Nursing Mistakes

After things calmed down, Blueblood was taken to Ponyville General, where it only took one glance at Princess Celestia to get him moved in and look after immediately. Normally, the princess wouldn't use her position for something like this, especially if there was other ponies with far worse cases, and yet at the moment, she couldn't and wouldn't refuse any special treatment. Her concern for her last blood relative had been taking over her mind, making her unable to pay attention to anything else. She, as well as the elements, Thorax, Spike, and Starlight, were currently in the waiting room of the hospital, wondering when nurse Red Heart would walk through the doors and tell them her professional opinion on the prince's condition.

Celestia, in particular, was just sitting in front of the door as the elements stayed quiet in awkward silence, none of them knowing what to do or even say in this situation. Eventually, Applejack couldn't take it anymore and she decided to break the ice.

"Can anypony please just say something already?" Applejack says, looking around the room yet, no one answered.

"Fine, if nopony is going to say it I will." She tells with a small glare at Twilight "What in the hay just happened Twilight? Who really is New B, and don't you dare tell me that you don't know what I'm talkin' about, because that'll be a bag of manure and you know it!" She tells pointing at the princess.

"Worrying about a colt's in danger, my flank! Ah know when a pony is concerned for her family's and back there was just what I saw."

Starlight just sighs and looks at Twilight with sympathy. "Twilight, I know you asked me to keep quiet, and I want to respect that, but at this point, you might as well just go and tell us. Like AJ said, perhaps other ponies could be fooled with Celestia's act, but we all know her better than that."

"I…I'm sorry I just can't."

"Its ok Twilight." Celestia says turning to the rest of the group. "Applejack has raised a good point and it would be insulting not to tell them now. I only ask that in return all of you, please keep the secret, once you've heard the truth." Celestia asks the group.

They just looked back at her and then smiled with a nod. "Do you really need to ask princess?" AJ mentions.

"Yeah, you can count on us! If you tell us to keep quiet, we'll gladly do it." Dash adds, hovering in the middle of the room.

"Plus, this seems kind of serious if you even ask Twilight to keep it away from us." Fluttershy mentions as well. "I just hope it's nothing too dangerous."

"Honestly darling, I'm a bit offended. Regardless of the secret, I'm not the type of pony that likes to gossip….that's not fashion related." Rarity says, pointing at Rainbow Dash, who seemed like she was about to counter her argument.

Twilight smiles and nods. "Thanks for understanding, and I'm really sorry I couldn't tell you guys, but we just didn't want to risk that this information would get out into the world before he was ready to handle it. A lot of ponies would have loved to use this information to their advantage, and if they do, Equestria could very well be in danger."

"Oh my. That sounds bad." Fluttershy mentions, bringing a hoof to her mouth in surprise.

"It is, because you see..." Twilight looks at Rarity and Applejack, a bit unsure before swallowing hard and proceeding to tell them. "I didn't exactly tell a lie to you, girls. New B. is technically my cousin, my cousin in law at least." She turns to Celestia "As well as being Princess Celestia's nephew."

The color in Rarity's fur drained in horror, as she feared of what Twilight was implying. "No..."

"New B. Blood is actually…"

"No." Rarity says again, as her horror kept growing. AJ's eyes widen in realization, as she starts to piece together everything as well.

"…Blueblood."

"N…!" Rarity almost yells in disgust and horror, but Celestia bubbles her head in a sound cancelling sphere. "Miss Rarity. I understand your surprise from your past experiences with him, but need I remind you this is a hospital?" She ask to her with a small glare, before looking back at the double doors, as Rarity continued her fit. Most likely not even noticing the bubble around her head.

"Oh! I get it now, that's what the 'B' stood for all along, right?" Starlight mentions with a smile before lightly hitting her head. "It was a code. New BlueBlood! Why didn't I see it?"

"The most subtle of hints are the ones that are put right in front of you." Thorax mentions with a smile before getting confused by Rarity's reaction, as he looks over towards Spike. "Did something happen between those two?"

"It's a long story." Spike explains with a sigh. "Let's just say, Rarity had a first-hoof experience with old Blueblood."

"Oh." Thorax nods in understanding once he had heard that.

