//------------------------------// // Telling Her Now // Story: Our Little Clementine // by MaxBeezy //------------------------------// For the next few days, Clementine was subjected to question after question from the same two curious fillies. It’s never a series of questions, just one a day, before going back to their group of friends to converse. On the second day, they asked if Matt was some kind of pony turned into a human. She said no. On the third day, they asked if Clementine was actually a human wearing a pony costume, looking down at her hooves like they were nothing more than props. Clementine said no, showing off her hooves like the real appendages that they are. After school, when Matt and Applejack would pick her up, Clementine continued to wonder what all these questions mean. Applejack assured her that it was nothing more than curiosity, and the next week, they will be more comfortable in having a conversation with her. Matt was a little more suspicious, but he felt that he was probably overthinking things. After a fairly uneventful weekend; that surprised the Williams-Apple Family, considering their penitent for trouble and shenanigans, it was back to school for the young filly. Unlike the beginning of her first week however, she walked inside the classroom with a little more trepidation. It was business as usual for her; the lecture by Ms. Cheerilee was as informative and exciting as it could be, and she wrote down as much as she could, on the chance that there would be some kind of test at some point in time. Lunchtime began, and Clementine went to her normal spot. Once again, there were no interested parties willing to go to her and sit down to have lunch. Minutes pass, and as Clementine is finishing up with her sandwich, multiple shadows loom over her, darkening the sunlight like an umbrella on the beach. Clementine looks up to see the two fillies that have always questioned her, but this time, they aren’t alone. This time, they are joined by a few other foals, some fillies, some colts. The crowd look upon her with devious smiles on their faces, which makes the young innocent filly gulp as a reaction. “Hey guys!” The orange filly calls out, “Check out the freak! She’s the one with the monster dad!” The crowd murmurs and giggles at her words. Clementine is more than a little perturbed. “Mah…dad isn’t a monster….” Clementine timidly speaks. “I bet her hooves are hiding hands and feet.” one colt whispers to another. “Ew, gross!” the colt replies at the suggestion. “That would be disgusting.” “No! I’m not hidin’ anything!” Clementine wiggles her hooves, “They’re hooves; just like you and me!” she looks at the duo that have been questioning her for the last week. “So you say…” the cream colored filly snides, “If you’re a pure pony, how is your dad NOT one?” “Ah…ah don’t know…” she really doesn’t know. Her parents haven’t given her the talk about her origins, yet. “Ah just am, that’s all.” “I bet that thing isn’t really her dad.” said the orange one, “Just some creature her mom picked up. I bet her real dad isn’t even around. She’s just some fatherless filly that no stallion would want to take care of!” “You’re wrong! He’s mah dad! They told me so!” Clementine tears up at their words and suggestions. “Why…why would ya…” “Aw…she’s going to cry.” cream colored mocks, “You going to cry, little filly? Crying that you don’t have a real father? Just a big ugly brute?” she points at Clementine’s crying eyes, “Check out the freak crying!” The group laughs at the now crying Clementine just as the school bell rings. Cheerilee calls them inside, and the group leaves Clementine alone on the playground. It takes her more than a few seconds to gain the courage, wipe her tears, to get up and walk back into class. When school ends, Matt and Applejack are once again waiting outside for Clementine to arrive. Eventually, she comes out; head hanging down in an attempt to hide the damp cheeks from her quiet sobs. It doesn’t take long for the two parents to notice. “Clementine?” Applejack inspects her closer, “Are you okay?” “I’m fine.” she replies drolly. “Did something happen at school?” Matt kneels down, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Ah said I’m okay. Just tired.” her tone comes off almost as a snap, but halfway turns into a normal response. “Ah need some sleep.” “Okay. Hold on, sugarcube.” Applejack lifts her up onto her back, carrying her home. Once they arrive at the house, Clementine went straight for her room. Applejack asked her if she was hungry, but Clementine simply shook her head before