Amnesty

The soft, cool hospital bed stood quietly in the tiny room that held Daylight. He continued to watch the ceiling, unsure of what to do anymore. He would have accepted the placid boredom if not for the occasional, unnecessary beeps. By learning that it beeped every fifteen seconds, he estimated that he had been awake for somewhere around three hours. Judging by the darkness he assumed it was still in the early hours of the morning. How long he had been out before finally waking up nothing in the room could tell him.

Somepony had hooked him up to a few machines to monitor his vitals. Last night's few hours of sleep were the best ever as he actually felt, for the first time in six years, rested. He may have felt wonderful, but he wouldn't allow himself to get out of the bed. The main reason he didn't call for assistance or unhook himself and leave was that he didn't want to be seen, for more reasons than simply because he had been proven the werewolf, even after his mix of caution and carelessness. In the dim lights of the monitors he happily saw that the cat eye no longer existed on his hoof. That didn't assure he was cured; there were a few other aspects of his cursed self that remained evident.

Thoughts of his curse took his mind to what happened the night before just as he was turning. So the other one had finally found him. That was just great because now he had to deal with that. Fate sure did know how to throw the book at him in his times of importunity. "You would think", he told the uncaring ceiling, "that being at least half-cured would bring some form of fortune. But, no. Not even I can have such a sliver of felicity…"

Self-loathing soon followed the pity, and he came to hate the mistakes he made in the past eight days in Ponyville. How he should have been more attentive to his research and not goofing like Rime during firefly season. The hate gave way to satisfaction at what he did accomplish outside his studies. Over the course of the short eight days, Day had managed to tie strong bonds with numerous ponies who didn't hesitate to place themselves in harm's way for him. He couldn't even think about what else he had managed to do. Finding the friendship in those ponies was probably the most special thing that had ever happened to him.

He chuckled. "Well, outside Fluttershy…" His cheeks turned crimson. He didn't bite his bottom lip like he usually did when embarrassed alone, but instead he smiled. He might not had known what was going to happen when somepony walked in and saw that he had woken up, yet he wasn't letting it bother him. The only thing he could let cross his mind was the picture of Fluttershy's soft smile and eyes. The optimism buzzed in the back of his head along with other unfamiliar feelings.

Day passed the empty time by relishing in all of the good things that had happened. He didn't know it then, but his entire outlook on life had been lifted out of the darkened crevice of fear. The curtains glowed faintly against the brightening sky. The colt took that as his cue to at least sit up. Since it was his first time in a non-Japonies hospital, he took in the room's features. It was much more decorated than back on the islands, something he wasn't certain he liked. The equipment was less advanced than what he was accustomed to, and that was years ago! Aside from the many displeasing aspects, he did like how whoever put the room together packed it full of tons of brightly colored flowers and even a few giftwrapped presents to lighten the mood. No Japonies designer ever did that.

He changed his gaze from that half of the room to the other, and found a very asymmetrical setting. It wasn't nearly as decorated as the half by the door, except for the odd bonsai or two. It was also the place for countless stools and chairs. That sight unnerved him. The thought of so many ponies watching him while he was unconscious was the kind of dream fuel that ignited nightmares. He counted the rows until he came upon a couch set just under the window.

Day's breath emigrated from his lungs when he raised up to get a better look. What was so breathtaking about this sofa? Why, the Pegasus asleep on it of course. Combined with the fact that she had once again donned her ice-blue kimono, her presence in his room stunned him completely. He couldn't decide out what captivated him more, the fact that she was there at all, or the fact that she had taken the time to get dressed to visit and stay with him through the night. Whatever the case was, he simply cast his stare over her. In the dim light he could still make out her soft, sleeping smile. The clock above the door ticked the seconds away. Daylight noticed himself staring many of those ticks later, but could do nothing to stop the act.

As his staring progressed, so did the blush encasing his face. The redness burned fiercely, but he just couldn't find himself able to look at another, less amazing spectacle. The way the strands of her redone mane gracefully fell over her face urged him to go brush them to the side, or if he dared, behind her ears. It was no mystery why she was so dressed up for a simple hospital visit. He knew she looked that way for him. Fluttershy probably felt she had to make up for what happened even though it was in no way her fault it was ruined.

