Epilogue
"Prim Rose was not an extraordinary pony," Luna said, voice strong to carry over the crowd dressed in black, from her position on a dias with an ornate coffin behind her.
She took a slow breath, staying calm, maintaining the image of a princess, even in grief.
"She took great pains to remind us, when the subject of skill or talent would arise, that she could do no more than any other pony. Her skill with her magic was trained, and simple. Her courtly manners could slip, and she had no knowledge of heraldry besides what she was taught here. She said once that she obtained her position by being in the right place when a kind face was needed."
Luna smiled and shook her head.
"But we would say that she was more. She did not give up, she did not take excuses to do the wrong thing, and she never grew tired of proving her Princess wrong. Whether in matters of politics, or those of society, she was willing to state her beliefs, and fight for them for as long as she believed that it was right.
"Many of our staff were trained by or at least overseen by Prim. She could be a stern mistress, and would not allow for mistakes in our protection. But we have heard my times that those who work with us considered her family. An aunt, a sister, even a mother," She gestured to the children of the night, who were all gathered with their own families, silver stars shining from every cloak and hat.
She could see Nova, one of the eldest, trying to hide her tears from her grandchildren.
"We considered Prim Rose to be the sun to my moon, in our sister's absence," Luna continued, voice rough, trying not to let her scowl show at her own poetic avoidance of the truth. "With Prim Rose passes the anchor that helped us weather the Daybreaker. To withstand the war, and politics which sought to prove that we were somehow unfit. But in her absence she has not left us alone. She has left us with family. With loyal and honest ponies who shall serve us well. Prim would tell us all that there is work to be done, so let that work be done, and her memory be cherished."
Luna turned, and as she raised the sun she lowered Prim into her grave, watching the sunrise light play across the glossy varnish on the wood. She then bowed low and could hear every pony present bowing as well.
Thus, the passing marked, the crowd quickly cleared but for a few who knew to stay.
Nova, without her family. A few thestrals. Silver Decanter. It was a small gathering.
Though Princess Spring tried to approach, some of Luna's guards took her aside, finding contrived reasons to keep her attention away from the true service, which was only for the ears of those who knew the truth of Prim and Luna.
"She was extraordinary," Nova insisted, gathering nods of eager agreement from the others.
"Is a mare extraordinary simply for whom she wouldst love?" Luna asked, head low.
"Yes, if the love changes lives, grows the one it seeks, loving may be an act of rebellion, if one holds true," one of the thestrals said with all the passion of a young lover.
"So she was remarkable," Luna agreed, shaking her head slightly. "Tis no great lie, many more have been spoken by Princesses, a eulogy may as well be the same."
"We do not object because it was a lie, we object because thou ought to be allowed to see her for who she was. A wonderful mare who had a great love for thee," Silver said, his voice soft and full of worry.
Luna let out a strangled sob, quiet and through a grimacing expression, trying to hold it back as tears began to form. Her friends and family stepped closer, pressing in to protect her.
"We should go," Luna mumbled, trying to turn away but feeling Nova next to her, that comforting warmth and closeness of her daughter.
"No, we should not," Silver said sharply, standing proud. "This is thy land, Princess. Thy time. We shall make it that thou shalt have it for as long as needed."
The arguing in the distance was masked by Luna's sobbing as she stepped forward and laid down, her nose nearly to the edge of the grave, but her eyes closed.
"I cannot live without her!" She whimpered as Nova's hoof traveled from the back of her head, down her neck, and back up to try and offer a small bit of comfort. "I shall surely die, for there is nothing to live for now!"
"Prim would never wish for thee to pass," Nova insisted gently. "Thy ponies need thee, and thou shalt love again."
Luna shoved Nova aside, fury burning through her heart.
"I care not for another. Six hundred years without love, to wait for another is an insult! An insult to what I've lost. Didst thou know?! Of dear Spring's demand?! I must forget her! My love for her must become a secret!"
"Just as ours," one of the guards said, stepping up and dragging a more timid thestrals with her. "Yes. A secret, your Majesty. A secret but not dead, for we love! Our love shall never die, even if we do. Thou shalt have a vast life ahead, and in that life, Prim shall live longer than any of us. Should Princess Spring be punished for her cruelty and insolence? I would carry out the order myself, but I shall not stand aside and let thee call it all for naught, just for lack of recognition."
Luna turned away from the guard, struggling to fight her emotions away, and trying to ignore her own muffled sobs. But her anger had no outlet, and she felt as though it might rip her apart.
"I could burn the whole world to ash," Luna mumbled, vision blurry from tears as she watched the ponies tense. "I could become like my sister, destroy everything and start anew, in the way I wish."
"Thou art too kind," Silver said, though he sounded a bit scared. "Too kind to kill the innocent."
"Maybe so, but who is truly innocent?" Luna asked bitterly.
The group stood there, reeling from the loaded question, until the guards stepped closer and embraced Luna. Despite all of Luna's fury, she fell apart in more tears, and she laid there for hours with the only ponies who she considered family, trying to hold onto Prim's smile in that final kiss.
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Is it weird that I feel kind of relieved that she's gone? Through out the whole story there's that thought in the back of my mind saying that Prim is going to die one day and l wouldn't know when to expect it (though at least you gave a bit of warning in the previous chapter).
Anyway, beautifully written as always. Even got me to shed a tear or two (correction: cry my eyes out).
8725595
Thank you so very much, and I hope that you stick around for the sequel! I made a blog post!
8725613
YOU'RE MAKING A SEQUEL?!?!
