> My Little Cuties
>  by Amazing Ups
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> { 1 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

There is a gaping hole in my life.

For the last 20 years I've been watching my whole life break down around me, and I've let myself break down from the inside out. With each year the aperture grows larger and larger, all my sorrows feeding the void. My family has been a a dysfunctional wreck for as long as I can remember. From what I can remember, I was the only one whose mind remained intact throughout the entirety of my life, but even now my sanity wavers. My father, a raging alcoholic, boasted a bipolar attitude that made his anger problems much more justified. He would always come home at late hours, smelling of liquor and shame, cursing my whole family. Said that we were holding him back, said he should've never even thought of children. Sometimes, I wish he hadn't.

My brother used to be a great person. He was the only person who really taught me anything in life. But when I was 10 years old, my father decided that my big brother, fresh out of high school, was plenty ready to face the world on his own. He didn't last very long on his own. He fell pray to a terrible disease with no cure. 

Crystal meth.

I'd visited him a few times in rehab. I could tell he was still the same big brother I'd known, but he was…changed. Now he's in jail. He tried to rob a bank to feed his cravings, and he killed a police officer in the process.

The final sad story to mention is my mother. She died when I was just 5 years old. She was fed up with my father's drunken antics, among other things. The car accidents; the lost jobs; the beatings. She had threatened to file for divorce is what my father told me. But he threatened her right back with a sharpened steak knife. So she did the only thing she could think of. The easy way out.

As for me, I finished my community college course a few weeks ago. As soon as I graduated from high school, my father threw me out just like my brother. I had been saving up for a while however, working at the local movie theatre. I had anticipated my father's decision. So now, I've got an apartment on "that side of town," the only thing I could afford. I still have the same jobs at the Theatre, serving up stale popcorn to this day.

I don’t know what keeps me going. 

Is it love? Is there something about this world worth living for?

Or is it hate? Do I want to succeed so badly out of spite, just to prove my father wrong?

Or...is it curiosity?

Whenever the odds have been insurmountable, whenever I felt like giving in, I let one question drive me.

Why am I here? 

And naturally, many other questions followed suit. What am I supposed to do with my life? How can I do it? And most importantly, why should I do it?

And on a separate tangent, which you maybe wondering at this point, how do I cope with such a gruesome past and dull present? Mainly, I take everything one step at a time. Whenever I want to just quit the game of life, I tell myself, “I can survive one more day.” It's like climbing a mountain. Just take one more step, and you're that much closer to the top.

And that’s how I make it through. 

However, there are a select few things that can help me and my sorrows. And although I don't care how corny it sounds, how childish it may seem, one of those things is My Little Pony.

I'd been completely in love with every aspect of the show since I first saw it on YouTube. I had found it laughable, and watched it ironically. "Grown men, watching ponies!" I said hysterically. Oh how the tables would turn.

As I continued to watch though, episode after episode, I was infatuated with the livelihood of the characters, their tangible personalities, and soon grew fond of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Just like me, they were constantly searching for a destiny they just couldn't find…asking themselves what their purpose was. I was soon digging much deeper than the show. I kept researching the culture behind it, the fan base, the music, everything. I had found something to help heal the hole. I filled my iPod with songs by brony artists, read countless fanfics, and I've even started saving up money so I can go to the next BronyCon. But with my current salary, it seems like a hollow dream. 

One fanfic I read hit me particularly hard. My Little Dashie. I sat on my couch for an hour, burning through tissue box after tissue box. I hadn't cried so hard since I was a child. After my mother's death, I felt like her passing had drained every last bit of emotion from me. Even though the tale left me feeling melancholy, I marveled at the thought of my own little pony, and the thought and heart put into the story; but I knew it could never happen. This was real life. Not a fan-fiction.

So I just keep living my life, convinced that the Pony world and mine are, of course, far, far apart.

***

It was a very slow day at the Theatre. I swept up spilt popcorn from the floor, and when my shift was done, I took off my old-fashioned usher uniform. Our manager, an old, frail man, couldn't afford to buy us new ones. My vest smelt of the aged popcorn I served so valiantly, and the mothballs that protected my uniform by night, two odors I'd grown accustomed to over the years. I usually would stay at the Theatre and watch a movie after we closed down every saturday night. The manager was kind if not anything else, and free movies were one of the few luxuries I could afford. But tonight was special. A brony friend of mine had found a link to the leaked first episode of Friendship is Magic season 3, and he said he would email it to me tonight. 

So. Awesome.

“Headed home for the night, sonny?” The manager asked.

“Yes sir. Just gonna call it a night.” I shook myself from fantasizing about what the new season may hold, and popped out a reply to his query. 

He smiled, beaming brighter than the neon lights of the open sign he proceeded to shut off. 

“Alright. You take care now.”

The manager always seemed to care about me. He didn’t really have much of a family, so he must have seen me as a sort of surrogate son. He said one day he would let me take over the Theatre. I didn’t know if I really wanted to. 

I walked outside in the cool moonlit street. I couldn't wait to get home. My second floor-apartment was a fair distance away from the theatre, which is on the outskirts of town. It's pretty far away from really anything important, and tucked away from most of society. As I rolled my skateboard home, I was deep in thought, pondering what intricacies of friendship and ponies the third era of FiM would usher in...

So deep in thought in fact, I rode right into the pothole I usually maneuvered around. 

I fell to the ground, spilling the popcorn I had brought home for the night all over the place. Hey, it was stale, but enough butter makes anything taste good. I cursed at nothing at particular and clutched my shin in pain. Hurt like hell.

I didn't feel like getting back up. I could barely see anything around me, as only a select few lights shone in this part of the city. I closed my eyes and tried to focus on lifting myself off the ground. I was about to ride off when something caught my eye. Yes, you guessed it.

A small, cardboard box lying in the street, illuminated by a single patchy streetlight. 

At first, I dismissed it. Just a box. A tiny, insignificant little box. But then, some sort of instinct kicked in. I got closer to investigate. There were five words on the side of the box, words I knew all too well. "Give to a good home." I blinked. The box was still there. The words were the same. I pinched myself; definitely not dreaming.

As I neared the box my heart beat a little a faster. Was this really happening? Could it really be happening? If this tiny, insignificant box held something more, could tiny, insignificant little me really hope to behold its contents?

I bent over, calling myself insane, and opened it up. I gazed downwards. My god.

In the box sat my heart’s desire. There in that tiny, insignificant little box, were three tiny, adorable little fillies: Sweetie Bell, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo, all breathing silently, huddled up together for warmth. They were shivering in the crisp November air. 

Omygodomygodomygodomygodomygodomygodomygodomygodomygod.

All three of them drowsily looked up at me, and started squirming around.

"Oh no, did I wake you up? I'm so sorry!" I whispered to them.

My speech only seemed to scare them. They crawled over in a corner of the box, with their big round eyes staring straight at me.

"Hey, come one. It's okay, I won't hurt you, I swear." 

I reached out my hand to them. They still seemed weary of me. 

"Pinkie Pie swear." 

I went through the custom motions of the Pinkie Pie swear, and in my nervousness, finished off by sticking my hand directly into my eye. I didn't exactly think that through, and flinched in pain. All three let out babyish giggles, and gingerly sniffed my fingers. Scootaloo was even daring enough to lick one of them. I barely managed to hold back a d'aw.

"Let's you get you girls to my house."

I picked up the box and ran home. Luckily it was late, and nobody was around to see me carrying a suspicious box in the middle of the night.

I battled myself internally. Half of me was extremely paranoid. "Is this a good idea? Is the government show up on my doorstep? Should I call someone?"

The other half of me was much more reasonable. "Who the fuck cares, ponies."

As soon as we were back in the apartment, I picked them all up and plopped them onto the couch. "What now?" I asked aloud. 

I had their undivided attention. At my words, Sweetie Belle cocked her head to the side like a little puppy, her usually poofy mane falling down to her side in scraggly bunches.

"Well…I guess you guys are probably real hungry, huh?"

Though they were still just babies, they seemed to understand me fairly well. All three sets of ears perked up at once. 

"Heh, I thought so. I'll go fix some dinner for you little cuties.” 

They seemed to emanate joy, happiness, sugar, spice and everything nice. I observed them from over my shoulder as I walked into the kitchen. I still couldn't believe this was happening. Three ponies, here with me in MY world. I reached for some carrots and sugar cubes out of the cabinet. It was particularly empty. I stopped for a moment. Was carrots and sugar cubes really a nutritious meal for these ponies? I'd have to stop going out every night and start buying real food, instead of living off Doritos and Hot Pockets. But hey, maybe not. I could call up some of my brony friends, see if they wanted to come over and… 

No.

Heeeeelllll no.

What was I thinking. I couldn't let anyone know about this. The Crusaders...they'd be put in a petting zoo, or be sold on Craigslist, or something much, much worse...I couldn't let the rest of my harsh world corrupt them.

I returned to them and they eyed the snacks with eager faces. I set it down for them, and they gobbled their snacks up ravenously.

"You guys sure have an appetite," I chuckled to myself. I still couldn't believe this. I had imagined this day for ages after reading that fanfic. And now it was actually happening. To me. In the real world.

When they were finished, I started to wonder aloud again. 

"How'd you fillies get here?" 

They looked as if they were quietly sharing their thoughts together. They all looked up at me with sad faces that clearly said, "We don't know."

I frowned. 

"Well…since you've obviously nowhere else to go, you three should stay with me for the time being." Obviously. Right? I was doing the right thing, right?

They all brightened up a little, and seemed to become a little livelier. If they were happy, I was happy.

"Well, for now, you'll have to share the couch." I was exhausted, and though the recent events had my heart racing, I just wanted to get to bed. But something held me back from entering my room. I turned around. And there it was. The three of them together, looking at me with pleading faces and puppy dog eyes. They didn't want to be left alone, did they? I thought back to all the episodes that they'd been in. There was one that particularly stood out in my mind. I tried to keep my voice down. I didn't want anyone to hear me, as this was about to be the most un-manly thing I'd ever done. I sat down beside them, and began...singing.

