Because I can

by Pumpkin-dreams

Another day

The camp was murmuring to itself, gathered around campfires and cooking pots, trying to relieve that burden of paranoia. The battle hadn’t happened yet, but there were hours yet until the sun set, and tomorrow always loomed with deadly promise. There was one pony, though, who stomped down the path, making a visible effort to be annoyed. The idle ponies looked over, wondering how she got so scruffed without a battle. She shot them glares from under her rainbow mane.

Parting the flaps to the medical tent, Rainbow Dash fell onto her usual bed and awaited treatment, huffing and tapping her hooves. Far too long later, though it was but a minute, the nurse approached. Halting at the edge of Rainbow’s sight, she looked more like a pink and yellow blob.

“Um, Rainbow? Why... what are you doing here? Not that I mind, unless you’re hurt, because that would be...”

Rainbow waved a hoof, still staring at the ceiling. “Sprained my wing in sparring match.”

“Oh.”

Fluttershy’s voice petered out like a breeze, and she, very very gently, nosed Rainbow onto her stomach so she could work. One of the pegasus’s wings was curled up tightly, blue feathers sprayed every which way. Trying to pry it loose got a hiss and a flinch. Then Rainbow forced her wing out with gritted teeth, refusing to be beaten by her own appendage.

Fluttershy made soft clucking noises as she prodded the muscles, like a mother to some misbehaving child. “Don’t you start on me,” Rainbow snapped, “I’ve gotten enough crud from Apple butt.”

“... I think her name’s Applejack?”

“Whatever. She pulled a dirty move on me. I wasn’t expecting to be sparring a cheat!”

“Applejack would never cheat-”

“I’m not a cheat!”

Fluttershy jumped backwards, muffling her yelp with her hooves, hoping the pink monster would leave her alone and not eat her- oh. It was a pony.

The pink monster was standing just behind where Fluttershy had been, and was pouting with visible effort. She was not a little worried that the mare would actually burst into tears.

“You jumped, like, fifty feet in the air! That’s not possible for an earth pony.”

“Unless they have really strong hoofsies, and I dooo!”

“Horseapples, where are the springs?”

“Ooh, springs! That’s a great idea- hey! What’re you doing?”

Rainbow had grabbed the other mare’s leg, and was searching for something. Fluttershy lifted a hoof, then dropped it. It was, technically, her job to keep peace in the tent, but they weren’t roughhousing. Rainbow knew better than that. Maybe. She hoped.

And then the two fell to the floor, rolling around while Rainbow tried to wrestle the pink pony down.

“Um, girls?” Fluttershy squeaked, hoof raised once more.

“Pinkie Pie! Just stay still!”

“Whee!”

“Girls?”

They rolled into a table, sending medical supplies spinning into the air. Fluttershy darted forwards, catching them with hooves and wings before they could be sullied by the dirt floor. She gulped when a small, dangerously sharp knife landed on her nose and perched itself, just waiting to fall. Now things were getting out of hoof.

“Gir-”

“Soldiers!”

Everything froze. Pinkie and Rainbow paused their second sparring match, glancing up to see their commander at the entrance, looking at them with a raised brow. Fluttershy had jumped at the shout, and was now frowning at the mess of dropped tools around her.

“If you would please cease this... whatever this is, you are needed with the rest of the troops. I’ve just received a missive from the Princess; the gryphons are marching our way.”

The temperature in the room seemed to drop. The two wrestlers separated and saluted the unicorn before galloping outside. The commander considered the tent for a moment and turned to leave.

“Commander Sparkle?”

“Yes?”

“They’re... they won’t come here, right? I’m not, I don’t know how to fight. I’m just a medic...”

“Princess Celestia willing, we’ll stop them outside.”

The commander walked out without another word, leaving Fluttershy to clean up her tent and prepare for the oncoming battle. This was to be her first taste of the years long conflict, and already her legs were trembling.