Twilight Alone

Twilight looked at herself in a standing mirror, while lying on the bed inside of her room in the Hoofington Inn. I need to brush my mane; it’s a mess, she thought. She levitated the hairbrush she had packed out of her saddle bag and began straightening her hair. The act was both relaxing, and gave her something to do that didn’t require standing up.

After four days of walking, she did not want to stand up. I’m already sore and exhausted after only a few days of walking. How does Applejack do this every day? Thinking about her friends reminded Twilight of the locket they had given her. Quickly putting her brush away, she magically lifted the necklace in front of her, gently opening the dangling locket with a hoof. Inside was a miniature picture of her and her five friends, all smiling. The first time Twilight had opened it was two days ago. Seeing the picture for the first time caused her to wonder where they found a picture that size so quickly. Now, she just looked at it for a moment before closing the locket and lowering the necklace so that it lay around her neck. It’s nice to have a reminder of home and friends, but dwelling on it won’t bring me any answers.

Sighing, Twilight stood up. Her hooves immediately began to ache again. Looking in the mirror once more, she wondered what her friends might say if they knew how sore a few days of walking had made her.

She tried to mimic Rainbow Dash’s voice. “You’re in great shape, Twilight... for an egghead!”

The room was devoid of an audience to ask for an opinion, but Twilight felt her impression was spot on.

Leaving her room and then the inn, Twilight slowly walked around town looking for the library. She had realized after leaving Ponyville that not only did she not know where she should be going on this quest Princess Luna had inspired her to undertake, she also didn’t understand just what she was supposed to be looking for. She had left Ponyville woefully underprepared in terms of research, but now she hoped to resolve this. Her best hope for that lay in the library, or so she hoped.

Luckily, she had been in contact with the librarian here before. She tried to remember what she knew about him. Page Turner, an Earth pony with a penchant for books about natural phenomena. Plants, animals, weather, even different kinds of rocks! Who finds rocks more interesting than magical study? Although, that is a unicorn-centric way of thinking. If you can’t cast spells, books on magic aren’t very interesting.

As extent of her knowledge of Page Turner, that was all she knew about Hoofington’s residents. Even that little bit of information had only come about due to the occasional letter or book exchange between them. Hoofington contained the closest library to Ponyville, and, due to the small size of their respective libraries, each had books that the other lacked. From time to time the librarians would get a request for a book in the other’s library, so letters would be sent and books loaned by mail. I’m sure Page Turner will be willing to help me, Twilight thought, feeling confident when she located the library.

Unlike Ponyville’s library, the one standing before her now was a two-story stone building. Looking around briefly, Twilight noticed that it was the only stone building in the entire town, which she found oddly out of place next to so many wooden structures. Perhaps this building has some history to it. I wonder if a stone building is more resistant to Rainbow Dash crashes than my tree. Then again, the tree does have a lot of natural warmth and comfort that stone might lack. Wouldn’t stone get damp, like a cave? Only one way to find out, I guess! With that thought, she opened the door.

As she stepped inside, Twilight recoiled from the sudden assault on her ears. She’d never heard a library this loud, even the always busy Canterlot royal library. Over two dozen ponies stood packed closely together around the few tables, reading books and talking loudly in order to be heard over the other talking groups. Many of them were elder ponies, and she didn’t see a single filly or colt. Twilight set aside thoughts about the noise, as it would be very rude to introduce herself by lecturing Page Turner on how to run his own library. Maybe the noise is worth it to have so many ponies share the joy of reading all at once, she thought as she looked for Page Turner. With so many ponies crowding together around the tables it was hard to distinguish any particular pony, let alone one she’d never actually seen. Her search ended after a few minutes when she saw a stallion carrying a basket full of books in his mouth, and when his long blonde tail swished to the side, she saw that his cutie mark was an open book with a quill writing in it. As he appeared to work at the library, Twilight decided to approach him. When she had managed to work through the crowded room to get behind him, she stopped. She had to raise her voice to be heard over the noise. “Excuse me, I’m looking for Page Turner.”

