//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2: Many Meetings 
// Story: A Lonely Path 
// by JDeck306 
//------------------------------//

Most of the passengers who boarded were young of age, mostly Foals on their way to school, laughing as they played around with their friends, which brought a warm smile to Twilight's face. But out of all the Ponies that entered the wagon, there was one who stood out from the others in every aspect.

Although Twilight paid little mind to other passengers, she placed her hoof on her aching chest and exhaled shakily when she saw one particular Pony: tall and old, bearded and grey, and wearing a red bow tie, and an eyepatch, the Unicorn that boarded the train last slowly let out an exhausted sigh.

When the Old Stallion entered the cabin, Twilight discreetly watched as he looked for any available seats, before he realised he could only sit opposite her. With a solemn nod, the Stallion, who bore a red cross on his flank, quietly greeted Twilight, and politely asked her if he could take a seat.

A gentle smile grew upon Twilight's face as she nodded to the Stallion, who warmly smiled to her in return, before he gracefully thanked her, and sat down. But as the Stallion longingly looked out of the window when the train started to move, Twilight found it difficult to not look at his eyepatch.

But when the Stallion closed his eye, and quietly acknowledged that he knew Twilight was looking at him, she quickly looked away, and apologised for her rudeness. In turn, the Stallion let out a deep sigh, and admitted that he understood how distressing the sight of his eyepatch could be to others.

The sorrowful voice of the Stallion told Twilight he had received comments about his appearance far too often, so she apologised to him again, to which he smiled, and slowly nodded. Although he never looked at her, and only watched the landscape outside, Twilight realised he had started to well up.

The smile on his face only grew bigger and brighter as a tear rolled down his cheek, before he took a silver ring off his horn, and gently placed it in his hoof. But he did not care that Twilight was looking at him as he held the ring close to his chest, and whispered she would have loved the view.

At that moment, Twilight put her own hoof to her chest when she felt the same ache as before in her chest, when the Stallion snapped his head to look at her. But Twilight could not even apologise for disrupting him while remembering a lost loved one before he sweetly asked her if she was all right.

Not wanting to cause further concern to the Old Unicorn before her, whom she could tell already had too many worries to bear, Twilight smiled, and said she was fine. But when she saw the red cross on the Unicorn's flank start to glow, he gently took her hoof, and kindly asked her not to lie to him.

It was clear that the Old Stallion saw more with his one old eye than she saw with both of hers, so Twilight sighed, and admitted that she had probably sensed his pain. When she saw him step into the wagon, and when he whispered with his ring in his hoof a moment ago, she felt an ache in her chest.

Now, the Old Unicorn sighed as a small smile grew upon his face, and he showed her the ring that he always wore on his horn, and carried with him wherever he went. It was a simple ring, with only two initials engraved on it, but it reminded the Stallion of the first steps he took into his new life.

When Twilight asked the Unicorn, who introduced himself to her as Doc, about his old life, he said:

"Truthfully, 'tis a tale too terrible to tell... But the one who gave me this ring helped me heal."


When Twilight put her hoof to her mouth, she quietly apologised to Doc, and promised that she would not bring up his past again. But to her great relief, he smiled, and told her it was all right, for not only could she not have known, but thanks to Selene, it did not even worry him as much anymore.

For a brief moment, Doc's smile fell, and he closed his eye, but when he held his ring close to his chest, his smile swiftly brightened again, and he sighed in relief. In turn, Twilight politely said that it warmed her heart to know he took such great care of that which reminded him of his beloved.

As Doc turned aside to look out of the window, he sombrely admitted that he had prayed for her safe return every day since they parted ways. But no matter how dearly he wished to see Selene again, to hear her laugh, see her smile, and hold her close one last time, he knew he could not reverse time.

The small smile on Twilight's face slowly fell as she offered Doc her condolences for his loss, and said that she understood his wishes very well. Doc smiled sweetly as he looked at Twilight to thank her for her gentle words, before he added that the pain of Selene's loss would probably never stop.

After Twilight briefly looked at her satchel, she discreetly wiped away a tear, and promised Doc it would become easier to bear in due time, but she warned him that it would worsen at first. Too well did she remember how quickly her friends appeared to improve after such grief, only to break apart.

But to Twilight's surprise, Doc chuckled, and told her that he while knew how great a burden it was to carry around this pain, he said that it helped him, too. Although his memories showed him a time he could never go back to, he could also not help but smile when he remembered his lost loved ones.

