The sunlight fell through the bedroom window unrelentingly, shining without a care for the one who was still asleep. Rainbow Dash grumbled and turned as the ray of light struck her eyelid, yet despite her protests, she was soon forced awake.
She dragged herself out of bed, her hooves falling sharply onto the clouded floor. She didn’t even bother to fly, as she normally would. There was a thick layer of sweat building on her skin, and as her mind cleared the early morning grogginess, she was made painfully aware of how gross she felt. She craned her neck around, and gave herself a sniff.
The sudden assault on her nostrils convinced her right away that a shower was needed. She wasted no time in getting herself there, and before long, she was already feeling the warm streams of water running down her coat. It was refreshing in a way that she had nearly forgotten about, to the point where she had shuddered with relief upon feeling the water touch her skin. She’d needed it so badly, she realized. How long had it even been since she’d showered last?
After washing herself clean, she stepped out of the shower and dried off. As the hot water vapor cleared from the air, Rainbow realized just how easy it had been. It was a simple task, by all means, but just yesterday it had felt almost impossible. A crushing weight, intangible and omnipresent, that held her down and kept her from her own responsibilities. But now, seemingly without reason, it was gone. Something had changed since yesterday, but what?
Come to think of it, the entire day yesterday was... fuzzy. She’d stepped outside of the house for the first time since Fluttershy passed away, and met with her friends. But aside from that, everything else about that day was completely blank. She had no idea what had happened.
And yet... when she thought about that day, something about it just felt right. Like it was everything she’d needed. Just what had she done?
The answer, once it came to her, seemed obvious. She must have slept through the entire day. She’d had difficultly sleeping since Fluttershy died, restless thoughts and emotions keeping her up all night. But for the first time since, she felt rejuvenated. She felt rested.
But she was still hungry, as her stomach soon reminded her. Before she went downstairs to prepare breakfast, though, there was still one thing she wanted to do. She made her way back to her bedroom. There, on a nightstand right next to her bed, was a single framed picture of herself and Fluttershy. Taken by her parents when they were still fillies, with Rainbow proudly showing off a somersault move while Fluttershy cheered her on.
This is what you would have wanted, right? You wouldn’t want me to literally lose sleep over you.
Rainbow Dash gave a small smile. As she did, she felt tear running down the side of her cheek. She didn’t bother to wipe it off.
Thanks for everything, Flutters. I won’t forget you.
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Applejack had found it difficult to work that day. She found it difficult to work, and she didn’t know why. It became apparent throughout the morning, as she repeatedly found herself skipping past trees in need of harvest, and bucking the same tree more than once. It wasn’t like her at all to be so careless.
But the more she went through her routine, the more she began to realize why. There was something nagging at her, something in the back of her mind. And it wasn’t until the afternoon that she understood what it was.
There was a hole in her memory. A massive, unexplainable gap where the day should have. She remembered attending the estate sale at Fluttershy’s house, and then... nothing. Everything else about that day had simply disappeared into the void.
As she pondered this strange turn of events, Applejack didn’t notice that she was slowly drifting away from the orchard. Her steps carried her without thought or reason, to a destination that she didn’t even know she was headed for. When she took notice of her arrival, her mouth fell open.
Huh? How did Ah get HERE?
The clearing. A place she had only learned of recently, but had since come to see as one of the most important places of her life. There in the center, standing tall above everything else, were a pair of trees that grew in tandem with one another, their trunks briefly coiling together before splitting apart, forming a heart-shaped gap in the space between them.
This place was a good distance away from the farm, she realized. She had to have been totally spacing out to not even notice she’d made it this far.
Why she came here, of all places, she couldn’t say. It didn’t make any sense.
...Yet at the same time, it also did.
She walked up to the twin trees, noting the blurry sensation that had overcome her eyes. Her breath grew heavy as she placed a single hoof against the tree. She closed her eyes, and held them. She didn’t know for how long.
“Applejack! There you are! Big Mac’s been looking all over for you!”
“Huh?” The sound of Apple Bloom’s voice snapped her back to reality. She blinked rapidly, wiping away the moisture from her eyes. She looked back, and saw her younger sister staring up at her pensively.
“You came to visit Ma and Pa, huh?” Apple Bloom stepped forward, sticking close by Applejack’s side. She didn’t make eye contact as she spoke.
“Yeah,” Applejack replied.
Apple Bloom went quiet, and for a while the only sound that either of them heard was the rustling of leaves in the breeze. Applejack wrapped her foreleg around Apple Bloom’s body, and the two of them stared up at the twin trees, taking in the sight of what their parents had left them.
“Ah wish Ah could’ve gotten a chance to know them better.” It was Apple Bloom who broke the silence. She was barely old enough to talk the last time she’d seen them.
Applejack struggled to find the words to reply. They seemed to stop just shy of leaving her mouth when she tried to speak. She settled on giving a silent nod, which Apple Bloom seemed to understand perfectly.
“Do y’think they’re still watching over us, somewhere?”
Applejack hesitated to respond, at first. But the more she let the question linger on her mind, the more it dawned on her. Not quite certainty, not quite faith, but a feeling. And right now, that feeling was all she needed to find an answer.
“Y’know, Applebloom? Ah think they are.”
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It was a nice day in Ponyville.
The days were usually nice, as to be expected from Ponyville’s weather team, but in contrast to the heaviness that weighed on Twilight’s heart since Fluttershy died, it seemed downright cheery. She could take some comfort in it, breathing in the crisp air, feeling the warm rays of sun lightly touch down on her skin.
The morning that day had been relatively quiet. Aside from a strange feeling that prompted Twilight to schedule an oncologist appointment, she’d been going about her routine just as she normally would. Just as though nothing had changed at all.
Of course, that wasn’t true. Things had changed. Things would always change. That was the nature of time, she supposed.
After taking care of her shopping at the market, Twilight passed by one of the local cafe restaurants. With the perfect sunny weather, almost all of the patrons were sitting in the outdoor tables, casually enjoying their meals as they socialized. Sitting at the table closest to the street were Pinkie Pie and Rarity, conversing beneath the table’s parasol. She stood there and gazed at her friends, not saying a word.
It was funny. Looking at them now, she couldn’t help but think about how fragile their lives were. She would almost certainly outlive them both, just as she had already outlived someone she held dear. It left a bitter taste in her mouth to think about, and yet...
...and yet, they were happy. And Twilight knew that for as long as she lived, she’d share in their happiness, keeping their memory close to her heart. She wasn’t sure what had brought on such intense thoughts, but it mattered little when the two of them turned to notice her.
“Oh, hey Twilight!” said Pinkie. “Rarity and I were just about to order lunch. Wanna join us?”
Twilight smiled. “I think I’d like that, yeah.”