• Published 11th Jan 2016
  • 33,013 Views, 2,955 Comments

My Filly, Nightshine - The Abyss



Jason's life has grown dull. After months of living in Ponyville, he can't shake the feeling that there is a void in his life. Then, one day, as he watches a family play in the park, an idea sparks within his mind: why not adopt a pony of his own?

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Endless Possibilities

Jason stood at the front door to the orphanage, his hand resting on the doorknob. He had taken the long way there so that he could think through his options, and in that time, his mind had come to the same conclusion that his heart had made yesterday. Since he had come up from the south, nopony had seen him coming, making his arrival a complete surprise to those at the orphanage. He wondered if Serenity would be shocked that he came back.

Closing his eyes, Jason took in a deep breath and held it in, then relaxed. His heart raced in his chest much like the time that he had first stepped into Equestria. He knew that in making this big decision, he was about to change his life and that of the orphan he picked. Jason lifted his hand from the door and held it up in front of him. Even though he tried as hard as he could, he could not stop it from shaking.

So after a few moments, Jason ran that same hand through his hair and chuckled. He wiggled his arms and threw on a small yet confident smile. As he wondered what his pick’s reaction was going to be like, he figured that he shouldn’t waste any more time. He stepped inside and pushed the door shut with a little more force than what was necessary. The bell chime was much louder than the time he had walked inside yesterday, making him feel a bit self-conscious.

A few moments passed before he heard hoofsteps coming from further inside the orphanage. Serenity emerged from around the corner a second later, and as she looked up at him, she paused.

“Told you I’d be back, didn’t I?” Jason asked.

“I, well... yes, you did, but... Nobody’s ever come back after saying what you did.” Serenity smiled and moved to stand in front of him. “So...” She cocked her head to the side and looked up at him with a hopeful smile. “Have you made a decision?”

Jason grinned widely. “I have.”

“Excellent! Everypony’s playing outside, so I think we should go and see everypony. It’d be a treat for them to see you again.” She turned around and began walking away.

Jason caught up to her, staying silent as they walked down the main hallway. They came up to a small door set in the right-hand side of the wall which Serenity laid a hoof on. “Before we go out, might I ask who you have picked to adopt? I think I already know the answer, but I would like to hear it from you.”

“Short Stroke seems like a fine little colt, full of energy and all that. I have no doubt that someone will come and adopt him, but he isn’t the one that I want. I want to adopt Nightshine, and I feel it would be both a pleasure and an honor to call her my daughter.” Jason leaned against the wall and tucked his hands into his pockets. “Heh, I can only wonder how she’d react when I tell her I’d like to adopt her.”

“Well, why don’t we find out? I’m sure she’d be happy to see you again.” Serenity smiled and threw open the door, then trotted just outside with Jason right behind her.


Nightshine lay on her back on the thickest, lowest branch of the tree out in the playground. In stark contrast to the past few days, the sun shined brightly. A few clouds hung in the sky, making Nightshine wonder what it would be like to nap on them. Her favorite branch was just about as comfortable as her bed, though at least she had a nice breeze to keep her cool here.

All of the other colts and fillies ran about beneath her, playing a game of tag that she had no interest in. She had grown tired of that many months ago, for her eyes had always been set on the open sky above her. Her heart yearned to fly, to be amongst the birds and the clouds, but the fear of punishment had always kept her grounded. There was no escaping the piercing gaze of Miss Serenity, who usually lay near the door to the orphanage with a book. She had thought that she had heard the bell above the door to the orphanage ring, but the cacophony below her had drowned it out rather quickly, making her wonder if her mind was playing tricks on her.

Her tail swished back and forth as it hung over the right-hoof side of the branch. She peered up through the leaves of the tree, her eyes locked on a nearby cloud. As Nightshine closed her eyes, her thoughts drifted to that of Jason, and what life could have been if he had picked her yesterday. Even though he wasn’t a pony, he had been able to make her feel something that she hadn’t felt in years: hope.

Having that hope ripped away had been one of the worst things she had felt in her life, far outweighing the times that she had been passed over for adoption. Getting adopted meant that she would be able to fly as much as she wanted to, so long as she got some proper practice in. Getting adopted meant that she would finally get to live her life, but that wasn’t the most important thing to her. What truly meant the most was that she would finally have someone to love her, and she had so much love to give.

