A stallion dressed as a skeleton was standing at the entrance to the ride, “Step right up, everypony! Give me five tickets and you’re free to ride!”
The Cutie Mark Crusaders and their friend gave the skeleton-stallion five tickets and walked through the gate that said “Enter”.
“Put your belongings in this basket so they don’t fall out during the ride,” He pointed at a black basket. The four friends put their bags of candy into the basket, and other ponies in line put theirs in, too.
“Let’s sit in the front!” Sun Ray shouted. She immediately took a seat in the front of the skeleton-themed rollercoaster cart, and Fluffball and Cheeseball followed. Jany was about to go on, too, but realized that there weren’t enough seats.
“Aw, there’s only three seats!” Jany looked for an open one, and saw that the only free seat was a row in the back with two seats. She sat down next to a colt around the same age as Fluffball wearing a costume of a changeling. He had a mask over his eyes, a hood over his head with a horn and small antlers on it, and a black suit with holes on the hooves and changeling wings on his back.
“Wow! How does your costume look so amazing!? Where did you buy that?” He asked. His southern accent sounded familiar, but Jany couldn’t quite put her hoof on it.
“I made it with my magic,” She told him. He looked up at her artificial horn, and nodded in understanding. He must have thought that the horn was real. Jany buckled her seatbelt, and then the stallion dressed as a skeleton talked again.
“Please keep your hooves, wings, and tails inside of the ride. Do not try to fly out of the ride or use your magic to tamper with it. Enjoy the Skele-Coaster, everypony!”
The rollercoaster cart started moving upwards, and the colt next to her started shaking.
“Are you okay?” Jany asked.
“I’m… I’m scared of roller coasters,” he told her.
“Then why are you on one?” She asked.
“Well… I wanted to prove to my best friend that I'm not a chicken… He said that I’m a foal for being scared of the roller coaster and he doesn’t want to be friends with somepony who ain’t brave…” He admitted.
“He doesn’t sound like a good friend. And also, you can hold my hoof if you’d like,” She offered. He hesitantly took her hoof. Jany could tell how scared he was by how hard he was squeezing it. The cart was reaching the peak of the slope, and he clutched her hoof with an iron grip.
The mystery colt was trembling as the roller coaster was at its peak. As the ride dropped, everypony started screaming and putting their hooves in the air, but the colt had his eyes squeezed shut and was holding onto her like his life depended on it. He shrieked and shakily embraced her. She returned his grasp, and the two ponies screamed.
The ride went on, and he trembled less and less. He let go of their embrace, but was still holding her hoof. At the next slope, his screams sounded less like he was terrified of the ride and more like he was finally starting to enjoy it.
As the ride ended, Jany could tell that the colt was having a blast on the ride and conquered his fear of rollercoasters.
“That was AMAZIN’!” He shouted as they got off of the ride.
“It was! So, have you overcome your fear?” Jany asked.
“Yeah… I think I have!” He said.
“That’s so great! I’m so happy for you. What ride are you going to go on next?” Jany inquired. The two of them were already out of the cart.
“Well, I’m gonna go help my family with our Corn Maze. Wanna come? It’s the best Corn Maze in all of Equestria!” He told her.
“The Apple Family’s Corn Maze!?” Jany suddenly realized why his voice seemed so familiar, “That means you’re… You’re…”
“I’m… What?” He was confused.
“You’re Cinnamon Apple! I can’t believe I let you hold my hoof!” Words couldn’t explain the look of disgust on Jany’s face. Cinnamon was still confused.
“Uh… Do I know ‘ya?” He asked.
“Jany, that ride was awesome!” Sun Ray walked up to her, Fluffball and Cheeseball following close behind. Cinnamon’s expression turned surprised and angry.
“JANY!? I CANT BELIEVE THAT I…” He galloped away towards the exit without finishing his sentence. Fluffball, Sun Ray, and Cheeseball were all very confused at what they had just seen.
