Unshackled Charge

by Zoura3025

Chapter 3: Settling in for the Winter

Tincture would stir awake some hours later. She had slept in, she thought, though it was hard to tell in the back room. She felt an odd weight on her side, and blushed faintly as she recognized the blue hoof gently resting on her shoulder.
Tincture would gently push the hoof off of her, and she carefully slid out from under the table. The mare soon realized why her nightmares seemed to soften over the course of the night; she thought about the gentle, reassuring voice that had permeated the memories, making them easier to bear. It made the unicorn smile gently.

Tincture would levitate the earth pony gently, taking her out of the back room and up the stairs, laying the earth pony on her bed and laying the blankets over her, "Thank you," Tincture would whisper softly, before slowly slinking back down the stairs.

She was interrupted on her way back to her room by the yawn of a pegasus behind her. Tincture turned to face Angel, the white pegasus stirring awake. "Mmm… Good morning, Tincture," She says.
Tincture would sit on the floor in the far corner of the room. She thought for an oddly long moment about her reply. "I… Yes. It is a good morning, isn't it?" She supposes, unable to suppress the smile creeping across her face.
Angel's Kiss blinked herself a bit more awake, sitting up and tilting her head at the smiling unicorn, "What's got you so perky?" She asks.
Tincture shrugged. "I suppose I realized… I'm free," She admits, "I'm not living under my teacher's hoof anymore… I'm not the slime beneath her hooves, and no longer is able to mold my life to her every whim," She says.
Angel's ears drooped a bit, but she nodded. "Well… Yeah," She replies, "I guess I'd be happy about that too," She supposes, fiddling with her hooves.

Tincture sighs a little, "I'm sorry, I know it's not a comfortable topic," She says, "But it really does mean a lot to me, that you'd welcome a stranger such as myself into your lives with open forelegs…" She expresses.
Angel smiled a bit, "Bottle's always been like that… I've crashed at her place so many times, like… If I stayed here any more, we'd be common-law," The pegasus admits with a giggle.
Tincture chuckled softly, "Why not move in, if that's the case?" She asks.
Angel shrugged, "It's a little far from the cotton farm. I like my commute of just having to jump out of the barn window," She giggles, "Though, I usually stay here in the winter when it's cold," She admits.
The unicorn smiles and nods, "Well, the seasons are turning. I suppose we'll be seeing each other a lot soon," Tincture supposed.
Angel giggles. "Yup! You're gonna be stuck with me 'till thaw!" She says, laughing mischievously, "You and… Huh, where is Bottle, anyhow?" She asks.
Tincture looked away a bit, her faint blush returning. "She's still asleep… She spent the night trying to ease my nightmares," She explains sheepishly.

Angel's Kiss thought for a long moment. "Mmm… Yup. That sounds like Bottled Lightning. Last time I came to her when I had a cold, she put me up for like, a week until I felt better," She comments, "I've always been surprised she didn't get a cutie mark in healthcare or something."
Tincture tilted her head, "What is her cutie mark?" She asks, briefly glancing at her own flank, as if self-conscious. Her mark was a small collection of 3 flasks, each filled with a different color of fluid.
Angel shook her head, "She doesn't have one. Never got it," She comments, "She helps out at the hospital, though, at least when someone's sick enough to end up there," She explains.

Tincture thought for a long moment. Her magic searched her room for her notetaking scroll and pen, which both squeezed out from beneath the door so she could jot a bit more down. Her scroll looked like an absolute mess; the ravings of a madmare. But, every piece of information was important.
"Hmm… I wonder if there's something we're missing," She says, "Her cutie mark could be tied to her magic…"
Angel nods. "That would make sense; I mean, why else would she not get her cutie mark for doing so much to help other ponies?" She supposes, "It seems like a passion to me!"
Tincture shrugged. "Traumatic events, in the most literal definition of the term, being a significant event that alters one's life, are believed to impact a pony's cutie mark… It's a subject of hot debate; whether it's mortal intervention into a higher power's plan, or simply determinism working in strange ways," She explains.
Angel shrugs, "If the magic is her cutie mark… Shouldn't it have cropped up as soon as she started training?" She asks.
Tincture nodded, "That's what bothers me. It should have…" She says, "Her magical stamina is also bothering me… A 15 minute sparring session shouldn't drain her like it does; it would be like if you needed a nap after flying from here to the restaurant."

