> Family Jump Start.
>  by Russell Dickson
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> What Octavia and Vinyl were not Expecting.
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vinyl Scratch, again, was screaming her lungs out. It seemed that every time something didn't go Vinyl's way, she started screaming and shouting and making a ruckus. At this instance, she was making something simple seem more dramatic than it was.
"We have to go to ER, now!" Screamed Vinyl Scratch, a pleading but furious look in her eyes.
Octavia Melody simply tutted, "Vinyl, it's just a little abdominal pain. And a slight one at that. More than likely, it is the flu."

The white unicorn, whose eyes were now starting to well up, stared Octavia in the eyes. "Octy! You've been driving the porcelain bus for over three hours! I almost lost you, to fault of my own stupidity! I cannot even begin to think how I'd react if that were to happen again..." Vinyl Scratch softly started sobbing, as she held Octavia's mane up out of the toilet water.

The Dark Gray earth pony had to admit that she'd been feeling sick for around three days now. Maybe, just maybe, it was finally time to visit a doctor. In fact, Octavia had been wondering about to see doctor for some time now. She'd missed her most recent estrous cycle, and she'd started to have these somewhat strange cravings. The last time Octavia had gone out to eat with Vinyl Scratch, she'd felt like eating foods that she usually wouldn't eat. She even caught herself peering over the 'Unicorn Only' section of the meal selection menu. For some weird reason, Octavia ordered the Unicorn delicacy 'Larvae Mush'.*

The thought of food, even the stuff that she liked, once more made Octavia feel sick to the stomach. After lifting her head, once more, out from the toilet, Octavia gave in.
"Okay, Vinyl. Going to the ER sounds like an appealing idea after all."
-----
One long, seemingly unbearable hour later, Octavia was waiting in the ER reception area. She laid across two chairs, clutching her abdomen with her hooves, groaning as Vinyl Scratch sat next to her, holding Octavia's hoof with her own. Also in the reception area, were two couples.

One, made up of two mares, who were talking to a doctor, whom had a white mane with black streaks and with a maroon coat. Though he was wearing a white doctors coat, his cutie mark was printed onto the flank section of the coat, which comprised of two hearts and a cross. It seemed that they were talking to him about one of the mare's hooves, who had tear streaks going down her yellow cheeks. The hoof seemed to be twisted in the wrong direction, and Vinyl found it hard to tear her eyes away.
The other couple, who were in the back corner of the reception, was a stallion accompanying his marefriend, who had blood running from her nose, seemingly broken. Her coltfriend seemed sympathetic, but something gave Vinyl Scratch the feeling that it wasn't so much an accident as it was domestic violence.

Vinyl's hoof gripped Ocatavia's own a tad bit harder, and Octavia seemed to notice.
"Vinyl, love. There is no need to panic so much for me. I'll be fine. As I said... It's only... Abdominal pain..." Octavia found it hard to get the last of the sentence out as pain gripped her stomach again, causing her to curl a little.
A heavy lump formed inside the white mare's throat.
"Octy... My dad left me and Mom when I was only just a little filly. Then Mom eventually died of cancer, right after I gained my cutie mark. You are the only thing that I love in this world. I'm not ready to let go. I just can't..." Vinyl Scratch, again, began to softly sob to herself.
"He'he, well, we'll wait for the doctor's verdict before you go planning my funeral arrangements," Octavia's weak joke actually ended up bringing a light smile to Vinyl's face
.
Vinyl's attention was now gained by a small mare, who had a whiter-than-white coat, and completed with a bright red mane.
"Octavia Melody and Vinyl Scratch?" Half-shouted the white mare, who now spotted Vinyl's waving hoof.
"Does she need a stretcher?" Asked the doctor.
"Please, if you could..." Answered Vinyl Scratch, her voice now very quiet. Yet the white mare seemed to hear.
"Okay, I'll get you one. Stoneheart! Get us a stretcher, stat!"

