A Silver Sky: Four Little Ponies

--Chapter 4: Bedrooms--

Pipsqueak hated the night.

It wasn’t the darkness which bothered him. In fact, he had always kind of liked darkness. He found it pretty. The way everything seemed to vanish in the dark always amused him somehow. It was almost soothing to know that the world could go away and then be back again the next morning.

He did not fear the dark. He feared the night. That was when she would come for him.

“But she’s not coming back…” Pipsqueak whispered to himself, as he lay awake in bed. “She promised. As long as I don’t tell, she’ll leave me alone…”

Pip tried his best to ignore the fact that she had lied to him before.

When he had returned home after the Gathering, Pip enjoyed a few days of restful peace. He was home with his mother, and life made sense again.

Then the dreams began.

They were always about the Gathering. In some, he simply relived the things that were done to him. Sometimes this happened with strange variations, where ponies he knew in real life, but who had never been at the Gathering, became Circle members and brutally forced themselves on him.

In others, there were strange, improbable scenarios. The one which he had most often began with Pip being chased by dozens of adult ponies, with looks of maniacal arousal on their faces. Sometimes they would catch him quickly, and the dream would end there.

But sometimes they did not, and the chase went on for what seemed like hours. Typically the ponies would chase him down an endless hallway, which got narrower as they went. Eventually Pip would realize that there wasn’t enough room in the hallway for all his pursuers. That was always when he looked behind him, to see that the ponies had merged, into one horrible, pulsing mass of flesh, hooves, and sexual organs, screaming obscenities at him and making unearthly sounds which sounded like they were halfway between an orgasm and a scream of pain. Then the walls of the hallway themselves would turn to flesh, and voices begin whispering to Pip about how beautiful he was, how desirable he was, how young and ripe his body looked. Then he would begin to feel them touching him, holding him down, forcing things into his body, until Pip himself began to deform and distort from the pain, his body losing all cohesion and turning into a grotesque monstrosity.
The dream always ended the same way: a moment of terrible realization, when Pip, in an action which always made perfect sense in his dream, looked down at his own body from above, then looked at the mass of flesh, and realized that he could no longer tell one from the other.

The dream would end there, with Pip waking up in a pool of sweat.

Pip only slept an hour or two each night now, when he slept at all. But the nightmares were only partly responsible. The night itself terrified him. Pip’s mind processed every creak of the house or whistle of the wind against his window as a certain sign that she was coming for him. Coming to take him again. To tie him up and hurt him, violate him, make him feel scared and confused…

Pip heard a noise from outside, and stifled a shout.

Breathing heavily, the little colt began rocking back and forth in his bed, mumbling to himself.

“There’s no Rarity…there was no Gathering…nothing happened to me…I’m a normal colt…nothing happened…”

Every night, the only way Pip was able to get to sleep at all was by denying his own memories.

And every night, when he finally did sleep, his memories would reassert themselves.

Pip had once loved the night.

*******

“…I’m not afraid of you.”

From Fancy’s reaction, Silver Spoon could tell that he believed her. Silver felt a twinge of pride. She had always been an excellent liar.

“Well, I would hope not,” said Fancypants softly. “I certainly have no intention of harming you, my dear. There are others who will suffer for what happened at the Gathering, but not you. I could never bring myself to damage a work of art.”

“Others…?” Silver asked. And then her mind jumped back in time. Back to the night of the Gathering. She remembered the look she had seen on Miss Rarity’s face immediately after she had boarded the carriage for home. Silver had never seen that look before. At the time, she hadn’t been sure of what it meant, but now, two months later, she understood fully.

Rarity had been afraid.

“You mean Miss Rarity, don’t you?” Silver said. “What are you-“

“Shhh…” said Fancy, putting his hoof gently over Silver’s mouth. “Forget Rarity. I’m here now. You’re safe.”

“But…” Silver stammered, only to be cut off by Fancy embracing her. Caught completely off guard, the silver filly reflexively returned the hug.

She hated to admit it, but it felt nice to embrace someone again.

“She can’t hurt you anymore, my perverse little angel,” he said. “You’re with me now. And it seems like I found you just in time. Look at what this world has done to you.”

“Why…why are you being so nice to me?” said Silver. She was unused to being treated with kindness from anyone, and it always felt slightly wrong to her. But Fancypants was the last pony in Equestria she had ever expected it from.

