//------------------------------// // Chapter 14: Day 14 // Story: Whooves, Doctor of Psychology // by nowego //------------------------------// Day 14 A record of events of Sunday, my fourteenth day in Ponyville, as recorded on the fifteenth. I woke with Ditzy on top of me, my head resting on the arm of the couch. She had her forelegs wrapped around me in a tight hug. She’s fond of those. Not having set my timer, the sun’s warming rays on my face were what had roused me. I wondered after the time, but the clock wasn’t visible from my position. It’s not important, I decided. There’s nothing else I need or want to be doing right now. I watched her breathing for some minutes. It was so steady, so reliable, so comfy. It had almost lulled me back to sleep, before she stretched, the sun having warmed her back. She blinked, freezing momentarily upon finding herself wrapped around another pony in a strange environment. Then she looked up at my face, relaxing again as a recollection of the night before registered. “Morning, my little mare.” She nuzzled my chest. “...g’morning...” Any day that begins like this has to be a good day. “Anything on the agenda for today?” A thought seemed to come to her. “I should get back to Dinky...” She sat back on her haunches. “...after breakfast?” I struggled to sit up as I extricated myself from under her. “Um, yeah! Sure. I’ll just get things started in the kitchen.” I got up and started trotting that way, Ditzy getting up to follow me. Entering the room, I continued over to the fridge, but frowned when I saw its surface void of paper. I frowned. “Hey Ditzy? I think I left the recipe on my writing desk. Could you get that? I don’t trust my amazing intellect yet.” She nodded, giggling at my all-too-obvious sarcasm, and exited the room. I set about busying myself by collecting ingredients (the ones I could remember anyway), pulling out pots and pans, and generally making a mess of the place. After a few minutes, something tugged at the back of my brain. More time passed, and the tug finally materialized. “What’s-” Oh. Duh. “Ditzy? Are you finding it okay?” I stepped towards the doorway, “Ditzy?” An uncharacteristic draft blew in. Turning the corner, I found my front door open, the door banging slightly against the doorstop in rhythm with the mild breeze it let through. Peeking into the office, I found it empty. This is getting just a little too w- Something touched my foot. I stepped back, revealing an upside-down note I had stepped on that had been lying on the floor. I nudged it over with my hoof. It was an unfinished and discarded letter that I recalled writing about a week ago... I had long since forgotten about it till now. I’ll repeat it here in case the recordings for my seventh day in Ponyville are unavailiable. To Her Royal Highness, Princess Celestia, Kind and Benevolent Ruler of Equestria, From Doctor Whooves, I regret to inform you that, do to unforeseen circumstances which caused excessive, unsustainable emotional stress, I am resigning my position in Ponyville. I have been restrained up to now, but my actions are getting too close for comfort anymore. Apologies that this could not be a face to face conversation, but by the time it arrives I will have left; I haven’t told but one about my- Recognising it, a question popped into my head. Oh, this unfinished letter. But how did it get here...? I froze in dread as I realized the implications. If she thought what I think she thought... Nonono! I dashed to the door, looking out to both sides, and up for good measure. There was no sign of the pegasus mare. “Ponyfeathers!” For a split second, my mind raged in internal debate. On one hoof, instinct told me to gallop after her. My strictly realistic side, however, knew that trying to explain something like this usually comes out sounding like an excuse. As frustrating as it is, it’s the truth. But at the time, I was about as willing to listen to that as I was to a Windigo; that is to say, not at all. I tore out of the door, heading for the Doo home. Cobblestones clicked under hooves as I rushed past other ponies, earning me trailing stares. I managed to clear the gate, suddenly bracing my legs, gravel building up in small piles under my hooves as I came to an abrupt stop centimeters away from the door. *Thump thump