Chapter 2: The Filly
Chapter 2
The Filly
After Spike left for home, Fluttershy took to watching over the swan as she continued her chores. After she fed her animals, she checked on the swan. After she cleaned the cottage, she checked on the swan. After she got back from her Spa Day with Rarity, she checked on the swan. And still, the swan slumbered. As night fell, Fluttershy checked the swan one last time. This time, the swan started to stir.
Fluttershy let out a quiet gasp as she quickly gathered fresh water and the bread that Spike brought before she approached the swan. As the swan's eyelids lifted, the revealed teal-blue eyes adjusting to the sight before her. The swan's vision was blurred for a bit, seeing mainly colors and faint shapes. One of those colors, a buttery yellow mixed with a mix of rosy pink and faint cyan where she figured the face was.
The Swan's vision cleared as the visage of a Pegasus mare knelt down before her with bread and water. Startled, the swan lifted her head to pull back. Or at least tried. Unfortunately, she was too weak to lift her head more than six inches. Seeing the startled swan, Fluttershy spoke softly to try and calm her down.
"It's ok. It's ok. I'm here to help you."
The swan seemed surprised at the gentleness of the mare's voice as if it was a foreign tone to her.
To prove herself, Fluttershy prepared the bread crumbs and held out a hoofull of crumbs.
"Here. Eat up." The Pegasus coaxed the swan a bit before the waterfowl took a bit of crumbs.
This was followed by happy eating as the swan kept eating the crumbs. Relieved, Fluttershy broke off slightly larger bits of bread and continued to feed her patient.
"That's it. Eat as much as you want."
The swan happily obliged. After being without food for so long, she was going to take the chance and have her fill.
As the swan ate, Fluttershy spoke as she broke more bread.
"My friend saw you falling into the forest near here. He found you and brought you here. He'll be taking care of you, too."
Even as she ate, the swan was curious. Who was her savior? And why did he go out of the way to help her? Many questions filled her mind as her stomach filled with much-needed nourishment. Once she was done, the swan set her head down as Fluttershy helped her drink some water.
"Drink up." She softly ordered.
The swan obeyed without resistance until her thirst was quenched as well. The swan sighed in content as she laid down to rest again.
When Fluttershy returned, she sighed at the sight.
"Looks like she needs more time to restore her energy."
She felt a tug on her mane, causing her to look down at an irritated (and "slightly" spoiled) rabbit.
"Now, Angel. I know she is in your favorite spot, but she needs it for tonight. The poor thing must have flown a long way for her to be exhausted like that."
Angel remained unconvinced. Still, it was just for one night. Begrudgingly, he made his way to his rabbit hutch while Fluttershy walked up her stairway. Before entering her bedroom, she looked down at the sleeping swan with a sweet smile.
"Have sweet dreams, Miss Swan."
The next morning, Spike and his friends were at the train station waiting for the train that was going to take the mares to Manehattan. All of the ponies had their luggage, packed with a week's worth of necessities they would need. Well, in Rarity's case, the necessities and then some. And of course, Twilight was finishing up with the latest checklist she made for Spike to do while she was gone.
"…and at 3 PM, the train will be back, so be sure to have everything done before then." Twilight finished as she rolled up the ten-foot scroll.
Spike rolled his eyes as she gave it to him.
"I got it, Twilight. It's not like the first time I've been left in charge of the castle."
Seeing the thickness of the checklist, Twilight blushed and grinned in embarrassment.
"I guess I don't really need to give you a checklist, do I? Still, don't want to waste a perfectly good checklist."
Without missing a beat, she shoved the checklist into Spike's claws, causing him to roll his eyes again. Still, Twilight remained uneasy.
"Are you sure you'll be ok, Spike? I mean, we've never been gone this long before."
Spike grinned as he patted Twilight's shoulder.
"Don't you worry, Twilight. The castle is in good claws."
Twilight was still unsure, however. But still, Spike wasn't exactly a helpless baby dragon anymore.
"I guess sooner or later, he'll want to do things like this on his own."
She then felt a hoof on her opposite shoulder. She looked and saw the hoof belonged to Applejack, complete with a reassuring smile.
"Don't worry, Twi. Big Mac will check on 'im every now and again."
