The room was empty, devoid of all things nice. The floor was cold, and so was the air. A window was there, letting in a little light but it was otherwise dark in the room. Everything was hazy, and seemed far away, or maybe nothing wanted to be near me — not that I had any right to complain. I could hear the sound of life going on outside but it was far away and muffled. I was lying in a corner of the room, alone and wanting and scared.

There were footsteps outside the room, somewhere far, but they were getting nearer. They were heavy and slow, but not slow enough. They never were. I couldn't recognise who they belonged to, but every time they sounded, I flinched and trembled. I didn't know where they were in relation to me, but it was definitely too close for comfort.

I wanted to bolt out the door and to somewhere safe or at least somewhere where I wasn't alone. But no such place existed; there was no point in confirming, I simply knew it. I was alone now as I had been the day before and the day before that and everyday before that one, and I would be alone tomorrow and every day after. I had pushed away the handful of people who came to me by virtue of being myself; who would want to be around me anyway?

Another footstep fell, so much closer now. How long had I not paid attention? Even if it didn't change anything, I should have focused. I wished I could focus on things and not be stupid.

More footsteps, just around the corner. I sucked in a breath and held it, burying my face in my arms and hiding myself behind my hair as best as I could. I doubt I was doing that well enough to hide, but I've never been good at anything. I'd get found regardless, like always.

The footsteps kept going, going, going, till they were right outside the door. I shrunk as much as I could into my little corner in the dark, and I stayed as quiet as I could, daring not to move or to even breathe. Please go away.

There weren't any footsteps of anyone leaving, and whoever was outside, stayed at the door. I doubt it was a friend outside — they had left me long ago for better people. They were waiting for an indicator I was here. I knew that if I moved or made noise or cried or took a breath, they'd break the door down and come in and get me. Was the door even locked? Did it matter? I wasn't somewhere I had control. I wished someone nice would come for me and save me. But that wasn't an option, even in my wildest delusions. I kept quiet and did whatever I could to make myself as small as possible. Maybe I would be hidden in the dark but I'd more likely be seen.

I took a peek at the window as silently as I could. There was freedom outside — I could run and not have to face this once more. I was high above the streets outside, I was sure of that, and I couldn't fly, which I was also sure of, but it was the easy way out that would permanently end my problems. But I couldn't move myself closer; I was too scared to go. I would take the hard way, all because of me being too scared. I hated myself.

I squeaked as there came a sudden pounding at the door. Stupid. I had made noise. It was too late, I had made noise and they knew I was here in the room. It was over for me. I felt tears roll down my face, and I had to hold my mouth shut to stop myself from crying. It'd be worse if I did.

More pounding, louder than before. I could hear snarling and heavy breathing behind the door. Maybe they were smiling in anticipation of what they could do to me, but they were probably angry that they had to see me. I didn't want to be alone as I faced them by myself. I didn't want to face them, or be by myself. I wanted to be anywhere else, with anyone else.

They pounded the door a third time, even harder and louder. They wouldn't be polite anymore, and the door would come down. I had very little time, and there was nothing I could do.

There was a moment of silence, the calm before the storm that almost seemed to taunt me with the possibility that everything was going to be alright — that it would be okay. It never was okay, things always went wrong.

I flinched and shut my eyes hard as the door was kicked. One. It was locked, but it wouldn't hold. The door creaked and whined as it bent under the second hit. Maybe it was sorry for me, but it is more likely that it didn't care about me and was concerned about itself.

There was a pause, so dreadful. I could feel my heart trying to escape my chest and run off.

The door burst open on the third hit, shattering into splinters and pieces that showered over everything. A piece hit my head, but I didn't flinch. I clenched my jaw so hard it hurt in an effort to keep myself quiet while I moved my arms to shield my head. The heavy and fast footsteps moved around the room erratically, coming closer and going farther in search of me. The floor would shake whenever they came close, and I would brace for whatever. Maybe I'd be dragged out of the corner by my hair, maybe I'd just be hit there. It was so hard to hold my breath.

The search ended too soon. The footsteps ended all of a sudden and turned to me. I shuddered, and exhaled shakily and as quietly as I could to make myself smaller. I was too loud.

They screeched at me, calling me something bad. The footsteps resumed, now running towards me. They still screeched. I couldn't move, or look, or react in any way besides bracing. I was like a deer in the headlights — I hoped that it would end just as quickly as it ended for a deer.

There was a crash as the window shattered. A cry of some sorts ran gout, distinct from the screeching but just as angry. Both were close. It always got worse.

I heard a horn lighting up and then discharging magic. Something blew up right after, and there was an ear-piercing screech of pain that was only drowned out by a loud "begone, beast". I didn't know if I was the centre of attention at the moment or not, but I still kept quiet and choked back sobs to make sure I wasn't.

There was more screeching, followed by someone hitting the floor near me. They got up quickly and ran towards the screeching. I wanted to look, but I also wanted to slip away while the two fought. I ended up staying put, paralysed by fear.

More fighting, more screaming and shouting. I wanted it to stop, but I could only cry pathetically. My head hurt so much. I shifted my arms so they covered my ears as well, which muffled the noise somewhat. I was sure that the two people had moved outside as well, taking their fight outside my room.

The fight kept going for a while, or maybe not. I had lost focus again. It was silent now, completely silent. No noise from outside, no more screeching, no more magic or anything. I wanted to crack my eyes open and see why it was so, but I didn’t want to see anything coming towards me silently.

Silence was replaced by footsteps. These ones were different, lighter and less unhappy than the previous ones, but I stayed tense all the same. You could never be sure. The footsteps came to a halt in front of me; I was cornered.

“Thy nightmare hath been vanquished. You need not fear anymore... my little pony.” I flinched at the sudden talking. She seemed familiar, and nice, but I didn't want to take my chances or any false hope. I stayed cowering in my corner.

She wasn't happy to hear that, if I went by the sound of how she sat down in front of me. She was very close — I could hear her breathing sharply. She seemed angry at me, probably for ignoring her. She'd shout now, calling me all sorts of things — I was sure of it. I held back my tears, sniffling for a little bit as I quieted myself fully.

The silence stayed intact, however. I could feel her glaring down at me; it was uncomfortable. She should have done something by now.

