//-------------------------------------------------------// Promises -by Joey777- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// A fresh start //-------------------------------------------------------// Author's Note Hey there, this is my first attempt at a multi-chapter fanfiction, so I will need adequate support to continue. I welcome respectful, honest, and helpful criticism. My inspiration for this story is from Asukaforver92’s fanfic ”Young hearts be free tonight” While I applaud the author for making the story a long term project, and actually finishing it, I was appalled by how a great concept quickly became poorly executed. This is a genderbent version of what the story could have been. A fresh start All was quiet as the moon beamed a still light through a small room in 1216 Franklin Avenue. Tension nevertheless lingered in the minds of some of the members of the 14 member household. A certain 13-year-old woman's life was changed forever nearly four months ago. Although a minor, she knew what it meant when Ronaldo Santiago and herself promised to forever commit to their new responsibility. After that repugnant discovery yesterday, there was no way that they could allow anyone to interfere with the emergency plan that they have now agreed to execute. Linka Loud grunted and stirred in her sleep. Just then, a full bladder prompted the young woman with snow pigmented hair to wake up. Her squinted eyes opened, revealing sea-blue irises. She sighed and sat up to see the time: 4:00 am. “Ron,” the youth called out to the snoring man sleeping beside her as she shook his left arm. The snoring stopped, and Ronaldo expelled a heavy breath before awakening. “Shoot..” The 13-year-old hispanic sighed worriedly after he glanced at the clock. “We need to adjust our plan! My entire family will be awake in a couple of hours. Even if we leave in 30 minutes, we have acquaintances who might recognize us since some of them are working outside at this very moment” Linka ranted anxiously to her boyfriend. The 13-year-old female tiptoed down the hall to reach the bathroom while making sure that there weren’t any obstructions that could become a trip hazard. She was careful not to flush the toilet after mandatory business was taken care of and quickly gathered her and Ronaldo’s toiletries in a little bag. After heading out, Linka passed by the room that belonged to her younger brothers Levi and Leon once more. This time, she couldn't help but notice that it was a crack open. The youth gingerly pushed it far enough just so that she could fit through. The young woman glanced towards three-year-old Leon’s bed and could hear him breathing peacefully in his sleep. “Goodbye, sweet boy,” she whispered. The youth swallowed, trying to calm the lump in her throat. He’ll be just fine. Just as Linka was about to exit, she stepped on something hard. Leon must have found something but tossed it once he got bored. The snow haired female moved her foot out of the way and saw what appeared to be some sort of green stainless steel watch with a wide digital screen. She stared at it before blinking and shaking her head. It’s just a watch, ignore it. A severe pang of deja vu flashed through her mind. Wait, she could clearly recall seeing this very same watch in the past. Two years ago, the youth had the strangest dream. Levi had allowed her to borrow a watch, which enabled people to visit a different dimension. It was one where the then 11-year-old girl had ten sisters instead of 10 brothers. It started as a great dream, but she ended up missing her brothers and wondered what would happen if their only sister would never return. The young girl was relieved to find out that it was all a dream because, at the end of it, she appeared to accidentally transfer to a dimension where Linka was named Lincoln and the only boy in the family-a direct parallel of her real-life world. If only I could magically wake up and find out that these last several months have been a coma dream or something like that. Something tells me that I need this. She picked the watch up and headed back to her and Ronaldo’s bedroom. “What do we need that for?” asked the Hispanic youth, as he stopped filling his backpack. “Ron, I had this dream a couple of years ago. In it, I remember seeing this same watch despite it not existing in real life. It was able to-“ The female youth paused, at a loss for words that could describe what happened for a moment. The young man peered into her eyes. “If you think it’s important, it probably is. Turn it on.” The young woman pressed and held on the largest button on the side of the screen for a few seconds before releasing her thumb. Nothing happened. Levi wouldn’t keep defective appliances in his room. They’re all tested regularly. She proceeded to press the button repeatedly. I know you're right for something!” Just then, the screen turned white, and a golden colored question mark appeared in the middle of it. That's strange,” Ronald remarked. “There’s not even a message to explain why it’s displaying that symbol.” Just then, the watch started to glow, and a countdown of 12 minutes appeared with the words “Analyzing dimension” fading in and out at the top of the screen. “Let’s continue packing,” Linka said urgently, interrupting Ronaldo’s thoughts. He nodded and placed the watch on the small table next to their bed. About 10 minutes later, both of them were done packing. The young woman decided only to take things that she needed and leave many things behind to remind herself that she is starting a new life. “What do you suppose the watch is gonna do at the end of the countdown?” asked Ronaldo. “In my dream, the watch displayed a 3D like the portal, and when I walked through it, I ended up visiting alternate universes.” Linka's face grew a bit red once she realized how ridiculous that sounded out loud. Ronaldo smiled. “It never hurts to imagine Linkie.” A few moments later, the countdown stopped, and a blinding green light ray shot from the watch. It formed into a glowing circular portal. The couple stared at it, speechless with their mouths gaped open. ”I- don’t even know what to say,” the female youth began. “I just want to go to a more peaceful world where we can be a healthy family and get a fresh start.” The 13 old started to tear up as the portal’s green glow illuminated her face. Ronaldo hugged his girlfriend tightly. “They’re eventually gonna find out what happened to us, but we can’t stay here,” Linka sniffed. “Of course..the inevitable must happen.” The young couple stepped through the portal gripping each other’s hands. As the world went white, memories flashed through their minds. It was a bright sunny March day in Royal Woods, Michigan, but a 12-year-old sat in her room solemnly looking through a photo album. She spotted a photo of herself and the family's pet pit bull terrier. The picture