going inside to her little hideaway. “Ah think something is wrong.” Applejack correctly surmised. “Clementine would always be hungry after school.” Matt says, finding the behavior odd. “Maybe she had a tough day at school.” “School can be a little rough for a couple weeks, but it didn’t leave me like that.” she heads for the door, “I’ll go talk ta her.” “Wait…” Matt places a hand on her shoulder, “Maybe it’s nothing. She could be genuinely tired.” “It’s likely…but ah don’t want to be wrong.” “If it is something, she would tell us. She does come from the most honest pony in Equestria, after all.” “And her daddy is the guy that put in a book that oil drillers stopped an asteroid.” “Good point…” Matt grimaces. “Let’s just give it a couple of days. If something happens, you can lecture me as much as you want.” “Ah don’t lecture! Twilight lectures.” “You both can lecture me.” Matt smirks. During the next couple days, the fillies and colts would bully and tease little Clementine, calling her names, and settling in the doubt of the validity to her origins. One some level, Clementine didn’t want to believe them. She didn’t want to believe that Matt wasn’t her father, and that her real father was out there somewhere. Matt and Applejack frequently noticed the change in her behavior. Her bouncy and happy self was replaced by a timid and quiet filly. They were ask her if something was wrong, but she would merely say that she was tired, and had a long day of school. Clementine wanted to tell her family about what had been going on at school, but they pushed her even more when she announced her threat to them. When she was alone in her room, she would spend the nights crying herself to sleep. She would want nothing more than to not attend school ever, but the fear would always come in. It didn’t take long for her young and impressionable mind to begin wandering; is what they were saying true? No, it couldn’t be. She has memories of her father for as long back as she can remember. He was always there for her. He took care of her just as much as her mother did. Why would those foals at school say such hurtful and mean things? Why…in some awful way…could they be absolutely right? Thursday arrives, and Applejack is visiting Sweet Apple Acres, leaving Matt to pick up Clementine from school. Matt waits around outside the schoolhouse, when the bell rings. Fillies and colts immediately come bursting out; talking and laughing on their way past Matt. Clementine, with her head hung down, is the last one to leave. Matt could no longer take seeing her in this state. “Clem…” Matt kneels down. She doesn’t look up. “Talk to me, please. This isn’t like you.” Clementine looks up at Matt’s concerned yet loving expression. Her eyes then drift over to the bullying fillies, who shake their head with devious smiles. She may be young, but she knows a threat when she sees one. An emotion is building up inside Clementine…one of anger. It’s a emotion that she hasn’t felt so far in her years, but she can hardly control it. However, she’s about to take it out on the wrong pony...or person. “Leave me alone!” Clementine shouts at Matt, pushing past him. “Clementine!” Matt is shocked at her outburst, “What is going on?” “Why should ah talk to ya?! Ah don’t need ta say nothin’ to ya! Get away from me!” she gallops away. “Hey! Get back here!” Matt runs after her. His longer legs catch up to her quickly, and her reaches down to grab her by the sides. “What’s gotten into you?! My Clementine wouldn’t talk like this!” “I’m NOT yer Clementine! Let me go!” she manages to use her signature apple family strength to break free of his grip. She may be young, but she is strong. Then again, Matt loosened his grip in shock at her words. “What?” Matt queries, “What are you talking about?” “Ya heard me!” she snaps back, “How can ah be a pony, if yer just some…some…THING?!” “I wasn’t sure if you’d understand…” “Ah understand perfectly! Yer not mah real dad! Mah real dad is a pony! Not…YOU!” “Clementine!” Matt nearly shouts, “I am your father! Who has been telling you this? Is this was this is about? Is somepony telling you these things?!” “Shut up! Don’t talk to me you…you…MONSTER!” She gallops away, this time at a faster speed, leaving Matt in the dust. His hand shakes at her words, but the palm turns into a fist. Anger seethes into his head, but the anger isn't for his daughter. He knows that somepony else is telling these lies to her, and he wants to know who. However, the words still hit their intended effect. A tear runs down his cheek as he follows her back home. “Clementine!” Matt