Icarus

"I think we're going to try and start a family again."

At these words, Aspen nearly choked on his afternoon sandwich. After what had happened only two months prior, this was a sudden change from his brother's depressed attitude. Catching his breath, he turned sharply with a look of shock on his face. He sighed, put his food down, and shook his head. "Oak--"

"Aspen, I know what you're thinking, but we can't just give up after...after Ash," said the pony named Oak, a muffled hint of sadness hidden under the last two words.

Aspen, with his yellow mane and pale-brown coat, frowned. He wiped his mouth and hooves and stepped up to Oak. He knew this would come eventually, but this soon? With another sigh, he spoke.

"Oak, I understand that. I wouldn't want to just give up on family, either, but Ash's passing is still fresh, y'know?" Aspen said softheartedly.

"I got that," said Oak, frowning. "But Diamond and I have been parents for sixteen years. The best sixteen years of our lives. Ash was our son. He was special. We felt like the luckiest parents in the world."

"You've gotta give it time, though, Oak. Two months isn't a lot, and having another kid so quickly after could bring up a lot of bad feelings." Aspen explained to his brother, hoping he would get the message.

"But we're ready!"

"Don't take this the wrong way, but what are you expecting? Do you really think you could replace Ash?" Aspen asked disquietly.

"NO ONE can EVER replace Ash!" Oak snapped upsettingly. "He'll always have that huge part of my heart."

Aspen nodded. "Which is why you may be disappointed when the time comes," he advised. "Having a kid will be great, but there's not a chance in Tartarus that they'll live up to Ash's level in your books. It won't ever be the same."

"But this would do us good, both of us. Me and Diamond." Oak said softly.

"Aha! There's a good point to bring up." Aspen said, nodding his head toward his brother. "Diamond."

"What about her?"

"You ever consider how she would feel about all of this?" Aspen inquired seriously.

Oak raised an eyebrow, confused as to where his brother was taking the conversation. "I'm sure she wants to start over just as much as I do," he said cautiously.

Aspen leered. "You're SURE? You don't know for sure?"

"Aspen, where the hell are you going with this?" he sighed annoyingly.

"Think, Oak," said Aspen, tapping the side of his head with a hoof. "What if Diamond is thinking the same as me? You can't just have it one sided. If she doesn't want to, you can't force her," he elucidated clearly.

There was a short pause in the conversation, before Oak looked at his older brother and asked, albeit with a minor drop of maliciousness hidden more or less by dismay, "Why are you discouraging me?"

The burly, yellow maned pegasus flinched. The last thing he wanted to do was discourage his brother on any decisions he wanted to make, and wanted him to think that way even less. "You know I'd never do that to you," he said softly, surprised.

"Then WHY are you telling me all of this?" Oak asked a little louder than intended, causing Aspen to flinch again.

"I'm being REALISTIC, Oak!" Aspen countered quickly.

"No, you're just making me reconsider this, is what you're doing!"

Aspen facehoof'd and sighed. Oak turned and looked into the break-room mirror. His green mane was short, but kept well and his brown coat was always well groomed, no matter what the situation. His emerald eyes were deep and longing. The green maned pony sighed.

"When I found out I was going to be a dad, I was ecstatic. I would have someone to teach, someone to bond with, someone to help me learn what being a father is like. Me and Diamond were both so happy and excited..." Oak explained, and he chuckled. "You should've heard her when she found out she was pregnant. I thought she had fallen in the bathroom and hurt herself. I rush over and get two hooves around my shoulders and her lips to mine. And she told me."

Aspen leaned against the table opposite from his brother, and listened intently.

"And the day Ash was born," continued Oak. "...Celestia, it was the most beautiful and heart warming thing I've ever felt. To see this little bundle of joy, to hold him, to know that I helped create him...I can't explain."

Aspen thought he heard his brother sniffle, but said nothing.

"Raising Ash was a huge blessing on our lives. Even WE learned things about ourselves, about others...all because of him. The day he died...it felt like the whole world crashed around us. Our only son, our only child, taken from us." Oak explained in a quiet voice. "I know...I know it won't be the same... But I want to do that again. Experience that again, learn teach, bond, all over again. I don't want to give up like this."

Aspen took all this into consideration while listening. The day Ash died, Oak was not the brother Aspen knew. He was quiet, on edge, and detached looking. And the two months up until that point that followed were hard to watch. Every day Oak looked more and more depressed. Maybe trying again would work... With a big sigh, Aspend spun his brother around slowly and put his hooves on his shoulders.

"Look, I know it's not my place to try and decide for you what you do. If you want to restart your family, then it's up to you," he reasoned. "All I ask of you, just one thing, is to talk to Diamond, and be honest with her, alright? For me?"

After a moment of silence, Oak nodded slightly. "Alright...I will...Thank you, Aspen."

Aspen opened his mouth to speak, but a gruff voice from the door stopped him.

"Hey, you two, break's over in two minutes. Get your plots back to work."

Written by Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager