Author's Notes:

READ PLS :3

This officially kicks off the retconning. The night in Manehattan still happened. Swift doesn't exist. They're just thugs. There is also no more cheesy Fallout reference. whoop I might keep the Manehattan explosion in and explain it properly, though I might not. We'll see.

The reason for the retcon is because this story has started to deviate from what I wanted it to be. I plan on changing that. For any Swift fans out there, I'm sorry don't hit me pls :c

Though, there might be some reasons to the attack revealed in future chapters, but nothing enough to cause a huge plot-line. Maybe one chapter, but that's it.

That's all, enjoy. :D

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vn0qkWiPUjk

"Time's up, fucker."

He grabbed the metal bat with a swift motion to his hoof. You could hear him silently laugh to himself.

As you try to argue against his actions, the pain prevents you from speaking at all, only bringing out groans of pain and numb agony. He readies himself as he tries practice swings near your head, and whenever you tried to open your mouth, you could only cough and choke.

"G, just kill him and let's get the fuck out of here."

The stallion remarks, "Gotta make it authentic; can't let this bitch go around snitching."

Bat in hooves, he quickly lifts the bat into the air. Not even your pleading face could convince him to not do it.

You look towards Spike; you could see the fear in his face. You wanted, you tried to tell him that it would be okay - you would be okay, you guys would be saved and you will be rescued and you'll get to see Dash again, and...

...And that wasn't going to happen.

You turned back to the stallion. He had one of the sickest grins on his face.

The words, cruel.

"Lights out."

And with a single, final swoop---

You awoke from your bed with a sudden scream, falling out from under the covers and crawling across the floor to the wall. You could remember just screaming for another few moments before it all died down, and you were left panting and breathing heavily while looking around your darkly lit room.

With a single touch of your cheek with your hoof, you could feel the tears running down your face. Your hooves were shaking, your body was quaking.

The bedroom door opened quickly, startling you. It was Aqua Lilly, standing at the doorway, looking like she had just gotten out of bed.

She was afraid.

"Are you okay?!" she exclaimed, showing very clear desperation. She seemed genuinely worried, and you couldn't blame her. You probably scared her half to death.

You took a look at her, still shaking. When she turned on the light, you were nearly blinded, but your eyes were quick to adjust. She could see you shaking on the floor. She approached you, and you briefly backed up.

"Hey, hey," she spoke quietly, "It's okay. It was just a bad dream...that's all."

She spoke to you like she was a mother and you were her child. It soothed you just a bit, and you could feel yourself breathing easier; your shaking started to cease, and the fear seemed to leave your body, in a sense. After a few moments, you found yourself starting to weep.

But you didn't seem to shudder or move away when Lilly came to you and held you. In fact - you embraced her as the reality of everything came back, and you started to break down into tears. Even as the mare tried to shush you, you could only cry as an answer.

"Shh...it's okay..."

She must have had the same thing happen to her once. Maybe her mother came to her aid and comforted her in the same way.

You held her closer.

"I'm sorry," you whisper through broken tears.

"Shh..." was all she said.

Shh...

For that first night, it had been passed off as just that - a bad dream. But the next night, and the night after that, it happened again and again. Whenever you fell asleep, you dreamed of something so vile, so terrifying, that it woke you up.

And every time you woke up, it was gone like that, and all that was left was the pain it simply left. After the third night, Lilly feared that something was truly wrong. It got bad enough that it even caught Dash's attention, and she started to worry for you. It escalated just enough to warrant a trip to the hospital - or rather, back to it.

So there you were, sitting in Cobalt's office, getting a brain scan, as well as your thoughts and whatever you could remember being written down for future use. You thought the notes were pointless if the dream always faded away, but you told him whatever you could that could help him.

He instructed you to sit in the waiting room until you were called back in. Lilly was helping Cobalt out, but Dash was right there, waiting for you, with a smile on her face.

That helped. Ever since that night at Twilight's home, she had smiled at you a bit more often. Perhaps it was the fact that she saw more, or maybe it was still - and likely would always be - the fact that you were awake.

That being said, you sat with her and as soon as you were close enough, she asked if you were okay. You only nodded. You were definitely fine.

At the same time, you were not fine. Was something wrong with you?

You couldn't rule it out, but you couldn't immediately jump to conclusions. It honestly made you a bit nervous; not enough to make you panic, but just enough to keep you at least a little on edge.

