Hourglass

by DuskPhoenix

Rating: teen
Tags: Alternate Universe, Main 6, Drama, Original Character, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Mystery, Spike
Length: 5621

An "automaton" resembling a pony made of living glass is accidentally freed from its prison deep in the Castle of the Two Sisters.

An "automaton" resembling a pony made of living glass is accidentally freed from its prison deep in the Castle of the Two Sisters. Though it acts supremely unhelpful, Twilight manages to learn of an ancient evil growing steadily across the land, infecting the very nature of the world. In the face of doom, the Elements of Harmony must try once more to save Equestria.

It would be a lot easier if the glass pony would just give them a straight answer...

Published 2017-11-01 21:10:06 UTC
Last updated 2018-02-01 03:46:03 UTC

Prologue

Twilight walked quickly down the spiraling stairs of the Everfree castle, a myriad of magical sensors and devices floating after her. Shortly behind, Spike lugged a box almost as big as he was, huffing and puffing all the way. Eventually, he groaned.

"Why do you... even need... all this... gah... stuff?" Spike wheezed.

"Well, the magic artifact I wanted to study is a bit too big to bring to my lab, so I'm just bringing the lab here!" Twilight explained, her voice laced with barely-concealed excitement.

They finally got to the bottom of the stairs and Spike flopped to the ground. Twilight looked back at him and giggled.

"It's just around the corner, Spike, I know you can do it!" She ruffled his head spikes playfully. "I'm sure a strong dragon like yourself can make it just a bit farther."

Spike looked determined at that. Standing up with shaking legs, he gripped the box and heaved with all his might.

It didn't even budge. Spike tried again, but it still didn't move. Twilight watched this for a moment, then just picked Spike up and put him on her back.

"Thanks for bringing it this far, big guy." Twilight said, picking up Spike's box in her magical aura. Spike gave a weak thumbs-up, groaning. As they continued down the hallway at the base of the stairs, Spike looked around.

"What even is this thing you're gonna study?" He asked, looking over some paintings across the walls.

"It's some kind of statue." Twilight said. "It was kept pretty far down, but it doesn't have anything around it that seems like it was meant to keep anypony out. There's all sorts of interesting paintings and carvings in the room with it that I want to study as well."

Spike raised an eyebrow. "Why are you bringing equipment to measure magic then?"

Twilight considered that for a moment. "Well, I just want to be careful. It seems like every time we find something here it's got some crazy enchantment on it. I want to make sure there isn't anything dangerous."

Spike nodded. "Like that book that made Rarity turn everything all fancy?"

Twilight chuckled awkwardly. "Uh, yeah. Like that." She shuddered. "That took forever to fix..."

A few moments later, the hall opened up into a wide, high-ceilinged room. Pillars made of alternating dark and light stone lined the side of the room, and paintings and sculptures in various stages of wear decorated the spaces between. At the end of the room stood a statue of an earth pony rearing onto its back hooves, its expression unnervingly blank. Spike looked up at it as Twilight walked closer, and its eyes seemed to follow him.

"Man, that is one creepy statue," Spike remarked, looking away from its gaze. Twilight nodded.

"There's an inscription on the base of the statue, but it's in some language I don't quite recognize." She walked up to the placard at the statue's base, looking over it. A few books levitated out of the boxes and floated before her, their pages turning rapidly. "It shouldn't take long for me to find out what it is though."

Spike nodded, wandering around the room as his gaze also wandered around the walls. Murals stretched across every surface, most of them having nearly faded away. The only still preserved mural lay at the end of the room across the far wall, and Spike whistled in appreciation as his gaze fell upon it.

Creatures of all sorts filled the bottom of the mural; dragons and griffins, ponies and minotaurs, zebras and bison, and even some creatures Spike didn't quite recognize. Every creature was gazing towards the center of the wall where Celestia and Luna were depicted on two thrones, the Elements of Harmony at their hooves. Spike frowned in thought as he glanced over the room again and then back to the mural. It seemed like this piece depicted the ending of the story the room had once held, but he couldn't make out enough of the other murals to guess what it was trying to show. Spike scratched his head in thought, calling back over his shoulder.

