Chapters A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 1
A Study in Friendship and Romance
You stood in the middle of your new apartment, turning around slow enough so as not to miss a single aspect of your progress. A week ago this space was merely an empty room, devoid of any personality. Now with the space filled with the furniture and items that you were accustomed to seeing for many years felt like home. Sure it was a small apartment, containing a living room, small eat in kitchen, bedroom, and bathroom, but it was enough for you. Everything that you owned seemed to fit perfectly in the space, and no place felt underutilized or crowded. It wasn’t that you minded being home with your parents while at Canterlot College. But you knew it was time to start life on a new hoof, and the new apartment was the first step.
“The place looks great!” you said looking over the last few details, “I didn’t think I’d have it done so quickly with all those boxes I had. Alright, now it’s time to get a sense of my neighborhood.”
You collected your keys and stepped out into the short hallway, pausing for a moment to look back at your apartment. You feared that this was all some illusion, that you would return to find everything magically in their boxes again like some small warehouse. You shook your head and chuckled at the thought as you made your way down the hall and towards the stairs. Finally you reached what was to be a very familiar sight, the front door to the apartment, and after stepping out and locking it behind you, you were now on the street alive with activity. Although you’ve been to this part of Canterlot before a couple of times, this time it was different, more intimate as this was to be where you called home. It was time to start exploring the place, getting to know the locals and the places.
As you stepped into the street with a light breeze blowing through your mane and tail, you looked at the building you just exited from. It was a skinny two-story brick building, wedged between two larger ones like it was some afterthought. Maybe at one time there was an alleyway until somepony decided to build a house there instead. Looking up, you could see the windows of your apartment, a chuckle coming from your mouth at how funny it sounded still calling it your apartment. Technically it wasn’t entirely yours but rented out, but why split hairs? Next door to your apartment was another set of windows, another apartment which you imagined to be the same layout, containing its own staircase and door to the street.
“I wonder who lives in there,” You said as you looked at the neighboring space on the second floor hoping to catch a glimpse of something inside. The space was illuminated inside, although the thick red fabric curtains revealed nothing inside but shadows. For a moment you could have sworn you saw a pony standing there behind the curtain, but before you could confirm it the lights went out in the next door apartment. You shrugged, hoping that you could meet the pony living there, as your attention shifted towards the space that took up the first floor of a building, a cheery looking store consisting of two large plate glass windows and a door in the center. Above the door hung a large sign welcoming ponies passing by: Paper Leaves Bookstore. It was an opportunity that you were very fortunate getting, being able to not only find a place to stay but a job that was literally only a few hoof steps from your door! Granted working retail wasn’t your life goal, but it was a good choice as you decided where to go next for your career. You graduated with a degree in History, but beyond that you didn’t know what to do with it. Did you want to teach, or maybe write about it, or even work at a museum? There were lots of options, and Canterlot was a big city, but it came down to what your heart wanted.
Pondering this fact you were about to turn and head down the street to the right of your apartment door, when suddenly you crossed right into the path on an incoming mare! She doesn’t see you coming as her head was down while struggling to hold onto a few books and a file folder brimming with papers. When she does look up it’s too late. You try to stop and so does she but in the end you plow into each other, causing a shower of books and papers to fly in the air. The two of you topple onto the ground with you on top of her.
“Ugh Ouch!” you heard a muffled yet peeved voice under you, “Can you get off of me?”
“Sorry,” you said as you rolled over, revealing the unicorn you just hit. She was a cute mare with a cream colored coat and a striking mane and tail, yet by all accounts it appeared that the mare made no attempts of showing off who she was. In fact it looked like she was more or less trying to hide behind her old black sweater that was two sizes too big, her baggy light brown pants, and her thick black glasses which hid her eyes and were unceremoniously repaired with a piece of masking tape. It was as if there was potential but the pony was content on not being noticed at all. No wonder you crashed into her.
“You should watch where you’re going,” she said in a perturbed tone as she started to gather up the papers with her magic.
“Sorry about that,” you replied, “Here, let me get those for you.”
You were about to activate your telekinesis to help her clean up when she said sharply, “No thanks, I got it.”
“Are you sure? It’s the least I can do to…”
“I said I got it,” she said as she quickly gathered the books and papers into a haphazard pile. Before you could say anything else to her, the mare turned with a mumble of dissent, got up, and hurried down the street, disappearing in the crowd of ponies, leaving you to pick yourself up off the ground.
“What was that all about?” you said dusting yourself off as best as you could as you tried searching your memory of who this mare could be. She looked familiar, but there was no way to place a name to her face. That was when your eye caught it, a lone piece of paper drifting in the air before touching down on the grey cobblestone sidewalk. You pick it up, happy to see it didn’t get too dirty. The paper outlined some very complex equation, and though you were no mathematician, you could glean that it was about the calculation showing the relationship between the weight and size of an object and the amount of magical force needed for a unicorn to lift said object. It was very fascinating, the likes of which you saw back in the university. It was then that you realized who this paper belonged to.
“It was her, the mare that crashed into me! What if she needs this? But where did she go, and who is she? I should hold onto this, in case I see her later on.”
With the paper folded and safely stowed away in your jeans pocket, you continued on your journey, the thoughts of your strange encounter still on your mind.
Author's Note
And here we go with my new story!
Unlike the other second person romance stories, this one will have limited, if any, mentioning of the Mane Six or Princesses. Instead, I'm going to focus on some minor characters in Canterlot.
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 2
Chapter 2
You made your way down the street, pausing at certain restaurants or shops that caught your attention. Before you took little notice of the area as there were places nearby your university and foalhood home that you could visit, but now that this was your neighborhood you needed to know where certain places were. After all, you couldn’t spend your life cooped up in your apartment!
Even though you were locating many places to eat, shop, and have fun in this part of the sprawling city, there was something else that seemed to dominate what was important in your mind. Brushing your hand by your pants pocket and hearing the tell-tale rustle of paper made you remember the strange encounter with the mare just a few moments ago. Who was she and where did she come from? You wondered why you kept think about her and the paper you found after the encounter even though to your knowledge you couldn’t decide if you knew her. She certainly wasn’t the warm and friendly type of pony accepting your apology or offering even the slightest hint of getting to know her. Maybe it was the fact that since the two of you met on not the best circumstances you felt the need to clear things up and start again by offering the lost piece of paper as a gesture of goodwill. There was always a time for a second change, and besides that you were often one to jump in and help when it was needed.
As you turned away from a particular restaurant, you couldn’t help but think that somepony called your name. It was faint but somehow familiar, but try as you could, nothing came to mind with whose voice that was. You looked around the scene but saw nopony you recognized or who looked like they were calling you.
“Must have been the wind,” you said as continued on your journey, “Or maybe it was somepony else calling to me.”
You were about to stop again and read a menu at a restaurant, the need for food building in your stomach, when you heard your name called again, this time clearer than before. Now you knew you weren’t hearing things!
“Hello?” you said to nopony in particular, getting the reaction of a few ponies passing by with a friendly hello, but otherwise nothing out of the ordinary. That was when you saw a familiar face in the distance, trotting towards you at a fast pace. She was a blue unicorn mare with a mane and tail two shades of blue. Her most defining feature though was the wide smile that she wore perpetually on her face.
“Oh hi there!” she said wrapping you in the biggest hug you ever received, “I thought I spotted you in the crowd. You remember me from school, right?”
“Minuette?” you said half surprised that in the big city you’d meet a former school mate and half as a guess.
“That’s me!” she replied, “You do remember! Wow, I haven’t seen you since we graduated from college.”
“Yeah, sorry I couldn’t meet with you before. I was busy with finding a job and such.”
“Oh believe me I know that feels! So, what are you doing in this part of town?”
“Well, actually, I live here now.”
“You do?”
“Yeah, I just finished moving in and I figured I’d treat myself by checking out the neighborhood. And that’s when I met you. Looks like a nice place with lots to do.”
“That’s wonderful that you came here. This is a nice place, and all the ponies are friendly here. Actually, I now live just a few blocks away, so now we’re kind of like neighbors, just a little further away!”
“Great!” you said to your friend, “I’m glad to at least know somepony in this neighborhood.”
“Speaking of neighborhood, it is getting about to be supper time. Want me to take you someplace really neat? Trust me, once you go here you won’t have to worry about being hungry!”
“Sounds like a plan,” You said with a smile, “lead the way!”
You followed Minuette through the crowd and away from the block where your apartment was before suddenly turning a corner to find yourself standing in front of a very familiar sight. It was a little place on the corner, brightly lit and welcoming in its appearance. Looking inside the squared off restaurant, there were booths circling the outer portion of the room and tables staggered about in the center. Near the back of the space was a counter with seats and a set of doors leading to the restrooms to the right and a door to the kitchen to left. With a look on his face he knew that was Pony Joe’s, a place that he, Minuette, and other friends frequented during their time in college. The two unicorns entered in and found a seat in the corner, chuckling how they chose the very spot they always had. The conversation continued over their meals, filled with laughter and memories. Just as you imagined it, Minuette found a career in creating wonderful timepieces. She seemed to have a gift with how much sand was needed in an hour glass, or how gears can be put together to create precision timing. You felt a little bad that you didn’t have your start but you knew it was only a matter of time to find your way. But as the conversation shifted, that moment before you met Minuette came to mind.
