Opposites Attract on Mount Aris

by Israel Yabuki

Rating: mature
Tags: Sad, Romance, Drama, Original Character, Queen Novo, Second Person, Princess Skystar, Sex, Anthro, Profanity, My Little Pony: The Movie, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Death, Human
Length: 19043

A clopfic between you and Princess Skystar

Life has treated you unfairly when your father manipulated your siblings into putting you up for adoption, so you spent the majority of your life pick-pocketing off of rich people to fend for yourself and then one day when you hit 21, finally meet your family, only to wind up getting killed shortly after your father passed away. Now you wind up on an island where you're now living with a royal hippogriff family. And their daughter has taken a liking to you. Lets hope that her mom and dad will actually approve of you.

Published 2020-03-22 23:20:01 UTC
Last updated 2020-12-26 05:25:32 UTC

2nd Human on Mount Aris

Author's Note

Props to NineTailBeastBall for helping me create the first chapter of this new story. Also a quick reminder for you all so please listen: I would appreciate if you stop pestering about when the next chapters will be up and what I should make for the next Anthro Waifu story.

2nd Human on Mount Aris

Opposites Attract on Mount Aris

Written by Israel Yabuki

Edited and Co-written by NineTailBeastBall

Families: They’re supposed to be supportive and loving, refusing to let each other down no matter what kind of challenges they must endure. Now of course with the world being as big as it is, every family is different. Some are big, some are small, some are rich, and some are poor. Just about anyone wants loving relatives who will be there for them, especially if they’re orphans. Unfortunately, there are orphans who just aren’t so lucky... and you’re one of them.

It was just recently that you learned that you were born into a very rich family and were the youngest of 3 brothers and 2 sisters. Apparently, the vile man who was unfortunately your father, wasn’t too keen on having another son because you were constantly whining and crying since the day you were born. Your siblings were in agreement, seeing you as the “runt of the litter” who would do nothing but slow them down.

This turned your whole world upside down, making you bitter towards anyone who seemed even remotely abusive. You vowed that one day you’d find your father so you could settle the score. You didn’t care how long it would take to get your wish.

As of right now, you are still down on your luck and you just hit 21-years-old. You were at a bar using some money that you pickpocketed from some shady business man out on the street. The snobbish sucker was obviously loaded, so there was no guilty conscience to stop you from drinking your cares away. You were sitting on the bar table with a big glass mug of beer.

Originally, you thought it was just going to be another typical night of drinking enough to be able to sleep, but things got interesting when a middle-aged man in a nice suit walked into the bar, dressed up in a nice, fancy suit. It was well-dressed guys like these that made you sick to your stomach since the attire always succeeded in reminding you of your father.

“Excuse me, can I get some whiskey over here, please?” the man asked.

“Coming right up,” the bartender replied. When he came back with the drink, he saw how his new customer was acting as if he had a headache. “What? Tough day?”

“That’s probably the understatement of the century. A longtime colleague from work convinced me to become his errand boy and help find his son. There’s a very important message that I need to give to him.” the man replied.

“Interesting. Specifically though, why did he send you to look for him?” the bartender asked, his curiosity piqued.

“Well... he’s realized that he made a huge mistake 21 years ago. He had a child whom he gave up because he deemed him the “runt of the litter”. I still remember the argument we had all those years ago. I tried to warn him that it would be a terrible mistake and he would surely regret it, but he didn’t listen... Oh, how I wish I was wrong about that part,” the man sighed before he took a sip of his whiskey. “His wife filed for divorce, his kids botched on his company and as if things weren’t bad enough, he’s got--”

You’ve heard enough and slammed your glass on the table to silence him. “Not another word!” you shouted, breathing heavily.

“Am I bothering you?” he asked understandingly.

“That heartless old fart can rot in hell for all I care! That is, if that’s even the same old man who flaked on me when I was a baby!” you snarled, clenching the glass so hard that it threatened to break. Even though you were losing your cool, the gentleman before you knew how to remain calm.

“Was your family... wealthy? Were you one of his 5 children who had your own siblings turn against you?” the man asked, trying to put two and two together. You got wide-eyed when he asked that question, but you still answered him, nonetheless.

“Yes, but how did you know?” you asked, squinting your eyes at the man. You had settled down just a little bit.

“If you really are his son, you’ve just made my mission a lot easier. I have a letter that your father wanted me to bring to you. He said it was urgent you should hear about what he has to say.” He handed you a piece of paper, and you hastily ripped it open to see what this was all about.

Dear son,

I can think of many reasons why you might not want to hear from me. I can only hope you won’t rip this letter apart before finishing it. I’ll go ahead and get straight to the point. It took me years to realize it, but I now know it was wrong of me to have let you go. Believe it or not, I want to find a way to make things up to you after all the years of neglect you’ve suffered. Your mother and siblings have searched high and low for you, but couldn’t find a trace. I’m so sorry for being such a lousy father, and I wish I could have said this to you sooner, but my time is running out. If we never meet again, then I’m happy to know my message found its way to you.

P.S
Your family also sends their sincerest apologies for leaving you like that. And we all love you very much.

Signed
Your father, Wilson.

As sincere as the letter sounded, you’d be lying if you said that you believed what you just read. Even so, you were willing to pay a visit to the family you cut ties with.

“Where’s the old man at?” you asked sharply.

“He should be at his home in bed at the moment. I’d be more than happy to give you a ride if you need it,” the assistant offered.

“It’s not like I’ve got nothing else to do,” you sighed, setting down your beer on the counter along with a few bucks to pay for the drink. The bartender took the money without question, and you allowed him to keep the change.

The ride took a solid 25 minutes, but the man brought you to your father’s home, or in high-class terms, his mansion. Walking up the steps, you rolled your eyes after noticing two lion statues. It was so typical for just about any mansion to have that kind of decor to make the owners look and feel powerful. Fortunately, you were able to get over it and rang the doorbell.

You heard footsteps from inside running towards the door and watched them open up. You blinked as an older woman who looked to be in her early 40s greeted you.

“I can emphasize this is very sudden, but I found your boy drinking his depression away at a bar. He must be at least 21 by now,” the man accompanying you said.

“What does it matter if I’m 21?” you asked, not caring. Instead of an answer, you got a sudden hug from the woman as she began to quietly sob to herself. You couldn’t process what was going on and therefore just stood still as the lady continued crying on your shoulder.

“I’m... I’m so sorry...” she sniffled. “I should’ve stopped your father from giving you up... Of course you don’t know me since you were only a baby when I last saw you, but my name is Vanessa... and I’m your mother. I was the only one who was against giving you up, and even though I failed, I never stopped looking for you.”

“That’s... uh... yeah, of course,” you replied. You didn’t know exactly how to feel, but you decided to stop acting like a statue and hugged your mother back. To be honest, it was the emptiest hug you’ve ever given anyone. And it’s not like you hated her, rather, no one’s ever showed you this much compassion in your whole life... ever.

After letting go and heading inside, you walked up a flight of stairs to the 3rd door on the left and walked inside. The room in question was large enough to fit a small living room. It had a king-sized bed where an older man was laying in the covers, coughing. Four other people were standing at the man’s bedside, and you had a wild guess who they were.

“Long time no see,” you bitterly said, while giving them the cold stare. If your suspicions that these were your siblings were correct, then you had every right to be angry at them for encouraging your father to throw you out. They obviously sensed your rage and didn’t know anything to say that would keep you from getting angrier than you already were. Walking over to the bed, you fold your arms, looking down at your ill father. His eyes slowly turn towards you weakly.

“Son... I was wrong... for leaving you...” he said weakly before coughing into his mask. Sadly, you had no sympathy for your father’s condition.

“Yeah, you’re 21 years too late to be asking for forgiveness, old man. Did you ever stop to think how miserable my life was when you forced my mother to give me up that day?” you asked, stone-faced.

“Money... it’s such a corrupting influence... but that’s no excuse... for what I’ve done. Looking at you now... I would’ve kept you had I known... that you were strong enough to survive... out there...” he replied, reaching out to grab your arm, and while your first instinct was to pull away, you stood still and allowed him to touch you.

“We’re to blame as well,” one of your older brothers said. “I know we messed up, but we already promised ourselves that if you ever did come back, we’d make things right and even help you in your times of crisis.”

“Bah! It’ll be a long time before I decide that any of you deserve my trust. How are you even going to help me with my problems?” you scoffed, turning away.

“Well... do you need a home or a job? We can make a few calls. It’s the least we can do to start over...” one of your sisters timidly asked. She was obviously amongst the siblings who felt the most guilty about cutting ties with you.

Thinking it over for a minute, you sighed and unfolded your arms. “Fine, but it’ll take a lot more than this to earn my trust after all that you put me through. You’re all still traitors as far as I’m concerned, but I’ll take what I can get.” Now that they have your approval, your sisters hugged you, but you didn’t hug them back.

“T-Thank you... for giving us a chance... to m-make things r-right... I’m so... h-happy... I p-promise that... we won’t... let you down... this time...” your father wheezed, obviously getting weaker with each passing minute.

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep. I’ve suffered from enough of those,” you snarled. “Now if you’re done, I’d like to be on my way and find some work--”

You were cut off as your father began coughing much worse than before. “You have... my full support... whatever you do... you’ll always... make... me... proud...” And after those words, you feel your sickly father go limp. His eyes slowly closed and a bright smile dawned on his face. Because of that smile, your face finally softened. Feeling some respect for your now deceased father, you set him down on the bed gently, placing his hands together like he’s in a coffin.

Your sisters and mother shed tears and they and your brothers mourned his death. You didn’t mourn him as even though your hatred had lessened, you still didn’t have enough sympathy for the man. In your perspective, he was still just some sickly old man who made the worst mistake of his life by shutting you out of his life.

“I’m out of here,” you said, turning away from your dead father and marching out the doors. You walked back down the flight of steps as you headed back to the door.

“Honey, please wait! Why are you leaving so soon?” your mother called out, running to catch you with tears still fresh in her eyes.

“The old man’s kicked the bucket. I’m not gonna sit around and mourn his ass, I got some applications I need to fill out,” you answered. It was only when you felt the woman’s firm grip on your wrist, that you decided to stop walking. “What is it?”

“I just... I just want to be able to do something for you. I’ve searched high and low for you, hoping that one day I could raise you and tell you how sorry I am for not being able to stop my husband from giving you away. I owe you that much at least, so please... tell me what I can do to help you in your time of need.”

You sighed and walked up to her. “You got a couch I can sleep on? This is all so much to handle in one day.” Your mother nods eagerly. “Alright, you win for now. Hopefully, I’ll have an idea of what to do after I wake up.”

