Helping a Friend Deal with a Breakup

27 September 2015

00:36 Ruzeth had been by the library to see Inky today, only to find out that she wasnt there when he expected her to normally be there. Somepony had mentioned seeing her in poor straights and so he makes his way over to her house with a cheerful look on his face. He approaches the door and gives it a couple hard knocks, waiting for her to answer.

00:37 < Inky> encouraging me to make terrible decisions?

00:38 < Ruzeth> (I mean, only if you want :P I'll probably crash before you do assuming my naps throughout the day havnt fucked me up too much :B)

00:39 < Inky> ( I do want, but I also am tired..)

00:39 < Der> (vattt)

00:39 < Ruzeth> (vattt?)

00:40 < Der> (Baaaaaaaaaat)

00:40 < Ruzeth> (Baaaaiiiiiit)

00:42 < ZeroItamae> (Buuuuut)

00:43 < ZeroItamae> (I forgot a t)

00:43 < ZeroItamae> (Also I feel slightly loopy)

00:44 < August> ( adrenaline crash. then coffee )

00:44 Inky doesn't answer the door, but one of her housemates does. The pegasus stallion blinks at the zebra. "Oh, hi Ruzeth," he says, the bat pony having introduced them before.

00:47 Ruzeth frowns momentarily when Inky's housemate shows up at the door instead, but then flashes back to a smile moments later. "Oh, hi Wind Burster. I sort of expected Inky to answer like she usually does...Ummm I heard she was feeling a little under the weather?"

00:47 < Ruzeth> (DId you change how her house works again? :P)

00:48 < Inky> ( I reserve the right to retcon that name if I feel like it )

00:48 < Ruzeth> (Thats fine :B)

00:48 < Ruzeth> (I just picked a random pegasi sounding name, since you ddint provide it.)

00:48 < Inky> ( and no, she shares the house with other ponies )

00:49 < Ruzeth> (Yes, but I thought she had like a back stairwell...)

00:51 < Ruzeth> (I suppose she might have locked that entrance or something)

00:52 < Inky> The pegasus hesitates, then nods. "She's up in her room," he says. "Haven't even seen her come out to eat." He steps out of the way, waving Ruzeth to the stairs right behind their front door. "She'd appreciate a visit, I think."

00:52 < Inky> ( I don't think such a stair exists, bah )

00:53 < Ruzeth> (But like we've played it like that a lot xP. Nvm though, minor details)

00:55 Ruzeth steps out into the house and towards the stairs before hesitating a moment. "How long has she been like this?" He asks, sounding concerned as he looks back at the pony who'd let him in. Ruzeth had only known Inky to lock herself away like that one other time, when she'd lost he rmagic.

01:01 < Inky> "All of yesterday," the stallion says, his own mouth twisted. "I asked, but she won't talk to me..." He sighs, and shuts the door behind Ruzeth. The pegasus leads him up the stairs, to another door on the landing. He raises a hoof to knock, then lets it fall without doing anything. "You'll have better luck," he says quietly, before turning around and heading back to his part of the house.

01:05 Ruzeth looks away from the pegasus as the corners of his lips press into a deep frown. The zebra is noticebly less bounce and more solemn as he makes his way up the stairs, especially as his rings jingle with far less energy than usual. When Wind disapears, Ruzeth stands before the door for a second and takes a deep breath in. He lingers for a minute longer before finally brinigng his hoof up to give a few ginger knocks, accompanied with, "Inky? Are you here?"

01:10 < Inky> There's no response for almost a minute, though the pegasus had said she was here. Maybe she'd flown out when he wasn't paying attention? A creak from above scatters that train of thought---she was moving! Ruzeth can hear somepony plodding above him, then slowly descending the stairs. The door unlocks, and swings inward. Inky stood there, her eyes red from crying, looking as though the only reason she

01:10 < Inky> wasn't crying now was because she'd run out of tears a long time ago. The mare stares at him blankly, one hoof on the door.

01:15 Ruzeth feels himself begining to wilt as he gets no response from the door. He's just about to turn and wander away when he hears the noise. He perks back up and returns to facing the door when it suddenly swings open. "Oh Hi Ink...y," Ruzeth starts, energetically at first and then dying away as he takes in the magnitude of her disheveled state. "Whats wrong? What happened? Did your magic disapear again?" Ruzeth begins to ask frantically, with a voice full of worry.

