//------------------------------// // Chapter 40 // Story: Pinning the Heart // by Random_User //------------------------------// Chapter 40 I woke up with a start. I could not remember the details of the dream, but my heart was beating fast, and I felt a lingering sense of dread. Remaining still, I swiveled my free ear and listened for anything out of place. I watched Coco sleep, while alert for any atypical sound. Focusing on her undisturbed breaths helped me slow my pulse and relax.  “You’re my happiness and peace, even when you’re asleep,” I whispered in appreciation. I gave the back of Coco’s head a light kiss. Her scent, which still had hints of her mint shampoo, and the soft touch of her mane helped me release the last of the tension. Coco stirred. For a second, I thought I had woken her up. She turned over, almost touching her nose to mine, muttered something, and then reached out with a hoof until she touched my shoulder. Coco muttered something incoherent again, sounding pleased. Her hoof drifted from my shoulder to the comforter, and then she settled into a deep sleep. I kept still for a few minutes, but could not go back to sleep. My internal clock informed me it was around my typical time to get up and I should do something productive. I eased out of the bed and, as quiet as I could, made my way to the kitchen. “If I can’t sleep, at least I can get things ready for breakfast,” I told myself. After getting a pot of coffee going, I began gathering what I would need to make pancakes. Light steps entered the room. “You couldn’t sleep either?” I turned to look at Satin, who had Rain tucked in her foreleg. “I did, but not that well. Rather than lie in bed, I wanted to do something constructive. I smiled at Rain. “Hello little guy. You’re up too?” “We’re herding,” Satin said. “You’re a little young to be herding,” I told Rain. “What’s causing our little guy to be worried?” “That’s not what I meant, you silly thing.” Satin nuzzled Rain’s head. “He’s up because he takes after his father and wakes up at the crack of dawn. You and I are up because something is bothering us.” “What are you worried about?” “Coxa and her little one. Becoming a new mother not too long ago makes it easy for me to imagine being in her horseshoes. I understand her being worried, even if there doesn’t appear to be anything wrong with her nymph.” I felt Satin’s thoughts echoed the cause of my uneasy dreams. “They’ve been on my mind too. Coxa and Spiracle would be devastated if something goes wrong. Berry, Gena, and Piña wouldn’t take it well either.” “And you wouldn’t.” “No, I wouldn’t. They’ve gone through so much. It would be too cruel for them to get their egg to a safe place only to have something go wrong.”  “There you are,” Stormbreaker said, as he entered the kitchen. He did not seem to notice I was in the room as he wrapped Satin and Rain in a wing hug. “My treasures went missing.” “We didn’t wander far,” Satin told him. She gave him an amused look. “I thought you were a pegasus, not a dragon.” “No dragons here.” Stormbreaker gave Satin a lingering kiss. “I do like to know that the things I cherish most are safe, though.” Rain babbled in a tone that suggested he wanted his father’s attention. “Yes, you’re my cherished treasure,” Stormbringer said and kissed Rain on the forehead. He looked up at Satin with apologetic eyes. “I didn’t mean to be a possessive dragon, but I couldn’t keep myself from checking on you.” “We’re all herding,” Satin said and looked towards me. When he noticed me, Stormbreaker’s ears snapped up. “Oh.” He grinned with a mixture of guilt and humor in his expression. “Sorry, I didn’t see you there.” I chuckled. “You had more important ponies to focus on.” Satin looked at the items I had put out on the counter and smiled. “You were going to make pancakes.” “That was the plan.” “Your plan just changed. Storm and I will make the pancakes.” “But-” “No buts,” Satin insisted. Stormbreaker let Satin go. “I’ve learned not to argue with her when she uses that tone.” “But you’re-” “We’re not guests,” Satin interrupted. “We’re family and you’ve been cooking for us far too much.” I looked towards Rain. “What about-” With smooth and quick movements, Satin closed the distance between us, passed Rain to me, and grinned. “Now he’s in good hooves, and you can get some snuggle time in with him like you’ve been wanting.” I looked down at Rain. He seemed as surprised to be in my forelegs as I was at holding him. “I’m not sure what just happened, but I’m glad it did. Your ‘aunts’ have been hogging you, and I was getting jealous.” Rain smiled and reached up with his hooves. I offered my nose to him, and he took it in his hooves. Coco stuck her head in the kitchen’s doorway. “Pin?” Her ears perked up when she saw me and Rain. “Aww!” Rain turned his head to Coco, smiled, patted me on the bridge of my muzzle, and giggled. “I think he’s pretty neat too.” Coco walked over to us and stroked Rain’s mane with a hoof. “I woke up and reached for Pin and all I got hold of was a pillow. Little did I know, he had gotten hold of you.” “We’re herding,” Satin said. Coco nodded. “I went to sleep thinking about Coxa’s egg.” “Have you noticed that it’s Coxa’s egg and not ‘Coxa and Spiracle’s egg’?” Stormbreaker said to me in a joking tone.  “She carried and laid it, it’s her egg,” Satin said. “Spiracle had to be involved somewhere in there,” Stormbreaker pointed out. “True, but marginally compared to what Coxa had to go through.” “I can’t argue.” Stormbreaker's ears angled out in thought. “You know I’m jealous of changeling’s way of doing things. All I could do was cheer you both on and keep you comfy as possible. If Piña is right, Spiracle’s been able to feed the egg his love.” He looked at Rain and smiled almost sadly. “Since this adventure began, I’ve felt I was on the sidelines while you were doing all the hard work. To a great extent, I’m still on the sidelines, since I can’t help you feed him or-” “You stop that right now,” Satin insisted. She stood on her hind legs and hugged Stormbreaker around his neck. “You have fed him plenty of times.” “With milk you made for him,” Stormbreaker said, as he wrapped Satin in his forelegs. “Which I could make since you’ve been taking care of me and making sure I had the right nutrition. You’ve also given me time to rest so I could keep taking care of him with you.” Satin kissed Stormbreaker’s nose and held his eyes with hers. “I know what this is about, Mister Overachiever. You don’t think you’re pulling your weight.” “Compared to what you’ve had to go through and given up, I haven’t,” Stormbreaker said. “First, you went through the pregnancy right at my side. You cared for me, fed me, made sure Rain and I we’re healthy, and kept telling me I was beautiful even while I looked like an over-ripe grape.” “You were beautiful when I met you, you were beautiful and glowing while you were pregnant, and you're a beauty now,” Stormbreaker said, still gazing into Satin’s eyes. Satin looked towards her flanks and belly as if questioning the validity of Stormbreaker’s words. “We talked about my opinion on mares with mom curves, remember?” When Satin looked back up at him, Stormbreaker gave her a lecherous grin. “You’ve gone right past Cadance to the top of the list.” Satin giggled and gave Stormbreaker’s shoulder a light slap with her hoof. “Second, I haven’t ‘given up’ anything. I chose to have our child with you so we could be happy together. Do you think Rain or I aren’t happy?” Stormbreaker shook his head. “No.” Satin’s eyes got a concerned look. “Are you not happy being a family with us?”    “No! Sweet Celestia, no!” Stormbreaker picked Satin up off her hooves and held her close. “You and Rain are the best things that have ever happened to me, and I love you both so much I can’t even describe it.” Satin turned her head toward Rain. “Rain, where’s Daddy?” Rain let go of my nose and looked toward Stormbreaker. He stretched out his forelegs and made cheerful noises. After a second or two, Rain looked up at me as if asking why I was not taking him to Stormbreaker. “Hang on a second,” I said. I waited for Stormbreaker to lower Satin back to the floor and then passed Rain to him. “There we go, little guy.” “Daddy does more than enough for us, doesn’t he?” Satin asked. Rain giggled and snuggled into his parents and put his head on Stormbreaker’s chest. “I would take that as a yes,” Mom said, from the kitchen doorway. “I assume you’re all herding too?” Dad asked, at Mom’s side. “We are,” Coco said. Mom looked at the bowls and utensils on the counter and then to the coffee pot. “Somepony was starting on breakfast.” “I needed to work out some nervous energy,” I said. “Rain and I interrupted him. Stormbreaker found us, and  we determined he and I were going to cook breakfast while Pin looked after Rain,” Satin said. “We mares will cook breakfast, Pin or Stormbreaker will take care of Rain, and Insight will prepare coffee for us. Whoever does not have Rain can set the table.” I looked at Stormbreaker and nodded towards Rain. “Why don’t you hold onto him? You two are having a moment.” Stormbreaker nuzzled Rain. “Thanks.” “After breakfast, we are all going to sit down and discuss housing and weddings,” Mom said in an authoritative tone and gestured for us to get on with our assigned tasks. “That will give us something productive to do with all this energy.” “Yes, ma’am,” Satin, Dad, and I said together. ***** “I don’t know.” Satin sighed as she looked at the two piles of notes that were on the coffee table. “They both have their good points.” “Which one seemed more fitting to your daily life?” Dad asked her. Satin thought for a moment. “I liked the location of the first one a bit more, but I like the layout of the second better. For me, it’s almost a toss up between the two” “When decisions are this close, trust your heart. Which one felt more like ‘home’ to you?”  