//------------------------------// // Family Is Important // Story: Stop Thinking For A Minute // by ThatBlueScreenGuy //------------------------------// I swear it, it’s as though these ponies know I have other shit to do. I’ve been trying to continue that side project that I’ve been working on for the past forever and a half, but every time I start to make real progress, I get interrupted. Yesterday, Twilight asked (dragged) me over to the library, so we could talk magical theory. The day before that, Pinkie asked (again, dragged) me off to the marketplace, so I could help her get gifts for Hearth’s Warming Eve. She made me carry everything, while I know for a fact she could have just put it all in some pocket dimension or something. The day before that, Applejack asked (dra- well you get the idea) me to help her around the farm. In winter. SHE NEEDED HELP FARMING IN WINTER! All these distractions have prevented me from getting to my own personal stuff. And it’s not like I’m going to say no. Then they’d just give me those pouty faces that could give a man type two diabetes at a mile away. My friends had constantly needed my help ever since the wedding, and I was all to weak willed to deny them. But, damn, does this shit get excessive. So, when I heard the buzzing that was my apartments ringer, I stalked up to it, pushed the speaker button, and yelled,”What the Hell do you want?” There was a moment of stunned silence from the other end. Eventually, Celestia’s voice came through the speaker. “Uh, Connor? Is this a bad time?” I sighed. Great. I was going to take out my frustration on someone who didn’t deserve it. “No.” I said. “Just… Working on something, and I’ve gotten all sorts of interruptions. You want to come in?” “If it’s not too much trouble, yes.” she responded. I pressed the button that unlocked the door, and went back to my little project. About a minute later, my apartment door opened to let in Celestia, and my personal minion, Signal Flare. By the look on Flare’s face, I can tell that she’s still pissed about being my little lackie (even though she technically isn’t). She showed Celestia to my work area, and then let herself out without a word to me. Celestia looked after her. “Is she still angry?” I nodded. “Yeah. Hasn’t said a whole sentence to me ever since the wedding. If she is good at one thing, it’s mopping.” Celestia shook her head. “You really should tell her about her new job. She can’t spend all her time doing your bidding, when she has an actual job to do.” I shrugged. “Yeah, but when I tell her, I get the feeling that I’ll want to be able to run as far away and as fast away as I can. I don’t think that she’ll appreciate the humor in it.” Celestia sighed. “You’re terrible.” I smiled at her. “Thanks. Now, what are you doin’ here? Don’t you have a country to run?” She nodded. “Yes, but I need your help with something.” I tilted my head. “Yeah? What’s that?” “Do you remember that favor you owe me from the Tag Games?” I nodded. “Well, I want to cash that in.” I shrugged. “Sure. But, forewarning. I don’t do anything involving children or animals.” She blinked at that. “What? Why don’t you-” She shook her head. “No, never mind. Luna’s birthday is coming up, and I need help coming up with ideas.” I blinked. “It’s Luna’s birthday?” Celestia nodded. “On Hearth’s Warming Eve, in fact. Luna usually doesn’t have a party, because she thinks that the founding of Equestria is more important a thing to celebrate than her.” “Huh. That’s a humble thing to think.” Celestia nodded agreement. “Indeed. I usually get her something small, but this year, I feel the need to get her something that she’ll remember for a long time.” She looked down. “It will be the first present she’s gotten since she came back from the moon…” My brows furrowed at that. “You didn’t get her anything last year?” Celestia shook her head, still looking down. “I didn’t remember. IT had been a thousand years since I celebrated her birthday. It used to be a day where I would cry myself to sleep each night, so I tried to forget about it. I only remembered this year because Luna was dropping not-too-subtle hints about it.” I slowly nodded my head. “Ok… But what do you need from me?” She looked up at me. “I remember once that you said that you are gifted in making a small situation big. I was hoping that you would help me do so with this.” I wiped the grease that was on my hands off on a rag, and sat down on a nearby couch. “Luna’s birthday…” I mused. “This would be the first time that you are getting her a gift in a thousand years. You want to make sure that it can be remembered…” I looked up at her. “What did you say when Luna was cured of the Nightmare?” Celestia looked surprised at the question, though she furrowed her brow in thought. “I… I told her that we should put our differences aside, and that we were meant to rule together. Why?” I ignored the question. “Did you apologise?” If she was surprised at the last question, this one put her in a state of near shock. “Why would I apologise?” She asked, incredulous. I rolled my eyes. “If I recall correctly, you did send her to the moon.” “Well yes but-” “And,” I continued over her, “if the legends of Nightmare Moon are anywhere near correct, then it was due