The cool night air blew softly in Rainbow’s face. Luna’s moon and the bright stars were blocked out by overcast clouds, grey and dark. A light drizzle was falling, but Rainbow paid it no mind. Her thoughts were elsewhere, and her mind was too preoccupied to register the raindrops landing on her wings and back as she flew through the air. She descended, landing gracefully in the Central Park.
The Park itself was nice, a large recreational area in the center of the ever growing town of Ponyville. For Rainbow, the park held some of the only memories she had left. Rainbow stood in the grass for a moment, allowing old memories to resurface. With a deep breath, she closed her eyes, reliving the past few years.
A green bench sat in front of a large marble statue. Rainbow trotted over, sitting in the bench with a sigh. “Hey.” There was no response from the quiet night. Rainbow shifted in her seat, her wings folding to her side. “Can’t believe it’s been this long… So much has happened. Soarin retired, I’m the captain of the Wonderbolts now… I got to see Spitfire again at the ceremony. What else…? Oh yeah, Rarity made it big, she’s out in Manehattan now.” Rainbow sighed as she closed her eyes. “I miss you, Flutters. Wish you were here.”
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The last time she saw Fluttershy played in her head. A mishap at the weather factory spawned a tornado so large and destructive that it threatened to wipe Ponyville off the map. A containment device, something called The StormBreaker was retrieved, and the Wonderbolts were tasked with flying into the eye of the storm and activate the device. The task was easier said than done, as the Wonderbolts soon found out. Rainbow was the first to attempt the task, being the fastest flier on the team. She ended up with a broken wing, lying in agony on the edge of the Everfree Forest.
Spitfire landed next to her, shaking her head. “No good. Soarin and Surprise are down, I’m scrubbing the mission.” From behind them, a quiet voice spoke up.
“You’re giving up? But… but the animals!” Fluttershy protested, her voice barely audible against the howling winds. Spitfire sighed.
“Sorry. We don’t have a chance in a million against that monster.” Spitfire sighed, watching the tornado in the distance. “We’re lucky it’s headed away from us.”
Fluttershy shook her head. “It might be headed away from us, but it’s heading towards Manehattan!” Spitfire remained silent, hanging her head. Fluttershy frowned, turning to the tornado, glaring at Spitfire. “I thought Wonderbolts were supposed to be fearless, but if you’re all too scared to act....”
Turning back, Fluttershy knelt by Rainbow. With a sigh, Fluttershy kissed Rainbow’s cheek. “Rainbow,” she said in her usual soft voice, “No matter what happens… I love you.” Rainbow grunted, looking at her marefriend in confusion. With astonishing speed, Fluttershy grabbed the StormBreaker tucked into Spitfire’s belt.
“Hey!” Before Spitfire could react, Fluttershy took off, flying into the storm.
“FLUTTERSHY!” Rainbow screamed. She tried to spread her wings, but collapsed on the ground. “NO!” Rainbow could only watch as Fluttershy slowly disappeared, the storm engulfing her. There was a flash of light from inside the tornado. Suddenly, a bright ball of magic erupted, ending the rampage of the winds. A roar filled the air, followed immediately by silence.
Rainbow and Spitfire shared a glance. They both knew that there was practically no chance of anypony surviving a blast like that. Spitfire’s radio crackled. “Did you see that?”
Grabbing the radio, Spitfire opened the channel. “This is Spitfire, what happened?” There was a brief pause.
“Somepony flew into the storm. They made it, activated the StormBreaker, but with all that energy…. They must have fried instantly. I saw them drop like a rock, I’d reckon they fell somewhere by the lake-” Spitfire quickly switched the radio off, but it was too late. Rainbow broke into sobs. She knew in her heart that it was done. Fluttershy was gone.
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When Rainbow opened her eyes, ending the traumatic flashback, she saw a light in the forest. Squinting, Rainbow saw that the light seemed to be surrounding a pony. The pony walked closer, and Rainbow gasped. The creme coated, pink maned mare that stood in front of her was faded, transparent almost. Fluttershy smiled at Rainbow, stopping in front of her. “F… Fluttershy?” Rainbow asked in soft disbelief. Fluttershy said nothing, but took Rainbow’s hoof in her own.
When her hoof connected with her own, a feeling of warmth and comfort shot through Rainbow’s veins, a feeling she thought she’d never feel again. “I’ve missed you too, Dash.” Fluttershy’s voice was as soft as Rainbow remembered it, but it seemed distant, echoey. Fluttershy leaned in, kissing Rainbow passionately. Rainbow, still in a state of disbelief, kissed back, closing her eyes. Despite Fluttershy’s apparent transparency, the kiss was warm and heartfelt. When they broke the kiss, Rainbow’s heart was still beating intensely.