thump-thump-thump* Calm, even hoofsteps reached my ears as a pony approached from the other side of the door. This seemed slightly out of place, but at the moment I was still panting like Winona after a roundup. The door opened. “Ditzy! I... wait. Who are you?” The orange-maned, yellow-coated mare glared at me with green daggers for eyes, blocking the doorway. “Carrot Top. You must be Whooves then?” I nodded. “Don’t let the gate hit you on the way out.” She tried closing the door, but I wedged my hoof in before she could get it all the way shut. She growled at me. “Look, I don’t know what your problem is, or why you’re here,” I said, “but unless I’m mistaken, Ditzy is here, correct?” “She is,” she glowered. “It just so happens that she’s my marefriend, and we need to talk.” “Sorry, Sunday is jerk-free day. Go stick your head in a pickle jar.” “What is your problem, mare?” “Whatever you did hurt Ditzy. I’ve known her as long as she’s been in Ponyville, and that just ain’t gonna fly. And you’re definitely not getting the chance to do it again.” The door slammed. I blinked for a moment, trying to compute Carrot Top’s character into the equation. I glanced to the side, spotting a garden with a lot of what I guessed was carrots (I’m not particularly well versed on that area) in the yard of the house next door. “Carrot Top?” There was no reply, but I knew she was still behind the door by the lack of receding hoofsteps. “Give Ditzy a hug for me.” I waited a few seconds for a reply (which I was denied), before turning and starting the walk back to my home. Slowly. I think the ‘∆ relationship: time’ ratio just got its largest divergence ever. I continued to my home, where I entered through the still-open door. Walking down the hall, I passed a familiar gray stallion in one of the doorways to another room. “Uh, Whooves?” I stopped, thought for a moment, and backed up. “Remember me? Lucky? Colgate’s neighbor?” “Yes,” I said, rolling the word over slowly. Right then, I felt like if I did everything slowly, then I could keep out the change. Change is good sometimes too, but that doesn’t make it any easier. “Yes, I remember you. What I’d really like to know is ‘what are you doing in my house?’” “Well... the door was open...” I raised an eyebrow. “Anyway... I came by ‘cause of this.” He produced a sealed envelop. “And this is...?” “Oh! Um... this morning, I was on my way out, and I thought I’d call on Colgate. See if she was ready to talk yet or somthin’. I went to knock on her door, but... I found it unlatched. She wasn’t there, but this was on the table.” “What does it say?” “I didn’t read it! It has your name on it.” “Oh.” I flipped it over. After retrieving my letter opener (oh, who am I kidding. I use a kitchen knife like everybody else), I sliced the top and unfolded the paper within. Whooves, If this letter actually makes it to you, Thanks. You were right, I had myself in a loop. That wasn’t what I wanted. Not really. I’m not going to do that anymore... but I don’t want to be alone again. Not that I had anypony that cared before, I just realize now that I was solo the whole time. Somepony should tell Berry Punch to stop waiting for me on Friday nights at the Cider House. And don’t beat yourself up, Whooves, or try to find me. To paraphrase, ‘This is my choice to make.’ -Colgate I dropped the neatly caligrified letter that only a unicorn could write. “Screw that!” I yelled at the note, then ran out the door. Behind me, Lucky stared after me before rushing to pick up the note and read if for himself. I ran blindly through the streets of Ponyville, yelling between breaths. “Everypony... we need... everypony... must organize...” It was pointless. I got a more than a few looks, and a couple questions asking if I was okay, but there was no action. “There’s a mare missing! We need to organize a ponyhunt! I need some volunteers... for, um...” I looked around, realizing I actually had an audience. “Thunderlane, take half a dozen pegasi and do a sweep along the border of the Everfree. The ponies here will split up into groups, and we’ll chop up the town into four quadrants... make sure to tell everypony you meet along the way. The rest of the pegasi not on the Everfree border I want over fields; you can cover more ground in less time that way. Alright! Any questions?” A hoof went