//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 - Motherhood // Story: Daughters of Glimmer // by Summer Dancer //------------------------------// “Your name is Moonlight Glimmer.” “Twailyt!” “No,” Starlight said firmly. “That’s not your name anymore. You are Moonlight Glimmer.” “Twailyt!” “Moonlight.” “Twailyt!” Starlight sighed in frustration at the little foal in her hooves. They had been at this for over an hour now—with all of her children. She had tried calling Rarity Sapphire, Applejack Sunshine, Rainbow Dash Prism, Fluttershy Buttercup, and Pinkie Pie Pearl, but none of the pint sized fillies accepted their new names, and kept insisting of their own. “Let’s try again, Moonlight.” “Twai!” Pinkie Pie shouted gleefully from the floor. Starlight glared at her as she laughed and clopped her hooves together. Twilight glanced down at Pinkie and then turned back to Starlight with a victorious smirk, pleased that someone agreed with her. “Quiet, Pearl!” Starlight scolded. “Moonlight, mommy’s giving you a new name and a new life. Can you at least try to accept it? For me?” Twilight gave her a curious look and pointed a hoof at her. “Mommy.” Well, at least she gets that part right. “Yes. And mommy wants the best for you, Moonlight dear.” Twilight sill looked confused, causing Starlight to groan. “Never mind. I’ll just coach you after lunch.” The mare set the foal down on the floor and crossed over to her newly made kitchen. During her exile, she had spent more than enough time in the caves. Every tunnel there was, she had explored. Before she acted upon her revenge, she decided to make a home here in the caves. After working a series of odd jobs for three months, she had enough to buy food, drinks, furniture, and cooking supplies. This part of the mountain had so much space, Starlight was able to make an entire house here—fit for a mare and six fillies. Starlight went over to her little kitchen area and lifted the lid off her pot of oatmeal. Being the brilliant unicorn she is, Starlight had figured out a way to power electricity through the mountains. But then, is there anything I can’t do? she thought smugly, stirring the oatmeal with a wooden spoon. Twilight sat at the entryway, her ears flat against her head. She still felt guilty about disappointing her mommy like that. She didn’t mean to. “Uh!...Uh!” She turned her head and saw Rainbow Dash struggling to her hooves and stumbling across the large wool carpet before falling down on her flank. Attempting to walk was the main activity for them for some time now. Seeing how Twilight had mastered it just a few days ago, the others wanted to join in on the fun. Applejack smirked at her sister and stood up slowly, carefully walking almost three feet across the carpet. The little pegasus scrunched her nose at the smug earth pony and raised her back, buzzing her tiny wings. She stuck out her tongue as the hovered across the room. “No fair!” Applejack shouted, pointing at Rainbow. “Cheated!” “Nuh-uh!” Rainbow said, landing back on the ground. Applejack toddled over to her and poked her in the chest. “Uh huh. No wing.” Fluttershy quietly watched the scene from her little corner. She sat with her legs tucked underneath her, her wings tightly folded against her sides. She wished she had the courage to walk too. She tried it once, but then she fell down and hurt her bottom. She had given up on the idea all together because of that painful fall. And flying? No, she just wasn't made for this sort of thing. Maybe it was for the best. “Girls, time for lunch!” Starlight called, levitating six bowls of oatmeal. She led the foals over to the large dining table, complete with six high chairs on one regular chair for herself. After she sat each bowl down, she helped the little fillies into their chairs. When she tried to help Applejack, she shook her head vigorously. “Me!” she insisted, and hoisted herself up. Starlight had to chuckle. She’s certainly headstrong, even as a tiny foal… With everyone properly seated, the foals started to dig in…all except Rainbow Dash. Starlight sighed, knowing what was coming. Not again… Nevertheless, she walked over to the little pegasus with a kind smile. “Eat, Prism. You want to grow up to be a nice and tall mare when you grow up, don’t you?” Rainbow Dash shook her head. Starlight used her magic to scoop up some oatmeal with a small spoon and held it to Rainbow’s mouth. “Come on, Prism. Open up~!” Rainbow turned her nose up. “No!” Starlight raised an unamused eyebrow. ‘No’ seemed to be her favorite word lately. “Prism--" “Wainbow!” Not this again. “Prism,” Starlight repeated. “Eat your oatmeal.” She prodded the spoon against the foal’s mouth, but she pushed it away with both hooves. “No, no, no!” “Noooo!” Pinkie giggled. “No,” Rarity said, trying out the word. “Pearl, Sapphire, stop that!” “Nope!” Applejack declared. Fluttershy tilted her head to the side. “No?” she asked, looking to Twilight. The unicorn nodded. “No.” Starlight threw her a look of warning. “Quiet, all of you! Moonlight, you know better!” Pinkie Pie pointed at the sulking filly. “Twai!” Then she pointed at Applejack. “Ay jay!” “Wawity!” Rarity screeched. “Shy,” Fluttershy whispered. “Those are not the names I’ve given you!” Starlight growled, nearly at the end of her rope. How did they still know their names? She had wiped their memories completely, she made sure of that! She could think of no other explanation other than what she had read about them. Surprise, surprise, they turned out to be the original bearers of the Elements of Harmony. Honesty, Kindness, Generosity, Laughter, Loyalty, and Magic. A bunch of hogwash if you ask me. Starlight was sure