Chapters The sun was shining, the birds were chirping, the gems were crunching... And they were delicious.
“Slow down, Spike!” Twilight said, laughing. “Don’t choke yourself; the gems aren’t going anywhere.”
“I know, Twilight, but,” I took another bite, chewing loudly. “They’re just so good!” Twilight laughed again and returned to her own breakfast. I took another bite. Twilight looked up at me.
“Would you get that, please?”
I stopped chewing long enough to ask, “Get what?” My question was answered by the sound of somepony knocking on the library door. I rolled my eyes and left the room to answer it.
“Why does no one ever remember that this is a public library?” I didn’t get an answer to that question. Not that I expected one. I opened the door to find a grey pegasus standing outside.
“Hi Spike! I’ve got a delivery for Twilight.” I accepted the package and thanked her. She flew away, only hitting one house before I got the door closed. I turned around to see Twilight coming into the room.
“What was that about, Spike?”
“Delivery for you,” I said, holding out the package. “I think it might be that book you asked Celestia for.” Twilight smiled wider than I’d seen in recent memory. She practically ripped the package out of my claws with her magic. She didn’t tear the packaging, even with how fast she unwrapped it. The book didn’t look anything like I was expecting. I wasn’t sure what the book was, but from how excited she was to finally get it, I was thinking it would be something... more. There was a letter with the book, and Twilight got even more excited upon reading it. She dropped the letter and started jumping around in circles with the book.
“Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes!”
“Twilight?”
“Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes!” She was lost to the world, so I picked up the letter and read it for myself.
Dear Twilight Sparkle, my most faithful student,
Here is the book you requested, I believe you are finally ready for it.
At this point in your training, it is time for you to study this book, but due to the nature of the dark magic contained inside, I cannot stress enough how important it is that you do not cast any of the spells you learn from it under any circumstances.
If you have any questions at all, don't hesitate to ask me.
Princess Celestia
My eyes were wide by the time I reached the end. I had no idea that this was that kind of book. I was even less impressed by its appearance, but suddenly felt a little intimidated by it.
“Yesyesyesyesyesyesyesyesyes!”
“Twilight, you’ll be careful, won’t you?”
“YesyesyesyesyesyesyesYESYEEESSS!”
“Twilight!” Twilight stopped jumping around. I guessed she finally remembered that she wasn’t alone. She looked at me, embarrassed, but still couldn’t stop smiling.
“Yes?”
“You’ll be careful, right? This stuff looks dangerous.”
“Oh, Spike, of course I’ll be careful. I’m always careful.” I cocked an eyebrow at her. She sighed and rolled her eyes.
“Okay, almost always. But I will be careful with this. I promise.” I nodded, satisfied. Her smile reappeared.
“I’mgonnagoreadnowcleanupbreakfastokay?” She darted to a corner of the room where she settled down with the book. I chuckled and shook my head as I left her alone to read. I started cleaning up from breakfast when there was a loud crash, like somepony, well, crashing... into the door. Only two ponies that would likely be, and one of them had already stopped by.
I heard Twilight greet the visitor. “Oh, hi, Rainbow. You know, it’s a lot easier to get inside if you land first and then open the door.” Score one for logical thought. I promised myself not to tell Twilight about actually keeping score on that. Or the list where I wrote down the score. Mainly because logical thought was losing, and she wouldn’t take that well.
They continued to talk for a couple minutes while I cleaned up, but I didn’t pay any more attention to it. I was surprised to hear Twilight call out to me.
“I’m going out for a while, Spike. Remember to dust the bookshe-” Her voice was cut off by the front door closing. I looked into the main room to find it completely empty. Twilight must have left with Rainbow Dash for some reason. Which meant I had just been left alone in the library.
“Well, well, well,” I said, turning to look at the bowl of gems still sitting on the table. “Where were we?”
After I finished the whole bowl of gems, something Twilight wouldn’t have allowed had she still been home, I got to work dusting the bookshelves like she wanted me to. The problem was, dusting bookshelves was boring. Really boring. Boring enough that using the duster like a microphone seemed like a good idea. I kept working, some, but mostly I was dancing around and singing. I lost track of the time, but it had to be early afternoon and I still wasn’t finished, when I heard a loud pop from behind me.
“Spike? Spiiiiiike?” I dropped the duster and spun around, embarrassed to be seen like that. I forgot all about my own concerns when I saw Twilight. She looked terrified. Her eyes kept darting from side to side like she was afraid she was being hunted.
“Twilight? What’s wrong?”
“I-I- I don’t- I can’t- I-”
“Twilight?”
“I- she- the rocks- the- I-”
“Snap out of it!” She looked at- through me, and stopped talking. She just stood there, hyperventilating.
“What happened, Twilight?” Twilight tried unsuccessfully to focus her eyes on me. Her mouth worked soundlessly.
“You left with Rainbow Dash this morning...” I prompted. For some reason, Twilight tensed up even more and let out a small squeak at the sound of Rainbow’s name.
“Where did you go?”
“Ghastly Gorge,” Twilight whispered hoarsely.
“Why would you go there?”
“That’s where Rainbow,” she struggled to say the name, “wanted to go.” She cleared her throat and continued more steadily. “She had some new tricks she wanted to show off. I took the book with me, because I was so excited to read it. She said that was fine, because I wouldn’t be able to keep my eyes on the book when she started performing. She was wrong. I could hardly stop reading, and when I did, it was because she had landed in front of me and was yelling at me to pay attention. I-I should have stopped right then, just closed the book and left it alone until later, but I didn’t. She started to do another trick, and before I knew it I was reading again. Those spells were just too fascinating, I’d never seen anything like them before! But... then...”
“Then?”
“I heard her calling my name. I looked up and she was diving almost straight down. She was waving at me and wasn’t looking where she was going. She was going to hit the sharp rocks along the wall of the Gorge. With how fast she was going...” I gasped.
“Is she okay? Is she in the hospital?” Twilight shook her head.
“She’s... not in the hospital. I-I didn’t have any time to think of something else! I had to do something! I cast the first spell I could think of to save her life.” She sounded like she was pleading with me.
“If Rainbow’s okay, what’s wrong?” Twilight sighed and sat down, looking at the floor.
“She’s not... exactly... okay.”
“What do you mean?”
“I cast a spell from the book.”
“Which spell?” Instead of answering directly, Twilight looked up at me and showed me a book. Not the same book which had been delivered earlier; this one had a very light cerulean cover with a rainbow border. In place of a title, this book had a picture of a cloud with a red, yellow, and blue lightning bolt.
Author's Note
I've been working on this story off and on for about three months. Finally got some real progress on it in the last couple weeks, so it's now close enough to done that I can start uploading it.
The cover image I drew with graphite pencils only. The image for this chapter I sketched with pencil, then inked, scanned, and colored using Paint.net; the first time I've digitally colored a drawing. Also, I got the image to appear correctly now! Yay me! I feel kinda dumb for taking so long on that...
I stared slack-jawed at the book Twilight was levitating in front of me.
"T-Twilight... Is that?" I pointed with a trembling claw. Twilight swallowed and nodded.
