Chapter 11: Story with a Twist
Just like before, Luna was walking along the cobblestone road. While the last time she had been walking it was because she was tired from all the flying—as well as the disorientating feeling from the two previous dreams—this time was different. She did not feel the need to rest her wings like she did before, and her senses were back to being as sharp as always. In fact, there really wasn't any real reason for her to walk along the road like she was. Regardless though, she allowed her wings another long bout of rest, and with lazy steps, she made her way through the streets of Ponyville.
However, if there was one thing especially unusual right now about her wings, it was that she couldn't get them to stop constantly twitching. Twice now, she had stopped to do a quick preening to make sure that her feathers weren't the cause of the ticklish feeling, but it was too no avail. So for now, she just tried to push the feeling to the back of her mind, and ignore it, despite the fact that twitching wings were one of the most annoying things that a winged creature could experience.
Luna suspected that the true reason behind her anxiousness was due to her thoughts wandering to the dream from before. In almost every single dream so far tonight—no matter how strange and crazy they were—she came out of each with a new insight on how Equestria and its ponies worked. With Lyra, she learned of the incredible love that a couple could and should have with each other. With Scootaloo, she learned of how true sisters should treat one another, and the bond that they could share. With Gummy, she learned to never delve into the dreams of animals ever again. Simple.
However, Derpy was different. No matter how much she tried to think about it, there wasn't a hard lesson to be learned from the dream. At first, she had suspected that the island could represent how the world tried to cage one's imagination and creativity, and that Derpy escaping the island represented her thinking “outside the box,” and trying new things. However, that sounded less like a moral and more like Luna attempting to sound like one of those blasted psychiatrists. A second hypothesis that she thought of immediately after the first was that if ponies are industrious, they can surpass any limits that the natural world could set on them. Sure, it was a lesson, but it once again seemed a little too abstract for what the dream was doing.
Racking her mind further, she tried to come up with more ideas of lessons that she could possibly apply to the dream. The idea that you should be careful in times of crisis came to her mind. It was true, and it wasn't one of those crazy abstract thoughts that she had been thinking about previously, but it wasn't really a major lesson to learn. Instead, it felt like more of a survival technique than anything else. Maybe... maybe that the world is filled with things that are trying to gobble you up, and you have to push onward to get through? No, that's even worse, for even Luna had no idea what that meant. Finally, she came up with one last lesson: muffin carrying containers are excellent travel companions on the high seas.
Luna shrugged. “Sure, let us go with that.”
With that settled, Luna took the entire subject, and tossed it to the back of her mind—never to be thought of again. Instead, she looked around at the surrounding area around her. The road that she was traveling on had suddenly ended, shifting from a regular cobblestone into a large grassy plaza. Flowering bushes lined many of the edges of the plaza, allowing all of the houses bordering it a slight amount of privacy. While Luna suspected that that the grass in the plaza would be beaten down by constant hoof traffic, this was surprisingly not the case. Instead, the grass was a fairly uniform—albeit short—field of green.
In the center of all of this, a massive tree stood above everything else. To the average pony, this “building” would have been one of the strangest sights that one had seen in quite a time. Instead of a building built around the tree or one placed within its branches, Luna saw that the domicile was carved into the tree itself. Very skilled craftsponyship and various enchantments must have been in place to have had that much of the tree's heartwood removed without having the sapwood decay. If the ponies that made the tree weren't careful when they built it, they would've killed it.
However, Luna was not surprised by any of this, for she was already familiar with Celestia's student's current residence.
Luna couldn't help but to smile at her luck in arriving at the current home of Twilight Sparkle. If there was one pony that Luna wanted to look into the dream of more than anypony else so far tonight, it was her. That wasn't to say that Luna didn't enjoy any of the other dreams however, but while Twilight's friends provided some of the most entertaining of dreams, she could only imagine what Celestia's “number one student” would come up with.
Not even bothering to shift into a mist, Luna spread her large wings, and took off into the cool air. It was short flight—no more than five or six beats of her wings—before she touched down on one of the many balconies overlooking the plaza around the residence. Fortune was with her yet again, for not only was she now standing right outside of what looked like the master bedroom, but the doors were left open to allow a cool breeze. The small smile from before still on her face, she entered the bedroom as quietly as possible.
Unlike the bedroom of Pinkie Pie, Twilight's bedroom had a much more natural coloration to it. There was not a corner to be found in the room, with all the walls curving with the shape of the tree itself. Complementing this, the wooden floor was carved straight from the tree as well, giving the floor a very unique ring texture. While there were various pieces of furniture, one of the more interesting was the large bookshelf lining the right way, for it was specially built to snug up against the curved wall. Add in a few of the decorations, and—
Squinting her eyes, Luna whispered, “Did... did she put oversized shoes on the wall?”
Ignoring that strange sight, Luna took another look around the room. To her left, she saw Twilight's pet dragon sleeping in his basket. She had to admit, having a dragon as a pet was one of the most fantastic of things that Luna had ever seen out of everypony—especially considering a dragon's typical hostility towards being owned. Thankfully, at least for Twilight, small wyrmlings like this one were mostly docile at this age anyway, so it was somewhat unlikely the mare had much to fear from it.
In front of Luna, the guest of honor slumbered in her bed. As the mare slept in her sun and moon covers—the various levels of irony not lost on Luna—she was as quiet as a mouse. Unlike Pinkie Pie or Rainbow Dash, Twilight's dreams did not appear to transfer to the real world in any way. Further, her breaths were as quiet as could be, leaving only heavier sighs to break the calm of the night. It was tranquil, it was relaxing, and it was the way Luna wished all of her subjects would sleep.
To Luna's right, her eyes focused on what must have been another one of Twilight's pets—an owl. However, unlike the other two inhabitants of the room, the owl was wide awake, and tracked Luna's every movement with its eyes. Luna shifted her head to the left, and it would follow. Luna shifted her head to the right, and it followed yet again. Luna shifted back to her center, and it returned to its original position. While they made the strange motions, it did not make a single sound, leaving her to believe that this creature was not supposed to be a guardowl of some kind.
Luna pointed a hoof at the owl. “Stay. No dream delving for you.”
The owl just blinked in response.
Satisfied that she had intimidated the owl into a terrified submission, Luna began to walk up to where Twilight was sleeping. Thankfully, while the owl still tracked her, it did not make any moves from its perch. Instead, the only warning that Twilight could possibly have to her approach were the muffled steps of her crystal slippers tapping against the wooden floor—not nearly enough to awaken all but the lightest of sleepers. True to her suspicions, by the time that Luna was right up against Twilight's bed, the mare had not moved in the slightest.
Lighting her horn, Luna whispered, “Let us finally see what Celestia's prized student is dreaming of this night...”
All Luna saw was white.
She didn't immediately know the cause, but she had a few guesses already. The first was that the dream she was looking into was taking place in a very bright area, such as the middle of the sun or something. That hypothesis was quickly discounted when she realized that there was no viable light source anywhere that she could see—as well as that she didn't have to squint to look around.
Luna's next guess was that the spell had once again fired off incorrectly like in Fluttershy's dream, and that this was all caused by a mishap of the magical energies required to view the dream. Just like before, she tried to realign said frequencies to make sure that the dream wasn't being cut off that way, but everything appeared to be in order. Fearing the worst, Luna moved to the right, and found that she was still able to move and look around. However, while that was a very fortunate find, it still didn't answer the question of what was wrong with the spell.
That answer came as soon as Luna noticed a little bit of purple out of the corner of her eye. Shifting her vision to the right, she observed the very normal looking figure of Twilight Sparkle laying on her belly—whether or not she could call the area below the mare the ground was questionable. From here, it was impossible to make out what the mare was doing exactly, but whatever it was, it was the focus of the mare's entire attention. Keen to find out what this wonderful activity was, Luna swooped down, and investigated.
Getting closer, she was a little bit confused at what she saw. Twilight was indeed laying on this weird dream's version of the ground, but around the mare were the last few objects that Luna suspected she would have. Instead of something fantastical, she simply had an open book in front of her—the mare completely engrossed in the text within. Further, off to Twilight's right, two more books sat next to her, begging to be read. What the subjects of the books were was lost on Luna, but that wasn't really important. What was important was that this was the most boring dream yet. Certain that something was going to happen in a few seconds, Luna was content to to float around, and wait for the mare's imagination to finally take off.
