I Should Have Been Asleep Five Hours Ago
"Nightmare Night, what a fright! Give us something sweet to bite!"
Before the mare stood a ghost, a knight in plastic armor, and what appeared to be that one kooky grandfather from Ponyville's retirement village. Dad never did forgive me for the move Songbird thought with an inward sigh as she grabbed the large bowl of treats with her magic, holding it up as if it were a Holy Grail from the legends. The foals beneath the costumes eyed the bowl hungrily like starved wolves.
Songbird recognized that look. She wore it many times in her youth and, according to her husband, though always in secret, still did when tempted with a chocolate bar. Yes, the Unicorn had to admit she had a weakness for sweets and it was one of the reasons she loved this night. It was, of course, not the only reason.
"Your ghost was more convincing last year, Shortstop," Songbird said as she deposited a piece of candy in the child's bag. "Seriously, not going to be any bit original?"
"Well, I was gonna be a slime monster this year but I ran out of jelly. Dad had a fit."
"I can imagine so," Songbird smiled just as a loud shout echoed through the house, shaking it's very foundations. "Speaking of slime monsters," she said with a roll of her eyes.
A young filly ran to the mare's side. Like older pony, she also had a horn and a blond mane. Her coat, however, was a lighter shade of blue than Songbird's. "Mom," the filly said, "Daddy ran out of tissues again."
"Mr. Sight has the Feather Flu," Songbird explained over another thundering sneeze.
"Aw, does that mean he won't be pranking us this year?" the knight asked with a voice that was much too high-pitched and too adorable to be appropriate for such an intimidating costume.
"I'm afraid not," the mare said sadly. "Well, I need to clean up. You kids have fun."
She and the filly waved as the group disappeared into the night, searching for their next conquest. The young Unicorn looked up and asked, "Why aren't we out there? Why can't I go out too?"
Songbird sighed. "Your father's sick and we need to take care of him."
"It's not far," the child whined. "I already have a costume and everything."
"Just use it for next year."
"But I don't wanna be a zombie next year!"
"What's wrong with zombies?"
"Nothing. I just know I'm gonna be a something else."
Songbird shook her head. "You're impossible, Medley. Let's go check on your father and make sure he hasn't coughed up a lung."
"Fine," she huffed.
The two ponies made their way into the living room where a large pile of blankets and tissues with a stallion's head laid on the couch. A thankfully empty bucket sat besides it.
"I've died," spoke the head. "I've died and am greeted by a pair of beautiful ang-" The rest of the sentence was covered up by hacks and coughs.
"Not feeling better huh?" The mare knelt besides him, brushing his naturally grey mane out of his eyes and off his brown square framed glasses. She levitated them off his nose. "You've been reading again, haven't you?"
The stallion sighed and pulled out a small notebook from underneath the blankets. With evident reluctance, he surrendered it to his wife.
"What's this?"
"Just some of the plans I had for this year."
"May I?"
"Go ahead."
Songbird opened the book, only to drop it like hot iron as confetti burst forth. Her daughter fell to the ground in a fit of laughter. "Sight..."
Sight merely grinned.
The Unicorn shook her head. She picked up the book and skimmed through a few pages. "Wow, you were going all out this year weren't you?"
"Of course. Had to make Medley's first Nightmare Night memorable." Sight gave his daughter a wink only to catch himself and frown. "Hey, where's your costume?"
"Mom says we aren't going,"
"What?" He tried to turn his head to face his wife. "Why?"
"We decided to stay home and take care of you," Songbird said. "Oh, don't give me that look. It only works when you're wearing your glasses, remember?"
"That won't do. I'll be fine," the stallion asserted, grabbing for his spectacles. "Hon-"
Songbird rushed forward, holding the bucket up to her husband's mouth as he dry-heaved.
"Honest," he finished weakly with an equally weak grin. "I'm feeling fine."
"Right."
"Hey, I'm not helpless. You two have fun, okay? Don't you dare hold back on my account."
"Please Mom," Medley begged, clutching at Songbird's leg. "Please?"
"Medley, it wouldn't be fair to your father."
"You know what's not fair? You two having to stay inside during this most glorious of night just because I got caught in a bad storm. Come on, Song, I know you're itching to show those kids how to gather candy."
Not without you. Songbird opened her mouth to argue but another coughing spree interrupted her.
"You two have to have twice as much fun for me, alright?" Sight managed to say when he finally managed to regain control. "Now hurry up and get your costume on, okay?"
"Okay!" Medley cheered as she ran upstairs into her room.
"I never said..." Songbird began. She sighed. "You're impossible, you know that? Medley gets that from you."
"It's a good thing that's all she got from me," said Sight as he dug deeper under the blankets. "I'm glad she got all her looks from you."
"Even on the sickbed you're a flirt." The Unicorn shook her head. "Are you sure..."
"Of course I'll be fine." He leaned forward and gave her a quick kiss on the cheek. "Make this a sure this night's as special to her as it is to us."
"I doubt that'll ever happen," Songbird said, returning the kiss. "I'm so glad I'm not a Pegasus."
"I'm glad neither is Medley," Sight said, nodding in agreement. "Hate for the two of you to catch this thing."
"Mooom, I'm ready!"
Sight shifted onto his haunches and tried to whistle. Songbird took a step back to avoid the spit. "Well, if it isn't the most adorable zombie in Equestria."
The little zombie began to pout. "I'm not adorable," she protested. "I'm scary!"
"Well, if it isn't the most frightening zombie in Equestria." He ducked back under the covers, winning a giggle from his daughter. "And where's your costume?" he asked, directing the question to the Unicorn mare rolling her eyes. "I'd hate to have you devoured."
Medley gasped. "He's right, Mommy! You need a costume or else Nightmare Moon will gobble you up!"
Shaking her head, Songbird left the living room. She returned moments later with a large black pointy hat covering her horn and a black silk cloak. "What do you think?"
"Shh, Daddy fell asleep."
"Oh." Songbird let her shoulders sag a bit. She quickly recovered, reminding herself how badly Sight need the rest. She stood next to him and whispered, "Don't you worry, Medley's going to have a great time, alright? You just lay there and get better. I'll set up a bowl of candy outside so you don't have to get up and I-"
"Mooom!" came the whine. "Let's go, let's go!"
"Hold on," Songbird called back. "I'll see you in a couple of hours." She gave him another quick kiss. "Try not to miss the bucket."
The witch followed the hopping zombie out of the house and into the ghoul filled streets. Before placing the large bowl of treats down on the doorsteps, she reached into the bowl and pulled out two large chocolate bars and deposited them into Medley's bag. Mother and daughter shared a smile.
"You ready for the best night of your life?" Songbird asked with a smirk.
"Am I ever! Let's go, let's go!"
The door slammed shut. Sight's eyes flew open.
The night had begun.