Standing still, Maeve’s face held a vacant expression as she stared at her crown. Choróin ar an Bitseach. She didn’t understand what the title meant, but she had heard the crown’s name many times during her extended stay in the castle of the fey. The crown was magical; it chose the wearer, the wearer did not choose the crown.
Maeve had picked up the crown up off of the floor right after she had lopped off Queen Oonagh’s head and then Maeve had placed it upon her own fiery orange tresses. After a contest of wills, getting herself a splitting headache in the process, Maeve had lived to wear the crown. She had made herself Queen of the Fey, and not long after, she had abandoned her kingdom, absconding with Princess Luna as the army was entering the castle to find her.
The power of the crown was unknown; all Maeve knew was that her magic grew stronger while wearing it, too strong, making it unpredictable and dangerous. The crown also made her feel aggressive, irritable, and rather crabby. She was not a nice girl when wearing Choróin ar an Bitseach.
Sighing, Maeve turned away from her crown and headed to the bathroom to take a bath.
Pony tubs were wonderful things, deep, wide, a human could get their whole body down in there for a good soak. Maeve’s face was bright red from the sun, as were her arms, and the rest of her skin had turned bright pink from the hot water. She worked herself over with her scrubbing brush, mindful of her tender skin. She had grown a lot in the past year, her legs becoming longer, her arms gaining a little length, and her neck seemed too long and ugly. Maeve knew that she was a gawky girl, but that was okay. She was the only human in this world, and that was fine. Maeve much prefered ponies. Most of them were better company.
Maeve’s height was a bit of an issue though. She was taller than Princess Celestia. The ponies here were little. Little, little ponies. Maeve had grown past the five foot mark, making herself just a little bit taller than Princess Celestia.
The ponies were odd creatures with many weird human artifacts. There were doorknobs, teapots, silverware, all kinds of things a human might find in their own house, and Maeve had no idea what all of this was doing here in a land of magical talking ponies.
As she scrubbed, the brush slipped from Maeve’s fingers and sunk down into the depths of the tub. As Maeve reached down to get it, she looked down into the water and saw clotted blood. She stared down in horror, realising that she was bleeding from there once more, like she sometimes bled after… Maeve shuddered, unable to finish the thought, and her whole body tensed as terror took over.
Unable to deal with the sight of her own blood, Maeve screamed as loud as she could and then fainted, her head slipping down beneath the water, bubbles rose up to the surface of the water as Maeve sank down into the depths of the tub.
Dressed in a robe, wrapped in a blanket, Maeve coughed up more water from her lungs. It splattered to the floor as Princess Celestia made an equine sound of worry, a low rumbling nickering.
“Princess Twilight Sparkle said that this would happen. She will be here in just a little while to talk with you, Maeve. Just try to stay calm and please do not worry,” Princess Celestia said in a low, worried voice.
“Why am I bleeding?” Maeve asked, her voice raspy and more of a gurgle than anything else. She shook her head, blinked a few times, and then pushed her wet hair out of her face with her left hand. She sat back in her chair and tried taking a few deep breaths.
The white alicorn closed her eyes for a moment so that she might gather up her calm and her serenity. She opened her eyes and looked at Maeve. “Please, try to wait for Twilight. She has experience in being a human girl.”
Recovering some of her usual plucky self, Maeve looked over at the guard. She raised her left hand, waved, and then smiled. “Thank you for saving me from drowning. You’re very kind.”
The guard, a unicorn, bowed his head low but said nothing in return. After raising his head, he resumed being a statue, standing near the door with a stern expression.
“One of these days, I’m going to get one of them to smile.” Maeve huddled down into her robe and her blanket, a scowl spreading over her freckled face. “If it is the last thing I ever do…”
“Might I give you some advice as a Sorceress?” Princess Celestia asked in a low whisper, her muzzle close to Maeve’s ear.
