//------------------------------//
// Chapter-6 Suspension 
// Story: To Touch the Sky 
// by TankFBI 
//------------------------------//

I awoke on a stiff bed, the crinkly noise of paper greeting my ears as I tried to sit up. As I did, it felt like all the blood rushed out of my head as a pounding headache took over. My head felt like it was about to explode. I looked around and saw that I was in what looked to be the nurse's office, Fleetfoot, sitting in a chair on the other side of the room. She was currently staring at the ground with her foot tapping away.

"Fleetfoot?"  I spoke quietly, " Where am I?" 

"Oh my gosh, you're finally awake!"  She remarked as she stood up and hurriedly made her way over to my bedside.

"What happened?"  I questioned.

"I don't know. All I got was a call that you were involved in a fight and were currently unconscious. I was hoping you could answer that question." 

I suddenly remembered what had happened with Misty and the two colts. The irritation must have spread onto my face because Fleetfoot took notice.

"You better have a good explanation for this. It's only your first day!"  She scolded, though she still sounded more worried than anything.

"These two colts were making fun of my friend, calling her a nopony and saying I would end up living under a bridge if I talked to her, and then l-"  I informed her about my new friend, the bullies, and everything that I could remember. I was silenced before finishing as Fleetfoot put a hoof over my mouth. She looked down for a second in thought before pulling me into a hug, causing me to stiffen a bit in surprise.

"While what you did may not have been the right way to handle the situation, you were looking out for others, and I will never fault you for that."  She looked me in the eyes, a caring expression looking back at me, " But I can't let anything happen to you! Spitfire placed you under my care, and I will ensure that I give you the best care possible. If anything were to happen to you, I don't know what I'd do with myself." 

"It's not your fault Fleetfoot,"  I said, feeling a little guilty. At the end of the day, the way I acted would most likely affect Fleetfoot, and while I have no regrets for what I did to that colt, I still don't want to hurt Fleetfoot. After all, she is the one giving me shelter and food out of the graciousness of her own heart.

"Just promise me you won't do anything like that again. You can always come to talk to me, and I will handle it. Promise me that you'll leave all that up to me." 

"I promise, and thank you." 

Fleetfoot told one of the others that I was awake before coming back and standing next to me for about five to ten minutes. A black pony with marble hair and a chalkboard on their flank walked in before long, holding a clipboard.

"How are you feeling?"  He asked as he walked up to my bedside.

"My head hurts a bit, but I feel okay." 

"That's good; you gave us quite the scare when you were brought here. Thankfully the nurse assured us that you were just fine."  He then looked at his clipboard and sighed before looking back toward me. " Now, we have to address the elephant in the room. While what we've heard was that you were doing was right, we can not excuse the use of violence in this school. You must remember that teachers everywhere are willing to help you, and there is no need to resort to petty violence." 

"But he was-" 

" It doesn't matter,"  he cut me off, " this school enforces a zero-tolerance violence policy. That means you and the other colt will be suspended for the remainder of the week. We can't make any exceptions." 

"But why ca-" 

"Ah ah,"  he cut me off again, " I understand you were just standing up for yourself. But like I said, zero tolerance means zero tolerance, end of discussion." 

I slumped over in defeat; zero tolerance policy was some of the dumbest crap I had ever had the pleasure of experiencing. I could have been getting stabbed, and they still would have suspended me. I didn't really care what the school thought; Fleetfoot seemed to understand, which was good enough for me. As long as I keep her happy, I have a better chance of getting out of here.

"Now that we've worked that out, you have someone to apologize to." 

The colt from the lunch room was called into the room, entering with his buddy trailing behind him.

I watched them like a hawk, my brow furrowing the closer they got. Each step closer made me want to cave in their puny little faces even more. They eventually stopped right in front of me. I was pissed at both of them, but the colt who mouthed off had my attention.

We stared at each other, ages passing without a sound. It was like an old western showdown, with whoever dared give in being the loser.

"So,"  the principal started, breaking the silence, " I want you all to apologize to each other, starting with you,"  He said, pointing at me.

I was pissed as I saw a tiny smirk emerge on his face, though I didn't lose my composure.

"I'm sorry for what I did to you both,"  I growled, my expression never faltering.

"We're sorry for hurting you,"  they both said, each returning the gesture.

Our eyes didn't break apart until he turned around to leave the room. I knew those two would be a prick in my side for a while, but I would return the favor. As much as I hated being angry at someone, I had no sympathy for those two and didn't even know their names.

My eyes fell as I let out a sigh. Fleetfoot noticed this and gave me a reassuring pat on the back, a warm smile being her only remark.

I smiled back. She really did have a reassuring smile.





I sat at the kitchen table, the sounds of a sizzling pan and the clicking of a timer filling the ambiance. I now had a pile of homework, Mr. Mango being gracious enough to give Fleetfoot everything I would be missing before we left. Fleetfoot made me carry the stack of papers back and said that was my punishment. Apparently, she had been a troublemaker herself, and though she condemned my actions, she admitted that, in the end, it was the right thing to do.