Since she had never considered his perspective, Twilight merely looked outside as she thought about what Doc told her, and her eyes welled up with tears. As her smile steadily grew brighter, Twilight thanked Doc for his kind words and his wise advice, while he carefully placed his ring on his horn.

With a slow and solemn nod, Doc added that his ring always allowed him to feel connected to Selene, but there was more she gave him that he could remember her by. But when Twilight asked him what her gifts were, Doc chuckled quietly, and apologised to her for not being clear enough by what he said.

Although they had indeed given many gifts to each other over the years they were together, what Doc meant could not be wrapped up and given to someone else. Instead, he picked up a couple of Selene's little quirks, such as her reactions to sweets, or how she walked around with a spring in her step.

While these things were rarely noticed by others, they were very important to Doc, as it meant that Selene could live on through him. But Twilight just smiled in return, as she fondly remembered that she got her love of reading from Shining Armour, only for Spike and Rainbow to pick it up from her.

As tears of joy stained her face, Twilight politely told Doc to hold on to their quirks, since they could never know how much these would mean to them, until it was too late. The familiar look in her eyes told Doc enough, and he nodded, and quietly added that he hoped their memories would not fade.

At that moment, Twilight's ears perked up, and she offered Doc a treat from the bag in her satchel.

"Please, take one of these. A sweet apple treat to say thank you, but also to help you remember..."


Though Doc did not fully understand what Twilight meant, the warm smile on her face and the sadness in her eyes told him there was something special about her treat. After he politely thanked her for her offer, Doc slowly grabbed a treat out of the bag, and managed to avoid spilling a single crumb.

As Twilight put the bag of treats back in her satchel, Doc took a bite, and quietly squealed in joy as he flapped his hooves, until he noticed that she was gazing at him in wonder. As her eyes welled up, she put her hoof on her chest, and sweetly asked him if this was what he picked up from Selene.

In return, Doc nodded to Twilight with a shy smile, and happily continued eating his treat, when he slowly started to cry. But before Twilight could ask Doc if he was all right, he turned towards the empty seat next to him, and the bright smile that swiftly grew upon his face said more than enough.

Eventually, Doc's smile turned bittersweet, and as he gently grabbed Twilight's hoof, he said, in a terribly raspy voice, that he could not thank her enough for her beautiful gift. He figured she was but one of a tiny hoofful of Ponies who knew exactly what he just experienced, if not the only one.

With a kind smile, Twilight solemnly told Doc that it was the least she could do for him, but asked him to save his gracefulness for her friend, Applejack, who gave her the bag of treats. She did not understand how she made them almost magical, but she was glad that she visited her before she left.

It was strange, Twilight added with a brief chuckle, that something so simple as a small bag of her friend's treats, which she had eaten so many times before, could mean this much to her. Though, she admitted that she would have forgotten to pack it in her satchel, had her friends not reminded her.

At that moment, Doc quietly let out a deep sigh, and he slightly lowered his head, before he looked throughout the entire cabin to watch everybody else happily speaking with others around them. Then, when he turned back to Twilight with a pained smile, Doc politely said that she was very fortunate.

After he glanced at the empty seat next to him, Doc told Twilight to hold her friends close, and to spend as much time with them as she could, to make memories that last many a lifetime; for even the wisest in Equestria could not foresee what the future held, nor what one could lose in a heartbeat.

But before he continued, Doc stopped himself, and he just shook his head as he let go of Twilight's hooves, and sincerely apologised to her for his harsh tone as he leaned back in his seat. He should know better, after everything she and her friends have done for others, and what they have endured.

To Twilight, however, Doc's tone was not harsh at all, for although she felt that he spoke sternly, she could tell that he spoke from a position of wisdom, and experience. As her eyes started to well up, she softly asked him whether anyone was awaiting his return, but Doc shook his head in silence.

The smile on Twilight's tear-stained face faded, as she felt defeated, and she did not know what to say, until she glanced at her satchel. After Twilight took a deep breath, she promised Doc that she would do everything she could to grant others a chance to be with their lost loved ones once again.

To her confusion, Doc gently took her hoof again, and as he softly squeezed it, he kindly told her:

"Your Highness- no, Miss Sparkle, please... We cannot avoid these evil days, nor change them..."


