It is a rather quiet, uneventful day in the land of Equestria. Miles away from the neighboring kingdom that makes up Equestria, hidden in the frozen North, the Crystal Empire sits peacefully. Inside one of the many rooms of the castle, Princess Mi Amora Cadenza or Cadence simply, lounges about on her couch enjoying some well-earned R&R. With no official kingdom business to attend to nor any opposing threats to keep track of, no sense in keeping appearances either.
There she lies upon a couch made fit for a princess. Wrapped in a dark grey hoodie, the hat covering the messy mane, her long tail lounging off the edge, and a hot cup of tea in her magical grip. And with no other pony to bother her, life does not get any better than this.
*KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!*
Her ears flick upward, her head is drawn toward the sound of knocking. A sigh escapes her lips, as she adjusts the loose strands hanging over her face. She slowly lifts herself out the cage, strolls down the castle halls, before making for the door. But before she leaves, she discards the hoodie toward the side and quickly straightens her mane, in the event some pony very important came.
“Some pony at the door?” She thought to herself. “Who’d be knocking at this hour?”
Eventually, Princess Cadence makes her way toward the door. Opening the door with her magic aura, there before her eyes is Shining Armor, Prince of the Crystal Empire and previously Captain of the Royal Canterlot Guard. In his grip, Flurry Heart squirms and babbles. To say her husband looks unkempt is an understatement… not to say Cadence has not had those days.
“Hello honey!” Shining Armor spoke tiredly.
“Hello Shining dear!” Cadence sighed.
The pair share a kiss along each other’s cheeks. Her eyes draw from her husband to their daughter Flurry Heart and back again. The eyes between husband-and-wife glance at one another, as if mentally agreeing something is up. Still, Cadence simply must know all the same.
“C-Can I help you dear?” She asked quietly.
“As a matter of fact, you can,” Shining Armor replied. “I was wondering if you’d be okay filly-sit Flurry for a while? I’d ask Twily, but she’s currently in Canterlot on official business. Didn’t feel right to disturb her, she’s stressed enough as it is.”
“Sure… that does make sense,” Cadence nodded. “I was on my own schedule myself… but I guess I can make myself free for a bit. Where are you going?”
“Spearhead’s hosting an art show in Canterlot,” Shining Armor replied. “And being his friend and all, he asked me personally to attend. I hope Flurry won’t be too much a hoof-full for my favorite alicorn princess.”
“You mean aside from Twily?”
Shining Armor makes a face toward his wife, who shakes her head with a smirk.
“Alright, alright… I’m only teasing you! Filly-sitting our daughter won’t be too bad, I am her mother after all. I’m pretty sure I can handle it!”
“You’re the best!” Shining Armor smiled, planting a kiss. “I shouldn’t be gone for no more than a few hours.”
He lifts Flurry Heart towards his wife, who carefully takes her in her arms. He smiles towards his little bundle of joy.
“Have fun with mommy now, Flurry!” Shining Armor spoke to Flurry. “Try not to work her too hard!”
“Please…” Cadence smiled confidently. “Flurry and I have will have loads of fun together. What’s the worst that can possibly happen?”
<>
Princess Cadence could not be any more wrong than now…
Before her very eyes, Flurry Heart uses her insane magic to send all her stuff animals flying all over her bedroom. It is not satisfying enough she will not pick just ‘one’ friend to play with, her daughter has to send all of them in a wild frenzy. Flurry Heart’s horn glowing, flying around the room with her toys, she chuckles and giggles as Cadence races after her daughter.
“Flurry Heart!” Cadence yelped. “Get down here right this—”
Cadence stops herself, realizing she almost resorts to yelling.
“Oh no, I can’t yell at Flurry!” Cadence thought to herself. “What am I to do? She’s only a baby… too cute to know better!”
Cadence chases Flurry out the bedroom and round the corner of the castle. The panic and anxiety starts to form, a bead of sweat rolling down her forehead. The pressures of motherhood increasingly frantically. If only she can think of some way to calm Flurry down without yelling.
“What would Twilight Sparkle do?” Cadence thought. “No… there’s got to be some other pony who’d know. Let’s see… Pinkie… no… Rarity… oh no, no, no, no… Rainbow Dash… eh… aside from Applejack, the only other responsible pony I can think of is…”
Princess Cadence’s eyes widen as one name comes to mind.
“I KNOW!” Cadence shouted.
