Ponyville Knowledge For All (Ponyville, Open)

[SteelEagle]

Golden Oaks Library was not one of the largest libraries in the nation, nor did it have the most extensive collection of valuable tomes. But what it provided was something that Twilight held dear to her heart and had helped her become the mare she was- easy access to a wide knowledge base and all sort of fiction to stoke the mind's vivid imagination. Libraries were a community oriented outreach program of the Royal family, books borrowed based on personal recognicance, good manners, and the honor system, free of charge for all ponies across the land. Twilight Sparkle was proud to be a librarian, even if it was probably the least publicly respected position she held now.

She still lived in the Library, spurning the possibility of a royal lifestyle for the time being. She still had her responsibilities, her stations abroad, even guards and a banner, but none of that adorned her living space at Golden Oaks. She wasn't uncomfortable per se, but accepting the regalia that went with her position seemed to be the move she'd make when she was ready to leave Ponyville, and for that time at least she couldn't possibly imagine such a move. She was quite fine being Twilight Sparkle in Ponyville for the time being, but as always being just that meant a whole lot more than perhaps other ponies would have thought healthy. Her schedule, especially with such long-distance ruling, allowed for so little time for relaxation. But for her, such hectic scheduling and excitement was the cornerstone of her Ponyville life before and after, and even something as small as opening up the library on time was important to her.

Every morning at 8 AM it opened. Before that she cleaned and tidied the library, took care of a few problems that had found their way to her during her short time asleep, ate breakfast and if time permitted took a jog. Spike was a great help, and that morning he had been just as great as he always was. Together- anypony who thought they did it alone was a madmare- they read reports befitting royal attention, she made decisions and he sent her word out, they talked and laughed and went over her obsessive schedule. Today it was fairly light, little else could be gleaned from the books of Golden Oaks, little extracted from the few sources nearby, and days of experimentation and bookkeeping having sapped her momentarily of the drive to do more. Between royal duties and her friends her time was taken, but today was a rare day where her schedule was open and her body ready for some hope of rest. Of course such days usually ended with her mind burning through some sort of crisis somewhere in Equestria, but she wasn't going to start the day off negatively. At 7:59:58, her horn lit up, the window opened, the sign outside was flipped to open, and at eight o'clock in the morning Twilight Sparkle opened the library sipping some tea while reading a book. It was interesting.

Even if she'd read it a thousand times before.

[ivi]

[colour=#947e62]The town was surprisingly unfamiliar. Papercut had been a young filly the last time she trotted along this street, which she somehow remembered as being so much.. wider. And the shops; they looked cramped, cluttered and small, especially compared to what she had been getting used to seeing in Canterlot. Could this even be the same Ponyville that she used to live in?

Despite feeling uncertain, she did her best to look just the opposite as she reassured herself that this was, indeed, the right place. Her head was held high and proud. Her emerald gaze intently watched the path, avoiding eye contact with any of the ponies who happened to pass her. Her quick steps kept up a long, graceful stride. The young mare was a firm believer in the fact that confidence was key. But she couldn’t help letting out a small sigh of relief when she finally saw a familiar place: the library in the tree, where she had spent most of her time in this little town.

No wonder she didn’t recall the rest of it.

Warm memories flooded back to her as she approached the beautiful building, bringing a smile to her face by the time she reached the door. Papercut paused there, a bit nervous to think it might have been let go as the years had passed, or that the elusive books she wanted might not even be here, making her trip from Canterlot a waste of time. She just hated to waste time. There was only one way to find out, though, so without waiting any longer she raised an off-white hoof and gently pushed the door open, peering inside with a squint until her eyes adjusted to the slightly darker environment.

Right away, she started smiling even wider as she saw the shelves and shelves full of books, giving the small room a very warm and inviting air to it. Papercut was completely oblivious to the other pony in the room as she practically pranced up to the first bookshelf and levitated a thick volume off of it, her shimmering green magic holding it in the air as she eagerly skimmed over the first few pages. It wasn’t what she was looking for, but it was fascinating nonetheless, and she fought to put it back before she become too deeply engrossed. She quietly repeated this process a couple more times, spending a bit longer on each book as if it was becoming harder to stay focused. It wasn't long before she glanced up in the middle of switching out books and noticed that she wasn't alone. The book she was levitating fell to the floor.

“Oh! Princess, I, uh..” she murmured, shocked to see none other than Twilight Sparkle, the newest princess in Equestria. Her professor had conveniently failed to mention who was running this library. Papercut rarely found herself at a loss for words, but she wasn’t quite sure of what to say, having just barged in here like that. Should she have knocked, at least? “I'm sorry,” she eventually said, bowing her head slightly as she lifted the book once again and put it back on the shelf. “I didn’t see you there.”[/colour]

​

[Lux]

Guiding Light trotted merrily down the street towards the familiar golden Oaks Library. Aside from his school and house, the library was a frequently visited place for the yellow unicorn who spent many hours just perusing the shelves and often returning home with his saddlebags filled with precious knowledge. Strangely, in his time visiting the library he had not once met the librarian. Usually the place was left open where ponies like him could use the honor system and take out books at will. There were plenty of rumors flying around about the mysterious librarian. Some said she was reclusive, others said that somehow she knew Princess Celestia. The strangest tale was that the librarian had recently become a princess. Each new rumor seemed like the stuff found in a good novel, and the colt desired to separate the truth from myth about this pony named Twilight Sparkle.

