As the train began to slow, Tarnished Teapot’s pulse began to quicken. His mouth went dry. He could see the distant lights of Ponyville ahead, the soft faint glimmers of lights in windows. Not all ponies went to bed at responsible hours.
He heard the train whistle and felt a rising sense of panic. There was bound to be a crowd at the train station. How many ponies would he affect with his magic? How much disruption would there be? Would there be trouble? Would something happen that was beyond his control? Was he little more than a dangerous magical contaminant that had no place in society? Was leaving the rock farm a mistake?
A whimper escaped Tarnish’s lips. Fearful, insecure, Tarnish felt very alone, so alone that it was painful. He felt his stomach churn and the muscles around his groin clenched as stress began to take a toll upon his body. A most peculiar desire overcame Tarnished Teapot and he felt a desperate need for the comfort of a pony.
A pony not Maud.
More than anything, he longed to hear the reassuring voice of Cloudy Quartz.
She would tell him that it would be okay. That he was being silly. She would scold him if necessary to get his attention. But she would make things better. She would somehow soothe his frazzled nerves. She would know just what to say to calm him down. She would make everything better.
His need to hear Cloudy Quartz’s voice became a painful ache.
Something clattered atop the train and Tarnished Teapot was startled into alertness. On reflex, his horn ignited, glowing with a brilliant blue light. He looked around, wide eyed, wondering what had just thumped on top of the roof of the train. He could hear the screech of the brakes now and the train was coming to a rapid stop. He could feel himself wanting to pitch forward in his seat as the train eased its way into the station.
The door to the train car opened. Tarnish wasn’t certain who he would see, but he expected the train conductor. That was not who stepped through the door. There was a flash of lavender and then, there she was. Her mane was mussed and her feathers looked a little disheveled.
“Princess…” Tarnish’s horn went dim and he felt even more fear welling up from within him. “Was that you on the roof?”
A sheepish grin appeared upon Twilight Sparkle’s face and she nodded. “The landing was a little rougher than I thought it would be. Rainbow Dash made it sound so easy… anyhow… I am here to let you know that when we depart the train, we’ll be departing on the side away from the station, to minimise exposure.”
“Okay.” Tarnish’s voice was a shrill squeak of fear.
“Tarnished Teapot?”
“Yes?”
“Maud has been very insistent on fixing things… a lot has happened. Zecora made the tea from that recipe and I drank it and right away, something happened that I can’t quite describe, but I feel so bad for what I’ve done… I should never have banished you, I believe something clouded my thinking. I feel so guilty… can you forgive me?” Twilight Sparkle looked at Tarnish, her expression hopeful.
“Of course… no hard feelings,” Tarnish said. Even as he spoke, he knew there were plenty of hard feelings, but none of them were directed at Twilight. Only the circumstance and the situation.
“It’s still not safe to have you around though. I’ve set up a very nice tent just outside of Ponyville. I hope you understand, and I really hope that you don’t feel hurt by this.” Twilight Sparkle started forwards, walking down the aisle towards Tarnish.
“I understand. This isn’t about me, this is about keeping others safe. We both have an obligation to do our best for others,” Tarnish said in a low voice. He watched as Twilight approached. His churning stomach was almost too much to bear and he worried that he might be sick. The train lurched to a complete stop and the steam whistle tooted.
“Welcome home, Tarnished Teapot. Welcome back to Ponyville.”
The night air was cool and as Tarnished Teapot was lifted off of the bottom step of the train by Twilight Sparkle, he took a deep breath. She didn’t want him stumbling, falling down, and hurting himself in the loose dirt. He felt his three hooves touch down upon the soil and began to look around, taking in his surroundings.
Much to his disappointment, there was no Maud Pie to greet him. His disappointment was crushing. He expected Maud to be here to greet him. Where was she? Why hadn’t she come? His stomach did more flip flops.
Twilight Sparkle, her horn glowing, made a gesture for Tarnish to follow. “Come on, it is a short walk, I promise. Maud is waiting for you.” Twilight Sparkle gave Tarnish a reassuring smile. “Maud tells me that you get around pretty good on three legs.”
Nodding, Tarnish had no words to answer. He followed after Twilight, hobbling after her as she picked up her pace. She was heading for the woods in the distance, walking through the high grass of the meadow. Fireflies flitted about, stars twinkled overhead, and a soft breeze blew a sweet scent that came from the direction of the forest.
Overhead, a pegasus was flying loop de loops in the starry sky, laughing, and carrying on. Tarnished glanced up, trying to see who it was, trying to guess who it might be, but their form was indistinguishable in the dark.
