Two hours went by before Pepper Ridge finally stumbled out into the waiting room. His coat, normally the lovely color of toasted bread, was dark and matted with sweat, but a tired smile was on his face. "Girls, you want to come in and meet him?"
Crystal and Velvet scrambled off the bench, nearly knocking each other over in their hurry to follow him to the room. Crystal's breath caught in her throat when she walked through the doorway and beheld a scene of pure tranquility.
Bathed in the flickering fluorescent light from above, Sunbeam rested on the lone bed in the room, wearing an unflattering aqua-colored gown. Her mane had been long since pulled out of its curls and instead clung to her neck and shoulders. From any physical aspect, she was a bedraggled mess; however, there was still something that had taken Crystal's breath away for a moment.
Sunbeam looked down at the little blue-wrapped bundle in her forelegs with such fondness and love that she radiated beauty. The sounds of the hospital—the beeping machines and murmuring staff—faded away around the family in front of her in that moment. Pepper Ridge stood at one side of the bed and Velvet climbed up on the other, all three faces looking down at one little one, all three ponies overwhelmed with a strangely calm joy.
Slowly, Sunbeam lifted her gaze to look at Crystal. "Sweetie, why are you standing over there?" She smiled. "Why don't you come say hello?"
Crystal swallowed. One hoof lifted and took a tentative step forward, then another. The closer she was to the bed, the more fluid her movements became until the face that had captivated the three of them came into view.
Nestled in the blue bundle was a sleeping, dark red foal. A tuft of off-white, almost cream-colored hair rested over his forehead. The blanket moved ever so slightly from his tiny but even breaths.
Crystal's eyes stung with tears. "Oh, Sunbeam," she whispered, "he's absolutely perfect."
Velvet stroked the mane tuft and looked up at her mother. "What's his name, Mom?"
"Red Velvet," Sunbeam said, giggling when Velvet gasped.
"You gave him my name?" she asked in a quiet but incredulous voice. "Mom, Dad, I'm Velvet!"
Pepper Ridge reached behind Sunbeam and over to Velvet, pulling his wife and daughter into a hug. "We're not replacing you, honey."
"But we knew we wanted him to having something in common with you, and the name just seemed right," Sunbeam continued.
"Plus," Crystal added in, all eyes turning on her, "we'll just call him Red."
Velvet scrunched up her nose, looked between them all, then sighed. "Fine, but I'm only calling him Red." She looked down at the blissfully unaware foal. "Got that? You're Red, and I'm Velvet."
A snort and a grunt came from the foal before his eyes opened, the same violet color as Velvet's. He blinked a few times and yawned, a small gurgling sound in the back of his throat.
Velvet's ears dropped to the sides as she melted into a smile. "Aww, all right. You can be Velvet, too, if you want."
Red focused his gaze on her. He opened his mouth and she smiled wider, eager to know what he was going to do next… and a loud wail burst forth from his tiny lungs. It sounded much more like full-grown lungs were powering his cries as they echoed throughout the room.
Velvet recoiled and exclaimed, "What did I do?!"
"Nothing, sweetums," Sunbeam assured her with a tiny chime of laughter. "Red is hungry, that's all." She carefully rolled onto her side. "If you want to turn away, now's your chance!"
"Turn away?" Velvet asked. Her eyes followed the bundle as it was lowered to the bed and set down beside Sunbeam. Red, driven by pure instinct, wriggled himself forward and buried his face against their mother. "Oh—Oh!" She blinked, then tilted her head. "Weird."
Crystal reached out and lightly bopped Velvet on the shoulder. "It's not weird! It's natural. How do you think you were fed as a foal?"
Velvet shrugged. "I dunno. I never really thought about it. I've never really given much thought to foals in general." She looked back at Red. "They're kinda cute."
"Oh, you." Crystal laughed and looked at the new-again parents. "Congratulations, you two," she said while Sunbeam and Pepper Ridge gazed at each other fondly. "I'll let you get some well-deserved rest. Velvet, are you staying here?"
Velvet replied with an emphatic nod.
"All right." She giggled and walked to the door, waving just as she closed it behind her. "Again, congratulations!"
The moment the door shut, the sounds of the hospital became much more apparent, despite it being so late in the night that it was almost morning. Crystal paused to look around at the nurses that walked up and down the halls, a few guiding patients to or from their rooms.
A small shiver ran down her spine. The smell of rubbing alcohol and hoof sanitizer was thick in the air, and the lights overhead continually flickered just enough to be noticeable. There was a faint, nauseous smell of somepony nauseated somewhere nearby, and the disorienting white on white on white of the surroundings made her hurry to the nearest exit.
