"Caeda, put the scythe away."
"You only cared about me because you thought I was somepony else!"
"Put the scythe away, Caeda."
"You keep treating me like "her," but I'm not!"
"Caeda--"
"And you're too much of a coward to admit it!"
"Brother, wake up!"
A mare with a lavender coat and a long, turquoise mane shook a stallion with an off-white coat and a messy deep-blue mane awake.
"Come on! We're going to be late!"
The stallion sat up, rubbing his eyes.
"For what, now…?"
"For the anniversary of the-- you know, the thing!"
The stallion's eyes widened a bit.
"Oh yeah. I'll be out in a minute."
"You better be! I don't want to be late like last year… and the year before that… and the year before that…" said the mare as she left the stallion's room.
" 'Kay." said the stallion as he slid out of bed. He walked over to his closet and took out a sweater and a big coat. He shivered.
"I know… It won't be long, okay?" thought the stallion as he put on the sweater and coat and walked out of his room.
"Are you sure you want to wear all those coats?" asked the mare, who was waiting for the stallion. "It's a really nice day today."
"Aww, come one, sis. You know me." the stallion replied.
"Yeah."
The stallion and the mare went outside to the chariot waiting for them. The stallion stopped the mare before she stepped on. He turned her to face him.
"Hey, are you gonna be okay?" the stallion asked, putting a hoof on the mare's shoulder.
"…Yeah." the mare replied. "C'mon, we've been doing this for ten years now. And it's not for me. It's for Emerald…"
"Okay." said the stallion. He helped the mare onto the chariot. "Let's go."
The stallion and the mare landed in a large, open field that stretched out as far as the eye could see. Another mare with a light green coat and a deep green mane was waiting for them near a small patch of flowers.
"Blue Fire. Aurora." said the green mare to the stallion and the other mare.
"Emerald." Blue Fire and Aurora replied.
"Are you ready?" Emerald asked.
Both of them nodded.
A giant claymore suddenly appeared in Emerald's hooves. She raised it up and plunged it deep into the ground where the flowers were planted. With a loud rumble, a big door was elevated up from the ground in front of Blue Fire, Aurora, and Emerald. Emerald looked back at Blue Fire and Aurora and nodded. Hesitantly, she pushed the giant door open and the three of them walked inside, the door returning back into the ground upon them entering.
Blue Fire, Aurora, and Emerald walked down a dimly lit hallway of what seemed to be the ruins of a castle. Dozens of doorways connecting the hall with a labyrinth of other rooms were at every corner. However, the group navigated their way through the halls as if they had done so a thousand times before. Finally, the group ended up in front of large door with a snowflake cutie mark etched into it. The door was severely damaged, with hundreds of scratches and slash marks decorating its surface. Emerald put her hoof against the wall.
"At least there's less damage than last year…" she mumbled.
"Hey, Em." called Blue Fire.
"Hm?"
"Take your time in there." he said, looking back at Aurora, who was looking at the ground with a guilty look on her face. "We might be a while."
"Oh… okay." Emerald replied before she took a deep breath and walked into the room on the other side of the door.
Blue Fire went over to Aurora and sat down next to her.
"…I thought you said you were okay."
"I-I thought I would be fine after doing this for a decade now, but apparently I still can't face the pony who I caused their misery… I-I know that Winter isn't mad at me, b-but I still can't stop feeling that it was all my fau--"
"Hey. No one blames you for what happened. Not me, not Emerald, and not Winter. We're all at fault. We all ignored her. We're all to blame, so don't carry all of it. Okay?"
"B-but--"
"No buts."
Aurora snickered. She wiped her eyes and took a deep breath.
"O-okay."
Emerald peeked out of the door in front of them.
"She's doing fine, and she's ready."
Blue Fire looked at Aurora and nodded.
"We're ready." said the both of them and walked through the door.
Blue Fire dove headfirst onto the carpet as soon as he entered the front door of his house.
"That was exhausting…" he said, his voice muffled by the carpet.
"Emotionally or physically?" asked Aurora, who sat herself on the couch.
"Mmm… physically." Blue Fire replied casually.
"Oh come on! You have no stamina at all whatsoever!" complained Aurora. "I still don't know how you landed the job as the Royal Reaper..."
Blue Fire sat up and put his hoof and his chin.
"Hmm… Well, for me, executing ponies is more taxing on me emotionally than physically. And I think I'm pretty strong emotionally."
Blue Fire's eyes suddenly widened. He shivered, clutching his chest.
"...I'm gonna take a nap real quick." said Blue Fire as he stood up, pulling his coat tighter around him.
" 'Kay. I'll make lunch."
"Okay." Blue Fire replied as he walked towards his bedroom.
Once Blue Fire arrived, he closed and locked the door behind him, and slid onto the floor. He held his head, his heart beating quickly.
"That was a little much, huh?" thought Blue Fire, breathing heavily. "Yeah. Good thing nothing else is happening this month."
Blue Fire felt a chill down his spine. He frowned.
"…No? What's gonna happen?"