Farewell to a friend
Twilight sat at her desk, as she usually did, writing away at the page of the large book before her. This was not out of the usual for her, as she commonly documented the day's discoveries and events in this book. It was both a combination of her diary and journal and had recorded all of the past three hundred years of her life. She sighed as she set the quill she held down on the desk, her memories slowly running through her mind like a reel of moving pictures. She had lived a full life, together with her true love and husband Spike.
They had been together though thick and thin, through the good times and the bad, and the fruits of their love rested even now in the small crib to her left. She smiled broadly and slid off the chair, walking over to the crib and resting her head on the edge as she stared at the child inside. Her daughter slept peacefully, sucking on her hoof and curled up in a tight ball. Twilight bent down and kissed the baby gently on the head before carefully tucking her in. The child snuffled and rolled over causing Twilight's smile to broaden a bit more as she returned to her seat, looking down at the book once more.
She couldn't have had a better life, and despite her happiness, there had been pain as well. Her smiled faded quickly as her mind turned to her friends and family. Naturally, as so much time had passed, they all had passed into the world beyond. Twilight wiped her moist eyes impatiently and picked her quill back up. Despite her determination to remain focused on her work, her eyes drifted unbidden to the wall across from her. Displayed upon it was a large collection of photographs spanning across all the years of life she had lived. Her eyes stared from her wedding photo's to various birthdays, to Rarity's wedding, to the birth of her first son, followed by Rarity's first child.
So on down the line of history the photo's went until the pain of time began to show. With each passing decade, her friends grew older and older, lines deepening in their faces and bodies growing frail and old. Fifty years after Twilight had been wedded, her parents had passed away. This event had devastated both her and Shining Armor, as well as their children, and from their, her pain seemed endless. Twenty years after her parents, the first of her friends passed away, Rainbow Dash. It had been heart breaking to hear the news of her passing. After her went Pinkie Pie, then Fluttershy, followed by Applejack, and finally Rarity.
Even though a few years separated each of them, Twilight's increased longevity meant that time was noticed in the passing of decades, not singular years. In this, the passing of each of her sister like friends had been like repeated stabs of agony to her heart. After they had died, Twilight truly understood the suffering of Celestia, who had lived for thousands of years after the death of her husband and first born son.
If it had not been for Spike, Cadence, and Shining Armor, she doubted she'd have made it through it at all. Shining Armor was one of the only members of her family, apart from her children, nephews and nieces, who still lived. Cadence had bound his life to her own, so as long as she remained the Princess of the Crystal empire, he would remain young and full of life.
It gave her some comfort to still have him, but most of her comfort came from Spike, who went with her yearly to the graves of her friends to pay their respects. She felt her heart lift a little as she looked away from the wall of her memories and looked back down at her desk. Even after three hundred years, she still loved her husband with all her heart, and the fruits of their union were clearly evident in many places in Equestria. It pleased her to have so many children and grandchildren, and even great grandchildren. Family reunions were always fun as she often had many descendants that she hadn't met yet.
She smiled a little as she looked over to the sleeping babe in the crib beside her. She always found comfort and purpose in raising her children. Twilight slid of her chair again and quietly rocked the crib with her magic while humming gently to the little girl inside. The child smiled and cuddled deeper into the wrappings of her blankets and sighed gently. Twilight's heart lifted even further as she bent down and kissed the child on the forehead.
"Oh little one, how I love you so."
This phrase she had said numerous times and yet she never tired of saying it. She continued to rock the crib gently for a few moments but froze when scaled arms wrapped around her neck. She felt the dragon kiss her neck gently as he rubbed her neck slowly, causing a shiver to run down her spine. She looked into the emerald green eyes of her husband and kissed him tenderly before turning her gaze back to their daughter.
Spike slid around to stand beside her and looked upon the child as well, his heart filling with pride at the little life before him. As with all of their children, he took great joy in them, loving and raising them each as though they were the first. It showed in all his children, the depth of his love for them and how much his caring had shaped them as they had grown and they each had grown into outstanding parents and friends to others in their own right.
