//------------------------------// // Think Twice // Story: All Is Calm // by Cranberry Muffin //------------------------------// When Cupcake stumbled down the stairs a short time later, she was still bleary-eyed and yawning, the pull of sleep threatening to lull her back to bed. She must have looked frightful and she knew it. Her usually sleek mane was sleep-rumpled and disheveled; she hadn’t bothered to fuss with it for her family like she would have if she were going out. And the sweater she was wearing was wrinkled, clearly indicating that she’d slept in it. But instead of taking time to groom after waking up, she had just rolled out of bed, stomach rumbling hungrily. Usually, the mare didn’t take naps during the day. She always had too much going on to even think about sleeping, and beyond that, napping had always messed with her body, leaving her logy rather than rested. Even as a young filly, she had argued with her mother at naptime, claiming she functioned much better without a nap than with. It took her a moment to realize that the house was quiet – Too quiet. Usually at this time of day, Graham was arriving home and Lemon was making her presence known. The sounds of father and daughter interacting were usually fairly merry; Lemon loved her daddy so and Graham doted on the filly. Accompanying that was the sounds of dinner, a piece of the evening symphony that was missing due to Cupcake’s impromptu nap. But it was still too quiet, even if one took the sound of pots, pans, and simmering out of the equation. Cupcake trotted heavily into the livingroom, where there was no telltale sign of where Lemon Meringue might be. There was no Gingerbread or Gusty, either, which just added to the peculiarity of the evening. Over the past three nights, their guests had been found curled up together on the couch in their quiet time, usually nestled under a blanket as they played cards or did a puzzle or something equally homey. Cupcake frowned to herself, yawning again, and continued on into the kitchen, where she found her husband sitting at the empty table, staring off into space with an indecipherable expression on his face. “I’m sorry,” Even to Cupcake’s ears, her own voice sounded too loud in the heavy silence of the usually warm, bustling kitchen, “I didn’t mean to sleep so long. I’ll get dinner started right away.” And without waiting for any kind of answer, she headed towards the refrigerator. “…Cupcake.” Graham’s cultured voice stopped her dead in her tracks. He sounded excessively serious, using a tone she’d never heard before. He was a fairly no-nonsense stallion, but he had always been warm and loving with her, even if a little formal from time to time. She’d never heard him so solemn, not when he was addressing her, and it unnerved her quite a bit. “Come sit down for a minute…Dinner can wait.” She turned, giving him an uncertain, curious look. Graham was not usually like this. He was lord of the manor and liked things done a certain way – Her not having dinner ready when he returned home was unheard of, unless she had something scheduled well in advance that coincided with dinnertime. Why was he not annoyed? “Please?” He pressed, voice unusually soft. She sat. Graham looked at her for a long moment, emerald gaze sweeping over her face. Cupcake was always beautiful, with her silk-soft hair and sooty lashes, a generous mouth that was quick to smile, and sparkling eyes the pale blue of the fine topaz he sold in his shop. She had taken well to the life of a socialite in Canterlot, easily mingling with the wealthy ponies and nobility he had introduced her to. She was stylish, sophisticated and witty, and yet, looking at her with her long mane sleep-rumpled and tumbling about her shoulders and her gaze still heavy-lidded, she looked young and innocent, the way she had when she first came to Canterlot. It had not been love it first sight, but it had been intrigue at first site. Graham had met Cupcake at a party thrown by the family of a mutual acquaintance, some friend of Cupcake’s who had moved with her parents to Canterlot at a young age. The white mare had been staying with Truly until she established herself as a reputable baker and the party had been to present the country mare to society. Cupcake had looked out of place among the more refined, sophisticated mares chatting amongst themselves in Truly’s sitting room, as well as awkward in her party dress. Somepony had attempted to clean her up and make her look the part of a high society pony, though the loose, simple curls and frilly attire did little to hide her naiveté and awe over the finery that surrounded her. The spoiled stallion had never really encountered a pony below his station before and upon being introduced to Cupcake, Graham had found himself enchanted by both her simple views on the world and her ambitious dreams – She had come to Canterlot, after all, to gain fame for her beautiful and elegant cakes; to make herself a household