“Well, why wouldn’t I be, my dear?” asked Fancy, in the most casual tone imaginable.

Silver let go of Fancypants. “I…hurt you.” she said.

“Nonsense, my dear. A foal in your situation can’t possibly be held responsible for her actions. I’ve seen this sort of thing before, you know: a Circle member takes on a new foal as her plaything, and buries the child’s will completely beneath her own. No, I’m quite certain the fault lies with your mistress.”

Fancy chuckled. “Oh, excuse me: your former mistress. From the state I found you in I can only assume that Rarity abandoned you. And after all the loving devotion you showed her. Ghastly behavior on her part, wouldn’t you agree?”

Silver paused. What was Fancy up to? She had always assumed he would do something horrible to her if she ever met him again. But then again, he had shown a great deal of affection for her at the Gathering. Was it still there, or was this some sort of trick?

It doesn’t matter. This is your chance.

No. Why the voice? Why now?

Who do you want to be?

The question took Silver aback. The voice had asked her that once before.

“I thought I loved her,” Silver Spoon said to Fancy, “I really did. But she just threw me away like I was nothing. She hated me for what I did, even though she had told me to look out for her sister!”

“Oh you poor dear,” Fancy said. “So that’s what happened?”

Silver nodded. “I’m sorry I kicked, you I really am! But Rarity ordered me to protect Sweetie no matter what. And…and I would never disobey my mistresses’ order. That’s all it was. I’m so sorry!”

“Look at me, Silver, said Fancy. “Do you remember how I looked when you last saw me?”

Silver remembered an injured face, missing teeth and a bleeding eye. Yet Fancy now looked exactly like he had before she had kicked him. Even his teeth were back in place.

“I remember,” she said. “How did you do that?”

“I know the best surgeon in Equestria. I think she did some work on you, in fact,” he said with a chuckle.

“Oh, so Triage did this for you? That’s very impressive work!”

“Oh no, she just referred me to a pony who specializes in cosmetic surgery. Said she was too busy, but she’s on sabbatical from her work so I can’t imagine why. She is a bit of an arrogant sort, though. I think she sees plastic surgery as being somewhat beneath her. “

Silver tried not to react to the absurdity of Fancy accusing someone else of arrogance.

“My point, dear Silver Spoon, is that what you did caused no lasting damage. Unlike Rarity’s actions, this was easily undone. Besides, you were simply following commands faithfully. An admirable trait in any foal.”

“Thank you,” she said. “Wait, what do you mean about Rarity’s actions?”

“You damaged my body, but she damaged my reputation. That is not so easily repaired,” said Fancy, his tone growing less jovial with each word. “Rarity humiliated me in front of my Circle. That cannot be allowed to stand. That is why I have saved you.”

“Saved…me?” Silver asked. She didn’t like where this was going.

“You were a part of Rarity’s little group. I wanted you someplace safe before my retaliation began. It’s important that you be here, Silver Spoon. I want you to see how weak and pathetic your former mistress really is.”

There was a glint in Fancy’s eye.

“You will see her grovel at my hooves, Silver. I promise you that. That’s why I’ve been searching for you. So you could be safe. So you could bear witness. I had friends on the train Rarity took back to Ponyville, ready to snatch you up and take you to safety. But you weren’t on it. That’s when I began my search. I’ve waited all this time to strike at her, just to make sure you would be here to see what I shall do to her.”

Fancypants positioned himself directly in front of Silver, and stared intensely into her eyes.

“Understand, Silver: absolutely nothing can save Rarity now. She will be made an example of. I am going to expose her, humiliate her, and then ruin her. Not a trace shall remain.”

Silver wanted to look away from Fancy, but did not dare.

“So if you have any feelings of affection left for the pony who so callously tossed you away, I suggest you let go of them now. You have two choices, my dear: you can be my prisoner, or you can be my guest. But either way, you are mine.”

Silver Spoon hesitated for just a moment.

Then she got up on her hindlegs and kissed Fancy on the mouth.

The older stallion was momentarily surprised, but soon began returning her kiss with great enthusiasm. Fancy’s tongue entered Silver’s open mouth, mingling with hers as the older pony let out a single, soft moan.

Silver broke the kiss and looked Fancy in the eyes.

