Hunger.

It was the first thing she registered as part of her awareness, this ache that sat, not in her stomach, but in the core of her soul, a desire that was as much a part of her as her magic or her heartbeat, and deep down, she knew there was only one way to sate it for even just a little while.

Breathing deeply brought the scent of aged paper, worn leather, and ink to her nostrils, and she felt herself smile at the memories and emotions it evoked. The scent was familiar, comforting, and even though the hunger never eased, she found herself relaxing. Flicking her eyes open, she confirmed that she was standing in a library of some kind, shelves of thick books stretching in all directions as far as her eyes could see. The library was dimly lit, with a soft golden light that seemed to just emanate from everywhere and nowhere at once, and it was almost silent.

Almost.

Her ears twitched, swiveling towards the faint sound of paper rustling and a murmured voice talking to itself. She knew the voice, and it was like sweet music to her ears that she would never get enough of, no matter how much time went by. That voice soothed her and excited her in a marvelously impossible combination, and the owner of it even more so… she wanted to get closer…but where…? Her ears moved and corrected as she narrowed down exactly where its source was located…

Target acquired, the smile transformed into a smirk, and with barely a conscious thought, she began to move towards the sounds, her steps silent and predatory.

It didn't take long to find her quarry, tail swishing in excitement. The other form was happily tugging books off the shelf, opening them to read a few pages, and either putting them back or adding them to a growing pile on the floor. Clamping down on the growl that wanted out, she crept up behind her, waiting until the last second to slide her arms around that familiar form, pulling her back and flush against her front. “Sparky,” she breathed huskily against the other girl’s ear, palms ghosting up and down Twilight’s sides.

Instantly the smaller form relaxed against her, pliant and willing. “Sunny,” came the happy response, and she could feel the joy seeping into her, filling the emptiness within.

“Books again?” she teased, tugging the ponytail out of the way so she could kiss and nibble on her partner’s neck in that way she knew Twilight loved.

There was a shaky inhale as a shudder passed through the body in her arms. “I...love…books...” was the reply. “This library is...” she broke off with a whimper when teeth nipped her jawline. “Ahh...Sunset...” She pushed back against the fiery maned figure, tilting her head to give better access.

She was all too happy to oblige that obvious want, leaving a trail of heated kisses and love bites along neck and collarbone. It elicited the most wonderful responses from the dark haired girl in her arms: more of those soft whimpers, panting breaths, and even a few moans that she tried to swallow. One hand pressed to Twilight’s stomach, under the shirt, claws scratching lightly across lavender skin, and a burst of pleasure nearly made her eyes cross in the process.

“Sunny....” Twilight whined. “...teasing me with this...do you know how long I’ve wanted this, with you?” Her body pushed back against the taller form again, pressing and shifting in a way that felt like more.

“...such a nerd,” she teased in that low voice. “Even your fantasies are nerdy...”

Twilight twisted in her arms, bringing them face to face, and the smile that lit her face was warmer than a summer sunrise. “Maybe....but I’m your nerd, Sunset Shimmer, and right now? That’s all I want to be.”

This time the growl did escape her throat, and she captured the smaller girl’s mouth, fingers twining into dark hair. The kiss seared their senses, filled with passion and providing a conduit for her to communicate the hunger thrumming in her veins, hunger that only the girl in her arms could sate. Twilight gripped her shoulders, whimpering desire into her mouth when her legs went weak.

“Mine,” she purred, pulling back to nip at Twilight’s bottom lip. “My Sparky...” Her hands found the curve of her partner’s rear, pulling their bodies flush together again.

Purple eyes were fixed on her, filled with emotion. “...yes,” she agreed, a strange note in her voice. “Your Sparky, Sunset...”

The books rocked warningly on their shelving when she lifted her smaller partner and took a step forward to trap her up against it. Her leg nudged Twilight’s knees apart, allowing her to rest a foot in an empty space on the bottom shelf, bringing her thigh up high enough to keep the other girl trapped off the ground. Squeezing the rounded rump in her grip, she smirked when it earned her a squeak and a gasp that advertised pure pleasure. “I can see the appeal now…though half of it might be the noises you make, Sparky…”

Cheeks flushed, but Twilight’s eyes sparked with lust and laughter in equal measure. “…you know…there’s no one to hear me here but us…so…we don't have to worry about volume control….”

A long tongue flicked out, dragging wetly up a lavender neck. “Good…” she purred happily, tail flagging higher, “…because I want you to scream my name, Twilight Sparkle…”

Claw tipped fingers had no trouble hiking up the back of that skirt, or snaking inside panties to grab smooth flesh directly. The taste of desire and Twilight’s need was a delightful buzz to her senses, making her head swim with ideas. She was going to coax every last pleasurable sound she could from this girl, and by the time she was done, there would be no place left on her for anyone—or anything—else to claim.

Twilight Sparkle was hers.

If any lurking, opportunistic shadows wanted Twilight….they would have to pry her from a pair of cold, dead hands at great cost.

