Pink dyed the blue sky ready for the dusk as two fillies stood alone in Ponyville market place. The fillies were unicorn and pegasus and siblings. The older one, the unicorn was holding a basket of flowers in her mouth whilst her younger sister was standing next to a market stand, selling cupcakes.
As for appearances of the pair, the unicorn was a faint teal color with a twin-colored mane of green and sea blue. Her eyes were very light blue but we're also very clear, indicating she was blind; which she was indeed. Whilst the 4 year old pegasus had a light pink coat, with a light blue mane; which was tied back into pigtails with green scrunchies and her eyes were golden. Neither of them had their cutie marks yet.
The sisters were trying to earn money to earn their food and living. They came from a orphanage, just outside of Ponyville where the foals had to work in order to be given a few slices of bread a day. The sisters each had to earn 20 bits by the end of the day; though they normally shared their money and would work together. The pegasus sighed, glancing at the nearly empty cupcake stand; before looking at the flower basket that her sister was holding; which was also near empty.
''Em?'' she asked. ''How much have we earned?''
Emerald Sea glanced down at her younger sister, Aqua Rose, with blinded eyes. The pegasus was deaf and wouldn't be able to hear her; though it didn't matter because Em was mute; so she picked up the money bag with her magic and levitated the bits; 42 in total. Just enough for today's bread. The pegasus smiled in delight, mainly cause she was gonna get out of the beatings, which the orphanage owner would give if they came back without the money.
''Yay.'' said Aqua.
Em smiled, despite having two disabilities, having Aqua as a sister was all she needed. She, then levitated her whiteboard and pen; which she used to communicate to others- mainly Aqua. She wrote down something clearly, before turning the board around to show Aqua, who nodded in reply.
'Come on, we have to go home' was what was written; how the blind, muted filly -despite being 10 years old- was able to write was a complete mystery, right? Well, not quite.
3 years prior.
Emerald followed their parents, through her mother's hospital's corridors. Their mother had formerly been a doctor, who helped with her daughters' disabilities. Even when Aqua was only a infant, she still received help. But all this was before the incident. One night; somepony set a fire going in the hospital and the family was caught inside it.
Emerald back into the wall; her frail 7 year old body wasn't coping with the temperatures nor the pain. In her arms was baby Aqua, who her mother had in trusted to her. Her mother was stood in front of the frail 7 year old and the year old foal, who was asleep. The adult mare was using her magic to protect to daughters.
The fillies' father was a firefighter, and was busy getting the various sick ponies out of their. Newborn foals, cancer patients and elders; many died that evening. But the worst of it was when the flames stole their parents. Em leaned on the wall as her mother lost control of her barrier spell and thus the flames began burning the mare as she cried out in pain, alerting her crying daughter.
''Mama!'' scream Em, she was formerly able to use her voice but after this; she became physically unable to.
''Em, listen to me, sweetheart. Once I use this teleport spell; don't come back inside. Get out of here, with your sister; before it's too late!''
Emerald hadn't been more shocked in her life, then she was that day. But when her mother's horn lit up and magic swirled around the sisters, she knew she had to get out of there, but that never stop the sobs, which threatened to destroy her throat; perhaps they did, she wouldn't know.
The energies swirling around her, lifted her up and made her vanish; only to reappear outside of the flaming building. Just as she placed a solid hoof on the ground, the building burnt to the ground; taking her parents as well as various other sick ponies' lives with it. Tears flowed freely down her face, and even woke poor Aqua. The tiny foals cried, even though she knew nothing about what had happened.
''S-...*Cough* *Cough*''
As Em tried to calm Aqua down, coughs erupted from her throat; along with a bit of blood, which trailed down her cheek. She was so traumatized by her parents' deaths, that she was now unable to speak -As well as not being able to see- It shocked her very much but no where near as much as her parents' deaths had. The poor unicorn placed a hoof on her infant pegasus sister's blue mane and stoked it; which seemly calmed down the foal. But it didn't bring her happiness.
She had lost everything that night, except her sister. The poor seven year old, after that was forced to walk from city to city; in search for a home and food in order to live. A year had passed before she had been taken in by the Ponyville Orphanage. During that year, she had taught her sister to walk and somehow talk, despite not having a voice anymore and walked from Manehatten, all the way to Ponyville. Even when Aqua's second birthday came around, she couldn't really celebrate it so there wasn't anything special about it.
When she had been taken in by the Ponyville Orphanage, shortly before her 9th birthday -It had almost been her 8th when her parents had died- she thought it was the best thing, she could have ask for. But when not only she but Aqua too, was put into work for the sake of a few slices of bread, for a living; she began wanting to rethink things. Maybe she was better as a poor street urchin with a toddler sister, not as a working filly. Lucky, the work weren't all that much -Except during the autumn months, when they were forced to work on a nearby grape farm- But overall, she was sad about this work business but it could have been much worse.
Back to the present.
The pair of foals ran up the 3 steps of the Ponyville Orphanage. Most orphanages are meant to be happy, loving and caring - not this one. This one was depressing, dark and smelly too. The foals living there were smelly, flea-bitten and bruised. The only thing good about this place was that most of the foals were friends. The sisters walked up to the desk, where a old earth pony sat on her chair. She glared down at them, before crackling.
''Good evening, Emerald. Have you got the money for your dinner?''
''Y-yes, Miss H-Heartful.'' stuttered Emerald, giving the money.
''Emerald, what have I told you about stuttering?''
''Never do it!'' she gulped out what had been formerly said to her.
''Then don't do it, you useless worm!'' yelled Miss Heartful. ''Now get to your dorm room.''
The pair did just that, and as quickly as possible. Their dorm room was number 40 and was in a attic. The sister shared it with 4 others; Peppermint Swirl; the meanest filly in the orphanage and probably the strongest, Jasmine Circle; a forgetful ditz, who is always getting into trouble by falling to sleep or simply being forgetful, Marmalade; the youngest in the orphanage, who constantly has nightmares and Kitty, a calm and mother-like filly even though she is the second youngest in the orphanage, she tends to break up fights between Peppermint and Emerald, which are commonly about Marmalade. Non of them were there yet, so the two just got on their saparente beds and waited for them.
