Cheese had never imagined what it would feel like to be burned. If he had to take a guess, he probably would have said it might sting a little, maybe hurt to touch things, but not as bad as say, breaking a bone. How he wished that were true now. Despite being kept unconscious for four days, having his legs treated by two doctors, and being put on the strongest pain medicine available, he still was in agony.
It was not the kind of dull, aching pain the muscle tear had given him. No, this was a searing, radiating, constant sort of pain that made him want to thrash and scream. Even as he lay on the hospital bed, he wondered if it would not be kinder to end his suffering. There was nothing in the sparse room to take his mind off of it. So he lay there, remembering all the stupid decisions that led to this, and kicking himself for not seeing the obvious.
A loud knock sounded, and he hoped it would be the nurse to give him some more medication. He was surprised to see a familiar set of glasses. "Quill? What are you doing here?"
"Came to check on you. The doctors said you were up." She strode over to his bedside, taking in the bandages wrapped tightly around his legs. "You look pretty beat up."
His eyes rolled sarcastically, "Thanks, I love you too."
The small chair by the wall levitated to the bedside, and Quill took a seat. "How bad?"
"The doctors say my front hooves are the worst off." He grimaced, "They had to graft some skin onto them. I'm lucky though, they say I'll be able to walk with almost no pain once it heals. My hind legs aren't so bad." Cheese put on an unconvincing smile.
The greying mare snorted, "Come on, you're not going to fool this old fox that easily. You're in agony I can see that. And-" Her eyes stuck on Cheese's mane which was now cropped short enough to lay straight, "-they cut your mane just like your dad's."
Like Father's? "Huh?"
Quill rolled her eyes, and levitated a hoof mirror towards him. "See? It's all short."
He had to admit, she was right. The resemblance surprised even himself. "Great. Just when I thought things couldn't get worse."
Quill's strangely high pitched giggle echoed around the room. "Why'd they cut it in the first place?"
"I think they said it was singed. I didn't realize they cropped it so short, and my tail too." He sighed dramatically, "Guess I'm just going to have to start my own company now. Sandwich incorporated, it's what's for dinner."
The giggle turned into a full on laugh. Clutching her sides, she wiped the tears away and composed herself. "I can see why you're a party pony now. I'll admit, I was starting to doubt that."
Cheese shrugged, and winced. The pain seared worse than ever, and he curled into a tight ball. "Sorry, guess I'm not myself today."
She rested a hoof on his back. "You okay? I can get a doctor."
"I'm fine. I'll-" How could I forget? "-Quill, have you seen Milo? How is he?"
The color faded from her cheeks, "He's…he's not good, Cheese." A flood of images she would rather forget flashed across her memory. The smoke from the fire, galloping down the street to find the fire department and ambulance already there. Milo's still form on the stretcher, covered in burns. The pool of blood being absorbed by the ashes.
"Quill?" It was Cheese's turn to be concerned. "Are you okay?"
"Huh? Yes, Cheese, I'm okay. Milo-" She bit her lip, "-Milo's not. The firefighters and doctors said it was a miracle you two even survived that blaze. They suspect arson."
His green eyes grew wide, "Arson? You mean somepony tried to kill us?"
"Not exactly. They think whoever started it had no idea you two were in there. I'm not so sure, but there's no way to prove it now." She pushed him gently back against the covers, "I got there shortly after the firefighters and ambulance. I wasn't allowed to see either of you, but I came to the hospital anyway."
She must've been pretty scared. "You care a lot about Milo, huh?"
"Yeah. He's not family, but he's as close to me as any brother." Quill levitated a glass of water from the bedside, took a deep gulp, and continued, "They were most concerned about Milo. As best as they could piece together, some burning rubble must have fallen on him."
"It was some ceiling timbers." He raised his front hooves. "That's why I hurt my hooves so bad. I had to pick them up one at a time to get him out."
Quill's eyes grew wide, and she stared at him with admiration. "You lifted burning timbers off of him? It must have been awfully painful."
"I had to get him out somehow, and I knew Milo would do the same for me."
Quill nodded acknowledgement. "He's a hopeless goody two hooves. That's what gets him into so much trouble you know. Anyway-" Her expression darkened, "-when they brought him in, they weren't even sure if he would make it. His burns were serious, nearly to the bone in places."
The thought of even worse burns than his own made him sick. If I'm in pain, how much is Milo in? His voice was small, "Were they able to fix it?"
"Yes and no. They had him through several surgeries, skin grafts in all kinds of places, and Celestia knows what else. I only just saw him today."
"They woke him up?"
