A Tale of Dreams and Nightmares

by Ivo

Chapter 1 - Introductions

”…there was a town called ‘Ponyville’.
It was a small, though, a very vibrant city in the south of Canterlot. It was located next to the wide hills of the Hackney Plains with its wide fields, clear blue lakes and rivers and peaceful forests, which are lying next to the foothills of the Canterlot Mountains. On the other side of the town, the dark and mysterious Everfree Forest with its high, close together standing trees and countless dangerous denizens, abutted. Only a few ponies ever dared to walk into these woods.

But though, the citizens of Ponyville never complained about living near such a spooky place. There even was a small cottage on the very edge of the forest´s foothills where a very kind pegasus-mare lived and worked as a veterinarian.”

“What is a vetenaran, mommy?” the young filly asked and broke her mother.
“A veterinarian is a doctor for animals. He looks at them when they are hurt and does everything to help them to get well again.”
“Aha.”
“So where were we…

The ponies of Ponyville always are very proud of their town. Though it was a small city, there were a lot of things to see.
The beautiful scents of the market in front of the big City Hall you could always smell from afar. And if you got closer, you could notice the lots of ponies, buying some apples or baked goods or resting on benches or the wide meadows at the nearby park, a small sky-blue river purling through it.
If you would go farther outside the town with its colorful uptowns, on a nearby hill you would pass by some orchards with lots of apples. Soon, you would see a big farm that produces lots of apples every year which were sold all over the world. It was called ‘Sweet Apple Acres’ and was very famous for its tasty apple cider and its Zap Apples, very delicious apples, which are colored in all colors of the rainbow.
But let´s go back to the town.
There also was a very famous bakery, called ‘Sugar Cube Corner’, a very colorful building in the city´s central, looking like a huge gingerbread house. The ponies working there made the best cakes and treats in all Equestria. Cupcakes, bonbons, jellybabies, pies, chocolate…there was nothing missing! Whoever would try one of these treats always will smile in the end and…”

“I´m getting hungry, mommy…” the young filly said smiling with closed eyes.
“Oh, I´m sorry.” her mother chuckled.

”Near the bakery, there was also a very famous boutique - the Carousel Boutique.
Its owner was one of the most talented fashion designers in all Equestria. The finest and prettiest clothes were made by this very special pony and sold all over the world. She even made the bridal dress for Princess Cadence and the dresses for her bridesmaids at the big wedding.”

“You mean the big wedding between Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armor?” the filly questioned. “I remember that story. Wasn´t that the story with the creepy Changelings and their queen?”
“Yes, exactly.”
“But…mommy?”
“Yes, sweetie?”
“You said the story is about dreams, but you only describe this town…” her daughter complained disappointed. Her mother only giggled.
“It is the game of the storyteller, my sweetie. Every story has its introduction. And this is mine. I create a world you can imagine and form in your head to slowly let you dream away and intoxicate you with my words.”
“Intixcate?” she asked confused.
“Intoxicate.” her mother corrected. “It means, I will catch your attention, make you beg for more and let you get caught up in the story to let you fall asleep into my fantasy world.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah, so let´s continue...

And finally, there was the city library. The special thing about this library, next to its treasures and wells of knowledge, written down in countless books along the rows of the wooden bookcases, was that it was built inside a big old tree. The fragrance of the old wood, mixed with the scents of the old and new books, greeted every visitor and was irresistible for every book-loving visitor.
And so was the hero of this story. Though, she not only was a book-loving visitor but the book-loving owner of the city library. Books and studying always were her passion. She was reading nearly all the day, even if she wasn´t at the library. Every day, she crashed into another pony because she was lost again in one of her books while walking through the streets of Ponyville.

