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// Chapter Six-The Dream Catcher 
// Story: Chasing Dreams 
// by Final Draft 
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	The storm knocked down utility poles as it continued its path across the city, leaving many ponies in the dark. Dream Chaser saw a flash of lightning and heard the click of his refrigerator shutting off as it lost power, which didn’t matter to him because it was empty anyway. He took a bite of an apple and waited for the thunder to finish rolling by before continuing though the box.

His mother had loved to take pictures, filling nearly twenty of her own memory boxes over the years. She had made him his own box when he was born and filled it with every picture she took. When he was old enough to take over the box, he had gone through it and had thrown many of the photos away; there was no need to keep the doubles, the blurry ones, or the pictures of nothing.

Of the hundred pictures that had been taken his first summer in Manehatten, only a hoof-full still remained. His cutie mark picture was the highlight of the summer. After that, there were the pictures from the BBQ his father had organized on one of his few days off. Despite doing their best to avoid the camera, Smoke Storm and the other reformed bullies found themselves in several pictures, one of which showed Dream Chaser and Smoke Storm sitting at the picnic table enjoying veggie kebabs. 

A framed class photo marked the end of the summer memories. “Mrs. Delight’s First Grade Class” was printed on the frame in gold lettering. The class had contained Dream Chaser and fifteen other ponies, one of which was Dream Catcher. They were next to each other in the front row, smiling for the camera.

Of the sixteen ponies, only four had cutie marks: Dream Chaser, two others whom he could no longer remember, and Dream Catcher. While he stood forward, making sure the photo would include his cutie mark, Dream Catcher had put her tail across hers, similar to a few of the blank flanks in the class.

She had gotten her cutie mark a few days before school started. Instead of being proud of it, she seemed…ashamed. No one knew what her special talent was or how she’d found out, not even her best friend Dream Chaser. He had pestered her constantly, but she would always avoid the question. It wasn’t until Nightmare Night that she had finally revealed to him the secret she had been hiding. 

Dream Chaser rummaged through macaroni art and hoof paintings, which were sure-signs that his special talent wasn’t associated with creativity, until he found the photo he was looking for. His mother had snapped it shortly before he and Dream Catcher had left for the haunted house, which her father was running at his work. He was dressed as a vampony and she was Wonder Mare. Both homemade costumes were of acceptable quality, but were lacking compared to store-bought ones.

“Be safe and have a good time,” his mother shouted as they ran out the door. In their haste, they nearly bumped into a group of Trick-or-Treaters making their way up the path. He wanted to go get candy too, but Dream Catcher had insisted they hurry to the haunted house.

“Where does your dad work?” Dream Chaser asked. He’d only met her parents once before and had never thought to ask.

“You’ll see,” Dream Catcher said as they walked into the city. Eventually, they fell into a flow of costumed ponies that seemed to be heading to the same destination. Creepy music, played on a pipe organ, began drowning out the conversations of the crowd, and ghastly screams echoed from the distance.

“Why are we slowing down?” Dream Chaser asked as he almost bumped into the zombie in front of him.

“This must be where the line starts,” Dream Catcher replied. “It attracts more and more ponies every year. Good thing we left early.” Dream Chaser tried to get a glimpse of the haunted house, but couldn’t see over the adults in the crowd. As he was jumping, a group of rowdy ponies lined up behind them. Dream Catcher had glanced back and quickly looked back forward. She tried tugging on his arm, but he didn’t realize it.

“Hey, I thought vamponies could fly,” a smug voice from behind him said. He turned and saw something that had given him nightmares for weeks.

He had been home alone a few months back, before meeting Dream Catcher, and for once he didn’t feel like running. The only other thing he could think to do was watch TV. His parents had forbidden him from watching it without their permission or supervision, and he wondered, what was the worse he could see? He turned the dial and sat in front of the screen. If he saw any kissing, he would close his eyes like his mother had made him do when he watched movies with her and his father. He didn’t know kissing had been the least of his parent’s concerns.

A cereal commercial had just ended and the station returned to the movie it was airing. Two ponies sat by a lake, the water reflecting a full moon. One of them leaned over and whispered something into the other’s ear. There was a pause and they began kissing, at which point Dream Chaser covered his eyes.

“Did you hear that?” the mare asked suddenly. Dream Chaser opened his eyes to see the two looking into the darkness. The camera switched to inside the bushes and shook as it looked at the two ponies.