"Yes, it is," she whispered. She set the book very gently on the floor and buried her face in her hooves, whimpering.
"What do I do now?"
"Um, ask Celestia for help?"
"What? No!" Twilight shrieked, standing bolt upright.
"Why not? She can help, right?"
"No! I cast a spell from the book she told me not to cast a spell from! Do you have any idea how much trouble I'll be in?"
"But you did it to save Rainbow's life; Celestia has to be okay with that, right?"
"She said not to cast them under any circumstances, Spike! Under any circumstances! Don't you know what this means?"
"Banished and imprisoned?" I asked flatly.
"On the moon!" Twilight screamed as her eye twitched. "At best! Maybe she'll even turn me into stone before banishing and imprisoning me on the moon!"
"Okay, okay, I get it, we don't ask Celestia for help. Can't you turn her back?"
"I don't know how!"
"That book you got told you how to do it, does it tell you how to undo it?" Twilight froze and her eyes widened.
"Twilight?" Twilight grabbed me with her forehooves and stood on her hind legs, spinning around.
"Of course! It has to say somewhere! How did I not think of that? Thank you, Spike!" She stopped spinning and set me down. My eyes kept spinning while Twilight picked up both books involved and ran to her room.
"I'll be studying the book in my room! Take care of anypony who comes to see me; I need to not be interrupted!" I stayed downstairs for a few minutes, but I couldn’t focus on my work, so I followed Twilight and watched quietly while she read. It felt like an eternity. Like standing in the waiting room in the hospital, too worried to even sit down, with no idea what kind of news you were going to get. I tried not to look at the bookshelves where Twilight had set Rai- the other book. Eventually Twilight closed the book with a heavy sigh and closed her eyes.
That can’t be a good sign.
"Twilight? Did you find anything?" I was afraid to get an answer, but I couldn’t keep waiting for one.
"No, Spike," Twilight said sadly, not opening her eyes. "The book says how to turn ponies into books, but not how to turn them back."
"Does the other book say anything?" I asked nervously. Twilight looked up at me, confused.
"The other book? What other book?"
"You know... the..." I gestured to the bookshelves. "Other book."
"Spike," Twilight said slowly. "Are you suggesting that I read Rainbow Dash?" I shifted my weight uncomfortably before answering.
"Well, I just thought, since that one didn't say anything, maybe the book you made has instructions on how to, I dunno, un make it."
"Maybe. I guess it can't hurt to take a look," Twilight said hesitantly. She magically picked up the other book and brought it over to the bed. She obviously wasn’t comfortable with the idea, but she opened the book to the first page and started reading. After several seconds, I spoke.
"Does it say anything helpful?" Twilight shook her head and looked up.
"Not yet, it looks like the story of her life." She flipped most of the way through the book and started reading again. She quickly shut the book, a blush spreading across her face.
"What's wrong?"
"I didn't expect so much detail," Twilight mumbled.
"Oh," I said, trying not to wonder what it was Twilight had just read. "Maybe the last page says something that'll help."
"I hope so," Twilight said. She opened the book to the last page. The corners of her mouth turned down as she read out loud about the tricks Rainbow had performed. She had been trying harder than ever simply because Twilight was there. Twilight read how she was upset that Twilight hadn't been paying attention. She read how Rainbow had started her final trick. How she noticed Twilight was reading again. How she tried to get Twilight's attention. How she saw Twilight start to cast a spell.
"That's it," Twilight said softly. "This book tells the story of her life, then the story just... stops."
"But, does that mean, I mean, is she...?"
"No! I can get her back. I will get her back. Somehow."
"But, how?"
"I don't know," Twilight said, burying her face in her hooves again. I opened my mouth to speak, then thought better and shut it again. I had an idea, but if I just came out and said it, Twilight would dismiss me out of hoof.
"Are there any other books like the one you got the spell from? Maybe one of them has the answer." Twilight looked up and rolled her eyes at me.
"But I had to ask Celestia to even get this book! I'd have to ask her for the others and then she'd want to know why and I'd have to tell her I cast one of the spells even though she told me not to and she'd turn me into stone and banish me and imprison me on the moon!"
"What if you just told her you were interested in the spells and wanted to learn more about them? You don't even have to mention the one that you cast. You just want to learn more; Celestia will believe that!" A smile spread across Twilight’s face as I explained my plan.
"You're right, she will believe that! That's exactly the kind of the thing I'd do! Take a letter, please." I readied a scroll and quill.
Dear Princess Celestia,
The book you sent me has so many interesting spells in it that I could hardly stop reading. Are there any more books about those spells or ones like them that you could send me? There is so much research to be done!
Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle
I wrote everything down and sent the letter. Barely had the letter disappeared when there was a knock at the door. I was surprised by the late visitor until I realized I could also hear birds chirping outside, and the sun was already rising. We had been up all night, and it was time for Twilight to go to the spa with her friends.
Author's Note
Anybody reading this who hasn't already seen it, go back to chapter 1 and check out the picture at the end. I fixed my mistake and it shows up now!
Pinkie Pie led us to the spa, where Rarity and Fluttershy were waiting outside for us. Well, mainly for Twilight, but she had insisted that I come along.
"Darling! I'm so glad you could make it!" Rarity said, smiling broadly. “And my little Spikey-Wikey is here too!” I blushed, first from the attention, then from the embarrassment of blushing.
"Now everypony's here!" Pinkie Pie shouted, standing next to Fluttershy, who winced at the outburst.
"Rainbow Dash isn’t here," Fluttershy said softly. I looked everywhere except at Twilight.
"Oh, well," Rarity said. "We all knew she wasn't going to come; her invitation was more a courtesy than anything. The spa isn't really one of her favorite places. Besides, she probably isn’t even awake yet." I yawned, unintentionally emphasizing how early it was. Little did they know that I was really yawning because I’d been up all night.
"Applejack isn't here either," Fluttershy said. "She's too busy on the farm.”
"That's okay," Pinkie Pie said. "This time." Fluttershy shied away from the sudden dark edge in Pinkie's voice.
"Right," Rarity said, chuckling nervously. "Well, shall we?" Rarity led us inside and specified that we were there for “the usual.” Aloe and Lotus distributed robes to the four ponies, but exchanged a look when they saw me. They apologized for not having a robe that would fit me properly, and offered to give me one of the smaller pony robes.
“No thanks,” I said. “I don’t need one.” It would be difficult enough to focus with Rarity there, but if I allowed himself to be too absorbed in the pampering, I was afraid I might forget about the reason I was there at all. If anyone started talking too much about Rainbow Dash, Twilight told me I needed to pretend to remember something she was supposed to do, giving her an excuse to leave.
Once everyone had a robe who was going to get one, Lotus directed us to the sauna and began ladling water over hot rocks, filling the room with steam. The ponies settled down to enjoy the treatment, and I stood just inside the door, intent on remembering why I was there. Determined not to be distracted by... Rarity, just sitting there, looking so beautiful... I shook my head to clear my thoughts and focus again. The movement caught Rarity’s attention.
