Author's Note

Ah, you've made to chapter seven of Fireflower's fanfic going beyond the typical oneshots made from before, a Mature one no less on the grounds a previous chapter has recently dealt with heavy subject matters proven to be unsuitable for those under eighteen, easily offended, and/or quickly nauseated; suffice to say, this was by far a strong note for many readers all so therefore you were all given an option to skip ahead to this chapter: whether or not you have taken this offer, it was only up to you to do so nothing more.

Aside from disclaimers long ago, I would like to take this time to inform you this chapter will be very surprising even more than the others before because a special guest is going to be joining one of our fateful protagonists in this chapter below: a familiar face that she has come to know since birth but not well enough so to speak of since mere years ago; that being said, at least now's the time to patch things up.

Lastly, let me also say I hope you can withstand this chapter now and stay tuned for future chapters later on because the second half's where writing gets to be a real clincher: seeing the doubleheaders of this weekend and the one before were nauseating, it'd be courteous of me to let you know that I'll be taking a break from writing the story for a while so as to replenish myself; as such, I'll come back later on and finish it in time, maybe even earlier than before.

Scintillation

Daylight was now being burned into the minds and bodies of every possible lifeform already dwelling upon the soil of the turning world, slowly rotating on its own axis at a set speed while revolving as well on a different on to say the very least; as a result, half of it was already bathed in it. As such, the wide white sky was clean enough to bear light with a flock of birds from various sizes and shades all soaring across so serenely that not even gravity alone could ever pull any of them down to the solid earth itself, free from both the fear and worry that bound the many other fauna. Within a large dream drop distance was but a small civilization being defined in such various materials used to build them from the ground up, most of them all were the ones suitably fit for the likes of even three little pigs with not even a care in the world for the dangers posed toward them. The calm gentle breeze was now surfing across every one of the grassy knolls, the brilliant green surrounding it all on a solid lower plane of existence even as the dirt road guided its way over from a nearby forest, a curvilinear line worth holding as much as it is and was worth crossing as well. Out amongst the very backgrounds had rested a valley and ridge of smoky mountains already carving themselves a significant piece of the landscape alone, many of which were raging with growth and erosion in the very process of their trying times as the dead leaves were being carried off. With the hustle and bustle about now deeply into the flow, the small town was instantaneously filled to the brim with but an utter abundance of many people from various demographics: age, gender, finances, and social standing being rather nothing short of the standardized metallurgy of life.

One particular place within that town stood out and about in the process: while it wasn’t home in the very least unlike the other residences that were built nearby but were nonetheless treated with respect. Standing upright from the brilliant green, a long series of numerous monochromatic stones all uniform: carved in various shapes, a name and a line of text beneath were clues to who they once were. All that was occupying near them were but an arrangement of many flowers made up of various colors and species already planted over the otherwise fertile soil that was their new residence at large. Many of them that were being observed by some wayward pedestrians remained aware of their purpose within that very space as there were at least some people, either by themselves or in a crowd. Uniting them under one common goal was but a feeling of solidarity and reflection of their lives as they had stared at the formations that were sticking out of the very ground they were standing upon.

Of the many who had appeared in attendance, there were at least two people standing out and about, side–by–side upfront of one particular stone out of the others. Defined amongst themselves were likenesses in fair dignity with commonalities: cool–colored tresses, clear complexions, somber emotions, and an achieved goal. Even so, they still had significant differences betwixt one another that many observers around themselves would be very quick to notice in just a heartbeat no less.

Speaking of which, these particular individuals in question had a sense of fashion that was more conservative much like the rest of the common folk themselves whom were also in attendance within the very environment thereof. For starters, their hair had brought out the color in both of the eyes: the man in question donned a bluish scheme yet a lone cerulean streak matching his orbs; the woman next to him was purple with strips of sapphire and carnation. Secondment, both faces were already possessing vibrant complexions so smooth and soft they were free of imperfections therein: his integuments were bright like a giant peach; hers were only reminiscent of many copper alloys. Third of all, their choice of attire were elaborate: the lonely man, clad in a long blue jacket with golden accents over a black shirt and white pants; the woman nearby him wore a jaded ensemble of a vest, blouse, skirt, and stockings.

“This is all my fault: I should have been there at the wedding sooner; why is it that people like her had to suffer this way…?” she’d sighed sadly, slowly sowing the spectral sprays nearby the stone.

He’d joined in and answered the woman in green, “nothing: she was just nearby while I just stood there and watched; if anything, it should have been me…!”

“Please, don’t even say that brother: I was the one who let myself get burned long enough to let it happen; I never imagined that the war would reach my home, let alone take my sitter’s life…” she’d wept, her eyes becoming saturated with water before they'd started falling onto the ground, “even to this day, I still don’t understand why; Fluttershy was one thing, but this was too much!”

