The Forgotten Family

It was an absolutely beautiful day in Ponyville. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, Rainbow Dash had made sure there was not a single cloud in the sky, and the Carousel Boutique was completely quiet.

Rarity was busy working on her new designs for a very important client when the bell above the door to the boutique chimed. "Welcome to Carousel Bou-", She began her usual greeting as she trotted down the stairs to find her parents standing in the main room of the boutique. "Oh, hello Mother, Father. Is it time for your annual vacation already?", She asked, trying desperately to remain calm despite the fact she knew she had far too much work to do to entertain Sweetie Belle for a week.

"No.", Her mother stated simply. "We decided to cancel it this year."

Rarity was baffled. Certainly she appreciated the peace and quiet of being alone with her work, but her parents had taken the same week long vacation every year for the past ten years. They had always left on the same day after breakfast with Sweetie and herself, and always returned one week later to the day always trying to hide looks of disappointment and sadness. She had assumed that her parents were just never able to do all they wanted in that week.

"Why would you want to cancel a week long vacation?", Rarity asked her mother.

Her father, who had not taken his eyes off of the floor since she had walked in the room, looked up at her then and she could have sworn that he had been crying recently. This startled Rarity, who had never seen her father stop smiling when he knew she was in the room and now here he was eyes bloodshot and frowning.

"Father?" she began. "Is something the matter?" For her parents, with their usually happy demeanor, being disheartened about anything was enough cause for concern, but when her father's only response was to return to staring at the floor she knew that something truly worrying must have happened to them.

"Rarity, we need to talk.", Her mother began. "Maybe it's best if we sit down?"

As much as Rarity would have liked to question her parents further, her better judgment told her to accommodate their request. "Sure.", she said as she walked into her kitchen. "Perhaps some tea?"

"That would be nice.", Her mother said, a ghost of a smile playing on her lips.

As Rarity set about making the tea, she realized two things. One, her parents were being quiet, which was abnormal for them. Two, her parents had not brought Sweetie Belle. The realization almost sent her reeling. Her parents always brought Sweetie Belle, every time they came to see her she was with them. Something must have been troubling them greatly for them to neglect to bring her little sister.

After a few minutes of almost unbearable silence, Rarity arrived at the table she had seated her parents at with three cups of freshly brewed chamomile and what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "So mother, father what exactly is on your minds?", She asked hoping to, at the very least, break the uncomfortable silence that had taken over her kitchen.

"Rarity, we decided it's time you knew the truth about our vacations.", her mother said.

"The truth?", Rarity asked, confused. They had never told her anything about their vacations, she had always just assumed that her parents went off for a week to enjoy one-another's company. "What ever do you mean, Mother?"

"They aren't vacations...", her father stated weakly from his seat. Upon hearing his hoarse voice and seeing his bloodshot eyes again, Rarity decided her earlier assumption of her father crying was correct. She was far from comforted by that fact as she used her magic to grab a box of tissues from a nearby counter top and place it on the table.

"No, they aren't.", her mother said. Her voice had begun to quiver and Rarity knew whatever news her parents were about to deliver would be far from pleasant. "They are searches.", her mother sobbed slightly as she said this and Rarity slid the tissues to her mother with her magic.

"I don't understand.", Rarity began. "Searches for what?"

"We've been looking for ten years Rarity.", Her father said. " We decided it's time to give up but, your mother and I believe you should know what we were looking for." She waited for further explanation but it seemed as if her father was done speaking.

After several long moments she asked, "What were you searching for then?" she was answered by silence, her father staring at the floor again and her mother sniffling slightly. "Please Mother, Father, I can help you, but only if you talk to me.", She was growing very concerned at this point. She felt the anticipation rising, causing her heart to feel like it was beating a hundred miles-per-hour.

Her parents were still quiet, aside from more sniffling, and she felt as if though she could scream. "What were you searching for?", her voice had more of an edge this time; she may have been asking a question but her tone told her parents she demanded an answer.

Her mother began to sob at this point, quietly but still enough to unnerve her daughter, who had never seen her mother cry so openly. Her father finally spoke and what he said made her blood run cold and sent a shiver down her spine. What he said would change her life. She decided she must have heard him wrong. What he said was impossible.

"What did you just say?", she asked, hoping against hope that she had heard him wrong, that it was a mistake, that she had not forgotten-

"Your brother.", Her father said grimly.

"My what?", Rarity asked. Surely this was not happening. She did not have a brother, and her parents did not have a son. They did not have any kids besides Sweetie Belle and herself. There was absolutely no way her parents had a son and hid it from her, it was so unlikely that she did not even register it.

"It's true.", Her mother said. "Your big brother has been missing for eleven years."

"That is completely impossible, Mother!", Rarity said, trying to suppress the panic that was building inside her. Surely this was all a dream and she would wake up soon. " That would mean I was nine years old when he disappeared. I believe I would remember. I don't know what kind of joke or prank this is, but I do not app-", Her father cut her off with a look that could pierce steel.

"No joke", her father's voice, barely above a whisper, cut her through to the bone. "I wish it was, but it's not. You don't remember him because of the accident.", He was either trying to contain anger, or tears and Rarity could not tell which would be worse at the moment.

"Accident?", she asked.

Her mother sighed and wiped at her eyes with a tissue using her own magic. "When we lost him you got hurt, dear.", Her mother explained. " You fell out of a window and hit your head. The doctors said you would be lucky to wake up, but you did... we didn't want you to go through the pain of losing your brother again, so we told you that you tripped at the playground."

Rarity was shocked. No, that was not the right word for it. She was devastated by the onslaught of information she was trying to process. She had a brother. She lost her brother ten years ago. She had lost a huge section of her memory so she never remembered her brother, and her parents had LIED to her about it all. She needed time to wrap her head around this.

"Leave.", she said as levelly as she could muster.

"Rari-", her mother began to plead, only to be cut off.

"MOTHER!", Rarity shouted. "I told you to leave. I want some time alone to think, so if you do not leave my house this instant... ", she let the sentence trail off as she stifled a sob.

Her parents looked at each other, unsure of what to do. After a few moments her mother just nodded and trotted out the door, her father in tow.

Rarity began crying openly now, not the loud sobs she used for getting attention, or whatever she wanted, but the quiet sobs of somepony whose whole world just came crashing down. She tried her best to curl up in a ball in the corner of her kitchen in an attempt to comfort herself. The bell above the door jingled as the door opened. "We're closed.", she said loud enough to be heard in the front room of the shop, not even trying to hide the sobs in her voice.

"Rarity?", a familiar voice asked. Rarity looked up from the floor to the doorway of the kitchen to see her friend Twilight Sparkle gazing at her with immense concern. "Oh my goodness, Rarity! Are you okay? What happened?", Twilight dropped the dress she had been holding under her wing (Rarity noticed it was the one she wore for her coronation ceremony several months ago) and ran to her friend.

Rarity wanted to answer her questions but she could not stop sobbing. Twilight, seeming to understand, sat next to Rarity and wrapped her forehooves around her and stroked her mane gently. "Shh, it's okay. It's okay.", she cooed into Rarity's ear.

After several minutes of crying in her friend's arms, Rarity finally began to stop crying, and fell asleep in the other mare's hooves.