Hush, now, quiet, now,
It's time to lay your sleepy heads,
Hush, now, quiet, now,
It's time to go to bed…

I'll admit, I was a little off key, and I didn't have nothin' on Fluttershy, but it did the trick. Soon, the fillies were nuzzling up against me, drifting off to sleep. I was about to explode from the sheer cuteness of it all. I sat there, continuing to sing until their breathing patterns all slowed down to a regular pace. I could feel all three of their beating little hearts thumping along with my own. My God, how lucky was I right now? I couldn't even begin to explain. The three of them were just so innocent, so...adorable! They would've trusted anyone who picked them up out of that box. 

I was so glad I found them first. 

Eventually, I fell victim to my own lullaby, and blacked out into the best night's sleep I'd had in ages.

***

I woke up the next morning to the familiar sound of Ditzy Doo's voice on my computer.



The three fillies laid in sleepy disarray on the couch.

I quietly got up, trying not to disturb them. Sweetie Belle rolled off of me without waking up. Yeesh. They must have had a rough time yesterday, because they were absolutely KO'd. 

I looked through my email inbox. Junk mail, junk mail, junk mail. It was littered with updates on my favorite animes and deals for Domino's pizza. As I scrolled downwards, I shuddered. It was the link to the leaked episode. The responsibility of taking care of the little ponies was starting to hit me. If this was really going to be like the story I read, if I really wanted to do this right, I had to nip problems like this in the bud. I didn't even know if I could afford them; how did  "They shouldn't know," I said to myself as I deleted my MLP background, my beloved email alert, and everything pony-related on my desktop. "Not until they're ready."

***
> { 2 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

It's been a year since I first took up caring for these little fillies, and man has the time gone by. The three Cuties have begun to bond far more than they ever did within the show. They're not just best friends, they're sisters.They've been learning so much from each other...and I them. They've shown me the loving side of a family that I've never known. These times we’ve spent together have been absolutely wonderful.

I’ve been teaching them to talk, and it’s been going fairly well. They aren’t exactly fluent, but hey, they sure are trying. They've learned a handful of words since they've been with me. Mine, no, bath, and…Daddy.

Daddy. They saw me as Daddy, and I…I saw them as the daughters I'd been needing to fill the gap in my life. I saw them as my little girls; my little ponies;

My Little Cuties.

Naturally, after all this time, they've gotten the whole "talk talk words words" thing down. Experts at whining, especially Sweetie Belle. Of course, she takes after her sister.

I can't believe some of the things these rascals have been up to. Just the other day Scootaloo tried to learn how to ride my skateboard. She can get some amazing air when she uses her wings to power up… but she's causing a lot of racket. I'll have to find time to take her out to a skate park or something. When she showed me how she could practically ride on the walls of the apartment, I was thrilled. It was just like in the show, how she rode her scooter. Maybe when I saved up enough money I could get her one for her birthday. She seemed just as excited about it.

"Really Daddy? Just for me?" 

"Of course Chicken. As long as you share it with your sisters."

And yes, I do call her Chicken.

With the thought of the scooter in my mind, I've been wondering a lot lately about their Cutie Marks. Would they even be able to get them in my world? Now that I thought about it, would they even stay in my world long enough to get them? I know it's just a matter of time before Twilight comes and whisks them away, and I'll never see them again. But how long would that take? I hope I never have to find out.

Anyways, the girls have become absolutely inseparable. The other day they asked me if they could have their own room. It was an awkward question for me. I've been running behind on the rent lately, but the only thing that matters right now are them.

I smiled, ruffled up their manes and said, "Not now, but soon."

And soon came very quickly. The manager of the theatre passed away recently, and just like he said, he left the deed to the theatre in my name. I feel like I should be a little more sad at his passing, but…I’ve already lost a lot in my life. I guess I own a movie theatre now. Funny how that works. The theatre has a small apartment-complex-thingy right above it, much larger than my own abode, with an old office that could be the girls' room. When I told them we'd be moving in, they were beyond ecstatic. All’s that left is to pack up my stuff…looks like I’ll be using that box I found them in again.

***

Oh God, how could I have been so STUPID? I knew they were excited, and it was just like them to try something as ridiculous as this. 

After I had told them about the new apartment, I realized I had forgotten to lock up the theatre. It was pretty late, and it got broken into on more than one occasion. I used the money I had saved up for BronyCon to buy a new bicycle. So when I rode off and left them home alone, they decided to all pile up on the skateboard and rocket after me. As I was stepping inside, in the reflection of the glass door, I saw an orange, white and yellow streak headed straight for me. 

Time seemed to slow down as I saw Scootaloo losing control of the board. Her eyes were filled with panic as they wobbled back and forth with too much speed. All three fillies flew into the air, and I dived to try and catch them. 

Lying on the ground, I asked them quietly, "Are you all right?"

Sweetie Belle managed to say one thing. One terrifying thing.

"App…Apple Bloom..."

Oh no. I counted heads, short just one pony. I gingerly put them down out of sight, behind a dumpster, and hurriedly started searching for her. I was looking all around the street, the sidewalk, everywhere…and then I found her. 

"No…please no."

I picked her up from the ground, shaking uncontrollably. I looked down on her. Her front right leg was bent in a terribly awkward position. It wasn't broken, but she certainly wouldn't be using it anytime soon. I didn't realize it at the time, but my eyes started to fill up to their brims, and overflow.

"Daddy?" I heard Sweetie Belle's voice call out. "Is she alright?"

I couldn't bear to answer her. Her and Scootaloo were behind me, trying to get a good look at their sister.  It looked like she'd flew into the brick wall of the theatre and landed in the grass. Please let her be ok.Tears streamed down my face, and splashed down onto her. 

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle came up on either side of me. They both stood stock still, astonished.

"NO!" Scootaloo was staring, terrified. She sobbed into the side of my leg where I crouched on the ground. She managed to get some words out in between bouts of tears. 

"It's all my fault!" 

I searched for words to comfort her. Nothing came. Sweetie Belle still stood slightly behind us, shaking her head in disbelief with wide eyes. 

Apple Bloom coughed softly. Life seemed to surge back through her body. In a daze, she said, "Daddy? What happened?"

I didn't take the time to respond. I just hugged her tight like I would never let go. I just sat there, holding on to her as long as I could.

"It's ok Bloom…it's ok. Everything's going to be ok."

***
> { 3 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Much time has passed since that day. Apple Bloom's leg has healed up nicely, but all three of them have learned to be much more careful. We've moved into the apartment above the theatre, and things couldn't be better. There's a small, fenced in area out back where they can get fresh air, and now they've got their own room. Every once in a while, when a nice kids movie comes out, I take the girls downstairs and we all have movie night together. They love the silly stuff like Madagascar. Hearing their little giggles always makes my day.

They liked to watch cartoons too. Scootaloo always demands to watch stuff like Wipeout and the X-Games, which usually collides into Sweetie Belle's TV schedule. She seems to like to watch talent shows, when she's not watching Glee, that is. Apple Bloom seems to be content watching anything though. I'm just happy that we don't have the Hub on our TV.

I just found out that the tree in the backyard is an apple tree. A few months back I'd tried to chop it down for some more play room outside. It was a tiny little thing looking like it was rotting alive. But Apple Bloom had defended it furiously.

"What's that tree ever done to you, Daddy?" She had demanded of me.

"Nothing at all, but-"

"Then don't hurt it!" She had stood up on her hind legs, holding out her hooves in front of it. Since her accident, she had become a sort of reserver of justice in our household. I couldn't swat a single fly without letting it pass one of her little trials.

I sighed, thinking the tree a waste of space back then. But with the changing seasons, it brought the most apples I'd ever seen on a single tree! The spring air seemed to refresh it, coloring it with beautiful blossoms. Eventually the flowers yielded too many apples to count. We went out to pick them, and Apple Bloom seemed very content with herself now. The skinny tree drooped over with the burden of its fruit. The girls certainly weren't strong enough to buck the apples out of the tree yet, so I let them climb up in it and shake the apples off their branches while I gathered them up. When we were done with the "harvest," Apple Bloom even helped make apple fritters for everyone. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo had offered to help, but I was a little reluctant. Scootaloo would probably just throw in a bunch of candy or something, and as for Sweetie Belle…well, if you've ever seen the Sister-Hooves Social episode, I think you'll know why I decided to keep her "help" to a minimum. 

***

Sweet Celestia, I just witnessed the most adorable thing. 

I caught Sweetie Belle, all alone in her room, singing. Scootaloo and Apple Bloom had gone outside to play, but Sweetie had stayed inside. I mean, I know she likes all those singing shows, but this is something else.

She was singing the first song from Beauty and the Beast, one of the girls' favorite movies. It was just fantastic. She even did the other townspeople's voices, and the funny accents too. But that wasn't all. She'd gotten into my iPod and started listening to Adele. Luckily, I had wiped all traces of Brony music off of it beforehand. I had been worried that I might've forgotten a song, but something else caught me off guard. When I heard her belting out "Someone Like You" perfectly, an octave higher than it should have been sung, I couldn't help but putting my hand over my mouth to stop it from dropping in d'aw-ness. Her singing was just too beautiful. It's hard to believe, but ponies sure have good vocal chords. While I was sitting there by the door, I let one tear escape. Just one. These fillies sure know how to pluck them heartstrings. 

I was so lost in the moment, I hadn't noticed her stop singing and walk out of the room. 

"Oh! Dad..!"

"Hey sweetie." 

We sat there awkwardly for a moment. Then i realized how ridiculous I must look, leaned up against the wall with watery eyes, and stood up quickly.

