While walking around, I saw Sunset and the others. I was getting ready to greet them, but they didn’t look like they were in a festive mood. They were all powered up with their Elements of Harmony with looks that would kill. Before I could run away, they immediately decimated me, and in my dying breath, I saw myself right beside them, turned into Midnight with a grin. Then they snuffed me out like a light… As my eyes opened up, I saw a mirror right in front of me. I walked up towards it and everything around me was pitch black except me. I looked at myself and saw my own reflection, a locket around my neck. Then I saw her…

“Do you see who I am now? This is but one of your inevitable demises that can and will be the end of you,” Midnight said maliciously. I look behind me but I don’t see anyone. This has to be a bad dream. She spoke once more, this time, a lot more clear. “You have seen what will happen to you. This could be you if you continue to follow this foolish path…”

“No… That can’t be…” I said in utter disbelief.

“So you still refuse to accept the truth? Even after showing you what will happen if you choose to follow this witless folly?” She asked, totally flabbergasted. “For someone who’s supposedly intelligent, you sure are lacking in common sense when it comes to the real world. Why don’t I show you what they truly think of you when you're not around?”

She suddenly cast this strange aura that lifted me up and took me somewhere. The next thing that I knew, I saw my friends. I saw them in a group, talking. Although it was quiet and hard to make out what they were saying. I attempted to speak but no words would come out. The words were so hard to hear that it was like trying to hear through a plastic wall. Just then, I heard them speak clearly.

“What should we would do about Twilight?” Rainbow Dash asked.

“I dunno. She’s nice, but-” Fluttershy said before being interrupted by Pinkie Pie.

“But she nearly destroyed our world!” Pinkie Pie shouted.

“I agree with Pinkie Pie. She nearly came close to killing us with her magic.” Rarity replied.

“Still, it wasn’t like she had any intention of killing us. She was just possessed, right?” Applejack said.

“Even so, we need to be vigilant. If anything happens, and if she tries to destroy this world, we may have to put her down. Does everybody agree?” Sunset exclaimed.

I covered my ears, trying to block out everything they were saying but it was all too hard to ignore… it was painfully clear.

“You're still going to blindly deny what they think of you? You really are a fool.” She grabbed my hands, removing them from my face and looked me dead center in the eyes. “But if you let me take control, all of this pain can go away... With me, you’ll be able to eradicate those who hate you. Anyone. People will respect you, worship you and you won’t have to worry about being abused again. That doesn’t sound so bad now does it?”

It was all true about what she told me. Having done this before... She is a magical being that defies all logic and understanding of the real world. If I do this, I wouldn’t have to be tormented again. But if only…

“It is true that everybody belittled me. I’ve dealt with being alone and being treated like dirt all my life… But, that’s not who I am. If I let you take control, there’s no telling what you’ll do. Besides, I’d rather be alone for the rest of my life than willingly let you hurt others,” I said, defying my apathetic counterpart.

She let my hands go, keeping her still, calm tone, but kept her leering stare right at me. I could feel her anger. It was increasing at this very moment. Then she said in a completely dark and guttural tone,

“So even after I showed you a reality where they will kill you, gave you a chance to fix your pathetic life and end your suffering, you're still going to reject me?” She closed her eyes, and the flames around glowed even brighter than ever. All of a sudden, she opened them back up but with more of a colder, sickly, evil glow to them, added by a soft laugh. “...Then perhaps I’ll just have to remove you from your consciousness by force!”

She blinded me with her magical flares, laughing all the while. They were so bright that I couldn’t make out what was happening. Just then, I was being held down by purple binds that held me without an ounce of effort. Despite this, I was able to speak, albeit, with difficulty.

“Y-You don’t have to do this, Midnight. I’m s-sure there’s a way that we can-”

“It’s not possible! Believe me, I’ve thought of the same thing and it would more than please me to align myself with you, but it can only fit one soul. Since you're unwilling to let me have it, I’ll just have to… eject you from your vessel. I’ve tried doing this the easy way, but your stubbornness impedes my goals. It’s a tragedy really. You would’ve made a good ruler... But I guess some sacrifices are needed to be made for the best,” she said, moving towards me. ”Oh, don’t worry. I’ll make sure you’ll die swiftly.”

