To Dream in Red

A month later, Princess Twilight Sparkle became the sole ruler of Equestria, and the royal sisters retired from the throne. As happy as she was for Celesita’s protege, Luna was plagued by creeping thoughts of Poppy Blanch in the back of her mind. Even years later, the sights she had witnessed within the colt’s mind haunted her far worse than any other experience in her lifetime.

At first, Luna struggled to find Poppy in the waking world. He seemed to not exist in official records, which only added a layer of strangeness to the colt. Eventually, Luna managed to pinpoint his location by finding not him, but his fillyfriend Jade Brook. They lived together in Baltimare, and so Luna had a guard assigned there indefinitely to watch over the colt, and ensure that none of the macabre dreams were spilling over into reality.

The guard, Shady Crest, would mail her letters regularly with observations on the matter, as well as his findings on investigating Poppy Blanch’s obscured past. Meanwhile, Luna herself would make occasional trips to Poppy’s dreams during her nightly bouts into the dream world. There, she would discreetly avoid him and only find more of the same: his crooked replica of Baltimare, complete with faceless ponies and dumpsters full of savaged corpses.

There was one notable detail that Luna did discover about Poppy’s dreams, however. Every night that Luna would visit to observe him, she found that he would perform the same grim ritual. He would first murder Jade Brook in a horrific display of vulgar brutality, desecrate her corpse in indescribable manner, then use it to cook a meal. The only difference in this routine would be the details in how he killed her, what he did to her remains, and what meal he would prepare. It was astonishing how he never seemed to do the same thing twice.

Most disturbing of all perhaps, was how he smiled lovingly at Jade Brook the entire time.

All of that was more than enough reason to keep the guard posted in Baltimare. That being said, Luna couldn’t bring herself to make an arrest. Despite it all, she wasn’t convinced that Poppy was actually a threat; it was merely the implication that left her wary. A suspicious feeling and unusually grim dreams were not evidence, after all.

The observations of Shady Crest seemed to support Poppy’s innocence, as over time the colt only proved himself to be an upstanding member of the community who served as a trusted and respected pharmacist. Even Shady’s investigations into the mysterious fire that claimed the lives of Poppy’s parents turned up nothing suspicious besides evidence of gross neglect and mistreatment of their son. The ruins of their razed home were demolished, but the stigma of the property meant it was never repurchased.

As months dragged on into years, Luna continued her obsessive observation of Poppy Blanch. As the colt grew into a stallion, she continued to stalk his dreams, occasionally visiting him under the guise of a friendly visit. Each time, she tried her best to worm any additional information from the colt, and each time she failed to produce anything certain. All that was clear to her was how the darkness that resided in him as a foal was very much alive into his adulthood.

Celestia had taken notice of this, of course. There were times when she urged Luna to cease her investigation into the seemingly innocent stallion, but Luna would always dismiss her sister. She meant well, but Celestia couldn’t understand. She never saw the things that Luna did.

Five years of this. Five years of obsession. Obsession driven by the fear that she might have been wrong about the colt. That she had failed to lead him away from the darkness in his heart. That he would become like her.

Until one day when Shady Crest’s monthly report came in. Luna poured over it, unsure what she hoped to find scrawled across the parchment. Part of her wished for vindication, for evidence that Poppy Blanch had succumbed to his dark instincts, whereas a more sane part of her hoped that she would never read those words.

While there was no evidence of criminal activity, Luna was surprised to read that Poppy was soon to wed Jade Brook. Ironically, Shady Crest had been invited to the event, as he had long since made friends with the enigmatic stallion.

Shady went on to explain that although he understood the importance of his mission, he also recommended ending the investigation, as five years later, nothing had changed. Poppy showed no signs of hurting anyone, and if anything, seemed to be completely well adjusted and happy, contrary to Luna’s own observations. He added, respectfully, that Luna should simply enjoy her retirement instead of worrying herself to death over a tragedy that seemed unlikely to come.

Luna read the page over several times, almost as though the words might change under scrutiny. She laid it down on her desk, and sighed. Perhaps Shady Crest was right. Perhaps it was time to let go. Did she really intend to hound the strange stallion until the day he died?

After sitting and pondering her choice for what felt like hours, Luna penned a response to Shady Crest, relieving him of his post. She read it once more, to make certain that she was ready for this decision. Not wanting to wait until she changed her mind, Luna placed the letter in an envelope, and brought it to the Silver Shoals post office to be mailed out in the morning.

As she passed the letter on, Luna felt a weight lift itself from her shoulders. Upon returning home, even Celestia noticed that Luna seemed to have some pep in her step, and correctly assumed that Luna had finally put the investigation to rest. With a tender hug, the elder sibling congratulated Luna on finally moving on with her life before suggesting a share of congratulatory cake.

Amused, but not hungry, Luna instead excused herself to bed, wanting to go to sleep early that evening. Curiously, when she went on her rounds through the dreamworld that night, she did not feel the pull towards Poppy’s door, nor did she cast even a single glance in its direction. In fact, she never would again. After all, he never had nightmares.