While Ghost and the CMC went towards Sweet Apple Acres, Grimm accompanied Twilight to the outskirts of the Everfree Forest. During their whole trip, Grimm was humming a tune, his cloak occasionally moving with the cool breeze grazing them. Twilight took glances at the Nightmare King during his tuneful song. His voice was so hushed that it came out quite raspy like ponies who had a bit too much to smoke. Another noticeable part about the Troupe Master was his eyes lighting up during certain portions of his song.
“Grimm,” Twilight began, breaking the Nightmare’s focus, “Where you are from, what are Nightmares to bugs?”
Grimm stopped walking for a moment, halting all his momentum to think on Twilight’s words for a few moments, “To answer that question, Ms. Twilight, I would have to tell you the tale of the Grimm Troupe. But, the time is not right for me to speak the very poem that describes us.”
“Us? Where are the rest of the troupe?”
Grimm sighed, acting somewhat somber at the question, albeit dramatic. “In the Nightmare Realm, awaiting my return.”
Twilight grew more curious, teleporting her journal to her and flipping the pages until she found what she desired. Presented the page to Grimm which held a rough drawing of Nightmare Moon, “Do you think the Nightmare Realm can influence ponies into becoming Nightmares?”
Grimm looked closely at the picture with his spindly fingers under his chin and his eyes squinting to take in every detail. Clearly a creature as tall as Celestia from the mere look of it and her eyes were much different. The sharp iris alone was interesting but nothing that he can recall right away. He pulled back and shook his head, “No, she clearly does not belong to the Nightmare Heart. A true Nightmare would bow to the Nightmare Heart and preserve its existence.”
“The Nightmare Heart? Is it another being? Is it the king of the realm?” Twilight asked after teleporting her journal away with her mind tingling for more answers. How different Grimm's version of nightmares compared to Nightmare Moon would be great to report back to Celestia. It might just be the main piece of knowledge needed to prevent any future nightmares from forming.
“More than a being, inquisitive one. The Nightmare Heart is the very thing keeping me alive and my troupe moving through lands and time.” Grimm explained simply before his eyes lit up once more, “Tell me, Ms. Sparkle, how do Nightmares work in this land? Do they serve a higher master or are they selfish in their endeavors?"
“They’re corrupted versions of ponies. Not sure exactly on their nature but there are many speculations. The most believed notion is that a pony falls under dark magic that leads them to negative emotions and desires,” Twilight explained, partially shrugging through her explanation
“Mere emotions lead to one's corruption?” Grimm rose a brow at such a silly notion as simply being negative to be evil. "Emotions are part of a creature's life. I see no reason how feeling any form of anger or sadness would result in one's corruption."
Twilight shook her head, “Not in that way, it’s letting those negative emotions control you that lead you to become a Nightmare. That’s what happened to Princess Luna."
“Oh? Surely a princess like her wouldn’t dare let that happen,” Grimm muttered, finding this topic most interesting about the younger princess that held such anger towards him.
Twilight’s tone got a bit more serious then, almost as if Grimm had stepped on a taboo subject. “Wrong. She got jealous that all the ponies would be thankful for Celestia’s daylight and sleep during Luna’s moonlight. She felt unloved and forgotten and it eventually consumed her to the point she tried to trap Equestria into eternal night.”
Grimm let his unnoticeable lips form a scary smile, almost enthralled at the idea of this Nightmare Moon. “Perfect for the scarlet fire to reign freely across the land. A shame I could not meet this version of the princess soon enough. She could have been useful for the Hearth.”
Twilight stopped before turning to the troupe master with shock and anger in her eyes, “She wasn’t the same after that, Grimm! She became the very opposite of who she is right now that made ponies hate her for a thousand years. Her own sister had to banish her to the moon for said thousand years to keep Equestria safe. It’s only now that she is welcomed and loved.”
Grimm placed one of his hands on his heart before his eyes closed and his smile disappeared, “Forgive me, Ms. Sparkle. I was only expressing myself in a humorous manner. I didn’t mean any of it. No matter if Luna personally objects to my existence, I will gladly give her my sympathy.”
Twilight’s features relaxed, sighing that she had let herself somewhat vent at the Nightmare King, who was probably enjoying the negativity already, “Grimm, I have to ask, how did you become a Nightmare?”