Although Twilight clearly recalled him telling her he would do anything to see his lost beloved one more time, she struggled to understand why Doc had changed his mind all of a sudden. After a moment of silence, Twilight solemnly asked him why he was now saying she could not undo what had happened.

But Doc did not answer Twilight's question before he closed his eye, and slowly exhaled, whereafter he gently squeezed her hoof as the cross on his flank started to glow again. As it lit up, however, Twilight noticed that she steadily felt calmer, as if a great weight had been lifted off her chest.

For a brief moment, countless thoughts flowed through Twilight's mind, until Doc's smile brightened again a split second later, to her confusion. Then, she realised that a tear was rolling down Doc's cheek right below his eyepatch, which stunned her into silence before she could utter another word.

As Twilight leaned back in her seat, Doc discreetly glanced at her satchel next to her, and sighed, before he quietly told her that he understood her desire far too well. To lose somebody so close to you, someone you love dearly, whom you never expected would leave you behind, it did not feel fair.

However, no matter how she planned to fix what had happened, Doc continued, to bring back those who passed away would only ever result in more pain, similar to how he was helping her now. Although he could find the pain she was suffering from, and ease it, it was nothing more than temporary relief.

After Doc sincerely apologised for doing this, he let go of her hooves, and in an instant, Twilight could feel her calmth fade, and she slowly took a breath as her pain returned. But she realised too late that it kept climbing, and over the course of a few seconds, it reached a very familiar level.

Since Twilight had often found herself at these depths, she had learnt to climb out of these again, but now, for reasons she slowly started to understand, it felt impossible. In turn, Twilight stared blankly into the distance as her eyes welled up with tears, and she carefully embraced her satchel.

The mere sight of Twilight's tear-stained face, as well as her nigh silent crying, almost moved Doc to tears as well, so after he briefly shook his head, he laid his hooves on hers again to help her. A moment later, Twilight shakily let out a sigh, and she wiped away her tears as she nodded to Doc.

As he solemnly nodded to Twilight in return, Doc apologised yet again for putting her through this, but he wanted to make sure that she wholly understood why her admirable goal would not work. If she tried to undo what had happened, it would only bring constant worrying, false hope, and more grief.

Silence fell between the two as Twilight let what Doc told her fully sink in, until she took a deep breath, and thanked him for telling her what she needed to know. Even though it hurt to accept that her idea was flawed, she now knew she would not make that mistake, and she closed her eyes to rest.

When the train started to slow down a moment later as it approached Canterlot station, however, she quickly glanced between the window and her satchel. But before Doc could ask her anything, Twilight worriedly told him that she was briefly meeting a few Ponies here, but she could not leave her bag.

With a firm nod, Doc promised he would guard her satchel with his life, to which Twilight replied:

"Thank you... it holds some... what's inside is... of great importance to me... just... Please..."


The sincerity Twilight saw in Doc's eye as he promised to look after her satchel greatly warmed her heart, and she joined the other passengers who were headed towards the doors. The train slowly came to a halt, and just as Twilight cleaned her face of tears, she saw her two Mentors on the platform.

Fortunately, none of the passengers paid any mind to Twilight, nor either of the Royal Sisters, who opened their wings and arms to catch the lone Princess. Without uttering a word, Twilight fell into their embrace, and she let out a deep sigh as she pulled Luna and Celestia closer to her in return.

But neither Luna nor Celestia uttered a word to Twilight, and they just smiled as they held her, as they knew how heavy her burden was. Not long thereafter, though, after the two Princesses nodded to each other, they sweetly whispered to Twilight that she should drop her facade, since she was safe.

After a few moments of silence, the Sisters felt Twilight's embrace weaken, and heard her breathing drastically quicken when she started to quiver. But just as she sank through her legs, Celestia and Luna slowly helped her to sit down on the ground, where Twilight quietly wept into their shoulders.

Through her heartbreaking sobs, Twilight sincerely asked the Sisters if she would ever learn how to avoid feeling such incredible pain, to which they could unfortunately give no answer. All they were able to do was hold her close, as they did not know how to tell her that they still struggled, too.

Instead, as they gently caressed her mane, the two Sisters sweetly told Twilight that they knew how much it hurt to feel like this, but she should not let it fade. No matter how tough it would be, or how long it seemed to last, this, too, would pass, and they told her that she could not give it up.

