“Spike!! Have you seen the copy of Magical Mares in Manehattan?”
“Uh… no.”
“Spike…”
“…Alright I have it, but I was going to finish it tonight!” the dragon whined. The humble abode that housed Ponyville’s one and only librarian, was now flooded with various books, tomes, and scrolls. The only place that didn’t have any books, seemed to be the actual bookshelves. It was rather stuffy, almost claustrophobic. The room flickered with a low light, having only a single candle set upon a desk next to one aggravated pony. Twilight groaned as she levitated her trusty quill and clipboard, enveloping both in a starry, translucent, purple aura.
“Spike, this is serious! You know that our duty, our only duty really, is to maintain this library and its contents!”
“I know, Twilight, but we’ve been at this all night! We check these books every day. It’s not like they can just get up and leave. I just want to get some sleep…” Spike, with his eyelids low, trudged across the room and landed in a pile of books with a considerable thud. At that point, a pile of hardcover books felt like a pile of blissful clouds.
“Ugh, you don’t understand, Spike! We’re the only library in Ponyville! The entire town is counting on us to have any and every piece of writing available for them! What if Cheerilee came and I didn’t have the book she needed?” Twilight realized she was pacing in a circle… again. Ignoring her surroundings, she continued on.
“And if she can’t find her book, then she can’t read it. And if she can’t read a book, then she won’t be able to read anything. And if she stops reading, she’ll forget how to read. And if she doesn’t know how to read, the fillies she teaches won’t know how to read either!” Twilight’s eyes widened as sweat appeared on her forehead. She shook her head, light dust bellowing from her disheveled mane.
“And eventually, everypony will forget how to read! I’ll be banished for sending literacy rates back a thousand years! There’ll be statues of my failure as the librarian who made everyone illiterate, I’ll have t-“
“Hey, Twilight, what’s this?
Snapping out of her rant, Twilight set down her quill and clipboard and turned to her little assistant. Twilight glanced behind her to find the baby dragon tugging at something underneath a large book pile that was set in the corner of the room.
“It… won’t… budge…” Spike grunted as he heaved heavily.
“Here, Spike, let me get it.” Twilight’s horn glowed once more, sending dozens of books aside. Spike quickly stepped out of the way, narrowly dodging various reading articles as they whizzed past him.
“Alright, Twilight, whatever you say...” Spike didn’t squander the presented opportunity. With Twilight’s back turned, he tip-toed, with remarkable agility, up the stairs, diving straight into bed.
Twilight could hear her assistant’s faint snore, ever so softly, through her room’s open door.
Thanks Spike… Twilight thought as she rolled her eyes.
Twilight grunted, breathing heavily as she lifted the foreign object out of the pile. The pile began to rumble, eventually collapsing on itself. Dust from each falling book blanketed every crevice of the tree-house, causing a certain dragon upstairs to sneeze.
How the hay can all these books be so dusty? I take them out for inspection every day...
Twilight sneezed deafeningly, forcing her to place her hoof over her mouth. Princess Celestia said she had always loved her sneeze, but to everyone else… it was rather disturbing. Her sneeze was just so… aggressive. The mare quickly recovered her thoughts and turned her attention to the object in question. As she walked nearer, she found it to be a white sack, depicting a wonderfully stitched golden horse-shoe, with a 5-pointed star in the middle.
What's this? Twilight pondered. Her overworked mind briefly tried its best to piece together an answer, but she sighed and simply opened the container. From it, she pulled out a variety of books and papers, all of which were in pristine condition. Twilight soon snapped to attention, as books that were so well-bounded couldn’t have been from Ponyville. She quickly sat down and lifted one of them excitedly towards her face, straining her dust-irritated eyes to read the title.
Predictions and Prophecies…
“Hmm, why does that sound so familiar?” Twilight thought as she talked aloud, rubbing her hoof on her chin. She quickly grabbed the next thing from the bag: a letter, to be exact.
My dearest and most faithful student Twilight, you know that I value your diligence, and that I trust you completely…
Flashing scenes of her arriving to Ponyville, meeting her soon-to-be friends, and battling Nightmare Moon all forcefully blazed through her brain, leaving an expression of realization on her once blank face.
It’s the letter the Princess sent me before I left for Ponyville… but why is this here? Twilight thought, curiously eyeing every feature of the letter.
As if on cue, a smaller piece of parchment paper floated down from behind the letter, landing square in Twilight’s lap.
My dearest and most faithful student Twilight, you left for Ponyville in such a hurry that you had forgotten your things in the Canterlot Library. I know how much you cherish your notes and research, so I gathered everything that was yours and entailed them in your bag. I assume you’ll be too busy with the Summer Sun Celebration, but at least you won’t have to worry about these. Remember, make some friends!
