I promised my guests they’d live the good life here, and I wasn’t lying. When I had this house built, I also had a bunch of guest rooms made in case I wanted to invite my buddies over for parties; they could just stay the night if they get too fucked up. It’s definitely easier than having to dig out the air mattress when you’re way too fucked up, too.

But anyways- each guest bedroom was basically like a fancy hotel room, with a four poster bed, private bath and shower, a regularly stocked minifridge and minibar, and a large writing desk with a hutch and drawers. But it also had some more modern features- such as a telephone, connection to the house’s PA system, and even soundproofed walls.

The PA system was really snazzy; the house is so big, if I’m looking for someone here it’s easier to get on the PA system and ask where they’re at. It’s also very useful if you run out of toilet paper.

The rooms can also be locked from the outside to keep someone in, as is the case for Maria, until I can deal with her. But, I’m not thinking about that. Fuck ‘em, she can wait.

But anyways, way I see it, why restrict the freedoms of my new friends? I’ll have some guys tasked with ensuring their safety and if they want, I’ll let them take a course on firearms themselves. But other than that? They’ve been great to have around!

We all ate dinner together that night. Once again, Glimmer tried to shy away, but Mamma wasn’t taking no for an answer. She was trying a new recipe tonight, and she wanted everyone’s input. It was a four-cheese ravioli stuffed with ricotta, fontina, mozzarella, and parmesan and smothered in tomato sauce.

I’ll save you all the prose I told Mamma at the dinner table and say it was fuckin delicious. And it was funny too, because Glimmer was surprised I didn’t have a private chef. I asked her, finally- “Why do I keep surprising you?”

Well simply put, she expected me to be like the rest of the rich assholes of the world- the “Elites” she’s so obsessed about, the kind of people who get through life without ever lifting a finger. Don’t get me wrong, I live a luxurious life- but I think I’ve fuckin’ earned it, all things considered.

But anyways- after dinner, we were all just chilling in the living room while Anastasia played with her toy cars on the ground. That’s when Dee decided to break out the photo album, and we were all crowding around the couch.

“Look! It’s the anti-drug PSA!” I pointed to the very first photo we took of Annie and I just minutes after her birth, never failing to get a kick out of it. Then I told them the story of the guard Mamma conscripted for sauce duty.

“So get this- the guy took off his uniform because it was gettin’ stuffy in the kitchen! He about had a heart attack when he heard the door open!'' We all shared a round of laughter over the good memories.

“Ohhh, check this one out!” I was pointing to a photo of Annie taken about a month after she was born.

---

“Annie? Anastasia!” I remembered yelling, utter panic in my voice as I witnessed the carnage which unfolded within my daughter’s bedroom.

“WHAT!? WHat… happened…” Dee yelled, hooves skidding across the ground as she turned the corner into our baby’s nursery.

“Bah!” Annie yelled with a grin, sitting on the floor covered head to fucking toe in baby powder; we still have no fuckin clue how she got it. There was an Anastasia-shaped silhouette on the ground where I lifted her up to take her to the bath. Then… she lifted her little arm up and pointed over my shoulder.

“Huh-” I turned around just in time to see my wife with a wicked grin holding the near-empty bottle of baby powder.

Puff!

Anastasia was giggling at me and my wife was in tears laughing at my expense. At first I was angry… but I joined their laughter quickly when I realized the absurdity of the situation.

---

My daughter, currently five years old, was laughing as I recalled the story; along with everyone else.

“Yeah, I’m talking about you, you little gremlin!” I quipped to her with a laugh. “Hey, did I ever tell ya’s her first word?” I said, and my wife started rubbing the bridge of her nose. In the picture I pointed to, Annie was only a year old.

---

“Mahbwah!” Annie babbled away incoherently on the couch, where I was sitting on the floor to make myself eye level.

“Say Mamma… Ma-ma!” I tried to instruct her.

“Mhm… mmf…” My eyes widened and my breath hitched in my throat. “Mmmhmmff…” she vocalized, and tears threatened to spill from my eyes.

“Mamma… Mamma…” I repeated, my beak trembling in anticipation. I took her little hands in mine, and she matched my smile.

“Mhhmmm… Mah…” COME ON! YOU GOT THIS!

“Mahthafack!”

