/bootleg/ - "Defective" by Red (Lyra orders a bootleg human)


                                            >You are Lyra Heartstrings.

                                            >And this... is the day when you will finally receive your long awaited My Big Human android - a perfectly life-like biomechanical robot, created by Magitech Industries.

                                            >Or... rather, you will receive a second-hoof, used model.

                                            >Being a musician in a country where over 80% of the inhabitants have great singing voice or musical skills, well, it does not pay that well.

                                            >Regardless, it's time, the delivery cart is in front of your house, and from your vantage point in the window you can already see the delivery ponies unloading a large wooden crate, larger than you are!

                                            >Excitedly, you rush outside, jumping in place, barely registering one of the delivery ponies asking you to sign a form.

                                            >Quickly scribbling your signature there, you lift the heavy crate with your magic, and after some struggle you successfully bring it inside your home, yelling a happy ‘thank you’ at the delivery ponies.

                                            >Now, being a My Big Human fan in your gender and age is not unheard of, although society does not necessarily agree with or like it.

                                            >You however, are way beyond that, a ‘Server Administrator’ with your power level beyond 9000!

                                            >Those jokes fly a mile above the heads of anyone not familiar with the show, but you don’t care.

                                            >Using your magic again, you peel off the top of the crate and, rearing up on your hind legs, you peer inside.

                                            >On the bottom of the crate, on top of a fair amount of soft hay is a big figure lying, in a fetal pose.

                                            >He is only wearing the plainest of blue jeans, a pair of white socks and a plain white shirt.

                                            >It’s him.

                                            >It really /is/ him!

                                            >Your grin is accompanied with a gleeful squeak as you admire over your new companion and bestest friend!

                                            >You are looking at Anon, the ‘main protagonist’ of the Man 6!

                                            >You thought about actually getting Incognito - the cool guy of the group, his shades, hat and trench coat is only making him more cool beyond his personality - but decided against it at the last moment, reasoning that Anon’s quirkiness fits you better.

                                            >You are broken out of your moment of joy by Anon stirring, then sitting up.

                                            >He stretches, yawns, then looks around, his emerald green eyes meeting with yours.

                                            >”Hello there! I’m Anon, who are you?” he asks, smiling warmly.

                                            >It takes you a serious amount of self control to not just jump in the crate and hug the biomechanical soul out of him!

                                            >You get yourself together and answer.

                                            “Hi! I’m Lyra, and I’m your new best friend!”

                                            >Anon’s expression changes as you say those last three words, his eyes narrow.

                                            >”Is this a trick? Did Incognito hire you to prank me?” he asks, standing up.

                                            >Wew, he is BIG!

                                            >Well, it’s My /Big/ Human for a reason.

                                            “No, no trickery here, just good old me, Lyra Heartstrings!” you reply to him as you look up at his towering form.

                                            >You are already thinking about all the different kind of clothes and accessories you could buy him, the things you could do with him, the time you will spend with him… only to gasp and jump back as Anon falls to his side, overturning the box.

                                            >The wooden crate, along with its former inhabitant, falls on its side, sending some hay and Anon on the floor with a loud smack.

                                            >”Owwie…” he quietly whines, lying on his side.

                                            >You are quick to get there and look him over for any damage… uh, injuries.

                                            “Are you okay? What’s hurt? How did you fall?”

                                            >”I don’t know… I just stood up and then I wasn’t standing up anymore,” he replies with a frown, then pushes himself up into a sitting pose.

                                            >You look him over again but see no external injuries.

                                            “You look fine to me, but why did you fall then?...” you wonder, pulling up his shirt and poking his side.

                                            >”Hehehe, that tickles!” he giggles, then gently slaps at your inquisitive hoof, “Stop touching me!”

                                            >It’s Anon alright, he would do and say exactly that.

                                            >But what’s wrong then?

                                            “Can you please stand up?” you ask him, gaining an idea about what could be wrong.

