My Guiding Lightby The Dawn FanaticChaptersAlone in the DarknessFalling DeeperA Glimmer of HopeGuiding LightAlone in the DarknessAuthor's Note Please do use the links to the background music I provided if you can. It'll set the mood quite well or it'll just make you cry. Either way, enjoy! Alone in the Darkness Alone as usual. It guided those in need. Stagnant on the cloudside, it remained ever watchful; its full height piercing the endless dark shroud. Chisel…chisel… A humble fluffy white structure, it looked deceptively naïve. Chisel…chisel… Standing firm against the wild wind, it proved not so meek. Chisel…chisel… Through any tempest or gale, it continued to do its duty. Guiding those in need. Casting its luminous musk across the night sky, it surveyed. Gliding its light through the never ending reaches of the darkness, it aided stranded pegasi who had lost their way. There on the lonesome cloud stood Loyal Light. Chisel…chisel…crack! The moonlight enveloped the night sky this evening; the once stoical and heart-breaking pattern of the princess of the night sketched into its face, now long absent. Of course, the return of the princess had brought the land much joy and the moon shone brighter than ever now but he had to admit that he rather missed the similar sentiment it etched across the sky. Zooming out, the stars came into view; their abundance making up for what they lacked in sheen. Not as bold the moon, he appreciated the subtle efforts they made to fight out against the dark. Further out still came the sight of the sleepy town of Ponyville resting in the valley below. It was still late evening and there was still some activity that he could see. From his view, it looked like a nest of fireflies swarming around the flowing river. One more time and…there! The outline of a cliff painted itself into the scene, curving at its end to give a modest vigil over the still settlement. Perched on its crest was an immovable log – he had tried before to move it to a better location – where the green pegasus lay atop, constantly searching for new inspiration as his wing rummaged around in his backpack for another pencil. Greenfly took his time. There was much to observe during the night and often he’d get lost in the beauty of it all and forget what he had actually come out here to do; draw! The drawing he was working on in particular didn’t call for hurry. It was rather something the pegasus needn’t draw but felt like he had to occasionally. The chilly wind brushed past the pegasus, letting his orange hair down to obstruct his view of his idea bank. Bringing up a hoof, he pressed it under his fringe and slid it up in order to return his mane to its regular bushy appearance and out of his line of sight. He then felt his wing twitch and remembered what his left wing had been doing the entire time. A spare pencil followed within its grasp and soon found its way into Greenfly’s right hoof, ready to begin again. He paused however; beginning to feel a little dissatisfied with the change in comfort he was feeling atop the coarse log. He shuffled around for a better spot. Click here for BG Music (Open in new tab) You might think why a pegasus would sit on a log or even the ground when they could just as easily sit on a much softer cloud. Greenfly however liked it that way. Ever since he moved to Ponyville, he really had embraced the earth pony way of life and took to nice walks especially at night than to flying everywhere. Occasionally if he desired a better perspective, he would fly up to the nearest cloud and sketch from there – if it was worth it. Otherwise, the creative pegasus normally wished to stay grounded; ever since it happened. Much like the feel of the log, the drawing was only a rough one. Having drawn it many times before, the artist skimmed over the here’s and there’s he usually added to his more unique sketches. But it didn’t diminish what it felt to him. It allowed Greenfly to remember them…and her. It had been a long while since the green pegasus had ever gone home for a visit; he knew he was being missed. Since he left, Greenfly never did check to see who or if anyone was checking up on the old girl. Then again she was always able to take care of herself. She always beamed at the sight of him; a trait he had admired all the way from when he was a colt. She’d never cease to be there for him when he needed her the most. And there was many a time that the little green colt came to her for solace. She never even wore a frown when he had let her down; she simply waited patiently for him to make it up to her. Of course, half the time she’d never actually let him. As a matter of fact, she was about as stubborn as those apple farmers Greenfly had noticed around town. The old girl was practically self-sufficient; never asking for help whether she needed it or not. Funny thing was she’d always see it through to the end…and succeed. Sure he gave her a helping hand regardless from time to time but although appreciated it was never necessary. But it was still appreciated. That was the main thing. The pegasus tensed up as his eyesight became fuzzy and quickly went on to adding more textures to his sketch. Compared with his other versions, the drawing had too few special features to be classed as a “rough” sketch by his standards. He proceeded to give it some small touches. An hour later and the artist could still be seen working on his rough sketch...which he was now adding colour to. A mass of concentration was clear on his face as he rigorously continued adding character to the piece bit by bit never ever tearing away, save for grabbing the next colour in his mind. One could say he was definitely devoted to giving even a “rough” sketch the best of everything but in Greenfly’s mind the fact that he was still drawing hadn’t occurred to him. In his head, there was merely an image and that was all. That’s all there needed to be. Had Greenfly been conscious of his autonomous illustrating, he would have known that the mountain of focus being drilled onto his face was his attempts to hold back the ever increasing reservoir of water accumulating behind his eyeballs. His hoof and pencil trembled as continued pressure was forced down onto the innocent paper; the maximum opacity being implemented on the image. He also hadn’t noticed the amount of colouring pencils he kept replacing. Perhaps he chose not to. Deep in a really back part of the desolate pegasus’s mind, an inevitable truth was fighting to break the ruse Greenfly was so determined to continue creating. It grew in strength as the close to tears artist realised this not so dormant part of his mind. The pegasus trembled violently, a stutter escaping his lips. And then his mind went blank. And Greenfly let out a quivering sigh. A lone tear managed to escape as the pegasus settled down, having finished his envisioned image. It blemished the dark indigo shade of the night sky out of range of the yellow streak slipping across the image. It was not enough to smudge it thankfully. Greenfly sniffled slightly as he studied his creation. He turned happy upon seeing the image before him instead of in his recovering mind. A smile projected across his lower face at his portrayal of his cherished memory. His senses returning back to him, the artist couldn’t help but feel astonished at how entranced he had been in completing what was only supposed to be a “rough” sketch. But then why should it have been just a sketch? This memory deserved appreciation and effort. So why had he just drawn a lazy sketch countless times before? Greenfly sat there a while, deep in contemplation. He looked up to the white orb hovering above him. He never was quite sure how to explain it but the moon normally made him surer of things and erased any bad thoughts that haunted him. He strangely felt warmer around it too; a feeling he could experience quite well tonight as the icy wind only picked up in strength as the night went on. It almost seemed like home to him. At times like these, Greenfly would often ponder what it must have been like for Princess Luna to be there on that rock as he himself couldn’t shake the feeling he belonged with it. The reason why was in turn the reason why he spent so many nights just examining the celestial being – each night hoping something might be that little bit different so as to give the pegasus a hint or two. Alas, he just couldn’t understand. He knew deep in his heart though that one day things would become clear; perhaps when he was able to share that horrible truth with her. For now though, he simply had to wait. And as an artist, patience was everything. Greenfly had learned that harsh lesson more than a few times when he had been a little too enthusiastic about his drawings. This occasional complacence led to some silly mistakes as the pegasus became overconfident in his abilities. Creating a profession out of it had been even harder and not a day went by that Greenfly didn’t receive some form of criticism for his latest work or commissions requested by the ponies of Ponyville. One client had even been so disgusted with his work, they never even set hoof near the place again. But as an artist, he was used to it – especially when the majority of feedback for his art was positive. He’d never forget that nightmare night where he picked up one of his most noteworthy supporters. It had been her first visit to the town after all and Greenfly had been exceptionally lucky that she chose to take a gander at his art – even if her voice boomed as if out of nowhere while he was actively sketching fillies and colts in their costumes. “Haha! Thou hast the most exquisite depictions of my glorious night! Might we ask you for a request?” The royal Canterlot voice had caught him completely off guard and all the green pegasus could do was nod silently while his mind still adjusted to the princess’s kind compliments. She had quietened down after that and apologised for it being a force of habit. Greenfly on the other hand was ecstatic that the very own princess of the inspirational night had paid him a compliment – not that he was really one for showing emotion…despite his difficulty earlier, he remembered jovially. Rather he was much better at evoking his feelings through his art than openly presenting them. Nightmare night was one night full of antics and mixed reactions and one of the few which revelled in the themes of the beautiful yet scary night. It was his favourite night on which to draw as most other nights at this time the ponies would be tucked in their hovels and as much as Greenfly liked the tranquillity of his evenings he sometimes relished the opportunity to create something a bit more lively than his usual still-life. It also meant that the artist could see the sheer thrill on everypony’s face and...most importantly her. He couldn’t recall a nightmare night where she didn’t look like she was having the time of her life. No worries and no concerns. Just how Greenfly wanted it. She was happy. She had friends; friends who Greenfly often wondered were a bad influence on her. Yet she had no clue how much the green pegasus felt about her. Greenfly sighed deeply. Maybe if I did tell her…would she even believe me? He hated himself for thinking this way but occasionally some part of him wished that she might feel empty inside, if only a little, that might persuade her to pose the question herself. But it was wrong to think of such things and the pegasus’s wings tensed at the anger he felt with himself. As an artist, he would be patient. For how long though could he resist? For tonight anyway, he affirmed to himself; the chilly wind echoing the call of his warm bed to which his flustered mind was eager to accept. Falling DeeperThe covers were tucked in neatly around the pegasus as the morning sun crept in through the window; the golden beam illuminating a wide smile on the sound asleep pony. RIRIRIRIRIRIRIRINGGGGGGGGGG……….! Greenfly looked round in surprise. Oh! Looks like I forgot again. The wide awake pegasus got up from his chair and walked over to his bedside, placing a hoof down on his alarm clock to silence it. He usually rose before his alarm went off and consequently he normally forgot that he had set it the night before. Greenfly sighed in satisfaction of his tranquil work atmosphere returning and retraced his steps back to the mahogany desk where his latest sketch was nearing completion. He sat back down on his chair and continued working. It was handy having his bed so close to his workspace since if the evening weather was not ideal for a twilight fascination then he could instead finish his “sketch-load” for the day before retiring to slumber. His bedroom wasn’t grand either; circular in shape so that everything was conveniently located from one another. It was composed of his bed and desk featuring a rather unkempt pile of rough or practice sketches along with a dresser and bookshelf. The bookshelf though hardly had books in it but rather was another stockpile for his endless plans for completed and upcoming drawings. They too had their worth as occasionally some ponies would even ask to buy his plans, shabby as they were. So he kept them around knowing however to throw some out if the stack became too large. And that wouldn’t take long either. Greenfly had space aplenty but it was still a modest-sized home. In addition to his bedroom, the green pegasus owned a kitchen and a bathroom too. But both were only built big enough to accommodate himself. In fact, his front door was just a little away from the bedroom. His profession while fun wasn’t the most profitable and the artist could really only afford the basic essentials on top of his supply of paper and utensils. But the pegasus wasn’t any unhappier. He lived in a wonderful town, he had wonderful friends and Greenfly could ignore the former two reasons anyway as nothing could make him happier than see her smile. Chisel…chisel… KNOCK! KNOCK! Greenfly’s ears twitched at the sound of the front door. He placed his pencil stationary next to his newest drawing and slipped off the chair. The pegasus made his way through his bedroom arch to his front door and opened it. His sight came upon the friendly smile of the familiar professor. “Hello Greenfly!” greeted the doctor in his rich Trottingham accent. “I hope I’m not a bother but I just wanted to check to see if my order was ready yet?” Greenfly nodded in response. “Yes. I’m just putting the finishing touches on it now. Would you like to come in?” “I shall, thank you.” Greenfly stepped aside to let the earth pony enter. “Can I get you anything?” “No, I’m quite alright. Thanks for asking.” “Not at all. Well, the picture is on my desk if you would like to see it.” The pegasus gestured towards his bedroom and beckoned Doctor Whooves to follow him. The drawing laid on the desk just as he had left it with the pencil having not budged an inch. He took it back up in his hoof and began adding the final adjustments to the sketch. He felt the presence of the doctor’s head peering across as he continued drawing. He heard an excited gasp escape the earth pony’s lips. It was rather a cute drawing, Greenfly had to admit. A grey pegasus with blond hair tugging the sun streaked bed covers around her; her eyes closed and a joyful smile on her face while she dozed. The artist grunted happily to indicate he was finished and presented it to the doctor. A knowing grin appeared on his face. “Awww…that’s my little muffin alright…” The doctor stared at the picture for a good minute before Greenfly had the courage to break the silence. “So…are you satisfied?” “Wha-wha-what? Oh! Uhh…yes! I’m extremely satisfied! Thanks very much, Greenfly!” He blushed before continuing. “Uhh…Greenfly old chum…can you avoid telling Derpy about this until…until I have managed to…ummm…” The doctor trailed off. “Yes of course, Doctor,” stated the artist. “Client confidentiality, you know?” “Indeed Greenfly, indeed!” chuckled the doctor nervously. A pause followed as the embarrassed doctor steadied himself. “Now…how much do I owe you?” “Uh…ten bits.” The doctor gave the creative pegasus a questioning look. “Is that all? I would happily pay more for this.” Greenfly shrugged. “Ten bits is fine for me. Besides I couldn’t let one of my good neighbours go out of pocket now could I?” “Well if you are sure…ten bits it is!” The professor hoisted the sack he had been carrying around his head and from it took ten coins and gave it to the pegasus. “Thanks! Do let me know if you need something else sketched,” Greenfly said warmly. “Well actually Greenfly now that you mention it I-” The doctor was unable to finish as a melodic sound soon wafted its way into the room and interrupted their conversation. The sound grew louder and soon other ponies’ voices joined in. “What do you suppose is going on?” the doctor asked. Greenfly shrugged and began trotting at a brisk pace towards the front door to inspect the sudden commotion. Opening it, the pegasus could see a crowd of ponies straight in front of