was taken on the snow haired girl's 11th birthday, which was exactly one year ago. The female canine sported a rainbow-colored sweater that Ronaldo gave her as a gift. The animal wore it for months and would always seem distressed when the sweater had to be removed so that the canine could be bathed. The young Hispanic knitted it himself but would not let anyone other than Linka know that. Less than a year ago, he, his mother Maria, and sister Roberta “Bella” moved to Chicago, Ilinois, to live with their extended family. Maria did not give any reasonable explanations for their sudden move in the middle of the school year, despite Loki and Bella being a couple and the fact that the Santiago siblings had many friends in Royal Woods. Linka remembered how down to earth the boy was. He was a great skater and loved animals and the outdoors. It surprised the girl how she felt when she thought about him. He always had her back, even when she failed him as a friend. The sound of someone knocking was heard, and one of the Loud brothers went to open the front door. “Linka!” her oldest brother Loki called to her, who was 18 at the time. “Come and see who decided to surprise you and the rest of us.” The girl hurried out and saw none other than the Santiago siblings standing at the front door. Bella obviously didn't look any different from last year, but her 12-year-old brother had hit a growth spurt since he left. His rich blue-black hair shone in the light, and his eyes glistened with confidence. Linka didn't remember the boy being so handsome. “Happy birthday, old-timer!” Ronaldo greeted, interrupting Linka’s thoughts. “Thank you, Ron” Linka replied before hugging him. “My mother, and Ronaldo have moved back to Royal Woods for good, so now I can just transfer my credits and go to that college next to Fairway University without worrying too much about them!” the 18 year old announced. Loki and Linka’s mouth gaped open at this. ”Sweet! I can finish my first year at the university with you by my side after all!” Loki embraced Bella and kissed her. In the past, their younger siblings standing near them might have acted in a way that clearly stated that they found this PDA repelling, but now they were older and a bit more mature. “It’s so good to have you back, Ron! Wait till you check out that new club that they have in Royal Woods Middle School. Your old friends mention you every once in a while, and I am sure you'll make quite a few new ones since the student body is generally pretty friendly to newcomers” said the young girl, feeling enthusiastic. Ronaldo smiled. ”I am glad to hear that. Can’t wait.” ”What made your mother decide to move back here anyway? Loki asked the siblings. They were silent for a moment before Bella spoke. ”There..was an arsonist that set fire to our apartment. None of our family's stuff was damaged, but the distance the fire spread made it a very close call. Our neighbors were mostly okay, except for the one that had asthma and had to be rushed to the E.R since the smoke did a number on their respiratory system.” “That’s awful! I am glad to have been born and raised in this little city, but it would be interesting to venture out for vacation someday. I never even left this state in my entire life.” Linka revealed. The young couple found themselves in another location when the white faded. They felt a soft wind and realized they were outdoors, but something was strange. They appeared to have arrived in some sort of town’s outskirts, and they had come face to face with a small wooden sign that read “Welcome to Ponyville” written in ink, in a sloppy font. “ I smell hay.. loads of it,” Ronaldo noted. Several years ago, his father took him to a farm so that he could spend the summer with his parents. “Those building designs are pretty old-fashioned- oh! their roofs are actually made out of hay,” observed Linka after taking a closer look. “I hope the inhabitants have an adequate shelter that they could offer us”. ”But what kind of name is ’Ponyville’?” scoffed Ronaldo. ”Even if the residents happen to be talking equine's, the name sounds like a 5-year-old came up with it.” ”It’s better than that city in New Mexico that's named ”Truth Or Consequences,” stated the snow haired youth. The couple cracked up at this. Even after what seemed to be an eternity of walking, there were no apparent shelters in sight, only hills and the occasional cluster of trees. Linka thought about how she wasn’t used to getting up so early in the morning. It became harder to think straight, and her body, especially her eyelids, seemed to feel heavier by the minute. The young woman eventually gave in and shut her eyes. ”Linka? When was the last time you drank water?” asked the Hispanic youth worriedly. ”It’s....been a while.” replied the female youth.”I just need to-” ”Sit” Ronaldo demanded. Linka sat near some weeds that were surrounded by dandelions, and her boyfriend pulled a water bottle out of her backpack. ”Drink all of it.” The female youth took the beverage and downed it quickly. ”I am sorry I got distracted,” she said, lowering her head. ”It’s hard to get used to the fact that it's not just about me anymore.” ”It’s hard for any woman, but never forget what you’re fighting for. It was your idea for us to literally leave this universe to do what’s best for them. ” The young man kneeled beside her and rubbed her belly. The pair got up and continued to explore the area. They soon noticed that there were suddenly fewer weeds and air seemed a little sweeter the further they walked. ”This orchard is beautiful!” Exclaimed the young woman after gazing upon many rows of Apple trees. The couple soon encountered a short white fence and saw a wooden sign with a carved design of an apple in the middle of it, hanging at the top of the entrance. They awed at the friendly-looking well kept farmhouse behind it. ”Who owns this place?” wondered Linka out loud. The pair heard a dog bark in the distance, and before they knew it, a small, brown and white border collie ran to them. The female dog growled lightly and positioned herself to defend her territory. The couple stuck out their hands at separate times and allowed Winona to sniff them. ”See? We mean no harm, girl.” the dog's ears perked up, and she headed towards the house. From the entrance emerged- a female orange fur colored equine. Her blond mane was in long pigtails, and she wore a hat. There was a tattoo like design of three red apples on her flank. The pony yawned. ”What’s got you all fired up at this hour, Winona?” She scanned the area and spotted the young duo. It was so quiet for a moment; you could hear an apple fall off a tree in the distance. ”Hey there, what brings y'all here this morning?” ”Uh..” stammered Ronaldo. ”We used a portal to reach this dimension...we're from another world,” he answered awkwardly. Portal...the equine quickly remembered where she had heard that word before. ”Where are my manners? Welcome to Sweet Apple acres. My name is Applejack. And I see you have already met Winona” Applejack chuckled. ”My name is Ronaldo.” The young Hispanic extended his hand. ”And mine’s Linka” piped the young woman. The mare stared at Ronaldo’s hand, confused for a moment before realizing that this must be a customary greeting for this unknown being’s kind. She extended her hoof, and the male youth shook it. ”Nice to meet you two. What do you call yourselves”? ”Humans” ”Huh. By what y'all have told me, I do reckon that my friend Twilight Sparkle might know a thing or two about your kind. How about we have breakfast with my family before we go see her?” Linka felt her stomach grumble. ”Thank you.” ”Yeah, that's a great idea” agreed Ronaldo. //-------------------------------------------------------// What doesn't kill thee makes thee stronger //-------------------------------------------------------// Author's Note MERRY CHRISTMAS!