Life With Benefits

Valentine and I sat there going over so many of the old photos. Laughing, talking, enjoying ourselves as the sun began to set. The smell of food being cooked filling the room, I could see Silver Spoon just off in the distance with Lightning at her side.

Even as a baby he was so curious and eager to learn. He was also a bit of a troublemaker then too.

Flipping a page I pointed at a picture of him just covered in food, “This was the first time I asked Rainbow to baby sit him, she lost track of him for five minutes before I came to pick him up.” I laughed as I recalled the nervous look on Rainbow’s face that day, “She was scared that we wouldn’t find him, or that I wouldn’t let her watch him ever again.”

After a moment of laughing Valentine was the first of use to calm down, “So how did he end up like this?”

Wiping a tear from my eye I sighed, “It was only a minute after she let me in that we found him. We heard a loud banging noise followed by several things falling over. When we got to the source of the sound, we found him gnawing on a pickle with bits of spaghetti sauce, peanut butter, and I think that’s jelly behind his ear. I thought it was so cute I had to take a picture.”

Turning over to the next page Valentine noticed a picture of Lightning struggling to stay standing. Behind him was Silver Spoon holding out her hooves towards him. Behind her was several young couples out enjoying the day.

“Aww, his first steps.” I almost cried knowing how close I was to losing this photo.

“She’s been there for you a lot hasn’t she?” Valentine asked looking down the hall, only to catch faint bits of Silver’s hoof.

With a sigh and a tear falling from my nose I began to sob a little, “Silver has been there for me through the toughest of times. She was there with my friends when I first found out I was going to have Lightning, when I chose to give birth, and when I chose to raise him.”

As she sniffled a little she heard Lightning from the edge of the bed, “Mommy, are you crying because of the pain?” He asked hoping it was the only reason, and not something else.

Walking in behind him Silver sighed a little, “That explains why my ears were burning.” She giggled picking up Lightning to set him on the bed, “This is why she’s crying, she’s looking at old photos of us.” Pointing at one of him in the bath with I began to smile, “See how tiny you were?”

With a light hearted smile I wiped the tears from my face, “That’s one we are going to share with any mare you date.” She sobbingly laughed only to wince as Lightning wrapped his hooves around her leg.

“Mommy and Silver are the only mares I need.” He pouted unwilling to let me go.

Hearing me whimper a little Lightning looked up, “I think you may want to let her go this one time.” Silver Spoon politely hinted as she held out her hoof.

Looking up at me he saw how I had only one eye barely open, as the other was tightly shut while I held back the urge to shout.

Slowly he let go of me nuzzling into Silver’s chest as she held him, “Sorry mommy. I didn’t mean to hurt you.” I could hear the sorrow in his voice as he tried to keep from crying.

Tussling his mane I gave a faint smile, “It’s alright, you just over reacted a little. It happens sometimes, and as you grow older you learn to keep a cool head when it happens. It’s all part of growing up.”

With a sniffle and a nod I could see that he understood he wasn’t in trouble.

Turning another page in the album he almost popped out of Silver’s hug, “What’s this?” He pointed towards an old photo of me and the girls.

I gave a faint groan as Silver burst out laughing, “I remember that night, the talent show when we were fillies.”

“That costume was a pain to put on. And the makeup that I had to put on, and don’t get me started on the props.” I groaned as Silver continued to laugh, “It wasn’t that funny.” I gripped.

“From where I was sitting yes it was.” She slowly began to calm down only for both of us to see that Valentine was clueless.

“Several years ago we had a talent show that Sweetie Belle, Apple Bloom, and myself tried to be rock stars. This was also around the time we were still trying to get our cutie marks.” I began to explain to the best of my memory, “Long story short we crashed the whole stage down on ourselves, but we got the comedy award that night.”

“I can see why, it’s a wonder that none of you were hurt that night.” Valentine giggled behind her hoof as she slowly turned the page, “Why is Sweetie Belle glistening gold?”

Silver Spoon groaned as she tried to turn the page, “What’s so bad about that one?” Lightning asked trying to keep her from turning the page.

Too keep her feeling calm and welcomed I nuzzled Silver Spoon, “That was back when the girls and I had some issues with Babs Seed, Apple Bloom’s cousin.”

“Please lets not speak of that time, it wasn’t the best for all of us back then.” I giggled a little as I began to turn the page.

“Lets just say, that Silver and I didn’t quite get along all the time.”

Lightning pouted a little till he perked up and asked, “You mean like when she spanks you, and calls you a bad filly?” Silver and I blushed as we stared at each other, unsure of what to say.

