Preordained

With their delivery date swiftly approaching, the couple focused their efforts on preparing for the little bundles of joy that would soon come into their life. They’d each been shocked to discover that they’d be having not one but two foals - then again, aside from having to double-up on provisions and order a second crib, that was hardly a bad thing. With a long day behind them, after Light had returned from work, the pair relaxed on their sofa and engaged in one of their favorite recent pastimes - speculating on their impending family.

“Ok ok,” Leech hummed, resting against her lover, “if there’s a filly and she has a dark coat, I’m thinking of Shade.”

Light snickered and stroked her shoulder, resting his chin on the top of her head. “What if one of them is a filly with a light coat?”

She thought for a moment, rubbing her chin as she looked down at her gravid belly. “I think Lux would be cute.”

“That would be pretty cute,” he chuckled. “We’re going to need a bigger place though - not now of course, but in a few years. I hardly think they’ll be happy sharing a room forever.”

“Once I’m back on my hooves - you know, after a few months, I can start looking for a job to help with the…” she fell silent, seeing him shake his head. “What? As much as I like helping out in the bakery, it might not be a bad idea for me to take a job a little closer to home - besides, if we’re going to need a bigger place eventually, we’ll need to save up some bits.”

It was true, as excited as they were to have their foals, their finances would be stretched thin because of the extra mouths to feed. While she didn’t have all that much work experience, having only held a number of temporary, menial jobs in the past, she had every intention of shouldering some of the burden. She’d be damned if she was going to let him break his back to support all of them by himself.

“We could always move,” he began, smiling down at her. “You know as well as I do that living here, even in the suburbs, isn’t cheap. With the price of everything going up, I could sell the shop and the house, make a small fortune, and we could get a nice place somewhere away from the hustle and bustle.”

She paused, her eyes never waving from his face, and slowly turned her head from side to side. “But your bakery is your life’s work. I’d never ask you to -”

“For starters, my family is more important to me than any silly bakery,” he corrected her, his smile never wavering. “Secondly, it’s just a bakery. There’s nothing stopping me from opening a new one, and it’s not like I won’t take all the important stuff with me,” he added, reaching up and tapping his temple.

A long silence settled over them, as they quietly thought upon the situation. He’d made a good point, though Leech was hesitant to admit it. There would always be a demand for freshly baked goods, regardless of where in Equestria they ended up, and the cost of living was significantly cheaper away from large cities - that said, opening a new business and starting over would require a monumental effort. With a heavy sigh, she stroked his chest.

“If you really want to look into moving, I won’t stop you,” she murmured. “Regardless of where we go or what we end up doing, I’ll be here for you.” She swallowed hard, a lump forming in her throat from a distant, nearly forgotten memory. “I promise.”

“I know,” he whispered, kissing her crown. “And I promise I’ll never leave you.”

Glancing over at the clock, seeing it was getting late, she closed her eyes. “You think tomorrow will…”

She trailed off and lifted her head to look up at him, her eyes widening when she saw tears streaming down face. His expression was hard to read, smiling in spite of crying, as she reached up to wipe his cheek. She’d seen him emotional on several occasions, like when the doctor had announced she was expecting, but this felt different - like she’d somehow touched a nerve.

“You ok?” she breathed, knitting her brow as she held his hoof.

Light nodded and swallowed, peering down to look into her eyes. “I’ll never leave you again…”

Her eyes widened in shock, the breath hitched in her throat, and she went rigid, as his words struck her like a gong. Again - he wouldn’t leave her again. There was only one time in her life when he’d left - truly left, and that was of no fault of his own. Feeling her eyes starting to water, she met his gaze and embraced him.

She couldn’t say exactly when she’d had the revelation, but she’d realized some time ago that her lover, the stallion who’d won her heart, was none other than the little colt who she’d met so long ago. Though she’d considered bringing it up on multiple occasions, she didn’t have the heart to - not because she didn’t want to, but because the guilt from breaking her promise to be there for him still stung. She knew it was foolish, that he’d understand and forgive her for it, yet she’d never been able to bring herself to ask him if he remembered her.

“W…when…how…” she sputtered, barely able to speak.

Wrapping his forelegs around her, he held her close. “It doesn’t matter,” he quietly replied, his voice wavering ever so slightly. “I won’t lose you, no matter where we go or what we have to do.”

It felt like a lifetime had passed since he’d returned to that street corner, looking for her with a number of pilfered, steaming muffins in tow, but he’d never forgotten. Day after day for nearly a week straight, the entire time he’d spent at his aunt’s house, he’d made the trek to where he’d met her - alas, in spite of his efforts, he hadn’t found her. As the years passed and the memory grew dim, only occasionally recalling the sweet little filly he’d given his blanket to, he gradually accepted that he’d never see her again - that was until fate intervened.

He was reluctant to say that a higher power had been at play, but he was genuinely thankful that she’d found her way into his life once again. The little ragamuffin on the corner, holding her head high and smiling at everypony who passed, had blossomed into a beautiful and captivating mare who was the love of his life, and he thanked the heavens each and every day for having her. Shifting his forehoof and wiping away her tears, he leaned in and pecked her nose.

“I…I…” she stammered, fighting through the overwhelming tide of emotions gripping her. “I love you. I love you more than anything and I’ll always be here for you.

Dipping his head, he peered into her amethyst eyes. “Promise?”

“Promise,” she rasped, the corners of her mouth turning up.

As she shot forward, they locked lips and kissed - not a brash, impulsive kiss driven by lust, but a deep, impassioned kiss that only true lovers would ever know. The world was full of magic beyond comprehension, both in the literal and figurative sense, and they were lucky enough to experience that firsthand. Serendipity had brought them together after decades apart, but this wasn’t the end of their journey - no, their story and the next chapter of their lives was only just beginning…