//------------------------------// // Life Moves On // Story: For Auld Lang Syne // by Mr.Dependable //------------------------------// For Auld Lang Syne Chapter 2: Life Moves On MLP: FiM Fic by Mr.Dependable January 24th 2012 “Life is eternal and love is immortal; and death is only a horizon, and a horizon is nothing save the limit of our sight.” Rossiter W. Raymond Chapter 2 Rarity was pacing back and forth in the rustic living room of Fluttershy’s small cottage on the edge of the Everfree Forest. It had been almost four hours since any of the Elements had seen their friend, and they all feared for the worst. Skylight and Big Red had long since departed the quaint town of Ponyville. It had pained them to be leaving without saying goodbye to their mother, but life paused for no-pony. So, they reluctantly left their hometown, and started the long journey back to their own families far away. “Rarity, come sit down… you worrying isn’t going to bring her back any faster,” piped Twilight, “the best thing to do right now is stay calm and just hope that she’s okay.” “Oh Twilight,” thought Rarity, “even in a situation with extreme emotional stress you still manage to keep a level head. Oh, how I envy you.” And it was true, Rarity’s age had affected her mind greatly, and the stress of her dearest friend being somewhere alone at night was more than unneeded. Fluttershy had hated the dark ever since Rarity could remember, and her mind couldn’t help but jump to the worst possible conclusion. She halted her sideways march as a wave of nausea flooded over her, and nearly brought her tumbling to the ground. “Careful there Rarity”, advised Rainbow Dash, “you’re looking a little faint, why don’t ‘cha sit down?” Rarity mumbled as she made her way to the stretched couch across the room. The nausea attacks were not a situational side effect, in fact she had had them longer then she could remember. She wasn’t worried though; it was more of an inconvenience, really. While they were intermittent, they never lasted for more than ten seconds, and before she knew it, she was able shake herself back to reality. “Thank you dear, I’m just worried… that’s all.” she said gratuitously, as she tenderly sat on the soft couch. “We all are Rarity, but like I said, it’s just a matter of staying strong and keeping your mind clear. Everything will sort itself out,” reminded Twilight. The five friends sat in awkward silence, and the grandfather clock in the corner slowly counted the seconds away. Applejack’s eyes found their way to the minute and hour hands on it’s marble face. She wiped away the dried tears from her eyes, and decided it was time to leave. “Well, Ah guess Ah’ll see ya’ll ‘round… Ah need to get back to Sweet Apple Acres and catch some shut-eye… Ah gotta lot more to do ‘round the farm now…” “Okay Applejack… we understand.” said Twilight, “Before you go… if you… ever need someone to… talk to, we’re right here” Everypony in the room nodded their head in unconditional agreement, and Applejack felt a lump begin to form in her throat. While she had tried to keep a brave face in the wake of her brother’s death, she often found herself awakening with tear stained pillows, and a brick in her gut. “Thanks yall, but Ah’ll be fine,” she said as she quickly turned around to hide her misty eyes, “Ah’m more worried ‘bout poor Fluttershy, wherever she is.” Even though she had tried to hide her growing emotions, everypony in the room could tell that she was anything but fine. Twilight shot Rainbow a worried glance, and as if she had communicated to her telepathically, Rainbow nodded her head, and stepped closer to her clearly distressed friend. “Hey AJ, I’ll walk you home. It’s awfully late, and the last thing we need is another missing pony.” Applejack said nothing, but replied to her proposal with a deep nod, before heading for the door. With that, the two mares left the cabin on the edge of the Everfree Forest, and began their journey back to Sweet Apple Acres. ****** Three hours had passed since Applejack and Rainbow Dash had departed, and a worn out looking Pinkie Pie had curled up into a tight ball in Angel Bunny’s old basket. Twilight and Rarity glanced at each other, and sighed gratefully; Pinkie Pie had never really been close to Big Macintosh, and while she was glum at first, she had quickly snapped back to being her normal, random self after only a few hours. She had returned from the kitchen shortly after AJ and Dash left, and continued to talk the others’ ears off until fatigue began to set in, and she finally fell asleep in the disused basket. “It’s getting late Rarity,” stated Twilight, as she gazed at the clock for the fifth time in the past minute. “I promise, if she’s not back here by morning, we’ll look for her, but we really should get some sleep. It’s what she’d want us to do.” Rarity glanced at the door, wishing with all her might for Fluttershy to come walking through it. But, it was no use; the door stayed silently still, and she let out a disdained sigh, bowing her head in defeat. Twilight gingerly shuffled over to Pinkie Pie and, using one of her multiple spells, lifted the sleeping pony into a wagon that Fluttershy