Chains Tales

Chapters

Cutie Mark Crusader Slavers! Yay!
Shining Meets Chains
A Caged Canary
To Be a Hero
Cuddling
Bandages
Unexpected Events

Cutie Mark Crusader Slavers! Yay!

It was a cool spring morning in a lonely, out of the way, little suburb.

A young man with auburn hair, fair skin and green eyes was sipping his cup of coffee as he read the day’s paper, checking on the status of his sports teams.

He put down his coffee and took a bite of his scrambled eggs, before he heard a knock on the front door.

Looking up as he set his paper down, and got up from the table.

He heard the knock again as he got near it. “I’m coming, I’m coming,” he said, as he reached for the doorknob and opened it.

And saw no one there.

He raised an eyebrow as he leaned out and looked right and left, not seeing anyone.

“Down here,” came the voice of a young girl.

He looked down to see the big smiling eyes of three adorable fillies; One yellow, one orange with pair of wings, and one white with a horn.

He stared at them in shock; unable to really comprehend how they could exist, let alone talk. He was almost certain he must have been both seeing and hearing things. Before the Yellow one spoke up with the same voice as he heard earlier.

“Can we please enslave ya’ll?” she asked sweetly, her eyes getting big and shiny.

It took a moment for the young man to register what she said, and at first he was furious at such a notion and was about to express it, when his eyes locked with hers.

She smiled so brightly and innocently that the anger the young man felt was slowly melting away.

And suddenly a pain gripped his heart as if it had exploded inside his chest.

His hand clenched at his chest, as he fell backwards, dead on the spot.

The fillies rushed to his side, and the orange one kicked the floor in frustration. “Darn it, that’s the fifth one!”

………………

Sometime earlier in another dimension

The three fillies, Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle, collectively known as the Cutie Mark Crusaders, lay on the grass, puzzling over ideas for how to earn their cutie marks.

“Ya’ll come up with anything?” Applebloom asked, studying a blade of grass for inspiration.

“Nope,” came Scootaloo’s bored reply.

“Nothing,” came Sweetie’s shortly after.

The three let out a collective sigh.

Suddenly, Applebloom had an idea and jumped up excitedly, “ah got it!” she exclaimed.

Her friends looked at her, equally excited to hear her idea, “We can be Cutie Mark Crusader Slavers!”

Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle tilted their heads, and frowned, and thought for a minute, “aren’t all the humans already enslaved?” Sweetie Belle mentioned.

Applebloom’s victorious pose faltered slightly, “ah….. well…..”

………………….

The present in this dimension

That’s how their day, and this journey, began. To think that finding the materials and magic to create a trans-dimensional gateway into a universe just packed full of humans was the easy part.

The Cutie Mark Crusaders traveled down the street of the neighborhood they had been transported to, to do their best in becoming Cutie Mark Crusader Slavers.

“Maybe we’re doing it wrong?” Sweetie suggested.

“What do you mean?” Scootaloo asked as they came to the next house along the street. The three of them stopped before approaching the door.

“Well, didn’t we learn in class that early humans were captured?” Sweetie recalled. “If we want to get Cutie Marks in slaving, shouldn’t we try capturing a human?”

Applebloom looked down, “ah don’t know ya’ll, it seems wrong to just do that without askin.”

“Do you want a Cutie Mark or not?” Scootaloo asked, somewhat forcibly.

“Of course ah do,” the yellow filly said, growing resolute. “Okay, we’ll try capturing one, but let’s ask it first, we may get lucky this time,” she said hopefully.

……………………

There was yet another young man, with brown hair and eyes, enjoying his breakfast, toast and bacon.

He had the day off, and was planning on going for a morning jog after eating, followed by a shower and some hardcore gaming until late into the night.

His plans would soon be derailed however, as he heard a knock at the door. He hadn’t been expecting anyone, and he didn’t feel like dealing with any door to door religions or salesmen, so he ignored it.

There was another knock, louder this time.

Sighing, he took another bite of food, before there came a third knock, this one seemed more eager, as if there were several pairs of hands knocking.

With some irritation, he stood up from his table, and went to the door.

‘Probably the neighborhood kids again,’ he thought to himself, as he pulled open the door, and looked down, expecting to see mischievous children running off immediately.

He indeed saw young faces, but not the ones he expected.

They stared up at him with bright hopeful eyes, and one of them spoke up, “would you please let us enslave you?”

He stared down at them, and blinked a few more times.

It was lucky for him that, unlike several of his neighbors, he was somewhat jaded, and therefore immune to the effects of cuteness overload so he survived the initial encounter and registered what the young filly had said, and was able to give a well thought out answer.

“No.”

The door was quickly shut and he went to finish his breakfast, trying to ignore the oddity of that morning.

…………….

“Well, now what?” Scootaloo asked, after the door was slammed in their face.

“We capture him of course,” Applebloom answered, “we just need a net or somethin,” she said, looking around, spying a nearby tool shed with its door opened.

“Come on, Crusaders, let’s find something to catch him with,” she said as she trotted towards the shed, leading her fellow CMC.

……………..

The young man was washing his dishes after his morning meal, going over the peculiar event that happened moments ago.

He considered that maybe he imagined it, or maybe it was a well thought out hoax by some local kids, though he had no idea how they could pull something like that off.

With these thoughts weighing on his mind, he almost didn’t hear the knock on the door, which seemed softer this time.

He shook out his hands and grabbed a towel, drying them off before answering the door.

This time he expected to see the three little fillies from earlier, but was surprised to see not a one.

Thinking that maybe it was ding-dong-ditchers, he stepped out to look around, and was suddenly attacked.

In a flash the three fillies had jumped upon him; the White and Orange ones from the sides and the Yellow one, wielding a net, from above.

The net in question however was a small fishing net that didn’t even go past his shoulders, and only went over his head.

He could see the Yellow filly with the bow in her red mane hanging onto the handle, dangling from it, as her weight did little to bring him down as the other two fillies were each grabbing a leg.

The yellow filly seemed to blush as she realized how much their attempt had failed, and just stared into his narrowing eyes with her large expressive ones.

After a long pause she spoke up, “can we enslave ya now?”

He felt like he was growing a headache, and just gently lifted up the net, filly with it, and set her down on the ground gently. The other two letting go of his legs and standing beside their friend.

“No.”

He answered again, and began to walk off, trying to go for his morning walk before more craziness filled his day, when suddenly he felt a weight on his leg.

Looking down he saw that the orange filly, who he now noticed had wings, had latched onto his leg, and behind her, was the yellow filly, latching onto hers. And at the end, was the white filly with a horn.

“Pleeeeeaaaaase?” They begged in unison.

“No!” He said louder, as he dragged them along the sidewalk.

“Pleeeeeaaaaase?”

“No!”

Pleeeeeaaaaase?”

“No!”

