“Thank you, Twilight, for letting me place this poster for the talent show in the library.” Cheerilee expressed to the unicorn, as we approached the door.
“It’s no trouble at all, Ms. Cheerilee.” I assured her. “I intend to come and see it on the night, so it’ll be a reminder for me.”
“Wonderful! I’ll be happy to see you there. The children are, of course, very excited about it. It’s a real opportunity for them to showcase their talents.” She then looked at me. “I don’t suppose you would be able to give any help in setting it all up?”
“I’m sorry. I don’t think I’ll have the time. But,” I added quickly, “I’m sure my second assistant Dusk will be more than happy to help. We can ask him if you like.”
“That would be wonderful, I’d be most grateful if he could.” We opened the door to the library and stepped inside, immediately confronted by Spike.
“I had nothing to do with this.” he said straight away. I soon saw what he was talking about.
“What is going on here?”
I looked over the scene, feeling quite scandalized, to see so many books in such disarray, in a large pile in the center of the room. Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and AppleBloom were at the center of the chaos, scanning through any book, parchment, or scroll they could find. Close by, I saw Dusk, who was desperately trying to bring some order, sorting out any books that they tossed aside into neater stacks.
“Well, we sure ain’t gettin’ our cutie marks as librarians.” AppleBloom remarked.
“I should think not.” Spike sternly said, earning a frown from me. “What?”
“I’m sorry, Twi.” Dusk abashedly said, looking up. “They were looking for a way to earn their marks…I didn’t think it would do any harm in letting them try.”
“It’s alright, Dusk.” I assured him, smiling gently at how forthcoming he was. “We can sort all of this out later.” I then spoke to the fillies. "Girls, I think you’re going about this the wrong way. Instead of trying to do things in areas you’re not familiar with, why not try doing things in areas that you already like?”
“And I have the perfect place to start.” Cheerilee rolled out the colorful poster on the floor for them to see. The three of them each read in turn, starting with AppleBloom.
“‘Showcase your talents…’”
Then Scootaloo. “‘…for all to see…’”
And finally Sweetie Belle. “‘…Perform in the Ponyville school talent show.’”
“There'll be all sorts of awards. Best dramatic performance, best comedy act, best magic act… Surely you can find your talent.” their teacher said encouragingly.
“This would be the perfect place to discover our talents.” AppleBloom exclaimed. “Jugglin’!”
“Acting!” Scootaloo proclaimed.
“Magic tricks!” Sweetie Belle piped up.
“Square dancin’!”
“Tightrope walking!”
“Tiger taming!”
“My little ponies! You're missing the point.” I cut off, refraining from laughing at their extreme suggestions.
“She’s right.” I looked up to see that Dusk had wandered over. I let him offer his own insight for it was usually good. “From what you’ve told me, you’ve been attempting to find your talents in unfamiliar territory. Instead of trying new things, why not focus on what you’re already good at, what you enjoy doing? That’s how you find your talent.”
“Sure! We can do that.” Scootaloo agreed.
“Yeah! Sure we can.” Sweetie Belle echoed.
“Well,” AppleBloom said, “whatever we do, we’ll do it as…”
“The Cutie Mark Crusaders!” Together, they raised their hooves to the sky. They then turned to Dusk. “Thanks for letting us try and be librarians. Sorry we messed up the books so much.”
“It’s fine, girls. Nothing that can’t be cleared away.” he said gently. “You run along now. I think you’ve got some plans to make.”
“We sure do! Come on, let's go!” Scootaloo led the way as they ran off to begin making plans for their performance.
“Well, at least they’re enthusiastic.” Dusk remarked, turning to Cheerilee. “Sounds like it's going to be a good night.”
“I certainly hope so. Now, I was wondering, Dusk, if you would like to help set it all up? We’re about to start preparing the stage if you’d like.”
“I, uh…certainly!” His own enthusiasm to help made me smile. “That is…if Twilight doesn’t mind?”
“Of course not.” I said. “Well, first I want to talk to you about something. Is that okay, Ms. Cheerilee?”
“Yes, it’s fine. Just come along when you're ready, Dusk. You know where the school is, so I’ll see you there.” With a grateful smile, the school teacher left, leaving us three librarians with some tidying to do.
