Chapter 1
The streets of Ponyville were full of smiling faces as its inhabitants trod their way throughout the town. Despite the sun that shone far above all the ponies going about their day to day lives a light gray mare kept her head held low as she made her way throughout the crowd. The neutral expression on her face earned a few turned heads from the ponies that seemed more interested in stopping to chat with their neighbors than make it to their destination on time. Her messy purple mane sat just short enough to obscure her eyes from the gazes of the others as she seemed to focus intently on her own hooves.
A stark contrast from most of the town’s population, Cinnamon Swirl prefered to stay out of the spotlight whenever possible. As she lifted her head to observe the buildings around her she would quickly avert her eyes from those of the others with a strained smile and awkward nod all while propelling herself forward with greater speed. By the time the pale mare had reached the end of the street she had been going down she was nearly galloping. She continued her quick pace even as her hooves met grass instead of dirt and the sounds around her began to die away.
She finally allowed herself to slow back to a reserved trot with a forced exhale as she observed her surroundings. As she made her way through the first of the large trees that dotted the edge of town a smile began to curl the corners of her muzzle upwards. Her hooves easily navigated the unkempt path through the lightly trod grass as she approached the edge of the Everfree Forest. While it supposedly held all sorts of dangers the young Unicorn mare didn’t seem particularly perturbed by what some considered to be an old-mares tale. Eventually the tree cover around her fell away to reveal a small patch of open meadow that overlooked some of the more densely packed forest below.
A giddy chuckle broke the silence around the lone mare as her grin gave way to a look of determination. Her gaze turned to the ground beneath her hooves and several small stones that lay before her amidst the healthy green grass. With a deep breath the Unicorn’s brows knit together as she seemed to focus intently on one of the stones. A violet aura slowly grew to surround the immobile stone as the same colored magic encircled her glowing horn. Her teeth clenched as she raised her head slowly as if she was silently willing the sediment to follow her lead.
Despite the aura of magic that danced across its grey surface it did little else but rest on the bed of grass beneath it as rocks are want to do. Cinnamon’s teeth clenched together more tightly as she willed more of her magic to do something to the simple rock. Slowly, and with a distinctly jerky motion the stone began to slide through the grass. In an instant the mare’s grin returned as a newfound eagerness possessed her.
Her determination seemingly recharged she closed in on the practice tool once more. This time as her magic caressed its chilled surface she closed her eyes and envisioned it taking flight and soaring through the air. Slowly the enraptured stone did just that, its rugged surface rose through the air until it spun just in front of the mare’s face. She squinted through mostly closed eyes until she caught sight of the spinning object. Childlike glee spread across the Unicorn’s face as her eyes snapped open the rest of the way. Despite the ease of such a feat in the grand scheme of things the mare’s sapphire eyes lit up with an uncontainable joy at the sight before her.
Just as her grin had exploded across her muzzle it was gone as the hunk of stone quickly dropped back to its previous position among its brethren. Her expression swiftly cycled from determination to pained as the aura that surrounded her horn vanished with a sudden ‘pop!’ With a resentful sigh the flat of her hoof was brought to rest against her brow as her backside dropped onto the grass. “Every time…”
Cinnamon winced as she ran slow circles beneath the base of her horn as she sat in silence. Though she hadn’t noticed previously after a few slow blinks she became aware of the presence of the tears that sat in the corner of her eyes.
A few sudden blinks later and the tears were banished from her vision. With a solemn breath the mare took one more long look at the rock she had levitated for a few seconds before she turned back in the direction of her home.
Only a few hoofsteps back the way she had come a sudden clap of thunder rang out overhead. The purple-maned mare wheeled around in the direction that the sound had come from as her gaze turned skyward. Despite the unmistakable crash of thunder the warm summer sun continued to beam down from its position high in the sky as a few clouds defiantly provided shade to those who resided down below. The jumpy Unicorn was so caught up in her search for storm clouds on the horizon that she barely registered the streak of blue and red that rushed towards the ground in front of her before branches began to snap and splinter throughout the canopy above.
She was so taken aback by the whole ordeal that her eyes remained fixed on the sky above for a good thirty seconds after the sound of snapping branches had faded from earshot. When it became clear that she had to at least look to the source of the sound she turned her eyes upon the trees off to her side. Dangling from several vines well above the meadow floor was a blue coated Pegasus. Though she had been about to yell something to the other mare the sight of crimson matting her pale blue fur silenced her.
It was with a cautious gait that Cinnamon made her way closer to the suspended pony. As she stood beneath the battered Pegasus the breath she had been holding in forced itself free from her lungs. As rivulets of red trickled down the mare’s body and dropped as small splotches on the healthy green grass it became very clear that she had to do something.