                                            >Anon nods and complies, pushing himself up on his two feet.

                                            >As soon as he is standing up straight, you notice him leaning to the left, then fall there.

                                            >Prepared, you catch him with your magic.

                                            >”Wow, wow, what?” he yelps as you keep him in place.

                                            “You… you can’t keep your balance?” you ask him, suddenly feeling heartbroken.

                                            >Anon shrugs, looking down at his legs and feet.

                                            >You cease your magic…. And he promptly falls to the left, only to be caught by your magic again.

                                            >You received a faulty human.

                                            >It explains why his price was half off.

                                            >”I-I think I will just sit down…” he mutters, doing as he said.

                                            >As you contemplate your next steps, you notice that he is looking at you with his sad, emerald eyes.

                                            >He looks genuinely sad, as if he has failed you, despite only knowing you for a short few minutes.

                                            >You can’t stand that look, it’s too much.

                                            >Before he could see you tear up, you step closer to him and hug him.

                                            >Anon’s arms softly wrap around you a moment later, his right hand petting your mane.

                                            >You feel more broken with each comforting pet.

                                            >The fact that he is hugging you close a couple seconds later making it all worse, you can feel his scent now, too.

                                            >Just like the scented dolls of him, he smells like that green apple scented car freshener tree.

                                            >Typical Anon.

                                            >It makes your decision about him even more difficult, and with it, you feel more heartbroken.


                                            >...


                                            >You are Anon, the sometimes reckless but otherwise reliable and totally funny leader of your group of ‘friends’!

                                            >After dreams of cold and loud, you wake up in a crate, looking at a small, minty green thing looking at you with gleeful golden eyes.

                                            >You introduce yourself and ask her - it’s a she, you can tell that much - who she is, but when she tells you that she is your new best friend, you can’t help but think Incognito is tricking you again.

                                            >You stand up to see where he could be hiding, just to pull out his trademark camera with a picture of a confused you snapped at the worst moment.

                                            >But… something is wrong.

                                            >Suddenly the direction of the room changes and you find yourself on the floor.

                                            >Your entire left side hurts, but this Lyra is helping you.

                                            >She looks nice.

                                            >Certainly nicer than Hidden when he gets drunk.

                                            >Then she pokes your side.

                                            >You slap her hoof away but you kinda like her touch.

                                            >She asks you to stand up again… and once more, the direction of the room changes.

                                            >But she catches you!

                                            >Then asks if you can keep your balance, but her question sound rhetorical., so you just shrug, trying to see if something is wrong with your legs.

                                            >/Again/ the room’s direction changes and you feel that warm tingly on your side.

                                            >Lyra is stopping from meeting the floor with your face!

                                            >You like her more, but a bad feeling is welling up inside you.

                                            >The look on her face makes it worse, so you tell her that you will just sit down.

                                            >As you sit there, you see her expression changing more, right until she looks like she is about to cry.

                                            >Then she hugs you, so you do the only sensible thing: you start petting her mane.

                                            >You don’t know why, but you have a faint but persistent feeling of failure towards your new best friend.

                                            >It makes you feel like a failure, the one your dad always believed you to be.

                                            >Feels bad, man.

                                            >But at least Lyra is nice, she’s hugging you, and not trying to steal your wallet, like Hidden would.

                                            >You realize, you must do everything in your power to keep her.

                                            >Or rather, for her to keep... you?

                                            >A white mesh of memories float in your mind, coming to a blank when you try to remember how you got here.

                                            >Deeming it unimportant, you continue to pet Lyra’s mane like a best friend would and hug her closer.

                                            >You’ll have to fill those shoes now, whatever it takes.


                                            >...


                                            >Guiding Anon around the house so he can learn the layout was not as bad as you have expected.

                                            >Getting yourself to the point that you can’t just discard him was more difficult than you have imagined.

                                            >Reading the guide about these magitech androids you found in his crate gave you enlightenment: they behave like the real deal would, however they are still bound by a logic matrix, as well as an initiation, which binds them to their new owner.

