//------------------------------// // 3 - To Whom It May Concern // Story: Owlowiscious The Immortal Owl // by sunnypack //------------------------------// Chapter 3: To Whom It May Concern They say opposites attract. I beg to differ. Now I don’t hate Rainbow Dash. I just avoid her. A lot. I don’t know why Twilight wanted me to see her first. I was expecting Fluttershy—you know—the animal expert. Still, it wasn’t the toughest thing to do in the world, especially after the heart to heart we had last night. Twilight seemed determined to do… something but I wasn’t sure. I couldn’t read her thought process for once. I didn’t know if she was heading out to perform a task for a princess, or visit her friends, or help out in the community, or commit to some of her new duties. I couldn’t read her at all. Back on point about Rainbow Dash, I just didn’t find her all that interesting. She was a lovely pony of course, nothing out of the ordinary. I just felt that our personalities wouldn’t mesh. I’m quite scholarly, with a thirst for knowledge, and she’s addicted to action and flying. Not the best matches, possibly barring the flying. ––––– “Owlowiscious? Are you around?" Twilight's voice echoed around the library section of the castle. I was perched in the corner of the room, with the nook made by a bookshelf and one of the weird crystal walls. If you ask me, I preferred wood. The homely feel of the natural woodgrain reminded me of my early days when I slept in trees. Hmm, when was the last time I'd done that? Must have been centuries. I really missed the old library. “Owlowiscious?” With a small sigh I extricated myself from the small space and waddled to the edge of the bookcase. I peered at the skittish alicorn as she weaved about the significantly larger library in her spacious castle. “Is this really necessary?” I tried to keep the petulance outside my voice, but it was hard. “Yes,” Twilight replied firmly. Her hoof clopped on the floor with a authoritative echo. “It is.” I tried not to groan. “I don’t think this is going to work out well. I know you don’t want to keep secrets from your friends but couldn’t we have tried somepony else? Maybe Fluttershy?” Twilight paused as if the thought hadn’t occurred to her. Wait, it really looked like it hadn’t occurred to her. “No…” I trailed off. “Really?” “W-Well I still think Rainbow is a better idea. I think she would find the concept of a talking owl quite interesting.” Interesting. I didn’t expect that. “Is there something going on between you and Fluttershy?” You could cut through the tension in the room with a sharp claw. “N-No!” she answered a little too quickly for my liking. “Nothing!” “Twilight? I hate to lay it on thick, but you’re being a bit of hypocrite here. No secrets.” Twilight flushed a deep crimson. She mumbled something under her breath. Even with my exceptional hearing, I couldn’t make out her stuttering speech. “Come again?” I pushed. *Mumble* *Mumble* “I’m sorry?” “I accidentally stepped on Angel bunny.” I winced for a moment, then did a double-take. Oh sly, I thought. “Angel? You stepped on him? How?” I choked out. I tried to keep my composure. “I trotted in through the front door and I couldn’t see Fluttershy around. I decided to wait for her until she got back. Uhm, embarrassingly I got hungry—I’d just finished an all night reading session—so I went to the counter and grabbed some salad that was sitting there. It looked delicious, I couldn’t help myself. Apparently it was Angel’s so he thumped me a couple of times with his foot. It didn’t hurt but it was getting annoying so I pushed him back a bit with my hoof. Surprisingly he fell limp. That’s when Fluttershy walked in.” You could hear a pin drop from a mile away. “I tried to explain but Angel was playing dead, probably for ruining his lunch. Fluttershy looked so distraught that I couldn’t bring myself to say anything. In the end I just bolted out of there.” I shifted on my bookshelf perch. “You don’t think Fluttershy would realise it and forgive you anyway?” I frowned. “It’s not even your fault.” I didn’t see the problem, was there something else? I peered at Twilight owlishly. She shifted her hooves uneasily. “There’s something you’re not telling me,” I said, fluttering down from the bookshelf to the table. Craning her head like that would give her a crick in her neck. “I… also may have accidentally unintentionally perhaps possibly conceivably…” I clacked my beak, startling her. “Get on with it!” I growled, resisting an eye-roll. She took a deep breath. “I went back, of course, to apologise but Angel was there again. He was being a nuisance so I teleported him to the upstairs portion of the cottage. Then I made up with Fluttershy.” “So…? What’s the problem?” “Angel didn’t like it. When I got back the castle I found all my research torn to shreds. That was two weeks worth of research! Two weeks! I didn’t even sleep half the time!” I tapped a talon to my beak. “Oh so that’s why you were so stressed a few days ago. Gee. I didn’t know.” Twilight hung her head in shame. “I was furious. I reacted without thinking. I—“ She stopped herself. Her hoof drew across the floor. No, I thought. No way, she didn’t. “I threw a book at him,” she said finally. “That doesn’t sound so bad.” Twilight grimaced. “It was the unabridged dictionary of magical terminology.” “No, not Oxley’s?” She nodded. I winced. Twilight continued, “He broke his wrist and was poorly bruised. Fluttershy was disappointed in me and rightly so, but do you know what the worst part of it is?” I shook my head. I was enraptured. “The worst part is the look of fear I saw on Angel’s face the next time I visited. It breaks my heart every time I see it. I never studied magic to hurt anypony. Or any creature for that matter. I used magic to hurt…” I fluffed my feathers, deep in thought. What Twilight did with her magic was wrong. Abusing her magic like that was against everything she stood for. Angel was wrong for provoking her of course, but Angel was Angel. Angel was Angel. It began as a low chuckle. It increased with every hop I took until I was perched on Twilight’s back. Her confusion at my mirth gave way to indignation. “It’s not funny!” she muttered. I heard the hurt in her tone. I waved a wing at her. “It’s a joke between immortals. Angel was yanking your fetters.” “What?” “Angel is just like me, he wouldn’t be afraid of a little magic. Probably cautious because he’s not fast enough to dodge some books, but he’s lived as long as me. What a drama-queen.” “Huh?” I cocked my head, then realised what I said. “Oh drat. I wasn’t supposed to let on that we’re immortal.” “WHAT?!”