//------------------------------// // CH3: A Secret Kept? // Story: Our Daughter // by lillytheomegawolf //------------------------------// Spitfire strode confidently into her morning lesson in advanced flight class as if nothing had ever been wrong. Nothing out of the ordinary. Nope. No pony had to know she was pregnant. Everything was fine as usual and she was all set for another day of learning. Soarin paused in the doorway behind her to take stock of their classmates as all gazes rested on the two late comers. Although she felt the need to stop with her soon to be husband and gather her thoughts, she refused to break her mask. She seated herself calmly in the front row of the small class beside her friend Fleetfoot and smiled “Morning Fleet.” “Hi, you two.” The teenaged mare grinned back. “Somepony is a bit late.” Spitfire shrugged. “Hey Fleetfoot,” Soarin greeted as he too took his seat, right beside Spitfire in the middle of the front row. The light blue teen lent toward the pair, “lucky the teach left to grab something or you two would be in real trouble. Apparently, we have bookwork for an hour then the rest of the day is practical.” She quickly withdrew at the sight of somepony rounding the corner into the room. “Alright class,” the grey stallion paused in the doorway. “Glad to see you two finally chose to show up.” “We’re only five minutes late,” Soarin commented quietly. “Only?” The stallion strode to his desk and deposited the papers he carried on his back on his desk. “You wish to use your time in my class to advance to the Wonderbolts academy, correct?” “Yes,” Soarin confirmed. As if everypony didn’t already know this. The grey stallion continued after a moment of staring at his student. “As a Wonderbolt do you think it would be okay to be five minutes late to a show?” “No sir.” “What about five minutes late to a press meeting? Or missing the start of a days training?” “Of course not.” Soarin’s reply was softer now. “Well then. Why are you late to my classes? If you don’t wish to learn to be the best I can have you returned to the regular classes in this school.” “I’m happy here thanks.” “So you do still want to be a Wonderbolt?” “Of course.” Soarin quickly confirmed. “Then act like one,” a grey hoof impacted with the desk. “Or at least try. Be early. That way if something comes up you will be late and still arrive in time to start.” “Yes, sir.” Spitfire almost felt sorry for her coltfriend. This, of course, was why she did not open her mouth. It was better to not fight professor Greywing. “Right, now where was I?” Professor Greywing asked the class. “Pegasus magic theory.” A light pink teenaged mare spoke up. “That’s right, Snowflake,” professor Greywing smiled broadly at his students. “Boring...” complained Soarin under his breath. Spitfire rolled her eyes. It might not have been the most exciting topic but pegasus magic was important for them to understand if they were to pull off the most epic moves possible. --------- Lunchtime rolled around quickly for the class and soon enough the trio were flying off to their usual spot in the clouds to eat their lunches. “So, lovebirds, how’s life?” “Same as yesterday.” Spitfire shrugged before she dug into her sandwich. Soarin eyed his fillyfriend. Spitfire eyed him back, “no.” “Why not?” Soarin cocked his head to the side in question. Spitfire felt the need within her to kiss his stupid, cute face. She quickly schooled her mind back into gear. This was not the time or place. There were other ponies about and it would not do to have her deeper relationship with him become public knowledge. “Just drop it pie boy,” she did her best to play it off as nothing before their friend caught on. “What’s going on?” The light blue mare lent closer toward the couple, concerned. “Did you two break up or something?” “Look. It’s nothing.” Out of the corner of her eye Spitfire caught a ripple of hurt in her young stallion’s eye. It ripped at her heart and made her wish she had chosen a different set of words. “Okay. Just as long as you two haven’t gone and done something stupid or broken up. I don’t want things to get any more awkward, I’m already the third wheel here.” Fleetfoot cracked a grin and threw her white mane off to the other side of her head. “Well we might have done something stupid, but we haven’t broken up,” Soarin replied earnestly. Spitfire groaned inwardly. Now Fleet was sure to keep digging till she found out. The light blue pegasus let out a sigh. “Oh thank goodness. I just wondered why the two of you are being a little weird today.” “I’m not acting weird.” Spitfire deadpanned, the sooner this topic was dropped, the better. “Yea. Spit and me are fine.” Soarin added. “Look, it’s just the way you two are acting together. What happened yesterday after school, what did I miss?” “Can you drop it till after school?” Spitfire’s question came out more like a command yet the light blue pegasus before her inched closer, a grin on her face. “It’s that good huh? Must be something special.” Fleetfoot mused with a thoughtfull look upon her muzzle. “Just finish your lunch Fleetfoot. Then the three of us are going to race." Spitfire replied, eager to shut her friend up and enjoy herself. “Yes, oh mighty leader,” Fleetfoot replied with a cheeky grin. ------ Three young ponies landed on a large cloud on the outskirts of Cloudsdale. With school over and Celestia's sun lower on the horizon, the nearby clouds were touched with golden rays. Soarin immediately relaxed next to his fillyfriend while Spitfire sat upright, her attention on the lands far below. Fleetfoot chilled next to Spitfire, her gaze wandered expectantly between the pair. "I wonder what its like down there." Spitfire mused out loud. "To explore and perform to everypony in Equestria." “So, what’s that thing you were going to tell me?” Fleetfoot asked, an eager grin upon her muzzle. “What thing?” Spitfire feigned ignorance. “You know... whatever it was you were not able to say in school even though no pony was listening in to our conversation.” Fleetfoot reminded her with a sly look on her muzzle. “Well-” Soarin began but was cut off as a yellow wing covered his muzzle. “Hey, let your coltfriend speak.” The light blue mare protested. “You’re really not gonna stop asking until we tell you what happened aren't you?” Spitfire replied dryly.
