Chapters Rainbow Dash had been in the hospital for a while and there wasn't much to do. Twilight Sparkle looked around the library, wondering what she should do. Everything was done for the day.
Nightwolf came into the library saying, "Knock, knock."
"Hey, Nightwolf," Twilight answered. "How's Rainbow doing?"
"Better," he said. "She can leave tomorrow."
Twilight looked at him wonderingly. "So why'd you stop by?"
Nightwolf looked at Twilight, trying to say something, but no sound came out.
After a few extra seconds, Nightwolf cleared his throat. "I'm here to check out a book," he said. "I'm looking for the 12th installment of Fetlock Holmes."
"The one where Holmes finally meets his nemesis?" Twilight asks.
"The great Professor Morhayarty," Nightwolf said. "It's my favorite one."
Twilight glanced around the library and quickly found the book in question. "Here you go," she said giving him the book.
"Thanks," he said. It looked like he was going to try to say something else, but he shook his head and turned away to leave.
"Is it about Hearth's Warming Eve?" Twilight asked.
Nightwolf froze. "It's nothing-really," he said, trying to avoid the subject.
"If you ever need to talk to somepony," Twilight said, leaving the sentance open.
"Thanks," Nightwolf said again.
The door shut and Twilight looked around the room. "That actually isn't a bad idea," she mumbled to herself, walking over to the Fetlock Holmes series, picking up the first one.
She opened the book, beginning to read. The words all blended perfectly, creating a mental show. The great Holmes deducting the most outrageous conclusions from the smallest of details. It was so engaging.
A small noise alerted Twilight to the presence of her young assisstant. "This just came in for you," Spike said, holding up a scroll.
My Dearest Twilight,
I have heard about your recent troubles and have decided to give you a break. You can't seem to give yourself a break, so I'll give you one instead. Thiis is a royal order to let yourself relax. Take a day or so off to recover yourself.
Your teacher,
Princess Celestia.
Twilight looked around the room, finding it darker than she had expected. "What time is it, Spike?" she asked.
"It's probably past midnight by now," he replied. "I didn't think you'd still be up."
Twilight looked around again. "I guess it's time to get some sleep, then."
With that, she fell asleep on the floor.
**************
Twilight woke up with a bad headache. The wooden floor of the library wasn't the best spot to sleep in. The book wasn't a bad pillow, though.
The letter from the previous night lay open on the floor. Twilight picked it up and started to put it with the others when she noticed a small lump in the paper. "Well that's going to make it hard to file away," she mumbled, slipping it onto a shelf to be organized later.
A knock on the door startled Twilight. She moved quickly down the steps to the main library, hoping her mane wasn't in too bad shape.
The door opened to reveal a cyan face. "Hey, Twi," Rainbow Dash said, turning her face towards the librarian. "I wanted to stop by to-"
She stopped, a sudden smile sprouting on her face. She started laughing heavily, falling to the ground.
"What?" Twilight said, slightly annoyed.
"Have you seen your mane?" Rainbow said through chuckles. "It looks like you were hit by lightning. Twice."
"It's good to see you can still make jokes after coming out of the hospital," Twilight said. "Why don't you come in and find what you're looking for while I go clean up."
Rainbow pulled herself off the ground and stood up, trying tnot to continue laughing. She walked past her friend, waiting for the door to close before bursting into another fit of laughs.
"Yeah, yeah," Twilight said, moving back up the stairs. She pulled a brush out and ran it through her mane a few times.
When she came back down, a few books were on a table and Rainbow was looking for a specific one in the non-fiction section.
"You could've just called for Spike," Twilight said, startling the pegasus.
"Sorry," she said. "I didn't really want anypony to know what I was looking for. And I really don't want spike to find out."
Twilight cocked her head. "Why would you come to a library then?"
Rainbow looked back. "Because the sign said closed and I knew you would let me in," Rainbow said. "I figured you wouldn't tell anypony. You're a great friend like that."
"Alright," she said, looking around. "What do you need?"