him all with excited happy faces; going somewhere. Doctor Whooves came up behind him and they both shared a confused look. “Doc, Doc!” Greenfly looked in the direction of the voice to find Derpy racing towards them; evidently addressing her secret admirer. “Doc! Ya gotta come see this!” “What’s going on Derpy?” he asked. “Those troublesome fillies finally got their cutie marks! Everyone’s going to see what they are!” The green pegasus woke as if out of a dream. He knew some troublesome fillies. She couldn’t have… “Oh that sounds marvellous! Don’t you think…” The doctor’s breath caught in a gust of wind that blew past him. It had come from beside him. “…Greenfly?” The doctor looked round but the excited pegasus had already bolted. The airborne pegasus couldn’t believe his behaviour of late. First his near breakdown the other night and now – for the first time since he came to Ponyville – the feeling of air rushing past his tufty orange mane reunited with him as he sharply rounded the corners of the town buildings, looking for that which compelled him to leave the ground. That which never left his thoughts. She just got…How? I…I… I must go to her. A cheer erupted from under Greenfly, prompting him to look down. He appeared to be hovering over the famed eatery square where Sugarcube Corner and various other restaurants sat. He stretched his wings to glide down for a closer look. Adjusting his wing power to a steady hover once more, the pegasus took in the sight he couldn’t believe he was witnessing. Deep in an embrace with Rainbow Dash, the orange filly beamed happily as she continued to nuzzle her sister-like friend. At least Greenfly was content that she had some form of sibling relation in her life. More dominant in the awestruck pegasus’s mind though was the new feature that had appeared on the orange pegasus. Etched onto her flank, a characteristic lightning bolt painted over a shield of crimson, white and orange was now evident. She had finally got her cutie mark. Greenfly couldn’t hold back any longer. A grin grew on his face; its weight clearly too much for the pegasus as his lips trembled under the extreme pressure exerted on his mouth. His eyes began to water and they would have probably emptied onto the ponies below, if the pegasus had not thought of that and floated back down to the ground. “Oh there you are, Greenfly!” He heard the greeting come from behind him but didn’t turn to see who it was. The pegasus instead found himself utterly transfixed at the emotional sight in front of him. The filly had parted from Rainbow Dash by now and – quite like the cyan pegasus – began to show off her enhanced flank to the passers-by who had evidently come to see the newly cutie-marked trio. “I wondered where you’d gone off to, old cha…is something wrong?” Greenfly took a while to notice that the doctor had caught up to him and was in fact standing right next to him. “Oh…no it’s nothing…” he replied softly, wiping the excess tears off his face. He had been crying gently it seemed and had been unaware of it until the doctor’s remark. “Hmm…” Greenfly saw the professor was eyeing him ponderously. He became nervous at the stare and his once vivid smile faded. Luckily for him, a shout caused their heads to jerk round to the excited trio once more. “You’ve made your mark…now Equestria’s so proud…you’ve made your mark…and we’re here to sing it loud…” “It certainly is great that those fillies finally earned their cutie marks eh old chap? Their families must be really proud!” the doctor enthused. “I a-” I mean, I am. Greenfly cleared his throat. “Yes, I feel very happy for them.” Truth be told, the pegasus was trying hard to not let his river break its banks; he didn’t want to attract any attention, least of all from her. Pretty soon though, the crowd of ponies began to disperse; the excitement of the happy event returning to normal levels. “Doc! Doc! Did you see their cutie marks?!” The walled-eyed pegasus flew over to them. “Yes Derpy, it’s extremely interesting to think they got their cutie marks at the same time! I must do some study into the science behind this.” Derpy sighed. “These moments make me think how lucky I am to have my own little filly, Dinky.” The scientist scratched the back of his head. “Well Derpy, I actually wanted to talk to you about something.” “Sure, Doc! What is it?” Greenfly saw the doctor incline his head to perhaps signal Derpy to walk with him a while. The doctor turned back to him with wide eyes and bit his lip. The green pegasus chuckled slightly. The two of them started off with the doctor making a stammered start to his conversation. “I think…perhaps…it would be best for Dinky…to have…a father…figure in her life…” Their voices faded as Greenfly remained to watch the daring filly a little longer. Wait! Where is she? Oh there…she’s leaving? The pegasus hastened to follow her but his brain suddenly caught his heart from doing anything foolish. No matter how much he wanted to congratulate her and wrap her in a hug, he knew it would cause nothing but sorrow for the jubilant pony. And today of all days was one that Greenfly wouldn’t want tarnished. The square became quite vacant as the remaining ponies departed to continue with their daily routine. Drooping his ears, the pegasus stifled a whimper. With his head down, he let the pipe leak slightly, knowing nopony was watching him. His brows twitched and soon the introvert pegasus felt rage boil within him. Greenfly knew this was wrong. But he didn’t care anymore. He had never felt so annoyed in all his years of living in the comforting earth pony town. I’m never going to have the guts to tell her. Greenfly cursed under his breath and shot his wings back up in temperament. He shot up into the air in a manner most unbecoming of the typical timid pegasus. What happened to walking? Know what, I really don’t care anymore! And with that the pegasus vigorously flapped his wings and made a beeline straight for his home with only one thing on his mind. Drawing. A Glimmer of HopeBGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) Sniffle…sniffle…gasp… The pegasus shivered as another wave of waterworks came pouring out his close to stinging eyes. Gasp...kah...kah…sniffle… He wiped a hoof across his face to renew it in preparation for yet another cycle. Chisel…chi-sniffle….chisel… The strokes of graphite were barely visible as the artist continued to apply unordinary light pressure on the pencil. It felt so loose in his hoof that occasionally he would drop the implement completely. His hoof would reach for it, then retract as his insurmountable unhappiness asked it what the point of it all was. I must draw…anything...Anything…please… He would take the tool back in hoof and continue his gentle strokes before releasing it yet again a wee while later and asking his right hoof the very same question. The resulting product of this repeating torture was nothing more than a couple of wavy lines overlapping each other with varying intensity; clearly highlighting when he had been close to dropping the pencil and when he had just picked it up. Although Greenfly’s head drooped towards the somewhat moist paper below, his eyeballs endeavoured to look as upward as possible. It made it seem that although his attention was fixed elsewhere he was still able to see the things below him if he wanted to. They sat eerily still though, budging only when a hoof came up to tend to their water level. Even when the frequent wood vs. wood sound occurred in his ears, the artist’s naturally observant eyes would make no effort to move towards the pencil. All the while his relentless thoughts reverberated in his head. Draw…draw anything… And so Greenfly’s facial parts persisted in working independent of one another; his eyes staring blankly somewhere, his nose scrunching up continuously, his mouth uttering quick breaths and gasps while the pegasus’s hoof struggled without the appreciated help of its anatomical colleagues to grasp the pencil once more. Something…anything…please… Even if an idea were to suggest itself, his bawling mind would never have apprehended it. At the moment, Greenfly could only understand two words; draw something. It was all that could fit into the miniscule part of his brain that wasn’t submerged in sorrow. And the flood level was rising ever faster. Please…please… Greenfly wasn’t going to hold out much longer. His regular order of watery coolness only doubled in pace as the pegasus desperately pleaded with his drowning mind for something to take his mind off of what had transpired today. Her cutie mark…I…I can’t believe it… Why had he let that in? Greenfly was close to breaking point now. I’m really proud of you… Sister. That did it. As if by fate, the left hoof which the pegasus had been using to prop his frantic face upon slipped down as the lubricant force of the gouging waterfall eased into the tiny gap between the contact of skin on skin – sending Greenfly’s head on a collision course with the desk. His cries of pain muffled through the wooden worktop; his uncountable tears seeping into the many cracks and splinters in the timber. By now the pegasus had let go of the pencil once more and let both his hooves slide off the table as he simply emptied his water banks into the table. He cried and cried to the point where he began to suffocate from lack of oxygen. Coming up for air, the tears slowed as Greenfly’s mouth stopped quivering but remained on the verge of whimpering. The artist’s sharpened senses began to return to him as he relaxed back into his chair. He decided to risk a look around to check nopony had openly seen him breakdown as he did. Cough…sniffle…That’s good I g- The water again began to form in the desolate pegasus as his eyes stood riveted at the sketch on the wall. Loyal Light… No…NO! With that, Greenfly jerked his hooves to lay on the table in front of him and buried his head into them – his moans and wails evidently much louder this time. He spluttered constantly as the continuous stream of water began to engulf him. His thoughts ringed in his head; becoming ever louder. WHY?!! Why did you have to leave me? We were all so happy…SHE was happy. WHY?!! Greenfly continued sobbing uncontrollably into his hooves, not even caring if anypony were there to judge him – in fact the thought never occurred to him. He didn’t even realise he was shouting. “I FAILED YOU, LOYAL LIGHT!! I CAN’T EVEN WATCH AFTER MY SISTER FOR A DAY!! THE ONE THING THAT YOU WERE ABLE TO DO FOR ME FOR YEARS!!” “I NEVER EVEN CAME TO VISIT YOU AGAIN AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! WHAT KIND OF HEARTLESS PONY DOES THAT?!” He lifted his head to look at her, tears still pouring out his stained eyes. “YOU WERE ALWAYS THERE FOR ME! Cough…WHY COULDN’T I BE THERE FOR YOU?!” He slammed his head back down to soak his hooves again. He continued to splutter and cough constantly. Just then however, a sweet innocent infant voice in the back of his mind said two crucial words, “Dra someting, hehe!” Greenfly’s crying ceased abruptly. He sniffled occasionally as he brought his head back up to look at the sketch of Loyal Light again. An idea. He finally got an idea. Shakily, he reached his hoof across for a nearby piece of paper as the old one had by now been disintegrated by the mountain of fluid that had leaked onto it. Breathing slowly, the pegasus took the pencil back in hoof for the hundredth time – this time intent on not dropping it…for the hundredth time. His creative composure returning, the sketcher went to work. A modest sniffle came from the pegasus now and again as he diligently worked away at his much needed distraction. He could still feel that his muzzle was full of snot and that his eyes stood ready to gush out at the slightest provocation. Still, Greenfly was managing quite alright to control his emotions. What he’d be like after he was done however, the green pegasus couldn’t be sure. He sighed deeply and braced himself as he drew the heart-breaking outline of Loyal Light – the artist made sure to etch it just right so that the dome kissed the dark night sky; rising far above the sea of puffy clouds. He sketched it as if he was looking at the front and towards the white ocean; the night sky splitting down evenly across both sides of its cotton stack. Greenfly stifled a whimper as his artistic mind realised the luminous musk emitting from the lightcloud would make the perfect background for the four familiar ponies that he would soon draw. He suddenly averted his gaze from the table and spun to his right to allow his eyes to discharge the pooling liquid on the floor rather than on his artwork. It needed to be perfect after all – otherwise the pegasus would never forgive himself. These four ponies meant the world to him…even if his world was much smaller now. Greenfly took a deep breath in as he shuffled back into his sketching position; having given his eyelids a little respite. He hesitated once again before his trembling hoof prepped for what perhaps might be its most strenuous creation yet. He began by drawing two pegasi, hooves extended in an arch – ready to scoop up another- Sniffle…whimper… A…Another couple of special pegasi. The male stood on the left while his partner was held in an embrace by his remaining hoof. It was obviously returned; creating a symmetrical effect between the two lovers. He had a purple coat with strands of both orange and red in his mane. The m…mother- Gasp… She sported a light green coat with a violet stream of hair which curled up over the forehead. Both of them stood beaming at him as if still watching him after all these years. If…(sniffle)…only… He would have added their cutie marks if the angle of perception didn’t prevent him from doing so – he wanted so much to draw them in anyway. Anything at all he could add would stop him from adding the two missing ponies. Sighing deeply again, the artist pressed on. “Greenfly! Are you done yet? You’ve been in your room for hours!” The light green mare’s voiced concern made it up the spiral stair to the teen’s room with little difficulty. “Just finishing up! I’ll be down soon!” Greenfly shouted in reply. “I should hope so, mister! Dinner is in 5 minutes!” The young artist chuckled – had he really been working on this sketch since lunchtime? Though, it was unsurprising considering how much concentration he put into even the tiniest of pictures. Ever since he got his cutie mark years ago, Greenfly rarely spent much time doing anything else than either draw or think about drawing. Well…that and Loyal. But she wasn’t going anywhere after all. After making a final adjustment to his newest creation, the pegasus slipped off his stool and started to walk onto the first floor landing. He then proceeded to the stairs. “Greenfly?” He paused at his mother’s question. “Yes?” “Can you please check on your sister? See if she’s still asleep?” Greenfly smiled. “Sure thing!” The green pegasus retreated from the tip of the stairs and trotted back in the direction of his sibling’s room. He edged the door open quietly so as not to wake the potentially sleeping infant. BGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) And asleep she was. Through the bars of her cot, Greenfly spotted his sister curled up in a snug ball and snoring peacefully. He lay his front hooves over the side of the cot and watched as his sister’s fuzzy orange fur rose and fell in a humble rhythm. She was too cute to resist a small nuzzle. With that, Greenfly leant his head down towards his sound asleep sister intent on giving her just that. Hey, Scoo- RRRUUUMMMBBBLLLEEE!!!! Thunder slammed into the shaken home causing Greenfly to abandon his plans for affection. He shot a look at the window which featured nothing but the dark clouds that he had expected to find with occasional streak of lightning illuminating them. Damm! That sound must have… He gaze quickly darted back to his still asleep sister. She hadn’t even stirred. Woah…you really are a heavy sleeper aren’t you? Not wishing to disturb her further, Greenfly retracted his hooves from the cot and trotted out the room; leaving his sibling to her slumber. His mother was lifting dinner onto the table when the teenage pegasus descended down the stairs. It smelled like hayburgers. Suddenly, a nearby window swung violently open; taking away the aroma of the burgers with it as the cold wet air from the raging storm drafted in. “Celestia, it’s wild out there tonight. The weather ponies really outdid themselves this time!” Greenfly grunted firmly in reply; flying off to close the window and secure it with the latch. As with most buildings in Cloudsdale, the walls and its accessories were all made up of clouds and so likewise was the window and latch funnily enough. At least it didn’t make a thud like windows here do… “I sure hope nopony is out there in this storm,” Greenfly’s mother stated worriedly. There isn’t Mom…believe me… “Now let’s eat before this dinner gets cold. Your father should be down shortly.” The green pegasus didn’t waste any