“Oh, Spikie, darling, do sit down. The point of a spa is to relax; don’t stand over there so stiffly. One would think you’re guarding something. If you’re guarding us, don’t worry, we’re all perfectly safe here.” I flushed and mumbled incoherently as I walked away from the door to sit between Twilight and Rarity. Rarity leaned close to Fluttershy and whispered, but she spoke just loudly enough that I was able to make out what she said.
“Isn’t he just so adorable when he’s embarrassed?” Fluttershy giggled softly and my blush deepened. I looked away, hoping Rarity wouldn’t know I overheard her.
“Now,” Rarity said, this time loud enough for everyone to hear. “I know Rainbow Dash didn’t want to be here today, but what is Applejack doing that so important? I thought she was looking forward to this.”
“Um, she’s pruning her orchard,” Fluttershy said.
“What?” Pinkie Pie almost shouted. “Oh, come on, that doesn’t take that long, she could be here with us and do that after!”
Twilight spoke up. “Not that long? Pinkie, even with Big Mac’s help-”
“Big Mac is helping?” Pinkie’s expression was half confused, half disgusted. I had no idea why.
“-it would still take them days to get all those branches removed.” Twilight finished, seeming not to notice Pinkie’s reaction.
Pinkie blinked, processing what she’d just heard. “Oh. Oooooooohhhh... I get it now.”
“You get what?” I asked, as confused as she looked a second ago. “No one was telling a joke, unless I didn’t get it either.”
“No, I was just confused. I didn’t hear what Fluttershy said right.”
“But why can’t it wait until later?” Rarity asked. “Is it really so important that she pulls all those limbs down now?”
“The Pegasus ponies have a big storm scheduled for next week,” Fluttershy said. “The, uh, other Pegasus ponies. Not me. I’m sorry.” She squeaked and hid behind her mane.
“If the storm tears down the limbs, it could cause a lot of damage to the trees,” Twilight said. “I hope she can get it done in time.”
“She said Rainbow Dash was going to help her with it too,” Fluttershy said. I glanced at Twilight, who swallowed hard.
“Twilight, are you okay?” Pinkie asked. “You’re all pale and sweaty. Are you sick?”
“Oh, darling, is it too hot in here for you? I think we should get you out of here. Lotus, dear, I do believe it is time for mud masks.” Lotus smiled and nodded, gesturing us into the next room, where Aloe had prepared the rest of the items needed for the usual treatment. While Aloe and Lotus started to apply the mud masks, Rarity announced that further conversation would need to wait until after the masks were removed, to prevent them from shifting during treatment.
“Why does that matter?” Pinkie asked. I suspected she was just looking for a reason she didn’t have to stop talking.
“If the mask slides, then it won’t be an even coating, which means our faces won’t have an even treatment, which means once the masks are removed, our faces won’t be even! That would simply be the worst. Possible. Thing!” Pinkie sighed heavily and made some complicated gestures that seemed to mean she wasn’t going to say anything else for a few minutes. Twilight and I, meanwhile, sighed with relief that no one was saying anything else about Rainbow Dash, at least for a while.
After the masks were removed, conversation resumed as Aloe and Lotus filed Twilight and Rarity’s horns and some of my scales. Discussion started to drift dangerously close to Rainbow Dash again, but was interrupted when the massage stage of the visit began. Pinkie Pie started making noises and listening to how they were changed by the impact of Aloe’s hooves against her back, much to Rarity’s chagrin. I found the sound oddly relaxing, although maybe it was just my own massage. My eyelids started to droop...
“Spikey-Wikey...” My eyes shot open to see Rarity and Twilight standing next to me. They were both smiling, but while Rarity’s smile was warm and genuine, Twilight’s was forced, and there was something in her eyes that made me uncomfortable.
“You were so relaxed you fell asleep during your massage,” Rarity said. “You slept through that and our hooficure. Come along now, it’s time for the mud bath.” Twilight silently warned me to stay where he was, so I yawned and stretched while Rarity left the room. Once we were alone, Twilight leaned in close.
“What are you doing ?” She whispered furiously. “You’re supposed to be here to help me make sure they don’t find out about what happened, not to be falling asleep while they ask me if I’ve seen Rainbow Dash! I had to lie to them and said I haven’t seen her in days!”
“I’m sorry, Twilight, the massage just felt so good, and I didn’t sleep at all last night; I couldn’t help myself.”
“Please try, Spike,” Twilight said. “I need your help with this. Now let’s go, before they get suspicious.” Twilight walked stiffly out of the room. I followed closely, determined not to let her down again. It was too late. Rarity, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie were looking at Twilight with concern when she joined them.
“Are you alright, darling? What was that about?”
Twilight’s smile snapped back into place before she answered.
“I’m fine. With Spike falling asleep like that, I was just worried I’d given him more responsibility than he can handle. He said I haven’t; that he was just so comfortable he couldn’t help falling asleep. Come on, Spike.” We joined the other three in the mud baths. I sighed, relaxing in the mud. Mud may not feel as nice as lava, but the company was far superior. I looked over at Twilight, and she seemed to be relaxing some too. I hoped she was relaxed enough I could joke around a little.
“Just to warn you,” I said. “This is so nice that I might fall asleep again.”
The ponies all laughed. Twilight’s laugh didn’t even seem forced.
Twilight was much more cheerful after the spa visit, and let me ride on her back as we went home.
“I think that was exactly what I needed to refresh my mind, Spike. Now I’m sure I can find a way to-” She glanced around at the other ponies around. “To solve the problem.” She started to hum happily as she trotted along the road. Her smile slipped and she slowed to a stop when she noticed ponies around giving her dark looks.
“What’s that all about?” I asked.
“I don’t know,” Twilight said. “I don’t know them. I mean, I’ve seen them around town, but I don’t even know most of their names.”
“You don’t think... You don’t think they know, do you?”
“Oh, dear Celestia, I hope not,” Twilight said, her voice shaking slightly.
“Excuse me, did I do something wrong?” She asked the nearest unhappy pony.
“How can you be so happy on a day like this?” The pony asked, glaring.
“A day like this? What do you mean? What’s happened?” The other pony walked away without answering. Twilight walked in the direction the other ponies were coming from, and we soon learned that they were leaving a funeral. We didn’t know the pony who had died, but we did overhear some bits of conversation.
“...fell and broke his leg...”
“...infection had set in and there was nothing they could do...”
“...to think somepony could be fine one day and dead only a couple days later...”
“...so sudden...”
“...never saw it coming...”
Twilight didn’t say anything else on our way back to the library. I tried to talk to her, but she didn’t answer me. After a couple tries, I gave up. She didn’t say anything when we got home. She set me down on the floor, picked some books from the shelves and took them to her desk to start reading. The silence continued until I brought her something to eat. I set her plate on the desk where she was reading and turned to leave when she spoke, surprising me.
“Spike? Did you hear what they said? That somepony was fine one day, and dead only a couple days later?” I turned to face her and wasn’t sure how to answer. She looked like she was on the verge of tears.
“I know, Twilight. It’s sad, but that’s life, you know? Stuff happens, and there’s no way around that.”
