Fate Rewritten

by Sunny_and_Auri_23

Rating: teen
Tags: Clover the Clever, Twilight Sparkle, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Alternate Universe, Sad, Other
Length: 1169

Clover the Clever. A name with much renown. But little does Twilight know what grief hid behind that same name.

Clover the Clever. A name with much renown. But little does Twilight know what grief hid behind that same name.

Published 2020-10-20 23:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2020-10-20 23:00:00 UTC

Prologue

It was just a few miles from the castle. The sky was blanketed with dreary clouds. It had been for almost a week now. The quiet sound of rolling thunder unleashed the first drops of rain that evening. Now, it would not stop until the night had ceased. It was as if the whole world had begun to mourn. But, mourn for what? There was nothing to mourn for.

The rain had begun to dampen her surroundings, though she remained dry.
It felt so strange. Yet it felt like nothing at all.

She stared at the gravestone in front of her. It looked ordinary. Nopony would have been able to tell that someone of importance was buried there. She sighed. If it were not for the engravings on the stone, she thought bitterly. The grass had lost its colour, as if the life had been drained out of it. The trees drooped in sorrow.

She did not understand why. There was no need for sorrow. Everything was fine.

The area was devoid of life, of any living creature. The wind was still. Even the rain was silent. It was quiet. She lowered her eyes. It was lonely, she thought. She was alone. Again. But it was fine. This was what she wanted after all.

She looked at her lavender hooves. They were the same as they always were. This was wrong. She should not be here. She wrapped her cloak closer to herself to keep herself warm, though she could not feel the cold. She was protecting herself. From what, she did not know. Daylight was waning. Dusk was on its way. But she did not know why. It had been almost a week, yet she still did not know why.

Her ears twitched at the sound of somepony approaching. Unwanted memories. So many of them. She was supposed to forget. Why did she remember? Her eyes narrowed as she recognised the voice that spoke. "You were always a stubborn mare, Clover," He gave a humourless laugh, his tired eyes showing wisdom and restrained grief.

But Clover knew better.

"At least I did not force my wishes onto somepony else." She turned from him and glared at the gravestone, refusing to look back at the intruder.

He did not seem at all phased, however, and continued to speak, "And your stubbornness had proven to be an invaluable trait; one that brought harmony to Equestria for the first time," He sighed, "A shame that very stubbornness has brought you here." His gaze was unfocused and his beard and mane were grey with regret. No, not regret. Disappointment.

"My stubbornness would never have brought me here if it were not for my acceptance, Master," Clover screwed her eyes shut. "Acceptance that I would not rather than forever."

"Knowledge. Power. Glory. That was what you wanted after all." His cloak and hat sunk into his fur, dripping with water. He almost did not seem to notice.

"Yes. It was what I wanted. But what was is not now. For now is no more."

"I suppose not."

"Master? Why are you here?"

He said nothing.

"Starswirl," She tried again, "What do you want?"

Still nothing.

Clover sighed and shook her head. Why was she even trying?

Starswirl walked closer to the gravestone and she was forced to step aside. Even now, it seemed, she was forced to do things. Even now.
His eyes began to glimmer, "Student, you knew you had to fulfill your destiny. Why could you not have stayed?"

Clover did not respond. It would not have made a difference anyway.

Starswirl stepped back and turned to leave. She would be alone again. Alone. Alone.
"No, wait!" She called out to him desperately, "Leave me not!" But Starswirl did not stop. He did not even look back.
Clover ran in front of him to block his path, "I do not wish to be-" Starswirl walked through her and carried on, unaware of the hopeless mare he left behind. "-alone!" She gasped and fell from the impact that only she could feel.

Then she felt nothing. Nothing at all. Not even the aching of her heart. Not even the sharp pain in her hoof. Not even sorrow. Yet, she cried.

Her tears became wisps of air, maneuvering through the raindrops, lost forever in the atmosphere. She envied them, at least they could fly. She was grounded here. She shook her head again. Crying would not do. It was pointless. She stood up on her hooves once more and faced the gravestone. Despite the little distance between them, Clover could read the engravings. They were all too familiar. The name engraved was all too familiar.

The rain was harsher now, and the dirt at her hooves turned to mud. She could not feel the mud. How long would she remain like this? How long would she face the fate she had tried for so long to avoid? How long would she have to face her mistake? All she could do now was wait. Wait until the world sought to relieve her. She would wait for weeks. Months. Years. Decades. Centuries. Millenia.

Eternity.

Her eyes misted over again. Try as she might, she could not stop the tears. Even as they misted away and left her eyes dry. She felt dry. But she could not stop. She fell again, sobbing into her hooves. Pathetic. A name as renowned as hers should not be so weak. But in the midst of her lonely wails, her name had no meaning anymore. Maybe to her friends. Maybe to her Master. Maybe to her Princess. Maybe to Equestria. But not to herself. The storm was at its worst now, yet she remained dry. There was no denying. Stubbornness may have brought her here, but there was no space for stubbornness. She chose acceptance this time. She accepted her weakness. She accepted her feelings, even though they did not matter. She felt sorrow.

She read the engraved writing.

Here Lies Clover the Clever
Loving Friend and Pupil
Your legend shall be ever remembered.

Author's Note

Another mundane story from yours truly (Sunny)!

Not sure where I came up with this story idea but I really like it for some reason? I've been fascinated by history over the past few months, and the history of Equestria is no exception! This is probably the best piece of writing I've ever done (hope I made my English teacher proud)! :pinkiehappy:

And yes, I am aware that in Forgotten Friendship, Clover is referred to as "he", but I'm coming off the headcanon that Clover looks like Twilight.

This is my first go at writing something meaningful and sad by myself, and I'm not really sure how I did, so if you have any comments or criticism, feel free to let me know! I always want to improve and I love hearing from all of you!

Thanks so much for reading and have a nice day! :twilightsmile:

-Sunny