                                            >In other words, you are stuck with your defective best friend now.

                                            >Setting him up on your couch was the next obvious thing you could think of, so you did that and now you’re standing in front of him.

                                            “Alright Anon, how do you feel?” you ask him, trying to keep up a happy facade despite those bad feelings gnawing at you from the inside.

                                            >”I’m good... I guess. What’ is happening now?”

                                            >He sounds so innocent, it breaks your heart even more.

                                            >With a sigh you think about the plans you’ve made before saying anything.

                                            “I need to go out for a bit, but I’ll come back soon, alright?” you reply and pat his left knee reassuringly.

                                            >”Alright. I’ will be here then, I guess,” he answers, adorably pouting.

                                            >You can barely fight off this Level 3 Hnng, but manage to do it in the end.

                                            “I’ll be back soon, I promise!” you tell him again and make your way out of the room and the house as fast as you can without breaking into a gallop.

                                            >How long you’ll be able to do this, you have no idea.


                                            >...


                                            >Trotting on the streets of Ponyville hasn’t been this stressful in forever, you realize.

                                            >You shouldn’t worry, yet, you act like you are carrying some MBH merchandise in see-through bags.

                                            >Never again.

                                            >Thankfully you find the person-uh, pony you were looking for with relative ease.

                                            >Twilight Sparkle, the one and only librarian of the town, living in the very Golden Oaks Library-tree she is working in.

                                            >Disgusting thoughts of the thing blowing up and getting replaced by some crystalline abomination to sell more merchandise flashes through your mind, but you quickly dismiss it.

                                            >Who would do that if real life was a TV show for children?

                                            >It’s almost like saying Twilight would receive wings and turn into an alicorn just because she is the protegé of Princess Celestia, and solved some ridiculous riddle!

                                            >No, you don’t have time for such nonsense.

                                            >Reaching the door of the library you knock and come in - you shouldn’t really knock, it’s a public library.

                                            >Eh, manners, you have them.

                                            >Finding one of the only two purple things in the library of warm wooden colors is easy: Twilight is sitting on a bean cushion, reading a book about astral physics.

                                            >As you reach her, you notice that she has something else lying on the opened book, something way thinner and printed on a different kind of paper.

                                            >It’s the latest MBH magazine - you can recognize it, you also have it.

                                            “Sup Twilight, whatcha reading?” you practically yell at the dork, loving to see her flustered reaction.

                                            >”Gaaah, Lyra! You scared me!” she replies, haphazardly closing /only the magazine,/ showing you exactly what it is.

                                            “You’re still bad at hiding your little secret, sister,” you tell her, pointing at the magazine’s cover, putting extra weight on the word ‘sister.’

                                            >She knows exactly what you mean, and with a frown she opens said magazine at where she was interrupted.

                                            >”Yes, well, ponies usually don’t sneak up on me.”

                                            “Uh-huh. I need your help.”

                                            >Twilight looks up from her reading, arching a curious eyebrow.

                                            >”Help? My help?” She narrows her eyes before continuing, “For what reason, Lyra? The last time you needed my ‘help’ was to tell ponies that the human toys you bought were for me.”

                                            >The memory of that is a fond one for you, embarrassed Twilight is adorkable.

                                            “No, no, I mean it. You see, I bought this second hand Anondroid…”

                                            >You would continue but Twilight interrupts you.

                                            >”You… you what? You have Anon from the show? The life sized model from Magitech?!” she asks you with the enthusiasm of a true collector.

                                            “Y-yes, but listen, he is defective! I need your help to fix him!

                                            >Twilight immediately quiets down, her expression falling.

                                            >”Define defective,” she tells you, the usual business like expression appearing on her face.

                                            “Well…”

                                            >You proceed to explain Anon’s fault to her.

                                            >A few minutes later the two of you are trotting back to your house.


                                            >...


                                            >You are Anon and you are sitting on a comfy couch.

