//------------------------------//
// Chapter 1: Present Day 
// Story: The Lion's Roar 
// by I Am The Night 
//------------------------------//

"GAH!"

Lyon's head lifted from his pillow as he awoke with a brief scream. His breath was short, his eyes dilated.

But there was nothing to be worried about. He sighed.

"Dammit."

He had it again. There was no denying it, it was the exact same nightmare. The same one he'd been having for the last year. He didn't know why he started having them, but once they started, they just never stopped. He tried sleeping remedies, dream spells per request, even some simple sleeping pills to just block out dreams entirely. And for a while, it seemed to work.

But eventually, it'd come back, and it would always be the exact same thing, but he could never make heads or tails of it all.

Burning trees, huts collapsing in plumes of flame and smoke, ponies scattered like ants. It was like some terrible catastrophe had struck.

Then he saw the bodies. Punctured with holes and blood pooling beneath them. Not even red blood, either. That was the weirdest part of the dream so far. He didn't focus on most details for longer than a second.

Lyon was running from something. From someone. He knew it.

And when the dream ended, the last thing he saw always woke him up in a sweat. A great, black creature towered over, staring down at him with cold eyes. There was no welcome to them at all.

They hated him.

Who did they belong to?

"Traitor," the voice always told him. Who said it?

He could never figure it out. As soon as he was up, the dream seemed to distort and jumble itself until he could barely recognize it, but with how often he had it, he was able to at least jot down the most noticeable parts⁠—which, no surprise, were always the most disturbing. The first time he had the nightmare, Lyon could remember waking up with fresh tears falling down his face. But nowadays, he was left feeling frustrated, but still at least distraught.

It was hurting him. And all he could do was just start the day and hope he'd forget about it by noon.

But at least there was some silver lining to it. At least it got him up early.

With no will to go back to sleep, and because of his work shift starting in an hour, Lyon got out of bed, albeit reluctantly, and began to make himself look decent. With a quick comb of his hair, a brush of his teeth, and a quick brush over of his fur to keep any mats out, he looked fit to accustom to ponykind with forty minutes to spare, leaving him plenty of time to get to Sweet Apple Acres, and maybe even stop at Sugarcube Corner for a quick boost to get him through the day.

He laughed softly to himself as he repeated that in his head. He didn't know why it was so funny, but he only met his boss, Applejack, through Pinkie Pie, the Corner's baker. What seemed just as funny was that he and his boss ended up becoming best friends. It wasn't necessarily uncommon for workers to be best friends with their boss, just that he didn't really see that very often around where he came from. Baltimare was notorious for its strict business etiquette.

Maybe that's why he found it funny that everypony in Ponyville were so close to one another. It was nice, though. Everyone could be so friendly and so honest without the fear of losing their job for cracking a joke.

He was glad he left when he did, especially after that "kumquat" scandal that rocked the place. Less he knew, the better.

Making his way downtown and walking at a decent pace, Lyon did exactly as he planned and stopped by the bakery for a quick slice of fudge.

Maybe two.

Lyon opened the front door, the bell signaling his arrival, and walked up to the front counter. It wasn't long before Pinkie was hopping her way through the doorway and practically shouting 'good morning' to him.

"Well," he began, "aren't we cheerful this morning?"

"Yoooou know it!" Pinkie answered with a grin. It was no surprise to Lyon that even the earliest morning hours of the day, Pinkie would be as hyperactive as she was in the evening.

Either that, or there were a lot of smoke and mirrors behind her.

"The usual?"

"You know it," Lyon echoed.

"Okie dokie lokie!"

Opening the back of the counter, Pinkie grabed two big slices of fudge, and proceeded to cut them down into smaller slices, enough to fill a small bag, but not keep it from closing. Pinkie hummed a tune to herself, wiggling her rump in the air as she went about her business. Lyon could never help but find it adorable.

"Ooh! I almost forgot! Did ya get my invitation yesterday?" She asked, peeking her head up from behind the counter.

Lyon did a double take. "What invita-OH, right! Sorry! Yeah, I got it." The stallion laughed to himself as the temporary bout of amnesia got to him. He wasn't that old... yet.

But his smile faded slightly as he remembered the day. 

"Actually Pinkie, I don't think I'll be able to make it. Same with AJ. We both got work, remember?"

Pinkie waved a hoof. "No sweat! Applejack said she's willing to cut the day short! Thooough, that's probably 'cause I promised to bring some of that apple rhubarb I tried making the other day."

