Darkness and warmth. That’s all the small red foal knew. Sometimes, sounds made their way through the darkness. The muffled babbling of things unknown to him. Sometimes he’d hear a soft humming float to his ears, soothing him.
Until one day, he heard a shriek of “Babbehs comin’!” from outside and he was thrown into bright light. He landed on something fuzzy and he felt air for the first time.
He took his first breath ever and began crying out, expelling fluid from his lungs. “Peep! Peep!” A few other warm, soft lumps landed beside him, and they chirped out as well. He felt one after the other lifted away.
After one of them was lifted away, he heard a voice say “ Gasp! Babbeh wook jus wike Bewwy! Hewwo babbeh! Mummah wuv yoo! Yoo am bestest babbeh!” Soon enough, he was lifted as well. He felt himself dangling by the scruff of the neck, and he felt something warm lap at his face. He heard the voice say “Nu taste pwetty” and he was placed next to something that smelled sweet.
He reached out with his muzzle and instinctively latched on, a warm liquid spilling into his mouth. As he drank, he felt himself gain strength. Before he was ready to let go, he was picked back up again and placed away from the sweet smelling thing. “It am bestest babbeh’s tuwn nao. Not bestest babbehs wait tiww bestest babbeh am done.” He heard the unknown being say.
After an unknown amount of time of drinking and sleeping, he was able to open his eyes. Everything was so blurry and bright. He looked up at the first being he saw. A large purple muzzle leaned down to him and nuzzled him, and he fell on his back, kicking his little hind legs and laughing.
“Oh. Wed pointie babbeh nu am bestes’ babbeh. Go ‘way.” The muzzle roughly shoved him back and left, and he saw it nuzzle a purple foal. His eyes cleared and he saw it giggle in its mother’s arms. His mother was a purple unicorn with a red mane and tail, and a blue horn. He trotted up to her grinning, chirping happily and wagging his tail, awaiting more nuzzles and some milk.
Huge ice blue eyes that sat above the muzzle turned and glared darkly down at him. “Bewwy said go way! Not gon’ gif yoo miwkies nao!” She snarled. The baby unicorn’s smile drooped. He whined, hungry and not understanding.
The huge purple being grabbed him in her mouth and flung him farther away. “Dewe. Cwy aw yoo want, dummeh not-bestest babbeh.” He landed painfully, tumbling over and over. He was now sore and bruised. He shakily listed his head, took a deep breath and let out his first ever cries of pain.
“Huu, huu, huuuuu!” He sobbed. Why was his mummah so mean to him? He’d done nothing wrong. He whimpered as his stomach roared at him. He was practically starving. He hadn’t eaten all day, and it was almost darkie time already. He shakily stood and stumbled over to his mummah again. He sniffled sadly, asking “Mummah? M-Miwkies? Huuuu…”
His mummah snarled and grabbed him by the mane, shaking him back and forth. He felt each yank bring more and more pain. He shrieked, and she threw him as far as she could. He slammed against the floor, a shock of pain coursing through his entire body. From then on he stayed in the corner, hiding under a red pillow away from the one he thought he could trust.
After a few days of near-foodless agony, he felt strong pains in his back. He cried out and rolled about the floor, feeling 2 bumps on his upper back. He sobbed, begged “Pwease huwties, go ‘way!” and hid his head behind his hooves, but nothing made the pain stop. A few times his cries of pain agitated Berry, and she kicked him and told him “Stahp scweamin! Yoo am scawin’ bestest babbeh!”. It even interfered with when he was able to drink milk. His cries of pain interrupted his nursing often.
A few days later, it stopped on its own. Then, the itching started. He squeaked and ran over to a wall. He reared up on his hind legs and scratched his back desperately. It was a long time before it stopped.
Eventually, after 5 long days of horrendous itching and nibbling on strange nubs growing out of the things on his back, he looked behind him to see 2 new wings fluttering on his back! Feathers! The primaries were dark blue, and the secondaries were dark red.
He gasped, and for the first time in a long while he was able to ignore his hunger. He pranced about the pen, and even went up to show his hungry littermates. His siblings smiled, cheered and clapped their hooves, glad something good had finally happened. He even went up to show Berry.
“Mummah! Wingies!” He called. Berry, who was in the middle of grooming her favorite foal, whipped her head around, glaring at him.
“Nu cawe! Yoo am just dumb wingie babbeh-” Her eyes nearly popped out of her head as she stared at the small alicorn in front of her. “M-MUNSTAAAAH!” She screamed. She shrieked, backpedaling into a corner and shielding her favorite baby, who chirped confusedly. “HEWP! HEWP! MUNSTAH BABBEH!” The small red alicorn cocked his head, confused.
“Munstah? Babbehs nu see munstah…” His littermates said, looking all about the pen.
One of the babies even muttered “Do Mummah hab cwazies?” Berry growled and pointed her hoof at the alicorn, losing her temper.
