//-------------------------------------------------------// The Daughter Of Chaos -by ChuckBoy- //-------------------------------------------------------// //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 1: Preparations And Hybrids //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 1: Preparations And Hybrids “Ok everypony! Let's go over everything one last time!” “Pinkie, are all of the decorations up and ready?” A very stressed-out Twilight said as she held a clipboard with her magic, ready to check off a list she had on the clipboard. “All set and done!” Pinkie said as she showed the main entrance covered in party decorations. “Applejack and Rainbow Dash, is the food ready yet?” Twilight asked as she went into the kitchen. “Er, I…we still could use a few minutes sugar cube!” Applejack exclaimed from the kitchen. “A few minutes? More like a few seconds! We’ll have this food ready in ten seconds flat!” Rainbow Dash said with a lot of confidence in her voice. “A few seconds? Calm down there Dash! The food takes far longer to cook than a few simple seconds.” Applejack exclaimed as Twilight went elsewhere. “Rarity, please tell me the dining room is ready for tonight?” Twilight said as she looked into the dining room. “Daring! Everything is ready!” Rarity said as she used her magic to place the finishing touches on the dining table. The Chandler was shining brightly, the silverware was cleaned to the brim, the placemats were set and everything looked brand new, despite every utensil, placemat, and everything else, being a few years old. “Well, it’s good to hear that some pony’s ready for this party.” Twilight said in a slightly exhausted voice, which Rarity picked up on rather quickly. “Daring, may I ask why you're stressing over this welcome home party?” Rarity asked in a slightly worried voice. “Why? Because Fluttershy’s the first of us to have a baby! I can’t just not give her a perfectly planned party!” Twilight explained with stress visible in her voice. “Daring, you're starting to sound a little like Pinkie, besides, everything is going to be fine. We all know that Fluttershy will appreciate this surprise party no matter what happens. You of all ponies should know that over the years.” Rarity said as she tried her best to comfort her friend. “Well, we know that Fluttershy will, Discord on the other hoof…” Twilight said. “Well, I’m sure that he’ll appreciate it too, regardless of what he says or does.” Rarity said with a little chuckle in her voice. “Thanks, Rarity, I needed to hear that,” Twilight said as she checked off the dining room on her clipboard and went over to the next item to check off. “Starlight, Spike, are the gifts perfectly placed where I instructed?” Twilight asked as she went into the main entrance. “Besides Pinkie’s excessive amount of gifts, yes!” Spike said as he placed down the last present in a huge pile of other presents for the new baby, most of which were from Pinkie. “I expected nothing less from her, speaking of, what did you get for the new baby Twilight?” Starlight asked. “Oh, just a simple music box with Fluttershy and Discord on it,” Twilight said as she pointed to her wrapped present. “Knowing you, I’m surprised you remembered to wrap your present in time!” Starlight said with a little chuckle in her voice. “Haha, very funny. Well besides the food, that should conclude my list!” Twilight said. “You went all out for this party, didn’t you?” Starlight asked. “What? I can’t plan an amazing party for our friend's new baby?” Twilight asked just when Applejack appeared in the hall. “The food is all ready! I’m surprised some of it wasn’t undercooked or burned.” Applejack said as she along with Rainbow Dash and Pinkie entered the room. “Well, that makes me feel a bit better now that everything is ready for when they arrive,” Twilight said as she could finally breathe after mostly completing her list. “See? Everything works out after all.” Starlight said as Twilight gave a small smile when there was a knock at the front door. “That should be them! Places everypony!” Twilight instructed as everypony took their places behind the hallway. Twilight then trotted over to the front door and very quietly opened the door. “Hello?” Fluttershy asked as she saw the decorations. “Surprise!” Everypony exclaimed with excitement. “A surprise party? For me? How did you know?” Discord asked with joy as he put on a party hat made for his two horns. “It’s for the baby Discord!” Fluttershy said as she held her newborn in her hooves. “Oh right, for the baby,” Discord said as his party hat came off while Twilight went over to Fluttershy. “We just wanted to give you two a welcome home party for the new baby,” Twilight said as Fluttershy started to tear up. “T…Thank you Twilight, it’s perfect!” Fluttershy said with a very happy voice. “I would give you a hug but I’m carrying Rosie right now.” Fluttershy said as she then looked at her newborn. “Rosie?” Almost everypony in the room asked. “Is what we decided to name our baby girl. We named her on the way over here while passing a rose garden full of flowers and roses funny enough.” Fluttershy explained. "I wanted to name her Discord Jr personally but I can tolerate naming this angel after a flower,” Discord said. “Well with that being said, can we see this baby pony already?” Rainbow Dash asked. Within seconds after Rainbow Dash said to see the baby, Fluttershy, and Discord seemed a little on edge, as if they were scared to show her to the group. “Is something wrong Fluttershy?” Twilight asked. “Well…uh…we didn’t…want this to freak anypony out but…Rosie’s….she’s…not….a pony.” Fluttershy said, reverting to her shy, quiet voice. To everypony else, that was code for something wasn’t right. “So is she a draconequus Daring?” Rarity asked. “Not…not exactly.” Discord responded as Fluttershy held their baby for her friends to see and what they saw shocked them. “She’s a hybrid sugar cube?” Applejack asked. “Yes, she is. When Discord and I first saw her, the doctors had no idea what to do since they’d never treated a draconequus before, let alone a hybrid.” Fluttershy explained. “She has to be the first of her kind then.” Twilight said. “We did want to ask if there were any records on her species before but I think that answers the question.” Fluttershy said. “This hasn’t happened at all in Equestria. Not to my knowledge. I’m not sure what to call her kind, nor what she could be capable of but we can worry about this later, for now, I think we should just head back to the party.” Twilight said. “I agree.” Fluttershy said as the party continued. The main six along with Discord had a really fun time. Twilight’s planning had come in handy for this. When it was time for the gifts, everypony revealed theirs. Applejack gave a pacifier, Rainbow Dash gave a slightly used baby bottle, Pinkie gave a foal blanket, Starlight and Spike gave a foal toy and Twilight gave her music box. Fluttershy and Discord thought they would be perfect for their little Rosie, who was starting to feel extremely sleepy after a little while. Before the sun had completely set, Fluttershy and Discord had to get going so they said their goodbyes and headed off to their cottage. Later that night… “Feels like forever since we were last here,” Fluttershy said as she held Rosie in her hooves as she and Discord walked up the hill to their cottage. “And that was when we weren’t parents yet,” Discord said. “And I’m already nervous about being a mother,” Fluttershy said with a little hint of fear in her voice. “Well, you’ve been like a mother to those animals for how long? Being a mother to our little Rosie shouldn't be that difficult now should it?” Discord said. “Now since when were you the spirit of wisdom?” Fluttershy asked with a chuckle in her voice. “I guess being a parent does that to you,” Discord said as Fluttershy unlocked the door and the three of them stepped inside. “Now I can roll with this Discord,” Fluttershy said in a teasing voice. “I’m still the spirit of chaos and disharmony you know! I’m a chaotic creature and I always will be!” Discord said as Fluttershy set Rosie on the couch. “Witch is one of the many reasons why I love you,” Fluttershy said as she and Discord leaned in for a kiss on the cheek. "Now shall we head to bed?” Discord asked as he gave a little yawn. “Wait, I forgot the crib!” Fluttershy exclaimed. “You do remember that I can snap my fingers to make one appear, right?” Discord asked. “I don’t think that’ll be necessary right now. Perhaps she can sleep with us until I can go to the market.” Fluttershy suggested. “Fine by me,” Discord said as Fluttershy brought Rosie upstairs to her and Discord’s bedroom. She then placed her down in between her and Discord as they both got ready for bed and all three of them fell asleep, not knowing what they were in for in the very distant future. Author's Note Hello everyone. That was the first chapter to "The Daughter Of Chaos" and the first chapter to an amazing story. I just wanted to say that working with @Rosiemlp herself has been amazing. She's incredibly talented at her artwork and for her to make the cover to this story and to give permission for me to use her characters is really amazing. I can't thank her enough for any of this really. I would highly recommend you check her out over on her socials as she makes some pretty good content. Lastly, it's been an amazing opportunity to be working on this story and I can't wait for all of you to see what's next. That's all I have for now and I'll see you in the next chapters. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 2: The Curtain Fall //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 2: The Curtain Fall 5 years later… It was a beautiful day. The sun was shining down to camp, the birds were chirping and I was very nervous. “Rosie…ROSIE!” I heard one of my friends yell into my ear as I started to focus again. “Hun? What? What did I miss?” I asked, not knowing what was going on. “I was asking if you were ready to perform. We’re most likely going to be the next ones up daring.” My friend, Sapphire Gem said. “I’m all ready for this! Plus I just love the song ya’ll pick out.” My other friend, Pastel Apple responded in a very excited voice. “Do…we have to go up there? I’m already nervous about this you know.” I said as I rested my head on the not-so-comfortable table. “Oh come on Daring, we’ve been rehearsing this song since we first arrived at camp,” Sapphire said. “I know, it’s…it’s just that…that…” I was about to explain. “Oh I see what’s going on here sugar cube, you’ve caught a bad case of stage fright,” Pastel asked as she was very much correct, even if I didn’t want to say it. “What…what are you talking about? Of course, I don’t have…stage fright!” I said in a quieter voice when it happened. “Next up, Pastel Apple, Sapphire Gem, and Rosie with ‘The Land Of Equestria’!” The camp counselor said as I froze. “Really? Then how about us three walk up to that stage and perform our little song?” Pastel said as I didn’t move. I’m not sure what it was. Maybe it was that stage fright thing Pastel mentioned but whatever it was, I just couldn’t move. “We do need to go up darling and we can’t do that without our lead singer,” Sapphire said. “Like…right…now?” I asked in a nervous voice. “When else? Come on!” Pastel said even though I didn’t want to follow them up to the top of that big, scary stage, I had no other choice but to follow them. “And a 1 and a 2 and an apple that’s blue!” Pastel said as we started to perform our song for the talent show. Pastel started to play the song on her guitar, Sapphire was playing…whatever that silver triangle was but for me….I was…well…I…I had….to…sing. I didn’t wanna sing, or to be on stage but…I wasn’t that good with an instrument…so Pastel and Sapphire put me front and center. I’m not entirely sure what changed, how I did what I did but all I can remember was me singing our song. “Equestria, the land I love, a land of harmony!” That was all the lyrics I could remember. When the song was done, I felt…different, like I had gotten over being on stage. Just then, the other ponies started to clap as my friends looked…off. “What’s the matter?” I asked. “It’s…your…cutie mark,” Pastel said. “Why, it’s marvelous!” Sapphire said as I looked over and where a cutie mark would be, there was a single rose. I had done it. I had earned my cutie mark…by singing...by my biggest fear. “I got my cutie mark!” I exclaimed as I jumped up and down over and over again. I couldn't wait to show it off to my other friends, my parents and everypony else! However, something…else happened. As we were exiting the stage, I was too excited to see where I was going. I’m still a bit fuzzy on how it happened but I’m guessing that I thought the next step was closer than it was, causing me to fall and land on my face. “And everypony laughed at me. I was so embarrassed! I never want to go on another stage again” I exclaimed as I cried into my pillow. “Well, think of the positives today Rosie, you earned your cutie mark while conquering your fears.” My mommy said as she and Daddy sat down on my bed. “But I still embarrassed myself in the process,” I said. “I never want to go on another stage again!” “Would it be a bad time to mention tomorrow?” My daddy said as I looked up from my pillow. “What?” I asked. “I’m joking. I’m joking.” My daddy said as he chuckled a little. “What your father means to say is that you should be proud to have not only earned your cutie mark but also conquered your stage fright today. Not even I could have done that so long ago.” My mommy said. “Besides, you're still our little princess,” Daddy said. “Yeah, the princess of disaster!” I said as my head fell to my blanket. I don’t know how long it was, maybe a few seconds but then, something happened. “Hold on, I think I know what’ll make you feel better.” Mommy said as she then left the room. A few minutes later, she came back with this…odd thing she was holding in her right hoof. “What’s that mommy?” I asked as mommy set the thing down next to me. This thing had a mini version of Mommy and Daddy on the top of it, a pink butterfly jewel in the middle and it had a yellow color scheme. “It’s a music box your aunty Twilight made for you when you were born.” Mommy said as she pushed a button and this music box started to play. “Hush now, quiet now, don’t you worry about your little fell, hush now quiet now, it’s all going to be good now.” Mommy and Daddy started to sing along to the music box and their words started to make me feel a little better as they went on. I couldn’t remember a lot of the words but..they made me feel better. “I…I guess that makes me feel better but I still don’t want to set a hoof on a stage” I said as I started to feel a little tired. “I think you’ll feel a little better in the morning Rosie, besides, it is getting rather late, you should head to bed. You don’t want to be tired for your last day of Friendship Camp do you?” Daddy said. “Well, we're making smores tomorrow so not at all!” I said with excitement in my voice. “Well, goodnight my little Rosie.” Mommy said as she tucked me into bed and turned out the lights as she along with Daddy left the room. I then grabbed the music box and set it on top of my dresser as I looked at it some more before falling asleep very shortly afterward. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 3: Meet and Greet's //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 3: Meet and Greet's 11 years later… “Bag, check, books, check, scroll and quill, check, I should be all ready to go!” I said in a very happy voice as I placed my books, scrolls, and quills into my school bag. Just as I was all ready to go, my mother came into my room. “Looks like some ponies ready for her first day of school already.” Mom said as she stood in the doorway, letting out a little chuckle. “Yeah, I might be just a little bit ready,” I said in a slightly shy voice. “But you know that I’m not exactly a pony, right Mom?” I said as my mother looked a little…sad. “Oh, sorry, It’s just a little more natural to me, besides, you already have the features and the heart of a pony Rosie.” Mom said. “Yeah, yeah,” I said as I put my last few essentials into my bag and just like that, I was all ready for school. “Do you need me or Dad to walk, or teleport you to school?” Mom asked as I chuckled a little. “Mom, the school is just beyond Aunt Twilight’s old castle, I think I can go that distance by myself,” I said in a reassuring tone. “I know, it’s…not every day my little girl gets so independent. It feels like yesterday I was singing you bedtime lullabies so you could sleep at night and now you're walking to school all on your own. It’s quite an adjustment” Mom said in her quiet voice. “Oh, you're going to make me blush. Besides Mom, I’ll be fine, you know the critters need your care, especially with the new litter of bunnies,” I said. “Well you are right, but before you head off to school, we need to take another family portrait.” Mom said as I rolled my eyes. “Again? What is it, every new school year?” I asked in a slightly annoyed voice as my father then appeared in my room. “Well, your mother likes to take them, Rosie. Unless you want her to give you the stare…” My dad said as I reluctantly agreed. It may be funny to see her use the stare on the animals but it wasn’t fun to be on the other end of it I can say. Dad then used his chaos magic to make a camera appear as we took a few family pictures. “Have a good day at school Rosie!” My parents said as Dad used his magic and made a tissue appear and blew his nose loudly. I double-checked my bag and just like that, I was off on my own to my second home, the School Of Friendship. Oh, Hi there. I can’t believe I almost forgot to introduce myself properly to you. My name is Rosie, daughter of Fluttershy, the kindest pony I know and one of the elements of harmony and Discord, the spirit of chaos and disharmony. It’s kinda funny how they ended up together now that I think about it. Just like my mother, I love to take care of animals, mostly at her animal sanctuary on the weekends, and just like my father, I love making and causing pure chaos anytime I can, like pulling pranks on anypony or something like that. I’ve gotten in trouble for it so I don’t pull pranks that often. Something else that I've picked up is a little talent for singing, mostly because it’s how I got my cutie mark so long ago and because…I just feel…me whenever I’m singing. I occasionally sing but I mostly keep it behind closed doors because…it might be obvious but I’m not exactly a pony of the spotlight…or a hybrid of the spotlight. I..I don’t want to go into that rabbit hole right now, I’m not exactly…ready to talk about it with you or anypony just yet. It’s too embarrassing for me. I’m just lucky I was born during a time when other creatures besides ponies roam Equestria. Speaking of, I finally get to reunite with my best friends since we’ve all been busy over the summer. I don’t know about you but the best part about school is your friends for me that is. The schoolwork can be somewhat enjoyable but my friends are the best part of any school day. I wish I could speak a little longer about myself but that’s all I have for now so I’ll continue the story as to where we left off. After a fairly short walk, I arrived at the School Of Friendship just a few minutes before the first bell. It’s quite surprising that my mother and my aunts worked here so long ago and just how much it’s stayed the same over the years. I then opened the doors to the school and found it was just as packed as the previous year. “Some things don’t change.” I thought to myself as I trotted through the packed hallways until I saw some very familiar faces. “Ponies, Rosie’s here! SHE’S HERE!” One of my friends by the name of Strawberry Swirl exclaimed as she started to jump up and down. “Girls!” I said as I rushed to my friends. “Hurtful.” Another one of my friends whose name was Comet Star said in his lower voice. “I’ve missed you all so much!” I said as we all came for a group hug. “We’ll we’ve missed you as well Daring,” Sapphire said in a cheerful voice as we disbanded from the hug. “So, how was your summer girls?” I asked. “Busy, being a student of Twilight is harder than you would imagine.” Another one of my friends, Luster Dawn, said, “Well, I’m just happy that she sent you to Ponyville! Now you can go to school here!” I said in a very happy voice. “I bet being a student wasn’t as bad as Wonderbolt camp. I still have cramps in my wings.” The last of our friends in our friend group by the name of Zap Apple said. “Being the daughter of a world-class fashion designer has been rather helpful with learning a few tricks with sowing,” Sapphire said. “OHH, working with my mom has been WONDERFUL! Who knew that I and her worked so well when there’s, flour, tasty frosting, and cupcakes involved?” Strawberry exclaimed very fast and very