Pleeeeeaaaaase?”

“No!”

“But we really want our cutie marks,” said the yellow one.

“I don’t know what that is, and I don’t care,” he said sternly.

“Come on,” the orange one tried to persuade.

“We’ll be your best friends,” the white one tried to bargain.

“No!” his denials were sounding more and more angry.

The three fillies let go of him and lined up in front of him, now having to resort to their final tactic.

They all stayed up at him with huge sad eyes, that began to fill with tears and shimmer in the light.

The human tried to stand strong, and turn away, but they were right there in front of him wherever he turned. “No, none of that,” he said.

Their eyes only got wider and they began to sniffle.

“Stop it,” he said, his voice faltering, even as hard hearted as he was, he could only take so much.

They each sniffled more and their lower lips trembled.

“Don’t…..”

He couldn’t finish the sentence, before they suddenly let out loud sobs and wails.

“WAAAAAHHHHH!!!!”

…………

Now sitting in a little red wagon, with a collar on his neck and his head resting on his fist, the human scowled as he was pulled through the portal and into the other world.

“Darn,” said the orange filly, who had introduced herself as Scootaloo, “Still no Cutie Mark.”

Author's Note

Non-Canon

Shining Meets Chains

The young unicorn filly by the name of Twilight Sparkle was excitedly running about her room, straightening up stacks of books, and picking up some of her stuffed toys.

Her human, Chains, was helping her tidy up, though he was somewhat perplexed by his Mistress’s sudden need to make sure everything was twice as neat and tidy as it had been already, which was saying quite a bit.

After a few moments, he voiced his curiosity, “Mistress, is there something special about today?” he asked her.

Twilight nodded as she reshelf her personal bookcase for what must have been the fifth time that morning. “Yes,” she said, turning to him with a bright smile, “My Big Brother is coming home from The Canterlot Junior Guard Academy for a visit,” she said, bouncing on her hooves.

Chains looked at her, “I didn’t know you had a brother,” he said, getting somewhat nervous, wondering if he was nice like the rest of Twilight’s family.

The filly nodded, “uh huh, he’s my Big Brother, Best Friend Forever,” she giggled excitedly, dashing suddenly to the other side of the room to straighten up a stack of some books for the third time before looking at him again, “I’m so excited that you get to meet him,” she said, bouncing towards him on her hooves.

Chains, despite his nervousness at meeting somepony new, couldn’t help but smile at his Mistress’s enthusiasm. He hadn’t seen her like this before.

“I just know he’ll like you,” The smiling Filly said, before looking Chains over, and then giggling, “we’ll have so much fun together while he’s home.”

The human boy looked down, “I hope so, Mistress,” he said, straightening out his clothes.

He had been the property of the Sparkle family for a few weeks now, the scars on his wrists were healing up, and Twilight was excelling in her studies, something she says he helped her with.

Twilight looked around her room one more time, “I hope I didn’t forget anything, I don’t want him to think I got messy since he’s been away,” she pouted while thinking.

The room was cleaned to perfection, due to both their efforts, and then re-cleaned passed perfection. Chains wondered if maybe his Mistress was over worried about her Brother’s visit.

Suddenly they heard a knock on the front door of the house, and they went out of the room to investigate just as Mr. Sparkle went to answer the door.

Opening it, there was a young blue maned stallion with a white coat. He smiled brightly to the older stallion, who smiled back, “I’m home,” he said, before getting pulled into a hug by Moonlight.

“That you are son,” Moonlight said, before letting him go, “come on in, if you’re quiet you can surprise…..”

“Shining!”

His sentence was cut off as Twilight called cheerfully and ran over to her brother, jumping at him to tackle him in an affectionate hug.

Shining Armor Sparkle caught his little sister and laughed as they hugged and he ruffled her mane, “Hey Twiley,” he answered with just as much affection, “how you been kid?” he asked.

“Good, real good, I’m getting even better at magic,” she said happily.

“Really? You have to show me sometime,” he said, finally putting her down. It was then he noticed a third presence, and looked towards the young human, who was watching, while hiding somewhat behind a corner.

Shining looked confused for a moment, and tilted his head.

Twilight saw this, and looked to where he was looking, before smiling again and running to the young boy, “Come on, come and meet Shining,” she said, coaxing him to come out of hiding.

Though nervous, Chains nodded, and came out from behind the corner and approached the stallion who was still somewhat confused at seeing him.

Standing in front of him, Twilight by his side, he was still nervous and looked at his own feet, looking up once in a while.

The silence was awkward, until Twilight spoke up.

“This is Chains, he’s my friend, and he’s been helping me with my magic studies,” she introduced him. Looking back to the boy in question, she said, “come on, say hello.”

Looking at Shining Armor in the eyes, the boy felt even more intimidated, as the stallion was taller than he was by a fair margin. He bowed respectfully, “i-it’s nice to meet you, Sir,” he said.

Shining looked at the boy, and then to his sister, who was smiling up at him, and then to his dad, who returned his look with one that said, ‘I’ll explain later.’

After a moment, Chains looked back up at him, and Shining raised a hoof.

The human closed his eyes, as if preparing for a strike, before he felt a gentle hoof ontop of his head, “It’s nice to meet you, Chains,” came Shining’s friendly voice.

Looking back up at the Stallion, Chains saw that he had a friendly smile as well. He did his best to return it, but only managed a shy smile.

“It’s good to see Twiley making some friends finally,” he chuckled, “I was worried he’d end up some sheltered hermit.”

He was answered with a kick to his shin from said little filly, she pouted up at him.

“Ow, I’m kidding, I’m kidding,” he chuckled, mussing up Twilight’s mane once more, getting her to giggle again.

“So, how long are you able to stay, Huh? Huh? Huh?” Twilight asked, while bouncing in place excitedly.

“All week, kiddo,” he laughed, “And I’ll spend as much of it as I can with you, I promise,” he said with a smile, earning a ‘yay’ from his little sister. He turned his attention to their father once more, “so where’s Mom?” he asked.

“She’s at the grocer’s right now, she wanted to get some things to make a special dinner when you got home,” Moonlight replied, happy that the children were getting reacquainted. “How about you have Twilight show you some of the magic she’s learned, I’ll call you when your mother arrives,” he said.

Shining nodded, “that sounds like a great idea,” he said, walking into the home, Twilight hot on his heels, Chains following nearby as well, “alright Twiley, show me what you got,” he said.

…………..

Dinner was a lively affair, as everypony ate together, and though he was uncomfortable, Chains ate at the table as well, enjoying his share of the meal, listening in as Shining shared stories from his time at the Junior Guard Academy.

He was amazed really, Shining Armor seemed every bit as excited about being a Royal Guard as Twilight was about learning Magic.

He wondered if all ponies were like this, or if it was just his Mistress’s family.