“Hey Minuette, you knew many of the ponies from school and still stay in touch with them, right?”
“Well, some have moved away from Canterlot and some I’ve lost touch with, but most of the class I still see.”
“Great, because I think I may have met somepony from school.”
“Really?” Minuette said as she looked up from her dinner, “Who?”
“Actually, I don’t know,” you said sheepishly, “It was kind of a surprise. I was just leaving my apartment when I kind of, collided into another pony.”
“Oh my gosh!” Minuette said as her expression turned from cheerful to that of concern, “Are you ok? Was the other pony ok?”
“Yeah, I’m fine, and I think she was although she looked none too happy that we bumped into each other. Before I could apologize, she left, but she dropped a piece of paper. It looks important so I want to find her and give it back to her.”
“Well I’m glad that you two are fine,” Minuette asked as she sat, “So what did this pony look like?”
“Well, things were kind of a blur, but she’s a unicorn with a beige colored coat, and a red mane and tail.”
“Anything else that you remember, like how she was dressed?" Minuette said as her curiosity was peaked.
“Well she was kind of… frumpy.”
“Frumpy?” Minuette said as if you were speaking in another language.
“Yeah, you know, wearing clothes that were extra baggy, mane and tail in a mess, thick glasses to cover her eyes?”
“Oh my gosh!” Minuette suddenly said loudly causing some of the other ponies to turn her way, “You met Moon Dancer!”
“Moon Dancer?” you said trying to remember her in school now that you had a name to her face.
“You probably don’t remember her. She was kind of quiet, almost introverted. But she is smart, very smart. Always got the top grades. My friends and I tried to help her come out of her shell a little and she eventually took time out from her studies and came with us to see a movie or to dinner. For a moment she looked like she was ready to make friends.”
“So what happened? When I met her she looked upset, not just from me bumping into her but something deeper, like she was upset seeing me personally.”
“You don’t remember, do you?” Minuette said as all cheeriness faded away into a solemn tone.
“No, I don’t. Now that you mentioned her name I kind of remember a Moon Dancer in some of my classes, but beyond that I’m sorry but I can’t.”
MInuette sat back again and let out a sigh before continuing, “I think you’re going to have to remember that for yourself.”
“So you don’t know?”
She said nothing to you, making you feel that there was more than she let on. Minuette was usually a pony who would freely tell you things, but there was something about your connection with this Moon Dancer that left a sour taste in the blue unicorn’s mouth. Perhaps she too was upset about you for something in the past, although she was more open to meeting you that Moon Dancer was.
“Did I do anything to upset you?” you said.
“No, you’re fine with me,” she said with a smile, “You’re a good pony, I know you are, but if I told you the truth I’m afraid you’d only bring up bad memories to Moon Dancer, especially that one night.”
“Wait, what night?”
“I said too much already,” Minuette said, “Can I ask you to do me a favor, as a friend of Moon Dancer and your friend?”
“I’m I guess,” you said unsure what she would ask of me.
“I want you to give me that paper you found and let me deliver it to Moon Dancer personally.”
“Why can’t I give it to her? It’s like you’re asking me to stay away from her completely.”
“I am,” she said, her words stinging her on the inside as much as it pained you to hear it, “I can’t force you to not see her, but I’m asking you to please resist the urge to do so. Will you give me the paper?”
You pulled the neatly folded paper out of your pocket and gave it to her using your telekinesis as she quickly snatched it away before you had any second thoughts.
“Thank you,” she said, “This will mean a lot for me and Moon Dancer.”
With the dinner eaten and your conversations running dry, especially after the awkward events that took place with your unknown connection with Moon Dancer, you bid farewell to your friend. Minuette promised that if you needed any help or just to chat again she was not far away.
The parting though was awkward as it felt like Minuette was trapped between two friends, unable to bridge the gap between you two.
“What happened in college?” you asked yourself as you watched Minuette disappear into the crowd once again, “How did I know Moon Dancer? Whatever happened, it must have ended badly, otherwise why would Minuette tell me not to see her?”
The thoughts swam through your head as you returned home with both your stomach and mind filled. There was no use exploring the rest of the neighborhood, not when it was getting late and your mind was on the strange encounter. Pondering the situation, you could only put aside mulling over how to proceed if at all for later. Tomorrow you started your new job, and you wanted to be ready for that time.
As you drifted off to sleep, you couldn’t help but think that this day would be the last would see Moon Dancer.
Author's Note
So we got a mystery on our hooves, don't we? I wanted to try something different from my other fanfics where "You" meets (insert character) and has a friendship develop from the start.
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 3
That night you had a very strange dream relating to the events of the evening before. You were walking down the street at night, seeing nopony around other than you, not even in the shops that you pass by. You then see the silhouette of a pony step out from a store, its appearance hidden in the shadows of a burned out street light. As the figure walks towards you, the form becomes more defined and the pony’s colors appear, revealing that this pony is Moon Dancer. You prepare to say something when all you can do is say her name. At that moment she spots you as her eyes go wide. Suddenly the unicorn turns and runs down the street.
You try desperately to follow her, the distinct landmarks of shops and homes blurring in a sea of colors as you tried to catch up. You didn’t know what you were going to say if you did catch up with her. You just wanted to apologize for bumping into her and for whatever happened between you that moment before. You didn’t care that you couldn’t remember what happened between you and Moon Dancer, nor did you care what Minuette said about you keeping away from her. All you wanted to do was to learn the truth, and the only way you knew how was to catch up with her and talk. But no matter how fast you ran she was always far away.
At last you saw her turn a corner, which you quickly followed suit. You found yourself standing in an alley dead ended by a high brick wall. Moon Dancer stopped in front of it, realizing that she was trapped. She turned around, her face carrying a look of frustration and fear of feeling trapped.
“Stay away!” she said loudly which caused you to come no further.
“I’m not trying to hurt you,” you said trying to relax your body to show you meant it.
“Yeah, like you didn’t plan to hurt me before,” she said as her words dripped with the venom of a mare scorned.
“I just want to talk,” you pleaded, “I want to know what happened.”
Before she or you could say anything you heard another voice behind you say, “Hey!”
You turned at the moment to see Minuette standing there, not with her usual friendly smile but with a scowl, her horn glowing and crackling with magic. She seemed bigger than when you last met her, the shadow cast by her form darkening the already bleak alleyway.
“Did I not say you couldn’t see her ever again?” she said as she approached you. You felt yourself backing away as Moon Dancer moved around you and joined Minuette’s side, her horn now alive with magic. Finally you felt your back hit the hard surface of the brick wall, and now you felt trapped.
“Please, I just wanted talk,” you said alternating your gaze between the two angry unicorns, “I wanted to know what I did wrong.”
Instead of getting an answer, the two mares fired their magic, streams of blue and purple energy aimed for you.
***
You woke up as cold sweat poured down your face as you gasped for air. You immediately began to feel your arms, legs, face, and body as if to confirm that you were in one piece. Knowing you were safe, you took a quick look of your surroundings, as if your eyes would play tricks on you. To your relief, you were in the safety of your bedroom within your apartment, not in some alleyway.
“It was only a dream. But it felt so real!”
You looked over at the clock by your bed, signaling that you had only an hour to get ready for work and eat. As you went through the morning ritual, you couldn’t forget the memory of the dream you had, especially Minuette acting so hostile towards you.
“She’s not like that,” you said as you pulled a clean shirt over your head, “She wouldn’t attack me if I somehow saw Moon Dancer again on the street, right? No, Minuette is the kindest pony I’ve known and we’re great friends. Maybe I’m just stressing myself out.”
Pushing the memory of the dream to the back of your mind, you did a final check of how you looked before heading down the familiar stairs and out to the street. You almost expected to see Moon Dancer once again in the street, but to your surprise and a little relief there was nopony that you knew in the crowd. It wasn’t really that much of a surprise of not seeing her as Canterlot was a big city. For all you knew, she could be just visiting the city and that your encounter was a one-off moment.
You walked only a short distance before entering the bookstore, your new job. The place was already open with a few ponies already milling about the various shelves. It was a nice open bookstore with its walls lined with tall shelves filled with nonfiction books and several smaller shelves in the center of the room with fiction books. Near the front of the store was a small coffee bar and the check-out area with a few registers lining the counter. Lastly there were several doors in the back of the store leading to the restrooms, the main office, and the big storage room.
“Oh good, you made it,” a voice said from the check-out. You looked over to see a white pony with a pink mane and tail smiling back at you. It was another one of your friends from school, Twinkle Shine, who loved learning and you were not surprised when you learned she opened a bookstore.
“Yep, I made it,” you said with a laugh, “thanks again for giving me this opportunity, and telling me about the apartment.”
“You’re welcome! Thank you for being able to work here. I could use the extra hooves to help me. I thought that it would be easy running a bookstore, but there are tons to do!”
“Alright, so what do you need me to do first?”
“Well, I just got a few boxes of new books in the back to put out. Why now start there?”
“You got it!” you said giving a smart salute to her before starting the first day of your new life.
Author's Note
A little bridge between the first two chapters and what's to come. And we get another new character, Twinkle Shine!