I finally made a move, taking a peek at her.

My vision was blurry at first but I could make out that she was blue and towering above me. As my vision became clearer, I could see that she had a horn as well. I didn't recognise her. She was wearing a tiara, a necklace thing, and shoes. I focused on the necklace and saw that it had a moon symbol on it. I didn't catch any other detail as my eyes were drawn to her sides.

She had bat wings.

"P— princess?" Why was she here? Was I in trouble? I could feel my heart drop at that thought.

"Aye, ‘tis I, Princess Luna of the night, in the flesh and blood," she replied, seemingly casual about the situation despite the pomp or how I looked at her with wide eyes. She suddenly turned her head up — maybe she wasn't as casual as I thought. She lifted a hoof (I shrunk back), and put it up to her chin as she continued, "Or, mental projection, to be true."

She put the hoof down. "But that is peripheral to our main issue."

I didn't care much about thinking about any of that, and tried saying something. "Y— you're—" I couldn't think of what to say.

She took my stammering as an opportunity to continue. "Aye, We are here. Thou aren't having a nightmare — not after We came to thy rescue," she explained, gesturing to the room behind her. Where were the splinters and broken glass? Where was the doorway?

"Ah, I apologise; I had slipped back into my old tongue," she said, breaking me out of my observation. I looked back up to her, and saw that her expression had become a lot more clear. She was looking down at me with... sympathy? I wasn't sure. "Panic not, we are in your dream right now. A dream beast had managed to enter, and my guard— and the dream golems weren't able to enter to stop it from feasting on your fear."

I stared up at her, more confused than scared. The princess looked back, now looking eager and proud about something, or maybe she was amused. Probably the latter; I looked like a dumb child right now. I asked the first question that came to me,"This... a dream?"

"Yes, Anya, you are dreaming."

"You're... here?" I began processing what she said earlier about being here in the flesh and blood. She wasn't actually here, right? She was just my imagination, right? The possibility that I had embarrassed myself in front of someone started eating me up. Why didn't this nightmare just end already?

"Yes, that I am," she answered, clearly bored by the questions I had. In contrast, I felt my heart drop. Someone had seen me like this, at my worst. And she was a princess. I wished that I genuinely didn’t exist.

It seemed that the princess took notice somehow as she assumed a more alert stance right after that thought. I was dreaming, right, so I should be able to force myself to wake up; I couldn’t handle making more of a fool out of myself. What should I do? I had to be quick; I couldn’t waste more time here.

“You need not worry about my presence,” the princess said, pulling me out of my panicked thoughts. I only paid her mind for a moment but that was more than enough for her to capitalise on. “I am here only to help thee— you. Anything that happens here shall stay here, I swear that on my honour.”

“What— what do you want?” I cringed as I blurted out that question — I might not have cared much about her rank, but I still had a basic expectation to be polite to someone who had been nice, so far. I looked away so that I didn’t have to make eye contact. I had to get away.

Instead of being offended like I thought, she simply answered, “As I said, I wish to help you. Yo—”

“Why?”

I covered my mouth with a hoof. I couldn’t really believe that she wanted to help me just like that — she was a literal princess. Shouldn’t she have more important things to deal with? Or other people’s dreams? But I shouldn’t have asked it like that. I was just being rude now and I hated that so much. Why couldn’t I be normal? That’s all they ever wanted why couldn’t I—

She put a hoof on my shoulder. Where was the shoe she was wear— She was gentle yet firm as she spoke, “Can you do something for me?”

I looked up at her and found my gaze drawn towards her eyes. I wasn’t sure if she looked back with worry, or with disappointment. I tried looking anywhere but her eyes but I just couldn’t. Was her horn glowing? What did she want? What was she doing to me?

Princess Luna hummed, interrupting me out of my train of thought, and then said, “Can you take a breath?”

“Huh?” That’s it? No, wait, I was trying to wake myself up, not calm down.

“Breathe, it’ll help you calm down,” she elaborated, still holding me by the shoulders and still staring me in the eye. I thought I heard magic. Had she blinked? What was the blue light?

I wanted to not do that, but I still found my breath becoming more relaxed as the moments passed agonisingly slowly. I couldn’t look away from the princess’s eyes, and I couldn’t tell what she was doing to me, but whatever it was, it was making me calm down. Why was I panicking again?

The blue glow intensified, and then dissipated.

I suddenly blinked and looked around. What was going on?

The room was bare as it had been earlier, but it seemed different now, less hazy and more definite. There were no sounds coming from anywhere, besides me breathing. I was not alone. I had been having a nightmare, and was now awake— not awake, I was... lucid dreaming? Yeah, definitely that, I think.

I turned to the other person in the room, the princess, who still held me by my shoulders. Her ears were slightly lowered and her hair flowed in a non-existent wind, looking just like the night. She was staring at me with a raised eyebrow and I looked back, confused for a moment and rather tired as well.

“Tell me this, how do you feel?” she asked all of a sudden, letting go of my shoulders and stepping back just as quickly.

“Fine,” I answered automatically, which made her frown a bit. I quickly added, “But a bit tired.”

“Tired? New… but understandable,” she said, looking up in thought. She mumbled something to herself.

I looked around again, partly to make sure the room had stayed the same, and partly to restart the gears in my head and remember whatever had happened. Why was the princess here? I had some sort of nightmare and she came to help. Why had I panicked? I think I got scared of the princess. She’d leave though since I was okay now. What had she done? Helped me. I should probably thank her before she goes.

I looked back at the princess, who was now blankly staring up, like a puppet not in use, but I had a feeling she was alright. Besides that, I had a distinct feeling that I was forgetting something. Or maybe the feeling was because I was just sitting next to someone so high in stature, in my dream, and was being just... casual.

I guess if someone asks me if I met a princess, “in my dreams” is a legit answer. Heh. I snorted at my joke, and then yawned. Weird how I’m tired while I’m asleep, but it tracked since I’m usually tired after any amount of sleep. I wished I had coffee, but I guess being okay was more than enough. I didn't let myself get too comfortable though; you never know what'll happen if you do that, and fumbling in front of a princess will definitely haunt me forever.

