Poinsettia tossed and turned in her bed. Sadly, this wasn't the first time that the young pegasus has had problems trying to sleep. Recently, the past couple of nights have been pretty rough on her, it was nothing school related and she wasn’t afraid of the dark. In fact, with her great aunt Luna watching over her, there was really no reason for her to fear the dark; it was mainly due to the fact that her parents were out of town.
Shamrock Clover and his wife, Sunset Shimmer, had left earlier that week to catch a train to Manehattan, where they were to spend their ninth wedding anniversary, but before leaving, they managed to leave their youngest daughter in the more than capable hooves of Shamrock’s cousin, Cadance, who had been sleeping in the guest room, located right next to Poinsettia’s room.
Both Cinnamon Drop and Sweet Pea had left that evening to attend a sleepover at their grandmother’s castle. Now, Poinsettia would've gone with them, but she had been feeling sick all day and just wanted to stay home with her aunt. She attempted one more time to try and sleep but it was no use… She just missed her mom and dad way too much. Eventually, the small snow white pegasus got up and out of her bed, grabbing her blanket and her small purple pillow before making her way to the guest room.
Cadance’s door let out a loud obnoxious screech and the bright night light that sat in the hallway shone throughout the room and right onto Cadance’s face, causing the young princess to squint and pull her blanket over the top of her head.
“Aunt Cadance,” she heard a small innocent voice call out. No response was given, just a loud yawn and a small amount of movement underneath the blanket that she was using to cover herself.
“Aunt Cadance!” Poinsettia shouted from the doorway.
The Princess shot up and looked all around the room before finally noticing the big blue eyes of her little niece.
“Poinsettia… Sweetheart, what are you doing up this late?” Cadance asked, attempting to rub the sleep from her eyes. “What’s wrong, muffin?”
Cadance had been calling Poinsettia “muffin” ever since she was a foal and the name pretty much stuck after that. In fact, it had become Poinsettia’s favorite and only nickname.
She approached the bed and gave Cadance a look that nearly resembled a saddened puppy dog.
“I can’t sleep… I miss mommy and daddy,” she said as tears began running down both cheeks. Noticing the tears, Cadance quickly got up out of bed and made her way over to the little filly. She quickly wrapped her hooves around her in an attempt to calm her down.
“Shhh….it’s okay muffin... You're going to be fine… I promise.” Cadance slowly consoled the saddened filly by hugging her and running a hoof through her bright orange and green mane. “I see you brought your blanket with you… why don’t you sleep in my bed with me tonight… would you like that?”
Poinsettia nodded in response and wrapped her small hooves around her aunt, giving her a big hug which she than followed up with a small peck on the cheek. Cadance gave the filly a small smile and returned both the hug and kiss with that of her own.
Finally after receiving some calming and reassuring comments from her aunt, little Poinsettia began to flap her tiny wings in a feeble attempt to fly, but since her wings weren't that strong yet, she wound up using a combination of both her mouth and her hooves as she tried her hardest to climb up the large mattress. Gingerly pulling herself to the top and peeking over the edge of the bed, Poinsettia had noticed that Cadance was already fast asleep, but that didn’t stop the foal as she quietly walked across the mattress before finally collapsing beside her sleeping aunty. Using both her pillow and blanket, she formed a small nest that rested beside the sleeping princess.
Cadance slowly opened her eyes and smiled as she watched Poinsettia climb on her pillow and wrap herself under her blanket somewhat like a cocoon, thinking about how cute and peaceful she looked when she was sleeping. She leaned close enough to place a small kiss on her niece’s forehead, but not before whispering, “Sweet dreams muffin,” in her ear.
The morning sun rose high into the sky as it’s bright warm rays shined through both the stain glass window and the blue curtains before landing on Cadance’s face. Slowly opening her eyes and using a hoof to block the bright light that relentlessly shone on her, she let out a small yawn, followed by a long stretch. She turned her attention to the small lump that rested under the blanket beside her.
“Hmmm… I wonder who that could be?” she giggled to herself. Cadance pulled the blanket back, revealing a sleeping Poinsettia.
