Doctor Fay had remained in the Royal Orphanage for longer than she thought, but it was clear that she was still needed. Her job as an administrator could still be done from where she was, and so she had yet to return to Canterlot.

Doctor Fay had been enjoying the crisp fresh air of the Royal Orphanage, as well as the quietness. Relative quietness, of course - kids tended to be loud at the best of times no matter the species, but it was still nothing in comparison to the constant droning buzz of Canterlot crowds that she had grown to... passionately dislike. There was a good reason why her Canterlot apartment was essentially a room within a room, thoroughly insulated against noise, with her windows being so thick and well-built that nothing save for an explosion or similarly loud things could ever be heard. It was blessed silence, and the blackout curtains guaranteed perfect darkness when she needed to sleep.

The Royal Orphanage didn’t require such extensive measures, and so her room was not as insulated, yet she found that she didn’t mind. The sounds of nature, as muffled as they were, were quite welcome, and she had found she was sleeping better, and her overall stress was quite a bit less. In all honesty, if not for her job, she would not step a single hoof back into any city if she could help it.

Despite the relatively peaceful atmosphere around and inside the Royal Orphanage, not all things were perfect. Many young ponies - and sometimes not ponies - came to the Royal Orphanage... Doctor Fay didn’t use the word damaged, although plenty of others would describe those people, but they were certainly traumatized in one way or another. The loud and brazen independents who ran away from home seeking freedom, the quiet and withdrawn who wanted to be left alone, the angry who wanted to rage against the unfairness that had befallen them, and many other different kinds of people came to the Royal Orphanage, and every single one of them needed help in order to find balance, to find peace, and to move on with their lives, to become the best versions of themselves that they could.

One such case was Blazing Fire, who had come to the Royal Orphanage full of anger and fear, lashing out at the smallest provocation. From what Doctor Fay had managed to find out, she had never been appreciated by those around her no matter what she did, and so she had turned to rebellion. When that brought nothing but punishment and even less understanding than before, she had run from her life and sought a new way, her way. Unfortunately, in a city as big as Manehattan, she had been nothing but a faceless shape in a crowd, with no place she knew where to go and no one willing to accept her due to her temper.

Doctor Fay had found Blazing Fire nursing a broken leg not far from the railroad close to Ponyville. Doctor Fay had been on a refreshing walk then when she heard curses and gasps of pain.

“Oh dear,” Doctor Fay had muttered then, her mind already working on a solution. She could quickly run to Ponyville and get someone, but the young mare in front of her had a look in her eyes, a look that begged for help and would see it as abandonment should Fay turn around even with the best intentions in mind, “Let me help you up.”

Blazing Fire hissed and cursed, her mouth spouting such a number of swear words that Fay was genuinely impressed. She had heard her accent then, a Manehattan accent, and certain phrases, even when they were curses, squarely placed her as a Manehattan native. Ponyville was a long way from Manehattan, and Fay was already figuring out how Blazing Fire found herself there.

Most likely, Blazing Fire had jumped on a cargo train, hitching a ride. Perhaps she wanted to come off at a certain point before she would be found out at a train station, or perhaps she had somehow slipped and fallen off the train. Either way, the result was the same - she was bruised, there were some cuts, and one of her front legs was broken. Painful, but definitely survivable, which Fay was very thankful for. It could have ended in a much worse way, after all. Blazing Fire had survived, and so she would, in time, thrive.

“Fuck!” Blazing Fire yelled when her broken leg was jostled, “Watch it!”

“I will,” Doctor Fay nodded, now walking more carefully, doing her best not to move her body too suddenly.

Others would perhaps berate Blazing Fire for the language she used or the tone, but Doctor Fay found such an approach foolish. Nothing lowered the opinion of someone in the eyes of a young person more than tone policing. Doctor Fay knew that they only desired to be heard, and not just their words but the meaning of what they were trying to say. And so Fay had learned to see deeper than the surface.

Blazing Fire was angry at what had happened, as well as afraid of what would happen next. This resulted in her behavior, and it was up to Fay to get Blazing Fire to trust her to do the right thing, and not just that but do it in her clear favor.

As Doctor Fay carried the young mare, she asked her questions. That was how she learned her name, and she had a strong suspicion that the young mare hadn’t given her her birth name. Not that it mattered - ponies tended to change names somewhat regularly compared to other species, and Fay could and should do nothing except respect it. There was no faster way to lose someone’s respect than by not recognizing their own personhood,

Of course, Blazing Fire had refused to tell Fay anything about her past. Fay only learned her name, her gender, and that she ‘fell’. Fay didn’t pry then, knowing her limits.

Doctor Fay had stayed with Blazing Fire when the young mare was healed and then was recovering in the Ponyville Hospital, providing steady and unquestioning support that, day by day, made Blazing Fire relax more and more and, in time, show some trust.

“I don’t want to go to a fucking orphanage,” Blazing Fire told her, her muzzle scrunched as if ‘orphanage’ was some kind of a dirty word.

“The Royal Orphanage will give you food, water, and a roof over your head,” Fay patiently explain, “And if you do not want to be adopted by a family, then you won’t be. You can stay for as long as you need, no one will demand anything more of you than following simple rules.”

