“Wait, you really wanna ask them?”
“Yes,” grimaced Cloudbank, not happy at hearing the disbelieving tone in Drafty’s voice. It wasn’t that she disagreed with her girlfriend’s skepticism; rather, it was because it reflected her own distaste at the idea. But Severance had made it very clear that one of the Night Mare’s core tenets was “use that which can be used.” And although she wasn’t entirely comfortable thinking about other ponies in those terms, the pragmatic nature of that sentiment was undeniable, especially in a difficult situation like what Vanhoover had become.
“But we barely know them!” continued Drafty, oblivious to her girlfriend’s inner turmoil.
“We know enough,” replied Cloudbank, looking around. Although almost everypony seemed to have eaten their fill, there was still a not-inconsiderable amount of food left, and most were lingering around to socialize or pick at the leftovers. That meant that there wasn’t really an easy way to find someone except by wandering around and hoping you got lucky, or asking someone else at random and hoping that they knew. But that was a problem that was easily solved for Cloudbank, who paused just long enough to look at Drafty and nod upward before spreading her wings and lifting off, ascending a few dozen feet before hovering in place and looking down. Okay, this should make it easier.
Drafty was beside her a second later, continuing the conversation seamlessly. “We do know enough: they’re friends with Piggy, who’s awful, and their leader is the one who killed Pillow!”
“Which Lex punished her for,” replied Cloudbank, giving Drafty a sidelong glance. Although she’d reassured the other mare that Lex had done the right thing just a day earlier, she couldn’t help but wonder if Drafty had any lingering doubts about his cursing Garden Gate.
Apparently not, as Drafty’s face didn’t show even the slightest hint of discomfort, instead maintaining the same disapproving frown she’d adopted since Cloudbank had let it slip that she wanted to recruit some of that other gang to go raid Vanhoover’s banks. “Yeah, and you saw how well they reacted to that. I really don’t think they’re going to want to help out, since you’re pretty much Lex’s go-to girl now.”
The statement brought a frown to Cloudbank’s face, and she turned her eyes back to the ponies below. “It’s at least worth a shot. They were out there in the thick of it while we barricaded ourselves in that apartment building. So they’ll probably have a better sense of the city than anypony else here.” Her voice wasn’t as strong as she would have liked, distracted by what Drafty had said. She still wasn’t sure how she felt about her girlfriend’s idea that Lex was, as she’d phrased it, “fond” of her. Up until now, Cloudbank had been certain that Lex didn’t like her – or anypony who wasn’t Sonata – very much, with his perpetually-foul disposition being all the proof she’d needed. It simply hadn’t occurred to her that his delegating more and more responsibilities to her could be interpreted as some sort of display of…what? Approval? Trust? Maybe even friendship? Without knowing for sure, Cloudbank was left feeling awkward and uncertain. And then there’s the fact that Drafty’s pretty clearly still gaga over him.
The whole thing was a mess that she didn’t want to deal with right now. Luckily, she had a task to focus on instead, even if she hadn’t found one volunteer so far. But judging by how the sun was nowhere near its zenith yet, she still had a few hours yet. But that’s no reason to delay, since I’m probably not going to get very-, there! She thrust a hoof out. “I see them!”
“Where?” Drafty looked at Cloudbank, then followed the direction her hoof was pointing in, spotting a group of almost a dozen ponies leaving one of the furthest tables. One of them was a mare with a bandage around her horn, and Drafty could see that her pace was more of a slow shuffle than her companions’. “Yeah, that looks like them alright.” She huffed slightly. “Good luck with them.”
Blinking at the implied farewell in the other mare’s words, Cloudbank gave her a surprised look. “You’re not coming along?”
Drafty shook her head. “I’ve distracted you enough already. You need to focus on finding ponies who’ll go back into Vanhoover, and so far it’s just you and me.” She held up a hoof, cutting off Cloudbank as the other pegasus opened her mouth to protest. “Don’t try to deny it. You’re going, and I’m going with you. After all,” she smirked, throwing a wink her way, “we don’t want to let Lex down, right?”
Frowning again, Cloudbank opened her mouth, then closed it, and then repeated the process before sighing. “I’ll catch up with you later, okay?” She didn’t wait for an answer before flying towards the group of ponies below.
Drafty waved as she left, but it wasn’t until she saw Cloudbank land in front of the group and start speaking that she turned away, looking in another direction. Sure enough, Sonata was still there, speaking with somepony that looked like a doctor, a different one from the unicorn stallion that she’d brought with her when she’d come back to Lex’s tent earlier. Judging by the look on her face, she was rather upset…which meant that there was a better-than-even chance that Lex had upset her.
Returning to the ground, Drafty surreptitiously made her way back to the outpatient tents that had been set up outside the field hospital…
“Lex?” called Drafty as she pushed through the flap. “I was-, whoa! What happened to you?”