Feeling overjoyed that she had succeeded in convincing you to stay, your mother showed you out to her car, reminding you that she lives in her own place. You were at least a little satisfied that you wouldn’t be sleeping in the mansion that until now, belonged to your father.

You sat quietly the entire time as your mother drove you off to her more humble home in a nice, humble neighborhood that was closer to the city. She quickly pulled up to the driveway of a two story house and allowed you to step out first.

Checking the exterior, you decided this was a decent place. It wasn’t big like a mansion, nor small like a cottage, so you were satisfied. Yawning and stretching your arms, you walked up to the front door and waited for your mother to come and unlock the door. But your attention was brought to the sound of blood-curdling scream.

Naturally, you grew curious after hearing a cry filled with such pain, and attempted to locate the source of the problem. Following the sound, you spotted a man in a hooded sweater holding one hand against a woman’s mouth while his other one held a knife.

“Shut your trap, bitch! I told you I’ll let you go after you fork over the cash! Damn it, I hate stubborn women like you,” he snarled, bringing his knife to his victim’s neck.

You made an effort to sneak up behind him, keeping your cool and taking out a knuckle duster from your pocket, which you stole off a similar thug 2 years ago. After approaching the man, you bashed him in the head as hard as you could, making him grunt and drop his knife.

“Get the hell out of here, now!” you ordered the woman, but she shook her head.

“I-I... I c-can’t...!” she stuttered, still trembling. You could empathize that all those death threats have left the poor lady paralyzed with fear. Be that as it may, you made another effort to snap her out of it.

“Toss your fucking fear aside right now, god damnit! I don’t have the fucking patience to listen to you say how scared you are!”

“You son of a bitch!” the thug said, getting up. He came up to you and slugged you, but you brought him down with you and threw punches at each other. "You’re gonna learn the hard way what happens when you get involved in matters that don’t concern you!”

He then reached out and tried to grab his knife, but you kicked him off of you. That was a big mistake on your end. The thug had the knife back in his hand and set his sights on the woman.

He ran up to her with intent to kill, making her scream in fear, covering her face. Moments later, the knife pierced flesh, only... it wasn’t the woman who he hit. He blinked in surprise to see that he had stabbed you. Worst of all, the knife was in your heart. However, instead of killing over, you snatched the man’s knife out of your chest and jammed it through the guy’s throat.

“Stay the... fuck out of... our lives, you... fucking twat...” you struggled to say, before coughing up some blood. Sharp pain coarsed through your body, causing you to collapse. Since you were still conscious, you weakly looked over to see the woman desperately pulling her phone out of her purse to call an ambulance, but you had your doubts they could help you.

“No, no, no! You can’t die! Please, stay with me!” the woman pleaded.

You grabbed her by the shirt collar and prepared your last dying words. “You’d better listen...! Don’t you... ever... throw your goddamn life away! And you have to stop acting... WEAK! You’re... stronger... than you think you are, lady... We both know it... Stay... alive...” A split second after your short speech ended, everything went black.

You weren’t sure how long you’ve been dead, but somehow, the pain in your chest had vanished and hopefully the lady survived. You wondered if even after all the things you said to your family, you were still being granted access into the afterlife.

Your body wasn’t completely awake, but you were conscious enough to feel that half of your body was wet. Next thing you knew, the sounds of seagulls squawking and ocean waves crashing on land rang in your ears. Still lacking the energy to stand, you just remained laying on your back, wondering how long it would take before someone found you.

However, you did have enough strength to open your eyes and see that you were on a beach. As beautiful as it was, it still struck you as off because you weren’t anywhere close to a tropical area when you died. “How... can this be?” you asked softly, and it wasn’t the only question. “How’d I end up here? Could this be... Heaven?”

Your weakened state made it so tempting to fall asleep, but before your eyes shut again, you picked up some faint voices. One of which sounded very gentle and composed, and even you would admit that it was nice to hear such a voice before you lost consciousness again.

It didn’t matter to you how long you were passed out this time, as you were much more concerned on figuring out where fate had brought you. While waking up on a beach wasn’t too bad, it felt much nicer to wake up in a nice soft bed. Holding your head, you once again started to ask questions as if believing you’d get the answers by yourself.

“How... How did I get here?” you asked, before noticing how luxurious the room was furnished. “What is this place? Please tell me this isn’t a mansion...”

You started thinking back to how you felt someone carrying you off before you passed out, but your thoughts were interrupted when you heard voices coming from outside the room you were in. Now normally you weren’t the kind of person who would eavesdrop, but you couldn’t help making an exception and got up to place your ear against the closed door.

“We’ll have to take this slowly, my dear. I still remember how much of a mess I was when I woke up on Mount Aris,” the voice that obviously belonged to a man spoke.

“What do you mean “take it slow”, Father? He washed up on shore half-dead,” said the gentle and kind female voice that you heard on the beach. “With all due respect, I feel he’ll lose it regardless of what we say. I’m especially scared of finding out how the poor thing will respond when he finds out the cold, bitter truth.”

“What I mean my dear Daughter, is that things are bound to be less of a shock for this man if the first face he sees is that of another human. I’ll handle this one myself, so the rest of you please wait out here.” It’s fair to say that you’ve been punished for being rude enough to eavesdrop, because moments later, the door opened up and you got smacked face-first, making you fall to the marble floor.

“Ah! Damn it! Note to self: never put your face against a door ever again...” you grumbled, rubbing your nose. A hand was offered to help you get back on your feet. Staring at the said hand for a few seconds, your eyes slowly traveled up until you saw you saw a man dressed in golden armor with a cape attached to it, along with a matching golden crown with various jewels. You hesitated at first for if he was indeed a king, it would be your first time coming face-to-face with royalty, but you took his hand and let him pull you back up.

“Oh, that look in your eye brings me back... You’ll find no one around here who can relate to your situation more than I can, my boy,” he said, sighing and shaking his head. You narrowed your eyes, trying to understand what he was getting at. Then again, as you darted your eyes to the door, you were almost scared to find out what he meant by it would be best if another human was the first face you saw.

“I know very well what you’re thinking, young man, and I intend to clear things up in the best way I can think of. I suppose as much as what you’re about to hear might shock you, I should begin by introducing myself. I am known as King Bellator, co-ruler of Mount Aris alongside my wife, Queen Novo. My eldest daughter, Princess Skystar found you washed up on the shore, and with her kind heart, was quick to bring you back here so you could recuperate.”

Just as Bellator had predicted, what he said was a shock to you, as it revealed you were no longer anywhere on Earth, nor did it seem you were in the afterlife. Furthermore, it annoyed you that you were looking at a person who probably had even more wealth and power than your late father.

‘Not this again,’ you thought to yourself as you went over to bang your head against the bed. “Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!” When you finally stopped your pointless little rampage, Bellator put a hand on your shoulder.

“Like I just said, I anticipated that this would be hard for you to believe, but rest assured, you’re in good hands. While you won’t find other humans besides me in this kingdom, the civilians won’t do anything to harm you. I’ll take the liberty to arrest anyone who tries such a thing.”

“What do you mean by that?” The king opened his mouth, but was cut off as the door swung open again.

“Please forgive me, Father, but I was just too worried to stand still in the hallway!” You only had a few seconds to be shocked before the intruder rushed over to unexpectedly hug you. “I know this is sudden, but I’m so relieved that you’re alright!”

“W-Wait, whoa...! What the-?!” you exclaimed, backing up a bit. “W-What... how...?”

“Let me apologize to you as well, I didn’t mean to startle you. I’m Skystar, and just like my father said, I’m the one who saved you down by the beach earlier,” she explained while at the same time, stroking your cheek to express just how concerned she was.

Her name wasn’t anything surprising, as you already assumed she was Princess Skystar after she came in addressing Bellator as “Father”. As she backed away from you, you got a good look at the girl who looked like some sort of bird. Other than being able to talk, she differed from any other bird you saw from the fact that she had a humanoid figure, including a rather impressive bust.

“We’ll need to work on your impatience, Daughter. I know you had good intentions, but don’t forget you’re going to be the queen one day,” Bellator said, unable to keep himself from smiling.

“Look,” you said, getting both of the royals’ attention, “I appreciate the concern, but can someone tell me how I can get back home? I finally got a chance to turn my life around after my deadbeat dad kicked the bucket.” You wondered if you said something wrong, as Skystar covered her beak and started to tear up.

“F-Father... s-should I...?” she choked, sympathy obvious in her eyes.

“Oh, Skystar, you’re an adult now. You don’t need my permission to show sympathy towards others,” Bellator said, assuring her. Skystar soon went up to you, hugging you in her arms again and cried for your pain, but you were confused.

“Uh... mind telling me why she’s... you know?” you asked.

“My daughter is quite the empathetic hippogriff. Hearing about your father passing away, it’s no wonder she wants to give you some comfort...” Bellator sighed. “But I’m sad to say, that’s not her only reason...” the king continued. “Believe me, it’s not easy for me to tell you this, especially since I’ve suffered the same fate... but you can’t go home.”

“E-Excuse me...? And why not?” you asked, barely able to keep yourself from yelling.

“Because... you were brought to this world for a reason—To discover the true purpose that you failed to find in your previous life. Of the billions of people who die each day, only a very small percentage are chosen to come live in this universe and you happen to be one of them,” Bellator replied.

You didn’t want to believe him. Even with Princess Skystar doing her best to console you, everything her father just said practically made you want to scream. You escaped the girl’s grasp and went back to banging your head on your mattress, keeping you from seeing the guilt that was building up within both of the rulers.

“We’re sorry, but it was only a matter of time before you found out on your own...” Skystar tried to reason. Before you could bang your head once more, you then felt your wrist being tugged on very gently. “I promise you though, the castle is full of kind faces. Just wait until you come to meet my mother.”

“To be fair, my beloved wife can be a little self-absorbed, but as the queen, there isn’t anything she wouldn’t do to ensure the happiness and safety of the kingdom,” Bellator assured. “Once you see her, you’ll know you’re in good claws.”

“I’ve had my fair share of those kinds of people back home,” you said, folding your arms. However, you found it hard to remain stubborn when Skystar was giving you such a desperate expression. Such a look reminded you that you weren’t heartless. “But I’ll keep an open mind about this.”

“Then allow us to show you to the throne room,” Bellator said. With the king, princess and guards to accompany you, you exited your room and walked down the halls, heading for these two big doors that lead to the throne room. You weren’t even remotely impressed that they would have something this fancy and just rolled your eyes.