“Fluttershy… how?” Rainbow asked. Fluttershy said nothing, smiling instead. Taking Rainbow’s hoof again, Fluttershy guided Rainbow over to a hill. Fluttershy sat down, patting the grass next to her. Rainbow obliged, sitting next to her. “Why are you here?” Rainbow asked quietly.
“I’m here to say goodbye.” Rainbow looked over her once-marefriend, noticing that Fluttershy’s wings were missing. “Rainbow, I love you. And I’m sorry, but I can’t stay long.” Rainbow fought back tears in vain, as her eyes watered. As Rainbow broke out sobbing, Fluttershy traced a tear down Rainbow’s face. “Shh. It’s okay.”
The drizzle had dissipated long ago, and the clouds were breaking apart. The moon was nowhere to be seen, and rays of daylight pierced the clouds. “All I want is to enjoy one last sunrise with you,” Fluttershy said, pulling Rainbow in for a hug. Rainbow nodded, a sad smile on her face. She understood now that this was her chance to say goodbye. Warm in her lover’s embrace, Rainbow turned her teary eyes to Celestia’s sun, gently rising over the clouds. After a few quiet moments, Rainbow turned back to Fluttershy. A pair of wings sprouted on her back, perfectly white and smooth. Fluttershy sighed, knowing her time was running out.
Rainbow, knowing what was coming, wiped the tears from her eyes and pulled Fluttershy in for another kiss. When they broke, Fluttershy’s wings had fully grown as the sun began piercing the clouds, drowning the park in a colorful serenade. “You’ve been up all night, Rainbow. Get some sleep,” Fluttershy said as she hugged Rainbow. “I won’t forget you, Rainbow. Don’t worry about me.” Rainbow sighed, burying her face in Fluttershy’s chest.
“Goodbye, Fluttershy.”
“Goodbye, Rainbow.”
Soon, the warm fur in front of Rainbow faded away, leaving a wall of air in front of Rainbow. Rainbow wiped her tears away, looking around her. She was alone, sitting on a hill in Central Park, with nopony else around. Rainbow stood shakily, thinking about what had occurred when she heard it and smiled. She looked around again, confirming that she was alone, before taking off into the sky, leaving behind a rainbow streak. There was nopony there, but she heard Fluttershy’s voice in her ear. “I’ll be with you. Forever.”
Song: Up All Night, Owl City
Night fell over the castle. Most of the royalty had turned in for the night, leaving the guards to patrol the palace. Twilight Sparkle, however, knew she wasn’t getting any sleep tonight. After Spike had fallen asleep, Twilight quietly slipped out onto the balcony of her room. With a deep breath, she watched the stars twinkle in the dark night.
Twilight sighed, taking a deep breath. She shivered as a cold wind blew across her face. She wrapped herself in a blanket, but her body was still cold. Twilight knew her body was longing for the warmth of some pony's hooves, but it was a warmth that she would never feel again. Twilight sighed again as she held the brown stetson hat in her hoof.
Applejack was gone now, Twilight reminded herself. And it wasn’t a good kind of gone, either. It wasn’t like she could write her a letter, telling her how much she missed her. And it wasn’t like Applejack could send Twilight a postcard from… wherever she was now.
Twilight sighed, remembering the first day after she heard the news. She had stayed on the balcony all night, weeping into her chest. When she looked up, Celestia’s sun was rising, and the inky black night had faded away into a shade of light blue. It was something she had watched with Applejack countless times, but now it different, more empty. She couldn’t describe the beauty of a sunrise when there was no pony next to her to listen. Twilight had looked down at her hooves, wishing that Applejack was there to hold them, to comfort her.
She knew back then, that she would find repose somehow. But after 2 sleepless nights, any hope of tranquility was dashed. Everywhere she turned she was swept with nostalgic memories, painfully reminding her of a time that would never come again. So every night she couldn’t sleep, she would sit on her balcony, watching the stars and waiting for the time of day she was named after. Although it hurt to think of Applejack, it made Twilight feel less alone.
Twilight shook her head, clearing out her thoughts. It seemed like she thought of her more times then she blinked these days. Twilight smiled sadly as she stared into the night sky. She wasn’t waiting for sunrise, not this time. Finally, Twilight saw it.
Two large shooting stars streaked across the sky, shining brightly and moving faster. Suddenly, a smaller shooting star appeared, in between the two large ones. The three stars flew across the sky, leaving a trail of white light in their tail. Twilight smiled, contently this time. She knew, that when the heavy feelings of guilt lifted from her wings, and when her violet eyes glowed brightly again, she would leave the ground forever. “I won’t forget you, Applejack… I’ll see you again someday,” Twilight said before turning and walking back into her room. She paused, watching the stars from the corner of her eye. “I wish you were here AJ.”
High above Twilight, farther above the clouds, sky, and sun itself, Applejack smiled. “Ah wish ah were there too, Twilight.” The orange pony sighed, seeing the sun rise. “Ah’ll be waiting for you.”
Song: Vanilla Twilight by Owl CIty