The princess suddenly took a deep breath, startling me out of my thoughts. She exhaled and then blinked a few times, giving her wings a few quick flaps as well, after which she looked back down to me with a piercing gaze. I sat at attention at that; crown or not, being looked at by someone sucked.

“Thy— your nightmare has been vanquished, but there is still work to be done,” she declared, putting on a reassuring smile that showed off her fangs right after. Then, her ears went down and she added in a less-happy voice as she looked off to the side, "If you wish to have my help."

Help? I couldn't help but stare blankly at her at that offer. She had stopped the nightmare; that was more than enough help. I shouldn't impose on her being polite, especially when she didn't want to be here — she's literally a princess; she wouldn't have time to spare, and even if she did, she shouldn't waste in on me.

Unfortunately, I spent too much time thinking about declining the help. The princess said, her ears now lowered and her hooves fidgeting, "We— I can don a more agreeable appearance if t— you want for that."

That was unexpected. I thought she'd ask me to hurry up, not try to persuade me into accepting. What was she cooking? Whatever it is, she doesn't need to do — she shouldn't waste time and energy on me. I just had to decline politely, and deal with my stuff by myself.

"Oh, uh, you don't have to— I mean— I don't want help." I fumbled that reply real hard. From the way the princess frowned, it was confirmed what I said was definitely offending. I swore I'd tear out my tongue if I kept at being stupid.

She abruptly stood up and turned to the window. She already had her wings open and ready to take off, but she didn't leave immediately though. She seemed bitter, but more importantly, sad as she said with her back turned to me, "We understand. We shall take our leave. Fare thee we—"

"No, wait," I interrupted her before she could leave. I didn't want to be mean to her, making her think I didn't appreciate her presence — that'd be bad of me.

She stopped mid-sentence and turned to look at me, and it was under her unhappy gaze that my spontaneous decision started to bite me in the ass. It was quiet for a long awkward moment as I figured out how to continue, no matter how obviously it was made up on the spot, "It's— it's not that you're— that I don't want you here, it's just that I think that— that you've already done a lot for me."

"Thou—" she frowned and grumbled at herself "—You believe that I have helped you enough?" she narrowed her eyes at me, disbelieving.

"Well, yeah, you made my nightmare go away. That's like, a lot, especially since you probably have important stuff to—" I couldn't finish as the princess, very suddenly and very loudly, interrupted to correct me.

"Nay! 'Tis part of our duties as princess of the night to protect and help our subjects from the perils of the dream realm," she was loud as she explained that, standing proud with a hoof pointed upwards as though she were giving a speech. I'm sure her volume would have worsened my ears if we were in the physical world. She pointed her raised hoof at me almost accusingly, making me take a step back. "Thou art not intruding on our own time as thee suggesteth."

It was dead silent after that, with the both of us staring at each other, her with incredulity and me with shock. I didn't know how long the moment lasted, but it was definitely time wasted.

We stared at each other for a bit. I couldn't think of anything to say, and I don't think she could either. I couldn't even make myself look away.

The princess put her hoof down and coughed slightly. "Ah, We— I apologise for... that... outburst." A moment of silence as she shook her head and got rid of her nervous expression. "So, ah... you will take my help? I promise you are not intruding on me."

I took a moment to get back my senses, after which I answered, "Y— yeah. Sure." I didn't think I could tell her to leave after that, seeing how adamant she was about going out of her way for me. I stood up as well, out of politeness. "What do you have to do?" the question came out better than all my previous ones, thankfully.

She was quick to answer, "Although the dream beast has been vanquished, there is work to be done. Firstly, we have to find why the dream golems were unable to enter your dream and vanquish the beast themselves."

"Like, look around my brain?" I asked, slightly worried, not because there was a problem with my head but rather, having her go around. What if she finds out private stuff? Hell, what if she finds out about Voth? Well, he had told me he had put blocks in me that make me forget everything about him if I ever got put in a situation like this. That didn't stop me from being nervous though.

"Aye, we must traverse your mind. There may be a fault or a wound in your dream's magic. The sooner we fix it, the better." Her confirmation, no matter how nicely she said it, was not a nice thing to hear. I kept myself from giving any really overt indication of not liking the princess's idea, on my face at least. I'm pretty sure my ears and tail lowered a bit, though the princess made no indication of noticing.

"Alright," I said with a hoof raised in anticipation. No backing out now. I hoped this went well. "So, how do we... find the fault, princess?" Even though I had used dream magic, I had used it for training, not whatever we're doing.

Her face lit up at that question, clearly showing how excited she was to talk about some subject she probably knew a lot about. She took a deep breath, and answered, "T's quite simple; we walk."

"We just... walk?"

"Aye, we walk," she confirmed with a smile, amused, probably because of my dumb question. "Thy— your," she paused, going cross-eyed for a moment as she glared at her snout. "We— I apologise; I keep slipping back into my old dialect."

"I understand what you're saying either way," I said. It seemed that Shakespeare english was her default, though I'm not sure how she got there considering that she hadn't been on Earth when Shakespeare, or rather, Hayspeare was around. Nightmare spoke normally as well, which was weird. I guess it's just one of her quirks. It didn't matter much to me since I could understand, or at least accurately guess whatever she was saying. No need to burden her with having to accommodate for me.

She looked at me for a moment, her head tilted a bit with one of her ears down and one of her eyebrows raised. "You do not mind my manner of speech?"

"No, it's alright." Even if it wasn't, who was I to say no.

She went back to smiling a bit. "Very well then. Let us be on our way."

She turned and gestured to the far wall with her wing. I followed her wing and saw that there was a door there, where there had been none earlier. I stopped to stare at it for a moment before remembering that I had a princess waiting on me. I walked to the door, and she followed me. I kinda wished it was me following her since she'd know things better.

I hesitated a bit as I put my hoof on the handle. Though I had agreed to let the princess look around, I was still looking for a reason to stall. What if there was weird stuff that she would see and I couldn't explain? There had to be some way I could avoid anything like that happening.

Too bad that the room around was empty, and that turning back now would not sit well with her. I didn't turn my head to look back at her for reassurance, but she probably knew I wasn't confident about this. I would be wasting her time though, if I just stood here and did nothing.