Upon stepping inside, you approached these two big thrones and in one of them was a female hippogriff who presented herself with pride and wisdom. She had the same humanoid features as Skystar and the other hippogriff guards, but her bust was much bigger than her daughter’s. Unusual as such assets were, they were held in place by a sleeveless magenta and light-blue colored royal dress that hugged her hourglass figure nicely.

“So you’ve finally woken up, have you honey?” she asked, smiling down at you before standing from her throne and walking towards you. As soon as you were within her arms reach, you received your second hug for the day.

“I-Is this how everyone gets greeted?” you asked out of curiosity and slight embarrassment, which made Novo chuckle as she stroked your hair with her talons.

“I had one other method, but sadly I have to reserve that for my sweet husband over there. You should feel lucky that you got a hug from me, young man,” she said with a wink. “It’s not everyday someone gets such nice attention from the queen of Mount Aris herself.”

Seeing how she just revealed the overinflated ego that King Bellator had warned you about, you didn’t find any reason to be amused. Novo noticed you clenching your fists, but made nothing of it.

“When you said she had an ego, I thought it was just an understatement,” you grumbled, turning to Bellator. Instead of getting upset at you for openly insulting his wife, he just chuckled.

“You’ll get used to it just as I have,” Bellator said.

“So now that I’m here, what am I supposed to do?!” you asked with your mood rapidly changing due to how impatient you were getting.

“Calm down, sugar,” Novo pleaded. “First, what do you say we get you something to eat? Chances are you’re especially grouchy because you’re hungry. After that you can discuss your living arrangements with Mama here.”

Hearing the word “eat”, your stomach responded with a loud growl, which helped to replace your annoyance with embarrassment for the second time. With all that has been happening, you didn’t realize you were so hungry. Fortunately, as awkward as this moment was, no one laughed at you.

“Being resurrected does have its problems... Alright, what’s on the menu?” you asked.

“I hope you don’t have anything against seafood, because that’s what we’re having,” Novo said. “And don’t you worry, little boy. Mama only hires the best chefs to work in the royal kitchen, and they can make a lean, mean cooked tuna fish. Smoked fish is also an option.”

‘At least she’s good at something else other than flapping her beak,’ you thought to yourself. Your stomach growled once more. “If it’ll get my stomach to shut up, then let’s go.”

Queen Novo quickly recognized the tone in your voice and felt a slight discomfort from how sour your voice sounded. “Friendly, aren’t we?”

You no longer had the energy to counter her and just allowed the royalty to show you to the dining area so you could tend to your stomach’s demands.

When you made it to the dining hall, you were unamused to see that another part of being royalty was that they owned a table long enough to seat 20 people. The utensils were either solid gold or silver, while the plates looked like antiques. The servants had expected the royalty’s arrival and pulled the chairs out for all of you.

You sat down a little ways away from Bellator and Novo, as you trusted them the least, but you just couldn’t seem to get away from Princess Skystar. The kind heir to the throne attempted to comfort you by reaching under the table to grab your hands. Just looking at her, you were treated to the most gentle eyes you’ve ever seen in your miserable life.

“I know you’re still trying to get used to your new home, but there’s no need to distance yourself from my parents or anyone else in our kingdom. I’ll remind you as many times as it takes that you’ll find it easy to grow fond of us after you spend enough time here on Mount Aris,” Skystar said.

“You’re a persistent one, aren’t you?” you rhetorically asked, attempting to use the gruffness in your voice to hide how disarmed you were by the unexplainable warm sensation you felt from looking at her eyes. “What do you see in someone who hasn’t given the residents here much particular respect?”

It suddenly became irrelevant that you were asking these questions when the king and queen could still hear you. The latter looked like she wanted to chew you out, but Bellator kept his wife from making a scene by holding her clawed hands.

“Mother likes to call it the “Skystar intuition”,” she giggled. “Even though we just met, I just know you’ve got some qualities that not many others would fail to see through the naked eye. You may be grumpy and skeptical, but that’s all bound to change once you learn to trust us.”

‘Oh, great! So she’s attempting to be a psychic?’ Even as you thought this, you couldn’t find the strength to verbally insult Skystar as long as you were staring into her eyes. The only individual who had ever revealed such a level of care and sincerity when they looked at you... was your mother.

You remained silent for the rest of the dinner, wishing you could somehow apologize to your mother for leaving her yet again. You could only imagine how devastated she must be to have lost you for the second time. Skystar and her parents allowed you to tend to your thoughts, saying nothing even as they spotted a lone tear fall down your cheek.

Breaking Out of the Shell

Author's Note

Sorry for the wait, but here you go. Be sure to follow NineTailBeastBall for helping me out on this chapter and as always, thank you for your patience and support. Remember to stay tuned for more chapters to come in the future and as always, keep on bronying on.

Breaking Out of the Shell

If anyone from home was stuck on Mount Aris with you, they’d be colored impressed since you’ve been here for a week and still haven’t gone off the deep end. You did all you could to shut the persistent Princess Skystar, mainly by locking yourself in your castle room, but she just wouldn’t give up.

Sadly, you were at the end of your rope this morning, no longer sure if you even wanted to look for the purpose that you were sent here in order to find. Cut off from your mother and everything you were used to, everything in this world just seemed pointless. You’ve locked your bedroom door again this morning and for extra insurance that no one would interrupt what you were about to do, you pushed your bed to barricade the door. You’ve decided... to commit suicide.

To no surprise, as you got ready to walk out onto the balcony, you heard knocking on your door, followed by the knob shaking. “Hello?! Is everything alright in there? Hello?!”

Shutting out Skystar’s voice, you acted a little dramatic by taking small and slow steps to the balcony rails as you honored what were likely to be your last seconds of life. You stared down at the ocean waves crashing against the jagged rocks outside the castle grounds. You gripped the railings tight and hunched down, ready to take the big jump.

‘Were you going to do the same thing... Mother?’ you thought to yourself. ‘I can only hope my decision to get away from this nonsense will allow me to join you in the next world. Yeah... the afterlife is where we both belong.’

With no more hesitation, you leaped over the railing, paying no attention to the door even as it broke open. You closed your eyes, feeling the air rush to your face as you waited for your body to crash against the cold, hard earth below you so you could wash away in your eternal, watery grave. But as you opened your eyes to see why you suddenly stopped, you saw that something or rather someone had grabbed your shirt and was now carrying you down to safety.

You slowly looked around and groaned to see that Skystar had soared down in time to ruin your selfish plan. Evidently, the fact that she could carry you so easily proved she was definitely stronger than she was given credit for, and you sensed you’d be getting a painful lecture once she found a place to land.

“What were you thinking doing something like that?! You scared me to death!” Pinning you down by sitting on your chest, you braced yourself as she raised her shaking fist, but the strike didn’t come. Keeping her hand up as she continued to tremble, she just couldn’t bring herself to hurt you regardless of how selfish you were acting.

“Why did you catch me?” you demanded. It really looked like then that the girl was finally going to go through with the punch, but the only thing that touched your face were a couple of tears.

“How could you ask a question like that?! No one has the right to forfeit something as valuable as their life! Father already told you how lucky it is for a human to come to this world for a second chance to live and yet you want to throw away such a wonderful opportunity!?” Skystar scolded.

“What... What would your mother think if she found out that you were taking your new life for granted? That you were so easily willing to give up the chance to have it all? You think she’d be happy about that?!” she shouted, not realizing that she’s said too much. Very much infuriated, you grabbed her shoulders and forced her to get off of you.

“YOU SHUT UP!!!” you snapped, making her flinch. “You don’t even know my mother, so who the hell are you to tell me what she would think?! I was perfectly fine with dying... until I was brought back to life in this damn place! What do you expect me to do, live in a castle all my life like some spoiled freeloader bum?!” you snapped back.

Skystar has obviously lost all of her fiery spirit because of your yelling, and was left stuttering as she thought of something to say. “I... I...”

“That’s what I thought...” Thinking about your beloved mother during the awkward silence that passed, your fury had changed into grief and you joined the princess in crying. “The only reason I’m here is because I did a noble deed and paid the price for it. It just so happens there was someone else who was about to lose their life because some bastard was threatening her, and I took the bastard with me in order to be the big hero. I should be dead... but here I am. Alive... but forever cut off from everything and everyone I know.”

“It never feels good to be away from your loved ones. Believe me, I know... I never knew my biological father because he died when I was just a baby. But even without him in my life, I’ve learned that I have to look at the positive aspects of life. You were brought back to life for a reason: to start over, make some happy memories and new friends. Surely you must have some good qualities,” Skystar said, still unable to stop herself from crying.

You thought about your life back in the orphanage. You became hardened at a young age due to all the times you had to deal with bullies and a few families who gave up on you the second it looked like you were a lost cause. Naturally being around Skystar’s family was a completely unfamiliar experience since they treated you better than any other family by giving you food and a warm bed to sleep in. And if that wasn’t enough, the princess was going out of her way just to stop you, a man who she’s only known for a few days from committing suicide.

Even so, this was still a kingdom and living with a wealthy family sent all sorts of red flags through your mind. You’ve always despised high-classed people, especially since so many of them have shut you out, primarily, your own family. But even as cold of a man society has shaped you into becoming, upon looking at the crying princess, you knew for a fact that those weren’t crocodile tears she was shedding, but genuine ones.

“I... don’t have an answer for that...” you said, making no attempt to stop more tears from falling down your face. “To be honest, I’m not sure what to think anymore after everything that’s happened to me. I don’t know exactly how to act around people. The idea of having a friend, someone to count on seems so... foreign to me.”

You sat down to get a good look at the sea, figuring that even the fish in those waters were more capable of trust than you were. Meeting your mother was the closest you ever came to building a healthy relationship, and now she was gone.

“After what you just heard, can you look me and the eye and tell me that you still believe you’re capable of giving me hope? I’ve already had my life ruined once because of the way I was treated by rich and powerful families like yours when I was young.”

In response to your question, the princess scooted closer to you and rested her chin on your shoulder. This was completely new and unexpected for you and you felt your face heat up from the unfamiliar contact.

“Yes I can. Even if you don’t acknowledge it, there is so much within you that you can give. I truly do sympathize with you because of all the snobs you’ve put up with; But not all of the wealthy are like that. Even without him telling you, I’m sure after you met Father, you figured that there were plenty of other humans in this world. A couple of them lived a rich life as the husbands of Equestria’s princesses, and even though they’ve maintained their wealth after retiring, they’re still as kind and generous as ever. You just have to learn how to open yourself up to these things. I know it’s a long process, but I’ll never give up faith in your ability to pull it off,” Skystar encouraged.

