I'm Just Prattling On

This time Twilight dreamt of a pony white as snow, with a long mane that moved even when there was no wind. She was tall and had wings greater than any pegasus'. She looked at Twilight with a smile and the filly noticed the long horn that emerged from her head, a thing to take pride in. Twilight didn't know who that mare was. She only knew what she was. She had read of alicorns before but standing in front of one was different. It wasn't so much the height but something else. The way the white alicorn smiled at her made her feel so much better already. She wasn't weak by her side, she was strong. She saw her parents in the dream, too. Them and Shining. They laughed together and were so happy. That was when she realized that it was only a dream, but she did not want to wake up. She never wanted to wake up again.

"Twilight Sparkle,“ she heard the white alicorn's voice, a voice filled with friendship, inspiring only love from the filly before her, "My faithful student.“

Twilight woke up. She felt weaker than ever before, her legs were shaking, her heart was pounding, but she was alive. She took one deep breath and as she got her focus right, she saw something moving above her. A big, yellow moon surrounded by stars and small figurines of flutter ponies. She understood the meaning of the device above her immediately and frowned. She was quite a bit too old for a mobile. Then again. . . She was in some stranger's room as it seemed. The blankets that now covered her were of more colors than a rainbow could have had and the entire bed was so warm and soft, together with the mobile above her she could've drifted to sleep again very quickly. She resolved herself not to and took a quick look around whatever room she was. She found it with another bed, size for a filly, with the same colorful bedding, although the construction was different. Toys laid scattered across the room, Twilight found as she turned her head away from the other bed. She spotted the door opposite to her own blanket fort and as she turned farther she spotted a window and beneath it another bed. That one was pretty stale with notes on its covers and a giant music instrument on it. She had to search her memory but couldn't quite find so much as a hint as to what this one was called. It looked like an oversized violin though.

The brown filly sighed and looked up at the mobile again. The constant moving annoyed her a bit but she felt too weak to do anything about it right now. As a matter of fact, even turning her head had made her heart pound against her chest real hard. She felt famished, too. She figured she could even eat a whole bowl of alfalfa. . . No, wait, no she couldn't. That stuff was disgusting! And green! All green food except flowers were disgusting and even they were borderline. She sighed again, and this time she was answered by the rumbling of her own tummy. She instantly tried to redirect her thoughts somewhere else.

Why was she in this strange place? She remembered going with Trixie, then they had been at some kind of old hall, then they had met Lyra, then an earthquake had happened and then they had walked back. Something else must've happened then, although she couldn't remember what exactly it was. She wondered if it had something to do with the alicorn from her dream. She figured not though. Papa had always told her that the last alicorn on this world had died more than a century ago. Shining had always said she must've been a real stupid alicorn, calling herself 'Princess of Love' and all. He had said that they were lucky that she was gone, he was sure he wouldn't have liked her.

Her tummy did not intend to give up so easily and another grumble came out. That, plus the feeling of emptiness really did nothing for Twilight. This truly felt like the worst day of her entire life. Yet still it seemed just like the start of every other day.

"You're awake,“ she suddenly heard an unfamiliar voice, it sounded very high-pitched even for a filly. Twilight turned her head, fully expecting to see some kind of almost-not-anymore-a-foal but what she saw was another filly. This one had a grey coat and blackish grey hair for her mane. She walked over to Twilight with something that might've been a noblepony's strut, if that noblepony would be extremely clumsy. And the filly seemed to try so hard to get every single step right, too. She even tried to hold her nose up but then she immediately stumbled over a toy and landed face first on the floor.

Twilight would've snickered but the grey filly began to cry immediately, which apparently alarmed the father, who came in a few seconds later and took the filly on the arm. She knew he was her father because he had a grey coat, although his was more on the dusky side. He also had a black mane and Twilight found his built pretty awesome. He looked like one of those action heroes she had always seen in Shining's comics.

He didn't even bother with Twilight, instead moved back to the door, keeping his balance pretty well for somepony who carried a filly with one hoof, and shouted out:"RAINDROPS! I TOLD YOU TO CLEAN UP YOUR MESS!“

Suddenly this place felt so much like home, the only thing that was missing now was him to go out to a bar, after he'd give 'Raindrops' a beating for the toys and the grey one for crying over nothing. The stallion however swiftly defied her expectations as he comforted the grey filly and put her on the bed, telling her to play something on the 'cello' for him and 'the guest'.

It took her one moment and then she began to pluck at the strings. At first it seemed pretty random but then the simple plucks developed a life, a melody came out of nowhere and a small but happy song was heard in the room. The stallion smiled at the filly.

"I need to tend to your friends’ friend, Octy, 'kay?“

As his question remained without answer he just smiled and moved to Twilight. "Hey, kiddo,“ he said, "The name's Jelly, Hugh Jelly, and you are?“

"Twilight Sparkle,“ she tried to say, but barely got a word out. Her throat felt so dry, there'd probably only come out dust instead of saliva if she'd take a spit now.

He looked a bit worried,"Want something to drink, Twilight? I think we've got just the right thing now.“

She wanted to say that she wanted something to eat but decided against it all of a sudden. Somehow she was scared of eating. She didn't know how this person might react if another pain-attack hit her.  So he went, getting her something to drink. That was something at least. She leaned back and listened to the other filly playing the cello. Here and then there was a mistake and she played wrong, but for the most part it was quite good.

The grey pony must have noticed that Twilight listened into her play and moved her head towards her, which Twilight heard, because suddenly the other filly started to play way more randomly.

"I'm just prattling on, yet everypony says it's good.“

Twilight didn't know what to answer, so she just spoke in that voiceless whisper she could barely manage, "It sounds magical. Where did you learn to play like that?“

"As I said: Just prattling on. . . Ah, right. I am Octavia Quarternote by the way, you surely heard of my family?“

Twilight shook her head, hoping the other filly would see it,"I don't know much about the outside world. . . Do they own some kind of jelly factory?“

What followed was the worst chord Twilight had ever heard.

"What?“ Octavia asked aghast.

"Because your papa. . . Hugh-“

"He's. . . He's not my father, more like a. . .“, Octavia interrupted, but then she didn't say anything, instead just resumed playing after a few seconds of silence. Twilight didn't quite know how to respond to that. The filly was strange, but on the other hoof, she must've been a friend to Trixie and Lyra. Maybe everypony associated with ponies like these had to be weird.

"My papa is probably looking for me at the hospital,“ or he was at a bar, drinking and complaining, maybe he was even celebrating now that the other ungrateful brat was gone from his life. Papa was better in her dreams, he smiled and was together with mama. She would've really liked the dreams to be true.

"Can't be, Madame said that the hospital was gone,“ Octavia told her.

Twilight stared blankly at the mobile for a moment, before her eyes widened in shock. Immediately a thousand questions ran through her mind like: What? Why? How? When? But most importantly: Where would her papa search for her if that was true? She didn't quite know how to respond to that statement so she did the sensible thing. Cry. When you cried, your parents came, just like it had happened with Octavia a few seconds ago. Her father would come, he needed to come. Or at least Shining, her brave knight coming to save her from pain and suffering. Her big brother best friend forever.

Twilight cried but neither came, instead Hugh arrived with a cup of warm tea. He immediately rushed to Twilight's side. He wasn't her papa and he wasn't Shining Armor, so she cried. She was hungry and thirsty, she was alone in a strange place and her papa hadn't visited her once. Shining had run away with some marefriend of his and her mother had died long ago during Twilight's birth. She had been sick and weak and always about to die. So all she could do now was cry.