As soon as she did leave, we set to work rearranging all of the scattered books and parchment, though Spike was a little reluctant as it wasn’t their mess. After some encouragement from Dusk and frowning from me, he soon set to work too.
As we did, I would occasionally glance at Dusk, who would be levitating several books at once, sorting them with a spring in his step, a smile on his face, and humming an upbeat tune. I couldn’t help but marvel at how different he was to when I’d first met him. Instead of working in silence, almost brooding, he was now happy, eager to work, and brought a different kind of air to the library whenever he was there. Friendship had really changed him for the better…
This occasional glancing was something we both seemed to do. There were times, when my gaze flicked to him, that he would be looking somewhere else, diverting his eyes away from me and looking a little red in his cheeks. Though what made this odd was, while he had it in its true form, he would have his tail wagging side to side. It could just be my imagination, but I could swear that he was doing it…but why was he doing it? For that matter, minus the tail wagging, why was I doing it too?
“That’s the last one.” Dusk said, bringing me out of my thoughts. “Remind me never to let them anywhere near these books again.”
“You got that right.” Spike agreed as he wandered off into the kitchen, leaving me and Dusk alone.
“So…Twi,” Dusk began, “what did you want to see me about?”
“Huh?” I’d been a state of deep thinking again. “Oh, yes! Did you bring the stones like I asked you to?”
“Of course.” He levitated them out of his saddlebag to me, letting me examine them once more.
Just like I’d seen them last time: jet black, varying in appearance and a little in size, all with a tiny dash of color on them. The newest one, I noticed, had the color of my fur, purple. I still didn’t know why they had these nor why Dusk had collected them, but they were obviously important to him, so I wanted to do this for him.
“Curious, aren’t they?” he noted as I studied them. “I suppose that’s why I collected them. So, what do you want these for? They’re just knick-knacks, really.”
“That’s why I want to make them something more.” I smiled at his raised eyebrow. “Remember when you got me those flowers?”
“Yes…” He flushed red again at the memory of it.
“Well, it really was a nice thing for you to do. So… I wanted to give you something in return. So… here…”
I levitated them before him, remembering the spell that I needed, engulfing them in a bright light. When it had passed, they were all joined together on a length of black rope, which I allowed to hover to Dusk and gently tie around his neck as he gazed on, a smile growing on his face.
“Twilight…what’s this?” He looked down at the necklace, wonder shining in his eyes.
“Do you like it?” Really hoping that he did, I pointed with my hoof. “It was a simple enough spell. I know it’s not much, but…you can wear it, for luck.”
“I…I…” I could see his eyes watering a little. Then, he gave me a gentle hug. “Thank you, Twi. I really like it. This is…a great thing you’ve done.”
“I’m glad you think so.” I let him step back, returning his warm smile. “You’re very welcome, Dusk.”
“You know…the things you girls do for me…you can still surprise me.” he said with a smile.
“We try.” I giggled. “You can go help with the Talent Show if you like.” For some reason, I found myself hoping he would say “no”.
“Right you are.” He hurried to the door, giving me one last smile before he left. “Thanks again for this, Twi. I’ll be sure not to lose it.”
“I hope not. See you later…” Once again, I felt a small amount of disappointment as he dashed off. But…why should I?
When Spike returned from the kitchen, munching on a sapphire, I had him fetch the book on magical theory that I’d been meaning to continue pursuing…the one Dusk had got me for Hearth’s Warming. I’d already read through half of it and it was quite a fascinating read with some new additions updated from the previous volume in the series. I opened the page I marked out, my eyes traveling over the words:
Starswirl the Bearded, possibly the greatest unicorn magician to have ever lived, always sought to push the boundaries of what could be done with unicorn powers, unlocking spells of huge power and potential. However, he also believed that these spells should never be misused, or the consequences could be disastrous…
I nodded as I read the passage. I certainly found it hard to argue with Starswirl on that regard. I wondered if Dusk knew much about this field of study. He certainly did know quite a lot…what did he think of the ancient unicorn’s views? What would he say? Would he want to discuss that with me?
