Steedphen King's "The Shimmering"
Not going up there are ya?
"Thanks for coming with me to help me move in guys!" Twilight Sparkle said with enthusiasm as she and her friends drove down the road out of Canterlot. Only days ago she had become an alicorn and a princess and as was fit for royalty, she was to be moving into her own castle just outside Canterlot on the moutainside. She and her friends packed up a few of her belongings, took a train to Canterlot and were now driving to her new place of residence. Yes, in a car.
"No sweat Twilight." Rainbow Dash said from the backseat. "We had to come along to check out your new digs."
Rarity, also in the backseat agreed. "I just can't believe it, it's all happening so fast! Your own castle, Twilight you must be so excited!"
"I'm sure it will have lots of space for animals." Fluttershy remarked, her gaze fixed out of the window.
"Uh oh." Big Macintosh commented from the driver's seat. "Roadsign up ahead." The seven of them turned their attention to the front. On the right side of the road, a large sign approached them:
Warning! Non-canon Territory Ahead!
"Non-canon territory? What does that mean?" Applejack asked as they passed the sign.
"Oh no." Rainbow Dash said, starting to shiver. "Not non-canon! Anything but NON-canon!"
Pinkie Pie, in the front passenger's seat turned around. "Oh boy! I love non-canon territory!"
"I have to admit, I'm none too thrilled that your home is in a non-canon area myself Twilight." Rarity said, a tad bit of unease apparent in her own voice.
"Oh, you guys are being silly." Pinkie said with a laugh. "Remember all those non-canon adventures we had? Like that time we met Daring Do!"
"Or that time we all became dragons." Fluttershy remembered.
Pinkie nodded in agreement. "Or that time we all became gay!"
The car became silent. Instantly. Wide-eyes and hard swallows dawned across every face except Pinkie's.
"I'm not sure I quite remember that-" Rarity began, only to be interrupted by Pinkie saying;
"Oh yeah! There was that one time we were all just really happy for no reason at all! It was the gayest day ever!" Pinkie remarked. A collective realization was shared by the occupants, several 'ah's were released in relief by the passengers.
"And what about all those original characters? Aren't those guys fun?" Pinkie asked in anticipation.
"Well... SOME of them are... quite unique." Rarity said in sort of an awkward, strained tone.
"Ehhh..." Big Mac began. "No comment." he finished. Pinkie frowned. Why was she the only one excited to be in uncharted lands? The spirit of adventure and opportunity was everywhere! The impossible could happen! Would it kill them if they just got into the spirit of things? Well, would it?(foreshadowing)
"I don't like non-canon territory." Rainbow Dash said, still quaking in fear. "Bad things happen in non-canon territory. Especially to me!"
"Oh Rainbow Dash." Twilight put a hoof on her friend's shoulder. "Everything is going to be fine."(more foreshadowing)
"She's right Rainbow Dash. We won't let anything happen to you, we promise." Rarity said, both she and Twilight embraced her in a one-forelegged hug.
"Hey Dashie? Want a cupcake?" Pinkie asked from the front seat.
"No!" Rainbow Dash yelped, recoiling from the treat like it was a poisonous animal of some sort.
"Suit yourself!" Pinkie said, popping the cupcake into her mouth and eating it in one bite.(not foreshadowing)
A veil of mist descended over the road, soon it became a thick fog. Big Mac turned on the lights in order to help illuminate the road in front of them.
"Well, I don't suppose I'll be here that long." Big Mac said, breaking the silence.
"Why's that big brother?" Applejack asked from directly behind him.
"For starters, the car's a rental so I'm going to have to return it to the dealer in Canterlot after I drop you guys off and get it unloaded." Big Mac explained. "I probably won't see you guys again until the end of the story, if that even."
"Why would you have to take the car back so early?" Twilight asked, questioning the oncoming predicament.
"Story's just kind of spookier if you guys are stranded in a new place for the weekend I reckon."
"Why would we be stranded?" Rainbow Dash asked. "We can fly, we've got magic, we're the Elements of buckin' Harmony for crying out loud!"
"Yeah but you won't be able to fly until this fog clears. And I don't think any magic is going to make it all just go away." Big Mac shot down Rainbow's notions of escaping easily.
"You're right... it's not easy to fly with all this thick fog everywhere." Fluttershy said.
Rainbow Dash scoffed. "Please! I could clear these groundclouds off in a heartbeat!"
Pinkie rolled down the window and stuck her head out side for a brief moment. She pulled back with a face covered in cloud-beard complete with cloud handlebar-moustache.
"Thicker than pea soup!" she said, shaking it off.
"There's something in the glove compartment that might help." Big Mac said. Pinkie lifted it up with her hoof and reached inside. She pulled out a small softback book.
"How to Survive Fanfiction? Looks interesting." Pinkie remarked as she read the title.
"Hey, could I take a look at that Pinkie?" Rainbow Dash asked.
"Sure Dashie, just lemme-" Pinkie fumbled with the book for a moment. She opened it up and the wind caught one of the pages, pulling the book out of her hooves... and out of the window.
"Oh no!" Rainbow Dash cried in dispair.
"Whoopsie." Pinkie said, watching the book fly out of the window and into the fog. "Sorry Dashie."
"Eeyup." Big Mac stated, his eyes on the road.
"What now Big Mac?" Twilight asked at his newest comment.
"You're all probably doomed. Probably." he stated, his voice still completely even and stoic. Twilight swallowed hard and felt a slight tremor of fear herself. Even with her new wings and princessness, no that's not a word, this was still a completely new experience for her. She preferred to be prepared and this was all new for her. Was she ready for this?
The castle appeared out of the mist. Big Mac pulled around to the entrance and stopped, car doors opened and the six ponies exited the vehicle. Each one took bags, saddle, duffle and otherwise out of the trunk of the car.
"Sure is a big place, Twilight." Applejack commented at the sight of Twilight's new accomodations. To be honest 'manor' would more accurately described the domicile rather than castle. It was larger than her treehouse in Ponyville but compared to Canterlot Castle, it just resembled any other large stone building. A small moat ringed the structure and a wooden bridge led up to the entrance. Despite the size, Twilight was nonetheless daunted by the thought of it being her new residence.
One of the bags Twilight was carrying twitched and shook. It wriggled off of her back and plopped to the ground before she could try to situate it. Unzipping it with her magic, Spike appeared and stretched.
"*yawn* Ah, that was a nice nap. Wow, so that's our new home?" the tiny dragon asked, standing in the bag.
"Yep... our new home..." Twilight trailed off, thinking of her old home back in Ponyville. Without a word, the car drove away as soon as the last bag was removed. Twilight watched the lights disappear into the mist.
"Well, let's head on in and make yourself at home at your new home Twilight!" Applejack said, encouraging her friend inside. Twilight nodded quietly and the seven of them walked across the bridge and up to the door of Twilight's new castle.
Applejack, leading the way pulled on the iron handle and opened the wooden door. It loud out a long *creeeeak* as she did so. Rarity, eager to see the furnishings was the first inside followed by the others. Twilight spared one last glance behind her. For a moment, she thought she saw a pair of lights pierce the fog and move past, like anothe car. It was gone before she could really get a good look though and she turned around and entered the castle.
Author's Note
Acclaimed pony author Steedphen King gave me the idea for this story. If you've never heard of him before, it's because I made him up just now. I'm also a fan of Dean Koltz and a few others, as well as famous pony filmmakers and directors. I dream of one day seeing all the classic works ponified and reimagined in new and exciting ways for people to read right along side the original versions, with gentle encouragments for the readers to make their own. Truly, stories never truly end as they continue to change with the people that read them, write them and love them.