//------------------------------// // Final Chapter: Journey's End // Story: A Journey of Bonding // by PurpleFire18 //------------------------------// It was almost time for Celestia to raise the sun, but if she was there she would have been surprised to see a pair of travelers waking up before dawn. While it wasn't dawn yet, Souvenir and Alastair decided to continue their journey as early as possible, hoping to get to Equestria before sunset. Walking excitedly, Souvenir offered to pull the heavier-than-before cart herself, doing so without problem. Alastair wanted to protest but after much thought allowed himself to simply walk beside his friend. When the sun finally came to the sky, Alastair decided to fly beside Souvenir while looking for something in his bag. She looked at him, curious at first, but then quickly realized what he was looking for and braced herself for ear torture. Alastair took out his bagpipes and began playing a tune that to his ears sounded like inspiring music, while it was clear that Souvenir simply thought it was loud. 'Oh sweet Celestia, why does he insist on playing that thing? It's like if he just wanted cats to die and perform a concert with their dying meows!. Souvenir simply tried to think of a different music in her head, and started remembering drums from a parade. However, the normal rhythm of the drums somehow changed in her head and the bagpipes' tune merged with it, and it made the music sound excellent in her head. 'Wait...this isn't nearly as bad. It's like I...like it? Why am I liking this?. After a couple seconds she realized the bagpipes didn't have the same effect on her as the first time she heard them. 'Maybe this guy's rubbing off on me...' she thought with a smile. Alastair was quick to notice the way Souvenir smiled and found himself smiling as well. "I assume you have a better taste in music now?" he asked. "Oh be quiet! You're just playing better, that's all!" she replied with a cheerful tone. "But it won't be one of the things I'll miss about you when we part ways." That last phrase made both of them stop where they were and feel like if something was drilling a hole through their hearts. Souvenir didn't even think when she said that. "I...I'm sorry...I..." she tried to talk but couldn't find a way to continue. "...what DO you have to do in Equestria anyways?" she finally asked, the question being unanswered since she met him. "I...let's just say I have a message to deliver..." he replied with a sad tone. "Just that? ...wow...I...feel awful now..." Souvenir looked down at the ground as she spoke. "You only wanted to deliver a message and because of me you are here instead of flying there, lost your sword twice and got into fights..." Her eyes started to water and her voice was breaking. "Souvenir? Are you alright?" he asked, flying closer to her. "Look, I...I can get to Equestria from here. Just go and deliver the message, I won't be delaying you anymore." "No...we started this together, and we will end this together. Like it or not..." "Alastair...ple-" "Souvenir, I said I would go with you, and I will!" That was enough for them to continue in silence. However, while on the outside he was silent, Alastair's mind was overflowing with thoughts. 'She's right...I have gone through a lot of unnecessary trouble because of her....' The more he thought about it, the more he realized he didn't mind the trouble through the journey. He liked to protect her, to see her safe. When they fought over the loss of his sword he could have easily left, but he didn't. He didn't want to leave her alone. When the bandits captured them his first concern was not to find his sword, he wanted to find her. He wanted to make sure she was safe. 'But...any trouble is worth it. I just want her to be safe....' He remembered the times they were close together, all the hugs and tender moments, somehow remembering that morning they woke up together last. The night before was still a mystery, but one thing was not, even though he denied it. He loved being that close to her, even if it lasted only a couple minutes and the shock had outweighed the good feeling. He loved to feel her breath so close to him, to see those beautiful eyes of hers, it made him happy. 'Ha, look at me, thinking about this pony like that. It almost sounds like if....' He stopped as he realized what it all meant. "Alastair, what's wrong?" Souvenir asked as she saw her friend had stopped. She didn't get an answer, Alastair simply stopped flying and kept walking ahead of her, his face showing an expression of surprise. She didn't ask about it and followed him. *** When the night came they were already in Equestrian land, just past the mountains. Souvenir knew they were near the Neighagra Falls, and could see Canterlot from the distance. However they were too tired to continue and they set up camp. Alastair still didn't talk to her, and she was growing impatient. After she offered him dinner and he didn't even respond, she snapped. "Alright, what is your problem?!" she shouted. "You have been avoiding me all day and I want to know why!" "Leave it alone, Souvenir, it's nothing." he replied, not looking at her. "Oh