01:24 Inky really did look like a mess. Her mane was down, but unkempt and sticking out at odd angles all down her neck. Her eyes were tired and watery, and her whole posture was slumped and defeated. She seems to be struggling with something, and opens her mouth. "I," she says, "I'm... an awful pony." The bat pony slumps to the floor, falling down onto her rump. She leans forwards, head hanging, dry sobs wracking her body. Ruzeth could see that her cutie mark was still there, unchanged, so that wasn't the problem.

01:28 Ruzeth rushes forward as Inky collapses to the ground and then wraps her up in a tight hug with her head on his shoulcer. His hooves pat her back gently as he coos. "Inky, you're one of the sweetest mares that I know, if not the sweetest. How could you ever consider yourself an awful pony? I'm sure it isnt as bad as you think it is."

01:32 Inky doesn't respond to that, still quietly sobbing against Ruzeth. His attempted reassurance only twists the knife in her heart, for hadn't she gotten herself into this by being sweet? Too sweet to broach the truth to either of them? The bat pony slowly wraps one foreleg around the zebra, then the other. She buries her muzzle in his mane, crying again, though she had no more tears left.

01:33 < Inky> ( probably last post from me for tonight )

01:33 < Ruzeth> (Alright then I'll post and hten sleep too I suppose

01:41 Ruzeth feels a chill run through his body as his reassurance nets the exact opposite response as he'd been expecting in the mare. He leans againt her with his entire body, supporting her weight, and rubs his hooves over her shoulders reassuringly. His rings jingle softly as she disturbs his made. "It'll be alright Inky. I'm sure nothing is as bad as you're making it out to be. Just tell me what happened."

01:42 < Inky> ( zebra horse does his best )

01:46 < Zuthal> (/me gives zebra horse a participation trophy)

01:48 < Ruzeth> ( Hmmm I wonder if I can work in asking where her boyfriend is and why isnt he comforting her before she spills the beans :P)

01:48 < Ruzeth> (Not sure how I'd do it though :B)

01:56 < Inky> ( she'll just cycle though being a sobbing wreck again )

01:56 < Inky> ( will probably need to be carried up the stairs :V )

22:29 Inky lets Ruzeth take her weight, leaning heavily on him. She doesn't seem to want to talk, slowly shaking her head and burying it back in Ruzeth's mane. Not even the jingling of the rings perks her up. Her eyes are screwed shut, and she takes sniffling breaths, the zebra's words having sparked another onset of sadness.

22:32 Ruzeth oofs as Inky settles down on top of him and sighs, running his hoof gently along her back. "Here lets get you upstairs at least." The Zebra shifts around and lowers himself to the ground, squirming till he had Inky positioned across his back and stands up, lifting her just barely off the ground before starting slowly up the stairs.

22:37 Inky doesn't resist as the zebra lowers down and hefts her onto his back, draped limply over him. Her legs dangle on either side of him, but she seems secure enough for the time being. The mare keeps sniffling softly behind him, recovering a little as they approach the top of the stairs.

22:41 Ruzeth grunts with effort at each step as he powers up the stairs with another pony on his back. Once at the top he looks around the room momentarily before making his way over to the mare's bed and leaning over till she slid off onto it. "Whats wrong Inky? Please tell me. Is there anything I can do for you? Please let me help you, let me be there for you."

22:44 Inky grunts as she slides back onto her bed, having recovered sufficiently to actually squirm around and get into a comfortable position again. She sniffles, and lets out a quiet whimper. Hugging one of her pillows to her chest, the bat pony gathers up her strength. "I... really messed up," she says in a tiny, raw voice.

22:50 Ruzeth gives the mare a reassuring smile and then hops up onto the bed to lean against the older mare and try to provide her some comfort. "I'm sure that it wasnt that bad. Everything will work itself out whatever happened. You'lre probbably just being a little melodramatic." He says and strokes down the inky stripe in her mane.

22:56 Inky grits her teeth, the zebra's cheery, naive optimism grating on her. Was this how other ponies felt when she tried to cheer them up? "No, Ruzeth, I, I messed up bad," she protests. The mare curls up again, pulling her head and disheveled mane out from under Ruzeth's hoof. "I'm so stupid," she mumbles again, staring down at the bed.

