"Would you like for me to carry you?" Dr. Smith says as we head down the hallway. "It doesn't look very comfortable to walk on three legs like that."

“Ah, uh, sure” I say, no matter how strange I might have thought it would be to actually be carried. “Just be careful, alright?”

"Will do." She says while picking me up. "You know, you're not all that heavy, considering you're a small horse." She notes aloud once she's holding me.

“Yeah, I wouldn’t think so.” I say, almost shuddering at the word ‘horse’.

It wasn't long before she was setting me down on a table that seemed more suited to caring for dogs than a pony. "Sorry, we don't have any facilities for ponies of your size." she says as she grabs some cloth and starts to carefully wipe away the blood.

“It’s fine, just as long as you don’t treat as a dog!” I say, lightly chuckling at my last remark.

"I wouldn't talk to a dog like it can understand me." she says, smiling at my joke.

“Ah, true.” I say, before sighing. “How bad does it look just like from the outside?”

"A little bruising, but you look fine otherwise." she tells me as she starts cleaning the blood from the other side of my face. "I'd still like to get that scan, though."

“And how long would that take?”

"A few minutes. So long as you don't freak out while we take some pictures." she assures, dropping the cloth into a small laundry bin.

“Why would I freak out about some pictures?” I ask, wondering what else she could be talking about.

"Some people and animals do." She says while looking at my nose... snout... muzzle... thing.

“Well, uh, should we get started, then?” I ask the curious doctor.

“Let me just finish cleaning up the blood."

I sigh, and wait for the doctor to finish cleaning up the crimsons stains around my muzzle.

"Alright... That looks nice and clean..."

“So can we get started, then?”

"Yes ma'am." Dr. Smith says while she straightens her stance. "Although, would you mind telling me why you were crying?"

“I, uh, wasn’t crying at all,” I lie to the doctor.

"Your tear stains suggest otherwise, but if you don't want to talk about it, that's fine." she says with a slight hand gesture of 'no big deal.'

I remain silent for awhile before peeping up again. “Where to, exactly?”

"I'll lead you to the room if you want to walk, but I'll carry you if you still don't feel like walking." she offers.

Oh, carrying. That sounds really nice.

“Carrying would be nice, thanks.”

She picks me up and starts to carry me to the next room, but on way out of the room, she suddenly asks, "So, how did you hurt your nose?"

“Well, all I remember is just me going head-on into a telephone pole, really.”

"Wow. Were you watching where you were going?"

“Not, not really. I just turned around, and BAM! Telephone pole.” I say, moving my legs around during the Emeril Lagasse moment.

Although my sudden movements almost made Dr. Smith drop me. Fortunately, she righted her grasp before I fell. "Careful, you're not exactly a toy poodle." she jokes.

“Ah, sorry. Just got a little carried away with the moment, you know?” I say, lightly chuckling.

"It's okay, just tell me when you'd like to walk around. I'd hate to drop you on the floor." she says, her voice still tinged with humor.

“Just, uh, carry me all the way. Thanks” I say, acting a bit more serious than the moment actually was.

"Well, I can't carry you everywhere. I'm not that strong." she says as we round a corner.

“But as you said before, I’m not that heavy, right?” I say, nuzzling into her arms, trying to get comfy.

"You're not exactly light, either." she tells me. "Not that you look like you'd be either." she adds, clearly trying to avoid upsetting me.

“Sorry. It’s just that getting carried around is a pretty sweet gig, if you ask me” I say, smiling.

"Don't get too used to it. I can't carry you everywhere."

“Well, for the time being, I’m going to enjoy the sweet nectar that is being carried around.”

"So you're just taking advantage of my kindness?" she asks, although her voice holds no malice or pain, but is instead, somewhat jovial.

“Well, yeah, basically. Isn’t it your job to take care of poor, sick little animals?”

"Aren't we all animals?" she asks.

“Well, technically yes, but I would say you take care of animals such as dogs, cats, and in this case, ponies.”

