//------------------------------// // Family - Final Part // Story: Crystal Note - Where life leads us // by TalkingToMyself //------------------------------// The Crystal Palace in the middle of the Crystal Empire was, of course, the residence of the royal family. In the palace, Princess Cadance met dignitaries and visitors from other kingdoms and cities, and she held audiences with the crystal ponies. For the crystal ponies, it also served as town hall, courthouse and assembly room. Therefore, the main entrance of the palace was always open and crystal ponies went in and out every day. It was, however, unusual for three fillies to visit the palace on their own. The two ponies of the crystal guard at the entrance recognized the sisters right away. They had been visiting with Crystal Note after the accident a couple of times. With a friendly smile, one of the guards addressed Glass Slipper and her sisters “Hello girls. Can I help you?” Glass Slipper blushed a little and looked away shyly “Hello, Sir. Um, can we go in? Do we need permission?” The stallion laughed and shook his head “No, not at all. You just looked like you didn’t really know where to go, that’s all.” “Oh. We, um, we wanted to meet with Miss Rose Quartz?” The guard nodded “The councillor should be in her office, there’s no meetings planed today. Take the hallway to the left, through the double doors and then the second door on the right. If she’s not there, you’ll at least find somepony who can tell you where she is.” Glass Slipper smiled and nodded politely as she followed the guard’s directions, the twins staying close to her all the time. Both guards smiled as they passed, but the fillies could still see the traces of pity in their eyes. It wasn’t nearly as bad anymore, but it still made the sisters feel uneasy. The room they found was only one of many in a long hallway and the door was halfway open already. Glass Slipper took a deep breath like she had seen from Crystal Note and poked her head inside. Behind a large desk with stacks of paper, she found who they’d been looking for. Rose Quartz was a middle-aged mare who seemed actively to try to look older with a stern expression on her face and her mane styled into a strict bun. Her coat had a sky blue colour but it seemed pale next to her bright pink mane, both of which heavily clashing with her rigid attitude. Sitting at her desk, she scanned through some papers with sharp eyes and the gem-shaped orbs only increased the impression of absolute concentration as she worked. There were some hard lines on her face, especially around her eyes, telling stories of how the mare had seen rougher days and bitter times. When the door jarred open, Rose Quartz head shot up from her desk “Hello?” As soon as she saw Glass Slipper, her face lit up like a sun. It almost was like an entirely different pony now sat in her place and the filly could see most of the lines on her face had softened up with that beaming smile “So nice to see you, Glass Slipper! Come on in.” The filly returned the smile with a shy one of her own as she walked into what turned out to be a large office. The twins stayed close to her sister and Rose Quartz only smiled wider “Ah, and you brought your sisters as well. Hello darlings. “ She stepped around the desk to meet them and asked “Now, what brings you here on your day off of school? Shouldn’t you be out there having fun?” Her brows narrowed in a frown but the fillies could see there was no real force behind it “You’re not hiding from Crystal Note, are you?” She giggled as the fillies quickly shook their heads. Rose Quartz listened attentively when the three sisters lively described all the fun they had together the other day. She laughed with them when the described how Crystal Note managed to get Velvet Heart into the bathtub and she smiled when they told her what happened after. “It’s good to see you get along so well. And it’s wonderful to see you smile again.” Rose Quartz had been there the moment the three sisters learned of the accident. She almost could not believe that the fillies she had seen screaming and crying until they passed out, now stood here before her smiling again after only a few short weeks. Of course, there was still some hesitation left, some fear that wouldn’t go away that easily. Rose Quartz knew this from personal experience. The fillies had opened up to Crystal Note as a guardian and it helped them immensely. Now they were slowly reaching out for others. Rose Quartz was well aware that the fact they came to her out of all ponies could only mean one thing “You’re here to ask me about Crystal Note, aren’t you?” The young twins looked away shyly but the older sister nodded firmly. Well, as