He reached down into the crib with one hand and gently caressed the side of her cheek causing the child to giggle softly and attempt to cuddle nearer to the paw. He smiled at his daughter before turning his attention back to Twilight and asking, "Have you heard anything from Celestia?"
Twilight's frown returned and she shook her head. Over the past few weeks, the Princess had been rather secluded and quite, not sending her usual letters to Twilight until three days ago, when she sent a cryptic letter to Twilight telling her that she would write again in a few days, "when it was time."
This last line had confused her, but she trusted that whatever it was that the princess was doing would come to light in due time. Until then, all there was for her to do was wait, wait for the Princess to write. She moved to sit back at her desk when a spat of coughing came from the crib. In an instant twilight spun around and moved to the side of the crib so fast she was almost a blur.
Her daughter was awake, sitting up with a look of apparent discomfort on her face as she coughed. Twilight couldn't see anything in the area that could cause the child to be coughing like this. She was about to use magic to sense what may be wrong when the child let out a small burp and a tongue of flame shot from her mouth, a folded and sealed letter forming from within the fire and dropping to the bedding.
The baby looked at the smoking envelope and cautiously sniffed at it before grimacing and backing away from it. Twilight smiled lightly and patted the child's head before picking up the envelope and opening it. The letter inside surprised her as the writing within was most definitely not Celestia's.
The letter read,
"Dear Twilight and Spike.
I am Soleilla, chosen mare to be the princess' successor. I am writing to inform you that Celestia has stepped down as princess of the sun. She said you would know what this means and has requested that you be with her in these final hours of her life. I'm sorry that our first correspondence could not be under better circumstances."
Twilight's heart felt as though it had stopped beat as she reached the end of this very short note. Her mind felt like it was spiraling into a free fall as she dropped the letter and fell to her haunches, staring at the floor. Spike looked questioningly from her to the letter on the floor and picked it up. After quickly scanning it his own head dropped to his chest and he clenched the letter in his closed fist. After a long moment of Silence he looked back up at Twilight and said, "Well, we better be going to her then. I don't want her feeling as though we have forgotten her."
Twilight sniffed and stamped her hoof against the floor angrily before demanding, "Why didn't she tell me?! Why is she doing this?!"
Spike sighed and tried to pull Twilight to her hooves, the attempt to overcome her anger steadied his own shaky feelings as he said,
"Because she knew that you'd react negatively if she had told you. I know you Twilight, you'd have tried to stop her."
Twilight refused to budge and remained stubbornly on the floor as she again demanded an answer to the second of her questions. Spike growled and picked Twilight up before setting her down on her hooves again and said,
"I don't know Twilight, maybe she felt the time had come for her to move on, after all, she's been around for almost five millenia, over four of them was spent bereft of the one she loved."
Twilight's anger cooled somewhat as she dropped her gaze to the floor, thinking over what Spike had said. He was right, Celestia had lived for thousands of years and had been nearly alone all this time, suffering again and again with each century that passed, with each century that brought new pain as her new friends passed away. Twilight could empathize with the Princess and her plight, but that did not mean that her heart wasn't burdened with sorrow at what was to come. She lifted her head to gaze at Spike, fresh tears sliding down her cheeks as she said in a slightly strained voice, "Its just not fair. Why? Why do all of my friends have to die and now my mentor and longest lived companion? It just isn't fair..."
Spike brushed her tears away with the back of his claw and said, "I know Twilight, I know. But there's nothing we can do to halt the advance of time. It is eternally patient and always wins. All we can do now is go and be with her, as she asked us to do."
Twilight sighed shakily and nodded, turning back to her desk and pulling open a drawer. She pulled out an enchanted mirror that she used to keep in contact with her children and asked the eldest of them, her first born son, to come and watch his sister. He agreed and Twilight returned the mirror to the drawer before turning back to Spike, her face looking drawn and older as she moved toward him. When she stood next to him, she focused her magic and teleported herself and Spike into Canterlot Castle, just outside the door to the Princess' chambers.
