Chapter 5 - Out of the Shadows
Twilight was in the entrance hall of Canterlot Castle again, but a few things had changed. The moon was still high in the sky, and both the doors to the princess’ chambers were still locked, but that was all that remained the same. The statues were gone except for those of Princess Celestia and Princess Luna at the far end of the hall. The hall was filled with torches that cast a warm golden glow over the whole of the chamber and left very few shadows. The way back not only was closed and locked but no amount of force – physical or magical – could open it or break it open.
Why can’t I leave? Is there something I’m missing? A secret passageway?
“Nothing is secret to you, Twilight Sparkle,” a voice came, calm and gentle.
Twilight whirled around and ran through the hall, looking for the source of the voice, the male’s voice she had been hearing and not wanting to see its source. Twilight’s heart beat faster and faster. She could feel sweat pouring down her forehead. Her ears flicked back and forth, listening for signs of the stallion. But nothing came.
“Do you remember what I told you the last time we spoke?”
That I would see you on Nightmare Night.
“And so, I intend to make my promise good. You are probably wondering why the torches are all lit in this hall. Let me explain: I also said that you were not able to see me because you were not focusing on me, but on using Canterlot Castle’s passageways to escape from me. Tonight, however, things will change. With the lights on and the torches lit, Canterlot Castle will be second nature to you, walking its halls just another thing you’ve done in the past and can remember without focus.”
…who are you? I want to know who you are before you reveal yourself to me.
“I would rather have this conversation face to face. Don’t worry; I wish on you no harm.”
Twilight heard the sound of a door unlocking and found that the doorway to Princess Luna’s chambers was cracked open. The inside of the hall was lit by torches much like the hall was, but the glow was dimmer and warmer, inviting Twilight almost like the soft glow of her bedside lamp when she was reading late at night.
“Walk through, Twilight, and come to the chambers. I’ll be waiting for you there.”
Twilight at first was unsure. However, there was nothing else she could do. Twilight walked slowly down the hall, walking until the door to Princess Luna’s chambers was in sight. There Twilight stood, unsure if she wanted to continue onwards, into the room to meet the owner of the voice, to see what he actually looked like. She tried willing herself forwards, hoping the dream would end sooner, only to find that for every step forward she took she immediately recoiled two or three steps back.
I… I am not ready…
Twilight’s vision became blurred; she put a hoof to her eye and found it was wet, and not much later a drop went down her face. Twilight stood facing the door, paralyzed and rooted to the spot. It wasn’t long before she couldn’t even look at the door, shying away in such a manner that even Fluttershy would find strange and cowardly.
She turned around and ran back down the hallway to the door to the entrance hall, but the door was shut. Twilight walked slowly back down the hall and found the room with the easel once again. The picture on the easel had changed and showed Twilight lying on her belly, an uncomfortable look on her face and was signed with the same “P.L.” as the other pictures in the room. Two new pictures had been added to the framed ones: Twilight sitting with Princess Luna at the coffee table discussing something and Princess Luna sitting under the apple trees in Applejack’s orchard like they had been doing earlier that afternoon.
Memories… is that what they are? All of these are simply memories shown by Princess Luna through my dreams in the form of pencil-drawn pictures. I suppose that explains the detail if they’re just my memories…
Twilight walked back out of the hall and walked over to the other room where she had seen the first picture, finding it back in its frame and standing upright at the desk. The oil lamp on the desk glowed softly, illuminating the picture in a golden hue. On the desk now was a letter, one that Twilight had not seen before. Twilight walked up to the picture and began to read the letter.
“I must admit upon opening your letter that I wondered why you didn’t even want to talk with me in private, being that your status is highly important and would warrant immediate attention. However, upon reading the contents, I feel that perhaps this is the best way to speak about this issue.
“That aside, I fear that if you were to inform her of these affections, she would not rebuke you. This is not to say that it is the best course of action. She is smart, but love is one area which she doesn’t understand. She cannot explain what love is, what it feels like, what it contains. If she were to explain things that were meant with love, she would only state the biological reasoning behind them. Instead, show her the signs of it. Skirt around the subject. When she begins to realize there is no source she can pinpoint scientifically, then tell her how you feel that that perhaps she feels the same way.”