"What makes the difference?"

“Well you’re quite more advanced in thoughts, science, yadayadah...”

"That's why I'm asking. Knowing the technical difference is a requirement, but I'd like to know what makes humans different from other animals."

“Thumbs.”

"What about monkeys? And apes? Gorillas even. What makes us different from them?"

“Things. But humans are like 98% apes, so, really, they’re pretty close.”

She stops in front of a door, looking at the ground. "What makes them different? That's what I'm wondering." she says, her voice finally vacant of any humor.

“I don’t know, alright?!” I say, annoyed by the doctors persistence.

"Sorry, I'm just... When I'm taking care of ponies like you, am I taking care of another animal, or a person?" she asks. "It bothers me not knowing if I'm treating those in my care properly."

“Well, uh, you’re kinda taking care of both. Though I may have thoughts and intellect of a human, I am a pony. So theres your answer.”

"That doesn't make the situation any better though..." she says. "Sorry, I really shouldn't be bothering you with my troubles."

“All that aside, shall we continue?” I say, pushing the negative thoughts out of my mind.

"I would, if the door wasn't closed." Dr. Smith says, gesturing to the plaques beside the door she stopped next to with her head.

“Here, move my head towards the door knob. I can help you.”

"The room's in use. We never close the door unless the room is being used."

“Well can you see how much longer whatever is going on in there is going to take?” I ask, slightly yawning.

Almost as if on cue, the door opens, showing an older man, and following behind him a pony. They pass wordlessly, but the pony looks like he wants to hold his stomach, almost as if it hurts.

I shrink back a microscopic amount. “What, uh, what was he in for?” I ask.

“I’m not really sure. First I’ve seen of him.” She says, stepping through the doorway. “Do you know him?”

“Fantastic” I say, under my breath. “No, and I doubt I ever will, really. And I bet it was meat- he looked sick to his stomach.”

“But... Ponies are herbivores.” She says, looking confused as she stops, thinking about something.

“Yeah, and I hate that. I tried meat yesterday morning after this happened, and I basically threw up instantly.”

She looks at me with this confused look for a moment before she sets me down on a table, shaking her head. “I’m going to need you to lie still for a few moment, okay?”

“Alright” I say, trying my best to be still on the cold table top.

“Okay, I’ll be stepping in and out so that I can operate the machine. Feel free to say something if you’re uncomfortable.” She tells me as she starts to move my legs a bit.

“Uh, alright” I say, feeling a little uncomfortable already by her handling of my legs “How long will I have to lie here like this?”

“Only a few minutes.” She says before quickly pulling her hands back, apparently having noticed I was uncomfortable. “Sorry, I just don’t know how to explain the position I need you to lie in...”

“That’s, uh, fine. Just be careful, ok? I don’t necessarily like to be handled, other than carried, of course.”

“Of course, of course.” she says with a light giggle, going back to moving my legs around.

“So, uh... How are things?” I say, in hopes of trying to make the mood a little less awkward.

“We have talking ponies coming in, how do you think things are?” She asks, her lightheartedness coming back.

“Different, I would expect. You know why though, right?” I ask, assuming that she already knows why.

“Honestly no. I’ve seen your kind on the news, but I’ve yet to hear anything about why you’re showing up.” she says as she reaches up and positions a large machine over my head. “Remember, it’s just a picture.”

“Yeah, I know. I know what a picture is, and I know a lot about a lot of things... I’ll tell you about it later.” I say, remaining still for the camera.

She nods wordlessly before walking into a smaller room inside of the room I’m in. It was kind of hard to see inside the room where I was lying down with a giant camera over my head.

I could use some food right about now...

A dandelion and bleu cheese sandwich? That sounds pretty good...

Wait.

Dandelions?

I smack my head against the table, in hopes of ridding the pony-ridden thoughts inside my head.

A moment later, Dr. Smith steps just outside of the small room. “What happened?” she asked.

“Uh, nothing” I say, quickly lying to the doctor.

