Roadtrip In Equestria

Gabriel had been in hospital for over a week now, and he was seriously getting fed up. It wasn't that the treatment wasn't good or anything, it was just that spending his days in bed, with aches and pains and a headache, wasn't exactly to his liking.

Indeed, he had spent most of his time in bed, keeping himself occupied as best he could when he wasn't asleep. He had continued to feed his video diary and had played a few games again, but he tried not to use his phone too much either, as Twilight wasn't always around to recharge it.

So he also read a few books, particularly on the various magic spells that can be used in this world. He even spotted a few that might come in handy. He had also read books on flora and fauna, and was surprised to see that there were many intelligent creatures other than ponies: zebras, griffons, minotaurs (as the princess had said), dragons... Even fucking cows could talk!

He also learned that there were a lot of dangerous creatures out there too, and that he'd better watch out if he went for a walk...

In addition to all this, he had also read books about the culture here. That's how he learned about the existence of several celebrations that bear a striking resemblance to human holidays, such as Nightmare Night, which is like Halloween, or Hearts and Hooves Day, which is nothing more than Saint Valentine's Day. But by far the most astonishing was Hearth's Warming, which is celebrated exactly like Christmas, even if the reason for it is completely different!

Of course, he hadn't just stayed in bed. He got up several times, not only to satisfy his needs, but also simply to stretch his legs. He had even ventured down to the ground floor once, his room being on the first floor. But on the advice of the nurses, and his own body, he had quickly settled back into his comforter.

The nurses made sure Gabriel ate properly and took his medication. As for the doctor, he came in from time to time to check on the progress of his illness. Fortunately, Gabriel was feeling better every day, which indicated that the medication was having the desired effect.

He had also been chatting a lot with Derpy, his room-mate, about everything and anything. But Derpy had finally left, after his bandages had been removed. Fortunately, he'd also been visited a few times by what Gabriel could now, he supposed, consider his friends, notably Pinkie Pie and, to his surprise, Rainbow Dash. They had mostly come to ask him questions, but they had also played games. In particular, they'd played a funny game that looked a lot like touch and go, but with other objects.

Anyway, it's all come down to today. Gabriel awoke as usual in his hospital room, to which he was now accustomed. A nurse came to bring him breakfast and his medication. Then, shortly afterwards, he was visited by the doctor, who entered the room and said: “Good morning, Mr. Couset! Sleep well?”

Gabriel replied, after yawning: “Yes, very well, and you?”

“Very well too, thank you. How are you feeling today?”

“Well, frankly, I'm feeling pretty good. I've just got a few more aches and pains and a bit of a cough, but other than that I feel great! I feel like I'm practically cured!”

“That's actually the case...”

“Excuse me?”

“Well...” Resumed the doctor, consulting his chart, “according to our analyses, you are indeed on the bridge of completely eliminating the disease from your system. You should just take your medication for another two or three days and you'll be fine”

“Okay, that's great!”

“And I've got more good news for you, you're going to be able to leave the hospital !”

“Really?!”

“Yes, now that we're sure your condition is stable, we no longer need to keep you under surveillance. So you'll be leaving our facility today”

A huge smile spread across Gabriel's face. A smile he hadn't had in a long time. “You don't know how happy I am, it's... It's great! Thank you so much for everything !”

“You're welcome, I was just doing my job” replied the doctor, also smiling. “I have to admit, it was pretty interesting working on your case. Makes a change from the usual ponies...”

Gabriel laughed, “Yeah, sure...”

“Well, I'll leave you to get ready and leave the premises. You can leave your robe on the coat rack, a nurse will pick it up. Good-bye !”

“Bye!” Gabriel said as the pony walked out the door. He then went into the bathroom, whistling, and took off that awful hospital gown he'd been wearing for days to put on the clothes Rarity had made for him. He had only one thought left in his head: to leave this cursed place. Then he brushed his teeth and splashed some water on his face. Afterwards, he went out again and took his wallet with his new identity card, his telephone and hung up the dress as the doctor had told him to.

He then left the room and headed down the corridor towards the stairs. He tried to find his way as best he could. Once he had taken the stairs, he went down to the first floor, and headed for the exit. Just as he was about to leave, a pony at the reception desk said to him: “Excuse me, but where are you going?”

“Well, I'm off. The doctor said I could go out today...”

“Wait a minute, you're Gabriel Couset the human, aren't you?”

