"How about this one mommy?"

I smiled as I bent down to pick the small grey filly off the floor. "No Dinky. You can't have a cereal that's made entirely out of marshmallows. You need to eat healthy so you can grow up big and strong." I place Dinky in the cart as I pick up another box. "How about this one? It has the same marshmallows."

"Yeah but those little oat bits taste like Styrofoam!"

I sigh. "I thought you liked oats."

"Not those ones. They're so gross!"

I put the box back and picked up the first box again. "Alright, I propose a compromise. How about I get you the nice oats that come in a tin and I''ll mix these in every morning. It will be just like the healthy cereal except with good oats!"

Dinky's face widened. "That would be so amazing! Thanks mommy!"

I smiled and continued to push the cart along. I've found that the best strategy to parenting a small filly is compromise. Make them feel like they have some choice in the matter. I stopped the cart right next to the oats. I let out a small hiss as I looked at the prices.

My husband hasn't been back with a payment in almost a month. Besides, even when he did bring home some money, it was always a hassle getting it converted into bits. I swear he finds a new currency every time he goes out in that damned telephone booth.

It's not like I didn't support Time Turner in all of his endeavors. I mean, I was the one who decided to fall in love with a Time Lord. It was just hard sometimes needing to get by without him. My job as a mail mare did what it could on those weeks where we could barely keep our heads above the water. Which is an ironic saying considering we can't afford enough water to be drowning in it.

I knew that Dinky would be upset if I grabbed the cheap off-brand oats because those are "no better than the ones in the cereal" according to her, so I just decided to grab the branded oats and feel the drop in my wallet.

I knew in my heart it didn't have to be like this. My other daughter, Sparkler, who was already sixteen was making quite a lot of money working for Rarity. She had offered so many times to pay for things like groceries and electricity. I refused each and every time. She has so much to live for and I don't want her to feel like she has to take care of the rest of her family alongside everything else. It will only hold her back.

As I walk towards the checkout, I smile as I look down at my other daughter, Dinky, who has occupied herself by levitating the groceries in the cart. "Mommy mommy! Look what I can do!" I watch as she levitates a can of beans and a pack of sausage. "I can do two things at once now!"

I pat her on the head and nuzzle her lovingly. "Great job my little snowflake!"

I wince as I see the numbers on the self checkout go up higher and higher with each item. I throw about 132 bits into the machine and put the bags back into the cart. Dinky smiles and looks up at me. "You know mommy, they have that doordash thing now! We wouldn't have to go grocery shopping anymore!"

"Doordash costs extra money sweetheart. Money that we don't have right now." I walk my cart over to the place where I had left my wagon. I drop Dinky into the wagon along with the rest of the groceries. I wrap the strap around my waist and begin to walk it back towards my house.

"Mommy, why are we always so short on money?"

I stop short in my tracks. I didn't think that Dinky was old enough to realize how much we were struggling. I forgot how smart she is. I look back at her lovingly. "We're not Sweetheart," I lied. "I just love grocery shopping with you and don't want to lose that by using doordash."

"But you said we don't have the mon-"

I put a hoof over her mouth. She was speaking so loudly that ponies around could definitely hear. It was no secret that I wasn't the richest pony in Ponyville. But I really didn't need them knowing I was the poorest. "How about we go get some ice cream?"

Dinky's eyes went wide and she jumped a little in her seat. "Yay! I love ice cream!"

My legs are aching by the time I make my way back to our house. Most ponies live closer to the marketplace. They don't know what it's like to walk about five miles towing along a small filly and what feels like a hundred pounds of groceries.

Still, it was something that had to be done.

As my house comes into view, I gasp as I see the telephone booth in the front yard. Dinky sees it too. I can tell as she yells out, "Daddy's home!!! Daddy's home!!!"

When I walk into the house, I see Time Turner sitting at the kitchen table talking to Sparkler, a purple filly with a darker purple mane. "You didn't tell me you were coming back so soon!"

Time Turner turned around at the sound of my voice and smiled. "Derpy! I wanted it to be a surprise!" He comes over and gives me a kiss on my cheek. "How have you been handling?"

"As best as I can," I say as I smile and blush. "How was work?"

"Long. Me and Rose Luck got trapped in some kind of Hotel of Horrors. We couldn't find the TARDIS for like two weeks! We were just trying to save as many people as possible."

"Daddy!" Dinky yelled. "What does "People" mean?"

Time Turner bent down and picked up the filly. "They're a race of strange tall lanky creatures with hooves that split into five different parts and no tail!"

"They sound scary!"

"Well, they're actually pretty friendly when you get to know them!"

Dinky laughed and Time Turner set her down. He turned to me and laughed. "Better not let Lyra know humans exist. She won't leave us alone until I let her come with me to see some."

I laughed a little halfheartedly. Something about him and Rose spending two weeks together alone in a hotel didn't sit right with me. I would never accuse Time Turner of cheating. But there were definitely some things about his and Rose's relationship that made me wonder sometimes.

I look at him and say, "So how long are you keeping away from you big ball of Wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey stuff?"

He put a hoof on my shoulder. "We'll talk about that later." Translation? I have bad news and I don't want the foals to hear.

I threw a gaze towards Sparkler. "So, answer a question for me. Where the hell were you last night?"

Sparkler flinched at the tone of my voice and Time Turner put a hoof on my shoulder. "Honey. Don't curse at the kids. I'm sure she has a really good explanation."

I hold up a hoof and turn back towards Sparkler. "So?"

Sparkler held her hooves up. "I was sleeping over with Sweetie Belle and Button Mash!"

"There was a boy there?"

"He's Sweetie's coltfriend! Nothing was going to happen to me! I swear!"

"Great! Time for another explanation!"

Sparkler rolled her eyes. "What now?"

