• Published 24th Dec 2011
  • 18,509 Views, 323 Comments

Loss - Pwnyta



The Mane 6 find themselves suddenly down to five. How will the girls be able to cope their loss?

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Author Thanks/Questions Answered

Authors Thank You, Questions Answered

As was stated in the title of this chapter, I would like to first thank everybody for their support while writing this story. To see this go from a small idea that sparked in my head on a random night out with friends all the way to its final product up here on FIMFiction is truly a blessing. Drafts were tossed out, late nights were had, and frustrations came and went with every word typed, but it was definitely worth it in the end! To wrap this section up, let me give some individual thank yous:

To FIMFiction: For hosting an incredible site. I’ve met some great people through the process of writing Loss, read some incredible stories, and definitely had a chance to improve my writing ability and it would have never been possible if not for this website and its members. Thank you all!

To Equestria Daily: For giving me the honor of having my story shared on this incredible MLP blog. I can’t imagine how much time I’ve wasted going through this site, and the content is always incredible, hilarious, extremely creative, or a combination of the three. It means so much to me knowing that the story was of a high enough quality to be shared to all my fellow bronies, and I can’t thank you enough for giving me such a great chance

To the readers: Even if you only read one chapter, it means so much to me to know that you looked. Everyone who commented on it or private messaged me to help me out along the way, thank you a countless number of times. I hope you all took something (other than a few tears) away from the story, and I really hope my story can help you learn how to cope if you ever are in a situation similar to our favorite Mane 6.

Last but certainly not least, to my editors/prereaders: If it hadn’t been for you, I probably would have put out a story that was on the writing level of a third grader. Seriously, I’m considering posting up one of the edited drafts that I got back from them once so you can see how much red ink there is all over it. Everybody would get a kick. Thank you all for helping make this story possible and of the highest quality it could possibly be!

So now that that is out of the way, on to the bulk of this “chapter.” I received a lot of questions throughout the writing of the story. A lot of them I wanted to answer so badly in comments, but it would have spoiled what was coming in the story. That’s why I kept pretty quiet and to myself. So I apologize to the long wait you all had to endure as I finished writing the story, but here are all of the answers to the more common questions I recieved:

Why write this story?
I’ve seen people comment about the various reasons as to why they thought I wrote this story. Some of the more prominent reasons was either for “shock value” or to “get attention.” Neither of these could be further from the truth.

I wrote this story in the memory of a dear friend who was killed in an accident back a few months ago. Having a friend ripped out of your life like that is one of the hardest things anybody has to deal with. To this day, I still find myself looking back and sometimes breaking down and crying. Me and my friends have all been able to cope, and several of my friends have done something to honor her memory or to help them move on (i.e. gotten a tattoo, donated stuff/money to a cause). This story was created as my way of honoring her memory, and to help me move on from the incident.

Every coping mechanism you read about is something I either went through, or experienced a friend going through. That is why the emotions in this story can seem raw and real at some parts. I don’t think I’m that talented a fiction writer, I just happened to experience what I wrote about.

But why the ponies? Why not a human subject matter?
My Little Pony is a show me and my friend enjoyed together. It was a huge bond that definitely strengthened our relationship and brought us closer as friends, as we managed to have our own little inside jokes and sayings, and we spent a lot more time together sitting around and watching the show. She even bought me my first little pony!

When it came to wanting to write this story for her, I considered both the human and the pony base for characters. After a couple of days of careful consideration, I chose ponies. Call it a cop out, but the decision was made on the basis that I could already just begin writing the main story without having to develop characters and go through a heavy amount of unnecessary set up. Plus, it just felt right using the one thing we strongly enjoyed together as a basis for what I wanted to do.

Who knows, as a project over the summer, I might humanize this story and add to the beginning to develop the 6 characters. That would be an interesting project.

Why was Rarity chosen?
As I said above, when I was drafting out the story, I was attempting to fit in the best coping mechanism for each character. On top of that I also was trying to find a way for each character to demonstrate traits of the lost Element. This was no problem for almost all of the characters. What I noticed in the show is that every character tends to show displays of having the other Elements inside of them, and (with the exception of a portion of the Discord arc) they are consistently able to display characteristics of their own element (Up to the point of the episode “Sweet and Elite”). I’m not sure if this was intentional or not, but it is there if you pay attention.