 “Yep.” Fleetfoot grinned back. Spitfire sighed. How much to tell? Should she stop with her upcoming engagement or tell the whole story? After a moment’s deliberation, her coltfriend beat her to it. “Spit and I are engaged.” “No way!” “Yep.” Soarin grinned triumphantly back. Spitfire glanced around to check that their little party was alone. Good. The few ponies in view seemed to be going about their business with no interest in the youngsters. “That’s so crazy. You have to tell me how you popped the question. Was it high in the skies on your own cloud, just the two of you someplace romantic?” “No.” Spitfire quickly shot back. Fleetfoot gave her a look but the fiery young mare refused to let herself react for fear of giving anything away. “Okay, shoot. How did he ask you?” Spitfire turned to her happy coltfriend, “we've not yet engaged you, big dummy. You just asked my parents if you could marry me.” “While you were there.” Soarin smiled back. “Surely that has to count for something, right?” “Yes, it means you have to make it good. Or I’ll tell you to try again," Spitfire wore a smug look on her mug as she pressed a hoof into her coltfriend's side to emphasize her point. “Ouch. That’s a bit harsh.” Fleetfoot giggled. “No, it’s not. I know he can pull something off that will amaze me. I just want to make it clear that I will accept only the best.” “Aren’t I already the best for you?” Soarin asked as he laid a wing upon his fillyfriend. Spitfire shook the wing off, “don’t do that in public.” “I see who’s gonna wear the dress in this relationship,” chucked Fleetfoot, her eyes on Soarin. The teenage stallion huffed. “So, when are you gonna have the wedding then. After we finish school?” “Too long,” Spitfire responded. "I was thinking sometime in the next few months." “But its only another year and a half more of schooling. Surely you two can wait.” 
Soarin cast a meaningful glance at Spitfire and she felt her insides churn. No. No, they could not wait. In fact, the sooner they married, the better. But how to break it to Fleetfoot? “We uh... can’t wait,” Spitfire heard her coltfirend mumble. A moment of silence passed. A time in which Spitfire sure hoped her friend had not heard her coltfriend’s quiet response. “Wait? Did I just hear that right? Why did he say you two can’t wait? Did he do something to you?” Fleetfoot turned her attention to Spitfire and the fiery pegasus couldn't hep but squirm a bit under her friend’s gaze. “Come on, you can tell me.” “I’m pregnant.” Silence. Spitfire wasn’t sure how the words slipped out. Yet from the look on her friend’s muzzle, she had not imagined the slip-up. “What?” “You heard.” Spitfire snapped. “I’m pregnant, Soarin’s the father. If we don’t get married before my parents and the school find out, I’m dead.” If it were not for the severity of the moment, Spitfire would have laughed at the light blue mare’s dumbfounded look. “You’re gonna be a teen mother?” Fleetfoot scoffed, “the mighty Spitfire, of all ponies pregnant? Please, tell me this is a joke.” Awkward silence. Spitfire shifted uncomfortably once more but settled as she felt her coltfriend’s wing upon her. “It’s true.” “Wow. This... uh... so this is why he asked your parents then huh?” “Yep.” Confirmed Spitfire with a sigh. “I know we were going to get married one day. I just figured that one day would be after us three made it into the Wonderbolts and were all secure and stuff. I guess some things just move the timeline up a bit huh?” “Yea.” Fleetfoot agreed, pensive as it the magnitude of it all settled in. “Hey, why don’t you just get an abortion? Then no pony has to know.” “Because I can’t be bothered flying all the way to Canterot just to have a stranger do things to my body," retorted Spitfire, she brushed her coltfriend's wing off her back with her own. "Not in public Soar'." Fleetfoot grinned at the continued dominance of her firey friend before she became more serious, “I mean, being in a relationship is gonna make it hard enough for you both to get in together. But if you have a foal, the Wonderbolt’s aren’t gonna pick you!” “I know!” “Alright. Then what are you two gonna do about it then? Because I can see Soarin totally has your back.” “Always,” the young colt confirmed with a confident grin as he returned his winged hold to his lover. This time Spitfire didn’t shrug it off. His feathers on her back were a comfort after all and after her little admission, comfort was good. “Spitfire and I already came up with a plan.” Soarin declared. “That's fast,” Fleetfoot grinned, “it includes me too right?” “We are