“Yeah,” Twilight agreed sadly. “No way around that.” She glanced at Rainbow Dash on the corner of the desk, then looked at the plate as though seeing it for the first time. She looked back up at me and gave a little smile.
“Thank you.”
“You’re wel-” My reply was interrupted by a sudden burst of flame from my mouth. Fortunately I felt it coming and turned away from Twilight first. Inside the flame a scroll materialized. I caught it and opened it. Twilight’s face lit up when she saw it.
“It’s from Celestia! She must be answering my letter! She’s sent some more books and this whole thing can be forgotten soon! What are you waiting for? Read it!”
I cleared my throat and began.
Dear Twilight Sparkle, my most faithful student,
I know that you are always eager to learn, and that is one of the reasons I made you my personal student. However, the magic you are researching is very dangerous. In fact, these kinds of spells are the same as those my sister began to use just over a thousand years ago.
If you have any questions about any of the spells you’ve already learned about, ask me, but it may not be safe for you to read any more of the books yet.
Princess Celestia
Twilight’s face fell and she sat down.
“Now what I do?” She asked. “There has to be an answer in one of the other books, but if I insist then she’ll want to know why, and I’ve already given my only excuse for it!”
“She said to ask about any of the spells you had any questions about, so maybe you should just ask about the book spell,” I said. “Find out if there’s any way to undo it.”
Twilight’s eye twitched. “I’m sorry Spike, I can’t do that. She’ll know why.”
I looked at her doubtfully. “How?”
“Princess Celestia is very smart. You don’t get to be Princess without being smart enough to figure out something like that!” She took a deep breath and stood up.
“I’ll just have to keep re-reading the books I already have. There must be something in one of them that will help.”
Twilight closed a book and smacked her face against the table. Her mane was sticking out in every possible direction, and even some that shouldn’t have been possible, but it did it anyway.
“Mrf mrfer em erny mrf frm.”
“Come again?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. Twilight looked up at me.
“I said there’s nothing in any of them! I’ve been reading for days and none of these books have anything about how to turn a book back into a pony!”
“Maybe you need a break to clear your head. At least get some sleep.”
“How can I sleep when my book is a friend?”
“You can sleep because you’re so tired you can’t even talk right, let alone think clearly enough to find the right spell. Now come on upstairs. You need to go to bed.”
Too tired to argue, Twilight followed me upstairs and let me tuck her into bed. She was asleep in seconds. I breathed a sigh of relief and went back downstairs. I looked around and groaned quietly at the piles of books everywhere. There had been no point in cleaning up while Twilight was awake. On the rare occasions that she didn’t stop me from putting a book away, she would just get it right back off the shelf within minutes of me putting it there. After a few seconds of staring at the enormity of the task which lay ahead, I started to clean them up. I read the titles out loud as I put the books back on the shelves.
“Let’s see, Supernaturals , that goes over here... Modern Spellcasting , that one should have helped... Understanding Medieval Equestria ? That goes over there... Daring Do and the - why is this one even out here? The Elements of Harmony: A Reference Guide ... Wait a minute!” In my excitement, I dropped all but the last book. A smile spread across my face.
“The Elements of Harmony! That’s it! The Elements can- oh. Oh yeah. I guess they can’t. It’s not like I can take Rainbow Dash’s place as Loyalty. We’ve tried that before.” My smile forgotten, I dejectedly gathered up the books and continued returning them to the shelves. It was a long job, but eventually I got all the books cleaned up and I started dusting. My mind wandered as it often did when dusting. I was going over what had happened in the past few days, wondering what I could have done differently. Suddenly I realized that I'd been dusting the same shelf for several minutes, despite there not being a speck of dust on it. I felt like I didn’t want to leave that shelf, which was weird until I noticed the only book on the shelf. I carefully picked up the book. I opened it, but before I could read anything, I quickly looked away and shut it again.
“Sorry, Rainbow. It’s your life here, it’s not for me to look at.” I sighed and sat on the floor, still holding Rainbow Dash. “You looked kinda lonely on that shelf, so how about I keep you company for a while? Twilight’s been trying really hard to find a way to fix this. To bring you back. She’s asleep now. No, no, she’s not being lazy, like you’re one to talk. I made her go to bed. She’s been awake for days studying. Pinkie Pie and Rarity and Applejack and Fluttershy keep coming by. They’re worried about her. They’re worried about you too. They don’t know where you are. They all miss you. I want to tell them what’s going on, but Twilight won’t let me. Princess Celestia told her not to cast the spells from the book, but when you were about to crash, she had to cast one right away or you would’ve-”
I swallowed and looked away, fighting the tears that were starting to form. “She had to. I tell her that the Princess will understand, but she’s afraid of being turned to stone and banished to the moon and imprisoned there.”
I looked back down at Rainbow Dash and continued. “Don’t worry. She’ll find something in one of her books. She’ll find a way to fix everything. She has to, because she always does.”
I smiled at the book in my lap. Despite my reassurances, I couldn’t help but remember what Celestia had written; that these were the kinds of spells Princess Luna had used before becoming Nightmare Moon. If the Princess of the Night could fall to the influence of the dark magic, what would happen to Twilight?
Suddenly the door slammed open. I frantically put Rainbow Dash back on the shelf, standing between her and the door so she wouldn’t be seen. I wasn’t surprised to see that Applejack had just entered the library. Pinkie Pie, Rarity and Fluttershy followed her inside.
“All right, Spike. Now you tell me where Twilight is, and don’t give me none of that nonsense about her bein’ too busy studyin’ ta see us.”
“She’s asleep,” I said. “Now’s not a good time.”
“Oh, if she’s sleeping maybe we should-eep!” Fluttershy was silenced with a sharp glance from Applejack.
“C’mon, y’all. We’re goin’ up to that room and she’s gonna take a break from all this studyin’.”
“No, she needs her sleep!”
No one but Fluttershy listened to me. She apologized quietly as she followed the others to Twilight’s room. I scrambled to catch up to them to stop them, but I was too late. By the time I made it into Twilight’s room, Pinkie Pie was already standing on the bed, staring intently at Twilight’s face.
“Get out of here, let her sleep!” I whispered urgently. No one listened.
Twilight shifted and mumbled something about books. She groaned softly and opened her eyes to find Pinkie Pie only inches away.
“Hi! Did you sleep well? I was starting to think you weren’t going to wake up! But if you didn’t wake up then I’d be so sad and-”
Twilight shook herself out of her stunned silence. “Pinkie, what are you doing in my bedroom?”
“I’m talking to you, silly. Are you feeling okay? You should have known the answer to that one.”
“Okay, let me rephrase that. Why are you in my bedroom?”
“This is where you are. How could I talk to you if I was somewhere else?”
Twilight facehooved. “Pinkie...”
Rarity stepped closer to the bed. “I’ll take it from here, Pinkie.” Pinkie Pie hopped down off the bed.
“Darling, you simply must get out of the library. You have been cooped up in here for days and you haven’t talked to anypony. Any time one of us has stopped by, you’ve been too busy studying to say anything to us. You merely had Spike tell us to come back later.”
