//------------------------------// // Chapter 10: Funeral for a Foe (turned Friend) // Story: Actually, I'm Dead // by Wave Blaster //------------------------------// The funeral was called for morning, with the first rays of sunlight. Twilight wanted it to be in Ponyville, where they first met. Nopony refused it. The coffin was closed, its contents not fit for public display. The funerary service offered the option of rolling it, but they all refused. To be honest, Applejack could have lifted the coffin by her lonesome. Still, Rainbow asked if she could take the back corner, where it was heavier. The other reached a quick agreement as to their own placement. “On three.” They lifted it together. “One… Two…” Like friends. “Three.” The service was intended to be small. Trixie had no blood family, and she had told Twilight that the ponies who she would have called family were unreachable, vanished without trace some time ago. Trixie did have friends, however, by the end. The services were arranged at the town hall, where Rarity and Pinkie made personally sure to have it looking worthy of Trixie’s last show. It took some convincing, and a couple of favors, but not too many. Even in her short time in Ponyville, Trixie made enough friends to convince the Mayor to permit the ceremony. Nopony expected it to be as well attended as it was. Princess Celestia herself wrote Trixie’s obituary and had it published in the the newspaper the day after her passing. Those whose lives Trixie’s time roaming the roads of Equestria had touched were drawn by that notice, and they had filled the place inside and out. Rarity, waiting with the rest of her close friends, was quite surprised at the number of ponies who had come to pay respects to the showmare. Mourners came from as far as Fillydelphia for Trixie. Even Pinkie’s family was there. There were so many. Some were there to honor Trixie. Others were there to support Twilight and her friends. And, sad to say, some were there just to look and spectate. When the six of them had crossed the doors to the main hall, Fluttershy had to close her eyes. The flashbulbs filled the place with light. It wasn’t an unusual view to see the Elements of Harmony together under the same roof as the Princesses. What was unusual, though, was all of them in a funeral; their first one. Just one look around reminded Celestia why she hated funerals. Saying goodbye is never easy, but having to do so in front of a public made it even worse. Centuries of the exact same scene and it hasn’t become any easier. Once the coffin was placed on its rightful place, the six friends took their seats, all looking down but two of them. Twilight was unable to take her gaze away from the coffin, tears freely falling down her face. Meanwhile, Pinkie Pie was trying to fight her own desire to see who was in attendance with them. She failed and began to scan the place. First, there were ponies that Trixie met in Ponyville, all of them occupying the first two rows. Pinkie saw how Cloudchaser was mourning with her face buried in her hooves and her sister, Flitter, holding on tight. Next to them, Raindrops had her eyes shut tight and teeth gritted while Snowflake saluted Trixie’s coffin, not moving a single muscle. The three of them were witness to what happened and they would have nightmares of it for the rest of their lives. Although they didn’t all resign as Rainbow Dash did, the entire class from the academy was present. There had been a small argument an hour ago, when Spitfire and the rest of the Wonderbolts had arrived. Raindrops confronted them, tried to call them out, but Rainbow stepped in and prevented it from escalating. This was neither the time nor place for that. Of all the ponies present, Trixie’s death had probably affected Rainbow Dash the most. Being so close to a death, and in such a direct way as she had been, affected her in a way she never saw coming. She was more somber than before. Some might even say more mature. To everyone’s surprise, Maud took the podium first. It took only a couple of minutes to make clear she knew Trixie well. Her speech had her heart poured into it and it was the kind ponies would read in book for generations. Everypony present listened silently as Maud said her last goodbye to a pony she held as more than a friend. It stung Pinkie right in the chest seeing her family come the night before, to have realized only then which rock farm Trixie had worked. Pinkie’s mane has been flat the whole time. If she had just visited her family, or just send a letter... Maybe she could have been more welcoming that first time Trixie came to town. Pinkie couldn’t help but feel responsible. She couldn’t even sleep, because each moment she closed her eyes, even if it was just for a blink, she would see Trixie’s ghost haunting her. The other Pies were affected too. Trixie wasn’t just