What Follows Hugs

by David Silver

9 - Clandestine Dreams

With Toby tucked in for the night, Celestia and Luna held a meeting of their own. Celestia looked up to the starry sky above. "You have painted an exquisite piece tonight."

Luna snorted softly. "You did not call us here to compliment my aesthetics, sister, though I appreciate it."

Celestia nodded softly. "You know Toby."

It was hardly a question in tone or phrasing. "Of course," agreed Luna. "What are we dancing around?"

"He seems a fine and wonderful creature, well worth learning and supporting." She flashed a brief smile. "But he comes with..."

"Sombra," Luna finished for her. "You can say his name. However grave his crimes before, he does seem to have better dreams in mind now."

"You say that." Celestia's wings ruffled faintly, clearly bothered. "In our bargaining, Toby understood a kind gesture, and was eager to return them. Sombra is blind to them, full of suspicion."

Luna lifted her shoulders. "He is well equipped to deal with some of the nations of the world. What he lacks is knowledge. Don't tell me he is the most contrary ruler you have dealt with even this moon."

Celestia's lips twisted in a faint smirk of remembering her worst visits with world leaders. "You have a point, sister. Perhaps... I am biased."

"Perhaps?" Luna shook her head. "This is a stallion we were ready to wage bloody war on. To speak of 'slight' biases is to be blind to oneself. You have feelings, sister, no matter how often you try to hide them. You look at him and see that war that could have been. Will he return with a countless field of Tsukis, their eyes blank, and order them to die for his ambitions? That is your fear."

Celestia's teeth clenched before she could calm herself. "You paint a severe picture, Lulu. You've been with him, them. Tell me what I cannot see. You brought him here. I trust you."

Luna extended a wing northward towards the Tsuki's home. "When first we arrived, he was doing exactly as you fear. The Tsuki lived in terror and did as he wished them for fear of punishment. Then Toby happened." She smiled gently. "His simple but well-meaning presence has pulled him towards a new heading."

"And why does he tolerate it?" asked Celestia as she stared at her sister. "A stallion like that should not tolerate another creature that distracts them from their goals."

"You would think..." Luna seemed calm. "But Toby is too useful and obedient in his disobedience. With him at his side, the other Tsuki follow Sombra with feelings he never knew from his crystal subjects before. They move willingly and with greater energy. The Tsuki want the future Toby promises them, and Toby says Sombra can bring that future to them."

Celestia drew in a loud breath, a slow gasp. "Is he lying?"

"Not purposefully, hopefully not at all. Toby does have faith in Sombra." Luna bobbed her head. "He is willing to work beside his new friend, grump as he may be, and march towards the future he wants."

With a sudden avian cry, Celestia's phoenix descended from the sky and landed on her forehead, perching.

"Philomena," spoke Celestia in kind tones. "Did you see anything?"

The phoenix shook her head.

"Thank you for looking. Do tell us if that changes."

Luna considered the arcane beast. "I had thought at one time that Toby would be my companion, mystic and powerful."

Celestia snorted quite loudly at that, making Philomena flap her wings in surprise. "Philomena? She's a good friend, but she is also a troublemaker." The bird squawked at her indignantly. "Have you so quickly forgotten the last time? That poor guard still excuses himself when you enter the room."

Luna clucked her tongue against her teeth. "Perhaps we share a curse when seeking an animal companion then, dear sister. Mine went and became a leader of his own people. Yours prefers playing pranks whenever she sees the chance."

Celestia raised a hoof and Philomena bounced onto it lightly. "It is not the same. You should be proud. You do know he still looks at you with the same gaze. He loves you fiercely."

Luna colored. "You don't mean?!"

"Not that kind of love." Celestia rolled her eyes. "I'm not even sure he has encountered that love yet. He respects you and adores you. He is a friend, sister. There is precious little more wonderful than that."

Drawing herself to her full height, Luna nodded. "I should patrol the dreams of our ponies, and you, my sister, should sleep. You are up late and that is not good for you."

"As you say, but I'm glad we took a moment to speak." She lowered her hoof and Philomena flew free gracefully, vanishing from sight. "I will see you next when it is time to exchange them." She did not need to say what 'them' was. Both knew too well of their duties with the sun and the moon. Celestia strode away towards bed.

Luna took a slow breath, clearing her mind and allowing herself to slip free from the shackle of her flesh.

She began to patrol the dreams of ponykind. A few ponies had seen the shadows and were frightened. She soothed their worried minds and set them back to dreaming of more pleasant things. Happy dreams, sad dreams, dirty and clean dreams, all were tended to.

As she finished the ones that shone the brightest with a need for her attention, she decided to check in with her partners in dream patrol, the moon beings. She slipped in among them. "Well met."

They turned with surprise, but that calmed quickly once they saw who it was. They were not surprised at Luna's presence, just her abrupt arrival.

