Agate's Vigil

by Wingnut

The Vigil's End

❅ ❆ ❅

While Cadance and Shining Armor were busy diplomancing and learning, Agate spent most of her time talking to her families, though there were other ponies that joined her on occasion. Arctic Ink kept stalking her, though Agate kept tempting her with bits of knowledge about the royal couple, making the filly whine and groan in frustration as she was forced to choose between listening to Agate or the foreign delegation.

"Gah! Fine, I'll go listen in on the pink chieftain," She harrumphed, trotting off as both of the families giggled.

"Cute filly. Bit forceful, though," Obsidian Spear chuckled.

"Yeah, her parents were very apologetic about her. Said that she needs to drink knowledge like a pony needs water, or she'll get sick. I usually don't mind, but she needs to learn to slow down a bit. If a pony drank as much water as she does knowledge, they'd probably drown," Agate smiled, reclining on a pointy base of a broken crystal pillar.

Now that Cadance wasn't examining her totem any more, they spent most of their time talking in Agate's clearing, the crystal ponies glancing at the huge pillar every so often. There was more space now that the broken crystals were cleared out, though the devastation didn't go unnoticed by the visitors.

"This place looks quite trashed. That's unusual for you, Agate. You never were a messy filly," Garnet Necklace mused.

"Well, I kind of wrecked the place when I was drawing magic from my totem to go and fight Sombra with," Agate shrugged, lazily tracking Floe Rider's foals as they played a small distance away.

"You didn't damage your totem, though?" Glacier Breaker asked.

"I did, actually, though I fixed it up afterwards."

"You didn't bother fixing up your clearing?" Radiant Cut asked.

Giving her father a flat look, Agate demonstratively extended a foreleg towards a nearby crystal, waving the appendage through the jagged spike several times. "Can't touch things, remember? When this place needs cleaning up, I need to ask other ponies to come in with hammers and picks."

"Ooooh... Right," He grimaced.

"So this is what you've been doing for a hobby? Growing crystals? Felt homesick?" Garnet Necklace asked.

"I didn't even do it on purpose at first. Ponies kept leaving crystals as gifts for me, and the magic from the totem kept feeding into itself and grew the crystals around it. I did start to "garden" some time later, though," She shrugged.

"And what is going to happen to your totem when you're... No longer using it?" Obsidian Spear asked.

"That's a good question, actually. Normally, totems are uprooted and burned, their ashes scattered to the winds. This... Taking this down would be quite the task alone, and I don't think the locals will even want to do it. It's been a... Famous landmark of sorts for quite a while now. It's not like they could even burn the crystal anyway, so they'd have to drag it off or smash it to bits and bury them somewhere, which I doubt they'll bother with, even if it's the opposite of what they do with totems," Agate pondered.

"It is quite unusual, but destroying it would be a crime now. It has become part of the landscape," Floe Rider nodded. "I am certain ponies are going to be visiting it for years to come."

"It sounds like they don't really build monuments for the departed?" Radiant Cut asked.

"Not really. The dead live on in the memories of their kin and others they made an impact on. When those memories are gone, what is the point of a rock proclaiming the greatness of some pony no one remembers any more?" Glacier Breaker said.

"I can see your point, but our people like to have places we can visit on occasion," Obsidian Spear shrugged. "I'm certain Agate's parents would appreciate it if this monumental chunk of crystal was left alone, even if it'd be hard to get to for them."

"We... Really would, yes," Garnet Necklace said quietly with a nod, looking away.

"Really, mom? Is that all you're going to do when I'm gone? You're going to go back to feeling sad for the rest of your life?" Agate scoffed.

"Well what in the world am I supposed to do, young filly?! I lost my only child!" The mare snapped.

"Make more," Agate nodded sagely with a grin.

"W-what?" Garnet Necklace sputtered at the sudden turn of the conversation as Radiant Cut and Obsidian Spear blinked.

"What? See Floe Rider over here?" Agate pointed to the snowmare, the mother raising her eyebrows.

"...Yes? What about her?"

"How many foals does she have, mom?"

"...Three? Agate, are you seriously telling your own mother to-"

"Get busy making more foals, yes," Agate nodded again, the massive grin still on her face.

"Agate!" Garnet Necklace shrieked as she lit up bright red, the snowponies going oooh at the sudden lightshow, the crystal pony nature of the mare and her garnet-red coat making the blush literally light up the clearing. "You can't just- just-"

"Can't I? Your parents can ask for grandfoals, can't they? What makes me so different? Is it the age? I am most definitely old enough," Agate pointed out.