Sadly, those few seconds turned into minutes, and quickly began to feel like hours as she drifted along in the featureless white void. Every so often, a quick movement would pique Luna's interest and cause her to right herself from her constant flips and spins, only for her to be let down by the realization that the motion was only the mare turning a page from the book she was reading or scratching her cheek. It was an aggravating ordeal, and it reminded Luna much of the time she spent at the Lunar Court. With that thought, it didn't take long for Luna to scowl at Twilight.
This is it? This is all that that the great student of Princess Celestia could dream up? No epic tales of arcane geniuses battling each other by throwing planets at one another? No adventures with silly analogies of the “pen being mightier than the sword” becoming much more literal by way of pen weapons? Not even silly fortresses made of books?
As if in response, Twilight scratched her neck with a hind leg.
Screw this. I am finished here.
Pulling her head out of the dream, Luna couldn't help but to continue to scowl at the mare below her. Twilight still was quietly dreaming her boring dream, almost mocking Luna with her gentle smile. Here, Luna had gone through all the trouble to get into her room, for what? The worst dream of the night?
Luna shook her head. “For a mare so brilliant, your imagination is lacking.”
A/N: That's it! Hope you all enjoyed the short chapter! Now, to make sure that everyone thinks that this chapter is a decent length, here's a lot of information about gray squirrels!
Eastern gray squirrel
The eastern gray squirrel or grey squirrel (depending on region) (Sciurus carolinensis) is a tree squirrel in the genus Sciurus native to the eastern and midwestern United States, and to the southerly portions of the eastern provinces of Canada. The native range of the eastern gray squirrel overlaps with that of the fox squirrel (Sciurus niger), with which it is sometimes confused, although the core of the fox squirrel's range is slightly more to the west.
A prolific and adaptable species, the eastern gray squirrel has been introduced to, and thrives in, several regions of the western United States. It has also been introduced to Britain, where it has spread across the country and has largely displaced the native red squirrel, Sciurus vulgaris. In Ireland, the red squirrel has been displaced in several eastern counties, though it still remains common in the south and west of the country. There are concerns that such displacement might happen in Italy and that gray squirrels might spread from Italy to other parts of mainland Europe.
Etymology
The genus, Sciurus, is derived from two Greek words, skia, meaning shadow, and oura, meaning tail. This name alludes to the squirrel sitting in the shadow of its tail. The specific epithet, carolinensis, refers to the Carolinas, where the species was first recorded and where the animal is still extremely common. In the United Kingdom and Canada, it is simply referred to as the "grey squirrel".
Description
As the name suggests, the eastern gray squirrel has predominantly gray fur, but it can have a brownish color. It has a white underside and a large bushy tail. Particularly in urban situations where the risk of predation is reduced, both white- and black-colored individuals are quite often found. The melanistic form, which is almost entirely black, is predominant in certain populations and in certain geographic areas, such as in large parts of southeastern Canada. Genetic variations within these include individuals with black tails and black-colored squirrels with white tails.
The head and body length is from 23 to 30 cm (9.1 to 12 in), the tail from 19 to 25 cm (7.5 to 9.8 in) and the adult weight varies between 400 and 600 g (14 and 21 oz).
The tracks of an eastern gray squirrel are difficult to distinguish from the related fox squirrel and Abert's squirrel, though the latter's range is almost entirely different from the gray's. Like all squirrels, the eastern gray shows four fingers on the front feet and five on the hind feet. The hind foot-pad is often not visible in the track. When bounding or moving at speed, the front foot tracks will be behind the hind foot tracks. The bounding stride can be two to three feet long.
Behavior
Like many members of the family Sciuridae, the eastern gray squirrel is a scatter-hoarder; it hoards food in numerous small caches for later recovery. Some caches are quite temporary, especially those made near the site of a sudden abundance of food which can be retrieved within hours or days for reburial in a more secure site. Others are more permanent and are not retrieved until months later. Each squirrel is estimated to make several thousand caches each season. The squirrels have very accurate spatial memory for the locations of these caches, and use distant and nearby landmarks to retrieve them. Smell is used once the squirrel is within a few centimeters of the cache.
