//------------------------------// // Figment // Story: A Figment of Her Imagination // by PaulAsaran //------------------------------// Snow was falling in gentle waves, making a small pile on her muzzle. Not for the first time that night, Daring wondered how it was she could even feel the cold. Or warmth, pain, joy... It was a true mystery, but she tried not to dwell on it. When she'd first been told by Twilight that there were ethical dilemmas revolving around her existence, Daring hadn't understood. She did now, and she'd spent her last few hours lost in deep thought about the consequences of her life. She remembered her encounter with A.K. Yearling and, now more than ever, understood what her creator had been trying to say. Her eyes were opened... and she'd made her decision. She stared at Fluttershy’s cottage from the edge of the woods, keeping to the shadows. Lights were on in the windows. Every now and again she would see somepony in them. It was Rainbow Dash and Twilight. They were looking for Daring. They probably thought Fluttershy would know where she was. Were they worried? Were they afraid? Did it matter? She felt frail, like all her energy had been sucked away. Her head hung low, her eyes were heavy, her legs weak. She knew she didn’t have much time left. She wanted them to leave. She had to talk to Fluttershy. But if she went to the cottage now, would they insist upon her going with Twilight? Probably. So she stayed in the shadows, waiting. It seemed to take an eternity, but the ponies finally left, flying off in different directions to continue their search. Fluttershy stood at her door, staring into the darkness. The sight of her would have made Daring’s heart break, if she’d had one. After nearly a minute, though, the pegasus turned and went back inside. Good, she was going to wait. Daring had to force her body to move forward. It didn’t seem to want to obey her commands. Every step felt like her horseshoes were made of lead, her hoofprints in the snow reflecting her dragging gait. Part of her didn’t want to do this, wanted instead to turn and walk right back into the forest and avoid this entire confrontation. But she couldn’t do that. She was about to hurt Fluttershy and the pony deserved to know why. At last, she reached the front door. With great effort, she forced her leg up and knocked. The door opened so quickly she wondered if Fluttershy had been waiting to open it. “Daring!” Fluttershy embraced her, and Daring found herself delighting in the warmth of her body. “Oh no, you’re frozen solid! Come in, quick.” Daring – lacking the energy to resist – let herself to be dragged inside. Before she knew it, she was sitting on a couch and had a couple of blankets thrown over her. Fluttershy snuggled up to her, but there was no hiding the tears in her eyes. “Where have you been? Rainbow and Twilight have been searching for you all this time, and I was so worried when they said you’d missed your appointment. No, what am I saying? I need to get Twilight, before it’s too late!” Just as Fluttershy started to pull herself away, Daring caught her in both hooves and held her close. “No, Fluttershy. Please, don’t go…” Fluttershy blushed and smiled, pressing tightly to her special somepony. “N-not now, Daring. There’s no time. If you don’t get to Twilight’s library soon—” She tried to pull away once more, but Daring only tightened her hold. Fluttershy resisted at first, but then her movements slowed. “D-Daring…?” Daring closed her eyes, chin resting on Fluttershy’s shoulder. She wished she had tears to offer, but her cheeks remained dry. “I… I can’t stay.” Fluttershy stiffened, her hold tightened. “W-what do you mean?” Daring buried her head in Fluttershy’s delightful pink mane, hooves shaking. “I don’t belong here, Fluttershy. I’m not real.” Fluttershy jerked away, even her feeble strength too much for Daring to manage. “Where did this come from? You want to stay, you said you did!” Daring leaned back in the couch, hooves slowly reaching up to caress her lover’s cheeks. Those eyes, with their pleading moisture, stung far more than any blow she’d ever received from Rainbow. She hated herself so much. “I do want to stay,” she whispered. “I just can’t. If I do, I’ll only hurt you even more than I am now.” “You don’t know that!” Fluttershy moved closer and kissed her on the forehead. “Twilight can keep you alive, we can stay together. Why are you giving up all of a sudden?” “It was a dream, Fluttershy.” Daring held her close, felt the pony’s tears on her cheeks. “What am I? I’m a figment of your imagination. You deserve something better than that.” Fluttershy shook her head vehemently. “That’s for me to decide! Maybe I’d prefer the dream.” “No, you won’t,” Daring whispered with a weak smile, kissing Fluttershy’s tears. “I was made to be an adventurer. I was made to wander. Eventually, I’ll mess up and be gone too long. I’m not going to do that to you.” Fluttershy leaned back to rub her eyes. “S-stop. Stop it. What happened to my confident and determined Daring? Twilight will find a way to make the spell permanent, and then it won’t matter anymore.” Daring shook her head. “And how long before she manages that? A year? Five? Ten? I won’t be able to wait that long, Fluttershy. And besides, look at me.” Fluttershy did, fighting back sniffs as her eyes roamed Daring’s body. “Y-you’re beautiful…” “I’m fake.” Daring observed her hooves, which were still shaking. “I should be in tears, but I’m not. My eyes can’t make them. I don’t have a pulse, or bones, or blood. I don’t even have a heart.” “Don’t talk like that!” Fluttershy came forward, setting her forehooves just above Daring’s shoulders as she looked into her eyes. Her soft pink mane hung over Daring, tickling the adventurer’s face. “You have emotions, don’t you? You love me, don’t you? You can’t have such feelings and not have a heart.” Daring could only stare at the creature above her. She hardly seemed equine, but rather something far more precious. A weak smile came to Daring’s lips, and though it took much effort, she reached a trembling hoof to touch that soft face. “Holy horseshoes, but you’re a pretty pegasus.” Fluttershy’s face broke. She collapsed, clutching at her love and weeping. “P-please, Daring, d-don’t do this!” Still smiling, Daring brushed a hoof through that delightful mane. She could feel her energy slipping even farther. “It’s too late. Even if I was to change my mind, we’d never make it to the library in time. It’s over, Fluttershy.” “B-but… But why?” Fluttershy nuzzled Daring’s chest, eyes closed tight. “We could have been h-happy.” “Because I love you,” Daring whispered, leaning her head back to stare unseeing at the ceiling. “I’m not going to hurt you anymore than I have to. You’re a smart pony. I think you’ll understand, in time.” “But I don’t understand now!” It came out as a wail, a pitiful cry that stung Daring in unfathomable ways. Fluttershy stared up at Daring for a few seconds, struggling to contain herself, but finally rested her forehead against Daring’s chest and sobbed once more. “P-please… Please s-stay with me…” They remained like that for some time, Fluttershy’s weeping the only sound. Daring noted the birds and other animals peering from their hiding places, but ignored them. At that moment, the last moment, Fluttershy was her world. She would have done anything to ease the pain, but there was nothing to do but wait and hold on tight. She felt… light. She reached a hoof up and saw that it was growing transparent. It was time. A deep-rooted fear struck Daring. Once again she felt that primal instinct, that determined desire to survive. Yet it was most definitely too late, so she clutched Fluttershy as tight as she could and prayed. “I’m s-sorry,” she whispered over her lover’s sobs. “I’m sorry about everything. But I promise, things will get better. You’ll see. You have friends. You have a pony who loves you. You’ll do better than a storybook doll.” Her stomach churned. She glanced over Fluttershy’s shoulder to see that her lower body was fading. No pain, aside from the emotional. Just a strange lightness, and a terrible understanding that she was about to become… nothing. She closed her eyes and spoke over Fluttershy’s weeping. “I love you. Remember that, please. No matter what happens, I’m doing this for you. I love you, Fluttershy. Never, ever forget that.” A second later, she was gone. Fluttershy could do nothing but curl up on the couch beneath the still-warm blankets and sob.