His cheeks red with embarrassment, Lex gave Drafty a sour look as he tried to clean up the food that had been spilled all over him. But with nothing except the edge of his blanket to work with, and the way the aura holding it aloft kept sputtering – something Drafty, having had unicorn neighbors all her life, knew had to be a reflection of how debilitated he felt – he wasn’t having very much success. “What do you want?” he asked curtly.
“I wanted to see if you’d gotten any food,” confessed Drafty. Thinking back to how upset Sonata had looked before, she could guess why he had what looked like a plateful of pancakes all over him. “I guess you did, but were you able to eat any of it?”
Lex turned away from her, resuming his efforts with visible frustration. “Go away.”
To Lex’s mild surprise, Drafty obeyed him, turning and leaving without another word. But a few minutes later she returned, a plate of something clenched between her teeth. Placing it down, she hummed softly as she held up a few small packets of something. “Just hang on, and I’ll get you cleaned right up.”
“I don’t need your help,” came the expected answer.
“I know,” answered Drafty without pausing, unwrapping the sanitary wipe from the package and unfolding it. “But I want to do it. After everything you’ve done for us, it only seems fair.”
“My actions are not performed with any expectation of reciprocity,” he protested. But he didn’t push Drafty away as she started to clean him up, instead settling for sulking and fixing his gaze on the ceiling.
A few minutes later she sat back, nodding in satisfaction. “There we go. And now,” she put the plate she’d brought with her down beside him, “dig in!”
Although she’d made sure to get food that she thought he’d like – the plate held some apple slices with peanut butter on them, a plain muffin, and some unsweetened yogurt – he only glanced at it for a moment before looking upward again. “I’ll eat later,” he muttered.
“Do you want something else instead?” asked Drafty, recognizing the deflection for what it was. “There was plenty left, so it’s no problem for me to go get something else.”
He shook his head, and for just a moment he looked uncomfortable, the same way he had when she’d spotted him wearing that plate of pancakes…and suddenly she knew what the problem was: he was too weak to feed himself. That was why he hadn’t even been able to clean himself on his own, why his telekinetic aura had barely been able to manifest at all. She almost said it out loud, but stopped at the last moment. Instead, she picked up an apple slice and held it right in front of him. “Here. Open up.”
He gave her a reproachful look. “I do not require your assistance!”
Drafty smiled, unfazed. “Even though you can barely move?” His eyes widened at that, and she knew her guess had been correct. “C’mon,” she pressed, “it’s not like I can throw myself in front of Severance again, so at least let me do this for you.”
Lex winced at that, remembering how she’d saved his life during the battle against those aquatic monsters, and that he hadn’t acknowledged that fact since it had happened. Although he snorted and looked away stubbornly, the next time she brought the apple slice close he opened his mouth, letting her feed him. Drafty, for her part, grinned silently, waiting for him to chew and swallow before offering him another.
They continued that way for a few minutes, until the apples were entirely gone, leaving her to start breaking the muffin into bite-sized pieces. “So what happened with Sonata?”
Under any other circumstances, Lex would have told her that it was none of her business, but he was still chagrined from her reminding him that she’d saved him before. That, and he knew he needed some sort of insight where his girlfriend was concerned, because no matter how he looked at it, he couldn’t understand what had set her off. Everything he’d said before had been correct, so the source of her anger was a complete mystery to him. Although he’d never stoop to asking for advice, if he told her what happened and she happened to volunteer some…that was something else again. “She took exception to my idea to send her to Las Pegasus.”
Drafty paused at what she was doing. “Send her to Las Pegasus?” she echoed, surprised.
Lex nodded. “I need her to go there and use her social skills in order to arrange for that city’s most affluent ponies to meet with me so that I can take out a loan. Otherwise, this city’s long-term prospects are bleak.” He paused then, looking at Drafty in anticipation of her response.
She licked her lips, her brow furrowing as though in concentration. After several seconds, she swallowed, before slowly speaking. “I think…I think you shouldn’t send Sonata to Las Pegasus. You should send me instead.”
One of Lex’s eyebrows went up. “You?”
Drafty slowly nodded. “Yeah. I mean, I know I’m not the monarch among social butterflies that she is, but I can be pretty friendly when I put my mind to it.” The corners of her lips turned up a little as she remembered Piggy. “I can definitely get a bunch of rich ponies to meet with you, and this way you can keep Sonata here to act as your spokespony, and use her magic if you need it.” Lex frowned, but didn’t say anything, and Drafty took that for a win, resuming feeding him.
A few minutes later he’d eaten everything she brought, and she stood up. “I’ll go ahead and let you rest. Get better soon, okay?” He grunted in acknowledgment, and Drafty gave him a smile as she left. But she had barely gone five paces before her smile faltered. “Are you sure that was a good idea, me offering to go to Las Pegasus like that?” she muttered, looking around to make sure that no one was around to overhear her.
Trust me, answered the sultry feminine voice in her mind. Once Lex sees that you can make a contribution, he’ll start noticing you more. From there, you’ll only grow closer.
It made sense, and Drafty couldn’t help but feel an excited shiver run down her spine at the thought. “Thank you, Kara.”