The restricting order, just like pretty much everything else that has been happening in Paint's life in the past week, took him absolutely by surprise. Whenever he thought that things were going to settle down, and that his life was finally about to cease being a drama, something new would pop up that made things even worse than they already were. Let's look about how things were just before he received the distressing news; like Rainbow Dash had said to him yesterday he needed to focus on what he did have in case of what he didn't have. He didn't have his father's love, which was something every single pony desired and deserved, but on the other hoof he had his friends, his mother and Rainbow Dash. As for his brother, Rainbow Dash was right in saying that at some point he will find out everything that was being kept a secret from him, whether Paint's father wanted him to know or not. Paint wanted to believe her, he really did, and he was really about to listen to her and look at the bright side of things, but then his father took even that away from him.
How was he going to focus on the fact that he had his mother back in his life as well as a baby sister if he was legally forbidden to be with them not to mention even come near them? Now, no matter from how many angles he looked at how things were, it seemed like there was no bright side and that there was no solution to his misfortunes. Well, there'll probably always be those who will attempt to cheer him up by saying that all he has to do is to sit down, talk to his father and try to knock some sense into him, but he knew more than well that it was not going to work. His father didn't even want to see him, and the legal document which forced him to stay away from the house, from his mother and from his little sister proved it, and therefore going to talk to his father wasn't really an option. Besides, even if that wasn't the case and there was no restricting order, Paint knew more than well that his father didn't want him around. Like mentioned before, he was going to try to live with that fact, and if it weren't for the restricting order he probably would have been able to do that and finally live a quiet and not-crazy life.
But no, for some reason everything kept blowing up in his face. The only question he couldn't answer was why. What had he ever done to deserve such a horrible treatment from somepony who was supposed to always be there from him? It was what depressed him the most; not how he was going to deal with his situation but why he ended up in the situation he was in. He had tried to ignore that the first time by starting a new life, which was how he ended up in Ponyville, but now the situation was different; now he couldn't just leave everything behind like he did last time and run away because he had everything he could have possibly hoped to achieve by running away in the first place; his friends, the new job which he was about to take in exactly 5 days from now and, most importantly, Rainbow Dash. There was no escaping from reality this time. But don't think that he wanted to run away again and couldn't because of the fact that he now had what he had. He didn't want to run away again because of the fact that he now had what he had. I don't know whether you see the difference but there is one (try reading those two sentences again if you don't see it). Putting up with his father's behavior and the consequences of it will obviously be less unbearable than leaving everything he now had behind.
After going over to his mother's house in order to try and get some answers Rainbow Dash returned to her own house to see how her coltfriend was doing. While she had no doubt that his mother had nothing to do with that stupid warrant, she still couldn't help her anger back when she spoke to her and Elisa. The older earth pony was so distraught by the news that Rainbow Dash was feeling a little bad about coming there in the first place, even though Paint's mother would have found out about the warrant sooner or later. It took the rainbow-maned pegasus and the unicorn housekeeper quite a while to calm her down but even after they did she was obviously very upset at what her husband had done. Rainbow Dash had a slight hope that Paint's mother will be able to set things right by talking some sense into her husband. As for now, there was nothing that Rainbow Dash herself could do to change the situation. All she could do was try to make Paint feel better. The fact that this was the only thing she could do was killing her, but there was nothing she could do about that either.
The rainbow-maned mare entered her house and headed towards her bedroom which was where she saw Paint go just before she left to talk to his mother, passing by the kitchen and the unfinished breakfast which they began making together just before the warrant arrived. All the food was no longer good enough to be eaten because it has been standing on the table for quite a while instead of being in the refrigerator and she was going to have to throw it all away, but that was something she would take care of later because she had more important things for her to worry about. She opened the door to her bedroom, which was closed, and found her coltfriend lying on her bed with his head underneath one of the pillows. There wasn't really any doubt as to how long he has been lying there like that, which was probably since his marefriend had last seen him.
"Paint?" she asked softly, approaching the bed. It gave her quite a sense of déjà vu, probably because of the fact that her coltfriend had needed her comfort more than once already. It angered her to see him like this, and if his father knew what was good for him he would do the right thing before Rainbow Dash lost her temper and went to have a little word with him herself.
"What?" came his chocked up voice from underneath the pillow, which was rather muffled because of the fact that that his face was pressed against the cloud-bed.
