Coltcuddler

Dream Chaser couldn't think straight. He stumbled over his words, and could barely stand upright. Gregor, too, was clearly feeling the effects of the spirits, whatever they were. Oak, on the other hand, seemed fine.

His anxiety from before was gone. The alcohol had set in, enjoining him with a wonderful sensation of security and calm. Grubs and Gretel had joined them again, and together they had sat in silence for the past twenty minutes, staring into each others eyes. They looked like lovers, lost in close embrace, but Dream Chaser knew they were high on much more than each other.

Gregor leaned in once more. For a moment, Dream Chaser expected him to vomit, but instead, he spoke, with surprising clarity to his voice. 'All right, kid. Enough fuckin' me around. Why did your dad really give you the hoof? You steal from him?'

Dream Chaser was drunk, but he wasn't recklessly drunk. He quickly shook his head, which seemed to annoy Gregor.

'Come on, you can tell - hic - you can tell me. I swear. You know, when I was your...' He leaned in, shook, and vomited onto the floor. Oak shifted slightly to avoid the puddle. Gregor wiped his mouth, then continued. 'When I was your age? I fu- I fuck - I killed my brother.' He leant backwards, claws raised. 'Used to beat my mom. So I killed him. Ripped his throat out with my own claws. Now? I'm lying low in this crappy city until the heat dies down.'

Dream Chaser's eyes widened. Behind him, Oak chuckled. 'You always say that. Make yourself sound tough. I say you got done for insurance fraud.'

Gregor shrugged. 'Believe what you want. My point is, nothing you say is gonna shock me.'

Dream Chaser hesitated. 'Nothing?'

Gregor shook his head solemnly. 'Nothing.'

Dream Chaser wasn't sure what it was. Maybe it was the booze. The look on Gregor's face. Maybe it was just the right combination of things. But he knew he could confide in them.

'I'm... a coltcuddler. My dad found out. So he threw me out.'

Gregor nodded solemnly. 'Gotta say, I wasn't expecting that. That's... shit.' He sighed. 'I don't know. My species, we, uh, we don't really tolerate stuff like that. But I guess I'm not one to judge. I mean, shit, I'm a fucking drug addict and a criminal.'

Oak followed up. 'He's right. Not much room here for judgement.'

Gregor rubbed his claws together. 'Ah, shit. So fucking awkward.' Reaching for his bottle, he raised it to his beak, only to find it empty. 'Fuck.' Rummaging around the sofa. he quickly produced a small leather bag. Spilling it's contents onto the floor, Dream Chaser saw it contained a series of small, white pills, each stamped with a "R".

Gregor pushed two pills his direction. 'You in?'

Dream Chaser held his bottle up to his muzzle. Like Gregor's, it too was empty. 'Sure'.

Dream Chaser wasn't sure how long he had been out. He could hear birds chirping outside.

Those pills had shown him things. Terrifying things. Beautiful things. He stumbled to his hooves, breathing heavily. He could feel his heart pounding in his chest, harder and faster than ever before. Around him, the others laid unconscious.

A stirring behind him startled him, causing him to spin around on the spot. Gregor had woken up, and was hazily blinking at him. 'You're alive. That's good.'

Dream Chaser decided to disregard that statement. 'I, uh... yeah.'

Gregor grinned at him. 'Powerful shit, isn't it?'

Dream Chaser nodded, the beating in his heart seeming to, impossibly, accelerate. 'Where can I get more?'

Gregor jerked his claw in the direction of Oak's unconscious body. 'He's got a stash. He's not gonna give them away. Might have to work out a deal.' Stretching his wings, Gregor nodded at him. 'I have to run an, uh, "errand". I'll see you in a few.'

With that, he took off.

Dream Chaser sat down on the empty couch. He didn't need more. He didn't need more. He didn't need...

'I need...'

Oak was woken by a gentle, yet urgent shaking. Opening his eyes, he was able to make out the shape of the kid from last night. 'What the-'

'Please... just.. one...'

Oak rose to full height, looking down at the colt, wide eyed and hopping from hoof to hoof. 'What do you need?'

'P-pill.'

Oh...

Oak was surprised. He had expected it to take a few attempts before the kid got hooked. Gregor had said otherwise, but anyone with half a brain knew better than to believe anything that flying rat said. Still, true to his word, one pill and the kid's brain was fried.

'Well... I could give you one... But I'd need something in return.'

Dream Chaser nodded. 'Ok. What?'

'Your dad's house. Got anything valuable in it?'

Dream Catcher's face fell. For the most fleeting of moments, he looked conflicted. But then the itch kicked in again. 'Lots. A-a-a lot of bits. Hundreds. Under his bed in a chest. My mom's old diamond necklace. Just.. please.'

Oak held up a hoof. 'Slow down. All right. You tell me where they are, how I can get hold of them. Then I'll give you one. All right?'

Dream Chaser nodded. For the next twenty minutes, he answered every question diligently. Finally, Oak looked up. 'All right, that should be enough.'

Turning to rummage around in his stash, he produced a leather bag, identical to the one Gregor had last night. 'Here. Take two. Don't take any more. Seriously.' He threw the bag at the kid's hooves. 'See you around.'

With that, he was gone. Dream Chaser was once again alone, with only the slumbering bodies of Gretel and Grubs for company.