Protean: Masks and Memories
1. (Intro) Destiny of the young
Life… the meaning of life has been chased around for thousands of years. Millions over millions of ponies, changelings, griffins, and other creatures have struggled to find it. It eluded all but the smartest, all but the most open-minded of creatures, but in any case if you wanted to understand the meaning of life you had to start your search at the beginning of it…
Birth.
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Scribble, scribble, scribble, scratch, huff, scratch.
The sound of quill, crayon, and pencil on paper was something not uncommon for an elementary pony school. Poems, drawings, essays, math, the class was busy with the task Miss Angel Heart had given her class.
Babies: A new life comes.
They were tasked with creating something, be that written, drawn, or otherwise, with the subject at hoof. Many of her students had brothers and sisters, the coming of which they experienced first hoof. Some of them were fresh from the experience. Among them, two brothers were looking at each other quizzically. Angel Heart moved her hoof to clear her sun-golden mane out of her face and approached the two brothers. One was a pegasus with black mane and blue coat, and the other was a unicorn, grey coat with a fire colored mane.
Tidal Rider and Fire Heart already knew that babies didn’t come from pelikans like some of their classmates might have been told. They knew from early on that they were adopted, however that didn’t comfort them. It wasn’t that they lacked parental care, but still the gap was there. There was no smile, but there wasn’t a reason to be sad either. There was a… gap as they would call it, a weird empty feeling that could never go away.
Angel Heart had studied psychology in order to become a teacher, but for her it was innate. It was in her heart shaped cutie mark, surrounded by feathers.
“Hey there boys… are you alright?” The brothers raised their heads, shaking the shivers as the mare caught them absent minded. They looked at the white-coated mare with the brilliant smile. A bit of her vibrant smile reflected on their faces.
They could both agree she was beautiful.
She caressed their heads a bit before speaking again, “Now I know you two don’t like talking about your family... If you don’t want to touch this subject it’s okay.”
“Miss Heart…” Tidal took the word.
“Yes?”
“... it’s not that we don’t want to talk about it.” Fire Heart continued, “But-” he sighed bumping Tidal’s shoulder. Tidal glared at him, wincing a bit as he rubbed it.
“Did they love us?” They looked with begging faces, their features dragged down by sadness as it weighed upon their poor minds. Angel Heart didn’t have an easy answer. She could lie, but that would be like betraying her talents, so she told them the truth as she understood it.
“Many foals around the world end up for adoption. Some because their parents died, some because they were abandoned. You were left purposefully at the doorstep of a family that would love you as if you were their own. I know your foster parents, so that I can swear.” She placed her hoof on her chest, puffing it out while stretching her wings to impress them.
“Most foals that end up for adoption take a long time before they know true family. Now tell me… would your real parents leave you like that if they didn’t love you at all? Even this small act of care shows compassion from their side. Who knows why they left? Maybe you have a chance to meet them again in the future.” Her words brought a small shine to the worried brothers’ faces.
Angel Heart smiled heartily once again as she hugged them both, rubbing their heads “Now, now, it’s not nice to ignore your foster parents either. I mean, what would they say to me if I made their sons sad? I mean, besides them being lazy...” She flopped her tongue out and stroked her chin comedically “Hmm, that can’t be good right? No sirs! That simply won’t do!” She waved her hoof, and curled her snout inwards while taking a comedically strict tone. Tidal Rider laughed, his laugh soon shared by his brother. Deciding not to disappoint their teacher, the brothers decided to join the rest of the class.
~~DRRRRRIIIIIIINNNG!~~
The classroom was drowned in a unanimous ‘YAY!’ as fillies and colts started making a small stampede in their process of going out. But before it could escalate Angel Heart clapped her hooves together loudly. The simple yet assertive gesture of the kind teacher was enough to get the message through her class’ minds.
“Now now, let’s not forget. Gather your stuff carefully and put it in your bags. You are free to complete this project however you want. Bring it to me by next Monday, alright? Now off you go! Quietly and in order!” She beamed a smile at them, leaning her head to the side.
