A Dream and a Nightmareby ThisGuyReviewsPoniesChapters1: The Checklist2: Survival Priorities3: Caretaker/Shelter4: Hope and Magic1: The ChecklistPersonally, I like Tuesdays. It seems like such a cool day. There's Taco Tuesdays and Ruby Tuesdays, and it just SOUNDS cool. Say it. Tuesday. It's awesome. And, to top it off, it's the third day of the week. Tertiary Tuesday! But, today was no ordinary Tuesday. Not at all... It started normal. Woke up, ate, went to school, ate lunch, came home, bummed around on the couch for a couple of hours... it was nice. After all of that was over, I took a shower and went to bed. Overall, a good day. I stared at my clock. 9:23 PM. "Man, these nights never seem to end..." I mumble to myself. I turned to my headboard. About fifty books filled the bottom, and a line of pony figurines, a rock, a swirly stone from HomeGoods, and a glass dolphin lined the top. I smiled. "I like you guys..." I whispered, directed at the pony figurines. They seemed to be one of my ports for sanity. "Meh, I'll see them tomorrow anyways." I looked back at the wall, before drifting to sleep. As I woke up, something seemed off. I mean, WAAAAAAAAAAAAAY off. I lifted my head and looked around. I'm in a pastel colored forest...? I thought. And everything seems... 2D. I lifted myself up to get on my feet, only to fall on my face. Something was wrong, that's for sure. I retaught myself how to stand in a nutshell, and it was still difficult. I turned around, only to see an extra pair of legs. Orange legs. Orange hooves? Waaaaait... I took a mental step back. Alright. Alternate reality check. ...Hey, don't judge. I come prepared. I paused as I recited the checklist in my head. Step one... dream test. Having no other option, I slammed my head into the ground, to be greeted with my good 'ol friend, pain. Let's see... If the dream check is negative, proceed to step two. Step two, species and appearance... I looked around before finding a convenient puddle a couple of feet away. I stumbled my way over, and looked down upon myself. Species? Pony, for sure. Subspecies if applicable... I looked at the reflection, noticing a horn on top of my head. Unicorn. Coloration differences... Orange body with a... yellow mane. Eye color, blue. I jumped to the MLP section of the checklist. Umm... Ah! Cutie Mark, if applicable... I adjusted my body to see my flank. Nothing. Let's see... In case of blank flank, take extra precaution to avoid the CMC. I shuddered at the thought of being stuck with the band of misfits. Ugh. Anyways, next is fake name... I looked around for inspiration. I looked at the ground, observed the horizon, gazed at the stars-- Wait. Gazed at the stars. Star Gazer. Perfect! I liked looking at the stars, and it had a nice ring to it. Now, it's time for my survival priorities. It was... Caretaker/shelter, and then food/drink... I think. I looked around again. I think this is... White Tail Woods. So, if I remember the map right, the nearest town is... I pause. "The nearest town is Ponyville." Author's Note Man, this chapter is long! At least, for my standards. I'm used to writing in a 19pt Arial. and the text here is so small... Also, the beginning credits lied. Mail won't be established in this chapter, but later in the story. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Also also, these A/N lied. The beginning credits don't exist. -TGRP 2: Survival PrioritiesAs I made my way to Ponyville, tripping frequently, I kept asking myself questions. Nothing special, just things like "How will you greet them?", "Where will you stay?, and "When you meet them, will you faint?" The answers were: Hoofshake, with Twilight (or Fluttershy, if the former disallows), and hopefully not. Once Ponyville was in sight, it looked as glorious as the show down to the dirt. Seriously. The dirt looked good. And that's saying something. Anyways, as I walked (or trotted, rather) into Ponyville, miscellaneous ponies stared at me as I passed by. I don't see how this is unusual. I'm just a colt. Traveling through a town. Alone. With no friends. Okay, I see how this is strange. In the distance, the Treecastle was visible, giving off so many lens flares, that even LittleshyFiM would be proud. Wait, how can I see lens flares? Can't you only see those through cameras? Ehh, maybe I'm just too used to looking