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Somewhere Far Away990 words
The Beginning of the End778 words
A Visit from the Princess959 words

A Visit from the Princess

Shadow had not left her home in years, save for a short trip along the clouds that passed her garden. Nobody knew where she was, and she didn’t know where they were, so she knew that if she wanted to leave her home she could, but there would be little point- she feared she would die before she ever reached land, or even another cloud settlement. Although her life was not the best, she did not want it to end in that way.

Spending all of her time alone in her fantasy world and having no experience of life outside of her lonely cloud home had allowed her to imagine ways in which she could come to an end. She imagined the ways that the people on the land, or maybe on other clouds would look up to her and admire her for meeting her fate during a brave conquest to rescue a puppy trapped in a well, or even sacrificing her life for a fellow pony. These were all things that she had read about in her story books- there were several in her home- and they almost always had happy endings, heroes, and princesses. Being a princess had never really interested her, but other than that, the books taught her a lot about what life could be like, and what there was out there to enjoy “once upon a time”.

There were things that she definitely didn’t want to come across- dragons, snakes, and spiders didn’t sound nice, and she was already scared of water (she had read so many stories in which people had met their end in water- either drowned or killed by monsters contained within the mysterious depths- it sounded altogether more dangerous than snakes and spiders put together), so sometimes she didn’t think living alone in her cloud was too bad, she was safe where nopony could hurt her, but that didn’t stop her fantasising that one day somepony would rescue her.

In the meantime she would tell her story. With no idea about how it would end, or even what would happen next, her story was as new to her as it was to the imaginary ponies she shared it with. She longed to share it with a real pony one day.
“To say that Chelsea was upset would have been an understatement. It felt like her world had been turned upside down and shaken. Her husband and the new life that they had brought into the world- the two things that she loved more than anything- were not as they were meant to be. Nobody could blame the cherub-faced filly for being the way that she was. There was only one pony to blame.

“All of those years ago when walking through the park, her heart was stolen by a monster. She had been manipulated by him, made happy by him, made whole by him, and now shattered by him, and there was no way to put the pieces together. Her eyes had lost their sparkle, her voice had lost its voice had lost its laugh, and she spent all of her time locked in her bedroom with her daughter clasped to her chest, curtains drawn, closed off from the world.

“It was like that for months, maybe even years- she no longer had any concept of time. She would allow nobody to see her foal, the father included. It may have destroyed him, but he understood, and blamed himself. It wasn’t easy for him to control his feelings, and he was faced with the task of explaining to their family and friends what had happened to the two missing ponies, but soon enough their voluntary exile drew the attention of the highest in the land.

“Princess Celestia cared about her subjects. She wanted them to be happy, and she loved them all as if they were her own children, perhaps none more so than Twilight Sparkle, her faithful student. It was Twilight that had heard the news about Chelsea, as her parents had been close friends with her, and Twilight herself owned a few garments that she had made. In her letter to Celestia, coupled with that week’s friendship letter, she had explained her parents’ concerns about their friend, and was confident that Celestia would take direct action.

“Later that week, in the evening, so not to be seen, Celestia and Luna flew on to the balcony above Chelsea’s boutique. In a kind voice, Celestia announced their presence, and waited to be granted entry. This wish was not granted, however, and although she did not wish to, she was forced to use magic to unlock the door, and was faced with a heart-wrenching sight.
“Chelsea was huddled up on the floor, clutching her foal- as Celestia was told she would be. That was not what had upset the Princess. What had was much, much worse.

“Chelsea appeared to be in a trance. Tears streamed down her face- it looked as though they had not stopped for months- her eyes were red and swollen, and her fur and that of her child’s was soaked through. She was gently swaying the foal in her arms and humming an off-key song. She didn’t notice the Princesses enter her room- her eyes were fixed on the small bundle in her arms. It was an alarming sight.

“The bundle was tightly wrapped in a strip of ripped bed sheet, with only its head and its tiny horn visible, and it appeared to be changing colour.

“It was difficult to notice instantly, but very gradually the foal, from horn tip to hoof, was going from pure white to grey. Celestia had never seen anything like it.”

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