Afterlife

by Star Sparkle

Bath Time:

After I had read some pages more into the book and then turned to the last page and I was finally done with the book and just on cue, a couple of minutes later Twilight called ‘’Sta-ar! Sta-ar! It’s time for your bath!‘’

‘’Coming!‘’ I called back, as I took the book inside and placed it back on the shelf and I left my room.

As I entered the living room Twilight stood at the bathroom door, I walked over to her and as she opened the door, I walked inside and saw a wooden barrel as steam came out of it.

At the barrel, I placed my hoof in and it was the perfect temperature, as I saw my hoof glowed the same purple as Twilight’s magic, I was levitated up and into the barrel, I then noticed that it was Twilight who levitated me and she got over to me, she scrubbed my mane, tail and especially my fur.

As I sat and was bathed like a child I asked ‘’Hey Twilight?‘’

‘’Yeah?‘’ She asked.

‘’I was just wondering, why didn’t I get a ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party? And what’s a Cutie Mark? And what’s this special talent I heard about?‘’

As she cleaned my mane with her hooves, she answered ‘’Whoa, that’s a lot of questions sweetie, but I’m actually glad you brought it up. About the party…‘’ She sighed ‘’You would have gotten that party on the day you would have found out you couldn’t go home, at this moment at least, so I feared that you would have seen it as a ‘You can’t go home’ party instead.‘’

She paused and after I took it in, I said ‘’Thank you Twilight. That was maybe for the best.‘’

She sighed again and said ‘’Yeah, that’s maybe why some ponies had been looking at you weirdly, as most ponies do get a party, but Pinkie understood… But how come you want to know about Cutie Marks?‘’

‘’No reason really, Apple Bloom just said something about, me not having one and Fluttershy said that she had a talent to talk to animals, so I just wondered if they were connected.‘’ I replied.

Twilight then stood up and as she pointed to her flank and a tattoo that I hadn’t noticed before as she said ‘’A pony usually gets his or her Cutie Mark at around your age. But only when you find your hidden special talent, which makes you unique from everypony else. Just like Fluttershy, I too have a special talent, but mine is magic, symbolized by my six pointed magenta star. Pinkie Pie also has her Cutie Mark, which is three balloons, but that doesn't mean that her special talent is blowing up balloons, she has instead interpreted it to her cherry mood and her love for parties. So a Cutie Mark can be anything and it’s free to interpret. Do you understand what I’m saying?‘’

I thought for a few moments as Twilight was finally done with me and as she said I was just that age for one, I asked ‘’I think so, but does that mean that I’ll also get a Cutie Mark?‘’

Twilight thought for a little while before she said ‘’To be honest Star, I thought that you would already have gotten your Cutie Mark, especially after what happened last night.‘’ I looked confused at her and as she saw I was lost, she said ‘’Back to when I got my Cutie Mark, I got the same kind of uncontrollable magic as you did, but not as powerful, but that could just be because a newborn Unicorn foal’s magic is normally quite stronger than normal and I believe that you just got all ten years of uncontrollable foal magic and a magical surge at the same time.‘’ I sat and tried to process what she had just told me and as Twilight saw that I needed some time, she said ‘’I will just find some towels to dry you, okay?‘’ I nodded and she went out of the bathroom.

In that short time I thought about it, I realized that I didn’t care about Cutie Marks, I was only concerned about the magic burst I made yesterday, but as there was nothing I could do about that at the moment, I tried to move on.

More time went by and with nothing else to do, I became bored and thought about how long I could hold my breath underwater, after I had walked around in the tub, I lay down in the water, with my head fully under.

After a few seconds I saw, through the water, the door opened and Twilight came in and had a look of terror on her face and as her horn began to glow, I got the cue and quickly got up, Twilight stumbled on her words as she asked ‘’Wha, wha, what happened? Did, did you fall? Ar, Are you, are you okay?‘’

As she looked around me and my head for anything I said ‘’I’m fine, I was just bored.‘’

She took me in for a tight embrace as she loudly said, still in shock ‘’Star you scared me, don’t ever do that again, okay.‘’

Her words really hit me in the heart, as I replied ‘’I, I’m sorry big sis, I didn’t mean to scare you.‘’ As I hoped that calling her ‘big sis’ would calm her down. It felt like it didn’t as she only held me tighter, but she lifted me out of the bath and onto a towel on the ground.
As I stood on the floor, Twilight let go of me and began to dry my mane, tail and coat.

