Hi! I'm here to tell you a story about an awesome pony called Shooting Star. Gotta warn you though—it's a kinda sad story, and whenever I hear it, I start to cry. But it's a story that should be told.
So yeah, onto the story.
There once was a young couple: A Pegasus stallion and an Earth Pony mare, who loved each other very much. They got married and moved together into their new little house on the ground. Like all young couples, they wanted to start a family, but it was harder than they thought. Try as they might, they couldn't get a foal. They were sad, they argued, blamed each other, blamed themselves, but eventually they always made up. And never gave up.
A few years down the line the mare started to feel off in the mornings. One day she felt so bad that she was sick into the toilet, but when she came out, she couldn't have been happier. Her cheecks were glowing and tears were in her eyes, and she hugged her husband. A visit to the doctor told them what she was already sure of: They were going to have a foal.
Months came and went. The mother's belly grew steadily, and the soon-to-be parents lived the happiest time in their lives. They'd be able to start a family and raise their own foal. Everything was perfect. One day, a month or so, they got to visit a very special Unicorn doctor. She used her magic to somehow peek inside the mother's belly. Among other news, she told them that if they wanted, she could tell them what kind of a pony they would have and even if it would be a colt or a filly. Imagine that! Knowing stuff like that before the foal was even born! Well, the parents thought about it, and decided to grab the opportunity. The doctor told them they'd be getting a Pegasus colt into their family.
So they started to prepare. The father remodelled the house, turning one of the rooms they'd been using mostly as a hobby room into a bedroom for the baby. He painted the walls blue, because that's what colour a baby colt's room should be. His father, that is, the baby's grandfather, was a really great carpenter, and made a crib for the baby, all by himself. The parents went around shops, buying everything they'd need for the colt: Clothes, diapers, toys, pacifiers, the works. They didn't go overboard, of course, but they wanted to be ready for anything. Like good parents would. Many ponies don't realise how much stuff you need to take care of a little foal.
Then the magical day came. The day they'd dreamed of ever since they'd gotten married. The day of the baby's birth. The father wanted to be there when the baby was born, even though some stallions think it's sort of icky and for some reason wanna be at a bar with a lot of their friends. I never got that part, really. But this father was different. He was there, in the early summer morning, holding his wife's hoof, as she gave the final push, and the baby came into the world. The same unicorn doctor that they had met all those months ago, lifted the baby onto his mother's stomach. He had a light red coat and a tuft of silvery mane sticking from the top of his head. His tiny little wings were covered in soft, fluffy down. The parent's couldn't have been happier to see the new life that had been born into the world. The doctor left them alone for a moment, and then the father leaned into the colt's ear, and whispered. "Welcome to the world, little one. This is your mom and I'm your dad. And you're Shooting Star, our greatest treasure in the world." A few minutes later, the doctor returned and they took Shooting Star away for a moment to clean him up. A nurse helped the new mother up and did some nurse stuff to her so she could get up soon.
The doctor told them that she should rest for a day or so at the hospital, but she would have none of it. Only an hour or so after she'd given birth, she was up and taking care of her baby colt. Once again the doctor told her that she should rest and regain her strength, but she'd have none of it. As the sun rose over Equestria, the family walked out of the hospital. They already had the whole day planned together, so there wasn't a moment to waste!
First off, they headed out for a picnic in a quiet grassy field near to where they lived. The father set up a red-and-white checkered blanket for them, and together they watched the sun rise on the first day of their son's life. They laughed and they cried, overjoyed at everything. The mother got to feed her baby for the first time with her own mother's milk too. She'd been worried about how it would happen, but it worked out easily. Came naturally to her, she thought. Some things you just know when you become a mother.
They soon left the field, walking around their home town, introducing Shooting Star to the streets and buildings that would surround him for his life. Ponies would stop them every once in a while so they could take a look at Shooting Star. There's something magical about a newborn foal, and everyone felt just that tiny bit happier for meeting him.