Scowling, Maeve sighed and waited for the lecture. “If you must…”
A terrible, horrible, frightful smile spread over Princess Celestia’s lips, a smile that Maeve did not see. “Most ponies are very ticklish just behind their front legs and upon their flanks, the soft stretch of skin that exists between the ribs and the hips… the soft place where you like to lay your head upon my sister, Luna.” Celestia banished her smile before Maeve could turn to see it, as Maeve was turning to head to look up at Celestia. “A Sorceress must know the weakness of her foe, whomever that might be.”
Looking up from where she sat in her chair, Maeve gave Princess Celestia an incredulous, wide eyed stare. Her mouth opened but no words came out. Her brain tried to process the fact that Princess Celestia was telling her how to make mischief and be a naughty girl.
“Twilight Sparkle will be very soon. Just hold on and be patient, Maeve…”
Halting, Princess Twilight Sparkle bowed her head and then looked at Maeve. “Hello again, Sorceress Maeve.” Twilight glanced at Celestia and then locked eyes upon Maeve once more. “Maeve, might I try to give you a hug?”
Startled, the girl took a step backwards. She folded her hands behind her back, and her lower lip quivered with worry. Her whole body trembled and her green eyes narrowed as she looked down at Twilight. “I don’t know what will happen if you do. I don’t know how I’ll react.”
A soft, gentle smile appeared upon Twilight Sparkle’s face. “I know, Maeve. I know that a lot of bad things happened, but not all touches are bad. You and Princess Luna touch—”
“That’s different,” Maeve said, becoming defensive. “And that don’t always turn out so well either. I can’t help how I spook.” The girl’s nostrils flared and she took another step backwards. “If you want to hug me, I won’t stop you.”
After taking a deep breath, Twilight Sparkle took a cautious step forward. Her wings unfurled and she took another slow step towards Maeve. After waiting for a moment, Twilight closed the difference, wrapped her wings around Maeve’s middle, and pressed her face against Maeve’s stomach. Feeling bold, Twilight, using her wings, gave Maeve a squeeze.
After a moment, Twilight let go and stepped away.
Maeve, who had been holding her breath this whole time, let it out in a huff. She stepped backwards once more and fell back into her chair, sinking down into the soft cushions, a look of relief upon her face.
Smiling, Twilight lept up into another chair and sat down. “See, everything went okay.”
“I am going to leave the two of you alone for this girl talk,” Princess Celestia said in a soft whisper. “I will return in a little while with cookies and milk. Thank you, Twilight Sparkle.” With a gracious smile, Princess Celestia made her exit.
Leaning forward in her chair, Maeve asked, “Could you just tell me what is going on?”
With a ruffle of her wings, Twilight took a deep breath and cleared her throat. “Menarche.” Twilight’s eyes focused upon Maeve. “Menses. Human females ovulate monthly once they begin their reproductive fertile period. When the egg is not fertilised, the body disposes of it, and there is some blood. I experienced it after I became a human girl for a while. It scared me to death, I thought I was dying. I had some friends explain to me what was happening. I was very, very shaken up by the experience. I think you are about the age that you should be when a human female normally starts, if I recall the book I read correctly.”
“So I’m becoming a woman?” Maeve asked.
“Yes!” Twilight nodded. “You’re growing up. It’s all normal and natural.”
“My mother never told me about any of this. I don’t understand,” Maeve said, hunching down into chair. She pulled her knees up to her chest, wrapped her arms around them, and curled up into a miserable ball in her chair.
Wondering what to say, Twilight’s mind turned over the different possibilities of what might happen if she tried to explain more. Maeve, being traumatised the way she was, might have a bad reaction to certain topics. Twilight felt an ache in her heart and a tightness in her throat.
“Maeve, you’re growing up and becoming a woman. This means that you could, if you wanted to, have children of your own someday, if you found a human male… now wait, before you get upset.” Twilight raised her hoof when she saw Maeve’s mouth opening. “You are the only human in Equestria. There are no human males. And I know that you don’t want anything to do with human males, this is just a brief explanation about your body. Okay?”
Glowering, Maeve nodded.