🎄 Oh my, where do I begin? First of all the "Alternate Universe" tag is there for a reason. Scootaloo is actually a colt named Scooter Flame in this ponyverse in case you somehow missed that. Second of all, I have decided to maintain the existing Pro-Life vibe from the story from where I loosely draw inspiration, so please don't say that I am offending anyone. When doing research, I encountered a site where a forum user writing as Twilight Sparkle explains how Celestia and Luna actually manipulate the solar system when "Raising the sun or moon." I just wanted to point that out. Finally, Pinkpoint the alicorn is my OC. What doesn't kill thee makes thee stronger The couple followed Applejack towards the farmhouse. They noticed a male equine with a red fur coat at the door. He had an image of a split granny smith apple on his flank, short orange hair, and a massive body build. He stretched his arms and hind legs, preparing to head outside. He stopped rather abruptly when he saw Ronaldo and Linka. ”Applebloom! Granny!” called the equine mare.”We have guests.” An adolescent filly emerged from a room down a hallway. Her fur coat was a light but vibrant yellow color and the design on her flank was a multi-colored shield with a purple apple in the middle. Her mane was cherry-colored and picked up into a French braid with a small pink bow at the bottom. She stared at the couple quizzically. Just then, an older female equine exited a large bedroom nearby. Her fur coat was a lighter, vibrant shade of green, and on her flank was an image of an Apple Pie. She wore a scarf around her neck and her light grey mane in a bun. ”Mornin’ Granny, Big Mac, and Applebloom. Meet our guests Ronaldo and Linka. They don't have any bits on them, so ah invited them in for breakfast. We'll be on our way to see Twilight afterward,” explained Applejack. The rest of the family nodded and exchanged greetings with the couple. Granny Smith served milk for everyone. ”Earlier, you guys mentioned that you came from another world,” began Applejack. The couple sighed. ”How different is it from Equestria?” ”Well..” began Linka before pausing. ”We don't know much about this place. We just got here a few hours ago.” explained Ronaldo. ”And we actually had to pack and leave our home at 4:00 am.” Added the female youth. The family listened to her, intrigued. ”You guys are the first inhabitants that we have met in this land, but this seems like a safe place. Where we come from, people don't open their houses to feed strangers. Anyway, we used a hand watch that my brother made to take us to another dimension, but..we didn't expect to land in this kind of world.” ‘’Actually’’ started Applejack before letting out a sigh. “This little town is part of Equestria. Our country used to be our world’s most powerful because unicorns and alicorns used to be able to expel all kinds of magic from their horns.” Linka’s mouth gaped open. Unicorns? “Some of them, such as my friend that ah mentioned earlier, and several others happened to be naturally gifted and persistent with their goals. This made our country a frequent target for a nasty variety of villains. One day a few months ago, around midnight, almost all of our unicorns and alicorns woke up to find themselves completely unable to use their magic.” “Who were the lucky ones to keep it?” asked Ronaldo.” “First of all, there is this pegasus named Rainbow Dash, who as a filly, was able to perform this...how do you pronounce it?” She asked her sister. ”Aerobatic maneuver.” ”The point is that it allowed her to fly so darn fast that she broke the sound barrier, causing a circular rainbow-colored shockwave to appear in the sky. It likely has some sort of supernatural thingamajig as it created specific umm..effects on me and several others.” The couple stared at the mare, puzzled, as Applejack got up to serve everyone pancakes. ”Notice how we each have a different image on our flanks?” piped Applebloom. ”These symbolize our most notable talent. The rainboom’s unknown power somehow helped my sister and five other mares discover it.” ”Ohh!” Ronaldo started laughing. ”I thought those were tattoos.” Applejack gave the couple their plates containing pancakes with light butter and jam on the side. ”As ah was saying,” continued the mare. ”The morning that all of the alicorns and unicorns lost their magic, Rainbow Dash woke up with a fully functioning horn on her head.” The couple raised their eyebrows. ”That's not all...this earth pony named Pinkie Pie, as well as my sister and her friends Sweetie Belle and Scooter Flame, suddenly developed these abilities that no one had seen before! They must keep their powers on the down-low, however. And there is this young alicorn named Pinkpoint that simply kept all her magical powers. ”But why were they specifically?..” began Linka before pausing. ”No one knows for sure, or what exactly caused any of it to happen, but my guess for why Rainbow Dash became an alicorn is because they said that while she never got the opportunity to be a leader, Rainbow had always worked hard to prove that she was competent to be one ever since she was a filly. After her horn appeared, the princess sisters Celestia and Luna ran tests on her and determined that she was meant to be crowned Equestria’s queen, being the older of the two living alicorns in the world. Judging by how the sun and moon didn’t rise or set at the times that you would expect for days, ah can infer that the royalty training was difficult for her.” “Wait. What do the sun and moon have to do with training Rainbow to be the queen?” asked Ronaldo. Applejack blinked, but before she could say something, Applebloom’s eyes widened. “Don’t you guys have some sort of ruler that intervenes with the solar system in your universe?” asked the youth filly. “First of all, In our country, we don’t live under a monarchy’s