“Oh yeah? What are those rules?” Blazing Fire almost spat the last word out, and it appeared it was even more dirty than ‘orphanage’.

“Nothing like ‘make your bed in the morning’, I can guarantee that,” Doctor Fay smiled, and Blazing Fire made an amused snort which she then seemed to regret in some way, “Do not hurt others unless in self-defense, do not steal, and, generally speaking, it can be summed up as ‘do not be a dick’.”

Blazing Fire laughed then. Naturally, the rules were more complex than that, but the gist of it was entirely correct, and that was what mattered.

Doctor Fay kept observing her as she recovered physically and mentally. Slowly but surely, she had gotten a friend, then two - quite a lot of progress in just the first week. No-strings-attached access to food, water, and shelter tended to loosen most ponies up, and the initial trust Fay had built with Blazing Fire had prevented the latter from letting her temper grow out of control. Some would perhaps call what Doctor Fay did manipulation, but the doctor herself thought that the entire field of psychology was about manipulating oneself and others into changing. That was, perhaps, a crude description, but, to her, it was accurate enough.

Blazing Fire was, of course, not the only one Doctor Fay was helping, and she could see more people coming to her. After all, there was never a shortage of young ones who needed a different environment to thrive. For a young one to desire escape from home didn’t require something as bad as outright abuse - sometimes it was simple incompatibility between family and the child in question. The family wanted one thing, the child wanted another, and a compromise could not be reached, and so everyone was slowly but certainly growing resentful and bitter. Often, such problems were easily resolved locally, thankfully. Perhaps the child would go to other parts of the same family and remain in contact with their parents, or perhaps a family of a friend would be willing to adopt.

Doctor Fay would hesitate to say that the Royal Orphanage took the ‘worst’ cases. Or ‘the most troubled’. The truth was, the more complex cases went to the Royal Orphanage. In Blazing Fire’s particular case, she had strongly expressed her desire to not be adopted.

“Fuck no,” she said when the option was brought up.

Doctor Fay could try to convince her otherwise, of course, but the truth was, she was only shy of a year of being an adult, and she already had plans.

“Go to college or some shit,” she said.

It was not exactly a detailed plan, but she had already shown herself willing to learn as long as the approach was right. So, despite her words seeming flippant, they were not thoughtless. To Doctor Fay, it was clear that Blazing Fire was strongly independently-minded, unwilling to place herself under what she saw as absolute authority of people she didn’t know and didn’t want to know. In part, perhaps it was also fear of being rejected, of never fitting in. But, if that was indeed the case, Blazing Fire had yet to make it known.

Of course, she was under the authority of the Royal Orphanage staff, but there was a certain amount of distance that translated into freedom or, at least, the appearance of it, which was beneficial for some people. The independents tended to stay in the Royal Orphanage the longest, usually until they reached adulthood. Doctor Fay knew quite a few people aside from Blazing Fire who fit the description: Wild, of course, came to her mind first. He had never expressed any desire to be adopted, and Doctor Fay knew it would be useless to bring up such a possibility. He already considered himself an adult - in fact, he was chronologically an adult by the standards of both his original species and pony standards. Overall, his circumstances were quite... unique, was the way to put it.

Wild had, in the relatively short amount of time that Doctor Fay knew him, grown and improved tremendously. She was aware that he had gained more friends over time since he came to the orphanage many weeks ago, had opened himself up more, and was now speaking again and doing so regularly. And now, he was going to see her for a reason that Doctor Fay considered an amazing improvement - he had a gained a lover, a possible partner in life, and he had a strong desire to make it work.

For many young ponies, early relationships were more about physical exploration, but Wild struck Fay as someone who is more... thoughtful and careful, perhaps. He didn’t give trust easily, and to see him give that trust to someone in such a way as to let them this close to him, not just physically but mentally, it was amazing.

“Good day, Wild, Artful,” Doctor Fay greeted the two when they walked in. Wild, she noted, was moving somewhat stiffly, his ears slightly down - sure signs of nervousness. In comparison, Artful was steady, certain, aware of why the two were here and willing to make the most out of it. Fay had already learned from Wild that Artful knew certain things about his past. Now it was up to Fay to figure out whether Artful remained with Wild despite what he had learned because he didn’t understand the entirety of the situation or because he did and was perfectly willing to accept it.

Wild sat down first, taking a place on a couch. Artful immediately sat next to him and leaned towards him in a clear show of support and care.

“It’s good to see you, Wild,” Doctor Fay said to him, “I see you are going forward with your life.”

Wild nodded but didn’t speak.

“Let me tell you this first - please, don’t hesitate to come to me if issues arise, even when they come to personal relationships,” Fay said, “Many ponies think they may be failing at relationships if they go so far as to go to therapy because of them, but it is not a failure. It is a thoughtful action, one that shows that you care not only about others but also about yourself. Relationships are a part of psychology as well, and therapy for life partners tends to be very effective at solving, say, communication or compatibility issues. Partner therapy also helps prevent misunderstanding from going out of control and doing permanent damage to relationships.

“So, what do you want my help with?”

Wild gathered himself before opening his mouth and, finally, speaking.

“I...” he said, then stopped, a thoughtful frown on his face as he no doubt picked the right words, “I now... told... some thing about myself to Artful, and, and... Artful says it’s alright, it, it works, and... I am still not... too sure.”

“What exactly are you afraid of?” Fay asked calmly.

“I...” he glanced at Artful, then returned to looking at the floor, “I... do not think... I am the best choice for Artful.”

Artful moved to speak up, but Fay gestured for him to stay silent for now. He nodded and backed down.

“I am... too much,” Wild continued, “I have... bad past. I am... weird. I am... not easy.”

“Alright,” Fay nodded, “That is what you think about yourself. Artful, what is your perspective?”

“I understand that Wild is not easy, but I’m, um, not looking for easy,” Artful said, “I don’t think any relationship is easy anyway. I... um, well, I am also weird, and I have a bad past, so I think it’s a match,” he smiled then, “And I willingly and knowingly chose Wild. Obviously I don’t know everything about him, but that’s what learning about each other is for, and, well, I did learn some surprising things, but... I’m still here, and I’m willing to continue our relationship.”

“Alright,” Fay nodded once again, “Wild, you have heard him say it in his own words. He has chosen you, and he is not leaving you, definitely not because of who you are. Because who you are is, as I understand, what attracts him to you.”

“...but he could do better,” Wild said quietly.

“I think you’re already the best, really,” Artful gave Wild a nuzzle, and Fay smiled at that.

Doctor Fay could see the issue. Artful was being honest and direct, and Wild knew that, yet Wild also had trouble believing and accepting it. Doctor Fay had a strong suspicion of where this lack of self-worth came from. Wild had once been violated in one of the worst ways possible, stripped of dignity and freedom and autonomy. From his perspective, he was reduced from a person to a thing, and Fay understood perfectly that no one could simply bounce back from something like this. He had also lost everyone who cared about him, forced to endure loneliness and homelessness for a long time. With no support left to speak of, it was no surprise he continued to question his worth even now after gaining trustworthy allies and friends.

Unfortunately, the only good way to help him overcome this was time and care. It was needed to remind him that he was not unworthy of good things, that he was still a person. What Wild needed was unconditional love and support, validation and reinforcement. As far as Fay could see, Artful was doing a good job at providing it all, not shying away from telling Wild directly that he was wanted and desired.

When it came to desire, it was clear that Artful was not at all repulsed by Wild. Wild had, in confidence, revealed that he had already been intimate with Artful and was not in any way pushed into it. So, there was no question at all - Artful wanted Wild, and Wild wanted Artful in turn.

Doctor Fay could find some distant humor in the situation - perhaps Wild would become better if he got laid more often. In truth, that did seem to be working if his acceptance of casual physical affection where others could see was any indication.

“Wild,” Fay began, “You have intrinsic worth as a person. That is not the kind of worth that needs to be proven. Relationships are not about proving whether you are worthy of them or not, whether the person you want a relationship with can, as you say, ‘do better’ or not. Relationships are not about earning anything, be it acceptance or love or intimacy or anything else. Relationships are not about who is better or worse, they are about likes, dislikes, and compatibility. Sometimes, there are simple incompatibilities, so no one is at fault at all if things don’t work out. In the end, it is quite simple - Artful likes you and wants to be with you. You also like him and want to be with him. You do not need to prove your worth because relationships, as previously said, are not about worth at all. There is nothing anyone can do to ‘earn’ a relationship, and those who believe otherwise are, frankly speaking, simply wrong.”

Doctor Fay let Wild process the information before continuing.

“I know what you must be thinking: ‘if it’s so simple, why is it so difficult?’” Fay said softly, “And the answer is because it is both. Relationships are as complex as the people involved. However, the very basics of how relationships work remain the same - simple. I think, Wild, that you need to let your relationship with Artful progress, give it a chance to grow and bloom. From my perspective, this relationship has a future, although don’t let yourself think that you have to stick with a relationship if you don’t like it or if you simply don’t want it. My approval or disapproval of any of your relationships is, frankly speaking, irrelevant. Best I or anyone can do is give you advice, and the rest is up to you.”

Wild nodded, and Fay let a few long moments pass before she spoke again.

“I believe you are a smart and empathetic person, Wild,” she said, “With both heart and mind, as well as some help where needed, I believe you will navigate your way in the relationships that you have. I know it may sound like a difficult, nigh impossible task, but I believe in you, and I imagine it’s not a stretch to say that Artful believes in you too.”

Artful gave Wild immediate support by smiling at him and giving him another nuzzle, confirming Fay’s words. Wild then, with some hesitation, nodded. Doctor Fay could see that he wasn’t entirely convinced, but he would, Fay thought, still do his best. Only time could tell if it worked. Privately, Doctor Fay believed he would be quite pleasantly surprised in the future.

Author's Note

More of Doctor Fay, now with her working with someone other than Wild as well.

Once again, I'm going to remind everyone that I'm not a therapist. I've been to a couple sessions, but that does not make me qualified to actually be a therapist. If something written in this chapter is inaccurate, it is entirely my fault.