Even though she stopped talking, she still hasn’t taken her head off of your shoulder and you didn’t know what to do or say. ‘What... What is this warm feeling? Am... Am I... happy?’ And as if that wasn’t enough, your chest was pounding faster and you were almost worried that Skystar would notice due to the close contact.

You’ve never experienced this type of feeling before in your life, and it left you frozen in place. But before the mood could be set in, you heard the sound of wings flapping. You and Skystar looked and saw Queen Novo descend. And judging from the way she was looking at you, it would only be a few seconds before she demanded an explanation for why her daughter was sitting so close to you.

“What is the meaning of this?” Novo asked, putting her hands on her hips. She may or may not be angry, but either way, she wanted some answers.

“Please don’t jump to conclusions, Mother,” Skystar said, being remarkably calm, albeit firm. Getting up, she stood between you and Novo, ready to protect you no matter how extreme things might get. “He already has enough on his mind because of the depression that I’ve been trying to help him with. We both got quite shaken up this morning since I stopped him from killing himself, so I figured that having a nice, long talk with him about it might ease the tension at least a little bit.”

The queen’s expression softened, but you turned away as quickly as it happened. “What are you even doing here?” you asked, already having enough to think about without Novo dropping in all of a sudden.

“I was on my way to visit my sister, but I grew curious when one of my guards said they heard Skystar here yelling in the hallway,” Novo said. She was most likely being patient and tolerating your disrespect because of what she just heard from her daughter. You took notice of this and for the first time, you didn’t look at the hippogriff queen as a narcissist who took joy in talking about her power.

“Sister?” you asked, no longer looking away.

“Oh, please forgive me for not telling you earlier, honey,” Novo said slightly embarrassed as she pointed at the ocean. “You see, when our kingdom was ravaged by that vile Storm King all those years ago, we were all forced to take refuge underwater. Of course, it was once again safe for us to return to the surface after he died, but some of my subjects preferred to remain in the ocean.”

Skystar giggled. “You should see my cousin Terramar. He’s never been satisfied with choosing one home. Even now, he likes to go back and forth.”

“At least your family is more organized than mine was... The only one who ever gave a shit about me and made an effort to find me was my mother...” you grumbled before clutching your face because of the nasty headache you were getting from all this talking.

Novo glared at you again. “I’m going to have to make it an order not to use such slander in my presence.”

“Hey, I’ve been through a lot growing up in an orphanage, okay? They took me in when I was just a plucky toddler and made me think that they would keep me safe and find me a good family. Well, they didn’t! Every parent figure, every person who I’ve looked up to for hope and guidance has either let me down or died! It’s been a long, difficult road and being pulled into this world has done little to ease my suffering! I’m not used to being around a genuinely nice family, albeit an egotistical one.”

“...I do beg your pardon?” Novo asked, more offended than ever. Skystar made sure to stand her ground in between you to keep things from getting ugly.

“Mother, please let it go. He’s not feeling himself today, so he’s bound to say things that he doesn’t actually mean.” Looking over her shoulder, Skystar arched an eyebrow from how you were grasping your head. “What is it?”

With your migraine getting worse, you couldn’t think of anything to say and just up on your feet to walk away.

You didn’t know where you were going, and you didn’t care. All you wanted was some alone time so this headache could clear up. With all you’ve seen so far, you had no reason to doubt Queen Novo’s story of building an underwater sanctuary, but visiting another new place was out of the question right now. Besides, you’ve never been swimming before and didn’t want to risk drowning.

“Nnngh!!! Damn it all! Why won’t the pain just stop?!” you grunted, your hands planted on your head. Even with as loud as you were being, you wouldn’t be making much of a scene since there was no one around. You’d rather be alone with a headache than be surrounded by those who would try and lecture you about hope.

Since you were distracted, you failed to acknowledge what was in front of you and ended up tripping on something. Spitting some sand out of your mouth, you got back up so you could get a good look at what made you fall down. “Who put this-” The rest of your upcoming sentence died the moment you turned around. As you began to doubt your widening eyes, you actually slapped yourself to make sure you weren’t hallucinating. As shocking as it was, you were convinced that what you had just tripped over... was your mother.

“No way... h-how did... but... this can’t be...” you stuttered. You leaned down and pressed your ear against her heart to check if she was alright. Her heartbeat was slow and weak, which naturally worried you. “Mother? MOTHER! Wake up! Come on! Open your eyes!” you yelled, but to no avail.

As you continued to try and wake her, the sound of your yelling had eventually attracted Skystar and Novo. “What’s going on?” the princess asked.

“This... This is my mother... For some reason she won’t wake up! You’ve got to do something, dammit!” you yelled.

Caring more about the condition of her newest subject than your choice of words, Novo left to get someone to help, but Skystar remained by your side. Novo returned a few minutes later with some of her guards, and the princess held your hand as you watched them place your mother on a stretcher.

‘What the hell happened to her? Did she die as well? Why is this happening to me?’ you asked yourself in your head, pounding the ground hard as tears escaped from your eyes for the second time this morning. Watching you cry again, the empathetic and gentle princess let go of your hand so she could hug you instead.

Of course, you eventually found the strength to snap out of your shock and allow Skystar to lead you back to the castle. Although, you didn’t say anything, nor did your escort pressure you into doing so. You just couldn’t decide what caused your mother to find her way into this world. Was it an accidental death? Illness? A heroic sacrifice?

You were forced to wait out in the hall as the doctors did their best to wake your mother. Now that you thought about it, you felt more foolish than ever. You realized that if Skystar hadn’t stopped you from committing suicide, your mother wouldn’t be there to greet you in the afterlife. What’s worse is that since humans have a chance of getting a second life in this world, if she had woken up and found that you were no longer around, she would have been devastated.

Moments later, one of the doctors came out and you walked up to him with eyes that were begging to hear about the results of his new patient’s condition. Pushing back his slipping glasses, the middle-aged hippogriff let out a sigh, letting you know he didn’t want to tell you what was going on.

“She’s alive, but she’s apparently lost tremendous amounts of blood which caused her to slip into a coma. On the queen’s orders, we’re doing everything we can, but it’s almost impossible for us to tell when she’ll wake up.”

“Is there anything we can do?” Skystar asked in your place.

“All we can do is wait, your highness. I’m sorry.”

“...I understand. Thank you. Please notify us immediately if the patient's condition changes while we’re away,” Skystar said.

“Of course.” The doctor left you in peace and Skystar lightly tugged on your arm, but you chose to stay where you were.

She sighed. “Believe me, I understand your concern for your mother, but like the doctor said, all we can do is be patient. Besides... you still haven’t given me the chance to guide you down to my other home in Seaquestria. There’s so much I can show you when we go to the place I grew up in after the Storm King appeared.”

“I’ve never gone swimming before...” you quietly confessed.

“Don’t worry about that.” Up until now, you’ve paid no attention to the necklace that Princess Skystar wore. Though as you took into account the way she had squeezed it before leading you back outside, you assumed that the jewelry served a unique purpose. It was only after you were back on the beach that she gave you more specific information.

“Like Mother said, after the Storm King’s defeat, it was safe for everyone to return to Mount Aris, but by that time many of our subjects have learned to adapt to the life underwater and elected to stay there. It just didn’t seem right to force them to leave, so she decided to break down her magical pearl into these several shards so that her subjects could keep their sea forms.”

“What do you mean?” you asked.

“I could tell you, but it would be much better if I were to show you,” Skystar said and held out her hand. She then grabbed her shard necklace before you both took a deep breath and dove below the surface. A bright flash emitted from the pearl, and when it died down, the first thing you noticed... was that there was no need to hold your breath.

“What in the... What’s going on here?” you asked, checking your new body. The second thing you noticed was that your feet have fused together into a tail fin shaped like a shark’s tail.

“That’s the power of this pearl. It has a unique magic that allows those who come in contact with it to change their form.” The princess then hugged herself with a shiver, as if this was a freezing environment. “When the Storm King learned about our powers, he went through great lengths to try and steal it from us. Even though we escaped and retreated to the ocean, we became so afraid of him and his growing army that we took no chances to visit the surface... Mother would often deny it, but I could see how much she missed her life above the waves.”

For the first time since you made the decision to become a cold-hearted and reserved man, you wondered if you were actually about to sympathize with someone. More specifically, you were wondering if you were feeling sympathy for the obnoxious, egotistical queen and her wealthy family. Nothing like this has happened to you before. Were you finally starting to acknowledge Bellator’s claims about underneath his wife’s proud exterior, she truly did have a big heart?

“So you see, until I met the heroes of Equestria it’s been hard for me to make friends. In fact,” she giggled, “I used to go out to collect shells and pretend they could talk to me. Even though I still keep my favorite shells Shelly and Sheldon in my room because of sentimental value, I now have friends who truly understand me and are there for me when I need them. While Mother kept herself from leaving Seaquestria for many years by convincing herself that the outside world was cruel, I never stopped believing that there was good in it.”

Though you kept quiet because more questions were popping up in your head, you let Skystar know you were acknowledging her story by nodding once she was done. This princess has been through a lot for some time. Whoever this Storm King was, you can only assume that he was much worse than any rich snob you came across while living in that orphanage.

“Did the nightmares finally stop?” you asked, referring to how Skystar was trembling a little while ago.

“Yes... but only after Father arrived on Mount Aris. Even though the hippogriffs no longer have to live in fear since the Storm King has perished, my life didn’t feel complete until after Mother got married for the second time.”

Taking hold of your hand again, she began swimming with you right behind her. She guided you through some underwater pathway hidden in these caves. Afterwards, the two of you arrive at your destination: the underwater kingdom of Seaquestria. Compared to the lost city of Atlantis, which was nothing more than a myth, this place was very much real and an impressive discovery.

Skystar giggled sweetly. “Beautiful isn’t it? Truth be told, it was nothing like this when we were forced into hiding. Mother dedicated several long years, making sure her subjects remained strong so we could build the ideal home to continue living. It was difficult abandoning what we were used to, but in order to survive and protect the magic of the pearl, the hippogriffs put their trust in Mother and we all began our new lives as seaponies.”

You were indeed impressed and could only imagine how hard Queen Novo worked not to give into despair after her surface kingdom fell into ruins. Looking around, you saw that a few citizens had noticed their beloved princess and bowed as she waved to them.

“Greetings, everyone. I trust you are all doing well on this fine day?” Skystar asked with a tone befitting a loving ruler who treasured the safety of her people. One young male seapony was bold enough to approach his princess with a smile that matched her own.

