The Life and Lies of Princess Celestia- Chapter 3
The Queen brought Princess Celestia and her younger sister to an orphanage that sat close to the hospital for medical reasons. The two fillies slept on her back, as if nothing had happened that night. She landed on the cold ground and walked toward the door. She used her magic to gently set the two fillies on the doorstep. She stared at them for a short while before conjuring a warm blanket for each of them and wrapping them gently in it.
When she was satisfied with their comfort, she produced a scroll explaining what had happened and placed it between the two fillies. She then knocked on the door gently, producing a sound quiet enough not to awaken the sleeping fillies, but loud enough to be heard from inside. She took a few steps back and spread her long wings, preparing to take flight. She stared at them for a short while before ascending into the air without a sound. This would be the last time they would see her for the next twenty years; but it would not be the last she would see of them.
The mare in charge of running the orphanage was fast asleep when the knock on the door came. She opened her eyes gradually and sat up, wondering who it could be that was knocking at such a late hour. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes using the back of her hoof and climbed out of her bed, making her way around the sleeping bodies of the foals that had nightmares that night and wanted to sleep in her room. She opened the creaky door as slowly as she could so as to reduce the noise produced by the rickety wooden hinges and stepped into the hallway.
She made her way down the equally creaky and rickety wooden steps that led from the second floor to the first and over to the door. She opened it and looked around, at first finding nothing and almost thinking it a prank played by some crude teenagers. She nearly shut the door before she looked down and stopped immediately. As she stared down she saw the two sleeping fillies on her doorstep, a scroll with an elegant red ribbon tying it shut resting between them. She stooped down and used her wings to pick up the fillies and held them while she grabbed the scroll in her mouth and carried them inside, shutting the door behind her.
She walked up the stairs and found a vacant room that held a crib and placed them in it before setting the scroll down on a table that sat in the corner of the room. She used her hoof to hold the scroll in place while she used her teeth to pull the ribbon off. She let the scroll unfurl before her and began reading the graceful hoofwriting:
"Dear Julianne,
I have brought these two fillies to you tonight because of a tragic incident that killed both of their parents in a house fire near the outskirts of the town earlier tonight. These two fillies have my personal blessing, and they will one day rise up to found a new nation: Equestria. Please see to it that these two are well taken care of in the meantime. I will return to help them proceed in their paths in twenty years' time.
Sincerely,
The Queen"
Julianne read and reread the script until it was almost burned into her memory in disbelief. Her eyes were wide with astonishment at first, but then they gradually returned to their previous state. This was probably a prank that was being played on her. The Queen was only a myth; told to explain the times before recorded history. Still, who could've played such an elaborate prank on her? Her mind was filled with wonder and partial excitement. She glanced over at the two fillies that slept silently in the crib. Then she got an idea. She headed to the supply closet that stood at the end of the hallway on the second floor and grabbed a flashlight in her mouth and shut the door again. She crept as silently as she could down the hallway, past her room that contained the many sleeping foals, and down the stairs. She decided not to be gone long, as she would have a long day ahead of her in the morning. She opened the front door, which was dramatically less creaky, and stepped through, latching the door shut behind her before setting out toward the outskirts.
She followed one street that cut right through Canterlot and turned a corner. She squinted in the night as it was difficult for her to see without her glasses in the darkness. I should've grabbed my glasses. She thought; thinking herself a fool. Then she remembered she had neglected to turn the flashlight on. She flipped the switch on the flashlight with her tongue and the shimmering beam of light burst to life. She shined the light around and could see the buildings and streets clearly now.
She was already almost to the outskirts by this point. She walked on, her mind wandering to the two fillies that slept in the crib and the mysterious letter she had received. What if the letter was real? It would be an incredible thing, and she would be glad to take on the two fillies and see that they were properly taken care of. There was also the possibility of this whole thing being a hoax, and she would have to return the two fillies to the almost certainly unaware parents.
As she reached the outskirts of the town she had to walk a little ways before turning a corner to the alleged burnt house. She shined the beam of light around and found nothing at first. Then the beam of light fell on something that made her drop the flashlight in shock. Before her stood a still-smoldering wooden house, pillars of black smoke rising into the night sky. Her eyes were wide with disbelief and horror. She stood there, paralyzed by the sight. Her heart sank deep into her stomach. As she stood there her eyes began to fill with tears. It brought back horrible memories of her foalhood, and her heart ached for the two fillies that slept in the crib. She sank to her knees and tears fell from her eyes, streaming down her face and dripping onto the cold, dry ground. Her eyes seemed to fill with the reflection of the remains of the house. It had, at one point, been a two story house; but the top floor had collapsed from the weakened support and added to the fire that had ravaged the first floor. All that stood was the porch, the bottom half of the four walls and the four supporting beams that connected them. The rest was smoldering ash.
Her eyes drifted to a body that lay half-buried in the debris. His expression resembled one of anguish, either from the physical pain, or the emotional. As she looked upon him the sky cracked with thunder and it began to rain, wetting the mare's mane and bringing it down to her sides. The cold rain mingled with her tears as she sat there, staring at the loving father that had fought to keep his foals alive. It was always a terrible sight to see new foals arrive at the orphanage, but this took the cake.
She wiped her eyes with the back of her hoof and stood, grabbing the flashlight in her mouth and taking flight. She had been warned never to fly in a thunderstorm, but this was going to be one exception. She flew back to the orphanage and landed on the steps. She unlatched the door and entered, flicking the flashlight off as she stepped through the doorway. She walked through the kitchen, dripping water onto the wooden floor and leaving wet hoof prints as she went. She made her way to the bathroom and grabbed a clean towel with which to dry herself off with.
When she was dry she tossed the towel into the hamper for dirty towels and proceeded to walk up the stairs to the second floor. She walked down the dark hallway and entered the room where she had left the two fillies. She walked over to the crib and peered over the edge, staring silently at the two fillies that slept so comfortably despite the events of that night. She sighed and managed to pull out a smile. Then she glanced over at the desk and saw the letter still unfurled on the surface.
"Could it be?" She whispered. She looked back down at the fillies with awe.
"I promise I'll do whatever it takes to protect you two." She whispered to them. With that she walked back into her room and closed the door, climbing into her soft, warm bed and falling asleep nearly instantly.