Description:
In the years following Monterey Jack's birth, Fruity Pop moved sporadically from town to town.
By chance, she ends up noticing a familiar face in a town's local paper… Serene Sky may get a visit she certainly wasn't expecting after all these years!
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1.
It had been several years since Monty had been born, more than Fruity Pop would have liked to admit. He must be around 6 or 7 years old by now? She shook the thought away. In the most recent years, she had found herself moving much more frequently and much more erratically than she ever had before. It was becoming harder and harder to simply pack her things and run from her feelings and her guilt. They had become faster, they followed close behind and were becoming impossible to ignore. She visited and wrote to Colby and Monty less and less, hoping that distancing herself entirely would make her feel better. Unfortunately, it only made her feel more guilty. But she couldn't go back now, after all this time. Could she? No, it was impossible. Why would they want her around anyways? These thoughts dug their way into her head and simply would not let go.
So she moved. And moved. And moved again, hoping desperately that a new start would help her escape as it did many times before. One day, she wandered aimlessly into a relatively small town, her cart in tow. It was a warm day, so she decided to set up in the town square. Many ponies took interest in her, a new face peddling icy treats, and she ended up getting more business than she expected. She smiled as she levitated a cold fruit pop down to an excited filly standing in front of her cart, and waved to the parent who thanked her. It was nice, it felt good to make others smile. But still, she felt a bit… hollow.
As she went to take a break, she accidentally bumped into a newspaper rack, causing some copies to scatter across the brick paved road. She carefully began picking them up and organizing them with her magic, when something suddenly caught her eye. She brought the paper closer to read it and gasped out loud as she saw a familiar face on the front page. Serene Sky, her childhood nanny, who she hadn't seen or heard from in years, was here? Fruity frantically scanned the article, trying to learn more. It looked like Serene had established an orphanage around five years ago and the town had recently celebrated the anniversary. As soon as Fruity found out where the orphanage was, she haphazardly shoved the papers back onto the rack and galloped off.
2.
Fruity galloped as fast as she could, pushing herself so hard that her chest hurt. She had to get there as soon as possible, she couldn't wait one second longer now that she knew where Serene was. She slid around a corner and burst through the open gate, onto a short isolated dirt road that was nestled amidst a small grove of trees. Suddenly, she stopped, her hooves buried into the dirt as she skidded to a halt. Her eyes widened and became wet as tears welled up in them.
Serene Sky had just smiled and waved kindly at a few children who were playing outside, nodding to another of the caregivers to make sure they were supervised. She came around the side of the building, towards the front, and stopped. She stared in disbelief as she looked at the panting purple unicorn. She was so shocked, she could not find any words, and so the two stared for what felt like minutes. Finally, her mouth moved, "…Lavender? Is that you?"
3.
Fruity burst into tears and ran towards the pegasus, who opened her wings to welcome her. As Fruity made contact with Serene, she wrapped her hooves tightly around her and cried loudly into her neck. Serene wrapped her large wings around the unicorn and pulled her in close, embracing her tightly. The hug was warm, soft, and comforting, and Fruity felt just like a kid again.
"I.. I'm-I'm so sorry! It's been so long!" Fruity gasped between sobs.
"Please don't be sorry, sweetheart," Serene said, smiling as tears streamed down her face. "You're here now, that's whats important."
Fruity sputtered and sniffed, "I should- I should h-have tried harder to find you…"
Serene Sky hushed her gently, patting the back of her mane with one of her wings. "There, there, it's alright. It seems we weren't meant to find each other until today. And I couldn't be happier to see you, dear."
They held each other for several moments, neither wanting to let the other go. Serene soon noticed that they were garnering attention from the children playing outside, and decided it might be best if they talked in private. Serene invited Fruity inside and brought her to her office, before closing the door behind them. Serene insisted that Fruity take a seat while she prepared some tea, referring to her as 'Lavender' all the while.
"…It's Fruity Pop now." Fruity said, almost shyly, seemingly afraid of what Serene might think.
"What's that?" Serene asked calmly, not understanding.
"My name," Fruity specified, "I changed it… to Fruity Pop."
Serene grinned at her, proudly. "Fruity Pop! That suits you."
Fruity chuckled weakly, smiling. "Thank you."
They spent hours and hours catching up, drinking tea and enjoying each other's company. Fruity eventually tells Serene about the relationship she had with Colby Jack, and the son they had together. Serene was excited at first, wanting to meet the colt, but became increasingly concerned as Fruity explained further. Serene asked Fruity why she had left, if she loved Colby. Fruity almost couldn't explain herself, embarrassed by her insecurities. She told Serene that deep down she knew that she didn't deserve happiness like that. She didn't want to be around Monty because she didn't want to turn out to be a horrible parent like her own. Besides, they probably didn't want her around anyways. Fruity began to cry again, this time in frustration and fear. She wiped at her eyes aggressively, stating that no matter what she did, it felt like the wrong choice.
