Ocean Blues

by TalkingToMyself

Chapter 15

Blue had more or less just dropped out of the sky as soon as her adrenaline ran out. She had barely noticed the rough impact on the ground, and she hadn’t even bothered getting up since then. Even if she could figure out where she was, there was no reason getting back anyway.

She messed up again. Not even in magic pony land could she last more than a day without fucking it all up again. She had nobody to blame but herself. Story of my fucking life.

This had been literally her last chance, for her and for her sister. Why couldn’t she keep her temper in check just for once? She had told the princesses everything and she had promised it wouldn’t happen again. They wouldn’t forgive her that kind of relapse, not so soon after making that promise. They’d see her as a threat to their world and just dump her back through the portal. The only hope she had left was that maybe Spring Meadow was allowed to stay. Her sister would be better off in this world and better off without her messing up everything.

Blue didn’t know how late it was by now, but it couldn’t be much longer until nightfall. She wondered why she even cared. I should just stay here where I can’t mess up anymore. Maybe for once I’m lucky and a magic monster shows up and eats me.

As usual though, she wasn’t lucky. She heard a rustling and a shadow passed over her. Next thing she knew, a pair of purple legs filled her field of vision. She didn’t even bother looking up.

“Are you okay, Ocean Shore?”
Blue pressed her eyes shut
“Only judges and parole officers call me Ocean Shore. Which one are you?”
She heard a sigh from Twilight as the taller pony sat down on the ground in front of her
“Neither, I hope. But that really depends on you now.”

All Blue could do was nod
“Are you going to lock me up or are you throwing me back through the portal? Doesn’t matter I guess. I promise I won’t make a fuss.”
“Ocean Shore! Look at me!”

Blue angled her eyes up to Twilight’s face and even though she had a stern expression, the princess didn’t look angry somehow
“I’m the Princess of Friendship and I want to give my friend another chance. But you’re making it really hard right now.”
On instinct, Blue’s pony ears flopped down, and her wings twitched
“I’m sorry, Princess.”

Twilight looked at her and held her eyes with her own
“What you said to Scootaloo back there. When you threatened to hurt her. Did you mean it?”
Blue hesitated for a moment. She could probably soften the blow by telling the princess what she wanted to hear. She knew what probably was the right thing to say. Problem was, it was far away from the truth.
“Yes. Every word of it.”

Princess Twilight’s expression didn’t change at all. She just acknowledged Blue’s sincere confession with a nod
“Why did you feel so strongly about it? Was it because your Scootaloo was Anon-A-Miss?”
Blue flinched and looked away
“No. I mean, it’s part of it, but not all. Anon-A-Miss, that still gets my blood boiling. But all the other things she said…”
“What other things?”
Blue closed her eyes again and her voice turned a little shakier with each word
“Like, ‘New Girl’. I’ve been ‘New Girl’ all the time when we moved around every few months. I always hated it when people didn't even bother to learn my name. Or when they said I’m ‘hopeless’ when they didn’t even know me. They also said I’m only a ‘waste of time’ when not even teachers wanted to bother with me.”
Blue gritted her teeth and clenched her eyes shut, even if it didn’t help hide the angry tears
“Bitter Leaves called me ‘lost cause’ all the goddamn time.”

“He was the human who tried to get you back into a prison, right?”
Blue nodded again, which made some of her tears drip down from her muzzle
“He also set things in motion so Spring would lose her job at the hospital. And he’s behind the people who tried to separate us. He hates people like me who don’t deserve a second chance. He used to tell everyone that ‘as long as he keeps lost causes like her behind bars, he was doing society a favour’. When she called me a lost cause as well, I just…”

Words just tumbled out faster than she could think, along with more tears that dripped down to the ground. It wasn’t an excuse. There couldn’t be an excuse for this, not even in magic pony land. Especially not in magic pony land where everything was butterflies and rainbows filled with cotton candy. It was stupid to think she’d ever have a chance here.

Princess Twilight didn’t say anything for a while, but when she did, her voice still wasn’t as angry as Blue would have expected
“I’m pretty sure Scootaloo didn’t mean anything. She probably didn’t think about what she was saying at all. But that doesn’t make her words any less hurtful for you.”
Blue dared to look up. Twilight was standing again, towering over her with a thoughtful expression
“I’m not okay with how you reacted towards Scootaloo, Blue. But I think I can understand why it happened. I can’t just ignore this either, I’ll have to discuss it with the other Princesses once we’re back at the castle.”
Blue dropped her head down towards the ground immediately
“I guess it’s the best place to lock me up, in some cell in the dungeon.”

Blue felt her head being lifted up by a hoof and she was looking at Twilight again. What she saw wasn’t anger, but pity
“I never said I would put you in a cell, I just said we’ll be going back to the castle. I don’t know what it is, but something always makes you assume the worst in every situation. You can’t just assume things from me, or from Scootaloo, if we don’t mean any harm to you. If you want to stay in Equestria, this is something you will have to learn, Blue. You have to listen to what ponies tell you without seeking a hidden threat behind every word.”

