Requiem of a Shining Star
The night sky blanketed the Maretime Bay, leaving a gentle azure glow over the quaint seaside city. The stars sparkled in the twilight like little flakes of snow dappling the leaves of an autumn tree, as the moon watched over her sleeping little children with her soft, motherly gaze.
All except Misty, who laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling with sunken eyes and a grimace on her face.
3 hours.
She had gotten approximately 3 hours of sleep before waking up in the middle of the night.
She buried her muzzle into her pillow, the cushion muffling her groans of growing aggravation.
She just didn’t get it! Her bed was as comfy as could be, and she had never felt as safe, as at home as she had in the Crystal Brighthouse. Yet, she couldn’t bring her body to just sleep out the full night!
She told herself time and time again that everything was fine, and she was just worrying too much as usual. But a little niggling feeling in the back of her mind kept telling her that something very bad was about to happen.
She shook her head, trying to clear away the clouds in her mind. But that feeling was still there, eating away at her soul, little by little.
Grumbling to herself, she wiped her sleep-ridden, emerald green eyes and shuffled out of bed. Maybe a quick walk around the Brighthouse would make her feel better. After all, that’s what she usually did when she couldn’t sleep or couldn’t think properly, and it worked like a charm.
Most of the time.
Setting her hooves on the floor as quietly as she could, she began her walk around her new home. Pipp, Zipp, and Izzy slept soundly in their own beds, not moving a muscle. Misty wished she could’ve been like that. She sighed, beginning to walk off before freezing in place as she noticed that Sunny’s bed was completely empty.
Where could she have gone off to, especially at this hour? It didn’t seem like her at all. What if she was in danger? What if she…
No. Her bed looked to be neatly made. If she was ponynapped, there would have been a visible struggle. She pushed the thoughts out of her mind and exhaled. Everything was okay. Everything was…
She eyed the rainbow elevator that led to the top floor of the Brighthouse. Maybe some star-watching would help her mind settle.
She stepped in and felt herself be lifted up, the starry night sky slowly becoming more and more visible as she approached her destination. The elevator came to a stop, and she stepped off of the flooring and onto solid stone.
She blinked when she saw a pony, already sitting there, their back facing her and something clutched in their hooves. Their apricot coat contrasted with the deep blue of the midnight sky, and their pink rainbow-striped mane glistened softly in the moonlight.
“Sunny…?” Misty called out softly, causing the other pony to jolt in surprise as she looked back at her, her eyes wide.
“Oh, hey, Misty.” Sunny seemed to calm down as her eyes locked with her friend. “What’re you doing up so late?”
“I could ask you the same thing.”
Sunny looked back up at the sky. “Couldn’t get myself to sleep through the night.”
“Seems we’re in the same boat then.” Misty muttered. She tapped Sunny’s shoulder to get her attention, and she pointed a hoof at a spot near her, her head tilted curiously. Sunny nodded, and Misty sat beside her. It was silent for a while, with the exception of the chirping of crickets and the hooting of an owl.
Misty glanced at the object Sunny held in her hooves, and her ears drooped. It was a framed picture of Sunny as a filly, riding on the back of an old blue earth pony. The two appeared to be laughing.
Misty recognized the blue pony. She had heard Sunny mention him before in her stories, and she’d taken passing glances at the photo when it would hang on the wall. She still didn’t know that much about him, but she did know who he was.
He was Sunny’s father, Argyle Starshine.
Misty went to speak but the words died on her tongue. What if Sunny didn’t want to talk about her father? She didn’t want to bring up bad memories or anything of the sort. But curiosity overcame her. She wanted to know more, to understand her friend better. So, she took a deep breath and finally forced the words from her mouth.
“What…was he like…?”
Sunny looked at her and blinked. Then, she smiled, giving a small giggle.
“Oh, Mr. Starshine…” she began, “he was a very benevolent and fun-loving stallion. Always there to lend a helping hoof to a friend in need. And…he understood me better than any other of my fillyhood friends did. At the time, at least.” Her eyes twinkled wistfully. “No matter how many ponies stood against us, he would always try and fight to bring back the Equestria that Twilight Sparkle always believed in.” Her smile faded. “I…miss him a lot…”
Misty was silent, only laying her tail on Sunny’s own. She tried to think of something to say, but the harder she searched for the words, the more of a haze her mind became. A question formed in her mind, and with reluctance, she stammered it out like a foal saying its first words. “I’m sorry for asking this, but…what exactly…happened?”
Sunny looked away, her ears drooping further. Misty felt a pang of guilt in her stomach and she scrambled frantically for words to ease the dejection weighing in the air. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to- um- you don’t have to answer if-“
“Sickness.” Sunny finally answered, her voice dull and quiet, as if all of the vitality had been sucked from her very soul. “It was sickness.”
Misty gazed at her with wide eyes as she fell into a shocked, somber silence. Sunny went on to explain, her voice barely above a whisper.
“In his final years, he had come down with something nasty, and it only got worse as the days went on. He just told me that it was a bad cold, and that he would be okay. ‘Illnesses get worse before they get better,’ he always told me. And my father would never lie to me about something like that, it just wasn’t like him. At least, that’s what I thought.” Sunny took a shaky breath before continuing.
“But every day, it got harder and harder for him to wake up and get out of bed. Then, one morning…he just didn’t wake up at all.” Her voice broke as she finished, and she lowered her head, her eyes closed and her brows furrowed. A couple tears gleamed in the light of the moon as they dropped down onto the picture she held ever so tightly in her hooves.
The despair in Sunny’s voice made Misty’s heart ache. She had seen her like this only once before, in Opaline’s castle all those moons ago, and it still hurt so much to see. “Oh, Sunny…” she whispered as she gently rubbed Sunny’s back with a shaky hoof. “I…I didn’t know. I’m so sorry.”
Sunny sniffled and opened her sodden green eyes. “You know,” she murmured with an unsteady voice, “sometimes I like to come up here…just to be alone, with my thoughts. My thoughts about everything. My thoughts about…him.” She confided, once again turning her gaze towards the stars in the sky.
“It might sound somewhat foalish, but I feel like if I look at the stars hard enough and for long enough… I’ll see him again. Smiling down on me, like he used to, all those moons ago…” she looked into Misty’s eyes, and Misty winced slightly at the uncertainty and sadness that shone in her eyes. “Do you think he’ll be proud of me?”
Misty blinked, giving a mellow smile as she rubbed her cheek against Sunny’s own. “I’m sure he’d be very proud of you, Sunny.” She reassured her, her voice soft and sympathetic. “You’re one of the best ponies I’ve ever met in my life. You’re kind, you’re compassionate, and you always know how to cheer a pony up.” She pulled away, her smile wide and her eyes gleaming. “And that’s not even mentioning the fact you brought magic and unity back to all of Equestria! I’m sure he’s over the Lunar Moon about the pony you’ve become!”
“Well, I couldn’t have done all of that without my friends…” Sunny admitted, a small smile forming on her muzzle. “But thank you Misty. I really needed that…” She wrapped her front legs around Misty in a tight hug, and the two remained in this embrace for a few moments more before Sunny eventually let go.
“Why don’t we stay out here for a while longer? It’s a lovely night.” Sunny suggested, her eyes no longer dulled by sadness and instead shining with joy.
Misty nodded her head with a smile, and the two sat there for hours, gazing upwards at the stars before sleep inevitably crept into their bodies and they dozed off together, their heads leaning against each other as they snored quietly. Overhead, shining above the Brighthouse, a shooting star trailed peacefully through the night sky.