//------------------------------//
// Chapter III 
// Story: Lessons in quirks 
// by Mike84 
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	Twilight had to think of Fluttershy once again just a little later. When she had invited her guest in, Spike was just descending the stairs carrying the tray with a hastily but meticulously prepared breakfast. Frank Blanket uttered a delighted almost triumphant call as he beheld the baby-dragon and ran to meet him, the bulging saddle-bags still on his back, blocking the way from the stairs.
"You must be Spike! A pleasure to meet you! I was hoping to meet you too! My name is Frank Blanket." He put on a broad smile. 
Spike was taken aback at the outburst of enthusiasm. "Oh err... yes I am. The student Celestia wrote about? I mean... you are?" 
Twilight relieved Spike of the tray with the breakfast by levitating it past the colt and onto the table in the main room. 
"You were hoping to meet Spike?" she asked with a tone of surprise. "Why? I thought you were interested in cutie marks?"
Frank cast a look at her as if she had asked him why he was breathing so habitually. 
"Of course I am interested in cutie marks, but why would that keep me from hoping to get to know the only dragon ever known to be living among ponies? We know way too little about dragons and Spike..." he turned his look back to the dragon, "Excuse me, but you Spike are really most special and it is a privilege to meet you!"
Spike was taken off guard by this degree of reverence bestowed upon him, much like Twilight had been by the address as highness and princess before. He was looking down at the most undragonish apron which he had put on when preparing the breakfast. But then he showed a brave, somewhat embarrassed but also proud smile. "Thank you! Nice to meet you too!"
Twilight gave a barely noticeable frown. She wasn't sure if she liked to see Spike being subjected to the same kind of fuss which she had become so weary about ever since her coronation. Moreover she remembered how in the past too flattering praise and recognition, much as she wanted to grant it to her number one assistant, had quickly gotten to Spike's head. But Frank's enthusiasm about meeting Spike seemed to be genuine rather than mere flattery. Come to think of it, he did have a point. Spike had been so integrated into Twilight's life for such a long time already that she hardly saw him as so unusual and spectacular anymore as the only ever dragon to live among ponies certainly appeared to other ponies who saw him for the first time. 

Frank put down the saddle-bags stretching a little after being rid of the weight. Twilight, Spike and he settled down around the table and enjoyed the breakfast for which Frank made sure to express both gratitude and compliments to Spike for making it. Settling down a bit after the whole commotion of the ungentle waking call, Spike got a little drowsy and asked bluntly: "So why are you here so early already?"
"Spike!" Twilight gave him a stern look. However, she did pick up the question herself. 
"We did not expect you to arrive for at least another hour."
"Yeah, like I had even known he was to arrive today", Spike muttered to himself earning himself yet another stern look from Twilight. 
"Do the royal carriages set out before sunrise now?" Twilight asked.
"I took the earliest train from Canterlot."
"What? But why didn't Princess Celestia offer you to take a carriage? She usually—"
"The generous Princess did offer me to take a carriage, but I didn't want to exploit her generosity any more than I had to. Also, I thought I would be here earlier by train and...", he blushed slightly and gave a sheepish smile, "...I hope I didn't inconvenience you by the early arrival." Another look from Twilight silenced Spike before he could say anything. Little sleep and rough waking calls had a tendency to bring forth his cranky side.

As the breakfast drew to a close, the talk turned towards Frank's research topics and Twilight had to admit that the zeal and enthusiasm he showed about the subject was quite contagious. 
Frank was talking about how a few ponies sported cutie marks almost from the moment of their births:
"These few ponies have often been named after their cutie marks while a sizable number changed their names after their cutie marks appeared", while some remained blank flanks even to old age and often suffered from social stigma caused by this:
"Many ponies think of elder ponies without a cutie mark as having no talents whatsoever; even though there are many different possible explanations". 
He brought up cases of cutie marks whose meanings of which remained unknown even to the ponies who sported them and which didn't seem to show any notable influence on the lives of these ponies: 
"A random number that didn't mean anything at all to this pony from Dodge Junction who was neither interested in nor talented with numbers or mathematics. A forty-two it was, if I recall correctly". 
He told of cutie marks that had caused their owners severe distress for being ambiguous or even seemed to indicate rather unseemly talents: 
"Some sixty years ago a young colt from Vanhoover was in fact repeatedly arrested under suspicion of horrible crimes or intentions for sporting a cracked skull as a cutie mark. At last it turned out that he was a highly gifted neurological surgeon." 
