It was a new life. It was a new night. Silver trotted easily, his hooves not even really touching the snow crystals beneath him. Each huge snowflake was another pony's dream, spread out wide beneath him. He was again a wandering dreamwalker, but for real. "Not a nightmare," he reminded himself with a little smile.
One particular snowflake was a bright purple, its pattern undeniable. "That's my cutie mark," joked Silver under his breath as he approached it. It felt tense as snowflakes went. Its owner was not entirely at peace. Perhaps he could help. He touched the center and fell into the dream beyond.
There was a throne room. Twilight sat upon that throne. A line of ponies to see her extended from just in front of her to the front of the castle. He couldn't see the entire line, but he knew it was there in a feat of dream logic. They all needed something. They all had to be taken care of, or Twilight was failing as a princess.
She was trying to speak to each, to learn what each needed and what she could do about it. It wasn't that she couldn't do it, but there were so many, and the next kept coming.
Silver was suddenly that next pony, casually slipping himself into the dream weave. "Princess, I have a request most important."
Twilight's ears raised, worry shining in her eyes. "What is it?"
"Relax."
The crowd was banished. The throne itself, banished. Twilight was perched atop a great pillow, soft as it was large. "You are doing a great job."
"B-but!" Twilight flailed a moment, looking for all her supplicants. "They need me!"
"They need you to be whole." He circled her at a light trot. "But, right now, you are asleep."
"I'm aslee... oh, I am." Just like that, she was thrust into lucid dreaming. She sat up atop the great pillow. "Which means you are dreamwalking. Have you come to instruct me?"
"Tonight, I think you need more relaxation. You're becoming frazzled, just as you had warned me not to become. I gave up my teaching position, by the way."
"I would hope so, or you shouldn't be here." She pointed at him accusingly. "But I heard your style was still being taught. I was going to explore that tomorrow, if I have the chance."
"Fast Change is teaching it." He easily step/hopped up onto that pillow. "One of my wives."
"You have so many of them." She frowned up at him. "And I don't even have a boyfriend. Then again, neither did Celestia, or..." It dawned on her even as she spoke. "You... had them too, didn't you?"
The dream shifted without Silver's input. They were on a bed. Twilight was wearing both ridiculous and lewd lingerie that her fur poked through in ways a human never would. "Have you come to complete your royal collection?"
She had her arms up, forehooves behind her head, her hind legs crossed just so. Was this a situation Twilight was ready for on any level? Or, was he being tested? Silver leaned in, but lips did not meet, instead just his nose gently touched hers. "I love you, more as a daughter. I want to help you."
Her ears went askew. "While I do appreciate that... you are not my parent, nor my mentor. You've given me a few classes, as an adult, but where do you get to come off as a big brother?" She was not wearing the awkward slinky garments, sitting up in royal raiments. "I have one of those, and one is quite enough. I don't want another. I want a peer."
He sat down in front of her, matching her pose, his wings spread as hers was. "Fellow royalty? We are both that, with heavy burdens to carry for our people. "
"Yes, precisely that." She nodded softly. "Celestia had Luna, and I have you, but we are not siblings. I do not desire that wall of familial bond." She wobbled a forehoof between herself and Silver. "We are two professionals that work in the same space. Perhaps our friendship will grow, or not, but I will not allow it to be defined by things not there."
"I feel this is where I should note firmly that I have a family. Children as well." He folded his wings lightly with a little smile. "I don't mean that to turn you away, but I am satisfied. Two loving wives, as many foals, and another who plans to slip back close when she can."
"Slip back..." Twilight raised a brow high before the other shot up to join it. "Celestia?!" Celestia appeared on the bed, dressed as Twilight had been a moment before, giving a sultry look. "Luna?!" Luna appeared just as silently, taking up what little room remained. Twilight's cheeks burned a bright red. "Did you... actually... I mean..."
Silver set a hoof on her nose. "We were married. We did as married ponies do. I will speak not a word further on that, out of respect to both of them. You wouldn't want me to share our time together, right?"
"I suppose not..." She glanced and saw the sultry Celestia. She almost choked and looked away, only to end up facing the equally simmering Luna. "Please send them away!" She hid her face under her wings, hiding from the two romantically charged figures, one of whom she had spent much of her life worshipping.
Silver extended his wings, gently brushing Celestia and Luna back into the ether that dreams came from. "They're gone, it's alright. You made them."
She peeked out and slowly folded her wings. "I did? I never saw Celestia that way!"
"You did just now," he gently corrected with a smile. "She was, and still is, a mare, not a god. She had her wishes."
"Her wishes," softly repeated Twilight, looking uncomfortable. "I see... Well, she kept them hidden. The image of the princess is of the utmost importance!"