I walk over to the corner of the room and pull over a saddlebag with Sparkler's cutie mark on it. I flip it open and pull out a half-empty bottle of alcohol. "Why's this in your saddlebag? This isn't your father's and it sure as hell isn't mine."

Sparkler sighed. "Listen mom, you and I both know that I'm far too old to be lying to you so I'm gonna be completely honest."

I crossed my hooves. "I'm waiting."

"I had a really stressful week and Sweetie Belle came up and said we were going to have the treehouse all to ourselves and when she said there wouldn't be any parent's I thought it would be the perfect time to take the edge of the week off. I stopped by the marketplace and got Rainbow Dash to buy that for me. I brought it over to the clubhouse and we just had a relaxing night."

I stare her down. If looks could kill, she'd be dead on the floor right now. "I'm gonna ask you a question Sparkler and I want you to be honest with me." Sparkler nodded. I could see the guilt in her eyes. "Did anything else happen?" Sparkler said nothing but shook her head. A small tear dripped from her eye.

"I'm sorry mom."

I sigh. "I guess this isn't the worst that somepony your age could do. And since you were honest with me, I suppose I can be a little light on the punishment. You're grounded for the next week."

Sparkler still said nothing and just nodded. I've learned that that's how I can tell she's sorry. She never argues with a punishment if she's actually sorry for what she did. Not that I have to punish her very often. With her father gone a lot, she's almost become like the second parent in the house and I can almost always count on her to be responsible. She's always willing to drop everything to babysit Dinky too which I always appreciate.

Time Turner stared at me. "Wow! You really know how to handle things!"

"Yeah, it comes from experience." I give a small chuckle and look over to the clock. It's already 9 PM. "Oh Wow! It's gotten late! Come on Dinky! Bed time!"

"But mom! Daddy just got home!"

"I'm aware but you have school tomorrow. You can play with him tomorrow."

Dinky sighed and turned towards her bedroom. I laughed a little and turned around. I looked at Sparkler. "You too, young mare! You're grounded so bed time is 9 now. Sparkler sighed and went to her room.

When I turned back around, Time Turner was standing there with a box in his hooves.

"Favorite game?"

"You're on!"

"Checkmate!"

I let my face fall into my hooves. "Remind me why I play a strategy game with the smartest pony in Ponyville?"

"Because you love me?"

I nod. "That's right!" I begin scooping up my captured pieces from his side of the board and begin setting them up on my side for another game. "So, what did you want to talk about without the kids around?"

"I never said that!"

"You implied it with the 'We'll talk about it later"

Time Turner clapped his hooves together and gestured for me to go first. "Fair enough." I move a pawn forward two spaces.

As the game continues to progress, Time Turner sighed. "There are so many problems throughout the entirety of the universe. There's really no easy way of saying this but.." He moves his queen and takes my rook.

"Spit it out. You can do it." I move my knight back and take his queen as he lets out a small snort of anger.

"I may need to be gone for a long time."

"What!" I stop playing for a second and my eyes meet his. "How long?"

He nervously pushes another pawn forward. "About a month."

"WHAT!"

"Honey! Keep your voice down. The kids are sleeping."

I pick up my bishop to capture his second rook. I practically slam the piece down on the board. "You can't leave me for that long! Did you even get paid for the most recent problem you solved?"

He nods. "Yes! Very handsomely in fact!" He reaches down to his saddlebag and pulls out six hoof-fulls of giant green crystals. "Each of these converts to around 30 bits."

"And what about the kids? How are you gonna explain to them how long you'll be gone?" I capture both of his knights while he begins sweating. I can't tell if it's from the conversation or from the game.

"Sparkler understands my work. She'll be fine."

I glare at him. "You know who I'm talking about smartass!"

"Listen Derpy." He stops playing for a moment and looks up. "I know my job is a lot of work for little pay. But if I take this job, I could possibly make so much money that we could send Sparkler to college!"

"If you were actually around, you would know that she doesn't need our help. She already has money saved up! She's been trying to give me money to help with this house for months now! I tell her no and every time I do, her college fund gets bigger!" I move my queen three spaces away from his king. "Check."

"Listen. I know I haven't been a very good father since I've had to start taking more responsibility with my job. But you have to understand that there is no avoiding it! After the amount of different time anomalies Starlight Glimmer caused when she opened that portal, I have no time to stay and relax."

"When are you leaving?"

"Two days."

"TWO DAYS?"

Everything stops as we hear the small click of a door opening behind us. "Mommy? Why is there screaming after bed time?"

I look back to Dinky. "It's nothing Angel. Go back to sleep."

As the door closes, the conversation continues at a more level tone. "Listen Derpy, I don't even pretend to know what kinds of things you have to go through around here. But I-"

"No Time Turner! There's no excuses you can make! You seem to be gone on every holiday! You haven't been here on Sparkler's past four birthdays! Four Birthdays Time Turner!!! You weren't the one who had to explain to our, at the time, twelve year old daughter why she was going to be getting less Hearth's Warming Presents than her little sister! You weren't the one who had to sit and hoof-stitch a sunflower costume for Dinky because it was sold out at the store!" My bishop takes his last pawn. "I'm sorry but it feels like I do most of the parenting while you go gallivanting around the multiverse with that Rose pony." I sigh. "Check."

"You're right. I haven't been there. But after this job, I may make enough money where I can pass on my responsibilities and make another version of myself. Sure, I won't be immortal anymore but at least I'll be with you."

I begin moving my pieces to try to box in his king. "Will Rose be there?"

"Of course."

"You know Time Turner, I'm not trying to start trouble. I love you. But I have to know, has anything every happened between you two?"

Time Turner looked down at the board and stayed silent.

"Time Turner?"

No answer.

Tears begin to well up in my eyes as a look of guilt spreads its way across his face.

