New Orleans Instrumental No. 1
The wind began to kick up as all the clocks in the bakery struck twelve.
It didn’t feel like it was midnight, but it could have been any time, and the feeling still would’ve been the same. Cup Cake was still cleaning up the utensils and leftovers from the last customers of Sugarcube Corner, and she was working at a pace that suited her if not anyone else. Normally, she would’ve gotten the job done much quicker, but her stomach still didn’t feel right, and since she didn’t have much to look forward to soon, it was only natural that the mildly plump mare would relax for the night. The bakery was like a ghost town; even Pinkie Pie dared not make a sound upstairs, not that she knew what had happened the previous day.
It isn’t fair to say that Cup Cake was in a sour mood, because she really wasn’t. Actually, she was more or less indifferent towards her surroundings, although if anything she felt more tired and numb. She didn’t look it, though. Rarely seen by anyone, but frequently appreciated by her husband, the mare washed her face and mane after a hard day’s work, and her usually upright, swirly mane went more loose and soft, causing the top to lower to one side. Her mane was still noticeably wavy, possessing that signature hairdo Cup’s side of the family was known for, but Cup Cake looked much more unprofessional and relaxed than normal.
None of the usual post-work peace made her feel at home, though. Resting her head on the bakery counter, as if trying not to fall asleep, Cup Cake felt an unbearable emptiness inside her gut. Yesterday she could have sworn there was life inside her, growing with each passing day until the time came when that life would leave her and make her proud and receive her love. The mare sighed miserably and wondered what her babies would’ve been like, if they had the chance to show her what they could do, what they could be. A colt and a filly, that were their genders. Cup Cake and her husband Carrot never really decided on which one they would prefer; a boy or a girl, but they knew they were ready to be parents, so it’s understandable that they were ecstatic when they heard the news a couple of months back. A boy and a girl. Cup couldn’t have believed it.
A boy and a girl. She wondered what they were like. Maybe the boy would’ve grown up to be a famous author, or perhaps the heir to the Cake bakery? Maybe the girl could’ve been the next mayor of Ponyville? These questions would be answered only in Cup’s dreams now, now and for all time. She wanted to cry, almost needed to, in hope that it would give her some relief, but the truth is that Cup found it difficult to cry for someone she never got to know. The mare covered her face with her hooves, and a small, pitiful noise escaped her lips. The situation was almost too nightmarish to be taken in properly, and for a good while the entire bakery was quiet once again.
Suddenly, the front door of the bakery opened and Carrot Cake wandered in, hesitantly closing the door and locking the raging wind of the oncoming storm outside out of their household. To most ponies, and especially mares, Carrot ought to be ashamed of himself for leaving his wife alone for a good portion of the night, although Cup knew that he needed to go for a walk more than anything else. It was an odd bit of chemistry between the couple; if a fight were to break out, or if someone need some time to themselves, they would go for a peaceful walk outside, for however long they needed to. Despite this effort the tall stallion was quite distraught, and although he wouldn’t outright say it, Carrot was in as much if not more pain than his beloved. His body was still slightly trembling, and he walked with an unsure air to him that made it look like he was afraid of some unseeable force.
That was probably the best word that described Carrot at the time. Afraid. Afraid and distraught were almost physically evident on the poor stallion’s face; he hadn’t slept all of the previous night, and Cup knew she herself wasn’t much better off. For better or worse, she cried herself to sleep from the initial shock of what the doctor had told her and her husband. Their worst fears had become reality, and it was damn-near shameful about what had happened.
Miscarriages in Equestria were extremely rare, almost as rare as the possibility of being pregnant with twin foals, and unfortunately, the Cakes were struck with the misfortune of receiving both ends. They had kept Cup’s pregnancy somewhat of a secret, as despite being chatty and upbeat during work hours the Cakes were surprisingly quiet and introverted when it was just them together. When word broke out that Cup was not only pregnant at one point, but pregnant with twins, the whole town appeared to be overjoyed at the news.
That was almost a month ago, and just yesterday the entire foundation had collapsed. No one knew, save for the doctors at the hospital who had to take care of cup Cake, and even they decided it was better for the catastrophe to remain a secret for at least a little while. It was Nightmare Night, and all the children (along with some adults) have had tons of fun just a few hours ago. Despite her best efforts, Cup barely managed to make it through the festivities, with the prancing happy children reminding her of her own lost babies. If it weren’t for Carrot’s uneasy support, she would have broken down during work, and that wouldn’t have been good for anyone involved.
Carrot himself came towards his beloved, looking down at the ground and silently mourning for both their losses, and Cup was starting to feel heartbroken all over again just from looking at him in this state. She lifted her head off the counter and felt her heart pounding as he got closer to her, before he reluctantly looked up at her and their muzzles were only a couple of inches apart from each other. Cup didn’t know what to do.
She didn’t know if she could do anything, really. It felt as if this whole tragedy was completely out of her hooves. Even the doctors were both puzzled and shocked when they found out. Nature had truly been a harsh mistress, and Cup couldn’t help but feel as if she were cursed to have been carrying something dead inside her. With nothing else she could think of that might help, Cup moved forward a tad and lightly kissed her husband on the lips, as if reminding him that he hadn’t lost everything. At least, not yet.
Feeling his wife’s presence, Carrot kissed back slowly, and the couple were comforted by each other’s love, if only for a few seconds. It was a small but irreplaceable kindness that the two were able to feel each other’s pain, and each other’s sadness in the moment. Even after all had seemed lost the previous day, the Cakes still had each other, and they made sure that neither of them were going away anytime soon. Breaking the soft kiss and going around the counter to be with her husband, Cup nuzzled Carrot on the cheek, quietly telling him that it was way past time for them to rest for the night. She could tell by his watery eyes that Carrot was practically begging for the opportunity to sleep with the love of his life. He wanted to make her feel better, to try to make the pain fade out, and Cup was more than willing to do the same for him.
As the Cakes were going to their bedroom for the night, Cup stopped in front of the brightly-colored room that was going to be the bedroom for her babies. A boy and a girl. She choked up and almost burst into the tears on the spot when the realization had come to her, and Carrot made sure to stay close to her, in case she couldn’t take the pain anymore. Cup looked around the room and noticed that all the things she’d bought for her children were still where she had placed them before. Even the cribs had remained untouched, and Cup would feel damned if she got rid of them anytime soon. Cup placed her hoof on her belly, and the petit mare felt like she was going to throw up.
She would never be able to sing her babies a lullabye before they went to sleep. She would never be able to take care of them and see them grow up and hear them call her Mommy. She would never be able to comfort them when they were sad and make them feel like the best children in the world when they made her proud. She would never be able to find out what they would have looked like, or sounded like, or acted like, or if they would ever come to love her like she loved them. She would never be able to see her children go trick or treating on Nightmare Night, or receive a card from them on Mother’s Day.
She would never be able to tell her babies how much she loved them.
The Cakes were going to name them Pound and Pumpkin.
A boy and a girl.