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 4
The morning went without incident as you settled into the routine of stocking shelves with new books, rearranging the merchandise, and helping to check out the purchases. All the while you felt a sense of accomplishment in what you had in your life and in helping others. It was almost perfect enough that the memories of the night before with meeting Moon Dancer and then the stranger encounter with Minueete faded into the background. To you it felt like this would be a one-time incident, never to be revisited upon. Everything would return to normal with your friendship with Minuette and life would go on. That was… until you heard the bell over the front door rang and in walked a face that you didn’t expect you would once again meet: Moon Dancer.
She didn’t see you at first as she entered the shop, bypassing the cash register as she disappeared among the stacks of books. You mulled over the situation, thinking about what to do next. It was inevitable that she would by ultimately reaching the cash register to pay for her merchandise, and she would see you. It was, after all, just you on the main floor as Twinkle Shine was in the stock room. There was the possibility that she wouldn’t recognize you as it wasn’t like you spent much time with her. But as the memories returned with your conversation with Minuette, you began to reconsider this as being far from a moment that Moon Dancer would forget.
There were a multitude of choices that flooded your brain as you watched Moon Dancer appear and disappear among the stacks. You could make a run to the back room or restroom as an excuse, but you couldn’t just leave the shop unattended like that. You could pretend that nothing happened, but this still wouldn’t help whatever happened between you and Moon Dancer before. There was only one choice: you had to talk to her in the hopes of fixing the broken relationship.
You were about to get that chance as you saw Moon Dancer mover closer towards the checkout with a few books in hand. There was no backing down now from what you planned, and if this meant repairing a bad relationship you were willing to take the risk.
“Here goes nothing,” you said as the unicorn mare approached the desk. For a moment you thought she didn’t recognize you. Then she looked up and stopped dead in her tracks as her eyes, or what you could see of them behind her glasses, went wide. She looked at you then glanced over at the front door as if pondering dropping her purchases and making a run for it. But with a blank expression she soldiered on and approached, setting the pile of books on the table with a thud as if to expound upon her displeasure of you being there.
“Um… hi,” you said as you began ringing up the books she had. She said nothing to you, her blank stare morphing into a frown. Clearly she didn’t expect you to be working here, and your presence was not a welcomed sight.
“Uh… fancy meeting you here… again!” you said hoping to add levity to the encounter as you continued to check out her books, noting that there were no fiction titles in the pile, just books related to high level studies of magic and science.
“Can you just ring up my books so I can get out of here?” Moon Dancer replied sharply, meaning how she was more interested in getting away from you than wanting to get away from the bookstore. Now it seemed that in her mind the two were intertwined.”
“Sheesh fine,” you said as you quickly scanned the rest of the titles. You were about to tell her the price when you noticed another pony in on the conversation. There stood Twinkle Shine, holding a box of books with her mouth agape at what was taking place. Casually, she set down the box she was carrying and stepped behind the counter.
“I think you should check the history section,” Twinkle Shine said, “Don’t worry, I got this.”
“Are you sure? I’m almost finished.”
“Trust me, this is for the best, ok?” she said alternating her gaze between you and Moon Dancer, making it clear that she wasn’t going to relent on this point.
“Fine, I go… check the history area,” you said as you stepped away from the counter, letting the other unicorn step in. For a moment you turned around, your eyes locking with Moon Dancer’s. You mouthed the words “I’m sorry” with a little shrug, something she acknowledged with an even more frustrated look. To your dismay, Twinkle Shine was also looking at you, wearing a lesser look of disdain as Moon Dancer but still not looking pleased. You turned and began to slowly walk towards the history area, feeling like it was you walking towards your execution. The history section was oh so conveniently located in the back of the store, which you knew was no mistake you being sent there, especially since the area was relatively untouched.
As you made your way there, you could hear Moon Dancer’s voice which was loud enough that you could hear saying, “What’s he doing here?”
“Moon, come on,” Twinkle said to her trying to soften the upset mare, “I needed somepony to help here and he needed a job.”
“But you knew that I’d be here!” the mare wearing the glasses protested, “Don’t you have any feelings towards your friend?”
“Moon, that’s not fair. He’s my friend too.”
“But why? Why do you and Minuette and Lemon Hearts still consider him your friend after what happened?”
“Moon…I….”
“Forget it,” Moon Dancer said relenting a little, “I have to get going. How much is it for the books?”
“Thirty-six bits,” Twinkle said with a sigh before adding, “You will come back, right? I don’t want to lose you.”
“Yes, I’ll come back,” she said setting the coins on the counter, turning around to see that you happened to be looking in the same direction of where she was standing, “Just have him leave me alone, ok?”
Not waiting to hear Twinkle Shine’s reply, Moon Dancer collected her bags of books left the store, making an effort to not catch your gaze. Then she was gone and once again you stood unsure of that missing moment in the past.
“What did I do to you?”
Author's Note
Yes, there is no mistake. The tag does say Romance, but this one isn't quite the smooth "Love at First Sight" tale.
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 5
Chapter 5
There was a clear feeling of awkwardness as you went about the rest of the morning with your tasks. You found yourself glancing at the front door every time the bell sounded, wondering if it would be Moon Dancer again paying the shop a visit. It seemed illogical that she’d do so, but it was hard to put aside the notion as you saw her twice in such a short time. You wondered if this was how life was going to be, that every day you’d meet Moon Dancer and have to keep avoiding her like some plagued pony. It was clear that it she wanted to be as far away from you as possible, but there was no way that you were going to quit your job, move away, and hope that you didn’t meet her on the streets or in some store. You had to find out what happened to make her act the way she did. It was beyond a simple disinterest, she wanted nothing to do with you.
“Time for lunch,” Twinkle Shine announced as she made sure nopony was in the store and flipped the sign from Open to Close. It was a relief that despite the events that took place a short time ago Twinkle was still her usual friendly self. Whatever happened between you and Moon Dancer surely wasn’t bad enough to sever ties with your mutual friends. Still it was enough to have Minuette and Twinkle Shine to go to lengths to have you as far away from Moon Dancer. You could only imagine the strain they must have trying to remain friends with you and Moon!
“Great, I’m starving!” you said with a smile, “I brought my lunch today actually.”
“So did I,” Twinkle Shine said, “I usually eat in the back room where there’s a nice little break room there. Want to join me?”
“Sure,” You said as you followed her and sat down to eat. The conversation between bites slipped between what the two of you had been doing and reminiscing about your time at school.
“And that’s how Minuette almost blew up the science lab!” she said with a laugh, “I know it shouldn’t be funny but I can’t help giggling about it.”
“Yeah, I know what you mean, but it is funny how Minuette was trying to make something to make her mane and tail shinier. Kind of reminds me of the time that I was in the library with Moon Dancer and…”
You immediately stopped the story as you noticed Twinkle Shine look up at you with a surprised yet sad expression.
“Sorry if I upset you,” you said.
“No, you’re fine. You can continue if you want.”
“Oh it was just a funny moment where some books fell on us while trying to retrieve a book on the high shelf,” you said trying to pass off the story before your thoughts turned to a more important topic, “Hey Twinkle?”
“Yes?”
“Can I ask you a question?”
“Uh…sure.”
“I mean I know if you’re my friend and all, but if you don’t want to answer that’s fine.”
“It’s about Moon Dancer, isn’t it?” she said, not even giving much time to think about it.
“Yeah, it is.”
“I knew that I’d be having this conversation sometime. Maybe it was knowing that you would meet Moon here, or maybe it would be on some other day at some other point, but it knew it was inevitable,” she said with a sigh, “Alright, what question do you have about her?”
“Well, I guess the big question on my mind is: what happened?”
“Why is Moon Dancer so opposed to meeting you?” Twinkle Shine said.
“Yeah.”
“You don’t remember what happened?” Twinkle asked in surprise.
“No, I don’t remember,” you said in a frustrated tone, “So far I’ve met Moon Dancer not once but twice and received nothing but coldness in her reaction. I met Minuette who told me I should keep my distance from Moon. Now I met you and you had me go somewhere else rather than even check out Moon Dancer. If I knew what happened or what I did, would I be asking? Wouldn’t I have tried to fix what happened?”
“I suppose you wouldn’t be asking,” the mare said as she folded her arms across her body, “Well, I know that you’re not a bad stallion. You’re one of my best friends! And I know that you should know the truth. So here it is. You remember your time with Moon Dancer, right?”
“I remember that we were in classes together and we hung out a lot and we became really good friends,” you said thinking back to your time in college. I remember that I really liked being with her. It was like we clicked together.”
“I see,” Twinkle Shine said, “You do remember about your time with her. I thought you didn’t know who she was.”
“I didn’t, well, at first I wasn’t sure. She looked so different from when I remember her. Like…”
“Like she stays mostly at home and barely has any friends? Yeah, I’ve seen that too, and I know why she went from what you remember her as what she is now. Do you remember the Winter Senior Prom?”
“Sort of. I remember that it was a big event and you had to have a partner to go. I went with Lemon Hearts. It was a great time, but now that you mention it I don’t remember Moon Dancer there.”
“That’s because she didn’t have anypony to go with,” Twinkle said.
