how Daddy’s doin…”

Soarin found himself staring at his own reflection in the lenses of his goggles, as he squeezed the frames. He swallowed hard as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat, finding it difficult to sit still as his eyes glanced to the drizzling rain covering the small city. He felt himself push out a heavy breath from his lungs, feelings his hooves begin to tremble before he pressed the goggles firmly against his chest.

Even if he was physically as far away as he could possibly be from where he had spent the past several weeks while still remaining in the facility, he couldn’t help but find himself become nervous as his eyes looked around, seeing many ponies in casts or still getting used to their freedom from them. He saw a few mares in wheelchairs, causing his stomach to turn before he continued staring into his lap.

The white walls were back. He had to close his eyes if he looked at them too long, just for a change of scenery. The area itself connected to the rest of the hospital he had just escaped the day before, the feeling of an invisible leash tightening around his neck as he thought about how easy it would be to walk to his old room from his current position. He found it best to wrap his upper legs around himself as he hunched over. It at least made the cold air around him feel a bit warmer.

Soarin tried his best to ignore the looks he knew his wing was getting as he kept scraping and clawing at the bandages uncomfortably. He tried to pick a spot close to the door, someplace where he would be able to listen to the rain as it splattered on the pavement outside. He brought a hoof up to his teeth, gnawing the edge as he curled up slightly in his seat, feeling his mind wander. The sound of ponies’ hooves tapping began to blur when he managed to keep his breathing calm; the voices muddled as if they were under water.

“Mister Soarin?” The pegasus’s own noise that escaped his throat broke the otherwise fairly quiet room, earning him several awkward stares as he looked to the nurse before him. He sat up as straight as he could when he saw the white unicorn, her eyes looking to him with mild concern at his surprised outburst.

“Y-Yes,” the blue pegasus felt his cheeks warm a bit as he pulled on his ear, looking to the white wall beside him instead of at the mare. “Sorry, I dozed off for a second.”

“I’m gonna need you to fill out this form,” she spoke, lowering a clipboard and pencil with her silver glow of magic to the pegasi’s hooves. He blinked as he tried to focus on the words before him. “Just the basics of your condition, and what not.”

“S-Shouldn’t they already know all of that?” The pegasus asked as he put the pencil in his mouth, pressing the tip against the paper as he eyed the nurse through his muffled words.

“This is just the usual stuff.” The white coated nurse looked down on him when she spoke, her blue eyes boring into him. “The first session is mostly about learning to manage and care for yourself despite your condition. Determining the treatment you need is one thing. If all goes well you’ll be better in...a few months to years.”

“Years.” Soarin found himself gripping the clipboard tightly. He closed his eyes briefly, trying to calm his breathing. The word was drilling into his heart as he felt his breath be ripped from his mouth. He felt the pencil grow loose in his mouth before he let it drop to the clipboard. He stood up slowly as he tried his best to hand the clipboard back to the mare, the pencil slipping and falling to the floor. His hooves trembled before he pressed one to his forehead for support.

“I’m sorry, I just… I can’t do this.” Soarin wasn’t able to finish his sentence properly, his voice shaking.

“This is a perfectly normal reaction.” The mare tried her best to assure him as she took the clipboard back, trying to reach out a comforting hoof that he shrugged off.

“I didn’t even want to be here.” He snapped in a hiss under his breath, glaring at the ground. “I… I’m never gonna… The doctors told me this might not even help me go back to my job. That it might just be a waste of time.”

“Yes, that’s always a possibility, but it’s very unlikely that…”

“Screw this, I don’t need your pity. I’m not weak.” Soarin wanted to spit on the ground, but somehow he only managed to stomp off with his eyes stinging, finding the doorway before the nurse was able to call out to him. He bursted out the glass door, damp air filling his lungs. He felt it finally happen; his eyes watered as he pressed himself against a pole that held up the small canopy above him. He angrily pressed a hoof to his eyes, wiping away a tear as he bit into his lip.

The pegasus sniffled, closing his eyes to prevent the tears from spilling out the best he could as he fell against the ground. He found himself planting both hooves over his ears, trying to block out any kind of noise coming from ponies walking past him, though few there were. He wasn’t prepared to cry in public as he held his breath; every time he let it loose he found it was shaking just as much as the rest of him.

It took several minutes, but the pegasus slowly looked in front of him, staring at several pony drawn taxis passing by the buildings and shops in the street before him. It was the same site he had seen every day for the past three weeks, the same one he would see if he came back as much as they wanted him too.

“Soarin?”

The pegasus found himself jumping. He growled under his breath, angry that he had gotten so lost in thought for the second time in such a short time period. He sniffled as he turned to the figure. “Look, I told you I don’t want…”

Braeburn was staring back at him. He was so busy being frustrated at the idea of a nurse following him that he barely registered the idea they likely didn’t have such a thick accent. The yellow stallion acted nervous, as his eyes kept darting away from the pegasi’s face when he looked down to his hooves.

“Ya uh…got a little somethin’.” The stallion spoke, pressing a hoof to his own cheek. “Ah know Ah don’t like ponies talkin’ ta me when Ah cry, A-Ah’m sorry, but Ah saw ya and thought Ah’d say howdy and didn’t realize ya were cryin’ like that… S-Should Ah go away now?”

Soarin wiped his eyes with a single leg as he shook his head slowly. “No, it’s fine, I’m just… being stupid.”

“Oh, okay.” Braeburn still looked a tad uncertain, as his bubbly personality wasn’t exactly shining through as it had the last time they spoke. Though sitting in one spot so neatly for so long seemed to be taking its toll, as he kept squirming every few moments. “Do ya remember who Ah am? Ah mean we only talked once fer a good ten minutes, Ah wouldn’t be hurt if ya forgot.”

“Braeburn,” Soarin said, his voice still shaky, though it calmed him a bit to see Braeburn’s warm smile when he said his name. “What are you… doing here?”

“Oh, uh,” Braeburn grabbed the end of his mane and pulled on it, looking a tad embarrassed. “Ah was sort of forced into a vacation, and Ah thought’d Ah’d see Daddy… Visitin’ hours ain’t till noon.”

“Thats a heck of a thing to forget coming out all this way.” Soarin stated, chuckling a little through his shaky breath.

“Shut up!” Braeburn whined, though his voice wasn’t as upset as he led Soarin onto believe, he simply lowered his hat a little past his eyes by looking down and dragged his hoof lightly across the pavement. “Ah didn’t think it through, alright, don’t tease me.”

Braeburn and Soarin remained silent before the yellow earth pony finally looked back to him. “A-Are you alright? Ah thought ya got out of the hospital days ago.”

Soarin looked away. He felt that icy claw return in his chest, tightening around his insides. Spitfire was going to scream at him when she found out how he panicked and stormed out. He pressed a hoof against his bandaged wing, feeling the knotted muscles as he let the dull pain subside.

“I… I kind of…” His words trailed off, he knew Braeburn was staring at him with those wide eyes of his. He knew he must look horrible, his eyes still had heavy bags under them, his cheeks still wet with tears and eyes red from the same. He began to regret ever coming here today… his mind flooding with thoughts of his damaged wing.

“Let’s go out for lunch.”

“Uh, excuse me?” Braeburn asked him, looking mildly puzzled at the Pegasi’s sudden suggestion. “It ain’t even noon.”

“Then breakfast, whatever.” Soarin knew his voice has a bit of panic in it, but the more he thought of going anywhere alone to let his thoughts consume him, the more he felt the claw tighten on his heart. “I’ll pay, it’ll be like a date or something.”

