Author's Note

Just a content warning for this chapter only, there is a traumatic scene at the end of this chapter that may be triggering to some readers. Proceed with caution.
Also, Cella is named Cella Strings and her name is pronounced: Chell-uh
Like Cello, but with an A instead of an O

Chapter 1: Innocence

September 12th, 10 years ago.

"Hurry up Cella!" I yell to my bestie, it's the first day of school and I'm over the moon with excitement.
"We're gonna be late!" I holler.

"I know, I know, just let me catch up, all this running isn't easy on me, this new prosthetic leg isn't strong," Cella called from behind me, her fluffy, blonde mane pushed in front of her smiling face, by the wind.

"Oh c'mon slowpoke! I've seen you run without it!"

"Not as fast as you're going!" She yells as I see her gaining on me, "Besides! This thing is expensive! My parents would be, like, super-duper DUPER mad if I broke it!"

"Yeah, yeah!" I chuckle, "Then why wear it?"

"Because mom says I have to." She sighs, clearly dissatisfied, her parents, though nice, didn't see Cella the way I saw her, all they saw was the fact that she was different, I didn't realize it at the time, but Cella sure did.

"Well then your parents are stupid heads," I snorted, sticking out my tongue.

"Don't say that!" She squeaked, her voice at a pitch so high it hurt my ears, "Erm... I mean, please don't say that." she corrected herself more quietly, a little embarrassed.

"Fine, fine," I say, a little annoyed, “If you MUST keep that dumb thing on then I suppose I can slow down for you," I say at last.

"Thank you" she sighed, finally catching up to me and trotting just to my left.

"Your parents are really weird."

"Yeah, well you've barely even met them"

"Oh really? I've been to your house! They add padding to all the sharp corners as if you’re a foal. Like they think you're so clumsy that you won't be able to stop yourself from hitting anything."

"Well... they... uh...." Cella droned off.

"Hey! Don't take it personally! Your parents may be weird, but you are one of the coolest ponies I know!" I state with certainty.

“You really think so?” Cella asks, her eyes glowing.

“Yeah, I do! Stop making such a big deal of it!”

“It means a lot to me,” She said softly, her eyes glowing with joy.

I flip my wavy mane out of my face as the wind repeatedly pushes it back, “Well that’s good to hear, now c’mon let’s get to class.”

We entered the schoolhouse side by side and sat at our desks, we’d scoot them closer together until Miss Cheerilee tells us to put them back, at which we’d carefully put them back one scoot less.

The classroom would look dull to a bystander, but Miss Cheerilee made up for all of that, she'd been our teacher since we were small, so she knew us all really well, she and Cella were very close, at the time I didn’t know why now I see that it’s because Cheerilee was like a mother to Cella. Cheerilee saw us all not as students, but as budding flowers, ready to bloom. She didn’t care if Cella was missing a petal, all that mattered to her was that my best friend bloomed into a wonderful, hard-working pony.

Now we sat in class as little ponies filed in, I knew each and every one of their names, and where they sat, they were the fillies I grew up with. Pip Squeak, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, Diamond Tiara, Silver Spoon, Snips, Snails, Dinky Doo, Ditsy Whooves, and Cherry Gumdrop.

Each of them sat at their respective desks and so the day began, and it went the same nearly every day. Cella and I would walk to school and back, and every time it was the same. It was when I got home that the real fun started.

“Hug attawk!” I hear my little brother shout as he dive bombs me from the couch. My mother walks over to me as I get up and shake myself off with a laugh.

“I readied our lunches! are you ready for the best park adventure the Bloom family has ever done?” My mom asked me enthusiastically as I gave her a bright smile.

“I sure am!”

“Well then let’s go!” She says with a smile.

We walk all the way to the nearest park, it’s near the edge of the Everfree Forest, so the plants are luscious and alive, it’s our favorite lunch spot in all of Ponyville. It was our favorite lunch spot.

I step onto the grass and trot around when my dad shows up, I rush over to him and give him a big hug.

“How’s My little girl?” He asks joyfully, his eyes bright with fatherly love.

“I’m great dad! Even better now that you’re here! Zecora said the forest is clear! We can play tag!”

Everfree Tag, a gave me and my father played every time we came to the lunch spot, as long as Zecora allowed it. She checked the forest for things such as Chimeras and Timber Wolves before we played, and we were always careful to avoid poison joke.

“Let’s get going then!” My dad said letting me get a head start, I was fast, turning sharp corners that my dad just couldn’t I kept dodging and weaving until I came to a cave.

“Perfect hiding spot he’ll never find me in here,” I said quietly to myself, backing up into the cave. I suddenly bump into something large and fuzzy. My fur stands on end as I slowly turn my head. Before me sits a large bear made entirely of stars, it is blue and holds in its paws a small log it is using as a toy. The log is barely a twig to the humongous creature. I can’t speak or move as fear grips my fur. That’s when it looks at me, its eyes glow with child-like intrigue and I gulp in a breath, thinking it my last, when I hear my dad calling for me. I let out a cry of desperation turning around, freed by this tiny pool of hope.

“DAAAADD!!” I scream helplessly, but it’s too late, The creature's mighty claws grip my flank, tearing wide tears in the skin on both sides. I scream in agony as the fear and pain overwhelm me, all I see is my father running into the cave as the creature lets go and everything goes dark.