//------------------------------//
// 1 The Scholar 
// Story: Continuity Disrupted 
// by Doug Graves 
//------------------------------//

July 2nd, 1000 Domina Solaria
The Day after the Summer Sun Celebration

The ground floor of the Golden Oak Library in Ponyville had seen better days. Or, maybe worse days, depending on one's point of view, and there certainly is a difference in perspective going on right now. On most days few, if any, ponies frequent the repository of paper inside of wood; this might make one think the library is not serving its function. And they would probably be right.  Not enough patrons to justify the salary of a full time, or even part time librarian. But yesterday, for the first time in many years, the library had seen more ponies inside at one time than cumulatively visited the rest of the year, in large part because of its new librarian.

The night before the library was the stomping grounds for nearly one hundred ponies, though thankfully not all at the same time. They had gathered together to celebrate the Summer Sun Celebration being held in Ponyville that year. By all accounts the pre-party was a smashing success, the party itself was a huge hit, and the after party was put on hold on account of eternal night. But! In spite of set backs, delays, and deranged madponies threatening to ruin everypony's fun, the after party finally blasted off.

Twilight Sparkle - newest resident of Ponyville and custodian of a library which hadn't had a librarian in two years - couldn't have been less enthusiastic.

Despite her carefully worded requests, orders on the authority of the librarian of Ponyville, and desperate bargaining with a certain pink mare, nothing had abated the party still raging below.

"Grrr!" Twilight screams to herself, cramming a fluffy white pillow around her ears as the deep base of many hooves stomping around downstairs continues. She shouts to nopony in particular, the room empty but for her and her books, "When will they stop? It's been sixteen hours and forty minutes! Don't they ever sleep?" The small mountain of books, with which she has made a fortress around her, has failed in its primary duty to protect her from the sound emanating from downstairs. It has doubly failed as a means of distracting her from said noise. None of the books she has been distractedly paging through have had even a brief mention of Doug, the strange creature she had seen yesterday. Or anything else interesting enough to draw her attention. Maybe she should try newspapers or magazines, they might have something more recent. Though with all the excitement from yesterday, it would-

The door to the room bangs open, breaking Twilight out of her recollection of the previous day's events. She looks over, bewildered as Spike strolls into the room. 

"Well, I think they're just happy that the town was saved and everything is back to normal," casually remarks her assistant. 

Former assistant. 

After his callous betrayal by ignoring her carefully enunciated request to 'Please please please go downstairs and use your dragon breath to send all the ponies invading her library to Princess Celestia!' Somewhere! Anywhere where they would be out of her mane!

He just had to point out that, at the time, Princess Celestia was in attendance at the party, and that using his dragon breath in that manner and that frequently would be really tiring, and that it would really be more of a party gimmick than an actual tool to remove the pesky partygoers.

"Hey, I brought your favorite!" says Spike, holding up a plate of daffodil sandwiches. "Did you want anything to drink? I hear they're breaking out another bottle of that Fire Sauce! This time in jam form!"

Twilight levitates the sandwiches from her newly reinstated favorite (and simultaneously least favorite, to be determined) assistant, munching on the greens with a frown. Her expression quickly turns to a smile as she finishes off the first sandwich, remarking, "Hey, these are really good!"

"Yeah! I've been trying to tell you that this whole time! The whole party is great! I'm really going to enjoy it here!" Spike nods enthusiastically, turning around and raising one clawed hand to the doorknob. He tries turning it, tugging at the door now encased in pink magic. "Hey, what gives?"

"Spike, I have a new assignment for you." Twilight smiles to herself, "I need you to get me two... no, four more of those sandwiches. There's no telling how long we'll need to sequester ourselves here, and I need to be prepared! Oh, and if you can also get me the copy of 'Predictions and Prophecies' that was left downstairs, I'll need a little light reading material."

"Twilight..." Spike groans, tugging at the doorknob in vain.

"Oh, and also my personal copy of 'Non-Magical Beasts and the Various Locations They Inhabit'. I need to do a bit of cross referencing. I think it's still packed with my things." Twilight shakes her head as she inspects the fort, "I can't believe I didn't bring it up here initially!"

Spike rolls his eyes, "Come on, Twilight. They're throwing this party for you! And the rest of the, um, what did you call yourselves?"

"Bearers of the Elements of Harmony," Twilight says, a touch of exasperation in her tone. "How many times do I need to remind you?"

"Well, you see," Spike says, rubbing the back of his head as he awkwardly glances towards the party, "last time I was down there they said something about this party being for all of the Bearers. One of them, I'm not going to say who, might have let slip that they were going to keep this party going until you came down to join them. Even if it's only the five of them."