"You mean to tell us that, that spoiled, snooty, 'too good for good old homemade cooking'. son of a mule, is now that kind, little colt!?" Applejack says in disbelief, glaring at Twilight. "I said that we wanted the truth, Twilight!"

"I'm telling you the truth!" Twilight exclaims. "I swear, all of the stories I told you, it's the complete truth. We don't know what happened, how or when exactly either, but Blueblood just lost all of his memories. When the princess found him, he couldn't even remember how to walk." She states. "And if the nobles find out about this, they'll just swarm him like sharks attracted to blood. They could corrupt him, use him like their personal puppet or worse, make him an even bigger jerk than he already was!"

"An even bigger jerk? But that would be, like two times meanier and jerkier version of him. It'll be like a Worse Second Blueblood!" Pinkie mentions in a panic.

"Exactly, that's why we couldn't risk his condition getting out."

"But why didn't you tell us Twilight?" Applejack looks at her with hurt in her eyes.

"It was my fault Applejack." Celestia says to them. "Like she said, we needed to keep this situation as quiet as possible. Plus, I wanted him to have a real second chance at living in harmony and with friends." She mentions as she looks back at her "Before you tell us how we should have had more faith in you, let me ask you a question. Would you have given him a chance if you ever knew the truth? And before answering just know that even I couldn't believe what was happening either." She mentions turning to look at all of them in the eyes.

Rainbow was the first one to try to retort, but she ultimately couldn't say anything, as she just lowers her hoof and looks at the ground in shame. Soon, the others were doing the same. Even Pinkie Pie wasn't sure of herself, as her mane starts to deflate in guilt. Everypony had a look of guilt about them, minus Thorax, Starlight, and Rarity, the latter just too busy still in her rage fit. All of them just looked down, ashamed to admit it, but the princess' words were right. The prince was something that, after hearing Rarity's story, as well as some sort of encounter with him one way or another, made them all share a common loathsome attitude towards him. So chances were that if Twilight or even the princess were to ask them to give him a chance, they would probably just laugh, thinking she was joking or just downright refuse to.

"That is what I thought." The princess stated before going back to wait.

"Wow, was he really such a horrible pony?" Starlight asks in complete surprise, looking at everypony in the room. "Twilight, what did he do in the past to just be so universally hated? I mean, I virtually destroyed Equestria more than once, enslaved a population, ruined your friendships and tried to brainwash all of you, and yet you could all forgive me almost immediately, after I just said 'I'm sorry.' What did he do, that even that was not enough?"

She didn't know it, but her words were only making their guilt and shame grow ten times in size, making them to feel like they were just monsters. Even Rarity had to stop her ranting for a second when she heard that, before just shaking her head and turning her back in indignation.

Before anyone else could say anything else, the double doors opened, a unicorn mare with a pink mane and tail, white fur, and a nursing hat walking in. Celestia now alerted, she rushed towards her. "How is he?"

She smiles and looks at the Alicorn. "The prince will recover just fine, princess. It was a miracle, but his hoof just has a minor dislocation, so he'll only need to wear a cast on it for a couple of days."

"Oh, thank the stars." Celestia let go of her breath that she didn't know she was holding.

"His rib cage and horn on the other hoof," The nurse continued adopting a more serious expression, "Suffered far more serious injuries. One of his anterior ribs broke, and just by sheer luck didn't pierce anything. He's depleted all of his magic, so he will be forced to wear a dampening horn ring and bed rest until he recovers enough of his energies, and until his body heals properly. That means, no exercise, no magic and no heavy lifting of any kind for a week, and after that just levitation spells until further notice." She explains to the princess and then gives the changeling necklace back.

"Luckily, returning him to normal didn't worsen his conditions but, I'm afraid until he fully recovers, he can no longer wear this. Otherwise, his injuries could reopen. I'm sorry princess." Nurse Red Heart mentioned, causing Celestia to shake her head. "What's important is that he's ok." She says looking at the necklace and then back at the nurse. "Can I see him?"

She nods and steps aside. "Just be careful around him right now, he needs peace and quiet."

Celestia nods and starts to walk inside. "Thank you, nurse Red Heart."

