Cool Wind in My Hair
A ghastly wind blew through the autumnally orange and brown leaves, dismantling many of them. They flew a short distance until the wind died and the leaves fell onto a dirt road. Two horse-drawn coaches crushed the leaves on the road as the coaches sped past them. A full, nightmarish moon hung in the sky, beckoning the ponies to their fate.
Only days before, Twilight and her friends each received an invitation calling for their presence at an archaic hotel on the outskirts of the capital, Canterlot. It had been there for years until it closed mysteriously several decades ago.
The invitations called for a dinner and a party, promising the guests the Canterlot elite, a Wonderbolt or two as guests, adorable little critters running wild, the most delicious apple-based treats in Equestria, and fun. These promises, among others, caught the attention of ten ponies from the small community; and they all made plans to go, even though it was on short notice. Besides, it was not like they had any plans that particular night; it was only Nightmare Night.
An excited Pinkie Pie bounced up and down in her seat, partially due to the road due to the road being as bumpy as her mane. She sat, sort of, in the middle seat, with Rainbow Dash to her left and Fluttershy to her right. Across from Rainbow Dash was Miss Derpy Hooves; and across from Fluttershy was Applejack, looking outside the window beside her seat. Since this was a formal dinner, all of the guests were dressed up for the occasion. Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and Applejack in this coach and Twilight, Rarity, and Spike in the coach leading this one were all dressed in their gowns they wore to the Grand Galloping Gala, complete with the pony-specific styled mane and tail. Derpy’s dress was a simply lightish red color.
"Wow!" Pinkie Pie yelled after she stopped vibrating, "I can’t believe we get to go to a fancy dinner in a spo-o-o-oky hotel."
Fluttershy’s brows jerked upward and she turned her head, lightly whispering, "Spooky? That doesn’t sound like fun at all."
"Fluttershy, don’t be such a buzz-kill," Rainbow Dash butted-in. "I can’t believe the Wonderbolts are going to be there! This is going to be awesome!" she shrieked.
"I don’t know," Applejack said, spooked by the lifeless woods around the road. She pulled her head from the window, "I heard some might awful things about that place."
"Like what?" Derpy inquired.
"Like how its haunted by ghosts, and how the only time any pony that goes in there heard from again is when their screams ring from the place."
A shivering Fluttershy had enough as she tried to open the locked coach doors. She was so distracted with her escape that she did not notice Pinkie Pie’s hooves slowly descending upon her until they were a mere inch from contact with her sides. Pinkie Pie then suddenly and quickly goosed Fluttershy while yelling, "Boo!"
Every pony in the front coach turned their heads as they heard a high-pitched scream come from the second coach. Spike, dressed in his tyke-sized tuxedo, turned to Twilight to his left, wrapping his arms around Rarity’s hoof to his right in the process, "What was that?"
"I think it was Fluttershy," Twilight replied.
Spike calmed down a little, saying, "So, it’s nothing then."
"Spike, that’s not nice," Rarity scolded.
"What? This is probably the first time she’s been out of her cottage on Nightmare Night in years."
Across from Twilight sat the fine leader of Ponyville, Mayor Mare, the most casually dressed, staring outside. Across from Rarity was the good Doctor Whooves, dressed in a tux, who also seemed to be distracted by the outside.
"Miss Mayor," Twilight said, catching the mayor’s attention and bringing it from wherever it was to here, "have you heard what kind of rumors surround the hotel?"
"Ah, yes, the ghost stories."
"Ghost stories?" Spike shivered, squeezing Rarity’s hoof tighter, "What kind of ghost stories."
Twilight laughed, "Don’t worry, Spike. They’re just ghost stories. They’re not true."
Mayor Mare looked outside and, up ahead in the distance, saw a shimmering light.