Land of Friendship and Magic

by Archmage Ansrit

Intermission: In defense of our dreams

Ditzy Doo.

Pegasus. Mailmare. Mother.

As a pony, she was, naturally, magical. She was physically fit, as well. She might not train as hard as Rainbow Dash, but her job, and the training she did do, meant that she was nonetheless exceptional; Rainbow herself complimented her on her skills flying through poor weather.

As so many others of the Wind family, she was proficient in the use of Wind Shaping practically from birth, and further helped along by Typhon himself and the older members of the family.

All of that meant that, as a mother, endangering her foals was beyond foolish and downright suicidal. After a heated discussion with one noble, his bodyguard overreacted.

Ditzy reacted.

He stopped acting for a while.

The noble learned that there was more to a pony than his or her appearance, and cleaned up his act rather nicely, eventually falling in love with a humble waitress of Manehattan, the first mare of the herd.

Ditzy Doo.

Seven names, seven bubbles, a heart seven times as big and strong...

Seven fears to each name.

For, while she was courageous, she was not without fear - and what great fears they were! It was a testament to her spirit that she could smile so honestly and stand so firmly while beset by such horrible thoughts and nightmares. For, while she feared losing her children like any mother, each name could be connected to a different one.

Derpy Hooves was known for her fear of being a burden, Derpamina for her fear of being trapped underwater and drowning, Wandering Eye for her fear of becoming lost and never finding her way home, Ditzianna for her fear of being crippled and never flying again, Whisper Wind for her fear of never feeling the voice and the kiss of the skies again, Bright Eyes for her fear of being blind in more than just the literal sense of the word, and Ditzy Doo for her fear of her children losing her.

It made her quite the prize for bogeymanes.

Bogeymanes were relatives of the Nightmares and the Pooka. Whereas the Nightmares twisted dreams and visions as a way of both being born and manifesting themselves, bogeymanes were an existence of their own after the distortions of fear had ran their course through whatever it was that started it.

A shadow in the night.

A rumor of ghosts in the alleys.

A tale of haunted mansions.

They became creatures such as:

A horse with no head.

A creature pretending to be a victim, only to attack you no sooner your back is turned.

A monster in the shape of the mad killer that used to be the owner of the mansion.

Not all of them were bad... the Olden Pony... most of them were content with finding old, rusty horseshoes, or receiving a blanket to ward off the cold.

Yet, they thrived on fear.

Bogeymanes scared others, that was the plain and simple truth of it. They were the creatures of fear and darkness. Fear. It gave them life, it gave them strength, and as such their mere presence made knees rattle. Even if they had no ill intentions. They paid it no mind, though. Being faced with the embodiment of fear itself, it was natural.

It was possible for them to thrive on other definitions of fear, some even preferring it for moral reasons...

But horror was just so sweet and delectable, so decadent and piquant, that it was hard to resist, more so with others spurring them on. After all, those that were born of ponies had some elements of the mentality of a pony.

And those great fears had such an irresistible smell...

Perhaps they could stay during a small nightmare, maybe two. No more than some haunting.

Nightmare Night was close; the borders were thin, and even the play-pretend scares and surprises were still a valid source of nourishment. They grew restless, and numerous.

The shadows reached for the sleeping mare, who shivered under her covers as her uneasy dreams darkened further.

A barrier of water separated her from her foals, who cried in her absence. She moved her legs and pumped her wings for all they were worth, but the light grew distant and dimmer with each passing moment...

She could not see their faces clearly any more, and the lack of air was making her panic.

She wanted to call out for them, to tell them not to be sad, to tell them that she was near; she sank deeper into the dark waters and her limbs grew heavier.

"Stay away from my mommy!" The light pierced through the shadows and made them retreat in a hurry.

Magic reacts to emotional states; it makes what you want to happen... happen. If one believes in something with all of their being, all of their strength, and all of their heart... it might just become real.

The heart of a filly, so full of love and determination, really, really wanted to help her mother.

And, in the eyes of a little filly, a pony wearing the armor of the Royal Guard was exactly what it was meant to be - a symbol of the desire to protect loved ones from harm, the stalwart heart that does not give in to fear, the unyielding wall which no danger can overcome.