But books hadn´t had been everything for Twilight Sparkle, the prized student of Princess Celestia.
Yes, the purple unicorn-mare with the violet mane and tail, one single pink streak in them, was the student of our princess. When she once was enrolled at Princess Celestia´s School for Gifted Unicorns to study magic, she had to pass a test, but nearly failed. She already had given up when her magic suddenly had turned inside-out and revealed its true power. Celestia saw this and asked her to become her personal student. And always since this day, she studied and practiced her magical spells every day. But that is another story.

One day, Twilight wanted to visit her friends. She hadn´t slept well the last night and was sitting at her kitchen table with a cup of black tea to wake her body up. It was early in the morning and she had a bad nightmare the last night. She had dreamed that her whole library had burned down with herself inside. Just when a burning plank would have buried her under it, she had woken up with a shock.
After she had made herself a daisy sandwich, her personal assistant Spike entered the kitchen, his eyes half-closed. Spike was a small baby-dragon and helped Twilight always with the library and the customers. He also sent her letters to Princess Celestia with his fire.
He opened one of the kitchen cupboards and took some turquoises for breakfast. You have to know, dragons sure also eat our food, but their favorites are always minerals, the rarer, the better.

“You also couldn´t sleep?” Twilight asked curious when she saw her friend.
“No.” Spike answered drowsy and let out a long loud yawn. “Some big mean other dragons stole my rubies and attacked me with their fire. You also had a nightmare? You don´t look very good, too.”
Twilight could only nod. “Yes. I´ll close the library for today and visit my friends…and better check the fire drenchers before…”
“And I´ll go back to bed…” the baby-dragon mumbled in response.

A few minutes later, Twilight was on her way out and the small dragon was asleep again, slightly snoring in his basket. When she opened the door, she noticed that there weren´t many other ponies around. Granted, it was still very early and many ponies still were sleeping in their beds.
But Apple Jack, one of her friends, surely would be up. So, she walked along the roads of Ponyville, a clear blue sky and a steadily rising sun over her head. Spring was almost over and the fresh morning breeze sent pleasant and vitalizing chills up her spine and cleared her head.

Just when she reached her destination, the orchards of Sweet Apple Acres, she was in a way better mood than before. Between the countless trees, heavy with lots of delicious apples, she saw her friend Apple Jack at work.
Apple Jack was an orange mare with a blond mane and tail and, as always, wore a Stetson on her head. She was the owner of the farm, together with her brother Big Macintosh and her grandmother Granny Smith. She also has had a little sister, Apple Bloom, but she and the others haven´t a role in this story.

“Good Morning, Apple Jack!” Twilight greeted her friend.
“Mornin´ Twi!” Apple Jack greeted her with her usual accent, reared to her front legs and bucked the tree next to her. Shortly after that, two wooden tubs were filled with the apples falling from tree. “Why y´are all here?” she asked.
“Oh, I just wanted to visit you. I had a nightmare and just needed to see one of my friends to cheer me up. And since it is still that early, I thought you would be the only one who would be already up.” Twilight explained.
Apple Jack frowned. “A nightmare ya say? Ah´d one, too. Damn´ termites ate up all the farm´s trees an´ our barn. T´was a real disast´r!”
Twilight frowned too. “That´s strange.” she said. “But misery loves company, right?”
“Yeah, y´are right there, Ah guess. But´s still annoyin´. Ah´ve ta be in top form ta buck all the trees before the apples get worm-eaten.” Apple Jack replied and bucked another tree.
“Oh, then I won´t keep you away from work anymore.” Twilight meant and Apple Jack said Good Bye with a “See ya lat´r, Twi!”

And so, Twilight went off to her next friend - Fluttershy.
Fluttershy was the veterinarian I mentioned before and lived in the small cottage near the Everfree Forest. She was a yellow-coated pegasus-mare with a waving long pink mane and always very, very shy. She really lived up to her name! But nopony should judge her for that. She had a big talent in talking with animals and she even once had made a full-grown dragon cry. But this is another story.

