Irradiance woke up slowly. The first thing he noticed when he regained consciousness was the medical smell that filled the room, overpowering his nostrils with notes of latex and sanitizer. Shifting slightly where he lay, the stallion next noticed the papery blankets that were draped over him, the pillow beneath his head was fluffy but it, too, was covered in the papery textured cloth. He groaned, rolling over before regretting the decision as a sore pulsing pain traveled through his body. Not the result of a physical injury, but the result of overworking his body to the point of failure.

“Ow…” He muttered, lifting a hoof and holding it against his head, where Irradiance felt bandages wrapped around his horn and forehead. Alarm bells rang. Pressing against the bandages further, Irradiance felt no break in his horn. Sighing, he returned to his previous position, resting his arms by his side as he lay in the hospital bed (or what he could only assume was a hospital bed, judging by everything else he’d sensed).

There was a faint beeping coming from beside him. A heart monitor, the stallion supposed, not bothering to open his eyes still. The beeping was steady. A good sign.

There were voices in the hall (?) and a door swished open as the voices then entered the room in which Irradiance lie. They were saying some medical jargon that Irradiance didn’t fully understand apart from “cracked horn” and “overuse of magic.” Magic shmagic! He saved his friends, didn’t he? Who cared if someone got hurt in the process? As long as it wasn’t–

“Has he woken up yet?” Leviathan. The door swished once more and the third voice entered, approaching the bed and seating itself. There was a hum from one of the medical voices.

“We haven’t seen him open his eyes yet, but there’s been an increase in heart rate now that you’ve entered the room…” Irradiance wished they’d leave! The beeping was growing faster.

“Is that normal?” Leviathan worriedly asked. Irradiance huffed a laugh. The Changeling gasped and Irradiance opened his eyes to look at the stallion, who was in his Pegasus form presently.

“Yes, it’s normal,” Irradiance managed, throat feeling sore.

“Irradiance!” Leviathan exclaimed, pressing his face up against the other stallion’s, pressing their muzzles together in a not-quite kiss, though if those doctor ponies weren’t here, Irradiance was sure he wouldn’t be able to contain himself.

One of the doctors chuckled; Irradiance wasn’t looking at them. He was focused on the Changeling before him now, breathing him in.

“He seems to be fine. Come get us after you’ve finished your visit and we can check his vitals now that he’s conscious,” The door swished. The pair of stallions were alone.

There was a moment of silence between the two before Irradiance broke it, looking up at the green Pegasus with wide eyes. “What happened?” He asked quietly. Leviathan had a pained look on his face for a moment before it faded away.

“You overpowered my mother with the amount of magic in your body, successfully turning her to stone,” Irradiance gasped, “And then, because you’d used so much of your magic, you suffered a crack to your horn and wound up collapsing because you’d practically drained yourself of all power.”

Irradiance was speechless. All that fight about not letting Lilith drain him of his magic and he’d basically done it himself? “Oh,” He managed, a bit embarrassed at the information. “But… I’m okay?” Leviathan nodded.

“You’re fine. One of the royal medics made his way down to the hospital here and healed up the crack in your horn. The bandages were put there in case you shifted in your sleep while the spell ran its course.”

“A royal medic?” Irradiance laughed. “Why was a royal medic tending to me?” Leviathan was quiet for a minute as he looked around the hospital room, urging the Unicorn to do the same. With a raised brow, Irradiance finally pulled his gaze from the Pegasus and took in his surroundings properly. “Woah,” There were piles of flowers, cards, and stuffed animals, not to mention the bouquet of balloons scattering the ceiling.

“So, you’ve been passed out for a couple of days,” Leviathan began to explain, laughing at the expression on the purple stallion’s face. “When we got here, you needed attention fast. So we told everyone who you were.”

“A random pony from the forest?”

“No,” Leviathan shook his head, “The missing pony from the academy. Didn’t you know your disappearance was a big deal? I lived as a royal guard for years and even I knew about your disappearance!”

“I thought you knew about me because of your mother?” Irradiance mentioned, brow raised.

“I knew about the magic because of my mother, I knew about the missing pony because of the giant memorial they had for you at the academy!”

Irradiance gaped at the mention of a memorial. Who would want to honor him? “There’s a memorial of me? I was bullied out of the academy!”

“Those ponies were kicked out, you know. All of them,” Leviathan assured. “You had left out of fear or whatever, but Celestia didn’t take the offense lightly and kicked out those Unicorns the moment she’d heard of the incident and then raised a memorial in your honor, hoping you’d return. When you didn’t, you became a big deal to the city of Canterlot.”

“How do you know all this?” Irradiance probed, head cocked in curiosity. Leviathan smiled and shrugged.

“I asked around! I frequented the memorial, went back to the castle to ask for my job back, stood around here a ton…” His green face flushed pink, “Ponies started making assumptions about me and so they started telling me stories about you.”

“Assumptions?” Irradiance repeated. “What assumptions?”

