Dear ~~Noktu~~ ~~Noctulisense~~ Noctuliscence,
How are you? I’m doing great! I read a whole book in one read today. It was a really fun book; I bet you would’ve been proud of me!
Or not, because you’re not really a book person – or egghead, like you call them – that’s not really nice - but It was a big book; with over one hundred pages!
It was about a heroic knight that had to save a ~~beou~~ beautiful lady, but she was stuck in a faraway land, and the knight had to go through lots of adventures to save her. He defeated the evil king, he went undercover as a thief to get his armor back, he rode a loooong time without even a single sip of water or crumb of food – and he even defeated the Dragon King! Isn’t that awesome? In the end, he saved the lady and they lived happily ever after.
You know, when I read that book, I really had to think of you. If I were the knight, than you would be the lady, and I would go really far to save you! Maybe, if I would be trapped by the dragon king, you would be the brave mare that saves me! Maybe you’d like that better, since you’re so brave. Wouldn’t that be awesome?
Oh, and Pinkie threw me my tenth birthday party! There were balloons, streamers, and even a huge cake! I had so many presents, one of them being the book that I read about the knight and the lady! The new librarian gave it to me; she’s really nice. She’s the best friend of my mom, so I can call her my aunt! Maybe, if you come to visit, you can meet her, and if she says yes, you can call her aunty too!
You know, it’s boring now you left. My mommy said you moved to a hospital in Cloudsdale yesterday. I’m sorry I couldn’t say goodbye to you; and daddy says that I can’t visit you because you because I’m a unicorn and unicorns can’t walk on clouds, they would just fall down. But maybe you can visit me some time? I would really love that! Then I can show you my new book! And we can pretend that you were the lady and I am the knight. Or something else, like, Twister!
I really hope you can do that when you get back, though, because it’s your favorite game! But if your legs are all tingly again, we can do something else, too. But now your legs are broken, so you can’t play… I’m sorry… But soon, you’ll be fine! Then we can play Twister and Monopoly and all other sorts of games!
Your bestest friend, Equinox!
Dear Nocti,
I can call you Nocti, right? I mean, I call you that all the time and you don’t mind, do you? I mean, it’s kinda hard to write your name every time I wanna tell you something.
Anyway, it’s been two weeks since my last letter. Are you all right? My mommy says you’re really busy with stuff in the hospital, like surtjeries. What is that? Is it fun? I hope it is, otherwise the hospital sounds really boring.
Anyway, a lot has happened the last two weeks. I had a LOT of homework to do, and that was really hard to do, because it was so much. Remember our teacher, miss Cover? She’s back, and she’s being really mean by giving us so much homework.
Do you have to do any homework? I hope not. It’s terrible, or you should do fun homework, that’s nice.
Why did you leave, anyway? It’s not something I did, was it? I’m sorry if that’s it. I’m really sorry I couldn’t say goodbye when you left. I really miss you. I hope you get back soon! Or, at least, write something. Pretty please?
Equinox (Or Nox, that writes easier too)
Dear Nocti,
I still haven’t heard anything of you, so I just write you something. It’s been three weeks since the last letter, and it should’ve been delivered by now. Even Momma says it’s strange. Maybe it got lost in the mail. Maybe I should bring it to you personally! I’m sure Auntie knows a spell that lets me walk on clouds! Or maybe get me wings! Then, you don’t have to be so alone.
Do you remember that night, when we were at your house and your mom had to get something from the market? It was almost dark, but that was mainly due to the thunderstorm. We were huddled up on the couch, under a lot of blankets, and each time thunder struck, we would scream in fright and laugh it off, because it’s actually fun to be afraid! Isn’t that weird?
Oh, and do you remember, that after that, we had a nice mug of chocolate! And I would have a great big chocolate mustache! Your mom would laugh and say, “You’re not that big of a colt yet, Equinox!” and wipe it off, but I would then take another sip and the mustache grew back! That was pretty awesome, too.
Have you ~~expi~~ experienced something fun, there, Nocti? I hope so. My mom told me that your legs were getting tinglier. It doesn’t hurt, does it? You will be able to walk, right? I mean, sometimes, when I sit on the floor for a long time, my legs get tingly too; it’s as if lots of little needles sting into my legs and it feels really numb. My mom says that my legs were asleep; but I don’t understand. You only sleep in bed, right? How can your legs sleep if you’re awake? And why do your legs even fall asleep when you’re not sitting still for a long time? Why can’t I fall asleep that easily?
Nox
Hey Nocti,
Maybe I should really bring these letters myself! I mean, they can’t all just disappear in the mail? It’s been a whole month and not a single word from you! Mom convinced me that I shouldn’t write so much to you, because you need your rest and I need to focus on my homework. But what is the matter? Why don’t you write back? But it isn’t your fault. Next time I see the mail pony, I’m gonna give him this letter and tell him he should give it to you personally. Maybe you’ll get it, and you can write back!
