It was early in the morning, and many ponies were waking up, some already playing in the warmth of Celestia's sun and a certain purple dragon was also just waking up. He yawned noting for once Twilight wasn't waking him up, he questioned this but thought Twilight must have just slept in. He walked over to the side of Twilight's bed and tugged at the blanket.
"Hey Twilight, it's time to get up- Twilight?" He whispered before pulling the blank off in one yank. Twilight was lying there pale as a ghost, her tongue hanging out as she moaned in pain. Spike screamed at this. He soon calmed down and asked "T-Twilight, what's wrong?"
"I feel sick.." She grunted. A bit later Twilight and Spike were at the hospital, Nurse Red Heart was examining her, asking questions.
"So what is wrong with me?" Asked Twilight, the nurse looked over her clipboard again. "Well...it seems you have gotten a new disease that's been going around recently, there isn't a name for it yet. But any way the disease changes the body and sometimes mind of a pony to that of child."
"What!?" Shouted Twilight.
"Yes, we have to keep you here but first we must move you to the children's ward." Red Heart affirmed as she began moving Twilight's bed down the hospital corridors. Twilight was shocked, confused, and dumbfounded as she was quickly rolled down the hallways. Suddenly she felt an excruciating pang in her stomach, followed by a sharp twinge inside her sphincter. She grunted and tried to wriggle her arms and legs, but it was no avail. She could barely move and there wasn't a thing she could do about it.
"Can you at least tell me what's going on?!" Twilight frantically asked, finally able to get a word in.
"Well Miss. Sparkle, the virus is of a magical kind. You see it already deep within, first it starts by moving around your bones changing each one until you are about the size of small filly. Then it goes for the mind and other parts until you're completely changed. We're still working on a cure. Just sit back and rest while the hospital staff takes care of you." The nurse sternly said. Twilight was worried now, also a bit tired. She wanted to scream, but she couldn't because she suddenly lost consciousness and her head hit her pillow.
When she awoke, she failed to notice she was now younger. About twelve now, but she was not done changing, she saw something that surprised her greatly. Twilight sat up in her bed and rubbed her eyes in disbelief upon the filly in the bed beside her own. The filly was a small, butter-yellow Pegasus with a light, creamy-pink mane. She was wearing a pink children's hospital gown decorated with images of butterflies, bunnies and other animals. The filly was even hugging small bunny plush toy while nuzzling it under her chin. The filly looked no older four years old.
Twilight's first thought was that this filly bared a striking resemblance to her friend Fluttershy, a bit too much of resemblance. Twilight thought it might be Fluttershy seeing as she might have caught the disease too. Twilight looked on as the nurse gave the filly a sippy cup full of milk, and heard the filly say "Umm...thwanks nurse."
"Fluttershy …?" Twilight asked the filly in the other bed.
The small filly looked over her bed at the pony next to her."T-Twiwight" the little filly murmured in her extremely timid voice
"So I'm guessing you got that new bug going around Ponyville," Twilight inquired, concerned about her friend. Fluttershy nodded slowly, blushing a little.
"Do you have any idea on how you got it?" Twilight questioned.
"I dwon't nuh I wuz jwust fweeding Angewl when I saw dis weiwd wooking buwg in my yawd. Wun I gowt cwoser to it, it biwt meh.." Fluttershy stated raising her hoof to reveal a little red bump on her palm. "A-an den I fewt siwck and stawted coughing and gwot wreal wreal hot. The vwery next day I wooked at myswelf in the mirror and I wuz a few inches showtuh buwt I just ingnowed it and went on wif' meh daiwy woutine. The dway afta dat I vwoice was highwer pitched so I came hewe to gwet checked. A-an da wowst pawt is dat thwey swaid it contwagious and I was the fiwst to gewt it." Fluttershy finished as she started to tear up, thinking she had gotten Twilight sick.
"Ya know, I remember that there was something up with a couple days at Sugarcube Corner but I waved it off as just a cold.." Twilight stated.
"I GOWT YOU SIWCK!?" Fluttershy yelled as she started to wail into her fluffy pink pillow.
"Oh, Fluttershy, it's okay.. I remember getting bit by some bug yesterday." Twilight eased her friend. "Besides, even if you did cause me to get sick I'm not going to get mad at you." Twilight smiled, trying to comfort Fluttershy.
"Pwomise?"
"Promise."
"Miss. Sparkle and Fluttershy, you have a visitor." The nurse said opening the door to reveal Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash! Pinkie Pie hopped over to Fluttershy with her usual grin.
"Hawy Pinwkie..."Fluttershy squeaked, waving at Pinkie with a small, shy smile. Pinkie Pie merely hugged her pastel-yellow friend.
"How ya feelin', Fluttershy?" Rainbow Dash asked with a genuinely kind smile.
"Bewtta den when you bwougwt me hewe." Fluttershy peeped. Twilight was confused now. "Hey!" she shouted, immediately gaining their attention as the three turn to the now eleven year old Twilight.
"How come you didn't tell me about this?"
"I didn't get a chance to, pipsqueak ," Rainbow quipped, rubbing Twilight's head. "Nooooogieeee!"
"Rainbow Dash! This is serious!"Twilight hollered in a stern voice. Pinkie Pie hopped in between the two fillies.
"I know it is, but Twilight look at how cute you are!" Squealed Pinkie as she pinched Twilight's cheek. Twilight seemed worried as she pushed the pink mare away.
"Pinkie! Be careful you don't wanna get the disease!" Twilight warned them. Pinkie just giggled.
"Twilight, we can't get it passed this stage."
"What do you mean passed this stage?" Asked Twilight, putting her hoofs on her hip. Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie just looked at each other, and then back at Twilight. The two didn't make a single sound as they pick up a hand mirror, then proceed to give it to Twilight. Twilight looked at herself, 'Nothing wrong so far..AHH!" She thought moving the mirror around her body. She stopped in shock upon seeing her now tiny filly body.
"See, you're a tiny filly now, other ponies can only catch it before you start changing. That's what the nurse said." Rainbow Dash uttered. Pinkie put one hoof on Twilight and gently nudged her. Twilight shook a bit, then floods of tears came rushing down her face, understanding now what the nurse was talking about.
"Oh, don't cry Twilight! It's not that bad!" Pinkie cheered, trying to calm Twilight down. "NOT SO BAD?! I'M REGRESSING BACK TO FOALHOOD FOR CELESTIA'S SAKE!" Twilight wailed out in frustration.
"Well…look on the Brightside!" Pinkie grinned, patting her friend on the back.
"What Brightside."
"Well , it's not every day that you get to be a filly again!"
"But I don't want to re-live it! I need to be studying and I can't if I'm a little filly!"
"You know, Twi, maybe being a filly again will help you relax, there's more to life than just reading books." Rainbow pointed out.
"But..I-I need to... ugh!" Twilight continued to weep. Part of her wanted to go back to the library and study, but another part of her more juvenile side wanted this to continue.
"Twilight?" Fluttershy asked
"W-What?" Twilight asked, still sobbing audibly.
"Hewe, maybe it will make you feewl bewtta," Fluttershy whispered, offering her an over-sized dolphin plushie as a gift.
"Thank you." Twilight snuffled out with a higher-pitched voice as she reached out and grabbed the plush. Squeezing the stuffed toy made her feel safe.
"There we go, no more tears from here on." Pinkie smiled gleefully at her friend's newly-found happiness. "Yeah…" Twilight sniffled. "I'm sorry, I don't understand what's happening to me… I feel so… strange." The lilac filly sighed.
"It passes." Fluttershy smiled as she clasped onto a stuffed bunny.
Twilight's crying seemed to have drawn the nurse's attention though, as the medical mare came trotting towards the bed.
"Is everything alright? Are these two mares upsetting you?" Nurse Red Heart glared at Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. "No, no." Twilight quickly said. "I was just scared of what's happening to me… but I'm okay now."
"Well that's good to hear." Nurse Redheart said. She looked Twilight over and nodded as she scribbled a few things onto her clipboard using her magic. "It also appears that you have finished up your regression process." The nurse pulled a bag out from underneath the bed.
Twilight blushed feverishly once she saw what was inside it. She held on to her stuffed dolphin tightly, trying to hide behind it.
"I hate to embarrass you like this," Nurse Redheart said as she pulled a diaper out of the bag. "But you do not possess the bladder control of a grown mare anymore."
"NO!" Twilight yelled as she smacked the diaper out of Nurse Redheart's hooves.
"I'm sorry, Twilight, but it must be done before you have an accident." Nurse Redheart spoke in a soft but stern tone as she reached down and picked the diaper up in her hooves.
"NO! NO! NO!" Twilight yelled. Now crying, she threw the pillow from her bed at Nurse Redheart, but Redheart dodged it and proceeded to begin to hold Twilight down. But before she could diaper Twilight, Twilight wet herself in all of the excitement.
"Oh dear," Nurse Redheart sighed. Twilight simply looked down in horror at what she had just done, and even in front of her friends.
Nurse Redheart took this as an opportunity to finish diapering Twilight while she was paralyzed in a state of mortification and humiliation.
Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy looked at Twilight with concern. She looked back at them with tears in her eyes before Nurse Redheart picked Twilight up and moved her to the empty bed on the other side of Fluttershy whilst she began cleaning the bed.
Twilight dove under the covers of the new bed not wanting to be seen. Rainbow and Pinkie looked at each other in shock before trying to calm her down.
"Twilight, we know you didn't do it on purpose, it's because you're sick," Rainbow Dash comforted Twilight, trying to make her feel better.
"Yea Twilight, it's not like you meant to wet the bed or anything." Pinkie murmured, petting Twilight's head.
"T-Twilight, um, its owkawy, um, you can hawve anowther pwushie if you want. I alweady hawve bunches of dem…" Fluttershy squeaked, handing another plushie over to Twilight. Pinkie picked it up and put it on the bed next to Twilight. Twilight then grabbed the plushie and pulled it under her covers and squeezed it tightly while she started to cry; she had no control over what was going on.