up. “Yes? What is it?” I snapped impatiently. “What are we looking for?” I’m such an idiot. “Uh, a mare. Blue coat, navy blue and silver mane and tail, hourglass cutie mark-” “Colgate?” asked another pony in the crowd. “Is this Colgate you’re talking about?” “Uh, yes?” There was some murmuring among the crowd. The first pony spoke up again. “Come back when you’ve checked all the bars and saltlicks in town, and don’t see her in any of them for three days.” There were a few chuckles as the ponies dispersed. “No, wait! You don’t understand. I have a note...” I was suddenly alone in my endeavor, as ponies went back to their previous activities. Lucky trotted up next to me, note in hoof. “D-does this mean what I think it means?” he asked, shakily. “Yes,” I said grimly. “But it doesn’t matter now. Nopony gives a buck.” “You’re giving up?” “No... but it’s not like just the two of us stand a chance at find-” A pink and yellow blur in the background caught my attention. “HEY! Fluttershy!” The pegasus yelped at the sound of somepony yelling her name, disappearing from the stand she was at to hide in a bush. I grabbed a bit of pink tail with my teeth and drug her out. “Futrshi!” “W-whooves?” I spat out her tail. “No time for questions! I need you to organize a group of pegasi–or anypony that will listen to you, actually–and start combing the area!” “M-me do w-what? Oh, I don’t think I could. I’m not a good flier, and I don’t know that many ponies. And, um... if you don’t mind my asking, what are we looking for anyway?” “A pony named Colgate.” Why did Fluttershy have to be weak and helpless now? It’s like I have my own personal raincloud following me. I stopped for a moment and re-thought that last part. Of course! The weather team! “Fluttershy! Do you know where Rainbow Dash is?” “Um... napping on a cloud, last I saw. Why? “Go get her. Quickly. Meet us at the library!” With that, I galloped away, leaving her in a bit of a shock–and with Lucky trying to keep up behind me. “Where are we going?” “I’ve got a few stops to make.” First up: Rarity’s Boutique. I practically knocked the hinged off the door when arrived, jumping in and waiting for the inevitable... “Welcome to the Carous-” “Save it, Rarity. We’ve got a life-or-death problem here. I need you at the library ASAP. Understood?” “I-” “See you there.” I turned and galloped out. Rarity looked expectantly at the out-of-breath Lucky. “Uh... it’s true?” he offered, before following me. Even my adrenaline was failing as I crashed through a the door belonging to an apparently gigantic gingerbread house. If there’s one pony that can call Ponyville together... “Pinkie P- mmphf!” A pink hoof clapped over my muzzle. “Sssh!” I removed the offending appendage from my face, continuing in a more hushed conversational style. “Pinkie... why are you wearing a dia- y’know what? Nevermind. There’s been a crisis, and I need you to come with us to the library.” “Okie dokie lokie! Oh...” “What?” “I’m kinda babysitting for the Cakes right now... I can’t just leave.” “Oh. Um...” I looked around. “Lucky?” “...huh? What?” replied the gray stallion, who had just caught up. “You’re good with foals, right?” “Wait, what?!” “Come on, Pinkie!” We made record time getting to the oversized treehouse. Twilight was waiting at the open door, keeping an eye out for us. “Pinkie? Whooves? What’s-” “Is Rarity here yet?” I interrupted. “Well yes, but-” “Stop talking. Inside. Now.” “Oh! Oh! Is it like a secret? Is it? Huh huh huh?” I didn’t bother telling the bubbly pink earth pony to desist; it wouldn’t work anyway. Questions began bombarding me from the various ponies gathered there. I brushed past them, marching my way to the table which I brushed clean with a sweep of my foreleg, earning an irritated exclamation from Spike. I lept onto the surface. “Mares, we have a situ-” I was interrupted as the door slammed open. Lot of doors getting abused today. Rainbow Dash fluttered in, with Fluttershy following timidly on hoof. “Ah-HAH! I knew you were involved in this, Rarity.” Okay, now I’m confused. A look from Rarity assured me I wasn’t the only one. “Um, Dash, I don’t think-” Fluttershy started. Rainbow Dash pointed an accusing hoof at the near-white unicorn. “Well, you’re not getting a comb anywhere near my mane!” Twilight looked from one of us to the