Mom says I need to have some patience, but I don’t want to be patient. I miss you. It’s really boring since you left.
We used to play together, always. In recess, we would play with our other friends; tag, hide-and-seek… you would always find me. Maybe that’s because I’m always hiding in the bushes next to the gates, and you’ve caught me a hundred times there, so you always know where I was and didn’t even have to try! We still had a lot of fun, though.
And in class, during game time, you would always drag me to Twister. You would always win, because you’ve got bigger limbs and you’re much lighter so when we fell, it didn’t hurt so much if you fell on me. But I would always fall first, though. And you would just let yourself fall. It hurt a little, but I’m not a wuss. Right? I can climb in trees without falling out!
But you fell… and you aren’t a wuss…
Anyway, I hope you write back soon!
Nox
Hey Nocti,
Are you being bullied? I mean, maybe they are hiding the letters from you. Maybe they are also hiding your letters from me, so that means I’m being bullied too! That’s not fair! I should tell mom, and she can tell your mom, and your mom can tell you that you’re being bullied! Maybe I can give her this letter, so you know that you’re not alone.
Oh! Maybe we can send you Missus Missesus! You know, your favorite doll! Or maybe you already have it? In that case you won’t be so alone.
Maybe, I can send you Fluffy with her! Remember Fluffy? He’s the really fluffy plushie pony on my bed! He’s the one who keeps the nightmares away. Remember when we had a pajama party at your house? I brought Fluffy with me. He and Missesus played tons of games, and so did we! It was really fun! But when it was getting dark and we had to go to bed, Fluffy and Missus Missesus went missing. I was really scared, then, because the nightmares would come.
So we searched the entire house! The living room, the kitchen, the study, even the bathroom and the attic! We also looked in your parent’s bedroom. We found some really weird stuff there in their closet, but not Missesus or Fluffy.
In the end, we went to your room and I looked into my sleeping bag. And guess what? Fluffy and Missesus were sleeping in my sleeping bag the whole time! Playing must’ve really tired them out. I bet they had loads of fun!
You know, Fluffy doesn’t really do his job anymore. I still have nightmares from the accident… But it wasn’t my fault… right?
Oh, and, by the way: I found your favorite ball you lost! You know, the blue one with the rainbow stripes. It was on the neighbor’s roof all along! Remember when we were playing? We were playing in our back yard and I tried to put it in the goal. But you kicked so hard, it went straight to their roof!
I’ll send it to you with this letter.
I will write again soon, I promise!
Equinox
Hey Nocti.
Are you okay? Mom says you aren’t. She says it had to do with the accident. I... I’m really, really sorry if that’s the case.
Maybe that’s why you aren’t writing back. Because you’re mad at me. But… But it wasn’t my fault, was it? If it was, I’m really, really sorry. I just wanted to play…
Will you please write me back?
I’m really really sorry,
Equinox
Dear Nocti,
Today we went on a field trip! Since it’s autumn, the leaves are turning orange and red. So, we went to the forest and gathered leaves, acorns and branches! We also found a lot of little critters like rabbits and squirrels and hedgehogs, which we could pet! There were a lot of mushrooms, too, but we weren’t allowed to pick them because some of them could be poisonous. Especially the ones that are red with white dots. They’re really, really poisonous, even though they look so pretty.
We also went fishing in the creek! There were lots of frogs and little fishes which we caught. After that, we went climbing in trees! We walked past the tree you fell out of, too. It was kinda scary, because I didn’t want to go there anymore. The other colts were daring me to climb in there, but I didn’t want to, and they called me a wuss. That wasn’t fun.
And to think… I dared you to climb into that tree…
Nocti,
Mom said that you couldn’t write back. Not just because you didn’t want to, but because you can’t write at all. Because you haven’t been awake all the time. But that meant that you couldn’t have read my letters, so at least you aren’t bullied! Right?
Mom said, I had to write about what happened. But I don’t want to write about it. Mom said that she needed to know what happened exactly. She said that it would help you forgive me. Is that true? I hope so. Because I’m really, really sorry for what happened. I… We just shouldn’t have gone to the forest… I shouldn’t have dared you…
I-I’m sorry… I… I didn’t…
Sorry… I wasn’t crying, I swear!...
No, I am crying… I shouldn’t lie to you…
Just, don’t call me a wuss because of that, please… I shouldn’t have called you a wuss…
Do you remember? I remember it far too well…
It was late spring, early summer. The trees were getting leaves again and all the animals had woken up completely. You were all jumping about, ready for summer break.
I wondered if there were any trees in the forest that we could climb in to, so after school, we went to the forest to find out.
“I bet you can’t climb as high as me!” you said, pointing up a dead tree. There were no leaves, but there were really thick branches hanging very short from the ground, so you could climb in very easily.
You climbed really high, like, two meters from the ground before I joined. I used my horn to pull myself up.
“Cheater!” You stuck out your tongue. I huffed and pulled myself up on the branch you were sitting.