knocks on her bedroom door, “Open this door, right now!” he juggles the knob, “Why in the world did I install locks on this thing?” he whispers to himself, before going back to shouting “Clementine!” Applejack walks through the front door with a look of worry on her face. She trots right into the hallway where Matt is standing. “What’s goin’ on?” she wonders, “Ah can hear ya from outside!” Matt leaves his pounding on Clementine’s door to lead Applejack to the kitchen, away from their daughter’s ears. He sits her down at the table, and sits across from her. He hasn’t said a word yet, but Applejack can see his hands still shaking, and the tears fighting to leave his eyes. “You’re right. There’s something going on at school.” he whispers, “I think Clem’s being bullied.” “Bullied? Clementine?” she gasps, “Why would they do somethin’ like that?” “I don’t know. I went over to pick her up, and she just lashed out at me. She said…” he pauses as his voice cracks, “...she said that I wasn’t her real dad.” “What?!” she nearly yells, “What did she say?!” “She called me a monster. A thing.” “What?!” she yells again, “Why, that tears it. I’m gonna put some sense into her! Nopony calls mah Matt a monster, especially our own flesh and blood!” she gets up from her chair to march over to Clementine’s room. Matt hurriedly rises from his seat, grabbing Applejack before she could do or say anything possibly foolish. She spins around to face him, trying to comprehend why he stopped her. “I don’t think yelling at her is going to help.” he says quietly. “Ah…” she is tempted to retort, but she can see it in his eyes. It’s not going to work. Even though her blood is boiling at the thought of their daughter calling Matt a monster, she knows that yelling is only going to make things worse. Her husband continues to try and put on a brave face, but the problem with Matt is that he wears his emotions on his sleeve. She can see the pained expression on his face, and the hurt in his eyes. It's a look that she both hadn't seen much, but knows all too well. Slowly, she pulls him in for an embrace, kissing him on the cheek. “Okay…I’ll talk to her…gently.” she nuzzles her cheek on his neck. “You go sit down. I’ll come see you afterwards.” “Alright.” he nods, letting her go. “If you need me, I’ll be on the couch.” He leaves her with a kiss on the forehead, giving her all she needs to march over to Clementine’s room. She knocks on the door with little force. “Go away!” Clementine shouts from behind the door. “Clementine Rosemary Apple…” Applejack says her name in full, a sign for anyone or anypony that they are in trouble, “Open this door, right now.” A few seconds of absolute silence pass, and the door slowly opens to reveal Clementine, hanging her head down to avoid eye contact from her mother. Applejack marches past her, standing in the middle of the bedroom. “Close the door, and sit down.” Applejack commands in a stern tone. Clementine, even in her anger, cannot help but give into to her mother’s demand, closing the door, and hopping up on her bed, sitting down immediately afterwards. Applejack paces on the floor, wondering what she is going to say next. Many conversations and emotions race in her head, trying to figure out which one is the right one. Finally, she speaks. “Why did ya call yer dad a monster?” “Because he is!” Clementine snaps, “How come ah am a pony, and he’s not? Just admit it! He’s something from the badlands that ya picked up!” “Don’t you dare…” Applejack warns, “Don’t you dare say that. You are almost six years old, and we taught ya better than to say drivel like that!” “Then, where did he come from?!” “He came from a place that’s far! He’s not some kind of beast, or whatever it is that’s going through yer head!” “He can’t be mah real dad! He just can’t! He has fingers and toes! Ah have hooves! Who is he?! Who’s mah real daddy?!” “HE is yer father!” Applejack points at the door, indicating Matt’s presence on the other side, “That HUMAN out there is your daddy! Ya wanna know how it’s possible? Ask him! He’ll be happy ta tell ya, Clem!” Applejack tries her best to calm down. She did promise Matt that she would try to converse with Clementine in a calm manner. Unfortunately, she’s not doing the greatest of jobs. She sits down, breathing in and out in an effort to clear her mind of anger, not for Clementine, but for the situation at hoof. She sees the tears forming in her daughter’s eyes, slowly running down her cheeks and dampening her coat. “Ah just…” Clementine shuts her eyes tight, “Ah just want ta be seen as normal.” “You are