//------------------------------// // Chapter Three: Greetings // Story: Rejuvenate // by Kody910 //------------------------------// Three long days had passed since you first spoke with Dr. Coachen. Or, rather, the first time you could remember speaking with him, that is. While you purposefully opted to not immediately leave the hospital, you were still itching to get out of there as soon as possible. It was only when you had been a patient in a hospital for several days that you realized just how boring it could be. You made a mental note to never end up in one again. After having filled out all the paperwork, scheduling some checkups with Coachen at later dates, and saying your goodbyes, you trotted- no, scratch that, wheeled out the front doors of the hospital at what you figured to be about noon. In your condition, you were required, or rather, forced to stay in a wheelchair, and to put as little strain on your legs as you could. It wasn't the most comfortable, being all cold steel, and the seat was really hard on your bum. At least your position as a miner made the wheelchair a little easier to deal with, given your extra upper-body strength. Outside the entrance of the hospital, you felt awash with relief. The crisp, clean, outside air was a lovely change of pace from the stuffy hospital atmosphere. The rays of Celestia's sun never felt better on your skin, and you wanted to soak up all you could to make up for the last week or so. Taking a deep whiff, you notice a delicious fragrance in the air that reminded you of cookies. Perhaps the local confectionery had just delivered a batch. You fumbled with some papers in your hooves. Scanning the documents, you find that your first checkup will only be three days from now. On top of that, you found some instructions as to the physical therapy you would need to begin with on your good leg, or rather, your "not-as-bad" leg. Taking note of that, you put the papers aside, and continue wheeling forward. However, you stop dead in your tracks at the sight before you. Approaching the front doors at a leisurely pace were two pegasi. The one on your right had a blue coat and a mane consisting of a plethora of colors. She held her head high, and she appeared to be listening to the mumbling of the pegasus to your left. This one had her head drooped low. Her long, pink mane obscured her face from your view, but you had a pretty good idea as to who this mare was. The rainbow-maned one spotted you, and gave her friend a nudge, nodding her head forward while wearing a sly smirk. The other pegasus quickly shifted her head forward to meet the object of her gaze. What she found was another gaze. Your gaze. The two of you lock eyes for what felt like forever. Everything around you seemed to vanish. Those aqua eyes seemed bottomless, and she wore a completely shocked, if not somewhat adorable, expression. Before you could get lost any farther in those eyes, her colorful friend gave her another nudge, catching her attention. With a simple, yet knowing, nod she flew off, leaving you and your apparent savior alone. The two of you slowly advance toward one another. You didn't exactly prepare for this moment, and even if you did, it wouldn't have made much of a difference. It isn't exactly easy to come up with the words to tell to the pony that saved your life. You weren't even certain this was her anyway! There was only one way to know for sure, though... "Um...hi..." You start, rather unsure of yourself. "Um...h-hello..." She said at a near-inaudible volume. "Um...are you, Fluttershy?" "Oh, um...yes...I guess that, um, Dr. Coachen told you about me?" "Yes, and, well, I don't even know what to say..." And it was true. You had no idea how to put this into words. You mentally scold yourself for not having prepared for this moment. You had three days to think, yet you never gave the moment of confrontation a single thought. "Oh, I'm sorry..." She says, catching you slightly off guard. "Wait, you're sorry? For what?" "Oh, well, I mean for, um..." She says, her voice becoming more and more difficult to hear. "Fluttershy, you have absolutely nothing to be sorry for." You say, in an attempt to relieve her of some of her nervousness. "You just saved my life! In fact, I should be sorry for making you go through the trouble of bringing me here!" "Oh, no, I'm sure you would have been..." Her voice trails off again. "That I would have been okay? No one would have ever found me out there had it not been for you!" With that statement, something clicked in your mind. Something you had been wondering since you found out how you got to the hospital. "Fluttershy, if you don't mind, could you answer a few questions for me?" "Um...of course..." She sounded rather unsure of herself, not that it came as a surprise at this point. You supposed that this was how she always acted, and being around you, the colt whose life she saved, probably wasn't helping. "Okay...first of all, how did you find me out in the forest?" You asked. "Well...I saw you and that other colt from my cottage." Must be Russ she's talking about, you think to yourself. "I live pretty close to the Everfree Forest... it was around seven when I saw you, I think..." "And a few hours later, I saw that same colt come running out of the forest, but you weren't with him, so, um...I got a little worried..." Must be when he abandoned me... "So I went outside, and I found a little map on the ground at the entrance to the forest...I think your friend may have dropped it...I followed the directions on the map to this big