A/N: Here we are again, working to write this rather than a three page research paper. I still have a week, but hopefully I won't wait until the last minute. Anyways, here is the next chapter.
I woke to the first rays of dawn stretching across the sky. Rubbing my eyes, I sat up, then immediately wished I hadn't. The skin of my back felt stretched out as much as an acrobat's legs doing the splits. Maybe it is better that I see a doctor. Besides, if they found out about me without Twilight to hopefully back me up, I can only imagine what would happen. I sat on the balcony for a short time, then sneaked past dragon-boy's bed, took a random book off the shelf, and began to read. However, it was some overly sappy romance novel which didn't hold my interest for very long. You'd think that being in a library would give me some peace, being quiet and generally very empty.
"Brian? Hello? Anypony?" Twilight called worriedly. She would think I ran away in the middle of the night, considering my track record with that. I know what I can do… this should be good… I moved like a shadow and hid in the curve of the staircase, waiting for her to trot down the steps.
Quietly at first, then at a considerably louder volume, I said, "Here's… BRIAN!" She jumped about a foot in the air, landing on her stomach. I laughed quietly to myself, then went to help her up.
"Was that REALLY necessary?" Obviously annoyed by my antics, I stopped laughing and apologized.
"Sorry, I didn't think that'd scare you. Well, I did, but I didn't think you'd fall flat on your face."
"Great, all we need is another prankster." I was a little surprised at this, I didn't consider myself a joker, but I let it slide. Deciding to move on to more important things, I moved back to the table and sat down, then turned back to Twilight Sparkle.
"So… do you guys eat breakfast around here or what? I haven't eaten for two days." I said, my stomach rumbling to further emphasize. I was really hoping that they ate some form of human food.
"Of course we eat breakfast! But first of all, what the hay do you who-muns eat?"
"It's hugh-mans, not who-muns." I said, making sure I pronounced it clearly so as to make sure she understood. "And we eat apples, bananas, basically most fruits and vegetables. Oh, and meat." Twilight listened, then froze up after I said "meat."
"You… you eat meat? I don't know anything that eats meat other than gryphons… Well, I don't think you can have meat here. We ponies are herbivores which means…"
"You eat only plant matter, I know." I finished, but she looked back at me irritated.
"Not true. We can eat other foods, like bread, and sweets."
"Bread? Sweets? How do you ponies even make that, you don't have hands!" Waving my hands in the air sarcastically, I suddenly remembered the reddish purple glow that surrounded me when Twilight searched for bodily harm. She looked about ready to answer me when I once again interrupted. "Magic? Like that stuff that surrounded me when you did whatever the hell you did?"
"Not necessarily," she answered. "In fact, most of the baked goods are made by the Cakes and Pinkie Pie, and they don't utilize magic for that." I have to admit, this shocked me. How would they hold the trays then? Open ovens and stuff like that? Unless they're specially made for ponies, which is probably true considering that's all I've ever seen here besides the dragon. Wait a second… Dragons? Gryphons? Unicorns and Pegasi? Did I fall into a fairy tale? Oh wait, that's right. Ponies. Because ponies. Seems like those awful girly cartoons I watched when nothing was on. Well, that was before everything…
"Brian… Hello?" I snapped back into reality with Twilight Sparkle's hoof in my face. "Oh, there you go. Would you eat… Pancakes?" That simple word brought back memories of my dad behind a griddle, bacon sizzling… Mmm… bacon.
"Yeah, I could go for some ba-pancakes. Thanks. Anyways, when am I going to the doctors? I want to know my enemy." That probably came across the wrong way.
Unfortunately, I was right. "Why would you want to hurt the doctors?" She said, VERY seriously, suddenly in my face.
"I didn't mean it like that, it was a joke, alright?" Making sure I didn't give anything away, as I was somewhat nervous on the inside. It must have shown though, because she chuckled and went back to cooking. I'm losing touch. I really need to harden up again, these ponies are driving me to insanity.
Having eaten, I prepared to go out to the pony doctor's office. Do I need an appointment? I hope not, I wouldn't want to be taking up time that could be spent saving lives. Maybe I shouldn't go.
"Brian, are you ready yet?" I was putting on a new wrapping for my upper arm when Twilight called.
"Hold on, I've got to finish this!" I shouted, hoping she could hear me. I tied off the bandage then grabbed my jacket and ran down the stairs, tripping over the last step. "SON OF A" I got cut off when I faceplanted. "bitch…" I muttered as I got back to my feet.
"Are you alright?"
I'm fine, I just slammed my face into the ground, which somehow makes my back hurt EVEN more. How does that even work anyway? "Yeah, I'm good. Now, where to?"
"You already know that! We're going to the doctors! I just hope you don't scare anypony. Maybe you shouldn't carry that knife"
"NOBODY. TOUCHES. MY KNIFE. Got it?" I said forcefully, my anger raw and real.