Upon landing she noticed the guards standing outside the door wore black capes that trailed to the floor, both of them looking red eyed as they stood there, resolute in their duty to Celestia. When they saw the new pair, they nodded and opened the door, permitting them access. Twilight stepped over the threshold and fresh tears formed in her eyes when she beheld Celestia. The princess had aged significantly, her once strong and proud body now was thin and frail. Her face was lined with age, wrinkles present on her cheeks and under her eyes. She no longer wore her crown or necklace which were both being worn by an alicorn that Twilight had never seen before.
This new pony turned towards Twilight as she entered, a sadden look on her face as she stood back from the bed saying, "I'm glad you came. She is resting peacefully." Twilight looked briefly at this new alicorn, who's coat was a deep gold in color, she also had Celestia's cutie mark on her flank, showing her ascension to Princess of the sun. Twilight nodded to her and moved toward the bed kneeling down beside the bed and reaching out with one hoof to touch Celestia's left foreleg. The touch caused the old alicorn to stir and open her eyes, which fixed upon the unicorn beside her, a smile spreading across her face. She attempted to sit up a little in her bed but seemed to lack the strength to do much more than to move her forelegs, let alone push herself up.
Twilight insisted that Celestia conserve her strength but Celestia ignored her eventually asking for assistance in rising up. Spike took Celestia by her fore hooves and pulled her into a sitting position. Once she was sitting she opened her forelegs wide and embraced Twilight, whispering in a tired voice into her ear, "With what life I have left Twilight, I would spend it with you, my friend."
Twilight's eyes filled with tears as she returned the embrace before whispering back, "Why must you die? Why do you have to go?"
Celestia's grip slackened on Twilight, who gently laid the her back down into her bed, pulling the blankets up closer to her. Celestia sighed wearily and said in a quite voice, "It is, my dear Twilight, what nature demands. All life has an end, mine is no different. It is the fulfillment of the cycle, of birth, life, and finally, death."
She sighed wearily and laid her head on her pillow, closing her eyes and pausing for a moment before continuing,
"I am sorry Twilight, that I can no longer fight nature."
Twilight let out a choked sob as she moved closer to Celestia's bed and smoothed out the old rulers mane, tears spilling from her eyes as she said, "Celestia, I've lost so many friends, so many loved ones, I don't want to lose you too."
Celestia looked back down at Twilight and said,
"I know Twilight, but the ones you love are never truly gone from you, they are always with you, in your heart and in spirit."
She smiled slightly and sighed resting on the pillows of the bed. Twilight was not truly comforted by the words of Celestia, and continued to stroke the princess' mane. The princess closed her eyes and smiled a bit more as Twilight continued to cry. She moved and hugged the princess, as she would her own mother, holding her tightly as if to let her go would be to end the world. She heard the princess' heart beating in her chest, weaker than she had ever heard it in her entire life. She felt the princess' foreleg slide around her head as she whispered to her, in a voice barely above a whisper,
"My precious little girl, I've watched you grow and live, a life full of love and friendship. I am as proud of you as I am of my own children and love you just the same."
Twilight choked back a sob at this and said in a weak whisper, "I love you too..."
Celestia continued to embrace Twilight, holding her with all the strength she had left. Even as Twilight listened, the beating of Celestia's heart slow, beating slower and slower until in one moment...silence sounded from within. Twilight let out a shuddering sob and held the princess tighter, but even as she gripped tighter to the princess, Celestia's foreleg grew slack and slid to the bed. All in the room bowed their head solemnly as somewhere in the distance, a mournful horn blew echoing out across the land, proclaiming to all the passing of Celestia.
The moon dimmed, the earth trembled and the sea's stilled as Luna, Tetran, and Ocaena grieved, the nature of the world falling still in reverence to the Princess. Spike knelt beside Twilight and wrapped his arms around her, his own tear stained face pressed against her as he tried to comfort her. Twilight raised her head to stare at the princess, a look of such peace upon her face as she had finally found rest.