Angel's Kiss thought for a long moment. "Well… I guess all we can do is support her, right? That's what friends do," The pegasus says with a gentle smile.
The word struck Tincture like a stone. She tensed up briefly, but nodded. "Yes… I suppose we are friends… And that's what we should do. Support each other," She said. She didn't mean to sound so off-kilter, but it was an unusual phrase to her.
The two mares would share banter over the course of the morning. Angel would even start brewing some tea for them, and the two would enjoy a calm morning as the sun slowly rose.

Eventually, Bottled Lightning would stir awake, groaning softly. She was back in her bed… Maybe getting up at night had been a dream? She shrugged. All of yesterday felt sort of unreal, but a quick scatter of small sparks from her hooves reinforced that that was not in fact true.
She slowly stepped out of bed, bracing herself for a shock from the carpet, but was spared this time. "...Huh," She murmured to herself, "Neat."
Bottled Lightning would smile a bit as she saw her two friends sat together on the couch, drinking tea and enjoying each other's company. Bottle almost didn't want to intrude, but she'd quietly walk down the stairs and pull herself into a chair.

"Good morning, Bottle," Tincture says softly, "Did you sleep well?" She asks, despite knowing roughly what had happened the night before.
Bottle nods, "Like a rock," She remarks, "I'm pretty sure if I were any more asleep I would've been considered dead," She says with a soft chuckle.
Tincture smiles a little. "I… Want to thank you, for last night," She expresses, "You helped immensely."
Bottle blinked for a moment, before remembering her interactions with the sleeping unicorn. "Oh, hah… It was nothing, really. I guess I just let my emotions get the better of me," She excuses.
Tincture shakes her head, "It was one of the best sleeps I've had in a long time," She expresses, "The fact that you'd be so willing to take care of a stranger like myself is…" The unicorn trailed off, her soft eyes and smile finishing her thought for her.

Angel's Kiss giggled, "I think you lost your right to be called a stranger when I kicked your flank at Coltan last night," She says with a giggle.
Tincture smiled. "Hah… I suppose so," She says gently.
Bottle chuckles softly, "I take it you two have been spending some time together this morning?" She asks.
Angel nodded, "The farm won't miss me for one day; besides, I took care of a lot of the picking yesterday," She says with a giggle, "So I've just made myself at home and taken Tincture with me!" She declares, still giggling.

Bottle chuckled softly, "Well, you're both welcome here as long as you like," She said, her attention turned more to Tincture than Angel; Angel already knew she could call this place home when desired.
Tincture smiled sheepishly, "Hah… As if I have anywhere else to go," She says softly, "I'd be a vagrant were it not for you."
Bottle smiles a little. "Well, so long as I'm around, that's not happening," She promises.
Tincture would mouth a small thank you, before Angel took charge of the conversation, "Oh! Can I be on breakfast duty?" She asks, "One of the other farmers told me about this omelet recipe, and now I wanna try it! So, please?" She asks, eyes wide with excitement.
Bottle simply nodded, "Hah… Alright, Angel," She says, "Just holler if you need any help," She says.
Angel simply giggled with glee, zipping off to the kitchen. Not that it was that far, of course, but it was the next room over.

