It was strange that, for once, Rarity was the one impatiently waiting for somepony else at the train station. A large cup of coffee floated beside her, which she’d bought on account of not sleeping since her reunion with Spike a few hours back. Then again, it wasn’t as though she really needed the coffee, since she felt very much awake.
奇怪的是，这一次，Rarity竟成了在火车站焦急等待别人的那位。一大杯咖啡飘浮在她身旁，这是她因与斯派克几小时前重逢后便未合眼而买的。不过话说回来，她其实并不真的需要咖啡，因为她感觉异常清醒。

She’d had a busy early morning, after all: going to Cheerilee’s house and insisting that Scootaloo, Sweetie, and Apple Bloom were needed at home due to private matters; waking up Fluttershy, insisting she not ask questions and instead go get the Cutie Mark Crusaders together then wait for her by the edge of the forest; and, finally, going to the station and waiting for Pinkie’s morning train.
毕竟，她清晨忙得不可开交：先是去车厘子家，坚称小蝶、甜贝儿和苹果花因私事需立即回家；接着叫醒Fluttershy，要求她别多问，直接集结可爱标记童子军并在森林边缘等候；最后，赶往车站等待Pinkie的早班列车。

Eventually, a giddy smile swept over her face at the sight of a distant train rolling toward the station. Earlier, she’d hidden her necklace when fetching Fluttershy, but now she quickly took it out of her saddlebag and put it on. She then watched as the train came to a stop and found an equally giddy pink pony waving at her, face comically pressed against the window.
终于，当远方列车驶入站台时，她脸上掠过一抹雀跃的笑容。早前接Fluttershy时她藏起了项链，此刻却迅速从鞍包中取出戴上。她注视着列车停稳，发现同样兴奋的粉色小马正滑稽地把脸贴在车窗上向她挥手。

“Hi, Rarity!” Pinkie exclaimed, jumping off the train, her saddlebags thumping against her body. “Did you meet Spike?!”
"“嗨，Rarity！”Pinkie欢呼着从火车上跳下来，她的鞍包拍打着身体。“你见到斯派克了吗？！”"

“Indeed I did!” Rarity said, smiling brightly and puffing out her chest in an attempt to give her necklace more prominence. “And good morning! Did you sleep well?”
"“当然见到了！”Rarity灿烂地笑着，挺起胸膛试图让项链更加显眼。“早上好！你睡得好吗？”"

Pinkie shook her head. “Not reeeeeally. Writing down all of Princess Luna’s questions took waaaay longer than I thought, even after Princess Luna made Professor Awe help me!” She giggled, glanced left and right as if to make sure nopony was eavesdropping, then leaned in to whisper, “She said she’ll stop visiting his dreams if he didn’t help.” She bounced up and began to hop away. “So! Are we going to see Spike now?!”
Pinkie摇了摇头。“不怎——么好。记录露娜公主的所有问题花的时间比我想象的要长——得多，即使后来露娜公主让敬畏教授帮我也一样！”她咯咯笑着，左右张望，仿佛在确认没有小马在偷听，然后凑近低声说：“她说如果他不帮忙，她就不再造访他的梦境了。”她蹦跳着开始走开。“那么！我们现在要去看斯派克了吗？！”

“Yes, we are, but only briefly, I fear,” Rarity answered, pulling Pinkie back with her magic and plopping her back in front of her. “There’s somepony else we must visit.”
"“是的，但恐怕时间会很短，”Rarity回答，用魔法将Pinkie拉回并让她重新站在自己面前。“我们还得去拜访另一位。”"

Pinkie’s ears dropped. “But, Rarityyyyy! I’ve been waiting aaaaaall of yesterday! Can’t they come with us, and then… and then…” She drifted off, her eyes gluing themselves to the grinning unicorn’s necklace. Slowly, she leaned down so that the tip of her nose poked the necklace before suddenly jolting straight up, sitting right next to Rarity and loudly whispering, “Rarity?”
Pinkie的耳朵垂了下来。“但是，瑞瑞——！我等了整整昨天一整天！她们就不能跟我们一起去吗，然后……然后……”她的声音渐渐消失，目光牢牢锁定在那只笑眯眯的独角兽的项链上。慢慢地，她俯下身，鼻尖轻触项链，又突然直起身子，紧挨着Rarity坐下，大声耳语道：“Rarity？”

“Yes, darling?” Rarity said, barely able to maintain her composure.
"“怎么了，亲爱的？”Rarity说道，几乎难以保持镇定。"

“Uhm, there’s something you really need to know,” Pinkie continued, throwing passing ponies suspicious glances. “Your necklace is glowing pink again.”
"“呃，有件事你真的得知道，”Pinkie继续说着，一边用怀疑的眼神扫视着路过的马群。“你的项链又在发粉色的光了。”"

“Oh! It completely slipped my mind!” Rarity exclaimed with innocence. “Yes, Twilight and I restored the communication spell earlier today in the library.”
"“哎呀！我完全忘了这回事！”Rarity天真地惊呼道。“是的，Twilight和我今天早些时候在图书馆里修复了通讯魔法。”"

“Oh, okay,” Pinkie said, still whispering loudly. A second of silence passed, then she nearly bowled Rarity over but restrained herself at the last moment. “WHAT?!” She jumped back, stamping her forehooves against the floor. “Does that mean you—?!”
"“哦，好吧，”Pinkie 依然用夸张的耳语声说着。片刻沉默后，她几乎要撞倒Rarity，却在最后一刻克制住了自己。“什么？！”她向后跳开，前蹄重重踏在地板上。“那是不是意味着你——？！”"

“Broke the curse?” Rarity asked, nodding her head, unable to hold back her wonderfully smug smile. “Yes, I did.”
"“解除了诅咒？”Rarity 点着头问道，无法抑制脸上得意的笑容。“是的，我做到了。”"

