Steel and Celestia stared at each other for several minutes, Celestia was shacking at that the moment and kept walking to him, fearing he could run away but he wasn’t moving, he was just. . .staring at her with widened eyes as well, he looked exactly like her last dream, a grown up creature, his exact age if he were alive, maybe a reminder of what he could had been.
Once she was a few inches from him, she slowly removed her Golden shoe, she knew he wasn’t real, he. . . wasn’t real, it was only her mind playing cruel games with her again, not that it would be the first time, she still remembered how she used to follow mirages of her little son around the castle only to end in a cruel deception.
Once her shoe was off, she proceded to touch his face, already preparing her mind when he’d fade away like dust at the touch. . . like all the other times but this time it didn’t happen, she was feeling the touch, the flesh of a living being, the flesh of her son. . . no, no, no, she couldn’t let herself fall in this again, it was nothing more than an Hallucination. . . he was gone, GONE! but still she kept touching his face, then his chest, eventually she started to use her both hooves, even though he wasn’t real, she decided to enjoy the moment and followed her mother insticts, she slowly wrapped him in a warm hug with the intention of never let go or at least until it finally decided to banish or she came back to her senses.
“This time. . . you almost. . .feel real. . .” – She said almost whispering, Steel was going to say something but Celestia interrupted him, by this moment she was sobing and screaming:
“Whyyyyyyy? Why? why? why are you doing this? Haven’t I suffered enough? I know I failed you! I FAILED YOU! I know it’s my punishment for being a poor excuse of a mother but still. . . .I can’t stand it! please. . . please stop doing this to me MY SON!”
Steel, feeling the hug, felt so confused, why he wasn’t opposing her, rarely he let any creature to hug him, not to mention ponies but he hadn’t been in Canterlot for 2 days and 3 ponies had already hugged him and some other even showed him kidness, what was happening? Ponies weren’t supposed to be like this! They were only kind to their own kind. . . could it really be. . . all he knew about Equestria’s Ponies were. . .wrong? forgetting that, there still was the main issue, this Princess. . . his “mother” was hugging him and he felt. . .happy, not only happy, he felt at peace, as if nothing in the world could harm him, to his surprise, Princess Celestia extended her wings to shield him from the world, like if she wanted him all for herself, even though she believed he wasn’t real, He didn’t even fight back, his body only responded to return the hug, Celestia felt his hands warming her barrel, her crying increased, it was too much for her. . .she started to faint but before losing all consious, she looked at her son right to the eyes and asked:
“Will you be here when I wake up?”
Steel looked at her, he only had to lie and leave her there, let her think she was alucinating and then continue with his escape but he couldn’t, he simply couldn’t lie to her. . .not her, reluctant he noded.
“I will be here. . . mother”
Celestia smiled and with a broken voice she answered:
“. . . no you wont, you never are, still. . . thanks for promising to me. . . until next time. . .fake Bright, by the way. . . you are very handsome, just like I’d wanted you to be. . .but. . .the scars were really necesary?” Celestia then closed her eyes and fell sleep.
Steel kindly placed her on the grass, by looking at her, it was obvious she was having her own issues, suddendly his head started to hurt, he started to see more new images, images of his forgotten childhood with this pony, it hurt a lot but ended very quickly, somehow, he felt a little more close to the Princess, He then chuckled and face palmed.
“I guess now I’m stock here right? If I don’t stay. . .I will break my promise, (sigh) let’s see what happens, I hope you are happy up there Mr Onyx, you really got me by making me come here hehehehe. . . besides, maybe having a mother is not that bad (even tough I don’t remember her very well)”
After looking Celestia sleeping for several minutes, Steel heard hoofsteps running to his way. Then a voice he knew very well screamed:
“STEEL! HERE YOU ARE! THANKS CELESTIA I THOUGHT YOU REALLY ABANDONED US!”
Cadence screamed and immediately hugged her cousin.