"Um... Agate, you shouldn't... Uh..." Radiant Cut trailed off, now blushing as well, looking around for help.

"Oh, no. You're on your own in this conversation, brother," Obsidian Spear laughed, unperturbed by his sibling's plight.

"She's right, you know," Floe Rider nodded with a smile, once Agate translated for her. "Ponies die, and, tragically, that does include foals. But that does not mean your life must come to an end, or that of your family line. Spring is here now, which is the best time-"

"Stop it, all of you!" Garnet Necklace shouted again, hiding her face in her hooves.

"Nope," Agate cackled. "Take a lesson from the snowponies: they lose foals as well. Glacier Glider lost a filly too. That did not mean that she gave up on life, though. She mourned, but she moved on. And, don't think that you're getting off the hook once I'm gone."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Radiant Cut asked as his wife peeked at Agate through her hooves.

"Oh, I had a little talk with grandpa and grandma before I left... They'll be sure to remind you when you return to the Empire," Agate explained with an evil grin.

"Agaaateeee," Garnet Necklace whined. "You're still my daughter! Cut this out!"

"Make me," The bodiless spirit shrugged carelessly, the others laughing at the blushing couple's plight.

❅ ❆ ❅

Although most of the snowponies in Snowpitt were busy examining the exotic visitors and talking about the foreign delegation and all the potential consequences that might come from their arrival, the deeper implications of Agate's family being among them didn't escape them.

Agate wasn't really close with all that many ponies at any given time, but she did almost always had at least working relationships with whoever the current chieftains were, and had a number of friends, or at least amicable acquaintances amongst shamares. And when all those elders pointed out that all this meant that the ancient spirit's time on this Earth was up, ponies listened.

While they occasionally saw her trotting about or went to see her totem at some point in time, the vast majority of ponies only knew of Agate through stories. Stories about righting wrongs and helping ponies in need meant a lot, though, especially ones so numerous and so old, that some of them dated over a thousand years back.

So, when Cadance and Shining Armor announced that they were planning to leave the next day, it could mean only one thing. Whispering ponies stood around Agate's clearing, small crowds forming and following the spirit from a respectful distance as she led her family to her clearing with a small, melancholy smile.

The three chieftains were there as well, bowing respectfully to Agate without a word as she passed them by, her crystal family sharing nervous looks at the ominous behavior, while the northern one shared similar, pained smiles. The unusual movement of ponies was reported to the royal couple by their guards, Cadance and Shining armor standing back and observing with their entourage, not wanting to cause a diplomatic incident by interrupting what was obviously a historically significant event.

"Feels like the time we got marched by Sombra's soldiers," Garnet Necklace muttered quietly, though Agate still managed to hear it, her ears twitching.

"Really, mom? You're comparing me to Sombra?" She asked with a frown.

"I- I didn't- mean- I'm sorry, that was wrong," The distraught mare sighed.

"Yes, it was. We talked about this, for weeks now. You knew it was coming. I knew it was coming. You yourselves said that I shouldn't have bothered waiting, and just went to my final rest the first time we saw each other again. Well, it's time," Agate said resolutely once they reached the clearing, facing her totem as her family stood behind her.

"Agate... No," Garnet Necklace whispered, reaching for her daughter.

"Mom... Please. Don't make me repeat myself. We talked about this. A lot," Agate sighed, turning around.

"For weeks, yes. What are weeks to the time we lose with you? Won't you stay? What of the life you lost?" Garnet Necklace pleaded.

"Mom. You still don't get it," Agate shook her head with a smile. "I have been around for a thousand years. I have been everything. I have done everything. I have seen everything. Traveler, scout, scholar, storyteller, teacher... Daughter, sibling, guide... Sure, there's a lot of things I haven't done. I haven't tasted all the foods, or smelt the sea, or been a mother myself. But those are things I can never do any more, and I already did all the other things, many times over. No. I am tired. I did my part, and there is nothing more for me in this world. You cannot go back. You can delay, perhaps, stand in place for a thousand years. But that's it. You can only go forward. It is the way of the world. And it's time for me to go, and for you to move forward as well."

Nodding decisively, Agate turned back towards her totem, extending a foreleg towards it as her mother sobbed, leaning against her husband as he hugged her tightly with a pained expression. Obsidian Spear, meanwhile, chewed on the inside of his cheek for a moment before striking a parade pose and saluting Agate with a fiercely proud expression, his eyes moist.