“Right, well, I’m not sure if the first shot was taken while you were moving or not, so I’m going to go ahead and snap a few extras, just in case, alright?”

“Yeah, sounds great” I say, this time trying to rid all pony thoughts from my mind.

Steak. Ribs. Burger. Meat sandwich. Calzone. Pizza. Salad.

No! Not salad!

Veal. Venison. Other meaty things.

Definitely not a dandelion and bleu cheese sandwich.

Especially if its on rye...

Definitely does not sound tasty.

Though I did not know it, my mouth was starting to drool from the temptations of probably the best sounding food ever.

Dr. Smith came over again, moving the machine away this time. “Alright, and we’re done here.” she says cheerily.

Though I can hear her, it all sounds like muffles. Sandwiches are the first thing on my mind.

“Ms. Phillimonica?”

“Dandelions!” I shout, coming out of a sandwich trance.

The vet smirks, clearly trying not to laugh at what I’d just said. “We can get you some if you’re hungry.” She offers.

“Yeah, with bleu cheese, and on some rye... Wait. No! I don’t want that!” I say, trying to change the subject. “How, uh, is my nose?”

She laughs for a moment. “We need to wait for the pictures to, sort of develop. We’ll be able to tell in a few minutes.” she assures with a good natured smile.

“Cool, cool” I say, trying to get the dancing sandwich out of my mind.

"Would you like me to help you off the table?" she asks. "Someone else might need to use the X-ray machine here, so we kinda need to leave this room."

“Yeah, sure” I say, kind-of propping myself up.

The vet didn’t say much as she helped me down off the table and started towards the door out of the room they use for X-rays.

“So, uh, how’s the pay here?” I ask, trying to break the silence.

“It’s decent enough.” She says, opening the door for us.

“Thats good to hear. Do you like working here?”

“It makes me feel like I’m doing something nice, yeah.”

“Good, good.” I say, trying to think of anything to say. “Are the pictures done yet?”

“I could go see if they are, but you’d have to wait for me to get back anyways.” she says, turning back down the hall toward the preliminary examination room we were in.

“I’d like to see the pictures with you. Though it may not look like it, my nose still hurts like a bit-, er, uh, female dog.” I say, watching my language.

“You’ll see them, I’ll even let you see them first.” she says, stopping just outside the room she cleaned my face up in.

“How about we just look at them together? I’d rather not mistake anything shown for something...”

“I’m not going to let you look at your X-rays without looking at them myself.” She says, trying not to laugh. “That’s just asking for something to be misconstrued.”

“Yeah,” I say, chuckling “Don’t want any mistakes, do we?”

"Of course not. I'll go get the photos, you just wait here for a moment." she says while leaning on the door frame.

“Alright. Let me know if it’s bad, alright?”

"I'll let you take a guess first." she says before walking off, leaving me alone again.

Well. This sucks I think, lying down on the weirdly warm floor.

I can hear my stomach grumble from only having be fed some old spaghetti and half of a ice cream cone.

I could really for a sandwich...

You know what, I really could!

“Can anyone here get me a dandelion and bleu cheese sandwich?!” I call out, hoping for an answer.

A moment goes by, before I see Dr. Smith walk into the room, a little hurriedly. "So sorry about the wait, but I got slammed with paperwork at the worst possible time." she explains as she hands me the photos of my... Octavia's head.

I look at the photos, before holding them back out. “Are these bad?” I ask, noticing the odd placement of a peculiar white strip on the photo paper.

"Well, they're not good." she says, scribbling away at the papers on her clipboard tirelessly.

“Well, uh, what is it, then?” I ask, carefully

"Nothing horrible, but you've got a small, non-threatening crack in your skull." she tells me as if it's not very serious.

“B-but it’s a crack in my skull. How is that not serious? I mean, the skull holds something very precious: your brain. And if anything were to happen to it-” I start to panic about it, before she cuts me off mid-sentence

"Calm down, calm...  Calm down. The crack is right around here," she says, pointing a finger close to my nose. "It's not even close to your brain. The most you have to worry about is a sore face while the bone mends.