"Cut the day short? Like, getting out of work?" Pinkie nodded firmly. "What about Big Mac and the others?"

"They're okay with it! Big Macintosh knows how much his widdle sister needs to spend time with her bestest friends!"

Lyon nearly deadpanned. "... Pinkie, I'm pretty sure Applejack is older than you. In fact, I'm pretty sure I'm older than you and the others put together."

"Wow, that is pretty old!"

"Oh shush, you know what I mean," he dismissed playfully with a laugh. "So what do I owe you?"

"For today, nothing!"

"What? Why?"

"Cause of the picnic, silly!"

Lyon looked around the building and noticed a few ponies already exchanging some glances. He could feel himself fidget in place.

"Uh... I don't really feel comfortable taking things from you for free, Pinkie."

Pinkie immediately caught on. "Ooohhh, gotcha. Reeeal lucky today, too!"

Before Lyon could ask, the mare hopped over the table, ran over to the door, and swung it open, catching the attention of a few passersby. She then retrieved a nearby bell and began to ring it loudly for all to hear.

"Hear ye, hear ye!" Pinkie shouted in an old timey accent. "For one day and one day only, in accordance with Sugarcube law, all fudge on display is now free! Get it now before it's aaaalll goooone!"

While the claim didn't get everypony's attention, it did at least turn some heads, no doubt the few like Lyon who enjoyed stuffing their faces with the stuff. He swore he could even hear the words "race ya" before two young colts rushed into the building and began looking at all of the different kinds of flavors.

Lyon didn't even know a cheesecake fudge existed until he came to town.

"Sugarcube law?" Lyon asked the mare as she hopped over to him.

"It's a little thing of mine! Anytime we make a huuuge surplus of yummy treats, we give the extras away for free! It's a tradition!"

Pinkie let out a brief squeak of glee.

Mrs. Cake, who stood behind the counter helping fill the bags of the fudge-craved colts, turned to Lyon. "And what a help it's been. Sometimes we make too much of one thing, and we didn't know what to do with it all before. We usually just tried eating it over a couple days."

She paused for a second, giving herself a glance before blushing. "That probably wasn't such a good idea in the long run."

But Lyon was quick to dismiss her self-deprecation.

"Nonsense. I think you look just fine!"

And he wasn't lying, honestly. She did look pretty nice today. And even with reluctance in her face, Mrs. Cake still seemed to agree, smiling with a blush.

"But," Lyon then added, turning to Pinkie, "even if it is free today, I'm still gonna pay. It's just instinct, that's all!"

"Are you sure, dear?" asked Mrs. Cake.

"I'm sure. Besides, it's only a few bits, right? I've got more money than I can spend, anyway."

Lyon walked up to the counter and placed down five bits. Mrs. Cake let another smile slip by, even if she couldn't help but feel guilty, but he could only tell her there was nothing to feel guilty for.

"So," he began, turning back to Pinkie, "when's the picnic?"

"1 o'clock, sharp!" Pinkie held one of the cuckoo clocks on the wall and turned its hands to the aforementioned time, causing the little wooden bird to fly out and caw, which elicited a giggle from the mare.

"Well... if Applejack's going... then I guess I'll see you there too?"

"Okie dokie lokie!" Pinkie exclaimed, hopping back over the counter and grabbing Lyon's bag of fudge. "If ya want, I can save these for you till then!"

Lyon pondered on it for a second. Did he really need them right now?

Well... maybe not all of them.

"Sure! ... But do you think I could grab a couple of those cheesecake ones?"

"Coming right up!"





Ten minutes—and a couple of more-than-sweet balls of goodness—later, Lyon had finally reached Sweet Apple Acres with twenty minutes to spare.

"Well, better that than late."

Making his way to the house, he gave the front door a few firm knocks.

"Come in!" a voice said from inside, and it was easy to make out who it was.

Lyon opened the door and made his way into the living room to find Granny Smith sitting upon her favorite rocking chair.

"Well, hello there, Lyon sonny!" she exclaimed. "You sure are here early!"

He laughed awkwardly. "Yeah, I thought it was a lot later. Wouldn't make sense to leave, you know?"

"Well, c'mon in! I'm sure them youngins are having breakfast in the kitchen."

Giving her a quick 'thank you,' Lyon started for the kitchen. He was no more than five feet away when he heard snoring behind him.

Teach me your secrets, old lady.