Rainbow sat down on the edge of the bed. "Twilight, if it would make you feel better, you can come stay with me and Fluttershy until the doctors sort this out, up in my cloud home no one will have to see you like this, and I know you taught Rarity the cloud walking spell so she could cast it on you, how does that sound?" Rainbow smiled, normally she would have laughed at her friend's misfortune, but she truly felt bad for Twilight.
"Yeah Twilight, if it makes you feel better you don't have to come with me." Pinkie said, she was disappointed that Twilight might not come with her, but it was a small loss if it meant her friend could be happy.
"I want to go with Rainbow Dash." Twilight squeaked with her high-pitched voice. "You won't be mad at me, right, Pinkie?" Twilight peeked out from underneath the sheets and gazed up over Pinkie Pie, who towered over her.
"Of course not, you silly filly," Pinkie put on a fake (though very believable) smile; though she was a little disappointed. "And besides, at least then you'll have a friend your age as well."
"Alright then." Rainbow Dash breathed out, "I'm going to go get Rarity now, okay? She can cast the spell and then I'll fly the two of you out of here in a flash. Nopony will ever know."
"Thank you, Rainbow Dash." Twilight smiled weakly as she squeezed the plushie Fluttershy had given her.
"Hey, you know what that means?" Pinkie asked with her jolly tone. "That means I still get to spend some time with my favorite little fillies!"
Rainbow Dash chuckled, "I'm off then. Try and leave Pinkie in one piece." She turned and headed towards the exit.
"Now then, tell your auntie Pinkie Pie what you want to do." Pinkie grinned as she pushed both of Twilight and Fluttershy's beds together and sat on them.
"I'm still older than her." Fluttershy whispered to Twilight, who erupted into giggles. "Could you tell us a story?" Twilight asked, still clutching the plushie.
"Okie Dokie Lokie!" Pinkie Pie shouted merrily as she pulled up a chair in between the two beds. "What story do my two favorite fillies want to hear?" Pinkie asked.
"Supwise us" Fluttershy giggled.
"Okie Dokie!" Pinkie agreed as she began thinking of a story.
"How about the story of the first magic unicorn!" Pinkie said
"I've never heard that one, I thought unicorns always had magic.." Twilight said as she tilted her head in confusion.
"It was a dark and stormy night, and a small filly unicorn, much like yourself, Twilight, was wandering near the Evergreen Forest," Pinkie paused as she looked at the two fillies, they were both in bed holding their plushies and Pinkie just thought it was too cute.
"Anyhoo," Pinkie continued. "This filly was wandering near the Evergreen Forest and lightning hit the ground just out of sight. The filly ran closer to the area that was struck because she thought she heard someone calling for help, but when she got there, there were some magical flowers!" Pinkie carried on with her story. Twilight yawned and soon became comfy nestled underneath the covers of the bed. Pinkie continued her story. "The filly smelled the flowers, they smelled great! The next thing she knew it was morning and the sky was clear, and something strange happened, all of the rocks around the filly were floating in a colorful pink glow." Pinkie paused when both Fluttershy and Twilight yawned as it was just the cutest thing she had ever seen.
Pinkie was about to continue when she noticed both Fluttershy and Twilight had fallen asleep, it had been a long day and it was almost night time.
Pinkie pulled the covers up over Fluttershy and Twilight and watched them sleep peacefully, normally Pinkie would have woken them up with some sort of loud obnoxious noise or song but she decided they looked too peaceful. Just then Rainbow Dash returned followed by Rarity.
"Shh," Pinkie spoke softly as she quietly trotted over to them.
"Aww, don't they look darling?" Cooed Rarity in a hushed voice.
"Yeah, and I have to take them both home with me." Rainbow sighed; she wasn't mad, she was just wondering how she would care for two little fillies.
"Well, I will perform the cloud walking spell and then be on my way, Sweetie Belle and I are watching my little Spikie-Wikie while Twilight is like this and I can't leave Sweetie and Spike alone for too long, otherwise they might just burn the boutique down.." Rarity chuckled as she walked over to Twilight. Her horn started to glow as she enchanted Twilight.
"All done, but you should know, even though Twilight has retained most of her adult mind.." Rarity said before being cut off.
"Actually her adult mind will slowly regress, though it won't regress as far as her body as her mind will still regress to that of a six to eight year old filly, which it already has started." Nurse Redheart interjected from the other side of the room.
"…As I was saying, filly unicorns get strange bursts of magic that they can't control, and something tells me Twilight might start having this problem again." Rarity warned Rainbow Dash.
"That's good to know, thanks Rarity." Rainbow thanked her friend before being handed a small saddlebag containing everything she would need to take care of Twilight and Fluttershy.
"That's all you need." Redheart said before returning to her work.
Rainbow Dash adjusted on a foal carrier of sorts that would allow her to carry both Twilight and Fluttershy while she flew. Pinkie and Rarity helped position Twilight and Fluttershy into the carrier.
"Well, goodnight guys. I'll see ya later. Gotta dash." Rainbow flashed a smirk as she started to trot out of the hospital room.
"Goodnight darling." Rarity smiled as she walked out of the room.
"Goodnight!" Pinkie yelled as she also left, to this Twilight stirred in the carrier but didn't wake up.
Rainbow signed some release forms before she started to fly home, she flew slow so she didn't wake Twilight or Fluttershy up. It wasn't even a flight, it was a gentle hover. It was pretty slow, even for Rainbow Dash.
As soon as Rainbow got home she put Twilight and Fluttershy into a small playpen like area in her main room, there were two pillows in there and a blanket for them to share, neither of them woke up while Rainbow was doing this.
Rainbow unpacked the items onto the table next to the playpen, the items in the bag were several diapers, wipes, foal food, baby powder and several other foal related items, as soon as she had unpacked everything Rainbow sat down on the sofa next to the playpen before quietly falling asleep wondering what she was going to do about her two new foals.
It was the middle of the night, it had gotten very dark as Rainbow had never turned any of the lights on when she got home. She was still asleep on the sofa next to the playpen. There was a sudden and loud wail coming from the playpen that jolted Rainbow awake. She quickly got up off the sofa before tripping over the edge of the table and falling flat on her face.
"Hold on, hold on, I'm coming!" Rainbow hollered as she made her way to a light and turned it on, it's blinding flares of light instantly illuminating the room. She walked over to the playpen where Twilight was sitting awake and Fluttershy was also awake but not crying.
"What's the problem!?" Rainbow nearly yelled, she did not like being woken up in the middle of the night.
"I...I..." Twilight said as she started to cry some more, she was upset that Rainbow was upset.
"Come on, let's calm you down," Rainbow sighed as she picked up Twilight out of the play pen and gently began rocking the lavender foal.
"Fluttershy are you going to be ok for a few minutes?" Rainbow asked while she continued to slowly sway Twilight back and forth in her arms.
"I gwuess" Fluttershy answered. She yawned and got comfortable again as she fell back to sleep.
Rainbow carried the wailing Twilight into her kitchen and she sat down in a chair while still holding Twilight and rocking her back and forth trying to calm her down, she still had no idea what was going on.
"Twilight what's the matter, you can tell me." Rainbow murmured in a somewhat motherly tone.
"Well, it's...I woke up...a-and..." Twilight was speaking through her tears.
"It's okay Twi, everything will be alright, but you have to tell me what's wrong" Rainbow whispered to the tiny infant.
"I woke...I woke up...wet." Twilight said as she started to cry even more.
"Twilight, it's nothing to be ashamed of, all foals do it and I'm sure Fluttershy is probably wet too." Rainbow added, trying to comfort Twilight.
"I...I just don't like feeling so helpless and out of control…" Twilight managed to say through her tears.
"Well it's the middle of the night…how about I get you changed and check Fluttershy and we can talk in the morning, I managed to get off of weather duty for a few days so I could be here for you and Fluttershy." Rainbow smiled at Twilight. "Okay..." Twilight agreed. Rainbow carried her back into the living room and set her down on the sofa.
"Flutters, do you need a change too?" Rainbow asked the golden foal.
Fluttershy sat up and blushed, Rainbow took this as a yes and picked up Fluttershy and put her on the side of the sofa as well.
Rainbow laid a towel down on the floor and picked up Twilight and set her on the towel, she then grabbed a diaper, a few wipes and the baby powder and began changing Twilight. She was also reading instructions on how to change a diaper as she did it. She cleaned Twilight with the anti-bacterial wet wipes, applied powder, put on a clean diaper, and then she put Twilight back on the sofa. Rainbow then did the same for Fluttershy, she then discarded the old diapers and put them back in the playpen. Fluttershy almost instantly fell back to sleep but Twilight kept stirring and this kept Rainbow awake.
"What's wrong now?" Rainbow asked, heaving a sigh on exhaustion.
"I'm cold and Fluttershy has the entire blanket.." Twilight pouted. Rainbow rolled her eyes and got another blanket for Twilight.
"All better now?" Rainbow questioned. "Yes, thank you, Dashie." Twilight grinned before falling asleep again. Rainbow laid down on her sofa and fell asleep, thinking "What in Equestria have I gotten myself into?"
Rainbow woke to the morning sun shining directly onto her face, the morning air drifted in through a half open window, she realized she fell asleep on her sofa next to the fillies. They were both still asleep, Fluttershy was clutching a small plush toy and Twilight was drooling onto her pillow. Rainbow thought the sight of the two sleeping fillies was the cutest thing she'd ever seen. She then went into her kitchen to prepare a morning meal for herself and heat up the foal food she had gotten from the hospital for Fluttershy and Twilight. Rainbow sat at her kitchen table and ate a dandelion sandwich while she heated up the foal food on the stove; she had just taken a bite of the sandwich when she heard a noise from the living room.
"Mooooom! Mommy! Mooooom!" The voice echoed throughout the home, bouncing off the walls and making the voice seem louder. Rainbow thought she was going insane until it hit her, she had two fillies in the other room and one of them was calling for their mother, she nearly choked on her sandwich before spitting it out onto a plate and running into the living room.