I had also tried to find out what happened to Misty, but all I got was a "she's doing fine"  from the principal. , On the other hand, I bumped into Sunny on the way out. She came into the nurse's office for a cut she got during recess while I was about to leave. We talked for a little and agreed to meet at the center of Cloudsdale central park on Wednesday, two days from now.

"How you doing over there, sport?"  Came Fleetfoot shortly followed by a crash and several expletives.

"Uhm, are you okay over there?" 

"Sorry, just pretend you didn't hear any of that. But dinner might be a little later than expected."  She chuckled a bit, more out of emotional pain from the half-hour of cooking lost, " Finish what you're doing and be a good colt and set the table." 

"Alright,"  I said back before turning back to the math paper resting in front of me. I quickly filed in the remaining few division problems before dropping my pencil in relief. Hand cramps, hoof cramps, in this case, were still a thing here as well.

As soon as I got home from school, I sat down and nearly finished the entire week's worth of work after only about two hours. About halfway through, I realized I would have significant problems with two subjects, specifically, science and history.

I had already given up on history, but science was something else. There were a few everyday science things, like what is the solid state of water, but other questions made absolutely no sense. Like, what the heck is the physical representation of magic? After seeing this, I asked Fleetfoot to take me to the library tomorrow, to which she agreed. I would not only need to do some research to finish this homework, but it would also give me an excuse to learn more about this place I was in. The library would be the best place to find anything; in my case, I needed everything.

I grabbed my papers and balanced them on my back before making my way towards the stairs to my room.

I plopped the papers down in the completed stack in the far corner of my room. I sat down on my bed for a minute and looked around. I made the palace reasonably cozy, with a wonderbolts poster hanging across my bed, a few plants on the windowsill, and a poster signed by the other Wonderbolts above my bed. It wasn't much, but it was a start. I was in it for the long haul, though not if I could help it.

I broke out of my stupor, hopped off the bed, and went down the hallway. Before I could go far, I noticed that Fleetfoot's door was open a little. While I respect privacy, especially when asked explicitly, I was suspicious of Fleetfoot as she had told me never to go in her room without her permission. This wasn't what worried me, though. It was the practically threatening demeanor she had when she said it. It was out of the ordinary, that's for sure, and I have to be careful. After all, I was living with a stranger I had only met a couple of weeks ago. Not getting murdered was my top priority.

I looked down the hallway, and the sounds of Fleetfoot humming along with a pot stirring met my ears. I lifted my hooves and planted them as lightly as I could. I slowly made my way towards her room, cautious that she could climb the stairs any moment.

"Food's ready!"  She shouted, nearly causing her to jump into the ceiling.

I hesitated and glanced at the door. While I would like to know what Fleetfoots had going on, I knew that if she ever found out, she would never trust me again. Ultimately, I decided that having Fleetfoot was too valuable of an asset to risk throwing away. I would be back, though. Just a matter of when the circumstances demand it.

"Okay, I'm coming!"  I hollered back a second later as I trotted down the steps.

I greeted her in the kitchen as I grabbed our plates and silverware, I tried to look at what she had made, but she blocked my sight of the pan. She liked to play a little game where I couldn't see what she was making until it was on the plate in front of me. All because I refused to eat a grass salad I saw her preparing on the second day I was here. While I had eaten plants before as a pony, I refused to eat grass because, in my eyes, I would be throwing away the last of my humanity. So now I have to smell what she's making or try to sneak a glimpse while she's not paying attention.

I set the table, pulled out one of the white chairs opposite where Fleetfoot usually sat, and plopped my behind on it.

A short while later, Fleetfoot arrived with a pot in her mouth, its aroma radiating throughout the kitchen and causing my eyes to flutter. Whatever she made today smelled exceptionally exquisite.

She tilted her head and poured out a sizeable portion of what appeared to be a tofu stir fry. It was perfectly cooked to a golden brown, the sauce permeating all the vegetables and tofu to perfection.

I waited for Fleetfoot to prepare her own plate and take her seat before digging in. And was it ever worth the wait! I nearly moaned at the taste of the vegetables, catching myself and shoveling another forkful into my mouth. While Fleetfoot typically cooked dinner, she really outdid herself on this one. Most of the time, she would make a simple stew or a few sandwiches. Yet, another time she made a mouthwatering tuna casserole. She told me that pegasi eat fish sometimes to help with bones or something and that I didn't have to eat it if I didn't want to. But by golly, was that the best casserole ever.

I returned to the food in front of me, nearly all gone, scraping the rest into my muzzle. I scooped the last of it into my mouth before leaning back in my chair with a sigh. I looked up and saw Fleetfoot with a smile, her plate still half full.

" Guess you liked it, huh?"  She asked with a little laugh.