I took a deep breath and silently cursed myself for my decisions. I opened the door.

The door swung open loudly, and the echo of it hitting the wall reverberated through the room for a few seconds. The outside wasn't how I had expected it — there wasn't a long hall lined with doors. Instead, there was a small, grey, and dusty closet of a room with a set of stairs leading up to a dark door. Besides that, the room was bare, as though it had just spawned into existence one day and was then forgotten about.

I stepped forward and out of the doorway, letting the princess walk into the coffin of a room. The room seemed to become smaller when she walked in, and I felt like it was a little harder to breathe. I looked back to the princess, but she didn't seem to be affected by anything, preoccupied with trying to find some detail about the room. If she was fine, I guessed everything was fine.

I looked back to the stairs, which were a lot more interesting than the suffocating room around. They were old, wooden, and... familiar. I had seen them somewhere, but where? I looked to the princess, who had taken to looking at the ceiling.

"I don't think there's anything here," I said, taking another look around to be sure.

"True," she agreed. She looked back down at me, and I could feel that there was a 'but' coming. "But t's a dream. There's more than what we can see, and details are obscured by thy subconscious. Tell me, do you find anything here to be evocative of some emotion? Tell me, even if it is a little."

"The stairs, they seem familiar," I answered. I found my gaze drawn towards the stairs. They seemed to have changed when I looked away, but I couldn't tell how. I just knew something had changed. "They've changed a bit. I don't know if that's good..."

The princess hummed in response, thinking for a moment. "T's most likely thy mind putting in familiar things in thy dream." She walked up to them for a closer inspection, lighting up her horn as well. I came closer as well, but to keep an eye at the door upstairs.

It was almost dead silent as the princess scanned the door, and even the sound of her magic seemed muffled. I kept expecting some sort of sound, be it a clock or air-conditioning, but there was nothing. It was like nothing existed outside the room, and even within. I found myself tapping my hoof, both to keep it from being too quiet, and to let out some stress.

Normally, I'd appreciate the quiet and be happy with its peace. The silence in the room, however, was more like the silence of sneaking around, or being snuck up on. It was unbearable, and I found myself constantly checking to make sure that the only thing behind me was a wall, and that the door upstairs wasn't being opened.

"So, uh, how's your day been, princess?" I finally asked, mainly to fill in the silence, and maybe a bit to make sure that the Princess was still near. I then realised an error in my question, and quickly corrected, "Or night, I guess."

"T's been... less than expected," she answered, cutting off her magic and shaking her head. She sounded tired as she said that. "Our night hast been unfortunately uneventful. I doth not believe I have aught to doth, except helping thee with thy nightmare."

Well, that was a response I hadn't been expecting. I wasn't the only one having a crappy night, not that that made me feel any better. I probably should have kept quiet instead of having her be reminded of her night so far.

"And thee, Anya? How has't thee fared tonight?" she asked back. There was a momentary pause, after which she coughed into her hoof and quickly answered her own question, "Nevermind. I wouldn't be here if it were well."

She didn't let me get a word in as she continued, "Let us not waste more time here. These stairs are merely a part of your dream constructed from memory. They're probably in thy home."

"Oh, okay." Again, a moment of awkward silence. "We should get going."

"Yes, we should."

The princess moved out of the way, letting me lead the way up the stairs. On one hand, it made me squeamish to be in the lead again, but on the other, if something jumped out from behind the door, it wouldn't jump out at the princess. I sighed and moved. The steps creaked as we moved up to the door. This door was different from the last, looking like a jail cell's door. I couldn't see anything beyond because of a dark fog that was on the other side.

I hesitated again. There could have been nothing beyond the door, but there could also be something waiting for me to open it. Sure, I had an alicorn princess of the moon behind me, but I still felt like I was making a mistake, and that I should just lead the princess back downstairs and figure out some other way to fix me.

A sigh from behind me broke me out of thought, and reminded me that the princess was there behind me and probably getting annoyed by me being a bitch.

Without further thought, I pushed the door open. Unfortunately, the fog didn't dissipate like I thought it would, and the only way forward was through it. Couldn't things go properly, in my dream at least? I tried willing the fog away but after it stayed there, I figured that I wasn't in charge even in my own head.

Seeing no other option, that wouldn't waste time at least, I stepped through.

The fog was thick, like water or maybe mud, slowing me down. It was cold to the touch, chilling to the core like ice water, but it simultaneously felt like a hot and humid room packed with people. It was everywhere, giving me the worst of both cold and heat, and it made me regret even stepping in. I couldn't see either and had to trust myself to walk straight and out to the other side, and hope that nothing jumped out at me, and that princess gets through as well. But until I got out, I had to contend with all the disgusting feelings the fog was making me feel.

The end of the fog couldn't come sooner and I was almost happy when it did end, putting a good metre between me and it. Unfortunately, the princess was still in there, and I felt sorry for her for having to deal with crap my subconscious made up.

However, I was quickly drawn away from watching the fog by the view around me. I was in a street, on the sidewalk next to what looked to be an asphalt road, surrounded by a mix of skyscrapers and other tall building-like things that looked like parking garages if they were absurdly tall. It was dark, but the streets were well illuminated by soft yellow light. The buildings were all completely dark, and the city completely still.

I felt my fur stand on its end, and my ears turn low and to the sides. The entire place felt off — a city was supposed to be the antithesis of silence. If not people, then distant traffic, and if not that, there should at least be the sounds of machinery, however little there would be. But here, even the air was still. I kept looking around for any potential threat, and did so discreetly just in case. How could I even dream up such a place?

I turned around to see if the princess was coming, but my eye was caught by the building there. It was a sad mid-rise apartment block that had its front door open, which had the black fog in it. I recognised the place almost instantly, and I was already glaring at the hell-hole with my tail almost between my legs, my fear mostly replaced. Even if I wasn't there, I couldn't escape this place. I swore I'd kill myself before ever coming back here, unless I returned to burn it— I forced myself to calm down somewhat; this was all a dream, not something to get worked up over.

Princess Luna stepped out of the black fog, but paused halfway through as she caught me glaring in her general direction. She hesitated a bit, and then asked, "Is everything alright?" she asked, looking at me with her wings slightly puffed up and her right front hoof slightly raised.