Sweetie Belle gave me a sideways glance. "Don't tell Scootaloo."

"Hey now!" I stopped her from running down the stairs. "Is there something going on I should know about Sweetie?" 

"Nope, nothing!" She refrained from looking directly at me. "Nothing at all!"

"Come on Sweetie, you know you can tell me anything. So what's wrong?"

"Well…" Her voice trailed off. She seemed to be weighing the consequences of telling me anything. In a split second, she made up her mind.

"Well, Daddy, you've been taking Scootaloo out to practice skateboarding every night!" Her hair poofed up in anger. "And it's just not fair! 

"Me and Apple Bloom have to stay up late waiting for you two, and we get so bored and tired!" She lightly stamped her hoof for emphasis on certain words. "And we thought, if we could do something cool like Scootaloo could, you might notice us some more.." Her mane shrank down to its regular size as a sadder tone enveloped her voice. 

I gave my self a mental facepalm. I should've noticed how reclusive the two had been lately.

"So you and Bloom are just jealous of Scootaloo?"

"I am NOT jealous!" At my words her hair inflated even more than before. "You've been totally ignoring us and it's not fai-"

"Shhhh." Sweet Celestia she takes after Rarity. Always the Drama Queen. "You know I'll always love all of you equally. Scootaloo can skate, but what I just heard? That was incredible Sweetie Belle!"

I'd never heard of a pony blushing before, but I swear I saw her fur turn pinker just a bit. 

"You know, if you work at it some more, you could probably even get your cutie mark."

Now she was practically bouncing up and down with happiness. "You really think so, Daddy?" Her squeaky voice gave me a smile.

"I know so. Now go play with your sisters. I'll meet you all downstairs later, and we'll play Hide and Seek." 

As she skipped away happily, I made a mental note to myself to talk to Apple Bloom too. I wondered what she had been practicing-

Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw something.

In the house across the street, there had been a black and white blur. Some sort of tall figure. But that house had been abandoned for years…

"Dad? You coming?" I heard Scootaloo's impatient voice call out. 

"..Yeah, I'll be right down." I pushed all thoughts of the apparition out my mind, and started counting to 10.

***
> { 4 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

So I met this girl, right?

One night while I was working the concessions, she walked out of her movie, I asked her if she enjoyed it (the same way I ask everybody else), and somehow we struck up a conversation. 

And somehow, we've got a date this weekend. 

Before she came by, I told the girls she was a health inspector. I felt a little bad about lying to them, but what could I do? I was that weird guy who lived alone in a rundown movie theatre. Plus the fact that I secretly take care of three ponies. So I decided to seize the opportunity,

We watched our movie rather uneventfully. She ate popcorn, I ate popcorn, she laughed, I laughed, and so on. When the credits started rolling, we got up and hung around outside for a while, chatting idly. 

I tried to break off the conversation and get back inside to the girls. Who knows, they might be trying to make milkshakes again like last week. Not pretty. 

"Well, I guess it's time for me to close down.."

"Do you mind if I come upstairs for a drink?" She asked suddenly.

I stood there sort of flabbergasted for a moment. This was the first person who had remotely interested in me for ages. 

"Well uh, it's a huge mess and I don't think-"

"Oh pshaw. I'm sure it's not that bad." 

"Haha.. no, it's pretty ridiculous up in there. I'll go clean it up."

I practically flew up the stairs, going three steps at a time. I slid into the living room, and saw that Scootaloo and Sweetie were feuding over the remote again. 

"Girls! The health inspector is coming upstairs, and you all need to get to your room. Now."

Scootaloo entered whining hyperdrive. "But Daaaad, tonight is the-"

"THE SEASON FINALE OF GLEE!" Sweetie Belle squeaked. "For the hundredth time Scootaloo, nobody wants to watch stupid Tony Hawk!" 

I was getting a little impatient. "If you girls don't get up to room ASAP, you won't be watching anything for a month."

Apple Bloom bounced off the couch. "It's y'all's problem now," she said rather matter-of-factly. 

Sweetie Bloom and Scootaloo glared at each other, then walked off to their room in a huff. I sighed in relief, stuck my head out the window and called out "Come on up!"

We sat there and talked, and then talked, and talked some more. We talked about current events, politics, music, just about everything. Then the conversation strayed to the internet, and the last place I wanted it to go.

"So, you ever heard of My Little Pony?"

My blood stopped cold. If I had been drinking some water, I guarantee I would have sprayed it everywhere.

"W-what?"

"You know, My Little Pony? It's basically been defining our generation lately. You haven't heard of it?" 

"Uh, I've seen like one episode, but that's it." 

"I've been watching all the episodes, it's actually a pretty cool show.. but there are all these unnecessary little episodes always dedicated to these stupid three ponies, the 'Cutie Mark Crusaders.'"

I involuntarily twitched. What did she say about my girls?

"There's this one hilarious part in the newest episode, I've got to show you!" She ran over to my laptop and started letting her hands fly over the keyboard. 

My mind was reeling. This was just too strange.. and it was getting risky too. "Oh my gosh, it's taking forever to load. But like I said, these three are the most annoying little horses you've ever seen. This is the part where that brat Scootaloo gets her-"

"You need to leave. Now." Now, I was mad.

"Excuse me?" She turned around, looking baffled. 

"Please. Leave." I gripped her hand tightly, and escorted her to the door. I pointed a stern finger down the stairwell.

She gave me a flustered look. "So what, you're rejecting me?"

"GET OUT!" I practically threw her down the stairs.

She got up and fixed her hair. "Fine, you bipolar freak!" She stomped off, and knocked down a stack of cups behind the concession counter on her way out. "Seeya later, asshole!"

Well. That was an ordeal. I thought to myself. I watched her walk through the parking lot to her car. Then somebody else stepped out of it to greet her. A man, sporting a pair of sunglasses and a suit. She shouted something at him I couldn't quite hear, and he got back in the driver's seat. There was something vaguely familiar about him…

"Daddy?" I heard Apple Bloom call out quietly. 

She was joined by Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. "What was all that yelling?" She asked with a small voice.

I put a hand on my forehead, quelling the small headache that came with my outburst. This would be hard to explain to the girls. Then I heard Sweetie Belle's voice. But there was something different about it, something just not quite the same..

"You did it Scootaloo! You did it! You finally got your Cutie Mark!" 

My heart dropped to the very bottom of my stomach.

I'd forgotten to turn off the computer.

All three of the fillies stood in horror, as their cartoon counterparts frolicked and leaped with joy on the computer screen. 

I watched on as my little girls' worlds were turned upside down. 

"Dad.." Scootaloo turned to me, desperation in her tone. "This is a joke right?" 

I was at a loss for words. 

"Right?" 

I mustered enough courage to look her in the eye. "Scootaloo, I-"

"Did you know about this?" Apple Bloom looked up from comforting Sweetie Belle. There were lines on her face from where the tears had been coming down. 

"Well, I used to watch the-"

I stopped mid-sentence, making eye contact with Scootaloo. She hadn’t cried since Apple Bloom’s accident, but now I saw her eyes, hollow with desperation and denial, fill up with tears. 

"I HATE YOU!"

The words echoed in my mind, bouncing off the back of my brain. It took a moment for me to even register what she had said. I didn't understand. My Little Cuties, who I'd raised from a box off the streets like they were my very own…my Scootaloo, my Apple Bloom, my Sweetie Belle…


I

HATE

YOU


No.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no.

I brought my hands to my face, terrified. My eyes burned with liquid sorrow. It was like someone had cut on a faucet in my head, and there was no way of turning it off. All the memories of a disturbed childhood, all the lost opportunities of a normal life, all the nights spent crying myself to sleep…

They all returned to me in those three words. 

"You told us we were special…" Apple Bloom said.

"Y-you told us we were o-one of a kind…" Sweetie Belle sobbed, in between bouts of tears.

Scootaloo, still crying, looked at me contemptuously.


"YOU LIED!"


I just laid there pathetically, wallowing in a pool of my own tears.

"But why??!" Scootaloo's anger gave way to utter confusion. 

"Oh God, I'm so sorry…"

"Why?"

"I never wanted to hurt any of you.."

"ANSWER HER!" Apple Bloom screamed furiously.

I couldn't manage to do anything. All my energy was drained, put to work pouring out my heart and soul of darkness and tears.

"I'm so sorry."

I crawled towards them, reaching out my hand.

"God knows I don't deserve it...but please…forgive me."

All three of them looked at me. I could tell they wanted me to comfort them, to hug them and kiss them and love them like a good father was supposed to. But their distrust held them back. So we all sat, listening to the sound of sobbing and crying and tears rolling off cheeks and hitting the floor.

It was only so long until one of us cracked.

"D-d-d-d-daaaaaaaaaddyyyyyyy!" Sweetie Belle broke out of Apple Bloom's arms, and came running to me to jump into my arms in a sweet embrace. 

"Oh God Sweetie, I love you. I'm so sorry."

Apple Bloom saw the love and affection, the love and affection she wasn't receiving, and followed suite. 

"Shhh, it's okay Bloom…I love you."

Scootaloo stood there before us, more demoralized every second. She walked up slowly to me. She fell to her knees, her head inches from mine. 

"D-daddy, I'm s-"

I raised my finger to her lips.

"I’m sorry. I love you Chicken."

At hearing her childhood nickname she usually scorned, she hurled herself onto me with the others, bawling her eyes out. We laid there, letting out the explosions of emotion that had pent up inside of us for our entire lives. 

I felt so much better, now that My Little Cuties were in my arms again. 

"I'm so sorry girls. I'll never do anything to hurt you ever again…I swear."

I remembered a similar promise I'd made to them so many years ago...

"Pinkie Pie swear.”

***
> { 5 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

God, what am I doing.

Those were the words that kept going through my head, as I slammed it repeatedly into the wall of my shower. 

