Fluttershy found herself falling asleep in a meadow of flowers. It had been a lovely day full of sunshine, and the pleasant heat had lulled her into such a state of relaxation that her eyelids drifted closed of their own accord. A sensation of falling brought her to attention, until she realized that she was moving at the pace of a spoon moving through cold butter. The slow speed allowed her to look around and gain her bearings, and though her wings were flared to ensure she descended on a gentler basis, there wasn't any need.
Her hooves touched the waving grasses, and as her head swiveled around it appeared that she was in the meadow she'd fallen asleep in. A soft breeze ruffled her mane, bringing the scent of springtime with it. Fluttershy paused to sniff more deeply, enjoying the combinations of orchids, daisies, bluebells, and the myriad of other flowers. While a part of her mind said there had only been one type of flora when she'd laid down, she had accepted this reality and chose to explore it.
Moving steadily through the meadow, the pegasus twitched her ears as sounds made themselves known to her. She picked up on the familiar sounds of her animal friends, rabbits, deer, chipmunks, and squirrels all having the time of their lives. Her hooves struck the earth with the confidence that she was alone here, until something at the edge of her vision caused her to come to a stop. Fluttershy was about halfway across the meadow now, and the growing storm clouds on the horizon beyond the trees caused her concern.
These weren't normal storm clouds. They were bigger, darker, and promised much more violence than she was used to. Swollen with rain and lightning, the deeply purple, red, and black clouds built above the treeline as they began their approach. Fear ran along her spine, locking her legs into place while she tried to discern whether or not she needed to run. Her eyes widened and pupils contracted, but the noises of the animals still filled her ears. Confused, she turned her head and looked around.
She was completely alone. While the sounds were there, there was absolutely no other sign of life in this place. Sunshine seemed to pour in from every possible angle, and in the shadows she could have sworn that moonlight made its presence known. That was impossible. Laughter came from the trees, and Fluttershy swung her head around. Nopony was there. Feeling rather uneasy, she went to call out when a sound behind her made her jump.
"I see you have found the realm of dreams," a voice said softly, but Fluttershy was startled nonetheless. Whipping her body around, she held her wings defensively while her ears flattened against her skull. Standing a few feet away in all of her midnight glory was Princess Luna, her mane flowing free in a breeze Fluttershy couldn't feel. Anxiety coiled in her belly, wrapping around her barrel as she took in the Royal Presence.
"The... realm of dreams?" she repeated, the words squeaking out as she started backing up from the princess. She felt like she wanted to lose her lunch, and her fur felt clammy. Fainting might be a good way to get out of this, whatever 'this' was. Her timid body language transmitted to the older pony, who nodded at her.
"I do not know how ye came to be here, but yes, that is where we are," Luna replied. She spoke slowly and carefully, and tucked her wings against her back to try and look as non-threatening as possible. With that she turned and looked at the clouds that were edging closer as the wind began to pick up in intensity and speed. "Those are the nightmares of the ponies in Equestria, and they can appear in many different forms," she explained at length.
Fluttershy looked up at them, and shrank against herself. "Are they going to come here?" she asked, trying not to shake but unable to keep from doing so. Luna looked over at her with a sympathetic expression.
"Yes," she said simply. "They are coming because of you."
Fluttershy looked horrified, and decided right then and there that was the perfect time to make a break for it. Running as fast as she could, grass and loam was pounded by her hooves as she fled to the safety of the forest. Stretching out her legs, she sought to put as much distance between the coming storm and her as possible. There was no real sense of time here, but it seemed like quite a long time had passed while she ran, and finally she had to stop and catch her breath.
The trees were still an expanse away. If she could put an idea of how far she still had to go, she'd say that it was roughly the length of at least two more meadows. Turning around, she could see Princess Luna standing at the top of the meadow, and the storm clouds behind her. While she had covered an impressive amount of ground, there seemed to be no end to the distance to get to the trees. As the princess began to walk towards her, Fluttershy tried to run away again. She thought she was making progress until the princess stopped by her shoulder and stared down at the smaller equine.
"Where dost thou intend to go?" Luna asked, curiosity coloring her words.
"The forest!" Fluttershy ground out, dropping her head to the ground and wishing that the princess would go somewhere else. Luna brought her head up, looking around their little area and surveying the location before looking down at the frightened pony.
"Why?" her question was a simple one, but it aggravated Fluttershy's anxiety. She wanted to scream, faint, run, and lose her lunch all at the same time, which made her feel very out of sorts. Her ears filled with a static-covered ringing, and her breaths shortened to hyperventilation. Luna observed all of this, flicking her ears forward and back to listen to her as well as the storm that was nearly upon them.
The sound of lightning striking nearby captured the princess' attention, as well as the rolling boom of thunder afterwards. Fluttershy cried out, clearly terrified. Luna took in a breath, then flared her wings and aimed her horn at the howling winds that descended around them. With a burst of magic, she simultaneously diverted the worst of the storm from their position, and shielded them from the rain and lightning. In the bubble of safety, Luna folded her legs to lay down upon the grass, while watching Fluttershy like a teacher might a student.
"The storm of nightmares is called to fear," Luna said at length, smiling sympathetically. "The more afraid ye are, the worse it becomes."