//------------------------------// // Chapter 5 - The Eve // Story: Pinknesia: The Darker Descent // by Wolokai //------------------------------// Celestia sighed, closing the book and looking over towards Pinkie, who could only stare back, terrified at what she just heard. Quill looked at Celestia quizzically and spoke slowly, as if trying to understand something "So...Pinkie is being...haunted you say? By this...Entity?" Celestia nodded and looked towards Luna, who looked up at her with a sorrowful glance. Celestia walked towards Quill as she spoke "Yes...it is the same Entity which Starswirl the Bearded trapped in the deepest part of the moon...although I had reason to believe that there were still traces of The Entity's power still here in Equestria." Quill cocked his head to the left and asked "Oh? What made you think that?" Celestia went over to Luna, laying beside her and pulling her into a comforting embrace, holding her as she replied "Because I believe The Entity fed on dear Luna's emotions...and more then likely gave birth to Nightmare Moon. The Entity's origins are unknown...and I've been in Equestria for a long...long time Detective Quill. There are several copies of the story scattered about in Equestria that contain legends and stories about The Entity, but luckily for us, my copy here has the ONLY written scriptures and methods for defeating The Entity, although it's in an old dialect that I have not seen or used for some time...it will take time for me to decipher it. I know it takes a spell of great, GREAT power to defeat The Entity, so I'll do my best tonight to decipher the scriptures." Quill nodded and looked over towards Pinkie Pie. She looked absolutely terrified, and looked at Celestia with a fearful look of worry. Celestia caught sight of this and spoke softly towards the Pink Mare "Do not worry Pinkie Pie, The Entity, if it really is what is ailing you, cannot do much to harm you as you do not wield any powers of Magic. I want you to go and rest, be at peace tonight. I will do everything in my power to ensure that tommorow goes smoothly for us all. Ok?" Pinkie Pie nodded and bowed graciously, Quill bowing as well and saying "I will take my leave as well your Majesty, I would like to be fully rested myself for tommorow." Celestia looked up towards Quill and said "Very well, but do wait for just a few moments. There is a matter I wish to discuss with you. Luna, are you well enough to see Pinkie Pie out?" Luna looked up, sniffling and nodding a little. She got up, heading over to Pinkie with a comforting smile and together they both left through the double doors. Quill looked back towards Celestia and smiled a little, asking "What do you need your Majesty?" Celestia sighed, laying down on her belly and looking towards the ground sadly. She stayed that was for a few moments as Quill sat back on his haunches, waiting patiently. He understood she must be starting to pile on a heap ton of stress. Running a kingdom is pressure enough, but when a chaotic, destructive Entity that tore your sister away from you returns...that has to run up the meter substantially. Celestia looked up finally, speaking to Quill in a hushed tone "Detective...I understand you are very literate and well versed in various forms of Magic, which is impressive for the Earth Pony you are...I was hoping that maybe at least you could give comfort and forgiveness for the lies I've told tonight." Quill shook his head, smiling a little at Celestia and whispering back "Dear Princess...you are only looking out for Pinkie Pie's well-being. She doesn't need to know such extents of the spells...she deserves a happy night, after all these years of torture and suffering." Celestia let out a deep sigh and put a hoof to her forehead, rubbing it a little around the underside of her horn and speaking "I know...it still feels so wrong to have to tell her that tommorow will be fine, as we both know it definitely will NOT be..." Quill nodded, walking up towards the Princess and sitting on his haunches in front of her. He held out a comforting hoof and whispered "I know...trust me. I understand the risks, after-all, how long have I been working for you?" Celestia chuckled at this, looking up with a tiny smile "I guess we both have lies that we have told...admirable of you to throw yourself under the chariot" Quill grinned sheepishly, looking away and muttering "I wouldn't say I lied...I wasn't really asked the extent of my profession. I am of course a Detective and a Therapist...the others haven't really asked about-" He was cut off as Celestia stated formally with a bit of Canterlot Tone "Grand Scribe White Quill of the Royal Canterlot Archives and Detective of the Canterlot Investigative Services and Inquiry, also, my Therapist" Quill blushed a heavy shade of red as he waved a hoof at Celestia "Oh horsefeathers Celestia you know titles mean nothing to me!!! I simply have a job in the library, like Twilight does in Ponyville! It makes me no different from anypony else!" Celestia chuckled a little and smiled, shaking her head "Dear Quill, do relax! I'm merely teasing you, there's no need to be flustered. And...I see you're on a first name basis with my star-pupil now...'Not a bachelor' my flank!" Quill buried his head in his hooves, groaning "Oh Celestia why must you be so cruel! Can't you allow me at least a shred of my dignity!" Celestia had to use all of her willpower to stop from laughing so hard. Instead, she chuckled a little and wiped a tear out of her eye, sighing and saying to him "Oh calm down, do not worry, I merely tease. But on a more serious note...you know the consequences of a foul-up tommorow...we must be EXTRA cautious...I know you've read many