The ground was still damp from the previous nights rain as I approached the Manehatten municipal graveyard. Even when it wasn’t raining, the place had a dark and oppressive feel to it. My heart felt leaden in my chest and I was uncertain as to what I would find in this place, “Other than dead ponies”, I sighed quietly under my breath. The stone stairs from this side of the site were large and shallow, designed to help ponies who were young, old or perhaps infirm, reach the level ground at the summit. A healthy climb later, and I was there.

The flag had been taken down, but the clearly new graves and colourful flowers stood out in stark relief from the rest of the drab stone. The ponies of the watch had clubbed together to top up the funeral fund for a little something more than the usual square slab which indicated the final resting place of the fallen. I walked slowly past each one, noting the name and examining the faces of each pony. Luna, there were so many……

I’d seen them put beneath the earth only the day before, but in the shock of the Chiefs revelations and the incessant freezing rain, it had all seem unreal somehow. Now, here was reality before me. No more games, no more laughter, this was it for them. They were gone. I gently stroked a hoof along the top of each grave stone, looking for the one I knew would be there…Dawn Rush.

Her grave stone itself was no different from the rest. She wouldn’t have wanted it any other way. Her picture however, rather than the standard ID types of the rest, was a cheeky smiling Dawn, winking at the camera. I couldn’t help but smile, a light chuckle in my throat escaping, “Dawn…….”, I whispered closing my eyes. After a deep breath, I read the inscription,

Watch Lieutenant Dawn Rush
Beloved daughter of Lilly and Carrot
Hero of the Manehatten Watch Flying Squad
Fly proud, Fly True

“Hero of the Manehatten Watch”, I read aloud, “You were that and more Lieutenant.”. I sat back on my haunches, wiping a rogue tear away. “No tears for you eh ? You’d buck me into next week !”. I looked up into the sky, breathing a big sigh. She’d tried to save us that night, save all of us. A hero of the watch indeed. “You better be taking good care of her up there y’here ?” I called up to the heavens, “or I’ll kick your arses into next Thursday !”. I laughed and stood, brushing the muck off my coat.

I had barely registered the crunching of hoof steps on the gravel path beside me.

“Capn’ ? That you ?”, that voice brought back memories.

“Blaze.”, I said turning to look at the sleek pegasus mare standing there in a smart blue watch cloak. The grey pony shook her rust coloured mane and looked towards the grave marker. “Thanks for coming to see her sir. She’d have wanted you to, you know.”

I was lost for words. Blaze and Dawn were, well, there was no other way to say it…. lovers. It was supposed to be a secret, a badly kept one that everyone knew about of course, but the watch regulations…..”No fraternisation between watch ponies”. But, we took that as an advisory rather than actual ‘rules’. They were two of the most liked
ponies in the watch and their little flirtations between each other would bring good natured lectures from the Chief if he ever caught them. We all knew them and we all loved them, our sisters in the watch.

“I couldn’t protect her, Blaze.”, I said to her, hardly able to meet the gaze of her big silver eyes. “She tried to save us…………I’m sorry.”. I hung my head, unsure as to what to say. What could I say ?

Blaze said nothing for a few moments, just standing there, staring at me. I could feel her eyes boring into me, searching my soul, what for, I didn’t know. Answers to what happened ? Why her lover had been taken from her ? I half expected her to buck me, I wouldn’t have blamed her if she had, so I stood, waiting for the blow.

“Do you know how she died ?”, Blaze said turning back to the grave.

I looked up blinking, “…..No.”, I took a deep breath before continuing, “The Chief told me she didn’t suffer though. Blaze, its not a good idea to……”. She interrupted me suddenly, “…She flew in front of me. My Dawn flew in front of those bloody damned fire bug things and….and…”, she choked back a sob. “…She… took a full blast in the chest. I caught her as she fell but there was nothing I could do. Blaze was already gone, the bastards damned near cut her in half. I cant get the sight of her blood out of my mind Cap, it was….do you know what that’s like ? Those bastards took the one reason I had for living and destroyed it. They stole my Dawn and…..”

