Auriel walks in the front door of the Golden Oaks Library with a stack of letters in her claws. Twilight and Rose sit at a table together, reading.
Auriel walks in the front door of the Golden Oaks Library with a stack of letters in her claws. Twilight and Rose sit at a table together, reading.
“Mail’s in, Twilight.”
Twilight looks up from her book. “Anything interesting?”
“Some bills, a postcard from Spike, a scroll from the Crystal Empire…”
“Wait, WHAT?!”
Auriel looks at the postcard. “It has a very nice shot of Canterlot Castle. Very picturesque and…”
“No, no! The scroll!”
“Oh! Well, I’m guessing that’s for you.”
Rose giggles. “Probably, yes.”
Auriel holds out her claw as Twilight quickly levitates the scroll to herself. Breaking the seal she looks it over quickly and begins to read silently. Sighing, she puts the scroll down and looks to Auriel.
“I hope it’s good news.”
“Kinda. Cadance was writing a bit of… love advice to me.”
Rose appears confused. “Was she now? “
Twilight smiles. “Yes, she’s been doing that for a few years now. I think she’s worried that I’ll turn into a wrinkled spinster, or something.”
Auriel appears confused. “What’s that?”
“A mare who doesn’t get married.”
Auriel nods as she considers this. “Oh. I guess all demon females are spinsters then.”
Twilight raises an eyebrow. “Really? How are baby demons born then?”
“Mostly orgies.”
Twilight blushes. “Ah… I see.”
A voice rings out behind her.
“What is an orgy?”
They turn to see Aurora standing there, looking confused. Auriel gasps.
“Aurora? What are you doing here?”
“Somehow a seed was left behind in the Nursery. We sensed its existence and wanted to reunite it with The Consciousness.
“But how did you leave Tartarus?!”
Aurora appears confused. “We just walked outside and transferred our matter to the seed in question here.”
Twilight gasps. “You can DO that?!”
Aurora nods. “The entire process took less than two minutes. But returning to our original question… what is an orgy?”
“Oh! Um… well… Rose?”
“Orgy. Noun. A gathering of numerous individuals for the express intent to engage in multiple sexual encounters with more than one mate. Sometime a female will be penetrated by multiple males simultaneously. This is known as…”
Twilight blushes heavily. “That’s enough, Rose.”
Auriel nods as she turns to Aurora. “To demons, it’s when numerous males and females gather to drink alcohol, brag loudly, and engage in copious amounts of sexual intercourse with multiple partners.”
“For the purpose of procreation?”
Twilight grimaces. “Not… exactly.”
Auriel shrugs. “It’s more for physical pleasure than anything else.”
“An interesting concept. We felt similarly when kissing Arc some time ago. Perhaps the Consciousness would do well to observe an orgy for themselves.”
Twilight looks away nervously. “I don’t think we have those in Equestria.”
“It is likely somewhere they are done. Maybe not on the same scale as in Tartarus, but…”
Twilight waves her hooves in front of her face. “Trust me. It doesn’t happen here.”
Auriel tilts her head to one side, confused. “Really? But I thought you and your friends were planning one.”
“WHAT?!”
Aurora appears expectant. “May we watch?”
Twilight shakes her head vehemently. “I just…! NO! Why would you think that, Auriel?!”
“Weren’t you and the others planning to form a herd with Arc?”
“That’s not the same thing!”
Aurora looks to Twilight quizzically. “Can you elaborate?”
“Well… um… we were just going to… I mean… we weren’t all going to do it together!”
Auriel frowns. “But you were all going to be engaging in sexual acts with him one after another, right?”
“…kinda. But it sounds wrong when you say it like that, Auriel.”
Auriel smiles. “I was actually looking forward to it.”
“You were? But why?”
“I spoke to Arc back on Earth about including me in the heard too. My hope was to be able to bear a child for him while attempting to find a way to augment Arc’s sperm cells to be compatible with dragon and, while probably not possible, equine DNA.”
Aurora puts a hand to her chin thoughtfully. “For what purpose?”
Twilight sighs. “We… my friends and I wanted to have foals with him.”
“We do not understand. To us, reproduction is merely having a pistil fertilized by a stamen. Similarly, the Consciousness understands that your species requires the fertilization of an egg cell by a male’s sperm cell. However we are unsure as to why Arc’s sperm was so desirable to you, Twilight.”
“It wasn’t his sperm so much as the man himself.”
Aurora looks to Auriel. “But all males contain sperm, do they not?”
“Assuming the male has reached sexual maturity, yes.”
“Perhaps you believed his sperm would bring forth the strongest offspring?”
Twilight sighs. “My friends and I wanted to raise foals with him because we believed he would be a loving, nurturing, and supportive husband to us.”
Auriel nods in agreement. “And because he would be an amazing father to them.”
“I guess. How do demon’s raise their children, Auriel?”
“Very few demons know whom their true fathers are, as the sperm is thorough mixed during any number of orgies.”
“But what about you?”
“My birth was an exception, as my father was my mother’s only mate.”
“Not trying to be rude, but how can you be so sure?”