a temporary worker at their farm. Her departure was a surprise to them, and when Igneous read in the morning’s paper of Trixie’s death, they all set to Ponyville in that exact moment. Any other time, Pinkie would have taken the opportunity to introduce her family to her friends and spend some quality time together. There would be time for that later. Now, there were other matters to attend. Pinkie looked up right in time to hear Maud’s voice crack. She watched through watery eyes as her big sister trotted down from the podium and placed a hoof tenderly over Trixie’s coffin. “Goodbye, friend.” Maud closed her eyes. She fought it back down; no tears. Other ponies weren’t that strong. Spike broke down in tears, only held in place by Rarity and Sweetie Belle. He wasn’t alone. The hall’s floor became a new map, filled with lakes of sorrow. Then, it was Celestia’s turn. Her speech was less personal, but more moving. She had a lot of experience in the matter, and she knew how to address the subject, so she gave the kind of speech journalists would quote the entire week. Celestia spoke greatly of Trixie, showing that she actually knew about her before the whole Ponyville ordeal. She told the attendants to remember Trixie for who she was and not for what she did, but not with tears. Celestia reminded everyone that Trixie wouldn’t have liked to be remembered in tears. They listened while Celestia said they would all miss Trixie, each one in their own way. That was it. The moment everyone expected, but no one wanted to really happen. Once again, Twilight, Pinkie, Applejack, Rainbow, Rarity and Fluttershy lifted the coffin together -friends- and marched with it to the carriage that would take Trixie to her final destination. The trip was short. Despite its recent notoriety, Ponyville was still a small town, and the cemetery barely on the outskirts. There, the last rites began. The first to offer prayers was a young stallion -around Trixie’s age- wearing a traditional robe of the Sun’s Order. He knelt down and took off his hood, revealing a greenish brown fur with yellow mane. The monk prayed in silence in front of the coffin and made a signal in the air with his hooves. After that, he took three steps back and stayed silent. Then, Applejack prayed too. However, she was not silent as the monk. With a voice filled with regret and sadness, she directed everyone within earshot to follow her words, pleading for Trixie’s soul to find the rest she was denied in life. Following her were others, a number of them rather surprising. First, Cranky Doodle and Matilda stepped forward to placed a bouquet of various flowers with a letter attached to them. Then, a female griffon, wearing a kerchief around her neck that had the same pattern a Trixie’s old cape, stood right in front of the coffin’s head, but looked in the opposite direction. She extended her wings, clasping her outstretched claw and pulling it towards her heart while lowering her head. It was a gesture of profound respect that Twilight had read about and she fleetingly wondered what Trixie had done to earn the honor of such an action from the griffon. Others stepped forth to offer words of farewell or lay a hoof on the coffin in silent prayer. Finally, when the final good byes had all been said, and Trixie lowered into the earth and buried, Twilight and Fluttershy moved forward to the patch of freshly turned earth. Twilight could have used her magic and have the deed done in a flash, but in difference to how her fellow unicorn spent her last days without it, Twilight used only her two hooves to dig the hole. Roanis have a tradition of planting a blackberry bush over the grave, so the place is left in peace. When Twilight had finished the digging and Fluttershy its planting, a familiar raven descended from a close tree, landing right next to the bush. Duo hopped around the grave as though searching for something. Lowering his head, he tucked in his wings and bowed, offering a low caw of respect to the pony he had befriended. With his beak, Duo broke off a branch from the blackberry and flew off into the distance. Princess Celestia walked inside the Black Room. She was thankful that the day was finally over. With extreme caution, she lit her horn. The golden aura manifested itself in the form of a portal. Pouring more magic into the spell, Celestia grabbed something from inside and started to pull. While she had feared that its latent magic would manifest like the last time its host had died, the Alicorn Amulet had not proven nearly as perilous in its recovery this time. Whatever magic had linked it to its host’s body seemed to have dissipated or dispersed due to the massive trauma inflicted upon Trixie. After that, it just became a matter of removing it from her body. She disliked having to do it, but the Amulet was too dangerous to be left inside a mundane