After dinner was finished, Chains started to clean up the dishes and put away leftovers as Mrs. Sparkle insisted Twilight take a bath before bed.

She protested at first, until she was reminded that if she went to bed early she could wake up early to spend more time with Shining in the morning.

As Chains started to fill the sink of dishes, Shining told his sister goodnight, and then offered to help the young human. “Y-you don’t need to bother yourself with me, Sir,” he told him.

“It isn’t a bother, I used to help clean up around here too,” Shining said, standing next to him, “And you don’t need to call me Sir,” he told the boy, “I’m not a Knight…. Yet. Now come on, I’ll wash, you dry,” he said.

The human relented, not wishing to argue, though still intimidated by the older boy’s presence, despite his friendly attitude towards him.

They cleaned the dishes in silence, until Shining spoke up, “Twiley seems to really be excited about you,” he said.

Chains stopped for just a second, before continuing, “I-I’m nothing special,” he said. “Besides, she’s really more excited about you, Sir,” he told him. “She was running around all day trying to make sure everything was perfect for you.”

Shining smiled, “I’m sure you helped her a lot,” he said.

“I’m happy to do it,” was the reply he got.

It was Shining’s turn to be taken aback, but he recovered as well and continued washing.

That wasn’t something you’d expect to hear from a slave.

“I’m glad she has you helping her,” he said.

………………….

Later that night, Chains was laying awake in his bed on the floor, thinking over the subject of Shining Armor, when he heard Twilight whisper to him, “pst, Chains, are you awake?” she asked.

He sat up, “Yes, Mistress?” he asked.

“Could you get me a glass of water, please?” she asked, her voice a little sleepy.

Her human nodded, and got up, and walked quietly out of the room to seek a glass of water for her. On the way to the kitchen he overheard voices coming from the living room at the other end of the hall.

Curious, he crept his way closer, and heard Shining armor speak, “I see, so you just got Twiley a human as a friend?” he asked.

“That’s about the size of it,” Moonlight answered back. “You know we’re not like that Shining, we’re still your parents,” he said.

“I know, it’s just, sorta weird still, you know?” Shining let out a sigh. “I guess I just never put much thought into it.”

“We didn’t either,” Starbright’s voice chimed in. “Believe me, I thought it a weird idea too, but Twilight is really taken with him, she goes everywhere she can with him, to the Library, the Ice Cream shop, the park, I never seen her so happy to do things outside of the house,” she chuckled.

“But still, a human, a slave,” Shining said, “I never thought of our family being in the same group as those stuffy aristocrats who show off their wealth.”

“And we’re not,” Moonlight quickly interjected, his voice stern. “We bought Chains as a friend for Twilight, but well, since he’s been here, he’s kind of become part of the family as well,” he explained.

“He’s still a slave,” Shining said once again, “it seems wrong, no matter the reasons.”

“And had we not bought him, where would he be?” Starbright asked.

Shining was silent, unable to answer.

“He’s a good kid, and Twilight likes him, the fact that he’s a slave barely matters in this house,” Moonlight explained.

Shining was still silent, he must have been thinking. “I can accept that,” he sighed. “You’re right, he is a good kid, but, I’m not used to somepony being scared of me like that,” he said.

Chains looked at the floor, thinking on the conversation, mostly on what Shining Armor had said. The conversation went on, but Chains wasn’t listening anymore.

He quietly made his way to the kitchen, got a small glass of water for Twilight, and headed back to the bedroom.

Twilight looked up at him as he came back in, “that took a while,” she said softly, as Chains set the glass gently on her night stand.

“I, had trouble finding a glass,” he said as he made his way back to his bed.

Twilight didn’t press the matter and just took a few sips of the water, before laying back down, “thank you, Chains,” she said, “Goodnight.”

Chains layed back down in his bed, and replied, “Goodnight,” as well, though he would find difficulty getting to sleep for a while, his mind still thinking on what Shining Armor had said about him acting so scared.

He resolved to try and not be so skittish tomorrow, and closed his eyes as he fell into a deep sleep.

Author's Note

Canon

A Caged Canary

The young human boy, by the name of Chains, was lying at the foot of his Mistress’s bed on the floor, attempting to sleep.

Twilight Sparkle, his Mistress, was in late night studies with her teacher, Princess Celestia.

She had been studying under her for four years now, and just a few days ago, on Twilight’s twelfth birthday Spike, the dragon she had hatched back just before he studies had begun, had grown somewhat and was placed in her care.

The baby dragon was given his own bed, a small one fitting his diminutive size.

While at first it was awkward for all three of them, Spike had grown familiar with both the human and Unicorn, though they both knew quite well that moving into a completely new home was never easy for one so young. Chains knew even more so.

The young boy was restless this night, though he didn’t know why. He tossed and turned, and then he felt a pair of eyes on him.

Looking up from where he slept, he saw the young dragon looking at him, in a somewhat timid fashion.

Blinking a few times, Chains sat up slowly, “Are you alright Spike?” he asked.

The baby drake shook his head, “no, I can’t sleep,” he said.

Chains couldn’t help but smile lightly, “neither can I,” he admitted.

The baby dragon came closer, “can, you tell me a bedtime story?” he asked shyly.

This took the human by surprise. He thought for a moment, “I’m not sure if I know any,” he admitted. He looked at the baby dragon, and saw his expression was crestfallen.

He sighed and smiled, “I’ll try to come up with one,” he relented.

Spike smiled excitedly and bound over to the human, and sat next to him, and the two of them rested against Twilight’s bed.

Chains thought for a second, trying to think of something he may have heard before, but couldn’t think of any stories that would suit a baby dragon.

He then had an idea, and started his story.

“Once upon a time, there was a small brown Canary who lived in a cage.

Everyday, his owner would set him by the window, and every day the Canary saw the beautiful world outside his cage. From the first day he saw it, he grew sad because he would never get closer to it than now.

The Canary sang for its owner while it was at the window, but its songs were always sad. Until one morning, the Canary looked outside and saw a beautiful lavender Sparrow, who was watching him sing.

When she got the chance she flew to his cage and greeted him.

The Canary was too shy to answer at first, but eventually he sang back his own greeting.

They tweeted and chirped for the better part of the day, before the Owner came back and took his cage from the window for the night.

For the whole night, the Canary thought longingly of the Sparrow, hoping to see her again the next day.

When the next day came, he was placed at the window, but was sad when he didn’t see her. So he once again sang his sad song, but to his amazement, the Sparrow and returned, and his heart leaped with joy.

It went on this way for days; he would be taken from her, and brought back every day, singing his sad song until she would come back to him.

One day, she asked him, ‘why do your songs all sound so sad?’

He shyly replied, ‘It was once because I could see how beautiful the world outside my cage was, and know that I could never fly free in it, but now, it’s because I found something more beautiful than the whole world, and I know I can never fly with her.’