Cadence uses her magic to disappear and teleport herself directly in front of Flurry Heart. Her plans works, trapping Flurry Heart in a corner near the stairs. Her light purple eyes narrow toward her daughter, her violet man with the rose-and-gold streaks flow in the breeze in the castle. And then in a matter of seconds, she widens her eyes and executes… ‘The Stare’ ala Fluttershy.
“That’s it, Flurry…” Cadence spoke, concentrating. “Look me in the eyes… straight in the eyes! Now you will put away all your toys, go straight off to bed, and take your nap right away… please?”
Whether Cadence is trying too hard to stare her daughter down or she is pulling a poor Fluttershy impression, all Flurry Heart does is look at her for a brief moment… then vanish in a flash of yellow light.
“FLURRY!!!” Cadence yelped. “Where did she go?! Holy Faust, my husband’s going to kill me… if my own daughter doesn’t first!”
Exhausted after such a lengthy chase, a sigh escapes Cadence’s lips and she falls backward onto the crystal ground completely exhausted.
<>
Princess Cadence gallops quickly through the palace halls, her heart pounding at an accelerated rate. Knowing how unpredictable her daughter’s magic is, the little pony’s powers are very dangerous. She races up the stairs and rounds every corner the castle trying to find her daughter somehow.
“Some Crystal Princess I am!” Cadence bereted herself. “Can’t even control my own filly!”
She finds herself racing back toward the top of stairs when Flurry Heart teleports in front of her, fluttering down the stairs before her mother can catch her. She sees her mom chasing her and gives her a playful raspberry in the distance. She races toward a nearby doorway and uses her magic to pass her body through the door, just as Cadence reached out and…
*CRASH!!!*
Cadence hits the door face-first, very hard. Moaning in pain, she folds her hooves across her face massaging her forehead. She sits back on the floor, her numb face turning toward a discarded stuff animal in which case resembles a bunny. Sighing in frustration, she lifts the stuffed toy with her magic.
“You’re lucky to be free, aren’t you?” Cadence spoke to the toy. “But she doesn’t know she’s doing anything wrong. Flurry, so small… so cute… oh, listen to me! My own daughter just slammed the door in my face!”
Cadence grunts in frustration, as she stares blankly toward the toy in her hooves. There’s an awkward silence yet it seems like Princess Cadence is actually listening to it.
“But honestly, some pony has to take care of her,” Princess Cadence sighed. “Besides if I don’t do something and anything goes wrong, Shining Armor’s going to ask me why… and I’m sure to be in trouble… and what kind of mother would I be if…”
Cadence groans, stopping herself from finishing that sentence. Deep down, she already ‘knows’ what will happen if she does not keep Flurry under control. Her eyes glance at the stuffed toy one last time.
“Fine! You convinced me.”
Tossing the stuffed toy aside with a huff, as it hits a wall with a ‘squeak’, Princess Cadence makes her way toward the door and slowly opens it with her magic. And almost immediately, she spots the playful filly right before her eyes.
The little alicorn herself uses her magic to make another of her toys, this time a teddy bear, ride her most favorite of all her toys: The little snail she refers to as her ‘Whammy’. The bear sits atop the snail, rocking back and forth precisely like a… well, a ‘rocking horse’. As Cadences watches silently, though her head still hurts from previously, she can’t help but smile toward her daughter.
“Well, let it not be said she don’t know how to have fun,” Cadence spoke to herself.
Still while Flurry Heart is a powerful princess, even if her cute image makes it easy to underestimate her, Cadence is a princess too. For the millionth time in her career, Cadence is often the butt of jokes either being captured or never having a chance to shine. The last thing she needs is to be outwitted by her own daughter. She just needs to think of a way to put the odds in her own favor.
*KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!*
A set of knocks, granted soft yet audible, draws Cadence’s attention. She briefly turns back to determine if Flurry’s ears catch the knocks. But fortunately, Flurry Heart is too busy with her stuffed toys to pay much attention. Breathing a sigh of relief, gentle and silent, Cadence makes her way toward the doors of the castle. By the time she reaches the front doors, Cadence uses her magic to open the door and before their eyes… and much to Cadence’s surprise… Fluttershy arrives, along with that bunny friend of hers, Angel.
“Good afternoon Princess Cadence,” Fluttershy greeted. “I hope we’re not interrupting anything.”
“Oh no, no, no!” Cadence replied, brushing her mane back. “Just spending some mother-daughter bonding time, no biggie. Can I help you with something?”
