Rarity didn't believe in ghost stories. They really weren't her preferred genre either: she’d much rather sit down with something more romantic, fanciful, something more like fairy tales. [1]
Unfortunately for Rarity, Sweetie Belle had found a stash of ghost stories, and now she and her friend Scootaloo were now coming up with increasing bizarre theories about the (temporarily!) closed library.
“They said that the librarian quit, but has anyone actually seen her leave?” Sweetie Belle asked.
“Oh dear,” Fluttershy said.
“Rumors say that she knocked over a bookshelf and was suffocated alive,” Scootaloo continued, ignoring Fluttershy’s increasingly panicked looks. “And now, she haunts the library in revenge for all the ponies who ignored her cries for help.”
“She sometimes turns into your worst enemy just to—”
“Girls,” Rarity interrupted, “unless you want to help me clean the entire library, I suggest you stop now.”
Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo stared at each other, then threw themselves out the door.
After a moment, Fluttershy asked, “T-the library isn’t h-haunted, is it?”
Rarity sighed, and walked over to Fluttershy to pull her into a hug. “No, there are no ghosts, dearie. Come on. Luna’s party isn’t over yet, it’ll take your mind off of the library.”
Rarity and Fluttershy met with Sunset at the still ongoing party. Sunset was hovering near the snack table and trying to figure out what mad concoction Pinkie had brewed.. “Hi girls!” Sunset called, lowering a green drink. “I never really got around to thanking you two for coming along with my hare-brained scheme.”
“No worries, dear. It turned out fairly well in the end.” Rarity glanced at the guest of honor, and smiled sadly. “I hope she finds her footing.”
Sunset followed Rarity’s gaze. “Yeah, same.” She rubbed the back of her head. “Did you know I once thought about preparing a secret army to fight the Nightmare?”
Fluttershy yanked her head out of a pastry. “You what.”
“Nooot my finest moment,” Sunset agreed. “Had a mental breakdown and needed Celestia to pull me out of it. I think it made her elaborate on the prophecy of Nightmare Moon I stumbled upon.” Sunset let out a sigh. “It stopped me from doing anything rash, sure, but now I’m consumed by the thought of having to save two princesses.”
“That must have been rough,” Fluttersy said.
“You have no idea. Sorry if I seemed a bit ... high-strung when we met,” Sunset said. “Celestia was a bit vague on who I should look for.”
Rarity smiled, pulling Sunset in for a brief hug. “All’s forgiven. Now come on, I want to see how Luna is faring.”
“Sure.” Sunset paused in thought. “Hey, since you’re here, would you mind if ...” [2]
Rarity and Fluttershy met up with Sunset again at the library the next day. Sunset had retrieved her bags from the inn she had been staying at. Rarity picked up the library’s key from the Mayor’s office.
“Hey Rares!” Sunset called, the luggage cart squeaking behind her in her magic’s grip. “Thanks for the help. I know it was a bit short notice ...”
“Think nothing of it,” Rarity said, flicking her mane behind her ears. “Now come on.” She levitated the key and unlocked the old wooden doors. She pushed it open, and almost stumbled over herself from the dust cloud the door kicked up.
Sunset’s horn flashed, creating a shield that gently pushed the dust away. “Jeez, how long has it been since someone checked in on this place?”
“I believe the last librarian retired six months ago?” Rarity said, tapping her chin.
“I remember Pinkie’s going away party,” Fluttershy chimed in quietly.
“Right,” Sunset muttered. She carefully stepped into the dark chamber within, pulling out several candles and lamps from her cart. Rarity followed suit with her own candles, giving a small nod of thanks when Sunset quickly lit them all with a spell. “Watch your step, girls. Might be some stuff left on the ground. I’ll go see if this place has a chandelier or something.”
Sunset wandered off into the darkness, led by the light of her horn and the lanterns orbiting her. Rarity stepped to the side, letting Fluttershy in. Rarity started pulling boxes of cleaning rags, bags, and other liquids out of the pair’s bags, and got to work.
Dust was swept into bins they found underneath a table, which were also thoroughly scrubbed. Fluttershy ended up helping Sunset with the built in kitchen while Rarity went to investigate the second floor.
Rarity set the lamps by the doorway; now that the windows were unlatched there was plenty of sunlight to get around. She hummed quietly as she picked up some of the dusty books that had been left on the table and sitting cushions. “These will need a wash if Sunset doesn’t want to stain her coat every time she touches them,” she muttered, wincing at the grey fuzzy waterfall they created when she lifted it up.
As she passed by the bookshelf, however, she caught sight of a brown hardcover with a ghastly red stain on it. She levitated it out curiously, placing it on the freshly swept table. “What happened to you...?”
”You can see it?
Rarity blinked, looking up. “... Sunset?”
”You can ... hear me!
