Canterlot was full of hustle and bustle that night, ponies walking here or there as they had places to be and parties to attend. Of course that was neither new, nor was it surprising. The city was lit by the moon, mare clearly visible for all to see that night. In one particular section of the city could be found a large gathering taking place, carriages lining the streets making traffic next to impossible.
Within one particular building a family reunion was being held. Fancy ponies wore fancy clothes that wouldn't have been far out of place with even the more elite of the city. One such pony was a little red unicorn filly, blond hair overly brushed and wearing a dress a few sizes too tight for her comfort. Fiora Everspark Flaressence, Fire Flare as she preferred, was busy pouting as she looked around. Once again her father was too busy to attend anything even remotely fun.
A light purple pegasus walked up to her with a concerned look on his face and a cup of punch in one of his hooves. "Hey, is something the matter?" he asked, unsure what to do about his pouting friend.
Fire Flare looked up, unsure for a moment what to make of the intruder on her less than happy thoughts. It took her a moment for it to click that it was her friend talking to her. "Oh, hey Tepid Wing! Sorry, I was kinda thinking about Daddy, he's always too busy working to hang out or anything" she said, sounding rather saddened by the notion that once again work was more important than family.
Tepid Wing took a sip of his punch before he gave a shake of his head. "Say something then, it's not like anything'll change unless you make it change" he advised. Tepid Wing had always, at least in her eyes, been the smarter of the two. Whenever she needed advice or just somepony to talk to he'd always been her pony of call.
Fire Flare gave a determined nod, agreeing in full with what her friend had said. Of course he was right, he usually was with whatever she brought to him. Though it was a surprise to hear him outright tell her to speak to her father, who tended to be the last pony to listen. Ever since he'd started making serious bits he'd been so preoccupied with making more that everything else faded into white noise. In fact were it anypony else giving her this advice she'd probably have written them off as crazy.
She gave her friend a small hug, being careful not to spill Tepids punch. "Thanks Tepid!" she said, perhaps a little louder than necessary if the looks she was getting was any indication. Not that she ever really minded, she never was one to care much for what strangers or more distant relatives thought of her.
Tepid only gave a small shrug and took another sip of his drink before his ears perked up a bit. He looked over his shoulder and spotted his mother. She stood next to her husband by the door. They both looked very important, far more so than anyone else in the building if their attire and faces full of disdain had anything to say about it. Clearly they did not approve of the company their son kept and they looked ready to tell him at length about it. Tepid sighed and shook his head "well, time to pay the piper" he said, finishing his drink and turning to walk off. He stopped however and looked over his shoulder "remember, talk to him. He's still your dad after all" he said with another look of concern in his eyes.
***
Pyrodaemus Ignition Flaressence looked up from his paperwork with a deeply etched frown on his face when he heard a knock on the door. The red mustached unicorn wasn't particularly happy with the interruption. "Come in" he said, eyes were narrowed in ire. His face did however relax a bit when two nervous orange eyes looked through the cracked open door. "Fiora, it's just you. Come in, what seems to be on your mind?" he asked while he smoothed out his mustache and set the paperwork aside.
Fire Flare nodded before she walked in with a little more courage on her face than before. "Daddy, there's a big party going on and everyone we know's here. Why can't you spend time with us just this once?" she pleaded, desperation betraying the number of times she'd likely asked that same question.
Pyrodaemus shook his head in response. "I'm sorry Fiora, as much as I'd love to spend some quality time with you this paperwork is far too important to put off," he responded, much to Fire Flares incredulity.
"It's paperwork, Daddy! It's not going anywhere," she stated, stomping a hoof ineffectually. Her irritation clearly showed on her face, orange eyes looked up at him almost angrily.
He shook his head once more, his patience had clearly ran thinner than he was willing to put up with. "I am sorry, Fiora, but I have to insist that you leave me be for now," he said much more firmly than he'd intended. Far too late to change the course of things, he decided to let it run at that pace. "I've heard this countless times already from both you and your mother, just let me work in peace!" he all but shouted, slamming a hoof into the desk. "I can't keep us living comfortably if every time I want to put aside work for fun I do so!" his anger was fully apparent now, eyes closed tightly as he waited for some inevitable response. Instead, all he received in response was the sound of a sob and the slamming of a door.
***
Outside in the hall Fire Flare stomped her hoof on the floor once again. This time she merely wished to vent, allowing it to be just as ineffectual, just for different reasons. "Stupid Daddy, why does he have to be such a jerk?" she asked no one in particular. Fire Flare looked around for a moment before deciding she needed some air. In anger, she kicked a tall table up against the wall opposite the main study. Were she taller, or perhaps in a better state of mind she'd have likely noticed one or two simple things. Either she'd have noticed the candle wobbling a bit, or she'd have noticed a hooded unicorn lighting up their horn just around the corner. As is she merely stormed off in anger, desperate to get some air to cool herself off.
