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Trigger Warning: Abusive Parental Behavior, Archaic Mentality and Gender Roles(There’ll be a lot of this in the Re-Verse, for future warning)

Previous: Love Across Lines

Next: Journey Beginning

“Petunia!”

The young white filly watched as her mother, a pretty lavender unicorn, flinched above her. Her expression, which had just been filled with love and adoration for her daughter, darkened. Her mother turned to the door of their one room cabin, her hooves clicking on the wooden floor. Her horn glowed, and the filly’s gold eyes jumped to the sparkling magic. It always caught her attention, it was so pretty. Especially her mother’s. The doorknob lit up lavender and swung open with no further preamble.

Celeste flinched herself, shuffling towards the end of the bed with her dolls. Away from the furious glower of her grandmother. The very pale pink mare -her coat nearly white- stood glaring in the doorway. Her blue eyes jumping from Petunia’s stony expression to the young white filly trying to make herself smaller, then back.

Her name was Pastel Sweet, a misnomer if there ever was one. Nothing good came from this mare.

“Why are you hiding yourself away in here?” The older unicorn snapped, lifting her nose.

Petunia's chin dropped, submissive. "Mother, I already told you. I won't leave Celeste alone in here for days. If we can't go out together, I won't go out at all."

Celeste let out a tiny sigh, remembering the secretive day trip the two had made just yesterday. Her young mind fluttered happily back to the sunshine, the cold creek, the butterflies and birds and flowers. She smiled to herself, but kept her mouth shut.

Petunia was strict about this. No one, especially not her Grandmother, must know of these visits. In fact, no one must know of Celeste's presence at all. This fact was the strictest rule, made stricter by Pastel Sweet.

"Petunia!" Both girls flinched, but Petunia's jaw set and her eyes hardened.

"You will not spend your days rotting in this tiny room. The town will start to talk, wonder why you're hiding away. They forgave the first two years, believing you to be sick with sadness after your-" A pause, punctuated by a disdainful glare at the cowering Pegasus filly. "Unfortunate stillbirth."

Petunia's glower sharpened, her body moving instinctively between her child and her mother. If Pastel Sweet had her way, Celeste would've been abandoned on a bluff and left to the elements. Before her pregnancy, Petunia's relationship with her mother had always been rocky. Pastel Sweet had always seen her daughter as a flighty, silly little chit. Off daydreaming and smelling the flowers, instead of helping around the town and making connections and meeting stallions. Making flower crowns instead of getting married.

Then Petunia fell pregnant. While unwed, to a stranger stallion that she refused to identify. Pastel Sweet had sent her daughter away, cast her to this tiny corner of the wooded outskirts. Set her up in a small cabin, pulled away the lavish luxuries of her previous life. And told her to either lose the baby, or not return.

So she had chosen to not return. She was happy here, with her daughter. When Petunia was ten months along, her silence had been broken. Pastel Sweet had moved in, determined to force Petunia's hand. Her daughter would never be allowed to keep her bastard child. And Petunia knew her motives. Either Petunia gave up the child, or she married the stallion that got her pregnant. Truth was, she'd have happily married Crimson Rush. He was the love of her life. A dashing red Pegasus with a strong heart and gene spirit. In a heartbeat, she would've married him.

If it was allowed. But it wasn't.

Eventually Petunia's pregnancy was known to the town, and rumors spread. The exact thing that Pastel Sweet had worked hard to prevent. It had infuriated the mare, and she'd returned yelling and screeching, telling Petunia this was "exactly why you're getting rid of that bastard child as soon as it's born!"

Petunia wasn't sure what divine power to thank when she went into labor after her mother had left on a three week trip to Canterlot. A trip of networking, rubbing elbows, and trying to find a man, any man, that would marry her sullied daughter. But Petunia was so desperately grateful to go into labor early.

The birth of a miracle was witnessed in this tiny cabin. The first Magic-Blessed Pegasus.

When Pastel Sweet had returned, she'd been shocked right off her hooves. A fainting spell that Petunia let her wallow in while she doted on her precious daughter. A pure white foal. A sin that would've been forgiven in its entirety. A Magic-Blessed filly, a tiny miracle born away from the royal family. A free token to a life of riches, royalty, and recognition.