Squirrels have been known to pretend to bury the object if they feel that they are being watched. They do this by preparing the spot as usual, for instance digging a hole or widening a crack, miming the placement of the food, while actually concealing it in their mouths, and then covering up the "cache" as if they had deposited the object.
The eastern gray squirrel is one of very few mammalian species that can descend a tree head-first. It does this by turning its feet so the claws of its hind paws are backward pointing and can grip the tree bark.
Eastern gray squirrels build a type of nest, known as a "drey", in the forks of trees, consisting mainly of dry leaves and twigs. Males and females may share the same nest for short times during the breeding season and during cold winter spells squirrels may share a drey to stay warm. They may also nest in the attic or exterior walls of a house, where they may be regarded as pests, and as fire hazards due to their habit of gnawing on electrical cables (see Tree squirrel for more on interactions with humans). In addition, squirrels may inhabit a permanent tree den hollowed out in the trunk or a large branch of a tree.
Eastern gray squirrels are crepuscular, or more active during the early and late hours of the day, and tend to avoid the heat in the middle of a summer day. They do not hibernate.
Predators include humans, hawks, weasels, raccoons, domestic and feral cats, snakes, owls, and dogs.
Reproduction
Eastern gray squirrels breed twice a year, December to February and May to June, though this is slightly delayed in more northern latitudes. The first litter is born in February to March, the second in June to July. Normally, two to six young are born in each litter, but this number can be as high as eight. The gestation period is about 44 days. The young are weaned at seven weeks and leave the nest after 10 weeks.
Eastern gray squirrels can start breeding as early as five and a half months old, but usually breed for the first time at the age of one. These squirrels can live to be 20 years old in captivity, but in the wild usually only live up to 12.5 years.
Communication
As in most other mammals, communication among eastern gray squirrel individuals involves both vocalizations and posturing. The species has a quite varied repertoire of vocalizations, including a squeak similar to that of a mouse, a low-pitched noise, a chatter, and a raspy "mehr mehr mehr". Other methods of communication include tail-flicking. Communications are mainly used in mating season and to ward off predators.
The use of vocal and visual communication has been shown to vary by location, based on elements such as noise pollution and the amount of open space. For instance, populations living in large cities generally rely more on the visual signals, due to the generally louder environment with more areas without much visual restriction. However, in heavily wooded areas, vocal signals are used more often due to the presence of less noise and a dense canopy restricting visual range.
Diet
Eastern gray squirrels eat a range of foods, such as tree bark, berries, many types of seeds and acorns, walnuts, and other nuts, and some types of fungi found in the forests, including fly agaric mushrooms (Amanita muscaria). They can cause damage by tearing the tree bark and eating the soft cambial tissue underneath: sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus) L. and beech (Fagus sylvatica L.) suffer the greatest damage.
Eastern gray squirrels have a high enough tolerance for humans to inhabit residential neighborhoods and will raid bird feeders for millet, corn, and sunflower seeds. On very rare occasions, when their usual food sources are scarce, eastern gray squirrels will also prey upon insects, frogs, small rodents including other squirrels, and small birds, their eggs and young. They will also gnaw on bones, antlers, and turtle shells – likely as a source of minerals sparse in their normal diet.
Habitat
In the wild, eastern gray squirrels can be found inhabiting large areas of mature, dense woodland ecosystems, generally covering 40 hectares of land. These forests usually contain large amounts of dense understory vegetation that provides them sufficient amount of food sources and favorable shelters. Oak-hickory hardwood forests are preferred over coniferous forests.
Eastern gray squirrels generally prefer constructing their dens upon large tree branches and within the hollow trunks of trees. They also have been known to take shelter within abandoned bird nests. The dens are usually lined with moss plants, thistledown, dried grass, and feathers. These perhaps provide and assist in the insulation of the den, used to reduce heat loss. A cover to the den is usually built afterwards.
Close to human settlements, eastern gray squirrels are found in parks and back yards of houses within urban environments and in the farmlands of rural environments.