Rainbow Dash's ears flattened against her head as she got onto the bed and lay down beside him. "I… I went to see your mother and I told her what happened." Paint didn't move and didn't say anything, which indicated that he knew that this was what his marefriend was going to do. "Look, I don't have to tell you that she was furious when I told her about this… I'm sure that everything will be fine. If anypony can talk some sense into your father then it's her, I'm sure she'll be able to make him come to his senses."
Paint removed the pillow from his head and looked at her. It was clear that he had been crying while she was gone, but who could blame him? "How is my mother? Is she feeling better?" Clearly he was focusing on the things that really mattered to him at the moment, and changing his father's mind was not one of those things because he knew that attempting to do that will be like head butting a large rock.
"I'm not sure… She seemed a little better when she came to greet me but I was so upset that I told her about what your father did without really paying too much attention…" she admitted with a sigh.
"So much for avoiding stress like the doctor said… I hope this won't affect her health…" as he said this he looked at the wall in front of him while resting his head down on the bed and between his forelegs.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, I completely forgot about that…" she said, sounding rather guilty, "I shouldn't have gone there to talk to her…"
"It's okay, she would have found out about it eventually." Besides, he couldn't blame her for looking out for him.
A few moments were passed in silence before Rainbow Dash placed a hoof on her coltfriend's shoulder, moving herself closer to him as she did. "Look, it'll all be fine, we'll figure out how to get through this mess." It was pretty much what she had been telling him for the past week and a half, but she didn't know what else to say.
"I hope so." he said with yet another sigh, his voice lacking any trace of confidence. He looked into his marefriend's eyes for a few moments before suddenly wrapping a foreleg and a wing around her, holding her close while rubbing his head against hers. "You're not going to disappear are you?" he asked with a sob as he held her closer, as if somepony was going to take her away from him in case he didn't.
"Of course not." she said reassuringly, allowing him to hug her while nuzzling him in yet another attempt of reassurance.
"I don't know what I would do without you…" he admitted, pulling her even closer to him.
"It's okay, I'm here for you and I'm not going anywhere."
The rest of the day was spent in the same manner. Paint remained in bed all day and Rainbow Dash did her best to lighten up his mood. She stayed with him all the time except for the few minutes during which she had to go and take care of the weather. She tried to convince him to get out of bed and go outside with her in order to get some fresh air but he refused, and she decided that forcing him was a bad idea, even if she did hate to see him remain inside the house all the time.
He went to sleep early and had a rather restless night, unintentionally waking his marefriend up a few times in the middle of it. He apologized probably a countless amount of time and she said that it was okay, she couldn't blame him for being as upset as he was. When she woke up the next morning she saw that he was already awake. Cautiously she went ahead and asked, "How do you feel?"
"Like yesterday." He admitted with a sigh, getting out of bed while holding a hoof against his forehead with a wince.
"Is something wrong?" she asked, noticing it.
"No." he said simply, placing his hoof back down. "I think I'll go to Sweet Apple Acres. I need to get my mind off of things and maybe they need some help."
"That's the spirit." said Rainbow Dash with a smile, hoping that doing something that was not lying in bed all day will make him feel better. "Do you want me to come with you?"
"You don't have to. Besides I think you deserve a day off from me."
Rainbow Dash chuckled, happy to see that a bit of his self humor was back. They bid each other farewell and he headed towards Sweet Apple Acres. Applejack was rather surprised to see him there, having heard about what has happened yesterday. He told her that he came there in order to see if they needed help and in order to get his mind off of what was bothering him and she gladly accepted the offer, not only because they could use the extra help but also because she wanted him to feel better.
Not saying anything else to Applejack, Paint went off to do what she told him was supposed to be done at the farm while she herself went to a different part of the orchard. Paint didn't really tell Rainbow Dash the truth earlier that morning when she asked him whether anything was wrong after seeing the way he held his hoof to his forehead. The truth was that he had a terrible headache. He thought that getting some fresh air will help him feel better but it only became worse as the morning passed. It took maybe half an hour for his headache to become unbearable, not to mention that he was feeling rather dizzy and even a little weak. Big Macintosh happened to come across him a few minutes later and he went over to the pegasus to ask him how he was feeling since he hadn't really seen him or spoken to him for about a week now, and he wanted to make sure that his friend was alright with all the drama that's been going on in his life lately.
"Hey Big Mac," answered the pegasus, offering the earth pony a small smile, "I'm fine. I just need a little time. Thanks for asking though."
Big Macintosh stared at him for a short moment and then raised an eyebrow. "Are ye sure ye're feelin' okay? Ye don't look so good."