When Twilight reached the small cottage near a calm streamlet, she knocked friendly against the door, knowing her friend was very easy to frighten with loud voices. After nobody answered, she knocked again. Still no answer. Was she out? No, Twilight thought. At this time, she always fed her animals. Twilight knocked a third time, more firmly this time.
“P-p-please, go away…uhm…if you don´t mind…” a timid voice could be heard behind the door.
“Fluttershy? It´s me, Twilight!” Twilight tried to calm her friend.
But the shy mare just answered: “N-n-no, uhm…p-please go away…”
“But it´s just me, Fluttershy! There is no danger outside!”
“T-t-the d-dragon said the same thing before…h-h-he ate me up…” she squeaked.
Twilight was irritated. “A dragon? Did you have a nightmare, too?”
“J-j-j-just g-go away…if you don´t mind…”
Twilight could only sigh. She knew Fluttershy well enough to know, that she wouldn´t leave the house until the next day.

Who should she visit now? Rarity? No, she sure was still having her beauty sleep.
And Rainbow Dash would still sleep, too.
So, she decided for Pinkie Pie and began to trot over to Sugar Cube Corner.

Pinkie Pie was the most vigorous and funniest earth pony of all Ponyville, if not of all Equestria, and the best mare to call if you want to party! Her parties always were the best!
She was the Ponyville´s very own party-pony!

When Twilight reached the bakery, she entered it with a ring of the store doorbell. Instantly, the fragrance of all the baked goods greeted her nostrils and she took an appreciative deep breath. She trotted over to the counter and heard somepony working in the adjacent room. She pecked through the opened door and saw her bright pink friend with the puffy dark pink mane kneading some batter in a bowl.

“Hello Pinkie!” she greeted Pinkie smiling.
She looked to the door and beamed when she saw the purple mare. “Oh, hello Twilight! What are you doing here that early?” she asked with her high-pitched voice.
“Oh, nothing. I just wanted to visit you. What are you doing there?”
“Oh, silly Twilight!” Pinkie giggled. “I´m baking! After all, this is a bakery! What else should I do? Of course, I could do other things. Like sleeping. Or dancing to the radio music. But Mr. and Mrs. Cake…” - they were the owners of the bakery, you know - “…are out today and I promised to run the bakery on my own. Or did you forget that this is a bakery? Oh no, do you have an amnesia? Did a book from your shelf hit you? But if you have amnesia, how could you remember me? Or where I´m working? Maybe-“
“Pinkie, stop!” giggled Twilight. Pinkie often ran off the mouth like this and you sometimes didn´t know, what the topic was at the beginning. That´s why Twilight stopped her.

“Pinkie, I don´t have amnesia! I just meant: What are you baking there?”
“Oooooooooh! Why didn´t you say so in the first place, silly?”
Twilight only rolled her eyes to this.
“I´m baking cupcakes. A very special, super duper delicious new sort of cupcakes!” she announced with an untwisted jump.
“Oh, that sounds great! Which sort of cupcakes?” Twilight questioned, hoping to be allowed to taste one of the new delicious cakes.
“Well, I had this idea during sleeping. I dreamed I was baking cupcakes, like now, but then there was that biiig elephant asking me to bake a huuuuuuge cake for him and his friend and that took thaaaaat looooong, that my cupcakes had been green when I came back. But I sold them anyhow and then, everypony was getting sick and bad with me and then, they chased me here and there and everywhere and when I woke up, I said ‘Pinkie, wouldn´t it be great if there were colored cupcakes ponies could eat?’ and so, I made…” she grabbed next to her with her mouth, out of Twilight´s view and returned with a big plate of cupcakes of all colors of the rainbow in her muzzle “…these! Aren´t they great? Huh? Huh? Huh?”

