It had been three days since the death of Knuckles and the Mane Six were pretty torn up about it. But none more so than Twilight. She didn't know Knuckles for very long and all of them didn't get along all the time, but she didn't want him to say goodbye like that. Sure, he was reunited with Maddi now, but he left behind someone who was more than willing to be his friend. Her friends felt awful as well because they treated him so horribly for most of the time and yet, he still sacrificed himself to save Twilight and them from suffering death's fate at the hands of Tirek in exchange for his own life being taken.

He might not have been the best individual, but he knows how to protect others when it's necessary. Twilight thought it would be best to orchestrate a funeral for Knuckles and her friends agreed. Most of Equestria had no idea about Knuckles' existence, but it was best that they tell them about him and honor his legacy that he left when he died. The day of the funeral had arrived and there was a sense of dread in the atmosphere.

All of Equestria had come for this funeral in Canterlot, but most of the ponies had come because they were curious about who this individual was that lived in their country for the past five years and also all of the princesses were there, so that made it a high priority event for most ponies. After everypony settled in, Twilight came up to the podium and said "Greetings everypony." She had to wipe a tear at this because she never had to do this before and it was just crushing to have to say this.

She continued and said "We are gathered here today to mourn the loss of Knuckles or Caleb Brody as his real name. Many of you probably have never heard of this creature and I don't blame you. He was often a very reserved individual and didn't come out of his house much. He was a supernatural human being that lived on a private island in Baltimare and often kept to himself. While he did stay in his mansion. he was often very hostile towards strangers and acted aggressively towards them. However, he did this because of his difficult upbringing and a terrible tragedy that happened in his early adult life."

This next part would be very difficult to say and she could only hope that she would be able to get through the entire thing without crying because she had to remain strong for the rest of the ponies there because after they hear this, they are going to feel crushed and feel greatly saddened by this.

She said "Imagine this: Let's say that you lived with your parents, who in turn despised you, they treated you like crap and would beat you to death at least once a day for 24 years along with your older sister joining in the abuse with slanderous words. That's what Knuckles' childhood and the first six years of his adult life was like. He met a girl in school when he was 15, and they ended up being together in a romantic relationship. However, a terrible car accident ripped her away from him and he was left alone after that. The person who did it effectively got bailed out by upper class folks and then died the next week after doing the same thing to someone else."

Everypony there was complete shock and they didn't know what to say to that. For some, that was the worst they had ever heard and for others, they had a similar story, so they knew what that felt like. However, no one would be prepared for this next part as this would be a first for any kind of creature in Equestria.

Twilight went on and said "After that horrific night, his parents believed it was a good idea to tie their son up against a tree and leave him out in a dangerous thunderstorm all night. I know that's unbelievable, but Knuckles got blamed for everything that went wrong in his household, even if it was not his fault. If others tried to take responsibility for what they did, his parents said that they were brainwashed and they would never do anything wrong because they were too "innocent" and "good people."

A lot of the crowd became angry at hearing how terrible these two people were. There were some who would admit that they were not the best parents, but they would never leave their child out in a violent thunderstorm all night after the tragic death of someone close to them and blame them for everything that went wrong when it wasn't their fault. Some of them didn't really care, but that was in the very small minority as most of the ponies there had standards when it came to raising up a child.

Twilight said "Knuckles was far from a perfect individual and he struggled a lot with social interaction, but with a life like that, can you really blame him? He might have seemed like a terrible individual at first, but he really is just like the rest of us. As the Princess of Friendship, I find it deeply troubling how we seem to embrace friendship, yet we seem to cast away outsiders because we don't know that much about them. I'll admit, me and my friends are guilty of this too, but it's time we move away from this. We can't say that we are happy and friendly all the time, yet turn around and cast out an outsider because we've never seen them before."

Most of the crowd was left stunned at that statement, but they wanted to hear the rest of the speech before they made judgement on anything since all four princesses were there and that could be a sign of trouble if someone yelled out something.

Twilight sighed and said "Even our interactions were not that great with him, but it wasn't entirely his fault. When he punched Pinkie, it was because he was scared and didn't know how else to react. When we showed up at his house, he didn't know what he was dealing with, so he had to be careful. After the fallout I had with him after discovering his darkest secret, he acted in rage because it was tough to deal with and he didn't want to think about it again. When Rainbow challenged him to a fight, he misunderstood what was being said because we were all too scared to say anything since he yelled so loud. When he almost threatened to kill Rainbow with a giant rock, he was so blinded by anger that he didn't realize what he was doing. I could go on forever, but the point is that even if he seemed dangerous, it was only because we made dumb decisions and he simply acted in anger as a response because that's what his brain has known his entire life."

At this point, most of the crowd was dead silent as they so desperately wanted to spark judgement, but they didn't want themselves executed in the process because they interrupted a princess.

