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Chapter 13,293 words
Chapter 23,291 words

Chapter 2

Opening the door of the library Narci was greeted by Spike,

"Hey Narci, how was school today?"

Giving him a warm smile she walked over to the table Spike was sitting at with a tome stretched out before him. The room was thick with the acidic smell of paper it burned her nose but, it was a good smell or at least she thought so.

"School was great! Did you know that Scootaloo has a special somepony?" she answered as she started placed a few of her books on the table and started to work on her homework.

"Yeah, what!' he said as he tried to come to terms with the absurdity of the statement,"Scootaloo? As in races at breakneck speeds on a scooter, gags at anything mushy, doesn't realize anypony exists when Rainbow Dash is around, Scootaloo?"

"Yep, apparently she and Featherweight have been hanging out."

Closing his book he shook his head,

"Hanging out and going out are two different things."

"I don't think they were just hanging out. When she realized she had blurted it out she blushed the deepest shade of red I have ever seen. And she kept trying to hide it." she said in a matter of fact tone.

"What? Her blush," he said in a board tone.

"Yes, she kept trying to hide her blush from us and she also had been keeping their hangout sessions a secret. Oh, and he always gives her a picture that he shot of RD after every meeting,"

"Maybe they ar-" Spike said just as Trixie strolled into the actual library part of the estate with a fierce scrawl on her face and a book held aloft in her magic,

"This book irritates the Great and Powerful Trixie." Looking around she found where the book belonged and then started to search the shelf for something more interesting. Wanting to get a better look she stood up on her hind legs and then pressed her hooves against a higher shelf. The extension pulled the fluffy bathrobe she was wearing up revealing her derriere.

Leaning in his seat Spike gazed at the mares compromised position. Besides her bathrobe she also had her hair in curlers. He didn't like to admit it but Trixie was a very attractive mare. Almost a beautiful as Rarity, almost. A bit of drool started to slide down the edge of his mouth. Narci was too busy doing her home to watch Spike lust after their roommate. His daydreaming came to a swift end as a book came crashing down on his head with a loud,

"Whop!"

The blow knocked him silly and had caused him to bite his tongue, he swiftly turned to face his attacker. The mare stood there with the stupidest little grin on her face. The mare looked eerily like her sister Trixie but she was daintier, had a lime green mane, and bore twin pools of lava for eyes.

"Ow! Why did you do that?" he groaned.

"I don't like how you were ogling my sister," she said in snappy tone.

"I wasn't ogling," he muttered.

"Yes you were," said Narci with out looking up from her work.

"Gah! I can't win for losing! I hate mares!" he yelled out in expiration as he threw his hands in the air leaving the table. Defeated and ashamed he walked down the hall that Trixie had recently walked down back towards his room.

A fit giggles exploded and two mares and one filly were all holding their sides from Spike's out burst. Merlina sat down across from Narci and then slid a small bag of bits her way. Narci reached out with a wing tip and gave it a shake,

"Feels like twenty bits."

Bringing her hooves together Merlina eyed Narci suspiciously,

"Do you really think that I would cheat you?"

"No," curtly responded the bat filly.

"I would," said Trixie as she approached the table.

"We know you would," jeered Merlina.

Plopping down beside Narci she looked over the fillies books,

"So you won your little bet with my sister, now pay up." Said Trixie as she held out a hoof.

Pouring the bags contents on the table she counted out half and slid them towards Trixie. Trixie's eyes briefly glowed with a greedy spark.

"Wait, a moment? What are you paying Trixie for?"

Looking up from her book she gave Merlina a sheepish smile,

"You bet against me and my idea that Spike had a crush on your sister. Which you would have known to be true if you were around him when he was around her, he puts out pheromones like a chimney puts out smoke. But, I had to have insurance. So, I told Trixie that if she would wear something fetching and it caused him to get all drooly that I would give her half of my winnings."

"So you rigged the game?"

"She didn't rig the game, Merly! The only way she could have rigged the game is if she gave him a love potion or something. Which she didn't do so, ha. Narci wins and so does Trixie." said Trixie followed by her blowing a raspberry.

"Still getting my sister involved and getting her to dress in such a revealing way was underhooved."

"I agree," came a voice as its owner descended down the stairs.

Twilight looked over the trio and scoffed as her eyes fell on Trixie,

"Trixie why are you still here?"

Smirking Trixie batted her eyelashes at the princess,

"You said as long as Trixie was here visiting her sister Trixie could make herself at home and that is just what Trixie is doing!"

