Heart's Desire

by LunarShadow

Twilight

Twilight

Twilight stared in dismay at the sopping wet book. The cover page had been wrecked beyond repair by the rain. The words inside had run together into giant pools of ink. On the table beside her were the remains of what had once been pages, crumpled, chewed, spit out.

“I’m really sorry,” Rainbow Dash said, her face locked in a grimace. “I ran a bath for Tank this morning and left him while I went to do my weather duties. I didn’t know that he’d go around the house and do something like this.”

“But you left it out where he could reach it?” a hint of frustration tinged Twilight’s words.

Rainbow Dash backed up and said defensively, “Hey! Fluttershy never told me that tortoises think anything leafy looking is food!” She pulled out a small bag of bits from her saddlebag and passed them over to Twilight. “Look, I’m really sorry. I’ve learned my lesson.”

Turning around, Rainbow Dash trotted out of the library, a dejected look on her face, her head held low. The door slammed shut, blocking out the storm that she had just walked into.

Walking over to a trash bin by the stairs, Twilight looked closed her eyes and turned her head as she dropped the book in. I hate doing that, I really do. If I ever have to do it again... I’ll... I’ll... She resolved on learning as much on book repair as possible. Which reminds me, I have a gift from my birthday that may have been such a book.

“Spike!” Upon reaching her room, she discovered that her assistant had neglected to put all his comic books away. Looking around, she couldn’t see Spike anywhere. “Augh! I told him that he couldn’t go romp around with the Cutie Mark Crusaders until he had cleaned up around his bed.” She stomped her hoof in frustration.

As she gathered up the comic books, stacking them neatly onto of Spike’s bed, the front door bell jingled. Her ears perked up and she trotted to the top of the stairs and looked down.

Derpy Hooves stood in the middle of the library, looking around. “Special delivery for Miss Twilight Sparkle. You here?”

“Yeah, up here.”

“Oh, hello Miss Twilight!” Derpy smiled and waved cheerily at Twilight. “Special delivery from Canterlot. The Princess asked that the package be given to you as soon as possible.” Puffing her chest out in pride, Derpy beckoned to somepony just outside the door.

Two soaking wet stallions grunted and strained as the they dragged a large, rectangular package through the door. They stopped as soon as the box was out of the rain. They dropped to the ground, panting. One of them finally looked up and said, “Hey, special instructions are that we have this put in the basement. Could you kindly direct us there?”

“Umm... sure. The door over there. Watch your step though, the stairs wind pretty tightly down.” As the stallions stood up and struggled to pick up the package again, Twilight turned her attention back to Derpy and joined her downstairs. “Say, it’s raining cats and dogs outside. How did you guys keep the box dry?”

Derpy pulled out an umbrella. “Well, pegasi are naturally water resistant, but I don’t think the delivery ponies stayed very dry.”

“The box, Derpy. The box!” Twilight rolled her eyes.

The whole town, myself included, loves Derpy, but sometimes she’s a little bit... in her own world.

Derpy smiled, her cheeks tinged red in embarrassment. “Sorry. I think it’s some new spell the department is trying. Works like a charm.”

Twilight sighed. “It’s alright, Derpy. You’re as helpful as ever. Thanks.”

“No problem! Oh, and that reminds me.” Derpy turned to the mail sack on her side and dug around in it. Eventually, she came up with an envelope. Frowning, she passed it over to Twilight. “I swear that I had another letter for you, one from the Princess, but I can’t find it.”

“ Don’t worry about it. I can ask the Princess for a copy via Spike mail. So, what’s this?” Twilight asked, staring curiously at the letter. Whoever had sent it had neglected to put a return address on it.”

Derpy shrugged. “I dunno. But I gotta go.” She turned as the stallions marched up from the basement and headed out the door. Following them, she waved at Twilight.

Absentmindedly, Twilight waved back. When the door closed, shutting out the noise of the rain, she went over to the table in the center of the library and tore open the letter. She quickly scanned for a name and found that it was from her parents. It read:

Dear Twilight Sparkle,

We waited at the train station for two hours hoping you had just missed your train and would be coming on another one. Guess you were too busy to visit up like planned. There’s always next time, right?

