“Are you real?”
Noctilucent looked at Princess Luna, who stood at his bedside. He was terrified that he was still dreaming. He was having trouble remembering exactly what he had been dreaming, as it was already beginning to fade, but he remembered enough to know that he was scared. He remembered one thing all too well.
“I am real enough,” Princess Luna admitted, pressing her lips to Noctilucent and kissing him as a flood of ponies were rushing into his room.
“What happened?” Cactus Blossom demanded, looking around sightlessly.
“I do not know what happened,” Princess Luna confessed.
“Are the foals safe?” Holly asked. As a unicorn, she had felt an awful disturbance without understanding what it was.
“Everypony is safe,” Princess Luna reassured.
“Noctilucent, talk to me,” Cactus begged.
“I’m alright, I think,” Noctilucent muttered.
Princess Luna leaned over the pegasus in his bed. “Sleep,” she commanded in a low whisper. “Do not dream.” Noctilucent’s body jerked from magical compulsion and he was asleep in seconds.
Even now, a part of Princess Luna prowled in the pegasus’ mind, looking for answers, as the other part of her stood watch over his bed.
“Cactus Blossom,” Princess Luna remarked. “There is something new about you.” Princess Luna pulled Cactus Blossom close. “You have a cutie mark. It is a little stuffed pony version of you. When you dream next, you will be able to see it. I do believe your gift is comforting other ponies. When Noctilucent came to you, you comforted him, did you not? Do you know what might have happened if you did not comfort him?”
Cactus Blossom trembled, afraid to answer.
“The part of him that makes him Noctilucent may have been lost to us forever. I took a big risk sending him to you. The shock was quite damaging to his mind. You held on the very thing that makes Noctilucent who he is, the pony that we care about. Thank you for keeping him safe and preserving him. You have a very important cutie mark,” Princess Luna said, pulling the filly foal close.
Cactus Blossom wished that she could see the smaller version of herself as a stuffed pony on her backside.
“You have button eyes,” Princess Luna said to Cactus Blossom, who smiled weakly at the news.
“Is he going to be alright?” Holly asked.
“Yes and no,” Princess Luna answered honestly. “He might be remarkly foal-like for a while. I think. Hard to say. I am still not sure what happened. He will be fragile, but I know that all of you will look after him.”
“Of course we will,” Holly replied. “I don’t understand what happened. He came home so happy.”
“Came home?” Princess Luna asked.
“He went on a little date with Quirky,” Holly explained.
“So he is playing with fire?” Princess Luna replied.
Holly smiled in spite of the dark situation. “He had a nice time with Quirky. Came home with a runny nose because that silly mare tricked him into eating habanero picante. He was happy,” Holly explained.
“So Quirky found a way to burn him, hmmm. And you say he came home happy? This is all so very odd,” Princess Luna muttered.
“You foals need to get back to bed. I know you’re worried, but you need your sleep,” Holly commanded.
“Go on, listen to Holly, I’ll be here watching over you all for a while,” Princess Luna added.
Far away in Canterlot.
Princess Luna stood amidst a room full of her most trusted guard, the fierce lunar pegasi, and the assembled guard all around her were the ones with “The Gift,” rare types who could enter dreams using their shadow magic. The lunar pegasi all seemed disturbed, agitated, and upset.
“I want to know what in Tartarus that thing was,” Princess Luna barked. “Some kind of doppelganger. I have never seen anything like it before. It was dangerous and just about mindwiped one of my subjects. I want it found. I had to banish it from Noctilucent’s mind. I could not find a way to kill it. It is out there right now, free floating through the dreamscape, a mere fraction of what it once was, and I want it found!”
“I am not sure we should try to kill it,” Lethe said.
Princess Luna looked the lunar pegasus addressing her in the eye.
“Well, it stands to reason that it might be an actual part of Noctilucent’s mind. Maybe not a good part, but we need to know more about what it is. It sounds like a schism. A fragment. A break. Something that snapped off when it could no longer manifest and drive Noctilucent towards destructive behaviours,” Lethe explained. “A schizoid break. Think about Noctilucent’s life up to this point. Solitary lifestyle, his secretive and avoidant behaviour, lack of emotions and warmth, and his total apathy which led to his suicidal behaviour. He is the textbook definition of ‘aloof’ and I’ve thought about adding his photo to the textbook I am writing. He had no connection at all to his fellow equines and a complete lack of the ability to see how his behaviour might impact those around him. And then this behaviour is no longer allowed to manifest and continue to bring about self harm. Perhaps part of his mind broke off and manifested in the dream realm. We need to study this.”