firmly as a blushing teenager was capable of, anyway. Glass Slipper watched Rose Quartz for any reaction, but the mare’s smile stayed in place. The councillor’s eyes had lost all of their hardness while she was listening and Glass Slipper could see that most of the lines on the older mare’s face came from smiling a lot. Rose Quartz held the filly’s gaze with no pressure whatsoever, yet there was a certain seriousness in the way she focused on the filly. The councillor wouldn’t dismiss anything the sisters told her as youngster’s babbling. Glass Slipper realized that Rose Quartz could be talking to a businessmare, an ambassador from some far away country or even a Princess right now and have that same look on her face. Reassured by this, Glass Slipper found her voice again “When we got up this morning, we found out Crystal Note had been up all night. Playing music.” “And she set up a magic bubble around her as well. For her music. But when we asked her about it, she was kind of sad.” Rose Quartz’s smile wavered a little even though her voice was calm and neutral “Did she scare you?” Glass Slipper looked away, but Velvet Heart and Sweetie Tooth shook their heads “Not really. She just startled us. She used pick-up-magic before but only a little at a time.” “But she explained everything, well almost everything, so it’s okay. But then she got tired and now she’s taking a nap.” Rose Quartz giggled at this and shook her head “Of course she is. Did she at least remember to make you some breakfast?” The young fillies nodded, at which Rose Quartz smiled again, until she saw the look on Glass Slipper’s face. The oldest of the sisters was nervous, almost distraught. Their eyes met and Rose Quartz’ smile fell apart when Glass Slipper pressed out some words “Crystal Note wasn’t sad when we talked about magic. She was sad when we talked about family.” Her eyes closed with a deep sigh. When they opened again, something had changed. Instead of the councillor they just met, an older pony now looked back at the fillies and there was some concern in her voice “This is not something we should talk about here. Come with me, please.” The fillies followed silently as Rose Quartz led them through the hallways deeper into the palace and into a small apartment she called her own inside the palace. There was a sitting area under a large window and Rose Quartz had the fillies sit down on cushions while she produced a plate of cookies on the table in front of them. Glass Slipper watched the older mare carefully as she tried to find the words to say “Family has always been a touchy thing for Crystal Note. She has had a difficult time finding one at first, and then lost it rather quickly after.” The fillies stared at the mare and Velvet asked hesitantly “But didn’t she have you? You’re sisters, right?” Rose Quartz nodded firmly “We are. I love my sister more than anything else in the world and I try to be the best big sister I can possibly be, every single day.” Glass Slipper smiled knowingly but the next words made her freeze along with the twins “But what you have to know is that Crystal Note and I don’t share a single drop of blood. We're not actually related. That’s not important when it comes to family. I love my sister and she loves me, anything else is irrelevant.” Glass Slipper quickly recovered from the initial shock and whispered “How can you be sisters if you’re not related?” Rose Quartz just smiled and turned her head to look out of the window for a moment “Being related does not make you a family. Love does. You care for your sisters, Glass Slipper. You’d do anything for them, they would do anything for you, just like Crissy and I would for each other. It’s the things you go through together, good and bad, that forge a bond so strong nothing can ever break it again. Tell me, aren’t you closer to your sisters, now more than ever before?” Glass Slipper nodded without hesitation along the twins and her hooves wrapped around them protectively as they slipped next to her. Rose Quartz’ warm smile returned and she nodded “Crystal Note and I started out as friends, best friends in fact. But her mother was already passed when we first met, and her father,” she waved her hoof dismissively, “talking about him is nothing but a waste of breath.” Velvet Heart shivered against her sister and her eyes opened wide “She doesn’t have parents anymore?” Like us. The words hung in the air, even though the filly didn’t say them out loud. Rose Quartz nodded with a sad expression “No. She didn’t have for the longest time. We met as fillies, younger than you are today, and decided we would be sisters. My parents started seeing her as their daughter and she called them Mom and