//------------------------------// // Mac Beth // Story: Unity: One Year Later // by Kieva Lynn //------------------------------// Bethany Stanz peered carefully around the corner of the Spoony Bard Diner, sighed in relief at what she didn't see, and quickly ran the length of the building before ducking into the next alleyway. She waited to a count of ten, peered around the next corner, then quickly ducked back again. Eyes closed, the girl thought to herself "Chill Beth. You knew this day was coming. Just get what you need from the store and get back out of the window's range..." She couldn't help but chuckle. "...And then keep doing it for the rest of your life..." Eyes open, Bethany steeled herself to take another look, then peaked around the corner... And screamed at the waiting, broadly smiling face of Pinkie Pie right there. "Hiya Bethy! Who 'ya hidin' from?" The Pink One asked, hopping about as Bethany stumbled back into the alley. "O.o! Is it ninjas? Or xenomorphs? Or xenomorph ninjas?" "Pinkie! You scared the crap outta me!" Bethany exclaimed. "What are you doing skulking around?" "Pot and kettle! You're the one skulking!" Pinkie argued. "Yeah but with a good reason... Can we do this later!? I'm in a hurry." Bethany said, peaking around the corner again. "Oh, so it is xenomorph ninjas! Well don't worry, I know their weakness!" Pinkie reached into her mane and produced a box of baking soda. "Little of this, little acid blood, messy but effective!" Bethany could only shake her head. Ponies in general were a little odd by human standards. This one cranked it up to eleven. "There are no xenomorphs Pinkie. Or ninjas." She sighed. "I'm hiding from my parents." "Your parents!?" Pinkie exclaimed, eyes going wider than normal. "But why!?" "Look, Pinkie, you do understand how humans are funny about mixed relationships right?" "Well sure, but isn't that just for things that aren't smart?" "That's the intent... But back home on Earth, there isn't anything else smart in the way you mean... So we tend to be funny about it either way." Bethany explained. Understanding dawned in Pinkie's eyes. "Ooooh.... So they might have a problem with you dating Mac." "There's no might to it. And since dating is the least of things..." "Huh!?" Pinkie cocked her head to the side. Bethany blushed slightly. She wished she'd not said that last part. "The point is, with the public access window online now, they're bound to be here looking for me. And I'd rather avoid that meeting for now, which means hiding out at home where the window doesn't reach... But I'm out of food." She peeked again. No parents in sight. "So if you'll excuse me, I gotta get to the store..." Not waiting for Pinkie to answer, Bethany ran around the corner and further down the street. "'Dating is the least of things...'" Pinkie mused. "Could she mean... Nah, we know they're doing that... But what else..." And with realization came the biggest, brightest, most disturbingly enthusiastic smile the pink pony had ever worn... XXXXX Sometime later, Raymond and Martha Stanz stood at the very edge of the window from Earth to Unity, looking across the width of two streets to the back of their home. "I always knew we should have lived closer to town... So close and yet so far." Martha said. Raymond nodded. "But why? Why wouldn't Beth be out here to see us? It's been eighteen months!" "Can I help you folks?" A voice asked from behind. Turning, Ray and Martha found a blonde maned grey coated pegasus in a postal uniform. "I don't recognize you, so you must be visitors. I'm Derpy!" "Um, Ray and Martha Stanz..." "Stanz? So you're Bethany's family then?" "Her parents. You know her then?" Ray asked. "Oh sure. You do mail delivery in a town no bigger than this you get to know everyone! Though then again, I'd say everyone knows Beth anyway, she's done a lot of good since we've been here..." Derpy looked around. "Where is she anyway?" "That's what we're wondering." Martha said. "She hasn't come to meet us." "We think she might be at home, but we can't get that far to check." Ray added. "That's weird... Wait here, I'll go knock." Derpy flew up and over the roof of the house, landing at the front door and knocking. Bethany answered and ushered the pegasus inside. "Whoa! Where's the fire!?" Derpy exclaimed. Shutting the door behind them, Bethany knelt down in front of Derpy. "The fire is you talking to my parents! I saw through the back windows! What did you tell them!?" "Nothing major... Just that I know you and you've been a big help to making the town work. What's wrong?" "What's wrong..." (Here Bethany slipped into a whisper even though no one else was possibly in earshot,) "What's wrong is... ...I'm pregnant!" Derpy's eyes uncrossed in surprise. "Oooooh..... So that explains it..." "Yes! That explains it! My parents will freak if they find out about Mac and me1!" "Oh... The