Chapter 1: Out of night, out of mind
in which Twilight must be reminded of a very important lesson.
(and the drawing is kind of better)
* * *
“So let’s hear it again, ” Twilight said, “You’re calling off the party because you had a bad dream?”
“Well, it wasn’t actually a dream. I guess.” Pinkie exchanged looks with her surprised friends, surrounding her in the Sugarcube Corner’s hall. “I think that I was quite awake about ten minutes ago, and suddenly it was all a big doozy”.
Twilight sighed. Over the last couple of years she got used to being constantly surprised with Pinkie “being Pinkie Pie”, but Pinkie Pie actually calling off a party - now THAT was something she didn’t see coming. Twilight Sparke had a stable and coherent vision of her friends in her mind, and now the mare with cotton candy mane decided to directly contradict Twilight’s idea of her. If Twilight had a checklist for each of her friends’ traits, the “Always wants to party no matter the circumstances” would be on Pinkie’s one.
“Um, Pinkie, I really don’t want to say anything that could make you upset, ”, said Fluttershy and gently put her left front hoof on Pinkie Pie’s forehead, “but aren’t you usually a little bit... dreamy?”. The yellow pegasus turned her head to the rest of the ponies, and gave them a meaningful look. It was, after all, a fact. Pinkie’s behaviour was always a little bit odd, sometimes leaving her friends wondering if she is even concious of her words or actions.
Applejack looked in Fluttershy’s eyes and slowly nodded.
“Shucks, Ah’ don’t want to offend ya either, but Fluttershy has a point. And, ya know, we’ve been here all day already, and seeing all day’s hard work go for nothin’ is...”
Pinkie Pie mirrored Fluttershy’s movement and put her left front hoof on Fluttershy’s forehead as well.
“No, you don’t understand! We can’t have a party now, it would be irresponsible!”
Twilight shook her head in denial. Hearing Pinkie talking about responsibility was still something unusual, even with her being a foalsitter for baby Cakes. She couldn’t make a thing out of this mess.
The ponies went silent for a while, and Rainbow Dash was the first to speak up.
“Well, after all Pinkie DID shake a little. Maybe we should check for some loose ceiling beams, or maybe we should close the windows so the doors don’t ambush us with... opening” Rainbow chuckled and winked at Twilight. "Is that the reason you left Spike at the library, Twilight?"
“Or maybe it was all about the dream Pinkie had? You know, like a side effect of all those bizzare and, might I add, ludicrous things she told us about” Rarity wasn't probably content with her part within Pinkie's vision. "I suggest we move along, and figure things out after the party. An anniversary such as this longs for a celebration"
"I'm with Rarity on this one." Twilight said. "We already put a considerable amount of energy into the preparations, and..."
"Sheesh, Ah may sound like Ah'm contradicting mah'self" Applejack interrupted, "But you, girls, are just foolin' yourselves, don't cha? First of all, everypony's seen what happened here. Ear flappin'? Body shiverin'? And, that's a new one, teeth chatterin'? I say to you, nopony gets slammed by a door today, and nopony has to watch out for fallin' things whatsoever! There's just one pony here, who actually knows what it is all about, and that pony ain't no unicorn!"
"Thanks, Applejack. At least someone here listens to the voice of reason. So, let me tell...."
"Rainbow!" Applejack shouted.
"What?" Rainbow Dash seemed surprised.
"Ah was talkin' about Pinkie Pie..." Applejack said, gritting her teeth.
"Gosh girls, I wish I had any idea, what my Pinkie sense was trying to tell me. But I can't. All I know is that something is going to happen. And when I say something I mean... " Pinkie took a deep breath and made her most serious face - "SOMETHING".
Fluttershy squeaked and hid behind Rainbow Dash.
"Listen Pinkie, I know, that your Pinkie Sense can be trusted... at least in a way, but how can you be sure it has anything to do with that dream you..." Twilight didn't seem to be bothered by Pinkie at all.
"A VISION. I've seen THINGS." Pinkie kept on opening her eyes wider and wider, and right now they resembled two big, black saucers with azure edges.
"Dream slash vision. Anyway, give up with this ominous voice already, you're scaring Fluttershy. And as for your... vision, why are you so sure there is a correlation between the two?"
Pinkie frowned a little, put her front hooves in the air and shrugged. "I just know! Isn't it logical?".
"It most certainly is not! Pinkie, you had a bad dream, and dreams don't follow any kind of logic. It is just our brain visiting random places in our mind and displaying them." Twilight was always more than happy, when she could present her smarts to her friends.
"But Twilight, if it was only a dream, then why I couldn't make anything happen? When I'm dreaming, I can do any kind of things by just thinking about them, because I know they are possible!" Pinkie was tenacious in defending her point of view.
"Darling, I believe you are speaking of lucid dreaming" Rarity said.
Twilight smirked, and continued her little lecture. "Yes, Pinkie. Rarity is right. You see, 'lucid dreaming' is different from a regular dream, because you are aware of your state. This knowledge alone allows you to perform things you imagine."
"Well, duh!" Pinkie responded, "Twilight, why are you telling me, how a dream works? You aren't that smarter than us, Professy McScholarson!"
"Pinkie, what I was trying to say, is that you shouldn't be surprised when you don't have control over your dreams!"
Pinkie looked surprised. "Say... what?"
"Pinkie, there are different kinds of dreams, and lucid dreaming is just one of them, and it's fairly rare" Twilight said.
Pinkie Pie went silent for a little while and squinted her eyes. "I'm not sure if you're serious..."
"Um, Pinkie, " Fluttershy said hesitantly, slowly making her way in front of Rainbow Dash, "but if, as you're saying, all your dreams up to this one, were the... lucid ones, how do you even know when you are NOT sleeping?"
"That's an excellent question. Long story short, I keep a Dream Diary when I'm awake!" Pinkie was helpful as always.
"You mean that diary which you told me you started, and then couldn't find it in your room, when you wanted to show it to me?" Fluttershy asked.
"Well, due to some miscalculations, it was an Awake Diary for a short time" Pinkie pondered for a while. "But today changes everything! I think, that I have to take some time with my pipe for a while", said the party mare, and started walking upstairs to her room, leaving her astonished friends behind. The five ponies looked at each other in silence until they heard Pinkie slam her bedroom's door.
*
"Well, that was... unusual. What do you think we should do about her? I'm quite concerned." Rainbow Dash asked.
"Personally, I think we should just go home already. There's not much we can do right now, until Pinkie calms down." Rarity said. "That being said, I'm yet to decide what to think about the whole situation."
The other ponies agreed, and started to depart.
"Cakes will want an explanation, I s'pose" Applejack said. "Can you stay in here, until they come back, Dash? My workday is not over yet."
"Sure, you can count on me, AJ."
Twilight sighed again, and left Sugarcube Corner.
* * *
The sun already started it's journey down the horizon under the Celestia's supervision a few hours ago, and Twilight was sitting with her nose in the books as usual. Spike was in the same room, standing in front of the mirror.
"Twilight?" said the lavender unicorn's assistant.
"Yes, Spike?" Twilight asnwered.
"Do you think you can change the color of my scales?" the little dragon asked, turning head around to take a look at his back.
Twilight raised her head from above the book and lowered her reading glasses with magic.
"Why exactly would you want a color change?"
Spike gave his reflection a sceptic look.
"It just doesn't look to manly."
Twilight sighed, for the third time this day.
"Spike, you are a baby dragon after all. And you're colors are fine, you look cute."
"Well, maybe I don't want to be treated like a baby anymore. And 'cute' doesn't help with it" Spike said, and crossed his arms.
"Spike you look fine" Twilight said, but moment later she spotted Spike's disgruntled face, so she concludet that she can spare some time for her assistant. "All right, Spike. I'll try to change you to a true stud. Or a dragon version of it."
Spiked jumped in the air and let out a cheer. "All right, Twilight, you're the best!"
"Coming from you, it must be true. So, black and red, I presume?" Twilight asked.
"Actually," said Spike, showing Twilight a crumpled and stained sheet of paper with a drawing on it, "I was thinking something more blue".
"Pretty neat, huh?"
Twilight looked at the drawing, and frowned. "Yeah, it's really sleek, Spike. I'm guessing the blue color was inspired by..."
"Yes, Twilight, by Rarity's eyes!" said Spike, and his own eyes turned into two hearts momentarily.
"Right. I'm not even asking why you drew those eyebrows this way." Twilight said and started to think about the right spell.
"One word, Twilight. Manly. Now change the color already."
"Spike, you really should cut down on this whole 'manly' thing", Twilight said and lit up her horn, preparing the spell. "I already give you fake facial hair every evening so you can shave it off in the morning." Twilight started the spell, and a cloud of magic surrounded Spike.