at it as a show. Anyways, as I neared the Treecastle, I became more and more ecstatic. I'm going to meet the ACTUAL Twilight Sparkle! Oooh, this is so exciting! I thought. I locked onto the doors (which, by the way, were huge) and knocked. I wonder who's gonna greet me. A guard? Spike? Maybe another one of the Ma-- My thinking was cut off as the doors slowly opened. Behind it, sat the ever-so-anticlimactic Twilight, the one and only Princess of Friendship. She looked around for a moment, before looking down. I let out a soft "eep" as she spotted me. I cleared my throat, and spoke. "Hi there! My name is... oh yeah! My name is Star Gazer. I'm kinda lost, and have nowhere to go. Do you mind if I stay here?" Twilight tilted her head. She responded by speaking... gibberish...? I thought that English was the universal language. For books and TV, anyways. I tried again. She spoke gibberish again. I figured that this was getting nowhere. I looked around for some sort of gesture. Suddenly, very over-conveniently, a family walked by, child included. I looked back at Twilight. I pointed at the family, then back to myself, then shook my head to try and signal that "I have no family." It worked. Author's Note Nngh, sorry if this chapter made no sense. I'm just trying to hit the 1k word mark. Anyways, leave feedback in the comments! -TGRP 3: Caretaker/ShelterAfter Twilight got my "hint" that I didn't have a family (in this world, anyhow), she took in a breath to speak... Then she connected the dots. If she couldn't understand me, it was probably vice versa. She had no way to communicate to me verbally. Great, how will she tell me wha--. I paused as she started waving her hoof inward. Gestures? I guess that works... I nodded, and slowly trotted inside, hoping not to be confronted with objections. I looked back, and she was closing the door. Phew. I let her go in front of me to lead. She looked at me to make sure I was following, and then she started walking. I admired the sheer amounts of crystal contained in this castle. It was... freezing. I had to move semi-quick, but make sure not to go in front of Twilight. Finally, we approached some more giant doors. Using her magic, she opened them with ease. Hmm. I wonder if I can use magic yet... I was greeted with the giant throne room, Golden Roots and all. My mouth was gaping open. The roof, the thrones... even the Cutie Map. Not active, but still there. Wait, where did Twilight go? I looked around until I saw her in a hallway on the left. I remember that. That's the hallway where Applejack and Fluttershy were pushing an obscure box in the second Equestria Girls. It probably was sent to Pinkie's Void. Down the hallway were many, many rooms that we couldn't see in the show. I kept walking, back to admiring the crystal, when I bumped into the side of Twilight. She had stopped, and was turned toward one of the doorways. I stepped back, and looked at the doorway. Twilight nudged me towards it. I paused. All of this was expected up to now. What's in this doorway, only Celestia, or Twilight, may know. Twilight nudged me again. Now or never. I stepped inside... ...to be greeted by a moderately sized bedroom. I gotta be honest, it's pretty nice. It had a bed with one of those canopy things, a dresser with a lamp, and another dresser for just storage. It was kinda like Twilight's room in the Crystal Empire from EqG 1. I looked back at Twilight, who was smiling. I smiled back, and went over and flopped on the bed. I glanced at the doorway, and Twilight was gone. Time to think out loud. "Today has been a long da-- er, night. Wait, how did all of these contrived conditions come together like this? It's like something written by M.A. Larson. Or a bad fanfic. Either way..." I mumbled to myself. I yawned, and decided it was to turn in. I got under the covers, and soon went to sleep. In Ponyville. This has to be a dream... But I'm not complaining. Author's Note Finally, I have the words to publish this fic! HUZZAH! Also, you may be wondering what "Pinkie's Void" is. Basically, it's where Pinkie grabs her random objects out of nowhere from. If Pinkie grabs a large crate out of nowhere in a future episode, I called it. 4: Hope and MagicAs I awoke, I expected to be greeted with a looped song of Fox Stevenson. But, instead, I was greeted with silence and a