I've Been Waiting For You
I've Been Waiting For You
Author's Note
Yet another fun commission! This was a joy to write, and to explore Princess Celestia's maternal side.
Title came from the Mamma Mia 2 song of the same name.
Commissioned for Yosh E-0
I've Been Waiting For You
The sun dipped below the horizon on another day in Equestria. For Princess Celestia, ruler and governor of the land, this was an average occurrence that could happen on any day, but today wasn’t just any day. Desks and chairs had been stacked up, ponies had gone home, and debris on the castle grounds had been cleaned away on this momentous of days.
Today, Twilight Sparkle had hatched a dragon egg, and subsequently gotten her cutie mark and an apprenticeship under the Princess.
In Twilight, Celestia had seen something remarkable, an amount of magical ability she had never seen from such a young filly in her time as ruler. She had had a short glimpse of the future in the moments after she had gone to see the filly and calm her down after her magical surge. She saw a possible princess in the unicorn, a glimmer of the ruler she might someday become were she able to tame those abilities. She wanted to give Twilight every opportunity to succeed.
There was, though, the issue of what to do with the young hatchling that had been born through the outburst.
Now, Princess Celestia often used eggs in her entrance exams for her students. But normally they were bird eggs or turtle eggs, occasionally a lizard egg or two. This was the first dragon egg ever to be hatched on the grounds. The egg had appeared by chance, one day when she was on the outskirts of Equestria to help with an issue, she had discovered it. She was not about to leave it out there. It had appeared abandoned, hundreds of miles away from it’s homeland, and dragon or no, there was still a child inside of there. She would never let a child be abandoned that way, pony or otherwise. So she had taken it back to Canterlot, in hopes that somepony might be able to hatch it.
Was it fate or chance that Twilight Sparkle had hatched him? She had not known at the time, but many years later, she would consider it the former.
Twilight had gone home after the events of the day, and would for several weeks, as school was not due to begin until then. The dragon, newly hatched, had stayed with her. She did not know much about dragons, and certainly not of baby dragons. Her trips to the Dragonlands over the years had been cursory at best, just a way to make sure things had stayed civil between the two countries. She had not been there long enough to see much of the culture, and certainly not long enough to see the way dragons raised their families. So, she was on her own.
She had considered several times throughout the day bringing the hatchling back to the Dragonlands to be raised there, but she hadn’t been able to see what good that would do. If the dragons there knew it had been abandoned, would they still care for it? She did not know. Honestly, she did not want to take the risk of them not doing anything. Better for her to keep an eye on the young one. At least then she would see to it that the hatchling was cared for.
She had seen to it that a crib and diapers for the young drake, along with bottles and changing supplies, had been brought to her room. She was not sure what she would do with the hatchling later on, but for now, he would stay with her. After she had set the sun, she returned to her quarters for the evening, having dinner brought to her room, and eating it in the quiet. The dragon was asleep now, sucking the tip of his tail, and Celestia had kept vigil over the tiny baby. She had read countless parenting books over her time as ruler, and had seen many families care for foals, not to mention her niece, Cadence, being a foal sitter. After she had gotten to her quarters that day, and eaten her dinner, she had poured over those parenting books, trying to learn and remember everything she might have needed to learn. But she knew better than any pony that experience was the best teacher, and it would be her first time with a baby in her care.
In her own foalhood, a time so long ago she could barely remember it, she had wanted to be a mother. That had been a dream that had stuck with her for years. But, fate and circumstance had caused her to abandon that dream when she was chosen as ruler of Equestria. When ruling a country, there hadn’t been time to find a special somepony. It would not be until many years later that she found out that it would not have mattered anyway. She found out she could not bear children of her own. The dream was put on hold, and eventually faded, instead being channeled into new directions, like caring for shaping the minds of young students. It was as close to that dream as she ever thought she would get. But now, that had changed, and it was all because of the hatchling in the room. She realized, quite suddenly, that she had been waiting for this, for this kind of a chance.
The dragon let out a cry, and she responded immediately, picking him up in her magic and settling him in her hooves. She found herself bouncing the tiniest bit in hopes of calming him as she hushed him. When he had calmed, perhaps lonely and needing some company, she spoke the words that weighed heavily on her mind and her heart: “I’ve been waiting for you.”
The tiny dragon looked up at her, emerald green eyes staring at her with a kind of innocence she had not seen in such a long time. It was instinctive to press a kiss to the dragon’s forehead, calm him down. He seemed to like that from his tiny giggle. The sweetness of the sound flooded her with warmth and love, one unlike any other she had felt. She checked his diaper and found that he was only a little wet, but decided that it would be best to change him anyways.
Getting a diaper on him had been fairly easy, as he had been sleepy at the time and hadn’t moved as much. Changing him out of one was much harder. There were more steps to follow, and the tiny dragon had squirmed constantly, babbling and looking curiously at the world around him. Had other ponies been around at the time, the might have found it comical when a tiny foot kicked her while she had been holding the foal powder and accidentally caused a cloud of it to burst out all over the young dragon. He had looked surprised, then gave a tiny sneeze that made her heart swell. She had decided at that point that a bath would be necessary. She headed to her ensuite bathroom and ran a bath for the little one, making sure the water wasn’t too hot for him. She had settled him in the bath, making sure there were bubbles in the tub for him to enjoy. He had splashed about in the bath as she washed him, and she realized at that point that he did not have a name.