Today was not just to meet the librarian. Guiding Light had bigger plans for this day. Ever since he received his cutie mark, the unicorn wanted to learn more about light magic from increasing his power and control to new spells he could learn. more importantly the pony longed to find out how he could use his talent for something other than being a glorified portable light.

[colour=#daa520]"Here goes nothing," [/colour]Light said as he opened the door to the wondrous library within the bowels of a tree.

He could see that there was a young mare already in the library which was no surprise seeing other patrons. What surprised him was there casually sipping tea was a purple princess. Even in such a such a simple task of reading a book, the Princess radiated, wisdom and power.

[colour=#daa520]"Um... excuse me. You are Princess Twilight Sparkle right?" [/colour]

He remembered the time meeting Princess Luna once while standing in line and how he gave a bow to her. He decided to display the same courtesy towards Twilight by bowing to her.

[SteelEagle]

Magical auras as given off by unicorns preceding acts of applied physical magic are effected by a wide range of stimuli in the weather systems of Equestria, owing both due to the nature of Pegasi magic's intermingling at basic biological levels and the action of the storm itself. Observe in Starswirl's Theorem that the actions of basic unicorn levitation are incontrovertibly weakened during a basic rainstorm, variables including the intensity and length of the storm proceeding the use of magic...

Twilight read the same passage for perhaps the ten thousandth time, knowledge renewed and refreshed repeatedly more so for the fact she enjoyed it rather than any new information she could glean. A Hundred Thoughts on the Theorem was one of her favorite works regarding Starswirl's Theorem, the fundamental foundation of all commonly accepted studied regarding the interplay of magic in Equestria, and beyond reading it for research she often read it for pure entertainment. In all that time nopony had been able to figure out some essential elements that were missing in the theorem, and that mystery was the sort of thing that tickled her mind's eye like no other.

So enraptured was she that she allowed the first pony of the day to wander in without greeting them immediately. She would have had the pony even amoment of hesitation, but she advanced towards the walls of knowledge that circled the ground floor and Twilight wasn't going to stand in the way of anypony's pursuit of knowledge. She went back to reading, keeping her ears perked for any questions the patron had.

...in certain conditions, however, it has been observed that weather patterns can have positive impacts on the use of magic rather than negative. Natural weather, a rarity in Equestria, holds the possibility for unique electrical storms. The ionosphere is charged uniquely during these periods free of the influence of pegasi majesty, and in these rare cases unicorn magic can be powered beyond their natural limits. The Theorem-

The sound of books hitting the floor, causing Twilight's head to snap up and meet the other unicorn mare, off-white coat and well-kept form melding well with a certain degree of confidence and hunger. A student? Canterlot perhaps, Twilight had her fair share of experiences with those types as well. She was surprised to see a Princess, and Twilight couldn't blame her. Twilight closed her book and picked up the book that had fallen and absentmindedly put it back where it belonged as she stood up and trotted to meet the mare.

[colour=#4b0082]"Oh, it's perfectly fine. I try not to interrupt a pony when they seem so intent on something, but is there anything I could help you find?"[/colour] Twilight offered, brushing aside her uncomfortableness with being called a Princess, [colour=#4b0082]"Usually ponies come here and meander about before asking for my help, but you seem to be on a mission! Research, or just longing for a good read?"[/colour]

As she asked, a little colt came in. This pony was one that Twilight was a little more familiar with, one of the younger ponies who populated the town with all of their crackling energy. He asked her if she was who she was and then he bowed. Reflexively, Twilight looked over her shoulder(past her wings) to see if Celestia had snuck up on her again, momentary panic sending her pupils into retreat as she wondered if she had forgotten a visit. Then she remembered that she was a Princess now, and ponies were going to bow. It was weird, but at least her mind didn't have to meltdown.

[colour=#4b0082]"Oh! Yes. I am Twilight Sparkle but you don't have to call me Princess- Twilight is just fine. Is there anything I could help you with?"[/colour]

[QuickLime]

The Library, Lime loved libraries! However the smell of a good book, the crispness of a page, and the fun of sitting quietly for hours wasn't the purpose of her visit today! No Lime was there to give something to the new Princess..She rolled her eyes at the title, in her time in Ponyville she had learned that Twilight Sparkle was Twilight Sparkle! It would be so odd to call her a princess when she lived in a library, and didn't even wear a crown or hoof protector thingies anyways!

Once at the Library Lime cringed a little bit...ugh there were other people here.. she moved a hoof up and fiddled with her glasses as they spoke, rolling her eyes a little bit since they both called her Princess, Twilights reaction showed that she wasn't used to it, and Limes mentality was confirmed when the Mare said

"[colour=#800080]Twilight is just fine[/colour]"

After giving them time to approach her Lime moved forward "Excuse me Twilight ? I'm a friend of Spikes and he mentioned that you might enjoy a certain type of tea that I make, so I thought I'd be neighborly and bring you some to try" She offered smiling slightly "I'll wait till you have spoken to these two before discussing it further....Then I'll be outa here so you can go back to your studies..sorry for interrupting by the way, I hate getting bothered when I'm nose deep in a good book.."

