A family of ponies, consisting of unicorn parents and a pegasus son. The male had light blond hair, that almost seemed grey, with a blue coat. His wife had dark brown hair with a lighter blue coat. Their son had darker blond hair and black fur.
The rest of their family that consisted of a silver female diamond dog, her white mate and their sons, one being silver while his brother was light brown, certainly was an odd bunch.
“Thank you for everything. Especially when we've been together for so long,” the male diamond dog said
“You're welcome. Besides, you're family no matter what anyone says,” the pegasus said
“Silverbelle, are you alright,” the female unicorn asked as the diamond dog doubled over
“No. I haven't been hungry at all,” Silverbelle replied
“Anything you need, mom. We'll do it,” the silver male said
“Just you being there for me helps,” Belle said
“Want to try eating something easy,” the unicorn male suggested
“I'll try,” Belle replied
After being given a broth of hay and vegetables, it seemed to stay down for a while and soothe her. A few hours later, the broth seemed to be in disagreement and found itself being expelled.
“Sorry, sis,” the pegasus said
“It worked for a little while. Hopefully this is just temporary,” Belle replied
The next day, they tried the broth again, but without including any vegetables and that seemed to stay down. While gems are a diamond dog’s main source of nourishment, the boys were able to eat, but were still worried about their mom.
“Come on mom, you need to get better,” the brown one said hugging his mom
“I'm trying. I just wish I knew what was wrong,” Belle replied
The next two weeks passed the same way with Belle just eating broth. Everyone was glad it was staying down, but the question as to what happened still was on everyone's mind.
“How do you feel,” the white male asked
“Lousy. I don't know why I don’t have an appetite. I hate this,” Silverbelle replied hugging her mate
“As do we. None of us like seeing a family member wasting away,” the unicorn female replied
“That's the question though; is ‘why’. We keep asking ourselves why did this happen, but still don't have an answer,” the pegasus said
In order to clear his head, the pegasus decided to take off for a flight around town. Roughly an hour later, he returned with nothing helping.
“I may not make it any longer,” Belle said sadly
“Don't say that. You need to be positive,” the unicorn male said
“I love you all. Regardless of the looks we receive, every one of you is my family,” she said hugging them
“We love you too, mom,” her boys said hugging her
“As do I. I promise to look after the boys,” her mate said
“I trust you to be good when I leave,” Belle said
“We'll certainly try,” the silver male replied
“I make no guarantees,” his brother added
“Thank you for being our friend and family all these years,” the unicorn male said
“You've been a sister to me and certainly a daughter to them,” the pegasus replied
“We love you so very much,” the unicorn female added
That night Silverbelle laid down for the final time with her family around her to keep her company until the end.
“Silverbelle, it's time to go,” a voice called
“Who are you,” the spirit of Silverbelle asked
“A friend. I am simply here to guide you. It's time to be free of your pain,” the Grim Reaper answered
“What about my family,” she asked
“They will come to accept it in time. Your family loves you very much,” Grim replied
Some time during the night, the boys decided to give her space as did the ponies. None of them really wanted to sleep, but knew it was an inevitability.
“Oh Luna. This must be a nightmare. I'll wake up and everything will return to normal, right,” the pegasus asked
“I'm sorry to say, but this is not a nightmare. Your friend Silverbelle has gotten sick, and did pass away. I am not able to visit the dreams of diamond dogs usually, but she did think of her family often,” Luna replied
“I'm glad to know that we were always in her thoughts and dreams.”
“My condolences to you all. If you ever need any assistance in your dreams, I'll try to help,” Luna said
“Thank you. How's my parents handling it?”
“The same as you. Each of you share a collective sadness. I would not expect this to go away right away. Grieving takes time,” Luna said putting a wing around him
In the morning, while everyone mourned, the pegasus grabbed a shovel and started digging. It may have been easier for one of the diamond dogs to create the hole, but the hard way was better to collect his thoughts.
“You've been busy. Feel better,” his father asked
“No. It hurts to lose her,” the pegasus said through tears
“I know what you mean. I've been feeding her for weeks, in the hopes of getting better. I hated seeing her wasting away, while we could only watch,” his mom said crying
“The only thing we can do is be strong for mom. At least we know she is free of her pain,” the silver male said
“Agreed. Perhaps we should say something,” his brother asked as he placed her gently in the hole
“Silverbelle, thank you for everything. These years together have been the best in my life. We have a beautiful family and I promise to take care of them. At least you can be with your mom and grandma,” the white diamond dog said
“I love you mom. Thank you for being there for me,” the silver male said
“I love you, too,” his twin added
“Thank you for being a friend and family member all these years,” the unicorn male said
“Goodbye Silverbelle. I'm sorry I couldn't do anything more to help you,” the female unicorn replied
“Goodbye Silverbelle. At least you are free from the pain. Run in Paradise,” the pegasus added
After everyone said their parting words, each of them participated in filling in the grave. They headed back inside the house to grieve for their fallen family member. Luna kept her promise about visiting the group in their dreams to try and comfort her subjects.
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust