Author's Notes:

I admit it. The ending of this chapter had me misting up real bad.
Warning to all. Keep a hankie handy.

"Okay Moon Lily. Take your time and think it through," Morning said, encouraging the little filly. She was the oldest of the foals they had rescued, having just been weaned the previous spring and Morning was absolutely loving her. She sat before him in the soft grass staring down at the pine cones that were lined up on a sheet of bark. Her face was scrunched up in deep thought as she struggled to work out the answer.

Nearby, Ash sat playing with an orange filly named Darling Grace. He was rattling a cleverly made gourd that Mosswood had partially filled with sunflower seeds, over the filly who cooed happily up at it. Holding it by the stick that had been attached into the bottom, Ash would shake it a few times to show the filly how to do it, before giving it to her to try.

They had set off early that morning, descending back down the valley until they came out next to the lake. Traveling east past the lake, they crossed through a small forest and came to a clearing near a river. Dark didn't want to overtax their new members too much, so he had them make camp there along the river.

Fires had been quickly set up and ponies busied themselves with various tasks around the camp. Mustard and Sky said that they were tired of smelling like they'd been rolling in a dung pile and set off to wash themselves in the river, leaving Morning and Dusty to watch over some of the younger foals with Ash.

Moon Lily nibbled her lip as she stared down at the row of pine cones before her. "Here, let me help you start off." Morning pointed at one of the pine cones on the end. "One." He pointed to the next one and waited for Moon Lily to continue.

Moon Lily considered the next pine cone for a time. "Two...?" she finally answered, looking up at Morning to see if she was right.

Morning smiled brightly at her and nodded. "Yes! You're right, it's two!" Moon Lily laughed and clopped her little hooves on the ground, excited that she got it right. "Now, what's the next one?" he asked, pointing to the last pine cone.

Running by, a frantic looking Dusty paused to search through a bush he already searched through five times before. "No, no, no! How could this have happened!? How could I have lost a foal!" he cried out in a panic. "I am going to be such a terrible father! How will Sky ever trust me with our foal!? I’m such a horrible stallion!"

"Have you tried that bush over there?" Morning asked, gesturing to a particular thorny patch of brambles nearby. "I thought I saw it move."

A hopeful look suddenly flashed across Dusty's face. "You did!? Oh, thank you!" He rushed over to stick his head into the brambles. "Ow!- Acorn Shell! You in here? Please come out! Ow- I'm not mad at you. I promise! Ow."

Ash looked up from Darling Grace to gaze for a short time at Dusty. Turning back to Morning, Ash shook his head. "When are you going to tell him that Acorn Shell is asleep under your tail?"

Morning shrugged with an amused smile. "Oh, I don't know. When it gets boring, I guess." He leaned back down to the filly, "Okay, you almost got them all. What's the next one?"

Moon Lily focused really hard onto the last pine cone as she thought really hard. Morning had to bite his lip as he fought how adorable she looked. "Umm..." She pointed her hoof at the first pine cone, "... one..." She pointed to the next one, "... two..." She then pointed to the last one, "ummm...Three...!"

"Yes!" Morning exclaimed, snatching Moon Lily up and hugging her. "You did it! You counted to three! You are such a smart filly." He then kissed her soundly on her little chubby cheek before setting her back down.

"One, two, three!" Moon Lily counted again. "One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three," she repeated several more times with Morning joining her.

Ash watched the scene with a smile, remembering when he had learned to count from Meadowlark. Something then caught his eye and he blinked in surprise. "Umm... Morning," he called out to him.

Morning continued recounting the numbers with Moon Lilly a few more times before turning his attention to Ash. "Yes?"

"Look," Ash said, pointing his hoof.

Curious, Morning turned and looked back at his flank. Three bright little sunflowers sat on his flank, each one with a happy smiling face in its center.

"I... I got my cutie mark!" Morning exclaimed in surprise. Snatching Moon Lily up again, he danced about with her as he rained kisses all over her face. "I got my cutie mark! I got my cutie mark!" It was thanks to this adorably bright little filly and her joy at learning something he had taught her that revealed his talent! He wanted to see other little adorable faces smiling up at him as they also learned new things! He couldn’t wait to shove this in Mustard’s face!

