Love Bites

Quetzal’s eyes shone green as she carefully slinked along the forest floor, pausing behind a large pine tree as her gaze locked onto a hare not too far from where she crouched in wait. It had been days since she last had eaten something, which was expected as the winter months brought little food. The dragon hybrid intently watched her prey slowly creep closer, hypnotised by the brightly colored orbs as it turned to look at her. She prepared to tackle the small creature when a loud crashing sound in the distance broke it out of its trance, causing it to dart off. Quetzal hissed angrily, rising to her clawed hooves to go put some sense into whatever so rudely scared her next meal away. Sharp ears followed the direction of the sound, bringing her into a clearing that was littered with downed dead trees. Her eyes snapped up to find Andante flying full force into a hollowed out trunk, the brittle wood creaking and snapping before tumbling down in the hybrid’s direction. Her horns quickly ignited with magic, and her aura enveloped the tree to set it down before it had the chance to crush her. The pegasus’ eyes widened in shock, and she quickly landed in front of the other Beta. “Quetzal? What are you-”

“I was going to catch something to eat, but someone was having a hissy fit,” the mare interrupted with a scowl.

Anne’s cheeks flushed. “Sorry, Beta.” She then raised an eyebrow. “Which reminds me. Where were you last meeting? Out of the three of us, you would be the last one I would think of to break a rule.”

Quetzal nonchalantly shrugged, walking past her. “Emergency business. Alpha’s orders. Not that it would be of any interest to you, being off the search team and all.”

The pegasus ruffled her feathers, frowning. “So Mom told you, huh?”

“Word travels fast, especially with telepathy.”

The other Beta sighed heavily, slowly leaning back to rest against the tree, the rough bark pressing into her fur as she let her eyes close. “I didn’t... mean to blow up, you know. It’s just… all my parents ever seemed worried about was my sister. Pixel this, and Pixel that. She got all the praise as a pup, too. Even more than Soundwave, and he’s been around longer than we have. So, I guess when she left, I was hoping that I would be more...noticed. That wasn’t the case.”

Quetzal’s stern expression turned soft. “And yet, your still worried about her. I can tell. If things were turned around, she wouldn’t leave you be if you ran off, would she?”

“I guess not.”

“And I’m sure she would appreciate that you were out looking for her when no one else was, don’t you agree?”

Anne opened one eye to glance at her. “What are you getting at, Beta?”

The hybrid smiled a little. “Just a bit of reassurance. To show you that things don’t have to be the way they’ve always been. You can be the one to take the next step forward, to change things. Of course, don’t take it from me. Take it from yourself.”

As the mare started to ponder on her fellow Rank member’s words, said Beta began to slip out of the clearing. “W-wait, where are you going?”

“I'm going to make some final preparations. You are free to join us, if you want. Or, you can stay here and knock down the rest of the trees in the forest. It’s your call.”

Mist Rise folded his wings after landing atop of the cliff face that jutted out above his cave, fluffing the feathers on his chest to help keep warm as cold air swirled around him. He was on watch duty tonight, what with his brother being kept busy by tending to his mate. He frowned slightly as his thoughts brought up his own partner. Where was Crescent? She was supposed to have returned hours ago, and this fluctuating weather was certainly not the best to be traversing in. Suddenly his ears perked to the faintest sound of leaves crunching, prompting him to dive to the ground in an instant. His lips began to curl up into a snarl until he noticed who it was. The purple pegasus met his gaze as she slowly entered the clearing, an exhausted expression on her face. The male quickly stepped forward, nuzzling her cheek before taking notice of the sleeping foal on her back. “Cres...what happened?”

The mare huffed tiredly. “She’s Nicky’s. Ran into her on the way to the Healer’s. Said her new pack is picky on the amount of members it has, so she’s been keeping her on her own under a bush. Long story short, I guess we have a new addition to pay attention to. How’s Lime doing?”

The stallion sighed. “Seems to be getting paler by the hour. Doesn’t even bother to eat anymore. Did the Healer suggest anything?”

“Just to keep her hydrated. She also gave me this.” A small vial was pulled out from underneath her wing, filled with a bright orange liquid. “Said something about it glowing to reveal any internal problems she may have. All I know is that she needs to drink it.”

“Better than nothing, I guess. Might as well head in then, she’s been asking for you.”

The pair traded a quick kiss, Mist moving to the side to let her through. Her eyes quickly adjusted to the dark tunnels, gleaming a bright red until she slipped into her cave’s Den. There she found her sister lying on her side, faintly whimpering as Dust hovered above her, magic keeping her hind legs spread as he had to stimulate her in order to get her to relieve herself. The brown unicorn purred soothingly as a means to have her relax. “Easy, love. I know this probably isn’t the most comfortable way to get everything out, but you’re far too weak to walk right now. I’m almost done, your doing great.” His head lifted at the Alpha’s approach. “Oh, Alpha. You’ve returned. And it seems that something either went right or terribly wrong, by the looks of it.”

“Both, Omega.” She reached back to pick up Snow, waiting for the male to finish before gently placing the tiny thing down beside her twin. The foal instantly curled up against the teal unicorn, basking in the new warmth that she had been given. Limelight’s eyes grew bright for the first time in a long while, then narrowed in concern. She looked up at the pegasus with a confused stare. “She belonged to Nicky, Lime. The Hunter couldn't take care of her anymore, so she’s with us now. Her name is Snow Fall.”

The Beta slowly nodded in understanding, gaze drifting back to the small creature that was lightly kneading into her belly. It was simply amazing how intricate the little thing was, and how much she resembled her mother, just with softer colors. Crescent then cleared her throat, presenting the vial.

“The Healer gave me this for you to drink. If your not up for it now, you can take it in the morning.”

Limelight shook her head, her horn channeling just enough magic to take and open the small bottle, bringing it to her lips. The liquid was surprisingly warm and sweet, starting to bring color back into her face that the others had tried to do for days. Then something a bit unexpected occured. A faint light started to glow from within her stomach, revealing a small dark shape, no larger than a rodent. Dust gasped when the realization hit him.

“Limelight...your pregnant!’

The mare beamed as her eyes sparkled, looking down at the foal which was growing inside her. Miniscule hooves floated freely as the creature was suspended in a safe cocoon of fluids. A tiny head and tail could be seen, as well as the thin cord that connected it to its mother. The mere thought of what was soon to come brought an even bigger smile to her face. She was going to be a mother. The unicorn’s heart swelled with pride and adoration, watching as her mate came over to lightly lay his hoof over the spot, the light fading moments later. Even Snow seemed to notice the change in atmosphere, snuggling up closer to the larger figure.

Crescent let out a small sigh of relief, calling Mist in to share the news. Leaning forward, she touched noses with her sister, blinking away the stray contented tears that had formed in her eyes. “Congratulations, Beta. We’re so proud of you.”