As Lyon entered the kitchen, he was greeted to Applejack, Big Macintosh, and their little sister Apple Bloom all chowing down on an assortment of apple-related foods. Apple cinnamon pancakes, apple cannolis, apple-rich hay bacon strips, and... no, they didn't...

Applejack was the first to notice Lyon.

"Hey, partner! You sure got here early!" she exclaimed after downing a slice of pancake. "I wasn't expecting you for another twenty minutes, at best."

Giving her the same expression as Granny Smith, Lyon laughed. "Yeah, woke up a little early. Didn't really have a reason to go back to sleep."

As he recounted just an hour before that, his smile faded a bit. Applejack immediately knew what he meant and smiled apologetically. 

"Nightmares again, huh?"

Reluctantly, he nodded. He had told his friends about the nightmares. They didn't mind him going into detail, but even that was hard to do without making them worry a little. He even went to Twilight Sparkle months ago to try and cull them, but not even her expertise could solve that problem.

Applejack's smile faded a bit, and her ears splayed downward. "I'm sorry, sugarcube."

"Don't worry about it." Lyon waved his hoof. "I'm used to it. Sorta."

Applejack opened her mouth briefly as if to say something, but closed it just a moment later. She then pulled up a chair and patted on it.

"You're free to join breakfast with us."

While it did sound tempting to him, Lyon shook his head. "Actually, I think I'm gonna start work early, if that's okay."

"Oh. Well... alright then."

Lyon gave the mare and her siblings a smile and headed for the backdoor a few feet away. He paused as his hoof rested on the knob, and he bit his lip.

He quickly turned around, grabbed one of the slices of apple cobbler fudge from the table, and left.

Applejack giggled as she took another bite. But she couldn't help but look back again, and soon, that giggle was gone. She ignored it.



...



Five hours passed. For those five hours, it was nothing but bucking trees, collecting apples, and bringing the filled buckets into the barn, then dragging them back out, empty and ready for another filling.

The entire time, Applejack couldn't help but glance at Lyon every few minutes. She wanted to call out to him, whether to break the silence or to say anything more than a couple one-liners or crack a few jokes about the heat.

But she didn't know what to say. She knew Lyon had been having the nightmares for a while now, it was no surprise. But it seemed as if they were getting worse. The last couple of weeks, he seemed more and more distraught, like something was getting to him. Did he not even notice? Is that why he didn't talk too much about it?

It baffled her that not even Twilight's magic worked to soothe his nerves. She suggested and attempted every dream and sleep spell and remedy she could offer, but it never went any further than square one.

He did his best to hide it, she saw, but she knew. Deep down, she saw he was trying his best to ignore it, and it was just eating at him, clawing like a Timberwolf to prey, and he was slowly coming to his wits' end. Twilight didn't want to suggest Princess Luna for help just yet.

But did she even have a choice at this point?

"Applejack!"

A voice hollered into her ear, knocking her out of her thoughts. She hadn't realized she was staring off into the distance. She turned to see Big Macintosh standing above her, concern in his eyes.

"You okay?"

Hesitantly, she answered, "Eeyup. Just got my head in the clouds. That's all."

"Then I'd say you and your friend got competition."

"Hmm...?"

Big Mac pointed towards some nearby trees. To Applejack's befuddlement, Lyon was several trees away, laying against a trunk and staring out towards Ponyville. He held his head briefly before going back to work.

"What time is it, Big Mac?" Applejack spoke after a few moments.

"Close to noon, I reckon?"

"Right. Okay."

Big Mac shook his head for a moment as the realization came to him. "Y'all got that picnic, don't you?"

"Yeah," Applejack answered, chuckling with a hinge of guilt. "I know it ain't right of me to skip out on work, but... you know Pinkie."

"I do. A little too much, for my liking." His sister looked up at him with a questionable glare. "Ain't ever said it was a bad thing."

The glare faded slightly as Applejack shook her head and laughed quietly.

"Well," she sighed, "I should go reel in Lyon and make sure we're all cleaned up beforehoof. Can't go covered in sweat and dirt, now can I?"

"I'll be here, in case you change your mind."

"Or if Pinkie lets me," Applejack joked, earning a chuckle from her brother.

The farmer started her way over to Lyon, who seemed invested in kicking at another apple tree. So invested that he didn't even hear her.

"Lyon?" Applejack called out, but Lyon didn't answer.

"Lyyyoon?"