time – he was starving. Turns out sketching for half the day works up quite the appetite. He slid onto the chair and began munching away on his hayburger. It wasn’t until Greenfly had finished his second burger that his father came down the stairs. “Oh there you are honey, I put your hayburgers back in the oven…Is everything alright, dear?” Greenfly had too noticed that his father looked a little bit sterner than usual. “I’m afraid dinner is going to have to wait, dear. I just picked up a SOS on the tower radio from a pegasi convoy not far from here. I’m going to aid them if I can.” “Are you sure?” Greenfly’s mother retorted, a touch of anxiety on her tone. “This storm looks very dangerous; it may not be worth the risk, dear.” I agree, listen to Mom. Please. His father simply shook his head and pointed a hoof towards his cutie mark – a lone eye on a silver shield. “It is our duty as lightcloud keepers to respond to those in need. I must go,” he affirmed. No…don’t... “Then…” No…Mom… “…I’m going with you, dear. I can’t let you go alone.” She trotted over to her husband and held him in an embrace before separating and confirming her intentions with a confident nod. Greenfly’s father turned to him. “Son, I trust you can watch over your sister while we are out?” No! Don’t go! “Of course, Dad,” Greenfly answered with a smile. “Thank you, son. We should return soon.” As the pair of them headed for the front door, Greenfly got up and also began towards the door. The front door groaned open as the gale force outside encroached on the homestead – the tufts of their manes rippling in the ferocious gust. Greenfly’s mother was taken aback slightly but nevertheless flexed her wings and took off into the storm. NO! MOM! “Be careful!” Greenfly said while waving a hoof at his father. “Don’t worry, Greenfly. We’ll be back soon.” NO YOU WONT! DON’T GO! The two of them shared a hoof bump. Greenfly smiled; well assured as he watched his father extend his wings to join Greenfly’s mother in the search. NO! GREENFLY! DON’T CLOSE THAT DOOR! GREEN- The whole room shook as the pegasus tumbled off the chair and onto the floor, utterly flooding it with a new pool of tear water. His conscience kicked in as his memory faded and Greenfly became aware once again of his emotional breakdown. He hadn’t thought about it this much in years. Why now? Because I’m a failure to my parents, Loyal and my sister. The pegasus continued sobbing into the mostly soaked timber floor – making sure every last drop had leaked before getting back to his hooves to finish the sketch. Greenfly let out a sigh which caught in his breath as he attempted to relax himself on the chair again. Looking down at this drawing – having been spared the flood – he observed the green teen pegasus and the ecstatic orange purple-maned filly in his hooves; wrapped around the comforting embrace of their parents. He grimaced as he tried to stop a tear leaking down onto the image. He couldn’t stand to see it any longer. Fumbling for his nearby eraser, he slid it roughly across the outlines of the elder pegasi, leaving only the brother and sister. Greenfly waited patiently in his sister’s room for his parents to return home. He sat there reading a book which he had been given for his last birthday while trying to block out the intrusive sounds of the raging storm outside. He could just as easily have read it on the kitchen table or in his room but the tranquillity of the young filly’s room was as good as atmosphere as any. Plus it meant that he could keep a closer eye on his younger sis and make certain she had been watched over like his father had asked him. The fact that he was close to her always made Greenfly feel happy. He would often sneak into her room to energize his creative vibes for something to draw before his mother came and pulled him out barking “She needs her sleep! You don’t know how long it took me to get her to sleep this time!” Greenfly grinned at the memory. He supposed that he was allowed to be in here this time, considering he was the only one in the house after all. The pegasus hummed in satisfaction of finishing yet another chapter. The fourth one so far. He eyed the clock in the room before continuing to read. It was nearing midnight. His parents had been gone for hours now. Greenfly would have been lying if he said he wasn’t getting a little bit edgy about it. Still, he found comfort that his favourite little filly lay asleep in the cot across from him. “WAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!” Woah…Strike that! Greenfly had only just taken his eyes off the numerous lines of words in the book when the unexpected outburst exploded around the room. The pegasus put the book aside and hurried over to soothe the wailing filly. “Shhh…shhhh it’s OK, I’m here now…” He reached his hooves over and picked the orange filly up; hugging her up against his cheek. She continued to wail but it sounded ever so slightly softer. What had caused her to awake so suddenly? Could have been the storm but she had slept through it for hours before. As Greenfly patted the filly’s back, all he could do was wonder. BGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) Please…anything Loyal…give me anything… The pegasus stared out towards the endless expanse of clouds; determined to find any glimmer of hope to reignite that in his head which had been long extinguished. His parents had not returned that whole night even though the storm had abated by around three in the morning. Greenfly had expected them to return tout suite after that but they were still absent when the sun broke from its slumber. And it had been that way for near three days now. His sister was becoming difficult to quell as she constantly pleaded for the one thing Greenfly could only imagine she would want – her mother’s affection. He had hardly even left her side all week and only just scarcely managed to put her to sleep to allow him to scour the view surrounding the tower as he was doing just now. Nothing…. Greenfly sniffled slightly as he turned his gaze from his current view and flew to another position in the circular tower – allowing him to keep watch of all angles and viewpoints that Loyal could give him. He relaxed himself into the warmth of Loyal’s elements; trying to escape all the panic that was filling his mind. He was beginning to fear the worst. “We’ll be back soon. Don’t worry, Greenfly.” The assuring words of his father maintained Greenfly’s optimism, keeping up his search while the latter of him begged the pegasus to accept the inevitable. His surveying yielding again no results, the green pegasus sighed and drooping his head he wandered slowly over to the third recurring viewpoint that formed the final corner of the triangle in which he continuously went. Greenfly couldn’t help it as his pessimism was starting to get the better of him and soon his eyes began to water. He had never been this long without his parents and not even knowing where they were was even worse. Before reaching the third spot, Greenfly halted and instead turned towards the control panel for the magical aura of the Loyal’s luminescence. He increased the light beam’s intensity. DING-DONG! The pegasus went off like a shot. The first sound other than either his whimpering or his sister’s wails just came through the house. Before he even knew it, he was downstairs and reaching his hoof for the door. His excited smile however fell at the sight of the stranger dressed in black. “Good afternoon, Greenfly,” he said solemnly. Greenfly stood motionless, unsure of what to say. How had this pegasus known who he was? His thoughts were soon broken however as the stranger kept on speaking. “Did you know that the light is on in stark daylight?” Greenfly felt stupid for saying it. “Yes.” “Oh…umm.” The pegasus in black dress shook himself all over as if he had just got side-tracked. “Greenfly, I’m afraid I have some bad news to tell you…” Bad news? … Something in the teen’s mind clicked as he noticed the nature of the stranger’s black clothing. No…please…no… “Greenfly, your parents are…” The last word hit Greenfly hard in the chest but the wail that had exploded out didn’t escape his lips. It had come from the orange filly in the cot upstairs. Guiding LightEvening had settled over the town by the time Greenfly was able to compose himself again. He had let loose his emotions all afternoon just about and was still struggling to keep calm – the same thoughts constantly clashing in his head. We’ll be back soon…. Greenfly, your parents are…. WAAAAHHHHHH… Scoo- A cold wind caused the pegasus to shiver and look up at the window. He spotted the sky’s crimson colour fading to make way for the light darkness of the early evening. Feeling the uncomfortable sensation of dripping snot go up his muzzle, Greenfly sniffled and slumped back into the stool. The moon would be out soon and the depressed pegasus was keen for some solace with his lunar companion even if it was rather early. He often waited until the late evening to venture out after eating his supper. Tonight however, instinct told him he would need the extra time. Even the thought of sitting on his lumber log bench under the moonlight brought happiness to Greenfly. There he could truly open himself up to the celestial being, nothing held back. After all, there was something about it that the pegasus couldn’t put a hoof on. It was as if the moon was like a long lost friend with whom he only chose to confide in. Pretty sound logic since the moon can’t blab to anyone else…sniffle… Greenfly’s ears pricked up. Hey! That might be why I- No! Not here! Save it for later! The pegasus heeded his conscience just in time to allow only small droplets of water to escape his eyes this time, preventing what could have been another downpour. He swivelled off his stool and trotted in the direction of his worktable. His hoof reached for his knapsack containing his usual outdoor portraying tools before retracting soon after. No drawing tonight – he had etched out his feelings too much already. And besides, Greenfly just simply wasn’t in the mood. All he cared about was the moon and him. Nothing else. No other distractions. Stifling a whimper, the pegasus breathed in slowly and started towards the front door. He shut it behind him as he wandered out, keeping his eyes locked straight ahead to keep anypony from noticing his evident depression. After all, it would be the first time that Greenfly went into his everyday evening without the thought of drawing on his mind ever since that first night in Ponyville. And that made him feel even sadder. Greenfly sat motionless on the chair, his eyes never leaving the orange filly in the cot across from him. He couldn’t tell how long he had been sitting there – his mind was frazzled by the news it had heard….sometime ago. Though it hadn’t come as that much of a surprise. Somehow the green pegasus had accepted that inevitable horrible truth on the second day of his parents’ absence but as any loyal and devoted son would, Greenfly kept denying it until the point where his fears were confirmed earlier today. The shock had erased his optimistic theories completely and consequently the pegasus didn’t budge an inch as the stranger in black offered up his condolences before alerting him of the upcoming funeral. A funeral? This early in her life? This can’t be… The stranger then rested a hoof on Greenfly’s shoulder and apologised once more after which he left the pegasus there on his own – in the suddenly much smaller lightcloud. Greenfly uttered no words; made no sounds. Even as his sister wailed louder and louder, the grief-stricken pegasus just stood there for a time. Then as if entranced, he made his way up to the beckoning sound and pacified the upset filly. And there she laid, sleeping in her usual cosy fashion with the blankets wrapped over her innocent and fragile body. She snored peacefully as her big brother continued to watch her – ever silent, almost scarily so. Any other pony would have sobbed on the floor or cried into the nearest pillow by now but Greenfly remained rigid and unmoving. And nothing but the tick of the wall clock echoed throughout the room; its syncopated rhythm proving to be quite relaxing to Greenfly even if half of his mind was unaware of the clock’s existence. Tick…snore…tick…snore… Greenfly’s facial muscles tensed slightly. From an observer’s point of view, it would seem that the pegasus was putting a lot of effort into keeping his expression neutral. Tick…snore…tick…snore… Sweat began to run down the green pegasus as he strained to retain his blank face. He began to teeter back and forth – his brow furrowing frequently. Tick…snore…tick…snore… Left. Tick…. Right. Snore… Left. Tick… Right. Snore… And just as Greenfly took in a big gasp full of air, he coughed on it and tears began to flee his eyes. Oh…What am I going to do? The familiar cold feel of the earth met Greenfly’s senses as the pegasus could yet again be seen sprawled out on the ground and emitting muffled moans. Lolling out on his belly, it looked as if he had tripped. Of course, if the green pegasus had not been incessantly taunted by his thoughts, he may have in fact seen the very conspicuous rock on the dirt path. And they certainly weren’t finished with him yet. BGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) The ceremony had been perhaps the slowest half hour of the teenage pegasus’s life; sitting still as a board as the undermare recited the traditional rites. With drooped ears and an unchanging frown, Greenfly’s desolate demeanour remained with him during that seemingly endless event. From then until now, it had remained. “You have my deepest sympathies, dear. Your parents were some of the nicest people I ever knew.” The teen simply nodded in response to the unfamiliar mare’s empathic statement. It was hard to accept comforting words from a pony he had never known or heard of. Of course, being secluded in one’s bedroom drawing art all the time would do that to you. And so Greenfly stood unmoving and quiet in his familiar lighthouse home as one by one of friends and neighbours made their way up to offer their condolences in an attempt to bring comfort to the ever silent pegasus. And much like the first mare that had paid her respects, most of these ponies were unknown to Greenfly – which made it all the more awkward. But he persisted in giving the humblest of nods to everypony that came up to him before they made their way to conveniently located buffet table. Food. The pegasus’s stomach growled in anticipation of what his mind was thinking. He hadn’t had a bite to eat all day with the lingering thought of the day’s agenda. He spotted a couple of petunia and daisy sandwiches on the table at the corner of his eye. He would have shifted his gaze to meet the tempting meal if his crushing sadness hadn’t rendered him incapable of motion. “I’m sorry for your loss, son,” said the latest stranger that was giving him sympathy. Greenfly gave the much routinely nod in reply. If the service hadn’t already seemed slow, it was practically feeling like a millennia watching the invited strangers fill the room while chatting amongst themselves – leaving the teenage pegasus alone with only his grief. That said, they would still come over occasionally but Greenfly sensed that they too found it hard to comfort the sad stranger in the corner. Greenfly had never felt so alone. The feeling was strong enough to drive him to tears but somehow the pegasus didn’t feel like crying. Even if he wanted to, he just couldn’t. So Greenfly endured the pain on his tipping point, without the promise of any relief whatsoever. “Greenfly, why you look absolutely famished! Here, please take this sandwich to sate that hunger!” The pegasus lifted his head out of gloom at the nice tones of the recognizable mare’s voice. For the first time in what seemed to be forever, the frown on the teen’s face had evaporated and his eyes were now fixed on the outstretched hoof holding the tasty looking sandwich out in front of him. Strength finally returning to Greenfly, he reached his own hoof to take the sandwich from his long-time pegasus friend. He softly whispered a modest thanks. “Don’t mention it at all, Greenfly. Celestia knows how you must be feeling…they were such good ponies...” She broke into a whimper followed by a few sniffles, prompting her hoof to bring the evidently reused handkerchief to her mini-waterfalls. Only a couple of tears made it onto her violet coat of fur. “Celestia…look at me not helping things…I’m a mess without my honey-bunch…” Greenfly supposed she meant her husband. In fact, he knew both of them quite well. They were perhaps the only outside contact that the family regularly saw despite the pair of them living in faraway Ponyville. They had always so affectionate towards him in his early youth. “I’ll bet he’d like to see you too…sniffle…where is he?” She wandered off, leaving Greenfly alone again with the sandwich still in his hoof. The encounter had done wonders