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// End 
// Story: Hair 
// by Acologic 
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Wind and rain rattled the windows of the Golden Oak Library. Twilight drew the curtains, turned and watched Spike’s chest rise and fall. She pulled up his blankets and blew out his bedside candle. She descended the stairs. Her horn glowed. Several books leapt from tables and chairs and slid into gaps among shelves. She turned her horn toward the kitchen. A mug and a tin flew toward her and stopped in front of her. She furrowed her brow. The tin opened, and cocoa jumped from it and into the mug. A bead of sweat formed on her face. The mug filled with hot water, which swirled and turned brown. The tin flew back to the kitchen. She sat down, her cocoa drifting beside her. She sipped it and smiled. A book floated into her lap: Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone. She opened it at her bookmark and read. She had turned ten pages when there was a thud on the door.

She looked up. She blinked. She looked down and read. There was a thud on the door. She set down her book and her cocoa and sat up. She walked to the door. She opened it. A pony stood before her. His grey coat was soaked through. His dark mane was plastered to his skull. Twilight stared. He stared. ‘Can I help you?’ she asked. 

‘No.’ 

‘Oh.’ 

‘Yeah.’ 

‘Um…’ Twilight blushed and said, ‘Well, then –’ 

‘I’m coming in.’ The pony pushed past her. She jumped aside and opened her mouth. Then she stopped. She watched him. He stood in the centre of the room, staring at the floor. Twilight blinked. She stepped around him. She closed the door. 

‘Wh—?’ 

‘Fluttershy was easy,’ interrupted the pony. His eyes were fixed on the floorboards. ‘She’s always gallivanting around those woods. It took patience, but it was easy. She plays with bears as well as birds. Claws are sharp. First I thought I could get it that way. Then I realised I was being stupid. How many twigs and thorns are there, which do the same job? It took a while, but I found it.

‘Rarity was more of a challenge. I tried as a customer, but she never left the room and gave me little chance in which to search it. I had to have a good think about that one. I considered sneaking in at lunch or at night. Then I realised just how pedantic she was. Her horn never rests. Everything in there is spotless. She changes her sheets daily. You’d think it’s easy, to get close to a pony, but no. What reason do I have? What excuse? It’s hard to do much without arousing suspicion. In the end, it was more or less my first plan with Fluttershy. Rarity has a cat. I spent hours trying to corner the little beast. It went like a dream. On my first attempt, there it was. I was so pleased with myself. I thought the others couldn’t be much harder. Applejack is a farmer. If I could find Fluttershy’s in a bush, surely I could find Applejack’s in an orchard or a pile of hay. Only I didn’t, and getting into the orchard during the day was far more difficult than I feared. She and her brother patrol the place like police. My time was running out. What chance did I have by night?

‘So, a break-in it was. Well, I didn’t actually break in. I sneaked into the barn and waited for hours. She came in, and at the time I thought it a miracle, and she left her hat. I checked it and a towel with which she’d dried herself. Nothing. So I waited, thinking to search the place as they slept. They ate dinner and went to bed. I considered giving up and trying something else. If I were caught, how could I explain it – and what would that mean for the rest of my efforts? But the decision was made for me. The brother locked me in. I waited for silence and crept up the stairs. I searched the bathroom. I thought I’d found it, but I was wrong. Then I hid in the kitchen as the younger one peed. She bolts the door to their bedroom, so that left only one hope. How lucky I was, now that I think about it. Applejack was the one who slept alone in a room, and she’s a sound sleeper! I tried the pillow and the mattress. How I held my nerve… Well, I went for it. I tried to pull it out. She awoke, and I sank to the floor, terrified. But it was fine. She went back to bed, and I simply waited and tried again. In the end –’ The pony snorted with laughter. ‘In the end, I bit it off! Hah!

‘So, three down and three to go. Rainbow Dash was a cinch in comparison! No skulking or scheming. She couldn’t have been better suited. She considers herself seriously, so I walked up to the girl and threw stones where it hurts. Know how much affection I felt for this pony, who made my task so easy. I led her to believe I was a sore loser and simply pulled them straight from her tail, hah! As easy as that! Can you believe it? Put yourself in my hooves and imagine, after struggling to catch cats and searching for needles in haystacks, how delighted I was! And it only got better! Pinkie!’ The pony wheezed and spluttered. He wiped his eyes. ‘Oh, dear, dear Pinkie! I had little idea of what to expect. I had been led to believe, however, that she was eccentric in the extreme. Hah, so, I strolled in and asked her for it, and she gave it to me! Can you imagine? She just snipped off a lock and gave it to me, just like that! Bless her!’ The pony raised a hoof and kissed it, his eyes streaming. He smiled and turned them onto Twilight. ‘But it’s all gone now. It’s done. Gone. Why? Because Twilight Sparkle does not have wings. Perhaps, if we are so lucky, someday another will succeed where I have failed.’

Twilight swallowed. She watched him, her eyes wide. He smiled and shook his head. His mouth quivered. ‘Don’t strain for explanation,’ he said. ‘Why waste the time? Please don’t. Please use it. Use it and love it. It’s the greatest thing the world gives. Ah, heh –’ He sniffed. ‘What a mystery I’m leaving you! Ah, Twilight, the good news is you can’t spare time for this, and you won’t. I know that much. You feel strange, don’t you? Yes, yes. A dream. It’s all our dream. I wasn’t here; you weren’t there. Yes. It’s best that way. It’s only fair.’

He smiled, his eyes glinting. ‘Six,’ he said. ‘That’s it. It’s done. Finished.’ He opened the door, kissed it, walked into the rain and left. He walked. He reached a row of houses. He walked to a patch of grass by a wall. He lifted a ring. He pulled open a door. He pulled a cord. A light flickered on. The door closed. He walked to a table. He picked up a matchbox. He placed it into a bag. He picked up the bag and secured it around his torso. He paused. He closed his eyes. He smiled. He untied the bag and opened it. He took out a quill, parchment and a bottle of ink. He paused. Then he leant forward and wrote: 

3 13 85 3 13 43 1 9 61 1 10 12 1 10 13 2 47 18 2 50 9 3 14 6. 

‘If he or she who finds this doesn’t understand it,’ he muttered, ‘perhaps someone else will.’ He left on the table the parchment, the quill and the ink bottle. He replaced the bag around himself. He glanced around the room. He smiled, wiped his eyes and pulled the cord. The light went out. He opened the door. He stepped onto the grass. The door closed. He walked.

He walked away from Ponyville, toward the Everfree. He tossed his mane. Water flew from it. He wiped his eyes and his face. He walked into the forest. He grimaced as his shoulder struck a tree. He felt around it. He held out a hoof and felt. He stumbled through the undergrowth. He fell into a clearing. He slid to the ground and stroked the grass. He sighed. He turned his head. He blinked at the clouds. He wiped his eyes. He smiled and shook his head. He waved at the sky. He brought his hoof to his mouth and kissed it. Then he closed his eyes and lay still. The clouds cleared. The rain stopped. The sun rose. The birds chirped. The wind breathed. The grass flickered. The treetops wobbled. Animals frolicked. Fluttershy sang. Rainbow Dash lazed. Applejack worked. Pinkie Pie danced. Twilight studied. Rarity slept. The clearing was empty. The clearing was empty.