I went to put a foreleg around Blaze but she back away shaking her head, “Capn’ I…..I didn’t get a chance to say goodbye !”. Tears were falling from her eyes like rain as she stared right at me, “They took her from me !”.

I closed my eyes for a moment before speaking, “Blaze, Dawn loved you. We all knew she did, that’s why she did what she did. If the roles had been reversed, you’d have done the same. Please, don’t beat yourself up over it.”

Blaze reared up and slammed her fore hooves down into the gravel, “That’s just it ! Those things were meant for me ! It should be me under that Equestria damned muck, not her…not her….”. Blaze collapsed to her knees, tears flooding down her muzzle into the freshly dug earth. I watched helplessly as my fellow watch pony poured out
her grief, hugging the mounded soil that blanketed the final resting place of her beloved Dawn.

I moved to put a hoof round her, but it was clear from her body language she wanted to be left alone. Turning away, I solemnly walked away down the row of graves, unable to comfort a friend. In time, when she was ready, she’d share her grief with us all, talk about the good times, the bad times, the happy, the sad, and we’d be there waiting for her. Watch ponies looked after their own.

My legs followed their own course, letting the Fairlight mind wander into places it probably shouldn’t. The Chiefs words rang through my head. Goddesses, whatever was going on, it wasn’t going to end well for Equestria. Just what were we going to do ? Who could we trust ? Being off the watch was bad enough, but the way this was

heading, would there even be a watch to go back to ? I mentally slapped myself, this wasn’t the time to be melodramatic.

Rounding the next row of graves, a green pony in a large straw hat came into view, lying on all fours, her muzzle resting on her outstretched forelegs. I could hear her sobs as I approached, despair etched on her face. She didn’t look up when I knelt beside her. A fresh bunch of marigolds had been placed on the grave before her. It was a neat simple plot, tidy, well kept and with a simple marker,

Chief Officer Apple Pop
Manehatten Watch
“Dad”
I lay there in quiet contemplation next to my wife. I didn’t deserve her and I knew it, a terrible part of me wondered how long it would be until she had simply had enough of her lot in life, of being the wife of a watch pony. The pit opened in front of me and my soul marched blindly on towards the precipice.

“He would have been so proud of you, you know”. Meadows voice was barely a whisper, “Dad was the strength in our family, the one we felt would be there to protect us. Be there, with us, forever.”

I kept silent, Meadow went on. “When I was in high school, Dad was already Watch Chief. We were so proud of him, I think the other fillies and colts were jealous of us because of that and used to tease us. My brother Silver, would stand up to the bullies and face them down. Just like Dad would have.”

She smiled through the tears and reached out to nudge the flowers into a neater pattern.

“He was on a shout to a school fire in the fourth precinct. Arson. Who or why, no pony ever knew. So…pointless. It was late at night and the school should have been empty, the fire department was already there and Dad had gone in with Captain Mitre to have a look around before the forensic team arrived.”

It was hard to imagine the big blue pony as the same rank as myself, and younger too. He looked the sort who’d looked middle aged when he was still a foal. I listened intently though, Meadow had never told me what had happened to her father.

“He and Mitre entered the school library and found…..”, she paused struggling with some inner conflict, “…found a foal. He’d been…he’d had his….”. She took a deep breath, but began to shake. I removed my thick worn watch coat and placed it over her.

“He’d had his tummy cut open.”, Meadow let out a cry of distress, covering her muzzle with a foreleg.

“Meadow…”, I whispered but she waved me off.

“He’d had his organs removed and they were strung up, like streamers, around the bookshelves. Dad and Mitre couldn’t do anything for him, he was….gone.”

My eyes stung, waves of emotion rolled off Meadow and the mental imagery I was receiving had me on the verge of tears myself.