This time, it was Grimm’s turn to look stupefied and astonished by such a question. His eyes dulled slightly while he began fiddling with his cloak. What was his life before he became the vessel for the Nightmare Heart? He was a moth, so was he part of the Moth tribe of Hallownest? Grimm found himself unable to answer Twilight’s question as he only found himself looking into blurry memories.
“I….I do not know. All I remember is becoming the sole vessel for the Nightmare Heart. But it does not matter as that could be many ages ago since then. I have my purpose,” the dark moth uttered in a low tone
Twilight felt a pang in her heart for having not only talked down the Nightmare King but also causing him to realize that he had no memories of his past. Ghost could at least remember everything he saw in Hallownest, and she would need some more info on how he was created, but Grimm had little memories. Yet, he acted like he didn’t need his past.
“Grimm, I’m sorry for asking about your past,” the purple unicorn softly spoke before putting a hoof on Grimm’s leg to give him some sort of comfort.
Grimm hummed at the apology before continuing to walk down the path. There were trees all around them now, boxing them in on a single dirt path. The sunlight darkened as its rays were blocked by the shields of leaves. While the duo traveled, a young tree stood out from the massive bodies around it. It was still quite young but it rose just above Grimm’s horns and had a sickly appearance to it.
Grimm’s eyes turned towards the young plant, walking over to it which diverted him from the path. Twilight stopped to wonder what Grimm was going to do with such a young tree before she gave a gasp as it caught on fire. One of the Nightmare King’s hands was out and had snapped before the flames occurred resulting in his involvement with the burn.
“Grimm! We need to put out the fire or the entire forest will be on fi-,” Twilight began to panic before a single finger silenced her lips
After a minute of burning, which surprisingly didn’t spread to the grass and other trees, Grimm snapped his fingers again to reveal the young tree was now a lantern. Four branches formed a claw-like design, reaching upwards as if to snag at the heavens above. The whole lantern was charred black but the wood looked clean and healthy compared to its former self. The interior of the lantern was hollowed out and opened for some sort of purpose.
“Such youth should not be extinguished for it has not reached its potential. Now, I have given this tree a purpose to the Nightmare Heart. Even a discarded thing, whether creature or plant, can dream,” Grimm uttered with satisfaction, snapping his fingers again as the lantern disappeared in a mist of red
He turned back towards the purple unicorn to find her staring at him in amazement. She hadn’t seen much use of pyrokinesis other than the few displays from Princess Celestia. The fire that Grimm released did not feel like welcoming flames, but more of flames that wanted to swallow everything in sight. All that in a snap of Grimm’s fingers. What more could he do with a simple snap? Not even a hint of magical aura was visible on his hands when he snapped unlike those that formed around unicorn horns.
“Ms. Twilight, I hate to be rude, but you’re staring at me too long for my liking. Shall we head to your friend’s residence?” Grimm said, wanting to get a move on with this meeting so he could return back to other matters. Almost as if he had something coming to mind shortly after making the lantern.
Twilight stayed silent for a few moments before giving a nod, resuming back down the path with Grimm in tow. The rest of the way was silence between the two as neither Grimm gave an explanation as to why he made a lantern nor Twilight wanting to know the process.
The duo finally got to a wooden cottage that was nestled comfortably next to a source of water. A small bridge allowed for anyone to cross the small body of liquid without getting their limbs wet. The sound of animals could be heard if one listened intently enough. Clearly, the owner was attuned to nature from just the location alone. It almost reminded Grimm of how peaceful Greenpath was without the infection. The memories of the many that had fallen showing lush nature growing predominantly without too much intrusion.
Twilight took the initiative to knock on the door softly. Grimm stared at the door expecting this Fluttershy to open the door with some sort of comment about his appearance. What he got instead was a quick glance of a yellow pegasus mare before the door shut immediately. Twilight knocked again, the door opening once more with the pegasus mare taking one glimpse of Grimm before shutting the door.
“Fluttershy,” Twilight began, “He’s not going to hurt you. Despite his appearance, he isn’t violent.”
The door creaked open with the yellow mare’s blue eyes looking over at Grimm hesitantly before turning to Twilight, “Um ...if you say so.”
Fluttershy opened the door fully and walked out to get a full view of Grimm. He looked down at the yellow Pegasus, bending down and extending one of his hands towards her. His scarlet eyes peered into Fluttershy’s blue, “A pleasure to meet you Ms. Fluttershy. You’ll find I am not aggressive towards anyone. Master Grimm, leader of the Grimm Troupe. At your service.”
