This is madness!
You left Canterlot to run away from her.
Why are you heeding her demands?

She warned me years ago that once she gets caught my turn will be next. I have no other choice but to talk to her. I need to gather as much information as I can if I want a fighting chance.

The midday sun was shining upon Canterlot warming the residents. It’s a warning for the upcoming summer.

Jewel was dressed in a gray suit with a red tie, it was long enough to cover his flanks. He had bought it as soon as he read the news yesterday. It was unfit for the weather but he needed to look presentable, if he had to infiltrate the office as a lawyer.

He felt a little bit guilty for leaving his workshop for an entire day, hopefully no pony would need urgent help while he was gone.

Maybe I can order the materials for Vinyl while I’m here to make up for it?

You’re stalling.

He quickly calmed himself well enough to enter the Canterlot Patrol Office, where he was supposed to find the detained criminal.

The reception had the same architectural design as the rest of Canterlot. White marble walls decorated with colorful rugs and curtains. From what he remembered when studying engineering and architecture from books, the insides of the walls had insulation installed to keep the temperature inside unaffected by the weather outside. This did explain how it was much cooler inside.

He walked towards the pony attending the reception desk, separated from visitors by magically reinforced glass. She was a neon-green mare similar of age to Jewel, she was clothed in a blue uniform and only the helmet on her head that informed other ponies she was part of the guard.

“Hello, what can I help you with?” she said nonchalantly, not even looking up from her paperwork.

“Hello,” Jewel greeted her, putting on his best posh accent, “my name is Clearword, I came to meet with mrs. Heartstrings.”

The guard looked up at him in surprise. She motioned for him to follow her and took him to a cell designed for questioning. It was bland, a small room with blueish-grey walls and a single table with two seats. The only way to see inside was through a small glass slit—barely a window—on the door.

“Please wait for a moment mister Clearword,” she said, “your client will be here shortly.”

Jewel was left alone for a moment, making him question his surroundings.

She didn’t even ask me for my license! How could she know I’m her lawyer?
Maybe the disguise worked too well?

Or maybe it was her doing.

Fortunately for Jewel’s psyche, he didn’t have to wait long for them to bring in his ‘client’. She walked in gracefully, her golden eyes immediately locking on to him. She didn’t wear any clothing, possibly in order to keep up the appearance that she has been detained.

“Thank you dear,” she said to the stallion that escorted her, “may you please leave us be for a moment? I think we need some… privacy.” She suggestively shook her flank at him which was adorned with a cutie mark of a puppet on a string. If somepony didn’t know better, they would have thought she did puppet shows for a living. Which isn’t so far from the truth.

I feel like throwing up.

The stallion just scoffed at her—already used to her tactics— and left them alone.

It’s as if she owns this place.

“I’m here Heartstrings,” Jewel said once he was sure the guard was far enough, “now tell me what do you want?”

“Is that how you greet your own mother?” she said, acting as if she had been hurt.

“You know damn well you don’t deserve this title.”

“Neither does the mare that adopted you,” she retorted with schadenfreude, “from what I’ve heard, you two weren’t on good terms when you left for Ponyville.”

Of course she knows about it.

“Get to the point! What’s with all this?” He motioned to the room with his foreleg. “I know damn well they didn’t just ‘catch you in the act’.” He put his hooves on the table and glared at her suspiciously

“What is your game here?” He said.

“And why would I tell you anything?” she asked smirking, “we both know I didn’t ask you to come here. You could have just ignored the news and let poor old me rot in her cell. But we both know what would happen then, don’t we? Now, if you want any information, I ask you to kindly show me the thing.”

“The… thing?” Jewel said.

“Don’t play a fool with me,” she said rolling her eyes, “you know very well what I’m referring to. If you won’t oblige, then our little discussion is over.”

Jewel sighed, he knew exactly what she wanted. He took off his suit with magic, showing his whole body for the first time in years. He stood there completely exposed, showing to the mare in front of him his biggest shame.

His lack of a cutie mark.

“Good boy,” she said mockingly, “a successor ripe for the taking.”

“Now it’s your turn,” Jewel ordered, “I need information.”

“Ugh… such a buzzkill,” the mare groaned, “fine! Ask away! What do you want to know?”

This outburst surprised Jewel. He didn’t expect her to be this cooperative. The last time she did this was…

When she told me about the curse.

“Firstly,” he said, “I want to know more about the curse.”

This seemed to get Heartstring’s attention.

“Oh?” She exclaimed, “well if you want to break it then tough luck my child. It’s impossible.”

“How exactly does it work?”

“Well… it’s not as much of a curse as it is a parasite. It feeds off hate and fear the bearer spreads. And if the host is unwilling… Well, the curse takes hold of the holder’s identity. Taking every single bit of personality and before you know it, you are a completely different pony. But it’s not all bad.”

