//------------------------------// // An Unforeseen Relationship // Story: Violet Lace // by DemonAngel13 //------------------------------// The sound of an extra pair of hoofsteps echoed in Violet's ears. They sounded so unnatural and different than what she was used to. It almost made her uncomfortable. No longer could she swivel her head or point her ears forward at nothing, engrossed her own thoughts. She couldn't mumble quietly under her breath while having a conversation with herself. She couldn't even change her walking pace to a slow trot when her thoughts got intense and she needed to burn the urge to run. Not without being locked up in the Canterlot Hospital for the mentally and magically unstable. This is going to be a long walk... She sighed at the thought. I guess I should do what I normally would... Even though she's new to Canterlot, that's no reason not to treat her with the respect and dignity I give to all of the ponies my age... Mother and Father wouldn't have it any other way. She thought. After all, Cloudy Sun was officially a Canterlot pony as soon as she set hoof in town, so she should be treated as such. "So what's your favorite color? Mine is blue." Cloudy Sun said cheerfully. "Hmm?" Violet asked, barely listening. "Oh! umm... That's nice. Blue is lovely." There was a long moment of awkward silence. What was wrong? Violet thought. I followed my mother's script. What makes this pony any different than the fillies and colts that followed me around at parties? "So... does that mean that blue is your favorite too?" Cloudy Sun asked, one ear lowered in confusion. "What?" Violet was startled by the question. Did she ask me... about myself? That never happened in Canterlot. At least, not with something so... simple. Normally when questions are asked they're about jewelry preferences or her favorite pony starlet. Not colors. In Canterlot, those things changed with the season, with the latest trend. If a new super model or a designer in Cosmare! or Hoof-par's Bazaar goes through an interview and states the color scheme of the newest line, and therefor the newest trend, then that will be 'Canterlot's' favorite thing. To ask an individual... and expect a unique answer... is unheard of. "What's your favorite color?" Cloudy Sun asked again. Violet furrowed her brow in confusion. What was her favorite color? She liked a lot of colors. Royal violet, periwinkle, scarlet, mulberry, indigo... how could she choose a favorite? "I, um, don't know." She answered. "How do you know?" "Well, I think of my favorite things." Cloudy Sun said simply, not even hesitating. "It just so happens that most of them are the color blue, or are referred to as. "Oh..." Violet thought of her favorite things. The ink splotches that appear on her hooves after an intense night of writing. The contrasting pencil led that smudges a paper. Delicate black lace. Black silk. The black sky at night time, dotted with thousands of stars and one huge glowing moon. Black... Violet's ears perked up at figuring out her new favorite thing. "Black! My favorite color is black!" "That's..." Cloudy Sun trailed off, thinking of the right word. Violet felt herself blush. Such a strange color to like... She must think I'm moody, or depressed. I bet she thinks of me as some rebellious filly trying to get a rise out of her mother. She thought about that last one. Well, to be fair, that's not impossible. "Mysterious!" The strange pony finished, taking Violet by surprise. "Oooo... I bet I can guess your hobbies! Um... Music?" Violet shook her head. "Photography?" Cloudy Sun tried again. Though the concept was interesting, Violet had never touched a camera in her life. She shook her head again. "Um... Acting?" She asked, now a little unsure. Violet shook her head violently. "Suffering sunbeams, I'm bad at this." Cloudy Sun pouted her lips. "Um... what about... writing?" "You got one of them." Violet answered. Cloudy Sun started jumping again, making Violet feel kind of awkward. "Yes! This is the start! I can feel it in my tail!" "The start?" Violet questioned. "The start of what?" "The start of our 'Best-Pony-Friends' friendship, of course!" Cloudy laughed. "I'm going to start making you a 'Best Pony Friend Forever' bracelet when I get home. Oooo... It's going to be so much fun!" "Wah..." The peach pony squealed. "We can have sleepovers, we can go shopping, we can..." Violet stopped listening, to absorbed in her own thoughts. What? Why... Who? What is wrong with this pony? What about the other ponies in our class? Why would she want to be friends with me? "Wh... Why?" The word felt forced out of her throat. Asking a question like that is far beyond Canterlot rudeness. Cloudy Sun stopped jumping. "'Why'? What do you mean 'why'? Isn't it obvious?" Violet slowly shook her head. Complete confusion filled her brain. "Well... I..." Cloudy Sun seemed a little bothered by the question. "You seem nice, certainly not mean. Why... why can't we be friends?" "I just... nopony's ever..." Violet couldn't find the right words. Why couldn't they be friends? "You just... so suddenly..." This pony didn't know her parents... didn't know her accomplishments. Why would she want to be friends with her? "I can't give you anything." "Give me something?" Cloudy Sun furrowed her brow. "Why in Equestria would you have to give me something?" "Because... I can't get you into that many parties... Mother only lets me buy certain things... I can't give you anything. Other ponies, like Shimmering Ruby, and Iron Wing... they can get you so much more, you should be friends with them." A lock of her gray mane fell over her eyes. Violet just couldn't understand this pony. "Violet..." Cloudy Sun trailed off. "Cloudy Sun, I'm sorry, but being friends with me will serve you no benefit. I highly recommend you be friends with somepony else." Violet stated bluntly. There was a brief moment of silence. The storm clouds that collected above them rumbled and growled. "No." Violet looked up from staring at her hooves. "What?" "No." Cloudy Sun said again. "I'm going to be your friend, you're going to call me Cloudy, and only Cloudy, and that's how it's going to be." The serious look on the pony's face was enough to make Violet's blood turn cold. Her navy blue eyes were slates of cold rock, and her mouth held no hint of a smile. Even her mane seemed to have dulled to fit her behavior. "I... don't understand." Violet said. "You will." ... Violet heard her front door slam behind her with a loud bang! She wandered into the large kitchen that nopony in her home ever really used, and found a note taped delicately onto a fruit bowl. Good afternoon dear, we hope you had a wonderful day at school! Both me and your father went to a tea party on Fancy Pant's yacht, and will be home late! Make sure you brush your mane 100 times, like we practiced, and work on using those products we bought you! With the brightest smile, Mother. Violet sighed and began to walk upstairs to her room. Once she entered, her exhaustion only grew with the grey lighting that filtered though her windows and the her soft looking bedspread. Maybe... I'm dreaming again. Her dreams were always strange, never really making sense. It was then when she glanced at her mirror. She saw herself, with her plain, matte lavender coat and gray mane. Her blank flank and her lack of accessories. I just... don't understand.