When done, she sniffed one more time before she tried to say with a happy tone ‘’All dry now, I will call for you when it’s time for bed.‘’

I couldn’t ignore her sniff and turned to face her, placed both my hooves on her chest while I looked up into her eyes and said ‘’I’m fine, see, you don’t have to cry.‘’ She took her hoof around me and hugged me and I hugged her, even though it felt weird as I stood on two legs.

After Twilight had calmed down, we let go of each other and as I was about to go back to my room, Twilight asked ‘’Hey Star, you wanna read next to me until bedtime?‘’

I turned around to see her, she had a hopeful look to her as I said ‘’Sure, I’ll just get my book.‘’

After I got the last book, I went back to Twilight and as I saw Spike read something I asked ‘’Hey Spike, um… What are you reading?‘’

He looked like a kid on his way to open a Christmas present as he eagerly said ‘’It's called Power Ponies, a team of 6 awesome super ponies that fight against criminals and this time the octopus Tentacle Tanner comes out of the ocean and wants to destroy the dam behind Maretropolis and flood the whole town.‘’

‘’Well, sounds like you have an interesting read ahead of you.‘’ I said as I laid down next to Twilight, he smiled and returned to his comic, while I began to read as well.

When I was a few pages in Twilight stood up and as I slightly leaned on her, I slipped onto the floor, Twilight looked back at me and asked ‘’Are you okay?‘’

I nodded as I responded ‘’Yeah, I’m fine, just surprised.‘’ She giggled and went into the kitchen and I went back to my book.

With my mind only reading, something came in between me and the book, which made me snap away from the book and look at what it was, a cookie. I then looked at Twilight who did not have a cookie and I said ‘’Thanks.‘’

‘’Well, you have been a good filly today, so you’ll get a cookie.‘’ Twilight said full of joy.

As I felt it was much like something else I asked ‘’Like a dog treat.‘’ As I hoped they had dogs here.

‘’Well, in a way… Yes. But if you don’t want it, then I’ll eat it.‘’ Twilight threatened.

‘’No no, it’s mine.‘’ I quickly responded, but as I realized what I had just said, I felt warm in my head and lowered it, as Twilight giggled at me.

Tasting the cookie, my taste buds went crazy, I then ate the rest of it within a second and asked ‘’It was really good, can I have another?‘’

Twilight gave me a smile and said ‘’If you’re good tomorrow as well, then you’ll get another cookie.‘’ But as I had to accept that, it was for some reason difficult and as Twilight looked at me, she continued ‘’But I’m happy to know that you like it, as the recipe has been in the family for generations. Though when Spike was a newborn I was still a filly and wasn't given the recipe, that was until a few days ago. As you’ll only get the recipe when you have somepony to make them too, only then will you learn it.‘’

‘’So… Because your parents adopted me and I live with you, then you got the recipe?‘’ I asked as I wanted to make sure that I had heard her correctly.

She smiled and nodded as she said ‘’That’s correct, because our parents adopted you, I finally got it.‘’ We then went back to our reading.

Twilight poked me in the side as she said ‘’It’s over your bedtime.‘’ I nodded as I stood up, I looked towards Spike and saw that he was already asleep.

Twilight then followed me to the bathroom and again brushed my teeth. After that whole thing was done, I went to my room and in front of my bed, I only stood as I waited for Twilight to levitate me onto the bed, moments later Twilight came, she smiled and said ‘’Try and jump up.‘’

I looked back at the bed and swallowed, I lowered my rear legs and jumped my front legs and on two legs, I jumped with my rear legs. With my front hooves and about half my body on the bed, I still fell down on the floor, but I didn’t hit, instead I was suspended in mid air and flew up onto my bed.

Now that I was on the bed, Twilight came onto the bed with me and leaned against the side of the bed as I lay on her with my ear on her chest and she began to read from some book I didn’t see the title of, Twilight then asked ‘’Do you want me to read to you?‘’

As I became more and more tired by every heartbeat, I said ‘’No thanks, I’m good.‘’ So she continued to read internally.