                                            >Lyra showed you around her place - real nice if not a size smaller than what you would be comfortable in - and you ended up here on her couch.

                                            >Walking and standing is still a no-no, the world won’t stop changing directions when you try that.

                                            >Sitting on the couch is fine though, and whenever the world’s directions are attempting on your life, you can just stabilize yourself with a well placed hand on the couch.

                                            >Time passes and by the time you would feel like doing something, you hear some noises from where Lyra left the house.

                                            >”-ember, I’m not sure if I can do anything, so don’t get your hopes too high,” says a different voice from Lyra’s. Sounds like a nerd’s.

                                            >”Okay-okay, just… Just do it!” Responds Lyra, you feel your lips curl up into a smile upon hearing her.

                                            >A moment later you see Lyra and not-Lyra enter the room.

                                            >This not-Lyra looks like her, except she has different colors and haircut.

                                            >She walks up to you, her eyes darting all around you frantically, and before you could do more than a few confused blinks, she jumps and hugs you!

                                            “L-Lyra, what’s going on?” you ask confusedly but gently wrap your arms around not-Lyra and pet her mane.

                                            >”Anon, this is Twilight, she is here to help,” she tells you, to which you nod.

                                            “Help with what?”

                                            >Your question is welcomed with both of them snickering.

                                            >”Like the original one, told you,” says Lyra to Twilight before answering you. “With your balance. Twilight /might/ be able to fix it.”

                                            >Balance.

                                            >Oh, right, the whole directions thing!

                                            >Yes, that’s good.

                                            “Yes, that’s good. How will she do it?”

                                            >Instead of answering Twilight pulls out of your hug and takes a closer look at the left side of your head.

                                            >”No idea. Twilight?” Lyra asks her and sits down in front of you.

                                            >”I’m running diagnostics… just… be quiet, okay?” Twilight replies before her horns starts glowing

                                            >You feel a funny feeling in your head.

                                            >Then the world goes dark around you.


                                            >...


                                            >Dealing with advanced magic, namely a rune based logic matrix, is not the easiest thing ever.

                                            >In fact, it’s quite a challenging task to do; doing as much as running a diagnostics on it is already straining you.

                                            >The fact that Lyra is screaming in your ear does not help either, so you quickly shove her away with a well placed hoof.

                                            “Stop screaming, he is not alive, this is basic diagnostics!” you growl at her, making your panicked unicorn friend actually quiet down.

                                            >With this little silence you earned, you, Twilight Sparkle, can finally properly concentrate on controlling the diagnostic spell routines.

                                            >Seeing the faintly glowing outline of the runes within Anon’s head, you engage the diagnostics spell.

                                            >A warm tingling sensation spreads from the base of your horn, travelling through your entire body before dissipating entirely, making you shudder.

                                            >The runes in Anon’s head and body all shine up, only visible to you, allowing you to quickly find one that lacks the faint glow.

                                            >Unfortunately it’s deep within the construct, you have no idea how to reach it without harming Anon - exterior and runes alike.

                                            >The only thing you can try is channeling some energy in it, perhaps the rune somehow short circuited itself?..

                                            >A loud zapping sound fills the room for a moment before you are literally thrown back and away from the couch Anon is sitting on.

                                            >You land on your rump, quite uncomfortably.

                                            >”Twilight! Oh gosh, what happened? Are you alright?” Lyra asks, immediately by your side, helping you up.

                                            “I’m fine, and I even found the culprit, but can’t fix it. That specific rune is too deep within him, too enclosed by other parts, I can’t possibly replace it. Not alone,” you explain to her, frowning sadly.

                                            >Lyra visibly deflates at that.

                                            >”So he is going to be this… broken? Is there no other way to fix him?”

                                            “I…. I don’t know. I think I can find something in my library, Anon’s systems are based on rune magic…” you reply, sighing, knowing already that it won’t work, “Or-or I can bring him in a Magitech service?” you offer then, smiling awkwardly.