“Am not. You have wings, I have my horn. We’re even!”
You pouted. “But Nox, you know I can’t use wings here! I would hurt them on the branches. You can use your horn anywhere!”
I rolled my eyes. “I bet you can’t climb any higher than this!”
You laughed. “Of course I can! See?” You jumped to the next branch. I jumped after you.
Together, we climbed another meter.
“Euh… Nocti?” I said, looking down. “Aren’t we a little high?”
You huffed. “Of course not. I can climb much higher than this!”
“Well, that’s because you’re a pegasus! You’re not afraid of hights!” I retorted, hurt. I crossed my hooves in front of my chest and stared at her, angrily.
“I bet you can’t climb all the way to the top.” I pointed up to the sky, where surely the highest branch was from the trees.
“Oh, yes I can.” And you started climbing. I looked up, unsure.
“Well… I’m going down now… I don’t want to fall out.”
“Pfftt… You wuss.” She jumped to another branch. “Whoa…” She barely catched herself.
I looked up. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah… my legs are all tingly again…” She glanced down at me, haughtily. “But that doesn’t mean that I can’t climb any higher!”
And she jumped… and landed safely.
“Hah! See-AAAAAAHHH!”
I looked up, just in time to see her legs failing and falling to her side. She fell off the branch, screaming.
“NOCTI!” I reached out my hoof to catch you, but I couldn’t reach. I felt your hoof brush against mine, and my magic reached out for you, but I only slowed your fall.
I climbed down as quickly as I could, hoping that you would be all right. And there, at the base of the tree, you were lying. Your legs were at a weird angle, but you were still breathing and crying.
“Nox… Help me..”
Quickly, I lifted you on my shoulder. You were kinda heavy, but I didn’t care. I galloped to town as fast as I could.
I can still see the look in your eyes when you fell. I can still hear your scream ringing in my ears. I am so, so, so, sorry that I had let it come to this.
But now you’re sleeping. Are you in pain? I hope not. I hope you’re all right. I really hope it’s going to be allright. It is going to be fine, right?
Love, your best friend, Nox
Dear Equinox,
This is Noctuliscence’s mom.
I’m really glad that you care for her that much, and that she had such a great friend.
Thank you so much for telling us what exactly happened. We really appreciate it.
There is one thing, though, that you should know… It might be a little hard to swallow, but I’ll have to tell you sooner or later and I’d rather tell you now.
You see, Noctuliscence… won’t be coming back.
She was in coma for a long time. She had been in pain, but now she’s… not anymore, I think. She had a rare sickness with her legs – they would be all tingly, every time her muscles would get worse. At one point, she would’ve been paralyzed.
It’s not that she wouldn’t want to play anymore. She was an energetic filly, and she always loved to play. Twister, as you know, was her favorite game.
Your mother gave your letters to me for when Noctuliscence would wake up. I read them – I hope you don’t mind – and I was really moved. I am so happy my little filly had such a great friend – but I already told you that.
You see, Equinox, I’m really sorry to tell you, but… Nocti… is gone. She’s gone forever.
The accident wasn’t your fault. It wasn’t Noctuliscence’s fault either – it’s nopony’s fault, mind you. She just had the ‘tingling’ at a very bad time.
Her legs were broken, yes, but that wasn’t the cause of her passing. No, the ‘tinglings’ were the cause. You see, they were slowly but surely making their way to her brain and her heart and lungs. She had been in coma, because the doctors had hoped that it would slow down the process and they could find a cure.
But they were too late.
After weeks, the sickness had made its way to her heart and there was nothing more we could do.
Maybe I shouldn’t have told you this this way. Maybe I should’ve let your mom tell you all this, but that wouldn’t have been fair to you. You were her best friend, and you were the one who was with her the last time she was awake. I’m really glad that you had such a great time together. I’m really glad that you made her so happy.
And I bet that she will be happy, wherever she is now.
I’m really sorry.
Nocti’s mom
~
~
Dear Nocti’s mom,
Can I give her Fluffy?
Then she won’t be so lonely where she is. I’m sending him with this letter.
Maybe he and Misses Missesus will be happy with her where she is.
I – don’t want her to go! I miss her sooo much. I really hope she is happy. Where is she? Will she ever come back? Will I ever see her again? I want to see her again because I miss her and she is my bestest friends forver ever tho shes so far far far away plese plesse let her come back I want her back I wanna play twister with her agan and I wanna play at shool hide and seek and tag and other games like with the hula hoop and the jumping rope and play wit you favorit ball the one wit the blue and ranbo strips and I wanna drink chocolate milk and hied under blankes and on the coutsh and play outsid and sleepover and peyamaparty and pleeeeeseee I wanna see her pleeesss I wanna huge her and say sorriiiiiii
I’m sorriiiiiii
I’m sorrrryyyyyy
I’m soo sooo soorryyyy
I let her down
I’m sorry
I’m so sorry I let her down
