The night for the family was rough despite the home's quietness. Mitta's body lay still, with only her lungs slowly rising up and down. While this may have been the sign of a mare sleeping peacefully, a fierce storm was raging inside the mind of the mature mare. Like Ruby, Mitta found herself trapped in the void of darkness, finding only a flat unforeseen surface for her to walk on. However, she found herself fighting what appeared to be a clone of herself, asserting that "she" was the real Mitta. No stranger to conflict and fighting, the mare grabbed the clone by the tail using her teeth with a fierce yank.
The clone lost her balance and fell, giving Mitta a chance to lay a few hits on her muzzle.
"Stay away from my family and me, you fake!"
The clone knocked her off and regained her ground with a powerful counter punch.
"No! You're the fake! How dare you try to steal my place! My happiness, and MY family!"
Staggering backward, Mitta shook off the punch and took a new stance against the clone. The clone of Mitta finally got back up but failed to react in time as Mitta suddenly slammed head first into her. The headbutt into the clone was enough to knock the less experienced fighter out, giving Mitta the satisfaction of her victory. This was enough for a bright light to shatter the void and the image of the clone before her. The light temporarily blinded her, causing her to wipe her eyes with her hoof.
After a few seconds, she removed her hoof and was stunned to see the image of a stallion covered in bright light. Taking a step back in fear, Mitta tried to recognize the mysterious stallion before her.
"Relax, I mean, you know harm. And neither did she."
Shaking her head in disbelief, Mitta asked,
"What are you talking about?! Who are you! And that fake tried to beat me to death!"
With apprehension, Mitta kept her fighting stance, unsure of this stallion's intention. The stallion chuckled but otherwise did not approach her.
"Ever the tough mare, I see. You always were strong and fiery; I loved that about you."
"Who is this? He seems to know me very well, and he seems familiar...."
"Who...who are you? Why am I here?"
The stallion examined her intently, despite Mitta being unable to see his face. Even his voice seemed to have some familiarity to it. But no matter how hard she tried, she simply could not recognize him, almost as if some mental blocking was going on.
"I'll tell you sometime in the future, but now is not the time."
Unhappy with his answer, Mitta formed a frustrated look on her face and replied,
"I asked you a question! This isn't funny, and my daughter and I have been to Tartarus and back! Now tell me what is going on!"
The stallion chuckled more and started to walk around as if examining her. Mitta, on the other hoof, couldn't help shake the feeling he was looking at her was of the more "intimate" variety. With a blush on her face, Mitta asked,
"Are....are you checking me out?!"
"Can't blame me, can you?"
His admission of her suspicion completely disarmed Mitta, with her face even more beet red than before. It had been a long time since any stallion had ever shown any appreciation of the sort towards her. The last time had been before her husband's death, and she never cared for romance after his death. Looking back at the stallion, she attempted to respond but found herself interrupted.
"In any event, that other mare is more like you in many ways. Listen well, for I won't be able to help much; this depends on your understanding."
"What? but I don't-"
"Understand? In time you will. Ruby can find the answer; she could always find things. This new struggle will go better if you learn about the other one. In the meantime, you're going to wake up and take the time to learn everything new when you're in control. Be the tough motherly figure that you excel at. Do this, and your new life will make sense. And be nice to your son-in-law; he's a nice man."
Before Mitta could reply, a bright flash overtook her and covered her vision. Mitta found herself awake in her room, sweating and panting with shock. Realizing she was asleep, the mare shook her head and got out of bed.
"Who was that? What happened?! This doesn't make any sense...I need a glass of water."
Quietly walking towards the kitchen, Mitta couldn't help but check up on her grand foals. Her grandson was asleep in bed, slightly snoring, albeit very cutely. His room was that of a typical colt, with pictures of comic book covers on the wall, soccer items on the bookcase beside his bed, and drawings most likely made by him. One of them appeared to be that of Konrad, inside a blue box with black wheels.
If Mitta remembered correctly, that was what he and Ruby called a truck, a ponyless carriage. On the top of the image was red lettering, "Daddy is awesome!". A crude but cute smile was adorned on the figures in the drawing, reflecting the happiness the young colt had for his father. Being careful not to wake Blau Strifen, Mitta whispered with a small tear in her eye,
"He's happy...I guess Konrad was great for Ruby after all."
Smiling at her grandson, she silently backed up, careful not to wake him, and looked into her granddaughter's room. It was also typical of a young filly's room, though with a rustic touch that was common within Sunny Town. It almost reminded her of what her late husband had planned to do with their one-room cabin back when she was just born.