no, I sure as hay won't! You are going to answer me or I will...I will...grr!" She sat down and crossed her forelegs in frustration as she realized she had nothing to threaten him with. "You know, Souvenir...this will be the last night we spend together..." he said, his tone making his concern clear. Souvenir herself began to feel sad as she realized he was right. "Oh...you're right...Ponyville is half a day from here...wait, where is the place you have to deliver your message?" "Canterlot..." "Oh, that is near Ponyville...I guess we'll have to say goodbye there..." Her eyes began to water at the thought. "I...I'm going to miss you..." she finally said. "...Souvenir...I..." he began, but couldn't continue. "But...you know...there's no reason you can't come visit sometime..." She said those words, but in her mind she still wasn't sure why. "Maybe have a few drinks together, remembering this journey we had..." she continued, "And maybe just hanging out talking about present stuff...or any kind of stuff..." Her voice broke as her tears began running down her face. Alastair pulled her into a tight embrace as Souvenir began to cry on his shoulder, hugging him back. He began stroking her mane as his own eyes began to shed tears. Souvenir pulled herself away just a bit to look at him in the eyes. Those fiery eyes that often scared her but at the same time made her feel safe. They looked into each others eyes with the same feeling that surfaced the first time they did. Finally, Souvenir began to lean in close as her eyes were slowly closing, and Alastair began doing the same. Her mouth and his beak were very close to touching and their eyes were almost closed. However, just before any contact, Alastair turned his head away quickly, but Souvenir didn't stop and kissed his cheek. It wasn't what she aimed for but was just as satisfying. She had done this impulsively, but this was the first time she didn't try to fight her urges. As she opened her eyes and saw Alastair looking away, she thought she had made a mistake, and one that couldn't be fixed. She broke the embrace and stormed into the tent, crying. Alastair would have followed her, but right now his mind was busy with something else. He, too, had apparently made a mistake. *** The dawn came and Souvenir left her tent. She had cried herself to sleep rather quickly, but was surprised to see that Alastair wasn't in the tent. He wasn't outside either, and this made Souvenir worry. She finally saw a note on her cart and read it. "I'm sorry, Souvenir. This can never happen between us. Goodbye, I will miss you too." This broke her heart and she fell to the ground, crying like if the most important thing in the world no longer existed. In the middle of her crying, she finally realized something she should have realized a long time ago, something that she tried to deny. She loved Alastair, but now he was gone forever. After she finally stopped crying, not because she wanted to, but rather because she had no tears left, she decided to go back to Ponyville, alone. She finally reached Ponyville before the night came. The sight of her hometown cheered her up, but only a small bit. She was greeted by the residents who were glad to see her back after one year, especially the museum workers and Ponyville's librarian. Immediately after, she was assaulted with questions about her journey and where she had been. While she tried her best to answer them, she was about to cry again when asked how she came back. She didn't ask any further questions and tried to hurry to her house. Before she opened her door, she saw her window, showing a reflection of Canterlot's mountain. This finally made her cry again, and she didn't even look at the items she had to get from her cart before running inside and closing the door behind her. *** It was minutes before Princess Luna had to make the moon rise, and she saw a lonely figure on Canterlot's rooftops. It was a black griffon carrying a sword, looking down in Ponyville's direction. Intrigued, she approached the griffon. "Who are you, griffon?" she asked. He looked at her, realizing she was the princess of the night. "I am...Alastair III of House Bloodfeather, your highness..." "What are you doing out here alone in the middle of my night, Alastair?" Princess Luna was quick to notice the sorrow in Alastair's tone. "Nothing..." he replied and looked down again. "Did you lose a dear friend?" "Aye...but there is no point in thinking about it now." "Isn't there? I believe she misses you..." Alastair was too depressed to even notice she had correctly guessed the gender of his friend and the context of the loss. "Even if she does, I made a horrible mistake last night, and this morning...I can't go back to her." "But even that can be fixed, Alastair. If you ask for forgiveness, you might have it." "It is not that simple, Princess Luna..." he said stubbornly. "Mending a broken heart is not always simple, that is true. But sometimes all it takes is a simple action." "What can I do? Nothing..." "If you believe that, then you truly have lost her. You must face your fears, go back to her or the nightmares will continue, and all will be lost if you