The stallion glanced behind himself. Upon seeing Twilight he set the basket down, smiled, and turned around to properly face her. “You’ve found him. Are you new in town? I don’t believe we’ve been introduced.” With that, he bowed his head and flashed a very dazzling smile.

Now that she had the chance to look at him, Twilight wondered if he had to beat Hoofington’s mares away with a stick. A bit smaller than Big Macintosh, he was still quite tall, with a leaner build. Her eyes were initially drawn to his well-groomed, lengthy blonde mane. Just add “Prince” in front of his name, and Rarity would be here in a heartbeat! A pair of large, bright blue eyes were looking right back at her. While the semblance was far from perfect, the eyes and white coat reminded her of Shining Armor, which put her at ease. Twilight smiled as she went into her planned introduction “It’s nice to meet you! I’m Twilight Sparkle, the librarian from Ponyville. We’ve traded letters but never met face to face.”

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, Miss Sparkle.” After looking around the crowded library quickly, his smile faded. “Unfortunately, you picked a rather busy day to pay a visit to my library. The whole town is worried, and that’s got everypony in here researching and talking. It’s normally much more tranquil.”

Twilight smiled once more. “It’s perfectly alright, really. You have a wonderful collection of books, I’m glad that so many ponies want to enjoy them.” Page Turner seemed pleased by the praise for his library’s collection. “If you don’t mind my asking though, what’s going on? What’s everypony worried about?”

Page Turner looked around before frowning, seemingly unsatisfied by what he saw. “There should be some quiet space upstairs where I can explain. If you would follow me?”

Follow Twilight did, as Page Turner wove through the crowd towards a staircase in the far corner. She looked around the library as she followed, not finding anything out of place until she reached the stairs to the second floor. Just before climbing the stairs, she looked to her left and met the pink eyes of a dark green mare, who was staring at her from around a bookshelf.

Must be my imagination; I don’t even know anypony here, so why would they stare at me? Shrugging the strange staring mare off, Twilight went up the stairs. The second floor was just as noisy as the first had been, and only slightly less crowded. As she started looking around, Twilight saw a shelf containing the complete Daring-Do series, which reminded her that several adventure books in her own library had come from Page Turner’s recommendations. Noticing that Page Turner was no longer near her, she realized that she’d gotten sidetracked and fallen behind. She looked around quickly and saw him heading for a door in the back corner. Walking quickly to catch up, she saw him open the door, then step inside while holding the door open for her with a hoof.

Once Twilight went inside, Page Turner closed the door and the room went dark. Twilight heard a series of clanging noises, and she quickly set her horn aglow with a simple light spell. She saw Page Turner struggling with a set of shutters that stubbornly refused to open due to rusty hinges.

As soon as the room lit up, he abandoned the shutters and walked over to her. “That is more efficient, I must say. Thank you. This old room isn’t used much except for storage these days, and many ponies in town feel uncomfortable in here. That makes it a perfect place to talk.”

Twilight found that a bit odd, so she looked around the room. Aside from it being clean and empty, she noticed that the window and shutters looked old, with the rusty hinges suggesting they weren’t often used. There was nothing else in the room aside from the two of them. Not even dust. “It’s just an empty room; why would it bother anypony?”

“This building has an interesting history, Miss Sparkle. The worst of it occurred in this very room. One day I would love to go into detail for you, but with so many people in my library, I must get to the point and return to my duties.”

“Oh, of course. That’s perfectly understandable. And please, call me Twilight.” Twilight smiled.

He grinned broadly, flashing perfect teeth at Twilight. “Gladly, Twilight. I knew a fellow librarian would understand. Now then... are you familiar with an aquifer?”

Twilight tilted her head slightly to the side and looked quizzical. “Aqui-what?” As soon as she’d said it, she felt embarrassed. Having a gap in her knowledge never sat well with her, except for the opportunity to learn that such moments provided.

