//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: Sweet Dreams // Story: The Reign of Princess Dinky the Cute // by Rodinga //------------------------------// “You okay, Tavi?” “Hmm?” I looked up from my cello. “I’m fine, just—”a yawn cut me off. Vinyl got up from where she’d been working underneath her turntables. “You haven’t stopped playing that tune since you picked your cello up.” “Practice makes perfect, and this needs to be perfect,” I declared. “The fate of Equestria depends on this song.” “It was perfect ages ago,” Vinyl reasoned. “Take a break and get some coffee or something, or that song is gonna lull you to sleep on stage.” I put my bow down. “I think you’re right this time, Vinyl” “Yeah I am,” she replied. “How are your preparations going?” I asked. “Kinda alright,” Vinyl admitted. “All this gear is top notch stuff, but that means it’s real sensitive. I’ve been too busy making sure it sounds good instead of really taking it for a spin.” “Will it be ready?’ I asked. To demonstrate, Vinyl took one of the turntable arms and ran it across the grain on a record. My ears clamped against my skull as the strangled-cat like noise rumbled through the few dozen speakers spread throughout the room. Vinyl grinned and I muttered, “I get your point.” “I’ll be mixin’ on the fly,” Vinyl said with a shrug. “But that’s when I do my best stuff.” I put my cello down against the wall. Then while stretching I said, “I’ll go down to the kitchens and find something caffeinated.” “No need, filly.” Vinyl stopped me with a raised hoof. “I got this.” She turned over toward the door and called, “Hey, guards!” The ballroom door opened and a guard stepped through. “What do you need,” the guard asked. Vinyl pointed at me. “Tavi here is helping me with this performance for Princess Dinky, and she could really use some coffee so she can make Dinky happy.” The guard opened his wings and said, “At once.” Then he shot off. I looked over at Vinyl with an eyebrow raised. “Vinyl, how long have you been abusing their condition?” “All day,” Vinyl replied as she tweaked the rotation speed of her turntable set. “I got lunch earlier. The food here is amazing, the chef has gotta make the best damn pasta I’ve ever had.” I sighed. There was no telling how ponies would react after all this was said and done, especially if they resented this sort of thing. “How long till the doors open?” I asked. “Bout a quarter hour,” Vinyl said. “The guards say we’re looking at least a hundred heads plus princesses, that’s as many as they’ll let in. There’ll be another hundred in hearing distance outside too.” “Is that a lot for you?” I asked. “Sorta,” Vinyl said. “It depends on the place, this ballroom’s kinda small compared to some places, but we’ll be at capacity here.” “Right,” I said. I supposed this sort of performance was a far cry from the exclusive parties and seated concert halls I normally performed in. “So what’s the schedule once the party starts?” “I’ll run for half an hour before you take the stand. Dinky’s still a little filly,” Vinyl said with a shrug, “so she’ll get tired fast, and when she goes, Celestia will as well.” “I’ll be ready,” I promised. The ballroom door opened again and the guard flew in with a coffee cup held in a non-spill carry sling held in his mouth. He handed in front of me and presented it with a flourish. “Your coffee, miss. Fresh ground from the kitchens.” “Thank you, sir,” I said before taking the cup. The guard bowed and intoned, “Adore Dinky.” “Adore Dinky,” I echoed, with less enthusiasm. The guard took off and flew back out the door. “I don’t think I’m ever going to get used to that,” I said to Vinyl. “It’s totally outta wack,” Vinyl agreed. She picked out a record with her magic and put it on the turntable. “One more test.” Vinyl dropped the needle on the outer rim. Through the speakers I heard it rumble along until it found its groove, then the sound of Sapphire Shores’ latest single, Equestria Girls started booming through the ballroom. My ears surrendered and clamped down. “For the love of Luna, Vinyl, shut that off.” A welcome screech silenced the terrible tune. “That settles that,” Vinyl said off hoof. “Not even this sound system can make that song sound good.” “Please tell me that wasn’t requested.” “Hate to say it,” Vinyl said as she leant on her tables. “But that was at the top of her list.” “Earth give me strength…” I said under my breath. Vinyl came out from behind her tables and over to me. “Tavi, I feel your pain, and you’ve been working hard on your song,” she said as she picked up my cello. “There’s a staff waiting room that the catering ponies use through that door over there.” Vinyl pointed at it with my cello. “Rest your hooves for a bit and come on out when it’s time.” I spent only a moment considering it. “Thank you, Vinyl. Are you sure you’ll