“It’s nothing…Where were we?” the young stallion asked seductively. He leaned to kiss his marefriend and just as Dream Chaser went to cover his eyes, the camera darted into the darkness. There was heavy breathing and the camera came back up in some bushes behind the ponies. They were kissing, but Dream Chaser couldn’t cover his eyes. The mare disengaged herself from the stallion and looked into the darkness in front of her.

“I heard it again,” she said. The breathing got heavier. She stood up and walked forward, her back to the camera. The stallion just continued sitting on the ground, watching her as she walked.

“Look, if you don’t want to do this, I under—Aaack!” Before he could finish his sentence, the camera sprung from the bushes, and charged at the unsuspecting stallion. The mare turned to see her lover with a horn sticking through his chest. As his body slouched forward and hit the ground, both she and Dream Chaser stared in fear. The attacker was a unicorn; his horn was dripping the blood of his victim. The camera focused on him for a moment, in order for the audience to take in the horrifying details.

The unicorn looked like he’d been stitched together using the parts of several different ponies. The face was the most terrifying. Several lines of stitches ran across the skull and big bloodshot eyes stared from lidless sockets. Hanging from his spiked horse collar were several bladed weapons. He levitated one using his magic, causing the mare to scream, and send her running into the bushes. The unicorn went to give chase, but something caught his leg. The camera panned down to see the stallion was not dead and was trying to save his lover by grabbing hold of the unicorn’s leg. The unicorn had looked down without a word and brought a machete slashing across the screen. The camera showed blood splattering against the trees and ground as the stallion was hacked into pieces.

Dream Chaser had wanted to look away, but was paralyzed in fear. The killer unicorn walked away from a pile of bloody limbs and began pursuing the mare. She ran and ran, but the killer always appeared in front of her. Just when it looked like she was going to make it to a road, she tripped on a root. With her ankle broken, she began crying hysterically. The killer made his way towards her slowly, levitating the machete. She tried crawling towards the road, dragging her injured leg behind her. This time, there was no censorship: Dream Chaser watched as the machete cut through her tendons and bones, sending blood everywhere. She screamed and cried and tried to defend herself, but was completely helpless. The scene went on for what seemed like minutes, ending with the face of the killer right in front of the camera.

Dream Chaser had shut the television off and had run to his room, diving into his bed. When his mother came home, she had found him still in his bed, and asked what was wrong. He explained that he disobeyed her and described the movie he’d seen. She consoled him and told him it wasn’t real, that no such pony existed. Her words had comforted him briefly, but as soon as he was alone again, fear continued its grip on him.

Now, that same unicorn stood before him. It’s just a costume, it’s just a costume, it’s just a costume, Dream Chaser repeated in his head. The unicorn stared and blinked–something the real killer unicorn couldn’t have done. He was also shorter, his horn wasn’t as pointy, and the weapons on his horse collar were made of plastic.

“It’s just a costume,” Dream Chaser said, referring to both costumes. “I’m not a real vampony…and you aren’t the real Triskaideka.” (He had learned the name of the movie so he never accidentally watched it again.)

“I know it’s just a costume,” the Triskaideka imitator scoffed. “It’s so obvious. Did your mommy help you make it?” Two of the fillies that were with him laughed. One was dressed as an Alicorn princess and the other was wearing a store quality Wonder Mare costume. Dream Chaser was about to inform him he’d made his costume all by himself when a voice boomed over the crowd.

“Mares and Gentlecolts, Nightmare Night is upon us! Are you ready to be scared? Are you ready to be terrified? Then enter the house if you dare!” A cheer went through the crowd and they began moving forward.

Rrrrrrip!

Dream Chaser turned to see Dream Catcher’s cape torn in half. The filly dressed as Wonder Mare had her hoof planted on one end of it.

“Whoops,” she said, smiling and rolling her eyes. Dream Catcher looked like she wanted to cry. She had put so much work into her costume. Dream Chaser didn’t know the definition of chivalry, but stepped forward anyway to confront the filly.

“Look out! I think her coltfriend is going to beat you up,” the Alicorn princess laughed, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

“He’s not my coltfriend!” Dream Catcher shouted. She stepped forward and grabbed the remnants of her cape off the ground. Before Dream Chaser realized it, she had run off towards the haunted house, leaving him there to mull over her words.

