Come True
All was black. For as far as the eye could see. In the blackness walked a simple stallion of white coat and black mane. His clothes an equally simple monochrome, making him nearly disappear into the vast expanse of nothingness around him.
One could have said that nopony would have been there. That nopony would have been seen in such a place. They would have been correct, for that was the stallion’s name: Nopony.
“Is anypony here?” he called out to the darkness.
No answer came.
Only moments before, Nopony had been in his home. He remembered those last horrifying moments of living, when the dream of the whole world he knew ended so abruptly. By his own hooves, no less.
“Hello?”
There was nothing. Only darkness. For the young stallion, his reality had ended. And himself along with it.
“What is this place? Looks like a lot of nothing.”
But, for a dream from a city of dreams, nothing was ever as it seemed.
Something appeared in the darkness. Though there was no light, Nopony could see it clear as day. A fountain, triple tiered, and flowing with crystal clear water.
“Haven’t I seen this somewhere before?” Nopony wondered.
The dark ground beneath his hooves began taking shape. What was once pure darkness was now starting to take shape. Like a cobblestone pavement, the ground began to crop up with bumps and grooves.
That was not all. As if a mist were suddenly thinning, buildings appeared around Nopony, along with many booths of all sizes. The buildings were shapeless, and the performer could not see who or what was at each booth. And with each passing moment, his wonder and curiosity grew.
Nopony walked around the fountain, and he saw more murky, faded images come into being. He began to feel as if he were in a dream of his own. One where he didn’t know what he was dreaming, but had it firmly in his mind.
He idly threw one of his juggling balls toward one of the shadows, and watched it bounce between the structures. In a moment, he was able to catch it, and threw it again.
All around himself, the performer saw potential. Everywhere he looked, he saw a prop to add to his performance.
A spark of inspiration welled up inside of the performer. As if by magic, the world around him became more colorful and clear. Nopony could now see the vague outlines of some creatures wandering through the place he was in. Among them, the buildings took a more defined shape, and the booths around him filled with indiscernible merchandise.
Even though he couldn’t see clearly what was around him, his mind became a whirl of ideas for a performance.
He began by bouncing his juggling balls on the ground, letting them sail high into the air. Next, he cartwheeled to the nearest booth, and grabbed an unseen piece of merchandise. He threw the object into the air, and caught his juggling balls as they fell from above.
Nopony danced merrily as he juggled, and caught the object on his face. It was now a mask.
What was once an unidentifiable mass was now a masquerade mask of many colors. It set on the performer’s face, making his sunglasses disappear beneath it.
The shadowy creatures around him stopped what they were doing. Had they any semblance of a face, they would have been turned to face the young performer, as he frolicked about.
Nopony flourished his hooves. What were once juggling balls became more masks of different styles and shapes.
The performer threw each mask into the air. He threw off the mask on his face and caught the next on that fell. He repeated the process, added a dance step between tosses, and changed his routine by rolling the different masks across his shoulders and flipping them onto his face.
With one final flourish, Nopony tossed his sunglasses upward and caught them on his face, as the masks all landed back on their display at the nearby booth.
The sounds of applause caught the ears of the performer. All around him, he was met with a sight he had seen very few times in his life: an audience.
Creatures of all species surrounded him, adulating and applauding the spectacle.
The sight of them all made Nopony almost freeze. He had never experienced the thrill of performing for such a large audience. For him, this was a dream come true.
“A dream?” Nopony wondered.
The dim lights in his brain started to brighten. Now that he thought about it, where he was looked very familiar. The fountain, the booths. It was like something that had been emblazoned in his mind like one of his juggling routines. Only now, it was better than ever. Before, he was was hardly noticed by any passing pedestrian. Now, he was the center of everpony’s attention.
To be loved. To simply be noticed. They were things that were all but lost to Nopony. Only in his wildest dreams did he ever think such a thing could be.
Nopony’s eyes lit up when a new idea occurred to him. If his dream had come true, being noticed by an audience was not all he had to look forward to.
The performer ran. The ground beneath his hooves seemed to roll past him with every step, making him feel as if he were almost flying.