[ivi]

[colour=#947e62]The lavender alicorn was friendly and kind - a relief to Papercut, who often found that authority figures in Canterlot were more irritating than they were respectable. Nothing could be worse than a pompous, rude, entitled pony who instantly assumed they were better than you just because of their title. Twilight Sparkle seemed just the opposite. She might have even been uncomfortable with her title, which was easily far more grand than most.

Papercut smiled and relaxed. “A mission is right,” she said. “I’ve been looking for a book, or a rumor of a book, really.. It’s a transcript of a journal that belonged to B.F. Trotter, about his theories on behaviorism and-”

Her answer - which was about to become a ramble - was cut short by a colt entering the library. He properly addressed the princess and bowed, making Papercut feel a bit silly again for the way she barged in, but she couldn’t change the past and decided to pay it no attention, instead turning back to the bookshelves while he and Twilight spoke. As another pony came in and started talking about tea, the unicorn mare was even more sure of her choice to wait. Groups weren’t exactly her thing.

Neither is tea, she thought, wrinkling her snout a bit in distaste.

Besides, there were plenty of books to keep her occupied while she continued her solo search through the library.[/colour]

​

[Lux]

Guiding light noticed some strange reactions with the ponies around him. Both the unicorn who was there before him and a green pegasus pony who arrived at the library shortly after him shared a look of surprise, like perhaps they felt that individually they would be the only ponies there in a library. He also noticed that Twilight upon calling her Princess glanced back as if she expected another princess next to her. The colt wondered for a moment what it was like to be a Princess, but of course he knew that such an occurrence for him would be impossible. The fact though that Twilight preferred to be called without the title was a shock to the unicorn but in the same sense made him feel more comfortable around the pony

[colour=#daa520]"Oh, well Princess... I mean Twilight Sparkle, my name is Guiding Light, but you can just call me Light if you want to. My magic is about creating light, like this..."[/colour]

With a flicker of his horn a small ball of white light, faint in the light of the library but still visible, appeared and hovered over the colt for a few seconds until it dissipated.

[colour=#daa520]"I was wondering if you can help me to improve my magic. I've been practicing hard every chance I get and have tried to read about light magic, but hardly any unicorns know how to help me get my magic stronger or to learn new things about it. so would you be able to help me with that? If not now it can be at another time." [/colour]

[SteelEagle]

Journals weren't the foray of Golden Oaks, the small community library simply not stocked so well as to have transcripts of most scholastic journals. Luckily the subject she was searching for happened to be in a field of enough scope that Golden Oaks simply had to have something, and B.F. Trotter was a titan in his field of expertise. Psychology was one of Twilight's many fields of interest though that was more of a hobbyist's interest than true academic. In any case Twilight had a few articles for the patron, though whether it was what she would want was very unlikely. Before Twilight turned her attention fully to the adorable little colt in search of her patronage, Twilight offered what she could.

[colour=#4b0082]"Well, we do have three works by B.F. Trotter that you can find in Pony Studies-Psychology, but if you want something as specific as a transcript of a journal, your best bet would be the royal archives,"[/colour] Twilight postulated, unsure if it existed even there. She'd have to do some research for the sake of research! The best sort of research, probably. With that, her attention turned to Guiding Light who did a little demonstration of his magic. She smiled.

[colour=#4b0082]"Light magic is very special and can be very enchanting. How lucky are you!" [/colour]She laughed, [colour=#4b0082]"light magic is also very difficult to master. If you try to get too strong too fast or try to do too much, then any number of bad things can happen. I knew a stallion who was almost blinded by somepony else's light display,"[/colour] she left out that it was Twilight who had nearly blinded Crescent during an experiment,[colour=#4b0082] "so you don't want to go too far very quickly. You've already done so much so quickly! But if you'd like more help, I was thinking of organizing a sort of camp for little fillies and colts like yourself that can't otherwise attend Celestia's School,"[/colour] She somewhat revealed a plan she had been working on, but heck, it wasn't like a colt would tell all of his friends. Or his family.

Just as her mind started to connect the dots, her nose connected with the aroma of ground tea leaves and the base ingredients of a darn good tea. She matched the smell with a face and smiled as Lime was willing to wait her turn, but Twilight organized social interaction as well as anything else.

[colour=#4b0082]"Oh, no need to wait. Spike knows me like a book, or a gem in his case, and I'm sure you have something delicious! Thanks for the wonderful gift. My name is Twilight Sparkle, and your's would be...?"[/colour]

[QuickLime]

The sophisticated mare's face made Lime frown softly, something about her presence seemed to bother her? Or maybe she was being paranoid..she waited till the other had addressed the first two guests, the alicorns assurance that she didn't need to wait was rather assuring, and something about her attitude made Lime less on edge with her than she was with most other ponies, and she offered her a small sincere smile "QuickLime, it's QuickLime, and yes, Spike smelled it and instantly suggested it, It's one of my favorite blends, and it's so naturally sweet it needs no sugar, you are more than welcome" She moved the top of her saddlebag off, and took out the box that contained the tea bags, sitting it on a nearby table.

