The air was warm, the sun was shining, and the soft grass i sat upon glistened with the morning dew. Aside from the occasional chatter of the ponies that waked by, the park was overtaken by a natural sound, one of various birds chirping and a few critters about who were off doing Celestia knows what. I felt at peace here, i knew ponyville was known for being the most in touch with nature, but it still felt too industrialized sometimes. The dirt roads would all too often wear me down, while the constant sights of houses and bustling shops would make me feel inferior. Nature was the only true place i could be myself, and i did so as i picked up the vibrant yet soft pallet of colors with my magic, floating it towards me. I looked around upon the lands i would soon sculpt with nothing but the brush and time, and looked for a focal point. The birds would make a lovely choice, i thought as i settled upon a small white bird cleaning itself upon one of the great oak branches. I sat down, looking to it like a sailor does to the sea, then to my empty canvas seeing nothing but possibilities. I began to paint.
It was cool out, the sun hid beneath the lands as the moon took its place up high in the sky. It had started to rain a few hours ago and i had began to float an umbrella of a dull orange that i had brought with me since the weather pony had said, it would rain earlier this morning. My magically encased brush was finishing the sunset in the background of the bird, working off the memories my had brain held onto. I smiled as i finished the last stroke, before taking a hoof step back and observing the latest piece. The painting was of a little white bird, feathers ruffled after a cleaning, looking out towards the fading sun with a curious gaze as it rested upon a twig big enough to hold it but not much else. Nodding in satisfaction, i cleaned up where i had been since early that morning, and began to head back home to the cottage a few roads down from Sugar cube corner.
Night made Ponyville a strange place. It warped the shadows that hid between houses, and felt barren compared to how filled the streets were in the day. The only time I've ever seen ponies walking around after dark was because their either were going home from a long shift, or were drunk from a bar in town, though i preferred to see the former, since the ladder didn't always mean good things. I shook off the thought and continued trotting towards home.
I got the feeling i was being watched. I was about a quarter of the way to my home, since i lived in the complete opposite side of town, when i felt it. I was walking by the bar, my normal route home, when i saw a stallion in complete black just standing there in one of the alleys. It was weird, but i didn't suspect anything since this town was full of creeps at night and decided to keep moving, though when i passed him i could feel his eyes burning into the back of my skull.
It was the dead of night now, all the ponies at home or drunk in some alley. As i walked through the dirt roads, i turned my gaze towards the beautiful night sky, stars were glittering as the moonlight shown down upon Equestria. The sounds of the night time creatures echoed off the empty streets, giving the night a more in depth feel. The only bad thing i could think of was the fog starting to form under hoof, causing me to step on a few unwelcome pebbles in the dirt.
I didn't like this. As i neared my home, i felt the stares again, along with a cold chill running down my spine sending goosebumps. I rounded sugar cube corner and saw my house, like a beacon in the everlasting night. I picked up my pace, trotting faster as i couldn't wait to be home and sleep, i felt so tired after all. My hoofs slowed to an almost crawling speed upon the oh so soft dirt, as my eyes blurred in and out. Since when had i gotten this tired? I attempted to walk, as i had stopped abruptly, as if i had to focus everything on one thing i was doing just to accomplish it, but my legs wouldn't listen. My eyes were threatening to close as i lifted an especially numb hoof that felt like a 100 pound brick, that's when i had saw it. A small barbed needle, protruding from a hole it had burrowed in my hoof. Alarm shot through my body as i tried to run home, but i only then noticed i was laying on the dirt path, looking towards the moon. I could barley anymore, i was being taken by sleep. The moon looked to beautiful tonight, i wonder if it saw this coming.
I awoke, i think. My eyes opened as i tried to blink out the sleepiness that rested there. Though my mind kept trying to tell me my eyes weren't open due to the utter darkness in both motions. I went to move my hoof up to clear the stuff from my eyes, only to find i couldn't move it. My hooves were tied together with a grading material, almost like rope, and i had realized that my face also had a velvety texture to it. I laid there, or i think i did as i could feel the hard wooden floor on only half my body. I started to panic, tried to scream and move around on the floor to free myself, but my screams were muffled by the thing in my mouth, and my bonds were on too tight. I felt a cold chill run down my spine, and a feeling like i was being watched, right before i heard a chuckling sound from behind me.
"Good. You're awake."
