Falling Into Shadow

"We're just so proud of you, sweetheart", Mom said putting down a heap of pancakes on the table. Twilight practically blanched at the sight of them, a second serving was far more than she was going to be able to handle.

Breakfast with the princesses promised master crafted food, with a side serving of awkward tension. Breakfast with her parents only came with servings of love, and more pancakes than she could eat. It was not a very difficult choice given how yesterday had gone.

"Mom, please...I really can't have another bite..." She weakly protested, placing her hoof on the plate and inching it away across the table.

Dad was on the other side, beaming nearly as brightly as Mom was. "You're still a growing mare! It's also great to have you home, too, now if we could get your brother and Spike to come by more often that would be perfect. Maybe we could even do some sort of vacation together!" Her parents were approaching retirement age, not that anyone ever really thought of it that way. They were getting older though, Twilight could see it in the faint gray hairs in their manes.

"That sounds great, Dad," and it did sound like a great idea, she'd went from being swept up in her magical studies to being in Ponyville. It was embarrassing to realize at the time that her friends knew nothing about Shining Armor until he was getting married. It was also embarrassing she didn't even know he was getting married herself, especially to Cadance! "Though maybe it would be easier if we all went to the Crystal Empire so Cadance could be there too?"

Mom nodded sagely at the logic, sitting down at the table for a change, though neither her or Dad's plate of food had really been touched. "We try and go up when we can, but running a whole city seems like a lot of work. And to think now you'll be running..."

The warm parental affection from her mother paused for a moment, as more genuine confusion seeped in. Twilight stepped in to provide the missing information. "Princess Celestia told me that it will take some time before I take on more...princess-like responsibilities, for now I suppose I'm the Princess of Friendship, but I'm sure she has something in mind for me."

"She better," Dad said, with a challenging tone and a grin. "If she's not careful, you'll be ruling all of Equestria before she knows it, with one hoof tied behind your back."

"Dad..." Twilight groaned, rolling her eyes at the over-enthusiastic dadding she was getting at the moment. Thank goodness nobody else was here to see something so mortifying. Her parents were far and away her biggest cheerleaders and never hesitated to tell anyone who was unfortunate enough to be caught in the crossfire. Fortunately it came with no expectations, they were just genuinely amazing, loving parents.

"Funny she didn't tell us that a few days ago," Mom mused, finally picking up a knife and fork with her magic to begin digging into her pancakes. It was only likely a few minutes before the syrup managed to completely soak through and render the cakes a soggy unappealing mess.

Twilight tilted her head slightly, brows furrowing at her comment. "'She'? Princess Celestia came here?" Celestia hadn't mentioned anything like that before.

It wasn't meant to be a secret, at-least, as neither Mom or Dad looked especially guilty. With Mom in mid bite of pancakes, Dad took up the conversation. "She came by to see how we were doing with you now being a Princess. She even asked if we wanted a guard detail, as if any bad guys would mess with us here in Canterlot." He laughed at the idea, which Twilight felt was perhaps a bit misplaced. The changelings had attacked not even a year ago, and there were other threats. Though it wasn't like guards were going to do much against a threat like Discord, or even changelings.

"She also told us you were talking to the new royal guard captain!" Her mother sing-songed her words to maximize embarrassment. "I remember Shining mentioning him, did you know that Flash Sentry was a candidate for the Wonder Bolts before joining the Royal Guard instead?" Mom practically squealed as the information, and though Dad had a protective roll of his eyes he hadn't voiced any complaints.

In other circumstances Twilight might have blushed and stammered out denials, which even she knew would only reinforce the perception that there was something to it. Instead of blushing, though, Twilight only felt a flash of...annoyance? It was a strange thing to feel on a topic like this. "No...I mean, I've spoken to him before, but Princess Celestia has it wrong, it's...not like that." There was no stammer, no blush, and her voice was firm enough that her mother snapped out of teasing to look more than a bit surprised.

"Oh really? By how Princess Celestia told it, we expected we might be having another wedding before the year was out." Mom laughed, even as Dad managed to finally sigh. "I'd like to at least meet him before he goes and tries to woo my princess, but you know how fast Pegasi like to take things."