"It's really nice to finally meet you face to face Twilight, Spike talks about you so much, he really thinks you hang the moon" She didn't offer a hoof, not sure if it was proper to engage physical contact or not "I am so glad to see someone so organized in charge of the library, nothing says cozy like a neatly stocked, alphabetized library to me"

[SunsetSombra]

[colour=#000000][ Somewhere in the darker reaches of the library...or at least, right at the back behind the historical tomes of Ye Olde Equestrian history... ][/colour]

Mornings at the library were always both the best and worst of times for the young dragon currently hard at work - it was always good fun to wake up and share a good mornings joke or discussion with Twilight, but it also entailed having to get involved in doing some of the more mundane library work, and this morning was clearly no exception to the rule. Spike had taken on, at the mares request, the oft-overlooked task of dusting down some of the older and lesser used reference shelves and had underestimated the size of the job involved...indeed, it almost seemed like most ponies preferred to read from the fiction or easier learning aisles, since almost every shelf here was smudged over in a layer of dust from disuse that probably dated back, Spike almost wanted to say, to prehistoric pony times or something.

" [colour=#008080]The captivating history of... [/colour]" Spike mutters to himself as he looks closer, raising one scaled eyebrow in curious intrigue at the title of the book he was currently dusting down the spine of... " [colour=#008080]Yarn and Twine - Seriously, who on earth writes this...oh.[/colour] " The author name reveals itself to Spike - and he gives a rather amused roll of the eyes, resuming his vigorous . "[colour=#008080] Knit N Needle? Seriously, who thought of that as a good name anyway[/colour]?! "

It was here that Spike suddenly sneezed, forcing the young dragon to shake his head and wrinkle his nose at the sensation before rubbing it with a claw and blowing through each nostril in turn to try an' regain composure...before sneezing again forcefully and falling flat on his rear end, the sneezing not ceasing as he tries to get himself back under control, getting back to his feet and shaking himself down somewhat before going back for another go at finishing off the shelf he'd been working on. Of course, it only resulted in him sneezing into the shelf and receiving a faceful of dust back in his face...which in turn only served to add to the sneezing onslaught. Spike found himself rendered into a state of uncontrollable sneezes, which in turn results in him creating small bursts of green flame...scorching along the bookcase slightly, leaving small black marks as he does so.

It took a few moments for him to recover, and by this time he'd left an intermittant trail of smoke and dust - along with a small trail of burn marks on the shelves, althugh fortunately none of the books had come into much contact with the small sneezeflames that Spike had let loose during his rather impromptu sneezing session. Spike wasn't sure the kind of reaction that Twilight would have on his rather unfortunate situation - it wasn't exactly a big issue, since none of the books were harmed, but the shelves looked a little charred around the edges.

this was about the time that the youngster heard the familiar voice of Quicklime, which prompted him to immediately take a personal break from what he was doing and make his way over to go see his newfound friend - the green pony having been a most interesting an' fun one to be around, and Spike had no problems taking a few moments to go see how she was doing this morning!

" [colour=#008080]Yo, QuickLime, whassup[/colour]? " he says, approaching now with a cheerful grin before sneezing again...luckily, this time was flame free. "[colour=#008080] ugh, Sorry...s'been one of those mornings[/colour]! "

It seemed to be a much easier situation to just save mentioning the charred bookcase to Twilight for later - didn't seem to be a need to bring something like that up just now!

[ivi]

[colour=#947e62]Papercut nodded, not at all surprised to hear that the book wasn't here. It hadn't been in any of the other libraries she checked either. Oh well, she thought, sighing a bit and trotting to the psychology section in the back that she had been directed to instead, though, as she levitated various books and flipped through them she kept glancing up at the princess and the other ponies on the other side of the library. It really was strange: an alicorn in a town like this, tending an archive so casually. As she listened to the sweet little colt ask for her help, she couldn't help but wonder why, even if Twilight was a natural at her job.

The sound of a sneeze caused Papercut to jump up and gasp, startled by the sudden noise. She whirled around most ungracefully and gave a bewildered look to.. a dragon? A small, purple-and-green dragon who began to have a fiery sneezing fit just a few shelves away.

"Oh my," she grunted, taking a few steps back, and then a couple more as the young dragon looked up and noticed the lime green pony who had brought tea. Papercut couldn't help her curiosity as she followed him with wide eyes. Once a lull came in the their conversation, she bluntly, perhaps rudely stated the obvious, "You're a dragon." After getting his attention, she added, "I'm sorry, I mean.. I've never met one before. You're simply adorable. What's your name?"[/colour]

​

[Lux]

Light listened to Twilight, hoping to absorb as mush information as he could like a sponge.

[colour=#4b0082]Light magic is very special and can be very enchanting. How lucky are you!"[/colour]

The colt wondered about how lucky he was to be blessed with such a talent. All that he knew how to do was to create a ball or beam of light and occasionally change its colours. But the use of it beyond illuminating dark places eluded him. Nevertheless when a princess who was well versed in magic told him he was lucky it made him feel good.

