Halfling
By Dee Pad
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Chapter 9: Insomnia

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The delectable aroma of an assortment of tasty foods wafted about the Ponyville café, both from the kitchen where said food was being prepared, as well as the plates of food already sitting on the tables in front of several of the customers. It made no difference if the meals prepared were vegetarian or off the red menu, nopony would argue that the scent was pleasant regardless of its source. Of course, this was normal for the small town's premier dining establishment, as it had developed quite a reputation over the years, and even more so in recent years due to certain, special circumstances.

But today wasn't really anything special. There were no more customers today than on any other day, there was no special menu being offered, and there was not anything worth celebrating—or at least, nothing that the whole town would celebrate together. People were just going about their day like usual, chatting and eating their lunches without a care in the world.

Out of nowhere, all conversations were brought to a halt by the loud, jarring sound of glass shattering and metal clattering, drawing everypony's attention to the source. A tray had fallen to the floor unceremoniously, the food that had been upon it splattered amongst the shards of glass and ceramic, creating an unsightly and rather hazardous mess.

And standing in the midst of it was the café's lone, changeling employee, eyes half-lidded and glazed over as though the slip up he had just made was nothing worth noting.

All eyes were on the changeling as he just stood there in the middle of the mess, some of them chuckling quietly at his expense, while others raised confused and concerned eyebrows at the changeling's uncharacteristic clumsiness. But needless to say the owners of the food that was currently decorating the café's floorboards were none too pleased by the incident.

Regardless of the customers' reactions, the changeling simply sighed internally, scooping up the mess with his neon green aura and floating it off with him to the café's break room to dispose of it. Now free from the prying eyes of the customers, Shade dumped the ruined food and shards of broken glass into a durable, plastic bag to be thrown out safely at the end of the day. Before heading back out, Shade made sure to grab a mop to clean up what was left before it stained.

However, just as Shade picked up the mop, the break room's door opened and in walked an off-white, earth pony stallion with a well-groomed, blue mane, a thin mustache and a clean, white suit. It was Shade's boss and the owner of the café, Horte Cuisine, looking somewhat perturbed.

"Shade, may we speak, s'il vous plaît?" Horte asked in his distinguished, Prench accent, although his tone made it sound more like a demand. He gestured toward the table where employees would usually sit to eat lunch during their break.

Shade pulled out a chair and sat down, and Horte did the same. The earth pony stared at Shade for a moment. It didn't take a genius to figure out what Horte wished to speak to him about, but even in light of the slight scowl on his face, Shade still retained his look of mild indifference and even annoyance. Even so, Horte couldn't help but notice the terrible bags under Shade's eyes and the listlessness in the changeling's gaze.

"Zis is zee second time zis week zat you've dropped an order on zee floor, Shade. You are not usually zis clumsy. I can't 'elp but zink zat zere is somezing bozering you."

Shade took a moment to formulate a response. Not because he didn't know what to say, but because it felt like his brain was running more slowly today. "I... I didn't get much sleep last night. Sorry. I'll..." He let out a long, tired yawn. "I'll make up for it. Take it out of my pay or something. I'll try not to let it happen again."

Horte shook his head and gave his employee a sympathetic look as though he already knew the reason for Shade's oddly inadequate performance lately. "Unfortunately, I do not know if your word is enough. You appear to be quite... distressed lately, and until you manage to deal wiz zis, you may be a liability to us, as much as it pains me to say."

Shade was confused and a little worried about the way he'd worded that. "So what do you want me to do?"

Horte let out a sigh. "Go 'ome. Get some rest. You've been an asset to us 'ere for a long time and I do not want to see you slip up any fuzer or it may 'ave an unfortunate effect on zee café's reputation. Once you feel you are in better shape, you may come back to work."

Shade was ready to ask "Are you sure?", but hearing his boss tell him himself that he could take the rest of the day off was an offer he was in no state of mind to refuse. Without saying anything, Shade removed his uniform and simply left.

Horte watched as the door shut behind the changeling. Perhaps this wasn't the typical method of handling situations like this, but, given what he knew of Shade's current circumstances, he felt sorry for him. Hopefully he'd be able to get everything on track before too long.

The loud, high-pitched sound of the whistling kettle pierced the quiet, late afternoon atmosphere of the kitchen within Ponyville's Golden Oak Library. The sound called the attention of the alicorn and dragon who were in the middle of preparing their suppers. Twilight Sparkle sauntered casually over to the stove, removing the kettle from the burner and pouring the scalding hot water into a pair of teacups with teabags already resting within. As the princess steeped their tea, Spike, perched atop a stool to reach the countertop, worked away putting together their meals: a bowl of mixed gemstones for himself, and a dandelion sandwich for Twilight, a personal favorite of the alicorn despite its simplicity. In addition to their respective meals, Spike also had a tray of biscuits baking in the oven for afterwards; a tasty treat to eat with their tea.

"Hey, can you check those biscuits, Twilight?" Spike requested as he slyly picked only the sweetest gemstones for his supper.

Twilight opened up the oven to fill her assistant's request with a smile. Her olfactory senses were immediately overcome by the sweet smell of lemon and sugar. Perhaps a little too sweet. The overwhelming aroma made her think Spike may have gone a little overboard, but she certainly wasn't going to complain.

Having gotten her fill of the tempting scent, Twilight looked over the biscuits. "I think they're about done."

Without needing a prompt, she carefully removed the tray from the oven and placed it upon the countertop to cool. She couldn't help but take one more deep whiff of their delectable, citrus-y scent. It was all she could do to resist the urge to pop one into her mouth to taste test them, but the risk of burning her tongue was all she needed to dissuade her. She then used her magic once more to stack the biscuits neatly on a plate.