"No, no. That would be cruel. The doctors have put him into a coma. They won't try waking him up for another month at least." Quill looked close to tears. "The doctors seem hopeful he'll heal, though he'll always be in a little pain."
Cheese could not speak. No words seemed adequate for the situation. The guilt sweeping over him was suffocating. "It's all my-"
"-don't even say it!" Quill gave him an icy glare, "-Milo has been digging his own grave for years, Cheese. He chose to chase Storm, and he knew he might get hurt in the process. Your case was just the straw that broke the camel's back."
"Right." A sense of frustration like he had never known before overwhelmed him. "I can't believe he won."
Quill nodded sadly, "There's no evidence, you two are in the hospital, and Storm's scott free. Guess that counts as a loss. But-" She placed a hoof on Cheese's shoulder once more, "-you need to let it go."
"But, I can't just leave things unfinished."
Quill shook her head, "No, you need to quit. You're young Cheese. I don't want to see you turning into Milo, chasing ghosts your whole life." She turned to her saddlebags, levitating a letter onto his pillow. "I received this yesterday. It's from your friends in Ponyville. They're worried about you, they want you to come home." Her eyes turned deadly serious. "Let it go, Cheese. Go home while you still have a home to go to."
He wanted to scream, to kick the stand over in frustration. But it would be wrong. Quill was right, he had been away too long already. "Okay. The doctors said I might be able to go home tomorrow. I'll take the first train I can get out of this hell hole."
Quill leaned forward, kissing him motherly on the cheek. "It's the right thing to do."
Before Cheese could even process what just happened, the unicorn had strode out of the room. Goodbye, Quill. I'll miss you.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………
Starlight read over the short article for the fifteenth time that morning, hoping that somehow the reality would start to sink in.
"Arson at Coltfax's
Firefighters responded to a fire at the office of renowned prosecuting attorney Milo Coltfax Sunday morning. The blaze, a suspected arson overtook the building in a matter of minutes. Miraculously, two ponies were found outside the building, one suspected to be Coltfax himself. No statements have been released on their condition. Police are continuing to investigate."
The article had been presented to her in an unmarked letter days after it had been published. Now, as she stared at the words, she tried to fathom how she could have possibly missed the signs. Surely Storm was planning something. But this, this was entirely unexpected.
Now her only chance to see her husband ruined had literally gone up in smoke. Anger coursed through her, and she slammed a hoof against the dressing room mirror, shattering the glass. A thousand shards danced across the room, a few slicing open her hooves. Her reflection in what remained of the glass scared her.
The long strands of her long mane were twisted and knotted, her coat needed a brush, and her once calm, calculating expression was replaced by a manic glint. Snorting, she smashed the mirror again, turning to stare around the room. The dressing room had degraded into chaos after Prius quit. Nopony had yet to come looking to replace her, and so Starlight was left to her own devices.
A loud knock jerked her attention back to reality. "What?"
The gruff voice of the studio's photographer sounded across the door, "Starlight, there's somepony here to see you. I assume you're still not taking visitors?"
She contemplated telling him to get the hell away, but stopped herself. Taking down the ego of some poor defenseless sod was just the release she needed. "Send them in."
The stallion's voice sounded taken aback, "Uh…yes, Starlight."
Starlight huffed in satisfaction as the door swung open. When she saw who it was, her heart stopped. Walking slowly in was none other than her son. Her immediate thought was to scream at him to get out. But as she stared, she felt that desire slip away. The stallion's legs were covered in thick bandages, and he limped terribly with each step. She remembered the article and froze. "You were in that fire too?"
"Yeah." Cheese's eyes darted over his mother. Never in his life had she looked so frayed. He noted the shards of glass and general state of disorder in the room. "Your image is crumbling, Mother."
She snorted, "Was it ever whole to begin with?"
"Not really." What's gotten into her? Standing on the burns sent shockwaves of pain through his body. Wincing, he continued, "I needed to talk to you, though I don't think you'll listen."
"Go ahead." She was beyond fighting it now. "Tell me how you want me to testify, to condemn myself so that Storm gets his comeuppance."
He sighed, "Guess you've got me all figured out." The words he had rehearsed slipped away from him. A familiar ache returned in his chest. How he longed to say something clever, something to shock her into reality. But, the words did not come.
Starlight stared expectantly at him, noticing the stallion's cropped mane and tail. The resemblance to her husband made her nauseous. "I'd forgotten how much you look like him."
Cheese cringed, staring hard at the tiles now and watching his legs shake. "I can't help that. It's not like I asked to look like him."
"No. But, when it was long it looked like my father's. It suited you better."