to the pegasus’s comfort and he decided to take a seat to enjoy this brief moment of encouragement. It had been scarcely two minutes when she arrived back with a dark grey pegasus stallion who Greenfly knew to be her husband and the sandwich had long since been devoured. Greenfly hadn’t realised how hungry he had been. “I can’t imagine what it must be like, Greenfly…” the kindly stallion began, “to lose your parents so young and with lil’ Scoots too…” Greenfly eased back into his sad state again but was quickly interrupted at the soft touch of a hoof under his chin. “And as your godparents…we’d love to step in and help you.” Greenfly’s face lit up in shock. “Godparents?” “Yes, Greenfly,” affirmed his godmother warmly. “When you were born, your parents asked us to be your guardians. And we really have come to love you as our own son.” “It means that both you and Scoots can be placed under our care in Ponyville,” assured his godfather. Leaving Loyal…? The thought didn’t sit well with the conflicted pegasus. “I…I…I don’t know if that’s a good idea…” His godparents recoiled in surprise, exchanging a bewildered look. “Greenfly, don’t you know what that means? It would be another chance at happiness for you and your sister! You want what is best for her, don’t you?” I do. I really do. But there was only one way the teenage sibling would ever accept his younger sister having a normal happy life. By now, Greenfly had turned his tranquil moonlight walk into an all-out gallop as he desperately tried to put the memory behind him. He was smart enough to know that he couldn’t run from his thoughts but that didn’t stop his mind from controlling his actions. He spied the isolated viewpoint; easily visible in the early evening. And it got to Greenfly. Without a second to spare, the pegasus quickly became airborne and flew with vigour at the necessity that was the hilltop. Normally, he would have enjoyed the trek up the hill path but at the moment he was making a beeline straight for the log – intent on wasting no time at all. Closer and closer he flew; the log becoming bigger and bigger as he approached it. Too big. The green pegasus suddenly realised he was on a crash course with the piece of lumber. And too late. Greenfly’s face made contact with the harsh ground; narrowly avoiding what would’ve been a more painful crash landing on the less forgiving log. His wings dug into the earth; pulling up grass and weeds as he gradually came to a halt. Greenfly grimaced in pain as he shakily got to his hooves again. They trembled as the pegasus struggled to keep his balance on his aching hooves. Sobbing with every step, he trotted gently to the log and sat down on the naturally hard surface. “You can’t be serious, Greenfly! She’s your sister!” “You’re right, she is. And that’s exactly why you must take only her.” Greenfly watched as the shocked expressions on his godparents’ faces became close to horrified. “But what about you, Greenfly? What will you do all on your own?” queried his godmother, clearly voicing her concern. “I won’t be. I have Loyal to keep me company.” “Loyal? Loyal’s just a rotating aura, dear. Besides, why in Equestria would you want to be separated from young Scootaloo?” Greenfly sighed deeply to prevent himself from openly crying. “She doesn’t deserve to live a life without her parents. She should have a life free of doubt, worry or fear and I am sure you will take good of her.” “She’s a smart cookie, it wouldn’t take her long to figure out that something was amiss. And if she ever asked me about it I…” The teen stifled a whimper before continuing. “I…don’t think I’d forgive myself if I ever told her…” “But she deserves to have her brother,” Greenfly’s godfather cut in. “Especially if you would go to these lengths just to protect her.” A long silence followed with neither side saying anything. The tension though seemed to prove too much for the violet mare. “Are you absolutely sure about this, Greenfly? Is this what you really want?” Greenfly responded to that as if his mind had greatly anticipated that question. He was also ignorant of his suddenly annoyed tone. “Of course this isn’t what I want! I never wanted our parents to die, but they did anyway! And now I’m suffering because of it. But I certainly don’t want Scootaloo to be unhappy either so I want to do what is best for her.” His voice became sad. “That said, I don’t want to be out of her life completely. But how can I be around her that doesn’t implicate me as being her brother? I’m better off just staying here.” The once concerned face of the violet mare lit up at Greenfly’s newest revelation. “Actually, there may be a way…” Greenfly had been staring intently at the bright orb in the evening sky for almost ten minutes now and he still couldn’t find respite from all the depressing memories swirling around in his head. Why wasn’t it working? It just had to be tonight of all nights eh? The day that my sister got her cutie mark, the happiest day in Equestria for the filly and her family. And for her brother too. Even though he had been quietly sniffling during his watch the pegasus soon found himself on the verge of tears again. Why can’t you be there for me tonight? What does it matter that I can’t celebrate my sister’s happiness? Why must I suffer this incredible pain? The early signs of wailing were now quite evident. I am your brother, Scoot- Greenfly turned from the moon and slammed down onto the rough oak of the log and wailed into it – the flowing tears darkening the shade of brown on the wood. He let his emotions out for a while before hoisting his head back up to rest on his fore hooves. His whimpers slowed and his mind became at peace, if only for a second. Just then the green pegasus heard a faint rustle from the nearby bushes and jerked his head over accordingly. Nothing. The pegasus turned back around and continued to cough silently with some remaining tears running down his eyes. That was until he heard a frightened gasp behind him. “Oh I’m sorry, mister! I didn’t realise anypony came up here.” BGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) Greenfly looked around and couldn’t help but smile. Scootaloo. Scootaloo backed away slowly. “I’m real sorry to have bothered you, mister! I’ll…I’ll go now.” The orange filly made to leave but Greenfly jumped right off the log and gave her a pleading look. “Wait! Scootaloo! Please don’t go!” Scootaloo stopped and looked back around, confused by the desperation in the green pegasus’s voice. “Oh ok…it’s just that…well…you’re in my spot.” “Your…spot?” Greenfly considered that for a moment; unsure of what she meant. He surveyed his surroundings and soon knew the “spot” she was talking about. “Oh! I…I didn’t mean to hog this place all to myself. Would you like to join me?” Scootaloo brightened up at the offer. “Are you here to watch the stars?” “Yes. Are you?” “Umm…yeah.” Scootaloo walked on over to the green pegasus and used her petite wings to give herself enough airtime to land on top of the log. Greenfly made sure to check that the nervous filly was comfortable before taking up seat beside her. The two sat in silence atop the piece of lumber, watching the tranquil night. The orange filly began to hum happily, making the regretful pegasus more relaxed than he had been in a good while. “Just look at ‘em…” Scootaloo started. “Do you ever know there were that many lights in the sky?” “Yeah, it’s pretty amazing,” replied Greenfly. “So you said that this was your spot, right?” “Well it was, I didn’t know anypony came up here…until I saw you. Some nights just after the sun is lowered I come up here and just gaze up at the stars.” “Really? Me too – though I tend to come later at night.” “I’d like to do that too but my parents don’t want me to be out late at night so I decide to go just before dinner.” “Sometimes my friends come too but they don’t understand why I like looking at the stars so much. Most ponies don’t – but my parents do. They always let me go out once a week to come here. I’m happy that my Mom and Dad understand.” “Yeah, your parents are one of a kind.” Greenfly pursed his lips shut as soon as he uttered what he meant to have thought. Scootaloo shot him a surprised look. “You know them?” Panic gripped Greenfly’s mind but knew he had to continue to prevent arousing suspicion. “Yeah…I’m incredibly grateful to them. They were actually the ones that helped me get set up here in Ponyville.” “What do you think, Greenfly?” The teenage pegasus pondered on his godmother’s question as he looked through the rooms of his new potential home. “It’s fine. There’s enough room for me and everything looks cosy enough, I guess.” His godmother smiled at the comment. “Now, are you sure about this, Greenfly? If you’ve changed your mind then that’s ok. We would love to have you join us after all.” “Yes, I’m sure. Thanks for your concern though.” “Well…if you’re sure, at least let us pay for the upkeep on the house until you get properly settled?” Greenfly hesitated before answering. “I guess I could accept that. It would be a big help.” She made a satisfied grunt upon hearing the teen’s acceptance. The pair made their way back to the front door where struggling moans could be heard from the rather over-encumbered dark grey stallion. “Uhh…uhh…ah!” THUMP!! “Dear, please take care not to overburden yourself. And be careful when you do! This is Greenfly’s new home after all.” Her husband made a sheepish grin. “Sorry honey, hehehe….Here’s the last load of your stuff, Greenfly - good thing the delivery ponies were quite prompt.” Greenfly smiled in appreciation of his godfather’s efforts. “Thanks. I’m very grateful for all your support.” The dark grey pegasus nodded in acknowledgement as he embraced his wife in a hug. They both then turned to address the teen once more. “Now, I promise this is the final time we’ll ask. Are you perfectly sure that you are comfortable with this new arrangement?” No I’m not. “Yes I am,” Greenfly confirmed confidently. “OK then. But do remember you can visit us anytime you want. After all, we are your family and Scootaloo is your sister.” “Don’t worry, I will.” “Well then, we’ll leave you to your unpacking then,” declared the violet mare, eyeing all the stacks of boxes around the room. “See ya round, kiddo,” said the husband, giving a small brush of Greenfly’s orange tuft of a mane. “Visit soon.” Greenfly waved them off as their voices faded off into the evening air. “I sure hope trusting that Applejack filly was worth it…” But I never did. BGM Music! Click here! (Restart point) “Yeah, you’re very lucky to have parents like them, Scootaloo.” Scootaloo felt awestruck by the pegasus’s story. “Wow! Really? Hey…how’d you know my name?” Greenfly grimaced at the question. How did I know that? Greenfly scratched the back of his head with a hoof while he composed his excuse. “Uh-uh-uh…well everypony knows you and your friends from the amount of trouble you all cause, hehe.” Scootaloo’s cheeks turned bright red. “Oh yeah, I guess our crusading is a little infamous, hehe. Maybe now we have our cutie marks we might be more behaved." Scootaloo paused. “Maybe…” Greenfly giggled. “Haha yeah. Congrats on getting your cutie mark by the way. You must be so proud.” A smile appeared on the filly’s face as quick as lightning. “Are you kidding? I was over the moon when it happened…hehe no pun intended.” Greenfly laughed. “But it was just so awesome! Rainbow Dash was so happy for me and we had such a fun cuteceanera after! Today was just so amazing!” “Well, I’m happy for you too, Scootaloo.” “Thanks. So what’s your name, mister?” “My name is Greenfly.” The orange filly stared more intently at the green pegasus as if the name meant something to her. “Your name sounds familiar. Have we met before?” Yes. I’m your brother, Scootaloo. “Maybe but it’ll likely have been from your parents that you heard it.” “Yeah, maybe…” Scootaloo looked unconvinced. She continued to gaze at Greenfly which made the green pegasus uneasy. He felt glad that his sister was giving him so much attention after all these years but at the same time the last thing he wanted was for her to guess the nature of their relationship. A gust of wind blew past the pair of them, causing the orange filly to shiver and consequently end her staring. “Brrrrr…that’s cold.” Before Greenfly could think about it, out of sibling instinct, he shuffled along the rim of the log and placed a hoof around the freezing filly. Much to his surprise, his ignorant sister warmed into the embrace – snuggling her head against the pegasus’s soft green fur. “Hmm…thanks.” “Heh…don’t mention it.” Greenfly was blushing furiously. His mind still raged with conflicting thoughts but he had needed a moment like this for so long that he decided not to listen. “What do you suppose they are?” “Hmmm?” countered Greenfly, wondering what the “they” referred to. “The stars. What do you think they are?” Greenfly paused. “I guess I’ve never really thought about it.” The shade of night was darkening as they continued to stare out into the sky; the shared warmth between them compensating for the chill in the night-time air. As the sky darkened, the stars shined brighter and became more numerous. “My friend, Dr Hooves once told me that they are balls of burning gas, millions of light years away.” Greenfly chuckled before continuing. “But since I really don’t understand what that means, I like to think of them as just beautiful lights in the sky.” “They sure are,” Scootaloo agreed. “Have you ever made shapes out of the stars before?” “Like constellations? Yeah, I did it a lot when I was younger.” “Wanna try and make one now?” “Sure. There are plenty of stars to choose from tonight.” “Cool! Race ya to see who can get one first!” Scootaloo began scanning the sky in frequent motions. Greenfly chuckled and simply adjusted his view now and then, taking his time rather than rushing ahead. Truth was Greenfly had already etched out a shape many times before and he could still see it in front of him tonight. What made it better tonight was that the real thing just so happened to be in a warm embrace with the green pegasus. Yet he decided to etch it out one more time. Three stars in a triangular distance from each other created the head, joining that to a star further down made the neck. Then the stars seemed to follow a filleted rectangle to from the body with a tiny cluster of stars poking out to create her cute little wings. And finally the four forks jutting out to form the legs – even if they seemed to sprawl all over the place. It does require a lot of imagination from just those lines, though. BGM Music! Click here! (New track this time) “I got one!” exclaimed Scootaloo, evidently quite thrilled at being first to shout out. “Look there!” Greenfly looked in the direction of the orange pegasus’s extended hoof. She seemed to be pointing directly at the moon. “The moon? You made a constellation using the moon?” “Uh-huh! Look, it’s Angel bunny – Fluttershy’s pet rabbit. The stars above the moon are his ears and the stars below are his feet. And the moon, it’s Angel’s belly.” Greenfly had to accept Scootaloo’s judgment. He didn’t really know any of the animal lover’s friends let alone Fluttershy herself. Much like himself, Greenfly knew the yellow pegasus to be quite timid and reclusive and so he never did see much of her or her animal friends. “Wow, I’m impressed. I don’t think I’ve ever thought to use the moon in a constellation before.” “Really? Cool!” exclaimed the orange filly excitedly. The filly began to relax back into the cosy embrace again, finding herself very much at ease with the seemingly familiar pegasus. Greenfly on the other hand didn’t know what to feel. He loved that Scootaloo was giving him so much affection but his fears which he had chosen to ignore earlier were coming back tenfold. “You want to know what I really think they are? The stars I mean. ” “Sure.” Scootaloo hesitated. “You know…I’ve never told anypony but…I’ve always thought they were lightclouds.” Greenfly was taken completely aback by that. “What?” “Billions and billions of lightclouds at the far reaches of the sky; shining their light on whoever needs it. My parents told me a lot about them and said they knew ponies who used to live in one.” Greenfly didn’t need another trip down memory lane to understand that. “Wow, I never thought of it that way.” “And the moon is the greatest lightcloud of all. The one who is always there for you.” Always there for you… Those last four words resonated within Greenfly’s skull. This night had contributed more to his understanding of things than all his past evenings put together. As the pair sat there drinking in the moonlight a thought came to the green pegasus. Oh Loyal, you never did leave me. You were there all those nights I spent looking up at you. You were always there for me. And you still are tonight. Greenfly’s trail of thought was broken by the intensified snuggling that Scootaloo was giving him. “And it’s nice to know you’ll always be there for me too,” she whispered softly. What? “Big brother.” My Guiding Light.
