The sound of beating wings announced the arrival of a blue pegasus. Princess Twilight Sparkle's ears perked, but she remained seated on her haunches, staring out towards the sunset. It was suitable end to a beautiful day, with enough clouds to cast huge shadows over the sky as Celestia's sun slowly sank into the horizon. The hillside gave an impressive view of the field below them, covered in long blades of grass that swayed ever so slightly in the evening breeze, interrupted only by a few scattered trees. Rainbow Dash sat down quietly next to her purple companion, wrapping her tail around Twilight. A small ornate box went unnoticed beneath her wing. For a few minutes, the sounds of nature were interrupted only by the occasional ruffling of feathers. "I'm glad you could make it," said Twilight in a soft, almost morose voice. She turned her head ever so slightly, peeking over at Rainbow Dash, who was still staring out into the sunset. Rainbow Dash had a sad look in her eyes, as though she already knew what Twilight was about to say. Twilight wondered how long she'd known. "So, are you immortal?" Rainbow Dash asked bluntly, turning her head to meet Twilight's gaze. Twilight sighed, and her gaze fell towards the ground. "...Yes, Celestia told me last week." Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. "So? Just how immortal are you? Are you invincible? Do you just have a crazy long lifespan? Will you live until the sun dies?" A hint of enthusiasm emanated from Rainbow Dash, but it felt... forced. On any other day, she would have been zipping around her, breathlessly asking questions, and doing loop-de-loops for no reason. But today, something seemed to be anchoring her to the ground. It was clear that something weighed heavily upon her mind, and it wasn't very hard to guess what it was. Still, these things took time, and Twilight knew better than to rush her marefriend. "According to Celestia, I will live as long as I do not receive a fatal injury, which is exceedingly difficult, given my alicorn physiology. She expects me to live for several thousand years." Twilight spoke mechanically, mindlessly regurgitating information like a university lecturer. "I can hold my breath for an hour, and go an entire year without food. All my biological functions are enormously augmented by magic and incredibly resilient, amplified even more by my natural magical affinity. Equestria could probably get hit by a giant meteor, and I would stand alone in the falling ashes with a body that's too stubborn to die." Twilight looked up. "I... I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash," she whispered. "No, it's ok," said Rainbow Dash, placing a hoof on her marefriend's cheek. "I've been thinking about this a lot, actually. About dying, I mean." Twilight turned away. "I'd rather not be reminded of the inevitable." "Oh come on, Twilight, you're not the one who's going to be dying. I promise I won't be a downer." "It's death," said Twilight flatly. "It's always a downer." "Just, come on, I'm trying to be deep and philosophical here." Rainbow Dash threw up her hooves. "Didn't you tell me to think before I spoke the other day?" "Not about death! Not about how I'm going to lose you and have to live for thousands of years with nothing but painful memories of you to keep me company!" shouted Twilight, before jumping up and flying over to a nearby rock. She soon found herself sharing her perch with a persistent Rainbow Dash. "Maybe they won't be so painful. Maybe when you are all alone and surrounded by darkness, they'll keep you company. Maybe when you go to bed, your memories will sing you to sleep." A small breeze blew an errant leaf across the hillside, and Twilight watched it tumble down the slope. "Or maybe they'll fade away, and I'll forget I ever loved you, until I have nothing but the cold grip of reality choking my frozen heart." For a time, both mares were silent, as they let the evening breeze whistle nature's song. Rainbow Dash shifted uncomfortably next to Twilight before finally speaking up. "I've been thinking about what it is we truly fear about death. Is it simply that we will never open our eyes again? Is it the mysterious, unknowable lands our spirits travel to? Is it the sound of our dreams shattering one final time? Is it simply because we can never know what happens when we draw our last breath?" Twilight blinked. Then she blinked again, and again, trying in vain to keep a tear from slowly falling down her cheek. "I think it's something else," continued Rainbow Dash, "I think it's because we don't want to be forgotten. In the end, our lives are nothing more than what we leave behind. Some ponies build things, some ponies invent things, some ponies start families. We're all trying to accomplish something that somepony, somewhere, will remember. Yet, no matter how brightly a snowflake shines as it tumbles to earth, ultimately it will be lost within a snowpack. "One of these days, I'm going to die, Twilight, and when I'm gone, who'll remember me?
