Making Hearthswarming
The ponies in Ponyville were all very busy getting ready for Hearthwarming. Decorations were going up everywhere to celebrate the event. However eight ponies were busy getting together some special presents for a certain individual. One who had been foremost on their mind since learning that he was still alive. It was still about two weeks before Hearthswarming Eve so there was still plenty of time to get together the necessary gifts they had planned on. It was decided that Luna would carry the gifts to the old ruins and deliver them when Alex was asleep. Since she was able to establish and maintain a link with Alex, although unknown to him, she had been watching over him and seeing to his safety every night since discovering his whereabouts.
One particular night while Alex was bathing in the hot springs in the castle ruins, Luna had been able to magically and secretly create duplicates of his clothing and shoes to give to Rarity to use as patterns so that she might be able to make her gift to him.
“Invisibility Spell.” She thought as she smiled to herself as she quietly came up on Alexs clothing set next to the pools edge. “A hundred and one uses, now a hundred and two.”
As she turned to leave with her duplicates of Alex’s clothes, she looked over her shoulder to make sure all was well with him before she left.
It was just at this time that Alex started to come out of the water using the steps at the near end of the pool.
Luna found herself transfixed! She couldn’t look away, her curiosity getting the better of her.
She noted that his torso and arms were rather lean and muscular. Almost as though he had been eating a little better and working out. He still looked tired probably due to his nightmares but other than that he was pretty attractive looking and rather fit, ….for a human that is.
As she continued to stare at Alex’s naked body ascending out of the water, she found herself wondering how a human would measure up against a stallion, only to be a disappointed when he grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist before coming completely out of the water.
“BLAST! Oh well,” She sighed. Shaking her head with disappointment. “Time to focus, mare. That’s not what you came here for. Stick to the plan.” She told herself.
Aside from getting the necessary information to create the gifts the elements had each planned, Luna was busy helping prepare Alex to fight the nightmares that had plagued him so.
Each night she would teach him in his dreams the defenses he would need to combat the evils and each time Alex would dive into the lessons like a man possessed.
This night would be his first test of his newly developed abilities.
“Alex? Are you ready for this?” the gentile voice of “Sarah” asked.
“No, I am not… But lets do this anyway.”
“Just remember what I taught you. These are dreams, nightmares, they are not real. You are the master not them.”
Starting with the Fluttershy nightmare and being put in a cage.
It seemed simple enough. Bend the bars outward. They had magically shocked him each time he touched them with his bare skin so he decided to look at the problem as a puzzle to be solved.
The first problem was Harry the bear. Harrys toothy grin and height made him look very intimidating.
“Alex, stand your ground. Do not show fear. Match his moves. You will find his weakness if you continue to observe.” Came the calming voice.
As much as he was terrified that the bear was going to maul him, Alex stood his ground. Harry walked on all fours and tried to circle Alex. Alex in turn circled Harry. After about the third or fourth round, Harry decided to attack. He charged Alex head on. Alex quickly side stepped at the last moment and ducked at the same time narrowly ducking under the bears massive paw coming for his head. Harry crashed into the paddock bars and was electrocuted. Stunned by the shock he fell to his belly and that is when Alex pounced. Alex tried to climb up on Harrys back to get his arms around the bears neck in a reverse headlock but as he was climbing the mound of fur, his shoes grazes Harrys side. Harry flinched and snickered a little. Grabbing the area where Alexs foot had just been. As he was climbing / scrambling up on the bears back, Alex noticed this and poked him in the ribs with his fingers, digging as deep through the fur as he could and started rubbing the bears other side. The bear snickered again. That was when Alex figured out Harrys weakness and attacked with full fury. Harry couldn’t fight back against the onslaught.
As he rolled this way and that, Alex continued to press his advantage.
Harry was horribly ticklish!
Fluttershy returned to see what all the ruckus was about and quickly opened the cage door only to find her bear friend cowering in the corner and Alex standing over him fingers at the ready.
“Oh my!” she whisper shouted as she rushed over to the fallen bear.
“What did you do to Harry?” she cried.
“Nothing. Just got in a bit of a fight.”
“What!?” Fluttershy yelped.
“Yeah, a fight. A tickle fight.” Was Alexs reply. “He lost and now… so do you.”
Fluttershys eyes went big as she turned around to face Alex. Alex had taken advantage of Fluttershys momentary distraction to quietly walk out the still open cage door. He was smiling as the door shut with an audible “click” and the hum of magical electricity started up through the bars.
As he turned away, Fluttershy tried to convince him to open the door and that it wasn’t safe for him out in the “wild.”
“Yes it is now safe.” Alex said. “Since you are now in there, I no longer feel like I’m in danger.” As he turned and began to walk away.
“Um. Please don’t go. Could you please open the door? Hello? Helloooooo?”
It was then that the dream world seem to change around Alex. Everything seemed to dissolve into dust particles and then those particles to smoke as the world around him seemed to blow away in a gentle breeze.
Alex once again found himself standing in a soft glow of white nothingness.
“Sarah? Are you there?”
“Yes, I am still here. Well done young Alex. Well done.”
“Sleep for now. You have earned it.” Came the gentle unseen voice.
Alex found himself at peace as he began to drift off in the dream world. Soft blankets materialized underneath and on top of him as he lay down. Luna magically tucked the blankets around him as he got comfortable.
“Sarah?” He mumbled as he faded off to sleep.
“Yes? I am here.”
“Thank you.” He mumbled again and was asleep.
Luna let out a deep happy sigh. She couldn’t help but smile.
“You are most welcome young Alex.”
As per her nightly protocol, Luna made sure that Alex was safe including her spell of safety upon him.
She then took to the night skies to give her duplicates to Rarity and report her nights work to her sister.