be fine on your own?” Vinyl grinned at me. “Filly, this is what I was born for.” I shook my head with a smile. “Alright, Vinyl, I’ll see you in a bit.” Taking my cello from Vinyl’s hold I followed her direction through a semi-concealed door and into the servant’s rest stop. The room was primarily a staging area for the wait staff during events like the Grand Galloping Gala. A counter with a small glazier’s worth of glass behind it waited for when it would be used to provide the waiters with drinks to distribute. Across on the other side of the room were cushioned sofas for the waiters to wait on. Taking a seat, I brought my cello around in front of me for some last minute practice. I played through the song Luna had entrusted to me, I’d memorized the notes well enough that I didn’t need the sheet anymore. It was a nice way to relax after such a long day. After a play through I was satisfied with my performance and laid down across the sofa. I hadn’t realised till now how much running around I’d done today across Canterlot, through the palace, up a tower, and that brief experience with flight. One can get carried away sometimes. Suddenly I heard my name called out. The performance! I stood up and lifted up my cello as I ran toward the door. I stood just at the door hurriedly checking my bow tie, straightened my mane, shook out my wings, and stepped outside. The light blinded me, and my ears winced under the sound of thunderous applause. The entire room shook as hundreds of hooves hit the ground. As the light faded I heard Vinyl’s amplified voice call out, “All hail, Princess Octavia.” “What?” I found myself standing in the middle of the throne room. Looking behind me I didn’t see the door, but the royal throne itself. More surprising was the set of wings on my back, and when I looked up I could see an elegant grey horn on my forehead. Looking forward again the crowd of hundreds of ponies gathered bowed as one and simultaneously declared, “All hail Princess Octavia.” Then my shadow moved to cover the floor in front of me and rose up. At first it was a reflection of me, and then its form changed. Colour flooded through it until Princess Luna stood before me. Luna reached up to touch my shoulder and said, “Octavia, it is time.” “What?” “Tavi it’s time!” Suddenly it wasn’t Luna in front of me, but Vinyl’s purple sunglasses. “You need to get on stage now!” “I’m going,” I said weakly as I rolled off the sofa. I quickly checked my back and forehead and found no mysterious extras. I reached up to my neck to find my bow tie and discovered it was missing. Now that I thought about it, I never remembered putting it on. I was horrified that I’d been running around the palace without one of my most distinguishing accessories. “Tavi, you’re on,” Vinyl said as she tapped me on the shoulder. My cello was already floating in Vinyl’s magic. “I’ve left a premix playing, but it won’t last forever. We gotta get you on stage.” Vinyl hurried me out into the ballroom. Music still played, it was a mixture of songs with a steady beat in the background. In the centre of the room was Dinky, dancing in the way all children do. Her movements untrained by experience as she threw her hooves around in whatever fashion occurred to her. While Dinky’s dancing could be described as cute at her age, for an adult pony it’s quite embarrassing. Naturally everypony in the room was mirroring every move Dinky made, the synchronized movement was rather disturbing, but then so was the fact that no one seemed to object to the style. Such dancing could lock a pony in the Canterlot Elite’s bad graces for weeks. There was a shove from behind me. “Come on, Tavi.” At Vinyl’s insistence I let her help me up to the stage. My mind felt like it was still foggy from my nap. Once we reached the stage, Vinyl took me behind the turntables and gave me a bottle saying, “Drink it.” Looking at the bottle I asked, “What’s in it?” “Water.” “What more than that?” “Probably minerals,” Vinyl said flatly. “Just drink it, Tavi. It’ll help you wake up.” I did as I was told, drinking the whole bottle and taking a deep relieving breath when I finished. It did help, I suddenly felt more awake. Vinyl pressed my cello into my hooves, gave me my bow, and swung a boom microphone over to capture my music. “Vinyl, I’m ready,” I said. “Good, by the way.” Vinyl held up a blank record in front of me. “I’m so recording this.” I considered the virgin vinyl. “A lot of ponies might want copies after this.” “Oh, yeah,” Vinyl agreed with a nod. “How often do we record history like this?” She put it down on one of her turntables and set a needle to carve a new recording. Steadying myself, I waited for the right moment. On the tables in front of Vinyl only one record was still playing, and as I watched the needle reached the centre of the record, slipped