With nothing else to say, I move my queen one final time. He knocks over his king.

"Checkmate."

"Time Turner?"

I look down to the ground as he stays silent. I could feel the tears welling up in my eyes. "It was one time. She came onto me. I know that's no excuse but I hope that makes it better."

I try to speak but instead just end up stammering. "W-what?"

"About two months ago, the TARDIS broke down in the middle of a trip. We had to wait about two days for it to reboot. One of those nights, Rose walked into my room and she was kind of drunk and... well... you know."

"Why?" That was the only question running through my mind. "Am I not good enough for you? Or do you just not love me anymore?"

"No! Derpy! I still love you! I know there's nothing I could ever say or do that would make you believe that but I swear! It wasn't my fault! She came to me and-"

"And what? You couldn't tell her no? You could't tell her you have a wife and two kids that would be devastated if you ever EVER did something like this?"

"I tried! She wouldn't take no for an answer!"

"Then you could have made her! You cannot dismiss responsibility for your actions Time Turner! Do you know how it feels to have a husband that is away from home almost all the time and then finally have him come home after two weeks to hear that he's cheating on you?"

Time Turner sighed. "I know. It's the same way I would feel if I knew you were cheating on me while I was away. But I can promise you it won't ever happen again!"

I sigh. "Please. Just leave me alone right now. I need to think."

He nods. "I'm going to go to bed. You can do whatever you feel is necessary. Even, if you decide to leave me, it's your choice. I know what I did was unforgivable. But I hope you can find it in your heart to stay with me. I love you Derpy."

He walks over to me and attempts to put a hoof on my shoulder. I smack it away. "Fuck off. Or better yet, go fuck Rose."

He sighs. "I deserve that. Fair enough. Congrats on the win." With that, he walks off towards the bedroom. When the door closes, I get up slowly. My legs are a little shaky as I stand. I slowly and carefully walk over to the couch and fall down on it.
I curl up into a ball and begin sobbing softly.

After about five minutes, I feel a small hoof on my shoulder. "Not now Time Turner." I turn around to see Sparkler standing there with tears in her eyes.

She begins to shake her head slightly. "I h-h-heard everything."

I get up. "Oh no no no Sweetheart. You weren't supposed to hear that." I encase her in a hug as she begins sobbing. I can feel the tears running down my back. "It's all gonna be okay."

"No i-it's not. Y-You're gonna l-leave him and w-we're n-never gonna see him a-again." Her words were all interrupted by the sounds of her gasps for air as she continued crying. I let her softly fall through my hooves as she falls slowly to the floor.

"It's all gonna be okay honey." I walk over to the medicine cabinet in the kitchen and pull out a bottle with a glowing orange liquid. I walk over and uncork the bottle. I pick up Sparkler's head despite her eyes refusing to look up. I put the tip of the bottle to her lips. I tip her head back and watch as the liquid begins flowing into her mouth. "Drink this honey. It will all feel better."

As she finishes the bottle, the potion's effects immediately begin to take effect. Her tears stop quickly and her breathing steadies. She begins to fall slowly back to the ground as she falls asleep. I read the label on the bottle, "Ease Potion" I knew I would need this. Thanks Twilight! I place the bottle in the trash and walked back over to the couch.

I curled back up onto the couch and begin to cry myself to sleep.

"It never seems to be enough does it?"

I swivel around to face the dark alicorn in front of me. I immediately bow down in front of her. "Princess Luna! I'm honored!"

Luna waves a hoof. "Now now, there's no need for all of that. This is your dream! You're the ruler here. If anything, I should be bowing down to you." I laugh as she gives a small bow.

"What brings you around?"

"You've had a rough night haven't you?"

I nod. "How could you tell?"

Luna sighs. "I often enter the dreams of the ponies under the most stress. You seemed to be the most stressed out of anypony in Ponyville. What's going on?"

"It's Time Turner."

"Ah yes!" Luna clapped her hooves. "Your husband! I will say, the work that he and Roseluck do for the universe is mighty impressive." A look of concern goes across her face as she notices my lack of enthusiasm. "Is something wrong?"

"He cheated on me with Rose."

Luna's eyes widened. "Really? He truly doesn't seem like that kind of pony."

"It's worse. Sparkler knows as well. She found out somehow. I had to use a potion to put her to sleep."

Luna sighed. "Yes. Your daughter's been under some stress the past two nights. Almost like there's a secret she's hiding that she cannot let out."

"A secret? Can you tell me what it is?"

"I'm sorry Derpy. There are some things I can't share about other pony's dreams."

I stomp a hoof on the floor. "I'm her mother! If she's keeping secrets from me,I have the right to know!"

Luna shook her head. "Unfortunately, you don't. I'm sorry."

I shake my head slightly. "I'm sorry, your highness. I shouldn't have raised my voice at you. Please forgive me."

Luna smiled and nodded. "So what do you plan to do about this situation?"

"I don't know. He has a big trip he's gonna be taking coming up here. I'm probably gonna think about it while he's away."

Luna nodded. "For now, I would recommend giving attention to Sparkler. Let her know that she's loved and appreciated. Maybe then she'll be willing to open up to you a little more."

I put a hoof to my chin. "I don't understand. She's always been the responsible one in the family. I can't think of a single reason why she would suddenly start keeping secrets from me."

Luna nodded. "There might just be some things she isn't willing to share about things like her mental health or her personal life. Maybe try to focus a little more on her than Dinky?"

"Dinky is a big job. It's hard to take my eyes off of her for two seconds without her breaking something or getting into trouble."

Luna nodded softly. "I'm just suggesting. It could be worth your while. Enjoy the rest of the night."