“I thought Miss Rarity loved me,” she said. “She said I would belong to her forever. But she threw me away…she just abandoned me in that horrible place like I was garbage. But then you appeared, and…even though I hurt you…you saved me.”

“Think nothing of it, my dear,” said Fancy. The kiss seemed to have transformed him. His intensity was gone, replaced with a contented calm.

“No! It’s not nothing! I would have died out there if it weren’t for you!” Silver said, hugging Fancy.

“I don’t care what you do to Rarity,” she said. “Just…please let me stay with you...”

Fancy kissed Silver Spoon on the top of the head. Silver was struck by how strangely paternal the gesture felt.

“You’ve made the right choice, Silver Spoon,” he said. “I always knew you would.”

“I’m so sorry about kicking you, Sir Fancypants…” she said, refusing to let go of him.

“All is forgiven,” he said. “And coming from me, those are rare words indeed.” He let out a chuckle.

“Can I ask you something?” said Silver. “What are you going to do to her?”

“Don’t you worry about that, my dear,” said Fancy, gently breaking the embrace. He stepped off the bed. “When the time is right, she will come to us. And I’ve already set the wheels in motion. As soon as we located you, I put an associate of mine on a train to Ponyville. And I sent an express letter to certain well-placed individuals…oh, forgive me, dear, all this adult talk must be boring you terribly.”

“Oh, no!” Silver said, with some urgency. “I find it very fascinating! Please, go on!”

“That’s quite alright dear,” said Fancy, patting Silver gently on the head. “There’s no need to concern yourself with her any longer. Besides, I’m sure you’re famished. When’s the last time you had a proper meal?”

Silver froze. She was hesitant to mention that for her, a meal consisted of whatever Rarity or Sweetie Belle had neglected to eat the previous evening. She also decided not to mention that she preferred it that way. Living off the day-old scraps of her mistress gave the filly a strange, warm feeling of contentment; a sense that she was in her rightful place.

Fancy raised an eyebrow in response to Silver’s silence. “Oh dear, that long, eh?” he said. “Well, worry not. Tonight, you shall dine on the most exquisite delicacies known to Ponykind. I’ve instructed my chefs to prepare us a feast. It won’t be ready for a few hours, so if you’d like something in the meantime...”

“Actually, I’m still very tired…” she said. “Could I just sleep until dinner is ready?”

“Of course,” said Fancy. “I have some business to attend to anyhow. I’ll have someone call for you an hour before dinner; that should give you ample time to bathe and wash that street grime off. I trust the bed is comfortable?”

“The softest I’ve ever felt,” said Silver.

“Only the best for you, my dear. But I do hope we’ll have a chance to visit my bedchambers later this evening.” He grinned.

“I’d like nothing better,” said Silver.

“Oh! I almost forgot: if you need anything, anything at all, simply ring that bell on your nightstand. A servant will be dispatched immediately. From this day forward, my dear, your every whim shall be catered to.”

Silver nodded, and Fancy walked toward the door. Before opening it, he paused and turned back to her.

“Welcome to your new life, my angel,” he said.

Silver beamed, and Fancy walked out of the room.

As soon as the door shut behind him, Silver let out an exasperated sigh.

On the night Silver had gotten her Cutie Mark, her mother had given her some advice. Being a society mare, she had said, was one part manners and two parts dishonesty. It meant speaking cordially, even with affection, to personally unpleasant ponies of great status and wealth.

“At a society party, you will be surrounded by ponies you would never want to know, but who are absolutely worth knowing. Not because of who they are, but because of what they have, and what they can do for you.” Silver’s mother was not normally this wise, but she did have her moments.

“It’s a game, Silver Spoon,” she had said. “And the first rule is this: it doesn’t matter if you like the pony you’re talking to. It only matters if he thinks you do.”

Silver was very good at this game.

Still, she had cut it close. Every passing minute with Fancy had been more unbearable than the last. Kissing him had not bothered her. She’d done that with countless older stallions.

But when he started telling her of the luxury that awaited her, babbling on about her “new life,” Silver began to feel sick. She did not relish the prospect of living in a huge mansion, being catered to by servants and treated like a princess. She had lived that way for the better part of eight years, and it had never felt anything but empty.

She felt deeply uncomfortable at the prospect of ordering servants around. The idea of rising above anyone felt almost unnatural to her.

“My place is below,” she whispered. “Beneath everyone, but most of all, beneath you. Serving, pining, hurting. For you.”