had left by the door. Unwillingly, she tried to get up from her comfortable chair, but Rarity was forced to sit back down again as another nausea attack shrouded her vision. This one was different though; unlike the usual short sporadic waves, this one lingered on. Twilight heard a gasp, followed by a dull thud. She quickly turned around, and shrieked when she saw Rarity lying comatose on the couch. “Rarity! Are you all right?” The question was redundant, because as soon as the words left her lips, Rarity had fought back the dizziness, and shakily brought herself to her hooves. She fought to clear her mind, but her thoughts had transformed into a fog of confusion. Somehow, in the midst of her bewilderment, she was able to emit a broken sentence. “I’m fine. I just feel a… little ill, I… I think the stress has gone to… my head”. “Can you make it back to your boutique?” probed Twilight. Rarity closed her eyes, and massaged her temple as she sat back down on the couch. She thought for a second, before speaking again. “I think… I’ll stay here, and wait until Fluttershy gets back… It’s much too late for me to be out walking like this… Go on ahead. I’ll see you tomorrow”. Twilight’s face contracted, as she thought to herself. She considered the pros and cons of leaving her friend here alone, and delicately analyzed every detail. Eventually, she came to the conclusion that it would be best, if someone were waiting at the cottage if... No, when Fluttershy returned. “Well, okay. Goodnight Rarity. Try to get some rest, and we’ll come find you tomorrow morning.” she said as she departed. Rarity sighed, and shut the door, as Twilight tugged the old wagon down the gravel path in front of Fluttershy’s house. A sense of dread filled her heart as she thought about the predicament she currently found herself in. She knew poor Fluttershy had taken it hard; considerably harder than most would. She had predicted that something like this would happen, especially after Angel Bunny had passed on. The bunny’s death had left Fluttershy a blubbering mess, and that was just a pet. Rarity had heard many tales of ponies who died mere weeks after their affectionate others had passed. Some would say that they passed on simply because of a broken heart. As she solemnly shuffled around the interior of the warm cottage, she couldn’t help but wonder if Fluttershy had met a similar fate. Rarity fought her dizziness, which was yet to subside, and turned off the last light. She lit a candle, and placed it in the front window, just in case Fluttershy came home in the night. Finally, she curled up on the couch where she had been lounging moments before, and let the nausea and worried thoughts sway her off to sleep. ****** Fluttershy stumbled through the orchard, as the sweet melodious tune of “Danny Boy” wrapped itself through the trees and snaked its way around the rolling hills that surrounded the farm. The reality of her loss was still hitting home, and the hole in her heart was larger and darker than darkness itself. She had left as soon as they closed the coffin, after the final departing wishes. She hadn’t talked to anypony after that; not even her two children, Skylight and Big Red. She simply lacked the energy to care. She gazed up into the gloomy, grey sky, and a cool autumn breeze played childishly with her long, flowing mane. She had lied to Rarity earlier; lied to all her friends, but, unlike her usual-self, the deception did not bother her in the slightest. For the first time in her life, the kind thoughts had drained from her mind, leaving nothing but a gaping vacuum that sucked up any happy or sympathetic thought. Her hooves left the soft, churned earth of the orchard, and landed on damp grass. She halted, and began to reminisce about everything: From the warm summer evening that Mac had proposed to her, to the day she had became the proud mother of two of the most-gorgeous foals in all of Equestria. Her children. Macintosh’s children. Her throat and lungs began to burn as she neared the top of the knoll, and she was eagerly awaiting the relief of reaching her destination. She stopped, and turned around; even on the most dreadful of days, the view from the hill was stunning. Sighing, she turned around, and faced the stone slab that sat just a few paces away. The undertakers had worked fast, but then again, Fluttershy had been out wandering the orchard, trapped in her memories for almost two hours. She bowed her head, and lay down with her back resting against the cold stone. The clouds began to spit rain, drenching Fluttershy as she sat with her late husband. She wished be with him. Her longing was so immense, that she prayed to slip away from existence, right then and there. For hours, she sat, remembering, before finally falling into a fitful sleep; a sleep she hoped would lead her into her loving husband’s embrace. ****** A white blinding light brought Fluttershy out of her dreams as she fluttered her eyelids. Surveying her surroundings she noticed that where she awoke was not the same as where she had fallen asleep. There were no tress, no hills, and there certainly wasn’t any grass. At first she concurred that what