She Put the Sparkle Back in His Eyes
Broken Dreams, Healing Hearts
Okay, so this is a one-shot that I thought of as I sat on my lonely little writer’s block that is “Awoken”. Don’t worry; for those of you actually reading that story, it will be updated as soon as I finish chapter 6.
Also, as a warning: this story contains major shipping. Don’t like it? Then get out. Nopony wants to read hate comments. Also, so you don’t get confused: this is a story about my OC Quillin Words, for whom my pen name is named after. Enjoy!
Toodledoo!
Quillin Words
P.S. If you want to know more about Quillin, I wrote a bio for him on my DeviantArt account when I posted a pic of him. Another warning: not sure if I captured Twilight well enough. She may be a little OOC.
Quillin Words POV
Quillin smiled as he finished the last quill stroke that symbolized not only just the end of the last chapter of “The Mare of Hallow Heights”, but the end of a long chapter in his life. So much time, so much dedication…..Quillin remembered the nights where he hardly had any sleep; he was up writing for so long. It had only been by the advice of his good friend Twilight Sparkle that he agreed to end his midnight quill strokes.
“It’s not healthy, Quillin. Sleep is essential to creative writing.”
Ah, that Twilight. She was something different, this Quillin knew for sure. There was something about her that made her different from the rest. There was something that, well.....sparkled, Quillin thought with a smile. She was another unicorn who fancied the academic arts, much like he did. She was unlike that brash mare Rainbow Dash that most everypony fawned over. Twilight preferred to stay indoors and read a good book—something Quillin could relate to. Perhaps it was time he….
Quillin shook his head. Confound these preposterous thoughts! He had not time for such emotions. That could wait for another day….perhaps Heart’s and Hooves Day, which was but a few weeks away. Till then….well, he had plenty of time to prepare something for the lavender mare. In the meantime, he had business to attend to.
"Well, it's off to the publisher!"
Twilight Sparkle’s POV (three weeks later, Heart’s and Hooves Day)
Twilight couldn’t help but grin at the festivities going on in Quillin’s home. Pinkie Pie had outdone herself again; this party was so magnificent that she thought it could rival the Grand Galloping Gala. Still, a Heart’s and Hooves party? Seriously? Pinkie should know that most ponies had other plans for the day. Surprisingly, the turn-up was unexpectedly large: over half of Ponyville had arrived.
“Pinkie Pie, how did you get so many ponies to come?” Twilight said, marveling at the sheer number of them.
Pinkie giggled. “Oh silly. Today’s not just Heart’s and Hooves Day! Don’t you know what today is?”
Twilight frowned. Something other than Heart’s and Hooves Day? What else could it be?
“Well….I guess I don’t know. What is it?”
Pinkie let out another giggle. “Today’s a party for your coltfriend Quillin! He finished his new book and got it published!"
“Oh, ok. I’d better go congratulate him--” Suddenly Twilight froze. “Wait, WHAT?! He’s not my coltfriend! Pinkie, you know I’m not into that kind of stuff!” Twilight looked around, blushing, hoping nopony heard what the party pony had sad.
“Well, what about the time you and him were out at my Hearth’s Warming Eve Party?”
For a moment, Twilight stared blankly back at Pinkie Pie, not sure what she was talking about. Then, the memory suddenly sparked in the back of her head. She had been dancing with her friends when she noticed Quillin walking out the back door. Twilight wondered if something was wrong with her writing friend, so she decided to go and talk with him.
Twilight walked out into the brisk cold air of the night, looking for the brown stallion. Where could he have gone?
“If you’re looking for me, I’m up here, Twilight.”
With a yelp, Twilight Sparkle jumped and turned around. Up on the roof, sitting with a quill and scroll, was Quillin Words. The way he sat and his position put him right in the center of the bright moon, so that all she could see was his silhouette. She gazed at him a little longer, her breath taken away by the sight of him. Wait, what? Did she really just think that?
Yeesh Twilight. She thought. You’ve been reading way too many of Rarity’s romance novels.
Twilight’s horn glowed, and she suddenly disappeared from where she stood and popped up next to Quillin. She scooted a little closer to him to try and see what he was writing. Immediately, the stallion inched a little farther away.
“Na-ahah! This is a surprise.” Quillin said, an impish grin upon his face. “Can’t have it ruined by a curious little mare, now can we?”
