Soul Saga: Catching Dreams

"Heya little brother. How're you feeling?" Mirage's cool tones drifted through the darkened room.

Dream Catcher stirred lightly, sound asleep amidst the realm of his special place in the world. From where the elder pony stood, he could watch the expressions that crossed the face of his younger sibling, noting that they were calm and relaxed. For once, he was glad that the little colt was asleep. After the day he'd had, Mirage couldn't think of any better remedy.

"It's okay Silver, he's asleep. If we're quiet, we can study in here by horn-light. C'mon in."

Mirage led his friend, Silver Quill into the room. The soft blue unicorn stepped quietly so as not to disturb the sleeping colt as she made her way around to the twin desks opposite the doorway by the windows. Mirage set his saddlebags down before going in for a closer inspection of Dream, noting with a smile that whatever it had been that was ailing him earlier didn't seem to have returned.

"Sounds like he had a rough first day. Poor little thing." The filly sighed, watching Mirage tend to Dream.

"It seems to be a lot better than pops made it out to be. Apparently, he fell out of his desk when the teacher woke him up; hit his head pretty hard. And to make things worse, he had a wicked fever for a bit. Dad said you could've wrung him out twice and still had enough for a full pitcher left over; he was sweating that bad. Something about a nasty dream too." Mirage shook his head as he watched Dream's easy breathing.

"I do hope he feels better." Silver stood up and tip-hoofed over, noting the cloth on the colt's forehead.

Mirage nodded at that, making for his bags again. He levitated a few books and some papers out, setting them down on his desktop without so much as a sound. Fortunately, the act of using magic for such things had the benefit of being nearly completely silent. If one didn't know what to listen for, they'd never hear the subtle sound of what you could mistake for the tinkling of tiny bells and an almost ethereal ambiance. With that done, he motioned Silver over to the desks and with great care to be quiet, the two set about studying.

The night passed relatively uneventfully with the background to their work being the soft, easy breathing of Dream in his own private little world and that of their father in the kitchen, cleaning up from dinner. The two eventually settled in to a questionnaire round for a rudimentary quiz on the basic fundamentals of magic that was scheduled for the coming week when Dream showed his first signs of stirring. The little pony sat up, gingerly rubbing his head as he focused his vision in the low light cast by the two lit horns in the room.

"Ow..." The colt shuddered when he hit a sore spot, alerting the others to his awakening.

"Hey there little brother." Mirage smiled gently, standing up to move next to the bunk. "How's the head?"

"Can I go back to sleep? It doesn't hurt when I'm there." Dream shut his eyes, feeling a sizable goose-egg on the side of his skull.

"Well, you could...but then you'd miss out on our friend being here." Mirage chuckled. He motioned Silver over to the bedside before returning his attention to Dream.

"Heya pipsqueak." Silver made her way over, sitting down beside the bed. "Fun day, I hear?"

"Totally." Dream sniped back. He looked around, finding a glass of water on the bedside stand. With unsteady hooves, he picked it up and downed it rapidly, feeling a little better.

"Probably still a bit dehydrated from turning your schoolroom into a swimming pool." The glass levitated out of Dream's grasp in the white haze of his brother's magic as the colt left to refill it for him. Dream sat quietly for a few moments until Mirage returned with the glass full again to which he responded by promptly emptying it once more. "Lumpy head aside, that could be the cause of a headache."

"Maybe. How was your day, brother?"

Mirage shrugged before regaling Dream with tales of a dreadfully boring class schedule, hardly any new and interesting things about magic to learn, and even worse...the teacher.

"Dad wasn't kidding when he said these first two weeks were going to be tough. It's only the first day and already I'm so bored out of my skull that I don't know if they'll ever get to teaching me anything I don't already know."

"Levitation spells, basic manipulation, overall control of your abilities, it's stuff your parents teach you when you first learn how to use your magic." Silver nodded. "They treat us like we're still foals."

"I could understand it maybe if we had somepony in our class who isn't well versed enough in their own basic magic that they could hurt somepony else...but this is just ridiculous." Mirage shrugged, casting a spell out to light the lanterns about the room now that Dream had awoken. "Fortunately for you, you don't have to worry about that."