The girls have kept themselves locked up tight in their room for the past several days, only coming out on occasion. We've all forgiven each other over and over, time after time, but there's still a sort of rampant depression taking over our household. It's like a small, personal raincloud has been hanging over all of our heads, following us around wherever we go.

The shower, strangely enough, is where I do some of my best thinking. As well as some of my worst.

I cried into the drain, not differentiating between the water coming from the shower head and that of my own eyes. My recent experiences have left me thinking, thinking about all those memories I had locked away. But now, they awoke in all their terrifying vividness, and haunted my days and nights. 

It was all amplified this morning, when I received a letter reporting my brother's death. He had caught some sort of virus while on parole. With my his passing, I lost my last tie to reality. The only person I knew and loved that wasn't a miniature equine was gone. 

Soap suds seeped into my eyes, making them sting like little pinpricks. But did I care? No. I had more pressing problems to worry about. Like the suited men. 

Men, dressed to kill had been popping up from time to time. For the past few days, they'd appeared in small groups of three, and circled the theatre like hungry sharks. I haven't let the girls out since. But it's not like they want to go outside anyways. They're just as scared as I am.

So now I was back to my old self, climbing out of bed with the thought, "I can survive one more day."

It was one of those days that I woke up, and saw we were almost out of food in the fridge. I had refrained from going out for any reason since the suited men had appeared, but it seemed I didn't really have a choice anymore. 

Later that day, I was looking through the cracks in the blinds of the upstairs windows. I had temporarily closed the theatre down. The neon 'OPEN' sign was deprived of it's usual shine, but someone had been inspired to pay us a visit anyways. 

While I was scouting out the parking lot for any suspicious activity, I heard a loud thud downstairs. 

Oh God, they must have broken down the doors!  I panicked, and rushed to the girls' room.

"Girls! Lock the door, stay quiet, and don't come out until I say so!" I whispered just loud enough for them to hear. 

I didn't wait for them to respond, but instead ran down the stairs to block the doorway. I kept my back pressed up to the door, waiting for it to be toppled on top of me. 

I heard steps coming towards the door. I prepared myself for their owners. And then…

"Ah, hello?" A rather formal, hushed whisper was accompanied by a light knocking.

That voice…it couldn't be. I hadn't heard it in ages.

I opened the door slowly, peeking through the small crack before opening it fully. 

"Hello. My name is Princess Luna."

I remembered where I heard the voice. The last episode of Friendship is Magic I had seen.

I admitted the Princess into my living room, letting her trot through the hall in all her splendor. 

"Thank you human. Inter-dimensional travel can get to be quite exhausting sometimes." She yawned, and took her place across from me on the sofa. I couldn't tell if she was joking or not, but there was one thing I was certain of.

"You're not taking them."

Luna shook her head. "I was afraid you would react like this. I haven't even told you why I'm here yet."

"Well, why are you here? Shouldn't Twilight and Celestia and the girls' sisters be here?"

Luna rolled her eyes at my mentioning of her fellow princess. "Oh no, my sister and her apprentice were much too busy to be bothered with the task…so they sent me instead." 

I grimaced at her word choice. Was returning my girls really just another menial "task?" 

Luna sighed, and began to speak again. "So, you know why I'm here. I traced the Crusaders location back to this particular spot, in this particular dimension. And I would like to inquire as to what they are doing here.”

I looked at her with a sullen face. "You should know what happened to them. You were on the other side after all."

Luna turned her head away, seeming;y embarrassed. "Yes. Well, ah, about that…"

"What?" 

"Well, it just so happens, that I sent them here." She shifted uncomfortably in her seat. 

"You sent them here?"

"Yes. An accident, of course. You see, back in Equestria, Queen Chrysalis came back, with an even greater army of changelings than before, and, well...

"She and her changelings had infiltrated the masses, kidnapping and impersonating ponies everywhere. We've taken care of it now of course, but there were some unfortunate pieces of aftermath. 

"You see, I had perfected a spell that could banish any changelings that got too close for comfort to a dimension of nothingness. Cheerilee's class had taken another field trip to Canterlot, and they came to meet my sister and I. But as it turned out, Queen Chrysalis was disguised as Cheerilee, and I managed to get rid of her once and for all. I suspected more intruders to have come along with her, including Scootaloo, Apple Bloom, and Sweetie Belle."

"How could you." 

I was barely suppressing my rage. 

"You sent them here, of all places. To this horrible, horrible world."

"I had no control over which dimension they were sent to-"

"HOW COULD YOU!!" My whole body shook with the short, rasping breaths that rattled through my chest. Tears spilled out of my eyes uncontrollably. 

"Do you realize what could have happened if I hadn't found them?" 

"I am fully aware of the risks. And I take full responsibility for my actions."

"There are sick people in this world. They could've been dissected, or sold as pets, or…" I trailed off, shuddering at the possibilities.

"And now, after I've cared for them for so long, they'll just be sent back and have to deal with the pain of two separate lives."

"I know how it feels." Princess Luna looked at me sadly.

"Surely you know of the time when I tried to overthrow my sister. Please listen to me when I say it was out of love.

"Celestia…she was always my big sister, someone I looked up to. But she never had time for me. Busy busy busy, raising the sun and attending to her royal affairs…while I studied the night away under the moon I so faithfully summoned."

I stood there flabbergasted for a moment. Here was the great and powerful Princess Luna, sitting on my couch, talking to me about her past like we'd known each other since we were young. 

"So I wanted to try something big, to catch her attention. I mean, at the time, reigning a world of eternal night seemed like the perfect way to get noticed."

Her story was both touching, and strangely familiar. I had trouble restraining emotion.

"And I know how it feels to be cast out. Like nobody loves you anymore. Like your father did to you." 

I cringed at the mentioning of my father.

"Celestia exiled me to a life of pain on the moon for a thousand years, with only my magic to keep me sustained. But alone on the moon, I continued to delve deeper into my studies, but this time practical studying. I found a new type of power, a power that corrupted me and my very essence."

"But you, you had something to save you from corruption." She smiled at me warmly. "Those three little fillies who changed your lives. Their love."

"I hate to do what I have been sent to do here tonight. But it must be done."

"Your majesty." I wiped my eyes of any trace of salty-sweet sadness that still lingered there.

"Please, call me Luna." 

"Luna. I appreciate how you're trying to make me feel better, but…”

"Yes?" 

"How did you know? About my father, and the girls, and, well, everything?"

Luna's face flushed ever so slightly red, behind the dark blue mask of her coat. 

"Well.. I, er.. when I found out that the girls had not, in fact, been changelings, I naturally went after them right away. But when I found them, I saw them here, with you.

"They just looked so happy.

"So, I obviously took an interest in their caretaker, you. Using my magic, I skirted in out of the timeline of your life, tracking your progress."

She continued on with her explanation. 

"You're perseverance in the face of adversity was astounding. And regarding your care of the girls, your actions were quite…valiant."

"Um. Thank you, Luna."

After a few moments of awkward silence, Luna coughed loudly.

"Ahem. Yes. Well, I guess we'd best get to it then. If you have anything to say to them, now would be the time."

I nodded. I knew. The girls' time in my world had come. And now it was gone. I walked over to there door. 

"Girls, it's time to come out now."

Scootaloo opened the door. She had a terrible mixture of fear and sadness in her eyes. 

"We were listening."

"Do we…do we really have to go?" Apple Bloom asked.

"Where's she going to take us?"

I sighed. I realized I had no energy left for crying. 

"Listen," I said to them, kissing each of them on the forehead individually. "I want you to always remember something for me. I know that after this, you'll all go back home. To the place you saw in the show."

Scootaloo cringed. 

"Things won't always be easy for you. But you have to stay strong. I'm sad that you have to leave now, but I'll always be glad you came into my life. And I'm glad I was the one that found you instead of some other creep. You girls had something I could never find as a child. A family. A father. A chance at life. And I can’t keep giving you those things here.”

They looked down at the ground. They were all letting their tears drip down onto the floor, and drooped their heads, accepting my words.

"But you have to promise me one thing. Promise me, that-"

BANG!

"AUGH! THY WORTHLESS WASTE OF SPACE, UNHAND ME!!" Luna screeched from the other room, exhibiting her Royal Canterlot Voice she had kept under tabs until now.

I rushed into the other room. A group of three suited men were wrestling Luna to the floor. In a flash of brilliant white-blue light, the men were blasted off of her in all different directions, only to be replaced by three more running up the stairs. The girls had rushed to Luna's aid, and one of the men made the terrible mistake of picking up Sweetie Belle by the tail. 

"GET YOUR DIRTY HANDS OFF HER!" I rushed in, joining the fray as Luna blasted more and more men down the stairs. I gave the man holding Sweetie Belle a square uppercut to the jaw, loosening his grip on her. He toppled behind the kitchen counter, taking Sweetie Belle and himself out of sight. Before I could come to the rescue, I saw her scamper off to join her sisters behind Luna. 

More and more men filled the apartment, coming in endlessly. I kept them back, brandishing and waving my crumby old skateboard at them manically. Soon, I was completely encircled, as were Luna and the girls, who had climbed up on her back. She gave me a sharp look. I’m not sure how, but she shot me a single telepathic thought across the room.

"I'm so sorry. Goodbye."

And in another flash of light, they were gone.

Just like that.

My arms hung limp at my side, and my skateboard fell to the ground. They were gone.

At my moment of weakness, the horde of men jumped me and brought me to the floor. On my knees, two men held my arms keeping me restrained. Then I heard the distinct sound of heels, coming up my stairs. The sea of generic suits parted in their owner's wake. 

"You." I put as much contempt into the word as possible. 

There she was. The woman responsible for ruining the hopes and dreams of my little girls, the woman I had flirted with so casually just a week ago, re-entered my home to cause even more damage.

