Chapter 2
"So, let me get this straight." Limestone said as she looked back at the human resting on the wagon. "You and your friends actually had 'friendly' battles with a rival frat house...by using actual fireworks?"
"Yep, that's right." Chris replied. "We became best friends with the police department fairly quickly."
"I'm sure you did." Limestone said as she turned her head back towards the road. Their morning had been simple. They woke up, Limestone packed up and ate breakfast, and the two of them went off to Ponyville. Along the way, they began to talk to each other and tell stories about some of the things they've done. Not only did this allow them to pass the time, but it allowed the two of them the opportunity to get to know each other.
"Yeah, although there was one time that somebody took it too seriously and tried to use bottle rockets in one of our firework battles." Chris added.
"I take it that that's a bad thing?" Limestone asked as she looked back at Chris.
"Considering that the bottle rockets he got were able to make a pretty sizable explosion, yes it was a very bad thing." Chris said with a frown. "So, me and pretty much everyone else drew a line in the sand and called the cops on him. That was probably the only time they were happy to see us...Well, most of us."
"And did that stop the firework battles?" Limestone asked with a mixture of curiosity and hope.
"Oh, of course not." Chris happily answered. "We just made a list of fireworks we could use. And a much longer list of what we couldn't use."
"Well, at least you guys made some standards." Limestone replied, not knowing if she should feel relieved or concerned.
"Yeah, although that wasn't as bad as the time we went to Denny's and-" He suddenly stopped as he looked ahead of the road and said, "Hey, I think I see something."
Limestone turned forward to see what Chris was looking at. In front of them was what looked like a rather large spike that was made from crystal. After a few more seconds of walking, Limestone noticed that the spike was actually a part of a large crystal star. Limestone immediately recognized what the star was and began to quicken the pace. "Hold on Chris, we're almost to Ponyville." She called back.
"That's good to hear. My leg's been hurting like a bitch." Chris replied with a sense of relief.
"Yeah, yeah. Tell me something I don't know." Limestone rhetorically replied as she began to enter the town. Just like Pinkie described, the town was filled with rustic looking houses as well as a few unique looking buildings that Pinkie told her were some of the various shops. Once she noticed a building that looked like a multi-story gingerbread house, she let out a sigh as she unhooked herself from the wagon and began to tense up her muscles.
"Um, Limestone, what are you doing?"She heard Chris ask her. "Aren't you going to ask anybody where the hospital is?" He asked, indicating to the ponies that were walking by and staring at him with a mix of curiosity and caution.
"Don't worry, I will." Limestone replied, not moving from her spot.
"So, why aren't you?"
"I'm waiting for somepony."
"Who are you waiting for?"
"My sister." As soon as those words left Limestone's lips, a pink blur suddenly flew out of the door of the gingerbread house and slammed into Limestone with enough force to kick up a cloud of dirt that would have put a dust storm to shame. While most ponies would have been knocked off of their hooves, Limestone, who was prepared for this, stood perfectly still.
When the dust was settled, her 'assailant' was revealed to be a pink pony with a poofy pink mane and tail. Her cutie mark was a yellow balloon that was in between two blue balloons. The pony was Pinkie Pie, Limestone Pie's younger sister, who was hugging Limestone tightly with a cheek pressed against hers. "Oh, Limestone, I'm so happy you're here!" Pinkie cheerfully exclaimed.
"It's good to see you too, Pinkie." Limestone said as she used a foreleg to lightly return the hug.
Pinkie then separated from the hug as she began to rapidly say, "Oh, I've got some super, duper fun things for us to do while you're here."
"That's nice, Pinkie, but-" Limestone tried to say as Pinkie kept speaking.
"Of course, that's after you deliver that granite to the Rich family."
"Yes, I know, but-"
"And after you drop off the super, freaky, alien monkey thing that's riding on your wagon." Pinkie then stood there for a few seconds before letting out a long, dramatic gasp. "Oh. My. Celestia. You brought somepony new to town. Give me a few seconds, sis, I need to plan a party really quickly!" She exclaimed as she started to run back into the building.