The night outside was quiet and serene. Crystal took a few deep breaths to clear the stagnant air out of her lungs, then smiled up at the moon before she started the long walk home.
♡
Crystal nibbled on the quill's tip as she read her latest draft, the ink still wet. There was only a little under two months left of summer break before she'd be back to school and tied to a desk most hours of the day. While she still had some freedom left, she was determined to make more progress on the story.
The thought made her giggle. If Silent Knight came home when he wrote that he would, then she could work on her Silent love, as well. She giggled again and lowered the paper to the coffee table. Her gaze wandered the joined living room and kitchen. The condo was calm and quiet, despite being a Saturday for which Velvet would normally be around.
She yawned and stood up, her joints popping and creaking as she stretched out her forelegs. The clock on the wall indicated it was just shy of noon and she had skipped breakfast in favor of getting an early start on writing. Her stomach made its opinion on the matter quite known with a loud rumble.
Crystal put on one of her floppy hats and walked out into the hallway. While she walked out of the building, she mused on what seemed most appetizing: a salad, a sandwich, or perhaps some brunch? Biscuits and jam sounded rather nice, and nopony made them better than Papa Pepper. Of course, it was also a convenient excuse to drop by their place.
The air outside was hot and a little humid. Even though it was a short walk to Sunbeam and Pepper Ridge's condo, she worked up a light sweat and was eager to get out of the sun.
She knocked on the door and waited until it opened. When it did, Velvet's smiling face greeted her. "Hey! Come on in!"
Crystal walked inside, setting her hat on one of the coat hangers. "How's little Red?"
"Perfect, of course." Velvet rolled her eyes. "He only cries when he's hungry or needs changing. Otherwise, he's just, uh, happy. Not like, super happy, just baby happy, I guess."
Crystal glanced at the door that led to the nursery. "Who's managing the shop right now?"
"Dad." Velvet tilted her head. "Why?"
"Aww." Crystal laughed softly and sat down on the couch, shaking her head. "I was hoping for some of his biscuits and jam."
"Oh, I can reheat some for you, sweetie," Sunbeam said as she walked into the room. She had a sweatband around each ankle and another around her forehead to pull loose strands of blonde mane out of the way. "Let me finish my exercising and I'll get right on that."
Velvet huffed, stepping in front of her mother. "I can reheat them, Mom! Just relax, okay? If you wear yourself out trying to exercise and take care of Red and take care of Crystal, you won't have any attention left for me!"
Sunbeam giggled. She wiped her forehead along the back of one of her hooves. "Ever the selfless girl, you are. It's okay, I can finish up on the way to the kitchen!"
With a huff, she stepped around Velvet. Her movements were somewhat exaggerated, one foreleg and one hindleg stretching as far forward as possible before stepping down and stretching out the others. Once in the kitchen, she started to jog in place on three hooves while the other retrieved a wrapped bundle of biscuits from the fridge.
Crystal watched her with a smile, saying to Velvet, "She's really dedicated to losing the baby weight, isn't she?"
"Yeah, she is." Velvet shrugged. "Anyway, are you really just here for biscuits and jam?" She took a seat beside Crystal and swung her hindlegs absently.
Crystal nodded, paused, then shook her head. "I was, but now that I think about it, I did want to talk about something." She glanced at Velvet out of the corner of her eye. "Can you not make a big deal out of my birthday this year?"
Velvet gasped with obvious exaggeration. The sound was louder than necessary and both hooves raised to her chest. "What? No! I would never do that! This birthday isn't any more or less special than any other!"
"Besides, we already have the cake planned!" Sunbeam called from the kitchen in the middle of her push-ups while the stove preheated.
Crystal turned on Velvet, frowning and prodding at her with one accusatory hoof. "You are planning something! Velvet, I don't want you making a big deal out of my birthday."
Velvet crossed her hoof over her chest. "I'm not making a big deal out of it. Honest! I'm making an appropriately sized deal. Just trust me, okay?" She leaned back into the couch and tilted her head. "Anyway, why? Last year it was just you, me, and Horsey because you didn't have any other friends. Now you have a lot. Don't you want to celebrate that?"
Crystal shook her head. "It's embarrassing! Birthday parties are for fillies and colts, not a mare my age."
"That's not true," Sunbeam chimed in. "We do birthday cakes for grown ponies all the time. It's perfectly normal!"
"Not helping!" Crystal chimed back. She sighed and looked down at the floor. "How much have you already planned?"
Velvet hummed thoughtfully. "If I were planning something, then I would definitely be pretty far along. It's only, like, two weeks away." She jabbed a hoof at Crystal. "So don't ruin this for me, hypothetically!"