temple..." "And is that when you found me?" You ask. You can see her begin to visibly shake as she continues. "Um...y-yes...your legs were under a really b-big rock...I couldn't just leave you there, so I tried really hard to move it, but I just couldn't do it alone...So I went to find some help..." "Wait, what ponies would be crazy enough to be in the middle of the forest that late at night?" You know, other than me, you, and that....one, that won't be named. "Oh, well, there weren't any ponies..." She replies. "So...who helped you then?" "Um..." She begins, sounding very unsure of herself. "...A...m-Manticore..." It took your brain several seconds to register what she said. A Manticore? Wow, that's some crazy sh- "Wait, a Manticore!? Like, the pony-eating monster Manticore!?" She brought a Manticore to my unconscious, helpless body!? "Well, yes...it was the only help I could get...I'm sorry...He was really cooperative though! He managed to move that boulder off of you in a matter of minutes!" A Manticore, cooperative!? What is with this crazy mare?? "How did you manage to get a MANTICORE, of all creatures, to help you?" "Well, you see, I'm really good with animals, and I've helped this particular Manticore before..." Okay, if you can get a Manticore to help you on a whim, saying that you're 'good with animals' is a severe understatement! "Well, um...that's...wow. I-is that how you brought me here?" "Oh! Um..." She sounded unsure of herself before, but now you could have sworn you heard her voice cracking now. "Um, no...i-it didn't want to leave the forest, so, um...I had to c-carry you..." You were at a complete loss for words. Not only did this mare risk her life in the forest, manage to track you down, tame a WILD BEAST to do her bidding, but she stuck it out and actually carried you back to town on her own back. You could only imagine how difficult that must have been for her. You weren't exactly the lightest pony, and she didn't seem like the type of mare who works out on a regular basis. "I...I can't even...but, why?" Your question appeared to have surprised her. "I-I'm sorry?" "Why would you go through so much trouble? Bringing me here, coming everyday to see my progress, why? You didn't even know me!" Surely there's no way she could have known I was still alive when she found me, why would she do all of this? "Oh! Um..." For a split second, you thought you saw a slight blush on her face. "W-well, um...it was the right thing to do..." Something about that statement rubbed you the wrong way. The right thing to do? If anything, the 'right thing to do' was something most ponies couldn't grasp the concept of. You learned that all too well over the years. There was no way anypony was naturally this kind. Some nagging suspicion in your mind told you to keep an eye on this mare, as crazy and clearly dangerous as she was. "Um...are you okay?" You were snapped out of your thoughts by her concerned voice. "Oh! Um, yeah...I'm just, uh, feeling a bit tired." It was partially a lie. While physically you didn't have much energy, you weren't exactly ready for sleep. "Oh, well, if you'd like, I could help you, um...get home..." She offered, her voice faltering a bit at the last words. "Whoa, no no no! I mean, you've already done so much for me, I couldn't make you do that!" You attempted to decline her offer, both out of humility and a bit of fear. "Oh, that's okay, it's no trouble at all!" And with that, she hovered behind your chair and began pushing you away from the prison you had spent the last week or so in. You opened your mouth to object, but something in you prevented you from speaking. You couldn't put your hoof on it, but you had some strange feeling. Something you hadn't genuinely felt since...high school... You snapped your mind away from those thoughts, and focused on directing the mare toward your house. *************** The trip to your house was dreadful. You couldn't help but feel all the stares and shocked expressions rain down on you as you and Fluttershy made your way through town. Normally you weren't concerned with what others thought of you, but the sight of you in such a sad, pathetic state was bound to leave impressions. Impressions you weren't particularly fond of. You attempted a conversation with Fluttershy, but it mostly consisted of her drilling you with questions about your condition. You had to constantly reassure her that you were fine, she wasn't pushing your chair too fast, your leg wasn't in too much pain, and so on. After awhile, you did manage to learn a bit more about her. She explained that her special talent was in dealing with animals, and that her home was full of small critters. Even with that, you were still unable to wrap your mind around the idea that she enlisted a Manticore to help her save you. Though you didn't want to call her a liar right away, your belief in that story was still tentative. Along the way, you stopped by that local apple vendor upon your own request, which Fluttershy was more than happy to oblige with. After stocking up on some produce (which your chauffeur graciously offered to pay for, much to your chagrin) you continued to lead her to your home. The sweet, tangy scent of the apples was unique to that vendors products, and you couldn't prevent your mouth from watering as you made your way back. It was certainly a more tantalizing aroma than that of the hospital food you had been eating. You weren't even sure if you would go so far as to call it "food," rather than "mush." At long last, you arrived. It felt like ages since