//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 - A chance encounter // Story: Divergent Destinies // by Leondude //------------------------------// A long time ago, there were two ponies that loved studying, Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer. But they didn't become friends instantaneously, for they were too absorbed in books and would rather spend their time reading books than socialize. Then one day, much to Twilight's excitement, her parents organized a trip to the Canterlot Library. Her parents usually get her books from the Library of Magic, which has a striking resemblance to the Canterlot Library but it isn't like the Canterlot Library since the Canterlot Library had way more ancient books and a restricted area (not that Twilight knew about the latter). The interior of the library looked almost like a colosseum, with lavender columns and violet walls, along with a very shiny floor and rows upon rows of bookshelves filled with what appeared to be over a million books. Twilight hyperventilated in excitement as she drank in every detail, with her mother casually handing over a paper bag for Twilight to breathe in. "She definitely takes after you," Twilight Velvet jokingly said to Night Light. "I'll take that as a compliment," Night Light said in a mildly proud manner. As they shared a chuckle, the two parents quickly noticed Celestia appearing from the far back of the library. They then made their way while Twilight ran off to enjoy whatever random book she could get her hooves on. "So...who talks first?" Night Light asked Velvet "You talk first? I talk first?" "It would be best if I did the talking, darling," Velvet answered, "I have been known to be the more sociable out of us." And so Velvet walked up to Celestia and introduced herself and her family to Celestia. "Ah, Princess Celestia. Pleasure to meet you. My name is Twilight Velvet, this is my husband, Night Light, and the little unicorn over there is my daughter, Twilight Sparkle." Velvet then pointed to Twilight, who was reading a book about the history of rock farming as if it was the most fascinating thing in the universe. "Ever since she saw you at the Summer Sun Celebration, she’s been obsessed with magic and has been reading every book on the topic ever since." "Well, I suppose rock farming is magical in its own way," Celestia joked lightheartedly. "Oh, and she just likes to read in general. If there's a book on something, she will read it." "She gets it from me," Night Light boasted. "Your daughter reminds me of a student I have," Celestia said while pointing to a unicorn that was slightly older than Twilight reading a book written by Star Swirl the Bearded himself. The unicorn was of an orange-yellow colour with red wavy hair that had streaks of yellow in it, making it almost look like bacon. Unlike the very obvious fascination written on Twilight's face, this other unicorn had a rather neutral expression, apart from the occasional smirk and eyebrow raise. "This is my personal protege, Sunset Shimmer," Celestia said while still pointing at Sunset "I've been meaning to get her to make some friends but she insists that studying is much more important than socializing." "Not to worry," Velvet said while giving a flap of her hoof "Our Twilight's a bit asocial herself." "That, and we don't trust her to be on her own," Night Light butted in. Celestia then trotted towards Twilight, who was still enthralled in the book she was reading, in spite of nearly reaching the end of it. Twilight looked up and noticed the pony that was now standing near her, much to her surprise and eventual excitement. "Twilight Sparkle, is it?" Celestia asked. "That's me!" Twilight said excitedly. "I was wondering if you could make friends with my protege, Sunset Shimmer, given how you both like reading." "Uh...That's a bit of a weird request, and I wouldn't really consider a shared fondness for reading to be a solid basis for friendship, but I suppose I could give it a try." Twilight levitated her book and trotted off to sit right next to Sunset. Sunset just ignored Twilight's presence while Twilight just kept looking at Sunset and then turning her head to look at Celestia while wearing an awkward smile on her face. "Uh...hello, My name is Twilight Sparkle. What's your name?" Sunset then gave Twilight a glance and acknowledged her. "If you must know, my name is Sunset Shimmer. I am Princess Celestia's personal student. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to continue my studies." Twilight tilted her head to get a closer look at the book Sunset was reading. "Is that Star Swirl's Magical Grooming Spellbook?!" "Yes, it is." "I have the entire collection!" "There's a collection?" "Yes. Star Swirl's Magical Spells for Personal Life!" Twilight was wearing a huge grin on her face. Sunset could have sworn she heard a squeaking sound when Twilight smiled. She also saw a twinkle in both of Twilight's eyes. "What else do you know about Star Swirl?" Sunset asked. "He's the father of the animorphic spell, he defeated the sirens that once plagued Equestria, he also has an entire section in the Library of Magic dedicated to him!" Sunset was slowly starting to find Twilight's excitement to be amusing. She was also mildly surprised by the amount of trivia Twilight had knowledge of. It would seem she found somepony that liked facts and reading more than she did, not that she would ever consider herself a bookworm. Then she had an idea. "This may sound weird but, on the count of three, say the first thing that comes into your mind. Don't overthink it. One. Two. Three." Both Twilight and Sunset said in unison "Daring Do and the Grand Multiple Choice Pop-Quiz!" They then looked at each other in surprise after saying that. "What?!" Twilight exclaimed. "Did we just become best friends?" Sunset asked in a milder tone. "Why yes, you did!" Celestia butted in. Twilight and Sunset then looked at Celestia. "Perhaps we should visit here more often for a study session," Celestia suggested. Twilight and Sunset looked at each other before looking back at Celestia with a smile on both of their faces. Twilight's smile was showing her teeth while Sunset's one had a look of confidence to it. Celestia herself was wearing a warm smile. She was happy because she finally managed to achieve what she thought would be nearly impossible. She got Sunset Shimmer to make a friend.