“Was that… Cinnamon?” Sun Ray asked. Jany looked at her friends and nodded slowly .
“What was he yelling about? If he hurt you, I swear, I’ll actually turn into a changeling and eat his non-existent love,” Fluffball said.
“No, he didn’t hurt me…” Jany replied. And I think he does have love, she silently added.
“Then what happened? He seemed really angry,” Cheeseball asked.
“I… don’t want to talk about it,” Jany said. She grabbed her candy bag and walked towards the exit of the ride. Her friends followed her back to the main fairground, still confused. She could tell that they wanted to ask more questions, but she wasn’t sure if she could give an answer.
Jany saw Cinnamon running towards two colts dressed as witch characters from a show she didn’t watch. They were twins from her class named Cloud Watcher and Colt; Cloud was a blue pegasus with curly light-blue hair, and Colt was a red earth pony with spiky red hair and yellow hooves.
Colt high-hoofed Cinnamon, who looked visibly happier. Cinnamon’s gaze turned to Jany. The two of them looked at each other from afar, remembering what had just happened.
“Are you okay?” Fluffball asked, snapping Jany back to reality. She turned to her cousin. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
Her friends eyed her suspiciously, and Jany decided to change the subject, “C’mon, let’s go to the Haunted Graveyard!”
“Yeah!” Fluffball and Sun Ray yelled.
“The what?” Cheeseball asked.
“Oh, yeah, I forgot to tell you! Our family makes a Haunted House each year for the trick-or-treaters, and this year’s is a Haunted Graveyard!” Fluffball explained.
“That sounds awesome! But isn’t your house in the Everfree Forest?” He asked.
“Yep! C’mon, let’s go!” Jany turned towards the forest.
“My dad said I can’t go in there, though!” Cheeseball said.
“And what about mine and Cheeseball’s siblings? We can’t just leave them here!” Sun Ray replied.
Cheeseball turned towards the Haunted Ferris Wheel to try and spot the foals, “Do you think they’ve finished the ride?”
“Probably. But they’ve got tons of tickets! And besides, won’t your sisters tell on you if you bring them to the forest?” Jany asked.
“I guess so.”
“Then, it’s settled! We’ll go without them,” Jany turned towards the dark forest again and started walking. Fluffball followed her, and Cheeseball and Sun Ray trailed close behind.
“Do you think our siblings will be alright? I don’t feel good leaving them,” Sun Ray asked Cheeseball.
“Me, neither, but if they come with us, I’ll get grounded for sure,” Cheeseball replied. The four friends all reached the edge of the forest. The trees looked spooky and grim, and the trail was dark and creepy.
“Do we have to go in there? Can’t you just teleport us to your house or something?” Cheeseball asked the cousins.
“Are you scaaaaared?” Sun Ray teased.
“What? No!” Cheeseball replied, “I just don’t want to get eaten by timberwolves or manticores or something!”
“Timberwolves and manticores won’t eat you, silly! Like your dad said, the Everfree Forest isn’t as dangerous as it was a long time ago! Grandpa Discord made it so none of the creatures in the forest would be a threat to anypony! And besides, it will be really spoooooky to walk in the forest on Nightmare Night,” Fluffball explained.
“I guess so…” Cheeseball said.
The ponies started walking along the trail through the forest. There were hoots from owls and twigs snapping, which scared them, but they all kept on walking. After a few minutes, they could see the Castle of Chaos looming in the distance. They arrived at Fluffball’s house, which had some Nightmare Night decorations on it.
Each of the foals grabbed a hoof-full of candy from the bowl, which reappeared once they took it, because of Screwball’s chaos magic.
“C’mon, let’s go to the castle now!” Jany galloped next door to her house/castle, which was covered in tons of Nightmare Night decorations. From jack-o-lanterns to strobe lights to headstones.
Right before the entrance to the castle, there was a huge graveyard. Skeletons were poking out of the ground, and bats were flying around them. There was fog drifting around. And it was real—not made by a smoke machine.
