//------------------------------// // 7. Colt and Filly // Story: The Halfling // by Scarheart //------------------------------// Edited by shadow blades, iakovl, and Magic Man The earliest memories Reign Cloud could recall would be when he was three years old, blowing out three candles on his birthday cake with great enthusiasm. His mother and father helped, of course, and there was a great deal of laughter and love. It was also the first time he became aware that the emotions around him as being more than something he fed upon greedily. Momma Cadence was his world in the early days; he was always with her in one way or another. She would even hold court with him at her hooves, fussing when he was hungry or when the hurt in his body flared up. The princess had to warn her visitors and guest to not get too close to the foal, lest they chance being bitten. Pappa Shining Armor played with his son every evening after supper, ‘rough housing’ as it were. Reign delighted in this activity, nipping at his father and throwing playful hisses and growls no pony colt was even capable of. It was unnerving at first for Shining (his wife laughed uproariously the first time Reign hissed at him), but he got used to it. Soon he began to emulate his son and the two played in the middle of the family room while Cadence looked on. The years rolled on and Reign came to know the most important ponies in his life. He already knew his mother and father, but there was also the great white mare Celestia and her sister, Luna (or ‘Woona’, as Reign came to pronounce her name). There were his grandparents—Twilight Velvet and Night Light—who spoiled him every time they paid a visit. Aunt Twilight was always inspecting him closely, between raspberries and tickles, gentle in her examinations as she both studied and played with the colt. On his fifth birthday, Reign Cloud was presented with a personal servant, much to the shock of Cadence and Shining. As a newly minted five-year-old, he had no idea what to make of it. The biggest mare he had ever seen brought a filly his age and presented her to his parents, invoking an ancient changeling tradition of bonding between a Worker and a Royal. Zeala was there, too and spoke to his mother and father. Reign did not like Zeala. A changeling filly was set in front of Reign. He was told her name was Maggie. As Zeala and Wilda explained the girl to the parents, the two foals were drawn to each other almost immediately. The two locked eyes and both felt a mental click in the back of their minds. What was visible to onlookers was bolts of what looked like white lightning arcing between the two foals as they simply stared into each other’s souls. Wilda looked on proudly, tears of joy streaming down her face as Cadence and Shining Armor panicked. What had just happened? Zeala smiled and simply announced her second request to Cadence was fulfilled. She then uttered some strange words in blessing over the colt and the filly still staring at each other, bade the adults present a good day, and departed with no further word. Reign only saw her on the nights she gave him his nasty medicine. This little fact never did endear the priestess to the colt. As the years rolled on, Reign Cloud’s illness was investigated to the fullest. Zeala grudgingly gave a few drops of her Essence of Emotion. Twilight was the first to receive a drop of the substance. She confirmed it was indeed very old and primal magic. She theorized the Essence might even have ties to the origins of all magic, though she had far too little of a sample to work with. As much as she was thrilled to have something possibly older in origin than Celestia, the young alicorn fought to stay focused in discovering the secrets of the Essence. Research was painfully slow. Unaware of what his aunt and other scientists were undertaking, Reign’s life was kept as normal as possible, given his precarious health condition. Changeling violence upon other changelings in the Crystal Empire was infrequent and whispers of a shadow war of sorts could be heard. It would never involved the old changelings held over from Sombra’s days. Zeala kept a short leash on her changelings and actually organized a security detail to report directly to the Prince Consort. This was stemmed from the night of violence less than three days after her fateful agreement with Reign Cloud’s parents. Unsurprisingly, he and Maggie grew close, though the colt went through countless governesses and nannies He bit half of them, despite the best efforts of his parents to admonish. Reign was likewise aggressive towards the castle staff and learned at an early age guard armor does not yield to fangs. As he came to know the staff and the guards, he tried to bite less (Cadence