Dreams About Friendship Are Magic

by Soft Story


Chapter 10

Prime Minister Gerald Windswept’s visit was the highlight of Twilight’s week. She spent an entire day with him, catching up with him and taking him out to see some of Canterlot. Princess Celestia spent the day alternating between paperwork from their previous day of court, and pacing about her bedroom doing her best to not worry about Twilight. Not only did she have the Prime Minister and his guards with her, but a full squad of unicorns would be trailing them. Spike did his best to keep her calm, but there wasn’t much that he could do. Paranoia was a difficult thing to quell.

Her constant worrying was for naught, though, as the day ended uneventfully. Twilight and Gerald returned to the palace in one piece, laughing about something they had seen out in the city with boisterous camaraderie. Twilight once again informed Spike and Celestia about how surprised she was at how easy it was to get along with the Prime Minister. Even just going off the events that Spike had told her about, she had managed to figure out exactly what sort of relationship they had and acted accordingly, without any suspicion from Gerald. Celestia happily pointed out that it was a sign that perhaps her memories were still buried in her mind, and she was drawing from them subconsciously. Twilight was hesitant to lean one way or the other about the state of her memories, but she hoped that Celestia was right.

The following morning Gerald and his group packed up and left, with Twilight promising that she’d introduce him to her parents to him the next time he was in Equestria. Her parents had unfortunately been busy the day before and couldn’t meet up with the Prime Minister. After a brief lunch, Twilight and Celestia held court for the rest of the afternoon. With the news of the Prime Minister’s visit having spread all around town the day before, most of the court session was spent discussing various aspects of their current agreements with the griffons. When they had time in-between cases Twilight started to explain the basics of her memory spell to Celestia, with a promise that after dinner she’d do a full write up of the spell.

As Celestia rose the sun on Twilight’s seventh day out of her coma, she read through the three pages of spell notes Twilight had produced the previous night. The spell itself was simple; it was the underlying principles that were hard for her to grasp. They were significantly different compared with the mental spells she was familiar with. Even with her many centuries of experience, it took her two days of studying and practicing to be confident enough about her skills to cast the spell on Twilight.

Just after sunset, the Princess mentally prepared herself to cast the spell. She sat on Twilight’s bed, looking into the eyes of her former student as she gathered her nerves. She didn’t want to mess up Twilight’s head because she was unfamiliar with the spell, or do something wrong in a panic and end up hurting her. The last thing Celestia wanted was for Twilight to enter another coma. “You’re sure I’m casting it properly?”

Twilight rolled her eyes, her impatience with Celestia showing. “Yes, for the thousandth time. It worked on Spike, and it’ll work on me. Now touch your horn to my head and cast the spell. Try focusing on a very strong memory to start with.”

Celestia was so hesitant to attempt the spell it was actually starting to make Twilight a bit upset. Twilight wanted to know if her proper memories were buried somewhere inside her head just as badly as Celestia. If they were, she’d be back to normal and all would be fine. She would be able to say with certainty that her dream was just that, a dream. If her memories were gone, not a single trace of them left, then it would be hard to say anything. The curse cast upon her could have destroyed her memories or she might really be from an alternate world, as unlikely as it was.

“Very well,” Celestia whispered as her horn gently pressed against Twilight’s mane. A blinding flash of light briefly came from the tip of the Princess’s horn, but nothing happened. There was no sudden memory rising to the surface for Twilight. Celestia closed her eyes and tried once more, focusing on a different memory, only to have the same result. Desperation seeping in, Celestia channeled more into the spell and rapidly began trying for anything at all that would stick, anything that would elicit a forgotten recollection. Several minutes passed. Nothing.

After a moment of silence, Twilight looked up at Celestia. The Princess was crying, silently. “It was a long shot,” Twilight said softly, grabbing her friend in a tight hug. Celestia simply wept into Twilight’s shoulder. “I’m okay, Celestia. I’ll make new memories and I’ll learn all about my past. Everything will be just fine.”

The Princess squeezed her tightly. “I’m so sorry, Twilight. I won’t let anything bad happen to you again. Ever.” Celestia held on to Twilight the entire night, even after they had both fallen asleep. While Twilight wasn’t surprised the spell failed to find any memories, she was a bit disappointed that that there wasn’t going to be an easy fix to her situation. As she snuggled with Celestia that night, her feelings of unease slowly melted away.

Twilight’s eyes snapped open and she stuffed her hoof in her mouth to prevent herself from calling out. In the two weeks since Celestia had tried to return her memories, she found herself dreaming of Ponyville and Princess Luna several times. This was her fifth time having the nightmare, and each time she awoke with a startled shout. At least she was getting better about silencing herself before she disturbed Spike.

The dream was mostly the same each time. She was lucid, aware that she was dreaming, and could freely explore Ponyville as she remembered it. Time seemed to have no meaning, but eventually she’d start to hear Princess Luna calling her name from the Everfree Forest. Twilight still refused to give in and venture out in search of Luna; she didn’t trust what would happen to her psyche if she did. The Princess of the Night would then exit the forest of her own volition and Twilight would wake up.

