//------------------------------// // Chapter Five: Little Posessions // Story: Our Day in Disdain // by Rainb0w Dashie //------------------------------// The late evening found Dashie behind Ponyville’s crystal castle, arguably one of the biggest structures in Ponyville and, oddly enough, the home of the town’s princess and librarian. Dashie was behind the castle,  hidden behind its large shadow, contemplating her plan as she fidgeted nervously with her saddlebag.  Although she was practically invisible in the castle’s shadow, she tried to tuck herself as close to the castle as she could. As if to somehow make herself even more unseen, because not only was she going to be trespassing in Ponyville’s local library, she was also intruding upon the personal home of the castle’s owner; Twilight Sparkle.  Dashie tried not to dwell on the fact that that what she was planning had every chance of ending badly. Breaking and entering, trespassing, theft… It took her an hour alone just to get out of bed and another to get used to the several new aches and pains that had now taken up residence in her joints, if she were to caught sneaking around Twilight’s home she would undoubtedly be unable to escape.  She tried to justify to herself. She only needed one book, only a book, and it wouldn’t take her long to find it. She’d sneak in through to the back window, find the book, and slip back out. It was an easy plan, but Dashie knew from the moment she stepped back into town that it was wrong, and not just the wrong she was used to; really really wrong. But at the same time she also knew it was the only chance she had to get what she was looking for. She didn’t know of any bookstores that had what she needed, she didn’t even know where to look. And besides, no shop-keeper in town would do business with her, she wasn’t even supposed to be in Ponyville.  For some reason, this was reason enough, and Dashie lifted the window and hoisted herself over the sill. However, She wasn’t very good at climbing through windows, so as she was manipulating her way through the window her back hoof got caught on the sill and she came down hard on the crystal floor. She didn’t feel the window catching her hoof, but she did feel the floor knocking into her stomach, a big flat whap accompanied by a sudden paralysis and the contents of her saddlebag spilling out in all directions. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe. The fall had knocked the wind out of her and the pain in her side had flared up again and was now collecting in her lungs.  She impulsively cried out in pain but attempted to choke it down, resulting in her breath hissing through her teeth and sounding something like a deflating balloon. She surely made enough noise to alert anypony in the room to her presence, but the only one in the castle besides herself was Twilight’s dragon assistant who could be heard steadily snoring from somewhere within the caste. The sound of her fall wouldn’t be enough to wake him since it wasn’t nearly as loud as the storm outside, but her screams would certainly be enough to rouse even the deepest sleeper. So she tried with all her might to not yell despite every dull pain from earlier now brilliantly awake and tearing at her body; as well as some new pains where her hoof scraped against the sill and where her chin hit the floor. Pain stabbed at her side as she picked herself up and she could also taste blood. The inside of her mouth was bleeding. She must’ve bitten it when she fell, or worse, she thought, her ribs could have been broken and her lungs were filling with blood.   Although her ribs were painful and the jolt from the fall had awoken the pains in her head, her breathing didn’t feel too labored and her pains didn’t feel too out of the ordinary. In fact, the only thing that was out of the ordinary were her possessions that were all over Twilight’s kitchen floor.  She moved slowly around the room, stuffing what little possessions she had to her name back into her saddlebag. Old quills, an empty inkwell, scraps of paper, a candle and a match, and a broken manebrush.  Under several sheets of paper Dashie found an old picture frame she took from her house containing a picture of two fillies, Dashie and her big sister, flying through the air; more so her sister flying her as Dashie was too young to even extend her wings yet.  It lay face-down, glass shattered, but the picture was more or less still intact save for a few superficial scratches from the broken glass. She removed the picture, folded it neatly, and stuffed it carefully into her saddlebag; casting the broken frame aside.  Finally, Dashie picked up her last and most important possession, a pair of souvenir earrings from the Celestial Sun Museum. She found them tucked neatly away under her dresser. The embossed lettering had faded away years ago, but the cardboard packaging retained most if it’s integrity. The same couldn’t be said for the sun-shaped earrings themselves, as they were badly tarnished from years of neglect. Instead of the little silver supernovas they were supposed to be, the metal had turned murky and green, and was ultimately the reason Dashie had snuck into the library to begin with; to find a book on how to restore the earrings. Dashie felt around the dimness of the room, until she eventually found the door to the hallway that lead to the library. The library was filled with a silvery darkness, save for a pool of light spilling in from a lone canopy window. Dashie removed the candle from her saddlebag and placed on a nearby reading table, lighting the wic with a match. She went to the shelves next and started looking over the books; recognizing maybe one or two of them. The only sound in the room was the low rumble of the storm outside, the infrequent snoring of Twilight’s assistant, and the occasional creak of the crystal walls as the wind sighed against the castle. Rather than being unsettled, Dashie found the ambience rather comforting. She found the atmosphere of libraries in general rather comforting. The calm quiet. The smells of old leather and parchment, the forgotten secrets. She felt safe. It didn’t take long for Dashie to get distracted and forgot all about the reason she had snuck into the library. Eventually a book called Ancient Equestrian History caught her eye and she took it over to the reading table where her candle was steadily burning; a thick bead of wax dripping down it’s stalk. “... And it is written that Celestia’s law of Malfeasance is broken if any Equestrian is found to have harmed or controlled another Equestrian against their will, or assisted in the commission or concealment of a crime committed by mundane means. This includes the hooves of an Earth Pony, the horn of a Unicorn, or the wings of a Pegasi.   Use of any of these means to attack or bring harm against another Equestrian is considered use of deadly force, regardless of whether it is in defense of the Equestrian’s own person or the life of another.  