of the scriptures inside the vault...you know what happened when myself, Starswirl, Magnus, and Skymaker were unsuccessful in ridding The Entity from Luna's mind...I do NOT want to banish Pinkie Pie EVER again. She is a free mare who DESERVES to hold onto all that she's fought for!" Quill nodded in approval, looking up towards Celestia and sighing "I know...if it is alright I will take my leave now. I need to set my Affairs in order..." Celestia blinked in surprise at this statement, saying in a hushed whisper "Goodness Quill you don't honestly think things will go THAT badly? Do you!?" Quill shook his head, standing and turning towards the door, muttering "Well of course not...but if it's one thing I've learned...it's that if bad things can happen...they will. One can never be too careful Princess Celestia...and I will be damned if I drop my guard now." Celestia nodded and bid him farewell, staying behind in the tower to think for a good while. Quill walked out of Canterlot Tower, sighing and looking up into the starlit sky. He had seen many ponies die in magical accidents over the years...and he was hoping, with every fiber of his being, that tommorow wasn't going to be one of those days... He headed down to the Chariot Requisition office, and requested his usual taxi, flipping out his C.I.S.I. badge, which substituted a passport. In ten minutes he was in the air, staring at the night sky with a wonderous look on his face. The chariot he was on sailed through the wind effortlessly, pulled by two Taxi Pegasus Ponies. It was a twenty minute ride to Ponyville which gave him plenty of time to think. He had read about this kind of spell-work before, the work Celestia was intending on doing. He would have offered to stay and help, but the scriptures were too outdated for even HIM to read! The only thing he could really do now was tie up any loose ends and set his affairs in order, in case the worst should happen. It seemed silly at first, to be so worked up over a thing like this, but Magic was vast and unpredictable in nature. Just trying to turn a tea cup into a flower could end up with somepony's brains splattered all over the insides of a building. He hopped off the chariot, heading up towards the front to personally thank his pullers, and gave them each a fair tip of ten bits. They thanked him graciously and took off, heading back towards Canterlot. He watched them go for a moment before turning and heading down Mane Street, the town void of any activity. He wondered how late it would be, and was starting to question whether or not Twilight Sparkle would even be awake, but onwards he trotted, until eventually he stopped in front of the large tree of a Library Twilight called 'Home'. He could see lights inside and shrugged, figuring it couldn't hurt to knock. He thought of three quick, clever excuses of why he was here so late if she was upset, and one true reason if she was alright with it. He raised a hoof and knocked politely, three times, with perfect, audible volume. He breathed a little on his hoof, smelling it and checking his breath. Nodding, he looked back up when he felt the door's outlines gleam with magic and in a moment opened to reveal the most beautiful lavender mare he could ever have set his eyes on. Twilight looked wide awake, which was good for Quill, and looked ecstatic to see him, which was even better! She smiled widely and said with glee "Detective Quill! What brings you around here so late? Little bit of late-night reading?" Quill smiled and cleared his throat, nodding a little and replying "Well, I was in the neighborhood so I figured I'd drop by and visit my favorite librarian, see if she had a moment to spare. Perhaps a talk over tea?" Twilight's eyes gleamed with joy as she held the door open for him and ushered him inside with a hoof "Oh of course! Come in come in!" She stepped aside as he walked in, breathing in the deep smell of her library and sighing contently, heading over to a table as he heard the door shut behind him. He sat on one of her velvety pillows as she walked towards the kitchen, turning her head and saying "It'll just be one second" Quill smiled and placed his front hooves on the table, replying "Oh don't rush on my account, take all the time you wish Twilight". Twilight slipped into the kitchen quietly, hearing Spike's humming as he put away the dishes from their meal. He looked over as Twilight came rushing up, whispering rapidly "Spike, Quill's here, is there anyway you can...I don't know...be busy or something?" Spike looked up at her, offended and whispering back "Well that's certainly a nice way to treat your assistant!" Twilight sighed and looked at her little friend, whispering in reply "Well would you rather be here, listening to me and Quill make cute love talk towards each other, or enjoy the fresh nighttime air or a donut at Pony Joe's Coffee shop?" Spike pondered this for a moment, looking at Twilight and muttering "You got a point...what's in it for me?" Twilight held up a hoof and said in a business like manner "40 Emeralds and a week's worth of doing no chores" Spike immediately curled his hand in a fist and bumped it against Twilight's hoof, nodding "Deal, see you later Twilight" Twilight nodded and watched him head for the back windows, not wanting to get involved in all the froo froo mushy stuff. Twilight put a kettle up on the stove, turning one of the knobs to the appropriate dial and heading back into the main room. She sighed, smiling as Quill smiled back. She sat across from him and spoke "So, how'd the appointment go?" Quill scratched his chin with his hoof and thought for a moment "Not...bad. We've narrowed it down to what could possibly be ailing Pinkie