And then came the guilt. Not just for last night, but for everything: keeping his secret from the Pegasus, lying to her, lying to his friends, the felony charges that would undoubtedly be pressed on him, and putting in harm's way not only his life, but the lives of countless other ponies, both close to him and otherwise. He felt himself go a layer lower with each thing he listed. For the first time in what felt like forever, tears formed in the corners of his eyes. He let them go their own way, the paralyzing compunction destroying all will to do anything outside lightly breathing. He kept his muffled crying to himself. He didn't want to wake Fluttershy and have one more thing to be sorry for.

It turned out his luck had something else planned for him. The sunlight pouring in from the cracks of the curtain angled into Fluttershy's face. She frowned in her sleep, furrowing her brow to rid herself of the light. He watched her struggle with the light. He knew if he got up she would probably hear the movement and wake up sooner. Fluttershy rubbed her eyes, finally defeated by the sunlight. Not wanting to be caught staring, he looked down into his lap.

The Pegasus yawned quietly. Her sleep-deprived eyes adjusted to the brightness of the room, and soon settled on the yellow Earth Pony quietly grimacing to himself. Confusion struck first, but was ultimately replaced by happiness at seeing he was awake. Spread her wings and flew over the rows of chairs to his bedside. "Good morning, Daylight!"

Her greeting was just a decibel or two above a whisper, yet it was still powerful enough to nearly knock Day off the opposite side of the bed. She seemed to be really happy that he was up. For a wild reason he thought he knew why. What he didn't know was what to say in return. Sure, "good morning" could have been a good start, but that was so simple and not at all in line with the other things swimming around in his head. Day racked his brain for the smallest, yet most meaningful words. He delved as deep as he possibly could without closing his eyes in concentration. His mental mining stopped when two of the most common words came to mind. At least they would be a start. "Thank you."

His attempted-grateful-yet-still-grim reply lacked a smile, which got a sigh from Fluttershy. However, she wasn't going to ruin the mood. Instead of asking why it was he didn't smile, even though his greatest burden had been lifted, she went on. "How are you?"

The stallion shrugged. "Aside from the itchy hospital gown, I feel…subarashī…terrific."

Fluttershy giggled. "That's great to hear. Everypony will be happy to know."

Day furrowed his brow. "Everypony?"

"Your friends", she clarified, "Pinkie Pie even thought we should all stay and watch until you woke up, but we were all too sleepy. They left you all of the 'get well' and 'thank you' gifts."

"I guess that explains the chairs", Day reasoned. "But not why you're wearing the kimono from last night."

She looked away shyly. "Well, you see…You didn't compliment it last night…"

He raised an eyebrow knowingly. "Fluttershy…" he coaxed.

"Oh, okay", she tittered, "I'm wearing it because…because…"

"Because?"

The moment had the nervous Pegasus in its clutches. She fought to get her words out, and managed to say, "L-last night…I never got to tell you what I wanted to say…"

Her blush spread across the gap between the two faces and infected Day as well. Regardless, he hopefully asked, "Which was…is?"

Turning her gaze into his vibrant olive eyes, she stammered, "I-I think I'm in l-love with you…"

Day saw that coming for a while now, but was still thunderstruck that it had finally arrived. Since he was prepared, he had a reply ready. "What a coincidence. I know I'm in love with you."

Fluttershy jumped into the air with a cheer. Giddiness rocked her body with giggles as the words he said sunk in. In her excitement, she flipped the room's lights on. Day watched her fly around the room, forcing his smiles down. He felt self-conscious about it, not having smiled in front of somepony that didn't know he was a werewolf since it happened. The Pegasus finally landed next to his bed, beaming so wide that he was sure the room had lost its dimness.

She noticed he wasn't smiling. It was time; this was such a tender moment, and she had to know why. "Day, are you okay?"

