The next morning, I spent most of my early day in my head. The story Luna had told me was… dark. The idea of her turning into a physical manifestation of all of her pent-up emotions was a terrifying idea. For one thousand years, she was just sitting up on the moon, biding her time, and waiting for revenge. Nightmare Moon sounded more like a parasite in her mind than anything; I couldn’t ever imagine Luna doing something like that of her own free will.
“What’s on your mind, honey?” Cadance asked from behind me as she brushed my mane and styled it the same as Flitter had.
I glanced up. “Oh, nothing…”
She raised a brow but didn’t pry any further and only began to hum while she worked on my mane. After a few minutes, she stopped and said, “Okay! There we go.” She leaned in while nuzzling the side of my face. “What do you think?”
I looked at the mirror; it was nearly the same as Flitter’s style, a few touches different, but it was very well done. I smiled gratefully, “Much better!” I said happily.
She giggled and kissed my cheek before standing back up. “I think Flurry is in her room right now, if you want to go play.”
I hummed and debated it: “Okay, I’ll see what she’s up to.”
“Alright.” She said with a nod, “You know where we’ll be; just come grab one of us if you need something, alright, sweetie?” I gave a firm nod and followed her out of their room. Cadance gave me a smile as she disappeared into their living room. Once she was out of sight, I opted to continue down the way towards Flurry’s room.
When I got to Flurry’s door, it was already cracked open. Nevertheless, I knocked on it as best as possible. And I quickly heard a distracted command, “Enter.”
I slowly pushed it open to see her looking in the other direction from atop her bed as she lay on her stomach. “Thank you for gracing me with your presence, your highness.” I said with a mock bow.
She smiled and huffed, glancing at me and sticking her tongue out before returning to her art book. I slowly approached as I watched her eyes dart about the page, a storm of drawing utensils hovering in and out of the page’s range as she drew one of the most detailed pictures of flowers I’d ever seen.
It was extremely impressive; no less than five different pens or pencils would be on the page at once, and it was impossible to keep up with. I was, again, a bit jealous of the dexterous nature of magic and its uncanny ability to make anybody into a one-man machine. “Wow,” I said quietly when there was a pause in her work. “It’s beautiful.”
She smiled and blushed as she almost considered hiding it before realizing the futility. “Th-Thanks.”
I sat down, admiring the ball of drawing tools hovering in her magic, ready to strike the page at a moment’s notice. “You’re really talented at drawing." I paused for a moment. “Unless you’re about to tell me this is a typical drawing level for a unicorn."
She glanced at me again with a tilted head, and I quickly bowed my head and clasped my hooves together above it in pleading, “Please don’t tell me that. I might cry.”
She laughed and shook her head. “It’s definitely not normal; even if you can float a pen, you can’t make the page look like art without practice.” She rested the book gently in between her hooves. “That being said, every time someone tells me that, I can’t help but question it. I don’t even have my cutiemark yet.” She said it with a tone of annoyance and a gesture towards her flank.
I shrugged. “Maybe that just means you’re even more talented at something else!” I suggested with a smile.
Her smile widened, and she nodded eagerly. “Maybe!” She said excitedly, “Oh!” She brought her book back up and quickly went back to work, clearly inspired by whatever thought had just occurred to her.
It was really now that I was wishing I had something to fill the gaps in my free time. Whether that be a hobby or simply the capacity to learn something like magic, being able to relax in this relatively dream-like world while bettering myself sounded quite fun!
But really, what were my options? My head fell to my hooves in thought, and eventually Flurry took stock of my silence. “You okay?” She asked with a brief halt.
I widened my eyes and looked back up to nod at her. “Oh, yeah. I think I’m going to go for now, though.”
She tilted her head. “Hang out with momma and daddy?"
I hummed and turned my back to her. “Something like that, I’m not sure…” I glanced back with a smile. “Keep at it, though! It looks great.”
She nodded and leisurely returned to drawing. It was clear that I was really a distraction for her at the moment anyway. Even if we could sit together in comfortable silence, my body wanted to go do something. Even though I had no clue what to do!
I took one step in the direction of the living room, where Cadance and Shining were, but then found my head turning in the other direction. Toward the door that led out into the greater bits of the castle. Surely a small little excursion by myself wouldn’t be an issue? And I wasn’t planning on leaving the castle either! I just needed to get my head straight about what Luna told me and about my own thoughts.
