A couple hours later Arc and Rose pull into the hospital parking lot. Arc looks to her as he turns off the ignition.
“Are you sure you’re okay doing this, Rose?”
Rose nods. “Yes. If you believe it’s the only way, I’ll do my part to help.”
“Thanks.”
“But I don’t know what to do.”
“Neither do I.”
Rose appears surprised. “Oh?”
“Well, at least not yet.”
“So how should we get started?”
“By gathering information. After all, we don’t even know where they keep the patient’s stuff.”
“I’ll follow your lead.”
Arc nods. “Let’s head inside. If we’re lucky, inspiration will hit us.”
They step out of the Jeep and walk inside. The hospital appears quite busy. Rose turns to Arc.
“Did something happen?”
“Probably no more than usual. After all, it is the middle of the day. Let’s take a walk, shall we?”
Rose smiles. “Yes! Let’s!”
Arc leads the pair down a wide corridor. They look around as Rose lowers her voice.
“Are we looking for anything in particular?”
“If we were to find the room itself, that would be ideal.”
“But…?”
“I doubt they have it marked from the corridor or on any of the visitor maps.”
Rose looks confused. “How’s anyone supposed to find it then?”
“They’re not.”
“Come again?”
“The support staff retrieves a patient’s personal property for them before their discharged. There’s no reason for anyone other than staff to go there.”
“Makes sense. But that doesn’t really help us now does it?”
“That it doesn’t.”
Rose sighs. “This is hard.”
“True. But we’ll think of something.”
The pair continue on for a bit. Arc sniffs the air as Rose turns to him.
“You smell something?”
Arc grins. “The Cafeteria probably.”
Rose giggles. “Hungry?”
“Well, it HAS been a long time since breakfast.”
They head for the Cafeteria. The sounds of clanking dished fills the air. Soon they sit down, Arc with a hamburger and Rose with a tall cup of ice water.
“That’s not too bad. It’s no Shelly Burger though, I suppose.”
Rose smiles at him. “But what is, right?”
“Can’t argue with that.”
She looks out the window. “Arc… can I ask you something?”
“What is it?”
“I’ve been feeling a lot of new things since you ordered the removal of my directives.”
“Is that bad?”
“I… don’t know. But they’re both wonderful and terrifying at the same time.”
“Can you describe them?”
Rose thinks for a moment before responding.
“Well, for starters, I… um… feel strange whenever my garments are removed.”
“Human modesty.”
“Originally that’s what I thought as well. But I’m not a human, remember?”
“That’s sort of true, I suppose.”
“What do you mean?”
“Think about it, Rose. You look like a human, sound like a human, feel like a human and… even smell like one.”
“But that doesn’t make me one.”
“True. But the only difference I see is how you were born.”
Rose sighs. “There’s also the issue of my internal parts. Yours are organic. Mine are synthetic. You’re alive. I’m not.”
Cherry calls out. “Just because one isn’t alive doesn’t mean they’re not capable of having feelings.”
Rose sighs. “Yes. You’re proof of that, Miss Cherry.”
“Try to think more about what you are rather than what you are not.”
Arc nods. “Agreed. And remember this. No one expects you to understand everything right away. Heck, I’m still learning how life works, and expect to do so until the end of my days.”
“What do I do though?”
“Take it one day at a time, Rose. Slow and steady wins the race, after all.”
“Is that how humans do it?”
“Pretty much. When we’re born everything is done for us. From our parents literally putting food in our mouths to wiping our rears.”
Cherry giggles. “The same can be said for foals. But as they grow, their parents slowly teach them how to care for themselves. Eventually they’re able to do everything by themselves. Including have their own foals. And the process begins anew with the next generation.”
Rose sighs. “That may be. But I wasn’t exactly born like you two were.”
Arc nods. “I suppose not. It must’ve been difficult to open your eyes as an adult.”
“That is was. I mean, mother programmed me with what she could. But there are large gaps in my knowledge base on a great number of subjects.”
Cherry sighs. “Nopo… no one knows everything, Rose.”
Arc nods. “Agreed.”
“But what about my feelings? Mother said she couldn’t program them properly.”
Arc reaches across the table and puts a hand on hers. “I think that’s one of the things you’ll just have to learn on your own.”
Rose sighs. “I guess so.”
Arc smiles at her as they stand up. “I’m sure you’ll do fine. Now I need to use the restroom before we get moving.”
“I’ll take care of the dishes while you do that.”
“Thanks.”
Arc walks toward a public bathroom as Rose takes his tray of dirty dishes over to the counter. She mutters to herself.
