The Lost Firefly

The ever-lasting thought sunk into her mind, infecting everything she thought hour after hour. Her opinions changed, along with her emotions and mental state. Pinkie obviously knew that something bothered her friend, but when asking about it she simply replies by running. Something doesn't seem right.

Firefly keeps scratching her head and her hooves. Every time someone tries to interact with her, she shuts them out. Eventually, her pupils became permanently small, and she usually hid herself in her bedroom, sobbing in the corner. This went on for several days without end. In every corner of Firefly's eye was her mother, and the same words repeated in her head over and over again...

I T S A L L Y O U R F A U L T

Pinkie Pie came over not long after realising that her friend kept shutting herself away from everyone else. Her pink mane was sprouting in different directions from the recent party, and her flank had a streamer hanging on it. Kicking it away, she lifted up her hoof to knock on the door, but instead stood there and shivered. After a long pause, she slammed her hoof against the door.

Small hoof steps could be heard from the other side of the room, slowly approaching the door. Pinkie noticed that all of the curtains were blocking the windows, so she couldn't peer inside to see if Firefly was okay. Eventually, the door opened, but only slightly. Firefly could be seen from the inside, shaking.

"Um..." Pinkie started. "Hiya, Firefly."

"Hello." Firefly said in a cracked, crispy voice. "What b-brings you here..?"

Pinkie's ears flipped upwards. "Oh, you know, just in the neighbour hood... Thought I'd stop by!"

"That's nice of you." Firefly's eyes bolted towards the back of the room. "Goodbye."

Before Firefly could close the door, Pinkie put her hoof in the way. "Wait! I just came to check up on you." Pinkie leaned in closer, examining Firefly. "You seem upset."

Firefly flinched. "Uh-huh..."

"C-Can I come in?" Pinkie asked with a weak grin. She was trying to play it strong. Firefly stared at her, then opened the door wider so Pinkie could fit in. "Thanks."

The room was messy, chairs and other types of furniture flipped over. Apple juice was sprayed on the walls and food was left on the floor to rot. Firefly's T.V was beaten up, probably by hooves. Her windows were boarded up behind the curtains, and insects crawled around as if it was their playground. Pinkie was surprised at the conditions Firefly was living in.

"Um..." Pinkie gasped. "I... Like what you did with the place?"

"Thank you." Firefly sang, weakly. When Pinkie saw the entirety of her, her mane was messed up, eyes had multiple bags underneath them, and she seemed to have blood dripping down from several bandages that were scattered across her body. "I forced myself to live like this."

Pinkie gulped. "Why..?"

"It's what I deserve, I think." Firefly coughed. She was clearly ill.

"You don't deserve to live like this..." Pinkie muttered.

Firefly glared at her. "I do." She quickly looked all over the place, as if she was missing something. "Would you like anything to eat?"

Pinkie looked at the state of her kitchen. It was growing mould and fungi, along with multiple spider webs strung across the appliances. "Um. No. Thanks." She said, sharply.

Firefly yawned. "What do you want, anyway?"

Pinkie frowned. "We need to get you outta this house!"

"We?"

Pinkie quickly shoved Firefly out of her house, then shut the door behind them. Firefly turned to face her, shielding her eyes from the sunlight. "We're gonna take you around Ponyville for some fun!" Pinkie laughed, throwing confetti in the air.

"I'd... Rather stay in-"

"Nonsense!" Pinkie giggled, hugging Firefly. "C'mon, let's go and have some fun!"

Pinkie took Firefly to numerous locations. The bowling alley was the first one, where Pinkie managed to score several strikes. Whenever Firefly threw the ball, it didn't hit any of the targets. The next place Pinkie took her was the hat shop, where they tried on many funny hats. However, Firefly just sat in the corner, watching. The last place she took Firefly was the Boutique. Rarity had finished making Firefly's dress, but she didn't want to try it on.

Firefly and Pinkie sat at a table outside a place that served daisy sandwiches. Firefly claimed that she wasn't hungry, but Pinkie bought two sandwiches just in case. For a while, the two sat in complete silence, waiting for the other to talk. Eventually, Pinkie broke the silence.

"So where do you want to go next?" She asked, cheerfully.

"Home..." Firefly lowered her head.

"Why don't you want to have fun, Firefly?" Pinkie questioned. "If there's a problem, just tell me, we can sort it together."

"Pinkie, please..." Firefly groaned. "Just... This isn't for me. I hate this..."

"What isn't for you?" Pinkie murmured, concerned.

"I... I can't go on much longer, I'm sorry." Firefly admitted. "I'm... So... So tired..."

"Then sleep!" Pinkie suggested. It wasn't long until she realised what she meant. "Wait, don't sleep!"

Firefly looked to the sky. "If I wasn't born..." She started to cry. "She said that if I wasn't born, then all of the deaths would have been avoided."

Pinkie's ears perked up. "You believe her? She's a crazy mare who just wanted to kill for fun, it's got nothing to do with you! It's not your fault."

'It's not your fault'.

"Firefly, look at me!" Pinkie demanded. Firefly looked down and met Pinkie's gaze. The sound of 'It's all your fault' and 'It's not your fault' battled in her mind as she stared at Pinkie's face. "Please. Just..."

"Pinkie..." Firefly sighed, crying. "I'm sorry. But I gotta do what I gotta do."

And, with that, Firefly ran off. Pinkie quickly stood up, yelling 'stop that mare'. As she galloped, she noticed a rainbow blur in the corner of her eyes. It seems like Pinkie had Dash to catch her. Firefly growled, moving in a zig-zag pattern to try and throw off the fast pegesi. It worked, surprisingly, and Dash couldn't tackle her.

Firefly remembered the old gun her grandfather used to own. It was passed on to her instead of her parents, and she had never known why. She kept it in a safe place all these years; in a hole in the Everfree. Charging towards the forest, she noticed Applejack yelling for her to stop. Obviously Pinkie told her what happened.

She was at the entrance of the cursed forest. Quickly, she dove behind a tree and reached down into a muddy, soggy hole. She pulled out a box covered in dark green moss. Hiding in the bushes, she waited for Rainbow Dash and Applejack to run by, then she raced out of the Everfree. They noticed her, and stopped, almost tripping over.

The mare raced towards her house so she wouldn't have to use her gun in public, but not before she was accompanied by Twilight, Rarity and Pinkie, all begging her to stop. Firefly couldn't hear them. She went deaf, and could only hear the same words that rang in her head over and over and over again.

'It's all your fault'.

Tears lit up in her eyes as she barged into her own house, diving on the floor and slamming the door shut. She locked the door, then covered it with a drawer. She sat in the middle of the room, hypnotised by the same words. Rarity, Twilight, Pinkie, Applejack and Dash were trying their hardest to brake into her house. They even tried slamming their own bodies into the boarded-up windows.

Firefly silently lowered her body towards the door, leaning in towards the old box. She carefully unlocked it with a pin that was lying down near the dresser. A small click was heard, and the box was open, revealing a desert eagle with five bullets next to it. It shone in the light that made its way through a crack in the wall.

Picking up the gun, she loaded it with one single golden bullet. One bullet, one life. As she put the gun to her head, she could hear the pleading of her former friends begging for her to reconsider. Firefly gulped, a tear rolling down her chin. She smiled weakly, laughing at her mind of how foolish they are.

Sorry, but they were friends with a dead mare to begin with.

BANG.