“D-Date?” Braeburn began to stutter the word, taking a step back in mild shock. Soarin watched his cheeks blush as a nervous chuckle rose from the yellow stallion’s throat. “Ah mean… Ah’m flattered, yer cute and… n-no, that ain’t what Ah wanted ta say.”

“Does that mean no?” Soarin questioned him, fearing for a moment he had judged the yellow stallion wrong. “I mean, you do like stallions, right?”

“No… Ah mean yes…Ah mean.” Braeburn shook his head as he pulled his hat past his eyes forcefully with his hoof to hide the top half of his face. “A-Ah uh… are ponies from where yer from this sudden ‘bout askin ponies they barely know out? H-How did ya know Ah liked stallions?”

“I dunno, I just figured.” Soarin responded, finding the cowpony’s response to his words rather intriguing. “It isn’t that hard to tell when a stallion blushes every time a guy talks to him.”

“O-Oh…it’s that obvious…” Braeburn began pulling on the end of his mane, proving Soarin’s words further as his face grew pink, to which he groaned in annoyance when he realized it.

Soarin tried his best to show a smile, even if it was work to pull it off convincingly with his eyes still burning from his tears. “I don’t know anypony around here. All my friends are working for the next few days. It doesn’t have to be a date...I just thought you’re easy to talk to about stuff that isn’t…y’know, stressful.”

“Ah didn’t really mean ta take all of Sheriff Silverstar’s advice.” Braeburn looked at the pegasus briefly by raising his hat. His face was still pink, but Soarin’s smile turned just a bit more true when he saw him like that. The earth pony swallowed hard, fixing his hat briefly as he straightened his back, putting a nervous smile on his face. “What the hay, Ah ain’t got nothin’ better ta do.”

Braeburn found himself staring at the table before him. He briefly squirmed on the pillow he was seated on before his eyes looked to the side of him, seeing the red walls and small short stools behind the countertop. The place was busy, but not exactly loud or over crowded to the point where the yellow stallion felt he was being suffocated.

“You’re not hungry?” The voice of the blue pegasus questioned him, bringing him back to the reality before him.

Braeburn looked to the other briefly, seeing him stuff his face with strips of grilled hay as if he was famished. Braeburn looked down to his own dish of hay and and eggs, shaking his head at Soarin’s question before he picked up a strip of hay to put in his mouth.

“You’ve been quiet for a while.” Soarin stated, leaning into his seat to look at Braeburn’s face. “I didn’t think you of all ponies would be shy being out with a guy.”

“What makes ya say that?” Braeburn found himself bringing up a defense. He couldn’t help but feel embarrassed when he realized he really hadn’t said much this entire time the two had been together. He looked down to the strip of hay he was holding in his hoof before he put it to his mouth.

“You just blabber a lot,” Soarin said as he took a sip from a glass of apple juice he had next to his dish. “Didn’t seem very shy when you felt me up after my bandages slipped is all.”

“Ah didn’t feel ya up.” Braeburn’s voice was somewhere between a grumble and a snicker at the other’s description, but he did end up smiling as he covered his face with his hoof in an attempt to hide it. “It’s just… I-Is this really a date?”

The yellow stallion knew he was blushing when Soarin laughed at him about that comment. He wanted to snap at the other to tell him to stop laughing, but he knew that would only give him more reason to continue if he got a good look at his face.

“That’s a weird thing to ask.” Soarin gave him a smirk when the yellow stallion finally uncovered his face. It was hard to believe less than an hour ago he had found the pegasus crying to himself in the rain.

“Well Ah don’t know if ya meant it or was just teasin’ me or were just throwin’ out words for whatever reason.” Braeburn’s works picked up pace when he spoke, the stallion knowing he was babbling once more. “Ah ain’t good with this kinda stuff.”

“Well that’s obvious.” Soarin began resting his face on his hoof by propping it up against the table. He chuckled when he watched Braeburn began pulling on the end of his long golden mane. “I guess it’s whatever you want it to be, you’re cute so I wouldn’t mind if being a date if you want that.”

“C-Cute. Right.” Braeburn mumbled as he fiddled with his mane. Truth be told he still wasn’t able to tell if Soarin was teasing him or not, that thought hanging over his head making it difficult to determine if the feeling in his chest was from anxiety or simply warmth. He took a sip of his water as he looked to the table once more. “Sorry, Ah ain’t really that great at this kinda stuff.”

“I can tell you aren’t uncomfortable being seen with another stallion in a restaurant.” Soarin spoke, his eyes looking up and down the other’s body. He was holding his drink with both hooves, leaning to the opposite side of his bandaged wing. “I’m guessing a lot of ponies know?”

“Yeah, whole family and friends and whatnot.” Braeburn laughed quietly when he took a bite of his eggs. “Ain’t really that scary when ya have a cousin who got a boyfriend they brings ta every reunion ta smooth out the waters. They hooked up last winter, boyfriend's a real cutie pie. He doesn’t like ta talk ‘bout it much, or at all actually. But they love each other a whole heapin' lot. Ah only really realized it a few years ago, he made it easier ta feel like nopony would be upset or nothin’.”

“Guess it’s a lot easier to figure it out for yourself if it’s normal.” Soarin gave the other a smirk, though Braeburn noticed his eyes were mostly focused on fiddling with his straw, his hoof constantly grabbing back to his wing.

“Yeah, a lot of ponies teased me sayin’ they knew.” Braeburn scratched his cheek with his hoof, giving off a nervous chuckle when he thought about the memory. “Ah was always the baby growin’ up. A lot of ponies were born real close together in my family an’ Ah was the last fer a good five or six years. My cousin’s used ta all tell me which aunt woulda give ya sweets and which would smack ya with their cane an’ call ya chubby if ya asked.”

“Big Braeby?” Soarin asked him.

“Yer jokes stink.” Braeburn commented.

“Sounds like fun though, regardless.” Soarin spoke with a small smile directed at the other. “Me and my buddies are real close knit like that too, cept’ a lot of them hit on each other. Causes weird work problems, I like to try and stick to ponies outside of all that.”

“Mmm, usually easier,” Braeburn agreed, biting off a piece of hay as he continued speaking. “Daddy met my Ma workin’, least that’s what he told me.”

“Well you happened.” Soarin commented. “Loudmouth or not, you’re a pretty decent pony so far.”

“Yeah, he says that was the only good thing ta come outta that.” Braeburn blushed, feeling a little embarrassed by Soarin’s comment. “Ah never knew my Ma, Ah mean she didn’t die or nothin’, just left right after Ah was born. Ah ain’t ever missed her or nothin’, Daddy’s always been there fer me.”

“Mmm.”

“Sorry,” Braeburn looked down to his hooves briefly. “Ah talk a lot ‘bout myself… a lot of ponies tell me Ah don’t know when ta shut up.”

“It’s no big deal.” Soarin shrugged.

There was a brief moment of silence between the two where Braeburn nodded, taking a moment to look at Soarin as he chewed on the inside of his cheek. He put his hooves on the table as he looked into the other’s emerald eyes.

“So uh… Soarin.” The yellow stallion spoke up. “Ah’ve been thinkin’ fer a while, an Ah might be wrong and just look real dumb when Ah spill it. Ah mean after Ah first saw ya Ah thought ya looked familiar and thought it was somepony Ah knew but…”

“Braeburn.” Soarin spoke, bringing the stallion back to earth as he chuckled nervously.