Bottle would turn back to face Tincture, gently trotting over to the couch to sit next to her. Bottle's voice was low, and gentle. "I don't know exactly how your old teacher treated you, but I promise, I won't throw you out just because you stop saying thank you or apologizing all the time," She says, a gentle hoof on Tincture's shoulder, "You're as much of a pony as anyone else. You deserve all the things they do."
Tincture set her tea down, looking at the earth pony with slightly watering eyes, "I-I…" She fidgeted with her hooves, "I was going to say I'm sorry, but I guess that'd defeat the point," She supposes, smiling dumbly to herself.
Bottle giggles gently, wrapping her front legs around the unicorn, "I know it won't happen overnight, it's okay. Just know that you have a right to speak up around here," She promises gently.
Tincture would hug back, hiding her teary eyes in the other mare's shoulder. "Th-thank you…" She whines softly.

After some minutes of being comforted, Tincture would pull back, wiping her nose some. "H-hah… I must look like a mess, considering how many times I've broken down at simple affection," She says.
Bottle shakes her head, "Angel's pretty much the same, just in the opposite direction; she laughs at even the slightest provocation," She chuckles softly.
The two mares would banter about plans for the day ahead; more training, no doubt, though Tincture also wanted to find some sort of occupation.

"Well… You'll be more or less the only unicorn in town," Bottle says, "And you're an alchemist, right? You could probably earn some bits just by selling some of your less…" She looks down at her hooves, "Violent potions."
Tincture nodded a bit, "I suppose that makes sense. I have some potions that might be appreciated… Tonics for healing and such," She supposes.
Bottle nodded, "That ration stuff, too. We get quite a few wandering traders through here; something they could carry that wouldn't go bad would surely be valued," She supposed.
Tincture nods, "I'll try making some extra batches then… I kept all my recipes," She says, now deep in thought.

Then, a call from the kitchen. "Breakfast's ready!" Chimed Angel, bringing a few plates to the table.
The two other mares would trot over, having a seat.
Bottle would sniff softly; it smelled vaguely sweet and creamy.
Angel would sit down after bringing some toast to the table, grinning, "It turned out exactly how I wanted!" She exclaimed excitedly.

Tincture would take a bite, pausing for a moment as she chewed. It was a… Complex mix of flavours, more complicated than most of her potions. Notes of sweetness, nuts, various fruits… It was like someone had fried scrambled eggs over trail mix. It wasn't bad, but the unicorn's palate wasn't suited to such… Vibrant flavours.
Bottle, meanwhile, quite enjoyed the dish, eating hers quite quickly, "It's really good, Angel," She says, "Tell that friend of yours they know how to cook."
Angel would look at the unicorn across from her, who seemed to be struggling a bit. "Is everything okay? You can say if you don't like it," She says.
Tincture shook her head, "It's good, I'm just… Well, you tasted what sort of food I'm used to living off of. This is… A lot," She expresses sheepishly.
Angel giggles, "Yeah, we like our noisy foods out here," She says, "You'll get used to it eventually."
Bottle smiled. "Trust me, when I first moved here, I had more or less the same reaction," She comments.
Tincture would eventually finish her meal. "Thank you, Angel; it was good," She says.
Angel just grinned at the unicorn. "Hehe! If you say so," She says, "So, are you guys gonna go train some more? I can clean up!" She offers.
Bottle shrugged, "That's probably a good idea," She says, "Maybe I'll be a bit more staminetic than yesterday."
Tincture nodded, putting her cloak on before leading the way to the outskirts of town.

"I think today I'd like to see if you can shield yourself. Lightning is more of a linear force than an area one, but you have good control over yours…" Tincture explains.
Bottle nodded, "Oh, okay," She says.
"I'll shoot at you; it'll just be a concussion spell. It'll knock you on your flank and make you dizzy for a minute, but nothing dangerous, okay?" She says.

