Loss
Some Years Ago...
A dark violet-coated earth pony frantically paced back and forth in the waiting room of the Foal's Peak Critical Care Clinic. The sun out the window was beginning to dip below the mountains to the west. The clouds that had dominated the sky for most of the day were finally parting in time for dusk. As she turned, she saw her reflection in the east window, and saw that her expression completely betrayed how worried she felt. Her violet and dark blue mane came down to just past her face on the right side, and was now frazzled as she had run her hooves through it more than a few times this evening.
The mare had been here for just over an hour, having rushed her unicorn daughter here when she had limped home with a cut over her right eye and a sparking, broken horn. Her two friends Glitter Drops and Spring Rain had helped her home, and after hearing that it had been an ursa attack, she had sent them home to their parents immediately before taking her to the closest thing the small town of Foal's Peak had to a hospital. The pace had been slow because she had been trying to trot on three legs, having held up a hoof to her eye.
"Don't rub it." Soapberry had sternly instructed her daughter as they made their way through town. The pair of ponies came in through the sliding double doors, and were lucky enough to not have to wait at all; Fizzlepop was admitted immediately, leaving Soapberry Breadnut out here nearly worrying herself sick. Sitting still in the chairs against the wall only made the nausea worse, so she had opted to pace from one wall to the other as she had the waiting room nearly to herself. It seemed to help a bit, so she didn't really care if the receptionist found her hoofsteps against the tile floor annoying at all.
She wasn't sure how much longer it had been, but the two swinging doors to the patient rooms swung open, and the pediatrician on call came out, stopping the mare in her tracks.
"Dr. Wellhoof..." She greeted, trying to sound cordial through her worry as the stallion physician stepped up to her.
"Miss Soapberry." The attending physician greeted in kind. "The good news is, Fizzlepop is going to keep her eye. I'm gonna have her wear a patch for a few weeks, mainly as a reminder to keep her from rubbing it due to the minor corneal abrasion. It should clear up in about a week. I'm also prescribing an ointment for the cut. It'll help it heal a little faster, but it will probably be sore for a few weeks, and I can't promise that it won't leave a scar. She's very lucky, Soapberry... A quarter of an inch more, and her eye likely wouldn't heal."
The mare took a deep breath, letting it out in a half-relief, but also steeled herself, as she knew the doctor wasn't done.
"And the bad news...?" She asked at just above a whisper, with Dr. Wellhoof likewise taking a breath.
"I'm afraid her horn injury is permanent. Her magic will be diminished for the rest of her life. It will also be unstable until she can be taken to a specialist. There is training, and perhaps even physical augmentations that can help her stabilize and use the magic she has left. But for now, I have to recommend she use her magic as little as possible. As it stands right now, I'm afraid she could be a danger to anyone around her if she tries to use her horn normally. It will be a very jarring change for her. Miss Soapberry, I'll be honest... Fizzlepop asked me how long it would take to grow back... I'm... I'm afraid I didn't have the heart to tell her the truth." He explained sullenly.
"That's alright, Doctor. I understand. I'll... I'll figure out a way to break the news to her. I just..." Soapberry paused as she started to pace again, away from the doctor, before whipping around as she found her words again. "Gods, what were they doing all the way out there? They know how dangerous those caves are, there are warning signs everywhere! What were they thinking??? Th-they could have been killed, for Celestia's sake!" She asked incredulously, her emotions finally bubbling to the surface.
"Miss Soapberry, if our children's decisions and judgements made sense all the time, I'd wager that being a parent would be much easier than it is... A single parent at that." Dr. Wellhoof replied, trying his best to set the mare's mind at ease. This was not her fault, or due to any lack of parenting on her part. Fillies and colts got messy and got hurt, and while they were mostly scraped hooves or a sprained wing, the truth was that sadly, sometimes the injuries were as serious and life-changing as this. Ursas were very territorial, and they had ventured too close.
The filly was lucky to be alive.
"Fizzlepop, enough. If you don't stop, I'll have Dr. Wellhoof prescribe an inhibitor, and I'll take it out of your allowance. I mean it." Soapberry warned as she tucked her daughter into bed, the sparks from the jagged tip of her broken horn dying down. She grabbed the tube of ointment, squeezed a dab onto the tip of her hoof, then carefully peeled back the white bandage patch that she had left the clinic with, beginning to apply it to the swollen line of red that started at the base of her horn, went down across her eyelid and stopped just above her right cheekbone.
"How long do you think it'll take to grow back?" The young filly asked, wincing at the light sting of the ointment, looking up at her mom with her good eye, keeping her right eyelid shut.
Soapberry let out a soft sigh as she finished the application, and carefully replaced the bandage, swallowing the lump in her throat, wondering if she had it in her to pierce and shatter the innocence in her daughter's eyes. They shared the same eye color, and her daughter's orchid coat was a few shades lighter, but the greatest contrast between the mother and daughter was her mane; Soapberry's darker colors could help her vanish into the night, while Fizzlepop's rose mohawk was much easier to pick out of a crowd.
"Sweetheart, you're the first unicorn in our family in two generations. I'm afraid I don't know. Horn injuries aren't that common, and we can't afford to go see a specialist right now. The doctor said it might not grow back. The three of you should have been more careful. You really need to take this as a life lesson." She told her, capping the tube of ointment before setting it on the nightstand next to her daughter's bed.
"I had to go get the ball..."
"Fizzlepop, part of growing up is being able to judge when a situation is too dangerous, and you have to turn and run away. This is pretty bad, but it could've been a lot worse. Luckily Spring Rain and Glitter Drops are okay. We can go visit them tomorrow. For now, get some rest." Soapberry said, getting up from the bed and walking to the door, shutting off the light.
"And if there's any way to get your horn back, I'm sure you'll find it."
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Is this the last story in this series?
10469276
No idea. This takes place before the last story's epilogue. It's been simmering for a few months.
flash sentry?
10469952
What? No. This is the sixth part in a long running story of mine.
I have to see what happens with Soapberry.
Hm. Kiddie Fizzle. Let's see what happened pre-runaway...
10470304
It's gonna be my usual style, a time jump after the prologue.
I saw this is part of a larger thing. But why does this fandom seem to have a fetish for Tempest being a Royal Guard? Let alone the Captain?
Last I remember, Hasbro or IDW didn't start the idea.
10470338
Same reason why Lyra has a human fetish.
We latch on to some things and just run with it.
10470343
Lyra's thing I'll agree with, even though it never amounted to anything in the show beyond a weird sitting position.
Tempest, I never saw anything show wise that hinted at this. Maybe in the comics, but I don't have a very good opinion on them.
10470344
I'd be thrilled if you go back and read from the beginning, but I was one of many that saw that Tempest was a considerably capable fighter, and that Twilight's castle and Ponyville didn't have any guards, despite being the home of a princess for years.