//------------------------------//
// A Prison of Love 
// Story: Another Horizon 
// by Crystal Wishes 
//------------------------------//

"You're pregnant," I said, momentarily too stunned to do anything but dumbly repeat her.

Velvet took a shaky breath that was somewhere between laughter and hyperventilating.  "I can't believe it!"

My eyes went wide.  "You can't believe it?"

She turned back to the bathroom and set down the thing she had been carrying.  That prompted me into getting up and hurrying over to stand in the doorway, looking between her and what appeared to be a small beaker of green liquid.

"Wait."  The gears started clicking back into action.  "How do you know?  What is that?"

"Oh, uh, that, well."  One of her ears flicked and she started to pace in the small space.  "It's something Runic concocted.  Normally I don't trust things he doesn't sell in his store given his, well, history, but I really didn't want to go to a doctor over and over, you know?"  She gave another shaky, breathless laugh.  "It's kind of weird.  Not important.  I'm pregnant."

So many emotions swelled in my chest that a lopsided grin spread across my muzzle.  I grabbed her by the shoulders to stop her from pacing and looked her in the eyes.  "Velvet, this is—this is great!"

She returned my grin with a smile that grew into a beam, then fell into an uncertain frown.  "Oh, you can—yeah.  You can stay until you find a new place.  That's fine.  That'll be fine.  I'll help you look."

My grin vanished.  "A new place?"

"Right.  It's short notice, but you'll be fine.  Canterlot is expensive.  You don't want to go back to Ponyville, right?"  Her gaze darted about, avoiding mine.  "Maybe we can look at Manehattan.  Oh, wait, isn't your employer in Baltimare?  That'd be a good place to start."

There was a strange empty feeling in my chest, as if all emotion had been drained from me in that moment.  "Velvet, I can't just leave.  You're pregnant, with our foal!"

Her expression hardened.  "No, I'm pregnant with my foal."  A soft, almost pleading look slipped through the cracks as she all but whispered, "We had an agreement."

Those words set the hairs on the back of my neck standing on end.  "Agreement?  How can you think like that right now!"  I tried to cup her cheeks in my forehooves, but she batted them away.  I snapped, "Don't be so stubborn!  Velvet, you may not like to hear it, but these past few months?  We've been a couple in everything but name."

"Excuse me?"  She released a huff of laughter, her nostrils flaring.  "No, we haven't!"

I rolled my eyes.  "We go shopping together.  We sit together and read most afternoons.  I watch you while you stretch, I wait for you to get home.  I make breakfast, you make dinner, and even though you go out most nights, you still come home to me.  Every night, you come home to me.  How is any of that not being my marefriend?"

Velvet recoiled as if I had struck her, her eyes going wide before they narrowed.  "Silver, you knew what this was.  I'm sorry if you got your hopes up, but I've been clear about this.  You're just so blinded by this right now that you're mistaking my friendship for something more."

I did, but that didn't make it any easier.  In fact, it made it even harder, because sometimes the things that hurt the most are the ones you watch coming straight at you.  The delusion that, maybe, you can just stand there and things will work out because you're doing what you think is right—it really stings when it shatters in your face.

"So that's it?" I asked, my throat feeling tight.  "You got what you wanted, and I'm just supposed to leave?"

Velvet stepped closer and shoved her face up into mine, her ears pinned back against her mane.  "Yeah.  And you can leave now, thanks."

There was a very strong part of me that wanted to fight, but the weaker side just wanted to cry.  I didn't want her to see that, so I growled as I turned and stormed out of the condo.  The door slammed shut behind me with a loud bang that felt more finalizing than it had any right to.

I stood there, breathing in through clenched teeth.  My stuff was still in there, but I could come back for it later.  Some distance would do us good.  She'd realize she was wrong, I'd forgive her, and we'd raise our foal together.

My ear twitched at the distinct sound of crying through the door.  That softened my heart; she wouldn't need much time, then.  I forced myself to walk away, down the stairs and outside so I could get some fresh air.  We both needed to cool off.  It would be fine.

Before I knew it, I had walked all the way to Sunridge Sweets.  It made sense, though—this bakery had become sort of a second home, a safe place I could go to whenever I needed a break from writing or lazing about the condo.

The little bell chimed when I pushed open the door and the scents of all things sweet greeted me.  I relaxed into a warm smile as things felt normal all of a sudden, like it had all been a bad dream.  Pepper Ridge smiled at me and waved a hoof to usher me to the counter like always.

"Hey, Silver!"  Pepper crossed his forelegs on the counter and leaned in.  "The old typewriter giving you trouble again?"