out of its groove lifted up and reset itself to the starting position. Silence stopped all movement in the room. Vinyl brought a microphone up to her mouth and spoke, “Hey, everypony, we’ve got a very special request for our gracious hosts, Princess Celestia and Princess Dinky. This song is just for you.” Vinyl lifted some sheet music from under the table along with a keyboard. I recognized the sheet as the one Luna had given me. Vinyl lifted her glasses up and winked at me. On the table the needle over the blank record dropped, and its gemstone head started carving a new track. Vinyl started playing a simple background melody. Following it by memory, I started on cue. My bow travelled back and forth playing the simple melody that I’d practiced nearly a hundred times today. Vinyl’s keyboard complemented my music perfectly; it wasn’t loud or obnoxious and gave me something to follow. Vinyl has always been good at bringing things together to make something better. Looking out into the audience I saw Dinky moving slowly from side to side following the tune, everypony else in the audience copied her, except one pony. Princess Celestia stood rooted to spot as she watched us. The princess didn’t move, nor did she blink. The song soon came to an end. Vinyl and I stood, and bowed. There was a polite applause from the audience. In the middle of the audience I saw Dinky yawn, and shake her head. She went over to Celestia and tapped her on the leg. Celestia didn’t respond for a moment, only coming to when Dinky was more insistent. Something between them was said, and then Celestia lifted Dinky onto her back and the pair of princesses left. With Dinky gone, all energy seemed to leave the crowd, and they quietly began to disperse out the doors. Within a minute or so we were left alone in the ballroom. “Do you think it worked?” I asked Vinyl. “Something happened,” Vinyl said with a shrug. “The princesses went home.” “Well, Luna said she’d be able to manage things from here.” Vinyl lifted the formerly blank record up from the turn table and looked at the track. “Looks like a good scratch, wanna hear it?” “Give it a spin, Vinyl,” I agreed, and the pair of us listened to the old song we’d brought back to life. We retired back to my apartment for dinner. It wasn’t anything truly impressive, a few simple bowls of fruit and oats followed by ice cream. After everything, we hardly had the energy to do more. Some ponies might be able to go on adventures all the time, but it wasn’t something for me. Vinyl borrowed some blankets and slept on my couch, while I went to my own bed. To help me get to sleep, I often play gentle music on a small record player I have near my bed. Tonight I put the fresh record we’d made on the table and lowered the needle into place. Before long I drifted off into the dream world. I found myself in an empty plane of grass, featureless but for the grass shifting in a breeze I couldn’t feel. Searching around, I heard hoof steps from behind me. Turning around I saw the ethereal form of Princess Luna phase into existence. I bowed, “Princess Luna.” “Well met, Octavia Melody.” Luna inclined her head in return. “Your performance this eve was exceptional.” “Thank you, your highness.” I looked around. “If I may ask, where are we?” “The dreamscape,” Luna replied solemnly. “Tis made of the worlds that we dream of as we rest. This is simply a neutral plane, and in itself is a mystery I have no answer to, but from here I can take thee to dreams of other ponies abed.” “We can travel between dreams?” I asked. “In a fashion,” Luna replied. “A dream is maintained by the pony who dreams it, and they can easily cast us out if they object to an external presence.” A thought occurred. “Then we could visit Vinyl’s dreams? She’s just in the next room.” “In but a trice,” Luna said with a smile. The princess’s horn glowed and I was plunged into water. The water was warm, and bubbles pushed me toward the surface. I swam up, breaking back into air with a flick of my head to keep my sopping wet mane out of my face. Breathing in fresh air, I noticed that I didn’t feel any need for it. Presumably this dream didn’t feature drowning. Looking around, I found that I’d just surfaced in a hot tub. It was shallow, and yet somehow deep at the same time. A white hoof reached around my shoulder and I was pulled into contact with Vinyl. She was completely wet as well, her blue mane still in its normal style despite also being as soaked as mine was. “Done with Swirly I see, well more for me,” Vinyl said as smug smile crossed her face. “Interesting dream you’re having, Vinyl,” I said awkwardly. “It’s not weird at all.” “This isn’t a dream,” Vinyl said. “If it were a dream you wouldn’t feel this…” My eyes widened as I felt Vinyl’s hoof make its way down my back. I spun out of Vinyl’s reach to the other