Grandma Figgy, or just Figgy rather, was quite familiar with the concept of patience. It had served her well throughout her long life, especially during the years when she'd had to raise her only grandson, Hitch. And in her old age, Figgy always felt it was important to take some time to slow down, appreciate the finer things in life that so often went unnoticed.
Still, the old mare was beginning to grow just the slightest bit frustrated as she sat outside one of Maretime Bay's finest cafes. There were many other things she wanted to do during her trip to the town by the coast, but they would have to wait until after this meeting she had specifically requested with a very important pony. And said pony was currently nowhere to be seen. What was taking so long?
Figgy sighed, sipping a little from her cup of hot tea. "Patience, Figgy. Patience." She thought to herself, all the while adjusting her glasses to make sure they were on properly. It wouldn't do her any good to get all worked up before her intended guest arrived.
At last, coming over the horizon was the outline of a very familiar looking earth pony mare with a peach colored coat and fuschia colored glasses balanced ever so precariously on her nose. It was clear that said mare was in quite a hurry, thus not caring a bit about her outward appearance.
Figgy felt tempted to smile upon seeing that other earth pony. It was Phyllis Cloverleaf, the one whom Figgy had specifically wanted to see today. It was the very reason why she'd arranged this meeting and made it her top priority. But remembering the reason behind the meeting, Figgy did not smile. She maintained a neutral expression, all the while waiting as Phyilis slowly but surely approached her.
Only once Phyllis had entered the cafe and taken a seat next to Figgy at the table did the peach colored mare allow herself a moment to fix her frazzled state. She pushed her glasses firmly into place, and took a moment to run a hoof through her mane to style it so that no loose ends or bangs were sticking up. "Sorry, sorry," She apologized to her host. "I must've lost track of the time. I'm usually very punctual. I hope I didn't keep you waiting long, Ms. Figgy."
"Not at all, Mrs. Cloverleaf," Figgy replied as her tone of voice remained calm and relatively emotionless. "I'm just glad you showed up. A part of me wasn't sure you would."
Phyllis chuckled. "Nonsense, Ms. Figgy. I could never turn down an invitation for tea and coffee."
Figgy gestured a hoof. "Please, Phyllis, just Figgy will do. We know each other well enough. Don't forget, you were practically a chaperone for Hitch when he was growing up. And I know you didn't just do it because you wanted to ease my burden."
Phyllis gulped and swallowed hard, trying her best not to look guilty. "Is that what this is about? It was never my intention to make you think I was trying to brainwash your grandson. I was merely..." She paused, trying to think of how best to say what she wanted to say. Unable to think of a good word, she finally settled for. "Concerned... about some of the influences in his life. Really, Argyle was the one I had a problem with, not you. And even I certainly wasn't expecting his sudden death when Sunny was still young. Bad enough poor Hitch had to grow up without parents."
The earth pony mare with a snow white mane and tail nodded. "Yes. It's always unfortunate when a parent doesn't live to see their child grow up," She then coughed into a hoof. "But we aren't here just to swap stories. I invited you here today for a reason, Phyllis," In an unusually stern tone of voice she added. "We need to talk."
The peach coated earth pony mare's posture began to slouch as she nervously replied. "I was afraid you'd say that."
Figgy nodded quite slowly. "Well, it's something that's been troubling me for a while. And after what happened with Opaline and the trees, I knew it was a conversation we couldn't put off any longer."
"You're not suggesting that I was rooting for that nasty alicorn, are you?" Phyllis snapped. "On the contrary, I couldn't be happier to know that she is no longer a threat, and that Sunny and her... friends," The last word left her mouth very slowly. "Prevailed. There's been enough problems in Maretime Bay as it is without ponies running around, worrying that they're going to lose their cutie marks."
"Then why is that I didn't see you once when everypony else was raising their voices and singing in encouragement?" Figgy questioned quite sternly, her eyes locking onto Phyllis' own. "Even your own son was capable of that much."
The peach coated earth pony mare tried her best not to look guilty, knowing she had no excuse for her absence. "Well, my presence obviously wasn't needed to ensure victory. And I've said it before, my son's grown up now, I don't control what he does of his own free will. If anything, him joining the others should be proof that I made sure to hold him accountable for what he did during his stint as emperor of Maretime Bay."
"Then why is it that I'm hearing from Hitch that you were nowhere to be seen even before Opaline showed up?" Figgy questioned further. "He says the last time he saw you was when those dragons arrived in Maretme Bay with Sunny and her friends. And that was the first time he'd seen you out in public at all since the crystals were brought together. You weren't even present when Canterlogic was converted into a movie studio. Even your son at least was hanging around the premise before then."
Phyllis put a hoof to her forehead. "Did you have to bring that up, Figgy? Canterlogic was my life's work, my life's purpose," In spite of her better instincts, she couldn't help but snarl. "And thanks to Sunny, suddenly it was all for naught. Ponies no longer had a need for my products. It was bad enough I had ponies thinking I wasn't a good parent because of what Sprout did, losing Canterlogic on top of that was a harsh blow. I needed time to recover, to think about what I would have to do without Canterlogic to provide for me and my family."
