"So... You're really leaving..." my best friend said to me as I put on my saddlebags. She took this harder than any other pony I knew.
"Yeah..." I looked at the grey mare that stood before me her black mane well-kept and her pink bow tie I had bought her tied around her neck.
"W-Will I see you again?" Of all the things she could say it had to be that.
I nodded my head. "Of course you will. We’re best friends, right?"
She smiled and nodded. “Yeah, I know.”
I gave her a quick kiss on the forehead and boarded the train. "Bye Tavi, I'll miss you..."
Without warning the train took off leaving Tavi and Ponyvile behind me.
That was about 10 years ago. Ten years since I left my best friend and the one place I called “Home”. Ten years since I had left Ponyvile with nothing but a single bag and my double bass. And who would’ve known that ten years later I’d be lying in a hospital bed, dying, my short life flashing before my eyes. But when is life ever long enough?
“Beep… Beep… Beep… Beep…”
I manage a glimpse to my side to see a familiar grey mare with a well-kept mane and a beautiful pink bowtie around her neck. “T-Tavi…”
“Beep… Beep… Beep…”
She looks up at me with tears in her eyes. “Y-Yes?” she manages to speak through her tears.
“Beep… Beep...”
“I-I love y-you, Octavia…”
“Beep…”
Her tears begin to fall harder when she hears the heart monitor’s rhythmic beat stop.
“Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeepppppppppppppppppp…”
“Oh, my god… CJ!” the tears begin to fall faster and harder. A white mare wraps her forelegs around the grey mare, failing to hold back her tears.
“I-I can’t b-believe it…” the gray mare manages through her cascading tears. “H-He’s r-really gone…”
“I-I’m sorry Tav…” the white mare says, comforting her friend. “H-He was, no, is my friend but I know how much he really means to you…”
A single doctor walked into the room and looks over to the recently deceased patient. “I’m sorry.” The doctor began, “Concerto Johan is no longer with us, with a heavy heart I announce him deceased.”
The doctor turned around and covered the stallion’s head with the thin sheet that now covers his body. Octavia stands on wobbly legs and walks over to her deceased coltfriend. She uncovers his face and gives him their last kiss together.
She slowly pulls away from the kiss and whispers, “G-Goodbye CJ. The next time I will see you will be the last…” she backs away and slowly recovers his face.
“Come on Tav.” the other mare says. “Let’s go home.”
“O-Okay…”
The walk home is silent for the two mares. The only sounds being made by the light rain that would undoubtedly become harder as the storm moves in. The two mares walk in front of a music shop. But this, mind you, is no ordinary music shop. This is His music shop. “Concerto’s Music”. The one shop that is closed off from the public by an investigation team.
At seeing the old shop Octavia’s heart stung with pain and tears filled her eyes as she remembered the events that put her where she is. Octavia shakes her head to rid herself of the memories and continues on her way home.
At last the two mares made it back to their humble abode. Vinyl walks into the kitchen to get herself a drink. She asks her roommate if she would like a drink. Octavia shakes her head and slowly walks to her room. Once there Octavia lies down on her bed and looks at the clock.
“7:30PM…” she mumbles to herself as she closes her eyes and drifts off into sleep.
However, her sleep was dreamless, but was instead filled with memories. One after another she watches the time she spent with her coltfriend flash before her like an old move she’s seen hundreds of times, but never grew tired of.
As she watched her memories she does not smile or sigh happily like she normally would have. Instead her mouth is twisted into a quavering frown and tears of sorrow spill from under her eyelids. But no matter how hard she tries, she is unable to awake from her slumber until the final memory of him plays. The three words he had said with his last breath. That one phrase you only say to ponies you care deeply for. “I love you”. That’s all it took for her to open her eyes and to feel her tear stained pillow beneath her head. Octavia’s eyes open fully to see a picture of her and her coltfriend together, smiling together in the sunlight.
She looks at the picture as if it were a picture of two ponies she’d never seen before. She knows the picture is hers, but the memory of them together taking the picture, laughing, smiling, and just being happy together is clouded behind the massive amount of grief she feels.
“I love you too, CJ…” she whispers to herself as she sets the picture face down so she would not have to be consumed by grief as she closes her eyes and enters a dreamless and ignorant slumber.
Two weeks after CJ’s death a funeral was held in his honor. The service was attended by his friends from the Canterlot Symphony, his family, and whom else but Octavia and Vinyl Scratch. Octavia adorned a black bowtie instead of her normal pink bowtie. The service was short but sweet, well as sweet as a funeral could be, one where many heart felt words were spoken.
After the main service everypony made their way to the spot where Concerto Johan II would be laid to rest. As the casket was lowered into the grave the quartet made up of three ponies from the Canterlot Symphony and Octavia herself began to play.
There were tears shed by all ponies except Octavia who had cried to the point where no tears could flow anymore. Everypony paid their last respects and left all except two mares, Vinyl Scratch and Octavia.
Vinyl wrapped a comforting leg around her marefriend. Octavia leaned into Vinyl and they both sat there in silence reading the tombstone until they had it memorized.
As the sun began to fall Octavia stood and said, “Come on Vinyl, there’s something I need to do before we go home.”
At that Vinyl stood and followed close behind her marefriend, unknowing of their destination. After about five minutes of walking Octavia came to a stop in front of His music store, she reached inside of her cello case and pulled out a sealed envelope. She tore it open and read the letter aloud to her curious marefriend.
“Tavi,” she began. “If you are reading this that means I am no longer able to be with you. There is a something I wanted you to have, but I am unable to give it to you myself. Inside this envelope will be the key to my shop, I want you to go inside of there and in the far back corner there will be something covered by a tarp. That is my gift to you.” Tears began to well up in her eyes but she continued reading. “I will forever love you, Concerto Johan II (CJ).”
She managed to fight back the tears as she unlocked the door and proceeded to the far corner where all she could see was a tarp covering something about the size of herself. She grabbed the corner of the tarp and there was an audible gasp from both mares from what they saw.
There standing before them was a beautiful hoof-crafted cello. Attached to it was another letter. Vinyl took the letter and read it to the awe-struck cellist.
“Tavi,” she began. “Remember when you first came into my shop and I was carving that large piece of wood? Well here it is, this entire cello was hoof-crafted by me, I wanted to give this to you myself, but that won’t happen. There is a case for it behind the stand. Don’t worry there are also two bows and a set of strings in there in case you need them. Still loving you, CJ.”
Octavia found the case and packed it away, still in shock of her brand new cello. Vinyl took her other cello and rested it on her back as Tavi put her new cello on her back.
“come on Tav.”
The two mares walked out of the old music store, locking the store up behind them.
“CJ.” Octavia said out of nowhere.
“What?” Vinly gave her marefriend an odd look.
“My new cello, I’m naming it CJ” Octavia explained to her marefriend who nodded in understanding.
The two mares made it back home and the rest of the night was spent playing away all their sorrows, not on just any cello, mind you. Octavia played on her new cello, the one that had been named after the one stallion she loved and he truly loved her back, CJ.
Author's Note
Yay for first fic! Any constructive criticism is welcome. Thanks for reading and such things!