Leviathan stared at the purple stallion for a long time. Finally, he spoke, “Are you serious?”

“What?” Irradiance seemed to be truly clueless about what Leviathan was implying. Or rather, what he was implying other ponies were implying.

“Irradiance!” The door swooshed open again, slamming against the wall it was framed against, and three ponies rushed inside. Hibiscus had tears in her eyes, carrying in a bouquet of flowers with her pink magic as she rushed to his side at the bed. “Oh, I was worried you wouldn’t wake up! Leviathan didn’t leave your side for a full day!” The Pegasus turned even pinker, bordering on red.

“I was worried I shook you too hard on the flight over here!” Cobalt fretted, brows furrowed. “Lev said you would be fine but he was scared, too!”

“Lev?” Irradiance repeated. “When did you all start using nicknames?”

“A lot can change in forty-eight hours!” Cobalt defended, smiling at the ponies around him. “I’m glad you’re okay, Irradiance.”

“We all are!” Marigold spoke up this time, blue eyes looking tired. “I may not be a real doctor, but I was a healer back in my old community. I was at your side once we’d checked you in with tips on how to deal with the Changeling magic you’d been poisoned with. Luckily I’ve lived near them for so long, otherwise, I’m not sure how long you’d be dealing with the side effects!”

Irradiance paused at that mention of poison. If he hadn’t been asleep for long with no physical injuries to be viewed, how had magic poisoned him? Hadn’t he defeated Lilith?

“Changeling royalty holds a special chemical in their magic,” Leviathan could sense the silent questions forming in the Unicorn’s head. “It’s a defense mechanism in case we’re ever put in danger. Marigold already had the cure on hand, so all the heaving and pain you were in after the attack on Lilith was gone once she saw you here. Knocked you right out.”

“Just doing my best!” The yellow mare smiled at the rest of the ponies, consequently ending the conversation.

“Thank you, everyone. I’m sorry I caused such trouble.”

“Don’t be!” Hibiscus assured the stallion, waving the apology away with a pink hoof. “You saved us, Irradiance. If anything, we’re sorry we weren’t hunting for a real cure! Stuck with the crystals, I guess.”

“I think your crystals look amazing,” Leviathan whispered to the purple stallion, causing him to flush at the public display of affection.

“Get a room!” Another voice came from the doorway.

“Amber!” Irradiance exclaimed, recognizing the Dragon Lord.

“Hey, purple pony. You healing up alright?” Irradiance nodded.

“Where have you been?”

Amber sighed, rubbing a hand against the back of her neck as she formed an explanation for her absence during the defeat of the Changeling Queen. “I followed you guys as far as I could to the hive, but once Lilith learned I empathized with you ponies rather than rooting for the feeding of your magic, she made a giant anti-Dragon border around the hive. I wasn’t able to travel within a couple of miles of the place.”

“Where were you, then?” Irradiance asked, still vague on the answers.

“She was here,” Cobalt answered for the Dragon Lord, “She got here before all of us, making sure the ponies knew someone was in danger and needed help. Once Lev and I got here, the hospital was already prepared. We only had to mention you were the forest pony and all the work was done for us. Marigold was the only pony allowed to see you until the medical care was finished and through.”

Nearly all of his questions answered Irradiance turned back to Leviathan, still in his pony guard form. “And why are you like this?”

“He was worried he’d scare the ponies that lived in Canterlot,” Hibiscus interjected. “I told him we’re used to multicultural creatures living here! King Thorax’s citizens visit all the time!”

“I don’t look like his hive! I’m still scary!” Leviathan defended, voice stressed. Irradiance laughed, lifting a hoof to his cheek and turning the Pegasus to face him.

“I think you look handsome.”

“Ugh, gross!” Amber gagged exagerattedly. “Come on, guys. Let’s give the lovebirds some privacy.”

The trio of ponies nodded among themselves, filing out of the hospital room. “See you later, Irradiance!” Marigold waved, closing the door behind her as she followed Amber, Hibiscus, and Cobalt out into the hall.

“Can you transform back?”

Leviathan scoffed, “Are you serious? You don’t think I’m handsome now?” Irradiance shrugged in his bed.

“I find all forms attractive, but I will say I like the natural you the best,” The stallion smiled. “Please?” He stuck out his bottom lip, pouting to the best of his ability. Leviathan rolled his eyes, scoffing as he transformed into his Changeling form.

“Happy?”

“Mhm,” Irradiance grinned. Addressing the elephant in the room, Irradiance finally spoke regarding the dynamic between the two, “Do you want to stay… together?”

Leviathan cocked his head to the side, red eyes blinking owlishly at the purple Unicorn. “What do you mean?”

“We were… weird at first, and then I thought I liked you, and then…” Irradiance trailed off as he thought back to the incident of perceived betrayal at the Changeling Hive. “I know I suggested you move in with me, or something, but… Do you want to? Do you want to be together? Officially?”