The tiny Pegasus was curled up into a ball, and out like a light. Cadance placed a hoof up to her mouth and she let out another small giggle. Suddenly, her ears perked when she heard a strange sound which nearly resembled that of a cat purring and the peep of a baby chick. She looked all over trying to find the source before returning her gaze towards the sleeping filly. The strange sounds were coming from Poinsettia and it was a sound that made Cadance grin when she heard it.
“Awww… how cute,” she exclaimed. One other thing that she noticed was that Poinsettia was chewing on her tail while she slept. “Oh, muffin...” Cadance mumbled as she gently pulled the filly’s tail from her mouth. Making sure as to not disturb the sleeping filly, Cadance placed the blanket back on top of her and quietly made her way towards the bathroom for her morning shower.
After a couple of minutes had passed, Cadance stepped out of the shower, both her long mane and tail were shortened by the small curlers that rested inside them. Wanting to make sure that her little niece was fine, she opened the bathroom door and took a small peek into the guest room, Suddenly, she felt her heart skip a beat when she realized that Poinsettia wasn't where she’d left her. Instantly, Cadance began to panic. She rushed out of the bathroom and straight for the guest room where she began moving the blanket around in hopes of finding the missing Pegasus.
Failing to locate her niece, Cadance went to check the other rooms. She ran towards the twins’ room first, thinking that maybe Poinsettia was being nosy and going through her sisters’ things. Barging in the room, she looked all over, but still no filly.
“Hmm… okay, Cadance. Think. Don’t panic… She has to be somewhere...” she told herself before finally remembering that Poinsettia had her own room. Cadance turned back down the hallway and made her way towards Poinsettia’s room, but like the other two, it was empty. The princess had really begun to panic and she could feel her heart sink in her chest.
“Oh… sweet Celestia. Shamrock and Sunset are going to kill me!” she muttered to herself.
Making another attempt to locate the filly, she headed to the main bedroom where Shamrock and Sunset slept, but when she noticed that their door was locked, she assumed that she wasn't in there and continued her search downstairs. Reaching the bottom of the stairs, Cadance looked in every closet along with some of the larger kitchen cabinets. Still unable to locate her niece, Cadance dropped to the floor, placing her hooves over her eyes she started to cry.
“Aunt Cadance, are you okay?” asked a sweet little voice. Lifting her head from her hooves Cadance slowly turned to her right side, and standing right beside her was Poinsettia and she was holding what appeared to be a small empty bowl. Without a second’s hesitation, Cadance leaped forward and wrapped both her hooves around the tiny pegasus.
“Poinsettia… sweetie, where in Equestria were you?” Cadance worried.
“In the kitchen,” Poinsettia replied with a furrowed brow.
“No I mean… where did you go?” Cadance asked.
“I was trying to get some cereal, but I couldn’t reach it… why, did I do something bad?” Poinsettia worried. Cadance took a slow deep breath and started taking out each curler one by one.
“Wait… if you couldn’t reach it then how’d you get that bowl?” Cadance asked out of curiosity.
“Well, I’m not as tall as daddy, so I used a chair to stand on,” Poinsettia answered.
“Oh really?” Cadance replied raising a concerned eyebrow. “Remind me to talk to your father about that later.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you… Aunty Cadance,” Poinsettia apologized, giving her aunt another puppy dog-like stare.
Letting out a small smile, Cadance placed her hoof on the filly’s head and gently ruffled up her mane while at the same time letting out a giggle.
“It’s fine sweetie… I was just worried,” Cadance explained. “How about I get a bowl and join you?” she suggested.
Poinsettia smiled and nodded in excitement. She was really happy that her Aunt Cadance had been staying with her the past couple of days, and with her sisters staying over at Grandma Celestia’s and Great Aunt Luna’s, she was able to spend more time than she normally would’ve with her favorite aunt and favorite princess. After Cadance was done making her own bowl of cereal, she noticed that Poinsettia was sitting on the living room floor, watching the early morning cartoons.
“What are we watching?” she asked, making herself comfortable on the bright red couch positioned next to the wall.
“It’s a cartoon that Cinnamon Drop, Sweet Pea and I watch every Sunday,” she answered.
Cadance gently put down her breakfast when she started noticing some small familiarities between the cartoon and a certain pony that she knew. She sat back and watched as the pony superhero started fighting the leader of the Power Ponies, a team of heroes, in what could only be described as a torrential downpour.