Rainbow, however, was right there with a hoof on your shoulder.

"Hey," she said, "It's going to be fine. You're probably just having some...side effects from the pill or something."

You turned to her. "You think?"

"Maybe. I mean, it's possible. What do you think?"

The only answer you had was an innocent shrug. You didn't know what to think of it. You doubted it was anything bad or life-threatening, but it...well, it irked you. Waking up in the middle of the night, in the dark, afraid and paranoid, looking around, and not even knowing why you were doing it. And Lilly waking up and caring for you - surely, that wasn't good for her either, waking up so early.

You honestly felt bad.

Soon enough, after roughly fifteen minutes, Cobalt came out and told you and Rainbow to follow him back to his office.

"I have some...cases you might like to see."

Placed in front of you at the table was a set of documents; simplified entries, really. They were all entries written down of former patients and their dreams, and they all seemed to have one thing in common:

They all forgot the dream.

But the other apparent common factor between all of them was that they had some form of ailment or injury that seemed to cause it.

Had a nap and dreamt of something beautiful and colorful. When I woke up, the color was all I remember.

I think I had a dream that someone was chasing me. All I know is that I woke up running into the wall, but I don't remember why. That might have been the reason.

I was having a sleep by a tree and I had this sudden rush when I woke up. I can't tell for the life of me why I felt like this, but it was really freaky.

And then, of course, there was yours.

I think someone tried to hurt me in a dream. I woke up backing up against a wall and holding my chest. It even hurt too.

Of course, the entry was simplified compared to what you told Cobalt and even Lilly, but the details still fit what you knew - or, rather, what you think you knew.

You looked up at Cobalt. "Why are you showing me these?" you asked.

He pointed to the papers and responded, "This is a symptom of a disorder that comes from brain injuries. Minor or major, it's part of what we call a 'neural loop' or even a 'neural recess.'"

"What's that?"

Cobalt gathered up the papers and placed them back into the folder they were in, before continuing on.

"Basically, what happens is that your brain is trying to retain a memory that can't be processed. Let's say you remember eating an apple. Then you forget that you eat that apple, but you dream about it later. Your brain is trying to keep that memory in your head, but it can only retain it for so long before you forget it again, such as when you wake up; and then you're wondering why the taste of apples is still caught on your tongue."

It was easy enough for you to understand. But you were still curious.

"So...what about me?"

"Well, it's quite obvious that you've been having a dream about a traumatic memory sometime in your past. There was a moment somewhere in your life where someone wanted to hurt you..."

He paused for a moment, giving a somewhat saddening sigh.

"Only...they weren't trying to hurt you."

It took a few seconds for you to fully understand what he meant by that. Then it sunk in.

You looked at him with genuine worry.

"...Someone wanted to kill me?"

He nodded.

"And they very nearly did."

He put in front of you a picture of what seemed to be your x-rays.

"You were stabbed several times...in several different spots."

As you looked at the x-rays, you could notice the written circles that labeled each apparent stab wound.

"-Followed by a massive blunt-related blow to the head, possibly from a hoofball bat. Despite all of this...you survived. And for a while, doctors had called you a miracle, solely because of how lucky you were."

You cocked your head. "Lucky how?"

"Well, all of the stab wounds were roughly an inch away from any major organs, blood vessels, and anything else that could have been, otherwise, fatal. Best to say, your attempted killer was a lousy hit."

As you looked down to the pictures, his statement made you laugh, but you were brought back to reality, and you looked back up at him.

"Well...why am I having dreams about that?"

Cobalt shifted himself just a bit before explaining.

"It's because your brain is not entirely healed. It's still trying to render enough energy to keep you awake enough for us to be...having this conversation. At the same time, it's trying to retain and re...revive the memories that you lost."

"Then...why does it fade out every time I wake up?"

"Like I said...it's part of a neural loop. It can only retain so much of that moment, but once your brain wakes up, it focuses on other things. The dream is essentially the only way for the brain to process that single moment in time. You won't be able to remember it until your brain can fully repair itself, and that might take another month, at best."

"And at...worst?"

"An extra month. It might take even longer. Even so, it will be a while before these dreams stop. It's possible you may have these several more times, or even every night until then."

"Is it possible to prevent them, or at least suppress them?"

"None that I know of, unfortunately."

You gave a defeated sigh. You knew he wasn't wrong, but you still wanted to hope that he wasn't right. Not only did you not want to be having these nightmares, but the last thing you wanted right now was to disturb Lilly in the middle of the night. The first few nights you didn't think was too bad.

