//------------------------------// // Chapter Nine // Story: Not Another Anon Story // by nameundetermined //------------------------------// A few days had passed since Anon had arrived back in Ponyville and things were going….suprisingly well for him. In his opinion at least. He certainly didn’t have many complaints. Aside from the occasional (if someone uncomfortably frequent) looks he got from the townsfolk while dusting the shelves or going out for an errand, he generally felt quite at ease just living his life as he saw fit. And that was more or less what he had been doing. One of the first things they had done when they arrived home was, of course, discuss the...mechanics at play with their new living situation. Anon walked through the door of the library and looked around, whistling softly before pulling up a woefully undersized pony chair and taking a leg off, setting his bag down next to him on the ground. It seemed like Spike was off somewhere, doing his own thing for the time being. “Huh, nice place you’ve got here, and the Mayor just lets you live here for free?” “Well, technically, Princess Celestia issued a decree that I would be allowed to reside here without cost during my time in Ponyville. I’ve just sort of been acting as the librarian since their last one had retired about five years before I showed up.” Anon scoffed softly at this, cocking his head to one side and giving a small smirk “So what else do you like to do when you aren’t using government tax money to larp as a librarian?” Twilight squinted at him and walked past, giving him a berth as she wet to set her bags down on the upper portion of the library, where her bedroom seemed to reside in a sort of loft configuration. “As it just so happens, I have several interests that do not relate to books on a direct basis.” She says, notably not naming any of them or answering his question. “Which is why I am hiring you as my Librarian’s Assistant.” “Oh, is that why? I was sure it was because you found it difficult to resist my passable good looks and adequate levels of charm and charisma.” He said, grinning at her as he unzipped his backpack and dug through it as Twilight rolled her eyes in response. “Trust me, I definitely have better reasons.” She said as she walked over and ran a hoof over the covers of a few books on the shelves, grimacing as she sees a coating of dust on her hoof, which she awkwardly rubs on the floor, then cringing when she sees she has only made the mess more spread out. “For one thing, I just don't have the time to manage everything here with going out on adventures and solving problems so often. I need someone who can keep the place functional. And while I cannot vouch for your good looks and charm…” “Oh, ouch, I‘m wounded.” Anon interrupts playfully, feigning offense as he drapes a forearm over his forehead before she continues to speak. “...I can vouch for your excellent mind. I am sure that keeping everything in order and giving appropriate recommendations should be easy for you, especially if you familiarize yourself with the building's collection as quickly as I am anticipating.” “So what, you’re saying that you think I’m some kind of shut-in who won't bother going out to make friends so I’ll read all of these books really quickly?” he asked her, raising an eyebrow and leaning towards her direction. “Of course not!” she said, trotting back over towards the kitchen area. “I know you’re that kind of shut-in. Now, do you want a snack or something while I’m in here?” She asked as she busily hustled together a sandwich with bits from inside of the fridge. Anon sighed and gave a small nod before rememberings he was out of sight, clearing his throat and calling out. “Yeah, just a glass of milk thanks, I’m not very hungry. So uh...I think there might be some...unavoidable difficulties that come from me attempting to interact with the townsfolk that we need to discuss.” he said softly, walking over and joining her in the kitchen, grabbing the glass of milk she seemed to have left for him at the other end of the table, pulling up another chair. Twilight turned to face him, a flower-ridden sandwich floating before her. She took a bite of it and hummed softly, thinking as she chewed before swallowing to answer. “Well, as long as Ponies know that you are around, they can avoid getting too close. Maybe we could put a bell on a collar for you.” “I'm going to pretend I didn’t hear the second half of that suggestion,” Anon said in an unamused tone, crossing his arms and looking down at Twilight, who seemed mildly embarrassed by the implications of what she had said after thinking on it for a moment. “How about we just sew some onto my clothes instead? I feel like that might be an easier and less...objectifying solution.” Twilight lights up a tad at this suggestion, quickly nodding “That sounds like a good idea! I’m Rarity would be happy to help once we explained the situation to her.” She said, taking another bite of her sandwich and excitedly chewing. Anon gave a small grimace at her table manners, sipping at his milk and then scratching his chin contemplatively. “Alright then, How about we go and see about paying her a quick visit once we finish our snacks and uh...wash our faces.” He said as he watched her tear that sandwich up. Did she really eat like that all of the time? He was leaning towards a solid yes on that last question after seeing her prepare and devour another sandwich the same way before they finally left the library again. As they walked down the street, he caught a couple of odd looks here and there, a few dirtier than others, but nothing too unpleasant or out of the ordinary by his reckoning. He did occasionally get the feeling he was being watched by someone outside of his periphery, Occasionally catching a small glint of blue near bushes or around corners. But he didn’t think terribly much of it. After all, there was admittedly supposed to be somepony stalking him, so why worry about it? They arrived at The Carousel Boutique, which was apparently owned by the snooty purple-maned one. Rarity, Twilight had called her. She was inside when they walked through the door, humming softly to herself as she stitched together a rather ornate-looking saddle-like outfit strapped to an equine dummy, a pair of red glasses perched on her snout as she delicately and quickly fed the needle through the material again and again. She gave a small start at hearing the chime of the opening door but did not turn around just yet. “Just a moment, darlings, I’m caught up in a delicate operation. I’ll be right with you!