A Little Girls Love

by darkmage1997

Original Plot Chapter 8

In the Nymph Grotto,

After meeting the rest of the Nymphs, Mavis was sitting around what they called the "Main Area". She was anxious about the princesses coming. She didn't want to go back with Cadence, for fear of what she may do to Mavis when angered, but she knew she couldn't stay with the Nymphs. She was unsure of what she wanted to do, as she watched Polly leading some baby ducklings to the pond. For the first time since she came to Equestria, Mavis cracked a smile. While she did like it in the Grotto, and the fact that the voices in her head haven't bothered her the whole time since she's been here, she missed holding her Teddy Bear. She felt someone sitting next to her. She looked to see Mariah, looking concerned for the young girl.

"Is there something troubling you Mavis?" the knowledge Nymph asked, motioning for Mavis to rest her head on the Nymph's lap. Laying her head down on Mariah's lap, Mavis sighed glumly.

"Well, I'm just worried about what the princesses are going to do once they find me. I don't want to go back, but I can't refuse the will of royalty. I just don't know what to do," Mavis confessed.

"I see. You're feeling conflicted between what you feel that you 'must' do, and what you want to do. Well, I can tell you one thing; no one, not even royalty, can make another do something they don't want to do," Mariah tried to offer some words of wisdom. While Mavis took those words to heart, but still felt unease. Just then, Sky fluttered over to them.

"Mavis, our guests have arrived, and they were asking about you," Sky said. Mavis felt her heart drop into her stomach.

"It'll be alright Mavis. The Princesses aren't tyrannical monsters. They have no reason to harm you," Mariah soothed, as she took Mavis hand, as she and Sky walked the young girl to the entrance area. Mavis didn't feel any better, even with Mariah's sincere words.

---

Earlier,

Having arrived at the exact site where Sombra had Mavis captive, the group of friends wasted no time in looking for her. When they came up with nothing, Fluttershy noticed tracks in the dirt, "Um, I think I found something," she quietly said.

"What is it?" Twilight asked. Fluttershy then pointed to the tracks, which the lavender princess and Discord then examined, "Tire tracks. I remember them from the Human world. The Demon Bus might've been here," she deduced.

"It looks like the ones over here are older than these ones here. And I spy some footprints that look small enough to be Mavis'," Discord commented, examining the tire tracks, as well as Mavis' footprints, which were located behind the fresher tire tracks.

"I see hoof prints too. Maybe the Bus and Sombra duked it out?" Rainbow Dash theorized. No sooner than she did, they all felt the temperature drop a few degrees.

"Mavis...… Mavis...…. Where's my baby? I love my baby!" the ghostly voice the Mane Six recognized echoed, as a red glow, and eerie honking of the Demon Busses Horn echoed, as it materialized, "Took you all long enough to get here," the Demon commented.

"Well, we had to chase some leads about Sombra," Luna cautiously replied. She, her sister, Niece, and Nephew in law had only heard about what the Demon Bus looked like, but to see it in person? It was more terrifying than they were told.

"Well, you needn't worry about that unicorn anymore. I took the liberty to send him to Hell, personally," the Demon commented, smiling it's red, glowing, razor sharp toothed smile.

"Well, that eliminates one problem," Discord commented.

"Serves him right for what he's done, I say," Cadence commented.

"As for Mavis, I sent her down that pass to find some help until you all would arrive. However, she fell into the river below. She's in safe hands at the moment," the Demon explained. This was starting to puzzle them even more. Why would the Demon Bus worry so much about the safety of Mavis? "Pink Alicorn. The one they call 'Cadence'. I see you've taken a liking to Mavis, yes?" the Demon questioned.

"Of course. She's so sweet, and gentle, it's heartbreaking to see her so fearful of us. I want to help her any and every way I can," Cadence replied.

"We've been meaning to start a family ourselves, and well, we've been talking," Shining Armor piped up. This came as a surprise to everyone else.

"Are you saying you two are going to adopt Mavis?!" Twilight exclaimed in joy.

"Of course. Mavis needs someone to comfort her when she needs it the most," Cadence replied.