to neglect and resentment by you that drove her to it.” “What?!” Celestia asked, anger touching her voice. “How was I, in any way, resentful of my sister?!” I gave her an even look. “Because when she started to slowly go insane, you did nothing to find out why. You didn’t resent her with your words, only your actions. You only did something to stop her when she was preparing to cast the entire world into eternal night. By doing that, you showed that you thought that her opinion didn’t matter, and that she was a child throwing a tantrum.” I rolled my eyes again. “Honestly, Celestia. Luna wasn’t the only one to cause what had happened back then. You’re just as much at fault because you did nothing to stop it, until things got out of hand.” Celestia looked shocked. I think she wasn’t used to being treated with this much blunt truth. She stood there, her mouth open. Slowly, tears started to run down her cheeks, and she fell on the floor, crying. My very dirty, very greasy, floor. “Oh, geez.” I said, feeling awkward. “Uh, hey. Come on, don’t cry. Please don’t cry.” She continued to shake with tears. “Please stop crying. If you cry, then I’ll start crying, and I look absolutely pathetic when I cry. You don’t want to see that, do you?” There were hiccups in her sobs now. She must have been laughing between the tears. After a moment, she gathered her composure, and stood up. She wiped tears off her cheeks with a hoof. “You,” she sniffed, “You’re right. It wasn’t only Luna’s fault that she fell into the hate she did. I wronged her, and was arrogant enough to not even realise it. But what does this have to do with Luna’s gift?” I smiled at her. “I have an idea for the Hearth’s Warming Eve play.” Her brows furrowed. “Uh, ok. What?” “I was thinking,” I explained, “that after the play itself, we held a sort of talent show. Anyone who wants to spread holiday cheer or give messages to loved ones is welcome to come and perform for everyone. Music, singing, dancing, storytelling, any sort of festive activity that you can think of. And I was thinking that that would be the perfect place for you to give your gift to Luna.” “But I still don’t know what to give her.” “True.” I said. “You don’t. But I do.” Celestia gave me a frustrated look. “Well? What is it.” I gave her a wide smile. “You’re going to apologise.” //////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Days later, and Celestia and I found ourselves in the theater in Canterlot. The whole Hearth’s Warming play had come and gone, and the EoH did yet another good job of it. Out of all the episodes that I had seen, that was one of my more favored. Celestia and I sat in the backstage area, where we prepared to tell the crowd that the talent show was about to come underway. Celestia, of course, was nervous. “I don’t see what you’re worrying about.” I told her. “It’s not like she’ll hate you for apologising.” Celestia shook her head. “You don’t get it. She’s my sister. If I did anything to harm her, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself. I only barely survived my times when she was banished. But that isn’t what I’m worried about.” I quirked a brow at her. “Then what is?” “It has been a very long time since I have done anything quite like this.” She responded. “I don’t remember the last time that I put myself in front of my subjects, and performed for them. It’s making me nervous.” I chuckled a little. “Celestia, those nerves are natural. every performer gets them at some point in their lives. But you need to remember. You aren’t doing this for them. You’re doing it of Luna.” That made her stop. She considered my words, and slowly nodded her head. “Yes, of course I am. I know that, but I can’t help but be nervous of their opinions anyway.” She shook her head. “Not to mention that I might embarrass Luna to no end. She was the one that found entertainment in my humiliation, not the other way around.” I looked at her incredulously. “You do realise that Luna won’t care if she’s embarrassed, right? She’s a pony who had been missing for a thousand years, then is forced to learn all the social rules of modern society, which aren’t too humbling on their own. She is a strange person in a strange land that only vaguely resembles home.” Kinda sounds like me, in retrospect. Celestia shook her head harder. “But she’s family. I know that I probably couldn’t embarrass her if I tried, but there is still the chance. It makes me nervous anyway.” She sighed. “I don’t expect you to understand.” There was a moment of stunned silence. “I’m sorry?” I asked. Celestia looked at me. “Connor, I didn’t mean it like that. It’s just that you are the only one of your kind here. it is easy to forget that you come from a home of your own, especially when no one can see it.” I nodded. “I know what you meant. It doesn’t mean that you get the right to say things like that, but I get it.” I sighed, thinking. I haven’t seen my family in, what, a couple months? I don’t even remember. Everything has kinda been a blur. First one thing happens, the the next, and suddenly I’m surrounded by talking multi-hued ponies, with a power inside me that I barely understand, and that will slowly drive me insane over time. Things have happened pretty fast here, or at least