The exception to this rule: Rarity. She is quite an oddity to watch on the show. Not only does she fail to really represent all of the other Elements, she has a consistent problem holding true to her own (albeit she usually resolves this problem by the end of the episode in which the conflict arises). Short of Twilight dying, there just really wasn’t a way to write about Rarity coping and displaying traits of the lost Element without breaking her away from her developed character.



At what point in the canon storyline did you place this story?
This was a pretty important question that came up, and it ties into the question above pretty well. Due to the fact that I was writing the story as the 2nd season was airing, aspects of the characters and the show were changing every week. Heck, if you look back through this story and compare it to what it is today (the newest episode being “Putting Your Hoof Down”), you’ll notice several flaws in my character actions based on what they’ve developed into today.

That being said, I picked a solid show stopping point and stuck to it. I picked the episode “Sweet and Elite” as this basis since it was the last episode in which Rarity had some character development before I started writing. So when looking at this story in comparison to the canon aspect of the show, that is where my story branches from.

Why did ____ cope like this? I think ____ would have been more fitting
Again, that is all something that I’m sure is up for discussion. The reason I chose each coping mechanism for each character is based off of what I’ve seen from them in the show. Each reaction seemed very fitting for each character based off of their personality. The only character I feel broke away from her set personality a bit was Twilight. I am a little bit disappointed I had to force her out of her character a bit in the last chapter, but I feel that looking at the story as a whole, I represented her quite well. Of course, let’s also not forget this controversy:

Why would you make Fluttershy attempt suicide? That’s disgusting/stupid/angering/etc…
Again, it wasn’t for shock value at all. Suicide is an issue that comes up following the death of a friend or loved one, and sadly, it was an issue that came up in the situation surrounding the death of my friend. I felt that with Fluttershy’s sort of feeble personality, she would fit the role the best to convey this. Something that should be remembered here is that someone who attempts or commits suicide doesn’t necessarily always act like themselves or give their friends any major signs or symptoms.

I was hoping that people would be able to take away from these two chapters that no matter how they seem after a tragic event such as the death of a friend/loved one, everyone needs as much support as you can offer. This was a major mistake by Twilight and Applejack when they spoke to Fluttershy in chapter 6. She was showing some very suspicious signs and they shrugged it off. Luckily, the outcome for her (reflecting the outcome of the real situation it was reflecting) was a positive one, but this is not always the case. I’m hoping readers can learn from the mistakes of Twilight and Applejack, and possibly even save a friend’s life if that ever arose in their lives.

As for the mental aspect of chapter 7, all I can really say is that I have never been rendered unconscious or comatose through injury, so I’m not entirely sure what or if a person can think if they are in that situation. I gave Fluttershy a live mind in order to show the internal conflict she continued to go through even after her suicide attempt, and to show how much just a simple thing like a will to live can make all the difference for a person in mental and physical distress.

What happened to Spike?
I left this one wide open for interpretation on purpose, so feel free to create an ending for Spike in your own mind. Hey, if you write it down, feel free to send me a message with it, I would love to see what people think of how Spike ended up knowing that I, myself, didn’t create or consider an ending for him.

However, he does need a bit of an explanation. Spike was representing a coping mechanism that is a negative. That is, he left Ponyville because he didn’t want to be reminded of Rarity. This is negative because he wasn’t truly addressing his feelings. Instead, he felt like blocking them out, and by running away from Ponyville, he was taking a course of action to do so in a rather extreme way. The bad about this is the fact that these emotions could boil over and really hurt and affect the person coping like this.

Honestly, anything can happen to Spike, which is why I didn’t conclude his story. He could eventually cope and move on, or he could do something more extreme, like attempt suicide a-la Fluttershy. That’s all up for you to ponder.

So there we go! If anybody has any further questions, feel free to shoot me a private message or leave a comment in the story. I’ll respond now, considering I can’t spoil a finished story. Again, thank you so much everyone who took the time to sit down and read, follow, and favorite the story. On top of that, thank you to everyone who helped spread it around a bit. I never imagined my audience would be this large, but I feel so honored that it did become this big. So with that, I close the cover on Loss.

THANK YOU ALL INFINITELY!

- Caffum

Comments ( 38 )

Oh yeah Spike...wow, completely forgot about him.