Wait, why did that matter? Sure, we were best friends, worked in the same place, and shared a lot of the same interests, but why did I feel the need recently to ask his opinion on things, get his view? I didn’t need to ask him about everything… It was just because we were friends…and co-workers.
Shaking my head, I tried to return to the book. But, whenever I tried to immerse myself in it, my thoughts kept drifting to Dusk. No matter how much I tried, I just couldn’t stop my thoughts wandering to him somehow… Why was that? Maybe…maybe it was because he would normally be here, but he wasn’t, so I was trying to just get used to it. Yes, that was it.
Not much happened throughout the rest of the day. The Cutie Mark Crusaders showed up again, to get a book called Ghosts, Goblins, and Ghoulish Figures, leaving both me and Spike expressing our thoughts on what the fillies would need with such a book. And again, I couldn’t help but think about what Dusk might have said about it. It felt strange, not having him around as much…well, he would be busy.
Not that it mattered to me, I didn't mind. Why should I?
Over the next days leading up to the talent show, Dusk was, of course, kept with helping out set up the show for Cheerilee, always making sure it was okay with me first, before leaving to get more things organized. He was always considerate like that, I’d noticed. I’d noticed lots of things about him since he’d moved here and started working. How did he ever think of himself as just some nopony? So clever, so well-read, so handsome… Wait, handsome? I whipped my head up now, so hard that I hit the shelf above me with it. Rubbing it, I thought furiously why that description had come to mind. Why was I thinking like this? Why couldn’t I figure it out? I had to know!
It was the day when, in the evening, the talent show would be taking place that I decided that I needed to talk to somepony, about my constant musings about my stallion friend. I couldn’t figure it out herself…I had to ask somepony. I needed to have some honest advice.
Asking Spike to watch the library, I trotted off in the direction of Sweet Apple Acres, arriving in just a few minutes as I was moving so quickly. Calming myself down, I searched for Applejack and Dog, who came through a thicket of trees, smiling at the sight of me.
“Well, howdy there, Twilight!”
“Hey, Applejack, Dog! Where’ve you just come from?”
“The CMC clubhouse. They’re busy practicin’ for the talent show we’ve just seen 'em.” Applejack told me with her and Dog giving grimaces.
“How are they doing? Are they ready for it?”
“They’re ready alright… Everypony’s gonna be ‘speechless’, let’s just say…” She shook her head before she and Dog restored their smiles. “Anyway, what brings ya here today?”
“Well…” Did I have to ask them so quickly? No, get a hold of yourself, Twilight. “I wanted to ask you two about something…well, somepony.”
“Sure thing, hun.” Dog beckoned me to a spot under an apple tree, him and Applejack sitting on the grass. “What’s on your mind?”
“Well…” I felt the heat rise to my face. Why was I acting like this? “It’s… it’s about… Dusk…”
“What about him?” His expression hardened. “He hasn’t started actin’ distant again, has he?”
“Oh, no, no! Nothing like that!” I said quickly. “He’s actually helping to set up the talent show tonight.”
“Really? That’s nice of him.” Dog smiled, nodding approvingly. “He’s sure changed from that nervous lil’ colt me and the boys first saw in Canterlot, ain’t he?”
“Yes…yes, he has.” I smiled fondly, happy that one of my friends thought the same as me in that respect. “Anyway, I wanted to tell you something about him…that’s happened with me…” I then proceeded to tell Applejack and Dog, who just sat and listened patiently, everything that I could put into words about how I felt around Dusk, how my thoughts always centered around him and, most importantly, that I just couldn't explain it myself.
All the while, Applejack and Dog just listened. However, with every word that I spoke, their smiles seemed to grow more knowing, warmer. Like they really did know something I didn’t. By the time I finished, Applejack was positively grinning and Dog was snickering.
“What? What’s so funny?” I asked, a little annoyed that they weren't taking this seriously.
“Nothin’, sugarcube. It’s just… well, it’s kinda obvious really.” Dog said, still snickering.
“What’s obvious? What?” Why couldn’t they just be straight with me?
“Twilight, we may not be experts, but anypony’d tell ya… well…” Applejack paused for a minute, still wearing that grin. “Ya like Dusk.”