Dream nodded, his mind going over to a poster of his hero, SkyStorm. The fastest and best flier in all of Equestria. The pony that Dream looked up to the most...aside from his brother. Soon, he'd be attending Flight School in Cloudsdale, training for the day when he could join the Junior Speedsters. He unconsciously stretched out his still underdeveloped wings, feeling a soft draft waft through the feathers.

"Can't wait, can ya?" Mirage smirked, knowingly.

"Nope. Gonna be just like SkyStorm. But better! I'll show them all how to fly when I get to Summer Flight Camp next year."

"Gotta learn how to use those wings first, squirt. And you can't do that if you keep falling asleep during important stuff...like school." Silver prodded him jokingly. "For as long as I've known you, you just can't stay awake when you need to, silly pony."

Silver leaned in and hugged the little black colt. Dream laid into it and hugged her back. Silver felt like the sister he'd never had. But she was right. His ears drooped a bit as he thought back on all the times he'd messed up. It brought a blush to his face to remember falling asleep face first in his birthday cake one year. The memory brought back the earlier day in full force when she left go, her muzzle accidentally nudging the lump on his head. He withdrew quickly on a sharp breath to quell the stabbing pain, Silver looking on apologetically.

Mirage stood up with the promise of his quick return and left the two alone again as he ventured downstairs for an icepack for Dream. Silver began to pack her things up for the night, settling everything into her saddlebags before returning to Dream's bedside.

"Hey...I know what will help you feel better. How about a game?" She suggested, levitating a board game from one of the nearby bookshelves in the room. It was simply designed, no hard thinking involved. All one had to do was roll dice and move their pawn across the board.

"Maybe. If Mirage says it's okay. He gets really worried about me sometimes." Dream's ears fell lower at the thought of his older brother pacing the floor again like he did the night Dream fell out of the tree in their backyard.

"Oh, he'll be all right. He just doesn't want anything to happen to you, that's all. I wish I had a brother like him." Silver smiled softly, setting the game out on the floor before motioning Dream Catcher out of bed. "C'mon. You can even bring your pillow and blanket if you want."

"Okay." Dream slipped out from under the cover, grabbing it and his pillow in his teeth before climbing down to the floor. He set everything up and got comfortable, picking out his favorite piece. The tiny black pony pawn was always his, no matter how many times they played or who played with them.

Mirage came back shortly after, carrying the icepack wrapped in cloth when he returned. He took one look at the setup spread out before settling down without a fight, a soft smile of preconceived defeat on his muzzle as he passed the cool cloth over to his brother. Picking out the red piece, he looked down at the board before the usual competitive grin crossed his face. "Okay...so who's going to go first?"

"Youngest, of course. I suggested we play to help him feel better, so he gets the first roll." Silver nodded smartly, moving the dice over within Dream's reach.

The young pony made his first roll, and the game began. They all took their respective turns, rolling and moving, all the while with Mirage and Silver making sure the other didn't fix the roll with magic. They kept on for some time, each gaining or losing ground as the dice demanded, Dream feeling much better as the game went on when a loud crack and the peal of thunder rolled through the house, turning Silver's attention away from her roll momentarily.

"Hah! Six! That means you go back three spaces!" Mirage cheered when the dice stopped, moving Silver's piece back the allotted number.

"That's not fair. I'll bet you used your magic when I wasn't looking!" Silver protested as she turned back to the board, but the white unicorn waved his hoof at her.

"Now now, don't be a sore loser, Silly Filly." He smiled, ruffling her mane gently.

"Yeah, I didn't see any magic." Dream agreed. "My turn?"

"Yup! Go for it!"

"Okay...here goes!" He rolled...and turned up a two. "Aww come on. That's the third two in a row."

As the pegasus colt moved his piece forlornly, the unicorns looked back at one another and smiled, as if sharing some kind of secret. Neither would've used their powers on Dream's roll in earnest, but they weren't above teasing him every now and then with the idea.

Just as he finished moving his piece, another peal of thunder rumbled through the house, shaking the foundation to its core. There came the sound of rushing hooves as their father entered the room to find a completely unexpected scene.

