//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Wings // by The Infinity Doctor //------------------------------// The storm continued to rage outside as the mare that crashed through the roof slept, she would occasionally toss in her sleep, tossing her still-wet mane. The mare was lying on her back, so I had to duck more than once in order to avoid being skewered on her long horn, it looked longer than most unicorn horns- most being shorter than a foal's foreleg. That wasn't the only oddity of the mare, there were also these...things...they were round, and were hanging off of her upper body. I shook my head as I pushed the odd thoughts out of my head, and went to get another washcloth to put on her forehead. I ran it under the sink, and turned the faucet off, holding it in my mouth, I went to the mare, avoiding the debris from the roof, and placed the washcloth on her head, just below her horn. Thoughts of where she came from and how she got so high in the air buzzed in my head as I trotted away from her, I took a seat on the couch as I heard the front door open. Thunderlane walked in, sopping wet, his usual mohawk-like mane bending side-ways. He shook himself off, fanning his wings as he did, shaking most of the water off of his body. "Everything alright out there?" I asked. "It's good," he replied, joining me on the couch "we managed to beat back most of the storm, but it'll be a little dreary for the rest of the week" I nodded, and laid my head on the hoof-rest of the couch, almost ready to pass out. "So...how's she been?" he asked. "I think she's fine, but...she looks really weird..." "Oh? Why do you say that?" "Did you see her?" "Only for a few minutes, I was a little busy worrying about the storm" "Well...her horn is kinda long" "That's not that uncommon" "I guess it's not..." I conceeded. "So what else is 'strange' about her?" "What are those things hanging off her chest?" I asked, pointing. Thunderlane's dark muzzle turned a shade of red. "Ah...why don't I tell you when you're a little older?" he said, dodging the the question. "O-oookkkaaaayyy" 'That was weird...what was all of that about?' "Will she wake up soon?" I asked. "I don't know, it looks like that storm really took a lot out of her" "That's another thing, how did she get up there? She's a unicorn!" "That...is a really good question..." He was silent after that, I took that to mean he didn't know. "Did they say where the storm came from?" I asked. "Rainbow Dash thinks it came from the Everfree, Flitter and Cloudchaser said it could have come from Canterlot-" "But you would've been told in advance" I interrupted. "-that's right, which leads me to suspect it was either because there was a miscommunication between our weather team and Canterlot's...or Rainbow Dash's theory of the storm rolling in from the forest" "Yeah, that makes sense..." What? It did! A storm that size didn't just come out of nowhere- he woulda been told if it came from another city. The mare tossed again, this time, one of her forehooves coming free from the wreckage. Thunderlane shot up and held her down, trying to prevent the mare from hurting herself; she continued to writhe under his hooves as she cried out, something like a scream of agony, and started talking in her sleep. Her ears flapped wildly as she continued, as if in pain. "What language is she speaking?" I asked, hearing the strange noises fall from the mare's mouth. "I don't know-" Thunderlane said, struggling to keep the mare restrained. The noise died down, and the mare drifted back into peaceful slumber. "What was that?" "I have no idea-" he replied, taking his hooves off of her "-maybe she was just having a nightmare" I approached the mare, and looked at her, her mane was a chaotic mess strewn out across the floor, stemming from her head, the cream-colored fur of her stomach steadily moved up and down, indicating her breathing. I looked closer, and found that something was wrong with her hoof. "What the hay is this?" I asked, picking up the strange appendage "It looks like her hoof split apart" "It looks like a claw" Thunderlane commented. "Na, it's too soft to be a claw, it's...what are those things...y'know, when that minotaur was here a few weeks ago-" "Oh, you mean hands?" "Yeah! That's it! They look like hands...but what's a pony doing with hands?" "Once again, I have no idea," Thunderlane said, thoroughly confused "we might want to get her checked out by a doctor once she wakes up" "Yeah...d'ya think we should start getting this stuff off of her?" I asked. "That, would be a good idea" Thunderlane said, blushing again. He and I started cleaning up the floor, clearing the fallen pieces of the roof from the mare and the floor. Thunderlane picked up a piece, and his muzzle, once again, turned red. "What's the matter?" I asked. "Uh, nothing..." he replied, still blushing "why don't you go and play in your room for a little while?" "Why?" "I'll tell you later" 'Why does it feel like everypony is always saying that?' "Alright..." I said, confused. I left the room, and into the hall. 'Maybe I can find something to blackmail Thunderlane' I grinned inwardly. X X X X X X X 'Whew...that was close' I thought, watching Rumble trot into the hallway. I trotted to the couch, where a blanket was hanging over the back. I took it in my mouth, and walked back over to her, I took the large, remaining piece of the roof in my hoof, and made the switch as quickly as I could. 'At least her hind-hooves are normal, how did she get hands in the first place? And now that I think about it...are her haunches supposed to be that straight? It looks like she's built to walk upright' I shook my head. 'That's ridiculous...ponies walk on four hooves, not two' Yeah, only minotaurs and Diamond Dogs walk on their hind-legs, and the occasional griffin, but that was about it, as far as I knew. But why did she only have hands on her forelegs? Why were her hind-hooves still normal? Was it some weird effect of the storm? Or did she decide to trot through a patch of poison joke? That coul've been it, after Twilight's encounter with it, it was pretty hilarious to Rumble and I...but, yeah... I looked down to the resting mare, and readjusted her blankets before trotting to my bedroom. I sighed in content as I laid down, my wings spread as I fell asleep.