//------------------------------// // Optimism // Story: Sanctioned Necromancy // by One-Of-Three-Names //------------------------------// "Undead, technically" Bones corrected her, raising a hoof knowingly. If Scarlet had eyes she probably would have rolled them. "Right, undead, of course." she sat down at the table across from him and tsk'ed at his messy brown-green mane. "Do you even try in the mornings?" "Nope!" Bones declared, sitting up straight and looking proud. That got a laugh out of her, she stood up and disappeared behind a nearby bookcase. He could hear her rummaging around for something. Her voice flowed over the shelves to him. "You really should, my mane looks better than yours, and I'm dead!" Bones opened his mouth. "Undead!" Scarlet called, before he could speak. Bones smiled. She appeared again, holding a mottled looking brown book. She placed it on the desk in front of her and sat down again. "So, whats on the schedule for today?" she asked with genuine eagerness. Bones attempted to identify the book she had brought out, but didn't feel like putting forth the effort to read upside down. "I don't know" he admitted, his smile fading. "Let me think for a while." He really wasn't in the mood to do any studying today, and besides studying there really want much to do unless he was called upon. His job took sudden and drastic turns from being incredibly boring, to utterly terrifying. Generally however, his job was to know things. He knew a lot of things. He knew how to raise or speak with the dead. He could summon extra dimensional entities and bind them to his will, and knew how to safely enter and navigate said dimensions. He could create or destroy powerful cursed objects. He was skilled in thaumaturgy, and could inflict terrible pain on anypony in Equestria with nothing but a lock of their hair. He could see into a pony's soul or dominate their minds simply by maintaining eye contact for a few moments. He knew how to place a hex that would effect and entire family line for generations. He could even create a monster capable of massacring hundreds across Equestria. He could do all these things, but he wouldn't. His job was to know dark magic inside and out, and how to stop the ponies who practiced it. Fortunately, dark magic practitioners were not very common. Unfortunately, this tended to make Bone's job very dull during the lulls between sorcerers. There was a lot of quiet time in The Archive. The sound of Scarlet flipping a page in her book brought Bones back to reality. The record player was now on a very slow and methodical piano piece. Bones found it relaxing, and he let himself be lost in the music for a while. He wasn't sure how much time had gone by when he noticed Scarlet staring at him patiently. "What?" he asked, just now noticing he was resting his head on his hoof. "Do you want to practice some spells or something?" she asked, closing her book. "Depends, what kind of spells?" She shrugged. "Memory?" Bones snorted. Memory charms was something he had always been good at. Navigating the brain and suppressing the imprints of memory on the soul was complicated, sure. But for some reason he found it came naturally to him, and it was a skill he had mastered years ago. The candlelight cast odd shadows across the bookcases throughout The Archive as the grainy silence stretched on, the record had long since been over and was now making a low scratching sound as the pin dragged across its surface. Both ponies continued just staring at each other. After about thirty seconds Bones realized he had been subconsciously participating a staring contest, and began blinking his watery red eyes, rubbing them with his hooves. Scarlet was laughing. "That was hardly fair" he complained, half jokingly. "You started it." Scarlet was still recovering from her giggles. "Seriously though, what are we going to do today?" Bones pondered for a moment "I suppose we could go out? Philomina can always find us if we're needed." Scarlet liked this idea, she let out the same gleeful noise she made earlier, and bounced into the stacks saying she would be right back. Excitable as ever. Bones considered taking his cloak with him, but figured the morning chill would have dissipated by now, and took it off, revealing his rather gruesome grinning skull cutie mark. He left his cloak draped on his chair and took a look at the cover of the book Scarlet had been reading: 'Tangible Illusions, by Midnight Gleam'. That sent a twinge of guilt through him, thinking of the days when Scarlet used to pride herself on her appearance. Bones met up with her near the front exit; she had acquired a pair of saddlebags from her room and was busily securing the straps. Bones gestured towards the saddlebags. "What are those for?" He asked. "Flowers!" ------- The Archive was located directly beneath the Canterlot Library, and could be accessed through a secret entrance in the libraries restricted section. The entrance was similar to the crypt in that it required a password to open. Bones had only ever been seen leaving the archive once before, by Celestia's protege Twilight Sparkle. The incident had occurred when Twilight was still fairly young, and he had stuck to the plan and played dumb as to the existence of the secret entrance he had just emerged from seconds before. He grimaced as he remembered how he had to refrain from using the library entrance for the next week as Twilight had set up shop there, just waiting for him to try it again. Today however, the coast was clear, and they were not accosted by anyone other than a dumfounded looking guard who had to let them out of the restricted section without remembering letting them in. The Canterlot Library was a bit of a maze, the interiors circular design could confuse anypony who's not a frequent visitor. Bones greeted the current librarian as he left, an aging yellow mare who's name he couldn't remember. Immediately after stepping outside, he regretted not bringing his cloak. He felt the same chill from his bedchamber this morning bite into him. He paused for a moment and scowled at the world. He figured it would be a few years still before a early spring breeze would bring him low, but middle age wasn't too many years away either. Scarlet continued on, and appeared to be reveling in the sunlight. Another pang of guilt. Scarlet only got to see the sun once every few days when they went out together, any other time they were usually out on business and had no time to simply enjoy being alive. Technically alive anyway. Bones picked up his pace to catch up with Scarlet as she headed towards the flower shop. The pegasi had apparently decided today would be slightly cloudy, their shadows occasionally blocking out the sun as they drifted with the wind. Most in Canterlot it seemed were getting a late start today, and the streets were busy with overly well dressed ponies walking to where they worked, or to tea parties or whatever it was normal ponies do in Canterlot. It suddenly struck Bones how out of place they must look, a pale unicorn with a raggedy green mane, and a deathly thin mare who was dressed like a leper. The same thing seemed to occur to Scarlet as she moved closer to Bones, lowering her head a bit. "Hey, cheer up. whats wrong?" Bones asked, feigning ignorance. "Everypony is looking at us." She replied, adopting an even more passive demeanor. "So?" "Well, I-" She fumbled her words for a few moments, not sure how to respond. "Don't worry about it. Look, we're here." Bones slowed to a stop and opened the shop's door for her. She looked at him for a meaningful moment before stepping inside, glad to be out of sight. Bones followed her, wondering what that look had meant. The Royal Flower Shop was not technically royal, but it certainly looked the part. Bouquets and arrangements filled every wall and window, and the scent of flowers was nearly intoxicating. Those two carrots Bones had for breakfast didn't feel very adequate. "Welcome! Is that you under there, Scarlet? Do you want the usual?" The shops proprietor was an indigo mare named Chrysanthemum from what Bones could recall. She had been rather wary the first few times Scarlet had shown up, but the two of them had warmed to each other over the past few years. Scarlet's mood seemed to have improved greatly now that she was off the streets. "No, I think I'll be making a larger purchase today." "Music to my ears, darling." Chrysanthemum clapped her front hooves together a few times before walking out from behind the counter. Bones began staring out one of the windows as the two mares began negotiating feverishly. He wasn't looking at anything in particular, letting things drift out of focus and resting his eyes. He had just begun letting his concentration fade when a familiar red streak swooped through the window, followed by a loud screech. Philomena perched on one of the flower pots hanging from the ceiling, a small scroll curled up in her claws. Bones levitated it out of her clutches and unfurled it in front of him. "What does it say?" Scarlet approached him, unceremoniously stuffing several bouquets into her saddlebags. Bones shivered. Sun and stars it was cold today.