"So, are we ready to eat?" Twilight asked, unable to ignore the rumble in her tummy.

Spike slapped the last dollop of mayonnaise onto Twilight's sandwich, plated it and turned to hand it to her proudly. "Yup. Here you go."

Twilight took the plate within her pink aura and waited for Spike to hop down from his stool with his bowl of gem "salad," taking note of the bowl's contents. "Spike, you should really throw a few greens into your diet every now and then."

Spike let out a groan and waddled back to the counter. With a huff, he hopped back onto the stool, grabbed the box of gems from the cupboard, and dropped a single emerald into the bowl before jumping back down.

The alicorn gave her assistant a rather bemused grimace as she grabbed the two cups of tea and the plate of lemon biscuits. "You know that's not what I meant, smart guy," she said as they made for the foyer to enjoy their suppers.

"What? They're healthier than you think. You ever try 'em?" Spike argued, holding the emerald out to Twilight.

The princess just stared back at him, disgruntled. "You know I haven't," she answered, pushing the mock offering back. "But just because you're a dragon doesn't mean you can't have a few vegetables with your gems. In fact, I'm sure it'd be beneficial in the long—"

Twilight stopped, raising an eyebrow as she followed Spike's pointing claw as they entered the library's foyer. There, sitting at the table in the middle of the room, head laying down and fast asleep, was Shade. They hadn't even heard him come in, which made them wonder how long he'd been there, especially considering he'd already fallen asleep.

Twilight walked over to the table, laying down her sandwich, the tea and the biscuits. Shade was definitely just sleeping. He was snoring softly and even drooling slightly on the table; Twilight made a mental note to clean that up as soon as possible.

The alicorn gently jostled the sleeping changeling with her lavender hoof. "Shade?"

There was no response. He just kept on dozing. Twilight gave a puzzled look to Spike, who simply shrugged.

Twilight breathed a sigh. "Well, this brings back memories," she quipped sarcastically, recalling occasions in the past when Shade had fallen asleep during her lessons.

Spike watched as Twilight used her magic to pull out a very hefty dictionary from one of the library's shelves—easily half Spike's size—and levitating it over to the table. She held the book about a foot above the table and braced herself. Her magic dissipated and gravity took hold of the dictionary, dragging it down onto the oak surface with a very loud whap, the force of it blowing Twilight's mane back as if a strong breeze had just come through.

The jarring noise did its job and the changeling jolted upright in a panic, almost falling over has his consciousness returned to him abruptly. "Gah! Wha—! Whu..." Shade's eyes slowly adjusted to his surroundings and it didn't take too long for his panic to die down and recognize the two baffled faces staring at him. "Oh, hey, Twilight," he greeted nonchalantly, letting out a tired yawn as he did.

Shade raised an eyebrow the best he could with the bags under his eyes weighing them down. "Whaddya mean? I'm here to study."

Twilight and Spike shared concerned glances before the lavender mare looked back at the changeling. "Uh, Shade, there are no more lessons. You graduated, remember?"

Shade stared back at her vacantly. Just through the expression on his face they could tell he was trying to process that information, further worrying the library's two residents. Finally, his eyes widened a little in realization. "Oooooh, right. Yeah, I was wondering why... uh... what's-her-name wasn't here. You know the one... The, uh..."

"You okay, Shade? You don't look so good," Spike inquired, noting both the haggard state of his face and mane as well as his tired voice.

"Oh. Yeah, yeah, I've just, uh... haven't slept much lately. Or at all. I'm a little sleepy."

"Sounds like an understatement," Twilight commented. She cracked a small grin. "I guess the baby's been keeping you up, huh?"

Just hearing her mention the baby caused Shade's head to hit the table again with a loud, unapologetic groan.

Twilight placed a sympathetic hoof on Shade's shoulder. "Guess somepony should have warned you about that. It's pretty normal for couples to get little respite after bringing their newborn back home."

Shade took a breath in an effort to calm himself, laying his head down on his forelegs. "Sorry. He just doesn't stop crying. I don't get it. He was fine in the hospital, but as soon as we got him home..."

Shade just glanced at the dragon, his eyes dead serious. "I haven't slept for more than an hour at a time since he was born. It's like every ten minutes there's something else wrong that we need to take care of. I just want a few hours of silence, that's all I ask." Suddenly, Shade lifted his head, a surprisingly wide smile on his face as he turned to Twilight. "Hey! I just thought of something fun. What if I spent a few nights here? It'll be like old times. You can move the guest bed into the observatory—"

"Shade, I'm not going to be an accomplice to your abandoning of Winter and leaving her to take care of Snowflake all by herself. This is just a part of being a parent. You were given fair warning that it wasn't going to be easy."

"Don't make me go back home," Shade begged. "He throws his food everywhere, tries to get into things he shouldn't, and there's all sorts of gross stuff coming out of him. Both ends! Do you know how bad baby poop smells?"

Twilight remained adamant in spite of Shade's pleas. "These are just some of the challenges the two of you are going to have to face together."

Shade's head hit the table once more. His tired eyes managed to glance over to the teapot Twilight had brought out. "Can I at least have a cup of tea? You know, to help keep me awake."

Her gaze never softened, staring back at him sternly. "Go home, Shade. No doubt Winter needs your help, and hanging out around here is just making more trouble for her. You're a father now, so it's time for you to step up and be one."

Twilight groaned, standing up and cloaking Shade's whole body in her pink, magical aura. Before the distraught changeling could register what was happening, she had lifted him into the air and brusquely carried him out the door, slamming it roughly behind them.