Rarity’s head spun around, trying but finding nopony standing in the shadows. “Darling? Anyone there? This isn’t funny!”
”Oh, its been so long!”
To Rarity’s horror, a ghostly sheet lifted out of the book, sending her scrambling backwards. A purple unicorn stood up, pushing back the sheet and looking at her. A translucent purple unicorn.
As Rarity screeched, her vision tunneling and darkening, only then did she believe in ghost stories.
Or rather, just this one. [3]
Sunset levitated a bag of trash out the door. Apparently some foodstuffs had rolled into the back of the drawers, and now were basically balls of mold. “Ugh, I’m gonna need to buy so much disinfectant.” She tossed the bag onto the growing pile of garbage and turned around.
She was met with Rarity’s grimacing face. “Rarity?”
“Haunted,” the white unicorn growled.
Sunset eyes unfocused for a moment. “...what?”
“Your library is haunted,” Rarity repeated.
Sunset moved into the library and sat down, the gears of her mind skipping all over the place. She idly noticed Fluttershy had already flipped over like a startled goat. “Okay?” she managed through a very dry throat. “Would it be anypony I know?”
Rarity glanced at the spirit only she could see, floating along the bookshelves and cooing eagerly at the rows of books. “She’s ... a purplish color. Unicorn. Dark, indigo mane wit a pink….” She looked back to Sunset and was shocked at seeing the blood drain out of the fiery unicorn’s face. “You ... know of her?”
“Twilight Sparkle ...” Sunset breathed, “was my mentor.”
The ghostly Twilight paused in her perusal of the library’s contents at the sound of her name, and squinted at the two living unicorns. “...Sunset?”
“She was Celestia’s other student,” Sunset said. “Several years ahead of me. She brought me out of my ‘angry anti-social’ streak, actually.” She rubbed her head. “Haven’t really thanked her for that. Then, before the year even ended the Changelings attacked the palace and, well, she died trying to get the students out.”
Twilight hovered to Sunset’s side, trying to touch Sunset’s back, but jerked her hoof back when she went right through. “Oh, I’m so, so sorry I couldn’t be with you. You’ve grown up so much”
Rarity moved closer to pass on a comforting hoof. “She knows. She’s proud of how far you’ve come.”
Sunset smiled weakly. “Thanks.” [4]
Rarity stopped the sewing machine, and lifted up her glasses. “Twilight, what do you think?”
Twilight floated over to examine the foal-sized plushie in Rarity’s magic. “That’s adorable! And me.” She scratched her chin “Why did you make a doll of me again?”
Rarity grinned, floating the doll to settle on her back. “I’ll show you. Come along, my dear, our friends are waiting at Sugarcube Corner!”
Twilight raised an eyebrow, but followed her anchor. There were a few curious eyes along the way. Rarity didn’t really make her perpetually haunted state public, but rumors spread nonetheless. Some wondered if she was hallucinating or suffering a mental breakdown. Rarity took in those looks and returned them with a beatific smile, though Twilight couldn’t help but wonder if she was hurting her.
Soon, the bakery appeared down the street, and Twilight put those thoughts to mind.
“Good afternoon!~!” Rarity sang, pushing through the bakery’s door. The rest of the Elements were there. Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie (who was behind the counter), and the one who had brought them together, Sunset Shimmer.
“Hey Rares,” Rainbow said, popping over a sundae. “What’s up?”
“I wanted to show you something I came up with,” Rarity said. “If you remember us finding out my being able to imitate Twilight’s voice with more and more accuracy?”
“Yeah?”
“I came up with a neat trick to make it more ... ‘tactile.”
The rest of the Elements sat up straighter. “Alright, what is it?” Sunset asked.
“This should be interestin’,” Applejack mused, pushing her drink to the side for a better view.
Rarity levitated out the Twilight doll and put it on the table. She looked at the ghostly unicorn and waved her on, smiling.
Twilight awkwardly stepped forwards, but found her eyes were drawn to the doll, perfectly imitating her movements. She glanced back at Rarity, who winked at her, her horn glowing. Twilight swallowed her apprehension, and cleared her throat and said, “Hello everypony. It’s great to be able to meet you like this now.”
Rarity’s near-perfect impression of her followed soon after, with the doll perfectly matching Twlight’s movements.
Pinkie made a sort of gasping wheeze, as she tried to exhale in joy and suck in air into her lungs at the same time, and threw confetti into the air. “That means I can throw a ‘Welcome to Ponyville’ party with a guest everypony can finally see!”
Twilight winced. “I would ... rather not too many ponies come, if that’s fine?”
“Sure,” Pinkie chirped. “We can work it up later.” The pink mare whipped out a notepad and started muttering into it.