next. “Uh...” Even Pinkie had stopped talking. “Rainbow Dash! Chill! Nopony is going to try to take your daredevil license!” I stomped in frustration. “Now could you all kindly shut up about your insignificant little daily quirks and listen for one second to something important that just might mean something?” Well, I commanded their attention. Now all I had to do was was convinced them I hadn’t gone ‘round the bend again. I brought my voice down a bit. “Dash, can you call in the weather team for a favor?” “Well, yeah, but w-” “This morning a unicorn mare went missing. It is imperative that she be found right away. Time is of the essence. I need you to get the team and any other pegasus you can to help you co- er, search the area from the air. I need you, Pinkie Pie, to see what you can do about getting the grounded ponies to help.” If she can make a town break out in spontaneous song, then maybe she can call them to action. I turned to the two unicorns in the room. “Rarity, you have some kind of gemstone-tracking spell, right?” Her eyes narrowed. “How did you-” “Could you use it to track ponies?” “Well... perhaps with a little modification...” “See what you can do, Twilight. After that, the search parties could probably use some help with organization. I believe you have some skill in that area, yes?” “How-” I kicked the door open with a rear hoof. “Now, please.” My subconscious pony knew I wasn’t going to get out of explaining this. You just blew your mission, Whooves. I gritted my teeth as I galloped on my way, only vaguely aware of the others setting out on their parts of the plan. That doesn’t mean horseapples, I told myself. Celestia can send me to the moon if she wants, but I’m not letting this go down without a fight. My inner doubts compromised sufficiently, I took new stock of my surroundings. Ponyville was exploding with action. Fleets of pegasi arced over the sky, crushing any clouds in their path. Earth ponies and unicorn alike gathered around Pinkie, who was poised precariously on a flagpole with a megaphone. Ponies in the crowd below her looked at each other and talked in small groups. Pinkie caught sight of me and gave a worried shrug. This was too close. “Everypony!” I jumped up on a haybale. “Look. Most of you probably know me by reputation. I’ve only been in Ponyville for two weeks today; I don’t expect you to trust me. “What I am asking is that you drop what you’re doing right now to help a pony who’s been with you a good bit longer. I haven’t had that long to get to know Colgate...” A few eyes rolled in my audience. “...but I ask that you help give me that time. Yeah, maybe Colgate’s not one of Ponyville’s elite. Maybe she’s not perfect. Maybe she’s not keeping up the facade like the rest of you. But she’ll put her back under the boulder to help if need be.” I hopped down and trotted over to a magnenta pony, whose identity I had guessed by then. “Berry Punch. Who makes sure you get home on Friday nights?” Or Saturday mornings, as the case may be. Berry Punch looked down. “Colgate...” Pinkie leapt down from her lofty seat, landing firmly in front of an old gray pony with a bowtie. “Mr. Waddle! Who helped you with your sleep in... inse... insi...” “Insomnia?” I suggested. She nodded. The old stallion sighed. “Miss Colgate...” I trotted up a ramped board to the top of an apple cart. “For Celestia’s sake, this is the pony that spent the night stalling her landlord so ponies could enjoy a party in the square! I know at least half of you were there.” I stared them down, one at a time. None would hold my gaze. “And you wouldn’t help this unicorn mare in a time where a life is on the line, not just getting home after a party, or catching a good night’s sleep?” Nopony was looking at me. “Who’s with me?” Slowly, a blue hoof and a pink hoof went up in the back. “We iz here, sir.” Another hoof went up. And another. And another. In moments I was in a sea of raised hooves. Somewhere in the midst of the group, a burly voice bellowed out, “YEEAAH!!!” I looked over my shoulder to see Twilight staring at Pinkie and myself, slightly slack-jawed. I stepped down, passing her. “You’re up.” “Okay, everypony. I’ve divided Ponyville and the surrounding area into...” Her voice faded as I got further away. I found a sturdy tree and thumped my head against it repeatedly, battling