“Hey, who’re you calling little?” Twilight said indignantly. Admittedly, she was a tad shorter than him, but just a tad. Meaning not that much. “You’re only a little taller than I am!”
Quillin laughed. “And yet, an inch or two could make the difference in the world. In this case, a few inches taller still means I’m taller than you are.” He got quiet again, and started writing once more. Suddenly, he sighed. “Twilight, may I confide to you something? Just promise you won’t tell anypony.”
Twilight was a little taken aback. This was just a little sudden. “Well, sure, I guess. I promise.”
Quillin smiled, then began his story. “Well, put simply, I’m a little on edge because of the feedback I’ve gotten on my last book. I had some good comments, and some that gave constructive feedback—for which I’m grateful for. However, there were some that were just downright offensive.” He turned his gaze to the white moon above, and sighed. “Perhaps I’m just not cut out to be a writer.”
“Are you kidding me?” Twilight said, trying to keep her voice soft. “Quillin, you’re one of the best writers I know! I own all of your books, and I love them!”
Quillin had a surprised look on his face. “Well, I never knew that. You own all of my books? Even the first one?”
“Of course!” Twilight exclaimed. “The Tale of King Eclipse was the best one!”
Suddenly, a saddened spirit seemed to fall upon her friend once more. “You see Twilight? Therein lies my problem. I’ve been trying desperately to write something that equates or surpasses my only best-seller. Thus far, I’ve failed repeatedly. Just look at my record. Of all the books I’ve sold, only one has been a best-seller, and let’s be honest. The others only sold because of the first’s popularity. Readers hoped that the books following The Tale of King Eclipse would be just as engaging. Well…..apparently they weren’t.”
Twilight wanted to argue, but his words had some truth in them. The main reason why she purchased any of Quillin’s books after The Tale of King Eclipse was because of how good the first one was. One thing she had to disagree with was how good each book following had been.
“Quillin, if it means anything, I loved each and every one of your books.” Twilight said, now putting a hoof on her friend’s shoulder. “Each told me a story, a lesson. That’s not something you find in most books today.”
Quillin started to cry, unable to hold it in. “But, the problem is, only you think that! I know you’re being honest, and I’m grateful for it, but I want everypony else to think that my writing is as good as you do! I don’t know….it’s just my writer’s pride has been stung so many times that I’m not sure if I want to keep writing.”
Twilight looked into his eyes, and saw that their usual sparkle of joy and optimism were fading. The thought of that scared her. She didn’t want to lose her friend over to the madness of the harsh words of others. She wracked her brain furiously, and suddenly, an idea came to her.
“Well, Quillin, all I have to say to you is this.” Twilight whispered, her voice soft and soothing. “Do you remember the fifth book you wrote, She Flared Her Wings and Soared?”
“Well….yes. That one got but a few nominations, but nothing big. Why’re you bringing this up?”
“Because, Quillin,” The lavender mare explained. “Because the character you created in that story named ‘Spirit Wings’ faced a similar problem that you are going through right now.” The brown stallion suddenly stopped sniffling and turned his head towards Twilight. “She was often criticized for her flashy flying style, almost to the point where she didn’t want to fly anymore. The thing was, that’s what made her different from the rest; flying was her passion. If I remember correctly, she was going to go through a surgery to remove her wings when her rival and friend Rapid Feathers told her something that stuck with me.” The mare smiled and looked at Quillin. “You wrote the words. Do you remember them, Quillin?”
The sparkle in his eyes suddenly seemed to flare back to life. Quillin started to grin, and said softly, “‘No matter what anypony tells you, the only ponies whose opinion should matter is those closest to your heart.’” Quillin began to tear up again. “Thank you Twilight. I can’t believe I almost went back on my own words.”
“Hey, that’s what I’m here for: to make sure you don’t do anything stupid.” Twilight said, a joking laugh about her.
Quillin scoffed lightly in return. “Oh please, I don’t do anything stupid. I ought to give you a slap or two behind the ears for using my own writing against me!” He raised his hoof threateningly, and Twilight cowered in pretend fear. Instead of bopping her on the head, he put his hoof around Twilight’s body, bringing her in for a warm hug. “And yet, I can’t thank you enough for doing so. Thank you, Twilight.”