"Oh? So it's a challenge they want, then? Well, I've stayed up for more than thirty hours straight studying for Princess Celestia's exams, and I aced every one of them." A devious look spreads across Twilight's muzzle, "And they thought they could outlast me? I'm the study master! I'm-"

Twilight turns and glares at Spike, the dragon's tugging on the door breaking her from her monologue. "Spike!"

"What? Didn't you want me to get you those books?" Spike shakes his head, "You'd think that this was some sort of punishment for you! Having to lock yourself in your room, instead of going to that sweet party downstairs."

Twilight snickers, "Oh, please, oh, please, don't throw me into the binding patch! Where I'll be surrounded by books and tomes!" Twilight melodramatically raises a hoof to her head, swooning and collapsing to the floor.

Spike sighs, taking the chance to open the door. He slaps his claws to his face as the door slams shut in front of him.

"Spike, take a note." Twilight points at various objects, still laying on the ground. "This will be the outline of the first draft of my ultimatum to those interlopers." The sound of a feather snapping breaks Twilight's concentration. 

Spike gasps, "Oh, no!" He holds the two halves of an otherwise perfectly good quill, "It looks like our very last quill just broke! Whatever shall we do?" His claws pull at his mouth and eyes before he holds up one claw. "I know! I'll just go outside, and get you some more! And, while I'm gone, you can just go down to that party, since you don't have those books you want up here!"

Twilight deadpans, "You broke that quill on purpose! Spike! That was my last good quill!" She rolls to her hooves, opening the desk and searching for another, many scrolls of parchment and ink wells levitating into the air.

"Well, it's a good thing they have a shop dedicated to selling quills here." Spike vaguely points towards the main part of Ponyville.

Twilight's face lights up, "Really? How did I miss that on my initial pass of the stores here? I was afraid I would need to custom order all of my quills from Canterlot, and the shipping alone would have eaten up nearly all of my excess stipend! Hmm, maybe I could set it up as a business expense, and bill it to the library?" A nervous look comes over Twilight as she dances back and forth on her hooves, "Ooh, but then anypony might realize that I was using library quills for personal correspondence! Princess Celestia would find out! I'd lose my job, and be forced to go back to Canterlot!" Twilight gasps as Spike snaps his claws directly in front of her eyes, completely ignoring the dragon, "If they even let me come back! All of the work I've put in to becoming Princess Celestia's personal prodigy, ruined!"

"Twilight!" Spike yells, violently shaking the purple mare, "Snap out of it, okay? That's not going to happen!"

"But it could!" Twilight panics, "What if they audit the library? I've only been here for a day, I had no control over what happened before I got here!"

"TWILIGHT!" Spike shouts to no avail, a heavy sigh as the unicorn collapses, the various objects she was levitating managing to not spill ink everywhere as they drop down. He grimaces as her lack of response, saying, "Just so you know, you're making me do this!" He walks over, pulling out a blank piece of parchment. He holds it in his claws as Twilight sobs, "Last chance!"

When Twilight doesn't move Spike closes his eyes, calmly reaching two claws to the top of the page. He pulls one claw towards him, the other claw pushing away.

*Kssh!*

"Spike!" Twilight bellows, instantly jumping up, "What did you do?" Her horn flares, yanking the slightly torn piece of parchment away from Spike's claws. "This was a perfectly good piece of parchment! Why did you do it?"

"I had to do something to snap you out of your funk!" Spike protests, folding his claws in front of him.

Twilight sighs, a smile spreading over her muzzle. "You're right, Spike. I'm sorry. Now, let's go get those quills."

"Finally, something I can agree with," Spike says, opening the door. "After you!"

"Thank you!" says Twilight, leading the way downstairs, the sounds of the party still ongoing. "Where was the quill shop, anyways?"

"Oh, it's called 'Quills and Sofas'. Middle of town. I bet you just skimmed and saw 'Sofas' at the end."

"You know, you're probably right. You're such a good assistant!" Twilight hops over, pulling Spike in for a hug. 

"Hey, it's what I'm here for, right?" Spike smiles, rubbing Twilight's mane. "Hey, how about this. I'll head to get you some quills, and you go join the party. Get some more of those daffodil sandwiches you like so much."

Twilight nods, "Alright, Spike, I think I can do that. Why do you think they sell sofas and quills in the same shop, anyway?"

"You got me. Maybe they sell sofas that are kind of like desks? Or, somepony needs to sell sofas, and he drew the short straw?" Spike shrugs, the two managing to avoid the other ponies as he gets to the front door. "Well, have fun! I'll be back before you know it!"

"Okay, Spike! I know it shouldn't be too bad out there, but stay safe!" Twilight smiles, turning and going to the party.