with my emotions. “Well, this can’t be a good sign. You know things are bad when the psychologist takes it out on a tree.” I looked up at Lyra, sniffling and wiping my muzzle with the back of my hoof. “Oh... wow... I’m so sorry...” “What’s going on? added Bonbon. “Short version? I lost my marefriend and I just managed to convince Ponyville to help look for my other friend’s corpse, via blowing my mission here.” Lyra blinked once, before pulling me into a hug. Bonbon added herself in too. “I-it could be w-worse,” I mumbled, but I think my tears betrayed how I actually felt. “Whooves...” Lyra squeezed me, almost motherly, as I cried into her shoulder. “We’re here, Whooves.” After a long minute, I internally berated myself and dissolved the hug. “Thanks...” “So... somepony was killed?” asked Bonbon cautiously. “Suicide.” The mares both gasped. “I... didn’t know that kind of thing actually happened,” commented the unicorn. “When?” furthered Bonbon. “Well... Lucky found her note this morning.” “Wait,” Lyra thought out loud. “So, she could still be alright?” “Well...” “Don’t give up, Whooves. What can we do?” “Um... Twilight’s organizing the search over there,” I replied, waving a hoof in the indicated direction. “Okay. If you need anything, come find us.” “Yeah, don’t dwell on anything,” added Lyra as they made their way toward one of the search parties. I certainly didn’t dwell on anything. Quite the opposite; my mind wandered. Seemingly random memories–though with a noticeably darker theme–replayed themselves. My hooves took care of themselves. Over cobblestones, dirt paths, roots, mossy logs... ...wait. I found myself a good ways down the path to the lake–the lake that Ditzy had taken me to. Deciding there wasn’t any point in doing anything else at this point, I continued towards the narrow beach, leaving the search parties behind. The wind coming off the lake was cold. That day with Ditzy... it had just rained, and yet it was so much warmer. It felt like that anyway. I sat and closed my eyes. The peaceful lull of the wind in the trees, the repetitive lapping of the waves against the shore, the distinct splash of something falling into the water... My eyes opened on instinct, as I wondered what had caused the intrusion on the cycle. There was nothing in the water that I could see, however, there did seem to be an odd lump in the middle of the lake where there should be water... I shaded my eyes with a hoof. Oh, of course. I forgot about that flat rock out there. Something made me re-process that. How could a flat rock be a lump? I stood up to keep the sun’s reflection out of my eyes. Are those... saddlebags? Oh No. I threw myself into the lake, spray from my hooves blinding me until I was deep enough that I had to swim. I never had the chance to do much swimming in Canterlot, but that hardly mattered now. I shoved every ounce of willpower I had into each hoof, pumping like there was a pack of timberwolves behind me. “Colgate!” I managed to sputter between the waves that battered my face. My front hooves touched rock, and with a powerful kick from my rear legs, I shoved myself onto its surface. Sure enough, they were her saddlebags. I trotted to the edge that the gear was sitting on, and dove in. Looking through the water was like trying to look through a green curtain. The only sense of direction I had was through the temperature; it got noticeably cooler by the meter. Suddenly, in the haze ahead of me, I spotted a streak of a lighter color–the silvery streak of Colgate’s mane! With the necessity for me to keep my mouth closed underwater (and hence any chance of hauling her out by her tail terminated), I had to come close enough to wrap my forelegs around her torso, leaving me with only their rear counterparts to act as lift. And Colgate wasn’t helping any. She was as limp as a ragdoll. For what felt like minutes (but I was told later that it couldn’t have been more than thirty seconds), I strained in an effort to make headway, but to no avail. I could feel the oxygen depleting from my lungs by the second. My kicks became less frequent, less powerful. Not. Giving. Up. But as much as determination may help, it doesn’t alter physics. I am happy to report, however, that a change in physics will change determination. A pair of gray hooves wrapped around