She hugged herself tightly with her forelegs.

“Miss Rarity…” she said. “I’m so sorry…I didn’t mean what I said about you…”

She spoke like a blasphemer reciting a prayer of contrition.

“I don’t hate you…I could never hate you…I just needed Fancy’s trust…I’m sorry…”

“If you’re in trouble, then I should be by your side…” Silver continued. “I’ll get out of here somehow. I’ll find a way…and then we’ll crush that bastard Fancypants together.”

Silver took a second to consider the full scope of what she was saying. It was all well and good to want to help Rarity in her struggle. But she did not have the slightest idea how to go about it.

She sat upright in bed, staring at the countless toys in her room.

“Toys…I was her broken toy…” Silver whispered. “Miss Rarity, please let me be yours again…let me be your plaything…”

You saved her sister’s life.

“Shut up…” said Silver. “I need to think clearly right now…”

You saved her sister’s life and she disowned you for it. Why are you pining for someone like her? You’re-

“Stop it…”

You’re-

“Stop, it, I know what you’re going to say, and it’s a lie-“

You’re better than this.

“No! I want to see her again!”

You’re better than this.

“I’m not! I’m just Miss Rarity’s property! Stop saying I’m-“

YOU’RE BETTER THAN THIS!

Silver’s head was pounding. The voice had never shouted before. But there was something about the way it yelled. It carried a familiar, shrill tone.

Silver had never stopped to ask herself whose voice had taken up residence in her head. She had long been aware that it wasn’t the same voice as her normal internal monologue. It sounded different. It was still the voice of a young filly, but not hers.

But when the voice yelled at her, it all came together.

“It's you…” Silver said. “Of course. Of course the voice sounds like you…something in my mind…was trying to remind me…”

Tears began falling on the bedsheets unbidden.

“Remind me of you…remind me of what I did to you…”

Silver grimaced.

“But don’t you see? That’s why I’m not better than anything…”

Silver Spoon looked at the toys again. She noticed two dolls in particular, each sitting on either side of a small hoofmade wooden table. Tiny plastic tea cups sat before each of them.

“That’s why I deserved to be abandoned by Miss Rarity. It’s only fair…”

The dolls were both young fillies. And they looked like they were best friends.

“…because I abandoned you.”

*******

KNOCK KNOCK.

“Sweetheart! Are you going to school today?”

“NO! Leave me alone, daddy!”

“Now, baby doll, I know you’re still getting over your friend. But you’ve missed an awful lot of-“

“ME AND SILVER SPOON ARE PLAYING RIGHT NOW! GO AWAY!”

“You’re…what?”

“YOU HEARD ME! LEAVE US ALONE!”

“….Okay, sweetheart. Have…have fun with your friend.”

Filthy Rich slowly walked away from the locked door to his daughter’s room. He hung his head low as he went.

His daughter’s recent deterioration had been a popular topic of conversation among Ponyville’s elite. Outwardly, there was only sympathy, concern, and hopes for a speedy recovery. But Filthy Rich was no fool. He could tell that privately, Ponyville high society could not be more thrilled at his misfortune. Many of them had waited years to see the once-infallible Rich family brought so low.

Rich walked into the kitchen, where his wife was preparing breakfast. Crown Jewel had set out three places, like she always did.

“Do you think she’ll come out of her room today?” she asked hopefully. “It’s been so long since she’s come out…and I made her favorite! Strawberry waffles…could you go and tell her I made strawberry waffl-“

“SHE’S NOT GOING TO COME OUT OF HER ROOM FOR SOME DAMN WAFFLES!” Rich screamed.

Crown Jewel took a step back in shock. Filthy Rich was known as a ruthless businessman, but he had never before raised his voice to a member of his family.

“Oh…oh, Celestia, I swear I didn't mean to…oh, honey, I’m so sorry…” RIch said. “I…I just...it's bad, Jewel. I think...I think she's getting worse."

Crown Jewel needed a moment before she could respond.

"What do you mean by 'worse?' "

The richest pony in Ponyville looked at his wife with an expression of absolute helplessness on his face.

“She’s my little girl, and I’m losing her right before my eyes…” he said. “Honey…she thinks Silver Spoon’s still alive.”

[NEXT: My gift to you alone/Knocking on another door/ELP YOU]