“I… I also feel a warmth in my chest whenever you and I are together, Arc. Mother says I have a crush on you. She told me it was normal for a mare to feel that way towards those they care about, but… but I know she feels the same way about you.”
Rose sighs as she walks over to the Bathroom to wait for Arc.
“What I wouldn’t do to have the courage to talk to you about this.”
A short time later Arc walks out and over to her.
“Alright. Let’s get moving.”
“Okay. Where to?”
Arc shrugs. “No clue. Haven’t had any ideas yet.”
The pair walk down the corridor together. A few minutes later there is a commotion behind them. Several nurses rush toward them pushing a gurney quickly down the corridor, Arc and Rose step aside to allow them to pass.
“What’s going on?!”
Arc sighs. “They must’ve been brought through the emergency entrance.”
“How could you tell?”
“No hospital gown. Trust me, they just got here.”
Arc quickly grabs Rose’s hand.
“Let’s follow them.”
Rose appears surprised as they do so. “Sure. But do you know the patient?”
Arc shakes his head. “Never saw them before in my life.”
The pair hurry after the gurney as hospital staff bring the patient to an examination room. Arc stops a ways down the corridor.
“Let’s wait here a bit.”
“What for?”
Arc smiles. “With any luck, a guide.”
“A what?”
“Someone we can follow.”
“Arc, judging from my scans, I don’t think that patient will be walking out of there.”
“Right. But let’s just wait and see.”
Arc and Rose watch as doctors and nurses enter and leave the room. Sometime later a nurse leaves the room with a clear bag. Rose turns to Arc.
“Those are the clothes the patient was wearing.”
“Right. Let’s follow her.”
Waiting for the nurse to pass, the pair give her a head start before following. They watch as she enters a doorway next to the security office. A few minutes later she walks out empty-handed.
“This must be where your friend’s things were taken.”
Arc nods. “Agreed. Now we just need to find a way to sneak in there.”
“Could we just explain the situation to whomever is in there?”
Arc shakes his head. “They’d just call security. I’m going to guess only hospital staff are allowed in there.”
Rose sighs. “So we have to break in?”
“Not necessarily. I’d rather do this quietly. Come on. Let’s go for another walk.”
“For more inspiration?”
Arc chuckles. “Something like that.”
They walk down several corridors as Arc looks around. Eventually his gaze falls on a laundry cart being wheeled down the corridor by a janitor. The man stops and walks into the bathroom as Arc turns to Rose.
“Anyone looking this way?”
“No. But why…”
Arc quickly reaches into the bin and pulls out a nurse’s blue hospital scrubs and shoves them into his ring before turning away quickly.
“Let’s go, Rose.”
She turns to him as they step away from the cart.
“A disguise?”
Arc pats his ring. “Yup. But we still need one more thing to pull this off.”
“Oh?”
“A badge.”
“A what?”
“Look around at the staff here. Each of them is wearing an ID badge pinned to their chest.”
“Where do we find one?”
“I’ll probably have to… borrow one from a nurse.”
Rose frowns. “You mean steal one?!”
“There’s no other way to get it, I’m afraid.”
Rose groans. “Fine. Now how do we go about… borrowing a badge?”
“They’re picture IDs, so it’ll have to look similar to either you or me.”
“Another walk for inspiration?”
Arc chuckles. “Yup.”
The pair walk the corridors for over an hour before they see a nurse outside a patient room going over a clipboard. Looking around Arc sees everyone else busy with other tasks.
“She’ll do.”
“So are you going to grab her badge with your magic, Arc?”
“I suppose I could. But she can play a larger role in my plan then that.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’ll see.”
Rose looks nervous. “You’re not going to hurt her, are you?!”
“Nah. Trust me.”
Rose sighs. “Well… okay. What should I do?”
“Just follow my lead.”
Arc takes Rose’s hand as they slowly walk toward the nurse. As they approach she suddenly puts a hand to her forehead and leans on the wall heavily. Arc rushes over to catch her as she loses consciousness. Lowering her quickly to the floor he lays her down, grabs her badge, and shoves it in his pocket as he turns to Rose and lowers his voice.
“Scream for help.”
“SOMEONE HELP!”
The staff look over and rush to their aid. A doctor arrives first and turns to Arc.
“What happened?!”
“I don’t know! We were just walking by when she collapsed!”
Rose nods. “She was lucky you were there to catch her!”
The doctor looks her over quickly as he turns to an orderly.
“Get a gurney over here!”
“Yes doctor!”
A few moments later he returns. Arc helps them put the nurse on it as the doctor looks to the orderly.
