//------------------------------//
// Chapter 5: Return to Sender 
// Story: Mother and Child 
// by AlicornPriest 
//------------------------------//

Chapter 5 - Return to Sender
By all accounts, Princess Platinum was a darling, sweet filly when she was younger. Unfortunately, Noble Blood kept her in a private, sheltered environment where she was always praised and taught that she was superior over all other ponies. Her ghastly behavior at the Windigo Convention was a reflection of this arrogance that was inculcated in her from a very young age. It is a shame that she had no friends or companions in her younger years; perhaps they could have evened her out or taught her to be more friendly. On the other hand, would she have caused the Pony Exodus in the same manner, thereby founding Equestria? It is difficult to say. Is the happiness of one filly worth the price of an entire civilization?
~Royal Families: part 1.c: The Unicornian Line (Regency-Exodus)

For a few hours, this was all to Pinkie's life. The five of them simply spent time together: Quicksilver raced Pinkie to prove his speed; Platinum matched them in energy and cheer; Silver Wish egged them on; and Coming Dawn stood to the side and watched them with a quiet smile. After that, they went inside, and Pinkie taught them fun card games that she knew. Granted, they used a weird deck with a bunch of extra cards in it, but she figured out how to make it work. Afterwards, she went to the kitchen and helped Wishsong with dinner while the foals continued to play with the cards. “So, have you been enjoying yourself?”
“Totally! And Platinum's been having fun, too!”
“That's good. I'm glad to see that she is fitting in with the others. I can tell she's very lonely.”
“I just wish things could stay like this forever.”
“If only, dear,” said Wishsong. “But things can change in the blink of an eye.” She pointed out to the yard where, out away from everything else, there stood two gravestones. The first was tall and square, while the second was small and in the shape of a wing and horn.
“Who does the other one symbolize?” Pinkie asked.
“My third daughter. She died during the birth. We named her Requiem.”
“I'm very sorry,” Pinkie said.
“We must move on. Besides, she has Morning Star now with her.”
“Pinkie! Come look at this!” Quicksilver said.
“Coming!” Pinkie looked at Wishsong one last time. She saw now a very different pony than she had when she'd first arrived. This mare had seen great tragedy throughout her life, and yet she survived for her children. She saw the joy, but she also saw the pain and the weariness.
“Pinkie!”
“All right, I'm coming!” She walked to the living room, where the four foals had three cards laid out on the ground. “This doesn't look like a very fun game,” Pinkie noted.
“It's a reading, Pinkie,” said Coming Dawn. “Quicksilver thought this one was really accurate.”
“I prefer crystal balls myself,” Pinkie said. “So, what does it say?”
“See, this first card represents being controlled, like Platinum is always talking about. That's the past. But this card shows a happy family together for the present! And then this last card is the Queen of Swords. It means that Platinum is going to become a wonderful Queen someday!”
“Isn't that the King of Swords?” Pinkie asked.
“...Oh, you're right. What does the King of Swords represent?”
“A strong, forceful presence?” Coming Dawn said.
“A strong... No!”
Just as Platinum cried out, there came four knocks on the front door. Then the door shot open, and Noble Blood appeared in the threshold. With him were two guard ponies and Starswirl himself. When Noble Blood saw the family before him, his face suddenly shifted into a cruel grin. “What a coincidence!” he said. “You've led me right to the home of the Morning Star Rebellion! I thought for sure you had all died out.”
“What are you talking about?” Pinkie asked.
“There was a stallion about four or six years back by the name of Morning Star,” Starswirl explained. “He organized the earth ponies in this area into a huge rebellion which went on for years. It only ended when he died in a snow storm and his followers broke apart.”
“And yet the rebellion hasn't ended, has it?” said Noble Blood. “It is still continuing, but in whispers.” He walked back and forth near the four of them, peering closely into their eyes. “So who among you is leading it? You, Mrs. Wishsong, carrying on your husband's legacy?” He passed on to Quicksilver, who was looking up with a fearful darkness in his eyes. “Or what about you, Quicksilver, the eldest? Or perhaps one of you two?” He stared into Silver Wish's eyes, but she was almost unreadable. “Did your father convince you that his cause was just, that what he did was right?” He moved on at last to Coming Dawn, whose strong composure seemed to be cracking slowly but surely. “Which one of you took on his position and now leads the rebellion?” He saw Coming Dawn's weakness and fixed his gaze even harder on her. “Can any of you understand how foolish it is to upset the natural order we've founded?”
“No! Stop!” cried Silver Wish.
“Yes?” said Noble Blood.
“I-if you take me, p-promise me you'll... you'll let them go,” she said.
“Very well. What do you have to say?” he asked.
“Don't do this, Silver Wish!” Dawn called to her.
“I... I am S-sidus Immortale, the Undying Star,” Silver Wish said. “Though my father has... p-passed on, his light shines ever on! I am his light, and I sh-shine where he cannot! I am the morning star, born anew, and I will never die! I live on in... in the h-hearts of all earth ponies, and we will not rest until we have our right!”
“I knew it! I wasn't expecting the youngest, but still. Guards, take her away!” At Noble Blood's command, the guard ponies stepped up and held Silver Wish by the forehooves. They dragged her out of the cottage to the sound of Wishsong's mourning.
Coming Dawn drew close to Pinkie. “Please, Pinkie, you have to do something! She isn't Sidus Immortale; I am! She wants to take the fall for me, but she's completely innocent.”