"Dad..." Twilight groaned, and shook her head. "I really mean it, I don't even think he'd be my..." without realizing it a sudden and immense yawn came over her. With it came a bout of tiredness, which she'd been fighting to ignore all day so far.

Mom looked concern, as any parent would, putting down her fork from a bite she'd been about to take. "Are you tired, Twilight?" She asked, "You do look a little worn out."

"I didn't...sleep very much last night, that's all. I accidentally feel asleep in the afternoon and it threw everything off." Twilight admitted, sheepishly. The Plan had been to stay awake all day and then crash as early as was reasonable to do so. If she was already yawning this early it did not bode well.

Now Dad looked concerned, his lips pursed for a moment and he exchanged a look with Mom. "Well, your room is always ready, if you wanted to take a nap we're certainly not going to make you go back to the palace." He offered, smile quickly returning.

A nap. Princesses didn't take naps, Twilight didn't even take naps before she was a princess. No matter how...alluring they could be. She tried, and failed to stop another yawn before giving a moan of disgust with herself. "Okay, okay, I mean...I don't really have anything on my schedule anyway. A nap wouldn't hurt, thanks Dad, Mom. You're really the best..." She meant it too, standing up from the table and moving around to give each of them a great, big hug.

It was a short walk up to her bedroom, familiar steps she'd taken more times than she could count when growing up. Even after so long away, everything looked exactly the same. It was like her childhood home had stayed locked in time, and Twilight couldn't decide if it was because her parents were just genuinely happy with how things were, or had kept it this way for their children. It was probably the former, the latter thought was because she really was quite tired.

Her bedroom was a personal showcase of the Twilight of many years ago, from even before she'd been accepted into Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. Dolls lined the dresser, and endless numbers of books lined the bookshelves, there were a few posters of Celestia up on the walls...and Twilight suddenly wondered if the Princess had come into this room during her visit. She'd never live it down if she had, the possibility of death by mortification seeming very real.

Though Celestia hadn't mentioned she'd visited her parents to her, which was even stranger than her visiting in the first place. Princess Celestia never did things without reason, not as far as Twilight knew. She didn't know why she felt troubled about the news, but another yawn interrupted her thoughts and she dragged her protesting body into her bed. It was getting a bit small, but the mattress was still exactly how she liked it. Not too firm, not too soft, and she didn't even need to get herself under the covers to get comfortable.

Getting her head on the pillow brought on a sudden rush almost like vertigo, and the unusual sensation of actually falling asleep almost immediately. Twilight didn't decide to fight it at all, and let go of the last fleeting thoughts that were shielding her from unconsciousness.

There was a feeling of times passage to be sure, Twilight couldn't help applying a degree of analytical thinking even when sleeping. The cycles of sleep were passing every further towards rapid eye movement, which was where she 'awoke'. She was still in her bed, though that she was dreaming was obvious by the smudged out of focus quality that was apparent the moment she looked out the window.

"Are all of my dreams going to be where I fell asleep? I thought they'd be more...somewhere else." She groused, not even startled when she recognized the presence of another in her room.

Dream Walker was over by her bookshelf, browsing through the many options without having selected one. "Normally, but I thought it might be a good idea to have a talk. You're more upset with your mentor than you realize." His deep, smooth voice didn't hold any mocking within it this time. Instead, he sounded quite serious.

"I'm not mad at Princess Celestia!" She protested, rejecting the premise from her subconscious out of hand. "There's nothing wrong with her visiting Mom and Dad."

"You're lying to yourself, Twilight. That isn't going to work on me." Dream Walker pressed on, glancing behind him to level her with a aside glance. "She's setting you up, did she think you wouldn't notice? Shouldn't she have asked before she started to meddle?"

Twilight had started to shake his head before he'd even finished. "Celestia always has my-"

"Your best interest at heart?" Dream Walker cut her off, and now had turned fully to face her. He was frowning now, unhappy. "You know her duty is to Equestria, not just you. If the two were in the balance, which would she pick?"

