//------------------------------// // (12) Open to the Public // Story: Of Dragons and Maternity // by SymphonicSync //------------------------------// The morning had passed by so quickly for Twilight. She'd dusted every shelf, done as much alphabetizing as she could, and tried to bundle up her fraying nerves. The library was so much larger for the unicorn when she was preparing it for other ponies. She'd hardly noticed when Spike came downstairs. "Twilight," he paused as she spun around, "do I really have to go?" "Yes Spike," she'd confirmed, hoofing him a small coin purse, "would you like me to walk you there?" He'd glanced at the door and shook his head. "No, I know the way." Twilight nodded. "Alright. That should be enough for a lunch. I'd have made something but..." A survey of the room at the time showed a hectic mess in need of attention. "It's alright." "Would you," her question halted, unsure of the course, "maybe like to get lunch together?" "I'll be fine. The Hayburgers isn't too far." "Okay..." They'd lingered there for what felt like several minutes. Neither could remember the last time they'd planned to spend the entire day apart. Twilight dropped to her haunches, wrapped her forehooves around the whelp's shoulders, and pulled him into a tight embrace. "Say hello to Cheerilee for me." Her chin lightly bounced off the drake's head. Just after Spike walked out the door, Twilight reversed the small chalkboard sign hung in the window. The unicorn returned to the back of the main room and sat behind the small desk she'd set up on the table that had been there before. She then waited for ponies to arrive. And waited. And waited... There must not be much of a need for books in a small town, Twilight thought to herself several hours later as she stood and stretched. With her back arched, she peered over her withers to the small clock hung on the wall. It had been little more than twenty minutes. "Ggggghhhhrrr..." Twilight ran her hoof down the page of the local newspaper, following along some article about a break-in at the grocery. After a brief commotion the culprit, a common red squirrel, was found and detained by Sheriff Daisy Chain. They were to be brought to a local wildlife expert for questioning before being excised to the Everfree. It was honestly difficult for Twilight to tell if the article was serious or there were some number of running jokes she was missing out in. The levi-sketch picture of the officer putting miniature pawcuffs on the critter was quite comical, if doubtfully accurate. The unicorn in charge of the publication's illustrations was rather talented for what she assumed to be an operation ran by yearlings. A glance over the top of the newspaper confirmed what she assumed from the continued silence; there was nopony outside or in the library. Twilight frowned. There were was always somepony at the public libraries in Canterlot. Granted, that was usually her but if she could visit then surely other, more outgoing, ponies could manage to do the same. A flex of her hooves straightened the page as she flipped it over the next insert. Scanning it, she saw a collection of crossword puzzles and coupons to shops around town. Her aura surrounded the quill and scissors on the table. "Hello miss Sparkle!" The newspaper ruffled in Twilight's hooves as her chair fell forward. She'd gotten a little too focused on a thirteen letter word for flower. She hastily folded the newspaper and laid it on her desk. "Sorry, I didn't hear you come in," a confused look crossed Twilight's face, "shouldn't you be at the schoolhouse Sweetie?" The filly cantered into the library and responded "Nope! Rarity says summer classes are for wonks and nitwits!" "Oh," the mare sighed, unsure whether to see offense in the statement, "does she?" "Yeah, but my grades are fine and I don't want to go," Sweetie chimed, half-jumping to get her front hooves on the table, "so I don't." The filly scanned the puzzle for a moment and then asked "Have you tried Chrysanthemum?" Twilight pulled the paper closer, investigated the surrounding words, and then said "No, no I hadn't. How did you know?" "Rarity played it this morning and you have some in the window!" She hopped down to all fours and walked over to a bookshelf. Twilight watched the filly and leaned back in her chair. The floor creaked as Sweetie Belle stepped to the side and continued mouthing out the names written down the spines. "Do you," Twilight mildly inquired after a minute of observing the unicorn foal survey the shelves, "need help finding something?" Sweetie did not acknowledge the mare as she tilted her head and silently read out the final half-dozen books on the wall before her. As she hopped towards the opposite side of the library, Sweetie answered "Nope!" With a new wall of books in front of her, the filly returned to her search. After a few more seconds of a pertinent stare, the rookie librarian slowly picked up her newspaper and began writing out Sweetie's suggestion. A minute passed to the sound of a quill dipping into an ink pot and the gentle murmur of a filly's voice. Another passed before Twilight let the back of the paper dip down enough to view the foal. She mustered up her best imitation of Celestia's stern-but-kind teacher voice. "Sweetie, what are you looking for?" "Rarity wanted- Elements of Harmo-nah! Wanted a book on metagurgling." "Metagur..." Twilight broke down the syllables and cross-referenced them with the numerous words in her memory. "Metallurgy?" "Yeah, melaturgey." Twilight could almost swear she heard a snicker from across the room. Before she had time to question it, Sweetie Belle looked at her and asked "Do you have any books about dragons?" The back of the newspaper pulled up as Twilight spread out her hooves. It blocked the sight of her reddening cheeks. "I'm, I don't think we do, sorry." She allowed herself a moment to collect her nerves before unraveling them again with a "Why do you ask?" Up the wall behind her, a small book on the topic of blacksmithing was pulled from its rest by her aura. "They're really cool!" The filly announced before she took notice of Twilight's levitation. Her voice rang out in disbelief, "You aren't even looking at it?!" "I, ah, already knew where it was..." Sweetie continued to gawk. "I can hardly hold up something I'm staring at..." She held out a hoof as the book floated into her grasp. The filly held it there with a manner of reverence, like some sort of treasured hoof-me-down. Twilight closed her eyes and mentally read over the list of books inside the library that she'd been using earlier that day. None of the titles struck the mare as the sort to talk about dragons, at least none that she'd seen while reorganizing. Perhaps one of the townsfolk had checked it out. There were many discrepancies between the inventory and what was on the shelves. "I apologize; There doesn't seem to be any books on dragons in the library. I can, um, check around the basement later?" The mare, semi-aware of the motion, turned to glare at the section of the wall that held the D titles. "There might be something down there." "That's okay, I was just curious!" Her voice hung in the air as if she meant to continue her statement. Several seconds later, Twilight asked "About?" The filly broke her attentive look at the book in her hooves and stared rather intensely into the mare's eyes. "Miss Sparkle, where do dragons come from?" What followed could only be described as verbal floundering on the scholar's part.