I sit on the chair, my bandaged finger elevated so it doesn't send searing agony through my mind when it touches something.

In the playpen before me, the ponies innocently play with the miniature roller-coasters, as I like to call them: a mess of metal rods, looping and hooping around each other, on which wooden blocks can be slid around. Rainbow Dash is absolutely fascinated with the track of rainbow spheres.

I sigh as I look down at the chart in my lap. It's all stuff I already know: tumor damn near the center of her brain, difficult to remove at best, fatal to remove at worst.

I grit my teeth as I toss it to the side in a fit of emotion and rest my face in my palms. I hear the ponies stop playing, and I know they're watching me in surprise and concern. I pay them no mind.

"Mr. Mactylan, she's conscious," a doctor announces. I'm up and to the door before he can say anything else. Before I have a chance to burst into the hallway that will lead to her room, he gently stops me with a raised hand. "But be careful. Too much activity could excite her and cause another seizure. Her brain is in a very delicate spot."

I nod. "Understood."

The doctor nods in return. "Then follow me."

I motion for Barbara to stay in the room to watch the ponies. She nods.

When I arrive at Derpy's room, I find that they've used a veterinary set-up to monitor her vitals. It's what I expected, given that we are in an animal hospital. It disgusts me to think of Derpy as anything other than human, but she can't be treated like one, now can she?

The small gray Pegasus' lazy eye is covered by a new eyepatch, and her other eye is focused on the sheet beneath her. I gently rap on the door, and she gives me a small smile as she sees me approaching.

"Hey," I whisper as I sit on the edge of her bed. "How're you feeling, sweetheart?" I take her hoof in my hand.

"I'm scared," she whispers in return. "What's going on, papa?"

I smile sadly as I bend down to kiss her on the forehead. "Don't be scared, sweetie," I advise her. "The people here are just making sure that you're okay. They're going to help you."

She immediately wraps her forelegs around my neck in a desperate hug. I smile as I adjust my position so I can comfortably hug her back. "Papa...what happened? Why couldn't I move, Papa?"

I shush her as I stroke her mane. "It's okay baby," I say softly. "You've got to calm down, okay? Just trust me - everything will be alright. I promise."

She sniffles into my shoulder. "Alright...I trust you, Papa..."

I smile. "Good. All you've got to know is that...life is going to be tough for you. It's going to be scary, and you'll have to face challenges that most other people won't have to face."

"But...why Papa?"

"I don't know, love," I admit. "But I want you to know that I'll be with you every step of the way, alright? You'll always have me, no matter how hard life gets."

She sniffles. "Okay..."

"And maybe one day, things will get easier. We won't know until we get to that day."

Derpy nods into my shoulder. "Okay..."

I smile as I kiss her on the cheek. "Now, you should get some rest, baby...I'll stay here with you, okay? Whenever you're sleepy, I'll go so you can rest."

Derpy nods again. She doesn't say anything this time, so I just kiss her again.

A little while later, she announces that she's tired, so I put her down and gently tuck her in. I proceed to return to the waiting room, where the ponies are drilling Barbara for answers.

"What's wrong with her?""

Will she be alright?"

"Is it contagious?"

"Why'd she bite Daddy?"

"Why won't Daddy tell us anything?"

"Where is she?"

"Why isn't she here?"

"Why couldn't she move?"

As I approach, the questions stop, and the ponies shrink in fear of what I'll do for asking so many questions. I sigh as I step into the play pen, and motion for the ponies to sit with me. They crowd around and on me, either sitting in my lap or leaning against my knees.

I gently and carefully explain it to them, making sure to avoid the fact that Derpy has a fatal tumor. I do explain that she has a growth on her brain, but not that it's fatal. I tell them why they have to be extra gentle with the poor Pegasus when they go in to see her later, and manage to satiate most of their questions. I explain what a seizure is, and why I put my finger into her mouth. I tell them that the words Barbara and I used when we panicked were very, very bad words, and that I never ever want to hear them say them, ever.

Once I'm done explaining, I take a deep breath, and pull the ponies in for a group hug. They smile, and I sigh as my phone begins to ring. I answer it after several moments. It's Charles.

He's asking, "what the fuck is going on!? Tratno just told me that he got word that you checked into a fucking animal hospital! What the fuck did you do!?" Verbatim.

I explain the seizure, and he sighs. He tells me that he's leaving today, because the meetings are finally over, and because he has a moral obligation to see Derpy. I smile at the sentiment, and I don't protest the idea. Unfortunately, Tratno won't be coming with him due to personal reasons.

I sigh as we both hang up after a sparse conversation. I drop the phone onto my seat, and I shake my head as I sit.

Why? Is all I can think. I find myself agreeing with Derpy's confusion.

Why? Why? Why?

Author's Notes:

Waffles
I wrote this while extremely tired.
Be happy.
Or, rather, be saddened, as is the purpose of this scene.