"Hey, you don't happen to have any, like, mural recovering spells, do you?" Spike asked. He waited a moment, then turned to look at Twilight. Twilight had her attention glued to a book, her mouth moving silently as her eyes flicked between the placard and the tome. Spike sighed, walking back over to Twilight and looking over her shoulder.

"You find out what language this is yet?" Spike asked, half expecting to get silence as an answer again. He looked a bit surprised when Twilight nodded.

"It's an ancient dialect of Dracon, one that died out over a thousand years ago." Twilight said, closing her book with a satisfied smirk. "But I think I've got it!"

She levitated a scrap of paper over to Spike, who looked it over carefully.

"May the Guardians watch over us until the end of Creation." Spike read, raising an eyebrow at Twilight. "Why was this written in the dragon language?"

Twilight pursed her lips in thought, her gaze falling to the mural Spike had looked at earlier. "It seems like this hall is a memorial of some kind." Twilight began slowly. "The paintings seem pony made, but the craftsmanship on the statue's plinth seems closer to ancient griffin works." Twilight eyed the support pillars and the floor, her brow furrowing. "These pillars look like minotaur craftsmanship though. And this floor," Twilight tapped the smooth, speckled tiles with a hoof, "this is Saddle Arabian marble."

"So this hall was built for Celestia and Luna by a bunch of different races?" Spike pondered that. "Do you think this could've been from when the Princesses banished Discord?"

Twilight hummed in thought. "That would make sense. Discord's chaos affected the entire world. I can imagine that the pony races weren't the only ones thankful that the world wasn't going crazy anymore." Twilight turned back to the statue. "But why is the statue an earth pony if it was dedicated to Celestia and Luna?"

Twilight and Spike looked back up at the statue in thought, staring into its cold gaze. Spike looked away after a moment, shivering and choosing to stare at the plinth instead. He paused and leaned down to inspect at the ground around the statue.

"Hey Twilight," Spike said, "there's scuff marks on the tile here. It's like-"

Twilight's eyes lit up as she glanced down to see what Spike was pointing out. "It's like the statue's been moved before!" Twilight said excitedly. "What if it's guarding a secret passage?"

Spike scratched his head. "Well how are we supposed to move this thing? It's huge."

Twilight stared up at the statue, her horn starting to glow. A low, slow beeping started up from a few of the boxes as the sensors picked up Twilight's magic, and a magenta glow surrounded the statue. Twilight's face scrunched in concentration, her brow furrowing as sweat formed across it. The statue shifted slightly with a low scraping noise, and Spike pumped a fist in the air.

"You got it Twilight!" Spike cheered, and the beeping grew faster as Twilight poured more magic into her attempt. Slowly, carefully, the statue slid across the floor. The edge of a hole came into view as the statue slid, yawning further until it revealed a narrow pit that fell straight down into darkness. Twilight relaxed, dispelling her magic and walking to the edge of the hole, her confused thoughts coming faster and faster. She peered down into it, but the only thing she could see was pure, inky blackness.

"Uhh, Twilight?"

Twilight was too deep in thought. Why was there a statue over this pit? What was this pit for? What did the other murals show? Her thoughts raced, and she frowned in annoyance as a sound broke through them.

"Spike, can you stop that beeping? It's making it hard to think." Twilight said absently. Maybe this was some sort of passageway centuries ago? No, the walls were too smooth for climbing and too narrow to fly easily. Maybe-

Twilight's thoughts screeched to a halt, her blood suddenly running cold. She looked over her shoulder at the boxes of magical sensors. They were still beeping.

"Uh, please tell me you're doing some invisible magic thing and those sensors aren't just beeping on their own." Spike nervously said. Before Twilight could answer the beeping increased in speed, getting louder and louder as it did.

A deep and sudden jolt send dust falling from the ceiling in clouds. Twilight scooped Spike up on her back and bolted away from the hole and the statue, the screeching of the sensors filling the hall until Twilight couldn't hear what Spike was yelling right next to her ear. The entire space shook, the air and stone reverberating with a constant low thrum that rose above the cacophony. Twilight's teeth chattered as the thrum vibrated through her bones, and she resisted the urge to cough as it passed through the air in her lungs. She forced herself onwards as light of all colors bloomed behind her, the door just within her reach.

