Her Little Gem

"Emerald Joy..." Honey's eyes flickered uncertainly, and she rubbed her face tiredly. "Celestia, he was one of the worst we've ever seen before."

Rarity whipped her head back to the staircase, before meeting the older mare's gaze with a furrowed brow. "But, darling, he seems like an absolute delight! Certainly a kind-hearted child," she protested.

Honey Petal shook her head, the faintest of smiles upon her lips. "Oh, yes, I know, Rarity. Emerald is just a sweet colt. You misunderstood. He was the worst cases," she said softly.

Rarity took a deep breath, her violet curls falling over her forehead. "Oh, dear."

Honey sighed, her eyes crinkling up like paper. "My workers, to say; the caretakers of my wonderful children, found him... in a cage. They had heard reports of screaming and frequent crying during the night from neighbors, and upon investigating, they were led to the house of the very colt," Honey said, focusing glassily off in the distance.

"They found him trapped down in the basement, where there was nothing, nothing, but a rusty old cage, surrounded by empty darkness. They told me there was a 4-year-old little pony stuffed inside, the cage being so small his head was bowed down to the ground. And... and—" she chocked.

Rarity squeezed her hooves together. "No," she breathed.

Honey pressed her ears back. "He was hardly more than skin and bones. He couldn't speak, even when the caretakers broke him out. He had obviously been left there to die, after we found his mother passed out, intoxicated, on the couch upstairs. The worst part was his horn, as you saw. Luna, it was festering and bloody! Gone, and jagged, like a knife had sliced it off." Honey's weathered jaw clenched. "We spoke to his abusive mom, and she finally told that she had ripped it away by force because her son was sleep-teleporting. Sleep-teleporting!" Honey buried her face in her forelimbs with a gasp, soon followed to her side by Rarity.

"That's horrible!" Rarity cried, finding that her cheeks were streaked with mascara. "I can't believe... that poor little baby!"

Honey moaned. "I know, Rarity. I know. They took him home, and I fed him, bathed him, but Emerald never lost his fear, and his timidness. Because of his constant starvation, he grew very thin, and the colts won't stop harassing him! They won't listen to anything I say, and I can see he's hurting!" She leaned into Rarity's shoulder. "No pony takes him in. He's too unstable, too strange," she finished.

For once in her life, the unicorn was silent. Her chest rose up and down rapidly. "Do you wish there was something you could do?" she whispered.

Honey only nodded, weakly—a mother not able to save her child. Her hooves shook.

Rarity closed her eyes. She felt faint, yet certain. "Honey, please get the papers."

The older mare jerked up, her tears, those that would never go away, glistened on her fur. "Rarity..."

Rarity gave a tight lipped smile. "Yes. I know what I'm doing," she said quietly.

Honey swallowed hard, pushing herself up. "Do you really mean it? Bless you, my angel, he needs someone like you so desperately! I know you were generous, but, Rarity, this is..."

Rarity shook her head. "No, Honey, this isn't my generosity shining through. Just a little bit of love."

A swift wind carried the scent of flowers and warm sunshine, as Rarity trailed carefully down the dirt path. Her heart pounded erratically. Gems, is he alright?

Behind her stumbled the butter-yellow colt, his eyes wide in fear whenever she looked back. He had refuesed to talk, or even walk beside Rarity to his new home. Emerald's hooves skidded around in the dust, taking in every sight and sound he sensed.

"Emerald Joy?" she asked, trying to keep her voice level.

The colt squeaked in response, seeming to have a heart attack. Rarity frowned, swallowing away her tears. Leaving the orphanage had been... interesting, to say the least. The boys and caused a fuss, calling him horrid names, and scrambling to Rarity's side to ask to be adopted instead. The fillies had only cried, yet Honey had assured they did that every time. Emerald didn't want to leave, and that was quite clear. Despite his torture from his peers, he loved 'Mother' dearly, and it almost broke Rarity's heart.

She shot a worried glance over her shoulder again, before taking note that they had already arrived at her boutique. She forced a smile. "Alright, Emerald! Home sweet...home?" She trailed off when she realized the colt had vanished, and that the bushes near by were rustling suspiciously.

"Oh, this'll be fun."

Sighing with effort, Rarity managed to heave the squirming colt onto the sofa, and stood back. "There, darling. It's alright. See, my house's nice, is it not?" she asked, sweat pouring down her forehead.

Emerald flipped himself upside down on the cushions, sniffing. "It-it looks scary," he squealed, hiding his face.

Rarity tilted her head. "It is? I assure you, it is completely safe." She sat down on the couch, reaching out to pat Emerald on the shoulder. Instead of accepting her touch, the colt shied away, his breaths coming out fast and short.

"No, no!" he cried, pushing away.

Rarity's hoof fell, as well as her smile. "But-but I thought you liked me!" Her voice cracked, and she cleared her throat. Had she scared the little kid?

Emerald whimpered. "No, uh, you're okay, Miss Rarity," he said, hardly above a whisper. "But Mother's not here, she was with me before. To protect me! She's gone now! I wanna go home!" he wailed.

Rarity bit her lip. "You are home, darling!" she said, resisting the urge to hug him.

Emerald's lip quivered. "I'm not! I-I —" he broke down, his tears coming heavy. Rarity flinched. Before she could react, he dived past her, sprinting towards Sweetie's bedroom and slamming the door.

Rarity stared after him, the warmth already leaving the cushions. Slowly, she stood up, and headed to the freezer. A night with a tub of Vanilla Oat's Swirl didn't seem so bad.