Sometimes They Call Me Super

by KorenCZ11

Persona VI: Childhood Friends (part 2)

Applejack

---

Wednesday came and went almost like it never happened. At the same time, it also felt like the day agonized by. Until you’re pulled out of the flow of time, ya don’t realize that ya can feel every second that passes by. After trainin’ was over, Ah didn’t know what ta do with myself. Should Ah talk ta him? Should Ah just wait till tomorrow? Should Ah just go home now and sleep fer once in my life? Eventually Ah just gave up on it and went back home ta sleep, only ta realize that Ah couldn’t. Eight at night, and an hour wasted away on my phone, Ah decided ta open up Applebloom’s game again only ta get sucked inta the dream until two in the mornin’.

How does this happen? Ah didn’t even finish it either, Ah was just so focused on explorin’ and not gettin’ killed by the next big monster, hunter pony, abomination or whatever that Ah forgot ta even glance at a clock. Why? Why can Ah never sleep? Ah guess irony would say somethin’ about bein’ trapped in a dream based on the game, but that doesn’t help me sleep either. Ah ended up wastin’ another hour on my phone before Ah finally passed out, only ta wake up an extra hour early. Ah gave up on tryin’ ta sleep anymore and just made breakfast fer everypony. It’s rare that any of us have the time ta cook in the mornin’, so Ah figured why not? My extra hour gone, Macintosh and Applebloom fed and off ta school and back from work since he’s started workin’ nights… where ever it is he works now, so Ah headed ta the castle, albeit early.

Trainin’ today went a bit different than Ah expected. Luna was apparently sent by Celestia ta give us a few of her hours and a sparrin’ partner, and that… that was almost worse than fightin’ the monsters we have been. Usin’ the sharin’ spell properly, even ta the point where she managed ta get Twilight in, we fought a big monster that was nearly identical ta the one from Sunday. Didn’t go well either. In all four simulations, Twilight died. In three, Pinkie died. In two, Rarity died. In the very last one, the whole team got wiped. In the end, she gave poor Twilight an earful and ta the three of us who didn’t get killed in all but the time she amped up the difficulty… a compliment?

It was strange, but apparently, she didn’t expect any of us ta survive more than two of the runs. The simulations were mostly ta test our team work, but the last one was just ta see what it would take ta kill us.

“I simply cannot believe that you have been killed in every simulation! I will be back every night just for you my dear niece! You too, pink one. As for the rest of you, you have either performed as expected, or out performed what I had hoped for. Well done. For you all to last as long as you did in the fourth simulation… you must be very hard to kill.”

Much like the sharin’ spell, all our fights took place in somethin’ like a dream, but these were more concrete than when we did it ourselves. If Celestia’s dream felt even more like a dream, then this was hard ta tell apart from reality. Apparently almost dangerously so because she yelled at Goose more than once for ‘taintin’ the simulation’ or somethin’. Ah don’t know what that was about, but he jumped in front of me on the round that we got killed in, and that makes me nervous. Ah know it was a simulation, but this is the second time he’s done that, and this time it was really him, regardless as ta what Ah think my dream was. He can’t keep doin’ this.

Ah tried ta make it my goal ta get him alone after trainin’, but as soon as we were done with the simulations, Luna dismissed the rest of us in favor of keepin’ Pinkie and Twilight. Goose blinked off ta who knows where immediately after that, and Rarity figured we outta go ahead and get me ready fer tonight. Once again, Ah didn’t get a chance ta talk. Ah did however, hear the tail end of Luna talkin’ ta Twilight, and… well, all Ah can really say is better her than me.

“I have forsaken sleep this day for you, and I will be damned if you cannot survive the first simulation before I leave here! We will run again and again and again until you get it right, do you understand me? You will not fail rookie level battle training!”

It made me wonder whether or not her mother knew what was goin’ on. Then again, Ah think Celestia has an easier time lettin’ Luna speak fer her anger. Somethin’ about that sounds right, but the dreams Ah’ve had with Celestia are fuzzy ta unclear now. She’s said more ta me than Ah can remember at this point. When we left the castle, it was only three, so we still had a whole lotta time ta kill before dinner. Or so Ah thought. Between her makin' me use every kinda coat and mane care product she had and then her doin’ up my mane in an even more complicated fashion than the first time, that extra hour and a half was gone faster than it came.

“Now then, I need to go bathe myself. Feel free to make yourself at home. We’re an internet family here, so you won’t find TV or anything like that, but my computer is in my office. It shouldn’t require a password for you to use the browser, so you should be able to find some way to entertain yourself,” Rarity said as she headed inta her bathroom.