coffin. The damage the fall had caused to the body already made the removal of the Amulet and the bones and tissues that it had fused with an almost trivial task. With one final effort, Celestia finally extracted the cursed artifact from the pocket dimension where she stored it. She sat down for a moment, admiring the work of magical crafting and dark arts now in her hooves. Celestia reflected on how much suffering this item caused, and the cruelty of its maker to let something like this be unleashed in the world. She realized how much damage her ponies just endured, all because she wasn’t cautious enough. With a heavy heart, she breathed a tired sigh. The world was getting too heavy for her shoulders some days. Swallowing her pain, Princess Celestia created a golden pedestal with a crystal box over it. She opened the box and placed the accursed amulet inside, closing the box again and sealing it under the seven spells she herself designed for cases like this. Celestia turned around and walked away, closing the vault door behind her and once again hiding the entrance of the Black Room. She trotted to her bedchambers, accompanied by the memory of Trixie Lulamoon; the memory of Sunset Shimmer; of Nightmare Moon, and many others. Princess Celestia took off her crown and sat down in her bed, to be alone. Alone with her ghosts. Author's Note: Wave Blaster: This is it. This is THE chapter we have been building up to. Now, I'm not gonna lie, this wasn't how I pictured this to end when I first came with the idea back in April. To be honest, this is not even close. I had pictured a way more innocent fic, lighter and softer. A slice of life with the themes of Ugly Americans, with a lot of silliness, but build around being heartwarming and funny. But then, I wanted to experiment a little more, get out of my comfort zone and try a shot at something different from my usual type. I took it serious, and worked hard and, thanks to Nightwalker, took a more analytical and, I dare to say it, adult POV. I never expected I would be also writing my very first, full force, tragedy. As a general principle, I prefer happy endings, but this story has become bigger than me and it demands something different. Thanks to all of you, readers, for sticking up with us, specially to the ones who didn't call quits after I managed to pull not one, but two base breakers. Of course, I would also like to thank to those who did the commenting, adding their own unique perspectives that helped to shapte some concepts and keep me focused. Guys, your opinions helped to keep this fiction running. And of course, a very special and planetary sized thanks to Nightwalker, without whom this fic would be still stuck in chapter 3. As I always said; Thanks for reading. I'm always curious, so feel free to comment. See ya. Nightwalker: There we go folks; Trixie has left the building! Again, I thank all those along for the ride. When I had gotten involved in this I was expecting to just take care of some cleanup and the like, not contributing nearly as much as I have. It was a good excercise to flex the writing muscles again in terms of contributing large parts of the narrative I have to say. Overall, a good experience. Glad that those who have liked it have liked it as much as they have. Wave, it was a delight working with you, as always. Onto the next project I guess! Take care all! It was dark where Trixie was. There was no sound, no light. It didn’t feel hot or cold to her. She could move, but where was there to move to? “Hello?” she called into the darkness. Her voice was flat and didn’t seem to travel very far. “Where am I? What happened to me?” The sound of hoofsteps in the darkness drew her attention, her ears swivelling up and forwards to catch the sound. From out of the dark came a pony. She was tall and lanky in stature, resembling Princess Luna in form except for lack of wings or ethereal mane and tail. As she drew closer, Tixie could more clearly make out what appears to be stylized whites makings painted upon her midnight blue coat. As she drew closer, Trixie was finally able to make out those markings; bones. Hooves, shoulders, neck, chest, even her sides as they flexed and moves as the mare continued to stroll forward were painted with representations of the bones underneath. Her skull, except for her horn and eyes, was almost totally white. Trixie quailed and tried to scurry back, her tail curling around her flank as if to try and ward off the creature before she. She had finally recognized the mare, she knew what that mare was, and she had realized where she herself was and what had happened. The Bone Mare stopped before her and smiled down, a surprisingly comforting expression that briefly called Celestia to mind before that impression was lost to Trixie’s panic. “Hello, my little pony,” the mare said softly. “Back again I see.”