rule. Instead, our government is divided into three separate branches. Each has the job to basically either create, enforce, or evaluate laws that the individual states don’t have the authority to make. They are supposed to have a reasonable amount of influence on each other to ensure that the others do not become too powerful. Unfortunately, the head of our executive branch is currently an orange-faced pathological liar who encourages discrimination against people such as Ron and bigotry against some protected groups. Anyway, in our universe, incorporating psychics and technology led us to realize that even in other galaxies, there aren’t any other planets that can support life as far as we’re aware of, but all of them, including the stars, sun, and moon scientifically function without anyone or anything’s interference.” explained the snowy-haired youth. The equine family was impressed by her summary. “With our planet, which is called Terra, Celestia used to control the gravitational forces of the sun to make it spin, and it was up to Luna to keep the moon in orbit,” explained Granny Smith. “Oh” “What ah don’t get is...why exactly did you fellows decide to leave your world? I don’t know anything about your kind, but something tells me that you guys are juveniles.” Ronaldo looked at Linka, and her sea-colored eyes darkened as she took a hesitant breath. Was it really a good idea for her to mention their situation to a family of talking equines that the youth met less than an hour ago? She felt herself become overwhelmed with anxiety. She knew Ronaldo loved her, but he and their babies that currently inhabited her womb were the only people she had left from their world. Although the pair were barely legal teenagers, how could they be expected to go back to living as children as if nothing ever happened when this was their mistake? All her life, she had been taught the dangers of failing to take responsibility for one’s actions. Her mother had told her that love is not necessarily about affection but about fighting for everyone’s well-being and dignity, especially the disadvantaged. Rita explained how selfishness, in general, was the root of just about all pain and warned her daughter to be prepared for times when Linka would be forced to pick among seemingly impossible choices. Leaving home was not such a choice. The youth respected her parents and appreciated how fair, dedicated, and composed they were when it came to raising their 11 children. Still, Lynn Sr. and Rita did not have the authority to make decisions when it came to anyone that they did not conceive. The past would likely come back to haunt them even if the young couple decided to reject their responsibility. And they couldn’t live with the thought of their children growing up with strangers in the already overburdened foster system. Linka grew up in an oversized but stable, loving family, so some people would shame and criticize her decision to give it all away to raise a family she never planned on starting for another ten years or so. But these were the same people who would likely never know what it would be like to be ignorant of their origin, potentially be abused in the worst ways by those they trusted with their life, or god forbid never be born at all! There are those who are not permitted to see the light of day. Not allowed the chance to feel the crisp air after a storm and gaze upon a rainbow. Not allowed the opportunity to exchange love and demonstrate righteousness on Earth and accept it with all its perfect imperfections. All because of women who think that they have the right to use their bodies to defile others and themselves, only to end up murdering innocent live(s) to pay for their mistakes. The young couple saw no greater evil than abortion, no matter the circumstances under which priceless fetuses were conceived. “Life got..really complicated back home.” Replied Linka trying to keep her voice from cracking. A light knock was heard coming from the front door. //-------------------------------------------------------// But now we're stressed out //-------------------------------------------------------// Author's Note Pinkpoint the alicorn can sense abnormal energy and was responsible for telling Twilight to visit Sweet Apple Acres. Don't worry, you'll meet her in the next chapter. :) But now we're stressed out It was a warm, cloudy day on the 16 of April in 2017. The Loud family was getting dressed to go to the Easter service in Royal Woods Roman Catholic Church. Back in April of 2014, a tornado that traveled from the southeast struck the chapel leaving it in utter ruin. Some residents were in favor of an expedited rebuilding. They saw no reason to make any changes to the cramped coziness and traditional designs that everyone had gotten used to. Others were in favor of enlarging it to accommodate new programs and services that a few companies have agreed to help sponsor. There were those that even suggested that a Baptist church be built in its place due to the declining catholic faith in the general population. That’s when a younger generation of Royal Wood Catholic’s grouped up and advocated for bold, fresh, but reasonable changes for the rebuilding and encouraged the adults to accept most of the sponsor’s funding. Linka Loud waited outside the bathroom as her 16-year-old brother Luke fidgeted impatiently with the collar of his navy blue vest. The older teenager was 14 years old the last time his family had been to church, but to him, it felt like it had been many years. Before the tornado, the Loud’s typically attended mass around three times a year. The coffee color haired boy had come to terms with his bisexual orientation during his sophomore year in high school, but Luke tried not to think about how he would soon be surrounded by community members who were likely to judge him. The boy was grateful to have a family that had his back and accepted Luke Loud for who he was. The family had finished getting ready. It was still chaotic for Lynn Sr. and Rita to help the younger Loud brothers get ready on time (I am especially Looking at you Lexx), but they were nevertheless on better behavior than expected. Loki was glad to spend more time with his family and friends who still lived in Royal Woods for spring break. Luke imagined how it would be like when the rest of his siblings and himself were adults. Family reunions would have to be held outside for most of the activities. It would take hours for everybody to fully catch up with everyone else’s lives. Lynn Jr’s children would play sports or just mess around on Mr. Grouse’s property. It would be fine until something got broken. Music of all genres would reach the ears of half the neighborhood. And if Luke himself ever decided to raise children, he would try to teach them how to dance. He did not know much about the art, but he made a