Nightmare Night—Halloween, in the wrong Equestria

Princess Celestia sat upon her gilded throne, her posture perfect, yet her eyes glazed over with the practiced apathy of a ruler used to the drone of nobility’s endless complaints. Once again, it was the same parade of grievances. She couldn’t help but stifle a yawn, remembering with bittersweet fondness the lively, chaotic Halloweens of her past life, a human life long lost to her.

Yes. It was Halloween in her Equestria. Now, this season had transformed into Nightmare Night—a celebration born from the tragic event of her sister’s banishment to the moon.

(Which, Celestia thinks is offensive towards her sister. It was a good thing she ordered them to be awake during the night in the event, to have fun and look at the stars—specifically the damn stars that her sister made.)

It had been almost a thousand years since that fateful day when she’d awakened as Equestria’s princess, fully conscious of her former human life yet trapped in the body of Celestia. The knowledge of what she'd done and what she’d lost still lingered like a persistent shadow.

She refocused on the noble, a pony so absorbed in his own melodrama he hadn’t noticed her wandering thoughts. Just as she drew a measured breath, ready to speak—

BANG!

'Mother of mercy what the hell.' she thought.

The door to her left slammed open. A sound so sudden and so loud, every guard in the room flinched and turned toward the noise, their hooves clattering on the floor in readiness. Even Raven Inkwell, her ever-faithful secretary, gasped as her quill snapped mid-sentence. Celestia’s eyes shot to the small door, hardly believing anyone would be so bold—

"Princess Celestia!"
"Tia!"
"Your Majesty—"
"Ma!"

Celestia blinked, her calm demeanor momentarily slipping as she took in the sight before her.

There, assembled like a tiny army in the doorway, were six very familiar ponies. But… they were children. Foals.

Six little foals—Midnight Sparkle, Nightmare Moon, Tempest Shadow, Sunset Shimmer, Sombra, and Chrysalis—all of whom she’d known as fully grown adults, all once revered or feared in their own worlds, now looking like they’d wandered straight out of a schoolyard.

And she's pretty sure they're all supposed to be in their respective Equestrias, not in hers.

Her brain stalled. She'd known these ponies as adults, powerful, dignified (or in most cases, terrifying) figures.

But here they were, barely old enough to reach her knees, and gazing up at her with wide, adoring eyes that of a literal toddler who just learned how to say their first word.

What??? Hello??? WHY ARE YOU HERE?!? WHY DID THE OTHER SUNSET CALL ME MOM??? I DON'T NEED YOUR EQUESTRIA'S LORE.

The guards around her looked equally bewildered, their rigid postures faltering. Even Raven Inkwell, Celestia’s usually unshakable secretary, was still startled, her mouth agape. And the noble before her? He looked looked utterly scandalized, a choking sound escaping him mid-sentence. It took every ounce of Celestia’s control not to laugh like a maniac.

You know what? She can just humor them. She doesn't care anymore. All the guards around her most of the time all know she has her own group of friends.

Who were not children. But fuck it. It's Equestria.

"Yes, my good friends?" she said, adopting her carefully measured, motherly tone as she peered down at the group.

Sunset, her little red-and-gold curls framing her face, was the first to speak. She looked up at Celestia with bright, expectant eyes and took a step forward confidently.

"We wanna go trick-or-treating."

Oh okay wow straight forward there little one, kinda expected because you're similar to my Sunset.

Her brain was still trying to process the sheer absurdity of the situation.

“Alright…” She put on her most diplomatic but motherly voice, “How about this? I’ll assign a few guards to—”

“We specifically want YOU to trick-or-treat with us!” Sombra demanded, little hoof stomped firmly, while Chrysalis nodded shyly from behind him, gaze pleading as she slightly leaned forward. These weren’t just any foals—these were her (previously human) friends, adults in other lives—and in their Equestria—who had somehow turned into foals, got to her Equestria, and stormed her throne room, demanding she abandon her post for… trick-or-treating. As if she, Princess Celestia of Equestria, could just skip out on royal duties for candy.

She’d faced dragons, defeated tyrants, and ruled the kingdom for centuries—but now, apparently, she was no match for six foals hellbent on dragging her out for an evening of trick-or-treating.

"I—"

"WE WANT HALLOWEEN!" The tiny insufferable Sombra demanded like the adult version, throwing a (probably tiny) tantrum and not letting her finish her sentence.

“Uhm, no.” She deadpanned, her polite facade slipping into sheer disbelief and confusion. “I’m at work. Please no.”

Her words were flat, her royal mask dropping like a curtain, and in its place, the true, frazzled, very human her emerged. Celestia knew she looked about two seconds away from losing her mind from the sheer conversation, and judging by the wide-eyed expressions of her guards and Raven—who was now covering her face with a clipboard—they could all see it too.

Her mental state was teetering between her canon self and then "needs freaking therapy."

The foals looked at her in horror. Their expressions were so disappointed she nearly burst out snorting and giggling—nearly.

The mini Nightmare Moon recovered first, "But every year at Halloween—"

"Nightmare Night." Celestia interjected, nodding at her.

And the tiny-sized villain (all could barely even reach her knees) glares at her, wings twitching in irritation. And then—with a level of audacity Celestia hadn’t seen since Luna’s rebellion—chucked one of her tiny hoofguards at her head so quickly it was like a bullet. Celestia caught it expertly with a flick of her wing, though she was more stunned by the absolute nerve of it all.

Why must you torture me this way.

Nightmare Moon didn’t miss a beat. “At NIGHTMARE NIGHT, you always look out the window, brooding and sighing as if fighting crime wasn't enough for you!”

