As The Dominos Fall

Dear Princess Celestia,

Sometimes life throws a situation in your path that you don’t know how to deal with, there are many aspects of life that come naturally to some and not to others. The situation I have before me is one you have no doubt been informed of due to the close relation of it to a bearer of harmony.

It disheartens me to say but the brother of my dear friend Fluttershy, Zephyr Breeze has passed from this world and while their relationship and his with the rest of his family was strained to say the least his passing has had a powerful effect on not just Fluttershy but I and the rest of our friends.

Immediately after being notified of his passing Fluttershy boarded herself inside of her house and refuses to answer the door to anyone, not even her animal friends are being allowed to enter and as you can imagine this is upsetting us all. We are worried for her mental and physical health but no matter what we do none can even get so much as a word out of her. Attempts to get Fluttershy to attend Zephyr’s funeral were met with intense crying heard through her door followed by silence.

Rainbow Dash has been very close to Fluttershy’s family for a long time and while she never got along with Zephyr she is taking his death exceptionally hard, hardly a day goes by that I don’t see her pushing her body to the absolute limits trying to distract herself from her feelings through extreme physical exertion and when we try to ask her to talk to us she will yell at us, telling us she is fine with tears in her eyes before flying away. She might very well become a danger to herself if she keeps pushing herself so hard.

The next most affected by this situation is Rarity whose friendship with Fluttershy is well known due to their weekly spa visits and Fluttershy’s help with Rarity’s fashion lines. Rarity’s normal drive for design as well as her constantly maintained appearance has suffered as she hasn’t come out of her boutique in days, while she will still sell her dresses and accessories I can’t help but feel that she has lost of some what makes her Rarity.

Applejack and Pinkie Pie don’t seem to be as powerfully affected by the situation but I can see that with our friends so obviously hurt their smiles are forced and the days are getting harder on them too. I myself am not immune to this either, each day feels a little darker and I’m not sure how to cope.

Dealing with death has never been something I’ve ever really had to think about and now that the situation has come upon me I can’t help but feel useless. My efforts to bring my friends together to weather the storm have failed but I will keep trying.

Due to our greatly extended lifespans I feel this is a situation you have dealt with in the past and one that I will have to also many times in the future so I hope that you have some advice on how we can get through this trying period in our lives.

I’m really worried about how much worse things could get before everypony can start to heal.

Your former student and friend,

Princess Twilight Sparkle.

P.S. Thank you for your friendship and support in such a hard time, it truly is special to have you in my life.

Dear Princess Twilight Sparkle,

I’m sorry to hear about the death of Zephyr Breeze, as with all of my little ponies I believe each life is important and special. Knowing that we have lost one and in such tragic circumstances saddens me greatly, even more so hearing how his demise has affected you and your friends.

Death is not a subject I talk about often as I have had to see so much of it in my long life, even before the unification of the tribes, the sealing of Discord and the creation of Equestria my sister and I have seen the beginning and end of many lives. To us and now to you this is something that you can never ‘get used to’ all you can do is to keep pushing on. Look back at the lives of our citizens and praise the lives they lived, not mourn their deaths indefinitely.

As for your friends I hope they get better soon and if not you are there to help them on their way to recovery.

I too am particularly worried about your friend Fluttershy, if was only trying to isolate herself away from everypony the situation would be bad enough but if she is even pushing away her animal friends, a very real denial of her element and special talent something must very well be very wrong with her. After speaking to Luna she informed me that Fluttershy had been having some terrible nightmares, ones so powerful even my sister could not expel them and recently she can’t even find her dreams at all.

What this could means I do not know as I am not as well versed in the ways of dreams or dream magic but I believe that it is imperative that check on her immediately as it very well might be that your friend may be unwell and not taking care of herself.

As for the rest of your friends all I can recommend is that you try to involve them in your life as much as possible, the magic of friendship is not one that becomes only apparent when times are good. No matter how bad the times in your lives can get having those close to you stand by your side will make your life better and you need to help your friends to see that in this difficult time.

I will not pretend to know what any of your friends are feeling at this time but I am sure that with your support and friendship the trial they find themselves under can be surpassed and you will all come out of it with an even stronger bond than ever.

Your friend,

Princess Celestia.