"That isn't fair!" Now she was getting angry, unable to listen to him, herself, say such things about the princess. "I may not always understand what she intends for me to do, or my destiny but that doesn't mean she doesn't care about me! I'm sure she has a good reason for me to...well, whatever she wants for me and Flash Sentry."

Dream Walker rolled his eyes at her attempt to avoid saying it outright. "She's pairing you up. Mating you. You're not even a princess for a month and she's already arranging the marriage, Twilight. You didn't even know colts existed until two weeks ago."

"I...I did too, I just have been...busy doing other stuff. It's not like I haven't looked, or thought about..." Twilight flushed, and hurried herself out of bed. Laying down while having this conversation was making her feel weak. In fact, it felt wrong to even approach this subject in her childhood bedroom. Remembering that she was in control of her own dream was a welcome relief and distraction.

A simple wave of her hoof and the pair were quite suddenly pulled away from the cramped bedroom and left in a lush, green field of grass that stretched for as far as the eye could see. Perfect, a chance to be creative.

"Twilight..." Dream Walker began, "running away from this isn't going to make you feel better."

"I am not running away, I just want to do...something else while listening to you try and convince me that the Princess is evil." Endless green fields were nice to some degree but what it could really use was a nice river.

"I didn't say she was evil," Dream Walker retorted, watching as she focused a few paces away to their right as a river three pony lengths across split the ground and began flowing along as if it had been there for tens of thousands of years. The detail of the water within her dream was something to behold when she focused on it. It looked absolutely real.

After a few moments of not hearing more from Dream Walker, she tore herself away from the river she'd created. "You're making everything she's doing sound bad, you don't know why she wants me to be with Flash."

"And do you know? Why don't you ask her? In fact, why don't you tell her that you aren't interested, that he makes you feel uncomfortably close to the idea of dating your brother." The last part made her wince and squirm again, did he just have to keep bringing that up?

"M-maybe I'm just being nervous for no reason." She protested, sounding weak even in her own ears. "Princess Celestia is good at...at matchmaking like this, she's why Shining Armor and Cadance are together."

"Ah, so you are willing to admit you noticed that." Dream Walker sounded pleased, and began to walk a few paces off to the side. "There should be a few trees along the river, and maybe a few stones."

"Of course I noticed..." She affirmed, though part of her wondered if she was walking into some sort of trap. His suggestion was a good one though, and with focus sprouted up a couple happy little trees along the river. Tall ever pines, and gray lumpy boulders began to appear near their bases. "The river is too...straight," she muttered.

Dream Walker nodded along in agreement, and lowered his head enough so that his horn would point to a spot further up the stream. "If you raise the elevation, and put a particularly large boulder, you could justify bending it around. Or, you could let me help." He offered, chuckling lightly.

"I think giving my subconscious free reign to control my dreams defeats the point of being lucid within them, besides I know what sort of things you would do if you were in control." She narrowed her eyes at the stallion, who looked extraordinarily smug as both their minds inevitably were drawn to their first 'meeting'. Her bad mood allowed her to avoid feeling too embarrassed about it at the moment. "So, are you going to tell me how Shining Armor and Cadance being together was a bad idea?"

Dream Walker had chuckled at her first retort, and then only shook his head after. "No, no, they're clearly very happy together. Some ponies can afford to remain ignorant about how things happened, but you're not so lucky. Are you sure you'd remain happy knowing you're still Celestia's pawn?"

"I am not her pawn!" Twilight was once again protesting, almost automatically. Her hackles raised, she'd forgotten all about diverting the river and rounded on the ash gray stallion. "I'm her student! Her most faithful student at that! She trusts me, and I trust her."

"You didn't say she and you were equals, which is remarkable considering she made you into a princess. She says you're equals, and wants you to use just her name." Dream Walker was good at arguing, which hardly was surprising to Twilight at this point. Was this really how she felt beneath the surface?

"It was just...sudden, okay? It's going to take some time to get used to being a princess. I get comfortable with something, and it's tough to change." Her ears had drooped at the admission, and her stomach felt tight and heavy. "But...each time she shows me something new, it ends up being great."