Suddenly, Cheeseball let out a terrified shriek. A sickly-green hoof sticking out of the ground was clinging onto Cheeseball’s hoof.
“ZOMBIE!!! AAAAAAAHHHH!” Cheeseball screamed. His friends laughed at his panic.
“Relax, it’s not actually a zombie,” Fluffball said.
“Yeah, are you a scaredy cat?” Sun Ray teased. Cheeseball yanked away his hoof and stood bravely, “I’m not scared!”
The green hoof clutched to the ground. A head poked out of the ground and the body of the zombie started rising up. It had purple hair and one red eye, the other one being missing. One of its hooves was missing, too, and its bones were showing.
“AAAAHHHH!” Sun Ray and Cheeseball screamed. They both started running in a different direction while their friends laughed. A skeleton loomed out of the shadows.The two terrified ponies ran straight into it.
“AAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!” They screamed again, and ran the opposite direction back to the zombie. Fluffball and Jany were laughing their tails off when something came up from behind them. A hoof was set atop both their heads.
The two of them yelped and turned around. There was a yellow batpony flying above them with red eyes, fangs, and black hair. It hissed at the two fillies and they started backing up.
Three figures jumped out of a nearby bush. One was a red demon, the second was a green demon, and the third was a purple one. They all had black eyes with red pupils, pointed tails and wings, and long sharp fangs.
The demons roared at them, and the four friends were cornered. They all cowered in fear as the six monsters grew closer and closer until…
“BOO!” The monsters all screamed. Sun Ray, Jany, Fluffball, and Cheeseball all looked up at them.
“OH MY CELESTIA THAT WAS AMAZING!” Fluffball jumped up.
Jany sprang up, too, “Wow, this has gotta be the best Haunted House so far!” Cheeseball and Sun Ray slowly stood up.
“Wait, this was all part of the Haunted Graveyard? I THOUGHT WE WERE GONNA DIE!” Cheeseball yelled.
“Of course it was!” Sun Ray said, “And you guys gave me quite the scare. That was awesome!”
“Thanks! We worked hard on it this year,” The red demon took off its head and was revealed to be Zany underneath the mask. The green one was Applespike, and the purple one was Jewel. Applespike was a half-stallion-half-dragon with orange fur, green slit-eyes, and a green mane. Jewel was a white unicorn with purple hair and blue eyes.
“Uncle Applespike!?” Sun Ray said with a look of surprise on her face.
“He’s your uncle?” Fluffball and Jany asked simultaneously.
“Yeah! I’m related to the Apple Family, remember?” Sun Ray replied.
“Oh yeah,” Jany said.
“How scared were you guys?” Applespike asked.
“Did we do an amazing job?” Jewel asked, obviously talking about herself. The crusaders and Cheeseball all nodded. A green light came over the zombie, and he turned into a changeling with faded-jade colored hair.
“Oh my Celestia, you guys were so scared,” Mothball beamed. The batpony took off the spiky black wig, and was revealed to be Fluttershy, Fluffball and Jany’s grandma.
“I’m sorry for scaring you all! It wasn’t too much was it?” She asked. The skeleton flashed white and turned into Screwball, Fluffball’s mother.
“Mom, how many times do I have to tell you that it’s Nightmare Night!? Ponies are expecting to get scared!” She said.
“Well, I hope I just didn’t frighten them too much,” Fluttershy replied. Fluffball gave her a hug, “You didn’t, Grandma!”
The sounds of foals’ voices were in the distance. The six ponies who were running the Haunted Graveyard put their disguises back on and started getting back into their places.
“There’s more ponies coming! Bye, kids! You can go back to the carnival if you want,” Mothball said.
“Bye, Dad!” Fluffball said at the same time as Jany said, “Bye, Uncle Mothball!” The fillies turned back to their friends.
“Let’s ride the Skele-Coaster again!” Sun Ray shouted.