He stopped suddenly when his destination appeared before him after not twenty steps. Even though he knew it was much further than that, there was his house before him.
Nopony stared at the door, at once excited and afraid of what he may find inside. He reached a hoof forward, and placed it on the door. With a gentle exhale, he slowly opened the entrance to his home.
Inside, it was pitch dark. But somehow, Nopony felt it was exactly as he always knew it. He stepped forward, and knew precisely where everything was. Everything held a memory to the performer. From the pedestal in front of the mirror, to the unattended counter, parts of Nopony’s life returned to him.
He walked into the back, where the workstation was. It was the one place where Nopony felt he was at his worst. Where his father always told him that his stitching technique was wrong. Where he was never allowed to create his own designs. It was in those times that he truly felt like a nopony.
There was a light on in one of the rooms.
Nopony walked down the dark hall to investigate. He opened the door, and found a familiar sight.
There was an old stallion at a table, busily stitching together a pair of trousers.
“Dad?” Nopony cautiously asked.
For much of his life, his father was no comfort. Ever since Nopony’s mother abandoned them, his father treated him like he was less than nothing. And that was only when he bothered to acknowledge his son’s existence.
The old stallion didn’t respond.
Nopony’s ears drooped. Even if he was living in his own dream, it seemed some things would never change. Until his father glanced over his shoulder.
Nopony was surprised by what he saw. For the first time in over ten years, he saw his father smile at him. A warm, fatherly smile, as if he were for once happy to see his son. Even so far to seem proud of his colt.
As cautiously as ever, Nopony walked into the room. His breath was steady, and his heart was calm. For once, he didn’t feel the slightest apprehension from his father’s presence. And all around him the room was filled with ponnequins, which were wearing clothes of intricate, beautiful design. Among them was the greatest surprise of all.
There was his mother. The very same as Nopony remembered her. Her form seemed to shine like a star in his presence, and it grew more radiant with every step closer she took.
Nopony could hardly believe what he saw. He was standing mere inches away from the mare he never thought he would see again. He reached out a hoof, and touched his mother’s shoulder.
The mare smiled sweetly, and embraced her son.
Nopony had ever felt more loved or more wanted in his entire life. After losing so much, he felt it was now in his grasp forever.
A feeling of weightlessness overcame the performer. Glancing down, Nopony saw that the floor beneath him had disappeared, and was replaced with a black void, filled with starlit magic. In spite of it all, he felt fear, as his parents both held him firmly in their hooves.
Looking up, Nopony saw something was drifting toward them all. It looked like a mass of light, but didn’t shine. Whatever it was, the performer could sense no threat from it.
“What is that?” Nopony asked his parents.
Neither one of them answered.
The closer they came to the light, the more Nopony got the feeling that he was going somewhere from which there would be no return.
“No! I’m not ready to go! It’s not my time yet!” Nopony said.
The light shined a gentle beam onto Nopony. In his mind, the performer saw what was next to come. All of his dreams were going to come true. His parents would remain happily with one another. His marefriend would never have left him. He would perform on a stage for a massive crowd, while the ponies he loved the most cheered him on from the front row.
It was all within his reach. The dream he held in his heart was now going to be his life.
The cluster of light shined its benevolent, white glow brighter. Within, purple accents lent further to the beauteous light.
“Wait!” Nopony abruptly said.
Within the light, Nopony saw the face of one more pony. A mare, who had come to mean much to him in the short time he knew her. He watched as her purple mane swayed about, as if it were caressed by a breeze of wind.
Her eyes met his, and it was then that Nopony knew he could go no further.
“Mom. Dad. I can’t go with you,” Nopony said to his parents.
Neither of his parents said anything. Their son had a new dream in his heart. One that they both knew was the one to lead his future onward.
Nopony stayed still as his parents walked forth. With one last shine of light, he watched them disappear before him, while a new light shone beneath his hooves.
“Wh--No! Wait! I can’t go! I have to find her!” Nopony begged whatever power may have been listening.
In moments, he was engulfed in a glow of purple and white.