name when it came to extravagant desserts. And though she had learned over the years how to talk and act and carry herself, and though he had opened doors for her to worlds she could never have even imagined, she had still retained some of the country mare that had made her so charming to begin with, and seeing her interact with her sister over the past few days had made Graham well aware of that. “Graham, what’s going on?” She cocked her head, blinking her luminous eyes. A lock of her hair slid over her shoulder, falling gently across her pale cheek. He reached across the table, pushing back the silky blue strands and cradling her cheek in his hoof. She smiled softly in return, her eyes once again sliding to half-mast, and he felt something stir in his heart, something he hadn’t felt since the early days of their courtship. “Cupcake,” his voice was still unusually quiet, “I love you.” He had spoken those words many times over the course of their relationship, of course. But sometimes, they came so automatically that all meaning was lost and the words themselves were hollow and dull. “I know…” She frowned, something clenching in the pit of her stomach. It was rare that her husband allowed any vulnerability to show and given the strange circumstances and the odd silence she had woken to, Cupcake suddenly feared something was dreadfully wrong. “Graham, please. What’s wrong? And where are Lemon, Gingerbread, and Gusty?” “Everypony is fine.” He shook his head softly, tossing his perfectly groomed mane askew, “At least, I think everypony is fine. I had words with Gusty earlier, and I’m afraid neither of us were very nice to each other, but she made me think…” He let his hoof fall away from her, looking back down at the table, “I may not have done it intentionally, but I haven’t always treated you fairly, simply because you are not a unicorn. Instead of realizing just how amazing it is, that you are capable of doing the beautiful things you do with just the use of your hooves, I’ve always thought it was unfair that you lacked magic to aid you in your craft. How much easier your life would be, if you only had magic to aid you, I always believed. ” “Graham…” Cupcake shifted in her seat, leaning in to take both his front hooves in hers, “I do have magic.” Her own voice was remarkably soft as well, though tender, and when he looked up, the stallion found her eyes to be sparkling with their usual warmth. “It’s just different than your magic.” “And I should recognize and appreciate that, instead of thinking you could be better, were you a unicorn.” Graham looked away again; he couldn’t bear to look at her for the shame coursing through him. He truly did love Cupcake and it mortified him to realize that he had always subconsciously wished she were a unicorn. She didn’t deserve that; she deserved to be lauded for her remarkable talents; to be praised for the things she did without the aid of magic. “And I’m sorry…I’m truly, deeply sorry for any time I may have treated you poorly, even without realizing I was doing so.” Cupcake was quiet for a moment, just watching her husband. She had known him for nearly ten years and in all that time, she had never once seen him so humble. He was usually a very take charge stallion, confident and sure of himself in all that he did, and spoke with the certainty of somepony who knew his place in the world. His attitude had, of course, sometimes bothered her, but she had known what he was like from the beginning. Truly had warned her that there were stallions out there looking for a traditional wife, one who would cook and clean and stay at home to mind the foals. Many of the citizens of Canterlot, the other mare had told her, had very outdated views on family dynamics. But Cupcake had never minded Graham’s antiquated notions about life. He had helped her meet the right ponies to launch her business and he had never stifled her creativity. She was more than happy to fix his meals, mind Lemon, and keep an orderly household, so long as she got to keep creating beautiful cakes and cookies. Truly had thought she was crazy, when she told her friend she planned on marrying the uptight, snooty Graham Cracker, but Cupcake was not to be deterred. And there was no romantic pretense behind her actions; she loved him, but she knew life with Graham was not to be a fairytale. He was finicky, but kind, and there had never been a single moment of regret for Cupcake since she had pledged to love him forever. But though there was still love and affection flowing between them, the mare hadn’t felt as if she was in love with her husband for a very long time. Not until he looked up at her, brilliant green eyes shimmering with tears, ears flattened against his skull, vulnerability and fear written across his face. Cupcake opened her mouth to speak, but the perfect stillness of the moment was ruined when the doorbell chimed, ringing out through the room and calling the mare away from the table.