“Yeah!” Fluffball, Jany, and Cheeseball agreed. The three of them started racing towards the trail back to Ponyville.
The trail was perhaps even more creepy now, because it had gotten even darker. The full moon shone above them, but they only caught glimpses of it because of the shroud of the forest. There were still sounds of owls hooting in the distance.
“Wasn’t that awesome!? What was your favorite part?” Fluffball asked.
“Mine was when Grandma Fluttershy came up behind us!” Jany said.
“My favorite part was when-” Sun Ray stopped mid-sentence. Two pairs of hoofsteps stopped, too, and Fluffball turned around.
“Guys? Guys!? Where did you go!?” Fluffball and Jany were alone in the Everfree Forest.
“What the hay? They were right behind us!” Jany said.
“I know you’re just hiding to try and scare us! I’m not scared!” She yelled out into the trees. A branch snapped and she turned to her right, “Guys, we can hear you. Just come out already!”
A pair of green glowing eyes appeared in the darkness in front of her. Fluffball rolled her eyes, “Guys, we know that’s you! I’m not scared.”
A revolting stench filled her nostrils. Fluffball’s hoof dashed upwards to cover her muzzle. The luminous eyes edged closer and closer. A brown wood-like claw stepped on the trail in front of her, and she jumped back.
“Guys? This is a prank, right?” She asked with a scared tone. A gigantic creature loomed over her. It had piercing green eyes, and was made out of dark tangled wood.
“TIMBERWOLF!” Fluffball screamed at the top of her lungs. Fluffball and Jany turned around and started galloping away as fast as they could. The timberwolf chased at their heels and its barks roared in their ears.
Sun Ray and Cheeseball were both on their own. One moment, they were walking behind their friends, and the next, their friends had vanished into thin air.
“What the hay? Where did they go?” Cheeseball asked. Sun Ray was also baffled, “I have no idea. Do you think they’re pranking us? They do have chaos magic.”
“Yeah, they probably are,” Cheeseball agreed.
“Fluffball? Jany? We know you’re there,” Sun Ray called. There was no response, and the two foals decided to keep on walking.
The sound of galloping was ahead of them. Four smaller foals were running towards them. As they came into view, Sun Ray and Cheeseball recognized them.
“Thunderstrike? Lightningstrike? What are you doing here?” Sun Ray asked, worried.
“Lucky? CC? You can’t be here!” Cheeseball said.
“HELP!! THERE’S A MANTICORE CHASING US!” Lucky screamed. A huge Manticore ran towards them. It had sharp fangs and its scorpion tail was arched above its head, ready to stab them.
Everypony screamed. The pegasi started flying and the earth ponies were galloping away. The Manticore roared as they ran and flew for their lives. Cheeseball and his sisters jumped over scattered twigs and rocks while Sun Ray and her siblings dodged branches in the air.
All of a sudden, the sound of the manticore behind them was gone. The six ponies all slowed down to catch their breath, the pegasi landing back on the trail.
“Are you guys okay?” Cheeseball asked. His sisters hugged him and Sun Ray’s siblings hugged her.
“What are you guys doing out here in the forest?” Sun Ray asked.
“Mom gave you explicit instructions not to set hoof here!” Cheeseball said. A twig snapped behind them. Everypony jerked their head towards the sound. A chicken popped its head out of the nearby bushes and everypony sighed in relief that it wasn’t the manticore and just a harmless chicken.
The chicken walked out of the bush and it had a green scaly body. Wings popped up from its back and it had a long tail with red spikes.
“Is that..?” Sun Ray started.
“OH MY CELESTIA, THAT’S A COCKATRICE!!!” Cheeseball screamed. Cheeseball’s parents had taught he and his sisters about all the dangers of the Everfree Forest, one of the most dangerous being the Cockatrice. If you looked into its eyes, you would turn into stone.
“GUYS, DON’T LOOK AT IT!!!” Sun Ray shouted. But it was too late. All four of their little siblings were turned into stone.