Spike looked around, confused and now alone in the library. He looked down at his bowl of gems, picking out the lone emerald. He glanced back at the door, making sure Twilight was actually gone before sneakily tossing it into a nearby trashcan.

Winter paced back and forth briskly, trying not to move too rigidly, but also hoping that the slight increase of movement would speed up the process. Cradled in her right foreleg was her week-old son, squirming and crying, continuing the week-long stress session she had had to put up with.

The house was a mess. Baby food stained the kitchen floor, clean diapers and other necessities for newborns were strewn about from all the times Winter had rifled through them to get to particular items, and toys were littered about the living room and creating various opportunities for physical harm. Winter had had no time to clean anything either. At this point, Snowflake had been crying endlessly for the better part of three hours and she could not for the life of her figure out what was wrong with him this time.

The mother herself was in rather poor condition as well. Her mane was frazzled, her coat unkempt and stained, and her feathers ruffled. In fact, she had even noticed that several feathers had been falling out of her wings in the past few days; a clear sign of just how stressed out she truly was. In the past week she'd been so preoccupied attempting to tend to her baby's needs that she had no time to take care of herself. She hadn't bathed in a least four days and her own body odor had mixed with the various unpleasant smells that her crying son was producing, creating a rather unpleasant, nose-wrinkling musk within the whole house. And on top of her lack of sleep, she also hadn't eaten much lately, only taking the time to eat whatever random food was lying around that didn't need preparing.

To make matters worse, she had to deal with all of this all by herself for eight hours a day while Shade was working. She found herself cursing him for having an excuse to get out this. All he had to do for those eight hours was wait tables while she was running herself ragged for a "customer" who couldn't actually tell her what he wanted. And if that wasn't bad enough, Shade was late today. He should have been home half an hour ago, and every minute that ticked by that he didn't return made her more and more aggravated.

Winter groaned in dismay. Snowflake was still crying just as loudly as ever. At this point Winter had forgotten what total silence sounded like. She'd been trying all day to get the colt to go to sleep, but to no avail. She didn't understand how it was physically possible for him to be awake right now considering he couldn't have gotten any more sleep in the last week than she did. Admittedly, her pacing may have been too quick and abrupt for the child to find it soothing, but she hoped beyond hope that somehow moving more quickly would put him to sleep faster. Obviously that wasn't the case.

Winter stopped her pacing, too exhausted to keep it up. She felt like she had just gotten a whole day's worth of exercise in. She was tired, and all she wanted was to just have even a brief moment of respite. Even if she had to continue dealing with the shrill cries of her distraught son, having a few minutes to just sit down and rest was a very welcoming thought. With that in mind, Winter carried her son upstairs, bringing him down to the nursery at the end of the hall and on the right.

There wasn't much to the nursery at the moment; they hadn't exactly had much time to decorate. She and Shade had been using the room as a storeroom, stowing away various odds, ends and knickknacks that they didn't have any place for. They made as much room as possible, but didn't exactly have anywhere else to put stuff. Thankfully, her parents were willing to take some of it off their hooves, and what they didn't want to get rid of was packed into boxes and stacked neatly in the corner of the nursery until they figured out what to do with it. With some magical help from Twilight, they had managed to effortlessly get the crib Winter's parents had gifted them up to the room, pressed up against the left wall and below the room's lone window. A few toys were within the crib itself, but most of them were scattered around downstairs since Snowflake had spent next to no time in the crib yet anyway. The only other things in the room were the various gifts Winter had received for her baby shower, including one part of the baby monitor—the other being in their bedroom—the various storybooks Twilight had given them, and even the bottled storm cloud from Rainbow Dash, all rather haphazardly placed upon a small end table. Winter was hoping that one day she'd put up some nice wallpaper; something autumn-y, like maple trees in the fall or something along those lines. But obviously those plans had fallen by the wayside.

Eager to have even a short break from being a mom, Winter lowered Snowflake gently, albeit shakily, into the crib. Once the foal was out of her grasp, she immediately fell back onto her haunches, letting out an exhausted sigh. She ran a hoof through her tattered mane, noting how greasy her hair had gotten without proper care, not to mention all the stress sweat. She also got a quick whiff of the odor she was emitting, cringing at her own rankness. As much as she'd like to take a nice, long, cleansing bubble bath, she knew she wouldn't have the time for such a luxury. She'd have to settle for a quick shower. Of course, she wasn't going to just leave the baby alone for any amount of time, even just a few minutes. She'd have to wait until Shade got home and pawn the foal off on him for a few minutes while she cleaned up. And that was the first thing she was going to do when he got back. Well, perhaps not. First, she'd chew the inconsiderate changeling out for not getting home on time, then shower.

Winter lifted her head from her thoughts for a moment. The fact that she had even heard her thoughts in the first place was startling. She stood up, staring down into the crib. Snowflake was drifting off. He hadn't exactly stopped crying, but he was definitely petering out. She didn't feel great letting her newborn cry himself to sleep when something may be bothering him, but any amount of respite she could get was more than welcome.

After a few more minutes, the bawling died down to weeping, then to whimpering, and finally soft hiccups as the foal drifted off into his no doubt light slumber. The tired, pegasus mother let out a quiet sigh, and her lips were graced with the first smile they had managed since bringing the little colt home. Winter didn't dare move from where she was at the risk of the sound of her opening the door jostling Snowflake from his much sought-after rest. She was content to simply curl up on the carpeted floor and close her eyes for a few minutes.

Until somepony decided to knock on the front door, startling the tyke and restarting the painful shrieking once more.

Winter stood up with a loud groan, taking every ounce of her willpower not to drown out her son's screaming with her own. "You have got to be kidding me!"

