//------------------------------// // Rehabilitation: Day Twenty Seven // Story: Rest for the Weary // by DismantledAccount //------------------------------// Fluttershy awoke slowly, her body taking its leisurely time to adjust to the morning’s welcoming embrace. She let out a silent yawn and struggled to her hooves. Letting the blankets fall off her shoulder, she rubbed her tired eyes then slid down to the floor. She silently plodded down the stairs, but paused at the bottom and watched the scene that was being played out on the floor. Lost was sitting calmly on the floor, his horn alight, and a small carrot in a blue aura floated in front of him. Across from him was Angel, who, against all odds, was eating the carrot. Beholding the peaceful relations between the pair, Fluttershy’s mouth fell open as she gasped quietly, which caused Lost to look over his shoulder and meet her eyes. “Good morning, angel,” he said, the corner of his mouth curling upwards. She shook her head once, jerking herself back into reality, and frowned slightly. “We went over this. I’m not an angel. I’m a pony. And my name is Fluttershy.” “Well, my name’s not ‘Lost,’ either,” he replied, his young appearance still at odds with his aged voice. “Do you finally want to share today?” she asked, her ears perking up slightly. His mischievous smirk grew as he turned away and continued feeding the carrot to Angel. “There’s nothing wrong with nicknames.” Rolling her eyes, she hung her head and brought her hoof up to her temple. There was no doubt that some of Lost’s antics could cause headaches. He still hadn’t said where he was from, his real name, or anything else of importance. The only thing Fluttershy knew about him was the pain he bore both inside and out from his time serving in the Royal Guard—that much she had figured out: she knew he must have had an injury because he had to relearn how to walk and use magic, and she knew he was a soldier from their first conversation. However, she still had so many questions. “Are you ready for breakfast?” she asked, walking past him, as Angel snatched the remainder of the carrot and scampered off to a corner of the room. “As always. You are an excellent cook.” She felt her cheeks warm slightly, so she hastened her pace into the kitchen. “It’ll be done soon,” she called, opening the cupboard. Soon, four slices of toast and two apples adorned a pair of plates, and she added two glasses of orange juice to the mix. Breakfast ready, she turned around, opening her mouth, but before she could speak, she noticed that Lost was already patiently waiting at the table. She simply spun around once more and retrieved their plates from the counter before continuing over to the table. “Did you sleep well?” she asked. “Fine,” he answered far too quickly. “And you?” She nodded while taking a bite out of her apple. “Good, but what I really want to know is how you made friends with Angel. He didn’t even want to look at you yesterday.” “We . . . reached an understanding.” “That’s good to hear,” she said, smiling brightly. Lost took a bite out toast, chewed for a moment, and then swallowed. “Could . . . could you teach me how to use these today?” he asked slowly, giving his wings an experimental flap. “I would love to.” Fluttershy smiled wider. “You can do this, Lost. You almost had it that time.” From his seated position, Lost grunted as he ripped a few twigs out his mane with his magic. Fluttershy sat down next to him and wrapped a wing around his shoulders. “It’s okay if you don’t get it on the first try. Or, um, more. But that doesn’t mean you can’t do it. Just relax a bit and try again, okay?” “I’m done.” “Won’t you please try again? I’m sure you’ll get it this time.” “No. I’m not going to fail again. I’ve already done enough of that in my life.” Filing away the important glimpse into his mysterious past, Fluttershy lowered her voice and cooed softly, “Lost . . . look at me, please, Lost.” Reluctantly, he looked down and met her eyes. “Will you try just one more time for me, Lost? Please? And I mean really try your best.” He sucked in a deep breath and let it out slowly through his nose, the warm air just barely caressing her cheeks. “I’ll be right here.” She smiled. He abruptly broke eye contact and looked around the serene glade while the sun and all of the warmth it brought shone down from above. The world was silent, save for the gentle breeze, and they were its only inhabitants. It was if all of Equestria was holding its breath in anticipation. Shaking his mane, the final few leaves and sticks fell to the ground. He struggled to his hooves once more and rolled his neck around until it gave a disturbingly loud pop. “Remember, just like I showed you,” encouraged Fluttershy, taking a step backward. “Right.” His face a mask of concentration, he slowly unfurled his wings. “Just like you said. . . .” He thrust his wings downward in one fluid motion then brought them back up, angling them slightly like he had been told, so as to reduce drag. Slowly, at first, but quickly picking up speed, his wings generated puffs of air and blasted them into the forest floor. Soon, Fluttershy could see that parts off his hooves were coming off the ground, and seconds later, all four of his hooves left the ground. “Woo hoo!” she cheered, clapping her hooves together. “I knew you could do it!” As he turned his head to face her, the breeze picked up slightly and caught the edge of his wing. She saw his look of satisfaction dissolve as he wobbled in the air. “Don’t—” she started, but it was already too late. Instead of landing, Lost attempted to correct his flight without knowing the proper methods, so he flailed around wildly; then just as quickly as he started, he stopped flailing and plummeted face-first into the ground. Fluttershy sprinted forward and slid to a stop beside him as he lifted his head out of the dirt. “Are you all right?” “Fine,” he grunted. “I’ve had worse.” With an iron grip, Fluttershy suddenly grabbed Lost’s chin and angled it upwards while she brushed his mane from his forehead. She tsked quietly upon catching sight of his torn skin. “You’re bleeding.” He reached a hoof up to his head, but before it could make contact with the slight incision, it was firmly pushed away. “Don’t touch it,” she chided, lifting him to his hooves. “Come on back to the house, and we’ll get you cleaned up before anything sets in.” He nodded once and let her guide him for the short distance back to the cottage. She opened the door for him and motioned over to the couch. Catching a glimpse of his face as he passed, she frowned: the cut had bled enough to where his left eye was screwed shut and the surrounding fur was heavily matted. “I’ll be right back.” With purposeful strides, she walked into the kitchen and placed a small bucket under the faucet before turning on the water; she also grabbed a soft sponge and a cloth bandage from one of the cupboards. Placing the former in the bucket and looping the latter around her neck, she bit the bucket’s handle in her teeth and, after turning off the water, returned to Lost. Humming quietly, Fluttershy set the bucket down next to the couch and grabbed the bandage in her hooves. She wrapped it tightly around Lost’s head several times and tied it snugly. She pulled the soaked sponge out of the bucket and squeezed it until it was damp. She brought it up to his face and gently dabbed around the rapidly reddening bandage; once the some of the red had been cleaned from his blue coat, she rinsed her sponge in the water and moved on to his eye. Even softer than before, she laid the sponge on his eyelid and, with long, rhythmic strokes, worked more and more blood out of his coat. Her melodious humming was a backdrop to her every motion: she had found out a long time ago that it helped her focus on her work, as well as to distract her patients. As she finished and paused to take in another breath, he nodded and said, “Thank you, Fluttershy.” Her eyes widened slightly, but she didn’t question the sudden usage of her real name after all this time. “I was happy to help, Lo—” “Cliff. My name is Cliff.” Fluttershy smiled. “I was happy to, Cliff.”