Still no answer.

"LYON!"

With a disjointed buck, Lyon stopped and gave a quick glance at Applejack, before he lost balance and fell to the ground with an "Oomph."

"Sorry, sugarcube," she apologized, "I didn't mean to frighten you."

"It's fine," Lyon responded a moment later. "Guess I just really wanted those apples."

He laughed to himself. Applejack looked up and raised an eyebrow.

"... Lyon, we cleared this tree an hour ago."

Lyon stopped laughing and looked up with her, and just as she said, the tree was completely bare, with not an apple to be seen.

He sighed. "I'm sorry, AJ. I just... got stuff on my mind, and—"

"You don't need to apologize, hon. I understand. I ain't doubting these nightmares must be driving you crazy."

"That's an understatement."

Applejack laughed, but it was quick to fade. She rested a hoof on Lyon's shoulder and looked at him. Her eyes seemed to sparkle at a certain angle, he noticed.

"Why don't we go freshen up? We don't wanna be late for the picnic."

"Pinkie wouldn't really get mad at us for being a couple minutes late to a picnic, would she?" Lyon chuckled.

"She would if you Pinkie Promised... ugghh," Applejack shuddered, remembering her time in Appleoosa just a few months ago.

Lyon cringed slightly.

"Oops."

"Yeah... oops too."





An hour later, Applejack and Lyon gently paced their way down the streets of Ponyville, carrying on their backs food satchels, which carried enough apples to feed a picnic's worth. By now, it was close to 1 o'clock, but Applejack remained confident they'd get there before then. Even if she knew Pinkie wouldn't be out for her blood, she still hated to upset her after that entire fiasco.

Applejack glanced over at her friend walking beside her. He seemed normal for the moment, but she could tell his mind was off someplace again. Before she could say anything, he shook his head and looked over towards Sugarcube Corner.

"Oh," Lyon began, "by the way, Pinkie's apparently bringing a boatload of fudge to the picnic too, because of that whole... like..."

"Sugarcube Law?"

He shrugged. "Yeah. I didn't even know that was a 'thing.'"

"Yeah," she laughed, "they started it a couple years ago after Pinkie made more cheesecake than they could sell. They didn't wanna eat it all, but they didn't want it to go bad, neither. So they just made the extras free until they ran out."

Lyon nodded slowly, scrunching his mouth.

"... You know, I think it's a good thing I'm only now finding out about this, otherwise I'd probably be 50 pounds heavier right now."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," Applejack groaned playfully, rolling her eyes, "especially with you working on the farm."

"I don't know. I'd probably give Pinkie a run for her money with how much I can stomach sweet stuff."

"Well, the feeling's mutual, partner," Applejack joked, stifling a giggle.

Lyon looked at her, also holding in his laughter, but couldn't stop it from belting out after a moment. "I don't think I've ever heard you flirt before."

"Well, I don't really make it a thang."

"Well, for what it's worth, you're good at it."

"Aw shucks, I wouldn't say that."

"I would." Lyon shrugged, scrunching a smile. Applejack blushed lightly and laughed, bumping her shoulder against his; he did the same in return.

A few minutes later, the duo eventually reached the park. Though it was typically on the outskirts of town, Applejack always seemed to enjoy taking the scenic route through town—but only when she was confident she wouldn't be late for it.

But it seemed they were the last ones to arrive, as they had noticed everyone had already arrived, even digging into their lunch meals. Well, at least Rainbow Dash was.

"Howdy, y'all," Applejack greeted, removing her bag and setting it on the ground. "Sorry we're late. Showers took a bit longer than they should've."

It wasn't entirely a lie, either.

Twilight Sparkle giggled to her friend. "Actually, you got here just in time."

"And most of us were actually patient in waiting for you," Rarity boasted while casting a glance at Rainbow Dash, who only shrugged while taking a second bite into a sandwich. "Besides, it's not exactly 1 o'cl—"

Suddenly, everyone jumped as Pinkie hopped up on her hind legs and frantically ran a bell, a grin prominent upon her face. Once she stopped, Rarity couldn't help but rub her exposed ear gently.

"... Well, I guess it's 1 o'clock now."

Unpacking the apples onto the picnic basket, everyone started digging into individual meals: From sandwiches made by Twilight and Fluttershy, to cakes and fudge packed by Pinkie and Rainbow, everypony had their fair share of lunch to enjoy. A light breeze covered the land, the trees bending and contorting with grace. 