A part of her was entertaining the idea of just ignoring it. After all, she had more important things to deal with and, quite frankly, whatever reason somepony had to visit, she really didn't care right now. But despite all that, she was still a nice person who wanted to be hospitable and, right now, was hating herself for it.

Winter lifted Snowflake out of the crib again, carrying him with her as she ambled downstairs, his screeching practically normal to her by now. She made sure to wear the most frustrated and indifferent expression she could—which came quite naturally at this point—in the hopes that her unannounced visitor would take the hint and just leave her alone.

When she opened the door, she was somewhat surprised to see Twilight Sparkle of all people standing there. And odder still was the disgruntled look on the alicorn's face.

Without even offering a friendly greeting, Twilight stepped aside to guide a shabby changeling wreathed in her pink magic into the house. "I believe this is yours."

Suddenly, the aura surrounding Shade dissipated, dropping the changeling to the floor unceremoniously and with a loud thump.

Winter decided to forego her attempt to dissuade her company from staying seeing as how she had brought the father of her crying baby back home. Instead, she focused her ire on him. "Where the hay have you been?! You were supposed to be home half an hour ago!"

"In his somnolent state, he ended up wandering over to my place, having forgotten that he's already graduated from my lessons," Twilight answered for the ashamed changeling. "I found him dozing off in the foyer."

And hearing that only heightened Winter's aggravation. "You snuck off and took a nap?! While I'm back here trying everything in my power to get Snowflake to stop crying for ten minutes!"

"I wasn't thinking straight!" Shade defended himself as he rose up from the floor. "I'm just as tired as you. I'm having trouble just seeing straight."

"Yeah? Well, you managed to 'see' yourself 'straight' to Twilight's place just fine."

"And you're also used to not raising your offspring. You've got a lot of habits you need to start breaking."

The arguing couple turned to Twilight with frustrated scowls, causing the alicorn to step back slightly.

Twilight cleared her throat, regaining her composure under the pair's irate glowers. "You know, if you guys are having difficulties, all you need to do is ask for help. I, and I'm sure any of your friends, would be more than happy to lend a helping hoof if you really need it."

Winter breathed a sigh at the offer. "Look, no offense, Twilight, but I'm a little tired of getting advice and offers to help from people who aren't actually parents."

Despite Winter's statement, Twilight did indeed take offense to that, furrowing her brow slightly. "I did help raise a baby dragon when I was just a filly."

"The key word being 'help,'" the pegasus quipped. "And does this look like a baby dragon to you?" She held the bawling baby out at the princess.

Twilight stayed silent for a few moments. In that short time she took notice of the state of the two new parents and even their home, giving them a look of pity. "I understand you're in a... volatile place right now, so I'm going to try not to take any of this personally. You're both tired and frustrated and you're not in your right mind. So I'd just like to calmly reiterate that you can ask for help. It'll be good for all three of you."

Shade turned to Winter almost pleadingly, his expression urging her to take Twilight up on the offer. However, Winter responded to his silent plea with a reluctant shake of her head.

"I'm not going to do that. Snowflake is our son—our responsibility. If we can't raise him on our own, what kind of parents would we be?"

Twilight frowned at her response. "That's not the point, Winter. A good parent would do anything they could to ensure their child is happy and healthy."

Winter passed Snowflake to Shade and walked up to Twilight, her hoof upon the open door. "And when you have a kid of your own, you can take your own advice. Now, could you kindly leave us alone? We're trying to put our baby to sleep."

Twilight wasn't happy to hear that, but it appeared as thought there was no getting through to the pegasus in her current state of mind. She received an apologetic look from Shade before turning back to return home.

Shade looked back at Winter, who was already stomping off towards the stairs. He then glanced down at the crying foal in his embrace, then back to Winter. "I don't think it's such a bad idea."

"Honestly, I could use a break, and I know you could, too. Weren't you looking for somepony to be a foalsitter at some point anyway?"

"That was for when I went back to work. I'm not gonna pawn off my son on somepony just so I can sit back and kick my hooves up. That would just make me look like a lazy, uncaring mother."

Shade took a look around the house and the sorry state it was in. "Winter, look around. We can't keep this up. We need some time to recompose ourselves."

Winter stepped up to Shade, her face full of determination and defiance. "This is all a part of being a parent. Everypony else has to put up with this kind of stuff and so do we. I'm not giving up. I'm going to be a good mom, and I'm going take care of our son."

Winter continued to stare Shade down, but the steely look in her eyes wavered for a moment, indicating that, despite her stubborn insistence, she knew there was credence to what both Shade and Twilight said. However, that stubbornness still persisted. "I don't want to come off as an incompetent parent. I want to show everypony that I can raise my foal as well as anypony else. And I can't do that if I ask for help."

Shade just stared back at her, worried about what this sort of thinking would ultimately do to not only her, but their family as a whole. Which is when a thought occurred to him. "This wouldn't happen to have anything to do with your dad, would it?"

Winter's determination made way for surprise and confusion. She hadn't expected him to suggest something like that. "What? What does this have to do with my dad?"

"Well, I've had a chance to get to knew you and your dad and the relationship you have with him. It just seems like you always have something to prove in order to impress him or something."

Honestly, that thought had never occurred to her and she mulled it over for a moment. "Um... I mean, I guess. I will admit that I have a tendency to try a little too hard around him, but that's only because he criticizes everything. Even the day I gave birth to his grandson he criticized me."

Winter furrowed her brow once more and straightened up. "You know what? No. This isn't about Dad. This is about you and me and our baby. This is our first big hurdle as parents and we're gonna get through it ourselves. We're going to prove we don't need anypony's help, because we can be good parents." She turned away and once again made for the stairs. "Now, could you watch him for a few minutes? I really need a shower."

