Twilight's Research

"Alright, so what do I know?"

My hoof fished through folder after folder in the miles-high vault of my mind. Sometimes, it was impossible to find anything useful in this place, but it was nice to have everything there on a 'just in case' policy. Another steel-grey drawer spent, I pushed it closed and carried on down the hall. "Lots of stuff, that's for sure. I always forget how big this place can be."

I looked around at the file cabinets stretching off towards the ceiling, impossible to count in their vastness - and believe me, I tried! The vault was huge, but I was grateful that I could get in at all. All the information that I'd collected over my life was safely sealed away in the massive granite walls, and the only key to its lock was in my safekeeping. Of course, when the only way to get to the Vault is through my dreams, it tends to be very secure. The actual creation of the Vault was always a mystery to me, though. Perhaps it was connected to me being a very studious mare? Or my mind really was just that organized.

Right, back to the matter at hoof. Another drawer, another massive row of folders. Where is AJ's file? Adrius, Agriculture, Aku, Antimatter... ah, here we go. Applejack! Though I didn't really need to go through the folders by name, it was still an official process I held to. Opening the folder in my hooves revealed the usual information about a pony: name, date of birth, age, Cutie Mark - along with a picture, helps with organization -, race, height, weight, measurements - mostly guessing, but I tended to be pretty accurate -, and birthmark, along with a lot of other tidbits. Ok, file. Let's see what I can find out about AJ... why did I have that dream about her?

"Subject, Applejack. Occupation, apple farmer and businesspony, salesmare, accountant... wow, she does a lot for her family. Age is twenty two, two years older than me. Seniority, maybe? But then I'd probably have been attracted to one of my instructors... then again, I was a filly back then, so probably not. What else, what else...?" The file on AJ was actually rather sparse, containing not much more than the general information you'd write about on a survey. The only thing that really held any value was her profile picture, and even that didn't reveal much. Orange coat, emerald eyes, blonde mane and tail - dunno why she put on those bands, it looked much better without -. She was curvy, but... why would that interest me?

"Hm. Was the dream just a fluke? AJ was the last pony I thought about that night, so it'd make sense. But then... what was with me acting like that? The fear, the attraction, the kiss, the... well, what happened next. It was like I'd never talked to a mare before. Maybe... well, it was a dream. That's the theory... now I just have to carry out the experiment, see how things go with that. Worst case scenario? It all plays out and... me and AJ never talk again." I gulped, fearful of the thought. There was a lot of danger with that kind of experiment, trying to play out a fantasy with a friend. The reward was finding out if I was interested in AJ in... that way, and the risk was losing a friend! Was there a better way to carry it out? There has to be... gotta be. I folded my forelegs and tapped my forehead, setting my thoughts to the task.

Alright. Nopony said that I'd have to carry out the dream to the letter... all I have to do is start it. In the dream, I was going to ask Applejack about running and the Running of the Leaves, maybe get my strength up by bucking a few trees. Simple. All I have to do is replicate the conditions, and see if the results match. My sight moved back to the picture of AJ as I considered my possible courses of action. One worst-case scenario was that I'd lose a friend... but the other was that everything would go perfectly. Me and AJ find ourselves hugging each other... we kiss, then whatever happens, happens. I gain a marefriend, somepony to stand by me for the rest of my life. Only question is... do I want that? Do I want AJ and me in that kind of relationship? We'd be hanging out everywhere together, making each other... happy? I guess? But we don't have any of the same interests. She'd be taken away from her work, or I'd be taken away from my studies.

"Question is, do you want something like that?"

"Huh?" I blinked at the profile picture, which had suddenly started speaking to me. Wait, what?

"C'mon, Twilight. It's a question, and you should have the answer to it, right?"

"Why is a picture talking to me?" My brow furrowed for only a moment before I came to the conclusion, a completely sensible, reasonable conclusion. I'm going crazy.

"No, yer not goin' crazy. You're just hearin' yer thoughts in a different voice. Back to the topic at hoof, do ya want a marefriend?"

"Well, I don't know. Do I want a coltfriend? Do I want somepony like that at all? What does it even imply?"

"Lotta questions for a simple situation, eh?"

"Hardly simple, AJ." I placed my forehooves back on the ground, staring at the picture as the folder floated in my magic. Where did she get off, telling me all that?

"Well, it's only simple when y' stop makin' it complicated. Ask yerself, do ya want somepony like that? Yes or no. Don't consider any a' the alternatives." The picture sat in the white space around it, raising an eyebrow at me.

"At this point in my life? Well... I don't know. It's a hard question to ask!" I put on an indignant tone - maybe more indignant than I intended to.

"Twi', to be blunt, you did just have a fantasy about me." The picture simply lowered its brow, glowering at me. "Ah dunno if it'd be worse for the real me t' find out if you love her, or if you're fantasizin' about 'er!"

"She's finding out about neither! T-There's no way I'm telling anypony about this. But..." Ohhh, there was that grimace again! I couldn't be doubting myself then, I couldn't!