But for the next month? Maybe two? Maybe more?

You would just feel guilty - even if you couldn't control that.

"But-" He stopped your train of thought.

You looked back up.

"-I didn't say that there wasn't a solution. It may take a while for me to find one, so...you can either test out some methods that could potentially lessen them or even stop them altogether, or..."

He paused. "Or...?"

"...Or you try to overcome them yourself - with time. Perhaps you can find some ponies who have had nightmares of their own that...maybe, stopped them some time ago. If you find someone, ask them how they did it and, perhaps, use that method to your advantage."

Cobalt got up from his chair and headed back over to his desk, where he placed the folder inside one of the drawers. He then turned back around, a thought seeming to come to his head.

"Come to think of it...it could also be a side effect of the Phabril. The pill is intended not only to suppress seizures, but - to an extent - suppress certain negative effects. It's possible that...perhaps, one pill might not be enough. You have been taking your pills, correct?"

Before you could answer, Lilly speaks for you. "Yes. I give it to him every morning when he wakes up."

Cobalt placed a chin on his hoof, thinking for a moment.

"You've taken your pill today, correct?"

You nodded.

"When you get home, take another one, and record if there are any changes in your sleeping and if the dreams continue to happen."

"Isn't taking more than one pill dangerous?" you ask him.

But he chuckles slightly.

"Only if you down the whole bottle."

You laughed a bit at that.

Soon enough, after enough time passed, you, Dash, and Lilly left the hospital. The three of you ate lunch again at the same café you ate at just a few days earlier. It seemed to bring your spirits up just a bit, enough for you to have a few laughs here and there. While you ate, Lilly hoofed you another pill, and you swallowed it with a drink of water.

You hoped it would work.

Before you knew it, the sun dipped down and the moon came out. The night came quickly and you found yourself hugging Dash goodnight and heading off to bed. With a quick sip of water, you crawl into your bed and shut off the lamp. After a few moments, you closed your eyes and was out like a light within minutes.

You could feel dreamland welcome you.

And then it happened again. With a sudden lift, you were sitting up in bed, startled and shaking. But you didn't scream - or, at least, you didn't think you screamed yourself awake. Looking over to the clock, what you thought had been only minutes was instead five hours.

You wiped your forehead, and could feel the sweat clinging to your hoof.

Getting up from the bed, you quietly open your door and head on over to the guest bedroom. Gently opening the door, you take a peak inside.

Lilly is still sleeping, a peaceful smile plastered onto her face. She seemed so snug wrapped up in her blankets.

It made you smile just a bit - even more so that you didn't wake her.

You closed her door and went downstairs to the kitchen. With a sigh, you open up the fridge and take a look at what you have. Lilly restocked the fridge a couple days prior, mainly with eggs and a new carton of milk. You told her she didn't need to do that, but she only insisted, at least until you were employed again.

Come to think of it, what was your job before? Salesman? Office employee? Farmer?

You consider talking to Twilight about that. What about your friend Applejack? Doesn't she run a farm? Could she hire you maybe? You hoped, because she was really the only one you knew with a job. You were still yet to talk with anyone in this town, even after a few days.

...

What were you doing again?

Right. Fridge.

You took the new carton of milk out and opened it up. Grabbing a cup from the cupboard - which took you a moment to remember where to find one - you poured yourself a small glass of milk and downed it within the first two seconds, before putting the carton back in the fridge.

Washing out the cup and putting it into the sink, you took a deep breath and exhaled after a few moments. You found yourself leaning towards the counter by your hooves, closing your eyes and trying to remember what the dream was.

You knew what it was now thanks to Doctor Cobalt - but you couldn't remember what in Equestria happened, other than what you could remember. Someone wanted to hurt-...

No...someone wanted to kill you. They wanted to end your life.

But why? Why would somepony do that? Did you anger somepony, or did you come across lowlife thugs?

Or rather, did they come across you?

You tried to remember, but no matter how hard, the dream had long since faded - like it never happened in the first place. Without Cobalt, you'd probably wonder if that was the case.

Suddenly, startling you, a voice came from towards the stairs, calling your name. You looked quickly, and saw that Lilly had been standing there. You didn't hear her walk down - or maybe you were too busy thinking of something else to notice or hear or care.

"Are you okay?" she asked you.

"Uh..." you hesitated at first before answering. "...Yeah. I'm okay."