Celestia groaned, putting a hoof to her forehead. “Okay, first of all, you’re making me sound like a copy of Batman, I don't fight crime anymore. And two—" She gestured wildly to the throne room, her composure cracking like a crumbling dam. “I am at work! Do you see all this? The guards? The petitioners? Could you just, I don’t know… keep, it, down?” she gritted through her teeth.

She also shot her friends a look and a gesture with her wings that screamed Please, for the love of Equestria, SHUT UP. But they just stared back, unyielding.

But her outburst and action only earned her even more shocked and amused looks from everyone present. The guards’ expressions were caught somewhere between astonishment and outright giddy; one was visibly shaking with restrained laughter, while another struggled to stay upright, biting down on his lip so hard he looked about to burst. Raven Inkwell had buried her face in her clipboard, as if she hadn't just witnessed her boss nearly get pelted by a foal's steel hoofguard.

The guard off to her right was barely holding in laughter, his cheeks puffed out as he stifled snickers. He had a maroon coat and a light pink mane with white streaks, and cyan eyes. Celestia shot him a look that practically screamed, "HELP ME," but all he could do was bite his lip, nearly losing it as his composure crumbled.

FELIX. She mouthed, looking at him pleadingly. He only snorted, keeping in his laughter.

FELIX, HELP ME. THEY'RE CHILDREN. WHAT DO I DO.

The bastard had the gall to look away.

Sunset Shimmer (who surprisingly still looked like her adult self, but incredibly young), undeterred, stomped her hoof again. “But mama, you want to go trick-or-treating! We all have a costume, and I know you do too!” she insisted, her tiny voice echoing through the throne room as she crossed her forelegs, her determination unwavering.

Celestia then let out an exasperated sigh as she caught sight of Tempest, who, despite her small stature, stood with the same grave intensity as her adult self. “Please, Your Majesty, come with us. We want you to have a break.” Tempest’s little face, however fierce, held a hint of concern, as if even she knew Celestia was teetering on the brink of sanity and as if she wasn't part of causing it.

Break? What break? You're all disrupting her predictable routine and now she has to babysit you fools who were all turned into FOALS who are calling her MOTHER despite not even BEING A MOM GOD DAMN IT.

“Alright, listen,” she whispered, half-pleading, “I know you think this is a good idea, but please rethink everythi—”

“Ahem!” The noble pony, apparently indignant over being ignored, stomped his hoof with a huff as he turned to Celestia, “Your Highness, surely you don’t mean to humor these rowdy peasant foals do y—"

“YOU SHUT UP!” Celestia and Midnight Sparkle shrieked in unison, with the latter thrusting a hoof at him with all the fury of a pint-sized general.

The entire room held its breath as the noble’s face went red with indignation, letting out an undignified choke.

That did it. The laughing guard finally lost it and doubled over in laughter, while several others barely managed to stifle snickers, muffling giggles behind their hooves, or even snorting so loud. Raven Inkwell was currently trying to hide her face behind the clipboard, her shoulders her shaking with restrained laughter. One guard was even thumping the floor with a hoof as he laid down cackling loudly. And dear god the main door to the throne room was slightly open and she could see a few nobles either chuckling, frozen in shock, or a journalist taking a picture and probably going to make it in the headlines.

Celestia.. could feel her dignity collapsing in on itself like a crumbling building.

She closed her eyes, inhaling deeply as if bracing herself for some great existential revelation from Harmony itself. She looked around, taking in the throne room filled with suppressed laughter and giggles, her once-solemn guards cracking smiles, her secretary hiding behind a clipboard, and her six very tiny, very insistent friends.

Dear sweet merciful heavens, someone please end her existence. Or better yet, let the floor open up and swallow her whole like an alligator.

She wanted to pretend this entire scene was a figment of her overworked imagination.

And apparently, she took too long to answer, as the tiny ball of evil shadowy sass Sombra took a deep breath, looked at her in the eyes and—

"TiaaaAAAAA!!!!"

—wailed, the sound echoing through the whole building like a tragic siren.

"Oh no." Celestia muttered in horror.

And then, as if on cue, the others followed suit—not quite throwing a tantrum but literally wailing. It was a cacophony of shrieks and cries so powerful that Celestia couldn’t help but slap her wings over her ears, cringing.

Even the tiny Chrysalis, usually such a sinister little thing, was letting out the most heart-wrenching sobs as if she just saw her non-existent pets die.

So far the loudest by far was Sunset, a downright thunderous bawling that probably rattled or cracked the stained-glass windows in her throne room.

'Holy shit, did Sunset inherit those lungs from HER version of me from her Equestria!?' Celestia thought.

“OKAY, OKAY! I’LL ABANDON MY DUTIES TODAY AND GO TRICK-OR-TREAT WITH YOU ALL! STOP CRYING!” Celestia yelled over their cries, her voice louder than theirs combined, and she wasn't even using her Royal Canterlot Voice.

A moment of stunned silence passed, and then everyone burst out in shocked reactions—laughter, gasps, and all the tears of mirth they’d been holding back. Her poor secretary looked torn between horror and hilarity.

"YAY! MAMA'S JOINING US!" Sunset exclaimed.

"Please I beg you never call me mama in the throne room. Infact, never call me that, you're going to cause so much rumors and political issues." Celestia choked out, hiding her face in her hooves from the sheer ridiculousness this evening.

Outside the door, Celestia could already hear the scandalized gasps and whispers of the noble ponies and, undoubtedly, a few journalists lurking nearby that were waiting in line. They were probably jotting down notes for tomorrow’s headlines as fast as they could.

She has to find out who or what the hell caused her friends to revert their ages or else she'll have to return then in their Equestria INCREDIBLY YOUNG.

She hopes the other versions of herself don't see her once she returns them all back.