Kevin E. Levin, the baddest dude to have ever existed (at least in his own eyes), was doing his damn best to resist the overwhelming urge to cry. He was a real man, he wouldn't let himself do such a girly thing! But… No matter how much he tried to distract himself, Kevin found his eyes watering against his will. "Kwarrel…" He found himself muttering, tears spilling quietly onto his cheeks. God. He probably looked like a little kid or something huh? Kevin silently chuckled to himself as he wiped the tears away, before falling back into silence, watching the Null Void's constantly changing landscape from the small floating island he had chosen to reside on for the time being.
This place was beyond depressing. Kevin cursed at himself for ever having any shred of trust for that damn Vilgax, he's the reason he's locked in this stupid place. But was he really? Kevin thought to himself. If he hadn't tried to absorb all that energy out of Ben's weird watch thing then he wouldn't have been all mutated and blinded by his own anger. Kevin let a sigh escape him, forcing his mind to focus on anything else, he wondered how his mom was doing. It's been, what, a year? Longer? Since he had last seen her. Hopefully she's alright.
Before anymore depressing thoughts could invade his head Kevin rested his hand on the ground, with a grunt Kevin focused his beforehand uncontrollable absorption powers. After a moment a layer of stone had covered Kevin's hand and arm, stopping at his shoulder. With a grin Kevin closed his hand to make a fist, admiring his work. "Thanks Kwarrel, I can never thank ya enough…" Kevin muttered under his breath. Without Kwarrel Kevin could've never hoped to control his power the way he is now, he owed that man a debt he could now never repay. All because of that bastard Morgg. Kevin found himself gritting his teeth at the thought of that damned guard, causing his concentration to break and his control over his power to lessen, meaning that the stone covering his arm fractured before crumbling off of him.
Kevin cursed as he looked at his arm, it seems he doesn't have as good control over his power as he first thought. Oh well, better than nothing he guessed. However, before Kevin could explore his thoughts any further, a loud chorus of howls interrupted his self introspection. Kevin resisted the urge to groan, great, more of those Null Guardians were on their way. Kevin debated on whether to stay and fight or not. On one hand he lost most of his overwhelming power when he reverted back to his original form after Kwarrel's teaching but on the other hand Kevin doubted those flying mutts could chew through solid stone. Hmmm… what to do, what to do?
With a smirk Kevin, once again, placed a hand on the cold ground beneath him, forcing a layer of stone to cover his whole body. Oh yeah, he was so going to enjoy this! With that thought Kevin flexed his non-existent muscles as a show of strength before getting on his feet, ready to crack a few heads together as he saw a small group of Null Guardians approaching his location. However, before they could even reach him, a flash of bright white light covered his vision. Kevin let out a (very manly and dignified) yelp as he momentarily lost his vision, stumbling back and right off of the small island. "Oh sh…!" Kevin let out before screaming as he felt himself falling. No way. This… this couldn't be it! All because of one stupid damn mistake! He was supposed to get out of here! This… this…
And, just like that, Kevin fell unconscious as gravity took full control…
__
Kevin groaned as he returned to the land of the living, the start of a splitting headache already forming. What… what had happened? Kevin questioned himself as he forced a hand to his forehead to message his aching temples. But, much to his surprise, he did not feel his hand touch his head. Instead, in its place, he felt a hoof. Kevin, now fully awake, forced his eyes open, looking at a hoof where his hand once was. "Wh… what?!" Kevin all but screamed, taking a good long moment to examine his new body. He was… a horse? No, he is far too small to be a horse. A pony then?
"This can't be happening…" Kevin muttered to himself as he forced himself to his feet, or uhh… hooves he guessed. Standing on four feet was an odd adjustment to make, he'd admit, but he had learned to control far more limbs than this back on Incarcecon, so it wasn't as bad an adjustment as one would think. Kevin took another moment to get a good look at his new surroundings. A forest, dark and foreboding, loomed over and around him. Well, at least it wasn't the Null Void, anywhere was better than that… Wait?! Kevin widened his eyes as he realized something. He wasn't in the Null Void anymore.