"Did you have it again? The dream?"

You gave her a subtle nod.

She seemed upset, something you were a little surprised at.

"You could've told me, you know," she answered with a small, worried smile.

"I...didn't want to wake you. I felt too bad about all the other nights."

"Hey," she remarked as she came down the stairs and walked to you, "That's what I'm here for. That's basically my job."

"I know, I know...still...I just felt bad, that's all. You needed the sleep, I know you did."

Lilly gave you another kind smile as she put a hoof down on your shoulder.

It wasn't as soft as Rainbow's - but it was still just as caring.

"Well, I'm awake now. So why don't we talk for a bit?"

Your mouth curled.

"Okay."

So you spent the next hour talking back and forth on the couch in your living room. Most of it was about your dream, but for the rest of it, it was about whatever came to sleepy mind. You both talked until you were too tired to talk, but you never went back upstairs. Instead, the two of you fell asleep on the separate couches.

But you had it again.

That little burst of sleep was enough to warrant the dream again, but Lilly woke you up before it could reach whatever the point was that made you tear up or scream or cower in fear - or even cover your chest.

Just feeling it...you could feel the scars.

Not fully healed yet.

The day went on as normally as you wanted it to go. You met with your other friends, as you had done in the days before, and they were showing their support still for your recovery. You didn't mind the support, but you wanted to feel like you were normal and not as special as someone like Pinkie would make you out to be.

You went back to the hospital later in the day to see Cobalt. You and Lilly told him of the results, and he suggested simply returning back to the single pill. He advised you to try and drink something before bed - perhaps a cup of tea or some warm milk.

You've never tried warm milk. At least, you don't think you have. How could you know now?

Tonight it was, then.

The rest of the day passed quicker than yesterday. You didn't want it to. The last thing you anticipated by now was the night - or sleep, in general - if all you knew was that you would wake up a few hours later screaming, sweating, and crying from something you can't even remember.

But at the same time, you really wanted to get rid of them, or at least hold them back for a while.

Night fell once again, but Dash was not there to hug you goodnight. She had other matters to attend to tonight. You couldn't blame her. Everyone had something to do. Hopefully, you would have something to do by the end of the week, or maybe even tomorrow.

As you walked through the front door, and that thought came to your mind, you realized something...

You forgot to talk to Applejack about the job today.

Damn it, you mentally curse.

With a sigh, you remark that there was always tomorrow for that.

Lilly walked in behind you and asked what you wanted for breakfast. "We could have eggs, if you want."

While that sounded good, and you would like that very much - you wanted to do something for her instead.

"Why don't I make them?" you request. "I mean, I kinda know how to cook, and...well, it would be rude for me to sit down and let you do the work."

She smiled. "You sure?"

With a nod, you head on over to the kitchen and open up the fridge, grabbing the essential ingredients for a decent meal. You knew making eggs was an easy feat.

You didn't need a memory to do that.

A whole meal later, Lilly gives her stomach a single pat, letting out some breath.

"That was actually really good," she says to you as you wipe your mouth with a napkin.

You give a smile. "Thank you."

The two of you engage in some more small talk for a few minutes before you both decide to hit the hay for tonight. Lilly heads up to the guest bedroom while you washed up the dishes and placed them back in the respectable cupboards.

You honestly liked making dinner tonight. It helped keep your mind off sleep for the time being and let you just have some fun - be happy, have a chat.

To be fairly honest, you really liked talking with Lilly. Sure, it had only been a few days since the two of you met - but you felt like you were really getting to know a lot about her. And you knew you still had much more to know about her. Like - where did you two meet? Apparently, you had met her before, when you...you know...still had memories.

You'd have to ask her in the morning. It'd be rude to do so now. She's probably already fast asleep. Or so you guessed - she was probably a heavy sleeper. You had to have been a loud screamer.

As you put the final dish into the cupboard, you wash your hooves and start shutting off the downstairs lights. As you shut off the last lamp in your living room, you take a look outside the window. You can see that it's raining, though very lightly. You have a feeling it will probably rain harder soon. Hopefully, nothing would happen to the house while you slept.

Looking away, you start to make your way towards the stairs. You should probably wash up a bit before you-

You found yourself turning to the door with surprise; you look at the clock.

It read eleven-thirty.

Who could be seeing you at this time of night?

With curiosity, you walk down the bottom steps and make your way to the door, which responds with three more knocks.