Figgy could only shake her head from side to side in disapproval. "You don't get it, do you, Phyllis? This is exactly why your husband left you not long after you had Sprout. This is why Argyle knew it was futile trying to argue with you. This is why Hitch always felt so conflicted growing up. You have a hard time accepting that you're wrong."
"Can you blame me?!" Phyllis complained as her eyes narrowed. "How would you feel if suddenly, out of the blue, you were told that everything you'd ever known and believed in was wrong?! How would you feel if your entire world was suddenly ripped away from you without even being asked if that was what you wanted?! I know I was wrong to think the way I did about unicorns and pegasi. But they feared us just as much as we feared them. And yet look around. The pegasi put their queen back on the throne even after she lied to them. The unicorns still let that tea selling merchant lead them. Nothing bad happened to them!"
"Phyllis." Figgy sighed in dismay, a pronounced frown forming on her face.
The earth pony mare with a peach colored coat snorted, bitter tears forming in her eyes. "Everypony keeps saying that it was a change for the better. But was it really? Did anypony ever stop to ask if we really should all be living together again? Look at what bringing the crystals together did. Who knows what other long forgotten evils will come after us now because of them? My whole world was ripped away from me out of the blue, and there was nothing I could do about it! It made it perfectly clear that it didn't want me around. So if the world is just going to keep on changing whether I want it or not, why should I bother pretending that this is okay? It's not okay. And there's nothing I can do to make it okay. For the first time in my life, I've lost control." Then she broke down, sobbing heavily.
Figgy had seen and heard quite enough. She got up from her seat at the table and trotted over to Phyllis, draping over her fellow earth pony's back and rubbing a hoof over it with practiced precision. "I know it hurts having to confront an uncomfortable truth, Phyllis," She spoke slowly and sympathetically. "How do you think I felt when I learned that my grandson had been orphaned when he was still just a blank flank colt? Don't you think I would've given anything for it to have all been just a bad dream I could wake up from? But living in denial wouldn't have changed anything or magically made it better."
Phyllis just continued to sob, though slowly but surely her crying began to die down.
Figgy went on speaking. "Much as we might wish it weren't so, life is always going to keep on changing. Nothing ever stays the same forever. But the way I see it, we have two options when the world inevitably changes: We can either adapt to it as best we can and try to carry on, or we can shut ourselves away and let the world pass us by. But no matter what we say or do, the changes can't be undone. I know it hurts feeling like you don't have control of your life."
"What do you mean? I don't have control at all. The events of the past year and a half have made that perfectly clear." Phyllis confessed in a gloomy tone of voice, her eyes now stained red from the crying.
The elderly earth pony with a snow white mane and tail shook her head from side to side. "You still have control of yourself. You can choose how you let those events affect you, Phyllis. You can keep on living in isolation, just ignoring everything and everypony. Or you can do your best to adapt to the new world we're living in. The choice is yours, and yours alone." She slowly lifted her hoof from Phyllis' back and returned to her seat.
For a moment or two afterwards, not a word was spoken. Phyllis just sat there, letting Figgy's words slowly sink in so that she could process them. Figgy, for her part, said nothing further. It was up to Phyllis to decide what to do next.
At last, however, Phyllis seemed to make up her mind. She rose from her seat at the table, looking Figgy firmly in the eyes as she did so. "Thank you, Figgy. I mean it," She spoke slowly and sincerely. "All this time, I've just been feeling sorry for myself without realizing it. I've been living in denial, trying to pretend that things are not what they are. All I was really doing, though, was denying myself a chance to grieve and a chance to process. But that's all going to change, just like the world itself is going to change. I may not be able to stop every change that comes my way, but running away from the changes won't stop them either."
"Does this mean what I think it means, Phyllis?" Figgy asked in a hopeful tone of voice.
The earth pony mare with fuschia colored glasses gave a firm nod. "Yes, Figgy. And I know just how to start," She turned her gaze towards the Crystal Brighthouse in the distance, knowing then and there what she had to do. "I'm going to see Sunny and her friends. I'm going to make amends as best I can for what I did and for what I allowed to happen. And from there, it's out of my hooves. Maybe they'll welcome me, and maybe they won't. I'll do the best I can to carry on, controlling what I can control. And the rest, I'll leave to fate." With that, she departed, determined to make good on her vow.
Figgy smiled, sipping her tea as she watched Phyllis depart. The talk had worked out even better than she had hoped. Phyllis was a changed mare already.
Author's Note
I wrote this story mainly because I wanted to do something with Grandma Figgy before my big plans for her for the year. But considering Phyllis only managed a non-speaking cameo during "Make Your Mark" and has only appeared in one episode of "Tell Your Tale", I can't help but wonder if her absence is intentional (or just the writers not considering her at any point), especially when she wasn't present during "The Magic in Us" even though Sprout was.
I've always held the headcanon belief that Phyllis is divorced. Given what we do know about her, I wouldn't be surprised if her husband would've found it difficult to agree with her on anything without provoking her temper. And her having custody of Sprout could easily explain why he's so attached to her.
And yes, this fic's title is based on "Just Girls Talking" by the late MyhtrilMoth.