That was, until she was stopped by Limestone simply stepping on her tail and exclaiming, "Pinkie, I don't have time for that. I have to get him to the hospital, now!" She pointed a hoof at Chris, who was just gapping wide eyed at Pinkie
"Why, he looks fine to-" Pinkie began to say as she looked over Chris, but then stopped when she noticed Chris's leg. "Oh my gosh, his leg is broken! We do have to get him to the hospital, stat!" She exclaimed as she grabbed Limestone and tossed her onto the wagon with Chris.
Limestone just groaned in frustration at her sister when she landed. She then scooched over to Chris and propped him up so that his upper back was resting on the lower part of her chest. She wrapped her hooves around Chris and held on tightly before she said, "You might want to brace yourself."
"Why do you say that?" Chris asked in concern as Pinkie grabbed the front of the wagon with her forehooves. Then, without warning, Pinkie began to pull the wagon at a blazing speed, to the point that the world around them passed by like a blur. Limestone, for the most part, was unaffected by the speed that Pinkie was pulling the wagon. Chris, on the other hand, was screaming at the top of his lungs while trying to grab onto the cloth on the wagon.
After a few seconds, Pinkie stopped pulling the wagon and Limestone looked over to the left to see that Pinkie had parked them right in front of the hospital. "Here we are!" Pinkie exclaimed. "Ponyville General Hospital. I'll let them know about your new friend."
"Yeah, sure." Limestone said as she let go of Chris. She began to help him off of the wagon as she said, "Come on, Chris, let's get you off of this thing."
"Sure, just one quick question." Chris said as he scooted towards the edge. "What the hell just happened!?" He practically screamed.
"Ugh, just Pinkie being Pinkie." Limestone said with a eyeroll before she jumped off the wagon. "You learn to deal with it...somewhat."
"Yeah, I'm sure."He said sarcastically as he got his good leg to hang off the wagon. "Ready?"
"Yeah, go for it." Limestone said as she stood on her hind legs and reached up to Chris. Chris reached his hands until he grabbed her hooves. Limestone, although feeling uncomfortable, was able to support Chris's weight as he slowly swung his leg over the side and then slowly put his good leg on the ground. Limestone let go of Chris and got back on all four legs right as Pinkie Pie returned with a couple of nurses with a stretcher.
"I'm back!" Pinkie Pie sung out. She turned to the nurses and said, "See, I told you there was a weird alien guy out here." She then suddenly went from right next to the hospital staff to right next to Chris. "And, just like I said, his leg is currently broken."
"Oh, wow, you're right, Pinkie!" The white nurse with the pink mane tied in a bun said. "And his leg does look bad. We have to treat him right away." She and the rest of the hospital staff brought the stretcher over to Chris. He turned around when they reached him and proceeded to carefully lie down on the stretcher, which was easy for him since it only went up to his waist. "Come on," the same nurse said to the rest of the staff, "Let's get him to an operating room." They then began to quickly push him into the hospital.
As the doors opened, Limestone heard Chris trying to catch the nurses' attention by saying, "Hey, wait a minute. Can't I tell Lime-" The doors closing cut Limestone off from whatever Chris was trying to tell the nurses. Limestone stared at the hospital doors for a few seconds after the doors had closed. In a way, she was glad that Chris was going to get his leg treated, but at the same time she at least wanted to say goodbye to him.
All of a sudden, she felt a foreleg wrap around her from the right. She looked over to see that Pinkie was giving her a side hug. "So, ready for our annual Pie Sisters Surprise Swap Day?" Pinkie cheerfully asked.
"Yeah, just let me deliver this granite first." Limestone said as she removed Pinkie's foreleg from around her and walked to the wagon.
"Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. You're bringing that to the Rich family, right?"
"Yeah, should I expect any trouble from them?" Limestone asked as she started to hook herself to the wagon.