"Except this time," Dream Walker said, though not without some sympathy. He'd walked over to her and placed his hoof on her shoulder. "It felt wonderful to realize you had your cutiemark, and to learn so many new things...and once you realized your connection to your friends, you never stopped loving them. This time...it feels different doesn't it?"

He was too damn good, and Twilight didn't shove him away. "Yes...Nothing changed, and everything changed too. I could get used to it though, I think it's just...realizing she's already preparing for another change, that must be why I'm especially upset."

"You should tell her then, how you feel. She'll respect you more, if you want to be her equal you should act like it." That sounded like good, solid advice. He dropped his hoof from her shoulder, and was smiling warmly at her.

She faltered, unsure of herself and his suggestion. "You really think so?"

His nod was absolute in its confidence. "Without scouring through your memories, I'm quite certain one of those many friendship lessons you've sent her way had something to do with the importance of not just letting yourself get pushed around. Especially if it leaves you unhappy, would Celestia really do something she knew made you upset?"

Dream Walker had her there, and though Twilight chewed her lower lip in apprehension about effectively going against her teacher, her mentor, she couldn't think of any counter argument against the argument. "Okay...I'll go talk to her about it."

"Wonderful," Dream Walker said with a touch of enthusiasm, his handsome face still exuding that warm smile. "Before you end your nap, there was something else I'd like to talk to you about. I had an idea that might be worth bringing up with Celestia, while you're speaking about the other thing."

Twilight hadn't immediately went to Princess Celestia after waking up from her nap. It had seemed like a good idea to give it some time, to carefully consider the suggestion Dream Walker had made. Her subconscious was being...odd, in a way that contradicted itself in how perfectly logical and illogical her experiences had been. Three times now, and every meeting with this supposed idealized stallion had been different.

He felt real, distinct, separate from her and yet she could also see how he was formed to reflect whatever was currently on her mind. Wasn't that how dreams and her subconscious were supposed to go? He was clearly intelligent, yet how he spoke and approached concepts felt almost alien to her. Was her mind really so powerful that it could generate a stallion with such a 'not her' personality while actively speaking to it at the same time?

While she did her best not to be too self conceited, Twilight knew she was highly intelligent. This seemed to the next level, though, maybe it had something to do with becoming an alicorn? There were so many questions, but reality was refusing to give her the space to really think. Her emotions were all over the place, and she missed her friends.

It was nearly time for dinner, Twilight had dawdled away her afternoon re-reading the same research material she'd already been failing to properly absorb for the better part of three days. Her mind consumed with so many other competing ideas, what was one more?

Now though she had been idling in the hallway which led to Princess Celestia's private study and office. Fortunately the honor guard were just outside, and thus couldn't witness Twilight pacing back and forth, nervously considering whether she should simply turn around and leave.

Just as she had committed, for the forty forth time, to knock on her mentors door, it opened. Celestia popped her head out, looking directly at Twilight with a face filled with confusion. "Twilight, I've felt you out here for almost twenty minutes. Is something the matter?"

Finding new reason to be embarrassed, Twilight let out a rather undignified squeak of alarm at being 'caught'. "N-no! I mean, well It's just...I did want to speak to you about something." As though that wouldn't be plainly obvious already.

Princess Celestia's confused look dissipated into one of more general concern. "Of course, Twilight. Come inside, I don't have to tell you that you've always been welcome to see me whenever you like. I'd make time for you even if we were being invaded by dragons." The doors to her office swung open, wide, and Celestia was beckoning her in with a sweep of her majestic, white wings.

"I'm pretty sure you'd be a little busy if it were dragons..." Twilight tried to quip, offering a sheepish, awkward smile. The office was simply enormous, so big that it worked very well for private magical lessons just between the two of them. This wide open office, with a desk far across on the other side, had always felt warm and friendly to her.

Now though, it felt like she was in trouble, which was ridiculous on its face. Celestia walked right beside her, though guiding them both off to the side where an assembly of couches waited. They weren't going to the desk, fortunately. "If the problem was big enough that you'd want to speak during an invasion, I think the dragons could wait." Celestia chuckled, the somewhat silly conversation doing its best to avoid the awkwardness Twilight felt. Once at the couches, Celestia took the largest one clearly meant for her and laid upon it. "Now, what's on your mind, my most faithful student?"

