Excerpt: Subtle Moonrise

Subtle Moonrise
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March 6, 2007
Tuesday

When Twilight got to school, she saw Dustin by her locker. “Hi. So, I heard you had a Dream-” Twilight groaned. “Geez, where did you find that out? And anyways, which one?” Dustin laughed. He watched, off to the side, as Twilight put her stuff into her locker, and getting out what she needed for classes. “Well… I know about the one with the frog…” and with this he started laughing, not loud enough to draw attention in the crowded hallways, but enough to make Twilight swat at him. “Hey! I bet you have strange Dreams too! I mean, with the whole Interdimensional, multiverse thing!” Dustin rolled his eyes, and soon they were by Twilight’s first class of the day. “Well, see you later.” Twilight returned the sentiment with a, “Yep, see you!”, and went into class.
During lunch that day Twilight simply listened to the conversations around her, occasionally putting in a comment. *Interesting friends I’ve got,* she thought in amusement. *People from Dreams, people from dreams, other middle school kid that are practically my opposite; quiet people, loud people; shy people, gregarious people. Lots of people.* She shook her head a little, to herself, and Dustin caught it, saying, **Whatcha thinking about?** Twilight responded, **‘Tis nothing. Just some random thoughts.** Dustin was reluctant to part from the topic, but at Twilight’s stubborn tone, he gave it up. For the rest of lunch, all was normal, or what was called ‘normal’ in Twilight’s world. All was well.

That night, Twilight dreamed (mostly)normal dreams, all through the night. Except for one particular set. One, lonely, Dreamspace, that showed bits of things to be read, and heard, and wished, and done. All a bit of a future, hers, and others, and many different paths that maybe, could be, someday.

Twilight stared at the test before her. *Stupid SAT’s,* she though. She hoped she would get a good score.

She kept her eyes, down, drawing, centering all her thoughts on the image in the page in front of her.

She whacked yet another person trying to annoy her by tapping her head incessantly. *If they knew about the magick stuff, they wouldn’t be trying to ANNOY ME TO DEATH! *she thought with vehemence. “Stop it!” she tried extremely hard to conceal her ire, but it leaked out. *Sigh,* she though. *I have strange, annoying friends. Ah, well, be it ever so.*

Twilight spun around, singing disjointed lyrics as she went about the house. “Too many oceans to see, too many places to be, no other home but yo-o-o-ou! How many places can we visit, before the time is up, no place but home, but home, I say, no place but home is yo-o-o-ou! There’s no way back up from the fall of the tide, and the whispers and whimpers that fall by my side, there’s no place but home is yo-o-o-ou! Never again, to leave thy side, never to know to be free-e-e! I’ll be happy with that, that small lot in life, if only, if only, with you-o-ou! Ever days, that pass me-e-e, ever nights that fa-a-all, ever days, and ever ways, no place but home, to sta-a-ay! Too many evenings to count, too many oceans to see, to many places, all fall about, if only you’re here with me-e-e!” She continued like this for some time, before realizing that she probably sounded like a crazy person, and toned down her voice.

Twilight felt herself Dream, a dream really, with a heart, and a hope. She felt what the dream was, that the golden haired boy was her husband, and they had a son. It was a strange dream, the rest, but there were parts of good, and light.

She watched the news with part dismay, and part amused support. “Three bets,” she muttered, “That Jesse will want to visit our house, and then drag us along to a protest.” It was not that she had a problem with the idea, far from it, but everyone else… Well, that was another story.

She wrote, a song, a Dream, a feeling, out onto the notepad-computer page. It was, of course, pulling small bits of other songs, and it was certainly, very much, not sane, but Twilight liked it. It was a well done thing, one of few, she supposed. “Black Dark River Rapids.”

Too many thoughts whirred around her mind. Twilight fell asleep that night, tears evident on her face.

The scenes turned a different way, a set of more ‘could be, may be, it’s your choice’ dreams, and pieces, and… Bits of shattered glass. Shattered glass that showed, reflected in the pieces, no future for Twilight.

A dark Twilight that felt like it was her, but a different part, older… crueler… bowed with a flourish to two women, faces shrouded by the shadows, yet familiar. She then walked up to them, close at hand. “Mistresesssss,” the other Twilight drawled out, acting, surprisingly, like a child trying to please a parent. Her next words, though delivered in the same tone, were anything but. “Found the traitors. They’re locked up, in the basement.” The watching Twilight noticed, finally, that they were in a fine house, fine, and mysterious. The two women looked expectant, and the dark Twilight added, “Made sure they know who’s boss though, you two. Bit of a zap on the youngest, they all agreed to come to the… party.” The darker Twilight looked amused, in a cold sort of way. This expression gave way for the softer type of happiness and innocence of a child, as one of the two reached out and stroked the dark Twilight’s hair, murmuring praise.

Another dark Twilight stood, looking without compassion, at an indistinct human, bound and gagged, kneeling before her. By the dark Twilights side, there was a little girl, obviously afraid, but kept busy by another little blonde girl who felt… like another, lighter, part of Twilight herself.

Sitting at a desk, Twilight, this one dark as well, but sadder, different, looked up at a picture on the edge of said desk. The object of the picture was shadowed, but Twilight could still make out every detail. Could remember every detail. She shook her head, regretful for a moment, before a mask of cold detachment fell back over her face. She looked back down at the papers before her, showing that now, truly, she had the whole world in her hand. She laughed sardonically, icily, and more than a little crazily. Speaking into thin air, she spoke sarcastically. “All the world, at my fingertips. Whatever I want, if I only speak. Leader of the world, and an Embassy of Gates and worlds, visiting so many multiverses. Like I couldn’t do that before,” she snorted in black humor “All that, and no one left to share it with. Nothing left, but bits of shattered glass.” This time, her laugh was haunted. After all, the one she had done all of this for, was gone. That was the reason she did it. Yet for all her prowess, and power, the one ability the Name revoked, was resurrection on their Mortal Earth. She laughed again, hollow. The watching Twilight shivered. She whispered. “Emptiness.”

A dark Twilight stormed into a room, the rooms’ features undistinguishable, eyes pitch black, hair darker than normal, and black, razor sharp claws tipping her fingers. She called out to the person in the back of the room, magically bound and shoved into a cage. “Hey, twitaziod boy! Got someone who’d like to have a word with ye! An’ be thankful it ain’t me!” She snorted. Then muttered, “Not that this is any type o’ mercy t’all,” So saying, the dark Twilight pulled open the door once more, and in came one of the mysterious women, from the dream twice before, still shrouded in shadows. But one thing was clear. She was angry. Dark magick flickered, everywhere, and the man in the cage backed away as far as possible.

The dreams faded into obscurity, not to be recalled until a later date, a new beginning for a quest of finding. It may have been just another day, but the night was filled with secrets.