I shook my head and turned around to stare at the ground. "Yes, just some... bad memories."

"Bad memories?" I heard her ask. She walked up to my side. "What is it with this place that makes thee furious to even see it?"

"Bad memories, princess," I repeated, wishing I could forget all the crap that happened in that place. It just made me so angry.

The princess didn't press me further for more information, which she definitely wanted. I felt a bit bad keeping things from her when she said she wanted to help me, but I really didn't want to let my secrets out of the relative safety of my skull. She probably understood why, but I still felt bad for being skittish.

I was shaken by her suddenly putting a hoof on my shoulder. She said, "This place doth not appear to be the locus of thy nightmare. If thee doth not wish to speak of it with Us, there shalt be nay discussion of it — We see that thee wish to leave these emotions be, though we advise 'against that. Anger festers and harms thee in ways subtle but terribly damning."

Done with her warning, she took her hoof off my shoulder and took a step forwards to look at the scenery around, while also giving me a moment to think over her words. I didn't think much about them. Sure, she was right about holding grudges being unhealthy — but I didn't hold grudges for things that could be solved and forgotten easily — almost everything that happened in that accursed building, between me and the waste of air that was the landlord, was not something easily forgivable. Just remembering those things in the few quiet moments left a sour taste in my mouth, and scowl on my face.

I kept myself composed though, figuring that I could be angry later. "I'll... think about that," I said to her, knowing very well that I probably wouldn't. Before she could call me out on that, I changed the topic, "So, where do we go from here?"

"That is up thee, Anya. This is thy dream, and thee will navigate it better than anyone," she answered, looking both ways of the street. "Though 't may be more difficult seeing how... unstructured thy dream is."

"Unstructured?"

She paused for a moment, and then looked back at me with a little playful smile. "Well, thy dream is structured in a manner"— she waved a hoof around, gesturing to all the buildings —"as we can see 'round us, but, t'is an unstructured dream at its core."

Had she... yeah, she just made a dad joke. A thousand year old princess, who probably isn't properly up to date, made a dad joke at me. I'm sure anyone else would have groaned, or maybe laughed, but I was a bit too surprised to do that even.

My lack of reaction elicited a reply of mock-injury from her. "Oh, come on, doth be not silent like that — We were quite humorous back in our time, and still are!"

"Yeah, I guess." To her credit, she did make me feel marginally better with that joke, and her reaction as well. "But what were you saying about unstructured earlier?"

Princess Luna turned so that she faced me. "To keep it succinct, most dreams have a clear beginning and end, and a straight path 'tween. As thee can see, thy dream has more 'round than expected from a normal dream. It means little by itself, but considering that the dream golems could not enter thy dream when they did need to, I suspect something is wrong. We can solve the issue, but thee shall have to lead us to 't."

I nodded, understanding most of what she said. I wanted more context, but I could probably ask later, after my problem was dealt with. I did have an important question though. "Do I just feel my way around to lead us?"

"Aye, that thee do," she answered. "Focus on thy surroundings, and thee shalt find something to follow."

I nodded, and then tried doing that. At first, I looked around — we were in some city-thing, and there could be signs — but found no visual indicator of a path. I couldn't hear anything either besides the silence, so that was out of the question. What other senses could I use? Magic?

I tried that, warily closing my eyes and lighting up my horn and feeling around. Almost everything around was made of magic, but it was just background magic and nothing out of the ordinary. There was the princess's magic, bright like a lighthouse and cool as the water around one. Behind me, the building seemed to radiate some distinct magic, though it was flickering like a dying candle. It wasn't what we were looking for anyway, and I moved on.

I tried feeling as closely as I could, but I could not sense anything out of the ordinary nearby. I cut off my magic, and opened my eyes, slightly disappointed in myself. This was my dream, why couldn't I just— I had an idea.

"Can't I just mould this dream so that we're closer to the problem?" I asked, miffed that I hadn't thought about that earlier.

"A simple idea, but unfortunately, not one we can execute," she answered, dashing any hope for that happening. I titled my head at her, and she elaborated, "Thy subconscious is crafting this dream, and thee art not conscious enough to command it to do otherwise."

"I'm not?" How was I not — I was literally talking to her.

"Aye. You only seem conscious because I have cast a spell that does so. The moment I leave this dream, you will revert back to dreaming normally. Unfortunately, I cannot make it so that you are dreaming consciously, and we are 'out of luck' as some would put it."

"Bruh." How inconvenient. "I can't feel anything like a clue. Do we just walk around then?"

"It seems to be the only option," Princess Luna said, looking down the street, towards an intersection. "Come, let us walk."

She set off at a leisurely pace, and it took me a moment to get my legs working. I was able to catch up and keep pace with her, staying at her left side, on the sidewalk. I kept a little distance between her and myself, not wanting to intrude on her space, but not staying so far that I may somehow separate from her.

We walked without making any talk, leaving only the sound of our hoofsteps to echo around the street. I wanted to ask some questions but I felt I'd be annoying. Instead, I occupied myself with looking around at the cityscape, observing all the things I found interesting.

The main thing I found was that there were only three types of buildings: the skyscrapers, the skyscraper-sized parking garage things, and mid-rise apartment blocks. All would have looked exactly the same if it weren't for their colours all being somewhat distinct shades of brown and grey. There were no doors on any of the buildings, and all the windows had their curtains drawn close. They gave off the feeling that they were either completely hollow, or filled in on the inside.

Either way, they were inaccessible. All the alleyways were pitch black, even if they were close to a light — they looked more like painted walls to be honest. Still, I felt like I was being watched from behind the curtains and from the shadows. Occasionally, I looked behind us to make sure we weren't being followed.

Even though I was safe with the princess, I still felt a bit on edge with the lack of anywhere to hide. The street we were in would be a perfect place to give chase. The only saving grace was that this was a dream and the worst that could happen was that I got scared awake, in the short term at least. The quiet didn't help one bit, since it seemed keen on making me feel like I was being stalked rather than reassuring me that we were alone.

The princess stopped, and I did as well as we reached the intersection. It was where we found the first interesting thing and an obvious clue to what was wrong.