“What?” you said in amazement, “She didn’t have anypony? There must have been plenty of stallions interested to go with her. I mean she was smart and pretty, so who wouldn’t go with her?”
“You,” Twinkle said curtly, “You didn’t go with her.”
“Me? I didn’t think that she wanted to go with me, or at all.”
“She did want to go with you, but instead you went with Lemon Hearts. She didn’t have the heart to go and see you dancing with somepony else. Can’t you see what happened? Don’t you see what your mistake did? She wasn’t just a friend to you. She was in love!”
The revelation hit you like a brick as you stared at Twinkle Shine’s face, unable to say anything for a few minutes. Your mind flipped with the moments you were with her, the meals spent with her in the cafeteria and restaurants, the movies you watched with her, and not to mention the late night study sessions and quiet moments together. But that was all in good fun with friends, right? You felt good with being her and upon separating to go about your day you felt sad, but was that love between you two?”
“But we graduated about six months ago,” you said in confusion, “Why is she still upset with me?”
“Because she loved you, and every time she saw you she remembers all the good times you had with her and how all that ended that one night. Same goes with us, and all the places you were with her. Minuette and I try to keep in touch, but she wants nothing to do with us so long as you’re friends with us.”
“But I’m sure I would have apologized to her, right?”
“You didn’t know why she was upset, but you did try to apologize with her,” she said with a sigh, “but because you didn’t know why she was upset besides you simply not going with her she didn’t feel you were honest. Eventually you and she just… gave up. You moved on and ended up here, forgetting what happened. She didn’t and can’t forgive you or her.”
“Why can’t she forgive herself?”
“She feels that she didn’t love you enough, and in that she walled her heart off from everypony else lest she make the same mistake and get her heart broken.”
“What have I done?” you said after a long pause, “I broke her heart and ruined her life!”
“Please,” Twinkle Shine said putting her hand on your face, “you didn’t know what was deep within her heart.”
“But I should have known!” you shouted before taking a deep breath and saying, “I need to fix this. Maybe I can’t have her love me again, but I have to help her realize that she can be herself again and not be afraid of her heart getting broken again.”
“I don’t know if you should,” Twinkle said looking down at the table.
“Please Twinkle, I need to do this, not for me, but her! But I don’t know if I can do it alone. Will you help me as my friend and her friend?”
“Alright, I’ll help, but we have to do this carefully.”
“Thanks Twinkle Shine,” you said hugging her.
“Hey, what are friends for?”
Author's Note
I was torn about this part. At first I wanted the unnamed protagonist to spend several chapters meeting Moon Dancer in awkward situations and have him feel more unsure about what took place, but looking at that I realized that it would get old too quickly. But there's the trick of not making this part feel rushed which i hope I kept a good pace. But now comes the next part of the story, and yes there's the Romance tag there for a reason, and not just for the off camera surprise I mentioned here!
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 6
The rest of the day working at the bookstore went by as normal as the uncertainty that plagued your thoughts regarding Moon Dancer had left. Still all was not calm in your mind as you pondered your next steps in making things right. You knew there was little chance in getting romantically involved with her again as jumping into that realm would only lead to the chasm between you to grow even wider and Moon Dancer becoming more reclusive. Your main goal was to help her get back to a sense of normalcy, even if that meant returning her to a point in her life before she met you. Finally as the sun began to set outside, Twinkle Shine checked to see that everypony else besides of course you was gone, before locking the door to the bookstore and flipping the sign to Closed.
“So, how did you like your first day working here?” Twinkle Shine said.
“Well, under the circumstances, I think things went well,” you said referring to Moon Dancer.
“Well, I’m glad that you like working here. I can’t thank you enough for agreeing to help me here. I know it’s not the most glamourous of jobs.”
“No, it’s great. I actually like helping ponies find what they’re looking for.”
“Well I’m glad to hear that. Listen, I’m sorry about you meeting Moon Dancer like that. I didn’t know she’d be visiting the store today, well, I figured she would but I didn’t know when. I’m sorry for putting you into that position.”
“Hey,” you said putting your hands on your friend’s shoulders, “It’s ok. I’m glad that you gave me this job and you told me what happened. Besides that, you could have protected me from seeing Moon here, but then there was the chance I’d meet her some other place.”
“Well, as long as you’re ok, that’s what matters. Anyway, I just a few things to clean up before leaving, so I don’t want to hold you up if you have places to go.”
“Wait, before I go, can you help me with something?”
“Uh… sure.”
“Can you tell me places where Moon Dancer likes to go?”
“You’re still interested in patching things up, huh?”
You nodded realizing how silly it sounded after the events of the day.
“It may not work you know,” she said, “She might be still upset or things might get worse.”
“I know, but I have to do something to try to at least help her be so reclusive.”
“Alright, I’ll try to help you with what I can. I may be her friend but I don’t know everywhere she goes. Still, there are a few places I know she goes to and a few she steers clear of. She can definitely be found in the Canterlot Public Library. That’s where she seems to spend her days at, and she actually works there.”
“Really? I thought she’d be a teacher or some research student for studying arcane magic,” you said remember how good she was in her studies and what she was focused on.
“She was planning on doing that, before…” Twinkle said as her voice trailed off. You know what she meant even though she didn’t specifically say it. How could your one act of not going to a dance with Moon Dancer led her to abandon all her dreams? What she hanging all her hopes and dreams on you?
“Alight, the library. Anywhere else?”
“Well, I see her at the corner market, because even a recluse needs to eat.”
“What about restaurants or shops? She must go to those, right?”
“Honestly I haven’t seen her much at those places. She just goes to work then home most days. Oh I’m sure that she stops at other places when she wants to like here, but none that I know of.”
“You said that there are places where she doesn’t go to? Sounds like she doesn’t go anywhere!”
“Yeah, but there are places she intentionally steers clear of.”
“Like where?”
“Take a guess.”
“Right,” you said as your ears drooped while feeling like a deflated balloon, “Everywhere that I was with her.”
“I’m afraid so. Pony Joe’s, the movie theater, that night club we went to on Third Street, she literally walks to the other side of the street to avoid them like they’re some monster.”
“Or that I am,” you said as the pit of your stomach hurt.
“Hey, don’t talk like that. It was just a mistake that’s all.”
“Yeah,” you said as not even her optimism could break you out of the depression you felt, “just a mistake. Thanks though for telling me where she is.”
“So what are you going to do now that you know where she goes?”
“Well, I’ll try to meet with her, most likely at the library.”
“And then what?”
“I will…” you began until your mind drew a blank, “I don’t know what I’ll do. I mean, I guess I’ll try to talk with her and hopefully she’ll want to talk to me.”
“Well, talking does help,” Twinkle Shine said as she closed down the register for the evening, not sounding very convinced at your plan, “Do you want my help?”
“I’m going to try to do this myself first,” you said, “I don’t want her to feel like she’s being overwhelmed. Maybe it will work this way.”
“If you say so,” the unicorn mare said feeling like you being there would be an invasion enough.
“Don’t get me wrong, I thank you for your help, and if things go bad I’ll be sure to come to you. Anyway, I better get going to find somewhere to eat. Want to join me?”
“Sounds good,” Twinkle Shine said, “I’d like to do some catching up with our friendship. Can I just offer you one advice before we’re lost in our conversation?”
“Sure.”
“Be careful with Moon Dancer. I know you won’t do anything to hurt her, but she is at a delicate time now even if it is years after the whole dance incident.”
“I will,” you said as you helped her with closing the store, hoping that you would live up to your promise.
Author's Note
And we now have a plan... sort of... of how our hero is going go win back his ex-marefriend. Of course you know things won't go that perfectly, right?
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 8
Chapter 8
You sat at a booth in the coffee shop, alternating your gaze between the coffee sitting in front of you and the door at the other end of the café. You spent a good half hour sitting there, arriving early just to be certain. Now she was late, something you always knew was not her style. There was a part of you that anticipated that Moon Dancer wouldn’t join you here, not even just to talk. It would certainly be a kind of poetic justice with you being stood up after what you did years ago. You hoped that this wasn’t the case.
“Maybe she had to do something at the library, or she met another friend,” you said to yourself as you sipped your coffee while staring at the table. You heard the chime of the bell above the door and looked up, hoping that it was Moon Dancer arriving. To your dismay, it was just another pony stopping by who promptly ordered and then left as quickly as he came. You were alone again in the café save for the baristas busily cleaning and preparing for other customers. Occasionally they looked over to see if you needed anything to which you merely shook your head while hoping that Moon Dancer would be there. The more time drew out, the more you began to doubt.
An hour passed since Moon Dancer was expected to show, and you were prepared to give up and leave when the bell rang again. There to your relief stood Moon Dancer, looking around for you while wearing an expression that she was still uncertain about the whole thing. You waved to her as you sat down, making like you weren’t planning to leave after all.
“Sorry I was late,” Moon replied as she sat down across from you, the space between you still feeling wider than even the table, “It was my turn to close the library for the evening, and then I got lost.”
“Got lost?” you said surprised, “I thought you knew where this place was.”
“Well, I did, sort of,” the mare replied looking down as if she was trying to hide something.
“Moon, I can tell you’re lying,” you said in a sly tone, “You were never a good liar. Besides that, this café was a block away from the library.”