Trixie's use of the third person voice irritated Twilight to no end. After their first meeting Trixie's trailer had been smashed and when she returned possessed by the alicorn amulet she ruined her reputation by enslaving an entire town. The only time she had dropped her act was when she was thoroughly humiliated. Seeing as the Ursa incident wasn't really her fault and seeing that her anger had drove her to purchase the alicorn amulet to begin with Twilight felt responsible for Trixie's fall from grace. And when the showmare showed up to visit the only family she had, Twilight couldn't say no. That had been over a month ago.

"I did say that," said Twilight rhetorically as she hooves hit the ground floor. Following close behind her was Flash Sentry. The guard pony could be very sweet and was often funny but that was something he wasn't as long as he was in armor.

"So, Narci did you learn anything interesting today," asked Twilight.

"Yep, I learned that Scootaloo has a coltfriend!" said Narci like it was the most important thing ever spoken.

After talking to her roommates and her personal tutor Narci made her way to her room. Knowing that Narci sometimes had trouble sleeping Twilight gave the room her across from Merlina's, like Twilight the mare was usually up late and so would make an ideal pony for Narci to visit. Next to her room was Trixie's room. Trixie was just the opposite of her sister. She was generally in bed by ten. The best thing about Narci's room was that it was painted her favorite colors royal purple and silver gray. It had everything she needed and nothing more. It even had a window that was magically enchanted so the sun's rays were no more harsh than moonlight.

Pulling out the letter that Dinky had given her Narci readied her newest toy, a rune pen. It was given to her by Twilight and in her opinion was the best invention ever. It was shaped like a bulky automatic pin with a flat tip. If you ran it across a line in a book the words were projected letter by letter into her minds eye just like she was reading a glyph book. It opened up so many possibilities and using it she had devoured tome after tome of the libraries collection.

Opening the letter she was surprised to find it was written in bridlelle. Running a hoof across the page she began to read.

Dear Narcissus Floret,

We haven't really met yet so let me introduce myself first. My name is Ditzy Hooves and I'm the local mailmare. I hope you get a chance to get to know my daughter, Dinky Hooves. She is quirky like me but, I love my little muffin. When I heard that a bat pony was coming to Ponyville, I was really excited because I had never met one. Even when Princess Luna came for Nightmare Night with her two Lunar Guards I really didn't get to meet them. So I hope I can meet you soon. I was equally as surprised to hear that you had a visual handicap. I also have a visual handicap. I have a serous form of what eye doctors call Strabismus, or what other ponies call lazy eye.

When I was little I had it in both of my eyes and I could barely read. So, my parents got me a tutor to teach me how to read bridlelle. I hated reading before I learned how to read this bump writing but it helped me to really enjoy reading. What was harder than that was how other foals treated me. There were times that I cried myself to sleep because of what some insensitive foal had said too me. And I had a hard time making friends. Just when I was ready to just give up I found somepony who would accept me for who I was and not how I looked.

Her name was Block Print. I think you may know the name, she's the mare that later wrote the Daring Do books. As time went on I met two more foals who liked me for me and their names were Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. By that time Block Print had left to study in a boarding school in Fillydelphia. By having friends I learned that the ponies that treated me badly weren't even worth being friends with but, I never really hated them. And today I treat them how I wanted to be treated.

If you have any trouble at all I want you to find my daughter and get her lead you here to my house. I'll have some fresh muffins waiting.

Sincerely,

Ditzy Hooves

P.S. I really hope you like the locket. It is very special. Don't worry about breaking it because you can't unless you can bend time space.

P.S.S. My name is Dr. Time Turner Hooves, please disregard the second and third sentences of the postscript above.

P.S.S.S Don't listen to him!

P.S.S.S.S They are both daft, please burn this letter after you read it.

The letter was touching but also weird. She wanted to meet this mare if for nothing else to thank her for the gift and to figure out what the hay all the postscripts were about.

Morning came all to early. After a warm bath Narci made her way down to the kitchen. The smell of eggs and haybacon filled the air and she could faintly hear muffled conversation.

"Your going to burn the eggs!" said a low rumbling voice. It was a voice that haunted her dreams, a voice so deep that it was more felt it than heard.

"I am not! I've been cooking breakfast since before I could even spell breakfast," replied Spike.

"I don't care what the two of you do but if somepony does get me some coffee soon, I'm going to turn you into matching tea cozy's," growled Trixie.

The clatter of dishes rung in her ears as she entered the kitchen. Spike stood over the stove perched on a chair so that he could reach all the knobs. With one hand on a skillet he shook it to keep the haybacon from sticking. Lumbering over was a tall thin stallion wearing coat of a ten thousand interlocking ebony black steel rings. On each of his shoulders were equally dark curved sheets of plate. His shift hadn't officially ended yet but he was relieved earlier by Flash Sentry. So he had gravitated toward the welcome smells of the kitchen. He drew uncomfortably close to Spike and Spike let him know it,

"Back off man! Hassling me isn't going to make it cook any faster."