[colour=#4b0082]"light magic is also very difficult to master. If you try to get too strong too fast or try to do too much, then any number of bad things can happen. I knew a stallion who was almost blinded by somepony else's light display, [/colour][colour=#4b0082]so you don't want to go too far very quickly. You've already done so much so quickly! [/colour]

[colour=#daa520]"Err... yeah, it is kind of hard for me to get the hang of it. As far as blinding a pony, I kind of did that to my teacher. Accidentally of course."[/colour]

He felt like a fool doing that but considering that accidents did happen his embarrassment was lessened. And his magic didn't cause any lasting harm to Miss Cheerilee, so that was also a good thing.

[colour=#4b0082]But if you'd like more help, I was thinking of organizing a sort of camp for little fillies and colts like yourself that can't otherwise attend Celestia's School,"[/colour]

This made the yellow unicorn's ears perk up. Although he pictured in his mind a one on one meeting with somepony who would help him with his magic, a camp where he could go to and learn magic, his own type of magic.

[colour=#daa520]"Really? You're planning a camp for me to learn about my light magic? That's great! Oh I'll definitely want to go to that! I mean, i really want to learn all I can about my light magic and how to use it. But you said that my magic can be enchanting. How does that work?" [/colour]

He looked over at the other unicorn present who was interested in a book the colt never heard about.

[colour=#daa520]"Hi there. What kind of magic do you like to do?" [/colour]

[SteelEagle]

As Twilight was about to respond to the mare who had so delightfully brought tea so Twilight could get her brain out of it's current funk- she wasn't researching something, and her brain was spinning and trying to make something out of nothing more than enough for one day- a series of sneezes snapped her attention towards the non-fiction section of her not-quite-humble home. Poor Spike seemed to be a victim of unfortunately timed and shockingly common bouts of sneezing which, by nature of Spike being a dragon, could turn into disaster at the drop of a hat. But the fact that he wasn't racing to tell everypony that everything was wrong or everything was just dandy and they shouldn't go investigate was a good sign.

In the time that took, little Guiding Light stole her attention away from QuickLime. Twilight was a little worried about somepony that young suffering from a lack of magical control and a certain degree of carelessness, but such was youth. After all, it would be wrong for Twilight to say anything- she had turned her father into a potted plant by accident, after all. A little stray light magic was nothing compared to momentarily wondering of you had to water your father to continue he would grow. Luckily for her, she lived in a family of means and had nearly limitless potential and power. Most unicorn fillies and colts weren't nearly as lucky as she was, and Twilight had a plan for that. Nice to see that he was excited about the prospect!

[colour=#4b0082]"Well, it's not just for you- hopefully there will be camps across the nation for ponies just like you! And by enchanting I was just saying that when used right, it can be very pretty, not to mention very useful. The creation of light is something that you should feel honored to have," [/colour]Twilight spoke softly, though it was the truth she would also the same about many varieties of magic. No reason to not make him feel special, though. He bounded off to talk with the mare, and Twilight turned her attention back to QuickLime. She seemed a bit nervous or pensive- either because of royalty or a perceived slight. Twilight brushed it off, not wanting to draw attention to it.

[colour=#4b0082]"This tea looks amazing. And you better thank Spike for how this library looks!" [/colour]She said, motioning to her assistant who was currently the number one focus of the would-be psychiatrist.

[colour=#4b0082]"I love to do big organizational projects, but Spike does a lot of the day-to-day maintenance and upkeep while I work on what I work on,"[/colour] she sighed, [colour=#4b0082]"a time-saver, life-saver, and the best assistant a pony could ask for,"[/colour] Twilight smiled, telekinetically getting a new pot of water boiling.

[colour=#4b0082]"Spike, when the water is ready may you pour some tea for the patrons?" [/colour]She asked, trotting towards him and leaning in close, whispering, [colour=#4b0082]"and you didn't burn anything in the non-fiction section, did you?"[/colour]

Considering there was boiling water nearby, probably wise to answer that one negatively.

[QuickLime]

QuickLime brightened significantly as she saw her friend Spike! He was a familiar face and the mare was instantly more at ease "Spike! How's it going with you? I just finally thought I'd bring Twilight here that tea you said you figured she'd like" Lime was way more relaxed now, her whole posture seemed to..relax.. "It's so good to see you" Letting his attention get snagged by the other pony however she glanced at Twilight and smiled a soft, sincere smile.

"Oh I don't doubt it, Spike has been a good friend to me, I really hadn't started coming out of my shell until we bumped into each other on the street, He's really helped me out in not being so..wary around social situations..I'm not good with them y' know? When I was younger it was kinda more fun to read and to work on my craft rather than...talk to ponies" She wrinkled her nose "I suppose I'm a bit stunted but I'm getting better"

Lime looked around the library and smiled "It's a beautiful Library, he truly does a great job" She glanced at Twilight again and beamed "You are so lucky you get to live in a Library"

[SunsetSombra]

Spike wasn't sure quite how to handle the praise - part of him wanted to be all loud and out there with it, the other half seemed too preoccupied with being entirely unsure about how to express itself...afterall, these were relatively respectable words from two friends whom he admired for differing reasons...one, of course, was Twilight - there was no end to how appreciative and admiring of her Spike was...afterall, this was the pony who had hatched him, and had been his best friend for most of his relatively short life so far.

