The sun beat down on the quiet town of Ponyville, weighing heavily on the buildings below. A small purple mare strolled along the streets, carrying a small package in her mouth. She slowly approached a tall tree with windows poking out of the thick trunk, and some windows were propped open to let some of the searing heat out. A cool drop of sweat slid down the mares back.
Her navy mane was cut in a straight line above her eyebrows, and it fell perfectly down her back, and curved around her neck. A pink streak ran through her hair, and was rested next to a horn which poked out from her skull. Her tail looked the same as her mane. On her rump, a pink star sat among sparkles, and it danced when she kicked open the door.
"Twilight!" A small voice exclaimed quietly.
"Oh! Fluttershy! You're here!" responded the purple unicorn. She dropped the box on the round table in the middle of the room. She looked up, and looked at all of the books on the shelves. She knew she was staying in a large library, but it still was baffling how this tiny town could hold so many books in one place. She scanned the rows of books, narrowing her violet eyes until they focused on a floating pony.
The pony was a soft yellow, a pair of delicate wings holding her up, with a rose-coloured mane and tail that fell from her scalp to her hooves. Three pink butterflies floated on her flank; her cutie-mark, her love and understanding of animals. A dirty rag covered her hoof, covered in dust and dirt. Fluttershy slowly lowered herself to the floor, and placed the cloth on the table, beside the package.
"Oh, yes. I decided to help you... clean the library... so it... wouldn't be so... um... dirty," she mumbled shyly.
"Oh, well, thanks Fluttershy! What brought you to the library?" Twilight asked, tilting her head curiously.
"I was wondering if you had a book on animal first aid... Angel caught some sort of illness, and I don't really know how to treat it and it's getting worse. And I was just wondering if you had any sort of book. But if you didn't, that would be okay... I mean, I don't want to interrupt anything that you were doing..." she said softly.
"Oh, Fluttershy, it's nothing at all!" Twilight replied happily. "Spike! Come here!" she called.
A small purple dragon with round spikes running down his back came out from behind a bookshelf. His green eyes wide. "You want me to find a book?"
Twilight glared at him. "Were you eavesdropping, Spike?" she joked. Spike looked nervously to the ground.
"Erm... Uh... I was..." the dragon stammered.
"Oh never mind. Just go get the book on animal sicknesses." Twilight rolled her eyes with a giggle. Spike ran up the stairs quickly. Fluttershy walked over to a book that was laying open, pages on the ground, and picked it up. Twilight saw, and her horn began to glow a pale hue of purple, and the book began glowing the same way. Fluttershy, startled, gasped and let go of the book. It floated over to an empty space in the shelving, closing as it went.
Twilight stopped using her magic, and trotted over to where the package sat on her table. She tore it open with her teeth, and took out a perfectly folded present. Whatever was inside was a small rectangle about the size of a children's book. The mysterious gift was covered in a rough, dry paper. Twilight carefully ripped open the paper, and a picture of her and princess Celestia was resting comfortably in the the wrapping paper. The picture had been taken at least a week before Twilight had arrived in Ponyville. The princess looked as stunning as ever, her long, slender legs were folded neatly underneath herself in a casual, yet regal position. Her ivory coat was gleaming in the light, and her flowing, colourful hair surrounded the reading Twilight Sparkle. Her perfect amethyst eyes looked lovingly at Twilight, who was too lost in her book to realize the princess's attention was on her. The princess's blue and pink mane and tail could easily be seen as waving in the wind.
Twilight gazed at the picture with shining, happy eyes. The princess was like a second mother to her, and she loved and admired her to tears. Minutes past before she realized that Spike had not returned yet.
"SPIKE! HURRY UP!" she shrieked. The purple dragon plodded down the stairs, carrying a book so thick that he couldn't see above it. The cover was brown and leather, and looked very ancient. Spike dropped it with a dull thud, and sighed.
"Here you go," Spike grumbled. "'A Book on Animal Sicknesses/Diseases and Their Remedies,'" he read. Fluttershy grunted with the attempt to carry it, but she dropped it beside Twilight's hoof. Twilight jumped back a couple feet, and she cried out.
"Ohmygawsh! Twilight I'm so sorry! I really didn't mean to, are you okay? Did the book hit your hoof? It was too heavy for me... Ohmygawsh I feel really bad, can you forgive me ever? I'm so so so sorry!" Fluttershy was close to tears, her delicate hooves covering her open mouth.
The flurry of words knocked Twilight back, she couldn't think straight. She was still processing everything when she numbly replied, "huh? Yeah, I'm okay, Fluttershy. It didn't even touch me anyways, it only startled me."
Fluttershy sighed with relief. She nodded her head in thanks and left. No sooner had the door clicked shut then Spike turned green. Well, greener than usual. He moaned, and his cheeks puffed out like one of Pinkie Pie's balloons. Twilight looked at him worried. Spike opened his mouth and belched, a wave of green flame burst from his throat, warming the air around him. The fire disappeared, and in its place, a neatly rolled parchment with a red ribbon tied in a bow around it fell to the floor.
"A letter from princess Celestia? Now?" Twilight looked at Spike, who was clutching his stomach and leaning against the wall. His tongue fell out of his mouth, and he shrugged.
Twilight picked up the letter with her magic, and opened it, handing the ribbon to Spike. Two simple words were written on the paper, yet they had enough to power to knock all of the wind out of the purple unicorn. Her eyes slowly widened and her pupils shrunk to minuscule dots, leaving large purple voids. Her thoughts were too tangled to understand this... this... news. Spike saw this and got worried. He poked her flank, and Twilight closed her open mouth, and dashed out the door in a lavender blur, dropping the letter. Spike snatched it from the air, read it, and ran out the door behind her.
I'm dying...
.