Authors note: Chapter 6 (proper) will likely be delayed a bit as I’ve just started a new job in addition to my penultimate semester of college. Until then, here’s a little something to hold you all over. ~ Ruirik
---
As the sun slowly dipped towards the horizon, the crepuscular rays shimmering proudly through the gaps in the cloudy skies; the ponies of Manehatten retreated to their homes for the cool spring night. Dawn Chaser did her best to ignore the masses as she made her way though the crowded streets, her thoughts far from her immediate world. Wrapped loosely around her neck was a simple black scarf. The little comfort it offered from the chill of spring air was a welcome enough distraction from Dawn’s more pressing thoughts.
She had left The Watering Hole under the watchful eyes of Jam Sessions and Silver Lining for the night, taking a rare evening for herself. The heated conversation she had engaged in with the mare that had identified herself as Vinyl’s fiancé still burned brightly in her mind. Wincing visibly, Dawn did her best to push the confrontation from her mind.
Her pace quickened to a canter as if a faster pace would het her escape the unpleasant memories. The pungent odor of the city threatened to overwhelm her as she moved from borough to borough. Markets and sewers, perfumes and sweat, all commingled into the unique potpourri of the Manehatten smell. Like an emulsion, it hung thickly in the air about her. Despite her better efforts, there simply was no growing used to it.
Her walk brought her to one of the many park-like areas that were dotted across the city. A tall ironwork gate heralded the entrance, its rusted metal frame announcing the name of Forest Home Cemetery for all to see. Dawn hesitated in front of the iron gates. Inside she could see a few ponies here and there, some walking, others sitting reflectively in front of a headstone. Dawn seriously considered running. To go inside meant confronting those unpleasant memories, but given what had happened earlier with the grey mare, she realized that there wasn’t any avoiding them now.
With a breath to calm herself, she stepped into the hallowed grounds. The plot she was looking for was a fair walk from the entrance. She hated that. It gave her too much time to think, too much time to maintain the wall built around her heart. The closer she got the more her heart raced within her chest. The sweet air of spring, normally so warm and nurturing, felt cold and empty. Her jaw trembled and her throat clenched as she crested a small hill where she found it. Under a budding willow tree, a simple headstone carved from granite. The front had been polished to a shine, though the luster had faded over the years while the sides and back had been left intentionally unfinished. Engraved into the headstone was ‘Center Frequency’. Dawn forced a smile, her hoof gently brushing leaves off of the gravestone.
“Hi Center,” she started gingerly. “I’m sorry I haven’t visited in a while.” She bit her lip as she sat.
“Nine years,” she sighed, her head tilting back as her gaze drifted to the clouds “nine years and it still hurts. You know, Azure will be in the fourth grade soon, and she’s taken an interest in your old recording equipment.”
Dawn smiled at the thought of her daughter.
“You should see her smile, every bit as big and bright as yours. She asks about you, you know. Last week we sat on the couch and we went through the photo albums. I showed her all the pictures of ‘mommy and daddy’ when we were dating.” Dawn let out a sound, half a laugh, and half a cry. Her eyes glistened in the fading light. “She doesn’t see many Pegasi at school, so she wondered why you had wings and I didn’t. I told her it’s because you always were my angel.”
Dawn paused, taking a shaky breath and composing herself.
“She’s asking about you more lately. I’m terrified of the day she will look me in the eye and ask where you are.” She sighed, her head bowing “I try to be strong, I try to keep my chin up and my eyes forward, but…but it’s just so hard without you.”
The stone remained silent, a chill wind swept through the graveyard, sending shivers through Dawn.
“I’ve kept the club running for you. It’s been hard, but it was your dream, so I’ve done my best. We’re…we’re having a bad run though. The bigger clubs are bagging more and more of the talent. If it keeps up, I’m not sure if I’ll have to cut back on the staff, though that would only buy us a few months to a year.”
Dawn rubbed the moisture from her eyes.
“I’ve got a problem, and I have no idea what to do anymore.” She sighed tiredly, her ears folding back. “I managed to book this unicorn, Vinyl Scratch. She’s a new talent on the scene, but also one of the best I’ve ever seen. I took a risk and managed to arrange a deal. I figured if we…if I made a heavy investment into advertising, I could leverage her fans to get us back in the black and out of debt. I was really hoping this would be the break we needed. Then she was a no show.
I thought she took the deposit and ran. I was so mad, Center. So mad I couldn’t think straight. All the preshow tickets had to be refunded, I had to spend hours apologizing to angry ponies thinking I had tried to scam them, and this random mare shows up telling me that Vinyl’s in the hospital!”
Dawn laughed bitterly.
“I was so convinced she was lying to me. That Vinyl paid her off to get her gear back and complete some weird scam. I acted like a donkey. Then, just today, another mare shows up who claims to be Vinyl’s fiancé. I panicked,” she smiled “you’d probably laugh at me for it. Stupid. Stupid, stupid, stupid!” she growled, smacking herself in the forehead repeatedly.
Tears escaped her eyes, dripping from her face and onto the soft grass below her.
“I don’t know what to do anymore, Center.” She whimpered “If I don’t auction the gear Vinyl left at the club, then the advertising debts might kill the club. If I do sell it, the club stays afloat, but I’ve probably killed somepony’s career. Either way, I can’t win.” She sniffled, wiping a foreleg across her face.
“I want our daughter to grow up and see your dream. I want her to have the option to take it over when she’s old enough, but…but I don’t know if I can ruin another pony’s life to do it.”
Dawn pressed her forehead against the deathly cold stone, wincing uncomfortably at the flash of memories the touch brought.
“What would you have done, Center? How would you fix this?”
The stone didn’t answer, it never did.
“I miss you, I miss you so much.” She whispered, gently kissing the headstone. “I’ll see you again soon, Center. Azure wants to plant some flowers for you. So she’ll visit too. Maybe…maybe by then, I’ll figure something out.” She smiled sadly, her hoof brushing over the polished face of the gravestone. “Sleep well, my love.”