23:00 Ruzeth snorts and then glares down at Inky when she calls herself stupid. He pulls away from her and stands up, looking at her seriously. "You're not stupid. Dont talk about yourself like that. I'm sure that whatever happened was an accident and you can work past it. You're a very likable and good pony, even if you maybe made a mistake."

23:06 Inky feels Ruzeth pull away from her, like he should. A terrible pony like herself didn't deserve niceties like that. The mare shudders, trying to put exactly what she'd done into words, only to give up and bury her head under her pillow instead. Ruzeth hadn't ever seen her like this. When she'd lost her magic she may have been lethargic and depressed, but she had still smiled and persevered. This was fundamentally different.

23:12 Ruzeth slumps as he racks his brain for some way to cheer up the mare. She didnt deserve to be like this, and she'd never acted like this before. What could she have done that would possibly justify something like this? He wasnt sure what to do at all as a wavering expression crosses his face. "If you wont talk to me, if I cant cheer you up, should I maybe get that nice blue stallion you introduced me to? You seemed to light up around him...." He offers, not sure how else he could help.

23:22 < -> Stoic is now known as Pistachio

23:25 Inky twitches and balls up at the mention of Gyro, squeezing her pillow against her head. This seems to have been too much for her, and the wound up pony lets out a muffled scream into the pillow before throwing it down. She bolts upright, eyes wild. "No! He hates me now," she snaps, her lips pulled back and her fangs bared at Ruzeth. "I cheated on him and Zuthal with each other! I betrayed them both... it's not just going to be 'all right'." After her outburst, the mare seems spent, the fire going out in her eyes. Inky slumps, letting herself fall back onto her side, staring forwards expressionlessly. She bounces once.

23:26 < Ruzeth> (I gots to shower. I'll probably reply when I get out.)

23:31 < Inky> ok

00:10 Ruzeth freezes as Inky lets out an ear piercing screech and then shirks back as she bolts at him. He opens and closes his mouth a couple times as the mare explains to him the situation, having difficulty processing exactly what was going on. Ruzeth distinctly had the memory of Gyro asking how many times he and Inky had well...done it, and was now trying to process what she meant. The zebra steps forward and rubs her back but cant find any words at the moment.

00:12 < Inky> ( last post of the night? )

00:13 < Ruzeth> (Nah, I can make it till like 12:45)

00:21 Inky doesn't seem to have any words either, though she'd have to find some to explain the significance of what she'd done to the young colt. The bat pony lies limp on the bed, not even reacting to Ruzeth's back rubs, though she does appreciate them on some level. She's not crying or sobbing anymore, just staring off into space.

00:26 Ruzeth sucks in a deep breath and then moves his head into Inky's field of view and flashes her a reassuring smile. "I...Seem to recall him eager to hear about you umm...cheating on him...with me the other day..." He finally says, breaking the silence and letting the unspoken question hang in the air. He presses the rest of his stripped fuzzy body against hers, sharing the warmth.

00:27 < Inky> ( presses the rest how? Is he on the bed too? )

00:27 < Inky> ( Also is that other day the dinner thingy )

00:30 < Ruzeth> (Yes and yes)

00:33 < Inky> ( Is Ruzeth behind her? )

00:33 < Ruzeth> (Umm I think so ya)

00:37 Inky barely spares a glance up at Ruzeth before she goes back to boring a hole in her desk. She sighs at the question, realizing that she has to explain a bit more. She opens her mouth, then closes it, unable to bring herself to talk about the stallion right now. "You already have a coltfriend," she says. "We're not... *romantically* involved. That was the agreement. See whoever you like, but no other romantic partners. I broke that." Her voice has flipped to the opposite extreme, flat and emotionless. Ruzeth's warmth does feel good, the mare subconsciously pressing herself back against it to better conform to the shape of the zebra's body.

00:48 Ruzeth looks away from Inky to stare up at the ceiling as she explains further, now unsure of what he could say to make her feel any better. He hadnt realized that Inky and Zuthal had been like that as well. Instead he just hugs her tighter and then turns to nuzzle back into her mane "Well...I'm sure he'll forgive you in time. You dont need him anyways. You're better than him."