Fluttershy opened the door to reveal two distraught ponies. The look on their faces spoke volumes.
"It's Rarity. Isn't it?" Fluttershy said quietly before either of her visitors could speak.
"Yes, b-but how did you know?" Twilight asked shockingly.
"Somepony told me goodbye just before I opened the door," said Fluttershy.
Pinkie Pie stood there with her mouth open in surprise while Twilight's facial expression had changed from somber to concerned. Another one of her friends is now hearing voices of the others. She began to wonder if what Rainbow Dash told her about the Hall of Elements was correct.
"Tell me, how did she go?" Fluttershy asked her two remaining friends.
Twilight and Pinkie looked at each other as if to decide who should break the news before Twilight answered.
"According to Lonely Heart, she died peacefully in her sleep."
Fluttershy breathed a sigh of relief knowing that her high-class friend didn't suffer any more than she had in the last 28 years, however she was also sad knowing that Happy Hooves would be without a mother for the second time.
"Yo girls, what's with the low vibes?" asked Vinyl Scratch as she entered the room with a towel around herself. "It's almost like somepony... oh... OH!" Vinyl caught herself as she realized what she about to say actually happened.
"Rarity died last night, Scratchie," Fluttershy responded.
"Aw, horsefeathers. You girls were really close," Vinyl said as she gently rubbed Fluttershy's back.
"Mmhm," replied Pinkie, who was unusually quiet.
"Lonely Heart was hoping you would be able to get your songbird choir to sing alongside Sweetie Belle for the funeral," Twilight told Fluttershy.
Fluttershy thought a moment before giving a response. The songbirds hadn't done any performances in the last year or so and she wondered if they'd be able to pull it off given the short practice time. But this was to celebrate the life of a dear friend, so Fluttershy told her friends that she would do her best to get the birds ready.
"Pinkie, are you going to be throwing a party for Rarity like you did for Rainbow Dash and Applejack?" Vinyl Scratch asked.
"Absolutely, I was thinking about asking you to DJ at the party like did last year for Applejack's," Pinkie replied.
"Please make sure Pinkie makes a chocolate cake for the party, Fluttershy."
A small smile made it's way onto Fluttershy's face, joining the tears that were leaking from her eyes, as she heard Rarity's request. The others noticed the smile and asked the pegasus what was going on.
"Oh, um, just Rarity wants her favorite flavor of cake for her reception," Fluttershy quietly said, earning confused looks from the other three ponies.
"Woah there!" Vinyl finally said. "Is Rarity talking to you? That's deep."
"So it's true..." Twilight said barely above a whisper.
"What's true?" Pinkie asked.
"That the Hall of Elements gets stronger as each pony passes on," Twilight said. "The last time I was there Rainbow Dash told me that as time goes on, the magic joining the dimensional gap has been growing stronger and when Applejack passed last year there was a large boost of magic to it."
"So that means that we can talk to them whenever now?" a confused Pinkie Pie asked.
"I'm not sure. I'll have to ask the girls when I go to the Hall after Rarity's funeral," Twilight responded.
Fluttershy wheeled herself into the Ponyville Cemetery with three wreaths, one diamond-shaped, one apple-shaped and one lightning bolt-shaped and three gifts. It had become a personal tradition to lay a wreath and gift on Rainbow Dash, Applejack and Rarity's graves every Hearth's Warming Eve over the last four years.
This gets surprisingly harder every year, Fluttershy thought sadly as she approached the three tombstones marking her friend's graves.
"It's *sniff* that time of year again, girls," Fluttershy said as she fought the tears in her eyes. "I brought you each *sniff* a new wreath for your graves and a Hearth's Warming Gift like usual."
"What did you get us?" came from what sounded like Rainbow Dash's voice.
After looking around a moment to find where the voice came from before replying.
"Well, each of the *sniff* gifts are from Twilight, Pinkie and I," Fluttershy responded. "Dashie, we got you *sniff* a six-pack of Special Reserve Apple Cider. Applejack, there's a new *sniff* hat for you in your box. Rarity, we got a *sniff* new necklace and earring set for you."
"Thank ya kindly, sugarcube," Applejack's voice said.
Fluttershy couldn't hold back any longer. The walls holding her tears crumbled at the sound of her late friend's voice.
"I'm sorry," Fluttershy cried. "I just miss... you girls dearly. Es-especially during this... time of year."
"We miss you too, darling. We'll continue to watch over you, Pinkie and Twilight until we're all together again," Rarity's voice echoed in Fluttershy's ears.
