Lost Years

Esra stamped their hooves on the doormat outside the shop. They were still quite unaccustomed to the cold winters in Canterlot, even after three years of living there. The bell above the door jingled as they walked inside, shutting out the cold behind them. Shivering, they took off their damp winter coat, hanging it on the hook in the back office. They set the drink carrier down on their desk, quickly picking up the hot tea and inhaling the steam.

Esra sighed as they took a long sip of the hot liquid, feeling the warmth spread through their bones. They took a moment to sip their tea and relax their muscles before they walked over to the window out front, flipping the sign to OPEN. They had an appointment at 10:00 and one at 2:00, but other than that, the day’s schedule was empty. It would likely be rather quiet, but after the commotion of the day before, Esra was glad for it.

By Esra’s 2:00 meeting, only five ponies, two griffons, and one zebra had been in, including the pony with the appointment. At 1:45, Esra tidied up their desk in preparation for the meeting, and at 1:57, the ruler of Equestria walked in the door.

“Uh, hello,” said the king, rather awkwardly. “I’m here for an appointment?”

Esra tapped their hoof on the floor, forcing themself to act natural. “Uhm, yes,” they said. “You’re marked down. If you’d come into the office with me?”

“Of course,” Periwinkle said, nodding.

“So, what are you here for, your majesty?” Esra asked, once they’d settled themselves into the cramped office.

“Uh, anxiety medication, mostly, and you don’t have to call me that.”

Esra looked at the king for a moment. “Well, alright, then, what should I call you?”

“Uh, just Periwinkle is good, I suppose.”

“If you insist,” Esra said, before turning back to business. “So, do you have a prescription, or do you need help finding good over the counter medicine?”

“I have a prescription, uh,” Periwinkle’s horn glowed, and a slightly crinkled sheet of paper appeared in the left corner of the ceiling. He floated it over to Esra with a sheepish look. “Here.”

“Thanks,” Esra said, inspecting it. “I actually do have this potion in the back right now, but it’s not always there, so you had good timing. Your dosage is two teaspoons a day, one in the morning and one at night, so I can give you the bottle I have in the back. That will just last you a week. After that, I can give you up to a month’s supply at a time, but no more.”

“That sounds good,” Periwinkle said. “Uh, when should I come back, then?”

“Well, what I’ll give you today won’t last more than seven days, so if you’d come back next Monday, that would probably be good. And from there, I can have it delivered, if you’d prefer, or you could continue to pick it up here every month.”

“Thank you, um, I think I’ll probably continue to pick it up myself, and I can come in on Monday, though not until late afternoon, are you still open then?”

“Yes, on weekdays I’m open until 4:30, so that should be fine, and I’ll put you down as a pickup customer, just remember you can change that at any time,” Esra said, penning the information into their notepad.

“Thank you so much,” Periwinkle said, sounding relieved the meeting was over. He was quiet while Esra fetched the potion from their back room, and quiet while filling out the insurance paperwork. The bell jingled softly as he walked out, and Esra, still slightly shocked, watched through the frosted glass windows as he spread his wings and flew toward the castle.