Family Secrets

Chapter 2: Memories, Sweet and Sour

Family Secrets – Chapter 2: Memories, Sweet and Sour

I looked up at the grim structure before me, and shivered. The once great Canterlot Castle crumbled around me, and sleeping rough under one of the fallen arches didn’t seem such a good idea in practise.

I couldn’t go back now – Dad would have my head if I went anywhere near the front door, so I gathered all the courage I possessed and trotted briskly into the dilapidated castle. Mutated statues watched with empty eyes as my hooves clicked uncomfortably loud against the old paths. My own eyes searched hungrily for a sheltered alcove or hollow space to spend the night, but found nothing. It was only on reaching the heart of the ruins that I found a chamber still intact. Against all odds, this small hall had survived the tirades of the Second War of the Nations, when the pegusi bombed the castle.

Tattered banners still clung half heartedly to the smooth stone, and a worn velvet carpet led to a grand platform at the end. I walked slowly to this platform, my head pounding as I tried to absorb the melancholy beauty of the place. It took overturned golden chair lying forgotten in a corner for my brain to make the connection that had been there all along.

This was the throne room, where the princesses Celestia and Luna sat as they ruled over my ancestors’ Equestria. This was where Princess Twilight Sparkle was coroneted, after taking her alicorn form. This was where Princess Cadence and Shining Armour were wed, where Queen Chrysalis tried to take over.

This was where it all broke down, where Equestria became nothing. This was where we all turned against each other, where Princess Twilight and Cadence were murdered and Luna and Celestia fled. This was where friends became foes, allies enemies and where equality had no place. This was the scene of our darkest hour, our greatest mistake, where our peace was torn to shreds. This was where our new age was born ...

Now I remembered what I had known all along, and the place lost its serenity. I could feel the ghost of every presence, every injustice served, and it crushed me. I saw everything, every foul deed; every step evil took to victory, every day growing further from the good this place was supposed to hold.

I galloped wildly to the balcony I was sure awaited me, and dropped panting to the ground. The moments of fear and panic subsided, and I raised my head slowly upwards. A pallet of deep blues and blacks, swirling whites and twinkling yellows smiled at me, and the beauty of the night sky hypnotized my body. A glowing orb hung comfortingly in the middle of it all, and I relaxed. In a trance, I curled up and cradled my head in my forelegs. I was asleep in seconds.

The sun’s rays spread slowly around me, gently poking and prodding their way to me, until I basked in a pool of warmth. My eyelids fluttered open, and I found the sky to have redecorated itself overnight. A blend of candyfloss pinks, lilacs and a soft baby blue undertone replaced the darkness of the previous night and calmed me. I lay peacefully in the dawn light, until yesterday’s memories flooded back. My body convulsed in horror, and I stood too quickly, dizzy but eager to be moving. I slung my saddlebags deftly onto my back, smoothed the creases from where I’d slept in my cloak, and set off.

I knew exactly where I needed to be, but lacked in map reading and wandered lost around the outskirts of Canterlot. The sun had risen high in the sky by now, and pulsated above me, everything becoming blisteringly hot. My legs dragged beneath me as I was reduced to an almost crawling state by the noon sun. It must have been pure luck that I looked up when I did, or I would never have seen the street sign.

Fortunately, I was more than able to understand the sign pointing down Aura Lane, and turned down to find myself looking at a younger me, riding gleefully on a smiling grey pony’s back – my mother.

“Faster, Mummy, faster!” she cried, mane whipping around her face as the mare beneath her laughed, something that to the tiny filly, seemed like the gentle tinkling of a wind chime on a breezy day.

The filly was an unforgettable one, on account of her mane and soft, downy fur. Strands of hair, only comparable to the rich oranges and maple reds of autumn leaves in colouring, hung loosely down in no apparent shape, much unlike any other pony in Canterlot. Her coat, a tawny amber and gold mixture, framed the thick black eyelashes that separated her eyes from her fur. Her hazel eyes completed her majestic appearance, but the oblivious filly only yelled louder in response to her mother cantering faster and faster, yet still slow enough for the filly to hang on.

The world around me began to refocus, and I groaned. Fainting wasn’t good in any situation, but of course I had to hit my head when I fell to add to everything. The nausea faded as fast as it had come, and anger flooded through me, replacing the emptiness.

I was no longer the careless child I once was, and I grit my teeth as my anger turned to steely determination. Maybe I still wanted to be that filly, but I couldn’t. Things had changed, and it was time I changed with it. Raising my penknife slowly and determinedly to my head, the blade took one clean sweep to achieve my aim. Amber locks fell to the ground either side of me, and in the side of the blade I saw my face. For the first time in years, I smiled at my reflection. A short maned, hazel eyed mare smiled back.

Content with my appearance, I surveyed the street and racked my brains in an attempt to match one of these houses with the image carved in my memory. I stumbled along the uneven cobblestone, staring intensely at each house that lined the road. Reaching the end of the street without success, I sat defeated on the grass. As I stared glassy eyed at my last hope, I was ready to admit defeat ... as a lopsided, teetering cottage began to take shape before me. Each squashed feature slowly slotted into place, and I looked on in awe as my saviour appeared.