"Mommy!" The voice continued.
Rainbow Dash looked into the play pen and noticed Twilight was the one calling for her mother. Rainbow picked Twilight up and sat down on the sofa, rocking her back and forth to try to calm the half asleep filly down.
"Twilight what's the matter, why are you calling for your mother?" Rainbow kindly asked the filly.
"I..I" Twilight was now crying "had a...b..b..bad d..dr..dream and I..I.." Twilight was saying as she continued to bawl louder.
"Twilight, why were you calling for your mother though?" Rainbow Questioned
Twilight tilted her head in confusion and spoke "B...b...but you are my mommy…"
Rainbow nearly dropped Twilight when she spoke these words. She was in shock at what Twilight had just said, she really thought Rainbow was her mother.
"Um...Twilight I...I um.." Rainbow was stuttering, she could not figure out what to say.
"Mommy, I had a bad dream.." Twilight whimpered as she hugged Rainbow who was still holding her.
"Uhm…" Rainbow Dash decided to play along for the time being, and then first thing after breakfast she would decide what to do about it.
"So what was this bad dream about?" Rainbow asked, she put on a motherly persona.
"I..I had a dream that Nightmare Moon was trying to make it night time forever! It was really scary!" Twilight cried.
"I bet it was, now why don't you go wake up Fluttershy while I get breakfast ready." Rainbow advised as she set Twilight back down in the playpen.
"Okay mommy!" Twilight said and smiled as she nudged Fluttershy in an attempt to wake her up.
Rainbow trotted back into the kitchen, many thoughts littering her mind at one time."What in the hay has happened to Twilight?!" Rainbow thought to herself, she decided to not think about it and she made breakfast. She returned to the living room to see an annoyed Fluttershy and a crying Twilight.
Rainbow set the food down on the table and rushed over to the play pen.
"What happened!" Rainbow exclaimed, picking up Twilight trying to calm her down.
"She woke me up and den she was swaying swome weird stuffs about you being her mommy." Fluttershy huffed. She spoke in a filly speech pattern that had not yet happened to Twilight for an odd reason.
"Sshh, Twilight, it's okay, calm down, Fluttershy didn't mean to hurt your feelings," Rainbow said as she set Twilight down on the sofa, she then picked up Fluttershy.
"Flutters I don't know why she thinks I'm her mother...just play along with it until after breakfast, then we will deal with it." She whispered into Fluttershy's ear before setting her down next to Twilight. She then put bibs on them and began feeding them the foal 'chow'. After that deed was done, she placed them in the playpen, Twilight was happily playing with some blocks and Fluttershy was silently napping again.
Rainbow walked into another room and began thinking, she didn't know what she was going to do about Twilight, but she soon came to a decision...
Rainbow was lost in her thoughts.
"Well, I guess I will just have to pretend I'm her mother until she gets better, the hospital did say weird things would happen..." Rainbow inwardly trailed off as she walked back into the living room.
"How are my favorite fillies doing!" She said, putting on a wide smile.
"Sweepy," Fluttershy babbled as she rolled over and put a pillow on top of her head in an attempt to block out noise.
"Oh, well, Twilight, it looks like it's just you and me for a little bit." Rainbow grinned. She was still uneasy about pretending to be her mother, "what if Twilight's older self found out?, would she be mad that I pretended to be her mother while she was sick?" Rainbow thought to herself.
"Okay Mommy!" Twilight said, she lifted her hooves up as a gesture that she wanted to be picked up. Rainbow picked Twilight up and took her to the balcony that overlooked Ponyville from her home, just then Rarity appeared on Rainbow's doorstep in a flash of white light.
"Honestly, I don't know how Twilight does that teleportation thing, it's so uncomfortable!" Rarity mumbled to herself, she saw Rainbow on the balcony and walked up to her.
"Look Twilight, Rarity came to visit!" Rainbow happily said.
"I can see her Mommy, you don't need to tell me.." Twilight huffed, a cute pout on her lips.
"Why yes, I just came to check up on-" Rarity stopped in her tracks. "Did she just..." Rarity was confused, in fact, she was concerned at the fact her friend just called Rainbow her mother.
"Yes, Rarity. Can I talk to you..?" Rainbow nervously asked, stopping Rarity before Twilight realized what was going on.
"Sure.." Rarity agreed, she glared at Rainbow as if to say 'You'd better have a good reason'.
"Twilight, why don't you go inside for a few minutes." Rainbow muttered as she put Twilight down onto the floor.
"Okay, Mommy!" Twilight gladly said as she galloped inside.
"Care to explain?" Rarity crossed her arms as she sat down next to Rainbow
"Well, uh, she woke up this morning and thought I was her mother, I decided it was best to play along with it until she got her memory back…" Rainbow Dash explained.
"Did you stop to consider what she would think of this, what her brother and her real mother might think of this!" Rarity protested.
"WHERE WERE THEY WHEN SHE WAS IN THE HOSPITAL?!" Rainbow countered.
"…Her father died, Rainbow." Rarity quietly replied.
Rainbow stared at Rarity in a state of shock.
"Her father died about a month ago, the service was two weeks ago, her mother locked herself in her room and hasn't left it since the service and her brother has been trying to help her sort life out. You can't blame them, no one even told them yet. Look, I know your just trying to do what's best for our friend, and I respect that, but think about what you're doing. If you need anything, just call me." Rarity finished as she teleported away from Rainbow Dash's house.
Twilight came back out onto the balcony, and she was in tears, she obviously overheard something.
Twilight looked at Rainbow with those, large, innocent violet eyes. Innocent violet eyes that only made Rainbow's heart shatter into a gazillion pieces of guilt and pity.
"Where is daddy?" Twilight asked in her high-pitched voice.
"Um, Twilight, why don't we go inside and check on Fluttershy?" Rainbow said getting up as she started to trot inside.
"NO!" Twilight yelled as she ran over to Rainbow nearly pushing her down, she was in tears.
"WHERE IS MY DADDY!" Twilight yelled, she pushed Rainbow down onto her back as she stood over Rainbow looking down into her eyes, tears rolling down her face.
"Twilight...I," Rainbow stopped, she looked deep into the filly's eyes; Twilight was heartbroken.
"TELL ME NOW!" Twilight screamed through her onslaught of tears.
"He..." Rainbow swallowed. "He's gone, Twilight" Rainbow admitted sorrowfully.
"WHERE?!" Twilight yelled, her tears were splashing down onto Rainbow Dash's face.
"He went to a place and he is never coming back." Rainbow sighed.
"I DON'T BELIEVE YOU!" Twilight howled, her horn started to glow.
"Twilight, your father is gone, you have to accept that, I know you're young, but these things happen.." A somber frown etched across Rainbow Dash's face, realizing she was talking to the equivalent of an infant that did not understand death.
"NO.." Twilight screeched in a whisper-like tone as her horn glowed even more, Rainbow was now experiencing a deep sting that was being caused by Twilight's magic.
"TELL ME WERE HE IS!" Twilight roared.
"Twilight...I...I...He...died…" Rainbow managed to cry out. She was now crying, partly because of the pain, partly because she felt so bad for her friend.
Twilight released Rainbow from her magic, and got off of Rainbow letting her get up.
Twilight was in tears, she started running, and she ran back into Rainbow's house.
"Twilight, wait!" Rainbow called out but Twilight wouldn't listen, she ran into the living room and teleported into the play pen and got under her covers and cried.
Rainbow was not far behind her as she made her way back into the house.
"Twilight..." Rainbow murmured softly.
"Leave me alone!" Twilight yelled through her tears.
"Twilight..." Rainbow said again.
Twilight's magic pushed Rainbow down onto the floor before releasing her again.
"Please Twilight, you have to listen to me, it's okay, it's going to be okay" Rainbow tried to comfort her.
"No it won't, it will never be okay, never again!" Twilight yelled through her tears.
"Twilight..." Rainbow was tearing up at this, she had never seen her friend so upset, and the fact that this friend had such a close bond with Rainbow upset her even more.
"Just go!" Twilight yelled still crying.
"Twilight..." Rainbow started.
"Leave...Me...ALONE!" Twilight yelled. Her magic created a shock wave that pushed Rainbow back into a wall, Twilight then teleported away.
Rainbow recovered from the fall.
"Twilight?" Rainbow called, no answer, she looked and Twilight was gone, she frantically searched the house looking for Twilight, until she went to check her own room, the door was locked.
Rainbow lightly rapped her hoof on the door. "Twilight?" Rainbow asked, no answer. "Twilight, it's me, I'm uh, I'm coming in." Rainbow said as she forced the door open, the light was out and the only light in the room was a small sliver of light coming through the curtains. "Twilight?" Rainbow called, she stopped when she heard crying, and she walked over to the sound of the crying to find a small purple filly sitting on Rainbow's bed wrapped up in blankets.
Rainbow sat down on the edge of the bed and wrapped her forehooves around Twilight picking her up still wrapped in the blanket. "Oh Twilight, I'm so sorry, it will be okay, everything will be okay.." Rainbow said trying to comfort her friend.
"No, it won't be okay, I will never see my daddy again, and I know I have you mommy but Daddy and I were so close!" Twilight sobbed, still thinking Rainbow was her mother, to this Rainbow was shocked, she thought Twilight had heard about her not being her mother as well.
"Oh Twilight honey, it's okay, there was nothing either of us could do to stop it, you just have to move on, it will be okay." Rainbow whispered now hugging Twilight very tightly.
"I love you, mommy." Twilight quietly sniffled out, returning the hug.
Rainbow let out a sigh in relief, she had calmed the filly down, for now at least.
"Twilight," Rainbow began.
"Yes mommy?" Twilight responded.
"You're a mess," Rainbow quipped playfully in reference to her matted main and tear stained face.
"Yeah and I think I made a mess too," Twilight giggled, her cheeks pinking.
"It's okay Twi, it's fine now, you didn't make a mess, everything is fine now." Rainbow said, stroking and caressing Twilight's indigo and magenta mane.