patiently corrected his social gaffs, albeit with a twitching brow), but instead hissed a lot. Changeling foals, it was discovered, were inclined to be distrustful towards those who did not smell like mother, father, or family. On top of that, he developed a bit of a mean streak. This would later be attributed to the constant pain throbbing through his little body. Shining Armor still worked diligently to get his beloved hoofball brought to the Crystal ponies and it became a labor of love. Reign was drawn in and soon became his father’s biggest supporter. It gave him something fun to do with his father and the two would even spend some days kicking a hoofball between each other. The bond they shared could only be had between father and son was cemented with the fanatical love for a sport known simply as The Beautiful Game. The years rolled on... The changeling filly bounced along, her dark gray chitin gleaming in the sunlight every time she passed one of the great windows. There was always a happy gleam in her deep blue harlequin eyes, today being no exception. Her mane was a pale, sea green color, flaring out in thick, wild layers over her neck and shoulders. They bounced, seemingly with a life of their own with each movement she made. Her wings buzzed excitedly, despite being buried under an avalanche of locks. An aura of happiness always seemed to crackle about; nothing seemed to bother her. The filly continued to bounce down the hallway, towards a part of the palace few dared to go. On her chitin-covered back lay a covered tray. It was lunchtime, and she hummed happily as she made her way towards her destination. The filly passed a maid who smiled and greeted her. “Going into the lair?” the maid joked with a wry grin. “Yep!” chirped the changeling. “Gotta feed the beast!” The mare laughed and rolled her eyes. “You’re the only one he won’t bite!” “That’s because I’m not afraid to bite back!” replied the little filly, flashing her fangs. She passed by a pair of guards doing their rounds. They paid her no mind and she skipped around them, smiling all the same. For a dark little creature, she somehow managed to be a ray of sunshine. The door she stopped at was no different than the others; opulent and gilded with gold as the former ruler had splurged on himself. Beyond lay a room where a certain brooding thing lay, a small living natural disaster that was predictable with his moods. Life had dealt him a poor hand, perhaps even cheated him, and he resented it. His raspy voice growled when she pushed open the door with a hoof. It was never locked. Princess Cadence forbade locks on his door. “Lunch!” Maggie sang out as she bounded effortlessly into the depths of the darkened room. She stopped on a spot on the floor she knew well, looking down and making a point to stand dead smack in the circle beneath her hooves. He knew why she was here. Her eyes adjusted quickly, noting the drapes were pulled, denying the sun from sending her rays inside. The room was not surprisingly clean. An enchantment constantly dusted the room and kept the atmosphere scrubbed free of unwanted aerial debris. Already, a rush of air swept in behind the filly as the door closed, an enchantment spell sanitizing her wake. Her body tingled as she was given what could be best described as a dry shower. Maggie had to pause and stand on a blue circle in the room. If she were to move past it before the tingling sensation stopped, she would be frozen in place. Princess Cadence had asked Princess Celestia herself to place enchantments on the room. It was said Princess Luna had also lent a hoof with the formidable protection spells. It was considered the most well-defended room in all of the Crystal Empire. There were bookshelves along the walls line with books thick and thin. Most were older, some were of the latest in magic theory. There was historical works of all the sentient races, the rise and fall of empires, wars won and lost. Reign Cloud loved history and legends. If he was worried about something, he read a book. If he was upset, he read a book. If he brooded —which he did often— Reign read a book. He shut out the world, much as his famous aunt did in her youth before a certain princess told her to go out and discover the Magic of Friendship. On one wall was a massive map of the world engulfing nearly the full length and width. It was one of the most modern in the world— only a year old. It had been a Hearth’s Warming gift from his mother and father. At certain cities and various locations were large pins, each tagged with a number. Reign had somewhere in his desk a list of names corresponding with the pins. They were places he wanted to visit. Because of his love for history, Reign wanted to actually visit