Kevin let out a laugh of disbelief as the realization dawned on him, he was free. No more crappy prison food. No more avoiding packs of Null Guardians. No more stupid guards telling him what he can and can't do. "I did it Kwarrel! I… I actually did it!" Kevin shouted, not caring if anyone heard him, he was far too jubilant even despite his current situation to care. He didn't know how, exactly, he was free but that didn't matter, all that mattered were the results. And the results were that Kevin E. Levin was a free man (colt) once again!
After his short celebration Kevin went back to inspecting his new body. He had to admit, he disliked it far more than his fully mutated form, at least that was cool looking. This body was a damn pony! That wasn't cool, like, at all! The furthest thing from it actually! And he was so damn short! With a huff Kevin looked over to his right, spotting a small pond. Kevin grinned to himself before walking over, taking a good long minute to properly analyze his new self. His coat (he guessed that's what one would call it) was a light gray while his hair was the same her black as it had always been and… was that a tail? Kevin looked back towards his rear end to confirm that he did, in fact, have a tail. With that out of the way Kevin returned his attention back to his reflection… man, were his eyes always that big? Well, at least he still had his super awesome lock necklace! It would have sucked big time if he lost the thing.
Kevin stuck his tongue out as if he needed even more confirmation that the pond was, indeed, showing him his reflection and not some weird illusion. With a groan Kevin finally walked away from the pond, getting a good handle on the whole walking on four hooves thing rather quickly. It wasn't as weird as controlling four arms plus wings Kevin readily explained to himself.
As Kevin walked through the dimly lit forest, the sun's rays barely cutting through the treetops, he began to question why he took this form of all things. Like, he only just learned how to revert back to his original self and now he was forced to be into yet another body that wasn't fully his own! The universe was a cruel place indeed. Wait! Kevin looked down at his hooves as an idea brewed in his head. Maybe… maybe if he focused hard enough, just as Kwarrel taught him, then maybe he could revert back to himself like he did before! With a determined glint in his eyes Kevin closed his eyes and clenched his teeth as he attempted to force his body back to normal… only to be met with failure as minutes passed with no changes. After releasing a breath Kevin glared down at his hooves, why… why wasn't it working? Was he trying to force it too much? Was… was he stuck like this?!
Kevin's eyes widened at that thought. "Oh no. No, no, no, no…" He muttered to himself, horror painting his features. "Not again. Not again…" He continued, his breathing becoming irregular as panic consumed him. When one thing goes right another thing always has to go wrong huh? Kevin grit his teeth as he resisted the urge to cry out to curse at the sky, as if the sun and clouds were responsible for all of this. But, instead of doing so, Kevin just pathetically cried. Out of frustration more so than sadness. As the tears stained his cheeks he roughly wiped them away, Kevin E. Levin DOESN'T cry. Ever.
Before Kevin could continue his futile attempts at returning to his old self he heard a voice call out. "Umm… excuse me? Is… is somepony there?" The voice said, it was so small and quiet that Kevin barely even heard it over his own thoughts. Also, did they just say… 'Somepony'? Kevin resisted the urge to groan, he could practically feel his masculinity fade away by the second. After a moment a pony, a bit larger than himself and with wings safely tucked on her back (why didn't he get wings?), walked through the thick brush that originally divided them. She (at least, Kevin assumed it was a she) had a yellow coat with light pink hair. When she met his eyes she let out a small gasp.
"What is a little foal doing all the way out here?" She asked, getting nothing more than a shrug from Kevin before his eyes slightly widened before narrowing. Wait. Did she just say little?! "You shouldn't be out here… It's almost night time and I don't think anypony should be in the Everfree when it's dark out…" She continued, shuddering slightly as if a chill ran down her spine. "My name's Fluttershy… what's yours?" Her tone was still soft, quiet.