Fluttershy leaned onto the table and carefully shook Twilight Plushie’s outstretched hoof. “Hi, Twilight, it’s nice to be able to see you.”
“Uh, Sunset?” Applejack asked. “You alright?”
Sunset was staring at the doll in quiet shock, tears pooling in her eyes. “It’s been so long,” she said. She dropped to the doll’s eye level, mouth running on autopilot. “I remembered your teachings, Twilight. You gave me so much, I don’t know what I would have become if you haven’t pulled me out of that hole. I pushed myself all the time, trying to be—”
Old instincts resurfaced, and Twilight placed her hoof over Sunset’s muzzle. “Are you happy here?”
“...Yeah.”
Twilight smiled. “I’m glad.” [5]
“Rarity of Ponyville!” the guard announced. A mare with a black hooded cloak stepped through the doors.
She bowed, and said, “Greetings, Princess.”
“Rise, my little pony,” Celestia said, smiling. “I should be the one bowing to you for bringing my sister back.”
“Thank you,” Rarity whispered, “but I’m afraid I’m here for business you may find uncomfortable.” Her magic lifted a foal sized doll out of her bags and set it on the floor. A small application of will animated it, giving it the appearance of standing on its own. “Go on,” she said, at a spot next to her.
Celestia missed the interaction, vision tunneling on the impossible recreation of her lost student. She stepped off her throne, her heartbeat pounding in her ears as the doll floated over to eye level, or rather, the height Twilight was before she died.
“Hi, Princess,” Rarity said in Twilight’s voice. “I ... I’m not sure ... “ The doll bowed her head. “I’m sorry for leaving you behind.”
Celestia gently cradled the doll, and whispered “Welcome home, my student.”
Twilight hugged back the best she could, Rarity’s magic moving the doll’s hooves in imitation. “I missed you so much.” Twilight looked up, smile watery. “How have you been?” [6]
Rarity fretted on a park bench. Twilight floated behind her, head on a swivel. Rarity winced as Berry Punch stumbled towards them, a large sun hat pulled tightly over her face. Berry managed to get as far as Rarity’s hooves before tripping on air and faceplanting on the concrete base of the bench.
“Um, well then,” Rarity managed. “Are you alright?” She bent down to haul the wobbly mare onto the bench.
Berry Punch pulled her sun hat tighter over her face. “Received a big shipment order,” she slurred. “Need ... needed tasting. One barrel went bad, cork rotted. Ended up barely able to check the rest from the aftertaste.” She hiccuped. “Drank too much to compensate, gotta get out before I start drinking the fumes.” She vaguely waved her hoof in Rarity’s direction. “What’er you for?”
Rarity tried to discreetly shuffle away. Twilight hovered over the inebriated pony curiously. “I was told to wait here for a specialist on spirits by Cheer—I mean, ‘La Cher’?” [7]
“Ahr. Waiting long?” Berry asked.
“No, not really.” Rarity put her chin on her hoof. “Not sure who I’m even looking for.”
“Now that’s an interesting story,” Berry said, all traces of her slur abruptly vanishing. Rarity and Twilight’s head darted towards the Terrasire [10] mare, who was still bonelessly slumped forwards. “You see, I was told I would find a ghost here.”
Berry pushed the brim of her hat up slightly, a tongue flatter and longer than a herbivore had any right to be. [8] Rarity’s heart beat pulsed through her ears. “... That is ... correct.” She swallowed hard. “My good friend ... is worried about accidentally moving on. She’s made quite a few friends here in Ponyville, you see.”
Berry grinned. “Oh, I do believe I know quite a bit about staying on the mortal coil a bit longer than most could consider acceptable.” [9]
The End...?
Author's Note
[1] Hi Mono I'm not plagiarizing I swear (The Enchanted Library) [11]
[2] So I just randomly decided to switch around Sunset's and Twilight's birth dates and now I'm wondering what I can do with this (so far, not much)
[3] Hi Hikaru no Go I'm not plagiarizing I swear
[4] Well at least its not bean ghosts
[5] Hi Dorkness I'm not plagiarizing I swear (One Pony's Curse is Another Man's Blessing, has a Trixie plush)
[6] I ran out of ideas
[7] Well I got permission to use her, but I haven't actually gotten a chance to use her (Countess Lily de La Cher, from TnaB's Vampire Cheerilee)
[8] Herbivore vs Carnivore characteristics
[9] I couldn't resist
[10] I am Mad that Earth ponies are the only one that don't have a unique name (Winged Pony -> Pegasus, etc), and if ShortSkirts can invent the word Bat Pony -> Sarosian, I can do Earth Pony -> Terrasire/Terrasi, Earth Born.
[11] The actual idea I had was a murder mystery kinda deal, where Rarity had to avenge Twilight's killer or something. Unfortunately I'm even worse at writing mysteries so here you go.