the places and locations where history happened, instead of just reading about them. He wished to experience history first hand, instead of having it metaphorically spoon-fed to him threw his books. Some were cities, some dead, others still thriving. Others were ancient battlefields, famous landmarks, or places of interest to the Halfling. The hours he and Maggie poured over the map, talking excitedly over the trip that had been three years in the planning, and counting. Luckily, the map had a protection spell on it to keep it relatively foal-proof. However, Reign was not driven by a hunger for knowledge and the desire to know everything about the world. His journeys seemed a pipe dream. His health was of a grave issue. The young colt could not do many things normal colts his age could do. His small body simply refused to stay healthy. It did not help his mother and father were paranoid about letting him outside. Maggie waited patiently until the magic sanitized her body and released her to enter into Reign’s room. She trotted happily ahead, skipping around the bed while transferring the tray from her back to balance easily on top of her head. “Lunch time, you grumpy colt!” she called out happily to the gray-yellow figure sitting behind a desk. A pair of pegasus wings flared for a moment, flashed with green fire, then became leathery thestral wings. They snapped down, then up again, flaring with more magic. Now they were insectoid changeling wings, buzzing with irritation. The head came up, blue eyes narrowing upon her approach and a half sneer curling above his fangs. The frazzled orange mane was somewhat combed back, but gave the youngster who owned them an almost maniacal appearance. He had been writing for a change, instead of having his nose in a book. “I’m nod hu’gry,” he grunted, a pencil stuck between his lips, which bobbed up and down as he spoke. “Go away.” “Peanut butter suh-aaaaaaaand-wiches! Cah-ruuuuuuuu-nchy peanut butter,” she sang teasingly, ignoring the dismissal as she threw the tray in front of him. The cover was tossed off in a magical flourish. “Eat it, or I’ll tell your mama you’re being difficult... again. You’ve been ignoring your meals and it’s making her sad.” He stared at the food now covering his letter to one of his aunts. Reign sighed, dropping the pencil. “You’re a bully,” he rasped, snorting. “No, I’m your caretaker,” she said, sticking her tongue at him. “I’m meaner than a bully. I’m gotta to keep you out of trouble and keep you healthy. If that means being a bully to get you to eat, then I guess I’m a bully. Eat, or I’ll hold you down and start shoving the sandwiches down your throat.” He stared at her in horror, reaching for his lunch. “Okay! Okay! I’m eating!” Reign took a sandwich and began to take frantic bites out of it. “Thee? Nom nom nom!” “Smartflank!” giggled Maggie. “I made it myself,” she went on proudly. “Princess Cadence said I could start making you simple lunches. Is it good? Huh? Is it yummy?” “It’s just a sandwich!” He said between chews, the mouthful garbling his words to something unintelligible. Reign Cloud nodded for emphasis as he realized her gaze had changed from a happy beaming to a growling glower. As soon as she saw him nodding, she was smiling again. Angry changelings made scary faces, moreover angry changeling mares. “When you’re done eating, we’re gonna go outside and get you some sunshine!” she went on, buzzing over his head on her wings. Maggie turned over on her back, keeping her eyes on the colt as he munched reluctantly on his lunch. Gracefully the filly landed on her hooves and drew herself uncomfortably close to Reign. The prince froze in mid bite, flinching away from the filly, his eyes huge. “Outthide?” he croaked with a mouth full of peanut butter and bread. Reign hissed, sending crumbs bits of food spraying over Maggie’s muzzle. He knew why she was here. “You know the rules. One hour a day in the sunshine or else you turn into a mushroom!” “But…” “Your mama’s orders!” “But…” “I’m bigger and stronger than you, you know,” she reminded him, wriggling her non-existent brows. Maggie flashed her fangs. “I could just drag you out of her like a fresh kill, letting all the guards and maids laugh at you for not doing what you’re told.” “Maggie…” “Yes?” she asked sweetly, batting her eyes. Reign swallowed his food and glared at her. “You’re impossible.” She shrugged. “I have to be. You’re moody broody, and you like to snap at ponies, and you’re always mad at yourself and you take it out on them and it’s my job to keep you from being a moody broody.” She buzzed her wings and settled back on her haunches. “So there!” The colt stared at her blankly. As she had spoken, Maggie had edged closer and closer to the colt she