Leviathan’s lips quirked into a small smile as he put together what Irradiance was trying to ask, “Are you asking me out?”

“I lived alone for ten years, okay?” Irradiance exasperatedly said, huffing a sigh. “Acting on emotion is easy! Articulating things is a whole other task!” The Changeling laughed, red eyes squinting in amusement.

“Yes, Irradiance, I’ll go out with you. We can be… what’s the term for two stallions dating?” Leviathan asked, genuinely unsure of the term. “I know marefriend is for… well, mares, but I don’t know if I’ve ever actually heard a mare or stallion refer to a stallionfriend, or whatever.” Irradiance shrugged once more.

“Partners?” Leviathan shrugged in agreement. “Partners in crime!” Irradiance added, resulting in a laugh from the former. “Or just regular romantic partners. Ooh! Lovers!”

“I like lovers,” Leviathan decided, pressing his muzzle against Irradiance’s again. They stayed like that for a few moments, silently breathing each other in, enjoying the peace and quiet for once during their journey together. With no danger occurring presently, Irradiance took a sharp breath as he felt a rush of emotion travel through him. Leviathan must have felt it, too. “Can I…?” The Changeling whispered, and Irradiance nodded eagerly, tilting his head slightly.

Leaning in, Leviathan gracefully pressed his lips to Irradiance’s, sighing into the kiss. Irradiance felt like he might melt at the contact, so grateful to finally be able to do what he’d only been imagining for days at this point. The stallion lifted his hooves to Leviathan’s face, pulling him even closer if that was possible. Irradiance wanted to stay like this and never let go. He could swear he was glowing with happiness at the contact.

In fact, opening his eyes revealed that Leviathan was glowing! “Oh, my Celestia!” Irradiance gasped as he pulled away, marveling at the sight.

“What?” Leviathan asked, unaware of his appearance.

“You’re glowing! Look!” Irradiance took one of the Changeling’s arms, lifting it to show the prince how the shining black body was glowing red, getting brighter by the minute.

Before either stallion could say anything else, Leviathan was encompassed in a bright glare similar to that of what Lilith was covered in before she was turned to stone. Unlike his mother, though, Leviathan’s body was swirled in the glowing red until it transformed him, turning his torn wings and hole-filled legs into long, beetle-like wings and shining, full legs. His hair became fuller, coat a shinier material, and his mostly-red color scheme became tinted with a deep purple. The glowing subsided, and Leviathan regained control over his color, observing the changes that had just taken place.

“You look… different,” Irradiance observed. Leviathan looked ecstatic.

“I’ve reformed, Irradiance!”

“What?”

“Like King Thorax! Like his entire Hive!” The Changeling was cheering, pacing the room as he searched for a reflective surface to look at his entire body in. “I found some way to generate magic by making it myself rather than feeding off of someone!” He halted his pacing as he thought back to what had caused the transformation.

“How did you manage that?” Irradiance asked, confused out of his mind at the over-the-top transformation.

“I have no idea!” Leviathan pressed another kiss to Irradiance’s lips, though this one was just a peck, “Magic… how am I making magic?” Irradiance watched as the Changeling looked at him for a long time, eyes studying the purple stallion’s face before smiling, “The magic of love.”

“Ha! No way!”

“I mean, it would make sense,” Leviathan reasoned, thinking back to just minutes before, “We kiss and then I turn into a way cooler version of myself?”

“I liked you when you were kind of rugged…” Irradiance grumbled.

“Okay, whatever. Let’s get the others in here and get you checked out,” Leviathan once again pressed a kiss to Irradiance’s lips as he walked out of the hospital room and into the hallway, fetching a doctor and the rest of their friends.

Irradiance smiled to himself once he was alone in the room again. Looking down at his hooves, where the deep purple crystals remained after the entire journey, he couldn’t help but enjoy the sight. The adventure for a cure had meant finding these ponies and other creatures that were now his closest friends, and the Changeling he’d begun to fall in love with thought the curse was enchanting. Not to mention, had he not had this much magic coursing through him, Irradiance wouldn’t have been able to save his friends! Granted, he also wouldn’t have been in this mess in the first place, but didn’t that mean never meeting Hibiscus, Cobalt, and the others in the first place?

The stallion let out a laugh as he watched doctors and his friends approach his room once more, likely coming to check him out of the hospital, remove his bandages, and start his new life. Irradiance had never been more thankful for his school bullies for making him live in the forest. They’d sent him on a path to meet the best creatures he’d ever know.

Author's Note

btw i wrote a cookie run kingdom fanfiction with an entirely different plot, but the same waking up from a coma chapter. but this one is done MUCH better in my opinion!!! more self reflecting and less horny cookies. bc these ponies are FAMILY FRIENDLY horny. not horny. i should stop saying horny. sorry. enjoy! one chapter left :) its an epilogue BUT IT SETS UP A SEQUEL???? or does it......?