Twilight could hardly breathe. She’d never been this close to him before, and now that it was happening, she felt faint. What was wrong with her? She never acted this way in front of other stallions before! Yet her heart seemed to be throbbing so much that she was sure that Quillin could feel it.
That thought struck a nerve in her brain, which immediately told her to do something about the situation. Gently, she brought her hooves up, pushed him away, and stood up.
“Um…it was nothing, really.” Twilight said, replying to his thanks earlier. “I’m just doing what a good friend would do, right?” Yet, it almost sounded like she was trying to convince herself of that.
Quillin cleared his throat and stood up as well. “R-right. Of course. Now, we’d better head inside before we catch a cold….”
“Oh….right.”
Suddenly, Twilight felt the world slip beneath her as she attempted to step off the roof, only to fall off of it completely. She yelled for help, and Quillin attempted to grab her hoof and pull her back up, but the combined weight of the two ponies caused both to fall to the ground. They landed in a messy heap, and as they groaned to get back up, the door in front of them opened.
“Oooh, found ya!” said a high-pitched voice.
Twilight looked up to see Pinkie Pie staring down at them, a wide knowing smile on her face. Twilight looked back at Quillin, who she realized was on top of her.
Twilight pushed her friend off and immediately faced Pinkie Pie. “L-look Pinkie, it wasn’t what it looked like!”
Quillin got up and rushed to Twilight’s side. “Twilight’s right! Pinkie, we simply fell off the roof!”
“And what were you two doing on the roof to begin with?” Pinkie Pie said, her grin getting wider by the second. When the two only stammered back mixes of “We were”s and “Um”s , the cotton candy maned pony simply laughed. “I’m just teasing you guys. Now come back in! There’s still a ton of party left in this house!”
Both ponies simply stared at the pink mare who walked into the crowds of partyers inside, before shaking their heads and joining them.
Twilight smiled as she remembered what’d happened but a few months ago. She was still unsure as to how she felt about her creative friend, but whatever lied ahead, she was sure it wasn’t going to be a problem.
Suddenly, a voice cried out. “Um, I need everypony’s attention please! Please, everypony?” Twilight looked up to see Quillin, who was standing at a podium parchment in hoof, trying to call a silence. Yet, everypony kept on making noise and partying it out. Twilight was angry that nopony seemed to give the colt of the hour the attention he desired. She decided to use a spell to magnify her voice.
“HEY!!!!” Immediately, the whole house got quiet, and everypony turned their heads towards Twilight. She blushed, and turned her spell off. “Um…Quillin’s got something to say.”
Quillin smiled that charming trademark smile of his, and thanked her. “Now, today is a very important day, not just for me, but for everypony in this room!” The house filled with cheers, and Quillin waited for everypony to quiet down before continuing. “I give you my most sincere thanks for coming to this wonderful party put on by our amazing party pony, Pinkie Pie!” Again, the room filled with noise as they stomped their approval. Pinkie Pie simply laughed and giggled. “Now, I have something that I’ve written here, for a very special somepony in my life. She’s been there for me through it all, even when I perhaps wanted to be left alone in the dark.”
Pinkie Pie rushed over to Twilight Sparkle and elbowed her in the side. “Guess who’s going to get lucky tonight!” Twilight simply rolled her eyes and tried to ignore the pounding in her heart. She turned back to the podium, only to see his dark green eyes staring directly into her purple ones. Twilight held her breath, almost unable to breath.
“This is a poem for—”
“WAIT!!!!!!!!!!!!!”
The door bursted open, revealing Flash Soaring and Umi Zoomelia. They both seemed out of breath, and Flash was holding a letter.
Quillin laughed. "Well, about time you showed up, you little rascal! Were you and your marefriend off doing...." He left his question hanging, embarrasing the two pegasi lovers.
Flash finally shook off his embarrassment. "No, we weren't doing anything. We just got a little hung up."
"Hung up on what?" Quillin snickered, eyebrow raised.
Twilight couldn't help but laugh. Quillin was always polite, but he had a way of joking with others. It was how he got back at others. In this case, Umi and Flash were blushing redder than the apples on Applejack's farm.
Umi huffed. "Well, fine. I guess you don't want the important letter from the Canterlot Writer's Society!"