she was standing on were clouds, but further investigation proved that it was something foreign. She blinked again in stupor as her bewilderment continued. “Fluttershy?” she heard. It sounded like… no it couldn’t be… Mac? She whipped around to see the unmistakable silhouette of a large workhorse standing in front of a clichéd bright glowing orb. Fluttershy’s heart skipped a beat, and she leapt into the air pumping her frail wings as hard as she could. The black outline of her husband grew as she pushed herself more and more, the longing to great him burning inside her. She let herself drop to the ground and continued her race, cantering as fast as she could. With the gap closing between her and her lover she let a volley of tears stream from her eyes and down her face. “MAC!” she cried with joy as the shadow, which was her husband, slowly began to fill with colour. She threw herself into his arms and nuzzled his neck, taking in the familiar scent of his body. For what seemed like hours she cried in his arms, letting his embrace reassure her overflowing emotions of joy. She had been granted the one gift she would give the ultimate sacrifice for. “I’m here Mac” she whimpered, “I’m here with you… and… and…” She couldn’t finish her sentence because Mac interrupted before she could utter anything else. He held her tighter and whispered something into her ear. Something, which dropped the equivalent of an atomic bomb into the bottom of her stomach. ****** Fluttershy woke with a start. The clouds had cleared, and the sky was twinkling with millions of tiny bright stars. Her heart plummeted as she recollected her dream. How she had come so close to being with her husband again, before getting thrown back into reality. The one word that Mac said, had managed to send her flying back to earth, and was still ringing in her ears. “No”. She had no way of telling how long she had been asleep, and she had no desire to know. Moments after leaving her slumber, she realized that she was still curled up against Big Macintosh’s head stone. Cursing aching joints, she pulled herself up onto wobbly hooves. Dirt fell off of her back in clumps, as she struggled to rise. Her head retreated into the masses of hair, which was her mane, and uttered three words. “Wait for me…” She gazed longingly at her husband’s grave before turning away, and letting the abnormally bright moon guide her along the path to solace; down the path home. ****** Fluttershy observed from underneath a willow tree, as Twilight struggled to pull a sleeping Pinkie Pie, in what she recognized was her old wagon. Waiting until they were out of sight, she trotted down the embankment and onto the path that led to her cottage. Twenty minutes of winding paths and overgrown foliage later, she rounded the last bend, crossed over the bridge and stepped up to the front door. She gingerly pushed it open, ancient hinges squealing as the door creaked open. Her house was pitch black; save for the magnificent pattern a lone candle left in her front window. Through the flicker of the light, she saw a silhouetted figure sleeping on the couch; her couch. Fluttershy suppressed a shriek of terror, before mustering enough courage to take a closer look. She sighed in relief as she realized it was simply Rarity, whom had taken refuge on her couch. Fluttershy managed a half-smile, and walked to the cupboard to get Rarity a blanket. She cautiously placed the duvet on the sleeping unicorn, before making her way upstairs to her bedroom. Fluttershy flicked on the light, and draped her black dress over a large wingback chair in the corner. She paused at a picture hanging on the wall; a framed portrait of her in the arms of Big Mac. She smiled; the picture had an uncanny resemblance to one of the famous country singer Johnny Colt and his wife June Canter. Mac had loved Johnny Colt- he knew more about him than anypony in Equestria, and had memorized every word of every song. As awkward as his obsession was at first, Fluttershy eventually came around, and learned to love the stallion’s deep soothing voice. She recalled many nights spent with Mac in the living room, listening to “Foalsom Prison Blues” until she, turned blue in the face. The yellow mare felt a tear slide down her face and navigate its way past her growing smile, as she reminisced about all the memories she had taken for granted. With a shuddering breath, she reached for the dusty record, which sat in a case in the corner of the room. She brushed of the film of dust, and stared at the signature that Mac and her had managed to score while at one of his last concerts. “To Fluttershy and Big Macintosh, The only two ponies with a love for each other stronger than ours. Sincerely, Johnny Colt and June Canter” Making her way to the record player she kept by her bed, Fluttershy tilted the cover, and let the record slide onto her hoof. However, there was something else in the record sheath: An envelope, with her name written in Macintosh’s handwriting on the front. Fluttershy placed the record on the track, and dropped the needle on the record. The vinyl scratched and skipped as the diamond point tried to find the groove- both figuratively