Prologue
Twilight Velvet smiled contentedly as she watched her son happily drawing with chalk on the sidewalk outside their small yard. She was just starting to doze off, when she was startled awake by her son’s voice.
“Mommy, what’s that mare doing?” the young colt’s voice rang out through the empty streets of Canterlot.
“Shining Armor!” the startled mother started to look at her son, but jumped up in surprise as an eerie green glow dimly illuminated the alley behind their house at the same time as she heard muffled hoof steps approaching.
Velvet quickly flipped around with her ears pinned flat to her skull, prepared to fight so her son could escape, as years of suppressed paranoia came to the surface and her mind began racing, thinking of all the terrible things that could happen to a mare all alone at night with her young child- only to see a sickly looking, thin black mare leaning over an object in the alleyway.
More curious than nervous now, Velvet motioned to Shining to go back into their yard as she began walking towards the mare. “Hi?” Velvet called tentatively.
As soon as she heard Velvet’s voice, the mare let out a strangled sob and began galloping in the opposite direction.
“Wait!” Velvet cried.
The mare’s only reaction to Velvet’s plea was to run even faster before disappearing around the corner.
Seeing that her son was still anxiously watching her, Velvet was about to turn around to go back with him, when she noticed a basket, illuminated by moonlight, at the end of the alley, where the mare had disappeared to.
Intrigued, Velvet walked up to it. Cautiously peering into the basket, all she saw was a fluffy lavender blanket. Velvet carefully lifted up the blanket, and nearly dropped it in shock when she saw what was underneath it.
The tiny, carefully swaddled unicorn foal yawned and opened her eyes. Their color was almost a mix between the dark indigo of her mane, and the lighter violet of her fur.
But what Velvet most noticed about them was that whenever she looked into them she felt as if she was not looking into the eyes of a young foal, but into the eyes of something different. Not necessarily more intelligent, or more mature, just different.
Next to the filly was a hastily written slip of paper, it said:
‘I’m so sorry I had to this, but I know you’ll be able to take better care of her than I ever could. Thank you for loving my little Twilight Sparkle like I do. Tell her I’ll be back for her someday, and that I’ll always love her.’
When she finished reading the note, Velvet sniffled and wiped her eyes with a hoof, "Oh, that poor mare. How terrible it must feel to be unable to take care of your child, I can't imagine if I couldn't take care of Shining Armor..." Right then and there she made the decision that she would protect this filly as if she were her own daughter.
Velvet carefully lifted up the basket in her telekinesis and walked over to her son. “Well Shining, how do you think you would feel about having a baby sister?” she asked, smiling gently.
Shining Armor looked quizzically at his mother and peered inside the basket. When he saw Twilight, his face lit up and he began galloping back towards their house. “Daddy, the stork came!” he called excitedly as his mother watched him with an amused smile on her face, calmly following him into their house with the basket still held in her magic.
Unbeknownst to them, a mare watched soundlessly from the shadows, obviously relieved about something, her eyes tearing up as she observed the happy family and their new addition. “Thank you, so, so much,” she whispered softly.