Chapters There it was. Just another block, and I'd be home free. The loss of blood was already making me feel lightheaded, but I knew there was no time to stop it. Every ounce of my energy was needed for a speedy escape, my pursuers hot on my tail. I mustered up every ounce of energy remaining, and managed to gain fifty feet. It was all I needed as I jumped in through my window and slammed it shut behind me, panting heavily. "Alright," I sighed, "Just need to get one of those Monsters, and I'll have enough energy to close up these cuts and multiply some blood cells..."
I reached into my mini fridge and cracked open a can of Monster, then went and sat on my bed, sipping slowly. I was already concentrating on sealing my wounds, but I still needed to recuperate from blood loss. All in all, it would take a few days until I was fully healed, my talents not fully developed as of yet. After a few minutes, my blood was at a good enough level again, so I finished the energy drink and dragged myself to my hooves.
looking around my small room, I sighed. There was supposed to be a new filly transferring from the Maresburg orphanage today, and that meant I finally had to give up my privacy. I hated this place so much. Sometimes I just wanted to take advantage of my free reign and leave, my powerful wings taking me somewhere only the wind knew. But it was no use. As much as I wanted to leave, this place was home...Ever since I was four I had lived here, and being 16 now I only had a few years free stay left.
Hoofsteps. Two ponies were approaching my room. One, I recognized as Mrs. Lily, but the other set sounded unfamiliar. 'That's gotta be her...' I rushed around the room, cleaning quickly. They stopped just outside my door, and I launched myself up into my bunk, landing with a soft thud.
"Wow! This place looks a lot more scary than the other parts of the orphanage! Is there like, some monster that lives here?" I groaned, realizing my roommate was going to be one of those ones that never shuts up. GAAAAAAAASSSSP! "Ohmycelestia! am I bunking with a monster?! Thatissocool!"
Mrs. Lily shushed the rambling pony and knocked on the door. "Mrs. Aqua, are you in there? Your new roommate has arrived..." I could here the caution in her voice. The same caution she always used when speaking to me, as if I really was a monster. I hated it. I hated her. I hated everything. I buried my face in my pillow and breathed in deeply.
"No...I'm not here..." I said sarcastically. But a loud squawk protested. My raven, Omen.
"That be a lie, Lyca be here."
The door creaked open and the light clicked on, causing me to further bury my face. "Argh! How many times do I have to tell you to warn me when you're gonna do that!"
She laughed softly and I heard her back up. "Well, I'll leave you two to get acquainted. And Mrs. Pie? Please, do feel free to come see one of the staff at any hour, should a problem arise." With that, she closed the door and left.
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The ladder creaked slightly as the new filly made her way up, no doubt to introduce herself. Groaning, I rolled over, only to come muzzle to muzzle with a bright-eyed, pink earth pony.Blushing deeply, I turned my head to the side and nearly bumped my snout on one of her hooves, which were currently placed on either side of me. Looking down I found that sure enough, she was standing directly over me, her back hooves right at my hips.
"Hi, i'm Pinkie Pie," the filly stated, her voice high and friendly, making my ear twitch. There was something about her. Something that made me look again, despite her overly happy attitude. Perhaps it was just the fact that she was an orphan. But then, why hadn't I noticed anything like this with the other foals? No, that wasn't it...
"i'm the monster that ruined this hall," I stated, my voice carrying a bit more resonance than I would have liked. Her eyes widened and she curved her mouth into a sheepish grin. She carefully moved from over me, and sat down at the foot of my bunk.
"You...you heard that, eh?" she half whispered, her small smile evaporating. It took most of my strength not to reach out and brush a hoof down this new arrival's poofy mane. What was it about her that made me seem to trust her? How could she be so easily breaking down a wall that I had so carefully built to protect myself from the consequences of trust?
It was too much. Her eyes glistened with tears trying to escape. I had to say something, anything, to get that smile back on her face. "Pinkie, of course I heard it. How could I not, with your loud, cheery voice? But I also heard that you thought it would be cool to have a monster as a roommate."