“Uh, yeah, thanks,” Ah got in before she shut the door. Without much better ta do, Ah started down stairs. Just as Ah did though, Ah noticed somethin’ on the piano. Unlike last time Ah was here, it was open and not completely covered in dust. In fact, it looked like it’d been used recently. Ah moved back up the steps and circled around ta the keyboard side, then saw two thin’s that looked awfully outta place. The first thin’ that caught my attention was a record player. A plugged in and recently used record player. The second thin’ was an ancient lookin’ piece on the music shelf. It was kinda yellowy and in plastic sheets that were covered in markin’s that meant somethin’ probably ta Rarity and nopony else. Aside from Rarity’s own markin’s that covered the pages, the music itself was covered in black dots and squiggly lines that meant somethin’ ta somepony with more know how than Ah. Geez, is she practicin’ this?

“Oh. Hi.” Ah heard a behind me. Ah turned quick ta see Rarity’s little sister starin’ at me just outside of her door. Has she been here the whole time?

“Uh… hey there?” Applebloom doesn’t talk much about her friends, so Ah don’t really know much about Sweetie. She sauntered over ta the piano and took a seat next ta me.

“So, do you know how to play too?” Ah chuckled and shook my head.

“Not even close. As far as Ah’m concerned, this is just a buncha dots and squiggles,” Ah said as moved my hoof across the page. Sweetie nodded.

“That’s fair. But this is that for some ponies who know what it all means too. There aren’t many who have the skill to play this in the first place.” She flipped through the pages... and when she kept goin' after six, Ah finally realized that this was all once piece. Ah knew it didn’t look like it ended after the second one, but Ah didn’t realize that all the pages here were part of the same piece.

“Wow. That’s uh… kind of a lot ain’t it?” Sweetie nodded.

“Mmhmm. It’s kind of insane that she could play this back when she was ten. Even now, I still think it’s crazy that she can still do it after ten years without practicing very much. Out of the ten or so times she practiced yesterday, she only screwed up like, twice.” She put her hooves up ta the keys and played a few notes that seemed ta go up ta a point, then down a little until she ended with four keys pressed. Hooves have some kinda magic ta ‘em that lets ponies grab and hold stuff, and apparently that can be used ta apply pressure ta certain points too, but Ah’d never seen it done until today. Sweetie wasn’t usin’ her magic either, so her playin’ four keys at once was a little weird ta see.

“So, can y’all both play?” Ah asked. Sweetie shook her head.

“No, I kind of missed out on that. I know a little of everything, and I can play most instruments to a degree, but that makes me a jack of all trades and a master of none. Part of my cutiemark is music, but Rarity… she can do special things on this instrument. Things I don’t know that I could ever do, even with a cutiemark to help me out. You would think that, with practice and dedication, anypony could play this. It’s just instructions to be executed and that’s all there is to it. But… even when I play, and I know what I’m doing, I can never get the sound the way she can. A song that sounds sad will sound sad regardless who plays it, but when you can hear joy, anger, bitterness, and hope all mixed in the sad song that somepony brought with them, it becomes so much more than what it was before.

It’s not just notes on a page at that point. The black and white fade away into all these colors of sound that make it truly special. Sometimes I just don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Why can’t I get all that emotion into music? Why is it when I play, that it’s just so monochromatic? I still haven’t figured that out yet.” When she finished, she started playin’ somethin’ and… it was just so sad. It was a waltz of some kind, probably one that Ah’ve heard before, but at the same time it was hers. When she finished, she just sighed and put her hooves down. Ah saw my own little sister in that, so Ah gave her a hug.

“Sometimes, it just takes time. Thin’s are always slow ta start at first. Back when Ah was yer age, Ah started doin’ somethin’ Ah’d always wanted ta do too. At first it was… well, pretty rough. Ah’d get beat up ta the point where Ah could hardly keep goin’, and Ah’d lose out on a job because Ah screwed it up bein’ more concerned about the catch than the ponies around me. Ah thought a lotta the same thin’s like, why is it that Ah’m not as good as he was? How come Ah can’t do it as well as he did? Even now, three years later, Ah still don’t know if Ah’ve caught up or live up ta what Ah’m supposed ta be. But Ah kept at it, and Ah keep at it.