Serene listened to Fruity patiently, frowning sadly as it hurt her to see the unicorn in such pain. However, she remained calm, and waited for Fruity to calm down as well. Once she was ready to listen, Serene told her that of course she deserved to be happy, and she was far too kind and thoughtful to become like her parents. She knew that Fruity probably thought that her decisions were the best for Colby and Monty, but it couldn't be further from the truth. She explained that the thoughts that Fruity had of worthlessness were a fabrication of a damaged mind, and no fault of her own, but of her parent's cruelty towards her. Fruity sniffled as she tried to process just what that meant. Serene gently told her that she knew someone who could help her, if she'd allow it. Fruity thought about this for a long time. It was so hard for her to accept help, or accept that she even needed it in the first place… But avoiding it hadn't quite worked out either. After some gentle coaxing, Fruity finally agreed to Serene's offer.
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and so Fruity finally agrees to go to therapy, woo! I'm so god dang tired, I hope this still reads well lmao
Some little character tidbits that I want to share, that I'm not sure if I'll be able to smoothly fit into a story-
- Serene Sky officially adopts Fruity Pop some time after they reunite; Fruity Pop asks Serene if she would, to which Serene replies with a resounding yes
- Serene knows quite a bit about mental health issues due to taking care of so many different kids from all walks of life. She isn't licensed to give official help, but she definitely knows how to spot when someone needs it.
- Its been over a decade since these two have seen each other
- Serene never stopped thinking about Fruity, and looked for her for a long while after she was fired by Fruity's parents. Fruity was nigh impossible to find with how much she moved around.
- Fruity also never stopped thinking about Serene, but never looked very hard for her, as she assumed Serene probably had moved on by then.
- Serene working for Fruity's parents and seeing how they treated her really drove her to want to help children in need, and thus pushed her to open Clear Skies Orphanage.
- Serene also feels guilty for not having done more to help Fruity when she was young, but where they lived, it was unlikely that anyone would listen to a Pegasus nanny over the rich Unicorn parents.
By chance, she ends up noticing a familiar face in a town's local paper… Serene Sky may get a visit she certainly wasn't expecting after all these years!
—————————————————
1.
It had been several years since Monty had been born, more than Fruity Pop would have liked to admit. He must be around 6 or 7 years old by now? She shook the thought away. In the most recent years, she had found herself moving much more frequently and much more erratically than she ever had before. It was becoming harder and harder to simply pack her things and run from her feelings and her guilt. They had become faster, they followed close behind and were becoming impossible to ignore. She visited and wrote to Colby and Monty less and less, hoping that distancing herself entirely would make her feel better. Unfortunately, it only made her feel more guilty. But she couldn't go back now, after all this time. Could she? No, it was impossible. Why would they want her around anyways? These thoughts dug their way into her head and simply would not let go.
So she moved. And moved. And moved again, hoping desperately that a new start would help her escape as it did many times before. One day, she wandered aimlessly into a relatively small town, her cart in tow. It was a warm day, so she decided to set up in the town square. Many ponies took interest in her, a new face peddling icy treats, and she ended up getting more business than she expected. She smiled as she levitated a cold fruit pop down to an excited filly standing in front of her cart, and waved to the parent who thanked her. It was nice, it felt good to make others smile. But still, she felt a bit… hollow.
As she went to take a break, she accidentally bumped into a newspaper rack, causing some copies to scatter across the brick paved road. She carefully began picking them up and organizing them with her magic, when something suddenly caught her eye. She brought the paper closer to read it and gasped out loud as she saw a familiar face on the front page. Serene Sky, her childhood nanny, who she hadn't seen or heard from in years, was here? Fruity frantically scanned the article, trying to learn more. It looked like Serene had established an orphanage around five years ago and the town had recently celebrated the anniversary. As soon as Fruity found out where the orphanage was, she haphazardly shoved the papers back onto the rack and galloped off.
2.
Fruity galloped as fast as she could, pushing herself so hard that her chest hurt. She had to get there as soon as possible, she couldn't wait one second longer now that she knew where Serene was. She slid around a corner and burst through the open gate, onto a short isolated dirt road that was nestled amidst a small grove of trees. Suddenly, she stopped, her hooves buried into the dirt as she skidded to a halt. Her eyes widened and became wet as tears welled up in them.