Distribution
The eastern gray squirrel is found in the eastern United States and adjacent southern Canada; New Brunswick to Manitoba, south to East Texas and Florida. It has also been introduced into Ireland, Britain, Italy, South Africa, and Australia (where it was extirpated by 1973).
Introductions
The eastern gray squirrel has been introduced to a variety of locations in western North America: in Canada, to the southwest corner of British Columbia and to the city of Calgary, Alberta; in the United States, to the states of Washington and Oregon and, in California, to the city of San Francisco and the peninsula area of San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties, south of the city. It has become the most common squirrel in many urban and suburban habitats in western North America, from north of central California to southwest British Columbia. At the turn of the 19th to 20th centuries, the eastern gray squirrel was introduced into South Africa, Ireland and England.
In South Africa, though exotic, it is not usually considered an invasive species owing to its small range (only found in the extreme southwestern part of the Western Cape, going north as far as the small farming town of Franschhoek), as well because it inhabits urban areas and places greatly affected by humans, such as agricultural areas and exotic pine plantations. Here, it mostly eats acorns and pine seeds, although it will take indigenous and commercial fruit, as well. Even so, it is unable to use the natural vegetation (fynbos) found in the area, a factor which has helped to limit its spread. It does not come into contact with native squirrels due to geographic isolation (a native tree squirrel, Paraxerus cepapi, is found only in the savanna regions in the northeast of the country) and different habitats.
It spread rapidly across England and then became established in both Wales and parts of southern Scotland. On mainland Britain, it has almost entirely displaced the populations of native red squirrels. On the island of Ireland, this displacement has not been as rapid because there was only a single introduction, in County Longford. Schemes have been introduced to control the population in Ireland to encourage the native red squirrels. Eastern gray squirrels have also been introduced to Italy, and the European Union has expressed concern it will similarly displace the red squirrel from parts of the European continent.
Displacement of red squirrels
In the United Kingdom and in Ireland, the eastern gray squirrel has few natural predators. This has aided its rapid population growth and has led to the species being classed as a pest. Measures are being devised to reduce its numbers, including one plan for celebrity television chefs to promote the idea of eating the squirrels. In areas where relict populations of red squirrel survive, such as the islands of Anglesey and Brownsea, programs seeking to eradicate pest squirrels are in progress in an effort to allow red squirrel populations to recover.
Although complex and controversial, the main factor in the eastern gray squirrel's displacement of the red squirrel is thought to be its greater fitness and, hence, a competitive advantage over the red squirrel on all measures. The eastern gray squirrel tends to be larger and stronger than the red squirrel and has been shown to have a greater ability to store fat for winter. The squirrel can therefore compete more effectively for a larger share of the available food, resulting in relatively lower survival and breeding rates among the red squirrel. Parapoxvirus may also be a strongly contributing factor; red squirrels are fatally affected by the disease, while the eastern gray squirrels are unaffected but thought to be carriers. The red squirrel is also less tolerant of habitat destruction and fragmentation which has led to its population decline, while the more adaptable eastern gray squirrel has taken advantage and expanded.
Similar factors appear to have been at play in the Pacific region of North America, where the native American red squirrel has been largely displaced by the eastern gray squirrel in parks and forests throughout much of the region.
Ironically, "fears" for the future of the eastern gray squirrel arose in 2008, as the melanistic form (black) began to spread through the southern British population. In the UK, if a "grey squirrel" (eastern gray squirrel) is trapped, under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, it is illegal to release it or to allow it to escape into the wild; instead, it should be humanely destroyed.
As food
Gray squirrels were eaten in earlier times by native Americans. Today, it is still available for human consumption and is occasionally sold in the United Kingdom.
Hmm... still fairly short on length. Let's see if there' anything about flying squirrels that needs learning...
Flying squirrel
Flying squirrels, scientifically known as Pteromyini or Petauristini, are a tribe of 44 species of squirrels (family Sciuridae).
Description
Flying squirrels are not capable of powered flight like birds or bats; instead, they glide between trees. They are capable of obtaining lift within the course of these flights, with flights recorded to 90 meters (295ft). The direction and speed of the animal in midair is varied by changing the positions of its two arms and legs, largely controlled by small cartilaginous wrist bones. This changes the tautness of the patagium, a furry parachute-like membrane that stretches from wrist to ankle. It has a fluffy tail that stabilizes in flight. The tail acts as an adjunct airfoil, working as an air brake before landing on a tree trunk.