Still, it felt harder than ever to leave him alone for so long. True, she had left him alone before. But those times were only for a couple of days at most. And when shehadto go somewhere longer than a couple of days, she would always bring him along. She had thought about asking the Apples to look after Spike, but Applejack informed her that Big Mac was planning on visiting his Special Somepony, Sugar Belle, and Granny Smith would be too busy watching Apple Bloom. In fact, they had to call on some relatives to look after Sweet Apple Acres.
Of course, Spike was still prohibited from using the Apples' kitchen again.
The sound of a train whistle brought Twilight out of her thoughts as the conductor called out "All aboard!"
Hearing the conductor, the six ponies gathered around Spike to give their good-byes.
"Take care, Spike. And if ya'll need anything, just head on over to Sweet Apple Acres." Spoke Applejack, her drawl in a caring tone.
"We'll be sure to bring back plenty of souvenirs. Though I still wish we were going to a Wonderbolts show." Rainbow Dash muttered, not exactly interested in the art of ballet.
"I'll be sure to throw a big 'Welcome Back to Ponyville' party when we get back." Pinkie Pie joyously announced.
Spike couldn't help but snicker at the fact that Pinkie could use just about any occasion to throw a party.
He was caught off guard when he felt a familiar unicorn's cheek nuzzle affectionately against his head.
"I do wish I was able to bring an extra ticket, Spikey-Wikey. I hate having to leave you out on this."
Spike, his cheeks a light lavender, brushed it off.
"Ah, don't worry about it, Rarity. There's always next time."
As soon as Rarity began to bring her luggage on board, Fluttershy approached him with a notebook.
"I've written what foods every critter likes in this as well as times to feed them. Your swan friend's diet is in here, too."
Upon being reminded of the swan, Spike looked to the notebook and back to Fluttershy with concern.
"Did she wake up at all?"
Seeing his concern, Fluttershy placed a reassuring hoof on his shoulder before smiling at him.
"She woke up twice, now. Once when you left and this morning. I told her you would be coming over to check on her. Oh! And I have also mentioned that you are a dragon so she doesn't get scared. If that's ok with you, that is."
Spike breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this.
"I don't mind, Fluttershy. In fact, I think you did me a favor."
Once Fluttershy boarded the train, Twilight gave Spike one last hug.
"If anything goes wrong, don't hesitate to contact us. You know how to reach us at our hotel, right?"
Spike rolled his eyes, though he smiled this time.
"Just sprinkle some of that magic powder onto the scroll and toss it into the fireplace. Got it!"
Reluctantly, Twilight released her assistant and boarded the train. As the train began to roll away, the six ponies stuck their heads out the window and waved their goodbyes. Spike waved back.
"I'll see you guys in a week!"
As soon as the train, Spike went through the chore list Twilight gave him. But his thoughts were focused on the swan that was resting at Fluttershy's cottage. He opened Fluttershy's notebook and found the time for the swan's feeding.
"Ok. So she gets bread, corn, and shredded greens at noon."
He then looked at a nearby clock.
"It is...10:43 right now. I guess I'll do some chores quick, then head to the cottage."
But as he began to walk to the castle, his thoughts plagued him again.
"Maybe I should check on her. Just in case."
With that, Spike left the station and made his way to Fluttershy's cottage.
Fluttershy's Cottage
The swan sighed as she watched the rabbit tried to get her to move from the sofa. After the mare left, the rabbit became insistent that she'd move from the couch. She had watched the breakfast scene as soon as she woke up and couldn't believe how spoiled this rabbit was. Even striking his owner just so he could have a dish fit for rabbit royalty. She did not like the rabbit's behavior, but she conceded. Not because of the rabbit, but because she wanted to go outside.
She was still weak, but she was strong enough to hop off the couch and make her way to the door. Angel raised an eyebrow as he saw the white bird make her way to the door. He became confused as she tried to turn the knob with a feathered wing and struggling. Did she want to go out? That was a big "no" to him. He had let Fluttershy know that he was going to help watch the swan while she was gone and she wasn't allowed to go flying for a while.
But before Angel could do anything to stop her, the door opened, causing both the swan and the rabbit to jump back. The swan fell backward as a small purple and green dragon entered the cottage in both surprise and anxiety.
When Spike opened the cottage's door, he had not expected to be greeted by the sight of a flailing swan falling backward from him. The sight caused him to jump and give a slight yelp as the swan struggled to fly around the cottage, looking for a way to escape.
"I must have scared her," Spike muttered to himself as he closed the cottage door.