I tried to raise my brow in playful surprise, but even I could hear the bitterness in my voice.  "Kind of weird to call your daughter a typewriter, but yes, she is."

Concern wove its way into Pepper's expression.  At the time, I thought it was for me, but I wasn't his son.  He always was and, I imagine, always will be Velvet's father before anything else.  "What's up?"

Delusion drove me to blind honesty.  "She's kicking me out because she's pregnant."

I heard the clattering of something hitting the floor before Sunbeam practically threw herself out of the back room.  "She's—"

"—pregnant?!" Pepper finished, both their eyes wide with excitement.

It was in that moment that I realized my mistake.  Dread curled in the pit of my stomach as I carefully said, "Yes.  She is.  And she's kicking me out, even though I'm the father."

Sunbeam and Pepper looked at one another.  In the span of a few seconds, an entire conversation took place solely through eye contact between them.  Finally, Sunbeam came around the counter and tried to put a hoof on my shoulder, but I withdrew a few steps back.

"You don't agree with her, do you?"  My brow furrowed.  "How?  How would you have felt if Pepper had left?  If Velvet didn't have a father?  Why are you okay with this?!"

There was a brief frown that flashed across Sunbeam's otherwise soft expression.  "Sugarplum, I'm not Velvet.  I wanted a husband, but she doesn't.  I gave up on that years ago, and trust me, that was after a good few fights on the subject."

Pepper nodded, shifting unsteadily against the counter.  "Celestia knows we don't always understand her, but she's our daughter.  We'll always support her.  Even if—"  He winced and bit his lower lip, then sighed.  "Listen.  What can we do?  Do you need some bits to get on your hooves?"

I had to blink a few times, as if that would change what I had heard.  "Bits?  What, you just want to pay me off and send me on my way?  Is that what this is?"

"No!"  Pepper quickly shook his head.  "Not at all!  Silver, I—"

Sunbeam looked over at her husband with pursed lips before returning her gaze to me.  "I'm sorry."  She stepped forward before I could recoil and hugged me.  She smelled like warm, freshly baked cookies and frosting.  "I'm so, so sorry."  She really sounded like she meant it, I have to admit, and it somehow made it all worse.

"For what it's worth," Pepper said with a clearing of his throat, "if she wanted a husband, I'd want for him to be you.  You're a good colt, Silver.  You deserve to be happy with a mare who loves you. I—I guess this is going to be goodbye soon, then, isn't it?"  He looked down at his folded hooves almost penitently.

"Goodbye?" I practically yelled as I pushed Sunbeam back so I could glare at the both of them.  The anger was back, red hot and uncomfortable, and I didn't care that the entire bakery had gone quiet to stare at the scene I was causing.  "What is wrong with you two?!  Velvet—I don't care if she doesn't love me!  I love her, and I want to be here for her and our foal!"

The sound of the bell chiming as the door swung shut pierced the silence that immediately followed my words.  A shiver ran down my spine as an all-too familiar voice said, "Wow.  I thought I'd find you here."

I turned slowly to see her expression the very opposite of her tone: for how hollow she sounded, I wasn't expecting for there to be tears running down her cheeks.

"I came to apologize."  She took a step toward me.  "I was going to tell you how I was sorry for springing too much on you all at once, again, and for saying some pretty awful stuff back there."  She stopped when her face was right in mine, and I could see the trembling of her frame.  "That I'd do what I could to help you find a new place, and maybe even play wingmare for you to find you a nice gal."

All I could do was stand there, conflicted between anger and guilt.  When I tried to open my mouth to speak, she jabbed me in the chest with a hoof.

"No.  No, you don't get to speak right now, not after you yelled at my parents like that!"  Her voice lowered, despite the fact that even whispering was loud in the silence around us.  "I trusted you.  I told you so much about me.  I—I thought you understood how I felt, how I feel."

My voice surged forth, almost unbidden.  "I do!  I'm not asking for you to marry me, Celestia's sake!  Just let me be here.  Let me help you.  Velvet, please."

Velvet shook her head, stepped to the side, and pointed at the door.  "Get out.  We'll talk some other time, but not right now.  And definitely not here."  Her eyes narrowed again to emphasize how she felt on that last part.

Panic seized my chest in a tight, burning grip.  I didn't know what to do; I looked over at Sunbeam and Pepper, but they just gave me pitying looks.  My gaze darted about and all around me I saw pity, confusion, concern—and in the midst of it all was Velvet, her expression stern but her eyes sad.  Hurt.

All I could do was whisper a soft apology before galloping out the door.

The sun was more blinding than I remembered it being just a few moments ago.  I staggered when I realized that was because I was crying, and my tears were the problem.  Without really giving it thought, I spread my wings and took to the skies, the only place that felt safe anymore.