you had last seen the place, and you were eager to get inside. Fluttershy opened the door, and wheeled you inside. Everything was just as you left it, albeit a little bit dustier, and with a bit of a musky smell in the air, but it was home, sweet home. You felt completely relieved to finally be back after so long. But there was something nagging at the back of your mind, something telling you that you were forgetting something. "Um..." Oh yeah, I have a guest. "Well, I suppose you want me to leave you now..." Fluttershy says, sounding somewhat dejected. "Well, um..." As crazy as you thought this mare was, you couldn't help but feel guilty for just sending her off. However, there was something you did need help with, but you absolutely did not want to press her any further, considering all she had done so far. "Um...I suppose I should be going now..." At this point, she turned around, and began trotting out the door, head hung slightly low. You managed to wheel yourself around to see her in this state, and something began tugging at your heart. This mare, who put you, a complete stranger, before herself was now walking out your- "WAIT!" Fluttershy stops dead in her tracks and looks back at you, bewildered expression adorned on her face. You're not exactly sure what made you scream out, but seeing her look so pitiful just tore you to pieces. Whatever made you stop her vanished, as you're suddenly, and very frantically, searching for words to follow up with. "Uh...er, uh, you don't have to leave so soon..." you start off rather uncertainly with. "Er, actually, I kinda...need your help." You idiot, isn't this what you were avoiding!? "Oh, well, of course! What did you need?" You felt like Fluttershy sounded just a bit too eager to help. "Well...you see, the thing is, um..." You weren't exactly sure how to put it, and you were even more unsure as to how she would react. You decided the best approach would be to just be straight-forward with it. "Well, I have to do this, uh, physical therapy. It's just a bunch of stretches and stuff. But, uh, I might need some help with them..." "Oh! Um..." Her face turns beet-red, and you wonder if you should have just let it go. Eventually, she managed to speak up. "Um, of course, I mean, i-if you r-really need it...." "I don't want to force you into this..." "Oh, if you really do need help, I-I don't mind at all!" Fluttershy made her way back to you, and pushed you over to the couch at your request. Taking out the papers from the side pouches on your wheelchair, you sift through them to find the instructions you had been given earlier by Dr. Coachen. You begin to scan over them, searching for the exercises to be performed for the first session. Taking a glance at Fluttershy, you notice her shuffling her hooves rather awkwardly. "Okay, um....are you sure you're up for this?" You ask your assistant, not wanting to put pressure on her. This was already weird enough, you didn't want to add on to the awkward air. "If it will help you, I'm certain." Fluttershy suddenly seems much more confident, and looks like she is raring to get started. "Well, alright then." You say, still feeling strange about the whole situation. "For the first few sessions, I'll need to just do some simple stretches. It says I may need an assistant to move my leg for me if I can't manage to do it myself. As long as the muscles are being stretched, that's all that matters." You had participated in a few of these sessions during your time in the hospital at Coachen's request, but you had yet to try them yourself. The nurses at the hospital simply moved your leg for you, working out some the damage without your input. The exercises seemed simple enough, to the point where virtually anypony with his head on his shoulders could try them. With you lying down on your back, you begin to gracefully move your leg. Due to your leg having been pressed under the stone in a rather awkward position, the muscles were somewhat stiff and difficult to move. Coachen explained that the goal of the stretches was to reset the muscles to their natural position, rather than the form they had molded to from being constricted for so long. The first motion was a simple bending of the knee. While the movement wasn't agonizing, it wasn't particularly pleasant either. As you lift your hoof to the ceiling, you begin to notice just how severe the damage was. Every muscle in your leg fought against you. It felt as though they were attempting to curl up like a party blower. At first, the sensation wasn't one of pain, but of extreme tension. Each fiber in the appendage was very stiff and uncooperative, but you continued moving. After having been able to extend your leg to it's fullest about three times, the pain really started to kick in. Where the muscles were tight before, now they screamed out in agony. Every little movement made you wince in pain, and it only grew worse and worse. Closing your eyes, you tried to force your leg to the ceiling once more, but you just couldn't manage to do it again. Feeling defeated, you begin to slowly lower your leg with a sigh. At that moment, you feel two soft, warm hooves grasp your leg. Surprised, you open your eyes and find Fluttershy staring at you, looking as though she was expecting some sort of response. "Um...I'm sorry, but, the paper said you needed to stretch your leg all the way at least ten times...I hope you don't mind..." You were somewhat surprised at her forwardness, considering how she had been so nervous and jittery all the rest of the day. Then again, she did say she