"You seem like the right people, or I should say 'ponies' for the job, as you would be the first mother figure she would have in her life. But I leave you with this little clue to getting Mavis to be as open as possible with you; do not let her take the adoption the wrong way," the Demon said, as it backed up, and disappeared.

"So, is that what happened when you all encountered the Demon for the first time?" Luna asked.

"Yes. It just appeared, we talked, and then it gave us a clue in the form of a riddle, before disappearing!" Pinkie Pie said in one breath.

"Well, I don't know what it meant by 'don't let her take the adoption the wrong way', but maybe having some parental figures in her life would do her a world of good," Cadence commented.

"Well, for now, we should follow these tracks Mavis left," Shining Armor suggested. The others followed after him, as they followed the tracks. About five minutes later, the tracks stopped at a cliff.

"The Demon did say Mavis fell into the river. Think this is the one?" Rainbow Dash questioned, seeing the raging river below.

"I hate to say it, but it might be. Maybe if we follow the river flow, we can find the cave she went into to. From there, we can try and find an alternate route into the Grotto, and find Mavis," Twilight suggested.

"Good call," Rarity commented, as they took to the path leading downstream. They continued following the river, until they saw the river ended in the side of the mountain.

"That doesn't make a lick o' sense! How can a river just stop?" Applejack wondered.

"My guess is that the river is flowing into some hidden cavern," Celestia theorized, just as a blue glow came from the water. The group took a step back, as a ball of blue energy rose from the river, and floated in front of them. The ball then disintegrated, as Marina was then seen, fluttering before them.

"Hello. I am Marina, the Ocean Nymph. I take it you all are here in search of Mavis?" she questioned.

"We are. Is she safe?" Cadence asked.

"She is, though she had a nasty injury to her head. But you needn't worry. My sister, Tabby, was able to heal Mavis' injuries. My other sister, Dana also gave her some soup to warm her up," Marina explained.

"That's a huge relief," Fluttershy commented.

"Indeed. If you wish, I can take you all to see her in our Grotto," Marina said.

"Would you, please?!" Cadence asked desperately, gaining an anime sweat drop from the Nymph.

"If that is what you wish, then follow me through the pass. I will take you to a shortcut to the Grotto," Marina replied, leading them down the mountain. It didn't take long to reach the bottom of the mountain, where they saw a large number of dead trees.

"What happened here?" Shining Armor asked.

"Not enough sunlight. And the fact that water doesn't flow through here anymore adds to that factor," Marina replied, leading them through the forest of dead trees. All the while, Luna couldn't help but feel responsible for the state of the forest. They walked for less than an hour, before they saw plants that looked more alive than the rest of the forest, "We are nearing the Grotto," Marina said, as they pushed past some vines. Soon, they had arrived. Needless to say, the pony friends were in awe at the mere sight of the grotto. Everything looked so.... alive. Just then, they saw Sky fluttering about.

"Hey Marina, these the ponies that Mavis told us about?" the musical Nymph asked.

"Yep! So, could you go and find her? I'll take them to see Wanda," Marina asked her sister.

"Sure thing!" Sky replied, fluttering away. Celestia, Luna, and Discord all had looks of impending dread on their faces, as Marina took them to see Wanda. Soon, the ponies were all face to face with the Nymph Queen herself.

"My, my, so many guests in one day," Wanda commented.

"Are you by chance the leader of the Nymphs?" Twilight cautiously asked.

"Indeed I am. My name is Wanda, the Earth Nymph, and, I guess you can also call me the queen of the Nymphs, though I am not royalty," Wanda replied.

"Well, I suppose introductions would be in order on our end?" Twilight offered.

"There is no need. We Nymphs have a Seeing Pool, which shows us everything that goes on in the outside world, including several events revolving around you lot," Wanda explained.

"So, does that mean you saw us coming?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"Indeed, which is why I sent Marina to find you," Wanda replied.

"Then, I suppose you know why we are here?" Cadence asked.

"Yes. It's because of Mavis, yes?" Wanda replied. Cadence nodded.

"It is. She just barely escaped from that awful King Sombra, and we're worried about her well being," Cadence explained.