Twilight anyhow was having a hard time to follow her words and looked at the cupcakes in amazement and slight suspicion. Red, orange, yellow, green, sky-blue, indigo and purple...and pink, of course, since this was Pinkie´s favorite color.
“Come on! Taste one!” she urged Twilight. “The green one´s are the best!”
“Really?” the purple unicorn asked skeptically and took the green one, sniffing at it and tasting a small bite, preparing for a bad moldy taste. But, in reality, the cupcake tasted very…minty. Minty and sweet! And with a happy smile and one big bite, Twilight took the rest of the cupcake into her mouth.
“Mmmmm! Pinkie, they´re marvelous!”
“Yeah, I know. Thanks! I used clover and spear mint, mixed with some juice of freshly squeezed grass.”
“But…let me get this straight: You had a nightmare, too?” Twilight finally frowned.
“Yeah, but that´s not so bad. Just laugh at it, you know, like in my song:
‘When I was a little filly and the su-‘“
A purple hoof in her muzzle instantly stopped her singing. “Yeah, I remember…”

Some chatty minutes with Pinkie Pie later, Twilight finally left the famous bakery, a box with colored cupcakes on a string in her muzzle and her mood way better than before. Next, she wanted to head for Rarity, who should already be up.
On her way to the Carousel Boutique, she thought about nightmares. How could it be, that she, Spike, Apple Jack, Fluttershy AND Pinkie Pie had had nightmares at the same time? But, on the other side, she thought, there were millions of ponies on this world. It was just normal, that a few of them had nightmares in the same night. Maybe, it was just a funny coincidence!

Thinking about that, our hero walked her way through the streets of Ponyville…and suddenly heard a shout above her.
“WATCH OUT!” somepony cried. “OUT OF THE WAY!”
Twilight frantically searched for the voice´s source…and found a cyan pegasus-mare flying in her direction at high-speed! “WAAAAAAH!” she cried and wanted to jump to the side and to avoid her…and in this moment, the pegesus crashed into her with a loud smash!

They landed both hard on the ground and rose back to their hooves slowly.
“He…Sorry Twi!” Rainbow Dash apologized sheepish. “Tried a new trick. Doesn´t work yet…”
Twilight only-“

“Wait, do you mean THE Rainbow Dash? The captain of the Wonderbolts?” the young filly interrupted her mother with sparkling eyes.
Her mother only chuckled. “Yes, indeed. Back then, she hadn´t been a part of the Wonderbolts yet and was always dreaming about becoming one of them one day. She always practiced very hard for it.”
“Cool!”
“Well, let´s go on…

Twilight only shook her head and looked at Rainbow with a friendly smile. “It´s alright. I´m fine…and my cupcakes too.” she said and took her box of cupcakes back into her mouth. In that moment, she noticed the bags under Rainbow´s eyes and frowned. “Don´t tell me, you had a nightmare, too!”
“Well…yes.” Rainbow said with a blush. “But don´t tell somepony about it. It´s just embarrassing, me being terrified by a stupid nightmare! Only because my wings suddenly fell off and I dropped into a huge dark cleft.”
“I´ll keep it for me. Pinkie-promised.” Twilight assured her friend and gestured the Pinkie-promise.
“Thank you, Twi.” Rainbow smiled and spread her wings, ready to take off. “Well, I have to go now. I have to practice this trick for the Wonderbolt-tryouts next month! See ya later!”
And off she was, diving into the deep blue sky.

Twilight continued walking along the road, the warm sun shining on her back. Soon, she arrived at Rarity´s boutique and entered it. Rarity was the owner of the Carousel Boutique and the famous fashion designer I told you before. She was a white unicorn-mare with a curled elegant purple mane and always perfectly styled! She was a very generous mare. Once, she even made every one of her friend her very own dress for a very big gala.
But though, who enters her boutique and wants to buy some of her designs should have a very heavy moneybag.

