Jack stood in his mothers home as he watched her and his sister busy themselves with getting stuff ready to take to Lemonades place, a place where he wasn't welcome but at the same time it was the biggest place they could have for this meeting and he was dreading every single moment that passed as it meant it was getting closer and closer to the time he would be arriving on his daughters doorstep, the very door she slammed in his face when he went around to ask if this meeting could happen. "Serenade, mom, my family hate me, you two arriving on their doorstep isn't going to make them want to welcome me in with open arms and and expect everything to be alright, hell, Winter and Lemonade have pretty much disowned me, Frostbite doesn't even want to look at me ever again let alone talk to me, Snow and Crystal..." Jack trailed off and shook his head, if anything, those two were his biggest dissapointments if only because they took after him and he knew it, he had been trying to make it where he was trying to tame the two of them, make them see that their behaviour all these years was wrong but a part of him even felt they were slipping away from him because he was too leniant on them and Frostbite had to step in and basically get them jobs because he was a failure as a father in more ways then one.

Serenade walked over to her brother and wrapped her front legs around him and gave him a hug and nuzzled him before kissing his cheek "Jackie, it will be alright, I promise, by the end of this meeting your family will at least start to rethink things, you know what our mother is like, she is a nightmare when she gets going" Serenade was about to continue when a "hey!" Pipped up from the other side of the bed, a smile on their mothers face which Jack and Serenade returned before Serenade continued "this will get sorted out, I know it will and besides that, something tells me that mate of yours won't know what hit her once they see our mother come through that door. If she thought Raven was bad she hasn't seen anything yet and this is a woman who may not be able to use magic like Raven but I have a feeling Raven hasn't read the book on advanced magic tricks in which will make one pony sit down, shut up, listen and not talk back" she said as she picked up the book and showed it too him "seriously, our mother DID actually write the book, best seller in Arcadia, if you ever want a pony to listen to you our mother knows all the tricks of the trade and all work as well, Arcadia's people swear by this book."

Jack chuckled "I remember hearing something about this book, even with my busy work schedule, this book was being raved about by many, if I wasn't so caught up in family life and my job and making sure I was on my best behavior for the esteemed Elders I would of picked up a copy to see what everyone was talking about, granted, I probably would have realized that it was my mothers work, half of that book at least has probably been used on us" he said as his sister nodded "thought as much though, mother, why the pen name?" He asked curiously.

"Like you can talk? Were you not making jewelry under a Pseudonym?" She asked her son curiously.

"You know about that?" He asked, shrinking back a little out of shame and embarrassment,

"Of course I do! I am your mother! you have sent Serenade and myself hand made jewels over the years and each one as unique and as beautiful as the last and we treasure them greatly but I also brought this" she said as she walked over to her vanity and took a half inch thick diamond and sapphire encrusted necklace out of the box with an emerald cut out in the shape of her marking, a potion bottle with amethyst pressed into the emerald to make it look like the bottle had liquid inside it. As soon as I saw it I had to buy it, not that I could have afforded it but still, it was based off my mark wasn't it?" She asked as he nodded "thought as much, though why were you selling it? It is beautiful but a piece like this I would of thought you would have just decided to keep it to yourself, its seems like a personal piece especially when they gems you used are a few of my favorites."

"I was going to as I made it to gift to you but at the end of it I realized that after landing in jail you and Serenade probably have hated me and wanted to forget about me so I didn't bother sending it to you, i thought better to sell it, I made it to remember the mother I had once upon a time and at the same time I remembered how much I have screwed up in my life and now I have just screwed up again" he said as he nuzzled his face back into his little sisters shoulder.

"Darling, don't worry about it, I swear, we will get this sorted out" she said as she turned around and replaced the necklace in the box and carried on getting ready.

"And please, mom, just remind me how much it cost you and I will pay you back for it, it is the least I can do" he said, having looked up and smiled softly at her.

"Don't worry darling, you got rid of the abuser in my life, if I have to give my son a bit of money in exchange for my own necklace and to have that a*****e out of our lives then so be it, though you can do me one small favor?"

"Anything, just name it".

"One day soon, you will take your sister and I out to a gourmet restaurant in Harmonia and treat us to whatever we want, just like your father used to do before her...er...'changed', it is to remember the good times, sure, even if they involved him, but it is also time we start making our own on our own and remember the times you, Serenade and I did spend time alone just by ourselves and without him, I just want a night out on the town where we can just be a family again" she said as she saw her son nod.

"Of course I can do that, we could make a day of it if you want, we could start out in the morning and have breakfast, do a little bit of shopping around Harmonia, get a bite to eat for lunch, take in a show at the theater, I hear there is a fun musical that is going to be starting soon, can't remember the name exactly but it got rave reviews from Misty Hallow, the critics can't speak highly enough of it and after that we will get dinner, how about that?"

Serenade looked at her mother grinning "yes!" She said as she looked back at her brother "Mom, please say yes, it will be fun to just spend the day out! Tiring but fun!"

"Yes, how can I say no to this after you seem really excited? Of course we can do it, though I don't want you blowing all your gold on us..."

"Don't worry, there is one thing that a*****e taught us, it was how to save money, my bank account could do with a little bit of light cleaning and why not spoil two of my favorite girls? It has been long over due" He said as he kissed his sisters cheek.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lemonade was just sitting there, watching the flames of the fire, she hadn't moved since her mate went to bed last night, she had slept there, she had breakfast there, she was doing everything there and why? Because she didn't want this meeting to start, she was dreading it, she didn't care if she got ready or not, she did NOT want to see these 'mysterious ponys' Jack was meant to be bringing, she didn't want to see him and right now, she didn't even want to see her older sisters or mother, the only one she was happy to see was her brother besides her normal family and even then she wasn't exactly speaking to them since a couple of days after the events of what happened happened.

"Mom, can I borrow your necklace? The beautiful diamond one?"

Lemonade said nothing.

"Mom...?"

Nothing once again, technically, she did bring up her last log of children by talking to them and being happy around them etc but it was all forced, she had to fake it for their sake, but now, as they are older, she didn't want to talk to anyone, not after what had happened.

Glacier turned around and walked out to the kitchen where everything was getting prepared for todays meeting, the food smelled fantastic "have you had any luck speaking to mom?" She asked Starlight who looked up from the cake mix she had just put into the tin and placed into the oven and shook her head.

"I haven't, your mother and I are close, really close, I can usually make get her to talk, but everything I have tried has failed, I don't know what to do, it is one thing to not talk whilst walking around this house like a zombie but it is something else to just sit there, doing nothing but eating and sleeping in one place for the past twenty four hours, I have no idea what to do, I have even spoken to my sister and even her ideas haven't worked, if I can't do anything and my sister and Winter can't do anything and pretty much you guys can't, I don't know what to do."

Glacier sighed and turned away, deciding to go back to her room.

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