4/23/78
Steadclaw,
Harmony told me I should try to get a hold of you again, so… hi. I don’t really know what to say to you.
I’m not expecting to hear back from you, but screw it, may as well try.
Cotton
6/4/78
Steadclaw,
I bet you don’t remember what yesterday was.
We’re hosting in the castle ballroom tomorrow. Most of the girls in our my class gave me affirmative RSVPs. So did the cousins and my buddies from Central. It’s going to be awesome.
I realize I never found out when your birthday is was. Has to have been before mine since we never talked about it before you left or during our other letters.
Cotton
6/27/78
Steadclaw,
Finals finished on Friday. Aunt Twilight helped me and the girls study again. I’m officially a graduate.
I decided not to go to college. Aunt Twilight’s pretty upset about that. I’m starting an apprenticeship with one of the local bakers next month instead. Took some serious effort to get that gig.
Gem hosted a graduation party yesterday and invited everyone in the class. Yeah, even me. Party got broken up, though—Novamac led the charge. He caught me having ONE drink and told my dad. Dad grounded me for a month. Figures.
7/4/78
Steadclaw,
My apprenticeship starts tomorrow. Not sure how it’s gonna go down, but I have to get up pretty damn early. Then I have to go straight home afterward since I’m grounded. Yay.
Let’s see how I do on my first day.
7/23/78
Steadclaw,
First couple of weeks have been pretty good. Mr. Cookie Cutter is pretty firm, and he makes me stay in the back to keep baking, but otherwise it isn’t that bad.
Grounding is almost over. Geez, this month felt like a year.
8/6/78
Steadclaw,
I don’t know if I can do this anymore. I know I said I was done, but I thought that sending you more letters to fill you in on what’s going on would make it feel like you were still writing. I thought it would make me feel better.
It doesn’t.
Daddy asked me again why I was bothering to send you letters. I usually just shrugged and he’d send them anyway. I guess he won’t be asking again, because I’m not writing again.
Goodbye.
8/17/78
Steadclaw,
I heard a customer ordering a cookie platter today, saying something about ‘celebrating a pony’s life instead of moping around like everypony else usually does.’ I wasn’t sure what they meant at first, but a little while later I figured it out and it got me thinking.
I wasn’t sure if you were really serious in that last letter you wrote, but when I didn’t hear from you for a long time, I figured you were. Despite that, I thought that after a few months you might change your mind and decide to finally respond to my letters, but you still haven’t. After I heard that customer, though, I realized there might be another reason I’m not getting any letters from you.
Are… are you dead?