So, my hooves turned directions, and I continued down that hallway and, for once, outside the living quarters on my own. Walking the long hallways of the castle just sounded like something that might straighten my mind out. I don’t know why. I mean, every single king in every movie does that as a replacement for pacing idly, so surely it would work for me.
My legs didn’t carry me at a fast rate; the halls were long, especially for such a small body as mine. The guards on my way out had only given me a glance, until eventually I heard another set of hoofsteps behind me. I turned and raised a brow at the random guardspony. “Can I… help you?” I asked curiously.
Without breaking form, he replied calmly, “Here to service and accompany you, at your order.”
“You know I’m not Flurry, right?” I asked with a head tilt.
He nodded. “Princess Cadance’s orders are to treat you with the same respect as Flurry.”
I sighed. “Can I order you to… not follow me?”
He bowed his head. “I apologize; if you are to stay on castle premises, I could make an exception.”
I nodded, “I will… so… Please do, thank you.” The guard nodded and returned to his post swiftly.
‘Wow, that worked?’ I immediately thought in surprise as he left me. I shook my head to clear my mind of distractions and continued back on my way.
My thoughts fell back on Luna and, more importantly, what she was trying to convey by telling me that story. I was happy either way that she was willing to share something like that, though it did seem like public knowledge anyway, so I would’ve found out eventually. Maybe she assumed it would be better to hear it straight from the horse’s mouth.
Heh, that was the first horse pun I’d made since I got here…
I wasn’t one to judge Luna based on her past, with mine probably not quite as destructive but still… not great. So I guess her story could be interpreted as “keep your emotions in check,” but that didn’t really sound right.
She could’ve been using it as a lesson on humility. Speaking to others about your concerns instead of letting them reach a boiling point? That was something I was actually not terrible at; I’ve made it very clear since I first got to Equestria what my concerns were. Cadance, of course, dismissed them all with reason, and I found it nigh impossible to disagree with her. And Flurry was very good at convincing me of things I would often never do.
The likelihood is that Luna was just telling me a story with many elements, with all of the above concerns as a potential lesson.
The hallway didn’t feel like it was getting any shorter; I could see the door at the end, but each step was only a drop in the bucket. I was also walking as slowly as molasses, so I can only fault myself.
I finally raised my head to look at the wall next to me, and while there was the occasional door, they all seemed to be the same guest rooms from that one night. I nearly doubled over immediately in cringe at my own actions that night… I mean, really? Was I that clingy? I’m not clingy.
One door did catch my attention, a bit farther down the hallway than the guest rooms. It was about twice the size and had a double door. The entire door was lavished with a silver accent to the dark wood color. It also had a much larger sign overhead, comparatively. I picked up the pace a little.
When I finally got in front of the door, I gave it another look and nodded my head resolutely. This door was important. I looked at the sign again and tilted my head. Their language was like hieroglyphics to me. Some bits were just a bunch of lines crossing, dotting, and curving nonsensically. Much the same way Chinese or Japanese did, but it was a lot simpler. Then the other symbols would sometimes resemble an almost recognizable form, like some twisted version of the Greek alphabet.
I shrugged and stepped forward. If it wasn’t locked, then clearly they wouldn’t care about people getting in. So with my curiosity, I stepped forward and placed my hoof against it, expecting it to swing open grandly in my mere presence, I guess. But that’s not what happened.
No, this door was heavy…
I found myself with my shoulder and both hooves on the door, trying to dig my back legs into the slippery floor enough to get a grip. And after some heavy shoves, it began to open. A light shone back at me from inside, and I upped my effort a bit more until there was a large enough crack for me to slip into the area.
With my tongue lolling out of my mouth in concentration, I made a careful leap towards the crack in the door, a resolute creak echoing through the room as it shut firmly behind me. I dusted my hooves off proudly and took a look around.
It was a library…
Well, that was an insult to my efforts… I felt almost mocked by this universe, having been led into possibly the most useless room I could ever enter.
The room was big, though—genuinely large. Looking up, I could see at least a second story, with what seemed to be even larger than the base floor in size. The bottom floor had a cross-shaped pattern, with a red rug dividing the room into four corners. And each corner had two sets of four massive bookshelves.