"Well, you wouldn't have too much trouble if it was Filthy Rich you had to talk to. But since he's running his store right now, then that means the one you're going to have to talk to is-"
"This is unacceptable!" A middle-aged mare that Limestone had learned was named Spoiled Rich exclaimed angrily, pointing a hoof at the stack of granite that was resting near her house. "I expected this delivery hours ago. What makes you think that I'm going to pay you full price for it now?"
Limestone was glaring daggers at the mare. Okay, Limestone, you can make her see to reason. She thought to herself. Just stay calm, don't yell at her, and don't say anything about that...muzzle of hers. She took a deep breath before she replied, "Look, I know you're frustrated, ma'am, but take some things into consideration. I made this journey on hoof and I had some unexpected events happen to me while I was on the road. Besides, we never agreed on a specific time of delivery. We agreed on a day of delivery," She said, "and I delivered it on that day. So, pay me the payment and we'll be finished with our business."
"I don't care if you didn't have a specific time to deliver the granite or not. Like I said this was something that I wanted hours ago, because I wanted my bathroom counter top at least halfway finished by now. Now, I've had to cancel all of my plans because you didn't get here earlier. Therefore, I refuse to pay you the full payment." Spoiled Rich replied with a huff.
...You know what, screw being calm and polite! She's crosses a line! Limestone thought as she jabbed a hoof at Spoiled Rich. "Listen here, stretch snout!" She yelled. "It took me days to walk to this town to get this granite here. Could I have gotten here sooner? Maybe, but part of the reason why I got here right now was because I ran into somepony that was injured. And, out what little bit of kindness I have in my heart, I decided that I didn't want to leave him there to die, so I picked him up and gave him a ride to the hospital. And how is my good deed rewarded? By having to deal with a rotten, self-absorbed bitch who's too pissy about an inconvenience to make a payment that I was promised!"
"Why, I never!" A flabbergasted Spoiled Rich exclaimed. "How dare you treat me with such rudeness. I have half a mind to not give you any form of payment at all, and to make sure that nopony ever orders anything from you agai-"
"Mother!" A young, female voice yelled out from the house. Everyone turned towards the entry way of the house to see a pink filly with a white and pink mane and tail. She also had a tiara for a cutie mark and was wearing one on her head as well. She walked up to the two mares with a frown that was mostly directed towards Spoiled Rich. "You have a lot of nerve, mother. Teaching me about how to be a 'perfect pony' while trying to scam somepony out of a service that was provided to you." She said when she was a foot away from them, adding a bit of sarcasm when she said 'perfect pony.'
"But, Diamond Tiara, dear I was-" Spoiled Rich tried to explain to her daughter before she was interrupted again.
"Especially somepony who sacrificed her time for the health and safety for another pony. I know you're frustrated that you didn't get the granite when you wanted to, but that's no excuse to take it out on her and refuse to pay her. So, pay her what you promised her, mother." She said giving Spoiled Rich a small glare.
Is this filly for real!? Limestone thought to herself as she raised an eyebrow at the filly. There's no way that her mother's going to take a lecture from her own daughter.
"Um, yes, I suppose you're right, Diamond Tiara. Let me just...get the payment then." Spoiled Rich nervously said as she walked back to the house, catching Limestone by surprise.
Wait, she actually backed off from her daughter. Damn. She thought as she looked down at the filly.
"Sorry about my mom," Diamond Tiara said as she turned to face Limestone. "She isn't exactly the nicest of ponies."
"It's alright, kid. Thanks for the help. Still can't believe that you managed to talk your mother into paying me." Limestone said with a appreciative smile.
"Oh, it was nothing. It's kinda my special talent." Diamond Tiara said nonchalantly as Spoiled Rich came back with a bag in her mouth.
She put the bag down and frowned at Limestone. "Here, this should be the payment we agreed upon."
Limestone opened the bag and looked inside to see a large number of bits inside. She dug through the bits for a while, then picked up the bag to feel its weight. "This seems like the right amount." She said. She then walked to the wagon and placed the bag in it. "Pleasure doing business with you." She told Spoiled Rich sarcastically after hooking herself to the wagon and began to walk away.