Satin glanced at Stormbreaker as if trying to read him.  When she did, I almost chuckled at how similar Satin looked to Mom. My eyes went to Dad, and he gave me a grin that told me he and I were thinking similar thoughts. “None of that.” Stormbreaker wrapped a wing around Satin and hugged her to his side. “Wherever you and Rain are is where my home is and where I will be happy.” Satin put a hoof on the second pile. “This one.” Stormbreaker smiled. “That was my choice too.” “How do I know that you’re not agreeing with me to make me happy?” Satin asked in a joking tone and leaned against him. Being careful of Rain, I held up a hoof. “Because I can vouch that’s the one he told me he liked yesterday.” Mom nodded. “He told your me the same. He also told me the reason he thought you would choose it.” “Which was?” Satin asked. “It was more similar to your townhouse, which you have adored since before you moved into it,” Mom answered. Satin stared at the pile of notes again as if seeing them in a new light. “I hadn’t even thought of that.” “Your subconscious will influence you in unexpected ways,” Dad said. “Sometimes bouncing concerns and ideas off those who know you best is the most revealing way to find out what it is saying to you.” “As your father said, if two choices are so close, it is almost impossible to pick the wrong one from an opportunity cost standpoint,” Mom said. She paused and looked at Stormbreaker. “May I ask what inspired such a grin?” Stormbreaker, his smile still in place, nodded to Mom. “The more I’m around you, the more I realize you two are two sides to the same coin. You both look at the world through logic and you both see connections between ponies and things all the time, but your approaches are almost inversions of each other. You see a group or system and its purpose then identify the individuals in it. He identifies the individuals in a group and then sees how and why they organize with other to reach a common goal.” “That’s one of the many reasons I fell in love with her,” Dad said. “Her views on things have always differed from mine, but I’ve always admired her intellect and reasoning and adored her personality.” He grinned at Mom. “That she has delectable ears to nibble on made me fall for her all the faster.”  “Insight,” Mom said in a flattered but warning tone. “Not to mention her marvelous flanks and perfect tea-” “Useful Insight, do not finish that sentence!” Mom interrupted Dad, a full blush on her face. Dad grinned. “For the record, you remain alluring in every way.” Mom, wearing a suffering smile, told him, “Thank you.” Her smile became relaxed and warm, as she touched her nose to Dad’s. “You remain the handsome charmer.” Mom hugged Dad, and he tucked her against him in a way that showed they both knew how they should fit together. Looking towards Satin and Stormbreaker, Rain wiggled in my forelegs and giggled. "Yes, your grandparents still snuggle like your parents do," I told him. Coco leaned against me and tickled Rain with her hoof. “I’m sure your mom and dad will be just like them, when they've been together as long.” “They look natural like that, don’t they?” Satin asked Stormbreaker. “Cooing over a foal together?” Stormbreaker nodded. “They do.” I felt a warmth in my chest, as Coco looked up at me and smiled. Coco tried to pull her hoof back, but Rain clutched to her hoof and refused to let go. She giggled and told Rain, “I’ll need that back at some point.” “Now that your housing has been addressed, let us turn to planning the details of getting these two wed,” Mom said. “Perhaps, after that, we could-” The sound of the back doorbell ringing caused us all to pause. “I’ll get it, since you two have the little one,” Dad said. He kissed Mom’s temple and let her go. Rain babbled at Dad, as he passed close to us. Dad paused and told Rain, “I won’t be gone long. I have a lovely mare I want to get back to cuddling with.” Mom shook her head, as Dad descended the stairs and out of sight. “Ever since you two got married and you two got engaged he has been more affectionate than he has been in quite a while.” “I didn't hear a complaint from you in there,” I teased. Mom smiled. “And you will not hear one.” There was a quiet second, then we could hear the sounds of two sets of hooves coming up the stairwell. Dad led Thunderlane into the room and nodded towards us. “Everypony is right here. Please, come join us.” “Hello everypony,” Thunderlane stopped and grinned at Coco and me. “You two are looking like