There had been many times in the past that they both feared their hearts would never heal, but over time, they promised her that the pain would become easier to bear. But if she decided she would try to avoid it, she could not experience the true beauty that was life, with all of its ups and downs.

At that moment, Twilight looked up at her Mentors, and she watched as both Luna and Celestia's eyes welled up with tears when they looked at each other, and she understood. They experienced the worst anybody could go through, but in turn, their reunion was too wonderful to describe, and she nodded.

But when Twilight heard the Conductor's whistle, and she was forced to let go of the Princesses, to her dismay, she started to shake her head as she pulled them closer. But Celestia and Luna promised her that she would be all right, and that they, and all her friends, would always be there for her.

As a bittersweet smile grew upon her tear-stained face, Twilight sombrely let go of the two Sisters to return to the train, all while waving to Celestia and Luna. Then, when she sat down next to Doc, Twilight let out a relieved sigh, and thanked him for looking after her satchel as he gave it back.

After Doc moved over to sit across from Twilight, they waved to the two Princesses on the platform, when Doc placed his hoof on his chest, and gestured taking off a cap. But although the two Sisters' eyes widened in response, they only briefly shook their heads, and warmly smiled as the train left.

The train departed, but the Princesses motionlessly thought in silence, until Luna softly asked:

"Thou hast seen it too, Sister?" 
"Indeed. I have not taught that sign for over a thousand years..."


The startled expressions that Twilight briefly saw on the faces of the two Princesses confused her, until she noticed the gesture that Doc made, which she faintly recognised, yet could not place. But she put this matter aside, and kept waving to Celestia and Luna, for as long as she could see them.

As Canterlot station faded into the distance, and the Royal Sisters, who were both deep in thought, returned to the Castle, Twilight slowly let out a deep and sorrowful sigh. Even though she was glad to have met the two Princesses on her journey, they had spoken about far less than what she wanted.

With a small smile on her face, Twilight made a note to herself to visit Celestia and Luna when she was on her way back, as she had a good feeling they had more advice to offer her. This would take a while, though, since she still had a long road North ahead of her, which she would not spend alone.

After she put the note in her satchel, Twilight gently embraced it to calm herself down, and looked at Doc, who sweetly smiled back at her, to thank him yet again for watching her satchel. In return, Doc solemnly nodded, and said that he always found it odd how such a light bag could feel so heavy.

The sincere and sombre tone in Doc's voice spoke volumes to Twilight, and told her that he had been burdened by the same weight she now carried far too often before. But Twilight discreetly shook her head, and instead, she softly told Doc that she wondered about the gesture he gave the two Sisters.

To her surprise, Doc quietly chuckled in return, and politely told Twilight that it was nothing but a sign of honour from his past life. When he saw the two Princesses, and Celestia in particular, he thought it was fitting, even if it was related to recent events that had never happened for others.

Unfortunately, Twilight only grew more confused at Doc's answer, so she sighed, and grabbed a piece of paper and a quill from her satchel to write to her friends, and to avoid hurting her head. After she wrote about her journey, as well as her meeting with Doc, she sent it away, to Doc's amazement.

As he watched the magic mist holding the letter fly out of the window and back to whence they came, Doc kindly asked Twilight if she could teach him how to send a letter by magic, too. Since he would not join her all the way North, he figured it would help them stay in touch after they parted ways.

Although Twilight felt her heart sink when she heard Doc admit that their paths lead elsewhere, she warmly smiled as she nodded to him, and offered her quill and another piece of paper. A few moments later, after Doc had finished writing a letter, he listened to Twilight as she explained the spell.

It took a long time and a lot of practice for Doc to figure out the spell, but after he took a deep breath, he focused on whither he wanted to send the letter, and at last, he was successful. When he opened his eye, and watched the same magical mist fly out of the window, he quietly cheered in joy.

But they took so long to learn the spell that his cheers were interrupted by an announcement, which told them that the train was approaching the station where Doc had to depart. Since it was the last station before the Empire, Twilight would reach her destination very soon, and Doc got up to leave.

Then, Twilight stopped him, and sincerely asked him not to go yet, to which Doc sombrely said:

"I shall write to you, Miss Sparkle, you have my word. Fare well, and until our next meeting."

With a final solemn nod to Twilight, Doc waved her goodbye with a warm smile, and left the train...