"You found him!" Dusty suddenly exclaimed as he rushed over to pick up a sleeping Acorn Shell. The colt had been uncovered when Morning had stood to dance with Moon Lily. Hugging the colt to his chest, Dusty smiled at Morning. "Oh, thank you, thank you! Thank you for finding him!"

Morning paused and blinked at Dusty, then he grinned. "Oh, I'm just happy you got him back. I'm sure you would have found him eventually."

Ash flinched when Darling bonked him on his muzzle with her rattle. Rubbing his nose, Ash looked down at the gurgling little filly. "Morning's a really bad pony," he said to her.

"I wanna try more!" Moon Lily said happily. Setting her down, Morning watched her go to find another pine cone to add to the three.

"Excuse me." A voice called from behind him.

Turning, he found Grass Stem standing there. Morning hadn't seen the light green stallion since their fight the previous day. A part of his rib would still twinge painfully whenever he moved wrong and he was pleased to see that Grass's eye was swollen halfway shut from a good shot he had gotten through.

Grass Stem drew himself up before him. "I wanted to apologize for yesterday."

Morning gaped at the stallion in surprise. "Why are you apologizing? I'm the one who attacked you! I should be the one to apologize."

"I'm apologizing because I purposefully drew you into that fight." Grass confessed.

Morning blinked at Grass in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

"I saw that Mustard was pining after you, but you were so stuck up with what had happened to you that you were totally ignoring her." Grass explained. "I decided to force the issue by purposely showing interest in her. I knew that if you saw a stallion moving in on your mare, you would have to react. I'll admit, I was surprised at how violently you did react, but I'm still happy that it still worked out."

Morning plopped his rump down and rubbed a hoof over the twinge in his rib. "So you weren't serious about going for Mustard?"

"Oh! Don't get me wrong," Grass said with a shake of his head. "I would have bred her in a moment if she had chosen me. She's got the same cute rump that her sister has, and there is no way I would be able to resist that."

Morning thought he should be angry or at least jealous, but instead he started laughing. "You're right. She does have a cute rump," he admitted, wiping tears from his eyes.

"Oh. This was just what I needed." Mustard sighed, climbing out of the water onto a large slab of rock that stuck out into the river and settled herself next to Sky. Other mares were chatting with each other as they relaxed in the water or on other rocks along the river's edge.

Sky was already stretched out on its warm surface in the late day sun, drying her wings out. "I know what you mean. I feel so much better now."

Picking up a wooden comb, Mustard started brushing out the tangle in Sky's freshly washed white mane while she did the same for her tail. "You have the most pretty mane," Mustard complimented as she worked the comb through her soft locks. "The blue streaks that run through it look like pieces of the sky have been caught into your mane."

Sky worked a snarl out of Mustard's golden yellow tail. "You have a really pretty mane too."

"You're just saying that to be nice. My mane and tail are just plain, coarse, and ugly." Mustard scoffed.

"No. It's true," Sky added. "They remind me of a sunrise after a rainstorm has passed. When the horizon glows with a golden light of the newly rising sun."

Mustard paused in her brushing to glance back at her tail. She had never quite seen it that way before.

The clop of a hoof stepping onto stone drew their attention to the shore. There, a russet colored unicorn mare stood looking at them shyly. Mustard was surprised to find one of the unicorns here.

"Hello," Sky greeted the mare with a smile. "You're Tranquil Charm, right?"

The mare bit her lip and quietly nodded. She was young, maybe a season or two older than Sky. Due to her being so thin, it was hard to tell.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you," Sky continued. "My name is Sky Twirl and this is Mustard Seed."

Mustard noticed that the mare seemed afraid of them, keeping her eyes downcast and only looked up at them with quick glances. "Would you like to join us? The cool breeze off the river feels really nice right now," she said with a friendly smile.

Tranquil Charm took a few hesitant steps forward, looking around nervously. Showing bit more courage, she quickly crossed over to the edge of the slab and sat down, letting her front hooves dangle over the edge into the water. "All you dirt ponies are really nice. Not like those meanie ones back home."