and literally. She turned the letter over tenderly in her shaking hooves; part of her wanted to rip it open, but another part told her to put it back in the cover, and leave it be. As the unmistakable bass line for “Foalsom Prison Blues” began, she cautiously lifted the envelope’s fold, and pulled out two pieces of paper. One was a hand written letter, and the other looked like a receipt or a bank statement. Fluttershy began to read with quivering hands, her mind narrating the letter in the unmistakable voice of her husband. My Dearest Fluttershy, If you’re reading this, I’m afraid the worst has happened. I know I wasn’t one much for words, but I needed to say one last thing before I left. I know it may be hard. I ain’t going to blame you if you’re angry with me for leaving, but there’s something you should know. My life changed so much when I met you, I was so happy I couldn’t possibly comprehend that I would ever feel this amount of joy again. Then, you up and said yes to me when I asked for you to be my wife, and I, once again, felt so overjoyed at the thought of you being mine for ever. Everything we did seemed to be a new adventure. As long as you were with me, I was happy. And then one day, I learnt I was going to be a father, and 11 months later, I was standing in front of the three ponies I loved the most in the world. We grew old, and though they moved away, we still had each other. Every single day I loved you more then the last. And when the moment came that I realized I didn’t have much time left. I decided it was best to make sure that you would be happy without me. I started putting some money aside, and eventually, I had enough to leave you something that would keep you going. You always talked about opening up a veterinary school, but we were always tight on cash, so it always got pushed to the back of our minds. Well, Fluttershy, I did it! The permits are all there on the second piece of paper. You have Ponyville’s permission to open your own school! Now, there’s one condition to this, and it’s going to be my dying wish. I want you to keep living. I want you to be happy. Don’t let me slow you down; I’ll always be there for you whether it’s in the soul, in the mind, or in the heart. Keep living, Fluttershy, and remember, I will love you forever and always. ‘Till we meet again, I’ll be waiting Your Husband, Big Macintosh ****** Rarity slowly pulled herself out of a restless sleep. To her surprise, there was a blanket carefully draped over her body. She let a sigh relief slip through her cracked lips and realized what had happened. The candle that had been set in the front window was carefully snuffed, and the sound of record static could be heard from the upstairs bedroom. Fluttershy had come home. Careful, as to not wake the sleeping mare, Rarity delicately ascended staircase to the master bedroom. Fluttershy’s dress was hanging on a chair, and photo albums were strewn all over the floor like fallen leaves. In the middle of her bed, surrounded by a minefield of memories, lay the sleeping Pegasus. Johnny Colt albums lay in a pile beside the record player, which was skipping, as it had reached the end of its playlist. In the yellow pony’s hooves was tear stained, hand written letter, which was accompanied by a permit of education that was registered to Fluttershy. Rarity gently sat on the edge of the bed, and felt tears well up in her eyes, as she saw what Big Mac had written. “Rarity…” said the sleep-drunk Fluttershy, “you’re up… What’s wrong? Did I do something? Were you too hot under the blanket? Oh, I’m sorry-” Rarity smiled as she wiped away the tears, and looked into her friend’s eyes. “Not at all my dear. You did absolutely nothing wrong.” reassured Rarity, “Let’s get up, and get dressed. I think we’re all in need of a good spa day.” She chuckled as she brought Fluttershy into a tight, friendly hug. Her best friend was coming back, and though it may take some time, she would eventually come to terms with life, and do exactly what Big Mac wanted her to.... Live. End of Chapter Two Author’s Notes: Thanks for all the great responses guys. I decided that I’m going to make this story much longer and give it time to build the characters. It’s going to be about 8 or 9 chapters long now. I decided that this week we’d have a happy ending, however as you can see there is heavy foreshadowing for conflicts that will happen in the next few chapters. I have a LOT of schoolwork to do, so don’t expect anything for possibly the next week and a half or so, but I’ll update my blog if any important news comes up. I’d also like to thank RazedRainbow, who has agreed to help me with my stories. He’s a great writer and you guys should go check out his page if you already haven’t. I also received quite a few requests for a separate story, which dives deeper into the Flutter/Mac love story. I’ve left a few holes in the story that I’ll delve into in the next story. Once again, if you have any ideas, noticed any mistakes or would like more explanation, leave a comment, P.M. me and let me know. Other than that please rate, comment and track and I look forward to hearing from you! Sincerely, Mr. Dependable