"Well, you needn't worry. One of my sisters, Tabby, took the liberty of healing a nasty wound to Mavis' head. And it was a good thing Marina found Mavis when she did. The water in the river was far below the freezing point. If we had been a few minutes late, well, best not to think about it," Wanda advised. This didn't sit well with any of the pony friends. Mavis nearly died from hypothermia? The mere thought was enough to make Pinkie's mane go flat.

"Wanda, we've brought Mavis," the voice of Sky made everyone look up. They saw Mavis, Sky, and an outrageously curvy Nymph standing in the doorway. The young girl in question looked tense upon seeing the ponies.

"Mavis! Oh, thank goodness you're alright!" Cadence exclaimed, as she went over, and scooped Mavis into a great, big hug. Mavis' heart was pounding faster and faster, for fear of what Cadence might do to her.

"P-Please forgive me, Princess. I didn't mean to make you worry," Mavis softly pleaded.

"All that matters is that you're safe and sound," Cadence soothed, rubbing Mavis' back.

"Since she got here, has she shown any signs of panic?" Twilight whispered to Wanda.

"Not that any of us have seen," Wanda replied.

"Is something wrong?" Sky asked.

"Well, to tell you the truth, ever since we found her, Mavis has been absolutely terrified of us. We've tried just about every approach to get her to open up to us, like offering her some toys or something sweet. But she always declines," Rarity explained.

"Hmm, that is rather strange for a child her age. Perhaps, her problem is one of a more psychological matter. She probably started acting like this because of some kind of trauma she experienced," Wanda replied. They were all doing their best to keep quiet, as not to make Mavis feel any worse. Just then, a thought came to Wanda's mind, "Mariah, could you take Mavis back to the library? I would like to discuss something with these nice ponies," she requested.

"Of course! May I, princess?" Mariah asked Cadence. Cautiously, Cadence released Mavis, "Come along now, little one," Mariah said, taking Mavis' hand, and leading her out of the den.

"Ok, so why did you want Mavis to leave?" Discord asked.

"Let me ask you all something. Are you familiar with an ancient city known as 'Trotlantis'?" Wanda asked. This caught the attention of the Royal Sisters and Discord, while the others looked perplexed.

"Trotlantis? I've heard of it, but it's just a myth, right?" Twilight asked.

"Actually, Twilight, Trotlantis isn't just a real city, but it was Equestria's very first city," Celestia replied, causing her former student's eyes to go wide.

"Indeed it was. In fact, what I am about to tell you pertains to a young girl who looked exactly like Mavis, and the Pharaoh who freed her from the thralls of slavery at the hands of the young Pharaoh's cruel, tyrannical father," Wanda said, as she began to tell them the tale of Trotlantis.

---

Flashback, 5,000 years ago, in a neighboring kingdom,

It was the middle of the night when several explosions erupted from the city walls. This woke up a young girl from within the castle. She was of a fair complexion and had long, luxurious black hair, "What is the meaning of this?!" the girl asked.

"Princess! You need to evacuate! We're being invaded by Trotlantis!" one of the guards yelled, rushing into her bed chambers.

"So that Pharaoh really is serious about conquering all nations. Alright, lead the way," the Princess requested, as the guard led her to the back of the castle, "Where are Mother and Father?" she asked.

"They went to help combat the invaders, but the enemy is using magic and tools we have never seen before," the guard replied, as he put the princess into a boat, just as the surrounding walls exploded, and several of the invaders rushed in, slaughtering all of the guards, who attempted to fend them off, but were unsuccessful. The Princess was horrified by the carnage, but she had bigger things to worry about, as one of the invaders grabbed her by the hair, and threw her out of the boat.

"What is the meaning of this?! I demand that you explain yourselves!" the Princess demanded, trying to be brave. She was only met with a fist to the face.

"Silence! We have orders from our king to take you prisoner. We've already slaughtered the majority of this city's population, and are taking the survivors as captives too," the invader said, as he took the jewelry the princess was wearing, and put them into his bag, "Put her with the other prisoners," the leader ordered to the lackeys. Two of them took the princess by the arms, and took her over to a cage, where several other kids her age were being held.