She considered this for a long time as she went through the motions of bathing him. What to call him? She could not call him a hatchling or baby dragon forever. Eventually, she settled on the name Spike. When he was clean again, she got him in a new diaper, this time barring a foal powder disaster, and decided to give him a bottle in case he was hungry. She knew enough to know that Dragons adored gems, and she thought she might someday give him some, but not for a while. He was too young for that right now. She sat on her bed, pulling a bottle of milk out from a small refrigerator in her room, and warmed it with her magic. She made a mental note to ask some pony to get her a bottle warmer tomorrow. She levitated the bottle to his lips, and Spike began to suckle instinctively. The moon now in the sky, the calming air of night had enveloped the kingdom, and it didn’t surprise her when Spike began to close his eyes. She sang him a lullaby, one she had not heard in so many years. Not since her parents had sang it to her sister as a foal. She pursed her lips at the thought. On nights like tonight, she missed her sister dearly because she wished that she could have somepony to share this with. She shoved it aside and looked down at Spike, who was now fast asleep. She kissed his head as she laid him back down in the crib to sleep.
“Sweet dreams, little Spike. See you in the morning.” She whispered. Then, exhausted, she went to bed herself.
Only to be woken up several times in the night by the baby.
Experience was a brutal teacher, Celestia had found. It was one thing to witness the parents of a newborn’s exhaustion, but another to feel it herself. The next day she found herself more exhausted than she had been in years. But, ever the professional, she plastered on a smile and dealt with it privately. She held day court, went to meetings, solved problems in her kingdom, but her mind was occupied by Spike. How he was doing, what he was feeling, if he needed her. It was a relief when she had been able to see him again at lunch and feed him.
Children are a second chance, or so the saying went. Spike was a second chance for her. She had neglected the feelings of her sister and it had torn them apart. She would not make that mistake again. She made it a point to put Spike’s feelings first- soothing his cries immediately, making extra time for him, giving him naps whenever it was called for. She put his needs before her own. Every smile, every giggle, every pat of the face with his tiny claw was a reward for all that. She had never felt such great pleasure as when she cared for the dragon hatchling. In doing that, she felt the old wound of her blindness toward her sister beginning to close, as well as the deep wound of finding out she was barren. In one of the books she had read, there had been a sentence that stuck out to her. Children invite our love and they return it richly. Never before had she been blessed with the chance to see how true that statement was. But now she could, and she was grateful.
When there was an intermission during the day, a meeting cancelled, and she had some free time, she went to play with Spike rather than get some sleep. She had not done something of the sort since her niece Cadence and nephew Blueblood were children themselves. Fortunately, the capacity for play had not diminished in the years since. She rolled a ball to Spike, made small stuffed animals dance for him, and tickled him just to hear his peals of laughter. The sound brought her so much joy, more than she had had in a long time. Taking the time to be with him was the best thing she felt she had done in years.
Days turned into weeks, and every moment caring for the baby dragon was a joy. However, the joy was tempered with a heavy dose of reality. Soon, school would begin. Her duties as a ruler and as a teacher would likely not let her have the time to give Spike the attention he so needed and deserved. The future, once seeming a speck on a distant horizon, now loomed over her, begging to be acknowledged. It was late one evening, a few days before the start of school, that she gave it some serious thought.
Again she considered the possibility of the Dragonlands, of taking him back there but she just couldn’t make herself do it. How in Equestria could she check in on him if he were so far away? It was out of the question. She needed him nearby so she could still keep an eye on him. She considered giving him to one of the castle staff but nixed that too. How would they have the time to care for him properly if they were at her beck and call? And so she thought again, and a new option came to the front of her mind.
She could give him to the filly who hatched him, and they could grow and play together.
It only made sense. With Twilight as her protege, she would see Spike often. But she needed to discuss it with Twilight’s parents first. So she requested an audience with them and explained the situation. They were a bit surprised, but when she explained her logic, gave her their consent. It was settled.
The last night came, much too quickly for Celestia’s liking, as she held the sleeping baby close to her. A score of memories flashed through her mind, and she had to try her best not to cry. That failed miserably. She knew that Spike would grow to do amazing things, and the best she could do was bear witness. But she had learned that love, real love, was the love that let go. That’s what mothers did. They gave their babies the best they could offer, and then watched them fly. That’s what she would do for Spike, because motherhood was synonymous with personal sacrifice.
Morning came quickly that day, too quick for her liking. She got him bathed, dressed, and fed, before she took a walk- the shortest walk of her life. She had asked Twilight to meet her early in the castle to give her the baby dragon before school began so he could be taken to his new home. When she approached, she looked down at the little dragon one last time, but with a bright smile. She wasn’t saying goodbye, not really. Just farewell for now. Spike patted her cheek as a goodbye too. Celestia fought back her feelings as she handed him to Twilight, who looked at him in awe and wonder.
Twilight reached a hoof out to tentatively touch him, and Spike wrapped his claw around it as best he could. Celestia saw the light in her eyes and recognized it. It was the same light he had brought to hers.
“Hi, Spike.” Twilight whispered, her voice full of so many emotions.
In the stunned but clearly happy silence that followed the words, Celestia heard an echo of her own words to Spike on that very first night in it: I’ve been waiting for you.