"No, I mean I messed myself," Twilight bit her lip, even more embarrassed.
"Oh, well let's get you cleaned up then." Rainbow smiled, so she took Twilight into the bathroom, bathed her, brushed her mane, and put her in a fresh diaper.
"All better." Rainbow spoke to the now spotless Twilight.
"Thank you, mommy," Twilight thanked her 'mother' gratefully, giving her a warm hug.
"No problem, my little pony," Rainbow smiled before setting Twilight down, Twilight then galloped into the living room and jumped up onto the sofa, finding a nice spot to lay down, she yawned and slipped into a mid-afternoon nap.
Rainbow Dash then checked Fluttershy and changed her to before putting her down for a nap as well.
Rainbow decided that she wouldn't be sleeping in her actual bed anytime soon with these two fillies in her living room, she couldn't leave them alone, so she got a sleeping bag from a small closet and put it on the floor next to the play pen. She also got herself a pillow and she got into her sleeping bag and tried to fall asleep.
"This is probably the only time I will get to sleep so why not." Rainbow thought to herself, she used to sleep almost all day, but with two fillies in her hooves, things just didn't work out that way anymore. Rainbow slowly drifted off to sleep thinking of plans for the next few days.
When morning once again came, Rainbow Dash awoke to Twilight jumping on her and chattering eagerly.
"Wake up, mommy! Wake up, wake up!" Twilight playfully yelled, Fluttershy joined in as well.
"Wake up, Wainbow!" Fluttershy joined in, also jumping on Rainbow's chest.
Rainbow opened her eyes to see two small fillies jumping up and down on her.
"Okay, okay! I'm awake!" Rainbow said getting up as the two fillies got off her.
"What's the problem?" She asked, thinking something was wrong.
"We just want to play!" Twilight said, smiling widely.
"They woke me up...to play..." Rainbow thought to herself, quickly discarding those angry thoughts as they were regressed to young fillies and didn't know any better.
She stood up and gently tugged on her mane to untangle her bed head, she then looked down at the two fillies staring up at her smiling.
"Well, what did you want to play?" Rainbow asked.
"We want to go to the playground!" Twilight giggled, Fluttershy nodding.
Rainbow was shocked, Twilight must have forgotten everything.
"Uh… I don't think that's a good idea…" Rainbow mumbled, trying to uphold her promise to her friend that she would not take her anywhere public.
"But I wanna go!" Twilight whined, she was pouting now and about to throw a temper tantrum.
"Yeah! we wanna go!" Fluttershy demanded.
"Fluttershy! Not you too!" Rainbow groaned, fearing Fluttershy's mind had regressed as far as Twilight's had.
"Wainbow we wanna go!" Fluttershy said, that confirmed to Rainbow that Fluttershy's mind was regressed as well, only for some reason she didn't think Rainbow Dash was her mother and Twilight did.
"Fluttershy, please tell me you don't think I'm your mother.." Rainbow bit her lip.
"Of couwse nowt swilly, your Twiwight's mommy and I'm just sweeping over for a few dawys." Fluttershy said, grinning giddily.
"Why do they all think I'm Twilight's mother..." Rainbow thought to herself once more.
"Well, I don't know…" Rainbow sighed.
"BUT WE WANNA GO!" Twilight complained, starting to throw a tantrum.
Rainbow Dash picked up a letter on her table. It was from the Weather Control team. She read it, hoping, just hoping for the right thing to be on it, she normally did not read her mail but since she was off of weather duty for the time being she got mail regarding what the weather would be.
"Thank Celestia," Rainbow breathed out loud by accident.
"What is it mommy?" Twilight said
"It's suppose to storm today and tomorrow, so sorry no trip to the playground." Rainbow shrugged as she let out a sigh of relief.
"Awww, well I gwess we can pway inside," Fluttershy said to Twilight.
"Fine." Huffed Twilight as the two mentally and physically regressed fillies galloped off.
Rainbow went around and closed all of the windows in preparation for the storm, she had just closed the last window when rain drops started falling and the gentle sound of the rain pattering and drumming on the roof could be heard, there was lightning and thunder that was quickly approaching, it was far enough away that it wouldn't arrive for a few hours.
"So what do you fillies want to play?" Rainbow questioned the fillies with a smile.
"We should draw!" Twilight exclaimed picking up some paper and some crayons, Fluttershy agreed and they sat down at the living room table and started to draw, Rainbow just sat on the sofa and watched them. They were so innocent looking, but Rainbow knew the real story, they were her friends, or at least used to be, Rainbow looked down at the table that she had set the mail on, there was a letter from the hospital, she opened it and read it to herself.
"Dear Parent or Guardian of Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy, the tests have come back and they are not good, we have to do several more studies but the tests show we may not find a cure for this disease, it is possible that you will have to raise Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy as they age a second time through foal-hood. We regret to inform you that if their minds have regressed to the age of their body or they come to think of someone else as their parent then the mental damage is irreversible and they will have to naturally age even if a cure is found otherwise there could be more irreversible mental damage, it is imperative that you do not tell them who their real parents are otherwise this disease will consume the conflicting thoughts and destroy the brain. Kindest Regards, -The Ponyville Hospital Staff"
Attached was a letter of permanent adoption for if they were going to be stuck traveling though foal-hood again. Rainbow was now stuck raising Twilight and Fluttershy, she couldn't just abandon them, so she signed the papers and sealed the envelope, when she did it magically disappeared. A few moments later, another letter appeared in Rainbow's hoofs.
"You Rainbow Dash are now officially the guardian of Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy until they reach their adult year. Their names have been changed to Twilight Sparkle Dash and Fluttershy Dash as a result of your adoption, please bring them for annual checkups at the hospital soon. Regards, The Ponyville Hospital Staff"
Rainbow nearly fainted; she was now officially the mother of two. However, she didn't know how to go about telling her two new children, or her friends.
The next day, Rainbow took Fluttershy and Twilight to Rarity's home. There was an old nursery there that used to belong to Sweetie Belle, which Twilight and Fluttershy could play in while Rainbow talked to her friends about the situation.
"Well uh ah dunno, sugarcube, are ya sure yer are ready for this kinda commitment?" Applejack asked Rainbow Dash.
"Honestly, Rainbow, do you really think you're ready for one foal let alone two?" Rarity queried her rainbow-maned friend.
"I'm stuck with them now, I don't have a choice, the adoption was already put through the legal system." Rainbow sighed, placing a hoof on her forehead.
"So, does this mean Twilight and Fluttershy are going to stay that way then?" Rarity asked.
"Yep, they will start to age normally sometime within the next month according to the hospital." Rainbow replied.
"So...does this mean I can't party with my friends anymore…?" Pinkie asked with a cheerless look on her face.
"You still can Pinkie, but they are only foals so you have to be gentle, and don't try to tell them about their adult lives, it could kill them according to the hospital, also their cutie marks will disappear soon so don't try to tell them what their special talent is." Rainbow Dash told her remaining friends. She was still unsure about raising them, but if she was going to, she was going to do it right.
"Well, Fluttershy still knows who her mother is, right? what are you going to tell her?" Rarity interjected.
"I'm going to have to tell her mother died," Rainbow paused "It's the only way that would assure her there was no way to ever see her again." Rainbow frowned; she was sad that she would have to lie to her friends, but if it was to keep them alive.
"Maybe we can try ta tell her that yall're her mum, Rainbow." Applejack suggested.
"Well, let's ask her who she thinks her mother even is." Rainbow heaved another sigh.
"Agreed." Rarity said, the four of them walked up to the nursery were Sweetie Belle was watching Twilight and Fluttershy.
"Sweetie Belle, why don't you go outside and play with your little friends?" Rarity asked her sister
"Okay Rarity!" Sweetie grinned as she galloped outside.
"Fluttershy," Rainbow called.
"Yes?" She responded, walking over to Rainbow.
"Do you know who your mother is?" Rainbow asked.
"Yes" She answered.
"Is she in this room with us?" Rainbow asked.
"Yes." Fluttershy said.
This puzzled them all.
"Who is it?" Rainbow said
"Applejack is my mommy." Fluttershy proudly said, latching onto Applejack's leg and nuzzling it.
Applejack was shocked but did a good job hiding it.
"Well um, Fluttershy, your…" Rainbow Dash paused "M-mom and I have been talking and she said you should live with me for a while, how does that sound?" Rainbow asked.
"B...B...but mommy..." Fluttershy started to tear up.
"Ah it's gun' be okay, sugarcube." Applejack said as she picked up Fluttershy and gave her a great big hug.
"W...W...Will I still be awble to swee you evewy day?" Fluttershy timidly asked.
"Anytime ya want Fluttershy, actually ya may not have ta stay with Rainbow if ya don't want ta, ah can see what ah can do." Applejack said with her kind smirk.
"Yeah pipsqueak, you don't have to stay with me if you don't want to," Rainbow smiled weakly. It would sure make life easier on her.
A few hours later Applejack, Rainbow, Twilight, and Fluttershy went to the adoption agency to sort out the situation.
"Fluttershy has to stay with you, Rainbow Dash." The agent said, adjusting her glasses.
"But-but I'm not qualified for such a task!" Rainbow protested.
"Most new parents aren't," The agent said with a knowing smile.
"Well, what about the fillies, do ya just ignore how they feel?" Applejack asked the agent with a hard stare.
"No, and we have a special agent here who can solve this with a magic spell." The agent replied, slightly frightened by Applejack's stare.
"Oh really, and what does this spell do?" Rainbow asked with an eyebrow puckered.
"It makes the filly think the first mare she see's is her mother." The agent, now known as 'Eleanor' by her nametag, nonchalantly replied.
"So you want Fluttershy to think I'm her mother?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Yes." Eleanor sighed.
"Ah dunno 'bout this, Rainbow…" Applejack said with an easy expression on her face.
"It's not like we have a choice, we can't just abandon them, AJ," Rainbow indifferently said.