Bottle nodded; she hadn't been presented any reason not to trust Tincture thus far, so as they stepped some paces away from each other, the earth pony was at ease as she briefly closed her eyes, bringing forth the lightning from inside of her. It came easier today, channeling comfortably into her hooves. She spun an arc, attempting to project it into a sheet.
The lightning fought this effort; it liked being narrow and linear, as Tincture had said. However, with enough coaxing, and some extra oomph, it would slowly form a ringular form before her, before branches snaked inwards, connecting in the center, forming an undulating shield before her.
It took a lot of effort to make the shield, but once the lightning seemed happy with its new shape, the load lessened.
"Alright, fire away!" Bottle calls.

Tincture was hesitant, seeing how much effort it had taken the earth pony to form the shield, but fired a concussive beam at it. The beam splashed against the shield, displacing it briefly, before it reformed. The sudden leap in effort make Bottle grunt, but she managed to keep the shield steady.

Tincture fired another beam. Then another. Then a volley of 2 in short order. It was impressive… The shield wasn't very durable, but Bottle's magical output was keeping it up regardless. Tincture fired a blast of 3 beams at once, wanting to test her theory. The shield nearly collapsed this time, shorting to just a ring before Bottle managed to reign it back into shape.
Tincture fired another pair of beams, with a few seconds between them. However, when the first knocked down the shield, it didn't come back. The second beam would hit the earth pony, sending her tumbling back a few paces.
Tincture gasped slightly, trotting over to her downed friend, as Bottle groaned gently. It didn't hurt all that much, but like Tincture had said, it was a bit disorienting.

Tincture looked at Bottle as she arrived, "Are you ok- eep!" She squeaked as a hoof lifted, lightly tapping her nose and delivering a small zap; not enough to hurt, it was just like touching her nose to a staticy carpet.
"That's for sending me flank over teakettle," Bottle huffs, before having a laugh.
Tincture would laugh a bit and help the earth pony to her feet, "Sorry, you were doing well with the shield, I thought after a blast of 3 a single bolt would've been fine," She says. The mood was jovial, despite the circumstances.
"I was, then I started getting tired," Bottle said, "It really didn't like being formed into a sheet like that… Took a lot of effort to keep it from collapsing," She admits, "The blasts… Actually kinda lightened the load, at least until you started throwing multiple."
Tincture nods, "It's all about maintaining focus," She says, "Some magicians can quickly flick shields as a reactionary spell, but it's generally easier to hold them. I take it that took all you had?" She asks.

Bottle nodded, "Yeah, I think that's all I've got for now… I feel like I had more magic available than yesterday," She says, "Like, the change from full of energy to tired was more gradual."
Tincture smiled, "That's progress. It'll take lots of practice for your body to get used to handling it, but I promise it does get easier," She says, "We might as well head home for now; if we have to push-and-rest you a few times a day, that's what we'll do," She says.
Bottle nods in agreement, leading the way back to her home, "I guess that's how training from nothing goes," She supposes.

When the pair returned home, the kitchen was clean, and Angel's Kiss was just putting the last of the dishes away. "How'd training go?" She asked with a smile.
"Well enough, save for being thrown around like a paper sack in the wind," Bottle remarks.
Tincture chuckled awkwardly, "I did my best to make it safe," She huffs.
Bottle smiled softly, "Regardless, I think I'm improving… Slowly but steadily," She says, flopping on the couch.
Tincture nodded, taking one of the chairs in the room. "Manifesting a shield is an acquired skill," She comments, "Especially with a force like lightning."

Angel would finish putting this away, plopping herself down on the couch next to Bottle and smiling, "That sounds like fun!" She says, patting the head of the exhausted mare next to her.
"I think Tincture just enjoyed shooting at me," Bottle comments with a soft laugh.
Tincture froze for a brief moment, but relaxed and laughed along with the earth pony, "If I had my choice, it wouldn'tve been me, but I wanted to make sure it was something safe being hurled at you," She expresses.
The group of mares would laugh a bit, and the group would continue to chatter for some time.