"Uhh… Kevin, Kevin Levin." The human turned pony answered, unsure on what to do in this situation. Usually, back when he lived on the streets, if some random adult came up to him to try to talk he'd just run the other direction and never look back. But now? It's not like he had anywhere to run, he did want to get out of this damn forest sooner rather than later after all. So he'd endure a few stupid questions, maybe this Fluttershy could even show him the way out if he was lucky!
Fluttershy gave Kevin a small, but still overwhelming kind, smile. "It's nice to meet you, are you lost? I wouldn't mind showing you the way out. We can go to my cottage so you can rest for a little bit, then we can go into town to find your parents. I bet they're really worried about you…"
Kevin resisted the urge to roll his eyes. His dad was long gone and his mom… his mom probably didn't even care, he was far too much trouble anyways so he couldn't really blame her. But he decided to play along for now, the longer she believed him to be a lost little kid (foal, his mind tells him. Which he adamantly ignored) the better. "Uhh, yeah!" He shouted, his voice a little higher pitched then he remembered. "It would be super awesome if you could help me out of here ma'am!" Kevin continued, almost wincing at his fake overly enthusiastic tone. He hated this. Acting like some little kid (even though he was one).
Fluttershy nodded, the same kind smile never leaving. "Oh it's okay… I know this place can be a little scary." She said, a chuckle escaping her as Kevin stopped himself from correcting her. He wasn't scared, Kevin E. Levin isn't scared of anything! "Come on, we just have to walk this way for a little bit…" She said, pointing a hoof towards where she had originally appeared from. Alright, good, finally, some progress is being made.
Kevin, keeping up the whole 'little kiddie' act, nodded happily. "Awesome! Let's get a move on Miss!" After saying that Kevin forced back a gag, he wanted to throw up. How do kids unironically act like this?! Fluttershy, not noticing Kevin's deceit, just quietly laughed at his (false) enthusiasm before turning and slowly walking towards the exit of this dump. The walk was, thankfully, quiet and uneventful. Fluttershy did ask a couple of questions but Kevin was practically a master at lying, so he had no issue in coming up with a fake cover story;
"What were you doing all the way out here?"
"Explorin'. Thought I saw something shiny and decided to try and get a closer look."
"Are you hurt?"
"Nah, I'm tougher than I look ma'am!"
"Do you know where your parents are?"
"Uhh… Maybe? I don't remember the address but I'm sure I'll recognize my house if I see it!"
Yup, he nailed it. Before Kevin could continue mentally congratulating himself they had finally made it out of those damn woods, Kevin let out a sigh of relief, much to Fluttershy's amusement. The mare quietly chuckled into her hoof, causing Kevin's eyes to narrow. He hated when people laughed at him. Sure, Fluttershy probably didn't do it out of malice but that didn't matter, no one laughs at him, period. He'd let it slide this once, and ONLY this once, to keep up his facade if nothing else. "So uhh…" Kevin began, gaining Fluttershy's rapt attention, "Where's this cottage of yours?"
"Just over here…" Fluttershy began, walking towards her home. "I live pretty close to the Everfree actually, to help all the little critters I can… it's a little… scary, I admit… living so close… but it isn't too bad…" She practically muttered, forcing Kevin to actually focus to understand what she was saying. Couldn't she speak up? He knows 'shy' is a part of her name but even so! This was just ridiculous…
Not too long after the one sided conversation they had finally made it and Kevin had to admit it, the place wasn't too bad looking. It was a little too forest-y for his tastes but it was still leagues better than anything in the Null Void, then again almost anything was better than the Null Void so it wasn't exactly a high bar to pass but whatever. Fluttershy walked forward, greeting all of the little animals that seemingly surrounded the cottage as she went. After a moment she opened the door to her home before looking back at him, silently giving him permission to head on in. So, after a moment of hesitation, Kevin strolled on in like he owned the joint.