"It would seem Konrad helped make that dream come true. I can't believe they had foals together. I really need to be nice to him."
Quietly walking into Katja's room, the mature mare took a quick minute to inspect it, hoping to glean more insight into her granddaughter's personality. While she wasn't as good at finding things as her daughter, she was a mother after all, and she could learn a lot with simple observation being one. There was a small dresser opposite her bed, where she slept peacefully, piquing Mitta's curiosity.
While ponies didn't wear clothing that much, it wasn't unheard of, even in a small hamlet such as Sunny Town. The difference between Sunny Town and most other places was that there wasn't much need to wear such things. However, according to what Mitta observed from Konrad and Katja, clothes were necessary.
"I guess not having a coat would mean they need clothes. Must be cold for them without them."
In the top drawer, clean white socks were stuffed neatly in order. Initially, Mitta blushed as socks were considered a more "intimate" form of clothing. But after thinking about it, it probably had to do more with comfort, as Mitta remembered seeing her wearing them earlier in the day. Relaxing, Mitta closed the drawer and opened another to discover several white shirts and a few skirts, and feminine blue jeans, all conservative in nature. Mitta approved of the style seeing it as appropriate for a young girl.
In the last drawer, however, she discovered a new form of clothing.....
"P-panties?! Why would she wear such a thing? Even though she's a human, she can't be old enough to wear such intimate things! Is this necessary for her?!"
As if to make things worse, a young filly's voice was heard behind her.
"Nana? What's going on? Did dad ask you to see if I did my laundry?"
Quickly putting the undergarment back in the drawer, Mitta quickly but carefully crafted a lie to explain to her human granddaughter.
"I was looking for something; I thought it might have fallen in the laundry basket, is all."
"Great. Lame excuse. I hope she doesn't ask what it is."
As Mitta looked at Katja, she saw her wearing a human-shaped one-piece pajama, similar to one Ruby wore when she was a small filly. Mitta couldn't help but smile at her appearance. She was literally a human, a species previously thought of only as a fairy tale, that now stood before her. However, she clearly had pony characteristics, similar to that of Ruby. She had her hair along with Ruby's beautiful face when she was a filly. Only her eyes differed as they were the color of her father. Even the rest of her body screamed feminine in human form; that much was obvious.
"This is my granddaughter. I can't believe this is possible or even how we are here! I have to find answers. And I need to keep my grandbabies safe! I owe it to Ruby!"
"Nana? Is something wrong? What was it that you were looking for?"
"No, my granddaughter. It's all fine, and don't worry about it. I'll look for it later, maybe with your mother's help.....You look amazing."
With a confused look on her face, Katja asked,
"Why? I'm only in pajamas. And my hair is a mess. Besides, you hit dad earlier. Why did you do that?"
Guilt took over Mitta as her ears lowered with a frown on her muzzle. She tried to explain the truth to the young filly human as best as she could without lying.
"I...I thought he was going to hurt her for some reason. Your dad didn't, they were merely having a heated discussion, and I reacted badly. Nana won't do that again."
The young girl started to relax hearing her grandmother's explanation and sat back down on the bed. Mitta took the opportunity to sit next to her, hoping she could learn more about Katja.
"So...is there anything you want to talk about before you return to bed?"
The girl blushed a bit before replying with a slightly guilty smile,
"Um...I want to know more about...colts."
"Oh horseapples!"
Mitta blushed and forced a smile before saying,
"How about we get some cookies, then I'll tell you about colts sometime this week, perhaps?"
Shrugging her shoulders before beaming a happy smile,
"Okay, that works! Thanks, Nana!"
Mitta quietly returned to the kitchen and retrieved two large chocolate chip cookies. She had to admit that they were really well made, making her wonder who made them. After giving Katja her cookie, who ate the savory treat with glee, the girl went to bed after receiving a hug from her grandmother. After ensuring Katja was tucked in, Mitta made her way back to her bedroom and lowered herself back into bed. After eating the delicious cookie, she sighed and closed her eyes, only to realize.
"Konrad said to watch out for the young kids sneaking cookies. And I got one for her all because she said the word colts...Ruby did the same trick once when she was young if I remember correctly."
Opening her eyes and moving them towards the direction of Katja's room, Mitta narrowed her eyes and gave a slight smirk, and whispered,
"Clever girl. Just like your mother."
Laying back down, Mitta's dreams were the most peaceful they had ever been. And it was all accompanied by the smile of a stallion watching over her.