Dad. There wasn’t anything like legal adoption back in those days. We loved another, so we were family, just like that.” Sweetie Tooth shook her head “You said her mother had already passed before you even met, but she told me her mom died when she was nine. Did she lie to me?” “No, Darling. Our mother, hers and mine, was born with an illness in her heart. It took a lot of strength out of her and one day, she was simply too weak to fight back anymore. She only gave birth to me, but when she passed on she had two daughters holding her hooves.” The fillies stared helplessly as Rose Quartz blinked away a couple of tears, before she continued “We lost our father later, during the Shadow King’s rule. And we even lost each other after that, before the curse. When we returned, she looked differently and suddenly had a horn. I was blinded by my fear at first, but in my heart, we never stopped being sisters.” Rose Quartz turned her attention back to the fillies in front of her “You’ve been through hard times as well. You helped each other and grew closer than ever. What does your heart tell you?” She focused on Glass Slipper “If your sisters suddenly grew horns or wings, what would you do? Would you be scared?” The teenage filly trembled and the hooves she had around her sisters clung more tightly “I… I… yes. I’d be scared. At first. But they’re my sisters! I’d get over it, for them.” Glass Slipper’s eyes opened wide when the meaning of her own words sunk in and Rose Quartz smiled knowingly before she turned her attention to the young twins “And how do you feel in your heart?” Velvet Heart struggled for words but Sweetie Tooth just blurted out “Crystal Note is family, too! I don’t care what anypony else says!” Glass Slipper noticed how Velvet Heart tensed up against her “How can you say that? She just appeared out of nowhere and took away Mommy and Daddy!” “She did not!” Sweetie Tooth’s voice was shrill and she broke out of the hug to glare at her twin sister “She stayed! Everypony else left but she stayed! With us!” “I didn’t ask her to stay.” “That’s not the point!” Velvet Heart refused to look at her sister while Sweetie Tooth’s voice cracked as she tumbled through words “She never got angry when you were yelling at her for no reason! She stayed and when you felt bad after, she was there.” Velvet Heart shrunk against Glass Slipper who couldn’t do anything but hold her little sister while stare pleadingly at the other, but Sweetie Tooth didn’t notice and only got more angry “Remember last night? She didn’t have to bring up Mommy and Daddy then, but she did. You know why? Because she cares! Unlike you!” She ended in a shriek, so agitated and angry that she was panting. A few moments later, the red cloud in front of her eyes faded and she noticed Velvet Heart burying her face against Glass Slipper to hide away tears. She looked up at Glass Slipper and only found more tears. When Rose Quartz was beside her and touched her back, Sweetie Tooth started trembling. She didn’t mean it. Tears ran down her cheeks and she sobbed. She didn’t mean those words. She opened her mouth to say it, but the words never made it out. She hurt her sisters and no matter what she said, she couldn’t take it back. She bolted around and tried to run for the door, but a pair of hooves grabbed her. She struggled but Rose Quartz pressed her firmly against her until she stopped flailing her legs. The tears came back, stronger than before, and Sweetie Tooth slumped against Rose Quartz wailing her little heart out. The older mare rubbed her hoof down her back, but it just didn’t help. Sweetie Tooth heard some mumbled words, a door opened and closed. Then, Rose Quartz put her hoof on her shoulder and the other under her chin. The filly didn’t resist when her head was tilted up towards the mare, but she recoiled when she found Rose Quartz’ stern eyes fixed on her “Tell me what that was all about.” All Sweetie Tooth could manage was a few words in between sobs “I didn’t mean it.” “I think you did.” Sweetie Tooth flinched away but Rose Quartz' stern gaze stayed on her “What Velvet Heart said may or may not be true, but it made you angry. More angry than I’ve ever seen you before. And it happened when your sister attacked Crystal Note with her words. Do you want me to go on?” The filly tucked her hooves in against her, but Rose Quartz didn’t stop “You care about my sister, more than you like to admit. So you defend her, like you would for every other member of your family.” “I called her mommy last night.” Rose Quartz stopped in track when the tiny whisper broke out of the filly. She waited silently when Sweetie Tooth whispered an explanation “Last night I woke up and I was scared. But