The Black Eyes of the Nightmare

"Goddammit!"

"What? What happened?"

"You're not gonna like it. The bracelet started to glow, and then it just...exploded."

"It...exploded."

"Do you even know what that means? That bracelet was the only thing that could resurrect Victor!"

"So that means...No! No! It can't be true!"

"I'm afraid it is. I warned him about this when he was alive, but he just wanted to go after her, no matter what. He should've learned to let her go..."

"But we needed her. He needed her, Twig."

"I'm sorry, but he's gone. We lost our hero..."

                                                                *                                *                               *

It's dawn in Equestria, and Celestia's sun is just about to crack through the sky. Victor is wide awake, lying on a bed in Fluttershy's cottage, who allowed him to stay along with Moon Fox. He recalls sleeping outside the other day because he didn't feel like bothering anyone about a place to stay, but Fluttershy insisted since she already had Moon Fox with her. Speaking of which, he can hear her soft snoring, considering they're sharing a bed. But the snoring was not the reason why Victor couldn't fall back asleep. He feels too happy to have his friend back.

He gets up, wearing a white shirt and shorts he keeps under his robes and looks at his mage robes, hanging on a chair at the other side of the room. He looks out the window, seeing only night. He leaves the room and takes a seat in the kitchen. Kinda hungry, he thinks.

"Oh, good. It's you," says a soft voice. Victor turns around and sees Fluttershy with baggy eyes.

"I couldn't sleep," answers Victor. "Sorry."

Fluttershy makes a long yawn. Victor's heart explodes from the cuteness. "It's okay. You could try going back to sleep."

"Nah. I'll just do something. Something quiet, at least." Fluttershy takes a seat next to Victor. "Aren't you gonna go back to bed?"

"In a little," says Fluttershy, sweetly. "I kinda wanna talk...if you don't mind that is."

Victor gets the feeling he's in trouble, and he knows what happens when you mess with Fluttershy. "About what?"

"It's about Moon Fox..."

Victor starts to get worried. "Did she do something?"

"Oh, no. It's just that, before you came, she was kinda hard on us at first."

"Oh, yeah. That thing with the Elements."

"No, not just that," corrects Fluttershy. "I just felt like telling you about that time I went looking for her, since you know her the most..."

"So what happened?"

Fluttershy yawns again. Victor starts to feel like he's the one responsible for her sleep deprivation, but is too busy having his heart explode, again. Man, is she adorable, he thinks. "Well," starts Fluttershy, "I went to the forest to look for her, even thought she said not to. I found her, and she strangled me with one of those tails."

"The tails always get to you," jokes Victor. "They're so scary. They're like a bunch of snakes ready to strangle you in an instant."

"So she nearly killed me, but then-"

"That bitch!" yells Victor has he slams his hand on the table. This startles Fluttershy, making her wide awake. She trembles with fear, and Victor notices. He feels bad and says, "Sorry. That bitch." He whispers the last sentence."

"So she spared me, like she spared Rainbow Dash. She did it because I wanted no conflict. After that, we've been secretly meeting each other, then Twilight got in it, and now everypony likes her because she saved the town from an Ursa Major."

"Wow, that's impressive. So why are you telling me this?"

"Because I want to know how YOU met the Moon Fox..."

Victor looks away from Fluttershy. He thinks, and keeps on thinking. He's not the best at remembering, but he tries to recreate when he first met the Moon Fox in his head. "Basically," he starts. "She saved my life."

"What happened?"

"I was about to get killed in a fight, and then everything went dark. I wake up, and she's treating my wounds. At first, she showed no emotional affection toward me. She always thought of me as a whiny kid because I couldn't stand all the work she put me through. And I'm talking about the training. It was an ordeal, Fluttershy, but she did it to make me a better fighter. She developed feelings for me as time passed and now we're friends."

"Sounds a little like my story."

Victor opens his yes wide. "Not sure," he says, "but I think I understand a little about Fox now. She makes you work for a relationship."

Fluttershy giggles. "Yeah," she agrees.

"Hey, Fluttershy."

"Yeah?"

Victor gazes at her teal eyes. They just melt him. "When I take Moon Fox back to Vremena, I'm gonna miss you. Sure, we've only just met, but someone, I mean somePONY like you who's so kind doesn't come very often. You eased up the tensions, and Fox is not seen as a rampaging monster, and all because you wanted to show kindness. Thank you."