"Is everypony okay up here? That last strike sounded really close." He asked of the three.

"Yes sir, Mr. Nights. We're just helping Dream feel better with a little game." Silver spoke up, smiling up at the stallion.

"Yeah pops. We're fine. Nothin to worry about." Mirage gave his agreement, motioning to Dream. "Look, squirt's even awake for once. Gotta write that down in the record books."

Everyone but Dream chuckled at that, the colt stuffing his head under his pillow in minor embarrassment.

"Well, so long as you're all fine. It's just odd though. The Weather Patrol didn't schedule a thunderstorm until later this week. I wonder what caused them to move it up?" Their father put his hoof to his chin in thought as he left the room, heading back downstairs.

The three ponies left behind all shrugged and continued their game. It wasn't much longer lived though as Mirage ended up winning with Dream coming in close second. Silver wasn't far behind either; one good roll and she might've beat Dream. With the game finished, the three sat around and talked on for what felt like a few more hours before Silver stood up and made for her saddlebags.

"Well boys, it's been fun. But if I don't get home soon, my parents are going to tan my hide." She sighed, lifting her bags off the ground in a blue glow to match her coat. All ears turned to the door when a knock came from the front door downstairs. "That might even be them now. I hope they're not mad that I didn't come straight home."

Mirage put a hoof to her shoulder.

"Hey, no worries. If they ask, just tell them you were helping me study. I mean come on, that's how it started out, right?"

Seeming to accept that answer for the moment, Silver Quill stepped out the doorway of the bedroom, fully expecting to hear her father's voice echoing up from the front porch when the boy's father answered it.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, Oneiric Nights...but I'm afraid I have some bad news..." A vaguely familiar voice wafted up the staircase.

"What...what's going on?" Their father's voice responded shakily as Dream and Mirage approached the doorway as well, listening in on the conversation downstairs. Much of it was muffled, but it sounded highly important.

"Don't worry sir, I can stay here with the children while you go. I think it important that you should be there."

"Yes, yes...I'll leave straight away. Thank you so much, Concord. Make sure the boys know what's going on, I'll be back as soon as I can."

There was a flash of light that could only mean their father had teleported away somewhere before the sound of the front door closing met their ears, followed quickly by hooves coming further inside.

"What do you think that was about?" Silver asked.

"I don't know...but if it was cause for father to use teleportation magic...it has to be important. He doesn't like to use it because he says it makes him sick to his stomach." Mirage pondered before the same voice from moments ago called up the stairs.

"Hello? Are you up there boys?"

"Yes sir, we're here." Mirage returned as he approached the top landing of the stairs. Below, dressed in full peace-keepers garb, was their father's friend, Concord. He wasn't soaked in rain, despite the sounds of thunder outside...but the rough look on his face told a story of something horrible as he climbed the staircase, removing his hat.

The earth pony moved quietly for his size as he stepped to the top stair, motioning for Mirage and Silver Quill to return to the room. Once all of the young ones were seated inside, he too sat down, removing his coat to place both that and his hat aside.

"Mirage? Dream Catcher? I...I don't really know where to begin." Concord's head hung low, his gaze seemingly drawn to his own cutie mark; that of a shield with a star over it. "Something awful has happened."

"Well...are you going to tell us? Or are you going to stare at your own butt all night?" Mirage sniped, his irritation at being kept out of the loop slowly starting to build. Obviously, something had happened. But what? Why was Concord here?

"You might want to relax, Mirage. What I've got to say isn't going to be easy to hear, and I've never really been good at having to explain things like this. Boys..." He took a deep breath, "...there's been an accident at the Weather Factory."

Dream's ears perked up, his eyes now fixed on their father's friend.

"What kind of accident?" Silver asked.

"Oh no..." Dream began to quiver slightly, turning to his brother.

"What is it kiddo?" Mirage turned to look down, only to find Dream on the verge of tears.

Concord froze for a minute as he watched the little pegasus break down into fits of sobbing, wondering if he'd somehow sensed it happen. The large earth pony shook it off though, took another deep breath and continued.