He nodded. "Yes, why do you ask?"

"You aren't smiling…"

"One last secret", he confessed, "This is the reason." Slowly, he lifted up his lips to form the never-before-seen expression. As he did, he revealed two pointed fangs jutting out from his top row of teeth. "They're a dead giveaway", he explained, "And only visible when I smile."

Fluttershy's blush deepened. She had never before seen a normal pony with fangs before. They weren't very big nor were they threatening. If anything, they made him look really, really cute. "I like them", she complimented, "They're adorable!"

Of all the things she could have said about them, Day never imagined that would be it. The weird feeling he had for letting her see quickly passed. Once his blush faded considerably, he unhooked himself from the monitors. He left the bed, threw the gown away, and stretched. "Let's get going, Fluttershy."

"Wait, Day", she called as he left.

"What is it?"

Her eyes wandered around the room, her blush coming back full force. "I was wondering…if we could…kiss again…"

He chuckled. "I thought you'd never ask." He was sure that her heart was beating just as fast as his was, if not faster. Last night's kiss was his successful attempt to confirm whether or not it would cure him. Now it was for a different reason. Nervously, he moved his face towards Fluttershy's. It was slow, but eventually, their lips touched. A jolt of happiness shot throughout their bodies. They were so focused on the other that the door opening went by unnoticed.

"And I didn't even have to go mistletoe!" Rime announced.

The yellow ponies pulled apart so fast that Rainbow Dash might have been impressed. Standing in the door way was Pinkie Pie, Twilight, and Strings, of whose head Rime was standing atop. They all smiled at the two lovebirds. Day hurriedly changed the topic before anypony could say anything. "What are you all doing here so early?"

"We came to see if you ready to party!" Strings answered as if Day should have known.

"And it looks like you are! Let's party!" Pinkie Pie shouted.

"Not just yet", Twilight intervened, "Somepony wants to see you first, Daylight."

"Who?"

Princess Celestia appeared behind the three ponies. "That would be me."

Day dropped to the ground. "Princess Celestia! I'm honored!"

"Please rise." She entered the room. "There is much we must discuss and I'm sure Pinkie Pie would like us to waste as little time as we can."

Day stepped frowned. "Oh…I'm probably under arrest now, aren't I?"

The Princess actually laughed. "Oh, goodness, no! But there are a few ponies that deserve apologies, don't you thinks so?"

Day nodded, relieved he wasn't going to be served with a prison sentence. "I agree."

Fluttershy stepped up to the Princess of the Day. "May I come too?"

"Yes you may, Fluttershy."

The mare almost glued herself to the colt's side. "Shall we?"

"Just one second", interrupted a young colt from the door. Everypony followed the voice to a dark blue Pegasus. "Sorry, Daylight, I'm Aqua Jet, an intern here. I just have to make sure you're healthy enough to leave."

"I feel fine", protested Daylight.

"And aren't you a little young to be a hospital intern?" Twilight asked.

"I might look twelve", said the colt, walking forward, "But I'm actually quite mature for my age. Now, Daylight, I only need to perform a standard exam. Nothing too lengthy."

"If it is procedure", Princess Celestia stated, "Then we cannot leave until it is done."

"Yes, Princess." Day stood still and let the younger colt look him over, using a medical instrument here and there for the things his eyes couldn't examine. The poking, and studying came to a halt sometime later.

"You're in good health", said Aqua Jet, "You can leave when you're ready."

"Hey, Little Bro, do you know where I can grab a coffee?" yawned Strings after the leaving intern.

"Follow me, I'll take you right there."

"Yay! Coffee!" Pinkie Pie cheered. She bounced after the colts. The voices of the three faded away, stopping somewhere in the middle of Strings's lecture about why Pinkie Pie shouldn't even smell the caffeine-filled drink.

When she was certain they could leave, Princess Celestia stepped out into the hallway. Together, Fluttershy and Day followed Celestia out into the empty corridor. Twilight told them she was going to go downstairs and grab a few hooves to get Day's presents and flowers to Fluttershy's cottage.

