//------------------------------// // Epilogue // Story: The Stars of Darkness // by D4ftP0ny //------------------------------// Dear Princess Celestia, Because of the events of the past month, this letter will not only be my report to you about friendship, but also an update as to the state of repairs to Ponyville and Whinnyapolis. After Dark Star vanished and you returned to Canterlot, Luna was kind enough to teleport us back to Ponyville. Everything was in a shambles, as you can guess, but when we came back everypony was already working on getting things together. Even the ponies from Whinnyapolis, who had only been in our town for a few days, were lending a hoof wherever they could. It was an inspiring sight, and our victorious return only added to the atmosphere; we held a party that night, despite the work that needed to be done, and Luna returned to celebrate with us. It was great to have your sister join us, and it was obvious to me that she needed cheering up. Pinkie Pie took that job upon herself, of course, and by the end of the night Luna was laughing and smiling. It warmed my heart to see her enjoying herself, Your Highness, and I thought you would like to know that she seemed happy, despite what had happened. The next day we started repairs in earnest. It was a lot of hard work, but by the end of the next week, most of the damage in Ponyville had been repaired. This was great news to those of us who live here, but it did nothing to help the displaced ponies from Whinnyapolis. That was when Mayor Mare made a decision; that Ponyville would send every filly, foal, stallion and mare that it could along with the refugees back to Whinnyapolis to begin repairs, and that they would leave the next day. Of course, we all volunteered. Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash took a while to get back to normal. Applejack refused to go anywhere without Fluttershy for almost a week, until the effects of the Element of Anger completely wore off; she was a little out of sorts for that week, but thanks to Fluttershy’s quiet, polite nature, she pulled through just fine. She told us she was ready for work. Even after our talk in the library before the last fight, Rainbow Dash was so quiet the first few days after Dark Star’s fall that I was really worried that she would never really get better. I thought for sure that Falling Star had worked fear so deeply into her mind that she would never free herself from it. She didn’t even fly for a few days! Rainbow Dash! Not flying! It felt like the world was going to end. However, thanks have to go again to Pinkie Pie, who would not leave Rainbow alone until she took a flight early in the morning (and you know how persistent Pinkie Pie can be). The love that Rainbow has for flying helped her overcome her fear, and now she’s the same old Rainbow Dash… although she really doesn’t want to talk about what happened between herself and Falling Star. I won’t press her. Rarity is still having problems, even as I write this. Dark Star knew what he was doing when he sent Morningstar to Rarity; she fell into jealousy easier than any of the rest of us would, and she’s horrified by the things she thought and said. She’s begged us to forgive her, tried to make up for it, has done everything she can think of to make it as though the whole thing didn’t happen… but it did. We’ve forgiven her, of course, but she’s going to have to take time to forgive herself. Anyway, we set out for Whinnyapolis the next day, and after a nice night of camping out, we made it to the ruins of the city. Everypony was pretty discouraged by the sight, but Mayor Mare (who told us that she would be coming to help, no matter who tried to stop her) helped me organize different teams for different tasks, and work began. It didn’t take long for other ponies to show up; the entire population of Whinnyapolis came back to rebuild their home, and ponies from every town that had sheltered refugees sent some of their craftsponies to help! It was really a breathtaking sight, watching all those ponies helping each other. I still get tears thinking about it, so I apologize if the letter is splotched. As for Wild Wings, Morninglight and Shooting Star, they stuck around to help. Morninglight and I have become friends and she’s helped me further my magical studies! Oh, the spells she knows, Princess! She’s not as powerful or as amazing as you, but it’s so nice to have a unicorn to work with who shares the same passion for learning and knowledge that I do. Together, we’ve built several houses with just our magic! Can you believe it? She’s truly repentant for what she did, but sometimes she still gets that jealous look in her eye; luckily, all I have to is give her the eyebrow arch, and she blushes and apologizes. We’re working on it, and I have high hopes for her. Wild Wings and Shooting Star returned to Cloudsdale with Rainbow Dash for a few days, but have returned to help rebuild Whinnyapolis. They told me that they were happy to return to their ancestral home, but that they knew most of the ponies there wouldn’t believe who they were. I asked if that really mattered to them, and Wild Wings just smiled and told me that he didn’t really care if anypony figured out that they were the real Wild Wings and Shooting Star or not; they knew who they were, and they were just glad to be back. Wild Wings apologized to Applejack so many times that I was starting to think it was the only thing he could say. He refused to leave her side, which I could tell was making poor Applejack uncomfortable. Finally, after almost all the rebuilding was done, he and Applejack took some time off to talk together, and after a few hours they returned, walking together and smiling, even though they both