was bonded with until her snout touched his. She grinned through her fangs cheerily while he bore his own out of shock. The Halfling snorted, tried to pull away, only to fall out of his seat with a cry. He landed on his back, hooves flailing in the air. “Maggie!” he squealed. She took his seat and began to eat the rest of his sandwich. “You were working on your changeling magic, weren’t you?” Maggie asked, not paying attention to the flailing colt on the floor. “You’re getting better, but you need to be careful or else you’ll get tired from tapping into your mana so much! You don’t got the stuff to hold it long. Trying to get stronger at it?” By then, the colt had righted himself with some semblance of dignity. Reign shrugged. “I guess. I can’t hold anything longer than a few minutes.” “We’re going outside,” Maggie announced firmly. She looked around. “I’m gonna ask the princess to get rid of your drapes. It looks... scary in here. I dunno. Weird.” The filly shuddered and shook her head. “You should have lots and lots of light in here to chase away your gloomy glumdrops.” “No,” growled Reign. “Yes,” she insisted, sniffling once. “You won’t make me cry, Reign! You won’t make me! You can’t. You’re going outside or I’ll drag you out. You’re going to have fun out there, you hear me?” Was she being serious or was this more of her antics? Reign Cloud fidgeted, slumping his shoulders as he hung his head, staring intently at the floor. He suddenly felt a nuzzle in his neck, up by his ears and along the crest. Eyes widened as he suddenly felt her hot breath as she grabbed a mouthful of mane and began to tug him towards the door. “C’mon, let’s go!” she said as she began to drag him. Her words were muffled and distorted as they tried two tasks at the same time. The glum colt simply went along, not exactly resisting... but at the same time not exactly complying. He certainly didn’t want his mother to scold him for not following the prescribed regimen of having an hour a day outside. Of course, it was a bit of a joke considering he was only allowed to go to a heavily guarded garden. It wasn’t far and once he left his room, his mother or father would know immediately. Often one of the two would join him or meet him in the garden. Rarely did both join as they had their duties, but they made it a point to spend time during the day with their son. Sometimes Wilda would come if she had the time to visit her foster daughter. The gigantic changeling loved slobbering the prince with motherly kisses. It made Maggie giggle when she did that. As soon as he left his room, several things happened: The threshold held a spell to go off when Reign Cloud stepped across it, warning the guards of his movement. Secondly, it warned his mother of his movements by activating an earring she always wore. Thirdly, crossing the threshold placed a tracking spell on Reign. Lastly, there was the sound of bell chimes announcing to all in the castle the prince had left his room. It was all really rather embarrassing. The prince hated having guards outside his door as it made him feel like a prisoner. As it was, they watched him from afar and never followed too closely. They were just the visible muscle. What was protecting him most effectively was unseen to most eyes. Maggie was almost always with him and acted as an extra set of hooves. In some ways, she was his nanny. The past ones never lasted very long, not since the mysterious disappearance of Aerial Glow nearly ten years ago. She acted as his helper and was his closest friend. Actually, she was his only friend as his medical condition more or less kept him in a protective bubble. More importantly, she kept the prince in check as his was susceptible to mood swings based on how much pain his body was in on any given day. On good days, he ached all over. On bad days, he was nauseous, his joints flared, and even the slightest movement brought searing pain. The first two weeks after getting his Essence treatment from Zeala, Reign felt as well as he could. The last two weeks were miserable as the medicine began to wear off. He was almost always bedridden the last few days before the height of the next full moon and he was always short of breath. Nineteen days until the next full moon, Reign felt about as good as he could, understanding his severe physical limitations. It did not prevent him from feeling bitter at his life as he had always been told without the medicine, his body would betray him and eventually begin to shut down. For almost ten years, he had been living on borrowed time. Reign knew this. He had known for the past two years of his young life. The effects on his mind wore him down as the hope his parents always spoke of seemed to dwindle in the colt’s eyes. He