Rarity found herself merely admiring it all, sighing with content among the group.

"It is gorgeous out here. Just gorgeous!"

Rainbow yawned with a grin. "Thanks to me, once again."

"Oh, please." Rarity rolled her eyes. "Why not give credit to the more deserving pegasi around here?"

"Well, maybe once the weather team can get on my level, I might consider that. But for now, all of this..." Rainbow paused, waving her arm to cast out against the open sky. "... all by yours truly."

"Whatever you say, darling."

Applejack and Twilight both giggled at the two mares bickering. Though, as brash as Rainbow Dash had always been, she wasn't entirely lying. She can clear the skies in ten seconds, after all—so who was to say today really wasn't thanks to her?

As Applejack continued to dig into her meal, she couldn't help but glance over at Lyon again. As she always saw him from time to time, he was eating away at little blocks of fudge. She knew how much he loved it.

But she didn't focus on it that much. Instead, she saw his face. His eyes, though not devoid of life, seemed adrift, gazing endlessly into nothingness. He was lost in thought again, holding back a yawn, almost as if trying to fight against sleep, though he didn't seem too tired before.

"Lyon?" Applejack called out, giving him a moment. After a second of hesitation, Lyon broke his staring contest with the earth and turned to the farmer, a questionable look on his face. "You alright, hon?"

He nodded slowly. "Yeah. Sorry. I'm just a bit tired from this morning."

"Speaking of... have your dreams gotten any better lately?" Twilight added into the conversation, visibly concerned.

Lyon shook his head, to Twilight's disdain.

"I don't understand," she mumbled, "those spells usually make any nightmares go away, or better yet 99% of the time. This shouldn't still be happening. Unless I messed something up somewhere..."

Lyon was quick to dismiss that claim. "No, it's fine. It's probably just... I don't know. But don't worry about it. I'll be fine."

"You keep saying that, sugarcube," Applejack remarked. "But it's like each day gets worse than before. Something's gonna give, you know?"

He sighed. "I know. But I know we'll be able to figure it out eventually. Who knows? Maybe it's because of all the fudge I've been eating."

Then he froze.

"On second thought, let's not think that."

It was enough to earn a giggle from Applejack, but it only lasted a moment. She eyed him with lingering concern, but all he could do was repeat that he'd be fine. And every time he did, she had to convince herself it was the truth. With Twilight on the case, surely those words held some weight. 

What am I thinking... It's Twilight. Of course they do.

"How exactly do the dreams start again, darling?" Rarity questioned. By now, everyone had their eyes turned to Lyon, genuinely curious, if not already concerned. It wasn't the first time they all wondered about the dream; each following one had new bits and pieces to delve into and look over, so it was only reasonable to know more, right?

"Well..."

Lyon started to recount the latest dream, only to stop when he heard the sound of a panting creature behind him. Everyone turned in the same direction to see Spike rapidly approaching. The young drake maneuvered his way through the picnic table to avoid knocking over or stepping on any of the treats scattered about.

"Twi... light...! I... have... lemme just..." Spike attempted to form a coherent sentence, but found himself choking on his own words and resting his claws on his knees.

Before Twilight or the others could ask if he was okay, the drake belched out a small parchment. Twilight was quick to take and read it aloud.

"Dear Twilight, I am sure you are as excited as I am about the upcoming wedding in Canterlot." She paused for a moment. "Wedding?"

But the unicorn held off her confusion for just a moment and continued to read down the line, revealing that everyone was given a specified task by Princess Celestia herself—from Pinkie Pie's catering to Rainbow Dash's sonic rainboom.

Lyon wasn't expecting to be on that list too.

"To Lyon: With your exceptional skills in archery, I would appreciate having you guide our guardsponies in the final fireworks display."

The stallion was left stunted by the rest. "I... uh... o-okay, then. That happened, I guess."

Twilight laughed silently as she finished reading the rest of the letter, but already Lyon found himself daydreaming. Celestia, the princess of Equestria, asked him to participate in a wedding! Per her request! As an archer! It'd been years since he actually put his talents to proper use—apart from the Hearts and Hooves incident last year—but this was a complete step up!

He stared up towards Canterlot, already thinking of what he'd have to do. Fireworks and arrows? Ages! One of his favorite things to do during the Summer Sun Celebration. And he was doing it again for Celestia?

Already, this day was shaping up to be even better.

"... My brother?!"

Yep. This should be good.