//------------------------------//
// 15 ...My Wayward Son 
// Story: Not Your Average HiE Story 
// by Aegis Steelshield 
//------------------------------//

	Nighthawk seemed to have passed out again. Twilight leaned in, and pressed her hoof against his neck. The pulse was the strongest it'd been since they'd pulled him out of the fire. She pulled away, and looked him over. The burns were healing fast, all things considered. It seemed, however, Nighthawk would have to deal with quite a bit of scarring.

She had panicked when the building fell. Her magic spiked, and she tore into the still burning ruins, trying to free him. It took Applejack shouting in her ear to get her to stop. The Pegasai had known about the fire, and had been gathering clouds when she got there. They got it all under control rather quickly.

They created a heavy downpour over the fire, and let it work it's magic. After the worse of the flames were put out, the town's unicorns started sifting through the ruins, trying to find Nighthawk. It had taken nearly an hour, and when they did...

It wasn't pretty.

As luck would have it, Doctor Shimmer was helping with the fire. He helped her get Nighthawk to the hospital, and perform several healing spells. It wasn't enough to heal him much, but it was a start. They cut his clothes off, and covered him in bandages. Twilight tried not to look at his eyes. They had practically melted. She didn't think Nighthawk would ever see again.

She had been there when he started screaming. She tried to cast a spell to ease his pain, but nothing was working. So she put him back to sleep. It was the least she could do for him.

It was a week after the fire, when they met Zecora. After the initial misunderstanding, Twilight learned that Zecora was a master of tribal medicines, and told her about Nighthawk. The zebra whipped up a paste she could rub into the burns to ease the pain. After that, Nighthawk stopped screaming, and was able to get some sleep.

She was glad the hospital survived the Parasprite attack that followed.

She turned to the Doctor, "Do you think he'll be able to leave the hospital anytime soon?"

"I can't be sure. Most ponies would never of survived burns like that, let alone heal. I would like to keep him a little longer, maybe put him through Physical Therapy, make sure everything's working before we let him go. Princess Celestia has offered to pay his bills, so money is not a concern."

"Thank you doctor. I just have one last question."

"Yes Miss Sparkle?"

"How have you been feeding him? His skin is too hard to pierce with an IV."

The doctor opened and closed his mouth a few times, "I... I thought you were using magic."

"Pardon?"

"We've tried IVs, even on the burnt sections of skin, but nothing works. Nothing, and yet he hasn't starved. We... We had thought you were using magic to feed him."

There was a groan from the bed as Nighthawk stirred. He croaked out a single work, "Water." His bandaged arm attempted to move towards the stand to his side. Twilight's magic took the cup, and carefully brought it to his cracked lips. She tipped it upwards slowly, turning her gaze back to the Doctor.

"I don't know the spells." She says softly, before placing the glass back on the counter. There was a look of concentration on her face. "But I know somepony who does."