All of a sudden, it stopped. Pure quiet fell over the room. Twilight almost tripped in the sudden stillness, her own hoovesteps now sounding like cannon blasts. She rounded the doorframe, skidding to a halt just outside of the hall and pressing herself against a wall and Spike into her forelegs. Both of them breathed heavily and strained their ears to listen for anything breaking the silence.

A hollow, sharp clank rang from the hall, causing Twilight and Spike to flinch. They stood tensely for a moment, but no other sounds came from the hall. Twilight looked down at Spike trembling in her arms and then out into entryway of the eerily silent hall. She held her breath and peered around the edge of the door.

The statue had been completely broken apart. Scorch marks radiated out from the hole like a five pointed star, and a large gap had been punched through the ceiling and two floors after that, letting a circle of sunlight shine down. Something in that circle glimmered, reflecting the light and making her squint. It seemed like a strange glass artifact now lay on the ground in front of the ruined statue. When nothing moved, Twilight motioned for Spike to stay back as she crept into the hall.

All of her machinery was ruined, she noticed with a frown. Whatever had scorched the ground from inside the pit had burst outwards in every direction and destroyed anything around it. She faltered at the sight of all of the books she had brought lying in a smoldering pile, gritting her teeth in barely restrained frustration. She slowed as she approached the pit, the glass heap at the foot of the crumbled statue coming into clearer view. She squinted her eyes at it. It had to just be the way the sun was glittering off of it, but the glass almost looked like...

The pile stirred.

Twilight backpedaled as fast as she could, putting a few meters between her and the glass. The pile moved, parts of it shifting and uncurling with unnatural clinks and clanks. Finally, it gave a short, synthetic sounding groan, standing on four legs.

"A pony?" Twilight breathed. As much as she couldn't believe it, her eyes told her it was true. An earth pony stood before her, entirely made from hollow glass. Its eyes opened slowly, and two glowing white irises glittered into being. A shimmering, gas-like substance flowed out from it like a short mane and tail, trailing off into the air around it. It took a deep, harsh breath, its eyes fixing on Twilight with a cold stare.

"Twilight Sparkle," The glass pony rasped in a voice as hollow as its body, "you have begun the end."

1: Cryptic Conversation

"It said what?"

Twilight flinched at how loudly Starlight Glimmer had spoken, glancing through the door they stood just outside of and into the Cutie Map room. The glass pony was lounging sideways in Twilight's throne, its expression flatly neutral and its gaze wandering over the ceiling. Spike stood a bit away from the glass pony, eyeing it warily and glancing back at Twilight. Twilight grabbed Starlight's shoulder and pulled her further back from the door.

"It said I had "begun the end,"" Twilight said, frowning, "and it knew my name somehow. I don't know what this thing is or why it was locked away in that statue, but I sent a letter to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna to see if they know what it is or what it wants."

Starlight pondered this. "I can't imagine it's got good intentions." She said. "I mean, the only other creature we know of that got sealed in stone was Discord, and he didn't exactly want to sing friendship songs when he got released."

Both Starlight and Twilight looked back at the glass pony. It continued to glance around robotically.

"Well it doesn't look hostile." Twilight observed. Starlight shook her head.

"Maybe it's trying to trick us into letting our guard down." Starlight countered. "I mean, the very first thing it said to you was a threat! It didn't exactly make a warm first impression."

"It didn't feel like a threat, though. It felt more like a warning." Twilight said, glancing back into the map room nervously. "I think we should at least try and find out what it knows."

Starlight shook her head. "How do we know it's not just going to tell us a bunch of lies?"

Twilight hesitated. "We can choose whether or not to believe it after we hear what it has to say. It can't hurt."

Twilight walked slowly into the Cutie Map room, Starlight following with a wary expression. The glass pony didn't even glance at them until they had reached the side of the map opposite it and Twilight tapped her hoof against the surface.

"Hello there," Twilight began with a smile, trying to keep her tone friendly, "we were just wondering if you could answer a few questions about what you said earlier." When the glass pony simply stared blankly at her, Twilight's smile became a bit strained. "Uhm. You know, your statement that I had begun an end? It would be really helpful if you could elaborate a bit."