"But yer wonderin' why you went an' got off to my real self makin' out with you?" The picture smirked at me! Smug little...

"Yes, but you don't have to be so mean about it! T-This is normal, right!?" I felt my breathing speed up, and my teeth clamp down on my lip like a vice. Panic attack. Those aren't good, not good at all!

"Calm down, Twi'. This is as normal as natural gets. Y' find the real me attractive, but not enough t' say yer in love. Maybe it just means you're into mares?" The picture shrugged, and I felt just as confused as it did. But it did make sense, definitely. My eyes moved down the picture to the profile below it, and I nodded.

"That... makes sense. It's a reason to continue my experiments at least. Ohhh, I hope I don't do that in front of others..."

"Yer kiddin'. Y'all're worried about that?" My eyes went back up to see the picture's jaw dropped, and that face of complete shock digging into my own. Wow... did I really act like that in public? No, don't think about that, it would just make matters worse!

"W-Well, of course not! J-Just thinking out loud, you know?"

Funny, my peace offering smile got denied before... deja vu.

"Twi', wake up before I start bein' honest like mah real self."

"Yes, ma'am." I quickly nodded as the world started to bleed away. Not like I'd wanna be around you any longer than I should.

"Ah heard that!" Was the last thing that boomed in my head before I woke up.

First thing. No burning smell. Well, that's good... phew! Opening my eyes to see the ceiling not cloaked in flames was a relieving sight. Though the relief was soon dashed by a grumble of my stomach. Cursed hunger! You hold me back sometimes... well, let's get this morning ritual out of the way. There's science to be done! Leaping out of bed with a determined smile on my face, and a stomach that really didn't like getting up that quick - like I could blame it -, I headed down to the kitchen to fix some breakfast. Sure, Spike's pancakes were amazing, but they took so much time to make. Didn't he say the batter alone takes about an hour to make properly? Nah, it's for special occasions anyway. What should I snack on today? Should make some lunch as well. Gonna be moving around a lot today. With a nod, I set about prepping some food I could take with me.

What came of my efforts and nearly blowing up the kitchen twice was a set of sandwiches - but not just any sandwiches, no! Very special sandwiches. Ohhh yes, very special indeed. I found myself with a rather devious grin as I tapped my forehooves together - felt a bit like a mad scientist, and I was right to! The sandwiches were infused with a special kind of magic that flowed more commonly through a unicorn's blood stream, rather than the magus coti. Most other ponies could get through their mornings on caffeine - coffee, strong tea, sugar, soda as a last resort - but unicorns had a trick up their sleeves! Or in their blood... heart? Appendix? I shrugged the thought off. Magic that triggers the adrenaline reflex, an all-natural caffeine that's served me so well on more than one study night!

Only issue is a problem or two with the kidneys, but in a proper dose - the sandwiches in question -, it was completely safe! Completely.

"So, that's about an hour burned, and Spike still isn't up. Should write him a note," I mumbled as I looked around for some parchment. Why did I never keep a quill and parchment in the kitchen? Cooking was just as good a science as magic or... well, science! A hunt through the library revealed my bounty, but why was it under my desk? Ah, doesn't matter. Scribble out the note, aaand... there. Totally legible! It only took a few seconds of staring at the chicken scratch before I re-wrote it. Several times.

I sighed, happy with the properly written note, and gathered up my breakfast and lunch - brunch? Lunchfast? Breaklunch...? Headache! - and headed out. With the firm slam of the door behind me, the dirt road below me and the wind racing through my mane, my day was ready to begin! Erm... just had to figure out where to go.

"What's the best place to find plenty of ponies in a natural environment, but with lots of hiding places?" I mumbled to myself, the wind in my mane down to a leisurely stroll as I watched the individual rocks scroll by me, wracking my brain over that difficult question. "Hmm. Well, whenever we have our pet play dates, we head to the park. Oh shoot, when is that, anyway!? Gonna have to ask somepony... ugh. Is it Tuesday or— no, no, it's Thursday. Yeah! Ok then, and the play dates are on Sundays. I've got time!" Was that sweat on my brow? Bah. "Alright, location, location. Park would be an excellent place to start, then I could go talk with Applejack, see how... that theory turns out."

I definitely wasn't looking forward to that meeting, but it had to happen eventually. Like having a tooth pulled out. Without any painkillers or magic assistance, just me, the dentist and a pair of tweezers. A pair of tweezers that were on fire. Not fun, not fun at all.

"Well, park's a ways away... guess I could study the ponies in the street for a while as I walk." It was a solid notion, considering my research. So, my eyes started their hunt for anything half-interesting in the morning sunlight. A few stallions, quite a few mares, and lots of flanks to stare at. Ugh, this is so inappropriate... but Roseluck's coat does look rather nice. Very eye catching with her slender body, feminine build and those... fl—

"Twilight?"

Well, at least the jump of shock and my heart stopping prevented my eyes from going anywhere!

"Oh, uh, hi Roseluck!"

