When Tommy was little, she had an imaginary friend called Summer Pine, who used to go almost everywhere with her. Pine was a pony that lived in olden times, and her family used to live at the border of the Everfree Forest, back before it was dangerous and out of control. The family used to make furniture and household items out of wood, which they cut from the forest they lived by, and they would trade them to their neighbours for crops and tools and the like. One day, though, there was a fire in the family house, and Summer Pine perished.

Trixie and Twilight have always been a little disturbed by this particular aspect of Tommy’s story about her imaginary friend, but have never really given it much thought. Maybe Tommy heard a similar story somewhere before and didn’t fully understand what it meant? Maybe she read it in a book? They’re not too sure, but ut’s never really been an issue. Little do they know, that their daughter’s little friend isn’t exactly made up…

I’m gonna do what I did with the last drawing here and come back and put dialogue in tomorrow. For now, enjoy!

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“Mom, can Pine and I go play in the back gardens?”
Twilight looked up from the papers on her desk and focused her attention on the sparkling purple eyes that never failed to make her smile instead. Phantomwise was stood on the other side of the desk, so small that only half her face was visible from where Twilight was sat.
“Are you sure you don’t want to play in the school grounds?” the Princess asked. “It’s much safer if you’re on your own.”
Phantomwise shook her head.
“Pine doesn’t like it there; it’s where she died.”
Twilight tried not to roll her eyes at the mention of her daughter’s imaginary friend, smiling good-naturedly instead.
“Well, so long as you’re both careful…”
“We will be! Thanks mom!”
And, with that, Phantomwise was off to spend another afternoon with nothing but her imagination. Sometimes, Twilight worried that her daughter wasn’t spending enough time with real ponies of her own age, but she herself had spent the majority of her childhood surrounded by books and she’d turned out just fine, so maybe she was worried for nothing.
And it wasn’t as if Phantom didn’t have any friends; she had Apple Core and Trigger up at the farm, and Tropical Oasis and his sisters, even if the twins were a bit too young to play with the others just yet. Yes, Phantom would be just fine.
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Phantom and Pine giggled all the way to the gardens, racing one another for the sheer fun of it. The alicorn was faster, but she was forced to dodge the many people going about their day to day lives in the hallways. Pine, on the other hand, was able to zip either above or through anypony that got in her way, but was hampered by her lackluster flying ability.
Eventually, though, they both tumbled into the grass, not knowing who’d won.
Phantomwise took a moment to catch her breath, and Pine, not having any breath to catch, occupied herself by watching a butterfly lazilly flitter it’s way through the air.
“What shall we do now?” Phantom asked eventually. “Tag?”
“We could go to the Everfree Forest?” Pine suggested, shaking her head at the previous offer. “I know where there’s a really tasty looking patch of berries!”
Phantom looked excited, but then her face fell.
“Mom would never let us.”
“We don’t have to tell-”
“And her security spells would let her know if I left.”
“Oh.”
Pine flopped back into the grass, sinking a little into the floor as the land-level when she was alive was slightly lower than it was now.
“You could show me how to carve wood?” Phantom suggested. “You used to do that when you were alive, didn’t you?”
Pine made a face. “Yeah, but I was only just starting to learn, so I’m not very good. Chipper was always better than me.”
“I guess…”
A little while of silence later, Phantom spoke up again.
“Could… could you tell me more about your brother? About Chipper? I know it makes you sad,” she added hurriedly, seeing her friend’s face drop, “but maybe it would be nice to talk about him? And your parents? Maybe then it’ll be like they’re with us, for a little while.”
Pine smiled sadly.
“Yeah,” she said. “Maybe. But not today, Phantom.”
“Okay,” the alicorn agreed solemnly. “Shall we go look for cool bugs?”
Pine perked up immediately.
“Yeah!”

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Kids, ammirite?

I know this is a day later than I said, but I was out all day so didn’t have time to write. Anyway, hope you like it