normal, Clem.” “But…I’m not. I’m the daughter of a pony and a….a….” “Human, Clem. Ya know that. We told you that. Not a monster, not a creature, a human.” “Right…a human.” Slowly, Applejack walks over to the tearful Clementine, sitting on the bed and being extra close to her. Clementine looks up at her mother’s worried face. “Are you mad at me?” Clementine asks tearfully. “No, Clem. I’m not mad.” Applejack assures her, wrapping a hoof around the filly’s tiny waist. “Ya have ta understand. Your father and ah are worried about ya. This isn’t like you. If something is going on, ya have ta tell us.” Clementine nods, sniffling at the same time. She grazes her cheek against her mother’s side, feeling its warmth and comfort. “There…there are these two fillies…” Clementine starts. “Oh, here we go.” Applejack rolls her eyes, knowing exactly what is coming. “They were the ones asking me questions about where ah came from. Ah was honest with them, and they would leave.” “Yeah, ah remember you saying that.” Applejack nods in understanding, remembering the events of last week. “Then, on Monday…they got these other foals together…and they started ta make fun of me.” she tears up again, “They were saying how dad wasn’t really mah dad, and they was callin’ me names. It was so…frightenin’. Ah got scared.” she holds on to Applejack tightly. “Dad must hate me.” “No…he doesn’t hate you, Clem. He’s just…upset.” “Because of what ah did!” she cries, “Ah said those awful things ta him!” “Shhhh…” she rubs Clementine’s back with care, “It’s alright.” “Should ah talk ta him?” she wonders. “Maybe not tonight.” Applejack shakes her head gradually, “Whatever ya want to say, you can say it tomorrow. Okay?” “Okay…” Clementine nods, “Can ah…have somethin’ to eat?” “Of course.” Applejack smiles, “Y’all stay right here. I’ll be back.” Applejack walks out of the room, and heads to the living room, where she sees Matt sitting in silence, looking down at the floor in deep thought. She trots over to him, where she places a hoof on his lap, taking him out of his mind and onto her. “Is everything okay?” Matt asks, “I heard shouting.” “Everythin’ is fine. Ah told her that you can talk ta her tomorrow. It’s better to keep some distance until mornin’. It gives at some time ta think about what ya want to say.” “Good idea.” Matt nods, “So…was it something at school?” “Yes.” Applejack confirms Matt’s suspicions, “There was a couple fillies that incited some bullyin’.” “I knew it.” Matt clenches his fists. Applejack moves her hoof to his hands to calm him down, which works like a charm. “Sorry.” he sighs. “I’ll go get her some food, and then we’ll talk.” Applejack smirks, giving him a peck on the cheek. She then heads for the kitchen, where she prepares a nice little meal for Clementine. Later that night, when the sun has set, and the moon is at its peak, Clementine exits her room carefully, as to not make any noise. She looks around at the darkened hallway, illuminated only by the bright and beautiful moon outside. She slowly walks into her parent’s bedroom, where they sleep peacefully and somewhat quietly. Applejack and Matt both have an amusing snore, which makes the little filly crack a smile. Matt is in a position that Clementine has seen before, on nights where she had to wake them up, due to a nightmare, or hearing a strange noise outside. Matt is resting his head on Applejack’s chest, with her slow breathing lifting it up and down, as he embraces her tightly, like he’s afraid that she’s going to leave. Clementine does nothing but simply watch them. More specifically, she watches her father. Even after all this time, she still cannot believe that this man was responsible for her creation. He doesn’t share any traits with the Equestrian species, other than talking, and yet here he is; married to a woman of a different species, and helped conceive a foal that doesn't have any of his physical traits, besides her mane and eye color. However, there is one thing that Clementine cannot doubt, and that is how her father loves her mother dearly. She always catches them in a wonderful mood, laughing, kissing, and hugging. On movie nights, her mom would lay down on his lap, as he would brush his hand along her long and flowing mane, kissing her when she would look up at him. He loves her with all his heart and soul, and it’s that thought that makes Clementine fully believe that he…just maybe…is her actual father. The questions will have to wait for her, as she intends to ask him when morning arrives. The morning sun shines over the mountains; its rays hit the Williams-Apple