Interviews With Equestrians

by Jmaster49

Subject 80: Prepare For Scares

And so, after much patience, Nightmare Night was finally here. I couldn’t wait to show off my costume to everypony. Especially the members of my crew. Yes it did seem a bit odd for such a stiff stallion such as myself to be enthralled by such frivolities. But I couldn’t help it. I absolutely adored getting scared, scaring others, and the candy! The chocolate-caramel bars were always my favorite, even as a colt. And my costume...it fit me both on a personal, and an existential level. Complete with a well-meaning brown suit on my right side along with a monocle, but on the left, it was a dreary, demonic black suit and the left side of my face was done up in a dark gray, homemade mask to appear evil with flayed skin.

The legendary figure from the novel most known around Trottingham and Trotland.

“Dr. Hayman Jockey and Mr. Leather Hide--as in pony skin--at your service,” I said to myself in the mirror as I looked myself over. Quite the dashing display indeed. Dr. Jockey was a kind-hearted soul, and Hide was the evil, demonic version of him, which contained his repressed hatred. It was a favorite book of mine and it even helped me learn how to become my own stallion, rather than allow myself to succumb to the hatred. But for Nightmare Night, it would be funny to scare others with this style of half-n-half.

DING-DONG!

Right on time.

I answered the door to find two fillies and two colts all dressed up in costume. Though, I only showed them the right side of my face. “Good-eve, children! I hope you’re all having a good time…hehehe…”

“Yes we are!” a filly in a scorpion costume chirped.

“Happy Nightmare Night!” a colt in wizard robes called out.

“Trick-or-treat!” a filly dressed as a cat yelled.

The last one, a colt in a cyborg costume rolled his eyes. “Finally. They got the order right.”

I snickered. This was so exciting. I only allowed them to see my right side as I reached for the candy behind me. “Now then...who wants…” I turned to my left, and exposed the deadly, ghastly side of my character, “some candy?!”

“Eee!” They all squealed as I placed candy in their pumpkin-shaped carrying bags. The squeals turned into laughter as they ran off. “Thank you!” they all yelled in unison.

It was satisfying to know that my costume was fully functional. Both as a representation of myself and with the capacity to scare to boot. Even my friend Corkscrew thought it was good as he flew down.

“Well this is an unexpected one,” said the pegasus as he flew in. All he had on was a simple black mechanic’s jumpsuit and a leathery mask that was reminiscent of a famous movie star. William Trotner, was it? Oh! That was the mask from the Nightmare Night series of movies! “Oh! You’re Michael Flyers! I didn’t peg you to dress yourself as a killer, though.”

He scoffed, and removed the mask for a second. “Heh. There’s a lot you don’t know about me, boss. My family and I dress up as our favorite horror film characters every year for our family photos.”

Even I had to admit that I was unnerved by the mask’s empty, soulless expression when it had no face to fill its contents. “Eeegh...I forgot how...odd your family was.”

“Meh, of course they are. But that’s besides the point,” he put the mask back on, and fluttered his wings. One of his feathers was used as a substitute for the masked pony’s trademark kitchen knife as a weapon. “So! What’s the plan boss?”

I shut the door behind me, and released the fireflies that acted as my porch’s light. I didn’t want anypony to come up to my house while I was gone. “Continue as planned. We lurk around and observe what’s going on. If we come across anything weird, we do as Sunburst instructed and attempt to subdue the culprit behind whatever...weirdness occurs.”

“And if we can’t?”

“Then we hope to every alicorn that we can find out what it is before it’s too late,” I said as a rather ominous crash of lightning occurred behind me against the dead of the night sky. “But let’s not lose our heads though, yeah?” I walked onward, towards the middle of Ponyville where the festivities were set to begin.

Corkscrew rolled his eyes, and hovered along the path that I walked across. “Oh stop. You know you love being in the rushing heat of battle, boss?”

“I mean, partially. Yes. I mean, look at my costume, heh,” I motioned my hoof up and down to show off my outfit, “But it’s not all that I enjoy. I also prefer to be analytical. Tactical. Take time to learn and understand things before making a move,” I put my hoof down and continued to walk. “Because see, when you do things without thinking...then you’re not making the choice, son. The choice makes you.”

Another roll of his eyes. “Oh come on. You ripped that right from one of the Marevel comic movies!”