whole 'Humans are funny about mixed relationships' thing... Um, I don't know how to tell you this, but that's not what I meant. What I meant was, I dropped the mail off at Sugarcube Corner a little bit ago, and Pinky was in a tizzy about some 'Super-Duper-Ultimate-Mega-Surprise-Party' thing. Wouldn't tell anyone what it was about, but knowing Pinky I'd say she knows somehow." As Derpy spoke, Bethany had turned white as a sheet. "Oh no! I've gotta stop her!" "Well, maybe, but... Everyone in town already knows... Isn't someone gonna say something to them sooner or later anyway?" Derpy asked. "Everyone knows about us dating." Bethany corrected. "Only you, me, and Pinky know about the baby. I haven't even told Mac yet... Look, can you maybe distract them away from the bakery while I go try to talk Pinky down?" "Well, all my deliveries are done... I can try to think of something I guess..." "Great!" Bethany hugged Derpy. "Just don't let them get to Sugarcube Corner, or anywhere on my path from here to there and back, for an hour. " She rushed out the door and Derpy followed... XXXXX Bethany burst through the door of Sugarcube Corner, to find Pinkie Pie busily crafting triple-decker cake that was pink on one side and blue on the other. "Hiya Bethie!" Pinkie exclaimed. "I figured I'd go half and half since we don't know yet if the ba-" She was silenced by a hand covering her mouth as Beth dragged her into the back room. Seeing that the Cakes were thankfully out of the room, Beth hissed "Who else have you told!?" "Told? No one!" Pinkie answered. Beth slumped back against the wall. "Oh thank God." She looked Pinkie in the eyes. "You can't say anything Pinkie. Please. No telling, no party, no anything." Pinkie gasped. "No party!?" "Well, not yet. Pinkie, my folks..." A rare serious expression came over the pink pony's face. "Okay, but... You know you can't hide it forever." Nodding, Bethany said "I know, I know. I don't plan to. I'm just not ready yet, that's all. I need some answers you know... Like, what to expect. And I need to tell Mac myself." Pinkie nodded sagely. "Well, I can at least help you with the answers. Come on, I bet Twilight's finished talking with those elves by now..." She bounded away, clearly expecting Beth to follow. Bethany did, though as she rose to her feet a thought occurred to her: "Elves!? Pinkie what!?" XXXXX They found Twilight in Golden Oaks, nose in an ancient tome, muttering to herself. Once Bethany explained what was going on, Twilight was more than happy to pull away from her books. "When two distinct species reproduce, the magic required to make it work tends to favor the female's species. Probably because the environment within the womb is different from one species to another and you need a match for the baby to survive." "So, the baby is most likely human then?" "Most likely, yes, though there could easily be relatively subtle variances caused by the paternal genetics being pony. For example, the baby might have skin and hair pigmentation you don't see in humans. Or ears like ours. A tail, maybe. Again, mostly human, I doubt we'll see more than one of these things." Twilight walked up to Beth. "Now, what's the real problem?" "My... parents are here?" "Oh my." "I have to tell them. But I don't know how." Twilight grinned. "I might have an idea. They've been in town since the window opened right? Someone has surely said something about you and Mac to them by now. Sorry, just how it is. So, what I think you should do is just... approach them. Get the first part of it over with, and deal with the second part when it feels right." XXXXX Ray and Martha Stanz sat on a park bench. "Do you think it's true?" Martha asked. "We heard it from too many people not to be." Ray answered. "It bothers you?" Ray nodded. "Of course it does. And yet... I wonder... It's not as if this isn't a person instead of just an animal." "You're thinking of your father." Martha said. "How he was towards other races." "Yeah... I mean, how different is this? I mean... Those elves that showed up today. I know for a fact that I wouldn't have a single thing to say if I found out she was dating one of them... Is there really a difference, other than looks? It bugs me... But I know it shouldn't..." "...Dad?" Ray and Martha looked to see Bethany standing behind them. They jumped up and ran to their daughter, embracing her tightly. "So, I guess you've heard...?" Ray nodded. "We have. And, it's rough for me. But I think you already heard what I said before. That's me, and I know it's wrong of me even if I can't get past it yet. So, you've got nothing to worry about from me or my reaction." Martha added "Though that said, I must insist on meeting this fellow." "Absolutely." Ray agreed. "I'll see what I can do about that." Beth said. "But... before we do... There's one more thing I think I should get out of the way..."