As he watched his beloved ascend the staircase, he couldn't help but admire that she felt so strongly about being a parent. It made him wonder if perhaps he should feel the same way, too. Was his willingness to ask for help truly a sign of being a bad parent? It pained him to think that, but he also didn't want to put up with this torture much longer. The entire time they were talking, Snowflake just continued to cry and cry. Shade wasn't sure how much longer he could keep this up before he caved. But he wasn't about to go behind Winter's back and ask somepony for help, even as much as he wanted to. He was just going to have to find some way to convince her to see things his way.

Night had fallen and not much had changed in that time. Despite the peaceful darkness that cloaked the rest of Ponyville, one house was still lit up from the inside, light shining through the windows like a beacon in the night. It was beyond the hour of the night that anypony should still be awake, but, just as it had for the past week, sleep eluded this home's residents.

In stark contrast to the serene atmosphere outside, the inside of the house was anything but relaxing and quiet. The home was still filled with the grating and disconcerting sound of a baby wailing away with no way to inform his parents what exactly he needed. As a result, and having tried everything they could think of already, said parents had resigned themselves to simply sitting around and hoping that the foal would eventually cry himself to sleep.

Shade sat down at the kitchen table—although perhaps "fell into his seat" would be a more apt description. He was so tired that he was amazed that he simply hadn't passed out from exhaustion at this point. His eyelids felt like they were being pulled down by heavy weights, but it seemed like every time they managed to drift shut, even with the baby still crying, Snowflake would let out a particularly loud shriek that shattered any chance of him finding the sweet release of unconsciousness.

Despite how badly he wanted sleep, Shade was still attempting to stay awake if only because Winter was as well. The changeling looked down at the mug he held with his hoof, grimacing slightly at the liquid inside.

Shade had lived in Ponyville for around two years and had tried many things that he never would have even considered back when he lived in the Changeling Kingdom. In terms of beverages there were a plethora of interesting and bizarre concoctions that the ponies had come up with. During his old life, the only thing available to really drink was water, unless you considered blood a beverage, and even then only some changelings would kill just for the taste of blood. But now Shade had tried all sorts of things; from drinks as simple as various fruit juices to stranger beverages like soda pop. Admittedly, Shade was caught off guard by the fizzyness of soft drinks and they were a bit too sweet for his liking. He had even tried alcoholic drinks once and, suffice to say, only once. Overall, he preferred the simpler drinks, like water, milk, or juice.

However, there was one drink that he despised above all others: coffee. Even though he regularly drank tea, which many people would say is at least similar to coffee, the bitterness and the overpowering fragrance was incredibly off-putting to him. Some people had told him that there were many different types of coffee and that there was probably one out there that he'd like, but, after hearing a list—a very long list—of the many different kinds, Shade was even less inclined to indulge. And based on what little he'd tried, he had to wonder why anypony would be willing to drink it at all.

The taste and smell of it weren't factors in his decision to drink this stuff right now. No, the only reason he was entertaining the idea of drinking this swill was due to one thing: caffeine. He needed something to keep him awake, and based on what he'd learned over the past two years, coffee was the go-to source of that magical substance. Unfortunately.

Shade took a long, reluctant swig of the dark brew, having trouble working up the willpower to swallow it as his brain was telling him to spit it out. Once the coffee had managed it way down his throat, his face tightened in a disgusted grimace and the bitter bite of it caused him to shudder. He wasn't even sure if he was getting the desired effect from the drink as he was still very sleepy, although perhaps the caffeine was the only reason he hadn't quite passed out yet.

The weary changeling looked up from his drink, staring across the table at his equally tired lover and mother of his child. Winter was staring back at him. However, underneath the tired bags of her eyes was a spiteful scowl, glaring across at him with icy daggers from her narrowed eyes.

Winter stayed silent for a moment, her eyes briefly turning up towards the ceiling where the incessant bawling that was keeping them awake was coming from. "That. You're the reason we're in this mess right now."

Shade, insulted and confused by the accusation, furrowed his brow and retorted defensively. "How exactly is this my fault?"

Shade gawked at her weird logic. "You're blaming that on me?! We both thought it wasn't even possible!"

"I don't even know what that is! You're the one who's supposed to teach me about these stupid, pony things! I'm not taking responsibility for you neglecting to tell me these things."

"You always had enough questions for Twilight. Did you never ask her about it?" Winter quipped vindictively.

Shade stared across the table, appalled. "What are you trying to imply? I'm not going to talk to Twilight about personal stuff like that!"

The pegasus rolled her eyes. "Oh, please. How personal can it be for you when you just would shack up with any available female back in the Changeling Kingdom?"

"You seem to show a fair amount of control when it came around while you were here."

"And look where that got us!" she shouted, once more gesturing in the general direction of their crying son.

Shade grit his teeth. He couldn't believe she'd act like this after he'd devoted himself to her. He leaned back on his chair, crossing his forelegs in a huff and turning away from her, not wanting to even look at her right now. "I wouldn't have to put up with this crap back in the Changeling Kingdom," he muttered under his breath.

Shade's gaze shot across the table, his ears falling slightly and all the anger that had built up evaporating after hearing that. He suddenly felt a stabbing pain in his heart and he sunk into his seat, his eyes turning down to the tabletop in dejection.

Seeing the harsh, crestfallen expression come over Shade's face, Winter was quickly overwhelmed with worry and remorse over what she'd said. "Oh, Shade, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean that, I swear," she apologized with deep regret. "I'm just..." She ran a hoof through her mane with a weary sigh. "I'm just a little on edge."

Shade looked across at her again, seeing the remorse in her wide, apologetic eyes. He leaned on the table with a sigh of his own. "I know. We both are."