This time, Twilight had entered the library and just laid in her old bed. It felt like hours past with her just laying there, wondering why she was dreaming this same scenario, over and over again. When she finally got up and looked out the window, Luna was exiting the forest. And then she woke up.

Something large and soft brought Twilight’s attention back to the present, waking world. Celestia was climbing into her bed, levitating the sheets up as she slid in next to Twilight. “Another nightmare?” Twilight nodded. “You’re having them more and more.”

“They’re nothing,” Twilight whispered as Celestia pulled in her for a hug. “And once you’re here, they don’t bother me again.”

The Princess nuzzled Twilight’s neck lovingly, holding her close. They sat in silence for a minute while Celestia waited for Twilight to relax. “Then perhaps I should spend every night holding you so that you never have another nightmare.”

Twilight blushed, glad that Celestia couldn’t see her face while they were embracing. “Celestia, really; it’s not a big deal. Just a stupid nightmare.”

“I promised to protect you. If I have to protect you from bad dreams, I will do that too.” Celestia’s tone was the same one she used during court, and occasionally when she was teaching Twilight. It was the kind of tone that projected a feeling of finality. There was no negotiation. There was no hesitation. Celestia’s word was final. “Now let us relax and go back to sleep. The sun is not supposed to rise for a few more hours.”

“Are you going to let go of me?” Twilight asked. She was still being held tightly against Celestia.

“No.”

Twilight sighed and nuzzled against Celestia neck again. “Good night, Celestia.”

“Good night,” came the soft reply. It only took Twilight a few minutes to drift off to sleep. Celestia released her hold, but stayed snuggled up with Twilight. The tiny smile on Twilight’s face was enough to make Celestia’s heart pound. She had finally done it. After the first two times she had to comfort Twilight after a nightmare, she had wanted to spend every night in bed with the mare she loved, but she didn’t have the courage to do so. The continuing nightmares gave her the perfect opportunity.

She knew that by tomorrow Twilight would most likely forget their midnight conversation, or have dismissed what was said as an attempt to comfort her. But Celestia was going to try her luck and join Twilight in bed from the start. If it was too much for her, or if it made Twilight too uncomfortable, she would go back to her own bed. But for now she wanted to sleep next to Twilight. She wanted to feel Twilight’s warmth. She did also want to help stop the nightmares Twilight seemed to be having. The Princess slowly drifted off to sleep, a happy smile tugging at the corners of her mouth.

Celestia didn’t sleep long as her body woke up in time to start her morning ritual. She was reluctant to leave Twilight’s side, but with their plans to head to Ponyville today she knew throwing off her routine would mess up their schedule. She went through the morning on autopilot, her mind focused on Twilight. The past few weeks Twilight had fully embraced her new life, and talk of her memories had died down. In fact, ever since the Griffon Prime Minister visited, she had seemed much more like her old self.

But Twilight still wanted to go see Ponyville, and Celestia didn’t have a good reason as to why they shouldn’t go. Before she knew it, Celestia found herself standing next to Twilight and Spike as a chariot was pulled around for them. “I think it’ll be good to get out, I haven’t left the palace in over a week,” Twilight said to Spike, a smile on both their faces.

“No kidding. You nearly slept in your office the other night. That’s really not good for your back, you know.” Spike’s tone mimicked that of Twilight’s when she was lecturing him. They both giggled at the reversal of their usual roles, and how funny Spike sounded trying to sound like Twilight.

Four white pegasi pulled the chariot over to them, stopping right in front of Celestia. “All set, Your Highness.”

Celestia and Twilight climbed up into the chariot, with Twilight levitating Spike up between them. “Thank you. Depart for Ponyville, please,” Celestia commanded once they were settled. The four pegasi easily pulled the chariot up into the air, smoothly guiding it up to just under the cloud level for the city. The Princess’s gaze was drawn over to Twilight, who was peering over the edge of the chariot getting a good look of the city as they quickly passed over it.

After a few minutes of silence they cleared the city limits. The mountain dropped out from under them, leaving them much higher in the air. Ponyville quickly grew as they moved towards the small town. “It’s different,” Twilight said suddenly.

“What is?” Celestia asked, knowing she was talking about the town.

“Ponyville.” Twilight’s gaze didn’t break from looking out at their destination. “I can already tell the shape of everything is different than my memories. The streets are unfamiliar.”

Spike, who couldn’t see over the edge of the chariot, climbed up onto Twilight’s back so that he could see what she was seeing. “Well, you said it yourself. It was just a dream.” Celestia flinched on the inside, keeping her calm exterior. Spike was rather blunt about the whole situation.

Thankfully, Twilight wasn’t bothered by it. “I know, Spike. But still… I guess a part of me was expecting to find it exactly like how I remembered.”

“Well how about as we walk around, you can talk about what it was like in your dream. That way we get to know more about your dream and you get to know more about the real Ponyville!” Spike’s cheerful attitude was a bit infectious.

Celestia smiled warmly. “I would like to hear about it as well, if you feel comfortable.”

Finally Twilight looked away from the small town. She looked up at the Princess and nodded once. “I don’t mind. Maybe it’ll be good to talk about it again. I didn’t even come close to telling you two everything.” The chariot started to descend, heading for the center of town. Twilight looked out at the town once more. “The library where we lived should have been somewhere over there.” She pointed to the West side of town, where several streets of boring looking houses sat.

