//------------------------------// // Preparations // Story: The Shattered Remnants of My Mind // by Chivalry //------------------------------// Chapter 4. Preparation: Part 1: Recovery Leon is sitting on the beach at dawn… the sea is almost motionless as the last bright stars fade away… he feels the freshness and the purity of the air…he's watching the water…the stars…the dark sky… loving the silence before sunrise, the stillness is filled with all possibilities… slowly, the darkness melts and the colors change…the sky over the horizon becomes red…then golden… Then the first rays of Celestia's sun reach him…and he watches it slowly emerging from the water…. With half the sun's disk visible and the rest still below the horizon…he sees that its reflection in the water is creating a path of golden shimmering light … The warmth of the sun is pleasant…and he decides to fly… slowly…with joy…he feels the light-filled clouds touching his body…he experiences himself floating effortlessly and moving pleasurably in the sky… The more he flies toward the sun, the less aware he is of the clouds, and the more the light around him increases…he feels enveloped in a beneficent, golden light which permeates him completely… his body is bathing now in the vitality of the sun…his feelings are pervaded by its warmth…his mind is illuminated by its light. In the deep background, Leon hears an angel gently whispering his name… "Leon… come this way, Leon…" Leon flies toward the voice. "Come sit with me on the beach…" Leon lands noiselessly on the beach, sits back and looks out to the horizon. "Remember this moment…" the angel's voice is next to him, louder…stronger. "Take a deep breath…now, another…slowly open your eyes…" Leon opens his eyes, to find himself staring into the kind face of Dr. Grey. They are sitting in her office at the hospital. It had been six months since his first panic attack, and he had been participating in these sessions every week since. "Now, how do you feel?" Dr. Grey asked. "Peaceful…" Leon said, still in a state of euphoria from the dream. He had the goofiest smile on his face. "I can see that." Dr. Grey said, giggling. "How have you slept?" "I still have nightmares, but they aren't as intense or constant as before," he replied. While it wasn't what either of them wanted to hear, Leon knew that he needed to be truthful. Anything but the truth could set them back as far as the beginning. "Well, either way, you have been making great progress, both physically and mentally. I am so proud of you," Dr. Grey declared as they walked out of her office back towards his room. "What else do we have to do today?" Leon asked. "Well, I need to check your bandages and see how much has healed, but after that, nothing." "How long do you think that will take?" "About a half an hour." "…And what time is it now?" "'Bout a quarter to three. Why?" she asked, puzzled by Leon's strange behavior. "Well… you see… It's… um…" Leon stuttered out. Dr. Grey rolled her eyes. She had become a costumed to his timid behavior. t wa"Spit it out!" "Well, Windbreaker's school is having their play tonight… and she's playing the lead role." Dr. Grey gasped, "Oh my gosh! She must be so excited!" "More nervous than excited, and I can't blame her. It's the biggest play they've ever held. She's counting on my to be there for support." "What time is the play?" "Five, but I still need to get home and pick up Mom." "Well, I'm not supposed to let you leave the hospital unsupervised for another week of therapy…" When she said this, Leon stopped, his heart dropped like a lead balloon. 'No. I needed to be there for her…' "Oh well," she continued. "I guess I'll have to accompany you to the play." Leon looked up at her, completely shocked. "D-do you r-r-really mean it? What about your fiancé?" "Luther and I hadn't planned on doing anything tonight anyway. We might as well go out and support your sister." "Th-that's great! Thank you so much!" Leon replied, fighting the urge to hug her till she exploded. "Well, let's hurry up. After I check the bandages, I have to hurry home and get dressed!" Half an hour later… "Leon, after seeing your wounds, I can actually remove most of the bandages, but you will need to keep your eye patch on for another month or so." "Will I always have these scars?" "Well, yes. While we can fix many things, no amount of surgery or magic will be able to remove those without causing more damage. Why? Do you not like them?" "N-no. I don't. Every time I see them, I think about what happened…" "Aw, but they make you look rough and tough… and don't forget 'sexy', if you don't mind me saying." Leon's face turned as red as his mane at that moment. "Wh-what?" "Take it from me, Leon! Young mares love a stallion with a few scars," she finished, winking at him. This only made Leon's face turn an even brighter shade of red. She laughed when she saw him try to hide it. "Um… D-Dr. Grey?" Leon tried say, but his voice was overshadowed by the sound of the doctor's laughs. "Dr. Grey?" He repeated, this time a little louder, but was still unheard. "DR. GREY!" "Huh?" she turned to face Leon, her eyes filled with tears form laughing so hard. "We should get going. Don't want to be late," he stated, pointing up at the clock. 