Ya can’t know if ya make it ta yer goal when that pony ya want ta catch up ta isn’t around anymore, so ya just gotta keep goin’. Before ya know it, ya might be doin’ thin’s that ya never imagined ya’d be doin’. Doubt is impossible ta get rid of. You’ll always wonder if ya really made it, or if you’ll ever make it there. It sucks, but you’ll get there. As long as ya never give up, you’ll get where yer tryin’ ta go.” Why does that sound familiar? Sweetie laughed and nodded.

“Yeah, you would say it like that. Thanks. Applebloom talks about you a lot. She says you always give good advice, so I figured I’d talk since you’re here. You look pretty.” Ah swear I’ve never interacted with this filly before.

“Thanks, Ah guess. Ah’m not really used ta lookin’… well, like this.” Ah almost felt awkward all dressed up.

“That doesn’t surprise me. You’re more used to wearing spandex right?” she giggled.

“Ah what?” Sweetie froze.

“You… uh… I… need to go, so bye.” She tried ta get off the bench, but Ah grabbed the scruff of her neck.

“Where do ya think yer goin’?” She swallowed.

“… Y-you know… I uh…”

“Who told ya what?” Ah asked, not playin’ games anymore. Dependin’ on what she says, somepony’s gettin’ an ass whoopin’.

“Okay, okay. Look, I know this looks bad, but… but it was my fault because I asked. I mean, she already knew about Rarity, and since you’ve been over here so often, and, and Scootaloo told me about that thing you did on Caballo day so I started to suspect, and since she has that power, she would know, so… I kinda forced it out of her. I swear I’m not gonna tell anypony, honest.” Ah leaned forward and put my hooves on my face, makin’ some kinda awful sound on the piano.

“Sure, whatever. Ah don’t care as long as ya keep it ta yerself. Ya already knew about Rarity?” She nodded.

“She told me herself a little while ago. My powers are… probably kinda dangerous if I don’t get a handle on them, so I asked and we just talked about it.” Ah scratched at my face. Perfect. Somethin’ else ta worry about.

“What about… were y’all three together when ya made her talk? What all did she say?” Sweetie scratched at her ear, which Ah noticed was lettin’ off a thin smoke.

“Well… Scootaloo wanted to know about Rainbow too, since Rainbow never tells her what she does or how she can afford everything she can, so she told us about that fight with the Cthulu kaiju, and how you all worked together. Not really anything specific, just that you were all there.” Ah sighed. Oh, that ain’t gonna go over well. Ah know she told me not ta look fer her again, but Ah should probably check up on them soon.

“What about her? Aside from what Ah know, anythin’ special about Scootaloo?” If she does have somethin’, that’s three outta three.

“Um… that’s kinda broad, you know, since it’s uh… Scootaloo, but I assume you mean powers, so no idea. We've seen some weird stuff happen around her, but what exactly her powers would be we don't have any idea. She has to be the cause of it, but I don't know if she's psychic, or she accidentally fixes stuff, or what.” Great. Three for three and Ah can only see this goin’ wrong if Rainbow is as stubborn as Ah think she is. But Ah know better, and she’s probably worse than that. Hmm… Ah bet Ah could get Goose ta get eyes on them… Ah was about ta ask another question when Rarity came outta the bathroom.

“Applejack, we need to leave in the next few minutes. Oh. Good evening Sweetie. I’ll be down stairs in a moment, be ready to leave,” she said as she headed toward her room. “Oh, and while I have you, I’m going to be out for a while tonight, but I should be home before nine.” And then she shut her door.

“Okay!” Sweetie yelled. “So… what is going on with Rainbow? I’ve only seen her a few times, so I couldn’t really guess.” Ah scratched my cheek. It would be nice if Ah knew.

“Not somethin’ good, that’s fer sure. Don’t tell anypony Ah said that. Just know that she’s… much more than she appears ta be. Ah figure ya know how dangerous thin’s have gotten so Ah’m not gonna lecture ya, but try ta stay outta this, okay? Even as bad as it is now… it’s only gonna get worse with the weeks ta come.” Ah got up from the pianoand Started toward the stairs.

“Oh…” When Sweetie started followin' me, Ah noticed somethin’ bright from that smokin’ ear, only ta see that it was on fire now. “Uh, thanks, again. It… makes me feel better that at least somepony knows what’s going on.” Ah barely heard her. Ah was more focused on the task at hoof, which was puttin' out the fire. Ah reared up and raised my hooves. “Uh… What are you doing?” Just like tryin’ ta swat a fly, Ah quickly and gently smothered the tip of her ear. Ah pulled back ta shake the smoke off my hooves, only ta see the ear as it was before it lit. How bizarre. Ah tilted my head.