“How exactly isn’t it ‘all bad’?”

“It grants its users a lot of magical power, that’s why it has been constantly forcing our forefathers to conceive unicorns. The best race for its goals.”

She took a little needle out of her mane with magic and pointed it to her neck. Its tip was clearly covered in poison.

“It takes hold as soon as a successor is born, binding itself so it can latch on to the fortunate soul who will continue its legacy once the previous bearer dies. But you already knew this part.” She smirked.

He did. She has been telling him about this single fact for years before she left him to fend for himself. She was constantly threatening him with transferring the curse early in order to keep him obedient as a dog.

“Is that why you are here?” He asked, “you decided you had enough?”

“Oh… puh-lease!” She scoffed. “I have basically the whole of Equestria under my hoof. Nobles blackmailed and ponies indebted to me. I already have reached my destiny.”

She smiled at him, the needle still tauntingly pointed at her neck. “But there is one more thing I have to do. I have to fulfill my duty and pass on the family legacy to you.

“You will continue the Heart family name. You will expand this empire they build just like I did, when I forced it from my dead fathers grasp. Future generations will remember me as the mare that outdid Prosperheart himself! I was hoping you would accept this gift bestowed upon us willingly, but it seems I need to force it onto you myself.”

“I will not allow you to turn me into a monster.” Jewel forced his magic upon the needle and pointed it at his own neck. “If I die, so does the Heart family’s bloodline. The curse will be destroyed and no pony will ever have to suffer because of it ever again!”

What will you do then, mother?

Heartstrings stood there stunned for a moment. She didn’t expect Jewel to actually try to fight her control over him.

Suddenly her horn lit up with a black aura and she threw herself at Jewel with great speed and force, pinning him to the wall and choking him with her foreleg. The needle dropped to the floor.

“Now what do we have here?” She said in a deep voice, “Trying to play the hero, are we? Sacrificing yourself for the benefit of others? Tsk-tsk-tsk… we can’t have that.”

Jewel couldn’t answer, he was fighting every single moment to breathe. When did She get as strong as an earth-pony?

“Now listen here, you ungrateful brat,” she hissed, “I don’t think you understand the position you are in. Even if you would end your life here and now, the curse will just keep me alive for long enough to conceive another foal. I am more than capable of escaping this ‘prison’ to find another unfortunate soul to help me with it.

“I could visit your father for example. Try to make him squeal for his life like a mouse between cat’s teeth. He gave me you, after all and he will give me someone else again.”

“You are too old to have foals again!” He retorted breathlessly.

“The curse does not care. It has been modified throughout generations by those just like you, ponies unwilling to accept it. The curse will force me to conceive.

“Maybe I should make a point for you? Would you like to see what I did to your father twenty five years ago? Making you watch might make it much more thrilling.”

“You’re sick!”

“It runs in the family.” Now that she made sure her captive got the memo, she let go of Jewel who fell to the ground gasping for air.

“Fucking Witch!” He cursed her under his breath.

“This curse is the definition of Art,” she said ignoring his remark, her voice back to normal, “multiple generations contributing into its development, an entire family tree composed of artisans who wanted nothing more but to develop and gain influence. I will not stand an ungrateful brat ruining this legacy!”

She looked at the pathetic quivering mess below her.

“My fun has been ruined,” she said, turning her back towards him.

“You will have to make up for it now. Which actually brings me to the reason I’m telling you all of this in the first place.” She levitated the needle back into her mane, hiding it from sight. “I’ve decided to give you a chance of breaking this spell.”

“And why would you do that?” He said, slowly regaining his composure, “and didn’t you just tell me it was impossible?”

“Will that stop you from trying?” She asked knowing full well what the answer was.

“And as to why I would do that.” She smiled.“ It's quite simple really. I’d like to see how a little mouse will react when it is cornered. Consider it my final entertainment before I retire.”

“As if I’d play your stupid games”

“What was that? I think I misheard you.” Her voice was deceptively caring, yet Jewel noticed her glaring at him with an murderous intent.

“I said: As you wish.” He gave up.

“Mmmm, Good boy,” she said, “as a sign of goodwill, here is a little clue.” She looked back at him with a sinister smile. “Blackheart!”

Suddenly the door to the room opened revealing the stallion from before waiting behind it.

“Looks like our merry time is over,” she said disappointed, “My trial starts in four months. A week after the Summer Sun Celebration. I hope to see you there. Or else…”

In the evening hours, Jewel stood in front of a building. The sign hanging swayed in the light breeze.

‘Merry & Bright Hoof Saloon. From polishing to painting, we do it all!’ was written in cursive on the sign.

