//------------------------------// // Chapter 2: Expectations // Story: Wrapped Up In Books // by Closer-To-The-Sun //------------------------------// Rainbow galloped quickly across the tiles of the atrium, causing a loud echo to fill the air. She was quickly scolded by a unicorn librarian to both trot at a calm pace and to keep her noise level down. She followed the orders, but Rainbow still was moving in at a panicky speed. She had to tell Twilight of the horrors she just learned. Again, she entered the large walls that housed the books. She continued on until she reached the table area where her alicorn friend was busy at work. Rainbow went up to Twilight. “Twilight, there’s something horrible!” her voice was soft but jumpy at the revelation she had just learned. “What? What is it?” Twilight turned, concerned. “It’s just awful!” “Yes?” “Like, the absolute worst thing imaginable!” “Yes, yes, what is it?” Twilight leaned in. Rainbow Dash leaned carefully and whispered to Twilight, “There are no fiction books in this library.” Twilight’s face turned to a mixture of annoyance and disbelief in Rainbow’s reaction, “Really? That’s what’s so awful?” “It is!” Rainbow exclaimed in a hushed manner. “Rainbow Dash, the Royal Canterlot Library doesn’t have any fiction books at all. It’s a research library,” Twilight explained. “What?!” Rainbow exclaimed loudly. Again, various other library patrons turned to the blue pegasus and shushed her for being loud. Rainbow adjusted her statement and volume, “What do you mean? You knew about this?” “Of course I knew about this. I spent most of my school years within these walls, studying numerous things for Princess Celestia. It was designed for researchers and learning more about a topic. I thought you knew that.” “No, I didn’t know that!” “Rainbow, do try to keep it down. Anyway, even though there’s no fiction books, I believe you can still find something that would spark your interest,” Twilight continued. “I don’t know. I was hoping to find some more action-packed books, like Daring Do or other stuff,” Rainbow admitted. “How about I help you find a book that’s right up your alley?” “Okay, I guess,” Rainbow seemed to not be completely onboard. Twilight guided Rainbow through he maze of books that made up the library. After a few turns, Dash was already lost and unable to figure her way back to where they had started. “Let’s see….I believe this section would be good,” Twilight said to herself as she trotted down a row of books. She stopped as she saw a certain book that was up high on the shelf. “Oh, I think this is perfect for you,” she commented as she used her magic to lower the book down. Rainbow looked at the front cover of the large, red book. In black lettering, it read ‘Fundamentals Of Aerodynamics’. “What is this?” Dash asked. “It’s the book I read shortly after I gained my wings. It helped me understand heavier-than-air flight with wings, and it was quite a fascinating read. I think it’s something that’s a perfect fit for you,” Twilight trotted out of the aisle with Rainbow to a reading area. She placed the book on the table. Looking at the book, Rainbow made a noise of doubt. “Please do give it a shot? I have to get back to my research, I’m at a real interesting part in the ‘Early Griffon Society’ that deals with how they constructed their buildings,” Twilight trotted off back to her section of the library. Rainbow lost sight of her within moments. Turning her attention back to the book Twilight had gotten for her, Rainbow sighed. It looked larger and even more boring now that it was out in the open. She opened the book and started to read the section that it had opened to. It read as such: “Understanding the motion of air around n object (often called a flow field) enables the calculation of forces and moments action on the object. In many aerodynamics problems, the forces of interest are the fundamental forces of flight: lift drag, thrust, and weight. Of these, lift and drag are aerodynamic forces, i.e. forces due to air flow over a solid body. Calculation of these quantities is often founded upon the assumption….” Rainbow Dash couldn’t make heads or tails of what she was reading. The sentences seemed completely made up and designed to make her head hurt. And to top it off, it seemed as if the words on the page were blending together, causing her to hate the book even more. She thought to herself, ‘Ugh, this book is complete junk. I don’t need to know the science of how to fly, I already know how to fly.’ She hit her head down on the open book with a light thunk. ‘Maybe I’m not cut out for reading stuff like this. But I don’t want to hurt Twilight’s feelings. She did pick this book for me and is expecting me to read it. And, if it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t be interested in books to begin with.’ She raised her head up and had a determined look on her face, ‘I got to give it my all, for her. She’s my friend and, by Celestia, I’m not going to do my best for Twilight.’ She moved her limbs around as if she was trying to warm herself up and get herself psyched up for some sort of physically demanding task. Apparently, reading about aerodynamics is such for Rainbow Dash. She didn’t realize it, but her internal struggle and physical preparation was watched by a few library patrons around her, each one of them thinking she had completely lost her mind. ‘Alright, I got this,’ Rainbow said to herself silently, ‘I can read this, I can do this!’ She fell asleep three sentences into the first paragraph that she read.