Fluttershy realizes that now. She was the one who went after the Fox, while the others ran away. Instead of running from the beast, she went after it, knowing the consequences. "I did..." she mutters.

"And that's why you're my favorite pony," adds Victor. Fluttershy is confused at first, but then recalls when Victor explained the show scenario to them. She smiles, blushing. "Oh, and happy birthday." Victor spreads his arms. "Birthday hug?"

Fluttershy accepts. Instantly. She flutters her wings and zooms right into Victor's arms. Compared to his size, she's a large, stuffed animal. That's how it feels for Victor to hug all these ponies. Many of his friends are hug people, and there's nothing wrong with embracing the people you love. "You're gonna have to wait for the present, though," says Victor.

"Present? I thought two new friends were my presents." Victor and Fluttershy laugh, and Moon Fox miraculously sleeps through it.

"Y'know, the princessses and I are working on a portal for multiverse travel," says Victor. This intrigues Fluttershy, because she loosens her grip and stares blankly at Victor. "If it works, we could visit.

                                                                *                                *                               *

"SURPRISE!"

It's noon, and Celestia's sun is at its peak. Everyone pops out of a hiding place in Twilight's library. Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Rarity, Spike, and Moon Fox. The party starts strong. There's colorful decorations everywhere, Applejack made her apple cider, Pinkie helped with entertainment and sweets, and Rarity made some fancy-looking party hats for the occasion. Fluttershy scoots back, startled. Then she grows with joy.

"Oh my!" she says. "Thank you, everypony!"

"Told you it was a good idea to visit Twilight," says Victor.

"Let's get this party started!" shouts Pinkie Pie as she trots over to a phonograph, playing merry-like music. Victor recognizes the music as jazz. Pinkie Pie starts dancing on her two hind legs in beat to the music.

"Bring it on, Pinkie!" says Victor as he nimbly jumps to her and starts dancing, too. "I call this one the Firecracker!" He moves his feet at an increasingly rapid motion, and Pinkie can see sparks of electricity flying out. Victor then takes a leap, bursting with tiny sparks.

"Neat!" says Pinkie Pie, excited. Rainbow Dash and Applejack join in the dancing. Meanwhile, Twilight, Rarity, and Fluttershy have a small chat, while Moon Fox is leaning back on the wall, drinking some apple cider.

"Looks like we got another Pinkie in the house," teases Twilight.

"Uh, he's actually kind of quiet," says Fluttershy. "Last night, he just looked out the window. For an hour."

"That's odd," says Rarity.

"Fluttershy," says Moon Fox as she joins the group. She looks away, noticing Spike joined in on the dancing. "Victor's a dreamer. He likes to think about what he wishes to happen."

"But I thought he was happy," says Rarity, confused.

"True, but he doesn't have everything he wants. None of us do, but he can still be happy for others. He's not very pleasant in a bad mood. It's a teenager thing."

"How old is he?" asks Twilight.

"17. Maybe 18." Moon Fox looks back at the dancing. Victor is giving Pinkie Pie a ride on his shoulders, while Pinkle is laughing and waving her arms in the air. Victor steps in a beat in sync to the music to make it look like a dance. "He knows he can go from likable to horribly unpleasant in an instant."

"Y'know, he's not the only one who can be unpleasant," says Twilight. Rarity and Fluttershy laugh. Moon Fox chuckles a little.

"But doesn't it seem like we all have beast inside us?" suggests Moon Fox. "It gets loose when you can't keep it in its cage."

The rest of the party gets repetitive. Some talk, and some dance, but most importantly, the birthday girl is having a good time with her friends. Victor lights the last candle placed on a cake Pinkie baked especially for Fluttershy. This is one of the most magical moments, where all of her friends are all sitting together, waiting for her to take the first bite of that delicious cake so the rest can follow.

"You ponies know the 'Happy Birthday' right?" asks Victor.

"Well, we do. But I don't reckon it'll be the same yours," answers Applejack.

"Actually," says Fluttershy, softly. "I'd like to hear that one."

"And to spice it up, I'll sing it traditionally."

Victor takes a deep breath, and all the windows in the library are covered by curtains. The only light in the room is the glowing wax of the candles, flickering shadows everywhere. And so, Victor starts to sing:

Cumpleaños feliz,

Te deseamos a ti.

Cumpleaños, querido Fluttershy,

Cumpleaños feliz!