Mustard switched to brushing out Sky's tail. "They didn't treat you well?"

Tranquil shook her head as she kicked her hooves in the water. "They called me names and told me I was a useless Unicorn with no magic." The young unicorn mare stopped splashing her hooves and stared down into the water. "They’re wrong. I do have magic. Good magic. Mother Grand told me so."

"Mother Grand? Do you mean Grand Vista? The other Unicorn with the broken leg?" Sky asked.

Tranquil Charm nodded. "She's been really nice to me. She cared for me after my mother died from fever. She found food for me and let me sleep against her side. And although she didn't have any milk to give, she'd also let me suckle from her. She said that it made her feel good, like she was a real mother."

"That was really nice of her," Mustard said, remembering the pleasantly warm feeling she had gotten when Acorn Shell had tried to nurse from her.

"Ow!" Sky suddenly exclaimed with a jerk, dropping her comb.

Mustard stopped brushing. "What is it!? Did I hurt you?" she asked in alarm.

Sky was blinking with a kind of mystified look on her face. "No. It wasn't you," she answered with a quick jerk of her head. Then her eyes shot wide as she gave a shocked gasp.

"What!? What is it?" Mustard asked, leaning towards her with concern.

Sky suddenly unfurled her wing around Mustard's head and pulled her down, pressing her cheek up against the firm bulge of her belly. At first Mustard felt nothing, until something abruptly shifted under her cheek. Mustard inhaled sharply when she realized what it was!

"By the stars! Was that...!?" Mustard quickly sat up to look at Sky.

"My foal just moved!" Sky answered, with an excited squeak to her voice.

Mustard pressed her cheek into her belly again and felt around trying to find where the foal had moved to. Behind them, Tranquil stood and slowly walked closer. Wiping her wet hoof onto her chest to dry it, she tentatively reached out to touch Sky's belly.

"You're... carrying a foal?" She asked, her eyes wide with a curious wonder.

Sky nodded. "Yes. I'm due early next spring." She giggled along with Mustard when her foal kicked again. "Do you want to feel it?"

Mustard lifted her head and pointed to a spot. "Here. Put your cheek right there."

Tranquil carefully set her cheek to the indicated spot and waited. After a few moments her eyes shot wide as a look of wonder crossed over her face. "How did you put a foal in there?" she asked, sitting back up.

"What do you mean?" Sky asked, confused by the question.

Tranquil rubbed her hoof over her stomach. "In here. How did you make a foal?"

Mustard realized what she was getting at. "Wait! Are you saying that you don't know how foals are made?"

Tranquil looked between the two and mutely shook her head at them.

"But, surely Grande would have told you how it happens," Sky said in disbelief.

Again, Tranquil shook her head. "Mother Grande said that it was something I didn't need to know about and I've never been allowed to go into the stables to see."

Mustard sat back with bewilderment. How could a mare her age not know how foals were made? With this many stallions about, who knew what might happen to her? Especially once they got back home! "We need to tell her."

"Are you sure? Grande Vista was probably keeping it from her for a reason," Sky asked, sounding unsure.

"Well, things are different here," Mustard said. "The Unicorns keep their stallions penned up in their breeding stables, but ours are free to roam as they please. If she's not properly prepared, then one of them might take things too far with her."

"We could speak to Dark," Sky offered. "Have him talk to the other stallions and warn them to keep their hooves off her."

"That could work for the short term but I really think she should know for herself," Mustard argued back. "She's old enough, she has a right to know."

Sky thought about it and finally nodded her agreement. "I think you're probably right." Sitting herself up, Sky looked Tranquil over. "I've never had to explain something like this before, how do we do this?"

Mustard scratched at her chin thoughtfully. She wasn't sure how either. "I guess we can start with how much she does know. Tranquil. What do you know about stallions?"

Tranquil looked confused at the question. "About stallions? Well... they're big, loud, and rather smelly." She crinkled her nose in distaste.

"Well, she's not wrong," Sky joked with an amused grin.

