Splitting aMid the Night

Day nine out of thirty dawns. Embrace the five suns' glory and put it to use, robot. Your time fleets.

Celestial glory seems but a hoof away at all times, but is in truth reserved for Those Who Came Before. She's even named after it! Or vice versa.

You need a sun for a population, but a single spark can produce enough warmth for somepony's world.

The familiar darkness that surrounded Midnight fled when a massive orb of flame erupted before her. It was far too much for her alone, however. Just when she began to feel overwhelmed by its blessed warmth, it condensed into a single burning ember. The darkness came back towards her, but there was enough light to allow her to see a bit in each direction. She took it into her magic, wielding it like a torch to bring light to where she needed.

But, in bringing light, does the spark not burn out for whom it serves?

Chemical energy. The two of you will only create warmth for one another without using up your own.

Midnight tossed the ember away. For a brief period of time, she could still see it, before the darkness swallowed it and closed in on her again. She couldn't complain, though. Often, she found that it was preferrable to view things in unclear twilight than to have to endure their full visage revealed by the light of day.

Disregarding that, what evil thoughts hide behind the mask today? What dreams of chronic, sustained cruelty?

Sweetheart, you already are in a dream. Below the hub layer, I mean.

Then why exactly don't I feel dreaming?

We're not in your dream, we're in mine.

How is that supposed to be possible? More importantly, why would you do something like that?

Dreams. The result of an idle mind using what it has learned throughout the day to reconstruct scenarios and create new abstractions. If I may answer with a counter question, then why should it not be possible for two sentient beings which happen to be in the same vessel to share a dream? I partake in yours everytime, didn't you know?

As an evil gamemaster, not a participant.

Also, just to see if I can, because I can. Enjoy your travel to the main level. I've made sure to make it as pleasant as my time in your infantile mind. Not that you'd be past that stage now, of course.

Enough talky, more candy!

Squid is demonstranded.

Whatever that's supposed to mean. I want something sweet, right now! An entire bag!

Can't help you to more than you already have, lil' sweet. Travel to layer hub one. Initiating transport in three, two, four, one.

Following the countdown, there were a few seconds of nothingness which left Midnight wondering what new evils she had thought up. Before she could finish that thought however, she was hit by a high speed wire grid, slicing her into bite-sized cubes, which then each fell into a matching recepticle in the ground. At least the mental daughter had her mother's creativity, she thought.

"C'mon, it's really time for you to leave," Daylight called up with the patience of an exasperated mother trying to get her filly away from the playground, which was only fitting as that was her current role.

"You can't make me!" Midnight responded from atop her personal fortress impenetrable for any adults, a metal climbing scaffold.

Daylight favehooved, "This is embarassing. You know, there used to be a time when simply thinking of her would make you cower away in fear. Where did that go? Besides, yes I can. Would you kindly get your blank flank down here?"

Midnight didn't see any reason to obey, but quickly realised she didn't have to in order for Daylight to get what she wanted when she saw and felt a golden aura pulling her down by the tail. She let out a playful scream and tried everything her short horn was capable of to escape. She succeeded in the way that she had displaced herself away, but couldn't quite rid herself of the feeling that a foot distance more or less wouldn't really matter to her mother's efforts. Thus, she resorted to plain flailing her legs as she was brought to the ground hanging in the air face down. "No fair! I want that kinda magic too," she complained upon her face coming to level with Daylight's.

"So you try to resist having to practice your magic? What kind of logic is that?" She then set off to their destination with Midnight floating next to her.

Midnight, finding herself helpless against a greater power, gave up struggling and said, "Okay. Can I get down now please? I won't run off, pwomise." She didn't like being too obedient, but it was hard to keep resisting when hung by the own tail, which had already begun to express its displeasure in Midnight's diet.

Daylight released her, "Glad you've finally come to insight. I know you'd prefer to run around and Celestia's plot knows what not, but it's important you work for later. Where would you be in ten years if you still didn't know how to control your magic?"

Midnight approached the two, her new form at eye level with the older unicorn, "Here I am, Mother. Look at me now. Look at what I've become in your legacy."

Daylight didn't react.

Tha Sun be risin' fer real this time 'round, mudda.

One day, you'll run out of stupid things to wake me up with, and I'll be there, and I'll laugh.