"Not you too, Princess!" one of the kids exclaimed.

"What happened to our city?" the Princess asked.

"These bad guys just up and attacked the city! They've been killing people left and right, and taking the survivors captive! It doesn't matter if your a man, woman, child or pony," one colt replied.

"My mommy and daddy," a very young girl whimpered, as the caravan took off. As they left the city limits, the Princess was horrified at the carnage that had befallen her beloved city. People and ponies were either being slaughtered or taken prisoner, homes and crops were being burned down, and the invaders were pillaging the riches of the city. As they began to cross the desert, the nameless Princess saw that her parents were murdered by the invader's overwhelming numbers.

---

Realtime,

As Wanda told them the tale of the Trotlantis, the Ponies were all shocked and appalled by what the Head Nymph had told them, "But, we were told that Trotlantis had a benevolent Pharaoh. Why would he attack another empire?" Twilight asked, sounding genuinely confused.

"Well, this was when the kind Pharaoh's cruel father was in power. He was a true tyrant even among the standards of other tyrants," Wanda replied, disgusted by the actions of the dictator.

"Ok, but what does this story have to do with Mavis?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"This next part will do more with what we'd like to do for her. It has to do with the Tyrant Pharaoh's son," Wanda explained, as she continued her story.

---

Flashback: 5,000 years ago

Walking through the corridors of the palace, a young boy, dressed like royalty looked sadly out the window, as he saw the multitudes of people and ponies his father had enslaved over the years. They were all being forced to work until they collapsed, in which case, they were then made to fight in the gladiator's arena, "Why father. Why must you commit such horrible atrocities?" the young Prince sadly asked, as he continued to walk through the halls. He had to admit, he felt ashamed of his royal heritage. The young Prince thought a kingdom should be ruled by a kind, noble king. Each time he walked through the halls, he was unable to help but feel guilty about all the lives that were taken to make it. His thoughts were interrupted when he bumped into someone, "Oh, I'm sorry. I wasn't watching where I was going," the prince apologized, seeing the nameless ex-Princess from the empire that was recently attacked.

"P-P-Please. forgive me," the ex-Princess pleaded, fearing of what the Prince would do to her. This was the first time that they had crossed paths.

"No, it was my fault. My mind was somewhere else," the Prince replied, helping the slave girl back up. The former Princess wasn't sure about how to react to this. Ever since she was made a slave by the evil Pharaoh, she had been treated like less than dirt, so for the son of the man who destroyed her kingdom to help her was a complete surprise to her.

"Th-thank you," she said hesitantly. The Prince eyed her shackles, and frowned.

"I truly do apologize for what my Father has done to you and your kingdom. He's been on this power trip for months now, and won't listen to reason," the Prince tried to explain.

"I wish I could believe you, but..." the former Princess said, sounding unsure about trusting the son of the man who pretty much murdered her family.

"I understand. But I have every intention of making it up to you any way I can, after I take the throne from that man," the Prince replied.

"You there! What are you doing, slacking off?!" one of the guards yelled, as he roughly grabbed the ex-Princess by her hair, "My Prince, did this slave harm you any way?" he asked.

"No, now release her! Unless you forgotten, that this section of the palace is under my rule, and I get to decide what happens to the slaves that Father put under my control?" the Prince sounded and felt disgusted by saying the word "slave", but knew he had to, as to enforce his authority over the guard, who then released the former princess, dropping her to the floor, before taking his leave, "Sorry to call you that awful term. Unlike father, I detest the thought of slavery," the Prince said, hating how his father treated other living creatures.

"I would so love to taste freedom again, along with my fellow captives," the ex-Princess replied.

"I would try to take the throne for myself by usurping Father, but he believes only one who can match him in combat, in terms of both physical prowess and magic, can take the throne, if they can take his life," the Prince replied, feeling useless. In truth, the Prince was a kind hearted pacifist, who abhorred the thought of ending the life of another.

"Even if you couldn't defeat him, is there still a way to escape?" the former Princess asked. The Prince thought about it for a moment, before getting an idea.