And lastly, toys. Such a simple concept - objects meant to entertain a child - and yet they represent the sweetness and the innocence that so many adults thoughtlessly discard or foolishly think they have lost. They are things that never go away, for true innocence was the measure of how far would one go to keep the happiness of others.

Three spectral guard ponies lunged at the shadows, their eyes like fire shining white and dispelling the blackness.

A small unicorn filly stood in the middle of the formation, glowing lines like ropes connecting her tiny frame to the heart of the constructs - a hoof-made stuffed bear with buttons for eyes, a tin guard missing a rear hoof, and construction blocks.

Her fierce expression, while diminished by her harmless appearance, nonetheless gave the dark pause. There was no fear in her, not one they could feed or feed from, and her heart and mind were open to the magic of the light she used - and she was not lost to it.

She was a foal they could not scare. A foal much too brave for her minute stature.

But they could overcome her.

She was but one, and young. They were more, they were strong, and they wanted that mare.

To the outside observer, they would only see vague shapes coming from the shadows, molded from the shadows themselves, trying to snap at the ghostly golden guardians, while the defenders prodded at them with hooves holding white fire in turn. They were but testing the fringes of her protection.

Occasionally, a larger shadow would lunge, only for it to be driven back by a powerful blow.

It hurt, and it burned worse than red-hot iron... but they knew. She could not hold forever, not against so many.

The eyes of the specters were dimming, and her eyes darted from side to side too much - she was losing focus and energy.

They all burst forward at once.

She screamed.

The door opened once more and two more ghostly figures, the color of fresh raspberries, dove into the black and broke apart the offense, scattering the shadows.

"Dinky!" Amethyst Star, or just 'Sparkler' to her sister, jumped into the room.

One figure was a female guard, her heart being a pegasus ballerina, while the other was a tiger with a white plush animal of the same kind.

The darkness knew the battle was lost. The new arrival loved the filly and the mare just the same as they did each other, and was older and stronger.

The figures oozed away through the windows, yet two stayed behind.

"My head..." A voice of cobbled-together sounds broke through the stillness, it was vaguely feminine and consisted mostly of pained grunts. "Did we get swept up in a Pandemonium?"

"I... I think so." Another voice, much like the first, yet masculine, replied. "I hate scaring ponies that don't deserve it."

"Who are you, that you don't scare others?" Sparkler asked the black blobs, while the dancer specter helped the guard, embracing each other and shining brighter together.

"Ah..." The female voice wavered. "Forgive our intrusion - it was not our intention."

Two figures were there, where once there were nothing but shadows.

"I am Slendermane."

Author's Note:

Here is the inspiration pic.

Comments

[Raistlin]

Uauh... seems like a Little Fears the rpg season.

[SeventhBrony]

only a fool takes the Hooves family lightly
I can just see it, somepony\thing about to harm Dinky, a Rainboom later and Dinky is safe and as who\wahtever is trying to figure out what just happened, Derpy's baaaack
As for the same for Derpy? Dinky and Sparkler are to unknown

MOAR please

[giz]

Dinky is a user Fullbringer

[Archmage Ansrit]

4453283

I don't have much appreciation for Bleach, though some elements are interesting...

However, I would more liken it to Harry Potter's Patronum spell, with a dash of Stand power from Jojo's Bizarre Adventures and a pinch of Hope-aspect player thrown in for good measure. Plus things here and there...

[ZephyrStrife]

I really like this story, and you actually helped me with coming up with how to express my main character's fears when they finally come to light.

[Archmage Ansrit]

4453873

Wow... glad I was able to help!

[ZephyrStrife]

4453888 Dude, you're a great author, and the Heir of Breath would be great to have as an ally, always remember, you write because you want to... not because others want you to, as long as you enjoy the story, we will too.

[Aerigim]

Yay I'm caught up now. Took me a while to find this fic after the collaberation with Auric during the warehouse adventure but it was worth it!

[Dragonfox]

I just have to say that I like this story. It was confusing at first because you wood give just peas of the story. In time as I read more of the story I have been able to make sens of the story. I like what I am reading and hope to see new chapter to this story.

So Keep up the good work you are doing hear and I hope to see a new chapter soon.

Dragonfox