The gardens were everything I imagined they’d be. The grounds were lush and green with gobs of beautiful flowers on sculpted bushes, ivy arches, and topiary. We passed intricate marble statues and burbling fountains that filled the whole area with the soothing sounds of running water.
Eventually, we neared a smallish building that appeared to be our destination. I noticed it had a simpler, less artistic style than most and tried to ask Rose Petal about it when suddenly:
“ROSE!”
With surprising speed and reflex, Rose Petal hopped and landed in a bracing stance with each hoof planted steadily into the ground. She was looking skyward and I followed her gaze to see a flash of green heading towards us.
But as soon as I did, the green flash recoiled briefly before floating to the ground. She turned out to be a pegasus with icy-white fur and leaf-green hair tied with pink ribbons into a cascade of large braids. The pretty, but confused-looking pony walked close to Rose Petal while staring at me intently.
Rose Petal quickly tired of the standoff and leaned toward the new pony who, seemingly involuntarily, mirrored the movement. They lightly rubbed their muzzles together in an intimate display of affection to which “Green Flash” smiled and shuddered; likely feeling the same effect I had when Rose had touched me. I closely studied the maneuver and half-considered going over to join them...
“Hello. My name is Winter Willow. I’m pleased to meet you”.
“Hello!” I replied. I resigned myself to introductions for now, but made a mental note to try a nose rub with someone eventually. A little too late, I realized she was waiting for me to say my name so I deflected with some non-consequential statement about the gardens.
She stared at me for a few seconds and seemed to be considering something when she suddenly glanced to Rose Petal and said, “Rose harvested some rare flowers with very particular needs and must tend to them. But I’d love to chat with you a while and introduce you to my friends if that’s alright.”
“I’d love to!” I replied and meant it. I had already noticed two other ponies down at the hall waiting for us and reasoned that if that’s where Rose Petal had been taking me, it must be where I should go. I walked next to my new escort as Winter Willow said, “Wonderful! It’s just this way”. “Thanks for bringing her Rose”, she added.
Having already forgotten that Rose Petal wasn’t coming with us, I turned and said, “Thank you Rose Petal! Have fun with your flowers”.
She smiled genuinely and said goodbye before walking off.
I watched her for just a moment before turning to Winter Willow who was busy watching me. She certainly is a curious pony, I thought. But I was curious too so I asked, “Is Rose Petal your… ah… partner?”
Willow’s face brightened and she smiled widely. “No, no. She’s just a very, very dear friend. She’s actually recently become interested in a handsome colt she met in the garden. It’s quite adorable and I can’t wait to see how it plays out.” She was buzzing with infectious excitement and I couldn’t help but laugh in response.
When we walked in range of the hall, the closest pony addressed us: “Who’s your friend Winter Willow?”
Taking it as her cue, Winter Willow hopped forward to make introductions. “Rose Petal brought her. She found her in the mountains.”
Surprised, I looked at Winter Willow. I was certain Rose Petal had never told her that.
Well, it is just a dream, I reasoned.
My attention was drawn forward again when Willow continued. She gestured to a mare with smartly-cut mid-length brown hair and lighter brown fur. She had bright yellow eyes and a diamond cutie mark. This is Inner light,” she said. “And the quiet one over there is Tender Embrace.” The colt she pointed at next seemed fairly young though he was still nearly as big as me. His fur was white and his eyes blue like mine, though a darker shade. His mane and tail were navy blue and his cutie mark was the face of a smiling foal… which was fascinating to me.
I’d never seen such a thing, but was given no time to ponder it when Winter Willow flew above the entrance and gestured widely as if introducing the building itself.
“Welcome to Heart Healer Hall!” she said enthusiastically.
Heart Healer Hall!? What could that imply? I wondered. And then suddenly it hit me.
I covered my mouth with my hoof, but couldn’t stop the chortle from escaping. The three reacted predictably; staring at me with a mixture of surprise and confusion which wasn’t helping. I laughed harder and harder until my legs turned to jelly. As I dropped to ground in a fit of giggles, I could only think of how my actions would confirm what they already suspected:
They think I’m insane!
***********
The three waited patiently until I had regained control and then escorted me inside.
I would have been nervous about walking into an asylum, even in a dream, but the building wasn’t barred or guarded. It was bright and open with soft places to sit and tables with flower vases on top. If anything, it reminded me of a tea room; spacious, comfortable, and inviting.
There were only a few ponies inside, none who appeared to be patients. I guess I’m the guest of honor! I thought. And so it appeared to be as Winter Willow introduced me to each of her “friends” one after the other.
They politely chatted and asked questions, which I knew was an attempt to learn more about me and my “madness”. I answered truthfully what I could, but stayed in character and kept the information to a minimum.
Eventually it was time for Tender Embrace to take a crack at me. He was so bashful that I had to smile at him encouragingly before he would look at me. It took a few moments for him to work up the courage, but all he asked was, “may I hug you?”
“Of course!” I chirped. He seemed so harmless and sweet that I didn’t hesitate, but since I didn’t know the mechanics of how ponies hugged, I let him take the lead. He sat close, leaned in, and put his unusually large hooves around my neck; resting his head to the side of mine. He squeezed me snugly, but gently filling me with an indescribable joy.
EEEEEEEE! I squealed.
I’m not sure what he’d hoped to accomplish, but as soon as he let me go, I excitedly jumped from pony to pony, hugging whoever would let me. Before long, we were all laughing, hugging, and having a good time… all except for Winter Willow who seemed frustrated.
I wanted to give her a hug too, but my attention was captured by Inner Light who was clearly bothered by my lack of cutie mark. When she explained that her talent was “talent finding”, she had my full undivided attention.
This is what I was waiting for! I thought excitedly.
She predictably asked about my dreams and hobbies, but also some really strange things like whether I preferred oceans to rivers and if I liked high places. Either way, I was fully committed to helping her as much as possible while avoided specifics of my non-pony existence.
Soon I felt as if we might be getting somewhere, but an increasingly strange feeling in my guy was making the conversation difficult.
Something’s wrong, my inner voice counseled. I began to feel uncomfortable and cold...
“How are you feeling?” Winter Willow suddenly asked.
“I’m… hungry,” I realized. I tried to remember if I’d ever felt hungry in dreams before. Sure I have, I thought. At least, I think I have… I’m sure it’s fine, I rationalized. I’ve never had a lucid dream before. Maybe this is part of the realism. Yes, I’m sure that’s it…
Winter Willow was intently staring at me, but the negative sensations subsided so I was content to wait and see what would happen next.
She closed her eyes and appeared to be thinking deeply for a few moments.
“Oh!” she said loudly with a wide smile.
“What is it?” Inner light asked just before I could.
“We should get some food!” she responded; though perhaps a little too excitedly. Then, addressing me, she said, “I’d like to take you to Artisan Square to meet an… ah… acquaintance of mine. We should be able to get dinner there as well.”
She had already started for the door and I walked over to join her. “That sounds fun!” I said.
I wondered what kinds of food I’d be able to try and if they would taste the same while in dream-pony form. At the very least, it might ease the realistic sensations of hunger I was feeling so it was a good idea no matter how I looked at it.
As we exited the building, Inner Light started protesting, “Wait… Wait! You can’t mean…”
*SLAM*
Winter Willow mischievously giggled as she cut off whatever Inner Light had been trying to say by kicking the door shut behind us.
“Shall we go?” she asked innocently.
Intrigued, I simply answered, “Yes”, and joined her as she walked towards the city.