"Hello Elfilis. It is good to see you in better health."

"Hi Luna, its nice to be dreaming of you again as well." I ignored the light kick to my side as I looked around at my dream. It still seemed to be endless but everything was much duller. The lights only sparkled a little bit, and the various bright neon purples I had grown used to were darker, as if they were low on power. "I definitely did a number on the place..."

"Yes, I had been worried you had done yourself harm when your dream collapsed around me. Of course, I then had to see to Chrysalis and her attack on Manehatten. All I could really do was hope..." Uh oh. Were her eyes watery? "... Hope that the absence of a letter from Carina or any of the Elements meant that you were okay and not... Not overly harmed. I- Ah!" I think I surprised both of us by giving her a hug.

"It's okay. I'm okay. Everything's okay."

"I- You can't just-! I thought you might've-! Fuck! I'm crying again aren't I?"

"It's fine. I'm not bothered by it. And..." I wiped at my eyes as Luna finally returned the hug. "And I think I might be tearing up too."

"Why are you crying? You could have died and I just had to hope you were okay, and I had to convince my sister to wait for whatever you pulled out of your flanks this time, and then she started talking about her vagina-" That didn't sound right. "And I thought that maybe Carina was too broken up by your death that she didn't think to tell anyone at first, or maybe she was too busy burying you too-" She was hysterical, and I lost track of what she was yelling at me about at that point but I let her keep going for as long as she wanted. "-So fuck you! Why are you crying?!"

"... Because I very well could've killed everyone by creating who I did."

"The knight? He was powerful, but he wasn't bad, if a little short... I mean, not short as in short in stature, short as in, ah..."

"Mannerisms?"

"Oh good, that word is still used. Why would he have turned on us?" She pulled away from me a little bit, though I could tell it was mostly so we could speak face to face. Her eyes were bloodshot.

"Because I have no idea what angry-me was thinking. The Galacta Knight I met was significantly different from what I thought he would be like."

"And...?" I just let her stew on what I said for a moment. "Wait, but isn't he... He is one of your Phantoms isn't he?"

"Yeah." She got it.

"Literally made out of your thoughts... And you think he should've been evil? Or that his original self was?" Well, not quite.

"I thought he would've been aggressive, and unwilling to listen to us. Instead, he was begrudgingly cordial."

"Hm. Perhaps the Phantoms are naturally inclined to listen to their creator?"

"Or, I thought of him as a calmer guy when I was angry. Or angry-me didn't even entertain the thought of him not listening to me. Or etc. Point being, I'm upset that I almost created a literal villain."

"... Hm. Fine. That's a good reason to cry too."

Rarity was a little swamped (what a nasty word) with work. The Grand Galloping Gala was fast approaching, and that meant copycat events across the country. So even though her own dress, the dresses of her friends, and Spikes dragon-proofed baby tuxedo were all done, she had a large number of commissions to fulfill. Granted, most of them didn't have to be her best work. Some ponies were going to bars or inviting friends to stay the night at their own places. Three dresses she hadn't completed yet though were for the actual Gala, and she was only just now completing one of them; Carinas elastic black dress.

"Poor dear just kept growing, didn't she Opal?" Opal, the cat, didn't say anything in response. "Even working with my most stretch fabrics didn't save me from reworking this dress every time she came to visit. But..
with... one... last... There! Perfection! Now, I could probably get a good start on Ocatavia's dress before closing time, which is... was, four hours ago... Hm." Indeed, Rarity had worked until midnight without realizing. The first thing she thought to do was to check on Sweetie Belle to see if she had gone to bed on her own. And then the front door opened and her bell chimed. "Oh! I'm sorry dear, I'm afraid we're..." Walking in was, speak of the devil, Octavia. And she was lightly frowning while pointing to the sign hung up on the door, not flipped around to say 'closed' to the outside world. "... Open."

"I know you aren't supposed to be open right now, but I saw the lights and it is better I tell you sooner rather than later, just in case." Oh no. Was she really going to ask for adjustments to the design while it was fully dark out?

"I'm sorry Octavia, but I really don't have the time-"

"I need to cancel mine and Vinyls commissions."

... Well, she supposed she could make time.

"I... Pardon?"

"I know it's really late, and I'm willing to pay for any of the work you've already done, but-"

"Oh no! No no no, you can cancel, of course you can! No need to reimburse me dear." There was also no need to let her know that the dresses hadn't gone past the planning phase. "I'm just curious as to why? Has something come up that's stopping you two from attending the Gala? You seemed so excited to perform as well."

"I... I'm still going to be playing at the Gala. I just... We find ourselves needing to save money. We don't know how much truthfully, and we decided it would be best if I went to the Gala while she looks into her- our, options." There was definitely a story there, and Rarity was becoming ever more curious as to what it was. Maybe there was some way she could help? "As a performer, it won't look terribly out of place for me to be on stage in just my bowtie, so... Yes. I would like our orders canceled." Rarity waved a hoof through the air casually.

"Consider it done... Provided you consider telling me what has you two wildly successful musicians worried about finances so suddenly."

"I... I really don't think I should say. It's not really my secret or problem to share." Rarity had expected that, but it was also confusing to the fashionista.

