//------------------------------// // 8 Partial Discovery, Further Study // Story: Scootaloo's Return // by RebelNarrator45 //------------------------------// In an hour, everypony was gathered in the library, seated facing Twilight, who stood by the chalkboard. Spike had served up haycakes, and Pinkie had somehow managed to bring freshly baked cupcakes along with her. "So, AJ said you figured something out?" asked Dash, still throwing suspicious looks at Dark Magic, who seemed resigned to the fact that they all completely did not trust him yet. "Yes, I did." Twilight answered, catching up the chalk in her magic and preparing to launch into a highly scientific explanation. Dash, fortunately, saw this, and waved her hoof. "Just give us the run down in a language we understand, will you?" She requested. Twilight rolled her eyes. "Fine." She sighed. "Let me begin by saying that I was going about my research completely the wrong way." "Meanin' what?" Applejack asked, arching an eyebrow. "Well, if I had been paying attention and looking at the clues right in front of me, I would have seen a good half of what we needed to fix this." Twilight stated. At their blank stares, she continued. "Look...I am the Princess of Friendship. Right?" Nods all around. "Ok. I am also the Bearer of the Element of Magic. Correct?" More nods. Twilight looked at Scootaloo. "Scootaloo. When you made your deal with Dark Magic, what was the most important thing to you at that moment?" Scootaloo rubbed her muzzle before meeting her gaze. "That my friend would be healed." She replied. "And it didn't matter to you what that cost?" Twilight asked. "Of course not!" Scootaloo said firmly. "It could've cost me my life, and I would have still done it!" "Why?" Scootaloo blinked at that, having thought she already made that clear. But everypony was watching her now, expecting an answer, so she took a breath. "Because she's my friend." She replied stoutly. "As her friend, it's my job to be there for her and do whatever I can to help her...even if it means sacrificing the biggest part of me to do it." "Exactly." Twilight agreed, with a triumphant smile. "That was what the obvious answer was that I should have seen." "Uh, now hold on, Sugarcube." Applejack said in confusion. "Ah'm not sure any of us is followin' your train of thought." "The power of friendship, Applejack!" Twilight exclaimed. "That's what I was missing the whole time! Scootaloo demonstrated the full power of friendship with her selfless act for Apple Bloom. Which means..." "Which means we could use the power of Friendship to fix the girls!" Pinkie squealed. "Not quite." Twilight said. "That's only one variable. If you take it and mix it with my Element, Magic, then yes, it will bring us closer to fixing them. But there's still a variable missing. Something I can't quite figure out. I can use the power of friendship to create a spell, but based on my calculations, that will only put us halfway to our goal. We are still missing something. Some key magical ingredient, so to speak." "Like what?" Scootaloo asked. "Well, that I don't know." Twilight admitted. "But at least now I know that part of our spell is the link between my Element, and my role as Princess of Friendship. Now all I need to do is figure out what I'm missing." "So...so ya'll can fix Scoots?" This from Apple Bloom. "I believe so, if we can find the missing variable." Twilight answered. "Did ya hear that, Scoots?" Apple Bloom asked, eyes shining. "They can fix all this!" Scootaloo gazed at Twilight. "What if you can't find what you're looking for?" She enquired soberly. "You're not gonna switch us back. I won't let you." "We know that, Scootaloo." Twilight said softly. "But don't worry. We'll cross that hill when we come to it." "So are you going to need to do more reading through all that?" Rarity asked, nodding her head towards the stacks of pages and journals. "Yes." Twilight responded. "There's still an entire box of it to go through, plus I need to re-read some of the others. I also need to see if there's something further I missed in my own books." "Well, then, tell us what you need, darling, and we shall all assist you." Rarity said. "Ooh! A book reading party!" Pinkie exclaimed. "I'll make more cupcakes!" She zoomed from the room at top speed and Dash shook her head. "I don't think she'll be doing any reading." "Probably not." Rarity agreed. The entire group selected books and settled in to read, while Twilight started comparing things in the writings to those in her own books, looking for the missing link to the required spell. Now that she had a pretty good idea how to begin the spell creating process, she needed the last ingredient to make it complete. Dark Magic, meantime, was busy studying each pony in the room...and the dragon currently back at his post by the door. He tried to be inconspicuous about it, but each one he looked at happened to be looking right back, eyebrows slightly raised as they regarded him with pure and unbridled suspicion. He noticed that the one they called Fluttershy was the only exception...she seemed to be studying him with some measure of sympathy, mixed with slight doubt. Sympathy for what, he didn't know, unless it was sympathy for the near death glares from the others. He returned his attention to his reading, wondering how long he was going to have to stay in this little town. He really needed to be going, but he figured none of the ponies in the room would let him. Not until the appropriate spell was found. Scootaloo and her two friends made their way out the door and off on an excursion they had already planned for the day. They hadn't been gone long when Pinkie burst into the room with a tray loaded with fresh cupcakes. The door slammed back into Spike once more, forcing another unexpected blast of dragon fire straight through his newest comic. He sighed, surveying the latest pile of ash on the floor next to him. "Aw, again?" He muttered, before throwing a killer glare at Pinkie and grabbing up another comic book in disgust. Pinkie divided up the cupcakes so everypony had a stack next to them, including Dark Magic, who was honestly quite astonished at the unexpected act of generosity. She then grabbed a book and spun over onto her back, holding it up in the air to read while flipping pages with one of her curly bangs. Nopony even cared to figure that out. It was just Pinkie Pie. Silence reigned in the room for a long time, broken only on occasion by a hum or a gasp from Pinkie. The others ignored it and focused on their own books. Twilight squinted, tongue sticking out, concentrating intensely on a passage in the book she was holding and comparing it to a passage in the book on her desk. There had to be something somewhere that she was just not seeing. But what? What was the missing variable to the spell she needed to create? And more importantly, how complex was the spell going to be? At least her friends were helping her search. And Dark Magic. She glanced at him. His brows were drawn together in a deep frown, and he was staring at the book in front of him, though not seeing it. His eyes were narrowed, and held a mixture of apprehension and fear. She frowned. What was it that was bothering him so much? What dark secret was he holding inside? Whatever it was, it had him too unfocused to stay on top of the matter at hoof. He looked up then, catching her looking at him, and gave a small smile. One of his most mysterious smiles yet. He looked back down at his book. Twilight stared at him a moment longer, then resumed her own reading, still puzzled as to the strange behaviour of her guest.