loudly. "Pastel and I have been learning how to play the guitar and it’s been rather enjoyable. I’m currently at the top of my after-school class not to brag.” Comet said. “Speaking of daring, what did you do over the summer?” Sapphire asked as I froze. “Uh…I…just…helping out my Mom at the animal sanctuary,” I said. “Speaking of, is your brother still at Twilight’s school?” I asked Luster, thinking of something to shift the conversation over. “For a while. I never knew how much better it is being an only child.” Luster responded as in a few seconds, every creature started to walk toward the front of the entrance where another pony who I recognized was approaching the podium. “Welcome every creature to the first day of the new school year!” The pony said who I recognized to be, you guessed it, my other aunt, Starlight Glimmer, and Luster’s mom. “I’m head mare Starlight and before you head off to your first class, I would like to introduce some new changes to this year, starting with new teachers for cooking and sewing,” Starlight said as she explained some of the new changes for the year. There was nothing too noteworthy outside of a few new teachers, Fridays being a little shorter and things like that…until something happened. I’ve tried to understand how it happened for so long, I would replay this moment over and over again, trying to understand what I did to make this happen, but all that I and my parents have figured out was that I started to feel a little…off like there was a swelling in my head. I thought I was just feeling a little light-headed from standing for so long since we were right next to each other or something. I placed my right hoof, or paw I think on my head, not knowing what that would trigger. “Last announcement, all tests this year are going to have a higher point evaluation, it might be a little chaotic for a while but it should even out” Starlight was explaining when it happened. Just then, Starlight felt a drop on her head. “Who did that?” Starlight said as she looked around the room, and then looked up. Within seconds, chocolate rain then began to pour from the ceiling, completely covering her as every creature started to back away. “What…how is that here?” Starlight exclaimed as she used her horn and zapped the cloud, causing it to disappear. “What…what was that?” Starlight asked as she looked around the room. I’m still fuzzy on this part but from what I can tell, I placed my right hoof back on the floor, and another chocolate rain cloud then appeared and I’m guessing that took it out of me as in a few seconds, I was passed out on the floor as I could only hear my name for a few seconds, then I was out cold after that. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 4: Abilities And Unwanted Responsibilities //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 4: Abilities And Unwanted Responsibilities I had no idea what happened. Even now, I’m still fuzzy on what happened. I know I somehow created the chocolate cloud, caused it to pour on Aunt Starlight and I passed out in the process but I still didn’t know anything. How? How could some hybrid know what happened, yet not know everything at the same time? How was that possible? These questions were like a mark on my brain. No matter how long it was, they wouldn’t go away, no matter how much I wanted them gone, they didn’t go. I don’t know how long I was passed out but after some time, I awoke in some sort of hospital room. I was in a bed with the sheets tucked in and there were some machines next to me, making sure I was alright I’m guessing. The room was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop if I had a pin to drop that is. Before I could look around the room, the door to my room opened and a nurse came inside. This nurse had a yellow coat with a yellow mane and a rose in her mane and she was wearing a typical nurses outfit with a nurse hat as well. “Ms Roise, glad to see you awake.” The nurse said in a relieved voice. “What…what happened?” I asked, still not knowing what fully happened at school. “From what seemed to be your friends, they said that you were getting light-headed, a pink cloud appeared, and then you passed out from said cloud. The head mare then called us and we brought you here a few hours ago.” The nurse explained as I felt exhausted from hearing the whole story. “Oh, before I forget, you have a few visitors who identify themselves as your parents, shall I let them in?” The nurse asked as I hesitated for a moment. “I…I guess so.” I said in a weaker voice as the nurse left the room. A few minutes later, Mom and Dad then came into the room with the nurse. “Here she is. I’ll leave you three alone.” The nurse said as she left the room. “Rosie!” Mom exclaimed as she along with Dad rushed over to me and they both hugged me as I could see tears foaming from their eyes. “Are you ok? We heard about what happened.” Mom asked me in a worried voice. “Well I’m in a hospital bed, I think I’m a little far from ok,” I said with a little chuckle in my voice. “Well, at least you unlocked your powers in MUCH better circumstances than I would have thought,” Dad said as I froze. “Wait, what?” I asked as Mom looked at Dad. “Discord, don’t you think we should wait to tell her that?” Mom asked as I became more and more confused by the second. “What are you talking about?” I asked. The room became silent again as Mom and Dad looked at each other, gave a nod, and then looked at me. “Rosie, I…I don’t know how to explain this…but…um…you know… you both a…a pony and a draquaquost?” Mom asked me in her quiet voice. “Since as long as I can remember yes,” I responded, not knowing where this was going. “And that there’s not much known about you, or your species yet,” Dad asked as I nodded my head with a little hesitation. “Well, when the doctors were drawing your blood, they noticed that there were…………..traces…………..of your father’s…………chaos magic in………..your…………….blood.” Mom said. “They…noticed that your magic levels were at an all-time high when you created those clouds…so they came to the concussion that they were activated somehow. So in other words, you have my powers, my abilities if you will,” Dad said as the room, along with my face, froze. I didn’t know what to say. I had no idea what to say. I couldn’t think of anything to say. “I have powers?” How does any creature respond to that? What was I supposed to say in this situation? My parents discovered something new and terrifying about my species and I had no idea what to do. “So I can make chocolate rain clouds?” I asked, just trying to say something, even if I knew the answer to the question. “Hey, I only did that once,” Dad said. “Back when you tried to take over Equestria you know.” Mom said. “Yes, yes, quite amazing if I do say so myself,” Dad said as Mom looked at me. “What we mean is that from our understanding, you can do great things with your abilities, things that I could barely think of.” Mom said as I started to process everything fully at that moment. “But…why? Why didn’t you tell me about this?” I asked as Mom and Dad looked down. “We…we didn’t know. Usually, we dranquaquosts unlock powers when we hit our teen years or when we are newborns but we weren’t sure when or if that would happen for you, given that you half dranquaquost, so we waited until this day would come…and…well…today is that day.” Dad explained. “I know it’s a lot to take in sweetie, it’s just as hard for you as it is for us but trust us, we’ll get through it together.” Mom said as she and Dad gave me another hug. “I…I guess I understand.” I said, not understanding at all when the nurse from before along with another doctor came back into the room. This doctor had a blue coat with a brown mane and an orange tail and he was wearing a traditional doctor's outfit. "Pardon me Mr and Ms.s Shy, I’m afraid I have to ask you to leave the room for a few moments for a few more blood tests.” The doctor said as Mom and Dad left the room, leaving me to process everything and I had quite a lot to process. The rest of the day wasn’t super eventful but very eventful at the same time. I got discharged from the hospital after a few more blood tests and I was able to go home with Mom and Dad as they stayed at the hospital until I was released. As we were walking from the hospital, I wasn’t in much of a state to talk right now. I was still trying to wrap my head around my newfound powers…and all the newfound attention I would be sadly receiving. I also wasn’t that much of a talker in general, unless I needed to speak. I’m assuming that Mom and Dad caught on as either one of them didn’t say a word as well throughout the walk back home. Once we did arrive back home at the cottage, I went straight for my room, I closed the door and proceeded to lie down on my bed. “Why did this happen to me? I never wanted powers! I never wanted to be this…hybrid! Why couldn't I have been just a regular earth pony? Why couldn’t I have just been a normal, happy pony instead of a shy, loser hybrid??” I exclaimed over and over out loud and in my head as my eyes started to turn pink and a few small, clear, and sorrowful tears began to fall from my eyes and landed on my sheets and my pillows one at a time. I wanted to cry ever since Mom and Dad told me the painful truth but I just couldn’t…not in front of them…now, I have all the time in the world to cry...and you saw that’s exactly what I did. After a while, my tears didn’t pour anymore. My eyes were still as pink as my mane highlights and tail and I was still as sad as I could be but I had already cried out what I could, and now all I could do was lay there in my bed….wishing I was somepony else. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 5: Heart To Heart //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 5: Heart To Heart As you may already know, I’m both a pony and a dranquaquost, so I’m sort of the first of my kind as you can figure out. From what I was told, it was front-page news that a new species was born in Equestria from one of the elements of harmony and the spirit of chaos and disharmony. From what I know, it was all everypony could talk about at the time. When I was younger, I wasn’t all that aware of how different I truly was. Granted, I was just a young filly at the time so I wasn’t aware of it myself and so were my friends. We all got along so we didn’t care as to what we looked like or something like that from what I can remember. As I got older, around when I first became a teenager, I started to feel… different…distant…from everypony. It wasn’t that I personally minded being a hybrid back then, it’s just that being one made me feel these thoughts and emotions…and it made me feel far different from everypony else. The older I got, the stronger these emotions became. If it wasn’t for Pastel, Sapphire, or any of my other friends, I never would have made it through school or life. I always tried to be just like everypony else, mostly because I’ve never wanted to stand out, even for a second. I’ve never wanted to be different, or special, even though I guess I was born that way. I just wanted to have a normal life and even my parents wanted that for me. For my entire life, this was how the story went, until today. Now that everypony in the entire school knows how different I truly am, who knows what’s going to happen to me? Will I get recognized by the public? Will I get teased? Will everypony shun me? Reject me? Bully me? Never want to see my ugly, loser face for the rest of there-? I think you…understand my struggles now. It’s not easy being the first of my kind as you can see. I haven’t…opened up like this before, from my experience, it just hurts others. I know it’ll hurt my parents if I say anything about this, I know it’ll hurt my friends so, who else can I tell about this? It’s not often that I break down those mental walls like that so…thanks for…being here. I’ll continue the story if…if I can manage myself. I don’t know how long I was in my room. I didn’t want to see anypony right now. I didn’t even come downstairs for dinner and Tuesday tea, something that I’d never skipped in my lifetime before. I just wanted to stay in my room forever like it was my tomb, in a sense, it sort of was. I spend the hours either looking out the window, crying into my pillow, or playing the music box my parents gave me so long ago. It usually helps me calm down whether I am having a hard time at school, with my friends, or more recently, my identity. However, this was the first time that the music box didn’t fully calm me down. Its tunes made me less sad but they didn’t cheer me up one bit. This wasn’t something that could be fixed with just a song and dance, right? If my most prized possession couldn’t calm me down, even in the slightest bit, what in Equestria could? As the sun’s shift of the day ended and the night’s shift started, I couldn't fall asleep. I tried to fall asleep a few hours prior but I just couldn’t. There were times I couldn't fall asleep before which I’m still not sure as to why I couldn’t but this time, I knew the answer to this reason, I had too much on my mind. As I looked out the window, I saw the backyard with all the animals heading off to bed when I heard a knock on my door. “Rosie?” I heard my mother’s voice say with a soft voice. “I…I don’t want to talk to you and Dad right now!” I exclaimed, sadness visible in my voice. “It’s just me Rosie, for a minute?” Mom asked again. This time, I didn’t respond as I continued to look out the window. Unfortunately, I heard my door open and I knew that my mother was there. I heard her slowly trot over to my bed as I could see her in the windows' reflection. “I said I didn’t want to speak with you right now,” I said as I could see my mother’s reflection looking down at the ground. “All I wanted to do was to check on you. It’s…it’s not often that you skip Tuesday tea.” Mom said as I noticed a small tea set on her back, two cups, and a pot which I’m guessing was filled with tea. “I’m not in the mood for tea,” I said, refusing to look at Mom. “It’s your father’s special tea.” Mom said as I glanced at her reflection to see that she was indeed correct. She had brought my favorite kind of tea, the one that made me forget my worries for a little while...and it was the one that sang one of my favorite tunes. “I don’t…I can’t forget what I’m going through right now, I’ll just hurt more when I remember it again.” I said as Mom sat on a small corner of my bed and she then set the tea down on the floor. “Your father and I were worried about you.” Mom said in her quiet voice. “Why? Because I inherited magic that I never wanted to begin with? Thanks for that.” I said as my volume started to rise a little. “Now everypony in Equestria will know how much of a freak I am,” I said in a lower voice. My room then became more…quiet, as if all noise just ceased to be. My mother then reached down to the ground and then poured herself a small cup of tea. “Did your father ever tell you the story of when he almost disappeared because he lost who he was?” Mom asked as she then took a quiet sip of her tea. “Not that I can remember,” I responded. “It was one of the most special moments that we had together.” Mom said as she told the tale. “Back before you were born and Tuesday tea was just me and your father, he wanted to throw me a tea party for all the care I gave him. While he was shopping for supplies, other ponies told him that we were too different to be friends. So he turned his old, chaotic house into a regular home, just so that I would like it, but I didn't like it. I thought it was too normal…too bland and not at all like Discord. That act of being too normal caused him to slowly fade away as I had to help him get back to being his chaotic self.” My mother said as she finished her tale. “What does this have to do with me? I’ll disappear in a few minutes?” I asked as I could feel my mother’s soft look. “It’s because just like your father and even me one or a few times, you have to be and do you, so what if some ponies judge you? Would you rather be judged for being you than being normal and like everypony else?” Mom asked as I felt her words sink into my brain. “It’s…It’s not that simple. You and even Dad aren't the first of your kind. No matter where I go, I’m always judged, nitpicked, and anything else. “You can’t possibly know what I deal with every single day.” I said as I could see my mother’s reflection looking down again. “I don’t. Neither does your father. We won’t and we will never truly know what life is like for you, but we can change the way it affects you.” Mom said. “I suppose it’s getting late. I’ll…I’ll let you sleep on it.” Mom then grabbed the tea set, placed it on her back, and closed my door. I want to say that I was able to sleep that night, for my and maybe your sake but…I couldn’t. It’s kind of ironic that I couldn’t sleep on what my mother said to me. It’s not that simple of just letting everypony judge me. It seems like the older I get, I…I feel this responsibility to…to…to be representing my kind. It feels like it gets stronger and bigger every day and I just can’t keep up with it anymore. It feels like I'm drowning at a pool with no lifeguard on duty, or I'm falling through a bottomless pit. Maybe I should have asked for a cup of tea, maybe it would have let me rest for a while. If only I could use my chaos magic to turn myself into just a regular Earth Pony, a Unicorn, or a Pegasus, that way I could blend into society instead of being a big, fat, anomaly which now that I think of it…I’m getting ahead of myself. For now, though, I have to face the hardest and worst day of my entire life, the next day. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 6: Unwanted Chaos And Disharmony //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 6: Unwanted Chaos And Disharmony I didn’t want to face everypony yet. I didn’t want to face my parents yet. I never wanted to face everypony after yesterday’s…incident. However, I had the option to stay home as Mom and Dad said at breakfast which I barely stayed for anyway. Yesterday afternoon/evening was hard enough, especially since I had a feeling that Mom or Dad were going to speak to me again, which I also didn’t want to face. I essentially had to pick two, terrible, terrifying, and trembois options. I was going to stay home today for…reasons but I found out that Mom was taking work off today and I knew where that would be going so I chose to go to school, even if it meant seeing everypony again after yesterday. So, I packed my bags, lunch, and all the other things and I headed off to school. Stupid I didn’t have anything I could use to hide my face, or anything for that matter so I made sure to look away at any passing ponies or creatures. I arrived at the school, purposely arriving right when the passing bell rang and I quickly trotted to my first class. I arrived a minute before the bell and I took my seat in the far back of the class as a few other students arrived as well. Among the crowd, I was thankful that I didn’t see any of my friends, I just…It’s weird for me to say this but I just couldn’t face them. I knew that they would talk about yesterday and I didn’t want to talk about it, not yet, I wasn't ready and I’m not sure I would be ready for a good while. A few seconds later, the first bell rang and the class was in session. “Good morning class!” Our professor by the name of Professor Belle said in a very friendly voice. Throughout the class, I was very careful not to look at anypony in the eye and that so far, worked. The second bell rang and I headed off to my next class. This worked out pretty flawlessly until…fourth… period….cooking. That was the class I had right before lunch and guess who was in my class? I guess it was a good thing that I arrived after Pastel and Luster had taken their seats because I didn’t have the strength to talk to them. I took a seat on the other side of the room as the bell rang. “Good morning class, today after we go over some good old safety lessons, we are going to be cooking a beginner dessert, cookies.” Professor Bloom said as we went over some kitchen safety stuff, then, that’s when it happened. Pastel and Luster noticed me. When I was looking at the board, I let my guard slip as we both made eye contact. I was quick to look away but I feared that it was already too late, and it was. After that, Professor Bloom said that we could choose our partners for this dish, to which the rest of my table left…and was replaced with Pastel and Luster. “Rosie, I’m sure glad you're doing better from yesterday,” Pastel said as she took a seat. “We were so worried about you, everypony was,” Luster added as I shied away from them. “Oh…th…thanks guys,” I whispered. “Is something wrong Rose? You're shy but you're not this shy towards us.” Pastel asked as I thought of something. “They don’t fully know what happened.” I thought to myself as I then let down my guard