Sincerely,
Celestia
“Huh, how thoughtful of the Princess!” Twilight happily announced as she levitated the remaining items from her bag onto her table. But as she did, a small yellow piece of paper fell from one of the books onto the hard oak floor. Sighing in minor irritation, Twilight set the rest of her books down and retrieved the loose paper.
“Canterlot Local Library… Due Back…”
Twilight snarled in frustration due to the lack of light. She swiftly levitated a few candles and matches, and proceeded to sufficiently illuminate the rest of the room.
“FIVE MONTHS AGO??? SPIIIIKKE!!!”
“Wha?!?” Spike shouted as he jumped from his small wicker bed. He then tripped over his small blanket, sending him down the stairs like a child’s slinky. As he hit the bottom, Twilight simply shook her head.
“Ugghh… What is it now Twilight???” Spike moaned, painfully sprawled on the cold hard floor.
“Quick, Spike! I need you to send a letter to the Canterlot Local Library! I have five books from their library that are overdue! I need to send them back as soon as possible! Inform them that they shall be swiftly returned on the morrow.” Twilight stood up and straightened her neck, giving her the appearance of an officer barking orders.
Spike, now wide-awake and extremely grouchy, grumbled as he hastily wrote down the improvised letter. If Spike had learned anything from being Twilight’s assistant, it was to be ready to write a letter at any time in the day. Any time. With a deep breath, and an even deeper blow, an emerald green flame emerged from his nose and mouth, whisking the letter away out an open window, into the brisk and lightless night.
“There, Twilight. It’s sent. Sheesh, it’s like three in the morning! They probably won’t even see it until morn-” Spike muttered before he spewed a roll of parchment paper from his mouth.
“I hate when it does that…” Spike mumbled as he once again trekked toward his bed.
Twilight levitated the letter, relentlessly unraveling it and stretching it across her floor. Apparently, there was no time for it to be read on a simple desk like a normal pony.
Dear Ms. Sparkle,
We here at the Canterlot Local Library certainly appreciate your notice, but we must adhere to strict regulations. One of those regulations being: our policy on late returns. It is very well-known as company policy that a 1% charge of the books original cost will be placed upon your library account every day past the due date, until the book has been returned. There are 5 books that are currently checked out in your name, all of which are 5 months overdue. You have an outstanding debt of 100,852 bits owed to the Canterlot Local Library, resulting in the freezing of any and all library accounts of your name, in all of Equestria, until the debt has been paid. The Canterlot Local Library wishes you the best of endeavors on your road to repayment, and is looking forward to accepting your money.
Sincerely,
Canterlot Local Library - Overdue Returns Division
“A hundred thous-…” Twilight trailed off as she fell to the floor, fainting as her body commanded her to shut down. Combining a lack of sleep with such a shocker did not bode well. She laid still on the chilled oak floor as a draft swept through an open window, blowing out the candles. Tomorrow would be a new day for the troubled unicorn. A new day with new ideas… and new problems.
The next morning was met with a glorious warming sunshine. Birds of multiple hues were happily chirping together, while the citizens of Ponyville began their day, optimistic and carefree. Inside the library, however, lay Twilight Sparkle, covered in a blanket of worn dusty books as a ray of sunlight finally met her eyelids. Her eyelids thrust open like a steel trap. She groggily leaned forward as she narrowed her eyes at the gateway of searing light that was her window. She swiftly retaliated at the blinding menace, sending multiple works on Equestrian bears through her glass-paned window. The shattering of glass finally awoke her to full consciousness.
Aw crud… Twilight iterated in her head as she gazed upon her destroyed window.
The books! Her mental voice screamed between her ears. Twilight searched the ground frantically for the letter, only to have Spike hand it to her face, a concerned look upon his face.
“So uh… Twilight? How are you gonna pay this?”
Twilight once again sat down on her floor with a thump, her mind scanning the very ends of her brain for a solution.
I could ask Princess Celestia for help, but I can’t look irresponsible and negligent, let alone downright poor, in front of the Princess!
Being the town librarian had left her without any source of income, revenue, or profit. She never had a need for money in Ponyville, as ponies practically gave her things. Being a hero of Equestria had its perks, but monetary compensation was apparently not one of them. She glanced around the room, pleading for an answer. Piles of decrepit books and works of knowledge littered across the room laughed and jittered at her pitiful mental attempts. She laid her head low, her cheeks beginning to swell, and her eyes reddened as a tear made its way down the side of her face.