"Will you sit on the throne just as she had? I would rather see you do it in your own way. She groomed you for you, not to be a copy of herself." He raised a hoof to his chin. "As copies of Celestia go, you are subpar."
"Subpar?!" she squeaked, frowning at him. "Take that back."
"I refuse," he practically sang. "But, as your own princess, that I want to see more of, and to help. Now, rest time. I should resume my patrols."
When he turned to go, a hoof suddenly landed on his shoulder. Peeking back, there was Twilight, smiling hopefully. "I still wanted that lesson, if you have the time?"
His left ear swiveled away and back. "Let's review..."
Night was exploring her own dreams, in a fashion. As she sat upon a mat, incense burning softly, she plunged into a small and specific dreamspace.
Twisted and tortured, she could feel unseen forces pulling at her from different directions. "Cozy Glow, are you here?" she called as she flew through the maelstrom, ignoring the uncomfortable presence. "You are not alone, not right now. Will you talk?"
"Talk about what?" came the reply, Cozy's face appearing through the storm just briefly, scowling at her. "You're here to make fun of me?"
The storm around them abated, pulling back to reveal a group of ponies trotting down a road. One of them Night knew. It was Cozy Glow. "Hey guys," the little pony called. "How about we go to the movies?"
The largest of them, a stallion, snorted. "Just so long as you don't sit in front of me."
A mare rolled her eyes. "The foal's seat doesn't put her that far up."
"Maybe I don't wanna go with a foal at all," he scoffed.
"I'm not a foal!" suddenly squeaked Cozy Glow.
The others shied back a bit from the outburst, and the storm rolled back in, leaving Night flying on the uneven currents. "You could not control how large you were," she spoke to the presence she felt there was at least an 83% chance was still listening. "They were wrong to make that such a big deal."
"And you're better?"
"I can try to be." Night landed on a rock that hadn't been there before, called by her own thoughts. "If you want to let me try. How old are you, if I may ask?"
"I'm a mare," boomed the voice, her face coming into view just as she shouted, eddies carrying the vision away just as quickly.
"I didn't say you weren't," assured Night. "But you used that, didn't you? You knew Twilight would have been hesitant, if she understood how old you were."
"You already know that's true."
"And yet, you did it. You stepped into the role you hated." Night inclined her head faintly. "What were you thinking, when those foals accepted you as one of their own. Did you hate their kind words? Was their approval a bitter thing, even as you reached for more?"
"Stop judging me!" Cozy was suddenly in front of Night, slamming stone that wasn't there a moment ago hard enough to shatter its brief existence. "I had it all worked out! I was doing it. I was the most successful of all those losers."
"What did you do?" Night smiled faintly. "Tell me about it."
"You just want to make fun of me, tell me how I messed up and throw it in my face." She thrust a hoof at Night. "You, the bat that thinks she knows everything!"
Night's teeth clenched, resisting the call to battle in being called a bat. "I want to know your accomplishment. Tell me?"
The storm suddenly abated. It was a clear, star-dotted night. A small fire was in front of them. Across the fire sat Cozy Glow, primping her mane. "If you really want to know..."
"I do," assured Night, a smile returning. "Will you share?"
"Sharing is one step in friendship." She rubbed one hoof along the opposed leg. "I made one of those, Tirek. Big self-obsessed slob, but he knew all about sucking up magic, so he gave me a few tips. I just had to be a friendly voice, get him talking..." Her brows fell suddenly. "Like you're doing to me right now."
"I promise I'm not here to suck out your magic." Night's wings fidgeted on her back. "I haven't lied. We could become friends. That depends on how things go. I want to get to know you, as a pony."
Her look of suspicion eased to that foal-like charming smile. "Alrighty. So I was writing him and he gave me what I needed, so I got to planning..."
"I recognize many of you." Fast paced sedately at the front of the class. "We sat side-by-side, learning this from Professor Watch." Her students looked confused, just as she had hoped. "Don't recognize me?" With a rush of magic, she became a filly, hopping up and placing her hooves on the podium. "Hello!"
Surprised gasps spread through the room. "Yes, yes, that was me. I was learning it too, but I was also developing my own roads." She became Fast once more. "And I'm here to teach. Silver may have other business to see to, but his work lives on, here. Now, you." She looked to a kirin in the second row. "I am going to teach you something nopony here knows."
Soft murmurs rippled through her captivated class and Fast could only smile. "You see, I have a little theory I have going, and we can all work on it, together. Consider it extra credit. If you want to participate, see me after class, and we'll bring magic to a whole new level." She suddenly raised a hoof. "No global domination schemes involved. All of my work will be published for all ponies and friends of ponies to enjoy." She began tapping her hooves together. "As it turns out, ponies are good at making friends, so that's basically everycreature we ever find."
The confusion gave way to whispers of excitement.
That had gone well, she silently decided, launching into the proper lesson of the day.