Family matters.
Curryfeather flew as fast as she could back to Cloudsdale. She didn't want to be here longer as she would need. First she returned home and landed directly by the door. Her letterbox was overfilled with letters it lasted one week to be missed out so badly. Curryfeather hasn't said anything and stayed one week down there and hasn't even written one line to anypony. Every friend of her would be worried and worst would try to visit her in the Curryparadise, but it was closed. She sighed silently, seized the letter and plucked them out of the letterbox with her left wing. Then she pushed the door open. She sniffled slowly and caught the usual smell of the clouds and the soft odour of the sleeping lightnings in the cloudstove. She stepped in the living room, spotted a comfortable cloud and sat down on it. She opened every letter and read them very carefully. Finally she sighed.
Two of her friends has invited her to their birthday parties. Three of them wanted to drink some tea with her and spoke about their problems. And five of them were asking, when the Currparadies would be reopen again. Curryfeather wasn't sure, that she simply could vanish again. Open Skies invitation for her birthday was very important for her and the party was in the day after tomorrow.
“Do you know, what would you like to become when you grow up, Firefeather?”
The gentle voice flew in her mind for a short time and Curryfeather smiled. Back then she was sure to work together with Open Skies in the weather factory. Then everything changed and...
It knocked on the door and threw her back into reality. She put the letter back on the table and hovered to the door. She opened it with her right wing,
“I'm glad you're back. Finally we could talk, Curryfeather.
The indigo body nestled softly up against her and the gentle hug surprised her.
“Rainbowshine. I'm glad to see you too.
I have read your letter already and am pleased about your invitation.
But I think it would be better for me, if we could make this meeting today. I could make tea and we talk your problems out.”
The next hours weren't easy for Curryfeather. Ranbowshine has talked out her worries and fears. The ash clouds and the appearing of Nightmare Moon were the main topic of her. As Curryfeather was finally able to calm her down and assured her, that Nightmare Moon has vanished already, the next friend of hers knocked on the door. Ranboshine thanked for the chat and laid automatic a bit on the table. Before Curryfeather could say anything about it, her friend left and Sunshower took her place in front of the table.
Her yellow coat was a little bit brighter then Curryfeathers and showed their kinship. She was her older sister after all. She nodded and pressed even a smile on her face.
“I've heard, that you are planing to live down there. Sunny said so.
Are you sure, that you could be the same pony down there?
That you could play the same important role for so many ponies?”
Like always she get to the point, without any solutions. Curryfeather cocked her head, as her sister sat down on a cloud and brushed out the tea cup. Curryfeather stood up, took the pot with her wing and walked in the kitchen with a sigh.
“Hello Sunshower. Nice from you, that you finally visit me and even be worried about me.”
Her voice sounded gentle out of the kitchen, but her sister understood it nonetheless and rolled her eyes about it. She even squinched up her face with boredom. Finally Curryfeather get a new pot and put it on the table together with a few hot carrot cookies. Sunshower starred at the plate and sighed bugged.
“I haven't ask for this, Fire. You don't have to serve me this and...”
Her little sister gazed so piercing at her, that she cleared her throat and poured tea into her pot with one wing. Her hooves put one cookie and nibbled on it.
“You know, Sunshower. My name is Curryfeather.
Nopony besides you calls me Fire. Will you please finally accept me decision.”
Tears were gathering in the eyes of her older sister, she coughed and fumbled quickly for the tea pot. Hot food was already painful for her and quite different to Firefeather she hated the cross between hot and sweetness even more.
“Like your decision for Wind Dancer? Excuse my worries about you. You have always the craziest ideas of all of us!”
Now Curryfeather took her cub and sipped a hasty gulp. Sunshower knew always the right words to uncover her insecurities. No wonder, that Sunny Rays left Cloudsdale and disappeared from her sharp tongue as fast as she could. She was the pet of the family and so defenceless against her harsh tone. Curryfeather held the pot in the hooves for a while and looked alert to her sister over edge of it.
“And what says Blaze to this?”