“Sorry, babblin’. Ya aren’t exactly a nopony, are ya? Yer one of those Wonderwhatzits.”

Soarin’s eyes looked up to his, raising a brow before chuckling quietly, perhaps at the serious expression which quickly regressed from Braeburn’s face when he realized he held it. “I was wondering when you’d finally realize it, you dope.”

“Ah don’t like sports all that much, Ah told ya.” Braeburn pulled on his mane when Soarin kept staring into his eyes, his belly feeling strange when he realized the other looked a bit more enthused by the conversation now that he was a part of it. “Ah didn’t wanna feel like an idiot by findin’ out later, and Ah’ve seen a bunch of posters lately but Ah just…Ah ain’t a dope.”

“Calm down, I was just teasing you.” Soarin gave a little laugh, though it wasn’t exactly mocking. Something in his laugh managed to make Braeburn feel a little better. “It just…ugh this sounds weird…”

“What is it?” Braeburn leaned in, earning him another smile at his attention.

“I just feel weirdly glad that somebody noticed.” Soarin put a hoof behind his head as he looked away. “It’s been a while since anypony really just asked me who I was. I mean, I was on top of the world a few weeks ago.”

Braeburn looked to Soarin’s hooves, watching him grip his cup a little more roughly than before as he used both hooves. The yellow stallion glanced back to the pegasi’s wing.

“A lot of ponies stopped talking to me when I passed them in the hallways. For the first few days the place was crowded with fans.” Soarin gave a dry laugh at the memory. “I don’t think the hospital was really ready for that kind of crowd, it was really loud for the first few days… made me angry cause I was so doped up on all those drugs they gave me after my surgery.”

“How did… ya hurt yer wing?” Braeburn asked the other, his voice a tad hesitant.

“I… did something stupid my last show,” Soarin admitted, leaning his head down so he could grab his mane with his hoof. “I dunno, I wasn’t thinking. I just… tried to give the crowd what they wanted, even though I was dead tired and the show was technically over. I think my friend caught me before I fell. ‘Cept he had to grab onto something to stop me, you can kinda guess what it was.”

“Your wing.” Braeburn stated, noticing the crowd of the restaurant was slowly depleting as the breakfast hours drew to a close.

“Yeah, the idiot sobbed in my room for a week before I told him to shut up.” Soarin shook his head slowly, Braeburn beginning to shift uncomfortably in his seat. “They printed this dumb article in one of those awful magazines that make up drama for dramas sake about it. The thing said that he sabotaged me, I didn’t even know the damn thing existed till I asked him what he was so upset about.”

The blue pegasus let out a whinny. “Around the time I told him to go and focus on his work the fans started leaving. I read some article a few days ago about how the Wonderbolts had their best show yet. I swear all of them say that, but this one just pushed my buttons. I mean, I don’t know why but I just felt so…”

Braeburn found himself reaching out his hoof, grasping it around Soarin’s as he heard the pegasi’s words cut short. He didn’t look up at Braeburn’s eyes, but he did stare at his hoof as he loosened the grip on his mane, sitting up straight.

“Ah saw one of yer shows.” Braeburn spoke, squeezing his hoof around the other’s. “It was just somethin’ my Daddy wanted ta see few years back when ya’ll passed by town. Ah don’t remember much, but Ah know ya flew amazin’. Ah remember bein’ really impressed, Ah didn’t see many professional fliers, it was weird thinkin’ ponies did it fer sport instead of just weather duties and stuff. But… the crowd was excited an’ ah was gettin’ excited too, Daddy said Ah cheered like an idiot.”

Soarin looked up to Braeburn’s eyes, the yellow stallion realizing there was a blush on the pegasi’s blue face. He didn’t expect that kind of reaction as he watched him pull his hoof away, grabbing it with the other as the pink remained on his face. Braeburn decided not to bring it up, even if he couldn’t help but stare at it.

“Sorry… I didn’t really think I was gonna get carried away with that and all…” Soarin mumbled, still feeling his hoof. “Um… thanks for trying to cheer me up.”

Braeburn gave the other a smile alone with a giggle, the pegasus finding it hard to look him in the eye after that.

“So why’d ya ask a nopony like me out ta breakfast with ya?” Braeburn took another sip of his water as he watched Soarin shrug. “Ya know nopony will believe me if Ah tell em a Wonderbolt asked me out. It really ain’t fair on my part.”

“You’re just easy to talk to.” Soarin stated, little hesitation. “It’s nice to have somepony friendly around to talk to.”

Braeburn found his eyes drifting to the waitress who began trotting in their direction. She wore a bright red apron that matched her yellow fur and mane well. “Anything else I can do for you two?”

“No, we’re good.” The pegasus stated, beginning to stand up from his seat when he issued for Braeburn to wait for a minute with a raise of his hoof. The pegasus trotted off as Braeburn ate the last few pieces of his meal, finding it a tad sad how quickly it had gone by.

He watched as Soarin paid the mare, though he also saw him scribble something down with a pencil in his mouth, giving the waitress a handsome tip before he walked away by the looks of it.

“So, that’s that.” Soarin came back with a strange smile on his face. “I think I should probably get back to my hotel before it starts coming down again. My buddies will kill me if my bandages get screwy in the rain.”

“Oh… uh, right.” Braeburn tried to hide the disappointment in his tone, however it still came off. He stood up slowly, when he lifted his hat he saw that Soarin was holding out a slip of paper, the yellow stallion hesitantly taking it before he unfolded it.

“Maringtin’ Inn, 210.” The stallion mumbled the words.

“Just in case nopony believes you when you tell them a celebrity asked you out on a date.” Soarin joked, though Braeburn couldn’t help but notice the pink tint from before was still on his blue face. “And uh… if you get bored and want to see me.”

“So this was a date?” Braeburn raised his brow at the other, making sure to carefully fold the address and place it in his vest pocket.

“Sure, I mean why not?” Soarin asked with a chuckle. “Beating around the bush is boring, isn’t it?”

“Ah’ll keep that in mind.” Braeburn nodded, a small warmth that was similar to a candle growing in his chest as the two trotted to the door, opening up into the damp air of midday.

“See you later, Braeby.” Soarin spoke, the yellow stallion strangely not annoyed as much this time when he was called by that name, though he still managed to roll his eyes before he watched Soarin walk off, pausing at the curb to wave to the other.

Braeburn waved back before checked his pocket once more to assure the slip was still there, mumbling the words under his breath so he wouldn’t forget.

“Maringtin’ Inn, 210…”

Author's Note

So I learned it isn't normal to add two spaces after a period. Huh. That is going to be really awkward to get used to.

Anyway I finished a chapter in under a month, yay!

Wounded

Author's Note

New format, I explained it better in the authors note for my Blueblood and Fancy Pants story, but the short version is it's easier for me to get out 2000 or so word scenes and call them chapters to help me because writing 3 stories at once is just about the smartest thing I could ever do ain't it?

This should theoretically speed up writing, but not for a single story unless I happen to take favor to it for a few scenes.

Wounded

Soarin found himself listening to the sound of Rapidfire’s breath coming in and out of his body, the grey pegasus leaning against his hoof, his cheek squishing as he slowly shook his head. The lobby of the hospital was just as oppressive as before in the bandaged pegasi’s mind, however at least he had something to focus on, even if it was just the calm collected sound of his friend’s boredom.

“Man, I wanted to go on a date with my mare today.” The grey pegasus gave a half hearted chuckle when he looked to the other. “I hope you know I’m taking it out of your wallet when I buy her some make up roses.”