The glass pony blinked slowly, the motion making the smallest of clinking sounds. Its head tilted back and it resumed scanning the ceiling.

Twilight's attempt at a smile failed fully, giving way to a frustrated frown. Starlight had a similar expression as she scratched her chin in thought.

"You're sure this thing speaks Equestrian?" Starlight asked. Twilight nodded, but she looked far more uncertain than she had before.

"I don't understand." Twilight muttered to herself. "I haven't ever dealt with something like this before. Usually mysterious forces start out with a speech, not with... weird silence."

"I prefer not to repeat myself."

Twilight and Starlight jolted as the cold, flat voice echoed out. The glass pony continued staring at the ceiling as if it hadn't spoken. Starlight and Twilight shared a look.

"Repeat yours-"

Before Starlight could even finish her question, the doors to the room burst open. She and Twilight whirled around, their surprise turning into a mixture of happiness and confusion as a pink pony collided with them in a flying hug.

"Girls!" Twilight exclaimed, giving Pinkie Pie a hug as the rest of her friends came to a stop around her. "I don't understand, why are you here?"

"Rainbow saw that glass varmint trailing after you," Applejack explained as she helped a dizzied Starlight stand, giving the glass pony a wary look, "so we came here quick as we could in case you needed help."

"Yeah!" Rainbow stomped up to Twilight with a frown. "We only found out about some probably world-destroying monster threat because I just so happened to be patrolling here!"

"Napping nearby is more likely." Rarity muttered under her breath. Rainbow snorted in response, rolling her eyes, and Rarity took the moment to push past the pegasus and give Twilight a worried look. "Really though, darling. We hear scary rumors around town of some kind of statue following you and you send absolutely nothing to us! Why didn't you call us?"

Twilight's gaze bounced between the glass pony who had gone back to staring blankly at the ceiling and the concerned looks of her friends. She sighed, lowering her voice to a whisper.

"Every time a new threat has surfaced, they've tried to do something to split us up or incapacitate us so we can't use our Harmony powers." Twilight explained. "I have no idea what we're up against here, or even if it's really an enemy at all! Until I was certain I wouldn't be putting you guys in danger, I didn't want to call you here." Her ears folded back and she frowned. "I'm sorry. I should've at least told you what I was planning. It's just all been happening so fast."

"Not fast enough." The glass pony interjected.

Twilight sighed in annoyance at the comment. "Now, let's-" Her eyes went wide, her words dying in her mouth. She whirled around, but the glass pony was still lounging in the throne all the way across the room. Her jaw worked for a few seconds before she could finally manage to speak. "Y-you heard that?"

"No." The pony said, and in the same moment swung its legs so it was sitting properly. It stepped up onto the map table, stiffly marching across. Everypony shrunk back from the table warily, unsure of what would happen. The glass pony looked over the Element Bearers, stopping as it looked over Fluttershy. Its gaze bored into the shy pegasus for a few moments and caused her to cower backwards. Rainbow stepped between Fluttershy and the glass pony, shooting a glare. The glass pony simply turned and leveled its blank gaze at Twilight.

"Idle threats would be against my goal," the glass pony sat down on the table, its phantom tail swishing behind it, "my goal is the highest priority. What I told Twilight is what would summon everypony I needed in the quickest time. It also is neither a lie nor a threat. My release means the release of a power capable of destroying this world."

Spike had made his way over, standing with Twilight between him and the map table. "Y-you mean whatever that explosion from that pit was?"

"Yes," the glass pony nodded, "within months this power will have corrupted and destroyed this world piece by piece. I will research and predict the movements of this power. For this purpose, I will inhabit this castle's library. Do not disturb my work."

The glass pony hopped down from the map, marching out of the room with eight pairs of stunned eyes glued to it.

The first to recover was Rainbow Dash, whose muzzle twisted into a frown. "Hey!" She barked, "you didn't even give us your name, jerk!"

The glass pony simply called over its shoulder without stopping, "I am nopony in name. Call me what you wish."

