//------------------------------//
// Recovery And Consequence 
// Story: The Olden World 
// by Czar_Yoshi 
//------------------------------//

Maple stared at the contents of the Immortal Dream's main table. "This was too easy."

"I have to agree, it's a bit suspicious," Gerardo said, leaning with a talon on the table and staring at the opened package. "Our Valey has fans, apparently."

"'From Anonymous,'" Harshwater read, repeating what was written on the card with a frown. "'Get well soon.' Right..."

On the table before them was a padded box with a single, vaguely-sparkling jar of red liquid exactly like the supplies Maple had carried around on the ship or in her cutie mark for months before the battle in Mistvale. To the side, Slipstream nervously shuffled her hooves. "It was a delivery pony who brought it. They said they didn't know who it was from."

"Your country's postal system allows deliveries without sender information?" Harshwater raised a skeptical eyebrow at Gerardo. "That's an excellent way for tournament fighters to get mailed poison or a bomb."

Gerardo shrugged. "Anyone can contract the services of an independent carrier. If you were paid to deliver an anonymous package, would you not have done the same?"

Harshwater huffed and looked away.

"Well, at least Valey won't need to drink it to tell if it's poisoned," Maple remarked. "Now that we have it, shouldn't we get it to her as soon as possible? If someone's going to hold it over our heads that they gave us this, they probably won't leave us alone even if we don't use it."

Harshwater's tail flicked. "Help yourselves. I'm not making the walk back up there."





About an hour later, Gerardo and Slipstream returned, and a third pair of hooves alighted awkwardly on the deck behind them. The three came belowdecks, Gerardo in the lead and Valey in the middle, raincoat back on and walking gingerly.

"You're back!" Maple instantly brightened from a chair where she and Amber were sitting together and reading a book.

"Hey, it worked?" Amber pushed aside the book, springing to her hooves. "Valey, you're walking again!"

Valey grinned, hiding a wince. "Yeah, sorta. I'm, uhh..." She spread her wings, lifting the raincoat and revealing a back that was still missing fur in patches, almost shiny from burn marks, even through the lacerations had closed and the wounds no longer were fresh. "Turns out there's a limit to what those things can do for cosmetic damage. But I'm on my hooves."

Harshwater sighed from another chair and set aside one of Shinespark's medical textbooks, getting up to examine Valey. After only a second of checking, she snorted. "Just not a big enough dose. Whoever packaged that potion was probably stingy and diluted it with water to make it look like there was more. How do you feel?"

Valey flexed her wings. "Kinda... stretchy? Feels like my skin is a size too small for my back. Doesn't hurt much, but bananas, it feels weird. Gonna have to practice moving like this."

"Just don't practice by fighting in the tournament?" Harshwater asked, eyes pleading. "I am tired of being the only pony on this ship with any sense of self-preservation."

Amber bit her lip. "Hey, Maple and I take care of ourselves, thank you very much."

"Yeah, well, we'll see." Valey stretched again, testing her new range of movement. "Look, if it's a big deal, maybe I will bail. I just didn't want to lose to that Grandpapa punk. But we've got a week to think over it until my next match, right? And bananas, if I don't keep going, we're gonna need something else to do."

"Such as?" Amber raised an eyebrow as Gerardo and Slipstream departed back to the bridge. "We've got plenty to do. Sell our goods from Mistvale, for one. We've already got some cash left over from Kero's vault. Maybe we could actually normally afford another of those potions if we needed it."

"She needs it," Harshwater interrupted. "If she doesn't want permanent scars, that is."

Amber winced, but continued. "And I don't know what we're doing with Crystal, but aren't we doing something? And then Shinespark still wanted to cross the mountains someday and try to find a way to trade between Ironridge and the Plains of Harmony... or is that dream old news? I forget; I haven't heard about it since catching up with you."

"Yeah, permanent scars don't sound so great." Valey looked at her back again and winced. "Maybe I should see about something I can wear that would cover this up... but yeah, we probably also should go talk to Felicity at some point. And remember Grapejuice? Didn't someone say we needed to talk to her about something as well?"

Everyone looked at her and shrugged.

Harshwater groaned and climbed to her hooves. "Sounds like a lot of problems for someone other than me. You, though..." She snapped her tail at Valey. "Are coming with me. I need to observe how the damage to your back affects your gait."

"Uh... okay." Valey blinked, wandering over and following along as Harshwater walked down the cabin hall, leaning against a wall. After a few doors, she frowned. "Yeah, you're not actually watching me, so that's bogus. What's up?"

Harshwater turned, opened the door to her room, and beckoned Valey to follow.

Confused, Valey stepped inside, shutting the door with her tail. "There are easier ways of saying you need to talk with me, you know."

"Sorry," Harshwater huffed, "I'm very stressed right now." She threw herself at her bed, bouncing and landing limp.

"Okay." Valey took a seat at the bedside. "I'm, uhh... guessing some of that has to do with me being reckless at the tournament?" She sighed. "Sorry. Really, I am. I've got some complex reasons for even being in it, and they don't really include taking the safe or easy road."

"I'm sure you do," Harshwater grumbled. "But harder doesn't have to mean better. I feel like your entire crew is reminding me why I don't want children."

Valey raised an eyebrow.

"Look, I'm doing the best I can...!" Harshwater sighed back. "I don't like being anywhere without earning my keep. We've been over this. But your crew are acting like a bunch of teenagers, sometimes are a bunch of teenagers, and I've only been on my hooves for a day or two. I'm trying my best, and I'm clearly more competent than all of you put together which is scaring me when you beat me and my entire old crew without lethal force, but I'm not that good! I can't help you all. I can't do this. I'm going to break."

Valey averted her gaze. "That stressful, huh?"

"Yes." Harshwater paused, then elaborated, "I have no grounding right now. I'm a mess, Valey. I need help, and I'm going to wear myself out long before I get it if I keep trying to whip your team into shape. And you're the pony who's worked miracles for me in the past, and you're also making stupid decisions that are terrible for your wellbeing, and I don't know how to help you. Please, if you care, reach inside yourself and scrounge up whatever scrap of maturity you can find and do what's smart for yourself so I can have someone I can rely on. I'm begging you."

"...You want me to quit the tournament that badly, huh?" Valey leaned back into the bed. "Bananas. At this point, I've gotten attached to doing it just to prove I can."

"It depends what's worth more to you." Harshwater's ears fell. "Can you really fight in it without disregarding your allies, sneaking around, taking stupid risks and hurting yourself?"

Valey winced.

"I'm not the only one that's going to have this talk," Harshwater warned. "Maple doesn't like it when you come wounded off a victory either, and Amber is hurt that you snuck away. She was your nurse. She was there to help you. But we had a talk, and I'm the one having this talk first because for me..." She looked down. "Maybe that doesn't matter to you, but I wish it would."

"So that's how it is, huh?" Valey spoke slowly, looking up at the bed. "Look, I just entered the tournament because Sparky was down and I cared about her and I wanted to inspire her a little. This isn't the last I'm gonna talk about this. But... yeah. I figured what we needed was some hero who would overcome anything no matter the odds, but I guess if that's not the case anymore? I'll quit."