For as long as she could remember, Neoma had hated the smell of lilies. The sickeningly sweet scent of the large, white flowers made her nose run and her throat burn. Neoma’s pollen allergies played a significant role in her averse reaction to the flowers, but like most ponies, she also associated lilies with death, as they were commonly used at funerals. Unfortunately, nearly every room in the castle was now filled with elaborate floral arrangements and tributes, most of which included lilies.
Though the enemy forces had surrendered, the war had ended, and Silver was home for good, Arrow’s death, as well as thousands of others, had cast an enormous pall over Equestria's victory. The royal family was officially in mourning. Summer busied herself with funeral arrangements, and she rarely spoke unless spoken to. Summer’s parents were staying in the castle, planning their son's funeral alongside their daughter-in-law. At nearly seven months pregnant, Neoma was constantly tired but relieved that Silver was home. He was her escape, a distraction from all the grief and pain that had now taken up residence in the castle.
"Okay, how about Rosebud?" Neoma said that night, turning in bed to face Silver. Silver raised an eyebrow.
"Why Rosebud?" he asked, wrinkling his nose.
"Okay, I'll take that as a 'no,'" Neoma said with a little laugh. "What about Lily?"
"I already thought of that name, but it never sounds right when I say it," Silver said.
"I think we should wait until we meet her to name her," Neoma said. "I think as soon as we hold her and look into her little face, we'll know."
"Good idea," Silver agreed. His face quickly turned serious again. "I know this is such a weird question, and everypony has probably already asked you this," Silver began, "but how are you doing? I know Arrow was a good friend to you, too."
"I mean, I'm sad, but I can't dwell on that. My highest priority right now is being there for Summer and getting ready for our foal," Neoma said. She reached for an extra pillow so that she could prop herself up in bed. Her back was killing her. "Summer has turned into a shell of her former self since Arrow’s death. It's almost like her entire spirit died with him." Her throat began to tighten, and she took a deep breath.
"Sweetheart, it's okay for you to feel the way you're feeling, and it's okay for you to be there for your cousin," Silver told his wife, "but you also need to give yourself some time and space to grieve. You and Cassie were close to Arrow, too. If you can't take care of yourself, you won't be able to be there for the foal, or for Summer. Remember to eat, drink plenty of water, and exercise. And think about all the fun things that are coming up. You have your foal shower in two weeks, and we still need to finish the nursery. If you focus on those things, everything will get a little easier." Neoma nodded in agreement, hoping the foal shower would be a perfect distraction for Summer.
It shouldn’t be so sunny outside on the day of a funeral, Neoma thought as she and her family waited outside the funeral home for Arrow’s coffin to be loaded into the waiting hearse. The coffin, draped in the Equestrian flag and carried by six soldiers, was brought slowly outside and carefully slid into the shiny black carriage. The procession headed off towards the cemetery, where a trumpeter played and seven ponies shot three volleys in a gun salute. The flag on Arrow’s coffin was folded and given to Summer, who clutched the fabric with all of her strength, her entire body shaking from the force of her sobs as she doubled over in agony. Celestia wrapped her daughter in her arms, tears streaming down her face. A bagpiper began to play a lament, walking off so that the mournful notes faded as the coffin was slowly lowered into the ground. Luna cried as well, and tears stung Neoma’s eyes as the service ended. The next few months would be extremely difficult for her family.
"Aaaawww, look at this little outfit!" Neoma squealed, lifting the tiny pink smocked dress out of its box to pass it around. "Thank you so much, Rarity. I love it." She winced from the pain that tugged at her back as she readjusted herself on the couch. Moving in any way was hard at eight months pregnant, especially since the foal was so active all the time.
"I know it's far too big for her now, but she'll grow into it," Rarity said, smiling. Neoma smiled back and reached for her next gift, a dark blue box.
"Oooh, this one's from me!" Cassie said. "It's not from your registry, either." Neoma tore off the paper and opened the box carefully to reveal a silver, sparkly mobile of the moon and stars. "You can hang it over her crib, and it will keep her occupied for hours," Cassie explained.
"Thank you, sis, it's so pretty!" Neoma said, leaning over to hug Cassie. Then, she reached for a small blue box, wrapped in dark blue paper with a white silk bow.. "This one is from Mom," she announced. She tore off the paper and opened the box to reveal a circular silver music box, which looked oddly familiar.
“You and Cassie might remember this," Luna said. "I used this music box to help you both sleep when you were little." Neoma opened the box, and a gentle blue light was released, along with magic image of the stars and a crescent moon around a statue of a ballerina pony that twirled in circles. The lullaby it played was soft and dreamlike, and Neoma remembered it immediately.
"Wow, thank you so much, Mom," Neoma gasped, hugging Luna tightly.
"The first of many gifts from her Nana Lulu," Luna said with a grin, reaching out to rub Neoma’s belly lovingly.
"Here's the one from me," Summer said in a voice barely louder than a whisper, forcing a small smile. She gave Neoma a small blue bag, which held a little white teddy bear with a light pink nose, ears and paws. A light pink ribbon was wrapped around its neck. "I got it from a cute little boutique in Ponyville, a few days before..." she paused and swallowed hard, her voice tightening. "Anyway, after Rarity told me about this place, I knew I had to check it out. That bear was the first thing to really jump out at me. I thought it would be special if I gave my little cousin's foal her first toy." Neoma smiled and wrapped Summer in a hug.
"Thank you," Neoma told her cousin again later, after everypony else had left. "You really didn't have to get me anything with everything you're going through."
"Stop it. I wanted to," Summer assured her. "Listen, I need these distractions. Ever since Arrow died, everypony has been walking on eggshells around me, so I've kept to myself, but that doesn't mean I haven't stayed occupied. I have no choice but to stay busy; if I weren't busy, I would fall apart. It's been really hard for me to get out of bed every morning, shower, get dressed, brush my teeth, leave my room, but I've been forcing myself to do those things, and every day it's gotten a little easier.
"Of course I'm ecstatic for you, but a small part of me is insanely jealous, Neoma," she continued, "because I will never have what you have. I'm never going to fall in love again. Don't you dare tell me I'm wrong." Neoma opened her mouth to speak, but Summer stopped her. "I don't want to fall in love with any other stallion. I know I'll be expected to produce an heir one day, but when I marry again, I won't marry for love. My next marriage will be arranged and treated as nothing more than a business transaction. Falling in love is a beautiful thing, but if you lose it, you lose everything. I'm guarding what little is left of my heart for the rest of my life." She tossed her head decisively.
"It's totally normal for you to feel that way right now," Neoma said, placing her hoof over Summer’s. "There are different kinds of love, and romantic love is just one of them. You have your family and friends, and we all love you. Take all the time you need to heal. Don't shut other possibilities out, though, okay?" Summer nodded, looking over at Neoma with a little smile.
"You know, as the older cousin, I should be giving you advice, not the other way around," she said, chuckling.
"We've always learned from each other." Neoma grinned, and the two mares hugged.