The Sparrow looked at him sadly, and he to her.

The Owner came and took his cage out of the window as always, but before they closed the window, the Sparrow called to him, ‘Please, sing a happy song next time.’

The next day, he was placed at the window as usually, and he tried to think of how to sing a happy song.

He didn’t know how, he had never sung a happy song before. So he sang his sad song as usually.

This time, the Sparrow did not come, and when the Canary saw this, his song only grew sadder and sadder.

He realized that the Sparrow would not come to a sad song anymore, so he stopped singing, and sat quietly in his cage, staring out at the beautiful world outside.

The Canary’s thoughts went to the Sparrow, and how he felt when she was with him. He let himself relive all those happy times, and slowly he began to sing again, and for the first time in his life, the notes he sung were happy.

Hearing it, the Sparrow flew to his cage, and sang as well, and the two sang happily.

The Canary never sung as sad note again for the rest of his days, even though he was in a cage, and the Sparrow was outside it.

Just being together was enough for him to be happy.”

Chains finished the story and looked down at the now sleeping baby dragon, and smiled, gently stroking Spike’s scales.

The dragon snuggled himself into the human, as he sucked on his claw and rested.

The human heard the room’s door open and close, and saw Twilight approaching them with a smile on her face, “That’s a beautiful story,” she said softly, “did you make it yourself?” she asked.

Chains nodded, his face blushing somewhat, “h-how much did you hear?” he asked.

“I think I started hearing it when the Sparrow asked the Canary why his songs were sad,” she said.

Chains smiled, “it’s, just something I came up with,” he said.

Twilight set herself down next to him, and snuggled up to him affectionately, “I’d like to hear it from the beginning,” she said.

His face more flushed than before, Chains smiled, “o-okay.”

Clearing his throat, he began his story again.

“Once upon a time, there was a small brown Canary……”

Author's Note

Canon

This one is short, but it was a cute idea I had. Spike's relationship with Chains isn't fleshed out nearly as much as it deserves to be.

To Be a Hero

Approaching the summit of the largest and most dangerous mountain in all of Equestria was a rather strange pair of adventurers. They were strange in the sense that one was a Unicorn, and the other a human, a race which most in this land believed to be only good as a slave race.

The human was tall and handsome, and wore armor that seemed to be made of silver as it glinted in the sunlight. His short brown hair blew in the wind as he trudged up the trail, his left hand gripping a shield, and his right hand on the hilt of his sword, which rested in its Scabbard, his mismatched eyes peering cautiously for their goal.

His Unicorn companion trailed not far behind him, a set of heavy robes clung to her form as she climbed after the human. Her purple eyes betrayed deep wisdom and magical knowledge. A powerful gust of cold mountain wind caused her to stop for a moment as her cloak and purple and pink mane billowed in the wind.

“My Lady,” the human called back, “we are almost there,” he told her.

She looked up to him and nodded, “we must hurry, the Dragon may soon eat the poor Maiden if he hasn’t already,” she spoke with a deep sense of urgency.

The human nodded, as they made their way closer and closer to their goal.

Upon reaching the summit they saw the entrance of a cave with a faint light deep inside, and could feel a tremendous amount of heat radiating from it. They had to shield their faces at first to get used to the stark contras of the cold they had endured till now.

They gave each other one last look to share their determination, before nodding and entering the cave to search for the dragon and maiden.

The cave smelled horrible and the human carefully drew his sword so as to be at the ready should the beast attack them.

The cave seemed to close around them as they went deeper towards the source of the light, listening for even the slightest sound.

They came to a turn in the cave and the human pressed his back to the wall, the unicorn followed suite, as the human looked around the corner.

The chamber he peered into was grand, and a large fire burned in the center to provide the warmth. He then spotted a maiden pony, grey in color, with patchwork clothes and a messy mane. She was tied to a stalagmite. She seemed to be unconscious.

He looked around the chamber, but saw no sign of the Dragon’s presence.

He turned back to the Unicorn, and whispered softly, “she’s in there, but I do not see the dragon.”

The Mage thought deeply, “let us hope he is out hunting, either way, we must go to our lady’s rescue,” she said.

The human nodded, and together they cautiously proceeded around the corner and into the chamber.

After a few steps, the Unicorn trotted to the Maiden’s side, and looked her over as the human stayed near the path they came from, looking around, his shield and sword ready should they come under attack suddenly.

After a quick diagnostic spell, the pony looked to him, speaking quietly, “she doesn’t appear to be damaged, just out cold,” she told him, her horn flaring up with magic as she proceeded to undo the ropes.

Before the first knot was undone, a low growl echoed throughout the chamber, causing both human and pony to freeze in place and look around in a slight panic.

The dragon was hiding in the shadows cast by the intricate stalagmites and stalactites, and it was clearly displeased.

The human warrior and unicorn mage stepped back towards each other, eyeing the shadows carefully, “are you prepared, My Lady?” he asked her, ready to defend her with his life as he knew she would do the same for him.

She nodded, though he couldn’t see it, “yes,” she said, her horn charging to prepare a spell.

Suddenly, a large purple dragon with green spines leaped from the shadows, snarling viciously as the heroes rolled aside from each other, the dragon going between them and continuing on, turning around and facing the both of them.

The mage fired a bolt of magic at the dragon, though this only served to draw his attention. He breathed a ball of fire at her, and she did her best to dodge, though the blast caught a bit of her robes, singeing them.

The human came at the dragon’s flank, and swung his sword, to draw his attention away from the unicorn.

The dragon snarled and swung his tail at the smaller human, who blocked it with his shield, though the force of the impact still sent him flying back.

The human stood as his companion fired another blast of magic at the reptile’s eyes, which exploded in a brilliant flash of light.

The dragon recoiled and roared in surprise as he was blinded.

“Now!” yelled the unicorn with urgency.

The human nodded and rushed the dragon, leaped in the air, and brought down his mighty blade upon the head of the beast.

……

Chains gently tapped the baby dragon on the head with an empty paper towel roll.

Spike let out a dramatic roar of anguish as he fell backwards, dramatizing his defeat with played up snarls.

The human chuckled and so did Twilight who was nearby, wrapped in a blanket which acted as robes for their little game.

Nearby, tied in string was Twilight’s doll, Smarty Pants.

The three children shared a laugh, which echoed in the empty library.

Normally it was closed at this time of night, and no one was allowed inside, but Twilight wanted to do some research and Spike wanted to read more adventure books.

He had been growing very fond of the stories involving brave knights saving damsels in distress.

“That was fun!” the young drake exclaimed as he sat up, “thanks for playing with me guys,” he said, getting up and going to the book that he had been reading.

“It was a pleasure Spike,” Twilight said as she went to pick up Smarty Pants.