“That’s fine…” Soarin mumbled, closing his eyes briefly at the sound of ponies all around him. He tried his best to ignore the old mare sitting across from him no more than six feet away, her leg in a cast as she rubbed it with a tired expression on her face.

Rapidfire frowned, watching the hunched over pegasus as he leaned up against the wall, in the corner of the waiting room. He sighed when he looked up to the ceiling, letting out a quiet whistle.

“Spitfire’s gonna kill you if she ever finds out you just ran out without even getting your bandages off.” The grey stallion looked to his friend, Soarin doing his best to breathe.

Soarin lifted his hoof to his wing when he saw a small child glance at it, feeling himself scratch and claw at the bandages before Rapidfire grabbed at his hoof and put it down. He wanted to growl, to grumble and argue, however he simply followed the silent orders his friend gave him.

“They aren't even supposed to come off yet,” Soarin mumbled, shaking his head. “Why did you drag me here?”

“Because I’m not exactly happy either that you just ran out.” The pegasus put bluntly, rubbing his forehead. “Dude, you’re my best friend. I’m fine if you’re not down with physical therapy, but you can let them see.”

“It doesn’t look any better.” Soarin mumbled quietly, finding himself looking at the wall as he began to bite the end of his good wing, bringing it over the front of his body. He smoothed out his ruffled feathers with his hoof, finding himself swallowing hard. “I mean, the only thing different about it and when it happened is there’s less blood. I can’t even move it that well. I mean, what’s the point if it just looks like I’m stuck like this?”

“Tryouts went well.” Rapidfire sighed, running a hoof through his thick white mane to scratch at his ears, making an attempt to change the subject. “I mean, Spitty yelled a lot and some ponies cried, same as usual. I think we’re getting a few new backliners.”

“Did you work on adjusting the team at all?” Soarin questioned the grey stallion. It was strange how much he used to hate talking about things like drawing up diagrams of team movement and charting the lineup.. “I mean, Fleetfoot’s in charge of a lot of ponies as it is and Star Strider doesn’t have many.”

“Man, you sound like Spitfire.” Rapidfire groaned, putting his face into his hooves with a groan. The grey stallion looked tired, less energetic than usual. “Didn’t you always complain to me about all this crap, what gives?

“Just wondering.” Soarin shrugged his shoulders, the frown returning to his face. “I just wondered how much things changed.”

Rapidfire let out another groan, this time followed by a white mare who gave him a strange look when she walked up. Rapidfire looked away from her, his cheeks giving off a gentle blush as he coughed into his hoof.

“Yes, Soarin…I’m Nurse Redhoof.” The nurse was different than last time, younger and a bit more easy to smile at the two of them. Her eyes scanned the clipboard in front of her eyes that levitated using her pink magic glow. She smiled as she scribbled something down, lowering the clipboard. “I believe this is just a simple check up, come with me!”

Her voice was chipper when Soarin rose to his hooves, trying his best to ignore as many eyes in the place drew themselves to him. He was glad Rapidfire had begun to rise as well, giving him a reassuring smile before Soarin began to follow the nurse, Rapidfire by his side.

The two walked to the direction of the desk and to a hallway with many doors on either side. Soarin tried not to look at the unicorn wheeling himself down in a chair using his magic, his body looking heavy and tired. The pegasus found himself holding his breath as he bit down on his lip.

“Right in here!” Nurse Redhoof spoke, opening the door to a small room with little more than a small looking uncomfortable bed. She turned in the direction of the lobby once more, the smile still on her face. “You can rest here, I’ll be back in in a few minutes.”

When the mare left, Soarin found himself moving to the bed, putting his hoof against it to test the firmness. It was hard, feeling as though it needed a replacement. He suddenly began to feel glad for his new large comfortable bed in his hotel room.

“Man, that mare is something out of one of your trash novels.” Rapidfire laughed at the other as Soarin slowly adjusted himself into his seat, smiling gently for the first time that morning.

“All my trashy novels have stallions in them.” Soarin reminded Rapidfire, giving off a chuckle as he did so.

“Not the ones from last month.” Rapidfire reminded him, a sly grin on his face as he moved to the couch next to the bed, seating himself down as he let out a yawn.

The door opened suddenly again to reveal Nurse Redhoof just as the blue pegasus began inspecting the window behind him, the blue skies a rare occurrence in this horribly rainy town. His eyes looked back to the nurse, who let out a huff of air as she trotted over to the other with a smile.

“Now Mister Soarin, I’m not fully aware of your knowledge of your condition so let me bring you up to speed, okay?” She lifted a pair of scissors as she made careful work to slide them between the large knot holding the wing in place. Soarin nodded his head, hearing the sound of a snip as his wing was soon free, the bandages around his chest falling off easily as the mare pulled at them carefully.

“I understand that flying is very important to you, but you being out of the hospital doesn’t mean that you can just go leaping off the roof the moment it’s done. You still have to begin doing the right amount of stretching and light exercise before you get any kind of feeling in your wing. I highly recommend physical therapy.”

Soarin found himself grabbing at his leg at those words, biting the inside of his cheek. He tried not to think about it too much as he nodded his heavy head.

“Your wing isn’t in any condition to fly even if you had full control over it at this point, your feathers shouldn’t have grown back yet, you’ll be letting off a lot of body heat, so I recommend you bundle yourself up if the weather continues raining like it has been.” The nurse snipped once more at the gauze, this time his wing which began to feel less tightly bound.

“He’s heard this all before… er, sorry to interrupt.” Rapidfire spoke, awkwardly scratching his head when the nurse glanced to him.

“My apologies then.” The nurse spoke. “I know how it is having things drilled into your head, medical school is like that. I’m sure you’re just wondering when you can get back to flying. You’ve been a wonderbolt for quite a while, haven’t you?”

“About seven years.” Soarin spoke, a small grin on his face. “I joined when I was eighteen. I’m got to be vice captain three years later, youngest one in decades.”

“That sounds very nice, doing something you love.” The nurse commented, beginning to remove the final layer of the gauze slowly, her hooves dragging lightly across his bare pink flesh. “Does any of this hurt?”

“No… not really.” Soarin shook his head. “It just feels weird.”

“That’s expected. Your wing hasn’t seen much of the world aside from bandage changings. It should take a while for it to stop being so sensitive.” The nurse commented. Soarin kept his eyes shut, the only time he opened them was to stare down at his hooves.

“I’ll be right back, it’ll give you a few minutes to get adjusted.” Nurse Redhoof spoke, giving the stallion a pat on the back before she began walking to the door.

Soarin felt as though it was a struggle to breathe as he began scratching his leg. He had to force in an out every breath as he closed his eyes once more.

“What does it look like?” He stammered out.

“Uh…” Rapidfire seemed to be taken off guard by the question. The sound of the creaking couch was heard as the pegasus stood up, trotting over to get a closer look. “I guess it just looks weird. There’s some feathers, but it’s really just patches, lot of small scars and a few bigs ones… whole things pink too, looks kinda ugly I’m not gonna lie to you dude.”

Soarin used his hoof to gently feel his wing, the some spots where feathers usually grew seemed to be missing, or not to the length he was used too. He put his free hoof to his forehead and tried his best to focus on not trembling.

“I… I met s-somepony…”

“What?”

Rapidfire seemed confused at Soarin’s change in topic. He could imagine Rapidfire tilting his head in confusion as Soarin bit into his lip.