She looked up at me, and that adorable, heartwarming smile slowly made its way back onto her face. As soon as I saw that happy face, I found myself beginning to smile. As much as I could tell there was something different about this roommate, I couldn't help but begin to trust her a tiny bit.
There was a brief moment of silence as we stared at each other, before Pinkie broke it with a small giggle. "What's so funny?" I asked, frowning a bit. She raised her hoof to point, and my vision wandered to the dresser, where I saw Omen looking in the mirror, staring at his reflection as he put his foot on the pump of a cologne bottle, spraying himself with the musk.
I laughed silently to myself before raising an eyebrow. "Another date tonight, Omen?" He looked over and smiled as best a raven can. "Yes. Besides, you two seemed to be wanting to know each other a bit better..." he sqwaked.
As he made his way out the window, a blush crept onto both our faces.
The poofy pony cocked her head before turning back to face me. "So, you have a talking crow? That's so cool!" She bounced down from the bunk bed and started rifling through her bulging saddlebags, tossing colorful streamers and balloons everywhere. Her hips swayed back and forth as she tossed things out of her saddlebags, surprisingly making everything look almost organized.
I took this chance and glanced to her flank, noticing the three balloons that adorned it. So, she was a party pony. Inhaling through my nose, I picked up and memorized her scent. Vanilla, with a hint of cotton candy, sugar, and strawberry. It was almost too sweet to handle, and I snorted most of the scent from my nostrils.
In about thirty seconds, our room looked like it was ready for a party. I couldn't fathom why, though, as I was informed that she was having a welcoming party when she got here -which I made sure to be absent for- and I just did not understand how somepony,even if she did have a balloon cutie mark, could stand to party more than once in a night.
Then, she did something I really wasn't expecting. An all too familiar, all too enticing smell permeated the air as she popped the top on a plastic water bottle and took a swig. My eyes widened as she half-emptied the bottle in one sip, and a slow smile crept onto my face. 'Perhaps, she's not quite as young and innocent as I thought...'
"98 proof dandelion vodka, made in Germaneigh, am I correct, Miss Pie?" I asked, already sure of the answer as the scent started to fade. I glided down off my bed and headed straight for my desk, as Pinkie sheepishly nodded, tucking away the bottle. "Just how old are you, Pinkie?"
"I'll be fifteen tomorrow!" Pinkie giggled and started to rummage through her bags once more. "That reminds me! When's your birthday? I wanna know when to throw your surprise party!" She produced a huge calender that would be impossible to fit into the saddlebag it came out of. I tensed just as I was about to open a panel in my desk, the mention of my birthday freezing me in place.
"A day as foul as the anniversary of my birth should not be celebrated..." I muttered under my breath, not realizing I said it aloud. Pinkie merely giggled and walked over to me, not yet able to see the look of despair on my face.
"Don't be silly! Everypony should have a party on their birthday! Why would you ever say that..?" It was then that she looked me in the eyes, and trailed off. Her eyes took on a softer, more focused look, and her smile slowly disappeared. Those bright blue orbs that had seemed to absolutely glow with happiness burned into my own goldenrod wells.
"What's so bad about your birthday, Lyca..?" The look in her eyes was too much, causing me to turn my head away from the soul-searching gaze. Images were flashing through my mind that I feared she would somehow see, as if my eyes were like tiny television screens.
Shivering, I shrugged the hoof she placed on my should away. "Look, Miss Pie, I just met you. There is no way I am willing to tell you why I hate the anniversary of my birth just yet. maybe another day..." 'Or never...' "I will, however, allow you to know the day. I was born October thirteenth," I muttered quietly, popping open a panel on the side of my desk.
Reaching into the large hole, I pulled out a bottle of the aforementioned vodka, hoofing it over to the disgruntled earth pony. After she took it, I rummaged through my collection of alcohols and pulled out a sizable bottle 3/4 full of green liquid labeled Gargle Blaster; A sure-fire way to forget your night in one shot. Disregarding the long line of warnings and possible side effects, I downed another quarter of the potent liquor.
