Notes Of Time:
Chapter 27- Day of Tears:
Throughout days of Maestro being unable to visit his own mother, he began to grow restless as of why he couldn’t? All he wanted to do was a simple checkup on her, nothing more, and they wouldn’t even let him do that. What if they weren’t telling him the full story, and only telling him what he wanted to hear that day? What if they had discovered something that seemed worse than a chicken egg sized mass within her brain? He got letters every now and then from the hospital in Canterlot, being informed on her current condition and such. He could care less honestly, and wanted to do nothing but be right beside her the whole way. He loved his mother too much to just leave her there without her son’s love for support.
The reports kept coming to his home, and that the day they performed the surgery…he was not let known of it. He was unfortunately let known of it the day after it had happened, which made him furious. The letter then finally came in on the report as for how it went on a wet and drizzly day.
“Octavia, the letter’s finally here!” he called out to her from upstairs, as her and Octave as well made their way downstairs to hear the news as for how it went.
“Oh boy, granny made it through!”
“Y-yeah, heh…granny’s made it through it I bet!” Maestro put on a fake smile for his daughter just to keep her happy and positive about it. But he saw Octavia make her way downstairs from the corner of his eye. He noticed that she had an expression of an “I hope and pray it went well for her” sort of look.
“Open it, open it! I wanna hear what they said about her being fine and stuff!”
“Octave, that’s enough young lady…do you understand? You are making your father nervous.” Octavia addressed to her firmly, but still on a level that only a mother could deliver it well enough to make it not sound mean or intimidating.
“Sorry mother…I’ll stop now.” Octave then took a seat on the couch, looking back over the top of the piece of furniture at her father in anticipation of the self-proclaimed good results.
The letter then read: “Mr. Maestro, I hope you have had a good day sir. It has come to my very unfortunate realization and confirmation from the doctors and nurses who worked so desperately hard to have your mother pull through this procedure with flying colors-”
Maestro then stopped reading the letter, as his eyes began to tear up, already seeming to assume the terribly tragic news.
“Sweetie? Maestro please keep reading it…surely that couldn’t be it?” Octavia’s face now filled with sympathy for her husband. As the last thing she needed was, was to hear the unthinkable.
Maestro hoof began to shake a pinch, as he resumed reading off the letter he had received through the mail just several short moments ago, with Octave now looking at him curiously.
“As it is my great displeasure to inform you that Ms. Harmony, your mother, had unfortunately passed away during the surgery last night. She broke out into another seizure, as we were nearly finished. I would rather not say the rest, as it hurts me a great deal as well to tell you this. I had talked to her some before this unfortunate demise, and might I say you had an excellent mother sir.
She even treated me like I was a part of her family, so humble…so kind…oh how I will miss her as well. Our thoughts and condolences are with you, as we grieve with you on this day, and that I am sure she will continue to remain in yours, and your family’s hearts. Good day Mr. Maestro
Sincerely,
Doctor McColtie”
The letter then ended, and Maestro simply stood there, tears flowing down the sides of his face like two rivers in incomprehensible feelings of disbelief and devastation within his heart and soul. His heart literally felt like it had tore in two, and Octavia then began to have tears stream down her face along with him, as she made her way down next to him, hugging him tightly. His face still simply stood there with eyes wide open, too devastated to even move, as the letter gently floated down to the floor below him.
“M-moth-th…” Maestro stuttered and muttered words to himself, thinking that surely this was all just one big dream? His mind was on the verge of losing it, like he was about to do something drastic to himself.
Octave then herself knew that this was not good news…not good news in the least.
“G-grann…y?” Octave trailed off, not believing what she heard from the letter either. She nearly seemed to take it just as hard as her very own father, and started crying hard with her face into one of the small pillows on the couch she laid on.
“O-Octa-v-vi…” Maestro then mouthing words to himself, was far too hurt within his self to even care anymore.
“Yes dear? Please, please stay calm okay?! I love you-I love you-I love you-I love you so much Maestro!” Octavia hugging him tightly, and quietly crying hard into his chest to help keep his racing mind at bay.
Those two rivers kept flowing silently down the sides of his face, as he looked off ahead of him with red eyes, and a depressed sensation coming from his face.
Octavia then kissed him on the mouth gently, and upon both of his cheeks. “Maestro…please listen to me, hello? Please dear, you need to calm down and regain your composure.” she stated to him deeply concerned for his emotional health now.
“M-mom…”
“I’m so very sorry Maestro! She was like a mother to me too!” Octavia replied crying quietly to him. All you could hear from her was sniffling and those typical brief gasps of air when short inhaling occurs.
A few more minutes had passed, and Maestro was lying on his bed, and balling his eyes out to himself. He remained within the master bedroom, keeping the door locked to prevent anypony from interrupting him.
“I-is…granny…”
Octavia then looked down at poor little Octave, her lower lip shaking, along with both of her eyes red as they could be. She herself felt obviously devastated and deeply shaken by the sudden announcement of her deceasing.
“Well…no, not exactly…she didn’t die sweetheart.” Octavia replied, as her eyes had dried up now. She wanted to be strong for the family, and try to put it back together whenever Maestro had calmed down.
Octave then sniffled from her small snout. “Then…w-what happened then mom?”
“Well…you could say, that she is in the same place my own mother is, she is certainly not hurting anymore that is for sure.”
“B-but granny died though!” Octave raised her voice a bit.
“Octave! That is not what a lady such as you should be saying! Your father is just on the other side of this door young lady!”
“I’m sorry mom…I just miss her so much now.” Octave then put her face into her mother’s chest in a loving manner.
“Shhh, there now…take this one step at a time okay? You said when you were a little filly, that you wanted to be just like me when you grow up?”