Crystal whined for a moment, pleading with her eyes, but Velvet didn't budge. Finally, she dropped her head. "If it makes you happy."
"Yay!" Velvet threw her forelegs in the air. "—is what I would say if I were indeed planning something!"
Sunbeam jogged over to the couch with a plate of biscuits topped with strawberry jam, which she set on the coffee table. "If you can stay for a while, Crystal, Red will be up from his nap soon."
Crystal's eyes went wide. "Could I play with him?"
"Certainly." Sunbeam smiled, then lunged her way to the nursery. "I'll bring him out when he's awake."
Crystal took a bite of one of the biscuits and relished its buttery flavor underneath the layer of jam. "Your dad can really cook," she murmured in bliss.
"Yep! Though with Mom stuck here with Red, I'm going to have to keep taking shifts at the bakery so he doesn't get overworked." Velvet sighed. "I'm sorry. I know that means you'll be stuck alone a lot of the time, but maybe you can be good and go out more?"
"'Be good'?" Crystal raised a brow. "What am I, a pet?"
Velvet's mouth wriggled before she grinned, nodded, and laughed when Crystal feigned a shocked gasp.
"Well, we'll just see how you feel about it when I—aww!" Her tone rose to a quiet but high-pitched squeal as her gaze was torn away from Velvet at the sound of a gurgle. "Look who's up!"
Sunbeam cradled Red in one foreleg as she walked over to them. "Here you go, Big Sis." She held him out to Velvet, smiling at Crystal. "She's his favorite when he wakes up from a nap."
"Of course! That's because Big Sis knows what Li'l Red likes!" Velvet raised the gurgling foal into the air, then gently wiggled him from side to side. "Choo-choo! Wook at mah widdle face!"
Crystal stared at her before she grinned. "Wow, Velvet, maybe you didn't want a cat after all."
"Huh?" Velvet lowered Red to cradle him in both forelegs. "What?"
Her grin widened. "You clearly wanted a foal!"
Velvet blinked. She looked from Crystal to Red. He looked up at her with a big, drooling smile. "What? But cats and foals are totally different. Cats are fun but foals are adorable and look at the way he smiles and oh my gosh I want one." Her eyes grew big as the realization sunk in.
Sunbeam gasped from across the room, dropping a small dumbbell to the ground. "What?!"
"I mean, not right now!" Velvet hurriedly clarified. "Now is definitely not the right time! Crystal needs to move out and in with Silent Knight first before I can even consider that. Also, the whole problem of, well, making a foal." She shook her head. "That means I'd need somepony, right?"
"You could always just adopt," Crystal offered.
Velvet blinked slowly. "I could always just adopt…" She shook her head again, more rapidly this time. "Anyway, let's focus on the real situation at hoof! Silent is going to come home soon and Crystal's finally going to tell him how she feels!"
Sunbeam, after having just picked it up, dropped the dumbbell again. "What?!"
Crystal rubbed the back of her neck and grinned sheepishly. "Oh, yes, I said I'd do that, didn't I?"
Velvet gave a stern nod. "Yup!"
"You won't let me go back on that?"
Velvet shook her head. "Nope!"
Crystal laughed, looking at the approaching Sunbeam. "Then I guess it's true!"
"Oh, honey, that's wonderful!" Sunbeam embraced her, then pulled back. "Velvet, let Crystal play with Red to celebrate!"
"Okay, okay." Velvet transferred Red to Crystal's hold. "Now, be careful, he's a little finicky with how you hold him. No, put your hoof here, and hold him around here…"
♡
Crystal trotted through the streets toward home with a saddlebag full of radishes, a small chuckle escaping her at the thought of them. Clearly, it was time for her 'surprise party'. Why else would Velvet wake her up and send her to the store to get "twenty-one radishes, each two-thirds more red than white"?
She rolled her eyes as she opened the door and called, "Oh, look at me, coming home so unsuspecting into a dark room!"
She waited. The lights remained off. Not a sound was heard. She blinked.
"Uh, hello? Birthday filly is here?"
Nothing.
She huffed and wandered around the room, checking behind the sofa, revealing nopony. She looked in the bathroom, under both beds, and even the kitchen cabinets.
"Seriously?" She walked back into the living room and slumped down onto a pillow just as she noticed a piece of paper taped to the back of the door. Her magic retrieved it and, once it was within reach, she read aloud, "You're a real treat."
Crystal stared at the note for a while before she gasped. "Sunridge Sweets! Of course!"
Just when she opened the door and barreled out into the hallway, she squeaked and collided into a grinning Velvet.
"What?!" Crystal looked down at the mare she had knocked over. "What are you doing here?"
Velvet laughed, getting back onto her hooves. "Waiting to see how desperate you were for the party you didn't want!" She winked. "Guess you wanted this after all?"
