Life would always come to an end.
Such is the stable constant of the universe.
Even magical lifeforms were not exempted from its finite properties.
The land of Equestria was one place where magic was abundant. Its inhabitants – unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies – were formed from this mysterious essence. In the center of Equestria, the capital city of Canterlot was built atop a mountainside. Ponies of all kinds prospered through years of conflict, all of which was resolved. Canterlot and all of Equestria was in an era of peace, and friendship.
All ponies understood the meaning of life; they understood that their time was limited.
As such, they strived to find their purpose and make the most out of their life.
Within one of the many districts of Canterlot stood a large musical theater. This was the home of the Canterlot Symphony Orchestra, a group known all throughout the nation. That evening, they had just ended one of their many rehearsals, and most members had packed up, getting ready to go back home.
A green earth pony sat behind a desk riddled with folders of sheet music and stray pages of pieces. Among all of that, there was a nameplate with the name “Emerald Melody'' engraved onto it. The title “Maestro” was inscribed beneath her name. She affixed her glasses on her muzzle as she glanced through the various music sheets that the orchestra had arranged. With a pencil in hoof, she marked several notes that she felt needed attention.
Two knocks came from her office door. Emerald Melody’s ears twitched at the sound, and her shoulders sagged. She had thought that somepony would come in with more work for her, ready to shave off more time from her evening.
“Come in,” she said in a monotone voice. Her eyes narrowed as a pony entered her office.
“Mel?” a soft voice called. A sense of relief filled Emerald Melody; that wasn’t a voice of one of her orchestra’s members.
“Golden Dusk? What brings you here?” Mel’s eyes softened at the sight of the gray unicorn.
He quietly closed the door behind him. Golden Dusk was the nephew of her wife. He was easily identified by bright yellow eyes that shone light gold. Yet, when he entered the room, Mel noticed an almost sad gleam to them. A usually bright light began to fizzle out.
“Happened to be near here, wanted to stop by,” he answered, closing the door.
Mel raised a brow. “You? Here. A music theater. In the music district?” She rested her chin on a hoof. “Not the best excuse you can come up with.”
He flinched. “Okay, fine. You got me.” Dusk took a seat in front of her desk with slumped shoulders. “Just… I haven’t been sleeping well.”
“What am I, your therapist?” Mel deadpanned.
“Yeah. I mean, I’m technically your nephew,” Dusk shot back.
Mel sighed. She didn’t mean to be particularly snarky towards him. She supposed the stress of another day at work got to her. “Sorry, I haven’t been feeling too well, either.” Mel reached over and patted his shoulder. “So, what’s going on?”
“Well... “ Dusk began, “you know…”
“Hm?”
“Ever since… the, uhm, accident...”
Mel flinched. Her gaze lowered for a moment as silence filled the room. Looking back up, she saw Golden Dusk shaking, and his eyes were glued to the floor.
“Dusk, that was almost six months ago…” Mel said.
“I know, I know. I just…” Golden Dusk rubbed his foreleg.
Emerald Melody stood up from her seat to sit adjacent to the colt. She looked him in the eyes with the softest gaze she could muster, a small, sad smile on her face.
“It’s taken its toll on you too?” Mel asked softly.
Golden Dusk gave her a gentle nod.
“That goes for both of us.”
She got up from her seat and gave Dusk a hug. The younger colt remained motionless, almost frozen, before slowly wrapping his forelegs around her as well. She listened to his rapidly beating heart, filled with emotion that he was scared to show. A short moment passed and Mel let go of Dusk, giving him a small pat on the back.
“Life is… unpredictably short, isn’t it?” Mel whispered.
“Yeah…” Dusk murmured.
“The best we can do is make the most of it.”
“I know…”
“Even when we lose some ponies along the way…”
“I-I know…”
Mel hummed as she continued to comfort Dusk. “Think of it like music. Each song will have to end eventually, but we can always look forward to new ones.”
A tear ran down Golden Dusk’s cheek which Mel gently wiped away. At the mention of music, she glanced over at her desk to still see her unfinished pile of work, but she glossed over the notion in favor of her nephew. The colt let out a few sniffles before the two locked gazes once more.
“Better?” Mel asked.
She got her reply with Golden Dusk throwing his forelegs around her. Mel gasped at the sudden movement but returned the hug all the same.
“Little bit…,” Dusk answered. “Thank you.”
“You're welcome. Family has to be there for each other in times like these, right?”
The two said their farewells shortly after that. Emerald Melody, almost reluctantly, packed a folder of sheet music into her saddle bags to go through at home later that evening. Hopefully, the atmosphere of her house would be less suffocating than the theater’s.
And, maybe, she’d finally be relieved of her stress for the day.
