Welcome To My Life
Chapter 2: The Birth of A…
Screams rang out from the other room. Had there been anypony outside nearby, they may have bolted through the January snow to the small farmhouse to check where it came from. Three mares and one dragon sat in the living room. None of the group made any advances to the stairs anymore. Fluttershy would call for them if she needed them.
Rarity and an 8 month pregnant Applejack were seated on Applejack’s couch. Rainbow Dash once again took off from her cushion, circling the room to vent her feelings of anxiety and uselessness in this situation. Spike had curled himself up on the recliner in the corner.
He had grown somewhat in the last couple of months, but mostly in the ever expanding reach of his wings. Still unable to maintain unassisted flight, he remained a regular of Scoot’s Sky Tour business, but he prided himself in the fact that he was relying on the glider less and less. Another few months, and he could begin flight school in Cloudsdale. Although it was not a necessary step for a dragon to undertake, Spike insisted on participating like any other pony with flight capabilities would.
The group had generally remained silent for the past half hour or so. All except for Twilight, who had gone into labour two hours ago. Spike had received an urgent telepathic ‘nag’, as he had termed it, while he had been paragliding around the gorge with Scootaloo. Flapping hard, he had raised his altitude and flown straight for the library without so much as a word to Scoots.
Finding her panting near the front door, her water broken, he had scooped her up and began running to the hospital.
“No… Fluttershy’s…” she struggled, “not hospital.”
“But why not the hospital?” Spike asked confusedly, yet he still altered his course according to her request.
“Birth certificate… to princesses… keep secret,” she managed to say in between gasps.
Spike did not like all of the secrecy around this Bastion character. He had tried to convince Twilight to tell Celestia about the whole mess on several different occasions. He had even offered to go there in person.
Twilight would hear none of it. Not only was she convinced that this was her duty to a friend, but her hormone-charged mind and motherly instincts told her that they would take her child from her. Unsure of how the foal would turn out, she had decided to consider Stalwart Bastion the father, and name her child after him. The fact that his name had only really ever been Steve never crossed her mind.
That was almost two hours ago now. Sending messages to all of her friends through a magical puff of smoke, he had called them all here. Fluttershy had been here in the first place, as had Applejack. Both of them lived with their husbands in the same house on Sweet Apple Acres Farm. Because of all of their spare time during the winter, Big Mac, assisted by Fancypants, were in the process of building a separate house on the property to give their families the privacy they needed. Applebloom still lived there as well, but Granny Smith had passed away in her sleep five months back, surrounded by family and loved ones.
Fancypants, who had dabbled in medicine for a time, was in the delivery room with Twilight and Fluttershy, orchestrating their efforts while an 8 month pregnant Fluttershy tried to keep Twilight calm and focussed. I do not know if you have ever witnessed a birth before, but calm is not how anything goes.
Rainbow Dash had showed up shortly after receiving the message, her face smattered with snow and ice from her flight. She had been having a romantic lunch in Cloudsdale with Lightning Storm, a fellow Wonderbolt, when the letter had materialized on her salad. After a quick apology, she rocketed off before he had had a chance to respond. By the time he had, she was already halfway there.
Rarity had taken somewhat longer. She had been on the train coming from the Crystal Empire from a visit with Princess Cadence to once again format her mane in the traditional headdress. Receiving the letter just as the train pulled into Canterlot Station, she had leaned out of the window and waved hello and goodbye to her husband, Sir Comet Fire.
In an effort to quell his confused look, she had waved the letter around and called out as the train began to depart, “Twilight needs me, Dearest! I’ll be back tomorrow!”
A short train ride and a rushed taxi later, she had barged in the front door only an hour and a half into Twilight’s labour. After saying hello and getting a quick update on Twilight’s condition from a loud scream, her first order of business had been to grab the hairbrush from her luggage and attack Rainbow’s still dishevelled mane.
Rainbow did not even react to this kind of treatment from her friend anymore; it was far easier to just let it happen. Rarity had been astonished by the length of her mane. It was longer than her usual style, and took a natural mature curl at the end. Despite the group of them all getting slightly taller since they had met, Rainbow Dash had really begun to grow up lately. Being in the Wonderbolts for a few years had taught her many things about maturity and friendship, both of which she mailed to Celestia and Luna about often.
Rainbow was still impetuous, as evidenced by her circling. Sitting down on the cushion once more, she gave an exasperated sigh.
“Ugh! How long does that usually take!” she moaned.
“From what Ah hear, if she’s lucky, it’ll be over soon. But if she’s not lucky… it could take a lot longer than we’ve already been waitin’.”
They all cringed in unison, both at that thought, and because Twilight let out yet another scream; the growing hoarseness of her voice revealing that she, too, was ready to be done as well.
Big Mac came in from the kitchen with a plate of baked goods of different varieties, only half of them containing apples. Applebloom brought in a tea kettle and cups and saucers. Once both had been placed on the round table in the middle of the room, the two Apples left again. Spike left to see if they were doing something more interesting than nothing.
Using her magic, Rarity began pouring tea for her two friends, also shuttling a biscuit with careful precision. She noticed the expensive make of the china, which lead her eyes on a dancing spree around the room, spying some rather tasteful art and fine cabinetry.