“Such an honor to see you again, your majesty. If I may ask though, who is the man accompanying you? Surely you can understand my curiosity since this is my first time seeing any humans besides the king.”

“He just arrived recently and I’m just showing him around the place. He’s had a very rough time in his previous life, so I’m helping him see the positive side of life. I trust you all will make him feel welcome, I presume?” she asked with her warmest smile and the seaponies gave her another bow.

It might have been just your imagination, but you thought that as you swam through the city, you heard a few seaponies wondering if you were dating their princess. “This is awkward...”

“What’s wrong?” Skystar asked.

“It seems a few seaponies are getting the wrong idea, as I overheard a few of them writing us off as a couple. Doesn’t that bother you since we barely know each other?”

The girl just smiled. “As future queen, I don’t intend to oppress my subjects. Mother polished me well to understand when others are merely expressing their opinions of what they think of us. It’s all in good, harmless fun.” Without dropping that amused smile, she then took your hands. “And speaking of fun...”

Skystar showed you right there that changing into a seapony didn’t take away her impressive strength as she dragged you close to the surface where you could be alone.

“W-What are you doing?” you asked.

“Giving us both an opportunity to have a good time,” she said as she came to a stop. “What do you say to a little underwater dancing?”

“I... I don't know, I’ve… never really learned how to dance before, let alone underwater,” you said, looking down in shame. It was already bad enough coming clean about having never gone swimming before today.

“I see... Well, with your permission, I’d like to be your teacher. I’m sure by the time we’re done, you’ll be a wonderful dancer,” Skystar insisted. “I’ve always enjoyed dancing, even as a child. Unfortunately, like I told you before, it was difficult to make friends since the seaponies were living in fear and were more concentrated on survival than having fun. Before the heroes of Equestria appeared, I was forced to practice in private, but I knew in my heart having a partner was the best way to dance.”

The princess offered you her hand, though you didn’t know if you should take her up on her offer. For one, this would be your first time dancing and there was a good chance you would end up making a fool out of yourself. Then again, so much has changed for you already because of the princess’ determination to befriend you.

Sighing, you looked up at Skystar and told her what she wanted to hear. “Alright, you win.”

“Things got a little wild when the surface dwellers came to Seaquestria, but I realize that we’ll have to take things slowly. So follow my lead and you’ll become a professional in no time,” Skystar encouraged.

The princess started things off by swimming backwards while keeping a firm, gentle grip on your hand. Following her instructions, you mimicked her and swam backwards after she came to a stop. After that, she grabbed your other arm telling you to wrap it around her, making it touch her back while she placed her vacant hand on your arm.

“W-What... What is this feeling?” you asked.

“It’s natural to feel nervous during your first dance. Just continue following my instructions and you’ll do just fine. First, kick your tail fins parallel to mine in a clockwise motion,” Skystar said. You did as she asked, keeping your eyes locked on hers as the kicking caused the two of you to steadily move in a circle. It could’ve just been your imagination, but you thought you could feel the watchful eyes of everyone around you, assuming that you and their princess might make it official.

“Perfect, now let’s try a fairly easy one. Without letting go of my hand, kick your tail fin in sync with mine so we can dance forward.” You processed what she told you in your head, then found out what she meant. Keeping your hand locked with hers and stretching it out straight, your other arm remained wrapped around Skystar’s waist and swam in the direction you were pointing to. “Very good. See? Practice makes perfect.”

“I guess... Now what?”

“Let’s try it again. So let’s do a quick turn and swim the other way,” Skystar said. You nodded and held your partner close as you turned around and repeated the dance. It was a rapid change, but you no longer felt paranoid about the possibility of someone watching you. Your insecurities were slowly fading and being replaced with a whole new set of confidence.

“You’re doing remarkably well for someone who’s never danced before. Since it’s my duty to give the subjects hope, I dare say you have a bright future ahead of you. I’m sure it won’t be long before we can share an official dance where neither of us are afraid of being in the spotlight,” Skystar said, impressed with how you caught on quickly.

“...Thank you,” you said after a pause.

“We can come back tomorrow for another session, but for now let’s return to the surface. I doubt your mother would be out of her coma just yet, but I can see in your eyes that you still want to be there for her.”

“Yeah... my mother,” you said, looking down after letting go of Skystar. Watching you space out yet again, the princess waited a few seconds before tapping your shoulder to snap you out of it. ‘Okay, I have to stop doing that,’ you mentally noted.

“Let’s be off then.” Skystar held out her hand and you accepted it. She took you back up to the surface and activated the pearl shards again, transforming you back into your original land forms. You didn’t even bother to wait to dry off before heading off to the direction of the hospital to check on your mother.

“Sir, I’m asking you to have some patience-”

“Just let me through! Even if she’s not awake, it doesn’t feel right not to be at her side!” you snarled, trying to get past some rather stubborn doctors. Unfortunately for them, you were stubborn too. You acknowledged how they said earlier that there was no way to know when your mother would come out of her coma, but you also remembered how King Bellator decided a human should be the first face a new resident of this world sees.

You probably never would have gotten into your mother’s room if the hippogriff king, accompanied by his queen came by and ordered the staff to make way. You ran inside and approached your mother, who looked the same as when you left her. You could only hope that didn’t mean she was going to die.

“Oh, Mother... When will you wake up? If... If I lost you here... I don’t know if I could live with myself...” you said, feeling the tears from your eyes run down your cheeks as you placed your hand on your mother’s face. You didn’t notice as the door opened again, but as a hand touched your shoulder you didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

“Don’t worry,” Skystar said from behind you. “I’m a heavy believer of fate and I can tell destiny wouldn’t reunite a mother with such a loyal son just to separate them again.”

“I hope you’re right... I can’t bear the thought of losing my mother, especially not like this. She’s the only one who ever cared about me... at least until I met you that is...” you said.

After wiping the tears away, you acted without thinking and reached up to hold onto Skystar’s hand to keep it on your shoulder. However, Skystar had a better idea than simply touching hands again, and instead, gave you a big hug. This warm feeling was all it took to push you over the edge, weeping in the princess’ embrace and hugging her back.

The Family of Hearth's Warming

Author's Note

Here's the final chapter. Sorry it took so long, we were kinda rushing it to post it on Christmas to make it all the more special, so after it's posted, we'll edit a more better version of it. Anyways, be sure to follow NineTailBeastBall for helping me out with this story.

And as always, thank you to all you bronies out there for your patience and support during these past few years I've been a writer, be sure to stay tuned for more chapters and stories to come in the future and remember to keep on bronying on and have hope you had a Merry Christmas.

The Family of Hearth's Warming

You sat at the edge of the hospital bed where your mother laid, weak, but no longer unconscious. While it’s true that a huge weight had been lifted from your shoulders when a guard came to your room this morning with the big news, you had to hurry since he also mentioned that she was making quite a scene. With your hand touching her own, you had just finished explaining what this world is and assured your mother that you were just as shocked as she was on the day you woke up here.

“I’m glad I came down here before the shock became too much for you,” you sighed. “How much of what I told you do you believe?”

“I know you would never lie to me. If I was hearing it from any of those hippogriffs as they’re called, giving them my trust might have been a bit more of a challenge,” she answered.

“Hmm, I see. Well I suppose it’s my turn to ask questions. How did you end up in this predicament in the first place?” you asked with your voice turning a little more serious.

“Well, you see... when I heard you had died after saving that poor girl, I... I just couldn’t find any other reason to go on living anymore. I did as much as I could to keep myself from making rash decisions. I made therapy appointments, tried meditating, and then some, but nothing seemed to work. Soon the time came where I couldn’t take it anymore and... I took my own life...”

Everything around you seemed to disappear the moment those words made it to your ears. “I... I honestly don’t know what to say Mother.”

“Are you ashamed of me? Now that I’m confessing this out loud, I feel so foolish.”

You no longer had the courage to admit that you too had planned to commit suicide before your mother arrived. You clenched your legs hard enough to draw blood, hoping the pain would help try to convince you to say something. With your back turned to her, your mother couldn’t see your bleeding leg, but she could tell you there was something you needed to get something off your chest.

“Mother I... I...” you hesitated, clenching your knees tighter, while gritting your teeth and closing your eyes tight. Before you could finally admit to your mistake, you heard knocking on the door and you had reasons to believe your visitor was the same lovable girl who saved you from your said mistake.

“You can come in,” you said.

Hearing the door open, you were just about to open your eyes to see if it was indeed Skystar who had come to see you and your mother, but you were immediately blinded as a rambunctious rugrat tackled your face. And if that wasn’t enough, two more pairs of hands grabbed hold of you. One tugged at your arm, trying to pin you down as if engaging in a wrestling match, while the other went for your leg.

“Please forgive me!” cried a panicked voice that obviously belonged to Skystar. “Thunder Hawk! You know and your siblings know better than to-”

She didn’t scold the triplet siblings that her mother’s relationship with her stepfather gifted her with any further, for even though you had fallen off of the bed, you actually started laughing. Being far stronger than the toddler hippogriffs, you were easily able to get Skystar’s brother, Thunder Hawk off of your face and stare up at him with a smile as you laid on the floor. The other two who went by the names Swan Dance and Eagle Dive remained attached to your leg and arm respectively.

“Finally...” you heard your mother say in a broken voice. Even though you couldn’t pry the remaining hippogriffs who were using your body as a gymnasium since your hands were occupied with Thunder Hawk, it became of no importance when you got back on the bed to look at your mother.

“F-Finally... I get... I get to see you... smile...” she sobbed.

You blinked in surprise, realizing how right she was. A lot has happened to you in your life that you rarely ever bothered to crack a smile, and your mother was never around when it happened. You could only imagine how it felt for her to see you express such positive emotions for the first time.

With you distracted, Skystar pulled Swan Dance and Eagle Dive off for you. “Should... Should I leave?”

“No. Please stay,” you insisted. It was only proper to introduce your mother to the girl whose heart of gold led her to save your life more than once.

“Mother... I know a lot has happened, but please bear with me. I’ve come to believe that this world is a lot more peaceful than our own. Princess Skystar here... she’s the one who took me in and did everything she could to make me feel welcome here, no matter how rude and stubborn I behaved in the process. I know now that I’m not exaggerating when I say that she’s... she’s the greatest friend I’ve ever had,” you explained.

Your mother looked over at the young princess. She knew you weren’t lying, but was relieved to know you were unharmed and alive. “I’m pleased to meet you, my dear. This old lady here can’t thank you enough looking after her boy... when no one else back home would. It just warms my heart to know he’s been found by someone with such a kind heart,” she replied.