The place wasn't too shabby. A little over decorated in his opinion but other than that? Pretty damn nice.
"Would you like something to eat?" Fluttershy asked, her voice breaking him out of his thoughts.
"Uhh, yeah sure. Why not?" Kevin mindlessly answered, still focused on analyzing every square inch of the cottage. As Fluttershy walked past him, probably towards the kitchen if she was sincere with that food comment, Kevin caught sight of something that was too good to be true. On the small coffee table that sat in the cottage's living room lay a small pouch, a golden coin next to it. Kevin, as if in a trance, walked forward and attempted to pick the coin up before cursing his lack of fingers. Come on. There has to be…
After concentrating for a moment Kevin finally picked the coin up… somehow. Honestly he wasn't completely sure how he did, it was as if the coin was magnetically attached to his hoof. Oh well. If it works don't question it. With the coin secured Kevin brought it up to his mouth, experimentally biting into it to check its authenticity. "Ow…" Kevin muttered, his tooth aching as it bit into the hard metal. Welp, definitely real alright. Kevin grinned from ear to ear as he checked the pouch proper to confirm his suspicions. Yep, it was full of these coins!
Kevin couldn't believe his luck! So, without a second thought, the newly turned colt picked up the small pouch… only stopping his theft for a moment as a small white rabbit kicked at his leg. Kevin, annoyed, tried to shoo the little nuisance away as he slowly and carefully walked towards the cottage's exit. Being as quiet as his hooves would allow. "Buzz off ya little rat!" He whispered, checking back to make sure Fluttershy was still occupied. Thankfully, it appeared she was.
The rabbit, a scowl on its otherwise cute features, ran ahead of him and tried to block the door. The rabbit then pointed back towards the kitchen. Kevin just rolled his eyes as he forcibly pushed the oddly intelligent rodent out of his way, "Stupid, little…" Kevin began, before stopping as he took a moment to consider what exactly he was doing. He had fallen back into his old habits already. Was it really this easy for him to relapse? What would Kwarrel think? Kevin shook his head as he narrowed his eyes, trying to ignore the burning pang of guilt that ate away at him.
"Sorry lady…" He finally said, his voice still a whisper. "But I need this more than you do…" And, with that said, Kevin opened the door and left. Not even bothering to look back as he bolted off, as far away as his annoyingly little legs would carry him. He left with an empty stomach but full pockets, Kevin would consider this a win… hopefully Fluttershy wouldn't take this too personally…
Author's Note
Man, this was pretty fun to write I have to admit! Hopefully you enjoyed it! Let me know if ya spotted any problems or anything with a comment so I can fix em if I can! I may not be the best at this whole writing thing but I do hope to improve as I continue!
"He did WHAT?!" A voice shouted, startling all of the little creatures that called Fluttershy's cottage home. Inside Fluttershy was seated on her couch as her friend, Rainbow Dash, paced back and forth. Fluttershy wasn't expecting a visitor today and wished that it would have been under better circumstances, with that thought Fluttershy's gaze turned to her coffee table, the missing pouch of bits being the cause of Rainbow's anger. Angel had told her everything. That little colt she took in ran off with it as soon as she turned her back to him, a sigh escaped Fluttershy's mouth as she thought back to the moment she saw that the little colt practically disappeared after only turning her attention away for a few minutes. He seemed like such an innocent little thing.
"I-Its alright…" Fluttershy attempted to mutter out, being interrupted by Dash before she could utter a word more.
"It is NOT alright 'shy!" Rainbow Dash all but shouted, her brows furrowing together as she let out a groan. "This little punk walked into YOUR home and stole YOUR bits! Right under your nose! The nerve of that little twerp!" The rainbow maned mare continued, her frustration getting the best of her. After a moment Rainbow Dash took a breath before sighing, shaking her head. "Sorry 'Shy, I don't mean to shout at you but you gotta understand that just because you believe it's alright doesn't mean that it is."