“Hear that, buddy? Friend zoned,” the Triskaideka whispered. He and his associates walked past Dream Chaser towards the haunted house, giving him smug looks as they passed. He was too young to fully understand what he was feeling. Having a special somepony was grounds for teasing in the first grade; he was glad he and Dream Catcher were just friends. Yet, he felt something else when he was with her: happiness like no other. Did she feel it too? Why had her words hurt so? What was the friend zone?

He gritted his teeth and scratched the ground with his hoof. With all the force he could muster, he kicked off and sprinted towards the haunted house. Within seconds, he reached the ponies that had upset Dream Catcher and ran through them. He was going so fast they didn’t see him, but they certainly felt the wind he generated. Their costumes flapped wildly and he focused on the Wonder Mare. With speed and precision, he managed to grab her cape with his teeth and pulled it up over her head.

The ponies shrieked and closed their eyes as clouds of dust flew up around them. They never even saw Dream Chaser leaving with the cape in his mouth. It took him several minutes of pushing and shoving, but he finally found Dream Catcher. She was being comforted by a mad scientist pony he barely recognized as her father. His mane had been dyed white and stood up wildly, his eyes were obscured by goggles, and a blood-stained lab coat covered his body.

“Dream Catcher!” he shouted through the folds of the cape in his mouth. Her father looked over at him and nudged her gently. She had been holding onto his leg and had buried her face in his chest. Dream Chaser walked over and her father nudged her again. This time she looked up and saw Dream Chaser and the gift he had brought.

“Wh-Where did you get that?” she asked, rubbing her eyes. Dream Chaser said nothing as he draped the cape over her shoulders and secured the clasp. It was much nicer than the one she’d had before, and complemented the rest of the costume well.

“We’re just borrowing it. I’m sure she’s going to want it back,” Dream Chaser said with a smile. She smiled in return and hugged him. There was that feeling again. His legs felt weak and his heart pounded in his chest. She let go of him and he saw she was blushing.

“Are you two ready to go into the haunted house?” her father asked. They nodded excitedly. “Alright, you can join this group here.” He let them cut in front of some younger ponies being escorted by their parents. The adults were having a good time and were even laughing while the fillies and colts shook in fear. A zombie pony with a slight limp trudged out of the bushes and began moving towards the group. Dream Chaser recognized the zombie as Smoke Storm; he and the other reformed bullies had volunteered to help with the haunted house.

“Braaaaaains,” he moaned as he approached. His nearly-healed sprained ankle gave him a very convincing zombie walk. He got right up to the group before any of the young ones realized. “BRAINS!” he shouted. The fillies and colts jumped, letting out high pitched screams of fear. Smoke Storm lunged at a filly dressed as a bee and she ran off, screaming at the top of her lungs. The others ran off into different directions and their parents had to go chasing after them. To the parents, it was hilarious, but their children would likely be scarred for life.

“Try to be considerate of the little ones,” Dream Catcher’s father said to Smoke Storm. He nodded and continued his zombie walk down the line of ponies, lunging at a colt dressed as a pirate, who dropped his sword and ran off crying. The large wood doors of the haunted house opened and closed as a short scientist pony scurried out. It was Short Stack and he was playing as Dream Catcher’s father’s assistant.

“Uh, Dr. Ash, we’re ready for the next group,” Short Stack said. Dream Chaser couldn’t tell if that was Dream Catcher’s father’s real name or his costume name.

“One moment, we seem to have lost some patrons,” Dr. Ash whispered. “If you have a group of six, please come forward!” he shouted over the sound reel. The ponies in the line whispered to each other before a group finally stepped forward. Much to Dream Chaser’s dismay, he saw the Triskaideka walking forward with his companions. Ponies stepped aside as he walked past them in his terrifying costume, levitating one of his fake machetes in front of him.

There were four ponies who hadn’t been scared off and they separated Dream Catcher’s group from the Triskaideka’s group. Dr. Ash counted again to make sure there were twelve ponies and gave a nod to Short Stack.

“Here are the rules,” Short Stack began, addressing the group, “Our actors can’t touch you so don’t touch them; please stay with the group at all times; do not go outside the designated path; no running; most importantly, no roughhousing.” There was a burst of laughter from the back of the group, an indication they hadn’t cared to listen to the rules. “It’s gonna be a long night,” Short Stack sighed. He turned and opened the sinister-looking doors of the haunted house and led the group inside.