After about a minute of walking, Limestone turned back towards the wagon and said, "You can come out now, Pinkie."
Right after she said that, Pinkie Pie jumped out of the wagon, landed right next to Limestone, and began to bounce right alongside her. "Oh good, I hate dealing with that mare. By the way, you went five minutes and forty-three seconds before you lost your cool with an unreasonable customer." Pinkie exclaimed, giving Limestone a side hug. "I'm so proud of you!"
"And what was my last record again?" She asked in an uninterested tone.
"Five minutes and forty-two seconds." Pinkie happily informed.
"I see." Limestone replied as she unwrapped Pinkie's leg from around her neck. "So, where are we off to now?"
"Well, first we're going to drop off this wagon at Sugarcube Corner, since you're probablye tired of pulling it around everywhere. Especially when you had to lug around all that granite and that alien guy you picked up." Pinkie responded.
"Yeah, probably a good idea." Limestone said. But when Pinkie mentioned Chris, she began to think. I wonder how Chris is doing right now. Maybe they're done treating his leg. Of course, if they are, then he's probably bored out of his mind.
"Limestone. Hey, Limestone!" She heard Pinkie yell out.
"Huh, what is it?" Limestone said as she jumped up a bit, not realizing that she had that Pinkie Pie had been speaking to her.
"Are you alright? You spaced out on me for a moment." Pinkie worryingly asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking about something." Limestone said dismissively.
"Well, if you say so." Pinkie said. "Maybe you're going to need this more than I thought."
"Need, what exactly?" Limestone asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Here we are! The Ponyville Spa!" Pinkie announced happily as she presented a building that looked more like a circus tent then a salon.
"Are you sure I need this, Pinkie?" A frustrated Limestone asked. "I don't think I need to go somewhere to make me look like...that!" She said, pointing to the golden sign that depicted a mare with a long, wavy mane and tail.
Pinkie Pie began to laugh as she walked up to Limestone and placed a hoof on her shoulder. "Oh, silly Limestone." She started to say wiping a single tear from her eye. "We're not here to give you a makeover. We're here to get you a message. Like I said earlier, I know somepony who's going to need it. Especially with all that stress you've worked up."
Then, as if Pinkie had just said the magic words, Limestone began to feel some discomfort in her right shoulder...and back...and pretty much every part of her body. "Well, I guess I could use a message, but can't I just go to a chiropractor instead?"
"Oh, come on, Limestone, no one's going to think differently of you just because you went to the spa." Pinkie happily said as she pushed Limestone into the spa, despite her attempts to stop her. "Even Rainbow Dash comes here for a massage on a regular basis."
"I have no idea who that even is." Limestone angrily said before she was shoved into the door. She glared at Pinkie as the both of them walked up to the front counter, which was being ran by a blue mare with a long, straight, pink mane and tail.
"Ah, Pinkie Pie, it'z zo good to zee you again." The mare happily said. "What can ve do for you today?"
"I'd like a massage and trip to the hot tub for me and my older sister." Pinkie said.
"Of course, vould you like your usual massage treatment?" The mare asked. Pinkie, who nodded enthusiastically. The mare then pulled out a pamphlet as she turned to Limestone. "And is zis you first time here?"
"Yes." Limestone unenthusiastically answered.
"In zat case, this pamphlet vill tell you vhat massages we offer." She said as she handed the pamphlet over to Limestone.
Limestone took the pamphlet and skimmed through it. Most of these massages are too froufrou if you ask me. She thought until she actually found one that caught her eye. "Huh, I guess I could go for the extra-strenght-hot-stone-deep-tissue massage."
"Okay zen." The mare said as she took the pamphlet back and grabbed a couple of robes from behind the counter. "If you vill follow me, please." She led Pinkie and Limestone through the spa for a while before stopping in front of an open room. "Zis shall be your room, Pinkie." Pinkie cheered out as she grabbed a robe and bounced into the room. The mare then turned around and pointed to another open room that was right next to the first room. "And zis shall be your room."