“When I ran out a few days ago, I ran into some stallion. I met him one time before, I dunno, I asked him out because I just wanted to get away from here.” Soarin spoke as he shrugged, feeling his eyes water. “He was nice and easy to talk too. It was easy to forget all of this crap when we went out.”

“You actually landed yourself a date?” Rapidfire questioned, an attempt to lighten the mood only sunken when Soarin simply nodded.

“Do you think that… he’ll think it’s ugly?” Soarin lifted a hoof to wipe angrily at the tears that had not yet spilled. “I mean, I hardly know him but he seemed excited to see me again… I don’t want him to just stare at it the whole time. He hardly brought it up and it’s all anypony talks about when they see me… and it’s even more noticeable and I just…”

Soarin wasn’t sure how to finish that, he simply swore under his breath as he sniffled gently. “I’m a mess…”

“Never thought you’d come to me over boy troubles.” Rapidfire laughed, though it was a comforting one, for a hoof was placed onto his shoulder. “I didn’t really mean blow off your appointment to get a date when I said you should find somepony to take your mind off of this… was he at least hot?”

“He was k-kind of annoying actually.” Soarin chuckled, his voice shaking as he struggled to keep down his emotions. “B-But it worked for him, he was cute… It’s easier to think about some stupid date over my medical problems.”

“I gotcha.” His friend reassured, patting his shoulder as he moved in front of the blue pegasus, giving a shrug of his shoulders. “Hell if you’re sad and mopey about what some guy thinks instead of being sad and mopey for nothing, that works for me.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” Soarin shrugged, frowning as he looked behind him at last, seeing a large scar right on the connecting point of his wing to his back. He felt his heart sink when he looked back to Rapidfire, a frown on his face.

So uh…” Rapidfire looked at Soarin’s expression, seeming to rack his brain for a few moments for a new topic. “You read anything kinky in those novels you wanna try out?”

“Shut up!” Soarin quickly spoke up, his face a little red at the thought.

The door opened once more, interrupting Rapidfire laughing at Soarin’s reaction. Nurse Redhoof trotted back in, a puzzled expression on her face at the two talking to one another.

“I have your bill right here, you shouldn’t need more than the pain medication you have left, you can just sign this and whenever you’re ready you can leave.” She spoke, trotting up to the two. "I'll just put some fresh bandages on for you and you're free!"

“You ready to split, Soar?” Rapidfire asked his friend, pointing his head in the direction of the nurse. “Dunno about you but I’m getting sick of this place."

“Yeah… let’s get the heck out of here.” Soarin agreed.

Battle Scars

Braeburn pursed his lips and shook his head. He could feel his long golden mane whack either side of his head. He didn’t feel like ponies staring at him because he looked out of place and because he was blushing like a complete moron. He bit into his cheek and brought the map up to his face again. Marrington Inn was only two streets down. He paid two bits for a run he could do in less than three minutes.

The stallion whinnied loudly and got to his hooves and quickly stuffed the folded map in his mouth in case he somehow managed to get lost on the straight path down to his destination. The humid air was beginning to make his fur damp and his body sweaty, and he only hoped it was early enough that Soarin hadn’t had time to shower properly. Braeburn went against the flow of ponies and carriages running down the streets. Most of the ponies looked as though they weren’t from around these parts. However; they looked much more like ponies from canterlot or Los Pegasus on a trip of either business or pleasure than some country pony from the next town over. He vaguely remembered that Maringting Inn was rather… pricy. Twenty bits for a train ticket and two bits for a map. If he wanted to eat anything this little morning trip would turn pretty expensive pretty fast.

Braeburn nodded to two dozen ponies that he passed who made eye contact. Less than half nodded back or even smiled, and the stallion only realized then that southern hospitality apparently didn’t travel far from home. Even vendors selling things like newspapers and raincoats who were already beginning to line up outside of the hotels he passed didn’t give him much more than a forced grin.

Braeburn ignored the first building when he crossed the street with little more than a jog in his step. He knew that Soarin’s was in the middle of the next five buildings, and he could even spot it from here. Celestia it was at least twice the size of any building in the city. The sign that seemed almost larger than life spelling out “Marrington Inn” lit up and reminded Braeburn of a casino. While the buildings around him didn’t look awful, they suddenly seemed to drop in quality at the sight of this Inn’s beautifully fresh brick wall and marble staircase that led up to the door. Braeburn stared with wide eyes and picked up his pace to get a better look. He stood at the edge of the sidewalk and darted his eyes up and down the building. Even from here the front entrance was a massive revolving door where he could see a fountain on the inside.

The stallion spotted many golden carts filled with luggage moving out onto the street to carriages, the hotel busy and lifelike even so early in the morning. Braeburn drew himself closer and side stepped many ponies in fancy outfits. He somehow felt even more out of place than he did before. When was the last time he had washed his vest?

“Can I help you… sir?” A deep voice came from behind Braeburn while he was distracted by the fountain in the doorway. The yellow pony jumped and shot his head over to see a stallion in a green vest stare at him. His moustache was white as well was his mane, and his fur was periwinkle. He eyed Braeburn suspiciously, most notably his outfit.

“Fo, fello!” Braeburn tried to speak cheerfully. He had forgotten that he was holding a map in his mouth. “Aa Loofin fe-” Braeburn felt a blush come to his face when he realized just how strange his voice sounded. He spit out the map with a “phooey” noise and everything and stomped his hoof on it to keep it from blowing away. “Heh, sorry ‘bout that. Ah’m here visitin’ a friend. He told me he was stayin’ here an’ Ah thought Ah’d come an’ see him. Ah got a little lost on the way here though.”

Braeburn scratched his blushing cheek and avoided eye contact with the worker. He tried to chuckle again to shadow his embarrassment, however the other didn’t smile. He realized he had been babbling again and quickly but down on his tongue.

“Check the front desk.” Was all the stallion told him. He didn’t seem like he was much one for chatting. Braeburn continued to keep his teeth clenched on his tongue when he nodded his head. He snatched up his tourist map and quickly shoved it into his vest pocket. He trotted away from the worker and placed his hooves on the first step of the marble staircase.

The further away from tourism he got and the closer he got to the rich the more looks Braeburn began to receive. Nopony was quite rude enough to say anything to him, but even the workers seemed to wonder just what he was doing there. When he trotted through the revolving door and came up to the fountain he stared at the lights on the ceiling that illuminated the entire room. The marble had turned to red carpet when Braeburn trotted ahead up to the front desk.

“Hey there!” Braeburn was the first to speak. The desk had four spots available, but only two mares on duty. Braeburn approached one who was scribbling down something with a pen and quill. The pink mare with thick purple glasses gave him a glance and a smile that Braeburn recognized as nothing but polite.

“What can I do for you sir?” She questioned Braeburn.

“Howdy, My name’s Braeburn an Ah uh…” Braeburn bit into his cheek and felt the mare’s eyes stare through him like daggers. “This is gonna sound crazy but a pegasus named Soarin asked me ta come see him. His room is 210.”

“Let me check the book.” The mare reached under the desk and pulled out a small blue book that looked like it had several names scribbled in it when she opened to the first page.

“Couldn’t Ah just head on up?” Braeburn raised his brow and nodded his head in the direction of the staircase to his right. He frowned and began to feel his chest tighten. “Ah ain’t lyin’ ta ya, Ah really know him.”

“A lot of celebrities stay in this hotel,” The mare rolled her eyes and Braeburn had to bite down on his tongue not to snap something at her. “They keep a book of the names they want visiting them along with a description. It’s just standard procedu… Oh look, here you are.”

