The Everfree Forest was not a place that most ponies would willingly enter. Rarity, however, was not most ponies. Where others would cringe away from the ominous shadows and gnarled trees, she trotted through the treacherous forest with a level of concern usually reserved for walking down Mane Street to pick up groceries. Compared to going on wild adventures and helping stave off the return of ancient evils, a moderately spooky forest barely registered. Certainly there were still monsters to be worried about, but so long as she stayed on the well-trod path, she was reasonably safe.
Of course, that veneer of safety only lasted until she reached a fork in the road and, denying both paths, trotted unhesitatingly through the middle and into the forest proper.
The trek was tougher after leaving the safety of the path, but she persevered. She pushed past a dense pair of bushes and her hooves found a new and hidden trail. Though rougher and far less used, the route was clear once she was on it. She continued on this path for some time before she reached a clearing and was hit by a gust of unseasonably warm air.
Before her was a glade unlike the rest of the forest. Birds sang, the trees grew tall and straight in a barrier-like wall, and beams of sunlight streaming in killed the forest's normal gloomy atmosphere. But it was that which occupied the center of the glade that was Rarity's reason for making her trek. A large pool of water, rimmed with river-smoothed stones and practically glowing with a mother-of-pearl sheen as steam rose lazily from its surface. A natural hot spring.
"Ah yes," Rarity murmured as she pushed the rest of the way through the barrier of shrubbery, "perfect as always." Weeds and ferns failed to grow there, instead there was only a delicate bed of moss as soft as any carpet. While the hot spring had been beautiful in its undisturbed state, Rarity had to take some credit for improving it slightly. As with everything in her life, she'd seen the value of the diamond in the rough and had set out to bring forth the inner beauty of even an overgrown pond. She'd added the rim of water-polished stones, covered the basin in a bed of gem dust, and even converted a standing hollow log into a clandestine cabinet in which to keep towels and robes without disturbing the ambience . Through her efforts, a chance quirk of nature became a beautiful hidden oasis.
She hadn't kept such a treasure a secret, of course. She'd shared it with her closest friends, though they all chose to keep it to themselves. The Everfree Forest still wasn't perfectly safe for the unprepared, and widespread knowledge of the hot spring would only tempt foolish ponies into taking dangerous risks.
She removed the traveling jacket that had kept her coat safe from the brush and brambles of the way there and hung it on the stump of a sawed-off branch. A quick twist of her magic tied her mane up in a messy bun high atop her head. Wasting no more time, she walked straight to the water's edge and eased herself down onto a sculpted stone seat that left only her head above the water.
What bliss! What relief! Her tired muscles sang out as the steamy water and natural mineral salts soothed their aches. Hooftips sore from pushing and pinching fabric. Neck muscles sore from hunching over all night. All sighed in relief as the warm water washed everything away.
A weak pulse of magic tripped the hidden catch on her disguised locker, letting the door swing open. From its shelves she extracted a magically chilled washcloth, folded it, and placed it on her forehead. A soft and contented 'ah' escaped her mouth as she experienced the contrast in sensation.
While she would ever remain a loyal customer of the Ponyville Day Spa, there was some quality about her secret little hot spring that they just couldn't replicate in a shop. Maybe it was the unique combination of salts and minerals in the water that left her coat as silky and soft as pegasus foal down. Or perhaps the ambiance provided by the natural landscape and subdued choir of birds and insects. Or maybe it was some more ephemeral, magical, indefinable quality of the place that allowed her to forget all her worries more thoroughly than anywhere else. Whatever the reason, it would always remain her most treasured and peaceful alone time.
She closed her eyes and relaxed, allowing her other senses to sharpen. Letting her feel the subtle currents in the water. Smell the rich earth and humid air. Hear the faint cries of a lark in the distance, the steady thrum of insects, and the rustling of something in the bushes by the far end of the pool.
Her eyes snapped open, just quickly enough to catch the fleeting figure of something darting back into hiding.
Years of customer service had trained her well to determine much about a pony from even a single glance. Almost instantly these skills went into effect.
They were small, too small for an adult. Had to be a foal, maybe Sweetie Belle's age, maybe younger based on height. A cloak had hidden most of her body and face, and not a good one. There hadn't been enough details to place a tribe, but she didn't need to. She knew enough. It was a foal, alone, in the Everfree.
"W-wait!" she cried, as she quickly got to her hooves. "Please don't go, there's no need to be afraid!"
The pony stopped, or at least the rustling in the bushes did. If Rarity squinted, she could just see the barest edge of a muzzle peeking out from a shrub. It moved, saying something, but the words were stolen by the steam before they could reach her.