Blue didn’t look away. There was some hope in what Princess Twilight just told her, but even as she tried to see it, there was like a fire alarm ringing in her head, telling her not to trust those words.

In the end, she shook her head with an angry snort
“I’m not sure I can do it. That’s a lot harder than it sounds, Princess.”
“Then you have to try and practice. Otherwise, you’ll end up in more fights anypony can ever win, Blue.”
At that, Blue could only laugh, and she hated how bitter it sounded even to her
“Story of my fucking life.”

“You didn’t come here to keep going on with the same life you had before, Ocean Shore. You are here to change, literally and figuratively, so you better start right away.”

Blue looked down, at her own hooves. Somehow, seeing these new limbs seemed a lot stranger to her than the first time. Still, she knew they were hers, just like the wings on her back now. Change didn’t just happen like that. She had to want to change for anything to happen at all. And if there’s anything I want, I want to change. Even if it’s hard.

She got back on her hooves and rubbed the remains of tears from her muzzle. Her wings flared up from her back, but she folded them down to her flanks again. It wouldn’t help to run away.

Blue looked at Twilight again and faced her expectant look
“What do I have to do?”

Twilight only indicated a nod, but she was smiling again. Not the bright smile she had when she welcomed Blue and her sister on the first day, but it was a start at least
“First things first, I suggest you apologize to Scootaloo, and to Rainbow Dash. They should already be at the castle by now. Then, you’ll have to figure out yourself what has to happen next.”

Blue nodded. She already had an idea what that meant
“Which way is the castle again?”
Twilight’s smile grew a little and Blue was blinded by a flash of purple light for a moment. Suddenly, they stood in the entrance hall of the castle.

“Take the stairs up from here and you should run right into them, Blue.”
Blue blinked but shoved away the surprise for now. Maybe, she would get a chance to ask about this later
“Right. On it.”

Halfway up the stairs, she could already hear some shouting, so she followed that to some kind of meeting room. As she got closer, she heard some of the argument.

“She tried to hit me! Why are you even defending her, Rainbow Dash?”
“I’m not defending her or anything! I’m just saying, maybe you’re not totally innocent on that one.”
“What? She acted like a jerk! Why do you like her better than me?”
“It’s not that, Scoots! Maybe she’s a jerk, but some of the things you said were just as mean. No wonder she ticked off.”
“Mean? I just said she’s a worse flyer than you, and it’s true!”
“I was there Scoots, and that’s not how you said it. Even if it’s true.”
“So what? Now I’m responsible if that jerk can’t take the truth?”
“Scoot, you called her a lost cause and a loser. How did it feel when Diamond Tiara called you that back then?”
“I hated that… but it’s not the same! Diamond Tiara was just mean and everything I said was…”
“…just as hurtful, even if you didn’t mean it. Blue doesn’t have friends to fall back on like you did. She’s new in town because in her old home, everypony was mean to her. She never got a chance to fly before and the first filly she meets calls her a loser. Great start, right?”
“I never meant it like that…”
“And how is she supposed to know that? She doesn’t know you, or me, or anypony. So she just took everything you said as it sounded, and boy did it sound mean to me.”

Blue stayed in the doorway and looked at scene in front of her. Scootaloo was slumped on the floor, just like Blue not so long ago. The fact that it was a hard crystal floor and not cold, wet forest ground barely made a difference. And just like Blue, Scootaloo needed somebody to talk some sense into her. Rainbow Dash looked angrier than Princess Twilight, but they both let it go for the sake of the pony they had to lecture. Blue hesitated on the doorstep, until Scootaloo started talking again
“I’m sorry Rainbow Dash. I never meant…”

Scootaloo trailed off, but Blue got it. She knew what the young pony wanted the say, because it was the same for her. Maybe they were not as different as she had thought.

“Yeah. Me too.”
Both Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo turned around when Blue chose that moment to reveal herself. She was past the doorstep now, but only two steps. As she had expected, Rainbow Dash immediately stepped between her and Scootaloo with her wings spread out in a way that meant ‘angry’ and ‘protect’ at the same time
“What are you doing here? You really got a lot of nerve showing up again after what you did.”

Blue let her head slump down, so she ended up staring at her own hooves. Of course, despite everything she had just said, Rainbow Dash was loyal to her almost-sister Scootaloo. How could she not? They’ve known each other for years and Blue was just an intruder from another world. But she still had to try at least
“I just want to talk. I want to apologize”

Unseen to Blue, Scootaloo was watching her closely from behind Rainbow Dash. Rainbow was watching too, but with anger in her eyes and her voice
“Well, we don’t want to hear it! So why don’t you just go back where you came from and leave us alone!”