Chains smiled as he went to Spike, but then noticed that the young drake had a perplexed look on his face. “Um, guys?” the baby dragon spoke up, looking at them as they turned their attention fully to him. “Why aren’t any of the dragons in these stories heroes?” he asked them

The human and the unicorn looked at each other, not quite sure how to answer it.

Though, Twilight was the first to come to some conclusion that may set the baby dragon at ease. “Well, dragons are usually the bad guys in fantasy stories like that,” she started, the drake began to look crestfallen, “but maybe, nopony has had the chance to see a heroic dragon in action,” she said, trying to give an encouraging smile.

Spike still looked sad for a moment, and held the book to his chest.

He had fallen in love with adventure stories involving heroes because of how brave they were and how they never gave up against such great odds.

He smiled as he came to a realization and he looked up at his would be siblings, “then I’ll be the first,” he proclaimed, standing up. “One day, I’ll be a brave hero, and I’ll save ponies from evil creatures and maybe I’ll save a Princess too,” he started to say excitedly, “and we’ll get married and live happily ever after.”

His smile was bright and cheerful as any child’s should be.

Chains and Twilight couldn’t help but smile with him, and the human spoke up this time, “I don’t doubt it, you’ll be a great hero one day, Spike,” he said.

The drake grinned and looked up at them, “I’ll need you two to be there too,” he said. “All the greatest heroes have their best friends helping them, right?” he asked.

Twilight chuckled and gave the baby dragon an affectionate nuzzle, “of course we’ll be there, we wouldn’t let our heroic dragon go it alone after all,” she said.

Chains came to their side, and placed a hand on Spike’s shoulder, “I’ll help in whatever way I can,” he said.

Spike’s smile only grew bigger as he hugged them both, “you guys are the best!”

Author's Note

Canon

I really do like writing these three together like this.

Cuddling

It was early morning in Ponyville, so early in fact that Celestia had yet to raise the sun.

Though just the day before some ponies feared that the sun would never raise again.

The Summer Sun Celebration had always been a day of joy for the inhabitants of Equestria, filled with parties that lasted till dawn and festivals that lasted the entire following day.

But the next day, everypony was shocked when the night went on longer than normal. Though many of them felt something was wrong, they didn’t worry too much about it.

And then it went on for hours, until it was what should have been the afternoon.

Confusion quickly turned to panic, but the moment the sun began to rise again, that same panic turned into cautious optimism.

Even now, ponies were worried though. Even when details spread to the four corners of the Equestrian nation explaining exactly what had happened. Nightmare Moon had returned, and threatened the world with darkness, but was defeated and purified.

They were told the day scheduling would resume as it normally would, and the normally longest day of the year had become the shortest in history.

But more so than worried, the ponies were too tired to be afraid of the dark the following night and most slept peacefully.

Some went to bed before the sun had even sunk to the horizon, and the moon replacing it in the sky, which shone with such majesty that had not be witnessed for millennia.

It was still dark as the brown and blue eyes of a young man opened softly. Having slept like a rock, his body felt stiff.

Chains let out a tired groan as he tried to move a little, but became aware of the presence in the bed with him.

Looking to his right side, he noticed the young lavender unicorn who he shared the dreamless slumber with.

Twilight Sparkle was still asleep, breathing softly, her muzzle resting on her human’s shoulder.

Chains smiled gently as he remembered the day before, how Twilight had expressed her love for him, and he expressed his own for her. Though they had said it before, it felt much better now that they were both resolute in pursuing their romance.

Despite the world nearly being thrown into eternal darkness, getting lost in the Everfree forest and nearly dying twice the same night, it was likely the best day in Chains’ life, and if not it was close.

The human pulled the unicorn closer and gently nuzzled her, and breathed in her scent. It was one he was familiar with growing up. The smell of ink and paper, and stale books which hadn’t been opened in years mixed with a slight scent of herbal tea.

It was calming and relaxing, and Chains had nearly drifted back to sleep, had the unicorn not began to stir herself.

A soft mumble escaped her lips as she pressed herself into the warmth of the human body next to her.

Chains blushed and wrapped his arms around her as her eyes slowly fluttered open. She looked up at him and smiled, before pressing her head to his chest affectionately. “Mmm, is it morning yet?” she asked.

The human looked outside the window, seeing the faint signs of the sky getting lighter as the sun neared the horizon. “Not yet,” he said, gently stroking her mane.

“Good, I don’t want to get up yet,” she said sleepily, earning a chuckle from the young man.

The two of them lay in bed, cuddling close, happy and content in just sharing each other’s warmth.

Twilight adjusted herself, moving her head along his chest, when her horn accidently tapped against his collar, making an audible metallic clank.

They both froze up, and Twilight gently moved her head to look sadly at the ring of metal around the human’s neck.

It served as a reminder of what he was, and the world they lived in.

Twilight frowned, and her horn glowed with a violet light, as did the collar around Chains neck. His eyes widened as he heard a click, and the collar was removed and placed on the nightstand nearby.

“Mistress,” he spoke with some worry in his force, before she nuzzled his now bare neck.

“Chains,” she spoke softly, her forelegs wrapping around his body to embrace him.

A smile formed on his lips, and he closed his eyes in understanding, pulling her into a tighter embrace.

“Twilight.”

For now at least, they could forget the world outside of themselves.

Here he wasn’t a slave, and Twilight wasn’t his Mistress.

He was her love, and she was his.

Author's Note

Most of the fanfics I'm writing right now have a lot of heavy stuff going on in them at the moment. Also a lot of the ones I've been reading lately hit hard emotionally. So I needed to write some Cuddle Fluff to lighten my mood a little. It's short, it's sweet, and its Canon, set just after the events of Chapter 14 in Chains.

Canon

Bandages

A tall human wearing a set of old military clothes and a beat up half shredded chainmail vest, and with wild graying hair and beard, trudged painfully through the Everfree Forest.

Each step he took seemed to thump harder against the ground than the last. His steel gray eyes growing heavy as he fought to keep conscious.

He was covered in bleeding wounds, caused by a pack of timber wolves that had ambushed him after he had caught what would have been his dinner that night.

He had a large gash in his right arm where a wolf had bit him and deep scratches in his torso along with a bite on his shoulder and one on his left leg. His left arm was missing, the stump ending just above his elbow, but that was a much older wound that had healed over years ago.

In his right hand was a short blade made of bone with a makeshift grip.

He groaned as he almost tripped and lost consciousness.

He wasn’t even sure of where he was going anymore as his vision started to fade.

‘Damn it, so many years, and this is how it all ends?!’ he cursed to himself as he tried to push on, though to what purpose and destination he didn’t know.

He just knew that if he stopped moving that would mean death.

He let out a grunt as his foot slipped and he went to one knee on the ground. He braced himself on his sword, and tried to push himself up, but lacked the strength to put his foot back in front of him, and he fell on his face, his sword left in the ground.