mental note to learn someday soon. It is, after all, a healthy way for people to skillfully express themselves and relieve stress. “We’re almost there kids” Lynn Sr. announced as soon as the church was in sight. “Let's see if- ” The 42-year-old paused when the rest of the family peered out the windows in shock. “I can find parking for this thing..” The man squeezed the wheel and groaned dramatically. “I wish you had paid attention when I declared that the results of my calculations meant that we should have arrived an hour prior to the grand opening’s scheduled time.” huffed Levi. Linka rolled her eyes. She loved her brother, but It was very annoying to live with a five-year-old that was more intelligent than her own parents despite lacking emotional development and life experience. Whatever. The girl just prayed for the next two hours to fly by. The family got out of the Vanzilla. After bumping into several families and having to chase after Leon, who ran after a stray dog, the Louds spotted the Santiago’s and joined them in the crowd. The snow haired 12 year old looked around her as the cameras gathered, and someone made a short but redundant speech regarding the grand opening. Linka spotted someone that she did not recognize at all. It was a girl that appeared to be mixed with Caucasian and Indian, and she was slowly moving towards her right. The girl wore a dark backpack and carried a small purse. This young woman sported a simple light blue dress and a somewhat filthy hat that matched it. Her hair was short and dyed dark purple. That's when Linka glanced into the teen’s hazel-colored eyes as the girl examined Linka’s odd hair pigmentation and gave a half-smile. The snow haired child realized that it was becoming harder to focus on the speaker and the light chatter around her muffled. Something about this person felt very unsettling. As the evening aged, Linka began to text her friend Claire McBride to catch her up on the day’s events. She and her adopted mothers chose not to leave their home at all that day. It wasn’t worth the drama. Besides, they had paperwork and an ill older cat to attend to. Linka mentioned the mysterious stranger she met at church and how she seemed a bit young to possibly be traveling independently. “If you think about it, a lot of weird people are moving to Royal Woods nowadays. I always wanted to live in Detroit, so thank god that the new mayor is pushing to urbanize this little city. People are now talking about how the population might reach 40k by the time the year’s over. Anyway, who knows? Maybe you’ll see the girl again soon. See you tomorrow. Night Linka.” Claire responded in her last text. The young girl got ready for school the next morning but was slightly delayed due to an incident in the kitchen. She hurried for the bus stop and exchanged greetings with Zoe, Ruby, Lena, and Claire. “Has anybody seen Ron? asked Linka. “ No. That’s odd because the bus should arrive in less than a minute,” replied Zoe, a girl who wore glasses and her red hair in a ponytail. “Wait..I think I hear something” Piped Lena. Linka glanced towards her left, where the young hispanic and another girl were emerging from some trees. The boy said something that surprised the platinum blond-haired preteen who wore a pink beanie. She then smiled, and he gave her a kiss. The group of friends looked at them in surprise. “Is that who I think it is??” asked Claire. Linka nodded, recognizing the girl as Casey Porter. Late last year, the snow haired girl’s class baked sweets to sell for a fundraiser. Casey was an associate of a former enemy of hers named Chandler before the latter finally moved out last week. The blondie, who looked somewhat similar to Linka herself, made her way into the latter’s classroom after school and found a way to break into the ingredient cabinet that the 11-year old’s group used. She proceeded to toss a bag of cannabis inside of it and sneak off without a trace. Even though the group was found innocent, any evidence against Casey was circumstantial. Why was Ronaldo interested in her? He sort of knew who she was, but Linka had never even seen the two together before. The school bus headed towards the group and screeched before halting. There was silence as everyone boarded. The girl wanted to yell and warn her friend to stay away from the beanie head. The boy had moved back to Royal Woods to stay out of trouble, not to find more, but Linka knew the hispanic would not appreciate her telling him what to do or maybe even ask if she was jealous...which she wasn't. The snow haired child sighed and wished him the best. The bus came to a stop, and everyone got off. Part of the crowd rushed into the school, but the girl took her time. When she was about to enter the building, someone fell and dropped some papers. It was the Indian girl from yesterday. Linka chased after a sheet that got stuck in the bushes and brought it to her. “Thanks” The purple-haired teen was dressed in stylish ripped jeans and a pink t-shirt. “I don't think I ever got your name.” she said. “Oh, it's Linka..Loud. What’s yours?” “Ella Keer” “Nice. Did you know that Ella is actually Lorde’s birth name?” “No, I didn't.” “What brings you to Royal Woods?” “It’s..a long story, but basically...I ran away to live with my Great-Grandfather.” As the girl tried to process this, the bell rang, signaling a warning that she would be tardy if she wasn’t in her third-floor class in 5 minutes. ******************* “Terra to Linka”? Applebloom opened the front door as the female youth blinked and came back to her senses. “Sorry..I just zoned out for a bit. I have a lot on my mind.” “Happens to all of us, sugarcube” replied Applejack. At the door stood a female purple-eyed former Alicorn. The young couple's jaw dropped when they saw her. The equine’s fur was the color of lavender, and her mane and tail were a shade of a very dark purple that had a blue tint if she would let it shine in the light, with the exception of the streaks of a lighter purple shade and pink. Her cutie mark was a large six edged star design with six smaller white ones surrounding it. Twilight Sparkle was her name, and pony’s large wings remained tucked to her sides. The mare thoughtfully narrowed her eyes at the human pair for several moments. “Who are you guys, and what brings you here?” she asked in a serious tone. After exchanging greetings with the now pegasus, Linka cleared her throat. “My brother built a portal. We used it to escape our dimension, but it sent us to a seemingly random world since we didn’t have any particular destination in mind.” With Twilight’s experience in dimension EQG, she did not give much thought to Linka’s height and for some time figured she was already an adult due to being five feet and four inches tall ( The youth would have continued to grow taller up until the age of 15 if she had prolonged her