Behind the doors was a plywood hallway that linked the front display to the actual building. “City Morgue” was etched into a gold plaque on the outside of the real building. Dream Chaser read the plaque and searched his brain for the definition of a morgue. After a few moments, he came up short, and decided he’d ask Dream Catcher later.

“Alright! Follow the arrows, remember the rules, and get scared,” Short Stack shouted over the pre-recorded screams and howls. He disappeared behind a curtain and the doors closed behind them. Fog filled the hallway and the lights dimmed. Dream Chaser felt Dream Catcher get a just a little closer to him. A door at the end of the hallway opened up and fog poured out of it, a strobe light flashing from the room beyond.

“Come on! Move!” a voice from the back of the group shouted. Dream Chaser felt a push and began walking towards the door, keeping Dream Catcher close. The hallway was lined with shelves containing skulls and pickled brains and other assorted horrors. As he walked past the last one, it creaked and tipped towards him. He jumped out of the way, but the shelf stopped and retracted backwards, the brains sloshing in their preserving fluids.

“Scared yet?” Dream Catcher teased. Dream Chaser scoffed; he regained his composure and walked through the doorway. They were now in what appeared to be an operating room. Strange devices hung from the ceiling over an operating table, on which was a mare in a blood-stained dress. The front of the dress, as well as most of her stomach, had been torn open. Realistic tentacles hung out over her sides, wiggling slightly. The rest of the ponies filed into the room and circled around the operating table. One of Triskaideka’s crew got right up to her face.

“This is so fake,” the pony said, looking away for a second. The mare’s eyes flung open and she began crying. The pony next to her jumped back in shock, flipping a tray of surgical tools.

“What’s going on? Where am I? Wh-What is this?” she asked in a frightened voice. Dream Chaser realized it was Tough Love and was impressed, and a little scared at her acting. She looked down at her stomach and began screaming, tugging at the shackles that bound her to the table. “Help me!” she screamed over and over. There was a set of double doors at the back of the room and the windows lit up. A silhouette of a pony putting on surgical gloves appeared in the window. “Run!” Tough Love shouted to them. “Run or he’ll get you too!”

The silhouette approached the doors and Dream Chaser looked for another way out of the room. There was a red flare across from where they’d entered and he pulled Dream Catcher with him. The rest followed his lead and together they escaped into another hallway. At the other end was another flare, but in-between were half a dozen “corpses”.

Dream Chaser walked past the first one cautiously, waiting to see if it would get up. When it didn’t, he treaded past the others, and the group followed his lead. As the last of Triskaideka’s crew passed the first zombie, it let out a moan and began crawling to its hooves. That was apparently the signal the others had been waiting for, and the six zombies rose up. 

The one closest to Triskaideka stumbled towards him, moaning and clawing at the air. Triskaideka levitated his fake machete and swung it at the zombie’s head.

“Ow!” the zombie shouted, sitting down and rubbing the spot where the machete had made contact. Triskaideka looked around nervously to see if anypony had witnessed his crime. They were all too busy fending off their own zombies to notice. He grabbed the cape-less Wonder Mare he had been with and forced her to follow him. They ran past Dream Chaser and through the next door, abandoning the group.

The zombies let the rest of them pass so they could tend to their wounded; the pony Triskaideka had struck was bleeding from a gash on his forehead. Dream Chaser cautiously walked through spider web-filled corridors, trying to find Triskaideka. The ponies that hadn’t strayed stayed close behind, and Dream Catcher stayed right at his side. The hallway held all manner of evil things, and Dream Chaser tried to keep his head down as skeletons and ghosts lunged from behind curtains.

A big wooden sign had been nailed above the next doorway and painted in red letters was, “TORTURE CHAMBER”. Triskaideka and Wonder Mare stood with their backs turned, staring into the room. Dream Chaser led the group in behind them and watched as Earth Bound and Twenty-Twenty were about to perform their act.

The room was filled with all sorts of torture devices, such as iron maidens, stretching racks, and stocks. Earth Bound was shackled to a stretching rack in the center of the room, as Twenty-Twenty (dressed as a torture master) turned the tension wheel. The rack was designed for pegasi and instead of pulling at the legs, it was pulling his wings. Dream Chaser knew one of the wings was a fake, secured on with some sort of adhesive and probably filled with fake blood.