“Ok, fine,” she said defensively, “I was debating whether to go here or not. I didn’t think that you’d be here.”
“Actually, I didn’t think you’d come,” you said as a barista came over and asked Moon Dancer what she wanted. The mare simply ordered a tea, not putting much thought into it.
“Guess that makes two of us,” Moon Dancer said, “So I took a walk and then finally got the nerve to come here. After all, you asked me, and I didn’t want to be rude…”
“Like me years ago,” you said noting that she stopped suddenly before saying what was on her mind, “That’s ok, you could say that. I was a jerk.”
“And?” Moon said looking at him.
“Ok, I was a big jerk for breaking your heart, ok?”
“Better,” Moon said as she received her tea and took a sip, “So what do you want to do with this talking thing you planned?”
“Well, I didn’t really have a plan,” you admitted, “I just wanted to talk with you, not at my job and not at yours.”
“Ok, so what do you want to talk about?”
“Well for starters, how did you get to become a librarian?”
“You remember that I wanted to teach magic, right?”
“Yeah,” you said remembering several instances where she mentioned this fact and even times when you complimented on her magic and mentioned that she should be one. It was one of these instances where the two of you were thinking alike and admittedly were times that you missed.
“Well, things didn’t go quite as well as it did after college and after a while I sort of gave up on that. But giving up meant that I had to think of something else to do with my life, so I picked a place that I felt comfortable and worked at the library. What about you?”
“About me?” you asked.
“Yeah, you didn’t think this time spent would be just you ask me questions, right?”
“Well no I…”
“Well then, what about you? How did you get to working at my favorite bookstore?”
“I guess it was the same thing for me. I thought I wanted to teach as well, but now I don’t know. Of course like you I had to find a job, and Twinkle Hearts had both a job and told me of a place to stay after college.”
“Ah Twinkle Hearts, always helpful,” Moon Dancer replied relaxing a little.
“Can I ask you a question, speaking of friends?” you said.
“Um…I guess?”
“Why did you decide not to make new friends or stay friends with ponies like Minuette and Twinkle Hearts or go somewhere besides work and the bookstore?”
“What?” Moon Dancer said with a frown as she almost dropped the coffee cup out of her hands, “What do you mean by that? I have friends! And I do go places too.”
“Oh really?” you said not letting this issue go for her own good, “Name one pony who you made friends with after college?”
“And not coworkers,” you said adding the note.
“Well…I…” she said struggling for a moment before saying, “I can’t remember any off the top of my head, but I’m sure there are some!”
“Well, of course I go to the grocery store, and the clothing store and…” she said before throwing up her hands and saying, “Fine, I don’t get out often! Is that a crime? If I knew you were going to interrogate me like then I wouldn’t…”
“Please Moon Dancer,” you said, “I’m not trying to get you upset.”
“Well you’re doing a pretty good job,” she snapped, “And I don’t think you have a right to tell me how I should live my life.”
“I’m not trying to upset you or run your life. I’m just concerned that you shut yourself out from the world that you won’t let anypony get close to you. This isn’t just me. Minuette and Twinkle Hearts are concerned too.”
“Really, I’m fine,” she said shuffling in her seat, part of her looking to make a speedy exit, but part of her wanting to stay.
“Was what because of you?”
“This... you not going anywhere or meeting anypony. Did I hurt you that badly that you shut yourself away like this?”
“I…” she began as if to refute your claims, but then she became silent which was enough for you to know the truth.
“I want to help you,” you said, “That’s why I brought you here to talk. I want to help you be the old Moon Dancer that I used to know who wasn’t afraid to do new things or meet new ponies. Maybe we can’t be friends again, but I want you to be happy. So can I help you see the world new again?”
You expected her to say no, toss her drink at you and leave never to be seen again, but instead she said, “Yes, maybe you can help me.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, really. I realize that it’s no use saying no to you, not like I could before. Oh, I know how this risky this is letting you take over my lie, but maybe it’s for the best. Alright, are you free this Saturday?”
“Uh…I think so.”
“Alright, meet me here, but come with an idea of… whatever you plan on doing.”
“It’s a date,” you said with a smile.
“What?” she said almost spitting out her drink.
“Just kidding. I’ll be there.”
“Alright, so what else do you want to talk about?”
Author's Note
Sorry about the delay. Finally got some time to write a chapter.
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 9
Chapter 9
The next day you entered the bookstore with a spring in your step. Maybe it was the fact that you succeeded in your goal in starting over with Moon Dancer, or it was the anticipation of what was to come. There was a little worry though with the promise you made to Moon the day before, how you were going to help her be more social and happier.
“Hey there!” Tinkle Shine said as she greeted you at the door, “How was yesterday?”
“Good I think. I met Moon Dancer, and while she wasn’t happy to see me at first especially where she worked, she accepted going with me to a café just to talk.”
“And how did your talk go?”
“It was like old times,” you said, “back before we were just friends and not…”
You didn’t finish but Twinkle knew what you were going to say, “And not before I fell in love and then messed everything up.”
“Well I’m glad to hear that you’re getting to know each other again. Maybe things won’t be as awkward when she enters this shop again. I’m kidding, but I’m really happy that you two are off to a good start. Did you two plan when you would meet next?”
“Yeah, we did, next Saturday,” you said as you happy expression changed to worry, “but I think I did something?”
“Did what? You’re not thinking about skipping out, are you?”
“No, I’m still interested in meeting her. It’s just that I think I bit off more than I can chew with a promise I made to her.”
“What promise was that?” Twinkle said leaning in as if to hear a secret.
“I felt bad that I might have been the cause for why Moon Dancer doesn’t see anypony or make new friends or just have fun. So I kind of promised that I would help her. The problem is, I don’t know where to start! I mean I’m not trying to change everything about her, but you’ve seen her. She looks like a hermit or a crazy cat lady rather than the pony we all grew up with!”
“Yeah, you’re right about that,” Twinkle said as she began counting the money in the register for the morning, “I’ve been trying to help her for months, trying to take her shopping, to the movies, even a club, but she didn’t want to do anything like that! She just cared about her work, this bookstore, and her home, that’s it.”
“Yeah, I got that same feeling too. I feel bad asking you this, but can you help me with things I can do with her, maybe something that will help her come out of her shell?”
“As I said, most things I tried didn’t work, but you seem to have an in with her, so maybe it’ll work for you. First thing’s first, you don’t want to overwhelm her with trying to do a dozen things during the day. You’ll overwhelm both of you, and it won’t be fun anymore.”
“Yeah, I was thinking about that myself,” you said.
“Next, I don’t think taking her to a club would work yet, but hold onto that idea for later. How about you start small, something that she would like?”
“Well, she likes books and learning things, and more books.”
“Wait, I got it! Make the first day with her a learning day! First take her to a museum, like the Science one or the History one. It doesn’t matter as I think she’ll like any of them. That will make her feel comfortable and she won’t have to worry about being in huge crowds. Then you get some lunch and get to another museum. If you two are up to it, get dinner, and then if you’re up to it, I have one thing more you can try.”
“What’s that?”
“Remember Professor Nebula?”
“Yeah, he was the Astronomy teacher, right?”
“Exactly, and he has a public stargazing event coming up on the outskirts of Canterlot. If you two feel up to it, then why not go there?”
“Sounds like I have my day planned out. Thank you so much Twinkle Shine! I couldn’t have done it without you. I was at a total loss.”
“I’m glad to help,” the unicorn mare replied, “I want to help her too be a better friend to you and to Minuette.”
“Did somepony call my name?” a voice was suddenly heard in the entrance of the bookstore. You clanked at your watch and noticed that the store was open and Minuette was your first customer. You felt a cold sweat running down your forehead. What if she heard your plans? Would she try to stop you from meeting Moon Dancer? You wondered what exactly she could do besides follow you everywhere you went.
“Oh hi there Minuette,” Twinkle shine said as she tried faking like nothing was out of the ordinary, “We were talking about the fact that we haven’t met up much lately and we should hang out sometime, like for lunch or dinner. You know, just like old times.”
The blue manned mare stared at you for a moment as you hoped the ruse worked. Finally her face relaxed into a smile as Minuette gave a sigh.
“Yeah, sorry about not meeting you sooner. Life has been very busy, although I did meet you earlier, right?” she said looking at you.
“Oh yes, I remember,” you said as that was more of an interrogation than a meal with a longtime friend.
“Anyway, I’d love to. How about this Saturday?” Minuette said.
“Err… actually I have some plans that day.”
“Oh, what plans?”
“Um…this sounds embarrassing, but I still have a lot to do with getting the apartment together. Plus I need some furniture.”
“Yeah, he told me,” Twinkle said trying to back you up, “It’s my fault that I’ve been keeping him here a lot. You don’t mind, do you?”
“Nope. So sorry Minuette. Maybe another time.”
“Alright, another time,” the unicorn responded with a shrug, “Anyway, I need to check out to see if the new Daring Do book is in.”
“I’d be happy to help you,” Twinkle Shine said, “Follow me.”
The store owner led Minuette towards the new books area, but you noticed that she turned towards you and gave a little nod as if to say that the ruse worked and that you were ready to meet with Moon Dancer.
