Steady as She Flies

by Witching Hour

Chapter 11 - Efferent

Three months later…

Witch sighs as she sets the letter back in her desk drawer and closes it. “This is just bad luck…” she grouses, looking over to where Monkey is packing her own bag.

“What do you mean? It’s perfect timing… This way, you’re not dealing with Tricks on your own while I’m at the Flight Academy, and I’m not rattling about this huge place like a lone pea in a tin can!” Monkey retorts as she carefully places a picture of the strange hodge-podge family she’d accrued over the last nine months in her bag. Looking at the picture of her with Witch, Tricks, Fine Brew, Holly Sweep, and Leaf Wind, Monkey thinks it had to be a little strange to be so readily adopted into her doctor’s family, but it’s a strange that Monkey likes.

“I feel terrible about this… Tricks should be staying with one of us… Not with some strange pony in a town he’s never been to…” Witch frets, even as she too starts gathering up the books Leaf had brought her.

“Relax Witchy,” Monkey replies, the consolation almost a knee-jerk reflex now. “I’m sure the princess’ friend will take good care of Tricks and he won’t think that either of us have abandoned him. Besides… I’m only going to be gone for two weeks. If you’re not done with your mystery solving by then, I can swing by on my way home and pick him up. Does that make you feel better?” she asks, raising an eyebrow at Witch’s frustration.

Sighing, Witch nods as she puts stray notes into a binder and sets it atop her books.. “Okay… Yes. It does… and don’t tell me I’m being overbearing again. You know full well why I worry about that.”

Setting aside her bag gently, Monkey comes over to Witch’s desk and gives her friend a playful shove. “I know… but he’ll probably have too much fun making new friends… Didn’t the princess mention a trio of kids his age related to her friends?”

“But what if they make fun of him for not having his cutie mark yet?” Witch asks, her voice raising in panic. “Forget it, I’m not going!”

Monkey sighs, pressing a hoof to her face before giving the back of Witch’s head a light smack with her wing. “You have to go!” Monkey insists as the unicorn glowers at her while fixing her now-mussed mane. “You said it yourself! You’ve hit a block! You’re not getting any further, and you need someone to help you. Celestia knows I tried, but I just don’t have a head for this ancient history stuff outside of a Daring Do novel.”

Witch sighs again. “But what about work?”

“You said Luna already cleared it with your superiors.”

“Tricks’ schooling?”

“Princess Twilight said she had that sorted out. He’ll go to school in Ponyville while you’re there.”

“Um… Housework?”

Monkey laughs outright as Witch runs out of arguments. “No housework to be done if we’re all not here… Besides, Fancy and Fleur always send their maid over twice a week no matter what we do.”

Deprived of all reasons to back out of her trip, Witch flops into her desk chair, staring with unfocused eyes at the mess that still remains there. “Sorry… Thanks Monkey… I just… I’m really nervous…”

“I know, Witchy… But that’s why you keep me around I think,” Monkey replies with a grin and a half-hug. “To talk you out of silly things like this…” she adds, ruffling Witch’s mane again with her hoof.

Not bothering to fix it this time, Witch simply sighs and starts levitating the books over towards a suitcase she’d left open. “You’ll write though, won’t you? At least to Tricks?” she asks as the tomes are neatly placed in her luggage.

“Of course I will… and you’d better write to tell me how everything’s going!” Monkey responds, scooping up several balls of crumpled paper and putting them in the waste bin beside the desk.

Witch smiles in return. “Definitely.”

“Hey… You gonna take this too? The princess might be able to help with it too.” Witch looks up at Monkey’s question and her heart nearly stops in her chest as she sees the pink crystal, still seeming so innocent, in its case held up by Monkey’s hoof. Without thinking, Witch speeds over and snatches it from her friend, making Monkey recoil away half a step. “Sorry… Forgot you don’t like ponies touching that… Even if it is in that weird-ass case…” Monkey says, heading off the flood of apologies that would inevitably flow if she didn’t.

Witch mutters several curses under her breath before adding it to the luggage. There was just enough room for it without it possibly damaging the books. “Dammit Monkey… Stop heading off my apology with one of your own…” she grouses, good-naturedly, as she closes the suitcase and moves it closer to the door.

Monkey simply laughs as she starts heading for her room upstairs. “Get over it Witchy… You can’t apologize for me screwing up this time,” she calls over her shoulder before she disappears into the stairwell.

Casting one last glance at her desk, Witch decides there’s nothing else for her to pack there and follows Monkey upstairs. Ignoring the sounds of things getting tossed about in a search through the door immediately to her left upon reaching the upper level, Witch goes to the end of the hall and enters her room.

The large room, decorated in rich blues and golds, had needed little alteration to suit her tastes from when she’d moved in four months prior. Going to her closet and pulling out her travel bag, she starts filling it with the non-book necessities for the trip. After a moment’s consideration, she packs her Wonderbolts uniform. Sure, she was officially on leave, but it could come in handy… Witch isn’t sure how, but it might.