"Fine!" Dash called back, crossing her forelegs with a sneer. "I guess big ol' 'Nopony' isn't willing to speak with us non-glass ponies!" When she got no response, she snorted, kicking at the ground. Everyone else in the room stared at Rainbow, processing what had happened. Twilight sighed and opened her mouth to speak.

"We shouldn't call them Nopony."

Everyone looked at Fluttershy, who shrunk away as if trying to pretend she hadn't spoken up. "I-It's not nice." She quietly added, partially hiding behind her mane. Twilight and Rainbow shared a glance, and Rainbow shrugged.

"Fluttershy, it didn't really give us any other options." Twilight frowned at the open door. "It didn't exactly try to be nice to us either."

"That's a very generous description of its manners," Rarity huffed, "really, one of these days can't we find an ancient force that isn't uncouth?"

Silence held after Rarity's statement as everyone still tried to register the flurry of events. Among everypony's confusion, a single question seemed to arise in everyone's minds: "what now?"

"Wait," Spike shattered the silence, "how does Nopony know where the library is?"

Everyone shared a wide-eyed look, before sprinting off into the castle.

2: A Horse With No Name

For Twilight, being awkward in a library space was nearly a betrayal of the library itself. She had never thought it was possible to be awkward when she was surrounded by so much knowledge, with the lives and works of so many minds that stood by her, the crisp smell of the pages, and the soft sound her hoof made when she ran it over the worn pages.

Even so, after spending half the day in the library with Nopony, she found herself incredibly awkward.

Maybe it had to do with the unnerving, uncomfortable silence that hung in the air as she and a handful of her friends watched Nopony scribble on papers and flip through tomes. Maybe it had to do with the unnatural clinking noise Nopony made every time they moved. Maybe it had to do with the whispered argument that had been going on a few meters behind Twilight for what felt like hours.

"Fluttershy, I think we just oughta agree to disagree. It's a fine name, and the thing sure don't mind it."

"I-I know, but-"

"But what? Come on! I've suggested, like, a billion names so far and you've said no to every single one of them!"

"Maybe it'd help if all your suggestions weren't insults, sugarcube."

"Oh, like yours were any better."

Yes, that argument was definitely not helping, Twilight thought with a groan. The biggest reason for the awkwardness, however, was the fact that they didn't know anything about Nopony. Every question she had tried to ask was completely ignored in favor of another tome. It was like inviting a possibly rabid dog into her home just so that it wouldn't go terrorizing the neighbors. She knew that keeping Nopony in sight and confined to the castle would make it easiest to understand what it really wanted, but that didn't make it any easier to accept the glass creature hoofing through her collection.

It took a moment for Twilight to come out of her musings enough to see Nopony staring straight at her. She stopped herself from wincing, putting on her best friendly smile.

"Sorry, did you say something?" Twilight asked politely. As Nopony stared back with mechanical deadness, Twilight pondered what would be worse, actually having to answer a question from the creature, or it continuing to emptily stare at her.

"Field Magics of Modern Equestria, Volume Two, author Crop, Fresh." Nopony intoned. Twilight blinked in confusion, scanning the titles scattered around the table and seeing no books that matched that description.

"You're asking if I have it?" Twilight ventured. "You've picked out every book in the Natural Magics section. If it's not there, somepony else probably has it checked out."

Nopony stared back as if incapable of understanding the concept of the book not being in the library. They slowly reached for their quill, flipped to a new piece of paper, and jotted more things down. Twilight took the opportunity to crane her neck and see what was being written now. Lines of letters and numbers in different cases covered the page in a nigh-incomprehensible mess. There was no pattern to them that Twilight could decipher at a glance, and occasionally Nopony would go back and cross out a line they had written and restart the entire sequence. Twilight leaned closer, her brow furrowing, as she tried to find some meaning in the strange writing.

"Oh, oh, is this a guessing game?"

Twilight jumped out of her chair, wings flaring as she whipped around to come muzzle-to-muzzle with Pinkie Pie. Pinkie smiled back, glancing between Twilight, the paper, and Nopony, who had stopped writing to turn around and stare.

"A guessing game isn't fun if you keep it to yourself, Nopony!" Pinkie said, then made a face as if she's eaten something sour. "Hmm. I think Fluttershy might be right about changing that name, "Nopony" just doesn't feel right."

