//------------------------------// // Revelations // Story: Their Sweet Potato Pie // by Amethyst_Dawn //------------------------------// The stallion’s back slightly ached as he trudged down the simple streets of Ponyville, his usually chipper attitude replaced by a melancholy cheer ever since that fateful day two months ago. That sad day that he and his beloved learned that she was unable to bear foals. It hurt them. It hurt to know that months of planning and expectations were all cast aside by a cruel destiny, for no discernable reason. For him, it felt like someone reached a hoof into his chest, and carefully selected a small yet sensitive piece of his heart to tear out. He couldn’t even imagine what it was like for his wife, as her hair had not yet regained its full bounce. Fortunately, it didn’t take more than a minute for her friends to see that something was wrong. In time, they were told the full story, and they dedicated their free time to comforting poor Pinkie. Rarity especially seemed to be of help, though the stallion was always shooed out before he could hear what they were saying. He tried eavesdropping once, but all he could gather was Rarity saying something about her own griefs in motherhood as well before he was caught. Now, Cheese Sandwich let his mind wander freely as the sunlight warmed his coat. Pinkie and he had planned so long to raise their own foals, surely there was a way to get one? Cloning was awfully expensive, and the last time he heard about that type of process was from those weird sauropods that lived on a city in the middle of the ocean. And they were too busy murdering all the blue-eyed of their race to really talk much anyways, so that route’s probably a lost cause... “Watch out!” Cheese looked up in time to see a blur of blue and orange approaching at breakneck speed, but not soon enough to dodge it as it smashed into his side: sending both him and the unexpected visitor sprawling along the street. He would have gotten up quickly to check on his assaulter, but he somehow landed on a pillow, and that threw him off for a second. Opening his eyes, he saw Pinkie smiling down at him. “Y’alright?” She chirped, tilting her head. He noted that her hair had almost regained its full… what was the word? Pomf, I suppose. “Yeah,” Cheese chuckled, “I’m fine.” Bobbing her head to the side with a cute smile, Pinkie turned to go to the other one, whom Cheese recognized as Scootaloo: the little filly who clung to Rainbow a lot. She’d also been unharmed in the tumble, but Cheese suspected that was only because she was used to these sorts of crashes by now. Pinkie extended her arm, which the filly gladly accepted as she stood to her hooves. She cast a sheepish smile in Cheese’s direction. “I’m sorry about that sir,” she chuckled nervously, “you might want to watch where you’re going.” “That’s okay-- wat. Where I’M going?” Cheese blurted, scrambling to sit up. Scootaloo pointed her shrimpy wing to her left. “Yeah, you kinda bumbled onto the road out of an alley.” “I did no-” Cheese began, before he glanced back to the path he was taking. “Oh… yep, I did. Sorry.” Scootaloo shrugged as she boarded her scooter again. “Eh, I’m the one who ran into you.” She nodded before kicking off. “Later, Mr. Sandwich!” Cheese and Pinkie waved as she sped off, and Cheese quickly looked over to his wife. “Y’know Pinks, in a way, you’re already a mother?” An inobservant pony would have thought that Pinkie’s mood would drop at such a comment, but her husband gladly smirked as her mane inflated slightly, and her eyes gave a slight twinkle as she looked back to him. “What do you mean?” She asked tentatively. Cheese walked up to her, and draped his hoof over her shoulder. “Well, you check on the residents of this town regularly, and go to great pains to remember every detail you can about them: from birthdays to allergies, favourite foods to anniversaries, and you even notice when a new pony visits.” When the look she gave him confirmed that he wasn’t making sense, he chuckled. “Pinkie, you do all that and more just to see these ponies smile. You cook for them, cheer them up, comfort them, babysit for them, anything you can do. Not because you need to, but because you enjoy it.” He lifted his other hoof to ruffle her mane. “You are, in a way, Ponyville’s mother.” She giggled as she struggled to push his hoof away, and gave him a peck on the cheek. “Thank you, Cheesie, that means a lot. But…” she drifted off, glancing down the road. “I know,” he offered, “it’s not the same as a foal of our own, but it’s what we ha--” Pinkie looked up at him as he froze, his eyes wide as saucers. A shiver ran up his legs and massaged his spine as a lightbulb lit over his head, and his blank stare was swapped for a beaming smile. “Pinkie Pie, hold my hat, I am just about to be brilliant!” -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Scootaloo was busy polishing her scooter, when somepony unexpectedly knocked on the door to her room and called for her: “Scootaloo, there are some ponies here to meet with you.” Her wings buzzed slightly from excitement as she beamed at the news. It wasn’t often somepony wanted to meet with her, as ponies usually chose one of the younger foals. “Coming, Mrs. Falcon!” She called over her shoulder, hurriedly cramming her transportation into the closet and rushing to open her door. On the other side, Pinkie Pie and Cheese Sandwich were beaming broad smiles as they greeted her, and Mrs. Falcon was levitating a stack of papers. “We’ve known you for a while, Scootaloo, so let’s just cut to the chase...” Pinkie said, clearly trying not to explode with excitement. “... Can I..." "... can I be your mommy?”