The other was QuickLime, a pony who had proven to be willing and ready to be a friend and to enjoy his company generally on days when Twilight was a little bit too busy with her necessary studies for their usual banter and chat. The young mare might have been a little rough around the edges, but Spike figured she was good company!

" [colour=#008080]Awww, you guys...[/colour] " Spike replied, a slight notable blush on his features as he gave a small footshuffle on the floor, trying not to let it get the better of him...whilst the dragon might have been fond of the praises ponies gave him from time to time, he was trying to learn how to keep himself grounded when it was given, 'lest he get too carried away with it and wear out the value of what praise was being given at the time.

"Spike, when the water is ready may you pour some tea for the patrons?"

Twilights request soon brings the dragon back down to earth, and he offers a small nod - but he barely had a chance to even get to serving anything when Twilight immediately asked about the incident a few moments ago, and whether or not anything had been burned. Spike cleared his throat and gave a small shake of the head in response, scratching his head for a second in thought.

" [colour=#008080]Well, nothing really burned as such - slightly scorched, perhaps, but nothing REALLY, uh..BADLY damaged[/colour]. " he says, a little sheepishly given the topic.

" [colour=#008080]the bookshelves up and around the d-e section may be a l'il blacker, and maybe a few books need...well, a new top cover spine, but other than that, it should be okay[/colour]! "

With that kinda out in the open, the young dragon returns to his prior command of serving tea - deciding it better for him to be doing something slightly productive for the time being!

[Corsair]

Snips trudged his way toward Ponyville's library. Normally, the excitable colt would have been bouncing just because school was out, but a weight in his saddle bags kept him grounded. This weight was not only dragging him down, but it had also dragged his grade down in Miss Cheerilee's class. "Stupid Starswirl..." Snips grumbled to himself.

The lump in Snips' bags was, in fact, a book; 'The Life and Spellwork of Starswirl the Bearded, Conjurer of the Pre-Classical Period.' He had checked the book out from the library for a book report. Snips had hoped that the book would have some exciting stories about Starswirl the Bearded, one of history's most powerful unicorns. Instead, the old, weighty tome had been analytic, boring, and hard to understand. As a result, his report had been the same.

More than anything, Snips just wanted to be rid of the book. When he finally arrived at the library, he was tired, sweating, and not really paying attention. He lifted his head just in time to see a purple, serpentine tail disappear into one of the back areas of the unusual tree. Snips flipped open his bag, exposing the top of the book. Raising his voice, he called out, "Hey Spike! Can ya give me a hoof? I need to get rid of this old doorstop!"

​

[Lux]

Guiding Light waited for the white unicorn to answer when he heard Twilight Sparkle respond. He felt a little embarrassed that he essentially cut the conversation short and quickly tried to remedy it. He felt a little bad that he wouldn't necessarily get the one on one treatment that he envisioned, but a camp that he could improve his magic was still a great option.

[colour=#4b0082]"Well, it's not just for you- hopefully there will be camps across the nation for ponies just like you! And by enchanting I was just saying that when used right, it can be very pretty, not to mention very useful. The creation of light is something that you should feel honored to have," [/colour]

[colour=#daa520]"Well, I'm really excited to meet other ponies and learn from them too then. Oh, yeah, I guess it is pretty neat to look at at night. Do you know of any other uses for it besides helping other ponies see in the dark?"[/colour]

Light then saw a familiar face in the library. A classmate, Snips, appeared, but was not too happy about being there.

[colour=#daa520]"Hey Snips. Is that the book on Starswirl the Bearded?" [/colour]

[SteelEagle]

Twilight nodded along, understanding perfectly where Quick Lime was coming from. She too had once been somewhat of a social failure, her senses primed for study and reading rather than allowing the outside world to truly touch her. There had never been good cause for it, just a love of books that consumed her so that her social life passed like dust in the wind. Thankfully she had ponies who helped pull her out and showed her how much she was missing, how life without friendship was stunted and completely pointless. And thankfully Spike was doing that for her- how sweet.

[colour=#4b0082]"That's great. I understand where you're coming from- I was the same growing up. I'm happy that Spike can help you, he's a great little guy. He does a great job of helping me keep this place clean- really does help make it a great place to live. All these beautiful books certainly don't hurt matters!"[/colour] Twilight ended with a solid laugh, nodding in Spike's direction. He really was a sweet little dragon, and without him her life would have been less. Of course without him there wouldn't be as many fires or close calls, which would have lent itself to her heart health. She had let the little accident go only because it seemed as though nothing was damaged, at least until the tea was served and the library was emptied of patrons which by all of her experience told her wouldn't be far too long.

[colour=#4b0082]"Thank you, Spike. Three cups should be enough- do you want some tea, Guiding Light?"[/colour] She asked the colt as he took in her previous statement, then came back with a question of his own. She gave it a few seconds of thought and smiled.