"The only way I can think of is through the garbage dump. Nothing ever comes back from there. We can escape through there," the Prince replied.

"'We'?" the former Princess asked.

"Yes. I can't stomach the atrocities that my father has inflicted on these lands any longer. I want to free these people from his clutches, and the only way to do that is to slay him in combat, as per our customs," the Prince replied, as he and the ex-Princess made their plan.

---

Realtime,

"Ok, so did they manage to escape?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"They did. However, it was no easy feat for them, but it was well worth it in the end," Wanda replied.

"You mean, the two of them finally found you and your sisters?" Twilight asked.

"Indeed, though it took them quite a few weeks before they wound up in the same scenario Mavis was in earlier," Sky replied.

"In other words, they fell into the rapids, and wound up in the river?" Cadence asked.

"Yes. After they told us of their plight, we agreed to take on both as students to train them in the ways of combat, even though we're against violence. The Prince was able to master several forms of Fire, Ice, Water, and Combat Magic from Dana, Yuki, Marina, and Daria, respectively, while the Princess was able to master the forms of Magic of ALL of us Nymphs, combined. Doing so triggered something that even we never anticipated," Wanda replied.

---

Flashback, 5000 years ago,

The young Prince was fusing Fire and Ice that he learned from the Nymphs into the Combat Magic, while using Water to shield himself, as Daria traded blows with him, "Excellent! You've come a long way since we began," she complimented, as the Prince released a stream of Fire with his next punch.

"Hopefully, I can use this to end my Father's tyranny," the Prince commented.

"While we don't like seeing our Magic being used to end the life of another, after seeing what he's done, we'll make an exception this ONE time," Dana said, resting her massive chest on the Prince's head, making him blush furiously. Meanwhile, the Former Princess was finishing her last lesson with Wanda, as she made several rock slabs rise up from the ground, forming a table.

"Wonderful! With this, you pass your final test," Wanda commended.

"Thank you, Wanda," the Former Princess replied. Just then, some crystals started to form around the young girl's feet, which then sprouted out, forming a large cluster of Crystals, each a different color.

"What's this now?" Wanda wondered, as beams of light from each Crystal shot out at the ex-Princess, as a pair of Nymph Wings sprouted from her back, "Well, this is unexpected," Wanda commented, using her magic to look over the young girl's body.

"Is there.... something wrong?" the former Princess asked.

"Well, it would appear that mastering ALL of the types of Magic my sisters and I have taught triggered some kind of.... metamorphosis, making you a Nymph as well," Wanda replied.

"Is that unusual?" the Prince asked.

"It's never happened before, so we don't know what to expect," Wanda replied.

"Well, in light of the fact that you both have passed all of your trials that we put in front of you, you both have passed," Wanda declared.

"Thank you for this opportunity," the Prince bowed respectfully, as did the ex-Princess.

---

Real time,

"In the end, the Prince was able to win the throne from his cruel father, and freed all of the slaves he had captured. While the majority of them were free to leave to rebuild their homes, some of the former slaves elected to stay and serve the young Pharaoh of their own accord. This included the former Princess too," Wanda concluded the story.

"Ok, so am I right in assuming what happened to the former human princess is what you want to do for Mavis?" Cadence asked.

"Indeed. Not only would this help her develop magic powers, but it could help her in terms of self confidence and being a bit more courageous," Wanda explained.

"Ok, but why have you guys teach her? Can't she learn magic at some fancy school or something?" Rainbow Dash asked.

"That's the thing I noticed when Mavis saw all of you. She seemed rather tense, to put it nicely. She seems to be more open towards my sisters and I," Wanda replied.

"Plus, most of the high ranking academies in the Crystal Empire are the equivalent to military schools," Cadence added.

"What Wanda is trying to say is that no matter what you all might do for her to make her feel more welcome, she still live in perpetual fear of you, especially the Princesses," Sky added. The ponies all had sad looks of understanding on their faces, especially Cadence.

"Well, it makes sense. Given everything she's been through, she probably fears important political figureheads like royalty," Discord theorized. Cadence then turned to Wanda.

"Wanda, do you believe this would make Mavis happier?" Cadence asked, a tone of desperation in her voice.

