Mother Knows Best

by CrimsonRose97

Part Ten: Three Days Later

A train was heading straight for the Empire, wife and husband duo Ambrosia and Ranger Arc were one their way to an important appointment.

The hot pink pegasus nervously tapped her hooves in her seat. "Ooh, can't this train go faster?"

"We'll get there soon, just relax, hon." The blue unicorn assured his wife, raising his left hoof to brush her long white hair out of her face. A stark contrast to his short black mane. “By the time this trip is over, we’ll be parents.”

“I still can’t believe it took us this long to do this.” she rubbed her muzzle with her hooves. “I really hope it's not like that other orphanage. I still can’t believe that poor colt was taken from his real home.”

Ranger grunted when reminded of that. That was very messed up. He continued to pet her head to soothe her - and himself - “Now darling, things are different now. The lawyer and I did an extensive background check on Chestnut Fall’s Crystal Heart Foal Center. Everything is legal.”

After being unable to have children of their own, Ranger and Ambrosia were on their last option of being parents.

No matter what happens on this trip, these two were going to be parents.

Ten minutes later the train pulled right into the station and with a KOOSHing sound of the brakes and sounds of the horns, they arrived at their destination.

What the couple wasn’t expecting was the fact that the Empire was still cleaning up from its earlier insurrection. Ponies are still reconstructing buildings of fallen crystal and gem.

“O-oh dear.” Ambrosia gasped, seeing the damage. “What in Celestia’s name happened??”

“I don’t know.” Ranger said, looking around. “L-lets go.” He said. His horn lit up a light purple, the same color as his eyes and the color of his cutie mark - which was an actual bow and arrow with a shimmer fused together, and their luggage levitated out of the train and the two quickly left the station.

Thankfully, only some buildings got hit, from what the two could gather on their way to the local inn. No pony was injured so that was a good thing. Talks of Sombra’s return and what had transpired seemed to be the talk of the town.

After checking in and putting their things in their room, Ambrosia and Ranger Arc made their way to the foal center.

When they arrived, the couple could see that there were already some children, five colts and four fillies, were playing with each other and in the sand box overlooking them all was a chestnut colored crystal pony. Parts of her wavy brown mane did have some gray but it didn’t deter the beauty she still held. Her blue eyes, still very young and vibrant, sparkled when she looked up to see the expecting parents.

“Well hello, you two must be Ambrosia and Ranger Arc, I assume.” She greeted them.

“Yes, that's us.” Ambrosia giggled, her wings gave a little flap of excitement as she looked at all the colts and fillies. Oh she wants to adopt every one of them, her heart filled with delight and longing for them.

“Easy love.” Ranger chuckled before looking at the pony. “Sorry, we’ve been waiting for this moment for a while.”

Chestnut Falls smiled. “I think it's the same for the children, they too share the same excitement of finding their families.” She giggled once some of the children stopped for a moment and took notice of the strangers. A couple even worked up the courage to walk up to them, giggling and hugging them.

Ambrosia whimpered before she fell to the ground so she could hug them. “Oooh why do we have to pick one!” she whined.

Ranger smiled sadly for a moment before walking up to her, putting a tender hoof on her arm before looking at the mare. “I think we’re ready to get started.”

The two foals let go of Ambrosia and ran back to play with their friends.

“This is the second graders, they’re having recess at the moment.” Chestnut explained. She walked through the door, giving one of her employees the word to come out to watch the children.

Ambrosia looked at the children around her for a moment longer before she followed the crystal mare with her husband at tow.

Once the pink pegasus heard the unmistaken sound of tiny foals cooing and giggling, her heart exploded as Chestnut Falls led the two to the foal section.

It was sectioned off in two rooms. The large room was obviously the play area as the tiny foals that were still in diapers were playing among themselves. Plush toys and building blocks were scattered about the lavender color carpet. Some of the tiny unicorns were displaying their spontaneous magic by tossing and lifting things in the air. Some of the pegasi were zooming about screaming with glee. Earth foals running about and intermingling with the others while. There were 4 large round table benches where a couple of foals were drawing, one had their head on the table asleep. Some colt or filly had stuck pencils and candy in their very poofy toxic green colored mane. Through a closed door was a little smaller room, but it was filled with mostly empty beds where the tiny foals sleep. Some were currently inside and taking a nap. In total, there were ten tiny foals inside this facility.

“Oh my gosh, hon, the babies.” Ambrosia cooed as she saw the tiny foals around. However, she did remind herself to take caution; she didn’t think she could take another incident like last time they tried this.

Ranger giggled when he saw some colts were rolling around on the ground and both were squealing. A colt and a filly were racing around laughing as well.

It was quite loud, that’s for sure.

“It’s feeding time, we could use some help, if you don’t mind, that is.” Chestnut offered with a smile.

A little technique she tends to use for those looking for a foal to adopt, a bonding exercise, usually the first foal either parent picks up to feed is the one that gets a home.

Ambrosia nodded eagerly, her wings flapped in emotion.

“You truly made my wife’s day, Ms. Falls.” Ranger smiled, looking at his wife as two unicorns came in behind the three, one was pushing a three tier cart that was filled with baby bottles.

Ranger levitates two bottles up and floats it over to his wife as a swarm of babies gathered around their hooves wanting to be fed.

Chestnut Falls grabbed a bottle and a foal of her own, the two unicorns grabbed four and five bottles, emptying the cart and all of them grabbed a couple of foals with their magic and everypony proceeded in feeding a baby.