After walking through the streets of Canterlot, Emerald Melody eventually found herself outside her own home. It was a quaint, two-story house with a well-maintained, but small front garden. The curtains were closed, as usual. Despite that, a sense of finality filled her. After a long day of work, she was finally back. Her speed shifted from a leisurely stroll to a brisk walk to her home. The moon had risen enough to near its peak; it was getting quite late, but that didn’t matter to her.
She climbed two steps as she pulled out a key from her bags. The front door opened with a gentle click, and Melody pushed it open to reveal an extremely dark room. She reached inside, by the door frame, her hoof moving up and down before she felt a small bump. Flicking the switch, Melody’s eyes were suddenly blinded by the sudden light. She sighed and blinked a few times to compose herself.
After opening her eyes, Melody was immediately met with the hallway, which at the end of it had a staircase leading up to the second floor. To her left was their living room. A large sofa was placed in the center, alongside a carpet and coffee table. In front of it was a small fireplace, left unlit. To her right was the dining room. There was a small table with two chairs, though she kept extra chairs in the corner for guests.
Melody felt her head ache and rubbed her forehead. “Moonie, you forgot to turn on the lights again!” she called as she closed the door.
She heard a thump from upstairs as a magic connection formed with her mind. A voice replied in her head with an echo, “Mel? Didn’t you just get home?”
“Yes…” Mel replied with her mind. “Why?”
The voice groaned. “You’re so loud! You do know that some ponies are trying to sleep, right?”
“At this point, you’re the one being– wait, did you get in bed without me?”
There was a long silence. “No…?”
Mel sighed as she set down her saddlebags. “Well, that’s fine, it’s late anyway.”
She rounded the corner and entered the dining room. Mel opened the fridge to see a plate of food wrapped up in plastic. She brought it to the counter.
“Have you eaten yet?” Mel asked as she placed the plate beneath a strange device. Etched on its base was the name ‘Mythic Moon.’
“Yep!” Mythic Moon replied from upstairs still. “You were taking a bit too long for me.”
The device began to humm, and Mel felt heat radiating from it. “That’s fine. Wasn’t looking forward to eating with you anyway.”
“Oh, are you being snarky now, Mel?” Mythic gasped.
“Whatever do you mean?” Mel asked cluelessly.
“Haha, very funny.”
Mel smiled. She took her plate of food from the device and onto the table, taking with her utensils. She sat down and began to eat.
“How was work today?” Mythic asked, still using telepathy.
“Actually, something different happened for once.” Mel replied in between bites of food.
Mythic paused. “Oh? What happened?”
“Your little Goldie popped over to see me.” Mel answered. “And with some news.”
“Go on…”
“Well, somepony finally decided to get together with Scarlet.”
Mythic squealed before she abruptly stopped and asked, “Wait, Goldie asked Scarlet out?”
Mel scoffed, as if Mythic got the easiest question wrong. “Don’t be ridiculous. Scarlet asked Goldie out.”
“Oh… well, good for them…”
Mel hummed in agreement.
“About time!” Mythic suddenly shouted through her telepathy. “I swear, those two have been staring at each other for forever,” Mythic said, exasperated by it.
Mel thought back her reply. “Well, we both know your nephew’s not one to take initiative, and Scarlet is the type to lure them in instead of taking the first step… if you know what I mean.”
“I know, I know.” Mythic sighed in her mind. “Why can’t our young ones be more like us?”
“You say that like we’re any better.”
“Touché.”
Mel got up and brought her dishes to the sink. She twisted the faucet, letting water rinse off anything unwanted left on her plate. Her ears twitched at the sound of hoofsteps coming from the stairs. A small smile found its way to her visage. She felt two forelegs wrap around her, and some pony resting against her back.
“Here to help me?” Mel asked Mythic jokingly.
Mythic hummed thoughtfully. “Nah.”
Mel rolled her eyes. “Then why’re you here?”
“Can’t I be with you?”
“Hmph.” Mel didn’t dare look behind her. Mythic most likely brought out her pleading eyes, one of her weaknesses. Though, a light blush rose to her cheeks at the thought of it.
“Aw, cute~” Mythic teased. “I didn’t know the maestro was this soft!”
“Hush.”
Mythic, in fact, did not hush. “Now, now, my lovely wife, I’ll be waiting for you upstairs~”
“You could just go back to sleep,” Mel said, eyes fixed determinedly on the dishes.
“Yes, but I want to go to sleep with you beside me.” Mythic let go of Mel and nudged her with her flank. “Don’t take too long, okay?”
Mel couldn’t help but smile. If there was one thing she looked forward to at the end of each day, it was the feeling of being with somepony she loved. Though, she’d have to give some slightly bad news to Mythic… about her leftover work due to Dusk’s visit.