to look at them. “It’s…it’s nothing. Just…just a little shaken up from…the cloud.” I said in a not-so-convincing voice. “Well, what matters now is that you're alright. Now, shall we get cooking?” Luster said as the three of us then got to work on our assignment. Throughout the class, it didn’t seem like Pastel or Luster knew about my…abilities yet. I wasn’t particularly proud of the fact that I kept something like that from my best friends but on the other hoof, I just wasn’t ready to talk about it or even try to use them yet. After a good, pretty stress-free class, the bell rang and it was time for lunch. The three of us headed off to the cafeteria as we took a nearby table and in a few minutes, everypony else sat down. “Rosie darling! Glad to see you ok!” Sapphire said as all of my other friends said the same general thing. I wish I could say that they were correct but you know, I wasn’t completely ok. “And that’s when I said, ‘I don’t like vanilla,” Zap said as she started to tell this story she had in the first period. Lunch was just about to end when I reached over and took a sip of water when I felt…it again. I looked down and noticed something… different about my hoof. These purple sparks were coming out of my hoof like some sort of spell but I wasn’t too sure. I quickly moved it under the table to avoid anypony looking at it and continued like normal…until I felt something on my head. “Uh, sugar cube, there’s another chocolate cloud…over ya.” Pastel said as I looked up…and it started to rain. I quickly moved away from the cloud as it didn’t follow me…not before it completely drenched me and my mane completely. “Wow, I didn’t know you were under the weather.” Strawberry said as she along with the rest of my friends had worried looks on their faces. “Are you ok Rosie?” Zap asked me. “Yeah, just a little wet.” I said as I wiped off some of the chocolate on my forehead. “Who knew this semester would have so much…chaos in it?” Luster said as I started to feel uneasy again. “Uh, I…I have to…bathroom!” I said very quickly, as I got up from our table and made a bolt to the girl's bathroom. I then saw the bathroom door at the end of the hallway and I rushed to it. I was about to open the door when a giant vine appeared out of the floor and blocked the door. “What?” I asked as I tried my hardest to open this stupid door. “Rosie? What’s going on?” I heard my friends ask from down the hallway. I want to say that I didn’t panic, I wish I hadn’t panicked at the moment and did something else, like talking it out, but I didn’t think, I just did. “Girls! S…stay back!” I exclaimed as my friends got closer. “Rosie, just calm down, daring!” Sapphire said in a reassuring tone. I didn’t calm down. I was too panicked to calm down. “No, stay back!” I was yelling now as my friends didn’t stay back. I regret doing this to my own family, but I was in a state of panic that I couldn’t control as if that was an excuse for my actions. “I said, STAY BACK!” I yelled as I slammed my hooves on the ground. The ground started to shake, like there was some sort of earthquake going on or a villain rampaging through town, instead, it was me being careless. I didn’t see it happen but from what my friends described, I slammed my hooves on the ground and this giant black vine came out of the ground, right under my friends. I didn’t see it fully but most of my friends flew as they crashed on the floor, not moving an inch. The only one that dodged the vine in time was Zap, guessing Wonderbolt training came in handy there. “Rosie, what in Equestria was THAT?” Zap asked with an impressed, scared, and worried expression on her face. “I…hurt…them.” I said under my breath as I bolted out of the hallway. “Rosie! Come back here!” Zap yelled as she tried to chase after me, though it was too late. I don’t know how I outran the fastest pony I ever knew and saw with my own eyes, but I did…and I hurt every single one of my friends in the process. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 7: Tears And Nightmares //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 7: Tears And Nightmares “I’m a monster,” I repeated to myself as I somehow managed to outrun Zap’s skills and everypony else. How could I have done that? They were only trying to be there for me when I needed them and I hurt them all in the process……or worse. Who does that? What kind of sick, twisted creature besides a villain would do that? Was I now ‘the bad creature’? Did I just earn the worst possible title I could have ever earned? What would my parents think? Why would they ever want to have me as a daughter after I almost killed my friends and everypony I cared about? I’m a monster. I’m a horrible friend. I’m a horrible hybrid. I’m the worst monster Equestria has ever faced. “I’m doomed.” I thought to myself as I had nowhere to go but far away from here. I very quickly found the entrance to the school and I rushed out of the doors as I could feel my eyes starting to tear up. I didn’t care. All I wanted to do was cry for hours and hours into my pillow, even if my parents would be home, I didn’t care. I don’t know just how long I was running for, long enough to know that I wasn’t being followed by anypony, but I reached the cottage as I could see my mother on the side of the house as she was watering the plants. I’m pretty sure that she saw me when I opened the front door but I didn’t care. I rushed upstairs to my room, accidentally slammed my door, and fell onto my bed, crying my eyes out. “I’m a monster,” I said over and over as I kept crying into my bed. I don’t know how long I was crying for, nor do I want to know. What I do know is that when I cried out all the liquid in my body, the sun was starting to set into the evening sky. That’s when I got something that I really, really wasn’t prepared for, a knock on my door. “I…Don’t come in! I mean it!” I exclaimed as I grabbed my music box, having the slightest bit of hope that it would calm me down, at least a little. “Rosie dear, it’s me.” I heard my mother say. “I…I…I’m not in the mood for talking.” I said as my mother slowly opened the door. “Just for a few minutes?” Mom asked as she looked at me with a kind face. “I…I guess.” I said as my mother came into my room and sat on my bed. “Lovely evening, isn’t it?” Mom asked as she pointed to my window. She was right, it was beautiful outside. The sky was a beautiful, golden color, there was a very gentle breeze and the sun was perfectly positioned. “Yeah…I guess it is.” I said as I looked down at my hooves. “Where’s dad?” I asked, trying to make some conversation that I wouldn't feel awful discussing. “He’s at guy’s night with Spike and Big Mac,” Mom said as my room became more silent like some creature was waiting for us to make the next move. “Listen, I know you don’t want to talk about what happened today, or yesterday, I won’t make you. I get it.” Mom said as I looked up from my hooves. “You already heard about how much of a freak I am, haven't you?” I said in my quiet voice. I knew what my mother was about to say: “Yes, yes you are a freak, Rosie.” I could hear it in my head as it echoed through my thoughts like a cave. “You are a freak and you always will be.” Mom then touched my chin with her hoof as she brought my face up to hers. “Nopony or creature has ever even considered you to be anything close to a freak Rosie. I, and your father never considered you a freak since I gave birth to you. Your aunts never considered you a freak, your teachers and your friends never considered you to be one.” My mother said in a very calm, slow, and thoughtful voice. “Then why was I born this way? Why couldn’t I just be a normal pony and act the same as everypony else?” I said as my mother looked at me. “Because you're not like everypony or every creature, you are you, just as much as every creature is themselves. I or your father may not fully understand why you were born as a mix of species, I doubt we will ever know the full reason why. What we do know is that you are a talented hybrid, full of amazing gifts and potential, you just have to see it for yourself.” Mom said as I could feel my eyes start to turn pink, filling with water again. “I…I…I’m not sure what to say next.” I said as my mother pulled me in for a hug. “Everything will be ok Rosie, you just have to take care of yourself and everything will be alright, I know that it will.” Mom said as I pulled away from the hug. “It’s getting late, I’m going to head to bed.” Mom then got off of my bed and I tucked myself in for the night. “Goodnight dear, I better not hear any crying tonight, understand?” Mom asked with a chuckle in her voice. I agreed as she turned out the lights and I drifted off to sleep. . . . “Hello?” Anypony there?” I asked as I was in some sort of dark room. There were no lights in this room, only darkness. “Hello?” I asked as I started to feel a little scared. After a while, I heard hoof steps slowly approaching me. “Hello?” I asked as I could see this pony more clearly…or I should say I could see my mother more clearly. “Hello, freak.” My mother said as I took a few steps back. “Mom? What’s…what’s going on?” I asked. “I’m so disappointed in you.” Mom said as I froze. “What…what did I do? I…I did my chores…” I said. “NO! I’m disappointed because of how much of a FREAK you are!” Mom yelled. “No, NO! Not again!” I exclaimed as I tried to run from my mother when another figure approached me. “Trying to run freak of the week? You know this is the house of freaks, or your house I should say” My father said, disappointed as well. “NO, make it stop!” I yelled as I slammed my hooves on the ground, hoping that would do something. “Trying to use MY magic against me? Pathetic you disgusting hybrid.” Dad said as he then held six other ponies in his left claw and what looked like a potion in the other claw. “Choose, your friends and your freakish life, or watch them die and become a regular pony!” Dad yelled as he then let out a villianish laugh. “No! I won’t choose!” I yelled back. “TOO BAD!” Dad yelled as he then let go of my friends and this potion. “No!” I yelled as I slammed my hooves into the ground, hoping that I would summon something safe for them to land on. Instead, I summoned the same vines from before as they all landed on the vine's spikes...deciding their fate. “NOOOOO!” I exclaimed as I ran to check on them when they then disappeared into thin air. “Make this stop! Make this stop!” I yelled as I heard both my mother and father laughing. "Look at the poor freak! Glad I'm not a hybrid!" My mother said as the room started to spin, when something unexpected happened. I woke up from that...nightmare, my blankets were covered in sweat and I was gasping for air. “I still am the permanent freak of the week,” I said to myself in a quiet voice. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 8: Solutions And Revolutions //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 8: Solutions And Revolutions Ok, I bet you have a few questions. First, I knew my mother was trying to help me. Second, I was an idiot for not listening to her, taking her advice, and seeing it for myself and yes, that dream multiplied my anxiety and fears, by quite a lot. I knew my mother meant well and I tried to consider her words, but I just couldn’t. I don’t know why, but once I woke up from that nightmare, it was like my progress had been reset. It was hard to remember a single word that she said to me and I felt like a horrible creature for doing that, even if I could rewind time just not to make that mistake again. Regardless, I was fearing the worst today, I still had no information on the aftermath of what happened yesterday. “Were my friends going to be alright? Were my friends even going to see me as their friend? ” Those were the biggest questions on my mind and I knew that they were going to be answered, in the worst way I could imagine. The morning sun then came out from behind the green and light blue hills as I awoke from its bright light. As I was getting out of bed, Mom and Dad then came into my room out of nowhere. “Morning sleepyhead, glad your feeling better. We have a big day today!” My Mother said in a very excited voice. “Uh, what’s…what’s going on?” I said while rubbing my eyes, trying to wake myself up. “Oh, don’t you remember? The school passed the fliers out like three times, it's Friends And Family Day today.” Dad said as I froze. “Wait? That’s today?” I asked, very panicked by the thought. “Yes, it is. Unless our little flower doesn’t want her parents or her caretakers to come and attend this amazing event?” Dad asked as he then made a tissue and started to blow his nose and wipe his tears. “Well…no…but-” I said. “Great!” Dad said as he then snapped his fingers and all three of us were at the school before I had the chance to blink. “Could you have waited until I got ready first?” I asked as Dad pointed to me. Turns out he got me ready during his snap, my mane and tail were brushed, and my lunch and everything else were already in my bag. Just then, as I was looking around, other parents started to arrive with their kids as well, until some of my friend’s parents started to arrive. The first ones were Applejack and Rainbow Dash…but I didn’t see Pastel Or Zap. “I was wondering when you three would show up,” Applejack said with a positive face. “I swear, it’s been forever since we last attended one of these,” Rainbow said. “Well, life does get busy, especially when the fillies arrive,” Dad said. “I’m still not used to this Discord being so…nonchaotic,” Applejack said. “I’m still chaotic, I just have a very kind child, life does that to you,” Dad said with a very clear voice. “Freaky,” Rainbow said as the two’s attention then turned to me. “So what’s been going on with you sugarcube?” Applejack asked me. I tried to think of an answer that didn’t involve…you know…and after a few seconds, I said it. “Uh…just helping out at the sanctuary…yeah,” I said with the most fakest voice I could muster. “Like a mother like a daughter,” Applejack said. “She’s been wonderful with helping around the sanctuary. All of the animals also seem to like her too.” Mom said as she along with Aunt Applejack and Rainbow continued to talk for a little while. After some time, I saw the front doors to the school open, and Aunt Starlight came out with an announcement. “Good morning every creature! Welcome to this year's Family and Friends Day! Parents and students, come inside for today’s agenda!” Aunt Starlight instructed as all of the parents and students, including me and my parents, came into the school’s front doors and we all stood at the front entrance which was covered in decorations for the event. There were balloons and streamers, and in the hallway, there were a few carnival games all around. “As I was saying, for now, feel free to play a game, talk to one another, and just have fun. At around noon, we are having a special event right here at the front entrance that you won’t want to miss. For now, just have a good time!” Aunt Starlight said as every creature then went their ways, including me. I tried to enjoy myself since none of my friends were on my radar yet. A few hours went by, I played Pin the Tail on the Donkey, tried a cheesy cheese sandwich, and all the other party things. From the looks of it, it seemed like Aunt Pinkie and Cheese Sandwich helped with this party just a little bit. However, no matter how much I wanted this break, this peace to last forever, it had to end eventually. As I was walking around, I thought I heard something odd, I turned around and didn’t see anything…but rather I accidentally bumped into some creature. “Sorry, I wasn’t looking where…I…was going.” I said as the pony turned around…and it was some pony I knew. “Rosie! I didn’t know you were coming!” Strawberry said in a lower, yet still excited voice. “Oh…hey Strawberry.” I said as I noticed more of our friends as they too noticed my presence. “Rosie, Strawberry, over here darlings!” I heard Sapphire’s voice say as it got closer and closer. “Uh…I think I heard my parents call my name. Gottagorightnow!” I said so quickly that it was hard to hear myself as I sprinted away. “Rosie! Where are you going?” Strawberry asked through the crowd as I ran and ran past the other parents and students. After what I think was a minute of this, I turned a corner and entered the nearest door I saw. I went in and took a second to catch my breath as I looked around. I ended up in our school library where they had a few games and a table for school merchandise. “Well, I suppose I could look for a new book now that I think about it.” I said to myself as I went into the rows of shelves, all filled to the brim with books. After a few minutes of looking around, I ended up on the magic spells shelf, the shelf where all things magic-related were like spells, potions, techniques, and rare creature magic. As I was looking around at the books, I thought about the nightmare I encountered last night. It was only just a nightmare…but how did my Dad in my nightmare know of a way to turn me into a regular Earth Pony? Was that just something I thought of on the fly that didn’t exist? While these thoughts raced through my head, I ended up bumping into another shelf again, and a book came out. I picked it up to put the book back on the shelf when I looked at the book’s cover, and I was shocked. “Transformation Potions For Fillies.” I read the title of the book. “Now this is a book I need to check out.” I said as a million thoughts entered my brain. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 9: Potions And Self Doubt Emotions //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 9: Potions And Self Doubt Emotions I found it. Wait, let me rephrase that: I found the answer to Every. Single. One of my problems. A book that had potions to turn you into another species? This could be everything I ever wanted and more. I would finally be normal, I would finally be accepted, everypony would stop judging me, I could finally be myself and no pony would ever give a flying feather about it for the rest of their lives! Instead of placing the book back on the shelf, I carried it with me to the nearest table and I opened the book up. “Let’s see what you can do for me, potion book,” I said to myself as I opened the book to the table of contents. “Hm, Hippogriff potion, yeah no. Dragon potion, next, please. Ahha! Here we are, Earth Pony potion.” I then flipped to that page in the book as it showed a very simple recipe for this potion. “Ok, one string of DNA, one tear of pure sadness, and finally, one small cup of water then one good stir to mix it all up,” I said as I read the ingredients. It was so simple that I could get all of the ingredients right now. “I’m finally going to be normal for once!” I said as I plucked a string of my mane and put it into a nearby cup. “Wait, do I want to do this?” I asked myself as I was thinking of a sad memory I could use to get a tear. “You may not accept yourself but your parents and your friends do! Do you want to give that up just so that you can accept yourself when everypony else already does?” I kept asking myself these questions to myself as more of them came, the more I started to feel sad. “Rosie, is this what you want?” I heard the same question but this time, it was in my mother’s voice. I looked around, seeing if some creature had noticed me, to which no creature even saw me. “Did I want this?” Was another question that came into my brain a few seconds later. Yes, yes I wanted this. I wanted to stop being a freak, I wanted to be just like everypony else for a change. I could be myself, I could do whatever I wanted, I could finally be the pony I wanted to be and no pony would ever have a reason to ever judge me again for as long as I live! I’m finally up on cloud nine and I’m not coming down! Still, though, these thoughts made me start to water up as I felt a single, lonely tear start to roll down my cheek as I caught it with my hoof. I hesitated to drop it into the cup, I was still holding on to these thoughts, worrying if I was making the right decision. There was no going back this time. There was no known antidote that I thought I needed to worry about but still, even after I thought these thoughts, I was holding on…until I wasn’t. I let myself go as I poured in some water, and then I started to stir the potion as it became a bright green liquid. “This is what I need to do, for me,” I said to myself as I picked up the cup, took a deep breath…………………..and drank the whole thing as fast as I could. For a few seconds, nothing happened. Nothing changed about me physically or emotionally. Did the potion…not work? Impossible. It had to work! I needed this to work! After a few seconds, however, then….it happened. My eyes were closed throughout what I think was the transformation as it was, not one of the worst, the worst physical pain I’ve ever been through in my entire life. I fully don’t