"Me." A malicious grin spread across her face. "Did you miss me?"

I spat on her shiny new heels.

"I'll take that as a no." She looked down at her shoes, disgusted. She waved a hand at one of her lackeys, who promptly kneed me in the face his associates chuckled at my pain. 

"Bet you're sorry that you stood me up now, huh? And I bet you didn't expect me to have my very own army at my fingertips…" She trailed off, smiling at her henchmen. 

"But I have something much more surprising for you. Yes, much, much, more."

She closed her eyes and lifted her head in the air, letting her hair fall back. She started to float above the ground. I was shocked. Then, she began to emanate a sickly green light, her hair flying around her face like it was flowing in the wind. Her features began to distort, changing with the light. As I began to recognize what was happening before me, I drew in a sharp intake of breath. 

She drifted down to the ground, her rotten-looking, black skin glowing with the same eerie green color. 

She cackled with evil laughter. 

"How do I look?" Queen Chrysalis asked smugly, in her true, horribly magnificent form. 

***
> { 6 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Queen Chrysalis let loose another manic bout of laughter, while I sat crumpled on the ground. 

"Yes, that's right. When your dear friend Luna decided to banish me and my changelings from Equestria, she inadvertently sent us here. To your world." Her voice and pronunciation was downright sinister.
"You don't scare me," I said weakly from the floor. 

"Oh really?" Well, perhaps my associates can help me with that."

Before my very eyes, the entire room of Agent Smith look-a-likes took their original looks of disgusting, insect-like pony creatures. They stretched out and made themselves comfortable, and continued to chuckle at the dumbfounded look on my face. 
Queen Chrysalis cleared her throat, apparently preparing to monologue. 

"You see, when I first arrived here in your world, I remained alone and starving, for the longest of times. In Equestria, it was so easy to find love to thrive off of…but here, I discovered that true love was like a rare commodity." Another wretched smile came across the Queen's face.

"And then I found you." She licked her lips. 

"Such kindness, and warmth in your heart…delicious. My subjects kept a careful eye on you, every hour of ever day. They discovered your weaknesses, your soft spots. They told me all about those little brats of yours, how you cared for them so much.

"So I thought I could convert you. If I could make you feel the same passion, the same love that you felt for those insufferable 'daughters' of yours, my subjects and I could feast for ages."

All of the changelings were eyeing me hungrily. I sat, terrified. 

"But I never expected you to throw me out like that. I tried to manipulate you with my magic, showing you how menial those stupid little ponies were compared to me. And it almost worked, too." A disgruntled look came upon her. "But your love for them wouldn't break."

"That was when it happened. I saw you all, in your little huddle of affection.

"And I wanted to be part of it." She looked ashamed of herself.

"My subjects, they exalt , respect me…but I have never had anyone truly care about me."

She looked at me longingly. "I fell in love with you."

I sat balled up on the floor. Part of me was disgusted. Part of me was terrified. And part of me was oddly flattered.

"But those useless fillies got in the way." Chrysalis snapped out of her little daydream. "But I still love you deeply my darling. So I think I can cut you a deal.

"Come with me. Forget about those little foals, and I'll make you one of us. One of the changelings.

"But not only that, darling. I'll make you my king." She stood there as if it was an offer I couldn't refuse. "With our combined love, we could rule not only over Equestria, but this universe as well!" She sat in anticipation, awaiting my answer. 

"Think about it. They don't really love you. They said so themselves. I bet they were happy to leave. After all, they didn't belong with you. Do you remember what your precious Scootaloo said when she found out she didn't?"

I shook my head. None of it was true. None of it. 

"Face it darling. They hate you."


I HATE YOU!


"LIES!!" I shouted out at her. "ALL LIES!" My mind raced with tidbits of memories, all the times the girls and I had disagreed, every time we had scuffled.

I looked up from where I laid on the floor. Steamy tears streamed down my face like a river, but my face remained solemn. The surrounding changelings watched eagerly as I began to stand up, so I could speak to Chrysalis face to face. 

I looked her in the eye, and mustered my last granule of energy.

"I will never love you."

She looked back at me, stricken. "We'll just see about that."

Her horn began emanating the same green aura from before, and she directed it towards me. I huge wave of magic crashed into me, making me fall onto my knees. My head throbbed with pain. Images of the Queen filled my mind, and I flitted in and out of consciousness. The last thing I saw before blacking out was her pleased face, looking down at me with those big, green, eyes.

Those big, beautiful green eyes.
> { 7 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the middle of Ponyville, citizens went about their day with some sense of normality. Weather-ponies from Cloudsdale flew overhead, making some last minute adjustments to the evening sky, and the earth ponies and unicorns down below closed down shop for the day. Twilight Sparkle was trying her best today to keep things normal. She was sitting inside of SugarCube corner, grabbing some desert before she went home to study. The Cakes were upstairs, tending to their children. Pinkie was taking inventory of all the different baked goods, and as usual she had made it into some sort of song. 

As Twilight chomped down the last of her muffin, she was pleased with the day she had so far. Though she hadn’t learned anything too major about friendship, but she knew it was good to relax and have a little fun every once in a while. Like she had planned, it had been a fairly normal day (or as normal as a day spent with Pinkie Pie can be) and she was glad it turned out the way it did. But things were about to get a lot less normal for her.

Starting with a loud bang right outside.

A flash of blue and white light immediately followed. Pinkie Pie gasped deeply, and zoomed out to see what the commotion was with Twilight. What they saw gave them even more cause to gasp.

"Oh my goodness! Princess Luna, are you alright?" Twilight stood over her, inspecting various cuts and bruises up and down the Princess' body. "What happened? Did you find the Cutie Mark Crusaders?”

Luna didn't get a chance to answer. Pinkie Pie's tail began to move of its own accord, twitching violently. Another ear-shattering bang rang throughout Ponyville, and three ponies fell out of the sky right on cue.

They landed right next to Luna. Twilight stood taken aback, dumbfounded by the turn her day had taken. 

All three of the Crusaders laid in a heap, completely unconscious. They seemed unharmed, though the powerful amount of magic that Luna had just put them through obviously had caused them to pass out.

"Girls?" Twilight nudged the mass of KO’d fillies. "What happened, Princess? Where were they? How did you find them? I-"

"Silence, Twilight Sparkle." Princess Luna in a hushed tone. She stood again, brushing off her injuries with ease. She tried to compose herself in her usual regal manner, but the paranoid glances she was shooting all over the place gave away her worry.

This isn’t where I expected the spell to take me… Her head hurt from the magical exertion that that last spell had put her through. She groaned audibly. How am I going to get out of this one??

“Um…Princess?” Pinkie Pie 

There wasn’t any time. More ponies would be coming outside soon, and the less that knew about this, the better. "Don’t fret, girls. I will make sure these ponies are safe.” An idea popped into her head. She didn’t like it, but it was the only option she had right now.

“But Princess, there must be some way that we can help!”

Luna frowned, knowing she would hate herself for what she was about to do. "I'm afraid there's not." Her horn lit up with concentrated magic. Her face strained, as if every last bit of energy was going into the spell she was about to cast. 

Twilight stepped back a few paces back. Pinkie inhaled, preparing to let out an ear-splitting scream.

Another flash of light lit up the square, practically blinding the two ponies. Twilight blinked her eyes a few times. They were oddly hazy. She saw Pinkie Pie standing next to her with a similar expression of befuddlement and equally blank eyes. "Twilight? Um, what happened?"

They found themselves standing outside of SugarCube Corner, completely alone. 

"Girls??" Mr. and Mrs. Cake bursted outside, aprons astrew. Pound Cake and Pumpkin Cake could be heard crying inside, startled by the commotion. Some curious heads were popping out of windows around the square. Mrs. Cake looked around manically. "What was all that noise?"

Twilight looked down at the ground, searching her mind. "I…I don’t know.”

“I can't remember."

***

Far away from the scene in Ponyville, Princess Celestia was in Canterlot, raising the moon to its full height. Her sister would be impressed. Maybe when she gets back, we could organize an eclipse. Princess Celestia smiled. She knew how much Luna loved eclipses. 

BANG!

Princess Celestia spun around in shock, losing her train of thought. Four ponies appeared out of thin air and plopped down onto her floor. Luna stood for a few minutes, trotted towards her sister, and collapsed. 

“Luna! Are you alright? I’ve been worried sick, you said it would only take you a few days at the most! I mean, it was a simple task, and –is that a chip in your horn? And what happened to your wing? Is it broken?? Have you been in a fight?” She trotted around the room, for no particular reason. “I knew I shouldn’t have sent you alone, I just knew it-“

Luna brought a hoof to her sister’s mouth, halting the flow of concern spouting from it. “Sis.. Chrysalis is back.” 

Princess Celestia stepped back a few feet. “Oh goodness… I-I must inform Shining Armor immediately. We must take every precaution! We will not be infiltrated again! As for the girls, I’ll be contacting their-”

“NO!” Luna gave her sister a harsh look. “You don’t know what happened to them, sis.” A tear sprouted from the corner of her eye. “You don’t know.”

“Well, depending on how the affair went with Chrysalis, they might be a little traumatized, but who better to comfort them then their own family?”

“Cele, you don’t understand…” She struggled to get her words out, bouts of pains shooting through her body. “They were in there…for much longer…than we thought.”

Celestia frowned, looking at the three fillies with dismay. “I’m afraid I don’t understand, Luna.”

Luna gathered up her last bit of strength, standing up and placing the ponies on her back. “They grew up…in a whole different world. A different set-up, different people…different parents.” She attempted to walk out of her sister’s chambers, but fell to the ground again. 

Celestia sighed, levitating her sister and the exhausted ponies onto her own bed. “I suppose I’ll just to have to trust in your better judgment this time, Luna. For now, rest. We’ll talk in the morning.” She walked out into the hallway, closing the door behind her. She giggled at her little sister’s maternal instincts, and made her way towards the vacant guest room next door. “Goodnight, dear sister. Sleep tight.”

