“Philomena!” An irate voice called out, shaking the very foundations on which Canterlot Castle resided. Not more than a few seconds later did the hurried footsteps of a panicked phoenix echo through the hall before finding their way to a particular room. Without a moment of hesitation, the phoenix hastily flung open the door before closing it to reveal what she hoped would be her ticket to freedom, or at least away from one very livid Sun Princess. With no time to lose and the grace of a half-drunken Wombat, Philomena flung herself over the unmade bed, taking most of the covers in the process as she desperately tried to conceal herself in their cloak of safety.
Not even a second after Philomena had gotten situated, the door to the room was almost magically blown off its hinges, revealing a rather scary looking Sun Princess.
“Where is she?” Celestia questioned, her voice never losing its irritated tone as she scanned the room for any possible places of refuge.
“And a good morning to you too Celestia,” another voice responded, though it didn’t seem all that surprised as to what exactly had Celestia fuming.
“I know she is in here Eric. Tell me where she is,” Celestia all but spat out. With a single glance from his desk, Eric caught the expression of his friend. It was an expression he had seen on several occasions, indicating exactly the situation Philomena had gotten herself in.
“What was it this time, cake or cookies?” Eric asked, though his tone seemed devoid of emotion almost as if this was a common occurrence.
“It was cookies, but that is beside the point. Where is she?” Celestia addressed again, putting Eric in a conundrum of sorts. On the one hand, he could out Philomena, allowing for a comical and most likely scary confrontation. Or he could just play dumb, and hope that Celestia wouldn’t tear his room apart looking for her cookie thief.
“Sorry Celestia, but I don’t know where she is. I have been working on designs all day,” he replied, motioning to his desk that held several designs of whatever project he seemed to be working on at the time. Celestia continued to glare daggers at her friend, not entirely convinced of his innocence. With a soft sigh though, Celestia relented.
“Very well. If you happen to see Philomena anytime soon, please let her know that I would like a talk with her. A long talk,” Celestia stated, emphasizing the last part just in case a certain sweets stealing phoenix happened to be within earshot. With a light wave of his hand, Celestia departed, leaving the room in an awkward silence.
“She’s gone now,” Eric stated a short time later, though his attention was still focused on the designs in front of him. After a bit of a struggle, Philomena managed to untangle herself from the mass of comforter before rising to her feet and making her way over to her savior.
“You know for a moment, I thought you were going to throw me to the wolves?” Philomena said, wrapping her arms around her friend.
“I thought about it actually. Even though you are a phoenix, I still don’t want to see you tempt death,” he replied. Philomena could only giggle at his response before pulling out the large bag of cookies that had gotten her into this mess.
“You sure it’s not because you like me? I am very lovable after all,” She teased, opening the bag and handing Eric his reward. He chuckled lightly before taking the delectable sweet.
“You are a spontaneous, rash, troublemaker that always seems to get me caught up in your schemes. What’s not to love?” Eric sarcastically questioned, receiving a light hit as a response.
“You know you like it. Without me, your life would be a lot more boring.”
“And a lot more peaceful,” he finished, watching as Philomena stuffed her face with one of the cookies.
“You should also be watching how many of those you eat. Keep it up and all that sugar will go straight to your ass,” Eric chided. Philomena paused the consumption of her tasty treat, before a devious grin shown on her face.
“If I recall correctly, I have caught you on several occasions staring at my wonderful ass,” she retorted, noticing the light blush apparent on her friend’s face.
“And I have told you on those many occasions, that I was staring at your wings, not your ass.” Eric countered, though the blush was still evident on his face. After a few more bouts of teasing, Philomena peered over her friend’s shoulder, scanning the designs of whatever he seemed to be working on.
“So what are you designing anyway?” Philomena curiously questioned. Her friend chuckled lightly to himself before slowly setting down his pen.
“It’s a hydroelectric generator. Kind of like the magical generators we use in here in Canterlot, though it doesn’t require any outside recharging. You just place it in the right area and boom, free energy.” Eric stated, with a bit more enthusiasm than she was normally accustomed too.
“That’s good and all Eric, but why design one when we can just recharge the ones we already have in place?” Eric sighed before looking down at his designs once again.
“This isn’t exactly meant for the equines of Equestria Philomena. I know it would take a lot of money and resources to replace the current generators we already have. In the long run it may be worth it, but the system is fine for now. When I designed this, I had other countries in mind. Countries that don’t rely on magic as a primary source of energy or ones that may find it difficult or expensive to continually power their generators.” He paused for a moment before smiling.