With that, Luna smiled softly and disappeared in a flash of light, leaving me alone in my own little world. I just let my thoughts run wild as I began walking around the small field I found myself in. No matter what I tried, I couldn't get my mind off of the fact that Time Turner had slept with a pony who wasn't me.

My biggest question to myself was: Am I going to ever be able to forgive him?

The next two days went by quicker than the clap of a hoof.

I basically ignored Time Turner for the next two days. Despite his numerous attempts to talk to me, I wouldn't give him the time of day. Eventually, it came time for him to leave. He hugged Sparkler and Dinky goodbye. He then turned to me. "I assume I don't get a hug goodbye?"

I shrug. "You shouldn't. But since Dinky is watching, just this once." I reach over and very lightly hug him. I know that it isn't a good thing to hold a grudge, but I couldn't help myself at this moment. As we hug, I hiss into his ear, "have fun with Rose!"

He pulls back and walks over towards the TARDIS. He closes the door and looks through the window as it begins to take off. I see him mouth the words I'm sorry in my direction. I dismiss it as I walk back towards the house. When we enter, Dinky runs off to her room to play with her toys. I sit down at the kitchen table and Sparkler joins me.

"Are you going to take another potion tonight?" I ask her.

Sparkler slightly shakes her head. "It's helped the past couple of nights but I can't keep relying on magic to help me cope with my problems." I nod and we sit in silence for a few more moments.

"I am curious, how did you hear me and your dad talking? We were talking quietly."

Sparkler smiled. "Let me show you! It's really cool!" She hopped up and gestured for me to stand as well. She held out her hoof and I took it. She then said, "Watch that wall over there." I nod.

She lights her horn up in a purple glow and shoots a small ray of magic at the wall. When I look back at the wall, I see a hole that is surrounded by a purple aura. I can see directly into Sparkler's bedroom.

"Why did you put a hole in my wall?" I half-yelled.

Sparkler stopped me quickly. "No! Mom!" She laughs a little. "Let go of my hoof." I do as she said and suddenly,the hole in the wall is gone. I grab her hoof again and it's back. "It's an x-ray spell! Lyra taught me how to do it!"

"Wow! That is seriously cool! Why were you doing it though?"

Sparkler cuts off the spell and the wall returns to normal. I let go of her hoof as she said, "Every night that he's home, you and dad play some sort of board game. I always love watching. Especially when it's chess!"

I smile. That's my girl. "I hope you know, Sparkler, that nothing is decided yet. I'm taking my time to think things over."

She nodded. "Yeah. I know. I don't blame you for anything. He was the one who did it."

I nod. Suddenly, we hear a small voice from Dinky's bedroom. "Sparky! Come play with me!" Sparkler giggles and runs off to Dinky's room. Once I'm sure nopony is watching, I run over to the counter and grab my laptop. I log in and access a new media program I downloaded.

During the two days I was giving Time Turner the silent treatment, he spent quite a lot of time out of the house with the kids. That gave me the perfect opportunity to sneak into the TARDIS and plant some small cameras. I wanted to see exactly what was going on when he thought I wasn't around.

When I flipped on the cameras, I think I caught Rose in the middle of a sentence. "-About us?!" She sounded angry and was partly yelling at Time Turner. He yelled right back.

"She had the right to know Rose! And you know what? I don't care if it was just one night! I fucked up and I don't think I can ever go back!"

Rose walked forward and started moving a hoof around Time Turner's chest. She spoke softly and seductively as she looked at him with soft eyes. "Well then, why not leave her? You and I could run away together. We could 'have fun' without needing to worry about another mare in the picture. What do you say?"

Time Turner pushed her away. "No Rose! Despite what you may wish, I'm in love with Derpy! NOT YOU!" I could tell that he had said those last two words with a little more harshness than he had meant to. He definitely got his point across though. Rose hung her head and walked towards her room.

"Fine. Let me know if you change your mind."

I couldn't help but smile at how he had defended our marriage. Maybe it really was just a mistake. A moment of weakness maybe. Something about me almost wanted to give him another chance. I watched as he sat down at the table in the room they were in. He sighed as he put his hoof on his head. He reached across the table and picked up a framed picture of him, me, Dinky, and Sparkler.

He kissed my image and put the picture back as he said, "I am so sorry Derpy."

I closed the computer and smiled. He really did still love me more than her. I walked towards my bedroom. As I walked past, I looked into Dinky's room. I smiled at how Sparkler played with her sister. They got along so much better than siblings should. Not that I was complaining of course.

There weren't any other siblings in Ponyville I knew who got along with each other better than Dinky and Sparkler. Applejack and Apple Bloom got along really well but they definitely had their share of fights. With Dinky and Sparkler,something was just different.

They never fight. Ever. I watch for a few more minutes before walking into my room.

I had a lot of thinking to do.

I couldn't decide.

I know he cheated on me. But I couldn't take my mind off of the fact that he had every opportunity there to continue an affair with Roseluck. I was shocked at how he turned her down. I was mean to him, rude, and I made it very clear I didn't want him around at the time.

Yet, he still wants to stay here. The only thing I could ask myself was, Why?

This was the question that plagued my mind for the next week. Even as I did my daily activities, I was still thinking about what I had seen on the camera.

There was only one answer in my mind. I was going to have to put it into action.

"Hey Sparkler, can you do me a favor?"

Sparkler was busy scribbling on designs and order sheets simultaneously. She screamed and threw half of the papers on the floor and turned to me. "Sorry about that. I'll pick them up. I've just been really frustrated at all of this damn paperwork."

"Language, Sparkler."

She sighed and bent down to pick up her papers. "Sorry Mom. Rarity has me doing the finances and when I told her that our sponsors wouldn't pay for the literal tons of gems she wants to use in these designs. They set her a budget and now she has me figuring out what to cut from the designs without making them look absolutely bland!"