Ahead, in the treeline, Tarnish saw lights. Squinting, he saw a structure. Twilight had said a tent, but what he saw was not a tent, but more of a pavilion. It was a massive structure, something almost like a princess would have if she had to go roughing it. It was circular and had a tall, peaked roof.
“I really hope the tent will be comfortable for you. There are cushions inside, a rug has been placed over the ground, and I tried to make it as comfortable as possible. I didn’t want you feeling bad because you had to stay in a tent,” Twilight Sparkle said as she trotted ahead of Tarnish.
“Thank you, Twilight.”
They were close now. The tent, nestled just inside of the treeline, loomed large in Tarnish’s vision. The tall peak appeared to be held up by a stove pipe, and smoke curled up into the starry night sky. Twilight plunged through the trees and Tarnish followed.
Twilight Sparkle came to a stop standing to the left of the flap that served as a door. She turned to look at Tarnished Teapot, her expression soft, but serious and full of purpose. She cleared her throat and then she started to speak.
“You and I will talk later. Other issues are far more important. I will be out to see you sometime tomorrow morning. Again, Tarnished Teapot, I am very, very sorry for everything that has happened. I must be going.” Using her magic, Twilight Sparkle pulled back the flap and gestured for Tarnish to go inside.
Stepping through the flap, Tarnish peered around, letting his eyes adjust to the dim light. The first thing he saw was Maud; she was lounging on a cushion beside the small cast iron stove in the middle of the tent. Beside her, on a short wooden table, there was a steaming teacup and a saucer with a few scones.
There was a loud noise, almost like a goose honking, and then Tarnish saw a blur rushing towards him. He had no time to react, no means to defend himself, a second later, something collided with him with an almost concussive force. He was knocked from his hooves and he fell down, his body hitting the rug that covered the ground.
Seeing actual stars, Tarnished blinked, trying to clear his vision, and then he heard the most horrible sound he had ever heard in his whole life. It took him several seconds to realise that what he was hearing was another pony weeping. He felt two legs close around his neck, almost cutting off his air, and his head was slammed into a warm, fuzzy something.
The whole thing was confusing, and Tarnish didn’t know what was going on. He tried to wiggle free, but couldn’t. The legs around him were long and cream coloured. There was a flash of blue in his vision. He squirmed around, trying to see what was going on, but he was being smothered. Something covered his face and he went blind, unable to see anything at all.
“Pinny?” Tarnish asked in a muffled voice.
There was another dreadful sounding honk, followed by coughing, and more wailing. The forelegs around his neck closed in and became so tight that for a moment, Tarnish was unable to breathe at all. He wiggled, squirmed, and tried to push away with his good leg. The grip loosened a little, and then for reasons he couldn’t understand, Tarnish began crying. The sound of wailing in his ears was too much to bear. It was the sound of pain, horrible pain, and Tarnish could not stand to hear it.
There was a confusing moment as Tarnish felt himself being pulled around, and then he felt something pressing up against his face. Lips. There were lips pressing up against his face. He opened his eyes and saw a chaotic blur. He came to the slow realisation that this was his mother and she was kissing away his tears. Tarnish did not have a clue as to what was going on.
“They said it was post partum depression!” Pinny wailed, her voice an agonised screech. “I took so many pills and nothing worked… nothing worked!”
“Pinny… I….”
Upon hearing her name, Pinny let out the most heart rending wail of agony she had made so far, and then her sobs renewed as she clutched her son.
“Mother…”
The tent filled with cries, cries that turned into pained screams, ear piercing almost hysterical screams as Pinny let go of her pain, shouting at the top of her lungs. She pressed her face into Tarnish’s, her muzzle rubbing along his, and her tears intermingled with her colt’s.
The pair held one another for several long minutes, until Pinny’s sobbing and wailing began to subside. She took deep, shuddering breaths, her forelegs still around Tarnish’s neck, and she lay almost on top of him, her eyes closed and her barrel heaving.
“When you were born, it was the happiest day of my life,” Pinny said in a strained whisper. “I loved you so much… so, so much… and then, it got hard to love you.” Pinny squeezed her eyes closed even tighter, causing tears to gush down her cheeks. “I never wanted this to happen, I tried to get help, but nothing worked, and after a while, I was so ashamed, I couldn’t bear to be around you. It just got harder and harder… I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry, please forgive me!”
Stunned, sobbing himself, Tarnished Teapot did not know what to say. He felt his mother kiss him once more, and then she shoved her face against his, the pressure so strong that it was almost painful. Tarnish understood nothing of what was going on, overwhelmed, confused, he lay there in his mother’s embrace, not knowing what to think, what to feel, or what to say.
“Tarnished Teapot, please say that you can forgive me,” Pinny begged.
“I… I love you… I didn’t mean for this to happen…”