looked like they’d been crying. I asked Applejack what had happened, and she just smiled at me and said, “I promised I’d keep our lil’ talk a secret, sugarcube; Wild Wings said he’d talk ‘bout it when he’s ready, but for now, it’s between us.” As for Shooting Star… well, he still doesn’t talk much- I guess he never did. Rainbow Dash told me that he’d asked for her forgiveness in Cloudsdale and she’d given it, but when they returned, the only pony he wanted to spend any time with was Pinkie Pie. They’ve been working together on everything, rarely going anywhere without the other; at first I thought they were just friends… but THEN I caught them one night, staring at each other and blushing! I guess opposites do attract! And with as much as Pinkie can talk, it’s probably a good thing Shooting Star doesn’t do much of his own. It’s hard to say exactly what will happen between them, but I wish them the best, and Pinkie knows how much we love her; I for one (and I can’t believe I’m writing this) trust her judgment completely. I don’t know if you knew, but Luna has been helping us, as well. We’ve been working during the nights as well, and Princess Luna was spearheading that effort. Recently, Mayor Quill and Mayor Mare announced that enough of the city had been rebuilt that we could all return home. There was an amazing party, held by the ponies of Whinnyapolis. It was a time of very mixed emotions, Princess; we’d all been through so much together that it was hard to leave our new friends, but we all knew that it was the best thing for now. Towards the end of the party I wandered off- Pinkie Pie mixed her Ponyville Packsa-Punch a little stronger than she usually did, and I needed some air- and I found Luna sitting outside of the lights, staring at the stars. I started to ask her what she was doing, but I saw tears in her eyes, so I stopped; however, she knew I was there and turned to me, a sad smile on her face. I knew without asking that she was thinking about Dark Star. I smiled with her, went forward and sat next to her. Neither of us spoke; I don’t know exactly how long we sat, but we sat there through the rest of the party. Finally, after all the lights were out and all the other ponies were in bed, Luna rose. “Come with me, Twilight Sparkle,” she said. Then, without warning, she teleported us all the way back to Ponyville, right into my library! We walked to the center of the room, and Luna’s horn glowed again. From the kitchen, a large saucer and a pitcher of water floated out; the saucer settled onto the table, and the pitcher poured its water into the basin before setting next to it. I recognized the magic she was working, a scrying spell, but I didn’t say anything; even for your sister, it takes concentration to find what you’re looking for. Luna muttered a few words, and the water in the basin went completely still, then began to glow. I stepped up to see what was in the water, even though I had a pretty good idea what would be there. It was a small hut, tucked away in a forest somewhere. It was probably only one room, very similar to the one our friend Zecora lives in out in the Everfree Forest. Out in front of the hut hung a sword, one that we are all very familiar with, and I knew that Dark Star must live there. I turned to Princess Luna, and her eyes were filled with tears. I couldn’t help but feel so sad for her, Princess… to have the pony you love leave, never knowing where he would go or what he would do; finally, I worked up my courage and asked a question that had been on my mind since our confrontation with the Elements of Destruction. “Princess Luna… do you think you’ll ever see him again?” Your sister’s tears dripped into the basin, causing the picture to waver, but her smile was hopeful. “I will live a very long life, Twilight Sparkle,” she said quietly. “I’ve seen many, many things since I was born, and I will see many more before my time here is done. I have seen triumph and defeat, happiness and loss, joy and pain… but nothing as strong as love and hate.” She turned her eyes to me, and they were so sad, Princess, that I started to cry as well. “Dark Star has so much hate inside him that it would not surprise me if he never defeats it… but I cannot help but feel… deep in my heart… that our love is stronger than his hate. Maybe, someday, he’ll come back to me.” We both looked back to the basin, and before our eyes, the image shimmered; the hut went from well kept to a shambles, run-down and abandoned, and the sword was gone; it was clear that nopony had lived there in a very long time. I couldn’t tell what the basin was showing us, the present, the future, or even a POSSIBLE future… but Luna sobbed, and her eyes were full of hope once again. “Someday…” she whispered. These past few weeks I have learned a lot about friendship. I learned that no matter what happens or what you do, a true friend, one who knows your heart as well as (and sometimes better than) you do will never give up on you, no matter how angry or jealous you get or how fearful and withdrawn you become- your friends will be there, and even if they can’t help you through it, they’ll be there afterwards to help you pick up the pieces of what’s left. And sometimes, that’s all you have. I also learned that friendship can’t defeat hate. Hate is blind to every wonderful, magical thing that friendship offers, and try as you might you simply can’t break hate. The only thing that can defeat hate is love, and even that doesn’t destroy hate; it simply makes it seem insignificant, and makes it easier to turn your back on it. Only time, combined with love, can destroy hate- and luckily, time is something we ALL have plenty of. Always your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ THE END