The chill of a cool winter’s night brushed over my coat.
Stepping outside, I shivered from the cold as I tightly wrapped a scarf around my neck. A freshly laid blanket of snow had covered the ground of the castle's garden, turning the landscape into a picturesque winter wonderland of ice and colorful lights. At this time of the year, and with Hearth's Warming coming soon, one would think that coming out here would put somepony in the festive spirit. They would be overjoyed to see such a beautiful sight?
The dazzling vibrant colors and how they traced along the vegetation would draw out an awe from anypony. I to sometimes marvel the work from our royal servants during this time of the year. With a bright smile on their faces, they love to call their work “Spreading the Holiday Cheer Duty.” Their primary mission was to leave no corner of this castle without something festive decorating it. It was the holidays, and it seemed like everypony’s job was to be happy.
However, my business out here tonight wasn’t to be filled to the brim with holiday cheer. I wasn’t exactly in the mood to really soak in the spirit of such a happy and joyful season. Why? The past few weeks haven’t been exactly kind to me, even as a princess. Since my return to Equestria, there was one matter of importance which I had delayed even before I became Nightmare Moon. Now, it has consumed my thoughts to the point where my mind wasn’t up to the idea of being thrilled for Hearth’s Warming… like that’s the least of my concerns.
My mind was just too preoccupied with I had put off for over a thousand years.
Why am I doing this? I asked myself. I could just do this another night and stay indoors.
With my head hanging low, I sighed. “Oh! Blast Luna!” I cried out.
With my eyes shut tight, I shook my head with frustration. I heard the whispers of my sister’s words, drifting through my mind. Like a faint, charming tune, they coaxed me with the memory of what she said about doing this thing I’ve delayed for quite some time. They crushed me to the brink of tears as I begged countless times for mercy.
Yet, the words still echoed through my head. You have to do this, my sister, Tia said. You can’t be dragged down by the weight of this. You and I both know what happened the last time you let your emotions get the best of you. So, I kindly ask of you to please let it finally rest.
Put it to bed, tonight.
“Fine.”
Picking up my hooves, I lightly stepped through the pockets of built-up snow while my eyes gazed forward in a fixated trance. All I could do was move forward through the ice covered landscape. The deeper I descended into the gardens, the more determined I became.
I held within my aura a freshly picked red rose. It’s a token of my sorrows and how far I came to acknowledging this situation. In the back of my mind, I asked why I didn’t carry along a black rose instead. It seemed more appropriate, yet I couldn’t bare to.
It would mean that they were indeed dead.
There was a clearing up ahead, where the brick path ends and meets up with a section of the garden’s snow covered wall. Carved within the marble, a gargantuan and elegant memorial was erected. It was dedicated a long time ago to the two most significant equines that I ever loved besides my sister, who I’m still blessed to have around today. If it wasn’t for her, I’d never would have had the courage or strength to finally see where they rest for eternity.
...where my parents sleep for the rest of time itself.
As I stepped up to the sight, I paused out of personal hesitation and closed my eyes. This was the first time I’d ever been back here since their funeral. From then, I did everything in my will to avoid coming here. For nearly fifty years, I never wanted to believe that it was true. I never wanted to believe that they were gone. I loved them dearly, and to have them ripped away from me wasn’t beyond tragic.
It was horrifying, like a nightmare that endlessly plays in your mind.
As a tear escaped from the corner of an eye, I opened them and used a forehoof to wipe it away. The pain of the past is far behind me now. A little while back, I’ve grown to realize that I must accept the truth of reality while facing it head on. No one is strong enough to sit around and avoid it. What’s worse is that it takes its toll on the mind, to point where it could consume your thoughts and drive anypony mad.
That’s when you know you’ve held out on reality for far too long.
Facing the truth, I gazed upon the two headstones that stood at the base of the memorial. With an overwhelming amount of emotion washing over me, I let out a long sigh as I read-off the two names embroidered in gold on each slab. I nodded my head in confirmation. Those were the two names of my beloved parents.
I set the rose down between the two headstones, “I’m sorry for not coming to visit you two sooner mom and dad. I hope you’ll forgive me for being so late.”
“I would.”
I was startled, turning around to see my sister behind me. Before I had the time to ask why she was there, Tia immediately wrapped her hooves around me in a warm hug. As tears escaped her eyes, I knew my sister was so proud of how far I came since I returned. Nightmare Moon was gone, the tantabus was erased, and now I was finally accepting the death of my parents after a thousand years. The scars of their passing were starting to heal within me.
I could finally put this nightmare to rest.