Limestone nodded as she grabbed the robe and walked into the room, closing the door when she was inside. She looked around the room for a moment and saw that the only thing inside was a massage table. She then haphazardly tossed the robe into a random corner of the room and laid belly down on the massage table. I hope that this is as relaxing as Pinkie says it is.
All of a sudden, she heard a loud crash over at the door. She looked up to see a large hole to the right of the door. Standing in said hole was a large, overly muscular white pegasus stallion. "Yeah! Let's get this massage started!" The stallion enthusiastically yelled out.
Limestone's eyes widened in fear as she thought to herself, I think I've made the biggest mistake of my life.
I've never felt so relaxed in my life. Limestone thought in bliss as she soaked in the hot tub. The massage she had was actually pleasant for her. The combination of the hot stones and that stallion's massage removed a lot of tension and knots she had built up over the years. I wonder if Chris would've liked this. Her eyes then widened when she realized what she just thought about. Damn it, why am I thinking about Chris again?.She thought as her head slightly tilted towards the water.
It was at that moment that Pinkie showed up. "Ah, finally. Hot tub time!" She excitingly exclaimed as she jumped up and attempted to cannonball into the hot tub. That was, until a pink mare with a blue mane and tail rushed in and started glaring at Pinkie, causing her to slow to a midair stop just inches above the water. Pinkie gave the mare a sheepish grin as she proceeded to slowly and smoothly enter the water from where she was hovering. The spa pony shook her head with a deadpanned look before she went off to another section of the spa. Pinkie stuck her head out of the water and said, "Sheesh, what a party pooper. So, how was your massage?"
"It was really good." Limestone said with a satisfied smile. "I don't think an issue occurred at all."
Suddenly, she heard a familiar sounding stallion yell out, "Thanks for giving me the rest of the day off, Miss Lotus!" Limestone and Pinkie turned to see the stallion that massaged Limestone talking to the blue spa pony from earlier. Although, now the stallion had very noticeable bandages around his front hooves.
"Don't vorry about it, Bulk Biceps." Lotus said. "Just rest your hooves for now and let us know if they've recovered tomorrow."
"Okay, see you later!" Bulk Biceps said before turning around and walking through the wall as though it wasn't there, leaving a large hole in the process.
Lotus groaned before muttering, "Vhy do ve even pay him anymore? He owes us more money than what we pay him on a weekly basis." She then turned around until she noticed Limestone Pie. Her eyes widened in fear as she began to back away slowly.
"Huh, I wonder what that's about?" Pinkie curiously asked.
"Probably something to do with me, since that was the stallion that massaged me." Limestone informed. "But my back couldn't have been that bad."
"Eh, it probably was." Pinkie Pie happily responded, causing Limestone to glare at her. "So, what were you thinking about?"
"W-what?!" Limestone asked she flinched back in surprise. "I have no idea what you're talking about."
"Oh, c'mon Limestone, don't say that. I can tell that you were thinking about something, because you had that sad, blank look that just screams that you were thinking about something." Pinkie happily explained. She then grew a sly smile before teasingly saying, "Or maybe...somepony."
Limestone groaned in defeat as she threw her hooves in the air. "Fine, you really want to know, I was thinking about Chris! Happy!?" She yelled out and splashed her hooves back into the water.
"Oh, Limestone, there's nothing to be frustrated about." Pinkie said as she moved over to Limestone and placed a hoof on her shoulder. "You're just worried about the new friend you've made."
"I think that 'friend' is a strong word to describe the two of us, Pinkie." Limestone deadpanned.
"Yeah, but he's somepony you care about. Which is a huge step up from how you view anybody that isn't family." Pinkie said before her eyes widened in realization and gave out a big gasp. "I have the best idea ever!" She loudly exclaimed. "Why don't we go to the hospital and visit Chris and formally welcome him to Ponyville. I'll even bring a cake with me!"