Mustard ignored Sky’s jest and continued. "What about mares and their seasons? Do you know about that?"

Tranquil thought for a moment then shook her head.

"Well,” Mustard said with a sigh. “Might as well start there.” Taking her comb, Mustard went around and sat next to Tranquil and started brushing her matted mane while Sky began working on her tail.

“When a filly grows and becomes a mare, she will start having cycles. As the seasons have winter and springs, so do mares.” Mustard explained. “Just like how in the spring when the land becomes green and fertile for new growth, a mare's body will also become fertile and ready for the start of life. Have you ever noticed times when you felt unusually strange, like feeling achy and swollen in places, while your marehood feels hot and puffy?”

Tranquil nodded. “It happens to me several times a year. Sometimes it gets really wet and starts twitching for no reason. Mother Grande told me not to worry and that it would go away.”

“Well, that is called being in heat,” Mustard said. “Your body was preparing itself to carry a foal.”

“Really!?” Tranquil exclaimed in surprise. “But then why didn’t I have a foal? I went into this heat many times and it never happened.”

Sky giggled. “It’s because you were missing one thing that is very important.”

Tranquil looked back at Sky in puzzlement.

“What she means is that you were missing a certain contribution from a stallion,” Mustard finished.

“Contribution?” Tranquil asked, looking even more confused.

“A stallion’s seed,” Mustard answered. “Once it’s planted into a mare’s fertile womb, a new life will bloom.”

“Just like what is happening inside Mustard’s womb right at this moment!” Sky exuberantly cut in.

A look of awe came over Tranquil’s face as her eyes shot down to Mustard’s stomach. “Really?”

“Well, Morning did breed her two times now,” Sky said. “If she’s not with foal by now, I’d be very surprised.”

“Umm. It’s been three times now, actually.” Mustard corrected. “I managed to trap him this morning for another quick one before we left.”

“Oh, really?” Sky said with amusement. “Is that why he was looking so deliriously happy this morning that he walked right into a tree?”

Tranquil was looking down at her stomach with confusion. “How does the stallion put his seed in there? Are you supposed to… swallow it?”

Sky started laughing so hard she couldn’t breathe, and rolled on the ground.

Mustard managed to keep a better control over herself. “No. You don’t swallow it,” she said with a shake of her head. “The stallion puts it in on the other end.”

Tranquil blinked as she tried to puzzle it out, then her eyes widened. “Do you mean!?...”

“That’s right!” Sky shouted with ruckus laughter. “That dangling bit that you see come out of the stallion when he pees. He shoves that right up inside you from behind and after some rather enjoyable moments of him plunging himself into you, he’ll then release his virile seed as deep into you as he can, filling the furthest parts of your womb until it can’t hold anymore.” Sky then cradled her hooves around her belly and smiled down at it. “And that is how you get a foal in here.”

Tranquil stared wide-eyed at Sky. “Really?” she asked breathlessly.

“That’s more or less right,” Mustard agreed evenly. “But there are some important details you should also know first.”

Dark walked along the riverside. The sun was just setting and the heavens glowed with a fierce fire that lit up the sky with its golden orange light. He wished Meadowlark was there. What Ash had told him the other day about a coming war had disturbed him greatly, and it didn't help him to also learn that Celestia was another Element bearer. The Element of Light. Whatever that meant.

Dark felt a sense of pride to discover that his filly was special, but then, he had always known that she was special since the moment she was born, just like her sister Luna was.

The cool breeze coming off the river felt good as it ruffled his mane back. Ahead of him, Dark noticed three mares sitting together on a slab of rock, along the river edge, conversing among themselves.

As he approached closer, Dark was surprised to see that one of the mares was the young russet colored unicorn. Dark was glad to see that she finally started to open up and talk to others.

Pausing not far from them, Dark smiled as he watched them laughing together from something Mustard had said. This was a good sign that things were working out. Drawing himself up, Dark cleared his throat to call attention to himself. Looking up, they all fell silent when they saw him. Tranquil gave a surprised eep and tried to hide herself behind Sky’s smaller form.

