This was overdue, so very overdue. It was overdue the minute that the herd meeting had ended – the minute that she had realized Res had left the meeting. Things had happened so fast but she knew what her first step needed to be. There were things for her to do, meetings to be called and jobs to be found, but all of that could – and needed to – wait until she did this. She was going to have to find Res and talk to her. Had her friend stepped down? Or was this a decision made by Kahlua and Kaj? It didn’t sit well with Aly. She loved being able to heal, loved being helpful, and she knew that Res did too.

Before the questions consumed her, Aly knew how to make them stop. All she had to do was ask!

The plan was to spend the day looking for the little mare and her fiery dragon. Hemlock had already taken shelter beneath her folded wings. The little owl was furious at Aly for having so many friends with companions that wanted to make a snack out of him. Why couldn’t they all be like that pretty bird Mikey had? No, they were all dangerous and they were all trying to eat him. It was ridiculously rude and clearly his bonded needed to stop hanging out with these mares but, for whatever reason, she kept seeking them out.

Like now. It was easy to pick the first place to start – Alysanne picked her way towards the herb garden that Res loved so much. There was little to do there in the winter but when had that stopped them from spending as much time there as they could? She might have sent Hemlock around to see if he could spot the healer but he remained firmly beneath the soft white feathers. No, she’d gladly take all the time in the world to find Res – whatever it took. She needed to make sure her friend was okay.


@[Resplendence], @[Abba]

An uneasy feeling in Alysanne’s stomach as Resplendence acknowledged her with nothing more than a mutter and then resumed her work. She had been wrong – there was work to do in the garden and, of course, its caretaker was hard at work as always. Not that she needed a great big welcome, Alysanne would be happy to spend a day in easy silence with her friend. But this wasn’t really that sort of silence, was it? “Hello Res.” The pegasus offered in her usual cheerful voice, wondering if that might help. She looked for the dragon but he was not around – though this did little to encourage Hemlock out of his hiding spot. That tricky reptile would come snooping around soon enough, he thought.

Attention returned to Res, this was why she was here. Sweet Res, please do not be mad at her! Alysanne would hand over her charge in a heartbeat if it was what was asked of her – if that would fix what had been broken. She loved to fix things, loved to heal and be the maker of patches. But she was getting ahead of herself. Maybe that wasn’t what was on the gardener’s mind though. Maybe there was something else? Were the nightmares still around? Uncertainty caused her to shift uncomfortably. “I can leave…” She started to offer before cutting herself off. No, she’d at least make an attempt first. Taking a deep breath she did just that. “Are you alright, dear?” The apologies that were just bursting to get through her were stopped by her caution.

She had her suspicions and her worries but silly Alysanne always hoped that there was another reason. She couldn’t even remember the last time someone had been angry with her, after all. It was not a logical assumption for her to make.

Valiance swung down from the sky, letting out clicking noises of distaste in the process. His claws snatched up each of the weeds which Res had yanked from the ground and carefully deposited them in a ring of stones. Then, he would fly off again and return with pieces of wood to add to the pile. When he deemed it sufficient enough he let out a puff of fire, igniting the kindling and slowly spreading to the thicker pieces of wood.

She had, for the most part, ignored the hello which had fallen from Alysanne's lips, though when she still hadn't left her eyes carefully pulled their way up toward the painted one and eyed the wings. Warmth from the fire near her garden kept her from chilling down to the bone as she whispered through the bond, "Valiance, I need you," Within a few seconds, he was curled up a top her poll in a sign of support for the pallid mare.

Finally, though, Alysanne spoke. She asked if Res was alright after cutting herself off with the option of leaving. So many things ran through her head. She didn't know if she should explain, or just sit there quietly and try and have Aly work it out herself.

Alas, the mare was too broken to figure anything out, and so she allowed the words to begin to pool from her maw. "The nightmares haven't stopped. But I'm getting used to little amount of sleep I've been receiving." she says with the anger still lingering upon her maw. "They took everything away. I thought we were family. I thought I was doing well. I thought I was finally helping. Now I can't heal anyone. I can't do anything. All I can do is sit here and weed a herb garden that seems to just go to waste. And you. You have everything. You have the only thing I've been able to do to help my family since I joined. The only thing I've ever been remotely good at," she chokes, tears coming to her eyes.

"I'm useless," she sobs, backing up a few strides, to get out of her garden to so that she didn't accidentally trample on any of the herbs. She was useless and Alysanne, Kahlua, and Kaj were everything anyone could have ever wanted.