"I don't know, Pinkie. Do you really think that that's a good idea? I mean, what if he's not ready for guests right now?†Limestone asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Well, it's either that, or we can go dress shopping at Carousel Boutique." Pinkie offered.
"I'll go to the hospital to see if he's able to accept visitors then." Limestone immediately answered as she crawled out of the hot tub. "I was just about done in there anyway."
"Okie dokie loki. I'll just get a few things after I pay for our treatment." Pinkie said as she sunk back into the hot tub. Limestone just shook her head and rolled her eyes as she made her way towards the exit.
Limestone Pie entered the hospital and looked around the lobby. It was relatively empty, mostly just the occasional pony waiting to receive treatment and two nurses behind the front desk. She then walked straight to the front desk, which caught one of the nurse's attention. "Hello, welcome to Ponyville General Hospital. How may I help you?" The nurse asked nicely.
"I was wondering if it's possible for me to visit somepony named Christopher Ayers?" Limestone asked as politely as she could.
"Christopher Ayers?" The confused nurse asked. "Do you mean that weird alien looking thing that came in with a broken leg?"
"...Yes, that's him." Limestone said, feeling somewhat peeved by the nurse's description of Chris.
"Let me see here." The nurse said as she began to look through some papers that were on the desk. "Ah, Christopher Ayers!" She exclaimed when she pulled out a single form. "It says here that his treatment is finished and that he should be able to receive visitors. So long as he accepts, of course. Would you like to see him now?"
"Yes, please."
"Alright." The nurse said. She then walked out from behind the counter and said, "If you would follow me, please."
Limestone nodded before she began to follow the nurse through the hospital, passing by various doctors, nurses, and patients along the way. After a few seconds of walking the nurse stopped at a door numbered 137 and knocked on it. She then opened the door and said, "Excuse me, sir, you have somepony here who wants to see you."
"Okay, you can send 'em in." Limestone heard Chris say.
"Alrighty, then." The nurse said before turning to Limestone. "You can go on in."
"Thanks," She said before remembering something. "Oh, also expect a pink mare to come by to see him as well."
The nurse gave Limestone a deadpanned look before saying, "She'll be fine...so long as she doesn't bring that cannon of hers." She then began to walk back to the main lobby.
Limestone smirked at the nurse before opening the door the rest of the way and walking into the room. The first thing she saw was Chris lying on the hospital bed with a bit of a dopey smile on his face. He also had a hospital gown and blanket covering his body. His injured leg was wrapped in a cast that was being elevated off the mattress. He looked directly at Limestone as he said, "I knew it was you. I told the hospital staff that I didn't want to see the press."
Limestone chuckled before responding, "Well, can't blame you for that. So, how have you been holding up for the past few hours?" She asked as she hopped onto one of the chairs that was in the room.
"Oh, you know, just enjoying whatever they used to dope me up for treatment. Also, I didn't think they'd have a hospital gown in my size, but turns out they have some for minotaurs." He happily said. He then pointed to his leg and said, "Doctor said that my leg was fractured and that, so long as I stay off it, I should be able to make a full recovery. Oh, by the way, they said that the splint you used did a good job of keeping my leg from moving around too much."
Limestone smirked before saying, "That's good to hear."
"Yeah, so what did you do after dropping me off? Did you get that granite delivered?" He asked.
Limestone leaned back and let out a frustrated groan. "Yeah, I got it delivered. And, dear Celestia, was it a bigger pain in the ass than it should have been."
Chris smirked before asking, "So, the person was a self-centered, snooty, jerk?"
"That's an understatement of the century when describing that mare." Limestone answered matter of factly. "At least her daughter was there to put her straight."
"Really?" Chris asked with an eyebrow raised.
"Yep. After that, my sister and I went to the spa and I got this really awesome massage." Limestone continued.
"That sound nice. So, why'd you come here then?"He asked.
"Well, for one my sister, Pinkie Pie, wanted to welcome you to Equestira in some way or another." Limestone answered. "And two," She began to say a little more bashfully, "I wanted to check up on you."