[colour=#4b0082]"Far too many for me to describe. Your options are really only limited by your own experiences and situation- wherever light can be applied, directed light magic can be very useful. Something you'll learn as you grow older, though study never hurt," [/colour]She ended with a smile, considering all of the times she learned and grew not just from study, but actual use of her magical talents. Of course there was a difference between her tight experimentation with her growing powers and any colt or filly feeling their oats. Still, the same logic applied. A moment after she finished, Snips entered, appearing to carry a heavy tome. She knew instantly what it was- the book he had borrowed from the library not long ago, one of the greatest works regarding Starswirl's life and theories ever written and one of her personal favorites. He entered and seemed to be on the verge of total and complete collapse, his plump frame equalling out to the tome poorly. He asked for Spike, but her assistant was busy. Twilight levitated the book and slowly but surely placed it in it's slot, sighing- that ugly space in both heart and mind was filled. She turned back to Snips.

[colour=#4b0082]"Thank you for returning the book! Did you enjoy it? How did your book report go?"[/colour]

[Corsair]

Snips lifted his head as he felt the weight of the library book lift from his back. To his surprise, he was not the only pony in the library. There was a white unicorn mare he didn't recognize, a tall green pegasus that looked vaguely familiar, and his classmate, Guiding Light. But all of those ponies were swiftly forgotten as he turned his attention to the purple mare that now held the heavy book easily in her magic.

Of course, everypony knew that Twilight Sparkle had become Equestria's newest Princess. It was all that the town could talk about, recently. All the fillies and colts in school were talking about it, all the stallions that came into his dad's barber shop were talking about it. But it was one thing to hear all the rumors, and see Twilight's face on his dad's newspaper every day. It was quite another to be confronted with the pony herself. Snips was dumbstruck.

He had already looked up to Twilight Sparkle, the unicorn. How could he not? She was the most powerful magician he'd ever seen, and had bested the so-called 'Great and Powerful' Trixie not once, but twice. But now, seeing her in all of her glory, an alicorn, a Princess, she seemed to glow as she smiled down at him.

She was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen...

​
[colour=#4b0082]"Thank you for returning the book! Did you enjoy it? How did your book report go?"[/colour]

It took several seconds for it to register in Snips' brain that the vision before him had spoken, and had asked him a question. It took several more before he could manage to get his mouth working again. "Wha... bluh..." Ok, that wasn't working so well... Snips's mind rushed to catch up. "It... it was... great... Prin... Your Highness..." There, that worked, he thought. But wait, he wanted to make The Princess happy, but he didn't want to lie to her either! "Err, I mean, it was, um, tough... Your Highness. To read, I mean. I, uh, didn't understand a lot of it but... but I'm sure it was a great book!"

​

[SunsetSombra]

Spike made his way to the kitchen, whistling slightly to himself - his attention hadn't really been caught by Snips's calling out to him, since he was too busy focusing on getting to the task at hand...making tea for guests was a task the dragon usually took pride in, and thus his mind was already pondering over which leaves to use for the mid-afternoon...settling on the idea that the more traditional variety was the best for ponies who probably weren't expecting anything else.

It didn't really take him too long to do, as far as brewing and preparing the tea went - he was surprisingly adept at handling the kitchen for a young dragon, having been doing it long enough for things to be second nature...besides, he was fond of being out in the kitchen when he got the chance, cooking being one of the things Spike loved getting to do now and then afterall.

A few moments pass and the dragon makes his way back out to the main room - taking a second to try and get a handle on what it was that suddenly struck him about the scen upon his return...Setting the tray of tea down on the desk, spike scratched the top of his head as his mind raced over just what it was that, perhaps, wasn't quite the same as when he'd gone to make the teas...everything SEEMED in order, but there was something that had changed just enough for it to bother him.

"[colour=#008080] Oh Hey there, Snips[/colour]! " the dragon looked over at the pony momentarily, before realising that was just it - he'd not seen snips enter, and thus hadnt made enough tea to accomodate.

NOthing MAJOR, of course, but it was a little nagging to him that he'd completely neglected to accomodate for any latecomers - easily fixable, though, if Snips wanted some!

[Lux]

"Oh tea would be great," Guiding Light said as he looked about the library, spotting any possibly books he wanted to check out before. He wondered how many he read in this library and how many of the hundreds maybe thousands that were left on the ornate shelves.

He listened intently as Twilight explained the use of light spells were limited to situation and imagination. His ears lowered when Twilight said it was something he'd lern when he was older, as this was something that all adult ponies seemed to tell him. He wondered where the line was between being considered a foal and a stallion and when and how he could cross that. But he quickly perked up when Twilight encouraged him to practice.

"Well, there is one thing that I've been trying, it's using mirrors. Like when I project light at a mirror it comes directly back. If i change the color of my light when it bounces back I can change the color of my coat. Maybe if I can project light over a pony directly I can give them a different color. Not really sure if it's really useful but it looks neat!"

He then heard Snips talk about the book he used for his report in school.