Spike waves, shutting the door behind him. He holds the two broken quill pieces together for a few seconds, smiling as it magically seals the break. "Best five bits I ever spent," he smirks to himself, "Now, where can I go for twenty minutes?" He turns, looking back at the party. "Too bad Rarity's in there.  I can't believe she likes gems nearly as much as I do!" He smiles as if smitten, wandering down the road to Ponyville.

Twilight walks back into the party as five mares burst into laughter. She peeks her head around the corner, watching as Pinkie Pie pantomimes reeling something in.

"And then I said, 'Oatmeal? Are You CAH-RAZY?'" Pinkie Pie laughs again, the other four mares quickly joining in.

"I did say that, didn't I?" Fluttershy quietly says, grinning to herself. She glances over, seeing Twilight standing by the front door. Fluttershy's eyes light up, the yellow mare walking over and smiling as she says, "Twilight! It's so good of you to join us! We were just talking about you!"

"Yeah, sure," Twilight says, looking around the room. "Where are all the other ponies?"

Pinkie Pie pronks over and about, "Well, I only guaranteed this party for the first thousand minutes. And after a Pinkie Pie Party Warranty runs out? Well, my actuarial skills might not be up to snuff with, say, that one certain pony who's been doing this longer than me, but still!" Pinkie Pie holds up a giant stack of papers, easily taller than she is, a few from the top blowing off and around the room. "Not one redemption yet! Most ponies just decide to call it quits when their guarantee runs out, since they don't want to be on the hook for a fiesta fiasco."

"You guarantee all of your parties?" Twilight says, raising an eyebrow. "How does that even work?"

"Welllll, I'm so glad-"

Rainbow Dash interjects, "Ugh, Pinkie, nopony wants to hear the metrics of preventative party performance policy."

Twilight raises a hoof, her muzzle beaming a smile at both of them, "Actually, I think that sounds really interesting! I mean, there are so many variables that go into a successful party that-"

"Oh come on!" exclaims Rainbow Dash, beating her head with a hoof, "I know this party is for you, Twilight, but it's also for us!"

"Now, Rainbow Dash, if Twilight wants to hear about the intricacies of Pinkie Pie's party policy, I certainly wouldn't stop her." Rarity swishes her styled mane out of her eyes, "After all, if she wanted to talk to you about transient weather patterns, or to me about the various fashion trends, then more power to her." Rarity's eyes beam, "After all, you just got here from Canterlot, correct? Darling, you must tell me all about what the ponies there are wearing!"

Applejack pushes forward, "Hey, what if she wants to talk about apples? Ah bet she wants to know all about how harvesting apples works!" Rainbow snorts, shaking her head from side to side, Applejack meeting the pegasus with a glare and a nod.

Twilight nervous says as she backs up, "Um, don't you just kick the tree and the apples fall down?"

Applejack huffs, "Okay, there's a bit more nuance than just going up to a tree and kicking it!"

Rainbow Dash guffaws, swiping Applejack's hat off her head, "Jeez, Applejack, looks like you just lost your hat with that bet! Maybe you can win it back the next time we play poker!" Rainbow takes off, hovering above the group, spinning in place as she points a hoof at Applejack, the Stetson jauntily buoyed over her rainbow mane.

Applejack snickers, "Alright, you got me there, Dash. But you better watch it, 'cause Ah'm winning that hat back." Applejack turns back to Twilight, "So, what do you want to talk about?"

Twilight backs up another step as the other five ponies advance, fearfully glancing behind her as her rump bumps into the wall. "Um... I don't know, they're so many good topics! Like, um, Fluttershy! What would you like to talk about?"

"Oh, me?" Fluttershy stammers, backing up, partially hiding behind her mane. She whispers, "I was just getting closer because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to hear you. I don't really have anything I want to talk about."

"Well, you seemed pretty interested in Spike when we were walking around." Twilight breathes a sigh of relief as the other ponies stop pressing forwards. She takes a cautious step towards Fluttershy, trying to hear the nearly silent mare.

Fluttershy energetically nods, speaking normally, "Oh, yes! I do love discussing all the various creatures that live around here. And many of the exotic ones that don't! Is there one in particular you had in mind?" She beams a smile at Twilight, her head fully out from behind her mane.

"Actually, there is one," Twilight says, nervously looking around. "Um, I thought I had read something about a creature that lives here in Ponyville. But there was nearly nothing about it, just a single article that didn't even include a description." Twilight paws at the ground, "I know Princess Celestia said not to talk about what happened at the farmhouse, but I can't help but think about it."

"Oh!" Fluttershy smiles, interrupting Twilight's train of thought, "You should just talk to him! I know we left really quickly after we got there."