I facepalmed way harder than I meant to. Fucks sakes.

---

“Gee, wonder where she learned it from?” Mamma said sarcastically, and I shrugged.

“Fuck if I know where she learned to swear from!” Despite the fact that I am 32 years old and the leader of my own independent nation… Mamma slapped me in the back of my head with a wing from where she was sitting on Her Chair.

Yes, I did capitalize Her Chair. No one but Mamma sits on Her Chair. But anyways-

“Knock it off.” She said sternly, pointing a finger my way.

“Alright, alright.” I said, surrendering to my mother. But then, it was my wife's turn to get distracted by a photo.

“Ohh! Annie, look at this one!” She yelled. The photo was of Annie playing with Roscoe’s daughter, Daisy, in the sandbox. They were about three at the time.

---

It was a sunny afternoon, and I was just relaxing on a lawn chair having a cigarette and a whiskey, making sure Annie and Daisy were safe. I was babysitting because I needed Ross for something on a little short notice.

I saw him pull up a chair and sit down out of the corner of my eye.

“Got that thing taken care of.” I nodded in satisfaction, pulling a thick envelope out of my coat and handing it to him.

“Appreciate it. I hate to drag you into something so short notice, but my hands were tied.” I gestured towards the sandbox, and he simply shrugged.

“Eh, it needed done. I’m fine with it. And ‘sides- my little girl wanted a playdate with her cousin, so she’s gittin’ a playdate!” We shared a laugh as we watched our daughters chase each other in circles around my backyard.

---

“Wait, cousin?” Trixie interrupted, understandably. “I didn’t realize you had a brother!” Mamma and I shared a good laugh at that one.

“Nono, Ross isn’t my brother, but he’s basically an uncle figure to Anastasia- one of many.” I explained and Mamma nodded, continuing after me.

“Yeah, that’s about how it works around here! Your parents' best friends become aunts and uncles. Don’t ask me, I don’t write the rules.” She said with a shrug.

I turned to my guests and said “I’ll introduce you to all my pals eventually, though. They’re a bunch of good fellas, trust me!” And before I could further elaborate, I saw something that made me giggle like a knucklehead.

“Here’s her first time in a car, about two years back!”

---

It was a much older model- it looked reminiscent of a pimped-out Model-T… or, as pimped out as you can make such an early car. It had my color scheme, at least.

I remember- I was driving and Dee was holding Annie in the passenger's seat. You wouldn’t think it- but honest to fuck, this thing was built like a tank… A nimble, fast, lightly armored tank that wasn’t actually a tank.

“MOW HIWW’S, MAMMA!” Or, more hills. Because of the large spoke wheels, the thing drove well even on carriage-tracked dirt roads. Not as fast as the Nightgaunt, but it beats walking.

“H-HOW ABOUT L-LESS HILLS!” My wife suggested, holding on for dear life to the “Oh Shit” bar above her seat, other holding Annie as close as possible. I knew Annie would be fine- Dee had a belt on and Annie was in a carrier, held close to her chest.

“SORRY, CAN’T HEAR YOU!” I yelled as I accelerated full-speed towards a small bump in the dirt track and ramped right off it; We got a few inches of airtime, and my baby and I were laughing like maniacs!

THUNK! CLUNK!

The car landed on the front left axle and literally snapped it off.

“Woah shit!” I yelled, putting a protective arm in front of my passengers and slamming the brakes. Despite them jerking forward a little, they were fine. You wanna know how I knew?

“FASTA MAMMA! Why we stop?” Anastasia asked, looking adorably confused as she absentmindedly nibbled her finger.

“Leona.” I knew my wife was upset by the dark tone in her voice; the look in her eyes told me that I would probably be sleeping on the couch that night.

While Anastasia was still in my wife's lap, I held up a fist.

“Bumpa!” She yelled, taking her tiny fist and bumping mine.

“Worth it.” I said, my wifes glare intensifying.

Yep. Definitely sleeping on the couch.

---

“Literally destroyed the thing, first day I had it!” I said, laughing heartily with my guests. “Just jumpin’ up and down all those hills all afternoon just completely fucked it up!” Byrd- the guy who manufactures this model of car, and shares the namesake with the company- was quite upset that I destroyed it.

My wife, meanwhile, rolled her eyes.