Under Celestia’s law, any Equestrian found guilty of Malfeasance is sentenced to have the source of their means forcedly removed - the hooves of the earth pony are to be permanently bound, the horn of the Unicorn is to be removed with a grinding wheel, the wings of the pegasi are to be broken at the joint and/ or surgically removed- and must receive a prison sentence up to and including public execution by way of the gallows.” Dashie read for almost an hour, eventually growing bored of the dry educated investigations into several of Equestria’s myths and legends and returned the book to it’s spot on the shelf in exchange for another book. She opened this book to a page with a carefully detailed illustration of a pony being dipped in molten bronze by a set of pincers and flipped to the cover: “Necromancy, Elementals, Alchemy, and other magics of the pre-classical era”  *** “Are you sure you’re feeling alright. Twilight?” Rarity asked as she helped her friend through the streets of Ponyville. “I could come in and make you something to drink if you’d like, some ginger tea’d be sure to settle that stomach of yours!” “I’m fine, Rarity.” Twilight groaned. “I think I just need to lie down. I’m sure I'll be fine after getting some rest.” Twilight let out a mix between a hiccup and a burp and tightened her hold on her stomach. “Oohh, maybe a little more than some.”  “Well be sure to have that cute little Spikey-wikey come and get me if you need anything.” Rarity propped Twilight up onto the stoop of her castle. “I know what it’s like to drink, or in your case, eat too much alcohol, and trust me darling, it does not do wonders on your stomach.”  “I appreciate the concern.” Twilight said, holding onto the door handle for balance. “But I think I can handle myself from here. Thanks for walking home with me.” “Anything for a friend “Rarity said with a pleasant smile. “Are we still on for tea tomorrow?” “Three o’clock” Twilight said with a matter-of-fact wink. “If I’m not too incapacitated.” The two mares shared in a laugh and parted ways after saying goodnight to each other. As Twilight opened the door and moved through the familiar darkness of her castle, she spotted the flicker of light coming from under the library door, and opened it to see the silhouette of a mare in the back of the library; illuminated by the tiny flame of a candle and placing a book into their saddlebag. Twilight’s face flushed furiously, and it took her a long moment to find her voice.  “Hey, thief!” Twilight shouted with too much intensity. “You’re stealing one of my books!” Twilight quickly flicked on the lights and was dumbfounded to see Dashie slipping a book, her book, into her saddlebag. “What do you think you’re doing with my book, Dashie?!” Twilight shouted, stepping into the library and over several books tossed carelessly on the floor..  Dashie froze at the sudden confrontation. “I, I was just” Dashie stammered, unable to craft a response. “You were just stealing my books.” Twilight used her magic to violently rip the book out of Dashie’s saddlebag, tearing it off her back and knocking Dashie to the floor in the process. “You broke into my castle and made a mess in my library” Twilight said with a hitch. She was was shouting now, completely unable to control the volume of her own voice “...and now you’re stealing one of my books!” “No no, I wasn’t” Dashie tried to explain. “I just needed to borrow it-” “You’re not even allowed to be in Ponyville,” Twilight didn’t let Dashie even attempt to explain herself. She prided herself in her extensive book collection and relished in the fact that it brought joy and knowledge to the citizens of Ponyville. Twilight’s books were a kindness she extended to the town. Sure she got a little upset when books were overdue or returned damaged, but she knew nopony in town would go as far as to actually steal  the books she so graciously lent out. To her, Dashie stealing her books was like stealing knowledge itself, and this was the greatest offence in her mind. Twilight was standing over Dashie now, looming over her like a tower of anger “You’re not even allowed to be in my castle. But here you are, in my library, stealing my books.” Her expression was filled with a cold, terrible anger, buoyed even further by her inebriated state. The thought of somepony stealing her books, stealing her knowledge, was so deplorable in her mind that she couldn’t stop focusing on it. Dashie tried to move, but Twilight rounded on her and slapped her hard across the face. She was filled with an unbridled anger. Twilight continued to yell and berate the intruder of her library, who had slunk into the floor with her ears folded back like a filly who was being scolded by her mother. Her yelling was so loud that it even disturbed the off-interval snoring of her Dragon assistant. Eventually came another voice, this one from outside library door. “Twilight, is everything alright? I heard shouting. Well, everypony heard it. You can hear it from clear across town…” It was Rarity. “Ahah it’s Rarity!” Twilight smiled angrily down at Dashie. “She was so right about you, just here to cause us trouble. Like you didn’t cause enough the last time you were here.”  Twilight turned to answer the door “And to think I even tried defending you…” She said as she trotted to the door. “Now she’s going to come in and see she was right about you, then we’re going to take you to Ponyville Police station for theft and breaking Celestia’s orders to stay out of Ponyville.” Dashie bolted upright and towards Twilight, pleading with her not to turn her in. Twilight would hear none of it. Dashie begged like a child as they crossed the room, fear and anger welling up in the bottom of her stomach and mixing into a sour adrenaline which filled her chest and limbs with an anxious energy. She tried to stop Twilight from reaching the door, but in doing so she lost her step and tripped over one of the several books she had strewn across the floor, and came crashing down on the librarian.  Twilight didn’t move, she didn’t struggle while underneath the weight of Dashie or even attempt to get up herself once Dashie pulled herself off the downed Alicorn.  “T-Twilight?” Dashie stammered looking down at the unicorn, her hooves twisted and bent. Twilight didn’t respond, save for a low painful groan. Rarity, hearing the dreadful sounds of the crash through the door, took no moment to hesitate and flung to door open, only to see her friend on the floor, books thrown everywhere, and Dashie clambering out the window she came in.  “Sweet Celestia, Twilight!” Rarity rushed to her friend’s side, who still hadn’t moved from the floor or corrected her hooves which were twisted and bent at impossible directions. “Twilight, what did that ruffian do to you?” “She hurt me, Rarity.” Twilight whimpered. “She hurt my neck and back...”