“YES MISS HEART!” The children cheered back. She sighed happily. Those smiles, their soft voices yelling happily, that was the joy of teaching, what Angel Heart lived for.
As she trotted out of the building, she was happy that she lived on the outskirts of Los Pegasus, away from the rich neighbourhoods that cramped the center. Here the community was more tight knit, and she could get to know the parents, which also made her teaching easier. Especially for cases like the adopted twins.
Speaketh the name of Tartarus, and here they were, the florists that owned the “Flower Haven”. The mother was an azure coated unicorn with a white mane with a purple rose cutie mark, and the father was a grey coated earth pony with the silver-grey mane and a red heart cutie mark with a twinkle on it. Edem Rose and Shining Heart were soon tackled by their adopted sons as they wrestled in a four- pony hug, laughing as they lost their balance and fell in a happy, laughing mess.
Picking themselves up, the quartet of happiness trotted side by side as Angel Heart admired their happiness. Adopted or not, the eight year old twins seemed like they would know eternal happiness.
If only…
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“So how was school today, boys?” At the sound of Edem’s voice the two boys paused for a moment.
Looking at each other, they smiled. It was only for a moment, a single glance and all was spoken between them but Edem spotted that strange vibe every time they were together. An invisible link held these two together, and they always had a firm understanding of each other. It was what Angel Heart had observed before, when the brothers spoke with thoughts in synch, what Edem had been told as her guardian.
It was Tidal Rider who spoke first, “Pretty good, we learned about the cycle of life, and nature. Pretty exciting! There’s even a theory that it all begun from water!” There was a glint in his eyes that looked towards the east where the sea was in the horizon. The young pegasus’s mind was ‘flying’, and he didn’t notice the lamppost he was about to crash in. He felt a pull from his side as Shining Heart yanked him to safety.
“Fascinating, as it is we don’t want you smashing your head on the wall from too much thinking, do we?” Shining scolded him mockingly. Fire Heart and Edem laughed as Shining smiled, rubbing his son’s head.
“There there… Come I’ll carry you now, okay?” Even though Tidal had grown he still enjoyed being on top of his dad. He hoped that he would never stop doing that, but the bump that his weight made on his father’s back increased over the years, and sadly there would be a time when the joys of youth would end, but for now Tidal was smiling, enjoying the moment to its fullest.
“So Fire Heart…” Shining continued now that Tidal was on his back. “How about you tell me what you thought of today on the way home?”
“Well, it was all nice, but I want to know more. How does it all begin? I’ve got so many questions, so little time… Oh and we have to do something about babies and the beginning of life for next class.”
Edem giggled at her son’s curiosity.“Curious little fella, aren’t you?” She said, teasing him, avoiding for now the baby-project that was clearly a hint to Tidal and Fire’s real parents.
“Shouldn’t I be?” The young unicorn looked curiously to his ‘mother’, wondering if he had made a mistake.
“No, of course not my dear! You are young, and it’s in your nature to be curious. I’m just remembering the times I was like you, it makes me happy in a way.” She shot back a vibrant smile that soon mirrored her son’s. There was a small rumble from his stomach, and Fire Heart smiled shyly, looking at his brother who was now rubbing his head over Shining’s mane.
Edem giggled once again. “Aww, what’s the matter? Jealous little hungry colt want a ride?” She puckered her lips, making the puppy eyes as Fire Heart scrunched his nose, turning his head to the side.
“No… I mean yes. I… please?” He didn’t have to wait a second more before Edem grabbed her obviously jealous son and placed him upon her back. If Edem thought he was heavy she didn’t say anything about it, preferring instead to beam up a smile as her son hugged her from his position.
Edem and Shining looked at each other. Their sons were definitely growing, sooner or later they would gain their cutie marks. What did destiny hold for them? What was their future? Would their parents come back?
As their son had said before… ‘So many questions… so little time’.
As they trotted towards their home their shadows stretched long, a part of them slithering towards a nearby alleyway. A pony wearing a grey cloak extended his hoof as the shadows converged and were absorbed into it. Looking at its hoof, the pony clenched it tightly a few times and nodded to itself.
“Still safe… for now.”