Page Turner smiled. “Don’t feel bad, Twilight. Few ponies are, and even fewer unicorns. You are familiar with a well, of course?”

Twilight nodded. She felt a slight sense of relief that the knowledge she lacked wasn’t commonly known.

“An aquifer is an underground rock formation through which water can very slowly flow. It’s what you dig into when you dig a well, and more importantly, it’s how water passes through the ground to keep the well full. I’m not sure if you noticed, but Hoofington doesn’t have a river or lake close to town. We get our water here from wells. The town is worried because recently those wells have begun drying out.”

“Water can pass through roc... oh, sorry. Is there any danger to the town?” Twilight’s cheeks flushed from embarrassment. Asking about rocks instead of the safety of the town, what was I thinking?

Page Turner grinned. “Please, Twilight, relax. You have no idea how refreshing it is to talk to somepony that just loves learning. Yes, water can pass through certain kinds of rock formations, though it would take some time to explain the exact conditions required. We have all the reference materials downstairs, if you are curious. There’s no immediate danger to the town. There’s enough water to go around for some time, and the pegasi have been working hard to stir up more rain and reduce how much we need to draw from the wells. Over the long term, however...” he sighed, his grin fading. “I’m afraid the town can’t survive if the wells dry up. The amount of rain that would be required to sustain us would create the risk of flooding, and Cloudsdale would be required to draw more water from elsewhere around Equestria. Most likely everypony would have to move elsewhere. That’s why the library is so full today. Mayor Coppermane has put together a team of Hoofington’s best and brightest to try and find out where the water is going. You’re a very intelligent young mare, Twilight. If you would consider staying for a few days, we’d be most grateful for your assistance.” He punctuated that request by flashing his bright smile once more.

Twilight’s mind raced. Is he always this friendly? What if he likes me? Oh, I wish I’d read that romance novel Rarity loaned me last week; it was all about this sort of thing and I’d know if that’s what he is trying to do! Then again, he’s asking for my help for the town. Of course he’d be friendly doing that! Don’t worry Twilight, I’m sure he’ll realize you’re not interested. Realizing that Page Turner was waiting for her reply, Twilight’s cheeks flushed. Oh no, he’s staring at me! Need to say something!

Twilight returned the smile, not wanting to be rude. “Of course. I’d be delighted to help in any way I can.”

Page Turner hugged Twilight with a huge grin. “Wonderful! Let’s head back downstairs and I’ll show you what we’ve discovered so far.”

The stallion walked to the door and opened it, stopping beside the door to hold it open for Twilight. The gesture reminded her of Rarity describing how her prince would act when she found him, before their eyes would meet and they would have their magic moment. I hope this is just a polite gesture, it would be awkward if it turned into Rarity’s fantasy moment. “Oh, thank you.” Twilight smiled at him as she walked past and headed for the stairs. She had only taken a few steps before stopping. A lonely shelf in the corner with only one book caught her eye. She walked over to it and read the spine of the solitary book.

“Nightfang’s Journey... by Page Turner?” She looked at the stallion, who had closed the door and come up beside her, but now looked away with his ears flopped down. “I had no idea you were a writer!”

“I’m not. I mean, I was. But not lately.” He shifted his weight and rubbed the back of his head nervously, still looking off to the side away from Twilight. “It was something I tried that didn’t work out. Truthfully, I don’t think about it much anymore.”

Twilight didn’t believe it for a second. Even if he put his book on a shelf by itself out of the way, he did still put it out. He must hope somepony reads it. Plus, he stammered when it came up. And there’s his cutie mark, which looks like writing now that I think about it. What went wrong? Why is he so shy about discussing his book? “Can I read it?”

“Err.” Page Turner stuttered, then paused briefly before continuing. “Well, it’s not very good...”

Twilight raised an eyebrow upon hearing the quivering of his voice and seeing his body tense up. It was hard to believe this was the same pony she’d been talking to moments earlier. She realized that this was a sensitive subject for him, but her desire to help him get past it mixed with her love for books, and she was undeterred. “I’ve made my decision. I’d like to check that book out, please.”

