Mall of Manehattan
9:03 PM
"I'm sure he'll be here any minute now," Shining Star reassured Crimson Moon. The two had been waiting outside the Mall of Manehattan for over 3 hours now, expecting Fallen Angel to pick them up at any moment.
"If he's not here in the next 5 minutes, I'm going home myself," Crimson announced. She sat herself back down on top of the concrete ledge that served as a passenger pick-up for carriages. She leaned down to look at her thigh, which was still healing from the injuries she had suffered in the attack on Manehattan just 4 months earlier. Although the pain had gone away, the scar would remain forever.
She looked back up to see a silhouette against the lights in the mall's lot. Shining Star took notice too, jumping up from her seat.
"Angel!" she yelled as she wrapped her brother up in a hug. Crimson kept in her seat, not nearly as excited, but very relieved to see her coltfriend was alive.
"About time you got here!" she playfully scolded him.
Angel cast his bright green eyes on his marefriend, smiling ear to ear. He seemed as relieved to see Crimson as well, which told her that something wasn't right.
"You will not believe the crap I've been through tonight," Angel started...
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Grand Garden Medical Center
9:58 PM
"IIIIIIITTTTT'S FIGHT NIGHT! Equestrian Wrestling Entertainment returns to Madisoat Square Garden on Sunday, February 24th! The main event: Cherry Blossom vs. Thunderlane in a Steel Cage Match for the World Heavyweight Championship!..."
Firestorm groaned as she tried in vain to turn the radio off. It would help if she'd actually look in it's direction, but if she sat up, she felt like throwing up. Even with the pain medication the nurse had given her, it still felt like her brain was going to blow right out of her skull. She'd never felt worse in her life.
Before she could reach the radio, she heard it suddenly shut off. She looked over to see Fallen Angel pulling up a chair to her bed.
"Mornin', sunshine!" he teased.
"Heyyyy," Firestorm greeted him. "It's the Angel of Darkness, or whatever the hell your name is."
Fallen Angel had been warned that she might be hopped-up on medication, so he fully expected her to act this way.
"Fallen Angel," he corrected.
"Right, sorry," Firestorm apologized, noticing Crimson Moon sitting down beside him. "Oh, and you brought Crimson with you too!"
"And Shining Star!" Star piped up from the other side of the room.
"Coooool," Firestorm slurred. "The gang's all here."
She giggled a bit, then added, "Sorry, I'm hopped-up on pain pills."
"I figured," Angel replied. "The nurse told us before we came in."
Firestorm, not listening, pointed both her forelegs in no particular direction and exclaimed, "Don't do drugs, kids!"
Fallen Angel shushed her, trying to help her remember she was in a hospital at 10 o'clock at night.
"It's not all fun and games," she added. "My head still hurts like hell."
"I bet," Crimson responded. "I hear you had a nasty spill."
"Yup," Firestorm answered. "Jackass slammed me against a wall and cracked my noggin."
Then she gasped, and turned to Fallen Angel.
"Is the mare okay?"
"Yep, she's all good," he replied. "Just a few cuts and bruises, and a partially soaked bag, but otherwise, she's A-OK."
"Good, good," Firestorm sighed. "That's all that matters. I'm sure you were more than helpful?"
"I might've tackled the guy into a sign," Angel admitted with a chuckle. "I think he used to be a wrestler, because I could barely keep him down. If it weren't for Silver Shield, I'd be dead meat!"
"Where's Blaze?" Shining Star asked.
"She was in here about half an hour ago," Firestorm answered.
"Wait," Fallen Angel exclaimed. "She?"
"Yeah," Firestorm clarified, "turns out she was a girl, just looked like a guy. Crazy, isn't it?"
Angel figured that this was her medicine talking, so he led her on.
"Yeah, I'd say so," he replied sarcastically.
"Sometimes," Firestorm said to nopony in particular, "abstinence is a bad thing." Then she chuckled to herself.
"Wouldn't that make an interesting song?" she asked, then started singing to herself. "I didn't know she was a girl..."