“Er, yes...”

The reception pony rummaged through a few files, before saying, “Ah, yes, indeed. You've been cleared for discharge. Can you just sign this paper, please?” She said, holding out a sheet of paper.

Gabriel took it, asking, “Uh, what's this?”

“A simple formality. It's to certify that you have indeed spent a stay here between these two dates.”

“Ha ok...” Gabriel took a Bic from the counter and signed at the bottom of the page, then held the paper back and said, “There you go!”

“Thanks, have a nice day!”

“Likewise!” And with that, he walked through the front door. He took a few steps before stopping and breathing in the fresh air. After spending so much time indoors, getting outside did him a world of good. What's more, the weather was beautiful, with a sunny blue sky. Then he thought about the direction he was going to take. He supposed the first thing to do would be to go to Twilight's house to let her know he was out, but the problem was that he didn't really know which way to go.

He looked in all directions, thinking, until he saw two familiar silhouettes approaching. Gabriel smiled and moved closer, until it was confirmed that they were indeed Twilight and Nurse Redheart.

If he knew the latter's name, it was only because she was the nurse who had looked after him most during his stay. And he had to admit, he'd grown a little attached to her. She was by far the kindest and cutest nurse. Gabriel greeted the duo as he arrived across the street: “Hi Twilight, and hello Redheart! What are you doing here?”

“Well, Redheart came looking for me saying you were going out today, and I was going to come looking for you” Twilight replied.

Gabriel turned to Redheart, asking, “Is it true, you did?”

“Well, yes. From what I understand, you're new here and I figured you'd be lost on your way out. And since I know you know Twilight, I thought it might be a good idea to go and warn her so she can give you a lift...”

“Well... thanks a lot, that's really cool of you!”

“You're welcome, it's my pleasure! Well, bye then!” She said, heading for the hospital.

“Bye and see you next time!”

“See you next time? I hope not!” Said the nurse, laughing.

Gabriel laughed back and said, “Yeah, sure...”

“Well, let's go then,” said Twilight. Then they both set off, walking side by side. “So, how does it feel to finally be out of the hospital?”

“Well, I think it's the first time I've been this happy since I've been here. I totally felt like I was in prison to the end!”

“Well, I'm happy for you! What do you plan to do when we arrive?”

“Well, uh, I don't really know... Say, you haven't heard from the Princess, have you?”

Twilight looked sad and said, “Not really, but I'm sure she and her team are actively looking for ways to help you!”

“Yeah, I'm sure they are...” Gabriel's good mood diminished a little, as he remembered his sad fate.

Twilight tried to comfort him: “Look, I know it's not easy being away from home, in an unfamiliar world, and I'll always be here for you if you need anything. But try to look on the bright side! You've got a whole new world to discover! There's so much to do here, I'm sure you won't be bored for a second during your stay!”

Gabriel smiled at the young unicorn's enthusiasm, and said: “Yeah, I guess you're right, I'll try to enjoy it while I can while I'm here, it'll be better than crying over my fate, I guess... Besides, I don't really have a choice anyway, do I?”

Twilight didn't answer and simply asked, “So... what are you going to do first?”

Gabriel pondered for a moment, before saying “Ho... well, I think I'll go to the town hall first to get my passport photo taken. I've been told to get there as soon as possible, so...”

“OK, then what?”

“Well, I don't know. Explore the city, maybe stop by Rarity's and order some more clothes. I'm going to need them if I'm going to be here long...”

“Well, that's a good start... Here we are!”

Gabriel recognized the tree in which he'd stayed one night, and especially his Fiesta mk2, which hadn't moved since he'd left. He ran over to it and touched it, saying “You're still here! I've missed you...” He examined the car and it didn't seem to have been damaged. Then he turned around and saw Twilight watching him with a funny look on her face. “Yes, I'm talking to my car! You got a problem with that?”

“Uh, no, not at all...”

“Don't worry, I'm just kidding! Anyway, thanks for taking care of it while I was away...”

“Oh, it was nothing... Well, let's go inside, then” Twilight and Gabriel headed inside the library, and Gabriel had to bend down again to get inside. He then saw a familiar person, reading a comic book on the sofa.

“Hey, hi Spike! What's up?” Gabriel asked the interested party.

“Hi Gabriel! Did you finally get out of the hospital?”

“'Nah, I'm still in, see?” Spike then took on a questioning look before Gabriel continued, “I'm pulling your leg, of course I'm out!”