"I know it's just that, Rainbow I've never thought of ya as a motherly kinda of pony.." Applejack gave Rainbow Dash a sheepish grin while Rainbow Dash shot her a harsh glance.
"It's the only choice," Rainbow paused. "Let's do it." She firmly stated.
A few moments later Fluttershy was restrained in a chair in a dark room, Rainbow Dash was the only other mare in the room and a stallion unicorn was going to carry out the magical procedure to ensure that Fluttershy did not think the doctor was her mother.
"Okay, Fluttershy, just close your eyes and relax." The stallion reassured the butter-yellow Pegasus filly, locking his hazelnut eyes with her teal ones as he tilted his horn towards Fluttershy.
Fluttershy reached out for Rainbow's hoof, hoping for some support. Rainbow extended her hoof and Fluttershy clutched it like she would a with a plush toy.
"Okay, you may feel a little tingly for a few moments but it won't hurt a bit." The stallion calmly reassured. Suddenly his horn began to glow a greenish-yellow color, illuminating the dark room. Fluttershy closed her eyes and the Stallion put his horn to Fluttershy's head, there was a flash of light and the Stallion moved back.
Fluttershy opened her eyes and blinked a few times, she looked at her hoof, she was holding someone else's hoof, she looked up to see Rainbow.
"Wainbow…" She said in a hushed voice. Fluttershy's teal orbs widened, then she blinked a few more times before speaking again.
"Mommy? Is evewy thing awight?" She asked, naively blinking.
"Yes Fluttershy, everything is going to be just fine." Rainbow countered, also in a hushed voice. She let out a sigh of relief that it worked, but it was also a sigh of pain; it hurt her that her friends were going through this.
While this was going on, the stallion had also cast a spell to make Fluttershy think Twilight was her older sister and in another room a spell was cast on Twilight to make her think Fluttershy was her younger sister, and a professional unicorn magician enchanted Twilight so she would always be allowed to walk on clouds.
"Mommy," Fluttershy asked her new mommy.
"Yes Fluttershy?" Rainbow answered her new daughter.
"We go home now?" She asked.
"Yeah, we can," Rainbow smiled and hunched down onto the floor, allowing Fluttershy to crawl onto Rainbow Dash's back. "Now let's go get Twilight."
Later that day when they got back to Rainbow's home, Twilight yawned and wanted to sleep, so Rainbow put her down for a nap, Fluttershy, however, was oddly full of energy.
"So Fluttershy, it looks like it's you and me for a little bit, what do you want to do?" Rainbow questioned baby Fluttershy.
"Well, let's pway dress up!" Fluttershy giggled.
"Okay…" Rainbow winced. She loathed playing dress up, but to keep her new filly happy she would do it.
After trying on several gala dresses, as that was the extent of the clothing Rainbow owned, Fluttershy got bored and demanded food. Rainbow got her some foal purée and watched her eat. There was just something about Fluttershy thinking she was her mom that just didn't seem right or moral, in fact the whole day Rainbow had been lost in thought on the subject, she had no idea what was going to happen, how she would explain it to their real families because eventually the day would come. Rainbow was sitting passively in a chair next to Fluttershy who had just finished eating, Rainbow was deep in her thoughts.
"Is evewything alwight, mommy?" Fluttershy asked concerned over her mother's behavior. Rainbow Dash didn't answer; she was lost in her thoughts about having to plan for their future, how she was going to have to potty train them, send them to school, and watch them grow up as she grew older, they should be growing old with her, not after, then she thought of the inevitability of one of them finding out the truth and having one of them do something rational.
"M...mommy?" Fluttershy asked, ready to burst into tears since her mother wasn't responding to her.
"Hmm, oh..uh, what?" Rainbow snapped back to reality.
"Nothing, you just seemed, weird…" Fluttershy sighed, waving off her own thoughts.
"I'm fine. It's getting late, why don't I put you and Twi-" Rainbow stopped and thought about her words, to prevent confusing Fluttershy who was obviously concerned she changed what she was saying.
"You and your sister to bed…" Rainbow completed her sentence, mentally punishing herself for almost confusing her daughter.
"Okay Mommy, but I need a change befowe bedtime"
"Okay then," Rainbow said, she proceeded to change Fluttershy's diaper before putting her to bed. She woke Twilight from her nap and changed her as well before also sending her back to sleep. She had fixed two cribs in her bedroom so she could actually start sleeping in her bed again. After Fluttershy and Twilight were asleep she readied herself for bed and then crawled into her cot. She soon slowly drifted off to sleep, wondering about the days to come while dreams gradually started to unfold within her mind.
It was late at night, and it was also storming, there was a scheduled storm that night afterall. Rainbow Dash must have woke from the thunder coming through the open window. She sat up in her bed, the lights were out, she had set up a small nightlight for Twilight and Fluttershy, the power must have gone out from the storm. Rainbow lit a candle she had on her nightstand, satisfied with the light now in the room she walked over to the window and closed it, then she walked over to the cribs she had set up, they were both empty.
"Twilight, Fluttershy!" Rainbow yelled, she was worried that she had just lost her two foals, her friends, she was worried, something must have happened, they could have gotten into the kitchen utensils, or worse fallen off the cloud and got hurt, it was baffling her that they even got out of the cribs.
"Rainbow…" Said a voice, it was a familiar voice, soft and distant, coming from a far part of the house.
"Rainbow…" It repeated.
Rainbow ran towards the direction of the voice.
She was in a dark hallway when *BOOM!* there was an incredibly close hit of lightning followed by unbelievably loud thunder, Rainbow jumped when that happened, nearly scared into a heart attack.
"Rainbow, are you coming?" The voice asked again.
"Who are you?" Rainbow replied.
"Rainbow, are you going to come save your fillies?" Was the answer.
Rainbow made her way to the stairs, she walked down them into her living room to see a terrible sight, the changeling queen was standing in her living room looking up at her.
"Wha..." It took her a moment to process what was going on "WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM!?" She yelled.
"Who, your precious fillies?" She paused. "They were appetizing, but not a full meal," She said as she licked her lips.
"You didn't!" Rainbow yelled.
"There small filly love was divided by magic and it was easy to chew it all up until there was nothing left." She said.
"You...YOU MONSTER!" Rainbow said breaking down into tears, she looked down at the floor, there was a boom of thunder and a flash of lightning and when she looked back up the Changeling Queen was gone, now her two friends stood there, Twilight and Fluttershy, fully grown mares, but there was something off, they seemed like ghosts.
"Rainbow, why didn't you save us?" Fluttershy asked.
"I...I couldn't, I" Rainbow stuttered.
"Rainbow, we put our trust in you, you said you would protect us" Twilight said.
"But...I didn't know that she would" Rainbow said still crying.
"You tried and you failed, that's all that matters, you're a terrible mother, I wish I had never thought you were my mother in the first place" Twilight said. "All of the lies, when were you going to tell us?" She said.
"The hospital said if I told you, you would die!" Rainbow cried.
"Another lie from the so called element of loyalty," Fluttershy spat.
"Fluttershy...I" Rainbow's eyes widened in astonishment; Fluttershy hadn't been this crude since Discord struck many years earlier; she was at a loss for words.
"Save it for the princess," Twilight muttered. "Speaking of the princess, what will she think? What will she say to you, what will you tell her, that you just thought it was best to not tell anyone about us, that you thought you could raise us?" Twilight pursed her lips.
"Twilight! Please, you have to understand, I didn't mean for this to happen!" Rainbow said, there was another flash of lightning and her friends disappeared, there was a boom of thunder followed by a booming voice.
"Rainbow Dash!" Said the voice of Princess Celestia. Rainbow's body began to glow with a pasty white flare of magic.
"You have failed in your duties as an Element of Harmony and as a Mother, you will be punished by having to endure the pain for the rest of your life in the Canterlot Dungeons where you will feel excruciating pain every moment of the rest of your life, you will also be stripped of your flight." Princess Celestia yelled at the full volume, venom tainting her tone.
"Please no, no! I didn't mean for this to happen it was an accident, please!" Rainbow begged for her life, then the magic ripped a red gem out of her chest through her skin leaving a cut on her chest, it was the Element of Loyalty, it shattered into one-thousand pieces.
Rainbow Dash began to feel dizzy, her vision blurred and she lost her balance, she fell down several stairs before falling through the cloud floor of her home, she tried to flap her wings but she realized they were gone, she fell, a hole opened in the ground below her house revealing a pit of fire and lava, and she was falling right into it, with nothing to do she spoke softly, "I'm so, so, so, so, so, so sorry, I really am.." She whispered to herself before she fell into the pit, the heat built up around her, and then she hit the ground...
...Her eyes opened and she jolted up out of bed, she was sweating heavily and crying, all of her blankets were messed up and her pillows were thrown all around the room, it was storming, there was an open window, but the light that was out before was on, she saw her two sleeping fillies in their cribs safe and sound.
She closed her eyes "I'm sorry," She whispered to herself, she got up out of bed and closed the window, she went to each crib and kissed both of her foals on the head before returning to her own bed, she laid down and cried herself to sleep.
The next morning, Rainbow Dash woke from the pitter-patter of rain on her window. It was still raining, the sun was not out so it still rather dark, her foals were still asleep.
"Thank Celestia they are both still asleep," Rainbow thought to herself. She walked out of her room and down into the kitchen, she made herself breakfast and got a drink, she had no appetite, the dream she had last night consumed her thoughts. She got up from her seat at the table and walked over to a set of French doors that led out onto a small balcony, she walked outside, her mane got wet and her fur had gotten wet as well, it was a cold rain, Rainbow shivered a little bit but then sat down on a small stone bench she had on the balcony, she looked out over Ponyville, in the far distance the storm was really bad, she could make out a small tornado, it was very far but from her cloud home she could see for miles, she stretched her wings.
"Maybe just one go," she thought to herself "No that would be reckless, especially since I have two foals," she thought to herself.
