Prompt: Deep Castle

Princess Twilight sat alone in her throne room, the night chirped, all of the torches near her purposefully snuffed out. She sat in darkness, only illuminated by the moon’s light through the stained-glass windows. She scanned the walls around her; counting every groove and indent in them, every imperfection and chip. It was a habit she developed over the course of several centuries. One of the few things she could remember about her friends, she recalled. Any attempt other ponies had made to remodel the room were quickly, and sometimes even furiously shot down.

Standing on all fours, she began to walk out, scanning the stained-glass windows around her. Her previous accomplishments all replaced slowly over time with newer groups of ponies. The last one she tried to keep was her defeat of Nighttime Moon with her friends; the event that had brought them together, but a few decades ago it too had been replaced by who were now the current bearers of the Elements of Harmony.

The door creaked open, she walked through the dark halls just beyond, it too was illuminated only by the moon, all the hand torches extinguished. Lavendar plants decorated the windows, she usually stopped for a moment to smell them, however upon looking down, she felt her own memories fog, she reached for the memory for why lavender specifically, but nothing reached back.

She took a deep breath and sighed, suddenly feeling choked up. She bit her lip hard and threw her head away from the plant she had observed. Her pace quickened, soon finding herself in the front halls of the castle. The large red carpet she was on had ended at the front doors of the castle. She glanced downward, the pattern of the carpet was breathtaking, only a pony with decades of experience could have made it, it always brought a smile to her face, she felt a familiar feeling towards it. The smile quickly faded however, blinking rapidly and forcing herself into toward the gala halls.

The main halls of the gala were brighter than the castle itself, a detail she thought was always the case. It was a perfect venue to plan events, remodeled and redecorated sometime ago, but she couldn’t place when. Her eyes scanned the venue, thinking if she looked hard enough, she’d remember, however no such memory surfaced.

The night was eerily silent; she secretly loosened security in the castle as of a few years ago, purposefully making the route she took during the night be without the silent eyes of guards. Swallowing hard, she opened the doors to the outside gardens. The day was always so busy, however at night she had all the time in the world to think, even if thinking had become more painful as time passed.

Leaves rustled within the trees as a sharp gust of wind moved past her. The quiet chirping of crickets could be heard, the garden itself illuminated by the moonlight; it was beautiful to her. Dozens of different types of plants and animals had made their home here. She had made an effort to collect and house as many varieties as she could; stating it was to impress foreign delegates. Specific requests were soon after made for fruits to be introduced into the garden, apple trees especially, it felt right, she just loved apples after all.

Chatters of the late-night animals could be heard all around her as she made her way through the garden. She could smell the sweet aroma of various flowers, it felt comforting and, somehow, nostalgic. She smiled; her chest ached. Pushing through a sudden creeping sense of déjà vu, she found herself at the edge of the gardens.

Beyond the marble railing she gazed upon the lands she was destined to rule. Unrest, however, had continued to climb and dysfunction plagued the courts more than usual in the past years. She picked her head up and saw stars falling in the distance. The night enamored her; the endless chatter of the day gave her immense appreciation for the silence the moon brought her.

She studied it, it’s every detail. Every inch had already known to her, however, she was compelled to even if, without a telescope, the attempt was useless. Bowing her head she looked back at the land below her. Time felt frozen, her breathing became unsteady, her chest tight. Igniting her horn, she squeezed her eyes shut as her lips began to tremble.

The moon briefly twitched in the night sky, soon falling slowly and smoothly. Her vision, lightened at the sudden introduction of the blinding sun, rising into the sky triumphantly.

A single tear fell from her face, memories of once was, leaving with it. Her legs felt weak, trembling at the cascade of emotions waving over her. She could feel the bile rising in her throat. Reactively swallowing hard, she looked up at the sun, her pupils dilated greatly causing her to squint. Her eyes fell from the sun for a moment, darting as pressure built behind her eyes. The sun was always the same, relatively, but she still grew older. Time’s infinite march suffocated her.

A single sob was all she could muster; her legs gave out and she sat, lowering her head. She muttered, “I can’t do this without you girls…”.