Twilight continued and said "Even though things were not looking good, the threat of Lord Tirek made him come out of hiding and return to help us defeat him. But at a very grave cost. He was able to beat around Tirek with his incredible strength and insulted him in a way that I never heard before, but never to be repeated here because of how inappropriate it was. That was enough to anger Tirek and it allowed us to buy time to try to fight him again. Tirek was about to crush me with his massive hoof, when Knuckles came running out of nowhere and pushed me out of the way, which resulted in him getting crushed instead."

Twilight could already feel the tears coming and she wanted to break down right then and there, but she still had to remain strong because that would be bad form as a princess to do something like that in front of a crowd.

Twilight cleared her throat and said "We tried to save him, but it was unfortunately too late when we got there to him. He said that he was already living a miserable life and that death was the proper punishment for his actions. He even apologized to Rainbow for trying to kill her and when Tirek blasted him, all that was left was his... skeleton. After that, we were able to defeat Tirek and get a castle out of that, but he... was gone. He was a very troubling person, but he didn't deserve to die like that. He did call us many insulting things, but in the end, he risked his life for all of us and saved us from total domination from Tirek. Anyone who wants to wish him a final goodbye may do so now."

She walked over to her seat and as soon as she did, she started to break down crying. She didn't care who was looking at this point as she was completely devastated at the death of someone she called a friend. He might not have thought so in return, but he was there when it mattered most. Even thought most of the crowd was shocked to see a princess crying in public, they felt nothing but sympathy for her because they knew that something like this was extremely painful to go through.

Rainbow was the first one to step towards to the closed coffin and she sighed, She said "Hey, Knuckles. I want to apologize for being so rough on you. I simply thought that you were a bad individual, but in fact, you proved me wrong. You were simply a hurting individual who was alone all the time and had a bad childhood. Nothing I could ever say would make that pain go away, but I do want to say that you've earned my full respect now. Even when you threatened to kill me, you still apologized right before your death. Even when you hurled insults at me and my friends, you still saved us in the end against Tirek by paying the ultimate sacrifice of death so that we may live. You may be more stubborn than Applejack, but you're more loyal than I could ever be. You represent my element better than I did, and with that, I eternally thank you for that. Farewell, soldier."

Applejack was the next one to step up to the coffin and she took off her hat as a signal that she is going to have an honest talk. She sighed and said "Ah admit, Knuckles, ya were one of the most stubborn individuals Ah have ever seen in mah lifetime, maybe even more than me, but ya have an incredible amount of honesty. Maybe just a little too much though. Ah also thought Ah was the strong one, but ya proved me wrong as well on that. The amount of strength ya have is beyond amazin' and it's a shame ya threw all that away for us. Ah understand what ya were goin' through now more than ever, and after Ah lost Ma and Pa, Ah know what's like to lose someone close to ya. Ya deserve the Element of Honesty far more than Ah do and nothin' could ever express how grateful Ah feel for ya sacrificing yerself so we may live. Take care, partner."

Pinkie was the next one to go and she looked miserable. She looked the exact same way that she did when her friends were avoiding her in "Party of One." She sighed and said "Knuckles, I know we didn't talk much and you couldn't stand my personality, but you knew how to make Twilight happy. She would often come home from your house in a happy mood and you unleashed something in her that none of us have ever seen before. I'm... sure you are happy now to be reunited with your girlfriend and are living the great life up there on the other side, but you left behind this Earth as well. I might not have been there to see it, but Twilight always mentioned how you could get a good laugh out of something and for that, you represent the Element of Laughter better than I did. See... ya later Crocodile." She made it about three feet before she collapsed on the floor and Rainbow and Applejack had to help her back to her seat.

Rarity was the next pony to go and even she was wiping away the tears in her eyes with the handkerchief. She sighed and said "Knuckles, I didn't really know you too well and you seemed like to be a very rude individual at first, but my entire opinion changed after hearing about your terrible upbringing. No parent should ever do that kind of thing to a child like yours did and no older sister should say such slanderous things to her younger brother either. Hearing that made me realize I need to be a better older sister to Sweetie Belle and be the proper role model she needs to have in her life. Nothing could ever change the way how you lost your girlfriend in a terrible way like that. I have tried looking for that love life myself, but you showed me that I need to care about the individuals who are with you the most in your life because they can be ripped away from you at any moment. When you sacrificed yourself like that, I saw that you were truly a very generous person despite what had happened before. You will always represent the Element of Generosity better than I would and I am eternally thankful that you saved us from Tirek, even though you lost your life as the ultimate cost. Sleep well, darling."

Fluttershy was the next one up and she was struggling to try to figure out what to say. She eventually got the courage to speak and said "Knuckles, I knew from the beginning that you were suffering through immense pain and I could see all of that in your rage filled eyes when we first encountered each other. I know it was incredibly hard growing up with such abusive parents and then have your girlfriend ripped away from you when you least expected it. No words could ever express how much pain you truly went through, but you never seemed to give up despite being beaten down so many times. The way you sacrificed yourself was beyond anything I could imagine and I don't know what to say. You truly are the kindest individual for doing that for us and you deserve the Element of Kindness more than I do. I will miss you greatly and I hope life on the other side treats you well."

