The Perfect Rose

by tom117z

16 - Grounded

Perfect Rose might have made a mistake.

She was sitting on the sofa in the living room of her family home, sitting rather awkwardly with her tail idly shifting back and forth as if it had a mind of her own.

She really wanted to put that tail in its place but didn’t want to get into more trouble by acting grumpy.

Stupid tail.

The young griffon didn’t entirely know what to feel at being grounded after their… ‘escapade’ in the castle dungeons. On the one hoof, she kinda deserved it. She HAD let loose a bunch of barely functioning ancient magic things that looked like metal ponies but scarier, and she HAD run away from them as they made the castle messy and made the normal ponies really mad and pouty. It had also been her idea to do the whole ‘Queen Griffon’ thing.

She still would’ve made an awesome queen. Or at least that was what Fluffy said, sitting still as he was on a pillow next to Perfect Rose.

Fluffy was also grounded. He didn’t have to be, but he wanted to be grounded with Rose so she wouldn’t be lonely.

Fluffy was great.

Still, despite maybe kinda sorta deserving to be grounded for accidentally causing a mess in Princess Celestia’s pretty castle, her parents being angry with her was still enough to make her beak quiver and her eyes water. Her stomach was doing backflips and she couldn’t help but sniff every now and then as if on the cusp of all-out tears. She had been close to them since the castle, but she had to remain strong for her equally upset friends. And now she just had to be strong because she didn’t want Fluffy to be upset too.

But not crying was hard, so she was trying very hard to focus on anything else.

She felt bad about her friends as well. Sundance and Bright Spark had been left behind at the castle when her parents had dragged her home. Their own parents had probably since picked them up with angry scowls and promises of no cookies for a month.

The. Worst. Fate.

As for Goldenblood…

She didn’t really know. The Princess had taken him aside herself, so she hadn’t gotten to see him much after everything happened. She’d have to say super-duper sorry at school because he was her friend now and this wasn’t ‘exactly’ the best start to that.

But that was a worry for later. Right now, she had to focus on the big thing. Namely, the grounding itself. Worse than that, how upset her parents were with her. They’d met with Time Catcher on the way back, and he also had that super disappointed look in his eyes even as he gave Fluffy back. He even said Fluffy was sad with her, which was kinda true, but the manticore had forgiven her as always.

Forgiveness with her Mum and Dad, however…

That was going to be a trickier thing to achieve.

Perfect Rose’s tail stopped swishing, the child giving off a loud groan before falling onto her back between the sofa’s cushions. The sudden movement disturbed Fluffy, who conveniently fell onto the griffon’s stomach as she wrapped the manticore up in her arms. She remained there for a good while, her ears listening out for any movement from beyond the closed living room door. Her mother had said to sit still, think about what she had done, and wait for them to come back from their talk.

But there was no sign of them as of yet. Just the occasional chirp of a bird outside and the soft squishiness of the cushions against her back. She sank into it quite far, her wings lazily sprawling out beneath her as she found a small degree of comfort from the piece of furniture.

She then held her favourite doll into the air, looking the manticore straight in its glassy eyes as her beak continued to quiver.

“They’re not gonna stay made forever, are they?” she asked it. “I know I was pretty bad today, but it’ll all go away, right? Like you forgave me, didn’t you?”

The toy was still.

“I know we’re besties and that’s totally different to being parents and stuff,” the child then lamented. “But still. Could you talk to them? Maybe get the cookie ban down a few days?”

Silence.

“…Yeah, that’s probably pushing my luck. But it sucks so baaaaad. I’ll miss you, chocolate chip-y goodness…”

Fluffy’s head jostled a little as Perfect Rose adjusted her position on the sofa.

“Yes. I know, we’ll survive this! Together! And then we’ll find Goldenblood and say sorry and sorry and very sorry until he forgives us for getting him in trouble. Sundance and Bright Spark too, though it was their fault too!”

Fluffy gave a completely unchanged look of disapproval.

“Was too!”

Nothing.

“Ah! Okay, fine! Mostly my fault. But not just me…” she complained. “Ughhh. Okay, but after that, Mum and Dad will forgive me and give us a load of hugs and definitely cookies. And then Time Catcher too. Because we… sorta… left him…”

Her stomach churned again.

“I don’t like being bad. Why was I bad? I’m a stupid dumb head. But at least he had you to keep him company. Oh! Did you go on adventures? Become superheroes like the Power Ponies? Did you find a super bad pony and stop it with super Fluffy Time Catcher powers!?”

