//------------------------------// // Learning Difficulties // Story: Lessons in the Moonlight // by Harmony Split //------------------------------// Chapter five: Learning Difficulties. “W-What?” Even without looking up, I could feel Twilight’s wide eyed gaze on me. I knew I could have just told her that she said it first, but I had no idea how she would react. Maybe she would just drop the topic soon enough. “What did you say?” Twilight most certainly didn’t drop it, and I looked up to see exactly the gaze I had imagined. “I… I said that yours is cuter,” I replied almost silently, hoping with all my heart that she hadn't caught it. “Do you really think that?” Twilight asked, her blush deepening with each word. I coughed awkwardly, covering my muzzle with an idle hoof in a way of hiding both my blush and the words that came out of my lips, “Yeah…” Twilight looked down, suddenly interested in her own plate. From her expression, I could see that she was thinking about it, but I had no idea about what exactly. Even I had no idea why I had said it. It just sort of came out, and felt right. Following her movements, my own gaze turned down towards my plate as I began to pick at the contents. Of course I was hungry, but after the little slip of my tongue, I was embarrassed enough as it was. With my luck, a slip of the tongue would be the least of my concerns. I can think of something else to use my tongue for… My ears fell flat against my skull as my mind started wandering into forbidden territory, and I quickly shook my head as if to fling the thoughts from my ears and onto the diner floor. To distract myself, I hastily picked up my veggie burger and brought it to my mouth, digging in with the enthusiasm of a starving pony in the middle of the desert. Needless to say, the resulting image was far from flattering. Twilight didn’t seem to mind, a small giggle escaped from her lips as her eyes were brought up to watch me. After a moment of her giggling, she reached down and picked up her own burger and brought it up to her mouth. Despite her dainty appearance, the princess took a page from my book and dug into the burger with enthusiasm that rivaled mine. In all honesty, it was the cutest thing in the world. Of course, I would never admit that. But I just couldn’t get my eyes off of her for long. Watching her eating with such enthusiasm brought a smile to my face for some reason. If I had to dwell on it, I’d likely say that it was because seeing her eating just like me kind of brought her down to the same level as me, and made her seem more equine. She may have been a princess, but she didn’t see herself as above me, which was something that surprised me as much as made me thankful. Not that there was really any regal way of eating veggie burgers, they were fairly messy to begin with. If Celestia or Luna had tried eating them, it would probably be an interesting experience. Though, I had to admit, I couldn’t actually picture Celestia or Luna eating anything as civilian as burgers. Returning my attention to my own food, I quickly went along with eating it, stoically doing my best to ignore the cute presence on the other side of the table. It was a task that was surprisingly not as hard as I imagined, considering that the veggie burger was probably the best I’d ever had in my life. It was no wonder why Twilight wanted to come to the diner for lunch. The rest of the meal passed fairly quickly and in relative silence, barring the sounds of us eating our burgers enthusiastically. It was enjoyable, the two of us eating together and just spending time with one another. It felt good, like whatever had been missing from my life was temporarily pushed aside and replaced by the company we shared. I supposed that was what friendship did; it pushed worries aside. When our plates were empty, we switched to our milkshakes and went to contently sipping at them, occasionally looking at one another and giving a smile or a little giggle. I couldn’t explain it, but I didn’t want to break the silence by speaking. It was a content silence, something that would just disappear and float away into the ether if we broke it. Too soon the shakes were empty, and Twilight leaned back with a small sigh. Silence spread once again until the waitress came up to the table. And completely ruined the mood. “Was everything fine, princess?” she asked with a overly bright smile that I really wanted to shove down her throat. “Oh yes, it was absolutely delicious,” Twilight answered before focusing on me, “Do you want something else?” “No, I’m fine,” I said, giving her a smile she returned while the waitress frowned before leaving us alone. “Is there anything you want to do, or should we just start with the lessons?” Twilight asked. I wanted to tell her that everything was fine as long as I got to spend time with her. That I just wanted to be at her side. I had no clue why, and my muzzle was glued. No sound left it. Ugh, stop it brain! It was confusing and disturbing me. I only spent a little bit of time with the princess, and I had already lost my mind at her side. I expected a lot of things, but that wasn’t one of them. “How about we just enjoy some more time together?” Ugh, that sounded pretty wrong! Twilight stared at me, flabbergasted, “W-what do you mean by that?” “N-nothing,” I stammered back hastily, ears flattening.          