Except she was born a Pegasus, not a Unicorn. Pastel Sweet's greedy joy turned sour in her stomach as soon as she'd seen those downy white wings. All her plans had fallen apart. She'd never incur the wrath of the divine powers that blessed this child by abandoning the newborn for death. Nor could she ever force an adoption. Not with a baby so unique, recognizable, and miraculous.

So a new rumor started. The mare Petunia, who fell pregnant out of wedlock, had had a stillbirth. She was staying in her hidden cabin, away from prying eyes, because she was suffering from severe sadness. A sickness of the mind that many mares knew well, especially around the birth or loss of a child. For the first two years of Celeste's life, they'd been left mostly alone. But now Pastel Sweet had returned, ready to force Petunia to leave her child behind. To start a real family. To leave Celeste as a secret after thought.

Petunia stamped a hoof, anger rising in her. All her mother cared about was image and reputation. She couldn't look past her own ego to see the miracle before her.

"I don't care, Mother!" She shouted, startling both filly and elder.

Celeste cowered further into the safety of her toys, staring over her shoulder. She'd never heard her mother yell, and by her expression, this was only the beginning.

Pastel Sweet sucked in a hissed breath, her blue eyes burning. "How.. dare you!"

"How dare I?" Petunia interrupted before the old mare could start. "How dare I!? I was blessed with a miracle and all you can think about is yourself! I refuse to hide away any longer. Celeste is three years old. She should be out, meeting kids her own age, having fun and developing! Not trapped inside this stupid dark cabin, with only her Mother as company. She deserves better! I deserve better!"

The grandmother puffed up, lifting her chin so high she could look down on the mountains themselves. "I am saving your reputation, Petunia! Do you know what folks are saying? They're calling you a spinster already! You'll never find a man to marry you. Especially if he found out you fell into bed with a *Pegasus*!" She hissed the word like it was a filthy swear, anger rattling out of her.

Petunia's ears pinned back."I 'fell into bed' with a stallion who loves me! Who loves our daughter! He loves us unconditionally! And if he could marry me, he would! And I would marry him. We could be happy!" She stepped forward, forcing her mother out of the doorway. "We wouldn't have to worry about rumors and reputation. Wouldn't have to fret over stupid societal boundaries that aren't even laws! Nothing I have done was illegal, just a faux pas. A faux pas I, frankly, couldn't give less bits about! I fell in love with a wonderful man and we had a gorgeous Magic-Blessed daughter. A walking miracle. It's not my fault you can't appreciate that!"

"If you love him so much, why don't you leave with him!?" Pastel Sweet stumbled backwards into the grass, surprised by the gall of her daughter. Never before has Petunia stood up to her, not like this.

"Maybe we will!"

Celeste shivered, her wings lifted to shield her from the yelling that had now moved outside. Leaving the frightened girl inside, watching the argument from over her shoulder.

This was her fault, wasn't it? She'd done something. Something that got her Mother in trouble. Her tiny body curled lower, her thoughts mixing with the yelling.

The yelling that abruptly went silent. Her head shot up. But before she could call for Petunia, her Mother returned and closed the door behind her with a slam. Celeste flinched. The sight had warmth and love returning to Petunia's soft eyes. The mare pulled her daughter close and cradled her, kissing her bare forehead and whispering soft words to her.

"My little darling." She cooed, stroking her child's soft wings. "We're leaving tonight. Make sure to get all your dolls, okay? We're going to live with her Father from now on."

A few more soft kisses and nose rubs, until Celeste's shaking had ceased and the little filly was giggling under the undiluted love and attention.

As Petunia settled her daughter in for an early bedtime in preparation for their night flight, she soothed her child with a soft lullaby. As Celeste's eyes fluttered shut and she yawned wide and round, the mare smiled.

"I'll always protect you. I love you, my darling."

————

I enjoy exploring topics like this. Especially since they’re thoughts still carried over into modern day that, honestly, shouldn’t in my opinion. Also, in my experience, they’re fairly hypocritical views. Pastel Sweet is a single mother as well, and while she was wed and her husband died, she’s now a widow. Which had its own negative connotations in the time as well. Thankfully, this is the first and last time we’ll hear of her

Description

Trigger Warning: Abusive Parental Behavior, Archaic Mentality and Gender Roles(There’ll be a lot of this in the Re-Verse, for future warning)

Previous: Love Across Lines

Next: Journey Beginning

“Petunia!”