"Okay," Angel stopped her, "let's settle down."
He suddenly heard a knock at the door, and looked up to see Rarity in the doorway.
"Hi there," she greeted everyone.
"What are you doing here?" Angel asked.
"I wanted to come by and see how one of my heroes was doing," she answered with a smile.
Firestorm slowly lifted her head up to see who was there.
"Who the fffff-fudge are you?" Firestorm yelled, censoring herself.
"Oh, good grief," Angel said to himself, covering his face with his hooves. In reality, he was trying to hide his smile, and barely holding back a laugh.
"My name is Rarity," Rarity introduced herself, smile only wider from Firestorm's comment. "You helped save my life tonight."
She offered a hoofshake, but Firestorm merely waved her hoof around, trying what looked in her mind to be a stylish hoofbump.
"I'm Firestorm," she announced. "It's a pleasure to meet you. And good to see you're okay."
"Same to you," Rarity replied. "More or less."
"Rarity?" came a voice from the hallway, and Fallen Angel watched Sweetie Belle poke her head through the door.
"Oh, there you are!" she exclaimed, entering the room.
"Hey Angel," she added with an upwards nod, to which Angel simply waved in greeting. "Who's the mare?"
"Crimson," Crimson answered for him, "Crimson Moon. And you are?"
"I'm Sweetie Belle," she responded, "I'm Rarity's sister."
"That's cool," Shining Star said. "Were you with her when Angel and Firestorm saved her?"
"No, but I got to hear the story," she replied, "and boy, was it a good one!"
Angel watched as Rarity pulled something out of her bag, the same one Firestorm had helped get back.
"I wanted to get you something as a token of my appreciation," Rarity replied. "I can't thank you enough for helping me."
Angel's mouth dropped as Firestorm held up a Heizenberg watch. Those things were worth at least 300 bits, if not more! How much money did this mare exactly have?
"Woah," Firestorm breathed, looking at the face of the watch. "This is a Heizenberg! Aren't these things really expensive?"
"A little," Rarity confirmed, "but I figured it would make a good gift. After all, now you can tell what time it is when you're on shift!"
"Yeah," she said, "but you really didn't have to buy me this."
"Nonsense," Rarity exclaimed, "It really means nothing to me. I wanted to get the best I could, no matter what the cost!"
Firestorm took a few moments to admire the watch, before finally saying, "Thank you. That means a lot."
"You're very welcome," Rarity responded. "Now, it's getting late, so I think Sweetie Belle and I should be getting back home."
"Same here," Angel seconded. "When are you getting out of here, Firestorm?"
"Tomorrow morning," she answered. "Although I'll be lucky if I don't puke on the way out," she added with a chuckle.
"Alrighty then," Angel said, "I'll see you later, Firestorm."
"See ya," she repeated, and the others took a moment to say their goodbyes before, one by one, they filed out of the room.
As they left, Sweetie Belle turned to Shining Star.
"So I hear you're friends with Babs Seed," she stated.
"Oh, you know her?" Star asked.
"My best friend back home is her cousin, so she visits from time to time," Sweetie explained. "I was wondering if you could take me to her place at some point. I'd think she'd be happy to see a friend."
"Sure," Star replied. "How long are you staying?"
"'Til Thursday," she answered.
"How about Sunday?" Star inquired. "I'm off of work that day."
"Sounds like a plan," Sweetie responded, turning to her sister. "You wouldn't mind, would you?"
"Not at all," Rarity replied, "as long as you stay safe."
"Sweet!" Sweetie Belle exclaimed. "See you then!" She then darted off towards the elevator.
Rarity took a moment to turn around and give Angel a hug.
"Thank you," Rarity told him, "for everything you did today. I don't think there's a better stallion in Manehattan than you."
"It's nothing," Angel replied with a grin. Rarity chuckled, then turned away.
"I should probably catch up to her," she stated. "I'll see you around!"
"Bye," Angel waved. And with that, the pretty mare from out of town took off in pursuit of her sister.