Moon Fox starts clapping, Spike slaps his clawed hands together, and the rest clop their hooves together. Victor's singing voice is strong, yet pleasant, and his friends loved it.

"That was...beautiful..." says Fluttershy, touched.

"Awesome singing, but what language was that?" asks Spike.

"That was Spanish. I can speak both English and Spanish," says Victor, then he starts to think. "Does Spanish exists around here?"

"I think I heard of it before," says Twilight. "Nonetheless, great singing!"

Fluttershy she forgot her cue to blow out the candles. The wax is starting to drip on the cake, so she inhales deeply and blows them all out at once. Applause ensues, and Fluttershy starts to blush.

"Fluttershy, darling, would you like to open your presents?" says Rarity, carrying a present for her with her magic.

Fluttershy looks at Victor, then says, "Not now. I'd like to say something first, if that's okay..."

"Of course it is, sugarcube! You're the birthday girl!" says Applejack.

Fluttershy clears her throat. "Um, I'd like to a few words on the Moon Fox and Victor, our very special guests." She stares at them deeply, not knowing where to start. Victor and Moon Fox stare back, wondering what she's going to say. "They both had a bumpy road to go through, but they were reunited here in Equestria. I'm blessed to have such strong and caring people as my friends, and knowing that you're both from another world gives me hope. Hope that we can all unite in peace and harmony."

Both Victor and Moon Fox are speechless. They look at each other. Fluttershy just poured her heart out to them, and they just don't know how to react. Victor only says, "Let's open those presents!"

Rarity gave Fluttershy a necklace with an emerald gemstone. Applejack got her an apple tree sapling so she can grow her own apples, and Twilight and Spike got her a board game to play when she had ponies over, or humans and foxes. For Rainbow Dash, she ran outside and everyone else followed.

"I couldn't wrap my present, because it's too AWESOME to be contained!" says Rainbow Dash.

Victor rolls his eyes. Typical Rainbow Dash, he thinks. Rainbow takes off into the sky and starts flying swiftly. She makes a giant loop, and an elastic becomes visible in front of her. She breaks through it, creating a Sonic Rainboom. The explosion sends an enormous gust of wind, but Fluttershy notices that Rainbow is not done yet. C'mon, Rainbow, thinks Victor. With a smirk, Rainbow Dash starts spinning and looping the air, leaving a rainbow behind her. She pulls off the jagged turns like Victor demonstrated, and when she's done, she lands right in front of her friends, feeling proud of her work. Fluttershy's mouth is wide open and she reads her own name in the sky, made of rainbow trails. "Way to go..." she says softly.

"Glad you liked it," says Rainbow Dash, feeling cocky. "Took me forever to get it right."

Victor chuckles. "Guess it's time to give you my present," he says as he walks toward a hollowed tree. He digs around in it, and by his surprise, finds a ball. "Pinkie Pie..." He tosses the ball out and keeps digging. He finds his present and gives it to Fluttershy.

Fluttershy tears the wrap open, and drops her jaw when she sees the picture Victor drew. It's her sitting on a bloomed tree. It's the first gift that makes her teary-eyed. She gazes at Victor, shedding tears of joy and says, "It's wonderful. Thank you."

"For being a good host," replies Victor. "And a reason for me to be happy."

Fluttershy jumps to Victor and hugs him. Victor is surprised by her grip. It's strong compared the hug he gave her at dawn. He struggles to hug back, but Fluttershy is trying to squeeze every ounce of love out of him. Victor falls on the ground, and Rainbow Dash yells, "Dogpile!"

"What?" shouts Victor.

Everyone but Moon Fox all dive on top of Victor, laughing and giggling while Victor tries to find light instead of fur coats. When they get off the pile, Victor hatches an idea. "Oh, Pinkie..." he says deviously.

"Yeah?" says Pinkie Pie. Victor leans toward her and pats her head.

"Tag." Victor runs away. Pinkie Pie laughs as she scouts for her victim. The atmosphere is filled with laughing and indistinct talking. Moon Fox looks at everyone playing around with a weak smile, until she feels something touch her shoulder. She turns around.

"Hey, Luna," she says.

"How are you today?" asks Luna, cheerfully.

"Really good, actually. The kids are playing."

Luna giggles. "Well, thou should meet me in the forest with Sister to discuss the project. Do you think it shall work?"

Moon Fox looks back at her friends. They're all still laughing and tossing each other around. She smiles as she turns her head back to Luna and says, "It has to."