The colugos, Petauridae, and Anomaluridae are gliding mammals, which are similar to flying squirrels, because of convergent evolution. A few mammals can glide through the trees, but they do not actually fly (like birds and bats). They have a membrane of skin on either side of their body.
The Siberian flying squirrel ranges from the Baltic Sea in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east.
Prior to the 21st century, the evolutionary history of the flying squirrel was frequently debated. This debate was clarified greatly as a result of two recent molecular studies. These studies found support that flying squirrels originated 18–20 million years ago, are monophyletic, and have a sister relationship with tree squirrels. There are four hypotheses as to why gliding has evolved in mammals: economical locomotion, foraging optimization, evasion of predators, and control of landing forces.
Life cycles
The life expectancy of flying squirrels in the wild is about six years, but flying squirrels can live up to fifteen years in zoos. In the wild, flying squirrels are commonly eaten by predators, but in zoos, they are not subject to predation. The mortality rate in young flying squirrels is high because of predators and diseases. Predators of flying squirrels include tree snakes, raccoons, owls, martens, fishers, coyotes, bobcats, and feral cats. In the Pacific Northwest of North America, the Northern Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis) is a common predator of flying squirrels.
Flying squirrels are usually nocturnal, since they are not adept at escaping birds of prey that hunt during the daytime. Flying squirrels eat according to what kind of an environment they are in. They are omnivorous, and will eat whatever kinds of food they can find. The North American southern flying squirrel eats seeds, insects, gastropods (slugs and snails), spiders, shrubs, flowers, fungi, and tree sap.
Reproduction
The mating season for flying squirrels is during February and March. When the infant squirrels are born, the female squirrels live with them in maternal nest sites. The mothers nurture and protect them until they leave the nest. The males do not participate in nurturing their offspring.
At birth, flying squirrels are mostly hairless, apart from their whiskers, and most of their senses are not present. Their internal organs are visible through the skin, and their sex can be signified. By week five of their lives, they are almost fully developed. At that point, they can respond to their environment and start to develop a mind of their own. Through the upcoming weeks of their lives, they practice leaping and gliding. After two and a half months, their gliding skills are perfected, they are ready to leave their nest and are capable of independent survival.
Diet
Flying squirrels can easily forage for food in the night, given their highly developed sense of smell, where they harvest fruits, nuts, fungi, and bird eggs. Gliding conserves energy. Many gliders have specialized diets and there is evidence to believe that gliders may be able to take advantage of scattered protein deficient food. Additionally, gliding is a fast form of locomotion and by reducing travel time between patches, can increase the amount of foraging time.
Yeah... that'll be enough words to trick ya'll. Hugs and kisses. Oh, and I totally made a D&D character that was a squirrel. Kickass, huh?
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Your squirrel reminds me of this guy.
oi49.tinypic.com/11r42ld.jpg
Also, I notice that one of my changes isn't in the chapter. Are you catching on to my antics?
Squirrels are cool
2161922 I almost pooped myself laughing at that picture. Oh, and which change? Might have actually been an accident...
2162003 It was an undocumented change, look under the "Behavior" section for grey squirrels on the file I sent you.
2162006 I may or may not have deleted that email...
If you like squirrels, go read the webcomic El Goonish Shive
One of the characters is a squirrel-alien hybrid girl
2162020oi48.tinypic.com/t4tklc.jpg
I skipped right over the information on squirrels.
I hope the next chapter is about spikes dream!
SQUIRRELS!!!!
I can't help but think that Twilight is reading about Squirrels. The latter half of the chapter was essentially her dream.
This makes so much sense. One wrong word though:
Every so often, a quick movement would peak Luna's interest and cause her to right herself from her constant flips and spins
Peak should be pique
for some reason I can actually see Twilight dreaming about reading a book
in that kind of background also since she will completely force on the book so the surrounding doesn't matter
I found your information on squirrels to be rather enjoyable, hopefully we can collaborate on a book about the humble squirrel.
2163439 This is now canon.
Funny!