Being the loving future ruler of Mount Aris, Skystar came over and gently wiped your mother’s tears. “You’re welcome, but there’s really no need to thank me madam. I was only doing what I knew was the right thing.”

You would have to wait to continue this conversation later, as the doctor came in and politely told you that you were going to have to leave so your mother could get some rest. Of course before that, they would have to run a couple of tests to ensure she was mentally stable. You understood and respectfully left the room with Skystar and her siblings so the doctors could do their jobs. After that the princess called a couple of guards to do their own jobs and escort the triplets back to the castle.

“Hey, are you gonna be okay now?” Skystar asked, putting a hand on your shoulder. Moving out of the room itself didn’t feel good enough, so you actually waited until you were on your favorite spot on the beach to start talking.

You gave her a calm stare, smiling a little. “I... I think so,” you said. “Only thing is...”

Skystar watched as you frowned. “You didn’t tell her... did you?”

You shook your head. "No, I didn't… or rather, I couldn't. How am I supposed to face her when… I tried to end it all? It was already hard before I learned she took her own life.”

"Eventually, you'll have to tell her. And if she's as understanding as she was when we first met her, then she'll understand your pain as well. You don't have to tell her now, just don't wait too long or it'll eat you up inside. Trust me, it'll help the both of you find closure," Skystar said before giving you a hug.

As much as it pained you, she was right. Sooner or later, your love for your mother would force you to come clean. As you heard the doctors talking to her from behind the closed door to her room, you decided you made the right call not to tell her since she wasn’t in the condition.

Skystar looked around to see if anyone was watching, much to your confusion. “Listen... Mother would probably agree this isn’t how an heir to the throne would talk but... I’d like to give you a confidence boost... and a gift for being so patient with us all in the last few weeks.”

Skystar then leaned in so her beak came dangerously close to your lips and just when you thought she was going to go through with it, she hesitated and pulled away. Feeling awkward, she changed her plan and planted a small kiss on your cheek instead. It wasn’t quick either. She held her beak there for at least 20 seconds before backing away to look at how red your face was turning.

“So... how do you feel?” she asked, hoping she gave you the strength to go back and confess your guilt to your mother. Without answering, you slowly turned away and headed back in the direction of the hospital. It was enough of an answer for Skystar who smiled as she watched you walk away.

“Thank you...” you replied, trying not to face her while you're trying to hide your blush. "I… I feel a little better." And so, you keep on walking, with that kiss still fresh on your mind, but now having a little more confidence in yourself. You're not sure how she did it, but in a way, it seemed to have worked.

The next day during visiting hours, you went to go see your mother again. You knew she was still recovering, but it was time for her to learn your secret. Skystar was accompanying you to provide the support you needed when you finally told your mother the truth about what you tried to do to yourself. Unlike yesterday she made sure the castle maids kept an extra close eye on her brothers and sister, as she didn’t want to risk your upcoming confession to be interrupted by another one of the triplets’ shenanigans.

“Guilt has been eating away at me ever since I found you on the beach,” you said, thinking it was only a matter of time before you started tearing up. “I learned during my time here that it’s rare for a person to get a chance to live here after they die, so I took the bet that my death would drive you to kill yourself too. I had no idea how right I would be.”

“It took a lot of courage to come clean like that, dear. What changed your mind?” she asked.

So later, you told your mom everything else that happened during your stay here. “It... It was Skystar who convinced me to keep on living… even when I had given up on myself. I got so… frustrated and confused, I didn't know what to do with myself anymore! So one day... I tried the... the unthinkable and almost splattered onto a watery grave.”

Your mother put a hand to her mouth in shock. “You... tried to commit suicide?”

“Yes,” you confirmed, hanging your head in shame. “But... if it hadn't been for Skystar, I would probably be burning in Hell. And I can’t say I don’t deserve it.”

“It’s true. It was a terrifying moment, but I managed to stop him and showed him that his life is worth living, no matter the hardships or conflicts we face,” Skystar vouched, paying no mind to the negativity at the end of your sentence.

“And when I found you here... I was shocked, but at the same time, deep down, I was relieved to see you again. But I was still worried about how you got here,” you said, holding her hand.

“Son... come here, please...” your mother said, opening up her arms. You hesitated at first, but after turning back and getting a nod from Skystar, you acquired the courage you needed to close in on your mother and felt her wrap her arms around you in a comforting hug.

“Promise me one thing, dear. If you promise not to try anything like that again, then I won't try it again either, because I want to make up for all the lost time. I wanted the chance to see my youngest boy grow up. Please, don't take that away from me again!" she begged, her voice cracking.

You knew it was only a matter of time before you started crying as well, and seeing your mother break down like that made you let loose. Skystar too teared up a bit since she was such an empathetic girl, but she sobbed quietly so your focus would remain on your mother like it was supposed to be. Finally, the time was long due. The time when you would finally come out of your shell and let all of your emotions out with nothing holding them back.

“I-I... I promise!” you declared, resting your head on your mother’s shoulder as the tears seemed like they would never stop. But you didn't have a care in the world and just kept letting loose the water works and your mother just laid there, patting you on the back and rubbing your head like any loving mother would. You needed this for so long. She’s been absent for the earliest years of your life, and the few days you spent together before your death didn’t even come close to making up for that.

“Skystar... please come over here sweetheart,” your mother encouraged, noticing her crying in the corner.

"Oh no, I… I'd hate to be a bother, ma'am," Skystar tried to refuse, but your mother shook her head and gestured for the princess responsible for keeping you alive to approach the bed.

“Skystar I’ve been thanking you a lot of times, but until now I didn’t realize how much you’ve taken care of my son in my absence. You name it, what can I do to show my gratitude?”

"There's no need to trouble yourself, ma'am. I'm just really happy you're back with your son,” Skystar insisted, but your mother held her arms out to Skystar this time. “Well... if you insist...” she finally submitted before heading over and joining in on the group hug. After all three of you had calmed down a little, Skystar turned her attention back to you. "So, are you going to be okay now?"

You look over at Skystar, your eyes red from the tears flowing, but a smile dawned on you. "For the first time in a long time… I think I'll be okay now." you reply, adding a nod.

“Me too, now that I have my precious boy with me again,” your mother said.

Suddenly, the doors opened up and the doctor came in. “I’m very sorry to interrupt you all, but visiting hours are over,” he said.

"Well, I guess that's all the time we have for now. I'll see you two next time," your mother said.

“Yeah. See ya Mother. I’ll be back real soon,” you promised as you gave her
one last hug.

“That makes two of us. Go ahead and get some rest,” Skystar added. Now that you said your goodbyes, you and Skystar gave your mother and retreated into the hallway.

“Your expression tells me that you feel much better,” Skystar said as both of you sat down.

“U-Uh... I... don’t know what you're talking about,” you stuttered, trying to be modest.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to hide it anymore. So, how does it feel to finally let out your emotions after so long?” Skystar asked, holding your hand.

You couldn’t answer, not while you were looking into those amazing eyes of hers. You were feeling so many things right now as your heart pounded as if you’ve just finished running an entire mile.

“S-Skystar I... I...” you tried to say and your grip on her talons tightened. Those were the most words you could manage before you completely let yourself go and planted your lips against the princess’ beak.

Naturally she was surprised by this as it just so happened to be her first kiss, but then she slowly kissed you back and placed her hands on your shoulders. It was convenient that no one was watching you, so that way there would be no one to ruin the moment as you poured your feelings out. This couldn’t be a more perfect moment for you and Skystar. Perhaps this could be the start of something brand new.

Time really seemed to fly, it’s already been three years since you set foot on Mount Aris. Of course it wasn’t like you’ve spent all time isolating yourself from the rest of the world. You’ve paid your share of visits to the ponies in Equestria. Your first stop was at Ponyville where you got to meet some interesting ponies, including the headmare of a school revolving on educating its students on friendship, Starlight Glimmer and her human husband, Chance.

Your relationship with Skystar improved with each passing day and by now, all the residents in the kingdom knew that you were dating. When Bellator and Novo heard about you two getting together, they were shocked at first. Of course, they both gave you the talk about being good to their daughter or else. However, today they weren’t really focused on harassing you with your relationship with their daughter, since a great celebration was taking place in both Mount Aris and Seaquestria.

The occasion was none other than the joyful holiday, Hearth’s Warming Eve Three Days of Freedom celebration. Of course when you were spending your first year in this world, the festival was just another thing that you struggled to get used to. Apparently, Hearth’s Warming Eve was like this world’s version of Christmas, and the residents always took the chance to celebrate their survival from the Storm King’s tyranny.

Now, the holiday's become second nature to you and the best part is... you've got a big family to celebrate it with, including your sweetheart, Skystar. Spending Hearth’s Warming with her... just makes the holiday so much brighter.

According to the tradition, all of the residents would be spending the day in Seaquestria in order to give thanks to the ocean for hiding them from the Storm King. Since Novo was running low on her pearl fragments, you had to split yours with your mother.

“What do you think, Mom?” you asked as she looked at the underwater paradise. You were swimming at a slow pace so she could adjust. Ever since she woke up in Mount Aris, she’s developed a psychological fear of the ocean and had only just now gotten over it.

"It's… amazing. I never knew what it was like to live and breathe underwater and have an underwater kingdom, to boot. This place is just... beautiful," your mother said. She brought her webbed hand up to touch one of the fish that swam by and to her surprise, the fish allowed the contact.

Queen Novo overheard your mother and with a proud expression, she pressed her hand to her chest. “Mama here takes pride in her architecture. That despicable Storm King and his minions never even thought of searching for us in the water. They hardly ever thought outside the box.”

“And as usual, you're acting all humble about it,” you said sarcastically, but a smile remained on your face. Before Novo had the chance to respond, you found Skystar pulling on your hands.

“Come on Levi! The celebration won’t last forever, you know!” she giggled and continued pulling on you, much to your embarrassment. Levi was a nickname she gave you 3 years back. She called you Levi, which is short for Leviathan, a mythical creature that ruled the seas in the stories told in the human world.

“Have fun you two!” your mother called out.

Seaponies have begun to gather around for the underwater celebration. And the one activity that excited Skystar the most, was where she was able to dance with you to her heart’s content. You couldn’t talk her out of it even if you wanted to, so you might as well have fun.

Right as you arrived, the music was blasting and Skystar got all excited from the melody and holiday spirit. She pulled you into the crowd and soon enough, the two of you began your little holiday tango. Even though the same thing happened last year, the dance hadn’t lost its effect on the other seaponies, who grabbed their own partners so they could follow your lead. That included Bellator and Novo.

