Twilight couldn't find her favorite book.
She misplaced books all the time, such was the hazard of having so many, but she knew where this one was. Or rather where it should be.
"SPIKE!" she yelled. Twilight knew that he wouldn't know where the book was either, but sometimes it was nice to have an outlet for her anger. She felt a little guilty for using him as a punching bag; but wasn't the point of having an assistant so he could assist her in every way possible? She heard his timid footsteps on the stairs. Without turning, she waited for him to respond.
"Y-yes, Twilight?"
"Spike, do you know where my copy of 'The Chameleon Caper' is?"
Twilight could practically hear him scratch his scaly head. "The what-y what-er?"
Stamping impatiently, she turned. "'Daring Do and the Chameleon Caper!' The best one of the series! My favorite book ever!"
"Ohhh. Umm… no, I haven't seen it… but…" He scratched his head again, blinking. "Hey, I thought that 'A History of Obscure Magicks' was your favorite book."
"SPIKE!" Twilight yelled. He never saw the point it seemed, always worrying about the wrong thing. "Do you have any idea how important that book is to me?"
"Yeah, I mean, you always talk about Starswirl and how great –"
"No, Spike! I mean 'The Chameleon Caper!' Twilight pawed at the ground anxiously and then turned to survey her collection of Daring Do adventure novels. Maybe she had overlooked it…
There was "The Bear's Bride," an adventure-romance, which Twilight had read after her first heartbreak. "The Griffon's Goblet," an adventure-comedy that had taught Twilight how to act around Gilda when she met her. "The Forbidden Fortress," Twilight remembered crying at the end of that one because she thought Daring had died. And, of course, "The Sapphire Stone," the first in the series, and the one that Twilight leant to…
"Rainbow Dash." Twilight growled.
Daring Do couldn't find her favorite hat.
Sure, she had tons of hats, and they all looked identical. But there was one that stood out to her, one that got her through every scrape. A lucky hat of sorts, if Daring believed in luck. In her line of business, though, it was all skill.
"Indy!" Daring called to her assistant. She kept her eyes riveted on the open closet. She heard the patter of tiny feet behind her, but didn't turn. "Do you know where my hat is, Indy?"
No response. Not that she was expecting one. Daring turned to face her companion and received a lick to the face. "Awww, my wittle Indy," she cooed at her pet dog. "You didn't take momma's hat, didja?" Indy straightened up and cocked his head to the side. "Didja, didja?" she giggled, scratching him with her hoof.
A noise in the doorway startled Daring. Whirling around, she reached for her bullwhip, only to realize that she was unarmed. The source of the noise turned out to be friendly, though. An older purple unicorn stood in the doorway of Daring's room, awkwardly shuffling on his hooves.
"Hey Professor Plum." Daring wasn't phased by his intrusion. She'd been caught in much more awkward situations than baby talking her dog. "How can I help ya?"
The stallion cleared his throat, obviously trying to command respect. Unfortunately for him, respect had never been Daring's forte. "Professor Do. It has come to our attention. That the Neighzis. Are closing in on. The elusive. Chameleon crystal." Daring wondered if his staccato way of talking was also a way to garner attention. She could never tell when he was done speaking, so she usually just went ahead and talked.
"Let me guess. The Society for Equestrian Culture wants me to go and 'use whatever force necessary to preserve this priceless artifact.'" Plum nodded and Daring sighed. "You all do know that archaeology and treasure hunting aren't the same thing, right?"
"Professor Do. We've discussed this before. If these artifacts. Are not acquired. They will be used. For evil. Furthermore…"
"Furthermore, potential harm may come to the artifacts, which will surely lower their archaeological, anthropological, historical, and cultural value even more than displacing them," Daring recited. "Yeah, yeah. I remember." She turned to her closet, signifying the end of the discussion.
"Meet me. In the library. In one hour." Plum barked. Indy barked right back, making Daring giggle. With a huff, the old professor was gone.
Daring surveyed her hats, hoping that she had overlooked her favorite one. Still no luck. "I could really use you," she muttered to it, wherever it was. With a sigh she reached for another hat. As she lowered it to her head, a piece of paper fluttered to the ground. Furrowing her brow, Daring read the hastily scrawled words on it:
"IOU one hat. – A."
"Ahuitzotl." Daring growled.