“Just imagine Philomena, the ability to supply energy to developing countries with little to no cost. All they need is a steady flow of water and they will be able to power whatever it is they may need; running water, sanitation, lights, things that we take for granted.” Eric finished with a fiery passion in his words. Philomena couldn’t help but smile softly as she continued to wrap her arms around her friend.
“You’re a good person Eric, you know that?” she stated, resting her chin on top of his head in the process. Eric couldn’t help but flush lightly at the contact, though after a few moments he grew a small smile of his own.
“I think I was brought here to do something good for all life living on Equis. I think this a step in the right direction,” he stated, feeling the weight of Philomena pressing lightly into his back as she tightened her hug.
“I wish more people would think like you,” she stated softly, before releasing her arms from around her friend.
“Come on. You’ve been working all day. Let’s take a break and maybe head into the city for something eat,” Philomena suggested. Before Eric could even answer, a loud gurgle from his stomach beat him to it.
“Well, I think you have my answer,” he playfully added before standing up from the seat at his desk. As the two friends made their way across the room, a dizzying sensation filled the vision of Eric, sending the helpless human to the floor for a brief moment. Turning her attention to the source of the noise, Philomena quickly rushed over to her friend, offering him a helping hand.
“Hey, are you ok?” Philomena asked, concern very evident in her voice. Shaking his head a few times, the dizziness began to fade as the human righted himself with the help of his friend.
“Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry about that. I didn’t get too much sleep last night and combined with lack of food,” he trailed off, orienting himself with the room once again.
“Are you sure you want to go into the city then. I'm sure we can have some of the chefs make us something here,” Philomena asked, receiving a light shake of her friend’s head.
“Nah, I think I'm good. Besides, the fresh air will do me good.” Eric added, though it didn’t dissuade the concerned look in Philomena’s eyes.
“Ok then. If you start to feel dizzy again just let me know. Can’t have you passing out in the middle of the street without my camera after all.” She jested, trying to lighten up the mood. This seemed to do the trick as Eric responded with a chuckle of his own.
“Wouldn’t be the first time I passed out in the middle of street. Though I believe you were in the same predicament with me at the time,” he stated. Thoughts of that night’s events flashed through both of their heads, causing both parties to laugh at their previous antics.
The walk into the city was short like always, though the two decided on a slower pace due to obvious reasons. Within the hour both friends had made their way towards a quaint little diner for their afternoon meal.
“So Eric. What kept you up last night?” Philomena inquired, sipping at her beverage as she stared at the human in question. She was met with a shrug of her friend’s shoulders.
“Nothing really. I just couldn’t sleep.” He stated, reciprocating his friend’s actions as he sipped on a drink of his own.
“Oh really? You sure it wasn’t my wonderful ass in your thoughts that kept you up all night?” She questioned. Her comment seemed to have its desired effect, causing the unsuspecting human to choke on his drink, sending the Phoenix into a state of laughter. It took a few seconds for the human to catch his breath, having almost sprayed Philomena with his lime flavored soda. Before he could even offer a rebuttal a waiter greeted the two with their lunches in hand.
“Alright, I have the grilled chicken salad and Chicken Penne Pasta,” the waiter politely said. Eric lightly raised his hand first; indicating that the salad was in fact for him and by default the pasta was for Philomena.
“Here you two go. If you need anything else don’t hesitate to ask.” And with that, the waiter had left the two friends to their meal.
“You know, you should really start eating healthier. Like I said before, if you keep eating like that that it will all go straight to your ass,” Eric stated. The comment was just loud enough to gain the attention of two mares a table back. Philomena’s cheeks quickly tinted a dark shade of red, as the giggling sensation of the mares filled her ears. She had to admit, she wasn’t him to embarrass her in front of strangers, though she wasn’t too upset. Eric’s randomness and well-timed remarks were one of the very things she enjoyed about him. Being born in the city of Canterlot, one tends to develop a higher-class sense of humor. Sexual jokes and jokes involving race are often looked down upon. Add to the fact that she herself is good friends with royalty; there were many nobles who looked down upon the phoenix for not acting as she should.
It didn’t take too long for the both Eric and Philomena to finish their meals. After paying, along with a generous tip, the two decided to roam about the city, trying to find something to do that would entertain them for the next couple of hours.
“Oh Eric! Let’s go in here!” Philomena beamed, practically begging her friend to stop as he took notice of the sign.
“Philomena, you know how much I hate clothes shopping,” Eric responded, though Philomena’s pouty face was almost too much for the human to handle. With a defeated sigh he was quickly pulled into the store by the overzealous phoenix.