Fluttershy hesitantly shook Grimm’s hand with her hoof finding it quite warm to the touch, “Are you a bat? A bug?”
“Oh no, I am a moth. Where I come from, bugs have sentient minds and don’t devolve to base instincts. At least, they used to.” The troupe master replied, “It’s easy to mistake my appearance.”
Twilight looked content that nothing had gone wrong with this small exchange so far. Taking a pen and paper with her magic, she began to make small notes for later. Then a thought came to her head, “Oh, Fluttershy, why don’t you tell Grimm about the animals you take care of? I think he'll find that interesting with how many animals you take care of."
The yellow pegasus bashfully looked away, “I don’t like to brag, but I do have an affinity for many animals. Much more than all the ponies in the kingdom. They consider me their only friend."
The Nightmare King’s eyes glowed bright at Fluttershy's self-description. How perfect of a creature to care for the child...for the ritual. “Do you now? Then can I entrust you with something I hold most dear? He shouldn’t be a problem with you and even I can’t take care of him all the time. A small drawback to my form of existence if my need to perform certain..tasks..to prolong my lifespan.”
This perked Fluttershy to look at Grimm without any sort of fear, instead of being replaced by curiosity and wonder. Twilight didn't mention anything about more animals or even children for that matter. Did Grimm keep this a secret until he found someone trustworthy to the task. “Where is he? He isn’t a huge animal is he?”
“No, he is not. He can be a curious little one. But, from what I have heard, you can handle him quite easily.” Grimm let one of his hands-free of his cloak before snapping.
The mares would find a gathering of red mist in front of them before it formed a solid base. A bug about a fifth of their size, dragonfly-like, appeared. It was similar to Grimm but the colors were dulled out, sporting only grey and black. Its eyes were pitch black, almost void-like. Four thin strands formed its wings, flapping lazily to maintain altitude over the ground. It let out a little sound that sounded something quite youthful.
Fluttershy’s eyes sparkled as the Grimmchild came towards her and nestled itself into her mane, “He looks like you.”
The troupe master could only chuckle, “Yes he does. Take good care of him for his future will be bright under your care, if you so choose. His potential will be great so nurture him well."
“I will, I promise you that,” Fluttershy smiled at the towering bug, earning another bow from him before he turned away
“Ms. Sparkle, I believe it is time that we go back,” Grimm stated with some ominous tone
Twilight cocked her head to the side with a questioning look, “We just got here and you want to leave already?”
“Only for this meeting. There are a lot of things on my mind, and probably in my companions. Especially one intrusive princess trying to probe his,” Grimm narrowed his eyes seemingly at the sky for now reason. Oh she was a bit of a crafty one but he knew Luna would try such a manner ever since the first time.
Both mares’ eyes widened at this revelation, “Princess Luna was in Ghost’s dreams? How did you kn-”
“I’m a Nightmare. Just as she can visit other dreams, I too can visit. My bond with my companion allows me easy access while she has to force her way in. Too bad she made a messy trail behind her, amateur.” The Nightmare King answered back, “Make sure you write her a letter about that before I deal with her myself. This will be my first and only warning.”
Before Twilight or Fluttershy could respond, Grimm had dissolved into a fine red mist that dispersed quickly. Both mares blinked for a couple of moments until Fluttershy spoke, “Since you’re here, would you like to help me with the animals?”
Twilight gave a smile and a nod before proceeding inside Fluttershy’s cottage.
Later that night…
Grimm appeared in the middle of Ponyville with the improvised lantern in one of his hands. He inspected the ground to be sure it was firm enough to hold the lantern without fail. Once he felt satisfied, he plunged the lantern into the ground causing it to flash with a red light. The ground around it scorched into black color and held the lantern upright. Grimm let his crooked smile form on his face while dusting off his cloak with whatever dust he had accumulated.
Even discarded can dream. See what the ritual brings.
“One last touch,” Grimm mused, snapping his fingers once more
The lantern turned back into a normal tree while the ground also returned to normal. Perfect, the ultimate disguise until the Night of Nightmares arrived. All he had to do was wait and the grandest performance would commence. Whether or not Princess Luna heeded his warning would not matter after tomorrow. The ritual would commence.