***

Oh god, my head. My head my head MY HEAD. 

I got up from where I laid, and looked around. Where was I? I couldn’t remember anything. I tried to scrap together some recollection; last night, there had been some guys in suits, and a lot of shouting, and…horses?

I looked out a nearby window, trying to get my bearings. That was my backyard…and the window I was looking out of was undoubtedly the window in my bedroom. But this was definitely not my bedroom. It was far too well decorated, and looked much more expensive than I remembered it. I cleared my mind, and looked at my reflection in a nearby mirror. 

My face was a mess. My hair was unkempt, and my eyes were glazed over. I felt like I had a hangover. Maybe I had gotten gotten in a drunken fight at some bar last night, and the security had kicked me out. And horses fitted in there somewhere, I was sure. All I remembered about those strange horses is that the suited men had been mistreating them somehow...and I think I came to their aid.

Examining some more bruises on my face and a black eye, I spotted a slender figure stepping into the mirror’s view.

“Why, good morning handsome,” A seductive voice called out. I turned around. A very attractive woman, looking oddly familiar, stood in the doorway, looking at me with longing eyes.

I searched my mind again. “Oh, it’s you…” I trailed off. A little jolt of pain went through my head as I remembered her. Queen Chrysalis. I viewed her with something close to indifference, and then sat back down on the edge of the bed, staring down at my feet. I had the urge to shout out in anger, but something held me back…

“Sleep well darling?” She took a few steps towards me. “I hope you don’t mind me wearing some of your clothes. My wardrobe for this form is somewhat…limited.” 

“Yeah, it’s fine Chrysalis.” I muttered my compliance, still facing the floor.  I rested my forehead in my palms. A dull pain throbbed in the back of my brain.

“Please honey,” she said, “Call me Chrystal.”

I remained silent. She didn’t.

“I thought you would be most, ah, comfortable if I remained in human form.” She giggled a little and bent over, her face inches from my own. 

“Now that you’re awake, I think it’s time I inducted you into my little family.” She brought her hand to my face, running her fingers through my hair. I remained cold and indifferent to her touch. However, something was boiling up inside of me, some sort of repressed anger…what had happened last night? I racked my brain as Chrysalis continued on.

“It’s a very intimate process. I don’t think you’d understand, unless I showed you specifically how it works.” She leaned towards me, as if about to go in for a kiss. The corners of her mouth formed a lustful smile. “Care to find out?” 

Then, in a matter of seconds, it happened. The events of last night exploded through the barrier in my mind. Where my thoughts had been blank before, my brain suddenly burst with memories of the past few years; three ponies in a cardboard box, a dusty old movie theatre, and how the time we spent together changed my life.

Those hadn’t been just horses I remembered from last night. Those had been my little girls. 

I slapped Chrysalis' face away from mine. “No thank you.” 

She sat there for a moment, immensely surprised. Her hand lingered over the red spot where I had made contact. She turned towards me. She seemed to be about to strike me back, but saw me trying to rub the pain away in my temples. Her face curved into a smile again.

“Oh dear,” she said playfully, “Are you getting another one of your headaches?” Her eyes emanated a sickly green light. Their glow pierced into my brain, shattering and altering my thoughts, like little shards of glass in the back of my head. “Feeling better?”

I mumbled vaguely in response. 

She got up from the bed, and walked away towards the door. “I’ll just let that sink in for a while. Hope you feel better honey,” she said as she left me confused and alone, clutching my face in pain. Then, for what seemed like the millionth time, my reality slowly faded, and left me to wallow in my own subconscious.

***
> { 8 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Luna exhaled a heavy sigh. From her balcony view, she saw her sister Celestia bringing the sun up from the darkness. Her shift was done. She looked at the vivid streaks of color that formed the morning's sunrise. Though she most definitely preferred sunsets, she knew there was something unique about the way that Celestia could paint the skyline so uniquely every morning. After all, Luna was never really a morning pony. On top of her drowsiness, she was quite preoccupied at the moment, intent on researching one specific subject: changelings.

She thought she had been rid of them for the last time, when she had supposedly sent the last of them away to be some other universe's problem. After betraying her sister, she felt somewhat obliged to help in any and every way she could, but in her efforts she only fumbled and made room for even more errors. She had sent those fillies to the human world, so she believed she had a responsibility to take care of them, as well as the man who had acted as their guardian. 

So, she reread her almanacs, encyclopedias, and textbooks for the umpteenth time, hoping to get some kick, some eureka moment out of it all. It was the same material, the same facts, but still she persisted, hoping the solution might present itself on the papers before her. In frustration, she gushed magic from her horn, slamming each tome shut at once. From the nearby bed, she heard a chorus of three small yawns and cringed. Luna had been dreading this moment, but she believed she was prepared to explain what had happened as best as she could.

Or maybe... she wasn't.

She couldn't bear the thought of speaking to them now. No. Not here, not yet. What would they say to her? The closest thing they could get to a father was now a prisoner of the changelings, and whose fault was it? Hers. Luna had simply left him there, and she didn't want to know how the girls would respond to that.

As the Princess of the Night, she knew a thing or two about sleep; and what she knew, she applied at that moment with a spell. A layer of dust sprouted from nowhere, coating the ponies in a thin layer of dust that would keep them dreaming sweetly for as long as Luna needed them to. She felt terrible, but she couldn't bring herself to face them. 

The spell she had used was a very fragile one, so she slowly made her way towards the door. Since she had worn down her books to their bindings, she would have to look elsewhere for research material. The only place Luna could think that the changelings might take their new prisoner was their hive, so she wanted to know as much as she could about what she was getting herself into before jumping headfirst into the belly of the beast. Her knowledge of changelings only extended to behavioral patterns, and she needed to learn about their habitats. And unfortunately for her, she knew exactly where to find this information: The Ponyville Library.

Twilight Sparkle's house.

Moments later, Luna's hood was wrapped tightly around her mane, keeping it from twirling about in the wind. She was flying low, trying to stay out of sight. Nobody was supposed to know she was back yet; she had sworn not to return until she had brought back the Cutie Mark Crusaders safely, but at the moment, those three were the least of her worries. Until she was done with the matter at hand, she thought it best to remain incognito.

As she flew towards Ponyville, she did her best to stay out of sight. Since it was now the middle of the afternoon, she was a little out of her element, but remained stealthy nonetheless. Sticking to the shadows, she found her way into the library, and out of sight of anyone who might question her being back in Equestria.

She immediately grabbed hold of every book her horn's aura could reach. She scanned titles aimlessly, hoping to find some hidden treasure trove of wisdom that would lead her to the answer to her problems. Things did not work out as smoothly as she had anticipated. Pages flew as she flitted through indexes, glossaries, and everything in between, hopelessly searching for that one magic keyword: changeling. She had to find the right book, before someone else could find her.

But her efforts were, as she had expected, in vain. At first Luna had high hopes for her investigation of the library, but as the stack of speed-read books grew higher and higher, her motivation slipped lower and lower. She was using up her final reserves of patience, and eventually, she reached her tipping point.

“CURSES!” Not thinking, she let loose her ear-splitting Equestrian voice, and in a frustrated surge of magical power, she sent the books rocketing all across the room. Her eyes blared with the blinding white light that accompanied freak occurrences of magic. The contents of the library rotated around her in a maelstrom of clattering leather-bound covers and tattered, flapping pages. Every annoyance and emotion she had felt in the past 24 hours was being exerted into the chaos surrounding her now, but all the chaos ended with the calling out of one small, drowsy dragon’s voice.

“Twilight?” Luna stopped the books in their unnatural orbits, and looked up the stairs to where Spike was rustling around under the covers of his little basket bed. She sighed. Another thorn in her side. This would be the second time today she would have to use a sleeping spell…

She shot a stream of the powdery magic Spike’s way. He emerged from the covers, tossing around. Apparently the spell didn't keep its victims from sleepwalking. Luna agitatedly hit with another blast, and another and another. It was almost as if the magic was bouncing right off his scales.

Luna gave it one more try, perhaps a little bit more forcefully than necessary. Spike, now stumbling in his slumber at the top of the stairs, was knocked off his feet. Luna felt very bad for him for when he woke up. He managed to hit his head multiple times as he rolled down the staircase, and came to rest at the bottom step. Luna walked over to him. She wasn't sure if it was the force of the spell or effectiveness that had caused it, but Spike was seemingly out cold. Luna made a note of apologizing to him once this was all over.

Spike was not down for the count just yet however; before he left his consciousness behind, he managed to roll over one more time, bumping his head on a small knot on one of the tree roots that the library resided inside of. But Luna saw something strange. 

Did knots in trees usually move like that when you hit them?

She didn't have time to find the answer, as she heard a loud clang behind her coming from the center of the room. One of the many books strewn across the ground had fallen...down a trapdoor?!

Luna trotted over to the opening in the floor, and looked down into the abyss. A stony, moss-covered staircase led down into some sort of cellar, which seemed more like a cave system than your average Ponyville basement. What was down there? Did Twilight have a private chamber for practicing taboo magics? Was there a secret tunnel system in the sewers of Ponyville? Was there some sort of danger, waiting for her at the bottom? Luna gazed down into the tunnel-like aperture with a sense of foreboding; but she wasn't about to back away now. After all, this was a library. The only thing that could be down there was more books, right? Right?

And maybe, just maybe, the knowledge that would inspire a plan of action for rescuing that troublesome human, and finally resolving her problems with changelings. 

And so, Luna had made up her mind.

She descended.

