//------------------------------//
// Chapter 2 - Dawn 
// Story: My Fair Twilie (Book 2/3) 
// by AdrianJNovelle 
//------------------------------//

	Unable to sleep, Twilight, once again, tried to levitate the book with her horn, but failed. She leaned over the edge of her bed, and picked it up manually, continuing where she left off and reading until sunlight hit her pupils. It was finally morning, and late enough that everypony would be awake. She pulled the covers off of her, hopped out of bed one hoof at a time, and quietly headed downstairs and out of the Library, for Spike was still fast asleep at the foot of her bed.
Twilight felt little pain in her injured hoof as she strolled through town, on her way to Sugarcube Corner. She may not be magical anymore, but she was at least mobile. "Stupid King Sombra," she mumbled to herself. Several moments later, she arrived at the front door of Sugarcube corner, where a familiar figure answered the door.
"Hey, Twilight!" gaily greeted Pinkie Pie, genuinely smiling.
"Hey, Pinkie Pie," Twilight greeted back. "Notice anything different about me today?"
Pinkie Pie scrutinized her friend. "Um...your mane's a mess?"
"What?" Twilight looked upwards where she could see some of her bangs, and the filthiness of them. "Oh, yeah, I forgot to brush this morning." She faced Pinkie Pie. "Yes, I guess that is something different about me today, but that's not what I had in mind when I asked."
"Um...wait, hold on...don't tell me! I can do this! Don't tell me! I got this! I got this! I can do this! Don't tell me-! Okay, tell me."
"I'm walking again!" exclaimed Twilight.
"Oh! Yeah! Duh! How did I miss that?"
"Probably because you're as used to seeing me walk as you are used to seeing my mane combed."
"Yeah, probably. Wanna come in? I got all kinds of pastries I'm making for breakfast."
Twilight followed Pinkie Pie inside to a table. 
"Already? It's first thing in the morning!"
"Oh, you don't know? I don't actually sleep at night like most ponies. I spend every night eating lots and lots of sugar, which keeps me energized throughout the whole day. And, by the time I would have my fall from all that energy, I'm in bed, eating more and more sugar. My diet's basically ninety percent pure sugar."
Twilight blinked twice, her pupils shrunken  in her giant eyes. She made no reply.
"Just have yourself a seat - I'll be right back."
Twilight seated herself at a table in the Sugarcube Corner lobby. A few cups and a pitcher were present on the tabletop. She tried to pour herself a glass of the contents of the pitcher which were presently unknown, but, of course, had not accomplished anything. She poured the cup manually, revealing the liquid to be orange juice, as if ponies drink orange juice. She had a sip as Pinkie Pie came back out, a tray of fresh-baked pastries in her mouth.
"Mmm! Those look good!"
"Thanks!" Pinkie Pie seated herself across from Twilight. "So, what's it like being an earth pony now?"
"Not as much fun or exciting as a unicorn," Twilight replied, taking a pastry and eating it. "Well, unless you're you: always breaking the fourth wall, telling us about these fans and defying the laws of physics and whatnot." Twilight took another sip of orange juice.
Pinkie Pie looked perplexed.
"Never mind. I don't like being an earth pony."
"That's a shame. I find being an earth pony fun fun fun!"
"Pinkie, you were born an earth pony. You don't know what it's like to be able to cast spells, teleport, levitate objects..." Twilight poured herself another glass of orange juice. "Or even pour yourself a drink!"
"I can clone myself, slow the effects of gravity on my body, cram into small spaces, and reverse a confetti cannon!"
"See! There you go again - breaking the fourth wall!"
"What? What are you talking about?"
Twilight face-hoofed herself. "One of these days, Pinkie...one of these days."
Pinkie Pie did not speak. She simply smiled at Twilight for a moment. "Whee! A pastry!" she picked one up and ate it. "Say, have you met the newcomer of Ponyville?"
"Newcomer?"
Pinkie Pie swallowed her pastry and nodded. "Yeah. A new pony just moved into Ponyville. I haven't met him yet, but I heard he's moving in close to our homes." Pinkie Pie leaned in. "And I heard he's from Canterlot."
"Canterlot?" Twilight's eyes widened. "I'm from Canterlot."