pregnancy) but then it suddenly occurred to her that the young hispanic was a youth due to his developing height and body structure that would continue to mature until about age 20. “I am familiar with your kind. How old are you guys in human years?” “We’re both 13 years old” They responded. The mare swore that they were older. She noticed how the poor kid’s eyes were heavy with stress and burden, amongst other things. Perhaps they were refugees. “Linka, what were you gonna tell us before the interruption?” asked Applebloom. The snow haired youth's face became serious. “You have to understand us...we wouldn’t have even chosen to use the portal if we knew that it would have sent us to a world with no humans in it!” The Apple family and Twilight listened and became concerned. “And that’s because I am four months pregnant.” Twilight’s mouth gaped open. //-------------------------------------------------------// Not alone //-------------------------------------------------------// Author's Note The Loud residence has more acres in this dimension. Not alone Applebloom studied the lavender furred mare. Sometime after Twilight’s princess coronation, a former student of Celestia decided to break into the Crystal Empire’s castle and steal her crown. It still had vastly powerful properties within it despite it not being correlated with the Elements Of Harmony ( Legend has it that when Nightmare Moon was banished to the moon, she came in contact with a god. They taught her several abilities, including one that allowed her to permanently destroy the elements when she returned, but the “original” mane six found another way to defeat her and bring Luna back) so Sunset Shimmer had to find another source. After many months of locating and translating ancient books and using odd methods to unlock various spells, she had made a discovery. Twilight said that the amber furred mare used the crown in dimension EQG to unlock the mightiest form that it could support-The Angel Of Darkness. (Not the demon form, a more twisted and destructive variant.) Despite human Applebloom using her reality-altering powers against the dark angel, the young girl was nearly killed. Sweetie Belle was eventually able to use a type of spirit energy to defeat Sunset. The yellow furred filly nevertheless envied the fact that former alicorn was able to venture out to another dimension and successfully avoid running into her human counterpart. “Applebloom, alert the princess and your friends so that they can join us in escorting these two to the castle. And don’t forget to give them a short rundown of everything we know.” “ I thought this place was-” began Ronaldo. “We have never had a single human in Equestria before since beings born in your dimension are unable to pass through the portal mirror. Even though potential villains have not caused any serious trouble in a while, human energy appears to be an obvious anomaly. Linka is especially easy to sense, which may lead to you guys becoming targets.” explained the pegasus mare. “I-wait, are you saying that you’ve been to our dimension?” asked Linka in disbelief. “I could be mistaken, but how else would I be familiar with your kind? Even though there is evidence of other dimensions that inhabit a different variety of humans, it appears that pastel colors are not natural pigmentations for them.” responded Twilight. “Yeah, that’s right, but my hair is white solely because I have a condition called albinism. I am very fortunate to not have any optical disorders as a result.” explained the snowy-haired youth. “I see” replied the mare. Applebloom left, and the next 10 minutes were spent in silence. Ron wondered if there was anything that a mere human could do to defend themselves against potential threats in this uncanny world. Linka considered asking the equines how long their typical life expectancy is but thought better of it. As the yellow filly stepped into the hot July afternoon, she tried not to imagine how this situation might bring about conflict between the queen and princess as their viewpoints sometimes clashed, and both are generally opinionated. The sound of knocking was heard, and the lavender furred mare went to open the door. The couple came face to face with three shorter equines that accompanied Applebloom. The first one was a pegasus colt. He had orange fur and a thick wavy mane that was a dull mixture of purple and pink. His cutie mark resembled Applebloom’s except for the fact that the shield had a lighting bolt in the middle. The young pegasus’s irises were a light, glassy shade of purple. The second one was a filly unicorn. Her fur was white, and her light-colored pink and purple mane was in pinup rolls. Her cutie mark resembled Applebloom’s as well, except for the music note inside a five edged star. The young unicorn’s irises were a light shade of green. Finally, the third one was an alicorn. It was...a filly perhaps? The monarch’s mane was in a slightly shaved jet black bob cut, and on her flank was a cutie mark of a sparkly red swirl with a pencil in the middle. Her irises were crimson, and she had a light rose coat that was hardly darker than Celestia’s white-pink fur. She sported a small silver crown. When the young equine got bored with the silence, she twitched her ears. The filly proceeded to raise her eyebrows and let out a quick snort. “Wait..are they really?..” Began Linka. “Of course. This is Princess Pinkpoint, Scooter Flame, and Sweetie Belle.” introduced Applebloom. After exchanging greetings with each other, the six were on their way to the castle. The hot air felt relaxing on the snowy-haired youth’s skin. “Guess beggars can’t be choosy, right?” the dark maned filly blurted while chuckling. Linka frowned. “You don’t even know us.” “Then enlighten us.” the princess retorted. “We should all hear the truth before you go see the queen.” The monarch glanced towards an area with trees that provided sufficient shade. “If she doesn’t want to talk about it yet, then don’t push her,” argued Scooter in the youth’s defense. “No, it’s okay.” reassured the young woman while creasing her forehead. Linka headed towards the shade, and the rest of the group followed. Sweetie Belle yawned as her nostrils enlarged and stretched her legs once she was engulfed in the shadow. Linka remembered how as a younger girl, she wanted to help build a stable so that her family could own a small white pony. Both the snowy-haired youth and her brother Loni shared that talent. But even when Linka saved up hundreds of dollars that were funded from her allowance, birthday, and holidays, the rest of the Loud’s understandably objected. No one wanted the responsibility of caring for all of an equine’s needs. The chaotic Loud brothers could not be trusted to keep it out of danger or to not do experiments on it anyway. The young equines faced Linka. “My parents...tried to