“What can I do?” Pinkie asked. She did the only thing she could think of and ran to Starswirl. “Starswirl, Silver Wish isn't the leader of that rebellion thingy. Can't you read her mind or something and prove it?”
“Read her mind? I suppose so.” He turned to Noble Blood and whispered something. Noble Blood called the guards back in, and they marched Silver Wish back into the room. Starswirl said, “This is a simple spell which will allow me to review your memories. If you are Sidus Immortale as you claim, I will see all of your treasonous acts.” He fired up his spell, and a bluish-indigo beam connected his horn to the top of Silver Wish's head.
It seemed that a century passed while Starswirl sat, almost motionless. In reality, it was only a few minutes before the spell expired. Starswirl blinked as the spell faded, but he seemed off. He muttered, “Per ignem et aquam...” 
“What did you see?” Pinkie asked. Rather than respond, he whispered again in Noble Blood's ear. With each word, Noble Blood's smile grew and grew.
“Well,” he said, “apparently, I've been mistaken. I'm sorry to bother you.” He turned around, but after a brief pause, he added, “In fact, I have a better idea. How about we move all of you up to the castle? I'm sure Princess Platinum would be happy to have you all living with her.”
“Really? You mean it?” Platinum said, her eyes wide.
“Of course. If this family really does mean so much to you, then I would be remiss if I didn't let you spend time with them. Besides, it'll be nice to have some ponies your own age around, no?”
“Oh, thank you, papa!” she said. She jumped to Noble Blood's side and nuzzled him closely.
“That was... easy,” Pinkie noted. “What did you tell him?”
“Ah, Pinkie. I hardly noticed you were still here,” said Noble Blood. “I take it you came with the princess?”
“Yes. I mean, I was going to stop her, but--”
“No worries on that count. I know she can be quite persuasive.”
Pinkie wondered for a moment if this was a completely different pony she was now talking to. From what Platinum had told her and from what she'd seen, this was utterly unlike him. And to let a whole family of earth ponies in his home?
Noble Blood gestured to the guards. “Could you help this family move their things? We'll put them up in the east wing, over by Starswirl's lab.”
The guards' horns lit up, and objects from around the little cottage began to organize themselves by the front door. Pinkie saw what looked like a little red gem float by, but by the time she registered it, the ruby was covered by a dozen other items. Soon, all of them were out on the road, with Noble Blood, Starswirl, and Platinum in the front, the guards in the back, and Wishsong's cheerful family and Pinkie in the middle. Despite the general positive atmosphere, Pinkie couldn't help but feel like she was missing something important.
---
The move-in had gone completely smoothly. They all had their own room, save for Coming Dawn and Silver Wish, who had to share. Pinkie was wandering about the halls when Starswirl pulled her to the side. “Pinkie! There's something I want to show you.” He pulled out the ruby she'd seen in the stack. “Is this the gem you were looking for?”
“Yes! How'd you know?”
“Lucky guess, although the magical gem among the things where Princess Platinum landed was a pretty good sign.” He spun it once around his hoof, then passed it to her with a broad smile.
Pinkie was torn. She was glad she had finally found the Child, but at the same time, she was enjoying her time here with Starswirl, Platinum, and Wishsong's family. But soon she remembered Twilight and all her friends back in her own time, and she realized that she wanted to go back home. “I guess now that everything's back to normal, I can head home, huh?” she told Starswirl.
“Yep. Back to your own timeline. It's a pity we couldn't do more together, but I'm sure you're very homesick.”
“I really am! I miss Ponyville, and all my friends there, too! Go ahead, send me back!”
A massive portal appeared between them. Before Pinkie could thank him, he said, “Wait, I haven't started yet! How did you do that?”
She looked down at the Child, which was now glowing with a warm, red aura. “The Child is doing it! I don't know how, but I guess it is!” She looked into the portal, but it was too dark to determine what was out there.
“I've never seen such a powerful gem before. I wish I had studied it a bit before giving it to you!” he added with a laugh.
“Sorry, Charlie, but it's gotta come with me. See you soon, and take good care of Platinum for me!”
“Will do,” said Starswirl.
“Oh, and if you ever see a mention of 'Windigos' in one of your books, make sure to tell Clover about them!”
“All right.”
“Maybe I'll see you again some time!”
“Maybe.” He waved one last time as Pinkie stepped into the portal. As it closed, he looked away. “Windigos, huh? Better go check it out.”
---
Pinkie landed in a dark room filled with the smell of hay. She recognized it all too well; it was probably the grain silo near the house. Why the Child decided to put her there instead of anywhere else was beyond her. She stumbled about and looked for the light switch. After a few steps, she slammed into a small wooden fence that had no place being in the silo. She followed it down, but once again she slammed into a wooden fence, this one with a gate on it. She kept going, but soon, she realized exactly where she was: a stable. But that was impossible. There weren't any stables on the Pie homestead. In fact, there weren't any stables in all of Equestria anymore! The last time anypony had used stables was back when--
The light snapped on, revealing that she was exactly right. There were ten or twelve stalls stretching down the long building. There by the door was a pegasus, green-gray in hue with a brown worksaddle around her wings. But there was one thing that shocked her the most: the mare's coat glistened as she walked towards her, like a flawless gem. “Who are you, and what are you doing in our quarters?” she asked.
Pinkie let her jaw drop. “I don't think I'm in Ponyville.”