                                            >Lyra’s pained expression tells you without words that she does not have the funds to do that.

                                            >Without any other alternatives, you flick a simple ‘turn on’ command in Anon’s diagnostics, ending your connection and waking him up.

                                            >Lyra quietly thanks you before climbing up on her couch, resting her head on Anon’s lap.

                                            >Seeing your friend in this state makes you feel terrible, especially because you can’t exactly help her.

                                            “I…. I should go…” you tell her and leave her home.


                                            >...


                                            >You wake up with a jolt.

                                            >Your insides feel funny, tingling with energy, like that time when you drank the coffee Incognito made you, replacing the water with an energy drink.

                                            >You saw noises for the rest of the day after that; wasn’t so funny to you, especially when the rest of your gang began to play on a kazoo.

                                            >105 Octane nightmare fuel.

                                            >Now, however, it just goes away and you see no noises.

                                            >What you do see however, is Lyra, her head on your lap.

                                            >Instinctively, you reach there with your left hand and start petting her mane.

                                            >She does not push her head against your palm, which is strange to you.

                                            >Tilting your head, you take a better look at her, then around the room.

                                            >Twilight is nowhere to be found, and Lyra is not reacting to you, but… you see something in the corner of her eyes.

                                            >Leaning to the right you get a better look: those are tears.

                                            >Why is she crying?

                                            >You can’t imagine the reason.

                                            “Lyra? Are you alright? You… you aren’t crying, right?” you ask her and wrap your hands around her midsection, lifting her up.

                                            >She just sadly looks into your eyes as you place her on your lap, sitting her down.

                                            “Lyra?” you ask her again, feeling a sad frown forming on your own face.

                                            >She shakes her head after a few long seconds, leaning in for a hug.

                                            >”It’s… f-fine, things are alright. Everything’s fine,” she tells you but her tone of voice says the opposite.

                                            >You are a good friend however, so you just agree with her.

                                            “Alright. Where did Twilight go?”

                                            >”Back home.”

                                            “Are we going to meet her again?”

                                            >She doesn’t reply for another couple, long second.

                                            >”Yes, yes we are.”

                                            “Okay, cool,” you respond and start caressing her back.

                                            >You don’t know why she is sad, but you are doing your darn best comforting your bestest friend.


                                            >...


                                            >Reading old tomes about rune magic is excruciating.

                                            >Not only because the entire material is dryer than the Badlands, but also because the language it’s written in, despite using the same words as your own language, still sounds like a completely different one!

                                            >You are one very knowledgeable unicorn, but this feels like something above your paygrade.

                                            >However, leaving a friend hanging, especially one as old as Lyra, isn’t an option either.

                                            >You are Twilight Sparkle, protegé of Princess Celestia herself, and apparently the Element of Magic - whatever that might entail for you in the future.

                                            >You won’t stand back from this challenge, even if it will break your back!

                                            >Only when the sun comes up in the morning you realize that you’ve been staring at the same diagram for several hours, trying to figure out the correlation between the function of a logic switch and a capacitor crystal.

                                            >Your brain feels as if it’s burned out, you are forced to cease studying.

                                            “S-*cough*-Spike!” you call out, finally feeling how dry your mouth became.

                                            >For a few moments you can only hear the wall clock’s ticking, then a sleepy groan answers you.

                                            >”No… I don’t wanna go to school, mom...” Spike is not quite awake yet, but it still doesn’t explain it to you: how and why would he say these things?

                                            >He has never received any schooling - besides your own homeschooling - and you were always a big sister kind of figure to him, not a mother.

                                            >Dismissing these thoughts you call out for him again.

                                            “Spike, wake up! I need your assistance!” you half yell, then a moment later add the keyword, ”Please!”

                                            >With a groan Spike pushes him up from his basket, staring at you with mildly annoyed, sleepy eyes, black circles clearly visible around them.

