THIS STORY FEATURES HEAVY SPOILERS FOR “THE ENCHANTED LIBRARY”.
I. The Library in the Forest
For a thousand years, the ghostly Princess Twilight Sparkle was alone.
For a thousand years, she had nothing but two owls, two candelabras, and a thousand crushing years of endless, spiraling thinking.
This was how it was supposed to be, she thought to herself, staring down a book she’d stared down a million times before. Year after year, this was what she deserved. How it should be.
Wasn’t it?
It was, it was, it was, it was, it was, it was, it was, it was, it was—
She closed her book and ended her thoughts.
Someone was in her library.
II. The Princess In The Library
Rarity.
The name burned her lips long after the strange mare was gone, hurried off with one of her books, limping from the injury inflicted on her.
“Hoo?”
Twilight’s eyes flittered towards the black owl beside her, hooting with excitement at the prospect of having a new friend.
“She’s not coming back,” said the princess, belatedly realizing she’d been harsher than intended when her owl frowned.
But it was the truth. To believe otherwise would be to indulge in hopeful fantasies and though she had all the time in the world for many things, fantasies were not one of them.
III. The Questions In The Labyrinth
“Rarity?”
Twilight watched as the mare came to a stop right before the tunnel.
“Yes, Princess?”
Twilight swallowed. “When you offered to look for the others. Whether you meant it or not, I wanted to say… Thank you.”
Rarity smiled at that. “You are most welcome, Princess Twilight.”
And it was something about the smile. Something raw and primal and strange. It was sincere, even after Twilight had accidentally hurt her and been distrusting and rude.
It was too much, so the princess teleported away, uncomfortable by something stirring within which she would spend days trying to figure out.
Rarity.
IV. The Princess Parade
Rarity always returned the books Twilight gave her.
Every single one so far, which was good because Twilight valued having her books back. Her eyes drifted towards her acquaintance, the unicorn busy taking photographs of her library.
“Rarity hasn’t asked for a book yet,” she said to Elara.
“Hoo?”
“She should have one for her trip to Canterlot, shouldn’t she?” she added, because it would be a long trip and Rarity might get bored and having a book meant she had to come back to the library to see Twilight.
And return the book, which was the important part.
Obviously.
V. The Dragon Library
Rarity was supposed to return Sunday and, according to the calendar and clock Rarity had given Twilight, Sunday had ended thirty minutes ago.
She stared into the black void that was the tunnel leading out of her library. Stared, and stared, and stared, waiting in the same position she had the entire damn day.
Two owls sat beside her.
“Hoo?” said one.
She stood up and turned around.
“Hoo!” said the other.
The princess stopped and spoke, and if she cared, her voice might have cracked: “She’s not coming back.”
But she didn’t care.
This was how it should be.
VI. The Broken Promise
Crashing relief.
There was really no other way to describe what she felt when she saw Rarity again, there inside her library. Relief like she hadn’t felt in a very long, long time, and so powerful it frightened her, so viscerally in fact she wanted to push Rarity away to stop these feelings that felt too good, too happy, more than she deserved.
But when Rarity eagerly asked to be taught magic, Twilight couldn’t say no.
And when Rarity casually mentioned she didn’t want to leave yet, well…
Princess Twilight Sparkle couldn’t help but quietly feel the very same way.
VII. The Search For Princess Booky
It was something so simple, yet so strange.
The majority of ponies Twilight had known throughout her life all mostly called her just by her name. This was the normal thing! It was only recently that ponies addressed her with titles like Princess and Your Highness.
So it made sense that when she asked Rarity to drop the formalities, it wouldn’t be strange.
But it was.
“Goodbye, Twilight.”
In Rarity’s giggling lips, Twilight’s name felt… special? No.
It felt… right. Like hearing her very own name for the first time.
Like she was finally allowed to be just that:
Twilight.
VIII. The Last Letter of Fritter Cobbler
Fritter Cobbler never came back.
He promised he would, and she waited, and he never did. Just like the other ponies who’d encountered her library and never returned.
But there was Rarity, scolding Sweetie for scarfing down pies.
There she was, coming back again and again and again, and Twilight would never admit it, but if losing Fritter had been hard, losing Rarity would be…
“I’m afraid,” she later confessed. "Nopony ever came back, no matter how much I wanted. How come you haven't left, too?"
"Well, princess," said Rarity, gently. "Maybe sometimes, good things are simply meant to happen."
IX. The Shadow on the Wall
“Twilight, think about it. If that was really the Spirit, why would he have led her to me and the library? It makes no sense.”
“Rari—”
“Twilight, please, you’re just worrying over nothing.”
“Ugh!” Twilight exclaimed, the conversation repeating over and over in her head as she paced her library floor. Why didn’t Rarity understand the severity of Discord potentially following her?
What if something happened to her? What if that was the reason nopony ever came back, like Fritter and the others? Just the thought of losing her friend and never knowing what happened…
“Ugh! Rarity! Come back already!”
X. The Party Mare and Her Secret
"Okay!" declared Sweetie Belle, starting the next game in her very illicit sleepover. She turned to Twilight. “I’m going to ask you questions, and you answer the first thing that comes to mind, ok?”
“What kind of game is this?”
“It’s a question game,” Scootaloo said. “Duh.”
“...Right.”
Sweetie cleared her throat. “Favorite food?!”
“Pastries.”
“Favorite place?!”
“Canterlot.”
“Favorite princess?”
“Princess Celestia.”
“Best friend ever?!”
“Rarity.”
No sooner had the name left her mouth, Sweetie Belle gasped, indignant.
“Rarity’s your best friend?!”
“No! No,” Twilight blurted out, cheeks red. “She’s not my best friend. She’s just a friend.”
And yet…
XI. The Broken Star
Best friend.
The words floated around Twilight’s mind long after their game.
Rarity wasn’t her best friend. She wasn’t. They’d only been friends for, what, a few months at most? And yet when Sweetie had asked, the answer came out so naturally.
Her standard for friendship had changed. That was it. She hadn’t had friends in… literal centuries, so of course she’d be grateful to just anypony who hopped in. If one took that into account, then, sure, Rarity was her closest friend right now.
But her best friend?
No. Not that.
Best friends, Twilight knew, were not for her.
Right?
Author's Note
Had these in my drafts for forever, so figured I might as well publish them.
This is an ongoing attempt to get myself back into writing, starting by the fact that I’ve stopped publishing a lot of stuff out of fear that it’s NOT GOOD or SUBSTANTIAL or WORTHY or BUT THIS IS JUST DRABBLES,,, PEOPLE EXPECT PRIMO CONTENT FROM ME,,, I CAN NEVER POST ANYTHING AGAIN UNLESS ITS THE BEST THING IVE EVER WRITTENNJDFHJFDHJDFFDHJ
So there you go.
If people like these, I might do the rest of TEL’s chapters??? We shall see