"A few stray lightning clouds got loose from the factory, unfortunately. Caused a lot of damage before the workers were able to clean them up. A couple of ponies got hurt."

"How did it happen?" Silver's eyes were almost as wide as Mirage's at this point. Both turned to look at each other before focusing back onto Concord as he sat there with a deeply sullen expression. He hadn't lied when he told them that he wasn't any good at relaying this kind of information, and Concord felt a lump knot up in his throat as he searched for the words to adequately describe just exactly how he'd been told that it had all went down.

"I know how..." Dream's tiny voice almost went unheeded as he continued. "Somepony wasn't paying attention..." He sobbed, repeating the last phrase over and over again.

The three stared at him for a moment, Mirage cradling the younger pony in his forelegs. Concord himself was definitely sure now that somehow the little colt had known exactly what happened, though he wasn't sure how. The peace-keeper didn't even have to say it; the look on his muzzle was evidence enough to the two younger ponies that were hanging on his every word at that moment.

"It's my dream...it came true." Dream piped up again, his muzzle still buried in Mirage's side.

"What do you mean, pipsqueak? What dream?" Mirage asked.

Dream sat up, wiping the tears from his eyes as he looked to the other three ponies in the room.

"The dream I had at school today. I had a dream that some clouds got loose and zapped somepony at the Weather Factory...my dream came true." Lip quivering, he shut his eyes and dove back into Mirage's embrace once more.

"It's exactly as he says, Mirage. Somepony wasn't paying attention at their station, and they allowed a few of the thunderclouds for the storm later this week to break loose. A few ponies got caught up in the impromptu storm...and some got hurt. Pretty bad too." Concord sighed, rubbing the back of his head. "Some of them might not make it through the night."

"But if you're here...and dad left, that means..." Mirage's eyes went wide again, the realization dawning on him. "Oh no...what happened to mom? Where is she?"

"I'm sorry boys. I really am. But I don't know what's going to happen to her. They rushed her off to the Cloudsdale Emergency Clinic at the hospital, and that's all I know about it."

"Oh no..." Was all Silver Quill could manage to squeak out as she looked to her friends.

Both brothers were wrapped around each other defensively, Mirage clutching Dream to his chest like there was some angry creature threatening to steal his little brother away at any second. His gaze lingered on Concord, a mixture of rage, sorrow and confusion all swimming about in the blue orbs. His breath was coming in short bursts, barely audible over the sound of Dream's crying at that point, but what was of the greatest concern was the sort of disconnection that lie behind the emotions.

Dream himself was lost in a sea of torment, his little eyes floating in a vast ocean of his own sadness. He knew. He didn't even have to ask how bad it was. Something in his mind told Dream Catcher that the pony in his dream had been their mother. There was little mistaking her, even with the charred white coat that hung loosely around her elegant frame. Even as he continued to let loose his emotions though, he could still feel the others in the room...could almost sense Concord stand up to come pat them both lightly on the shoulders in the only display of comfort the earth pony was comfortable in giving.

"So...how's about you head on home, little miss? I know friends are important to keep around during times like this, but I've got them for now. You don't need to worry too much."

Silver took one glance at the boys before looking back to Concord, shaking her head slowly.

"No, I'll wait for my parents. If I'm not back soon, they know where to find me. I wanna stay here with Mirage and Dream for now." She set her bags back down, slowly moving in next to Mirage to wrap her forelegs around both of the brothers. Mirage seemed to calm visibly, but Dream continued to soak his brother's coat generously.

"Fair enough. I will be downstairs if you need me." Concord sighed, gathering his effects before leaving the three alone.

They sat quietly for some time, the only sound in the room being the steady release of grief from Dream Catcher. The colt cried until he could loose no more tears, and then wept more. There would be no consolation that night. He didn't have to ask. He already knew. The little colt was probably the most aware of any of them what the outcome would be, just because he had dreamt it. And now, life would be that much harder on all of them.

The pegasus pony in his dream hadn't moved a single twitch after it had fallen.

There was no need to hear it when their father came home early the next morning alone.

Their mother was gone.