"Hi, Twilight..." Her voice fell off, not a good sign. Questioning look, definitely not a good sign. Rising eyebrow, oh no... "So, what brings you by here?" Her tone didn't seem too interested. That was a good sign among the other three of a possible social apocalypse.

"Just on my way to the park, that's all." I smiled as naturally as I could, worried that she caught me staring. Distraction, distraction! And that prayer was quickly answered as I looked to the flowerbed that seemed to be dominated by the flower on her hip; it was like staring into a river of red! Wondrous red that stole the eye. Some of the flowers still had morning dew, sparkling like diamonds... wow. "Extremely high quality as usual! Those look beautiful!"

"Oh, thank you, but it didn't take that much work! My sister, Daisy, is a wizard with fertilizer!" Roseluck grinned as I turned back to her, pride thankfully replacing her interest in me.

I smiled back at her; at least she seemed happy for a distraction. Well, may as well humor her... but what should I talk about? Think, Twilight, things are getting awkward! "So, how're things going with prettying up the village? I know you and your sisters have been working pretty hard on it." They had, hadn't they? Yeah, definitely. Oh, please be right...

"Oh, you noticed? Yeah, we've been working pretty hard," she placed the watering can down on the ground as she spoke, but a tinge of... something came up, "And as you can see, daisies have been taking over..." she gestured around her, and I couldn't help but agree; if the rosebed was a river, the sight before me was a snow field with little yellow spots. It was very nice, no doubt; nopony could beat the smell of a well-taken-care-of daisy, but... why were there so many? Kinda ruined the depth of the town to only have one flower out in force.

"Why aren't there any roses or other flowers?"

"Because, unlike roses or lilies, daisies can grow pretty much anywhere, and pretty quickly at that. They spread like..." She bit her lip before carrying on to what I could only assume would be an angry tirade against her sister. "They just don't get the same love and care as other flowers. It's disappointing."

"Ahhh." I nodded. Maybe I should take up studying agriculture and botany? Maybe help Roseluck out with her issue, once mine's all dealt with? Heh, super-fast-growing roses! That'd be interesting. I smiled, humoring the idea of a magic seed that would grow a perfect rose in seconds. What a challenge that would be! Certainly something that would drive my brain to the brink of crazy in search of an answer. So exciting! "So, I guess you and Lily have just been caring for your respective flower beds?"

"Yes, though I can't help but..." she sighed and shook her head, lowering her voice, "I shouldn't be talking like that."

"Hm?"

"Nothing, sorry for taking up your time, Miss Sparkle. I hope you have a good time at the park." That smile of hers definitely set something in my stomach, and it wasn't what I felt with that fantasy.

Should come back here and check on her later, see if she wants to talk. I don't like that look... I simply nodded, offering a smile of my own - hopefully a lot more natural than before -, "It's alright, Roseluck. Always happy to chat! Good luck with your flowers, and I hope you take back some of your territory!"

"Thank you, and I'll certainly try."

We waved to each other as I walked away, but that sick feeling didn't calm down in my stomach. I really hoped that this issue wouldn't interrupt my research... but maybe it'd end up helping it in the future? I mean, I was studying mares after all, and Roseluck was a mare. Not just any mare, but a rather beautiful one... that would be able to help my research.

What constituted attraction, though? Was it simply the mental aspect of a pony, their personality, wit, intelligence? Or the physical aspect, their body, shape, strength, fat and muscle? How deep did it go, and what factors contributed to overall attraction? There were so many questions to answer, but the flame of hope still burned; the park held lots of ponies everyday, so it would be easy to collect data. Data. Data... oh no. No!

No, I forgot my note-taking materials!

Alright, so, with several teleportations out of the way and my mind actually straightened out, I'd found my hiding place at the park. A completely inconspicuous bush under a tree... nopony would find me there. Nopony! Well, it was better than hiding in a tree with a bird's nest on my head.

Also, less harmful a prospect. That bird was angry!

"Alright," I whispered, experienced eyes scanning the battlefield around me, "Checklist. Binoculars, check. Parchment, check. Quill and ink, check. Plenty of targets..." one, two, three... "Check. Alright, let's see here. There's about twelve stallions and twenty mares wandering about today, several colts and fillies as well. Plenty of specimens." A grin crossed my lips as I raised the binoculars to my eyes - with my hooves! Magic was very noticeable by proximity for unicorns. -, and peered about. Let's see... there's Derpy, rolling around on the grass... Lyra wandering about. That's a really interesting color scheme on her, actually. Haven't seen many ponies with a primarily bright coloring, short Rainbow Dash. Even Fluttershy's coloring doesn't make my eyes hurt... ow. I took a moment to rub my eyes; darn things really were starting to sting. Right, back to it. Derpy, Lyra, Thunderlane... hmm, Thunderlane. Wonder how he's doing? Probably still getting over his latest cold. Surprised he hasn't gone to the hospital to get his immune system checked out. Still, he isn't any worse for wear. Wonder where Rumble is, though? Those two are usually together