“Does that happen often?”

“Only when her emotions are all over the place. I don’t know what you did, but we need to leave, so I’ll save the interrogations for later. Bye Sweetie,” Rarity answered. All dressed up in black, baby blue, and silver, her own dress had a more shimmery effect ta it where it caught and reflected light about as bright as it came in. She passed me and made it down ta the ground floor before Ah even started ta move.

“Shiny ain’t it?” Ah asked as Ah caught up. She nodded.

“But of course. However, I am not the focus of tonight so my colors are muted and closer to monochromatic. The bright sunset will draw the eye, even if I’m around it. Now get in the car. I’m going to have to… ignore certain rules to make sure we arrive on time.” Rarity unlocked her vehicle, sat down and brought the engine ta life. Ah sat down myself and looked at the clock.

“Five fifty!? We can’t make it there by six! How long does it take a pony ta shower!?” Rarity shifted inta reverse and waived my complaint away.

“As long as she needs. Besides… I can get anywhere in this town in under ten minutes…” she said with a smile on her face. But not a nice one. This was more the crazy kind.

“Oh dear goddess help me.” Outta the parking lot, shifted inta first, and hoof ta the floor, the engine roared.

---

“Ya know, most ponies would be afraid ta drive as fast a ya do on a highway. Other ponies fuckin’ die drivin’ as fast as ya do through the damn alleys! How often do ya have ta replace yer tires? Ah’m pretty sure ya left more rubber on the ground than ya started with.” Ah complained as we arrived at Champagne. Rarity giggled.

“Ha! You’re right, other ponies would get themselves killed driving like that. I’m just better than other ponies,” she said with her snout raised. Ah rolled my eyes and got outta the car.

“Whatever. Ah don’t think yer really that good, ya just cheat by freezin’ time every couple seconds.” She made a noise.

“Pfft. I cheat she says. So maybe I do use my powers to assess whether or not I need to turn down an empty alley. Would you rather have me making turns blindly and possibly hitting somepony?” Ah shook my head.

“Ah mean, ya could also be normal and drive on the roads like everypony else.” She smirked.

“Ah yes, this coming from the mare who regularly lifts her motorbike off the ground to weave through traffic. Please miss Saint, lecture me more.” She locked the thin' and threw her keys in her purse. Ah raised a hoof and she stopped and raised her eyebrow. “Oh? What’s this? Is that a double standard I hear coming? Something about normal ponies, possibly abuse of my natural born abilities, when she herself in fact, abuses her own natural born abilities?” Ah closed my mouth and walked inta Champagne. Nope, game over. She won.

“Let’s just go in already,” Ah mumbled. Ah entered first, and the thin’ that immediately caught my eye was that there didn’t look ta be anypony here. Huh. that’s weird. Ah’ never been in Champagne before, but Ah know this place was pretty popular with the rich folks, so why ain't there nopony here?

“Ah, ello. You must be miss Apple, oui?” Ah heard a mare say. She must’ve been hidden behind her big semicircle podium because Ah didn’t even notice her.

“Uh, yes ma’am.” She stepped down with a tablet under one hoof and motioned fer me ta follow.

“Zis way.” Which Ah imagine translated ta ‘this way’ through her accent. She’s gotta be Chevallian. The restaurant was laid out with three rows of booth tables on the left and right, then down the center with free standin’ tables in the large gaps between. At the back was a bar and a stage with a very large piano, probably a bit bigger than the massive one Rarity had in her boutique. The floors were black, the walls were white and every cushion was red on the polished black wood furniture. There was a single thought runnin’ through my mind and Ah knew Ah shouldn’t be thinkin’ about. How much did this cost? How much is this gonna cost?

“Oh, hey, you made it,” Goose said as we turned round the last booth in the center row. Instead of bein’ set horizontally like all the others, this booth was aligned just so that one could see the piano without somepony havin’ ta move. Goose… well, in a weird way, didn’t really look like himself. Much like the other day, he was wearin’ a dark blue suit with a bright red tie, and everythin’ had a gold accent of some kind on along the fringes. His mane was all slicked back, and his little beard had been shaved down ta where it formed a neat smooth shape along his chin. He always looked ‘clean’ ta a degree, but this was a step above that. And… there was a smell. A sweet, welcomin’ fragrance that Ah knew but couldn’t place just kinda enveloped the air around him. “You alright? I know it’s not my usual look, but you don’t have to stare,” He laughed. Ah shook my head and nodded.