“Please, never do that again! I don’t want to live that experience again”
Steel patted her head.
“It’s ok, don’t worry, I don’t have intention to run away anymore”
“Anymore?”
“. . . .never mind, point is, I’m staying for some time”
“Oh! you don’t know how happy I am to hear th. . . wait? Is that Aunt Celestia?” - Cadence said finally noticing Celestia sleeping behind Steel.
“ahhh yeah, she is”
“She. . . saw you?”
“Yes”
Steel proceded to tell Cadence everything that happened with his mother.
“Well, that explains why she is sleeping again, it was too much for her. . .I never knew she used to hallucinate about you. . .what kind of family I am? She needed more help than I thought and I didn’t see it!”
Steel looked how conflicted Cadence was but. . .it wasn’t the time for that, he wanted to understand his “mother” behavior better, he needed to know it now:
“. . . . Cadence, what happened to me? how was I taken away from all of you?”
Cadence turned to see her cousin and started to share some tears, she told Steel everything that happened that night, how Celestia did everything in her power to find him, how she only found his royal pendant covered in blood.
“So I was taken away by some foalnappers?”
“Yes. . . we caught the leader of the gang, using forbiden Royal spells, we managed to get all the information we needed, they were planing to sell you as an exotic creature outside the country and if not. . . ask for ransom to your mother, I can asure you this, your mother would had pay any Price to have you back!”
Steel smiled and noded.
“He tell us you managed to escape and crashed his balloon and he lost sight of you in the Forest while you were being chased by a Timberwolf”
“Even though we found the bracelet, our soldiers kept looking for days but looking while trying to hide your existence proved to be imposible”
“Hide my existence?”
“Yes, you see, only a few ponies and the Castle’s staff knew about you, you were supposed to be introduced to the world the next day, after your 10th Birthday but then all that happened, after your foalnapping, Celestia still with little hope to find you, refused to spread the word to everypony, she feared if by any miracle you were still alive, someponies would had try to do the very same thing that scum bag did”
Steel didn’t say anything, somehow he understood that decision.
“After a week of intense searching, we finally accepted the “reality” you were gone for good, we even had a funeral with a cofín and all”
“A cofín? And what was inside?”
“Everypony put in something special, photos, plushies, dark gems, I put in one of your kid’s royal armor replica, a gift I gave you. . . I thought with hope, you would get it in the after life”
Steel chuckled, he wasn’t that unsensible but that was kind of funny.
“After everything that happened, Celestia still refused to tell everypony about your existence, the last thing she needed at that moment was answering questions about you and she even feared about the press lying about you, besides, even saying or hearing your name was a torture to her”
“. . . Wow, I didn’t know it was that hard for her”
“Hard? Steel! Hard doesn’t even start to explain how she felt! It took her almost a year for her to come out of the palace to interact with other ponies, during her courts she did her best to smile but many ponies noticed how fake those smiles were, sometimes she even cleared the east wing of the castle to hide in your locked room for nopony could see or hear her cry, I’m sure if it weren’t for the fact she still had me, Twilight and the eventual return of her sister Luna and many other ponies who support her, your mother would have become crazy for the pain”
This time Steel was shocked, finding his voice, he said:
“She. . . loved me that much?”
“WE loved you that much, We still love you that much, Believe it or not, I was close to become like her but I knew she and Twilight needed me, it was so hard to pretend to be happy when all I have in mind was you, to be honest, my fiance Shinning Armor and Twilight helped me a lot to not become crazy too, when you left us, you took great part of our happiness with you.”
Cadence then, without a warning, hugged Steel Tightly.
“Please, don’t go away again, I know you don’t remember very well but WE DO! And you can be sure we never stopped loving you, not a single day, please.. . give us a chance, I know you have friends and maybe. . .family in Minus, that’s ok, I don’t mind, in fact! I’m gratefull to them, they kept you safe and made you the brave. . .human I’m seeing now, I have my issues about the kind of dangers you went through but that’s for another time, my point is. . . would it really that bad to give us chance and try to be a family again? Would it really that bad to be Princess Celetia’s son?”