Crystal puffed out her cheeks. "Well, I just, if you did it anyway I might as well enjoy it!"
"Great! So now that I've distracted you…"
"Distracted me?" She glanced up, to the left, then the right. "From wha—"
"Surprise!" several voices yelled from right behind her, most laughing when she squealed and jumped into the air.
Crystal whirled around to see everypony standing in the hallway: Raven was accompanied by Moore, Horsey with Savoir, Painted Wave with Verdant Wellspring, and, of course, Runic, who probably would have been holding hooves with Miley if she weren't overseas.
She feigned a laugh as the reality in front of her set in. Almost all of her friends were in a relationship. How did she, the most desperate of all of them, end up the only single pony? She glanced at Velvet and mentally corrected, The only unwillingly single pony, that is.
Finally, her smile lifted into sincerity as she said, "Oh, you all didn't have to do this!"
"But we haven't done anything yet," Runic said before grabbing a phial from his vest. "But now—"
"Runic, no!" cried those that knew what was to come.
"—it's started!" he finished, rather innocently or intentionally ignoring them and throwing the phial to the ground.
Pink smoke filled the hallway and likely disturbed several neighbors. However, it had the pleasant smell of roses, and quickly dissipated into a thin haze, as though looking through rose-colored lenses.
Runic smiled with pride. "Made it just for you! It's my version of a bathless bomb!"
Crystal and a few others laughed through their coughing. Velvet ushered everypony inside, closing the door and hurriedly opening the kitchen window.
Sunbeam, Pepper Ridge, and Red were already waiting inside, having snuck past while Velvet kept Crystal distracted to deliver the cake. It was a two-layer white cake with a chocolate topper shaped like her cutie mark and a rosy pattern along the sides in pink. Several swirls of a dark shade of blue were interspersed throughout and Velvet leaned over to explain, "For, yanno, your Knight."
Crystal giggled and swatted at her. "Oh, you."
Cake was served first, as Crystal's sweet tooth couldn't let such a testament to all things sugary sit untouched. Painted Wave wandered over to Crystal while the others mingled, especially Raven and Horsey who seemed particularly gossipy about each other's love lives. After all, Moore had officially proposed on Hearts and Hooves Day, so Raven was excited to show off her engagement ring to everypony.
"Hay," she said, levitating her plate of sweet hay fries and strawberry dipping sauce. "I saw your changeling invasion article in Mares Monthly."
Crystal glanced nervously up at her. "What did you think?"
Painted raised her brow. "Does it matter what I think? Well, if it does, then I think the real question is, how are you doing?"
"Much better. I still have a nightmare once in a while, and I can't go into Runic's back room yet without breaking out in a sweat, but I know that'll get better with time." Crystal smiled, looking out at the room. "I didn't realize it until Velvet pointed it out, but I really do have a lot of friends now. I don't think I appreciated that before. I'm sure that helps more than anything."
"Good." Painted munched on a fry. "So, Velvet said we're hoping for a surprise late arrival?"
Crystal giggled and shrugged. "That'd be quite the birthday miracle! The stallion I have a bit of a crush on might be returning from overseas, but I think if that were going to happen he'd be here already." She looked over at Velvet across the room. "I'll keep hoping, though."
Painted patted her on the shoulder. "That's the spirit! Now, come on, Velvet told us that you're a devilish Timberwolf player." She grinned. "I have no idea what that means but I want to find out!" Her head turned toward the room and she called, "Timberwolf!"
"Where?!" Runic looked around and reached for his phials.
Velvet yelped and tackled him, though it was more like a leaping hug, as he didn't budge at all. They all laughed and gathered around the coffee table while the remainder of the cake was moved to the kitchen.
It was a tight fit for the group, so the stallions sat out to enjoy some stallionly chat. Red dominated the conversation with his gurgling and babbling, however, seeming to have very strong opinions about construction, Wonderbolt races, and how long mares took to get ready for parties.
"So," Crystal started, looking across the table at Velvet, "this game is growing on you, huh?"
Velvet smirked. "Only because I have a secret weapon now."
"Secret weapon?" Horsey asked.
Velvet merely chuckled, then burst into a full-on cackle. The other mares looked at each other in concern, save for Sunbeam, who hummed a little tune while looking at her dealt role card. Crystal had a feeling that mares in that family all hummed when they had something up their sleeve.
Sunbeam, it turned out, had the ultimate poker face: her sugary disposition paired with her terms of endearment made it nigh impossible to call her a liar. Raven did so once and was so burned by the look of hurt on Sunbeam's face that she believed even the most improbable of claims from the mare. That included Sunbeam saying she was a Clairvoyant when Raven herself had been that role.
