//------------------------------// // June 1st // Story: Closet Pony // by DouglasTrotter //------------------------------// >>>June 1st, 8:25 AM<<< I can't imagine how all of you feel right now. You were all flung far from your home. It was by sheer chance you found a kind, generous stranger who aided you in your time of need. Apple Bloom. Sweetie Belle. Scootaloo. From the bottom of my heart, I'm beyond grateful for your bravery, and I'm so, so sorry, my little ponies. For these records, for our friend's records, I, Princess Celestia, will start at the beginning by saying the issue at hoof has the clichéd sense of "it feels like yesterday," from some novel a pony might find in a bookshop or library, despite the fact it started seven days ago. The days have flown by in the blink of an eye since our friend's last entry. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and myself had grown accustomed to our new home in Sanctuary. Our period of acclimation seemed long but now seems so short. I'm sad to say those were happier times.What horrifies me and these little fillies right now happened as we settled in for the night. It's when I approached my bed that I stopped, and then exhaled a small, deep, quick breath. My wings refused to stop twitching. I journeyed through the portal. Though it relieved me to see our friend on the couch, an unnatural sense permeated the air. I placed my wing over the human's shoulder. They looked up and gave me the most melancholic look I had ever seen in my lifetime. Our friend apologized, for some odd reason, and then, despite the expression, gave a warm greeting before leading me outside. The cool night air brushed against my mane while the stars twinkled in the cloudless night sky. All of it had a serene sense of calm about it when the two of us sat near the pool. I was presented with a small cup of tea, placed on the metal table beside me. Our friend startled me when they draped a piece of cloth over me.I found it rather kind to be given a blanket. It felt wrong for me to pry into their business, so I dropped the of asking about what ailed them. Instead, we struck up a light conversation, which drifted from topic to topic; it had a loose bit of cohesiveness, but nothing that alarmed me. What little I remember now seemed to be about the prospective future of when the four of us would return to Equestria. I thanked our friend for the tea and proceeded inside, placing the teacup into the sink before going to the portal's entrance. The thing that did disturb me happened as I was about to, as our friend would say, "hit the sack." I found myself stopped at the portal/gateway to Sanctuary by a gentle touch on my side. Our friend placed their hand on my back. "Thanks for being there." a weary voice said. I nodded, gave them a gentle hug, and returned to Sanctuary where I meandered toward my room. The small hand pointed at eleven while the little hand pointed firmly at twelve. After I settled into my bed and closed my eyes, the clock appeared to leap forward. Soon, I awoke to see it was six in the morning. The girls stood in the hallway, as if they had just gotten up, when I opened the door to my room. Our friend came through the portal, waved at us, and then collapsed. The chilling thud echoed throughout the spacious area of Sanctuary's entrance. My hooves, my wings, my body didn't move fast enough. The cold of the northern land my niece rules with her husband didn't compare to what coursed through my body. I would have poured every ounce of magic in my body into our friend's. I should have done it.To Tartarus with the ramifications! I clutched our friend close to my body.In that moment, I felt lost. I felt hurt. What joy I found in this world, finding a dear friend, felt robbed from me. What stopped me from pouring my energy into the human's body was fear of the unknown. Instead, all I did, all I that could do was hold onto our friend's seemingly lifeless body while I looked into the teary eyes of those three fillies, seeing my tears reflected back in theirs. Apple Bloom, you are the one who saved our friend's life. You were brilliant to remember the instructions we were given if there was an emergency. I cradled the human in a soft magical aura. We rushed through the portal.Apple Bloom dashed to the phone. She pounded the three numbers on the keypad. Within minutes of dialing the emergency number and screaming "help" into the phone, a contraption showed up to the house. My mind and heart raced. Two emergency workers came to the house and banged on the door. I used my magic to unlock it from a distance. The two humans looked around then bolted to our friend. Those humans spoke into strange devices attached to their clothes while they inspected our friend. Even stranger were the phrases they used. None of it made sense. It's a miracle I managed to maintain enough clarity to place a locator spell on our friend, all the while maintaining the invisibility spell around myself and the three fillies. The days that went by were agonizing. No phone calls; no messages; no nothing. My last nerve frayed on the sixth day. As