Ghost in the Library
The aisles of the library were silent. The few candles still on, faintly gave away the hidden eyes in the corners. The pale light of the moon, the always vigilant silhouette of the Mare in the Moon, watched every moment. The Doctor and his companion did the only thing they could given the circumstances.
They ran.
“There´s a door! Agh, it´s locked!” the Doctor yelled.
“Well open it! Use your sonic screw-thingy!” she yelled.
“It doesn't do wood!”
“You´re an unicorn! Use your magic!”
“Oh right, I keep forgetting I have a horn now!” awkward pause. “How do I use it?”
“Oh for Celestia´s sake!” and she kicked the door down.
“Glad to have you around.” they got in and closed the door shut, placing a large book to close the door.
“That was close!” he said.
“Too close!”
“Stop complaining!”
“I´ll complain as much as I want!”
“Umh excuse me?”
“Oh Derpy never complained!”
“I´m not Derpy!!!”
“Excuse me!”
They turned over and saw a small and shy light blue bespectacled pony hiding behind the counter.
“Wh-who are you two?”
“Well, hello there! Sorry for the disturbance. I´m the Doctor and this is my current companion, Mrs. Masquerade.” the Doctor introduced the yellow mare who scowled.
“What is happening in here? I saw something grab my coworkers and they just...disappeared. I ran and hide here but now...”
“Calm down. Everything will be fine.” Masquerade calmed down the terrified mare and then glared at the Doctor. “Right?”
“Sure, we´re only trapped in a library with a terrifying and unknown creature hunting us down but I´m sure we will be okay.”
Masquerade reassured the trembling librarian and moved next to angry whisper at the Doctor. “Could you be a little more considerate? The poor thing is scared to death!”
“Well sorry for reminding you that we are in a life threatening situation!”
Masquerade crossed her forelegs. “So, you have any ideas?”
“Well, if you were Derpy I could ask you to fly through that window and go to the TARDIS for...”
“Well, I´m not Derpy! She is gone, you´re stuck with me and you have to deal with that!”
The Doctor took a good look at those angry eyes. Suddenly, he felt really small and stupid. “Yes. I know. New companion. I´m sorry.”
Masquerade calmed down and let the Doctor go back to find a solution, searching through the library books. She sit down next to the librarian.
“You two are okay?” she asked.
“He gets in my nerves all the time but he is not such a bad guy deep down. Really deep down.” Masquerade said.
“I have read about him. About the Doctor. He´s in some of these books.”
“Oh, and any of those books mention a pretty mare companion?”
“They mention several companions.” Masquerade face fell down. “You are so lucky. Travelling along with the Doctor. That means you´re special. I wish I could have your life. My life is so...boring and plain. I´m just a dull librarian. I´m nopony!”
“Hey, don´t say that!” and Masquerade grabbed her shoulders. “I once met a librarian who saved Equestria, twice! So don´t gave me that “I´m nopony special” speech! Right now, right here, we are special!”
“Yes, you are!” the Doctor suddenly shouted. “You are earth ponies! That explains everything. Miss librarian...” the Doctor was so excited he accidentally teleported. “the other staff members what are they?”
“They are all unicorns. I´m the only earth pon-”
“That´s it! I´m so stupid! So stupid stupid stupid!”
“Care to share, Doctor?” Masquerade asked.
“You earth ponies have a connection with earth and dirt. You are always covered in mud and filth not like us unicorns you are all used to get dirty!”
“Doctor...” he was again being haughty and inconsiderate.
“And this whole place is made of what?”
The mares didn´t answer.
“Wood! This whole place is made of wood and your natural connection to nature protects you! All the unicorns succumbed to that creature but not you because you lack a horn! There´s a double entendre in there but never mind now, I need time to find the correct spell!” and he teleported back into the shelves. “Where is it? Where is it?”
A sudden bang in the door remind them that it was a creature just hanging outside the room.
“Where are you, blasted book?”
“Doctor, care to hurry?!” Masquerade pleaded.
“Find something to delay it!”
“Delay it with what? We don't have any weapons!”
“Please, you want weapons? We’re in a library! Books! The best weapons in the world! This room’s the greatest arsenal we could have - arm yourselves!”
The door finally collapsed and a shadowy pony figure entered. It had no eyes nor Cutie Mark, only darkness inside. Masquerade and the librarian grabbed all the books they could hold in their hooves and started to throw them at the creature.
“Not exactly what I had in mind but...aha! Here it is!” the Doctor took a book and started to read.
“You think this is the right moment to read a book?” Masquerade yelled.
“I´m busy!”
The books didn't hurt the shadow creature who hissed at the mares. The Doctor shut the door and throw it at the monster with his magic, tumbling it down.
“Now, where´s the exit?”
“There's a back door there!” the librarian say and they all ran inside. Unfortunately it led to another closed room.
“We´re trapped!” Masquerade complained.