“Oh my, don’t you recall Cadence? You promised you’d look after Angel for me while Silverstream and I attend a lecture on the preservation of Cockatrice.”
“… I did?”
“That’s right! I normally would’ve asked my friends to look after Angel, but every pony else was busy and you said you’d be glad to look after Angel for me. And seeing as I know how much fun you have with little Flurry, I figured this wouldn’t be a problem… it won’t be a problem, will it?”
“Absolutely not! I love, love, love caring for cute little creatures… especially this little guy.”
Cadence practically forces herself to smile at Angel, but Angel is practically the obvious. He merely glares at the Crystal Princess, sticking his tongue out at the mare. Cadence frowns a bit and quickly sticks her tongue back, before smiling back to Fluttershy just as fast.
“Actually… I am glad you’re here Fluttershy. There’s a tiny little favor I must ask of you in return.”
“Me?” Fluttershy spoke, surprised. “Well, this is sudden… but how can I be of help?”
“I have a ‘tiny’ problem of myself involving my daughter,” Cadence replied, looking back. “The little bundle of joy is a bit of a hoof-full and for the life of me I can’t quite figure out how to calm her down. Since you are so good with taking care of little ones, perhaps you can help me out. I know it’s very last minute but think of it as a favor from one friend to another.”
“It is very last minute,” Fluttershy admitted. “But… the train doesn’t leave for a few hours. I can see what I can do.”
<>
If Fluttershy knew exactly what Cadence dragged her into, she wouldn’t have been quick to help. But after explaining to Cadence the full details of the scenario, of course Fluttershy assumed this would be easy. But much like a certain ‘Crystal Princess’, she is proven very wrong. Especially when most of Fluttershy’s tactics involved the same matter of caring for animals (Because it worked so well during that foal-sitting job years back).
Suffice to say, the women tried every tactic:
First, Fluttershy tried to demonstrate by coaxing Flurry Heart to fetch one of her toys and put it back in the toy chest. But Flurry Heart merely ignored her and kept playing. When the child was being disobedient, Fluttershy motioned Cadence, who held a squirt bottle with her magic and lightly squirt her daughter’s face. The water drew Flurry’s attention and Fluttershy pointed to the chest… but still, she did nothing.
Getting impatient, Cadence squirted her daughter in the face… and again.. and again. But Flurry, growing slightly irritated, used her magic to force the squirt bottle away and hurl it out of the room. The tables turned as Flurry smugly pointed a hoof as if telling her mother to ‘fetch’. A sigh escaped her lips as she made off to get the water bottle, as Fluttershy shook her head.
<>
The next tactic had Fluttershy present a clicking device to a rather curious Princess Cadence. She then offered Cadence the device and she in turn approached Flurry Heart, who was preoccupied with her whammy toy. Cadence proceeded to ‘click’ the device, which drew Flurry’s attention. But the baby alicorn, frankly annoyed with the device, took the device with her magic… and literally tore the bit of plastic with a snap! Cadence’s left eye twitched, as Flurry hurled the pieces in her face. And Fluttershy shook her head.
<>
Finally, there was one tactic that Fluttershy was hoping not to do but figured it just might work. Since it became apparent that Fluttershy and Cadence couldn’t get through to Flurry, not even with Fluttershy’s own tactics, there was one among them who ‘could’. As Flurry Heart used her magic to hurl a pair of teddy bears round and round in a circle, tapping feet drew Flurry forward. Standing at the ready, Angel Bunny glares at Flurry Heart with the most serious face he can pull off. But one look from Flurry Heart, all the hearts swirling in her eyes, a drop of sweat fell from Angel’s forehead.
Soon the little bunny took off with a rapid sprint, with the little alicorn princess flying off in hot pursuit. Either she mistook Angel Bunny for another stuffed animal, or she saw how cute Angel was. Either way, the little alicorn was flying after him as fast as he could hop. Seeing the severity of the situation, Fluttershy and Cadence pursued the little filly in hopes to prevent her from doing anything drastic.
<>
All this leads to the now, Angel Bunny, his arms folded together, forced to sit on Flurry’s whammy. She rocks her favorite toy back and forth, with Angel made to ride the toy like a rodeo act. By this point, Fluttershy and Cadence lay on the ground with a sigh. To say the look worse for wear is an understatement, the little filly ran them down to their last breath.
