Opening Up

by Dizzy Daze

Chapter Three

Fluttershy woke up in an unfamiliar bed, feeling nauseous and sore, but very much alive.

The first thing she noticed was the moonlight streaming into her face. That raised a few questions. Was it the same day? How long had she been out? She lifted herself up to observe her surroundings, but found herself restrained halfway up. She followed the feeling over to her hoof. A tube was taped there, jutting out from her skin, limiting her movements. She lay back down on the bed and contented herself with moving her head.

White walls, white sheets, and cold metal poles greeted her. She was in the hospital? The rest of her senses slowly woke up, and she found it to be true. The soft murmur of ponies came to her from the hallway, as doctors and nurses rushed by on their rounds. She breathed in, and the sharp, almost comforting smell of rubbing alcohol met her nose. A pretty pink mare in a starched white cap poked her head inside the door. "Oh, good, dear," she whispered. "You're awake. Oh, your friends have all been so worried for you."

The nurse stepped inside the room, trotting over to Fluttershy and checking her vitals. Temperature was normal, pulse was slightly elevated (but that was to be expected). Fluttershy stayed quiet, waiting for her to finish, then asked, "You mentioned my friends? Are they here?"

The nurse checked the clock over the door. "Let's see, it's ten fifteen right now... I believe it is Princess Twilight who is in the waiting room right now. They've got a rotation, you see. Visiting hours are over, but since it's the princess, I believe I can make an exception, if you'd like. Just make sure to keep it down; you've got a roommate," she waved a hoof towards a white curtain along one side of the bed. "Would you like me to go and tell her Highness you're awake?"

Fluttershy nodded weakly. "If, if it's not too much trouble, please." The nurse smiled kindly at her and trotted out of the room.

She returned a minute later, followed by Twilight and Spike. "She's just through here, your Highness," the nurse breathed respectfully.

Twilight looked uncomfortable. "Please, it's just Twilight. And thank you for letting me know. Would it be alright if we get a little bit of privacy?"

The nurse bowed slightly and backed out of the room, closing the door quietly behind her. The two visitors approached the bed tentatively.

"How are you feeling, Fluttershy?" Twilight asked gently. "We were so worried about you."

The question that had been bothering her since she woke up danced on the tip of her tongue. "How long have I been out?" Fluttershy asked, frightened for the answer.

Twilight couldn't seem to meet her friend's frightened gaze, moving her eyes from the intravenous tube to the curtain divider to the window behind her. Spike hopped up onto the bed, putting a reassuring claw on Fluttershy's hoof. "It's been almost two weeks," he explained. "We-- well, we were getting scared that you wouldn't wake up."

Twilight turned back around, tears shining in her eyes. "It's great to see you awake, though. Have you tried sitting up yet? Any dizziness?"

Fluttershy gestured towards the tube sticking out of her leg. "I tried, but this was holding me down. I am feeling a little nauseous, though."

Twilight chuckled dryly. "Yes, I suppose that does come from eating through a feeding tube for the last two weeks. I'm sure once you have some real food, you'll feel much better. Come on, Spike. Let's help her sit up."

Spike, still sitting on the bed, crawled over to the edge and stuck his head down, looking at the control panel. After several seconds of serious consideration, he rubbed the scales on his chin and pressed the top half of a button. Instantly, the bed shot up two feet in the air. Blushing, he pressed the bottom of the button, and they jumped back down to the floor. He looked sheepishly back at the bed's occupant, who was pressing her hooves to the side rails of the bed, the look of terror on her face barely concealed by a thin smile.

Twilight plucked the young dragon off the bed with a sigh, setting him on the floor and pressing a different button with her hoof. The head of the bed tilted upward slowly, and Fluttershy soon found herself in something of a sitting position.

"Any problems?" Twilight asked brightly.

Fluttershy shook her head slowly. She trailed the opposite hoof along the tube sticking out of her leg. "What's this?" she asked.

Spike jumped up from his spot on the floor. "Twilight and Apple Bloom created an antidote for timberwolf poison. Since you got bitten, you've been plugged into this since we found you." He looked proud for his friends' accomplishment.