“Please! Please let me go!” Earth Bound begged as Twenty-Twenty turned the tension wheel slowly. His wings got further apart with every turn of the wheel and the crowd wondered which one would break first. Dream Chaser was so engrossed in the performance; he almost didn’t notice Triskaideka and Wonder Mare sneaking out the next door. He discretely separated himself from the group and went to investigate.

Dream Chaser was halfway down the hallway when he heard the scream of Earth Bound and the collective screams of the ponies as they were spattered with fake blood. A tap on his shoulder startled him, and he turned to see Dream Catcher had followed him.

“You weren’t supposed to leave the group,” she whispered, though he could barely hear her over the house’s sound effects.

“Neither were they,” he replied, pointing to Triskaideka and Wonder Mare. They were disappearing through the next doorway and he hurried after them. As he rounded the corner, he saw Wonder Mare’s tail disappear through the curtains lining the hall. He and Dream Catcher cautiously pushed through the curtain, coming out in an undecorated part of the building. The only light came from a pair of flood lights above an exit door.

“Masher? Masher! Where are you? This isn’t funny!” The cries of an upset filly were coming from beyond a pile of unused props. Dream Chaser used the props as cover and looked over them. He could see the Wonder Mare walking cautiously towards an open door. “You better not be down there!” She shouted down into the darkness.

“Don’t go down there!” Dream Catcher shouted, stepping out from behind the props. The Wonder Mare turned to see Dream Catcher approaching her and recognized her cape.

“Hey! That’s my cape!” she shouted angrily. Dream Chaser stepped out from his cover and her eyes darted to him. A sly smile ran across her face. “Oh, you and your coltfriend come back here for some “alone time”, some kissy-kissy?” She laughed at her own joke and Dream Catcher’s face turned bright red.

“He’s not my—!” Dream Catcher started to say the phrase that Dream Chaser found emotionally painful, but Wonder Mare let out a scream. Dream Chaser was charging at her with the full intent of teaching her a lesson, and she braced for impact. From the shadows burst Masher, a.k.a. Triskaideka, and he slammed into Dream Chaser, throwing him off balance. He fell through the open door and into the darkness, as if in slow motion.

He was falling, staring up at Dream Catcher, her face ridden with shock and concern. Hidden behind the mask, Masher’s expression was likely one of sick pleasure. Wonder Mare slowly opened her eyes and realized what was happening, a broad grin making its way across her face. She turned to Dream Catcher and pushed her through the doorway as well, grabbing onto her cape with her teeth. The clasp came undone and Dream Catcher tumbled into the darkness.

Time resumed its normal pace and Dream Chaser closed his eyes. He bounced painfully off several steps before finally landing on his back at the bottom of the stairs. The cold, concrete floor did nothing to soften his landing and pain ran through his spine. Before he could get his bearings, Dream Catcher landed on top of him. The wind was knocked out of his lungs and he gasped for air.

“Don’t have too much fun!” Wonder Mare shouted down to them. She reattached her cape and gave Masher a nod. He used his magic to close the door slowly so he could stare down at his victims. The ray of light shrunk until there was nothing but a sliver remaining, with Masher’s face in the middle. He stared an extra moment before closing the door completely. There was a loud click, and the sliver of light disappeared.

The two ponies lay in the dark, breathing heavily in a much more innocent way than would happen several years later. Though he couldn’t see her, Dream Chaser knew Dream Catcher’s face was right in front of his. He could feel her breath, smell her scent, and sense her eyes looking into the darkness for his.

“Are you okay?” she asked at last. Her breathing had slowed, but his remained fast, and his heart was pounding.

“I think so,” he replied, though his ribs hurt from her landing on him. “What about you?

“I’m, uh, I’m fine,” she said with uncertainty. Her arms were still wrapped around him tightly, and he could tell something was wrong. His eyes adjusted to the darkness and he saw she was looking around nervously.

“Are you sure?” he asked with concern. She realized she was still on top of him and jumped to her hooves.

“Yeah, let’s…let’s just get out of here,” she said, helping him up. Pain ran through his back and neck, but he didn’t feel anything was broken.

“Where are we?” he asked looking around. There was a row of stainless steel refrigerator doors built into the far wall. Big metal carts had been set up in front of them with trays of surgical tools close by. On one of the carts he could see the outline of something covered by a sheet. “Dream Catcher?” he asked when she didn’t reply. He turned to see her with her head down and covering her ears with her hooves.