Pie...but if it's what we think it is...it's not good at all" Twilight blinked, waiting for him to go on. After a moment he sighed and said "Celestia and Luna believe that Pinkie is suffering from a dark, chaotic evil known as The Entity, which makes sense when you think about it because-" "Because Nightmare Moon was affected with it and when myself and my friends used the Elements of Harmony to defeat her, the explosion probably released a part of The Entity which then corrupted the closest thing to it...Pinkie Pie" Quill blinked in amazement at this, utterly dumbstruck as Twilight laughed nervously and explained "I did a little bit of reading myself...guess we both came to the same conclusion..." Quill smiled and nodded a little as the kettle in the kitchen began to whistle. Twilight excused herself from the table and quickly trotted to the kitchen, giving Quill the small window of time he needed to check his breath again. Twilight used her magic to levitate two small cups and saucers from the cupboard and the whole kettle itself back to the main room, pouring herself and Quill the tea and setting it out on the table. Sitting and sipping the mixture, they both enjoyed a peaceful moment's silence before Quill spoke again "I'm amazed, that you could figure out such a thing Twilight, old, outdated scriptures and legends like that are hard to come by in most public libraries." Twilight blushed a little and said "Well...I guess being Celestia's star-pupil gives me some benefits...getting some older, more difficult books to read is one of them" Quill nodded and sipped his tea, looking back after a moment "I'm curious to see what else you've theorized about concerning this subject Twilight, is there anything else you know that could help us?" Twilight nodded excitedly and got up, heading towards the stairs to her bedroom and shouting back "Sure! Just one second!!!" Quill watched her go up, his eyes trailing over her Lavender coat, from her neck down to her...flank. His face grew hot and he put a hoof to his head, sighing and muttering to himself "Easy Quill...settle down". He heard rustling from the second floor and looked up to see Twilight backing up with a large assortment of books. He watched her for a moment but suddenly gasped, seeing that she was about to fall off the edge of the second floor. He held up a hoof and shouted "Twilight watch your st-" but it was too late. Her back hoof came down and hit air and in the next second she went tumbling backwards, screaming. Time slowed down as Quill hurled himself over the table, kicking off the wooden surface with a hard smack of his back hooves and launching himself up into the air. He turned so his back was towards the floor and held his front legs out wide, feeling Twilight's body slip into his grasp. He close his hooves around her quickly and sucked in a deep breath, waiting for the impact. It came with a loud 'BANG' as his back hit the wall and together they slid towards the floor. Books that Twilight was carrying rained down on them for a moment before all went quiet. Quill's back ached and he panted a little, looking up at Twilight and saying loudly "Twilight! Are you alright?" Twilight looked up after a moment, panting a little herself and breathing out "Yes...I think so..." They stayed that way for a moment until they both realized the position they were in. Twilight's back hooves were under Quill's front ones, the middle of her haunches pushed up against his belly as Quill held her tightly around her back with both his front hooves. They both blushed horribly as they stared at one another. An awkward silence and stillness settled over the library, neither of them moving and simply staring at one another. Suddenly, Twilight wrapped her front hooves around Quill and sat up on him, pushing her lips against his in a heat-enveloping kiss. Quill stared wide-eyed at her, watching her close-eyed expression morph into one of longing and need. They stayed that way for several moments, locked together with lips and hooves, until Quill finally closed his own eyes and pushed back against her lips, kissing her back in full. They held each other tightly, pecking at each others lips and kissing one another, Twilight running her hooves along his back and shivering as Quill rubbed his along her sides. Their embrace became desperate, Twilight letting out a few squeaks of pleasure until she suddenly broke apart and backed up on the library floor, pulling Quill up to his hooves. -Twilight Sparkle- He looked at me, confused at first but I expected it. I couldn't believe...I just...wow. Wow was all I could think of, and I couldn't help but give him the widest smile. I nuzzled his neck and gently pulled him in the direction of the stairs, hoping to make my intentions known. He didn't resist, smiling a little himself as we ascended to the second story. We stood there for a moment, staring at one another before he moved his face forward, pushing his lips against mine. I sighed with heavenly bliss through my nose as I kissed him back. I couldn't exactly remember what happened in the next few moments, only that I was suddenly on my back on my bed, holding Quill tightly to me as we kissed one another, trailing even more kisses along each other's necks and cheeks. I tilted my head back as I felt his lips under my chin and sighed, holding him to me tightly. There was a few moments pause, and then... Bliss.... For Quill...I knew it was the eve of a day he believed would hold great misery and pain...and I wanted to give him a night's peace and pleasure...just a night of carefree worry...with a mare he loved. It was an eve...of a day he knew would be dark for him....and little did I know...dark for me too...