remember much about what happened at that moment, it’s probably for the best that I don’t remember it completely anyway. I remember screaming, I remember I was in complete agony, I remember hearing some other ponies rushing towards me, trying what they could do to help but the one thing I can’t forget about that moment was hearing my parents voices. To this day, I still don’t know how they got there so quickly. Maybe my Dad sensed it somehow, maybe Mom had a feeling, I can’t be sure. What I am sure of was that I was knocked out because of this potion, I remember I collapsed onto the floor, not knowing what I had just done to myself as everything went black. . . . Like my nightmare from last night, the one where my fears multiplied by a thousand, I was in a dark room. I couldn't tell where there was a wall, or where a wall would end and another one would begin. There was no pony in the room beside me as I was all alone, maybe this dream and the real world weren’t so different in the end, but I was feeling the same emotions as I did a few moments ago. “Hello?” I asked as my voice echoed through the room just as something happened. “Oh goodie, you're finally awake.” I heard a voice say from…somewhere in this dark room. “Who….who’s…there?” I fearfully asked, my fear visible between my words. “You.” The voice said as what appeared to be a pony came into my ray of vision. “Who…..are….you…..?” I asked as I was able to see this pony more clearly…or I should say I was able to see myself more clearly. “WHO AM I? Why I’m none other than you freak.” My other self said as I took a few steps back. “Wh…at? H….How?” I asked, not being able to say a single word or sentence. “Well, I’m not you, you. I’m just a figment of your inner thoughts that you’ve built up over your life but mostly the past few days.” My inner thoughts said with a visible chuckle in…her…or their voice. I can’t tell anymore. “So…where am I?” I asked as I feared that I already knew the answer. “Why, you’re too slow to figure it out for yourself. A freak like you would know that you’re in your mind. That’s why it’s so…empty and…alone here.” My inner thoughts said in a very annoying voice. I tried to say something…anything in response…but I couldn’t think of anything. I couldn’t even tell if this was real or not. I felt real, everything looked real, my inner thoughts looked real…but was any of this real? Why would my inner thoughts be doing this? I had so many questions…and yet, I had a feeling that I knew part of the answer all along. “What’s the matter? Too scared to talk? Want to shy away and hide away from other ponies and creatures? We really are the daughters of that shy, sweet, and cowardly Stuttershy.” My thoughts said as they let out a very confident laugh. Upon hearing this, I don’t know what came over me, or what came out of my mouth but I just let my thoughts out in one fell swoop. “DON’T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT MY MOTHER LIKE THAT!!” I shouted at the top of my lungs. “Wow, Fluttershy Jr is standing up for herself. I am surprised.” My inner thoughts said with a sprinkle of surprise in her voice. Just then, she raised her hoof, and a split second later, I was trapped inside some kind of cage. “What..what just happened? What did you do?” I exclaimed to my inner thoughts. “You do forget that this is your mind right? I’m in control here and you're just a little weakling, not a big surprise though. It’s not like you’ve ever not been one, am I right?” My inner thoughts then laughed until they let out a cough as she then started to trot away and stopped. “Why…why are you doing this?” I asked as that question was the only thing I could think of to ask myself, though I feared that I already knew the answer. “I suppose you should know, I can do everything you can, but better, so I think it’s time I keep my true self away and let my fears take the wheel from now on.” My inner self then laughed as she started to trot away. “I’m a loser in the real world and I’m a loser in my mind,” I said to myself as something came across me. This was my mind, right? If my inner thoughts could control this place, maybe I could do the same…but how? I took a deep breath and tried my best to break through the iron cage but it was to no avail. I was still trapped. I then felt something in my eye, like I was going to cry again. I then lifted my hoof to my face, rubbing my eyes when I saw some sort of dent in the bars. I looked over and one of the bars in the cell had moved, right when I moved my hoof. “Wait, that’s it!” I exclaimed. I then took a deep breath, cleared my thoughts, only thinking about escaping this cell, and moved my hooves. Instantly, the bars started to move to my will as I bent them in a way that created a hole just big enough for me to fit through. I then climbed out of the said hole and escaped, for a few seconds. “I should have known you would find your way out of there.” My inner thoughts then appeared in front of me, with a very angry look on her face. “You can’t keep me here forever,” I said with what I think was confidence in my voice, something that I’d rarely had before. “Actually, I CAN.” My inner thoughts yelled as she then fired a laser at me that I didn’t see…until it was too late. …? //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 10: Self Battle //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 10: Self Battle “Get up Rosie, get up!” I heard my father’s voice say over and over again as I kept hearing this loud ringing in my ears like a clock had just struck noon. I was able to open my eyes ever so slightly as I got back up on my four legs. Let’s see, I was trapped within my mind, my fears, inner thoughts, and doubts were trying to lock me up and they just struck me down as I got back up, ready to fight. “Poor little Rosie, too weak to face herself. Pitiful.” My inner thoughts said as I saw that I was still in the dark room my mind had become. “What…what…happened,” I said as I slowly started to remember everything that just happened a few moments ago which didn’t take too long for me. “Took you long enough. I was starting to get rather bored.” My inner thoughts said as I looked her straight in the eye. “I…I can’t…I don’t want to fight…you? Myself?” I said as my inner thoughts looked at me, then laughed. “I should have known that I would be so kind…TOO kind. Here, Fluttershy Jr, let me show you how I fight.” My inner thoughts said as she summoned a few big rocks, and then proceeded to fire them towards me. Luckily, I remembered that I was also in control of my mind as you would guess. I was then able to transform the rocks into whatever I thought of. I turned the first rock into an ice cream Sundae, then the second rock into a banana, and so on. My inner thoughts kept throwing attacks at me and I kept dodging them all at once. It was almost as if I was finally getting used to my powers…maybe…was…was I using my powers and abilities…for good? If I didn’t have these powers…I don’t think I could have stood a chance against myself. Could I have been…wrong all this time? “NO, impossible, HOW?” My inner thoughts yelled as I kept getting closer to her as she tried to back away. “You hated the mere thought of your powers! How are you doing this??” “Maybe so, but at least I can use them to stop you!” I said as I held my hooves at the ready and guided my inner thoughts into a corner, ready to defeat her for good. “I would…rethink that…bold statement.” My inner thoughts said as she then let out an evil laugh. I was confused…but a few seconds later, she then tilted the floor, it was too fast for me to process in time before I could even think of flying away, causing me to fall and land in another cage. “I have to admit, you were tougher for a stupid, shy, and pathetic hybrid, it’s a real shame that all good things...” My inner thoughts said as she then kept reinforcing the cage. I kept trying to escape, making as many holes in the cage as I could but she was too powerful, she knew how to handle chaos magic far better than me, making all my attempts to get out almost impossible. “MUST COME TO AN END!” My inner thoughts yelled as she finished reinforcing the cage, locking me in...for good. “You…won’t get away with this! Our parents and friends will know something's off. They all know me better than anypony!” I shouted as my inner thoughts smiled. “Will they? Who’s been spending so much time…away…from them? Who’s been the one ignoring their words that would have…oh, I don’t know, prevented me and this? Who’s been doing that?” My inner thoughts asked with a smile. I…I was speechless…because I know how right my thoughts were. I was the one ignoring my parents and my friends, I only hurt them in the process. They only wanted the best for me, they tried to help me when I needed it the most…and what did I do? I acted out like a foal, tried to change who I was, injured my friends, and hurt my parents when all they wanted was the very best for me. What kind of creature does that possibly make me? Not a good one I know, one that belongs in the pits of Tartarus for sure. “That’s what I thought. After all, you can’t defeat yourself, or your fears and doubts. Not even with the little song and dance you put up.” My inner thoughts said as something else happened. I remembered. My life didn’t flash before my eyes like I thought it would, but one memory did. I was telling the story of how I got my cutie mark to my parents. I was embarrassed that I fell off the stage, claiming that I’d never go on a stage again. I’m still sad to say that claim is true to this day as I still fear the stage but for a slightly different reason. My mother then showed me the music box of her and Dad as she and Dad started to sing along to the song. I had heard the lyrics before, even very recently…but I never could remember them all, until this moment. “Hush now, quiet now, don’t you worry about your little fell, hush now quiet now, it’s all going to be good. Hush now, quiet now, we’ll be here to give you cheer, hush now quiet now, it’s time to go and beat your fear. It all works out in the end.” I kept singing the song over and over again as I looked down at the cage. It began to shake as if an earthquake was going on and within moments, my singing had broken the cage, setting me free at last. “What…? How? You should be powerless?” My inner thoughts yelled as I stopped singing. “I may not be able to defeat you once and for all, and you may be able to return whenever you want, but