He raised his claws up as he called up to the swan as she was trying to find an opened window.
"Wait! Stop! It's ok! I'm a friend!"
His cries fell on deaf ears as the swan kept flying into things looking for an escape. Spike's worry grew not because of the number of things being broken in Fluttershy's cottage, but the growing chance of even greater injury to the swan.
"I have to do something to calm her down! But what?"
Spike looked to Angel for an idea, but the rabbit was struggling to stop the swan and yelling at her with his lagomorph speech. This left the dragon with little to no idea on what to do. He thought hard about how to calm a scared swan but nothing came up.
"Ugh! Is this what Twilight had to go through when she first took care of me!?"
Biting his lip upon seeing the swan falling to the ground and moving back towards a corner, Spike figured it was time to try again. Mouthing to Angel to find up some bread, Spike knelt down before the frightened swan, keeping a friendly look on his face after the rabbit left.
"It's ok. I want to help you."
The swan kept at the corner, still scared. Spike stayed where he was, holding his claw out when Angel returned with some bread. He broke off some pieces and slowly held them out to the swan, who was hesitant to go near him. Seeing he wasn't going to get anywhere with the bread in his claws, he placed the crumbs on the ground a bit before her before breaking off a sizeable piece and popped it into his mouth.
"Don't worry. I don't eat meat."
This confused the swan. In all her life any creature who had sharp teeth had a penchant for meat. Her confusion furthered when the dragon ate another piece of bread without looking like he was going to be sick. In fact, the rabbit didn't look afraid of the dragon one bit. Her stomach telling her to eat, the swan proceeded to eat the crumbs while keeping an eye on the dragon. It was then that she got a better look at him.
Instead of a giant, frightening dragon like what she had heard of, this dragon was not only her size, but looked rather…cute? In fact, she began to wonder why she was so scared of him in the first place. She ate more crumbs as the dragon spoke up, noticing how comfortable she was getting.
"There we go. See? I'm not so scary."
The swan let out a soft smile as the dragon continued.
"My name's Spike. I'm the one who saw you fall into the Everfree Forest."
The swan lifted her head up in curiosity.Thiswas the one who saved her? But…why?
As Spike continued to feed her, he decided to break apart the bread in his claws and give them all to the swan. The swan held no qualms about eating the bread. She was pretty hungry after all. She did, however, give him a grateful smile before she ate.
Seeing the swan eat well, Spike leaned back next to the couch and closed his eyes. A light snore caught the swan's attention to the sleeping dragon before her. With a light smile, she moved to his side and nestled next to him, joining him in a nap.
Especially since she had plans tonight.
Later that night…
Spike woke up from his nap and, much to his surprise, it was night. Or at least the beginning of the night as the moon hadn't risen yet. A chill made him turn his head to the door.
It was opened!
Rubbing his head, Spike wondered if he had left the door open when he arrived as he approached to close the door. But as he reached for the doorknob, he saw a white blot on the pond. He squinted his eyes and saw that it was the swan, looking quite content.
Spike watched as the swan swam, looking quite happy. He was relieved to see that after the events of today, things were looking up. But as he turned back to make himself dinner, he heard something. Somepony…a filly…singing. Curious, he looked back outside to find the source of the voice. But he saw no pony around. Just him, Fluttershy's animals, and the swan. He watched closely as his ears picked up a song coming from the water.
I know there's someone
Somewhere, someone
Who's sure to find me
Soon~~~
Spike rubbed his ears, trying to make sure he wasn't hearing things. The sound he was hearing came from one place that was clearly unorthodox. Keeping his eyes on the swan, his eyes widened as the swan's mouth moved and a filly's voice came out in a beautiful song.
After the rain goes,
There are rainbows
I'll find my rainbow
Soon~~~
Quietly, Spike left the cottage and carefully made his way to the water's edge so as to not disturb the swan. He settled on a patch of grass as he listened and watched the strange moonlit concert.
Soon, it won't be just pretend
Soon, a happy ending.
The swan, clearly engrossed in her song, failed to notice her audience had a dragon in it. She opened her eyes to keep track of the approaching reflection of the moon as she continued. Spike was completely mesmerized at the creature's talent and how beautiful it was.
Love, can you hear me
If you're near me?