“THUNDERSTRIKE! LIGHTNINGSTRIKE!” Sun Ray shrieked as Cheeseball yelled, “LUCKY! CC!” The two friends started crying as they stood in front of the statues of their younger beloved siblings.
As the Timberwolf chased after Jany and Fluffball, Jany remembered something, “Wait, we have chaos magic!” Jany stopped running and stamped her hoof on the dusty trail. The timberwolf disappeared.
“Oh my Celestia, thank you Jany! That was so scary… I don’t know if I can look at wood the same way ever again…” Fluffball said in between breaths.
“You’re welcome… Yeah, that was terrifying. Wait… Do you hear that?” Jany replied. Fluffball perked up her ears and realized she did hear something. It was a rushing sound getting louder and louder. Fluffball and Jany turned around and saw a tsunami heading their way.
Jany’s eyes widened. She was terrified of water. And also, how the hay was there a tsunami in the middle of the Everfree Forest?
“RUN!” Fluffball yelled. Jany couldn’t run. All she could do was cower in fear. The giant wave would reach her any second and she would drown. The ginormous wave, black in the reflection of the night, was coming straight towards her. Jany squeezed her eyes shut, about to brace for impact. Why wasn’t anythig happening?
Jany opened one eye and saw a dark green forcefield around her and Fluffball, the water rushing past them. Jany let out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding and noticed her heart was pounding. The water finally slowed down and rushed away. The forcefield went away and Fluffball sighed. Jany turned to Fluffball and hugged her.
“Thank you!” Jany said.
“It’s the least I could do after you saved me. And what is happening tonight? How did a tsunami get here?!” she put her hoof on Jany’s shoulder, “and I’m sorry you had to go through that, I know how scared you are of water…it's like all of our worst fears are coming to life tonight.”
“Fluffball? Jany? Is that you?” a voice called. They turned around and Sun Ray and Cheeseball were standing there.
“Cheesy! I was so worried about you! Where were you guys?” Fluffball ran to Cheeseball and gave him a hug. They both blushed.
“We got chased by a manticore and then our siblings got turned to stone by a cockatrice!” Sun Ray yelled, turning to point, “wait… Where did they go?!”
Lightning struck the sky and thunder boomed in everypony’s ears. A tall black figure loomed above them with red eyes, evil laughter filling the sky. Everypony screamed.
“HAPPY NIGHTMARE NIGHT!” The figure stepped out of the shadows. It was Discord. Everypony’s eyes widened and they all gasped. Discord’s beard bounced as he cackled.
“GRANDPA DISCORD?!” Jany and Fluffball shrieked.
“Was this the extra special surprise you told me about?!” Jany asked.
“It sure was! Wow, I think that was the best Nightmare Night scare I’ve ever done. Did you ponies like it?”
“Where are my sisters? Are they okay?!” Cheeseball interrogated.
“Relax, relax. Everything I did to you ponies was an illusion! You were all just standing here in the cold and it was all happening in your minds. Your siblings are perfectly safe and on rides at the carnival.”
Cheeseball and Sun Ray let out sighs of relief.
“That has got to be the scaries thing I’ve ever experienced,” Sun Ray said. Her friends all agreed.
“Grandpa, I think you went a little too far…” Fluffball said.
“Yeah,” said Jany.
“Oh, come on, don’t you know how to have a little fun on Nightmare Night? You’re supposed to get scared! Now, go along and enjoy the rest of tonight. The carnival is still open for another few hours.” Discord disappeared to go scare more ponies.
The four friends decided to go back to the carnival and have fun after the most terrifying experience of their lives. The rest of the night was a blast. They played games, got more candy, and went in the corn maze with Sun Ray and Cheeseball’s siblings, which wasn’t scary at all compared to what they had just experienced. Even though they all got scared out of their fur, the four ponies agreed that it was the best Nightmare Night ever.