Chris stared wide eyed at Limestone for a few seconds before responding, "Um, wow, I...uh appreciate that, Limestone."
"Yeah, no problem." Limestone replied, feeling slightly relieved, before she heard the door open.
She looked at the door to see Pinkie Pie walking in with a wide smile on her face and three boxes wrapped in wrapping paper balanced on her back. One of which Limestone recognized as the present she was giving to her. Pinkie closed the door behind her as she said, "Hello, everypony! I would have gotten here earlier, but they wouldn't let me bring my party cannon."
I should have known. Limestone thought as she looked at Pinkie with a bemused look.
"But anywho." Pinkie drawled out as she placed the boxes on the floor. Then she suddenly zipped to Chris's side in a matter of a second. "It's good to see ya again, mister alien. Is your leg any better?"
Chris stared at Pinkie for a few moments before nervously saying, "Um, my leg is doing fine. Thanks for asking. And my name is Christopher Ayers, by the way."
"Well then, Christopher." Pinkie said as she grabbed one of the boxes. "Welcome to Equestria!" She happily exclaimed as she handed the box to Chris.
"Um, thanks." Chris nervously said as he politely took the box. "And just Chris is fine."
"Okie dokie loki." Pinkie happily replied as she grabbed the other box that Limestone didn't recognize. Must be my present. Limestone thought as she took the gift. Pinkie then grabbed the present that Limestone got for her.
"So, should I open it now?" Chris asked.
"Not yet." Pinkie sang out. "You see, my sisters and I have what we call a Pie Sister Swap Day where we spend the day together and give each other gifts. But since Limestone wanted to make sure that you were alright, I decided to get something for you as a 'Welcome to Equestria' gift and then I thought, 'Why don't we have the gift swap when we visit him at the hospital!?' So, I grabbed mine and Limestone's gift before coming here."
"Huh, that makes sense." He said.
"But before we do open our gifts, we first have to sing the Pie Sister Swap Day Song, The Limestone Pie Edition!" Pinkie happily exclaimed, causing an annoyed frown to appear on Limestone's face. "Are you ready, Limestone?"
"Let's just get this over with." Limestone said with a sigh.
Pinkie then sprung up as she began to dance around. "It's the Pie Sister Swap Day with Limestone!" She sang in a simple beat, pointing a hoof at Limestone when she stopped singing.
"Is the song over yet?" An annoyed Limestone simply asked, causing Chris to chuckle.
Pinkie giggled before sitting down behind her gift and said, "Okay, now we can open them."
Everybody began to unwrap their respective presents. Pinkie was the first to finish unwrapping hers as her eyes lit up with joy when she saw what was inside. "Oh, Limestone, you know me so well!" She happily said as she pulled out the contents of the box. "How did you know that I needed a new supply of joke exploding cigars!?"
"You told me that you were running out of them in one of your letters, remember?" Limestone replied, pausing from unwrapping her gift.
"Awe, you do read my letters!" Pinkie happily replied.
"...Um, of course I do. Why wouldn't I?" Limestone frustratingly replied before continuing to unwrap the gift. When she finally got it opened, she peered inside and immediately smiled. Inside the box was a brand-new pickaxe with a polished wooden handle. "Thanks, Pinkie! This is awesome!" She said picking up the pickaxe.
"Yeah, I noticed that the handle of your old pickaxe was starting to look bad. So, I got you a new one to replace it." Pinkie explained.
"Thanks, I appreciate it." Limestone genuinely said. She then turned to Chris and asked, "So, what did Pinkie get you?" Already having a good idea on what was in the box.
Chris finally got his gift open and looked inside. "It's a piece of chocolate cake." He said.
"Yeah, I didn't know what cake you was your favorite, so I thought that chocolate would be a safe bet." Pinkie explained.