“Uh, yeah, Ah’m fine. Uh… Rarity’s drivin’ is a little scary, so Ah’m kinda…” Ah looked behind me and finally realized that Ah’d walked inta Champagne alone. “... out of it, Ah guess,” Ah said as Ah scratched at the part in my mane. He nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, I know how that is. Please, have a seat. You look amazing in that, by the way. I’m not sure it’s complete without your bracers though.” Ah laughed and sat down.

“Yeah, Ah had the same thought when she put my mane up like this. Ah’m not sure if Ah’m just supposed ta look pretty or beat the snot outta ponies from across the world in a gauntlet.” He took his seat, and the server mare put her tablet on a little stand on the table.

“Well, I am 'appy to see zat your evening is off to a good start. Zis is ze menu, just tap your order and zen confirm once you’re all done, and it will give you an estimate on when it should be out. Zankyou for dining with us.” She bowed and went back ta the kitchen Ah guess, and then it was just us. Alone. In this big fancy restaurant. Ah’m wearin’ a dress Ah never could’ve afforded before Ah met Rarity. Am about ta eat a meal Ah never coulda afforded before Ah joined Harmony. And ta top everythin’ off, Ah’m here… with Goose. Ah put my hooves ta my muzzle and took a deep breath. Don’t ask about the money. Do not ask about the money. Ah swear ta goddess, if you-

“Goose, how much is this gonna cost ya?” Oh, goddess damn it. “Ah know ya wanna make a good impression or whatever, but Ah can’t have ya blowin’ thousands of bits-” He put a hoof on my lips.

“Shhh, don’t worry about it. Let me be real with you here for a minute. If I wanted to, I could take us here every night for the rest of our natural born lives. Sure, if I didn’t try to impress you, then I wouldn’t be doing my job right. But, that’s not the main reason I brought you here. For now, let’s just… forget about everything else. The food is great, the music is nice, and we’re here, together. Pick out anything from the menu you think you want and we’ll have a nice dinner.” He pulled his hoof away and Ah frowned.

“Goose, will ya just-”

“Just for the hour. I don’t want to talk about anything from before until after we’re done. Then I’ll be at your mercy.” He cut me off. Ah sighed.

“One hour?”

“Unless we take longer to eat than that. I do have something planned for when we finish, but I don’t think it’ll take us that long.” Ah sighed again.

“Fine. But Ah wanna know everythin’, and Ah mean everythin’. If Ah ask, ya tell me the truth, no matter what it is, alright?”

“Yes ma’am~” he sang. Ah chewed inta my lip ta try not ta smile and rolled my eyes.

“Whatever. So what’s good here mister money bags?” Ah asked movin’ on ta address my slowly growin’ hunger.

“Now there’s a question I’ll be happy to answer.”

---

Ah’ve eaten a lotta food in my life, but there haven’t been many times where Ah’ve eaten till Ah’m full and wanted ta keep eatin’ just because it tasted so good. Ah searched the table with my hoof for a napkin and brought it up ta my face. Ah would never say Ah’m fat. In all honestly, my whole family is probably a little malnourished from years of only managin’ ta put enough on the table. At the moment though, Ah was havin’ a hard time not fallin’ asleep from my food coma.

“Ah’ve made a terrible mistake,” Ah moaned.

“I warned you it was a lot of food. You dug this hole yourself, cowpony,” he said through a chuckle. Ah rolled ta sittin’ up straight and put the napkin down.

“Ya didn’t tell me it was a damn pound of food! Good goddess, Ah didn’t know Ah was capable of puttin’ that much pasta away. Ah ain’t never even had lobster before, much less a whole one. That’s like a dish ponies share right? There’s no way they expect somepony ta put all that away on their own.”

“You would be surprised at what my dad could put away back when we used to come here all the time. I uh… I’m not sure if you care about the whole ‘meat’ thing or not, but since we’re carnivores, dude could, and often did, put a whole thirty two ounce steak away on his own. Like, this one time when I was like fourteen, we made a bet that he couldn’t down it in one go. And then I lost that bet. He was sick for a while after, but damn, if that wasn’t impressive to see.” Ah scooted back in my seat and leaned on the table.

“Meat huh? So, does that mean eatin’ a pony wouldn’t make ya sick?” Goose gagged.

“One, gross. I’m a carnivore, not a cannibal. Two, that’s a good question, but not one I’m willing to find the answer to. I mean, maybe? Ugh, just thinking about it makes me kinda nauseous.” Ah shrugged.