The day that happens is the day you die. Hell, I've even got some lines for that. Go ahead, do it, I wanna demonstrate.

Midnight had, fittingly to her name, never been a morning pony, but it felt like the bed was more inescapable that morning than usual. Thus, instead of trying to fight it, she took the more direct route out and reentered existence a bit to the right of her previous location. That proved an effective means to wake up easier, if only due to her slightly graceless landing from falling down from bed height which used mostly her face to absorb the initial decceleration.

You keep doing that. Are you sure you're not actually a floorphiliac?

If only the carpet was less comfortable.

Rise, would you kindly?

Yeah, yeah. Our work is never over.

You call that work?

Given that it's eight hours per day four days a week, I would.

Midnight waved the brush in the air, then realised how pointless gesticulation was in an autodialogue and thus floated it back to work in her mane.

With no travel time since you can literally teleport there. Tsk, fillies of the present. In my day, we first had to ride two hours in the train to get from one end of the castle to the other, then pay full attention for five hours and not miss a single word before then doing five hours of lab duty and going back for another two hours, then followed by four hours' worth of homework, due the following day!

I thought you said you were a hellspawn bred in Tartauros?

Well, yeah, that's what we did at night instead of sleeping.

The better quesiton is, is it safe to go down now?

A quick look through the walls revealed to Midnight that she would have to be the one to make breakfast, as both Vinyl Scratch and Octavia were still resting, even in their respective chambers this time. Unfortunately, even though she had that information now, she didn't feel like it'd be very convincing if she waited until one of them would wake up and perform her duties instead. She sighed at her inability to cheat fate once again and went to work.

A seeming eternity of actually doing honest work later, Midnight was finally ready and allowed to leave.

And it's still snowing. Oh how wonderful. Why do they even let it snow now, a few days before those silly earths will scoop it up with hard labor? Did I mention I hate coldness? Please tell me I'm allowed to skip it today.

You may, if you really wish.

Midnight let energy start to slowly collect in her horn. Like a physical body, magic needed to warm up for a moment after periods of lacking usage.

Why should I not?

One particularly big snowflake touched down right on the tip of Midnight's horn. Taken by surprise by the cold wetness, she shrieked and lost focus, firing a blast of energy straight upwards. A few seconds later, the cloud layer reacted to the input by sending a small flood of unfrozen water down over her.

Yup, walking it is. I'd have to curse the world if that hadn't looked so wonderfully epic. Actually, let me get something.

Midnight dived back inside for a few seconds, coming back out with a rainbow colored scarf around her neck as she set off for the clinic once again.

Why you even have this is beyond me, much less why you bother to wear it. Afraid of catching a little bug?

Because scarf equals happy. It's warm and comfy.

Then why didn't you wear it before?

Because before wasn't cold and snowy. Watch my back, I don't want to be surprised by somepony.

Methinks that she's still sleeping. But, if you insist, why don't you watch it yourself?

The Magic Flow was amazing as ever. Where previously the Sun had hung, the giant Shadow Star had claimed its place. Midnight no longer felt any cold, even though it oddly was still snowing even within the Flow, though it was just a slow, serene falling of a few flakes which lazily drifted towards the ground. As a simple consequence of going from a storm into a romantic evening's snow fall, she would be able to see anypony coming from afar. Unfortunately, she wasn't able to relish the sight for long as her eyes rolled up in her head quickly after she had entered, at least according to what she could puzzle together from sensations plus her vision turning up towards the sky. She gasped in pain and surprise and bent down with her eyes shut in an attempt to undo what was happening. Needless to say, she wasn't very successful with that for she just looked through her skull ahead of her.

Funny. That's the furthest your eyes seem to be able to go. How sad.

Undo that now or I will kill you.

Ah, filly, why so serious? Fine, let's put a smile on that face then.

Midnight felt herself returning to a normal position while remaining within the Flow. With a few artificial gusts of wind, she cleared herself of the snow to the best of her ability before it would melt within her fur, then entered a small trot to make up for lost time.

Don't you find it amazing that you are currently tied into two worlds simultaneously?

If the second was anything more but a tool for comfortably accessible omnivision, maybe.

Rainbow, zero o'clock up.

I don't see any. Where are they supposed to be there in this kind of weather, anyway?