Page Turner’s reaction didn’t surprise Twilight given how tense he looked, though the excuse he came up with did. “I’m sorry, Twilight. Only residents of Hoofington may check books out of the library.”

Rarity would know how to handle this... wait, that’s it! Rarity was a master at getting her way by charming both stallions... and Spike. No doubt I won’t be very good at it compared to Rarity, but deep down I don’t really think he wants to keep people from reading his book. All I have to do is be charming enough to overcome his nervousness. With that thought, she tilted her head slightly, batted her eyelashes, and tried to look like she was about to cry over being rejected. “Pleaaassseee?” Her plea came out sounding like an awkward whine. She suspected that if Rarity had seen her, there would be lectures about how to do it properly. She also suspected that if either Rainbow Dash or Applejack had seen her, there would be gales of laughter.

“Why is it you pretty mares never play fair?” Page Turner sighed, and Twilight smiled. “Alright. If you help us resolve our water problem, once we finish that you can read my book.”

Pretty? He thinks I’m pretty? That flatterer! Twilight’s smile brightened after receiving the compliment, even though she believed it was simple flattery. “Great! Now why don’t you tell me everything you know about how water gets into the aquifer underneath Hoofington.”

“Of course. The maps and most important books downstairs. The truth is, we don’t know very much. There’s a layer of clay underground, and the water is below that. Rainfall doesn’t penetrate a clay layer, so the water must be coming from somewhere else, like a deep lake or a...” He trailed off as he turned back towards the stairs and saw a green mare looking in his direction. “Oh, hello sweetheart!”

As Twilight followed behind him, he walked over to the mare, put a foreleg around her neck in an embrace, then gently nuzzled her. The mare in turn leaned into Page Turner, but had all of her attention focused on Twilight. It took only a second for Twilight to recognize the pink eyes glaring at her now as the same ones she’d seen earlier.

Page Turner broke the embrace then took up a position standing next to the mare, with both of them facing Twilight. “Sweetheart, this is Twilight Sparkle, Ponyville’s librarian. She’s going to help us with the water problem. Twilight, this is Oaken Leaf.”

“Hi!” Twilight said immediately, smiling. She saw no reason not to be friendly.

Oaken Leaf waved a hoof and gave a smile which never touched her eyes.Twilight shivered as the cold glare from Oaken Leaf began to get to her. She hates me. What did I do to her?

Twilight laughed nervously and scratched the back of her head, trying to figure out how to break the tension. Before she could think of anything, Oaken Leaf spoke. “Charmed. Dear, can I talk to you?” Although she was talking to Page Turner, she never took her eyes off Twilight.

Page Turner turned to look at her, all smiles. “Oh, of course. I just need to show Twilight what’s going on here, so she can get started. It’s just this way Twilight, follow me. As I was saying, there are no lakes around here, so we’re not sure just how far the water travels...”

Twilight lost track of his voice as he went down the stairs and out of sight. After laughing nervously to Oaken Leaf, she moved to catch up. Oaken Leaf followed her down the stairs, but didn’t attempt to follow Twilight through the crowd of ponies on the first floor. Even when there were other ponies and a shelf between them, she could still feel Oaken Leaf’s hate-filled gaze upon her.

If looks could kill, I’d need Shining’s force field right now. I wonder what I did to make her so angry.

Twilight felt a chill go down her spine. There was a time when such feelings would have troubled her, but having already spent three days feeling the same sensation at least a dozen times a day, she was getting used to it.

Twilight had spent the last three days in the library, helping with the effort to find a solution to Hoofington’s water troubles. The chills were courtesy of Oaken Leaf, who had spent much of those three days glaring at Twilight’s back. Twilight hadn’t understood the reason for the glaring until noticing that Page Turner was seemingly always nearby. If Twilight wanted anything, he was there. He brought snacks and drinks before she realized she wanted them. Any time she started looking at a map, he had some interesting fact to point out about it. Every time he doted on her, she knew those hate-filled eyes were locked on her and felt a chill in response to being watched so intently.