Shade shook his head. "I think we both need to just blow off some steam. I wouldn't mind just... kicking a hole in the wall right now."

Winter held her head in her hooves, the reality of their situation finally hitting her like a ton of bricks. "What are we even doing? Look at what this baby is doing to us. We're a mess. I don't know how much more of this I can take."

Shade watched as Winter rubbed her temples, her head no doubt pounding as badly as his own. She had been pretty ornery this whole time, and even more so as the week went on. But now, she looked like she was on the verge of tears, like she was ready to just give up. "Winter..."

She looked up at him, a regretful seriousness upon his face. She already knew what he was going to say.

"Please, don't..." Winter whimpered, trying her hardest to fight back the tears.

Winter threw her head into her hooves, her tears flowing freely, and she began to bawl as loudly as her crying son. "I'm a bad mo-o-o-m!" she sobbed, although in a rather exaggerated fashion.

Shade stood up, walking over to her side and placing a hoof tenderly upon hers. "You're not a bad mom. We just need a little help to get us started, you know?"

Winter stared up at him, sniveling quietly. "Y-You think we just need a little push?"

Winter sniffed, wiping the tears from her eyes. "And... nopony will think less of us for it, right?"

"They've been suggesting it for ages, Winter. If anything, we were being irresponsible for waiting this long."

The pegasus hiccuped softly, cleaning the moisture off her cheeks. After a moment of deliberation, she nodded. "Okay."

Shade gave her a supportive pat on the back as he made for the door. "Alright. I'll be right back. Try and console Snowflake until I get back, okay?"

Winter waited patiently on the couch, Snowflake cradled in her forelegs and still crying endlessly. Oddly, she wasn't quite as distraught as she was a few minutes ago. Perhaps the idea that somepony was actually going to help put an end to this torment was comforting on its own, though how effective their help would be was yet to be seen.

Winter didn't even know who Shade was going to ask. It was probably something they should have discussed before he left, but there was nothing she could do about that now. It would probably be Twilight anyway. Whenever Shade needed help with anything, Twilight was the one he'd generally turn to. Honestly, she felt a little insulted that he wouldn't ask his own girlfriend first, but, admittedly, she wasn't nearly as smart as Twilight and she knew that. If anypony was going to be able to answer his questions or calls for help, she'd be the most likely.

The pegasus's eyes drifted back down to her screeching child as she attempted to rock him to sleep in the hopes that help wouldn't be necessary. She wasn't really sure how much help Twilight would be in this particular situation. As regrettably blunt as she was to the alicorn earlier that day, she felt she still had a point; Twilight wasn't a mother and probably didn't have much experience caring for children, especially newborns.

The exhausted mother let out a sigh, barely audible beneath Snowflake's jarring cries. Considering the state both she and Shade had been in this past week, she had to wonder if perhaps it may have actually been easier to raise a full changeling baby. Shade had said they're at least manageable as long as they're well fed, and they probably didn't cry nearly this much, if at all. She couldn't help but crack a slightly amused smirk, finding it funny, if not a little polarizing, that, for the first time since she got pregnant, she felt like she would be okay if her baby was born a pure changeling. But Winter shook her head; she knew that was just the exhaustion talking.

Winter's head jerked up when she heard the sound of the door opening. In spite of her weariness, she stood up from the couch rather quickly to meet Shade. Sure enough, the changeling had returned, but with him was not quite the person she expected. Following behind Shade was a sleepy, pale yellow pegasus, grinning weakly after a long, tired yawn.

"Good evening," Fluttershy greeted quietly, her voice likely physically incapable of reaching any higher a volume at such an hour. "Although, I suppose it's actually closer to morning at this point."

Thinking about it now, it made sense to Winter that Shade would think to ask Fluttershy for help. She was very experienced with caring for small and helpless critters, and Snowflake certainly met those criteria. Additionally, she was also the least likely to be a grump about having been woken at such a late—or perhaps early, depending on how you looked at it—hour. The small, gentle smile on her face was evidence enough of that. And besides, she was one of their prime candidates for a foalsitter anyway. This was a good chance to see how well placed their trust would be.

"Sorry we had to get you up so late, Fluttershy, but we're getting desperate here," Winter apologized.

Fluttershy waved it off weakly with a kind smile. "Oh, it's no problem. I'm always willing to help my friends, even if it's really late. Besides, this sounds like a bit of an emergency," she said, looking toward the crying infant in Winter's care and having noted the physical and mental states of the two parents from the past week.

Shade gestured for Fluttershy to follow them upstairs and the three of them headed for Snowflake's nursery. Once they were there, though, Shade and Winter just stood there awkwardly, Winter still holding the crying baby. Fluttershy raised an eyebrow at their silence and supposed confusion.

Shade cleared his throat, feeling somewhat embarrassed to be in this situation at all. "So, uh... What do we do?"

"You said you've tried everything, right? Changing him, feeding him and such?" Fluttershy asked.

"Everything," Winter groaned with exasperation. "He's been eating and peeing and pooping just fine, but no matter what we do, he won't go to sleep."

Fluttershy gave them a sympathetic look, their rising desperation evident in their expressions. She then turned her attention to the poor foal. She held out her hooves toward Snowflake. "May I?"

Snowflake's screeching died down to a whimper as he took a moment after changing hooves to look over the new face now holding him. Fluttershy gave the tyke a kind, motherly grin. "Hello there, Snowflake."

Immediately, the foal returned to its never-ending cries, finding little comfort in this nice mare.

"If that's all it is, then why won't he just go to sleep?" Winter asked, not understanding the logic behind it; if one were tired, then why wouldn't one just sleep?