And with those final words, I felt myself fade away, with my consciousness slowly slipping away. My friends… My family… My world…

. . .

I awoke with a sharp gasp, my eyes were shooting out like jack-in-the-boxes, and my heart felt like it was about to burst out of my chest.

Oh, it was that one again... The one I always woke up from in a nervous sweat, being unable to change the outcome of the dream itself. Sometimes, if I was lucky, my mind would be able to block out the dream but when it didn't, the outcome was always the same… no matter what I said or what I did, the end result was always the same... I started trembling once more, then heard a small noise behind me. I felt my heart shoot up into my throat as I whirled around. It was Sunset being squeezed towards the wall in a position that looked uncomfortable, restricted and twisted against it. She was sleeping lightly. Not exactly snoring, but she was making these soft, muffled murmurs about something along with a fearful look on her face. Immediately, I could almost hear the pounding in my chest slow down as my brain registered this, my hands were completely still, and breathing felt a little easier now. I started looking for a clock- from what I could tell, I had been, for what it seems, asleep for about two hours at most. I turned around, feeling as if I should get more sleep. Two nightmares in one night would seem like a broken record, but I had to keep calm, because if I had given up already, it would already be too late.

The moonlight coming from my window reflected onto something. Squinting onto the dress behind my closet door, I could only make out two cups and a note. I slowly got out of my bed while making sure that Sunset was still asleep, and quietly padded my way towards the items. The first thing that I did was grab the note, holding it right near the window. It said,

"Dear Twilight/Sunset. I hope everything’s going well. Don't worry about me, I'm fine downstairs. You don't have to worry about anyone disturbing you two. I left your drinks here in case you two get thirsty."

I glanced at Sunset's sleeping form and wasn’t disturbed in the slightest. I was gonna have to get an answer about this ‘Catch Phrase’ sooner or later. I then turned my attention at the cups. They were filled with what looked like tea that harbored a sparkly substance which looked like minerals. I took a sip. It was still warm… like it was just made, probably ten minutes ago. It looked really tasty. I smiled and placed the cup back down. I just simply turned away from it and quietly went back into my bed. I’ll just talk to her tomorrow about this when I’m not tired. Maybe if it’s at least for one night, I could have some semblance of peace to myself. That was all I needed right now...

. . .

I blearily flicked open my eyes. I have awoken again for the third time now, but this time there was sunlight beaming from the window. As I groggily rubbed my eyes, I turned and noticed that Sunset wasn't there. Maybe she decided-

"Twilight?"

I was started by the sudden call, whipping my head back to face the door where the voice had come from. It was Sunset and she was leaning against it, her body language suggesting she'd been there for a while. I offered a confused smile.

"Uh, hey Sunset... how long have you been up?" She simply shrugged and said nothing. "Oh. Um, you… didn't seem to be busy or anything…"

"You needed the sleep. I'm well aware you got up in the middle of the night," she pointed to the two cups of tea, one empty and the other barely touched. "So I decided let you sleep in."

"Oh," I repeated, stunned. "Well thanks for that… you didn't need to do that for me though."

" Are you ready to talk now?" she asked, seemly ignoring my comment.

I rubbed my eyes again and looked at the time. It was barely 9:30.

"I'm not quite up and ready yet. Why don't we eat first?" I lifted my head and met her gaze. "Don't worry, I won't avoid the subject after that."

She seemed skeptical at first, then turned and simply played along. As much as I wanted to avoid talking about my personal dilemma, I knew she would eventually track me down and break the truth.

"Breakfast is downstairs. Rainbow Dash already ate and left to see the others. It's just the two of us for now."

The words Midnight spoke echoed in my head, ‘they will kill you’. I swallowed as I forced myself up and out the door. What did she mean by that? Will Sunset really do it? What was the point of talking if it'd just be-

"Oh, and make sure to get some coffee. You look a little tired," she said as she walked behind me.