In all honesty, the experience wasn’t too bad. Shopping had never been one of Eric’s interests, even when he was back on Earth. Countless shopping endeavors with his sister had made him reluctant to shop by himself, let alone with someone else. Though the joyful look Philomena had when she pawed through the never-ending piles of clothing, it brought a smile to his face. That is until they stumbled upon a particular section of the store.
“Oh Eric, what do you think of these?” Philomena innocently asked, though her intentions were anything but that. Held in her grasp were a pair of fiery red underwear, that whether Eric wanted to admit or not, complimented her pale skin and brightly colored wings.
“It seems a little small. Maybe you should go a size up,” Eric casually responded, receiving a rather harsh hit from his now, partially embarrassed friend.
“Very funny Eric. Just remember, I know where you sleep at night,” Philomena playfully threatened, though her tone hinted a small amount of seriousness as well. Knowing full well that he was not about to win this war, Eric raised both of his hands in defeat.
“Fine, you win. Though if you really want my opinion, they compliment your figure and complexion,” Eric truthfully stated. Philomena couldn’t hide the small blush creeping up on her cheeks from the compliment. However, she was more than satisfied with her friend’s compliance and opinion though she wasn’t quite done. In order to up the ante and for a little payback for the food comment earlier, Philomena quickly made her way over to another section of the store before returning with a lacy red bra to match.
“That’s what I like to hear. Keep up the flattering and you may even get a treat tonight,” the phoenix teased with sultry tone. Instead of the embarrassed response she expected from her friend, Eric could only respond with a roll of eyes.
“If that treat has anything to do with sweets, you might need to do battle with the sun,” Eric retorted, causing Philomena’s body to tense. With all of the fun she had been having, the forgetful phoenix suddenly remembered the very livid Sun Princess that she would have to face at dinner that evening.
“Ugh, don’t remind me. If I'm lucky, I will only have to revive once or twice tonight,” Philomena joked. In all honesty though, she was dreading the lecture she was sure to get later on that evening. A soft hand soon found it’s way on her shoulder, comforting the fugitive as she mused over her sweet stealing crime.
“Don’t worry. I will stop her from doing anything too rash,” Eric stated with a heartfelt smile. It was another thing that Philomena loved about the human. He had the ability to make almost all of her worries disappear, no matter the situation. The thought alone brought a smile to her face.
“Oh, my hero!” Philomena dramatically voiced, wrapping her arms around Eric in a playful embrace. The human quickly noticed all of the stares the two were receiving, trying desperately to pry his friend off of him.
The two friends parted from one another a moment later, though Philomena began twiddling her thumbs like something else was on her mind.
“E-Eric, since you are my knight in shiny armor now, c-can I have one more favor from you?” Philomena’s voice had evolved from its usual energetic and playful tone, to one of child-like innocence and pleading. The puppy dog eyes she was also giving gave the human little chance of denying her request. Knowing he had no chance of disappointing his friend, Eric nodded his head as he had a bad feeling in the pit of his wallet.
Eric and Philomena exited the store a few minutes later with the human’s coin bag a few bits lighter. Eric knew what to expect when he noticed the change in Philomena’s behavior, though for the life of him he couldn’t say no whenever she made that face.
“So what do you plan on doing until dinner?” Philomena curiously asked, twirling her bag around in her hand without a care in the world.
“Well, I will probably work on my designs a little longer before hitting the gym,” Eric responded, though it was more of himself thinking aloud than a definitive response. Philomena immediately stopped twirling her bag as a thought shot through her head.
“Please don’t push yourself too hard,” Philomena stated in a tone laced with concern. Eric quickly adopted a small smile as he heard his friend’s words. The way that she could be flirty one second and very protective the next was one of the things Eric loved about Philomena. It highlighted her caring attitude and undying devotion to her friends.
“Aww, you do care about me. You’re so sweet.” Philomena quickly scoffed at her friend’s comment, though there was no denying the small smile she held.
“Please, without you who else would harbor me from the wrath of the Sun?” Both parties let out another bout of laughter as they made their way back towards Canterlot Castle.
Several hours had passed since Philomena and Eric had parted ways. In all honesty, Philomena found herself on the receiving end of the boredom bug. One can only read for so long after all. Luckily, it was half an hour till dinner, which meant that Philomena was only half an hour away from gorging herself on an assortment of delectable sweets combined with the company of her best friend.
“What more could a girl ask for,” Philomena thought, before a mischievous grin crawled along the phoenix’s face. Standing from her spot on the sofa she had been lazing about on, Philomena made her way towards her chambers door, a noticeable bounce in her step as she set off towards an unsuspecting human’s room.