Fire Flare made a quick stop by her room to disrobe, tossing the dress onto her bed. The room was sparse, just a bed and a vanity, clearly not a room lived in long. Once free from the restricting and uncomfortable outfit she felt ready to head out. She knew of course that if she tried to leave through the main hall she'd be stopped by someone. Either a guest or her mother, either of whom would likely ask where she was going and why she wasn't dressed. Making a quick decision she decided she'd take the kitchen exit instead, knowing that the only one she'd need to avoid would be the cook. Carrot Stew, while a relatively new addition to Fire Flares life, was clearly not the type to put up with shenanigans. To the little fillys relief however Carrot Stew was busy in the pantry when Fire Flare stopped by. This allowed her clear exit to the path out by the side of the small manor. The little filly then ran off, unaware of how her life was about to change forever.
Fire Flare couldn't help but look up at the sky, admiring the beauty of the stars for the brief moment that she could. The Pegasi had been very thorough with removing the clouds above the city that evening, so she had a very good view of the twinkling lights above. It was no secret that she found beauty and comfort in the night sky, her mother having once been an astronomer. She could recall countless evenings with her family just looking up at the stars, before the allure of bits had-
"I say! Do watch where you're going, peasant!" a voice huffed from in front of Fire Flare, snapping her out of her thoughts.
In the absence of her mind she'd somehow wandered into a noble out for a late night walk. While she didn't even reach the top of his leg she still had somehow bothered the stallion enough to make him look annoyed with her. She'd dealt with their types a couple of times before, having been born and raised in Canterlot, so she had a basic idea as to how to diffuse the situation.
"I'm so terribly sorry, I'll take my unworthy self out of your glorious presence" she said with a deep bow. Fire Flare then hurried around the stallion and went on her way, secretly grateful for that trick she'd seen performed by the homeless. The nobles of Canterlot were nothing if not full of themselves. As such she knew she could get away with irritating them so long as she demeaned herself and made herself seem unworthy of their time or attention.
With that unfortunate encounter out of the way, Fire Flare decided it'd be a better idea to 'watch the road' as the saying went. Her path guiding her towards the park. It was a small place, hidden by tall buildings that encircled it. A meager park consisting only of a slide and a swing set on a patch of dirt. Celestia had refused to let the foals playgrounds be destroyed, but that didn't mean much to those who wished their buildings built. The consequences of which had allowed the foals many a hideaway to play in secret. Giving a cheerful smile, she galloped towards the swing set, eager to get in a little play to help clear the remnants of the blues from her mind.
***
It was about an hour later that Fire Flare had chosen to leave her little hideout. There was only so much fun to be had when one was alone after all, and she'd pretty much expended the entire parks budget on fun five minutes in. The road was much clearer than before, with most ponies wanting to be inside before it got too late. That didn't mean the world had gone completely quiet however, as Fire Flare could still hear a commotion coming from a little out of sight, perhaps four or so blocks away. Up ahead she could see two ponies talking to each other, their faces darting around almost conspiratorially.
"Did you hear?" one of them whispered in a hushed tone as Fire Flare drew near, keeping to the shadows a bit to avoid being seen. "The Flaressence household is on fire!" she declared, much to the fear and surprise of the eavesdropping filly.
"Yes, I did! In fact I hear nopony has made it ou-hey!"
Both mares were shocked by the sudden intrusion of a little filly bolting between them, eyes wide and full of frightened tears. She didn't need to question the source of the noise now, she already knew. As she rounded the corner she finally saw it for herself, the home her family lived in was burning brightly. Terrified and heavily pained screams from the ponies inside now quite audible now that some of the windows had shattered. A crowd of gawkers had surrounded the building from a safe distance, oblivious to the fire fighters they were blocking from doing their jobs. The blaze grew brighter and brighter, until Fire Flare could feel the heat from where she sat, tears streaming down her face.
The screams, the light, the heat. It all became too much for her to handle, and so she ran. For what felt like hours she ran through the empty streets, the life she'd known burning behind her. Fire Flare finally came to a halt when her legs finally grew too tired to carry her. If she were to look around she'd probably notice that she was located in a dark alley and completely alone. Now that her panic had exhausted itself however, she could finally take stock of her situation. Unfortunately that meant several unnoticed things from before came to mind. A candle just within her peripheral vision, a table, her hoof.
She screamed.