“Ugh. Thank goodness we had all those roads paved- I don’t ever wanna drive on a dirt road with you ever again!” She said, playfully punching my shoulder.

“Do ya see how she treats me? It’s abuse!” I said in a joking tone, and received a shoulder punch and a wing slap. I giggled and rolled my eyes. “Alright, alright. I’m sorry.” I smiled, giving my wife a quick peck on the cheek- which my guests mimicked with each other.

“Ohhh, stop iiiit!” Glimmer said to her wife, blushing and giggling.

“Hah! Gay.” I pointed and laughed before turning to kiss my wife again. Trixie and Glimmer both looked at me with a I’m sorry, what? Type of look.

Thwap!

Mamma didn’t even look up from the cheap pulp magazine she was trying to read, simply opting to hit me with a wing and point at Anastasia; of whom was currently running in a circle chasing her tail, mimicking our cat, Corleone. It wouldn’t be a lie to say she has orange cat energy- I’m sure if I had a laser pointer, I could keep her entertained all day.

But enough about Anastasia. Though I suppose the laser pointer would keep the cat entertained, too.

I turned the page, and the picture I saw made my breath hitch in my throat.

“What is it?” Mamma asked- and I just turned the album over to her, feeling choked up. She had much the same reaction- after all, it was Mamma’s first time home in a long time- taken about a couple months ago, in fact.

---

I remember, for the longest time she was actively avoiding our destination down the road, mainly because she didn’t wanna see the hideous state it was in.

She was riding as the passenger in the Nightgaunt- and about a few blocks from our destination, I made her put on a blindfold. It took some convincing, though.

“It’s a surprise, Ma. For your birthday- please?” I asked her, and she crossed her arms, huffing.

“With you in the driver's seat? Not a chance!” She said, sweeping her arm in a wide gesture that meant fuck no. My wife made her argument-

“I’m not much better in the driver's seat, either!” Anastasia was in the baby carrier attached to her chest- and because of the commotion, she yawned and awoke from her nap.

How she could fall asleep in the Nightgaunt, I have no idea.

“She’s right you know- she’s a terrible driver. Just put it on- it’s only for a few blocks!” I tried to convince her, but she’s more stubborn than I am. I had to restrain myself from groaning in annoyance- but I had an ace up my sleeve. I always have an ace up my sleeve.

“Anastasia?” I asked, getting my daughter's attention with a smug grin.

Mamma’s eyes shot open. “You will not use my own granddaughter against me!” It was a weakness we both shared, in fact.

“Anastasia, activate cuteness!” I pointed and commanded with a smirk, and she turned and gave Mamma the biggest puppy dog eyes I’ve ever seen.

“Please, Gramma?” She asked, and Mamma’s shoulders fell. “Please? It’s a surprise!” she argued.

After a few moments, Mamma groaned. “Fine.” I wrapped the blindfold around her face, and I actually did try to drive reasonably. It was still a very short drive, though. One in which Mamma complained the whole way.

Literally- anytime I drive her anywhere, every time I step on the gas she’s telling me to slow down! I learned how to drive in New York, what d’ya want from me? I don’t need to use my turn signal, I have my middle finger to let people know I’m turning! Furthermore; I paid for the whole speedometer, I’m gonna use the whole speedometer.

When we finally made it to our destination, I just parked the Nightgaunt by the curb out front.

“This better be worth it…” Mamma muttered to herself as Dee and I helped her out of her seat.

Without further adieu, I pulled her blindfold off and watched with a grin as she fell to her haunches in amazement, slack-jawed and wide-eyed. She seemed to be at a loss for words, so I simply said-

“Welcome home, Mamma.” Our childhood home had been lovingly restored to its original look, before everything went to shit. While the rest of the homes on the street still looked rotten and derelict- that wouldn’t be the case for long.

In the front yard, the re-planted weeping willow was practically glowing orange from the autumnal season. The mailbox by the door had been polished and re-painted, the bold black inscription reading Grimfeather. The roof had been re-thatched, and reinforced with plywood to further protect it from leaks. The re-painted and replaced siding looked much brighter and fresher than it ever did when we lived there. And the front porch was mostly rebuilt- except for a single board.

As we made our way inside, Mamma sporting a massive smile, I pointed to the board and looked at my daughter.