Twilight uncovered her face and looked up. Without Pinkie blocking her view, she could see Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, and me. When she looked at me, I grimaced and shrugged helplessly.
“Girls, I appreciate that you’re worried about me, but I’m fine. I just have a lot of studying to do. I’ve got a... big report for the princess.”
“C’mon Sugarcube, ya need to get outside some of the time. And uh... Now’s the time.”
“You look awful, too! Doctor Pinkie prescribes an emergency dose of fun, stat! One for you too, Spike.”
“No, no, I have to solve this problem,” Twilight said.
“What problem?” Pinkie asked. “I thought you were working on a report for the princess.”
“I... am! I just... have a problem I’m researching for her!” Twilight laughed nervously.
“What’s the problem? Maybe we can help! If we help then you’ll be done in no time and then you can get out of the library for a while. Your mane’s getting all messy like it does when you’re obsessing about something.”
“No!” Twilight shouted, earning her concerned looks from the other ponies. “I mean, no, thank you, but I need to do this myself.”
“Maybe so, but you need to take a break. We’re havin’ a picnic and you’re comin’ with us. We won’t take no for an answer.”
Twilight lowered her head in defeat. “Fine, I’ll go.”
Rarity insisted on brushing Twilight’s mane and tail first, but then we left for the park. When we got there, Pinkie Pie got a picnic basket she had stashed in a hollow tree, “in case of picnic emergency,” and with a flourish, spread the blanket and set out food without anyone seeing quite how she did it.
“Dig in!” She shouted. A platter of cupcakes disappeared in seconds. Applejack, Rarity, and Fluttershy each started to eat, though not with nearly the enthusiasm of Pinkie Pie. Twilight sighed and tried to smile as she also got some food. I didn’t eat. I was determined to direct conversation away from Rainbow Dash or what Twilight was studying.
“Twilight? Um... Have you heard from Rainbow Dash recently?” Fluttershy asked.
“And just what have you been studying that’s so important you can’t even make time to see us?” Rarity pouted.
That could have gone better.
Twilight choked on her sandwich. Coughing, she tried to reply. “R-Rainbow Dash? No, not recently.” She looked at me with a pleading expression. “Why do you ask?”
“Well, I haven’t seen her in over a week,” Fluttershy said.
“An’ she was supposed to help me on the farm, but I haven’t heard from her either. That just ain’t like her. Now, it wouldn’t surprise me if she didn’t help much, but she normally would have at least stopped by to give me an excuse why she couldn’t work.”
“Twilight, I just remembered that thing that Celestia wanted you to do today, you remember?” I asked.
“Right! The... thing,” Twilight smiled apologetically. “Sorry girls, but I need to get back to the library.”
“Ah don’t think so, sugar cube. Y’all been cooped up in the library long enough, the Princess has been waiting for days; she can wait another hour.”
“But I-”
“No.”
Twilight took another bite of her sandwich and chewed slowly, looking at the ground.
“I got the strangest combo any time I thought of Rainbow Dash this week,” Pinkie said. “I don’t know what it means, but I’m sure she’s okay, wherever she is. At least I hope that’s what it means. I don’t even know where to start looking for her!” After a brief pause, she grabbed Twilight’s shoulders and shook hard. “WE’VE GOTTA FIND HER! WHERE IS SHE?”
"Pinkie Pie, calm down! If Twilight says she doesn't know where Rainbow is, then she doesn't know. No point in shakin' her around when she can't tell ya nothin'.
Pinkie sighed and let go of Twilight. "I know," she said sadly. "I just don't know where she is or if she's even okay."
“Darling, we’re all concerned about her, but you’re, how shall I put this, taking it to the extreme. Even for you. Is there something we should know?” Rarity asked gently.
“You mean Sweetie Belle hasn’t told you already?”
Rarity’s voice lost some of its gentleness. “What? What would my sister know about it?”
“Well, I kinda scared her. Like... a lot.”
Rarity started to glare.
“I didn’t mean to!” Pinkie added hastily. “Okay, that’s not really true, I did mean to.” She took a deep breath. “They were telling scary stories and I wanted to tell one so I told one that I knew and it involved Rainbow Dash and they were really scared but now I need Dashie back so she can tell them it was all just a story because I would never do those things to anypony but now the girls are so scared of me they won’t go near Sugarcube Corner even when I’m not there and whenever they see me they just run away so I can’t tell them it was all just a story and I’m sorry for scaring them so much!”
“And jus’ what was this story you told mah lil sis that would make ‘em so scared of ya?” Applejack asked.
Pinkie stiffened and shook her head. “I’m not ever telling it again. Never ever. I just want Dashie back so she can tell them it was just a story and then I want to forget about it.”
It was at that moment I had a brilliant idea. "I just remembered, the last time I saw Rainbow she said something about having to go visit her family."
"And you didn't mention it until now? Do you see the worry lines I've developed?" I couldn't see any imperfections at all, but Rarity's anger suddenly directed at me felt like a slap in the face. I immediately regretted saying anything at all. I looked away, tears forming in my eyes.
"I-I'm sorry. I forgot?" Before I knew what was happening, I was being held. All I could see was pink and yellow.
"It's okay, Spike," Fluttershy said soothingly. "We know you didn't mean to forget, right Rarity?" With how tightly Fluttershy was holding me, I couldn't see her face, but from her tone I could imagine she was almost giving Rarity The Stare for making me cr- for being angry at me at the same time that I got dust in my eyes. I squirmed a little and Fluttershy loosened her grip enough that I could see Rarity's face. Suddenly she was the one who looked like she’d been slapped. I almost confessed right then, but I saw the hope in Twilight's eyes and remembered why I was lying in the first place. Just one more lie, then everything would be okay.
"I think she'll be back in a few days." As simple as that, everyone relaxed. Everyone except me. Twilight mouthed a thank you to me. I tried to smile back, but couldn’t quite manage it. My friends went back to eating and talking about other things. They tried to get me to join in a couple times, but when I only gave them noncommittal grunts in reply, they left me alone. Rarity didn’t say much except when she tried to apologize for yelling at me. I couldn’t look her in the eye. She had every right to yell at me. Every time they’d asked, I told them I didn’t know where Rainbow Dash was. It was my lies that had them all so worried. Not that the truth would make them any happier. I just wanted Dash back so everything could go back to normal. I didn’t want to keep lying anymore.
It was a relief when Twilight announced we were going back to the library. The others didn’t object this time. I guess Twilight had spent enough time with them that they weren’t so worried about her anymore. Rarity walked over and pulled me close with one hoof.
“I’m so sorry I yelled at you, Spikey. Can you ever forgive me?” She gave me a sad little smile. I couldn’t smile back, but I nodded, and that seemed to be enough for her. She let go and told Twilight and me that she would see us later. Applejack, Fluttershy, and Pinkie followed suit. We all went our separate ways.
If I learned anything from the picnic, it was that this whole thing had to end. When we got back to the library, I realized I had to talk to Twilight about it again.
“C’mon, Twilight, you gotta ask Princess Celestia for help!”
I was less than persuasive.
“No! I can’t, and neither can you!”
“But-”
“Spike, promise me you won’t ask the Princess for help.”
