//------------------------------// // As I Gazed Into the Air... // Story: The Little Foal That Wasn't There // by Lise //------------------------------// As I gazed into the air, I saw a mare that wasn't there. She wasn't there again today. Oh how I wish she'd go and stay... Twilight felt her head move forward on its own accord. Startled, she straightened up, eyes popping open. She was in the dining hall, a bowl of honey oats in front of her. Great. Dozing off again She yawned looking at her food in near disgust. Right this instant, she was too tired to even bother stirring it, let alone eat. “Is everything alright, Twilight?” A very concerned Spike approached. “I got this specially for you. I heard these oats are really really good...” “I'm just not hungry, Spike,” she yawned again, then pushed the bowl away. “Didn't sleep well last night.” “I noticed,” the dragon said, going to the fridge and taking out a large slice of watermelon. “I heard you at three, then again at five.” “Well, it's been one of those nights...” Lately I've been having a lot of those. Maybe I should tone things down a bit. Tonight I'll go to sleep right after sunset! “You've been having a lot of those lately,” the dragon placed the watermelon slice in front of her. Twilight to cringed. She really really didn't want to think about food right now. “Maybe you should, you know, go see a doctor or something?” “Spike, please,” the alicorn stood up, leaving the food untouched. “I'm fine. A quick stroll will make me feel all better. You, enjoy yourself.” “But...” Before the dragon could continue Twilight teleported herself outside. She wasn't in the mood for arguments. Not that she was upset, it was just the constant speaking that was getting on her nerves. Maybe I am a bit tired...she considered. And fatigue is a symptom of many conditions. No. I probably just need to reset my internal clock. I'm no filly anymore. Going to bed late and getting up early might be a bit too much. There always was an excuse for it. Last week, the map had sent her and Applejack halfway across Equestria to deal with a problem of some urgency. Before that, there was some business in Canterlot, then catching up with Moondancer. Oh, and she couldn't forget her visit to the Crystal Empire, it being Shining's birthday. Time sure flies by... Another yawn forced itself upon Twilight. Maybe she should just lie down somewhere and... “Careful there, girl!” a raspy voice managed to bring Twilight back to reality. “You don't want to swallow all the clouds.” “What?” Twilight shook her head violently, as if that would remove the sleepiness clinging to her. “Your mighty yawn,” a rainbow-maned pegasus flew down from the sky. “For a moment, I thought it would be the end of Ponyville.” She started laughing. “Very funny, Rainbow,” Twilight attempted to sigh, but the only thing she managed was yawn again. This time, she put a hoof in front of her mouth. What were we arguing about, again? “Wow,” Rainbow's laughter suddenly stopped, replaced by concern. “Seriously, Twi, you don't look so good. Maybe you should… you know.” “I'm fine!” Twilight snapped. “Seriously! What's with everypony! Just because I feel a little tired. You sleep all the time! Oh, and remember when Applejack...” “Hay, I do!” Rainbow ruffled her feathers. “I sleep when I want to! A hundred and ten percent full of energy, all the time!” “I know, Dash, I know,” Why am I having so much trouble keeping awake? Usually I'm ok by now. “Sorry. It was the snooze talking. I'm just a bit groggy...” “That's what I've been trying to tell you! You've been like that for months!” Months? That sounded a bit extreme. It certainly didn't feel that long. Nah, it was probably just Rainbow being silly. Although, maybe Twilight did need a little nap. There was nothing important to be done today, nothing that couldn't wait, at least. A few hours rest and everything would be fine. “You know, you're right,” Twilight said. “Maybe I should take better care of myself...” “Maybe?!” Rainbow Dash crossed her forehooves. “...which is why I'll go to get a nice nap in the park right now,” the alicorn finished. “Well, ok.” The pegasus wasn't convinced. Tilting her head slightly, she gave Twilight a warning look. “But I'll be watching you!” “Fiiine,” Twilight sighed. Seriously! I'm a princess now! I could take a nap without having somepony check on me! Less than twenty steps further exhaustion kicked in with a vengeance. Twilight didn't even make it to the park. Instead she lied on the first place that looked remotely sleepable, in this case a bench. For some reason it felt far more comfortable than she expected – surprisingly soft, fluffy even. Well something good was bound to happen today! she thought. Sadly, her luck was short lived. The moment she closed her eyes, she felt something tug her tail. Oh, for Celestia's sake! Her first reaction was to flap her tail. That had no effect. Gritting her teeth, Twilight tried to ignore it, in the hopes that whatever was doing this would go away. “Wake up,” a tiny voice said, after which Twilight's tail was pulled harder. “I want to play.” This is the last straw! Twilight turned around furiously. Still holding her tail in its mouth, was a young unicorn foal, no more than five years of age. Seeing her reaction, it quickly let go, a smile beaming on its face. “You woke up!” the foal said with such joy that Twilight's anger instantly evaporated. “You woke up!You woke up!” it kept repeating, as it hopped about happily. “So it seems,” the alicorn couldn't help but chuckle. You're lucky you are cute, you rascal. That's certainly not the way to wake up ponies. “And you seem overly energetic. Do you always wake up ponies like that when you want to play?” The question caused the foal to look at the ground, ashamed. It was obvious he knew it was wrong, but had done it nonetheless. His parents definitely needed to do a better job if they didn't want him to grow up a spoilt brat. Come to think of it, where were his parents? They certainly were nowhere to be seen. If the foal was any indication, they had to be unicorns. “Where are your parents, little one?” Twilight asked. White fur, lilac curly mane, she observed. A bit like Rarity. No, no way there could be a relation! Rarity would have mentioned if she had a younger brother. Then again, she didn't tell me about Sweetie Bell, until she came to visit. “Do they know you are here?” “Uh?” the foal