The chamber below the library was resonant with the sound of hooves on stone. Luna made her way through the halls of the underground chamber, surprised to see that torches still burned within the depths of the cellar. The passage seemed to be endless, but at least it was a straight shot to whatever the destination was. There were no branching points, just an infinite hallway with the occasional right or left turn. It made quite an affair out of getting to wherever it lead to, but the only direction Luna could go was forward; the trapdoor had slid back shut and locked in place when she entered, swallowing her up in the darkness. No amount of pushing or spell casting could open it back up, so she simply kept walking, anticipating what might lie around every corner.

Eventually, she found herself in a small room stretching slightly from left to right. The air hung thick with smoke from the torch sconces and the dust Luna had stirred up from its usual resting places. Luna surveyed the room. On the far left hand side, what looked like an alchemy table and writing desk were laid side by side, a huge cabinet resting in between the two. No doubt it housed all sorts of reagents and ingredients, as well as spare quills and ink. What remained of the enclosure was taken up by bookshelves, reaching up to the short ceiling. All sorts of titles caught Luna’s eyes. The Black Arts of Canterlot. Everfree’s Little Secrets. Dragon Taming and You. But only one really stood out to her.

The Equestrian’s Guide, Volume VI: The Good, the Bad, Everything in Between.

Luna flipped open to the first page. 

“The perfect guide for adventures and escapades fraught with dangerous creatures. Keep your friends close, your enemies closer, and a handbook with all their weaknesses even closer!”

Luna scoffed. Handbook? It was anything but. As she heaved the tome off its shelf with a bout of magic and floated it on over to the desk on the other side of the room, she could practically feel her horn straining under its weight. As she slammed open the book, she found herself automatically flipping towards the table contents, which might give her an idea of where start. She was overly excited; she’d never seen any of the books in this little private library, and she knew there just had to be something she overlooked. 

She also overlooked a few of the page numbers, starting at the D’s of the contents. Draconequus, Diamond Dog, Cockatrice, Chimera…

Changeling. Page 372. She turned there immediately. Specks of dust flew everywhere, glinting in the torchlight. Luna wondered how old this book must be. It must have been written while she had been banished to the moon, but quite a while before she returned to Equestria. These among many other thoughts scrambled in her mine as she flitted through the book, until she found the proper entry.

“The changeling in its natural form appears as an insect-pony hybrid like creature, with green and turquoise features such as fangs, glowing eyes, and gnarled horns which they use for magic. They are excellent shape shifters, and with practice, can take the form of nearly any other species. A colony of changelings is often led by a queen, whose main purpose is to guide them to a steady supply of nourishment: the emotion love. Her colony will serve her without question, and many will sacrifice themselves simply for the queen’s sake, as noted in the Changeling Attack on Canterlot.”“

Luna was taken aback. There was no possible way that this book could be so recent. She checked the date in the front: no, it was not possible. It had been written far before her return to Equestria, far before Princess Cadence and Shining Armor’s wedding. So how?

““This attack was the first instance of changeling hostility, and the first known contact with them in all of ponykind. The colony in question that attacked Canterlot is the only currently known colony in Equestria, led by their queen Chrysalis.”“

“Wait a moment. What?!” Luna couldn’t help but ask herself aloud.

“The attack was, of course, covered up by Princess Celestia, who defended Canterlot from the invasion. The attack was wiped clean from nearly all records, bar the one you are reading right now.”

Luna was shocked at first, but then she realized: that was such a typical Celestia move. She always was trying to keep the ponies happy and calm. Who knew how many times the changelings might have tried to sack Canterlot, and Celestia had simply erased the memories of the masses. Luna, in all honesty, was not surprised by her sister’s secret keeping. It was something she had used on the citizens just yesterday, to cover up her return. But those spells always fully how could anybody remember enough to write it all down here?

She continued on. 

“Changelings, while not searching for food or serving their queen, can be found resting in what we might call a hive. They appear the same color as their inhabitants, a greenish-blue hue, but under the right conditions, they also retain other attributes of their masters: for example, they can shape shift to look identical to other structures. This spectacle is a feat only possible by the queen’s horn, with places she may have previously visited. This makes direct attacks on changeling hives very difficult, as the Queen could mold the hive into a maze of sorts.”

Luna cursed under her breath, making a note of that detail. Overtaking Chrysalis’ lair would be no easy feat.

”Changeling hives are extremely difficult to find for one reason: they do not reside in any specific planes of existence. The bulk of the hive dwells inside a rip in the fabric of space, and the only way in is to find one of the hive’s entrances. These openings are often found in dark, underground caverns, like abandoned mines and dungeons, but are not limited to these areas; if the Queen is powerful enough, she can create entrances across multiple universes, making inter-dimensional travel a breeze.”

This sure was news to Luna, but she didn’t have enough time to ponder her newfound discoveries. She could not pry herself from the book’s ancient pages.

“This was observed in the only known changeling hive, the one belonging to the colony of Queen Chrysalis. Many entrances were discovered throughout Equestria, most notably one suspected to be in the crystal mineshaft directly below Canterlot. However, rigorous search efforts proved to be in vain, and the entrance was never found.”

“I bet you’re wondering, Princess.”

Luna nearly jumped out of her skin, hearing a strangely formal yet familiarly squeaky voice emerge from behind her. She turned to face the owner.

Sweetie Belle stood before her. “I bet you’re wondering,” she said again, “How anybody could know about a changeling attack that was wiped from history.”

Luna was perplexed. The sleeping spell should have worked much longer on a little pony like Sweetie Belle. What in the world was she doing here? Where were Apple Bloom and Scootaloo?

“You needn’t worry about the other two foals,” Sweetie Belle said, practically reading her mind. She was sounding rather detached from her two best friends. “They’re still back at the palace, dozing away.”

Luna spoke up. “Sweetie Belle, I know you might be angry at me for leaving your father, but…”

Sweetie Belle laughed. “Hardly. You think I care about that fool?”

Luna couldn’t believe what she was hearing. These words weren’t Sweetie Belle’s. They had a sharpness to them that was not her own, and Luna stepped back a little in surprise with each development in their conversation.

“But excuse me. I digress.” Sweetie Belle waved her tail matter-of-factly, letting it shine an unworldly color in the darkness. “What of that book you just read? Find anything interesting? Anything, off the records?”

Luna could not quell her curiosity. “How did you know about this book Sweetie Belle? I have to assume my sister wiped the records clean of it. How did you know about this chamber, even?”

She ignored Luna’s questioning. “It’s quite detailed, isn’t it? Considering a pony has never made it out of a changeling hive alive.” Her eyes wandered across the room, then snapped back to Luna. 

“Did you consider that maybe a changeling played a role in its creation?”

With these words, the whole room radiated with the same ghastly color that Luna knew all too well, as the imposter Sweetie Belle shifted into her true form. Luna watched as holes appeared in her legs, wings on her back, and her adorable little horn blackened to a shade she could scarce describe.

“You ought to ask me. After all, I helped to write it.”

Luna had no words. Her mouth simply hung agape.

The changeling laughed. “Don’t be so worrisome. I only assumed this form last night. Quite the scuffle getting out of that dusty old movie theatre, wasn’t it?”

Luna nodded. She had seen the man

“I suppose you’re still wondering what I have to do with that book?” The sound of the changeling’s voice was like nails on a chalkboard. Luna only replied with another curt nod of the head.

“I was one of Chrysalis’ top servants. And your sister saw an opportunity in that.” He mentioned Celestia with distaste. “She thought she saw ‘the good in me,’ so I went along with it as long as I could. Within that book, changeling was the only blank entry, and guess who helped to fill it up? I gave them information, and they foolishly mistook it for my trust. Never should have left me alone with that historian.” 

He cracked a malicious grin.

“I grabbed the book and ran. Once I returned to the hive, I was rewarded generously. I gained the privilege of being the Queen’s own little secret agent. But I was away from the hive for a long time. I lived down in this little paradise for quite a while, trying to find a way back; and when I did, I had a library’s worth of knowledge about your world to share with my comrades.” He smiled in that same sickly way, and said playfully, “I probably know more about this place than you do. I don’t imagine a thousand years of exile on the moon would be very beneficial for sharpening trivia skills.”

“Oh really?” Luna asked, thoroughly aggravated. “Would you like to find out yourself?” she asked, her horn glowing threateningly. "Give me 

“Want to get rid of you'It doesn’t matter at this point. You do realize what my job was, don’t you? I was assigned to stall you."

Luna stepped back. She had left the crusaders in her room, unguarded. The only person that knew they were there was Celestia.

“You're too late. We already have one of those little brats. And every minute you spend here is another we use breaking that tiny little human. His love for those ponies is practically tangible.” The changeling licked his lips shamelessly. "Mouth-watering.

"We’re going to milk him dry.”

***
> { 9 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“How are you liking the royal treatment, dear?”

I turned my head from the relaxing position I was in, resting in my favorite reclining chair. My own little thrown, ha. 

“It’s fantastic, Chrystal.” 

I watched contently as her men in suits scurried around the room. I downed my glass of sweat tea and it was immediately refilled. I gestured my hand for them to change the TV channel. I didn’t really like football anyways. They switched it over to the Walking Dead instead. Awesome.

Chrystal giggled. “I’m so glad you're happy.” She walked away into the kitchen, and returned with some black, tar-like substance in a bowl. “Would you like to try some? I made it myself.”

I opened my hands and a spoon was immediately placed in them. I took a big bite from the mixture. Kind of like jell-o, right? Not really. It tasted like raw eggs and burnt popcorn. Terrible. But then, I felt a strange wave come over me, and my mind went blank.

I smiled. “It’s delicious.”

Chrystal smiled right back, and another butler-man took the bowl off my hands. I had barely moved an inch in the past hour. Not like I needed to, of course. 

“I’ve got another big surprise, honey. But of course, I’ll have to save the best for last, am I right? You just keep watching your show, and I’ll get everything ready. It shouldn’t take more than five minutes.”