4:10 Dr. Grey gasped. "OH MY GOSH! I need to let Luther know to get ready!" As she ran out the door, Leon started to get ready. When they had come to visit him, Moondancer and Windbreaker had brought some of his things with them. Among them was his nicest, white collar shirt, a black tie, cologne, and his father's wristwatch. Seeing the watch brought back memories of he and his father, and the incident that took him away... --------------------------------- Part 2: Heart of a Leon Ten years ago… It was a dark and stormy night. Leon had wandered off from his campsite to get some firewood and had fallen off of a small cliff. His leg was broken, and he was too weak to fly. All he could do was call out for help, but you never know what will find you in the Everfree forest… Suddenly, Leon heard a rustling in the bushes. "Wh-who's there?" he asked, but there was no response. "h-hel…" Then, the brush began to decay, and a large snake-like creature appeared. It's maw dripped with saliva, it's pale skin shown in the little light provided by the moon, and it looked hungry. "LEON! Close your eyes!" He heard a stallion yelling. When he turned to the voice, he discovered that his father was flying towards him as fast as he could. Being the captain of the Wonderbolts, he was perhaps the fastest pony in all of Equestria. He was closely followed by his mother and uncle. "Dammit, boy, look away! That is a Basilisk!" his father commanded. Leon knew that a Basilisk was a remnant from the age of Discord. It was a large snake whose poison is so strong that merely touching it would kill a full-grown dragon. It also had another dangerous trait that turns whatever looks at it into stone. Leon didn't shut his eyes, but instead watched his family move between him and the beast; "Moondancer! Get him behind cover, and keep yourself safe!" his father commanded. She replied with a small kiss on his cheek. "Please, be safe," she whispered. Then she turned, picked up Leon, and darted out of the forest as fast as she could. "Alright, Dawnstar, we need to get rid of this thing…" Moondancer reached the edge of the forest with Leon in her arms. She was out of breath, and tired beyond all belief, but she needed to tend to her son. All Leon could hear were the roars of the snake and the falling of the trees around it. Eventually, the noise stopped, and he watched Dawnstar emerging from the forest with Leon's father on his back. Even from here, Leon could see the large tear in his father's flesh… "Bolt!" Moondancer cried out, running towards her lover. "M-Moondancer…" Bolt said as Dawnstar laid him gently on the ground. "Baby, baby, stay with me!" "I-is he safe?" Bolt asked. "... Y-yes… Leon's safe…" "Please… br-bring him over." Dawnstar went over to where Leon was laying, and helped him over to his dying father. "Leon? I-is that you?" Leon just was completely paralyzed with fear. He knew that these were his father's last moments, and he was terrified of losing him. However, he still answered: "Y-yes, dad, I-I'm here." "Come closer, my son." Bolt pulled his son closer to tell him his final request. As he whispered, Leon nodded his head and replied, "I will, father… I will." "Good boy. H-here. T-take this." Bolt removed his wristwatch and put it on Leon. The watch belonged to his great-grandfather, and has been passed down from generation to generation. Leon didn't want it… "It's not my turn to have it yet. Please don't go, Dad." "T-take c-ca…" At that moment, the Basilisk venom filled his heart, and he was dead. "I will take care of them, dad. I will." Leon sat on the hospital bed crying. That memory was always painful to revisit, but he did it to remember the promise he made his father that day… --------------------------------- Part 3: Shades of Grey Dr. Grey ran toward her house as fast as she could, aware of the dire situation she needed to deal with. Her next move would be perhaps her most challenging one yet: having to wash, get dressed, and get her fiancé ready for Windbreaker's play in less than an hour. She raced through her home up to her bedroom to wake her beloved, but instead found her best dress, her jewelry box, and her shoes all laid out on the bed. As she sat there wondering where Luther was, she looked on his side of the bed to find a note on his pillow. It read: Lucy, I had a feeling that you might need these and I drew a bath. I already have my uniform on, and I just ran to the store to get some things. Be back in ten. Love, Luther After she finished reading, she just smiled and laughed. 'I am a lucky girl. He always knows just what I need. I wonder how he does it… Ah, what am I doing? I have to get ready!' She dashed into the bathroom, jumped into the tub, and instantly began washing. Some time later… Dr. Grey emerged from the bath with a satisfied and relaxed smile on her face. This all changed when she looked at the clock, however. 4:30 PM "AH! OHMYGOSH! I'M GONNA BE LATE!" she shrieked, running for the bed. As she got dressed, Luther walked in their bedroom. "Lucy, I'm home!" he announced, with a smile on his face. 'He has way too much fun with that line…' "Good! Can you zip me up?" "Sure thing, hun. So, I was right to assume that we are going somewhere?" "Yea," she grunted as Luther zipped the dress. "We are going to see a play with a patient of mine." "The one who was attacked by those bullies?" Being reminded of that made Lucy lose her chipper attitude. "Y-yes. He wanted to go see his sister's play, and he needs a medical escort because of his latest condition," she finished. "What's happened?" "The hazing left him with PTSD, and he is not out of the thick yet." "PTSD? You mean, like what Todd?" Thinking of her brother made the pain in her heart greater. "Yes… Just like Todd…" Todd Winterbreeze was her brother and used to be in Luther's regiment, but he saw some terrible things in the war with the Diamond Dogs and couldn't go into combat anymore. He was now a desk jockey, but thanks to Lucy he has come a long way and can actively serve if the need ever arose. Lucy shook her head of those thoughts. 'No need to go down that road right now.' When she finished getting dressed, she turned to Luther and asked, "What were you getting at the store?" "Oh! I almost forgot…" he left the room and grabbed the flowers from the kitchen. "I had a strange feeling that we might need these later, so I picked them up. What do you think?" Lucy looked at the beautiful bouquet before her. Twelve red roses held together by white wrappings and gold twine. Perfect for throwing on a stage after a performance. "I don't know how you do it, honey, but you always get exactly what I need." "It's just cause I love you," he pecked her on the cheek. "Now, we shouldn't keep your patient waiting too long. Let's go." "Alright. This should be an interesting night."