When they were out of earshot, Day started the conversation. "So, I'm not in trouble?"

"Absolutely not", said she, "There is no punishment for a disorder."

"But what about what Mystic Edge was trying to do?" he asked, "Why was he going to—"

"Mystic Edge was disobeying direct orders from me. He faces his court martial tomorrow morning. I promise it will be short. He was always a little harsh when dealing with werewolves, but I don't know what had pushed him to the brink of almost ending your life."

"That's easy", Fluttershy piped up, "He was jealous of day. Anypony could have seen that he didn't like how close I was to Daylight."

"I see. Well, Daylight, since you are not a werewolf any longer, I grant you full amnesty for your transformations. However, I do have one question for you."

"Anything, Princess."

She let a few nurses pass by before asking. "What compelled you to stay in Ponyville? You must have known that your transformations would have caused trouble."

Fluttershy watched him. That was one question she didn't think to ask.

Day looked up at her. "I thought I could keep my wolf form under control. I usually could for the first few hours and just before changing back. I was foalish…"

Her curiosity satisfied, she stopped in front of room two-twenty-three. "In here are Lyra and Roseluck. I asked for them to meet us here instead of going out for them. There's also a third pony, who asked to see you by name."

"Third pony?" Could it be who I think it is? He pushed open the door. Inside was brightly lit by the sunlight outside. Lying in the bed with a book in his hooves was a silver pony. A bandage around his head partially covered his messy white mane. On the visitor's couch sat the two mares, who he knew were his victims.

His hoofsteps caught their attention. The colt grinned. "Hello, blood brother." He rubbed his forehead. "You're still one big headache, you know that?"

"What are you doing here, Haze?" Day stood at the side of the bed.

"I figured it out. The cure, I mean", explained, "But I guess you did too." Haze adjusted his gaze to the Pegasus behind his visitor. "Hello, who's this?"

Daylight waved Fluttershy over. "Fluttershy, this is Misty Haze, my oldest friend. Haze, this is Fluttershy, my fillyfriend."

"I'm also Day's blooded werewolf brother, meaning we were bitten by the same werewolf in quick succession. Not family related, but the werewolf venom that runs through his veins also courses through mine."

"And because of that", Day continued, "He was doomed to follow me during our transformations. We knew that, and traveled in separate directions. He went east, and I west to separate ourselves. I guess I should have kept traveling. None of this might never have happened."

"Not really, Day", said the bed pony, "I've been trying to catch up for you for a year. Last night was my first night in Ponyville—sorry about almost getting you, Fluttershy. I actually came to tell you something very important."

"What?"

"You're still a werewolf."

The Earth Pony almost fainted. "What?"

"Listen, do you know how you only have four bite marks from the night we were bitten?"

Day nodded.

"Well, it turns out, you weren't completely turned like me. That night I saved you from full infection by pushing the werewolf off before his other two fangs sank in. I wasn't so lucky." He lifted his hoof to show them a scar of six puncture wounds. "I was infected with both the primary and secondary venom, you just had the primary. I found a book about Japonies Silverbacks, and those who aren't fully infected remain a werewolf, but with a catch."

"What's this 'catch'?" Fluttershy asked, following along and managing to make sense of everything. She glanced past the two momentarily to find that Rose and Lyra were just as interested, having leaned in to hear more.

"Day's blood still holds the venom, but now controls it, and not the other way around."

Day's eyes widened in surprise. "So, you mean…"

Haze nodded. "With a little practice, you can transform on command!"

"Amazing", Fluttershy gasped.

"Isn't it? Well, there's more where that came from! I figured something else out too." The expectant expressions of the two ponies were enough to make him go on. "Since the werewolf that infected us bit me right after you, your blood was transfused with mine, and, this doesn't make much sense, when you were cured of your hostile lycanthropy, so was I. Except that I can't transform anymore. Unless I'm bitten by you. Then I would have the ability as well."

"Excuse me", Rose interrupted. "I have a question."

"Go right ahead, cutie", Haze said.

