Sparkler and the rest of the house was in panic. Except for Flurry, who was just giggling on the couch.
After putting Flurry there, Twilight rushed over to Sparkler’s side, and sure enough, she didn’t see their son where he was supposed to be. “I…where…how…WHAT THE FRAX HAPPENED?!” Twilight asked in panic.
“Squawk! Flurry sneezed. Squawk!” Flappy replied.
“And made Kicker disappear.” Spike added.
“Thank you Captains Obvious!” Sparkler and Twilight shot back at them. Sparkler shook her head. “This is bad, this is very, VERY bad!” She said.
“He could be anywhere in the world right now…he’s probably scared out of his mind.” Twilight replied. “Uh…oh! Sparkler! Tracking spell!” She urgently reminded her Alicorn Marefriend.
“Tracking spell, right!” Sparkler closed her eyes and concentrated on the spell, which she thankfully never removed. After a few seconds, she got a lock on him…and was confused. “Ok now this makes no sense.” She said.
“What?” Spike asked.
“According to my tracking Spell Kicker’s right here, but obviously he’s not.” Sparkler began walking around, and sure enough, the tracker moved with her. “Yeah. Kicker should be on me, but no Kicker.”
Flappy watched Sparkler, and he, like everypony else, noticed something that could very well be the answer. “Squawk! Uh…Sparkler. Squawk!”
“What?” Sparkler asked.
Twilight poofed a mirror in front of Sparkler, and she got a look at herself, and that’s when she noticed that something about her changed. Her underside was larger than she remembered, and she knew it wasn’t that large this morning. Her irises shrunk to near invisibility again as her brain connected the dots.
Outside the house, the ponies outside suddenly heard an ear splitting scream, at what was most Definitely the Royal Canterlot Voice. “I’M PREGNANT?!”
After some screaming, panicking, and her friends getting her to calm down, Flappy, Spike, Maddy, and Flurry were left at the house while Twilight rushed Sparkler to the hospital. There they were able to get a checkup from the night staff. Now, after the doctors took some scans and an ultrasound, Twilight and Sparkler waited in a patient room. Sparkler was pacing back and forth, shaking her head.
“No, no this isn’t happening. There is no way in Tartarus that I’m pregnant with our son. There is no way that Flurry sneezed Kicker into my womb. It just defies all logic and reason!” Sparkler panicked. She tried to light her horn to summon a bag to breathe into, but nothing happened. She sighed. “And as if this night can’t get any worse, my MAGIC stopped working! What is going on?!” She asked in a panic.
Twilight hopped off the chair and immediately pulled Sparkler in for a comforting hug. “We’ll figure out what’s wrong sweetie. It’ll all be ok. I promise.” She soothed her distraught marefriend.
Sparkler continued to hyperventilate and started glancing around. “T-this is just a prank right? This whole thing is a massive prank dream by Luna because she’s bored.” She looked up and started chuckling. “Ok Luna, You got me. Ha ha, this was a good prank. You can stop now…please?”
Twilight shook her head. “Sparky, I don’t think this is a dream, or a prank.” She told her.
“How can you be so sure? She's been visiting me in my dreams more than she probably should. Maybe she decided to have a little fun and mess with—nngh!“ That was when she felt like she was kicked in the gut. She sat down and held her tummy. “Ow. W-what was that?” She asked.
Twilight touched her hoof to Sparkler’s stomach, and after a second, Sparkler winced as she felt the pain again. Twilight felt a little bulge stick out before retracting. She nodded, confirming her suspicions. “That was a baby kick Sparkler.” She said.
Sparkler took a few deep breaths, before tears started forming in her eyes for the second time that night. “Then…” She knew there was no physical pain in the dream realm, leaving only one possibility.
Twilight nodded as she wrapped her hooves around Sparkler again. “This is really happening Sparky.” She whispered.
Sparkled stared off into the distance as a million questions started plaguing her mind. Mainly revolving around Kicker. “I-I’m scared.” She whispered, letting out a small whimper.
“I know sweetie. I am too…but we’ll get through it…together.” Twilight assured Sparkler. “You’re not alone.”
At that moment, the door to their room opened and a doctor came in. “Excuse me, Ms. Sparkler. The results of your tests are in.” He said.
Sparkler pulled out of the hug and nodded towards the Doctor. “What are they?” She asked, hoping against hope that somehow, this wasn’t what she knew it was.
“We’ll get the big one out of the way. You are indeed pregnant.” He announced.
That destroyed any last hope Sparkler had of all this being something totally different. Not having the will to talk, she solemnly nodded, urging the doctor to continue.
“According to our tests, you are a few weeks into your pregnancy…but it’s unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.” He revealed.
“How so?” Twilight asked. “And how can she be a few weeks in?”
“According to our tests, your pregnancy is proceeding at a rate greater than normal. Usually pregnancies last for 9-12 months. But assuming a steady pace, you could be due as early as next week.” The doctor explained.