“It’s no use…” Cadence sighed. “That little filly’s too much to handle.”
“I’ve cared for every known furry creature known to pony kind,” Fluttershy shook her head. “But I’m afraid getting through to baby fillies is a whole different level.”
Groaning in frustration, Cadence butts her head against the floor.
“There… must… be… some… way… to… calm… that… filly… ow…”
All of a sudden, the filly stops playing with her Whammy and turns her face toward the side. Confused, Cadence and Fluttershy look over and spot what Flurry’s eyes catch. A snail slithers across the crystal floor… a real snail. How it got inside the castle, no pony can say. It looks so similar to Flurry’s favorite toy, yellow with a green shell, small and innocent, just crawling across the floor minding its own business.
And yet… yet when Cadence turns back to Flurry’s eyes, she can see such great measure of curiosity. So mesmerized by such a tiny little creature. So intrigued over something so living, instead of just standing around waiting for Flurry to assume control. And as Cadence looks at her, at least she can recognize that for being a filly with such great power she is still just a child. Driven by an inner need to learn… to understand. She turns toward Fluttershy and one look in each other’s eyes it is vastly clear they share the same idea.
Princess Cadence silently watches from the distance, as Flurry Heart picks up the snail with her magic. Picking up her whammy as well, she compares the two side by side. Her smile brightens, as she sets the snail down… gently and with care. All at once, a shadow looms over the little filly stopping in her in her tracks. She turns around with wonder and there before her eyes, her mother and Auntie Fluttershy stand over her.
The three ponies stand perfectly still, waiting to determine who will make the next move. Flurry Heart gently prods Cadence by the right fore-hoof, probably expecting her to play or something. Cadence stands there for but a second or two, but then she shrugs with a smile.
“Why not?” Cadence replied.
Then with a silly face, Cadence runs away and looks behind to see if Flurry will follow her mother. And sure enough… she is. Fluttershy waits till the two ponies disappear, before she approaches Angel Bunny, who hops off Flurry’s whammy and into his owner’s hooves. Fluttershy gently soothes the bunny, while she hopes Cadence’s plan pulls off nicely.
A game of tag commences between mother and daughter, a game Cadence actually enjoys. What starts as a day of utmost uncertainty turns into an amazing moment on what initially begins as a run-of-the-mill quiet day.
Flurry Heart races after her mother, pursuing the older mare through the hallways of the palace. She ducks and dodges any obstacle in her path, taking advantage of her size. She keeps her eyes forward to make sure her mother is not far ahead… but before she knows it her mother disappears in a flash.
Curious, the little filly looks side to side, searching around for where her mother could be. Retracing her steps, she flaps her way back toward the stairs for a better look. But there is not a trace of her mother any place, the little filly starts to get worried. So much so, she drops her shoulders and starts squeaking in distress.
“Gotcha!”
All of a sudden, Cadence grabs Flurry Heart from behind capturing her with a big hug. The filly squeaks with fright, till she turns toward her mother’s face and smiles. She babbles and nuzzles against her mother’s chest, as she looks down toward her daughter. While Cadence herself still has much to learn about motherhood, at the end of the day she is still her child. And she like all mothers must enjoy this moment while it lasts.
<>
“Thank you so much for agreeing to foal-sit Angel!” Fluttershy thanked.
“A deal’s a deal,” Cadence replied. “You helped me with Flurry, it’s the least I can do.”
“I have a list of everything you need to know for Angel,” Fluttershy explained, digging through her bag. “All his mealtimes, when to take his medication, his bath… very important… and also his nap time. He should get at least a half hours’ worth at best. I shouldn’t be gone for more than a couple hours at best.”
She proceeds to hand Cadence every item she mentions. All of Angel’s food, his medicine, and even a complete list for Cadence to check. The mother and daughter scan the list side to side, as all the items pile up.
“Don’t worry about it,” Cadence assured. “Flurry and I will have a great time with Angel. We can handle this.”
With a silent nod of thanks, Fluttershy says her goodbyes to Angel before flapping off back to the station. The moment Fluttershy leaves, Cadence and Flurry’s eyes turn toward Angel Bunny. All at once, whatever innocent demeanor he carries, quickly shifts into an evil smug. His eyes narrow as a stare down commences between the little bunny and the two ponies. Cadence and Flurry Heart turn to one another, nod their heads in agreement, and evilly glares back.
“Bring it on, bunny boy!” Cadence challenged.