Alone in the DarknessAuthor's Note Please do use the links to the background music I provided if you can. It'll set the mood quite well or it'll just make you cry. Either way, enjoy! Alone in the Darkness Alone as usual. It guided those in need. Stagnant on the cloudside, it remained ever watchful; its full height piercing the endless dark shroud. Chisel…chisel… A humble fluffy white structure, it looked deceptively naïve. Chisel…chisel… Standing firm against the wild wind, it proved not so meek. Chisel…chisel… Through any tempest or gale, it continued to do its duty. Guiding those in need. Casting its luminous musk across the night sky, it surveyed. Gliding its light through the never ending reaches of the darkness, it aided stranded pegasi who had lost their way. There on the lonesome cloud stood Loyal Light. Chisel…chisel…crack! The moonlight enveloped the night sky this evening; the once stoical and heart-breaking pattern of the princess of the night sketched into its face, now long absent. Of course, the return of the princess had brought the land much joy and the moon shone brighter than ever now but he had to admit that he rather missed the similar sentiment it etched across the sky. Zooming out, the stars came into view; their abundance making up for what they lacked in sheen. Not as bold the moon, he appreciated the subtle efforts they made to fight out against the dark. Further out still came the sight of the sleepy town of Ponyville resting in the valley below. It was still late evening and there was still some activity that he could see. From his view, it looked like a nest of fireflies swarming around the flowing river. One more time and…there! The outline of a cliff painted itself into the scene, curving at its end to give a modest vigil over the still settlement. Perched on its crest was an immovable log – he had tried before to move it to a better location – where the green pegasus lay atop, constantly searching for new inspiration as his wing rummaged around in his backpack for another pencil. Greenfly took his time. There was much to observe during the night and often he’d get lost in the beauty of it all and forget what he had actually come out here to do; draw! The drawing he was working on in particular didn’t call for hurry. It was rather something the pegasus needn’t draw but felt like he had to occasionally. The chilly wind brushed past the pegasus, letting his orange hair down to obstruct his view of his idea bank. Bringing up a hoof, he pressed it under his fringe and slid it up in order to return his mane to its regular bushy appearance and out of his line of sight. He then felt his wing twitch and remembered what his left wing had been doing the entire time. A spare pencil followed within its grasp and soon found its way into Greenfly’s right hoof, ready to begin again. He paused however; beginning to feel a little dissatisfied with the change in comfort he was feeling atop the coarse log. He shuffled around for a better spot. Click here for BG Music (Open in new tab) You might think why a pegasus would sit on a log or even the ground when they could just as easily sit on a much softer cloud. Greenfly however liked it that way. Ever since he moved to Ponyville, he really had embraced the earth pony way of life and took to nice walks especially at night than to flying everywhere. Occasionally if he desired a better perspective, he would fly up to the nearest cloud and sketch from there – if it was worth it. Otherwise, the creative pegasus normally wished to stay grounded; ever since it happened. Much like the feel of the log, the drawing was only a rough one. Having drawn it many times before, the artist skimmed over the here’s and there’s he usually added to his more unique sketches. But it didn’t diminish what it felt to him. It allowed Greenfly to remember them…and her. It had been a long while since the green pegasus had ever gone home for a visit; he knew he was being missed. Since he left, Greenfly never did check to see who or if anyone was checking up on the old girl. Then again she was always able to take care of herself. She always beamed at the sight of him; a trait he had admired all the way from when he was a colt. She’d never cease to be there for him when he needed her the most. And there was many a time that the little green colt came to her for solace. She never even wore a frown when he had let her down; she simply waited patiently for him to make it up to her. Of course, half the time she’d never actually let him. As a matter of fact, she was about as stubborn as those apple farmers Greenfly had noticed around town. The old girl was practically self-sufficient; never asking for help whether she needed it or not. Funny thing was she’d always see it through to the end…and succeed. Sure he gave her a helping hand regardless from time to time but although appreciated it was never necessary. But it was still appreciated. That was the main thing. The pegasus tensed up as his eyesight became fuzzy and quickly went on to adding more textures to his sketch. Compared with his other versions, the drawing had too few special features to be classed as a “rough” sketch by his standards. He proceeded to give it some small touches. An hour later and the artist could still be seen working on his rough sketch...which he was now adding colour to. A mass of concentration was clear on his face as he rigorously continued adding character to the piece bit by bit never ever tearing away, save for grabbing the next colour in his mind. One could say he was definitely devoted to giving even a “rough” sketch the best of everything but in Greenfly’s mind the fact that he was still drawing hadn’t occurred to him. In his head, there was merely an image and that was all. That’s all there needed to be. Had Greenfly been conscious of his autonomous illustrating, he would have known that the mountain of focus being drilled onto his face was his attempts to hold back the ever increasing reservoir of water accumulating behind his eyeballs. His hoof and pencil trembled as continued pressure was forced down onto the innocent paper; the maximum opacity being implemented on the image. He also hadn’t noticed the amount of colouring pencils he kept replacing. Perhaps he chose not to. Deep in a really back part of the desolate pegasus’s mind, an inevitable truth was fighting to break the ruse Greenfly was so determined to continue creating. It grew in strength as the close to tears artist realised this not so dormant part of his mind. The pegasus trembled violently, a stutter escaping his lips. And then his mind went blank. And Greenfly let out a quivering sigh. A lone tear managed to escape as the pegasus settled down, having finished his envisioned image. It blemished the dark indigo shade of the night sky out of range of the yellow streak slipping across the image. It was not enough to smudge it thankfully. Greenfly sniffled slightly as he studied his creation. He turned happy upon seeing the image before him instead of in his recovering mind. A smile projected across his lower face at his portrayal of his cherished memory. His senses returning back to him, the artist couldn’t help but feel astonished at how entranced he had been in completing what was only supposed to be a “rough” sketch. But then why should it have been just a sketch? This memory deserved appreciation and effort. So why had he just drawn a lazy sketch countless times before? Greenfly sat there a while, deep in contemplation. He looked up to the white orb hovering above him. He never was quite sure how to explain it but the moon normally made him surer of things and erased any bad thoughts that haunted him. He strangely felt warmer around it too; a feeling he could experience quite well tonight as the icy wind only picked up in strength as the night went on. It almost seemed like home to him. At times like these, Greenfly would often ponder what it must have been like for Princess Luna to be there on that rock as he himself couldn’t shake the feeling he belonged with it. The reason why was in turn the reason why he spent so many nights just examining the celestial being – each night hoping something might be that little bit different so as to give the pegasus a hint or two. Alas, he just couldn’t understand. He knew deep in his heart though that one day things would become clear; perhaps when he was able to share that horrible truth with her. For now though, he simply had to wait. And as an artist, patience was everything. Greenfly had learned that harsh lesson more than a few times when he had been a little too enthusiastic about his drawings. This occasional complacence led to some silly mistakes as the pegasus became overconfident in his abilities. Creating a profession out of it had been even harder and not a day went by that Greenfly didn’t receive some form of criticism for his latest work or commissions requested by the ponies of Ponyville. One client had even been so disgusted with his work, they never even set hoof near the place again. But as an artist, he was used to it – especially when the majority of feedback for his art was positive. He’d never forget that nightmare night where he picked up one of his most noteworthy supporters. It had been her first visit to the town after all and Greenfly had been exceptionally lucky that she chose to take a gander at his art – even if her voice boomed as if out of nowhere while he was actively sketching fillies and colts in their costumes. “Haha! Thou hast the most exquisite depictions of my glorious night! Might we ask you for a request?” The royal Canterlot voice had caught him completely off guard and all the green pegasus could do was nod silently while his mind still adjusted to the princess’s kind compliments. She had quietened down after that and apologised for it being a force of habit. Greenfly on the other hand was ecstatic that the very own princess of the inspirational night had paid him a compliment – not that he was really one for showing emotion…despite his difficulty earlier, he remembered jovially. Rather he was much better at evoking his feelings through his art than openly presenting them. Nightmare night was one night full of antics and mixed reactions and one of the few which revelled in the themes of the beautiful yet scary night. It was his favourite night on which to draw as most other nights at this time the ponies would be tucked in their hovels and as much as Greenfly liked the tranquillity of his evenings he sometimes relished the opportunity to create something a bit more lively than his usual still-life. It also meant that the artist could see the sheer thrill on everypony’s face and...most importantly her. He couldn’t recall a nightmare night where she didn’t look like she was having the time of her life. No worries and no concerns. Just how Greenfly wanted it. She was happy. She had friends; friends who Greenfly often wondered were a bad influence on her. Yet she had no clue how much the green pegasus felt about her. Greenfly sighed deeply. Maybe if I did tell her…would she even believe me? He hated himself for thinking this way but occasionally some part of him wished that she might feel empty inside, if only a little, that might persuade her to pose the question herself. But it was wrong to think of such things and the pegasus’s wings tensed at the anger he felt with himself. As an artist, he would be patient. For how long though could he resist? For tonight anyway, he affirmed to himself; the chilly wind echoing the call of his warm bed to which his flustered mind was eager to accept.
Falling DeeperThe covers were tucked in neatly around the pegasus as the morning sun crept in through the window; the golden beam illuminating a wide smile on the sound asleep pony. RIRIRIRIRIRIRIRINGGGGGGGGGG……….! Greenfly looked round in surprise. Oh! Looks like I forgot again. The wide awake pegasus got up from his chair and walked over to his bedside, placing a hoof down on his alarm clock to silence it. He usually rose before his alarm went off and consequently he normally forgot that he had set it the night before. Greenfly sighed in satisfaction of his tranquil work atmosphere returning and retraced his steps back to the mahogany desk where his latest sketch was nearing completion. He sat back down on his chair and continued working. It was handy having his bed so close to his workspace since if the evening weather was not ideal for a twilight fascination then he could instead finish his “sketch-load” for the day before retiring to slumber. His bedroom wasn’t grand either; circular in shape so that everything was conveniently located from one another. It was composed of his bed and desk featuring a rather unkempt pile of rough or practice sketches along with a dresser and bookshelf. The bookshelf though hardly had books in it but rather was another stockpile for his endless plans for completed and upcoming drawings. They too had their worth as occasionally some ponies would even ask to buy his plans, shabby as they were. So he kept them around knowing however to throw some out if the stack became too large. And that wouldn’t take long either. Greenfly had space aplenty but it was still a modest-sized home. In addition to his bedroom, the green pegasus owned a kitchen and a bathroom too. But both were only built big enough to accommodate himself. In fact, his front door was just a little away from the bedroom. His profession while fun wasn’t the most profitable and the artist could really only afford the basic essentials on top of his supply of paper and utensils. But the pegasus wasn’t any unhappier. He lived in a wonderful town, he had wonderful friends and Greenfly could ignore the former two reasons anyway as nothing could make him happier than see her smile. Chisel…chisel… KNOCK! KNOCK! Greenfly’s ears twitched at the sound of the front door. He placed his pencil stationary next to his newest drawing and slipped off the chair. The pegasus made his way through his bedroom arch to his front door and opened it. His sight came upon the friendly smile of the familiar professor. “Hello Greenfly!” greeted the doctor in his rich Trottingham accent. “I hope I’m not a bother but I just wanted to check to see if my order was ready yet?” Greenfly nodded in response. “Yes. I’m just putting the finishing touches on it now. Would you like to come in?” “I shall, thank you.” Greenfly stepped aside to let the earth pony enter. “Can I get you anything?” “No, I’m quite alright. Thanks for asking.” “Not at all. Well, the picture is on my desk if you would like to see it.” The pegasus gestured towards his bedroom and beckoned Doctor Whooves to follow him. The drawing laid on the desk just as he had left it with the pencil having not budged an inch. He took it back up in his hoof and began adding the final adjustments to the sketch. He felt the presence of the doctor’s head peering across as he continued drawing. He heard an excited gasp escape the earth pony’s lips. It was rather a cute drawing, Greenfly had to admit. A grey pegasus with blond hair tugging the sun streaked bed covers around her; her eyes closed and a joyful smile on her face while she dozed. The artist grunted happily to indicate he was finished and presented it to the doctor. A knowing grin appeared on his face. “Awww…that’s my little muffin alright…” The doctor stared at the picture for a good minute before Greenfly had the courage to break the silence. “So…are you satisfied?” “Wha-wha-what? Oh! Uhh…yes! I’m extremely satisfied! Thanks very much, Greenfly!” He blushed before continuing. “Uhh…Greenfly old chum…can you avoid telling Derpy about this until…until I have managed to…ummm…” The doctor trailed off. “Yes of course, Doctor,” stated the artist. “Client confidentiality, you know?” “Indeed Greenfly, indeed!” chuckled the doctor nervously. A pause followed as the embarrassed doctor steadied himself. “Now…how much do I owe you?” “Uh…ten bits.” The doctor gave the creative pegasus a questioning look. “Is that all? I would happily pay more for this.” Greenfly shrugged. “Ten bits is fine for me. Besides I couldn’t let one of my good neighbours go out of pocket now could I?” “Well if you are sure…ten bits it is!” The professor hoisted the sack he had been carrying around his head and from it took ten coins and gave it to the pegasus. “Thanks! Do let me know if you need something else sketched,” Greenfly said warmly. “Well actually Greenfly now that you mention it I-” The doctor was unable to finish as a melodic sound soon wafted its way into the room and interrupted their conversation. The sound grew louder and soon other ponies’ voices joined in. “What do you suppose is going on?” the doctor asked. Greenfly shrugged and began trotting at a brisk pace towards the front door to inspect the sudden commotion. Opening it, the pegasus could see a crowd of ponies straight in front of him all with excited happy faces; going