Twilight continued to cry even as She turned to her husband, throwing herself into his arms and begged him with her tears for him to hold her close. He gripped her tightly, trying to avoid looking at the princess' body, his claws slowly stroking Twilight's mane. A silence of such absolution had filled the room apart from the gasped sobs and sniffling as all present mourned. After what could have been hours, Spike finally said in a strained voice,
"Twilight, we should head home...There are others who need to know..."
Twilight sniffed heavily and forced her breathing to slow, looking up into Spike's face, seeing her own sorrow mirrored in his eyes. She coughed slightly and nodded. They both gave one last look to Celestia's body before turning to leave. As they made their way across the room something warm touched her cheek. She thought that it was one of Spike's tears but no, he was just behind her. She looked up towards the ceiling and froze. A chink of light seemed to be shining through the stone of the ceiling, bright and golden. Falling from the light was what could only be described as snow, made of light, drifting slowly to the floor. Another of these light snowflakes landed on her cheek and warmth spread through her, easing her hurt and pain. The light grew larger and larger, spreading out across the ceiling to gasps from the gathered ponies.
The light snow fell throughout the room as it grew out towards Celestia. A ray of golden light fell onto the princess' face as the pool of light cleared to reveal what lay beyond. An enormous island suspended it clouds of gold and silver, in a sea of golden light, with mountains tall and proud reaching up infinitely into the many star like lights above. Rolling fields and pastures stretched out across the island and a golden city sat at its heart. On the bank of the gold sea stood a tall figure clearly visible despite the obvious distance. An armored dragon, with gold and silver scales stood there, looking out towards Celestia with obvious longing. He stepped towards the edge of the ocean before stepping upon the golden waves as if they were solid earth. He continued to walk upon the golden sea towards them when Twilight heard a noise behind her.
She turned to see to her amazement that the princess was sitting up. Her skin and mane returning to their youthful appearance, as she stepped onto the light and climbed from her bed into the golden ocean. Her face was transported and distant, a joyful gleam in her eyes as she made it into the hole and began to walk across the ocean of light towards the dragon. At first her steps were uncertain and slow as she tested her footing but she soon broke into a gallop as she dashed towards the dragon, tears streaming behind her as she went. The dragon ran forward as well and threw his arms open as she leaped for him, catching Celestia in his arms and holding her tight. He kissed her tenderly, and she held him tight, the two lovers finally again reunited. Twilight's eyes moistened with renewed tears, but this time of joy as she watched Celestia embrace her love of so long ago, the light of heaven falling upon both of them.
Her attention was diverted away from them as she saw movement upon the shores of the island. She looked into the distance and thought that her heart would explode with happiness as she saw all five of her friends sitting upon its bank waving towards her, their family standing behind them waving as well. Her tears flowed from her eyes as she reached out towards them and in her mind and around her body could feel them hugging and talking to her, wishing her the best and reminding her that they would never be truly gone. Twilight's eyes sparkled and glistened as the renewed companionship within her slowly dimmed away until it became a warmth in her heart that would never leave her. She looked back over to Celestia and her love, the great dragon king, Valukan, to see them walking off towards the island, a visible aura of joy and happiness surrounding them, lifting the hearts and spirits of all those present to see it.
As the golden opening to the heavens above slowly began to close again, Celestia looked back towards Twilight, her face full of happiness. She smiled at Twilight and said in an echoing voice, "I shall always be watching you Twilight. Live your life to the fullest and never forget, we will see each other again." Twilight wiped away her tears and nodded to her waving goodbye to her old friends as the open doorway to the heavens shrank to the small chink of light and finally vanished. Twilight continued to stare at the ceiling for a long while until Spike slid his arm around her neck and gave her a squeeze before asking, "Ready to go home?"
Twilight looked away from the ceiling to focus on him and said, "Yes, we have children that I want to see."
Spike smiled slightly, and together they left the room, comforted by the knowledge of what lay awaiting them at the end of their long journey.