headache. And a paper laid on my face. Scratch that, a scroll on my face. Using my hoof, (which, by the way, is super hard to use to maneuver after you're used to arms and legs), I pushed the scroll off of me. After doing another dream check, a thought struck me like a brick to the face. Oh, crap. If I'm not home by the time my mom wakes up, she'll have a metaphorical heart attack! Or a real one, I dunno. Either way, it worries me. I'm just gonna hope time isn't 1:1, and move on. I got out of bed and on my hooves. Still hard. At the moment, two thoughts were on my mind. One: can I use magic, and two: how long until morning at home. I decided to investigate the latter first. Going with the assumption that a day here was equal to half an hour on Earth, I did some quick mental math, and figured out that I had about 42 days to stay in Equestria. And no, this isn't a Hitchhikers Guide reference. I actually did the calculations. So, about one and a half months? I can deal until then. Now, can I use magic? The first spell I wanted to learn was levitation, for ease of access. I remembered reading something about using levitation from a fanfic. Let's see... Imagine your aura wrapping around the target object, and then imagine maneuvering it as if it were in your hooves. I'm gonna replace "hooves" with "hands", and call it good. My target object was the scroll I knocked off of my face. Step one, envelop with aura. I imagined grabbing the scroll with my hands. As I tried, I noticed an aura going on and off. A sub-mission I had was figuring out the color of my magic, which apparently was a dark navy blue. I focused. Use your hands and pick it up, dammit! After maybe fifteen minutes EST (Equestria standard time), I finally got my aura to hold on to the scroll. Crossing my imaginary fingers that nothing explodes, I slowly drew the scroll toward me. It came, and nothing exploded. I couldn't believe it. I could use magic. Carefully unraveling the ribbon thing that kept the scroll in a roll, I took a peek at it's contents. Gibberish symbols. Whoop de Daring Do. Author's Note Well, this is weird. I actually had a plot planned for this chapter, but I got drawn in by the whole magic thing. That'll wait until next chapter. -TGRP
1: The ChecklistPersonally, I like Tuesdays. It seems like such a cool day. There's Taco Tuesdays and Ruby Tuesdays, and it just SOUNDS cool. Say it. Tuesday. It's awesome. And, to top it off, it's the third day of the week. Tertiary Tuesday! But, today was no ordinary Tuesday. Not at all... It started normal. Woke up, ate, went to school, ate lunch, came home, bummed around on the couch for a couple of hours... it was nice. After all of that was over, I took a shower and went to bed. Overall, a good day. I stared at my clock. 9:23 PM. "Man, these nights never seem to end..." I mumble to myself. I turned to my headboard. About fifty books filled the bottom, and a line of pony figurines, a rock, a swirly stone from HomeGoods, and a glass dolphin lined the top. I smiled. "I like you guys..." I whispered, directed at the pony figurines. They seemed to be one of my ports for sanity. "Meh, I'll see them tomorrow anyways." I looked back at the wall, before drifting to sleep. As I woke up, something seemed off. I mean, WAAAAAAAAAAAAAY off. I lifted my head and looked around. I'm in a pastel colored forest...? I thought. And everything seems... 2D. I lifted myself up to get on my feet, only to fall on my face. Something was wrong, that's for sure. I retaught myself how to stand in a nutshell, and it was still difficult. I turned around, only to see an extra pair of legs. Orange legs. Orange hooves? Waaaaait... I took a mental step back. Alright. Alternate reality check. ...Hey, don't judge. I come prepared. I paused as I recited the checklist in my head. Step one... dream test. Having no other option, I slammed my head into the ground, to be greeted with my good 'ol friend, pain. Let's see... If the dream check is negative, proceed to step two. Step two, species and appearance... I looked around before finding a convenient puddle a couple of feet away. I stumbled my way over, and looked down upon myself. Species? Pony, for sure. Subspecies if applicable... I looked at the reflection, noticing a horn on top of my head. Unicorn. Coloration differences... Orange body with a... yellow