The old stallion chuckled to himself, remembering his beloved toy. The toy had comforted Tin on many days. It had been his friend through and through. It had never left his side, not that it could, nor would he let it. His chuckle soon faded, turning into a series of phlegm-filled coughs. He cleared his throat.
“Lungs aren’t what they used to be,” he told himself, shaking his head in frustration.
Tin’s expression changed, frustration fading as he smiled. His mind jumped, remembering the song. He remembered all of her songs. Each detail of all of the times she had sung had been locked into his mind. He had forgotten much of his past, but he would never allow himself to forget those songs.
Tin would never forget the silver-maned earth pony mare. He would never forget her words, nor her soothing tone or melody. He sighed, leaning back into his chair. A lone tear rolled down his cheek as he thought of her name.
“Lullaby…”
--0o0o0o0--
Several years had past since Tin’s first adventure. Tin had grown, no longer small, nearing the early years of adolescence. He had made many friends within the orphanage, and had many more adventures. The mare that had lulled him to sleep became a new figure to which he admired dearly; all of the foals loved her dearly. Nopony in the orphanage had ever felt unloved, lost, or sad while in her company.
Lullaby.
Tin felt comforted at the mere mention of her name. He smiled to himself, clutching his favorite toy as he woke. He set his toy down while he sat up in his bed. Tin had named his toy, Iron Vein, upon the insistence of Lullaby. She would not tell him why, but only that it was the name of someone very close to Tin. He shrugged to himself, long since giving up trying to find the original owner of the name. Slowly, he shambled out of bed.
Tin had plans today, plans for another adventure. Recently, Lullaby had been taking trips out into the city, sometimes leaving for hours at a time in the early morning. He was worried for Lullaby. She would never keep secrets from the foals at the Orphanage, but she had been avoiding any questions about her disappearances. Tin was determined to find out why. To him, there was no reason to keep secrets. They were all family.
Tin heard the sound from downstairs, the soft clip-clop of hooves on wood flooring. He knew who it would be, and it was time to move. Tin opened the door to his room, heading across the hall to another foal. It was early, the sun barely reaching through the windows of the Orphanage, so Tin knocked, as he was unsure whether anypony would be awake. The door slowly opened and a smaller teal unicorn filly met his eyes.
Her name was Aurora. Aurora had been at the orphanage since Tin had, and so they had both grown up together. She had become a close friend to Tin in their early years. She often followed him on his adventures, and the foals grew close with their shared curiosity for exploration. Both of them had taken notice to Lullaby’s disappearances in the early morning, and both had agreed to follow her.
Aurora was not expecting Tin this early, as such, her normally kempt, short-cut blue mane was untidy, hairs sticking in almost every direction. Their gaze met, her glare equaling that of a rudely awoken manticore. Clearly, she was not amused.
“Why did you wake me up?” she questioned, calmly, glare unfaltering.
Tin cleared his throat. “It’s Lullaby; She’s going out again.”
Aurora’s glare faltered, expression softening. She sighed, looking back into her room. “Fine. Just let me brush my mane.”
Tin shook his head. “She’s leaving now! We can’t wait.”
Aurora groaned inwardly, moving forward and closing the door behind her. She stepped closer to Tin while muttering a few choice words under her breath. She looked down the hall. “Alright, let’s go.”
The two foals nodded to one another and headed silently downstairs. Lullaby was not in the main lobby of the orphanage. Believing Lullaby to have already left, Aurora’s horn glowed as she wrapped her magic around the front door’s knob and unlocked it. Tin patted her on the back, impressed by her quick work of the lock. In turn, she smiled as both headed through the now-opened door.
It was still dim outside. Celestia’s sun was slowly rising, but the dull outline of Luna’s moon was still seen. The foals shivered as the air’s chill reached their coats. Both looked about, and the streets of Canterlot greeted them. Several well-designed, ornate homes and shops surrounded them. A small collection of ponies milled about at this time, but the streets were, for the most part, empty.
Tin and Aurora continued through the streets, looking for Lullaby. Most of Canterlot was unfamiliar to them, as they had been confined to the general vicinity of the orphanage. After a few moments, the foals spotted a familiar silver mane. Trotting closer to a better view, Tin and Aurora caught sight of Lullaby.
Lullaby’s head drooped, and her ears splayed back. She seemed anxious, walking at a brisk pace with her brow furrowed. Lullaby looked nervous. The two foals shared worried glances, looking upon her. This was not the Lullaby that they were accustomed to.
The foals followed her quietly. They did not have to hide, or stay unnoticed, as Lullaby did not pay any heed to what was behind her. Within minutes, Lullaby came to a large white building, a red cross atop the entrance. She headed to the door, slowly opening it with a sigh.
Tin and Aurora waited for a few short minutes, as they did not want to be seen by her. They cautiously walked toward the entrance, afraid of being seen. As they entered the building, the first things they noticed were the pristine floors, walls, and desks. All were painted white and were completely sterile. The ponies that sat along the wall did not follow this trend. Most were hunched over, looking pale and flustered. Others had hacking coughs, and none looked well.
The two foals hesitantly moved to the center desk, scanning around the room for any signs of Lullaby. She was not in the lobby.
A rather bored-looking pegasus stallion cleared his throat as the two approached the desk. He quirked his eyebrow at the small foals. “How may I help you two?”
Tin and Aurora looked between each other before Tin answered. “We’re wondering what this place is?”
“You don’t know?”
The foals shook their heads.
“It is a hospital. It’s for sick ponies,” he explained, casting a curious glance between the two.
Tin gulped, fearing the worst for Lullaby. Aurora smiled. “See! It can’t be too bad. The hospital will make her all better.”
Tin did not share the same enthusiasm, or positive outlook. “I’m not so sure...” Tin sighed, turning back toward the exit. “We might as well get back. We know where she’s been going, and we can ask her about it later.”
The foals headed back through the streets, quickly arriving at the orphanage. Aurora went back to her room, as she was ready to get back to sleep. Tin went to his own room.
He sat onto his bed, grabbing the toy set down next to him. Pulling the toy up, he gave it a hug, comforting himself in his fear for Lullaby. His breathing turned ragged and his toy became dampened with tears. Holding Iron Vein to his chest, he mumbled. “Please… be okay.”
After waiting for what seemed like an eternity to Tin, he heard the faint creaking of the front door. Tin quickly sprung up from his bed and moved downstairs, frantically looking for the one he cherished most.
Lullaby entered the orphanage, slowly closing the door behind her. Turning, she saw Tin and gave him a weak smile. She looked downtrodden, her smile faux. Her eyes had dark circles underneath them. Her once-silver mane now showed signs of grey. She looked weary and frail.
“I need to get some rest Tin… I’m sorry if you’ve been waiting for me all morning.”
Tin nodded and watched as she sluggishly shambled into her bedroom. His throat felt dry, and his heart rate increased. Tin feared the worst for Lullaby.
The night came quickly, as Tin had been too worried to pay attention in the day. He watched Lullaby constantly that day. He noticed that she seemed dazed. She appeared to be distracted, not giving her normal bright smile to all of those she cared for.
Tin’s worry increased as the foals were all put to sleep. Lullaby had always sung a wonderful melody or song to lull the orphans to sleep, but not tonight. Tonight, the ponies had felt alone.
Tin’s uneasiness grew, but all he could do was clutch to his toy, hoping for a brighter day.