Re: Fallout Equestria: The Kingdom

[Tytan]

Clock covers her mouth and gasps slightly.

I- I thought he said I was his first. He... he wouldn't lie about that... would he?

[XT Vengeance]

"I... was escorting her to Friendship city when I saw smoke coming...coming from the direction of my hometown. I...I left her to go there. When...when I got there my family...the whole town...they were taken or killed," Charcoal hung his head.

"I...I know it was because of me."

[Orm]

"Char, how could that be your fault?"

[XT Vengeance]

"There was a sign written...written in blood. It...is said 'The price you pay, Hunter," Charcoal said, tears forming in his eyes.

[Tytan]

Clock placed a hoof around his shoulder and hugged him.

[Orm]

"What does that have to do with Change?" He asked, slightly worried about the answer Charcoal was going give.

[Orm]

"She was taken when I was gone. The raiders that killed my town...they captured her," Charcoal said quietly.

[Tytan]

Clock teared up a bit.

So... I... He...

I'm a horrible pony.

[Orm]

"But you said you saved her, right?"

[Orm]

"I had saved her from raiders. That...that was how we met. But...but I couldn't...I didn't...I wasn't fast enough. When...when I finally found her...she...she," Charcoal let out a sob. He sobbed into his mechanical hoof, unable to continue.

[Tytan]

Clock wrapped her hooves around him and gently rocked him. She gently shushed him and gave him little reassurances, far to quite for anyone else to hear.

[Orm]

Searchlight, cringed at what Charcoal said. Then proceeded to mentally kick himself in the head for what he said to him earlier. "Shit. Char, I'm sorry."

[Orm]

Charcoal wrapped his hooves around Clock's shoulders, sobbing quietly into her neck.

[Tytan]

Clock turns to the group, "We should continue this later. I'm taking him to our room."

Clock pulls ninety caps out of her bag and passes them to Searchlight, "Search, can you pay Hearthfire for us? I've still got the key."

[Orm]

"Sure." Searchlight takes the caps, then looks at Clock and Charcoal. "You two take care okay." He says before leaving and giving the caps to Hearthfire, and explaining who they were from.

[Tytan]

"Come on Char." She leads him to their room.

[Orm]

Charcoal stood up and followed Clock, his head held low.

[Tytan]

She lead him into the room and locked the door behind them. She directed him to sit on the bed. She sat next to him, put one hoof around him and used the other to hold his mechanical hoof.

"Are you okay Char?"

[Orm]

"I..." Charcoal thought about lying. "I...no, I'm not. I...the story doesn't...it doesn't end there."

[Tytan]

Clock sighed, "I didn't think it did... but you've had enough for today...

It's my turn."

[Tytan]

Charcoal looked up at Clock, confusion on his face. "Your turn?"

"I... haven't told you everything you need to know."

"Clock...after what I didn't tell you...you don't owe me anything."

"No... you need to know. If you found out later I... I don't think I could forgive myself for not telling you."

"Alright,' Charcoal said, wrapping his hoof around her shoulder.

Clock took a deep breath, "You know I had relationships before I met you, right?"

"I...I guess deep down I did," Charcoal said softly.

"I'm sorry," she said more to herself than to him. "Please don't take that the wrong way. What we have is the greatest, most meaningful relationship I've ever had.

Before you my most meaningful relationship was with a moondust addict I tried to help get cleaned up. We were nearly through too, but I ended up with a bunch of missing supplies and a patient nearly ODing on moondust...

Her name was Moon Dust too. How fucked up is that?"

"...her?"

Clock blushed heavily and stammered a bit, "I-uh, yeah... I guess I kinda... sorta... like mares... too."

"That's...I...alright then," Charcoal stammered.

Clock blushed a little harder, but then she remembered why she wanted to talk to Charcoal, "That's... not what I wanted to confess."

"Alright. I'm still listening," Charcoal replied.