mane. Eye color, blue. I jumped to the MLP section of the checklist. Umm... Ah! Cutie Mark, if applicable... I adjusted my body to see my flank. Nothing. Let's see... In case of blank flank, take extra precaution to avoid the CMC. I shuddered at the thought of being stuck with the band of misfits. Ugh. Anyways, next is fake name... I looked around for inspiration. I looked at the ground, observed the horizon, gazed at the stars-- Wait. Gazed at the stars. Star Gazer. Perfect! I liked looking at the stars, and it had a nice ring to it. Now, it's time for my survival priorities. It was... Caretaker/shelter, and then food/drink... I think. I looked around again. I think this is... White Tail Woods. So, if I remember the map right, the nearest town is... I pause. "The nearest town is Ponyville." Author's Note Man, this chapter is long! At least, for my standards. I'm used to writing in a 19pt Arial. and the text here is so small... Also, the beginning credits lied. Mail won't be established in this chapter, but later in the story. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Also also, these A/N lied. The beginning credits don't exist. -TGRP
2: Survival PrioritiesAs I made my way to Ponyville, tripping frequently, I kept asking myself questions. Nothing special, just things like "How will you greet them?", "Where will you stay?, and "When you meet them, will you faint?" The answers were: Hoofshake, with Twilight (or Fluttershy, if the former disallows), and hopefully not. Once Ponyville was in sight, it looked as glorious as the show down to the dirt. Seriously. The dirt looked good. And that's saying something. Anyways, as I walked (or trotted, rather) into Ponyville, miscellaneous ponies stared at me as I passed by. I don't see how this is unusual. I'm just a colt. Traveling through a town. Alone. With no friends. Okay, I see how this is strange. In the distance, the Treecastle was visible, giving off so many lens flares, that even LittleshyFiM would be proud. Wait, how can I see lens flares? Can't you only see those through cameras? Ehh, maybe I'm just too used to looking at it as a show. Anyways, as I neared the Treecastle, I became more and more ecstatic. I'm going to meet the ACTUAL Twilight Sparkle! Oooh, this is so exciting! I thought. I locked onto the doors (which, by the way, were huge) and knocked. I wonder who's gonna greet me. A guard? Spike? Maybe another one of the Ma-- My thinking was cut off as the doors slowly opened. Behind it, sat the ever-so-anticlimactic Twilight, the one and only Princess of Friendship. She looked around for a moment, before looking down. I let out a soft "eep" as she spotted me. I cleared my throat, and spoke. "Hi there! My name is... oh yeah! My name is Star Gazer. I'm kinda lost, and have nowhere to go. Do you mind if I stay here?" Twilight tilted her head. She responded by speaking... gibberish...? I thought that English was the universal language. For books and TV, anyways. I tried again. She spoke gibberish again. I figured that this was getting nowhere. I looked around for some sort of gesture. Suddenly, very over-conveniently, a family walked by, child included. I looked back at Twilight. I pointed at the family, then back to myself, then shook my head to try and signal that "I have no family." It worked. Author's Note Nngh, sorry if this chapter made no sense. I'm just trying to hit the 1k word mark. Anyways, leave feedback in the comments! -TGRP
3: Caretaker/ShelterAfter Twilight got my "hint" that I didn't have a family (in this world, anyhow), she took in a breath to speak... Then she connected the dots. If she couldn't understand me, it was probably vice versa. She had no way to communicate to me verbally. Great, how will she tell me wha--. I paused as she started waving her hoof inward. Gestures? I guess that works... I nodded, and slowly trotted inside, hoping not to be confronted with objections. I looked back, and she was closing the door. Phew. I let her go in front of me to lead. She looked at me to make sure I was following, and then she started walking. I admired the sheer amounts of crystal contained in this castle. It was... freezing. I had to move semi-quick, but make sure not to go in front of Twilight. Finally, we approached some more giant doors. Using her magic, she opened them with ease. Hmm. I wonder if