With his last ounces of willpower, he put his single arm in front of himself and tried to drag his body on.

He lost consciousness as his fist clenched the blades of grass, and a gentle humming was heard nearby.

………..

Fluttershy hummed sweetly to herself as she was gathering a few rare seeds that grew from the trees on the edge of the Everfree Forest. She was hoping to serve the seeds to the birds she was recruiting to sing at the Summer Sun Celebration in a few weeks.

She wasn’t worried so much about the forest, especially during the day. This part was especially tame, and a pony could even see the sun through the treetops on a clear day.

While scanning the ground for any loose seeds that had fallen to the forest floor, when she noticed some of the spots of grass with pressed down, indicating tracks of some sort of animal.

She looked to the forest and saw that they came from there, and then looked to the other way they traveled, and just a few feet away she saw the unconscious form of a human.

Letting out a nervous gasp, she galloped over to the unmoving form.

She looked him over, and her breath caught in her throat.

He was badly hurt, and losing more blood by the moment. She almost cried when she noticed his missing limb.

The yellow Pegasus looked around to see if there was anypony else nearby, and her eyes landed on the bone sword.

Such a cruel looking tool didn’t likely belong to anypony nice.

She was torn on what to do. This human could be an escaped slave, which meant somepony maybe looking for him, and if he had a weapon, he may have been hurting ponies.

She considered alerting the town watch.

The human let out a groan of pain.

Fluttershy took a deep breath.

There was no question now.

She almost tried picking him up herself, but stopped, knowing someone of his size would be just too heavy for her.

She flew off quickly, not wasting a second to think or second guess herself as she looked for one of her friends who could carry him.

………….

Luckily for Fluttershy, her friend Harry, the bear, was nearby, and was happy to help carry the human into her cottage and laid him down on her bed, as it was the only place that had enough room to work.

She made a mental note to pick some extra berries for him later.

She had quickly removed the injured human’s clothes, suppressing her own blush as she looked over his wounds.

She was somewhat relieved to see that the stump of his arm was healed over and that it wasn’t a new wound. But he still had many deep cuts and gashes that she recognized as Timber Wolf bites and scratches.

She did what she could to stop the bleeding as fast as possible, and managed to do so with little difficulty. Treating wounds wasn’t much different no matter who, or what, you were doing them on.

After the bleeding was stopped she did her best to clean him up, and even put his clothes in the wash, with the exception of his chainmail, of course.

The more she worked on his wounds and clothes, the more she wondered who he was, and why his clothes looked so militaristic. Humans were slaves, not soldiers. At least not that she knew of.

She remembered something that Dash told her once, that there used to be some rich ponies that had human slaves act as bodyguards.

‘Could he be one?’ she wondered to herself as she got her needle and threat and began doing her best needlework to stitch up some of the larger gashes after they stopped bleeding.

Once that was done, she began to carefully wrap clean bandages over his wounds, and checked his pulse once more, and let out a sigh of relief.

He seemed like he would be okay, though she didn’t know how soon he’d be awake.

It was then that realization suddenly dawned on her.

She had taken a potentially dangerous or deadly human into her home, treated his wounds, and had sent the bear, which had carried him there, home, leaving her alone with it.

Her eyes widened as she looked at the still unconscious form of the human she had cared for, her mind running wild with possibilities of what he could, or would do to her.

He was much larger than she was, and all those wounds, new and old, meant he was at least experienced in fighting.

She had cared for his wounds, so maybe he’d be grateful and would be nice?

Her thoughts went to the sword she left sticking in the ground at the forest’s edge. She shuddered as she thought of it.

She wondered if it was made out of the bones from his arm, but dismissed that as it was far too long an instrument.

It must have been the bone of a much larger animal.

Her eyes widened further, realizing how big the creature would have to be to have a weapon made out of its bone like that, and putting together the fact that this human had taken it.

Fluttershy quietly stood up, and slowly backed out of the room with her eyes on the sleeping human as if he was a dragon with a hair trigger temper.

She slept downstairs that night, and had the door to her room locked from the outside.

……….

The next morning she had made a light breakfast and had made a little for the still unconscious human in her bed. It was small and would be easily palatable for a human, even an injured one. She quietly unlocked the door and opened it, going inside to find the human still resting where she had left him the night before.

Now with the sun’s light coming into the room she could better see his features, his wild and messy hair and beard gave him the look of a fierce creature. She could even casually compare him to a manticore.

Fluttershy shook her head, ‘Shame on you,’ she scolded herself. ‘He’s hurt, and your patient, Fluttershy.’ She went to his side and set the plate down on the nightstand. ‘You can’t treat him like he’s a rabid monster.’

He began to stir, and she froze like a deer in headlights as his gray eyes opened and tried to focus on the world around him.

After a moment, he looked in her direction and their eyes locked. His steel gray eyes seemed to look into her soul with a tiredness that went beyond mere physical exhaustion.

Gathering up what courage she could find, Fluttershy attempted to break the silence, “Um, hello,” she spoke softly, almost inaudibly.

He opened his mouth as if to respond, but instead he had a coughing fit, and when he could, he croaked out a scratchy plea for “water.”

Fluttershy quickly nodded, she had brought a small glass of water with the plate of food. She grabbed it and quickly brought it to his lips carefully with one hoof while the other pressed his back to help him up.

He sipped at the water and tried to drink as much as he could. His body was still aching greatly from his ordeals and soon he was leaning back. “Thank you,” he scratched out.

Fluttershy smiled to him, but it faltered when his steely eyes locked with her gentle green eyes again, and she shrank back a little, “Um, i-is there anything else I can do to help you?” she asked nervously.

The man tried to push himself up on the bed with his single arm, wincing in pain as he didn’t get very far.

Fluttershy quickly put her hooves on his chest, “Wait! You’re still hurt, don’t move too much!” she pleaded to him, her fear overmatched by her concern for him as she gently pushed him back down.

Lacking the strength to argue, or even move much, the human let himself fall back onto the bed without much of a fuss, relaxing into the soft bed. He then spotted the plate of food that was brought in.

Fluttershy smiled, “Are you hungry?” she asked.

The man simply nodded his head, his throat still hurting for him to give a vocalized response.

Fluttershy smiled and gently helped him into a better sitting position, and then took the plate of food off the night stand and brought it to him.

Once he was seated the human leaned back and gently took the plate of food from Fluttershy and rested it in his lap. “Thank you,” his voice scratched out again before he looked down at the food in front of him.

The meal was comprised of a couple of slices of buttered toast, hash browns, and even a fried egg. The human paused for a moment, and then took hold of the fork that had come with the meal, looking as if it had been a long time since he had last held one.

Fluttershy was going to ask if he was okay before he began to move again, using the fork to cut into the egg and separate it into small bites. With the yoke oozing out, he mixed in the pieces with the hash browns and shoveled them into his mouth, careful not to drop any of it onto the bed.