“Annie? Who’s name is that?” I quizzed her, and she immediately recognized the scrawled name and pointed back at me.

“Mamma’s!” She answered correctly, earning her a hug and a forehead nuzzle.

“Smart girl!” As I opened the door, it didn’t fall off the hinges this time!

“Has Mommy ever seen this place?” Annie asked, referring to Dee.

“Not in this state.” She said, seemingly amused by the quaint cottage. I rolled my eyes and chuckled.

“Sorry to disappoint.” Meanwhile, Mamma was mesmerized, looking around the room in disbelief.

“This… goodness, if you told me that you drove me back in time to see the past, I’d believe you!” The last time I saw her this giddy about anything is when I told her she was gonna be a grandmother.

Thanks to the clarity of memory caused by my Louse, all the interior decorations, down to the last intricate detail, had been recreated. Every picture frame was in the exact spot they used to hang up, with copies of the original photos printed and framed. Walls were re-papered in the original patterns; the carpets the same color I always remembered.

Hell, I made sure they re-created every detail; from the old books and magazines on the side table, the original appliances and cookware, the same style of lighting and draperies, even down to the small dent in the wall caused by opening the front door too fast!

Okay, that last detail may have been incidental- but hey, authenticity and all that.

“Try sitting on the couch.” I told Mamma. She seemed skeptical at first- but her eyes widened as she sunk into the cushion.

“It feels exactly how I remember!” she sat in her spot, and I smiled.

“Fun fact- I managed to track down the craftsman who originally built that couch.” I said, running my hand along the soft fabric. “The guy was retired for almost a decade- but long story short, he said he’d be honored to rebuild our couch. He even managed to find the original design drawings in an old warehouse of his!” He tried to refuse payment- but I pulled a sneaky on him.

Let’s just say that his retirement fund had a couple extra zeros added to the end just recently.

But anyways- I set Anastasia in the spot I used to sit in.

“I’m just like Mamma!” She yelled proudly as she snuggled into (my) Mamma’s side, and got a wing wrapped around her. Dee was getting a camera ready, and I took a seat next to my daughter.

It was a wonderful picture- and probably my favorite family photo. Mamma was sitting on one side of the couch, I on the other, and Anastasia directly between us. The camera was set to a timer, and Dee came up behind the couch and threw herself over the back rest, chin resting just above Annie’s head.

Click!

We then spent the next while exploring the newly-restored house; mainly though, we were answering Annie’s questions as we went along.

“Who’s that?” she asked, pointing at a picture of Gramma. The entire time we were here, she had this constant look of amazement and childlike wonder, her eyes practically sparkling as she tried to take it all in.

“You see that lady there?” I pointed to the shawled woman in the photo. “That’s your Gramma’s Gramma. My great Gramma, and your great great Gramma." Personally, I never cared for her- but I know Mamma did.

“Woahhhh…” She seemed absolutely amazed… then got distracted again. “Ohhh, what’s that?” She pointed to the notches on the wall written in marker on the doorframe to my old bedroom. With a wide grin, I pointed a finger to the mark labeled 5 Yrs.

“See this here? If you tell me what number that is, I’ll tell you what those marks mean!” She squinted her eyes, but only had to think for a moment.

“Five!” She exclaimed proudly, and I ruffled her feathers.

“Good job! That notch there?” I said slowly to build suspense, and my baby was nodding her head. “That’s how tall I was when I was your age.”

If my ears didn’t constantly ring with tinnitus, I probably would have heard the sound of her mind being blown. Then, she realized what I saw as an unfortunate fact; since the marker was at her eye level, that meant that she was taller than I was at that age.

“Wait… I’m taller than you were?” She sucked in a deep gasp, and started running around me while laughing like a madwoman. “YAYYY! I’M GONNA BE BIGGER THAN MAMMA!”

With a ““stern”” glare, I said to her- “You better not get taller than me!” I said, yanking her off her path, her little legs flailing around in the air. She started squealing adorably, because she knew she’d been had.

“AH! Wait, Mamma, I was joking!” But it was too late. With an evil glare, I held her up and, without a shred of remorse or guilt… used my wings to tickle her adorable exposed tummy! “P-PLEA-EA- AHAHAHA! S-STOP!”

God, having a daughter was such a fantastic idea.