The road in front of us, the one perpendicular to the street we were on, looked like Godzilla had been there. The road was split apart into a little valley, and had several craters dotted around the valley. In the craters and the valley was what appeared to be completely black still water. Looking either way, the damaged road stretched from horizon to horizon. A perfect obstacle — for me at least; the princess could fly.

"Is this what's wrong?" I asked the princess, even though the answer was obviously going to be a yes. The princess was busy observing the broken road with a keen eye and didn't answer.

Suddenly, she stepped forward, spreading her wings out. She took off just as suddenly, flying over the road and hovering in the air above it, just beyond the lights. Besides the sound of her leathery wings, it was quiet as she observed the road from her new place. It was hard to see her since she blended in with the darkness well, but her eyes gave her away since they reflected red light — she kinda looked like some kind of phantom, or maybe some bat cryptid. I wasn't scared, just a bit intimidated, and I hoped that she didn't see that.

She stopped hovering, and made a beeline for the ground, landing next to a crater on the street. She looked down into it for a moment, before raising her head back and calling out to me. "Anya, come hither." She seemed disturbed as she said that. Did she see something bad? I could feel a knot form in my stomach at that thought.

I didn't need to be told that since I was already walking over. Once I was at her side, she said quickly, "Anya, look into the water, and tell me what you see."

I looked into the crater and at the water in it. My attention was caught by the princess's reflection. She was looking down with me, though she looked quite grim with her ears to the sides and her pupils narrowed. She was almost baring her teeth at her reflection. I quietly took a step away from her and shifted my attention to my reflection, only to find that the water was not still anymore, and was rippling a little, distorting the reflection and making it look ugly. It didn't matter much since I was ugly anyway — in fact, I was relieved it wasn't anything bad.

"The water's rippling, my reflection is messed up," I informed her. I brought my head up and asked her, "Is there something up with this water, or its reflections?"

"Aye, the water muddles how one looks at themself, t's the work of a beast that aims to anger," she answered, taking one last angry look at the water before stepping back and lighting her horn up. I stepped back as well, and she shot a spell at the water. I didn't get to see what happened, but judging by the hissing and the black fumes that appeared and dissipated, I could conclude that she boiled the water away. I didn't really see the usefulness of that, seeing how there was a whole lot of the water left, but seeing how she looked only mildly annoyed after that, I figured it was for anger relief.

"Forget it. Let us move on, the road shalt lead us to where we need to be." She set off, keeping to the sidewalk this time. I trailed behind her to avoid intruding into her personal space, but I wished to be at her side, just to feel safe.

Again, we were walking in silence.

I looked to the side, observing the buildings even though they were mostly the same, if a bit plainer than what I had seen so far. There weren't any alleyways here, but I could see an intersection coming up, after the block ended. I turned my eyes forward and observed the princess for a bit, noticing how she had lowered her head a bit, and that her ears were low. I kinda wanted to ask her if I could do anything to make her feel better, but I doubted that I would be any help. I just kept my guard up and frequently checked behind us.

Finally, as we came across the first intersection, the princess spoke up. "Anya, can thee answer a question?" she asked, not stopping or looking back.

I took a quick look at the stop sign as we started crossing the road. "Yeah, what is it?" Looking either way, I noticed that the street was rather wide, and that I couldn't see down the road. What if a car or something came barreling through? I tried thinking of something else, but kept an ear up anyway.

The princess took a moment to say anything, the air around her pensive. She then asked, almost whispering, "Do you... fear me?"

I was taken aback by the question, to say the least."Huh?"

"Do you fear me?" she repeated, louder than before, and more sadly as well.

I didn't even have to think about the question to answer, "No, I don't." Sure, she was intimidating, but she wasn't scary. I then asked my own question, "Why?"

The princess sighed and shook her head. "Come, walk at my side." She moved a bit to the side, giving some space. I looked between the space and her for a moment before moving to be at her side like she wanted. It was uncomfortable, being that close to her, but it was what she wanted. I took the opportunity to look ahead and saw that there was a second intersection coming up.

She didn't begin speaking immediately, waiting till we were back on the sidewalk again. "T's been a millennium since I walked the earth, but it is still as... cold as it was then, but now, I do not have much to contribute even." She paused, taking a deep breath. "Ponies... people, they... they fear me. Most no longer fear the night and its inhabitants, as they did all those years ago — and I'm grateful for that — but... they still fear me."

She had her head lowered and sad eyes as she finished. Though she hadn't said a lot, I could still feel the weight of what troubled her. A thousand years behind and not with a good image and basically nobody to depend on. She straightened up quickly, covering up her sadness rather poorly. "Apologies, t's improper of Us to speak of our troubles while helping thee with thine own."

"No no, it's alright. No need to apologise," I said. "And if it means anything, most people should come around eventually."

"That is the issue: that they take so long to do little," she said, snorting a bit. "Even in Our— my and my sister's castle We face trouble. Nary a servant looks at Us without fear, even Our own guards stay cautious around Us, as though We art still the nightmare from all those years ago!" For a moment, it looked like she would go on a rant, but then she deflated. "They still shun me as monster."

She didn't say anything after, slowing down quite a bit. I stayed at her side, asking myself what I could do to cheer her up, without bringing up some shitty thing. I wanted to put a hoof on her shoulder and tell her it'd be alright and that not everyone hates her, but it felt like I would be overstepping boundaries if I did that. But she looked so sad as well, and she might assume that I was scared if I kept mum.

She sighed and turned her attention forward, her ears drooping down and her wings sagging a bit. "But I suppose they're right. We—"

"They're wrong," I interjected loudly, without much thought put into that statement.

The princess turned her head to look at me incredulously. "Wrong?"

"Yep, they're wrong," I repeated. She still stared at me with disbelief, as though she couldn't imagine me saying that. I continued, "You're definitely not a monster. A bit intimidating, yes, but not a bad person. If they can't see that then they're blinder than I am." It was the best I could think of at the moment, but it was a shame that I even had to think of that in the first place. Fucking losers making good people miserable.

The princess stared at me for a moment longer after I finished. She then turned her head back forward with a little smile. "Quick to defend, and to insult," she said with some cheer. She definitely didn't fully believe what I said, but it did pull her out of her slump at least. "I suppose t's a matter of perception, as thee say."

