October was Spike’s favorite month. Cooler weather became more common, cider season starts, and one of his favorite holidays ends the month off with a bang. Ever since he was a hatchling, he could barely wait for Nightmare Night. He loved giving out candy, and scaring ponies out of their socks. And this year, he planned to go all out. For years, He saved up his bits, and this year he had enough to buy a small plot of land outside of Ponyville, and to begin building his magnum opus. For the entire month, he worked. Boards were nailed, fog emitters were set up, and costumes were sewn. He even managed to get some good friends to volunteer. And as the end of the month grew closer, ponies began to get curious. What was he building? Soon, they would find out.

3 days before Nightmare Night, and Spike had begun to put the finishing touches on his work of art. As he put a fake severed hoof into place, a knock sounded out from the entrance of the building. Hearing it, he quickly got up, and rushed to the door. As he opened the door enough to poke his head out, a familiar, Rainbow-haired face greeted him.
”Sup, Big guy?”
Spike grinned at the prismatic mare, before stepping out completley.
”Oh, hey Rainbow. Just working on this project. What’s up?”
”I was just wondering: I haven’t seen Gilda in a minute. You know where she is?”
”Oh yeah, she’s helping me set this up. She ran to Manehattan to grab some stuff I ordered.”
”Okay, but what are you guys working on?”
”You’ll just have to wait to find out! I’ve gotta get back to work, good seeing you RD.”
Rainbow sighed, curiosity growing within.
”Yeah, don’t wanna hold you up. Good seeing you big guy.”
Spike waves and heads back inside, as Rainbow sulks off.

A few minutes later, in the basement of the golden oak library, a makeshift laboratory has been set up. Within, an experiment that could revolutionize power for Equestria was being performed by the most brilliant mind in the country. But just as she was about to finish, Twilight is Startled out of a research project by a loud knocking on the basement door. She drops the beaker she was holding, causing her eyes to shrink to pinpricks.
”Oh no.”
As an explosion rocks the lab, the door busts open, and Rainbow Dash rushes in.
”Twilight, you okay? I heard a- oh.”
Standing there, covered in a layer of soot, is Twilight Sparkle.
”Well I was doing an experiment with Azidoazide azide, but since it’s had an explosive reaction, I guess I’m done. So, what do you need.”
”Look, I’m sorry Twi. I was just wondering what Spike was doing.”
”Thats It? You ruined an important and highly hazardous experiment for a wellness checkup?”
”Look, I’m sorry, I’ll just go-“
”No, no. I’m sorry, just… just be knock more quietly next time.”
Rainbow nods in response, before Twilight wipes herself off a bit and turns to her.
”Okay, so what do you wanna know?”

As Spike continues his work, he’s interrupted by the door opening. Turning around, he see’s Gilda, carrying several large boxes.
”Hey dork, I got rest of the stuff.”
Spike grins at this, greedily snatching up the bag.
”Perfect! Now that we’ve got these last few animated props, we can ramp this up! And when Thorax returns from Canterlot with my old gear, we’ll have all we need!”
”Good, can’t wait to scare some poor suckers. Man, it’s been years since my last Nightmare night.”
”Well I hope you’re ready, cause Ponyville wont know what hit em.”
Just then, the door opens again, and Thorax walks in, large bag on his back.
”Hey guys, I’ve got everything! The rest of its out there. Gotta thank Big Mac for helping me get it here.”
Spike grins devilishly, as the three head out the door.

”What the hell is Spike building? And why are so many ponies helping him?”
Twilight just giggled and rolled her eyes, before walking past her. Before Rainbow could ask what’s happening, Twilight signaled her to follow her. So, Rainbow did. As they left the basement, Rainbow looked around. The library was scarcely decorated. Kinda weird being so close to nightmare night. Suddenly, Twilight stopped, and turned around.
”So you wanna know what Spike’s doing?”
Rainbow furiously nods her head, eager for a response.
”Okay, I’ll tell you a bit.
Rainbow leans forward, listening intently. She was about to finally know what Spikes secret project was! Twilight leans closer to Rainbow’s ear, and rainbow begins to shake in anticipation.
”… You’ll just have to wait and see.”
Twilight leans away, and begins to cackle. Rainbow, feeling betrayed, looks to Twilight, pain in her eyes.
”… Why, Twi?”
”Thats for getting me blown up!”
Eventually Twilight stops laughing, and looks to her friend again.
”Seriously though, just wait a few more days. It will be worth the wait.”
*sigh*”I hope you’re right Twi.”

