We turned towards the library at this point, Twilight leading the way with me following relatively closely behind her. She turned her head to glance at me and smiled before motioning me to trot beside her. The ponies who had witnessed our exchange with Discord returned to their business and left us to ours at this point. This sudden change in attitude from her seemed to puzzle me but I chalked it up to emotions getting the better of both of us. I continued to trot by her side as we headed back into the library.
"I'm sorry about that, Aurora, but I think I may have become attached to you," Twilight opined softly, a genuine smile on her face. She brushed her hip aside me and giggled at my reaction, but maintained her smile. Something about this change brought a smile to my lips as well.
"My attraction for you has always been strong," I replied, tacking on a short chuckle at the end. She giggled at the mention.
"I know, you've already told me so many times, Aurora," she noted mirthfully. "I can't go five minutes without you telling me as much."
"Sorry about that, Twilight, I guess I want too much too soon," I responded almost glumly. I found myself recalling the times I had confessed my admiration for her, too many to count, too numerous to mention. She was right, I was obsessed with her and I needed to correct that oversight.
"That's okay, it makes me feel happy to know somepony really likes me for who I am and not what I am," she said before sidling against me and smiling at me again. We entered her house at this point and she guided me downstairs, this time ensuring that I did not fall. She turned on the lights using her magic, this time lighting the way completely.
To see her basement in its entirety was quite interesting, though once my eyes adjusted to the light levels and I got a chance to see what was down there, my interest flagged a bit. The center of the room was dominated by a large table, reminding me of the table in her castle that I had seen in various episodes of the show. Despite that, the one item on the table was a large book, remaining open to the last thing she had been studying before tracking me down.
"So, Twilight, what do we have here?" I asked, trying to peek over her shoulders. I could see some arcane writings but could not decipher them.
"I was going to teach you the basics of magic use, how to use it properly, and maintaining control of your magic," she stated in a matter-of-fact fashion. "You're competent enough at using magic, but you need to be able to control it so you don't waste mana while using magic."
"Sounds fair, and considering how accomplished you are at using magic, I think some pointers would be a great idea," I responded, my admiration for the librarian having renewed in full. She smiled in response, and used her magic to flip the book to a particular page.
"Okay, Aurora, since you've already shown me how much you know (and I'm quite impressed by the way), I will train you on improving your levitation skills," she said, though when she smiled at me, my heart melted just a little, eliciting a very broad smile on my face. My smile seemed to be just as infectious as hers because she giggled ever so slightly. "To be honest, Aurora, I never thought I'd find a pony like you," she added warmly.
"I had been dreaming about meeting you for such a long time, and hoping that I might be able to impress you enough to show some admiration for me," I replied, my tone just as warm and as soft as hers. She smiled demurely at my statement, but chose not to respond, then returned her attention to the book.
"You've said that to me so many times, Aurora!" she giggled. "But you have to understand that I don't just simply give my love to any pony who professes their love to me!" she added almost firmly. "So let's return to the task at hoof!" she declared as she lit her horn. "Follow my example."
She used her magic to lift several items simultaneously and commanded me to follow her lead. I tried using my magic, but found I could only levitate two items before my horn started hurting from the effort. She frowned in disapproval.
"You're going to have to do better than that," she chided. "Don't make me send you to Magic Kindergarten, this is elementary level magic here."
I sat on my haunches, holding my horn with both forehooves. I groaned in pain. "My apologies, Miss Twilight," I replied out of rote memory. Too often I had been forced to say this to her whenever I did something to displease her. I felt as though I had already failed her at this point.
"No, it's okay, Aurora, you don't have to treat my like a mistress," she said softly. "I know you're still trying to get used to using magic, I apologize for trying to force you to do too much too soon -- tell you what, I'll help you learn at your pace, that way you can improve your skill without feeling like you're failing me," she added as she sidled next to me and gave me a quick peck on the cheek. "Aurora, I like you, and I want you to reach your full potential with your magic."
I was tempted to take her into an embrace, but I forced that temptation down. I smiled her instead. "Thank you, Miss Twilight, that means a lot to me," I said reverently. She chuckled at my formality.
"Please, Aurora, you don't need to call me that any more," she grinned. "I want to help you, and I want you to consider me an equal now instead of a mistress!"
"Please forgive me, Twilight, but I would love to give you a hug to show my appreciation, if that's not too much to ask," I stated apprehensively. She smiled warmly at me, and embraced me in a hug.
"Of course, Aurora, we ponies love to hug!" she giggled.