“Mitre thought he heard a noise and went to investigate, Dad went with him. There were no lights in there, only what they could see with their lanterns. In the darkness of the library alcove, they heard a foal crying…..”.

I held my breath involuntarily.

“She wasn’t alone. There was another with her, a tall crimson male. Dad didn’t get a good look at him. He was….doing things to the little foal, Dad…..never said what and Mitre wouldn’t talk about it at all.”

“There was a fight, the big pony shot Mitre with a hoof held crossbow. Dad only had his truncheon on him, he pulled the foal off the table but the other pony….”, Meadow let out a breath, shaking her mane before looking across at me. “He stabbed him. Just like that, in the back as he held the foal. It was like his life meant nothing, nothing at all…just a piece of meat.”

“He was my Dad, Fairlight ! That dirty animal, he stabbed my Dad, he…”

She was coming apart fast. I put a foreleg around her and pulled her in to me while gently resting my head across her neck. She resisted momentarily before she continued.

“When they failed to return to the team in the school yard, the Lieutenant sent in another team to look for them. They found Dad and Mitre, alive but in critical condition. Dad was lying there, still sheltering the foal in his forelegs. The other pony was long gone.”

“Mum woke me and Silver to look for Dad when he didn’t come home. We took a cab to the watch house, they told us about the fire but no pony knew where he was, Mum was hysterical.”

“I ran out into the night and headed for the school. I ran and ran and ran….”

I nuzzled Meadows neck to try and reassure her that I was there for her. I willed my strength to help her through this.

“The ponies at the school told me Dad was at the hospital. They wouldn’t tell me what had happened. The look of their faces….Fairlight, I…I’ll never forget the look on the faces !”, She pushed me away suddenly and hauled herself to her hooves to look down at me.

“I ran all the way to the hospital. The watch ponies offered me a ride there, but I just ran. My mind was a blank, all I could think of was finding Dad, making sure he was okay.” Meadow began to shake again, whether with the cold or her distressed state, I wasn’t certain.

“He was……”, she began. “Oh Fairlight ! He…”. “

I gave Meadow a reassuring smile, “Its alright love, take your time. I’m with you, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Dad was just….lying there. His eyes were open but they were so distant, they’d always been so bright and alive. There were tubes and magical monitors and…...they were sticking into Dad and…..”, Meadow stopped to steady her breathing.

“I tried to hold, to tell him it was going to be okay, but the nurse stopped me from hugging him. He just looked across at me and smiled, Fairlight. Smiled ! After what that monster had done, my Dad smiled at me.”

“The machines made a bleeping noise and the nurse called the doctor, he ran into the room and I pushed to one side. Dad had…stopped breathing. I didn’t know what was happening at the time and tried to stop them from ‘hurting’ my Dad. The nurse went to push me out the room just as Mum crashed through the doors. I’d never seen a look like that on a ponies face before Fairlight, and to be on my own Mothers…..”, Tears started anew.

“The Doctor tried Fairlight, he tried so hard to save Dad, but there was too much damage. I remember the way he looked at Mum, I couldn’t quite hear the words but I could see his lips moving….’I’m sorry’. That was it….’I’m sorry’. Dad was gone. Mum’s screams where deafening, I can still hear her sometimes in my dreams you know ? Crying and screaming out at the world that took her beloved husband. My Dad.”

My heart was aching for her. My Meadow, was this what she thought could happen to me, every time I went out to work ? Goddesses, I never realised. In my narrow minded view on life, I simply saw the watch as a means to an end, a way to help the everyday lives of common ponies and make some money for my family. The strain it put her under…..Luna forgive me….

Meadow wiped her eyes and pushed her muzzle into my neck, breathing in my scent. “She never recovered. Mum was like a ghost after that, Silver and I spent most of our time with family relatives or with Mitre and Shelly. She simply……faded away. Doctors said she died of a broken heart. I…didn’t even think that was possible.”

