//------------------------------//
// IV 
// Story: Devours Dreams from a Distant Dimension 
// by Dirty Bit 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 4


Dispersing Daily Discussions


Luna trotted down the halls of the castle in search of Celestia "Sister! Art thou present? We hath returned from our trip to Miltiades!" She was lucky enough to see a pair of guards march authoritively along another route of the halls on patrol. She approached them and they instantly saluted at her sight "Pardon me, guards, but dost thou know of the whereabouts of our sister?"

One of the guards nodded "She's in her study reading a friendship report from one of her subjects!"

Luna nodded with a smile "Thou hast our gratitude! Proceed!" At her command, the guards resumed marching away further into the castle's halls. She then decided to make her way into Celestia's room to see what she was up to 'Hopefully our subjects hath rested well whilst we were at Miltiades...'

When she reached the door to her older sister's room, she rapped the door with a hoof. Celestia's motherly tone was heard behind the door "Come in!" Luna made her way inside and noticed Celestia sitting down and about to write a message. She smiled at her younger sister "Why hello there, Luna. Did you enjoy your time with Daedalus?" Celestia took notice of the emblem on Luna's chestplate and her smile widened "Judging by your gift, I'd say it went quite well!"

Luna smiled as she levitated the emblem off of her "Daedalus, or moreso his advisor presented this to me and claimed that it was a personal bond of trust between us and the emperor! I've neigh thought Emperor Daedalus would be so trusting!"

Celestia began writing her paper as she replied "You freed him from what could be a moment of unwanted bloodshed in his country. I don't see why he shouldn't trust you for what you've done for him."

Luna looked away "But we've known Daedalus for the longest time! Sure, he represents his race and all, but his manners are far from acceptable!"

Celestia held a playful smile on her lips "You would say that when he gave you a gift that establishes friendship?"

Luna flinched before she sighed "He could have presented it himself if he were so willing to be friends with me..."

Celestia laughed "Yes, you're right. But I'm sure you have enough friends to have fun with. Like your little friend Pipsqueak, for instance!"

Luna looked troubled "About that, Tia...Have our ponies been well-rested in our absence?"

Celestia nodded "I'm sure they slept peacefully despite you not being around. I highly doubt that our little ponies haven't faced what the griffons had in the past." She closed her eyes "And it is a good thing it hasn't. I cannot imagine them going through terrible times all due to lack of sleep..."

Luna looked away with a saddened glance 'Neither can we...'

Celestia then finished her letter and raveled up her scroll as it levitated and burned away in green fire. The solar princess perked up shortly afterwards "Oh, I just remembered!" She fished out an envelope with her magic and levitated it to Luna "You had a message from Pipsqueak as well."

Luna took the envelope with her magic and opened it up to read the message.

Dear Princess Luna,

I'm not sure how my dream had to end like that last night, but I know it wasn't your fault. I saw you do your best out there, and even though it was very scary getting gobbled up by a kraken, it almost reminded me of my first Nightmare Night. For that, I wanted to say thank you for at least being with me. Maybe we can see each other again another night and have another thrilling adventure!

Pipsqueak

Luna gave a relieved sigh as she tucked the note under her right wing with a smile "It is comforting to know that little Pip is in good spirits..." She gave a sad frown "I was beginning to think he did not favor me anymore." Luna muttered sadly.

Celestia rose from her sitting position and trotted over to Luna to give her a nuzzle "Now, Luna, you know Pipsqueak likes you more than anypony. I'm sure he'll be glad to see you soon!" She drew herself back and looked at Luna "Now that you're here, maybe we can talk about your trip over supper."

Luna smiled "Of course! We have enlightening news to share with thou involving the griffons!" The two regal sisters then trotted out of Celestia's room and made for the dining room.
_____

Celestia was not really surprised when Luna made mention of the griffons and how some happened to be more mature than others make them out to be, but she was very interested in how happy Luna was while she explained it. Something told her that she wasn't exactly happy about the griffons and their dreams. She must be hiding something. After she swallowed a bite of her daisy salad, she spoke "The many dreams you told me are enthralling, Luna. But perhaps there is something else to your joy that you aren't telling me?"

Luna finished a bite of her own salad, but she perked up at Celestia's question. She pondered if it was necessary to talk about the existence of Darkrai to her older sister. On one side, she can explain that she had made a new friend from another world that monitors dreams like she can, but on the other side, Darkrai was only capable of nightmares and nothing else. Revealing the ghost pokemon's nature and the fact it was responsible for the nightmares would only provoke Celestia and Daedalus. Luckily, she was able to maintain a good poker face throughout the conversation "Only that we've forgotten how amazing it was to traverse through many dreams. I look forward to raising the moon and continuing our duty of watching over the night!"