“What? Of course, I do. We’re best friends!”
“No, not what ah meant… ah mean, ya like-like him.” she emphasized.
“Huh? What’s that meant to…” I stopped when my mind finally revealed the answer. “Oh, no… No, no, no, no! That can't be it.”
“Why wouldn’t it be? It’s the only thing it could be.”
“But it can’t be!” I now found myself nervously pacing. “I can’t feel about somepony…like that. Friendship is one thing, but romance? That’s just silly! Absolute nonsense!”
“Why would it be nonsense? What’s wrong with romance?” Dog asked.
“It’s just silly. I mean, devoting all of your time trying to dote somepony, woo them, when they may not even feel the same way? That just doesn’t make any sense! It’s foolish!”
“Twi…”
“And why would he even feel anything like that for me? I’m not saying he does, but why would he? I’m not…well, it’s just not possible! How would it affect us? Wait, why am I even asking? It’s all just not possible!”
“Okay, okay, calm down, Twi.” Applejack said. Dog stopped snickering and he and Applejack had wiped off their grins now, concerned at how distressed I now was. “We’re just tellin’ ya what we think. Ya don’t have to believe us. We’re sure there’s a…different reason. You’ll figure it out if that’s the case.”
“Yeah… yeah, of course I will.” I agreed, calming myself. “Maybe it’s something else… I just need more time to think… Sorry I kinda lost it there.”
“Don’t dwell on it, Twi.” She gave me a well-known honest smile. “If ya like, we can keep this between us for now. We won’ tell a soul.”
“Thanks, AJ. You too, Dog.” I returned the smile as best I could, turning to go. “I’d better get going. I’ll see you at the show tonight.”
“Sure thing. Have a good one. And, Twi?" I turned back. "Just wonderin’ here…what if we are right?”
“Applejack, Dog…”
“Just if, sugarcube. Just if.” she repeated.
I thought for a moment, being sure not to dwell too much on those words. It would be a waste of time, even considering it now.
“Then…you can say ‘I told you so’.”
“Duly noted. See ya, Two…”
As I made my way back to the library, returning to my studies once more, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t stop Applejack's words from resounding in my mind, echoing in my thoughts.
What if we are right?
It was the night of the talent show. Everypony in town had turned out to see the little fillies and colts perform and show off their special talents and skills, to revel and share in the pride that they no doubt shared with them.
I was backstage, crossing over to the three dark-robed figures that were AppleBloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. All the while, I couldn’t help but cast my gaze around for Dusk, wondering where he might be back here…it felt like so long since I’d seen him…
No, stop thinking like that, Twilight. I told myself. It's all silly… Glad for the distraction, I approached the girls.
“My little ponies! How are you doing?”
“Nervous…” They all admitted
“Don't worry.” I said in a determined tone. “You’re gonna be amazing. Remember, just stick to what you know best.”
“See, girls? Just like I've been saying.” I looked up to see Dusk, descend down a stage rope and landing before them. “Phew! Glad that worked… Anyway, hav…” He stopped and tripped, realizing his leg was still stuck in a loop of rope. Red in the face, he disentangled it and cleared his throat.
“You okay, Mr. Dusk?” AppleBloom asked.
“Fine, thank you.” he said with as much dignity as possible. I suppressed a giggle at how flustered he looked and he tried again. “Anyway, haven’t I told you everypony else would say the same? Focus on your strengths and you’ll do fine.”
I wasn't entirely surprised at how supportive he was being to them, he was always good with words of encouragement. But still…it was nice to see him being there for the girls as he apparently had been. It was why I had tried my best not to laugh at his slip-up.
My feelings for him still felt confused, almost hidden. But I felt for sure the two of us were still good friends. I wasn’t going to let a little confusion spoil that. I would just have to keep my feelings in check and under control.
“Yeah…you were right, Dusk. Thanks for the support. You too, Twilight.” Sweetie Belle said sincerely.
“It’s no trouble.” I exchanged a smile with my friend. “I can’t wait to hear you sing, Sweetie Belle.”
“Why does everypony always think I’m gonna sing?” she asked, annoyed.
“Actually, Twilight Sparkle,” Scootaloo corrected. “I’m the main singer tonight.”