family home, pooling into Clementine’s room and hitting her eyelids, causing her mild discomfort before opening up. She yawns her loud yawn, stretching out her limbs in the process to start the day. Looking over at the clock, she nearly yelps to see that it was well past the usual wake up time. In an instant, she tumbles out of bed, rushing into the hallway to get her morning snack. However, fully expecting to see her mom and dad sitting at the table waiting for her, she only sees Matt alone in the dining room, reading an article from the Ponyville Daily Newspaper, detailing that after some delays, production of the sixth Transformares movie is finally underway, with superstars Silver Screen and Trixie set for one last appearance. Matt puts the paper down, noticing Clementine’s noises of panic. He doesn’t have a look of sadness or disappointment on his face, but rather a smile, happy to see the filly, despite the events that happened the day before. “Good morning, Clem.” He moves up a plate with an apple muffin on it closer to Clementine’s seat. “Here’s some breakfast.” Clementine, confused at her father’s behavior, hops up on the chair and takes a bite from the muffin. He goes back to reading the paper, but she continues to look at him. "Where's mom?" Clementine looks around for any sight of Applejack, but finds none. "She's at Sweet Apple Acres visiting Granny Smith and Applebloom." Matt responds, still reading the newspaper without looking at her. “Why aren’t ya mad?” she queries, “I’m gonna be late for school.” “Because you’re not going to school today.” Matt folds up the newspaper, placing his attention on her. “You’re going to be spending the day with me.” “But…why?” she asks again, “Ah thought school was supposed ta be important?” “It is.” he nods, “But if you’re being bullied into believing something that isn’t true, I’m not comfortable in letting you go back to that place without providing you with some answers.” Clementine grimaces. Applejack told him what she said last night. What’s catching her off guard is that he’s so calm. She is so used to her father being angry when it comes to matters that concern his family being accosted, but here it’s almost tranquil in appearance. A sense of security if she’s ever seen one. “Ask away.” Matt obliges her. “Ah…” she thinks carefully, “Ah only have two questions…” she briefly looks away from him, before looking back into his eyes. “The first is…how?” Her tone of voice doesn’t represent doubt, but curiosity. Though he expected this question to come up sooner or later, he didn’t expect it to happen so early; maybe in her teen years, when they had to discuss the birds and the bees with her, but not now. “To tell you the truth Clem, until the day your mother found out she was pregnant, we didn’t think it was possible. But…hmm…how do I explain this simply?” Matt thinks, wanting to vocalize an explanation that doesn’t sound like mumbo jumbo to the filly, “Auntie Twilight…she did some…experiments on me.” “Experiments? Like what?” “She took samples of my blood, after Spike kind…well…totally…attacked me.” He hears a chuckle come from Clementine, “Everypony I tell this story to is so amused by that.” “Sorry…” she stifles her giggle, “It’s just Spike is so big now, I’m surprised ya got away with yer life.” “Trust me, nearly seven years ago, he was a little dragon; no taller than up to my knee.” Matt thinks back on Spike smaller stature back then. Nowadays, he’s about as tall as he is, and is beginning to develop wings as well. “Anyway, Twilight seemed to have the foresight to believe that since I was going to be staying here, and would be the only human…” “Wait…what about Grandad and Granny?” she asks, “They’re human.” “Yes, but…dang…I forgot…” he nearly slaps his forehead, “Clem…I’m not from Equestria.” “What? What do ya mean yer not from here?” “I’m from…well…you could say I’m from another world.” “Like…an alien?” “Something like that.” he nods with a simultaneous shrug, “Where I come from, there are many more like me. There are even ponies where I am, but…they’re not like you or your mother. They’re much more…like…um…animals….I guess. They’re not as expressive, nor do they talk or have paying jobs, and they’re much bulkier. They’re beautiful in a way, but not in the way I think of your mother.” He hangs his head down, remembering he’s talking to a six year old, “Man, this is getting complicated.” He looks back into her curious eyes, “It’s okay if you don’t, but do you understand what I’m saying?” “Ah think so.” she responds, “Ya come from a place where our kind isn’t as