"I can't hear you." Rarity shook her head. "Can you come closer? Please, I just want to help. Are you lost?"
She perked up her ears, straining them to the limit as she tried to block out all other sounds. Finally, she picked up a small voice, barely louder than a whisper. "I'm sorry. I didn't know someone owned this pond..."
Rarity put on a comforting smile and tried to look as non-threatening as possible. The last thing she wanted was for the filly to run away. "It's the Everfree Forest, dearie, no one owns it. I just maintain this little patch for the use of myself and anypony else who may have need of its services." She made an open gesture. "Would you like to come in? It's very nice and warm."
As much as she wanted to run to the little filly and help her, knowledge and experience tempered her generous urges. She'd spent enough time with Fluttershy to know the signs of a scared animal, and this filly looked ready to bolt at a moment's notice. She'd have to take it slow and earn her trust.
A foreleg poked from the bush, but then hesitated. " You... you want me to come closer?"
"Of course! This spring is terribly large. Why, it's wasted on me alone. And one can always do with a bit of pleasant company."
The filly hesitated a moment more, indecision practically visible in every twitch of movement. After an eternity, she finally stepped out and allowed Rarity a proper look at her.
Her initial assessment was correct. It was a filly, covered by a ratty and threadbare cloak that looked as though it may have been fashioned from a blanket or tablecloth. It covered almost her entire body save for the end of her muzzle and a few scattered patches that were almost thin enough to see through. Though her tribe was still unclear, Rarity couldn't help but notice an odd lump on her back. It was in the wrong place for wings and too large to be a second, younger foal. She tried to make out more but the steam seemed to be thicker than usual.
Rarity started to comment as the filly stepped into the water on the far side, cloak and all, but thought better of it. It was still an outdoor reservoir, and the cloak would probably come out in better shape by the end.
They sat in silence for a few long moments. Neither was entirely sure what to say. Finally, Rarity took the plunge and broke the ice.
"So. Do you come here often?"
The filly froze for a second as if she was unused to other ponies talking to her before she nodded. "Yes. The water here is... tingly. It feels good."
Tingly? Rarity contemplated for a moment before realization dawned. "Ah, you mean the saltwater. I suppose you're young enough to have never seen the sea. So this is probably the only natural saltwater you've ever seen, yes?"
Much to her surprise, the filly shook her head. "No. I used to live by the sea. In a little fishing village."
"Oh?" This piqued her curiosity. It was comforting, at least, to know that the filly had a home. Ponies who were looking for and would miss—
"They... didn't like me. They sent me to the forest. Told me to leave and never come back."
The hairs on the back of Rarity's neck bristled. "They what?!" She had to stop herself from shouting; it would be disastrous to scare her off now.
She continued, unaware of Rarity's reaction. "Mhm. They said I was an abom... an abomim... an..."
"An abomination?!" Rarity asked, horrified.
"They said... they said that I did all sorts of bad things. That I brought bad luck and made the crops go bad and made the ground shake. But I didn't!" she insisted, her voice suddenly loud and strong. "I never did anything like that! I just... happen to be where bad things go wrong a lot. It's not my fault."
Rarity found herself at a loss for words. Blaming a filly, a mere foal, for random acts of chance and natural disasters? Had they somehow slipped back into the pre-unification days of superstition and mysticism? What kind of horrible ponies would do that, could do that, and to a foal no less? And then they cast her out?! The very thought of it boiled her blood. She wanted to stand up, rush to the filly, take her in her hooves, and tell her that they were wrong. That they were the abominations, not her! But she couldn't. They had still only just met, and the poor filly had no reason to trust her yet and good reason not to. So Rarity settled for a more measured response.
"That's not good," she said with a voice kept carefully level lest any anger slip through and be misinterpreted. "They must have been very bad ponies to not like such a polite and cute little filly like you."
Rarity couldn't see the filly's face, but body language told her as much as any blush would have. "You... like me?"
"I do." Hesitation was a dangerous risk now. This filly needed help, more than she had first thought. But to give her that help, she would need to trust Rarity. "Why, I don't think I've ever met a sweeter little filly."
The reaction was subtle, but discernible to Rarity's practiced eye. Some of the tension had gone. She was winning her over. Time to try and press her luck a little. "Why don't you come a little closer? I'm afraid all this shouting is a bit rough on my throat."
Again, the filly hesitated, but less this time. Keeping to the edge, she worked her way around the hot spring, closing the distance to about half. As she did, Rarity tried to get a better look at her.