"That… was… amazing!"  I proclaimed before settling back down. I began to notice just how much like a home-cooked meal this was, and it reminded me of that. Its taste became bitter as it reminded me of just how far away from home I was. I felt a small hole open up in my heart, my longing to be home trying to pull its way through. Fleetfoot must have noticed my demeanor change as she spoke up quickly.

"Hey buddy,"  she calmly began, catching my attention, " I just want you to know that you can trust me with anything. While I don't know what you've gone through, I know that going through life alone can be scary. Remember that no matter what's going on, just come talk to me, and I'll be all ears, no questions asked. Okay?" 

I stared at my plate, my mind a mess. I knew I had to accept that I was here right now and that there was nothing I could do. No amount of wishing in the universe would send me back home. I was all alone, and my fate was in my own hands. If I was going to get out of here, some help would be ideal after all.

"Okay, I'll remember that Fleetfoot,"  I responded, looking back into her deep magenta eyes. I saw the pain, the emotions, and the triumphs. She had frankly been through it all.

"Thank you,"  I said, a second later electing another smile from her.

"I'll clean up down here,"  she said a few moments later, " if you're done, you can go relax." 

"Thanks,"  I said, sliding off my chair and pushing it in before heading back to my room.

While climbing the stairs, I felt that I was physically an alien, but mentally, I sensed I had moved a little closer to home.





I heard the familiar beeping of my alarm clock pierce my skull. Of course, it was Monday, why wouldn't it be!

I fumbled with the cheap plastic clock beside my bed, face still buried in my pillow. It continued to mock me before finally knocking it off the table.

I groaned before sitting up, a yawn filling the air, rubbing the dirt out of my eyes. I stood up, stretched a bit, and headed over to my dresser, grabbing a new shirt and pair of shorts. I didn't usually dress this casually, but today would be a chill day at the hangar. I felt my mind ease a little as I remembered that, not having to go to work on a Monday, what could be better? The boys and I were going to take a little flight in our planes, land, get lunch somewhere unique, and come home.

I stretched my arms and legs, cracked my knuckles, grabbed my comb, and began combing my hair.

I walked over to the stand-up mirror in the opposite corner of my room to check my hair. I still wanted to look good, after all.

I dropped my comb as I walked in front of the mirror. The reflection that stared back at me was not my own but that of a tiny white horse with dark blue hair and stubby wings. It was something straight out of a cartoon. Its eyes stared back at me like a deer caught in someone's headlights.

I rubbed my eyes, my reflection doing the same, to ensure I saw this right. But when I looked back, the same sight greeted me, causing me to take a step back out of fear.

I began to wave my arms around, jump up and down, and even do a little spin. My mind began to ponder as I performed these actions when the reflection did everything identically but in quadruped form. What I was looking at was impossible. All I could do was stare wide-eyed at what I was seeing.

I felt my mind begin to blur. It felt like my reflection was now a different entity staring right back at me. Each question that flew through my mind only led to a hundred more. I knew this wasn't real. How could it be? I must be going crazy.

I decided to return to my bed, but when I turned around, I gasped when I saw that my bed was completely white and made out of… clouds?

I backed up in dread, bumping into the mirror, causing it to come crashing down… only it didn't shatter and landed with a poof. I looked down and saw I was also standing on fluffy white clouds.

With every glance I took around the room, something changed. The walls. My pillows. The dresser. Everything slowly began to turn into a fluffy white cloud, my eyes betraying me the more I tried to comprehend.

After seemingly everything had turned into a white puff, I tried to grab onto my fleece blanket, pulling it in tight to myself. It was the last thing in my room that wasn't a pearly white fuzz. I hoped to god that I could protect what little was left, even if it was a blanket, from doing the impossible.

But the moment I blinked, the blanket fell apart in my arms, white puffs of cloud floating off of me and onto the ground. I reached out, trying to pull the cloud back in, only for it to slip between my fingers and continue to float away from me.

"What's happening!?"  I cried out. All of my most prized possessions were disintegrating before my eyes. But what could I do?

I began to feel my eyes water out of frustration, uncertainty, and grief. Only when I tried to wipe away my tears, all I saw was a furry white stump. Continuing further down greeted me with the sight of the same creature I saw in the mirror, only it was me. I was that creature.

I suddenly found myself floating in an empty void, nothing as far as my eyes could see. My body floating throughout the endless abyss of the universe. My mind suddenly ran blank, all of my previous thoughts and worries vanishing.

I could feel that I was not alone, as if I was in a stadium full of people I could not see or hear. It was unnaturally quiet, yet I felt I was being observed and scrutinized from every angle.

I saw a pinhole of light off in the distance, slowly growing as it appeared to approach me. I stared at it, with nowhere else to go, before it slowly encompassed my entire body.





I flung the sheets off my body and onto the floor, my body jolting upright. I panted, a bead of sweat falling down my face. I quickly regained my composure and looked around my dark room only to see everything was made of clouds because I lived with Fleetfoot in a cloud. Everything was fine. But my mind felt otherwise.