Fluttershy pulled the colt close, having him nestle up against the fine fur of her chest. Despite her warm and gentle embrace, Snowflake still squirmed and cried, but that didn't stop the quiet pegasus from smiling down upon him. She cleared her throat discreetly and took a deep breath.

"Hush now, quiet now,
It's time to lay your sleepy head,
Hush now, quiet now,
It's time to go to bed.

Drifting, drifting off to sleep,
Exciting day behind you.
Drifting, drifting off to sleep,
Let the joy of dream land find you..."

To the shock of the foal's parents, Fluttershy's soothing singing actually seemed to be working. As she continued to sing and ever so gently rock the colt back and forth, the crying began to fade and Snowflake's teary and tired eyes slowly began to drift shut. Shade and Winter almost couldn't believe it. After everything they tried, Fluttershy was effortlessly lulling the fussy baby to sleep with a simple song.

After a few minutes of singing, Snowflake, amazingly, had fallen asleep. Fluttershy hadn't managed to finish her song, but seeing as they were all looking forward to getting a good night's sleep, she figured it best to cut it short as long as the job was done. The yellow pegasus lowered the dozing baby into his crib. She noticed that the worn, plush bunny she had gifted to Winter during the baby shower was lying in the crib as well, and placed it beside the colt and covered him with his soft, cotton blanket.

Fluttershy flashed a smile at Shade and Winter. "Well, that wasn't so bad. I'm surprised you had so much trouble."

The two parents just stood there, flabbergasted. "How... How did you do that?" Winter inquired in amazement.

"Oh, I've always sung that song to help my animals fall asleep. And my mom used to sing it to me when I was a filly. But, really, it wasn't the song. I think the poor thing was just a little scared. He needed somepony to comfort him, let him know everything was okay. Maybe with the two of you so worked up about him all this time, he felt uneasy, like something was wrong."

Winter's ears folded back dejectedly. "He... He doesn't think we're comforting?"

"Not when you're all panicked and desperate. I think you need to have more confidence in yourselves as parents. So even when you feel stressed out or anything, just make sure to keep smiling, for his sake. And if you want, I can write down the lyrics for that song in case you think that'll be helpful."

Winter stared blankly, but nodded slowly. "Uh, yeah, sure. I mean, I'm don't think I'm a great singer or anything, but I guess I can give it a shot if I can't think of anything else."

Fluttershy grinned at her. "All you really need is to be his mother. Just let him know you're there for him and hopefully that'll be enough." She let out another long yawn. "So, um... I guess I'll be going. If you ever need help again, don't hesitate to ask."

"My pleasure. Good night, you two," she bid them as she walked out into hall, down the stairs and out the door, eager to get home and return to bed.

Even though the house was finally quiet, Shade and Winter couldn't help but continue to stand there and stare at their baby, sound asleep in his crib for the first time since they brought him home. It was still hard to believe that just a few minutes ago, this little, sleepy bundle had been on a week-long temper tantrum. And now, here he was, like nothing was ever wrong to begin with.

Winter stared down at their son. Even though she was finally given some long-deserved respite, a depressing thought was on her mind. "Shade... Are we bad parents?"

The changeling let out a long sigh. "I think we're inexperienced parents. Twilight did say this was something every parent had to go through. Maybe this was like our first test as new parents or something."

Shade shrugged. "I don't know. Given that everypony is willing to lend us a hoof if we need it, I guess not."

"So... we can finally go to bed?" she asked him, her amber eyes wide and hopeful.

And with that the pair immediately made for their bedroom, the soft mattress practically beckoning to them, causing their pace to quicken as though the bed had its own gravitational pull, drawing them more quickly the closer they got. The two of them practically collapsed the moment they made it to the bed, letting their heads hit the pillows with a satisfying fwump. They both let out simultaneous, contented sighs, having forgotten what lying in bed was actually supposed to feel like.

"You think things'll be easier from here on out?" Shade asked as he stared up at the ceiling.

He got no response. Hearing Winter's silence, he turned to her. Winter had already fallen asleep the moment her head hit the pillow, snoring softly in her deep slumber. Apparently she needed this much more than he did. Shade let out one more sigh, grinning to himself and pulling the covers tightly over the two of them as he draped a hoof over his beloved, pulling her gently up against him. She unconsciously nestled into him, resting her head into the crook of Shade's neck. It didn't take much longer for the changeling to follow her into her slumber.

Cold; dark; depressing. These words and many more could be used to describe the Changeling Kingdom's vast and seemingly endless catacombs. Even for the inhabitants of these lands the caves within the hive had claimed many lives due to their disorienting and maze-like nature. Many changelings even prefer the biting, autumn winds of the decayed forests outside than try and survive within the hive itself. There were very few changelings who could actually confidently navigate the caverns, and most of them were among the higher ranks of the colony.

One such changeling had found herself aimlessly wandering the twisted and labyrinthine corridors of the hive this night.

Queen Chrysalis had no particular destination in mind. She simply walked, freeing her mind to focus on other things. She had come to resent the silence that surrounded her day in and day out. Sitting alone in her quarters with nothing but the sound of harsh winds blowing outside and the constant and incessant sound of water dripping onto the cold, stone floor was enough to slowly chip away at one's sanity. She needed a distraction.

There was little doubt that she was still crestfallen as she had been for quite a long time. She had passed by many of her subjects as she traversed her home. Each one she encountered looked at her as though she were some rare occurrence—which, recently, may have been accurate. The worst part was the noticeable lack of respect in their eyes and their murmurs when they thought she was out of earshot. There was a time where her very presence would elicit wary bows and even fear in her subjects due to the commanding and foreboding air she carried with her. But now, she was but a shell of her former self. Her self-confidence, her determination, her drive had all vanished, and with it the admiration of her beloved subjects.