After about three minutes, Octavia was in a small but bright ER room. She was hauled from the stretcher, and onto the awaiting bed. Octavia's stomach now felt like it was turning inside out, and as Octavia hung her head over the edge of the bed to vomit, the white mare's quick reflexes allowed her to grab a bucket catch most of the sick.
"Sorry about the rush, but we don't mess around in ER. Now, my name is Doctor Midwife. And yes, that is what my own midwife said when I was born. 'Behold, I give you your child, Midwife!'" She sighed, "But, I also became a Doctor...".
"So, y-you're both!?" Vinyl stammered.
"Well, I am the family doctor, and a pediatrician." Explained Midwife.
Vinyl looked nervously around, now feeling a touch uncomfortable.
"Okay, so what seems to be the problem?" Asked Midwife, walking up next to the bed Octavia lay on.
Octavia explained, "Well, I've been having these terrible abdominal pains for about three days now, and it's driving me absolutely insane. So, Vinyl suggested that I come to ER and have it checked."
"Hmm, okay then. I'll just take you over to the X-ray room, and grab a couple shots of you're stomach." replied Midwife, already pushing the stretcher next to Octavia.

A few seconds later, Octavia and Midwife were in the room, the big X-ray machine looming over Octavia's midsection.
"Okay, Ocatavinia, I'm going to need to spread your limbs out and keep absolutely still. All good?"
"Yep, okay. But it's Octavia, not Octaviana." Replied Octavia kindly.
"Oh, sorry. Okay, starting X-ray procedure now..." Said Midwife, as she pressed a button that made the X-ray start flashing.
After six more shots, Octavia was instructed to get off the bench.
"Okay, if you could go outside and wait with Vinyl while I get the X-ray's, that would be wonderful." Midwife grinned, as she pressed a button that unlatched a bolt from the door.
Octavia walked out slowly, her stomach now not so sore.

"So, how'd it go?" Asked Vinyl, enthusiasm, worry and anxiety all bunched up into the one single question.
"I don't know. Midwife said she had to collect the X-ray's."
As if right on cue, Midwife walked out with the seven X-ray's in her mouth. She made a jerking motion with her head that seemed to say 'Follow me'. After they turned three corners, and Celestia-knows doorways, (honestly, who was counting?), they arrived at a room with the label 'Ultra-sound' above the door. As they entered, Midwife put the X-ray's on a bench, and asked Octavia to lay on the bed that was placed near an array of equipment.

"Okay, so we now know that nothing is damaged. Your bones are fine, there aren't any tumors and cysts, but I did find something... interesting." Midwife lifted one X-ray and placed it on a light box mounted on the wall.
"Now, see this?", Midwife pointed her hoof towards a sort-of bright smudge int he center of Octavia's abdomen. "This defines that there is a large mass of living tissue in your abdominal area. I argued to myself whether it could be a large cyst, or maybe even a large tumor, but that is not likely, seeing how it's growing slower than anything like that."
"So, what is it?" Asked Vinyl Scratch, who now seemed a little relieved.
"That's why we're here to find out," said Midwife as she put some sort of gel-like substance over a slightly vibrating tool.
"And where do you think that is going...?" Asked Octavia, now kind of nervous.
Midwife smile and explained. "This thing, I am going to place and rub over your stomach. It should reveal what that living tissue is..."
Octavia felt a massive relief, as the medical lubricant gel was rubbed over her belly. It was cold, but not overly cold. She shut her eyes as the Midwife continued the action, until finally she pulled it away and went to the other side of the room to a small monitor.
Midwife's expression turned to one of concern, "Octavia, Vinyl. May I ask if you have been having unprotected intercourse, and if so, for how long...?"
Octavia blushed, while Vinyl's eyes seemed to instantly become wide, "Uh... He'he, for about two years now. Why, is there a problem?"
"Well, has your partner ever warned you about the dangers of horn-hunting?"
"That's a thing...?" Exclaimed Octavia.
"We're lesbians. How the freaking hell do I tell a lesbian, let alone Octavia, that Unicorns can go both ways!?" Shouted Vinyl Scratch, who now had tears streaming down her cheeks.
A confused Octavia asked, "You mean,you like, being with Stallions as well as Mares? Bisexual?"
A sniveling Vinyl confessed, "No. Unicorns are dickheads. Not as in the insult. We are literally Dick-heads. Even Unicorn mares can get other mares pregnant. Whether they are unicorns mares, or form one of the other tribes. That why, being gay in the unicorn tribe is a pretty common thing. We have a total mix-up of same gender relationships."