Painted, on the other hoof, was immune to Sunbeam's charms. "Objection! You couldn't be the Scandalmonger, because I was the Burglar and stole Velvet's card. She was the Scandalmonger!"
Sunbeam pouted. "Are you calling me a liar?"
"If the horseshoe fits!" Painted grinned.
The last grains of sand fell; time was up. They voted and several hooves pointed at Sunbeam. She flipped her Timberwolf card over with a small huff. Laughs went around the table, interrupted by a knock on the door.
Crystal's heart stopped, but her hooves moved faster than ever. She flung the door open to see the mailpony standing outside.
"Hello!" he said, held out a hoofful of envelopes, and winked. "Is it somepony's birthday?"
Crystal nodded. Her magic brought over a small plate with a slice of cake on it. "Here you go!"
He licked his lips. "Boy, that looks good! Thanks, you have a happy birthday!"
Crystal sighed after she shut the door. All eyes were on her, so she lifted a smile. "Just the mailpony."
"Yes, and?" Velvet rolled her eyes. "What if there's a letter from you-know-who in there?!"
The thought drew a gasp from Crystal and she flipped through the mail. A bill, something from her parents, something from her grandparents, and—"There is!"
Velvet cleared her throat as she stood. "Small intermission, everypony! Resume games and chatter like normal!" She grabbed Crystal by the hoof and dragged her into the nearest bedroom, shutting the door behind them. She whirled on Crystal like a ravenous timberwolf.
Crystal already had the envelope opened and was reading the letter, her heart pounding, her lips moving to mouth the words.
Dear Crystal Wishes
The time is finally here for us to say goodbye to our gracious hosts and return home. I imagine that we’ll be hot on the trail of this letter. Fortunately for it, mail moves faster than royal entourages.
I’ve made a fool of myself here. I let my distrust of gryphons blind me and I acted rashly. I realize now that I need to reevaluate irrational judgements. Thankfully that did not jeopardize the lasting good that has been done by ponies with cooler heads.
Our mission has been a great success and I think much has been done to bring pony and gryphon together. Please know that I look forward to seeing you and the crowd at your earliest convenience.
If I’ve done my math right this letter should arrive precisely on your birthday. Velvet Step told me the date before I left and urged me to hurry home for what she had planned. Please accept my deepest apologies for not being there myself but know that you’ll be in my thoughts.
Happy Birthday, Crystal Wishes. I know you’ll have a wonderful party.
Your friend
Silent Knight
"Friend?" Crystal sighed and folded the letter. Her ears drooped low. "I'll be in his thoughts, but he's only a friend?" She sighed again. "Oh well. It looks like he won't make the party, Velvet."
Velvet kicked at the ground. "Shucks! And I had the perfect lunch planned, too!"
Crystal blinked. "The what?"
"Well, we have exactly enough plates for every pony here, plus two." Crystal stared blankly and Velvet continued, "I ordered some spaghetti with zucchini and tomato sauce from Mangiatoia to be delivered, enough for every pony here, plus three." Velvet waited, then sighed when Crystal just continued to stare. "That means there'd have been enough plates for Miley and Princess Luna, but not for Silent Knight. Forcing you and him to have to share and end up kissing from a single spaghetti noodle like in the film!"
Crystal made an 'o' shape with her mouth in realization and laughed. "I don't think that works in the real world, but I appreciate the effort." She looked at the letter, then set it aside. "Well, it says he'll be home soon. I hope he means it this time because all this 'friend' business is quite seriously killing me inside!"
Velvet put a reassuring hoof on her shoulder. "Don't worry. Come on, let's get back to the party, okay?"
Crystal smiled a little reluctantly and nodded. "Yeah, let's."
♡
The rays of the sun travelled slowly across the room, creeping toward where Crystal was on the floor. The stillness in the air was interrupted occasionally by her tapping the quill against the paper that held no words, only irritated, restless dots. She sighed and dropped the quill as she dropped her head.
"It's no use," she muttered. "Without knowing how he feels, I don't know how Stoutheart feels!"
The only reassurance she received was the blinds-filtered slat of sunlight reaching her hoof and warming it. It was also a reminder that it was nearing dinner time. She glanced at the door, frowning. Velvet had said she'd be home for dinner to help with finishing off the leftover spaghetti. Even after five days, they had barely made a dent in the surplus of servings.
"Liar," she grumbled, getting to her hooves. "I've been replaced by a foal." She stuck her nose in the air and started for the kitchen when three short knocks resounded from the front door.
Three short knocks. Her heart skipped three beats, or so she thought. In reality, that probably would have killed her, but such logical thinking escaped her right then.