Blue clenched her eyes shut and her ears flopped down instinctively. Rainbow Dash had every right to be angry at her, of course, but she had dared to hope the good time they had before would mean anything. She should have known better, but here she was anyway, and she sounded like she was about to cry
“Please, I just want to talk. I don’t want to hurt anyone.”
“Oh yeah? You have a really weird way of showing it.”

Blue didn’t know what else to say, so she just said nothing. She knew that if this was her Rainbow Dash, there was no way she could convince her right now. She would need something short of a miracle too…
“Okay.”
Both Blue and Rainbow Dash threw their heads around to stare at the small pegasus. Scootaloo just looked at Blue and said again
“Okay. Let’s talk.”

“Scoots, you don’t have to…”
“I know, Rainbow Dash. But…”
Blue took a deep breath and nodded. She knew why Scootaloo couldn’t say it, because she couldn’t either, so she just mumbled a “Thanks” under her breath.

Apparently, that was already too much, because Rainbow Dash flared up her wings again
“Now wait just one sweet second. If you think I’m going to leave Scoots alone with you, then…”
“Rainbow Dash! Please!”
Blue turned her eyes back towards the floor. Maybe she couldn’t convince Rainbow, but Scootaloo could, and it worked.

With a defeated sigh, Rainbow turned back towards Blue and her anger returned. She shoved Blue hard towards the wall farthest away from Scootaloo. Blue let it happen and glanced up at the angry mare for what had to come next
“Listen chump, if you try anything like you did before, I’m gonna make you regret the day you ever set a hoof into Ponyville. You got that?”
“Yeah.”
Rainbow Dash glared at her for a minute longer and then stormed out of the room. Both Scootaloo and Blue flinched when the door slammed into the lock.

They both stayed silent for a while. Blue had said she wanted to talk, but now that she had the chance, she was having some trouble finding the right place to start. Instead, it was Scootaloo who said something first
“You’ve never been flying before today?”

Blue just shook her head. She knew she had to come up with some backstory eventually, but right now, she needed all her wits just to remind herself to keep breathing
“What’s it like, flying?”
Blue just shrugged and her wings rustled at her sides
“You’ve got wings. You tell me.”
“I wish I could.”

Scootaloo turned away when Blue stared at her and instead looked out of the window, towards the clouds
“My wings are too small. The doctor said they didn’t grow along with the rest of me. Maybe they’ll catch up one day, or maybe not.”

Blue took a deep breath and slowly walked towards the window. Not being able to fly must be like not being able to walk for a human. Probably worse, since everything she’d seen from Rainbow Dash, the whole pegasus life revolved around flying and flying skills.

She didn’t know how to respond, but Scootaloo still had things to say, so she listened
“I always wanted to fly with Rainbow Dash, but I never could. I can walk on clouds just fine, I just can’t fly. But it’s your first time, and you’re already flying with Rainbow Dash.”

Blue reached the window by now and sat down next to Scootaloo who was still watching the clouds. Scootaloo didn’t sound angry like Blue had expected, what she heard sounded more or less like resignation. Scoot was just a small filly, a young girl by her standards, and that made it sound so wrong. Blue felt like she had to say something now, something encouraging like she knew either Rainbow Dash would say, or something wise and profound like Princess Twilight or maybe Miss Celestia might say.

Too bad she couldn’t think of anything like that. Instead, she just went with the thing that seemed natural to her
“Shit. That just sucks, dude.”

Scootaloo turned her head and stared at her. She wasn’t scared anymore, now she just looked surprised. She probably wasn’t used to people swearing around her because she was still a young filly. Blue knew better though. Blue knew Scootaloo wouldn’t like being treated like a young girl, because she hated that as well when she was younger. So, she’d keep swearing
“It fucking sucks.”

Scootaloo grinned, almost gratefully. Blue’s swearing wouldn’t help her deal with her small wings any more than before, but it felt good that a though pony who was even cool enough to be a friend of Rainbow Dash acknowledged her problems. Even if it was just by cussing.

They both turned back to the window and stared at the few clouds that hovered over the castle, just barely out of reach. It wasn’t a comfortable silence, and Blue was the one who broke it
“Listen Scootaloo, I just wanna say…”
“Yeah. Me too.”
“Cool. Thanks.”

There wasn’t really much more they had to say, at least to each other. Blue knew this was far from over, so she appreciated that at least with Scootaloo, she could keep it simple. In that regard, they were very much alike.

Instead, she got back to something that had stirred her interest before
“So… you can walk on clouds?”
Scootaloo turned around to stare at her
“Uh, yeah? So can you. Duh.”
Blue’s wing twitched when Scootaloo started laughing again
“Wait, don’t tell me you didn’t know that? What kind of pegasus are you that you don’t know that?”
Blue felt a twinge of anger, but nowhere as bad as before, so she could deal with it this time
“You know, for a pony who can’t even fly herself, you’re far too cocky, you little hypocrite.”
“Hey! Don’t call me things I don’t even know what they mean!”