Sunset was pulled back to consciousness abruptly, her eyes snapping open and her heart racing as she stared at the ceiling of Twilight’s bedroom. Fire in her veins tingled with the hum of her magic, and fragments of the dream flitted through her mind, making her face feel hot. She’d had dreams like this before…but usually she didn't have them when she was tangled up in bed with the same girl who starred in them.

For a moment, she wondered what had woken her up, trying to ignore the feeling of disappointment over the dream being interrupted…and the unease she felt from the unpleasant way that dream logic had incorporated all manner of things that had been on her mind the past week, including a previous nightmare, and the sense that something was after her girlfriend. Despite the discomforting nature of some of the elements in the dream, it had been the furthest thing from a nightmare, and what had been happening before she woke had been…intense…but not bad. Since none of that accounted for what had jolted her back to consciousness though, it had to be something else…something external.

At present, the room was dark and silent, and she could make out the numbers on the clock. Far too early for her to be awake—if she had her way, her eyes did not open on this side of six AM unless she had to pee. There was no sound outside—no one going out early for work, no cars—and the house itself didn't seem to hold anyone else stirring. Even Spike was quiet in his little bed, soft doggy snores a familiar noise that wouldn't have woken her.

Then her bedmate twisted in the sheets beside her with a whimper that raked along her awareness like an electrical jolt. Rolling onto her side, she studied Twilight, thankful for once of whatever magical side effect had given her night vision that an Abyssinian would be jealous of, since it meant she didn't have to squint through the darkness for some vague hint of her girlfriend as a featureless shape. Instead, Twilight was crystal clear, and what Sunset saw was concerning. The expression on her face was not relaxed in any way, not with her features twisted up with tension, pajamas askew and hair messy and sticking in places to a sweaty forehead. The former unicorn immediately drew her girlfriend into her arms, hoping to soothe the nightmare before it woke Twilight up.

“Hey...It's okay, Sparky,” she murmured softly, kissing her forehead.

Another whimpering sound, and Twilight’s back arched, pressing their chests together. Sunset couldn't breathe, couldn't move...her heart rate thundered in her ears, the flash of her lips closing around a pert nipple on a lavender skinned breast dancing before her mind’s eye. She did her best to squelch the desire while it was still half formed—this was not the time for that! “Shh...You’re safe, Sparky,” she offered as reassurance. “I’ve got you.”

On most nights where she was with Twilight and these nightmares hit, that was enough to calm the other teen back into restful slumber. Tonight seemed to be different—Twilight’s state worsened, her head tossing from side to side, her hands scrabbling in uncoordinated desperation until she latched onto Sunset’s pajama top, fingers digging into her arm and side. “...Sunset...” came the plaintive whine, the sound sending a shiver down the redhead’s spine and the dream rushing right back to the forefront of her mind…

Twilight threw her head back against the spines of old leather-bound tomes with a loud, breathy moan. “Ah! Sunny!” Her back arched under the smooth motion of nails dragging down her unclothed back, making it all the easier for her companion to use her tongue and teeth to draw more of those sounds from her.

Pulling back from a nipple, she tilted her head to look up at Twilight’s face in that omnidirectional, ever present mood lighting. “If you don't stop moving, I'm going to have to hold you down…”

The growled, seductive words in her own voice echoed in her ears, and Sunset struggled to focus, to breathe right….particularly as her girlfriend’s writhing became more and more pronounced, leaving the redhead to tighten her arms around Twilight to keep her from sending either one of them out of the bed and onto the floor. It would be so much easier if she rolled them until she could pin Twilight under her larger, stronger body…

It would feel good too.

Shaking her head to try and clear it of the intruding thoughts spurred by the still lingering dream, Sunset adjusted her body so she could tuck her face close to Twilight’s ear, trying to wake her. “Sparky,” she coaxed, falling into that firm tone that worked so well. “Stop. You’re going to hurt yourself. I promise, I’m here, and I’m not going anywhere. You’re safe. Wake up.”

For a moment she thought it worked, as the frantic thrashing stilled, and the hands fisted in her shirt relaxed. But then a low moan escaped Twilight, and her legs jerked, locking around one of Sunset’s securely. The redheaded girl sucked in a sharp breath, hot lightning lancing through her innards as her mind shoved more of the dream back into her conscious thoughts.

Claw tipped fingers trailed up a smooth lavender thigh, even as gleaming blue-green eyes observed the figure half sprawled now across a veritable bed of forgotten paperbacks, many of them tawdry romance novels with women locked in a thousand different intimate embraces printed on the covers. None of the pictures compared to the vision before her now, of dark hair, free and mussed from passion and her touch, pooled across cover and page like a waterfall of spilled ink…of lavender skin at last exposed, covered in love bites and kiss-bruises, a canvas brushed with loving care by the artist’s proud signature…and purple eyes, staring at her like she was the key to the secrets of the cosmos…

Hunger welled up, more powerful than ever, and she found herself kneading at the flesh under her palms, shuddering with pleasure of her own at the keening, pleading, begging cries that echoed off the bookshelves around them and drove themselves into the depths of her soul. It drove her touch higher, until knees were draped over her shoulders and the moaning of her partner was sweet music in her ears.