In the center of the room was an assortment of desks, tables, and chairs meant for recreational use. With the very back of the room having a double staircase splitting halfway up to go in separate directions.
I didn’t even want to begin thinking about the size of the second floor. The room was already looming over my small form like a mountain with its insurmountable amount of literature. “Hello?” I called out, my voice echoing about four times. But there seemed to be not a single soul other than me amongst the tree graveyard.
I huffed greatly. “I’m out; too many hieroglyphics.” I said dejectedly, turning around and walking muzzle first into the giant door I just came through.
I put my hooves and my shoulder up against the door, and I realized one thing that turned this from an unfortunate sidetrack into a hostage situation. The door was only able to be pushed open one way.
I was not tall enough to reach the handles on the inside.
I certainly did not have enough grip strength to open it, even if I was.
With an almost unbelievable amount of shock, I sat back on my rump, staring at the door in realization. “Wow, I messed up.” I released a long groan, facehoofing with annoyance.
“Am I stupid or something?” I fell backwards onto my back and stared at what seemed to be a mile-long ceiling. “No, really, Kieran. Your intelligence is positively radiant.” I mocked.
I raised my hoof up and lamented my intellect: "Truly, your brain must lack the critical thinking skills required to operate a simple door.” I snorted a small giggle afterward.
I stood back up, and for about twenty minutes, I tried many times to stack books high enough for me to climb and reach the door handle, but I could barely even lift the books! It was a lost cause. I walked over to the center of the library and found a large pillow, falling onto my back with a large sigh.
I tilted my head while staring at the ceiling. It wasn’t game over; I wasn’t going to die in a library. Cadance would eventually find me after a lot of panicking. Maybe the library would even get some traffic, and I could ask for help.
Maybe I shouldn’t have turned away that guard from following me… But having some random guard following you was such a bore.
I sighed greatly once again. It wouldn’t have been so bad if I could read, but I couldn’t. Maybe if I found a picture book? A comic? Do they even have comics in Equestria? Oh no…
I really need to get some knowledge of this world thoroughly into my noggin before something goes wrong. Actually, getting stranded somewhere would be a death sentence for me right now.
I once again found myself pacing the library, but with no indication of which section of the library I was in, the whole thing was pointless. "Well, this problem only has one solution.” I said with a firm head nod.
"Alright, little ones, how about some dinner?” Cadance said with a happy hum as she opened Flurry’s door.
But the sight of a lone Flurry sitting in the corner playing video games made her head tilt. And it made Flurry’s head tilt even more at the pluralism of her words. “Kieran’s not in here, momma.”
Cadance was at a loss for words. “Oh, bathroom then?”
“Nuh uh,” Flurry shook her head again. “I haven’t seen him since this morning. I thought he was with you.”
Her brow furrowed with worry. “Then… did he tell you where he’d be going?”
Another shake of the head made a sudden rush of panic travel up Cadance’s spine. “That mother’s adrenaline is kicking in,” she whispered quietly to herself, falling to her rump in despair. “I can see every equation.”
“What was that?” Flurry asked with a head tilt.
“Nothing!” Cadance replied hurriedly as she exited the room.
….
It took Cadance and Shining a while to get on the right track, but eventually she was reminded by Silver of all ponies that she’d placed a tracking spell. Cadance followed the trace, a wisp of energy directly leading the two until they were at the library doors, where the trail led right through. “Oh no… I told you this heavy door would be a problem, Shining!”
Shining’s ears folded against his head slightly. “They didn’t tell me the door would be so heavy when we were constructing it; I just thought it would look cool.” He defended himself mildly.
Cadance quickened her steps and threw the doors open with her magic. “Kieran! Kieran!?” Cadance’s voice rang out in the library desperately with worry. The sun from outside was barely emitting a glow as it was becoming dusk.
Shining trailed behind her. “Are you sure he’s in here?”
Cadance nodded confusedly. “The tracking spell showed he was in here, but…”
She worriedly and hastily trotted into the center of the room, gazing in every direction possible. “Kieran, sweetie, where are you?”