The mare shut the book and Braeburn had to blink several times before it fully sunk in. Soarin had actually told the front desk he was allowed to visit… that made his chest feel all warm and gooey for some reason. He pulled down his hat several inches and chuckled in an attempt to hide his reddening cheeks.

“Head on up, sir. Enjoy your visit.”

Braeburn barely gave the mare more than a nod before he trotted away from her at a pace just below a jog. He felt a smile hit his face when he passed massive paintings of scenery like lakes and forests just to feel his hooves hit the stairs. He passed no more than three mares traveling up the staircase and when he got to the top he skipped the last two. He saw a large number two before his eyes and soon trotted through the doorway to be greeted by a massive hallway painted in red and gold. The walls were golden while the carpet was red, and every door was crimson.

The stallion chuckled to himself when he realized his heart was beating just a bit faster than usual. He trotted slower down the hallway in an attempt to slow it down, adjusting his hat, mane, and vest in the process.

“208… 209… 210!” Braeburn smiled happily when he came up to the door he was looking for. Without much thought he brought his hoof down to the door and knocked five times. His tail swished back and forth and he realized he was actually excited to see the pegasus. Sure he set out today to see his new friend, but the level of excitement hadn’t quite reached his peak until he was given permission to actually visit his friend.

However; Braeburn felt his smile falter when he heard a groan from the other side of the door. It didn’t sound as though it was coming from directly before him, so the instant fear that Soarin groaned at looking through the peephole was crossed off the list of possibilities. It sounded more like he was rolling out of bed. Braeburn looked down either side of the hallway and began to bounce impatiently in place when the hoofsteps of the other drew near.

There was a brief silence when Braeburn smiled in the direction of the peephole. He gave a little wave and chuckled. The sound of a chain becoming undone as well as a lock turning soon greeted Braeburn to a door opening and… a pegasus that looked like he had awoken from the dead.

“Please tell me why does every farm pony wake up at the crack of dawn?” Soarin yawned. His mane was a mess… well, more than usual. It wasn’t as organized of a mess. His eyes had bags under them that looked much heavier than they had before. He yawned again and looked as though he was leaning against the wall. “Hey there, Braeburn.”

“It’s nearly nine.” Braeburn blinked his eyes. He smiled when Soarin said his name. “Hey there.”

“Like I said, the crack of dawn.” Soarin opened the door all the way and Braeburn was greeted to a darkened room. When he looked into the room he realized the shades were closed and the lights were all off. Soarin was rubbing his eye and stepped aside to let his guest through. Braeburn’s smile had vanished, but he stepped inside regardless. “Didn’t expect you to visit so soon, actually.”

“So soon?” Braeburn asked when he raised his brow. He was squinting, trying to see in the dark and make out objects so not to trip over them. “It’s been three days.”

“Early, that’s what I meant.” Soarin put a hoof to his forehead and shook his head. Braeburn looked at his wing and saw that the bandages looked ragged and in need of a replacement. “Sorry, Braeburn, I’m really tired. Y-You can open the curtain if you want.”

“Ya didn’t get drunk last night, did ya?” Braeburn asked. He trotted past Soarin and to the balcony window to open the shades. He only opened it halfway, the bed still half darkened where Soarin soon sat down. Light filled the room and Braeburn realized it wasn’t nearly as big as he imagined. It was nice, sure, but not very big. The paintings on the wall were large and lifelike, the wallpaper under them crimson like the door. It had a certain sense of wealth that nothing in Appleloosa truly did.

“I think that’d kill me, much as I’d like to have,” Soarin chuckled and in doing so winced. He grabbed at his wing and grumbled under his breath. “No, I just… the doc gave me all these weird meds for my wing. They’re mostly painkillers. But shit, they make me tired.”

“Oh, uh…” Braeburn shifted in place and stared out the balcony. He cleared his throat and turned back to Soarin. “Ah’m sorry Ah came at a bad time then… do ya want me ta leave? Ah don’t wanna be a bother.”

“No, it’s fine.” Soarin yawned once more. He laid down on the bed and was careful not to roll onto his wing. “My friends have been pretty busy since I last saw you. Rapidfire freaking skipped practice just to drag me to that stupid doctor... I’ve just been up here reading trashy novels and newspapers.”

“Trashy what?” Braeburn widened his emerald green eyes.

“Don’t act like you haven’t read books of two stallions grabbing each other,” Soarin smirked at Braeburn. Some of the charm that reminded Braeburn of why he came here in the first place returned to Soarin. “C’mon Braeby, I can tell you’re not a magazine kind of a pony.”

“Ah uh…” Braeburn shifted in place and adjusted his hat. He wasn’t sure if he blushed more at Soarin’s implications or the fact that he was called ‘Braeby’ again. “Ya may be right.”

“Have you read ‘Sensational Windings’?” Soarin questioned and began to wiggle his eyebrows in a way that made Braeburn bite his tongue. “The stallions in that story like to tie each other up and fool around. They use a riding crop an awful lot in that story.”

“Ah… Ah ain’t heard of…” Braeburn put his hoof over his heart and realized it was beating rapidly. His eyes darted around when Soarin began smirking. “Ah wouldn’t know.”

“Suuuuure,” Soarin chuckled, and this time thankfully didn’t grab his wing in pain. Braeburn took several steps forward and sat himself down at the end of the bed. He folded his hooves in each other and stared at Soarin. He rolled his tongue around in his mouth for a few moments, wondering if it was his place to talk.

“Are ya sure Ah shouldn’t leave?” Braeburn cocked his head. He reached out his hoof and briefly considered placing it on Soarin’s leg. He decided against it and pulled it back to his body. “Ya look awfully tired. Ya haven’t been sleepin’ well, have ya?”

Soarin shrugged one of his shoulders and kept his good hoof on the one that couldn’t. “I can’t sleep that well… Before this all happened I used to toss and turn a lot. I keep waking up cause I roll on my wing or something. Hell of a thing to wake up to pain like that. Least in the hospital bed there wasn’t much room to roll around.”

“Ya don’t sleep well in general?” Braeburn frowned at his friend.

“I’m usually way more nocturnal than this.” Soarin shook his head slowly and placed a hoof against his forehead. “Sorry, Brae. Normally I’d do something a little more fun with my friends. I think I’d pass out in the carriage if we tried to do anything in this town.”

“That’s fine,” Braeburn smiled. This time he did reach out his hoof and grabbed Soarin’s own. The pegasus’ smile brought one to Braeburn’s lips as well. “Ah don’t like big cities all that much. Ah like talkin’ with ya though. Ah came ta… y-y’know, see ya, not the city.”

“C’mon, you’ve never been on a big date in a city like this?” Soarin raised his brow in question. He pointed his hoof out to the balcony and slowly scooted out of the light and closer to Braeburn. “There’s so much to do! At least more to do then a tiny town like yours I bet. You don’t get any privacy out there.”

“Ah ain’t been on many dates in general. And Ah don’t like strangers that much,” Braeburn giggled, though he knew in his heart that it sounded forced. He squirmed in place for a bit and felt the bed shake. “Ah like knowin’ everpony. It feels like my family’s even bigger. It ain’t fun not knowin’ everypony and not knowin’ why they look at ya funny fer wearin’ a vest.”

“I take it you saw the usual guests around here?” Soarin grabbed his tail and put it in his lap to hold onto with gentle hooves. “Pretty stuck up, huh?”

