Unfortunately, I found myself stuck with my friend Jade Rain out here, regretting the decision. Tonight was Nightmare Night! Everypony dressed up like scary creatures, their costumes were so convincing that I had to remind myself they were just ponies in disguise. They are right? Ponies in disguise? They’re not going to eat me, right?!
As we navigated the lively street, the smell of hay mixed with the sounds of happy ponies and the sight of charming homes. From both directions, costumed ponies trotted along. With bags and buckets in the mouth of themselves or an older pony (or saddlebags), fillies and colts were delighted in the abundance of candy they had collected. But for some reason, my friend wanted to indulge in activities other than collecting sweet treats.
“Come on, stop quivering like a frightened mouse, Shining Ember.”
“J-Jade Rain, you k-kn-know I’m not fond of Nightmare Night…” I stuttered.
“So?”
“I’m scaaaared!” I earned worried looks, pedestrians glancing at me with concern.
“What are you all looking at?!” Jade Rain hollered. Everypony continued going on about their night, walking from house to house.
“You’re a red pony with even brighter red hair. You stand out, Shining Ember. Learn to get toughen up, will you?”
“I-I-I can’t be a brave filly like you, Jade Rain…”
“That knight in shining armor costume you got on isn’t fitting for a colt like you, Ember.”
“You’re the one who wa-wanted us to dress up as a knight guarding a p-princess.”
“I know. I’m having second thoughts about it.”
“We’re still friends though, r-r-right?”
“Best friends, now let’s find something spooky to indulge in.”
“We’re only ten years old. Where is your older brother?”
“He acknowledges my ability to take care of us both.” I sank down to the grey sidewalk, covering my face with my hooves. “Okay, seriously Ember, next year I’m getting you a turtle costume.”
Out of nowhere, a grown mare with a white blanket covering her appeared, her presence adding an air of mystery to the scene. She was dressed up as a creepy ghost, and her costume emitted an unsettling, ghostly moan as she moved. “OOOoooOOooo…”
“Celestia, save us!” I cried out. Jade Rain brought a hoof up to her forehead, and I clamped back into hiding.
“You two looking for some entertainment?”
“We are!” Jade Rain answered with excitement.
I vividly remember my mother's warning to stay away from strangers who uttered such phrases. B-but if she tried anything, J-jade would put a stop to her.
“Aw, that’s adorable. I overheard you say each other’s names. Jade Rain is the blue filly and Shining Ember is the red colt, do I have that right?”
“You do. Now bring us to a place of entertainment blanket face!” Please don’t do this Jade! I want to go home!
The blanket-covered pony brought me and Shining Ember to an unoccupied shady street. I backed up with concern. “Hey… you’re not a weirdo, are you?”
As the ghost turned around, its eyes, marked with a black marker, pierced through us. “No, but the pony running this joint is.”
“Oh, okay!” I replied with no further concern.
“You’re missing the part where she said Haunted House Jade! And if she says somepony else is the weirdo, then what kind of f-f-fr-freak is awaiting us?!”
“It’ll be fun. Calm down.”
Traversing down the dark empty street, we arrived at a building I didn’t expect to be a haunted house. The blanket-covered mare opened the door and brought us inside, charging me at the register right by the entrance. “Twenty-five bits to enter.”
“Twenty-five bits?! Are you all con artists?!” Seriously? That much for entry?
“We’re running a business here, kid. Twenty-five bits. Or, if the both of you can hold in your screams, it’s free.” That would have been a deal if this easily frightened turtle named Shining Ember wasn’t with me, so I just paid the con artist front and center. As I paid, the register emitted a cheerful chime.
Ding!
“We have two customers, Hollow Shack!”
Another freak showed up. He was a unicorn stallion dressed up in a top hat, a cape, and a white half-mask. “Welcome to Baltimare’s Haunted House of Apparitions!”
Was this a circus in disguise, too? “So… this ghost right here is one of those ‘apparitions’?”
The joker in the midnight navy blue top hat replied with a whisper. “Shh… This isn’t a time for questions.”
The entrance was quite unsettling. It resembled a room where a witch had perished. Like stumbling upon an uncharted tomb from centuries ago. It was the bizarrely shaped bottles, filled with a liquid of strange hues and curious floating objects, that did the trick. Almost made me throw up my lunch.
Now that Banafrit was wearing her ironic Nightmare Night costume, it was showtime. I pointed to a staircase leading to the floor above. The blue filly followed my directions with ease, but she had to drag the red colt by his tail. Confirming they made it to the next floor, I gave the signal to Banafrit, and she seamlessly passed through the white blanket, disappearing into the ceiling.
How would I get up there, you ask? Something every showpony worth their bits needs. Camouflaged amidst the surroundings, there was a secret entrance, concealed from plain sight... Nah, I’m just kidding. I used teleportation magic. I am a unicorn, after all.
From my vantage point behind the wall, I observed our young customers. A blue filly and a red colt. They appeared to be around ten years old, and the colt trembled at the slightest of noises. It would be easy to scar him for the rest of his life, but the filly might prove to be more of a challenge.
Why scare children? Because nopony believes them. Simple as that. If they told their parents they saw a ghost, Mom and Dad would brush it off with a casual remark, saying “That’s interesting, sweetie,” without showing much concern. I’ll go easy on them though. We want them to come back.
They were standing in a narrow hallway, and there were many doors leading to who knows where. The blue filly, Jade Rain, opened the nearest wooden door to the left. It was a dreary bedroom, with tattered curtains ominously fluttering with a slight breeze. Not only were the curtains tattered, but the room itself was in a state of complete disarray. Were they always like this, or did Hollow Shack…
“Pfft, is that all you got?” Jade Rain said. Is that all you got, Hollow Shack? A room with an eerie atmosphere just won't be enough. Wait… what’s that? Something was descending a string. I don’t know how Hollow Shack is doing it, but if Jade Rain has a fear of this critter, this might work.