I urged myself to think about something else as she followed me down the stairs, feeling her glancing at me, as if checking to see if I would run or something. After a few seconds of awkward silence, we made it inside the kitchen and I sat down I watched her flutter around. There were eggs, bacon, and waffles on the table. That still didn’t keep my suspicions at bay though. I idly wondered what Midnight was planning, my body trembling with terror, still so afraid yet suddenly eager for the next pla- No. Think about something else.

"So, did you sleep well?"

She paused for a moment. "Y-Yea. And you?" She was acting so guarded, so cautious. I couldn't help but feel irritated. Not at her but at myself.

"Don't worry about me, I'm doing okay."

"Hmm."

The awkward silence returned with a vengeance. I couldn't help but think back to last night, my insides flinching at the idea of someone out there other than her seeing me in such a broken state. The thought made me feel like shattered glass. I rather jump off a cliff than someone see me as that monster.

"You know," she said, finally breaking the silence, "I lied about what I said last night. Not about us caring about you… but about the reason I wanted a catch phrase."

"Huh?" I hadn't expected this to be the first conversation topic. "Oh, right. I was wondering what that was about."

"I was lying to you because I kept thinking about what your secret was, because I had been thinking that there was something familiar, and I didn't have a chance to figure it out, and it'd be very inconvenient if I did it that late."

"I see."

"So that's one reason… that and I just wanted to check up on you and made sure you were okay. Of course, the catch phrase wasn't a complete lie."

"Seems fair, I guess."

"Yes, well, it’s an adventure. It’s nothing to worry about!"

…Was that a lie? In all the time I've known her, she's only done that when she was nervous or panicked. Which didn't happen very often.

"But, besides all that… it was very beautiful. And Rainbow Dash helped me with it! And she talked to me quite a bit, and said a lot about my problems, and then I remembered how long she was listening…" her voice drifted off. "And…well…I was petrified."

I tried not to run back to my room. Was she aware of Midnight?

"And…" She sat the plate down by the sink when she finished her meal. "then you came downstairs."

"Yeah." I poked the food with my fork. It was pretty obvious where this was going. I rubbed the back of my head, nervously.

"And that is the tale of why I was up late last night. Now that I've explained myself, can we try and talk about you now?"

I shoved a forkful of my breakfast into my mouth in an attempt to stall. I chewed slowly, cringing through the taste, almost choking because of how much I had in my mouth. Should I tell her? I closed my eyes and saw, rushing through my mind like a roller coaster ride, running and running, where I had suffered from my nightmares. They were vague, but I knew I couldn’t hide it forever. It wasn’t always bad when my parents helped me through my nightmares, but took longer to calm me down faced with the knowledge that they were just dreams. I clenched my hand around the fork. I couldn't do it. I imagined the words coming forth and the mask built beneath my heart suddenly roared forth, foaming at the edges with desire to just confess, tell someone, not be so bitterly alone in this. I steeled myself. No, I had to do it alone. It was far better that way. I took the brunt of reality so she could be happy, where everyone could be happy. That was the best way to do things, I had it all as a responsibility, it was my own.

"Twilight? Is it okay if I ask you something?"

I nodded cautiously. She fiddled with her hands, looking every bit as awkward like my usual, nerdy self.

"Why…why do you call out for me last night?"

I almost spit out the food after hearing her response and watching her eyes looking on in confusion.

"W-wait, I called for you?"

"Well," she murmured. "a few times you apologized for things, you usually ended up screaming and calling out my name along with other things but I couldn’t make out what you're saying."

"…Oh." I suddenly felt naked and afraid, like I'd had been singled out by one of the popular kids. When you're awake, it was simple to hide, but I guess you reveal your true self when you're asleep. The very thought of saying something had barred me from stopping… I stabbed my fork into my food and started circling it.

"What happens in your dreams? Are you always so paranoid? Was it me that’s driving you crazy?"

I shook my head violently after hearing her question.

"No, no, that was the first time…" I fumbled around for words. I wasn’t in the mood to speak about it… "that… happened."

"So what do you usually dream about, then?"

“Tell her. Tell her what she did to you. How I told you about your friends and how she tried to kill you and how your friends nearly-”

"Shut up!" I suddenly snapped, my body heating up.