side of the hot tub. “I have no— What has gotten into you, Vinyl?” I asked, reeling from what I was seeing. Vinyl didn’t answer, and before I could press her for an explanation a light purple pegasus surfaced in front of Vinyl. The pair held each other as they relaxed against the edge of the tub. Vinyl tilted her head in confusion. “Don’t drag, Tavi, you were having just as much fun with Swirly.” I blinked. “Who’s Swirly?” The cosmic forces ruling Vinyl’s dream decided it was a good time to explain that. Something rose out of the water beside me: it had fins, scales, and the head of a pony. It leant over to my ear and whispered, “Shoo be do.” Against another tub wall Princess Luna sat laughing. I pushed the thing back off me and yelled, “Get me out of here.” The dream faded away instantly and we found ourselves in the grassy field again. Luna was still laughing. “Oh what mirth, tis been a while since I saw such a thing.” I spun around as I checked myself – I was dry again. Snapping around to look at Luna, I said, “What was all that? And why was there a seapony there?!” “’Twas a mermare,” Luna explained. “Seaponies don’t have scales.” “Why was Vinyl dreaming about that?” I pointed in her metaphorical direction. “We’ve been friends for years, is that what she truly thinks of me?” Luna held up a hoof. “Peace, Octavia. ‘Twas merely a dream, a passing fantasy forgotten before it can be remembered.” “Does it mean that…?” I left the rest unsaid. “Most likely not, you were not the only participant and so ‘twas not focused on you, but Vinyl’s enjoyment.” Luna’s wings flapped dismissively. “You likely made an impression on Vinyl Scratch today, and so her subconscious added you to her dream. On another night it would have been somepony else, don’t presume to know somepony from a merest glimpse at their thoughts.” “Then it meant nothing.” I sighed with relief. “That’s good to know.” A rather troubling thought crossed my mind and I looked up at the princess warily. “Do you visit ponies in dreams like that often?” Luna stood taller and lifted her head further up to look down on me. “No I do not,” she replied firmly. “Rarely do I visit somepony who isn’t calling out for assistance. Perhaps I should not have so boldly allowed you to visit your friend, particularly with a more pressing matter at hoof.” “Why did you bring me here then?” I asked. “I wish your assistance in rescuing my sister,” Luna said solemnly. “I stand over her now, in truth. She sleeps in the chair where hence she told bedtime stories to Dinky. To break the filly’s hold on her, we must give Celestia something else to dote on. I would ask you to play the song one more time.” “Well, Vinyl did record our performance—” I was suddenly surprised by my record player appearing in mid-air before me with our recorded performance already set upon it. Luna smiled. “Twould seem that you have the song stuck in your head.” Luna lit her horn. “Tis your mind’s construct, you must bring it.” I closed my record player’s lid and ducked underneath it to carry it on my back where it balanced effortlessly. The scenery changed again to something reminiscent of the Royal Palace. However the paintings were thick on the walls and the hallway was lit – strangely well – with moonlight shining through the grand windows. “This is our sister’s dream,” Luna explained. “Her only dream most nights.” Luna walked over to one of the paintings crowding the walls. It pictured a class of graduating students from Celestia’s own school, and the sign in front of them was dated fifty years ago. “As ponies age their dreams look more to the past,” Luna said as she tenderly dusted the picture’s frame. “For somepony as old as my sister, the dreams become monuments and museums.” “Then where’s the princess?” I asked as I searched. “Down there, toward the present.” Luna pointed to the better lit part of the hall. Turning to look, I quickly saw the aurora of Princess Celestia’s mane. Then I gasped when I realized where she was, she sat in front of a giant golden statue of Dinky. Luna spoke with scorn as I looked at the statue. “Even with this dream pressed for space to hold everything, that filly still commands the greatest share of attention.” “What do we do?” I asked. “Play the song from your memory.” Nodding, I reached up to the turntable on my back and pulled the needle down. The song played through the player’s small horn, but sounded almost as loud as it had been in the ballroom. Celestia’s ears pricked up. She turned to look down the hallway toward us and stood. Then, with a steady gentle gait, she started walking, eyes closed, ears twitching as the music played. When she reached us, I could hear her humming the tune, and a moment later she walked right past us. Luna leant down and whispered, “Let us follow.” With the record still playing on my back, we