"What's happened to yourself Rainbow, you're not who you used to be, you used to be undeniably, unquestionably, unsafe, now you're just an old mare" she thought, her wings tucked back at her sides, she was getting soaked by the light drizzle of rain. "Maybe, maybe I just need to talk to someone...yeah, yeah that's it, I just need to talk to someone" She thought, normally she would talk to Fluttershy or Twilight, but she couldn't do that, and she defiantly needed to talk about that dream, she walked back inside and closed the door behind her, she dried off with a towel before returning to her chair, she just sat there, and thought, she waited a few hours before even thinking about waking her foals. She stared at the wall, for hours, before she heard a call for her.
"Mooooom!" Twilight yelled.
"In a minute," Rainbow called back, one of her foals was awake, the other was soon to wake up as well, she might as well start the day. She got to the bedroom to see Twilight trying to get out of her crib.
"Oh Twilight, let me help you," Rainbow said, she helped Twilight out of the crib, and she also helped Fluttershy out of hers as she had woken up to, she changed them and let them play.
Later that same day, Rainbow was at a small table with Pinkie, Rarity and Applejack. She had left Twilight and Fluttershy with the Cakes, who graciously agreed to foal sit for her.
"I don't know, it's like the dream was trying to tell me something, maybe, maybe I'm just not ready to be a mother…" Rainbow sniveled.
"Well Rainbow, that does sound like a mighty intense dream there.." Applejack rubbed comforting circles in her cyan-colored friend's back.
"Rainbow darling, I think you need to get professional help, really, those kinds of dreams can't be good for you," Rarity stated, Applejack concurring with her.
"Rainbow, your losing your mind! Don't go insane on me, we will have to put ya in a..." Pinkie was cut off.
"Pinkie!" Applejack scolded her for saying such a rude comment.
"What? I was gonna say a crazy home, what's the problem with that?" Pinkie asked.
"Ah, sugarcube, do ya know what a mental home is?" Questioned Applejack.
"It's a fun place where you can relax for several days and they give you nice food… I should know! I've been to several!" Pinkie happily exclaimed.
"That explains a lot…" Rarity flinched slightly.
"Seriously guys, I don't know what to do, and I don't want to just give up on Twilight and Fluttershy, but at the same time it's just so much!" Rainbow said, she was exhausted, she had barely gotten any sleep last night.
"Honey, if your that concerned get professional help from a doctor, they will have you talk about what's on your mind and how to solve your problems, here," Rarity said as she gave Rainbow a small card.
"Call him, he is my doctor, he knows how to deal with stressful situations, and he is a super se...er uh...I mean he is nice, yes, that's all I meant, well I must be going now you know to see Sweetie Belle," She said as she tripped over a chair
"Uh, Rarity, Sweetie is at school" Applejack rubbed the back of her neck with her hoof.
"Uh… well, I have a client then, I'll be leaving now. Ta-ta!" Rarity said as she trotted off, embarrassed.
"Well, she was a lot of help. Still, if she says he is a professional, whom I highly doubt because of her description of him, he might be able to help a little bit." Rainbow sighed as she trotted off to the doctors.
Later that day, Rainbow Dash ended up at the doctor's office. She was sitting in a waiting room; it was quiet. The room was filled with chairs and sofas for people to sit in, Rainbow was the only one in the room. There was a small window that was closed, it was the receptionists window, a small door next to the window opened and a large unicorn stallion appeared, he seemed to be older, he was wearing a bow tie and glasses "Rainbow Dash," He said looking down at a small clipboard he was holding.
"Yep, that's me." Rainbow confirmed as she hopped off of her chair.
"Come with me please," He said, Rainbow trotted along behind him down a small hallway into a room, there was a desk with a chair and a small daybed on the other side of the room.
"Please lay down." He said as he sat in the chair by the desk, Rainbow laid down on the daybed and closed her eyes.
"Now tell me, why are you here," The doctor said, he was holding a clipboard.
"Well, I had a nightmare, and I'm going through a lot of stress" She uttered.
"I see, tell me about it." He said as he took notes.
"Well, I have two new foals that are stressing me out a lot, and it's a long story, but I will make it really short, its complicated as to why I have them and I recently had a nightmare were I lost them" She said
"I see, is the father the cause of this stress with the foals." He said.
"There is no father," Rainbow replied.
"Then how did you conceive?" He asked with a puzzled look on his face
"I didn't give birth to them, they were my friends that got sick in the recent epidemic, they regressed and now they both think I'm their mother, and the hospital said if I tried to tell them the truth they would go brain dead because the magic in the virus is somehow blocking out their adult mind." Rainbow sighed in frustration.
"I see." He said taking more notes "Tell me more about the situation."
"Well, it all started a few days ago, I was suppose to take my friend Fluttershy with me when I left the hospital, but my other friend Twilight was so upset over someone seeing her that I took her to because I live in a cloud home and rarely get visitors, so I took both, one morning Twilight woke and thought I was her mother, the hospital said to not tell her who her real mother is, and then Fluttershy thought Applejack was her mother so we had to go to a special doctor to make her think I was her mother because Applejack was unable to take Fluttershy and it was just unethical to separate a foal from her so called mother, so now I have both foals and that night I had a dream that both of them died under my care and then Princess Celestia took away my wings and banished me to the Canterlot dungeons for the rest of my life and sentenced me to eternal pain." Rainbow cried. She was now crying at the thought of her dream.
"Calm down, here have a tissue," The doctor comforted, his horn glowed and a tissue box floated up next to Rainbow, she blew her nose and threw away the tissue.
"I'm just so concerned that I will do something wrong and that something bad might happen to my foals" Rainbow Dash blubbered.
"Well it seems like you will do just fine." He smiled reassuringly.
"How do you know? You barely know me.." Rainbow sniffled looking at him confused.
"Ah, but you fail to see your motherly instincts have kicked in, your being very protective over your friends and treating them as if they were your own, you are being overly protective as well, the sign of any true mother, I feel that your friends will be just fine in your care." He said with a smile.
"Well, I guess you're right, but what about the nightmares?" Rainbow asked, drying away the rest of her tears with another tissue.
"They will pass in time, they are probably a result of over stress, I suggest you go get a professional massage, a hooficure, or some kind of spa day, you know things that would make you feel better." He recommended.
"A hooficure...the day i get a hooficure is the day I turn in my daredevil..." she stopped mid sentence.
"Hmm?" The doctor said looking up at her raising an eyebrow.
"I guess I already did that when I chose to have two foals.." She chuckled.
"Exactly, now don't worry just go do something relaxing, you don't need silly old me telling you what to do, and if you're really that concerned about caring for them, there are many books you can read, or you could bring in a potential mate to be the father and help take care of them, these are things you should consider, but don't rush it, everything will be just fine." The doctor scribbled a few things onto his clipboard once more.
"Thanks, doc." Rainbow thanked him before leaving the room.
She left the office and was walking through Ponyville, when she stopped at the spa. "Maybe just one hooficure…" She thought to herself.
She went into the spa and got a massage and then decided to get a hooficure. A short time later she emerged from the spa feeling better, she had gotten her mane professionally done, a hooficure, and a massage.
"All of these years I thought this was just girly stuff, but it really felt good to be pampered…" She thought to herself, smiling as she picked up her foals from Mr. and Mrs. Cake and flew home with a new sense of confidence.
That night, Rainbow was sitting in her living room and noticed her mail, a letter from the hospital, she opened it and read it.
"Dear Parent or Guardian of Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy, Due to the magic nature of the disease, a cure cannot be found and the foals you know as Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy will have to grow naturally, we are sorry for the inconvenience, ~Sincerely, The Ponyville Hospital Staff."
Rainbow set the letter down on the table, she noticed another letter from Cloudsdale labeled urgent; so she picked it up and read it.
"Rainbow Dash, you have not reported to work for several days and if you do not report to work tomorrow you will be fired."
Rainbow was shocked, she had completely forgotten about work, it's not like she had the time to even go anymore, perhaps she needed someone, someone who could help her take care of her foals.
"What are you reading mommy?" Twilight trotted into the room, peeking over Rainbow Dash's shoulder as she used her magic to levitate herself into the air.
"Oh nothing, it's not important" Rainbow said nonchalantly.
"Ok, well me and Fluttershy are tired. Can we go to bed?" Twilight asked, yawning a bit.
"Of course," Rainbow smiled softly. She went to the bedroom and tucked both Twilight and Fluttershy in to sleep.
She then went back downstairs and sat on her sofa.
"Well, maybe I should think about sending them to school, that way I could work and they would be some were safe, but, that would go against everything I promised them, I could get one of my friends to watch them, but they all work too…" Rainbow thought to herself. "Maybe, I could ask Big Macintosh. We did have a relationship before this all started…" She thought to herself. She had secretly been dating Big Macintosh for a while before this event occurred, though it wasn't that much of a secret after Apple Bloom caught them in the middle of an 'intimate' moment and then told everyone.
"Maybe, maybe he would marry me, we have been going out for over two years, it wouldn't hurt to have a Stallion around the house, he has a job, he could support the family." She thought to herself, it was a long shot, but it was worth a try.
Rainbow began her day normally, she woke, made sure her fillies were okay and then she went about making breakfast, she went into the living room, her mail magically appearing on her table like it always does, a letter from Cloudsdale.
"Rainbow Dash, you have been fired from your duties as a weather control Pegasus." the letter read.
"Oh no, how am I going to afford my fillies now, even worse the house!?" She whispered to herself, there was then a knock on the door.
Rainbow opened the door to reveal Rarity.
"I've come to check up on you, I haven't heard from you and I wanted to make sure you were ok" Rarity said
Rainbow hoofed her the letter without words, Rarity read it.
"Oh darling, I'm so sorry! Do you have a backup plan for money?" Rarity asked
"No, I don't have anything, the only thing I can do at this point is beg for my job back and get a foal sitter, but I can't afford a foal sitter, and I don't trust anyone enough to foal sit for me anyway, I'm almost out of bits as it is, I'm going to lose the house if this keeps up!" Rainbow said, she was tearing up, she was losing everything over something so trivial as not being able to show up to work for a few days.
