The Librarian

Dear Diary

Day 1

Forget the date,  this is the first entry in this diary as mother calls it. I really don't know what to write or how to write it. I'm still new to the alphabet that mother has told us about. I'm not happy with anything, there I said it. All the chaos, the evil, the hatred. Mother tried to explain to us what colors were, like green, blue, red, yellow, orange. She says the grass is supposed to be green, the sky is blue? She also tells us of a rainbow? I've yet to hear of that. Still, I'm worried about what this is doing to Lulu. She's so innocent and sweet.

Twilight Sparkle was busy dusting her library. Today was reshelving day after all, and she couldn't put all of her books on the dusty bookshelves could she? Of course not! Spike was busy at Rarity's doing Celestia knows what and nothing was particularly exciting back here either. Twilight couldn't reach the top shelf of the last bookcase so she walked up the stairs and lock-on to the dusty shelf and wiped it clean.

"Done!"

The bookcases were indeed finish and they sparkled clean and shined like they were brand new. The books were all stacked on the other side waiting to be sorted. The lavender unicorn levitated a checklist over in front of her and pulled up a quill that was resting in the bedroom. She looked at the checklist and crossed off the first item.

"Dust the bookshelves. Check! Next item on the agenda? Reshelve books."

Twilight put down the checklist on top of the barren case and jumped over to pile of literature on the floor. She picked up the first pile in her magic and gently carried it over trying to keep her concentration on the task at hand. Which proved to be a waste because at that moment the door swung open and a familiar filly walked through the door.

"Hello? Twilight? Rarity sent me!" The filly looked around for the magical mare until she saw a pile of books on the floor in front of her.

Twilight's head popped up out of the books, scattering a few of them here and there. She rubbed her head for a moment when she spotted Sweetie Belle at the door. She seemed uncomfortable with the situation.

"On second thought, maybe I should just come back at another time."

"Oh no, Sweetie Belle, it's fine. I was just in the middle of reshelving when you walked in. What can I do for you?"

"Well, Rarity wanted to see if you could help teach me magic. You are the best I know, and Rarity can't teach me because she's always busy with her orders." Sweetie Belle cast her eyes down at the floor and her ears flattened against her head.

Twilight looked at the young unicorn and smiled. It was always fun teaching young filly's about magic, and now Twilight had the opportunity to have a student of her own. Sweetie Belle could be reckless at times, but she was creative and enthusiastic.

"Well, Sweetie Belle, if it's ok with your parents I guess I could teach you magic and spells." Sweetie Belle's ears perked up and she smiled big.

"YAY! Thank you thank you THANK YOU!" Sweetie Belle ran forward and gave Twilight a hug of gratitude. Twilight was a bit taken aback by the sudden contact but brushed it off and returned the hug.

"We can have our first lesson today if you want? But I need to finish up here first ok?"

"Can I help! If I help you it would go a whole lot faster!" Twilight giggled.

"Ok, you can help."

"Yay!" Sweetie Belle dashed into the fray of books and immediately began putting books on random spots on the shelves.

"Um, Sweetie Belle? You have to-" Twilight stopped when she saw that Sweetie Belle was just throwing the books onto the shelves as fast as she could. Twilight was still in the book fort that she had accidentally made and started levitating books up onto the shelves.

She examined the titles as she went and sorted them accordingly. Equestrian Games, Supernaturals, Advancement Spells, Legends of Equestria. Wait, Legends of Equestria? Twilight stopped her sorting and pulled the book back in front of her. Where had this come from? Twilight was confused now, she had read almost every book in the library and she had never seen this one before. She flipped through the pages and skimmed the words. She passed up legends like 'A Double Rainboom' or 'The Mare in the Moon' (Which is a legend now) and 'The Solar Journal'.

Whoa whoa whoa, hold up! The Solar Journal? Twilight levitated the book over in front of her eyes. There was a large diagram of a book on the page, the various parts pointed out. The title of the page was named The Solar Journal. Now Twilight was interested. She scanned the page for anything resourceful and helpful in determining what this journal was about.

"Hey, Sweetie Belle?" Sweetie Belle glanced back when she heard her name.

"Yeah, Twilight? What is-What are you reading?" Sweetie stopped shelving and dropped the books on the ground.

"Take a look at this."

She walked over and jumped up on the pile and scanned the passage that Twilight was reading.

The Solar Journal is believed to be the journal of Princess Celestia that dates back to her youth and to a period of time before Equestria even existed. The journal contains all of the princesses thoughts before she became a princess. It is also believed to hold information on Pre-Equestrian lifestyles and culture. A search had gone on for the book but was nothing was ever found. The book was there fore deemed as a legend. The Princess herself claimed that she owned no book in her youth, and thus was officially deemed a legendary item. There are still archaeologists who continue the search for the book but have found no evidence of it's existence. The search was given up and was forgotten in the history books.

Twilight turned the page to continue learning of the entry but the next page was torn at the seams. Twilight flipped the page back and forth looking more and more frustrated and unsatisfied everytime. Sweetie Belle on the other hand looked confused and stepped back from the mare.

"The Solar Journal? I've never heard of that before." She kept backing up until she bumped into the bookcase.

