//------------------------------// // On the Shelf // Story: Disappear // by ShimmeringStallion //------------------------------// On the Shelf “Spike, have you gotten the books sorted out over on your shelf?” “Check!” Spike jumped off the ladder and onto Twilight’s back. He was glad to be a small dragon, and still able to get free rides around the library, and even Ponyville at times. Without wings, he really couldn’t cover much distance on his stubby legs. He climbed off and went to another shelf to reorganize its contents. “Re-Shelving Day” seemed much more hectic ever since they had been getting more ponies to check books out, mainly due to the aforementioned ponies rarely putting them back where they belonged. “I can’t believe how quickly we’re doing this! We’ll be at the 'Pony History' section before long, at this rate. This is going very smoothly. Great work, Spike!” Twilight liked these tasks to go two ways: Simple and quick. It’s just organization, after all, and Twilight liked few things more than the knowledge that her library was in perfect order for any new and prospective readers. Spike grinned to himself as he finished another shelf. “THAT section of shelves will just need a re-dusting, given how little attention ponies give it…” he quipped. Jumping down and landing safely on Twilight’s back, she bucked him off of her and into a pile of books. “Spike, listen! Even if nopony else is viewing books from a section, it should still at least LOOK like it’s being maintained properly!” Twilight turned away and gave a smirk. “Besides, I’m still giving them plenty of attention, so at the very least, I’d like to not have them covered in dust when I choose to read them, understood? Now, what’s that pile of?” Spike jumped out and looked at a few of the books he had been launched into. “They seem to be ‘New returns’. Ugh…” Twilight smiled, knowing that they needed to be freshly checked off the 'Borrowed' list and reorganized. The day certainly wasn’t going to be boring for her. For Spike, that was a different story. As Spike picked up a few books, he put his head under the ‘drop box’ connected to the pile. Suddenly, the library door burst open to the sight of Rainbow Dash, as well as another pony that she was carrying on her back. The slam of the door against the wall caused Spike to jump up, whacking his head on the handle of the drop box and collapsing into the pile he had tried organizing. Seeing that her friend was clearly struggling with the pony that Twilight could now identify as Derpy Hooves, Twilight ran over to help Rainbow Dash, but was quickly shrugged off. “Twilight, I need your help! Get a pillow! Get a table! Get SOMETHING I can put her on! QUICK!” Twilight Sparkle didn’t know what was going on, but Rainbow Dash wouldn’t stop by if it wasn’t important. Leaving Spike rubbing his skull whilst sitting atop a pile of books, she used her magic to pick up Derpy’s prone body, carrying her up the library stairwell and bringing her up to her own bed; it was the best possible option available, given Derpy's unconscious state. Rainbow Dash was still livid. “Do something, Twilight! DO SOMETHING!” Twilight lifted her hoof in order to stop Rainbow’s orders. “Rainbow, you burst into here and demanded my help, without telling me what’s going on. I need answers!” Rainbow Dash stammered a bit before calming down just enough to produce a still-hectic explanation of what happened at the boulder by the dirt path. “… I see… was there anypony else around?” Twilight Sparkle was able to piece together most of what Rainbow Dash had said, but some of it was spoken at a speed much too quick for Twilight to translate through the panicked wordings. The question was sincere in asking about witnesses, but she was also hoping that perhaps somepony who was less panicked could describe the situation to her. Rainbow Dash was frantic. “No! There was no one! I heard her crying, looked at her back, and then she passed out! I came straight here from that boulder!” Twilight walked up to the fallen Pegasus pony on her bed, carefully examining her for any other clearly visible injuries, to no avail. “Th-This isn’t normal, right?” Twilight looked at Rainbow with utter confusion, as if to confirm if she really meant to ask that question. Rainbow clarified herself as she placed a blanket over Derpy. “I mean, this couldn’t be caused by something other than magic, right? Right!? Because I know you can fix it if it’s related to magic. Come on, Twilight, you’ve GOT to try. Please!” Twilight seldom saw her friend being so emotional; Rainbow Dash really showed that she was the embodiment of the Spirit of the Element of Loyalty when it came to those closest to her. Twilight Sparkle lifted the blanket up, and looked at the injury. It was worse since it