"During one of my old relationships I... You see... I..." The more Clock talked the more she became frustrated with herself. She pushed Charcoals hoof off her shoulder and started pacing across the length of the room, still trying to spit out the words.

"Clock? Are you...did...did I do something wrong again?" he asked sadly.

Clock keeps pacing and her voice has an edge, "No! It's me! I can't spit out the goddess damned words. It's like I can't even admit it to myself. Like if I don't say it, it didn't happen. I can't just say that I... I..... I....." after each pause her voice got softer and her pace slowed until she was sitting on the floor in front of Charcoal looking up into his eyes, "I was pregnant."

"I...you...what?" Charcoal stammered, confused.

Clocks voice is unexpectedly serene, she thought for sure she'd have broken down by now, "I-I was pregnant... Years ago. Before I met you... Before I met Vik."

"I barely knew her father. He was just some guy I met in town one day. We made love once and then I never saw him again. It was a while before I figured it out..."

"I was going to have his child."

"I was... so excited. I'd always wanted to be a mother. I figured I'd be a great mother, just like mom."

"I prepared for months. Books, clothes, toys. I was ready."

"Then one day... my water broke. I went into labor."

"Twelve hours."

"She was beautiful. She had my mane, and my moms coat. And... and... she wasn't breathing."

"I thought I was ready. I'd read that some foals needed some help getting their first breath."

"I tried. I really did. I tried everything I could think of. Flak Jacket had to pull me off of her."

"She was... stillborn."

Charcoal is silent for a moment before he grabbed Clock in his hooves. "Clock...I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. No one should have to go through that," he said, holding her head against his. "I..." he struggled to find any more words.

"I think... I'm going to be alright."

That's how it works right? If you don't cry you're going to be fine.

Her vision started to blur, "I'm going to be alright."

She tried to hold them back, "I-I'm gonna be alright."

The floodgates opened, there was nothing she could do do about it now. "Ah'm gunna alri-hi-hight."

Charcoal grabbed Clock in his hooves and pulled her onto the bed. He held her tight and stroked her mane, doing the only thing he could think of to comfort her. "It will be okay Clock...I'm here," he whispered in her ear, holding her close.

She kept trying to repeat the phrase, 'I'm going to be alright' through the tears, but all that came out was incoherent blubbering.

Charcoal held the mare and pulled the covers over them. "That's right Clock, you're going to be alright," he whispered to her.

She kept crying for quite some time. Eventually fatigue overtook her and she fell asleep. But even in her sleep tears streamed down her face. It's plainly apparent that her dreams are not happy ones... or perhaps too happy.

Charcoal sighed, disheartened that once again, he couldn't help someone he cared about. He laid there, holding Clock close until he drifted off to sleep, once again in the grasp of his nightmares.

[Tytan]

Clock woke slowly. She looked at Charcoal sleep. She ddn't dare move. She waited for Charcoal to wake up on his own.

[XT Vengeance]

Charcoal bolted awake, for the third time that night. He noticed Clock looking at him. "I woke you up didn't I?"

[Tytan]

Clock tried to talk, but her voice was hoarse so she spoke softly, "No..."

"Charcoal, do you want to be with me?"

[XT Vengeance]

"I..what? What do you mean, Clock?" Charcoal asked, confused.

[Tytan]

"It's just... I didn't know about your had a marefriend before me... And I didn't know that... that happened. I've been forcing you back into this relationship. I've been selfish."

[XT Vengeance]

"Clock I..." Charcoal went silent, struggling to find the words he needed. "Clock...things...they didn't end well with Change," was all he could get out.

[Tytan]

"... I guess I kinda figured that's what happened. Did she dump you?"

[XT Vengeance]

"I wish." Charcoal's shoulders sagged. "I...she was taken by raiders...by Blitz...he..." Charcoal struggled to say any more, the memory of her fighting to overwhelm him.

[Tytan]

"I... I'm sorry Char."

"Should I... Should I just go?"

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