Sing your song
Sure and strong
And soon~~~~~
As she hit the final note, the moon's reflection moved so that the light was touching the swan like a celestial spotlight. Beneath the swan, a golden glow appeared as water began to rise and circle the swan. Spike stood up, ready to help the swan as the water spiraled around her until it encompassed her and dispersed before he could lift a foot. When the glow faded, Spike's eyes widened with shock and surprise.
Before him where the swan once stood was a unicorn filly about his age. Her coat was a pristine white and her mane was cut short and was of a golden color. Her tail was of average length with a wave to it and was golden, but had the addition of cyan highlights. There was no Cutie Mark to identify her talent. Her cyan eyes fluttered open with content, only to shrink with shock at the sight of Spike.
Spike was beyond stunned. Before him, the swan he had saved the other day turned into a filly. And one his age, from the looks of it. He had heard of unicorns using transformation spells, but this was clearly something he was unfamiliar with. He took in the sight of her from hoof to horn, only to snap out of his stupor at the sight of fear in her eyes with a hint of Fight-or-Flight. More on the latter than the former.
Carefully, he waved his fingers as he spoke.
"Uh…hi?"
Still, the filly remained frozen. Biting his lip again, Spike tried talking again.
"Uh…if that's a secret, I won't tell."
Hearing what he said, Spike wanted to smack his head in frustration, but opted to close his eyes in embarrassment, instead.
"Ok! That sounded very stupid! Think, Spike, think! There's got to be a way to salvage this."
"…um…"
The sound of the swan's voice caught Spike's attention. It was soft, but he could tell it was coming from the filly before him. Opening his eyes, he saw that the filly was looking off to the side, twirling her right hoof so that it made circular ripples in the water.
"…th-thank you…Spike…"
Spike let out a relieved sigh as he smiled at the filly.
"Hey, I'm just glad I could help."
He then held out a claw to her, causing her to look at it in confusion.
"Come one. I'll cook you a proper meal other than bread crumbs. That is…uh…if you want me to."
The filly looked at Spike in surprise. She was certain he was going to dislike her for her transformation, but to be fine with it and offering to keep it a secret and cook her a meal, the filly could not help but find this…foreign.
"Y…you don't find me… I mean...You don't hate me?"
Now it was Spike's turn to be confused again.
"Hate you? For what?"
The filly gulped as she struggled with her words again.
"F…for…what I…I can…"
Seeing that the filly was having a hard time getting the words out, Spike decided to intervene.
"Look. I don't hate you. Not at all. But how about we talk about it inside over a nice bowl of soup? I don't know about me, but I'm sure you're pretty hungry."
A low growl coming from the filly's stomach cause said filly to blush in embarrassment and Spike to chuckle. She chuckled nervously, but Spike's chuckling made hers transform into delight.
"He-he…I-I guess I am."
With a small smile, the filly walked out of the pond and approached Spike as he led her to the cottage. He stopped before he turned to the filly.
"Oh! Um… What's your name? I mean, I can't call you 'Miss Swan' anymore, right?"
While she had some reluctance, the memories of the dragon's kindness made the filly decide that it was probably alright to tell him her name. After all, what were the chances he knewher?
"M…my name is…Pirouette."
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Well, I can say without a doubt that the direction taken with this story is quite good so far.
DO go on.
8642808
Yay! *hugs*
8643128
*hugs*
Awesome chapter! Awesome OC too!
Waiting these months for the next chapter to come have really been worth it. Along with that, it was a great way to kick off the new year.
Keep up the good work.
Oh, and don’t be afraid of making the story your own despite it being based on The Swan Princess.
Must say I thought the first chapter was great introduction to your story(despite how bad you think it is!) i'm glad you're making it original instead of listening to other people thoughts. I wanted to give some recommendations/inspirations to make your story better but forgot about it & real life situationsMoving out of my childhood home and into a new place!
there's only two errors in this chapter...where rainbow dash said 'I still "we" were going to a wonderbolt show.' you meant to write wish. also when pirouette asks spike "you don't find me..." I think you meant to say fear.
can't wait to see what your oc's backstory is in chapter 3 or later on!
8645630
I'll check on that Rainbow Dash line.
As for Pirouette's line, she was going to finish with "repulsive." She was confused about Spike being nice to her.
8645630
Also, it was a little past midnight when I finished the chapter, so my editing wasn't exactly on par due to exhaustion.
When is the next chapter coming?
8755370
When i can get a break from College.
8755848
Okay.