Her hooves were the first thing to react as she began galloping through the clearing back towards the pathway she had taken time and time again. She had barely reached the threshold of the meadow when she slid to a sudden stop. “It’ll take too long to call for help and get back here, even at a full speed gallop. Think Cin, think…”
With an unsteady sigh the tanned mare returned to the tree whose branches housed the injured Pegasus. Her horn alit with the spark of magic as her telltale aura took hold of one of the thick vines that suspended the other pony. With a swift tug the vine snapped and sent the mare tumbling down the rough oaken trunk of the tree. Cinnamon winced with each dulled thud of impact until the other pony lay on the ground before her.
“Buck! Oh buck, oh buck! Please be okay, please be okay, please…” She mentally kicked herself as she rushed to the other female’s side. The slow rise and fall of the Pegasus’ chest was something she was immensely grateful for as tears once more pricked at the corners of her eyes. With a shake of her head she set out to take stock of the damage done to the crashed mare before her. What appeared to be minor cuts and scrapes had dyed a fair bit of her coat a much darker color, though that appeared to be the extent of the visible damage done to her.
“Oh Celestia…” As the concerned Unicorn turned her inspection to the winged mare’s back the shocked words came without prompting.
Her wings…
While not something Cinnamon had ever really paid attention to, the state of her wings caused the tanned mare’s brow to furrow in worry. The wing that she could see was far from the safely stowed away appendage that she had been used to seeing, instead it hung limply against her side complete with several feathers that seemed all sorts of askew.
As she straightened back up a worrying thought struck her. “How am I going to get her all the way back to Ponyville like this…? Can I carry her all the way back?”
The shaken mare turned her head skyward as if to somehow seek guidance from the great ball of flame that stared mercilessly down upon her. With a sigh of resignation Cinnamon planted all four hooves firmly upon the ground and focused on the injured mare before her. As she lowered her head she caught sight of her lilac aura as it began to creep along the form of the unconscious female. It began with a hoof and soon another and another were each within her grasp until her magical field grew to encompass the other mare completely.
A hasty sigh of relief slipped from her muzzle before she was struck with the sinking realization that she had only just done the easy part. At the very least she was thankful that the mare before her was unconscious, she would have never been able to grasp a kicking and struggling target. Cinnamon allowed herself a silent countdown before she clenched her eyes closed tightly and began to will the mare upwards from her bed of grass. Despite the unfamiliar throbbing that began to emanate from her temple she continued to channel her magic.
By the time her magic receded from around the red-maned Pegasus her head throbbed and her vision had begun to swim before her. Suddenly she was very glad that she had decided to go with a light lunch that afternoon. With the other mare laying square across her back she raised a hoof tentatively from the earth. Her remaining legs wiggled somewhat under the additional weight but she managed to stay upright easily enough.
“Man… I wish that I could just use magic to carry her, or Celestia forbid, teleport both of us right into the hospital.” The sensation of the unconscious mare upon her back lengthened her trip exponentially by limiting her movement to a slow trot, not to mention how it forced her to move at a snail’s pace to avoid losing her precious cargo. By the time the dirt roads of Ponyville peaked out through the grass ahead, her legs had grown further unsteady and each step threatened to pitch the two of them forwards onto the ground.
Just as before, Cinnamon’s head lowered as the road of the town replaced the grass beneath her hooves. As she moved in the direction of the doctor’s office other ponies began to take notice of her. The shaking that had begun to plague her hooves may very well have tripled as some of the ponies close by her began to speak.
“Oh my…”
“Are they okay?”
“Who are those mares?”
“Is… Is that the milkshake shop owner?”
Cinnamon had never cursed the cup and straw that adorned her flank more than that moment as she trudged along the dirt road. Gone was the relative anonymity that she thrived in. All she could hope for was that any interest in her this might drum up would all be a passing fad.
A stirring against her side snapped her right back into the moment. The purple-maned mare re-adjusted her passenger and continued towards the hospital at the end of the street. The only thing that mattered was getting in there. She ignored the burning in her lungs as the soreness in her sides began to cry out in frustration and the shakiness of her legs seemed to increase as she reached out to push open the double doors before her.
The cool tile caused each of her hoofsteps to echo in turn as she approached the nurse at the front desk. The kind, but well-practiced welcome from the nurse fell silent as soon as she had begun to speak. Cinnamon was vaguely aware of the nurse as she called out to someone she couldn’t see. Despite the aches in her limbs and the kink in her side Cinnamon mustered up a small smile that went unnoticed by the staff rushing about. The last thing that she recalled before the tile began to swiftly approach her was the sudden feeling of lightness as she assumed the Pegasus was lifted from her back.