"Darling, I can lend you money, it's no problem, honestly," Rarity said trying to make her friend feel better.
"Well I do have one other option…" Rainbow looked up at Rarity "But, it's kind of desperate" She said.
"Well, what is it?" Rarity asked.
"Come with me," Rainbow said, she led Rarity into her home and to a small cabinet next to the door, she opened a small door on it and brought out a small box, she opened it revealing an engagement ring and she showed Rarity, Rarity read the engraved words. "To my love, Big Macintosh".
"Rainbow, you were going to ask Big Mac to marry you? How long had you planned this" Rarity asked shocked, she knew about their relationship but she had no idea it was this serious.
"About a month, I had planned to ask him to marry me a few days ago but then all this happened, I was going to quit my job anyway and get a house with Big Mac anyway, but that was when I didn't have two Foals to deal with, now it just looks desperate of me," Rainbow said
"Honey if you really love him, he will understand and he will still say yes." Rarity said
"I hope so…" Rainbow said
About an hour later, with Rarity watching her foals, Rainbow made her way to Sweet Apple Acres, she had the ring with her.
She found Big Mac and took him aside from his work and explained the situation, she then popped the question.
"Eyup," He said, smiling. She hugged him tightly.
"Thank you, thank you so much!" She said, she flew up into the air, ecstatic that she was going to be getting married! He even agreed to moving in to her house, of course she would have to have it grounded so he could get to it, but that was the least of her problems, they had agreed on a small wedding as soon as possible, in fact, they had agreed on the next day, Rainbow then flew home and told Rarity, Rarity then went home and told the rest of their friends, they all would show up for the small wedding on Sweet Apple Acres, naturally Applejack was the last person to agree to showing up to this wedding as she didn't much like the idea of her big brother marrying Rainbow, but she eventually was convinced it was a good idea.
That night Rainbow tucked in her foals and smiled as she laid in her bed, the day to come was going to be the best day of her life, and soon almost all of her problems would be over, or so she thought.
The next morning, Rainbow laid awake in her bed nearly all night. She was getting married, she was so excited, Rarity had provided her a wedding dress the night before and it was proudly hanging on a small hook on the other side of the room, she opened her eyes and looked right at it, her fillies still sleeping.
"Well, today is the day!" She thought to herself.
She slowly got out of bed trying not to make too much noise so she didn't wake Twilight and Fluttershy.
She walked over to the dress and picked it up, she then quietly walked out of the room into another bedroom, she put the dress on and admired herself in a mirror.
"It's really happening, as much as I thought I didn't want to settle down with a husband and foals, I do, I really do" She thought to herself, outwardly all of her life she may not have been this kind of pony, but she was a mare after all, and deep down she wanted what every mare wanted, companionship and foals, she just never admitted it to herself until now.
Rainbow had taken the dress off and placed it on a table just as someone knocked on the door.
Rainbow opened the door to see Rarity, she had a box magically floating next to her.
"Rainbow darling, may I come in?" She asked graciously.
"Of course Rarity," Rainbow grinned.
They both went inside and sat down on Rainbow's sofa in her living room.
"So uh...what's in the box?" Rainbow asked.
"Why, dresses for the flower fillies of course" Rarity exclaimed with bliss.
"Excuse me?" Rainbow asked puzzled, she was having a small wedding and didn't even think there would be flower fillies.
"Well, you're not going to completely leave your foals out of this wedding are you?" Rarity asked, chuckling.
"I guess it never occurred to me…" she admitted, scratching the back of her neck.
"Well, Fluttershy and Twilight are going to be the flower fillies," Rarity said as if it were her own wedding and she was deciding.
"Um, okay, I guess…" Rainbow muttered.
Rarity left, leaving the dresses for Rainbow. Rainbow Dash proceeded to wake up her foals, she then changed them and fed them breakfast.
"Um, I have to tell you two something," Rainbow suddenly said.
"What is it mommy?" Fluttershy asked.
"Well, I'm uh, I'm getting married" Rainbow blurted out, uneasy about the subject around her foals, she didn't know how they would react.
"Married? When?" Twilight asked.
"Um, later today…" She murmured.
"TODAY?!" Twilight yelled, banging her fists onto her highchair tray.
"Calm down Twilight!" Rainbow sucked in air through her teeth while she grinded them nervously.
"But...to who?" Twilight asked.
"Big Macintosh." Rainbow said proudly.
"Congraduwations!" Fluttershy cheered timidly. She was for some reason not bothered by this, but Twilight on the other hand was very upset for some reason.
"But...but...you can't get married! You'll never spend time with us again!" Twilight cried, tears forming in her eyes.
"Actually Twilight this means I will have more time to spend with you," Rainbow grinned.
"No, you'll always spend time with him!" Twilight argued.
"Twilight, calm down, I'll still spend as much time with you as I always do." Rainbow said, she had picked Twilight up and hugged her.
"Promise?" Twilight asked.
"Promise." Rainbow smiled and nodded.
"I love you, mommy," Twilight said, hugging Rainbow tighter.
"Did she just say...I love you?" Rainbow thought to herself, she knew that Twilight thought she was her mother, but, she had never said 'I love you' Rainbow didn't know what to say so she just returned the hug and responded
"I love you too, Twilight."
"You know uh, you two will be in the wedding, you're the flower fillies" Rainbow said
"Really!" Twilight yelled in excitement.
"Um..okay…" Fluttershy said in her shy voice.
"Yeah, Rarity dropped off these dresses for you two, and it's almost time, so let's get you two dressed." Rainbow said, a few moments later she had changed them again, and then put the dresses on them, Rainbow then put her own dress on and Rainbow picked both of her foals up and started to fly to the wedding. Big Macintosh was waiting at the altar, and all of their friends were there.
Rarity instructed Twilight and Fluttershy and then returned to her seat, then on cue Twilight and Fluttershy proceeded down the aisle throwing flower peddles every were, when they got to the alter they stepped aside and the wedding music began, Rainbow trotted down the aisle slowly, she wanted to soak in this moment, it was everything she wanted and more! Her wedding dress was white but her vale was rainbow colored to match her mane, she was wearing a necklace that she made for her now passed mother, it was a small wooden necklace that was multicolored.
As soon as she got to the alter the elder stallion minister said all of the important wedding words from his book and then started with the final part of the ceremony.
"Do you, Rainbow Dash, take Big Macintosh, in sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?" He asked.
"I do." Rainbow said looking right into Mac's eyes.
"And do you, Big Macintosh take Rainbow Dash in sickness and in health as long as you both shall live?" He asked.
There was a long pause, Mac then smiled and said "Eyup."
"Very well then, you may kiss the bride." the minister said, Rainbow and Mac shared a long romantic kiss, then Twilight and Fluttershy ran up to Rainbow and hugged her, and Rainbow hugged them back and tried to bring Big Mac into the hug at the same time, the music started to play and the reception was about to begin.
It had been a short time since the wedding, the wedding party had arrived at a small clearing in the apple orchard were there were lights and chairs and tables and such, there was even a DJ station. It was starting to get dark and the reception was beginning. A slow song started to play, it was the bride and grooms first married dance. Rainbow and Mac made their way to the center of the dancing area and started dancing together.
"Thank you," Rainbow whispered to him.
"Eyup," He whispered back.
"No really, thank you." She whispered.
"Anything for you," He whispered
They carried on dancing until the end of the song, Twilight and Fluttershy had wandered under a table and were playing some game, Applejack was keeping a close eye on Rainbow and Mac, Rarity and Pinkie were watching Twilight and Fluttershy from a distance until they started talking. It was not yet night but it was starting to get dark.
Twilight and Fluttershy were near the dance floor when Princess Celestia appeared on a blaze of fire.
"Twilight Sparkle!" She yelled appearing in front of Fluttershy and Twilight.
Fluttershy and Twilight both screamed and ran to Rainbow and hid behind her, Celestia followed but Rainbow blocked her from getting any closer to Twilight and Fluttershy.
"Rainbow Dash, move out of the way." Celestia barked furiously.
"You're not getting near my foals" Rainbow snarled, obviously trying to protect Twilight and Fluttershy from whatever Celestia was trying to do, as it did not seem to be good.
"Your what!? You have a lot of explaining to do, Rainbow Dash!" Celestia bellowed with fury.
"What does she want? Make the mean pony go away mommy!" Twilight said still cowering with Fluttershy behind Rainbow.
"It's okay, Twilight, I will deal with this, you just go with Big Macintosh and Applejack, they will take care of you, I promise nothing bad is going to happen" Rainbow Dash said turning to Twilight, she hugged her before sending Fluttershy and Twilight with Mac and Applejack.
As soon as they were far enough away so they could not hear what was happening, Celestia spoke.
"This has something to do with that new regression disease, does it not?" Celestia said
"You'd be right." Rainbow glared at Celestia.
"No one informed me, I assumed Twilight was just slacking on her studies."
"Okay, so what now?" Rainbow asked her, Rarity was still there watching over the conversation.
"Have her relatives been informed?" Celestia asked
"No," Rainbow replied.
"Rainbow Dash, you understand by taking Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy without letting any of their relatives know and refusing to give up custody you have committed an act of crime and you will have to be punished." Celestia raised an eyebrow.
"You're not taking my foals away, I'd die before you took them away from me!" Rainbow Dash shrieked, backing away from Celestia.
"As you wish," Celestia said, her horn started to glow and she began to float up into the air, Rainbow Dash's chest glowed red, the color of her element of harmony.
Celestia fired a beam of energy from her horn, Rarity jumped in front of it firing her own beam of energy from her horn, the energy beams clashed and an explosion occurred sending both Celestia and Rarity to the ground.
"Rarity!" Rainbow yelled galloping over to her friend, she was on the ground covered in ash and soot, Celestia was in a similar position but not as injured as Rarity was.
"I'm fine, go. Run!" Rarity said in a weak voice.