“Ah don’t know why Ah expected a big shot like ya ta sleep somewhere subtle. Everypony just wears suits and bow-ties even though it’s hotter than a desert out there,” Braeburn giggled and covered his mouth with his hoof. “I bet nopony here has any idea how ta have fun.”

“I’m not fun?” Soarin smirked in Braeburn’s direction. He squeezed Braeburn’s hoof for a brief moment.

“N- That ain’t what I meant!” Braeburn cried out. He felt the muscles in his legs tighten and he pulled away from Soarin’s grasp. “W-Well… Ah don’t know. We ain’t even spent any time together aside from breakfast. Yer a celebrity an’ all so Ah assume ya’d know how ya have fun.”

“I was teasing you,” Soarin seemed to chuckle at Braeburn’s babbling. “Do you babble at everypony, or just when you’re nervous?”

“Ah… E-Everypony.” Braeburn scratched behind his ear and slowly took his hat off his head and held it against his chest. He looked around the room a bit and noticed several books lying open and newspapers from the past three days all stacked at the end of the bed. The bed itself was ruffled and unmade. “Yer really messy.”

“Hey, don’t change the subject, motormouth.” Soarin smirked at Braeburn.

“Ah’m serious, this place is a mess!” Braeburn cried out with a laugh.

“Hey, you’re the one who visited ten minutes after I woke up,” Soarin said with a roll of his eyes. He laid his body down gently and leaned on the side of his good wing. Once again Braeburn bit his lip when he saw the bandages. They looked so… old.

“Honestly ya could at least clean up a little.” Braeburn puffed out his cheeks and whinnied softly when he crawled slowly across the bed. He grabbed one of the newspapers and saw the previous days date. “Ya sleep with all this stuff coverin’ yer bed?”

“It’s a big bed.” Soarin shrugged his good shoulder and smirked at Braeburn when his eyes scanned the paper. The cowpony opened up to the second page. “I’m more used to clouds, anyway. You can hide all kinds of goodies in them… just good luck getting them out without accidentally tearing it apart.”

“Still, it’s just messy an-... Wait Prince Blueblood and Fancy Pants are datin’?” Braeburn opened his mouth in mild shock at the newspaper. He closed it with help from his own hoof and shook his head. “Well Ah guess they have been spendin’ a lot of time together.”

“Oh don’t tell me you actually keep up with all that gossip crap?” Soarin blew air forcefully out of his nose and shivered. “That stuff’s just a nightmare to deal with.”

“Ah don’t…” Braeburn closed the paper quickly. He suddenly wished that he hadn’t removed his hat, for he groped his hoof above his head out of habit trying to lower it. He instead darted his eyes away from Soarin. “Ah mean… Not all the time. Just if Ah happen ta see a paper or two layin’ around Ah sneak a peak.”

“You know that stuff is usually all made up.” Soarin frowned at his friend. “The papers once said I was dating Spitfire and Hoity Toity at the same time.”

“Ah know. D-Daddy tells me that too.” Braeburn scratched behind his ear. He began to chuckle and feel his forehead sweat. “It’s silly, really. Ah don’t… Y’know, believe any of it. A-And Ah don’t pay attention ta the sports ones.” The stallion quickly grabbed his hat and put it over his head.

There was a brief pause between the two. Braeburn squirmed in place and Soarin’s eyes felt like knives piercing his skin.

“So ya didn’t date Hoity Toity?” Braeburn asked.

“I have never even spoken to Hoity Toity.” Soarin frowned, but something about the way his lips wiggled made Braeburn think he was fighting back a smile. “I can give you a list of five Wonderbolts who have slept with him though, if you’d like. I hear he’s a wonderful dom.”

“Ah’m good.” Braeburn clasped his hooves together. Soarin finally smiled and Braeburn felt his chest loosen just a bit. Soarin reached out his hoof quickly, maybe just to snatch away the newspaper or to flick Braeburn on the nose, but soon recoiled in pain and clasped it back onto his bandaged wing.

“O-Ow, Shit!” Soarin hissed.

“Pain medication not helpin?” Braeburn cocked his head. He scooted himself closer to Soarin and the shadow he sat in. “Can Ah… Ah mean, can Ah help?”

“N-No, I’m fine.” Soarin sucked in a sudden breath of air before forcing it out just as fast. He shut his eyes firmly and Braeburn saw the muscles in his face scrunch up. “Just keep forgetting what side’s the good one.”

Braeburn looked to the bandages again and then back to Soarin. He kept glancing between the two for the next several moments before he closed his own eyes. He bit into his lips and contemplated the situation for the next several moments.

“Hey, Soar?” Braeburn leaned forward and pressed most of his weight on his front two legs. “Ah don’t know if it’s my place ta say anythin’, but when’s the last time those bandages got changed?”

“W-Why’s that matter?” Soarin spat out. His voice contained toxicity that Braeburn hadn’t heard before. It was almost enough to make Braeburn recoil from the topic, however he somehow managed to hold strong. “Southern hospitality is really a pain in the ass sometimes, y’know!”

“Because it’s just gonna get worse if ya don’t get it changed! Don’t act like a lil’ kid over nothin!” Braeburn spat back Soarin’s venomous tone with reasoning of his own. Soarin stared at him wide-eyed, perhaps surprised that Braeburn had it in him to snap back like that. The two sat in silence for a while until Soarin looked down at his hooves. His cheeks were blushing. “So yer all bark no bite, huh? Couldn’t one of the staff help ya?”

Soarin grabbed his leg with his free hoof and squeezed it. He swallowed a lump in his throat and soon began to bite into his cheek. “I… I don’t want ponies to see the scars.”

“What, that’s silly!” Braeburn soon clamped his mouth shut when Soarin glared at him. It took a minute to recover from whatever kind of stupidity had come out of his mouth before Braeburn felt confident enough to speak again. During that time Soarin fidgeted nervously and Braeburn rolled his tongue around in his mouth. “Ah mean… Scars ain’t all that bad. They look a little ugly, sure, but ponies are usually more interested than scared.”

Soarin didn’t reply. His ears were flat against his head like he had been yelled at by a parent.

“L-Look, Soarin here.” Braeburn began to remove his vest slowly, and only that seemed to get Soarin’s attention when he started at the earth pony with bewildered eyes. He pointed to his side and saw a large scar that stood out against the yellow pony’s smooth skin that was at least six inches long. There were two of them, one jagged and one straight. “Ah got this scar when Ah was eight. My daddy was busy with the farm an Ah was screwin ‘round on the fence even though he told me not ta. Ah… Ah kept tryin’ ta hop between the posts. Ah slipped an’ Ah just remember a lot of blood and cryin’. Daddy had ta stop workin an’ rush me ta the doctor soon as he could.”

“Why are you showing me this?” Soarin asked. His tone didn’t have the same spiteful nature as it had before. He seemed more curious than usual.

“Ah’m sayin’ Ah don’t like ponies seein’ this scar that much.” Braeburn covered up the area with his hoof. Soarin’s eyes instantly went to the part that was still visible. “Ah didn’t get it doin’ amazin’ stuff like flyin’ in a crowded stadium, it’s just embarassin’. Ah get embarassed talkin’ bout it. Ponies are really nosy where Ah live. Ah was dumb an’ daddy had ta stop workin’ fer the day and had ta would double the next.”

“It’s… not very pretty.” Soarin forced a chuckle. It didn’t sound disingenuous at least, which gave Braeburn reason enough to smile.