Raising an eyebrow slightly, Twilight spoke, “Night Glider, don’t avoid my questions. What did you mean by spending more time together?” she asked, leaning forward against the table as if she were suddenly interrogating me. “I don’t think I’m any good with all this friendship stuff,” I tried to convince her to leave the topic be, looking down and avoiding her gaze. However, she never dropped her gaze, “That’s all?” I nodded hesitantly after a moment, “Yeah, that’s all. I like spending time with you, it’s been fun so far. A-and besides, what better way to learn about friendship then by hanging out, right? Practical learning and all that,” I said with a bit of nervous laughter, doing my best to dodge the potential accusation. Twilight seemed to mull it over for a few moments, staring at me in thought before she sat back in her seat and gave a little smile, “Well, I suppose that makes sense. That’s the way that I learned about friendship, after all,” she said, folding her hooves on the table and nodding enthusiastically. Letting out a thankful sigh, I shook my head. That was a close one, I’d have to watch my muzzle from that point onwards to make sure that I didn’t mess up and say something else that was embarrassing. Calling a princess cute was one thing, but if I kept going the way I was, chances were that I’d scare off Twilight and wind up having to head back home. And that wouldn’t be good for me. Looking around for a moment, Twilight shuffled out of the booth and stood up, turning to look at me as she did so, “How about we take a walk around the town. I’m sure you’ve had the chance to see everything Ponyville has to offer, but if we find anything we want to do, we can stop and take a break to do it,” she offered with a smile, gesturing for me to come along with her hoof. Nodding my assent, I quickly shuffled out and joined her, “That sounds like a plan to me!” I exclaimed enthusiastically, shaking off my previous bashfulness now that we were off of the awkward subject. At least until my mind takes a left turn into the gutter again. Twilight made to set some bits down on the table before a certain irritating waitress appeared out of nowhere, “Princess! You don’t have to pay, it’s on the house for you!” she exclaimed, as if Twilight paying for her own food was the most atrocious thing that could have possibly happened on her watch. It didn’t help my desire to smack her in the back of the head. Reeling back in surprise, Twilight blinked a few times before hesitantly taking her bits back, “Oh, umm… Thank you!” she said, putting on the most fake smile I’d ever seen on Twilight’s face since meeting her. I figured that she wasn’t used to the royal treatment yet. Setting my own bits down on the table, I shook my head and wandered off to the door, Twilight following in tow as the waitress called out, “It’s my pleasure, princess! Please do come back any time,” in that annoyingly cheerful voice she had used for the entire day. It took a lot to refrain from bucking her into one of the tables and taking my leave, but for Twilight’s sake, I didn’t go over and kick her flank. With my mood only minorly spoiled, a thought came into my head as we went outside into the midday sun. Looking over at Twilight, I gestured with an idle hoof, “Actually, you know what? How about we go back to the castle and read something? We can check out the rest of Ponyville some other time,” I suggested, nodding my head in the direction of the castle on the other side of town. Twilight gave me a surprised glance for a few moments before she nodded, “Sure, I’m alright with that. I didn’t think that you enjoyed reading,” she said, the surprise reaching her voice as much as her eyes. The claim brought a chuckle to my lips and I nodded my assent, “Yeah, you caught me. I love reading. And besides, I’m sure you have something in your book collection that could help me understand friendship a bit better, right?” I asked as I turned to make my way towards the castle instead of mindlessly wandering around Ponyville. As much as I wouldn’t have a problem wandering the town, getting