Even if the ponies of her village were horrible despicable monsters, there must have been something they used to justify their hatred. Something different about the filly that made them angry or scared. With the water soaking her cloak, it stuck to her fur and made the hidden colors easier to see. With her designer's eye Rarity could pick out... red... and white? A two-color coat? Piebald ponies were rare, to be sure, but certainly not discriminated against nor cast out. But these patterns did not look like the normal splotches of a piebald. If anything, they looked like striations or even stripes. A partial zebra heritage, perhaps? That would certainly put the filly in a very small minority. And it was possible, though still unlikely, that a very insular mono-tribal community of ponies might look on such a thing with enough derision to treat her poorly and cast her out even.
Oddly, the closer the filly came, the denser the steam seemed to become. As though there was a patch of irregularly cold air just above the water's surface. It obscured the filly's face, but Rarity could just barely make out her general expression and the shape of her face through the fogginess. There was something off about it, but the details were still too vague to make out. There was no sign of a horn, so she was likely an earth pony. The biggest thing she noticed, reflecting the filtered sunlight like sapphire beacons, were two enormous startlingly blue eyes.
Rarity started to address her, but was suddenly struck with a bolt of realization. "Oh dear. I just realized how terribly rude I've been. All this talking and I never even asked your name. Oh, shame on me."
She waited for a moment for a response, but was met with silence.
Rarity took the initiative. "Here, I'll go first. My name is Rarity, owner of the Carousel Boutique in Ponyville."
The filly was silent for a moment. "I... don't have a name," she admitted, "no one ever gave me one."
Rarity gasped, a little exaggerated for effect, but the heart of it was genuine. "How dreadful! Nopony should go without a name. Tell you what, how about I give you one? Would you like that?"
The filly blinked for a moment, confused at the offer. Then her face expression lifted as though someone had just offered to make her a princess. Was that really all it took? How hard must her life have been that such a simple gesture made her light up like the morning dawn?
"Oh—okay," she squeaked, failing to hide her excitement. But Rarity could see that the excitement was fighting with something for dominance.
"Let's see.. do you have your cutie mark yet?"
She winced, and Rarity realized she had hit a sensitive subject. Inwardly, she chastised herself. She'd seen her own sister fret and worry over her cutie mark for so long, and then she went right ahead and put another filly, possibly even younger, on the spot.
She squirmed, but eventually replied. "No, but... I have something special. Promise you won't run away? O-or hit me?"
Rarity was taken aback. "Hit you? Why, I would never do such a thing! And run away? This might sound a little silly, but I've been in the business of looking closely at ponies for a long time. I doubt there's anything you could show me that would make me even think of you differently." She considered that a physical deformity might be involved, but resolved herself to remain as generous and considerate as she would with any other pony.
A struggle was clearly taking place in the mystery filly's mind, but Rarity's comforting words had clearly pushed one side to victory. The filly took a deep breath and released the clasp on her cloak, allowing the soaked portion to pull the rest off her body.
Rarity sucked in a sharp breath as the enormity of her mistake dawned on her and she understood the rationalization of the villagers from the fishing town.
This foal was definitely not a zebra hybrid. Nor were the red and white stripes her fur. It was muscle. Raw muscle and sinew open to the elements. The filly didn't have a scrap of skin nor fur nor mane anywhere on her body.
And then the rest of her stood up.
The strange lump on her back shifted and stirred and began to move. It rose a head and a half higher than the top of her pony head before it stopped in all its inequine horror. On the filly's back was another torso, long and bipedal like some kind of yeti or ape, and equally as skinless as the rest of her. A pair of long dangling arms draped down her sides like hanging vines and nearly scraped the bottom of the pool with the tips of their claw-like fingers. Atop the monstrosity of a torso was a head, or more of a round skull with thin webbing of muscle and a single enormous eye as crystal blue as her two normal ones.
Monster, a primal voice in Rarity's head whispered. But another voice overpowered it: a voice that had looked back to the filly's face and seen the desperation. The pleading, begging need for this revelation to not go like all the others. The voice of Rarity's long-neglected maternal instincts that overpowered her trepidation with the stalwart battle cry of Do Not Hurt This Child!
She took a deep breath in, composed herself, and let it out slowly, purging the surge of fight-or-flight adrenaline from her system. "Well that's... certainly unique."
The monstrous filly's face fell. "I knew it. You hate me too. You think I'm an abobimation just like everypony in the village." Her arms rose from the water and crossed across her upper torso in a closed-off, protective stance. She turned to walk away. "I'll leave you alone and go back to the woods."