gonna ditch school just as Spitty here shows then we are gonna go travelling, have the baby then head back in time to join the Wonderbots.” “That’s not what we agreed on.” Spitfire reminded her colt. “Only I am to disappear. You have to keep up the schooling so I can rejoin with minimal fuss.” “You know I’m totally not gonna leave you right, love?” Soarin rubbed his nose along the side of his mare’s cheek and grinned as it turned into a gentle nuzzle. “What happens if...” Fleetfoot trailed off thoughtfully, her gaze skyward, purposely away from the cute couple before her. With the attention back on her, Fleetfoot chose to continue. “Since you both want to get married so soon, what happens if you tell everypony you're going on your honeymoon. Sometime like during the coming holidays or something. You guys extend it as long as you need while I cover for you the best I can. Soarin, you can keep training like you do now. Spitfire, you just do the best you can. You both are already great perofrmers, so I'm sure Soarin could at least earn a few bits by performing for ponies. Then after you’ve ditched the foal, you refresh then come back here and show everypony just how awesome you are! We could even meet up when your feeling ready to rejoin and run over a quick routine together to wow everypony!” “You, know. That’s not such a bad idea,” Spitfire conceded with a slow nod. “That’s pretty much my idea though,” complained Soarin. “Except I improved it,” Fleetfoot replied with a smug grin. “Now it might actually work.” Soarin scowled back but held his silence. “So, do I get to be the best mare and help plan this feast for family and friends?” Fleetfoot leaned in a bit closer, a hopeful grin upon her muzzle. “Sure. I don’t see why not.” Spitfire shrugged. ------- The weekend rolled around soon enough and before he was ready, Soarin found himself being led into the Rainbow Factory by his soon to be father-in-law. “Why are we here?” Soarin wondered aloud as he trailed after the older stallion around the magnificent inner halls. Tempest Wind smiled to himself. “I just wish to show you something. Hopefully also give a glance into what I do here, a little father-son time if you get me.” “Okay, sure.” Soarin sped up for a moment to catch up as his guide continued to stride purposefully on through the weather department and into the rainbow pools. The duo quickly exited the main rooms, as Tempest Wind led the way into a rather bland looking cloud hallway. The stallion quietly posed his companion a question, “Son, are you sure you can provide for my daughter?” “Uh... Yes.” The older stallion raised an eyebrow. “I mean, of course.” Soarin tried to sound more confident in the presence of the imposing pegasus. “Do you have a job?” “Not yet.” “Hmmm...” Tempest Wind hummed to himself. "Okay, so why do you wish to marry my daughter all of a sudden? Like I said the other day, I thought the two of you would wait until you had at least finished your schooling." Soarin tensed, he should have been ready for such a question, after all, something like this was sure to raise a few questions. "Uh, um... because," he took a deep breath, here goes nothing. "I love the most awesome filly in all of Equestria and I want to keep her by my side always. We've been friends forever and been dating for two years. When you caught us cuddling, I just figured it was worth a shot to take things to the next level." Tempest Wind smiled, considering the poor colt was put on the spot there, that was a surprisingly good and clearly honest answer. "Unable to wait any longer are we?" "Yes." The deep orange stallion eyed the younger pegasus and made sure to lock eye contact before he spoke, a sly grin upon his muzzle. "Beds getting a little cold at night without her around aye?" Soarin's cheeks flushed crimson. "Y-yes." "Okay. Fair enough. I know how that feels. I guess I can't fault you, I married Stormy after only courting her for a year and here we are happily married all these years later." The older burned orange stallion stopped at a rather solid looking cloud door in the middle of the rather quiet hallway and turned to Soarin as he drew up alongside. “You know where we are now?” Soarin shook his head. “This place is restricted to high ranking staff only. One last question before we head inside so I can show you around. Has either of you given the wedding more thought? Do you want a nice public feast with all your friends and family or a private, top secret one?" Soarin thought for a moment, "a nice family and friends one should be fine. We don't have many close