Here we go, the deep water all at once.

"I wanted to first talk about...well, Captain Sentry," using a more formal title helped to detach from the guard in question.

To her credit, Princess Celestia must have realized the topic was quite serious given its lead up and so didn't go for lighthearted teasing as Twilight had initially worried she might.

"Oh? And what about our new Royal Guard Captain, Twilight?" She asked, as good as Twilight had gotten over the years in reading her mentor her attempt at being casual was feigned. She had the Princesses complete attention.

Twilight took a nervous swallow and steeled her courage. "I...know you visited my parents not long ago and...told them about well, the idea of me and him maybe being...romantically involved. B-but I'm pretty sure I really am not interested."

In all her many years, this was as close as she had ever gotten to 'calling out' Celestia. It felt like an immense betrayal all the same.

"Why, Twilight." Celestia looked quite genuinely surprised. She had even sat up straight from lounging. "I am sorry if I gave any indication I was...pushing you for something you were uncomfortable with."

"It's okay," Twilight definitely wanted it to be okay. "I just...being a new princess is...a lot to deal with on its own."

Celestia nodded in agreement. "I'm quite certain it is. I was also happy to have heard you might be interested in finding 'romantic involvement' as you put it, it can be a wonderful thing. Though that is only if you want to...we can talk about it more if you like."

"N-no! That's okay!" Twilight was suddenly alarmed at the notion she might have anything close to 'the talk' with Celestia.

"Are you sure?" she pressed, one of her eyebrows arching in mild surprise. "To make one thing more clear. When I spoke to your parents they were quite interested in how things have changed since your ascension." Celestia allowed a quite sudden smile and warm chuckle. "Anything they may have said to you may have been more wishful thinking and imagination on their part. I'm sure they are just hoping for more grandfoals than just from your brother and Cadance."

Twilight felt her face burn, suddenly realizing this could have all been one terrible misunderstanding. "O-oh," was her only reply at first. Though there has to be more to say, surely. "I just worried that..." she trailed off in a mumble, feeling trapped from her own rashness to confront something that didn't appear true after all.

"What were you worried about?" Celestia wasn't going to let it drop so simply, even tilted her head to side to make the question seem more innocuous.

It still sounded ridiculous to say out loud, especially given the insinuation of wrongness that lay behind it, but Twilight could hardly turn away from elaborating on how she felt. "I suppose...I had been very happy being your faithful student, and being with my friends. I never realized you had...more things in mind for me, becoming a Princess, and a full alicorn. A-and being a princess is great! It's wonderful, really. It's just that being here, I'm not sure what you..." She paused, seeing sudden concern and a frown written all over Princess Celestia's face as she spoke. "I mean, what might be coming next for me. What I'm a princess even of. Also then...well, this colt just appears, and he's cute and nice but...it felt like everyone knew what was supposed to happen next, except me! I remember how...you helped Cadance and Shining Armor get together, and they're so happy and perfect together, yet I just...I don't know, I suppose there must be some greater destiny for me but I just wish I understood what it-"

"Twilight, I understand," Celestia cut her off finally, raising a hoof and speaking in a tone that was both soothing and clearly filled with more than a little sadness. "This is entirely my fault for leaving you in the dark for so long my faithful student. I am also sorry if it appears that I am in anyway pushing things upon you, or manipulating you. It's true, I did see from the beginning that your brother and Princess Cadance might fall in love and I helped ensure that they had that chance. Yet it was only that, a chance, their situation is entirely of their own choosing, as is yours. Your destiny has always been within your own hooves, Twilight Sparkle. I would never choose it for you, you ascended as a princess because you were worthy of it."

Twilight felt immense relief to hear those words from her mentor, it was all the reassurance she had been seeking. For a moment it was like a very heavy weight had lifted itself from upon her shoulders and she physically sagged into her own couch cushion as tension left her. Though it came back quickly, a small knot still in the pit of her stomach. "I would like to go be with my friends again." She quietly said, chewing her bottom lip in seeking for approval from Celestia.