Chrysalis paused when she came upon a chamber set aglow with an eerie, green light. Her wanderings had brought her to her throne room, illuminated by torches set all around the jagged, stone walls and upon the several naturally-formed rock columns and burning with magical, emerald flames. The queen looked upon her throne. It was seated upon an enormous stone platform overlooking the rest of the chamber, cementing her position as the leader of the entire colony. The throne itself barely resembled something someone would sit on, simply being a large piece of shattered and jagged rock that roughly looked like a chair, though in the green glow of the flames it left a rather intimidating impression with its shape and silhouette.

Hesitantly, Chrysalis approached her throne, climbing the steps as she did when she first put on her crown. It had actually been a long time since she sat here. With nothing happening within the kingdom recently, she had no need, nor the willpower, to hold an address for her subjects. With a weary sigh, Chrysalis lowered herself onto her throne, looking out over the empty chamber for the first time in ages.

It didn't feel right anymore. Normally, sitting upon her throne gave her a feeling of power rivaled only by the stolen love of ponies. But now, all it did was remind her of her failures; her failure to conquer Equestria, and her failure to give her subjects the lives she'd promised them. She had thought about it a lot recently, but now, more than ever, she really felt as though she didn't deserve to be queen.

Unbeknownst to her, the ruler of the hive's sullen disposition was being observed. From the entryway of the throne room two changelings clad in sharp, midnight blue armor watched as their queen lost herself in her self-pity. One of them, large and imposing, looked on through his violet eyes with cautious curiosity. The other, a female of more average size, was notably more indifferent to the queen's downtrodden mood.

The larger changeling offered no response at first, but just continued to stoically observe.

"Her mood is shifting, if only a little," the female continued, brushing aside a few errant strands of her short, chocolate brown mane that had escaped from the confines of her helmet. Having still received no reply from the other changeling, she breathed an impatient sigh. "The fact that she's in the throne room for the first time in ages means something, unless it's simply subconscious. I'd like to know your thoughts on the matter, Captain Wraith."

"You may be right," Wraith finally answered. "However, her behavior when she's resting within her chambers hasn't changed in any way. She still has not been eating very much and hasn't been sleeping properly."

"So this is negative change, is what you're saying," the female surmised. She shrugged as she contemplated that. "I can believe that. You think that she's finally starting to approach her decision. She's been tormented about it for a long time. It won't be long now before she makes her choice."

"The fact that she's delayed it this long shows that she has at least a modicum of hope left, whether she's aware of it or not. And there is no guarantee that even now she has actually made a concrete decision. She may be weighing her options."

Wraith never once removed his gaze from Chrysalis. He'd been silently observing her actions for the better part of two years, ever since her failure in Canterlot, watching as she slowly descended into a long spiral of depression and self-loathing.

Wraith turned away, heading back towards the deeper catacombs of the hive. "Come, Glory. Leave her be."

The female, Glory, gave her superior a skeptical look before following Wraith's order. She trotted up alongside him, glancing at him through the corner of her dark, hazel eyes. "Your talks haven't been going well."

"My efforts have yielded no discernible results. She's asked for my opinion on the matters that pervade her mind, but it seems even I am unable to make any sort of impact."

Glory let out an irritated groan. "I'm getting a little fidgety here, Captain. We can't really afford to sit around until she makes a decision. Time's not exactly on our side with how antsy the drones are, as well."

"Have patience, Glory. The changelings will have their chance again in due time. If you cannot keep even your own anticipation in check, you may find yourself in an unfavorable position."

Wraith looked down on Glory. His eyes appeared calm and stoic at first glance, but the female could feel his gaze boring through her and she shrunk back slightly with a nervous gulp.

The captain's gaze turned forward once more, allowing Glory to take in a breath of relief. "Truthfully, I, too, am beginning to grow concerned."

Glory could see in his eyes that there was a thought that he must have been playing around with. "You've got an idea."

Wraith shook his head. "No. But we need something to push us in the right direction: a catalyst. As it sits right now, we're walking upriver and making no headway against the current."

The pair of changelings put their conversation on hold as another armored changeling hastily caught up to them from behind, panting in exhaustion. Wraith gave him a curious stare as he waited silently for the other changeling to catch his breath. Glory gave the captain a dismissive wave.

Glory waited impatiently, tapping a hoof on the stone floor as the other changeling's breath finally started to level out. "Any day now."

"Uh-huh..." Glory rolled her eyes, having had enough of waiting around to get to the point.

With a sigh, she grabbed the other changeling by the horn, surprising him. Her horn, as well as her hazel eyes, began to glow with an eerie, green light as she stared deeply and intensely into the messenger's eyes, which had also begun to glow green under her gaze. After a few moments of this, Glory released him, pulling her head back.

The other changeling shook his head after being freed from her grip, shuddering uncomfortably. "Can you not do that? It's weird."

Glory ignored the complaint, but a pleasantly surprised grin spread across her face. "Well, this is interesting news indeed." And that was all she said before taking flight, buzzing off down the cavern to catch up to Wraith, leaving the other changeling to just groan in displeasure to no one but himself.

It didn't take long for Glory to find Wraith again, since he hadn't made it far. The moment the captain heard the buzzing of her wings approaching, he stopped to wait for her. The female touched down in a brisk trot just in front of him, her grin still persisting.

Wraith took notice of her expression immediately. "Something important, I take it?"

Glory's grin turned into a eager smirk. "Yeah, so you were talking about needing a 'catalyst.' Well then, I've got good news for you..."

Halfling

by Dee Pad

Chapter 9 - Insomnia