Sparkler’s jaw dropped. If she was hearing this guy right, she was experiencing a hyper accelerated pregnancy, something that she thought was impossible. “H-How?” She asked.
“I’m afraid we do not have an explanation.” The doctor said sadly. “Maybe it’s just a natural-born Alicorn thing?” He guessed. “It’s our best guess.”
Sparkler had so many questions, but she went for the most important one. “Am I having an Earth Pony Colt?” She asked. She was curious about how she could have an accelerated pregnancy, but aside from that, if the doctor said yes, then she could at least take solace in the fact that Kicker would be back soon.
“I wish I could tell you the gender.” The doctor replied. “But we were unable to determine what gender the triplets are.” He explained.
At the mention of triplets, Sparkler’s and Twilight’s jaws dropped. “Triplets?!” They both asked, shocked.
“Yeah.” The doctor said with a small smile. “Congratulations Ms. Sparkler.” He said.
Sparkler shook her head and fired off. “But…but I’m not supposed to be having triplets! There should only be one earth pony colt in my womb. That’s what went in when a magical sneeze hit me!” She explained.
The doctor blinked. Not entirely sure how to respond. “I don’t know what to tell you other than what our tests revealed.” He said. “You’re pregnant with triplets.” He said.
Sparkler was on the verge of fainting by this point. She could accept that her accelerated pregnancy could’ve been a result of Flurry sneezing, she would believe it. But TRIPLETS?! What the heck?!
Seeing that Sparkler was at a loss for words, Twilight wrapped her up in her wings and glanced at the doctor. “Are you sure it’s triplets?” She asked.
The doctor nodded in response. “Our tests are rarely wrong Princess. If our tests reveal triplets, then she is likely carrying triplets.” He said.
Sparkler took a second to process all this, before she spoke up. “Do you know the species?” She asked, praying that at least she could have an answer to THAT.
“One Unicorn, one Pegasus, and one Earth Pony.” The doctor replied simply.
When the doctor named the last species, Sparkler breathed a sigh of relief. She still didn’t feel good about all this, but at the very least she could momentarily relax, taking comfort in the fact that Thunder Kicker was still the species he was magicked into her womb as.
“So what happens now?” Sparkler asked.
“Well, we’ve done what we can for now. Now it’s simply a matter of playing the waiting game.” The doctor said. “In the meantime, get plenty of rest.”
Sparkler nodded, before another thought came to her. “What about my magic?” She asked.
“Now that, we at least have a good answer on.” The doctor said. “Due to your larger magic reserves than that of regular Unicorns, your hormones suppressed your magic so that your Unicorn’s magic can safely develop along with the rest of it.” He explained.
“That makes sense.” Sparkler replied. It was one of the few things that DID make sense in this whole thing.
The doctor nodded. “If there’s nothing else, then I’ll let you go. I’m sure you two would like to celebrate tonight.” He said with a wink.
Twilight let out a chuckle. “Oh we’ll be doing something alright.” She smiled at Sparkler, who smiled a little back.
“In that case, I bid you goodnight.” The doctor said.
A few moments later, Twilight and Sparkler walked back to Sparkler’s house together. They took it much slower than the trip to the hospital. Along the way, Sparkler finally had a chance to take it all in while she walked under the cover of her lover’s wing. I’m having Triplets through a hyper accelerated pregnancy because of a freaking one-year-old…And all because of a SNEEZE…
For Twilight’s part, one could say she was faring slightly better. She was still worried sick for their son and her marefriend. And the fact that Sparkler was carrying triplets just added to the stress. “So…triplets…didn’t see that coming.” She commented after a few moments of silent walking.
“It’s unbelievable.” Sparkler replied. “A simple sneeze just changed the course of at least 5 lives…or four…” She added in a quieter tone.
Twilight caught that, and raised an eyebrow. “I assume I’m the fifth life. Why did you backtrack to four?” She asked.
“You signed up to be Kicker’s mother, not a mother to triplets. I can’t expect you to just jump onboard right from the get go.” Sparkler explained. “And with this change being so sudden…I don’t even know what I’m going to do with the Unicorn and the Pegasus…” She sadly admitted. She knew for a fact that she was keeping the Earth Pony, but the other two…
“You’re not doing it alone. That’s for darn sure.” Twilight responded immediately. “Sparkler, I signed up to be Kicker’s mother. You’re right that triplets weren’t on my mind. But that wasn’t the only thing I signed up for.” She turned her body so that she was facing Sparkler directly. “I don’t want you to feel like you have to bear this burden alone. You have friends who will reach out to pull you through any situation. Flappy, Spike, Starlight, they’re all there for you. And you also have me. You don’t have to bear this burden alone Sparky, we’re in this together.” She said, putting a hoof to Sparkler’s face in a loving manner.
Sparkler heard Twilight’s words, and a few tears of joy came out of her eyes. “Really?” She asked.