The others followed suit but Red Heart stops them. "Sorry, only family members at the moment."

"I'm his cousin." Twilight mentions but Applejack stops her. "Oh no ya don't! You still have a lot to explain Twilight." AJ says "For now, let the princess go talk with him. We still need to talk about the other things that happened." She says with some worry, which peaked Celestia's attention.

"Do you mind if I come too?" Thorax asks the nurse. " I need to talk with him. Don't worry, I'll be fast." He says.

The nurse is a bit taken aback, but once the princess nods, she stepped aside and let King Thorax in as well. "Thanks."

Once they're gone, Applejack sighs and looks at her friend. "Twilight, did the princess know about the near-death experience?" She mentioned with worry, surprising Starlight.

"Wait, what?!"

In a private room

Looking at the starry night through his window, the prince just sighs before looking at his hoof cast, suspended in a sling.

So much for keeping this body intact

He thought in shame before scratching the ring on his horn.

God, what the hell is this thing and why does it itch so much?

His attention is drawn to the front door when he heard it open, and from it, Princess Celestia and King Thorax walked in. The prince reacts immediately and bows to them as much as he could in a hospital bed. "Your high…"

"You can stop nephew." Celestia stops him using her magic and makes Blueblood look at her. "He knows," She says before her expression turns more serious. "And that's not the subject we need to discuss right now." Her face slowly turns into one of anger as she put the necklace on a nearby table.

"Oh." Blueblood reading the mood as he looks down. "The incident with the plant, aunty I just want to say…"

"Do you have any idea of the scare you just gave me?!" She complains approaching his bed, making him flinch at her reaction, as she starts to pace left and right in front of him. "Practicing behind your teacher's back, trying a complex spell, which by the way, specifically tells you that you need at least two unicorns to perform it correctly and you jump straight away into the most complex type of transformations it can offer, and worst of all, you try it on your own, in a secluded place where nopony could see you. Not only was that extremely irresponsible and dangerous, you could have hurt others. Can you imagine what would have happened if I hadn't been there when that thing came into being?" The princess shook her head and breaths in and out, trying to calm her nerves before continuing. "What do you have to say in your defense, young colt?" She mentions keeping her cold gaze on him.

The prince can only shrink under her gaze and looks down in shame from the scolding. "I'm really sorry, Aunty. I just got curious. Starlight told me that I was making progress pretty fast so I thought that maybe I could try something a bit more advanced, and I thought I could manage something like that."

The princess stopped her glaring, letting out a sigh before sitting on his bed next to him. "Blueblood, look, it's ok for you to be curious about magic and wish to learn more, I even encourage that, but I asked Twilight not to give you advance spells specifically because of this. They are dangerous, and the risk of miscasting is much higher than a regular one." She used her hoof to bring his face up. "You are my precious little nephew, as well as my last distant relative. I'm worried for your well being, Blueblood. That's why I sent you here in the first place, if something had happened to you I would be devastated." She mentioned with worry, bringing him into a hug using her wings and hooves. "That's why I want you to promise me that you will never do something as dangerous and reckless as this ever again."

The prince felt terrible, as the sentence provoked a mental conflict in him. Here he was, being loved by a pony he felt he was tricking. The sensation of being cared for was something alien, and, at the same time, welcoming to him. The unconditional love she was giving, the comfort of her wings, the harsh yet fair words only a family member could give. All of that and more made him feel both very happy and guilty at the same time, as he hugged her back. "Aunty, I-I'm really sorry."

"Promise me." Celestia repeats herself, sensing how he was dodging her words until she felt him nod on her stomach.

"I promise, I will not do something like that again. I'll just be patient and let my training go at its proper pace."

"That's the only thing I wanted to hear." Celestia relaxed and let him go. "Yet, I'm afraid you will not get out of this mess so easily, nephew." She mentions more relaxed yet still stern.

"What?" He asks in surprise and fear.

"Starting tomorrow, you will have an escort of two guards with you at all times.",she proclaims in determination. "Not only that, but now, you are prohibited from playing outside with your friends until you are fully healed."