“Ah suppose. Ah mean, there are only so many sentient races on the planet. Ah figure it’s not a question of if ya could, but whether or not ya could ignore the morality of it. Like, if ya had ta do it ta survive, would ya?” He reared back.

“Are you inebriated or something? I’m pretty sure the alcohol is cooked out of the dish before they serve it…” he said as he started lookin’ though the menu. Ah shook my head.

“Nah, this isn’t that. Just curiosity, really. Aside from the griffon or stray big cat ya can find around Manehattan, Ah’ve never really talked ta somepony whose eaten somethin’… well, like me ya know? How much different am Ah from a cow ya could find across the ocean in Bovania or somethin’? Their bodies are of such a high value around the world that they’re constantly at war with themselves, and the slave trade is just terrible. What if that was us? We have laws against that for our own species, but that doesn’t change the fact that we can import beef and leather. My own jacket, the one that was my dad’s, is leather and Ah couldn’t imagine wearin’ anythin’ else in the winter, but that used ta be a cow’s skin. It just makes ya think, ya know?” When he was silent, the music in the air stated get my attention. Soft jazzy piano, A sting bass, a couple violins, and a drum kit. Ah could swear they were playin’ the same thin’ the whole time. When did they get here, anyways? This place was empty when Ah came in. Still don’t know what happened ta Rarity.

“You’re not turning into one of those 'green peace' ponies on me are you?” Goose said after a bit of a pause. Ah reared back, almost in disgust.

“You kiddin’ me? Ah’m not one of those tree huggin’ pussies. A carnivore has the same right ta live as much as a vegan does. Ah just think the culture around vegans is dumb. Ah mean, Ah just ate a lobster. Just cause it’s shellfish don’t mean it wasn’t alive at one point, Ah just don’t care.” Goose laughed.

“Wow, rude. I see you’re no less outspoken than you used to be. Well, if you’re ready for it, I’ve got one last thing before we can go and…” He let out a breath. “Talk about the past.” Ah nodded.

“As long as that one last thin’ isn’t dessert. Ah’m pretty sure Ah could force somethin’ down if Ah really tried, but it’d come back up in a hurry,” Ah said though a laugh.

“Nasty. Okay! Go ahead!” he yelled out ta the band. Everypony on the stage picked up their instruments and started ta fill the seats at the bar, patiently waitin’ and watchin’ the piano. From the back returned that server mare and she took a microphone that had been standin’ unused on the stage.

“We would like to zank our ‘onored guests zis evening for zeir patronage. As requested by monsieur Carcharodon, a special guest Will be playing a piece for us tonight. Please come back if you’ve enjoyed yourself tonight, and of course, try ze Champagne. We welcome madame Rarity Belle to ze stage.” She moved ta a seat at the bar herself, and then, sure enough, Rarity sauntered from the back room ta the piano, her shiny dress almost glowin’ in the low lightin’.

“So that’s where she went! Did y’all-” He stopped me.

“Shhh. Just listen. Of all the things I did for tonight, I think this is probably the most important.” He slid over next ta me and gave a signal ta Rarity, who flashed me a smile. As soon as she started playin’ the piece, it all made sense. When Sweetie said Rarity could make the piano come ta life, she wasn’t kiddin’. Ah didn’t even recognize it when Sweetie started this earlier, but now… the memories and nostalgia are all just floodin’ back ta the surface. She wasn’t just his mom, Swan Song was the mare who played the role of my mother fer those three years. Ah didn’t just forget Goose, Ah forgot her too. Everythin’ she used ta do, all the thin’s she taught me, and the one thin’ Ah never shoulda forgot, her voice.

This was the piece she would play at her house all the time, one that she would sing ta and dance the way she did, how it was almost hypnotizin’ the way she moved. As she played and Ah listened, the emotions from back then started comin’ back. All the fun we had, all the thin’s we shared, how sad we were after she died. By the time Rarity was finished, Ah didn’t even notice that Ah’d been cryin’ until Goose wiped away the tears on my cheeks.

“Ah’m… Ah’m so sorry. Ah never shoulda forgot. We never shoulda been separated, and… and all this is just so fucked up.” He pulled me in fer a hug and Ah noticed the tears on his own cheeks.

“Yeah. Yeah, it really is.” His voice was just as shaky as his touch. Ah wiped away his tears and reciprocated the hug.

“It’s been far too long, Catchy.”

Author's Note:

The piece Rarity plays - Ballade No. 1 in G minor, Op. 23