I hiss a little. "Sounds rough."

Sparkler nods. "Yeah." She straightens the papers against the table and set them down in a stack. "What did you need?"

Now that I saw how busy she was, I felt a little bad asking her for extra work. "Would you mind watching Dinky tomorrow? I'm gonna be busy."

She stares at me blankly. "I...guess? What are you doing?"

"I have some online training junk I have to do so I'm gonna be stuck in my room all day."

"Yeah. I guess. I'll have to get a day off from Rarity. She's usually pretty easy going so I should be able to do that."

"If she's so easy going, then why all the frustration?"

"Just because she's easy going on me, doesn't mean I'm very easy going on myself."

I nod. "Fair enough. Thanks!"

Sparkler nodded. She walked over to the front door. I step in front of her. "Hold on! Where are you going?"

"Week's been up for like two days now mom. I need to stop at the marketplace for something. It's really really important to me."

"What do you need? I was already gonna head to the marketplace. I can pick it up for you so you can keep working."

Her face goes beet red. "I-It's n-nothing. I don't really need it that bad anyways." She gives a nervous chuckle and casts her glance to the side.

I cross my hooves. "Sparkler, what are you hiding from me?"

She looks down. "I-It's really nothing."

"Mhmm. Sure. I'm going to the marketplace. I have to pick up a few things for tomorrow. See ya later."

I hear a small sigh of relief from Sparkler as I close the door. What could that filly possibly be up to?

When I got home that night, I was ready for the next day. I did finally manage to have a word with Rainbow Dash at the marketplace about selling my 16 year old daughter alcohol. Not necessarily a pleasant conversation. But now I was ready. I was going to sit in my room all day and watch the cameras. I was going to make sure that Time Turner didn't fall.

By the time morning came, I was already up, watching. I heard as Sparkler told Dinky not to bother me today because I was really busy. I could hear them enjoying the blueberry muffins I had set out the day before. I heard as Dinky left for school. Strangely enough, I think Sparkler left with her. That's definitely weird but I had more things to watch out for.

I never really understood exactly how long it took for the TARDIS to travel. Now I understood why he was always gone for so long. I waited all day for something to happen. They just kind of went about their business as normal. I heard their conversation as they sat down at the breakfast table.

"We should be docking today. I hope you're ready."

"Well don't hope too much." Rose rolled her eyes a little. "Hope can easily be crushed."

"Come now, Rose. It's been a week. Get over it. I'm sorry but I'm married and I can't just go around fucking anypony I feel like."

"That wasn't a concern for you a couple months ago."

"That was a mistake and you know it."

Rose looked down. "Whatever." She stood up from the table ad went off to her room.

Time Turner huffed after her door was closed. I heard him mutter, "That mare can be so damn foalish sometimes." He rolled his eyes and continued eating.

I smiled again as I realized that Rose wasn't going to get her way. Maybe Time Turner was really truly sorry for what he had done. I jumped as I heard somepony walk through the door. I called out, "Who's there?"

"It's just me mom! I went to the marketplace for a few things!"

I sighed. I knew I would never find out what was in the bag she brought home.

I continued to watch the cameras all day. No more notable events happened until the night time. Sure, they played chess a little. Now I know how Time Turner practices while I'm away. Rose was actually pretty good. I did notice that Time Turner spent a lot of time just staring at the picture on the table.

He often sighed or just stared at it. I couldn't help but wonder if it was because of recent events or if he did this every time he was away. I suppose it was a good way to cope with missing us. Outside my door, I could hear a lot of differnt tones of voices. But one conversation I heard stood out to me.

"Sparky, why won't you play with me?"

"I'm really busy right now Dinks."

"But you're just watching tv!"

"I have a lot on my mind right now Dinks. Wanna come watch with me?"

"No thanks."

I could hear hooves that I assumed were Dinky's go through the hallway and I heard a door close. What is wrong with her? I couldn't understand why Sparkler was suddenly being so dismissive towards Dinky. She had never turned down an opportunity to play with her little sister.

I saw as a blob of white appeared on my screen and realized that Rose was here. She walked over to Time Turner and said, "I know you've made it explicitly clear that you'd rather be with Derpy. But I just wanted to stop by and see if you're sure?" She flicked her tail at him flashing something he clearly didn't want to see. I know I sure didn't. I could only think That's a dirty trick, Rose!

His face turned red and he said. "Rose! I told you no! Please leave me alone. We're docking in like an hour and I still need some time to think."

She huffed. "You've been staring at that damn picture for like three hours! Are you sure there's nothingyou want to do?" I watched as she walked over to Time Turner and she pressed her lips to his. He let out a muffled protest and pushed her away.

"Rose! That is it! You've been hitting on me this whole trip despite my constant attempts to tell you not to! So here it is! I'm putting all of my cards on the table. If you don't stop this, then you're fired!"

She crossed her hooves. "What's your problem? You weren't like this a couple months ago!"

"No Rose! What's your problem? I've made it so clear that I'm not interested! Have you ever heard the saying 'if you play with fire, you'll probably get burned?' Well guess what? I played with fire! I got burned! I'm done! So please leave me the hell alone!"

She crossed her hooves. "Fine."

"Fine?"

"Yeah! Fine. But, how about I tell the entire town that you cheated on your wife? How about I tell them all-"

"That you caused it?"

"What?" Rose stopped short.

"If you tell everypony that I cheated on Derpy, then I'll tell them all that you're a motherfucking HOMEWRECKER!"

Rose stared at him blankly. She had nothing else to say. And both me and Time Turner knew it. "Screw you Time Turner!" She walked back towards her room and slammed the door.

Time Turner called back, "That's kind of how we got into this mess dumbass!" He huffed and went back to looking at the picture on the table.