"If you've got a better name, I'd be happy to hear it." Twilight sighed. "AJ and Rainbow have been discussing it, but they haven't exactly found something yet that isn't..."

"Insulting." Nopony offered.

"... Yes." Twilight conceded, looking away with an awkward half-frown.

Pinkie tapped her chin in thought, staring Nopony down. She leaned back and forth as if trying to get a better angle on the glass pony, "hmm"-ing to herself as if she was trying to solve a deep mystery hidden somewhere on Nopony's back. Finally, she grinned, sitting up straight and clapping her hooves.

"I've got it!" Pinkie cheered, "Stained Glass!"

Stained Glass simply blinked in response. Pinkie's smile faded suddenly, and she nodded.

"Hmm, no, not quite." She brightened again. "Oh, now I've got it! Glass Mane!"

Twilight raised an eyebrow at Glass Mane. "Uh, Pinkie, its mane is just about the only part of it that isn't glass."

"Darn. Oh, oh, what about Mirror Mare?"

"Hey, hold up," Rainbow interjected, flapping over with AJ and Fluttershy close behind, "you guys can't just decided on a name without me! I've been working on this all morning!"

Applejack just shook her head. "Working's a bit of a stretch." She muttered under her breath.

Pinkie shrugged. "Sure! If everypony chips in, I'm sure we'll think of something super-duper amazing! I just suggested Mirror Mare."

Dash regarded Mirror Mare as if she was seriously appraising a piece of art. "Nah, too flashy. Besides, I think Zipper Lips fits better."

"Ohh, that is good." Pinkie agreed with a nod. Zipper Lips looked up at Twilight with the expression of an old accountant being asked to work late without overtime.

"Okay, if nopony can think up a better name, we should just leave it be." Twilight interjected. She paused, her eyes suddenly crossing. "Wait, I mean... augh!"

"How about Null?"

Everypony, including Nopony, turned to look at Fluttershy, and then at the glass pony. "I-it just seems easier to say." Fluttershy added, glancing between everyone as if carefully looking for their reaction. Null seemed to ponder it for a moment, before simply returning to their tomes.

"If that is most efficient." Null droned. With that decided, the library sank back into awkward silence, interrupted only by scribbling and page flipping. Everyone stood around for a few moments as if trying to figure out what to do now.

"When the heck are Rarity and Starlight getting back here?" Rainbow asked suddenly, breaking the silence. "Shouldn't they be done talking to Mayor Mare by now?"

"The Mayor's probably got them tied up in red tape just about now." AJ said, sitting down in a chair at the table at giving the scattered papers full of jumbled characters a frown.

"Spike went with them, so I'm sure he'd have sent a letter if they needed help." Twilight said. "Besides, they only went to tell the Mayor that the city wasn't in danger." Probably. "If we're just patient, everything will make sense eventually."

Everypony present conspicuously avoided looking at Null. Twilight stifled a sigh.

"Eventually..."

3: Clear as Mud

Moments before Rarity, Starlight, and Spike burst through the door, the library had settled into a sense of relative peace. Null flipped through book after book at the table in a pattern so monotonous even Twilight had resigned to doing her own thing. She sat in a chair with full view of the library, perusing a new book on thermal magic she had been gifted. Fluttershy and Pinkie walked past every few minutes, dusting and returning the piles of books on the table to what was more-or-less their rightful places. Applejack and Rainbow were across the room running out of library-related things that they could turn into a contest and just slouching in chairs.

Moments after Rarity, Starlight, and Spike burst through the door, that relative peace may as well have never existed.

"Girls, Spike," Twilight called out, "you're back!"

"Finally, thank Celestia," Rainbow groaned as she let herself slide out of her chair completely.

"Ohh, ohh, what did Mayor Mare say? Is everypony panicking? Is the town on fire? Does Null legally count as a pony enough for me to throw them a party?"

Starlight raised an eyebrow at Pinkie. "Null? I thought we named it Nopony."

"Fluttershy thought that was a mite bit rude and confusing," Applejack explained, "so it got renamed."

"I still think Zipper Lips was perfect." Rainbow grumbled, earning herself a quiet sigh from Fluttershy.