could not help but feel helpless and as a result, took it out on other ponies. Fortunately, it never got too badly out of hand and Maggie was always there to keep him from nipping at the staff. Reign Cloud still had a vicious bite. Most of the castle staff were directed to avoid him unless he was attending public functions when his health permitted it. The prince was simply too eccentric with his personality, it tended to put off the normally gentle-minded Crystal ponies who made up the majority of the castle’s staff. Though they were used to changelings, they weren’t used to the colt who tended to be loud and sometimes obnoxious. Oddly enough, Reign’s antics endeared him to his adopted subjects. The tale of how he came to be the adopted son of Princess Cadence was the stuff of local legend. Knowing he was sickly, but angry about his condition caused a bit of a swelling of the chest for the locals. They didn’t mind his tantrums. So long as they weren’t in the same room with him during one of his infamous episodes, they were perfectly happy with him. Besides, he couldn’t use magic and therefore was not the second coming of Sombra, despite some attempted rumors. The Daily Equestrian would on occasion run an article questioning the adoption of an undocumented foal. Somehow, some years back, somepony had gotten their hooves on irrefutable evidence in the form of copied official and sensitive documents revealing the identity of Reign Cloud’s mother. While it cause an uproar in Canterlot, the Crystal Empire simply shrugged and went about its business. The Crystal ponies had not yet been freed from Sombra’s curse during the events of the now infamous wedding. As the two made their way through the curves and odd architectural design of a castle literally set on stilts, Maggie did almost all of the talking while her smaller counterpart remained silent. All she wanted to talk about was about her family and her mother and father and brothers and sisters and how everyling was getting together in a few days for some sort of changeling ceremony. Well, not exactly just for that. Her oldest brother was graduating from his class and was going to be the first changeling inducted into the Crystal Guard. “Mama’s so proud of him!” chirped Maggie happily as she skipped circles around Reign. As usual, he drowned out much of his friend’s babbling, focusing on putting one hoof in front of the other and losing himself in the sounds of his own hoofsteps. He really didn’t mind her talking, but Maggie did tend to open a floodgate of endless chatter once she got going. At least she wasn’t the sort to talk about herself. Maggie found it much more interesting to share her day with the colt, as if she wanted him to see it through her recollection how wonderful a home the Crystal Empire was. Anything to put him in a good mood. She had to slow down enough to allow the smaller Reign Cloud keep up without exhausting the prince. Maggie was mindful of her friend’s physical limitations and did what she could to compliment him. Mama Wilda had raised a good foster daughter, instilling a stubborn will within the little filly every bit as unyielding as Reign’s own. She needed every ounce of her will sometimes to keep Reign from doing something stupid, which was often. Reign had a terrible, terrible temper. At least he was told he had one. Maggie had seen its full-blown force before. It was simply amazing someling so small could blow such a huge top, she once giggled to the prince in the aftermath of one spectacular episode. It was not something that happened often, but when it did… Reign had once been told by his mother Aunt Celestia and Aunt Luna could feel his anger after one particular episode. The prince was never sure if she was serious or not, as he had no aunt with which to ask for validity. Cadence assured him she could feel it, but that probably had more to do with her being the Alicorn of Love, he was sure of it. Momma had ways of understanding her colt better than even Daddy. This had been some months ago, but he never forgot the disappointment in Mother’s eyes. She expected him to control his emotions, having taken the time to sit with him and explain the positives and negatives of each one. The colt shook the memory out of his mind, focusing instead on the changeling filly bouncing backwards while at the same time staring him in the face. Her muzzle was practically touching. “Gah!” He stumbled backward, head jerking as something akin to a frightened whinney escaped from Reign. “You were daydreaming again, you silly!” she sing-songed, beaming as she bounced in place. “Stop doing that!” he sniped, ruffling his feathers. Reign examined them, noting Momma was probably going to be cross with his inattentiveness. A