“Oh, yeah… what’s it called?” Cadance asked.
“It’s called The Heroine. It's about this female superhero who battles bad guys and monsters,” Poinsettia explained. “She’s also the daughter of the princess. She has to live that out too.”
As Poinsettia continued to explain the details of the cartoon, Cadance couldn’t help but point out certain things about the show. “She… does all of this while wearing that black armor with the pink eyes?”
“Yea that’s her battlesuit,” Poinsettia stated. “She also uses a staff like baton weapon when she fights.”
“Shamrock’s not going to be happy about this...” she mumbled to herself. The two spend most of the morning sitting in the living room watching a mini marathon of this so called “Heroine” TV show and the princess couldn’t help but make a few notes. “Does she battle any monsters or baddies in this one?”
“No… this one’s a two part episode where the Heroine fights the other heroes of Equestria,” the filly replied as a smile stretched across her face.
“You don’t say...” That was basically the only response Cadance had about the cartoon. She knew exactly what the cartoon was based off of and where the idea came from.
The princess began to question the things on her mind, like,“Was it time that the kids knew about their father’s past?” But she knew that the only one who could answer that and tell the kids was the former hero himself… her cousin, Shamrock.
When the cartoons finally ended, it was already in the middle of the afternoon. Poinsettia began playing with her doll as she sat in the middle of the living room, giving Cadance a small opportune moment to relax.
Sadly that moment wouldn’t last very long.
The front door was thrust open and in trotted two very excited ponies, Cinnamon Drop and Sweet Pea.
“Hello, Aunt Cadance!” the twins said in unison. “Hey, Poinsettia!”
“There are my girls!” Cadance smiled, lifting herself off the couch and over to the two fillies. The young alicorn wasted no time in wrapping her hooves around her two eight year old nieces. “How was your night at grandma's?”
The twins eagerly bounced in places as they’re excitement continued to grow.
“Well, grandma tried to teach me a new spell, so I’d have something to show mom and dad when they got home,” Cinnamon Drop answered.
“Oh yeah? How’d that go?” Cadance asked.
“It was… okay,” Cinnamon said in a disappointed tone.
“Just okay?” Cadance questioned.
Sweet Pea rolled her eyes in annoyance before interrupting her sister. “Yeah, if you call releasing a pack of rats all over the castle ‘well’.”
“Oh. My. Gosh. Sweet Pea it wasn’t that bad,” Cinnamon said, aiming her stern glare towards the green filly sitting beside her.
“Not that bad? Great Aunt Luna had to go into their dreams and use their nightmares to scare them off!” Sweet Pea exaggerated.
“What kind of spell were you trying to learn, exactly?” Cadance asked out of curiosity.
“How… how… how to-” Cinnamon said, before hearing her sister’s voice.
“-How to make flowers appear!” Sweet Pea interrupted once more.
Cadance sat in silence before placing a hoof in front of her mouth, letting out a small fit of laughter. “Rat’s are nowhere close to flowers, Cinnamon. Celestia and Luna aren't mad at you are they?”
“Hmm… not that I know of,” Cinnamon thought out loud.
They’re super mad… well at least with her,” Sweet Pea said, pointing her hoof towards her orange twin.
By the time the twins had finally settled down, it was already dinner time.
The dinner conversation wasn’t too bad; it was mainly filled with the stories of Cadance’s wedding and how she and her friends brought the Equestria Games to the Crystal Empire.
After having dinner and eventually wearing out their energy, the twins started to feel tired along with their aunty, Cadance. Using her magic, the princess managed to put them into their own individual beds before heading back to her room. Sitting on the edge of the guest bed, she gently tucked in her wings and lifted her blanket.
Before she could even think of relaxing, she remembered that she forgot to brush her teeth, so Cadance made her way towards the bathroom where she brushed her teeth and washed her face before heading off to bed. Making her bed and placing her blankets just the way she liked, the princess placed herself under the covers before rolling on her left side.
“Ahhh!” Cadance shouted in shock. There lying right beside her, was Poinsettia. “Muffin, what are you doing here?”
“Can I stay in here with you tonight?” she asked, using her cuteness to her advantage.
“But your sisters are home now,” Cadance replied.
“Yeah… but… mommy and daddy still aren’t...” Poinsettia stated with sadness in her voice.