Rainbow looked around nervously as well. "I was thinking about getting a book of magic for my brother," she said. "He helped me through that whole ordeal."
Twilight looked at Rainbow as if she had sprouted a horn. "Why would you want to hide that?"
"Because I don't want anypony to think I've gone soft," Rainbow admitted. "I basically threw him out of the family. I have a reputation to maintain."
"It would only show that you care for your family," Twilight explained. "There's nothing to be ashamed of in that."
Rainbow Dash looked at her friend. "Could you just get me the book?"
"Here," Twilight said, handing over a book. "You really should just say something. He is your brother after all."
"Yeah," Rainbow said, walking out of the library. "Thanks Twi."
The door closed and a small sound echoed through the library. Twilight couldn't quite tell what it was. It sounded like... Laughter?
Shaking the thought from her mind, Twilight moved back to her desk only to see her calendar had gone missing. All of her checklists had disappeared as well. "Spike!" she called. "What happened to all of my plans?"
Spike came down the stairs. "I moved them so you wouldn't try to disobey Celestia," he explained. "She said to take a day off, remember?"
Twilight sighed. "I guess I could go for a walk..."
"Yeah," Spike said. "Just try to keep yourself from working. You do way too much of that."
"I'll go for some breakfast, then," Twilight decided. "I should just let myself enjoy this."
Twilight left, heading toward Sugarcube Corner. She would be able to say hello to Pinkie Pie while she was there if Pinkie wasn't off throwing one of her crazy parties.
Upon arrival, Twilight noticed that the breakfast rush wasn't quite in yet. Silently thanking her good timing, she was seated and had her food within minutes.
Eating silently, she could see and hear almost anything that happened if she tried to. She could hear a bustle of ponies beginning to gather around the restaurants for their morning so they could eat and head off to work.
There was a slight shuffle from behind her and she turned to see who it was.
"Oh, hello," Twilight said, greeting the grey colt in front of her. "What are you doing here, Nightwolf?"
"Hey," he replied. "I was just stopping by to eat something and noticed you were over here alone. Thought you might want some company.
Twilight motioned over to the other chair, inviting him to sit. "So what did you want to talk about?"
After a slight hesitation, Nightwolf answered. "I just thought we should talk. It helps get the day going."
He ordered his drink and waited for any conversation to start. There was no conversation starter, so he just let the silence reign.
Twilight was the one who finally broke it. "Have you ever danced?" she asked.
"Dance?" Nightwolf scoffed. "Me? I'll dance when Tararus has a bottom. I don't dance. Ever."
"Why not?" Twilight asked.
"It's just not my style," Nightwolf said. "I've never really gotten into dancing. Why do you ask?"
Twilight turned slightly, trying to hide her face some. "The Gala was coming back around I was wondering if you would go with me," she said.
Nightwolf chuckled. "That's months away. I try to avoid things like that, anyways."
Twilight tried hard to hide her disappointment. "I understand."
The rest of breakfast was in silence, until something else happened. The laughter rang out quietly again. "Did you hear that?" Twilight asked.
"Hear what?" Nightwolf asked back. "Are you feeling alright? You're acting a little odd."
"I'm fine," she said, glancing around.
"You seem a little more like me. That's not a good thing," Nightwolf said. "What's wrong?"
Before Twilight could answer, there was a slight tremble. The ground shook and dishes shifted across the tables.
Nightwolf moved quickly, taking action before anypony else knew what was going on. He jumped across the room and looked out to the streets. He muttered somethin and the restaraunt stopped moving. There was a soft light coming from around it. Looking at the rest of the town, the same light was keeping the other ouses still.
The ground continued to tremble, gaining strength like it was some sort of monster. It kept moving for a few more minutes, then stopped again. The light faded and the houses seemed to rest.
Nightwolf stood there for a few seconds before falling down, completely exhausted. Twilight ran over to him and checed to make sure he was safe. When she couldn't feel him breathing, she yelled.
"Somepony get help!" she screamed. She closed her eyes, wishing he would just get up.
When she opened them, she was face-down on her book in the library.