I can be sure you don’t control any more of my life than you already have!” I shouted as a bright yellow glow then illuminated my body as my inner thoughts were trying to break through. “This…isn’t…OVER!!” My inner thoughts yelled as my energy then pushed her far away to…wherever she went as I felt…happier. I felt more comfortable in my skin, I could feel myself smiling, and more importantly, the endless thoughts and doubts I had about being the first of my kind…well…weakened. I felt…as If I was going to wake up from my mind. I don’t yet know if this was all a dream just yet…all that I knew was that I had a lot of apologies to make…and I knew the first eight creatures I needed to apologize to first. //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 11: Finally Me...And A Disagreeing //-------------------------------------------------------// Chapter 11: Finally Me...And A Disagreeing “Is my baby going to be ok doctor?” Was the first thing I heard since my battle with my inner thoughts. The ringing in my ears was back, though less loud than before, and just like during my battle, my eyes were a little blurry. After a few seconds, my vision returned to normal as I awakened in another hospital room. “Ugh…what…what happened?” I asked as I saw every creature that I wanted to see. My Mom and Dad were sitting right next to me, my friends were right beside me and I noticed that they each had roses in their hooves. I never really addressed it but I knew why they had Roses because they were my favorite type of flower. What, did you think I liked Roses just because my name is Rosie? You wouldn’t be wrong but it wasn’t the main reason. “Rosie!” My mother exclaimed as she and Dad then gave me a very much-needed hug when I noticed a few bags around their eyes. I never really asked about it but they looked rather tired, as if they hadn’t slept in a while. “What’s going on…? What are you all doing here?” I asked, knowing the answer to my question as Strawberry took a very deep breath. “So-what-happened-was-that-you-drank-this-drink-that-tried-to-turn-you-into-somepony-else-annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd-then-you-were-here-and-we-weren't-sure-if-you-would-be-ok-so-we-all-got-roses-for-you-since-we-knew-you-would-like-them,” Strawberry said in less than a second as she stared to gasp for air. “What?” I asked as I barely caught a single word Strawberry said. “It’s…a little more than that.” My father said with a soft smile on his face. “We're just glad you’re alright sugar cube.” Pastel said as all my friends then gave me a needed hug. Right after, my friends were then requested to leave the room as it was just me and my parents in my room. “So…I’m guessing you already know part of the story?” Mom asked as she and Dad looked down at the floor. “Yeah…and I’m…I’m so, so sorry.” I apologized as my Mom gave me another hug. “It’s ok Rosie. It’s ok.” Mom said as she let go of the hug. “I thought that changing my species would…make me normal for once, I…I…I just didn’t want to be…a freak anymore,” I said as I felt tears starting to form in my eyes. “Why would you ever think that? You’re not and will never be a freak, Rosie, you're a gift. You’re a gift to the world, to your friends, and us. You are the last thing that any creature would consider ‘a freak’ but you are a beautiful gift, no matter what you feel inside.” My mother’s words felt different compared to the last few times we spoke in my bedroom. Instead, they felt…complete, as if I was finally ready to listen to them…and I let them sink into my heart this time, something I should have done a while ago. “I…I needed to…to hear that.” I said I did what I needed to do, I gave my mother the best hug I could have given her, and she gave me another one right back. After what felt like a few hours, maybe a few minutes, I didn’t know, Mom and Dad then looked at each other, as if they had planned something. After me and Mom broke our everlasting hug, it happened. “Listen, Rosie, there…there is something else that…happened that day.” Dad said as he told me something truly devastating.” “Right after you passed out from drinking that potion, all of us rushed you to the hospital, the doctors then said that your chaos magic was…lowering. The doctors determined that your body needed my chaos magic to stay alive, it was essentially your species' blood and you were losing your blood the more you started to turn into an Earth Pony. Your tail was turning into a regular ponytail, your wings were disappearing and eyes your eyes were changing, I…I couldn’t let that happen to my little princess so…” My Dad then stopped mid-sentence as he looked down at the ground, preparing himself for whatever he was about to say. I could see a few tears starting to form around his face. “So…what?” I asked in a quiet voice. “I…I had, there was no other option to save you. Right when it seemed that we were going to lose you……….for good…….I…………sacrificed…………………………all………………….of my chaos magic……to save you.” My Dad said as he and my mother looked down at the floor. My……heart then sank into my body and started to burn like a fire, as if I was having a heart attack, but…but I wasn’t. Instead, I was having an emotional heart attack. How does one respond to this? My father sacrificed his magic, something that made him special, something that was exclusive to him years ago, for me. I…I felt terrible. I felt…sad and weaker somehow. I didn’t know how to respond to that. “I…I caused that?” I asked in a very weak, quiet, and low voice. “Oh no, I’m not letting you take the fall for this one Rosie. I would have given my essence if it meant you could stay alive. Besides, we all make mistakes.” Dad said in a very clear voice as my Mother looked at me. “Your father did a very noble thing to save you, there’s nothing to feel sorry about.” Mom said as her words sank in. “I…I just feel bad that you did all of this…because of my actions.” I said as both Mom and Dad gave me yet another hug, that seemed to be a trend today. “We all make mistakes Rosie, what matters is that we learn from them and grow as a result.” Mom said as her words made me feel better…complete if you will. Just then, a darker yellow pony with a yellow mane and purple highlights along with a rose in her hair came into the room. “Mr and Ms Shy, I’m afraid I’m going to ask you to leave for one more blood test.” The nurse said as Mom and Dad then left the room. “Is everything going to be ok?” I asked the nurse out of the blue as she was checking my heart rate. “Don’t worry, you’re in good hooves, Rosie.” The nurse said as she started to…do something to test my blood. “You know, those two back there seemed to care for you. I’ve never seen a creature who was willing to sacrifice his magic before.” The nurse then said as she was getting ready to leave the room. “I…I guess I got lucky.” I said as I couldn’t think of anything else to say. “I’d say we all got lucky seeing you.” The nurse said as she then left the room to test my blood. A couple of hours came by, I was discharged from the hospital, and I had to go home with my parents but something else happened. When we got home after a fairly long walk, something else happened. “I know it’s not Tuesday and I’m breaking a very important tradition in this house but after what happened in the last couple of days, I say we have Tuesday tea a little early.” Dad suggested. “I think we all need that.” Mom said as I agreed instantly. What can I say? A girl needed her weekly tea. For the first time and this wasn’t the last time, Dad didn’t snap his fingers and made the plates appear in seconds but he rather went to the cupboard and pulled out the plates and cups instead. It was…unsettling at first but I wasn’t going to dwell on it for any longer than that. After Dad got the plates and cups, I grabbed the ingredients and Mom made her famous tea. We took a seat at the kitchen table and we began to talk. “So you would not believe what happened at guy’s night,” Dad said “Did you do something chaotic?” I asked with a chuckle in my voice. “Looks like somepony knows all the answers.” My Dad said as he then proceeded to tell this funny story at his guy’s night party involving a cardboard cutout, a little glass of water, and all-around chaos that ended with him and the guys on the ceiling. Only Dad tells the most random stories you could ever imagine. After we had dinner, I started to get ready for bed when I did something I hadn’t done in a long while. For the first time since I was a little filly, I gave Mom and Dad a goodnight hug, which they gave right back. I then went to my bedroom and closed my door as I lay there on my sheets. “I’m finally ready to be…me.” I said to myself as I looked out the window when the sun was setting behind the green mountains and the moon was rising from the top of those mountains. I don’t fully know what was yet to come, nor what challenges I would face with my new powers that I tried to throw away. What I do know is that my name is Rosie, I’m a 16-year-old hybrid…and…I’m ready to be myself. I have powers that used to belong to the spirit of chaos and disharmony and I’m the daughter of said spirit and one of the elements of harmony…and I’m the daughter of chaos. It took me a while to find myself but it was worth it in the end. This is who I am…and I’m ready to be the pony I need to be. Meanwhile… “Alright students, today’s our last day abroad so pack your bags and be at the train station by noon alright?” A school counselor said as several students then went over to their hotel rooms to pack their belongings, one of these ponies who had a light blue coat with a dark blue mane did just that. She packed her bags and was ready to head home to her great and maybe even, powerful hometown, as she was waiting down at the train station with her classmates, she stumbled upon something…odd. “What’s this? That… traitor made it in the newspaper again? And she has chaos magic? Why does that shy filly get all the attention and I don’t? I’ve never made it into the local paper and my skills are beyond her’s in every way imaginable!” The pony exclaimed with such fury in her voice. “You know what? I’m done with this. If my mother could make a fool of her rival, I think I could do…the same.” The pony said with a devious smile on her face as the train pulled up at the station and the class got on the train as it was heading for Ponyville. It was time for a little payback and her final curtain call… To be continued . . .