This is so frustrating. I understand that Oaken Leaf feels ignored, but why doesn’t she blame Page Turner for that? He’s the one ignoring her! I really need to do more research when I get back to Ponyville in order to learn how to avoid getting into messes like this.

Pushing thoughts about Oaken Leaf out of her mind, Twilight looked around the library. Unlike the previous three days, today most of the books had been set aside. The ponies she’d been working with were crowded around the largest table, looking at a map and speaking their minds. The discussion centered around the likely source of the water for Hoofington’s aquifer. There were a lot of opinions but no agreement. Twilight squirmed her way up through the crowd to the table and listened, taking it all in.

She continued listening when Mayor Coppermane returned for his daily visit. This time when he asked for an update, three ponies all started speaking at once. He managed to restore order, but soon six ponies wanted to speak and all six had different opinions on what to do. After all six had spoken, they began arguing, and the mayor’s head slumped down.

He looks really tired. The risk to the town and lack of consensus must be getting to him, Twilight thought as she watched the mayor. The mayor had come each of the last three days asking for updates. Each time, she’d remained silent so as not to step on the hooves of the local ponies. After seeing the mayor’s state and the bickering, however, she decided to end her silence.

Using her magic to lift a ruler that was lying nearby, Twilight used it to point at a mountain range southwest of the town. “Excuse me, Mayor Coppermane? The source of the water is most likely here. If you se—”

Twilight found herself interrupted by a cacophony of dissenting voices. Of all the opinions expressed, the mountain range was not at the top of the list. Mayor Coppermane silenced them all by pounding the table with a hoof. He then looked at Twilight. “What makes you say that, miss?”

“Well, you have very detailed maps in every other direction that stretch for huge distances, but this mountain range is at the northern border of the Everfree Forest. The maps around this location aren’t very accurate, and since your weather ponies don’t normally fly over the Everfree Forest, they wouldn’t have noticed a problem yet. Also, I found an old account of the founding of the town that mentioned a lake to the southwest. Mountains often act as the starting point for rivers, which means this range is likely the source feeding the lake. If that source was cut off and it’s where Hoofington’s water is coming from, you wouldn’t have a way of knowing it from here. I think it’s worth looking at.”

“Pardon me, but this is foolish.” Twilight looked in the direction of the high pitched voice, and found a pegasus whose name she hadn’t learned yet, though she did remember somepony else mentioning that this mare was the leader of Hoofington’s weather patrol. “We’ve been here our entire lives and know this land better then anypony. Why should we have to listen to a librarian from Ponyville?”

There were murmurs from other ponies in the room at that statement. Twilight saw a couple of heads nodding in approval, along with several more frowning or shaking their heads. To her, it looked like most of the room was willing to listen to her if she could present solid evidence, which she was prepared to do. Just as she opened her mouth to speak, Mayor Coppermane silenced the room by striking the table once more.

“Now now, Stormfront, let’s keep things civil. Just because you don’t like her doesn’t mean I’m going to dismiss her thoughts.” He looked back at Twilight. “You’ve no doubt heard all the differing opinions expressed here. Can you prove why you believe you’re right, miss... I’m sorry, but I don’t know your name.”

Doesn’t like me? I don’t even know her! Why would she dislike me? What am I doing wrong? Forcing that line of thought from her mind, Twilight opened her mouth to speak. For the second time in a row she was cut off. Her ears twitched in annoyance as Page Turner spoke for her. “Oh, this is Twilight Sparkle. She was visiting from Ponyville and offered t... mayor, is something wrong?”

Mayor Coppermane’s jaw dropped when he heard Twilight’s name, and for a moment he simply gaped at her, looking astonished. The rest of the room except for Oaken Leaf looked between him and Twilight in confusion, not sure what had made him so disoriented. For her part, Oaken Leaf had gained a triumphant grin, convinced by the reaction that Twilight was some nefarious pony about to be banished. When Coppermane finally managed to say something, he sounded more than a little shocked. “The Twilight Sparkle?”

