“I’m asking again mon ami. Do you have the book?” Fleur asked the librarian, who waved his hooves in defense.
“I’m telling you, Miss Fleur, I don’t have the book. We’ve sold out of the last copies in all of Canterlot. I’m sorry.”
Fleur breathed heavily and paced around the main floor, her mind fuming at the rotten luck. She had been anxiously waiting for weeks to get her hooves on ‘The Flowers of War’. It was an old tale from long ago and apparently somepony decided to give the old book to the Canterlot library. It grew popular when a certain young alicorn decided to read it herself, and since then many ponies within Canterlot had been demanding the book. It had only recently been translated into modern Equestrian from it’s old language. It may have been a popular book, but Fleur wanted it for other reasons, and she had missed her chance. Her head slumped low, and she began heading toward the doors in defeat.
“Is this what you're missing my dear?” a familiar voice echoed in her ears, and she turned to see a dear friend holding a book in his aura.
“Fancy pants… is that...” she began to say as her friend gave a warm chuckle.
“Yes my dear. I had the privilege of ordering the book in advance, and I was blessed to receive the last copy.” He walked over to Fleur and she took the book with her magic. She placed a hoof on its surface, moving over the symbol of the Fleur de lis, which was the same as her cutie mark. Without saying anything, she moved over to Fancy Pants and nuzzled him, her neck wrapping around his in an apparent hug.
“Thank you, mon ami. I don’t know what to say,” she said, continuing to hug him. He chuckled again, and the two soon parted as she observed the book.
“Would you accompany me this day my dear? We can find a place of rest while you read your book,” he asked. She eyed him with a pleasant look before offering her hoof to him.
‘Merci,” she said as he accepted her hoof, and the two walked out the doors of library and onto the streets of Canterlot. Fleur opened the book and saw it’s title, ‘The Flowers of War’, written in bold cursive letters. Below the title was a picture of two guards, one with a red mane and one with a blue mane. Both wore golden armor and looked off into the distance. Between them was a small white filly with a pink mane and violet eyes, and her hoof was wrapped around the blue mane guard’s hoof. Fleur smiled. For Fleur, the very reasons she wanted this book, why it was so important to her, was because it contained her lineage, the genealogy of her forebearers and what they did after the First Contact War. She moved a hoof again over the picture. Seeing this little filly, her ancestor, the same one who shared her namesake, and seeing the strong resemblance between her and the filly, made her feel so connected to her, and yet she had barely knew her. But she wanted to know more, and it excited her to no end.
She held the book closer to her chest as she leaned into Fancy Pants. He leaned into her as well, supporting her weight with his own, as the two continued on through the streets of Canterlot.