Fluttershy extended her right wing and turned her head so she could wipe the tears from her face with it. "Thanks, girls."
After a few moments of reflection, Fluttershy turned around and began to descend the hill. Before leaving sight of the tombstones she looked over her shoulder and could've sworn she saw a faint image of her deceased friends waving at her.
"Scratchie! Come here! Quick!" Fluttershy hollered across the yard.
Vinyl came out of the cottage at a high gallop, fearing some tragedy had befallen her wife. She was treated to a pleasant surprise upon reaching Fluttershy.
On the ground next to the chicken pen was Fluttershy, noticeably exhausted, standing shakily on all four hooves. A huge smile appeared on both of the ponies' faces just before Fluttershy collapsed. Vinyl laid down in front Fluttershy so that the pegasus could climb onto her back and then helped her back her wheelchair.
"It... it... only took... four... fourteen... years... but I finally... man... managed... to stand... on all fours... again," Fluttershy said while catching her breath.
"All those therapy sessions were worth it, weren't they, critter lover?" Vinyl asked as she continued to hold a grin from ear to ear.
"Haha... yeah," Fluttershy replied softly as she turned her head toward Vinyl to give her a passionate kiss. "Thanks, Scratchie."
Vinyl leaned back into the kiss as a few tears of joy rolled down her cheeks. She was so proud of Fluttershy for continuing to beat the odds.
Fluttershy slowly opened her eyes as the light from Celestia's raising of the sun filtered through the curtains. For the first time in almost sixteen years, Fluttershy literally hopped out of her bed and landed on all four hooves.
She softly hummed a song as she strolled down the stairs to make breakfast. About halfway down the staircase Fluttershy paused, realizing something was off. She looked around and noticed that her elevator was gone, as well as her cabinets being at pre-paralysis heights.
'What the hay is going on?' she wondered. After drawing a blank while trying to figure out what was happening, Fluttershy resumed her humming and descent to the first floor. As soon as she reached her living room a loud clap of thunder echoed through the house, causing Fluttershy to fly under the staircase.
'Something isn't right,' Fluttershy thought as she slowly crept out of her hiding place. 'The sun is shining through the window, so where did the thunder come from?'
"I can explain that," came from the other side of the front door. Fluttershy cautiously walked toward the door as another clap of thunder, this one louder than the first, echoed in the house.
"Can you tell me through the door?" Fluttershy shouted after retreating back under the staircase.
"Sorry, I can only tell you inside your house," the voice shouted.
"Um, okay. I'll be there in a moment," Fluttershy responded, creeping back out from under the stairs staying as low as possible to the floor.
"Fluttershy please let me in," the voice insisted. "This is extremely important."
"Okay. I'm almost... EEEP!" Fluttershy said before hearing yet another clap of thunder sending her back into hiding for a third time.
"C'mon, sugarcube. Ah don't think she's ready yet," another voice said.
And then it dawned on Fluttershy. She was fighting for her life. She just had to be. Her injuries her healed but everytime she approached the front door it would thunder, causing her to go into hiding.
"Fluttershy if you open the door the thunder will stop," the first voice told her.
As Fluttershy continued to comprehend the gravity of the situation, she could feel her body begin to weaken. As she looked around nervously she saw her kitchen begin to morph so it was wheelchair accessible, as well as the elevator and her wheelchair materializing out of thin air.
"Please Fluttershy. Can I have a..." the first voice trailed off as Fluttershy climbed into her wheelchair.
"I have a pulse..." a new voice hollered.
Fluttershy managed the strength to open her eyes enough to see a white and blue blob next to her.
"Scratchie? Ish that you?" Fluttershy said with her speech slurred.
"Yeah, critter lover. *sniff* It's me," Vinyl Scratch cried.
"Wha-what..." Fluttershy started slowly.
"Happened to you? You... *sniff* you had a... a stroke," Vinyl finished.
"How bad wash it?" Fluttershy asked her wife, still slurring her words.
Vinyl used her magic to remove her glasses from the top of her head and set them on Fluttershy's face as she cried into her wife's hooves before telling her the truth.
"I'm sorry, critter lover. They... they don't... expect you to... to..." Vinyl stuttered before breaking down.
Dashie, I'm ready to go now, Fluttershy thought as tears began form in her own eyes. "I'll love you forever, Scratchie."
Vinyl pulled Fluttershy into a tight embrace as the pegasus lost consciousness and began going limp.
"I'll always love you too, critter lover," Vinyl cried as she laid her wife back in the bed and covered Fluttershy's head with the sheet on the bed.
"Goodbye," Vinyl Scratch whispered.