//------------------------------// // Chapter 19 // Story: Dreams About Friendship Are Magic // by Soft Story //------------------------------// Not that she would ever admit it, but there was one thing that really got on Twilight’s nerves more than most things: Not being able to run a test she had designed. For the past two months she had gone about her usually routine as Countess of Canterlot, ready to run several spells and tests the next time one of her friends appeared before her. Yet since the night she started to plan out her tests, she hadn’t had a single sighting of any pony she knew from her dream. Two months of her checking around every corner as she walked the halls of the palace. Two months of her going out of her way to speak with every single pony she encountered just to be sure they weren’t from her dream. Two months of dodging Celestia and Spike’s questions about her odd behavior and why she had learned a spell to instantly summon a pre-prepared collection of potions from anywhere in the palace. Yet she was determined to catch her hallucinations and prove them to be only in her mind. To add to her list of things that were not going the way she wanted them to, was the fact that Bronze Spear had reported nothing of interest to either his investigation into the groups that conspired against her or the smuggler Bolt’s story. Gerald had sent a letter that they were able to find some information about the pony the smuggler was delivering to, but that the pony was long gone by the time they received the information. Without any evidence from Equestria to back up his story, Bolt was convicted of smuggling illegal substances and sentenced to five years in a labor prison. And of course, Celestia had added one more item to Twilight’s plate as well. Last month, she had taken Twilight out for a fancy dinner on the day of her three month “Waking Up From A Coma” anniversary. Tomorrow would be her fourth anniversary and they were once more going out to a very fancy dinner in Manehatten (at Celestia’s insistence). Twilight stood in her bedroom surrounded by various dresses and outfits that were all custom made for her. She was supposed to be picking one to pack and wear tomorrow, but she was having a hard time deciding. The fact that she laying in bed trying to finish up the last chapter of a particularly good mystery novel was adding to her inability to focus on picking a dress. “Really, darling, I can’t even begin to imagine what sort of uncultured excuse for a dressmaker designed this.” Twilight glanced up from her book to look at Rarity as she held up a pale blue dress. “It’s completely the wrong shade to go with your colors.” Twilight’s attention instantly returned to the book. “Yeah, I guess,” she said noncommittally, once again being absorbed by the dramatic reveal of the mystery. Rarity sighed at the lack of response from her Twilight, gently setting the attire back into its previous position. Squinting her eyes and rubbing a hoof underneath her chin, she decided to devise a way to capture the bookworm’s attention. A sly grin appeared on her face. “Really, Twilight. Picking a dress is much more important that some silly old book.” It worked exactly as she hoped. Twilight looked up, launching into a defense of her book. “What?! Rarity, this book is great! The mystery is just complex enough that it leaves the reader wondering what clues might turn up next. I know it might…” She trailed off from her lecture as she realized that she was currently talking to a very smug-looking Rarity. “Now that I have your attention, let’s talk about your outfit.” Rarity grabbed up three dresses with her magic. “Now, I know you normally want a more simple look, but I want you—” “Rarity!” Twilight magically threw the book up into the air as she jumped up onto her hooves. She leapt off the bed, landing inches from Rarity’s face. “Rarity, you’re here!” To her credit, Rarity barely flinched as Twilight invaded her personal space, though she did raise a brow at the energy in her friend’s declaration. “Um, yes I am? Are you feeling okay, darling?” Remember her tests, Twilight’s horn quickly started to go. “Sorry! Rarity, I need you to hold still for a minute.” Twilight closed her eyes and quickly cast a multitude of spells crafted specifically to detect living creatures. After a moment the arcane cocktail confirmed that there indeed was one other living creature in the room with her. She opened her eyes and looked around to confirm that she was alone with Rarity. “Twilight?” Rarity asked, tilting her head in worry as a single strand of hair sprung out of Twilight’s mane. “Do you mind telling me what’s wrong?” “You’re real?” Twilight muttered. Ignoring Rarity, she cast her summoning spell to bring a flask of a specially-made potion to her. She popped the cork off and took a quick sip. In less than five seconds, Twilight’s head started to spin. Her fashionable friend could only stare in perplexed