After a medical check, Sirius was told he was good to go. However, there was one small thing that was wrong with his body. His hind leg, while healed, wasn't in the right shape. Unfortunately, after putting it back together, the doctors weren't able to restore to its previous condition completely.

Sirius gritted his teeth slightly as the doctors explained it to him. He would no longer be able to even walk properly — a limp would follow him for the rest of his life. Galloping was out of question for a while, too. His bones needed time to heal, and he would have to use a wheelchair to support his hind legs. While his front legs were fine, he still needed assistance to walk around.

In fact, the former human was furious. He became a cripple. Not a vegetable, but one step closer to it. He didn't want it to happen, he didn't want to become dependent on anyone or anything. Unfortunately, he would never be able a professional sportsman, at least in running. He would have some problems with fencing as well. However, he was sure he would still be able to fight even in his new state. He would never give up on fencing.

Finally, Sirius was allowed to stand up from the hospital bed. Carefully, he stood on all his four legs. He was weakened due to lying in one place without moving for more than a week, but he was determined to restore at least most of his strength and endurance.

Soon, a special wheelchair was strapped to his body, allowing additional support for his hind legs. He could also put them on special plates he could adjust, and then only use his front legs to move around.

However, he wasn't going to do it. Instead, he would use all his four legs. He would probably take off the wheelchair as soon as he could. Limp or no limp, he would never allow himself to be in any sort of wheelchair.

With Iclyn's guidance, he finally exited the hospital. He appeared in the courtyard of the Canterlot Castle. The grass was turning yellow, leaves were falling from the few trees that were in the yard. The sky was filled with clouds, making everything seem so gray and bleak despite many colors surrounding the area. There were some puddles on the ground as well — a rain had come and gone.

Sirius inhaled the autumn air, feeling its coolness spreading through his body. It was a long time since he breathed fresh air. The last thing he remembered was the smell of blood, scent of iron in the air and in his mouth. He liked that he didn't feel it any longer.

Most of his time in coma was spent in either the void or strange, surreal dreams. He didn't remember much of them, but something gripped him from the inside, making him feel uncomfortable.

He realized he didn't have his weapons. No swords nor any guns. He was completely defenseless, stuck in the wheelchair and with his limp for the rest of his life.

He frowned, looking down at the ground. He bared his teeth slightly and growled quietly and lowly. Iclyn heard it, and it sent shivers down her spine.

He despised his new state of body. He outright hated it, the wheelchair, and especially Chrysalis. A nasty sense of satisfaction and pleasure was brought by the fact that he removed her horn, making her less powerful than any unicorn. She would brag or gloat no more. She gave him a limp, and he brought her suffering. It was a fair trade, at least in his book. He would like to see her face, to see her misery — she would never hurt anyone again, especially those he cared about.

"Sirius... Both princesses are waiting for you in the throne room." Iclyn said, breaking his line of thought. "They said you must come alone. I, I'll be waiting for you outside."

The former human nodded and went straight into the castle. He needed to get his weapons back. It was the only reason he found sufficient enough to make him go near the princesses. Sure, he was a hero in the eyes of ponies, but he couldn't care less about it. He did what he did not for them but for his friend.

Either way, he didn't like tyrants. He would at least try to kill the changeling queen anyway. In his eyes, she was no better than a rapist. He didn't know how love could be taken from someone, but he suspected it included violation of that one's being. Not only the body, but the mind would be damaged as well. Sirius would never let a rapist live. No matter how they called it, he was sure any type of violating someone's love was rape, no matter the reason or cause.

He was so happy about the fact that Iclyn wasn't violated. If she were, Sirius would kill anyone involved in it. Torture them for hours, and not let them die until... No, he wouldn't let them die at all. He would make sure the worst would happen to them, and it wouldn't be death.

Those thoughts left a nasty taste in his mouth. He couldn't stand rape, that was it.

He forced his mind to change and push those thoughts further back. Iclyn was alright, he was more or less fine, Chrysalis was punished. Nothing else mattered.

On his way to the throne room, he passed through the hallway where he killed the changelings. An image flashed before him — a slitted throat, blood gushing out of it. The scent of iron was there as well.

He shook his head. It was all just a vision, it was nothing.

A clash of swords. A scream, body hitting the floor.

Nothing, it was nothing. Sirius closed his eyes. It was nothing, absolutely nothing.

Clash. Blood. Screams. Open throat, crushed head. Dying moans. More blood.

Sirius dashed through the hallway, trying to get past it as quickly as he could.

Swords clash. Swords covered in blood. Him covered in blood. Bodies covered in blood.