Crystal Note was there and it made me happy, so I just said it.” The mare nodded and gently ran her hoof down the filly’s back. “Now that you thought about it, do you regret calling her mommy?” The filly shook her head frantically and Rose Quartz smiled. “Do you regret lashing out against your sister?” A nod, just as fast. “Then, I suppose you owe your sister an apology. And you owe my sister the truth.” Sweetie Tooth nodded and Rose Quartz leaned down to be at level with the filly, whispering with a smile “And if anypony gives you a hard time, you come and get your Auntie Pinky to fix it, okay?” Sweetie Tooth blinked confused but then giggled when Rose Quartz winked “Thanks… Auntie.” The filly leaned into the offered hug, finally smiling again. When Rose Quartz released her, she rubbed away the last traces of tears and bolted straight for the door again. This time, Rose Quartz didn’t stop her and just watched with a warm smile. The door to the small home flew open with a loud thud and Crystal Note woke up with a start. The mare jumped from the couch and the last bit of drowsiness vanished when she saw the small filly storming in and panting as if she'd been running through the entire city "Sweetie Tooth? Are you alright, dear?" Deep concern filled her voice and she made her way to the filly. Her eyes went wide with surprise when small hooves clung around her middle. She gently pulled Sweetie Tooth into a comforting hug, giving her the chance to catch her breath "I'm sorry." Crystal Note's worry turned into genuine confusion at this. Her hoof ran down Sweetie Tooth's back in an effort to calm the agitated filly. Sweetie Tooth's breathing slowed down after a while, but still all that made it out were the same words "I'm sorry." Crystal Note leaned down to nuzzle the top of her head "Whatever for, Sweetie?" The small filly took a shaky breath “For calling you mommy and making you sad.” Sweetie Tooth could feel Crystal Note freeze up, but only for a second before her hug turned into a soft squeeze “So you were awake last night.” She nodded and buried her muzzle into Crystal Note’s coat when she felt a soft nuzzle again “Sweetie, you didn’t make me sad. None of you did. If anything, you made me happier than I’ve ever been before, even when you bombard me with heavy questions while I’m sleepy.” Sweetie Tooth giggled when Crystal Note nuzzled the ticklish spot behind her ears “You don’t have to apologize for anything, Sweetie Tooth.” The filly blushed and whispered “You’re not angry at me for calling you…” She didn’t finish her sentence and Crystal Note just shook her head. She pulled away from the hug so she could look properly at the filly “Never, dear. I promised, after all.” Sweetie Tooth’s head flew up and she stared at the mare, only to find a smile and eyes that shone with care and affection “Remember our first trip to the market? I promised I’d always be there when you need me.” Sweetie Tooth nodded and inched a little closer “And always means always. However you need me. Whether it’s as a legal guardian, for making breakfast or anything else.” They smiled together and Sweetie Tooth leaned gently against the mare as she continued “And when you need me to be more… when you need a mommy…” Crystal Note’s voice wavered with emotion when Sweetie Tooth wrapped her hooves around her middle. She felt a soft kiss on the top of her head “I’m here for you.” Sweetie Tooth choked on a happy sob and pressed herself into the welcome warmth, just as that gentle pair of hooves wrapped around her like so many times before, but she felt so much warmer this time “Thank you, Mommy.” Crystal Note felt tears of love run down her cheeks as she embraced her little filly “I’m here, Sweetie Tooth.” They stayed like this, the mare circled around her daughter-in-heart and the filly basking in the warmth and safety of her new mother. They would have stayed like this for hours, but in the back of her mind, something kept nagging on Sweetie Tooth, something that kept her from enjoying this moment as much as she wanted. Luckily, she had a mommy who could help her “Velvet and Slipper won’t like it.” A melodious laughter washed over her troubled thoughts and when Crystal Note cuddled her gently, the nervous knot in her tummy quickly vanished “Maybe not right away. Give them a little time and they will understand.” Sweetie Tooth glanced up shyly and felt more confident once she saw an unconditional smile shining back at her “Maybe, when they are around we try not to… but if it’s just the two of us, you could be mommy?” Instead of an answer, Crystal Note pulled her a little closer into the embrace. A soft nuzzle to her cheek finally brought a smile back to Sweetie Tooth.