"I'm sorry to disturb you fine mares, but with the sun setting, it will be getting dark soon," Dark said to them. "You all should head back to camp now."

Gathering their things together into a small basket, the three mares crossed the slab to the shore. As Sky and Mustard passed him, they both dipped their heads down respectfully and wished him good evening.

Tranquil was still doing her best to hide herself behind Sky but as they began to leave, she paused a moment to face Dark. “Th-thank you,” she said, dipping her head down like Mustard and Sky had done. Then she quickly turned and rushed back to Sky and Mustard who stood waiting for her.

Dark’s gaze lingered on Tranquil as he watched them leave. She had thanked him. Starless had thanked him as well, but for some reason, hearing it coming from the timid unicorn mare felt more gratifying.

Heading back to the camp, Dark silently walked through, listening to the laughter and songs that filled the air around the campfires. A few ponies were even dancing. There was a lot to be happy for. They were going back home after saving fellow ponies in trouble. Dark was proud of every one of the ponies that had come with him. They had all performed their tasks wonderfully.

Dark paused when he saw Starless sitting alone by one of the campfires. She was a intriguing mare. One moment she’s arrogant and disdainful of the earth ponies around her, and the next moment she seems like a normal, sweet young mare who wants to be included with others.

Ground was doing his best to be friendly with her, but he was hitting a strange resistance. She would try to bully him at times, but then at other times she would act almost frightened of him.

Earlier that day, she had literally jumped a full length into the air with a terrified scream when Ground came up to report to Dark on some matter and accidentally startled her. She spent the next half day looking over her shoulder to make sure he wasn’t sneaking up behind her again.

Dark was thinking about going over to join her when he noticed a familiar large shadow already moving across to her. Ground stepped carefully into her firelight and openly approached her, setting a small basket of sliced fruit near her before disappearing back into the night. Dark smiled. Ground was a good, honest stallion. If there was one who could draw out her true self, he would.

Starless seemed to ignore the meal that Ground had brought her. Instead, she stared off into the night at were he had vanished with an odd expression on her face.

Moving on, Dark was careful as he approached the next campfire. Staying out of the firelight, he stepped up next to a tree and looked in. Mirage and Ash where sitting together as they talked with his mother. Ash was telling the story to her about how he dove into a river to save Pine Blossom from drowning.

Dark felt his gut twist as he gazed down at his mother. This was the first time he had seen her since he had left so many years ago. He was surprised at how much older she looked. Grey heavily streaked her mane and tail now, and her once strongly held head now hung lower.

Throughout his story, Ash had to pause several times to wait out one of her coughing fits. Dark was surprised to see just how gaunt his mother was. Her ribs showed heavily along her sides, and whenever she had one of her coughing fits, it left her short of breath.

Looking down at her, Dark found his anger at his mother falter. It had been a different time back then, a harder time filled with difficult life and death decisions. Looking back now, she had probably made the best choice with the bad choices she had available to her.

“I would really like to meet this Herd Father of yours,” his mother said. “Little Ash, would you pass on my gratitude to him? He’s a truly remarkable stallion and I want to thank him for everything he’s done for us.”

“I will be happy to,” Ash said.

“You're such a good colt,” his mother said, patting Ash on the head. “You really remind me of my son, Dark. Have I told you of him? You have the same hardness in your eyes as he did.”

Dark shifted his stance. Mirage glanced up as she noticed his movement and saw him standing at the edge of the firelight. Her eyes widened in surprise. “Ash. How about you tell my mother the story of how you were found and taken to Meadowlark.”

Ash shot a quick look at Mirage. “You mean…?”

“Yes,” Mirage answered with a nod. “I think now would be a perfect time for it.”

What kind of game are you playing, dear sister? Dark wondered.

“Well, okay.” Ash looked unsure but he nodded anyways.

“My mother was a stern mare. Hard with her words and critical in her judgments,” Ash started. “I was a growing colt and was a strain on her to care for and feed, but despite this, she saw me through the tough and arid lands in the south as we traveled. Through many moons of wandering, the Herd finally came to a fertile land that was generous to our needs. My mother was with foal and was glad to finally fill her belly.