night fell on the sixth day, I flew into the sky to gain a better vantage. While I scanned the vast landscape, a machination overtook me as I sat atop a cloud.Its noise defend my ears, dwarfing the roar of the most powerful of dragons. I continued my search. I arrived a large building after four heavy, powerful wing-flaps. Our friend slept rather peacefully on the bed inside the room. A doctor, from the appearance of her garments, stood by our friend. The doctor looked at the chart then the "patient" in front of them. I felt both nervous and calm as, from what I could see, nothing appeared too serious. "Nurse, please get me some..." the doctor said, trailing off. She tapped a pencil against a clipboard.The doctor came to the window, looked outside, and shrugged. She performed a final examination before leaving the room. The hand that glided against my chin felt so cold. "... Hey," our friend's voice strained, "you're one horse-sized problem, that's for sure. So-Sor-Sorry about all this.I'll try to make it up to all of you. Perhaps I can get some takeout when I'm outta this place." My lower lip quivered. "Those are some warm tears. It's -- I'll be fine. Just keep an eye on those three, will ya. They're a bit of a handful at times." our friend said. They laid back, after some heavy persuasion, and began to rest. I returned to Sanctuary where I relayed the news to Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo. The three of them shed their tears and hugged one another. Though Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle were optimistic our friend would be alright, Apple Bloom seemed hurt. The filly forced her eyes shut, however, her tears leaked through. Today marks the seventh day since the ordeal began. Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and myself, all of us have rather high hopes we'll be reunited with our friend. All we can do is hope, leaving things up to fate. >>>June 1st, 11:25 AM<<< Those three fillies, those Cutie Mark Crusaders are rather mature for their ages, however, they're still fillies. They're still children. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo fought back their tears. Apple Bloom slammed her hooves into the ground in the garden.She just screamed and screamed, harder and harder. Apple Bloom screamed as hard as she could while Sweetie Belle cried.Scootaloo bit down on her lip, trying to remain brave like the pony she idolized. I embraced those three fillies in my wings. Our friend didn't come home. All of us, myself included, we took our time to grieve in case the worst may have happened. We had to prepare for the worst but hope beyond hope for the best. That's all we could do. The Cutie Mark Crusaders are on cleaning duties and yard work, being cautious not to be discovered while outside our friend's house. I drew the longest straw and found one chore being the use of the computer to maintain our friend's records. At this point, learning how to operate this comptre computer to write these entries requires both dexterity and skill, which is both confounding and intriguing. These notes appear to be more than just a hobby, if I had to surmise from the earlier entries. From what can be assumed, they appear to be a way to help our friend cope with their stress. If -- "Hey, sorry I haven't called.I just woke up and wanted to let you all know that I'm ok. They've got me under observation right now. If I'm released into 'someone's' care, they'll let me go." the voice on the machine said. That's a huge relief. It feels like the weight of Equestria has been lifted off my wings, but what in Tartarus do they mean? O dear, how in Celestia will I pull this off? Well, I guess that is a good question. How will I pull this off? Princess Luna, my dear sister, please, please lend me your strength to make this work. >>>June 1st, 4:25 PM<<< "And you are?" She said. "Ah'm... a friend." Apple Bloom said. "And I presume she's your mother." she said. "She's my... relative. We're on vacation together right now. She can't speak cause of a sore throat. She's a bit horse." Apple Bloom said. The little filly ended with quite the chuckle, at my expense no less. Still, given the circumstance, it was best to let her feel at ease. "We're just here to see how our friend is doing." The relative of our friend had quite the glare in her eye. I could feel her dagger-esk gaze trying its best to pierce right through the spell in that quiet hospital room. What held back the suspicion, the only saving grace for me and Apple Bloom was the sheer fact humans cannot sense magic. "How did you meet, if you don't mind me asking? Why was I never introduced to you?" The relative said. "If you don't mind me asking, might I know how you found out I was in the hospital? I didn't call you, nor did I ask anyone to inform you." our friend said. The relative went white as my coat, had I been in my equine form. "..." the relative remained silent. "Since you won't answer my question, I'll ask you to leave, please." our friend said. "Hmph." The relative said. I had to face my back to the wall after I felt part of my tail starting to