The young white filly watched as her mother, a pretty lavender unicorn, flinched above her. Her expression, which had just been filled with love and adoration for her daughter, darkened. Her mother turned to the door of their one room cabin, her hooves clicking on the wooden floor. Her horn glowed, and the filly’s gold eyes jumped to the sparkling magic. It always caught her attention, it was so pretty. Especially her mother’s. The doorknob lit up lavender and swung open with no further preamble.

Celeste flinched herself, shuffling towards the end of the bed with her dolls. Away from the furious glower of her grandmother. The very pale pink mare -her coat nearly white- stood glaring in the doorway. Her blue eyes jumping from Petunia’s stony expression to the young white filly trying to make herself smaller, then back.

Her name was Pastel Sweet, a misnomer if there ever was one. Nothing good came from this mare.

“Why are you hiding yourself away in here?” The older unicorn snapped, lifting her nose.

Petunia's chin dropped, submissive. "Mother, I already told you. I won't leave Celeste alone in here for days. If we can't go out together, I won't go out at all."

Celeste let out a tiny sigh, remembering the secretive day trip the two had made just yesterday. Her young mind fluttered happily back to the sunshine, the cold creek, the butterflies and birds and flowers. She smiled to herself, but kept her mouth shut.

Petunia was strict about this. No one, especially not her Grandmother, must know of these visits. In fact, no one must know of Celeste's presence at all. This fact was the strictest rule, made stricter by Pastel Sweet.

"Petunia!" Both girls flinched, but Petunia's jaw set and her eyes hardened.

"You will not spend your days rotting in this tiny room. The town will start to talk, wonder why you're hiding away. They forgave the first two years, believing you to be sick with sadness after your-" A pause, punctuated by a disdainful glare at the cowering Pegasus filly. "Unfortunate stillbirth."

Petunia's glower sharpened, her body moving instinctively between her child and her mother. If Pastel Sweet had her way, Celeste would've been abandoned on a bluff and left to the elements. Before her pregnancy, Petunia's relationship with her mother had always been rocky. Pastel Sweet had always seen her daughter as a flighty, silly little chit. Off daydreaming and smelling the flowers, instead of helping around the town and making connections and meeting stallions. Making flower crowns instead of getting married.

Then Petunia fell pregnant. While unwed, to a stranger stallion that she refused to identify. Pastel Sweet had sent her daughter away, cast her to this tiny corner of the wooded outskirts. Set her up in a small cabin, pulled away the lavish luxuries of her previous life. And told her to either lose the baby, or not return.

So she had chosen to not return. She was happy here, with her daughter. When Petunia was ten months along, her silence had been broken. Pastel Sweet had moved in, determined to force Petunia's hand. Her daughter would never be allowed to keep her bastard child. And Petunia knew her motives. Either Petunia gave up the child, or she married the stallion that got her pregnant. Truth was, she'd have happily married Crimson Rush. He was the love of her life. A dashing red Pegasus with a strong heart and gene spirit. In a heartbeat, she would've married him.

If it was allowed. But it wasn't.

Eventually Petunia's pregnancy was known to the town, and rumors spread. The exact thing that Pastel Sweet had worked hard to prevent. It had infuriated the mare, and she'd returned yelling and screeching, telling Petunia this was "exactly why you're getting rid of that bastard child as soon as it's born!"

Petunia wasn't sure what divine power to thank when she went into labor after her mother had left on a three week trip to Canterlot. A trip of networking, rubbing elbows, and trying to find a man, any man, that would marry her sullied daughter. But Petunia was so desperately grateful to go into labor early.

The birth of a miracle was witnessed in this tiny cabin. The first Magic-Blessed Pegasus.

When Pastel Sweet had returned, she'd been shocked right off her hooves. A fainting spell that Petunia let her wallow in while she doted on her precious daughter. A pure white foal. A sin that would've been forgiven in its entirety. A Magic-Blessed filly, a tiny miracle born away from the royal family. A free token to a life of riches, royalty, and recognition.