primary was sticking out, mocking the prince. He was supposed to preen... “Ooooh,” Maggie clucked, shaking her head. “The princess isn’t going to like that.” She threw a hoof at his wings. “You haven’t been preening.” “Are you reading my mind?” he demanded suspiciously. “No, silly,” she huffed, rolling her eyes. “I’m too old for picture books.” He opened his mouth to retort, but his brain failed him, leaving the prince to gape at his friend. Reign grumbled, got to his hooves and stormed ahead, scowling. “Too much?” Maggie asked hastily in his wake. “I’m sorry! I’m sorry, Reigny!” She chased after him. “I didn’t mean it, Reigny!” He said nothing, grinding his teeth as he plodded along. “Don’t be mad!” she cried, grabbing him by the tail with her teeth and tugging lightly. “Please?” She didn’t want to ruin the reason why she had come to fetch her prince. Reign counted backwards from ten, just as his mother had taught him. Cadence had wanted him to control his temper, even having to go through several setbacks in the process. He wasn’t ignoring the filly pleading for forgiveness. Reign was trying to keep his temper under control. He realized Maggie was his best friend and knew sometimes she went a little overboard with her teasing. It had been like this since he had met her five years ago. He sighed, snorting through his nostrils. Reign up. “I’m not mad.” She stopped right in front of him, her eyes huge and round. “Really?” The colt managed a dismissive smile. “Yes, Maggie, it’s fine. I’m not mad, honest.” Then, she glomped him. “Thankyouthankyouthankyou!” Maggie cried happily. Beneath the pile of ecstatic changeling filly, Reign groaned. “Kill me now.” Maggie giggled again, her muzzle pressed against his. “Nope! Not until we get where we need to be!” She got off him and helped the colt to his feet. Reign grunted, the whole time giving her an odd look. Wait a minute. He knew why she was here. His mind chimed at him the significance of this day, though it didn’t really dawn on him until now. “Is it May the fifteenth?” he asked her suspiciously. “It’s my birthday, isn’t it? Momma and Daddy’s having a surprise party for me in the garden, aren’t they?” “No Pinkie Pies were used in the planning of this party!” she promised, uttering the name all changelings seemed to speak with a touch of both dread and awe. Though she had never met Pinkamena Diane Pie, Maggie was well aware of the one time the party pony had planned Reign’s eighth birthday party. The changeling filly even kept a picture of the pony in her room, even emulating her to some degree. He liked her, but even a cautious Pinkie eventually seemed to forget about Reign’s delicate health and had him dancing on the floor. That is, until his body reminded him how easy it was to get overstrained from the effort of partying like it was nine-ninety-nine. The poor colt was bedridden for three days in the aftermath with a very deflated pink earth pony apologizing every chance she could get. Good times. “As long as it doesn’t suck,” he said as the two resumed their epic journey through the castle. Curiosity flared into the next question. “Who’s coming? It’s not a huge party, is it?” Maggie nudged him playfully. “I can’t tell you! Besides, I kinda...sorta... accidentally... told you about the surprise party, so I can’t tell you who’s there. Please, please, please look surprised when they yell out ‘surprise’. Can you do that, Reigny? Puh-lease can you do that?” “Yeah,” he said slowly, arching a brow before narrowing his eyes slightly. “I can do that. Only because you’re my friend.” Reign managed a small but genuine smile, booping the filly on the tip of her muzzle. “You...you smiled!” she accused with a toothy grin. “Didn’t mean to,” he quipped with a shrug. “We must get to that party!” she announced grandly. Maggie hopped behind Reign, placed both hooves on his flanks and began to shove. “Let’s go! Before the warm fuzzies go away! Move it, Reigny! Party, party, party! Secret party! Be surprised!” Laughing, the prince let his friend shove him like a wheelbarrow missing its wheel. Maggie was stronger than him and he knew resisting her would not end well for him. They ended their journey to a pair of large glass doors leading to the dead center of the Crystal Palace. There, the small palace gardens awaited. Both colt and filly took deep breaths before Maggie shoved them open and dragged her companion with her, even though he was compliant in following. The pair was greeted by a badly chorused round of ‘SURPRISE!’ from a small group of ponies led by none other than Shining Armor and Cadence. There was a modest cake and a conservative amount of colorful balloons. Thankfully, there seemed to be no clown this year. Oh, and there were presents.