began, or at least the smell was. Since removing the saddlebag, the whole back was visible, but only the area between and including the wings had been visibly affected. If you covered it up with a strap and two saddlebags, somepony would hardly even notice the blackened area. Twilight moved to Derpy’s face before raising her hoof to it. Feeling her forehead, the blonde Pegasus pony had broken out into a fever, but was sleeping quietly. Twilight wasn’t sure whether she should be relieved or scared at Derpy’s condition, but she knew one thing without question: Derpy needed immediate medical attention, and this was not the place where she could obtain it. “Rainbow, we can focus on the issue regarding her wings, later. I know it’s important, but it seems like she has a fever. You need to take her to Ponyville Hospital!” Rainbow Dash felt rejected by such a statement, but she knew it was for the best. Still, she had to be sure that there were no immediate options available, before she could allow herself to leave in good faith. “Can’t you do anything to help her? Maybe mix up a potion or use your magic or…” Twilight knew that she didn’t have to say anything, but she was also aware that Rainbow Dash would feel better hearing it straight from the horse's mouth. “I’ll look at my books to see if there has ever been anything like this. In the meantime, she needs immediate medical attention before her fever gets worse.” Rainbow Dash tried to interrupt, but Twilight stopped her. “I know you want me to help her, and I promise I’ll do everything I can with the books I have in my library, but if she doesn’t get immediate help, I don’t think I’ll have the time necessary to find a cause, let alone a solution. Understand?” Sighing in defeat, the disheartened Pegasus pony nodded. “… Okay… Alright, you win. I’ll take her to the hospital.” Rainbow Dash was about to pick her up, but Twilight decided to move Derpy’s prone body from the bed to Rainbow’s back, so as to not risk hurting either pony. It was during this, that Derpy opened her eyes, weakly. She turned to the direction of Rainbow Dash’s ear, and whispered to her weakly. “… V-Vanish… told me… to tell you… to help… me…” Saying what she needed to, she allowed herself to fall back into the painless embrace of sleep, content with the knowledge that she might have helped somepony, forgetting to make sure her friends could hear her in the process. Vanish watched from the window outside the library, hidden on the limb of the tree thanks to the leaves surrounding it. He had been following Rainbow Dash ever since she had picked up Derpy. The stallion dropped down from the tree limb, and went to the door. It was there, that he was crashed into by Rainbow Dash. He was startled with regards to how fast she made it from the second floor to the front door. “Oh, my apologies. Mares first.” He said, as he bowed graciously. This act wasn’t reciprocated, as Rainbow looked around quickly, mumbling audibly to herself. “Ponyville Hospital, Ponyville Hospital… THAT WAY!” Rainbow began heading to Ponyville Hospital with Derpy in tow, like a mare on a mission. Twilight stepped out and shouted, “Don’t worry! I’ll be there soon! Just get her in a room! ...Oh! H-Hello! We’re a little busy right now, actua…” The stallion raised his hoof to stop her from providing an explanation. “That’s perfectly alright, my dear. I just came by to see if you had a couple of books that I’d like to check out.” Seeing her hesitance in permitting entry, he continued speaking in the hopes of gaining access. “I happen to know of the books by their respective titles, if that is of any significant convenience.” Twilight knew she had to work fast, but as long as this was quick, there shouldn’t be a problem. She sighed in acceptance, and went back inside the library, accompanied by the fedora-wearing pony in the dark, dark blue coat. The stallion tipped his hat towards Twilight, and gave his requests. “You have my gratitude. The books I am looking for are ‘Modern Ponyville History’ and ‘The Elements of Harmony’. If I may ask, where might I find them?” Twilight was hardly listening, focusing intensely on the ‘Magical and Medicinal’ section of books in front of her. “I’ll have Spike get ‘Modern Ponyville History’ for you. As for ‘The Elements of Harmony’, it’s…” Her focus was broken upon speaking the title of the book. No pony had ever asked for that book by name, and she would know if they did; it was arguably the most important book in her entire library. “Is something the matter? You did not finish your sentence, my dear.” The stallion tipped his hat up slightly in order to properly look at Twilight Sparkle. Twilight didn’t feel right giving the book to this stallion, she just didn’t. “If I may ask, why are you interested in that specific