Blue rolled her eyes, but with a smirk
“How about we give it a try instead?”
Scootaloo didn’t understand at first, until Blue pointed at the clouds outside, and her face lit up in a smile
“Alright! I mean, if you think you can do it, that is.”

Blue only laughed more when Scootaloo tried to hide her excitement. She tried to sound cool, but her wide smile clashed heavily with that. That kid just spends too much time around Rainbow Dash.
“Let’s do this.”

Blue fumbled with the window to get it open and already spread her wings for take-off, but then remembered something
“Oh, right. Hop on.”
Scootaloo’s face lit up even more when she climbed on Blue’s back. It felt weird for a moment, but Blue shook it off and spread her wings again
“Hold on tight, squirt!”

She put more power into her flapping as before but found that it wasn’t necessary. She barely felt Scootaloo’s weight, and she could still manoeuvre just fine. She didn’t go for any stunts with a passenger though and steered straight for the biggest cloud of the bunch. She flew a wide turn so she was hovering above it, unsure if it was safe to just land. Scootaloo however just hopped down with no concern at all and stood safely, the cloud just barely dented under the filly. With a few careful flaps, Blue lowered down until she stood on her four legs on the foamy surface.

“It’s warm.”
“Well, yeah. What did you expect?”
Scootaloo laughed when Blue lowered herself down until she was lying on her belly, with her legs tucked under her. She sunk in just a little, like on a very soft mattress, but immeasurably more comfortable. She wouldn’t fall through the cloud. She just knew this instinctively and felt safe. Combined with the surprising warmth, Blue could have just closed her eyes and dozed off up here.

Scootaloo squatted down on the cloud as well and watched as Blue experienced sitting on a cloud for the very first time. It wasn’t really that different from watching a pony who had just received their cutie mark and now tested out their new special talent. Speaking off…

“Hey new girl, can I ask you something?”
Blue frowned but was far too comfy to get up and get angry like before. Scootaloo still noticed and remembered a few of the things Rainbow Dash had told her
“Sorry, but I don’t think I ever caught your name. I probably should have asked about that earlier, huh?”
Blue rolled her eyes, but her frown faded. At least the filly was trying now.
“Just call me Blue.”
“Just… Blue? What kind of name is that?”
“You’re one to talk.”

Scootaloo took her breath for an indignant response, but only let out a long sigh instead
“Sorry. I did it again, didn’t I?”
“Kinda. Don’t worry though. What did you want to ask?”
“Oh, right. Um, so I was wondering… if today was your first time flying, how did you get your cutie mark?”

Blue was far too comfy on the cloud to worry right now, so instead of making up an elaborate background-story, she just shrugged and stuck to the truth
“I dunno. It was just there at some point.”
“Huh. That’s odd. Normally, getting a cutie mark is a very special moment. It doesn’t just happen like that.”
Blue shifted a little on the cloud so she could look at Scootaloo
“And you’re like the expert on butt marks or what?”

“Well, yeah. See that?” Scootaloo turned to show off her own mark, which was a tricoloured shield with a lightning bolt on it.
“I’m a Cutie Mark Crusader. I’ve helped tons of blank flanks getting their cutie marks and even helped grown-up ponies figuring out theirs.”

Blue had no idea what a ‘blank flank’ was but finding out more about her mark sounded like a good idea. However, before she could ask Scootaloo about it, something else in the sky caught their attention
“What’s that?”

Scootaloo looked up and saw something big in the sky, heading directly towards them. She could make out a few pegasi as well. Since the thing came from Canterlot, she had an idea
“That looks like Princess Celestia’s carriage. Huh, that’s strange, I didn’t hear anything about a visit from the Princess. Twilight usually makes a big deal out of this.”

Blue could think of a few reasons why the princess would visit and a few more why Twilight Sparkle would try to avoid attention for this. Unfortunately, she couldn’t be picky about what kind of attention she would get today.
“Hey Scootaloo, let’s get back to the ground. I have to talk to the princess.”
“Huh? You mean Princess Celestia? Why?”

Blue just nodded but didn’t answer, but Scootaloo saw how nervous she suddenly was, so she climbed on her back without any fuss. Blue spread her wings and glided down towards the castle doors again, just as Princess Celestia and Princess Luna climbed out of their carriage and headed for the castle doors.

“Wait! Please!”
Both alicorns stopped at the door and watched as Blue landed close to them. Scootaloo hopped of her back and bowed down like anypony would, but Blue just ran up to the princesses without any decorum
“I need to talk to you!”