it seemed that way. And the thing about all of this, is that I didn’t even consider what I would be leaving behind. I’m sure that I’ve racked my parents sick with worry. The few friends that I did have would probably do something stupid, in an attempt to find out where I went, and that would probably end up with one of them in a body cast. That’s not to mention my girlfriend at the time, Cathy, who I had been getting rather serious with. I have no doubt that she had cried herself to sleep a few times. Thinking about it, I really made a stupid decision, just leaving like I did. I didn’t have much of a choice in whether or not to go, but I did leave without so much as writing a note. Christ, I’m an ass. Celestia seemed to recognise the look on my face, and asked, “Connor, are you ok?” Her voice was smooth, and sympathetic. I shook my head. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just realised that, when I was dumped into Equestria, I left without telling anyone goodbye.” I chuckled slightly. “I suppose that’s for the best, though. I never did like goodbyes.” She gave me a slight smile, and said, “Come on, Connor. We have a show to put on. Afterwards, we can have a talk, if you’d like one.” I looked at her, unsure of how to respond. Eventually, I went with a quiet, “Thanks.” She nodded. “Now, lets go. We have to remind the crowd about why they are still here.” ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ “Good evening, Canterlot!” I said into the mic that I was given. The ponies in the crowd slowly calmed their chatter, and turned their attention onto me and Celestia. “Yes, good evening, my little ponies.” Celestia said, into her own mic. “I hope you all enjoyed that little play. Very well performed, and I think that they deserve another round of applause.” When I said that, I started to clap, and the crowd joined in with me. when the applause died down, I said, “So, bet you’re all wondering just what the Hell you're still doing here.” There was a sound of agreement. “Truth be told, we locked the door, and misplaced the key.” The crowd laughed at that. “In all seriousness, though, we here at the theater are glad to present to you a new little thing that will help us celebrate the Hearth’s Warming holiday.” “Indeed.” Celestia agreed. “We have spent the past few days coordinating with the theater management, and any other assets that we might need, to come to you with a new Idea. Tonight, we are going to end the night with a small talent show.” “And by small,” I said, “We mean, consisting of you people. Any of you who have even a smidge of musical, lyrical, or dramatic talent are welcome to come up here and perform for all your peers, who will be silently judging you.” Celestia gave me a mild glare. “The point being, that anyone can come and spread the holiday cheer, just so long as they come up here and perform.” The ponies all exchanged dubious, yet excited, glances. Apparently, they want someone else to start it before they participate. “And, to kick things off,” I said, “I think that I’ll be the starting act. Just to get you people comfortable with the idea.” I looked at Celestia, and she gave a nod of consent. I smiled at her, and she walked off stage. So, I was left alone there, thinking of a way to start off a talent show. I’ll be honest, I hadn’t really thought of any ideas for this. I didn’t really plan to participate, other than with helping Celestia. I suddenly felt a familiar chill run down my spine, and I had the best idea that I could probably come up with, on such short notice. I ran backstage, looked around for what I needed, and pushed it onto the stage. Some of the ponies back there helped me push the piano onto center stage, and I thanked them for their help. They scurried back, and I went back to my mic. “Now,” I started, “this is a song that i used to hear frequently back home. It was usually played around this time of year, during a holiday called ‘Christmas’. Normally, I would dedicate the song to the season, but tonight, I’m going to dedicate it to a friend of mine that has decided to show up.” I looked in Isaac’s direction, where he had entered the reality, and nodded at him. “This one’s for you, old man.” I then stepped back from the mic stand, focused my Will, and snapped my fingers. Standing next to me, were three other copies of myself. They all wore the same clothes. A hoodie, cargo pants, sneakers, and sunglasses. The only difference was the colors of the clothes. While the main colors of my clothes are orange and purple (with red shoelaces, and random paint splotches on the pants), the others were colored with a different brush. One of them had the colors of blue, where I had orange. Another had green. The third was closer to pure red shades. They all were identifiable as me, yet diverse enough to not be mistaken as the real me. Frankly, it was one of my cooler spells. I grinned like a moron, and walked up to the piano, my clones following me. We each got into our separate spots, and started to play. ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ From my song, which had been met with much applause (I mean, come on. Have you ever seen a guy play four different parts to a song all at once?), the shows went on without a hitch. Quite a few ponies thought that it was a good idea to participate in this new idea, and promptly lined up. Their performances were quite good, though not nearly as sexy as mine (modesty, thy name is Connor). But as time went on, Celestia got more and more nervous. Granted, she controlled it very well, but it could still be seen in how she held herself. She was tense, and getting more so by the minute. “Hey,” I said from next to her. “You’ll be fine.” She nodded nervously. “Of course. I know that. But it’s one thing to know that you’ll be fine, and another to feel nervous.” I chuckled. “Yeah, I know the feeling.” I patted her on the back. “Well, you best get rid of those nerves soon, because we go up next.” She nodded again, and took a deep breath. I left her to calm herself, and walked over to the orchestral musicians that were setting up. I spotted one that I recognized, though not by name, and padded up to him. “Hey,” I said, drawing his attention. “You guys ready?” He looked around. “Just about, but we need to know what we’re playing, if you want us to play at all.” I nodded, and handed him a stack of sheet music that I stored in my don’tquestionit. “Hand these out. Read ‘em through, and get ready, ok?” He grabbed the sheets, and nodded. He then went to hand out the music, and I jogged back over to Celestia. “Ready?” I asked her. She didn’t respond. Instead, she just walked out onto the stage, and to where the mic stood, at the center of the stage. I took up my position, at the piano that was a few feet from her. “Good evening, my little ponies.” She said. “I hope you’ve had a good time so far.” The crowd cheered their agreement. Celestia looked down. “I have a confession to make, my loyal subjects. I have done many things in my life. Many things of which, that were not easy. And very few of them do I regret. There is, however, one thing that I do.” She looked up. “I have wronged one of you. I have wronged one of you, and hadn’t had the frame of mind to even realise it.” She looked directly at Luna, who sat up in a small booth. “Luna, you decent into Nightmare Moon had gone unnoticed by all. Not eve I had seen it, though I should have. I had, in my arrogance, assumed that you were merely complaining for the sake of it. I hadn’t foreseen what would happen. And in my neglect, you fell into a madness that took a thousand years to cure. For this, I have had Connor,” I waved at Luna, “help me create a gift for you tonight. A gift that I hope will show you just how much I am sorry for what I did, or rather, didn’t do. I only hope that this will help mend the gap between us. The one that we both created.” She nodded at me, and I started to play. “Fate has been cruel and order unkind How can I have sent you away? The blame was my own; the punishment, yours The harmony's silent today But into the stillness I'll bring you a song And I will your company keep Till your tired eyes and my lullabies Have carried you softly to sleep Once did a pony who shone like the sun Look out on her kingdom and sigh She smiled and said, "Surely, there is no pony So lovely and so well beloved as I" So great was her reign and so brilliant her glory That long was the shadow she cast Which fell dark upon the young sister she loved And grew only darker as days and nights passed Lullay moon princess, goodnight sister mine And rest now in moonlight's embrace Bear up my lullaby, winds of the earth Through cloud, and through sky, and through space Carry the peace and the coolness of night And carry my sorrow in kind Luna, you're loved so much more than you know Forgive me for being so blind Soon did that pony take notice that others Did not give her sister her due And neither had she loved her as she deserved She watched as her sister's unhappiness grew But such is the way of the limelight, it sweetly Takes hold of the mind of its host And that foolish pony did nothing to stop The destruction of one who had needed her most Lullay moon princess, goodnight sister mine And rest now in moonlight's embrace Bear up my lullaby, winds of the earth Through cloud, and through sky, and through space Carry the peace and the coolness of night And carry my sorrow in kind Luna, you're loved so much more than you know May troubles be far from your mind And forgive me for being so blind The years now before us Fearful and unknown I never imagined I'd face them on my own May these thousand winters Swiftly pass, I pray I love you; I miss you All these miles away May all your dreams be sweet tonight Safe upon your bed of moonlight And know not of sadness, pain, or care And when I dream, I'll fly away and meet you there Sleep… Sleep… Sleep…” As the last notes faded into the theater, you could see, clear as day, the tears that covered every pony’s face. Most importantly, Luna’s. When the last note faded, Luna sprung from her chair, flew in, and tackled Celestia in a hug. It was a beautiful sight, really. Those two were perfect complements to each other. One serious, the other humorous. One following the calculations of their mind, the other, of their heart. One day, one night. You could tell just by being in the same room as them, that they had grown closer than most ever would with anyone. And that had been tainted. When Luna came back, and the two started to interact once again, you could feel the tension between them. Celestia had been right. There was a gap between them. A kind of gap that forms when you want to trust someone, but are still wary of them, due to their history. It was the kind of gap that could be filled in and make a relationship stronger, or one that could destroy it all together. Looking at the crying sister, I could almost see that gap being filled, their relationship with each other getting stronger. Everyone could. And everyone applauded. Not me, though. I didn’t clap. I merely smiled slightly, and walked away, content with letting the two sisters have their moment. For me, the rest of the night was spent getting home. ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ When I got home, I found that I couldn’t sleep. Not really a new thing for me. I would often find myself in a position where I was too tired to sleep. I always hated those moments. I leaned on a windowsill in my apartment, one hand held up at neck level, holding the silver pentacle amulet that I wore (usually under my shirt). I looked down at the thing. It was a simple piece of artwork. A silver five pointed star, bound inside a circle. The points representing the five elements: fire, water, earth, air, and spirit. The star was inside the circle, which represented control. Power bound with restraint. A slight chill went down my spine, and I smiled. I had expected him to show up at some point. “‘bout time you showed up.” I said through a yawn. “I was getting tired.” Isaac’s voice came from behind me. “Well, I simply needed to see you. I really wasn’t expecting you to do that song for me. That was very well played.” I smiled, still looking out at the snow cover landscape of Ponyville. I saw Isaac enter my peripheral vision. “But something that shocked me even more was that ordeal with Celestia and Luna. Care to explain that one?” I shrugged and said. “I owed Celestia a favor, and she cashed it in. She wanted help with getting a present for Luna, and I obliged her. I figured that that would be as good a gift as any. Family is important, after all.” Isaac nodded. “Yes, it is. But I suspect that you have other motives.” My face became serious. “Family,” I repeated, “Is important.” I pushed off the windowsill, and walked over to a nearby table. On the table was a simple brown box, and a white envelope. I took my necklace off, and put it in the box, the envelope following it. I picked up the box, and walked over to Isaac. I held it out to him. “Can you do me a favor, and deliver this to someone?” Isaac’s brows furrowed, but he took the box and nodded. “To who?” He asked. I simply tapped the address on the box. He looked down at it, and his brows lifted. “Yes, of course. I shall deliver it personally.” I nodded, and looked back out the window. My guest made his way for my door, but I said, “Isaac?” He stopped, and turned to face me. “Thank you.” I said. He merely smiled and nodded. He left my apartment, and I felt the chill that accompanied his departure. I continued to stare at the snowy lands of Ponyville, and mused about day that had been. ///////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ The sound of loud knocking drew the woman out of her stupor. She blinked, and looked around her living room. The place hadn’t been ever pretty, but now it just looked like a pigsty. Bottles of all shapes and sizes were strewn about, along with papers, wrappers, and anything else that you might think accompanies a disorganized room. There was a distinct lack of Christmas decorations around the place. Usually there had been a tree, a raging fireplace, and decorations on any surface that would support them. But, this year, there were none. The world had become a grey place ever since her son had disappeared. She heard the sound of knocking once again, and her attention snapped to the front door. She sighed, and lifted herself up from her position in the couch. There was an impression from where she had been. Those were becoming more and more common. She reached the door, and swung it open, to find a vigorous looking old man in a UPS uniform. He had grey hair, a grey beard, and deep blue eyes. He also wore a brown UPS uniform, retrofitted to fit the cold weather. On the left breast of his jacket, was a name tag that read ‘Isaac’. ‘Isaac’ smiled and held out a small package to the woman. “Delivery.” He said. The woman furrowed her brows. “I didn’t know that UPS shipped on Christmas.” Isaac shrugged and said, “Someone paid express. Said to get it here A.S.A.P.” The woman took the package, and the man turned around to leave. “Wait.” she said. “Don’t I need to sign for this.” The man turned to her, smiled, then walked away. The woman’s brows furrowed even deeper, and she shut the door. She made her way over to the couch, and took a seat. She grabbed a pair of conveniently placed scissors, and cut off and tape that held the package together. When she opened it, her mouth dropped open. Inside, was a simple pentacle amulet, and an envelop. When the woman saw the pentacle, she instantly recognised it. He eyes snapped to the note, and she grasped it, tearing it open. Inside was a small piece of paper that read, simply, “Merry Christmas.”