"I'm coming!" you holler to them, letting them know you could hear them. They didn't seem to knock again.

You reach the door and unlock the latches to it. Grabbing the knob, you pull it open.

And there she was, standing right there at your front door - Rainbow.

"Rainbow?" you say, "What are you doing here?"

The mare is standing on your doorstep, only partially drenched from the sprinkling rain. She's shivering, but doesn't at all seem to mind it too much. She gives you a smile and a tiny shrug.

"Helping," she answers. It sounded more of a question, but you knew it wasn't.

At first, you had to think back on what you needed help with. When it clicked, you felt dumb.

"Oh. Right, yeah," you respond with an awkward chuckle.

She gave a humorous smile. "You forgot?"

"No, I-...uh..."

You were speechless.

"...A little." You blushed, but she didn't mind it. She gave a little giggle.

"Mind if I come in?" she asked you, and almost immediately after she asked that, the rain started to pick up.

You didn't deny her shelter. You stepped aside and she walked right in, and you shut the door before the rain got any worse. As you locked it, you could hear the sound of distant thunder.

"Pretty crazy weather tonight, huh?" she started to make small talk.

"Uh...yeah," you answer as you put the last lock in place. You turned back to her, curious. "Um...you guys make the weather, right?"

"Mhm," she replied with a nod. "We're supposed to have a big thunderstorm tonight. Hopefully it doesn't get too out of hoof."

You remember when she talked to you about that a couple of days ago. Even today, the concept of it seemed a bit...strange, so to speak. Controlling the weather...wouldn't that just put a bunch of ponies in danger intentionally, or...?

Leaving the thought for another day, you head over to the closet to grab a towel as Rainbow was shaking herself dry.

"Here," you say as you give her the towel. She thanks you and starts wiping herself down.

You looked on. You weren't ashamed to look. What was so wrong with watching your friend dry herself off?

The way her fur looks slick...the way she dries herself off, the way the towel just wraps around her body as it dries-...

You had to stop staring. It was way too late for that.

"So, uh...you're here to help?" you ask with a curious eye. "Why?"

As the mare continues to dry herself, she asked, "A friend can't help another friend?"

Keeping the conversation, you answer, "I didn't say that. I just...well, I wasn't expecting you to show up at almost midnight...that's all."

When you said that, Dash stopped drying herself. But it wasn't because she was completely dry.

It was because of what you said.

With a sigh, she turned to you and said, "...I know. I should've said something earlier today, but...I wasn't sure if I was going to come anyway. But I...I wanted to...you know, help."

You cocked your head.

"But why? I mean...other than the...friend part."

Whatever caring smile or general smile that the pegasus had on her face faded away. She gave a sad sigh and looked up at you.

That joyful glow in her eyes had already disappeared.

"Because I've been through the same thing."

She waited until the two of you were in your bedroom. As you walked through the hallway, you checked to see if Lilly was asleep. A quick peak in and the peaceful look on her face was enough to let you know.

When you entered your own bedroom, Rainbow was sitting snug in the side of the bed you typically had slept on. She had been apparently zoned out until you walked in, to which she gave you a faint smile.

You had a feeling it was fake or tried to be real.

Closing the door behind you, you made your way over to the bed and climbed in, lifting the covers and crawling over to Dash. You sat up and rested yourself against the head of the bed.

That was when she grabbed your hoof and held it with both of hers. It took you by surprise, but you didn't seem to mind it.

She rested her face gently against it, taking in its softness - while you took in the softness of her face.

But her expression was anything but happy or satisfied or anything positive.

She seemed sad.

So sad.

You had to ask.

"What...What did you mean that you've 'been through the same thing'?"

For a moment or two, she said nothing. She just sat there, hoof still resting against her cheek. And then she sighed. It was like she didn't want to say anything - but at the same time, it was like it needed to be said.

She opened her mouth - but the words were different.

"When I was younger, I..." Already, she froze - but she pushed on. "...Sometime happened to me that...changed me for a while.

"I was angry, I was sad...I was always crying. I didn't want to talk to anyone, I didn't want to see anyone. I just...shut myself out from the rest of the world, because...because I didn't want to see it."

She sniffled, just a bit, but she held her composure.

"...Whenever I fell asleep at night, I would have these...dreams, these...nightmares. Always of the same thing, happening over and over and over again, every night for...days. It just never stopped. I wanted to stop sleeping altogether. It got so bad.