After the dishes, Mel dried her hooves with a cloth and brought her saddlebags with her upstairs. She entered their bedroom. The bed was a mess; it seemed like Mythic did a number to it. In a similar fashion, her desk, too, was fairly unorderly. Despite that, she laid her saddlebags down beside it, took a seat, and pulled out the same black folder she showed the stallion earlier that evening.
There was a subtle click from behind her. Soft hoofsteps moved towards her, and Mythic, again, hugged her from behind. “I thought we were going to bed?”
Mel sighed and lowered her head. “I have to do a couple things first.”
Mythic nuzzled her ears. “That’s fine, I guess. I think I’ll stay here for a bit, though.”
That wouldn’t be a problem; Mythic was light enough.
As Mel began to read through the score, her left hindleg tapped to the beat of the song. She hummed the notes to find what she wanted from each section’s part. The percussion to this song were particularly essential, as they would help set the tone. Seemed like she’d have to note down a few things for them.
Mythic suddenly began to nuzzle Mel even more. “Can’t this wait ‘till some other time?”
“Can’t. I have to do this now, or we'll fall behind,” Mel answered.
Mythic whined but didn’t push her. Instead, she asked, “Writing down more notes for your group?”
“Yup. They need to get it right.”
There was a brief pause, as if Mythic was reading through the score as well. “So… what’s this ‘sf’ thing mean?” she finally asked.
“This one below the notes?” Mel pointed with her pencil.
“Uh-huh.”
“It means ‘sforzando.’”
Mythic yawned. “And that means?”
“Play it with a strong accent, or suddenly loud. Kind of like a scream,” Mel explained.
“Like how I want to scream at you to go to bed with me already?”
Mel could feel her wife’s smirk. “You already knew what it meant, didn’t you?”
Mythic didn’t reply, instead her forelegs already around her tightened, pulling Mel closer to her. Mel responded by wrapping a hoof around Mythic’s foreleg, acknowledging and appreciating the embrace. Mel’s body loosened, relaxed for the first time in hours. She felt safe, like she could be herself. Mythic nuzzled Mel’s cheek, and she responded in kind.
“Love you~” Mythic said sleepily with a kiss on her cheek.
Her heart beat hastened, and butterflies flew in her stomach. What she came back to everyday kept her going. Home gave her strength to continue to be the best pony she could be. Warmth began to spread throughout her form, as her face lit up the brightest it could.
She twisted her body around, making Mythic let go of her as she turned to face her. “I–”
Mel stared at Mythic Moon smiling warmly behind her. Though, she knew that something was off. Mythic’s entire body was bathed in an ethereal light, and she was almost transparent. The mare continued to gaze at Mel warmly, as if nothing was wrong.
As such, Mel could only say one thing to her.
“I love you too.”
Mythic Moon’s gaze softened and her smile grew warmer. For a moment, Mel still felt that same warmth she would when Mythic was still with her. The ghostly mare gave Mel a hug, one that she couldn’t feel, before Mythic dissipated into wisps of magic, the essence the ponies were molded from. Now, Mel looked around to come to a realization.
The room was empty.
Empty, except for Mel herself.
“I guess even when you go back to what you were, you still remember me, huh?”
Emerald Melody’s hoof found its way to her chest, rubbing her aching heart. The warmth she felt was replaced with sheer cold. Loneliness incomparable to what she remembered her home would give her. Her vision began to blur. Mel sighed and turned back to her desk once more. In the corner of her desk, she saw a picture frame. She reached over and gently grasped it with her hoof, bringing it closer to her.
She gazed at it wistfully. It was a photo of Mel with a unicorn standing beside her. Both of them smiled gleefully at the camera. Mythic Moon had a foreleg around Mel, and Mel wrapped a hoof around hers. Drops of tears fell on the glass, which Mel wiped away.
“Move on… it’s the best thing we can do for her…” Mel told herself. “Right, Golden Dusk?” she called out to her nephew who lived nowhere near her, seeking solace. She gave him a chance to let out his feelings, yet she couldn’t grant herself the same opportunity.
“I’m such a hypocrite.”
The pencil fell from Mel’s hoof. Her hoof shakily grasped at the stationary to no avail. Mel tried, and tried, yet her sunken heart could not bear with the overwhelming grief she felt at that moment. She covered her face with her hooves, tears flowing freely as her breath grew unsteady.
“I need you…”
She whispered those three words over and over again. A silent, desperate plea for her life to return to what it once was. Her vision blurred, yet she mustered what little strength she had left to wipe her tears away, only for her eyes to water shortly after. Mel picked up her pencil once more to continue with her work. Several hours passed before she finished up her work for the night… only for her to turn into a cold bed.