“I do love what you have done with the place, Applejack!” Rarity commented, trying to lighten the mood. “Your taste in décor has definitely improved!”
Applejack smiled at the jab and accepted the refreshments with a nod. “Well, what can Ah say? Ah guess Ol’ Fancypants’ rubbin’ off on me!”
“An’ besides, Business has been real good lately, ‘specially since Fancy started makin’ that Apple Wine. Not only does it have a real nice taste, but he’s gone and got all his high-falutin’ friends hooked on the stuff! It’s a huge hit up there in Canterlot; we can’t make it fast enough!”
Rainbow stuck out her tongue. Ok, maybe she is not as grown up as she looks.
“What about cider? You’re still making apple cider, right?” she asked worriedly.
“Hoo boy, you betcha we are! Ah mean, Ah don’t mean ta sound happy about other ponies misfortunes, but since those Flim Flam Brothers went out of business, we’ve been run ragged for more cider! We’ve had to pull in six more hired hooves ta keep up!”
Rarity’s eyes went wide as she slapped a hoof up to her mouth, nearly spilling her tea. “My dear! You do know why they are out of business, don’t you?”
“Umm…no,” Applejack replied hesitantly. “Why?”
“I’m not sure how you haven’t heard! Honestly, it’s been the talk of Canterlot for weeks!”
“Are ya gonna tell us or what, Rarity?” Rainbow said impatiently.
“Do you recall their… odd cider making vehicle?”
They nodded.
“Well… there was an accident. Somehow, while they were inside the bladed intake barrel fixing something… it turned on.”
“It did what?!” Applejack cried.
“Somepony nearby saw it happen. One minute, they were singing away to that catchy tune of theirs, the next, nothing could be heard other than mechanical grindings and… snapping noises.” Rarity paused, nauseated by the thought, the other two were not fairing much better. “He said that in only a few minutes, they came out the other side, fully… processed and unrecognizable.”
A shadow began settling over the three, but was suddenly whisked away as Twilight gave out another long yell. It was not so much her yell that startled them, but the higher pitched cry that came afterwards. Applejack eased herself from her seat. Rarity hopped up and trotted quickly to the stairs meeting Spike, Applebloom, and Big Mac already on their way up. Rainbow was at the bedroom door, hovering anxiously.
* * * * *
The upstairs bedroom smelled like blood and sweat. Fancypants was mopping up the floor, so Big Mac had moved her to a fresh room. Fluttershy had followed, all the while mopping Twilight with a damp cloth. But now, in a clean bed, they all got a chance to see.
“Meet Stalwart Bastion.” Twilight introduced proudly.
“Awwwww!” they awed in unison.
Cradled in Twilight’s forelegs, and wrapped in a light yellow blanket, was a small light purple pegasus with a red mane. Only Twilight had noticed his different colouration from almost a year ago, but that only reinforced her belief that he was her son, as opposed to her former friend. He had her purple coat, and his father’s mane and eyes.
Knowing that her friends wanted to hold him she gingerly held him out to Rarity. Upon receiving him, she immediately began nuzzling his nose and speaking in a baby-pandering voice.
“Who’s the widdle cutiepie? You are!” she cooed. Much to her satisfaction, she elicited a short but adorable giggle from the little bundle of joy. The female portion of the room squee-d with delight; the males, including a newly present Fancypants with sleeves still rolled up and collar askew, could not help but smile.
Similar activities were enacted by the rest of the circle, each more enamoured by his squidgy little face and round eyes than the last. The last one in the path of the baby hot potato was Spike, who looked somewhat unsure and nervous.
“But what if I drop him?” he asked unsurely.
“Don’t worry, Spike, you won’t,” Twilight reassured him. “And even if you do, I’m ready to catch him with magic. It’s not like he’s going to bite you or anything!” she laughed.
Tentatively, he reached out and accepted the foal from Big Mac. Spike held Bastion close to his warm dragon chest and smiled at him. Bastion reached out with his miniscule hooves, straining to grasp Spike’s finger, which was hovering just too far away.
The crowd awed again.
Succumbing to his wishes, Spike let him grasp on and pull his claw in to himself. He immediately began to suck on the purple appendage contentedly. Smiling profusely, Spike looked up at Twilight.
“Heh, you said he wouldn’t bi-YEOW!”
He wrenched his arm backwards, extricating his claw from the young pony’s mouth. But that was not the mouth of a pony.
It was that of a dragon, teeth and all.
Spike, startled and hurt, accidentally tossed the newborn into the air, to be caught by an angry Twilight just as the blanket fell away. Everyone gasped.
Levitating in a purple magical field was a tiny dragon, purple with red crest scales and spines. Visible from his back were a pair of bright purple wings with red membranes. Himself startled, Bastion immediately began to cry with indignation at his treatment.
Before anypony could say a word, and as Twilight began bringing him back to herself, Bastion had returned to the form of the pegasus he had been just moments before. On his flank, which may or may not have been there earlier, was a depiction of an orange sword with fiery dragon wings.
Twilight rewrapped him in a blanket and cooed him into peace. Giving a short yawn, he snuggled against her soft, warm coat and fell to sleep.
Nopony awed this time, although they would have had he not just been a different species.
Twilight looked up at the group of shocked spectators. Her eyes betrayed both worry and fear.
“Tell nopony.”