wonder. It lasted a few moments, but once it was cleared any hallucinations Twilight might have been having should have been cleared. Rarity was still there looking at her with grave concern. Cautiously, she took a step backwards, slowly as if her speed determined its visibility. “Twilight, what’s going on?” “But… you’re just a hallucination,” Twilight murmured to herself. Her eyes were frozen in a thousand-yard stare, and the strength in her hind legs left her. Roughly, she sat down on her haunches. “T-the spells shouldn’t have detected you!” Twilight stammered. She shook her head, rubbing her temple with a hoof. “Did the spells potentially misfire? Maybe I cast it incorrectly...” Rarity placed a hoof on her friend’s back, gently rubbing circles into her coat. She was surprised at the tension she was feeling. “Take a deep breath, darling, and tell me what’s wrong.” The Countess did just that. A few deep breaths later and her crazed expression had diminished. Slightly. “You aren’t real, Rarity. You and the other girls were just part of a dream I experienced when I was in a coma.” “Well I can assure you, Twilight; I am quite real,” Rarity replied, still rubbing Twilight’s back reassuringly. “I mean, I’m here and I’m talking with you, right?” Twilight nodded. “You are, and the spells I cast confirmed that you are real… But you can’t be real.” Frantically, but not unkindly, she shrugged away Rarity’s hoof. “You shouldn’t be real! You don’t exist. I never moved to Ponyville, we aren’t the bearers to the Elements of Harmony, and you aren’t real.” “Are you sure of that? I recall all of that happening. And you remember all of that happening, as well,” Rarity started to reason. She was cut off by Twilight. “It’s not true! It was just a dream! This is the world that is real. It has to be. Don’t try to… to confuse me on this!” With a sudden stand, the Countess began pacing around the room. “I just need to figure out why you and my other friends keep appearing. Then I can make it stop.” Twilight’s posture got rigid and she glared slightly at her friend. Rarity sighed in defeat. “Very well. I know how you can get when your mind is set on something. Shall we talk fashion then?” “Don’t try to change the subject. You’re just trying to distract me from the issue at hoof.” Twilight quickly walked over to Rarity and gave her a look over. “There has to be something that proves you’re just a horrible hallucination. Some missing detail or something.” Rarity sat still as Twilight slowly walked around her, examining her closely. “Twilight, if I were your hallucination, then wouldn’t I appear exactly as how you think I should appear? After all, the hallucination would draw from your knowledge of how Rarity looks, right?” There was an awkward silence as Twilight mulled over that idea. “You make a good point. But if you were a hallucination, then you might just be saying that to prevent me from figuring out you’re a hallucination!” There was another awkward silence as Rarity simply raised an eyebrow at Twilight, giving her an incredulous look. Twilight sighed and her posture relaxed a little. “Yeah, that was a little too paranoid even for me.” “But really, Twilight, it doesn’t matter if I am a hallucination or not. I’m your friend, I’m here for you, and it seems you’re having a hard time picking out formal wear. I say we make good of the time we have together, no?” Rarity offered with a friendly smile. Twilight wanted to object, but seeing as all her tests failed, pointing to the fact that Rarity was indeed really there with her, she decided that for now she’d just give in. Once she had some free time, she would reevaluate her testing methods and try to come up with a few new spells to run. “Very well, Rarity. I do need help picking a dress.” “Fabulous! Now what is the occasion? Something formal, judging by the selection you have here.” Rarity walked over to the pile of formal dresses, using her magic to hold some of them up. “Yes, Celestia is taking me out on a date as a celebration—” “A date! With Celestia! My goodness!” Rarity exclaimed loudly, hearts appearing in her eyes. “Oh, you simply must entrance me with all the details about your relationship.” Twilight winced at Rarity’s enthusiasm. “There’s not much to say. Celestia loves me, she’s taken me out on some dates, and we’re just sort of… Together.” Rarity swooned a little. “Yes, but dating the Princess! Our Celestia was always so closed off about her personal life, and most ponies just assumed she had no need for a suitor.” “I know,” Twilight replied. “But the real Celestia is much more… like a regular pony, I guess.” Rarity’s horn lit up and she grabbed the three dresses she felt would look best on Twilight. “Now then, these two are both very formal. The last one would be better for a slightly less formal meeting, so we can exclude it from our choices. You have to look absolutely amazing for the Princess.” One of the dresses floated away and was