"I would avoid blunt trauma to the face, and I recommend against eating nuts. I would prescribe some light dosage painkillers, but I'm sure you wouldn't like horse pills." she jokes,  smiling at me again.

Me, as worried as I get, take a jump on the offer. “I’ll take those painkillers, if you don’t mind, that is.”

She starts laughing, sitting down so that she won't fall over. "I didn't think you'd want the pills, honestly." she says, trying to look at me with a straight face.

“Well, I kinda worry about my health. Anything to help, really”

"Sorry, I shouldn't be laughing." she says, regaining her composure. "I'm not sure how you'll take the pills by yourself. These bottles aren't exactly, uh... pony-friendly?"

“Maybe you can put them in a ziploc container or something. It’d still be difficult, but it is easier in  a way.”

“Are you staying with someone?”

“I, uh, I think so. The Derpinator should be outside waiting for me”

"Then I'll be sure to get you some pills before you leave."

“Won’t that just be now, then? Or is there something else that needs to be done?”

"Well, some government officials have said they'd like to ask you a few questions about something, but I couldn't get them to tell me what."

“G-government officials? Are they here or something?” I ask, looking around cautiously.

"No, they said to get information on where you're staying, that way they can get in touch with you."

“Oh, well I’m staying in Manehatten, I-I mean New York!“

"How do you plan on getting there in one night? Do you have plane tickets?" she asks, standing up.

I dart my eyes to the left, then to the right. “Uh, yeah. Plane tickets.”

She motions for the door. "Well, what hotel do you plan on staying in when you land?"

“That was derpy’s job, so whatever one she booked.” I say, before pausing a short while. “So, uh, that medication?”

"I'll be getting you some Phenylbutazone. It's a painkiller that's likely to not harm you." she informs me as she starts to lead us to what I can only assume is the front of the building.

“How do I take it? Is it like a pill, a drink, or what?” I say, looking up at the doctor.

"I'll be giving you a pill that's to be eaten with your food."she starts as she turns and leads us down a hall. "Although I'd like to get your weight before I get you the prescription."

“Seems fair, I guess” I say, continuing to trot down the hall.

Soon, we had gotten my weight, and are now in the pharmaceutical section of the clinic picking up my medication.

“So, uh. How much did I weigh again?” I ask, carefully.

"Shockingly, almost a hundred and forty pounds. It's remarkable, really, considering your not fat at all, and are so small."

I pause for a moment before adding in again. “H-How?”

"It might just be the scale, so I'm being careful and only prescribing you two grams, twice a day. Once with breakfast, once at dinner."

“Should I just take one now?”

"Well, how bad does your face hurt?"

“Like someone just punched it” I say, trying to smile

"That's just the bruising, most likely."

“So should I just take one or not?”

"You should be fine until tonight if it doesn't hurt a lot by now." she says as she receives a bag filled with pills from someone on the other side of the counter.

“Can I see those?” I ask, looking at the white bag.

"Did you want to take one now?" she asks while she eyes me skeptically.

I nod, still staring at the bag.

"Must hurt more than you're letting on." she said as she got into the bag and produced a small pill, which she promptly split in two before holding out a half of it for me.

“Only half? I say, staring in a somewhat disappointment at the split-in-half pill in front of me.

"They're four gram tablets." she tells me as she holds the pill out to me.

Shrugging, I grab the pill and pop it into my mouth, not realising I don’t have some to wash it down.

"That might go down a bit rough, considering you didn't ingest any food with it. I'll get you a bottle of water for the road."

“Thanks” I say, rather dryly, before actually swallowing the pill. I can hear my stomach grumble as she leaves.

It only takes about a minute or two before she comes back with that water bottle, holding it out to me.

“Thanks,” I say, trying hard to hold it between two hooves. I twist the cap off with my mouth, and chug nearly half of it. It tastes good.