“I’ll leave out all the reproduction mechanics.” Twilight sighed and took a moment to collect her thoughts. “You’re female. You have eggs inside of you. So do I. Males have sperm. When you combine the two, you make offspring. Foals. Babies. Under normal circumstances, it is a very loving act, it makes the two ponies or the two people involved very happy, and the cycle of life continues. And that is all I will say because you don’t look so good… you okay Maeve?”
“I feel sick,” Maeve replied, closing her eyes.
“Uh oh, that’s not good. Want help getting to the bathroom?” Twilight Sparkle asked.
When Maeve gagged, and then clamped her hand over her mouth, Twilight Sparkle did not wait for a further reply. She lifted Maeve in her telekinesis, slipped out of her chair, and hurried for the bathroom.
Holding up a glass of water in her telekinesis, Twilight Sparkle helped Maeve get a drink. The girl was huddled up in the corner of the bathroom, her knees pulled up to her chest once more, and her arms folded around her shins. Maeve sipped some water, and then pushed the glass away after raising her right hand.
“You gonna be okay?” Twilight asked.
“You don’t talk like the other princesses,” Maeve replied. She held her head up and looked at Twilight, who stood by the tub, giving Maeve the space she needed.
“I’m not like the other princesses. I was born a unicorn and I became a princess after a whole lot of hard work.” Twilight smiled and shook her head. “I made a lot of messes, mistakes, and had to do a lot of learning to get to where I am.”
Groaning, Maeve stood up, her legs wobbling, and then she steadied herself. She took one shaky step, got her balance, and walked out of the bathroom. She headed for her comfortable chair, her stomach gurgling every step of the way.
Twilight Sparkle set the water glass down upon the edge of the sink and then followed, returning to the sitting area in Maeve's’ room.
“So this is going to happen every month?” Maeve asked as Twilight sat down.
Getting herself settled in a well cushioned chair, Twilight Sparkle’s head bobbed. “Yep.”
“Is it like a chicken egg? Am I going to lay an egg?” Maeve’s green eyes were almost as wide as saucers as she asked her question.
“Oh no… human eggs are very, very tiny. You can’t see them, not really.” Twilight Sparkle was serious, solemn, there was no trace of laughter in her voice, no amusement, there was nothing that would betray Maeve’s trust.
“My mother always told me babies came from storks,” Maeve said in a low mumbled whisper. “I never believed that, it seemed silly. I heard another woman say that babies came from the cabbage patch.”
“That’s funny, the earth ponies sometimes say that to curious little foals that ask too many questions, like ‘where do foals come from’ and the parents are too embarrassed to explain the messy truth.” Twilight tilted her head and her ears both dropped over to one side.
“So fairies are real, magic is real, magical talking ponies with wings and horns are real, but babies definitely do not come from storks. I don’t know what to feel about anything anymore.” Maeve unfolded her body and allowed her legs to hang off of the chair. She sat up and looked at Twilight. “I don’t even know what is a lie anymore.” She lifted her left hand and tapped her index finger upon her chin. “I wonder if Saint Nicholsby was real?”
“Who?” Twilight’s head tilted in the other direction.
“Saint Nicholsby was a tall skinny man who gave gifts to good girls and boys during the winter yule holiday. Bad children got rotten black eggs and good children got toys. Some of my dolls came from him… if he’s real. I think my mother bought my dolls… I don’t know what is real anymore.”
“Hmm, that sounds familiar… when I went through the mirror, there was a jolly fat elf named Caspian Krangle that delivered toys to children. Good children got toys… bad children got rancid sauerkraut left in their shoes. He supposedly flew through the sky on a magical rowboat and left presents all over the world in one night.” Twilight Sparkle shook her head. “It sounded like utter nonsense but so many humans believed in it.”
“Sounds like Saint Nicholsby… but he flew around the world in a magical cart pulled by dogs,” Maeve said, looking at Twilight Sparkle. “He also delivered presents all over the world in one night.”
“Fascinating… many worlds, many myths, but the stories seem so familiar…”