                                            >”Fine. What do you need? Breakfast? Quill and ink? A letter to Princess Celestia?” he lists the most likely possibilities, crossing his arms before his chest.

                                            “Breakfast would be lovely, however I need your help in delivering a message, uhm, claw to hoof,” you explain.

                                            >”Uh-huh, and to whom exactly?” he asks, arching a scaly eyebrow.

                                            >You can guess that he is not entirely happy with being woken up early just to be sent on an errand his big sister could very much do herself.

                                            “Nurse Redheart. She will know what to do… I hope. And if not, well…” you trail off, frowning.

                                            >”Right, right, just write the letter. I’ll get ready now,” he responds, and with that he walks to the bathroom.

                                            >You give him an apologetic look, but quickly get to composing said letter to Redheart.

                                            >Writing has never been as difficult as it is right now.


                                            >...


                                            >Spending your first day with Anon seemed different in your mind when you first envisioned it.

                                            >Then again, real life is rarely living itself up to your expectations, which led to you expecting less and less, still somehow feeling let down after each time.

                                            >With your constant help - giving great strain to you - you can make Anon walk around, and he seems comfortable in your home, so you can say that despite your killing headache and continuously increasing tiredness, you have had fun interacting with him.

                                            >For a few fleeting moments you even forgot that he is defective, his reactions, the way he talks and generally behaves, it all perfectly mirrors how he is in the show.

                                            >Of course, the magic is broken when your grip around him slips and he literally slips, falling face first on the floor.

                                            >You are sure, if your heart was a gem, it would be in a million little pieces.

                                            >At least he is the same great cuddler you expected him to be, with the exception of that he is not cuddling a pillow, but you.

                                            >The morning of the next day after his arrival is mostly spent with you drinking waaay too much coffee and Anon trying to move around in the kitchen while firmly sitting on one of your chairs.

                                            >Quite comical, especially because the chairs you have are child sized compared to him.

                                            >However, you know deep inside that you can’t keep this up, having him like this will drain and break you, in more than one way.

                                            >It’s almost noon when finally something (unexpected) happens, breaking you away from your moping, which Anon just can’t fix despite his best efforts.

                                            >A series of knocks echo through the house, taking your attention and stopping Anon from trying to reach the top of the fridge while sitting.

                                            >”Oh? Are you expecting some visitors? Uhh, tell them I just left,” he tells you, frowning (or pouting?..) in an adorable, comical way.

                                            “No, I… I don’t think they are looking for you, Anon,” you reply, shaking your head.

                                            >”Oh okay. But if they do, then… I am not here!” he says and grins, then scoots behind the kitchen table, leaning forward to hide himself.

                                            >Still very visible.

                                            >With a little chuckle and shake of your head, you leave him be, going for the front door.

                                            >To your honest surprise the pony on the other side is Nurse Redheart, carrying some sort of package on her back.

                                            >Before you could react to her, Twilight, who was previously out of view, speaks up, interrupting you.

                                            >”Lyra! I’ve come up with a solution! Nurse Redheart here was kind enough to offer some, uh, ‘tools’ to solve Anon’s lack of a sense of balance problem!” she explains awkwardly, grinning in an equivalently awkward way.

                                            >Redheart just rolls her eyes.

                                            >”I am merely delivering a crutch for a friend in need, Miss Sparkle. The solution is all yours,” the good old nurse responds, rolling her eyes.

                                            >She is a humble one, not like Coldheart.

                                            “Uhh… o-okay? Come in?”

                                            >Both mares enter your home, Nurse Redheart with curiosity, Twilight with the same awkward grin, which you react to with a grimace, promptly stopping her from doing it.

                                            “I’ll get Anon, one moment,” you tell them as the three of you reach your living room.

                                            >With both of them responding in the affirmative, you trot in the kitchen, finding Anon /under/ the table, blinking at you with wide, innocent eyes.

                                            >”It wasn’t me, I swear. Incognito is framing me!” he quietly tells you, making you almost unable to stop yourself from breaking out in laughter.

