Hard Earned Trust

The first thing that happened was a sharp pain on my back. Then I took a quick breath.

‘I’m breathing?’ I thought.

‘How? I’m dead! My heart was torn to pieces!’ I frantically thought as I decided to open my eyes.

I opened my eyes to see that I was in a room. There were big multi-colored ponies all around me, staring. No wait, I was small. Why? A look past one of them at a mirror revealed why. Right about where I should have been in the reflection, there was a baby pony with a red coat and the start of a white mane. I moved my hand only to find out that I had no fingers. It was just a hoof. A red hoof.

I’d just been born.

“What?!” I exclaimed loudly, making the other ponies in the room jump.

“What, never seen a talking pony before?! I wish I had been reborn right! I don’t want to remember that damn bastard for another lifetime!!” I screamed, and proceeded to just sit there, glaring at everypony.

The small crowd was silent. Then the one right next to me started talking. I turned, and immediately I could tell it was my new mother. The edge went out of my eyes, and I tried to listen to what she was saying. But she was definitely not speaking English, that was for sure. I think I conveyed that in my demeanor, because she wrapped me up in a hug. I melted right into it- it had been a rough day and somepony clearly cared for me. There I go again, replacing people with pony.

‘I wonder if there are any people wherever I am,’ I thought, as I drifted off (She was rocking me so gently, I couldn't help it).

***

Pearl Rain, a pegasus with a white coat and mane was so excited. Today was the big day. She was going to have a baby. She had been preparing for this day for quite some time now with her husband, Swift Heart. She could still remember the day the met.

She had been a worker at the weather factory, helping make rain clouds. She really loved her job, and was the best in the place. Then Swift Heart came. He was a writer and part time journalist, here to get some ideas for his next work. Pearl ran into him (literally) quite by accident. They had just rounded the corner, Swift just going along, and Pearl rushing to get back to her station. It didn't take the pegasus  long to fall in love with Swift, a witty red coated unicorn from the outskirts of Canterlot. Not long afterwards, they started dating, and about two years later, Swift Heart proposed, and they got married.

It was now three years later, and they had decided to take the next step and raise a child. IT wasn't an easy decision, and Swift still had fears that the baby wouldn't take to either of them. Pearl calmed him down, and now they sat together in the hospital room, about to give birth.

When the baby came, it was the most beautiful thing Pearl had ever seen. He had his father’s coat and his mother’s mane. He was also a pegasus. Swift heart had always wanted to fly, and was glad his newborn son would someday live that dream. At first, he didn't start breathing. The doctor had to smack him on the back, and then he did. But, he didn't cry. In fact, he tensed up after he started breathing.

“Is this normal, doctor?” Pearl asked.

“I've never seen a pony not open its eyes before. But I have heard about it. I think he just needs some time…” the doctor responded.

Then the little foal opened his sky blue eyes and looked around in confusion.

“Awww, he’s so cute!” Pearl said. By now, a couple more nurses had entered to handle everything else, and had stopped to look at the little red foal.

Then something went wrong. The foal locked eyes on the mirror. He moved his hoof, and looked down at it. It seemed cute, but then he shouted. He shouted, but not like an infant. More like a gown pony in deep shock.

“Doctor, i-,” Pearl started, before her little foal started yelling. Yelling! Nopony could understand it, but he spoke as if in an alien tounge.

“Please, calm down. Please,” Pearl said, as gently as she could. Her little foal turned to her, and for a moment, she could see anger burning in his eyes. Then it died away, and he looked at her in confusion.

“It’s ok, you’re with mommy, it all alright,” she said, embracing him and slowly rocking back and forth. Very quickly, he calmed down, and even fell asleep.

“Well, that was quite unusual,” said one of the nurses, “But congratulations. What will you name him?”

“I think we should call him… Sky Gear,” Swift heart said. The name simply came into his head, and somehow, it seemed perfect. Pearl agreed.

“That sounds wonderful honey.”

Just as they were getting up to check out, the blanket Sky gear had been wrapped up in slid down, revealing his flank. It should have been blank, but it wasn't.

“….”

“What does this mean?” Swift heart asked the doctor.

“I have never seen a cutie mark on a newborn in my entire life. I have no idea what to make of it. I can’t even think of anything it could represent!” he replied.

“It scares me a bit,” Swift Heart said weakly.

They left to go home, opting to take a chariot in celebration, but neither of them could speak.

Their newborn son already had a cutie mark.

And it was a bloodstained kitchen knife.