Twilight Sparkle has been happy in life. After all, she has best friends who she cares for like no other, a wonderful family, and a loving mentor. She is a princess who can spread friendship across the land and with her seven best friends she brings happiness to all sorts of ponies and creatures.
However, in reality the world is not a place full of sunshine and rainbows. Not even in a land as prosperous and peaceful as this. All of it is a mere façade. Wool over Twilight's eyes which had kept her from finding out the truth. The terrible and lonely truth. Only Twilight Sparkle can see them.

Now most would view this as a curse but Twilight disagrees at least at the beginning. See Twilight is a special pony and she has been ever since she was born. Luckily for her, in her youth she had a young little mind which hadn't been capable of the horrors that her mind can now create.

Regarding a certain memory of Twilight's, it was just a regular evening in her home in Canterlot. She was playing in her room while her parents were much too busy to come check up on her. Twilight was a calm filly anyways but if they had, they might have taken notice of the odd behaviors she exhibited every night. Twilight remembered having so much fun that she didn't seem to find anything of significance about those nights in her filly hood. Active filly imagination, she remembers thinking, and yet these sort of thoughts changed when she saw them again.

Looking back Twilight realized she was being foolish to believe it was a figment of her imagination, but she had to find some sort of logical explanation for them. Deciding to take note of this phenomenon; Twilight wrote about how as a filly she had imaginary friends. They were fun to play with and kind to her. Her friends she remembered even kept her company when she was busy studying for Celestia. They were, Twilight wrote, all made up of pony like shapes and each of them had innocently colorful appearances with large joyful smiles on their faces.

The princess proceeded for hours to scribble in her journal about 'these invisible ponies'. However, eventually she had to remove herself from the journal so she could perform her princess duties. The day seemed rather normal after that but soon the normality fled her when hours later the mulberry mare returned to her studies. There as she lit the candle in her room did she find her journal ripped to ruin on top of her desk. Shreds of paper littered her desk and all of her writings were gone. Forlornly Twilight gathered it up in her magic and she tossed it away. She was certain an animal might have gotten lost inside of her castle, but not even Flurry Heart would believe a lie like that.

A deep sigh echoed within her library as Twilight flicked through the book she had been trying to study. A book about ancient pony Philosophers. This was to take her mind off of everything, but it was futile. Her mind could not help but wonder about the journal or wonder when they'd return. These strange happenings must have an explanation she rationalized, should they not? Yet no explanation seemed to present itself to her.

Twilight yawned to herself and she set aside her last book for the night when she noticed a book on the second stack that wasn't there before. Lifting it with her magic, her violet eyes widened when she realized what book it was. It was her journal, now in complete pristine condition.

The alicorn swallowed nervously as she veered closer to the book. She was too curious, and she felt her body move towards the miraculous object that lay resting upon her oak wooden desk. As she began to read what was on the faded yellow pages, Twilight's heart raced in her chest.

Journal Entry: 200/11/23
'This will be my first report. Simply an observational text as I have been studying these things that have been following me. Things, I say, because they're most certainly not ponies and yet I do not think they're creatures either. The first time I saw one I remember thinking that I must be dreaming, but I have yet to see Luna in any of these nightmares. Which is... off-putting.

When they appear they are generally shadowed figures far in the distance, but when they are close enough they are terrifyingly gruesome. I am aware that when I see them I know I will not get any sleep that night. As it is, I barely regularly consume food for malnourishment for that matter either, but who has the time when they are being hunted? It is not an easy task to observe while knowing that I am being watched. Always watched.

Truthfully, all I want when they are near is to be able to close my eyes and not see anything ever again. It was that... one in particular that had captivated my attention and sent chills through my spine every time I turned my head. The pitch black soulless eyes of the figure and countless scars all over its indescribable face had nothing on the rest of it. It looked like it had been mauled by a bear. The stomach was ripped to pieces and its own internal organs were spilling out like confetti, and worse still it's larger entrails dragged on the ground when it walked. Blood dripped from its body which created a long trail of crimson as it followed.

With the fact that whatever it was had to be dead aside, when I noticed more about the monster I felt my beliefs fall from right under me, crashing and burning where they lay.

The monster’s jaw hung loosely I noted, but no blood seeped from it’s maul and as it stumbled I could tell that it’s legs would contort in impossible directions almost as if it were breaking it’s joints and bones with every step. I can picture at this moment those jutting bones in the rib cage which had somehow begun to point upward in awkward angles. Eventually the next time I chanced a glance at it, the bones had pierced straight through its own fur coat. And when I got a closer look as I had braved flying over it, I could tell that the bones were forming crudely shaped... wings.

This particular disturbing figure always appeared. The jaunty footsteps still echoing in my mind whenever it would slowly trail a distance behind me. It always walked behind me, slowly but never resting.
To my misfortune none of my friends have noticed anything. I of course will not broach the subject. They'd think I was crazy! Absolutely bonkers! I would not blame them either with my track record, but whatever these monsters are I cannot get them out of my mind. No matter what I do I am haunted…Haunted by these facts:
One they’re all after me. Two whatever they are, they do not seem to go away. Three there is no pony who can help me. Four, I am so afraid. And five, they have cutie marks.

That winged monstrosity has a trio of balloons on it's flank,
Just like Pinkie Pie.'

Author's Note

Hey there, I really hope you have enjoyed this first chapter! Also I will take any constructive criticism gladly.
And while we're here, what did you think of the journal being in color? Is that pleasing to the eye or more of an distractor? I would love to hear the feedback on that as it was something I was nervous about.

~~I am such an perfectionist, I swear you guys.~~

~Twi.