“But is it any less valid?” I said as I adjusted the fake monocle, “After all, we all represent two halves of a coin. It’s a matter of knowing when to express both sides and--are you listening?”

The pegasus had already flown ahead and had his head shoved in a bucket to dive for apples, much to the delight of the foals around him.

Now it was my turn to roll my eyes. “Ugh…” I gave an exasperated groan, then a chuckle. “Heh...that kid is crazy.”

“I know, right? Luna gets the exact same way!” a familiar, motherly voice spoke out from next to me all the sudden. It was Celestia! Dressed as...Daybreaker? Complete with a fake helmet and everything. “There she goes right now.”

I looked over, and watched as Luna jumped out of the apple-bobbing crate with a fake Nightmare Moon costume to scare everyone. The foals--and Corkscrew--squealed aloud before they all laughed as a result of the little prank.

“Ah!” I gasped when I looked at the former princess, but then I realized her costume was fake, and calmed down. “Oh, whew. It’s you, Celestia. Having fun with your sister on this Night?”

“Of course! We figured we should go for an ironic set of costumes this year,” she said and removed the fake, vampire-like teeth that made the Daybreaker costume work. “See? It’s all fake, my little pony.”

I rolled my eyes at that candy-cornish joke. “Yes, well. Good. I’m glad you’re enjoying yourselves.” Hm. Yes, I could have told Celestia about the incident, but all it would do was cause her and her sister undue stress on what is essentially supposed to be a night that celebrates Luna. Besides, they were strong enough to handle anything, so it didn’t concern me whether or not they knew beforehoof. So long as I could find out the situation, and deal with it. “Anyway, I’m gonna...go to the caramel apple stand over by Applebloom. See ya!”

“Oh…?” she leaned her head to the left with a bit of concern as I walked away. “Well, as long as you’re sure everything is alright! Don’t be afraid to meet up with Luna and I at some point!”

I wasn’t. In fact, there were only a few things in this world that I was truly afraid of. But anyhow, I think it would be best if we covered more ground by splitting up. Now yes, that didn’t sound smart on paper. To be fair though, this wasn’t some horror movie with a haunted mansion or spooky forest. We were in the middle of a crowded town of ponies who were enjoying a festival. To act rashly in such a large slew of individuals would be suicidal. Hm…

Corkscrew had fished himself an apple from the bucket, and munched upon it. “Heh! That was fun, wasn’t it, boss? I didn’t expect Luna to appear so...soon.”

“I mean, it’s her sister’s celebration and all, isn’t it? But for the moment, I suggest we take different ends of the town, and meet up back here after say, an hour?”

He spat the seeds out, and tossed the core into a nearby waste bin. “Sounds good to me. Just don’t go too far, alright? We need to be able to keep tabs on each other.”

I chuckled. “Heh. Don’t worry yourself. Things will be just fine. I’ll take the North end. You take the South--preferably from the air, okay?”

“On it, boss!” he said with a salute as he flew into the air.

Okay, perfect. Time to head out, and see what strange things I could find near the edge of the town.

So I set out on my own. Nothing too crazy happened near the Northern side of town. Just a few rivers and some trees. The Everfree Forest was near the Southern side, but that was less likely to be attacked given the festivities, led by Zecora, would take them through there. Hm...just what could be happening at a time like this?

I surveyed the area a bit more, but found nothing. Was it possible that both Luna and Sunburst’s assumption was a bit off? But how can that be? Both were very reliable sources, especially when it came to active magic. Something wasn’t right here…

Well. I spent about twenty minutes here. Nothing. Maybe I should’ve just headed back by then, hm? Well, that’s what I would’ve done. Except…

“BOO!”

Two voices cried out to me from the shadows.

“AIE!” I screamed and got ready to fight off whatever it was. That is, until I heard a familiar pair of laughs.

“Haha! We got him, didn’t we mate?” Flash Drive snickered as he emerged from the bushes. His costume was a trenchcoat loaded up with rows of chains on the back. But his face was another story entirely. He wore a mask filled with a bunch of cheap, harmless toy pins that were jammed into styrofoam.

“Too right, friend,” Neon flew down from a nearby tree, and struck a kung-fu pose. He had one a green and yellow jumpsuit with a mask that hid his face. Wait, that was a comic book hero, wasn’t it? What was his name again? “I didn’t even need to break out the true strength of my hoof.”

