Nightmare Boutique

A sizable crowd had already gathered by the time we all arrived at the newly constructed, One-to-One scale replica of Sugar Cube Corner. A light yellow stallion tapped his hoof nervously as he looked out over the excess of seven hundred ponies that had turned out. Nervousness showed on him as plain as the muzzle on his face, but I couldn’t help but smile at his nervousness. They wouldn’t be paying attention to his deliverance, they were all too hungry. With a wavering hoof, he adjusted the microphone attached to the podium before him, and began a small schpeal that I largely disregarded… That is until I heard my name.

“Is Sebastian Cooper present?”
Shit…
I tried to shrink into the crowd, but to no avail.

“Here he is!” A white unicorn with electric blue hair and a musical note cutie mark volunteered, pointing down at me. I threw her a dirty look.

“Could you come to the stage, Mister Cooper?” Mister Cake requested.

Shit!
With a small sigh, I made my way to the stage, reluctantly climbing the steps to the podium, silently pleading to God not to make me speak publicly.

“We hear it’s your birthday, son. Is that true?” he asked.
I guess Rainbow Dash told a few people about it…

“Um… Y-Yes sir.” I responded.

“How old are you today?”

“I’m… I’m um… Eighteen years old…”
A collective tumult of awes arose from the crowd.

“So young…” I heard one mare comment.

“Barely legal… Sweet…” another said.

Oh God…
With a gesture of his hoof, Mister Cake summoned up Officer Grey Shield, the stallion that I approached with the note about Rarity a month back. He carried in his hoof a small slip of paper… Once said slip was in my hand, I unfolded it and inspected it. It was a check for…

Dear God, fifty THOUSAND Bits!?

“Oh wow… Um… I don’t know what to say…” I began.

“Just take it as a thank you from Ponyville.” He said.

“I see… Um… Th-Thank you, everypony…”
After the applause died down, the ribbon was cut and the new Sugar Cube Corner was declared open to the public.

Alice and I were seated toward the back of the restaurant. Alice was well in to her Danish by the time she noticed I hadn’t taken my eye off the mare behind the greeting podium. My dear friend Rainbow Dash… The one I had saved from a brutal death at the hands of our own Party Pony… She smiled to the ponies she greeted, but I could tell that she was far from easy. Her pupils were the size of pinpoints and she seemed to startle a bit at the clatter of the kitchen a solid twelve meters behind her. She saw what I saw. The victims that were splayed about this place… I watched the line her eye followed as the cute little mail mare, Ditzy Doo trotted to her seat. The ghost of the pink psychopath that knew the workings of this place dragging another by her mane behind the counter into the trap door that was disguised there… Poor Cheerile…

“You okay, Sebastian?” Alice asked, visibly startling me out of my stupor.

“What?” I asked.
She sighed, setting her pastry down.

“She’s-” she began, but I cut her off.

“I know she is…”

“But not to you. You still see her.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” I lied.
With another sigh, Alice edged forward in her chair, setting her gaze upon me with intense focus. She was deadly serious…

“I know you, Seb. You never slept well, not even when you lived at the manor. You see ghosts… The people whose lives you ended in the defense of that which you care about. You’re haunted by them. You speak to them… I’ve heard you… You see the Professor in hospitals, and you see that pink girl here…”

“Her name was Pinkie Pie… And I do not…”

“Then why is your eye dilated to a pin-prick?”
Damn… She knows me too well…

“I’m sorry… It’s just…”

“You’re afraid. Afraid of losing the friends you’ve gained while you’ve been here.”
I sighed, taking a large gulp of my coffee, then set the mug back down.

“You know me too well, Mistress.” I said, avoiding her gaze.
A young mare approached us then. Her lavender coat and dark mane welcomed the gazes of others with confidence, beauty and a slight hint of magic. The spark on her flank caused my gaze to shoot upward to her face. Twilight Sparkle. My most intellectual equine friend. The gentle smile on her face caused my heart to flutter ever so slightly, and a similar smile to plaster itself upon my features.

“Hello there, Sebastian.” She greeted.

“Twilight! Come, sit!” I blurted, immediately getting up and pulling a chair out for her.
The unicorn slowly took the seat and greeted Alice.

“Good morning. You must be Alice. Sebastian has told me so much about you! You’re one of his closest friends!” she said.
Alice smiled widely to her and nodded.

“And you’re Twilight Sparkle. Sebastian went on and on about you in our letters. Wow,” she said, eyeing the unicorn with a mischievous look in her eyes. “He was right. You are beautiful.” the young dormouse commented.
Twilight’s face lit up immediately and her gaze set on me, the question burning in her eyes. Instead of saying anything, I simply looked between the two, my face as blank the tablecloth we were eating from. I knew I looked like an idiot, so I opted for the first idea that entered my head that would get me away from this whole awkward mess. Standing quickly, I all but sprinted toward Dash.

“Rainbow!” I called to the pegasus pony, who looked up at me with a bit of a startle.

“Um. Hi there, Bunny Boy.” She greeted, using my pet name.
Since I knew Alice and Twilight were clear out of earshot, I felt inclined to speak freely to the blue mare.

“I just bolted over so I wouldn’t have to tell Twilight straight to her face how pretty I think she is.”
Dash smirked and tilted her head at me.

“You like the egg-head?” she teased.

“Well, it’s not just her. If I told her, then eventually all six of you would hear about it, and it’s not like I think only she is attractive. I find you attractive too. And Apple Jack… And Flutter Shy… And Rarity… Speaking of whom, have you seen her?”

“Who, Rarity?”
I nodded.
It took Rainbow a moment, but she soon gestured with a dismissive wave of her hoof.

“I think she shut herself in again… Not sure why… She’s been whining about Opal a lot, though.”
A small snicker arose from me.

“Whining? She is not whining, she is complaining. Do you want to hear whining?” I imitated.
Dash burst into laughter at this. Looked to me like the stress was dying down a little bit being in the presence of someone else who had experienced the same nightmares as she had…

“Maybe you should go visit her. She could use some support from a man.” Dash prompted.

“Is that your way of saying she needs to get lai-”
A blue hoof slapped itself over my muzzle before I could finish, Rainbow half snickering, half shushing me.

“Oh, right, right.” I said, nodding her hoof away from my mouth. “Yeah, I’ll drop in after Alice heads home tomorrow morning.”

“Well, Ah’ll be! If it ain’t yew two!” Apple Jack declared with a hearty clasp of my shoulder. “Ne’er thought ‘n a thousn’d years yew two’d show up. It’s great tah see ‘yer movin’ passed the whole ordeal.”
I craned my head about to look at the cowpony with a warm smile to be greeted with a similar smile and wonderful, hay-colored hair.

“Pah! C’mon, Apple Jack, this is me you’re talking about,” Rainbow boasted, puffing her chest out triumphantly. “I am the Iron Pony!”

“Now, now,” I interrupted, seeing where this was going. “That was a long time ago…”
Apple Jack merely laughed at this, adjusting her hat.

“Still, Ah’m glad you two are here.”

“I am too, Apple Jack. Trust me, I am.” I said.