The parents knew exactly where they were going. It was to be a big surprise to Shooting Star. The cheers coming from the polo arena soon filled their ears. It was a match day, their local team playing against their long-time rival. From the stand outside they bought a cap for Shooting Star. Despite it being way too big for him, they put it onto his head. Ponies had waited for the match to come for a long time, and even though it was still pretty early in the day, ponies from all over had come to see. Inside the arena was filled to the brim and they were lucky to get nice seats for themselves. After a marching band played and a young mare sung the local town's anthem the game started. The players rushed to and fro, pitting their skills against each other with all their might.
Then the most amazing thing happened! A shot from one of the players went wide and arced far into the stands of ponies watching the game. It landed only maybe a dozen feet from Shooting Star and his parents. A lot of ponies tried to grab the lucky ball in the air. They leapt as high as they could, but it was a middle-aged stallion, who shot up higher than any of the others, grabbing the ball firmly in his teeth. The younger ponies around him begged for him to give it to them, but he would have none of it.
The game itself was really tight, both the teams giving it their all. Shooting Star's parents wanted to stay till the end, but they knew there was so much else they wanted to do that day that they'd have to leave at half time. When they were getting up from the stands, the middle-aged stallion walked over to them. He was a really gruff-looking pony, bearded and stocky, clearly used to hard work. Despite his burly outlook, there was a twinkle of laughter in his eyes. He asked to see the baby, and the parents happily introduced Shooting Star to him. "He's a handsome little thing, isn't he," he said. "I have two children of my own, but they're all grown up now. I used to come watch polo with them when they were younger. They always dreamed that they would catch a lucky stray ball during a match. Today I finally caught one. I was thinking of giving it to one of my kids, but I think young Shooting Star should hold onto it."
The parents were overjoyed at the stallion's generosity. With tears in her eyes, Shooting Star's mother hugged him so tight that he had to tap her back to have her let go. She wanted to know his name, which he grudgingly gave as Ship Shape. He was clearly embarrassed at the gratitude he was getting, but he somehow managed it. Shooting Star's parents thanked him once more, but then excused themselves.
Their next destination was the zoo. Shooting Star got to see a lot of different animals and beasts from all over the world. Manticores, jabberwocks, owlbears, jackalopes, and many others growled at them, making the parents' manes stand on end from shock. Shooting Star didn't seem to mind though, her little hooves flailing in the air every which way, taking it all in stride.
They then went to see a movie. It wasn't really a kids' movie, but Shooting Star's parents didn't really mind. It was a good film nevertheless, action-y and fast, with a handsome hero and a beautiful mare to be saved from crooks. In the end the hero triumphed and probably saved the world on the side. As the credits rolled on screen, Shooting Star and his parents shot out the door, already rushing for their next destination, which was the local amusement park.
It had been there years, the colours from its attractions faded and worn from weather, yet still kept running with the love and care of the folk working there. There were a lot of larger and fancier amusement parks all over the world, but it had been the place where Shooting Star's parents had gone on their first date, so it was special. They went on all the rides that the employees would let Shooting Star on, even turning a blind eye on them sneaking onto the roller coaster. It was probably thanks to the mother fluttering her eyes at the man running the thing. They played several games, but didn't win anything. That was, until they got to the throwing range. All you had to do was knock out nine cups with one ball. Shooting Star's father tried several times, but always one or two stubborn cups would stay upright, almost like taunting him. As they were about to move on, it was the mother who decided to give it one more go. She took aim, stood on her hind legs, and with the accuracy of a pitcher, dropped all the cups on her first try. She won a small stuffed rabbit, perfect for Shooting Star. It goes without saying that his father hasn't heard the end of that one ever since. They celebrated with the three of them cramming themselves inside a tiny photo booth, getting the first picture of them as a family. They finished up by sharing a cotton candy, getting their hooves and manes all sticky with the pink stuff.
After the excitement of the amusement park, there was one more place they wanted to go to. Nearby was a quiet calm lake with crystal-clear water. Ponies could rent small pedal boats from the old pony living nearby, and so they did. After pedaling away from the shore, Shooting Star's mother told him a secret. It had been on a boat just like the one they were on now that Shooting Star's parents had shared their first kiss. She even told him that his father hadn't had the guts to do it, blushing and stammering like a schoolcolt, so she'd had to kiss him instead. Shooting Star's father blushed at the memory, but this time he acted first and kissed her instead.