book? I-It’s not very good; I’ve read it before…” She had to buy some time, somehow. “How strange… you’re unusually curious, aren’t you?” The hat-wearing pony had appeared to begin being suspicious of Twilight, who was trying to smile innocently in response, but not having the greatest of ease in doing so. She knew that she was treading on thin ice with this pony, and could feel that this wasn’t going to proceed well for her. “… Well, if you MUST know, I don’t have any personal interest invested in the book itself, however…” The stallion tipped his hat back down, looking away from her as he continued. “I was asked to look into it, by my employer no less… and I was told to make sure to learn the names of the ponies in that book; that it would be of the utmost importance to do so… It’s important I learn them.” The stallion gave a coy smile towards Twilight. “I’m not what you would call a 'fan of surprises’, so to speak.” Twilight backed up into a bookcase. The impact caused her to look back reflexively, and much to her horror, there it was, right with the other books on the shelf: ‘The Elements of Harmony’. She turned back around and saw the stallion much closer to her now, staring at her much less gently than he had been doing moments before. “If there is no problem, I’ll simply borrow the book and take my leave. May I have it?” Twilight stepped in front of the book to keep it out of view of the stallion, but he saw that she was acting suspicious. He took a couple of steps towards her, causing her to push herself further against the bookcase. “I apologize for any insinuation, my dear, but to be frank, you’re acting in a rather peculiar manner. Is something the matter?” Twilight knew she couldn’t move from where she was. The studious mare was trying as hard as she ever had to remain calm, but her mind was racing with a plethora of thoughts: “What if he reads the book? What if he reads it and comes back for more information about the girls? I can’t put my friends in danger, I need to be there for them. He’ll surely find them next, if he doesn’t find them first!” With panic setting in, Twilight quickly tried to think of something to say. “Umm… T-The book is…” “HERE!” A book popped up from below the two ponies, breaking the tension caused by their now-broken eye contact. Spike had grabbed ‘Modern Ponyville History’ as quickly as he could, bringing it between Twilight and the stallion. “‘Modern Ponyville History’, right here. Also, I took at look at the shelf where we keep ‘The Elements of Harmony’. We don’t have it in at the moment. Sorry about that, sir!” The pony was startled at the sudden appearance of the baby dragon, but remembered why he was here. “That is a shame… Oh well, I suppose I couldn’t read two books at the same time, had they both been in stock. I’ll just read this, and return in the near future. I certainly hope for the return of the second book, soon.” He grabbed it with his mouth, and turned his head in order to put it into one of the two saddlebags that he had on him, dropping it in before speaking. “I am most grateful that you could help me, even if I could not acquire both of the books my employer had asked me to procure. But that was then, for now I must make haste for Ponyville Hospital! Good day, you two.” With that, the stallion tipped his hat up slightly before walking out. Twilight and Spike kept their eyes on him until he closed the door, before they finally exhaled a shared sigh of relief. “Thanks, Spike. I didn’t feel right about giving him ‘The Elements of Harmony’… What was up with that guy?” Spike crossed his arms, trying to piece together the words the visitor had said. “It seemed like he didn’t have a good idea about who you were, Twilight… but what about the princess?” Spike had a point; it would be ideal for Princess Celestia to be made aware, given how the ‘elements’ were in Canterlot. For now, Twilight had to get the others. “They might be in danger, with that stallion walking through Ponyville, and even worse, he's headed for Ponyville Hospital: Where Rainbow Dash and Derpy are!” “Spike, send a letter to the princess. Tell her as much as you can about that stallion. I have to go warn the girls; they might be in trouble.” With that, Spike began to write a letter to Princess Celestia, detailing the hat-wearing visitor that had sought information about the Elements of Harmony. Twilight sprinted from the library, and headed to Fluttershy’s Cottage. It was a little bit out of the way, but it was the only one that wasn’t in the direction that she saw the stallion walk in, so she could be sure he would not see her, at least, not immediately. Twilight had an idea, but needed all her friends to help. More importantly, she needed to find everypony, before that stallion found out the truth.