Luna’s eyes met hers and like the other day, Blue got the feeling that she was looking into her rather than at her. Princess Luna didn’t seem to like what she saw, because she was frowning
“And it seems to be something very important as well. Could it be why Princess Twilight asked for our presence tonight, Ocean Shore?”
Blue bit her lip and nodded. She kept her head low, unable to face Luna’s stare right now
“Probably. I… there’s something I need to tell you. Before you talk with Twilight. Please.”

She didn’t really make a good job of selling herself, but the royal sisters just shared one of their sideways glances and nodded
“I’m sure there is a room inside we can borrow. I have a feeling that this is nothing you would like everypony to hear.”
Blue nodded, with her eyes still held low and her ears flopped down
“Thank you, Princess.”
Blue followed them inside, but a call had her turn around at the door

“Wait! What’s going on? Are you in trouble?”
Blue forced a confident smile for Scootaloo who was staring at the scene before her with wide-open eyes
“Don’t worry kid. Hey, can you do me a favour? Can you find Rainbow Dash and tell her ‘Thanks for the lesson’ from me?”
Scootaloo didn’t really look less worried at that, but nodded anyways
“Sure. But why don’t you tell her yourself?”
Once again, Blue didn’t answer and just nodded
“Thanks. See you later, kid.”

With that, she walked through the door into the castle and wordlessly followed the two princesses into what seemed to be an unused office. Celestia and Luna watched her closely, so she took a deep breath and started talking.

It took her a while to explain everything that happened, from the actual thing over her talk with Twilight to her sort-of-apology to Scootaloo. She didn’t dare looking at the princesses when she was finished. They didn’t say anything for a while and Blue just kept staring at the floor
“I suppose that does indeed explain why we were called in today. But there is one thing I still want to know.”

Blue nodded and turned her head slightly towards Princess Celestia, even if she kept her eyes cast down
“Why was it so important to you that we have this conversation before we talked with Twilight Sparkle?”
“Because… because she would have kept out some details. She would have tried to make me look less bad. I don’t deserve that, and you should know the truth before you make your decisions.”

Blue swallowed down the lump in her throat and waited. The two princesses said nothing for the longest time, until Princess Celestia spoke up again
“Very well. You can be sure we will consider what you told us today. You may leave now, Ocean Shore.”
Blue nodded and got up and turned towards the door, when Luna’s voice stopped her
“Wait!”

Blue turned her head and finally looked at the princesses. Neither of them seemed obviously angry, but Luna was staring at her with those eyes again
“You made a promise to us. You didn’t even last a day before you broke it. I think we deserve an apology from you for this, at least.”
Blue just shook her head, eyes back on the floor
“There is no good apology for it. But, for what it’s worth, I’m sorry Princess.”

Celestia acknowledged this with a nod and asked with a somewhat softer voice
“Is there anything else you need to tell us, Ocean Shore?”
Blue clenched her eyes shut so she wouldn’t cry in front of the princesses and nodded again
“Just one thing. This is my fault. Please don’t pin this on anyone else. Don’t punish my sister for my mistakes.”

---

When Spring walked through the hallway back to her room, she still didn’t know how to feel. It was still weird dealing with four legs and a lack of hands, but only when she thought about it. Back in the hospital, she had almost slipped back into some kind of routine, at least when she talked with the doctor about the patient.

At the same time, walking around with a princess was not normal at all, especially when all the people around them bowed to her. Add that to her breakdown in front of said princess and that unreal talk with the doctor… she really didn’t know how to feel.

A part of her told her she should be thrilled. She had the support of one of the most important people in this world and she had impressed the doctor with all the things she knew. Heck, she even already got a job if she was allowed to stay, at a hospital where she could finish her nurse training, maybe even add to it. She had all the reasons and more to be happy right now.

But then, there was also the far bigger part of her that constantly warned her. Princess Cadance had no good reason to just help her out of the goodness of her heart, she probably had some ulterior motive behind it. If she wasn’t careful, she might end up in some political quarrel between Princess Cadance and the other princesses. Doctor Lucky Clover was too quick to agree on being her guide, who knows what he had in mind for her behind Cadance’ back? If he kept his promise to keep quiet in the first place. Spring didn’t know if there was something like the FBI in magic horse land, but if word got through that she was a literal alien from another dimension, she and Blue could end up as lab rats for some crazy scientist.

Thinking about Blue snapped Spring Meadow out of her mountain of worries, for now. They still nagged at her from the back of her mind, but she hadn’t seen her sister since breakfast and the need to check up on her was stronger. And maybe, Blue would have some good news as well, despite everything. God knows that Blue really deserved a break from all the shit that had been going on in their lives recently.

When she reached her room, she immediately knew something was terribly wrong. Blue sat by the window… moping. With her new body, it was more obvious than ever. Her pony ears were flopped down, the wings hung down limp at her sides and her whole posture was just wrong. Blue had been through an unhealthy number of troubling situations in her life, but Spring Meadow had never seen her like this. Blue would get angry. She would scream, drown herself in deafening music and maybe even throw around some furniture. Or she would run away somewhere to let off some steam. One day, she’d been gone for three days and Spring still didn’t know where she’d been. But even through all that, she’d never seen Blue mope like this before.