Unbeknownst to him, the pair of crystal guards some distance away saluted her as well, showing respect to the valiant spirit of the Empire that resisted the call of death itself for a thousand years, just to defy Sombra. One by one, the pegasi all saluted as well, Shining Armor joining in after a few moments, Cadance standing awkwardly before bowing towards Agate's totem. The snowponies whispered well-wishes to the ancient spirit, beseeching their ancestors to show the foreign traveler the way to her final rest.

Agate's totem, meanwhile, was vibrating, faster and harder. Unlike the drawing of power she performed before, where the damage was a side effect, Agate was preparing to wreck it on purpose, severing the enchantments permanently. Her family grimaced, feeling the dissonant frequencies in their bones, their expressions turning ill.

"Agate, please!" Garnet Necklace begged one last time. "Think of your family!"

"It's exactly what I'm thinking of right now, mom!" Agate shouted back, a resounding crack echoing across the entire settlement as the totem started to break, even the snowponies in the distance grimacing in pain.

An uprooting of a totem usually was a bittersweet occasion, ponies giving thanks to the departing spirit for their long service with grateful smiles, leading them to their well-deserved rest. As always, though, Agate was an outsider, and her path ended up being different once again, the locals sniffling sadly at the legendary traveler spirit's imminent departure to her final journey.

"Think... Think of your siblings, then!" Garnet Necklace shouted again, struggling against Radiant Cut, who kept hugging her.

"W... What?" Agate asked, truly confused for the first time in a long, long time.

"You... You said that guardian spirits watch over families! Protect them! Especially their younger kin!"

"Um... Yeah, but... The Empire is safe now, and..."

"What if we, ugh, can't believe I'm about to say this, do make a foal, then? Will you not stay? Will you not watch over them, as a guardian spirit does? No one expected Sombra to happen, and yet he did! You never know what could happen next! Have you heard about all the monstrosities that attacked Equestria recently?! Do you think none of them might look towards a smaller target like the Empire, should they try again? I don't want any more of my children sharing the same fate you did!"

"...Oh. Huh," Agate mused, the vibrations dying down as she lost focus of her magic.

Everyone collectively held their breath, staring at the ancient spirit weighing her options. A deathly silence fell upon Snowpitt, no one moving or talking. After a while, though, they were forced to start breathing again, as Agate took her time thinking.

"Huh," She eventually repeated.

"Please, Agate?" Her mother pleaded, her father remaining silent, though his eyes were full of pain and longing as well.

"...I have conditions," The spirit nodded slowly.

"Bargaining?! What... What could you possibly even want?" Garnet Necklace asked, completely flabbergasted.

"No excuses. No delays. Spring is here. Get busy," Agate said, her empty expression morphing into a cheeky grin as she slowly focused her magic again and began to mend the crack on her totem.

"AGATE!!!" Her mother shrieked, mortified, as her daughter embarrassed her in front of the entire population of Snowpitt, as well as the royal delegation. The snowponies didn't really know what was happening, but looked with fascination at the burning blush of the crystal pony nonetheless.

Comments

[Wingnut]

And done. Epilogue coming soon.

No, this story doesn't get the "happily ever after" treatment, as was already discussed in the past, though I did make it somewhat more light-hearted than people were probably expecting. Fun thing: did you know that the original phrase meant "happy in the ever after"? As in, in the afterlife.
Agate doesn't leave yet, no. But she will, sooner or later. She did become a tiny bit jaded and distant from ponies during her vigil, though, and it took her mother some effort to break through to her. But break through she did, and Agate will hang around for a while longer. I won't be writing about that, though.

This is the end. (Almost. Epilogue soon, like I said.) Hope you liked it.

[ThoScreaptCompaig]

[Danger Noodle]

I'm feeling selfish like Agate's mother. I don't want her story to end, either.

But all things end. As Agate said, we most continue to move forward.

[Hook Echo]

Heh, looks like I was right last chapter. Agate will be her family's guardian for a time. Probably also will help the Crystal Ponies and Equestrians understand the spirit world.

But wow, almost 2 and a half years...

[Zanec]

Now this brought a smile to our face, guess this is a Thousand Year Romance after all!

[BirdsBooksBrownies]

11872930
About the factoid on "happily ever after" I like this much more than the Disney take where the loving couple presumably never has even the slightest disagreement.

I do feel that Agate's birth mom was selfish, not to say that her pain isn't acknowledged, but all but demanding that she stay around even after weeks or months of being told of Agate's long vigil.

[Oreng Pingvin]

11872978
Already?