A shudder passed through her, her body aching with want. Here, in bed, surrounded by the familiar scents of shared bedsheets, with the smaller form pressed against her, a pleading whimper coming from Twilight’s lips, it was all she could do not to lose control.

Wait.

Sunset’s eyes widened as her attention was suddenly focused on her girlfriend’s voice, breathy and full of sleep. “....please, Sunset....” Twilight begged, her tone needy and desperate. “...more...Don’t stop...”

Sudden clarity brought with it a hyper awareness of the situation. The fact that that wasn't fear in her voice, but desire, the way her hands were gripping Sunset’s arms in vice grips, the flush on her cheeks, the way that Sunset’s leg was trapped between the dark haired girl’s thighs in a way that could never be construed as anything but intimate. Sunset froze, eyes wide and startled, all other thoughts fleeing her head in that moment. Her control was already balanced on a knife’s edge—she could hear her own breathing coming in harsh pants, and her nerve endings tingled in a way that she couldn't decide was physical, magical, or both.

There was a throbbing ache between her legs that worsened with every beat of her heart, and she let out a low, panted moan of her own before she could stop it. Sunset clenched her fists against Twilight’s shoulders, fighting with herself; the urge to roll them over, waking Twilight up even as she pinned her to the mattress wouldn't leave her mind.

“Sparky, please, wake up...” she hissed in desperation. This couldn't be happening, shouldn't be happening, but it was, and she had no idea how to stop it...and she cursed the part of herself that didn't want to stop it.

It would be so easy…and Twilight’s words from the night before raced across her mind like a tantalizing piece of fruit just out of reach. She could pin her down, reenacting the dream in the waking world, until Twilight couldn't remember anything but Sunset’s touch…the thought of her begging, arching needily into whatever the redhead decided to do, however she decided to touch her…it almost broke her.

She had to get away before she lost control completely.

Tears leaked from her eyes as she struggled to extricate herself from the tangle of bodies and sheets, fighting Twilight’s gripping hands and sleepy whimpers. She could feel the way the soft body arched and writhed against her despite trying to get away from the touch… Heated breath panted against her shirt, the warmth passing through the fabric to tickle over her breasts until her nipples ached and making the hot need between her legs that much worse.

Twilight whined, and a jolting movement from Sunset pressed the dark haired girl’s knee higher, and pleasure slammed into the former unicorn that almost sent her careening off the bed. She dug her nails into her own palms hard enough to hurt, using pain to hold onto the last threads of control she had. It lasted just long enough to let her tear herself free, landing on the floor in her mad scramble with a thump, shivering and shaking violently.

Her girlfriend whined in her sleep at the loss of contact, reaching for the now missing body. Sunset wanted nothing more than to soothe her, to hug and hold her, but she didn’t trust herself, not with the dream and desire almost ruling over her. She needed to get away…to push it all down and get her control back before she gave in and did something that would destroy both her and her relationship with her best friend.

Lurching to her feet, she fled to the bathroom, leaning against the sink in the dark, panting. Sunset brought her hand up, scrubbing the tears off her face, trying to tell herself that she wasn't a horrible mare, that she would never force herself on Twilight like that…that her reaction was a result of her emotions and her human body’s biology…but somewhere, deep down, she didn't believe it. For the briefest of moments, in the near total darkness of the bathroom, it felt like when she looked in the mirror, the demon of her nightmares looked back, smugly satisfied and pleased with herself…

*sizzling sound*

Yikes. This chapter got a little hot and steamy... *gets a bucket of ice water*

Twilight's one heavy sleeper, it seems.

Poor Sunset, feeling like she's coming out of her skin. No fun, that.

In all seriousness, the dream sequence was fun to write. This chapter went through about...four or five versions before we were satisfied with it being more about SUNSET'S own urges and reactions than anything to do with the sleeping Twilight being...horny and clingy in her sleep.

Because that's the focus here--Sunset's not upset by Twilight. She's...panicking at her own body and emotions eating at her control. As someone with a temper problem, who lives every single moment of every day knowing that I can never, ever, under any circumstances relax my control over my emotions because people could get hurt, the feeling of being out of control is the most terrifying thing in the world to me. (Its so bad that I actually fight medication and medical drugs, like the time I proved completely immune to morphine at the hospital.) Sunset is like that--she has such a history of loss of control leading to others getting hurt that she fights it with everything she has and causes her to freak a little.

The dream was fun to write though. I'm pretty damned proud of the paragraph about Twilight on the books, personally. Every once in a while, I do come up with a description that I'm super proud of. Besides, we all know that these two dorks totally share a library fantasy. *wink*

Hope you all enjoyed!