//------------------------------// // Chapter Eight: In Which Our Protagonist Dreams // Story: A Family Matter // by Bardsworth Brony //------------------------------// It wasn't until Sketch stopped to catch his breath that he realized where he had run to. There, in front of him, was a familiar building, the first he had seen when he had made his journey to Ponyville. The shack was just as run-down and decrepit as it had been when he had last seen it. Still, at the moment, it was a more welcome sight than Ponyville. "Home sweet home," he said in a weary voice. The last time he had been there, he had been hauling his wagon of art supplies. Now, those and his paintings – and his treasured gray overcoat – were all at Sweet Apple Acres. There was no way he could go back for them. They were lost, another chapter of his life that he'd have to walk away from. Exhausted from galloping and from the emotions that battered him, he walked into the shack and collapsed onto the dirty floor, uncaring of the filth that surrounded him. His mind buzzed and tumbled, trying to sort out what had happened. His friends… his neighbors… Applejack… they had all turned on him, become angry with him. They hadn't even wanted to hear his side of things. Had his father done all that? Had he really managed to convince everypony so absolutely? It didn't seem possible. Sketches eyelids grew heavy, and though evening was just beginning, he could think of nothing better at the moment than falling asleep. It had been a while since he had slept out in the open, but at least it wasn't cold. With a few tears still stinging his eyes, sleep swept over him like a tidal wave and engulfed him. *** The crowd stood before him, their eyes red and glaring, their faces twisted and monstrous. They shouted at him, they mocked him, they advanced on him slowly. Sketch backed up, fear gripping him like the tight hold of a dragon. "You don’t understand," he shouted, though no words left his mouth. "I love Ponyville! I'd do anything for it!" Still the crowd advanced, and even though Sketch turned his head so as not to see it, the terrible sounds still assaulted his ears. Without warning, there was burst of wind and something landed in front of him. He turned back to see the crowd receding, the grotesque caricatures of ponies backing away in fear. Standing between him and the crowd was a dark blue pegasus with a flowing mane and tale. She turned and Sketch started; she wasn't a pegasus, she was an alicorn! Recognition finally clicked into place. "Princess Luna," Sketch breathed, and then gathered his wits and bowed. He looked back up at the princess, catching her eyes, and in that moment a burst of clarity ran through him like a chill. "I'm… I'm dreaming, aren't I?" "Yes, Sketch, you are dreaming," the princess said in a soft voice. "But this is my domain, and I can visit you as easily as I can in the waking world." "Why me?" Sketch asked, looking around at the dreamscape, but seeing no traces of the monstrous ponies. "I mean, I'm grateful that you scared away my nightmare, but…" "There's been a disturbance of late." "A disturbance?" Sketch turned his head and met the beautiful mare's blue eyes. "What sort of a disturbance, your highness?" "Many of the dreams of the ponies in Ponyville have been absent," she responded with a frown. "There are still a small number that continue to dream, but the others… it's as if something has stolen them away leaving only… silence." "What could be causing that?" Sketch asked, concern and curiosity in his voice. "I'm unsure. But it is something magical in nature. You seem to be one of the few ponies unaffected and mindful that something is wrong. And the only one with the determination to stop it. It's up to you to figure out what's happening to Ponyville and to save it." "Me? But…" The words that the faceless pony shouted earlier in the day came to him. "I'm not even from Ponyville." "But you've become a part of it. You haven't just found a place to live, Sketch, you've found a home. And I know you'll do what you must to protect it. I've seen that much in your dreams, and a pony's dreams reflect what is in his heart." Sketch paused, considering the princess's words. "You're right, your highness. I… I can't just run away from it. I have to do something." Princess Luna smiled. "Rest assured, my child, that you will not be alone. I'm sending help to you." "Thank you, your highness. I'll do what I can." The princess smiled and turned, spreading her strong wings to fly away. For a moment she hesitated, then turned around. There was a slight sheepish look on her face. "By the way, do you think… do you think someday you could do a painting of me like you did of my sister? Perhaps I'm vain, but the only paintings of me that exist are… unflattering." "I… I would be honored, your highness," Sketch said with a swelling in his chest. The princess gave him one last smile as a "thank you" and took off into the sky. *** A shriek and a crash outside of the shack jolted Sketch from his sleep. Disoriented both by the dream he had experienced and his surroundings, it took almost a full minute for him to sort everything out. "Help…" he said to himself, thinking of the crashing sound he had heard. Scrambling to his hooves, he raced out of the shack. "Hello? Anypony there?" "Um, yes… me…" came a female voice somewhere in the trees. "Are you all right?" Sketch called, trying to pinpoint the source of the voice. "Yeah. I just don't know what went wrong…"