“Argh. Lemme guess. Iron Hoof, and…” I looked at Flash Drive and grit my teeth. It was on the tip of my tongue.

The jet black unicorn tilted his head. “C’mon, mate. We’ve seen the move hundreds of times.”

I stomped my hoof when it came to me. “Ah! Pincrest, yes? Tartaraiser? As soon as I saw the chains, it hit me right away.” As ponies, our crest was the back of our necks from which our manes grew. Although, Flash Drive’s costume was rather incomplete since his fake mask lacked pins that went all the way down the back of his neck. But that could get very demanding on one’s mane after a while of wearing it, so I wasn’t going to sweat the small stuff. “Well it’s good to see you both in high spirits. But have you seen anything suspicious or odd around?”

Neon flew over, and landed next to his brother. “Nah, friend. I’ve been out flyin’ for what feels like a shite long time and come up with muck all.”

“Same here,” Flash Drive added, “It’s a bit borin’ so far. But we’ll let you know if anythin’ changes. Guttersnipe is here too...somewhere.”

That was a nice thought to have. My entire crew was here, and ready to fight against whatever odd circumstances may occur. Though, part of me wondered just what her costume was. And speaking of which…

“Understood, gents. Oh! And how do you like my costume?”

“Dr. Jockey and Mr. Hide,” both brothers said at once.

I was delighted that they recognized it. “Hah! I knew it was a perfect choice. Plus, it’s an amazing novel.”

“Still haven’t finished it to be fair,” Flash Drive replied as he put his mask back on, “Too damn busy. But I’ll get around to it. You both stay on your guard now, yeah?” he said as he trotted off.

Neon struck another pose, and performed a flip into one of the trees. “Absolutely, bruv. Back into the shadows we go…”

I shook my head and smiled. Those two were still acting like colts well into their adulthood. It was an adorable thing to see. And admittedly, I was a bit of the same way. I just hope that whoever decides to cause trouble doesn’t steal all of the candy or something...that would be disgusting.

That’s when I heard the leaves rustle around me. Could this finally be what I had been searching for? Yeesh. When I thought of it like that, it came out as if I desired something bad to occur. But trust me, that wasn’t it. I was simply eager to find out what was going on here.

ZAP! CRASH!

The strike of lightning in the sky, followed by the roar of thunder in the distance. The wind kicked up. The trees rustled, the bushes writhed, and the area around me generally felt colder and more lifeless as time went on. I could swear that, for a moment, I could see a familiar symbol up in the sky as well. Could it have been…

Someone was here. Someone who wasn’t friendly.

“Show yourself. Just what do you think you’re even doing way out here?!”

To my horror, the individual in question was all too familiar.

“...Kid? Is that you?”

Comments

[Neo4K]

“Dr. Hayman Jockey and Mr. Leather Hide--as in pony skin--at your service,” I said to myself in the mirror as I looked myself over. Quite the dashing display indeed. Dr. Jockey was a kind-hearted soul, and Hide was the evil, demonic version of him, which contained his repressed hatred. It was a favorite book of mine and it even helped me learn how to become my own stallion, rather than allow myself to succumb to the hatred. But for Nightmare Night, it would be funny to scare others with this style of half-n-half.

Well..uh...okay, I can see him dressing up as something akin to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. I'm a little disappointed he's not dressed up as you-know-who. 😁

“...Kid? Is that you?”

😟 Is Cozy back to the role of a villain?

[Jmaster49]

10509703
Who did you think he would dress up as? XD

And stay tuned to find out!

[Neo4K]

10509705
😁 Oh, JM, you wound me. I think we both know the type of dark, violent character that Pale Vestige reminds me of.

[Jmaster49]

10509737
Oh! That would've been too obvious though. XD

[Neo4K]

10509753
Oh, I agree. That's just me answering your question.

[Jmaster49]

10511119
Exactly. The only reason why Neighsay hasn't been given the death penalty yet is because he has been compliant...so far, anyway. That could very well change.

Svengallop meanwhile was irredeemable and genuinely had no remorse for the countless crimes he committed. His death ensured other ponies around Equestria would live.

[Veylon]

10511123
Someone should've smashed the evil trio statue, too. There are just so many villains in Equestria that they keep around. It's disgusting.

Also, who's investigating Svengallop's murder? Someone cheated the hangman and he needs to collect his due.