Twilight was the final one to step up to the coffin and even though she spoke before, she had a few things to say before he was buried. She sighed and said "Caleb, nothing could ever express how I truly feel about your death. It was the most reckless thing I have ever seen in my life, but also the bravest I have ever seen. I know your life was horrible, but you didn't have to go out that way. You might not have felt the same way, but I considered you my friend despite our challenges. You made me realize that we as a nation needs to do better when it comes to outsiders. Most of us thought you were dangerous, but in fact, you kept to yourself because you didn't want us to know the truth about your terrible past. When you sacrificed yourself, I realized I was being a terrible friend for the entire time and with that, I am deeply sorry. I've been terrible at being the Princess of Friendship and you represent my Element of Magic far better than I ever could. You may not be sad anymore, but I am with you gone. It will be hard, but just know that you always have a friend here. Goodbye, Caleb Brody."

After everyone was done, the other princesses put the coffin into the ground and put the dirt on top of it. Soon, everyone dispersed and went their separate ways. The Mane Six got back onto the train home and none of them said a word to each other. They were still hurting from all of this and they didn't want to say something they would regret because of conflicting emotions. As soon as they got home, they went their separate ways and did not speak a word to each other.

Weeks passed by and that eventually turned to months before they ever spoke to one another again. When they finally did, it happened by chance. However, the environment was still very tense and no one was sure on what to say because they could cause a firestorm amongst them.

Applejack was the first one to open up and asked nervously "So, how are y'all?" All of them said that they were fine and went quiet again. After a few seconds, Applejack asked "How did we get like this?" All of them looked at her with confusion and she clarified what she meant by saying "It seems like ever since... ya know, we hardly seem to talk to each other anymore and ghost 'em instead."

That proved to open up a can of worms and Rainbow was the first to speak by saying "Well gee, Applejack. You ever figure out why that was the case?! We just lost someone who happened to help stop Tirek and died in the process so that we may live!"

Rarity got angry and said to Rainbow "As if you actually cared about the individual in the first place! You even challenged him to a fight all because of a simple misunderstanding! Sure, he might have tried to kill you, but that never would have happened if you hadn't opened your mouth!"

Rainbow growled with anger and said "Neither did you! You constantly went on about how much of a "brute" and "uncivilized" creature he was and while he did call you a drama queen, he wasn't entirely wrong!"

Twilight was angry at both of them and said "None of you actually cared about him! I was the ONLY ONE that truly cared! I gave him the benefit of the doubt when you didn't! I tried to be friends with him when you didn't! I even went to his house to talk to him when you didn't! The only time you did start to care is when he was about to die! Had he not done that, you would have NEVER ADMITTED how wrong you all were about him! You would still have hate towards him in your hearts! Even after I told you about his childhood and the death of Maddi, you still REFUSED to believe that you were wrong!"

Pinkie jumped in and said "HEY! We're supposed to be friends here, and this is the EXACT OPPOSITE OF BEING FRIENDS! HE EVEN RIPPED MY PARTY CANNON APART AND THREW IT INTO SPACE! YOU DON'T SEE ME COMPLAINING!"

All of them started ripping into each other for how bad of a friend they were and Fluttershy just stood in silence because she didn't want to say anything. Things were already bad enough and she didn't want to add to it. Eventually, they all yelled that they didn't want to see each other again and they ran in their separate directions.

Nearby, a figure in the shadows was watching the entire fight go down from the top of the Castle of Friendship and he could only feel guilt as he watched. He shouldn't have done this to them. He shouldn't have given them some bs goodbye and then disappear from the scene. He even told them that they shouldn't do this to each other and yet, none of them called the other out for dishonoring his wish. As he watched them leave, he sighed and turned around to leave. He said "I'm so sorry girls. I wish you could truly understand what you're doing to yourselves." He went up into the air and disappeared.

Author's Note

AN: Well, things got a bit ugly to say the least. This was bound to happen and it was only a matter of time before this occurred. I'm sure you all knew the figure that was hiding in the shadows, but it will be revealed truly in the next chapter, so you want to stay tuned for that. Hope you enjoyed the chapter!

Next Chapter: Amending Fences! After the huge fight that breaks out between the Mane Six, most of them eventually come back a few weeks later to apologize to each other. However, Twilight is still left heartbroken over Knuckles' death and she refuses to come out of her castle. Eventually, she is forced out and ordered to go to Canterlot to talk to Celestia about this. Will Celestia be able to help Twilight move on with life, or will Twilight be filled with too much pain to move forward?

Until then, my fellow readers