I smiled. A beautiful girl, an awesome pad, butlers? I was livin’ the high life. Anything before now was just a shitfest. But honestly, I couldn’t remember much of anything before now. I was like, a horse tamer or something?  But that wasn’t really important anymore. All the sweet tea I could drink, and all the zombies I could watch,

“Surprise.” Chrystal walked out of a nearby corridor, with three men behind her carrying…no way. My horses! The white one, the orange one, and even the yellow one, no way! They looked sad though. Their mouths and legs were tied with rope, to keep them quiet and still. They were looking at me with these puppy dog eyes, and it made my heart hurt.

She pointed towards the men remaining in the room. “All of you, out. Now. Do not interrupt us for anything.” She turned her eyes toward me as they exited. 

“Do you remember these ponies, dear?” 

She stepped towards me and whispered in my ear. 

“These are your girls.”

Oh, god. I remembered now. Those weren’t just any old horses. Those were my girls. Everything came back to me. Kissing boo-boos, bedtime stories, literally everything.

“These are the girls that ran away from you.”

My mind went blank again. That wave of nothingness crashed into my brain, and then it was flooded with words that I could never get rid of.

“I hate you.”

My head filled with strange thoughts, as if they weren’t my own; memories of crying for weeks, waiting for them to come home. We had a fight for no reason at all, and the next morning they had disappeared…the pain in my heart multiplied exponentially. I felt like I could die right there in that La-Z-Boy.

“We found them last night,” Chrystal said. “They said they forgot all about you.” 

I shook my head. Why? Why would they do that? After all that time, after all I’d done for them, they just left home, and…and forgot? I clutched my chest. When I tried to start crying, I failed to realize that tears had already been streaming for several moments already. I sobbed even more forcefully after that.

I just couldn’t believe it. My girls, my babies, my cuties. God, how did this happen? I just…I just didn’t understand. My emotions could not be transferred into words. So naturally, between the bouts of tears and snot dripping down my face, I transferred them into vomit instead and hurled up Chrystal’s home cooking.

She placed her hand on my back. “I know. I know.” She comforted me as best as she could without getting too close to my vomit. “It hurts, doesn’t it?”

I sniffed, and tried to speak; I couldn’t. I nodded instead.

She patted my head and kneeled down next to me. She brushed her hair out her face, and placed several barely audible words in my ear.

“I can make it stop.”

I turned towards her. I knew what she was going to do. I wouldn’t let her. I couldn’t. 

“Do want to become a changeling?”

I looked into her eyes, and tried to resist, but my vocal chords failed me. Her eyes glowed in that way they always did, and the same crash of nothingness filled my mind. I opened my mouth again, trying to resist

“Daddy, don’t!”

Queen Chrysalis’ face was filled with rage. “HOW’D YOU GET OUT OF THOSE BINDS? SHUT UP ALREADY!”

As she lost her concentration, I looked over at the girls. She attempted to silence Scootaloo, but it was as if some invisible wall was stopping her. And the ropes tying the girls down…they were…levitating?

“I THINK IT WOULD BE FOR THE BEST IF YOU USED YOUR INSIDE VOICE.” 

Inside voice? There was only one person with an inside voice like that.

That was the inside voice of Canterlot Royalty.

Princess Luna stepped from the corridor and stood by the girls. Her irises and pupils where whited out by a near-blinding light. “YOUR EVIL ENDS HERE, CHRYSALIS. I HAVE LEARNED EVERYTHING FROM YOUR SERVANT, AND I AM GOING TO SEND YOU TO A PLACE YOU WILL NEVER RETURN FROM.” Her shouts themselves were more intimidating then the words she spoke. Her horn was vibrant with color, swirling like a rainbow. Sparks flew from the tip every so often, emphasizing her points. As Chrysalis began to focus more on her own feelings at that time, my mind began to clear. The girls never ran away. Chrysalis just wanted him to think that.

“NO! YOU CAN’T STOP ME NOW!” Chrysalis flickered in and out of her true form, her body looking as if it was decaying rapidly. “AND YOU CAN”T TAKE HIM AWAY FROM ME!”

Luna looked fiercely at her. “YOU DO NOT DESERVE HIS LOVE.”

She lost it. Breaking from her bodily prison, she sprouted wings, a horn, and all her other changeling anatomical features. Her horn emanated pulses of energy. Curse my weak will. All this time, under her influence, I’d been charging her up, making her more powerful. It was all my fault. Chrysalis threw her head back. Whatever witchcraft she had planned would surely break the barrier protecting Luna and the girls. All my love had strengthened the Queen, but it would strengthen me even more. 

I tackled her, and put her into what I could best describe as a headlock. Her skin was repulsive. She bucked and bucked, trying to throw me off, I held fast. 

“Luna!” I shouted. “Whatever you’re going to do, do it now!”

Her Canterlot voice reached a normal pitch. “No! You have to come with us! Get in the force field, this spell is going to bring down the entire hive!”

“Hive?!” I asked manically in between trying to quell Chrysalis’ feverish movements. She tried to speak, but I clamped what seemed to be her muzzle shut, and said, “What are you talking about? This is the theatre!!” 

Chrysalis attempted to throw me off again. Not so fast. If I could wrestle three ponies into a bathtub at once, I could wrangle a changeling queen, no problem.

“There’s no time left. Just do what you have to do, and make sure the girls stay safe.” I tried to wipe the tears coming down my face, but my hands were busy keeping Chrysalis pacified. “Girls…I love you.”

It was like a trio of angels responding to him. “We love y – “

BAM. Chrysalis finally threw me off, and caught me right in the face with her back leg. I fell over in pain, feeling the warmness of my own blood gushing from my nose.

“Not here,” she said. “Not like this.” Chrysalis gathered herself together, charging up an even more powerful spell than the last. I could feel her suckling off my life force.

Luna looked me straight in the eyes. It would take me ten years to explain the emotion I saw in her eyes at that moment, because in that second we stared each other down, it was as if we lived out ten years of pain and sorrow together. It hurt to look too long. I realized at that moment that she must have been reflecting the same feelings my own eyes had in them. So as I turned away, some of that sadness leaked from the bottom of heart and escaped through my tear ducts. I choked on my own voice, and swallowed the lump in my throat.

“Do it.”

With a flare of light brighter than the full moon, I felt everything around me dissipate.

I lost all feeling in my toes.

Then my fingers.

Then my legs, my arms and my body.

And then finally, my brain.

***
> { 0 }
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Girls, I want you to know something.” 

Luna was trotting at a steady pace, the Cutie Mark Crusaders in tow. Much time had passed since their return from the human world, but they all had yet to find their cutie marks, and were still the fillies that Ponyville knew and loved. Every so often, they visited Luna for little playdates. Being the first pony beside themselves they’d ever encountered, they had a tendency to trust her a little more than others. 

Today, Luna was touring them through the Canterlot Gardens, a favorite activity of theirs. Birds flapped their wings, plants shimmered with dew, and animals peeked from their hiding spots. The sun was relaxed, slowly rising from behind the horizon, lazily making its way over the distant cloud cover. It was days like this that made Luna sad that she was the Princess of the Night. She continued on.

“When an alicorn or unicorn learns certain high level spells, there are phrases, little sayings, that explain the mindset behind the spell.”

“What do ya mean?” Apple Bloom asked, clearly confused.

Luna exhibited a slightly pained smile on her face. “When I learn new magic, I have to understand it, feel the meaning of its power. These phrases provide insight into this power.” She turned her head towards the ponies. “Does this make sense?”

They looked at her blankly.

“Perhaps you’ll understand better from example, then.” She cleared her throat.

“From the darkness, light can always be seen.

From the night, the day always arrives.

And from nothingness, a trace of something can always be found.”

Scootaloo cocked her head to the side. “Huh?”

Sweetie Belle seemed excited by the incantation. “I like it. It sounds so pretty!”

“Really?” Luna asked. “I’m glad you think so. I am the one who came up with it.”

The Cuties stared fixedly at the Princess as she stopped in the middle of the pathway, and turned towards them. 

“I used it when I sent you to the other dimension.

“The idea was that I could send that something away into nothingness. You’re very luck that it turn out as I planned. How could I send something into nothing? Then that nothing would have something. And something has to exist somewhere, does it not?

“That is what happened to you. You became nothing, but then far, far away, you became something again. And that is how he found you."

Apple Bloom seemed flabbergasted. “That’s amazing…”

Luna nodded her head. “Do you remember anything from when he first found you?”

They all remained silent. 

Apple Bloom kicked it off. “I remember. We were in a box. In a place with no trees or nothin’, just a bunch of lights.”

Scootaloo piped up as well. “Yeah, uh, me too. I think he took us back on a skateboard.” She let her gaze wander off again. “I was so warm.”

“I remember…when we got to his house…he sang to us.” Sweetie Belle’s voice quivered, and her eyes were at her hooves. Apple Bloom and Scootaloo looked over at her, and their eyes moistened ever so slightly.

“Maybe,” Luna said during the pause, “He found you for a reason.”

“What type of reason?” Sweetie Belle asked, raising her head.

Luna shook hers in response. “I don’t know. But what I do know is that before he found you, he had nothing; and you girls gave him something.”

She let herself crack a tear.

“Isn’t that just beautiful?”

Scootaloo stopped her. It was getting a little too sappy, and she hated crying. “I’m sorry Princess, but why are you telling us this?”

“None of you have found your cutie marks yet, am I correct?” Luna shook off the drama of the moment swiftly. 

“That’s why I’ve called you all here today. I think I’ve found something that can assist you in that regard.”

All three of the ponies shouted excitedly. “Something?”

Luna laughed audibly. “Yes, girls, something.” 

She stepped to the side of the garden pathway, allowing a small, rumpled cardboard box to come into their view.

“Something that came from nothing.”


The End