followed Princess Celestia as she took a literal walk down memory lane. Our gait remained steady. Celestia didn’t pause, but often looked at exhibits as we passed while she followed her ears. Though the song played from me, Celestia seemed to be following it back deeper and deeper into the past. Occasionally, I picked out depictions of history I’d learned during my schooling and of other events I’d learned of since. Occasionally we passed statues of ponies that had been important to Celestia in successive periods. Celestia’s gaze lingered a little longer than average on an ebony statue of an armour clad pegasus I didn’t recognise. Luna snorted as we passed, but didn’t volunteer any information on the subject. What did stymie Celestia was an event that seemed to be scarred into her memory. An entire section of the hall was dedicated to successive pictures on a single subject. They started with an image of the mare in the moon, then many more of a dark alicorn. I felt a splash of water against one of my legs. When I looked over my shoulder to investigate, I found Luna had turned away from me. Following images of a climactic battle, the images eventually led to one of Princess Luna with anger written on her face. The real Luna beside me kept her head turned away from that image. After another moment’s introspection, Celestia started moving again. Past images of a city made of crystal, and a statue of Discord locked in a dance. Several images followed of the chaotic tyrant, and one of a crystallized tree. Beyond those, the light in the museum dimmed and the pictures became sparser. The events here from an age barely remembered even by the Princess herself. Finally we arrived at a door. Celestia reached up and opened it, walking through the crack and disappearing inside. I nipped forward went through before it could close. The music stopped, and I found myself in what looked like an old cottage. The walls were made of rough stone and mud supported by timber that led up to a thatched roof. The room had two beds that were little more than sacks of straw with woollen blankets. Then somepony walked past me, a pink maned filly on the cusp of her teenage years. I noticed the ivory coloured wings first, and then when I saw her horn my jaw dropped. It was Celestia. The young alicorn pushed a tree stump over to one of the beds and sat on it. Under the blanket in a mess of sky-blue mane rested Luna, herself just a few years younger than her sister. “Hey, sis,” Luna murmured. “Can’t sleep?” Celestia asked. Luna chewed on her lip, which looked rather cute. “Scared?” Luna nodded. “Don’t worry. I’ll always be here for you.” “Always forever?” Luna squeaked. “Always and forever,” Celestia said as she pulled Luna into a hug. I brought a hoof to my mouth as I watched. “Sis,” Luna spoke up. “Can you sing my lullaby?” “Of course, little one,” Celestia said, and she started to hum. The sound bounced around my mind and I recognized it as the same song I’d played for her. After a minute or so, Luna fell asleep against Celestia’s chest and the older sister smiled before whispering, “Good night.” She laid Luna back against the bed and reached down give her a kiss on the horn. Then Luna’s eyes opened and looked toward me. A smile on her face, Luna winked at me before feigning sleep again. Suddenly the entire dream shook and Celestia reached up to touch her shoulder, just before everything fell apart.   I woke with a start. I was back in my bed, much as I was when I first pulled up the covers. My record player was just as I left it as well. Massaging my forehead I did my best to think about the dreams I’d experienced. Something, presumably Princess Luna, had woken Celestia up and booted me from the dream. There was a cry and thump from outside my bedroom door. Concerned, I got out of bed to check it out and went into my living room. Vinyl was lying on the floor in front of the couch she was supposed to be sleeping on, and she was very much awake. “Something wrong, Vinyl?” I asked. “Nothing,” Vinyl replied quickly. I crossed my hooves. “Bad dream?” “Freaking nightmare,” Vinyl said as she picked herself up. “I started out on a boat having tons of fun and stuff, and then suddenly these seaponies appear.” “Seaponies?” I asked. “Yeah, fins, fish tail, scales—” “Mermare,” I corrected. “What?” Vinyl asked blearily. “They were mermares,” I repeated. “Seaponies don’t have scales, but mermares do.” Vinyl rubbed at her face. “How do you know something like that?” “Heard it somewhere,” I said with a shrug. I wasn’t going to talk to her about our shared dream. “You were saying?” Vinyl continued, “Yeah well these mermares surrounded the boat and started singing this siren song to get us out into the water.” “Were they singing ‘shoo be do’?” Vinyl shook her head with a laugh. “Nah, worse. It was the Pony Pokey.”