“I know…!” the lonely man in blue cried out, hugging his sister tightly as the light winds lapped at their backs, a melancholy addition to the situation they were both in as memories of great days flowed onward.

She’d looked up to his face and said, “I was being such a dunce throughout my life I didn’t even bother to stay in touch or close: my friends have gotten hurt and worse, you were left out in the cold, and even my classmate Swain has been killed; I guess this was my punishment for neglecting them…!”

“Now, where in the world would you get such an idea like this?!” the lonely man in blue had exclaimed at once, looking back at his greener counterpart with only restrained intensity, “you’re Twilight Sparkle, the smartest in all of the homeland and the dutiful of the family household…”

“But still one individual, and one individual plus one too many mistakes just seemed to be reason enough to question what I have been doing my whole life besides studying…!” the eponymous woman responded, looking away from her brother to stare back at the tombstone still right in front of themselves.

He broke away from the embrace and said to herself, “how can you honestly say that?! You’re my sister, my only sister and the last thing I ever wanted was to lose you to some mad villain’s scheme…!”

“Funny you should mention it in the very least since the fact that we’re here today because of some other villain from several years ago…” Twilight had laughed mirthlessly, already unresponsive to the reply her brother just made recently, “to be honest, I had never expected for Princess Celestia to come up with such a program, let alone put Fluttershy and myself in there. I understood how and why she’d ended up in here with the other four, especially considering what our classmates had done that had led up to the whole idea; I’ve never questioned it beyond the first day we all met, although I was in town the whole time weeks after moving away from the capital. Considering that Fluttershy wouldn’t have been able to survive behind bars, it was probably for the best, even in hindsight; of course, look how that turned out: those wretched bastards gave that poor girl shit over what happened with the very soldiers since Swain died. I should have done more to save her; at least they wouldn’t have put her through the whole insult to a game of charades, especially knowing what happened: I can’t believe that they burned down her only home with all those animals inside she’d been taking care of. If any single one of them had been kids, then everyone else would’ve spoken up even louder so to speak; from what Fluttershy told me, they were trying to make her out to be some common degenerate: as if her sexuality wasn’t enough, they'd even went so far as to say that she makes it with them instead of people for crying out loud…!”

“Oh dear, that’s awful…!” the lonely man commented while watching his sister’s facade become weakened by melancholy, teardrops in full force.

She’d covered her face and wept, “I just wish that Cadance would forgive me for not being there in time… I was so quick to give into my fury, my sorrow, I sold her memories to heal my own; I’m so fucked up…! I’m not the bright young girl that was looked after; I’m worse than nothing: I’m even lower than the boiling point of liquid nitrogen itself!”

“Twilight… please try to listen…” the aforementioned woman’s brother replied, staring at the flowers, “she can’t forgive anyone anymore…”

“Shining…?” she’d choked out, calling out his name.

The lonely man in blue continued on and had said to Twilight plainly, “Cadance is gone, Twily…”

“Because of us, right…?” the woman in green snuffled a bit, peeking at him lugubriously, “I know that, though I deserve much of the fault, not you…!”

“It’s one thing to take responsibility for one’s own actions; it’s another thing to act as if everything other people do is your fault: in doing so, it keeps the pain at a nice, safe distance…” Shining said, laying a hand over her opposite shoulder gently.

Twilight backed away and scoffed, “what in the whole wide world do you know, besides this and that?! Cadance’s dead and we’ve lost; we may have been able to end the war but it came at the cost of every single thing that made us who we are: Rainbow lost her pride, Pinkie lost her joy, Rarity lost her freedom, Applejack lost her home, Fluttershy lost her child, and I lost my sitter…!”

“So this is how you’re going to spend the rest of your life, staying here at the cemetery until you waste away and die, just like the others?!” the lonely man in blue had shouted at his sister lightly, his tone firm yet friendly, “Twily, people die all the time and not just before, during, and after those wretched wars but even in peacetime too. It’s been that way since the dawn of time but the best thing you can do in the face of that is be happy. Besides, it’s what she would have wanted overall, especially you of all people in the world: you’re a strong, intelligent woman with a winning personality surrounded by people that love and care for you; you’re the beacon of this generation that we need to guide us through those dark times and I’ll be damned if I let you go out like that again, especially if it’s permanent. But death is not defeat nor should it ever be the end of anything: I may have lost Cadance too and I’m going to live with this pain for the rest of my life; that being said, however, I refuse to take that loss to heart for we’ll be together forever.”

“Together… forever…?” she’d quickly repeated.

He held his sister tightly yet again, nestling the moist face into his textiles to absorb the deluge, “it’s true that Cadance is dead but our love didn’t die with her; life’s more than just a game of win or lose, don’t you think, Twily…? Let’s live… I’m through regretting the past: life isn’t always about loss even when they take things too far; the few things they can’t take are our spirits… Besides, I’m a complete person now despite everything; I’ve still found a reason to live and so have you.”