A groan rang out, along with a questioning hum, “Huh? Is someone there?” She heard him call out from somewhere on the second floor. Cadance quickly spread her wings and flew up to the next floor. She was absolutely shocked to find what she did.
Kieran came running out of a foal-sized castle made entirely out of books. With the ruler wielded in his mouth, he lowered his two front hooves and growled into a defensive stance. “Who dares defile the land of lost trees and dreams!?” He shouted out.
Cadance froze in her tracks and tilted her head. “Kieran? Are you… Are you okay?”
An extra look showed that his fur looked disheveled, with small bits of paper sticking out of his back. There was a wild look in his eyes that spoke volumes about his sanity.
Shining reached forward with a hoof out of curiosity, only for it to be smacked away like a disciplined student by Kieran’s ruler. “He seems to have gone native.” Shining hummed with pursed lips and a hoof to his chin.
Cadance glanced over at him in surprise, bumping into him with her side scoldingly. “What if it’s serious?” She reprimanded him with a hushed hiss. before shaking her head and facing the foal. “Did you get stuck in here, sweetie?” Cadance asked softly, taking a few steps forward.
Kieran lowered the ruler from his mouth, dropping his weapon metaphorically guarding him. “State your purpose here, wench; these are sacred lands!” He continued, and she caught a small hint of a smile on his lips before he buried it.
Cadance finally realized his playful act and smiled with relief. Clearing her throat, she quickly joined in: “I’ve been searching for my foal. Some say he was banished to these sacred and lonely lands long ago. Would you happen to know somepony named Kieran?”
He gave a face of wonder, “Kieran? Ah yes, that name does ring a bell…” The foal sat in silence, humming confusedly before his epiphany. He clicked his tongue and said, “Aha! I remember him! He’s me!”
Cadance hunched lower to the ground in horror. “Oh my! You’ve grown so old!”
The foal fell to his stomach in defeat, hanging his head sadly. “How long has it been? Days? Weeks?” He whispered sadly, looking down at his hooves with a thousand-yard stare. “Has the world outside crumbled to dust?”
Shining approached carefully, a large smile on his lips. "Actually, it’s been about nine-”
“Nine years!?” The foal interrupted him with horror. “Dear gods…” he muttered.
“There’s more.” Shining began.
“No…” Kieran lamented even further, horrified at the implication of his words.
Shining wasn't able to hold his composure and started dying of laughter from behind her as Cadance levitated the foal up in front of her. Suppressing a giggle at his defeated look, “I’m so sorry, little one. We searched far and wide for you, but you were simply too lost.”
Kieran’s head rolled back. “Have you come to take me to the afterlife with you? I think I see the light.” He reached his hoof up towards the sky before dropping it unceremoniously, his tongue lolling out of his mouth.
Cadance couldn’t help it and released a bout of laughter. All of her panicked worry washed away in the wake of his acting. Eventually clearing her throat and trying to get her composure back, “N-No, ahem… we’re here to take you home. You’ve had a long journey, my little king.”
“So, so long…” He whispered gravely, “I still remember the faces of those I’ve lost, gone with the passing tide of time.” He held his face in his hooves dramatically.
Shining’s laughter finally died. “Did you really get stuck in here all day, buddy?”
Kieran perked right back up, forgoing the act and locking eyes with him. “Yeah, it was a very boring day.”
Cadance giggled and glanced up at the small castle of books. “It looks like you found your own way of entertaining yourself, though.” She tried to cheer him up. Then she gave him a scolding look of scrutiny. “That must've taken a lot of pulling and pushing with your hooves, hmm? The hooves you aren’t supposed to be using?”
Kieran huffed sadly, his ears folded against his head. "Sorry, Cadance,” he apologized honestly. “I was mostly using my mouth, though! I promise.”
Cadance couldn’t stay mad for even a second as she leaned in and nuzzled him heavily. “Oh, it’s okay, little one.” She paused for a minute and raised a brow at him. “Was there any particular reasoning behind the castle construction?”
He shrugged. “I was just looking for a picture book or comic, and every time I didn’t find one, it became part of my castle. I never found a comic either, so it was a big waste of time.” He said with an exasperated sigh.
Cadance hummed and nuzzled him. “Aww… I’m sorry, honey.”
Kieran giggled. “I didn’t make you worry too much, did I?”