"Yes, I know Twilight. It's just I'm fed up with all our friends patronizing me" Spike looked down at the magic whirlwind surrounding his knees and slowly moving up, changing the color of his scales in the process. "So I figured out that if I act like I'm a grown up, and look like a grown up, the others will start to treat me as such".
"So why not just wait to grow up the natural way? It doesn't require fake magic beards and mustaches", Twilight said, focusing on the colors in the picture.
"Yes, I tried growing up the natural, dragon way once" said Spike. "It wasn't as fun as I imagined". The spell was already halfway through.
Suddenly, the library's door bell rang.
"Excuse me Spike!" Twilight stopped casting her spell and run to the library's entrance. She opened the door and spotted her prismatic friend.
"Rainbow?" Twilight was quite surprised to see the cyan pegasus.
"Yes, your favorite daredevil-turned-egghead, at your service!" said Rainbow Dash. She trotted inside, and then flew to the bookshelves.
"So, what's you doing here, Rainbow?" Twilight asked, while Rainbow stared at the bookshelf with letter "D" on it. "Did you speak with the Cakes?"
"Oh, yes, I did. They were quite upset, but understanding. D-A, D-E, D-O..." Rainbow mumbled while browsing the books.
"Dash, if you seek the Daring Do novels, they are in the adventure section, on the opposite side. This is the science section". Twilight started going upstairs, to finish her own studies.
"Daring Do? Well, I think I'm finished with them. Besides, in the last book I read included some writing I don't like", said Rainbow not turning away from the bookshelf.
"It did?" Twilight stopped, and went back to Rainbow Dash.
"Yeah, you know, it was like the nineth Do novel I read, and in the end they introduced a completely new character, and the author claimed, that it is Daring Do's lifelong friend, and there wasn't even any foreshadowing of the character... I hate those things. Anyway, how's your brother doing? Did he come back from his honeymoon?" Rainbow clearly tried to redirect Twilight's attention.
"My brother's fine, Rainbow." Twilight was way too smart to be distracted like this. "What's you're really up to?".
Rainbow Dash turned away from the books and found herself standing eye to eye with Twilight.
"What do you mean 'what's your up to?' " Rainbow said and tried to avoid eye contact.
"Well, if you have nothing to hide" said Twilight, "then you can tell me, what exactly you are looking for".
Rainbow Dash gulped, and replied. "OK, stop with this interrogation! I'm looking for some scientific books on dreams."
It must be fourth sigh today, Twilight thought after exhaling the air. "Just as I thought. Rainbow Dash, there are no truly scientific books on dreams. There's not much research on the matter, and if there is any, I doubt it has any value."
"Look Twilight, I'm just trying to help Pinkie Pie out. She spent all day over her diary, and she said she won't go to sleep until she figures out the... things she saw."
Twilight was about to respond to Rainbow Dash, when she heard Spike shout. "What's taking you so long, Twilight?! You can't leave me like that!".
Twilight and Rainbow looked up at the entresol, where Spike stood, blue up to his waist. Rainbow Dash burst out in laughter.
"What kind of sorcery is THAT?" she asked.
Twilight smirked. "That's... work in progress".
"Hi Rainbow. What are you doing here? It is kinda late. By the way, I'm changing colors to better... express myself". said Spike, trying to hide his blue legs and tail behind entresol's railing.
"Ha, fine by me, " said Rainbow, still laughing, "The more colors, the better. I'm here to convince Twilight to help Pinkie Pie."
"And what kind of help Pinkie needs?" asked Spike, and looked through the window. The light of the sun has already been replaced by the gentle glow of stars and the moon.
"Absolutely none." Twilight interrupted, "She just had a bad dream in the middle of the day, and now she just goes out of her mind trying to attach some hidden meaning to it". Twilight turned to the cyan mare. "Rainbow, I believe, you can leave us for now, if there's no other book you want."
"Great Twilight" Rainbow said while making her way to the door. "You acted even more OOC than Pinkie today" she said angrily and slammed the door. Spike looked at Twilight.
"OOC? What does it mean?"
"It's an abbreviation for 'out of character' " Twilight explained, joining Spike upstairs. "It's a popular term among us, literature fans. And she had a point. Pinkie never cancelled a party, at least as important as today's, not to mention locking herself up in a room for a whole day, paired with desire for scientific research." Twilight continued, and she was back by the book she was reading earlier.