This could only mean one thing. Something had gone awfully, terribly, catastrophically wrong. In a dash, she was at her side. While her worries went into overdrive, her pony body acted on instinct. Her hooves wrapped around Blue and as she leaned in, she nuzzled the top of her head. Blue, following her new pony instincts just as much, pressed in against her.

They stayed like this for a few minutes when nobody said anything. Spring felt the wetness where Blue’s head was pressed against her, which caused her grip to grow a little firmer still
“I’m sorry, Spring… I messed up again…”
“Blue, you didn’t. It’s just this new body and…”
“I did! I know I did! There’s no one else to blame this time.”

Spring, without realising, switched back to their first language
“Shut up! I know that’s not true. You’ve never done anything bad without any reason!”
“There was no reason! I just got mad and I tried to hit her! I would have beaten her up if Twilight hadn’t stopped me!”

Spring just held her sister for a while longer
“Who was it? What did she say?”
“Scootaloo… she…”
“The girl who framed Sunset?”
“No! That's just it. She's just a little girl... little filly who never did anything like it, but that didn't stop me. I was so angry, and when she said some stupid things she never meant, I tried to beat her up.”
“But you didn't?”
“No... Princess Twilight stopped me in time.”

Spring just held her sister even closer
“We can't change what happened, but we can still make something out of this. We could run and try to blend in somewhere else and...”
“Spring. I already confessed. To Celestia and Luna.”
“What? But Blue, why? We could have found a way.”
“No! Not we! I messed this up. You don't have to run away or anything. This is just on me.”
“Blue, shut up. Like I would ever leave you.”
“I'm serious! You stay here and have a good life for once and I'll just... I dunno.”
“How can you even say something like that?”

They kept going back and forth and neither of them even realized that they had gone from mumbling to loud shouting. Since they were still talking in their first language, nopony could understand what they were talking about, but it clearly drew some attention.

“Hey guys? Everything okay with you?”
Blue looked up and stared at Sunset who was standing in the door. The unicorn looked at her with pity in her eyes, but right now it was more than Blue could take
“Do I look like I’m fucking okay?”

Spring pulled away from Blue when she started yelling and Sunset walked into the room. A red horn glow closed the door behind her
“Twilight told me what happened. I just want you to know…”
“Just, shut up Red! I don’t wanna hear it!”

Spring and Sunset shared a glance and it only ticked off Blue more
“Stop fucking with me like this. I know I messed up. I didn’t even last a fucking day.”
“Blue…”
“Shut up! Just go and live a happy life here! You deserve it, and I don’t want to make everything miserable for you, like I always did.”

Blue would have probably gone on with her yelling, but suddenly something hit her head and made her jump on her hooves with an angry shout. She noticed a red glow and another pillow from the bed hit her straight in the face. A third one came flying, but she managed to deflect it with her hoof
“Quit it!”
“You quit it! What’s gotten into you, Blue? It’s not like you to get all whiny.”
“Oh yeah? What the fuck do you know?”

Sunset was now glaring at Blue and soon they stood muzzle to muzzle
“I don’t know, huh? You think I don’t what it’s like when you suddenly have a strange, new body? Or what happens when you’re suddenly forced to face all the bad stuff you’ve ever done? You really think I don’t know what it’s like to have a slip-up?”

Blue shook her head and her ears flopped down again
“I… no, I… I’m sorry, Sunset. I know you’re right. But, this time… I really tried. I really tried but I can’t do it.”
“Blue, you can’t just change in one day. Nobody is expecting that from you.”

Blue blinked away some tears, and now Spring and Sunset closed in on her again. Somehow, as a pony, it felt less strange. She knew if they were humans, Blue would have struggled against having someone sit so close they touched her, but right now she didn’t. Spring noticed as well and followed her instinct to lean her head against her little sister
“Blue, we came here so we wouldn’t be separated. So either we stay together, or we leave together. But you can’t push me away.”
Sunset nodded along
“I know it’s really hard right now, but you can’t give up from one set-back. You told Princess Twilight and Princess Celestia. I know they will give you another chance.”

Blue closed her eyes and her wings twitched
“How many more chances will I get, though? And how many more will I need?”
“Ponies are big on forgiveness. You’ll get more if you need them.”
Spring nuzzled her sister, following her pony instinct
“You don’t have to go through this alone.”

They stayed together like this for a while, and even though nobody said anything else, it made Blue feel better. Before soon, there was a knock at the door and Spike the dragon poked his head in
“I’m sorry, Ocean Shore? Twilight and the others want to talk to you in the throne room.”

