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MOAKStryker: Twilight's Tree Troubles1,407 words

MOAKStryker: Twilight's Tree Troubles

TWILIGHT'S TREE TROUBLES

By MOAKStryker (AKA Advisor The Accursed One)

The time was 8:00 in the morning and Twilight Sparkle’s alarm clock went off, much like it did every morning. She gently kissed her husband, who was lying next to her, and got out of her bed before she walked down the stairs to the main floor of the Golden Oaks Library. She went to the kitchen — where Spike was cooking them a hearty breakfast of scrambled eggs, hay bacon, and toast. Twilight looked around for a moment and sat down.

After Spike brought the food out to the table, he saw Twilight with a hoof upon her chin. “What are you thinking about, Twi?” he asked.

“Oh nothing much, I just wanted to expand the library.” Twilight answered. “We have tons of boxes of books in the basement that there’s no room for in the main library. So how about, after breakfast, you and I go and get a sapling?”

“I guess so.” Spike replied. “But what about Geo?”

“What about me?”

Twilight and Spike turned in their seats, the latter balking at the sight of a bleary-eyed man wearing nothing but a pair of boxers while Twilight giggled and blushed. Geo sat down at the table with the two and yawned.

“Morning, folks.” He said as he helped himself to some of Twilight’s toast. “Now what were you saying about me?”

“We weren’t saying anything about you.” Twilight said. “I was merely suggesting to Spike that we go and buy a sapling which will eventually grow into a tree we can use to expand the library, since I’m sure you’ve noticed how cramped it is.”

“I don’t take up that much space, Twi.” Geo chuckled before kicking out at one of the many boxes of books littering the floor. “But yeah... I see what you mean. I guess I’ve got to accompany you both on this journey?”

“Not if you don’t want to.” Twilight replied. “Spike and I are more than capable of—”

“Oh thank Celestia, I’m saved!” Geo cheered. “I’m going back to bed. Have fun on your tree hunt, and I’ll see you both later.”

With those words he left the kitchen, still chewing on a piece of pilfered toast, and ascended the stairs to the bedroom. There was a creak, and then silence fell. Spike and Twilight looked at each other and shrugged, resuming their own meals.

***

After their somewhat hasty meal Twilight and Spike headed off to the Ponyville train station and bought two tickets to Canterlot, where the magic sapling store was. On the train ride there, they brainstormed about what kind of tree to buy, using a catalogue as a guide.

“Ooh! How about we buy a redwood! It’s a HUGE tree, and we could fit the whole library into it!” Twilight suggested. “... oh, nevermind. Look at the cost, we’d never be able to afford fifteen thousand bits, not to mention the extra land needed...”

“Yeah, maybe not. How about we get another oak? You know it’s a good tree, and... Wait, you have more than enough books in the basement to fill up about two more oaks...”

The pair kept discussing types of trees, when Spike said, “Twilight, how about we buy a sy...”

“NO!” Twilight interjected.

“Why, though? They’re cheap and grow taller than oaks!” Spike tried to reason with Twilight, but to no avail.

“Because they’re ugly. Rarity would blow a fuse if I bought something like that,” Twilight explained. “Besides, the bark seems to peel off a lot. It might be structurally unsound.”

“Then how about a birch? Functional, stylish, and safe.” Spike took a final guess.

“It’s settled, then. We’ll buy a birch.” Twilight was glad to finally decide what type of tree to buy.

Once they got to Canterlot, the duo made their way to the tree store which was, of course, inside a tree as an advertisement. But to Twilight’s surprise, said tree was a sycamore.

The shopkeeper walked behind the counter of his tree-house-shop and greeted Twilight and Spike when they entered the building with the chime of a small bell attached to the doorframe. “Hello, what can I do for ya?” he asked with a slight hint of a Canterlot accent.

Twilight was quick to reply, “Do you have any saplings? Preferably a birch sapling?”

The shopkeeper told the others to hold on, then went in the back room of his store to look for a birch sapling, as requested. The only kind of tree he had in stock, though, was a sycamore. He telekinetically grabbed a sapling, then headed back to the front counter and said, “Sorry, but I don’t have any birches in stock anymore. Somepony bought the last one about an hour ago. I do have this sapling, though. It looks like it’s unsafe, but it’s the same is this tree. It’s held up in some pretty bad storms, has a lot of room, and is actually kind of cool-looking.” The shopkeeper seemed to have read Twilight’s mind.

Twilight was struck with confusion. All this time, she had thought sycamores were the worst possible thing, yet they seemed to be somewhat better than her oak tree-library-house. She inwardly admitted her mistake, then bought the sapling and started heading back to Ponyville.

After Twilight arrived back at her hometown, she went straight to the town hall. She asked for a building permit, and had to wait five hours in a line headed by the slowest pony at signing things in existence — Diamond Tiara.

“Diamond Tiara? What under Celestia’s Sun are you doing working here? I thought you would work in management if you worked anywhere, not be giving out permits! Oh, and I’d like a building permit, please. I’m planning on expanding my library.” Twilight was taken aback by the seemingly random appearance of the pink, and quite bossy, filly.

“Miss Sparkle, I’m here because my daddy has lost his mind and told me to go earn my own money for my things for once. And so, here I am, handing out permits. Your information checks out, now sign here, here, and here. And initial here,” Diamond replied in a flat tone, pointing at each line that she indicated.

Twilight signed her name and initials as indicated, grabbed the permit, and thanked Tiara. After she got home, she planted her tree, poured some water on it, then waited. And waited. And waited.

***

Five weeks later, after Twilight finally moved all her books into the now fully grown tree, Rarity came over. “Hello, Twilight. Hello, Spike. How are you to... OH MY SUN!! Where did you get that tree? It must have cost a fortune!” She was obviously surprised at her friend’s new purchase, and showed it.

Twilight simply put a hoof behind her neck and said, “Yeah, about that... I had thought you would hate that kind of tree. I know I did at first.”

To which Rarity replied, “Hate it? I love it, darling! Did you know my boutique is made of sycamore wood? It’s obviously the best kind of wood ever!”

And Twilight was struck dumb right then. She was surprised that Rarity loved sycamores, and felt extremely stupid. “Spike, take a letter,” she said, reciting her catchphrase.

Dear Princess Celestia,
A few weeks ago, I needed to expand my library, as it was filled with too many books. So I had went to a store in Canterlot, intending to buy a magical birch sapling to complement my oak tree house. To my surprise, I found that the only tree in stock was a sycamore, which I hated at first, and imagined everypony else would as well. Now, after a few days of having the tree, even during a scheduled storm, I found that it was a good decision, and all my neighbors like it too! It may be a little ugly, but it’s functional! So, on to the lesson I learned: Not choosing something that might be perfectly functional, yet dreadfully tacky, because of its appearance is a bad thing. This can translate to real-world interactions, as well. Never judge a pony by his or her looks, because they might be the nicest pony you’ve ever met!
Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle

Author's Note:

MOAKSTRYKER'S THINGS: Breakfast, Expansion, and Sycamore.

MOAKSTRYKER'S AUTHOR'S NOTE: Yeah, random things. Thanks to my friends for moral support, and all that. I chose the words suggested on the third roll of the generator: Note that I personally like birch trees, because birch beer is GOOD (Which is why I made Twilight and Spike agree on a birch)! Various things kept me from working on this, so sorry for it not being done when the collab was posted. That is all. Oh, and these facts may be wrong, but I don’t care.

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