Twilight laughed nervously as she felt every eye in the room focus on her. “Umm... I’m the only me I know, so I guess so.” Her voice rose due to her nervousness, and her reply almost sounded like a question.

It was Oaken Leaf who asked the inevitable question, barely able to mask her pleasure at the awkward moment. “Why mayor, what do you mean?”

Ignoring the question, Coppermane looked at Page Turner. “Why didn’t you tell me she was here? She’s been here for days and you didn’t tell me so that I could properly introduce myself beforehoof?” He turned to Twilight, and lowered his head in deference. “Please Miss Sparkle, I didn’t realize it was you. No offense was intended to you or the princess.”

The mayor’s drastic change in attitude and his sudden deference to Twilight got the entire room talking again. Most of the room’s occupants were looking at Twilight still. She found the attention very discomfiting, and she started to fidget while laughing nervously again.

Page Turner looked Twilight over as if studying her, then looked back at the mayor. “I don’t understand. Why would I have introduced you?”

“Don’t you realize? This is Princess Celestia’s personal student! The pony who defeated Nightmare Moon! The pony who saved Equestria from Discord!”

For a few seconds, dead silence filled the library. Then, as if a dam had burst, nearly every occupant of the room started talking about this turn of events. Only three remained quiet. Twilight looked around frantically, hating this kind of attention but not seeing any way to calm it down. Page Turner looked as if he was just seeing Twilight for the first time, and she wasn’t comfortable at all with the intensity of his gaze. He’s looking at me like I’m some kind of painting to be admired and studied!

Oaken Leaf’s triumphant smile had been wiped away. Instead, she was scowling at a wall with her head hung low and her ears drooping. Twilight wanted to give her a hug, but first she had to calm things down. Even then, she wasn’t sure a hug would help if it came from her.

“Everypony, please. Listen to me.” Unlike the mayor, who had to resort to stomping the table to get quiet, the entire room fell silent as Twilight spoke. The effect of her words irritated her. I’m not Princess Celestia’s right hoof mare; they shouldn’t act like they’re intimidated! “Mayor, there’s no reason to be worried. I’m just a pony like everypony else. Hoofington has been very friendly ever since I got here. I’m happy to help, and if the princess ever asks, I only have nice things to say about all of you. Please, just call me Twilight.” One lesson Twilight had learned while living in Canterlot was that showing humility around nervous important ponies could help calm them down.

Mayor Coppermane relaxed. “Well, I’m very pleased to have you here, Twilight. Would it be too much of an imposition to ask you to be one of the ponies that investigates your theory?”

Twilight smiled. “I’d be happy to help. Although, wouldn’t it be easier to just have a pegasus fly over the area?”

Stormfront shook her head. “That area is always foggy above the trees, and there are treacherous wind currents coming off the mountain. It’s a dangerous area to fly.” She looked at Twilight, and there was a hint of respect in her voice as she continued speaking. “I suppose I could, but...”

“No,” Twilight interrupted her. “The ground will be safer. I won’t have to spend more than a couple of hours in the Everfree Forest to reach the mountains, so I don’t think it will be very dangerous.”

There were gasps and murmurs around the room, as most of the assembled ponies reacted in surprise to the idea of simply walking into the Everfree Forest. Mayor Coppermane smiled, unconcerned. “Splendid. Stormfront, would you accompany Twilight?” When the pegasus nodded, the mayor continued. “Excellent. Any other volunteers?”

There was no response. Ponies shifted uncomfortably, looked away, and tried to look smaller so as to avoid drawing attention. The Everfree Forest was farther from Hoofington than Ponyville, far enough that no resident had a reason to go there, but close enough that the legendary dangers were known. They wanted nothing to do with it. The silence was getting awkward when Page Turner finally spoke. “I’ll go.”

