Home Is Where The Herd Is

After the meal, the tour was put on hold in favor of hearing my story.

Twilight insisted that I should only tell it when I feel comfortable enough to do so. When I told her that it was fine, however, she ignored me and took us to her room, saying,

"The best way to tell an uncomfortable story is to be as comfortable as possible while doing it."

I could only assume that meant she wanted me to feel safe and secure while telling it, so that I don't feel like I have to hide anything from them.

It was a nice gesture, and I really appreciated it, but all in all it was a bit embarrassing. The fact that Twilight would go to all this trouble just to make me feel better was a bit overwhelming. It felt like I didn't deserve it.

That being said, I wasn't gonna look a gift horse in the mouth and be ungrateful. If fate was giving me a chance to unload my grief, I would take it with pleasure.

"Well, you see...my parents died. Today. On my 22nd birthday. It may not seem like much of an explanation, but the wound is still fresh. My parents were great people. They were kind, caring, and understanding. And yeah, sometimes they were strict with me, but what kid hasn't made mistakes, right? No one's perfect. I still have so many fond memories of them, too. I remember the lullaby my mom used to sing to me whenever I would go to sleep. I remember going fishing with my dad. We would sit in a boat and go out onto the lake, facing away from each other as we both waited for a bite on our lines. I remember we would talk for hours about almost nothing as we listened to the birds chirping in the early hours of the morning, the smell of grass tingling against our senses. And it was the same with my brother. We had the typical dynamic of brothers. One would annoy the other to no end, and the other would despise his older sibling for as long as he lived, but even still we were family, and family sticks together. He was always there for me when I needed him, my brother. He never let me down, not even once. I just hate that it all had to end so suddenly. Even my little sister..."

As Twilight, the girls, and now Spike, sat there listening to me tell my story, I noticed That they were all sobbing quietly, little sniffles letting me know where they were in the dark of the night. I was about to try and stop their crying, to tell them that it was alright, but then Twilight spoke up, saying,

"Oh my...Mike, I...I don't know what to say, I...to think that the very ones who cared for you your entire life would have to leave you on the very cusp of adulthood is just...well it's too unfair for words! I can't imagine losing my parents. They've cared for me my entire life, and to lose them so suddenly, so unpredictably, without even a chance to say goodbye is just...it's just..."

"Don't worry about it, Twilight. Eventually, I was able to get over my grief long enough to pay a visit to my parents old place. They left it to me in their will but I never really went. I couldn't. The memories were too painful. Besides, at least I was finally able to see them at the funeral. I got one last look at them before I showed up here. I guess it was just...bad luck, is all."

"No!"

The sudden exclamation caught my attention as if a gunshot had been fired. I was surprised to find it had come from Twilight herself.

"Um...Twilight..." I tried to say, but she cut me off.

"No, I won't allow it! Don't you dare say it was just bad luck! Don't you dare say it's alright! Don't tell me not to worry about it! Any normal person would be worried sick about you right now!"

I was stunned. I couldn't say a word. Seeing Twilight so torn up over me had shocked me into silence. And her expression kept me from saying anything to counter her words. I wanted to tell her it was alright. That I would get over it. That with time, it would all heal, and I would be back to my old self. But Twilight's words had taken my breath away.

Her expression was one of anger. Not at me, but at the world I lived in. From her eyes flowed righteous tears that I could tell held a deep kindness in them. Her teeth were clenched in barely contained rage. I could tell she wanted to scream her lungs out and cry out in defiance against whatever cosmic force put me in such a state.

Never had I seen such passion, such fire in one person's eyes, all for the sake of another. Never had I seen such compassion from another being to another. Never had I been cried for like she was crying for me now.

Suddenly I felt Twilight wrap her arms around me, and I accepted her hug, giving her one back. We stayed like that for quite a while until Twilight finally spoke the words that I would've told her. The words that I thought I already knew, but was apparently so wrong about. The words I needed to hear, but had deluded myself into thinking that I already knew what grief was like, and what it meant to be in pain. With resolve in her tone, she spoke the words I would carry with me throughout my journey in this new place.

"It'll be okay, Mike. My friends and I are all here for you. Whenever you need us, we'll be here to help. Just call on any one of us and we'll be right there waiting for you to share your troubles with us."

She finally stopped hugging me and let go. When she stood up, she had a wide grin on her face, and her tears had dried up on her face. She wiped them away, put her hands on her hips, puffed out her chest, and said,

"From now on, We're your family, Mike. And this time, we won't be going anywhere!"

I was suddenly well aware of the tears rolling down my face. I hadn't even realized I'd been crying. I quickly wiped my eyes and looked up at Twilight. Was she serious? Because if she was, then I had just gotten more lucky than i'd ever been in my entire life.

I heard a voice to my left, and realized it was one of the girls talking, "Yeah! Twilight's right! We're here for you Mike. The cutie mark crusaders will hep make you feel right at home!" It was Apple Bloom. And judging by the smiles on the other two girls' faces, they both agreed as well.

If my ears weren't deceiving me, and I wasn't dreaming, then chances are I had a new family. And I promised myself right then, that this one, would be different.