On your head, if you don't react soon.

Midnight looked straight up and spotted Rainbow Dash falling towards her. She wasn't tumbling, rather executing a controlled dive with the probable intent of startling Midnight. She didn't like that idea however, and responded with a quick spell she had fortunately learned how to do with Sparkle. It wasn't unfair simply because the result was invisible. Dash would still have the chance to see how the snowflakes paused in midair. Briefly said, she didn't.

"Just what is it with pegasi dropping onto my head? Look at this," she cleared a small hole in the ground of snow while Rainbow Dash was slowly sliding down on her forcefield. "That's the crater adorable little Fluttershy left last week."

Rainbow managed to land on her hooves, then flapped her wings a few times in an attempt to remove the snow from them. "Sorry, didn't mean to, uh, I guess I kinda did mean to scare you. Wonder how you always spot me, though, yeah, you have that, I remember. Uh, nice scarf. Mind if I walk along a bit?"

Midnight cleared her throat. "Moving on from what should make me want to make an arts mistake when curing you, you really are that way?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you really have to have everthing associated with rainbows to like it?"

"Says the filly with naturally blue hair whose room is entirely that color, including the room itself," Rainbow murmured.

"Might I ask that you stop spying on me for no reason, lest I do pick up my mother's craft," Midnight paused for a moment, then added, "heartless angel?"

It was only faint, a well repressed hint, but Dash briefly hesitated before gathering herself and responding, "Keep your friends close and your enemies friends. Simple concept, always effective."

"And hope that neither you nor any close relatives will ever end up under my care. Eheheh, that's enough of that. Though, coming to think of it, why don't I know anything about your parents? You know, since you already know plenty about mine, up to where she's buried, I feel like I oughta know."

"I'd prefer not to talk about that. We don't have to bring up our parents' sins. Reminds me, how is Dusk doing?"

"Well, lone parent, loss of his wife still burns, his only child is a homosexual and carries psychoses, neither of which he has any idea of, take your pick. Maybe I should mail him sometime. He's probably going mad since I left him behind in Canterlot like everything else for Sp- onyville."

Midnight stopped for a second and scanned the skies, causing Rainbow Dash visible confusion, "What are you doing?"

"Given the tendency my life's been having recently, I'd have expected the great Derp to also come drop on my head and bring a letter from Dad right as I mention him, but I guess not today," Midnight replied and resumed walking.

Reminds you, you know that taking a part-time job to earn moneys for a date with Sparkle would include actually doing that?

If I had any idea how to do that, I would long have.

There's a board for such stuff in town hall.

Obligatory question: How do I know that?

A Guide to Ponyville, page seven point three. You'd be surprised what our memory can hold if you bother to access it correctly. Don't ask me why they'd write something like that in a guide for foreigners which either already have a job or don't stay long enough to need one. Eh.

Sounds like a plan to check that one out after work. Speaking of which, this is usually the moment I find myself in front of the clinic, and today is no different.

"Well, Dashie, it's been fun talking to you, but I am one of the kind that actually has to do work, so if you'd kindly excuse me?"

Rainbow Dash wanted something of Midnight, it was obvious from her face. "Uh, wait a sec, I gotta ask you something."

"Yes? Is it going to be a summerborn?"

"Huh?"

"I don't think I even could explain that to you. Sorry, keep going, what's your issue?"

"Well," Dash said, scratching the back of her head, "it's Scootaloo. She's been getting kinda drowsy and exhausted lately."

"Assuming that you made sure she's slept enough, well, it could be many things... really exhausted? As in being barely able to move around?"

"Yeah, she almost collapsed on me today."

"Hm. You gotta excuse me for a sec, you know, this is only my second week here in Ponyville and I hate foals of all kinds, so which one is Scootaloo again?"

"Orange-purple pegasus filly, does that ring a bell?"

"I think I know her, yes. I'm not sure if I remember shooting her, though. This might be something serious, tell her parents to bring her here as quickly as possible, okay? It's cleanly curable, but we gotta act fast or she's still in danger."

Rainbow didn't respond, though she would probably have said, "You know..." after an awkward pause if she had, judging by her facial expression.

"Nothing holding your meddlesome gang back, is there?" Midnight sighed, "Fetch her and bring her over quick. If it is what I think it is, she needs an injection now."