somewhere. Doctor Whooves came up behind him and they both shared a confused look. “Doc, Doc!” Greenfly looked in the direction of the voice to find Derpy racing towards them; evidently addressing her secret admirer. “Doc! Ya gotta come see this!” “What’s going on Derpy?” he asked. “Those troublesome fillies finally got their cutie marks! Everyone’s going to see what they are!” The green pegasus woke as if out of a dream. He knew some troublesome fillies. She couldn’t have… “Oh that sounds marvellous! Don’t you think…” The doctor’s breath caught in a gust of wind that blew past him. It had come from beside him. “…Greenfly?” The doctor looked round but the excited pegasus had already bolted. The airborne pegasus couldn’t believe his behaviour of late. First his near breakdown the other night and now – for the first time since he came to Ponyville – the feeling of air rushing past his tufty orange mane reunited with him as he sharply rounded the corners of the town buildings, looking for that which compelled him to leave the ground. That which never left his thoughts. She just got…How? I…I… I must go to her. A cheer erupted from under Greenfly, prompting him to look down. He appeared to be hovering over the famed eatery square where Sugarcube Corner and various other restaurants sat. He stretched his wings to glide down for a closer look. Adjusting his wing power to a steady hover once more, the pegasus took in the sight he couldn’t believe he was witnessing. Deep in an embrace with Rainbow Dash, the orange filly beamed happily as she continued to nuzzle her sister-like friend. At least Greenfly was content that she had some form of sibling relation in her life. More dominant in the awestruck pegasus’s mind though was the new feature that had appeared on the orange pegasus. Etched onto her flank, a characteristic lightning bolt painted over a shield of crimson, white and orange was now evident. She had finally got her cutie mark. Greenfly couldn’t hold back any longer. A grin grew on his face; its weight clearly too much for the pegasus as his lips trembled under the extreme pressure exerted on his mouth. His eyes began to water and they would have probably emptied onto the ponies below, if the pegasus had not thought of that and floated back down to the ground. “Oh there you are, Greenfly!” He heard the greeting come from behind him but didn’t turn to see who it was. The pegasus instead found himself utterly transfixed at the emotional sight in front of him. The filly had parted from Rainbow Dash by now and – quite like the cyan pegasus – began to show off her enhanced flank to the passers-by who had evidently come to see the newly cutie-marked trio. “I wondered where you’d gone off to, old cha…is something wrong?” Greenfly took a while to notice that the doctor had caught up to him and was in fact standing right next to him. “Oh…no it’s nothing…” he replied softly, wiping the excess tears off his face. He had been crying gently it seemed and had been unaware of it until the doctor’s remark. “Hmm…” Greenfly saw the professor was eyeing him ponderously. He became nervous at the stare and his once vivid smile faded. Luckily for him, a shout caused their heads to jerk round to the excited trio once more. “You’ve made your mark…now Equestria’s so proud…you’ve made your mark…and we’re here to sing it loud…” “It certainly is great that those fillies finally earned their cutie marks eh old chap? Their families must be really proud!” the doctor enthused. “I a-” I mean, I am. Greenfly cleared his throat. “Yes, I feel very happy for them.” Truth be told, the pegasus was trying hard to not let his river break its banks; he didn’t want to attract any attention, least of all from her. Pretty soon though, the crowd of ponies began to disperse; the excitement of the happy event returning to normal levels. “Doc! Doc! Did you see their cutie marks?!” The walled-eyed pegasus flew over to them. “Yes Derpy, it’s extremely interesting to think they got their cutie marks at the same time! I must do some study into the science behind this.” Derpy sighed. “These moments make me think how lucky I am to have my own little filly, Dinky.” The scientist scratched the back of his head. “Well Derpy, I actually wanted to talk to you about something.” “Sure, Doc! What is it?” Greenfly saw the doctor incline his head to perhaps signal Derpy to walk with him a while. The doctor turned back to him with wide eyes and bit his lip. The green pegasus chuckled slightly. The two of them started off with the doctor making a stammered start to his conversation. “I think…perhaps…it would be best for Dinky…to have…a father…figure in her life…” Their voices faded as Greenfly remained to watch the daring filly a little longer. Wait! Where is she? Oh there…she’s leaving? The pegasus hastened to follow her but his brain suddenly caught his heart from doing anything foolish. No matter how much he wanted to congratulate her and wrap her in a hug, he knew it would cause nothing but sorrow for the jubilant pony. And today of all days was one that Greenfly wouldn’t want tarnished. The square became quite vacant as the remaining ponies departed to continue with their daily routine. Drooping his ears, the pegasus stifled a whimper. With his head down, he let the pipe leak slightly, knowing nopony was watching him. His brows twitched and soon the introvert pegasus felt rage boil within him. Greenfly knew this was wrong. But he didn’t care anymore. He had never felt so annoyed in all his years of living in the comforting earth pony town. I’m never going to have the guts to tell her. Greenfly cursed under his breath and shot his wings back up in temperament. He shot up into the air in a manner most unbecoming of the typical timid pegasus. What happened to walking? Know what, I really don’t care anymore! And with that the pegasus vigorously flapped his wings and made a beeline straight for his home with only one thing on his mind. Drawing.
A Glimmer of HopeBGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) Sniffle…sniffle…gasp… The pegasus shivered as another wave of waterworks came pouring out his close to stinging eyes. Gasp...kah...kah…sniffle… He wiped a hoof across his face to renew it in preparation for yet another cycle. Chisel…chi-sniffle….chisel… The strokes of graphite were barely visible as the artist continued to apply unordinary light pressure on the pencil. It felt so loose in his hoof that occasionally he would drop the implement completely. His hoof would reach for it, then retract as his insurmountable unhappiness asked it what the point of it all was. I must draw…anything...Anything…please… He would take the tool back in hoof and continue his gentle strokes before releasing it yet again a wee while later and asking his right hoof the very same question. The resulting product of this repeating torture was nothing more than a couple of wavy lines overlapping each other with varying intensity; clearly highlighting when he had been close to dropping the pencil and when he had just picked it up. Although Greenfly’s head drooped towards the somewhat moist paper below, his eyeballs endeavoured to look as upward as possible. It made it seem that although his attention was fixed elsewhere he was still able to see the things below him if he wanted to. They sat eerily still though, budging only when a hoof came up to tend to their water level. Even when the frequent wood vs. wood sound occurred in his ears, the artist’s naturally observant eyes would make no effort to move towards the pencil. All the while his relentless thoughts reverberated in his head. Draw…draw anything… And so Greenfly’s facial parts persisted in working independent of one another; his eyes staring blankly somewhere, his nose scrunching up continuously, his mouth uttering quick breaths and gasps while the pegasus’s hoof struggled without the appreciated help of its anatomical colleagues to grasp the pencil once more. Something…anything…please… Even if an idea were to suggest itself, his bawling mind would never have apprehended it. At the moment, Greenfly could only understand two words; draw something. It was all that could fit into the miniscule part of his brain that wasn’t submerged in sorrow. And the flood level was rising ever faster. Please…please… Greenfly wasn’t going to hold out much longer. His regular order of watery coolness only doubled in pace as the pegasus desperately pleaded with his drowning mind for something to take his mind off of what had transpired today. Her cutie mark…I…I can’t believe it… Why had he let that in? Greenfly was close to breaking point now. I’m really proud of you… Sister. That did it. As if by fate, the left hoof which the pegasus had been using to prop his frantic face upon slipped down as the lubricant force of the gouging waterfall eased into the tiny gap between the contact of skin on skin – sending Greenfly’s head on a collision course with the desk. His cries of pain muffled through the wooden worktop; his uncountable tears seeping into the many cracks and splinters in the timber. By now the pegasus had let go of the pencil once more and let both his hooves slide off the table as he simply emptied his water banks into the table. He cried and cried to the point where he began to suffocate from lack of oxygen. Coming up for air, the tears slowed as Greenfly’s mouth stopped quivering but remained on the verge of whimpering. The artist’s sharpened senses began to return to him as he relaxed back into his chair. He decided to risk a look around to check nopony had openly seen him breakdown as he did. Cough…sniffle…That’s good I g- The water again began to form in the desolate pegasus as his eyes stood riveted at the sketch on the wall. Loyal Light… No…NO! With that, Greenfly jerked his hooves to lay on the table in front of him and buried his head into them – his moans and wails evidently much louder this time. He spluttered constantly as the continuous stream of water began to engulf him. His thoughts ringed in his head; becoming ever louder. WHY?!! Why did you have to leave me? We were all so happy…SHE was happy. WHY?!! Greenfly continued sobbing uncontrollably into his hooves, not even caring if anypony were there to judge him – in fact the thought never occurred to him. He didn’t even realise he was shouting. “I FAILED YOU, LOYAL LIGHT!! I CAN’T EVEN WATCH AFTER MY SISTER FOR A DAY!! THE ONE THING THAT YOU WERE ABLE TO DO FOR ME FOR YEARS!!” “I NEVER EVEN CAME TO VISIT YOU AGAIN AFTER ALL THESE YEARS! WHAT KIND OF HEARTLESS PONY DOES THAT?!” He lifted his head to look at her, tears still pouring out his stained eyes. “YOU WERE ALWAYS THERE FOR ME! Cough…WHY COULDN’T I BE THERE FOR YOU?!” He slammed his head back down to soak his hooves again. He continued to splutter and cough constantly. Just then however, a sweet innocent infant voice in the back of his mind said two crucial words, “Dra someting, hehe!” Greenfly’s crying ceased abruptly. He sniffled occasionally as he brought his head back up to look at the sketch of Loyal Light again. An idea. He finally got an idea. Shakily, he reached his hoof across for a nearby piece of paper as the old one had by now been disintegrated by the mountain of fluid that had leaked onto it. Breathing slowly, the pegasus took the pencil back in hoof for the hundredth time – this time intent on not dropping it…for the hundredth time. His creative composure returning, the sketcher went to work. A modest sniffle came from the pegasus now and again as he diligently worked away at his much needed distraction. He could still feel that his muzzle was full of snot and that his eyes stood ready to gush out at the slightest provocation. Still, Greenfly was managing quite alright to control his emotions. What he’d be like after he was done however, the green pegasus couldn’t be sure. He sighed deeply and braced himself as he drew the heart-breaking outline of Loyal Light – the artist made sure to etch it just right so that the dome kissed the dark night sky; rising far above the sea of puffy clouds. He sketched it as if he was looking at the front and towards the white ocean; the night sky splitting down evenly across both sides of its cotton stack. Greenfly stifled a whimper as his artistic mind realised the luminous musk emitting from the lightcloud would make the perfect background for the four familiar ponies that he would soon draw. He suddenly averted his gaze from the table and spun to his right to allow his eyes to discharge the pooling liquid on the floor rather than on his artwork. It needed to be perfect after all – otherwise the pegasus would never forgive himself. These four ponies meant the world to him…even if his world was much smaller now. Greenfly took a deep breath in as he shuffled back into his sketching position; having given his eyelids a little respite. He hesitated once again before his trembling hoof prepped for what perhaps might be its most strenuous creation yet. He began by drawing two pegasi, hooves extended in an arch – ready to scoop up another- Sniffle…whimper… A…Another couple of special pegasi. The male stood on the left while his partner was held in an embrace by his remaining hoof. It was obviously returned; creating a symmetrical effect between the two lovers. He had a purple coat with strands of both orange and red in his mane. The m…mother- Gasp… She sported a light green coat with a violet stream of hair which curled up over the forehead. Both of them stood beaming at him as if still watching him after all these years. If…(sniffle)…only… He would have added their cutie marks if the angle of perception didn’t prevent him from doing so – he wanted so much to draw them in anyway. Anything at all he could add would stop him from adding the two missing ponies. Sighing deeply again, the artist pressed on. “Greenfly! Are you done yet? You’ve been in your room for hours!” The light green mare’s voiced concern made it up the spiral stair to the teen’s room with little difficulty. “Just finishing up! I’ll be down soon!” Greenfly shouted in reply. “I should hope so, mister! Dinner is in 5 minutes!” The young artist chuckled – had he really been working on this sketch since lunchtime? Though, it was unsurprising considering how much concentration he put into even the tiniest of pictures. Ever since he got his cutie mark years ago, Greenfly rarely spent much time doing anything else than either draw or think about drawing. Well…that and Loyal. But she wasn’t going anywhere after all. After making a final adjustment to his newest creation, the pegasus slipped off his stool and started to walk onto the first floor landing. He then proceeded to the stairs. “Greenfly?” He paused at his mother’s question. “Yes?” “Can you please check on your sister? See if she’s still asleep?” Greenfly smiled. “Sure thing!” The green pegasus retreated from the tip of the stairs and trotted back in the direction of his sibling’s room. He edged the door open quietly so as not to wake the potentially sleeping infant. BGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) And asleep she was. Through the bars of her cot, Greenfly spotted his sister curled up in a snug ball and snoring peacefully. He lay his front hooves over the side of the cot and watched as his sister’s fuzzy orange fur rose and fell in a humble rhythm. She was too cute to resist a small nuzzle. With that, Greenfly leant his head down towards his sound asleep sister intent on giving her just that. Hey, Scoo- RRRUUUMMMBBBLLLEEE!!!! Thunder slammed into the shaken home causing Greenfly to abandon his plans for affection. He shot a look at the window which featured nothing but the dark clouds that he had expected to find with occasional streak of lightning illuminating them. Damm! That sound must have… He gaze quickly darted back to his still asleep sister. She hadn’t even stirred. Woah…you really are a heavy sleeper aren’t you? Not wishing to disturb her further, Greenfly retracted his hooves from the cot and trotted out the room; leaving his sibling to her slumber. His mother was lifting dinner onto the table when the teenage pegasus descended down the stairs. It smelled like hayburgers. Suddenly, a nearby window swung violently open; taking away the aroma of the burgers with it as the cold wet air from the raging storm drafted in. “Celestia, it’s wild out there tonight. The weather ponies really outdid themselves this time!” Greenfly grunted firmly in reply; flying off to close the window and secure it with the latch. As with most buildings in Cloudsdale, the walls and its accessories were all made up of clouds and so likewise was the window and latch funnily enough. At least it didn’t make a thud like windows here do… “I sure hope nopony is out there in this storm,” Greenfly’s mother stated worriedly. There isn’t Mom…believe me… “Now let’s eat before this dinner gets cold. Your father should be down shortly.” The green pegasus didn’t waste any time – he was starving. Turns out sketching for half the day works