"Got it. Ready?" Before I could reply, she opened the door, and I walked out behind her, hoping I wouldn't cause a stir. My fears became realized as I everything just… stopped. I felt multiple eyes on me as I continued to walk behind Twilight. I almost took a red bandanna and tied it around my face so I could hide. Please stop staring… please stop staring… I really don't like this… Should I run? No, I need to do this. I need to do this, I need to do this, I need to do this. I thought, trying to reassure myself that it is necessary for my survival.
"Mommy, what's that?" I heard a child's voice call from the crowd, but I kept walking. There was a slight murmur from the crowd as I hiked to the medical buildings with Twilight.
"Go back inside, Dinky,"
I felt like an animal in a zoo, stared at, always being watched. After what felt like an eternity and then some, we arrived. Treatment inside, however, was no different. The secretary gawked at me as Twilight walked up to her and said "We have an appointment." The pony behind the counter's jaw was practically on the floor as I leaned against a wall nonchalantly. I really hope this doesn't become an all-day affair. "Excuse me? We have, you know, an appointment?" Twilight waved a hoof in the receptionist's face.
"Oh, yes, Twilight Sparkle and… Brain. Bree-an"
"It's Bri-an." I said, taking my que to correct her. Will they EVER get it right the first time? The things I do… maybe I should rethink my life in general.
We walked into a small room, with a table about two feet above the floor. We sat for a long time, before a pony walked in.
"H-hi, I'm Nurse Redheart… um… you must be Brian..." The pony said, the color of her fur reminding me of a lab coat, or the off white that is worn in insane asylums.
"That'd be me, where's the doc?" I replied gruffly, probably scaring the little nurse even more.
"He wasn't able to come in today, so h-here I am. W-what seems to be the p-problem?" she asked, stuttering even more. I'm not that scary, am-oh who am I kidding I probably still look like I just came out of a battlefield.
"We've come to believe that there is an unusual growth on Brian's back, as he reports extreme pain and as far as I can tell the skin is stretched to the point of tearing." Twilight said, tearing the words out of my mouth before I could say them.
"We might want to look at that, could you… you know… take your coat off?" It took me a moment to register what she had said exactly, and suddenly remembered an important detail. I still have my knife on me. I'm wearing a weapon in a hospital. Great, now my first impression's going to come off as a terrorist. I took the jacket off, uncovering the leather bound kukri that was at my side, which I hoped would pass off as nothing. Thankfully, she didn't notice, or if she did, she didn't say anything. "The other top as well." I looked down, and noticed that I was wearing my troop T-shirt. How long have I been wearing this? And how the hell did I not notice that I was wearing it? I took it off, looked down, I noticed that I'd lost weight. Damn, I'm thinner than a rail. I guess that's what happens when you don't eat. Note to self, eat food. "Could you turn around please?" I did as I was told, and I heard a gasp.
"Don't keep me waiting doc, what's the deal?" I said, impatiently.
"While I don't know anything about your anatomy, I'd say this isn't supposed to be here." She replied cryptically.
"What shouldn't be there? Is it a tumor?"
"No… We're going to have to take an x-ray." I guess that was to be expected. This is a hospital after all. We moved down the hall, to an x-ray machine. Unluckily, there wasn't any lead coverings my size.
"I don't know what I should do, most ponies fit in the vest…"
"Got any radiation sickness pills?" I asked, half-jokingly.
"Yes but I don't think that'll suffice. Maybe we've got a bigger vest in the back." Redheart began to walk out into the hall again, but then Twilight called out to her.
"Couldn't you just use Big Macintosh's? I mean, he is the biggest pony around here."
"I don't think we have it, considering we had it only because of the leg injury and it was borrowed, but I'll see." She turned around and rifled through the lead vests again. After a moment, she lifted up a gray vest big enough to cover my torso and then some.
"Not to be mean, but that'd be way too big."
"It doesn't have to fit, it just has to be big enough that it can safely cover most of your body but your back." She said, like she knew everything about medicine. Oh wait, she does know almost everything about medicine. You really are losing it Brian, aren't you?
She took the x-ray, and when the results came in, things weren't looking good.
"Good news and bad news." Nurse Redheart said, with a somewhat worried look on her face.
"Good news first," Twilight and I said simultaneously. "then bad news."
"The good news is, it's not a tumor or a parasite. Bad news is, there is what seems to be bone growth here down to here, as well as considerable muscle mass building."
"So what the hell is growing back there?"
"I… I don't know. However, it doesn't seem to be too much of a problem. The back pain I can prescribe medication for, but I don't know if it will work."
I couldn't help but to shout in a traditional "Left 4 Dead" fashion, remembering the game I'd played at Aidan's.
"GRABBIN' PILLS!"
A/N: Five chapters in, and I'm not out of material. I've been in a hole recently with some writer's block and other schoolwork. The awesome sauce will keep flowing, just keep reading, and as always, PONY ON!
~LazerShaman