“If ya let me, Ah could bandage ya up. Ah told ya how ponies got hurt all the time when we was settin’ up Appleloosa, right?” Braeburn questioned. He held out his hoof to Soarin’s own, yet let the pegasus’ decide for himself if he wanted to take it. “Ah showed ya mine, but Ah’m sure it ain’t nearly as big as the one ya got.”

Soarin lifted his hoof and Braeburn realized it was shaking. He was frowning when his eyes met Braeburn’s own, but nonetheless he set it down onto Braeburn’s. Braeburn held it tight and brought it slowly and carefully to his own heart. Soarin tried to force a smile, but it only came out as half.

“Is that a yes?” Braeburn asked.

“Y-Yeah… just, do it quick. Alright?” Soarin bit down on his cheek. “The gauze is in my bag next to the bed.”

“Ah’ll do it lickity split!” Braeburn gave a single firm nod. He hopped off the bed with a bouncy nature that he heard Soarin chuckle at. He opened Soarin’s large blue bag with a pull of his hoof and saw nothing but books and sweaters and at the very bottom, some gauze. He pulled it out with a triumphant laugh and gently placed himself back onto the bed. “Well, let’s take those ones off.”

“Uh…” Soarin paused and stared down at the sheets of his bed. “Can we… not talk about my wing?” Soarin’s cheeks were pink. He was squirming in place every few moments. “Can you just talk about something else? I don’t…” Soarin trailed off.

“Sure thing, Soarin.” Braeburn nodded his head. He scooted himself gently to behind Soarin and grabbed at the bandages that wrapped around Soarin’s back. He pulled on the knot and watched the bandages fall. His own face felt warm when he got a closer look at Soarin’s body… he was toned. Braeburn had thought he looked scrawny for quite some time, but now that he got a closer look he had muscles on most of his body. He wasn’t just thin, he was fit as well. “W-What do you wanna talk ‘bout?”

“What’s living on a farm your whole life like?” Soarin asked. He tried to turn his head around to watch Braeburn’s work, but he simply hissed in pain.

“Well, Ah didn’t until Ah was ‘round four,” Braeburn mumbled and untangled the bandages from Soarin’s body and began to work on his wing. He got the first sight of Soarin’s scar. It was so deep and pink that it made him lose his train of thought. “Ah… Ah lived with my cousin’s fer a while, Daddy havin’ ta sell the house since my Ma left an’ all. We moved ta a small town till a few years back.”

“Did that one have a farm?” Soarin questioned. The muscles in his body seemed to tense when Braeburn began working on the wing. Braeburn held his breath and saw the naked flesh where feathers should have been, yet refused to grow.

“Y-Yeah… Daddy worked hard with some other ponies on it. Ah used ta do chores ‘round the house since he couldn’t take care of both. Ah learned ta cook real good an he always complimented me on it.” Braeburn giggled and gently touched Soarin’s wing. The pegasus’ shivered. “When Ah got a little older Ah used ta ask ta work all day. My family always called me the baby but… Ah got my cutie mark before all my cousins.”

“You’re still a big Braeby,” Soarin snorted. If Braeburn weren’t half sane he would jab his hoof into Soarin’s back. Instead he just rolled his eyes and made sure the first wrapping of bandages around Soarin’s chest were extra tight.

“Yer still rude ta yer new friends.” Braeburn tried to match his tone to a growl, though it still somehow managed to come out as a giggle. “But ta answer yer question, it’s nice livin’ on a farm. Ya work hard an’ feel real good fer doin’ repetitive tasks day in an’ day out. Ya can work till yer purple in the face if ya got the stamina. Wasn’t till a few years ago that a bunch of ponies were talkin’ bout expandin the farms out this here way. Probably the hardest Ah ever worked. I helped build my own home fer lands sake!”

“Hey, I built my own home too!” Soarin jabbed Braeburn with his good hoof. “Course that was when I was five and learned I could mold clouds. I camped out in that hut for a year I think.”

“I figured all pegasi build their own homes,” Braeburn raised his brow despite the fact that Soarin couldn’t see him. He began to gently wind the gauze around the top of Soarin’s wing. He touched the scar gently with his hoof, but didn’t bring attention to it. The sight of it made Braeburn’s belly turn. I looked like his wing had been nearly torn out of him. “Do ponies make them fer ya?”

“Sometimes.” Soarin shrugged his good shoulder. “A lot of us just find a good cloud and sleep on it. We don’t have to worry about the rain. Cloudsdale has some molded homes around, but it’s mostly just ponies grabbing onto a cloud. We don’t get cold all that easily, y’know, feathers and all.”

Braeburn was getting to the end of the wing. He felt his chest swell with pride that Soarin hadn’t so much as flinched with his hooves touching them. Braeburn smiled and made several knots at the end of Soarin’s wing before clapping his hooves together happily. “There! I did it!” He called out excitedly.

“You’re a dork,” Soarin stated.

“Well Ah didn’t hurt ya, ya big baby!” Braeburn scooted away from Soarin and examined his handiwork. “Good as new, though!”

“Yeah, I guess it is,” Soarin chuckled and touched his wing gently. “Hey uh... Thanks, Braeburn."

Braeburn smiled at him and got off the bed before grabbing the remaining gauze and beginning to shove it back into Soarin’s bag. He was humming a little victory tune that only seemed to make his smile groan.

“H-Hey, Braeburn?” Soarin asked. Braeburn snapped his head to Soarin in attention and raised his eyebrow.

“Hmm?” Braeburn's eyes met Soarin's own.

“I was just… wondering what you were doing today.” Soarin coughed into his hoof and continued to feel his newly bandaged wing. “I mean, the rest of the morning I guess.”

“Well Ah mostly just planned ta visit Daddy. He gets outta the hospital next week an Ah wanna make sure Ah have the home ready fer him.” Braeburn nodded his head firmly and zipped up Soarin’s bag again. “Course that was after I finished up here. Why ya askin?”

“Do you wanna eat some breakfast with me?” Soarin asked the stallion. He was running his hoof through his mane in somewhat of an attempt to make it less of a mess than before.

“Ya ain’t very original, are ya? Ah’m gonna get bored of ya if we do that fer a third time,” Braeburn giggled and stood before Soarin, but a frown soon fell upon his lips. “But Ah thought ya didn’t feel well enough ta leave the hotel.”

“Ever hear of this thing called room service?” Soarin reached over to the end table beside his bed and snatched up a menu with listings all down the front and back. “I’ve been pigging out for a few days. We can just… y’know, talk for a while. You can tell me more about the farm. I mean, as long as you don’t want to see your dad soon.”

“That sounds mighty fine, actually.” Braeburn got up onto the bed and scooted next to Soarin. Their bodies pressed together when Braeburn leaned over to him to look at the menu. He could feel his own cheeks blush and his body squirm when he giggled. Soarin was warm. He was tired and ruffled and just a bit cranky, but he was still warm. Braeburn had to resist the urge to nuzzle up closer to him. “Just know if yer payin’ Ah’m gonna get somethin’ expensive… actually everything in this hotel’s expensive…”

“Hey, the wonderbolts are all chipping in on this room till I get better,” Soarin laughed and handed Braeburn the menu. “Far as I’m concerned it’s a buffet."

“Well then,” Braeburn gave Soarin a dastardly grin. “I’d be happy ta join ya."

Author's Note

LIKE A PHOENIX I EMERGE FROM THE ASHES!

MMMM guess whose struggling to remember plot details he forgot.

Guess who also is not used to posting major stories without an outsider viewing it! Mmm that's right it's me.