I'm so proud of you! Congratulations and I just wanted to say that this was one of the best (death) fictions I've ever read.:moustache::yay:

One of the few stories to actually make me cry. Amazing job. I hope to see another amazing story from you sometime soon.

It was really good! I'm glad I read it. Also I'm sorry to hear about your friend.

Want to say again this was a very touching story. I myself have had some personal tragedies come up within recent months (people moving away, one friend getting hurt badly) and the thing for me that comforts me is reading stories that expose how people react, and make us (as people) see that yes, the pain hurts, but you can beat it. I am not the best with words when describing past emotions...

I do find myself still sad, as these memories are very fresh..but stories like this made me happy! I thank you for this...and wish you luck in whatever future ventures you choose to partake in!

Hmm.

I do agree that what Spike did is a negative coping mechanism (though by no means one that doesn't work; everyone has to find their own way, and "confronting your feelings" is actually harmful to some people, strange as that may seem), but I can't really believe that the others would just let him go like that. Celestia's appearance would have been a good opportunity to resolve that thread one way or the other; not even having any of the characters mention him seems strange, have they forgotten about him this quickly?

Then again, if this is what it takes to finally get me to write for this fandom outside the stuff about my RPG character, so be it! :rainbowdetermined2: I have no idea whether anything will actually come of this, but I do feel fired up to get rid of this dangling little thread.

Your story was the first MLP fanfiction I ever read. From the beginning to the end your story intrigued me with it's twists and turns. While not being My Little Dashie sad, the story used a mix of sorrow and hope to show pure emotion. This story inspired me to write my own story (which is currently being hand drafted). Keep up the good work I am looking forward to reading your newest story.

Amazing story man. Love reading it. One of the best fanfic's i have ever had the pleasure of reading. Keep up the awesome work!

I've read a lot of fics, but I'd say 90% of what I read is either sad and/or shipping. Reason is simple: it's what I can relate most to. Is it the best story I've read? No. Did I tear up reading this? No, but, fortunately, I have been feeling good. Is it a powerful story? Undoubtedly. A lot of readers avoid sad fics like the plague. "They're all cookie-cutter; throw in somepony dying or a haunting past, have the characters cope, and Boom! instant sad fic."

A sad fic only works if it's believable. For me, there's only two ways this happens: the author is a damn good writer, or the author has experience in the story's content. Lemme tell ya, I didn't need the author's notes to know that (s)he experienced losing someone or watched a friend lose someone. That's what draws me to sad fics; they puts my life in perspective, and they show me how others handled the situation.

A good, serious fanfic is like a good episode of the show. They present an entertaining story with the hope that the viewer/reader looks at themselves differently afterwards. Caffum, you have thoroughly succeeded that with me. Thank you for sharing a little of yourself for others to read.

-Pontius Possum

I was hoping that Spike would come back and visit Rarity grave but that didn't happen. Of course that didn't happen. How ever if anyone writing fan fiction story of spike reaction to Rarity death let me know. I would love read it.

Woo! Go buddy! I didn't think I'd end up helping you in the end, but I'm happy to see that this did get a lot of attention and that some ponies enjoyed reading it. It's subject matter is ponies, but the heart of a good story is what happens, not who's in it. :)

this is an amazing story you have writen but I dont know how you will feel when I say I used it for my monthly therapy to help me cry so I could get my emotions out of my system...
any way I actualy was brought to tears by the fact that I was as well in a simalar situation but I took some very bad copeing skills I just locked all emotion away so I could not get hurt but what I thought was solving my issue of sensitvity realy made it worse when all the emotions I locked up over loaded my body I whent off the deep end hurting myself and others I soon developed DPD :pinkiecrazy: to cope with it all henc the part of my name my name the artificial alicorn which represents my body making other personalitys to cope with the emotion I felt some of thes turned ot to be alittel more dangerous than others so ya I can conect with the loss thing but thats my acount of a bad way of copeing subcontious as it was it still is a copeing skill :derpytongue2:

Ohh good..the ending is making me cried,what a lovely fan-Fic :fluttercry::!I felt sad that rarity died :raritycried: and I :heart: it.:flutteryay:

This is.....amazing. I rarely cry, but I sure as hell cried. :pinkiesad2::raritycry:

Thank you for writing this story!