Lethe was an exceptionally well trained psychologist and one of Princess Luna’s most trusted advisors. The mare was old, canny, and seldom wrong. Her cutie mark was a Psi, the symbol of psychology.
“Anyway, I am announcing my retirement,” Lethe said.
“No, I need you, you can retire when you die,” Princess Luna retorted.
“No, I am old, it is time for me to retire, I think I will rest my bones in Mustang Springs for a while. I hear the medicated hot springs are nice,” Lethe said pointedly.
Princess Luna narrowed her eyes and stared at Lethe. “Perhaps I was mistaken. Get out of here you batty old mare, at your age, you are practically useless,” Princess Luna snarked.
The old mare nodded. “I know when I am not needed, I’ll show myself out, you heartless old nag!” Lethe became somewhat transparent, a shadow of her former self, and then vanished completely, disappearing from the room, having dove into shadow and traveled along unseen planes, the thin shadowy places in between reality.
Other lunar pegasi were already studying Luna’s memories, sprawled on cushions, lost within the dreaming realms, looking for answers or details that Luna might have missed.
Princess Luna began to disperse more of herself into the dream realm, and poured more of her will into the version of her standing watch at Noctilucent’s bedside. If something came back, she wanted to be prepared.
Noctilucent wandered around in a slight daze, having awoke just before dawn. Princess Luna followed him around the building, worried, acting more like a mother hen than anything else. His mood had improved considerably when Shortbread Cookie had been slung around his neck, the foal having a calming effect on the troubled pegasus.
Both Holly and Princess Luna hoped that Quirky would have a positive effect when she stopped by for a feeding.
The foal fussed, hungry and knowing something was wrong with her caretaker, she squealed and cried a bit.
Graves, something of an early riser, had awoken first, as he usually did, and sat in the common room watching Noctilucent, looking worried. He occasionally watched Holly in the kitchen, who was fixing breakfast.
“You pulled him out of his own mind?” Graves asked suddenly.
“I had to,” Princess Luna replied, turning to look at Graves. “I had no other choice. I was faced with an impossible decision and I had to remove him to keep him safe.”
“I wish I understood more about what happened,” Graves muttered in dour tones. “This is difficult for me to comprehend.’’
“Graves, given time and maturity, you could be one of the few who would really have a solid grasp on what has taken place. You have a fine mind. Continue to develop it,” Princess Luna said to the donkey foal.
There was a soft rapping from the front door.
“Quirky,” Graves said, trotting off to the front door to get it and let her in.
Only it wasn’t Quirky.
“Hello Graves, you absurdly cheerful little extravert. Is the antisocial alicorn with a maternal fixation and photophobia here?”
“Princess Luna, I think it is for you,” Graves said, a faint smile on his lips.
“Lethe, how could you,” Princess Luna protested as the lunar pegasi came down the steps. “I have been a lot better about my fear of the light,” the alicorn pouted, her lip protruding.
“Noctilucent,” Lethe said in greeting to the pegasus. “I am Lethe. I just retired. I am planning on doing a bit of volunteering around here.”
“Wonderful,” Holly cried from the kitchen. “Help is always appreciated. How have you been Lethe?”
“Well, after so many years of faithful service, I was callously sacked,” Lethe replied, moving her large body through the kitchen door and looking for the coffee maker.
“I did not sack you, you retired,” Princess Luna argued into the kitchen.
“You called me ‘batty’ you obsessive compulsive control freak,” Lethe retorted from the kitchen.
Graves began to chortle.
“Very rude, calling a lunar pegasi a ‘bat pony’ or other bat-isms. You don’t call solar pegasi ‘bird pony’ or any other silly names like that,” Lethe continued her protest.
“Yeah,” Noctilucent muttered, sounding slightly dazed. “I am not a bird pony,” he agreed.
The smell of coffee began to drift out of the kitchen and slapped Noctilucent in the face. He seemed to perk up a little more. “I feel very confused right now,” he muttered.
“Be at ease, Noctilucent,” Princess Luna soothed. “You are safe, and I will not leave your side until such a time that you are calm again and feel safe.”
“What if that never happens?” Noctilucent asked, wide eyed and worried. “I feel like I will never feel safe again. I don’t remember much, but do remember one thing in particular…” his voice trailed off and fear made his eyes glassy.
