Ratchet clutched his ears as the tiny filly continued to wail. Eventually he couldn't take it anymore, and in desperation yelled, "Twilight, stop!"
The tiny filly immediately stopped crying, tilting her head and making a curious sound.
Ratchet blinked. "Huh. Didn't think that would work." He kneeled down by the basket. "So this is your name, then? Twilight Sparkle?"
The filly squeaked in reply. Then her stomach gurgled and her eyes began to wrinkle up again.
"Food!" Ratchet yelled out, running to his fridge. "I've got some steak-no, you're a pony of some sort, you need vegetables. A carrot? No, you're too small, you must be a baby. Milk!" Grabbing the carton of milk, he raced back over to the filly. "Drink up!" he offered, holding the open carton out to her.
She stared at the carton in confusion, then sniffed a bit. She attempted to fit her mouth around the opening eagerly, but it was too wide.
"Right! Glass!" Ratchet dropped the milk onto the bed and raced for the cupboard. "Where do I keep the glasses-wait, I don't have any! What do I-" He paused as he heard happy gurgling.
Turning, he saw that the filly's horn glowed with a purple light. The milk was flowing upwards from the carton with the same color surrounding it, and pouring towards Twilight's mouth in a steady stream as she drank it up. Ratchet stared in absolute silence as he watched, hardly believing what he was seeing. "Well," he whispered, "I'd read some sophonts(1) had telekinetic abilities. She must be one."
At that point, Twilight apparently had finished her milk, and burped happily. The light around her horn suddenly flared, and the milk still in her grip burst into flame and exploded. Twilight giggled at the light show.
Ratchet wiped the cooked milk from his face. "Pretty potent abilities, too." He then opened his eyes wide as the foal's wings began to buzz and she lifted into the air, zipping around his head. "And she can fly too. Great." He proceeded to chase after her, trying to catch her. Twilight continued to giggle as she zipped around until she collided with his bookcase. She fell to the ground, covered in a pile of holo-books. Ratchet braced himself for crying, but was instead greeted with a squeal of delight. Looking back, Ratchet saw Twilight curled on top of the pile of holo-books, with one sitting open as she scanned it, practically cuddling another to her chest. "I guess she likes books, too."
He sat back watching her. "I'm way out of my depth," he muttered. "I really ought to take you into town and see if someone else can care for you..." His voice trailed off as he remembered how the colony had greeted him and his own orphan status. And this time, there was no Nursemaid Bot to take her in. "...I guess that's my job, then," he whispered, pressing the Gadgetron Help Desk Uplink again.
"This is the Gadgetron Help Desk," the voice on the other end began. "How can I assist you today?"
"I've come across a sophont I don't recognize," Ratchet said, using the camera function on the uplink to send the help desk a picture of Twilight. "Anything you can tell me about her?"
There was silence for a time. "Image matching has come up with three possible matches for creature type of the unknown sophont. Two are marked as Old Earth Science/Fantasy. One is marked as Old Earth Children's Fantasy. Which references would you like?"
Ratchet stared. "Nothing outside of Fiction?" he asked plaintively.
"Negative."
He sighed. "What are the two Science/Fantasy references?"
"Flight of the Pegasus, a work scientifically analyzing the flight capabilities of the mythical creature called 'Pegasus', author unknown. Spells of the Unicorn, a work scientifically analyzing the magic abilities of the mythical creature called 'Unicorn'."
Ratchet tilted his head. "How do those match-"
"A Pegasus is described in Old Earth Mythology as a winged equine capable of flight. A Unicorn is described in Old Earth Mythology as a horned Equine capable of magical feats, not the least of which was telekinetic manipulation of their environment."
Ratchet nodded. "Huh." He looked at Twilight. "Guess you must be some sort of crossbreed. How much for those two references?"
"30 bolts per book, plus 20 blots shipping and handling each."
Ratchet nodded. "...what was that third one, marked Children's Fantasy?"
"My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, filed under video media and holo-comic."
"Yeah, that one's not going to help me," Ratchet groaned. "I'll take the two Science/Fantasy ones."
"The charge has been filed to your account. The requested references will arrive in three days. Thank you for your business."
Ratchet turned off the uplink. "Well, Twilight, what are we supposed to do now?"
Twilight held up the book she was holding, and made an entreating sound.
Ratchet chuckled. "I guess you want me to read to you, huh?" As Twilight squeed happily, Ratchet took the book and opened it up. Twilight curled up in his lap where she could see the pages. Putting his finger to the words, he began reading. "The Epic Adventures of Captain Quark: Chapter 1, the Unbelievable Origins..."
Ratchet had gone through seven chapters by the time Twilight had finally fallen asleep, clutching the book to her fuzzy chest. He leaned back as he watched her sleep. "Well, at least I know how to get her to sleep. Better be prepared to see what else I might need to do for her..."
Picking up a notepad and pencil, he began writing out everything he thought she might need based on what he knew so far. He covered everything he could from dietary issues to grooming needs to toilet related issues. He couldn't decide whether she would need diapers or a sandbox. He eventually settled on diapers and toilet training, as he figured it would be easier to invent an automatic diaper changing machine than a sandbox that would stay clean and scentless. He then went down the list and marked off which he could provide for her with his own skills and which he would have to buy.
As he finished totaling up how much he'd have to spend for her, he sighed. "Guess I can kiss saving up for the new game console goodbye," he said to himself. He glanced over to where she was sucking on the corner of the holo-book, and couldn't help but smile. "Then again, I'm sure I'll get plenty of fun out of you, right? Probably won't have time for video games for years..."
He leaned back as he looked at the list again as that settled in on him. He was literally dedicating his entire life to an unknown sophont who had shown up on his doorstep, one that was literally a brand new species as far as the galaxy was concerned. He could probably get into contact with some scientists, hand her over to them, and get enough bolts to have him be set for life whatever his choice of life style and home. Besides, the scientists would probably be able to figure out how to take care of her better...
He actually thought about that for a time. Would she be better off with scientists who cared more about what they could learn from her than her own health and well being? The answer to that was obvious. She'd be best off with someone who would actually care for her.
And right at this moment, that group totaled one.
Sighing, he walked over and covered her up with a blanket, stroking her head. She nuzzled his hand in her slumber. He couldn't help but smile at that. "Don't worry, Twilight," he said softly. "I'll take care of you."
The purple pony smiled in her sleep, curling up tighter to around the book and under the blanket. Ratchet sat back, slowly nodding off as he watched her slumber.
(1) Sophont - a general term for a sapient/sentient alien being. Adopted when the diversity of life in the known universe expanded to include people who were not exactly people, by the traditional definition of person. Borrowed from the Phule's Company novels by Robert Asprin.