But eventually, we settled back into the living room. Anastasia was actually upstairs taking a nap in my old bed, having been tuckered out by all the excitement of the day.

“She really is just like you, isn’t she?” Mamma joked, as she knew my childhood napping habits better than anyone else.

“Eh, girl needs her beauty sleep.” I said, setting my prosthetic leg against the couches side and resting my real leg on a pull-out ottoman. Mamma was relaxing in Gramma’s old chair and Dee sat next to me.

“So, what’s your plans for the rest of the street?” Mamma asked, thumbing through an old magazine.

“Oh, I’m gonna have this entire street restored and turned into a folk museum. I still have a bunch of shit to do, like finding the old owners and…” I then shrugged- “Eh, anyways- the idea is to preserve this small neighborhood as authentically as possible- so as the city modernizes and develops around it, we’ll always have this frame of reference as to where we started.” But mainly, I wanted to see my childhood home restored to its former glory. In fact, something told me my house would be particularly popular... so I'd have to make sure there were guards everywhere to... discourage souvenir taking.

Mamma smiled when she heard the idea. “I think that’s a wonderful plan, dear.”

“Did you think of what it’s gonna be called yet? I was thinking like, The Griffonian Heritage… something something.” Dee said, idly rubbing her chin.

“Oh, I was just gonna name it after the road it’s on.” I said plainly, and Mamma nodded in understanding.

Dee, however, was confused. “So… what’s it gonna be called?” She asked, and I cocked an eyebrow.

“The road?” I said, and she nodded.

…

“Well?” She asked, apparently expecting more. “What’s the name?” The exasperation was evident in her voice, and I wasn’t sure why.

“The road.” Mamma said, not even looking up from the magazine. Apparently, she decided it best for me to sort this out.

“Ugh! No, what’s the name of the road!?” she snapped, and I spread my arms out, bewildered at her reaction.

“Honey, why are you getting so upset over this? It’s the road.” I tried to explain, and she facehooved.

“WHAT’S THIS ROAD LABELED AS ON A MAP!?” She yelled, hooves on my shoulders.

“The road?” I asked,

“Yes!” What the fuck is her problem?

“The road.” I deadpanned.

“YES! THE ROAD! TELL ME THE NAME!” She gripped my shoulders hard while gritting her teeth.

“The road!” I yelled back, to compensate for the cotton that must be in her ears. My wife sucked a breath in through her grit teeth.

“PLEASE! JUST TELL ME THE NAME!” She practically begged.

“IT’S THE ROAD! I’VE TOLD YOU TWENTY FUCKIN TIMES ALREADY, OPEN YOUR GODDAMN EARS!” At this point, I had enough of this shit- then her maddened expression fell, and she blinked.

“Waitafuckinminute… The Road?” She reiterated, and my eyes lit up as my wife finally understood.

“Not the road, it’s The Road!” I said with a chuckle, wondering when my wife became such a knucklehead.

“Hang on… so this house's address would be 159, The Rd.” She connected the pieces to the puzzle that was already fuckin’ built, and with a scoff she started- “Who the fu-”

“Mommy? Mamma?” Anastasia was at the bottom of the steps, and the look of hurt in her eyes made my heart break. “Why are you fighting? Are you mad at each other?”

Dee and I locked eyes for a fraction of a second and nodded- I rushed to put my leg back on and we both were immediately at our daughters side.

“Aww, it’s not like that, baby.” I said as Dee gently set her on my back. We walked up the stairs side by side, with Annie’s arms clinging around my neck.

“But-but you were-” she started, but Dee came in clutch.

“Yelling? Sweetie, we get into arguments sometimes- that doesn’t mean we don’t love each other very much.” Dee took her off my back and the two of us tucked her into my old bed.

“Really?” she said, the look of distress vanishing from her face. I simply nodded with a smile.

“Yeah! And if anything, I think it makes us love each other more once we get it figured out.” Cheesy as that is. I looked my wife in the eyes from where I was standing, on the opposite side of the bed. “I mean- what were we even arguing over? Something stupid, that’s what.”

Anastasia’s little smile grew, and Dee and I couldn’t help but match it.

“Exactly! Your Mamma and I just had a little misunderstanding, that’s all. It happens.” Dee said, kissing our baby on the forehead.