He couldn't stop. He mustn't stop. He must go, he must pass through it.

The pounding in his head subsided, the screams were gone, the scent of blood disappeared. Sirius breathed heavily. His legs were shaking, his heart was pounding, his eyes were open wide. He was all out of breath or strength.

After Sirius recollected his thoughts and calmed down, he moved forward.

It was nothing.

***

Sirius stopped right in front of big doors that led to the throne room. He didn't notice it, but the pair of guards stationed by them were those he saved from the changelings.

They glanced his way but didn't say anything. Frankly, they didn't know what to think of him. Both of them were trained to protect Equestria and its princesses at all cost, even be ready to kill. Nothing prepared them for Sirius' aggression. The guards would try to immobilize their targets and bring them to justice. Sirius, however... He would kill those targets. The guards didn't know what made him murder them in such a brutal way, they didn't know why he didn't even flinch. In his eyes, they remembered seeing immense anger and hate, something no guards had. It was their duty to protect the country, and they were trained to control their emotions.

For them, Sirius wasn't a murderer but still was a weird case. He didn't hesitate to be offensive in the fight, he never once hesitated to kill. Truth be told, those two guards feared him. What if they were between him and whatever he wanted to do? Neither of them wanted to die by him.

Sirius entered the throne room. The doors closed behind him, leaving him alone with two diarchs. Celestia looked at him with worry and pity, as well as wariness. Luna was somewhat happy to see him, but she still had to be cautious.

"You wanted to see me." Sirius stated. Luna could pick up impatience in his voice. Whatever the princesses were going to tell him had to be short in order to satisfy him.

"Sirius, you are a hero to Equestria." Celestia stood up from her throne and walked down. A medal was lying on a pillow which flew in her magical grasp. "I was informed you wouldn't like a big ceremony, so we will keep it short. However, it doesn't mean your heroism isn't appreciated. This medal is the Crest of Valor." she levitated the medal.

It was cross-shaped, a circle in its center half of which represented the moon and another half represented the sun. A white ribbon was connected to the medal, allowing it to rest on its bearer's chest.

"In the face of danger, you showed courage and bravery. You stood up to the one who was much more powerful than you, and you won, freeing Equestria from Chrysalis' tyrannical grasp." Celestia said.

As she finished her speech, Sirius lowered his head to accept the medal. He felt like old veterans of war — expended, given a medal, and then thrown away as a cripple he was. He was sure he wouldn't be able to get any job at all, medal or not. He was a cripple — he would never be like any other unicorn. His magic wasn't that powerful, his endurance and strength almost came to zero, and he didn't have much knowledge to offer either. He spoke poorly, he lacked any discipline. All he could do was fencing. What, would he be called in the face of danger? Once in a few hundred years at best. He wouldn't be alive to witness it — he would most likely spend the last days of his life out in the streets, 'proudly' displaying his medal and ask for food. He was sure he wouldn't live that long in the first place — he would rather kill himself.

However, there was Iclyn. But how long would she support him, a cripple? No matter what she said about love, Sirius was sure she would abandon him. Who would ever need someone like him? His skills weren't needed, he couldn't do anything else, he didn't like anything else. The school killed his motivation to learn, too. Not Equestria school but the one he had to go through on Earth. He got so many useless kinds of knowledge he would never apply to his life unless he wanted to become someone like a rocket scientist.

"And as a reward for your actions," he heard Celestia saying. "We grant you a piece of land in Canterlot, as per our laws and traditions. That land will now belong to you. It has a mansion, but you are free to change anything in your land according to your desires."

Sirius couldn't believe what he was hearing. A mansion? Celestia couldn't be serious. He would also have to pay taxes for it, he was sure. How would he ever get money for it? How would he ever use it?

"Your land shall be tax-free as long as it doesn't produce anything for sale aside from self-grown food." Celestia finally finished, allowing her sister to talk.

"You proved to be able to hold a weapon, as well as use it correctly." Luna spoke. "And thus, we return your weapons. I hope you will use them as wisely as you did while fighting the changelings."

Sirius nodded, not uttering a single word. Both his blades as well as the pouch with the revolver were returned. He securely strapped them to his body. It felt perfect to him as he felt their weight on his side.

"A chariot is waiting for you outside the castle to show you the way to your land, Sirius." Celestia said. "From me personally... I may not understand you and what you do, but thank you. Queen Chrysalis... you did right. I hate to admit it, but you were right to remove her horn. She no longer poses any threat to Equestria, and her armies are scattered, probably leaving the country for good."