Cadance smirked. “No, we knew how to find yo-”
“She was absolutely freaking out.” Shining interrupted her, much to Cadance’s dismay. “She was practically upturning the entire castle for the past few hours, until Silver Drift reminded her of that tracking spell Cadance put on you days ago.”
Cadance blushed defiantly and gave a sour face. “Yes, I might have been a bit… worried.” Kieran just laughed again and nestled into her chest fur. She happily reciprocated the affection.
Shining’s horn lit up, taking hold of every book. They all seemed to sort themselves out quite handily throughout the library. “No! My fortress of solitude!” Kieran lamented.
Shining just laughed and ruffled his head. “Gone with the tide of time, I’m afraid.”
Cadance rolled her eyes playfully and set Kieran on her back. “How about dinner? I’m sure you’re a starving little king.”
He nodded. "Yes, please…” There was a bit of silence as they began leaving the library.
And as if coming to Kieran like a sudden light in the dark, his eyes suddenly lit up with the sudden promise of purpose. Something to fulfill his time and allow him to occupy himself and feel productive in a way he hadn’t since he first arrived. Kieran eventually cleared his throat, "Um, Cadance.”
“Yes sweetie?” She asked sweetly, glancing an eye at him.
“Can you teach me how to read? Like… soon? I really want to learn..."
A large smile spread on Cadance’s muzzle and a warm feeling in her heart. “Would you like to start tomorrow?”
“Yes!” He said ecstatically. And she giggled when she felt him happily tiptoe dance between his hooves excitedly.
“I can’t believe you got stuck all day.” Flurry said a bit mockingly, ducking away from Kieran’s advances by climbing up Cadance’s back even further.
Kieran huffed with a scowl as he swiped up at her leg, draped halfway over Cadance’s back, trying to catch her. “Because I didn’t get stuck, I was admiring the architecture!” He growled.
“Yeah right!” Flurry giggled and pointed down at him. “I got to play games all day while you sat there and built a castle!"
Kieran smirked. “You sound jealous of my superior creative skills!”
Cadance and Shining glanced at each other with raised eyebrows and suppressed laughter.
Flurry huffed and held her head high. “They’re my creative skills, actually; that’s my body you’re in.”
He shook his head and said, “My brain, my creative skills.”
“At least I can read!” She countered suddenly.
He groaned. “Cadance is going to teach me.”
“Okay, Flurry, that was rude.” Cadance scolded her, lowering her head so the filly rolled down onto the carpet below.
“Momma!” She whined slightly, lying on her back in front of the fireplace.
Cadance shook her head sternly with raised brows. "No, apologize to Kieran right now for that.”
She sighed as she got to her hooves, her horn glowing slightly. She did seem rather apologetic. “Okay…I’m sorry… And you better learn perfectly and be the quickest learner ever. Or else!”
Shining shook his head. “I don’t know if that’s good enough to teach my filly not to be a bully,” he continued. “Kieran, I give you permission to get your payback."
“Hey!” Flurry protested as Shining held her up from behind, as if posing as a dejected cat, as Flurry attempted not to laugh. Kieran and Shining shared an untold smirk of mischief.
Kieran quickly hopped down from Cadance’s back, “Gladly!” He said so happily, angling himself and jumping to perform a perfect tackle. The two foals rolled across the floor, their fight quickly turning into giggles as the two got tangled up on each other.
Cadance and Shining leaned against each other comfortably, happily taking in the rivalry between the two foals. Yet the serene moment was interrupted as the door to their home opened. The two adults swiveled their heads to meet the entrance of Silver Drift, which was a rare sight since she usually would have left by then.
“My Princess, forgive my interruption, but may I speak with you?” She said with a deep bow.
“Me?” Flurry asked excitedly, her head popping out of the ball of tangled foals.
Cadance laughed softly, “No dear,” She stood, approaching the guardsmare. “Of course, Silver Drift. Follow me.”
Cadance led the mare to a small room with a few comfortable pillows to sit on and a table in the center. Cadance sat at the long end as Silver placed herself on the opposite side. “Would you like some tea?”
Silver shook her head. "No, thank you. I apologize, but I don’t intend to be here for too long.”
Cadance nodded respectfully. “Of course. What did you wish to discuss?”