The wind whipped through my mane as my thoughts became a disjointed cacophony of noise, of chaos that made it hard to breathe.  Pain shot from my constricted chest and through the lean muscles of my wings as they snapped in to my sides.  I felt so lost and helpless that I needed to feel like I was in control, and—as contradictory as it seems—I did so by letting go for just a moment.

Which meant I was falling.

Because Velvet was pregnant.

Pregnant with my foal.

And she didn't want me around.

Once again, I'd gotten tangled with a mare who didn't want me, who was just using me for her own purposes.

Then there was silence.  Oh, don't worry—I'm obviously fine.  My head cleared up when I was barely halfway down the length of Alicorn Spire and I reverted to instinct, letting my wings stretch out to catch the wind and send me into an aimless glide.  While I don't recommend my method of choice, sometimes you need to let go of control to realize how much you really do have it.

A quiet question bubbled up from the emptiness of my mind: what now?  That spurred a line of thinking that came at a slow, drawling pace.  I had nowhere to go except back to Canterlot to finish our 'talk', but how could I face Velvet after I'd made her cry?  Besides, there wasn't much to talk about.  Her mind was made up.  Nothing I could say would matter.

The sky was fairly clear, but I still had to tilt occasionally to avoid the few stray clouds.  Down below, I saw the dark and foreboding expanse of the Everfree Forest.  Hadn't I thought about being a hermit months ago, after proposing to Parasol?  Suddenly, that idea seemed really appealing as the twisted woods reached its gnarled trees for me.  I could hide there for the rest of my days.

My gaze lifted to trail from the woods to the town that bordered it.  Ponyville looked as quaint and peaceful as the day I left, as if nothing had changed.  Why would it have?  It's not as if I had been a particularly important pony there.

Something came over me—perhaps it was nostalgia—and I found myself angling toward the little town.  The colorful shapes I knew to be ponies became clearer as I grew near and I recognized a few of them.  One spotted me and waved; I didn't return the gesture.  I wasn't even sure why I was there, but I knew it wasn't to socialize.

I landed in the town park that I'd always thought was somewhat unnecessary.  Ponyville was essentially one big park; just take a stroll outside the outermost houses and, voila!  You're in nature.  It's not like Manehattan or Baltimare or Chicagoat where the grass and dirt have been replaced by pavement and cement, or Canterlot with its pristine cobblestone.

There weren't a lot of ponies around; most folks in Ponyville had jobs and didn't just wander the streets to go shopping and gossiping.  My nose wrinkled up as I realized how much I really disliked Canterlot after all.

"Yoohoo!"

Every muscle in my body tensed before I forced them into action to carry me in the opposite direction.  I knew that voice.  Everypony in Ponyville knew that voice.

"Hello!  No, you're walking the wrong way, sorry!"  Before I could react, my vision was filled with pink as Lovey Dovey, Ponyville's own Matchmaker Extraordinaire, swooped over me.  "Hi!"

I could feel my stomach twisting into knots.  If Lovey had her sights set on me, that meant she saw something, and I wasn't in the right emotional state to handle her.  "I'm sorry, I—"

Lovey practically touched her nose to mine as she stared me in the eyes before she pulled back with a bubble of giggles.  "Oh, I remember you!  We met at the Summer Faire a few years ago.  You and your pretty fillyfriend!"

My jaw clenched.  "Yep.  I remember.  Nice to see you again.  Now—"

"I'm sorry about how I acted."  Her voice was almost as if it was from a different pony.  Even her eyes were sad, and in all the years I'd known Lovey—and I hadn't known her well, mind you—I had never seen her look like that.  "I know it didn't make sense back then, but I can't help myself sometimes.  I see a severed love line, I can't help it, I just have to try to do something."

There was only a briefest of pauses before she perked up and continued, "Oh, but look at you now!  Did it work out?  Your love line looks stronger than ever!"

I can't really explain it, but when she said that, I wanted to scream and cry and storm away and collapse.  It was like she was just there to torment me, to remind me of what an awful day I was having.  Then I lifted my gaze to meet hers, all ready to give her a piece of my mind, and I saw her smile falter.

Lovey reached out a hoof and cupped my cheek.  "I'm sorry.  But I promise it'll be okay.  The right pony for you is just around the corner, I just know it!"

"I already found her," I found myself saying before I could really think the words through.  They set my throat on fire, constricting around a lump of emotion.  "She's in Canterlot."