"No, wait!" Rarity dashed forward, quickly closing the distance between them. She rounded on the filly and cut her off. "You don't have to leave. I don't hate you."
All three of her eyes blinked as she hesitated, as though she had thought her eventual departure had been a foregone conclusion. "You don't?"
"No, darling," Rarity offered in a soothing voice.
"You're... not afraid of me?"
"Heavens no!" Rarity forced a small laugh for the filly's sake. "I've lived a very strange and interesting life and met some very strange and interesting ponies. You may be very... different, and unique, but you don't even make the top ten of strange ponies I've come to call my friends."
"I'm... your friend?" There it was again. That light of hope in the filly's beautiful eyes.
"If you'd let me be yours," Rarity offered with a nod.
Before Rarity could even react the filly had raced forward with unprecedented speed and embraced her in a four-limbed hug. Rarity gasped in surprise and lack of air, but quickly calmed down and returned the gesture, thankful that the filly had accepted her friendship. She had expected the muscles to be either tacky or unnaturally smooth but found herself pleasantly wrong on both accounts. The filly did have fur. Thin, almost invisible strands that reminded her of the fur of crystal ponies, though much finer. Only this close could she actually feel and see them, any farther away and the fur was practically invisible, but still caught the light making the musculature look forever slick and moist.
"You know," Rarity said through the hug, "I think I thought of a name for you."
The filly backed off and took a step back so her inquisitive and expectant expression could meet Rarity's. "What?"
"Aquamarine. You move so quickly in the water, I thought something related to that might be appropriate. And it's also because of your eyes."
She blinked, and attempted to look at her own eyes (which she could do with a bit of tricky bending). "My eyes? What's so special about them?"
Rarity tipped a hoof under her chin, bringing their gaze back together. "They're the first thing I noticed about you. You have such beautiful blue eyes."
The filly blushed on both faces and bashfully crossed and uncrossed her arms. "O-okay then." She said it again with more confidence. "Okay! Yeah! Aquamarine! That's me! Aquamarine the special not-an-ambulation pony! Friend of Rarity!"
"Splendid! I'm glad you approve." Rarity sat back down on the bank of the hot spring, noticing that the steam cloud had returned to its normal wispy state. Aquamarine hopped up beside her. "So, Aquamarine, how long have you had these extra limbs?"
"I think I was born with them," the filly replied easily, her sudden open attitude a complete reversal from the filly Rarity had seen thus far. "Most ponies get really scared or say it's a daemon that's possessessing me."
Rarity nodded. It was not a farfetched conclusion, though if they'd taken the time to actually talk with her they surely would have realized their mistake. "So it's just another part of your body?"
"Mhm." Aquamarine proceeded to raise and lower her arms in a variety of poses: leaning on her pony head, crossing, bent, straightened. She twisted the torso around so the head looked backward, made it blink and move its jaw. "I can't speak from up there, but I can eat through it if I want to. You really don't think it's weird?"
"Not at all. It is unique, certainly, but everypony is unique in their own way. You should meet a fellow I know by the name of Discord. Why, not one part of his body matches another."
Aquamarine giggled. "I think I'd like to see that."
Rarity saw an opportunity. "I think I could arrange that. If you come back to town with me, I know someone who can get in touch with him. We could have some snacks while we wait and I could even make you some clothes if you'd like."
The filly gasped, hooves going to her mouth while her hands kept her balanced. "Clothes? I've never had clothes before."
Rarity tittered. "Well, let's see if we can do something about that. Why don't you come back to my boutique? I can make you something special that will fit you perfectly. All of you. And maybe we can have something to eat while we're there. You look like you could use a good meal. Would you like that? What do you say?"
Aquamarine started to reply, but a dash of her old hesitancy came back and a little luster left her eyes. "Go... in town? With... other ponies? Won't they be scared of me?"
Rarity scoffed. "Darling, this is Ponyville. After the last couple of years we've had, no one will bat an eyelash at you."
Aquamarine thought about it for a moment. While her pony face was hard to read, her other one was surprisingly expressive. Fear and hope waged a quick war as she weighed her options. She glanced at Rarity who gave her a simple, supportive smile. After a time, she decided.
"Okay. I'll go into town with you." Her stomach rumbled loudly, interrupting her. "And maybe we can get some food as well as clothes."
Rarity frowned at her reflection. With a precise prick of magic, she plucked out a single hair. A silver thread among a sea of royal purple. Another one. She was going to have to get it colored again, and sooner than usual.
Downstairs, someone knocked on the door. Which was odd. Nopony knocked, they all knew to just walk in and a bell would ring on its own.