“Oh?” I hadn’t expected that. But there was more to come...
“And I’m the main dancer.” AppleBloom proceeded to perform a karate chop.
“Oh?”
“And I’m in charge of…”
“Costumes?” I asked, fearing the worst.
“And sets and props. How’d you know?” So…they’d taken my words to heart, but not in the way I expected.
“Really, girls?” I said nervously. “Are you sure…”
“Cutie Mark Crusaders, you're on next.” Cheerilee announced. “Break a leg.”
“Knock them dead, girls.” Dusk added.
“Wow! The theatre sure has a lot of violent ways of sayin’ ‘good luck.’” AppleBloom remarked as they scurried off.
“Break a le…” I stopped as I heard AppleBloom trip. “Uh… good luck!” I turned to look at Dusk. “How do you think they’ll do? I thought… well, you know…”
“That’s what I thought too.” he said, nodding. “But they’re doing what they’re comfortable with and we shouldn’t fault them for that. Let’s just see how it goes.” He turned to smile at me, beckoning me up a set of stairs. “Come on, these are the bests seats in the house.”
I looked down to see we were up in the rafters, where the lights were shining down on the stage below, looking down from above. This certainly was a unique spot to view it from. I looked at Dusk to see that the necklace I made for him was still there.
“Hey, you’ve still got it.” I remarked.
“Of course. You made it for me. I’m not going anywhere without it now. I might get struck by a bout of bad luck.” he joked.
“Dusk… I…” I was cut off as the lights went down and the music began to play.
I watched with Dusk as the girls began to perform their routine. It didn't start off well as Scootaloo sang many notes off key, most of the dancing was uncoordinated and clumsy and the sets and props looked crude and tacky. I knew they were just fillies, but considering how well AppleBloom had done fixing up their clubhouse. I looked at Dusk, who was grimacing and gasping, so he thought much the same.
The routine started off badly and it ended just as badly with the set the girls had made literally falling to pieces, the audience bursting into laughter. Dejectedly, the girls trouped off the stage. I wanted so badly to go and make them feel better and, by the looks of it, so did Dusk. However, the girls were called back on stage for the awards, reluctantly mind.
We watched as Spike handed out the awards as the CMC hid behind the other performers to avoid more laughter. They were just as surprised as us, the two unicorns, however, when they were given the award for “best comedy”. We must have clapped the hardest out of all of them as they all gave a bow, quickly leaving the rafters to congratulate them for their efforts.
“Congratulations, ponies! Job well done.” I voiced to them.
“Seconded.” Dusk agreed. “See? I told you you’d be great!”
“Thanks…” they all said sadly.
“Hey, why the glum looks?” Dusk asked gently. “You should be proud of yourselves.”
Scootaloo sighed. “We worked really hard and won a prize, but we still don’t have our cutie marks.”
“Which is the prize we really wanted.” Sweetie Belle moaned.
“Oh, girls…” I couldn’t help but feel disappointed for them. I couldn’t imagine how they must feel. But still, I was surprised by what AppleBloom and Sweetie Belle said next:
“But we think we know why.”
“Yes. We know why.”
“Oh? Tell me.” I requested. “I’d love to make a special report to the Princess.”
“Want me to take a letter in Spike’s absence?” Dusk asked with a grin.
“It's fine. I’ll have him write it up later.” I giggled. “Anyway, go on girls.”
“Well, maybe we were trying too hard?” Sweetie Belle started nervously.
“Yes? And…” I encouraged gently, making them think rather than spoon-feeding them the answers.
“And instead of forcing ourselves to do something that’s not meant for us…” Scootaloo continued.
“Yes? Yes?”
“We each should be embracing our true talent!” AppleBloom finished.
“And that is…?”
They all exchanged a glance, then proclaimed: “Comedy!”
Mine and Dusk’s eyes widened simultaneously at this. Even as they ran off to see their elder siblings, idol in the case of Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo, we relaxed and exchanged knowing looks of our own, knowing we were both thinking the same thing.
Like when I would eventually figure out the real reason why I felt this strange way for Dusk, pushing down any notions of romance, the day when those three finally figured out their talents would be a proud day indeed.