“But-”
“Pinkie swear it! You don’t want me to be banished and imprisoned on the moon, do you?”
“No,” I mumbled.
“Then Pinkie Pie promise me that you won’t tell Princess Celestia that I turned Rainbow Dash into a book.”
“YOU DID WHAT ?”
Twilight and I jumped at the shout from the kitchen. I spun to see Pinkie Pie staring slack-jawed at Twilight. A cupcake lay forgotten on the floor by Pinkie’s hooves.
“Pinkie Pie! Uh... wh-what are you doing here?” Twilight stammered.
“What am I doing here? What are you doing here? More importantly, what is she doing there?” Pinkie pointed to the shelf where Rainbow Dash sat alone.
“Pinkie, this isn’t what it looks like!”
“I sure hope not! Because it looks like a prank that’s gone way too far. You should turn Rainbow Dash back into herself right now.”
“I- I can’t.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t know how.”
“Then why don’t you ask the Princess for help?”
“Because I wasn’t supposed to turn her into a book in the first place and if the Princess finds out that I did what she told me not to she’ll-” Twilight kept trying to talk, but the only sound was of her hyperventilating.
“Calm down, Twilight,” Pinkie said, walking over to her. “Just tell me what happened. We can figure this out. Spike, can you give us a few minutes?”
I nodded and left the room by way of the stairs. I was just glad for the excuse to get out of there. That was not a conversation I wanted to be a part of. I stopped just inside the bedroom and listened. I heard Pinkie Pie reassuring Twilight for a couple minutes before Twilight finally said something in response. Satisfied that the tense situation had been defused, I busied myself cleaning up the bedroom while Twilight explained to Pinkie what had happened. Twilight’s voice continued for a while, only occasionally interrupted by Pinkie’s. As I dusted, I felt more relaxed than I had since Twilight had brought Rainbow Dash to the library. I listened again, smiling slightly. What I heard made me freeze in place. The voices had turned sharp and argumentative. I crept closer to the door to hear what they were saying.
“...it’s no fun being a book! If you can’t fix her, you need to get the Princess’ help.”
“No, no, no! Even if you’re right and she won’t banish me, she’ll still think I’m not trustworthy and take me back to Canterlot away from all of you! She probably won’t even keep me as her student!”
“Don’t be silly, Twilight! I’ll just explain to her that it was an accident, she can fix everything, and-” There was a flash of light and Pinkie’s voice stopped.
“Spike?” Twilight’s voice was barely loud enough for me to hear her. “Could you come here please?” I slowly walked back downstairs, afraid of what I would find when I got there.
I found exactly what I was afraid of. Twilight was standing in the middle of the room. On the floor next to her was a book with a pink cover and a picture of three balloons. Twilight’s voice dropped to barely more than a whisper as she continued.
“Would you please put Pinkie Pie on the shelf next to Rainbow Dash? I need to get back to studying.” She slowly walked to the basement door. I walked over and carefully picked up the pink party previously-pony.
“Spike?”
I swallowed and turned around, still holding Pinkie Pie. Twilight had stopped just on the other side of the doorway and was looking back at me with an unreadable expression.
“Promise me.”
I did.
Author's Note
For those of you who want to know what Pinkie was talking about, check out my first story; "Where is Everypony?"
This chapter's image I sketched on paper and scanned in for reference, but the finished product was entirely produced in Paint.net
The Safety of the Library
No one was showing up to find out where Rainbow Dash was anymore, thanks to me. That didn’t make me feel any better about lying to my friends. To make matters worse, now there was the occasional pony asking if I’d seen Pinkie Pie anywhere.
Since Pinkie Pie came over, Twilight had started doing all her studying in the basement to minimize interruptions. A few times I heard her casting spells, and occasionally I heard her talking to herself. As long as she didn’t start laughing maniacally, I hoped that I wouldn’t have to worry too much. She didn’t take Rainbow or Pinkie downstairs with her except when she had an idea how to turn them back to ponies. I had expressed my concerns to Twilight about keeping Rainbow and Pinkie on the shelves in the main room, but as she pointed out, virtually no one ever came to the library for the books, so it wasn’t likely they’d be noticed. It was safer for them not to be in the basement while she was practicing spells down there, anyway.
I checked on Twilight a few times a day, bringing her more books and taking the ones she was finished with back upstairs. Three days after the picnic, on one of my trips to the basement, I found her staring at the wall, deep in thought.
“Twilight?”
She didn’t answer me. I had to wave my arm in front of her face before she noticed I was there. She flinched and looked around guiltily.
“Spike! Uh... what are you doing?”
“Do you need to take a break? When was the last time you slept? You look terrible.”
“No, no, I’m fine. Would you bring me my copy of Magic of Legend ? I thought of something else that might help.”
“Twilight, are you sure you’re okay?”
She looked annoyed. “Of course I am! I already said I am, so I am! Why do you keep asking?”
“Well, it’s just that I brought that one to you an hour ago,” I said, gesturing to the book which lay closed on the desk in front of her, exactly where I had put it the last time I was in the basement.
“Oh, right. Thank you. I need to study.” She used her magic to open the book and waved me off with a hoof. Every other time I checked on her that day was normal, but the next day, I found her staring at the wall again.
“Twilight? Have you made any progress yet?” I braced myself and asked the other question that needed to be asked. “Do you think it’s time to ask Princess Celestia for help yet?”
To my surprise, she didn’t get upset with me for asking. She didn’t even blink. She spoke, softly enough I had to strain to hear what she was saying.
“...safe here. Safer than out there...”
“Say what, now?” I asked her.
She blinked and turned to look at me. “Oh, Spike. Um,” she bit her lip. “Nothing, I was just thinking. Well, thanks for checking on me, but I’ve got lots of studying to do, so...”
For some reason, I didn’t want to leave her alone. I tried to think of an excuse to stay a little longer. “Do you need any of these books put away? Do you need any more books?”
“Nope.” She started reading again and was hardly paying me any attention at all.
“Are you hungry? You haven’t eaten in a few hours.”
“No.”
I shifted my weight nervously. “Do you need a break? We could go outside and do something. We could go for a walk. Some fresh air might give you a new perspective, you know?”
She turned to face me, her brow furrowed in annoyance. She opened her mouth to say something, and I put on my best puppy dog eyes.
“Please?” I asked. “You spend all your time down here.”
And I miss you.
“Okay,” she said, sighing. “We can go for a walk.”
We left the library and walked around town for a while. I tried to get her to talk, but she didn’t say much. Ponies would greet us, and more often than not, Twilight would give them a thoughtful look rather than say hello. We didn’t have any particular destination in mind, but we steered clear of Sugarcube Corner; a conversation with the Cakes about Pinkie Pie was something we wanted to avoid. Eventually, we found ourselves on the path to Sweet Apple Acres.
“I wonder how Applejack’s doing without- I mean, with her job that she’s doing.”
“I guess since we’re here, we can find out,” Twilight said with a smile.
Getting her outside was such a good idea. Way to go, me.
We followed the road to the barn. When we got close, we saw Big McIntosh pulling a cart loaded with dead branches.