“I’m convinced you’ll NEVER lose your touch when it comes to a tango,” you chuckled, as you spun the other way.

“Dancing is one of my passions. At first it was just a hobby, but now it's my bread and butter," Skystar replied. "You've gotten better with practice, Levi. I'm very happy to see that. I mean take a look. You weren’t able to get Mother and Father to dance last year.”

When you got the chance to turn around again, you saw that she wasn’t lying. Novo and Bellator were indeed trying the tango even though it was rare to see them dance, even on a special holiday. Reason why they didn’t often dance is due to Queen Novo dancing like she’s got two left feet. Even with Bellator, she always steps on his feet. Despite not being on land at the moment, they still had trouble dancing right, but there are some worse mistakes than stepping on each other’s feet, like non-synchronized swimming.

But it was nice to see them get into the spirit and join the fun. It always can be quite the show to see them “dancing.” Novo's keeping her eyes on Bellator's tailfin to make sure she's keeping herself in sync and not throwing each other off. The look of uneasiness on her face was priceless to watch, you gotta admit. And Bellator's just smiling in amusement.

“Maybe if she'd boasting about her "greatness" and start improving herself a bit more on her feet and tailfin, she'd already be getting more attention than she should have,” you retort

“Oh, come now Levi. Don’t be mean during Hearth’s Warming Eve,” Skystar playfully scolded before giving you a peck on the cheek.

“Ah, you know I don’t really mean it all that much. I’m indebted to you and your family for all you’ve done for me these last three years. You gave me and my mom a second chance at a brand new start. Neither one of us would be alive if it wasn’t for you and your caring hospitality.” You then decided to return Skystar’s affection and kiss her on her own cheek.

"You can sure be a real sweetheart, too, Levi," Skystar said and decided to go for another round of dancing. This night was going to be a long one, and there would be two more that would be just as tiring, but exciting nonetheless.

During the Three Days of Freedom, the first day is always spent celebrating under the ocean in Seaquestria. However for today, everybody was coming out of the water to spend the second day on Mount Aris. Up on the Harmonizing Heights, you looked up at all the hippogriffs who were dancing in the sky in order to commemorate the defeat of the tyrant who terrorized them for so long.

It was unfortunate that you couldn’t join them since you couldn’t fly, but at least Skystar was sitting next to you to keep you company along with a few other hippogriffs. Plus, you couldn’t really complain since you got to look at the magnificent sight of all those colorful subjects harmonizing in the light of the sunset. It threatened to bring a tear to your eye.

“You really don’t have to sit here and watch you know,” you tried to encourage your girlfriend. “You love singing so why don’t you go fly up and join them?”

Skystar shook her head and pinched your cheek like she usually did to lighten the mood. “I can’t leave you all by your lonesome. It just wouldn’t be fair,” she said. “Besides, I can tell from your face that you think this is romantic.”

“Is it that obvious?” you asked with a cocky smirk, earning your cheek an even harder pinch. If any other hippogriff tried to grab you with those sharp talons, you would have become scared that they would accidentally tear your face open. Lucky for you, due to all the time you’ve spent with Skystar, you knew her and trusted her to be careful with her strength.

“You know Mount Aris much better than I ever will. Are all hippogriffs such gifted singers?” you asked.

“In all my life, I haven’t come across a single hippogriff who couldn’t sing aside from a baby,” Skystar answered. The music was so relaxing and calmed your hearts despite the excitement of the holiday. Practically hypnotized by the romantic atmosphere, she laid her head on your shoulder to await your loving caresses. Too bad she wasn’t going to get it.

“Tag! You’re it!” you heard three young voices full of mischief shouted in unison before you found yourself face first on the ground. Even after three years, the little assailants who had tackled you were still young and seeking chances to get the jump on you.

“Well, I can see you three have the holiday spirit,” Skystar giggled as you got up and confirmed it was indeed her siblings who had pushed you down. Since it was indeed a special day, you couldn’t get made at the little nuisances.

“You kids are lucky I can’t bring myself to get rough with children. Otherwise you’d be singing a different tune, you sneaky little devils,” you chuckled and pinched Swan Dance and Thunder Hawk’s beaks. If only you had three hands Eagle Dive would be getting the same treatment, but you would get to him in just a second.

“Mommy’s up there singing right now, so Daddy said to play with you instead,” Swan Dance explained after you released her tiny beak.

"Figures they'd sick you little monsters on us. Well, you're here now, so no use in arguing the head mama now," you said with a smile. You then forced Eagle Dive into your lap and tickled his belly while laughing maniacally. Unlike his siblings, he hadn’t gotten his beak pinched but this seemed like an equal punishment.

Skystar followed your lead and grabbed Swan Dance and Thunder Hawk Before they could fly away and began tickling their tummies as well, making them laugh like crazy and squirming to get free. They put up a good effort to get loose, but Skystar only tightened her grip and tickled them even faster.

“S-S-Stop! P-Please stop! T-That tickles!” Swan Dance laughed.

“Learned your lesson yet?” Skystar asked, still not slowing down. “Have you learned what happens if you sneak up on others?”

“Okay! Okay! We get it! Just please, stop!” Thunder Hawk hollered through his laughter.

You looked at Skystar and you nodded simultaneously, deciding the little hippogriffs wouldn’t prank you again for the rest of the night. And afterwards, you let the little troublemakers go. Even so they didn’t fly away like you expected, but instead made themselves comfortable on your lap so they could join you in watching the hippogriffs sing.

‘Sure, now they’re behaving,’ you sarcastically thought. The triplets may have been prone to cause a great deal of trouble, but it still felt nice to have them on your lap. Smiling you gave each of them a gentle pat on the head.

“Make sure to remember the happy smiles of your fellow hippogriffs and seaponies you three,” Skystar addressed her siblings as they admired the singing queen who brought them into the world. “Mother risked everything to make sure the Storm King didn’t take that happiness away when he attacked our land.”

You joined in and ruffled their heads again. “Learn from your mother and sister’s struggles and I have no doubt you’ll each grow up to become as strong and courageous as the two of them.”

“Sky, do you really think I’ll be as great as you?” Eagle Dive asked hopefully while looking at his older sister hopefully. It wasn’t long before Swan Dance and Thunder Hawk were giving her the same face.

“It’s not something that I think, it’s something that I know. And if you don’t believe me, Mother’s coming down right now as you can see.”

Indeed, the song had finally reached its end, and when the hippogriffs responsible for the performance landed, you could see just how tired they were.

“I think that just about does it for my vocal work out. So, how did you all enjoy the performance, my dears?” Novo asked, waiting for her subjects to butter her up and compliment her voice like they did every year. As expected the one who got the privilege of complimenting her first was none other than her husband.

"As usual, you blew away my mind with that goddess voice of yours, my dear. If you sang in my world, you'd be asked to sign up for America's Got Talent," Bellator praised. "You were absolutely wonderful, honey."

"Thank you, baby. As expected, it's nice to know I haven't lost my touch," she boasted, looking up proudly.

"How long did it take for this guy to get used to her ego?" you asked Skystar quietly, which got her to giggle.

"It actually took him a whole year to get used to her," Skystar replied.

"Guess he's got more nerves of steel to tolerate her if he can get used to her in that short amount of time," you whispered back. You and Skystar gave a laugh which quickly got Queen Novo's attention just as she finished the nice cold cup of iced tea Bellator brought her for her sore throat.

"Now what might you two be laughing about?" she asked.

"Oh nothing, just sharing a few friendly laughs, that's all," you said, waving your hand to brush it off casually. The queen squinted at you, but since this was a time to be happy, she decided not to risk making a scene and gave her attention to the triplets. Needless to say, she was completely ignorant to the little stunt they pulled while she was busy singing.

‘Phew, saved by the bell on that one. I'd hate to think how she'd react if I called her out on that thich-headed ego of hers,’ you thought to yourself. But then, another thought popped into your mind as you stared at Novo playing with the kids. 'Hmm... I wonder if it's possible for me and Skystar to one day have some kids of our own. We’ve been dating for a few years and… the timing's just right. Maybe I'll ask her later on tonight or tomorrow...' you thought as you turned to the princess herself. You wouldn’t be surprised if she admitted the thought crossed her mind at least once.

Today was the last day of the Three Days of Freedom celebration, and instead of having to choose between shifting into a hippogriff or a seapony, all the subjects in the kingdom would make the choice on their own as they spent the day partying together. On one side, you could see the seaponies sticking their heads above the surface of the water as they swam to the shore, and on the other side, some of the hippogriffs instantly went underwater.

“This never gets old,” Skystar sighed, watching everybody having a good time. “A lot of families were split up when they chose between going back to living on Mount Aris or remaining underwater in Seaquestria. It’s nice to see making such a choice hasn’t done anything to strain our subjects’ relationships.”

“You’re thinking about your cousin Terramar, aren’t you?” you chuckled. That hippogriff was no longer a child, but he still had the tendency of going back and forth between his two homes. Speaking of which, you could see him by the shore building a sand castle with his triplet cousins so you decided to go over and strike up a conversation.

“I’m kind of jealous of you Terramar. These little rascals never seem to treat you like a target,” you said.

“Why do you say that?” Terramar asked. All you had to do was point down and remind him that the bundles of energy were being so unusually well-behaved and quietly shaping the sand castle. If you tried to help them with this, they would’ve already dumped a bucket of sand on your head for a good laugh.

He shrugged. “I honestly can’t explain it. Kids are a mystery. That aside, tell me about your plans with Skystar. You’ve been dating for three years already, and I’m naturally curious what your future will look like.”

“Skystar... she's an amazing girl. It's like every time I look at her, everything just makes sense, you know. And she's done so much for me when I first came here and… I honestly hope that one day, she and I can build a future together, even have some kids of our own. I really do love her, man. Three years ago I wouldn’t have even thought of saying this but Skystar means the whole world to me,” you said, watching your girlfriend.

“What about you Terramar? Any pretty hippogriffs or seaponies you have your eye on?” you teased, and got the reaction you were looking for when Terramar blushed while the triplets snickered.

“Honestly, since it’s not in my nature to settle down in either one of our homes, I’ve had trouble maintaining a relationship,” he admitted.

“Oh, I see. Sorry to hear that, man," you replied, patting him on the back. It seemed like your joke hit a sensitive spot.

“But… there's no law that prohibits me from finding someone outside my species. And there are a few eligible candidates outside my kingdom. Just look at Queen Novo, she got remarried to a human some time after her first husband died. You’ve been dating Skystar for three years, so what’s stopping you from going beyond that? If you want to get married and have kids with her, then go ahead. I’m sure she'd love to start a family with you,” Terramar said.