This question sounded fast and harsh over her lips, as she has pulled herself together. Her eyes were filling with tears, but she blinked them away. Her wings trembled slightly, but Sunshower would misinterpreted this for anger hopefully.
“He didn't care. He said always, that you should life your own path in life.
He didn't show any will to hold the family together. Not like me!”
Sunshower sighed gentle and raised the pot to her lips again. Her voice sounded so much frustrated and angrily, that Curryfeather felt a bit sick for her. Two conflicting emotions knotted in her mind and laid both sympathy and anger on her voice and face.
“I'm sorry to hear. But you don't have to put it on your shoulder alone, sis.”
Curryfeather stood up and moved closer, but Sunshower kept the distance with a few flaps of her wings.
“If not me, who else would do it? Mum has assign the responsibility for you and I'm the oldest of us...”
Curryfeather took off too and slowly a chase around and over the table broke out. Sunshower was a much better flyer than her and was able to dodge her again and again. First she was serious to hold the distance, but then it evoked the memory of her easygoing foalhood and as they had played tag back then. Both smiled and let the memory took over their actions for a while. Their chase for each other lasted for a few moments, both panted and flew faster and faster inside the living room. Sunshower even laughed and let herself finally caught by Curryfeather and both returned to the ground. The chase was really exhausting for the younger sister and she had to recover from it with a sip of tea. She even gasped a lot. Sunshower on the other hoof wasn't short in breath and didn't even sweat. Her smile took quickly a different approach, as her eyes glanced sad and her shoulder began to droop.
“I just wanted, that you think twice, what you want.
I wanted to guide you to choose right and be proud of you two.”
Curryfeather moved closer again and this time Sunshower allowed it, that Curryfeather touched her and stayed on the ground.
“You're not Mum, you know. Had you spoken with her about this?
I mean before she died?”
Curryfeather sought out for her view and tried to sound soft and peacefully. But her sister turned over and grimaced nearly angry.
“No!
She had only said, that I have to look out for all of you and.
I just believe, I have disappointed her.
I couldn't protect you from this stupid Wind Dancer!
I have hounded Sunny Rays out of her home and Blaze.
He didn't even answer, when I send him a letter.
You're the only one, which spoke with me in regular bases.
And now you want to disappear, to flee from me down there.
Then nopony will help me here!”
She yelled this monologue at her. But she silenced, as Curryfeather nuzzled her over the head with a wing. She even swirled her mane with a gentle breeze like mum did.
“I do not vanish from Equestria, you know. Not like Mum.
And Sunny don't too. Visit us down three, if you want to.
I have to take care for Scootaloo.”
Sunshower raised her head and her right wing wiped the tears out of her eyes.
“You have to take care of her?
Did you see your letter box and this is only the tip of the thundercloud.
You should look for the Curryparadise. Your friends are missing you.
They're needing you!
And I'm needing you too!”
Curryfeather hugged her sister gently and nuzzled her with a wing. Why was it so difficult for her to let go? Mum was dead for four moons. Why could she didn't let go then? Why didn't she live her life like the other siblings? Curryfeather thought back to her last conversations with her mother. Different as both Blaze, who purported many work and Sunshower, which wrote in her letters, that her not to be delayed work in the weather factory excused her absence, she and Sunny were alongside theirs mum, as the end was not far off. Her conversations around the future, her plans and Mums own insufficiency and wrong doings in the past were sometimes difficult and teary, but also liberating in the same time.
“I didn't mean to, that she think bad about me, Fire.
I really wanted to visit her, when winter was finally set in Ponyville.
I really do..”
Curryfeather nodded and sensed tears in her coat, where the face of Sunshower laid.
“But then she died and I was not able to say her..”
The older pony interrupted herself with a sob and pressed herself closer in Curryfeather mane. The younger sister looked first confused, but then she smiled gentle. Why happened this all so fast in a row? Who decided this? Who wrote her destiny? Who took the responsibility for all of this?
“Mum knew, that you loved her, Sunshower.
She was proud of you and wasn't surely intent
to let you saddled yourself with all of this.”
Curryfeather sighed into the light blue mane of her sister and closed her eyes. She laid her head onto her sisters and was fighting her own tears.