Fluttershy nodded appreciatively at the alicorn, and then gave a small start. "Oh, Twilight, I meant to tell you," she whispered excitedly. "When I took the bandage off of Woodsworth's leg, the splint was part of his leg. I thought that might be important." She started to say more, but whatever she was going to say was swallowed up in a yawn. Twilight patted her leg gently. "I think we should leave now. Get some rest. I'll tell the others and we'll try to come by tomorrow during visiting hours."

She trotted to the door, turning the knob gently in her magic and gesturing for her assistant to follow her. Spike gave Fluttershy a quick hug before jumping off the bed and following Twilight out the door.

As Twilight walked through the hallway, she ran through a list of friends in her mind. She could go see Rarity tomorrow; the unicorn would most definitely not appreciate being disturbed at such a late hour, even for Fluttershy. Rainbow Dash was most likely already asleep, so she would have to wait until tomorrow, as well. Sugarcube Corner was closed, the Cakes most definitely asleep, but Pinkie Pie may well be somewhere else at such a late hour. Twilight decided to check a few of the party pony's favorite night clubs on her way home. Sweet Apple Acres would have to be visited that night, as well; Big Mac was assigned to the eleven thirty shift, Applejack had the following one, at three thirty, and Granny Smith had the one after that, at six thirty. She would have to inform them that their trip would not necessary.

The cool night air met her face as she exited the hospital. She closed her eyes, envisioning the streets of Ponyville in her mind and determining the most efficient route to hit all of the places she intended. She opened them and smirked at Spike, who stood next to her, sniffing the sweet breeze like a dog.

Twilight unfurled her wings and scooped up an unsuspecting baby dragon, depositing him on her back. "Hold on," she called back to him. When she felt his little claws tighten around her neck, she lifted into the air and soared towards the only section of Ponyville that was awake after the sun went down.

---

Finding Pinkie had been the easy part. Leaving, however, proved to be much more difficult.

Twilight had found her friend on the stage of the first place she looked, a small club called "The Liquorice Rope", doing a stand-up comedy act. Only one stallion was in the audience, and he appeared to be too far into his drink to even notice there was anything else in the room.

"Clever name for a bar," Spike commented.

"Hush," Twilight whispered. "You're lucky I'm even letting you come along. Don't get too used to going to bars, especially at this time of night. You're much too young for that."

Spike fell a few steps behind her and stuck out his tongue at her receding figure. "I'm not that young."

Pinkie jumped around on stage, singing a song about cups. Why they had to be red, Spike had no idea. Twilight tapped a hoof onto the stage and waited for Pinkie to bounce her way around to her.

"Well hiya, Twilight! What brings you here? Shouldn't you be at the hospital?" Pinkie chattered into the microphone, which dangled from her mane. Before her friend could answer, the pink pony spotted Spike. "Hey, Spike! You should have heard my joke earlier. Okay, here goes: What do you call it when a penguin gets in a fight with a polar bear?"

Twilight put up a hoof to cut her off. "Well, actually, Pinkie, polar bears and penguins don't even live in the same--"

Pinkie burst into giggles. "The Cold War!" she sputtered.

Spike scratched his head. "I don't get it."

Twilight sighed and looked at him in exasperation. "Spike! Don't you read? The Cold War was a period of intense hostility between Equestria and Griffonia during the early Celestial reign. It lasted for almost two hundred years, and it was triggered by the imprisonment of Nightmare Moon, because the Griffon ambassador had been working exclusively with Princess Luna. After--"

Spike grabbed Twilight's lips in his claw, swiftly cutting off her lecture. "Didn't we come here for something other than a history lesson?" he asked pointedly.

"Oh yeah," Twilight grumbled. She turned to Pinkie. "Fluttershy's awake."

"What?" Pinkie screeched. "That's great! Oh my gosh, we'll have to have a party tomorrow. Twilight, can you bring the nachos?"

Spike shuddered. Twilight smiled at both of them. "Sorry, Pinkie. I'm stopping by Sweet Apple Acres tonight, but I have to see everypony else in the morning. I'm sure whatever you want to put together will be fine."

Pinkie nodded thoughtfully. "Hey, Twilight, wanna stick around and listen to the rest of my set? Pretty please?" She looked at her friends with big, round, innocent eyes.