The beautiful green mare walked several steps away before turning back to me with a determined look in her big yellow eyes, “I don’t want to fade away Fairlight. I don’t want to find you hooked up to hospital monitors and tubes…. dying before my eyes. I wont have it, damn you Captain ! Damn the bloody watch and damn Celestia !”

“Meadow !” I exclaimed at her words, I’d never heard her swear before. It was a taboo in our home and I was careful, usually, to respect her aversion to it.

“I don’t care Fairlight ! You’re mine and I will be damned if I let any pony take you from me !”, she shouted, lowering her front into a fighting stance. I was shocked and, I hate to admit, slightly aroused by her aggressive stance. This was a Meadow I had never seen, a facet of her which, I found oddly exciting.

She advanced on me, a strange look in her eye. Her muzzle nuzzled into my neck before she retreated a step, eyes closed, to inhale the smell of my cloak. “It smells of you.”, she said quietly, “You were wearing this when we met remember ?”. “I remember” I replied, “You were wearing that hat too”. Meadow pushed her hat up on her head and walked away down the gravel path, a slight glance over her shoulder beckoning me to follow her.

As I trotted to catch up to her, she began to canter away. I increased my pace but she broke into a gallop and turned off into the woods. What the hell was she doing !? I galloped after her but she was pulling ahead, damn she was fast. Minutes later I’d lost sight of her and slowed to a trot, then a walk, catching my breath. I was blowing hard. I was built for strength, not speed, Celestia damn it all. What was Meadow playing at ? I leaned against a tree, sweat steaming off my flanks as I tried to slow my racing heart rate.

Something large and blue crashed out of the bushes to my right, bowling me over onto my back in a blur of legs and….wool ? “Too slow my dear” Meadow grinned down at me, my cloak still wrapped around her. “Wha….?”, I began but she pushed me roughly to the ground with her fore hooves. She looked me over with her lantern yellow eyes, searching mine, her pupils wide, steam rising from her body. She huffed a deep breath and pushed her muzzle deep into my chest.

“I don’t want to lose you Fairlight, please. I cant lose you…” Meadow said breathlessly. I licked my lips, the gallop had dried my mouth out, “You wont love. I’ll quit the watch if I have to, I don’t want to see you cry again. Ever”. She lifted her head and suddenly clamped her mouth over mine, her hot breath filling mine, her tongue hungry and desperate.

My forelegs pulled her into the kiss and we lost ourselves in each other for what felt like an age. Finally, she pulled away from me. “No love. I don’t want you to leave the

watch, I don’t want to lose who you are. Just….promise me you’ll be careful. Please ?”

I nodded.

“Mmmmm….” She moaned and she began rubbing her haunches back and forth along my stomach. All the while she looked deep into my eyes. “My Fairlight…..” She sighed and gave me a smile, the smile she gave only to me. She was the one in charge this day, I was her stallion, she was my mare.

Meadows movements increased and she began panting, he muzzle inches from mine, the yellow eyes never leaving my face. With a shudder, she went limp and rested her forehead on mine, all I could see in my field of vision was her eyes. It was like our
very souls were merging in those deep reflective pools, becoming one. Her pants deepened, and I felt her hoof brushing my stomach, reaching down. I gasped.

Meadow smiled, wriggling herself over me until I felt a warmth that left no doubt as to what she desired. “Fairlight….”, she purred, “My Captain.” My beautiful mare kissed me deeply once more before transfixing me with her gaze. “I want you…..”.

I smiled up at her as she lowered herself onto me with a gasp, closing her eyes as she did so. She grabbed me around the chest and squeezed, that soft light green mane lying sensuously across my face.

“I love you Captain Fairlight.” She whispered to me as I gripped her hind legs with a gentle, yet firm embrace. “I love you too, nurse Meadow”. Birds rose from the canopy as her cries resounded throughout the forest.