Seeing that she wasn't so down anymore, I was somewhat satisfied. I would have liked to see her not sad at all but doing more was beyond my ability and up to someone else.

I took a look around, seeing that we were coming up to the second intersection. The buildings were shorter and plainer now, and more grey. Everything was losing its colour — even the streetlights, and the street seemed narrower. I pulled my attention back to the sidewalk and saw that the crosswalk was coming up. The stop sign was placed wrong though, being in the middle of the sidewalk instead of being off to the side. I stepped around it and stayed at the princess's side.

"Nightmare Moon talks about thee," the princess suddenly began as we crossed the street, which was fortunately a lot smaller than the previous. However, I was more focused on what the princess said to care about that.

"She does?" To be honest, I did wonder from time to time what was going on with her. The last I had seen her was almost two months ago and it didn't end well with Twilight getting her sent back to Canterlot for minor crap. But then, I was more at fault since I just took Moon out for ice cream without talking to Twilight. Gulit aside, I found it a bit surprising that Moon thought of me.

"Aye, she does. She considers you a close friend, however little you two have met in reality," she answered, seemingly disappointed to say that, especially the last part.

"Is she really that lonely?" I had expected that she got better, but then, she was THE villain two months ago and I doubt that that was enough time for anyone to consider forgiveness. Wait up, was she in a cell? "Or is she stuck in prison?"

"In a manner," she said, making me feel both relieved and worried. "She has her own private quarters within the castle, but rarely is she without an escort, and she only has me to talk with — if she even decides to leave the confines of her room. Her situation is quite unfair really."

I didn't reply, feeling guilt — how could I not? I was kinda the reason why she was going through all that crap. I'd give so much to go back in time and punch myself in the face. I sighed, knowing there was nothing that I could do now, besides probably making things worse.

I looked around to distract myself. Another intersection was coming, this one with traffic lights that were red. The buildings around were now just blocks of concrete which were getting shorter and smaller at an increasing rate. I looked behind and saw that the previous intersection was rather far off. Still nothing else behind us. The road was terrible now, looking more like a rocky coastline than something in a city.

"You needn't worry, however, for I am working to improve her situation," she added. "She might be in Ponyville sometime in the month of October with me. It'll certainly help her; she might even make more friends."

"So, like, you're coming to visit Ponyville?"

"Aye. T's not for business; I merely wish to observe the Nightmare Night tradition in Ponyville." Huh, that was cool, I guess. The princess continued, "It will be nice to meet thee in person at last... well, without any threat of magic demons, I hope."

I hummed in acknowledgement, thinking over whatever she had said about her plans and what it meant for me. Since she had explicitly mentioned meeting me in person, she'll definitely expect me to be there. The only real thing I was worried about was how it could affect things, like Voth's work if it wasn't done by then. Plus, I'd be an actual dark mage by then and I doubt she'd like that. The only real positive I could see was that I could see Moon again.

I was jolted out of my thoughts by the princess suddenly extending her wing over me and stopping. I stopped as well and looked at her. "What is it?"

"Look."

I followed her gaze forward and saw what she was pointing out: two stop signs in our path, blocking the third intersection's crosswalk. Looking beyond, I could see that all the traffic lights on all four ways were pointed towards us, all red. Beyond that, the street narrowed noticeably and lost all light, becoming an impossibly narrow abyss. The buildings became smaller and darker and sharper. Somehow, I could make out a dark shape in the distance — a house, perhaps. Just looking at the far off house made my heart beat faster. I didn't want to get any closer. Maybe we should not go further.

"The fault in thine dreams is close; I can feel it," Princess Luna said. She breathed in and then said quietly, "Stay close."

She stepped forward despite all the things ahead of her politely suggesting that she shouldn't. I didn't step forward, not able to or wanting to my legs. Why couldn't we just turn back and leave this stuff to sort itself out? Worst case scenario is that it doesn't sort itself out and I get worse, but I'd get worse anyway so it didn't even matter.

"Anya, do not fear. Come with us and this shall be over," I blinked and saw that the princess had already taken a few steps forward. She still had a bit of her wing on me, almost like a hand to hold. I looked at her, feeling a bit sick. I did not want to go further.

And yet I stepped forward at her urging.

I didn't feel my leg move or anything, I just stepped forward, towards the one place I didn't want to go. And before I knew it, I was walking alongside the princess at an uncomfortably fast pace, down the narrowing road and to the dark place. I shivered a bit as we left behind the intersection and the lights, as though we had passed a threshold we shouldn't have.

It was dark in the street now, darker than anywhere I had ever been. Still, I could make out shapes in the dark, of things ahead and around us. The buildings deteriorated a lot, becoming more hostile with each step. Their sides sharpened into spikes, threatening to cut if I stepped too close. Going on the road was not an option as it had become a ravine that dropped off into an abyss that called to me almost like a siren. Stop signs appeared as well, intermittently at first but gradually increasing in numbers. The worst was the silence and stillness of everything — everything felt more like a tomb than a city. I had to keep reminding myself that I wouldn't be hurt physically at least.

Despite all the warnings, the Princess kept walking forward, all but dragging me along with her wing on my back. I had moved closer and had kept my eyes fixed on the pavement. Afraid. I didn't know how long we walked but it wasn't long enough. Why didn't the nightmare end already?

I didn't notice it at first but the darkness was slowly going away, instead being replaced by an ominous red glow that came from the growing number of traffic lights hanging over us. The world was washed in that red light, making my fur stand on its end. Please turn back. There weren't any more intersections — no escape — for them, the lights just hung in the air. The only thing between me and getting hurt was the princess. Please wake up.

Still, we carried on forwards like lemmings to a cliff.

"Anya." I almost jumped out of my skin as the princess startled me. I quickly looked up to her to see that she was looking at me with some concern. "Calm thyself. We can feel thy fear." With that, she turned her head back to look forward, looking grim all of a sudden.

I followed her gaze and saw that the end of the red hallway was coming up. It was a pitch black square that looked more like a hole in reality than an exit. I almost turned around but the princess's wing and the narrow street kept me from doing that. There really was no escape. It kept getting colder, and my heart beat faster. Turn back.