The yellow pony stared in amazement at how well the human handled just having a single arm. She was fully prepared and willing to help him if he struggled, but it seemed like it didn’t bother him one bit.

Finished with the eggs and potatoes, the human wiped up what remained of them with the toast and ate both slices.

The plate cleaned off, he lifted it and handed it to Fluttershy who took it and smiled, “W-wow, you must have been hungry, would you like some more?” she asked.

The human seemed to take a moment to think before shaking his head, just relaxing against the headboard of the bed. He looked to the glass of water again, and motioned to it.

Fluttershy nodded and took the glass, handing it to the human, who drank the rest of it in one gulp. The yellow mare looked about nervously, but smiled, “Um, my name is Fluttershy,” she introduced herself, “What’s your name?” she asked, wanting to try and make him a little more comfortable being there.

His eyes were looking more tired by the second, and he seemed moments from going back to sleep, but he looked at her, and shook his head, “Not important,” he managed to say, before, blissful unconsciousness took him once more.

Fluttershy grew more worried as he drifted off to sleep, but as she saw that he was breathing still, she felt a little better. It still bothered her that he didn’t share his name with her, but maybe he was just shy about it like she was.

She grabbed up the dishes, and made sure her patient was comfortable, before leaving the room, this time, not locking the door.

………

So it was for about a week. Every day she would bring him breakfast, clean his wounds, and change his bandages, with little protest from him.

He still wouldn’t share his name, but he let her speak without interrupting or even looking bored. Not even when she would go on long winded tirades about some of her favorite cute woodland critters. She thinks she may have even seen a smile form on his lips once or twice.

Then, on the fifth day, he asked her a question. It was the only time he started the conversation.

“What do you plan to do with me?” he asked. It didn’t sound demanding, or harsh, just curious. Like someone asking where they were going.

Fluttershy was caught off guard, and wasn’t sure how to respond right away.

“Um, well, I don’t know, I guess you can leave as soon as you feel better,” she mumbled lightly, her voice betraying her.

Part of her didn’t want him to, but this was something she was accustomed to by now. She would find a wounded animal out in the woods, nurse it back to health, and it would return to the wild.

The man nodded, “Thank you,” he said, not looking her in the eyes now.

Looking outside, Fluttershy saw it was becoming dark, “Oh my,” she said, fluttering to the window. “Is it night time already?” she asked aloud.

The sky was clear, and even though it was the middle of summer, it was looking like it would be a fairly chilly night.

Turning back to him, she smiled, “I have to feed the animals, how about you get some more rest?” she suggested.

He nodded as a silent response as he watched her exit and he closed his eyes and went to sleep.

He didn’t sleep for very long.

……………

It was during the middle of the night, when the nameless human was sitting up in his borrowed bed, and carefully pulled on each piece of his worn and tattered clothing, sliding on his chain shirt last.

Standing up, his body ached and his joints cracked over not having been used in a week’s time.

He was still a little light headed as he made his way out, when he stopped in the living room, before the front door.

Looking over to the couch, he saw his host and caretaker laying there, shivering slightly. The thin blanket which she was using had fallen to the floor.

He narrowed his steel eyes, noting that the bed he had been sleeping in had much heavier and warmer blankets.

He walked carefully and quietly over to it, and with his one arm, he gently and carefully picked up the sleeping Pegasus, and carried her to the room he had been sleeping in until now.

Putting her on the soft bed, he pulled the blanket over her, and unable to help himself, smiled gently as she snuggled under the warm covers.

Standing up straight, he cast a lasting gaze upon her, before shaking his head and leaving the house, leaving no sign he was even there to begin with.

Author's Note

Canon

This chapter remained unfinished for almost as long as the last chapter of Chains had. ^^ but now they're both finished, within a day of each other too. Let's see how much more I can get done.

Unexpected Events

The whole of the Sparkle family was sitting in the waiting room of the Canterlot Royal Hospital, waiting for news on one young Twilight Sparkle.

Twilight’s Father fidgeted in his seat, speaking idly with his son, Shining Armor who seemed as worried as he was. Twilight’s Mother was doing some crossword puzzles to try and keep her mind occupied while they waited while Spike was curled up on a chair, having a somewhat restless sleep.

And lastly, likely the most worried out of all of them, was a young human named Chains, human slave and, unknown to all other occupants of the room with the exception of perhaps Spike, secret lover of Twilight Sparkle.

They were all here because of Twilight’s unexpected bought of illness.

It started a few weeks ago in fact, while in the middle of her morning classes, Twilight suddenly felt a great wave of nausea and had to excuse herself to the restroom and proceeded to vomit violently.

It proceeded to be as such nearly every morning since, and she’s had to cancel her classes.

The Princess was away on Royal business, but Spike had sent her a message informing her of Twilight’s ailment. The Princess had in turn instructed him to take her to the Hospital and said she would wrap up her duties as soon as she could to check in on her.

Indeed, only Blue Star, Twilight’s appointed guard, was not present, a fact which Chains was grateful for, as the Stallion made the human very uncomfortable.

The human stood, staring at the door which the doctor would come through as soon as he had something to report on. Chains could only hope that whatever it was that ailed his Mistress, it was not too serious.

He was jarred from his musings as he heard the door open, though he shied away when he saw it was not the doctor.

He bowed low and made way as Princess Celestia entered the waiting room, flanked by two of her guards.

The rest of the family rose from their seats and bowed, except for the still sleeping Spike.

“Please, remain seated,” she said, before looking to her guards, “You may leave us,” she told them. They turned and left without a word as the Princess looked again to Twilight’s parents, “Has there been any word yet on Twilight’s health?” she asked.

The Mother shook her head, “No, your Majesty, we are still waiting,” she said.

Celestia only gave her a gentle smile, “I would not worry, this is the season for the flu to go around, it is probably nothing more than that.”

“I hope you’re right,” The Father said, as he sat back down.

Celestia’s eyes landed momentarily on Chains, who averted his own gaze, likely in a small semblance of fear as well as respect, though the act made the Sun Princess frown.

Before anyone else could speak another word, the door opened once more, and a doctor with heavy bags under his eyes and a short cut black mane walked in, the look on his face seemed one of grim confusion which only made the occupants of the waiting room worry more. Seeing the Princess, he bowed, “Your Majesty, I was not expecting you to be here.”

Celestia motioned for him to rise, “Please, what is Twilight Sparkle’s condition?” she asked him.

The doctor seemed to struggle in his mind, either trying to find an escape, or just being unsure of how to answer. “Well…..” he started, seeming to finally come to it, “She’s pregnant.”

Time seemed to freeze in the room, as five sets of eyes went wide. Everyone was expecting anything except for that.

Each mind raced and began to come to one conclusion or another, before finally each of them had come to the same one.