I laughed. I know I shouldn't have but it was just so damn hilarious watching Rose get shut down like that. I closed the laptop for the first time in almost 24 hours. I think I might be okay with letting him stay. Of course, I'm gonna keep him under constant surveillance, but I think that this could still work out.

I flipped over onto my side and closed my eyes. Before I drifted off to sleep, I whispered, "I forgive you Time Turner."

"I'm proud of you Derpy."

In my dream,I found myself standing in the middle of the same field I was a few nights ago. Princess Luna was once again standing in front of me. "For what,Princess?"

"For forgiving him. I've actually visited Rose's dream tonight. I can't share too many details but I can tell you that she even feels a little regret for what she did."

I put a hoof to my chin. "Interesting. How's Sparkler?"

Luna sighed and looked down sadly. "Unfortunately, she seems worse than she was a week ago."

"Yeah. I could hear her a little through my door today. Something's off with her."

"You think something bad happened?"

"Princess, she turned down playing with her sister to watch tv instead! That's something she's never EVER done! Something's wrong. I can feel it."

Luna nodded. "She'll come to you when she's ready. I'm going to leave you now and go visit her dream. I wish you the best of luck my friend."

I don't know why, but I felt a warm sense of happiness when she called me her friend. Not many people did that. It made me feel good. "Have a good night Princess!"

Luna nodded. "You as well, Derpy." With that, she disappeared in a flash of light.

I suddenly felt mostly at ease. I laid down in the field and just watched the clouds go by. Everything was going to be just fine.

Until I woke up....

When I woke up, I quickly got Dinky up. I opened Sparkler's door to wake her up. I quickly noticed that she wasn't in her bed. "Sparkler!" I called out.

"In here!"

The voice came from the kitchen. I came out of the hallway to see Sparkler sitting at the kitchen table drinking a cup of coffee. "What's got you up so early?"

Sparkler cast a glance to the side. "W-Work."

Instead of crossing my hooves like I normally would, I walked over to her and spoke softly. "What's wrong my little Sparkle?"

"N-Nothing." I could've sworn I saw a small tear come from her eyes.

"Okay then, If there's ever anything you want to talk about, just let me know." I stood up and walked over to the cabinet to pick up a pan. I grabbed the eggs out of the fridge.I put the pan on the oven and began to preheat it. I threw some butter in the pan and began to spread it around as a sleepy-eyed Dink walked sleepily into the room.

She yawns. "Good morning Mommy!"

"Good morning Snowflake!"

I crack the eggs into a nearby bowl and begin to whisk them. I pour the beaten eggs into the pan and begin to move them around with a spatula. I watched as Dinky tapped Sparkler's still hoof.

"Hey Sparky! Wanna go to the park after school?"

Sparkler stared blankly at the pan and then shook her head as if she were snapping out of a trance. "Uh... Yeah Dinks. Sure."

"Are you okay, Sparky?"

She slowly nods her head. "Y-Yeah. I'm fine."

I finish cooking the eggs and put them onto three separate plates. I bring the plates over to the table and sit down with my daughters. I set a plate down in front of each of them and then sit back down at my own plate. "So girls, I was thinking that maybe later we could go catch a movie? What do you guys think?"

Dinky hops up and jumps up and down. "Yes! Yes! Yes!"

"Well, that's a yes from Dinky. What about you Sparkler?"

Sparkler begins using her fork to push the eggs slowly around on her plate. I receive no words to my question. Just a slow nod.

The next fifteen minutes passed by silently. Sparkler never ate anything. She just continued to push the eggs around on her plate. Eventually, the time came for Dinky to leave for school. I waved goodbye to her as she walked backwards down the driveway. "Dinky! I've told you a hundred times! Don't do that! You're gonna get hurt!"

Dinky laughed and turned around. She ran across the street and towards the schoolhouse. I went back inside and closed the door. "That filly is gonna end up getting herself killed!" I walked back over to the purple young mare who was still blankly staring at her plate and pushing the eggs around on it. "Alright, spill. What's wrong?"

Sparkler's expression turned from blank to frustrated. "I told you! Nothing!" I quickly noticed that her voice was no longer quivering as it was earlier.

I sigh. "Sparkler! You can talk to me! Whatever is wrong, I'll be there for you. I know-"

"YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING!"

My expression switches to confusion. "What?"

Sparkler claps her hooves over her mouth. "I'm so sorry mom! I just... You don't... You wouldn't..." Her voice is constantly breaking as she tries to switch her sentence. "You just wouldn't understand." We sit in silence for a second. "I'm gonna be late for work."

She gets up and grabs her saddlebag. She walks over to the door and walks outside. Before she closes the door, I call out, "Have a good day at work."

Sparkler looks back at me and then closes the door. I stand in the hallway for a couple minutes. I just couldn't understand what was wrong. As I turned around to head towards the laundry room, I heard the door open behind me. I swiftly swivel around and look back to see Sparkler standing there with tears in her eyes.

"M-Mom!"

She runs forward and collapses into my arms. "Oh no! Sweetheart what's wrong?"

"I-I-I..."

"Come on, you can do it."

"I'm pregnant."

"You're what?"

Sparkler looked down to the ground and refused to look up.

"I-I'm Pregnant."

I stared at her blankly as I tried to piece together events in my mind. Suddenly, in a flash, it all came together. The string of events. Sleepover party, a colt, alcohol, the 'emergency' marketplace trip. Sparkler walked forward and gave me a pregnancy test with a big green + on it.

"Um... mom?"

I stare at her. "Y-You know, sometimes these things are inaccurate."

Sparkler rolls her eyes and gives me a second test with another big green + on it.

I stare at the test and then back to her. My eyes continue to dart between the two. Sparkler suddenly spoke up. "I know what you must be thinking but if you give me the chance to-"

"WHAT THE FUCK SPARKLER!"