"I'll get you help, I promise you," Rainbow said before she galloped into the trees, she did this because she would easily be spotted in the night sky if she flew, she ran to were Applejack and Mac had taken Twilight and Fluttershy.
"Applejack, Rarity is hurt, I wish I could stay but I have to get them out of here," Rainbow frantically told her orange friend.
"Ah'll take care of Rarity you just get yer self and yer foals outta here." Applejack immediately said, Rainbow picked up Twilight and Fluttershy.
"I'll try to contact you once I get some were safe." She said to Applejack and Mac.
"Y'all do what y'all have to do, we'll hold her off as long as we can." Mac said.
Applejack and Mac ran into the orchard, Rainbow flew as fast as she could away from the farm, she flew to Fluttershy's old home, it was abandoned, or so she thought, when Rainbow got to the cottage it was surrounded by Royal Guardsmen, including Twilight's brother.
Rainbow tried to turn around but she was caught in a magical force field that forced her down to the ground, the guards tried to force Rainbow to let go of Twilight and Fluttershy but to no avail, Rainbow kicked as hard as she could at the guards.
"Stay away from my foals," She yelled as they managed to subdue her and force her down to the ground, one of the guards took Fluttershy and Twilight.
"Mommy! Help!" Twilight yelled
"Mommy!" Fluttershy yelled before they were taken out of eyesight, the last thing Rainbow remembered seeing before she blacked out was Shining Armor, he kicked her in the face and she blacked out.
Rainbow woke in a dungeon like room, she was free to move about the room but it was dark, there was one heavy door in the room and a small barred window that was letting moon light in. There was also a small wooden bunk in the room that she was laying on.
She got up and assessed her surroundings, she put her hoof to her head.
"Ow, what did he kick me with an iron horseshoe" She said to herself, she rubbed her head with her hoof.
"Well I'm obviously in a cell some were," She thought to herself, she looked out the window and saw the lights of Canterlot "I'm in the palace dungeon, great," She thought to herself, she looked around, something, anything to let her know her foals were alright, but nothing, just cold stone walls. "I bet I could fly through that door"She thought to herself, she went to fly but her wings would not move.
"What's going on, they must have dru-" She stopped in her tracks when she looked at her back.
"My wings!" She yelled "They're gone!" She yelled, she was starting to cry, her nightmare was coming true.
She sat down on the bed and cried, she laid down on the bed and cried some more.
"It's true, my life, my foals, my wings, they are all gone, I'll probably rot in this cell for the rest of my life." She said to herself, just then the door opened and Celestia walked in followed by two guards.
"Rainbow Dash," Celestia spoke.
"Go away, you've done enough to torture me today," Rainbow sobbed.
"After consulting my advisers and the hospital that Twilight was staying at I have come to the conclusion to release you and return your wings, however, Twilight Sparkle and Fluttershy will remain in the care of me and my sister." Celestia spoke.
"No," Rainbow paused. "No, I won't leave without them."
"You have no choice" Celestia said sternly.
"Either all of us go, or none of us go." Rainbow growled.
"You're not leaving with those foals." Celestia barked.
"Did it ever occur to you, that your destroying three ponies lives with this action?!" Rainbow said darkly.
"Enlighten me," Celestia scoffed.
"Fluttershy and Twilight think I am their mother and if you try to change that, it will kill them, ask the hospital, this disease will kill them if you try to change that, and it's unethical to keep a pony from her mother, it would also kill me to leave me foals in the hands of someone like you, I used to look up to you, but now look at you, your ruining families for your own benefit." Rainbow said
"Well...I" Celestia stuttered, she was at a loss for words.
"Maybe next time you will think before taking action, I choose to raise these foals because they had no one, none of their relatives came to visit them in the hospital, I did, did you come? No you did not, In my eyes, how do you think that looked, I lost my job because I had to take care of them, I nearly lost my house just to keep them fed and clothed" Rainbow paused. "Now are you really going to take them away from me, after all of this" Rainbow said
Celestia looked at the floor, and then back at Rainbow, so much devotion to the foals, Celestia did not know what to say, she made a tough decision.
"Your free to go," Celestia said, she had not returned Rainbows wings or given her back the foals.
Rainbow just stood there looking at her, she didn't budge.
"Go, before I change my mind." Celestia said, Rainbow was looking her right in the eye but Celestia was avoiding eye contact.
"Not without my foals." Rainbow Dash huskily said.
"You leave me in a tough position, Rainbow Dash." Celestia sighed.
"No, it's easy, you just don't have the heart to do it, separating a family, how pathetic."
"Take the foals and go." Celestia hissed, still avoiding eye contact
Rainbow Dash, without word and without her wings left the room, she took Twilight and Fluttershy from the royal nursery and began the walk out of the palace.
"Rainbow Dash, I have one final thing to say to you." Celestia spoke as she came up behind Rainbow who was almost out of the palace.
Celestia raised her head and her horn started to glow, Rainbows wings returned to her sides.
"I'll be watching you…" Celestia said, and with that, Rainbow left the palace without another word, she flew to apple acres were Applejack was sitting on a chair looking up at the night sky.
"Where is Rarity?" Rainbow asked in a worried tone.
"She is at the hospital, Mac and Pinkie took her." Applejack replied, pulling her hat over her face.
"Can you watch Twilight and Fluttershy, I need to check on her." Rainbow asked her friend.
"Sure can do" Applejack said as she lifted her hat off of her face. Rainbow Dash gave Applejack a small smile as she handed Twilight and Fluttershy to Applejack. Applejack winked at Dash in response. With confidence, Rainbow Dash zipped off into the night sky at bullet speed, a sparkling rainbow trailing fast behind her as she flew.
Rainbow got to the hospital and was greeted by Pinkie and Mac. Mac and Rainbow shared a small kiss before Rarity was wheeled out on a wheel chair.
"Are you okay?!" Rainbow asked fretfully as she checked her friend over.
"I'm better than you look," Rarity said pointing to the tears that still covered Rainbow's face and chuckling softly.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Rainbow said, wiping her tears away.
"The hospital said I just need some bed rest, I just had some minor scrapes and bruises is all." Rarity smiled dimly.
"That's good, I was worried about you," Rainbow said in a genuinely concerned voice.
"You had more important things to do, I understand." Rarity answered back.
"Well, I need to head home now, Goodnight," Rainbow said, kissing Mac again before leaving. When she got to the farm, she took Fluttershy and Twilight from Applejack and flew home, she then put her foals to bed and then tried to fall asleep herself, but the events of the past day kept her awake all night. "What did she mean by 'I'll be watching you'" Rainbow thought, the thought lingered all night and she barely got any sleep.
The night slipped past far too slowly for Rainbow, she was up most of the night afraid of the days to come, she had no idea what was in store for her, or if Celestia planned any visits.
The sun had not risen yet it was still considered night, Rainbow was awake, she got out of bed, her foals were stirring, Twilight had tears coming out of the corners of her closed eyes and Fluttershy was moaning and also crying.
Rainbow walked over to their cribs and picked them both up, waking them up if they were not already awake, she brought them over to her bed and laid them down and pulled her covers up over them, she sat on the end of the bed and she brushed their manes out of their eyes with her hoof.
"What's the matter" She asked them with a heartrending frown.
"W..W...W...We were ha...having n..n.n...nightmares…" Twilight wailed between tears.
"It was scawy," Fluttershy whimpered.
"It's okay, nothing bad is going to happen to you two…" Rainbow said in a motherly tone.
"B..B...But w..what about l..last n..n..night…?" Twilight asked.
"It's all over, don't worry, I won't let anything happen to you ever again." Rainbow said.
"Pwomis?" Fluttershy squeaked.
"Promise." Rainbow Dash replied and hugged Fluttershy and Twilight.
Fluttershy yawned and started to fall asleep, she had stopped crying.
Twilight on the other hand was still crying and shook up from her nightmare.
"Twilight, it's going to be ok, just calm down and try to go back to sleep." Rainbow repeated.
"But...I...I..I don't want to go back to the scary place…" Twilight whined.
"What scary place?" Rainbow tilted her head and puckered an eyebrow in confusion.
"The place with the big pony who took you away from us, my nightmare was there, I don't want to go back!" Twilight bawled.
"Twilight, I will be right here when you fall asleep and when you wake up." Rainbow smiled reassuringly.
"O...o...ok" Twilight muttered, finally starting to calm down as Rainbow Dash rubbed comforting and soothing circles in her back in order to calm her down.
"Now just lay your head down on the pillow and try to fall back to sleep." Rainbow said.
Twilight yawned and shortly fell asleep next to Fluttershy, Rainbow crawled back into her bed under the covers next to Twilight and Fluttershy and she tried to fall back to sleep, the warmth of her two foals was filling the bed next to her, she couldn't help but smile knowing they were there and they were going to stay there, with her, for a long time.
A few hours passed and Rainbow had managed to get some sleep and so had her foals, Rainbow woke to the sunlight coming in through the window and shining on her face, her foals were still sound asleep this time not having nightmares, Rainbow quietly laid there until they woke up, shortly after Rainbow woke Twilight stirred and Fluttershy woke up, Fluttershy rolled over forgetting she was in Rainbow's bed and rolled right onto Twilight waking Twilight up, Rainbow watched and could not help but think that it was cute. Twilight woke up and yawned.
"Good morning," Rainbow said to them.
"Good morning." they said in unison.
"Did you sleep well?" Rainbow asked.
"I slept good," Twilight said
"I swept good too," Fluttershy said, she had gotten off Twilight and she was standing on the bed.
"Well let's get you two changed and then we will get some breakfast, how does that sound?" Rainbow said
"Okay!" They both said.
Rainbow then changed them both out of their dirty diapers and then took them down to the living room and put them in their playpen, Rainbow then went to the kitchen to start making breakfast.
As Rainbow returned to the living room with breakfast there was a knock on the door. Rainbow opened the door and saw a very filthy Rarity, she was covered in dirt and dust and scrapes and bruises, she was struggling to catch her breath.