“Um…uh-huh.” Octave nodded, clearing her face up for the last time.
“Well…what is mommy trying to do then at the moment?”
“Um…” Octave then had to stop for a second to think; even despite she was a witty little filly. “Mom’s aren’t supposed to cry?”
Octavia then giggled a bit at her daughter’s efforts to try and solve it by herself. “No sweetie, mothers can certainly cry, but they need to be strong for the family too.”
“Oh…” Octave then turned her head a little away from her mother, but still keeping eye contact back with her.
“Okay then…” she added.
“Come here now…shhhh.” Octavia brought her in closer with her motherly embrace. She felt so soft and delicate to Octave, like she was an angel herself.
“Um…mom?”
“Yes dear?” Octavia wondered, continuing to keep hugging her daughter to make her feel more secure and safe about the situation for a little bit longer.
“Does that mean she’ll get to see your mom too?”
“I don’t really see why not? Why I bet the two of them are even talking about how great, and how sweet you are.” Octavia then let her go from her embrace partially, and looked straight into her eyes warmly smiling.
A few hours had actually passed now, and Octavia had sent a quick letter to Vinyl. She had to let her know about the unfortunate news, and that she might need to look after Octave due to Maestro and her needing to make the funeral arrangements down at the funeral home. It was the very same funeral home Octavia’s own mother was at when she herself was a small filly.
“Octave! I’m-…oh…” Octavia stopped herself, seeing nopony else in the living room but her daughter looking off into the fireplace quietly to herself. As the silence fell, nothing could be heard but the distinct crackling coming from the blazing pieces of firewood.
“Hey mom.”
“Hello dear.” She passed her up, kissing her on the crown of her head. “Where is your father? Is he not down here still?”
“No…he’s been pretty quiet since you left.” Octave replied, still looking off into the flames, and its smoke rising up into the chimney.
“Well did you check on him at all when I was gone?”
“No.”
“Octave, he is your father dear!” Octavia demanded to her, as she then began briskly making her way upstairs. She then had approached the locked bedroom door, knocking lightly onto the wooden surface.
“Maestro? Sweetie I have arrived back from the post office.” She spoke up, but to her surprise…nothing could be heard. She knocked lightly again, and then a third time, only with more force now.
“Dear please, talk to me okay?” She still didn’t hear anything, and then proceeded to open up the door with a spare key under a rug in front of the door. She quickly placed the key into the slot and turned the knob, unlocking the door, and leading her inside. She still continued on using only easy actions, and slowly opened up the door, with the room blackened out. A beam of light from the hallway light being cut on shined in on what appeared to be Maestro having his back towards her in the bed, with the covers draped over everything but his head.
“Maestro?” she tried speaking softly once again, fortunately a tiny movement could be seen from her vision focused on him. Thankfully that happened, otherwise then she would begin to grow worried as to something that happened to him…that she didn’t even want to go there on such a thought.
“Maestro dear, did you hear me just outside of the door?” she continued speaking softly. She kept getting no response from him, and decided to lie down next to him.
“I am so sorry this happened…but you do know that she is not dead, don’t you?” she said, luckily managing to hear at least something out of him, despite it being only a mumble.
“Of course, I understand…would you like me to let you get some rest and calm down a little more?” She asked him with soft kindness in her voice.
“No…” he mumbled, luckily being a mumble loud enough for her to catch onto this time around.
“Oh, well…alright then…” Octavia replied in a soft tone of her voice, as she put her foreleg around him.
“I love you so much…be strong with me okay? I am doing the best I can about it. Sure, yes…absolutely, it is never an easy task, but I am trying my best to do my part.” She added, before lightly kissing him on his cheek.
He then slowly looked back at her from the corner of his eye, and it was still appearing to be a bit bloodshot. Showing no emotion from his face, not even slightly, he then put the covers over him even more.
“I will let you be then, it is approaching nightfall in the first place. I shall start on dinner…feel free to join your family. I am sure daddy’s little girl would want to see her favorite father.” Octavia smiled a bit, then simply made on her way, and left the bedroom entirely, leaving the bedroom door cracked this time.
Later on that evening, it was about eight o’ clock now, and Octavia had finished preparing dinner for all of them.
“Octave sweetie, dinner is being served!” she called out to her from the kitchen. The sound of pots and skillets being rinsed could then be heard afterward. Octave then made her way into the kitchen to wash her hooves to get ready for dinner next to her mother at the kitchen sink.
“Is dad gonna join us?”
“I am unsure as of that? Maybe a little persuasion from you would do the trick?”
“Uh, okay…I’ll be right back.” Octave then made her way out of the kitchen after drying her hooves off before heading upstairs.
Several more moments later, Octave made it outside of the cracked bedroom door. She slowly opened it and called out to her father in a smaller tone than normal.
“Um…dad?” she then approached right next to the bed, but not getting up onto the bed with him.
“No…go please…”
“But mom said that you-”
“I said leave me…”
“But dad, you need to be with your fa-”
“I said go now damn it!” Maestro lashed out at her. Immediately propping himself up out of bed, and his face quickly being viewed so quickly. His expression and eyes seemed to pierce into her heart with fear and great intimidation. The volume of his voice, and the way he shouted back at her so suddenly frightened her greatly. Never had he ever treated her this way in her entire life. Maestro’s eyes and face then switched over to sympathy, realizing the terrible mistake that he had committed just then, as he saw her start backing up away from him tearing up.
“Oh…my…sweetie I-I’m so-”
“Shut up! I hate you!” Octave shouted back at him crying once more into the day, and running back downstairs to mom.
“What have I done…?” he trailed off to himself, now afraid to even approach his daughter now.