Fluttershy nodded her head, the movement barely even noticeable. As much as she didn't want to believe her friend she had no choice but to do so. That cute little colt, barely even eleven or twelve years old if her guess was correct, had come into her home and taken something that belonged to her. "B-But… maybe he just… needed the bits…" Fluttershy muttered out, it wasn't the best counterargument, she knew, but she always liked to see the best in ponies.
Rainbow, meanwhile, just shook her head. "It doesn't matter if he needed them or not! Let me ask you something, would you have given that colt some bits if he had just talked to you and told you why he needed them?" She questioned, resulting in Fluttershy to slowly nod her head once more. Rainbow nodded herself, but in self satisfaction rather than timidness, "See! And yet what does he do?" She asked, pausing for a moment as if waiting for Fluttershy to answer before answering her question herself. "He just waltzes in and takes it! Who does that?!"
Fluttershy just quietly sighs as she finds herself agreeing with Rainbow despite how much she didn't really want to. What would drive such a young foal to do something as terrible as thievery? "W-What do we… do?" Fluttershy asked, looking towards her friend for advice. She'd never been in such a situation as this one before and was unsure on what exactly to do. "Do we… look for him?" She asked, unsure in her question. "He could be anywhere by now…"
Rainbow's hoof tapped at her chin as she thought about Fluttershy's suggestion, she was right that that little twerp could be anywhere in Ponyville by now but it's not like they had much of a choice. Rainbow was the Element of Loyalty after all! And she wasn't about to allow some foal to steal from one of her friends! "Guess we're gonna have to keep an eye out for the brat, c'mon 'Shy! We got a thief to find! He can't stay hidden from the fastest flier in all of Equestria for too long!" Rainbow boasted as Fluttershy silently chuckled into her hoof.
"Let's just not be too hard on the little colt okay…" Fluttershy muttered as she hopped up off her couch and onto her hooves to follow her friend out of her cottage.
__
Kevin leisurely walked through the streets of… whatever this place was called, Horsetown or something like that, with his recently acquired pouch of golden coins. At first Kevin thought this annoyingly small body he had found himself in would be nothing but a curse, but it seemed to have its benefits. None of the adult horses (ponies, whatever) even looked towards his direction, not one! He was… what did that lady call him? A 'little foal'? Yeah, back home he was anything but little heh.
As Kevin looked at the pouch, as if checking to see that it hadn't disappeared out of his grasp, the same feeling of guilt clenched his heart. He felt like he was going to throw up. He didn't particularly want to steal from the lady but what other choice did he have?... Well, there were probably a couple better options available but Kevin was going to valiantly ignore that thought, for his own sake if nothing else. Thievery was one of the only things Kevin was good at, that and fighting, so why should he feel guilty for doing something he was good at? Shouldn't he be feeling pride for doing what he did best?
Kevin bit the inside of his cheek as he forced his thoughts elsewhere, thinking back to those miserable days at Incarcecon, it was just… so weird. Not having those annoying guards monitoring every little move he made. He was free, but he wasn't home. Kevin resisted the urge to groan to avoid any curious eyes as his little legs carried him forward before turning to head down a seemingly empty alley to be alone with his thoughts for a little while, practically on autopilot. "Stupid damn conscience…" Kevin muttered under his breath as he took a seat in between two trash cans.
What would Kwarrel think if he could see him now? Kevin thought as he looked up at the sky, the sun already beginning to descend as the day's light recedes in favor of the night's darkness. Kevin huffed as he took a good look at the alley he had found himself in, not the worst alley he had ever been in. In all honesty it was actually pretty clean all things considered, and a feral cat hasn't attempted to claw his eyes out yet either so that was a definite plus. With that in mind Kevin curled around the pouch of coins protectively as he closed his eyes, ready for some sleep after the very weird day that had just transpired. Despite the overwhelming cold that the night brought, Kevin was quick to give in to the bliss of sleep, his thoughts lingering on his best friend and mentor he lost far too soon. Kwarrel…
__
Kevin's eyes fluttered open after a moment, taking in his surroundings. Gray walls and iron bars met his gaze. He was back. Kevin let out a groan as the realization hit him, all that weird pony stuff was just a dream, of course it was. Kevin mentally cursed at himself for even believing that fantasy for a moment. I mean, c'mon, talking horses? Kevin may have seen a lot of things since his stay within the Null Void but that was pushing believability.