make a decision that was completely out of their hands.” Linka sighed. Applebloom’s ears folded slightly. “Neither myself nor Ron could live with that. We had a few family members who would have followed us to the end of the earth to support us in whatever we chose to do, but-” Linka realized that her throat was parched and that the 85-degree air made it harder to breathe. She zipped open her backpack and reached for some berry vitamin water. “Now we have to go to sleep imaging how they will cope without us,” said Ronaldo, finishing what the young woman had to say. The couple imagined their loved ones bringing their photos, treasured belongings, and flowers to the church for a remembrance ceremony. The equines nodded and huddled together. The young humans watched in confusion before Applebloom glanced towards them and nodded. They joined the group without another word. It became clear that the equines fur texture varied depending on how they maintained them. Their breaths reeked of produce. Pinkpoint’s horn lit up in a soft white aura, and within a second, everyone was transported to the side of a mountain. Before the group stood a massive castle plated with tungsten and a stunning waterfall that ran its course through it. “That..was neat” admitted Linka in fascination. “Thanks” The six approached the main door, and the young monarch used her magic to open it. A hallway awaited them, and the lights were recessed into the ceiling. The floor was made of white granite. The group took a left and passed by an auditorium with a dining room and kitchen nearby. Before the six took a right, Linka was surprised to see doorless bathrooms that were equipped with showers. In the middle of the endless hallway’s left side was a plain wooden door with a handle. Applebloom stopped to prick her ears. The rest of the equines followed suit, and Sweetie Belle closed her eyes in concentration as her horn flickered for a moment. “Clear” she announced. “You do the honors, Ron” offered Pinkpoint. The hispanic pulled the handle, and before everyone was...the throne room. An earth pony stopped her silent pacing. Her long hot pink mane was vivid and fluffy, and her irises were cerulean. The equine’s coat was a light shade of pink, and on her flank was the symbol of three ballons. Two were blue, and the one in the middle was yellow. Linka observed her surroundings. The stained glass was vacant of any depictions. The red carpet led to a single throne surrounded by purple drapes, and on top of it was a symbol. It was of a rainbow-colored lightning bolt emerging from a cloud. “Hey there!” boomed the equine with enthusiasm. The couple exchanged greetings with Pinkie Pie, and mare mentioned how she would have thrown an extravagant party so that Canderlot could get to know the couple. This idea was scrapped due to safety concerns. Ron and Linka could not risk calling attention to themselves, at least not yet. “Wait, how do you already know about us?” “Psychic powers.” The couple was silent for a moment. “She’s actually not joking.” piped Pinkpoint, breaking the silence. A light flashed before everyone’s eyes, and there was now another mare standing before them. It was a cyan furred alicorn with a rainbow-colored mane. Her eyes were a gorgeous shade of magenta, and she sported a white crown with purple jewels and a pendant necklace that matched it. Ron and Linka immediately got on their knees before Rainbow Dash, the queen. //-------------------------------------------------------// Promises not kept (Announcement) //-------------------------------------------------------// Promises not kept (Announcement) Dear readers, I have made the decision to cancel “Promises” due to the lack of support and feedback. I had many ideas planned for this story, but this is how I was basically planning to end the “Season” in a nutshell. The new “Mane six” would be able to direct Ron and Linka to the Equestria Girls dimension so that they could further their education and seek appropriate healthcare. Human Queen Rainbow Dash would luxuriously accommodate for them to live in Dimension EQG’s royal palace. Linka would have more memories of Ella Keer. In them, the 13 year old tried her best to be a good new kid in Royal Wood’s Middle School, but she stood out for her anti-social behavior, dishonesty, and secrecy. She eventually revealed to Linka that she ran away due to her mother, Aparna Keer, having a mental illness of some sort and being a drug addict. Ella then explained how Aparna always treated her like a mistake because 13 years prior, she had some dental surgery done at a clinic. Although there was no evidence that anything out of the ordinary happened that day, she soon found out that she was pregnant despite having refrained from any s*xual relations since the year prior. Ella mentioned that for some odd reason, her own skin pigmentation was comparable to the color of honey mustard as an infant before it darkened to a more natural Indian shade. As for Linka, she and Ron’s relationship blossomed from the fact that although they did not have much in common, they taught each other to understand and embrace what was positive about each other’s world. Meanwhile, Linka and Claire’s friendship faced a series of obstacles. Things were simpler back when they were in elementary school, but now the girls were almost teens. It was time that they started their journey of true self-recognition and deciding how they wanted to see the world. Ronaldo had a friend that handled defective merchandise from a variety of warehouses. Every few weeks, Victor would give him a randomly filled bag but explained once that some things were still of practical use, despite not meeting strict qualifications. One day, a pack of c*ndoms happened to be in one. After Linka celebrated her 13th birthday with family, Ronaldo gave her a piece of scarce meteorite and took her to a restaurant. Maria had to work a night shift, and Linka’s curfew was extended to 11:00 pm. The couple wanted to see a movie back at the Santiago residence but could not find anything worth watching on cable that night. Ronaldo decided that this was an opportunity to make some memories, and Linka happily gave in to his advances. Ron found out the hard way that the c*ondom he used on her was from a temporarily recalled brand, and for a good reason. Linka began to act snippy and indifferent towards Ron for the next few weeks. The snow-haired youth then realized that she had stopped having her period and would experience significant fatigue. She confided in her mother what had happened on the night of her birthday. Rita took her to the clinic, where the youth ended up testing positive for pregnancy. Linka reprimanded Ron when she told him the news. Ron’s initial panic and fear would turn into anger. He practically called her an entitled b*tch and asked her what she could possibly want from