“My Princess, it’s about Kieran.” Silver Drift said with a sigh. Cadance tensed, though she didn’t really understand why. Her body language adopted a much more attentive stance.
Silver Drift saw the look of intrigue and continued with a sigh, “I know I might be outstepping my boundaries, and I apologize if so.”
Cadance shook her head quickly. “No, please, go on. You’ve been with us for so long; I trust your word.”
Silver Drift nodded a faint smile on her regularly hardened features and said, “Well, Princess, you know I’ve had a few foals in my lifetime.” Cadance nodded to indicate she was listening. Silver seemed to be having trouble starting. Clearing her throat, she continued, “I hate to… say this… but I worry for Kieran. Especially after today’s incident.”
Cadance tensed more and hung her head slightly in shame. “I… understand. I feel just as embarrassed and ashamed as you’d imagine. Even more so that you had to remind me of the tracking spell.”
Silver shook her head and said, “No, no Princess. I didn't mean to tell you this insultingly, but more so to help you out.” Cadance tilted her head, and Silver locked eyes with her. “I know you don’t want to hear this, my princess, but Kieran… The care for him is very similar to that of a handicapped foal.”
Cadance’s mouth opened in shock, and she stuttered in her own breath for a minute in disbelief. “I… I don’t know, Silver…”
Silver sighed at the shock on her face. “Cadance, dear, he can’t even feed himself properly. The poor foal can’t hold things much; he can’t fly; he can’t use magic… He can barely walk after he uses his hooves to grab things; you know more than anybody the struggles he is used to.”
Cadance thought back to the times before she fully understood it—the many times he’d trip on his own hooves if he’d been using them much at all. And his grip was weak for a foal his age. Cadance winced a bit before Silver continued.
“Not to mention his mental state being rather unstable." Silver sighed sadly. “I know you love him, and you want to show him freedom, but I think he’s more reliant on others than you realize, Princess. He’s a very frail foal-” Cadance’s hoof came down on the table, causing Silver to stop speaking abruptly. Though Silver didn’t jump at the action, it only softened her look.
Cadance hid her face; her voice spoke volumes for her emotions, though: “We’re trying… But despite all my power, I’m not good enough at magic on my own to help him, Silver.” Her voice shuddered. “Kieran is strong; he just doesn’t have the body to support it yet. I can’t just cage him up like some animal.” She groaned angrily at herself as she held her head in her hooves.
Cadance felt a hoof on her back and looked over surprisingly to see Silver Drift with her helmet off, the old guardsmare offering her sympathy. “I’m sorry, Princess; I did not mean to hurt you.”
Cadance wiped her eyes and shook her head. “N-No, forgive me; I lost control of my emotions.”
Silver moved her hoof to Cadance’s front leg and said, “When it comes to your foals, you would do anything. I know that feeling, I’ve had it many times before. What I did not mean by approaching you with this was for you to feel like you aren’t doing enough. I know how much you’re doing, Princess.”
Cadance breathed deeply. “Did you have a suggestion of sorts?” She asked curiously.
She nodded. “A personal guard. As you did by entrusting Flurry to my service, you should do the same for Kieran. You, Sir Shining, and Flurry can’t always be around him, and I worry about my ability to be entrusted with two alicorn foals.” She sighed. “It won’t give him all the things the poor foal lacks, but a guard he can trust, an impartial ally, I suppose.”
Cadance’s eyes widened, and she quickly hummed with curiosity, “That’s… a great idea. I agree.” She held a hoof to her muzzle in thought.
Silver nodded with a large smile. “That’s great. I know of quite a few experienced and well-acquainted guards that you could choose from.”
“I’ve already got one in mind,” Cadance replied, a smile growing on her lips.
Silver looked surprised but quickly nodded. “Just say the word, and I can have the transfer started and all the official nonsense. Though it may take a while to get it all processed.”
Cadance smiled. “That’s fine; I will be waiting until after Hearth’s Warming to allow them time with their families.
Silver Drift stood back and saluted, “Of course, Princes. I will fulfill your request as soon as the holidays are over. You have my word.”
Cadance stood from her spot and faced the mare, saying, “Thank you, Silver.” She hummed, “Are you sure there’s nowhere you’d like to go for Hearth’s Warming either?”