Twilight smiled, and pulled Sparkler in for a passionate kiss, which Sparkler gladly returned. After a few seconds, Twilight pulled back. “Me and You, Ooh Ooh.” She sang.
“Always got each other’s back we do…” Sparkler finished automatically.
“I love you Sparkler. And I’ll always be here to support you in your time of need. And that time is now.” Twilight said, smiling.
Sparkler finally, genuinely smiled for the first time since the accident. “I don’t deserve you as a marefriend.” She said.
Twilight giggled. “No. You deserve everything good in your life.” She said as she kissed Sparkler’s cheek.
Sparkler smiled, and leaned against Twilight as they resumed walking back to her house. She still didn’t know what the future held, but she now had faith that it would turn out alright.
After several minutes of walking, they eventually made it back to Sparkler’s house. They opened the door and walked in, right into a confetti explosion and a very high pitched shriek. “Congratulations!” Shouted Pinkie Pie.
Sparkler blinked confetti out of her eyes, and saw Pinkie. AJ, RD, Fluttershy, Rarity, and Starlight there, smiling at them.
“There you two are!” Rarity exclaimed as she ushered them in.
“Pinkie here told us something amazing just happened…and then Spike explained what happened here with Flurry.” Applejack explained.
“Is it true Sparks?” Rainbow asked.
Sparkler sighed, and nodded. “Everypony…I’m pregnant with Kicker…and two other foals.” She announced, thinking it wasn’t worth hiding when Pinkie already knew.
Pinkie smiled brightly. “That’s amazing isn’t it? Now Kicker’s gonna be your biological foal!” She said.
“I want to say Yay, but I don’t want to assume that’s a good thing.” Fluttershy said.
Sparkler sighed. “I don’t know Flutters. On one hoof at least we didn’t permanently lose Kicker…to our current knowledge anyway, but on another…I…I don’t know. It all happened so sudden.” She said.
“Squawk! Well, one thing’s for sure. We are never foalsitting Flurry again if her sneezes can cause this. Squawk!” Flappy joked to try to lighten the mood.
“I just can’t believe it’s triplets.” Spike commented.
“Me neither Spike.” Starlight responded.
“Yeah. It is a big change.” Twilight said. “And Sparkler’s gonna need support to get through this.”
“Well duh!” Pinkie replied. “Why do you think I wanted to throw this congrats party now? To make sure Sparkler knows she’s not alone.” She explained.
The others voiced their agreement that they were there for Sparkler. To which Sparkler smiled. “Thanks everypony. It’s nice to know I have friends like you.”
Spike nodded…before he frowned, and suddenly coughed up a green fire. The fire reformed into a scroll in his hands. Once he finished coughing up, he glanced at the scroll’s seal and smiled. “Hey! Celestia got back to us!”
“What? We never sent her a letter…did we?” Sparkler asked.
“I took the liberty of contacting Celestia and telling her about this. I told her all I knew.” He cleared his throat and read the letter.
Dear Spike,
This is certainly unexpected news. I do hope that Sparkler and Kicker are well as can be given the circumstances.
Keep me apprised of the situation as it develops. I shall search for anything that might help in the meantime
Perhaps it might also be good for Sparkler to come to Canterlot earlier than originally planned so that my personal Doctor can have a look at her.
I look forward to hearing back from you soon,
Princess Celestia.
Spike finished reading. The ponies that surrounded him glanced at each other.
“The Princess wants me to go to Canterlot early.” Sparkler said.
“Yeah…sure sounds like it.” Rainbow replied.
“While I do agree that perhaps it would be best to be looked at by the best, there is one problem that I foresee with this.” Rarity commented.
“Nobles.” They all said. They all knew about the big stink the Nobles were making over Sparkler, and they could only imagine what would happen if the Nobles caught wind of this.
Twilight gulped, weighing their options. After a moment, she came to a decision. “Let’s do it.” She said.
Everypony glanced at her, wide eyed. Twilight turned to Sparkler. “I agree with Celestia that it would be good for you to see the best doctor in Equestria. What happened tonight is not normal and for all we know there is a serious danger not just to you, but to Kicker as well.” She explained.
“But Twilight, what about the Nobles?” Fluttershy asked.
“They’re gonna see her at the Yule Ball anyway.” Twilight reasoned.
Sparkler took in Twilight’s words…and agreed with them. Her encountering Nobles was unavoidable, and no offense to Ponyville General, but the monarch of Equestria would have the best doctor. “Yeah.” She said. “Yeah I agree. The nobles seeing me is unavoidable.” She said.
“I would ask Celestia for a guard escort for Sparkler.” Rainbow suggested. “That has the best chance of driving those Nobles away.”
Sparkler winced. She was afraid somepony was going to suggest that. Twilight but her lip, then turned to Sparkler. “I think it might be for the best Sparky.” She said.
Sparkler glanced between Twilight and their friends. She could see it in their faces that they agreed that a guard escort was necessary. And as much as she hated it, she had no grounds on which to argue logic.
“Spike, Take a letter.”
To be continued…