Jewel was trembling from anticipation, he hasn’t been here for four months. The last time he was here, was with sour words thrown at him from his adoptive mother.

He knocked on the door, ignoring the ‘closed’ sign on it.

Half a minute later a pink earth-pony mare with a dark-blue mane opened the door. Her flank was adorned with a cutie mark of a bottle of hoof-polish. Her belly was swollen, a clear sign of a late stage in pregnancy.

“Can’t you read? We are clo—“ she stopped when she realized who was standing in front of her.

“Hi, Merryhoof,” Jewel greeted her.

Merryhoof quickly shot a glance inside the house before turning back to Jewel. “What are you doing here? Do you know how worried your father has been lately?”

“I need to talk to him,” he said firmly.

“No way!” She hissed, “why now of all possible days? And why is your father so worried about her suddenly? She’s finally gone, Jewel! You two should be celebrating.”

“But she’s not gone to us, Merry!” He retorted, his eyes unable to withstand the pressure much longer, “please… I— … really…. Really need to see him. It’s important.”

“Why is it so important? Need I remind you how upset your father was when you left him?”

“I know, I’m sorry,” Jewel said, “but I couldn’t stand being this close to her, I wanted to feel like she was a distant memory. But now I realized how wrong I was.”

Merryhoof looked at him surprised, finally noticing the imprint left by his mother when she strangled him.

“You’ve met her…”

“Please, Merry,” Jewel pleaded, “let me talk to him.”

Merry hesitated, unable to tell what she should do. Then she sighed.

“Alright,” she said defeated, “come in, we can’t have you outside during the night.”

“Thank you, Merry.”

“Don’t mention it, just please make sure she won’t come here later.”

“She won’t,” Jewel assured her, “she has other matters to attend to.”

He went into the big dark room full of couches used by the patrons to relax while they got their hooves done. Merry sat him at one of the couches that had a table between them.

“Sit here,” she ordered, “I will tell Brighthoof upstairs and make you guys some tea.”

“I think you should bring wine.”

“Oof… it’s that bad?”

“It will make the words flow better, if you get what I mean.”

“I understand completely,” she said smiling while she took the stairs to their apartment.

Not long after came the sound of frantic steps going downstairs.

The pony that came into Jewel’s view was a tall yet lanky beige stallion, on his head rested a blue mane carefully taken care of. His cutie mark was that of a hoof clipper.

“It’s you,” he said when he noticed Jewel sitting on the couch, “It’s really you!”

Jewel accepted his fathers embrace, barely holding his tears back.

“Oh Jewel,” Brighthoof cried, “my little Jewel, it’s so good to see you. But what are you doing here? Weren’t you supposed to start a new life in Ponyville?”

Jewel couldn’t stop himself anymore. “I’ve talked to her dad,” he said in between sobs, “I’ve talked to her…”

Brighthoof’s eyes narrowed in fear at the mere mention of Heartstrings. But his love for his son was greater than any fear.

“Shh-shh, it’s alright, I’m here” he whispered to Jewel’s ear, “we’ll get through this together.”

Brighthoof tightened his embrace on his son and patted his back. Yet he couldn’t hide the fact that his hooves were shaking.

“You’ve read the news , dad!” Jewel wept, “we both know she—… she got herself caught on purpose!”

“What did she tell you, Jewel?”

“She—… she decided it was time for her to retire, dad.”

Brighthoof’s eyes widened in understanding.

“How long until she does it?” He asked.

“She gave me four months.”

“Gave you?”

“Uh-huh,” Jewel confirmed, “she decided to tell me in more detail about the curse to give me a false sense of hope. She dared me to try to find a way to break the curse.”

“We will have to try, Jewel! We can’t let her have the last laugh!”

“But that’s what she wants!”

“So what? Are you going to just let the curse overtake you?”

Jewel sniffed. “No.”

“So we will have to try to stop it! I have access to the Starswirl Library, I’m sure we can find something that may help us. Nothing is set in stone yet. Four months is plenty of time to research whatever we need.”

Those words managed to inspire hope in Jewel. If his father was sure they can do it, then the least he could do was try.

“Thanks, dad.”

They were interrupted by Merryhoof approaching them with a crate of wine balancing on her back.

“I think you guys should let me in on what happened,” she said with a determined voice, “I only know of her existence and her involvement in Jewels birth but other than that I’m still in the dark! Why is her finally facing justice such a bad thing?”

Brighthoof and Jewel looked at each other before nodding in unspoken agreement.

“Give me a bottle and I’ll tell you what happened today,” Jewel said, “after which, I think we need a plan…”

Author's Note

I hope I didn’t go overboard while writing the mother. Though I must say it has been a lot of fun.

I also hope I managed to make you hate her as much as I do.