Cadance looked down at the filly and gave her a loving smile. “Well… alright. I guess one more night won’t hurt.”
After getting the approval from her aunty, Poinsettia remade the small nest that she had slept in the previous night and quietly dozed off into a relaxing slumber. Before Cadance could join her in the land of dreams, she began hearing the all too familiar snoring of the little Pegasus.
“That is still so cute,” she whispered.
Poinsettia and Cadance slept soundly in her bed, but the bright glow from the old hallway night light had a way of waking ponies out of their slumber. Cadance mumbled, throwing the blanket over her head in an attempt to avoid the bright light. After an hour or so, the pink princess finally drifted off to sleep.
Unknown to her, voices of two ponies talking reached the outside of the slightly ajar guest room door.
With little Poinsettia’s back facing the doorway, she opened her eyes, thinking that some pony was breaking into her home, the filly curled up, waiting for something to happen. Her little body tensed with fear, but when she started to hear talking, she relaxed, knowing that the voices were ones that she’s heard her whole life: the voices of her parents. Poinsettia didn’t said a word, nor did she get up. She simply lay in bed, quietly listening to her mother and father.
“The twins are tucked in, but I can’t find Poinsettia anywhere,” Sunset whispered in a worried tone.
“I think I found her,” Shamrock replied, pointing his hoof at the little white mass that rested beside the pink alicorn.
“Aww… sleepy thing… should we move her?” Sunset asked.
“Nah… best to let her sleep,” Shamrock answered, looking over at his wife.
“You want to know something, Shammy?” Sunset asked in a choked up manner.
"Depends... what’d I do?” Shamrock joked.
“Nothing yet, I’m sure… but I’ve been thinking. The twins are growing up… Poinsettia’s going to grow up… and what happens to us?”
This question had been on Sunset Shimmer’s mind for some time now. She loves Shamrock and she loved being his wife, but since becoming a mother, she’s realized just how much she doesn’t want it to end. She still had so much love to give, and so many stories and lessons to share, but she had to admit that her fillies were growing up and she herself wasn’t getting any younger, eventually they’d get old enough to where they didn’t care or they’d be more focused on what their friends were doing or the type of stallion they’d want to marry, then all of those precious moments would be gone and who would she give that love to and share those stories with.
"What are you saying hon?” Shamrock questioned.
“Shamrock, the best thing we’ve ever done was becoming parents and creating the three beautiful fillies that live in this very home… the twins Cinnamon Drop, Sweet Pea and little Poinsettia, they mean the world to us… I was kinda hoping that we could add one more to our little clan… I want us to have one more baby,” Sunset admitted giving her husband a loving smile.
This wasn't the first time Shamrock had heard this. In fact, Sunset has been on the baby train for a while ever since the twins turned eight and Poinsettia, four, but Shamrock understood and he knew where his wife was coming from. Eventually the kids would grow up and move out on their own and be the ponies they wanted to be. Being the former hero that he was, he too had some lessons and stories to share but the biggest lesson he’d learned was to cherish the friends and family around him. After growing up an orphan and nearly losing his wife, all he wanted to do was love the life and the new family he’d come to know and create.
Was a new baby the answer to this whole thing? Probably not, but he didn’t want to say no to his wife either, because like her, he’d believed that being a dad was the best thing that could've happened to him. The stallion placed his hoof on top of his wife’s and gave her a warm smile of his own.
“Well if you feel so strongly about that…another baby couldn’t hurt.”
Sunset leaped in excitement wrapping her hooves around her husband’s neck and giving him a warm embrace, which was followed by a few pecks on the cheek. Shamrock turned his head back to the room and gave one final glance at both the sleeping pegasus and alicorn.
“Let’s hold off on it for a while,” he whispered.
Sunset also looked at the small filly before nodding in agreement. “You’re right Shammy… Poinsettia’s our baby right now and we need to spend time with her and the twins while they're still young.”
Both Shamrock and Sunset walked away but not before shutting the door behind them which instantly made the room dark again…In fact, the only brightness you could see were the two bright blue eyes of little Poinsettia.
“Another baby?” she questioned.
Eventually, the filly snuggled a little closer to her aunt and quietly drifted off to sleep. It would be a question for another day.