up quite the appetite. He slid onto the chair and began munching away on his hayburger. It wasn’t until Greenfly had finished his second burger that his father came down the stairs. “Oh there you are honey, I put your hayburgers back in the oven…Is everything alright, dear?” Greenfly had too noticed that his father looked a little bit sterner than usual. “I’m afraid dinner is going to have to wait, dear. I just picked up a SOS on the tower radio from a pegasi convoy not far from here. I’m going to aid them if I can.” “Are you sure?” Greenfly’s mother retorted, a touch of anxiety on her tone. “This storm looks very dangerous; it may not be worth the risk, dear.” I agree, listen to Mom. Please. His father simply shook his head and pointed a hoof towards his cutie mark – a lone eye on a silver shield. “It is our duty as lightcloud keepers to respond to those in need. I must go,” he affirmed. No…don’t... “Then…” No…Mom… “…I’m going with you, dear. I can’t let you go alone.” She trotted over to her husband and held him in an embrace before separating and confirming her intentions with a confident nod. Greenfly’s father turned to him. “Son, I trust you can watch over your sister while we are out?” No! Don’t go! “Of course, Dad,” Greenfly answered with a smile. “Thank you, son. We should return soon.” As the pair of them headed for the front door, Greenfly got up and also began towards the door. The front door groaned open as the gale force outside encroached on the homestead – the tufts of their manes rippling in the ferocious gust. Greenfly’s mother was taken aback slightly but nevertheless flexed her wings and took off into the storm. NO! MOM! “Be careful!” Greenfly said while waving a hoof at his father. “Don’t worry, Greenfly. We’ll be back soon.” NO YOU WONT! DON’T GO! The two of them shared a hoof bump. Greenfly smiled; well assured as he watched his father extend his wings to join Greenfly’s mother in the search. NO! GREENFLY! DON’T CLOSE THAT DOOR! GREEN- The whole room shook as the pegasus tumbled off the chair and onto the floor, utterly flooding it with a new pool of tear water. His conscience kicked in as his memory faded and Greenfly became aware once again of his emotional breakdown. He hadn’t thought about it this much in years. Why now? Because I’m a failure to my parents, Loyal and my sister. The pegasus continued sobbing into the mostly soaked timber floor – making sure every last drop had leaked before getting back to his hooves to finish the sketch. Greenfly let out a sigh which caught in his breath as he attempted to relax himself on the chair again. Looking down at this drawing – having been spared the flood – he observed the green teen pegasus and the ecstatic orange purple-maned filly in his hooves; wrapped around the comforting embrace of their parents. He grimaced as he tried to stop a tear leaking down onto the image. He couldn’t stand to see it any longer. Fumbling for his nearby eraser, he slid it roughly across the outlines of the elder pegasi, leaving only the brother and sister. Greenfly waited patiently in his sister’s room for his parents to return home. He sat there reading a book which he had been given for his last birthday while trying to block out the intrusive sounds of the raging storm outside. He could just as easily have read it on the kitchen table or in his room but the tranquillity of the young filly’s room was as good as atmosphere as any. Plus it meant that he could keep a closer eye on his younger sis and make certain she had been watched over like his father had asked him. The fact that he was close to her always made Greenfly feel happy. He would often sneak into her room to energize his creative vibes for something to draw before his mother came and pulled him out barking “She needs her sleep! You don’t know how long it took me to get her to sleep this time!” Greenfly grinned at the memory. He supposed that he was allowed to be in here this time, considering he was the only one in the house after all. The pegasus hummed in satisfaction of finishing yet another chapter. The fourth one so far. He eyed the clock in the room before continuing to read. It was nearing midnight. His parents had been gone for hours now. Greenfly would have been lying if he said he wasn’t getting a little bit edgy about it. Still, he found comfort that his favourite little filly lay asleep in the cot across from him. “WAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!” Woah…Strike that! Greenfly had only just taken his eyes off the numerous lines of words in the book when the unexpected outburst exploded around the room. The pegasus put the book aside and hurried over to soothe the wailing filly. “Shhh…shhhh it’s OK, I’m here now…” He reached his hooves over and picked the orange filly up; hugging her up against his cheek. She continued to wail but it sounded ever so slightly softer. What had caused her to awake so suddenly? Could have been the storm but she had slept through it for hours before. As Greenfly patted the filly’s back, all he could do was wonder. BGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) Please…anything Loyal…give me anything… The pegasus stared out towards the endless expanse of clouds; determined to find any glimmer of hope to reignite that in his head which had been long extinguished. His parents had not returned that whole night even though the storm had abated by around three in the morning. Greenfly had expected them to return tout suite after that but they were still absent when the sun broke from its slumber. And it had been that way for near three days now. His sister was becoming difficult to quell as she constantly pleaded for the one thing Greenfly could only imagine she would want – her mother’s affection. He had hardly even left her side all week and only just scarcely managed to put her to sleep to allow him to scour the view surrounding the tower as he was doing just now. Nothing…. Greenfly sniffled slightly as he turned his gaze from his current view and flew to another position in the circular tower – allowing him to keep watch of all angles and viewpoints that Loyal could give him. He relaxed himself into the warmth of Loyal’s elements; trying to escape all the panic that was filling his mind. He was beginning to fear the worst. “We’ll be back soon. Don’t worry, Greenfly.” The assuring words of his father maintained Greenfly’s optimism, keeping up his search while the latter of him begged the pegasus to accept the inevitable. His surveying yielding again no results, the green pegasus sighed and drooping his head he wandered slowly over to the third recurring viewpoint that formed the final corner of the triangle in which he continuously went. Greenfly couldn’t help it as his pessimism was starting to get the better of him and soon his eyes began to water. He had never been this long without his parents and not even knowing where they were was even worse. Before reaching the third spot, Greenfly halted and instead turned towards the control panel for the magical aura of the Loyal’s luminescence. He increased the light beam’s intensity. DING-DONG! The pegasus went off like a shot. The first sound other than either his whimpering or his sister’s wails just came through the house. Before he even knew it, he was downstairs and reaching his hoof for the door. His excited smile however fell at the sight of the stranger dressed in black. “Good afternoon, Greenfly,” he said solemnly. Greenfly stood motionless, unsure of what to say. How had this pegasus known who he was? His thoughts were soon broken however as the stranger kept on speaking. “Did you know that the light is on in stark daylight?” Greenfly felt stupid for saying it. “Yes.” “Oh…umm.” The pegasus in black dress shook himself all over as if he had just got side-tracked. “Greenfly, I’m afraid I have some bad news to tell you…” Bad news? … Something in the teen’s mind clicked as he noticed the nature of the stranger’s black clothing. No…please…no… “Greenfly, your parents are…” The last word hit Greenfly hard in the chest but the wail that had exploded out didn’t escape his lips. It had come from the orange filly in the cot upstairs.
Guiding LightEvening had settled over the town by the time Greenfly was able to compose himself again. He had let loose his emotions all afternoon just about and was still struggling to keep calm – the same thoughts constantly clashing in his head. We’ll be back soon…. Greenfly, your parents are…. WAAAAHHHHHH… Scoo- A cold wind caused the pegasus to shiver and look up at the window. He spotted the sky’s crimson colour fading to make way for the light darkness of the early evening. Feeling the uncomfortable sensation of dripping snot go up his muzzle, Greenfly sniffled and slumped back into the stool. The moon would be out soon and the depressed pegasus was keen for some solace with his lunar companion even if it was rather early. He often waited until the late evening to venture out after eating his supper. Tonight however, instinct told him he would need the extra time. Even the thought of sitting on his lumber log bench under the moonlight brought happiness to Greenfly. There he could truly open himself up to the celestial being, nothing held back. After all, there was something about it that the pegasus couldn’t put a hoof on. It was as if the moon was like a long lost friend with whom he only chose to confide in. Pretty sound logic since the moon can’t blab to anyone else…sniffle… Greenfly’s ears pricked up. Hey! That might be why I- No! Not here! Save it for later! The pegasus heeded his conscience just in time to allow only small droplets of water to escape his eyes this time, preventing what could have been another downpour. He swivelled off his stool and trotted in the direction of his worktable. His hoof reached for his knapsack containing his usual outdoor portraying tools before retracting soon after. No drawing tonight – he had etched out his feelings too much already. And besides, Greenfly just simply wasn’t in the mood. All he cared about was the moon and him. Nothing else. No other distractions. Stifling a whimper, the pegasus breathed in slowly and started towards the front door. He shut it behind him as he wandered out, keeping his eyes locked straight ahead to keep anypony from noticing his evident depression. After all, it would be the first time that Greenfly went into his everyday evening without the thought of drawing on his mind ever since that first night in Ponyville. And that made him feel even sadder. Greenfly sat motionless on the chair, his eyes never leaving the orange filly in the cot across from him. He couldn’t tell how long he had been sitting there – his mind was frazzled by the news it had heard….sometime ago. Though it hadn’t come as that much of a surprise. Somehow the green pegasus had accepted that inevitable horrible truth on the second day of his parents’ absence but as any loyal and devoted son would, Greenfly kept denying it until the point where his fears were confirmed earlier today. The shock had erased his optimistic theories completely and consequently the pegasus didn’t budge an inch as the stranger in black offered up his condolences before alerting him of the upcoming funeral. A funeral? This early in her life? This can’t be… The stranger then rested a hoof on Greenfly’s shoulder and apologised once more after which he left the pegasus there on his own – in the suddenly much smaller lightcloud. Greenfly uttered no words; made no sounds. Even as his sister wailed louder and louder, the grief-stricken pegasus just stood there for a time. Then as if entranced, he made his way up to the beckoning sound and pacified the upset filly. And there she laid, sleeping in her usual cosy fashion with the blankets wrapped over her innocent and fragile body. She snored peacefully as her big brother continued to watch her – ever silent, almost scarily so. Any other pony would have sobbed on the floor or cried into the nearest pillow by now but Greenfly remained rigid and unmoving. And nothing but the tick of the wall clock echoed throughout the room; its syncopated rhythm proving to be quite relaxing to Greenfly even if half of his mind was unaware of the clock’s existence. Tick…snore…tick…snore… Greenfly’s facial muscles tensed slightly. From an observer’s point of view, it would seem that the pegasus was putting a lot of effort into keeping his expression neutral. Tick…snore…tick…snore… Sweat began to run down the green pegasus as he strained to retain his blank face. He began to teeter back and forth – his brow furrowing frequently. Tick…snore…tick…snore… Left. Tick…. Right. Snore… Left. Tick… Right. Snore… And just as Greenfly took in a big gasp full of air, he coughed on it and tears began to flee his eyes. Oh…What am I going to do? The familiar cold feel of the earth met Greenfly’s senses as the pegasus could yet again be seen sprawled out on the ground and emitting muffled moans. Lolling out on his belly, it looked as if he had tripped. Of course, if the green pegasus had not been incessantly taunted by his thoughts, he may have in fact seen the very conspicuous rock on the dirt path. And they certainly weren’t finished with him yet. BGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) The ceremony had been perhaps the slowest half hour of the teenage pegasus’s life; sitting still as a board as the undermare recited the traditional rites. With drooped ears and an unchanging frown, Greenfly’s desolate demeanour remained with him during that seemingly endless event. From then until now, it had remained. “You have my deepest sympathies, dear. Your parents were some of the nicest people I ever knew.” The teen simply nodded in response to the unfamiliar mare’s empathic statement. It was hard to accept comforting words from a pony he had never known or heard of. Of course, being secluded in one’s bedroom drawing art all the time would do that to you. And so Greenfly stood unmoving and quiet in his familiar lighthouse home as one by one of friends and neighbours made their way up to offer their condolences in an attempt to bring comfort to the ever silent pegasus. And much like the first mare that had paid her respects, most of these ponies were unknown to Greenfly – which made it all the more awkward. But he persisted in giving the humblest of nods to everypony that came up to him before they made their way to conveniently located buffet table. Food. The pegasus’s stomach growled in anticipation of what his mind was thinking. He hadn’t had a bite to eat all day with the lingering thought of the day’s agenda. He spotted a couple of petunia and daisy sandwiches on the table at the corner of his eye. He would have shifted his gaze to meet the tempting meal if his crushing sadness hadn’t rendered him incapable of motion. “I’m sorry for your loss, son,” said the latest stranger that was giving him sympathy. Greenfly gave the much routinely nod in reply. If the service hadn’t already seemed slow, it was practically feeling like a millennia watching the invited strangers fill the room while chatting amongst themselves – leaving the teenage pegasus alone with only his grief. That said, they would still come over occasionally but Greenfly sensed that they too found it hard to comfort the sad stranger in the corner. Greenfly had never felt so alone. The feeling was strong enough to drive him to tears but somehow the pegasus didn’t feel like crying. Even if he wanted to, he just couldn’t. So Greenfly endured the pain on his tipping point, without the promise of any relief whatsoever. “Greenfly, why you look absolutely famished! Here, please take this sandwich to sate that hunger!” The pegasus lifted his head out of gloom at the nice tones of the recognizable mare’s voice. For the first time in what seemed to be forever, the frown on the teen’s face had evaporated and his eyes were now fixed on the outstretched hoof holding the tasty looking sandwich out in front of him. Strength finally returning to Greenfly, he reached his own hoof to take the sandwich from his long-time pegasus friend. He softly whispered a modest thanks. “Don’t mention it at all, Greenfly. Celestia knows how you must be feeling…they were such good ponies...” She broke into a whimper followed by a few sniffles, prompting her hoof to bring the evidently reused handkerchief to her mini-waterfalls. Only a couple of tears made it onto her violet coat of fur. “Celestia…look at me not helping things…I’m a mess without my honey-bunch…” Greenfly supposed she meant her husband. In fact, he knew both of them quite well. They were perhaps the only outside contact that the family regularly saw despite the pair of them living in faraway Ponyville. They had always so affectionate towards him in his early youth. “I’ll bet he’d like to see you too…sniffle…where is he?” She wandered off, leaving Greenfly alone again with the sandwich still in his hoof. The encounter had done wonders to the pegasus’s comfort and he decided to take a seat to enjoy