Philomena took around five minutes to reach her destination. She was rather glad that her friend’s room was located in the general vicinity of hers. If it had been located on the opposing side of the castle, it would have taken at least twenty minutes to reach his room. With such close proximity, it allowed the devious little phoenix to prank whomever she pleased, while knowing she had a safe house away from her own room but still within a manageable distance. As the thoughts of previous pranks soon surfaced through her mind, Philomena had to use her hand to stifle a giggle.
After gaining control of her short bout of giggles, Philomena used her hand to gently turn the knob on her friend’s door. She wasn’t positive, though from previous encounters this would be the time Eric would usually take his shower. As she slowly poked her head through the door, she was relieved to find that her assumption had been correct.
Closing the door as lightly as she could, Philomena then made her way from one door of the room to the other. No doubt that the other door led to the bathroom, and from the ringing of cascading from the other side of the door, Philomena knew she had timed it right. Repeating her actions from before, Philomena took a hand before placing it gently on the handle of the bathroom door. With practiced patience, she slowly opened the door, praying to the gods that it wouldn’t make a sound, or if it did, the running water would drown it out. She had little experience in a situation like this, for she had attempted this prank only once before. However, she was rewarded with one of the most comical reactions she had yet to elicit from her friend. Eric, to his unknowing, had been the victim of the phoenix as the devious girl stole his change of clothes, forcing the poor human to confront her with a small towel gripped tightly around his waist. To say the little troublemaker was pleased with her work would have been an understatement, though one could also argue that she had ulterior motives for that sort of prank as well.
After what seemed like a decade of patiently cracking open the door, Philomena had managed to gain entrance into the bathroom. All she had to do now was locate the human’s pile of clothes and possibly his towel, before retreating to the other part of his chambers and waiting. However, as Philomena scanned the contents of the bathroom, her eyes grew wide in horror. There, lying unconscious in the middle of the bathroom floor was Eric. The human’s attire had changed since they departed from one another, a pair of gym shorts and plain grey t-shirt adorning his body, indicating that he didn’t make it into the shower at all.
Rushing over to his side, Philomena began to gently shake her friend, trying desperately to wake him from his unresponsive state. With her tactics getting her nowhere, Philomena hoisted the human over her back, grunting lightly from the weight as she quickly made her way towards the medical wing of the castle.
The time was now well into the night. Hours had passed since Philomena discovered Eric’s unconscious body, though she couldn’t be bothered with such trivial details as time. Her thoughts continued to focus on Eric and everything that could have contributed to the fact of him passing out. After a few moments of thought the Philomena mentally scolded herself for not bringing him to the infirmary the first time he collapsed.
“If I had only been a bit more assertive.” Philomena was pulled from her thoughts as a white figured quickly made their way through the door and towards the distraught phoenix. The newcomer wasted no time in enveloping her friend in a soothing embrace, her large white wings and gentle touch trying to give Philomena any sort of comfort she could.
“How is he?” The voice of Celestia softly spoke, though anyone could tell it was plagued with worry. Philomena shook her head before sighing.
“I don’t know Tia. The doctors haven’t said anything...” it was in that moment that another set of doors opened, revealing a brown-mane stallion with a clipboard in hand. He looked exhausted, though that was more than expected after tending to his patient for the better half of three hours.
“Tell us doc, how is he?” Philomena questioned, quickly breaking away from the embrace of Celestia for any new information on her friend. The doctor gave the two friends a small shake of his head before sighing.
“Eric is fine for the moment, though he is still unconscious,” the stallion stated, much to the relief of both Celestia and Philomena. The knots in both of their stomachs lessened at the news of their friend. Unfortunately, the doctor had yet to deliver his full report.
“With that being said, I'm afraid to say that his condition will not be improving. He may regain consciousness, though as his body is concerned,” the doctor trailed off, trying to find the right way to phrase the situation. He knew that there was no easy way of saying what he had too and the exhaustion he was experiencing might have contributed to his judgment call. Though there was no denying what the test results claimed.
“There is no easy way for me to say this, and I wish it wasn’t the case. But I must say what has to be said.” The stallion paused once more before preparing himself for what no doctor ever wants to tell their patient’s friends and family.
“I'm sorry, but Eric Lancer is dying.”
Author's Note
Sup everyone. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. There will only be two or three chapters total in this story. It was something I have had in my head for a very long time. Not to mention that I don't think Philomena gets that much love anymore. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy and don't forget to comment, good or bad.