""Stop Traveler," I said once the figure had drawn near, his armor clanking with his every step. "From where have you come, and where will you go?" The stranger looked at me then, the weapon slung across his withers glowing softly and spoke with a weariness I had not heard from any other pony before.
"Home, and now onward into the unknown." The stranger, no, The Knight I realized. That horrid Knight. He disappeared into the trees and took not only that damnable Locket with him, but also the souls of the ones who used it's power and the ones murdered by it with him to Hell. Where they all belonged."
-Short Story, Folk Tales of Equestria, printed 1966
The sun was hanging at the apex of it's journey across the heavens when 'Maple's' train pulled into Ponyville station around noon, and 'Maple' was shaken from her thoughts by the train's whistle . 'Ok, on to step 3.' 'Maple' thought to herself as she stepped off of the train and into Ponyville proper, taking a deep breath and smiling to herself when all she could detect on the breeze was the nature surrounding the town... And the downright intoxicating scents wafting out from Sugarcube Corner.
"Focus 'Maple'. I need to... Oh but it all smells too good." 'Maple' could barely stop herself from trotting to the confectionary for a quick snack stop, (read hours long), but thankfully her will was stronger than her stomach and 'Maple' was able to make her way toward Golden Oaks Library. The Library itself was important to her quest for a couple reasons, chief among them being a map to her destination and the pony who lived in it's hollow trunk.
As 'Maple' approached the tree she could hear that the Library already had a few rambunctious guests. And she couldn't help but smile when she heard to unmistakable accented tone of a Mare who had lost her cool at her friend's disregard for the sanctity of The Library's silence. Giggling to herself 'Maple' let herself in, knowing that nopony would hear her knocking over the shouting and was witness to quite the amusing scene, the small Eleancana shouting at the larger Belire and smaller Peralge.
"Honestly you two, I cannot BELIEVE that this is the fifth, FIFTH time this week I have had to restrain you both so neither of you will damage anything! You girls needn't drag me into your competitions so take all of this outside or so help me I shall-!" At that moment Twilight Sparkle had turned from where she was berating the two mares held in her magical grip and saw 'Maple' standing just inside the doorway; holding a hoof over her muzzle to keep from laughing, and Twilight suddenly changed from her normal lavender color to a deep magenta as the embarrassed flush exploded onto her face.
"Ow-"
"Hey-oof!"
With twin sounds of both protest and impact as the two mares landed in a tangled heap Twilight quickly used her magic to clean the mess the two of them made around the library and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath to calm down. Once her healthy flush had receded Twilight cleared her throat and spoke up to address the newcomer, her voice losing the distinctly Canterlot accent as she recomposed herself.
"Hi! Welcome to The Golden Oaks Library, I'll be with you in just a moment. Girls? Come over here for a second." After a brief moment of struggling to detangle from each other, both of them trotted over to Twilight, the Pegasus shooting 'Maple' a gaze full of suspicion which gained her a hoof to the back of the head by the orange mare. While the three of them conversed quietly 'Maple' took the chance to mill around the Library's bookshelves, making note of the fact that each and every shelf was categorized using Twilight's quintuple filtered sorting method. First by genre, then by subject, next was by year, after that author, and lastly alphabetical. It was both very complicated and a layman basically needed a map to the book they were looking for, but to those who had known Twilight Sparkle long enough, it was... Fondly exasperating.
After a few minutes 'Maple's' ear flicked upon hearing the bell above the door chime with the departure of Twilight's friends, promises to hang out later tossed over their shoulders before silence befall Golden Oaks once again. The sound of Twilight's magic rung through the air as she resumed what she was doing before the interruption in the form of two athletic mares, Reorganizing a bookshelf and cleaning the public sitting area. 'Maple' leisurely walked to Twilight's side, waiting for her to finish stalling for time which didn't take long at all.
"Cel-, I-I mean Pri-." Twilight took another deep breath, holding it for ten seconds before letting it out, all while 'Maple' watched her with that infuriating grin. "'Maple Syrup', It's been a while since we've met." Twilight turned to 'Maple', looking up at her with an expectant expression. "What map do you need now?" At seeing 'Maple's' hurt expression Twilight rolled her eyes, walking over to where she kept the maps of Equestria. "Don't give me that look. You only ever come see me when you need one 'Maple'."
'Maple' Gave a gentle laugh as she followed Twilight, conceding this point to the smaller mare. "I suppose you are right about that my dear. But you ARE the most reliable pony for the job after all." Twilight lowered her head a bit at the compliment, the tips of her ears beginning to turn darker. "I need a map for the lands on the other side of the Whitetail Woods. As far into the Undiscovered West as we have gone."