me. Spurred on by the salvation, my hooves found the energy to kick again. The three of us rose, gaining more speed as we approached the surface, until we broke free in a shower of silver droplets. I caught the edge of the rock with one hoof, taking a moment just to bring my breathing back to a stable level. Looking over, my eyes fell upon Lucky, who wordlessly nodded greeting. With a grunt, we hauled the unconscious unicorn and ourselves onto the hard surface. Lucky lay panting, while I tried to reconcile a series of coughs that had taken me. I poked Colgate tentatively with a hoof. “Colgate?” “Is she gonna be okay?” I moved my hoof up under her chin, and waited for a moment. “There’s still a pulse... but a weak one. We need-” Another coughing fit overtook me. “...help,” finished Lucky, pointing to the air. I looked dizzily up from the splatter of blood I had just produced, to see pegasi descending down toward us. Right about then was a convenient time to pass out, so I did. Later, I woke with a very bright light in my face. One of the top ten worst things to wake up to. The light suddenly clicked off, revealing the white face and pink mane of a nurse. “Doctor Whooves? Nod if you can hear me, Whooves.” I managed a weak nod. The nurse turned to somepony outside my field of vision. “He’ll be okay. Let him get rest, maybe get some soup, and don’t let him overexert himself again.” I braced my forehooves against the padded surface I was on, giving a push to sit up. “Easy there,” said a masculine voice, which I recognized as belonging to Lucky. I blinked, trying to clear the afterimage on my retina left from the nurse’s penlight. I found myself in a sparkling clean examination room with tile floors and walls, with a reflective metal waistcoat around the edge. I shielded my eyes from the bright (but empty) lightbox used for x-ray viewing. “Colgate?” I asked, discovering my throat was raspy. “Doctor Flat Line is with the unicorn right now,” she replied. I looked from Lucky to the nurse, the only other pony in the room. “And that would make you...?” “Nurse Redheart.” “Pleasure. I’m Whooves. Doctor Whooves.” “‘Doctor...?” “Shrink.” “Ah... well, I guess we have you to thank that the unicorn made it this far.” I chuckled weakly. “I was just weighing him down, actually,” I answered, gesturing toward Lucky. “Never woulda found her without you.” I shrugged it off, before trying to slide off the examination table. Both of the room’s occupants jumped to each side to steady me. “Guys, I’m okay. Seriously, you act like I’m an old mare with a pulled tendon.” They both slowly retreated, still at the ready should I prove unstable. I shook my head (which turned out to be a mistake; I discovered that I had something of a migraine) and walked to the door, pushing it open with a hoof. “Satisfied?” They followed me down the hallway, stepping past the  intermittent potted plants, down to the waiting room. I smiled when I saw Lyra and Bonbon among the various ponies there, both of whom stood upon seeing me enter. Redheart looked at the clock on the wall. “Well, I have to get back to my rounds. If you start coughing up blood again, get back here immediately.” Lyra and Bonbon watched her leave with wide eyes. “Don’t worry, it’s not that bad.” “The hay it’s not! What happened out there?” demanded Lyra. “I just... I’m not used to that much physical-” Lucky held up a hoof, cutting me off. “He almost drowned.” “Wha- well that was a foalish thing to do!” I grinned sheepishly. “What, no hug?” “After being an idiot like that? I should think not!” “Oh, don’t listen to her. She always gets like that when she’s worried,” assured Bonbon, stepping forward and wrapping her forehooves around my neck. Lucky embraced me from the other side, followed by a still-griping Lyra, till we had a small huddle. We stayed like that for a few seconds, till I felt a hoof on my back. Turning my head, I found Pinkie joining in too, adding a second layer. One by one, the other ponies standing around awkwardly trying to ignore the hug broke down and joined it. In three minutes time, everypony had added up, a total reaching well over fifteen ponies in all. The sound of the rubber flaps on the door leading to the ER section caused everypony’s head to turn towards said doorway. The unicorn doctor with his stethoscope cleared his throat awkwardly. “Miss Colgate is still unconscious at the moment. She won’t be able to see visitors for a while, so if everypony here concerned for her could come back tomorrow or the next day, it would be very much appreciated. Thank you for your patience.” Ponies began dispersing. I kept my eye on the doctor, noticing him turn to a somewhat portly but kind-faced earth pony nurse, talking in low tones. I looked to my side and saw Lucky also staring intently at them. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” Lucky looked at me, blinked, and grabbing a hoof, started dragging me toward them. “Ow, hey!” “Hey, Doc,” Lucky called out on our approach. “Can I help you?” “Yeah, actually I think you can.” “What seems to be the problem?” “Well, it would be a good start if you’d tell us what’s actually going on,” Lucky stated, matter-of-factly. “I just told everyone, she’s-” “Yeah yeah yeah. Doesn’t take a mind reader to notice you didn’t go to mentioning why, though.” Lucky looked at the pink-coated nurse. “Come on, he deserves it. This is the pony that saved her life!” Flat Line looked me up and down, as though he didn’t believe my verbally blunt companion. “And what about you?” “I... saved his life. Kinda at the same time. Anyway, that’s not important. But we need to know what’s going on if there’s something you’re not telling us.” The coat-wearing doctor hesitated for a second, before sighing. “Very well. But it would probably be best if this was kept to ponies we can trust not to panic or worry themselves. You understand, don’t you Whooves?” I nodded. “We’re not going to tell anypony that can’t handle it, right Lucky?” “Uh, yeah. Sure. Would you spit it out already?” Glancing around, Flat Line lowered his voice. “Colgate appears to have used a knock-out spell on herself–one I actually keep around in case of an emergency, for anesthesia. We’re still not sure how she got her hooves on it. Anyway, she used a bit more energy than is recommended... probably didn’t care much, seeing as how she was using it effectively dr-” “Cut to the chase, doc,” interrupted the impatient Lucky. The medical doctor closed his eyes. “Colgate is in a coma.” I sat down. “Be straight with me, as a doctor to doctor. What’s it look like right now?” “Honestly, I’d tell you if I knew. As it is, I can only see the effects the spell had on her. Without more information, I won’t know if she bypassed the safeguard or not, or exactly how much energy she used.” There goes tonight’s sleep. “Okay. Thanks anyway, doc.” Most of the ponies had left by then. Among the remaining were Lyra and Bonbon, waiting for us. “Hey, what’s up?” Lyra asked. “I’m... going to be staying overnight.” Even Lucky looked at me. “You sure, bro? Want me to bring back my sleeping bag or something?” I shook my head. “Naw, I don’t think I’ll be doing much of that.” We shared hugs again, before Lyra and Bonbon headed back to their home, and Lucky back to his apartment. The last one out, Lyra stopped at the door. “Oh, and Whooves?” I looked up. “Thanks for the bubble bath.” She winked. That of all things drew a chuckle out of me. “Don’t mention it.” “Take care.” I watched them disappear into the night through the windows. I continued staring at a streetlight outside, until the squeak of a wheel distracted me. I turned to see an oatmeal-colored mare drearily pushing a cart with emptied food trays stacked on it. My stomach gave my brain an angry kick. “Excuse me, miss? You wouldn’t happen to have any leftovers would you?” Twenty minutes later, I pushed a scraped clean platter of my own away. Yup, still tastes like rotten compost no matter how hungry you are. I looked around, searching for something to occupy my overactive mind. I sorted through a stack of magazines, but didn’t find anything even close to journal level. One of the slippery covered monthly issues slid off the stack I had taken to alphabetizing. Ah shoot... I reached for the magazine I had unwittingly dropped into an unobtrusive basket, pausing when I felt something a bit more substantial in the basket. I pulled out a hardcover copy of the first in the Daring Do series. Fiction eh? I guess it’s not that far off from the rest those magazines, and much more enjoyable besides. I kicked up my hooves on a coffee table and settled in for a long night.