did make it a hobby dealing with animals. You figured she just had been used to dealing with injuries, so she was capable of helping you. With a nod, you allow her to begin moving your leg for you. With you no longer putting strain on the muscles yourself, the pain had very much been subdued. The fibers had still been somewhat reluctant to budge, but not anywhere near as bad as you attempting to use them yourself. However, you chalked up some of the relief you were feeling to the mare holding your leg. Her gentle hooves gracefully wrapped around your leg, gently moving the appendage to and fro. It almost felt like a sort of pseudo-massage. Had it not been for the tightness of your leg, this would have been heaven. But why did you enjoy this so much? You barely knew this mare, and you weren't certain if you could trust her. Yet when you looked into those deep, beautiful eyes, a part of you couldn't help but melt. Looking at her, you can slowly feel a heat coming to your face. After losing yourself in her features, you quickly snap your gaze away to try and hide your inevitable blush. Luckily, it seemed Fluttershy didn't notice your reddening cheeks. After a few moments, the pegasus let go of your leg, and retrieves the instructions she left on the ground. She begins to read over the next procedure. "Okay, now that that's taken care of...it looks like the next step is rotating the hoof. First clockwise, then counter-clockwise." Hearing this, you give her a nod, and begin rotating. At first, there is very little resistance from your hoof. The muscles in that area hadn't been particularly painful. You felt a little silly, as it didn't feel so much like you were revitalizing your leg as you were just preparing for a race or something. But you knew that if you were to have any chance at getting better, it would need to be done. After several full rounds of twisting, the muscles in your ankle began to ache. No part of your leg had been spared by that boulder, and the tendons of your hoof began to fight against you. The pain gradually began to spread into the already-sore regions of your leg, further piling on to the pain. You clench your eyes shut, attempting to force another spin. Once again, the muscles begin to give out. Even as simple a motion as this was beginning to take its toll. And once again, the gentle warmth you had began to grow fond of caressed your hoof. You open your eyes to find Fluttershy had taken your hoof into hers, and began rotating it in the other direction. Though it was such a simple movement, to you it felt like heaven. Her hooves were notably soft, and she held your hoof with such a gentle grasp. The itchy, stinging pain of your muscles melted away as the pegasus twisted your hoof. You hoped this didn't have to end anytime soon. After several rotations, Fluttershy let go of your hoof. Glancing down at the instructions again, she suddenly looked somewhat surprised. "Oh! It looks like that's all we need to do for the first session!" You had mixed feelings at this statement. On the one hoof, you were glad you were done torturing your leg muscles for one day. On the other hoof, however, you were somewhat disappointed that you wouldn't get to feel Fluttershy's gentle caress again. At least, not until next session, you reminded yourself. But wait, would she be open and willing to help you again? You were afraid to ask. On top of that, how should you go about asking without sounding awkward? If your word choice was wrong in the slightest way, she might refuse, be repulsed, or downright creeped out. As you were battling out in your mind over what to say next, Fluttershy spoke up. "Um...I'm sorry, but, I know you will need to do this for the next several weeks, and, um, I was wondering if, um...." Her voice began to falter again. "...Well, what is it?" You inquire. You felt like you may have put a little too much force into your voice when asking that, but the thought is dispelled from your mind when she speaks again. "Well...I was wondering if you would, um, like some help with your sessions later...." You were relieved. Not only because you were going to be getting help with your sessions, but that she was completely okay with helping you. She had also taken care of your having to ask her for help as well! "Well...if you are completely okay with it, I would love for you to help." Her face lit up at this statement. With a smile, she helped you make your way back into your wheelchair. The two of you made your way to your front door. "Well..." Fluttershy started, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" "Of course." You reply. "And Fluttershy?" "Um, yes?" You quickly draw her in for a hug, eliciting a surprised squeak from the pegasus. "Thank you. For everything." "Um...d-don't worry about it. It was just, um, the r-right thing to do..." Eventually, she returned the embrace. You had never been happier to have received a hug in your life. After a few seconds, the two of you broke the hug, and she began to trot away. "Well....I guess this is goodbye!" "Goodbye, Fluttershy." After you saw her off, you closed you door and reflected on the events of the day. But no matter what you thought of, your mind always jumped back to that crazy, yellow-coated mare. It had been a long time since you felt this way toward anyone, let alone someone you barely knew as her. Was this feeling one of genuine trust? You weren't certain, but glance out the window towards the pegasus flying away confirmed your thoughts. "Perhaps there is someone in this world I can trust after all..."