“Hey, Big Mac, how are ya?” I asked cheerfully.
He nodded once in greeting.
“Have you seen Applejack?”
“Eeyup.” He gestured out into the orchard.
“Thanks.”
“Eeyup.”
Following Big Mac’s direction, Twilight and I walked out into the orchard. It wasn’t long before we could hear the familiar sound of hooves impacting on tree trunks. The loud cracking and crashing noise that followed was less familiar, but still, we’d found Applejack.
“Howdy, Twi, Spike! What brings y’all out here?”
“Spike insisted that I take a break from studying, so we were taking a walk around town,” Twilight said. “We thought while we were out we’d check to see how your work was going.”
“He insisted, did he?” Applejack asked Twilight. “Always looking out for ya, that one,” she added with a smile at me.
“We saw your brother pulling a load of branches on our way over here; it looks like I’m not the only one who could use a break,” Twilight said.
Applejack took her hat off and wiped sweat off her forehead. “Maybe so,” she said, “But with R.D. leavin’ me to do all this work on mah own, I don’t have time to take a break. Speakin’ of which, I’ve rested enough for now; I need to get back to it.” With a shout, Applejack ran toward a nearby tree, spun around and swiftly planted Bucky McGillicuddy and Kicks McGee against its trunk. The tree shuddered with the impact, but no branches fell. She looked it over and nodded to herself, then moved on to the next one.
“We’ll see you later, Applejack, I have to get back to work too,” Twilight said, clearly uncomfortable after the mention of Rainbow Dash. We left Applejack to her work and walked back the way we came. The sound of Applejack bucking trees echoed throughout the orchard, followed occasionally by the crash of branches falling to the ground. After a few minutes, there was an exceptionally loud crash and a yell.
“Twilight, did you hear that? I think Applejack’s hurt!”
Twilight stopped to listen. Sure enough, we could hear Applejack calling for help. Twilight picked me up onto her back and ran to Applejack. We found her laying awkwardly under a large limb. One of her legs was obviously broken.
“Thank Celestia y’all are here,” she said through gritted teeth. “I need help.”
Twilight set me down and stepped forward. Her horn glowed and her magic enveloped the branch. As soon as she shifted it slightly, Applejack cried out in pain. Twilight stopped and thought for a second. Suddenly a look of complete calm spread across Twilight’s face. She smiled and released the branch. Applejack cried out in pain again.
“Consarnit, Twilight, what are you doing? Get this branch off me!”
“Don’t worry, Applejack, I’ll make sure you’re safe.”
Applejack looked confused. “What in tarnation are ya talkin’ about?”
Twilight’s horn glowed again.
At that moment I realized what was about to happen. “Twilight, no!” I yelled, but it was too late. There was a flash of magic, and instead of Applejack, there was only a book and Applejack’s hat.
Twilight picked up the book with her magic and gave it to me. I was speechless, staring slack-jawed at the book I had just been given. I looked back up at Twilight, my mind trying desperately to make sense of what had just happened.
Twilight smiled brightly at me. “Let’s go home, Spike.”
I regretted convincing her to go outside. My earlier thoughts echoed in my head. Getting her outside was such a good idea. Way to go, me.
Yeah. Way to go, me.
I numbly followed Twilight as she walked back toward town. We came out of the orchard near the path to Fluttershy’s cottage. I just hoped we wouldn’t see-
“Oh, hello, Twilight. Hello, Spike.”
-Fluttershy. I winced and turned toward the voice. Sure enough, Fluttershy was approaching us on the path from town. She was wearing saddlebags that were bulging from how much they were holding.
“Hi, Fluttershy, what are you up to today?” Twilight asked cheerfully.
“There’s a family of bears that have gotten sick, so I got some medicine and now I’m going to go make sure they feel all better.”
“A family of sick bears? That sounds awfully dangerous,” Twilight said.
“Oh, no,” Fluttershy said, smiling. “They-”
“...And I wouldn’t want you doing anything unsafe .” Twilight continued, ignoring Fluttershy. Her horn glowed. My eyes widened. I couldn't believe what was happening.
“What are you-”
There was a flash of magic and Fluttershy disappeared. Her saddlebags fell on top of the book on the road.
The world started spinning.
“Spike? Are you okay?” Twilight sounded concerned. I opened my mouth to answer, but I couldn’t seem to say anything.
“Spike?”
Everything went dark.
I opened my eyes. I was in my bed in the library. I yawned and stretched. “I hope I never have a dream like that again,” I muttered before I got up, rubbing my eyes. I looked outside to see that the sun was up, but it was still fairly early morning. It was quiet outside; a peaceful day. That sounded great to me after the night I’d just had. I looked over at Twilight’s bed, but it was empty and neatly made. She must have gotten up early. Looking around the room, I found a note she’d left for me.
Spike,
I have some errands to run this morning, so I’ll see you when I get back.
There are a few books downstairs I need you to shelve while I’m out.
Twilight
“Of course there are,” I said sarcastically to myself. “First, breakfast.” I left the bedroom to go to the kitchen. Halfway down the stairs, I looked out into the main room of the library, lost my footing, and fell down the rest of the steps.
Removing my face from the floor, I gave the room a second look.
“A few books? More like all the books!” There were so many books piled on the floor that it looked like re-shelving day. I looked away from the pile and walked to the kitchen, intent on getting some breakfast before tackling the enormous task before me. While I was eating, I had a disturbing thought.
What if it wasn’t a dream? I chuckled a little at myself. That couldn’t be true; if it wasn’t a dream, then all those books would be-
I dropped my breakfast and ran back into the next room. The floor was piled with enough books to fill the shelves, but the shelves themselves were still full. All the books on the floor had to be new. Trembling, I walked to the pile and picked one up. The cover was very light aquamarine, and instead of a title, the book had a picture of a lyre. I started hyperventilating when I realized that not only had I not dreamed the events of the past few days, but there were a lot more books than Dash, Pinkie, Applejack and Fluttershy. I wondered if there were any ponies left in Ponyville at all. As I was examining the pile I found another note.
Spike,
Take the older books to the basement to make room for the new ones.
Twilight
With no idea what else to do, I started taking the books off the shelves. I stacked them all near the basement door; I would take them down there later. I don’t know how long it took, but eventually there was only one shelf left with any books on it; the one with Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie.
I looked at the pile and swallowed hard. Taking a deep breath, I picked up a book and put it on a shelf. Then another, and another. One by one, I placed dozens of ponies on the shelves of the library. I didn’t do much by way of sorting. Close friends went on the shelf with Dash and Pinkie. Other ponies I knew went in that section of shelves, and the rest of the room was for the rest that I didn’t really know. While I was working, I heard the door open. I turned away from my work and was as surprised to see Cheerilee as she was to see me.
“Uh, hi, Cheerilee,” I said. I glanced down and realized I was holding one of her students. I quickly put the book on a shelf.
“Spike, thank Celestia I found you. Have you seen anypony else? Where’s Twilight?”
I looked around at the books and felt tears well up as the reality of the situation finally started to sink in. Cheerilee hurried over to me, clearly concerned.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
I couldn’t speak, I just gestured at the books I still had to sort. She picked one of them up.