that this process would work, but it almost seemed that they were….resisting somehow, without even fully knowing it. She would have to read up on the matter further. She fixed the little girls with a stern glare. “All of you be quiet and eat your oatmeal, or there will be no desert!” A blanket of silence fell over the table as the foals turned to their mother in shock. Starlight smirked inwardly. Gotcha. Rainbow Dash, however, was quick to recover and knocked over her bowl of oatmeal in a tantrum, getting the sticky substance all over Starlight’s coat. “Uuugh…” Rainbow screamed at the top of her lungs and pounded her hooves against her little white tray. Rarity looked at her and tears started appearing in her own eyes. "WAAAAAHHHH!" “Oh, come on…” It wasn’t long before the chain reaction started; others joined in on the crying, their high pitched screams piercing Starlight’s ears. She rubbed her temple in exhaustion and moaned. “Please…stop crying…Rainbow Dash….” Instantly, Rainbow stopped screaming and sniffled. Starlight blinked. “Uh...oh for…” She turned to the other crying foals and sighed. “Fine. Have it your way. Twilight, Fluttershy, Rarity, Applejack, and Pinkie Pie. Stop crying.” It both relieved and disappointed Starlight when the foals fell silent. Her nose suddenly wrinkled when she smelled something foul in the air. “What in Equestria is that?” The foals looked at Pinkie Pie, who smiled at Starlight innocently. “Ugh! Gross!” After three more diaper changes, Glimmer had settled in her rocking chair with a book while the foals played together on the carpet beneath her. It had been eight weeks since Starlight whisked the elements away. The Princesses have been frantically searching the country for some time now—she knew this because of the newspapers she picks up on her weekly trip to the market a few hundred miles from the mountain—which would be a problem, if you didn’t fully grasp the benefits of telelportation. She knew the caves would be the only safe place to raise her children…away from the watchful eye of the royal guard. She lifted her gaze from the page and smiled as Pinkie chewed on Applejack's ear. Starlight had had a very vague idea on who were the youngest and the oldest of the six, so she sat back and let them decide for themselves; how they reacted towards each other might give her some leeway. Twilight of course, showed great intellect and served as a sort of guide for the rest. Rainbow Dash was also protective, but teasing. Her maturity was at an all time low, according to Starlight. But she was showing early signs of flight already. Rarity almost had the same level of attitude as Rainbow Dash, but more toned down in a way. It was more sass than full on rebellion. Pinkie Pie is the most playful one, always giggling and smiling, and all the girls seemed to protect her more, comfort her more. Applejack threw the least tantrums and cried very little. She was a happy carefree baby, but she was also very independent. And then there’s Fluttershy. As Starlight predicted, she was the quietest, but spent a lot of time playing with the others, and giggled like any child would when she had fun. Starlight tapped her chin. She decided to make Twilight the oldest, since she would be her special pupil. Applejack would be next, followed by Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, and then Pinkie. She smiled to herself and focused back on her book. Twilight had toddled over in curiosity and stood on the tips of her hooves to see what her mommy was reading. Starlight noticed this and scooped her up with one hoof and placed her on her lap. Twilight stared at the left page of the book and looked up. This area of the caves had a narrow opening in the high ceiling, revealing the starry night sky above. Twilight looked at the book and then pointed at the sky. “Moon!” The corners of Starlight’s mouth lifted. She’s intelligent alright. That would had to be fixed soon. “Yes…that’s the moon…despite my efforts to name you after it. But…I suppose it’s the one thing I’ll let you keep….Twilight Moonlight Glimmer.” The baby cooed and nuzzled Starlight’s chin. The mare’s smile faltered for a few seconds. She thought of the distraught parents and family members that the girls were forced to leave behind. It’s for the best, Starlight told herself. It’s for a good cause. Let them mourn. When eveypony thinks they’re dead, it'll be easier to do what I'm meant to do...and now that I have six new successors? Starlight closed her eyes and smiled. My time is now. Starlight had finally managed to tuck in each and every one of her daughters in their cribs. Being a mother was much harder than she anticipated. She lost countless hours of sleep trying to get just one foal to sleep; and if she accomplished that, another foal would start crying. Not to mention all the accidents she had to put up with. It was enough to want to pull her hair out! The screaming, the feeding, the burping, the nursing. At one point, Starlight began to think it was all a lost cause. But then, by looking at their sleeping faces, she knew that it would be worth it someday. She peered down at Rainbow Dash, all snug in her pale grey blanket. Sleep peacefully, demon child, she thought. It might be a bit rash to think about, but she knew she had to keep an eye on that one. If she dared to rebel even more than she does now…that could be dangerous. These weren’t ordinary ponies after all. But then I’ll be able to give her more proper punishments when she grows older, Starlight thought with a smirk. “Sweet dreams, girls,” Starlight whispered, walking in between the two rows of cribs, three on each side. “Life is so grand in Our Town…”