At that statement Twilight stopped completely, the atlas floating in space above her head as she slowly turned to look at 'maple'. "'Maple'... No, Princess, are you sure about this? I mean," Twilight flipped open the atlas and laid it out on one of the reading tables set out around the room. "The West is so much more dangerous than anywhere else in Equestria! What could you possibly be looking for out there?"
'Maple' lowered her head to look Twilight in the eyes, a warm consoling wing coming down to rest on her neck as She let the disguise drop, Revealing Princess Celestia in all her radiant glory. "Twilight my most faithful student, You need not worry about silly old me. I guarantee you that this is one of the most important things I have done. Don't let your worry cloud and force your future actions." Celestia slightly frowned as she saw that her words did not have the intended effect on the young mare, Twilight refused to meet her eyes and Celestia could practically see the gears in her head moving, cooking up more and more scenarios that all had a bad ending for her.
They sat in silence for a while, Celestia giving all the comfort she could to the younger mare while trying to think of a way to get Twilight out of her head. Suddenly, She realized that their little huddle was missing a member. "Twilight, Where is Spike? I haven't seen your number one assistant at all since I arrived."
Twilight blinked before looking up at Celestia the troubling thoughts she created dissipating in the presence of a question she DID have an answer for. "Oh, Spike is at the Carousel Boutique with Rarity." An errant thought flitted through her head, causing her to giggle into a hoof and gaining her The Princess' full attention.
"Oh? and what is so funny, little lady?" Celestia grinned as she questioned Twilight, happy that those dark thoughts had been left behind in favor of this distraction. "Something you want to tell me?" Upon seeing Twilight shake her head no Celestia decided to make a game of it, certain that it would chase away the last shadows from her mind. "Let me guess, if I get it right YOU," The Princess poked Twilight with a hoof, causing her to giggle harder." Will have to come spend at least a few days with me in Canterlot. It is terribly lonely without a certain little mare talking my ear off about anything and everything she found interesting that day." At Twilight's sudden and offended pout Celestia threw her head back and laughed heartily, causing Twilight to ineffectually bat at her with a hoof.
Once The Princess had calmed down she cast her mind back to the interactions she had seen between the young drake and Rarity, which, unfortunately, she had not been present for many at all. So, Celestia focused on the ones she could remember with clarity, mostly just glances the younger thought he had gotten away with, and suddenly it all became clear once she compared it to the glances a certain captain had given her niece, or the ones that many young stallions had given her in passing.
"Oh, I see now." At that Twilight looked up again, curious to hear about the conclusion the Princess had come to. "Yes it's all clear to me now. Our dear friend Spike has a crush..." Celestia drew out the word, enjoying how Twilight leaned closer, giving The Princess her complete and utter attention. Celestia couldn't help but mess with her, just a little bit. "On Rainbow Dash!"
Celestia had to bite her lip to keep from laughing as she watched Twilight's expression rapidly shift, first Excitement, then confusion and disbelief before looking up with the most bewildered look Celestia had ever seen on her, causing Celestia to lose all composure, practically shaking the foundations of the tree with her roaring laughter.
"Princess Celestia!" twilight whined, uncaring of how childish she was acting at the realization that she had been tricked by her mentor once again. "Jeez, I can't believe I actually believed you." Once Celestia had stopped laughing, using her other wing to wipe the tears that had formed, Twilight spoke up in a small voice. "Thank you. I get lost in my head a lot and it just makes my anxiety worse." At that statement She looked up at Celestia, who was watching her with a motherly smile. "I can always count on you, huh?" Twilight looked back over to the Atlas, before gathering her resolve and standing out from under Celestia's wing.
Celestia for her part silently closed her wing and watched her student flip through the atlas' pages, before she lifted out a folded map before slotting the Atlas back into place. Twilight then turned back to Celestia and carefully laid the map into a protective case. "Thank you Twilight." Celestia said as she stood as well, stretching out her wings and legs as she gathered up the case and drew the Unicorn into a hug. "I shall be back before you realize, so why don't you spend some time with your friends?"
Twilight snuggled into the hug for a moment longer before pulling back, casting a warm smile up at her mentor before nodding, already moving to the door. "That sounds like a good idea, Princess-" When Twilight turned her head to talk the Celestia, The Princess was gone and in her place was Maple Syrup. Twilight rolled her eyes before continuing. "Fine then, Let's go Maple. I'll walk you to the edge of town, Hopefully Applejack and Rainbow have stopped arguing so we can have a nice day out."
Maple looked over Twilight's shoulder and quietly and gently grabbed twilight's head in her magic before turning it to look the other way, showing her that the two mares in question were currently glaring daggers at each other in front of Sugarcube Corner. Upon noticing that, Twilight gave a bone-deep shuddering groan before trudging toward the two of them, Maple following with a bouncy trot, happy that she somehow managed to get an excuse to get a few snacks for the road ahead.