The Olden World

by Czar_Yoshi

Loneliness' Reward

"...Mom?" Hayseed's smile lessened. "You don't look happy."

White Chocolate snapped out of her reverie, looking aside at the filly. "Could you go check on the tea, dear? I'd like to talk with Maple on my own for a minute."

"Sure thing, Mom." Nodding respectfully, Hayseed retreated from the bedroom, edging the door quietly closed behind her.

"...So." White Chocolate closed her eyes as the door clicked shut, ears pointing straight and true. "You knew my old husband? And he's in the Stone District, you said? I see..."

Maple gulped and shook her head. "N-No. I mean, we did, but... we're not from Ironridge. We knew him from somewhere else, but we're not allowed-"

"Wait!" White Chocolate cut her off. "Don't... There's no need to tell me."

For a second, the room was silent, save for the sounds of Starlight rubbing a white towel against her face and a rocking chair creaking beneath White Chocolate's weight. Eventually, Starlight looked up and mumbled, "Why not?"

"What did he say about me?" White Chocolate whispered, leaning forward earnestly.

Maple folded her ears. "I don't really remember. We just... When I mentioned that I was going to Ironridge, he gave me an address, and asked if I could go there and see if whoever was there was doing alright, if it wasn't inconvenient. He never even mentioned your name, or how many of you there would be, or anything."

White Chocolate hung her head, sighing slowly. "Well. I suppose that's more than I could have expected..." She looked up. "I don't know who you are, or yet if I'm glad you came, but thank you anyway. It must have been hard, traveling all the way from the skyport to find me in a city like this."

"Why don't you want to know where he is?" Starlight repeated, tilting her head. "Do you not miss him?"

"Because he left," White Chocolate said. "After the airships came, Faron lost his job as an engine die maintenance worker. He used to make sure the equipment used to produce the shells of manaengines was in top shape... and they didn't need him anymore. It saddened him greatly. I tried my best to comfort him, but it wasn't enough. He began leaving the house for hours at a time, doing nothing but taking long, long walks around the Earth District to think. One day, he didn't return. I feared something had happened to him; that perhaps he had crossed paths with the Spirit or the Defense Force. I grew so worried, I went to Sosa to ask for help... and they discovered a record that he had bought an airship ticket in the Sky District. He just left, without even saying goodbye... because Ironridge wasn't worth staying in anymore. Because I wasn't enough. And if I wasn't good enough then, how could I be now?"

Maple's mouth hung open. "...I'm sorry," she whispered.

"That's stupid," Starlight pouted, frowning. "Why should it matter whether you're good or not? And who gets to decide in the first place? Things like this are just bad luck, and they shouldn't happen at all!"

White Chocolate smiled sadly. "He decided when he left, Starlight."

"So!?" Starlight stomped a hoof. "He's probably wrong! Maple! When we get home, we need to give him a piece of our minds!"

"Starlight..." Maple wrapped a hoof around her shoulder, fur still spiky from being dried. "You remember why we can't do that, right? Why it wouldn't do him any good to want to come back?"

"But..." Starlight's face fell. "We could talk to... to..."

"It doesn't matter," White Chocolate consoled from her rocker, blue bathrobe draped over her shoulders. "Like I said, he left. I wasn't worth staying for, and that was when I was there to love and support him. How could I be worth coming back for now?"

"Okay, hold on." Maple's brow furrowed. "He didn't think you were worth staying for. I've had more than enough of my fill of ponies beating themselves up lately, thank you very much. I know what it feels like, and it isn't a useful thing to think, so please don't?"

White Chocolate kept smiling, that same wistful look in her visible eye. "How long have you known Faron? How long ago did he arrive where you were?"

"...About two years," Maple hesitantly said. "Why? When did he leave?"

Instead of answering, White Chocolate shuffled, getting her hooves under her and propping herself upright. Carefully, she unbound and shrugged off her robe, sitting as tall as she could... and Maple instantly realized that what she had initially ignored as pegasus wings were the sides of the mare's belly, swollen and gravid with foal.

"See?" White Chocolate said, stretching uncomfortably and putting both forehooves on her womb for emphasis. "What kind of loyal wife does this? I haven't just stayed the same mare he left. I've... I've been so lonely, lonelier than I was loyal..."

"Huh?" Starlight folded her ears.

Wordlessly, Maple stood up, walking until she was two steps away from the chair where White Chocolate sat. Ignoring the mare's display, she looked her straight in the eye, and said, "My best friend has three beautiful foals, all from different fathers, and I know for a fact Faron has a child where he is now, who's already born. It doesn't matter what you have or haven't done; everypony makes mistakes. That has no bearing on whether or not you can feel good about yourself."

"He has, has he?" White Chocolate stared for a moment, before partially fixing her robe, pulling it over her back without closing the front. "Heh. I guess I held on longer than him, after all..."

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door, and Maple retreated back to Starlight. It swung open, and Hayseed trotted through, a tray of teaware balanced carefully on her back. "Here you go, Mom!" she proclaimed, happily setting it on a small table next to White Chocolate's chair. "You never said what you wanted, so this one is peppermint, this one is banana cinnamon, and this one is mixed berry!"

"Thank you, dear." Calmly, White Chocolate patted her on the head, ruffling the filly's braided mane. "Is everyone else in bed?"

"Hee... Yeah." Hayseed leaned forward, nuzzling her mother's rounded belly with a cheek. "Were you showing them my new sibling?" She looked up at Maple and Starlight with shining, purple eyes. "Mom's gonna have another foal. She hasn't been to a unicorn doctor to see if it's a filly or a colt, but says this time I can help name them. I haven't decided what, though."

White Chocolate stood up, carefully climbing down from her chair. "I'm going to go tuck Hayseed in," she said, nodding to Maple and Starlight. "I'll be right back."

She stumped out with a heavy gait, not bothering to close the door behind her, and in a matter of seconds Maple and Starlight were alone.

"...Maple?" Starlight blinked, pupils dilated. "We're going to do something, right?"

Maple allowed her strong face to crack, sitting in silence for a minute. Eventually, she leaned over, wrapping Starlight in both forelegs and rocking back and forth. "I don't know," she murmured, eyes closed. "I don't know what we can do, yet... but yes. We're going to do something, Starlight. We have enough friends in this city that we're not in danger any more. We don't have to leave immediately... We're going to find something we can do."

Comments

[Boopers]

Silly Maple, you've got one job, how could you possibly forget?

[Carnelian-Quasar]

HE SAID HE WAS SORRY
that was the entire task! aghhfg i understand it's been a long few days but hdnfksl

[blankity-blank]

I don’t know how I just noticed the theme of abandonment going on in this story. I guess it works as mirror to what happened to Starlight.

[sploopy slooder]

jesus christ faron is a piece of shit. he just replaced howe on the top of my "i would like this character dead please" list. but at least he's SORRY, right?