“Put her in Treatment Room #3, and have someone there look her over.”
The man nods and wheels her away as the doctor turns to Arc.
“Thanks for your help. Tell me, do you know her?”
Arc shakes his head. “No, sir. Like I said, we just happened to be walking by at the time.”
The doctor sighs. “Great. I was kinda hoping you did. She wasn’t wearing her badge, so I don’t know who she is.”
Rose looks to the doctor apologetically. “Sorry we couldn’t be of any help in that regard, doctor...”
“Rieper. Well, I need to get back to work. Thank you again.”
He turns and walks away, looking over his clipboard as he heads to check on the unconscious nurse.
“I know I’ve seen that man somewhere before. But where?”
The doctor sighs as he finds himself no closer to an answer.
“Well, I’m sure it will come to me in time.”
Meanwhile, Arc turns to Rose.
“Okay, we have everything we need now.”
Rose frowns. “What did you do to her?!”
“Just a little Sleep Spell I learned from Ember. She’ll be out for a few hours, but won’t have any lasting effects.”
Rose breathes a sigh of relief. “Is that why you waited to cast it until we were closer?”
“Yeah. I didn’t want her to crack her skull on the floor.”
“What now?”
Arc grins as he picks up the nurse’s clipboard. “Time to implement the rest of my plan. This way.”
He leads Rose over to a private bathroom. Casually, Arc looks around before hurrying inside with her and locking the door behind them. Rose appears confused.
“So what should I do?”
Arc pulls the scrubs out of his ring and hands them to Rose.
“I need you to put these on and pretend to be a nurse.”
“So I can get into the patient property area?”
Arc shakes his head as he turns to look at the wall. “Not quite. But I can explain on the way.”
Rose sighs as she quickly undresses. “What else would we do?”
“One more stop to seal the deal and ensure this plan’s success.”
A few minutes later Rose calls out to him.
“Okay, you can turn around now.”
Arc does so. He pulls the badge out of his pocket and looks it over.
“It’s pretty close. Just need one little change.”
Reaching back into his pocket, Arc pulls out a rubber band.
“Turn around a minute.”
Rose does so. Arc quickly puts her hair into a ponytail.
“Do you always carry those around, Arc?”
“Nah. I nabbed it from the nurse’s station we passed. I know it’s not the best, but now you look almost exactly like her.”
He hands her the badge.
“I really do.”
“We got lucky there. Now go ahead and put that badge on your pocket.”
Rose does so as Arc calls forth his armor. She raises an eyebrow.
“Um… are you really going out there in that?”
“Yes and no.”
“Huh?”
Arc chuckles. “Yes I’m leaving the room in my armor. No inasmuch as no one will see me.”
“You’re going to be invisible, huh?”
“Not exactly. Say, how’s your hearing?”
“I can pick up any auditory sounds easily. Even more so if I know what to listen for.”
“Okay, here’s the plan.”
A few minutes later Rose steps out of the bathroom and walks down the hall, clipboard in hand. Arc grins as he looks through a small hole in her pocket before turning his gaze upward.
“Can you hear me, Rose?”
Rose nods.
“Yes. Just be careful not to talk too loud now. I’m able to filter out the noise around me, after all.”
“Alright. Now we just need to follow the signs to the Treatment Rooms.”
“Dare I ask why?”
“Partially to check on that nurse. I do feel kinda bad for doing that to her.”
“And the other part?”
“Although I know it sounds callous, she still has something we need to make this work.”
“What’s that?”
“Plausibility.”
“Um… what?”
Arc chuckles. “You’ll see.”
Rose makes her way down the corridor. A short time later they arrive at their destination.
“There’s Treatment Room #3. What should I do, Arc?”
“Any hospital staff in there?”
“Not at the moment, no.”
“Alright. Head in there and scan the patient.”
“For what?”
“Just make sure she’s okay.”
“Very well.”
Rose enters the room and walks over to the bed. She quickly does a full body scan as Arc waits nervously.
“Is she alright?”
“Yes. I estimate she’ll be out for quite some time though.”
Arc breathes a sigh of relief. “Good. It’s my first time actually using that spell on someone.”
“Generally speaking, a failed spell of that type simply results in nothing happening.”
“That’s what I’ve been told. But I still worried, as magic isn’t exactly well understood from the human caster standpoint.”
Arc sighs and shakes his head.
“In any case, look to the table in the corner.”
“What about it?”
“Do you see that clear bag?”
Rose nods. “Yes. It has the nurse’s clothes and jewelry in it.”
“Good. Pick it up.”
“What?”
“We’re going to do the hospital a favor.”
