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// Your Nightmares 
// Story: A Game of Homes. 
// by Lethrael 
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Your Nightmares.

Scootaloo stared at the blank sheets and tried to find a good start. She chewed on her pen, frowned and sighed silently. This day was way too perfect to end it with the reliving of her nightmares. But she wanted to tell Mum about the nightmares, so they would stop. Scootaloo put the tip of the pen back on the sheet and started again.
	

Dear Mummy,

I have to tell you something.


She stopped and shook her head. She turned around and stared at the painting, who was hanging in front of her bed. First she had thought to write names on every heart, but this would mean, that it wouldn't be Mum's painting any more and so she didn't do it. Her eyes went to her bed, where Mum's teddy stood beside her pillow and to the sleeping bag right in front of her bed. Sweetie Belle had rolled it out already and went to the bathroom a while ago. Scootaloo smiled and looked back to the lines and put the tip of the pen back and started to write.


Since you had left, I have nightmares and I'm feeling...


Scootaloo spat the pen out and it landed on the sheet. She made a bugged noise and scrunched the letter up. She chucked it into the trash can and looked to the ceiling. She started to speak in a normal tone.
“I won't sound like a little filly, who just wants her mummy back.”
She shut her eyes closed and  mumbled another sentence in a lower tone.
“Even, when I just want that.”
There, she chewed on her lips again. Scootaloo put the pen back in her mouth and leaned over the next blank sheet.


Dear Mummy,

I hope you will be okay soon and you can visit me soon.
I miss you so much.
Since you had left, I have many terrible dreams.
I know it's dumb, but I'm afraid, that you would leave me alone here.
And I'm mad at...


Another half written letter was throw in the trash and Scootaloo breathed out very bugged. Lumbering hooves from the door caused her to stop and Sweetie Belle stepped slowly in. The unicorn had definitely heard her and looked to her with an assessing expression on her face. Her left hoof drew lines on the ground and she wagged her tail nervously.
“Say Scootaloo, what are you doing there?”
The pegasusfilly stroke her mane and sighed at the next sheet. She hemmed and hawed and watched her lips very carefully, so she didn't start to chew on them again.
“I just tried to write a letter for Mum.
But it sounded always like I would blame her and it is dumb in some way or another.” 
Sweetie craned her neck and stared at the white sheets in front of Scootaloo. She thought for a while and mumbled a few words.
“Maybe you could, so.
Just write, what you're feeling and don't overthink it.”
The last sentence was so hushed, that Scootaloo had to turn her head and to look at her lips to understand what she had said. She leaned over to put the pen back in her mouth, but stopped and leaned back. She ran her hoof over her lips, continued with her mane and wiped the sheet and the pen off. She mumbled irritated and almost snarled at her friend.
“That's not so easy, Sweetie. Fluttershy had said, that a letter could be easier.
But I think that's not the case here.”
She shook her head, noticed, that she chewed on her lips again and licked her chops. She stood up quickly, closed the gab between her and the unicorn and snuggled hesitantly against Sweetie Belle.
“I'm tired of thinking about it, Sweetie. Let's go to bed, okay?”
Sweetie Belle nodded and yawned.

This night was as worse as the other ones. Scootaloo tossed and turned in her nightmares and Sweetie Belle had to hear all of that with wide open eyes. The stammering alone, interjected by the struggling hooves, kept the white filly from sleeping.
“Please, go away. No...”
Was she sobbing right now? Sweetie stood up, shook away the goose bumps and stared to her friend, who turned around and hit the air with all four hooves. She seemed to run for her life, but struggled to get away from somepony. Sweetie raised her hoof hesitantly and fondled gently over her face.