I broke the silence as I asked ‘’Isn't it convenient that I’ve already met all of your friends?‘’

I could hear her heart as she giggled before she said ‘’Well, maybe a little bit, but you still haven’t met Rarity or Rainbow Dash.‘’

I didn’t recognize the names, but I remembered a pony with a rainbow mane from Canterlot and asked ‘’Does Rainbow Dash have a Rainbow mane and tail?‘’

She stroked my mane as she said ‘’She does, while Rarity has a white coat and a purple mane and tail.‘’

After a while I came to a point where I wasn’t awake or asleep and as I felt Twilight lifted me off and placed me down on the bed and with my head comfortably laid on the pillow, the sheet came over me and she tucked me in. I felt as she used her hooves, instead of magic and for some reason it felt more comfortable.
I then felt her lips on my forehead as she kissed me, just before she whispered ‘’Goodnight little sis.‘’ Her hooves became distant as I fell completely asleep.

Comments

[Feynna]

She sighed again and said ‘’ Yeah, that’s maybe why some ponies had been looking at you weirdly, as most ponies do get a party, but Pinkie understood… But how come you want to know about Cutie Marks? ‘’

Really? That's the reason for the weird looks? And who wouldn't want to know about Cutie Marks, they are like what drives society in Equestria...

Twilight then stood up and as she pointed to her flank and a tattoo that I hadn’t noticed before as she said ‘’ A pony usually gets his or her Cutie Mark at around your age. But only when you find your hidden special talent, which makes you unique from everypony else. Just like Fluttershy, I too have a special talent, but mine is magic, symbolized by my 6 pointed magenta star. Pinkie Pie also has her Cutie Mark, which is 3 balloons, but that doesn't mean that her special talent is blowing up balloons, she has instead interpreted it to her cherry mood and her love for parties. So a Cutie Mark can be anything and it’s free to interpret. Do you understand what I’m saying? ‘’

A Cutie Mark isn't exactly hard to notice... The eye is typically drawn to things that stand out on a person and if you aren't exactly covering up your tattoo, you can bet people will stare at it for a little while at some point.

[...]I believe that you just got all 10 years of uncontrollable foal magic and a magical surge at the same time. ‘’

That argument would be valid if Star had been a unicorn since birth. I'd argue that it has got something to do with the nature of the transformation magic that Celestia, Luna, etc. pumped into Star.

As she looked around me and my head for anything I said ‘’ I fine, I was just bored. ‘’

Do you actually do that? If so, please stop with that. Being bored shouldn't make you want to hold your breath underwater...

He looked like a kid on his way to open a christmas present as he eagerly said ‘’ It's called Power Ponies, a team of 6 awesome super ponies that fight against criminals and this time Tentacle Tanner comes out of the ocean and wants to destroy the dam behind Maretropolis and flood the whole town. ‘’

All the jokes that could be made here... Seeing that this story isn't rated M, I won't make them but I'm sure you know what I'm talking about.

Twilight gave me a smile and said ‘’ If you’re good tomorrow as well, then you’ll get another cookie. ‘’ But as I had to accept that, it was for some reason difficult and as Twilight looked at me, she continued ‘’ But I’m happy to know that you like it, as the recipe has been in the family for generations. Thought when Spike was a newborn I was still a filly and wasn't given the recipe, that was until a few days ago. As you’ll only get the recipe when you have somepony to make them too, only then will you learn it. ‘’

Again with the constant treatment of being a child. I would understand that if Twilight was actually Star's mother, but enforcing good behavior isn't necessary for an adult as they should know better how to behave. Ah, well...

I broke the silence as I asked ‘’ Isn't it weird that I have already met all of your friends? ‘’

Why would it be weird? I don't understand.

[Luckyfanisaac]

After a few seconds I saw, through the water, the door opened and Twilight

As she looked around me and my head for anything I said ‘’I’m fine, I was just bored.‘’

‘’Well, you have been a good filly today, so you get a cookie.‘’ Twilight said full of joy.

Though when Spike was a newborn I was still a filly and wasn't given the recipe,

Twilight poked me in the side as she said

I could hear her heart as she giggled before she said ‘’Well, maybe a little bit, but you still haven’t met Rarity or Rainbow Dash.‘’

She stroked my mane as she said ‘’She does, while Rarity has a white coat and a purple mane and tail.‘’

my head comfortably laid on the pillow,

[KvAT]

As she cleaned my mane with her hooves, she answered ‘’Whoa, that’s a lot of questions sweetie, but I’m actually glad you brought it up. About the party…‘’ She sighed ‘’You would have gotten that party on the day you would have found out you couldn’t go home, at this moment at least, so I feared that you would have seen it as a ‘You can’t go home’ party instead.‘’

FINALLY SOMEONE GETS IT! You won't believe how a lot of HiE fanfics don't get this.

[Killjoy1221]

10617713
You'll never go home. Twilight won't let you.