A short time later Rose enters a small room. The security guard present stands behind a counter in front of a large number of racks. Rose walks over to him and places the bag on the counter.
“Belongings from the patient in Treatment Room #3.”
The guard nods as he fills out a form. “Patient name?”
“Unknown. She’s one of the hospital’s nurses, but wasn’t wearing her badge when she collapsed.”
The guard nods. “Alright. I’ll put her down as ‘Jane Doe’.”
Rose nods and leaves the room. As she steps out into the corridor she frowns and walks slowly away.
“I sure hope you know what you’re doing, Arc.”
Meanwhile, the guard picks up the form and tapes it to the bag. He then walks over to a rack and puts the bag in the corresponding room number slot. As he walks back over to his chair behind the counter, the edge of the bag slowly folds back and a miniature Arc climbs out.
“Well, here I am.”
He looks around and spots a security camera on a wall overlooking the room. Blinking over to it Arc stands on top of the lens and surveys the room.
“That bright red suit shouldn’t be too hard to see.”
A few minutes later he spots Frank’s signature fire engine red suit.
“Bingo! Now I just need to grab it without the guard or the security office recording me.”
Arc thinks for a moment before turning around and climbing to the back of the camera. He spots a wire leading into the wall and, with a mighty tug, pulls it loose.
“That should do it.”
Blinking onto the bag Arc quickly casts the Matter Compacting Spell on it before stuffing the entire thing into his ring.
“Alright. Now to make my escape.”
He touches his earring.
“Arc to Rose. Can you hear me?”
“Yes.”
“I’ve got it. Head back to the room, but do not enter. Let me know when you get here.”
“Okay. I’ll be there in two minutes.”
A couple minutes later Rose’s voice rings out in Arc’s ear.
“I’m outside the door. Now what?”
“Kneel down next to the door and tie your shoe.”
Rose looks down, confused. “But it is tied.”
“Untie and then retie it then. Just make sure you’re looking toward the door frame.”
Rose sighs. “Very well.”
She bends down and does as he asks. Meanwhile, Arc looks around to make sure the guard is still in his chair. Reaching out a hand he pushes a bag off the shelf across the room. It falls to the floor with a thud. Hearing a noise, the guard stands and walks over to it. Using this opportunity Arc crosses the room in several Blinks before crawling under the door. Peeking out he spots Rose kneeling down nearby.
“Don’t move, Rose.”
She silently nods as Arc looks at her pocket. With a final Blink he reappears inside it.
“I’m in. Walk away, Rose.”
“Okay.”
She does so as Arc sits down and breathes a sigh of relief..
“You okay, Arc?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“Where to now?”
“Find a private bathroom. You need to change.”
“I’ll head to the one we used a little while ago. Is that okay?”
“Sure.”
Rose walks down the corridor. A security guard passes her and enters the room. She frowns and looks down at her pocket.
“Did something happen in there?”
“I took out a security camera. He’s probably going in there to check out why they lost the feed.”
“Ah!”
Rose enters the small bathroom. She closes and locks the door behind her
“Can I help you down, Arc?”
“Sure.”
Rose puts a hand to her pocket. Arc climbs out and into her palm.
“Thanks. Just set me down on the floor.”
As she does so, Arc casts the counter spell and returns to his normal size.
“That feels better.”
“I’m sorry. Was my pocket uncomfortable?”
Arc shrugs. “Kinda. It’s hard to stay upright in there.”
“Next time I’ll do better.”
“No, no! You did great, Rose. But I think you should get changed.”
Rose looks confused. “Why?”
“Because we’re done. And you being in disguise is kind of a risk.”
“It is?”
Arc nods. “Yes. Say someone who knows that nurse who’s badge we took saw you. It’d be kinda tough to talk our way out of that.”
Rose sighs. “I suppose you’re right.”
Arc reaches for his ring and pulls Rose’s clothes out before turning away respectfully.
“Just let me know when you’re dressed.”
Rose nods as she begins to disrobe.
“Arc?”
“Hm?”
“I… um… was just wondering what you think I should do.”
“With your life?”
“Yes.”
“Whatever makes you happy.”
Rose sighs. “But I don’t really know what that is.”
Arc smiles as he stares at the wall. “You’ll figure it out. After all, you’ve already grown so much since we met.”
Rose calls out as she steps into her pants. “I haven’t changed in size since my activation, Arc.”
“I meant grown mentally and emotionally. “You’ve learned so much.”
“Experience?”
“Yes. I’m looking forward to seeing what you can accomplish, Rose.”
Rose smiles as she blushes slightly. “Thank you. So am I.”