"Do not worry, this all shall be over soon." Couldn't it end sooner?

The road ended soon and we stopped in front of the exit, the hole, the tiny little space that had something terrifying on the other side. If something would jump out, it would be after we crossed the dark threshold. All around it were warning and stop signs, telling us to not enter. But I had no choice in that matter, not after I had come this far.

"We're here, I can feel it. Whatever it is that troubles thee lies beyond," Princess Luna announced. I almost didn't hear it, too busy staring at the hole, afraid and frozen in place. I could feel the sorrow and fear behind it and I almost couldn't breathe being so close. Wake up wake up wake up. The princess resumed walking after taking a long look, but this time around, I didn't budge from my place. She probably didn't like that seeing how she suddenly pulled me forward, almost dragging me along.

With as much protest as I could give, which amounted to nothing more than a whine, I was walked into the bad place.

The hole gave way to a second, shorter corridor. There were no walls, and everything was dark, but it was still a corridor with nowhere to go but forwards to where I didn't want to go. The air became colder and more stifling as I got closer to the end, and though I didn't know how or why, I just knew I was in danger. I breathed and walked as quietly as I could, like I was prey close to a predator. My head hurt.

Princess Luna said nothing as we neared the end, keeping her face locked in a grim expression even though the air around her betrayed her own wariness. She just kept her eyes focused forward, and her wing over me as both protection and cage. Even with her here with me, I felt alone.

We exited the corridor into a place that was brighter, but still just as dead. We were in a crater of sorts, the walls reaching high like cliffs. Above them, I could see the city we had been in. The sky above was now grey and dreary, and the ground below was cracked road and pavement.

However, those things didn't have my attention for long. Instead, it was what lay at the center of the crater that had my immediate and undivided attention, and my genuine fear.

It was a house, grey and blue, dull in colour in both colour and outward appearance. Made in some factory in the great lakes region and assembled by underpaid workers. Nothing would distinguish it from the other houses of the suburban hellscape it was plucked out of.

Yet it made my heart sink and skip several beats. Run away. I almost cried, and felt sick to my core just looking at it. Leave. I couldn't forget even after all these years. There was nothing that could make me go back to it. Not money, nor fixing nightmares. It was too painful.

I flinched as I heard the sound of a door come from the house. There wasn't much time. I kept my eyes and ears locked at it as I felt around for the princess's hoof. There wasn't time to waste, we had to leave for anywhere else. Before he found us.

I found the princess's hoof and took it in my own. I tried retreating back towards the dark corridor but she didn't budge. Please don't stay. For just a moment, I looked away from the house and to her so that she could see that we shouldn't be here.

What I looked at wasn't her.

There was a dark figure, towering and malevolent, looking down at me with sadistic glee. We locked eyes, and I knew it was going to hurt me.

I immediately tried pulling away my hoof and running, not giving a care about the princess that it had replaced. She had left me. But it did not leave my hoof, keeping a hold of it with its large dark hand. I tried harder, but it was a futile effort. I was done for. I could already feel the tears on my face.

Then, it let go, and I fell backwards.

I hit my head on something wooden and was momentarily stunned. I looked up to see what it was that I hit, and froze when I saw that I was at the stairs to the front door of the house. It took me another second to process that I was hearing something coming from within. Footsteps. Recognisable footsteps.

I tried getting up, my heart beating like it never had, but I was painfully sluggish in my movement. The door was thrown open and I was grabbed by my mane and dragged in. I screamed in pain and struggled, trying to free myself. How did I get back here? The only thing I managed was to earn myself more painful tugs on my mane, and incoherent shouts of rage. It will hurt more if you struggle.

The house was completely dark on the inside, but the layout was burned into my mind and I knew I was being dragged to the stairs. Just like I remembered, I was dragged up, no care given to me — it even hurt in all the same places like back then. It was just being a teen all over again. I wished I was dead.

I was dragged around some more, to my room and then thrown at a wall. I had only a moment to curl up and catch my breath before the pain began. Please wake up.

But the pain didn't begin like I remembered. Instead, there was shouting and the sound of a blast. I didn't peek, and just stayed curled up, trying to keep my snivelling and crying under control. There was a crash and a roar, followed by something being thrown hard at the floor, making it shake. The air wasn't still any longer, and had been replaced with an angry wind. More crashes, more roars, a slash, all right next to me. I trembled, hoping I was forgotten in the chaos. I should stop wasting time on hope.

There was another blast, and then, the world was a lot brighter and quieter. It was a ruse, he'd be back. I stayed in my corner, silently crying and hurting and wishing I didn't exist. Why me? It would never get better, I was stuck like this. No one would help.

I braced and held my breath as there came the sound of hooves on the floor. He was back. I wondered if I should just let go.

"Anya," said he in the voice of the princess. I didn't respond, knowing it was a trap. I just prayed he thought I was dead and went away, but my shaky breaths and snivelling betrayed me.

He stepped closer, and I heard him bend down. "Anya, I have vanquished the beast." I didn't believe it. That's what she said earlier but it clearly didn't happen — it was all just a figment of my imagination, no one would care enough to help. I deserved this.

"It was quite entrenched in thy mind. You'll suffer from it no longer, however." More lies. Life was pain and that was it for me. Why did it have to go the extra mile to lie?

I suddenly felt a hoof on my shoulder, and I shrunk away, almost screaming out. It was getting harder to control myself and choke back sobs, and I felt I'd break and just start bawling.

It hummed and sighed. "But you need rest. Sleep well, Anya. May we meet under better circumstances."

There was the sound of a horn charging and a spell being cast, and then everything started fading away.

Author's Note

23w Au

And so, Anya finally meets the princess of the night, for more than just a few moments now (10k+ words in fact). too bad it's a nightmare.

also, lemmings don't actually go to cliffs to die. consciously at least

If Anya's your "She's literally me fr!!!" character, I don't even know what to say beside good luck.

today's mission: comment

Supa Important:
Nemo chapter coming up soon, hope you haven't forgotten her, though I'd understand if you did. I'll try and ease her in (she'll drop in like a nuke)

Many thanks to Arcane Dust for editing and pre-reading this chapter (which happens to have Luna and also be the longest (so far)).