The guards brought the chariot down to the ground near the City Hall. Ponies all around stopped what they were doing and stared as Celestia and Twilight gracefully stepped down from the chariot. Celestia started to address the crowd, but Twilight wasn’t paying any attention. She was too busy looking around for any sign of something familiar. Town Hall itself was completely different. It was now a two-story, nondescript brick building with a large sign that read “Ponyville Town Hall” above the entrance.

What used to be a large marketplace North of City Hall was now a large grouping of buildings with store fronts. In fact, the part of town around the town hall felt more like a city than the small town vibe of the Ponyville in her memories. All of the buildings around were commercial in nature, with what appeared to be apartments in the upper floors.

Celestia, finished with her impromptu speech, leaned down and gently nuzzled Twilight to get her attention. “Are you okay?”

Twilight nearly jumped out of her skin, Spike clinging to her neck so he didn’t fall off her back. “Ah! Don’t do that.” She took a deep breath to relax. “I’m fine, I just didn’t expect it to be this different.”

“What? Town Hall?” Celestia asked, giving a look around.

Twilight nodded. “This whole area. In my dream, the town hall was a wooden structure, and this whole area was more open. There was a small marketplace with stands; none of these stores. It felt a lot more… More like a small village, and less like a city.” She looked up at the sun and got her bearings. “Let’s start going this way.” Twilight led Celestia down a street, looking around at all the various stores and homes.

Eventually Twilight stopped at an intersection in the road, looking around. “I think Sugarcube Corner would be somewhere around here. This area, anyway.”

“That was a bakery where one of your friends worked, right?” Spike asked. “Was the food good?”

Twilight smiled and nodded. “They had the best cake. You wouldn’t believe how perfect it was every time.” She started walking again, picking a direction at random. “The library where I lived would be up here a ways. Just on the edge of town.” Before she could continue with her thought, she came to a dead stop.

Spike tumbled off her back as he hadn’t been holding on at that moment. “Ow! What gives, Twi?” he murmured in slight pain, wincing as he clawed some dirt off of his face.

Celestia looked down at the Countess, and then followed her gaze to see what had caused her to stop. A simple looking store sat between two homes, the sign over the door bearing no text. It displayed a large quill and a large sofa. Twilight’s jaw slowly dropped. “What is it, Twilight?”

“That’s Quills and Sofas,” she stated simply. “I would have Spike go there to buy me quills.”

There was a moment of silence between the three of them as they all stared at the store. Spike finally spoke up. “That’s a really weird combination for a store. Only quills and sofas? How do they stay in business?” Just then a pair of unicorn mares came walking out of the store, each one levitating a sofa and a box of quills. “But… What?” Spike asked no one in particular.

“Yeah, in my dream he did pretty well. I never really questioned it, but apparently it was a solid business model,” Twilight commented softly, her gaze still locked onto the store.

Celestia cleared her throat after several moments of stunned quiet. “Well, perhaps we should go find somewhere for lunch?” When neither Spike or Twilight replied, she simply grabbed them with her magic and turned around. They had passed a few cafés on their walk. She would simply have to pick one if Twilight didn’t snap out of her current state.

In fact, Celestia not only picked a café, but ordered food for the three of them before Twilight returned to her senses with the arrival of a quaint, earthy soup. “But I dreamed up that store!”

“Yes, you did,” Celestia replied as she took a drink of the tea she had ordered. “You also dreamed about apple farms, and there are indeed apple farms nearby. Such a coincidence is not surprising.”

“But such a randomly specific thing!”

“Twilight, while I agree it is unusual, think of this: What if you had heard of this store before your dream? Such a strange detail that, while you might not have mentioned it to me or Spike, had perhaps been incorporated into your dream world? Just as myself, Spike, and your family were.” Celestia explained as calmly as possible, not wanting to draw a scene. Thankfully, most ponies in the area were giving them the space and privacy they wanted.

The Countess mulled that over before sighing heavily. “I guess that sounds plausible. It’s just such a weird detail to find here. I honestly expected to find nothing but vaguely similar buildings and maybe see a pony with a familiar color and cutie mark. But not anything like that.”

“So wait,” Spike interrupted. “Did the store itself look the same? Or was it just what they sold?”

“No, the store itself… Was different. You’re right, Spike. The idea of a store only selling quills and sofas was in my dream, but it didn’t look like that in my dream. In fact, it was in another part of town entirely!” Twilight’s stress seemed to vanish entirely as the pieces fell into place.

Sometime before her coma she had heard of the store; perhaps in one of her outings outside the palace. Spike could have been elsewhere or not paying attention at the time. The strange store, which Twilight knew she would shop at given the chance, stuck in her mind until she was cursed. It made sense and it fit in with the other things she had been considering.

The waiter arrived with the food Celestia had ordered, and Twilight decided to steer the conversation away. She brought up some of the cafés and restaurants she and Spike ate at in her dream, and other details she could remember about the town. Quills and Sofas slowly faded to the back of her mind.