Twilight glanced around, noticing her surroundings. She was about to clean up when she heard somepony at the door. She looked directly at it, then at the clock on the shelf.
Moving downstairs, she ran a hoof through her mane, hoping it wouldbe enough to smooth it over.
Rainbow Dash's cyan face looked back at Twilight when she opened the door. "Hey Twi," she said, looking at her friend. "I was stopping by to-"
"Pick up a book for your brother," Twilight finished.
Rainbow looked at her friend in shock. "How did you know that?"
"I just had the weirdest Dream," Twilight explained. "I thought I could see if it was all coming true."
"Coming true?" Rainbow asked. "Are you telling me you dreamt about this happening?"
Twilight looked around the library nervously. "This did," she explained. "But that's just a coincedence. It's not uncommon for unicorns to have partially prophetic Dreams."
Rainbow looked at Twilight skeptically. "If you know why I'm here, then go get the book."
Magic encased Twilight's horn and she brought a book off of a shelf. "I think this was the one you were looking for."
Rainbow stared in shock at the book. "That's cool. A little creepy, but cool."
"It's just one of those Dreams," Twilight said. "They only come partially true. A good thing in this case."
"What do you mean?" Rainbow asked.
"Nothing," Twilight said, dismissing the subject. "It's already different. Only one event comes true anyways."
"Well thanks for the book, Twi," Rainbow said, beginning to leave. "See ya around."
Twilight moved upstairs to put the book away when Spike came around. "Twilight," he siad. "You're supposed to take a day off, remember?"
Twilight looked at him. "It was just one book," she said. "Besides, I have other things I can do. I was just going to put this book away and then head off for the day."
Spike looked at her strangely. "You're not even going to ask about your schedule?"
"I know you would've taken care of it by now," Twilight said.
"Are you feeling OK?" Spike asked.
"I'm fine," Twilight replied. "It was just another Dream."
Spike looked at her, slightly more concerned. "Capital D Dream?"
"It's not uncommon," Twilight said.
"But it is for you," Spike said. "Remember your last one?"
The thought of the event scared Twilight some. The last time she had had a Dream was when her parents had taken her to Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns for the first time. The entire event had unfolded just as she had Dreamt it would. Including a few celebratory events afterward.
"It's nothing," Twilight said. "Just a simple Dream."
A small chuckle drifted through the room for a second, causing Twilight's ears to perk up. "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Spike asked. "Are you sure you're alright?"
"I'm fine," Twilight said, moving toward the door. "I just need to get something to eat and you know how bad of a cook I am."
Spike shuddered, remembering the charred soup. "Just try to stay away from the places you went to in your Dream."
"There's nothing to worry about," Twilight said, leaving for Sugarcube Corner. She might be able to talk to Pinkie (or let Pinkie talk, which was more likely) while enjoying a good breakfast.
On her arrival, Twilight noticed there weren't many ponies around. She had gotten in before the morning rush.
Strange, she thought. Normally, the morning rush would be hitting around now.
Glancing around, she noticed something shift behind a vase. Passing it off as the flowers shifting, Twilight ordered her breakfast and sat down to wait.
A few minutes later, the rush finally hit and ponies came barreling toward the restaurant. Twilight looked closely to see if she was just being paranoid or if there was more to happen.
Nightwolf made his way above the crowd, gliding down to the ground and getting in faster than the others. He moved toward Twilight and she turned back around. Trying to figure out how to stop the event, Twilight didn't notice Nightwolf speak.
"Are you feeling alright?" he asked, worry showing on his face. "You're staring off into space."
Twilight shook her head, clearing her thoughts. "I'm fine," she said. "Just a little nervous."
Nightwolf looked at Twilight, concern and confusion showing on his face. "Nervous about what?"
"It's probably nothing," Twilight said. "I'm just being a little paranoid, I guess."
Nightwolf stood there for a few seconds before asking, "So could I sit down?"
"I'm going to be leaving soon," Twilight said. "If you want to take this table, go ahead. I should probably do some research on something."
