A Tale of Two Returns

by Al Capony

(?) The End

“It’s time to go now.”

I look up to the old man, his words echoing in my head. An aged look adorns his face, furrowed brows contrast his soft blue eyes, eyes that look as if they have seen far, far too much. A long, silver beard trails from his chin, seemingly uncared for yet immaculately groomed. Coincidentally the exact colour of the small tussle of fibres sprouting from beneath his hat, an old thing with a wide brim and a pointy tip, covered in stars. The navy blue tone matches his eyes to a tee, and the silver stars to that of his hair. The hat is just as battered as he is, with ragged patching at irregular intervals across the surface.

Just like the old man’s heart… I wonder to myself.

His cloak is in a similar state, barely held together with patchwork, close to falling to pieces and withering away from his tall, skinny frame. While it has a sort of wanderer’s charm to it, it is far from fashionable and obviously faded.

I tilt my head and look around, surrounded by a formless void. At first glance I float in an eternal sea of the deepest blue, though on closer inspection I can make out tiny stars, dotted and pulsing from every direction - more like an eternal sky.

Concentrating on a star its shape becomes more apparent: a six-pointed star, with elongated peaks on its vertical axis. To its right are three deflated balloons, next to three butterflies which in turn is across from a stylistic form of the sun, reminiscent of the sorts of designs on old sun dials.

Checking each star I can see, they all have a different shapes - a trio of apples, a crescent moon, a lightning bolt with a tricoloured trail…

They’re all cutie marks!

“You can’t stay here forever you know. Neither of our worlds would allow that.”

“I know… I just don’t want to forget, you know? These memories… the time I’ve spent here - I don’t want to lose that!”

The old man’s eyes grew softer still, his sublime and calm demeanor sympathetic.

For a while I ‘sit’ in silence - my legs are crossed, but lacking in gravity or a surface to sit on, I can’t really call it sitting. Time passes without any indication, if at all; technically, time doesn’t really exist here so I could stay here forever if I wanted. But I don’t want that, an eternal torture yearning for something I can’t have, and the old fellow knows it.

“You won’t fully forget you know… We’ll still come to you in dreams and wonderings. The familiarity of a memory, though you won’t really perceive it that way.”

My gaze shifts its focus to him and his eyes, the sorrow and pain within all too apparent, but not nearly as much as the incredible age.

"How many times have you told me that?"

“Enough to wish I would never have to say it again,” he responds, and after a pause continues, “you can look back on it all once again if you’d like. It may help you keep a hold of the time here more strongly… and give you a chance to move on.”

I close my eyes and straighten my legs, my trousers rustling amongst the deafening silence of the cutie marks pulsing in the sky. I plant one foot in front of the other, then the other, and before I know it I being to pace. No gravity, no solid ground, yet still I can pace.

Some things must just be universal constants, I mentally chuckle to myself.

Pausing my steps I look out to the ‘sky’, focusing on a wand with the tip of a crescent moon, and beside it a star. I reach out, longing to touch it… to no avail.

“I think I’d like that,” I reply after a time. “So what do I do?”

“Nothing, just get comfortable. This may be a bit disconcerting… you won’t be remembering per se, it will be more akin to looking back at it all from my perspective”

I ‘lay’ down, getting as ‘comfortable’ as I can expect to in a place like this.

Stroking his silver beard, he contemplates for a second before responding, “It may clear up a couple of questions that to you are still unanswered.”

Confused for a second, I consider what he said.

“Like how Twilight knew about Spike and-”

“Ssssshhhh! Spoilers!”

Pinkie’s voice echoes throughout the void, startling the two of us. For once, the old man looks to me for answers, utterly confused. Putting a hand on his shoulder and looking at him straight in the eyes, I explain everything to him with two simple words.

“Pinkie Pie.”

Not quite understanding, he raises an eyebrow and carries on.

“Um, yes, of course. Well anyhow, I suppose we should be cracking on. Now, hold still for a second.”

I lounge for a time, unmoving. A stone sentinel, a paragon of zen, a master of stillness... a man with a terrible itch grows on his nose. Fighting to ignore it, I brave onwards in the face of this herculean challenge.

Must… Fight… The urge…

Losing the last of my will to resist, I give in and scratch my nose heartily, enjoying the sweet respite from the torture- before being blindsided with a sudden smack to the skull.

“I said still!” he chastises me.

Rubbing the back of my head I reply,

“Okay, okay - still.”

He looks at me with a degree of suspicion, concludes I am sufficiently still, and closes his eyes in concentration.

I count the time passed in heartbeats as I remain still as humanly possible, fighting boredom with all the strength of my will. It’s been an eternity, how can I possibly endure this!?

Eight-and… Nine-and… Ten-and…

I absent-mindedly begin to tap a finger against my thigh to the beat of my heart, staving off the banal silence as best I can.

“Do you want me to turn you into a newt?”

The question catches me off guard and I look to his scowling, irritated, yet peacefully concentrated face.

“Can you do that?” I ask, curious as to what life as a newt would be like.

He looks me dead in the eye.

“Do you want to find out?”

Considering the threat for a second and concluding that a reptilian lifestyle probably isn’t for me, I halt my tapping and return to a state of synthetic tranquillity, relaxing myself for the ongoing act of doing utterly nothing.

Thankfully, I don’t have to wait long before an all-surrounding light begins to engulf me, and I see the world from the eyes of a god.

Author's Note:

Well here it is - I haven't written in a while, so I might be a little rusty!

I hope you enjoyed the end to this story - now lets start at the very beginning, a very good place to start...