Three days later
As the sun begins to set upon Ponyville, Colts and Fillies, dressed up in costumes run around from house to house. Eventually a small Brown and white colt, dressed as a pirate runs up to the Ponyville Library, before knocking on the door. As the door opens, the colt begins to sing.
”Nightmare night, what a fright! Give me something sweet to bite!”
After his little song, the door opens slightly more, before revealing who opened it. Standing in the doorway was Spike, with grey paint covering his entire body, and yellow contacts. His wings had a fake skin applied over them, making them look as if he had bat wings, and cracks littered his facade. The gargoyled Spike looks down and smiles at the little Pipsqueak, before handing him some candy. As the Colt thanks him and runs off, Spike shuts the door.

As the door shuts, Spike smiles to himself, before setting the bowl down. Knowing he needs to go soon, he calls out to his sister, who responds immediately, and comes running down the stairs, belled hat jingling as she moves.
”Really, Starswirl again? Jeez, almost every year you’ve been him!”
”Well I like it, and that’s all that matters!”
Spike rolls his eyes, before chuckling a bit.
”Well, I’m heading out. You have fun with the princess!”
”I will! You guys scare some ponies good, y’hear?”
”Don’t need to tell me twice!”
And with that, Spike exits the library, and takes off towards his little plot of land.

As gets closer, he notices a crowd of ponies have crowded in front of his creation, curiosity getting the best of them. Smiling to himself, he lands in front of them, startling them all.
”Welcome, one and all, to the moment you have all been waiting for. Now prepare yourselves, For tonight, your greatest nightmares come to life, as the horrors of the dark come to feast. And it just so happens, that you shall be their main course! Welcome, to the Ponyville, house of horrors!”
With that, the doors open, and Music begins to radiate from hidden speakers.
” Before we begin, let me warn you, that what you see may be gruesome. But remember, none of it is real, and you shall not be harmed. Now, Enter if you dare!”
With that, a few brave ponies began to inch closer. Suddenly, Thorax ran out, pretending to be hurt. Shortly thereafter, Gilda came out, wearing a leather mask and holding a hatchet, and grabbed him, dragging him back in. This scared the crowd, but with the knowledge that this was fake, those brave ponies continued forward, and into the house.

Only an hour has passed, and word of mouth of the Ponyville house of horrors had spread fast. While some ponies despised the idea of this, especially parents, most others had loved it. It was quickly becoming an extremely popular destination for both adults and older foals. As the moon continued to rise, Spike smiled to himself as another scream echoed from within the house. Before he can relish in his success, a he hears a voice in the distance coming towards him.
”So you say that this ‘house of horrors’, shall be enjoyable? From how this night had been going so far, I doubt that.”
Recognizing that voice, Spike smirked, as a devious plan formed in his head. He moved to the side of the entrance, and stood perfectly still, barely even breathing. As he heard them getting closer, he had to hold back his laughter at what he was planning. The. Finally, two ponies were directly in front of him. His sister, and Princess Luna, regent of the night and namesake of his favorite holiday.
”So, this is a popular activity for our holiday? It has an awful lot of… screaming.”
”Well yeah. Ponies tend to enjoy getting scared on nightmare night, and this is the best way to get scared.”
”We see. This set a smart mare, madam Twilight, so why do ponies enjoy getting scared on our holiday.”
Spike, seeing his moment, sprung into action.
”I think it has to do with the adrenaline rush. It tends to make one feel more alive.”
As soon as he broke his facade, Twilight jumped, gasping audibly, while the princess just looked at him.
”Your theory makes sense young Spike. Thou has done well on thee costume as well. You looked almost as if you were real. ”
”Thank you princess.”
Twilight finally caught her breath, before glaring at her brother.
”Well, your majesty, would you like to see what the fuss is about?”
Luna nods to Twilight, before walking into the house. Moments later, Twilight rushes in after her, causing Spike to laugh.
”Good luck you two!”

After a few minutes, Twilight runs out of the house, followed by princess Luna, laughing her face off.
”Wow, that was horrific! Spike really outdid himself this year.”
”We must agree with your assessment. That was some of the most fun we have had in one thousand years. Watching thee be spooked by everything brought joy to our heart. A few things even managed to get us!”
Spike eventually walked up to them, smiling.
”Glad you enjoyed it! So Princess, how are you enjoying your holiday?”
”At first, we felt naught but sorrow. Our subjects screamed and fled from us! I thought they still saw us as a monster. And as the night continued, we thought our fears were validated, as everything we did caused naught but fear. I was scared that in attempting to enjoy this holiday with my subjects, I was instead reinforcing their fear of me. That is, until your activity. Twilight had convinced me to try once more, before calling it a failure, and she had chosen this. And thanks to her and thee, we now see. This is a holiday to scare. It was not our past actions that caused our subjects to flee, but the fun of the holiday! So we thank thee, sir Spike, and thee, Lady Twilight, for showing us the truth. If it had not been for this, we may have very well just canceled the holiday out of shame! But thou have ensured that is not the case.”