Sparkler cringed a little and clapped her hooves to her ears. "Well, that was unnecessarily loud."

"Was this at the sleepover?"

She looked down again and nodded. "I-I'm s-sorry."

I turn away from her for a second and walk over to the phone that's hung on the wall. I quickly dial a number. "Hi, Rarity? My daughter can't come into work today." I pause for a second as Rarity asks why. "There's an emergency family issue we need to deal with." Rarity agrees. "Thank you. Have a nice day."

I turn back to Sparkler and hold up a hoof. "So, you lied to me, and now you're pregnant. What's your next plan?"

Sparkler looks at me. "W-Well, I've already informed the father. I'm gonna go live with him now."

"You're what!"

"Mom! It's the best course of action."

"You're 16!"

"I'm also carrying his child!"

"When do I get to meet this stallion?"

Sparkler scoffed. "Not now."

"And why not?"

"Because I'm ninety percent sure that you're gonna shoot him the second you see him."

I nod. "Good call. You're absolutely right." I sigh and sit down on the couch. Sparkler came over and put a hoof on my shoulder.

"Mom. I know it's not what you planned. But trust me it's not what I planned either. We're gonna get through this. I have so much money saved up from working with Rarity. I can support the foal and we'll all be okay."

I sigh. "I know honey. It's just..." I hesitate for a second. "You had so much to live for. College, a promising career. You've thrown it all away because of a mistake."

"I didn't throw it all away! In fact, even before all of this, I decided not to go to college."

I tilted my head. "Since when?"

"Since Rarity offered me a job as head fashion designer in her Manehatten store. The pay is about 1.2 million bits a year."

My eyes widen and my jaw drops. "Wow!" I pulled her into a hug. "Sweetheart! I'm so proud of you. Don't get me wrong, I'm still pissed beyond imagine. But I'm also proud." I give her a warm smile. "Can I ask you something?"

Sparkler nods and I continue. "Why didn't you come to me about any of this?"

She looks down. "I was scared. Princess Luna entered my dream a couple nights ago telling me about some of the challenges I would have to face if I were... you know... expecting. It scared me. I realized I may not even have a foal so I decided to brush it off. Until I felt nauseous two night ago. I was going to the marketplace to pick up a test."

"And you went yesterday while Dinky was at school?"

Sparkler nods. "I'm sorry Mom! I shouldn't have hidden from you but I was scared. If I told you, I thought you would kick me out or something. Without an extreme reason, I don't think my coltfriend would have let me move in with him. I just... I had nothing I could do."

I sigh. "Sparkler, you've always been the responsible one in the family. Obviously, not this time, but still. I know you would have figured out something. It just worried me that you seemed so stressed." I decided not to tell her about Princess Luna. "I want you to be able to talk to me without fear of being rejected or screamed at."

"You did scream a little at first."

I sigh again. "I know. I shouldn't have done that. I don't know. It's kind of hard to be mad. You kind of remind me of myself."

Sparkler tilts her head and her eyes widen. "What do you mean?"

I take a deep breath and let it out slowly. A trick that Applejack had taught me to calm myself down. "Alright. I'm gonna be completely honest with you. But I need you to promise me that you can handle everything I'm about to say."

"Mom! My life was just completely changed! If I can handle that, I can handle anything."

I nod. "Okay." I take another deep breath. "When I was your age, I met your father. Everything was great until one night, we went to a little party. Nothing super special. There was alcohol there and despite several urges from Time Turner not to, I ended up getting myself drunk that night. In my drunken state, I somehow managed to pressure your father into doing so as well. One thing led to another and two weeks later, I was standing in the exact same position you were."

"So I wasn't planned? I was a mistake? But that doesn't make sense! Given our age gaps, I don't think it's possible that you could have had me when you were 16! Not to mention-"

I hold up a hoof to silence her. "Let me finish." I take another deep breath and continue. "Me and your father got married pretty quickly after that. We spent all of our time making sure we could provide for our new child. We got this house and made a very special nursery. After about four months of pregnancy, I got an ultrasound. We wanted to determine what color to paint the nursery walls and what kinds of toys to get the foal." I take one more deep breath. "We saw that it was a boy." I small tear comes out of my eyes.

Sparkler tilted her head. "Wait. I don't have a brother." She tilted it more. "Do I?"

Tears were beginning to pour down my face. I couldn't even speak as I shook my head. I looked down and softly started crying as I tried to find the will to finish the story. I suddenly felt a hoof on my shoulder. I look up to see Sparkler with a comforting hoof on my shoulder. "It's okay. You can do it."

I nod slightly. "I had a miscarriage in my third trimester. The incident tore your father and I to pieces. Somehow, we managed to get through it. In the end, three years later, when we decided we were ready, we had our first child. A beautiful, brilliant, smart, purple filly. I knew the second the second I laid eyes on you, I would cherish you and never let you go. I promised myself there was nothing you could ever do to make me abandon you. Not that that was ever a problem. You never really gave me any reasons to punish you let alone kick you out. I tell you this whole story as a way of saying..." I stop for a second. I can still feel the tears in my eyes and, therefore, the breaking in my throat. "I l-love you. And I know you c-can do this. And I can relate to you. If you ever have any concerns, talk to me."

Sparkler looks at me. She also has tears in her eyes. She smiles. "I love you so much Mom!" I nod. Sparkler jumps up happily. "I'm gonna be a mother!"

I smile. "I'm gonna be a grandmother!"

I walk back to my room and picked up my laptop. I considered calling Time Turner to tell him the news. It wasn't that I didn't want to, but I didn't want to distract him while he was working. Besides, I can't afford a cell phone so I use a landline and that doesn't have nearly good enough signal to make a decent sounding call to the TARDIS.