The stallion backed up a few inches but kept his breakfast vigil. He was always like this in the morning. Narci sat down at the table and gaze longingly at the armored guard.

"You are as bad as Spike," said Trixie between sips of her coffee.

Shooting her a hard look with a blush surfacing the on her sea of gray Narci did her best to convince that if looks could kill Trixie would now be killed over dead in the floor.

"I am not!" she whimpered

The rustling of chain cause Narci to look back at the boys by the stove. She watched the stallion struggle with his chain mail so she rushed over to help him. With a few tugs he was free and her spread out his leathery wings to their fullest. He was beautiful. Thick corded muscles flowed underneath his dark blue coat and his jet black mane stood out wildly after a night wearing his helm. Twilight had tried to explain to Narci that her infatuation with him was due to the recent traumatic experience she had experienced. And he was the first pony she had saw after being in the cave for so long. Narci didn't believe that for a second, in her heart she was convinced that he was her soul mate.

"Thanks, kid!" he said as her ruffled her mane. She melted like putty underneath his touch. She walked back to the table and sat down. Her face was glowing and she looked like a foal getting presents on hearth's warming eve. Lost in thought she didn't even register that Spike had made her a plate.

"Eat up, Kid" rumbled the voice before he took a bite of his own meal. She looked over at him with a silly smile.

"Ok, Mr. Shadowsteel."

His fork hung awkwardly in the air as he shot her cheeky grin,

"Mr. Shadowsteel is my dads name. How many times do I have to tell you to call me, Emmett"

"This is the last time, I swear."

After breakfast Narci headed out into the streets of Ponyville. It was still early and few ponies had even left their homes. From the town square came the scraping and thumping sounds of ponies setting up their stands. Occasionally a voice could be heard, mostly a profanity or two coming from a pony who had stomped their hoof or some other method of general clumsiness. "Apple Bloom will be tied up until noon today with Applejack and the apple stall." she thought.

"Good Morning, Narci!" yelled a voice as it rolled towards her. Turning she spotted Featherweight on his blue and yellow bicycle. He looked funny sitting on the slender seat. The basket hanging from the front of the bike had a big blue bag sitting in it full of newspapers. The cream coated colt rolled to as stop flashing a friendly smile.

"What are you doing on that thing," said Narci as she pointed to the bike.

"What you don't like my bike," he replied sound almost hurt at the comment.

"No, is cool. But don't you usually fly your route?" she asked.

"Yeah, I usually do but Scootaloo bet me two bits that I couldn't deliver half as many papers as she could on her scooter if I didn't fly my routes. I don't understand what got in to her this morning she usually nice to me."

"I'm sure its nothing," she lied.

"Well, I better get back to work. If I loose to a filly I'll never here the end of it," he said before he realized he was talking to a filly, "Uh, no offense."

"None taken," said Narci nonchalantly.

Pedaling away he turned around a waved bye.

Narci strolled around trying to think of something to do,

"AB is helping her sister. Scoots is delivering papers. Sweets has got her singing lessons this morning. And Silver's gone for the weekend to Canterlot with her parents. I won't have anypony to hang out with until noon. What am I going to do until then," she thought. "I know I can go see the mare that wrote me that letter, no wait. She's a mailmare so she's working today, ugh, I really have nothing to do." Looking up she realized that she was passing a small shop that looked like one of those old antique stores back home. Having nothing better to do she walked in.

The store smelled old. It brought to mind images of her grandparents and the scent of mothballs. The sales counter gleamed as it reflected the interior lights of the room across its polished surface. The rooms walls were covered with shelves and each shelf had numerous items like old perfume bottles, antique china, and other bits and bobs. The center of the room held a select number of cabinets, tea trollies, and old furniture. She had seen enough this wasn't a place she wanted to explore. It was way too boring.

"Are you going to buy anything, miss?" asked nasal voice. Looking around she couldn't see or detect anypony. The clop of hooves followed and a head rose from somewhere behind the counter. The brown coated stallion blinked a couple of times as he looked down at the little bat filly. A smile stretched across his face,

"I know you!" he said in cheery voice.

"Forgive me, but I don't know you and I think I'll be going now," said Narci as she trotted towards the door.

"You're that bat filly that Ditzy wanted to meet." he said excitedly, "Your name is Narcissus isn't it."

Narci stopped dead in her tracks and turned to admire the stallion who somehow knew both her name and that Ditzy wanted to meet her,

"Ditzy did write me a letter saying that she wanted to meet me. She also have me this locket, only I didn't know it was a locket until it-"

"Opened all of its own" finished the stallion.

"How... How did you know that?" gasped Narci as she held out the egg shaped locket.

"How indeed!" he joked holding out a pocket watch shaped locket of his own.

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