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Jovialitea1,276 words
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Jovialitea

For as long as I can remember I always hated Nightmare Night.

Most ponies laughed when I told them that. Who could possibly hate all the games, candy and fun? I didn't hate any of those parts, I would tell them. I hated all the scary parts. The monster decorations, the pranks, the scares, the creepy laughs and screams and stories and all those awful things. Being scared was awful. Seeing everypony else scared was worse. It was all just too much for me. Saying all that just made them laugh harder at silly, timid little Fluttershy.

My friends, Rainbow Dash in particular, had tried more than once to get me into it, but I just couldn't bring myself to enjoy it. Even when I discovered that I was really, really good at scaring my friends I simply wasn't having fun like everypony else did. I was very grateful that this year my friends had all promised me that they would let me stay home with my animal friends in peace and quiet. Rainbow said she would stop by just before sundown to make sure I was all set, just in case I needed her to quickly grab anything from town before it got dark. I set aside a special little teacake for her just to say 'thank you for caring'. Rainbow could be such a dear and thoughtful friend when she wanted to be.

Ordinarily I would have been unhappy all day, even before night fell just from the idea that Nightmare Night was coming. A constant cloud of worry would cling to me from the moment I peeked out from under my blankets in the morning until I woke up the next day. I knew it was silly. I knew it was ridiculous and irrational and, above all, foalish. Knowing all of that didn't make it go away. Being reminded of all that made it even worse. But not this time.

This time I was happy. This time I saw the bright sun and fluffy clouds and smiled at the beautiful day it was. I made my normal rounds to all my adorable little friends with a bounce in my step and lightness in my wings. I hummed a cheery tune all through my chores, and kept an eye on the clock not with dread but with excitement. I hated all the unexpected surprises of Nightmare Night, but on this day I was expecting one surprise I wouldn't miss for anything.

I didn't know where, I didn't know how or what form it would take, but I knew when it would come down to the minute. As soon as all the animals were fed and watered, I was in the kitchen making all the final preparations. It was a lot of work, so much cooking and cleaning to do, but it was worth every moment for the surprise to come. It was like that feeling you got as a filly when you woke up on Hearth's Warming morning, knowing that there was a pile of presents and a lovely mug of hot cocoa just waiting for you to come and get them.

I trotted out of the kitchen just minutes before the hour, pushing a serving cart stocked with treats into the living room. I was almost too excited to hold the plate of sandwiches steady in my teeth when I transferred them to the table, and I very nearly upset the teapot with a clumsy bump of my muzzle. It was a big relief when I caught it with a hoof before any of the hot tea could spill onto the sandwiches. I was always so tense when I did this. Yet another silly little thing that I knew shouldn't bother me nearly so much, but always did. It was just so important to me that everything was perfect.

I fluttered away from the table to the bathroom to quickly make sure I was neat and tidy. I may not have had quite the eye for elegance and style to match Rarity, but I am just a little, tiny bit particular about my mane. When I was younger and shyer I often hid behind it, sweeping it over so that it covered as much of my face as possible. As a result, I've taken good care of it since I was a filly, something that's helpful when your mane grows as long as mine does. I can't even count how many ponies have asked me if I've had extensions done on both my mane and my tail, some of them judgmentally, others enviously. I always tell them the truth: they just grow that way. Except for one time after an accident with a rose bush right before the Cutie Mark Crusaders decided to try journalism. I was so close to having that embarrassing incident go completely unnoticed, too.

I was just through the doorway when I heard the clock strike the hour.

It was time! Somewhere, somehow, and within the next 60 seconds, my surprise would arrive. An electric shiver skipped right up my spine, in time with my heart's jumping tempo. My legs were trembling and I couldn't keep a giddy little smile off my face. I rushed to the mirror on quickly beating wings and felt my heart leap right up my throat when I saw the reflection.

“Oh!” I gasped before I could catch myself. I hurriedly forced my expression to be as neutral as possible, and willed my wings to flap more slowly so I could land. Nice, even breaths were essential. Adequately calmed, I leaned in to study the reflection as naturally as I could.

I checked the mane first, inspecting the stray, glossy, black strands that had escaped the rest before sweeping them to the side where they belonged. I turned my face this way and that to check that the gray coat was laying smooth and tidy on the long, narrow muzzle. I pulled my lips back so I could confirm that nothing was stuck between the reflected teeth, particularly next to the long, pointed snagglefang. Satisfied with the pearly-whiteness on display, I moved on to the eyes. I reached up and adjusted my eyelashes just the tiniest bit where one or two were askew. In the mirror I could see scaly, yellow digits deftly tending the elegant hairs around the lopsided red-within-yellow eyes. I smoothed one of the bushy white eyebrows for good measure.

I pulled back with a nod and a happy smile. The reflection returned a toothy grin and moved in sync with me when I spoke.

“My, I really am looking extra lovely today!”

I managed to keep up the smile for almost five whole seconds before I started to giggle. The reflection sputtered and choked as it silently bit back its own laughter. In a further five seconds I lost it entirely and burst out laughing. A second voice, jovial and far more male, joined in from behind me. Two mismatched arms threw themselves around me and pulled me into a warm, furry, feathery, scaly hug. I wriggled myself around until I could put my own forelegs around the serpentine body of my dear friend, both of us still laughing our heads off.

“Oh, Discord! I'm so happy you're here!”

“Wouldn't miss it for the world, my dear Fluttershy!”

Yes, this Nightmare Night was different than the previous years. This year I wouldn't be spending all day anxious and upset. I wouldn't be looking over my shoulder and shuddering at the ringing of every hour. This year was special. This year was delightful.

This year Nightmare Night fell on a Tuesday.

Author's Note:

I actually wrote the first draft of this before Royaltea quite some time ago. I'd hoped to start this anthology a little sooner but between being busy and my mind being pulled in so many other directions by other stories I've had trouble making headway on any one story. Updates to this are bound to be sporadic at best and I may start and finish other stories in the meantime. As an anthology it's meant to be more open ended, anyway. At least, I think so.

Thank you for reading.

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kurusagi16

kurusagi16 #1 · Mar 13th, 2018 · 1 · ·

This is pretty good so far, I'm curious to see what the next chapter looks like. Also, will you be doing some chapters from Discord's POV?

Hasty Revision

Hasty Revision #2 · Mar 13th, 2018 · · ·

8793723
Thanks for reading, I'm glad you're enjoying it so far. As for Discord's POV, I'm undecided. I've thought about how to approach that and I'm not sure how to do him justice, especially in a first-person perspective. There's a lot of decisions I'd have to make about who he is and how he thinks that, unlike Fluttershy, there isn't a lot of background for. I might try it eventually but for the moment everything I have drafted for this anthology is from Fluttershy's perspective. Sorry to disappoint if you were hoping for that.

Thank you for your feedback, I really appreciate it.

kurusagi16