"Keep the Vodka ash a welcome gift, ansh fell free tsoo raid mah shtash angytime. Ayh'm goin' tah go shee Shcratchiee!" 'Oh no...slurred speech already, and my mind's starting to lose focus as well...' With great effort, I managed to put the thought destroying liquid back in my hidden cabinet and sloppily open the window enough to let myself out. Upon closing said window, I looked back in time to see Pinkie sniff the Gargle Blaster and recoil before pouring about a half-shot into a glass.
I tapped on the window to get her attention, pointing towards a pile of newly bought snacks, and motioning that she shouldn't drink it without some food nearby. She smiled as I saluted and headed off towards the bar my friend Vinyl said she was working at this week.
A few weeks after Miss Pie moved in, I recieved a rare oppportunity. One I am honored to say would never have come to pass without the bubbly pony in question...
Regret.
Shame.
And a pounding headache.
Once again I woke up with a powerful hangover. It seemed like I was trying to escape...I'm not sure what exactly, but something-by getting piss drunk and sleeping over in the spare room of one Miss Vinyl Scratch's apartment. But then again, I realize now that I was avoiding something, or rather, someone.
"All I'm saying is that I don't see why you have to let her stay here ," a posh female voice whispered rather loudly through the door. The scent of barley and sweet-grass accompanied the speaker. Her counter-part paced in the hallway, her own scent that of autumn.
"Octy, you and me both know there's a reason she hasn't been going back to her dorm at the orphanage, and I'm not about to let her just wander around all night, hooking up with any stallion or colt she can get a hold of," the familiar tomcoltish voice argued back. "Besides, she hasn't done anything wrong while she's been here...except for now."
Confusion.
I slowly opened my right eye. The other was swelled shut and most likely a silvery shade of black. Looking around the room, I could see nothing wrong. not a single item was broken or stained. 'She must be talking about a fight. Why else would I have a black eye..? Nothing seems out of the norm-crap.'
A pink hoof wrapped around me, and the fuzzy, unmistakable scent of Miss Pie invaded my nostrils. 'Oh no no no no no!' As my mind continued to scream at me, I gently pulled myself away from the filly wrapped around me. With a light flutter of my sore wings, i made my way silently towards the door, pressing my ear against it to listen.
"She broke Prince Blueblood's leg! Now all of Equestria will hate me for bringing her in the first place!" the high class mare half-yelled. "Plus, she's in there cuddled up to a child! She's nearly seventeen, and that little ball of pink fur is what, twelve?!"
"Baby, quiet down or you'll wake her up," the oddly sourced voice of reason sighed, trying to mollify her roommate. "Besides, Lyca said Pinkie was fifteen. that's not very young. And, hey. She was twelve when we met her, and we both know how she got past the bouncer..."
Pushing open the door, I dropped my head in shame. I walked up to the two mares, hoofed the ground while ignoring the pain permeating my whole body, and sighed. "Look, I'm really sorry for...whatever I did, and I promise not to come back here anymore. I'll leave the both of you alone, and pretend like i don't know you. But please, before I bring Miss Pie back to her dormitory, I didn't have sex with her, did I?" I asked, groaning as I looked back towards the slumbering filly, now hugging a pillow. "And why do I have a black eye, torn muscles in my neck, and not one intact rib?"
"You got into a fight with the prince, then got beat up by the royal guards after you kissed some random purple unicorn and screamed some nonsense about Celestia having a sister on the moon," Octavia growled, glaring at me. "Then, you proceeded to thank me for letting you come, slapped the princess's flank, got thrown out, and beat up again..."
"And no, you didn't buck the kid," Vinyl cut in, stopping Octavia from snapping with a loving look. She started to giggle. "Have to admit, it was pretty funny."
"Thank you for the information, I will see to it that nopony blames you, and farewell, my former companions," I stated formally as i stiffly lifted the poofy pink ball onto my battered form, not inclined in the slightest to heal myself at all. I dragged myself to the front door and carefully opened it, Pinkie hugging me around the neck. Walking away, I took one last look at another ruined friendship.
"Lets give you both a few days to forgive her, then we'll make sure she realizes we don't hate her. 'Kay Octy?" Vinyl sighed, closing the door. the grey earth pony nodded as she lowered her gaze.