Chapter 2: Rehab
“So, you participated in the invasion, injured two and attempted to attack a third before you were ejected from the city.” Shining summed up. “How did you survive? That wave launched the rest of the changeling army well into the Everyfree Forest. That kind of force launching you into the ground should have killed you.”
Lyra spoke up, “He was lucky to hit one of the fuzzle trees along the road. Still, he was seriously injured when Bonbon and I found him.”
“Why don’cha tell us 'bout it?” Applejack suggested.
“Alright,” the unicorn mare agreed, shifting in her seat to get comfortable. “As you know, after spending the night in that ravine Twilight tossed me down, I decided to head home early...”
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“You sure you're okay?” Bonbon asked for the fourth time, adjusting the harness to her empty candy cart.
“I'm fine,” came the same curt reply from Lyra. “I just... feel so used.”
“Do you want to talk about it?”
“No,” Lyra replied with finality. “... Why didn't I talk to Princess Celestia? I mean, sure, she didn't believe Twilight, but she hadn't seen Cadence for years. Me, though... Cadence is one of my best friends! I know her better than Shining even!”
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A throat clearing brought the story to a brief halt.
“What? You think a husband knows a mare better than her best friends? Not a chance. Anyway...”
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“I mean, she's supposed to be this wise, all knowing goddess-”
“She's not a goddess, Lyra,” Bonbon interrupted. “You know that. And she definitely isn't 'all-knowing'. She's old, wise, and powerful, that's it.”
“Well, what the hell is a thousand years of wisdom worth if you can't even stop and think that maybe when you know a threat is out there and somepony says that somepony's acting suspicious, that you should at least look into it!
“This whole mess would have been avoided if Celestia wasn't so arrogant as to think nothing could hide right under her nose.”
Lyra kicked a rock, venting her frustration. The stone flew into a bush where it landed with a grunt.
Lyra forgot her anger for a moment, coming to a stop. “Bons... did you hear that, too?”
Bonbon had stopped as well, confusion coloring her face, though that was quickly replaced by worry. “Oh, my gosh! I think somepony's in there!”
Lyra's eyes widened as she darted to the bush. “Hello? I'm sorry if that hit... Bonbon! Get over here!”
The candy maker had already slipped out of her harness and rushed over to see what it was. The sight she was met with was a broken and battered changeling colt, no more than eight or nine years old. He was unconscious, luckily for him. Three of his legs were contorted in unnatural angles, gashes and cuts littered his body, and one wing was half missing.
“Lyra, levitate him onto the cart. Keep him absolutely still.”
Doing as she was told, Lyra placed the child in the cart as Bonbon retrieved the first aid kit. First, she used the antiseptic on the open wounds. Then she bandaged them as best she could.
“I can't do anything else here,” Bonbon stated. “Let's get him to Doc as quickly as we can.”
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“Who's 'Doc'?” Shining Armor asked.
“Why, so you can arrest him for treating the sick and injured?” Lyra asked spitefully.
“That remains to be seen.”
“Ain't 'Doc' the nickname of the Time Turner, fellow?” AJ asked.
“Uh... No.”
“Is he a changelin'?”
“Of course not!” Lyra tried lying, but remembered who she was trying to lie to. “He's lived here his whole life! He was born in Ponyville, as were his parents, okay! His family hasn't followed the Queen in generations!”
“Are there others?” Shining asked.
Lyra glared at him defiantly. “Others that live peacefully alongside us, never hurting anypony? Yes, quite a few. Until I know you won't try to hunt them down, I'm not telling you who they are.”
“Shining,” Applejack stopped the stallion before he could retort. “Let's just find out if they're a threat, first.”
“Excuse us,” Shining said before erecting a privacy bubble. “Applejack, we need to know who these ponies are. They're a threat to Equestria and need to be rooted out.”
“And you know that how?” the apple farmer replied. “You told me you could keep your feelin's outta this, but all Ah'm seein' is your personal grudge. Now, can you keep your feelin's outta this, or am Ah gonna have to keep you locked up for the duration of this investigation?”
Shining Armor was stunned. It had been years since anypony had ever spoken to him like that. Even longer since it was someone that could actually make good on the threat. “I can see why Midnight made you his second in command. Fine, I'll try to keep it under control.”
“Thanks. Ah don't wanna throw mah best friend's brother in a cell, but Ah also ain't gonna let no pony mess this up. Ah want the truth, and the only way we can find it is to keep an open mind.”
With that, the privacy bubble popped and Applejack motioned for Lyra to continue.
“Alright, so we rushed to Doc's place as fast as we could. It wasn't easy, considering I had to ride in the back with the kid so I could keep him from moving too much. Luckily, Bonbon's pretty strong, even for an earth pony, and we made it to his house just after nightfall...”
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The two sisters waited patiently outside Doc's workroom for what seemed like hours. Considering sunlight was starting to peak over mountains, that was exactly how long it had been. Just before the golden orb, itself, rose, Time Turner opened the door and greeted them with a warm smile. That was enough to lift a great weight off their withers.
“With plenty of love and rest, the colt will make a full recovery,” he said. “However, I'm sure you've noticed he suffers from advanced love addiction. You said he was on the side of the road just outside Canterlot? Was he a part of that... invasion?” He spat the word out with disgust.
“We think so. Why else would a love addict be out there right after the attack?,” Bonbon answered.
Doc sneered at the thought. “I knew the Queen was a monster, but to send foals into a battlefield... Disgusting.”
The good doctor took a calming breath before continuing. “He's going to need a pony family if he’s going to get enough love. Do you think you two could take him in? I know it's asking a lot, considering all you've done for us, but I know of no other sympathetic family that can.”