Auriel bows her head. “Probably for the same reason no one ever courted me. They were afraid to even look at me wrong out of fear of retribution from my father, the king.”
“Sorry. I was just curious.”
“It’s okay. I know you didn’t mean anything by it. But can I ask you something, Twilight?”
“What is it?”
“What you described as a ‘spinster’… it’s kinda… sad, I guess.”
“I’m okay with it, I suppose.”
“Well, I’m not!”
“Auriel?”
“During our last trip to Earth, I… was able to sleep with Arc.”
“You were?”
Auriel nods happily. “Yes, and it was the most amazing thing I had ever felt. Just like you said it would be.”
Twilight smiles. “I’m glad you were able to experience that with him. Arc needed a proper relationship of some kind over there.”
“I think Ember took care of that most of the time.”
“Probably.”
She looks out the window absentmindedly for a long time. Eventually Twilight breaks the silence.
“Are you pregnant, Auriel?”
Auriel shakes her head. “No. We didn’t go that far.”
Aurora appears confused. “This entire concept is very confusing to us. Everyone concerned wanted to mate with Arc, yet none did. What were you waiting for?”
“Ultimately… Arc to be ready for us.”
Meanwhile, Snowflake loads the rest of the old hay into her little wagon.
“That’s the last of it.”
She looks around before turning back to Arc and lowering her voice.
“Sorry about… you know…”
“It’s okay. Considering what happened last night you handled it well.”
“Handled it well?! But I ran and hid!”
“True. However, you could’ve frozen up. By running, you moved so that I could take that thing down. Somehow…”
“Yeah, you’re pretty strong!”
“Thanks. I hope your dad wasn’t too upset with you being out here last night.”
Snowflake sighs. “He was, yeah. But thankfully he didn’t remember this morning.”
“That’s good.”
“Not… really. You see…”
“Snowflake!”
Shadow’s booming voice rings out nearby.
“Yeah, dad?”
“We have work to do! Remember?!”
“Yes sir. I was just…”
“Waste time playing with my new pet when your chores are done.”
“New pet?”
Shadow nods happily as he holds up a key. “Yup. I just paid the doctor’s bill, so you’re mine now, beast.”
“We still need to come up with a name for him.”
“Fine, fine. I’ll let you figure that out, Snowflake. Now let’s go.”
Snowflake sighs and turns to Arc as her father unlocks the cell. “This way.”
They walk through the village together. Snowflake turns to her father.
“How did you get the rest of the money so fast, dad?”
“Selling ‘Crimson Charms’.”
Arc appears confused. “What are those?”
“Necklaces that ward away Crimsons.”
Snowflake raises an eyebrow. “Where’d you get them from?”
“Made them out of that Crimson’s mane early this morning.”
Snowflake frowns. “How is that supposed to ward anything away?”
Shadow shrugs. “I dunno.”
“Dad?”
“I can’t prove they work, granted. But they also can’t definitively say they don’t work either.”
Snowflake frowns as they continue on their way. Soon they come to a well-beaten path on the outskirts.
“We’ll be there in a few minutes. You doing okay?”
Arc winches. “Y-yeah. Just a bit sore.”
“Did that salve from your mother help your pet?”
“His wounds are healing nicely, dad.”
“Good. Because there’s quite a bit of work we have to do. He can put those tentacles to good use.”
Arc rolls his eyes. “They’re fingers.”
“Call them what you will.”
“But dad, he isn’t ready yet!”
“Well, I paid his bills and we’ll be providing food and housing, so…”
“But if he starts too early he’ll just have a relapse! Or worse! You wouldn’t want to risk losing your investment, would you?!”
Shadow frowns. “Fine. I made a good bit from the Crimson I caught last night anyways.”
“You mean the Crimson HE caught, right?”
Shadow shrugs. “Splitting hairs.”
They arrive at a large clearing. A small but well-kept house sits in the middle of a dirt field. A barn lies off to one side along with several smaller outbuildings. Snowflake looks to her father.
“Can he sleep in my room, dad?”
Shadow shakes his head. “Animals don’t belong in the house. There’s plenty of room for him in the barn.”
“Aw…”
“Get him bedded down for the day with food and water. Then I want you at the store with your mother.”
“But he shouldn’t be left alone right now!”
“Why? You afraid your pet will run away?”
Shadow tosses a large lock over his shoulder to Snowflake.
“Put that on the barn door before you leave.”
He returns to the house as Snowflake escorts Arc to the barn. Pushing as hard as she is able, she gets the door open far enough for them to squeeze through. Motioning for him to follow, Snowflake leads him over to a corner of the barn where a large pile of straw is covered with several blankets.
“You can sleep here.”
“Thanks for putting this together for me.”
Snowflake sighs. “I didn’t… um… you’re welcome.”
She looks over her shoulder, nervously.
“Well, I need to get to the store now. Um… my mom left another bottle of her salve in the corner for you.”
“That was nice of her.”
“She was just happy you kept me safe last night. In any case, I’ll get you some food and water real quick.”