I open my computer which was given to me by the mail company for urgent alerts of immediate delivery packages. Ever since I finished working with Rainbow Dash, I had worked up my flying skill. I could even fly super fast! I was only about 100 mph slower than Rainbow. Which, believe it or not, that's a really big feat. So I was the main mailpony for immediate delivery packages.

When I opened it, I saw that I had missed messages. They weren't from the mail station. They were from Time Turner. I opened the first one.

TARDIS3854@Error...: Hi Derpy! I installed an email function on the TARDIS control panel! I just wanted to say I'm sorry and I want tot talk to you. Please message me back when you're ready to talk.

I opened each other email. They were all pretty similar to that one. Just saying how much he missed me and how much he wanted to talk to me.

I opened the last one and formed a reply.

Mailmare33@pmail.com: Hi Time Turner. I have to talk to you. I was surprised at how fast he answered after I sent the message.

TARDIS3854@Error...: Derpy! I'm honestly a little surprised you answered.

Mailmare33@pmail.com: Don't worry about it. Listen, long story short, I might have possibly set up cameras in the TARDIS. I saw every interaction between you and Rose. Thank you so much for standing up for our relationship. I forgive you. But don't pull any of this shit again!

TARDIS3854@Error...: Oh my goddess! Thank you so much Derpy. We can talk about it when I get home. Only about three more weeks.

Mailmare33@pmail.com: We actually have a bigger issue at hand. I can't tell if it's a problem or a blessing.

TARDIS3854@Error...: ???

Mailmare33@pmail.com: Sparkler's pregnant.

TARDIS3854@Error...: WHAT! HOW! WHAT HAPPENED?

Mailmare33@pmail.com: Really Time Turner? You still don't know what happened? We have two children dummy! LOL!

TARDIS3854@Error...: That's not what I meant. Is this about the party?

Mailmare33@pmail.com: Yeah. Please don't be mad at her. We had a talk. I told her the whole story of how we got married. She knows I'm there for her.

TARDIS3854...: Hey Derpy, I have to go, there's a bunch of strange statues attacking the TARDIS. They remind me of the damn weeping angels. I'll talk to you again soon :) Thanks for forgiving me. I swear to Celestia, it won't happen again.

With that, the little green dot next to the email address turned to grey.

I couldn't help but think about how suddenly that conversation had ended as soon as I told him the news. I couldn't help but wonder what he was thinking about.

I walked out of my room to see Sparkler sweeping the floor. I walk over to her. "Sweetie, you don't have to do that."

"Well, I don't have work today anymore so I needed something to do."

"Fair enough." I put a hoof to my chin. "Actually, I have something I think you can do."

"Does it involve working?" I nod and smile. "Then I'm all for it! You know I love working!"

I run to my room and pick up a box. "I meant to give this to you on your birthday! I completely forgot that I had it under my bed!"

"What is it?"

I Ran over to the table and put the box down carefully. I opened it and carefully pulled out small pieces of glass and assorted different pieces of a frame. I also pulled many different decorative paints.

"I don't know how I could've possibly forgotten about this! I had this custom made for you." I begin pointing to different contents of the box. "First, you assemble the frame. Then you take the instructions and paint the different pieces of glass accordingly. Then, you assemble it and use a magic spell to fuse the entire thing together into one big stained glass piece!"

Sparkler's eyes widened and she ran to sit down in front of the task. "I love this idea! Carefully painting the pieces, putting it all together like a puzzle!" She ran up to me and embraced me. "Thank you Mom! I love it!"

I pat her on the head. "You're welcome, angel. Now go have fun." She ran back to the table and began sorting the workspace. I knew she would love it. She loves working. Sometimes I think it's the only thing she thinks about other than maybe her sister.

Her sister.

I had completely forgotten about Dinky. I had to find some way to tell her that she was going to be an aunt. The age gap between her and Sparkler was immense! Sparkler was 16. Dinky was 4. Obviously I couldn't tell her exactly why it had happened.

I had to think of some way to explain things to Dinky that wouldn't go into any detail. Which was probably gonna prove to be more difficult than you would think. Dinky was a smart foal. She would definitely ask questions.

I was definitely in trouble.

"So you see, that's how you're gonna be an aunt."

Dinky tilted her head. "So Sparkler wrote a letter to some magical birds telling them that she really wanted to be a mommy and they're gonna bring her a baby in about eight months?"

I chuckle a little. I know how stupid it sounds but I certainly wasn't gonna hide it from her. "Yeah. Yep. uh-huh! That's how it all went down!"

Dinky nodded her head. "Okay! Cool! I'm gonna go get Sparkler! I wanna play with my toys! It's never the same without her!"

I smile and exit Dinky's room with her. Dinky ran directly over towards the table. I saw Sparkler hold up a hoof to block Dinky from running directly into the table. "Woah there DInks! Watch out! This glass is sharp! It could seriously hurt you!"

Dinky completely ignored what she said and instead started jumping up and down. "Wanna come play with me Sparky?"

Sparkler smiled. "Sure." She put down the piece of glass she was painting and got up. She walked over to Dinky and they walked into her room.

I smiled and decided to go to my room for a little nap.

I awoke to the sound of crashing glass and a choked up scream of "MOM!"

I jumped out of my bed and ran into the kitchen. I saw Sparkler sitting there sobbing with her Dinky lying unconscious in her hooves. I noticed three long, deep, jagged cuts along Dinky's left side. They were pouring blood.

"Sparkler! Can't you cast some sort of healing spell on your sister?"

"I'm not that advanced! I can stop the bleeding temporarily but we need a doctor!"

I nod and ran to the phone and dialed the number for the hospital. I see Sparkler light up her horn and put a purple aura along Dinky cuts.

As the phone was ringing, I was only thinking,

What the fuck happened here?