“Don't need to worry, I just needed some time to perform this spell...” and the Doctor horn began to bright.
“And what does the spell do-” but Masquerade disappeared before she could finish her question. The Doctor, suddenly serious, turned over to face the shadow creature.
“Umh Doctor?”
He turned over to find the shy librarian standing there.
“How did yo-”
Now it was the turn for the Doctor to be interrupted as the shadow creature broke the door and growled at them.
******
The sudden bright of light grey disappeared, leaving a confused and angry yellow mare in the middle of a garden. She looked around and once she realised she was all alone she started to yell.
“Stupid stupid stupid!”
*****
The Doctor was still new to this whole “levitation spells” thing but he managed to pull both him and the librarian into the air, moving into the upper levels. The shadow creature was unable to jump very high apparently and growled like a feral cat at them. The Doctor and the librarian ran into another room, closing the door behind.
“What are you doing here?”
“I recognized the spell and moved away from its area...”
“Right, don't care. You shouldn't be here!” he yelled at her but regretted the second he saw tears on her eyes. The poor thing was simply too sensitive. “I´m sorry. It seems my current incarnation is a bit of a jerk. Must come with the horn.” the Doctor fell down to his haunches. “I´m all out of ideas. I simply don´t know what to do. I´m still new and that means useless.”
The librarian knew this was her chance to say something inspiring and cheer up the Doctor but she didn't knew what to say so she just sit down as a well.
*****
Masquerade roamed through the garden, surrounded by the statues of past victories. Ponies representing Victory, Friendship and many more. She stumbled onto a statue that didn't seemed that reassuring. The smuggling draconequus forever trapped in a opera pose, laughing forever. She saw the glimpse of a purple tail, hiding behind some bushes.
“Wait!”
She ran, trying to catch that pink coated pony. She never got a good view of her face but she seemed to be wearing a cap with a propeller?
“Where are you?”
The mysterious mare lead Masquerade to a clearing where a single statue stood. The statue of an alicorn princess but it wasn't either Celestia nor Luna. Masquerade came closer to read the inscription.
And then she gasped.
Masquerade looked back at the statue, the moon bathing her figure in a silvered light.
*****
The Doctor used his magic to move as many shelves as he could to keep the shadow creature at bay. The librarian found an empty closet and they hide inside.
“I dont´want to die! I don´t want to die here! Why is this happening to me?” the librarian cried.
“You? What about me? I survived the Windigos Invasion! The Smooze Infestation! The eighth season finale! And now I´m going to die in a closet! In Ponyville!”
The librarian hugged a book close to her heart while crying. The Doctor suddenly remembered something. “Wait! You say you were with the other ponies when this thing first attacked...”
“Yes?”
“When Masquerade and I entered this place it was empty. We assumed at first it was because of closing hours but this all started during the day.”
“Yes.”
“So why is still here? Why is still roaming this place? it wont attack you because you´re an earth pony and it couldn't know I would be here. What is it waiting?” the Doctor opened the door and went out to look at the window. The moon was high, bathing with her light the Everfree Forest. “Could it be?”
The shelves finally came down and the shadow creature approached the Doctor, roaring.
“Listen to me...”
The creature roared again.
“Listen! It will have a great life. Your child, it will be loved!”
The creature roared once more.
“I´ve seen it! Years from now this place will be loved! The pony that will live here will love and take care of this place! And now this mare, this librarian, she will take care of your child!”
The meek librarian nodded.
“You don´t need to worry. She will be fine.”
The creature leaned its headed and after a small growl, it appeared to have understood and disappeared in a puff of smoke.
“What was all that?”
“The seed of this tree came from the Everfree Forest. It took a few years for the mother to realize but she came looking for her child and she wasn´t precisely happy to see some haughty unicorns living inside her. But she will be fine now because you will take care of this place, right miss...”
“Oh, Spectrum Dash.”
“Kind of a strong name for such a meek pony.”
“It runs in the family. Along with the rainbow mane.” and she tossed her multi colored mane away revealing a pair of strong reddish eyes. “Wait! What happened to my friends?”
The noise of grunts in the living room gave the answer. They were all fine and safe if a bit confused.
“Well, it ends well wha-oh pony feathers! Masquerade!”
******
The yellow mare was waiting in a bench in the Royal Gardens. She was still shocked for what she had saw and for what it meant. Suddenly she felt very little and stupid, like she was just a tiny foal walking along an eternal and powerful god. The familiar roar of the barn box arriving woke her up.
“I´m sorry, I´m terribly sorry and you can yell at me all that you wan-”
“Just take me home.” and she entered the TARDIS.
“Sure, home. I can...I can do that.”
As the TARDIS disappeared, a smiling figured watch it leave. Her propeller hat spinning and her manic grin shining in the night. She had done well, she had planted the seeds of mistrust on the companion. Now the Doctor will be betrayed and left alone and nothing will stop her “Daddy” from returning.
