//------------------------------// // Memories of An Old Friend // Story: The Day My Life Began // by Authora97 //------------------------------// Cloud Kicker Morning. That special time of day when ponies all across Equestria get up to live their lives. The grown ponies go to work, the fillies and colts go to school, and the Princesses raise the sun. Climbing out of my bed, I trotted over to my bedroom window. It gave a beautiful view of the shining town of Ponyville. There was Time Turner on his way to work. There was Ditzy Hooves on her mail route. There was Cloud Chaser and her sister, Flitter, going Celestia knows where. They were all so happy so carefree. I sighed. I had moved to Ponyville shortly after I turned eighteen a few months back. My best friend had urged me too. She was always the braver out of the two of us. She had been telling me for weeks that it was the right thing. Her sister too. Every time I asked her why, she smiled at me. Such a sad smile it was. Sighing again, I closed the window and got back to my morning ritual. It would be a long Monday. I could tell already. I arrived at work with great timing. Of course my boss was late as usual. Rainbow Dash, head of the Ponyville Weather Committee. She was great at her job, but she refused to show up on time. Even when she did, she’s either practicing her tricks or napping! Thunderlane flew up next to me. “Hey Kicker, Clould Chaser and Flitter invited us to The Frosty Mug at eight tonight.” He elbowed my shoulder. “Ya wanna come with?” I smiled. “Sure. It’s been awhile since I’ve been to the Mug.” Thunder smiled. “Awesome!” Before he could say more, Raimbow Dash flew into the building. A proud smirk on her face. “Okay everypony! We’ve got an awesome plan for today!” *pomf* There. That was the last of the clouds I had to pop today. It was kinda fun working in the Weather Team. Cloud work was my special talent after all. I flew over to one of the remaining clouds. According to Rainbow Dash, some of the clouds had to remain in the sky for shade and a small rain next week. Ruffling my lavender blue wings against my coat, I took in some of the autumn afternoon sunlight. Closing my eyes, I thought of how nice life in Ponyville had been. Sure, it had it’s moments. Like, that giant Ursa Minor. Those parasprites. The Running of the Leaves was last week. I participated…that’s when I saw that she was in town. Killjoy. She had won first place in the race, much to the surprise of Rainbow Dash and Applejack. That blood red pegasus had been in Ponyville for a long time. Ever since Applebuck Season. That’s all I could get. Nopony knew much else. On one hoof, I was excited to see her. On the other, I was heartbroken. The last time I saw Killjoy, her family had just died. She was leaving town to try and explore the world. Find out who did it, she had said. Her older sister had let her go. I told them both that KJ was insane. She was fifteen at the time. I sighed. Thinking about my old friend made me- “But Mommy!” A small voice cried out from below my cloud. “Hun, I’ve told you a hundred times now. You have to do your homework on your own.” A familiar voice chastised. “Why?” Peeking over the edge of my cloud, I saw her. That familiar coat, same two colored mane, strange cutiemark. Even the dragon walking next to her was the same. Raspberry Stardust had her saddlebags at her sides. Lilac walking beside her. The young dragonette looked annoyed as any child could. “Because, if I do it for you, then you’ll never be able to do it for others.” Raspberry explained. “Ugh! Why would I want to do more schoolwork?” Lilac groaned. Noticing they were starting to get out of hearing range, I flapped my wings a few times so the cloud would follow them at their pace. Raspberry smiled, patting her daughter on the back. “Lilac, when your Aunt and I were just fillies she tried talking me into doing all her homework. I told her no. She had to learn on her own, and years later she found out why I told her no.” Lilac stared at mother, as though waiting for more explanation. The pink unicorn laughed. “Once we were old enough to get out of school, your aunt went all across Equestria. She sent letters, as you remember, telling me how much she had learned. “One such letter explained how Killjoy had ended up at a party full of pegasi on the coast. She said that she was 800% positive that all twenty pegasi there shared the same brain cell. She apologized for trying to make me do her work. She realized it was to keep her from becoming like those pegasi. She was smarter and learned things the hard way, not by making somepony else do the work for her.” Raspberry explained. The mare laughed. Lilac was still confused. “So, does that mean you won’t do my homework?” “Do it yourself. Also, don’t try to convince one of your friends to do it for you.” The lilac dragon groaned. Her head titled back. Her midnight blue eyes locked with my orchid. The dragon poked Raspberry’s side. “Mommy, somepony’s watching us from that cloud!” Lilac tattles. Just before Raspberry could look up at me, I flew off. It took a few minutes to arrive back at my house. Slamming my door shut, I pressed my back to the door and slid down. That was the first time I had seen Raspberry Stardust since I moved away. She was right, it did