Eventually, Tincture would stand up, "I'd like to go take stock of my recipes," She declares, "I have some potions I could sell here, but I need the ingredients to make them," She explains.
"Ooh!" Angel's eyes lit up, "Are you gonna sell that bread stuff at the market?" She asks, "I know a few farmers who need a good field ration."
Tincture nods a bit, "Should I be able to find what I need, I'd like to start selling my potions at the market, yes," She expresses.
Bottle nods a bit, "Just call us if you need anything; and don't be afraid to take a break," She says.

Tincture would nod a bit. It would take the unicorn some time to get her recipe book laid out, noting what she needed.
Like any good spell, the ration spell was based in water; however, she also needed hay, salt, and sawdust. She also noted cherries, mint, and cobwebs for a topical, salve-like potion. She didn't want to just be a one-trick pony.
Tincture would jot down her grocery list, leaving the room.

"I'll start small for now," She says, magicking the note over to her two friends, "Do you know where I could find these things?"
Both Bottle and Angel would read the list. "The only thing I know that market doesn't have is cobwebs," She explains.
Angel thought for a moment, "Does it have to be cobwebs?" She asks, making a soft "eugh" sound.
Tincture shook her head, "Anything fibrous should do…" She said, "You said you worked on a cotton farm, right?" She asks.
Angel nodded, "Uh-huh! Some of the cleanest cotton this side of Canterlot!" She says, beaming proudly.
Tincture nods, "Cotton should do… Some of these ingredients are admittedly just improvisations based on what I had at school," She admits.
Bottle cocked a brow, "You had a steady supply of cobwebs?" She asks.
Tincture looks away a bit, "The building was… Very old," She concedes.
Bottle just nods. "Well, I can help you at the market. Angel, do you want to go ask for some cotton?" She asks.
Angel nods frenetically, "Sure thing! I'll bring back enough to stuff a mattress!" She giggles.
She'd zip off just before Tincture would try to say that she only needed a bit for the batch size of her potions, and the unicorn chuckles softly, "She really doesn't give time for additional instructions, huh?" Tincture supposed softly.
Bottle chuckled. "No. No she does not."

The pair would walk over to the market, Tincture holding her list before her. Most of the ingredients were easy enough to find at the market; hay was in no short supply, and salt and mint were easy enough to procure from a food vendor. Cherries proved a little bit trickier to find, but still possible. "So where are we getting sawdust, exactly?" Tincture would ask.
Bottle lead her down a cobblestone road, smiling, "We have a small lumber mill just outside of town for cutting construction pieces," She explains.

Tincture was in awe at the size of the supposedly "small" mill. Teams of several ponies worked to haul what seemed to be full-sized trees into one end, with planks being offloaded from the other. Even with magic, a production facility of this sort would've been impressive; nevermind a lack of it.
Bottle and Tincture would step inside, briefly deafened by the sound of large, metal grinders being spun around the massive tree trunk, shearing it down to a roughly square shape.
Tincture's ears would pin to her head to try and negate some of the noise, but Bottle would walk on, stepping up next to a stallion who seemed to be in charge of the operation.

"Excuse me," She says politely.
The stallion turned to her, "Well, howdy Lightning! Been a good minute since you came to us for anything. Looking to put another room on the house?" He asks.
Bottle smiled, but shook her head, "No, not yet," She says with a laugh, "My friend here is looking for sawdust."
The stallion would look at Tincture, who was still cowering slightly in anticipation of another noise. "Sawdust?" He asks, "Well, shucks, dig in! We have enough to make a whole other forest!" He says with a laugh, "Just throw it in some of the paper bags up against the wall there before you try taking it home; you'll never stop findin' it if you put it right in your saddle," He says with a laugh.
Bottle smiled, mouthing a thank you as the loud blades spun up again, now shearing the wood down its height to form planks.