~” She called out in a kind, almost sing-song voice. Anon looked over to Twilght, who gave a small shrug and sat down in one of the comfortable chairs on offer, Anon took a seat on a couch, looking down at the accompanying coffee table. He rifled through the reading material on offer there. There were some fashion magazines, some high living periodicals, and...a tabloid with his face plastered on it or rather, a somewhat crude character. It depicted him with beady eyes, large teeth, and hair that was significantly messier than he normally had. Anon did not seem terribly upset that the ponies seem to have reimagined him as a Reddit moderator, if anything he was quite tickled, laughing softly to himself, one hand covering his mouth as he got twilights attention “Hey, Twiggles, check this shit out.” he said, tossing the rag to her, letting her catch it with her magic to look at the cover. “Looks like Rarity keeps up with the goings-on in Canterlot.” Twilight sighs as she sees the paper, she had seen this same story printed everywhere after their arrival and his...disagreement with the Diarchs. “Yeah, she’s pretty invested in that sort of thing. It’s a bit part of getting a leg up in the fashion industry to keep up with the trends, apparently.” Before the conversation could continue much further, Rarity finally emerged from behind her counter, walking out to greet them properly. She sees Anon and cringes just slightly before seeing he is with Twilight and doing her best to put on a pleasant, welcoming demeanor “O-oh! Anonymous, Twilight, what can I do for the two of you?” she asked as she gracefully sauntered over towards them, keeping her distance. Twilight seemed not to immediately notice her discomfort, beaming at her friend as she gestured over at Anon. “Good Afternoon, Rarity. We were just wondering if you could do us a favor and sew some bells to Anon’s Sweater here. It turns out him getting too close to ponies causes them to lose their magic for a bit, so we need a way to make sure everyone knows he's around so they can give him some room.” “Hmmm, I suppose I can help you with that easily enough. Are you sure that you don’t want to put a collar on-” “Rarity I have the requisite amount of respect for you as a person that comes with being mutually acquainted with Twilight, But I will not hesitate to say something very hurtful if you make a statement that insinuates I am a housepet again.” Anon cut in politely but firmly before she could finish her thought. Rarity looked over at him with mild surprise, Opening her mouth, then closing it again, then pointing her hoof at him and opening it again before closing it and shaking her head. “Fair enough. My mistake, Anonymous.” She said, acknowledging her faux pas if not outright apologizing, which was reasonable enough by anons reckoning, he had been fairly snippy with his reply there, so it evened out. She continued on, unphased once more. “I could also make a few copies of his ensemble if you would like. Maybe in some brighter colors so he will stand out more. I do have to say, darling, that is a bit too much black for my taste, maybe something green to bring out your eyes might be nice…” “I like black, it's slimming and simple,” he said a little defensively, tugging just a tad at the collar of his sweater. Fuck him if he was going to let this little equine diva turn him into some Blues Clues looking ass... But that wasn’t a productive train of thought. He was being offered something and he should try to be a bit more graceful. “I appreciate the thought, But I prefer to keep my clothing reserved and functional, thank you.” Rarity seems a little saddened by his request, but nods. “I suppose that is fine, Anon. Spike, could you come here for a moment, darling?” She called out in a pleasant tone, the little scaly simp in question trotting out, a few pins sticking out of the back of his head here and there and a measuring tape in his claws. “Yes, what is it, Rarity?” he asked, smiling a bit dopily at her, obviously down bad for the mare in a way Ann felt may not be entirely appropriate for the age gap. But it wasn’t his place to tell Spike who he should be tier three subbing to. “Spike, I need you to please take Mister Anonymous’ to the back and record the measurements so I can make a few copies with some -ahem- slight modifications.” She said, fluttering her eyes at the little dragon, who nodded readily and trotted over towards Anonymous, gently grabbing his pants leg and dragging him towards the back. Anon took notice that the little dragon seemed to be unaffected by his anti magical properties the way the ponies had been, and as they walked behind the counter he pondered about what might be the cause, perhaps he could ask Twilight later. As he was measured up and down by the little dragon, the physical contact was uncomfortable enough to distract the human from the feeling of being watched that had been bugging him since he got back into town. It certainly kept him too occupied to notice the pair of red eyes staring him down through the window from below a curly crop of blue hair, silently waiting, scheming...