break my heart. Back at my hometown, I had a small hooful of friends. The two that I spent almost all day were Raspberry Stardust and Killjoy. Well, three if you count Lilac. She was barely understanding what was going on. The two sisters were orphaned when they were fifteen. They stayed in my house with my parents, since we were close friends to their family. Raspberry could barely sleep the first month, Killjoy the first two weeks. Lilac, the sweet thing, was confused as to why she lived in my house now. Raspberry had told me what happened that night. How Killjoy and her had gone out on their monthly camping trip, they came back to a- I stopped myself. Razzle had explained almost perfectly what happened that night. To the point where it felt like I had walked in to the gore. Months back, when I turned eighteen, I had decided to move to Ponyville. I had tons of doubts, but Razzle kept encouraging me. The look in her eyes, though, confused me. It looked like she was dying on the inside. When I asked her what was wrong, she told me later that night. “Something’s gonna happen to me.” The raspberry pink unicorn had explained. “Nothing bad. I don’t think. The same will happen to Killjoy.” “What? What’s gonna happen Razzle?!” Her amber eyes shined with unshed tears. She brushed a raspberry hoof thru her mane to get some tangles out, something she did when stressed. “We’re gonna go away.” I had raised a brow to her. “That’s it?” Razzle shook her head. “Not like move away. It’s kinda like… when you add creamer to your cocoa.” My brow remained raised. Razzle had always come up with weird ways of explaining things to ponies. “The creamer and cocoa are two different things, but when mixed they can never be unmixed. The cocoa will look the same with or without the creamer, even so, you can still taste the creamer when you take a sip. It can never be just plain hot chocolate again unless it goes thru a complicated process. Or time travel.” My best friend explained. Slowly, I nodded. “So…which are you?” I was afraid of her answer. A lone tear had fallen from her face. “The cocoa.” Even now, months in the future, I hiccupped as tears fell out from my orchid shaded eyes. She had gone on. “The next time you see me, after you move, I won’t be me. KJ won’t either. Lilac will be the only one of the three of us who remain as she is. And I’m so so sorry Kicker, but it will break your heart.” “Why you? Why does it have to be you? Why my best friend?!” Razzle had hugged me tight. “I don’t know why. I just know.” I moved days after. Here in Ponyville, I had made a few friends. Thunderlane was one. Cloud Chaser and her sister. Twins. Identical twins. Why did I like being friends with twins? Looking over at the window, I saw the sun had set. I was gonna be late for Chaser and Flitter’s party! Tossing back my jasmine mane with a chiffon streak, I saw the small line outside The Frosty Mug. Thunderlane waved to me from the middle of the line. “Hey, Kicker!” He yelled. I smiled, walking up to him. “Hey Thunder.” The dark gray pegasus smiled. “I was starting to think you weren’t gonna show.” Laughing, I climbed under the rope barrier. The line was moving really fast. It was just another two groups and we would be inside. “So, how long was it since you were here last?” Thunderlane asked me, just as the line moved up again. I shrugged. “A couple weeks, give or take.” The line moved up slightly. We were almost in. “It was that night DJ-PON3 was here.” “Aw yeah! I loved her music!” My eyes were wide. Turning my head I saw Killjoy in a black jacket and sunglasses. “Why are you wearing sunglasses at night?” Thunderlane asked. I was silent. The blood red pegasus took off the glasses and stared her royal purple irises at Thunder. “Magically enchanted. My nerd of a sister fixed ‘um up so that they look like sunglasses but aren’t. Best birthday present ever.” Killjoy and I hadn’t been close as foals. The mare was more into doing things on her own or with her sister. The one time I ever saw her with her younger brothers was when she had their necks in a headlocks. The two of us would occasionally go out on short flights. We had learned how to fly at age ten, KJ was a natural. Once she warned her cutiemark and I mine, we drifted slightly. Razzle was short of our link together. And now, now Killjoy didn’t even know who I was. The guard looked at the clipboard in her hooves. “Names?” “My name is Thunderlane and this is… hey Kicker, you okay?” My eyes were still on Killjoy as she looked up at me. A half worried look in her eyes. “You look like you’ve seen a ghost. Oh! Is there one behind me? I could use something exciting.” The pegasus turned around to see if there was any ghost. “N-no. No ghost. Just…” I paused. “You reminded me of an old friend.” Killjoy shrugged. The worry gone from her eyes. “Alright.” She unhooked the clasp on the rope. “There’s a Thunderlane along with a Cloud Kicker. Gonna guess the shell shocked mare is Cloud.” Thunder and I walked into the club. “Have an awesome night.” Once we got inside, the shock faded away. It was time to party. It had been two hours since Thunder and I had arrived. It didn’t take long to find Chaser and Flitter. The two were buying us rounds of drinks, and Chaser, being a lightweight, was drunk very quickly. “Youze