“Okay… let’s go…” Twilight said with a faint smile, before breaking away again to walk past Shining where he’d followed suit, “Cadance, if you’re still watching me, then maybe I could still prove myself to you after all.”

At that very moment, the twosome kept on moving forward and were surrounded by a series of houses, proof alone that they’d entered the town. The number of people increased in density as both brother and sister walked about, already cast off in a sea of others with loud senses of fashion. Even though that they were all within the lines of eyesight which had belonged to the numerous passersby, the duo in particular were all left to be. More often than not, she couldn’t help herself but to see a few faces possessed by some shiny happy people they both encountered on the way.

“So Twily, where do you want to go now…?” he’d said to the titular traveler, stuck in the middle of town as they were both currently facing at a rather large mound right up in front of themselves.

The woman turned around and answered back at Shining, “let’s go to the hospital; I heard that Rarity had been transferred there: the tumor is in remission so she should be back in action by within the next fortnight…”

“Are you sure about that: they said that she’s been ranting and raving ever since she made a scene not too long ago; is it even necessary…?” her brother had inquired, looking around the plot of dirt and flora with suspicion, “I’m not saying that it’s a bad idea but I’m merely suggesting that we should exercise caution in doing so; besides, so much has changed the poor woman…”

“I know; what happened to her was a tragedy, even considering what they did to the rest of my friends: burning down the house was one thing but everything that occurred prior to that was more sickening…!” Twilight snapped up neutrally, even though her palms were sweaty with knees weak and arms so heavy with such indignation.

Shining had edged closer to his sister carefully and whispered in her ears rather calmly, “indeed, no one in this household deserved to suffered this way and neither do the Smiths or the Pies; the work of one man was bad enough on its own but what they did to the girls, it was too much for us and them: even if they weren’t female, I would’ve never stood for this kind of treatment…”

“It makes you think though: your subordinates would’ve mostly made mincemeat out of these bastards and Rainbow wouldn’t been alone in seeking vengeance…” she’d huffed, turning away from both her brother and the barely occupied topsoil nearby the duo, “speaking of which, I’m worried about Minuette: she’s been acting cold and aloof lately, especially around her own son.”

“What do you mean by that…?” he asked again.

Taking in a deep breath, Twilight had asserted to Shining, “have you ever seen how he’d looked lately? He’s barely getting enough to be fed these days and a bit nervous around her; I think she might be mistreating him somehow but I don’t know how could this even be possible though, brother… I understand that the war had changed Minuette and Lyra for the worse but at least Lyra tries to be a good parent for her child despite being adopted, something that Cheerilee and Fluttershy can relate to. Even if that weren’t the case, I’m still worried about her nonetheless: she’s always out there never being seen for her son at night most of the time; come to think of it, I’m starting to wonder if she’s selling her body for the thrill of easing the pain. I heard that back in the olden days women who’ve been abused in such a way sometimes develop a compulsive hypersexuality to cope with the trauma and shame; that being said, it’s no excuse for what she’s subjecting him to lately: he needs a mother, not some broken down lady of the night neglecting her young much of the day.”

“I see what you mean but we need proof of that; Martin got some when he did his expose on the brothers and their relationship with the military…” the bright skinned man said as he’d found himself starting to walk around the mound immediately, something that made his own sister trail right behind this time around, “of course, we need to avoid taking risks in doing so…”

“I know it’s hard for even me to believe yet even I still think that there is some good in Minuette and Rarity as much as every other person in the whole entire world; you understand that, right brother…?” she’d said to him without hesitation.

A sigh had escaped right out from Shining’s lips almost instantaneously, “that may be but from everything that had happened before, during, and after the war, it’d be wise to take everything with a grain of substance; besides, even if stuff like fairytales were real, then it would show us as a species incapable of living up to own potential without bias or fear of others’ transgressions. As a matter of fact, what we have done to ourselves and other people along with the environment we live in is proof that they’re only stories that give off an imitation of life itself, sometimes to the chagrin of contemporary societies championing for its writer’s end despite the points being made here and there: not even all of these tales had ended happily ever after, Twilight.”

“Still, all the knowledge in the world, or lack thereof is meant to be examined and tested; that’s how progress has maintained its foothold as the gray matter of our society: at least, that’s what I had hoped for…” the eponymous sister replied.

Needless to say, even the lonely man in blue briefly chuckled, “I guess anything’s possible in this day and age…”

“I know, right, Shiny…?” the woman in green had spoken back to him with a growing smile appearing on her face, “come on, BBBFF, let’s go get some flowers for Rarity; I’m pretty sure that she would appreciate the best of the best…”

“Indeed, my LSBFF…” the aforementioned male had said in return.

Like much of the townsfolk whom remained unaware of their presence overall, the twosome in particular had regained a feeling everything else was currently right with the world.