One step. Two ste- Oof! I pulled my back leg off the floor. Every time I set it down I thought I'd be okay. And then just as it touches the wood, it crumbles under the weight. Fluttershy was giving me encouragement from the couch. "Just move slowly towards me. You can do it." I smiled. If it had been any other pony, I would have lashed out at them by now for trying to give me false hope. But not Fluttershy. I knew she believed in me and I had to keep...oof! There it goes again.

I've been trying to walk for a week. It's been two months since our encounter with the dragon. It's taken me this long just to get the strength to stand on my own. Now I have a new obstacle.

After another few steps Fluttershy could see the beads of sweat falling from my face. She walked over to me and helped me over to the couch. I sat down and propped my leg up, a sigh of relief escaping my body. She sat next to me and smiled. "You're doing really well. You just need to keep practicing." I looked down at my scarred leg and began to laugh. Fluttershy looked at me curiously. "What?" I couldn't help but smile. "I feel like a colt. I never figured I'd have to learn to walk again." I continued to laugh. I could see the grin on Fluttershy's face and soon she was laughing too.

We spent the rest of the afternoon looking over some of my old drawings. I was pretty embarrassed with some of them. Fluttershy would giggle every few pictures and I would roll my eyes. My early drawings were pretty cheesy. She also complimented some of my more current work. Soon she pulled out my most recent drawing. She looked puzzled for a moment. "Speedy...what is this?" I held the picture out and pointed to the different parts. "This is my leg. And this is my invention to help me walk." It consisted of wires and a brace on my hoof. It would help relieve some of the pressure off  the leg. Fluttershy took the drawing and looked it over. "I didn't know you were an inventor." I shook my head. "I'm not. I just design the inventions. I've never made anything though." Her head tilted to the side. "Why not?" I shrugged. She rolled up the drawing and put it in her saddle bag. It was my turn to be puzzled. "What are you doing?" She heaved the saddle bag onto her back. "We're going to visit Rarity." Now I was downright confused. "Rarity?" She nodded and grabbed my wheelchair. "She's a designer. Maybe she can help you make your invention."

We were rolling through town towards the boutique. I had tried to argue, but Fluttershy wouldn't take no for an answer. She flew behind me pushing my wheelchair. Every pony we passed waved to us. The story of me defeating the dragon had spread quickly. I still didn't understand Fluttershy's thinking on this. "Why are we taking my drawing to a pony who designs dresses?" I looked up at Fluttershy, her face upside-down with my perspective. She smiled. "She's a designer silly." Oh. And that made complete sense to me. Sometimes I wonder what goes on in a mare's head. They don't think like stallions do.

We pulled up to the boutique and rolled/flew right in. Rarity was working on an outfit that I'm sure was 'fashionable'. I just thought it looked like a pile of fabric. She stopped when she noticed Fluttershy and me. "Hello you two! How are we doing today?" She walked over and gave me a hug. "How are you feeling today Speedy?" I hugged her back. "Better and better all the time." We pulled away and Rarity looked between me and Fluttershy. She smiled. "You two are so adorable together!" Fluttershy and I looked at each other, smiling and rolling our eyes. Rarity sat down. "Now what can I help you with?" Fluttershy pulled my drawing out of her saddle bag and unrolled it. "Speedy designed this." Rarity looked over the picture. "Ugh. This must be the worst shoe design I've ever seen." I sighed. "It's not a shoe. It's a leg brace to help me walk." Rarity sat up. "Oh. Well in that case it's a wonderful design!"

Fluttershy finally explained why we had come here. Apparently she thought that between our two heads, Rarity and I could bring my invention to life and get me walking. Why she didn't just tell me this in the first place is beyond me. Rarity seemed in love with the idea though. "Well Speedy, with your design and my fashion sense we could make you a whole new leg!" I looked between the excited mares. They were obviously waiting for an answer. I shook my head and chuckled. "Alright. Let's get to it then."