guyzes are my best friends.” Chaser slurred. I laughed. “We know, Chaser, we know.” The pegasus lifted a hoof. “No. No. No. I mean it!” Chaser patted my shoulder with her hoof. “Mah best friends in all of Equestria!” Flitter carefully pushed the drink away from her older sister. “Chaser, I think you’ve had enough to drink tonight.” The drunk pegasus scoffed. She turned to her sister, her glazed ruby eyes trying their hardest to glare. “You just…just…” Chaser dragged on. “Shush.” Thunderlane and I chuckled. “Hey guys,” I started, “I’m gonna go up and get another drink.” “Alright,” Thunderlane said, “But be back quick. I don’t think Chaser can last that long.” Flitter rolled her eyes. Chaser rolled her head and ended up smacking her head onto the table. I flew off towards the bar, my empty glass in my hoof. The bartender, a light brown earth pony, walked up to me. “Can I help you miss?” He asked me. I nodded. “Yes, could I please have another glass?” The stallion nodded, taking my empty glass. “Got it miss.” Smiling, I began heading back towards our table. “And a toast! For Rarity’s success!” I froze. That was her voice. “To Rarity!” Multiple other voices cheered. Turning my head, I saw her. Raspberry was sitting at a table with six other mares. There was Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack. The other ones I had difficulty naming. The white unicorn was familiar, I think I saw her fashion show last night. Rarity? The yellow pegasus was familiar too...Shutterfly? That purple unicorn was completely unknown to me. They all had drinks raised high, the white unicorn was blushing. “Oh, mares, thank you so much. It was really nothing.” The unicorn said. Shutterfly turned to the white unicorn. “Oh Rarity, but it was something. Hoity Toity is going to use your designs! You’re sure to get a lot of business going once the ponies in Canterlot see your dresses.” Rarity smiled. “You have some good points Fluttershy.” Oh, that was the yellow pegasus’ name. “And thank you, Raspberry, for taking us here. I had no idea Ponyville had such a place.” The pink unicorn shrugged. “Neither did I.” Rainbow Dash chugged a bit of her drink, nearly slamming the glass down on the table once she finished. “Yeah, this place is kinda exclusive. I barely knew about it. How did you even get us in?” Raspberry smiled. That kind of smile where she knows something you don’t. “I know the bouncer.” The purple unicorn flinched back. “That blood red pegasus by the door? You know her?” Raspberry too a sip of her drink. “You could say that.” “How do ya know her? Ain’t she the one that drugged me?” Applejack asked, beginning to glare at Raspberry. “She and I have a history.” The mares at the table were shocked. “Not that way. Geez. KJ is one of my oldest friends. We’re like sisters.” Pinkie Pie squealed. “KJ! That’s such a great nickname! I was gonna call her Joy or Killie! How did you come up with it?” “K as in kill, j as in joy. KJ. Killjoy.” Raspberry explained. “It’s way cooler than her nickname for me.” The purple unicorn raised a brow. “What is it?” “Razzle Dazzle.” Raspberry said before she could stop herself. She threw her hooves in front of her muzzle as the other mares snickered. I did too. That’s what made them all spot me. “Hey, I know you.” Rainbow Dash said. “Cloud Kicker, right?” My orchid colored eyes widened. I realized I had been spying on them, very rudely too. “Y-yeah.” “You do look kinda familiar...” Raspberry commented. “Now that I think about it.” She tapped a hoof to her chin. “She’s really good friends with Thunderlane, Cloud Chaser and her sister Flitter!” Pinkie explained. “She works with the Weather Team and her birthday is in 268 days!” The table laughed. Pinkie always knew how many days were left til somepony’s birthday. Once it stopped, Rainbow Dash looked over to me with a half-angry look in her eyes. “Were you spying on us?” I laughed nervously. “Yeah. Sorry. I just got kinda sidetracked.” “No problem.” Raspberry said instantly. “If I had a bit for every time I got sidetrac- oh look a butterfly!” “Butterfly!” Pinkie shouted while hopping up from the table, hovering in midair and dashing off in a random direction. Looking back towards the table with six mares around it, I rubbed my neck nervously with my hoof. “Well, it’s also that...you kinda look like an old friend of mine...” I told Raspberry, briefly glancing into her amber eyes. She stared at me for a moment. The others did too. They looked more confused, giving Raspberry a glance too. My old friend glazed over for a moment. Once they faded she smiled brightly. “Yeah, you kinda look like an old friend too. Can’t...remember...her name...though.” Raspberry proceeded to try and bang her hoof onto her head. “Yep. Nothing. Sorry.” I shrugged. “No problem. Have a good night.” “See at work, bright and early Cloud Kicker!” Rainbow Dash said proudly. Giving one more nervous chuckle, I headed off. “Raspberry, did you know that mare?” The purple unicorn asked. I paused a moment to hear Raspberry’s answer, even though the mares couldn’t see me. “In another life.” Raspberry answered, a sad tone to it. My eyes suddenly filled with tears, though I didn’t know why. I wiped them away with my hoof and walked back to my table. The others were probably wondering where I was.