That hatred? It turned to nothing but sadness...

i don't want you to leave, will you hold my hand

The explanation came and it wasn’t entirely surprising. The anger was there, but it faded soon enough to sadness. In instinct, upon seeing a friend in pain, a step was taken but Alysanne stopped there – not wanting to upset her friend even more. She would wait for a sign that her touch would be welcomed before doing so. “I’m so sorry.” Came the whisper, still unable or unwilling to speak any louder. But what good was just an apology? If she wasn’t going to rush forward and hold Res like she was so itching to do – that mothering instinct kicking in – but she could try to talk this out. It hurt that she was partially to blame for the strife affecting Res but what hurt more was just seeing the sadness that was there.

So settling in and making sure that she wouldn’t move unless she knew it would be okay, Alysanne tried to explain – her voice soft and her eyes sad. “Please believe me, I didn’t want to be the only Moon Doctor - not without you. You have so much more knowledge than me, more experience. I’m only still learning! I didn’t ask for you to have this taken away from you. I didn’t want that.” She understood the desire to help, and she knew she had only just a taste of the connection that Resplendence had to this herd and the horses living within. “If you want we can go find Kahlua and Kaj and reason with them. No one should feel useless in their own home.” Especially not one who had worked so hard for it. “The Edge still needs your help and so do I.” Alysanne had yet to summon the mists for healing, she wasn’t even sure she would be able to do it when it was asked of her.

Her face crinkled into a deeper frown as she continued. “But the fact that the nightmares are lingering makes me so worried. Maybe you’re getting used to less sleep but I don’t believe you’ll be able to keep that up forever.” There just had to be a way to help. If they could get the nightmares under control, get Res the sleep she needed, they could get their seasoned Moon Doctor back.

“Is it still the fire?”

The sadness settled in to stay, listening as Resplence made assumptions about their leaders based on their actions. “I wish they had warned you. If it had been up to me you would have.” Alysanne could only guess but she did not think Kaj and Kahlua meant to cause pain. Bad news would be best delivered one-on-one, not in front of a crowd. Even if it had not been explicitly stated, anyone that knew of the healing ranks would have noticed the absence of a certain name. Resplendence had been such a key member of this herd for so long – she and Kahlua were sisters in all but blood! This situation did not sit well with her, not in the slightest, when a simple communication could have helped just a little.

But there was nothing she could do to help that now, she supposed. “The herd would suffer if you weren’t around to contribute. Res, I’m still learning to walk and I’m on shaky legs. I really do need you. Kahlua and Kaj didn’t cast you aside, you got moved down one rank – it’s a big change but you’re not out of this. Not if you don’t want to be. You’re still a part of the healers and if you’re up for it, I’ll need you with me every step of the way until…” Until what? “Until you’re back as a Moon Doctor.” Alysanne felt stronger as a team with Resplendence, she felt like they would make a great pair of doctors together, and she’d fight to get that back.

But first, before all of that, the focus was on these nightmares.

She felt as though her own heart was breaking as she listened to Resplendence talk about the nightmares – about the things that haunted her – but she knew that whatever sympathy pain she might be feeling it would be nothing, nothing compared to what her sweet friend was going through. “Oh Res, you've the kindest, purest heart of anyone I know. How could anyone doubt your love for this herd when those are the nightmares that plague you at night?” She asked quietly, though she wondered if Kahlua and Kaj even knew. Had anyone else asked what was wrong, or been allowed to ask? She was glad for the fact that Resplendence had not run off or simply not answered the questions. Perhaps that meant that there was a part of her that was ready for Aly’s attempt to help?

The clicks and the look from Valiance are further push for her to think of something. There was no doubt, no doubt at all - Alysanne wanted to help. She wanted to show Resplendence that she was and would never truly be alone – not if this pegasus had anything to do with it! She wanted to leave no doubt, no silver of uncertainty, in her friend’s mind – so that her subconscious would not have fuel for these nightmares.

It probably wouldn’t really work like that, but Aly was always one to hope – and when it came to her friends she was happy to go through anything to help.

Two ideas come to her, the first one making her stomach churn but it was a possibility. “Mikey – Miykael – he has this magic… he can block out memories.” Her hesitance is obvious, she hated that this sort of magic existed, but even she could see the potential. “It’s effective but if something ever triggers them to come back it might be worse. It was for me.” But she mentioned it because it was not her decision to make – if it even had the slightest potential to help she had to at least bring it up, didn’t she?

She watches her friend carefully, wondering if this idea would be tempting.