Kevin forced himself up, wincing slightly at the feeling of the cold concrete (or whatever alien material it was) he was laid down on. Kevin had to admit that, even though his freedom was nothing but a fantasy, he was quite glad that he had his hands once again. After a moment Kevin gazed down to look at his current form, he was human again, just as he expected. At least he wasn't a stupid baby horse anymore.
"C'mon kid, time to get up-" A voice suddenly called to him before Kevin could continue appreciating his very human body, causing Kevin's heart to skip a beat. Kevin whipped his head to the side, not believing his ears, and widened his eyes as he saw the one man who had practically changed his entire view on his powers. Kwarrel. He… he wasn't dead. Morgg hadn't killed him. Was that all part of the dream? Why… why was it so detailed?
Kwarrel just chuckled as he placed a massive hand on Kevin's shoulder, a comforting feeling that Kevin believed he would never feel again. "Rough night huh?" Kwarrel asked, a smile partially hidden under his muttonstache. "Don't worry kid, soon enough we're gonna get outta here. You n' me. We don't belong here, not anymore, we did our time." Kwarrel continued, patting Kevin on the back before getting up and walking towards the hidden tunnel he had been working on since before Kevin ever got stuck in the Null Void as their fellow prisoners began to fight amongst themselves, drawing all attention away from them.
Kevin let out a shaky breath as he forced his eyes shut as tears threatened to spill, he just couldn't believe it. Kwarrel was alive. He was here and he was alive. He hadn't failed his friend. Kevin forced himself to calm down, why was he getting so worked up over a stupid dream? Kevin heaved himself up to his feet as he watched Kwarrel remove the heavy piece of miscellaneous equipment from atop his escape tunnel, "It's now or never kid-" Kwarrel said before jumping down, looking back for only a moment to see if Kevin truly was joining him. Kevin took one last look behind him, the prison's main courtyard already enveloped in a large-scale riot, before joining his mentor down the hole.
The sprint down the tunnel was a tense one, Kevin doing his best to keep up with Kwarrel, who would've thought someone as buff as Kwarrel could run so fast. Kevin's mind instinctively went back to his odd dream once more, more specifically to how Kwarrel had lost his life. One of the guards, Morgg if he remembered correctly, had discovered the tunnel and was already waiting for them down here. Kevin pushed that thought aside, that was just a dream, a nightmare, nothing more. Right?
However, as Kevin was more focused on his thoughts rather than his surroundings, Kwarrel's hand suddenly stopped him from running forward. Before Kevin could even ask what had happened his eyes caught sight of something (or, more accurately, someone) that filled him with an overwhelming sense of dread. Morgg. No… this… this couldn't be happening…
Kevin took a step back as Morgg began to taunt him and Kwarrel's attempted escape, Kevin too shocked to even properly hear what the bastard was saying, before the guard lowered his rifle, fully intent on firing the blaster. Kwarrel jumped into action and lunged at Morgg, wrestling the rifle from the guard's grip as the weapon fell to the ground. As Kwarrel fruitlessly attempted to overpower Morgg he turned his head slightly to look at Kevin, his student. "Forget about me kid. Run! Get out while you still can!"
Kevin just stood there for a moment, shocked at what was happening, was… was his dream really coming true? "...No-" Kevin finally said, clenching his fists as he narrowed his eyes. He's not abandoning his friend.