8725615
Luna lives on! After all, the story was just as much about Luna as it was about Prim!
Message repeats
8725618
I'm glad! I was wondering if you were going to continue because leaving it where it was didn't feel right 😅
I'm looking forward to the sequel 👍 just don't let it come out too soon, I'm recovering lol
8725623
Thank you for catching that for me!
So somber a tale, yet one that must be told
for in shadow, perhaps, one shall find the bold
8733594
Hah! I wasn't even thinking about Prim. Madame "Chryssy" was more what I was going for.
8733755
Oh! Yeah Yeah, I really enjoyed that! Hehe, I like working in secrets that become relevant, and I think tying up relationships in mystery is lots of fun!
I'm glad it was still a surprise despite the name!
8734625
I'm sure if I wasn't much of an idiot I would have noticed it, haha
How many stories will be in this series?
9017525
Six stories total. This one, the previous one, and four more.
(edited, meant the one I'm working on now, this one, and the following four)
A beautiful story, and very well thought out.
And on a minor note, I applaud you for being able to keep up the archaic English all the way through.
9247521
Hah! I did a couple editing passes and I pulled waaaaaay back from where I started. After all there's a far cry between "cute Luna-style archaic english" and "Hwý and âlibban ðêos to weargbr¯æde hêan leornere?" Old english, or even the one-step-further I thought about going which would be a little harder to read but well beyond what I settled with.
A truely great story and I think I am not able to finde the correct words to discribe how mutch I love this stroy and I Hope the next stories will be just as good if not better.
Keep up the good work and I will now start to read the sequel.
9374535
Thank you, thank you so much for this message. It means a lot to me and pushes me to keep writing when someone enjoys my stories. I'm glad I've been able to keep writing these stories!
My goodness, this story is amazing.
The characters, gosh, the characters. They are so amazing. I love how you introduced Prim slowly and allowed her characterization to take shape as the story did, particularly with how you weaved her inexperience in both a big city and in castle life into the story without making it so overt as to be annoying. She was so innocent yet so very wise, and that's a hard combination to pull off. Sparkle is wonderful too, how she starts as disdainful of Prim but grows into a likable character in her own right, and you perfectly portrayed her conflict between duty to the solar crown and Celestia.
Speaking of Celestia, I did not expect this story to take that turn with her. Serious props for that twist. I will say her downfall scene felt kinda rushed compared to the rest of the story, but it also makes sense. Battle is a confusing, rapid thing. Honestly, though, I think you did an amazing job handling Celestia's character and motivations. How you slowly delivered the explanation of the pressures she faced as the sole ruler of a nation was great.
And this brings us to Luna, then, doesn't it. Holy crap. I love her. You nailed her speech pattern so well. Actually, you just got the speech right across the board. But anyway, I really like how you made her knowledgable to Celestia's plans to plant a senechal in Luna's court, and at least suspect of what the nobles were planning to do. It really added a lot to her depth of character. You did a really good job showing her cleverness and how she cares for everypony regardless of station, especially with how she implemented changes to the nation in the years following Celestia's fall. Also, such believable and intense emotion! Truly masterful.
If there's anything I could complain about it would be Sali's later scenes, which I found kinda confusing. But... I also suspect that was part of the point, because it mirrored how Prim was feeling about herself at the time. I wasn't surprised by Sali's twist, based purely on the name, but I am extremely pleased with her overall arc and story. You gave it such purpose and meaning.
I'm... really not sure what I think about the last few chapters. They're so densely packed with emotion that it's... just wow. The love Luna feels, the bitterness she harbors for the laws against that love, the attempts to prolong Prim's life out of fear of losing her, and the pain of losing her anyway... it's so expressive and infectious and heavy, yet somehow hopeful. I didn't want this story to end. It was such a journey, and one I happily look forward to continuing with the next volume.
10113158
I may just frame this comment and point at it when I'm feeling sad, lol. Thank you so very much for your kind words and review, and I really hope you like the next one just as much!
A wonderful story. It shall be added to my favorites immediately, and I shall cherish Prim Rose.
Alas, I must close this book, so I may seek out its sequel, for luna needs more love for her aching heart.
10227929
Thank you so very much. I really hope that you enjoy the sequel, it's almost done! Then I can start the next one!
10228769
eeeeeeeeee gives you all the hugs!!!!
Ok, Ive added this to my reading list.
I almost forgot about that one! I look forward to seeing how this one compares to RIM. I think I still have RIM 1-5 Somewhere.
The Monk
“....... And it's the cowgirl with a disturbing love of apples.” -Hawker Hurricane
10237807
I hope you enjoy it and the sequel which is nearing the 80% completion point now.
If the main OCs in this story were voiced, what would they sound like? Or did I already ask this?
10262756
You did, but here's the answer:
Prim Rose would sound like this: Beth Malone
Not hard to apply any accent over her voice, logically since I'm following a European historical timeline, she'd have an american-mix accent, since This Article explains that the American accent is closer to what was spoken back then.
Luna would sound exactly as Luna does in the show of course, she's so close to being an OC here. Sali would sound a lot like Cadance, Golden Sparkle would sound like a female Blueblood with a lot more huffing and breathy intonation. Tao and Evenstar would both have the kind of lower raspy voice that make people unsure if they're speaking with a man or a woman, though they try to match eachother's voice on purpose to blend in, Tao has the deeper voice and Evenstar could easily speak closer to Prim.
Nova Star as a child would sound like Scootaloo but with Sweetie Belle's pronunciation. Very proper but forceful and brash.
If you have any others you're curious about, let me know!