Little Stripes and a Star
The Birth and Death of a Love
It was an odd day in Ponyville, nothing bad happening but nothing good happening either. Though when he woke up this stallion felt as if the day was going to be special. This pony was none other than Star Point, the star of the Equestrian Navigators. He lived in Canterlot but was in Ponyville on business nopony could know. He stayed with Rarity, who had a special place in his heart, but he somehow knew that she was not meant for him no matter how much he adored her. He went through his daily routine and left the boutique to go to a sailing competition. When he arrived he was ready to go and felt a wave of courage as the first rounds were being posted with times of competing and lakes to sail on. He waited around for a bit, talking to his fellow teammates about their hopes for the competition until his round was about to start. When he got to the lake he saw the other competitors. Most of them were other stallions like himself, but one mare was wondering around aimlessly. Although Star Point was typically a more shy pony, when he was at these competitions he felt that he could approach and talk to anypony. As she came closer he looked at her and asked, “Where ya headed?” She stopped and looked at him for a second then responded with, “I’m looking for somepony.” He took this into consideration and asked If she needed any help. She just shrugged and said, “I guess so.” They started off and got to talking. They talked out competition type stuff and then the more personal life questions came in. She told him her name was Little Stripe because of the small stripe she had on her bow. The more they talked, the more he noticed how cute she was. Her bow made him cringe at the pure adorableness of it. Even though he noticed her a little more now he decided to just focus on the task at hand. Get her where she needed to be and get back before the round started. After searching for a little bit they headed back to the lake. There she saw a stallion that Star Point had spoken to earlier. It was as she ran up and hugged him that Star realized the circumstance. She was his special somepony and it bothered him. He couldn’t quite comprehend why it irked him so much, but the very idea of her with him upset him to the core. The round was starting so he just shook it off and continued to the competition. At the end of the round he felt as if he did well and proceeded to regroup with his teammates, but when he got back to the meeting spot they were nowhere to be found. This didn’t bother him so he decided to just walk around for a little bit. Upon walking down the corridors of the meeting house he ran into her. They said hello and she decided to walk with him while they waited for the next round. This time, while they walked, he was much more attracted to her. It may have been due to her being with somepony else, but she seemed so perfect to him. The next round was announced and he went to go compete again leaving her behind. This round he found it hard to compete due to his thoughts drifting to her every time he was at focusing on the task at hand. After the round he met up with her boyfriend and they conversed. They became friends. This was amazing for Star for now he had someone to have fun with while having all the stress of competing. After they talked for a little bit and Star learned the boys name was Rocky he departed. Star went about his last two rounds without seeing the little bowed girl and it helped him focus, but inside the lack of her presence was upsetting to him. The last round had ended and he was sitting at his teams table. He looked over and there she was, with Rocky, hugging him so tightly I almost collapsed. They proceeded to sit down and wait for the awards ceremony as did Star. During the ceremony Star couldn’t help himself from staring at the little bow on her head. Even when he tried his hardest to look away he was gravitated back to her. He loved her, but she loved somepony else. He didn’t understand how he could love someone he just met and barely knew, but he knew whole heartedly that she was the one for him. With all of these feelings inside him he had to talk to her once more before they all parted ways forever. He approached the couple in the hall and began a conversation. They discussed the events of the competition and complained about some of the judges. At the end of the conversation Star and Rocky hugged and said good bye. Star looked over and Little Stripe was staring at him. She blushed and asked if she could have a hug too. The excitement coursed through Stars body but he showed no sign of it as he hugged her. This hug was the first he had experienced with somepony he had feelings of this magnitude with. Afterwards they parted ways and Star and his team packed up and went home. On the way home the team talked about their placing but Star didn’t have any interest in how he did. All he had interest in was the beautiful mare he met and lost in the same day. Now he didn’t lose her for he never had her, but he loved her so much that it was like he had her, that he had known her and loved her for years and she was just taken out of his life. He got home and was exhausted. He went to sleep. When he awoke the next day Rarity had cooked breakfast to congratulate him on doing so well. He was amazed at the spread she placed before him and was the upmost grateful. But he noticed something. The way he used to feel about Rarity had vanished and he didn’t quite understand why. He had work to do though and was left with no time to dwell on it. He went though the normal work day and got home once again exhausted. He had gone through the day with all the mares he had small feelings for and every one of those feelings had vanished. This really messed with his mind. This was new to him, could this cute girl he had met yesterday be lingering in his mind as somepony that actually meant something? No impossible, or at least he thought.
20 years went by and he had let the past go. Once he realized that the little bowed girl was gone forever he went and carried on his life like he would if he never met her. He had had girlfriends over the years but nopony was as significant as her. One day upon cleaning out his closet back home in Canterlot, he found his old notebook containing things he wanted to remember form Ponyville. He looked through it for a while until he found the day he wrote about Little Stripe. It was written the say he was reading it and it sparked an idea in his mind. He decided to go back to the competition grounds of that year and walk around like he did before. He arrived and started to venture into the meeting house. After twenty minutes of walking he heard some noise. Curious he walked towards it. When he turned the corner he caught a glimpse of a pony sobbing under a competition sign with a bow with one little stripe. He walked over to her and took a look at her before speaking. It was her. It was the mare that had changed his life forever on this very day 20 years ago. He continued towards her and said softly, “Where ya headed?” She looked up with tears streaming down her face. Her teary eyes cleared up and she made out who he was. She immediately jumped up and hugged him. Still crying she tried to explain why she was here and so upset. It turned out that Rocky and her had gotten married. Later on in the marriage he abandoned. This left her with nothing but memories of a better time. This led her to come to the place where she was happiest. After completing her crying she looked at Star and asked “Why are you here?”
Star shook his head and just said, “Reminiscing on a better time I guess.” They were quiet for a little bit, but after a while she got up and asked him to follow her on the same walk as when they first met. He agreed and they headed off. His thoughts were racing and he didn’t quite know what to do. Finally after completing the walk they got back to the spot where he learned of her and Rocky dating. This is what broke him. 20 years later and he was still in love with a girl who never cared for him. She saw him crying and watched for a little while. After some time she walked over to him and kissed his forehead and said, “Don’t cry, I love you.” This only made it worse. He cried for some time after finally stopping. She asked why he was crying and he sat there for a second. Finally after all this time he told her how he felt. He told her of the way he loved her since the day they met and how she made dominated his thoughts back when they left for the first time. As he poured his heart out to this mare, a tear welled up in her eye. He stopped and they sat there for a second. She finally spoke. “When we met, Rocky and I had just started dating. We liked each other but we never really had the connection we needed. After the marriage there was nothing and that’s most likely why he left. But when we met, I felt something. I almost told you but I never thought you would feel like this. To be perfectly honest, I love you. I love you more than anyone in this world. You are the only pony out there who no matter how much time went by stuck by me. Even if it was in spirit, it was still there and part of me wants to say that’s why we’re here, because our minds reflected on our meeting and sent something to our hearts to let us know it was time. Now we are here, what do you say, do you love me still?” He sat there for a good ten minutes not saying anything. This was so perfect for him but why was he not as happy as he thought he would have been. Yes he loved her still, but something felt wrong. This feeling continued until he looked up and saw the Equestrian Navigator flag in the night sky. This gave him the courage to look at her in the eyes and say, “Yes I love you” They hugged and she kissed him. Later that night he was at home sleeping and he woke up in the middle of the night. He was in bed thinking to himself of the feeling he had when he woke up that fateful day. When he somehow knew he would meet the mare that would change his life forever. He rolled over and there she was sleeping peacefully with her cute bow still on. He smiled and drifted off to sleep. He was finally at peace once more.