"Well Mayor Mare was certainly grateful for an explanation, or as much of one as we could give." Rarity explained. "Apparently she was already getting worried comments from ponies who'd seen our, ah, guest." Everypony glanced over at Null, who was still flipping through books and accumulating pages of alphabet soup. "Speaking of," Rarity continued, "there isn't any reason to worry for us either, right?"

"As far as we can tell it just wants books," Rainbow sighed. "Lots and lots of really boring books about crops and history and stuff. It's not even really reading them!"

"Well, that's sure weird, but at least it's not doing anything dangerous," Starlight shrugged. Twilight nodded in agreement, and the group fell into deep thought.

"Well then, er, if there isn't any threat from it..." Rarity trailed off, not meeting Twilight's eyes.

"Can we go?" Rainbow finished. Rarity winced, shooting Rainbow a glare, but it fell into a sigh.

"I'm terribly sorry, darling, but I was already behind on orders and this is prime time for customers at the boutique." Rarity explained, fiddling with her mane.

"I've got a lotta work I should be doing as well if you don't need all of us here no more." Applejack added. Fluttershy and Pinkie nodded along.

Twilight smiled encouragingly. "Of course. Don't worry, I have Starlight and Spike with me in case anything does happen, and I promise to call you right away this time. Thank you for helping me."

The six mares joined together in a group hug, which parted for a moment as Pinkie pulled Starlight and Spike in as well. Rainbow was the first to leave, after which Twilight's other friends filtered out until Starlight, Twilight and Spike were left waving at a closing door. A page turned in the silence, reminding the three of the catalyst for all the day's events.

"So..." Starlight attempted to break the silence, but found herself just awkwardly trailing off. Clearing her throat, she tried again. "Have you figured out anything about what "the end" it was talking about was?"

Twilight just groaned. "No, nothing at all. It only talks if it can't find a book, and it just ignores most of what I ask!" She rubbed the bridge of her muzzle, sighing. "I swear, it almost feels like this thing is trying to drive me up the walls."

"Maybe it'll talk when it's done doing... Whatever it's doing." Spike suggested, just the slightest bit of hope in his voice. Behind him, Null robotically reached for another book without saying a word.

"I appreciate the optimism," Twilight said, "but it would be nice to know something solid about what's going on."

Almost before she was done speaking, Spike belched a fountain of green flame that curled up into a letter bearing Celestia's seal. Twilight caught it in her magic, eagerly opening it as Starlight looked on.

"Wow. The Princess really has great timing." Starlight said, getting a nod from Spike.

"Honestly? It's kinda weird." Spike whispered back when he thought Twilight wouldn't hear. Twilight was a bit too busy reading the letter to notice, a frown growing across her muzzle. After a moment of silence, she levitated the letter wordlessly towards Starlight, who read it with concern.

From the pen of Quick Quill, Royal Scribe
Addressing Princess Twilight,

I, Quick Quill, Royal Scribe, am most apologetic, but Princess Celestia is currently at a charity event and cannot respond to your missive. However, I, Quick Quill, Royal Scribe, would like to take this opportunity to reiterate the Princess' excitement for your tea tomorrow morning. She has been greatly looking forward to it, and you may receive a faster answer by reiterating your missive then.

Your Most Humble Servant Quick Quill, Royal Scribe

Starlight looked up in confusion. "I didn't know you had a tea with Princess Celestia planned."

Twilight shook her head, lowering her voice so only Starlight and Spike could hear. "That's just it, I didn't."

All three looked back down at the letter, a feeling of unease settling over them. Null closed another book somewhere behind them, and then stood up with their chair scraping the crystal floor. Twilight rolled up the letter and shoved it into Spike's claws as Null glanced over at her.

"Alright, I'm going to borrow your seismograph," Null droned, walking casually past the mares and dragon, "try not to tip any furniture."

Starlight was the first to react, reaching out a hoof. "Hey, you can't just take something from the castle without asking!"

"I'll give it back," came the flippant response.

Starlight groaned in frustration, flashing Twilight a look of annoyance. "Maybe ask Celestia if she can find anything about making this thing less rude." With that, Starlight bolted off to follow the glass pony, leaving Twilight and Spike with their growing confusion.