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 10
You waited outside the café, this time armed with a plan for the day and that Twinkle Shine approved of trying to reconnect with Moon Dancer. There was still the worry that Moon Dancer might not show up for your day with her. The possibility of Minuette showing up in any of your locations you wished to be with her was even worse a scenario. It wasn’t that you thought that one pony could do much to prevent you from seeing Moon Dancer, although Minuette could convince your ex-girlfriend that seeing you again was not in her best interests, unraveling any of the plans you had to reconnect.
As more time passed waiting for Moon Dancer, you began to worry that this event would not take place. Perhaps the meeting a few days before was as far as you’d get, the two of you being just mere acquaintances and nothing more. Just when you were about to leave, you saw her walking towards you through the crowd. It was like that moment you saw her again reminding you this time of the night you saw her, only this time she looked interested in seeing you. Although she tried to hide it behind the veneer of her blank expression, she looked happy to accompany you on whatever plan you had for the day. Trust had remained with her after all these years of you not staying in touch and her animosity of what you had done. What struck you as interesting was that Moon Dancer took some lengths to accepting your offer by dressing the part. Her mane and tail, although still the typical straight style you’ve seen her have for as long as you could remember, was devoid of the look you saw her sporting where she looked like she rolled out of bed. The clothing she wore wasn’t the frumpy unattractive look she had before by actually normal in a skirt and blouse, and although you would not admit it, she actually looked sexy in it like the cute nerd way.
“There you are,” you said flashing a smile as Moon Dancer joined you. “I was wondering if you were having second thoughts.”
“We may have had a rocky reunion, but I’d never forget a promise,” Moon said as although she meant no malice in her words they reminded you of how you got into this mess to begin with. “I was getting ready for this day actually. I really haven’t dressed up like this much and wanted to try something different.”
“So I see,” you said while trying not to sound like you were examining her too much.
“I look ok, right?”
“Relax, you look fine. Besides that, you didn’t have to dress up for me or this event.”
“I didn’t actually,” Moon Dancer replied, “I did it for me as I said. But I thank you for being honest for how I look. Anyway, have you decided on this mystery day of ours together?”
“I think so,” you said, “and I felt like today will be your day where we can spend time in places you would like. And by these places I don’t mean the library or the book store.”
“Oh? And what places do you think I like?” Moon said as her interest seemed peaked.
“Well, how about we keep this a mystery,” you said, “Think of this as a little test of trust. I trusted that you would want to meet me, and now I’m asking you to trust me that I made the right decision where to go. So, will you trust my plan and follow me?”
Moon Dancer hesitated for a moment, not entirely ready to give up all control that the mare carefully guarded in her life and put her faith in somepony who wronged her. But soon her expression changed to that of surrender.
“I accept your trust,” she said, “but don’t try anything funny with where you plan to take me or do with me.”
“Deal, now follow me,” you said, but before you could go she took your hand. It felt so nice to have this simple embrace and sign of connection between the two of you, and although you tried not to read much into this you felt like things were off to a great start. You led her from the familiar streets where the book store and library sat, through places where you ventured with her when the two of you were in college. It was different now revisiting old haunts, but looking at Moon Dancer you could see that she looked fondly upon this place rather than disappointed. As you rounded the last intersection, there stood a massive building designed to be some ancient temple complete with columns and a grand staircase leading to the entryway and a bas relief displaying aspects of history like conflict, progress, and time.
“The History Museum,” Moon Dancer remarked, “I haven’t been here in years.”
“Well, it’s time that you see it again as this is our first stop.”
You watched Moon Dancer’s normally expressionless face change to one of joy like a colt going to an amusement park. Without warning she grabbed your hand and literally pulled you up the stairs and through the doors of the museum. Admittedly it was a great museum, one that you enjoyed visiting before and now. You enthusiasm, however, was easily overshadowed by Moon Dancer who after quickly bringing you to the museum spent a lengthy time in each room chronicling a certain time or theme in history, often pointing out something she’d think you needed to see. You didn’t mind as this was meant to be her day, and whether your plans would be carried out completely or not was not a major issue.
“That was great!” Moon Dancer exclaimed with a passion that you hadn’t seen since reconnecting with her, “I’m glad you thought about coming here.”
“I’m glad that you agreed to come,” you said as the two of you exited the museum, “You seemed to like the exhibit on the early formations of Equestria.”
“Definitely, and I could barely pry you away from the one about the war between the Princesses and King Sombra. Guess we both learned something new about the world we live in.”
“And about each other,” you said to which Moon Dancer nodded in agreement. So far things were going well between the two of you, and you could feel the bonds of friendship growing stronger like a rope becoming thicker. With each moment of joy, however, there was a fear that somehow you would through your words or actions ruin the great chance. There wasn’t yet the feeling that you were at the point that you built your trust with her enough to make simple errors in judgment not monumental. When that time would be and how you could reach that point in trust was something you could only guess. The only thing you could do was to proceed as it was an hope that Moon Dancer was still trusting in the end.
“Hey, are you ok?” Moon said with a concerned look on her face.
“Oh, yeah, I’m fine,” you said. “Why do you ask?”
“You went silent for a moment, like you were deep in thought. You’re not having second thoughts about this day, are you?”
“No, of course not. It’s just that I’m happy to be with you, and I don’t want to screw this up, like, you know, before.”
“Hey, I’m sorry that I was harsh on you for not taking me to the dance a few years ago. You’re a good friend, and I haven’t forgotten about it even after all these years. Yeah, things are strange with the two of us getting back together, but I’m here to make it an effort, not to judge you or to assume that this won’t work.”
“Thanks, Moon Dancer,” you said feeling better with her words.
“You’re welcome. Now I think we’re due to go somewhere to eat. You have somewhere in mind?”
“I do,” you said.
“Then lead the way!”
You took Moon by the hand and led her away from the museum and down the street. Unbeknownst to the two of you, somepony was watching the events played out, following behind with a look of cautiousness.
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 11
The afternoon passed by with little incident as you took Moon Dancer on your tour of Canterlot. So far, the two of you got along as you had lunch together and then made your way to the next stop: the Science Museum. It was like you were back in school when the two of you were friends and those years of dwelling on the past and being separate from each other never existed. You even heard the previously stoic pony laugh at admittedly was a corny joke. It was then that you realized that you didn’t have to compare what was happening now and what was in the past. The more you spent with her the lines blurred. You met, you parted, and now you’re back to being friends. It was a true testament to Moon Dancer’s character to give you another chance and trust you for this day, although why she didn’t before was a mystery you had yet to solve.
“Moon Dancer?” you said trying not to spook her as she carefully studied some gems in the Geology section of the museum.
“We’re back to being friends now, right?”
“Yes,” the mare said as she let out a sigh, not of boredom but relief, ‘I believe we are.”
“I was thinking, you were so easy to forgive me now, but I wondered…”
“Why I was so nasty to you the first times I saw you?” she said, “I have to apologize for that. You see, when I saw you, all I could think about was how you left my life like that. I couldn’t push my thoughts past that time and remember all the good times we had, many, many good times. I’m so used to using my head, but that time my emotions got in the way, not in a good way. But when you came to the library that day, I saw you were willing to forgive me and try starting over.”
“It reminded me of a time when I was upset at another pony from years ago. She too was a friend, not… you know… leading to anything romantic. She also, however, left me, and it upset me to the point that I barely ventured out of the house. I know you mentioned that I don’t do much of that now, but I was worse back then. She came back and tried to reconnect with me, but like you I pushed her away. It wasn’t until she threw a party for me that things just boiled over. I just let out all my anger, but instead of her admitting defeat she apologized. Now she and I are back together as friends after forgiving each other. So when you came to that library that day, you reminded me of her and how I needed to learn to forgive and forget minor past sins if I ever wanted to rebuild my friendships. I hope that explains things.”
“It does actually,” you said with a smile, “I’m glad you forgave yourself and me.”
“So am I,” Moon Dancer said with a smile that tugged at the very core of your heart.
You continued your tour of the museum, pausing frequently at exhibits that interested you or her. To your delight both of you enjoyed the same things. It wasn’t much of a surprise as you knew from the past you had similar interests. Still there was something else on your mind when you watched her stare at the objects behind glass. Being with her reminded you not just of when you were friends, but also that moment when you thought the two of you were truly in love with each other, only to have it cut short too soon. Did Moon Dancer think of that time as well? Did she consider you restarting a romantic relationship even a remote possibility? You dared not ask her what she felt about the matter as doing so had the danger of ending the lovely day and the friendship for good.
There was something else that you noticed though in your travels from one room to the next in the Science Museum. Although it was most likely your mind playing tricks on you, you could have sworn that you saw Minuette. You couldn’t be sure as every moment was out of the corner of your eye. There was a bit of blue and white and then it was gone the moment you saw it. You tried to look around the room for any sign of the unicorn spying on you two, but either this was your mind playing tricks on you or she was that good at watching both of you without being watched herself. If this was truly Minuette, you wondered how long she spent watching where you and Moon Dancer went. Was it this entire day, or even before that?
“Moon, I have to ask you something,” you started only to have Moon Dancer let out a sigh.
“I know what you’re going to say,” she said, “and yes, she’s here in this museum.”
“Really? So I’m not just being paranoid?”