Blue gave a deep, gusty sigh, but stood up and followed Spike through the castle. She seemed okay and had picked herself up, but anyone who knew her longer than a day could tell she wasn't back to her normal confidence. Her tail kept lashing nervously with each step and her ears twitched at any sound her hooves made on the crystal floor.

As they were getting closer to the throne room, Blue heard voices long before she could make out any words. She still recognized that high-paced rant as Twilight Sparkle, her human friend also got that whenever she was excited or agitated. From the sound of it, the pony princess wasn’t in the best of moods, and that was enough to get Blue worried again. Sunset could see and walked up until she was right next to Blue, Spring Meadow took her other side moments later. Before Blue could appreciate their support, they reached the door and walked in after Spike.

Twilight was agitated, even though her rant was over by now. Still, the way she looked at Celestia and Luna wasn’t all that pleasant. Twilight stood in the middle of the room, probably so she could pace around while she talked, if the human version was anything to go by, while the two senior princesses had retreated to their throne-seats at the map-table again. They both had that forced-neutral expression Blue knew from parole officers or judges. They both really didn’t like being here right now, but they forced themselves not to show it. Even a ranting Twilight wasn’t enough to shake their façade, although Princess Celestia did a slightly worse job on keeping up her cool that Princess Luna was.

As usual, Blue glanced around as soon as she entered the room and saw Princess Cadance was here as well, but she had chosen the far side of the room instead of joining Celestia and Luna at the table. She looked majorly pissed, or at least as majorly pissed as a pink pony with a heart on her butt could look like. However, that seemed directed mostly at the two royal sisters. In fact, when she noticed that Blue and the others were here, she even managed a quick smile in their direction.

Time seemed to tick slower as usual while Blue tried to read the room and figure out what was going on. The four alicorn princesses clearly disagreed on something, and it looked like Cadance and Twilight were on the same side. If that smile from Cadance was anything to go by, that side was Blue’s side. That could be good or bad, but in the end, it didn’t change the fact that she had royally fucked up. Didn’t take me long for that. Guess now it’s time to face the music.

Blue took two steps forward, so she’d stand by herself, leaving both Sunset and Spring Meadow behind. She messed up and now she’d stand up for it.

Princess Celestia addressed her first, with that same neutral tone she had earlier
“Thank you for coming, Ocean Shore. We would like to talk to about what happened today. Considering that it’s a delicate matter, maybe it would be best if we only talked with you first. Perhaps Sunset Shimmer and Spring Meadow could wait outside while we…”
“No!”

Princess Celestia found herself interrupted by Twilight Sparkle who even flared out her wings in emphasis
“They are guests in my home and my friends. I won’t tell them to leave. This matter concerns all of them.”

Celestia’s expression wavered a bit as she responded calmly
“Twilight Sparkle, you have already had plenty time to vent and convey your concerns to us, and I would rather not start another hour-long discussion. However, I hope you can understand that…”

As Celestia tried to start one of her famous long-winded answers, this time it was Cadance who cut her off short
“If you won’t listen to Twilight anymore, then you’ll have to listen to me. Spring Meadow and Ocean Shore came to us because the other world threatened to separate them. I’ll not just stand there and let you do the same, Auntie.”
At this point, Spring Meadow was right back at Blue’s side and probably glaring just as much.

Princess Luna who had been silent so far, now decided to speak up
“We have no intention to separate them. But we must address this matter in a proper way. Ocean Shore threatened a young filly on base of nothing but a misunderstanding. This is simply unacceptable.”

Twilight and Cadance backed up quickly
“She regretted it the very next moment.”
“And she apologized, properly.”
“She also confessed to both of you out of her own intend! That has to be worth something.”
Luna nodded, but her expression didn’t change
“It does. And I want to believe that Ocean Shore will stay true to her promise this time. But she made a promise to us before and broke it before even a day passed.”

Twilight was about to rant again, Blue could tell from the look on her face, but before she could, her muzzle was held shut by a red glow that belonged to somepony’s magic. Blue turned around and stared at Sunset Shimmer, just like everybody else, who kept her red magic glow in place as she talked
“Blue just got here. She has to deal with a new body, a whole new world and more things that you could even imagine right now. And I can tell from experience that’s not easy, on top of getting interrogated by four ponies she barely knows.”

Sunset, now sure that Twilight wouldn’t interrupt her, let her magic go and looked at Princess Luna
“When I was suddenly a human, I was confused and did some bad things. And even when I decided to change, I still slipped up a lot at first. But my friends understood and forgave me. They helped me get past that. Shouldn’t we do the same? When you returned after 1000 years, I’m sure you had some trouble adapting at first as well.”