right into the lessons with Twilight likely was the better use of my time. Eyes glowing with excitement, Twilight nodded as she rushed to join me, “Oh, of course I do! I have several books on the subject! I can recommend a few, and we can read together, make a lesson in friendship over them!” she exclaimed, her words coming out slightly faster with each exclamation. If the mere notion of reading was enough to get her excited, I’d hate to see what would have happened if she had seen Starlight Glimmer’s library. She would likely have a heart attack and die from the sheer lack of content. Giving a little laugh, I lead the way towards the castle, listening to Twilight ramble on as I tuned out. As much as I enjoyed her company, she seemed to like ranting, and I didn’t have enough information about the books to really contribute to the rant. Though, I did admit that I enjoyed her voice and the sheer enthusiasm that she spoke with during it. It was cute, in a way, innocent. We found ourselves at the castle only a few minutes later, Twilight only just concluding her rant about the books as we reached the steps, “Oh, I’m sorry! I’m ranting! It looks like we’re here,” she said, flustered and embarrassed that she had gotten carried away as she looked up at the castle, her ears flattening slightly. “Don’t worry about it,” I said with a small chuckle, “In those few minutes, I learned more than I have in years back in that village listening to Starlight and the others. You’re an awesome mentor, if you ask me!” “Me? Awesome? Are you sure that you haven’t confused me with somepony else?” she asked with the cutest blush I had ever seen. Wait. Why do I find everything she does cute? “Yeah, I’m pretty sure I’m thinking about you, Twilight,” I replied with a chuckle that she soon mimicked. “You remind me a lot of Dash, but you’re different in a lot of ways,” Twilight softly spoke as we made our way inside. “What’s different?” I asked, eager to know about everything she liked. “Well, you both love flying, as far as I know. Even though you’re both pegasi, you love reading. The greatest difference so far is that you are more shy and… silent, in a way. You don’t brag about anything. I don’t mind it in Rainbow, but for you… it makes you seem kinder, that you don’t do it. Humble, even. I’m sorry, this sounds like a young schoolfilly babbling. I’m still not perfect,” Twilight stopped and stared at the ground. “I don’t think that anypony needs to be perfect, Twilight, you’re just fine the way you are,” I said with a small smile. “But you haven’t known me for that long,” she quietly spoke, but a smile still managed to break on her muzzle. “Even if I haven’t known you for long, I know that much,” I continued to smile. “Did you ever think about what to do after this? You said that you don’t have friends, but what about Sugar Belle and the others? I thought they’re your friends?” Twilight suddenly asked. I blinked a few times in thought as we made our way through the castle towards, I assumed, the den. I hadn’t actually thought about what I would do after I was done with Twilight. Honestly, I had assumed that I’d just go back to Starlight Glimmer’s town and find some job with the weather team there or something along those lines. “I haven’t really thought about it. I mean, yeah, Sugar Belle and the others are my friends, but I don’t know much about them. I’ve never really been close with anyone in the town, I was just sort of...there,” I explained, looking over at her in hopes that she understood what I meant. Twilight hummed in thought and then gave a nod, “I suppose that makes sense. I was the same way when I lived in Canterlot, I had ponies to call my friends, but I never actually knew anything about them and never hung out. I was always caught up with my studies,” she explained, shooting me a gentle smile as she did so. It didn’t come as much of a surprise that Twilight had been too caught up in her studies to have friends. It made sense, she was very studious. Giving a small laugh, I shook my head, “Of course, Twilight. Makes sense that you, of all ponies, would have your muzzle buried in a book too much to make friends,” I joked, batting her side gently with a wing in jest. Her laugh echoed mine and her wing smacked my side in response, “Hey! It’s not my fault, I just love books,” she replied, her grin stretching from ear to ear as she met my gaze.          