Except she was born a Pegasus, not a Unicorn. Pastel Sweet's greedy joy turned sour in her stomach as soon as she'd seen those downy white wings. All her plans had fallen apart. She'd never incur the wrath of the divine powers that blessed this child by abandoning the newborn for death. Nor could she ever force an adoption. Not with a baby so unique, recognizable, and miraculous.

So a new rumor started. The mare Petunia, who fell pregnant out of wedlock, had had a stillbirth. She was staying in her hidden cabin, away from prying eyes, because she was suffering from severe sadness. A sickness of the mind that many mares knew well, especially around the birth or loss of a child. For the first two years of Celeste's life, they'd been left mostly alone. But now Pastel Sweet had returned, ready to force Petunia to leave her child behind. To start a real family. To leave Celeste as a secret after thought.

Petunia stamped a hoof, anger rising in her. All her mother cared about was image and reputation. She couldn't look past her own ego to see the miracle before her.

"I don't care, Mother!" She shouted, startling both filly and elder.

Celeste cowered further into the safety of her toys, staring over her shoulder. She'd never heard her mother yell, and by her expression, this was only the beginning.

Pastel Sweet sucked in a hissed breath, her blue eyes burning. "How.. dare you!"

"How dare I?" Petunia interrupted before the old mare could start. "How dare I!? I was blessed with a miracle and all you can think about is yourself! I refuse to hide away any longer. Celeste is three years old. She should be out, meeting kids her own age, having fun and developing! Not trapped inside this stupid dark cabin, with only her Mother as company. She deserves better! I deserve better!"

The grandmother puffed up, lifting her chin so high she could look down on the mountains themselves. "I am saving your reputation, Petunia! Do you know what folks are saying? They're calling you a spinster already! You'll never find a man to marry you. Especially if he found out you fell into bed with a *Pegasus*!" She hissed the word like it was a filthy swear, anger rattling out of her.

Petunia's ears pinned back."I 'fell into bed' with a stallion who loves me! Who loves our daughter! He loves us unconditionally! And if he could marry me, he would! And I would marry him. We could be happy!" She stepped forward, forcing her mother out of the doorway. "We wouldn't have to worry about rumors and reputation. Wouldn't have to fret over stupid societal boundaries that aren't even laws! Nothing I have done was illegal, just a faux pas. A faux pas I, frankly, couldn't give less bits about! I fell in love with a wonderful man and we had a gorgeous Magic-Blessed daughter. A walking miracle. It's not my fault you can't appreciate that!"

"If you love him so much, why don't you leave with him!?" Pastel Sweet stumbled backwards into the grass, surprised by the gall of her daughter. Never before has Petunia stood up to her, not like this.

"Maybe we will!"

Celeste shivered, her wings lifted to shield her from the yelling that had now moved outside. Leaving the frightened girl inside, watching the argument from over her shoulder.

This was her fault, wasn't it? She'd done something. Something that got her Mother in trouble. Her tiny body curled lower, her thoughts mixing with the yelling.

The yelling that abruptly went silent. Her head shot up. But before she could call for Petunia, her Mother returned and closed the door behind her with a slam. Celeste flinched. The sight had warmth and love returning to Petunia's soft eyes. The mare pulled her daughter close and cradled her, kissing her bare forehead and whispering soft words to her.

"My little darling." She cooed, stroking her child's soft wings. "We're leaving tonight. Make sure to get all your dolls, okay? We're going to live with her Father from now on."

A few more soft kisses and nose rubs, until Celeste's shaking had ceased and the little filly was giggling under the undiluted love and attention.

As Petunia settled her daughter in for an early bedtime in preparation for their night flight, she soothed her child with a soft lullaby. As Celeste's eyes fluttered shut and she yawned wide and round, the mare smiled.

"I'll always protect you. I love you, my darling."

————

I enjoy exploring topics like this. Especially since they’re thoughts still carried over into modern day that, honestly, shouldn’t in my opinion. Also, in my experience, they’re fairly hypocritical views. Pastel Sweet is a single mother as well, and while she was wed and her husband died, she’s now a widow. Which had its own negative connotations in the time as well. Thankfully, this is the first and last time we’ll hear of her