I can use magic yet... I was greeted with the giant throne room, Golden Roots and all. My mouth was gaping open. The roof, the thrones... even the Cutie Map. Not active, but still there. Wait, where did Twilight go? I looked around until I saw her in a hallway on the left. I remember that. That's the hallway where Applejack and Fluttershy were pushing an obscure box in the second Equestria Girls. It probably was sent to Pinkie's Void. Down the hallway were many, many rooms that we couldn't see in the show. I kept walking, back to admiring the crystal, when I bumped into the side of Twilight. She had stopped, and was turned toward one of the doorways. I stepped back, and looked at the doorway. Twilight nudged me towards it. I paused. All of this was expected up to now. What's in this doorway, only Celestia, or Twilight, may know. Twilight nudged me again. Now or never. I stepped inside... ...to be greeted by a moderately sized bedroom. I gotta be honest, it's pretty nice. It had a bed with one of those canopy things, a dresser with a lamp, and another dresser for just storage. It was kinda like Twilight's room in the Crystal Empire from EqG 1. I looked back at Twilight, who was smiling. I smiled back, and went over and flopped on the bed. I glanced at the doorway, and Twilight was gone. Time to think out loud. "Today has been a long da-- er, night. Wait, how did all of these contrived conditions come together like this? It's like something written by M.A. Larson. Or a bad fanfic. Either way..." I mumbled to myself. I yawned, and decided it was to turn in. I got under the covers, and soon went to sleep. In Ponyville. This has to be a dream... But I'm not complaining. Author's Note Finally, I have the words to publish this fic! HUZZAH! Also, you may be wondering what "Pinkie's Void" is. Basically, it's where Pinkie grabs her random objects out of nowhere from. If Pinkie grabs a large crate out of nowhere in a future episode, I called it.
4: Hope and MagicAs I awoke, I expected to be greeted with a looped song of Fox Stevenson. But, instead, I was greeted with silence and a headache. And a paper laid on my face. Scratch that, a scroll on my face. Using my hoof, (which, by the way, is super hard to use to maneuver after you're used to arms and legs), I pushed the scroll off of me. After doing another dream check, a thought struck me like a brick to the face. Oh, crap. If I'm not home by the time my mom wakes up, she'll have a metaphorical heart attack! Or a real one, I dunno. Either way, it worries me. I'm just gonna hope time isn't 1:1, and move on. I got out of bed and on my hooves. Still hard. At the moment, two thoughts were on my mind. One: can I use magic, and two: how long until morning at home. I decided to investigate the latter first. Going with the assumption that a day here was equal to half an hour on Earth, I did some quick mental math, and figured out that I had about 42 days to stay in Equestria. And no, this isn't a Hitchhikers Guide reference. I actually did the calculations. So, about one and a half months? I can deal until then. Now, can I use magic? The first spell I wanted to learn was levitation, for ease of access. I remembered reading something about using levitation from a fanfic. Let's see... Imagine your aura wrapping around the target object, and then imagine maneuvering it as if it were in your hooves. I'm gonna replace "hooves" with "hands", and call it good. My target object was the scroll I knocked off of my face. Step one, envelop with aura. I imagined grabbing the scroll with my hands. As I tried, I noticed an aura going on and off. A sub-mission I had was figuring out the color of my magic, which apparently was a dark navy blue. I focused. Use your hands and pick it up, dammit! After maybe fifteen minutes EST (Equestria standard time), I finally got my aura to hold on to the scroll. Crossing my imaginary fingers that nothing explodes, I slowly drew the scroll toward me. It came, and nothing exploded. I couldn't believe it. I could use magic. Carefully unraveling the ribbon thing that kept the scroll in a roll, I took a peek at it's contents. Gibberish symbols. Whoop de Daring Do. Author's Note Well, this is weird. I actually had a plot planned for this chapter, but I got drawn in by the whole magic thing. That'll wait until next chapter. -TGRP