Spike took a slightly amused look as he said, “I see, very funny... Anyway, you seem to be in a good mood!”

“You bet I am! I feel like I've escaped from jail!”

“Well, it's good to see you looking so happy!” Twilight says this time.

“Yeah...”, Gabriel replied, ”but I don't know why I feel like it's not going to last...”

Twilight lightly hoofed him, saying “Ho, stop being so pessimistic, I'm sure you're going to have a great day!”

“If you say so...”

“Besides, you can go up to your room and drop off your stuff, if you like...”

“My stuff? Well, I don't really have any stuff except my wallet and my phone... By the way, could you recharge it, please? I'm almost out of battery here...”

Twilight rolled her eyes, then said, “All right, but check your room anyway, there's a surprise in there.”

“Um... okay, thanks...” Wondering what the surprise might be, Gabriel climbed the stairs, and managed to find his bedroom door. He opened it to discover the room he'd slept in. There was something on the bed. On closer inspection, he realized it was the work clothes he'd worn when he first arrived here, folded in a heap. He remembered that they had left them here before leaving and hadn't seen them since. He examined the clothes in more detail to discover that they had been washed and ironed to perfection. That must have been the surprise.

He smiled as he looked at them, among the few things he'd managed to pack that reminded him of home, with his car and his other belongings. He decided to put them back on, as Rarity's clothes were starting to get dirty. After getting dressed, he looked at himself in the mirror. He was now back in his black and gray work pants, and his black t-shirt topped with his gray sweater. The only thing that hadn't changed was his work shoes, since he hadn't asked for new ones, figuring it might be a bit too complicated to do.

Well, he may not have looked like a tourist, but at least he was clean. Besides, he liked the way he looked and felt comfortable. He came back down with his new clothes. Twilight and Spike noticed him, and Twilight said “Ha, I see you've discovered your surprise!”

Gabriel smiled at her and said, “Yes, it was really nice of you to clean my clothes. Thank you very much, I appreciate it.”

“Ho, you know, you should be thanking Spike instead. He did most of it.”

Gabriel turned to Spike and said, “Well, it looks like you can do a lot of things! Anyway, thanks!”

“That's what it's like when you're assistant number one!” Spike replied with a thumbs-up. Twilight came up behind him and made a throat-clearance indicating displeasure. Spike continued, “Uh, I mean, you're welcome...”

“Okay, well, that's great, I guess I'll just have to go to City Hall now... Could you tell me where that is?”

“City Hall? What for?”

“I need to take a photo for my identity card...”

“Oh, right... Well, when you leave the house, you take a right and keep going all the way to The Sugar Cube Corner, and then...”

“The what?”

“The Sugar Cube Corner! It's a pastry shop, and it looks like a gingerbread house...”

“Oh yeah, I see...”

“After that, you turn left to go past it and keep going straight until you get to the big square. It's the big round building in the center, you can't go wrong!”

“Okay... I think that should do it. Would you mind giving me my phone back, Twilight? ”

“Oh, yes, of course, here it is...”

Twilight levitated the little device, which Gabriel retrieved in mid-air. He could see that it had indeed been fully charged. “Great, thanks! Well, see you later!”

Gabriel started for the door, but Twilight held him back. “Wait! Don't you want me to come with you so you don't get lost?”

“Ho, that's nice, Twilight, but I think you've already done enough for me. I wouldn't want to bother you any more, if you've got things to do...”

Gabriel turned towards the door, but Twilight said, “Wait! Are you sure? I mean, I don't mind...”

“Don't worry, I'm a big boy now. I should be fine. Besides, I think I need some time alone for a while, to clear my head, you know?”

“Ah, yes, I understand...”

“But, hey, I'll see you later, okay?” Gabriel says with a smile

“All right!”

“Well, bye!”

“Bye !” Spike and Twilight replied simultaneously. With that, Gabriel opened the door and stepped outside. He put his hand in front of his eyes to get used to the sun again. After all that time being guided by others and locked up in the hospital, he finally felt free again. He started walking, trying to follow the directions he'd been given. He passed a few ponies on the way, who didn't seem too surprised to see him. He even waved, and they waved back. “The ponies really seem to be used to me, maybe the mayor's 'speech' had something to do with it...”.