His response was followed quickly by another, from Oaken Leaf at back of the room. “I’d better come along.” She made her way through the crowd after volunteering to stand beside Page Turner. “He always gets himself into trouble without me.” Most of the room laughed at the joke, which Twilight didn’t get. Twilight wasn’t thrilled about having Oaken Leaf as a travelling companion, but kept her expression neutral.

Mayor Coppermane nodded. “Good, good. Twilight, if you prepare a list of everything you need for your trip, I’ll have it ready for you tomorrow morning. Page Turner knows how to find me. For the moment, I need to be off to tell everypony in town what’s going on.” Twilight nodded, and he walked out of the library. Most of the ponies in the library began filing out after him, now that a plan had been formed. As they filed out, virtually all of them began talking about Twilight once more. The bits of conversation Twilight heard were split evenly between surprise that she would be here, confidence that she could easily solve such a mundane problem as water shortages after saving Equestria twice, and questions about why she had stayed quiet for so long. The type of attention she was getting and her own powerlessness to do anything about it left her feeling dismayed.

Trying not to think about it, Twilight looked at what had become her exploration team. One of them likes me more then I’d like, the second one loathes me because of the attention from the first, and the third doesn’t like me and I don’t know why. Sure not the same as travelling with my friends. Her mood dragged down by that thought and the reaction the other ponies in town had given her, she wanted to rest. “Why don’t we take a break for lunch, and meet back here in an hour to figure out what we need?” When the three of them agreed, Twilight forced a smile. “Great. I know we’ll be able to solve this mystery. See you soon!” With that, she headed out of the library and back to the inn.

Once inside, she asked the innkeeper for a daisy sandwich and hayfries to be brought to her room, then went to relax on her bed with the copy of Traditions and Festivals of Ancient Equestria she’d checked out from the library, with a notable lack of resistance from Page Turner and no mention of needing to be a resident at all. The book documented the traditions before the era of Nightmare Moon appeared, and Twilight hoped it would contain some reference to the quest Luna had guided her into undertaking. Thus far she’d been disappointed on that front, but the book proved fascinating, and some quiet reading was just what she needed to relax.

No sooner had she laid down on her bed then the door opened again. Oaken Leaf came in, looking at Twilight without glaring. Twilight still found her gaze uncomfortable. “Hi,” Twilight said.

Oaken Leaf’s voice was flat, quiet, and cold. “I don’t care how important you are, Twilight Sparkle. I’m not going to let you steal him from me without a fight.” Before Twilight could respond, she stepped back out of the room and slammed the door. Twilight buried her head in her pillow and sighed. Sweet Celestia, why me?

A knock at her door forced her to lift her head out from under the pillow. “Yes?” she asked tentatively, not sure she wanted another confrontation.

“Your lunch is ready, Miss Sparkle.”

“Oh, right.” Twilight magically opened the door. “Just set it down on the table, thank you.” She then buried her head back underneath her pillow without looking at the food she no longer had the appetite for.

Twilight stayed that way for almost half an hour before deciding that writing a letter might help cheer her up enough to eat. Before long, she had her writing supplies out and was trying to think of what to say.

Dear Rarity, Applejack, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, & Rainbow Dash,

I decided to stay in Hoofington for a few days. Most of them have been spent in the library. Nopony is surprised by that, I’m sure! There are some things going on here with the town’s water with which I’m trying to help. Did you know that they don’t have a lake, dam, or anything that Ponyville has? Wells comprise the town’s entire water supply.

It’s different here than in Ponyvile. People there know me for me. Particularly the five of you (and Spike, of course!), but I don’t think anypony there thinks they need to give me special treatment. That’s not the case here. Some ponies seem to believe that because I know Princess Celestia, they have to act like I’m special. It’s extremely frustrating! The princess isn’t like that, and I don’t like everypony walking on eggshells trying to make me happy for no reason.

We’re going to set out tomorrow to try and find (and hopefully fix!) the water problem. I’ll write more when I get back.

Your faithful friend,
Twilight Sparkle.