parents and you’re not even married yet.” Satin gave a light snort. “Marriage is not a strict prerequisite for becoming a parent.” Mom looked Thunderlane up and down and then stated, “You are nervous about something.” Thunderlane blinked and looked down at himself. “What gave me away?” “You have been shifting on your hooves, the feathers on your wings have a slight puff to them, and your tail is twitching,” Mom listed. Thunderlane glanced at me. “I bet you didn’t get away with much when you were little.” “You’d be surprised how much we both did,” Satin said, which earned her a look and a raised eyebrow from Mom. “What’s got your feathers ruffled, Lane?” Stormbreaker asked. “I need to talk to all of you as family,” Thunderlane said. Stormbreaker’s eyebrows rose. “So it’s serious.” Thunderlane nodded. “It is.” He took a breath and then announced, “I’m going to ask Rarity to marry me.” We gave a collective cheer. Rain looked confused at all the excitement. I bounced him in my forelegs and told him, “It’s alright. We’re just happy for your uncle.” “I take it you have talked with her parents?” Mom asked. “I have.” Thunderlane’s expression became worried. Mom’s steady gaze remained on Thunderlane. “There is more you are nervous about.” “Saffron, Sassy, Filter, Silent, and I were planning a surprise for Rarity, for when she stops in Canterlot on her way back from Manehatten in a couple of days, and I got the idea it would be the perfect time to ask her.” Thunderlane’s ears fell. “I’ve got an idea of how I can get Sweetie and her parents to be a part of it, but I can’t figure out how to include all of you without giving things away.” “Thunderlane!” Mom chided. “It is sweet of you to think of us, but we understand.” Coco, Mom, Satin, Dad, and I voiced our agreement to Mom’s statement in a simultaneous jumble of words. “Whether or not we’re there, we’ll be happy for the both of you,” Stormbreaker said. Dad clapped his hooves in a polite display. “Here! Here!” Thunderlane’s ears fell further, and he put on a worried grin. “Then again, if she turns me down, having a smaller audience might be best.” Coco gave him a reassuring smile. “You don’t have to worry about that.” Thunderlane’s ears perked back up. “How do you know?” “Mares will answer all kinds of questions during mares’ nights after having a couple of glasses of wine,” Coco said and winked.  Thunderlane smiled in relief. “I’m glad I don’t have to wo-” The doorbell rang, cutting Thunderlane off. “This seems to be a popular spot today,” Dad said. “I’ll get it,” Thunderlane volunteered. “I’m already up.” He trotted from the room with more energy and confidence. “You made his day,” Stormbreaker said to Coco. “He’s been thinking Rarity was out of his league since he started dating her. He’s been worried she would turn him down, once it was time for the big question.” “There’s no chance of that happening,” Coco assured him. “Rarity said that if her ‘tall, dark, and handsome’ coltfriend didn’t ask her to marry him soon she was going to borrow Twilight’s balloon, fly up to the Wonderbolts’ academy, and make a scene of carrying him off with her to Las Pegasus to elope.” “I can see her doing that,” Satin said. “I understand why Lane was worried, though,” I said. “Courting high profile fashion designers can be intimidating.” I turned to Coco and gave her a smile. “Asking one to marry you is much more so.” Coco gave me a bemused look. “I’m not a ‘high profile fashion designer,’ and you never had a thing to worry about.” The sound of hooves racing up the stairwell caused me to hold my reply.  Piña ran into the room, came to an abrupt stop, and turned to face us. Her eyes were lit up with excitement, as she declared, “It hatched! We were there, when it did! It was amazing! Everything is fine! She’s got pretty colors and she’s adorable!” “Piña are you-?” “Sorry, Uncle Pin, but I’ve got to get to Kevin’s and tell them!” Piña sprinted from the room, leaving us all staring at the doorway to the stairwell. There was an exclamation of surprise and a grunt followed by Piña saying, “Sorry!” to somepony. “She has gotten fast,” Stormbreaker said. “Maybe we’ll see her in the Equestrian Games someday.” The sound of Thunderlane’s laughing preceded him up the stairwell. “When earth pony mares get moving at full speed, the best thing to do is get out of the way.”  “I’m just glad she didn’t hit square on,” Cubitus said. “She’d have leveled me.” He paused, as he followed Thunderlane into the room. He looked down at himself, and his ears pinned back. “Sorry! Piña knocked me out of my disguise. I’ll change back real quick.” “You don’t have to change on our account,” Dad told him. “You’re among friends.” Cubitus hesitated. He scanned the room as if searching for anypony that felt otherwise. “You have such wonderful colors,” Satin said. “It would be a pity for you to hide them.” “Thanks,” Cubitus told her, with a slight blush. Rain wiggled in my forelegs and craned his head as if wanting to get a better look at Cubitus. “Hang on.” I turned so Rain could see Cubitus. “He may look different from when you saw him yesterday, but it’s Cubitus.” Rain studied Cubitus as if he was not sure. “Hello, Rain,” Cubitus said and waved at him. “It’s me.” At hearing Cubitus’ voice, Rain laughed and reached towards Cubitus with his hooves. "You're happy to see me?" Cubitus asked and offered his hoof to Rain. Smiling, Rain took Cubitus' offered hoof with his and mouthed it. “You made a friend yesterday,” Stormbreaker said. “Rain adores anypony who plays with him.”  Mom scooted closer to Dad and made a foal sized space between her and the arm of the love seat. She patted the free spot on the cushion beside her with a hoof. “Come and sit with us. If you have time, I would like more details about what happened. Piña was effective at getting the basic ideas across, but we would appreciate more information.” “Thanks, but I can only stay for a couple of minutes,” Cubitus told her. “I’m a messenger for Coxa, so I'm talking with everypony Pinch is seeing too. I was trying to keep up with her, but I’ve given up on that.” “We won’t keep you too long, but we’ve all been worried about the egg and would like to know more about how things went,” Dad said. Cubitus relaxed a bit. “The egg hatched about two hours ago. Coxa and Spiracle have a daughter now. From what everybuggy can tell, she’s healthy, even with hatching early.” “So Dinky’s and Piña’s theories seem to be right,” Coco said. “It looks like it,” Cubitus said.  “What’s her name?” Satin asked. “Arista,” Cubitus said, a smile coming to his face for a second, before fading just almost as fast. “Are you uncomfortable being here?” Mom asked. I winced at Mom’s blunt manner, and Dad sighed. “Dear, you could have phrased that better,” he told her. Satin laughed. “Considering it’s Mom, it could’ve been worse.” Cubitus shook his head. “I’m thinking too much about something.” “About being an honorary uncle?” Thunderlane said as if trying to lighten the mood. “You shouldn’t be. You did great with Rain yesterday, I’m sure you’ll be great with Arista too.” “Thanks, but that’s not it.” Cubitus looked back to Mom and braced himself. “Can I hug you?” Mom looked surprised and then gave Cubitus a warm smile. “Of course.” Before Mom could rise from the love seat, Cubitus hurried over and hugged her. “Thank you!” Mom laughed and wrapped Cubitus in her forelegs. “That is quite a reaction to such a simple request.” “The hug’s great, but I wanted to thank you for helping Radi.” He looked up at Mom and smiled. “He and June are dating now, because of what you said to her yesterday.” Mom smiled back at him. “I am glad the gambit worked. With some stallions, hints are not enough and more direct approaches need to be applied.” Coco, Mom, and Satin cut their eyes at me, and I did my best to act clueless. Cubitus let Mom go. “I better get going. Piña’s got a good head start on me.” Mom released Cubitus, and he walked towards the stairwell. Before he got to the end of the couch, he stopped and slapped his forehead with a hoof. “I almost left without telling you; Coxa and Spiracle wanted me to invite all of you to the Viewing at Sanctuary that they are planning to have.” “Viewing?” Coco asked and tilted her head. It took a great deal of restraint for me to keep from nuzzling Coco’s elevated ear. Cubitus grinned at me. “Thanks for the snack.” He turned back to Coco. “It’s something Coxa, Twilight, June Bug, Spiracle and Radius came up with. All I know is it’s going to be some kind of celebration of Arista hatching and introducing her to everybuggy in Sanctuary and our friends from Ponyville.” “Sounds grand,” Dad said. “When is it going to be?” Thunderlane asked. “I’m not sure, but Pinkie Pie’s in charge of getting the party together,” Cubitus told him. “In that case, it will be soon,” I said. “The only thing that will slow Pinkie down is getting all the food ready. If she gets the Apples and the Cakes to help, it could be in two or three days.”  Cubitus smiled at Rain. “We’ll see you there too, right? Coxa and Gena would be disappointed if you didn’t come.” Rain responded with pleasant noises and waved his forehooves at Cubitus. “He’ll be there too,” Satin assured. “Thank you again, Miss Study,” Cubitus said, before trotting across the room, down the stairs, and out of sight. “I just had a thought,” Thunderlane said. “What?” I asked. “Do you know how to get to Sanctuary? I don’t.” “Not a clue,” I admitted. “I know it’s close to Maud’s cavern, but that’s it.” “We know ponies who do, though,” Coco said. “I’m sure we could ask directions from-” Something about the sound of the back door shutting made my ears go up.  “That was a bit of a delay, considering how long ago Cubitus went down the stairs and how fast he was moving,” Mom said, as if she had the same thought. “I thought I heard somepony to him talking too,” Stormbreaker said. The sound of hooves coming up the stairs made me turn in my seat towards the stairwell. The sound of hooves stopped and Rumble’s voice came up from the stairwell, “Hello! Pin, Coco, can I come up?” Rain giggled and squirmed. “If you don’t, Rain will not be happy,” I told him. “He will not be the only one,” Mom said. Rumble came into the room. Somepony had braided his mane in a dashing competition style. “Hello, everypony,” he greeted, seeming a touch self conscious at his appearance. “You’re looking sharp,” Thunderlane complemented. “What inspired you to get all fancied up?”  “It just kinda happened,” Rumble answered. “I went with Noi and Piña to visit Coxa and her egg. When we got to sanctuary, the Research Team, Twilight, and Spike were already there. Piña was so anxious about the tests the Research Team was helping Twilight with that she was distracting them with all her questions, so Twilight suggested we spend some time with the hatchlings. When we got to the nursery, Piña and Noi decided on showing them a pony ‘social bonding practice’.” Stormbreaker, grinning with amusement, asked, “Aren’t hatchings young for that kind of thing?” Rumble shook his head. “Not according to Piña and Noi.” “Come here and let me get a look at you,” Satin said. Rumble moved to stand beside the coffee table, and Satin hummed an approving note. “Turn around for me, please.” After Rumble finished his full rotation, Satin nodded and smiled. “They did a good job. You look quite handsome.”  “Thanks,” Rumble said and blushed.  “I hope you returned the favor,” Mom said. “I tried, but Noi’s running around with only half her mane braided right now.” Dad laughed. “What happened?” “After they were done with me, Piña and I started braiding Noi’s mane. Before we could finish, Dinky came racing into the room to get us when the egg hatched. After the egg hatched, the fillies were so wound up Spiracle sent all of us foals as messengers to tell everypony the good news.” He looked at Thunderlane. “I got your note about coming over here. What did you need to talk with them about?” Rumble’s ears went back with worry. “Is everything okay?” “Everything’s fine,” Thunderlane assured. “I needed to talk to them about something is all.” Thunderlane’s nerves seemed to return. “I need to talk to you about it too.” “What is it?” Rumble said. “I’m going to ask Rarity to marry me, when we go to Canter- uff!”  Thunderlane’s words were cut off by the impact of Rumble using his wings to propel himself to Thunderlane to give him a hug. Rumble looked up at Thunderlane, grinning. “I knew you were going to ask her soon! You’ve had the same look when you talk about Rarity Pin does when he talks about Coco.” “I guess that means you approve,” Thunderlane said and hugged Rumble back. “Of course I do,” Rumble said. As if he had a sudden unpleasant thought, Rumble’s ears pinned back. “Does that mean you’re moving in with her?” Thunderlane laughed. “I’m not sure how we’re going to arrange things. Why?”  Rumble looked away from Thunderlane, his ears folding the rest of the way back.  Thunderlane’s eyes widened. “Wait a second. Did you say ‘You’re moving in with her’?” His expression became serious. “Rumble, do you think I’d move in with her and leave you behind?” “You love her,” Rumble said in an unsteady voice. “That was a non-responsive answer,” Mom said. “Dear, now’s not the time,” Dad chided in a gentle tone. “She’s right, and now’s the perfect time,” Thunderlane said. He looked back down at Rumble. “Bro, I need a straight answer.” “I don’t want to get in your-” Rumble choked up, as Thunderlane pulled him into a wing hug. “I would never send my cooking buddy, training partner, chill housemate, and my brother, who I love and am proud of, to live with our parents and have to move with them every six months for anypony.” “But-,” Rumble started. “No buts. Rarity and I have already talked about things.  