At last he told of cases where the tell tale sign of the cutie mark had in fact been a pain in the flank to ponies who would have rather kept their special talents secret. "Most masterful thief the highwaypony called Robing Hooves must have been, but a huge cutie mark displaying a wanted poster with his name on it sure didn't help whenever he was trying to stay undercover. Short of having his profession tattooed all over his face it was probably the worst that could have happened to him."
Twilight laughed at the image. As a kid she had sometimes heard tales of Robing Hooves. His cutie mark had never been referred to in those stories, but in this context the frequent mention of him wearing a long cloak all the time, no matter the weather, suddenly made a lot more sense to her. 
"All of these are interesting stories. Some of them cheerful, some of them tragic, some of them funny. It has taken a long time to gather them." 
"Where did you find all these stories?" Twilight asked since most of the examples Frank had provided had been unknown to her. 
"A few I found written down in books, but I learned most of these stories by asking ponies about them. I traveled a lot, interviewing many ponies about their cutie marks or about any interesting cutie mark stories they knew of. Some could tell stories about cutie marks of their ancestors, sometimes with old drawings or photographs documenting them. However, many of the ponies also react confused or even annoyed if asked about their cutie marks." 
"Why is that?" 
Frank shrugged: "For many of those who are not entirely certain about the meaning of their cutie mark or whose cutie mark is ambiguous it may come across as a bit to personal to talk about whatever doesn't meet the eye. Also, many who are, usually for good reason, convinced they know what their cutie mark is about feel very uncomfortable to just think about any other possible interpretations."
"An example?"
The colt thought for a few moments: "Your cutie mark is a fine example."
"What?" the mere suggestion that there was anything uncertain about her cutie mark appalled Twilight. "Explain!" 
It was an order brought forth in a tone that would have befitted Princess Luna in one of her angry moments and it startled Spike who had dozed off during the previous talk.
Frank seemed to shrink a little, made a soothing gesture and he sounded uneasy when he continued: "I am sorry Princess Twilight. I didn't mean to offend you."
Twilight didn't miss he had addressed her as princess again and silently scolded herself for her lack of self-control. Being turned into an example herself after all the previous unusual examples for strange cases of cutie marks and the suggestion that her cutie mark could be seen as anything other than what she had always known it to be, had caught her on the wrong hoof. 
"Of course it is quite clear that your cutie mark relates to your extraordinary magic talents", Frank hurried to reassure her. 
"It is so certain for a number of reasons. The context in which it appeared during your entrance exam, as Princess Celestia told me, your devotion to magic, the Element of Magic taking on the shape of your cutie mark all leave hardly any doubt about that."
Twilight relaxed a little, but she couldn't help feeling a bit at a disadvantage towards somepony she hardly knew but who on the other hoof seemed to have done some research on her. This too was one of the things she apprehended she would have to get to terms with for her role as a princess. 
"But think just of what you see when looking at your cutie mark and imagine it to be attached to somepony you don't know at all. It could indicate an interest for astronomy, maybe it could be a sign of a talented pyrotechnist, it could be the cutie mark of a successful acting star, depending on the nature of the unknown pony to sport the same sign even the interpretation of a reference to a habit of getting intoxicated to the point of seeing stars could not be ruled out with absolute certainty on the basis of scientific objectivity." 
Spike snorted with laughter at the last suggestion: 
"Told you that you were drinking too much tea, Twilight!"
"Oh get to your cot or wherever else you want to go and let the grownups talk, Spike!"
Spike shrugged and started to clear the table still quietly chuckling to himself.
Twilight took a deep breath and said: "Well Mr. Blanket... Frank, I think I see your points about ambiguous cutie marks and ponies being not at ease to see the interpretations of their cutie marks called into question."
"I'm sorry if this came out wrong. I didn't mean to..."
Twilight shook her head and smiled and jokingly imitating his voice she said: "Oh no, I think on the basis of scientific objectivity you have made those points with absolute certainty."
Frank chuckled, but there was something uncertain about this chuckle and Twilight noticed that he was gnawing on his lower lip as if trying to keep something in he actually wanted to say. 
"Is there something else?" she inquired and Frank nodded hesitantly. "About my cutie mark?"
"Well...", Frank rubbed his neck and avoided Twilight's look. "Maybe. But it probably isn't anything really and just a random theory. Moreover I think I accidentally disproved part of it through my untimely arrival here."
Twilight was about to ask again, but before she could Frank continued so hastily that it was quite clear he was trying to stir away from the topic and Twilight decided to let him. She made a note to herself to get back to this later.