Twilight’s Mother had fainted on the spot, and while this would be a concern for both her husband and her son, they were both preoccupied as they slowly turned their heads to look at the human who stood as still as a statue, sweating profusely as his own eyes were locked onto the doctor.

Celestia bit the inside of her cheek as her expression became a bit more serious and sullen than that of the other occupants.

The doctor had followed the eyes of the stallions to the human who seemed to be hoping that if he didn’t move, they wouldn’t see him. It was a vain hope at best. “I see that I don’t need to show you the ultrasounds,” he said.

“Doctor,” the Princess was the first of them to speak, “Are you quite certain of this?” she asked. “Is it even possible?”

The doctor looked to her, “I was asking myself that not ten minutes ago, the embryo is still in its early stages, but it is unique from normal pony embryos at that stage, going on a hunch, I looked at examples of human embryos. It is similar enough to both that I would say it is indeed a hybrid, though I’ve never heard of such a thing before, it is likely the first of its kind.”

“Does, does Twilight…..?”

The doctor nodded to Twilight’s father, “I told her already, and if you’re worried, I left a nurse with her in case something happened.”

Having gotten over the shock, at least somewhat, Shining Armor was at his mother’s side, trying to revive her from her fainting spell. After a while, he had her seated, and she was brought up to date with the conversation.

“So,” She started, deciding to ask the question on everypony’s mind “What happens now?”

Celestia frowned, her features taking on every day of her millennia long lifetime, “This is a highly irregular occurrence, one I would never have imagined being possible. A human and a pony procreating together, I would honestly say I’d love to see the fruits of such love….. however.” She looked down, as if too ashamed to say it to any of their faces.

“I cannot think of many ponies who would be so accepting, at best society would shun her, and at worse, she maybe reviled, spat upon, tormented, jeered, perhaps even attacked. The child would be seen as an abomination by many groups, especially the nobles of Canterlot, and the more extreme of them may attempt to harm both her and the child.”

She grew quiet, again not looking at anything other than her own hooves on the floor, “For Twilight’s safety and well being, the pregnancy should be terminated and not another word be spoken about it.”

None of the ponies said a word, none of them liked the idea of making Twilight go through either course of action. The truth is, deep inside all of them, they would not be opposed to a half human child in the family, but they knew that such a child would not have an easy life, least of all in a city like Canterlot.

They could not argue against it, no matter how much they wished they could.

“Please,” came a quiet, almost inaudible voice.

Everypony turned to look at the human, who was on the floor, bowing as low as he could, his head pressed to the floor, and he seemed like he was trying to press it even further.

“Please, I know I have no right to speak, and I have no right to make any request of you,” he said to the Princess. “But please, don’t do this,” tears were trailing into the carpeted floor. “It’s my fault, if anyone deserves punishment, it’s me. Punish me, please, just don’t hurt Twilight or the baby.”

The Princess could only stare at the human kneeling and bowing on the ground before her, begging for the life of the likely ill-fated offspring. She knew why. Because it was his child, and it was the result of the love he shared with the pony carrying it.

Celestia let out a breath she didn’t know she was holding, unable to bring herself to look at the human, she walked passed him, and to the doctor, who remained quiet as they talked amongst themselves. “I will need to speak to Twilight Sparkle alone,” she said.

The doctor nodded, “Right this way,” he said, leading her out of the waiting room, leaving behind the sobbing human, giving quiet cries of apologies to the family of his love.

And despite the implications of recent events, they could not find it in themselves to be angry with him.

Twilight Sparkle lay in the hospital bed, and sighed to herself.

‘Stupid, stupid mare’ she thought to herself.

She should have known better, even if pregnancy was thought to be impossible, she should have made him wear protection at least.

The nurse who was in the room with her chatted away about something, but Twilight wasn’t paying attention. Her hooves rested on her belly, which, now that she thought about it, had a little bit more of a bump to it.

Twilight sighed again to herself, chastising herself for not noticing sooner. Now everypony would know, and they’d probably take Chains away, probably wouldn’t let her keep the baby. Her mind was racing with what might happen, what could have happened, and what she would have wanted to happen.

Despite the turmoil in her mind, outwardly, Twilight seemed calm, though very quiet and sullen.

She supposed she was as calm as any 15 year old who just found out they were pregnant with a hybrid child could be.

She almost didn’t notice the knock on the door, and both she and the nurse looked as Princess Celestia walked in, and give the young Unicorn a gentle comforting smile, before turning to the nurse, “If you would excuse us, I need to speak with my student alone,” she told her.

The nurse nodded, and excused herself, leaving mentor and student in each other’s company.

Celestia sat on the floor nearby, and still smiled to Twilight, “How are you feeling, Twilight Sparkle?” she asked her.

Twilight smiled back, though it was much more visibly forced than the Princess’s, “I’m doing okay,” she lied.

Celestia’s ears layed back on her head. She truly wished she didn’t have to speak of this subject. “Twilight, about your…. Condition….”

Twilight’s eyes again fell on her slightly rounding tummy.

“This is your decision, and I will not force you to make one or the other, but it is something you must decide.”

The Princess went on. “You are carrying a hybrid child, one that’s never been seen before, and I cannot promise that you, Chains, or even your child will have an easy life, in fact, I fear it will be most difficult for all of you,” she told her. “The best option, would be to terminate the pregnancy, and just forget this all happened, no one would have to know.”

Twilight body tensed up.

“However,” the Princess continued, “If you do chose to keep the child, the crown would not be able to help you, I can assign guards to you, I could publicly announce that you and your child are protected by law, but those would only deter the sensible. If you do keep the child, it must be kept a secret from everypony, perhaps even disguised to look naturally like a pony. That would not be an easy life for it to live.”

Twilight was quiet.

“No pony who knows will judge you if you to not keep the child, but neither will we force you to give it up.”

The young Unicorn’s eyes were glued to her abdomen, and the undeveloped life which resided inside her as she thought long and hard, before turning to look at her mentor to give her answer.

The Sparkle family had comforted Chains and had gotten him up off the floor, convincing him to sit in a chair while they waited for Celestia to return.

None of them were speaking now, minds still reeling from the shocking news. They had also chosen not to wake Spike, believing it better if he wasn’t troubled with this kind of news just yet.

To Chains it seemed an eternity when Celestia finally came back to the room, his duel colored eyes looking up at her, still pleading.

The Sun Princess gave them all a wary smile, “She’s keeping the child.”

Author's Note

Non-Canon

I wrote this some time ago for a friend who came up with the idea of Chains and Twilight raising a hybrid child together in the face of adversity. He's yet to write it, but I did write this as a prologue and thought, "Hey, maybe it'd make a good chapter for Chains Tales."

Don't worry, I am trying to continue my work with Chains, but working nights can take it out of a person. I hope to bring you more soon and hope you all enjoyed this little bit of a non canon story.