The foals squealed and cooed in delight as they were either held in the adult’s arms or cradled in magic and fed. Ambrosia was filled with joy as she held a tiny orange and pink spotted pegasus colt with pumpkin color mane and tail. His coat sparkled the same as the adult crystal ponies and among the rest of the foals in the center.

“So sparkly babies.” The pink pegasus cooed as she looked at the colt. He giggled and babbled as he drank his milk from the bottle.

Ranger tended to a little filly rose color crystal earth pony, her candy cane striped mane in pigtails. She drank two gulps of the formula and then puked at his face.

“Oof.” Ambrosia winced with a giggle, the caretakers chuckled. One of them levitated a towel over him.

“Thank you.” he said, taking the towel with his magic, removing his glasses and cleaning his face.

“You okay darling?” his wife asked, trying to not let him hear her chuckling.

“Good, I’m good.” He said with a grunt. Chestnut Falls sighed softly as she took the puking foal.

“I do apologize for that. Excuse me for a moment.” she said as she took the foal out of the room so she could get the filly cleaned up.

Ranger sighed as he cleaned his round rimmed glasses before putting them back on his face. His eyes adjusted seeing through for a moment till something caught his eye at the far corner of the room.

There was a bottle placed in front of a young dark colored unicorn. He noticed that she wasn’t moving towards it, was just looking at it.

Ranger took a step towards her to get a better look. He noticed that her horn was much smoother than the other unicorns in the room, and it was curved. Her eyes were strange as well, being red and green.

“Is there something wrong with this one?” Ranger asked the two caretakers.

“Just about everything.” one of them mentioned. “I’d be careful with that one.” caretaker one warned.

“Why?” Ambrosia asked, looking to where her husband was looking. Seeing the lone filly all by herself.

“You heard about what happened right?” Caretaker two asked.

“We heard.” Ranger muttered. Then realizing, turning towards the caretakers. “Are you saying that’s the filly everypony’s been talking about?”

The caretakers nodded.

“Yeah, that’s the one. Another shadow pony like that creature Sombra.” Caretaker One snorted as she switched foals to feed. “Probably his bloody spawn.”

The second that name was mentioned, the little filly consumed that bottle with her magic and chunked the bottle at the mare with a hateful screech.

“Whoa!” That caretaker, along with the foals she was holding with magic, jumped back as the bottle flew past her, hitting the ground and rolled away. The other foals began crying in unison. The adults’ ears flung back as the radiating sound of babies wailing echoed in the room. Even the ones who were napping woke up and started screeching.

“Sour Sweet, you dingle bat.” Caretaker two groans.

“What’s going on??” Chestnut Falls came back with the now clean filly foal, entering a screaming room.

“That little monster made the babies cry, that’s what.” Caretaker One, known as Sour Sweet, grunted as she began to try soothing her collection of crying foals.

The screaming was deafening to Ranger but he and his wife both tried to consol the babies in front of them.

“Oh dear.” the head of the foal center sighed heavily as she began shushing and holding the foals around her. “I am so sorry about this.” she apologized as she tended to the foals.

“I-It's not a problem. Honestly.” Ambrosia said as she managed to get a couple of the children around her to stop crying. Ranger managed to get two of his own to stop crying as well, showing off their parenting skills around the situation.

As the pink pegasus just put a colt to sleep with a rocking motion, she turned her head back to the dark unicorn. She could get a sense that everypony around the facility was uneasy with her. Even the children, for example the crying foals, didn’t like the young filly.

She hoofs the colt over to one of the caretakers before she trotted over to the milk cart and grabbed the last baby bottle and walked over to the dark foal.

“Be careful.” Ranger warned her as she approached the baby.

The tiny foal let out a low growl as Ambrosia walked up to her. “Hi.” the pegasus said as she sat in front of the child.

She then set the bottle down between the two.

“What’s her name?” Ambrosia asked the caretakers while not taking her eyes off the foal. She could tell by the filly’s eyes that she was not really happy. There was anger, but there was something else.

“Umbré.” Chestnut Falls responded. “At least that’s what Prince Shining Armor said when he personally brought her here.” she said as she watched Umbré and Ambrosia closely.

Though the filly’s magic was stable, she could still do some damage.

“Umbré, huh.” the pegasus said, looking at the foal. She gave her a soft smile. “Hello Umbré.”

Umbré continued to stare up at the pegasus.

“You must be hungry, here.” she said, pushing the bottle with her wing a little closer to the foal. “No one is going to force you to feed,”

Umbré grunted before pushing the bottle back towards her with her magic.

“She’s also very stubborn.” the second Caretaker muttered.

Ambrosia smirked. “I’m not moving this spot however. Not until you drink.”

Umbré stuck her tongue out at her, showing off her very tiny, needle sharp fangs.

The pegasus just sat there, looking down at the foal with that smile. A stare down if you will.

Umbré then used her magic to push Ambrosia away. The pegasus let out a yelp when being shoved six feet back.

Ranger quickly made his way to his wife. “Are you alright?” he asked her, making sure she wasn’t hurt.

“Ranger, I’m good, I’m good.” Ambrosia said, patting her arms. “I’m fine dear.”

“We’re going to have to cut this short, i'm afraid.” Chestnut announced, looking at the couple. “The foals need to lie down after this.”

“We’ll be coming back tomorrow, same time then?” Ranger asked as Ambrosia stood up.

The headmare nodded and then the two was escorted out of the center. The pegasus took one last look at Umbré before she left.

She now knows what that something was. It broke her heart to see it in her however.

The foal was deeply sad. That sadness was shown in her eyes. No pony that little should be sad.

No matter who she is.