“I don’t understand, why does this book have no title? It’s just a picture of a green apple half.” She gave a small chuckle. “Actually, it looks just like Big Mac’s cutie mark. And the cover is the same color as his coat...” She opened the book. After flipping through a few pages, she closed it again and looked at me. “Spike, why do you have an autobiography by Big Mac?”
I shook my head.
“It’s not by Big Mac?” She asked.
I sniffled. “I-It’s Twilight,” was all I managed to say.
“Twilight wrote this?” Cheerilee asked, clearly confused.
I shook my head again. “It is Big Mac,” I told her.
She grimaced. “You aren’t making any sense, Spike. Come on, take a few breaths and tell me what’s going on.”
Once I got my breathing under control, I told her what happened. I told her everything, from when Twilight came home with Rainbow to the moment Cheerilee came to the door. A look of horror was frozen on her face by the end. When I finished, she took a deep breath to steady herself.
“So, if I understand you correctly, these books,” she said, gesturing to the shelves and floor, “They are not books, so much as they are our friends and neighbors.”
I nodded.
“I see.” She paused. I could see her transition into teacher mode. “There’s an important lesson here, Spike.”
“What lesson?” I asked.
“It’s good that you wanted to keep your promise to Twilight, but when keeping a secret would hurt somepony, it’s not a secret that should be kept. I think you should tell Princess Celestia.”
“But I promised! Twilight can still find a way to fix everything! She just needs to not be interrupted all the time! When she can study in peace and quiet she’ll find the answer for sure.”
“Okay, okay. How about this. We’ll finish picking these books up and putting them on the shelves, and then we’ll talk to Twilight about this when she gets back.”
I almost dropped the book I had just picked up. “No! You can’t be here when she gets back! You’ve got to get out of here! She’ll turn you into a book too!”
She looked at me with an expectant expression.
“I... No. I can’t break my promise. She’ll still find a way to fix it. Just get out of here before she gets back.”
The sadness in Cheerilee’s eyes was almost painful to look at. “I hope so, Spike,” she said. She walked to the door, which opened before she got to it.
“There you are!”
I gasped when I heard Twilight’s voice. There was a flash of magic, and Cheerilee was a book. Twilight stepped inside and set a large stack of books on the floor. She opened a scroll from her saddlebags and made a checkmark. She put the list back and smiled at me. There were bags under her eyes.
“Hi Spike! I’m glad to see you’re feeling better. Yesterday was just too much excitement for you, I think.”
I couldn’t answer at first. She was acting like everything was normal, when everything was as far from normal as it could be.
“You look tired,” I managed to say.
“I am! I’ve been up all night! I just couldn’t stand the thought of anypony getting hurt. I had to make sure they were all safe.” She looked around the room and nodded approvingly. “You’re doing a good job in here. I-” She yawned. “I’m going to go to bed now. I’ll get back to it later on.” She walked past me to the stairs.
“Get back to it?” I asked, my voice breaking. “You mean finding a way to turn them back, right?”
She stopped halfway upstairs and gave me a strange look. “And undo all my hard work? Don’t be silly, Spike.” She laughed and went to her room, leaving me alone with almost everypony I knew.
I refused to believe what I had just heard. “She’ll fix it. She always fixes it,” I told myself as I continued to shelve the books. I couldn’t quite convince myself. I started to think that maybe Cheerilee was right. I placed her on the shelf above my close friends. Having made it through the pile, I started on the stack Twilight had just brought in. A few ponies I didn’t know went on the shelves. Derpy went next to Cheerilee. Time Turner went next to Derpy. A couple more ponies I didn’t know went on the shelves. Rarity-
My breath caught in my throat. The moment I had hoped for for so long had finally come, and it was the worst possible thing. I had Rarity in my arms, and she was a book. Deep down, I knew that I would find her in the books somewhere, but that didn’t make it any easier. I felt detached from the scene, like I was watching someone else holding a book with three diamonds on the cover. I was almost surprised to find that there were no tears. I calmly walked over to the close friends shelf and put her on it. I walked over to a desk and got out some ink, paper, and a quill. After a few false starts, and with many words marked out, I wrote a letter.
Dear Princess Celestia,
You remember that book you sent to Twilight? Well, long story short, she accidentally cast one of the spells and turned Rainbow Dash into a book. I told her right then that she needed to get help from you, but she was afraid of being punished since you told her not to cast any of the spells. She made me promise not to tell you, and since she was trying to figure out how to undo it herself I figured it could wait. But she isn’t even trying anymore, and what’s worse, she thinks it’s a good thing for ponies to be turned into books. She thinks they’re safer that way. She was up all night turning ponies into books. I don’t think there are any ponies left in Ponyville at all now.
I’m scared. Please help.
Spike
I took a deep breath and then watched as the letter was engulfed in flame.
A Quiet Evening in the Library
Twilight closed the book she had been reading. A single tear rolled down her cheek and splashed onto the purple and green cover.
“You were going to tell her,” she whispered. She looked at the smouldering remains in the fireplace, where she had thrown Spike’s letter hours before, ripping it out of his grasp just before he could send it to the Princess. He never even knew she was there. He didn’t understand that all she wanted was to keep him safe. Now she would never be able to tell him. The teardrop on the book was joined by another.
He was afraid. Afraid of her. Another tear hit the book.
Twilight sniffled and wiped her eyes. She stood up and carried Spike to the shelves. She gently wiped the tears off the cover and set him on the shelf next to Rarity.
“I know it’s where you’d want to be,” she said to him, trying to smile.
I’m scared.
“Don’t be scared, Spike. You’re safe now. You’re all safe.” She looked at Pinkie Pie.
It’s no fun being a book.
“Isn’t it more fun than having a broken leg?” She asked, looking at Applejack. “Or worse?” She added with a glance at Rainbow Dash.
I can’t buck apples like this.
“You couldn’t with a broken leg, either.”
How am I going to join the Wonderbolts now?
“Well, you...”
Mah leg would have healed.
“But...”
Um, I can’t take care of the animals if I’m a book.
“I...”
How will I ever design another dress?
Twilight’s lower lip quivered.
This is the worst party ever.
Her eyes brimming with tears, Twilight looked around the room. She realized that the last time most of the ponies she saw had been in the library was at the party welcoming her to Ponyville.
I just don’t know what I did wrong...
“You didn’t do anything wrong!”
Then why did you do this to us?
“I did it to keep you safe! How many times to I have to tell you that?”
Why would I want to be safe if I can’t do what I love?
What’s the point of existing like this?
This isn’t really living.
You killed us, Twilight Sparkle.
You killed all of us.
Twilight frantically looked around the deafeningly silent room, cowering under nonexistent accusing glares, her tears flowing freely. “I SAVED YOU ALL! WHY DON’T YOU UNDERSTAND?” She screamed before collapsing to the floor, sobbing.
Author's Note
Eeyup. Now, before you break out the torches and pitchforks, allow me to direct your attention back to the description of this story. See that "Tragedy" tag there? You can't say I didn't warn you.