Celestia giggled "There's a difference between watching over the night and monitoring dreams, Lu-Lu...But I shouldn't keep you if it brings you that much happiness."

Luna nodded "It is indeed most uplifting after each grueling day of staving off those pompous nobles! When will we be able to cancel out their incorrigible laws permanently?" She spoke in an agitated tone.

Celestia sighed and frowned "We musn't chastise them too much for their work. While I agree that most of their laws seem ill-minded, they only wish to provide stability to our kingdom's economy. All we can do is reprieve the ones that seem too extreme for our subjects."

Luna huffed "They still must consider the well-being of our little ponies if they wish to pass more laws..." She then took another bite of her salad and a mischievous smile played along her face 'Perhaps we should have Darkrai have a look at their dreams...'

Celestia ate her salad and could not help but stare at Luna while she was enraptured in her own mind 'What is it that you're hiding from me, Luna?' She thought with curiousity and faint hurt. Celestia then spoke up "We should finish our supper soon, Luna. We have to move the sun and moon.

Luna snapped out of her thought and gave a brief but frantic nod "O-Oh! Of course, sister! We'll finish shortly!" She gave a sincere smile, though it betrayed innocence with her thoughts. The princess of the night then went back to eating her salad, leaving a confused Celestia to stare at her before she did the same.
_____

Later, the two regal sisters positioned themselves at the balconies of their respective rooms and commenced the shift of day to night. Celestia was still confused to Luna's hardly-contained joy and why she wasn't being direct to her about it, but perhaps she could tell her at a later date if she felt up to it.

When Luna finished, she turned away and placed her hooves on her cheeks to give an ecstatic giggle that was devoid of her regality. The princess of the night was indeed excited to see Darkrai again and what he had to offer her. She then trotted back into her room and figured out a way to pass the time. Luna did not feel like calculating on her abacus with how she could barely contain herself. Perhaps some time in the gardens would ease her excitement so she could handle her emotions better. She remembered how she could easily wake herself up if her emotions went out of hoof.

Her mind made up, Luna trotted back out of her balcony, and she unfurled her wings as she jumped from it and began gliding down to the lavish and majestic gardens of her castle. She noticed the distant glow of the fireflies and the moonflowers that laid below her as she descended in her flight. Soon, she touched the grass and decided to trot along the gardens to pass the time 'If we cannot stroll in the city on our own, it is only best we stroll here...' Luna adored how the many trees in her garden casted a darker shade on the ground so that her precious moonflowers could pride themselves with their luminescent beauty.

Luna reached a pond and decided to sit near the edge and stare into the water. Her precious moon provided a wondrous glow to go with its reflection in the pond. As she stared further, the princess of the night gave a deep sigh "Surely our excitement hasn't wavered so easily..." She said to herself in a bothered tone.

"What's t' be excited 'bout, yer majesty?"

Luna was startled at the new voice, and she looked behind herself to see the castle groundskeeper Hayseed giving a docile smile to go with his curious eyes. He held his trusty rake in his forehooves and a straw of hay in his mouth. Luna shook her head "Nothing that concerns thee, Hayseed. But good evening to you." She offered a sincere smile.

Hayseed chuckled "Now now, princess. It may be dark, but that don't mean ya should leave me in it. I could use somepony t' talk to since I don't have much else to do around the gardens."

Luna looked away with a reluctant expression 'Would it be wise to open up mine dream activity to Hayseed? Darkrai musn't be known to our sister, otherwise there could be serious consequences.' She then placed a hoof on her chin as she retained a thoughtful gaze 'Although, perhaps some minor conversation may be just what we need to course this night further...It would be best to give only the acceptable details...' As much as she trusted Hayseed, she couldn't bring herself to reveal her past activity completely. She shifted her eyes to Hayseed with a calculating glance "Hayseed, can we trust thee to keep this conversation between us and nopony else?"

Hayseed nodded with his expression unchanged "Sounds good t' me!"

Luna gave a relieved sigh "Very well." She turned to face Hayseed as she sat properly in the grass. The groundskeeper followed suit, but sat in a more laid-back position while he rested his forelegs and chin on the end of his rake "We art only excited to meet a distant friend of ours. One that we've just recently made in the past."

Hayseed's smile widened "Would it be that little colt that sends ya letters?"

Luna tilted her head "Art thou referring to Pipsqueak?" She shook her head "Neigh. We hath established our friendship long ago. We art referring to a new friend."

The groundskeeper chewed on the straw of hay in his mouth "Is it another pen pal o' sorts? That's mighty neighborly o' ya t' make connections with plenty o' yer subjects like this."

