Lament of the Musician

In Memory OfJacob J. H. BeaudryAugust 6, 1995 - June 21, 2011

The orchestral hall was dead silent, save for the cellist at the front performing. The song she played told a story of life lost and life lived, the mare's hooves gliding across the instrument. It told a story of a friend, once living, whose life was now lived through another. A single tear fell from the mare's eye onto her pink bow tie, clearly remembering a horrible tragedy. Nevertheless, she kept her composure throughout her tune.

Eventually, the lament ended, and the mare took a bow as the audience stomped their hooves in approval. More tears flowed down her face as more memories flooded into her thoughts. She didn't care if the ponies liked her song or not. All she cared about was living on a legacy. It's what she would have wanted… thought the mare as the red curtains closed in on her.

Her performance over, the mare placed her bow and cello into the old carrying case. There were marks all over the case showing it had been through the best of times and the worst of times. The plastic was charred in some places, and all together missing in others. Oddly enough, though, the cello inside was in perfect condition, despite being used many times by her. The mare didn't care, she preferred it that way. It was special in a way she couldn't describe.

Closing the case, the mare found herself in the endless stare of a pony she once knew. The peeling picture, like the case, was special to her. It showed the picture of a grey Earth pony with a black mane and a pink bow tie laughing. In one of her hooves was a glass of some purple drink, halfway gone. The other was wrapped around a white unicorn with a wild mane alternating between an electric blue and a normal blue. Purple glasses covered her eyes as she chugged the same purple liquid down. Her last night… thought the mare to herself, unable to hold back her feelings. Tears streamed down her face and onto the case as she choked on her sadness. She opened her eyes to look at the two happy ponies again and yelled, "It's all my fault! It's all my fault that… that she's… she's…"

"Excuse me, ma'am, but what's your fault?" piped up a little voice from behind. The mare spun around to see a young teal mare with a maroon and white mane behind her. She had a picture of the mare in her mouth. Wiping the tears from her eyes, the mare asked, "E-excuse me? Wh-who are y-you?" The filly seemed to jump as she said, "I'm Angel! I'm a huge fan of your music!" The mare cracked a smile as she said, "Listen, kid, I-I don't really care for fans, followers, o-or anything like that. At least, n-not anymore. I play for… s-somepony close to me…" The picture dropped from Angel's mouth as she said, "No, I mean, I've listened to you since before you were popular!"

"Well, number one fan, could I have s-some time alone?" The filly looked up to her idol and said, "Maybe I can help you with whatever you're doing! I've always wanted to work on some music with you!" The mare shook her head and said, "No can do. I just need some time to… to r-remember a long gone friend…" Angel sat down for a minute, then said, "Maybe I can help you remember your friend? I wouldn't want for you to be alone and sad…"

A second smile came across the mare's face as she said, "I guess I could… tell you…" She slid the case over in between her and Angel as she pointed to one of the ponies in the curled up picture. Her voice shook as she said, "Y-you see this m-mare?" The teal filly gave a nod, signaling for the mare to continue. "W-well, me a-and her were the b-best of f-f-friends… w-we lived together… sh-shared the same h-home… the s-same b-bed… the same e-everything…" The tears began to roll down her face again as the filly frowned. She stared at the picture and said, "I don't ever remember hearing about her in any news article including you…" The mare sniffled as she choked, "W-well, m-me and h-h-her, we n-never had the s-same taste in m-music, s-so w-we never w-wanted to be m-mentioned t-together…"

The backstage lights began to go out, one by one. The loud clicks echoed throughout the room. The mare looked up at the lights and said, "M-maybe we should c-continue this… o-outside…" Angel nodded and helped the mare put the cello case on her back and walked out with her. The December snow fell lightly from the dark sky onto the two. Angel looked around in wonder as the snow crunch under her hooves. She then looked up to the cellist and asked, "Maybe we should go to your house?" The mare looked at her fan and said, "Y-your parents… wouldn't they be worried?" The filly smiled and said, "No, they won't be. They always know where I am. They honestly won't mind." Another sniffle came from the mare as she nodded and walked away without a word, the filly tagging along behind her, the crunching snow the only sound echoing in the streets.

The two eventually passed by the charred ruins of a brick building, snow failing to cover the blackened wood and brick. The mare stopped at the ruins and stared at it as Angel walked up next to her. They both looked out into the ruins as the filly said, "I remember hearing about this. Just a bit, only that one pony died. Is this place special to you?" The mare shed a single tear as she said, "This… this is where we should stop…"

"But… your home? What about that? Are we gonna just stand out here in the cold?" asked Angel. The mare turned to her and said, "This was my home. This is where I'm going to tell you about the fire that took everything away from me. My studio, my home… my friend…" The mare started to sniffle as the tears once more trailed down her face, then she said, "Th-this is where my f-f-friend died… b-because of m-me…" Her bow tie fluttered to the ground as it fell off her neck. Tears splashed on the ashes of the complex. It hurt the mare to remember, but she had to do it. She had to remember her friend. Angel sat down next to the mare as the cellist pulled out her cello and began to play the song from the earlier performance. It was a special song that she made herself from scratch.

The Lament of the Musician.