With a delighted squeal, Lovey's wings started to flutter and she pranced in place.  "Oh my gosh, that explains it!  That's why your love line looks so strong!  Though—"  She paused to stare at my chest in that unnerving way I remembered from the Summer Faire.  "Canterlot?  Well."  Her head turned one way, then the other.  "Okay, maybe."  Beaming, she looked back at me.  "Tell me about her!"

What else could I do but sigh and walk over to the nearest bench to take a seat?  When Lovey settled down beside me, I explained, "I met a mare."

Lovey nodded emphatically.  "Uh-huh!"

"She's—"  A short laugh escaped me.  "She's not my type.  She's a little obnoxious, stubborn, and snarky.  She likes loud music and night clubs and drinks."

There was a distinct fondness in Lovey's voice as she breathed, "Oh, attracted opposites are my favorite love type."

I just shrugged.  "But she doesn't love me."

"What?"  Lovey sat up straight, blinking a few rapid times.  "But she does!  She must!  Love lines don't go one way, no, never!  And yours is, it, well."  Her wings quivered as her gaze dipped.  "Admittedly, yours is strong, but it's not glowing yet."  She furrowed her brow and pursed her lips.  "Are you sure you found the right mare?"

The scowl I sent her way was a little harsher than I'd intended.  "I think I know my love life a little better than you, since I'm the one living it right now.  Yes, I'm positive!  She's pr—"  My throat tightened and tears rushed to my eyes.  "She pre—She..."

Silence fell on us, save for the light twittering of birds and the wind rustling a few nearby trees.  Lovey squirmed in clear discomfort before she nudged her shoulder to mine.  "She sounds, um, nice.  What's her name?"

"Velvet Step," I replied, the name nearly as difficult to say as the word 'pregnant'.

Lovey's hooves flew to cover her mouth as she gasped and I shot her a sidelong glance.  She looked at me with wide eyes and, exasperated, I snapped, "Great, let me guess.  You know her?"  When Lovey gave a meek nod, I threw my hooves in the air.  "Of course you do!  Every mare in my life is connected somehow!  Sure, of course you know her."

There was a long pause, then I looked at her again.  "Wait, how do you know her?"

With a meek look down at her lap where she was twiddling her forehooves, Lovey sighed.  "I met her, um, um.  Two years ago?  Golly, it's been a while, but I'll never forget her!"

"Who could?" I said more wistful than I would have liked.

"I've seen a lot of things as a matchmaker, you know?  I could go on and on and on and on about it!  But Velvet Step was a first.  I ran into this mare, Crystal Wishes—"  I scoffed and she glanced at me, but I gestured for her to continue.  "She brought me home, which was really sweet of her, because I was feeling super down.  I went right up to Velvet to see what I could see.  Do you know what I saw?"

Uncertainty filled my chest with a heavy weight and I shook my head.

"No love love line, which is okay!  There are lots of ponies with no romantic love line.  But I saw a faded line, all curled up and kind of distant and just waiting to bloom someday.  Maternal love!"  Lovey looked up at the sky with a lopsided smile.  "I couldn't figure it out, you know?  She had so much love to give as a mom, and of course lots of lines for family and friends, but I've always wondered about that little one that'd someday be for a little one."

There was an uneasy tension in the air between us as I tried to decide if I wanted to laugh or cry.  Velvet was literally destined to be a mom without me, then?  Great.  Some ponies were destined to be great inventors or wizards or doctors.  Me?  I was destined to be used and tossed aside.

Just as the pain started to force tears to my eyes, Lovey reached out and grabbed my hoof.  "You're going to be okay."

I looked at her for a long moment.  The soft smile on her lips told me she really believed it, but I couldn't see how.  I withdrew from her, muttering some kind of platitude of appreciation, and jumped into the air again.

I don't know where I thought I was going, but I do know it didn't matter at that point.  I just wanted to get away from everything.

Unfortunately—or perhaps not so unfortunately—something grabbed my tail and spun me around, my surroundings becoming a brief blur.  When I stopped, I found myself staring at Lovey, though it took a moment for her features to come into focus through the dizzy haze.

"You were going the wrong way," she said with a brightening smile.  As if I were a foal, she leaned in to place a kiss on my forehead, then turned me around to face away from her and pushed against my back.  "Go find them.  They're waiting for you."

It was stupid and spiteful, but I just wasn't in the right state of mind at the time.  I shot her a glare over my shoulder and pumped my wings to put distance between us as I purposefully headed in a different direction than she was trying to force me.  The last thing I wanted right then was another mare sending me down a path of heartache.

There's some irony there, don't you think?  I'll always wonder how things would have turned out if I hadn't been such a stubborn brat.  Ah, well.  I suppose it's a good thing, because the chapter of my life with Velvet Step wasn't quite done.  Not just yet.