"Yeah, that was an interesting book. Don't feel bad though Snips, as it was tough for me to read too."

[SteelEagle]

It was endearing and quite expected that the little colt would be a bit flabbergasted and short on speech as he tried to talk with the Princess. She understood it perfectly as she had once been the very same, awestruck by the majesty of Celestia in the shimmer sun that acted as a chariot for the soaring spirit that Celestia had. She wasn't nearly arrogant enough to believe that this was the same level of reaction, but then again she was in front of him making small talk while for much of her foalhood Celestia was a figure of awe more than a pony. More importantly the book had apparently been a bit much for him which didn't come as a shock to her. It was a high level book and while she thought he was an intelligent little colt (even if a bit silly at times), it would be a challenge for most. He didn't seem to take to it with all the gusto she would have preferred but she couldn't have everything she wanted all the time, could she? She smiled at the colt and ruffled his mane a little, an action that she hoped would make him a bit more comfortable.

"Well, that book isn't for everyone. It is a work usually reserved for scholars and high level researchers like myself- not to toot my horn too highly, of course. You should be commended for even attempting it- most colts your age wouldn't have half the nerve to try, let alone get through it as far as you did or make as earnest an effort. You should be very proud," Twilight offered, meaning every word of it as she sipped her tea. Awfully good- Spike was superb at this! She'd have to bring it up the next time she spoke with the Mayor, a lover of tea and coffee herself. But alas, Spike hadn't made enough for everypony. Twilight took half of the cup in a devilish gulp and then wiped down the tea glass before offering it to Snips.

"Here you go. It's really good tea!" She turned to Spike, "great job, Spike! And thank you QuickLime for picking up something so delicious. Spike knows me rather well, I'd say," She ended with an innocent light laugh, Guiding Light stealing her attention. HE seemed determined and creative, qualities of equal importance and virtue.

"That does sound very interesting, though I'd caution against practicing outside of a safe area with qualified instructors. It might sound boring, but being safe while you study, learn, and grow is one of the most important parts of studying!

[SunsetSombra]

Now that it seemed everypony was kinda going back to their own business, Spike decided to make his way over to Quicklime and just see what was up with the mare...ever since meetin' her, Spike had done things to help her out here and there when he had some time to do so, and in return he attained new ideas for the kitchen and stuff that would generally make for better teas. It was a mutually beneficial friendship, and one that the dragon had recognised was worth holding onto if possible...which immediately brought something to mind that he'dmeant to have brought up to her a little sooner, although it really hadn't been like he was totally free to have done so ahead of today when he thought on it!

" Hey, QuickLime! " the dragon piped up, giving the mare a small grin. " I think I gotta book around here that might make for pretty great reading! "

And without a word, the dragon bounds off into the direction of the food reference library section, disappearing for several momemts before coming back clutching hold of a book almost as big as him...and about a dozen times as old. He stumbles his way back towards the green pegasus and puts the book on the table nearest to her, patting it once on the cover with a claw. " I found this a couple of days ago - Exotic teas from around the world by Professor T Drinker....and yeah, that's really his name, pretty stupid if ya ask me! "

He chuckles slightly and leans against the table, giving a small shrug. " I figured that maybe, y'know, this'd be somethin' you'd like to take a look at! "

[Corsair]

Snips felt like his legs were locked in place. He couldn't have moved if he wanted to... not that he really wanted to. The Princess was talking, to him, complementing him, and even offering to share her drink! She was more amazing than any pony he'd ever seen before... His mouth moved silently for a moment before finally managing "T-t-thank you... your Highness... you... you're too kind..." That was the kind of thing you were supposed to say to a Princess, right? Right?? In this state, he barely noticed Twilight talking to the other ponies in the room.

Snips took a sniff of the cup that floated before him. The colt wasn't really a fan of tea, particularly fancy tea mixes. But... this was from the Princess, he had to at least try. He took the cup in in own magic, focusing intently so he wouldn't drop it. THAT would be a disaster... He took a sip of the beverage, and immediately began coughing. As spams wracked his throat. be barely managed to keep the cup floating. As quickly as he could, he passed the cup back to the alicorn. "Um, it was, um, very good..." he said, before trailing off...

​

[Lux]

Guiding Light's ears drooped upon hearing Twilight Sparkle speaking about having to practice with a professional. It was a problem that had reared its ugly head as he now faced the issue of his ongoing problem coming full circle.

"Well, it's not that I think its boring. It's just that with my type of magic that I do is rare. Do I want somepony to teach me? Absolutely! The problem is that I can't find one! Every unicorn I met so far doesn't know light magic as a talent. So that's why I've been studying on my own and trying to learn what I can from the spell books I read. Maybe this magic camp will help, but do you know of a pony who is skilled in light magic? I know that you do, but I'm sure you're busy with your royal things. I mean even if it means traveling to Canterlot I'm sure my parents won't mind."

Hoping that the lavender Alicorn understood the colt levitated the tea cup and quietly took a sip. He watched as Snips didn't seem to like it but tried to keep a happy look on his face. Although he wouldn't admit it to the yellow unicorn, Guiding Light could see that for whatever reason the pony was nervous around Twilight.