Nopony closed his eyes, fearing what fate he may have brought upon himself for not following his parents to their final destination.
The sounds of crickets and gently flowing water caught his ears.
Nopony dared to open his eyes, and found the world was in utter darkness once more. After removing his sunglasses, he found that he was not where his journey began, but on a bridge over a small river, in an unknown town.
The hour was late, and the streets were empty. Nopony was around. And there was nowhere for Nopony to go to.
With nothing else to do, Nopony simply did what he did best. He threw one of his juggling balls, bounced it against the side of the bridge, and caught it in his hoof.
For many nights, Rarity had laid awake in her bed. Unable to sleep, unable to stop thinking about the dream she once held in her hooves. The stallion who had challenged her perceptions of romance, and who had taught her a new meaning of inspiration was now nothing more than a lost chance.
Wherever he was now, whatever had become of him, Rarity knew he would only be a memory now. And the only place he would ever be would be in her dreams.
Each night, her heart grew heavier, and now as she laid her head on her pillow Rarity felt the weight was liable to hold her down when the dawn arrived.
Her tears had been spent weeks ago. She was only able to silently watch out her window, and try to imagine what could have been.
In time, she closed her eyes, and awaited sleep to overtake her.
Somewhere in the distance, she heard a noise. It was the sound of hooves moving rhythmically on a solid surface. For some reason, somepony was outside at night, and it sounded like they were dancing.
A new noise joined the hooves. The sound of something rhythmically bouncing from one surface to the next. A sound that mixed harmoniously with the steps of the dancer’s hooves, creating a musical melody that seemed to travel directly to the fashionista’s window.
Rarity quickly lifted her head from her pillow. She had only known one stallion who was able to do such a thing. Could he possibly have returned to her? The chances of such a thing were astronomical. No, they were impossible. But, what chance did logic and probability have against the dream in her heart?
With a jolt, Rarity leapt from her bed. She didn’t even bother to put on her slippers and dressing gown before she ran out her front door.
Outside, she could still hear it. The musical percussion was clearly coming from the direction to her right. Without thinking, Rarity followed it.
Whichever way she turned to, Rarity could hear the direction the rhythm was coming from. It was as though it were calling to her. Telling her which way to go to.
In time, Rarity found she was led to the river that ran through Ponyville. There, she found herself at the bridge. Upon the bridge, she found a wondrous sight.
The moon was full, and the clouds were many, rendering all that was illuminated a black silhouette with a moonlit outline. On the bridge, the silhouette of a stallion was present. He was wearing clothes at least one size too large for himself. His head was adorned with dark sunglasses and a pork pie hat. But, most recognizable of all was the way he danced.
The silhouetted stallion jumped between both guard rails on the bridge. At the same time, he performed acrobatic aerial maneuvers as he bounced his juggling balls on any nearby solid surface.
Rarity watched in stunned silence. Was this just a dream, or had a beautiful dream come true?
The silhouetted stallion landed on the bridge and tossed his hat in the air. His hat caught every one of the flying juggling balls. But, the stallion did not catch his hat. His attention was drawn completely toward his one onlooker. A mare who he could only have hoped to ever see again.
Rarity smiled when she saw the stallion take one step forward. He was coming to her, she knew. Whether it was a dream or not, she was going to have him again.
With sudden burst, Rarity ran forth, and the stallion ran to her. Never again would they part. Never again would they be an unreachable dream.
Author's Note
There you are. Another one shot, featuring a friend from The Magical Quest. This time, it was Rarity's dream stallion, Nopony.
This one was just another spur of the moment deal, where I just wanted to throw a bone to the people who really wanted to see Rarity and Nopony get together. Sorry if this story was a bit hard to read, but it was written with a kind of dream-like quality in mind.
With that said, it seems to be a bit ambiguous as to whether or not Rarity is just dreaming that she's meeting Nopony again, doesn't it? But, that's not definite. Me? I think they've actually found each other again, and stay together, because dammit, I think those two would have made a good couple.
Really, it's up to you readers to decide if it's real or not. Or if this story is even canon to its source. Either way, rock on to that jam \m/