this brief moment of encouragement. It had been scarcely two minutes when she arrived back with a dark grey pegasus stallion who Greenfly knew to be her husband and the sandwich had long since been devoured. Greenfly hadn’t realised how hungry he had been. “I can’t imagine what it must be like, Greenfly…” the kindly stallion began, “to lose your parents so young and with lil’ Scoots too…” Greenfly eased back into his sad state again but was quickly interrupted at the soft touch of a hoof under his chin. “And as your godparents…we’d love to step in and help you.” Greenfly’s face lit up in shock. “Godparents?” “Yes, Greenfly,” affirmed his godmother warmly. “When you were born, your parents asked us to be your guardians. And we really have come to love you as our own son.” “It means that both you and Scoots can be placed under our care in Ponyville,” assured his godfather. Leaving Loyal…? The thought didn’t sit well with the conflicted pegasus. “I…I…I don’t know if that’s a good idea…” His godparents recoiled in surprise, exchanging a bewildered look. “Greenfly, don’t you know what that means? It would be another chance at happiness for you and your sister! You want what is best for her, don’t you?” I do. I really do. But there was only one way the teenage sibling would ever accept his younger sister having a normal happy life. By now, Greenfly had turned his tranquil moonlight walk into an all-out gallop as he desperately tried to put the memory behind him. He was smart enough to know that he couldn’t run from his thoughts but that didn’t stop his mind from controlling his actions. He spied the isolated viewpoint; easily visible in the early evening. And it got to Greenfly. Without a second to spare, the pegasus quickly became airborne and flew with vigour at the necessity that was the hilltop. Normally, he would have enjoyed the trek up the hill path but at the moment he was making a beeline straight for the log – intent on wasting no time at all. Closer and closer he flew; the log becoming bigger and bigger as he approached it. Too big. The green pegasus suddenly realised he was on a crash course with the piece of lumber. And too late. Greenfly’s face made contact with the harsh ground; narrowly avoiding what would’ve been a more painful crash landing on the less forgiving log. His wings dug into the earth; pulling up grass and weeds as he gradually came to a halt. Greenfly grimaced in pain as he shakily got to his hooves again. They trembled as the pegasus struggled to keep his balance on his aching hooves. Sobbing with every step, he trotted gently to the log and sat down on the naturally hard surface. “You can’t be serious, Greenfly! She’s your sister!” “You’re right, she is. And that’s exactly why you must take only her.” Greenfly watched as the shocked expressions on his godparents’ faces became close to horrified. “But what about you, Greenfly? What will you do all on your own?” queried his godmother, clearly voicing her concern. “I won’t be. I have Loyal to keep me company.” “Loyal? Loyal’s just a rotating aura, dear. Besides, why in Equestria would you want to be separated from young Scootaloo?” Greenfly sighed deeply to prevent himself from openly crying. “She doesn’t deserve to live a life without her parents. She should have a life free of doubt, worry or fear and I am sure you will take good of her.” “She’s a smart cookie, it wouldn’t take her long to figure out that something was amiss. And if she ever asked me about it I…” The teen stifled a whimper before continuing. “I…don’t think I’d forgive myself if I ever told her…” “But she deserves to have her brother,” Greenfly’s godfather cut in. “Especially if you would go to these lengths just to protect her.” A long silence followed with neither side saying anything. The tension though seemed to prove too much for the violet mare. “Are you absolutely sure about this, Greenfly? Is this what you really want?” Greenfly responded to that as if his mind had greatly anticipated that question. He was also ignorant of his suddenly annoyed tone. “Of course this isn’t what I want! I never wanted our parents to die, but they did anyway! And now I’m suffering because of it. But I certainly don’t want Scootaloo to be unhappy either so I want to do what is best for her.” His voice became sad. “That said, I don’t want to be out of her life completely. But how can I be around her that doesn’t implicate me as being her brother? I’m better off just staying here.” The once concerned face of the violet mare lit up at Greenfly’s newest revelation. “Actually, there may be a way…” Greenfly had been staring intently at the bright orb in the evening sky for almost ten minutes now and he still couldn’t find respite from all the depressing memories swirling around in his head. Why wasn’t it working? It just had to be tonight of all nights eh? The day that my sister got her cutie mark, the happiest day in Equestria for the filly and her family. And for her brother too. Even though he had been quietly sniffling during his watch the pegasus soon found himself on the verge of tears again. Why can’t you be there for me tonight? What does it matter that I can’t celebrate my sister’s happiness? Why must I suffer this incredible pain? The early signs of wailing were now quite evident. I am your brother, Scoot- Greenfly turned from the moon and slammed down onto the rough oak of the log and wailed into it – the flowing tears darkening the shade of brown on the wood. He let his emotions out for a while before hoisting his head back up to rest on his fore hooves. His whimpers slowed and his mind became at peace, if only for a second. Just then the green pegasus heard a faint rustle from the nearby bushes and jerked his head over accordingly. Nothing. The pegasus turned back around and continued to cough silently with some remaining tears running down his eyes. That was until he heard a frightened gasp behind him. “Oh I’m sorry, mister! I didn’t realise anypony came up here.” BGM Music! Click here! (Right Click to open new tab) Greenfly looked around and couldn’t help but smile. Scootaloo. Scootaloo backed away slowly. “I’m real sorry to have bothered you, mister! I’ll…I’ll go now.” The orange filly made to leave but Greenfly jumped right off the log and gave her a pleading look. “Wait! Scootaloo! Please don’t go!” Scootaloo stopped and looked back around, confused by the desperation in the green pegasus’s voice. “Oh ok…it’s just that…well…you’re in my spot.” “Your…spot?” Greenfly considered that for a moment; unsure of what she meant. He surveyed his surroundings and soon knew the “spot” she was talking about. “Oh! I…I didn’t mean to hog this place all to myself. Would you like to join me?” Scootaloo brightened up at the offer. “Are you here to watch the stars?” “Yes. Are you?” “Umm…yeah.” Scootaloo walked on over to the green pegasus and used her petite wings to give herself enough airtime to land on top of the log. Greenfly made sure to check that the nervous filly was comfortable before taking up seat beside her. The two sat in silence atop the piece of lumber, watching the tranquil night. The orange filly began to hum happily, making the regretful pegasus more relaxed than he had been in a good while. “Just look at ‘em…” Scootaloo started. “Do you ever know there were that many lights in the sky?” “Yeah, it’s pretty amazing,” replied Greenfly. “So you said that this was your spot, right?” “Well it was, I didn’t know anypony came up here…until I saw you. Some nights just after the sun is lowered I come up here and just gaze up at the stars.” “Really? Me too – though I tend to come later at night.” “I’d like to do that too but my parents don’t want me to be out late at night so I decide to go just before dinner.” “Sometimes my friends come too but they don’t understand why I like looking at the stars so much. Most ponies don’t – but my parents do. They always let me go out once a week to come here. I’m happy that my Mom and Dad understand.” “Yeah, your parents are one of a kind.” Greenfly pursed his lips shut as soon as he uttered what he meant to have thought. Scootaloo shot him a surprised look. “You know them?” Panic gripped Greenfly’s mind but knew he had to continue to prevent arousing suspicion. “Yeah…I’m incredibly grateful to them. They were actually the ones that helped me get set up here in Ponyville.” “What do you think, Greenfly?” The teenage pegasus pondered on his godmother’s question as he looked through the rooms of his new potential home. “It’s fine. There’s enough room for me and everything looks cosy enough, I guess.” His godmother smiled at the comment. “Now, are you sure about this, Greenfly? If you’ve changed your mind then that’s ok. We would love to have you join us after all.” “Yes, I’m sure. Thanks for your concern though.” “Well…if you’re sure, at least let us pay for the upkeep on the house until you get properly settled?” Greenfly hesitated before answering. “I guess I could accept that. It would be a big help.” She made a satisfied grunt upon hearing the teen’s acceptance. The pair made their way back to the front door where struggling moans could be heard from the rather over-encumbered dark grey stallion. “Uhh…uhh…ah!” THUMP!! “Dear, please take care not to overburden yourself. And be careful when you do! This is Greenfly’s new home after all.” Her husband made a sheepish grin. “Sorry honey, hehehe….Here’s the last load of your stuff, Greenfly - good thing the delivery ponies were quite prompt.” Greenfly smiled in appreciation of his godfather’s efforts. “Thanks. I’m very grateful for all your support.” The dark grey pegasus nodded in acknowledgement as he embraced his wife in a hug. They both then turned to address the teen once more. “Now, I promise this is the final time we’ll ask. Are you perfectly sure that you are comfortable with this new arrangement?” No I’m not. “Yes I am,” Greenfly confirmed confidently. “OK then. But do remember you can visit us anytime you want. After all, we are your family and Scootaloo is your sister.” “Don’t worry, I will.” “Well then, we’ll leave you to your unpacking then,” declared the violet mare, eyeing all the stacks of boxes around the room. “See ya round, kiddo,” said the husband, giving a small brush of Greenfly’s orange tuft of a mane. “Visit soon.” Greenfly waved them off as their voices faded off into the evening air. “I sure hope trusting that Applejack filly was worth it…” But I never did. BGM Music! Click here! (Restart point) “Yeah, you’re very lucky to have parents like them, Scootaloo.” Scootaloo felt awestruck by the pegasus’s story. “Wow! Really? Hey…how’d you know my name?” Greenfly grimaced at the question. How did I know that? Greenfly scratched the back of his head with a hoof while he composed his excuse. “Uh-uh-uh…well everypony knows you and your friends from the amount of trouble you all cause, hehe.” Scootaloo’s cheeks turned bright red. “Oh yeah, I guess our crusading is a little infamous, hehe. Maybe now we have our cutie marks we might be more behaved." Scootaloo paused. “Maybe…” Greenfly giggled. “Haha yeah. Congrats on getting your cutie mark by the way. You must be so proud.” A smile appeared on the filly’s face as quick as lightning. “Are you kidding? I was over the moon when it happened…hehe no pun intended.” Greenfly laughed. “But it was just so awesome! Rainbow Dash was so happy for me and we had such a fun cuteceanera after! Today was just so amazing!” “Well, I’m happy for you too, Scootaloo.” “Thanks. So what’s your name, mister?” “My name is Greenfly.” The orange filly stared more intently at the green pegasus as if the name meant something to her. “Your name sounds familiar. Have we met before?” Yes. I’m your brother, Scootaloo. “Maybe but it’ll likely have been from your parents that you heard it.” “Yeah, maybe…” Scootaloo looked unconvinced. She continued to gaze at Greenfly which made the green pegasus uneasy. He felt glad that his sister was giving him so much attention after all these years but at the same time the last thing he wanted was for her to guess the nature of their relationship. A gust of wind blew past the pair of them, causing the orange filly to shiver and consequently end her staring. “Brrrrr…that’s cold.” Before Greenfly could think about it, out of sibling instinct, he shuffled along the rim of the log and placed a hoof around the freezing filly. Much to his surprise, his ignorant sister warmed into the embrace – snuggling her head against the pegasus’s soft green fur. “Hmm…thanks.” “Heh…don’t mention it.” Greenfly was blushing furiously. His mind still raged with conflicting thoughts but he had needed a moment like this for so long that he decided not to listen. “What do you suppose they are?” “Hmmm?” countered Greenfly, wondering what the “they” referred to. “The stars. What do you think they are?” Greenfly paused. “I guess I’ve never really thought about it.” The shade of night was darkening as they continued to stare out into the sky; the shared warmth between them compensating for the chill in the night-time air. As the sky darkened, the stars shined brighter and became more numerous. “My friend, Dr Hooves once told me that they are balls of burning gas, millions of light years away.” Greenfly chuckled before continuing. “But since I really don’t understand what that means, I like to think of them as just beautiful lights in the sky.” “They sure are,” Scootaloo agreed. “Have you ever made shapes out of the stars before?” “Like constellations? Yeah, I did it a lot when I was younger.” “Wanna try and make one now?” “Sure. There are plenty of stars to choose from tonight.” “Cool! Race ya to see who can get one first!” Scootaloo began scanning the sky in frequent motions. Greenfly chuckled and simply adjusted his view now and then, taking his time rather than rushing ahead. Truth was Greenfly had already etched out a shape many times before and he could still see it in front of him tonight. What made it better tonight was that the real thing just so happened to be in a warm embrace with the green pegasus. Yet he decided to etch it out one more time. Three stars in a triangular distance from each other created the head, joining that to a star further down made the neck. Then the stars seemed to follow a filleted rectangle to from the body with a tiny cluster of stars poking out to create her cute little wings. And finally the four forks jutting out to form the legs – even if they seemed to sprawl all over the place. It does require a lot of imagination from just those lines, though. BGM Music! Click here! (New track this time) “I got one!” exclaimed Scootaloo, evidently quite thrilled at being first to shout out. “Look there!” Greenfly looked in the direction of the orange pegasus’s extended hoof. She seemed to be pointing directly at the moon. “The moon? You made a constellation using the moon?” “Uh-huh! Look, it’s Angel bunny – Fluttershy’s pet rabbit. The stars above the moon are his ears and the stars below are his feet. And the moon, it’s Angel’s belly.” Greenfly had to accept Scootaloo’s judgment. He didn’t really know any of the animal lover’s friends let alone Fluttershy herself. Much like himself, Greenfly knew the yellow pegasus to be quite timid and reclusive and so he never did see much of her or her animal friends. “Wow, I’m impressed. I don’t think I’ve ever thought to use the moon in a constellation before.” “Really? Cool!” exclaimed the orange filly excitedly. The filly began to relax back into the cosy embrace again, finding herself very much at ease with the seemingly familiar pegasus. Greenfly on the other hand didn’t know what to feel. He loved that Scootaloo was giving him so much affection but his fears which he had chosen to ignore earlier were coming back tenfold. “You want to know what I really think they are? The stars I mean. ” “Sure.” Scootaloo hesitated. “You know…I’ve never told anypony but…I’ve always thought they were lightclouds.” Greenfly was taken completely aback by that. “What?” “Billions and billions of lightclouds at the far reaches of the sky; shining their light on whoever needs it. My parents told me a lot about them and said they knew ponies who used to live in one.” Greenfly didn’t need another trip down memory lane to understand that. “Wow, I never thought of it that way.” “And the moon is the greatest lightcloud of all. The one who is always there for you.” Always there for you… Those last four words resonated within Greenfly’s skull. This night had contributed more to his understanding of things than all his past evenings put together. As the pair sat there drinking in the moonlight a thought came to the green pegasus. Oh Loyal, you never did leave me. You were there all those nights I spent looking up at you. You were always there for me. And you still are tonight. Greenfly’s trail of thought was broken by the intensified snuggling that Scootaloo was giving him. “And it’s nice to know you’ll always be there for me too,” she whispered softly. What? “Big brother.” My Guiding Light.