friends so it would be mostly our two families there to witness Spit and me exchange a feather. As long as the Wonderbolts know that we mean business as a couple, then Spitfire and I don't see any problems." "Sounds good. I'm sure I can always talk to a few friends and help you two. I also have a friend in mind who could officate the signing of the legal documents and not kick up a fuss at marrying such young ponies.” The deep orange stallion tuned to face the solid cloud door once more, “Tempest Wind, GM.” Without a sound, the door dematerialized to reveal a room filled with skinny walkways over the top of vats of different colors and in the middle of the room, a massive water tank, half full. Off to the right side lay a control panel of sorts with all kinds of data on display that Soarin failed to comprehend. “I personally oversee this room. It holds all the stock we need for making clouds, rainbows and snow.” “That's kinda cool,” Soarin agreed quietly, his gaze continued to roam the room as he was led along the central walkway. The older stallion slowly led him over to the large yellow vat of unmixed rainbow and casually asked, “do you know how it feels to fall in one of these?” 

 “No, sir.” Soarin had a feeling, he probably was not going to like the direction this conversation had just taken. “Did you know, Rainbows after they have been mixed taste bitter and sting badly if you fall in.” “N-no.” A sly smile played on the lips of the older stallion. “Then I guess you also don't know that unlike mixed rainbow, the vat you see before you of pure yellow rainbow matter doesn't just taste bitter and sting, this stuff can give a pegasus a severe stomach problem if ingested and make all your hair fall out. That includes your feathers. Now if you were to fall in... well, that could very well land you in hospital. I’ve had staff here fall in. In fact, the one who fell into the raw red rainbow was unable to work anymore.” Okay, now Soarin was starting to feel really creeped out. Was this crazy stallion threatening to push him in and make it look like an accident? “Now, I’m sure being my daughters best friend and an athlete, there won’t be any problems. But if you break my daughter’s heart or wrong her, it would be a shame for you to be found in one of these vats now wouldn't it?” Tempest Wind casually turned his head to face the frozen younger pegasus. Despite feeling like he could wet himself, Soarin forced an answer, “y-yes sir.” He swallowed and hastened to continue before his future father-in-law got the wrong idea and pushed him in. “I won't let you down. I love Spitfire with all my heart. No matter what happens, I could never leave her.” Now the smile on the older pegasus became genuine. “That is wonderful to hear. Please understand that I just wanted to make my side of things absolutely clear.” Tempest Wind turned and unhurriedly made his exit, Soarin hastened to join him. “I do hope that the two of you wait before having foals though. It would be a shame for two of our most promising youngsters to fail to make it into the Wonderbolts because they couldn’t wait to become parents.” “Yep,” Soarin quickly replied. “I agree.” "Trust me son, it's a whole lot harder to not bang your special mare when your sharing a nice comfy bed with her every night." Oh, as if Soarin did not already know that. His cheeks burned in silent shame at his inability to keep his desires under wraps. "I'll be sure to keep that in mind sir. She is very nice to cuddle though, so I'm sure living together won't be a problem." That drew a friendly smile from the tough older pegasus. “Alright, then let me show you the rest of the Rainbow Factory, I promise the rest of your tour will be more enjoyable than this room.” “Sure.” Soarin agreed, unwilling to deny the stallion who had just threatened him anything for fear that an ‘accident’ may happen. Soarin dreaded to think what Tempest Wind would do to him if he discovered Spitfire’s pregnancy. “You know, a bright young stallion such as yourself could make a great employee here while you finish your last two years of schooling before you join the Wonderbolts. What do you say?” “I’ll think about it.” Soarin agreed. While a job to help support Spitfire and himself would be nice, he didn't particularly want to work under his future father-in-law. Maybe he should start looking for a job somewhere though, maybe his local Cloudsdale bakery? Free pies and get paid? How hard could it be to find a job for three months? After that it would probably be time for a little road trip to hide an incoming foal anyway.