Valentine however couldn’t help but burst out laughing, rolling out of the bed as she did hitting the floor with a thud.

“That’s something else. And we will tell you when you’re older.” Silver nervously explained hoping he didn’t presser the issue any further.

“Is that how I was made, through spankings?” We could only hear Valentine's laughter grow louder as she pounded the floor begging Lighting to stop.

I groaned as I began to explain, “No sweetie, you see when a stallion and a mare love each other very much-”

“But Silver isn’t a stallion.” As Valentine crawled up off the floor she saw him pointing at Silver’s crotch, “She’s a mare see.”

Valentine couldn’t help but fall back down laughing, to hear this had to have been the funniest thing she had bore witness to in years.

Turning the page I saw an old photo of his father, “I’ll explain it to you when you’re older. For now it smells like something is ready.” My eyes remained locked on the picture, hoping Lightning didn’t ask about it.

As he leaned in Silver Spoon jumped out of the bed, “NOT THE CORNBREAD!” She shouted running down the hall.

Lightning quickly gave chase after her while Valentine tapped the picture, “The only reason you kept this one?” I knew she was asking from her tone, but even still I wasn’t sure how to answer.

How could I answer, it's his father. And I knew that one day he would ask, but what could I tell him? That his father is a lunatic who raped me, that he is nothing more than a creature found in the Everfree Forest, or do I tell him about all the good times we had before then?

With a groaning sigh I closed the book, “I’m still looking for the reason, as well as the answers that Lightning will have when he asks about him.”

She could see the painfully deadpanned expression on my face, how the mere memory of it all drew me to tears. And how even after all these years ponies still talk about it, saying that I asked for it, that I wanted it to happen. That’s why I was there that night, not what the guards had in their report.

Even the guards had begun to believe those lies over the recent years. But I have Twilight and Discord to thank for keeping the record straight, if Discord hadn’t gone into his mind as well as mine. And shared what he learned, I don’t know what Twilight would have believed today.

In the end I’m thankful that she and her friends never stopped believing in me. And for their continued support over the recent years.

With a sigh Valentine walked past me and out the room, “Tell him the truth.” I looked at her in shock.

Of anything I could say about his father, of anything I could tell Lightning about him. Why the truth?

Looking back at me she smiled, “When he finally asks, he should be old enough to hear the truth. And if you need us, we will all be there to help him come to terms with it.”

“But…” I groaned trying not to cry, “what will he think of me? What will he believe happened, can he believe it happened? What if-” Valentine cut me off by placing her hoof on my lips.

With a loving expression only a mother could give, she pulled me in. Hugging me as I started to sob on her shoulder.

“When the time comes we will deal with it then. Not a moment sooner. Till then just spend as much time with him as you can.” I cried into her as my hooves wrapped around her, “Believe me when I say that he will know the truth before he realizes it. He will know you love him no matter what.”

I don’t recall how long we sat there, me crying like a newborn tossed into a scary unforgiving world. But I was glad that Silver let us take our time for me to calm down. It wasn’t very long before we sat down at the table to enjoy a nice meal.

But the atmosphere of the room felt a little off to me as Silver cleared her throat, “So Lightning is coming to that age where he will have to start school soon. Is there any school in particular you would like him to go?”

I hadn’t given that much thought. Over the years Ponyville had managed to grow a few sizes bigger. By about three miles in all directions from the last I heard about any of it.

And Cheerilee wasn’t the only teacher anymore, and her school house wasn’t the only one either. Twilight had begun to take on students as well, though like Celestia only a rare few were selected to come and learn. Rumors around town was she would toss old bones she found in a fire to see where she picked her students.

But that was from the newer parts of Ponyville, causing us closer to her to laugh at such things. It was more than common knowledge that most of her students were selected by the cutie map, others managed to show their determination for learning and earned their right to be there. The other school was at the other end of town, only a few miles from Sweet Apple Acres.

Applejack was more than happy to let them open the school up on a small unused part of her land. Something she came to regret a few years later, when the teacher tried to sue her for more land space. Twilight quickly put an end to that, saying that the land they were given was leased and nothing more.

Before I could answer I felt Lightning tugging at my leg, “I want to go where mommy and Silver went when they were my age.” It brought smiles to Silver and myself to hear that.

And though I would have wanted him to try and learn from Twilight, I knew that Silver Spoon would agree with me. And let Lightning go and learn from Ms, Cheerilee before attempting to learn from Twilight.