Nightwolf sat down, appearing to dismiss the situation. "What are you going to be doing today?" he asked.
"I don't know," Twilight replied. "I'm supposed to take a day off."
"You deserve it," Nightwolf said. "You've already saved my life once or twice. Usually, I'm the one doing the saving." He stiffened a little after finishing the sentence. He acted as if he had said something he shouldn't have.
Twilight let the silence sit for a few moments before seeing her food come out. She pulled a box to her table so she could take it to the library so she could do some studying.
"It was nice seeing you," Nightwolf said, breaking the silence. "Maybe I'll see you later today."
Twilight didn't respond. She had some studying to do on Dreams before she could truly relax. All she did was leave the bits on the table and walk out as calmly as she possibly could.
That's when she felt the tremor. Just like in her Dream before. Twilight looked back frantically, hoping she wouldn't see what she had in the Dream.
And she didn't. The tremor stopped after only a few seconds. Maybe it is over, she thought.
Moving to the library quickly, Twilight began to relax a little more. This hadn't been in the Dream. It had to be over. There was no other explanation.
Something made a sound behind her and Twilight spun around to see Nightwolf running toward her.
"Get in the library!" he yelled.
Twilight, in her confusion, stayed where she was and watched Nightwolf run.
He finally reached her and said, "What are you still doing out here? Get inside! Now!" He turned around and yelled something, light flying from his hoof. He took to the air and dove after some creature that had gotten into town somehow.
Twilight snapped out of her daze and sprinted into the library. Waiting inside, she panted. Twilight looked around, hoping for Nightwolf to come through the door. Waiting for him to walk in and dust himself off. She looked for some sort of explanation where there was none. She frantically looked around the room, hoping for some form of sense.
Closing her eyes, Twilight began to breathe deeply, calming herself down. She opened them and was face down in a book with the morning sun rising. Again.
Twilight looked around the room, confused. Had everything been a dream within a dream? A terrible dream, but still a dream? The book was the one she had before. The light was the same. It must've been a normal dream.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a sound at the door. Twilight jumped, recognizing the scenario. She sprinted down to the bottom floor and locked the door. Twilight then searched the library for her personal references. There had to be some sort of explanation. Dreams were never inside other Dreams like that. It just didn't happen.
A window opened upstairs and Twilight diverted her attention to the stairs. Somepony came down on silent wings, gliding to the ground. She looked around, going straight for the non-fiction section.
Twilight grabbed the book her friend was looking for in magic and pulled it out towards her. The pegasi froze midair, wings being the only thing moving. Slowly turning, Rainbow Dash faced her friend.
"Hey, Twi," she said nervously. "I didn't think you were home. I was going to pay for the book."
Twilight just pulled the book forward, searching the pages quickly. Maybe there was an explanation in there.
"That's the book I was looking for," Rainbow said. "I guess I don't need to look for it. Could I take a look at that for a minute?"
"You can have it when I finish reading through this," Twilight said, still scanning the pages. "Something's happening."
"Are you feeling alright?" Rainbow asked. "Normally you jump at the chance to give me a book. Sometimes literally."
"I'm fine," Twilight said. "I just need to figure something out."
Rainbow stayed hovering in the air for a few moments before breaking the silence again. "What's going here?" she asked. "You not only didn't leap to give me the book, but you haven't asked a single question or taken any notes."
Twilight ignored her friend for a few seconds so she could finish the last of the book. "It's not here!" she screamed in frustration. "There has to be some sort of explanation!"
"Explanation to what?" Rainbow asked.
Instead of answering, Twilight teleported up to her room to see if there was anything she had missed that had a chance of explaining it. She searched the room until every last speck of dust had been inspected for a clue.
Sighing, Twilight sat down. She didn't know what to do. There was nothing she could do. The day kept happening and there didn't seem to be any reason for it.
Rainbow looked at her friend for a moment. "What was all that about?"
"You'll think I'm crazy," Twilight said.
"You were visited by your future self once," Rainbow said. "You knew about Nightmare Moon when nopony else did. You did what you could to save the world many times. I'm pretty sure you can't top any of that."