"Vinyl? The pony who started pole dancing on my stage when she came in for a fitting?" The nervous look on Octavias face quickly dropped to one of annoyance.

"... I knew she was going to do that. Yes, that Vinyl. I know it seems odd of her to not overshare, but this feels different. And I'm not one to overshare on her behalf anyway." Something so bad, or so embarrassing, that even Vinyl Scratch of all ponies was (potentially) keeping it close to her chest. Well, it sounded to Rarity like that was a good time to stop prying.

"That's okay, forgive me for being nosey. Just tell me, is Vinyl okay? Is she handling, whatever it is, well?" And then Octavia revealed the hidden talent of all ponies. She exploded.

"I don't know! She says she's fine, but she says that about everything! This is a big deal! It's terrible! An absolute invasion of privacy, modesty, and some other third thing that I yelled at her before I left that I can't remember right now!" Rarity slowly backed up and pulled a mannequin closer with her magic. In case she needed to take cover. "I can never tell when she's lying! She does it all the time, and I wish she could just let it go! Just tell me what's wrong! Why can you not trust me...!"

"... I..." Octavia sniffed as she held her head down, tears hitting the smooth floor.

"She can't help it, you know? It's how she was raised. Vinyl never lies to get out of doing chores, or for doing her fair share of anything, but... I really wish she could tell me when something was wrong. She always waits till it's too late for me to help her through it..."

"... How do you... Why do you-?"

"Stay with her?... Because when she says she loves me, those are the times I know she's telling the truth. She used to say it so much, to so many ponies. I was the only one she ever looked in the eyes when she said it... I'm not mad that she lies. I'm mad that she's gone through so much that she hardly knows how to tell the truth." ... Rarity was going to make an effort to not stick her nose in the private lives of customers. You would think she learned her lesson after the stallion who wanted leather belts but noooo...

Vinyl Scratch stared at the toy in her hooves. It is probably what some would expect from her at this point. A full-sized phallus with all the bells and whistles money and magic could provide to a lonely pony. But she didn't use it anymore. She just stared. No excitement. No anticipation. No blush, embarrassment, fantasies, pride, and no lust in the slightest.

Only disappointment and sore legs.

"... Do we really matter that little to you? Do you secretly geld all my brothers too? No, if you did that you wouldn't fuck half of them to exhaustion. Just us. Just your daughters. Just the ones who would look up to you the most... Well, fuck you too bitch. I'm getting your little magic beads out, I'm going to master a unicorn transformation spell, I'm going to get my brains fucked out of me by my marefiend, and I'm going to have a foal so loved and so goddamn cute that you'll tear out your own fucking tract when you realize how shit you are at being a mother."

The dildo didn't respond. Vinyl was too angry to care.

Fluttershy, despite the marks upon her flank, didn't often speak to the butterflies. They were naturally quite solitary outside of breeding and migration seasons. It was a shame, she felt, since they were what she based her own flight philosophy on. Light, soft, completely unheard... And with deceptive strength.

They were what taught her that she didn't need to be like Rainbow Dash, or Spitfire, or any of the pegasi she used to go to school with. Grace was just as fulfilling as speed. It wasn't something she really spoke to many ponies about, not that she often spoke with ponies in general. She made exceptions; Rainbow Dash, her new friends from Nightmare Moons return, and the changelings.

There was something about them that Fluttershy couldn't quite put into words. They were always so curious when they first came to see her, and so scared of being themselves that she couldn't help but sympathize. And never let it be said that she didn't know what it was like to feel like an outsider in a pony world. Animals, nature, the quiet of living next to the Everfree where no other pony dared to build. Those were for her. The ponies could keep to their herds, she would keep to her packs and hives and pods and swarms.

What she didn't know how to deal with though, was an absolutely apocalyptic number of butterflies suddenly descending onto her cottage.

"Oh my... is something wrong? Are you all okay?"

Someone knows, someone fears
They whispered, but Fluttershy heard.

"Who? What? Why? And... uh... where...?"

Woods of White are filled with thoughts

Unaware, that is all it needs to be wrought

The one, the true, the aspect of Change

He comes, he hides, just out of range

Who he'll choose, we'll never know

Death shall reap, and sorrow he'll sow

"D-d-death?" Animals had never spoken of death so reverently to her before.

We come, we warn, but we cannot stop

He is master, father, cream of the crop

Pray for peace, hope for quiet

If chaos ensues, incites a riot

Then he will come, in a beam of light

The inevitable end, the Morpho Knight

Distantly, in the Canterlot dungeons, a prisoner encased in crystal and pinned with spears is set down in a cell all her own. The guards who had to carry her were tired, the Princess who used her magic to enlarge the path was tired, and the Captain, rife with guilt, was tired. They all made one final check, to make sure she was still and unable to fall over. And then, they left. The doors shrunk back to their usual size as Celestia dropped her spell, and the guards gave sighs of relief at a job well done.

And when there was no pony left to see, a heart topped spear began to dim, and creak.

Author's Note

This one became dramatic all on its own. I have become haunted by the writers spirit. Fear their wrath, and their love of lore. You may die, if you hear their words of bore.

I think Lord of the Rings was the only series I ever read where the constant lore dumps didn't drive me away and actually sucked me further into the story. If I could emulate that, I'd be a happy [nondescript human being].