Despite my previous assumption, we passed the study and reached a room that looked to be the library, where Twilight collected some cushions into her magic and stacked them in one corner of the room before laying down onto them. She floated a book from one of the many shelves to her, waiting for me to join her. I just stood there for a few seconds before she patted one of the cushions at her side with a wing, “Are you coming, or not?” she asked, smiling. I gave a quick flap with my wings and took my place at her side. My coat was softly rubbing against hers, and it made me warm, letting a blush envelope my muzzle. Twilight didn’t seem to notice it, and opened the book, beginning to read out loud for me. It was marvelous. *** When all was said and done, Twilight and I had read for the rest of the day, well into the early hours of evening. When we had said goodbye for the night, the sun was already setting in the distance, casting Ponyville into incredible shades of orange and black, making the already rustic-looking town seem even older than it was. It was almost picturesque, and brought a smile to my face as I walked down the steps of the castle’s front entrance. We had managed to get through two small books together, both of which we had taken turns to read out loud to one another. I was sure that Twilight had read them both already, considering that she almost fell asleep a few times whenever I was reading to her, but she seemed to enjoy it nonetheless, and I found it plenty entertaining. Not a lesson in the typical sense, I had learned a bit more about friendship from the books and Twilight’s explanations and rants that followed a few chapters and sections. It was interesting, and in all honesty, it was a really fun day. I had to look forward to the next lesson. Even more than that, I now carried a book under one of my wings that Twilight insisted that I should read. The walk back to the farm was uneventful, and illuminated in the colors of sunset the entire way. It was only just reaching the final minutes of sunset as I turned the last corner onto the farmland. Even in the dying light, the farm was a welcome sight, and I was eager to get some sleep before the next day of lessons. As I turned the bend, however, my eyes caught the sight of a flash of prismatic color disappearing into one of the upper floor windows. I stopped in my tracks and blinked a few times before a slow sigh escaped my mouth. Rainbow Dash had just flown into Applejack’s room, which could only possibly mean one thing. Here we go again… Maybe there’s a stack of hay in the barn for me to sleep on? Shaking my head, I knocked the side of my head twice with my hoof to try and clear my thoughts before making my way up to the farmhouse. As much as I hated the thought of thin walls and squeaking beds again, it would be better than sleeping out in the barn. Besides, now that I knew the windows could open wide enough for a pony to fit through, I could just go for a night fly if they kept me up again. I made my way through the house, grabbing an apple off of the counter on my way through, and up the stairs to my room. I made extra sure to ignore any sounds as I passed Applejack’s room, and closed the door behind me as I entered my own room. Plopping down on my bed heavily, I sighed contently and began munching at the snack I had grabbed as I removed the book from under my wing. The old leather-bound book honestly looked like a journal of some kind, and a quick look inside the cover confirmed the suspicions. Some sort of “friendship journal” that Twilight and her friends had kept. It was odd, but at the same time, it seemed like it would be fairly useful in understanding friendship. I could see why Twilight wanted me to read it. At least I had something to distract me from what was going on in the other room. *** I awoke with a start, my blood running cold in my veins. I was still in my room, with white moonlight filtering through the window and illuminating the space as if it were day time. I had no idea what had woken me up with such a start, but it left me on edge and breathing heavily. Shifting the book off of my chest, I rolled off of the bed and quietly landed on my hooves, eager to work off the anxiety that my fright filled me with. Trotting in place for a moment, I turned and walked over to the window, setting my hooves on the sil to look out at the moonlit farm. Despite the beauty of the night and the darkened farm, I could tell that something was wrong. I couldn’t place it, but there were sections of the farm that I knew wasn’t supposed to be there. And last time I checked, Twilight’s castle wasn’t so close to the farm. Despite the strange scenery, I felt the anxiety draining from my veins and a sense of calm replacing it. Even with the odd change of the world, I felt a familiar presence, something that made me feel like everything was fine. Leaning my head on the sil, I basked in the feel of the cool night wind flowing past my muzzle. I didn’t remember opening the window. Sleep, child. Your dreams are safe.