The letter had no opening nor closing. It was written as though it was part of a standard conversation with the exception of the intro paragraph. It was also typed, which meant there was no handwriting to distinguish who could have written it. All Twilight could figure was that two ponies of high status and importance in the castle were discussing a mare. Twilight left the letter on the desk and walked back to the door to Princess Luna’s chambers.
The corridor felt long and slow, but eventually Twilight found herself standing next to the doors. Twilight raised a shaky hoof and knocked on the door.
Hello? …are you in here?
There was a moment of silence. Then…
“Twilight, you’ve arrived. I wondered when you would arrive; I would say you delayed me, but decades can pass in dreams within minutes of sleep. I have as much time as I need.” There was another click. “The door is open. Enter when you feel you are ready.”
What if… what if I’m not ready?
“You have all the time you need.”
All the time she needed… it was a dream, and yet she couldn’t shake the feeling that it was just too much for her to handle. This creature – pony! Twilight reminded herself – had been chasing her down and making her feel trapped and insecure, and now the only way for her to escape was to confront it. Twilight hoped she could will herself awa
“You can’t wake right now, Twilight,” the voice came from the other side of the door. “You are too deep in sleep. Come. Once we have our little talk, I can help you return to being awake when you need to.”
“‘Twilight gulped. She couldn’t imagine what was happening to her, but then she remembered: it was a dream. If she was in a dream, that meant this individual must be a part of her consciousness and could see what she was thinking. The thought caused Twilight to shake in fear, in addition to the voice coming from the opposite side of the door.’ It is a simple matter of going through the door and facing me. I promise you that I’ll fulfill what I said to you. ‘But Twilight was not sure if what the voice said was true. So many things were going around in her head: the voice of the thing on the other side of the door’ – how disrespectful, calling me a thing! – ‘the continuing thoughts going through her head, conflicting opinions as to whether or not to trust the owner of the voice or to run away. Eventually, it became too much, and she screamed out with a mixture of fear and horror…’”
SHUT UP! SHUT UP! The words were out of Twilight’s mouth before she realized how well they connected with what the voice had said. She was still shaking in fear from what the pony was saying and how closely they connected with her thoughts. Twilight could feel the sweat coming down her forehead and couldn’t even stand on all four hooves, collapsing on the ground as she whimpered a bit, her cries muffled by her face pressed into the floor.
“I understand I make you afraid,” the voice said, this time gentle and comforting as it slowly made its way to Twilight’s ear. “But please… please trust me. I know you are afraid, but I want to help you overcome that fear of me. You have hidden me for so long, I wish to make you see me, but I cannot do that if you don’t come here.”
I… I have no other choice… do I?
“That depends on what you consider your choices are.”
Twilight struggled to her feet and slowly approached the doors to Luna’s chambers. Raising a hoof, she pushed open the door to Luna’s chamber and began to walk in, noticing the figure standing in front of her, slowly turning around to face her. This time, the vision of the pony was clear, illuminated by the light of the full moon behind it, yet the sight scared Twilight more than being unable to see it.
In front of her was a winged unicorn stallion with a flowing blue mane and tail that reminded her of the starry night sky behind him. His coat was a dark blue that matched his irises, and his flanks were covered with a darker black fur and a cutie mark in the shape of a crescent moon. He wore a black crown with the same insignia of the moon on his head with a matching black breastplate on his chest, and his hooves were adorned with sparkling light-blue armor-like shoes.
“It is good to finally see you, Twilight Sparkle,” the stallion said, his voice clearer but much more gentle. “And it is good that you are finally able to see me.”
Who… who are you?
“You may call me Prince Apollo,” the stallion said; Twilight noticed his voice was softer than before and almost seemed to echo around her. “I help Luna with the night and dreams, yet I often like to keep myself hidden from other ponies. For the most part, I prefer not to be seen and to practice my art in peace. You, however, have caught my eye.”
You look so much like Princess Luna… Twilight said, taking a cautious step forwards.
“Yes, I am similar to her in a way. I help other ponies with their dreams like Luna does, and I know dream magic like Luna does. Perhaps the similarities are quite striking, though I have taken this form because it is one you are comfortable with. You know and are friends with Princess Luna, sometimes to a larger extent than you realize. As such, while I myself do have a different form, this is the one that I shall be using to speak with you.”
But… why a stallion?