2163439
i thought the exact same thing too!!!1
What spawned the idea of doing squirrels as a "filler".
2161948 No, squirrels are fuzzy.
2162022 Sweet merciful god... I think I've heard of this. Is it related to this?
i2.photobucket.com/albums/y2/MaverickHunterZero/SquirrelGun.png
2162027 I have no freakin' clue on why I didn't see that. Seriously. With the way I usually do my edits you send me (save as your file, accept/reject your corrections, then copy paste to mine), it should've went through. I didn't even look at that section, so I have no clue...
2162037 You didn't realize that the No-Sea party was Nazi Party? Huh...
2162174 You monster! How DARE you! I put my heart and soul into that copy paste!
2162542 I confirm nor reject nothing.
2163181 Don't you
me. Do you even lift?
2163324 And that shall be our battle cry.
2163439 ...I... I... I can't even... wow. That's... honestly brilliant.
haterannotatorelectricboogaloo.blog.com/files/2011/07/freshmanandy-win-one-internet.jpg
2163442 Nope. Squirrels.
2163591 Really? Huh. I always thought it was "peak" because of the whole "mountain peak" means the tip top, and so I assumed to "peak one's interest", you are reaching the summit of the interest. Either way, you are right. Fixing!
2164152 Not going to lie, I had to read that comment five times to understand what it meant. Either way, have a derpy.
2164285 Squirrels are second only to Gummy on the pimp scale.
2164484 Seconded.
2164582 I hope so! That's the point!!
2165110 So thirded!
2165357
I often have dreams about really magnificently picturesque thunderstorm complexes that spawn elegant little EF0 rope tornadoes that I then chase after and poke with scientific curiosity.
I also dream about being in many buildings, most of which I have never seen before, which have either extraordinary intricacy in structural and aesthetic design (making me wonder how my brain even came up with them, since I can't draw them worth a damn afterward) or have bewildering and impossible architecture, often either surreal or antiquated and broken to the point where whole sections of floor and staircases are missing. And in the buildings, my brain creates all manner of narrative tales: from mere attendance at conventions, to chases, to sci-fi, to having a job doing something in them, to shopping for some hard-to-find item in a near-futuristic mall, to industrial espionage (had one of those last night in a MASSIVE corporate structure. The 2nd floor was some sort of executive suite with seriously posh and luxurious interior decorating... SERIOUSLY!! HOW DOES MY BRAIN MAKE THAT STUFF UP?!), and the 3rd floor seemed to be the kitchens and dining. And I was pretending to be looking for a bathroom as I crept through the back stairways... I asked the one executive who was sitting in a lounge chair on the second floor smoking a cigar. He bore a partial likeness to Tony Stark, now that I think of it, except with... an afro.. Geez, brain. WTF?!
Ah, and the dream of the luxury hotel a few weeks before that! The huge central, enclosed swimming pool area, with the coconut palms and other ornate plantings, the various balconies of the rooms jutting out overhead, hung with flowering vines, tilting inward slightly as they rose floor after floor until reaching at last the spectacular glass and steel dome lidding the top, the steelwork of artful craft, intricately designed in patterns like metal vines and branches, twisting and joining in a complex symmetry.
Oooo! And there are my travel dreams! Those often meld into other stories in my dream or are dreams of themselves. The scenery is always astonishingly beautiful, in whatever environment I'm in, it's always painted in such as way as to be 'perfect' in it's own way. Such as a dream in which I was traveling down roads in what was, ostensibly, part of the Pine Barrens of NJ (where I live) but different than any area I'd ever seen. It had the stunted trees, sandy paths, tough grasses, and sparse flowering plants... but instead of being sickly looking as often the Pines look, it was as if it was a work of art, arranged so that everything had something of a lonely beauty to it, even the typical small houses and struggling local shops.
Each travel dream is like that: the artful Americana of the old days, as if those idealized paintings had grown to encompass an entire region and come to life. Or not-quite-fantasy lands in Europe, melding forest and village and old city styles.