It was getting late already, so they pedaled back to shore and headed home. It was dinner time, and Shooting Star's mother knew exactly what was on the menu. It was the favourite food of all colts, macaroni and cheese. They mushed it to a thin paste so they could give Shooting Star a taste, but his main meal was a good helping of mother's milk. After dinner, Shooting Star's mother started doing the dishes, so his father took the opportunity to sneak outside with him. He had a big surprise hidden in the woods behind their house. Without even his wife knowing about it, he'd built a tiny tree fort on an old oak tree. It wasn't much, nowhere near finished in fact, but he'd built it with his own hooves. They added a few planks to it together, just like a father and son should. As the sun was setting behind the trees and twilight crept in, they talked about things. They were the things that fathers and sons talked about together. Secrets shared by males from generation to generation. Shooting Star listened intently, until his eyes finally started to droop shut. With a laugh, his father picked him up and carried him home.
Shooting Star's bedtime was fast approaching and they changed him into clean diapers and a cute little blue pajama. In his light-blue room, they carefully laid him into the crib his grandfather had made him. They slipped the lucky polo ball and the fluffy bunny to his side, the treasures he'd gotten on his first day in the world. His father sat next to the crib, slowly rocking it from side to side. His mother sang him a quiet lullaby. Shooting Star quickly fell asleep, yet his parents never left his side, watching their greatest treasure sleep calmly.
It was maybe an hour later that Shooting Star coughed a few times in his sleep, then exhaled a long sigh, and stopped breathing. His parents picked him up in their hooves, crying, yet smiling through their tears.
You see, back when they'd seen the Unicorn doctor, she'd given them some bad news. Some very bad news. There was something really wrong with the foal they were expecting so much. He wouldn't probably live for more than maybe a day after birth. She'd offered them a few options, but in the end, Shooting Star's parents had decided to have him anyway. They'd decided that even if his life would only be a day long, they'd give him the childhood that he deserved. They'd made a list of things that every kid should get to do at least once in their lives. That's where his name came from too: A streak of light crossing the night sky, burning brightly for the brief time it got to shine, bringing hope to all that could see it.
Oh mane. Now I'm crying again. Mom says it's okay for colts to cry sometimes. I guess they're right, though I hope my friends don't find out. Maybe I should have introduced myself at the start. Hi! My name's Shining Star! Nice to meetcha! Shooting Star was my big brother. I was born two years after him and I'm almost twelve now. Today me and my parents celebrate Shooty's birthday. We do it every year. Mom cooks the best mac and cheese in the world! They like to tell the story of my big bro every year, though I know it by heart by now. Shooty's lucky ball has a special place on our bookshelf. I got into trouble once when I played with it and almost lost it. I don't think I've ever seen dad so upset. Dad always shows me the faded photo they took at the amusement park. I don't think I've never seen anything so sappy in my life with their grins. They do look real happy though. That's the only picture of my big brother I've ever seen too. Can't really make out a lot from underneath the huge cap on his head.
I sometimes think what kind of a pony Shooty would have been. I think he would have been one of those big brothers who kinda teased me a bit, but whenever I was in trouble he'd be there to have my back. We'd do stuff together, like finally finish the tree fort, or play catch. Maybe he'd even teach me how to talk to fillies?
Ehh. It's bedtime already. Usually I get to do whatever till pretty late, but dad insists on tucking me in today. I'm a big colt already—practically a stallion really—but just for today I guess it's okay. Mom comes in like I knew she would. She sings me a quiet lullaby. She has a really pretty voice. It sounds a bit cheesy, but I feel like she's singing to both of her colts as she does. My eyes become to droop shut. My last thoughts are about tomorrow's match. Uncle Ship Shape got us tickets a month ago.
Maybe this time I'll catch a lucky ball?
Author's Note
This story is based on real-life events i heard about. A couple knew their child would be born with a very little time, so they'd made a bucket list for him. The idea was both a bit creepy, yet ultimately I completely understood why they did it. Last night I kinda got to thinking about it and suddenly my imagination took over. What would that day have been like? What kind of memories would they have made? I don't usually write sadfics, but this time I couldn't help it. Sometimes stories just have a way of coming out.