Spike just sat there, dumbstruck. His little haunt caused the Princess to not cancel his favorite holiday? He felt conflicted by this revelation. On one hoof, he managed to save his favorite holiday, and earn the princesses appreciation. On the other, she had felt so unwelcomed during the night that she had almost canceled his favorite holiday. In the end though, he decided to be honored, and not horrified.
”Thank you my princess. I am honored that you enjoyed my haunted maze, and that it helped you see the true spirit of the holiday.”
”And the fact that this is free makes this so much more enjoyable. Knowing that those suffering monetarily may still enjoy this work of art. Is there anything that we can do for thee, sir Spike, to repay you for the joy thou have given us?”
Spike thought for a moment, before a wicked smile spread across his face.
”Thank you Princess, but I only have one small request. Do you know where Rainbow Dash is?”

Rainbow was having the time of her life. Her rain could scare had gotten most of the town at this point, and everypony was loving her costume. That said, she still hadn’t managed to figure out what Spike was doing, despite her best efforts. She kept hearing about this ‘house of horse’, which just sounded weird to her. She continued to fly, until she noticed something. At Spikes little project house, the lights were on, and a blue blob was out front. Curious, she landed, only to gasp as she realized what the blue blob was. It was Princess Luna, covered in blood and bruises. She coughed and sputtered, before looking up, directly at Rainbow.
”We… could not stop them. They took Lady Twilight, and Sir Spike. Please… save them.”
Before rainbow could even say anything, the princess flopped back down. Panicking, Rainbow flew up to her, and check to see if she was breathing. She was. And her pulse .was still strong. Good, she’d probably be alright. But she had other things to focus on. She had other things to worry about. She had to save her friends. Taking a deep breathe, she flew into the double doors, barely noticing as they slammed behind her.

Rainbow was horrified. Within this place, there were severed limbs and body’s everywhere. A strange fog blanketed the ground, and everywhere she looked, blood was speckled. She began to hear strange noises, and screams echoed from deeper in the building. Stealing her resolve, she continued in, until she stumbled upon a horrifying sight. In front of her, was a table with a single silver tray on it. And in the middle of that tray was a griffons claw. She ran up to it to see if she could recognize it, but froze upon noticing something. It had Gilda’s birthmark. Terrified, she ran further in, now fearing for three friends, not hearing the snickering from under the table. As she went deeper within, more horrors greeted her. From strange creatures, to severed cutie marks, and even gut-cupcakes. But worst of all was finding small parts of her friends. Applejacks hat was in one room,while Pinkies pet alligator was in another, licking red off of himself. Rarities tail hung from one of the walls, and fluttershy’s wings hung over a fireplace. As she made it to the last room, her worst fears were confirmed. There, in the middle, was Twilight and Spikes heads.

Rainbow sprinted through the halls, dodging monsters and horrors along the way. One looked as if it was Big Mac, but his head was missing, while another looked like Thunderlane, but with missing eyes. Eventually, she managed to see the exit, and her heart fluttered. She was gonna make it! As she finally came flying out of the horror show, she looked around. And she suddenly became very confused. All her friends were standing in front of her, smiles on their faces. She just stood there, confused, until Spike spoke up.
”Gotcha.”
Suddenly, the crowd burst into laughter, as Rainbow fell onto her rear.
”N-none of that w-was real?”
”Nope! This was my big project. Ponyville’s first and only haunted house. What’d ya think?”
”B-but I saw Rarity’s tail! And Gilda’s claw!”
”I was under the table doofus!”
”And I had a replica of my tail handy darling. After the river, I realized having a spare was a good idea. “
”B-but Fluttershy’s wings! Where is she?”
”Those were just fake wings that were painted yellow. She isn’t a part of this, don’t worry. Don’t want to give her a heart attack.”’
As Rainbow finally began to calm down, the princess walked up to her, and looked her dead in the eyes.
”I believe thou would call this… a prank.”
At this, Rainbow began to laugh, and took it all in good fun. After all, this was a time to get scared! And she had just gotten scared straight.

Author's Note

Happy Halloween! I updated Luna’s color to make it readable in dark mode, hope you enjoy. I also tried to give Pipsqueak a more fitting color, but for some reason typing in brown for the text color makes it red. So sorry, Pipsqueak is red. I hope you all enjoy my favorite holiday, and remember: leave some candy for Nightmare moon, or she’ll gobble you up!