"I do believe so," the Nymph replied.

"Then please, teach her your ways of magic, and help her become braver!" the Princess of Love begged.

"You have my word. Of course, whether or not my sisters and I will be able to teach her is all up to Mavis," Wanda replied.

"Ok, so how do we ask her?" Applejack asked.

"Simply put, we just ask her like it's an offer, as a means to keep her from feeling we're forcing this on her," Wanda replied.

"We should probably have Mariah ask her. She's the most soft spoken among us Nymphs," Sky suggested.

"Capital idea," Wanda replied, as she pulled a crystal from her cleavage, and used her magic on it, causing it to glow, "Mariah? Are you there, sister?" the leader Nymph asked.

"Yes, I am. Is there something you need Wanda?" Mariah's voice said through the crystal.

"Yes, I would like you to relay a message to Mavis for me. It's about taking her under our tutelage as an apprentice, and potential Crystal Nymph," Wanda replied.

"Ah, so we're going through with it?" Mariah asked.

"Yes, but could you try and make it sound like an offer, rather than a request? We don't want to make Mavis feel put upon," Wanda requested.

"Of course, dear sister. I'll bring her over once we're done reading," Mariah said, as the Crystal stopped glowing, and Wanda put it back into her bra.

"Thank you for this, Wanda. There is one more thing I need to inform you of, regarding the little one," Cadence explained.

"Yes?" Wanda asked. Cadence explained that she and Shining Armor were planning to adopt Mavis as their own daughter, "I see, though you wish to adopt her AFTER she completes her training?" Wanda asked.

"Yes. As we previously mentioned, Mavis has been utterly terrified of us, so we want to wait until she becomes more assertive from your training to adopt her. We don't want her to forgo chances for her own happiness for some selfless reason," Cadence replied.

"Well, with Daria's help, Mavis should be able to be more assertive, and willing to try things you and your husband want her to," Wanda replied.

"That's all I ask. But, could you maybe keep this a secret? I don't want the thought of being adopted interfere with her lessons," Cadence requested.

"Of course," Wanda replied.

"Excellent! We'll return to the Crystal Empire to get Mavis' room prepared. How long should we expect these lessons to take?" Cadence asked.

"Well, for the original Crystal Nymph, it took her about a year, maybe 15 months, to master all of our various magics, so we have a pretty good grasp of what we should do for her," Wanda replied.

"But we'll only teach her al the essential magics, such as Mariah's knowledge magic, Daria's combat magic, the various elemental magic that myself, Wanda, Dana, Yuki, and a few others know, as well as a few other types," Sky added.

"We should leave now. If Mavis sees us leaving without her, she might think she did something bad or that we may do something bad before we go, and force herself to come back with us," Twilight suggested.

"We'll leave this with you. From what we can tell, it's all that keeps Mavis calm," Shining Armor said, levitating Mavis' raggedy teddy bear to the Nymphs.

"We'll be sure to give it to her. And Luna? You needn't worry about patrolling Mavis' dreams. Cosmo can handle things here," Wanda said to the Lunar Princess.

"Very well," Luna said, as the Ponies were then escorted back to the entrance of the grotto.

"Take this with you. We can keep in contact about Mavis' progress, and we'll let you know when she's done with her lessons," Sky said, handing Cadence a cluster of crystals that seemed to glow on their own.

"Simply marvelous!" Rarity was in awe at the cluster.

"Thank you all for doing this for Mavis. I truly hope that she becomes more open minded about Equestria," Cadence said, as Discord teleported them all away. With a smile, Sky went back to where Wanda was at. However, she was unaware of a sinister presence lurking nearby.

"So, it would appear they're taking all the necessary precautions for Mavis to become happier, but it will take much more than magic and kindness for her to know true joy," the Demon Bus Driver said, as the bus disappeared into the shadows.

Comments

[Bronycommander]

Interesting. Though can the demon really called demon if he helps them?

[darkmage1997]

10102140
It's the title it was given after it took the lives of all who either tormented Mavis or tried to cross the bridge of the "accident"

[Bronycommander]

10103294
Of course