"Yes, Rainbow was right about you too." said Spike. "I never expected to see you deny your friends help. At least she wasn't OCD. I think she was being loyal to Pinkie Pie"
"She is the Element of Loyalty after all." said Twilight, turning another page of the book. "Let's hope she is not the Element of Memory and Holding Grudges too." Twilight looked at the clock. "I think you can make a few cups of tea. It is going to be a long night."
"Well, I'm sure you are not the Element of Memory" Spike was clearly displeased with Twilight's behavior. "All you do all day long is studying, and I get the feeling you don't learn much". Spike went downstairs to the kitchen annex, and started to fill the kettle with water.
Twilight felt a shiver down her spine when she heard Spike's statement. "What do you mean I don't learn much?".
"It's easy. You keep forgetting important things!"
"No, I'm not!"
"So, if you really don't" Spike said, "Then tell me, what is the name of my little pet phoenix".
Twilight went silent for a while and calmly answered. "It's Peewee."
Spike's jaw dropped. "Wow, Twilight. I honestly didn't think that anybody remembers his existance, not just name!"
Twilight smiled, and went back to her book. "Any more things, that I apparently forgot?"
Spike was a little bit confused. "Actually, I wanted to crow a little by proving that you don't remember your own friendship reports."
" It's a good idea to stop and listen to your friends' opinions and perspectives... Even when they don't always seem to make sense. That one?" Twilight asked.
Spike opened his eyes wider. "Yes, that and..."
"Learning to trust your instincts is a valuable lesson to learn." Twilight smiled to herself. "This one is a quite fresh lesson. I think it is an appropriate one. Although we are talking about Pinkie's instincts this time."
"I don't understand." The water in the kettle started to boil, and Spike started to put tea leaves in the cups, "Why you refused Rainbow the book on dreams? Why did you let her believe you don't care about Pinkie's dream - or whatever it is?"
"Well, I didn't want her lend her the book mostly because I am reading it at the moment" said Twilight, and raised the book in front of her with a baxic levitation spell. The book's title read: "Slumber Science: Interpreting Dreams". "She was searching in a wrong section anyway. And I tricked Rainbow Dash, because I didn't want her to interfere tonight. If she knew that I treat it seriously, she'd never leave, and I need some silence to focus. But again, she is the Element of Loyalty."
"Well, talking about Elements... today you proved, that you are at least a half of the Element of Magic" said Spike, looking at his blue legs.
"Right. Stay still for a while, Spike". Twilight lifted Spike's picture from the ground and finished the spell. "Now you are one, blue piece of a heartbreaker". Twilight looked at the clock again. "Is the tea ready? Pinkie Pie should be here any minute now".
Just as Twilight spoke these words, the doorbell rang.
"Just in time. Please, Spike, open the door. And don't get overwhelmed by the compliments."
Spike opened the door, and saw Pinkie Pie. The party pony had dark circles under eyes, presumably because of lack of sleep. She carried a saddlebag, and Spike could see a thick, hard-covered note sticking out of it.
"Oh my gosh, Spike, you're blue! It's not my favorite color, but it's like my second favorite, and if I wasn't all pink I think blue would the way to go, and I think you look fantastic, and I don't want to say that you did not before, and..." Spike blushed a little when he heard the last part.
"Yes, Pinkie, I think that Spike looks ravishing too." said Twilight. "Now come here, we have A LOT to talk about." Twilight lifted three cups of tea and put them on the desk, where "Slumber Science" lied. "But first let's get rid of the sleepiness". Twilight casted another spell, and a subtle, blue fog surrounded the cups of tea. Pinkie Pie quickly drank the the, and the dark circles under her eyes disappeared.
"The spell keeps sleepiness away from you for some time" Twilight explained. "It is useful, when you have to study hard, and you can't allow yourself to sleep".
"Or if you don't want to." said Pinkie Pie.
"Unfortunately, it can't be overused" Twilight continued. "Each consecutive brew will have a restrained effect. It's a safety measure to protect pony's body from a complete exhaustion".
"So let's not waste our precious awake time!" Said Pinkie Pie and put out her Dream Diary out of her saddlebag.
"Just one more thing, Pinkie. Spike take out a scroll. We need to write a letter". Twilight went to a window and opened it with her magic to let fresh air in.
"Twilight? Are we already informing Celestia about... whatever you will discuss now?" Spike hesitated, but approached the chest where the empty scrolls were stored.
"Actually, " said Twilight, looking out the window, "I was thinking about someone else".
The moon shined in it's fullness, covering the world in silver, cold light.