Sighing, Rarity eased herself up from the vanity and put on her red horned spectacles. Once they'd only been for precision work, but nowadays she needed to wear them more often than not just to see clearly.
Stairs creaked underhoof as she descended. The boutique was getting old, much like its proprietress. The knock came again.
"Coming!" she called. It had to be either somepony important or a close friend. The boutique was more home than business nowadays, except for when someone needed a very special custom order done by none less than the Founder of the Rarity brand.
Finally, she made it to the door. Taking a moment to make sure she was presentable and that every hair was in place (aside from the grey traitors), she set her expression to an affable smile and opened the door.
"Welcome to Rarity's Boutique, where-oh!"
Her face lit as she looked up, and up, and up. Up to the towering face of her massive visitor. From above, two enormous mouths smiled back.
"Hiya, Mom."
"Aqua!" Rarity gushed as she wrapped her daughter's foreleg in a hug. "You didn't tell me you were coming for a visit! Oh come in, come inside out of this chill."
It was actually a pleasantly warm afternoon, but Aqua complied. Bending down both her heads, she shuffled through into the main foyer.
She had changed much in the years since she and Rarity had first met in that hot spring oh so long ago. Gone was the timid filly, shaking at the thought of another pony even seeing her. In her place was a proud mare, strong and confident, and tall enough that even Princess Celestia had to look up to meet her gaze. The navy blues of her off-duty uniform were as spotless and wrinkle-free as one would expect of a fashionista's daughter. And undeniably custom cut, designed to be worn by both her torsos.
"Still growing, I see," Rarity commented as her daughter ducked beneath the chandelier, "and yet still so skinny. Don't they feed you in the Navy? Let me fetch you something."
Rarity headed to the kitchen, despite her daughter's protests. "Mom, it's fine, really. I get to eat my fill every day. They've got a special pantry just for me"
"Well, you'd better." Even between rooms Rarity's teasing lilt carried across. "A growing filly like you needs her vitamins. That aside, I'm sure it would be rather disastrous PR if an admiral were to collapse from hunger in the middle of a speech."
Both of Aquamarine's jaws dropped in unison. "Wha-how? How did you know?"
Rarity tittered from the other room. "Oh sweet, naive Aquamarine... I'm on a First-name basis with every Princess of Equestria and several from the neighboring kingdoms. Don't think there's a thing I don't find out about during a royal fitting session. They may call you the unofficial Princess of the Sea, but I'm still on top when it comes to information and gossip."
"Besides—" Rarity returned carrying a tray heaped high with assorted finger snacks "—who do you think your Quartermaster contacted to make your new dress uniform?"
"Square Away," she cursed under her breath. "I swear he's getting a court martial for this."
"Oh let the poor stallion be." Rarity set the tray down and allowed herself to sink into a plush armchair. "I doubt he knew. But still. Admiral."
"Youngest in history," Aqua confirmed through a mouth full of sandwich. "I just barely beat Admiral Tradewinds from the eighth century who was appointed when he was thirty."
"That's my filly." Rarity beamed with motherly pride, "Out there making history and making a name for herself."
"You're one to talk about making history, Mom." Aqua used her upper mouth to lick her fingers clean so her pony mouth could keep talking. "How many times did you and your friends save the world?"
"Oh pish, there's no need to go into ancient history like that. That part of my life is past. You are my world now."
Aqua blushed, which was quite a colorful sight. "Mom... you're getting sappy again."
"I'm allowed to, it's called motherly privilege." Rarity stood up, cracked a kink out of her back, and headed for the door. "Well, we'd better get going."
"Going? Going where?"
"Why, to the party of course." Rarity grabbed her favorite party hat from a rack above the door. "To celebrate your promotion. If I know about it, then it's certain that Pinkie and her daughters do as well." She stood just outside the door, hoof offered, beckoning. "Well? Are you coming?"
For a moment, Rarity felt herself overcome with a sense of déjà vu as she found herself mentally transported to back then. To a small spring in the woods, her hoof outstretched and beckoning. Offering to to take a little filly somewhere better. But the filly was far from little now, and neither was she the same mare she'd been back then. They'd both grown and changed so much in the years since. Rarity couldn't even imagine how different her life would have been if she had never met the pony she now called her daughter.
From the mistiness in Aqua's eyes, she seemed to be having a similar moment. "Mom... I love you."
Rarity paused, startled for a moment, and then smiled back. "And I love you too, my darling daughter."
Then together, the two walked out into the city. An odd pair, but family nonetheless.
Through a small act of generosity, many years ago in a forest, two lives were irreparably changed. And they wouldn't have it any other way.