Nightshine sighed as her tail stilled. Several moments passed before she noticed that everypony running around the yard was galloping back towards the orphanage. We have to go back inside already? But I didn’t hear the whistle... Instead of hearing all of them groan like they usually did when it was time to go back inside, Nightshine heard cries of surprise and joy. Curious as to what all the commotion was about, Nightshine carefully rolled over and let her legs dangle over the branch, hanging loosely in the wind. She glanced up just in time to see Jason step outside as everypony rushed up to him, clamoring for attention.

She lifted her head up from the branch, her ears flicking up and her eyes going wide. Nightshine stared breathlessly, unable to believe her eyes. She rubbed her eyes with her hooves, then looked again. Her heart sank as she saw him reach down to scratch the ears of several of her fellow orphans.

Then, right as she was about to give up hope for what felt like the hundredth time, Jason looked around the yard until their eyes met. Nightshine stared at him, her heart beating rapidly in her chest. Much to her disbelief, Jason ignored the rest of the other orphans and started walking towards her. Her mind went blank and her tongue felt as dry as sandpaper as he finally stood beneath her, looking up at her with the most comforting of smiles.

“Y-you came back?” Nightshine asked softly. She saw Serenity move to stand beside Jason. Nightshine tore her gaze away from him and glanced at her, her eyes pleading the question that danced on the tip of her tongue. Serenity smiled warmly at her, which was quite the surprise in and of itself, then nodded once.

“Yes,” Jason said, making Nightshine look back at him. “I came back for you.”

Nightshine’s vision turned blurry as tears formed up in her eyes. Her ears flicked back and her muscles went slack. “I... I...” She pushed herself up with her front legs to get off of the tree, and as she opened her wings to glide down, the tip of her right wing hit a branch and threw her off balance. Nightshine tried to grab onto the branch that she was just laying on, but it was just out of reach.

Resigning herself to a painful fate, she tensed up, waiting to hit the ground. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Jason lunge forward, his arms outstretched. She fell into his arms mere inches before she hit the rocky ground with a slight ‘oomph’, her stomach facing upwards. Her forelegs curled up to her chest. She flicked her gaze up to meet his as he pulled her against his chest, his arms curling upward. His right arm held her rump while his other arm wrapped around her shoulders.

As he held her against his chest, she got a whiff of his scent. Slight earthy tones filled her nose. “Th-thanks for catching me...” Nightshine murmured as a slight blush turned her cheeks pink.

“Nightshine, you should have been more careful!” Serenity barked as she stepped around in front of them. As Jason put Nightshine down, her tone became softer. “I really wouldn’t want to see you, or anypony else for that matter, get hurt under my watch.”

“Sorry, Miss Serenity, I promise it won’t happen again.” Nightshine brushed herself off and looked up at Jason. She sat down, flicked her tail around her flank, and rubbed her right foreleg with her left hoof. “So... are you really going to adopt me?” she asked, putting the smallest amount of hopefulness into her tone.

Jason kneeled down and brushed a few hairs out of her face, tucking them behind her right ear. “Yeah. That is, if you would like for me to adopt you.”

Nightshine nodded as tears of joy dripped down her cheeks. Her ears flicked back as she stepped up to him. She stood up on her hind legs, and as she closed her eyes, she wrapped her forelegs around him and pulled him into as tight a hug as she could. Nightshine nuzzled him over and over as relief soared through her. Endless possibilities of what her new life would be like flew through her mind, and even though she had no idea what the future held for her, she knew that she couldn’t wait.

She felt Jason scratch her behind her ears as he rubbed her back, just like she had always imagined her adoptive parents would. “Are we leaving now?” Nightshine finally asked as she let him go. “I... I don’t have anything to pack.”

Serenity cleared her throat in that obnoxious way that meant that she had something to say. “He has to sign some documents first, and it’ll take a while. Why don’t you go on and play with everypony else while Jason and I wrap things up?”

Nightshine glanced between Serenity and Jason a few times, then looked up at Jason. “If it is okay... c-can I stay with you, Jason? P-please?” I don’t want you to leave me again...

Jason chuckled at that. “Of course you can. You might get bored, though, and like Serenity said, it might take a while.”

Nightshine smiled and shook her head. “It doesn’t matter! As long as you’re there, I’ll always be happy.” As they started walking back to the orphanage, Nightshine nuzzled his leg and whispered, “Thank you...”