“Nope,” Moon said with a giggle, “You’re seeing here just as I am. I have something to confess to you. I kind of…asked her to follow us.”
“Why?” you asked more confused than upset.
“Honestly, I was afraid, and not because of you. It was me, I was afraid that I would do something stupid like get scared and run away or worse lash out at you like I did before. So, I brought her along to make sure I was fine as well as this excursion you planned was ok. Kind of like bringing a friend on vacation to a place you’ve never been to. She’s always been my best friend and when she saw you and learned that you met me, she was concerned. I talked her down, promising that I’d keep her in the loop. You’re not mad at me, are you?”
“Not really, a little freaked out that she’s been basically stalking us the whole time, but I get it. But, did she know where we were going as we went from place to place, or…”
“Yeah, about that. Twinkle Shine was in on it too. She gave you the places we should be because she spoke to me right after you spoke to me. Then after meeting you in the bookstore, she told Minuette when she was ‘helping’ her find a book. Sorry this all had to be behind your back. Again, I’m still learning how to be social.”
“No problem, just next time invite them rather than have them plot things like a spy operation, ok?”
“Deal,” Moon Dancer said, “Now how about we have a little fun with Minuette, ok? Last I saw her she was making her way to this room.”
“What do you have in mind?”
“You’ll see, or more like hear,” Moon Dancer said with a sly grin, “Oh you may want to cover your ears. This might get loud.”
You did as she said as the two of you hid behind a temporary wall.
“No, stop!” Moon Dancer shouted convincingly, “I’m not going to make out with you!”
“Aha!” Minuette said appearing around the wall, “I knew this was too good to be true, and now I have proof! What do you think you’re doing…not…doing anything…and smiling at me?”
The blue unicorn knew that this was a ploy to pull out of hiding to which she smiled and shook her head.
“Let me guess,” Minuette said to you, “You know that Moon Dancer ask me to spy on you, right?”
“Yep,” you said, “and that Twinkle Shine was in on it, too. So, did I pass the friendship test with Moom Dancer?”
Minuette alternated her gaze between you and her friend as her mind thought about the day.
“Fine, you passed the test. You know that it wasn’t about how I felt about you, right? You are still my friend after all. Sure, I was worried how Moon would react when you met her before, but then she wanted for me to be her support in case she got cold hooves. But you know what? When I saw the two of you together, it was like we were back in school! I guess what I’m trying to say is that if Moon Dancer doesn’t mind being friends with you again, I don’t mind either!”
“Glad to hear that,” Moon said hugging her friend, “Thanks for your help.”
“Anytime!”
“Minuette, do you want to hang out with us, like for real now? After all, you know where we’re going.”
“Nah, I think you two can take it from here. Maybe some other time we can get together. Plus I think you’re going to need the time alone with each other. See you soon!”
You looked at Moon Dancer as she returned the glance, wondering what Minuette meant by you needing time alone. Before you could ask the blue unicorn disappeared from view.
“Well, that was interesting…” you said.
“Yes, well now we’re alone. Now, let’s get dinner. You’re still planning on going to The Basil Leaf, right?”
“Yep, why mess with the plan, right?”
“Right!” Moon said as you made your way through the rest of the museum. Strangely, Moon Dancer looked like she was deep in thought although what you couldn’t tell for now. You hoped that after dinner Moon would tell you how she felt about this friendship.
Author's Note
Just a chapter or two to go before I can say this story has a good ending.
Thanks to all who read this so far!
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 12
You and Moon Dancer made your way from the museum towards the café near your home. It was funny how things changed in such a short time. This café was once a place where you met frequently, but after your return it was the place where Minuette met you and told you that Moon wanted nothing to do with you. Now with your friendship renewed this café was no longer a place for endings but new beginnings.
“I was thinking,” Moon Dancer said as her voice pulled you out of your thoughts. “I think we should skip the stargazing event with Professor Nebula.”
“Oh?” you said surprised at the request but hopeful that this wasn’t Moon Dancer’s way of ending the night, “Do you want to go or do something else?”
“No,” she said before shaking her head, “I mean yes, but no more museums or lectures.”
“Ok,” you said confused at the mixed messages, “what then?”
She thought for a moment as if the decision was the most difficult one in her life, “Somewhere private, a place we can just talk alone and not be interrupted.”
“Alright, do you have this private place in mind?” you asked.
“Well, I hope you don’t mind, but can we just go back to your place?”
The revelation shocked your very core. You thought the unicorn had in mind a nice quiet park, not the most private of places like your apartment.
“I guess that’s ok, but why my place?”
“I don’t know, I just think it would be the best, most private of places to go. Besides, I think your place would be the best to talk to you.”
“Well, why not tell me now?”
“I…can’t,” she said, “What I have to say is between you and me. I don’t feel right saying it here. Going back to your place is ok for you, right?”
You wondered what was so secret that no pony else could hear it. It wasn’t like the café was filled with customers. That was when you began to worry. What if she wanted to go to your apartment to tell you that she wasn’t interested in continuing this friendship? You hoped this wasn’t the case as that would tear your heart out! Still there was no use delaying what needed to be said.
“My apartment is fine,” you said trying to mask your worry.
“Great,” she said as her voice trailed off and she once again reverted to her quiet state, the secrets she had to tell you once again locked away.
“So, here it is,” you said, “feel free to have a seat.”
“Thanks,” she said finding a place on the couch and looked up at you as if waiting for something.
“Do you want something to drink, or a snack?” you said trying to play the good host.
“No thanks. I just want to talk to you right now.”
With her voice heavily hitting the words “right now” you took a seat in the chair directly across from her, as sitting next to her on the couch might not be the best decision especially with what she had to say.
“I…I have something important to say to you,” she said, “and I felt that if I wasted anymore time I might regret it.”
“Actually I have something important to tell you too, something that was on my mind,” you said no longer able to hold it in,” but please, you first.”
“Oh,” she said surprised that you had something to say before taking a dep breath, “Alright, here it goes.”
As she opened her mouth to speak, you felt that this was the moment to say something. Without giving it a second thought, you too spoke.
“Wait, what?” you said first.
“I love you. I didn’t think I could after all this time holding that grudge and being away from you. When you bumped into me on the street that night, all those feelings came flooding back. I tried to push them aside by pushing you away, but it was no use. Now I realize what a fool I was to try and resist my feelings! Can you forgive me?”
You didn’t waste a single second as you got up off the chair and walked towards her. She stood up with a confused look on her face as to what you were doing. Then before she could react you wrapped your arms around her and gave her a kiss that felt better than anything you could ever hope for. Moon Dancer responded by embracing you, pulling your body closer towards you as she knew you accepted her forgiveness.
“There, is that the answer you wanted?” you said.
“Better than any I can get from a book,” Moon Dancer replied and she stared at you with those dreamy eyes, “Now, how about we have some fun on this couch together.”
The two of you made out with the passion of those years ago when you were first in love. You knew that this was a second chance you weren’t going to take for granted ever again, not when this magnificent mare was willing to forgive and forget. From now on you knew life was going to be wonderful with Moon Dancer.
The End
Author's Note
Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed it.
A Study in Friendship and Romance
Chapter 7
Chapter 7
The next day you had off from work, or it was more like Twinkle Shine gave you the day off. You felt bad that after one day of employed you had to leave your friend behind, but she didn’t mind. In fact it was as if she wanted you to go and meet Moon Dancer, if nothing more than to have closure for you and her. It didn’t take you long for you to make your journey from the bookstore and your apartment to the library just a few blocks away. The library was always a magnificent building, a grand white marble edifice with white columns in the front and a bas relief depicting aspects of learning like science, literature, and history. This was a place you spent much of your time in college researching and even meeting with friends. But now wasn’t the time to reminisce about the past, despite the fact that this little trip had much to do with what happened before.
“Well, here I am,” you said approaching the doors like a prisoner going to jail. “What am I going to say to Moon Dancer? It’s not like she gave me much of a chance when she saw me at the bookstore. I guess there’s no way to do it other than to try to apologize.”
Collecting every ounce of your courage you had stored up for this moment, you pushed open the massive doors and entered the library. The library had a big open room in the front where the circulation and information desks were as were several large tables for reading or studying and the reference books. To the left were two levels containing rows upon rows of nonfiction stacks as well as the children’s library. In the back was a smaller reading room with all the fiction books. After all the times you spent studying or simply pursuing the shelves, you could almost walk the place blindfolded. Yet this wasn’t a time to simply rush about the place, for you were on a mission to find Moon Dancer. Of course given how big the library was it would be easier for you to find a book among the shelves than a pony there.
“Alright, here goes nothing,” you said as you began scanning the room for Moon’s familiar face. There were only a few ponies sitting in the main room looking contently over books, but none of them were who you wished to speak to right now. You made your way into the back reading room, only to find no sign of the unicorn in question.
“She must be somewhere in the stacks,” you said albeit softly as you prepared to venture into the labyrinth of books. The trip through the fiction was brief and yielded no results. It was predictable as the Moon Dancer you knew was more into nonfiction like science and magic studies than reading about romance or fantasy stories. Then it was into the rest of the stacks at a blinding pace, almost knocking over a pony holding a haphazardly stacked pile of books.