Cadence’s words were sincere, Steel knew that, she was ready to do anything to convince him to stay, he knew when to accept defeat, sighing, he said:
“No. . .I wouldn’t be that bad, maybe being. . . Bright will not be that bad, Ok, let’s give it a shot”
“Really?!”
(Steel noded) “Besides. . . I kinda just remembered. . . sometime ago, I made a promise to my. . .mother to don’t go away from her and now I promised her I will be here when she wakes up, I can be many things, but I always keep my promises”
“YAY! Thank you thank you so much, you will not regret it, I promise St. . .”
Cadence was interrupted when Steel use his finger to cover her mouth.
“Bright. . . call me Bright, that’s how you know me right?”
(Cadence noded and continued)
“Yes. . . I promise. . . Bright”
“Excellent, now I think we should take my mother. . . wow, it really feels strange to say it after all. .”
“Don’t worry, it’s normal but remember she really is your mother, in time it will be natural to say it as before, you’ll see”
“Thanks Cadence, as I was saying, let’s take my mother to her chambers, I don’t think she will wake up anytime soon”
(giggle) “I guess she wont, ok! Let’s go”
Cadence then levitated Celestia while she and Bright proceded to go back to the Castle, Bright was curious about something.
“Cadence. . . Bright is my full name?”
“No, Your full name is Bright Sunny! Isn’t it lovely”
“. . . . Ok. . . I think we will need to make a few adjustments after all”
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
When Bright and the Princesses arrived at the castle, they were immediately recieved by Twilight, her friends and dozens of royal guards, ignoring everypony, Twilight tackled Bright in a crushing hug, her red eyes revealed she was crying not so long ago.
“I, I thought you had left us. . .as Cadence said”
Bright felt a little guilty for Twilight’s state, after all, Onix told him to never make a girl cried, no matter if she was ugly, of course, Twilight was very pretty, he slowly strocked her mane.
“Easy Twilight, I’m here, don’t be a drama queen like your white unicorn friend there is for sure”
“Hey!” Rarity said while the rest started to laugh.
“Sorry Pretty unicorn, but It’s so obvious you are”
Rarity could not say anything in her defense, she only blushed and turned her sight away, Bright kept strocking Twilight’s mane until she calmed down.
“Where were you?”
“I was. . .in the gardens, talking to the Princess”
“She saw you?”
“Yes, but. . .look, we’ll explain later, for now, we need to take her to her room and. . .well, it’s a family issue, right Cadence?”
Cadence noded to that statement and both of them with Celestia still in Cadence’s aura continued their way, Twilight and everypony were confused, what were they planing?”
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Princess Celestia woke again in her room, she wondered how whe ended there, maybe some of her guards or her family found her in the garden and brought her there, she then heard a kind voice next to her.
“Aunt Celestia, I’m glad you are ok”
“Thanks Cadence, you found me in the gardens right?”
“Yes, well, he was the one who found you and then you passed out”
“He?”
“. . . Aunt Celestia. . . there is somepo. . .someone you need to see”
“Someone? What are you talking about Cadence?”
“Before I continue, I need you to promise to not freak out or think you are alucinating. . .Ok?”
“Cadence. . .you are starting to scaring me. . .ok, I promise”
“Good, now raise, here is right there, in front of your bed”
Princess Celestia sighed, she then stood up from her bed to look whoever Cadence wanted her to meet.
“Ok, let’s see who. . .”
Celestia once again was out of words. . . Cadence told her to not freak out or think it was an alu . . . noooo! It wasn’t posible, it just wasn’t!
The creature in front of her, already expecting that kind of reaction from her, chuckled and with his arms crossed, said:
“Hello. . . mother”