Snowflake hurries out the barn door as Arc lays down on the makeshift bed. Removing his shirt he gets to work rubbing the salve on his many wounds as he muses to himself.
“What a situation. I’m not sure if I’m incredibly lucky or unlucky here.”
Arc rests his head on his arm and sighs.
“Maybe both.”
Many hours later, as the sun lowers in the sky, the sound of a key sliding into the lock on the door rings out. It opens to Snowflake walking in with some more food.
“Supper time.”
She sets the bowl on the floor in front of the bed and steps back.
“H-hello?”
Arc does not stir. Snowflake takes a cautious step toward him.
“Are you… okay?”
Reaching out a hoof cautiously, Snowflake gently pokes Arc. He sits up suddenly and cries out.
“NO!”
The filly falls over her hooves as she runs away. Arc puts a hand to his head as he sighs.
“Snowflake?”
The frightened foal peeks out from behind a crate as Arc looks to her apologetically.
“S-sorry about that.”
“What… happened?”
“I was having a nightmare.”
Snowflake slowly steps out. “Oh? Do you remember anything about it?”
“Glass, blood, and pain mostly.”
“Huh?”
“The doctor said he found bits of glass in a couple of my wounds.”
“Maybe you fell through a window and cut yourself, or something. That would certainly hurt a lot.”
“I suppose. But that wouldn’t explain how I got out here.”
“Did you remember anything else?”
Arc shakes his head. “Nothing new.”
“Well, hopefully enough bits and pieces will come back for you to remember who you are and where you came from.”
“I sure hope so.”
“Eat up and get some sleep. Tomorrow morning my dad’s taking the two of us out foraging.”
“Okay. Thanks.”
Snowflake leaves the barn as Arc begins to eat.
“Foraging. Kinda makes sense.”
Finishing his meal, Arc lays down and closes his eyes. Sometime later that night he hears the barn door open and small hoofsteps approaching him.
“Snowflake? Is that you?”
A small lantern illuminates the filly’s path as she slowly walks over to him.
“It’s me.”
“Come to make sure I’m still here?”
“Not… exactly.”
“Uh…”
Arc stops talking as he hears the sound of breaking glass through the silence of the night.
“What was that?”
Snowflake sighs. “My dad.”
“Shouldn’t you go check on him?”
Snowflake shakes her head. “Nah. He’s okay.”
“Are you sure?”
“Very. He decided to have a drink after supper tonight in celebration.”
“What’s the occasion?”
“Buying you. But the bar for what’s important enough to celebrate is really low for him.”
“So…”
“He’s falling-down drunk.”
“That must’ve been quite a drink.”
“Well, when I said ‘a drink’ that was just how it started. My dad just doesn’t know when to stop.”
Gasping, Arc clutches his head as fragments of memories from his childhood living with his own alcoholic mother flash before his eyes. Snowflake puts the lantern down and hurries toward him.
“What’s wrong?!”
Arc sweats profusely. “Just… some more memories.”
“Anything good?”
“I don’t think so. At least it didn’t feel like a pleasant memory.”
“Well, why don’t you sleep on it? Maybe things will be clearer in the morning.”
Arc shrugs. “Nothing else I can do right now, I suppose.”
Snowflake picks up her lantern and shifts on her small hooves uneasily. “Um…”
“Is something wrong?”
“Kinda. You see… that makeshift bed there is… um… where I usually sleep when my dad’s like this.”
Arc frowns. “Did he hurt you?”
Snowflake shakes her head. “He sometimes tries, but can’t really move too much by that point. That and he’s really loud and easily angered when drunk.”
“Where’s your mom?”
“She stays in there to make sure he doesn’t break anything really important. Like her apothecary tools or any really rare ingredients.”
“Well… you can sleep here if you want.”
Arc stands and walks slowly toward the other side of the barn. Snowflake steps onto the blanket and turns to him as he lies down on the floor.
“What about you?”
“I’ll be okay over here.”
“You sure?”
“Yeah.”
“There’s a couple more blankets over here. You want em?”
“Sure.”
Snowflake burrows under the hay momentarily before emerging with two blankets. Walking over to him, she drops them a few feet away before slowly walking back over to the hay pile.
“Thanks.”
“No problem.”
Snowflake lays down and blows out the lantern.
“Good night.”
“Night.”
They are silent for a time as Snowflake tosses and turns trying to make herself comfortable. Arc sits up.
“You okay over there?”
“Yeah. I’m just… a little nervous.”
“About sharing the barn with me?”
“…kinda.”
“Don’t worry. I won’t bite.”
“That’s not reassuring.”
Arc chuckles. “Sorry.”
Snowflake winces as another echo of breaking glass reverberates across the open air. Arc sighs as he turns back to her.
“So… how often does this happen?”
“A lot more lately.”
“Why? I mean… is something bothering your dad?”
“Um… it’s complicated.”
“Oh. Sorry.”
“Maybe we can talk about it another time. I’m kinda tired.”
“Me too.”
Arc rolls over and is quickly asleep. Putting her hooves over her ears, Snowflake does her best to drown out the sounds of more breaking glass coming from the cottage.