The Princess was only too happy to give it, nodding with a wistful smile on her face. "I understand, and you have always been free to see them and be with them whenever you like. I did enjoy your time here in Canterlot, but I didn't imagine I could keep you for very long."

That could have been that, and there could have been an easy return to normalcy, the weight was still off of her and she was free! Yet, her mind drew back to Dream Walker, and his suggestion...her subconscious suggestion. "I don't want to...stop learning how to be a princess though, that's why I didn't want to leave sooner." Celestia had been about to speak in reply, but Twilight decided in a moment that it would be better to simply say her idea than to draw it out. "I think I should become Princess of Ponyville!"

Where Celestia had been completely at ease, she looked rather startled at the idea. Her eyes drawing in a mix of confusion as well as curiosity that Twilight almost took as suspicion. "And why would you want to do that, my faithful student?" The warm, caring tone was subdued in place of something much nearer to being guarded.

Still, much like before there was no backing down once committed. "W-well, I thought that it could let me, well, practice at how to be a princess by administering the town while also being near my friends. That way I don't feel like I'm...well, not taking being a princess seriously."

Celestia now looked thoughtful, and even allowed herself a moment to rub her chin with a hoof. She was clearly taking the notion seriously, carefully considering the request. "Being a princess and being an administrator are not...always the same thing, of course. However, given how talented you are I don't think that's an altogether unreasonable idea."

Twilight was still waiting, half holding her breath in while watching Celestia slowly work her way through considering it. She had balked at the notion when Dream Walker first proposed it, pointing out how Ponyville already had a mayor, who seemed to do her job perfectly well. Dream Walker was persuasive, though, appealing to how much good she could do if she took a more active role in improving everyone's lives. Wasn't that what a princess should do if she were able?

"Alright," Celestia finally nodded, though she was no longer smiling quite so warmly. "I think that is something I can arrange, for tomorrow even so that you can return to your friends as quickly as possible. You will become the Princess of Ponyville, which will make you quite unique and the envy of the nobility I might add." Celestia wryly chuckled for a moment, glancing away with a far off look. "I spent hundreds of years slowly prying land from their control, you will be the first pony I will have granted a fiefdom to in well over a millennia. In fact, now that I think about it, you will be my only direct, landed vassal in all of Equestria."

Put in such terms, it sounded like Celestia was granting quite a lot now. Twilight's eyes had gone wide, trying to digest the breach of tradition she had just managed to do. "I-I didn't realize that I was asking that much." She began, wondering if it was even possible to backtrack.

"No, no, if I were to do such thing, you can be sure you would have been the first pony I would have thought of." Celestia chuckled, the smile back and fairly warm. "Apart from finding that elected and meritorious civil servants generally perform better, I mostly became tired of the endless ceremonies of granting land and receiving fealty. We'll have to dig out the etiquette books, they may even be in a museum somewhere. I'm sure that Proper Form, the Canterlot Palace's Master of Ceremonies will be thrilled, he's always been a fan for overly stuffy events like this."

They'd chatted pleasantly for hours, it was honestly up there on the list of 'all time greatest talks with the princess' and might be even placed in the top ten. They'd meandered through topics of Celestia's past ruling Equestria, what Twilight make expect as Princess of Ponyville and other more light topics. By the end, Twilight had wondered why she had ever felt nervous about talking to Celestia about her feelings and idea.

But now it was getting late, and Twilight was feeling positively giddy in anticipation of the future. Tomorrow there would be the formal ceremony, and then after that packing to return back to Ponyville to see all her friends! She was almost skipping as she entered her bedroom and did the necessary routine of preparing herself for bed.

All the stress of the day, and its following relief had also left her tired enough to make drifting off to sleep easy. The comfort of her pillow and the softness of her mattress was about all it took before she was descending once more into restful slumber.

"You have so many reasons to celebrate, and your only thought was to get some sleep?" A deep, self amused male voice spoke up from behind her.

Twilight opened her eyes to discover she was no longer in her own bed. Instead she was standing, with a breathtaking sight before her. She was atop an incredibly high towering spire, with a bright and vibrant city lit up below the night sky. The city stretched out in every direction, with the tower at its center. The sky above was filled with twinkling stars, in the dream world no amount of light pollution from below could cause them to dim.