"I'm reliving the same day and I have no idea why or how," Twilight said.
Rainbow looked at her skeptically. Then her expression changed a bit. "Is that how you knew about the book?"
"Yes," Twilight said.
"Maybe you should try doing the same thing you did before to see if the same thing happens," Rainbow suggested. "But if you were going to do that, then that means this entire thing was set up."
A groan escaped Twilight's mouth and she ran out the door to Sugarcube Corner to get some food. She couldn't think straight when she was hungry.
Upon her arrival, Twilight remembered the previous encounters here. She ordered her breakfast to-go and waited at the desk.
Nightwolf walked up without Twilight noticing. "Hey," he said.
Twilight jumped a bit, realizing who was behind her. "Hi," she said nervously. Every time she had gone through the day, something bad had happened to him. There had to be a pattern.
"I don't see you here very often," Nightwolf said, dragging Twilight out of her thoughts. "What brings you around?"
"I was just picking up some food before going about my day," Twilight replied.
"Is there anything I can help with?" Nightwolf asked.
"No," Twilight answered, a little too quickly.
Nightwolf cocked his head, curious. "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Twilight said, paying for her food and leaving with the bag in her telekinetic grip. She moved quickly, not caring about what was going on around her. She had to figure out what was happening before she was permanently trapped in a loop.
Twilight returned to the library and made sure she wouldn't be disturbed. There was already too much that could go wrong. If just one thing didn't work, she would have to start all over.
She pulled as many books on time and space off of the shelves as she could and started searching anywhere and everywhere for a solution. None of the books had anything like this. None of the books had any solutions.
"Twilight?" Spike asked from upstairs. "What are you doing?"
"I'm busy," Twilight said. "Can't talk right now."
"You're supposed to relax and have a day off, remember?" Spike said.
"I can't have a day off," Twilight said. "There's too much to do. I need to find the problem."
Spike looked at Twilight in confusion. "What are you talking about?"
A laugh rippled through the library at that exact moment, taking Twilight completely off guard. That was the one thing that had been different each time. The timing of that laugh had always changed. That meant that there was a solution. There had to be.
Twilight closed her eyes to gather her thoughts. Something had to be causing this problem. Something had to be happening that had a connection to the timeline.
When she opened her eyes, Twilight was face down in her book again as the morning light shone down through the window.
Twilight sighed, laying her down on the book. The page was a little lumpy and pressed hard against her cheek.
Twilight looked down at the page. There shouldn't have been a lump in the book. It was a fairly new one, sent by Luna after the old copy had been damaged. This one shouldn't have had anything wrong with it.
Twilight looked closely at the page, recognizing the sticky pages that were causing the lump. Gently pulling them apart, Twilight straightened out the pages and moved to put the book back when something fell out of it.
A small container with a note attached was now laying on the floor. Twilight set the book down, curious about what this thing could be.
Opening the letter, Twilight finally made sense of what had been happening.
My dearest friend,
Strange things have been occurring across Equestria. I do not have any full reasoning why, but I do have a few suspicions. Some ponies have said that they were living the same day over and over again without being able to escape. Some said their homes were not their own when everypony else remembers the homes as they are.
My reason for sending you this letter is because I do not want you to be unprepared for the possibility that something strange will happen to you. I do not have a way to stop it, but I do have a way of showing others what you have been experiencing.
There is a metal device that should be with this letter. It can only be used once, so be very careful of who you bring into the trap. It will show the pony what you have seen and it will allow magic to bend around them, bringing them into whatever magic you have been trapped in.
Please solve this mystery before it gets out of hoof. I wish you the best of luck.
Your friend,
Princess Luna
After staring at the letter for a few moments out of pure shock, Twilight was able to start piecing things together. If this had happened to others, then there had to be something extremely powerful behind the entire ordeal. There had to be something that enjoyed watching all of the chaos around and seeing ponies running around in a panic.
And there was only one thing that found this sort of thing amusing that also had the power to do it.