appear through the amniomorphic spell. "Well, the paperwork is in order, and the patient's condition appears stable. I'd like to keep them for further observation, however, they are not in danger and pose no risk to themselves or others. As such, I cannot keep the patient against their will. Please sign this and they'll be released into your custody. I just ask that you keep a watch over them for twenty-four to forty-eight hours. If you see any unusual signs of weakness, fatigue, shortness of breath, etc..., you need to return them to the hospital, immediately." The doctor said. While she examined our friend for the final time, I glanced over the form. "Thank you -- pardon me if this is rude, but, are you from around here?" "We're visiting." Apple Bloom said. "I see. Well, who am I to judge another's handwriting." The doctor said. She chuckled to herself and leaned in close to Apple Bloom. "Between you and me, my teacher hated my handwriting to the point I was told it instantly qualified me to be a doctor. Still need to thank that teacher. After hearing about doctors, I decided to learn about the profession, and, well, here we are." Our friend pointed towards a small bag when the doctor left. After they were out of the patient gown, the three of us headed downstairs via the elevator. "I'd still like to know who you are and where you all met." the relative said. Her arm extended out, blocking the exit. She appeared perched at the elevator entrance when we came to a stop on the ground floor. Her fingers tapped against the elevator's frame. "Not to mention I haven't seen too many women that are as... 'tall' as you are my dear. You're what, seven feet tall?" Our friend pushed by their relative, stumbled for a second, and then regained their composure. They leaned against me and Apple Bloom. In a firm tone they said, "We have nothing to say to you. I have nothing to say to you." "That's rather rude. " the relative said. Our friend turned around. Their hand shot out, shielding Apple Bloom. I placed my hand on our friend's shoulder while Apple Bloom leaned against them. Before the relative could speak any further, our friend said, "You want to go at it? Right here, right now? You see these two standing next to me," our friend placed their arms around the two of us, "they treat me more like family than you ever did, more than you ever will." "Is there a problem here?" A uniformed individual said, getting up from their desk. "... No." The relative said in a harsh tone before she stormed off. "Thanks Mike." Our friend said. "Meh, no need for thanks. Just try to keep yourself well." The uniformed individual said. He looked at all of us and gave a slight nod. "Take care. I don't want to see you back here again." "You and me both." Our friend said. All of us headed towards a strange area that housed several contraptions. Down a flight of stairs, we found ourselves on the ground floor of the building that sat adjacent to the hospital. Per our friend's request, I scanned the area and found no other humans around. With that detail taken care of, we moved behind a wall into a secluded area where I dispelled the illusion around me and Apple Bloom. I caught my breath, focused on the entrance of Sanctuary, and, in the proverbial flash, we were teleported back to our home. Apple Bloom bolted down the hall and came back with Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. The three fillies latched onto our friend, soaking their clothes in tears. I have to admit, I wiped away a tear or two on our friend's shirt as I leaned up against them. The four of us guided our weary friend to their bed in Sanctuary, having them lean against me the entire way. I'll confide in these notes that I felt hurt at the thought somepony believed they were burdening me. Friends are there to help each other out. Friends should be there to help each other out. Our friend has been there for us more times than I care to count, so why shouldn't we be there for them. In any event, the day feels like it's dragging on forever. The five of us still need to get some food into our stomachs before we hit the sack. >>>June 2nd,2:25 AM<<< My hooves are aching after being up since early this morning. It's not just me, however. All of us have been on watch after our friend came home from the hospital. The Cutie Mark Crusaders are resting since I've drawn the short straw, that so-called short straw being drawn on purpose. "The patient should be given minimal excitement. Per the request to avoid medication, it is advised the patient explore means of relieving stress to prevent relapse in lue of medication." I've read this note so many times and cannot understand how to help our friend relieve their stress. I won't give up though. I must keep moving forward. On this final note, our friend, my friend, if you read these notes, please talk with me. I am here to listen. I am an open ear, an open mind, and, just as important, an open heart. I won't turn away from you, nor will those three fillies. I wish on all the stars in the sky, both in our world and in yours, that you get better, our dear friend.