"And then this one night...my...my mother walked into my bedroom after I woke up from another one...and you know what she did?"

You looked at her. A smile started to form on her face. It was really faint - but it was there.

She looked back at you.

"She cuddled up right beside me, held me close...and she did not let go of me for one second - even if it meant her life. She just held me, told me everything was okay...told me she loved me...and she didn't let go of me even after I fell asleep. She slept beside me all night."

The smile grew, only slightly.

"I didn't have any nightmares for the rest of that night. She slept with me again the next night, and I didn't have any bad dreams at all. Every time she held me and I went to be with her at my side...it was like all of those bad...images...those bad dreams just...vanished, like they never came back."

She turned away from you again, looking to the front of your bed. Dash was silent for several moments before she spoke again.

"I was sixteen when she did that. That...that was just a few years ago, I was just a kid, and I...I slept with my mother for months."

Rainbow laughed just a little at that. It was like she found it silly or embarrassing that she had her mother with her at night. But you didn't find that silly or embarrassing at all.

You found it sweet.

"Is that why you...came over here? To sleep with me? I mean, like...sleep with me?"

She looked at you again and gave you a nod.

"I thought that maybe...it would work with you, you know? Maybe...sleeping with someone would help them go away."

You stared at her. It wasn't that you were unsure, but perhaps it just seemed so...sudden. One second, you wake up in a hospital with a mare you hardly know sitting next to you, and the next minute, she was sleeping on your bed wanting to cuddle the demons out of you.

Well, not literally demons, but...

Was it all moving too fast? Or were you just overthinking it?

You had to ask her.

"Why do you care so much about me?"

The question seemed to hit Rainbow in a way. She wasn't upset or heartbroken or distraught. They were completely different feelings.

Different...ideals.

She turned towards you in the bed, letting go of your hoof and placing hers on your chest. It felt ticklish, but at the same time, it seemed to relax you just a bit.

For a moment, she was quiet, like she had trouble finding the right words.

But when she found them - they hit you too.

"I was such a jerk. Before all this, before you..."

She closed her eyes and sniffled again.

"My mind was just in a bad place. I-I wasn't thinking straight, I... I was just rude."

You knew what she was getting at - you knew what she meant, it wasn't that hard to follow it.

She readjusted her hooves. One was higher on your chest than the other now.

"I just want to make things up to you."

You looked at her with another curious glance.

"But why?"

Again, she didn't answer straight away. She stared down at your chest, but it wasn't to ogle it - she was definitely lost again.

You could feel her shaking, but faintly. It was like she was holding in all of this emotion, but she didn't want you to see it.

She looked into your eyes again. Back and forth, left and right.

You could see the tears.

She told you why.

"You're gonna start remembering things soon... very soon. I don't know when or where or whatever: A week, a year, tomorrow, I don't know, but soon. You're gonna start remembering everything I said to you, everything I did. You're gonna start remembering everything."

Looking down, she froze.

"I-I...."

She shook more now. She returned to your eyes, and a single tear fell down her left cheek.

"I-I don't want you to hate me."

She shut her eyes tight as the tears started to fall. Dash pushed her head against your chest, muffling the sobs that started to come out.

You found yourself with a crying mare resting herself against your body - and you didn't know how to react at first.

How could you know?

Dash took in ragged breaths and continued to cry into your chest.

You could hear her muffle, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." over and over again.

It could easily just break your heart.

You had to say something, or do something at least.

And so you did.

You hugged her close. Wrapping your arms tightly around her, you held her close to your body. You held her head with a hoof and carefully brushed her colored mane.

She could feel your touch. It was enough to calm her down, even just a little - but she still cried.

The poor mare couldn't seem to hold it in, even for just a second.

You didn't let her go. You just couldn't.

You continued to brush her mane and looked towards the window. It was closed and blinded, but you still looked regardless, and it made you remember that night at the castle. You didn't know why, but you remembered it.

The thought of it made you smile and laugh - even blush.

It was the best first night again that you could have asked for.

So you leaned in close to her ear.

And you whispered.

"I will never hate you."

She heard it, definitely.

The crying stopped, but she could still sniffle. You could feel her smile.

And then you could hear her laugh just a little bit through her sniffles.

Dash hugged you tighter - closer. She didn't let you go. You didn't let her go, either.

And so the two of you huddled against each other until the night overtook you.

And you know what? She was right.

It worked.

Nothing but dreams.