And the journeys through farm or woodland, (flat expanse, or rolling gentle hills, or craggy and mountainous) are simply spectacular. I cannot weave the words to properly describe them, as my memories can hardly hold the images of the fantastic scenes my mysterious mind has conjured. They have the richness of a scene described by Tolkien, in the dream I can almost feel the life within them. They feel so rich and vibrant, and somehow that tells me that they cannot be real. They are perfection, not flawless, but with each cracked stone and dead leaf and twig accenting and highlighting the loveliness.
And this doesn't even get into the oddities of my 'serial dreams', some of which can go years before the next incarnation, which I then remember from before! I will go to places I had been in dreams from a decade or more past, long forgotten in the foggy thoughts of waking morning, and suddenly recall everything as if it'd just happened.
An odd mind I have indeed, always creating things I've never seen, weaving the threads of whole unknown worlds every night and hundreds of people I've never met. If I could remember them all, I could fill a library shelf with all the stories.
*chuckles* Luna might enjoy my mind. It'd be like cable TV if every channel had something on worth watching.
One more comment: Squirrels... squirrels... SQUIRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEELLLLLSSSS!!!!
HATEHATEHATEHATEHATEHATEHATEHATE!!!
(Alondro has had much trouble with squirrels these past few years.... and deer..)
DEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRR!!!
2165415 Aaaaaaaand I read that entire thing. My eyes and brain hurt now.
I feel bad not saying more in response to all of that, but I seriously have no idea how to respond entirely to it. Oh well, I guess you'll have to live with the fact that you got an entire comment to yourself over yours, so kudos?
Oh, and you get a picture of my and my little brother. He's the bearded one.
oi51.tinypic.com/m8mob8.jpg
2165406 Reminds me of a song by Ray Stevens.
You are an evil mastermind.
2165406 NOT related to that manga at all. Though there are TF guns and other such stuff in 'El Goonish Shive'
2166337 It might be simpler to just give him a link to the comic, alongside a link to the TVTropes page so he can see what it's all about.
Problem: (Acer pseudoplatanus) L has the L outside the parenthesis
Oh, you troll.
GREY SQUIRREL IS BEST PONY.
i514.photobucket.com/albums/t342/damiano014/twilight__s_bookfort_by_tomdantherock-d5hrwyv_zps7db29857.gif
Filly Twilight in book fort is always relevant!
This chapter... i like it! I could honestly see this happening in the show, except twilight would read a book while having wings. On her back.
2165435 The imagery in my dreams is fascinating. I like to share it when I think about it. This story, being about dreams, kinda tied in.
2165501 Never heard of him, or at least I can't make the connection. I'm sorry
2166411 Except you already did this in the same blog post that I posted the Gibbers idea I think!
2166991 Overrulled, I copy-pasted that from Wikipedia. Don't care if that was properly proofread. If it isn't, then sue me!
2167097 No idea what you're talking about.
2167992 ...You obviously didn't get the point. The chapter itself (without the squirrel part) is about 2100 words long. I seriously doubt that a normal person would assume a 2100 word chapter would be a legit one. This is especially true when every single chapter before this has been about 5k-6k words long. The entire part with the squirrel was to not tip people off with just looking at the word count (before reading the chapter).
Plus... ya know... squirrels.
2168706 I have no arguments.
2168920 In the description:
She ain't an alicorn yet.
2169048 I see... carry on then!
2071170 YouTube Mississippi squirrel revival. Look for a guy in a red blazer jacket.
2171014 Actually, I'm pretty sure what I linked you before was Code Geass and Jojo's Bizarre Adventure. That one was El Goonish Shive.
2171014
I know that this takes place before season three, what i meant to say was that if this ever happened in the show twilight would probably have wings while reading the book in her dream. Get what i'm saying?
"geez Lisa, even your dreams are lame"
2175349 NNNEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRDDDD!!!
2176539
so that's what Twilight was reading in her dream
That was probably what Twilight was reading about.
Well, that was comletely pointless.
I thought, that with Twilight's dream being a white void, and her being incredibly smart, she would happen to be, I don't know, a master lucid dreamer? And using that to continue studying even when sleeping? And you could've exanded on Luna' experience being inside of somene's lucid dream....
Instead we get... squirrels
2352060 SCREW YOU MAN, SQUIRRELS ARE FUNNY TO WATCH!
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