Cardion looked at the Macerator and Paladin sitting before her. They were the only two puppets she'd spawned before the Titan took over, and she still hadn't found much of a place for them. With Hyacinth busy with working with Mercedes again, Cardion found herself at an impasse for what to do. A thought finally crossed her mind. "This one should find places for thase both," She mused, standing up. "Come, siblings," She requested, turning to leave her room and walk out into the castle hall. She could already feel their confusion and wonder, and tried to assuage their concerns as appropriate. She was the big sister, after all.
Cardion glanced around the castle as she and her two followers continued along. Her ear twitched as she caught some of the castle guards talking to one another. She considered that in regards to her own quiet ways. She, of course, talked to her mother, and her mother talked to her, but why did she so rarely talk to her siblings? She supposed it just seemed unnecessary most of the time: She knew what they were thinking, at least in the broad strokes, and they knew the same for her. She did wonder, however, what the ponies talked about.
Cardion rubbed her chin, then stopped in place, trying to focus on listening.
"...So how're Ligne and the kids doing?" The guard on the left asked.
"Oh, y'know. It's an adjustment from Prance for them, but it seems like they're settling in okay," The guard on the right replied. "Apparently the lighting situation there's a lot worse than over here in Equestria."
"Yeah, well, not much we can do about it unfortunately," The left guard shrugged. "Unless one of us becomes an alicorn or something."
"Couldn't pay me to, knowing what happened to..." The right guard trailed off, noticing how Cardion was just kind of standing smack dab in the middle of the hallway. "Is something wrong, ma'am?" He asked.
Cardion squeaked a bit as she was suddenly pulled into the conversation, a pair of pupae tumbling from her body and swiftly hatching into what looked like two large scales. The Paladin following behind her stood at attention, regarding the guards with a leer. "A-ah," She stammered. "This one was just curious as to what thase ones were talking about," She explained.
The guards shared a look, regarding the large equine like one might look at a bizarre insect. "So you were eavesdropping," The one on the left finally said, tilting his head slightly.
Cardion blinked. "What is eavesdropping?" She asked.
"You were listening to a conversation you weren't a part of," The left guard explained. "That's eavesdropping. Most ponies don't really appreciate that," He added. "Though our conversation wasn't particularly confidential. Just passing the time."
"Oh," Cardion blinked. "This one is sorry..." She rubbed her leg.
"You are forgiven, just try to be a bit more aware next time," The guard replied.
Cardion blinked, signalling for the Paladin to relax. They weren't in trouble, evidently. "This one is trying better to understand ponies," She finally conceded. "These ones do not need to talk. These think for each other."
The guard on the right nodded slowly. "Ponies have to communicate somehow. Speech and writing are the most common ones," He commented, starting with the basics.
"This one understands now why mother talks to ponies instead of thinking," Cardion rubbed her chin. "Though mother also talks to this one, and encourages this one to talk back."
"They're probably trying to teach you," The left guard reasoned. "Most of your siblings can't speak at all."
Cardion stopped for a moment. "Those ones cannot?" She questioned, tilting her head.
"You've... Never picked up on that before?" The left guard asked.
"This one has never noticed that before," Cardion admitted, rubbing her neck awkwardly. "This one always understands what those ones are thinking."
"I'm sure you'd have picked up on it sometime," The right guard commented with a slight smile.
Cardion's eyes narrowed a bit, focusing on the Paladin for a moment. She took control, speaking through its mouth; a simple greeting. A puppet's "hello world", so to speak.
The two guards shared a concerned glance as a croaking, warbling sound left the throat of the Paladin.
"Now, what did thos one say?" Cardion asked, looking back at the guards.
"...At the risk of sounding rude, I couldn't make much out of that," The guard on the right conceded.
"Oh," Cardion blinked. "Maybe it is good that this one practices then..." She trailed off, a blank and slightly awkward stare on her face. "This one should be going now. This must find places for those two," She explained, turning to leave, more to extricate herself from the now awkward conversation than anything.
"Er... Take care, ma'am," The left guard bade, watching her leave.