Anyhow, when Twilight entered the boutique, she heard the fashionista working on her sewing machine. Silently, she entered the designer´s atelier and watched her working for a minute or two.
“Hello Rarity!” she finally greeted her.
Rarity jolted with a sound of surprise and turned around. “What?” she snapped at her.
Twilight only gasped when she saw her friend, her eyes blood-shoot and big bags beneath them. “You too?” she asked worried.
“Twilight, darling…” Rarity began, taking a deep breath. “I don´t know, what you´re meaning, but I really have to get this dress finished. And the fact, that I couldn´t sleep because of this stupid Prince Blueblood chasing after me in my dreams, doesn´t help me either! So if you just want to talk: please come back later!”
And with that, she was back on her sewing machine and Twilight left the boutique, more curious than before.

She walked a while around Ponyville, before she finally headed back for the library. She had noticed, that not only her friends, but all inhabitants of Ponyville seemed to have had nightmares the night before! But why? One thing was for sure: This wasn´t just a coincidence! There was more behind it!
And Twilight was determined to figure out, what it was!

The rest of the afternoon, she spent with searching her books for illnesses that caused nightmares and could explain this wave of them. But she didn´t find anything. Though, she didn´t give up.
She researched about dreams and nightmares all the day, until it was finally late at night. Twilight´s yawns got more and more and longer and longer. She tried to stay up, but her body cried for sleep, longed for it! She took another looong long yawn and took the next book. Her eyes got heavier and heavier and her breathes got deeper and calmer. Her eyelids slowly closed and she finally fell into a deep, sound sleep…”

She recognized a soft chugging next to her and looked at her daughter. Snuggled up in her blanket, she cuddled against her mother and the blanket rose and lowered in a calm, steady rhythm. Her breath was deep and peaceful and her eyes tightly closed.

She was asleep.

Her mother chuckled. “Works just as always.” she mumbled and kissed the forehead of the small filly with a ‘Good night, my sweet angel.’ and snuggled herself up next to her.

“…and that´s, where the real story begins…” she finished her last sentence of the story, closing her eyes and slowly falling asleep next to her daughter…

The head was wandering across the purple-blue sky. His mind was focusing, leading the bow levitating in front of him. Two degrees lower, one degree right…perfect!

He stood on his rear legs, a black trilby on his head and the black cloak around his shoulders waving lightly in the fresh breeze that stroke through the alleys of the city. Finally, the tip of the arrow came to a rest, aiming at a big green creature, which suddenly had appeared out of one of the houses around. Why was it here?
But that was a question he could search the answer for later. Now, he had to act!

And with one last thought, he let the bowstring go.
Only one moment later, it hit its destination.

With a loud roar that made the earth quake, the green thousand-eyed monster reared to its hind legs when the arrow buried itself deep inside it, destroying one of its eyes. It turned around to face its enemy. Nine hundred ninety nine pop eyes stared with hatred at the stallion, waving one of its long green tentacles at him.
He rapidly jumped to the side, avoiding the long limb which hit the ground right next to him. His bow began to glow in a bright light, changing its form. He snapped at the light with his mouth, revealing an elegant long sword when it dimmed. He brandished it and cut the tentacle next to him, making it vanish in a cloud of white dust.

The monster cried again, darting more tentacles at him. The stallion took his sword and avoided them with trained movements, waving his sword and cutting more of them. He fought his way near the monster, which took note of that and reared on its hind legs, ready to bury the stallion under its giant torso.
But he only had waited for that!

His sword began to glow in his mouth, transforming back into a bow. He rapidly took aim, leveling the bow at the monster´s heart. With another thought, he materialized three shining white arrows, drew the bow with them on the string and let it go.
An earsplitting cry of pain announced the succeeded attack. But the massive green body was still right above him and would bury and destroy him if he wouldn´t react.
With on last glow of his horn, the three energy-arrows exploded inside the monster´s chest and made it vanish in white dust just when it would have squashed him underneath.
The eternal wind waving through the empty streets took the remains of the beast away.

