//------------------------------//
// A Strange Package 
// Story: Friendship is Shining: The Ticket Disaster 
// by Hopeful_Ink_Hoof 
//------------------------------//

	Shining Armor stood in the kitchen of the Ponyville Library, still yawning as his horn glowed.  He poured himself a cup of tea, the milk and sugar already added to the mug.  There were two slices of toasted sourdough, one with creme cheese and one with apple jelly (compliments of sweet apple acres "f'r helping save the sun so them apples could still grow big, strong and tasty").  Pressing them together, he took a bite, enjoying the mix of the bread's sourness with the jelly's sweet and the cheese's creaminess.

He considered waking up Spike, but there was not really much of a reason to.  The dragon was young and did like to sleep in.  Besides, everything was clean and organized.  The two of them were already moved in.

Moved in...

Shining looked down at his mug as he thought about it.  There had not really been much to actually move.  Mostly books filled with his own notes from studying, with everything else being a small number of photos and one or two outfits.  The library was already furnished so that meant leaving behind the bed and such.  It already had books, and a lot of them still belong to the school.  Some of the ones that belonged to him he brought a long, but the ones that would have been redundant were donated to Celestia's Academy.

He really did not have much to bring with him, books aside.

A knock drew his attention and derailed his train of thought.  Had he unlocked it already?  It was supposed to be library hours and it was the routine he was trying to cultivate: get up, unlock the front door (if he had locked it to begin with), get breakfast.

After chugging the rest of his tea, he set the mug in the sink and went to answer the door.  Reaching it, he found that, yes, it was unlocked.  Taking a hold, he pulled it open.

"Hello?"

Shining looked around, blinking in confusion.  There was nopony out there.  Although there was a package on his stoop.  Moving closer, he looked at it curiously.  There was neither an address or return address written on it.  So it had not been mailed to him.  Who would just drop off a package at the library without saying anything?  And why?

With his magic, the stallion wrapped a shield around the package and levitated it.  He braced himself and shook it hard, reinforcing the shield as much as he could.

He let out a sigh when nothing happened.  Bringing it inside, he carried it with him through the library and down into the basement.  Shifting his focus and magic, he let the shield turn to energy, using it to take hold of the packaging.  Once it was open, he slowly moved toward it to look inside.

It was the remnants of Nightmare Moon's armor.  When the power of The Elements of Harmony had struck Nightmare Moon, it had turned her back into Princess Luna.  The armor had been knocked off in the blast.  Last time Shining Armor had seen it, they were leaving it behind in the castle ruins as they left to return to Ponyville.

Why in Equestria would somepony send this to him?

Shining Armor reached into the box and took a hold of the chest-plate.

Cold.  It's so cold.  Everything feels like ice.  Dark.  There's nothing but darkness.  No sun, no moon, not even the glimmer of a star.  Fear.  ANGER!

"Shining?"

Shining Armor opened his eyes, blinking rapidly.  His head throb, the pain pulsating with the sound of steps down the stairs echoing through his ears.  He managed to push himself back up into a sitting position as Spike reached the bottom of the staircase.

"Are you okay?" the dragon asked as he reached the stallion.

"I think so," Shining responded, rubbing his head.  "I was just checking... something..."  Turning he looked at the package that was near him.  Spike moved to look as well.

"What's that?"

"Nightmare Moon's armor."  Shining Armor started to reach for it, then stopped.  He had a sense of deja vu, like he had done this before.

"Why would somepony send this to you?" Spike asked.

"That's just it, they didn't."  The stallion pushed the box away.  "Whoever sent this dropped it off at the door and left.  Although I don't know why."

"So, what are you going to do with it?"

"I don't know.  I guess we'll send a letter to Princess Celestia to see if she wants it, then go see if anypony saw who brought it here.  Come on.  Let's get started."

With that, Shining Armor started up the stairs.  Spike looked at the box a moment longer, gave a shrug, then followed after him.