The Glow

by WhoHoo

Chapter 1: Kindling

Knock, knock, knock.

Twilight Sparkle had just finished reorganizing Golden Oak Library when she heard someone at the door. Hopping with glee, she rushed to entranceway.

“Here you are, Miss Twilight,” Derpy Hooves cheerfully announced as she presented the librarian with a small, twine-wrapped package.

“Thanks, Derpy!” Twilight grinned and thanked the deliverymare, rushing back inside. She had been waiting all week for Long Wind’s Myths, Fables, and Folk Tales: An Introduction to Obscure Equestrian Legends. Her library, and her own education for that matter, woefully lacked a firm foundation in Equestrian mythology (Twilight had always favored histories grounded in real events, but the librarian in her knew that this was a paltry excuse for not reading). She had ordered this text from a Manehattan bookseller as a way to begin fixing this problem.

Looking around, as if to make sure no one was watching, Twilight levitated the book in her magic, telekinetically holding it in front of her face. She quickly flipped through the pages, breathing deeply. Twilight loved the smell of new books almost as much as the odor of old ones.

Placing the book down on a table in the reading area and sitting on a comfy cushion, Twilight opened the tome and began to peruse its first chapter.

---

Students of history often wonder: “Where do we come from?”

Long before the modern Equestrian nation state, there were tribes, warring groups seeking dominance over each other. Prior to these groups, there were small groups of ponies, clinging to each other in a desperate, seemingly endless search for sustenance and shelter.

What we know about our early history comes partly from legends. Ponies would gather together around fires at night, sharing their experiences and trying to make sense of the hostile world. Before these stories were written down in (what we know refer to as) Old Ponish, they were shared orally. Tales would be passed through generations, just as we give our children precious heirlooms today.

According to one legend, the story of ponykind extends far into the past, claiming that Princess Celestia is our progenitor. Thousands of years ago, Equestria was covered in wilderness. For centuries, Celestia and Luna wandered through it, sharing each other’s company. Although there were small creatures, the sisters were lonely because there was no one like them. One day, as Celestia raised the sun, she took a piece of the solar fire and brought it to Equus. This was the Glow, a shard of her true power. She placed it in the “heart of the land” (note: literal translation from Old Ponish), and the first ponies began to appear soon after.

One should note that the existence of the Glow, like the Alicorn Amulet of other myths, has never been proven. Indeed, scholars have endeavored to—

---

Twilight paused. The last sentence struck her as odd: she knew that the Alicorn Amulet was real from her past experiences with a certain Ms. Lulamoon. She wondered if there was any basis to this “Glow” and whether that meant other old legends were true. Maybe that statue in her garden really was Discord!

“Hey, Spike, take a letter for me,” called Twilight to her assistant, who was busy sweeping a corner of the library.

“Jeez, Twi, didn’t you write a friendship report two days ago?” moaned the purple dragon.

“Yes, but this is about books!” she responded. Twilight cleared her throat and began to dictate. “Dear Princess Celestia, could you tell me more about a magical artifact called the 'Glow?' I read about its legend in a book by Professor Long Wind at the Royal University of Canterlot, but I figured it would be better to ask you directly."

After he finished transcribing Twilight’s words, Spike sent the letter off to Celestia in a puff of green flame. Twilight got back to work, for a librarian’s duties never cease! After all, there are always more shelves to dust, reorganization strategies to consider, and card catalogues to adjust.

-----

While she and Spike were eating dinner (daffodil salad and topaz, respectively) later that evening, Twilight was still thinking about what she had read earlier.

“Hey, Spike,” asked Twilight?

“Mhmmgh?” grunted Spike, his mouth full.

“Where do dragons come from?”

Spike swallowed hard, blushing. “Uh, Twi, haven’t we already had this discussion? Is this a pop quiz? I already know about hemipenes and cloacas.”

Twilight’s face flushed. “N-no, not like that!” she stammered quickly. “I mean, where did dragons, in general, come from?”

Spike looked at her as if she had grown an extra horn. “Don’t dragons come from the Dragon Lands?” he deadpanned.

Twilight chuckled, facehoofing. “Not that literally, Spike. What kind of legends are there about the origins of your species?”

Spike thought about her question, munching on a few of the gems on his plate. “I’m not sure I know any stories like that, Twi.”

“Why’s that, Spike? Don’t we already have books here on dragons?”

“Yeah, but those were written by ponies about dragons, not by drakes themselves. Sometimes I think that I’m more pony than dragon… Sure, I’ve met Garble and some of the others in the Dragon Lands, but I never got to hear them talk about dragonkind, only about themselves. It’s not like I got to interact with other dragons while we were growing up in Canterlot. Don’t get me wrong, I love sharing in pony holidays that celebrate historical legends like Hearth’s Warming Eve and Nightmare Night. But that’s the thing: those are pony events. I’ve never been able to really learn about dragon myths.” Spike looked down at his food, frowning.

Twilight felt a deep twinge of guilt. She never realized that Spike considered things this way. She got up from her seat and walked over to him. She hugged the dragon. “That’s okay, Spike. I can get some more books about dragon mythology, and we can study them together. Maybe we can create a dragon holiday for Equestria! How does that sound?”

Spike hugged her back, smiling gently. “Thanks, Twilight, that sounds great.”

Twilight was glad she purchased Long Wind’s book. If anything, it let her connect with her number-one assistant better.

Author's Note:

This is my first attempt at fanfiction, and it will be a learning process. Feedback is appreciated!

Comments

[SpikeSmolder fan]

Liking this premise so far, that bit between Twilight & Spike was heartfelt.

[WhoHoo]

10252038
Thank you for your kind words! Spike is a fun character to write.