Fluffy didn’t say a word.

“Awesome!”

She could have used those power when being chased by the metal ponies. Then she wouldn’t have broken Princess Celestia’s door.

She was pretty sure they had tape in one of the drawers somewhere. Maybe she could get some and go back to the castle so she could fix it? Door doctor!

Not as cool as Fluffy Time Catcher superpowers. But she’d take it!

It was around then that she finally heard movement on the other side of the living room door. Sitting up, Fluffy still clutched timidly in her claws, her eyes remained focused on the entranceway anticipating its opening at any moment.

What would they say?

Would they be angrier than before?

Would they kick her out!?

She didn’t want to go…

With all of these fears rampantly running around inside her head, an unstoppable flood now that the gates had suddenly been thrown open, did the door finally begin to open to admit the three ponies who were the focus of that fear. Her mother entered first, her father following on with Time Catcher taking the rear. Once they were all within, the butler closed the door behind him and stood in the corner while Rose’s parents approached the sofa with completely neutral expressions.

Those looks made it worse somehow. She didn’t even know what they were feeling.

“Perfect Rose,” Ebony spoke with an equal tone, albeit one that had an edge that very much conveyed who was in charge at that given time. “I hope you know, now that you’ve had time to think on things, why we’re taking this so seriously.”

The griffon nodded meekly. “…I was a super bad griffon and did a dumb thing and I’m sorry! I- I didn’t mean to… I mean… I didn’t…”

Her mother held up a hoof. “Stop. I don’t want to hear excuses. What I want to hear, Perfect Rose, is why what you did was bad.”

She tilted her head. Why what she did was bad? Wasn’t because of all the big messes she made by making the metal ponies make them? And getting her friends in trouble, that was bad too. And ditching Time Catcher while he was being nice to that mare. She thought it was kind of obvious what went wrong. A lot of obvious things at that.

It hadn’t exactly been their most successful of adventures.

“I… I did bad stuff and made a door explode,” she bluntly remarked. “And I didn’t tell Time Catcher where we were going… I’m sorry we left you, I didn’t mean to make you sad…”

“I am certain you didn’t, Madame,” Time Catcher replied. “However, it was my job to watch you while your parents attended to their business. And your taking advantage of a lapse in concentration, my assisting another pony in distress no less, was no less as alarming as it was hurtful.”

Rose sagged guiltily. “I’m sorry…”

“And that brings up the main point,” her father then spoke up. “I do believe you made Time Catcher worried sick when you vanished.”

“Indeed,” the butler confirmed. “I had no idea where you might’ve been. Had you simply wandered off or had something more nefarious taken place? If I could not find you, what was I to tell your mother and father? Especially leaving dear Fluffy behind, your abandoning that doll was most unusual for you.”

She held Fluffy tighter.

“Actions have consequences, young Madame. They must be thought through properly,” he then concluded with a sigh. “You are but a child, so I cannot hold you in complete accountability. But I could not bear something happening to you on my watch. Having watched you grow these past years… It goes without even considering.”

“Do you understand now, Perfect Rose?” Ebony asked. “Yes, what you did was bad. The damage to the castle after you accidentally turned on those golems. Sneaking in in the first place! That’s…”

“…A bit impressive, actually,” Cash noted.

“…Not the point!” Ebony rebuffed. “As much as all of that is terrible and worthy of your punishment in of itself, despite the Princess’ remarkably relaxed response… It’s far worse to consider what might have happened differently. Had you been seriously hurt! Or worse! You or any of your friends! The main point of why it was bad wasn’t the chaos itself, even though that IS bad, but the main reason is how it would have affected everypony around you if something happened!”

Perfect Rose’s young mind tried to consider that for a moment. If something had happened? Metal ponies breaking things was something happening, though. But she also said if she had gotten hurt. She guessed she meant super hurt, not just a scraped knee or something.

One time she thought she had lost Fluffy down a drain. But in reality, she’d just fallen behind a chair out of sight. The griffon had been super scared when that had happened, thinking that if she never saw Fluffy again…

An ember of understanding lit in the child’s mind. Perhaps not the full scope of what those consequences could be, just how hurt she could have been in differing circumstances, but at least enough to know a little bit of the fear they would feel in that scenario. A fear of thinking they might not see their daughter again…

“Perfect Rose…” her mother spoke out, her neutral expression breaking as her voice quivered. “If anything were to happen to you… If you were to get hurt I… I couldn’t…”

“It would make us very scared,” Cash simply explained, placing a hoof on his wife’s shoulder. “And very sad. Like you made Time Catcher very scared and sad today, but even worse than that if things didn’t turn our okay. Do you understand?”

