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// Epilogue 
// Story: The Eyes Are Blind 
// by Fe94Knight 
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Epilogue
Fall Cloud waltzes his way across the path that heads up to his friend’s home. It has been a few days sense he seen them last. Not an uncommon occurrence when you consider who they are, and what they are trying to hide. A small basket of goodies, and sweets for the little one is clamped between his teeth as he hums a little tune to pass the time. Taking his time in this wonderful morning to enjoy the trip instead of taking to the skies. 

‘Oh Midnight will be happy to know that I know a unicorn that could help with his…talent,’ Fall ponders while making his way to the cottage, ‘Floral does love to work with kids, and she is so sweet that perhaps with the proper introduction, she may be able to help.’ 

The Pegasus allows vivid images of the cute little unicorn he met a few weeks back to dance across his mind. As he recalls their few interactions with one another in the market. Floral was setting up her flower stand, and asked Fall if he could help with positioning the cart. Seeing as her magic was already in use at the time holding up a few petunias. It was the first time they met, and one he won’t soon forget. Able to feel the heat in his face, the colt knows full well that it’s not the sun that’s causing it at the moment. Especially after that introduction, he’s run in to her several times in town sense then, and has even shared a meal after meeting by accident at a dinner. 

‘She is a cute one… I wonder...’ Fall shakes his head for a moment to get to the task at hoof, ‘Mares later, friends now… though still,’ he wonders while breaking off in to a trot, and soon finds himself outside of Sky’s and Golden’s home. Though as he approaches, he sees the door is slightly open. ‘Well it’s a nice day out,’ he finalizes, ‘Golden is probably letting the breeze in.’

Though as he gets closer, Fall sees that part of the door is cracked after being forced in. He drops the basket on the porch, thinking perhaps that it’s just another accident from Midnight’s gift. ‘No cause for alarm,’ he throws it up to, trying to fight back the feeling of the sweat trickling down his neck, ‘I’m sure everything is alright,’ “Sky! Golden! Are you-?” though before the last word can leave his mouth, Fall cracks open the door, and sees the trail of blood on the ground leading off down the hall.

Not even waiting to read the sight for what it is one more time, the colt takes off down the path while kicking over the basket after a burst of speed fuels his legs. Making it around the corner, and almost stumbling over the body of a friend he once knew, “Sky…” He mumbles while bringing his friend up in to his hooves, as he sees the open eyed stricken expression that remains on what’s left of Sky’s face from the rot. Throat slashed, stabbed in the chest, with a pool of blood around him from where he bled out in the hall. Small flakes of dried up blood sticks to Fall’s coat, along with pieces of oily tissue from decomposition as he shakes his head in near disbelief at what his eyes are showing him, “…Who did this to you my friend…who?” 

Fall was the one that said something like this wouldn’t happen. He told Sky not to worry time, and time again. Yet now he is holding the corpse of Sky in his hooves. Slowly lowering him back down to the ground, and with a single hoof he closes his eyes so that he may rest peacefully. Already mentally preparing himself for what he may find behind the door, that the once guard was clearly trying to reach for. With a gentle push the door creaks open, and then comes to a halt against something blocking it. 

Fall cocks back his hind legs, and in one kick the door is open. A few steps inside he finds several other guards lying about in armor, dead and rotting away from the wounds they have sustained after looking like they’ve been ripped limb from limb by a back of Timberwolves. Though they are ignored, as the Pegasus takes up along the side of the mare laying there on the ground. Golden dead where she lays, almost cradling the small silent form of Midnight in her hooves as she passed.

“Not you too… not all of you,” Fall strokes the mane of the young tike that lays there motionless to his touch, at first. 

“…Mhmm…” The young Midnight starts to roll over in his bed, made of his mother’s body. 

Fall almost jumps at the sight, as he pulls his hoof back, sure that his eyes and ears just tricked him. Though after seeing the small chest rise up and go back down, the colt is sure the foal is alive. With a gentle hoof Fall lifts up the form, and brings the kin in to his own hooves. The cold remains of the mother he loved no longer comforting the tike, as Midnight instinctively almost grabs at the warmth that Fall brings with him which he has missed for a few days now. The tiny hooves wrap around his neck, as the Pegasus falls back on to his own rump, and sits there for a moment. 

Taking in the scene he has witnessed at the moment for what it is. 

‘Sky, and Golden… dead,’ He mumbles in his mind while Midnights eyes remain closed against his chest. The other bodies that he doesn’t recognize, look like they used to belong to what once was royal guards, now mangled beyond belief. For the parents that fell, those guards are likely the only suspect that he can imagine that would do harm to them, ‘But who brought them down once Sky, and Golden were done for?’ 

He wonders while cradling the foal, and running a hoof through his hair once more. Though this time he notices the odd green highlight on Midnight’s mane, and tail, and finally even the cutie mark that he sees. “A shield I can understand…” Cloud speaks aloud, while the slight snores from foal fills his ears. Thankful that he isn’t awake to see his parents like this once more, “…after all look who his parents are, but the flame?”

“…Nmm…” A slight coo escapes the little lips as Fall gets up, and grabs a clean blanket to wrap him up in.

“There, there Midnight…” He pats the back of him while resting the foals head against his chest. “…I got you.” 

At heart the Pegasus knows that no other pony, short of the few friends that the couple made in town, would accept the foal. And out of them, he can’t imagine any going through with it. Fall looks down at the sleeping foal wrapped up. Now in a sling around his neck, rocking gently against his chest, as he walks past the fallen mother, and soon enough the fallen father as well. 

‘I never thought I’d have a foal… or a mare for that reason,’ Fall knows that as nice and charming as he can be, even if he plays it off so much, he still had doubt, “But if that’s what it will take to make sure you get through this… then I’ll do it,” The Pegasus rubs the end of his muzzle atop Midnight’s head. Getting a small smile across his face, as the older colt starts off to one that may be able to help with this sorrowful predicament, ‘This isn’t exactly how I wanted them to meet… but I hope Floral is up at this hour.’



	The end