Oh, I had the misunderstanding? Is what I wanted to say. But somehow, the voice of maternal instinct overshadowed my near instinctual, deep-seated need to bust balls.

Motherhood is truly a magical thing.

“I love you, Mamma’s!” is how Anastasia referred to Dee and I collectively.

“We love you too, sweetie.” I said, ruffling her head feathers. “You can get back to your nap- I promise, we’ll be quiet!” I said with a giggle.

“Okay, Mamma.” she said, rolling over with an adorable yawn.

Dee and I made our way downstairs in much better spirits than when we went up. Mamma gave us a smug grin from her chair and I rolled my eyes, my wife and I sitting back down.

“So…” Dee spoke up to get our attention. “The Road?”

“Don’t start.” I said plainly.

---

“The Road?” Glimmer reiterated, apparently just as confused as Dee was.

“No, not the road, it’s The Road. Isn’t that right, Anastasia?” I expected my loyal daughter to back me up, but she just slowly lifted her head from her spot on the floor with a yawn.

“The Road!” She yelled enthusiastically, though her voice gave away how tired she was- probably from chasing her tail around for an hour. A quick glance at the clock told me it was past her bedtime- and of course, as soon as Annie yawned, everyone else was forced to join in. Mamma was already way ahead of us though, peacefully napping in her Chair.

So, we decided it was time for bed. I led my guests to their room and made sure they were comfortable- you know, making sure they had enough blankets and pillows, showing them how to use the lock, and reiterating basic rules, like don’t enter locked rooms.

I can be called many, many things. I refused to be called a bad host.

“Anything else you need?” I made sure to ask, and Starlight nervously spoke up.

“A-actually, I was wondering if I could get a pen and paper?” she asked, and I nodded in understanding.

So, I made sure to set her up with a blank journal and plenty of spare pens. But there was one more thing I had to bring up.

“Oh, Starlight?” I got her attention, “If you want, you can work with me tomorrow. Show you what a functioning government looks like.” I had a smug grin, and she nodded with a smile.

“I’d love to!” Then she awkwardly looked to the side- “I-I mean, not like I had anything better going on.” I laughed,

“Alright, alright. Sleep well, you two!” Then, with a sly grin, I added- “And the walls are soundproof. Do whatever you want in here- but just know, you’re doing your own laundry.”

Starlight blushed and Trixie started giggling.

“Soundproof, you say?” It sounded like she was talking to me, but she was looking at her wife while she said it. At that point, I decided to show myself out so they could seize the means of (re)production with a little privacy.

So, it was my turn to go to bed.

That night, Dee and I were cuddling- and I was the little spoon. I may not have been showing it, but I was genuinely nervous that something was wrong with Celestia.

If Celestia goes down, then the dragons will realize that there’s no-one to keep them in check anymore. While I don’t know all the details- the dragon's call the war they fought with Equestria in, The Day the Stars Fell. But unfortunately, because of the secretiveness of the dragons and the subtle but apparent censorship by Celestia… very little is known about this battle. Hell, there is genuine debate as to whether or not Luna was even there.

All that is said about it in the Equestrian history books is that Equestria herself fought in a grand war against the dragons, its people uniting and yadda yadda, hooray, the dragons fucked off! This is part of the reason I’m trying to keep Starlight on my side- simply put, as someone who’s best friends with the leaders of multiple nations, she’s already proven to be a gold mine on illegal info!

However, there could be a problem. Glimmer was friends with, of all people, Dragonlord Ember. I’ve been keeping Operation Starfall a closely guarded secret- hell, Dee and I are the only ones who even know the name. A lot of different groups of griffons are unknowingly working towards the goal of utter military supremacy; and when the timing is perfect, these technologies and groups will co-operate and synergise with one another to create…

Well. Loose lips sink ships and all that. But the bottom line is- I need to determine whether or not Starlight will take sides with Ember. On one hand, she is friends with my current most hated enemy- But on the other hand, many ponies heavily criticized the decision to hand Griffonian land over to the dragons.

Many called it an illegal overreach of power- potentially because, I dunno… IT FUCKING IS!

“Calm down, sweetie.” Dee whispered in my ears. My nerves refused to settle, though.