The spider delicately landed on the red mane of Shining Ember. Jade Rain turned around and noticed it. “Ember, don’t freak out.”
“What? W-w-why?” Reacting, Shining Ember flattened himself against the wooden floor, trying to remain unseen. He put his front hooves to his face, caressing the tip of his red mane – causing the spider to move down to his muzzle. “AHHHHHHHHHH!” The screaming colt ran off into the hallway, entering another room. It was a real spider… not a prop. That wasn't part of the haunted house attraction. I believe Hollow Shack didn't plan that.
Jade Rain pressed her hoof against her forehead in exasperation. Tell me about it. They’re both idiots. But they’re our idiots.
The brave filly ventured through the hallway once more, then opened the nearest door from the right side. There was no sign of Shining Ember in there. Regardless, she continued on inside. In the spacious room, a tall bookshelf stood, its shelves covered in cobwebs and neglected books strewn across the floor. “Is this Haunted House just some old home you bought and neglected to clean?!” I wondered that myself, and… now I’m believing it is. Maybe Hollow Shack had no idea how to run a haunted house.
In a sudden moment, the bookshelf collapsed, sending dust flying and enveloping the room in a cloud. Coughing, Jade Rain attempted to shield her mouth from the swirling debris. Next, a shadow moved through the screen of debris. Dressed as a sinister werewolf, Hollow Shack stood tall, his presence looming over the frightened filly. As the dust cloud dissipated, his powerful roar reverberated, announcing his presence. “RAWR!”
“That… was... so cool! How do you roar like that?! And I can’t believe you used a cloud of dust to sneak around, it was like you appeared out of thin air!” Jade Rain jumped around in admiration.
“Oh, well you see– wait, no– where’s your friend?” Hollow Shack said, shattering the unsettling atmosphere. The mismatch between his natural ecstatic voice and the ugly werewolf mask was jarring.
“I don’t know, your spider scared him off to another room,” Jade Rain replied with a hint of amusement in her voice.
“Spider? ...Hey, little filly, how about we make a deal?” Another one?
“I’m listening.”
Hollow Shack proposed his idea. “If I startle him enough to make his coat lose its color, will you pay double?”
With a squint of her small eyelids, she replied. “You’re so on.”
“Your time has come, Banafrit,” Hollow Shack proclaimed.
“Who’re you talking to?” Jade Rain wondered, her small head turning in every direction.
The wolf sassily moved his elbows and placed his paws on his hips. “Why, it’s my trusty assistant.”
I entered from the ceiling, looking down at the quivering red colt known as Shining Ember. He was hiding in a linear closet. The reason for it being this high was… questionable, but whatever. In the cramped space under the hanging clothes, he stuttered to himself, his voice shaky. “T-there’s n-n-n-no way for anything to scare me from here unless they open the d-d-d… door.”
True, but something tells me he would have been startled either way. But I was a ghost pony. Opening the door was an option, but I found the idea of phasing through it much more enjoyable. Shifting through the ceiling once more, I took a few hoofsteps to the side before descending back down to the floor below. While staring at the closet door, I phased through it with care, revealing a pony trembling and with his hair standing on end. I could have altered my physique into something nefarious and vile. But as I looked at this poor fellow, I couldn’t bring myself to do it. Being myself and seeing me slip through solid material should prove enough.
I signaled for somepony to knock on a wall, and the thud resonated to here. With his curiosity piqued, Shining Ember darted his eye up to meet mine. “Hey.”
“Eep.” He fainted, the intense red of his fur coat and bright red mane and tail dulled out.
We stood in the eerie hallway of my haunted house, our gazes drawn to the open closet. Inside, a blacked-out colt had lost all the color in his fur. Cha-ching.
“That was awesome! Are you a real apparition?!” Jade Rain's eyes widened in interest.
“That I am, kid,” Banafrit answered.
“I can’t believe this is an actual house of apparitions! I thought it was just a false advertisement!” The filly exclaimed and gasped as she looked toward me. “That means you’re a real pony of apparitions! Not some bum in a cape!”
“Well, he might be both,” Banafrit murmured.
“Bingo! I’m Hollow Shack! Pony of Apparitions! The Spooky! The Bone-chilling! The bearer of all things unnatural as a terrifying force that instills fear in all who witness his presence!” I can say with confidence that my grand opening was a success. Ponies may not have been waiting at my doorstep, but this is what I wished for. To have a pony recognize my name and purpose. I will forever remember these two as my first fans. My fans of the eerie, Jade Rain and Shining Ember. Welcome to the family. “Your friend isn’t dead… is he?” There were certain purposes for which I had to ask.
“Nah… this always happens.”
On the staircase that doubled as the entrance and exit to my haunted house, we lingered, exchanging goodbyes with our first customers. I flipped my cape, making sure it flapped in the wind. “Thanks for the bits!”
“Since I got to see and become friends with a real apparition, I’m the one who ripped you off, old man!”
“The great Pony of Apparitions is only twenty-four years old! And keep telling yourself that!”
“Will you visit often, Jade?” Banafrit asked.
“You pulling my tail? You got yourself permanent visitors!” Jade Rain jumped and responded with the blacked-out red colt perched on her small back. “I’m going to tell everypony in school, and then some! But I’ll be sure to leave out certain details.” She winked at Banafrit and me before fading into the quiet solitude of the dark and deserted street.
“Splendid! I’d say that went great!”
I stood there watching my fans of the eerie walk around a corner leading to the next street. Banafrit then broke the silence with a swift and concise statement. “…This won’t be enough to pay your rent–”
“–Yeah, I know.”