Tincture's eyes would be transfixed on the machinery in action, despite the ear-piercing noise. Earth ponies worked the ground, both driving the blades and pulling the log through the track, while pegasi sprinkled water from above to keep the contraptions both cool and lubricated.
As the log was finished, Bottle would come up to her side, shoving a paper bag in one of Tincture's saddlebags. "Grab as much as you need; he said they have plenty," She says with a soft laugh.
Tincture wound magic one of the smallest sawdust piles into the paper bag, filling it, "This should be plenty for a long time; it's for flavour," She explains.
Bottle simply nodded, and the two would leave to head back to Bottle's home.

Angel's kiss was already there, with a sack full of a cotton; she wasn't kidding, it really did look like enough to fill a mattress. "Did you find everything you need?" She asks.
Tincture nodded, "Yes," She replies, "I should have plenty of ingredients for some initial batches; I might need a bigger cauldron to use all of it," She concedes with a soft laugh.
Bottle chuckles. "You're probably covered on sawdust and cotton at least until thaw, aren'tcha?" She asks with a laugh.
Tincture nodded as she was lead inside, walking to her room, "Thank goodness… The mill operator seemed nice, but the noise would be enough to make a foal wet themselves," She huffs softly.
Bottle giggles, "Yeah, it's pretty loud," She comments, "Shame they don't make corks for their ears," She remarks.

Tincture would lead the two other mares into her room. The small alchemy set she had mostly fit in the spare space: It consisted of a trio of five-gallon cauldrons over a low brazier. Tincture had already filled the cauldrons during her initial preparations, but the brazier remained unlit.
After some unpacking, Bottle went and got some firewood, neatly setting it in the brazier and lighting some of the smaller pieces to start the blaze.

Tincture looked unsatisfied at the small flames. "It won't get the water hot enough; there isn't enough airflow in here," She explains.
Angel giggles, "Leave it to a pegasus to fix airflow problems!" She declares, sitting a short distance away from the flames and fanning them with her wings.
The blaze would quickly pick up with the extra air, and Tincture would smile a bit. "Well that's helpful, considering I didn't bring a bellows," She admits, "Thank you, Angel."
Angel giggles, "Don't mention it! I need a little more exercise in my day, anyways."
Tincture blinks. It felt weird to have somepony manually fanning the flames; but then again, Angel hadn't made a big deal out of it. Was this what friends did?

With some help from Bottle, Tincture would measure out her ingredients. "The rations come as a pair; a base that contains all the nutrition, and a catalyst that makes it bake without heat," She explains, "The hay and sawdust goes in two cauldrons, and the salt goes in the one left over."
Bottle blinks, "How does saltwater turn into the catalyst?" She asks.
Tincture smirked a little. "Magic," She says with a cheeky snicker.
Bottle facehooved, "Leave it to me to get baited by a unicorn," She snorted, giggling a bit regardless of how bad the joke was.
The ingredients would be added as the pots came to a boil; Bottle would feed the flames as Tincture began stirring the pots with large metal spoons, looking at her recipe book.

Bottle would close her eyes, setting her utensils and book down as her horn glowed brighter, and the liquids in the cauldrons began to change colour; the hay and sawdust melted into yellow liquids, whereas the saltwater turned a pale shade of pink. Bottle opened her eyes and smiled, "Good, that's the hard part done. Now these simmer for a while, until they're about half as full as they started. You don't need to fan the flames anymore, Angel; the fire should be hot enough," She says.

Angel sighed softly in relief as she allowed her wings to fold in. "Good," She says with a gentle huff, "My wings were getting tired."
Tincture chuckled softly, "This is why good quality potions can be very expensive," She says, "This is a simple recipe I made as a student, using very cheap and available ingredients, and it's still taken us a few hours to assemble, measure, and cook everything," She explains, "Nevermind the magic-" She cuts herself off with a yawn, "...Investment required to manipulate and enchant everything involved as needed."
Bottle chuckled softly, "So what you're saying is you're gonna be making good money off of these," She says.
Tincture nodded, "I'll price them fairly, but labor isn't cheap," She snorts, "Especially magical labor in a town with one whole unicorn."
"We helped you for free, didn't we?" Angel says with a cheeky giggle.
Tincture smiled awkwardly and laughed. "Got me there," She says.