There was a rattling heard from within the furniture at first. Both ponies turned their heads towards the shelf. The shelf started to shake and rattle loudly. Panic started to settle into their minds at first, but was driven away by curiosity. The shelf stopped it's rattling and stood still. They cocked their heads in confusion. There was a 'click' and the case started shifting sideways and revealed a hidden passageway. The case was now completely out of the way and the hidden passage was fully exposed. Sweetie Belle and Twilight both looked at each other then back at the door. Sweetie Belle was the first one to make a move and cautiously walked over to the passage.

"Sweetie Belle, wait!" Sweetie Belle paused and looked back at Twilight.

"What?"

"We don't know what could be down there!" Sweetie Belle took a step back from the hidden hall.

Twilight Sparkle was absolutely dumbstruck! In all her years of living in the library she had never known of this secret passage! It was, amazing! Who knows what could be down there? There could be treasure, or some ancient artifact, or a book! Her curiosity was overwhelming at the possibilities as to what was hidden down there. There was only one way to find out. Twilight leaped from the pile of books she was still encased in and landed next to Sweetie Belle. The white unicorn was shaking in her hooves from anxiety and excitement. Twilight walked up to the walkway, there were steps going down. Torches lined the walls and it was dimly lit. It defined ominous and eerie in ways only a staircase could. Twilight stretched out her hoof and brought it down on the first step. Her hoof 'clinked' against the wooden step and Twilight released a breath. She motioned for Sweetie Belle to follow and she did, reluctantly at first then she started down the stairs right behind Twilight.

The staircase was spiral shaped and led down quite a bit. Twilight's hooves were starting to ache when they reached the bottom. There was yet another door but this one looked very distinct from the last. There was metal engraved into the wood and the knob was colder than snow. The door had two torches on either side illuminating the shadows guarding the door. Sweetie Belle managed to squeeze herself underneath Twilight, her head and her horn rubbed up against the other unicorn's fur. They stared at the door blankly neither one wanting to make a move and open the entrance in front of them. There was a very long pause until finally Twilight reached out. Her hoof was shaking as she moved to make contact with the knob. The cold air from within rushed their feet below and only succeeded in delaying Twilight's entry into the chamber.

She finally touched the metal knob. It was freezing! The knob was colder than icy winds mixed with heavy snowfall. She turned the icicle clockwise, turning the gears and releasing the door from it's position. Twilight gulped loudly and felt Sweetie Belle retreat into her belly fur for protection from whatever was inside. She opened the door very slowly, the creaking of the rusted hinges echoing in the hall. Twilight took a peek inside the chamber after she had opened the door enough for her to stick her head through. Sweetie Belle had also peeked her head inside as well.

The chamber was relatively small, a desk sat at the far end across from them and bookcases lined the walls. There was a quill and ink laid on the desk along with a piece of paper with landmarks drawn on it. There were four torches in the room, each one in the corners of the room providing enough light to read and write. Sweetie Belle moved out from under Twilight and trotted into the room, glancing at everything on display. Twilight also walked in but headed straight for the desk instead of taking in the scenery. The map was a map of Equestria, specifically of the Everfree forest and the surrounding area.

"What is all this, Twilight?"

"It seems to be a study of some kind. This must be hundreds of years old! I mean just look at it, this practically speaks historical goldmine!" Sweetie Belle made an 'oh' motion with her lips and continued browsing the artifacts.

She came across all sorts of spell books and pictures along with notes and paper plastered on the wall. She came across the map and studied it for a moment.

"Twilight, what is this?" Twilight was looking at a book sitting on the shelf and acknowledged Sweetie without looking away.

"It's a map of the Everfree forest and the area surrounding it."

"Where's Ponyville? I don't see it anywhere on the map."

"That's because that map dates back before Ponyville."

Sweetie Belle glanced sideways for a second and noticed a piece of paper on the wall. It had words written on it that were illegible to her, but Twilight might be able to help her translate.

"Hey, Twilight, can you translate this?" Twilight had picked up a book in her magic but immediately put it back after she had heard the word translate.

"Translate what?" Sweetie Belle pointed to the paper.

"That." Twilight squinted trying to get the words into view. The torches didn't do a very good job of illuminating the paper, but it would have to do.

"Well, it'll be a rough translation. It says When you gain entry to the Everfree. Follow the path of vines and leaves. Reach the palace of Light and Dark. Light the statue with a spark. Reveal the door which is so bright. The key to it as pure as light.  Within the room a prize awaits. Behold the book of Celestia the great."

"So what does that mean?" Twilight had to think about it for a second.

What did it mean? Gain entry to the Everfree, Reach the palace of Light and Dark? The book of Celestia the great? Twilight had no idea what any of it meant. Then it clicked, all the pieces fit together like one big puzzle! The palace of Light and Dark must have been the old home of the royal alicorn sisters in the Everfree. The book of Celestia the great must be the Solar Journal! Twilight jumped up and down in joy. She had figured out the riddle, now the real challenge began. She needed to obtain that book no matter what it takes! Sweetie Belle was busy trying to figure out the riddle herself when she noticed the suddenly happy unicorn next to her.

"Why are you so happy?" Twilight stopped her jumping and smiled big, managing to scare Sweetie Belle a bit in the process.

"I know where the book is."