This story carries a lot of emotion. There are some flaws in structure, and in the grammar. But the story itself, and the feelings behind it. They're there. Well done.
I'm going to go reread the Ask Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie Tumblr page archives fifty times now. :fluttercry:

Spike brings back zombie Rarity in my own ending. lol Nice story.:raritywink:

amazing story!! got me crying!! :fluttercry::fluttercry::fluttercry:

this is a sad story. it was the first one i read when i got into the fandom last month. i like it. :raritycry:

This is one of the most beautiful fics I've ever seen, and this is the reason why Rarity became my favorite pony. :raritywink:

This has to be one of my all time favorite fics.

It was almost as good as My Little Dashie. No joke! :rainbowderp:

Just wanted to drop by and tell you that I bawled with this story.
This is easiest the best story I've read and it's on my top favorites.
Rarity became my favorite pony because of this story, thanks. :raritystarry:

306588:rainbowlaugh: I don't know why, but that comment made me laugh so hard.

And yeah, thanks for writing such an awesome story. Spike was kinda being a baby (oxymoron.) And I love how you handled Pinkie's coping, it seemed actually believable instead of being all depressed like so many people assume.

After a great few months of fan fiction I came all the way back to where it all started this story touches me for many reasons.

1. First fanfic I ever read.
2. First MLP fic I had read
3. First BOOK/written pieceI ever cried to.
4. Inspired me to write fanfics
5. Hooked me to FIMFICTION.

For me this story will always be number one This story is truly amazing and has truely changed me. Thank you or this Caffum

2211553

The tip's obliged, man.

If you don't mind, I'd be willing to make a short story that concerns Spike as an extension to this story.

All these feels, they hurt.

The feelings! The feelings! I am so sorry about your friend. I too, do self therapy with writing. This was an excellent, if very sad story.

It seems like a logical follow through on Spike would potentially lead him to just acquiring a hoard (that is something that is not losable in the same manner) and behaving more like your average dragon.

Really good, really sad...:fluttercry::raritydespair:

I just wanted to say thank for writing this story. This was the second fanfic I've ever read, and the first to make me feel this way. This story is the reason I read fanfictions, this story is the reason I've signed up for this site. This story feels like it could be an actual episode. It handles a very adult subject in a way that anyone can relate to, and even though I've never experienced a tragedy like this, it still made me feel.
This is my favourite fanfic. No exaggerations. This is exactly the kind if story I want to be told on the show. okay, maybe not exactly. I want to see the show do some mature subjects on this manner, in a way that doesn't talk down to kids but doesn't mentally scar them either.
You probably think I'm crazy, or drunk or something, but I can assure you: I really do love this story that much.
Once a gain, thank you for writing this, and I hope you live a wonderful life.

This fiction is a masterpiece; there's no question about that.

One of the first fics I read on this site some years ago. Still stands up even with the later seasons

I sit upon a forgotten golden land of a peaking fandom. Never again will works like this be born unto the fandom. Truly tragic, for this was the fandom in which the highest quality content was ever produced. Where else can you find so well written fanfiction? The most popular of fandoms on FanFiction•net do not compete with the decline era of this fandom!

I gotta say this is the best fan fiction I have read that deals with loss of a friend. I like how it shows us how they deal with it and so fourth and the ending is amazing. Overall good job.

Omg this is so sad happy and amazing i love it soo soo much <333 :heart: :heart: :heart:

It makes me feel sad to leave a comment to a story whose author was last seen on this site more than three years ago, but it is a good story, a sad but heartwarming one, and i loved it.

So, even if the chances that you'll read this are very little, thank you for writing this story.

8983807
I hear you, friend.

This was one of the very first My Little Pony fanfictions I had ever read, back in the day. Heck, it was one of the reasons that I created an account here to begin with. This story was uploaded around the same time as Sweet and Elite aired. I still can't listen to Becoming Popular, especially the last twenty-five seconds or so, without thinking back to this tearjerker.

Caffum really understood how it felt to lose somebody close to you. I hope he hasn't faced any loss in his real life. It certainly feels as though we've lost him. But I've gotta send thanks his way for unintentionally and unknowingly bringing me to a website where I've met a lot of lasting friends, harbour a lot of happy memories, and ultimately, for making me shed a tear or two.

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