“STOOPI FOAWS! MUNSTAH WIGHT DEWE!” Her hoof shook as she pointed at the red foal, screaming bloody murder. The babies, turned, confused. Why was she calling their brother a monster? He hadn’t tried to hurt them, ever.
A few days later…
The alicorn foal woke up to find Berry standing over him. He chirped and wagged his tail. “Mummah gif miwkies an’ wuv?” He asked innocently. He hadn’t eaten for a while.
“Yoo… Stoopi meanie munstah… Yoo nummed Bewwy’s babbehs, didn’t yoo?!” The purple mare screeched. She leaned down and grabbed the foal’s mane, dragging him around the pen. He screamed in pain, not understanding what he was being accused of.
“SCREEEE! NU! NUUU! NU HUWT BABBEH!” The alicorn wailed. Berry slammed him against the ground. He howled in agony.
“BEWWY WAKE AN’ FIND AWW BABBEHS GONE! BESTEST BABBEH GONE TOO! YOO NUMMED DEM, YOO MUNSTAH!” Berry screamed in his face. “AN BEWWY KNU WHAT TO DO WIF MUNSTAH BABBEHS!” The unicorn roared. The alicorn foal backed up, eventually hitting a wall.
“P-Pwease mummah, nu huwt babbeh! Am onwy wittow foaw!” The alicorn yelled, shaking in pain and terror. He heard urgent shouting outside his pen. He pressed himself against the wall, as if he would be able to phase through it and escape. But alas, escape was not possible.
“AM NOT YOO MUMMAH!” Berry snarled, raising her hoof. “GU FOWEVA SWEEPIES, MUNSTAH!” Her face twisted in hate, she brought that hoof down upon the foal. Luckily for him, he dodged, but not fast enough. Berry’s hoof came down on his right front leg. It broke with a sickening CRACK and he screamed in agony. Instantly, he felt 2 huge hands scoop him up and away from Berry. Berry let out an angry SCREE! as he was carried away from the pen. He heard her protest his rescue, but it was drowned out in his cries. At some point, they passed by a concerned looking man with black hair. But the foal didn’t care. He was sure he was going to die.
He was brought into a bright room, gently placed on a table, and a strange mask was placed over his muzzle. Weird smelling air was pumped to his mouth and nose. He fell asleep.
When he awoke, he felt warm and safe. He blinked rapidly in shock when he realized he was being held and rocked by a black unicorn he’d never seen before. “Mummah wuv babbeh, babbeh wuv mummah… Oh! Babbeh am wakies!” The unicorn exclaimed. She nuzzled his little cheek and he chirped in confusion. His leg didn’t hurt anymore, but now it was covered in a white, hard thing and he couldn’t move it. It was a cast.
“Nice to meet yoo babbeh, fwuffy name am Night! Night wiww be yoo nyu mummah fwom nao on.” Night cooed. She ran a white hoof through the alicorn’s mane.
The foal cocked his head in confusion again. “Why nyu mummah? Am munstah babbeh. Mummahs nu wuv munstah babbehs, huuu…” He hid his face in a hoof and sobbed broken-heartedly. “Nu gif miwkies, ow wuv ow huggies… Onwy huwties an’ foweva sweepies.”
“Oh nu babbeh, pwease nu cwy! Mummah Night wuv yoo! Yoo nu am munstah to mummah.” Night snuggled him gently, minding his leg.
“Sniffle Chirp? Night wuv babbeh? Nu am munstah? But aww da uthah babbehs am gone. Nu knu whewe dey awe! Huu…”
“Oh! It otay babbeh, yoo bwuddahs an’ sistahs nu am gone. Dey hewe! Tomato, pwease being yoo babbehs hewe to show Night babbeh!” Night called over her shoulder. She gently lifted him up, and he could suddenly see over the pen and into another! On the other side, a reddish-orange pegasus mare was leading her babies over to the edge of the pen to show him.
“Hewwo pointie wingie babbeh! Am Tomato! Tomato am waisin’ yoo bwuddahs an sistahs!” The mare crowed as she wagged her tail.
They were his siblings! They were ok! But… Why had they disappeared overnight? What had happened?
“A nice mistah saw Bewwy bein bad mummah an towd a hooman dat wowks hewe what was goin on! Su nice wowkin hooman take babbehs away fwom Bewwy whiwe she was sweepies. But Night guess dey nu see wed babbeh cause wed babbeh was hidin fwom bad mummah. Babbeh hide weaw gud!” Night explained.
The alicorn couldn’t believe it. He wasn’t a monster, then? Tears of happiness leaked from his eyes and he was brought back down to nurse from Night. A mummah song made its way into his little fuzzy ears as he drifted off.
Someone loved him.
First chapter: You are here!
Chapter 1, the official beginning: Cherry and Brian, Chapter 1: Beginnings (Star-The-Alicorn)