Only one pony she knew knocked on the door that way.
Her stomach went from hungry to nervous excitement in an instant and she scrambled to the door. She paused to primp her mane and face with one hoof. She had to look her best when she opened the door, because standing there was a white-coated, blue-maned guard.
Her excitement lulled. Not only was the guard wearing the wrong color armor, but they were a she.
Crystal furrowed her brow and asked, "Winterspear? Why are y—" She gasped and one hoof raised to cover her mouth.
There was only reason why Winterspear would be visiting, her helmet tucked under one foreleg, sadness in her eyes.
Crystal's heart clenched, then sunk into the very pit of her stomach.
There. Now I can repost what my previous comment that I deleted was:
REDDDDDDDD. REEEEEDDDDDD!!! *collapses in tears of not-creepy adoration*
Wow, way to leave things on a total cliffhanger
6002322
I'm calling him Velvet Jr., just to annoy you. But yes, adorbs.
If I hadn't read Memoirs, this would have been even more of a cliffhanger. Still, I can't wait to see how Crystal is going to react to all of this.
Right In the feels.
Evil Runic confirm.
Also, it may be simply because I watched the episode recently, but I kinda noticed similarities between the last scene and the flashback scene from Arrow where Malcolm Merlyn gets the news that his wife has been killed. From happy, bouncy, and carefree to just "... No..."
Fun chapter as usual!
That was a nice birthday party :)
Now boarding.
6002440 Thanks so much for the comment! [edit] I'm really sorry, I deleted your comment because it shows you as offline and it had major spoilers in it and I know some readers don't read Memoirs. Please forgive me!
6002421
Take me with you.
I have bits for the trip. Many, many bits. Enough to buy a ticket and a comfort blanket.
6002487 Travel and lodgings are included in the price of the trip, it's a package.
Welcome aboard, in any case.
Ahhh ya cliffhangered all of us! *flails*
Does he have a license to carry those things? Weaponized bathbombs and slightly less-than-lethal mane care products. This guy must have been the inspiration for the 'Maneiac'. I can make you look so fabulous that you'll want to DIE!
Creme rinse with color and a casket...?
Or, Runic is/was an avid comic book reader and took his inspiration from that...? Anyway. My bet is that one had a strong influence on the other.
Wait a minute. Isn't Crystal supposed to be the romantic one? This sounds like it has Lovey Dovey's hoofprints on it. Where is she anyway?
...
Really, folks? Am I the only one that —
I —
Really???
...
I'll just leave this here, then, and hope it's actually working. Philistines.
6002557 nope, not working
(Not an actual) Spoiler Alert!
Winterspear: "I'm so sorry, Crystal, but Silent... His train... was... delayed."
Crystal: "No-! Wait, what? His train was just delayed? You suck so much, you know that?"
Winter spear: "Yup!"
6002557 That sounds an awful lot like a remix I've had on repeat lately...
It's not really a typo and you probably meant it the way you did it, but I'd say that it was late in the night. Meh, me and my nitpicking
Aaaand the title:
Aaaand new vocabulary added: finicky
6002459 It's fine. I understand. Good luck writing the next chapter.
6002657 I feel legitimately bad doing that, as it's the first time I've ever actually deleted a comment. I just kind of panicked after ten minutes... I value you taking the time to comment and deleting it is extremely rude in my opinion, so I am sincerely sorry.
6000153 Not arguing, but 3 out of 4 of my sister's kids were born 20 minutes after her water broke... Her first was quick too, and took her doctor by surprise, he almost missed the birth.
And as for losing baby-fat, isn't most of that done just by nursing?
6002670 If you feel bad about any future comment, but don't want to delete it, tell me and I can edit it. I understand your panic. I'm sorry about the spoiler. I have been told by my family I have a big mouth. I guess it transferred over with my comments.
6002692 It's okay, no need to apologize, I was slow in putting a "no spoilers please" in the author's note. ... I originally did ask for spoiler tags in my reply, but I got a little panicky given that this is a big chapter. I blame that on my (sadistic?) excitement to see reactions to what has happened and what is to come!
I'm just glad you're not (outwardly) mad!
6002691 Wow! That's pretty fast, as (according to the U.S. Department of Health) labor (which commonly begins afer the water breaking bit) as lasting between 12 to 22 hours on average.
As for the baby fat bit... if anyone knows of a way to quickly get rid of that, I bet they'd be rolling in dough in no time!
6002723 I'm not mad. If anything I'm laughing at the hilarity of the situation.
Cliffhanger? You unfeeling Bastard!
img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20140905070324/glee/images/c/cc/Himym_noooo.gif
6002727 Not wanting to turn this into a forum on labor and birthing, but yes, we recognize that she was unusual. My sister kept up her jogging as long as she could, and fast-walked after that, so she was fit. And she didn't mention anything until the pains got bad, so her "labor" may have been much longer.