It doesn't help! The nightmares doesn't disappear with mum's teddy. She ran away from green glowing eyes, hid in a dark, dark forest and crawled deeper and deeper into the prickly thicket, to get away. A hoof with holes touched her and pulled out a streak of her mane. She sensed the aching on her head and screamed.
“Buck off.”
She jumped out off the thicket, galloped through darkness and tried to find another place, she would be safe. Somepony touched her forehead, fondled over her cheek and a soft warm thing snuggled against her face. Scootaloo opened her eyes and looked directly into the wide open ones of her friend. Sweetie Belle put the hoof down and drew lines on the ground with it. She flinched away and whispered through the greyish darkness.
“You're having a nightmare, Scootaloo.”
The little unicorn felt silence and rubbed over her mouth. She eyed the pegasusfilly and stammered.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
Her voice faded more and more away. First Scootaloo just shook her head and sighed. The filly squinted her eyes, the image of the perforated hoof touching her mane returned and she snuggled closer to her pillow. She trembled shortly and opened her eyes quickly. Scootaloo glanced at the painting with the five hearts and ignored Sweetie Belle as she did. She scooted away on the bed to make place for her friend and started.
“I've dreamed...”
She finished her breathy narration with a deep sigh and looked to Sweetie Belle just now. The unicorn had seated herself on the edge of the bed and had hugged herself with her own front hooves. She looked to the floor pensively and licked her chops. The unicorn noticed, that Scootaloo looked at her and didn't say anything. Sweetie sighed and shook her head. Her voice sounded worried through the night.
“And how often did you have this nightmare?”
Scootaloo shut her eyes close and sat up. She cuddled against Sweetie Belle's side and looked to the floor beside her sleeping bag.
“I don't know. Since Mum had left, I think.”
She trembled again and a cloud came out of her mouth. Sweetie Belle shivered and hugged her. She leaned her face against Scootaloo's and both fillies sensed a goose bump drifting over their bodies.
“Maybe. We should go visit your mummy tomorrow? Maybe Sunny Rays could...”
This suggestion sounded low on Scootaloo's ears and she flinched away shortly. She sounded louder as her friend and almost angry.
“But Princess Celestia comes to town tomorrow and we wanted to see her.
Besides...”
Sweetie Belle looked at her with wide eyes and sighed. She snuggled her friend and whispered.
“When you've dreamed this every night!
You should really speak with your mum and uah.”
A yawn stopped the unicorn and she laid surprised her other hoof on her mouth. Scootaloo smiled and tried to suppress her own yawn. For nothing, she yawned too and snuggled back at her pillow. Sweetie Belle looked to her and sighed gentle. She stood up from the edge of the bed, looked down to her sleeping bag and shook her head finally.
“Scoot, Scootaloo.”
The white unicorn cuddled against her friend, hugged her with one hoof and closed her eyes. Scootaloo felt her warm body, before she was overwhelmed by her own tiredness and fell asleep.

First the darkness was just amorphous and nothing pierced it. But in a sudden it formed well known buildings and clouds. Cloudsdale in grey mist. Cloudsdale in green lights. Cloudsdale with pitiful glances. Cloudsdale in cold. Scootaloo ducked herself into a cloud under the cold blast and looked around. It was different from all the other dreams.
It was more real.
The filly looked up as a hoof stroke her mane, stuck in it with a sharp edge and pulled a streak out. The green glowing eyes were filling her whole visual field and the glance. She knew this kind of glance from here, full of pity. The black unshaped thing spoke with a well known voice, who she hadn't heard in days.
“Poor filly, where's your mummy?”
It changed quickly into a well known shape. Her mummy stood there and cocked her head. The hoof lost the touch and Scootaloo sensed her wings buzzing on her back.
“She...is here.”
Scootaloo just accomplished to say this and pushed her trembling hooves under herself. She pushed up herself slowly and stumbled to her mum. But she flapped her wings and hovered slowly away. The harder she struggled to get to her, the far away she glided. She ran her lungs out, but she couldn't reach her.
“Scootaloo. Scootaloo hold on.”
This voice was familiar too, but she didn't know who it was. She ran further, crossed a dark cloudwall and found herself in a total different location. The light was bright, the glances softer and everything was warmer. Ponyville and especially Sugarcube Corner raised in front of her. She was still running and crossed the wall, as it was made out of clouds. She saw a Cutecenera in full display and crossed the room quickly. Three fillies stood around a table, giggled and Scootaloo gazed at them, as she galloped closer.
She saw herself with Sweetie Belle and an earthponyfilly. Right now the other Scootaloo balanced a cupcake on her nose and put it on the table. She stopped, tried it at least, though she stopped her hooves, but drifted quickly further through herself, through the back wall and found herself in darkness again. It felt, as she would fall. But the darkness didn't appear, that she fell down something. It made no difference, if Scootaloo shut her eyes close, or stayed it open. It didn't change anything. She squinted her eyes and sighed gentle. Had she sobbed right now?

A gentle hoof touched he face and fondled gently over her cheek.
“Why are you here, Scootaloo?”
It was Sweetie Belle's voice. The little filly opened her eyes and saw her friend in front of her. Th eunicorn cocked her head, smiled hesitantly and petted her face gently.
“I don't want to be gazed at with pitiful eyes.
I don't want to be seen as wrong.
And I want to talk with Mummy.”
She babbled and Sweetie nodded. Her smile faded away and she turned away from her.
“You should tell your mum, that you missed her then. And show, that you love her.”
Sweetie Belle saw to a golden light, turned around again and pushed Scootaloo away from it. Her voice speeded up, but became lower in the same time.
“Just write her a letter. Show, what you're dealing with.
But stop dreaming about it.”
The voice became much faster and higher, she even squeaked once. This in addition to the golden light, that shined into Scootaloo's eyes, were enough to wake her up.
“Stop dreaming!”

The sun tickled in Scootaloo's nose and shined into her eyes. The warmth of a summer day woke her up and she tried to correct the jumble, that Sweetie Belle had made with her. The little unicorn nestled to her so closely, it looked like Scootaloo was her giant stuffed animal. She even drooled on her coat. A squeaking sound escaped her, as Scootaloo pushed her away and tried to move her hooves.
“Sweetie Belle, wake up.”