intelligent as we are here. Over there, being married to one of us would be strange, but here it’s okay?” “Well…you’re half right. If I brought your mom looking the way she does now, bad things would happen. Only my parents know what she looks like. Man, we’re getting off track. Where was I?” “Experiementin’.” “Right. Twilight tested my blood with ponies, to see if…in the event that I would fall in love with a pony…I was somehow able to continue my bloodline. Sure enough, I was…but it was very rare.” “Auntie Twilight must have thought ahead, huh?” “Yeah…” Matt thinks back to the time he found out Twilight had a crush on him at one point. He figures that’s why she was doing experiments on him. “Ah guess mah other question is…when did you and mom meet?” “Oh, almost seven years ago. I was living in my world, when Aunt Twilight made a portal, sending her and her friends falling on top of me, when I was in a park. There was also your other Aunts; Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rarity…and finally...your mother.” “Ya must be strong if they didn’t hurt ya.” “I think I got a couple of bumps and bruises.” he chuckles, “Anyway, I took them in, and after some time, I began to care for them. I saw them as friends.” Matt smiles, “When they went back to Equestria, I didn’t think about following them…until I hit my head on a tree and fell right in with them.” Clementine giggles again, another common reaction whenever Matt tells the story on how he got into Equestria. “So, despite being scared and worried for my parents, as they didn’t know where I was, I tried to make the best of it. Over time, I got to know everypony…and I fell in love with your mother.” Clementine pushes her plate aside, placing her hooves on her cheeks to listen further to his tale. “It took a while for us to admit it, but when we did, we were so happy. After a while, we got married…well…we TRIED to get married once, but it had some complications, but that’s a story for another time. When we actually got married for real, it was one of the happiest days of our lives.” he reminisces about the wedding, and how beautiful it was. “Still, at the time, we didn’t consider pregnancy. It was a one in a million shot.” He looks deeply into Clementine’s eyes, “You were that one.” “What happened when ya found out?” “We were excited, but also scared. We didn’t think we would be prepared, but were willing to learn all the same. We had our good days and bad, but when the day came, it was the SCARIEST day of our lives.” “How come?” “Lots of reasons.” he grimaces, thinking back to when he almost lost Applejack, “But one of which being that we…or I….didn’t know what you would think of me. After all, you were going to be born a pony, but I was your human father. I got scared about what others would say about you; that you would be made fun of, but then…I saw you.” He now looks at her lovingly, “You were so beautiful, and so…curious. You didn’t stare at me with fright or sadness, but of curiosity and love. You tried to use my fingers as bottle tops.” “Ah did?” “You sure did.” he laughs, “You did it for the first year, before you gradually stopped, especially when you were taking to biting. I wasn’t afraid anymore. I thought you saw me as your dad.” His eyes go sad, “Until yesterday.” He tears up, “I know you were being bullied, but I feel it was my fault. I should have prepared you for it. I should have told you about the possibility of foals not understanding where you came from. But, I didn’t. I let my happiness and optimism get in the way. Seeing you like that…it hurt me.” It’s a rare sight for Clementine to see her father trying not to cry. He always shown himself as strong, yet happy, but here he’s on the verge of tears. “I just…I just want you to see me as your daddy again.” Clementine can no longer take the tears. In a flash, she runs across the table and dives into his arms, embracing him tightly. The force knocks them onto the floor, but Matt sits himself up, still holding on to the sobbing filly. “You ARE mah daddy!” Clementine cries, squeezing her grip, “I’m sorry! I’m so stupid! Ah shouldn’t have let them get to me! Yer mah daddy; nopony and no ONE else!” “It’s okay, Clem.” He smiles, a tear going down his cheek as he brushes Clementine’s mane. “Do ah…do ah have to go to school, now?” “At some point.” He nods, “But we’re going to have to do one more thing.” “What’s that?” He parts her a little bit from him, allowing him to look upon her face, and wiping away a tear from her cheek. “We’re going to have a little talk with these fillies…and their parents.”