Another (obviously female) friend of mine insists that her labor pain was easy to deal with as long as she was able to move, stretch, flex, and work with the contractions. Something you can't do when you are lying in a bed. She insists - along with many home-birther's and midwives - that the best way for the mother to give birth is to NOT lie down.
Hospitals have very good reasons for their methods and procedures. Some of them are even medically based. But the main reason they want mothers-to-be in their beds screaming in pain, is so that there is no chance of the mother falling and resulting in a HUGE lawsuit.
"I saw your changing invasion article in Mares Monthly." Um dunno if you noticed but it's changeling invasion. Really good chapter overall though
Hope the next chapter goes up quickly, cliffhangers can be troubling if they go on too long.
6002957 The next chapter will go up according to my normal update schedule (Tues & Thurs).
OH GOD! the boot just dropped! Dat cliffhanger though! The birth and birthday was very touching scenes, Ive read the memoirs but I wont give spoilers. I laughed at the bit with Runic through and everyone thinking hes gonna blow up the place.. for a second I thought he was too..
Right, no spoilers, got it. *ahem*
And so it was that Crystal Wishes was conscripted into the Mega-Giant-Dragon Fighting Squad! By the power of her readership, Crystal Wishes will strike love into the hearts of drakes everywhere, and make all the lady-dragons swoon for- wait hold on. I'm typing from the wrong comment box...
Right, so, love the emotional roller coaster of a chapter. I'll go pick up a ticket for the next ride!
And here's the punch in the gut... Poor Crystal. And it's only made worse by the happy cuteness high I was enjoying at seeing Red Velvet being adorable. And Velvet Step being a big sister of awesomeness. Now, I'll stop my comment now before I reveal any spoilers, but suffice to say, I'm awaiting Tuesday in both anticipation and dread.
Untitled
As they return from over the sea,
There is only one I wish to see
He who promised to return to me
Only once I see him again will I be free
From worry and doubt that plagues my mind
Did he go on and leave me behind?
A truth to this visit I must find
Of the one I love, and hope loves in kind
What happened to my silent knight?
He who shines with radiance bright
He who promised to come back alright
What has happened to my Silent Knight?
And this is the moment I have been waiting on. So much lost time in the other story, now we get to fill in the blanks... and I'm a romantic son of a bitch so this is probably gonna overload my feels.
I READ MEMOIRS AND I'M STILL DYING.
And Reeeeeeddddd!!!!!!!
6004112 Back off and get your own Red. DDDD:<
6002691 I'm going to chime in for this outside of the response round-up to keep that from getting even longer than it usually is. Of course, this is really for anyone's interest and isn't relevant to the story, so feel free to ignore this, y'all.
From all of the experiences of which I've been told, as well as articles I've read, a woman normally won't go into labor until several hours once the first stage begins. Granted, no person is the same (obviously, in your sister's case!) and there are a lot of factors that go into things, biological and lifestyle-wise. Some women go into labor before their water breaks! This study has some more specific numbers on the mean lengths of the first and second stages.
As for the baby fat, that's a bit of a double-edged situation. Yes, a woman burns calories while breastfeeding, but as far as I know, that also is based on the body's assumption that she's intaking calories to remain healthy and be ... healthily productive, let's say. She wants to be eating so she's getting nutrients to pass on. So theoretically, she's only burning what she's eating. Again, biological and lifestyle factors play in, yadda yadda...
However, a fair amount of women struggle to lose the weight they gained during pregnancy. In Sunbeam's case, she was lackadaisical with losing the weight she gained from Velvet, so she's particularly determined to get herself back into shape.
6002322 Now I can finally commission something of him! I didn't want to risk doing it too soon and spoiling the surprise!
6002360 As long as you don't call Velvet "Velvet Sr." she'll allow it... Maybe "Velvet Prime"? "Alpha Velvet"? "Princess Velvet the First"?
6002361 Yes, it does have a different feel for Memoirs readers, but luckily for me we are wandering into territory that Memoirs couldn't cover, so I get to still have surprises!
6002362
6002371 I've not seen that but that does absolutely sound like a scene that would punch a character right in the gut. I watch a lot of Bollywood movies, and they tend to do that, especially right before a wedding. Happy song, happy dancing, happy bride-to-be, and then... "The groom and his family got in a car crash and are all dead."
6002379 It was the last thing I wrote, because I wasn't sure how I wanted to handle her birthday. I'm glad it turned out well!