"Yeah, so I guess he's very classy...kinda like Rarity. That's only my guess because I don't even know what being classy means!" That sentence did not remove Pinkie Pie's smile from her visage.
"Why are you bringing him up?" asked Twilight.
"I thought that maybe if you're bored, you'd like to meet him. I already know everypony in Ponyville, so I'm gonna go introduce myself later today."
"Well thanks for the invitation," Twilight rose to her hooves. "Maybe I'll stop by after I go brush my mane and take a bath."





Now cleaned, Twilight took a walk around town, subconsciously in search for the newcomer of Ponyville. During her journey, she caught side of a stallion using his horn to bring large, thin objects into his cottage. The building in which he was loading the objects had previously been uninhabited. Could this be the new pony? She approached the scene, quietly stepping up to his cottage. He had a coat as white as Rarity's, the shiniest teal eyes you could imagine, and a well-quaffed mane and tail of a hue of blue which was quite pleasing to the eyes. His cuite mark featured a paintbrush with some magenta paint on the tip.
He had his back turned at the moment, but when he turned back around, he noticed Twilight out of his peripheral vision. 
"Well," he said, in a somewhat deep, delightfully masculine voice, "who do we have here?" Before Twilight could even answer, he continued, "My name is Dawn: spelled like the time of day; not short for Donnor."
"My name is Twilight Acorna Sparkle," began she, "and I would like to welcome you to Ponyville. My friends call me Twilight."
"Twilight Sparkle, euh?" repeated Dawn. "What a beautiful name for a beautiful mare." Twilight blushed as Dawn eyed her flank. "That's a very interesting cutie mark. What does it symbolize?"
"My special talent i- was magic."
"Was?"
"I lost my natural-born horn in a battle against King Sombra recently when I tried to save the world from utter destruction, and I haven't cast a spell since. The horn I have now is artificial."
"An artificial horn," Dawn scrutinized Twilight's horn. "I must say that is some craftsmareship: I would not have been able to tell the difference if I had not been told." He leaned back upright. "It is a pleasure to meet such a friendly and noble pony such as yourself, Ms. Twilight. Do come in." He started inside his cottage. Twilight hesitantly followed him to a rectangular wooden table set up off to the side of the room. The only other objects in the room were those large, flat objects Dawn had been carrying in when she arrived.
"What are those?" Twilight asked.
"Paintings I have done," replied Dawn. "I'm a painter."
"May I see them?" 
"Oh, of course." Dawn used his horn to pick up one of the paintings and show it to Twilight. "You might recognize this young fellow."
The painting was undoubtedly Shining Armor, and looked like a picture had simply been taken and enlarged, the quality of Dawn's talent was simply that divine. 
"Hey, that's my brother!" Twilight exclaimed.
"Ah, so he is!" Dawn put the painting away back with the others. "I just moved here from Canterlot. I painted everypony in Canterlot, and have desired to move onto new locations and new ponies. Your name did seem familiar when I met you. And now I know why: I met your brother and somewhere in that stack is also his wife, Princess Cadence." He paused. "Interesting story you were telling me about your artificial horn. I know I could never live a day without my horn. I don't know too much about all the fancier aspects of magic, but my horn is my life when it comes to painting. I could never be a painter if I had to carry my brushes with my mouth. If I, for some reason, were to lose my horn like that, I'd have to give up my career as an artist."
"I still haven't gotten used to not having mine," said Twilight. "A hundred times a day I try to levitate something, only to remember that I can't."
"I am sorry you had to be reduced to such a menial lifestyle."
"It's no so bad: it was for the sake of Equestria and everypony within its borders."
"Well there ya go!...May I paint you, Twilight, as my first subject since my arrival at Ponyville?"
Twilight's eyes shimmered. "You...want to paint me?"
"Well, sure! You're quite a photogenic pony, if I may say so, and you're the first pony to introduce yourself to me."
Twilight blushed again. "I'd love to, Dawn."
Dawn smiled. "Great! But I'm still in the process of moving in. Why don't you head on back home until tomorrow and come back tomorrow? I'll try to be ready to paint by then - well, unless you wanna stay."
"Stay? But aren't you moving in?"
"I am...but you're hardly an imposition."
"Can I help you move in?"
"Absolutely!"