Caving in

Shala's home. One of first homes ever where she had complete and utter privacy. Windows were a nice touch, and having no holes in the walls or roof was excellent. And the furnishings were all so pristine.

Not a single one of these were on her mind anymore. She was far too busy with her thoughts as she groaned at the headache that could split a mountain. Her tossing around on the couch knocked empty bottles onto the floor. Of all the mornings she had with a hangover, this one was among the worst. She drank her entire personal stash (fortunately small for her standard, Ponyville didn't have a large stock on them). Now that it was the next day, her head ached AND she had that evil tick of time going through her.

It was not the ticking that drove her to drink so terribly yesterday. It started with her morning after that. When she woke up and recalled what happen the day before. Intel. The glass. The hospital. How could she lose herself so badly? How many more terrible things will she do?

And that was how she got started on her drinking. Not just last night but all together. Shala recalled what that pony named Night said. Something along the lines of everyone having makeup with something underneath. Shala knew what was under her makeup. It was why she drank. She did not like what was under there, and what she did to Intel reminded her of what she was running from. She moved to Ponyville to start things over. Grampy gave her the money to make it happen. Why was it all comming apart now?

"I....need to write him a letter..." She groaned, looking for a paper and quill. That crosseyed mailmare better not skip her house by mistake. Shala always wrote Grampy a letter when she was not feeling so well. He always cheered her up.

There was a timid knock on the door. "S-Shala...? Y-You t-there...? I-It's m-me, I-Icarus... I-I b-brought s-some C-Cake... T-That is, I-If you l-like c-cake... O-Or are e-even h-home..." He said through the door, Voice somewhat worried.

Shala was about finished with her letter when she heard the knock at the door. The sound caused her head to ache with each knock.

"Comming!" She shouted so the knocks would stop. The shout from her only made her groan in anguish as more pain hammered her head. Stumbling to the door, she opened it and found her eyes on a innocent mechanic.

She was quite surprised. Not just by the fact he was visiting but that he brought a cake. To Icarus though, she looked like a mess. Her mane frazzled, her eyes tired and looked a little tear streaked.

"Icarus...Hi..." She looked away ashamed. It was obvious she was not taking to well to herself lately.

Icarus' first impulse was to ask "What's wrong?" But shied away from asking. Instead, he offered a shy smile and asked, "H-Hi S-Shala... C-Can I c-come in?"

Icarus was Worried sick, the state his friend was in doubling that, but Didn't want to lose his friendship due to being too nosy, but also didn't want his friend in such a state, and...

Shala nodded and went to went inside, sitting on her couch. The door was left open for Icarus. She began to fold up the letter she had finished writing and put it in an envelope for later delivery. Suddenly the empty bottles were much more obvious to her. So much for setting a good impression. She quickly began to clean them up with some stumbling and put them in the trash. Otherwise she was silent and poor in spirits.

Icarus shyly walked in, and helped float some bottles to help clean. "... B-Bit for you t-thoughts?" He asked, placing the bottles gently in the trashcan.

Shala was silent until all the bottles were cleaned up. Then with a huge sigh she hunkered down on her couch and looked down at the floor. She wanted to just shut up and keep it all to herself, but Icarus was just...hard to resist. "I'm...a bad pony...I've done a lot of bad things...nothing to be proud of..." Her voice was quiet, just short of Icarus.

Icarus sat down next to Shala, gently patting her back with a hoof. "W-Well, I d-don't t-think you're b-bad..." He said quietly, a small smile on his face. "I-I mean, Y-You're s-still o-one of t-the nicest ponies I k-know besides, a-anyway." He added. "S-Still... I-I read once t-that it h-helps t-to tell s-somepony... I-I promise n-nothing s-said here w-will e-ever l-leave this r-room." He promised, smiling.

"Im a BAD pony!" She said raising her voice. Shala pulled a pillow over her head to hide her face. She tried so hard to hide the fact she was whimpering through her breaths. It took her a few moments but she managed to calm herself enough to speak again.

"I have done terrible things....I didn't want to bring them here. It has no business here!...I'm...starting over."

She sounded like she had begun to whimper again, but it was hard to tell.

Icarus was dumbstruck, stunned into silence... then he gently hugged Shala. "I-It's okay... He murmured, just staying still.

Shala was caught off guard as she was hugged. No pony had hugged her in a long time. She wanted to push him away, to be isolated and alone in her self pity, but Icarus's nature did just the opposite to her.

Her tears started to flow and wailed away into his shoulder with her sobs. Never before had she ever got to let it out like this is so long and in such volume. She hugged back very tightly. Several minutes worth of sobbing went by before she was reduced to tired whimpers. There was so much in her to let out. It felt a little better to have a shoulder to cry on. The shoulder of a friend.

Icarus just simply hugged Shala, Letting her cry it out, Gently patting her back. "I-I'm h-here f-for you... N-No m-matter w-what." He said softly, giving a soft smile.

Shala began to sob more into his shoulder, letting it out with no resistance. Another few moments went by before she could control her sobbing. "T-thank you....Icarus..." She whimpered and softened up her hug on him before retreating back to hiding her head under the pillow.

After Shala softened her hug on him, Icarus just patted her back, Simply being there. "I-It's n-no problem, S-Shala..." He said softly, giving a slight smile.

Shala rubbed her head into the pillow to wipe away the tears. She had been doing this for a while now. But the relief she just got was so much more than any of the tears she shed before.

"Thank you...But...I can't share it...its....hard." She tried and failed to think of any other way to put it. She was not very open at all to any digging through her past than necessary.

Icarus nodded, understanding. "Y-You don't h-have t-to t-tell m-me r-right a-away... o-only w-when you're r-ready t-too." He said, smiling softly. "I-Is there a-anything I-I c-can d-do...?

Shala shook her head. "No...You did plenty already...Thanks..." She let out a sigh, having gotten over her tears for now. "...You don't have to stick around...I might be this way for a while...I have to...talk to Intel sometime..." She winced. Apologizing was a very huge hurdle for Shala. It would be days before she could talk to him again.

Icarus smiled, nodding. "I-I don't h-have t-to, but I w-want to. Y-You're m-my friend." He stated, giving a one-legged hug. "U-Unless y-you w-want m-me t-to go..." He added softly.

Shala sighed and patted Icarus back on the shoulder. "You can stay...But i do need to do the rest alone..." She used her magic to float over the letter she had written and put it next to Icarus. "If you leave before the mailmare gets here, can you drop this off at the post office? I rather...that odd mare not see me like this..."

Icarus nods, placing the letter in his pocket. "I-I'll d-deliver it... I-If you n-need a-anything, L-Let Me k-know..." he said, standing up. "D-Don't l-let t-the past r-rule you... S-Somepony s-said that, o-once." he said with a small smile, heading out the door.

Shala let him go. She stared at the floor for some time. It was not the first time she heard the phrase. But it was hard since her past was all she had. "I hope you reply soon Grampy..."