set down. Twilight examined the two in front of her. “I like the one on the right more.” Rarity smiled. “Exactly what I was thinking.” She put away the rejected dress and, with a simple spell, quickly dressed Twilight in the once she chose. After a minute of making sure it fit right on her, Rarity stepped back. “There! You look amazing!” “Oh wow,” Twilight said softly as she turned to face a nearby mirror. “This is perfect! Celestia will love this.” “Of course she will. You look stunning. Now then, darling, you need to make sure that before you go out you do your hair up properly.” Rarity used her magic to simulate an effect on Twilight’s hair. “Something like this would look best. A bit of curl, lots of sheen.” A knock at the door interrupted Rarity. “Lady Sparkle! A message has been delivered for you.” Twilight walked over and opened the door. A maid with a bundle of scrolls was waiting on the other side. “Oh, thank you very much.” She levitated the scrolls into the room and closed the door. “Sorry Rarity, this might be something import—” When there was no answer, Twilight looked around the room. Rarity was nowhere in sight. “Rarity?” The alabaster mare was nowhere in sight, and all the dresses were laying where Twilight had originally left them. When she caught a look at herself in the mirror, she was no longer wearing her dress and her hair was back to normal. It was as if the entire encounter with Rarity hadn’t happened. The scrolls fell to the floor as her magical grip on them suddenly vanished. Twilight walked around the room, searching for any sign that her friend had been there. She had been so sure her friends were simply hallucinations, brought on by the fact that her life had completely flipped on its head due to the difference between her dream world and the real world. But both Pinkie and Rarity had seemed so real. Twilight could still remember the warmth of Rarity’s hoof on her back and the slight twinge when Rarity’s magic slipped the dress over her body. Her spells had said Rarity was real and her potion didn’t clear away the hallucinations as it was designed to do. After several minutes of pacing about the room trying to decide if the encounter was real or not, Twilight remembered the scrolls that had been delivered to her. She turned and reached out with her magic to pick them back up, but they were nowhere to be found. “Hold still, darling. I can’t take the dress off of you if you keep walking around,” Rarity commented, with a bit of an attitude to her voice. Twilight screamed and jumped as Rarity was suddenly standing next to her once more. Startled by the sudden outburst, Rarity quickly backed up, away from Twilight. “Rarity! But, what happened? You were just gone!” “Gone? Twilight; I’ve been here the whole time.” “No, I went to open the door when the maid knocked on it, and when I turned back around you were gone!” Twilight rushed over to Rarity. “Where did you go? You are just a hallucination, aren’t you!” Rarity kept backing up until her rump was pressed against the wall, yet her face remained passive. “Honestly, Twilight: we’ve been alone this entire time. You put on the dress, I quickly did your mane, and you started walking around to get a feel for it. I haven’t gone anywhere!” Twilight’s eyes seemed to lose their focus on Rarity as she started to pace around the room, giving Rarity her personal space back. The Countess started muttering to herself, weighing in the different options of if Rarity was real or a hallucination. If Rarity was real... it would mean that her world was fake. Her title as Countess was fake. Her relationship with Celestia was fake. “No! It... it couldn’t be,” Twilight whispered to herself. She was suddenly shaking, and she leaned against a dresser for support. Her world... it was real, wasn’t it? The life she was living; it couldn’t be a dream. If it was... she didn’t want to think that. Abruptly, the world around Twilight went dark and she slumped over. She tried to move her legs and get back up, but found that she couldn’t. One by one, her senses winked out until she was utterly numb. And then, a warmth started to encompass Twilight as a bright white light appeared in the void around her. Twilight opened her eyes to find herself being held tightly by Celestia. The Princess was cuddling her like a young filly cuddled a doll, and sweet nothings were being murmured into the Countess’ ear. “Don’t worry, Twilight. I’m here.” “Tia?” “You fell asleep reading your book and had a nightmare. I’m here now. Nothing will hurt you.” Celestia leaned down and kissed Twilight on her forehead. She almost didn’t notice the golden glow still surrounding Celestia’s horn. “I’m going to protect you.” Feeling safe against her marefriend, Twilight closed her eyes and started to drift off to sleep. Not once did her mind think back to Rarity’s visit, the scrolls, or the failed spells and experiments. All that mattered was that Celestia was there for her.