“If I have to spend the rest of your life at your side, than I shall do so, as awkward as that might be. I have vowed to keep you safe, and I will do so,” Princess Luna promised.
There was another knock at the front door.
“That had better be Quirky,” Graves said, heading up the steps.
“Graves, you are supposed to smile when you answer the door,” Quirky said, her voice drifting down the stairs.
“I am smiling,” Graves replied, heading back down the stairs, shaking his head as he went.
“I smell coffee,” Quirky quipped. “And I see my pegasus friend. Why so glum?” she asked, looking worried. “Princess Luna,” Quirky acknowledged, bowing her head slightly.
“Quercus? How is Shady?” Lethe called from inside the kitchen.
“He’s getting better. Each day he makes a little more progress,” Quirky replied, heading over to Noctilucent. When she reached him, she leaned in and gave Shortbread Cookie a smooch.
“Noctilucent had a rough night,” Princess Luna explained. “A very troubling dream. Well, more than actually,” she added, remembering Quirky’s need for honesty.
“Aw, poor thing, I hope I didn’t cause it,” Quirky said, looking sad.
“No,” Noctilucent replied. “Shortbread is hungry,” he added, changing the subject.
“I know,” Quirky said, wrapping the foal in a bright orange aura and pulling it free from the sling. She trotted off to the other side of the room, settled herself on a pile of cushions in the corner, and placed the foal in a position to nurse.
Arroyo peeked out from the stairs, looked around the room, and then headed for the kitchen, waving briefly at Princess Luna as he passed. He yawned as he went through the kitchen door. He sat himself down at the kitchen table and waited.
“What’s for breakfast?” Arroyo asked.
“Pancakes with agave syrup,” Holly replied.
“I hope Cactus doesn’t drink the syrup again,” Arroyo mumbled.
“Cactus Blossom drank syrup?” Lethe said, her voice full of real fear.
“Yeah,” Arroyo replied.
“She must have been unbearable,” Lethe said, recoiling in horror.
“You have no idea,” Holly replied.
“Cactus got her cutie mark last night,” Arroyo said with a yawn. “It is a little stuffed pony version of herself. She saved Nighty Night.”
“Fascinating,” Lethe replied, getting a cup of coffee, using her grasping digit that extended from her central wing knuckle to hold the pot. Once poured, she grabbed her coffee and sat down at the table with Arroyo.
Sassafras was the next one up the stairs, her eyes nearly closed, she marched sleepily through the room, paying no attention to anypony or anydonkey as she passed. She headed right for the kitchen table, sat down, and rested her head on the table, saying nothing.
“You are not an earlybird,” Lethe chuckled at the young griffon.
Sassafras did not reply.
“Noctilucent, get in here and get some coffee,” Lethe bellowed.
The troubled pegasus did as he was bid, heading into the kitchen and sitting down at the table, Holly floating a cup of coffee over to him. He stared down at the mud in his cup, eyeing it warily.
“This isn’t coffee,” he announced.
“Yeah it is. I fill up the whole little basket thingy, rather than use a couple of scoops,” Lethe explained.
“Uh,” the pegasus protested.
“Shut up and drink your coffee,” Lethe growled in annoyance.
Noctilucent took a sip and immediately shuddered, his whole body contorting from the taste of the thick brown sludge. “Uuuuglaaauuuh!” he muttered, his tongue lolling out.
“See, it is good for you,” Lethe said, taking a drink of her own cup. “You can trust me, I’m a doctor. I have a vow to do no harm.”
“What would happen if Cactus Blossom drank this?” Noctilucent gasped, each one of his eyes now blinking out of synch. His ears vibrated.
“Never speak of such things,” Lethe commanded. “Nightmarish!”
Biscuit emerged from the stairs next, his face damp from being washed, and he ran, not to the kitchen, but to Princess Luna, and began to squeeze her leg. She pulled the foal close and returned his affection, and kissed him on top of his head.
Candy Corn appeared next, Cactus Blossom trailing along behind her. Candy yawned a greeting to the foal snuggling alicorn and headed off to the kitchen, Cactus on her heels.
“Go get breakfast,” Princess Luna said to Biscuit, gently prodding at his backside with a wing. Biscuit resisted for a moment, looked to the kitchen, looked at Princess Luna, and then took off reluctantly. “Quirky, join us when you are done,” Princess Luna invited.
“I plan to,” Quirky replied. “I need to cheer up my pegasus friend.”