Twilight sighed. "Only for a few minutes," she relented. "I have to make it to Sweet Apple Acres tonight."

Pinkie launched into a stream of corny jokes, drinking songs, and, at one point, tried to gather the other five of the room's occupants into a kickline. The bartender was not amused. Neither was Twilight.

"Pinkie, I really have to go," she protested for the umpteenth time. "It's almost eleven. And I need to make it to Sweet Apple Acres before my shift is up."

"Oh, come on," Pinkie whined, laying her head on the ground and giving a goofy smile. "Five more minutes?"

Twilight started to tell her friend off, but was interrupted by a reptilian snore. "Sorry, Pinkie," she explained. "I gotta get Spike to bed. You know, he's not used to being up this late."

"Oh, I understand," Pinkie chirped. "I'll come by the library tomorrow morning before we go to the hospital."

Twilight scooped the dragon onto her back and gave a little wave. "See you then."

The two quickly left. As they shut the heavy door behind them, Pinkie's voice rang out. "C'mon, Cherry! Let's try this again!"

---

After depositing Spike at the library under the watchful eyes of Owlowicious, Twilight frantically flew across Ponyville, racing the clock to get to her friend's farm. She landed just past their carrot patch, skittering on the ground to avoid ruining the plants in her landing. She galloped up to the farmhouse and tapped her hoof on the door. Applejack opened the door a few seconds later, her trademark hat absent.

"Well, howdy, Twi," she said through a yawn. "Checking up on us? Big Mac just left for his shift 'bout five minutes ago. But shouldn't you still be at the hospital?"

Twilight gasped for a moment, trying to catch her breath. "That's why I'm here. Fluttershy woke up. I tried to come by before your brother left, but I stopped to see Pinkie, but there were so many bad jokes, and then we started dancing, and then Spike fell asleep, so I had to take him home..."

AJ stifled a snicker. "Sounds like a rough night. Listen, don't sweat it, sugarcube. Let him go. Big Mac barely leaves the house anymore; it's good to let him get around town every once in a while. But Ah'll let Granny know. Thanks for stopping by."

Twilight nodded wearily. "Oh, and before I forget, Pinkie wants to throw her a party." The two mares chuckled. "Just so we all show up around the same time," Twilight continued, "I was planning on having breakfast at the library around eight thirty."

"Sounds good," Applejack replied. "Now, if that's all, I hope you don't mind it if I head back to bed."

Twilight bid her friend good night, and took to the skies once more, at a much slower pace. Her mind turned to her warm bed, and she drifted across fields and silent houses, pondering her thoughts.

---

Big Mac wandered through the halls of the hospital towards the waiting room, a bunch of wildflowers in his teeth. Every day for the past two weeks he had brought them with him, and every day for the past two weeks he had given them to the nurses' station. But every day for the past two weeks he had brought them for a patient who lay unconscious in her hospital bed.

He settled into the cushioned bench that ran along one wall, setting the flowers delicately next to him. He leafed through a farming catalog that sat on the table, before a chipper blue mare pushing a cart caught his attention. He recognized her as one of the nurses who tended to the patients on this floor. Snatching up the group of flowers, he trotted after her.

Hearing hoofsteps, the nurse turned around, and Big Mac had to skid to avoid a collision. "Oh dear," she apologized. "I'm so sorry. Can I help you with something?"

He tried to explain as best he could with the flowers in his mouth. "Good ev'nin', miss. Ah was wonderin' if you could--"

The nurse cut him off as she looked at the flowers. "Oh, you must be the kind young gentlecolt who's been bringing us such pretty flowers lately. Would you like me to take those back to the nurses' station?"

He began to nod, then seemed to change his mind. "Ac-actually, miss, Ah was wonderin' if you could bring these to miss Fluttershy. She's in room 2B."

The nurse looked slightly surprised, but nodded. Big Mac set the flowers gently on the cart, thanked the nurse for her trouble, and stumbled back to his seat, eyes firmly ahead. He grabbed the catalog again and settled down for the long shift ahead of him.

Comments

[BobtheLurker]

Aw, that's so nice.

[OmniFox]

Big Mac brought flowers to the Nurses' station? I knew he was a ladies' man.