Originally posted on: December 1, 2018 at 8:56 AM UTC
> Street [w/ Story]
> Two years.
> It's surprising how quickly things can go from good to bad. Just that long ago I was living happily with my lovely boyfriend, in a house with actual friends.
> But then one day, it was just gone.
> I was no longer a Tanuki, I was no longer at home, and I was no longer with him.
> It didn't take me long to actually find my way back to where I was supposed to be, but something was off. Something was…different.
> I found the window to our room and I see him, but everything inside was completely different.
> The ball that he uses to play fetch with me wasn't on the nightstand like it was supposed to, there was a laptop on the desk where it wasn't supposed to be, and the photo on the desk…
> The one with him and I together, smiling at the camera…
> Was exactly the same as it always was, except I wasn't in the picture. In my place was a completely different mare. A brown mare with a weird looking tail.
> I couldn't believe what I was seeing. It was like he had never met me.
> Like I never existed…
> I could tell you how my life just seemed to change overnight, if I actually knew. I would've suspected the mare took me out of their lives using some kind of magic and inserted herself in my place, but after stalking her for about a week, I knew it wasn't the case.
> She has unicorn magic, despite not having a horn, but she can't do much outside of the basic telekenesis spell all unicorns can use. She even passes out after using teleportation once. And besides, she doesn't know who I am.
> sigh
> And here we are now, desperately trying to make enough money through any means necessary, despite the result of that soundly sleeping beside me.
> At least it's pretty warm out tonight. Hopefully it stays that way through morning. Celestia knows we need more old bed sheets.
> "Mama…?"
> I look down to his baby blue eyes, still droopy from waking up. "What is it, sweetheart?"
> "Do we have any food left…?"
> Shit, he's still hungry and we barely have enough for a snack. Just perfect. "Only a very little bit. Are you starving?"
> His growling stomach answered for him, and I knew that I'm gonna have to rake in more bits tomorrow. Or at least scavenge for more scraps.
> I reached into the beaten bucket and pulled out the only bit of food we have: a half-eaten cupcake left over from some kid's birthday party at the park.
> At least it's better than nothing.
> He ate it up in no time and went back to sleep. Hopefully that cupcake will last him through the rest of the night.
> He can't sleep when he's hungry, and kids cry if they get too hungry. It's always a pleasant experience trying to calm your kid down for an entire night.
> I sound like I hate him, I'm not gonna deny that, but the truth is that I love him dearly, like any mother should.
> It's just that I wish he was born in a better time. When I'm not out here and I'm actually able to afford food every day.
> But at the same time, in dark times such as this, when I have literally nothing to lose…
> He's the only reason why I'm still here and not in a grave, right now.
> ~
> This drawing took me nearly a week to finish (but that's just because I took my time and worked on it a little bit each day), but I had this idea of a drawing coupled with the story for a while, now, and I wanted to give it a shot.
> Also I wanted to revive Bling (you know, my first persona on this sight before she got replaced by Em?) in the form of a new character named Mel.
> She's still (kind of) the same Bling we all knew, the only thing that's changed is her appearance and name (and personality because of what's been going on in her life).