"Hey," called out one as they approached. "Do you know a big rabbit guy? Horns? He said he was with you."

Luna blinked softly. "Toby was here?"

"Oh, so he was telling the truth?" She seemed surprised at that. "Huh, I figured he was just a random visitor that knew you. Happens once in a rare while."

Luna's expression creased into a frown. "I told him to watch over the dreamworld for me, and he did just that. He is too stubborn in his desire to be a good friend to realize he couldn't do that."

The dream being shrugged her shoulders. "And he did it. He's wet behind the ears, but he was eager to help. He dove right in like he knew what he was doing, which he didn't."

Luna laughed at that. "That sounds appropriate. I trust no harm came of it?"

"He stressed your sister, but did pull her free from a class 8. Not bad, for someone who has no idea what they're doing."

Luna's laugh died. "You're certain she was unharmed?"

"Absolutely." She gestured at the pools they were surrounded by. "You should know your sister's tough. It was a graceless transition, but they pulled through it without either losing it."

Luna wanted to know what horrific vision had seized her sister, but to ask would be prying too close. It was one thing to witness the dreams of ponies removed from herself, but her own sister... She deserved some mote of privacy. "I... am glad Toby was there, if none here were going to act?"

"In a class 8?" Her brows went up together. "Get outta here. We just made sure it stayed in one place and monitored for any extremes. You know what a class 8 can do to you."

Luna did. The mind was in such a dark place that death could come quickly and easily to anyone you thought of in the dream. This meant that those who intruded on it risked being slain quickly and without a chance to defend themselves. It was often not a clean way to go either. The result was a dream guardian hurled free of the dream, shocked and hurt themselves, and a dreamer still lost in their dreams of death with just another to cry, scream, or run from.

"Lucky fool," she grunted out, wings fluttering fitfully.

"That's a good description," agreed the moon being. "He jumped right in and just forced her to a casual romantic setting and paired her up with someone before we pulled him out."

Luna perked at that. "A romantic setting?! Tell me he did not--"

"Not with himself," the moon being quickly assured. "Looked like a guard."

Luna deflated a little before a laugh escaped her. "He is more perceptive than we give credit for. How many of her guards pine for her..." She shook her head then. "Any other anomalies to report?"

"Just one." She pointed the way forward and began weaving among the dream pools towards one that had three other beings already watching it. "Class ten."

Luna frowned. "Nothing?"

"That's what makes a class ten." She pointed into the utter dark of the dream pool. "Nothing."

"I will investigate." She spread her wings as she marched towards the lip of the pool. "Hopefully it is naught more than a pony who has enjoyed their cider too thoroughly."

Luna slipped past the surface of the pool and everything was gone. She was in darkness, pure and thick. Class tens were unnerving in a way. It was not a dream of night, that would be fine. It was a literal void. Luna could not even feel herself in it, which was the greatest danger when exploring such places. One must have a concrete sense of self to not become lost in that nothing.

She pressed 'forward', though forward was a direction, and there was no direction to be found. She could only press on. She could not even be certain she was moving, but she dared not give up in trying to penetrate the depths of whatever absence of a dream she was in.

She was not alone. The realization was at once uplifting and terrifying, as she felt whatever was there meant her no good. She felt as prey in the darkest of nights. She was being watched from all directions. It was above, neigh, to the right? Every time she tried to face it, it was somewhere else. She was no longer in nothing, but somehow she found herself wishing for just that.

"Show yourself!" she commanded, but her voice, even her Royal Canterlot Voice, seemed smothered in the void, barely a whisper reached her own ears.

"One little pony, dancing in their head. One little pony, soon she will be dead," rhymed a genderless voice. "Princess of the night, she barely knows fright. Take her head to hoof, think she's so aloof. Pull apart flesh bits, Will she lose all wit?" Luna tried to face the voice, but continued to be wherever she was not facing. She mustered her magic to shield herself.

Great clawed hands grabbed her at the front and back and suddenly pulled with tremendous strength.

She screamed. Even her wails could scarcely penetrate the void.

Suddenly she was drawn free of the pool in the hands of a half-dozen moon beings. She was heaving for breath and shuddering violently.

What was that?

Author's Note:

Luna encounters a dream she cannot handle. What does it mean?

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Comments

[badninja]

Well Luna it is time to consult Tobin's Spirt Guide. Twilight should have a current copy.

[Booster Spice]

If a Class 8 is so dangerous, I woudlve thought they dont get class 10s. As a class 9 dreamer has a pretty good chance of scaring themselves to death fairly quickly?

Sombras own mental defenses.. or his umbral Tantabus?

[David Silver]

8072015 You're assuming each class is directly 'worse' than the one before it. They're just different. Class 8 is full fear of death, be it yourself or others. Class 10 is nothing. Nothing. Not even the dreamer. It is a void.