I noticed Sunset back away and tried to apologize for the outburst but my tongue wouldn't work. She glanced at the floor with dejection, her shoulders sagging.

"I-I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"It's…it's alright, Twilight. I didn't mean to… I was only…"

I caught the small waver in her voice, the sudden turn of her head. A pit opened up in my stomach as I realized what I did and what I was trying so hard to avoid. She slowly got up and walked towards the door.

"I'll just leave you be."

I reached out and tried to stop her.

"W-wait, Sun—"

"No. I shouldn't have been so pushy. I was always so relentless. I'll just… leave you be."

I could hear the strain increasing and it hurt more than anything that I could ever come up with. Why am I so guarded? I listened to the all-too-familiar sound of tears on the verge of being released.

"It's not like that-"

The door shut, leaving me behind in sorrow. I hopped from the chair, promptly overcome with the desire to chase after her. Trying my best to block out the pain, I could hear Midnight, hurting me and taunting me.

"What did I tell you? She could never understand anything about us. In the end, you and I are-"

"Shut up! Just shut up! Stop talking to me! Why can’t you just leave me alone!?" I screamed, trying to block her out.

I ran to the door, scrambling for the doorknob, my fingers shaking opening the door and shouting out towards the snow that was coming down hard.

"You hurt her again. It's like I told you, she doesn’t understand us. It's just a mere fallacy. Being alone isn't so bad once you learn the benefits to it."

I ignored her words. It's true that I'm always secretive, stubborn and pushy but... She's one of the few people who took the time to care about my problems. My mind told me to stop chasing her but my heart told me to go after her.

"I wouldn't bother with her. You'll just mess up again, prove once more at what a failure you are. Why even bother? You're just a waste to everyone."

Go after her!

"What do you-"

"Enough!"

I gave a cry of frustration as I threw myself onto the snow and pattered unsteadily after the fading sight of a sad morning. Somehow, I could imagine the taste mixture of water and dust… My breath stuck in my throat and my hands were shaking but they wouldn't stop. I wanted to curl up into a hole so badly, hold my head and wait for it to pass and possibly wait for the pain to end. But I put it off in order to keep going. I forced my legs to keep moving forward, but I knew I wasn't the athletic type.

"Sunset?" I called. "Sunset, where are you?"

For a second, my vision blurred and I found myself at a high cliff. Oh no... I'd accidentally got myself lost in my panic. Then again, I shouldn’t've pushed her away in the first place. The area by the park is where Sunset said she'd go, right? I looked around wildly as I see her at the park, standing near a pond.

"Sunset!" I gasped in relief. "There you…are…" She froze, tears falling down her cheeks. I stared at her, feeling this overwhelming amount of regret flow over me... "Sun-" I whispered, my stomach twisting again.

"Would you look at that?She’s giving you the death stare. And you called me a monster."

I tried to ignore Midnight’s words and force them away as I reached for her hand. Without warning, she violently pulled away. I reeled backwards in surprise.

"You can't share anything with me, can you?!" she cried. "Is it because you think I'll make fun of you? That I can't handle it?! Because I'm not who you think I am, Twilight! You don't have to shield everyone from yourself! Why… why can't you-" she rubbed her face, clearly trying to pull herself away from the edge, to stop talking, but words kept slipping through her teeth. "why can't you just trust us? More importantly, me?!"

I swallowed, each word digging like a sharp blade against me. Like before, I forced myself to overcome this agonizing stream of pain and worry that wanted to pop out of me in any way, shape, or form- most likely leading to another meltdown.

"Sunset…" I took a deep breath and reached out again. "I-I'm sorry. You're absolutely right... I've been selfish and stubborn. I just thought that if I’d kept it all a secret, I’d just spare you the trouble. And for that, I'm sorry. I… it's time I told you. Or at least showed you."

She listened, as we both wiped away our tears. She grabbed my hand and hugged me. We started heading back, now realizing where I am. It was time for me to face my demons.

"Twilight I-"

"Come on." I suddenly felt cold, empty, and anger wrapped around my heart…

Author's Note

I apologize for the long delay. I was busy writing other stories amongst other things. I hope you enjoyed it.