6002421 To quote Velvet in this chapter... "Choo-choo!"
6002487 Hugs all around!
6002528 You bet I did!
6002535 Where is Lovey? ... Who knows ... Lovey is anywhere, everywhere, nowhere! She's flighty, often distracted, and rarely makes casual luncheons on time if at all. She's probably halfway across Equestria chasing a love line in danger by now...
6002607 Gosh darnit, well, that's it, show's over folks. I guess I won't post the next chapter because you just summed up ~10,000 in one comment. Thanks a lot.
6002639 That is indeed the titular song! I've been listening to it for a few weeks preparing for this scene, and what is to come. And, I love the new vocabulary updates, though now I feel like I'll be sad if I have a chapter where there isn't a new vocabulary for you.
6002738 Oh, I have feelings. They're feelings of sadistic joy!
6002786 We'll find out on Tuesday! Then you'll know what they've been talking about...
6003135 Thank you! I actually got a little emotional (in a good way) writing the first scene. I've been looking forward to introducing Red and I really wanted to capture the feeling just right for a couple reasons... the obvious being, well, the calm-sweet.
6003343 I have no idea what comment box you meant to put that into but I enjoyed it! Don't worry, all this coaster costs is patience!
6003533 Yes, the chapter was, on the whole, a light-hearted and happy chapter, with Red's birth day and Crystal's birthday... but, alas, we have a plot to move along! And, aww, I love the poem. It's perfect!
6004030 It will definitely be interesting to provide some insight to what happened!
6004112 Reeddd!! I love imagining the stallions trying to talk and him gurgling over them. "So, them Wonderbolts this season, they—" "Aughhgblblrlerr!" "... Exactly."
As always, thank you all for commenting! I look forward to seeing y'all again on Tuesday with the next chapter!
6004328 I'd link it, but the context wouldn't make all that much sense. Basically, it's showing how Malcolm, a loving father and husband, goes crazy after his wife's murder and becomes the Dark Archer (Green Arrow's arch nemesis). It, along with another scene from season 1, were quite telling on just how far gone he was.
As for Bollywood, I've not seen much in the way of that type of filmography. I'm a very casual moviegoer. I maybe see one or two a year in theaters.
6004328 Dun dun dun!
6004358 ... Forget everything I had planned! Crystal is going to become... The Pink Quill!
Bollywood movies can be very hit or miss. It's one of those things that you should probably ask someone for a recommendation, because, I mean, well, like any culture's movies, there are great ones, and there are terrible ones, and there are "Oh god why, why, why did someone think this was a good idea."
I won't link it so no one can blame me because they have to willingly look it up themselves, but Tees Maar Khan's opening is, to date, the weirdest I've ever seen. (The movie wasn't that great, either, though it does have a few addictive songs.)
... But, anyway, to stay relatively on point, I draw some inspiration from Bollywood movies.
6004397 Hehe, there's one particular scene I love. Won't link it here so as not to distract from the actual fic, but it gave me inspiration for a fic where Shining Armor kinda became like Malcolm. Of course, the fact that John Barrowman plays him in Arrow is just too perfect.
Hmm, noted as far as Bollywood films. And I find it interesting to see where people draw their inspiration from in terms of subject matter and how they write characters. Always brings up some interesting beginnings and ideas.
THE FEELS ARE HERE!!!! The emotion has BEGUN!! (That cliffhanger Crystal you sly little rascal, you did it on purpose )
6004499 What? Oh, no, I don't plan anything. I didn't have that end scene written like, several days ago...
6004510 How could you do you this??!!!!
6004328
I'm not a big hugger, but I totally would enjoy a hug from you, just sayin'
IGN: 11/10 would hug again
6004648
My plan is slowly coming to fruition! Soon, I shall hug ALL the readers! I have fooled you into thinking I am huggable with my carefully constructed persona... of da MAGICKS!
6004675 Oh no, must... resist...!
Noooo!!! The huggles are too powerful, I must succumb! NOOOOOooooooooohnnnnnnggg!!!!
6004397
... "The Pink Quill"? Really? I mean, I get that it's a play on the Green Arrow, but at the very least, she could settle on something more appropriate and also without two hard consonants right next to each other that is much easier to say. Something like "the Heartbreaker". Or "the Paramour" (I'm rather fond of this one myself).
Or "the Tease".
Or "the Fling".
Or "All Amity Jane".
Or just "Coquette" (I'm rather fond of this one, too).
Look, I have unlimited resources, thanks to the Internet. I'm like the Energizer Bunny; I'll keep going and going and going and go — you get the idea.
Meanwhile, I imagine that, much like the doctor of a college track team, your patience are running thin.
chances are most of your readers also read the other story so is it really considered spoilers?