decide to give up." Princess Luna turned around and began flying away. "Remember that, young Alastair." Alastair finally remembered he had seen Princess Luna before, more specifically, in his dream last night. She was there when he dreamed that Souvenir left, years passed and they didn't see each other again. At first he thought it was a coincidence, but eventually came to realize she had seen his dream and attempted to help him. To a griffon this was confusing, but Alastair had heard of Princess Luna's dream powers last time he visited Equestria. He began to think about what the princess had told him. He realized that he didn't make such a big mistake last night, or that morning. His only mistake was denying his feelings for Souvenir, the feelings which made him apologize for yelling at her, the feelings which made him want to keep her safe. His only mistake was denying that he loved her. After calling himself stupid countless times in his head, he finally resolved to fly to Ponyville and look for Souvenir, then apologize and confess his love. His return was seen by the Princess, who smiled at this. He arrived in Ponyville when the moon was up in the sky. His arrival did not go unnoticed, and a pink pony with blue eyes and puffy hair approached him excitedly. "HI! I'm Pinkie Pie! I've never seen you around here before, are you new?" the pony asked. "Aye, look, I'm looking for a pony." "Well, you found one!" the pony said, laughing. "You misunderstand, I'm looking for a pony called Souvenir. Yellow coat, black hair, lavender eyes?" "Let me check...Souvenir, Souvenir...AHA! You are looking for the item collector that travels every year!" "Aye, exactly! Where can I find her?" "Hey, no need to rush! Let me welcome you to Ponyville first!" "No, no, I have no time for this, just tell me where to find her!" Alastair was growing impatient. "Hey, no need to yell at me! I insist on welcoming you now, it will only take a minute!" "We can do this later, please!" "Ok, you said later! She is in her house over there!" Pinkie Pie pointed in the direction of Souvenir's house, but before she could say anything Alastair rushed to the house. He arrived in mere minutes. Her cart was there, and still full of items. The house was indeed bigger than the other ones around, like Souvenir told him. He looked at the door and noticed a sign saying "DO NOT DISTURB". Knowing she wouldn't open the door to simple knocking, he thought of a better idea to get her attention. Taking out his bagpipes from his bag, he began playing the same tune that Souvenir had liked. This drew more attention than he intended, as many ponies that were ready to rest at their homes began hearing the loud music and went outside to see what was happening. Souvenir was crying in her room when she heard the tune. At first she believed she was imagining it, but as the tune got louder she realized it was real and quickly ran to her window. She saw Alastair playing just outside her house while a large group of ponies gathered to see what he was doing. Rubbing her eyes to make sure she wasn't imagining this, she quickly realized he actually was outside and ran out of her room, down the stairs and to the door, opening it. As soon as she opened it, Alastair stopped playing and they looked at each other. "What do you think you are doing here?" she asked, not angry but rather confused. "Souvenir, I'm sorry...about this morning...I..." Alastair found himself unable to continue his sentence. Remembering the Princess' words, he decided to act. He dropped his bagpipes and hugged her, much to the surprise of everypony. "I was wrong..." he added, breaking the embrace. "I don't want to be without you...I love you, Souvenir." Everypony gasped at this and looked at Souvenir, who was in shock herself. She felt like something in her heart ignited her soul with a burning, pleasant fire. Her eyes watered as she smiled and blushed, her heart beating quickly. "Alastair...I love you too!" she said as she threw her forelegs around him, hugging him tightly, and he soon returned it. They looked at each other and leaned in close, finishing what they started the night before as they finally kissed. The touch of their mouths, being clearly different, felt a tad bit strange, but they wouldn't have it any other way. They broke the kiss after a couple seconds that felt like ages, and saw the ponies of Ponyville with mixed reactions. Some were still surprised, some were cheering and others were confused. "He heh...everypony, this is Alastair...I suppose you can say he is my 'coltfriend'." "HEY! You know what this calls for?!" said a voice that even Alastair recognized. "Let me guess..." said Souvenir rolling her eyes, not intending to finish the sentence. "A PARTY!" Pinkie Pie came out of the crowd with a cannon. Upon firing it the crowd was covered in confetti, streamers and cake. The ponies soon began to laugh and an improvised party started. Alastair was confused and turned to face Souvenir. "Is it always like this in Ponyville?" Souvenir laughed and kissed his cheek. "You get used to it..." The couple soon joined the party, after all there was no other way to end such a great journey.