“Dee?” I asked, and she hummed. “Can you just… talk to me about something? To help get my mind off it?” I hated having to do this to her, but I wanted to sleep at some point tonight.

After a few seconds, she said- “Anastasia is the best thing to happen to us.” She said, and I agreed wholeheartedly. “I mean, when we were looking through that album… Heh, it almost made me a little sad seeing how fast she’s growing up.” With a giggle, I sighed.

“Yeah…” I muttered, memories of good times spent with my baby filling my brain. “Heh, remember her reaction the first time I took her out flying?” It happened only a couple days after she was born. I was only a few feet above ground to gauge her reaction to heights- but come on, now. What kinda griffon’s afraid of heights?

With a giggle, my wife said- “And remember when we took her to that candy place afterwards? That was her first time seeing unicorn magic!” We giggled at the memory, and I remembered my first time witnessing proper unicorn magic. Actually, this was the same candy shop Mamma took me to when she first took me flying, though ownership had been completely passed on to the next generation by now.

“Yeah! When he was levitating those jelly beans around, and Anastasia was grabbing them out of the air? God, the look on her face was so worth… worth everything, really.” I trailed off at the end there as I felt tears welling up. “Motherhood has been so, so wonderful. Like, every time I look at Anastasia, I think holy fuck! That smart little hen is my daughter! My baby!” Tears were freely running down my face. Tears of pride, that is.

“Yeah… must be nice…” Dee muttered in a somewhat melancholic tone.

“... What’s wrong?” I asked her, and she sighed.

“Well, it’s… please, don’t take this the wrong way. I love Annie with all my heart- but every time you and her are together, you have this… connection.” She explained, “Like- I don’t know how to explain it, but… but she seems to prefer you over me.”

I took a moment to think of a reply- but I sighed instead. “Yeah, I… I kind of know what you mean- but do not think Annie loves you any less than she loves me, or Mamma, or anyone else in the family.”

My wife sighed dejectedly. “Yeah, but… but I-”

“You know what it probably is?” I interrupted her, “It probably comes down to our obvious racial differences- and it’s not your fault! But it’s just… You know, I taught her how to preen her feathers, I taught her how to fly, how to hone her beak and talons… we bond over that stuff, I guess.” and among other things I’ve taught her how to do. “But the bottom line is, as another griffon, there are far more things that we can closely bond over than if we were a different species.”

In other words, she hangs out around me more often because, aside from childish instinct, she probably finds me more relatable to herself. I wouldn’t phrase it like that out loud, though.

“...Oh…” She muttered, sounding dejected. This, however, would not do.

“But, imagine if you had your own kid?” I suggested, and I heard her gasp behind me. “Like, you could teach her how to style her mane, paint her hooves, and- well, you get the idea. How’s that sound?”

After a long pause, she said- “Maybe.”

“And besides- I’m sure Anastasia would love a kid-sister… or brother, either way.” I idly mused, and she giggled in response.

I hope she thinks it through and says yes, to be honest. We’d have to find another surrogate, though- nothing against hippogriffs, I’m just certain that Dee would prefer to raise a pony.

---

“Honeeeyyyyy! Are you done writing yet?” Trixie whined from her spot on the bed, her eyes drooping with exhaustion.

“Almost done!” she said, very thankful to have a journal to write in. “Now, where was I…” She was at the tail end of the journal entry which went over everything that happened from the start of the rally onwards.

In conclusion; These past few days have been utterly nuts! Nevermind the fact that LEONA herself apparently sees within me, some sort of… political potential, is what I’ll call it! But more on her tomorrow. My Darling Trixie is getting antsy without me in bed, apparently.

She moved to close her diary for the night- then gasped out loud, flinging her diary open and jotting down a quick note for herself.

“Baaaaaaaaabe!” Trixie whined, and Glimmer rolled her eyes.

“I’m coming, I’m coming!” She jumped on the bed and tackled-hugged her wife. “You’re so needy!”

“You love me, though.” Was her response- a point in which Glimmer couldn’t debate.

“Absolutely.”

THE ROAD

THE ROAD IS REAL

I have a discord server for this fic out now!! It'd be real cool if u joined :333

Ah, anyways...

I hope you enjoyed reading about The Gremlin growing up as much as I enjoyed writing it :3

Thank you for reading! Likes and comments are always greatly appreciated :3