Chapter One
It was a bright, sunny day in Ponyville. There were few clouds, and a nice, refreshing breeze was drifting through the area. It had been seventy years since the fall of the crystal empire. Seventy years since the second defeat of Discord. Seventy years since the crowning of the new princess, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Ponyville had changed during that time, much of it for the better. However, away from this lively, bustling township, was Twilight Sparkle, who was walking amongst a series of graves behind a secluded house near a forest. Each small grave symbolized the death of an animal, but she was paying little attention to those.
Finally, she found what she had been searching for; A rather larger set of graves, five in total. Each headstone was made of smooth gray marble, and were almost exactly the same. The only differences in any of them was that each one had a unique symbol engraved into it. As Twilight glanced at each one, memories began to flood back to her. The first stone had a trio of multicolored balloons engraved in it.
Pinkamena Diane Pie, undoubtedly the happiest pony she had ever known. She always loved to throw parties for any occasion, and she always knew how to brighten anypony’s day. She had sadly passed after her party cannon backfired. She was the first to go.
On the second headstone, there was a lightning bolt shaped rainbow descending from a cloud; Rainbow Dash’s Cutie mark. While she wasn’t the smartest pony in life, she was incredibly loyal, and she was always there when her friends needed her. After finally achieving her dream of becoming a Wonderbolt, she was rarely around much anymore, but she visited every chance she got. Her end came when she suffered a heart attack caused by the stress of trying to complete three Sonic Rainbooms simultaneously.
The next headstone had a trio of apples engraved into it. Applejack, once Rainbow’s marefriend, was honest, trustworthy, and an all-around great friend. Even after the passing of Rainbow, she still managed to keep Sweet Apple Acres going. The apples they grew were still the best in Equestria. However, while she was bucking an apple tree, she gave it too strong of a kick, and it toppled on top of her. Sweet Apple acres was still going strong, now under management by one of Big Mac and Fluttershy’s grandfoals.
After Applejack’s headstone, there was one marked by three diamonds. While Rarity would sometimes tend to be overdramatic, she was always generous and kind. Her clothing designs were still used widely throughout Equestria. Even Hoity Toity had greatly respected her designs. Rarity passed away peacefully shortly after releasing her final, best selling line of dresses.
Finally, Twilight reached the final grave, which had three butterflies engraved into it. Fluttershy, Once the wife of Big Macintosh, had been very timid in life, but she was incredibly kind. Her love of animals lead her to found her own veterinary clinic in Ponyville, which was now run by her grandfilly. Sadly, while she was working outside her home, she accidently stepped on a cobra, which bit her just above the hoof. She couldn’t get to anypony in time for anything to be done.
As Twilight looked at the graves of her friends, she began to remember all the great times they had together. All the adventures and fun they had over the years, she would never forget. While their deeds and titles would fade into history, Twilight would remember them forever. As she turned to leave, Twilight decided that she would write one last friendship report to Princess Celestia.
She was about to teleport home when she decided, that with the beautiful day, she would walk. She turned and walked towards the road that had lead her to the small house the graves were at. This was none other than Fluttershy's long-since empty home. Even after staying uninhabited for many years, the house showed no signs of aging. Vines gently grew up the sides towards the roof. Looking through the now empty doorframes, Twilight saw that the inside of the house was still rather clean, despite the fact that animals were everywhere inside. Most of them were descendants of the animals that Fluttershy had raised, and they treated the home with respect, making sure to keep it clean.
Twilight walked down the trail towards Ponyville. Even from here, she could see the new structures that dotted her small town. One particularly large building was filled with ponies, ranging from young colts and fillies, to full grown stallions and mares. A sign hung above the entrance that said ‘Crusaders University’. Twilight loved seeing that Sweetie Belle’s, Scootaloo’s, and Applebloom’s school was such a booming success. This one was small compared to the other ones in other cities such as Manehatten, Baltimare, and Canterlot, but it was still incredibly popular. Every year, the Crusaders University helped hundreds, if not thousands of ponies earn their cutie marks.
As Twilight was walking through town, she looked at all the buildings, old and new alike. One particular building caught her eye, along with almost every pony who comes to Ponyville for their first time. The building in question was large, and greatly resembled a large gingerbread house. Sugarcube corner was still going strong, attracting hundreds of ponies daily. The Cakes grandfillies kept the shop in great order, baking wonderful cupcakes, the recipies of which were created by Pinkie over the years.
As Twilight was walking by the park, she saw many ponies, including an old stallion who wore a colorful beanie that had a propellor on top of it, similar to the one he sported as a foal. He had a cutie mark in the shape of the D-pad from the joy-boy he would always play many years ago. In fact, he had the very same device in question in one of his hooves. He was showing it to a couple of foals, which of whom Twilight could only guess were his grandfoals. Button Mash seemed to be telling them of all the fun he had when he was their age, playing his video games.
FInally, Twilight saw her destination: A large treehouse that she called her home. Over the years, the tree had grown much, now 1 ½ times the size that it had been 70 years ago. When she got inside, she looked around at the vast collection of books she had collected over the years, many of which she had long since read. The library was empty, with Spike having slipped into a hundred-year sleep inside a cave in a distant range of mountains. Twilight sat down at a desk by the window, picked up a quill with her magic, and began to write.
“Dear, Princess Celestia,
It has been many years since my best friends have passed away, and even more years since I’ve written a friendship report. However, as I was visiting my friend’s burial site, I began thinking. Time is like a desert, stretching endlessly in all directions. When someone is born, it is like picking up a hoof-full of the sand. Each grain is a pony that they will meet, the places they will go, and the memories that they make. As they age, the grains begin to slip from their grasp, being scattered amongst the wind in the ever changing dunes. As the grains fall, this represents ponies that pass on, the places they leave behind, and the memories that they lose. When the final grain falls, that is their end, they have lived their life and is time for them to move on.
However, as we are both princesses, we are immortal, so even when our sand runs out, we just pick up more. As time goes on, we see many ponies pass on, many lives lived, and many memories made. As I have watched my many friends pass on, along with the city of Ponyville grow, I’ve learned that when we lose a sand grain, rather than trying to search for it in the ever shifting dunes, we should try to find more, just as unique and special as the ones lost.
Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle
As Twilight was sending the letter, something in the corner of her eye caught her attention, and the letter fell from her magical grasp. It was a large frame that held six gems, each a different color. Many years ago, her friends decided to pass their respective elements of harmony on to her, to give to apprentices she would mentor in later years. She smiled upon seeing them, for they reminded her that even as her friends were gone, she would always remember them, and these items would always be their legacies. She smiled and slowly returned her attention to the letter. She picked it up again in her magical grasp, and with a flash, it was gone.
As she looked out at the sun setting over Ponyville, she thought of all that the town had gone through, and all the great times she had, she smiled, tears coming to her eyes. She then turned to head upstairs. She knew she was going to live forever, and that she was going to see countless other ponies pass on, but she knew that she was going to make many more friends and have just as many more adventures.
And she was ready for it all.