“Of course,” Lyra said, smiling brightly. “We'd be happy to.”
“I don't know,” Bonbon said, thoughtfully. “We aren't equipped for detox.”
“I can install everything you need in your basement,” Doc offered.
After a well utilized pouty-face from Lyra, the candy maker conceded with sigh. “Alright. We'll do it.”
Lyra lunged at her sister and latched onto her in a tight hug. “Thanks! I know we'll be great mommies!”
“Woah! Let's not give ponies the wrong impression. The last thing we want is for others to think we're together. Remember how bad it was when that rumor about that Apple filly started spreading around.”
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“Uh... sorry,” Lyra said with a sheepish smile. “Still a sore spot, I take it?”
Applejack’s face was one of repressed rage when she answered. “What the hay do you think?”
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Changelings are very industrious ponies. Given a task, they will complete it with efficiency enough to turn the Royal Guard green. Thus, with two friends help, Doc had finished a padded room, complete with restraints and everything else they would need, in three hours time.
This wouldn't be the first time the mares dealt with a love addict so they knew how to use the equipment. However, it would be the first time they hosted one. Also, they hadn't dealt with one so young, though Doc did assure them it wasn't really any different, except with how much force to use if he needed to be restrained.
Lyra and Bonbon slept through the entire process, having stayed up the entire night, and only awoke when Doc told them their new charge was conscious.
Lyra was up in a flash, where Bonbon still needed some time. This wasn't unusual, however. With the exception of Tuesdays, this was how it always was. One might think Lyra was the more eager to speak with their new ward, but the truth was she was terrified.
“What if we aren't ready for this? What if we're bad parents?” Lyra said in a panic, pacing in front of the basement door.
“First of all, stop calling us 'parents',” Bonbon stated again. “How about just 'aunts', hmm?”
“Bons, we don't have any other brothers or sisters,” Lyra deadpanned. “At least one of us have to be 'mom'.”
“Or we can tell part of the truth,” Bonbon suggested. “We tell ponies we adopted the colt. That way, at least some of it will be the truth. We'll both be his aunts, so neither of us feels like the other is more important.”
“Yeah... that could work.” Lyra took a deep breath. “Okay, you ready?”
“Just waiting for you.”
The basement door swung open in Lyra's golden glow and the sisters nervously made their way down. Immediately, they could hear the muffled shouting of a young voice.
“-with an army, you weird looking freak!”
Lyra opened the cell door just in time to hear Time Turner's response. “You may be surprised to learn that this is how we're supposed to look. You, too, will have a similar look once you're cured of your addiction. Ah, and here are the two kind mares that are going to help you through this trying time.”
“Hello,” Lyra said, stepping forward with a friendly smile. “My name's Ly-”
“I don't care!” the changeling foal screamed, struggling against the restraints of his bed, heedless of his injuries, and his voice distorted by the muzzle. “Let me outta here or you'll be sorry!”
Doc sighed. “I'm sorry, ladies. He'll be quite disagreeable for quite a while, until his body comes down from the toxins. I'll return in the morning to check on him”
“Hey! Don't you leave me here!” the foal shouted. “You traitor! They'll kill me!” He started getting hysterical, tears in his eyes.
Doc took pity on him and went back to his side. “I know you're frightened, but these ponies are friends. You may not realize it, but you're sick. You have been since you were born. These ponies are going to help you.”
“B-but... I'll starve!”
Doc smiled warmly at the youngster. “No. In fact, you'll never go hungry again.”
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“That first week was the worst,” Lyra continued. “He still hadn't really come to trust us. After four days, he was practically feral. He would snap and snarl at us. The worst days were the ones where he would be literally begging us, in tears, to let him bite us.”
Lyra held her nephew close, both tearing up from the harsh memories.
“It hurt so bad, I couldn't think straight,” Storm added.
Applejack and Shining Armor exchanged a quick glance before Shining spoke up. “Part of me thinks you're nothing but a lying, manipulative parasite.”
“Shining!” Applejack scolded.
“but,” He continued, interrupting whatever tongue lashing he was going to receive, “considering my past experience with changelings, that's a biased opinion. I still don't trust you. You put my sister in the hospital, drained of her magic.”
Shining Armor sighed and got to his hooves. “But the fact is... You saved my brother-in-law's life. For that, and that alone, I'm willing to give you a chance.”
“Really?” Storm asked, hopeful but scared he was imagining things.
“You step one hoof out of line, though, and I'll make sure you're dropped in a hole so deep, you'll look at Tartarus with envy. Do I make myself clear?”
“Y-yes, sir.”
Lyra's glare didn't leave the stallion, but it did seem to soften ever so slightly. “And if you lay one hoof on my colt without reason, you'll wish I did the same.”
“Understood.”
With that, Shining opened the door just in time to take a hoof to the forehead.
“Oh! Sorry, about that! I thought you were the door,” Rainbow apologized. “Um... We just got a message from the hospital.”
“Is it Midnight?!” Applejack. “Is he okay!”
“No, it-”
“What happened to Twilight?!” Shining pleaded.
“Oh, no!” Storm cried. “I was so careful! That shouldn't have hurt her!”
“Would you all shut up!” Rainbow shouted. “Jeeze... They're all fine. Rarity went into labor.”
“Let Sweetie out, Ah'm goin'!” Applejack said to Lyra before rushing out the door.
“I'll catch up,” Shining called. “I need to work off a bit of frustration.”
“Oh, I forgot,” Rainbow called back. “Twilight's awake, too.”
The former guard captain pulled a one-eighty and trotted right back. “Let's go!”