Between a Rock and A Nice Place

I awoke to a pulsing in my ears and my laboured breathing, still slumped against the tree, the pain in my stomach still there.

I groaned and used the tree for leverage to get up.

"Has it really passed that time?" I asked as I looked at my phone, I got an IPhone 6 Gold for my birthday, and every so often I'd do this.

I reached into my bag and sat back down pulling my knees close to my chest, and pulled out my Colt and golden bullet.

I twirled it again and stared ahead, watching things unveil in Ponyville, it looked as though they were chasing some kind of featherless chicken... possibly Celestia's Phoenix?

No matter, I twirled the bullet for a few seconds before getting an empty clip from my bag and slotting it in.

I looked on and saw the bird coming back from the flames, as Celestia explained and Twilight gave her friendship report...

Heh, friendship, to be truthful, Lee, Johnner and Marl were my only friends, everyone else at the party was just looking for an excuse to drink, and I hardly ever see Johnner and Lee, Marl was more frequent but I still didn't him much either... truthfully I was alone, the only thing keeping me going protecting my little brother, he is technically my cousin but we're close enough to be brothers.

I took my hoodie off, put it in my bag and inspected my wounds, they were starting to bleed through the bandages...

I put the clip in the gun and chambered the bullet and put the gun barrel to my head, suddenly I felt a rush of wind and saw the Princesses bird next to me, looking at me with a scolding look...

"Shoo! go on!" I harshly whispered, suddenly I dropped my hands over my knees and sighed, but I also felt a single stitch rip, I could never do it, did that make me a coward? or make me brave?

"Philomena!" I heard a soft yet commanding voice call.

"You better go." I said to the bird, then it gave me a look to say 'I'm telling...' suddenly it squaked like a bleeding siren!

I jumped up painfully, put one of my bags straps on my back and legged it...

-Meanwhile Philomena's POV-

As I saw my mother Celestia run up with her student and her friends, Celestia raised an eyebrow.

"What is it?" asked Twilight to the me.

"She sometimes does this if somepony is in danger..." said my mother, sounding sceptical.

I nodded furiously.

"Oh my!" exclaimed Fluttershy.

"But she could just be pulling our hind legs." said Celestia with a glance toward me.

I shook and jumped around where he had been sitting, where scuff marks are.

"She's right! she's jumping in blood!" exclaimed Flutter- I stopped... blood?!

I looked down and saw a pool of blood where he had been sitting... he was going to hurt himself with that thing he was holding! I know it! he was already hurt!

I suddenly jumped on my mother's back and squawked in her ear, I never did this unless it was important... or Luna told me to...

"Girls! this is serious now!" said Celestia and the girls nodded with a fixed glare.

We started to follow the blood trail, I jumped up and soared off to find him while my mother disappeared in white light.

-Meanwhile, My POV-

I ran... and ran... and ran...

My stomach had reopened slightly and I was bleeding, badly.

Suddenly a pony teleported in front of me... Celestia! her eyes were white from the teleport...

-Celestia's POV-

I pinpointed the pony's location and teleported in front of him/her, but the sudden teleport and brightness rendered me unable to see for a few seconds...

-My POV-

Wait... was she blind?

Maybe a side effect that lasts a few seconds...

Luckily my cousin taught me how to freerun and parkour, I dropped to the floor and hugged my bag to my chest, sliding beneath her.

I jumped back up, red as a tomato from clutching my backpack so hard., but didn't waste any time as I had reopened a few more stitches.

Suddenly I saw RD come in, in a swoop toward me to stop me, but there was sun glare so she couldn't properly see me, I moved left at the last minute and she crashed into Rarity and Pinkie, who had just turned a corner with Fluttershy hiding behind said corner.

I saw AJ, also in the sun glare, she threw a lasso at me and I caught it, she closed her eyes and pulled, I jumped on a tree with one foot, put the loop on a branch and left her to find out, as I dropped, I reopened another few stitches and fell over, going arse over teakettle into a gorge.

I got up and limped further in, losing blood fast.

I used branches for leverage to move faster.

I coughed blood and fell over again, I heard foothoofsteps behind me and I crawled away, getting behind a tree trunk and sitting down, wheezing, I spat blood on the floor, seeing that damned bird on a branch looking at me, and squawked as I lost consciousness.

-Princess Celestia's POV-

How had he avoided seven of us?

Me and Twilight should've been able to catch him, one minute I saw a silhouette, the next it dropped to the floor and disappeared...

Suddenly a squawk was heard from Philomena and we ran toward it, we found her and... an odd creature slumped against a tree, bleeding from it's midsection and breathing heavily.

"OH MY GOSH!" exclaimed Fluttershy and ran over to it.

"It was scared... why was it scared of me?" asked Pinkie and her mane slightly deflated.

"It was scared of all of us Pinks." reassured Rainbow which made her a little better.

"It looks bad..." said AJ.

"He was injured by an object, he stitched himself up, which would have been fine, but we and Philomena must have scared him so he ran away and reopened his stitches..." said Fluttershy.

"He?!" asked everypony, including me.

"Yes! I do know anatomy you know?" asked Fluttershy.

"How is he?" I asked, concerned for his health.

"Oh right! Twilight, take him to the library, Rainbow, help me gather my first aid things from my cottage, my house isn't big enough for all of us." she... almost demanded.

Everypony nodded and I tried to use my magic to put him on my back, but magic didn't work on him!

Twilight put him on AJ's back and tied him to her using the lasso so he wouldn't fall.

"Boy is he heavy!" exclaimed AJ and jumped slightly to reinforce her point, which made him cough blood violently.

"APPLEjACK! BE CAREFUL WITH HIM! if could please..." scolded Fluttershy.

Applejack's ears were back at her friends outburst, and saw the blood he coughed up.

"Ah course." she nodded, we all started to run from the forest, with Applejack having to stop when he coughed.

We burst into the library.

"SPIKE! CLEAR THE BED!!!" yelled Twilight, I saw Spike wake up and run to the bedroom as Applejack carried him up.

"Why? wha- Princess Celestia!" exclaimed Spike and bowed instantly.

"It's ok Spike, no need." I said quickly and used magic to untie the rope around him, before nudging him from Applejack's back onto the bed.

"What is that?"

"You mean who is that?" I asked him with a raised eyebrow, he gasped and corrected himself.

I couldn't help but feel partially responsible for him.

Suddenly Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash burst in and we cleared the way.

Fluttershy put her hoof near him, he grabbed it instantly and was bleeding from his mouth, Fluttershy asked Rainbow to hold his claw down as gentle as she could.

She started to pierce his skin with a needle and stopped instantly as he thrashed and roared, I held his other claw down and as soon as he saw me, he calmed...

He held a gaze on me for a second, when Fluttershy started again, he never moved, never made a sound, and let her work, it seemed impossible... anypony would still be thrashing no matter what, he held his gaze on me, then he looked around in wonder .

Silence as she sewed his stomach up, apart from his laboured breathing.

When she finished she had blood all over her hooves and muzzle, Spike had prepared and brought her a basin of water.

I noticed it had gone from me holding his claw down, to him holding my hoof gently, I looked over to him and saw he had passed out.

Fluttershy noticed and quickly moved over, putting an ear to his mouth, she sighed in relief as he breathed.

"Come on girls, he should be up in an hour." said Fluttershy.

"I will keep an eye on him, and call you when he wakes." I said, he still was gently holding my hoof.