With that, the mannequins flew through the air. Rarity levitated them into a line. "Now we'll have to make it several different ways to find the best model that blends style with function. First thing's first though." She turned to me. "Do you prefer more summery colors or autumn?" I glanced at Fluttershy giving her my 'see what you started' look. She smiled and shrugged, taking a seat on a stool.

Rarity slowly moved the wire into place, hooking it to the rest of the brace. With a final nudge the wire slipped in and we stood back to admire our handy work. Rarity wore a tired smile. "I think we've got it this time." She carefully removed the brace from the mannequin's leg and brought it to me. "Care for another fitting?" I held up my bad leg and Rarity slipped it on. With her help I got out of my wheelchair and began to lower my hoof to the ground. Halfway there however, two wires snapped out of place and flew across the room. I flopped back into my chair and Rarity began pacing in frustration. "What are we missing? Every time it's perfect, something goes wrong!" I shrugged and said nothing. This was our fifteenth model so far. Nothing had worked as of yet.

The front door opened to reveal Pinkie and Twilight. Pinkie cartwheeled into the room "See? I told you they were here!" Twilight walked in and looked around the room. Fifteen busted leg braces and piles of supplies littered the tables and floor. "I see you two have been busy. Any luck yet?" Fluttershy hovered off her stool and joined the group. "How did you know we were here?" Twilight pointed at Pinkie. "I was on my way to see you and Speedy when Pinkie told me you two were at Rarity's." Pinkie appeared out of nowhere and landed in my lap. I winced from the sudden weight. "And here we are!" She  hopped off my lap and I sighed. Twilight walked up to me. "How's the leg?" I smiled and patted it gently. "Same as ever." Fluttershy scolded me. "You know it's getting better." Twilight grinned. "And that's why I'm here. I think I can help Speedy walk while his leg gets stronger." My ears perked up.

Twilight had Rarity pull out some fabric and sew it into a leg shape. When it was finished, Twilight slipped it onto my leg. It was a black sleeve that covered my entire leg including my hoof. I looked at Twilight. "Okay. I have a black leg now. How does this help?" Twilight closed her eyes and her horn began to glow. The others stood back. Me, I couldn't move. What was she going to do to me? Her horn grew brighter until I almost had to look away. Twilight lowered her head and touched the sleeve. The light disappeared and everything looked normal again. With a sigh and a smile, she opened her eyes. "It's done." I was still confused. What was done? Twilight stepped back. "Stand up." I was about to question her, but common sense told me to just accept the order. I put my front legs on the ground. I put my good back leg down next and then looked at my sleeved leg. I slowly began lowering it to the floor. I hesitated, holding my hoof an inch above the ground. Finally I inhaled and set it down...

Nothing. I looked down to find my hoof was on the ground. And yet I wasn't feeling any pain. I felt the tears coming to my eyes and I turned away from the mares. I didn't like to cry in public. But Twilight had just performed a miracle. I turned back to Twilight and took two steps forward. Now Fluttershy was tearing up. If she started crying, I definitely would too. I hugged Twilight and held her tight. "Thank you." I pulled away and she motioned to my leg. "The spell will wear off day by day. You'll feel more and more of your own weight on that leg until the magic wears off completely. By the time that happens though, I'm sure you'll be good as new. I turned to Fluttershy, who indeed was crying now, and I walked up to her. "Hey." She smiled. "Hey." With that we threw our arms around each other. I could hear Rarity saying 'awww', but I didn't care.

Fluttershy and I walked back to her cottage. We stopped at the front door. I felt awkward about what I had to say, but it needed to be said. "I...I guess you won't have to be my nurse anymore. Now that I've got four hooves again." Fluttershy didn't make eye contact. "I know." She raised her head. "But I'd still like to come visit you. If...if that's okay." I nodded. And then I kissed her on the cheek. She blushed. I was surprised at myself for being so bold. But then I was surprised even more when Fluttershy returned the kiss, on my lips rather than my cheek. We stayed there for what felt like an eternity. And it's an eternity I will cherish forever. Next Chapter: The Cloudsdale Ball Estimated time remaining: 2 Hours, 20 Minutes