I told her I would not abandon you, and she informed me she would have been very unhappy with me if I had even considered wronging my ‘charming, polite, young stallion of a brother’ in any way chasing after her.” Rumble, looking much less distressed, chuckled. “Does that mean we’re both moving in with her?” He looked up and put on a mock expression of concern. “I will, if you want me to, but me staying in Sweetie’s guest room might make things awkward between Sweetie and me, especially if she wants to have a sleepover with Rarity.” “We’ll figure all that out later,” Thunderlane assured. “From what Rarity and I’ve discussed, she and I will have ‘short distance living arrangements’ for a while, since you and I are still keeping the house for Mom and Dad.” “You two have been talking about things like this?” Stormbreaker said. “They inspired us,” Thunderlane said, pointing a hoof at Coco and me. “Rarity likes the practical parts of a Canterlot courtship, and suggested we look at our situation the same way they did theirs.” Ah, I see what happened, I thought to myself. “If she’s the one that started the conversation, it’s another good sign she won’t turn you down when you ask her to marry you,” I told Thunderlane. “It was a hint for you to.” “Pin, I’m proud of you!” Satin teased. “You’re learning.” I looked at Coco and smiled. “I’ve had an outstanding teacher.” Thunderlane snorted. “Okay, enough sappy stuff,” Thunderlane said, and let go of Rumble. “We’ve got something we need to ask you.” “Sure,” Rumble said and released Thunderlane. “Could you guide us to Sanctuary for the Viewing?” Thunderlane asked. “I know about where it is, but I’ve never been to it myself.” Rumble grinned. “No problem.” The back doorbell rang again. Everypony looked at me as if I were responsible for the bell’s ringing. After seconds of uncomfortable silence, I broke. “What?!” “This is a very popular spot today,” Dad said, with obvious enjoyment at me being flustered. “I’ve got it.” Thunderlane patted Rumble on the shoulder. “Keep the whole asking Rarity thing mum, please. If word got out, the news would be be all over town faster than I could fly from one end to the other.” “I won’t say anything, I promise,” Rumble said. Thunderlane disappeared down the stairwell, after a few quick steps. “Shall we take bets on who it is?” Stormbreaker said. “Berry, who will want to visit with Rain,” Mom said with confidence. She looked intrigued, as the sound of three sets of hooves came up the stairs. “Somepony else is with her, it would seem.” Noi stepped into the room and her eyes went to Rumble. “There you are!” She walked toward him, pointing toward her mane with a hoof. “You’ve got to fix this! I look ridiculous. Goldie even laughed at me when she saw me. I was hoping to catch Piña at her mom and dad’s, but she’s still running around telling everypony about Arista hatching.” “You don’t look ridiculous,” Berry said, as she appeared from the stairwell with Thunderlane. “You look like you were in a rush is all.” “I agree,” Satin said. “You have the start of a nice straight braid going.” “I can finish it up,” Rumble said. “Thank you,” Noi glanced around the room, as if looking for a spot for them to occupy. Satin lit her horn and used her magic to move the coffee table from in front of the couch and out of the way. “Here you go. Now we have some space to work.” “We?” Noi asked. “I’d like to help, if that would be all right,” Satin said. “That sounds great,” Noi said and Rumble said together. As Satin and the foals settled on the floor, Rain wiggled and made wanting sounds. “If Satin’s on the floor doing something, he thinks he should be too,” Stormbreaker said. “He tries to crawl off, if you don’t watch him, though.” “I’ll keep him corralled,” Thunderlane said and lowered himself to the floor. “I’ve been wanting to play with him.” “You have to share,” Berry told Thunderlane. “All this talk of a new little one has me herding again.” She glanced around the den. “We’re going to be tight on space, though.” “We could all gather some blankets and cushions and all move into the spare room. Rain can crawl around and we can keep him contained while having more space for everypony.” “An indoor picnic kind of arrangement.” Dad nodded with approval. “We can do that.” “I’ll help set up the room,” I said, getting to my hooves. “If you’re going to help, I get Rain,” Berry declared. I gave Rain to her, and Berry nuzzled him. “Your Uncle Lane and I are going to have so much fun with you, here in a minute. We just have to wait for them to get everything set up.”  Something prompted me to look at Satin. She met my eye and gave me a look and a smile that told me she had a thought that had inspired her to older sister shenanigans. “Sis, what are you up to?” Satin’s grin grew. “Nothing… yet.” Satin looked at Coco, sending a message whatever devious designs she had in mind involved her. Coco glanced back and forth between Satin and me as if trying to figure out what was going on.  ***** After placing my engagement ring beside Coco’s on my dresser and putting on my horn protector, I slid into bed. Coco wiggled close and wrapped her forelegs around me. “I’ll be able to get to sleep easier, knowing Arista is okay.” “So will I.” I told her, hugging her back. Coco gave me a light squeeze. “Did you say something to me this morning?”  “I did wake you up, then. Sorry.” “I had the impression that you had said something to me, when I woke up, is all. It must have been something sweet. Even before I came all the way awake, I wanted to hug you.”  She smiled and touched her nose to mine. “I was disappointed when I reached for you and all I got was a half-warm pillow.” “I had some kind of nightmare and woke up on edge.” Without thinking, I stroked Coco’s back with a hoof. “Watching you sleep and listening to you breathe calmed me down. I whispered you were my peace and happiness, and you rolled over to face me. I thought I had woken you up, for a second, but you settled right back down.”  “You’re the same for me. I feel loved and secure, when you’re around. You also bring…” My ears snapped up, as Coco placed a teasing kiss on my neck and then nuzzled her way up to kiss the tip of my ear. She giggled, as I shifted my lower half away from her to keep from embarrassing myself, and then finished, “A lot of passion to my life.” Coco looked up at me with tempting fire in her eyes. “I should have gotten that spell from Sassy,” I said. “We can be quiet,” Coco whispered as if showing how quiet we could be. “You might, but I’m not sure I could be.” I kissed her ear and nibbled it for a second, delighting in her suppressed giggles as she squirmed. “I also want things to go so you can’t be quiet, so I’ll behave. For now, anyway.” “Promises, promises,” Coco teased. She looked deep in thought, as she caressed my cheek with a hoof. She stared into my eyes, as she let her hoof rest on my cheek, seeming to debate whether to say something or not. I took her hoof with mine and held it. “Bit for your thoughts.” “I need to talk to you about something. While you, Stormbreaker, and your parents were seeing everypony out, Satin asked me about what our plans for the spare room are.” “That explains the look she gave us before everypony moved from the den. What did you tell her?” “That we had a couple of ideas, but we hadn’t decided on anything yet.” I gave a good humored snort. “Knowing her, that answer didn’t satisfy her.” “It didn’t. She asked whether one option we had discussed was making it a foal’s playroom.” I felt a jolt of emotion at Coco’s words, even knowing the conversation was flowing towards the topic. “What did you tell her?” Coco’s eyes got a vulnerable look. “I told her it had been mentioned, but we hadn’t sat down and had a serious discussion about it.”  “I’m not opposed to those kind of ‘plans’ for the room.” As Coco perked her ears, I smiled. “If I remember correctly, I said something along those lines about the room when the night we completed our courtship.” Coco pulled me closer and nuzzled her head under my chin. Coco said nothing for a moment or two, and I began to worry. “Did I say something wr-?” “You didn’t,” Coco said, before I could finish. “It feels more real to hear you say it, especially now we’re engaged.” “Did you think I said I was open to foals to lure you in or something?” I half-joked. “No!” Coco leaned back from me, looking shocked. “I-” Coco relaxed when I kissed her nose. “I stand by what I said. You’re the only mare I've ever had serious thoughts about having foals with.” “I’m still not sure why you feel that way. What makes me so special compared to all the other mares out there?” “You’re the only Coco Pommel in the world, and I know you would keep me from warping a foal by being a poor parent.” “Pin, don’t be ridiculous. You’re great with foals.” “With other ponies’ foals. Playing with them for a while and then turning them back over to their parents is one thing, helping raise one full time is another.” Coco gave me an amused look. “Is this about what Rarity and Sassy said to you about having a filly?” “Having to say no to a ‘miniature Coco’ might be a challenge, but that’s not what worries me.” “What is?” “I’m concerned that I would make a foal as neurotic as I am, if I helped raise them.” Coco snorted. “You’re not neurotic.” “You’re very kind, but thanks to my parents’ influence, my time at boarding school, and my grandparent’s almost contradictory stances on how to raise a foal, I’ve got more hangups than our store.” “We all have quirks.” She grinned and reminded me, “You described mine as ‘endearing foibles’.” “I did. But-” Coco gave me a quick kiss, before I could argue. “There’s a part of me that’s worried about me being a good parent too. My parents loved Filter and me, but they were gone so much he and I were pretty much latchkey foals. We didn’t raise ourselves, but I doubt how we grew up would be viewed as normal.” I looked into Coco's eyes and told her, “You’re going to be a great mother, and I’m going to be right there beside you the whole way.” Coco drew in an emotional breath and then gave me a tender kiss. She snuggled against me, and we held each other in peaceful, loving quiet until we drifted off to sleep.