"Vinyl Scratch..." Octavia warned, "What have you done to me...?"
Octavia, seemingly stunned, peered in between Vinyl's hind legs. Nope, nothing dangling there.
Midwife spoke up, "Nothing dangerous. You're six weeks pregnant. Congratulations!"
Octavia's sweet, loving eyes suddenly went wild. But, her voice was cold as she asked, "Explain, please."
"Very well," Midwife replied. "The horn of a unicorn, whether male or female, can impregnate a female mare. Whether Unicorn, Earth, or Pegasus . You see, this happens when the magic inside the horn can morph the egg of a mare into a replica sperm of a male. The replica sperm moves up the ovaries via a transport cell. This replica sperm cell then ejaculates out the top of the horn. In this case, Vinyl body made one of her eggs into a sperm, then she ejaculated inside your uterus."

Vinyl looked pleadingly at Octavia, whose eyes now seemed to be filled with fire.
"Octy, you asked me to. I mean, you said that it would be perfect to have something hard up inside of you, and you asked me to shove my horn in there..." Vinyl started to break down into a streak of sobs.
Octavia eyes went wild.  But, her voice was very cold as she asked.  "Explain, please. Why did you not tell me that this was possible!?" Shouted Octavia, her voice filled with hatred.
"We're are s-supposed to o-only use the horn on o-other U-Unicorns..." Vinyl Scratch regained control of herself.
"Being an Earth Pony, you're not in the club, so to speak."
Midwife took on a professional tone of voice.  "If this an unwanted pregnancy, we could end it and...."
"Abortion!"  Octavia's attention snapped back to Doctor Midwife.  "You can get that thought out of your head right now."
Vinyl became elated.  "We are keeping it?"
"My foal is not a stray animal that is take in off the streets, Vinyl.  My foal is not a pet.  I will not have my foal referred to, in that tone of voice, as an 'it'."
Vinyl reverted back to screaming.  "It is my foal too!  I want to love it, and protect it. I want it to have all the things I never got from my parents. You want to know something, I want it in my belly.  I mean you get to feel it grow up and move.  But, I got to be the guy in this, and I hate guys.  Stallion are all ---"
Vinyl stop.  She starting thinking about what she was about to say.  In almost a whisper, Vinyl ran down her list of what she hated about stallions.  "Stallions are all fake acting, self centered, loud, show off ponies.  With no real skills or plans.  I am a fuck up stallion."  Sobbing Vinyl ran out of the room.
Doctor Midwife let out a deep breath.  "Now I guess you are in control now?"
"Does this look like I am in control?"  Asked Octavia.
Midwife look over her clipboard.  "I am not a family psychiatrists.  However, I do know that school teach pony sexual education.  Even if the part about unicorn horns being use as penis is sort of keep on the down low.  I sure they did tell you that a unicorn horn can spread a number of sexually transmitted diseases, and they you should always use a condom."
Octavia looked sheepish.  "I do recall those lectures.  I honestly did not know you could get pregnant, but I understand what you are saying about being in control."  Octavia then started to sob. "I just use our foal as an emotional weapon against my own mate."

Vinyl was praying.  When screaming did not work, Vinyl always ran to a church and started to pray.  Vinyl was never sure if Luna or Celestia even head prayers, but it was all she had to work with.
Vinyl was in the hospital chapel, praying.  When she hear a soft voice coming up form behind her.  "I am sorry."
Vinyl turn to see Octavia standing beside her. "That was a horrible thing I said to you back in the examining room.  Can you forgive me?"
Confused, scared, and hurt, Vinyl could only look at Octavia.  Then the words came out.  "I love you."
Octavia hug Vinyl, saying  "And I love you so much."  The two of them sob into each other coats.  
Then Octavia said.  "No more alcohol."
"I have not had a drop in six months."  Said Vinyl.  Fearing that Octavia was about to say she was unfit to be around a colt.
Smiling, Octavia said. "Not you.  Me!  I have to give up wine.  Because by this time next year, I want us to have a health, happy little colt."
Vinyl had tears of joy streaming down her face.  "Whatever you want,Octy."
"No."  Said Octavia.  "What ever the foal needs.  This is no longer about you or me, or even us.  We have to take responsibility for this life that we made.  We have to live and love for our child now."
Octavia then wiped away some of Vinyl tears.  Then Octavia added. "Vinyl, I want to see a family therapist.  I think we need help."
"Okay."  Said Vinyl.

The two mares sat in the small chapel holding each other and praying.
Giving thinks for the new life that was growing inside Octavia, and praying they would be strong for the big changes to come.

Fin 


*"A Twilight Dinner Date" by Fimbulvinter