Au Crépuscule de sa Vie
En sa beauté gît ma mort et ma vie.
Fluttershy was dying. Not that she would admit it, but everypony knew it. She wasn't sick, simply growing old. As she aged, she had lost the skittish, nervous personality and began to carry herself with quiet dignity. As such, she kept her aches and pains to herself, insisting on taking care of her animals as she always had. She didn't want things to change and so she remained alone in her little cottage, quaint yet lonesome.
Elle croit que tout change, et seule elle a changé.
The worst curse, they say, would be to watch the ones you love die. Fluttershy knew this curse all too well. She had outlived all her friends, except, of course, Twilight Sparkle. It was this reason that the day she found herself unable to stand, she did not call for anyone. She told herself that she would be okay, that she didn't want to make Twilight go through the death of another friend. Most of her animal friends were gone now, too, moving on with their lives. Fluttershy had sent many of them away when she began to realize that she was nearing the end. Angel Bunny, the sassy little thing that he was, had refused to leave her. He would stay with her until the end. They both knew it. That day, Angel stayed with her as she drifted between sleep and half conscious memories. He rubbed her clammy hoof with his small furry paws, doing everything he could to keep her comfortable.
In her dreamlike state, Fluttershy dreamed of her friends, of the adventures they'd been on, of the times they'd spent together. More often than not, she found Twilight's face to be in the forefront of her dreams and hallucinations. The yellow pegasus had always cared a lot for Twilight. Twilight had understood her fears of other ponies, as Twilight herself had once feared other ponies, too.
She remembered the way Twilight had tried to talk to her that first day they'd met, with the bird choir chirping in the background. She'd been so afraid of the energetic pony, but she hadn't considered how frightened Twilight might have been, her ideas dismissed and sent to a strange town far from home with orders to make friends. Twilight had just been trying her best. She really had done her best. She had excelled so far beyond just making friends. She'd made life long companions and brought happiness to all their lives. Twilight had been the catalyst in Fluttershy's own life, giving her so many opportunities to overcome her shyness and become the pony she could, to fufill her entire potential.
After their other friends had begun to pass away, Twilight had started visiting Fluttershy even more often. They'd have tea and Twilight would talk about books she'd read and her more recent studies. The lapses of silence always felt so empty as they tried to ignore the absences of their friends. The grief never quite went away. Fluttershy knew how much it hurt Twilight, saw the pain in her eyes and the way she would look at Fluttershy from time to time with concern. She didn't to lose anyone else. She couldn't bear to lose anyone else. This was the reason Fluttershy had decided not to call for Twilight. There wasn't anyone else to call for who wouldn't immediately summon Twilight to her side. She blinked at Angel Bunny, wishing he would go home to his twenty children and tired wife. He didn't need to suffer either. She knew he had grown up as she grew old, he had a family now, a home, responsibilities. He didn't need her. Maybe he thought it was fair that they both would have taken care of each other in their times of need.
Angel heard a hoof knock insistently at the door, urgency echoing in it's staccato beat. "Fluttershy? Are you home? I had the worst dream, please tell me you're home!" Twilight's voice called through the door, an edge of anxiety in tone despite the fact that she was trying to stay calm. Angel Bunny, hesitant to leave Fluttershy's side, slowly hopped to the door and peeked out the crack before opening the door for Twilight. Twilight burst in to see Fluttershy lying on her side on the floor and Angel Bunny worriedly at her side. She stared for a moment before whispering, "Fluttershy?" Her voice cracked with fear and grief. She'd known this was inevitable, but it didn't change the fact that she wanted to pretend it wouldn't happen. Her horn glowed and surrounded Fluttershy with pleasant, warm tingle magic as she was moved from the floor to one of her soft couches, the scent of animal fur and tea emanating from the fabric a welcome comfort to the dying mare.
Fluttershy raised her head blearily and looked at Twilight. How had Twilight gotten here? She wasn't supposed to come, to see this, to grieve yet again. Fluttershy was a healer, she didn't want to cause more pain and suffering. She knew she had to say something, she couldn't leave Twilight with out a word, "Twilight... Thank you... so much... f-for being my friend."
Twilight sat next to the couch, gently stroking the pony's mane, "No, thank you for being my friend when I never wanted to make friends in the first place. Thank you for always being there and for showing me how a pony can be so gentle and kind." The voice was soft, shaking slightly with her grief.
Fluttershy smiled softly at the princess, her friend, "Everyone deserves a little kindness in their life, Twilight." Twilght nodded, a few small tears gathering in her eyes. Fluttershy's breathing slowed and her eyes closed slowly. Twilight sat next to her as she drew her last breath and finally joined their other friends in the endless summer fields of the afterlife. Twilight was once again as she had been, alone, but not in the same way as she had been as a young pony. Angel Bunny buried his face against Twilight's fur and clung to her, his small paws holding her. Twilight picked him up with her wing and left quietly, taking him home with her.