Seeking Melodies

by AliziaRoElier

Like a Sister

Ponyville Library - BL 6 - Winter

The orange filly dropped the note on the table and walked away woodenly. Not a word was spoken. The old mare picked it up and began to read.

By now, I’ve already boarded the train to Canterlot. There, I’ve said it. I don’t plan on disappearing but I have a feeling this will be the last time I’ll see you all. Macintosh, you know everything about what’s happened since high school. You know how dangerous this whole thing’s been for me. I know you’ve always tried to help, despite my best efforts to keep you and all this separate. Please, trust me when I say you really can’t help me now. From the beginning, this was always going to be my journey. Maybe selfishly, I’d always hoped that you’d be there with me but I don’t think its going to happen.

At least I can tell you what I’m about to do. Do you remember me telling you about The Middle Winds? Well, I found it. The last copy was in the private collection of that new entrepreneur, Filthy Rich. He seemed like an okay kinda guy, if a bit stuck up. Anyway, I asked him to let me borrow the book and he reluctantly let me. He knew I was a librarian and that’s probably the only reason he let it out of his sight. If he’d known what he really had, he would have sold it by now.

Mac, it’s so much more than just a book about music. It’s a library. A living, breathing library. I don’t know how but the lives of every pony that’s ever heard Harmony are written in it - from tens of thousands of years ago to just last year.

I have to talk to Princess Celestia. She’s holding an open court on Hearth’s Warming Eve and I need to ask her about all this. Most of the stories in the book talk about something called “Curse:Cordantia” and it’s really worrying me. The book said the ponies that can read them, the true stories, are descended from a special line of ponies from before Celestia’s and Luna’s assumption of the throne. The curse is on that line. I can read the book.

Every pony, every pony in the book said that they had tried and failed to break the curse. None of them actually wrote down what the curse was. I need to find more information.

Seeking Song

P.S. Macintosh, if I had the choice I would say yes. I’ll always say yes.

---

Ponyville Library - AL 4 - Winter

In the aftermath of the pink intrusion and subsequent confusion, Seeking Song, Twilight, and Spike decided to go about the rest of the day readying the tree’s guest room for an long-term inhabitant. The chore lent itself readily to a steady stream of questions from Twilight for Song that left her slightly confused. Near the end of their task, Seeking Song needed to put her hoof down.

“Twilight, I never attended a unicorn school. Half the stuff you’re asking I have no idea about.”

Twilight paused mid-question about entropy ratios and looked a little crestfallen, “Oh. Right. I forgot.”

Spike finished sweeping out the room and Song sat down on the now tidy bed. Bookshelves lined all four walls. One shelf had an alcove cut out of the middle for a window that had a view of the Everfree on the edge of town.

“Thanks for letting me stay here,” Seeking Song said, “would you mind if I took a nap for a while? Traveling here took a lot out of me.”

Twilight nodded and Spike just left the room, “Sure. How did you get here? Train? From Canterlot?”

Seeking Song hesitated for a moment unwilling to have another mountain of questions dropped on her and grudgingly replied, “Um. No. I... shifted from Zebrica to the alley between the bakery and the adjacent apartment complex.”

Twilight's eye twitched, “Extremely long range teleportation with pinpoint accuracy. Of course. What other method of transportation would make sense?” Seeking Song could almost see the sarcasm and exasperation rolling off Twilight in waves, “You wouldn’t be able to explain that to me either, could you?”

Seeking Song laughed, “Well, if I said that Harmony must be heard, I’m not sure you’d take that as an explanation.”

Twilight sighed and hung her head, “No. That would fall under the category of cryptic nonsense.”

“I thought as much. Then I’m sorry I can’t help you. Though I guess I could point you in the right direction. The obelisk in the Trotfalgar Square is much more than sculpted stone.”

Twilight growled, “That’s not much better.”

“I know, but at least now you have a physical starting point.” Seeking Song’s expression was carefully blank but her eyes revealed how much fun it was poking (metaphorically) Twilight Sparkle, consummate scholar and thaumaturgist.

Twilight got up in a huff and walked out of the room. Though she was annoyed she couldn’t help the small smile she left with. The mare was just likable.

In her room, Seeking Song collapsed on her bed and closed her eyes. The day’s excitement was catching up to her. Mentally, she called up the ever present knowledge of just how much time she had left: six months, three days, twenty three hours.

Right on schedule.

---

Bang.

A groan of annoyance escaped from under the pillow and Song tried to bury herself away from the noise.

Pop. Sizzle.

The sounds of laughter and enjoyment filtered through the door and Seeking Song finally rose to investigate. Suddenly everything went quiet. Seeking Song rubbed her eyes tiredly and forced herself to look rested. I’m always so tired now. It’ll be... nice... when this is all over. Seeking Song opened the door to pitch black library and looked around.

Berd creaked quietly and Song understood what was going on - a surprise party. She plastered a blank expression and waited for the inevitable.

The light flashed on, blinding her and everypony in the room yelled, “Surprise!”

Had Seeking Song been looking in a mirror, even she would be unnerved by depths the of emptiness of her facial expression. For a moment, every pony in the room stared at the singularly unmoved pony before Seeking Song’s expression broke into a pleased smile and laugh.

Of their own accord, her eyes scanned the pony’s faces. From left to right, Twilight, a white mare with an exquisite mane, a yellow pegasus that seemed to shrink under her gaze, Pinkamena, a blue pegasus that stared back challengingly, and...

“S-song?” The orange mare on the right of the line stepped forward with a look of disbelief that hardened into determination, “Why are you here?”

Borderline hostility radiated from Applejack’s tense body. Seeking Song’s smile dropped and an expression of absolute anguish replaced it. Twilight stared at the abrupt change, unused to the depths of emotion on Song’s face.

Applejack’s stance relaxed a bit and she took a few tentative steps forward. Almost like a dam breaking Seeking Song’s barely repressed feelings of sorrow fully took control and she ran forward to embrace the orange mare.

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” Seeking Song clung to the mare that she had once considered her little sister and broke down into sobs. The tide of exhaustion that she had been holding at bay crashed over her again.

Slowly, Applejack’s forelegs wrapped around Song as she fell unconscious once more.