him. The male youth warned her to not turn her brothers against him. When Linka told Claire the news, she at first appreciated the fact that the girl listened carefully and did not judge her for what happened. Things took a turn when Claire criticized Michigan’s teen abortion law (Requiring minors to obtain at least one parental signature before being permitted to have an abortion) and how it terribly unfair for youth like Linka who are growing up in a pro-life home. This enraged the snowy-haired female, who decided to cut off ties with her friend. The months passed by, and Linka found out that she was expecting twins. The snow-haired youth had the feeling that something was off with her parents and decided to swallow her pride and meet Ron to apologize. Ronaldo accepted her apology and returned it with one of his own. He agreed that it would be best for him to move in with the Loud’s, and keep things civilized with Linka. One day, the female youth came home with some paperwork and decided to fill out the basic information. Loni gave her the key to the safebox. Since the parents were out doing errands, Linka decided to poke around all the files as it contained some interesting documents. Linka found a stapled set that seemed unusual. It was a series of forms filled with a lot of personal information about herself along with a long list of conditions. Her signature was at the bottom of the last page despite her never signing it. When Linka examined the forms more carefully, she realized that there were contacts written in pencil in the blank spaces as well as an elaborate backup plan for something. The youth realized to her horror that her parents forged her signature on legal adoption papers and were planning to have a wealthy couple seemingly kidnap her newborn children. This caused her and Ron to run away, and the rest is history if you have read every chapter of the story. In dimension EQG present time, the Department of Health and Human Services is concerned with the fact that an increasing number of babies are being born with genetic abnormalities. While the human mane six are enjoying peacetime, a mad scientist named Silver Ice, aka “JOSHUA” is revealed to have been behind the infant health dilemma due to him experimenting on donated sperm from a bank. His hair is a very fair shade of blue, and his dark hazel eyes clash with the man’s light yellow skin. The pastel-colored male has an accomplice named Jezebel that gave a dimension crossing watch that she made. Unlike the one that Levi created, this one permitted Joshua to specifically reach six different dimensions at will every year for twenty-four hours. The 31-year-old male saw this as an opportunity to test his experiments on subjects from different human worlds on a limited scale. When Joshua was an infant, his parents and two older siblings died in a car accident, leaving him to grow up in an abusive foster home. He decided not to accept the fact that humans were so fragile and criticized the government for restricting experimentation on stem cells and prohibiting it on already born individuals. Joshua sends his crew to spy on Ron and Linka after Jezebel detects anomalies. Linka and human Pinkpoint are eventually cleverly tricked into being separated from each other while going on a hike in the wild sometime before Linka’s due date. Jezebel manages to kidnap Linka and mask her energy. The world goes black, and the girl wakes up handcuffed to a bed in a small room without windows. The 31-year-old greets her and explains that he caused the genetic abnormalities in some of the infants. He goes on to say that he previously tried to limit his experiments in dimension EQG since this world would make it difficult to go into hiding should his lab be discovered. Joshua’s accomplice, however, recently found a way to alter the watch permitting a user to stay in a dimension for an infinite amount of time. This made his plan to experiment on the youth’s newborn babies convenient. Linka realizes that Ella Keer looks very similar to Joshua and that the strange feeling that the youth had when she met the teen has returned as she peers into this man’s eyes. When he was nearly 18 years old, Joshua already had a college degree. He chose to freeze his own sperm since the teen already knew to do certain modifications to its DNA. The young man did not plan to be a father until age 40, however. The pastel-colored male’s children were to develop high immunity to diseases, be intelligent, have desirable looks, and..be very fertile. Joshua got a vasectomy after he turned 18 and soon after met Jezebel, who was a surgeon in her 20’s. She gave the pastel-colored man the idea to experiment on donated sperm from a bank and take it to other dimensions. Jezebel would do surgery on a handful of women from various countries who needed to be sedated. When they were asleep, Joshua would artificially inseminate them. One of these women was Aparna Keer. What the two failed to realize was that a man who worked for them began to find their work immoral and unacceptable. He raided the freezer from where Joshua saved his sperm and found a way to switch the contents with the sperm from a bank. The man would have reported them to the government if he was not caught writing notes. No one found out what he did, however. Jezebel is preparing to analyze the results from some blood that she collected from Linka the following morning. It has been about 26 hours since the snowy-haired girl was taken captive. The youth goes into labor, and Joshua assists her with the knowledge and basic equipment that he has acquired. Linka, at one point, decides to mention how a girl in dimension 63 seemed to highly resemble him. Joshua dismisses this as a coincidence but ponders the probability. At about 11:00 am, Jezebel is able to see the results from Linka’s blood sample. Her DNA appears to..have been altered before her conception? The woman does some further analyzing and comparisons. She drops her pen after an unmistakable discovery. Jezebel texts Joshua. His face grows white when he reads it, and his heart is filled with conviction and distress. The man does not reveal anything to Linka just yet, and the youth gives birth to a baby boy and girl at around 4:00 pm. Linka cries when she realizes that she had a daughter and apologizes to both of her children for not being able to protect them. Joshua breaks his silence by saying that he has decided to leave her children alone. It would be revealed sooner or later that Linka Loud and Ella Keer are actually Joshua’s biological daughters. I chose to go this route because neither the snow-haired youth nor her male counterpart Lincoln Loud resemble Lynn Sr. at all. l I was not sure how to continue the story after this, but I came up with the names Ronaldo Santigo Jr. for Ron and Linka’s son and Joey Santiago for their daughter.