"Yeah, he wasn't exactly feeling that great, after what happened." Applejack nods, quickly followed by the rest of the mares. She flexes her hind legs, "My sides still hurt a little."

Twilight gasps, "Did he hurt you? He was all bloody, was that from fighting you? And those fillies! How did they get there?"

Applejack smirks, shaking her head, "No, he wasn't hurt from fighting me, or the fillies. Ah mean, he probably carried them there himself!" 

"You mean he foalnapped them? He could be on the loose!" Twilight gasps, turning to the stairs, "We need to prepare in case he comes back!"

Applejack laughs, "Whoa there, partner! There ain't nothing to worry about. Ah reckon he can tell you about it, but give him a little time. He went through a lot already."

Twilight stops, breathing heavily as she glances back at Applejack, "Okay, I can do that, I suppose." Twilight looks around the library, spotting the daffodil sandwiches. She frowns as she sees Pinkie Pie packing up the party, asking, "So, now that I'm here, the party is over? Well, that doesn't make me feel very good." Twilight takes a bite of the sandwich, smiling at the taste, though the bread has gotten a little stale. It could use a little more spread, and she levitates a knife and the bottle closest to the sandwiches.

Pinkie Pie nods along, her grin becoming more solemn, "Well, I can only guarantee parties for so long, you know? Afterwards they get kinda stale. Like bread!" Twilight nods along as she unscrews the jar in her magic, smothering her sandwich in a bright red jam. Pinkie Pie cocks her head as she looks at the jar, a hoofdrawn flame on the side of the bottle. "Um, are you sure about that? I mean-"

Heedless of the warning, Twilight takes a bite of the sandwich. Her eyes grow large as her muzzle turns pink, the color quickly darkening to a deep red before her mane and tail erupt into bright orange flames! She jumps into the air, flailing around before sprinting to the punch bowl Pinkie Pie has helpfully not packed up yet. She dunks her head in, greedily drinking the cool liquid.

"You see, that right there?" Pinkie Pie deadpans, pointing at Twilight's smoldering tail, "That's kinda why I only guarantee my parties for so long. Something like that is bound to happen given enough time!"

The front door opens, Spike walking in with a few quills in his claws and a brochure for sofas. He looks at Twilight, giggling and saying, "Hey! It looks like somepony Sparkle'd the punch!"

"Pinkie!" Twilight shouts as she pulls her head out, "The same thing happened earlier! What about your Pinkie Pie Party Promise then?"

"I'm sorry, the statute of limitations for a unsatisfactory Pinkie Pie Party is one hour after you've woken up from the party, or when the party stops." Pinkie Pie pronks around Twilight, "But I can make up for any lingering dissatisfaction by promising another party!"

Twilight yells, "But, I don't want another party!" 

Pinkie Pie gasps, her hooves flying to her cheeks as she takes a step back. "No... no more parties?"

"No more parties!" Twilight points a hoof at each pony in turn as the other four stand around, confused looks at each other. "This is a library! It's supposed to be clean! And quiet! Not covered in-"

Twilight turns to point a hoof at the remaining party decorations, gaping when she can't find any. She turns back, a depressed Pinkie Pie trudging out the front door, Fluttershy following after and trying to console her.

Rainbow Dash flies up to Twilight Sparkle, "Some friend you are. Maybe next time somepony does something nice for you? Think about what you're doing before you insult them."

Twilight retorts as Rainbow flies off, "Yeah? That's rich, coming from somepony who couldn't help but ruin my appearance!"

Rainbow turns, a curt wave and tilt of Applejack's hat before she leaves the library, Applejack chasing after her. The door slams shut as Twilight fumes, her eyes turning to the last pony in the room.

Rarity sighs, "I'm sorry we overstayed our welcome, Twilight. Just know they weren't trying to irritate you."

"Yeah, well, I'm sorry it happened too," Twilight snarks. "Now, I need to organize this library."

Rarity slowly nods, "Yes, I can see you'll be very busy. I was going to go organize my gems at the Boutique. Good day, Twilight." Rarity walks to the front door, glancing back with a sigh as she lets herself out.

Twilight merely nods, walking off to the first of many disorganized shelves of books. Spike excitedly taps the floor, glancing between Twilight and Rarity's departing form. He says, "Hey, Twilight? I don't suppose you mind if I?"

"Oh, sure, Spike, go run along and abandon me too. Everypony else has." Twilight glares at the next shelf, all the books from the first one levitating up and stacking on the floor.

"Okay! I'll be back at some point, bye!" Spike runs to the front door, closing it behind him.

"That was SARCASM!" yells Twilight at the closed door, grumbling as she turns back to the books in front of her.