Cardion blinked as she walked down the hall, briefly looking back at her siblings. "Thase ones... Do not speak. But this one does," She pondered.
The two puppets offered sheepish noises in return. Mixes of regret and apology, conveyed in what to her were fluent words, but what sounded aloud like animalian grunts and warbles.
Cardion blinked. "...It is okay. This one can understand thase ones both. It is just strange to think about," She admitted, rubbing her chin.
After most of a day's walk, Cardion found herself at the site that the new Titan was being constructed. Its body was finally beginning to take some sort of real shape. Three ribs formed the foundation of its barrel, and the arrangement of the two completed legs indicated it would likely have more than four. Its head was still a work in progress, but it had roughly a third of its face. Most notable was the length of the meaty part of its tail, resembling more a dragon or serpent than a pony.
Cardion looked at her two siblings, who had been following her throughout the day. It felt unkind to just dump them here on guard duty. But, after her earlier encounter with the guards, she pondered something. After a moment, she started walking towards the nearest barracks, puffing herself up in preparation for socializing. It couldn't be that hard, could it? She'd already spoken to two ponies today.
Cardion lightly paced into the barracks, looking in at the small group of soldiers huddled around a game of cards. They looked at her as she walked in, and Cardion felt her heart skip a beat. All eyes were on her. "E-er..." She started nervously. "This one wishes for those ones to get some experience with thase ones," She began, the two puppets filing in behind her. "Those ones do not have names but thase ones are welcome to find some, this one should be returning now," She excused, stepping quickly out of the tent, leaving the two puppets behind.
Cardion sighed deeply, starting at the floor of the bedroom she shared with her mother. She wondered if she should even be here. Would they be disappointed? Mad, maybe? What if she'd really screwed up? Nevermind how confused the puppets must have been. She wondered if she would ever leave. Maybe she wasn't cut out for it. Maybe someone else should've had the gift of talking.
Cardion's inner diatribe was cut off by Hyacinth stepping gently through the door.
"Oh, there you are," Hyacinth expressed with a gentle smile. They trotted over, pulling Cardion into a gentle hug. "The castle guards told me you went out today..." They trailed off as they saw the small frown on Cardion's face. "Did something happen, dear?" They asked gently, cumbersomely sitting before their daughter.
Cardion's expression finally cracked. Tears pricked at her eyes, rolling down her face. "Th-this one screwed up today," She whimpered, slumping in Hyacinth's embrace.
"Screwed up?" Hyacinth questioned gently. "What did you screw up, dear?" They asked, tone gentle as they tried to piece together what happened.
"Th-this one talked to some of the pony guards today about how they can't th-think like these ones can," Cardion explained. "S-so when this one was looking for places f-for this one's siblings, this one dumped the siblings on some military ponies a-and ran away," She whined.
Hyacinth paused. That was a lot to take in. "Ah, now... Slow down a bit, dear," They cooed gently, tracing a hoof over Cardion's foliage. "You went out and talked to some ponies all on your own?" They asked, cracking a small (if concerned) smile.
"Y-yes?" Cardion croaked, shaking a little.
Hyacinth smiled gently. "That's wonderful, dear! I'm glad to hear you're coming out of your shell some more," They expressed. "I know it's been hard on you with me being so busy all the time... I'm glad you're trying to find some friends."
Cardion blinked. "But this one w-was bad to this' siblings," She whined softly.
Hyacinth nuzzled Cardion gently. "Your siblings will forgive you, if they haven't already. We all know we love each other," They expressed. "Sometimes we don't always have a perfect place for everyone. I know I struggle with that sometimes. Plus, you're still young, dear. It's okay to not get things perfectly right the first time, that's how we learn."
Cardion looked up, eyes still wet.
"I'll tell you what: Let's go visit those two tomorrow and see how they're settling in, okay?" Hyacinth offered with a gentle smile. "I'll go with you, just in case."
Cardion just nodded, hugging Hyacinth tightly. "Th-this one loves mother so much," She whimpered.
Hyacinth gave Cardion a gentle squeeze, nuzzling her. "I love you too, dear. I always will," They promised.