That bag packed, Witch settles it on her back and goes across the hall. She knocks twice on the door before opening it, peering into the room. “Tricks? You ready? We have to get to the train station soon…” Witch asks, looking for her ward. She spots him over in his play corner so she enters and walks over to him when he doesn’t respond. “Tricks? You okay?” she asks, putting a gentle hoof on his shoulder.

He looks up from his toy blocks, the cubes clattering to the floor as his magic suddenly drops them. Witch smiles down at him. “Why can’t I stay with Nana Brew and Pappy Sweep?” he queries in a tremulous voice that makes Witch’s heart break.

“I wish I could have you stay with them, Tricks… But they’re getting ready for that ale festival in Germaney,” Witch explains, trying valiantly to keep her own anxiety from her voice. “Do you really not want to go?” she asks softly, her hoof stroking his mane reassuringly.

“What if the other foals don’t like me? What if they tease me about my horn?” he asks, turning his fretful gold eyes on his guardian. Witch sighs, pulling him to her in a hug.

“Just give it a try for me? Please? I’m sure Princess Twilight’s friend, Fluttershy, will adore you as much as I do…” she says, not addressing the issue of the children his age. “If you have any problems at all, you can tell Fluttershy, and she’ll bring you straight to me at the Golden Oak Library,” she adds, laying the reassurances on thickly. Witch finds herself becoming more confident as she comforts her ward, as though saying the reasons Monkey had just given her are finally made believable by her speaking them herself.

After a long moment, Tricks nods. Witch stands and coaxes him over to his own closet, where his travel bag lay discarded with only a few books and article or two of clothing haphazardly shoved into it. “That’s my big brave colt… Let’s finish packing up. We’re all getting breakfast at Rusty’s, remember? You don’t want to miss that.”

Author's Note:

Welp! That's it for Steady as She Flies! Thank you all for sticking with me through all of this! I trust all of you will be back for Chase the Wind and Touch the Sky, but even if you don't, thank you for reading!

The sequels will take me a bit to get going, but I imagine it shouldn't take me more than a month to get them started. Keep your eyes peeled for something to be posted around Labor Day (US).

Love and Light,
WitchingHour13

Comments

[Sylvian]

I swear, Tricks gets cuter and cuter the more he appears

I can't wait to see the sequals!

[The Forgotten Comrade]

Maths can't lie.

CMC + Tricks = Armageddon

Dear god.

[Sylvian]

6242058

Their meeting shall be the first sign of the coming cute apocalypse!

[Witching Hour]

6242058

It's so true!!! Doom; it comes for thee!!!

[Witching Hour]

6274663

I'm glad you approve! Rusty was the most fun to write, shy of Spitfire and Fleetfoot...

[Witching Hour]

6328096
Bliss is awesome! She makes extensive appearances in this story... And will return after the sequels, once everybody's back in Canterlot.

[Witching Hour]

6329570

Thanks! Cinna is so many shades of hilarity... She's an aux. corps answer to Rarity and Fleetfoot, melded into one unicorn... Who thought this was a good idea? Someone needs to cut her coffee supply or switch it with decaf.

[Siren Bliss]

6328130
You write her professional self well :)

[Witching Hour]

6332969
Vellum Trace is pretty vague, but I imagine him being the sort that does all sorts of experiments that randomly comes up with awesome stuff for others...

6333853
A fun thing that I wrote back in the prequel to this story is an experience in Canterlot General Hospital that's very close to what one might expect in a real-life operating room. I used more real life experience when I wrote the line you quoted for Bliss because I usually wind up being a counselor for my friends. Even though it's not dealing with physical injuries, it still gets to the point where I can't do anymore because it hurts me to devote so much of my time to dealing with pain.

From what I'm able to understand of studies citing depression running rampant in doctors, it's basically the same idea but to an extreme degree. This also happens to be why Witch feels her failures more keenly than her successes.

6333860
I'm glad I at least nailed that aspect!

[Witching Hour]

6340210
You are one to talk there, Calm.

Don't worry... I fix it.

[Siren Bliss]

The updates are perfect, Witchy. Absolutely perfect.

just a small note Bliss's mane is dark brown, not black and her eyes are green, not brown, just a small note but really it all looks great I don't want to be a pest

[Witching Hour]

6356251

I'm super happy I got it down!

And don't worry... I can fix those things too; no problem. You're not being a pest. I find it highly helpful!

[Siren Bliss]

6335898
I've actually worked in the care industry, as does my mother. In fact, we were both working with the same client and his family. We were there to provide him with palliative care, but we also ended up being a support for him and his family, my mother as a counsellor helping them through the grieving process and myself as a support when he passed away. It is good to see this care being interpreted so well in stories.

[Witching Hour]

6356801

I'm glad I'm doing well in that respect!

[Witching Hour]

6866574
Thanks!

[Witching Hour]

7136463
THUS the entire premise for Chase the Wind.

[Witching Hour]

7988094

do I sense some Yoda-y things going on here, hmm?

Mebbe... A little bit... You'll understand more if you read the other Expanded Wonderverse stories.