Silver bowed her head. “My family lives in your empire, my lady; I will be with them precisely when I’m no longer needed on Hearth’s Warming Day.”
Cadance nodded as she began exiting the room. “Oh, don’t worry too much; the foals will be too busy opening presents to get caught up elsewhere.” Cadance opened the door and turned back. “Get some rest now, Silver.”
She bowed deeply and said, “I will, Princess.”
I sat in deep contempt within the shallow, warm water of the bathtub, even as Flurry lathered my mane until I was a big, bubbly mess.
Cadance laughed from above. “Honey, are you trying to color him white like Shining with all those bubbles?”
Flurry giggled as she put the finishing touches on my coat. “I’m turning him into an art piece!”
I slowly turned my head to her in dramatic fashion and asked, “Why must you desecrate me further?”
She fell backwards in a giggling fit. Cadance laughed quietly as she dumped water over me, only furthering my sour expression even more. She hurried the pace as best she could, pooling the water off of us with her magic and bringing both of us out of the tub and into our own respective towels.
Flurry was still dying in laughter, which only amplified when she saw my super-puffed-out coat and hair with my still-sour expression. Cadance hummed a song as she brushed our hair back down so that it wasn’t crazy, carried us outside, and set us gently into her bed. “Hmm, what would my little ones like tonight?” She placed a hoof to her chin in thought, though she was clearly asking us to make a decision: “A bedtime story? A song? Another bath?”
“No!” I whined immediately, hiding under the covers.
Cadance giggled and leaned over the bed to kiss the part of my head that wasn’t hidden. “Too far? I’m sorry.” She calmed her laughter. “Well, what do you little ones want?”
Flurry giggled more, exclaiming excitedly, “More momma cuddles!”
Cadance raised her brow, “More? How would I go about that?” She seemed to act stumped for a minute before climbing onto Flurry’s bed and causing her to laugh wildly. I couldn’t help but laugh either as she settled in between the two of us like some oversized dog.
“What a comfy bed!” Cadance said, pretending to yawn and lay her head down. She fake snored as her two forelegs reached out and grabbed me and Flurry, pulling us towards her like oversized stuffed animals.
Flurry squealed and struggled in her grip while she giggled wildly. I actually found it quite comfortable and was pretty tired, so I allowed her to keep me close to her chest without struggle. Cadance hummed confusedly as she pretended to wake as she stared at Flurry. “Now why are you so squirmy, miss? Kieran is already falling asleep!”
Flurry shook her head. “Then take Kieran only!” she giggled mischievously.
Cadance tilted her head. “Oh? This must not be my bed!” She crawled off, releasing Flurry and still holding me to her chest. “I’ll take this plushie to bed with me then.” She said, hugging me gently.
Flurry got out from under the covers and stood defiantly. “No! He’s mine!” She said with a giggle.
Shining entered through the door and sighed with a bit of laughter. “Honey, are you bringing their energy back up again?”
Cadance turned and laughed. “Quite the opposite, trying to settle this one down.” She said, gesturing to the wild-eyed Flurry.
Shining passed her with a chuckle. “Hold on, I’ve got this.”
Cadance nodded and glanced down at me. “You look comfy,” she giggled.
I nodded slightly and buried my face farther into her chest fur. She only smiled and looked up at the other two. “I’ll be taking this one to bed with us then.”
Flurry fell to her stomach and protested playfully, “No~!”
Shining got up on her bed and nuzzled her relentlessly. “There’s nothing you can do about it, little pony! Muhaha!” He growled with a menacing laugh.
Cadance laughed softly as she exited the room, taking me with her to bed that night. She settled into her own room, turning the lights off with magic before pulling back the covers and cozying into it.
She pulled the covers over us and continued to hold me close as she brushed my hair back soothingly. "Goodnight, little one, I love you.”
My mind was preoccupied with nearly attempting sleep, and my thoughts were buzzing. So when I leisurely replied back, it was nearly on auto-pilot. I wasn’t thinking very much. “I like… mom…ma.. cuddles...”
I didn’t hear another thing that night, but I did feel her hold on me become much tighter. And the faintest hint of something wet dripping onto my head, but it was quickly brushed away by Cadance’s soothing nuzzles.