Sirius nodded, and then turned around to leave. There was nothing he could or wanted to say.

A mansion. He still couldn't believe what he had heard. He wasn't thrown away but given something. It was shocking to him. Surely, the princesses could just give him the medal and tell him he could go back to the life he lived.

Did owning land make him a noble as well? Was it even alright to give him land? He was greatly confused. What would he ever do with it? He could probably live there and... that was all.

When he was way younger, he dreamed of owning a castle like he thought real knights had. He dreamed of becoming a well-known knight who would defend his people and rule them fairly and justly. Those were the dreams of his younger, more innocent self.

When he was older, he still dreamed of owning maybe a manor. Sitting by a fireplace, resting while reading a book. He would practice fencing from time to time, maybe go camping somewhere, and then return to his big place and rest.

He knew he would never be able to get anything bigger than a normal house, and thus he didn't expect to ever receive a mansion.

What would he do there? It would certainly be a good home, definitely better than the current apartment, but there was simply not much he could do. He never thought of it, really.

"What did they tell you?" Iclyn asked.

Sirius stopped in his tracks — he didn't even notice leaving the castle.

"They said I now have a mansion." he replied.

"Oh my!" Iclyn covered her mouth with a hoof. "It must be an honor! I... I never would've thought about owning a mansion!"

"I don't know how I feel about this." Sirius admitted. "I just... Nevermind. There is chariot somewhere outside the castle. Mind joining me? I could... use some help." he hated to admit it but going up and down the stairs was difficult with the wheelchair on. Besides, he wouldn't mind a companion.

"Alright, if you want to." the filly said. "Let's see what your mansion looks like."

Some time later, the two arrived at the big gates. They were made of iron and featured decorations such as elaborate ornaments. The whole mansion was surrounded by a rather high brick wall, which was also decorated with different architectural elements.

The two disembarked the chariot. Iclyn helped Sirius get on the ground and adjust his wheelchair. As much as he hated it, it felt nice to be cared about.

Sirius opened the gates, getting himself and his friend inside. The territory was rather large, featuring a small garden of flowers in the front with decorative bushes near the wall, as well as building, the most important part of the territory. There were total of three buildings: a large mansion, a small wooden house, and a shed by the house. There was also a couple of greenhouses further in the back, hidden behind the large mansion.

The mansion itself had two floors and was made of stone. Many ornaments and other decorations were on its walls, which were white in color. There was also a big balcony in the front, supported by wide cylindrical columns. It didn't resemble any particular style but was more of a mix of many different ideas.

Sirius' eyes shifted to the right. There, a small wooden house stood, which had just a few decorations, mainly carvings and flowers. The shed, as expected, had no decorations at all.

Suddenly, the former human was approached by an elderly mare. She was white in fur, her mane was tied in a tail behind her head. The mane was still blond, though there were some gray streaks. Her eyes were of vibrant green and shone with life.

"Greetings, Sir Sirius!" she bowed. Her voice had already lost its young charm but was still youthful in a way. "My name is Flora, and I tend to the garden and the flowers around the mansion."

"Um... you don't need to bow." Sirius said a little bit nervously. In truth, he didn't expect to meet a gardener. Though, he liked her already. He always had a soft spot for elderly, especially those who were still in their minds. Flora's soft and welcoming way of speaking almost instantly warmed up to him. He just couldn't find it it himself to tell her to go away or be aggressive to her in any way.

"If you want so." the mare said. "May I ask who is your lovely companion is?"

"Iclyn is my friend" Sirius replied. "I thought we could look at the mansion."

"Right away! I will show you everything around here, and then you'll be able to rest while I tend to the flowers." Flora said, smiling.

Sirius didn't really know what to think of the place yet. Sure, Flora was nice, just as he would've expected if he knew she was there. The place looked fantastical, especially for him. There wasn't anything to complain about at all. Sirius was used to a simple bunk, maybe a small house, but nothing of this scale and size.

Though, he was still unsure of what to do next. He was Equestrian hero, he owned a mansion, he had a big load of money, and he was loved by someone he considered special. Truly, he had more than he could ever wish for. Respect, status, money, even love, it was all there.

Somehow, it didn't make him feel any better.

Author's Notes:

I guess that it's appropriate for Sirius to receive such a big reward. I don't think that Equestria has that many history in the current day and age, and thus a reward for getting rid of a tyrant is certainly fair.

Sirius had gotten more than he could ever wish for. However, there isn't much he can do with all those things. There are still troubles inside him.

P.S. As some of you might've already guessed, he has signs of PTSD.