looked at her in surprise. A sudden feeling of sadness overcame Twilight. What's going on? she blinked. Why do I feel like crying? Everything should be alright… Everything... Tears slowly trickled down her cheek, accompanied with a deep feeling of loss. “Err...” The foal made a step back “I'll go look for dad,” it said then ran away. “Wait!” Twilight shouted, bursting in tears “Don't go! Don't you...” “Twilight!” a yell came from above. It was Rainbow Dash. “What's going on?” Before Twilight could answer, the pegasus picked her up from the ground and started shaking her intensely. This was beyond weird, yet the only thing the alicorn could think about was Why do I have dirt in my wings? “What happened? Why are you crying?” Rainbow sounded unusually worried. “I have no idea.” Twilight brushed away the tears from her eyes. The sadness had gone, just as abruptly as it had come. Right now she only felt stupid. “You can let me go, now.” “Oh, right,” Rainbow smiled sheepishly and released her grip. “So what was that about?” “Probably a side effect from...” she paused. If I admit that I haven't been sleeping properly, I'll never hear the end of it. “From my lack of sleep yesterday night,” she quickly added, narrowing her eyes preemptively. “Sorry for the fright.” “Nah, no biggie,” Rainbow waved a hoof. “If I don't keep an eye on you, egghead, who will?” “Uh-huh,” Twilight crossed her forehooves. “Anyway, thanks for your help and all, but I really must be getting back to the castle.” A wave of Dash witticisms quickly changed Twilight's mind. She might not have been able to get a nap, but she did feel much better. Obviously things weren't as alarming as everypony made them out to be. The remainder of the day was spent about Ponyville, something she rarely had a chance to do. Lunch at Sugarcube Corner together with her friends was always a treat. Pinkie Pie had perfected a new cake recipe she was all too eager to test, and while such events occasionally ended with a burned tongue, today's experiment was quite the success. For one thing, Twilight would never have thought of combining sugar hay with sour cream and rock salt. There might have been other ingredients as well, but valuing her sanity, Twilight hadn't inquired. The lunch was followed by a nice relaxing massage at the Spa, and lots of lots of gossip. Rarity certainly was in her element. Becoming a rising star in the fashion world hadn't slowed down her ability to hear things. In that regard she was second only to Pinkie, and far more understandable. Twilight couldn't follow a fifth of the things discussed, but enjoyed it nonetheless. "That certainly was relaxing," she stretched her wings, once outside the Spa. "Maybe I should come here more often." "You really should, darling," Rarity caught up to her. "With all the things I've been hearing about you, you must come here three times a week at least! And don't feel ashamed if you fall asleep during a massage. Aloe found it quite the compliment." Twilight blushed slightly. That part wasn't planned, although it had done her a world of good, even if it only lasted half an hour. "Well I suppose..." She stopped mid sentence. "It was Spike, wasn't it?" Her eyes narrowed. "What has been telling you about me? Oh, when I get back home..." "Twilight, please! A lady, and princess, doesn't think ill of her friends. Besides, Spikey-Wikey isn't to blame. He's worried about you, as are we all." "I know," Twilight sighed heavily. "It's just, you know how he tends to exaggerate! He's really blowing this out of proportion." "Darling, and I ask this with all my love, have you even seen yourself lately? More often than not, you have been walking around half asleep. Once you even dozed off while I was taking measurements for your new dress. That, and going to bed at one in the morning, is by no means healthy for you or your appearance." Twilight remained quiet. She couldn't dismiss Rarity's claims as easily as she had Spike's and Rainbow's. For one thing the unicorn was a workaholic, used to spend nights on end slaving over her latest fashion designs. If a pony like that said Twilight wasn't getting enough sleep, it had to be true... to some degree. "Very well," Twilight said begrudgingly. "I will put some effort in restoring my sleep pattern." "And?" "And I will not get mad at Spike when he worries about me," she grumbled. "Regardless if he overreacts or not." "There." Rarity smiled. "Doesn't that feel a lot better?" "Not really," Twilight whispered under her breath. At times, you really act as if I'm just a big baby! Although... "Err, Rarity?" The unicorn turned her head, looking at Twilight expectantly. "Do you have any other siblings, or cousins, or such visiting Ponyville at the moment?" "Siblings? Cousins?" Rarity blinked, surprised. "Are you sure you are feeling alright, darling? Maybe things were even worse than Spikey-Wikey described." "No, it's fine, really!" The last thing I need now is for Rarity to start thinking there is something wrong with me! "I just saw a new foal in the park this morning, and thought he might be related to you in some way. He was a white unicorn with a slightly curly violet mane, so I thought I saw a resemblance." "Oh," the unicorn relaxed a bit. So did Twilight. "Well, I can't say that there are. Not to my knowledge. He might possibly be some distant cousin, but I'll have to check to be sure." "No, no mater," the alicorn shook her head. "It's not important. I just found it curious. And anyway I think it's time I went to bed. As you said - more sleep, better fur." That wasn't remotely what Rarity had said, but the unicorn nodded. Obviously it was close enough. Must go to bed early tonight, Twilight thought. No more walking about the castle, no more reading books. Although, I might just finish another chapter on Zebra culture. Oh, and I need to send a letter to Princess Celestia. Apart from that, I'll go straight to bed! The evening unfolded pretty much as Twilight had envisioned it. She started by writing a letter to Princess Celestia, omitting certain details, like her sleep problem. Then came a bit of light reading - no more than three chapters. It was supposed to be one, originally, but Zebra culture was so fascinating, that Twilight couldn't tear herself away from the book. Following that - a quick bite, an even quicker shower and off to bed she went. Nothing to it! It's not even ten. Tomorrow I'll rise fresh as new!