Anyways, we’ve been doing fine. Thank you for the book on gardening. It’s helped us immensely. We wish you could be here to see it. The tulips are blooming beautifully. We’re looking for any books we can on gardening. If you could us more, we would be very greatful.

In other news, your mother learned a new spell a few days ago. She can teleport small objects short distances. Who said you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? Maybe you can come up next weekend and help her learn to transport the items further.

We look forward to your next visit. Your brother will be up all next week. It could be like a family reunion!

With Love,
Your Parents

Twilight finished the letter and grimaced, her eyes squeezed shut. Tapping her head, she tried to hold back tears. “Shoot! Shoot, shoot, shoot! I promised!” Crumpling up the letter, she threw it across the room, the frustration from early returning in vigor.

Ugh! I am just one big mess up lately. Twilight wiped her eyes and sniffed. I’d better go unwrap that package Princess Celestia sent before I screw up even further.

Twilight walked downstairs, trying to remain calm. She took deep breaths, letting them out slowly to keep her frustration under control.

At the bottom of the stairs, Twilight turned on the lights. In the center of the room stood the package. It loomed above her, nearly three times the size of her. Her anger forgotten, she examined it curiously.

Huh, no marks on the outside, not even the standard mail markings. Guess the Princess was in a hurry.

She used her magic to tear a jagged cut down the center of the package. The box fell away to reveal an ornate mirror. To her, it looked like it was a thousand years old. The edges were engraved with intricate designs, but the actual mirror had a misty appearance to it. She couldn’t clearly see herself in it.

Huh, why would Princess Celestia want to store an old mirror in my basement? Maybe the letter Derpy forgot will explain. She looked at the top of the mirror to see if there was anything to help her discern something more about the mirror. Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi. Huh, what does that mean?

Twilight cocked her head while she thought about it. However, after five minutes of thought, nothing came to her. Maybe I have a book that can help. Though, I don’t even know where to start. I don’t know what language that is.

Twilight trotted upstairs only to return a few minutes with some window cleaner and a rag. But first, let’s get this mirror clean. She ran the rag across the mirror several times and squinted.

“Huh, nothing.” She leaned close to examine the mirror and see if her cleaning had had any effect on it. Suddenly, she jumped back in surprise. “S-Shining Armor? Mom, Dad?”

Looking over her shoulder, she found that the basement was as empty as ever. Turning back to the mirror, Twilight saw that the in addition to her family, she could see a library in the background.

The library was massive, and certainly not her own. She could see a desk and above it in large, fancy letters were the words Canterlot Library of Higher Learning. Around the room were dozens of ponies, each wrapped up in their own studies. Library assistants, including Spike, ran around shelving books.

A door to the left of the desk opened and in trotted all of Twilight’s friends. They waved at her and immediately split up to find books on their own.

Twilight reached out to touch her parents, but her hoof was stopped by the glass of the mirror. “I... I can’t believe it. This is what I’ve always wanted. To be in charge, to help ponies to learn, to be somewhere where I could visit my family regularly.”

She sighed sadly and leaned against the mirror. She slid down it, frowning. The anger from before faded, replaced by an empty feeling. She finally let the emotions get the better of her and burst into tears.

Comments

[LunarShadow]

Okay, this is just a little thing I came up with.

I will update every few days with a different ponies. Now, this is how it's going to work. If you comment, leave the pony that you want to see written about next. The most popular at the end of the previous chapter is the one I'll do.

Enjoy the story!

[Bell]

I think you should do Princess Celestia. Also, maybe I'm wrong, but shouldn't this be tagged crossover?

[Relevant Heavy Metal]

The Mirror - Dream Theater

[LunarShadow]

790909
I asked about it. But because I only include the one element, and I never really connect it to Harry Potter, no. Though, if this somehow incorporated Harry Potter in a larger way, I would retag it to reflect that.