Luna giggled at Hayseed's assumptions "Not so much a pen pal, but another good friend that we've met." She looked away with sadness "Although our first encounter could have gone better..."

Hayseed gave a knowing nod "Makin' friends is easy sometimes, but there can be some ponies that choose t' make a bad impression 'fore they can become good friends with each other. Why, Ah remember th' first friend Ah made. Turned out t' be a filly, actually." He gave a nostalgic laugh "Oh, we would call each other names at first, but soon enough we were th' best o' friends." He then gave a small frown "Poor Amber Wave...Ah miss 'er already..."

Luna looked sad "Is she not around? Our sincerest apologies, Hayseed! We did not mean to unveil such hurting memories!"

Hayseed put on another smile after Luna's words "Don' worry none, your majesty. There ain't much t' cry about when life can do that t' somepony..." He looked up as he stroked his small beard "So long as Ah remember her, she's still alive. Maybe Ah can dream about her an' all my troubles will be washed away..."

Luna smiled "That is most comforting to hear from thee, Hayseed." The princess of the night had to credit Hayseed for his elderly wisdom and being able to cope with almost any circumstance put in his way. She felt bad for him knowing that he is getting on in years, but at least she knows he is happy.

Hayseed nodded "Sure is. But this ain't about me, is it? Does yer friend have a name?" He asked as he chewed his wheat straw.

Luna almost flinched at the question, but she did not know how to answer that. It was best to dodge it for now "Forgive us, Hayseed, but we do not feel comfortable to regard thee with an answer to that question despite its trivality..."

Hayseed was more curious as he tilted his head at her "Is it too personal t' ask?"

Luna looked away "Thou could say that. Our friend is, shall we say...misunderstood. We fear that saying their name could cause trouble in the castle. There is nothing grave about this particular setting, mind you. We only wish we could explain in better detail without any mishaps..." She looked down in sadness, feeling slight guilt to hide so much from Hayseed, let alone her sister.

Hayseed stared in silence with a neutral gaze before he smiled again "Ya sure 'bout that, yer majesty? Ah figured it was clear that this conversation stays between us." He held out a hoof "Ah'm a stallion of my word, y'know. Ain't no word leaves this little chitchat o' ours. Not a peep." He poked his chin with his outstretched hoof "But if it troubles ya that much, though, Ah won't keep ya. Wouldn't want t' provoke ya or anythin'..."

Luna gave a sad smile "We thank thee, Hayseed. Our most sincerest apologies for this small conversation not bearing everything in full context. Our goal was to merely pass the time before we meet our new friend..."

Hayseed chuckled "Sure are antsy, ain't ya?" He then waved a dismissive hoof "An' don't let it bother ya that ya didn't open up all th' way to this old coot. We all have our secrets that we keep t' ourselves." The groundskeeper smiled "Hopefully yer friend can be more open t' other ponies if they feel up t' it. Wouldn't want them t' be lonely fer th' rest o' their lives. But hey! That's why yer here for 'em, right?" He gave a hearty laugh before he dropped onto his legs with his rake slung onto his back "Ya should probably go on an' talk to yer friend soon. Wouldn't wanna keep 'em waitin'."

Luna realized that enough time had passed so that she could go to bed. Perhaps a small conversation was all she needed to move time along faster. She smiled at Hayseed "Yes, we should make ourselves scarce for now. We thank thee for the small talk that hath taken place, Hayseed! And we bid thee a good night."

Hayseed tipped his hat "Likewise, yer majesty. T'was good talkin' with ya, too. Maybe we can talk again some other time!"

Luna nodded "Perhaps..." She then looked pleading "And this talk-"

Hayseed made a zipping motion with a hoof along his smiling muzzle "Not a peep. Ya don't have t' worry 'bout a thing! Better skidaddle now!" He made a shooing motion with his hoof as he began to trot away "Ah better hit th' hay myself so I can be ready for tomorro'. G'night, Princess!"

Luna waved before she unfurled her wings and flew back up to the balcony of her tower. When she reached it, she trotted back inside and made her way to her favored four-poster bed. She gave a relieved sigh before she tucked herself in 'It is good to know that Hayseed can be a trusting pony. At least now there isn't much else to worry about in terms of exposing Darkrai.'

It was weird to know that the very cause of Equestria's nightmares happened to be Luna's newest friend, but that did not bother her anymore knowing that Darkrai was willing to show just how far she can go in the dream realm she was familiar with. This time, she was able to contain her excitement so that there wasn't much to worry about in terms of sleeping. Soon, she will leap beyond the limits of her power and see what nopony else has seen in their life. And the princess of the night could not be more happier with this realization.


End of Chapter 4