He watched them vanish and took a deep breath. His bow glowed one last time and the light attached to his chest, dimming and revealing a small silver necklace with a small pendant, looking like a crescent moon, a round dark-blue crystal bordered between the tips of the lunar orb.
The unicorn-stallion, a coat black as charcoal and a mane and tail bright yellow as the stars, looked around. His golden eyes noticed some damaged houses because of the monster. There was a big fissure in the brown path beneath his hooves, too.
He closed his eyes and concentrated, imagined how the buildings looked like without their damaged walls and broken windows. He also imagined the alley, clean and without any sign of usage. His horn began to glow and then, with a sudden pulse of his magic, everything was just as it should be. The windows were repaired, the walls without one single hole and the fissure was gone.

Suddenly, the lights of the house next to him, the cottage the monster came from, lit up. Phew! The soul´s unharmed… he thought.
He smiled. The souls were his only friends. He protected them, cared for them, repaired their houses if they got damaged.

And he played with them, when they allowed him to do so. He comforted them, when they needed shelter. He guided them, if they consulted.
Every night.
Every day.
Watching. Waiting. Comforting. Consulting. Playing…

The stallion walked over to the cottage and laid his hoof on the doorknob, opening the door and entering the house. He wanted to look after her, the soul that rested inside. The first thing he noticed inside was the darkness. It was absolute.

The only fleck was where the soul rested, her head lowered to the ground. Small tears dripped down the cheeks of the small foal.
That thing attacked a small filly? How could it dare!
A sobbing came from the small filly, her gaze wandering through the darkness to find anything. But she didn´t find what she searched and sobbed again.
“Mommy... Daddy… Where are you?...” she asked, starting to cry.
Poor little pony… the unicorn thought and came to a point.

He closed his eyes and concentrated, his horn glowing weakly. With a final pulse of magic, he changed his shape. Now, there was standing a young colt at the same age like the filly, his cloak and trilby gone but his coat and mane still of the same color. Just a very young version of himself.
Slowly he approached her and laid one of his hooves comforting on her shoulder.

She didn´t notice him approaching and turned around with a start when he laid his hoof on her shoulder.
“Hello.” he simply greeted her with a friendly smile.
She only looked at him in confusion with her big blue eyes and sniffed, drying her tears with her hoof.
“Hey, please stop crying.” he said.
“But…but I can´t find my mommy and my daddy! I want back to them!” she sobbed.
“Well, only sitting here and crying isn´t going to help you. I will help you to find them, okay?” he suggested.
“Okay…” the filly sobbed and rose to her hooves. “Who are you? I don´t know you. Why do you want to help me?”
“Well…” he said and manipulated the surrounding with his magic. The darkness vanished in a blur of colors and revealed a huge harbor. Lots of ships anchored around and the biggest of them, a great wooden bark, was right behind him. He also imagined an old but impressive captain´s hat on his head and a black eye patch above his left eye and spoke to her: “…I am Captain Black Eye. And this is my ship. And I may know where your parents are. It will be a dangerous journey; there are sea monsters and pirates waiting for us! So do you have the guts to come with me and find your parents?”

With big eyes she looked around when the darkness vanished. She saw old white warehouses along the quay and lots of ponies busily walking around. She saw seagulls, flying above her head and hundreds of colorful flags waving in the wind. The stallion was amazed when a red parrot suddenly appeared on his shoulder, when the young filly entered the staggering ship with a loud cheery 'Yay'.
He cocked an eyebrow for himself. She had a good, powerful and vivid fantasy. And she was keen to play with him.

He smiled. These were the best! This night would be fun!

And so, they sailed through storms, fought against pirates and serpents, fought side by side as prince and princess to save a queen and rescued as fireponies a baby from a burning house until they finally found the filly´s parents.

The stallion only smiled, when he watched the foal pressing against her parent´s chests, tears of joy in her eyes. He turned around and left the scene.

And there, he was again.
Watcher. Waiter. Comforter. Shelter. Consulter. Player.

Dreamer…