"What're you talking about? I'm fine." despite him having said that Big Macintosh touched a hoof to his forehead, "What are you doing?" he asked, frowning slightly and moving the earth pony's hoof away with his own hoof.
"Yer forehead's boilin' with fever."
"I'm fine." he lied, even though he felt as if everything around him was spinning.
"Maybe ye should come into the house with me."
"I said I'm fine." He didn't even manage to hear what Big Macintosh said next, and after a few moments his legs gave way and he passed out.
In Paint's mother's house
Paint's mother was lying in bed. Ever since she found out about what her husband did yesterday she was forced the remain in bed because of her fever. Elisa soon entered the room carrying a bowl of cold water and a small towel. She soaked the towel with water before placing it on the older mare's forehead. The earth pony's fever became much higher after yesterday and it greatly concerned the housekeeper. "Can you bring Emerald here?" asked the ill mare, getting a nod from the unicorn who left the room and returned after a few moments with the sleeping foal. Elisa gently gave Emerald to her mother, who took her and let out a sigh. "I have not seen my son in over a year and now that I finally found him I still cannot see him. Is it not cruel to have him kept away from me?"
"Yes my lady, it is." said the unicorn, dipping the towel in the bowl of water again and placing it back on her mistress's forehead.
"It burns my heart." she said with a sigh, gently caressing her baby daughter. "One of the maids told me that she saw Silver here in Ponyville during Hearts and Hooves Day. Why did he not come here to see me? Did my husband tell him not to?"
"I don't know madam."
"He must have told him that I want him to focus on his studies." She let out a shaky sigh and held Emerald close. "Why is he not telling Silver that his younger brother is here?"
"I don't know." There was a short silence.
"He's taking his anger too far." Again there was a short silence. "I think it's time we told him."
"Told your husband what?"
"Not my husband. Paint should know."
"Oh, you mean..."
"Yes." said the earth pony with a nod and another sigh.
"Speaking of which…" Elisa paused, not sure of how to say what she had to say. "Do you remember that he was imprisoned in Canterlot?"
Paint's mother stared at her for a few seconds, confused. "Paint went to jail?"
"No, not him…"
"Oh…" said the earth pony after another short silence, "I remember now that you've told me. I didn't think about it before."
"Well… He's out."
The older mare stared at her housekeeper for a short moment. "He's out of prison?"
Elisa nodded. "He was released earlier because of good behavior."
"That's delightful. I always knew he was a good fellow. I wonder how he is. Do you think you'll be able to contact him for me?"
"I will try. Your husband is furious though."
"Do you think that's the reason for his behavior?"
"It may be." said the unicorn.
"Well it is only natural that he is upset, but I will still not have it." She coughed a few times, causing the unicorn to walk closer to her.
"You should rest." Without asking for the mother's permission she gently took Emerald away and placed her in a cradle. One thing was for sure, the actions of Paint's father were negatively influencing the health of his wife, and Elisa feared that her mistress's condition will worsen unless something is done with that restricting order.
Later in the evening, in Canterlot
Paint's father was sitting by his desk as usual. There was a knock at the door, "Come in." he said and Elisa entered, closing the door behind her. "Good evening to you Elisa."
"Good evening sir."
"If you came here in person then I guess you have something important to tell me."
"Yes sir. I was looking for your son earlier today-" she paused, "your younger son that is… He's fallen ill and has quite a fever." She used her magic to take out a folded piece of paper from the pocket of her dress. "I have a letter, written by his mother. She would like to nurse her child." All this time the stallion in front of her was looking at her with a blank expression. Elisa unfolded the letter, "She writes-" again she paused, "If I may?"
"You may not." said he, rather bluntly.
"Sir!"
"It is out of the question. Tell my wife that I can personally send a physician to examine and help him."
"Sir, I beseech you, listen to reason…"
"How is my wife?"
"Her fever's getting worse. I beg you, you need to remember that your son has been seriously ill once just because of pure stress, you're hurting him by keeping him away from his mother like that. You're hurting your wife too."
"My wife," he said with a frown, "will be perfectly fine. Is there anything else you came here to talk to me about?"
"Yes. Your wife wishes that you let Silver know about his brother. Keeping them apart as well is also not doing your son any good."
"Anything else?"
Elisa was shocked at her master's indifference, but she knew to watch her mouth around those superior to her. "No sir."
"Then I bid you a good evening and a safe ride on the train back to Ponyville."
A/N: I have a new avatar picture! *squee*
I always liked Braeburn =]