                                            >You keep yourself together though, just smiling and shaking your head.

                                            “No Anon, you did nothing wrong. Remember Twilight from yesterday? She is back, with help!” you explain to him, with actual hope in your tone of voice!

                                            >This hope you feel, is it going to be true or false, you don’t dare to think about it just yet.

                                            >”Phew, for a moment I thought… Alright, I’m going,” he replies and crawls out from under the table, gets up on his hands and knees… then falls on his side, “Oh, right. Help?”

                                            >With a forced smile you envelop his torso with your magical grip and help him stand up.

                                            >Doing this is making your headache worse.

                                            >Thankfully getting in the living room and leading him to sit on the couch is done quickly, and since he is already on the couch, you decide to join him.

                                            >While you were in the kitchen, Twilight and Nurse Redheart opened the package the latter carried, presenting Anon and you with a wooden/metallic crutch.

                                            >It’s not your everyday crutch though, not made for ponies, no.

                                            >It’s for bipeds, like the minotaurs, but also much longer: minotaurs, despite being bipedal, are still one and a half, two heads shorter than Anon on average.

                                            >Ponies are especially little compared to him.

                                            >The crutch Twilight is giving to Anon was built with this in mind, fitting him quite well.

                                            >Anon, first hesitantly, takes the tool offered to him, then attempts to stand up.

                                            >He is immediately starting to fall to a side, but his reflexes kick in and he stops his fall with the crutch… but only momentarily.

                                            >Twilight saves him from an unnecessary fall, helping him back on the couch.

                                            >As you feel your hopes slipping away again, Nurse Redheart shakes her head, speaking up.

                                            >”Miss Sparkle, did you, by any chance, forget to activate the enchantment on the crutch?” she asks, arching an eyebrow as she looks at Twilight.

                                            >”Uhh… maybe?” Twilight replies, smiling sheepishly.

                                            >With a flash of her horn, the crutch is encased in her purple magical aura, its surface starting to glow for a few moments before returning to normal.

                                            >”Okay Anon, try it now,” Twilight instructs, holding the crutch for him again.

                                            >With a nod, Anon takes it and does the same process of standing up, losing his balance, using the crutch to stabilize himself, then… oh.

                                            >He stands up straight, slightly leaning on the crutch, looking at the three of you with a genuinely surprised expression.

                                            >”Hey, it works! What did you do to it, Twilight?” he asks, grinning.

                                            >”I applied a modified binding spell on it. Unless you intentionally pull it away from the ground, it will stand still! Although, the spell needs to be renewed every three days, approximately,” she explains, and as she does, Anon takes a few, cautious steps around the room, still grinning.

                                            “W-wow… you… you fixed it! Well, kinda, but still!” you speak up, staring at your bestest friend happily strolling around, “Thank you Twilight!” you exclaim and jump into a hug, making Twilight awkwardly pat your back.

                                            >”Don’t just thank me, without Nurse Redheart’s help we wouldn’t have the custom made crutch,” she tells you, earning a warm smile from Redheart.

                                            >”Don’t mention it, it’s the least I can do. Keeping ponies healthy doesn’t only mean physical health, it’s also about making them happy, and this is making Miss Heartstrings happy,” Redheart humbly waves it off but continues to smile.

                                            “But… no, I must repay you, both of you, tell me what should I do!” you almost frantically tell them, letting Twilight go.

                                            >The two mares exchange a knowing look between each other, with Twilight ending up telling you the ‘price’.

                                            >”Learn how to cast the spell. You will always find ponies who could use such enchanted tools in their recovery.”

                                            “Oh… is that it?”

                                            >”As far as I know, yes.”

                                            >You are amazed by the kindness of both of them, so before they could react, you pull them into a group hug.

                                            >”Whatcha girls doin’?” Anon asks, seeing the group hug, “Oh, wait, let me do it too!” he chirps, letting go of the crutch and…


                                            >There really are happy endings, after all.