"That's fine, I actually like it." He said as he picked up the fork that Pinkie placed inside and ate a piece. His eyes widened instantly as he chewed on it. When he swallowed it, he said, "Oh my god, this cake is amazing." Causing the two mares to smile.
So, for the rest of the time they were there, everybody was sitting around exchanging stories and telling jokes to each other. Limestone would be lying if she said that she wasn't having a good time. Then, after about an hour of talking, Chris suddenly yawned. "You know, I'm feeling kinda tired. I think I'll take a nap."
"Alright." Limestone said as she picked up her new pickaxe and placed the empty boxes on her back. "We'll make our way out then."
"Bye, Chris!" Pinkie said as she and Limestone began to walk out the room. "I'll come back to see you later. I'll even bring a few friends of mine. I'm sure one of them will really want to meet ya."
Chris chuckled before he said, "Sure thing, Pinkie. See ya later."
When the two mares left the room and closed the door behind them, Pinkie turned to Limestone and said, "Well, he seemed nice."
"Yeah, he is once you get to know him." She said as she grew a solemn look on her face. As she walked, she knew that she wouldn't be seeing him again. I knew that when I brought him to the hospital that I wasn't going to see him again, but why does that make me feel sad?.
It's been a week since Limestone visited Chris in the hospital. She left Ponyville early that next morning for her long journey back home. She didn't bother visiting Chris in the hospital, since she knew that he would've been sleeping at that time. When she made it home, life had continued on for her like normal, only now she found herself thinking about Chris on occasion. Even now, as she was mining with her new pickaxe, she couldn't help but think about him. She wiped some sweat off her face as she stopped mining. I think I'm done for the day. She thought to herself as she started to walk back to the house.
After about five minutes of walking, she reached the front door of her home and opened it. She placed her new pickaxe next to her front door and began to stretch her muscles out. "Limestone, art thou done for the day?" She heard her mother call upstairs.
"Yes, mom!" She called back.
"Very good. While you were working, a letter came in for thou. I have it sitting on the kitchen table for thou."
"Is it from Pinkie?"
"No, tis from somepony named Christopher Ayers."
Limestone's eyes widened in surprise as she immediately ran into the kitchen and found the letter on the table. She ran up to it and inspected it. Sure enough, not only was it addressed specifically to her, but it was also from Chris. She immediately opened it and began to read.
Dear Limestone Pie,
So, I heard from your sister that you left the morning after your visit. That's alright, I was asleep when you left anyway, so I asked your sister for your address and wrote you this letter. Speaking of which, your sister kept her promise and visited me with a few of her friends of hers. Did you know that she was friends with royalty!? Anyway, the real reason I wrote you this letter was because I don't think I had the opportunity to thank you for getting me into the hospital. So, thanks for that, Limestone. You really helped me out when I needed it most. I owe you a debt that I don't think I'll ever be able to pay back.
Sincerely,
Chris
P.S. That princess that's friends with your sister says that she'll try to find a way to bring me home. I hope she does.
Limestone smiled at the letter. He thought about me. He actually thought about me enough to actually write a letter to thank me. She felt a little sad that one of the princesses was finding a way to send him home, but that didn't stop her from understanding why he would want to go home. It's where he was supposed to be after all. So, wanting to let Chris know that she got the letter, she went out to the living room and grabbed a quill and parchment and began writing.
Dear Chris,
It's good to hear from you again. Yes, I know that Pinkie's friends with a princess. There's not a whole lot that she doesn't tell us. Anyway, I'm glad that she's trying to find a way to get you home. I hope it works out for you. Anyway, don't worry about trying to 'repay a debt' for helping you, I was only doing what was right. Although I hope that you get out of that hospital soon, you're probably bored out of your mind there. Anyway, just thought I'd let ya know that I get your letter and that I'm sorry that I wasn't able to say goodbye to you. Hope to hear from you soon.
Your friend,
Limestone Pie
When she finished the letter, she looked at the last couple of words that she written down. Is it really appropriate to end the letter with, 'your friend?' She then smiled as she began to neatly fold the letter. Yeah, it is.