While they waited, the three mares would play a card game; blackjack. Not for anything in particular; just to kill time while the potions boiled down. A faint cinnamony smell would fill the house as the potions cooked.
Every so often, Tincture would set the cards down to check on the potions, until they were ready, at which point she called the other mares into her room. The colours of the potions had solidified and emboldened into a deep, rich yellow and a vibrant pink. Tincture was already laying out a large amount of glassware; larger bottles with spherical bases, and smaller tubular vials. They were carefully marked; the bottles labeled "2", the vials "1".
The masses of liquid were drawn into the air via magic, funneled meticulously into the correct containers; yellow to bottles, pink to vials. Corks were then applied, and the potions were carefully laid out on a rack to cool, except for one sample of each. Tincture grabbed a plate and smiled, "Well, we'd be awful cooks if we didn't test the product," She says with a small smile.

Angel giggles excitedly, clapping her hooves together.
Bottle simply nods. "By your ready, Ms. Alchemist," She says with a small smile.
Tincture would uncork each piece of glassware, pouring them onto the plate. The chemicals mixed into a warm brown liquid, and then sprang to life, forming a large lump of bread that spilled over the plate some. Each mare would take a piece, testing it.
It was chewier than the batch Tincture had "brought from home", with a stronger, sweeter flavour. It was also a bit more moist.

Angel grins, "Mm! This is even better than the last one!" She says with a smile.
Bottle nodded, "That chew is addictive," She comments, already reaching for another piece.
Tincture thought for a moment, "That was with some extra sawdust, and wasn't overboiled like my last batch," She comments, "It's definitely nicer like this… Feels more like food than a ration," She comments, laughing.
"Think you'll be ready to sell this tomorrow?" Bottle asks.
Tincture nodded, "If we're all this pleased with it, I think it'll prove popular. Thank you both for your help," She expresses, wafting the plate of bread aside to hug both of her new friends.
The other two mares needed no more invitation; they both hugged back.

After a particularly bread-based meal, the three would head outside; having had most of a day to rest, Bottle's magic was raring to go again.
The training would consist of some basic trading of blows; Bottle would sling a few bolts at a shielded Tincture, who would then fire back some concussive bolts, which Bottle would shield. They repeated this routine a few times, until Bottle ran out of steam. Angel, of course, would be there as moral support, though she'd also be there to help Bottle to her feet should she not shield herself in time.

After training, the three would wind down with Settlers of Coltan, talking excitedly about tomorrow. Though she was nervous about her new business, Tincture felt confident that, with her friends' help, it would succeed.
The three didn't even need dinner, the ration spells having done a good job filling them up, despite the activities of the day.
Eventually, Angel would have to leave; the farm would need tending tomorrow, so she wanted to be over there. She promised Tincture she'd come by to see the new business in action.
A hug later, and the pegasus left, leaving the two other mares alone to get ready for bed.

"You know," Bottle says, "You can sleep on the couch if you want: it's probably comfier than some blankets on the floor."
Tincture smiled gently, "Thank you for the offer, but I like my corner. It makes me feel safe," She expresses.
Bottle nodded. "Well… Alright. Have a good sleep, okay? Tomorrow'll be a good day," She promises.
Tincture nods, "It will," She replies, moving to her room, "Good night, Bottled Lightning. Thank you for everything," She expresses.
Bottle giggles gently, "Really, Bottle is fine. You don't need to be so formal with your housemate," She promises, giggling as she strolls up to bed.

Both mares would sleep soundly that night; Tincture didn't even have any nightmares. She was too excited for tomorrow! Finally, a chance to be a normal, functional member of society…