Braeburn and Soarin first met at a big wonderbolt festival and there was instant chemistry between them. They met up a few times afterwards and eventually started dating. For a long time they managed to hold up a long-distance relationship, due to their busy jobs and homes being far apart. After a few years of dating they moved in together in Ponyville, planning to start a family. They married shortly after and everything seemed to be going just fine.

With the help of a donor and a little magic the two boys Cloud Chaser and Color Splash were brought into the world. Cloud Chaser, being three years older, took care of his brother from time to time or when his parents weren’t home. Which was a lot. Soarin was away most of the day, leaving early and coming home late, due to his career, leaving not much time to spend with the kids. And it’s save to say that Braeburn was occasionally overwhelmed with taking care of two kids basically alone. It didn’t always go well. But he tried his best.

The arguments heated up a few years later. They had already begun early on but now it became more frequently. Soarin wasn’t willing to sacrifice his career for the family, leaving Braeburn frustrated, who had a hard time accepting Ponyville as his home after leaving Appleloosa. Their different point of views and unwillingness to understand each other let to them argue ing about every minor incident. Very often Cloud could hear them fighting behind closed doors in the evening, getting Color to sleep in when he started crying.

After a while of things only getting worse, the family reached the breaking point. The couple has to realize they weren’t in love anymore as they were back a few years ago. They divorced. For them, an eventual relief. For their kids, not so much.

Braeburn went back to Appleloosa. And at first the plan was for him to take the kids with him. But Cloud Chaser always had been more attached to Soarin due to him looking up to him and his masterful skills as a flyer. He was NOT gonna leave his home and everything he new just because his parents couldn’t get their shit together. And Color Splash, well, he was stuck on Cloud like a magnet. And moving to a different city, leaving behind his brother and his friends at school, scared the hell out of the already very anxious little filly.

So in the end, Braeburn left and the kids stayed with Soarin. He hired a nanny to take care of them while he was at work. Safe to say he was not good at showing much affection to his children, leaving them having a very distant relationship throughout their lives.

The kids visit Braeburn at the weekends and while Braeburn has a very dear connection to Color Splash, he cannot help but think that Cloud despises him.

Their relationship with their parents as well as their break up had left deep emotional marks at the brothers. Cloud grew up to be a mean, bratty jerk. If there was no one at home telling him what was wrong or right, how did he care? He did what he wanted. He had some friends but emotionally disconnected to them after his parents’ breakup. He bullied others at school or on the streets with his gang. The frustration and anger he gathered at home he let out on other ponies. They only one he was protective over was Color Splash. He was occasionally brotherly mean to him too but god damn it he would break anyone’s legs if they would hurt him. When he was younger he constantly tried to get Soarins attention. He was the prodigy to yearn after. He wanted to become just like him. But Soarin had a hard time connecting to his children and Cloud was left disappointed over and over again. Nowadays he still tries to fit in his fathers shoes, to become a great, no, even greater wonderbolt than his father was. But he doesn’t reach out for affection anymore. That also goes for Braeburn. After all he’s better on his own anyway. And he can achieve anything on his own. Who needs parents anyway…

Color Splash has been an angsty child naturally from the start. And his parents’ breakup didn’t help in that one bit. He had heard the fighting. The arguing. His parents screaming at each other had terrified him. Why were they fighting? Why didn’t they eat dinner together anymore? Why did his dad come home so late at night? Why didn’t he tell him stories from his flights anymore? Why was everyone crying all the time? It made him cry too… why did daddy leave? What did he wrong? Was it his fault? Why did he had to leave his home all of a sudden? He didn’t want to go! … why didn’t daddy come back again? Why didn’t he love them anymore?

It wasn’t like they never explained to Color Splash what was happening but he still somehow searched the blame in himself. And he was constantly scared being left by other people he loved. Sure, he saw his dad weekly, but he was still so so far away. As he became older, Color Splash turned into some kind of people pleaser (pony pleaser…? :/). Constantly fighting with the thought of others not liking him, having social anxiety and a hard time making new friends.