Dream Walker was standing there behind her, wind softly blowing part of his dark black mane. At his side was a table with an expensive looking meal complete with candles and, of all things, a wine bottle in a bucket of ice.

Twilight burst out into laughter at the sight, turning to more fully look at the stallion. "You can't possibly be my subconscious, don't you know how ridiculously cliche that is?"

Rather than getting upset, or even blushing, Dream Walker glanced at the table and then gave a grin. "Cliches are that way for a reason, they're fitting. Even if you don't drink, the advantages of being in a dream is that it can taste however you want."

Twilight only rolled her eyes and returned to looking over the ledge of the tower they were perched upon. "What is all this?" she motioned towards the city.

"You don't recognize your creation from early today?" Dream Walker chuckled, joining her at the edge. "True, we only had just finished the landscape, so while you were busy with things I decided to finish it. A bursting metropolis is quite a bit better than an empty field don't you think?"

"I suppose it makes sense, now that I'm going to be ruling Ponyville myself. Is this some sort of...reflection on what I want to turn it into? Ponyville is kind of nice as a small...well, little village." Twilight tilted her head slightly, somewhat puzzled at where her subconscious was taking her.

Dream Walker looked her way, quirking an eyebrow. "That's surprising, and here I assumed you were a pony of progress. Scientific, as well as life advancement."

"I don't really know what kind of ruler I'm going to be, there's so much I don't know yet." Twilight admitted, now looking down upon 'her' city. The lights were enough to let her pick out individual details, tiny specks of shadow moving about must have been ponies going about their lives even at night. It wasn't easy to hear anything though, only the wind could be heard whipping itself past her ears.

The stallion next to her let out a low sigh, and turned to walk back towards the table. "We can talk all about that, are you sure you don't want to enjoy a nice romantic dinner under the starry night sky?" He said, his voice filled with smoothness and charm.

Twilight turned back to look at Dream Walker, he was already lifting the bottle of wine up with magic and uncorking it. "And waste a night of dreaming when I could be doing something more amazing? I'd much rather look at the stars up close."

It was actually rather entertaining to see Dream Walker's face fall and a scowl actually form on his lips and by the creases around his eyes. It did a lot to add to the illusion that he even could disagree with her or display emotions like this. "I take that to mean you don't want me to accompany you, either."

"Well, you certainly could do that," Twilight quipped, and made a point of spreading her wings. They'd felt stiff before, she'd hardly been using them lately in the real world or her dreams. Now stretching them out felt remarkably good. "But I'm afraid you're not fully equipped..."

Dream Walker snorted, and it was his turn to roll his eyes. "This is your universe, Twilight Sparkle. You can explore it however you wish." Was his stiff reply, sounding displeased.

She paused for a moment, and then walked over to him. "I really do want to thank you though," she said, softening her voice and smiling at him gently. "Imaginary or not, you really did help me through my issues today. I'll be sure to come back here to talk to you in the future if I need help and there's nopony else I can talk with."

He nodded, accepting her thanks. "You may want to consider coming to me sooner than that, there's no one else you can be assured of more confidence with than speaking to yourself you know."

"That's true." Twilight was smiling wider now, confident that things were on an upwards trajectory for a change. "It's just a bit weird, something I need to get used to. Like being a princess, actually. I hope you have a good night, Dream Walker. I've got a date with the stars though."

Dream Walker gave no reply, as Twilight was instead craning her head upward. She tensed her legs as she set her wings up and then flapped down at the same time that she jumped. Even in the real world she would have taken off into the air doing that, but in her dreams she might as well have been a rocket. Instantly she was propelled at near super-sonic speed, the gentle night wind giving way to the absolute silence of space.

Her dreams adjusted to her new perspective and desires, and much like the previous visit with Dream Walker the kaleidoscope of space and its many impossible beauties were laid out before her. This time though she seemed to have all the time in the world to enjoy it by herself. Twilight would find herself in the morning more rested, and at peace with the world than really any time she had known. The future looked bright.