"What? But aunty-"

"Don't, 'but aunty' me, mister." She says, stern once more. "I gave you freedom and you abused it, so if you want it back, you will have to earn it. So one more complaint and I will hold your hoof and drag you around with me, everywhere that I go, for a month. Are we clear?"

The prince sighs in defeat. "Yes aunty."

Celestia smiles and stands up. "It will just be temporary and it's mostly for my own peace of mind, nephew." She says to him in a calm voice, bringing his attention. "The doctor said that, due to your injury, you can't do too much exercise and can't do any kind of heavy lifting for a while anyway, so all of this will just be a precaution. I know that you can be patient, and this will only teach you to be more careful."

"I-I understand aunty, I promise to be more careful from here on out."

"That's what I like to hear." She mentions with a satisfied smile.

The prince, at that moment, realized something.

"Aunty, what's going to happen, now that we can't keep this secret anymore?"

"There's no need for you to worry about it. I already had something in mind for that. For now," The princess look back at her companion, "There's someone I would like you to meet dear, a friend of us that was kind enough, to help us in our time of need. I only wish the situation would have been more favourable." She told Blueblood as he looked to the changeling in the room approaching the two.

"Hi" he simply waves at them with a smile. "My name is Thorax, it's very nice to finally meet you Blueblood."

"It's very nice to meet you too, Thorax." He says trying to be more friendly before getting intrigued by a passing thought."By any chance are you Ocellus' dad?"

That comment makes Thorax laugh and shake his head. "Oh no, she's just one of my subjects but don't worry about offending me. Due to my height, its a common mistake"

"Subject?" His eyes wide in realization "Then that would mean…" He looks back at Celestia who just nods. "Nephew, I want you to meet King Thorax, ruler of the changelings."

Blueblood's eyes widen, and he's about to bow again when Thorax stops him.

"Ah, you don't need to do that prince. We're all royals here." He exclaims.

"Sorry." Blueblood mentions with some embarrassment.

"Nephew, the race of the changelings are the ones responsible for making that necklace that helped us." Celestia explains pointing at say artifact.

"Wait, they made the necklace?"

"That's right, one of our best creations, capable of copying our famous ability," He says, before engulfing himself in a green fire and turning into an exact copy of Celestia down to her voice. "Shapeshifting." He announces before changing back.

"Wow." That's the only thing Blueblood could say, in surprise "Does that hurt?"

"Oh not at all, it's like when you unicorns used magic from your horns, this kind of things is just simply something that we can do." Thorax explain.

"Thorax and I were planning a story for you to use when you return to Canterlot, a way to help you reintroduce you into society, without any risk of the nobility taking advantage of your situation."

"We have been known for being the masters of infiltration ever since our creation. Long story, I'll tell you later." He raises his hoof before the prince could ask "So when the princess herself told us that we could use those abilities to help, I was more than happy to give her a hoof. We only needed to discuss the plan with you, take a couple of pictures and then you simply needed to play along and see how well we do our magic" Thorax mentions with a small degree of pride.

"Unfortunately, that plan kind of got derailed now." Celestia says with a sigh.

Feeling responsible, Blueblood just looks down like he just broke Celestia's favorite tea set. "I'm sorry."

"It doesn't matter at this point." Thorax shake his head. "And hey, all is not lost. We can still think of something else, perhaps we could save some of the plans, and try something different."

"Something different…" The prince has an idea and looks back at them. "Maybe this is not a complete loss."

That grabs both of their attention. "What do you mean?"

"What was the original plan? Maybe I just messed it up, but if there is something I have learned living here is that I can adapt to the situation." He tells them with confidence.

God I'm going to hate myself to play the business game once more, but if I can use it to solve this problem, then so be it!

"Blueblood I don't think we could still do…" Celestia tells him but the prince interrupt her

"Please aunty, at least let me try. I dragged you both into this mess, now let me fix it."

The two blink in surprise before looking at one another until they agree. "Ok, here is what we got." Thorax commences explaining.


Chapter 18, 19 and 20 will be posted, on the 5 of september of this week but for anyone that wish to read it early you can visit my page on ko-fi ( link to the page on the profile page ) . And if you wish to gave a donation it will be more than well receive thanks!