Kwarrel just clenched his teeth, unable to say anything more, before being thrown away by Morgg. Kwarrel jumped up, attempting to continue the fight but, by then, Morgg had already rushed towards his rifle, pointing the barrel right at Kwarrel. "I must admit-" The bastard began, his voice condescending. "This was almost fun, but playtime is over." And, with that, Morgg pulled the trigger. Kevin let out a scream as he rushed to Kwarrel's defense, positioning himself in-between his mentor and the rifle. As Kevin closed his eyes, silently accepting his fate, he awaited to be blasted away, taking solace in the fact that he at least defended his friend. He could live with that, at least.
However, the blast never came. Kevin took a moment before experimentally opening his eyes. "Huh?..." Kevin questioned as he took in the scene that laid out before him. It was as if everything froze in time, a blaster bolt suspended in the air, only a few short inches away from piercing his chest. Both Morgg and Kwarrel, too, were frozen. Morgg's face twisted in anger while Kwarrel's showed shock. "What?..." Kevin quietly asked himself. What was happening?
"Do not fear young one." An ethereal voice called out to him, causing Kevin to whip his head around as he attempted to find the voice's source. Nothing. However, before Kevin could continue his search to demand answers, the world around him all but faded. The tunnel he was currently in evaporated as if it were made of smoke, leaving him in nothing more than a black void. With a gasp Kevin quickly reached out to the now frozen Kwarrel, his hand going through the man's form as he, too, practically evaporated out of his reach. Kevin watched on with wide eyes as he fell to his knees, so… this was the dream. "Why?..." Kevin finally muttered, not expecting an answer. So imagine his surprise when a voice saw it fit to give him one.
"Our subconscious minds work in mysterious ways." The same ethereal voice from before said, causing Kevin's head to, once again, snap towards its rough location. This time, however, his search wasn't as fruitless as the last. A horse lady, taller than the other horses he had seen beforehand, stood before him. Her coat was a dark blue with black accents with the symbol of a crescent moon emblazoned on her chest, her long and flowing mane looked as if it were the night sky itself. The most eye-catching thing about her was that she had both a set of wings and a horn. Kevin was under the impression that it was one or the other but apparently that wasn't the case. "Are you okay little one?" The horse lady finally asked, breaking Kevin out of his thoughts. "For a foal as young as yourself to have such a dreadful nightmare…" She trailed off, causing Kevin to look down at himself as he finally processed her words.
He was a damn pony again. Kevin just bit back a sigh as he curled further in on himself, so this really was all just a nightmare. One hell of a nightmare, he thought bitterly. Before Kevin could compose himself to answer the weird dream horse he felt a wing wrap around him, it was… comforting, in a way (not that he'd openly admit it). "It's okay, the nightmare can no longer hurt you." The horse said. Kevin almost immediately felt the urge to swat the horse's wing away, he didn't need some damn horse's sympathy! He didn't! But… but he didn't go through with it. He couldn't force himself to, plus, what did it even matter? This was all a dream. Nothing here would ever matter. He'd indulge himself, just this once.
So, as Kevin felt conciseness slowly pull him back to the land of the living, he quietly leaned into the dream horse's embrace. She was warm. Comfortable even. When was the last time he was both of those things at the same time? "...Thanks… I guess…" Kevin muttered out, before finally waking up.
__
Luna opened her eyes slowly, blinking as she saw the beginning of the sun's light penetrate through her windows. Seems she was a little late in lowering the moon. Oh well. She's sure Tia wouldn't mind the slight delay. Speaking of Tia…
"It would be most wise if I brought this to her attention as soon as possible…" She muttered, thinking back to the last dream, or nightmare, she had interrupted. It was most… peculiar. Yes, that was a good word to describe it. She had plenty of experience in encountering very odd creatures during her escapades into the dreamscape, especially when it came to foals, but this particular instance just seemed… different somehow. It required further investigation. Luna, interrupting her own thoughts for a moment, ultimately decided to get to work. The moon wouldn't lower itself after all. She could tell Tia all about this at a more appropriate hour…