To be honest, you didn’t know what was stopping you from asking Skystar for her opinion on expanding the royal family. You suppose, one thing is that it would be quite awkward if it turned out getting pregnant never crossed her mind. After all, it would mean her siblings would have a niece or a nephew even though they were only five year olds. Not to mention, Novo might get all insecure about her own age when she found out she was going to be a grandmother.

“I guess you have a point there. Well, I suppose once the festival is over, I could gather the courage to go and ask her and see how all of this plays out. Even though this was a bit awkward, I’m glad we had this talk. Thanks for the support, Terramar,” you reply, giving him a fist bump before going back to Skystar and sitting next to her.

“So what did he have to say?” she asked.

“Oh, he told me that he’s planning on finding some suitable candidates from outside his kingdom. He says it’s been hard to get a date when he’s so used to moving around.” Of course there was more to it than that, and as soon as you felt some pressure you touched your lover’s hand. “And uh, Skystar... after the party, do you think you and I can have a... a talk... alone?” you asked. “It’s kinda important.”

“Oh... of course. After the celebration is over, we can tell me whatever is on your mind, no holds barred,” she nodded. “In the meantime, try to have fun like you’ve been doing for the last two days! Mother should be here any minute and I can’t wait to see what kind of presents she’ll hand out this year!”

To wrap up the festival to commemorate their survival from the Storm King’s oppression, Queen Novo left early in the morning with a handful of guards and spent the entire day in Equestria gathering all kinds of unique treasures to hand out to her brethren. Proper rewards to express her gratitude in her subjects for believing in her so she could find the power to keep them all alive in a war torn environment.

About 20 minutes after the sun had set over the horizon, the queen had returned with two loaded chariots following behind her. Having the utmost respect for their ruler, everyone got in a nice, single file line waiting to see what kind of gift they would receive.

As for you however, no kind of present would be anywhere near as significant as the question you had for the love of your life.

“I swear Hearth’s Warming Eve becomes more fun each year...” Skystar sighed as you gave her a piggyback ride back to her chambers, or more accurately your chambers. It wasn’t like she was going to tolerate you sleeping in that old guest room now that you were a couple. Once you both reached your chambers, you sat Skystar on the side of the bed before going back and closing the door. You then walk up to your lover and sit down next to her. "So, what is it that you wanted to talk about?"

You waited for a minute to take a deep breath, then turned to face her eye-to-eye. “Skystar, there's something I've been meaning to tell you." you said. She nodded in understanding. “We've been dating for 3 whole years, but it feels like you've done more for me and my mom than I ever did for you and to be honest, I feel like I want to have a chance to make you the happiest girl of all time. Every day has been an adventure and a half ever since you and your family found me and took me in without hesitation. If it wasn't for you, I feel like I would've wound up in Hell. So now, I'd like to ask you something that's long overdue."

Skystar had a feeling of what you were gonna say as you got down on your knees in front of her and took her hand. “Princess Skystar... will you marry me?”

“Oh heavens to Celestia...! Yes! YES! OF COURSE I’LL MARRY YOU!" she exclaimed as she tackled you to the ground with the biggest hug she could give you and a kiss on the lips. Ordinarily your kisses only lasted a couple of seconds, but things were changing and before you knew it, Skystar’s tongue was poking your lips begging you to open wide. You did so and let your own tongue dance with hers.

Even though this was romantic, there was still another important question that you needed to be answered and so you pulled out of the kiss. “Skystar I’m sorry but I need to know something else... I’m not sure if you’ve noticed the way I’ve stared at the triplets, but every time I watch them play... I can’t help questioning our own future... What I’m trying to say is... is...”

“You want to start a family,” she finished for you. “Well, to be honest… I've always wanted to start a family of my own. I was just waiting for the time when you'd finally ask me that. And it seems you found the perfect time. So… are you ready to be a daddy?” she asked, staring at you with her sweet, adorable smile.

“Yes... I’ll admit I was a little scared and unsure of myself, but now... now I’m finally ready for it,” you confirmed. Tears of joy fell down your cheeks now that you had Skystar’s consent and you grabbed both of her cheeks to give her another fierce kiss. Hypnotized by the contact with her beak, you didn’t even notice that she was trying to take her dress off.

Soon, she eventually gets it off fully and tugs at your clothes, trying to get you just as naked as she was. You helped her out by grabbing your own shirt and taking it off, separating your lips from her beak for a split second. You tossed your shirt to the side and got right down to taking off your pants and boxers. You even kicked off both your socks and shoes, too. Now you were just as naked as she was.

"So, this is how you look like in your birthday suit... You’re just as adorable and beautiful as the day I met you...” you complimented, checking out her perfect body from her curves and legs up to her ample bosom and star-spangled eyes. She let out a giggle in reply.

"You're not so bad yourself if you've got a neat body like this," Skystar replied, eyeballing your well-built chest and six-pack. Even after you arrived at Mount Aris, you made it a habit to keep yourself in shape instead of laying around all day and moping. Needless to say, your daily exercise routines have worked in your favor for the princess to be checking you out like that.

“Glad you like what you see, my princess. And I certainly like what I see,” you replied. Despite your husky tone, you took things slowly so Skystar wouldn’t feel like you’ve betrayed her trust. Looking at her F-cup bust, you gulped as you ignored the temptation to grab them as hard as you could. Instead, you gave her right breast a careful squeeze and got a relaxed moan out of the girl.

“T-That’s it...” she sighed. “That’s just right... Please continue...”

“Okay...” you whispered back and kissed Skystar’s neck and held your mark until you were drawn to her nipples. Your hand still hadn’t left her breast, nor did the gentle hold you put on it change. While you focused on carefully tending to her right breast, you slid down until your mouth was right above her left nipple and went down so you could suck on it.

Skystar giggled. “I suppose I should get used to this... Once we have our baby, he or she will be giving me the same treatment.”

“We need to make sure you’re ready before we go for the real deal, you know,” you said and moved your hand down until you felt Skystar’s clitoris brush against your palm. “May I?” you asked and after you got a slow nod, you gave the bud in between Skystar’s legs a playful pinch. Whether it was intended or not, rolling her clit between your thumb and finger rewarded you with some of the most adorable noises that you’ve ever heard. Not to mention, her virgin slit was spraying the juices of her arousal against the hand that was tending to her needs.

“T-That...! That feels... so g-good...!” she stuttered before letting out another of her lovely moans. “I think I’m gonna... I’m gonna...!” Her body beat her mouth to it, as she squealed loudly as she sprayed a fair amount of her love juices onto your hand, prompting you to release her clit so you could get a good look at your messy hand.

“Go ahead and help yourself,” you said with a smile as you brought your hand up to Skystar’s tomato red face. This was all new to her, but like someone who has been stranded in the desert for days, she leaned up to your fingers to lick up her nectar as if her life depended on it. You didn’t think the hippogriff princess was capable of doing such a thing, but in your eyes, it didn’t do anything to ruin her beauty.

“Not bad... but that’s not all I want to taste,” she said and looked down at your impressive shaft. “Please let your royal bride-to-be return the favor.”

You didn’t do anything to protest Skystar’s intentions even though this would be the first blowjon you ever received. You got off of her to sit down on your knees, presenting your rock hard manhood to the drooling princess. She licked her beak a few times to get it nice and wet before she showed you just how warm and soft her mouth was.

“Oh! Oh, wow...” you gasped and placed your hand on Skystar’s soft mane, which felt like silk in between your fingers. Keeping such a careful hold on her head, you slowly pushed deeper down her throat and you were colored impressed that you didn’t hear her choking.

“S-Skystar... are you really okay?” you asked. While of course she couldn’t give you a verbal response, just staring into her beautiful eyes gave you all the assurance you needed to know that she could handle your length. And if sucking you wasn’t enough to drive you off the deep end with pleasure, Skystar got naughty and reached to fondle your family jewels.

Her evil plan was working, for as you felt her talons tickle and squeeze your groin, pressure was already starting to build up in your shaft. Biting your lip, you placed your bets that the pain would distract you into holding back your release so you could relish in the luxury of Skystar’s mouth. Unfortunately the moment she noticed you were resisting, she groped your nutsack with even more pressure, and that was enough to break the dam.

“Levi...” she said once there was nothing left for her to swallow, “...I think I’m ready for you...” Returning to her original position where she was laying on her back, Skystar spread her legs wide open, giving you the perfect view of her virgin flower. Taking it was an honor she couldn’t even think of giving to anyone else except you.

You lined the tip of your manhood with Skystar’s pussy. “On the count of three, I'm gonna put it in. If you feel even the slightest pain and discomfort, you let me know and I'll stop, okay?” Skystar nodded. “One... Two... THREE!” From that moment, you plunged your manhood right into her royal love caverns and felt the resistance of her hymen trying to push you back, but you wind up breaking through, making her gasp and shout in pain and pleasure.

“S-Skystar! Honey are you-” A good, deep kiss was all it took to calm you down. "I guess I'll take that as a way of you saying you're okay...” you said. Wiping a tear away, you pulled out slowly and moved back in with the same amount of caution.

Skystar holds onto you, moaning softly and having a great time. You nuzzle this horny princess cheek to cheek while you keep thrusting inside her. It was your first time and didn't want to mess it up, but she seemed to be enjoying herself plenty.

“S-Skystar.. you’re going to be a w-wonderful mother...!” you grunted and picked up the pace. These were no longer cries of pain ringing in your ears, but cries of pleasure.

"A-And you’re... gonna be… a fantastic father, Levi!" Skystar moaned back. Things only got noisier as you grabbed both of your mate’s breasts, using them like handlebars as you thrusted into her, desperate not to lose to the tight embrace of her pussy.

Skystar then locked her legs right around your waist, losing her mind to your amazingly huge manhood. Eventually, you felt your balls building up pressure deep down, ready to blow.

“There’s no going back now...! H-Here it... COMES!”

"Give it to me! FILL ME UP! MAKE ME INTO A MOTHER!!!"

You continued shouting at one another until you finally let loose the cream cannon, painting her insides white. Skystar let out the loudest scream and came hard all over your crotch and on the bed sheets. You spurted a few more times until you were spent and collapsed on top of Skystar with nothing else to give her. Exhausted as you were, you managed to move your tired body enough to get off of her and lay at her side.

"Gotta say… this… was by far… the best Hearth's Warming ever..." you said between breaths.

“I couldn’t agree more Levi...” Skystar panted while rubbing her belly. “I couldn’t agree more...”