The storefront interior of Maple's bakery was a mess, water covering the floor and tables and somehow still dripping from the ceiling. Gerardo Guillaume, looking very harangued, had his back against a wall, beak open helplessly as Maple pointed a hoof in exasperation, her breath finally spent.
"Woah," Valey remarked, shouldering almost all of Amber's weight as the earth pony leaned heavily against her. "What happened here?"
Maple shuddered, pointing from Gerardo to her door, which hung at an angle, one hinge detached from the wall. "He... just..." She closed her eyes. "I didn't even know one griffon could hold that much water in their coat in the first place. And he ignored the towel rack and shook everywhere, and scared off three different customers, all of whom were here to take shelter from the rain..."
Gerardo held a mortified talon to his breast. "I assure you, I was only acting in the name of expedience! I presumed you wouldn't want me dripping in your foyer, so I endeavored to dry myself with all due haste!"
"You're still dripping," Maple pointed out bitterly. "Even after that. Now dry yourself off, help dry my house off, and thank you for reminding me normal days don't exist anymore when I was just feeling like I was having one."
"Hey... Maple..." Amber grinned feebly, trying to get her friend's attention. "If you need some good news, I'm up and about."
Maple blinked. "You're walking? It hasn't even been a day! I couldn't talk after that much time!"
"A day? Did something happen of which I'm not aware?" Gerardo strolled forward to peer sideways at Amber, dripping more water on Maple's wood floor and earning an unnoticed scowl.
"I tried out your sword," Amber said. "Seems like it's losing its touch, Gerardo. Also, do you mind not antagonizing my friends? I think you're a cool catbird, but you're not being very good at making yourself welcome."
Gerardo stared blankly at her, completely missing Maple's nod of agreement. "You struck yourself down with my blade? That's... well, quite impossible. By this amount of time, you should be regaining the barest whisper of speech, not keeping your legs beneath you!"
"Like she said." Valey shrugged, careful not to unbalance Amber from her side. "Sounds like your sword thingy is losing its touch. We'll totally take it if you don't want it, by the way."
"Preposterous," Gerardo said. "Are you pulling a hoax on me?"
"If we were," Maple grumbled, running a towel along a tabletop, "you'd deserve it. Especially since you're not even bothering to help me clean this up."
Gerardo's eyes widened at her. "Ah! Hold that," he exclaimed, pointing a talon at her towel. "Please, I'm aware the mess is mine. You needn't burden yourself with cleaning it up; I shall do it in due time."
Maple offered him the towel, eyes narrowed. He took it idly, and rather than wiping, returned to staring curiously at Amber.
Amber stared back at the unused towel in his talon, then gave him an expression that said 'Really?' Maple threw back her head with a sigh of frustration and went to get another towel, resuming drying the room herself.
"This is actually uncool, you know," Valey remarked, shifting Amber's weight against her. "Like, I will slap you if you don't help her out."
Instantly, Gerardo jumped, frantically beginning to wipe down the floor and ceiling, shaking even more water out over the room with his motion. "Of course, of course," he squawked. "My apologies. I suppose I'm far too used to the open seas and road; my manners have been slightly shaken as of late..."
"Here. Lemme get that for you." Setting Amber in a dry spot, Valey grabbed two towels from Maple's doorside rack, one in her teeth and one beneath her good wing, and whisked around the room, drying tables and blotting down the ceiling in a blur. Within seconds, the dripping had stopped and the wettest floor patches were covered with linens to soak up the moisture, Valey standing with the only clean towel left in the middle of the room. "That's how you do it," she informed Gerardo, throwing the towel at his head. "Now dry yourself off if you're staying, because you're still soaked. Might wanna ask her permission first, though. She looks ticked." She pointed her wing at Maple.
"I..." Gerardo blinked, having been thoroughly outdone.
Maple sank to the ground. "I don't know," she murmured, voice a stressed whine. "I just... didn't need this right now. I don't need anyone barging into my house without knocking, ever. Please leave before I do or say something I regret."
Valey shrugged apologetically. "Sorry, Birdo. Looks like she laid down the law. Hope you've got somewhere else to sleep, because spending the night in the rain would smell, hard."
Gerardo glanced between them in disbelief, then resignation. "Now, now, just because I..."
"You remember where my house is, right?" Amber asked, lifting her head. "You can crash there, if you like. Just make sure to towel off first. And, Gerardo..." She made sure he was making eye contact, and smiled. "Please try to take care around my friends, okay? I don't know if it was Ironridge, or if the first time you were here was different, but you gotta have some sensitive to go with the noisy and good-natured. Social awareness, buddy. Try to be friends with my friends."
Gerardo slunk off without another word, the broken door hanging open in his wake.
"Now I feel bad for making him feel bad..." Maple moaned, covering her head with her hooves and laying on the floor. "Even though it was his fault and he had it coming and I was... ugh..."
"Pretty sure he'll get over it," Valey remarked, trotting up next to Maple and nudging her with a wing. "Want me to see what I can do about your door? I'm a pretty terrible carpenter, but..."
Maple lifted her head, staring at Valey with eyes that were on the verge of crying. "You're being unusually helpful. Is there something you need?"
"Meh. I had a talk." Valey glanced at Amber, who winked. "Feel sorta like doing more good-guy stuff right now. Lucky you, right?" Shrugging, she picked Maple up and set her on her hooves, earning a yelp of surprise. "If you wanna thank me, take it easy and go, like... hang out with your friend, or something. And if you have any sweets that didn't sell before all that, I'll totally take them off your hooves, too."
Maple stayed standing, glancing up the stairs to her kitchen and living area. "I suppose I should close for the day and start dinner for us and Starlight. I wonder where Starlight and Willow are? They've been gone the whole day...."
Valey lifted her nose and sniffed. "I'd say... pretty close, actually. I can smell Starlight from a long ways off, and unless there's some top-secret hangout around here I haven't found, she's probably on her way back." She glanced at the empty towel rack. "Might wanna get something for them so this whole hullabaloo doesn't happen all over again..."
Maple shook her head and sighed. "No matter what I do, it's going to happen again tomorrow. And the day after, and the day after, and... I don't know. I'm sure some day I'll get used enough to Gerardo barging in when I least expect it that it will be funny, but for now, it's just stressful..."
"I mean, technically you could hire me as a bouncer?" Valey shrugged. "I've got seven years of security experience and will work for fruit or candy."
"Let's settle for fixing that door for now. I'm getting cold," Amber advised. "Can someone lift me up there so I can see that hinge? Boats are more specific than general woodworking, but I still know a thing or two."