Princess Luna held Sunset’s gaze, but her expression softened up. She nodded and shared a glance with her sister, who replied in kind, before she talked again
“As I was saying, we do not wish to separate Ocean Shore and Spring Meadow, but we want to make sure that this incident wasn’t more than just a slip-up.”
Celestia picked up from Luna and continued
“We believe that everypony can change if they want to. But Ocean Shore is not a pony like the others. Therefore, we would like to wait until we make our final decision.”

Both Celestia and Luna turned to look at Blue and her sister, who hadn’t said anything yet
“We would like to give you the chance to experience life here in Equestria, without any of us restricting who you meet and what you do. Show us that you can adapt to our world.”
“Think of it as a trial period, for us as much as yourselves. We will ask Princess Twilight to watch over you here in Ponyville. She will tell us how you fare, and then we will decide. And meanwhile, you get to see if you can be happy in this world just as much. In three moon’s time, we will meet again.”

Blue just stared and probably looked ridiculous with her mouth hanging open like that. She had expected a swift, harsh punishment, but instead she got this. Two ponies she barely knew just defended her without any good reason except that they wanted to believe in her. And even the two royal sisters, who were still angry at what Blue had done, even they didn’t think about punishing her. At least, not right away.

“Does that mean I’m on probation or something?”
Princess Celestia looked at her, frowning
“I would not want to call it like that. It sounds like we were just waiting for you to do something wrong. I would prefer ‘trial period” for now.”
“As do I.”

Princess Luna stepped forward from the table so she could me the two former humans eye-to-eye
“We won’t be hovering around you and watch your every step, but that does not mean we aren’t willing to help if necessary. Princess Twilight offered her castle for a home and if you stay in Ponyville for now, she will be close if you need anything. She will also be able to contact sister or me when our help is needed.”

Blue was still too baffled by all that happened. She couldn’t think of anything to say, so she just nodded. Princess Luna returned in kind and turned to Spring Meadow next
“Princess Cadance also told us that you already made some arrangements at the local hospital. We fully support those plans as well. If there is anything you need, please don’t hesitate to ask us.”

Blue bit down any comment and just nodded. There was still enough tension in the air that she didn’t want to talk right now. The others seemed to feel the same way, so after a minute of awkward silence, it was Spring Meadow who spoke up
“It doesn't make any sense. Why would you just let everything slide? There has to be a catch.”

Princess Twilight, who had been just as baffled as Blue but had recovered more quickly, now addressed Blue’s sister
“I understand that’s how you’ve come to expect it, but this is not the human world. This is Equestria. You can trust us.”
Princess Celestia got up from her seat
“I believe we said everything that needed to be told. In that case, we will now…”

“WAIT!”
Everypony, even Princess Celestia, startled at the sudden call and the blur of colours that burst in through the doors. Blue blinked a couple of times and the blur took the form of Rainbow Dash who stood in between her and the princesses
“I know I was angry and yelled at her, but that doesn’t mean you have to banish her!”

Blue just stared at the mare while behind her, the princesses fell apart. Twilight Sparkle rolled her eyes at her friend, but she was smiling. Meanwhile, Cadance and Luna both tried to hide some chuckling, though Cadance didn’t do a very good job of it.

Only Princess Celestia didn’t look amused and sighed out
“Why does everypony think I’ll banish them if they do something wrong? I swear, it happened one time a thousand years ago, but everypony acts like I do this every day.”

Everypony started laughing that that, not because it was very funny (at least for Blue it wasn’t), but mostly because Celestia failed to fake a pout in her voice. Princess Luna laughed hardest and returned to her sister’s side, with a wink
“You should leave acting to those ponies then, sister. You’re terrible at it.”
Rainbow Dash looked from pony to pony, utterly confused that her heroic entrance only caused laughter
“Can somepony tell me what’s going on here?”

While Twilight pulled Rainbow aside and brought her up to speed, the other princesses gathered around Blue and Spring Meadow
“We will return to Canterlot for now. We both wish you the best of luck for your future and I hope in three months, we will meet again under more fortune circumstances.”

Blue turned around to look at Spring Meadow. Her sister was staring back at her and she still looked confused and unsure, but not as devastated as before. Sunset Shimmer next to her gave her an encouraging smile and nodded as soon as their eyes met.

Blue took a deep breath, and then nodded as well. It might be tough, but she could do it. She had to.

Comments

[BottleH2O]

I honestly feel like the princesses are being a little too harsh here. They know full well what Blue's life is like and the only time she was provoked was by one of their precious little ponies who acted like a complete dick to her. Please tell me Scoots is gonna get some kind of punishment besides a talking to too because pinning it all on Blue is pretty unfair and what Scootaloo did was just as bad.

[TalkingToMyself]

10978742
Yeah, kinda. Since this story is focused on Blue, you get to see her side of things in more detail, maybe that's why it's 'harsh' compared to what Scootaloo got. Also, the princesses didn't really punish her. Most of it was in Blue's mind, because of her bad experiences from the past. I'm sorry if that wasn't clear enough during the story.