“Aw, come on, Twilight! Look, let’s just move all these books and we’ll figure it out. I know you can! You’re the smartest pony in Equestria!” Spike encouraged.
That’s it!
“You’re a genius, Spike! I’ll sell all these books!"
Twilight pulled out a quill and parchment paper, furiously performing mathematical operations.
"From last night’s records, we have over two thousand books in stock. If I can sell every single book for about... hmm, 50 bits, I’ll have enough to pay the debt and buy the library some new books!” Twilight sang cheerfully, wiping the moisture from her eyes.
“Quick, Spike, take the table and some books outside!”
The morning sun hovered high above Ponyville, gracing its inhabitants with its loving embrace. The streets of Ponyville bustled with activity. As it slowly made its decline toward the horizon, the skies changed from a relaxing light blue to a soothing warm orange and red, leaving the streets and roads empty, save a few ponies.
“Ugggghhhh…” Twilight moaned in frustration. “Not a single book Spike! No one is this entire town reads a single book! It’ll be fine if I send literacy rates back a thousand years, there wouldn’t be much of a difference!”
Twilight twiddled her hooves sitting at her wooden study desk, now placed outside her familiar oak door. A large white banner hung from a branch above her, reading…
High Quality Books for Sale! Only 50 Bits! 40 Bits! 30 Bits! 20 Bits! 10 Bits…
“Look Twilight, maybe you don’t even have to pay it. All they did was stop letting you checkout books, right?” Spike questioned.
Twilight turned her head back 180 degrees, staring Spike right in the eyes.
“Don’t you understand? Don’t you see? If I can’t check out any books, I can’t learn anything! If I don’t learn anything, I’ll be practically useless to the Princess and she’ll banish me in a second! Not to mention the fact that I’ll go crazy!”
Twilight’s chest rose and fell at an alarming rate, smoke trickling from her nostrils and ears. With one ear down, one ear up, and a crooked grin, she turned her head back and slammed her face into the wooden table.
“Uh… yeah… right, you’ll go crazy. Heh-heh, I think I’ll go over to Rarity’s to see if she needs help with anything. Bye!” And with that, Spike rocketed down the brown dirt road; he was a fast little guy.
I guess I’ll just have to beg in front of the Princess…
“Hey Twilight!” Twilight reared her head in the direction of the beckon, fixating her eyes upon a blur zooming past her, sending wind and other various objects in Twilight’s face. With her eyes still rolling inside of her head…
“Sheesh, Rainbow... Do you have to fly so fast? What’s the hurry?”
“Heh-heh, sorry Twilight, I was just looking for some stuff and I saw you out here, so I came down to check out what’s going on. For an egghead, you look like you really want to get rid of those books…” Rainbow Dash said whilst getting off the ground. She looked up and squinted at the banner.
“High Quality Books? Bwaahahahaha, Twilight! Those things are older and more boring than Granny Smith!” Rainbow quickly did a double-take as if searching for any adjacent blond-maned orange ponies that could have been lurking nearby.
“You’re pretty strapped for bits, eh, Twilight? I have a couple if you really need them.”
Twilight cocked her eyebrow and stared quizzically at her confident friend.
“Sorry, Rainbow, but I don’t think anypony, even the amazing and awesome Rainbow Dash, can pay for this…” Twilight held her head low as she levitated the library’s letter to Dash’s face.
“Whoa, Twilight… how in Equestria did you manage that?” Rainbow’s face appeared from behind the letter, staring towards Twilight with concern.
Twilight began for the door of the great tree that was her home, the troubled unicorn passing by her loyal friend.
“I’d rather not talk about it… All I know is I’ll probably never read again,” Twilight grimly said with her head hung low.
“C’mon, Twilight! Don’t get all mopey on me. Uh, let’s hang! Being with me will definitely get your mind off it.”
Twilight stopped before the front door, gazing out past the glowing red-orange horizon.
“Maybe you’re right. A relaxing day could help ease my mind off things, and then I’ll figure this thing out. So... what do you want to do?” Twilight remarked, leaning towards Rainbow Dash.
Rainbow let out one of her familiar yawns, spreading her wings and hovering into the air.
“Oh, I didn’t mean right now, Twilight. It’s getting pretty late and all... I think we’re both pretty tired, so why don’t we just meet up tomorrow?” Rainbow hovered higher and higher, fading out of earshot before Twilight could even answer.
“Uh, alright then.” Twilight squinted at the sky, searching for any sign of the pegasus’ indicative mane color.
As Twilight stared at the sky, she prayed to Celestia that she could find an answer, and that the answer wasn't Celestia.