“Things were good in our new grazing lands, and I was allowed to play with my friend, Celestia. Together, we became the menace of the meadowlands and our spirits became boundless. It seemed like our worries just went away, and before we knew it, the vibrant autumn leaves fell from the trees and winter descended on us with a fierceness we didn’t expect.

“The cold wind was harsh and the snow came down heavy, covering the once lush meadowlands in a thick layer that was a struggle to dig through for the meager mouthfuls of grass that was found underneath.

“Things were bad. Celestia’s mama and papa helped mares that were struggling. They helped set up shelters against the biting wind and saw that those who had young foals got the food they needed. My mother was proud and headstrong, she refused to allow anypony help her. The winter dragged on and my mother had to face the reality that she couldn’t care for me as well as to see to the needs of herself and her unborn foal, so she chose to set me off onto my own to fend for myself.”

Dark could see his mother’s body start shaking as bitter tears began to fall from her eyes. The sight of the pain he saw in his mother's face caused him to take a hesitant step closer to her.

“I was forced to follow after other mares as they dug out the snow, snatching what little food I was able to find in their leavings. At night, I would burrow into the hollow spaces under young pine trees to curl up to sleep. Every time, I was convinced that I would never wake back up in the morning, but I was too cold and hungry to care.”

Dark’s mother let out a whimper as she buried her tear streaked face into her uplifted hoof. Her body racked with tearful sobbs. Dark took another step closer. He remembered a time when he wanted to see his mother filled with remorse for what she had done to him, but seeing her in such agonized pain now didn’t give him the satisfaction he thought he would feel. Instead, his chest felt like it was being crushed in a hydra’s jaws.

“One night, as I lay curled up under the snow, I felt a hoof break through my meager shelter and jostle me. It was Celestia’s papa. He was surprised to find me there and asked me what I was doing there all alone. I told him about how my mama set me off to fend for myself. He grew angry when he heard this and I thought I had said something wrong. But then before I knew it, he suddenly snatched me up and carried me back home to his mate, Meadowlark, and their daughter Celestia. They took me in and cared for me like one of their own. Without their kindness, I would not have made it through that winter.”

Dark had no idea that Mirage could be so ruthless or so cunning, using Ash’s story against him like that. He now stood only a few paces from his mother, and it was only because that her back was turned to him that she failed to notice him standing there. The pain in his chest was crushing his heart. He wanted to take the last few steps to her, but something in him held him back. It was a clumsy misstep that did him in. An errant branch crunched under his hoof and his mother turned to look up at him.

Her wide tear filled eyes stared up at him with shock. “Dark…?” she whispered in disbelief.

Despite the stabbing pain he felt in his heart, Dark managed to give her a weak smile. “Hello... Mama.”

“Oh, Dark!” she cried out. Attempting to stand, her weakened legs failed her and she fell back to the ground, where she then began to dig desperately at the dirt as she tried to drag herself across to him. “Dark! Oh, my little Darky! I’m sorry. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry! I’m sorry for what I did to you! I am sorry,” she bawled out at him, tears streaming in torrents down her muzzle as she fought across the ground to reach him.

Dark felt his heart break as he stepped to her struggling form and knelt down just before her. Reaching up, he set his hoof against his mother's tear soaked cheek and looked into her eyes. “It’s alright, Mama. Don’t feel bad.” He kissed her lightly on her forehead. “I forgive you.”

Letting out a withering wail of anguish, his mother lunged into him and wrapped her frail hooves around his neck. Clinging to him tightly, she began to weep, deep-racking sobs into his chest. “I looked for you. I looked for you for so long. I thought… I thought I would never see you again.”

Dark embraced her. “Shh… It’s okay, now. I’m here,” he whispered into the top of her head. The crushing feeling in his chest vanished, as if a great weight had been lifted from him. The anger he had carried for all these years was now gone. “I love you, Mama.”

Watching the pair, Mirage couldn’t stand it. Snatching Ash up, she blubbered into his coat as she crushed the unfortunate colt to her chest.