Though Tombs wanted to take Dusk straight to her house and let him settle in, she knew Odd wanted her to show the stallion around. Tombs knew better than to not do what that mare wanted. In the six years Tombs had lived in Ponyville she had only seen one pony that had gotten on Odd’s bad side. It hadn’t ended well for that pony.

So Tombs dragged Dusk around the long way, pointing out everything important. Shops, cafés, and restaurants were all shown to a less than enthusiastic stallion. Had he had any idea where to go, Dusk would have slipped away halfway through the “tour” of the town.

After a while, Dusk stopped paying attention to what Tombs was saying and focused on the scenery. Most of the shops that lined street had second floor apartments above them. He assumed that the ponies that owned the shop would live there.

The commercial district slowly began to turn into a more residential area. Cottages and townhouses replaced the shops and restaurants.How cute. It looks really close to what I remember. It’s weird; it’s the fimiliar but different all the same.

As his attention began to drift from the background to ponies inhabiting the town, Dusk began to notice a strange trend. Every time somepony spotted him, they quickly turned away. If they were with another pony, they would lean in close to one another and whisper.

Now that Dusk knew what to look for, he saw that almost everypony was avoiding him and Tombs. They turned off onto side streets or ducked into stores. Though they were on what should have been the busiest street in town, it was deserted.

“Tombs?” Dusk said, questioningly. “Why is everypony avoiding us?”

“They’re not avoiding me.” Tombs laughed. “They all know I’m good. They’re avoiding you.”

Dusk stumbled at Tombs comment. He fell a few steps behind but quickly caught up to the trotting mare. “Why would they avoid me? I know I’m new and all but that’s no reason to go out of their way to not meet me.”

“While you being new in town does have something to do with it, it has more to do with who you were walking with earlier and the thing sticking out of your forehead.” Tombs grabbed Dusk around the neck and pulled him down into headlock. She bopped him on the horn, giggling. “It’s very, very odd for Odd to be seen with somepony like you.”

Dusk fell back onto his rump as Tombs’ grip loosened. “Why would she not talk with me? She seemed very interested in getting to know me. She was really nice to me”

Tombs gave Dusk a strange look, as if she was deciding whether to throw him to the timberwolves or not. She apparently came to a decision and trotted off down the road. She looked over her shoulder and called. “Are you coming or not?”

Dusk stayed on the ground, dumbstruck, for a moment before scrabbling to his hooves. He ran after the tan mare as she turned onto a side street. As Dusk rounded the corner, he saw that Tombs had stopped in front of a skinny yet tall townhouse.  The building was the same green as her hair so it stood out in the relatively pastel neighborhood.

The door was already open when Dusk got there. Tombs held it open for him, motioning for him to enter. The room beyond was dark and dusty, much like the library. It also appeared to hold as many books as the library did.

The stacks of books called to Dusk, inviting him to start tearing through them. His horn began to glow and a few books from the top of the stack nearest to the door began to float toward him, enveloped in mauve hue. He plopped down in the front room after taking a few steps. His eyes darted from one book to the next, drinking in the knowledge.

“Go on and make yourself at home.” Tombs muttered. A little louder, she said. “Come on book-colt, your room if up here.”

It took some effort, but Tombs managed to hull Dusk up the two flights of stairs to the top floor. She opened the only door and shoved Dusk inside. “Welcome to the spare room. You’re going to be staying here for a while, so go ahead and move some of the books out into the hallway.”

Dusk barely heard what Tombs said. The sheer number of books in the room was overwhelming his senses. The smell of dust covered pages, the sound of silence, the feeling of thick parchment between his hooves; it was all too much.

Dusk charged into the room, his horn alight and started organizing the books within. Dust flew into the air causing Tombs to sneeze. She crept into the room, careful to avoid the flying books, and threw open a window. She stuck her head out.

Drawing in a deep breath, Tombs leaned out. She opened her eyes and gazed out at the street. The ponies that had hid were slowly returning to the streets. Looking further down the road, Tombs saw a figure that caught her eye. The pony was dashing from house to house, pausing for a second before running to the next.

As it got closer to her home, Tombs say that the pony was a zebra. Fear leapt into her heart. The only zebras that lived anywhere near Ponyville were Zach and Zumma. Odd had left to go see them. Sure she hadn’t actually said she would but Tombs knew Odd well enough to know she had.

“Dusk,” Tombs said, pulling him away from a book on magical signs. “Something is wrong. We need to go. Like, now.”

Dusk snapped out of his stupor and followed Tombs down the steps. They stumbled out into the street, startling a few ponies milling around. The zebra spotted Tomb’s green mane and darted towards them. Dusk looked at the black and white pony in confusion.

“Odd… Hospital… Tried to… Help... So stupid... Should’ve known.” The zebra heaved.

“Zumma, calm down.” Tombs said. “Is it the Ponyville Hospital? Is that where Odd is?”

Zumma nodded furiously. He motioned in the direction of the Hospital, indicating that they should follow him. Tombs began to run in the direction Zumma was pointing without question. It took her a moment to realize there was only one other hoof beat following her.

“Dusk, you better move your plot or, Celestia so help me; I will burn every book in your room.” Tombs called, slowing down but not stopping. “Odd is in trouble and I’m not supposed to leave you alone.”

Dusk took a tentative step then another. He thought of Tombs burning all those books and began to move a little faster. Though he was fairly certain that she wouldn’t harm any of the books, he wasn’t going to take a chance. He sped up to a trot and then a run.

Tombs sped up and so did Zumma. Within a few seconds, the ponies were running at the same pace. Surprisingly, the couch potato Dusk kept up with the much more fit Tombs and Zumma. They raced through the relatively empty streets with ease.

By the time Zumma, Tombs, and Dusk made it to the Hospital, they were all out of breath and had slowed to a fast walk. Another zebra was waiting outside the surprisingly cozy-looking building. He was pacing back and forth in front of door. He seemed like he was looking for somepony.

With a burst of renewed energy, Zumma dashed forward. The other zebra glanced up with a worried look. That look of worry changed to one of rage when he saw Zumma coming towards the Hospital.

As Dusk and Tombs reached the front entrance, the other zebra tackled Zumma and slammed him into the ground. Dusk made as if to help the pinned zebra but Tombs held up a hoof, blocking his way. She shook her head, unable to speak. She nudged the purple unicorn to the door.

The two ponies left the two zebras outside. They rolled in the dirt, each one trying to get on top, but Zumma was at a disadvantage from the run there and back. Zumma was quickly pinned by Zach.

“What did you do?!” Zach screamed at Zumma. “What did you do to her? I know you did something to her; why else would make us follow her every time she left our hut?”

“I… Thought… I did the right thing… You know I did.” Zumma wheezed. The combination of Zach’s weight and his exhaustion was clouding his mind. It was getting more and more difficult for him to breathe. “She needs… She needs… Needs to… Do something… I can’t remember.”

Zach slammed his brother into the ground again, trying to wake him up. “You have to know how to fix this. Odd is comatose and it’s your fault. She trusted you and me; she’d never admit it but she trusted us. You bucking idiot! Odd is never going to trust us again, with anything. We were the only ponies that could’ve gotten through to her.”

Zumma’s face wrinkled as if he was trying to remember something. He nodded his head slightly. “I did what I needed to.”