“I can hear him,” she whispered, not opening her eyes. Dream Chaser strained his ears. but could only faintly hear the sounds of the haunted house carrying on up above.

“Who?” Dream Chaser asked. “Your father?” She shook her head and pointed her hoof into the distance.

“Him,” she said. He followed the direction of her hoof and saw she was pointing at the sheet covered object in the distance.

Was that a pony? Dream Chaser wondered. He walked across the room, his hoof steps echoing in the silence. I don’t hear any pony. Maybe she’s playing a trick on me. As he got closer, he saw something sticking out from under the sheets, a small card hanging from a string around it. Is that a hoof? He was inches from the cart now and could clearly make out the details of a pony beneath the sheet. Is this part of the haunted house? Is this a real dead pony? Is Dream Catcher’s father a killer? Am I next?

His head was running with too many thoughts at once; he nearly jumped out of his skin when Dream Catcher put her hoof on his shoulder. He looked at her in fear, then to the body, then back to her again.

“Dream Catcher! This isn’t funny!” he shouted at her, but he could tell by her expression it wasn’t a joke. She looked like she wanted to cry and he relaxed, taking a deep breath. “Why is there a dead pony here?”

“It’s my dad’s job,” she replied.

“Your dad gets paid to kill?!” Dream Chaser asked, assuming the worst.

“What? No!” she shouted, and he felt relieved, if not a little stupid. “The ponies are brought here and he finds out how they died. Then he cleans them up before they’re buried.” The idea seemed pointless to Dream Chaser. Why bother when they’re just going into the ground? Then he remembered his grandma’s funeral from the spring. He remembered looking into her casket after the sermon had finished, when he and his parents had gone up to pay their final respects. She had looked like she was sleeping, as if at any moment, she would get up and say how much he’d grown since she’d last seen him.

“Okay, but what did you mean when you said you could hear him?” Dream Chaser asked. She looked at him with sad eyes then turned to her cutie mark.

“It’s my special talent,” she said quietly. He just looked at her, not quite understanding what she meant. “Please don’t think I’m weird!” she begged.

“Wait, I don’t get it. What’s your special talent?” he asked. She hesitated for a moment, debating how or if she wanted to explain. Eventually, she walked to the head of the covered pony and lifted the sheet. Beneath was a stallion that had fallen to his death the previous week. The cause of death was a broken neck, and his vertebrae still stuck out at odd angles.

“I can hear their dreams: everything they’d ever wanted or hoped to be,” she said, putting her hoof over the stallion’s eyes. Dream Chaser felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and chills ran down his spine. “They speak to me and get mad when I don’t listen.”

“What…what is this one saying?” Dream Chaser asked hesitantly, moving up so he could see the stallion’s face. Dream Catcher closed her eyes and concentrated. After a few moments, she began relaying the messages of the deceased.

“He wanted a mare he couldn’t have. He dreamed of being happy with her and raising a family, moving to the country and getting away from the city.” Her brow furrowed and she began to look as if she tasted something unpleasant. “He wanted to kill the mare’s lover.” She began shaking, keeping to herself the horrible things the stallion had wanted to do to the pony, who he felt didn’t deserve the one he loved. She went quiet and Dream Chaser walked over to comfort her.

“How did you find out it was your special talent? How is this even possible?” he asked, unsure what to think of the odd situation.

“I came to work with my dad a few months ago and he brought me down here. He opened one of those lockers,” she pointed to one of the things Dream Chaser thought were refrigerators, “and I heard a voice coming from inside. I listened as it told me its dreams. My father thought I was pretending until my cutie mark appeared.”

For the first time, she actually let him look at her cutie mark: a dream catcher with a star in the middle and three stars hanging from it. Later on, it would become something he could draw with his eyes closed.

“But how? And why?” Dream Chaser asked. He had little knowledge of the spiritual and supernatural; after all, he was just an earth pony.

“The only way my father could explain it was his great, great gram was a unicorn, and I got some magic genes…or something…I don’t know,” she said looking down at her hooves. “I’m just a freak.”

Dream Chaser’s gut instinct told him she needed a hug and he embraced her. They stayed like that in the darkness for some time. He listened to the distant sounds of the haunted house and she listened to the now quieting dreams of the deceased.