Grandfather? It was the first time Cheese could remember his mother mention the stallion. Getting sentimental, Mother? Another shot of pain rocketed through him, and it was all he could do to keep from crying out. Better hurry. "Prius seemed to think that if you ever cared for me, you'd accept that you were in the wrong and testify. But, I'm not so sure. You've only ever cared for yourself. Why should you change now?"
"Correct. I don't see the point in trying to deny it. So why did you-" She paused, staring at her son. His emerald eyes were filled with pain, and he sunk to his knees with a thud. Before she could convince herself to stop, she trotted over to his side.
Cheese turned away from her, trying to stand, and falling completely to the ground in the process. "Don't touch me!"
Starlight stepped back, heart skipping a beat.
Cheese managed to stand, hooves shaking violently. "I think I've overstayed my welcome."
"Where will you go?"
"Home to Ponyville. Pinkie's waiting for me." He turned, limping out of the room. "I hope you change your mind, but I'm not holding my breath."
Starlight watched him until he vanished out of sight. A rage like she had never known swept over her, not at her son, but at his father. Storm. Why did he seek to torment her? Her colt had done nothing wrong, he never had. But it was always he who suffered. All because she was too scared to stand up for him.
Rory's right, I only think about myself. Well, not this time. She strode over to her dresser, drawing out a long sheet of parchment. This time I'll be the one taking the fall.
……………………………………………………………………………………………………....
Pinkie lay sprawled on her bed, reading through yet another book. Reading was never her favorite activity, but it was a necessary divergence. Her skills with home improvement left much to be desired. She flipped through yet another page on how to fix leaky pipes. Apparently bubblegum was not the preferred method. Yawning, she turned to her clock and started. It was already one o'clock in the morning. Better get to sleep. Just as she reached for the light, she heard a soft thudding noise.
Perking her ears, she discovered it was coming from the downstairs. As quickly as she could in her groggy state, she made her way down the stairs and to the back door. Who visits at one in the morning? Maybe it was Twilight, about some super important quest. Welp, let's hope not. I'm way too sleepy for that. She swung the door open and gasped. "Cheesie? What are you doing here?"
Sure enough, the lank stallion was standing outside the door. He gave a sheepish grin from under his traveling hat. "I'm back."
"Wahh! You didn't say you were coming back." She reached out to hug him but stopped short. Her excitement at seeing him morphed into fear as she took in his appearance. Not only were all four of his hooves wrapped tightly in bandages, but his mane and tail were short and straight and his entire body was quivering. His eyes, normally so cheery were flickering with pain. "Cheesie! What happened to you? What about the case? You can't be done with it already."
"The case has been dropped. I-" He winced as a strong shot of pain coursed through him, "-I was caught in a fire with Milo." The thought of going over everything again seemed too much to bear. All he wanted now was to be by her side. "I wanted to see you."
"Me too." Pinkie gave him a gentle hug and ushered him inside. Her eyes darted nervously over his hooves, "You were in a fire? Does it hurt?"
"Yeah. But, I'll be okay." Truth be told, he was far from okay. Between walking to the train station in Manehattan and walking through Ponyville, he was in agony. He gave her another hug, savoring the familiar sweet scent. "It's lonely without you."
Pinkie nuzzled him softly, then pulled away. His tough act was not fooling her for a second. The stallion's legs continued to shake like a leaf. She gestured up the stairs, "Come on. The Cakes are asleep, so be quiet."
He followed her up the steps, wincing each times he brought his hooves down. They reached the hallway, and Pinkie ushered him into her room. It was just the same as he remembered it. Hopeless pink and fun, though with a little more clutter than last time.
Pinkie shut the door and walked over to Cheese. Before he could protest, she slipped off his hat, saddlebags, and poncho, resting them on the dresser. She pointed to the bed, "Lay down, you're exhausted."
He would have protested, but he was too tired. Slowly, he crawled onto the pink covers. The bed was unlawfully soft, and he was glad to curl up on it.
Pinkie turned off the light and jumped up beside him. A hundred different questions raced through her mind, and she longed to bombard him for answers. But, something told her that was not what he needed just then. So she pressed her side to his, feeling his rapid heart rate. "What's wrong, Cheesie?"
"I've messed up." He closed his eyes, and rested his head on her back. All the frustration, guilt, and shame he had felt over the past few weeks crashed over him like a flood. Pinkie's quiet presence was all the tonic he needed. Why did I ever leave?
Pinkie grew nervous at his uncontrollable shaking. "It'll be okay, it'll be okay." For a few minutes, he just quivered, holding her close. Eventually he calmed down enough to lie still. Pinkie watched his sleeping form, glad to have him home but worried none the less. Closing her own eyes, she drifted off herself.