The first warmish day the next spring, we were in the air. We laughed and said we were doing Cougar patrol, but we were just four Pegasi that were tired of being stuck in our cave. We took to the sky where we belong. We couldn't stay up for hours, but we all alternately laughed and cried the whole time. And after flying until we were too tired to fly, we landed at our trees and ate new oats and drank enough water for the first time in months. Of course, we all stayed together. We were a family now, and I didn't think anything could change that. We had thoroughly enjoyed our winter together, and the new year held so much promise for this Pegasus family simply enjoying life together. I could hardly wait.
That first warmish day turned into a week maybe. We flew every morning looking for Cougars, and enjoying flying too. We were quickly regaining our stamina, and we could all stay up for over two hours, and that was only after five days. And we still alternately laughed and cried. We spent the afternoon eating and drinking our fill, and then relaxing together in the amazing warmth of direct sunlight. It was still cold at night, so we spent nights in our cave. Shysage and I weren't really sure how to address that, but we both felt we would spend nights in the cave permanently if Annie preferred it. She was the one chased from Coptol by a band of Cougars hoping to kill her when she landed. We would let her decide.
Our Ariel was maybe two years old now, and we guessed Annie was two and a half years old. It seemed like, over the short six months we had Annie with us, she had, well matured substantially. So did our Ari. Shysage mentioned quietly to me that it would be interesting which of our girls would get their Cutie Mark first. The girls clearly realized this, and talked about it a lot. That was just an exciting prospect for each of them.
I awoke the next morning to what sounded like Annie quietly crying. Shysage and Ari were still asleep.
"Annie, what's the matter..." I said this quietly, lovingly. I loved Annie as my own.
Annie got quietly up, and moved over next to me, and I sat up too. We were quickly hugging, crying softly together. Annie just kept crying quietly. After minutes, she said softly "Summer, I have to go back..." Then she just cried for a while more.
Ari woke up next, and quickly joined us as the light of the sun filtered through greening trees from the east. We hugged and cried a minute maybe, then Shysage joined us too. This was our family, and we would rather cry together.
Annie must have sensed this, so she said again "...I have to go back..."
Ari started crying pretty hard. "Annie, please... Why can't you stay? We all love you so much..."
Annie pulled away, and hugged just Ari, tightly, and they cried loudly together.
When Annie turned to hug Ari, Shysage gasped quietly.
"Summer..." he said calmly.
It was only when I moved over to where he was that I noticed...
Annie had her Cutie Mark now...
I gasped too. I didn't, couldn't say anything, but Annie's Cutie Mark was exactly half of Princess Celestia's (Cel's) Cutie Mark, a blazing yellow sun. It contrasted with Annie's greening coat wildly, and a wavy line ran top to bottom to mark the boundary where the other half of Princess Celestia's Cutie Mark would have been. Annie's mark was half of Princess Celestia's mark... I was stunned...
Ari hadn't noticed the mark. But Annie clearly felt terrible, and tried hard to explain. The disconnected way her words came out... Annie was reeling inside...
"Ariel, oh, Ariel...
"I need to, have to... go...
"Ari, I'm the... Ariel, I'm... ...the Mare... I just can't help... Oh, Ariel...
"I never want to leave... You... Your family...
"I... I don't... want... I don't want to lose... this... lose you...
"...But we have to go... Back... to..."
Annie cried really hard, and only said one more word...
"Coptol..."
We all cried together for a while...