At one point he arrived in front of what he assumed was a florist, for the building was adorned with flowers with a sign also displaying flowers. There were also three earth ponies who seemed to be working here. There was a pink pony with green curly hair, marked with two daisies. There was also a pale yellow pony with hair in two shades of red, and a rose mark. The last one was paler pink, with blond hair and three lilies tattooed on her buttocks, and she also had one in her hair. They seemed to be busy tidying up, and hadn't seen him.

Gabriel approached, trying to look as innocent as possible, before greeting the trio with “Well hello, it's a beautiful day today, isn't it?”

The three suddenly turned around, and the one with the rose suddenly shouted, “By Celestia, it's, it's...”

“It's the human!” finished the one with the daisies. The three then proceeded to faint on the floor.

Gabriel, not expecting this reaction, took a closer look at the three. They were still breathing, but just lying on the ground. Then Gabriel looked around, and when he saw that no one had seen the scene, he whistled away as if nothing had happened. “Well, okay, maybe not all the ponies are totally used to me yet...”

Gabriel continued on his way until he arrived in front of the large cylindrical building Gabriel assumed to be the town hall. The building was indeed quite imposing in the middle of the small houses, at least three stories high with a small tower sticking out. Gabriel tried to find the entrance and saw two rather large doors. He pushed them open and stepped inside.

Once inside, he saw a reception desk, and the Mayor he'd met earlier at the hospital completing some files. She straightened up when she heard someone arrive and exclaimed: “Mr. Couset! What a pleasure to have you here! How are you?”

Gabriel smiled and said, “I'm fine, thank you. I've just been discharged from hospital, I'm practically cured! And how are you?”

“Very well, thank you! I'm glad you're feeling better. So, to what do I owe the honor of your visit?”

“Well, I came to have my identity photos taken...”

“Ah yes, the photos, how could I forget? Follow me, I'll show you how it's done...”

Gabriel followed the Mayor into another room, where another pony stood in front of a camera that looked extremely dated. Gabriel stood in front of a blue background and smiled just before the picture was taken. It took a moment for the pony to develop the photo and place it on his ID card, but it didn't take too long. Then Gabriel returned to the reception desk, his new identity card finally complete in hand.

“Well that's perfect, thank you very much!”

“You're welcome, it was a pleasure!”

Just as he was about to leave, Gabriel's eyes were drawn to a stack of papers on one corner of the desk. “Excuse me, but what's this?” He said, pointing to it.

“Oh, these? They're maps of Ponyville. You can have one, they're free. And they'll probably come in handy!”

“Ho, okay, cool...” Gabriel grabs one of the maps before saying, “Well, thanks again, have a good day!”

“Have a nice day too, enjoy our little village!” Says the Mayor before Gabriel walks through the door.

Once outside again, Gabriel took a moment to observe the map. He could see the town hall and where it was located on the map, and Twilight's house further up. The village didn't look extremely large, and he'd probably know it like the back of his hand after spending a few days wandering around here. Then he thought about what he could do next. He hesitated to go to Rarity's to ask for some new clothes, but figured that could wait and explored the village instead.

Then he had an idea. He took out his phone and put it in video mode to film himself. Then he said to the video : “Hello to anyone who sees this video. This is the 'sequel' to my diary about my time here. As you can see, I'm finally out of the hospital, and...” Gabriel began to walk, recounting the events of the last few days. He filmed everything he came across, be it houses, plants or ponies, a bit like a vlog. After a while, he stopped filming and started taking photos of places, and he also took several selfies of himself with the ponies in the foreground.

After walking for almost 45 minutes, Gabriel decided to take a break and sat down on a bench he found. Once seated, he looked at the videos and photos he'd taken, making sure everything was properly recorded. “If that's not evidence, I don't know what is...”

Suddenly, he saw movement in the corner of his eye, to the right. He looked up to see a single bush standing a little further away. Gabriel shrugged and looked at his phone again, but at the same moment the movement resumed. This time, Gabriel stared intently at the bush, frowning. After a moment's observation, he saw the bush moving, as if there was an animal inside.

Gabriel looked around to see if anyone else had seen what he'd seen, but there was no one. He then got up from the bench and slowly approached the bush. As he approached, he saw the bush tremble slightly. He was sure there was something moving in there. Once in front of the bush, Gabriel, shouting “Ahah!”, spread the foliage with both hands, revealing three little fillies, cowering together, trembling with fear. Three fillies Gabriel had seen before.