With an unamused narrowing of her eyes, the mare asked, "If you two are cured now, what are you going to do now? If you decide to stay, I have houses you can rent here in Ponyville for cheap."

"If it's okay with her", Day answered, "I'd like to live with Fluttershy. I've grown to like my room."

Fluttershy giggled. "Of course it's okay with me, Day."

Haze closed his eyes. "Hmm…I could head back home. How far are the islands from here, couple thousand miles?"

"Why don't you stay in Ponyville for a while", Lyra suggested, "I'm sure you and Day have a little catching up to do."

"Less than a little!" Haze laughed. "Travel by day, eat instant ramen for lunch. Transform on crescent moons, wake up next morning eat instant ramen for breakfast. Rinse and repeat."

Day finally noticed the mares talking. "Oh! I'm sorry! I was sent in here to apologize to you two, and almost forgot!"

"Eh, it's fine, Day", Lyra dismissed, "I've been attacked by way worse. I was just glad you didn't bite me."

"And it's really my fault you got to me. I went out after dark, so I deserved it. We really can't blame you."

"So we're all friends, then?" Haze asked.

"You bet!" Lyra exclaimed.

"I'm sure we'll get along now that you don't smell like wet dog", Rose snickered.

After the apologies and forgiveness, Daylight was released from the hospital. Princess Celestia was kind enough to pay for the night he stayed. The rest of the day went just as smoothly. There was a big party celebrating the curing of him and Haze, where he actually laughed at Pinkie Pie's jokes. He danced with Fluttershy, who impressed him with her moves. Rime played a few pranks on him and the others. Twilight was happy to have her books returned to her, and she didn't even charge him late fees. Daylight and Dream acted out several scenes from the night before, exaggerating what really happened for the audience. Haze spent most of the party getting to know the mares, and was rather disappointed to find out that the ones who might have shown the slightest interest in him had coltfriends already.

Lots of pictures were taken by Fluttershy. She wanted Day and Haze to be able to remember their first day of freedom for years to come. Every embarrassment, happy moment, and laugh was captured by her old timey camera. The day turned to night, and like all good things the party had to end. However, this wasn't the end of Day's happiness.

As he looked up at the crescent moon with Fluttershy snuggled into his chest, he knew that things could only get better with every passing second. He didn't feel the tingle of his body changing as he had dreaded every night of the cursed chapter of his life. By putting his hoof around Fluttershy, he closed the werewolf story of his life, and, by kissing her head, opened a brand new book, ripe and ready for him to read. The best part of it all, was that he wasn't going to read it by himself. He was going to have Fluttershy too.

All's Well That Ends Well

I never thought I would cry at the end of this story, but I just found the ending so sweet that I couldn't help it.

Let me give a big thanks to AquaJet25 for being nice enough to let me use an OC. Aqua Jet was supposed to appear two chapters ago as a passing pony, but there was too much going on so I repositioned his appearance.

For all of those who have followed and favorited this story, please share some kindness and leave a review. It's been so fun writing this that I really want to see what you all think honestly. The last couple of chapters were sort of lacking in reviews, so let's end on a big farewell, please?

Story Trivia:

Daylight is the fifth created pony I developed for the mane six. He also has one of the deepest back stories so far of any of my OCs.

Kindness is the Cure came right after The Formula for Love, making it also my fifth story.

The lycanthropy in this story has very many different sources, and even my own personal touch to give it unique rules and aspects.

Will we see more of Fluttershy and Day in the future? Yes. I have already started coming up with a sequel, and have a title! Keep a lookout for Trials of the Past!

Easter Eggs: *Non-plot Spoilers*

For those readers who read across my stories: you may have noticed three things are very odd about the timelines. I wrote them in such a way that I have three "Easter Eggs", so to speak. They are:

Event Difference: Instances where stories feature the same events, but with many different aspects.

Time Paradox: Instances where events happen at seemingly different times in Equestria.

Pony Arrival Paradox: The fact that each story hints that the main OC may or may not have been the first in Ponyville, whereas evidence from another story suggests the opposite.