Serene Sky had just smiled and waved kindly at a few children who were playing outside, nodding to another of the caregivers to make sure they were supervised. She came around the side of the building, towards the front, and stopped. She stared in disbelief as she looked at the panting purple unicorn. She was so shocked, she could not find any words, and so the two stared for what felt like minutes. Finally, her mouth moved, "…Lavender? Is that you?"
3.
Fruity burst into tears and ran towards the pegasus, who opened her wings to welcome her. As Fruity made contact with Serene, she wrapped her hooves tightly around her and cried loudly into her neck. Serene wrapped her large wings around the unicorn and pulled her in close, embracing her tightly. The hug was warm, soft, and comforting, and Fruity felt just like a kid again.
"I.. I'm-I'm so sorry! It's been so long!" Fruity gasped between sobs.
"Please don't be sorry, sweetheart," Serene said, smiling as tears streamed down her face. "You're here now, that's whats important."
Fruity sputtered and sniffed, "I should- I should h-have tried harder to find you…"
Serene Sky hushed her gently, patting the back of her mane with one of her wings. "There, there, it's alright. It seems we weren't meant to find each other until today. And I couldn't be happier to see you, dear."
They held each other for several moments, neither wanting to let the other go. Serene soon noticed that they were garnering attention from the children playing outside, and decided it might be best if they talked in private. Serene invited Fruity inside and brought her to her office, before closing the door behind them. Serene insisted that Fruity take a seat while she prepared some tea, referring to her as 'Lavender' all the while.
"…It's Fruity Pop now." Fruity said, almost shyly, seemingly afraid of what Serene might think.
"What's that?" Serene asked calmly, not understanding.
"My name," Fruity specified, "I changed it… to Fruity Pop."
Serene grinned at her, proudly. "Fruity Pop! That suits you."
Fruity chuckled weakly, smiling. "Thank you."
They spent hours and hours catching up, drinking tea and enjoying each other's company. Fruity eventually tells Serene about the relationship she had with Colby Jack, and the son they had together. Serene was excited at first, wanting to meet the colt, but became increasingly concerned as Fruity explained further. Serene asked Fruity why she had left, if she loved Colby. Fruity almost couldn't explain herself, embarrassed by her insecurities. She told Serene that deep down she knew that she didn't deserve happiness like that. She didn't want to be around Monty because she didn't want to turn out to be a horrible parent like her own. Besides, they probably didn't want her around anyways. Fruity began to cry again, this time in frustration and fear. She wiped at her eyes aggressively, stating that no matter what she did, it felt like the wrong choice.
Serene listened to Fruity patiently, frowning sadly as it hurt her to see the unicorn in such pain. However, she remained calm, and waited for Fruity to calm down as well. Once she was ready to listen, Serene told her that of course she deserved to be happy, and she was far too kind and thoughtful to become like her parents. She knew that Fruity probably thought that her decisions were the best for Colby and Monty, but it couldn't be further from the truth. She explained that the thoughts that Fruity had of worthlessness were a fabrication of a damaged mind, and no fault of her own, but of her parent's cruelty towards her. Fruity sniffled as she tried to process just what that meant. Serene gently told her that she knew someone who could help her, if she'd allow it. Fruity thought about this for a long time. It was so hard for her to accept help, or accept that she even needed it in the first place… But avoiding it hadn't quite worked out either. After some gentle coaxing, Fruity finally agreed to Serene's offer.
——————————————-
and so Fruity finally agrees to go to therapy, woo! I'm so god dang tired, I hope this still reads well lmao
Some little character tidbits that I want to share, that I'm not sure if I'll be able to smoothly fit into a story-
- Serene Sky officially adopts Fruity Pop some time after they reunite; Fruity Pop asks Serene if she would, to which Serene replies with a resounding yes
- Serene knows quite a bit about mental health issues due to taking care of so many different kids from all walks of life. She isn't licensed to give official help, but she definitely knows how to spot when someone needs it.
- Its been over a decade since these two have seen each other
- Serene never stopped thinking about Fruity, and looked for her for a long while after she was fired by Fruity's parents. Fruity was nigh impossible to find with how much she moved around.
- Fruity also never stopped thinking about Serene, but never looked very hard for her, as she assumed Serene probably had moved on by then.
- Serene working for Fruity's parents and seeing how they treated her really drove her to want to help children in need, and thus pushed her to open Clear Skies Orphanage.
- Serene also feels guilty for not having done more to help Fruity when she was young, but where they lived, it was unlikely that anyone would listen to a Pegasus nanny over the rich Unicorn parents.
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