She nodded. “Y-yes… I didn’t mean to make you sad… Please don’t cry, Mama…”

“S-sorry…” Ebony wiped her eyes quickly. “I just can’t bear to think it. Please promise me you won’t do something like that again. If you want to do something, ask first. Please don’t wander off on your own. The world can be dangerous if you go to the wrong places, please tell me you won’t get yourself hurt like that.”

“I promise to be good. Please be happy again… I…”

Perfect Rose sniffed, that barrier she’d placed around herself cracking as she finally started to let loose those tears she’d been withholding.

This was worse than them being angry. Them being sad and crying because of her made her wish they were angry. She didn’t want to make anypony cry! That was mean. She was mean! Like Ice Shard and Blueblood! Mean to her parents. Mean to Time Catcher. To Fluffy! Her friends!

She was just a meanie griffon…

“Okay, that’s enough of that…” Ebony cooed, pulling Perfect Rose into a loving hug as Cash immediately went to join them.

Both parents shed a few tears of both fear and relief of their own as their daughter sobbed away her guilt, her tears matting their coats as Time Catcher took a step closer to the family but kept at his own respectable distance.

Rose gave a hic, slowly pulling away from her parents and rubbing her eyes with a claw. She looked towards the butler, opening her wings and shooting towards him like a battle mage’s fastest bolt. She glomped him, holding him tight as her weeps suddenly returned amidst a flurry of apologies and guilt-ridden promises to be a good foal.

Time Catcher was clearly taken aback at first, blinking in surprise at the sudden attack of affection. But then he relented to it, putting his hooves around the young griffon and softly shushing her cries. Rose’s parents watched on at the sight, calming themselves and listening in until the child had worn herself out into a quiet slumber.

“I think she is sleeping,” Time noted, levitating the chick up and putting her onto his back. “I shall deposit her to her bed, she could certainly use the recharge.”

“Okay. Do that,” Ebony agreed. “Oh, that was more emotionally charged than I was expecting…”

“You’re telling me…” Cash muttered. “So… should we relax the grounding? She seems to have learned her lesson.”

“Maybe a little bit,” she concurred. “But only a little. She did wreck the castle.”

“She… did do that, didn’t she?”

Their daughter had wrecked Canterlot Castle.

Despite it all, they couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of that.

Comments

[The Voice in the Water]

I'm glad Perfect Rose understands (to a degree) why what she did was wrong. And that Time Catcher didn't get into too much trouble with Ebony and Cash.

Regarding wrecking the castle, I'm sure Celestia found the whole thing immensely entertaining.

[tom117z]

10351306

Regarding wrecking the castle, I'm sure Celestia found the whole thing immensely entertaining.

Very.

[Silver Echo]

I'm glad that she understands what she did wrong. I also like how she managed to befriend Goldenblood finally.

"Their daughter had wrecked Canterlot Castle." This line is beautiful. Celestia's laughter on the situation was amazing. If Luna had been present, she would have been most impressed.

[Silver Echo]

Overall I love this story so far. It is a nice change and brings some new life into Canterlot, especially the stuck up nobility. Please keep up the amazing work and bring forth more chapters.

[JMP]

Well, I'm glad Rose understood why she was wrong. It's very important for her to understand that. Celestia certainly had a great day, but I do feel bad for Rose's friends, especially Goldenblood. Still, it's nice to see Rose apologize to Time Catcher as well as her parents. She doesn't want her family to be sad, and Time is included in that.

[ArceusFan493]

Lord, I'm still worried about the situation with Goldenblood, I'm REALLY fearing the worst here.

Good chapter nonetheless, although it did have quite a few minor typos :P

[Nodqfan]

After reading the first few chapters of this story I'm strangely getting inspired to write a story where a family of ponies adopts a baby breezie.

[A Wild Magikarp]

“…A bit impressive, actually,” Cash noted.

Dads will be dads! Kid was naughty, but darn if it wasn’t in an eye catching way!

Time Catcher is up there with Alfred and Jarvis for best butlers ever.