“Watch it,” he said as he struggled to keep his load from tumbling over.
“Sorry,” you said pausing for a moment before heading into the first floor of the stacks. There were a few ponies searching the rows upon rows of books and reading in the aisles, but once again the pony that you made it your goal today to see was nowhere to be found. It would be just your luck needing to get something done only to find out that this had been a waste of time.
“Ok, not in the reading areas and not in the first floor. Guess there’s one last place to go.”
You trudged up the steps to the second floor, hoping she was there while feeling very frustrated that your search was ending with nothing. Of all the places where she could be, the second floor was the best area as it had books on both science and magical studies. Why you chose to go to the other places first and not here was beyond your guess. Your heart began to beat faster at the knowledge of finally achieving your goal and maybe with the anxiety of having not planned out everything you wanted to say to Moon Dancer when you found her. With each stack of books accounted for, you were getting one step closer towards your goal. You prepared yourself for the last aisle and turned the corner, only to find it completely empty.
“Rats, she’s not here,” you said to which you heard a shushing sound from the aisle next door. Out of desperate hope you looked over to see a mare giving you a perturbed look before resuming checking the shelves for a book. With your head hung low in defeat, you began to make your way back towards the stairs. Maybe you’d find a book along the way to check out, but beyond that you felt like the time spent in the library, no, more like the day, was ruined.
“I checked everywhere, the stacks and the reading rooms, everywhere.”
You happened to pause before a door leading to the children’s wing. Like the rest of the stacks, the children’s library was two floors and plenty of space for books, reading areas and places for special events. It even had its own circulation/ information desk, like it was a library within a library. But you quickly shook off the notion that Moon Dancer would be there. After all, she had no children or relatives who were kids, and she never struck you as the type to be interesting in reading children’s books. Yet as you were about to leave you heard a familiar yet muffled voice.
“Moondancer?” you said in surprise as you opened the door and entered the children’s wing. She wasn’t there on the same floor, but you could hear her conversing with the unseen foal somewhere below.
“I sure will!” the filly said in a sing song voice filled with excitement, “Thanks Miss Moon Dancer.”
“You’re welcome; now let’s get your book checked out.”
You carefully made your way down the stairs and towards the desk where Moon Dancer stood. It was like a complete change from when you saw her at the bookstore. She still looked a little frumpy and disheveled, but she was actually happy and content, smiling at the filly as she accepted her book and library card. It reminded you of happier times spent with you studying, hanging out, and having fun. As you got lost in your own memories, you failed to realize that upon leaning against the one low shelf your hand accidentally caught a few chapter books and sent them careening off the edge, landing on the floor in a thud. That was all it took for Moon Dancer to look up, and in that moment her expression changed from placidness to one of shock like you were the worst thing she could see at the library. You stood there with a sheepish grin, not sure what to say or do. This only made things worse as Moon Dancer gave you a stare the likes of which would burn a hole through you if she had the power!
“Um…Miss Moon Dancer?” the filly’s voice cut through the awkward silence, “Are you ok? Who’s that man you’re staring at? Is he your boyfriend something?”
It was definitely not to the words you expected the pony to say or that both of you wanted to hear. You opened your mouth to speak in the hopes of explaining things, but Moon Dancer shot you a not so subtle look that told you not to talk and that she would handle this.
The filly shrugged off the awkward encounter saying, “Alright, I’ll be back next week. See you then Miss Moon Dancer.”
“Bye Golden Tulip,” Moon Dancer said with a wave, but the moment that she saw the filly exit the children’s library, her forced smile quickly melted away into that cold stare once again, “What are you doing at my job?”
Each word she said to you was punctuated like an explosion, especially when she got to the word “you,” her voice dripping with venom like you were the last pony she expected or wanted to see here.
“I was... wait you work here?”
“Yes, I’m a children’s librarian. I don’t just come here to study. Now, I’m going to ask you again: Why are you here?”
It was a shock to you hearing she was a children’s librarian. You always saw her as doing something scholarly like be a teacher or scientist, so her working here wasn’t much of a stretch. What surprised you was the fact that she was working with kids. It wasn’t that you saw her as bad with kids, more like she preferred to work with adults. But this wasn’t something to debate at this time. What mattered was how to answer the question. It was a simple one, but it needed to be handled carefully like something fragile since this may be your only chance to speak with her.
“Well,” Moon Dancer said as her already frayed patience was clearly waning.
“I wanted to come here and say I’m sorry to you.”
“Sorry? Sorry for what?”
“For not asking you out to the dance when we were in school, for throwing away such a great relationship we had together so easily…”
“For being an unfeeling jerk,” Moon Dancer said adding her feelings, although you noticed her frown starting to crack.
“Yeah, Ok. I was a big jerk. You had no right to be treated that way by me or anypony else.”
“Your apology is still not accepted,” Moon Dancer said as she walked from the desk and over towards the pile of books that lay at your hooves, bending down to pick them up.
“Here let me help you,” you said reaching for a think picture book.
“No, I got this,” Moon said.
“Please, I made the mess. Let me help clean this up.” you insisted.
“I said… Gahhh!” Moon exclaimed as on accident her hand touched yours, like she just touched fire. She jerked backwards and sat down with a thud, hitting her head on a nearby chair.
“Moon, I’m so sorry,” you said approaching her, “Are you ok?”
“No, I’m not,” she said as she hastily collected the books near you with her telekinesis, “I thought that you were gone from my life, which I could just move on, but no. You had to come back in and open up old wounds! First you decide to work at my favorite place to go when I’m not here, one that didn’t have the memories of you on it. I think that Twinkle Shine, my former friend, planned this, to have you meet me. Then, you come here to pester me further! Why couldn’t you just leave me be. Why don’t you just…”
Her words diminished in a frustrated growl as she got up and resumed putting back the books, but you knew what she meant. Why couldn’t you just find another job, or even better, move far away from Canterlot, never to see her again?
“Moon, listen. You know that even if I lived on the other side of Equestria that wouldn’t you help you forget what happened. Do you think I expected to meet you on the street or be reminded of the horrible thing I did by Twinkle Shine, or meeting you again at the bookstore. Moving on isn’t going to help either of us.”
“So, that was you plan then, come here and act like nothing happened and have us go back to the happy relationship we had. Because if you’re thinking that then you might as well…”
“No,” you said cutting her off, “I know that won’t help things either.”
“Then what?” Moon said with a frustrated tone as she put her face up to yours, “What do you want other than that apology?”
“I… I just want to talk to you. I know that you don’t want to be my friend, and you made it perfectly clear we can’t go back to being in a relationship. I just want the two of us to talk, like we just met. I know it might not be perfect as we still remember the past, but I want to try, and I hope you will too. We just can’t live with the memories like this trying to avoid each other and act upset when we see each other. So, will you give me a chance and just talk with me?”
“Aren’t we talking now?” Moon said, “Is this not enough for you?”
“Yes, I mean, no. We’re not talking. We’re fighting over books and accusing each other! Can’t we just go somewhere where we can sit and talk that’s not here or the bookstore?”
Moon’s dour expression slowly began to crack in front of you as she weighed the possibilities of talking with you. You realized that saying what you felt didn’t need to be worried over and rehearsed like some speech. It was clear that your words reached her, but was it enough to convince her.
“I…I…can’t,” she began to say but you held up a hand.
“Please, just this one time, and if you don’t like it… well…then that will be it. So, are you willing to give me a chance?”
She looked at you for a long time, not to judge the sincerity of your request but as if uncertain what to do. It was as if a war was going on inside her mind between the side that she currently embraced that granted her safety by closing her heart to all around her and the still present side you remembered where Moon Dancer was fun-loving and open to new experiences. She could have easily rebuffed your offer and told you to leave, but she didn’t. It was then that you noticed her tense body relax as her face changed from being upset to a sign of relenting.
“Fine, we’ll talk,” Moon Dancer said with a sigh, “Oh this sound like a bad idea, but I can’t resist. Alright so how are we going to do it?”
“Do it?” you said raising an eyebrow.
“Right, bad phrase,” Moon said shaking her head, “I mean, how should we meet?”
“Oh, well, are you available today to talk?”
“Err…I’m suppose I’m free after working here,” Moon said who seemed to realize that you didn’t have it planned out, “I suppose that you don’t have a place for this talk either, right?”
“Not really,” you replied sheepishly, “I wanted to get past you saying yes. Do you have a place you like to go, besides here and the bookstore?”
“I do go to other places I’ll have you know,” she snapped, “Alright, how about The Happy Bean. It’d a coffee shop nearby.”
“Oh yeah, I remember that place.”
“Good. Then I’ll be there at five thirty. Sound like a plan?”
“It sounds fine,” you said, “Thank you for allowing me to talk to you.”
“Don’t read much into this,” Moon said, “This is just a talk. Now, if you excuse me, I have to get back to work.”
“Right, I’ll let you get back to it. So…see you later!” you said as you gave a weird wave and disappeared from the children’s library, but not before turning back to see Moon Dancer shake her head as she returned to her desk. Although you weren’t sure, you could have sworn she cracked a little smile.
Author's Note
And I'm back on schedule. Sorry about the Hiatus with this story. I had to iron out a few details before continuing.