“Simple: I cannot exactly copy Luna exactly. I am a stallion myself and even magic to make me look like another cannot change my gender. I am not a changeling, I assure you, as a changeling can copy the gender and voice as well as the looks.”
Twilight stepped further into the room, noticing the eyes of ‘Prince’ Apollo were still focused on her. He looked at her with what she could describe as a mixture of curiosity and warmth, interested as to what she would do but not willing to make a move at all. Twilight walked around Apollo and looked him over; he certainly looked like Luna and appeared to be hiding nothing as far as she saw, so she walked back around and looked at him.
Why have you been searching for me?
“Your magic talent is incredible,” Apollo answered. “I have heard much about you from Luna; how you defeated Nightmare Moon, how you beat Discord’s mind games, how you helped rescue Cadence from the caves on the eve of the royal wedding, and how you defeated King Sombra and saved the Crystal Empire. Celestia and Luna have asked me to teach you the ways of dream magic, believing that you could master their power for themselves. If all goes well, any magic you learn or discover in your sleep will be automatic and natural to you while awake.”
Why can’t you just confront me personally?
“As I have said earlier: we have all the time in the world.”
The prospect of learning new magic had always been something of a lure to Twilight, at it pulled at her even now along with Apollo’s rather disarming voice and oddly attractive eyes. Yet Twilight was immediately pulled back to reality; the figure had been stalking her for at least three nights and was searching for her for six nights before that. Something seemed… off.
What reason do I have to trust you?
Apollo smiled. “How about I give you a sign? After you awake, there will be a knock at the door of the library where you live. The first and second group of knocks will be pranksters at work on Nightmare Night, yet if you wait until the third set of knocks, you will receive your order from the bakery you placed this afternoon.”
Twilight backed up a step. I… I don’t know if…
Apollo stepped up to Twilight and placed a hoof under her chin, gently pointing her face to his. “Give me a chance. If what I have just described does not occur, then you may feel free to decline my offer.”
Twilight sighed, then nodded. Okay
Apollo nodded. His horn began to glow blue and the area surrounding Twilight began to fade to white until only Apollo was left. “I shall see you later, Twilight Sparkle. The offer is always available to you.” Twilight watched as Apollo himself then vanished into the white light, then everything turned to black. There was the sound of soft breathing in Twilight’s ears, and she opened her eyes to the evening sun setting on Ponyville.
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Hrm. Not sure if I like this Apollo character...
Even if it is Luna in disguise!
Well, I'm entertained so far.
The story has a really solid atmosphere. If you were concerned about that, you shouldn't be; it's spot on for creepy. The pacing in the story is really good too. There's not too much time spent on suspense or too little. Also, the balance between dream scenes and awake scenes is at the correct level so that neither of them have the chance to get boring.
Chapter one had some stuff in it that impressed me [minor spoilers]. The part where Twilight goes into Luna's room had all the tension set up for a jump scene, but then we got a creepy thing instead with disturbing implications that aren't immediately obvious. Too many horror stories blow their load right at the start and then have nothing left, so this was really cool. Also it took me by surprise.
The romance stuff is interesting too. Not much development in that area for me to comment on, but it looks like it's coming together. It's cute, I'll give you that.
I do have a few gripes with this though. After chapter three the horror dies off quite a lot. Imagery alone doesn't cut it. There isn't really anything to be scared of after that point, and it changes the whole mood. Also, Luna's behavior is confusing me. She seems too calm and collected for the situation. I'm not sure what sort of twist you're planning, but I can't think how this will fit into the story once the romance starts.
Anyways, its certainly a good story, whatever the main point of it is supposed to me. Would recommend.
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Listening to a playthrough of Amnesia: The Dark Descent has been an efficient and effective muse, then; chapters 1-3 were written with that playing in the background. Perhaps I could get myself more into the mood by continuing to have that play while writing the next chapters.
Congratulations, this story has good enough grammar to be included in the Good Grammar Directory, a comprehensive list of grammatically-correct stories on Fimfiction.
I'd change this if I were you, though:
Also, remember to include a comma before a coordinating conjunction linking two independent clauses, such as here.
You do it one or two other times as well, but I won't post them all. You get the idea.
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Must have been in a rush to get that first one out.
Sooo good!
Awesome story
I wish it wasn't cancelled 
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Wish no more; I hope to have a chapter out by the end of the week.
5803086 yayyyy
I shall diligently wait till that chapter.