“Ohmigosh, Rarity! You did it! You broke it!” Pinkie exclaimed, hopping up and down like a foal who’d had excessive amounts of sugar. “But wait!” She stopped and narrowed her eyes. “That was fast. Too fast. In my books, bad stuff happens when you do stuff too fast. Oh no!” She gasped and jumped back, looking horrified. “What if you broke it so fast because we’re all going to celebrate only for something even WORSE to happen and then you’ll be separated from Twilight AGAIN!”
"“天呐，Rarity！你成功了！你解除了它！”Pinkie 欢呼雀跃，像吃了过多糖果的小马驹般蹦跳着。“等等！”她突然停下，眯起眼睛。“这也太快了。书里说，事情做得太快准没好事。糟了！”她倒吸一口气，惊恐地跳开。“万一你解得这么快是因为我们刚要庆祝，就会有更糟的事发生，然后你又要和Twilight 分开了！”"

“Pinkie, Pinkie, darling, calm down!” Rarity interrupted, playfully rolling her eyes. “After what we’ve gone through, I hardly think there could even be something worse.”
"“Pinkie，Pinkie，亲爱的，冷静点！”Rarity 插话道，顽皮地翻了个白眼。“经历了这么多，我不信还能有什么更糟的事。”"

Pinkie narrowed her eyes. “That’s what they all say in the books, Rarity…”
Pinkie眯起了眼睛。“书里都是这么说的，Rarity…”

Rarity shook her head and trotted off. “Pinkie, the only way I’d ever be separated from Twilight again is if she kept me out.” She cleared her throat and gestured for the mare to follow. “In any case, let us press on. It won’t do to keep Spike and the others waiting.”
Rarity摇了摇头，快步走开。“Pinkie，除非她把我拒之门外，否则我绝不会再与Twilight分开。”她清了清嗓子，示意母马跟上。“无论如何，我们继续前进吧。让斯派克和其他人等太久可不好。”

When they reached the outskirts of the forest, Rarity was very pleased to see everypony did as instructed. Rainbow Dash waved to them, while Fluttershy, Sweetie Belle, and Apple Bloom gawked at Spike, and Scootaloo gawked at Rainbow.
当他们抵达森林边缘时，Rarity非常高兴看到每匹小马都按指示行事。Rainbow Dash向他们挥手，而Fluttershy、甜贝儿和小萍花则目瞪口呆地盯着斯派克，飞板璐则惊讶地望着Rainbow。

“Hello, everypony!” Rarity exclaimed, grabbing the attention of everypony save the Crusaders, who were still gawking at Spike. “Are we all set?”
"“大家好！”Rarity大声说道，吸引了除了仍在盯着斯派克看的幼驹们之外的所有小马的注意。“我们都准备好了吗？”"

“Y-yes,” Fluttershy replied. “I’m not sure for what, though…”
"“是-是的，”Fluttershy回答道。“不过我不确定是为了什么…”"

“OhmiGOSH!” Pinkie gasped, rushing over to Spike and practically climbing on top of him. “You’re so big! I have so many questions! Is it true you used to wear aprons when you were a baby?!”
"“哦天哪！”Pinkie倒吸一口气，冲向 Spike，几乎爬到了他身上。“你这么大！我有好多问题！你小时候真的会穿围裙吗？！”"

“Pinkie, now’s not the time for embarrassing questions! I’ve been waiting my entire life for this moment!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed, lifting off into the air and gesturing toward the forest. “Let’s go!”
"“Pinkie，现在不是问尴尬问题的时候！我一生都在等待这一刻！”Rainbow Dash大声说道，腾空而起，指向森林。“我们走！”"

“Go?” Scootaloo said, tearing her gaze away from Rainbow and toward Rarity. “Go where? I thought you wanted us to meet Rainbow Dash!”
"“走？”Scootaloo 说着，将目光从Rainbow转向Rarity。“去哪里？我以为你想让我们见Rainbow Dash！”"

“Or Mister Spike,” Sweetie Belle said, gingerly approaching him and poking the bottom of his claw. “Coooool.”
"“或者斯派克先生，”甜贝儿小心翼翼地靠近他，轻轻戳了戳他的爪子底部，“酷——毙了。”"

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. “The dragon’s okay, but Rarity wanted us to meet Rainbow because she’s cooler,” she said, completely missing Spike’s thinly veiled snort.
飞板璐翻了个白眼。“这条龙还行，但Rarity想让我们见Rainbow是因为她更酷，”她说道，完全没注意到斯派克那几乎掩饰不住的嗤鼻声。

“It’s true! I’m so awesome, Spike here asks me to hang out with him all the time so I can teach him everything I know,” Rainbow replied, flying down and condescendingly patting the dragon on the head. “Right?”
"“没错！我超厉害的，斯派克总是求着和我一起玩，好让我教他所有我知道的东西，”Rainbow一边回答，一边飞下来居高临下地拍了拍龙的头。“对吧？”"

“No,” Spike replied, grinning widely at her. “I let you hang out with me because somepony who thinks pegasi medicine will help a dragon grow wings clearly needs a lot of help.”
"“才不是，”斯派克咧嘴笑着回应她。“我让你跟着我是因为某个认为天马医药能帮龙长出翅膀的家伙显然需要很多帮助。”"

“Hey!” Rainbow blurted, a fierce blush decorating her cheeks. “I was a kid, okay?! Let it go!”
"“嘿！”Rainbow脱口而出，脸颊上泛起一抹浓烈的红晕。“我当时还是个孩子，好吗？！别提了！”"

“But wait,” Apple Bloom asked, turning to Rarity. “If y’all didn’t want us meetin’ Mister Spike, why’d you get us out of school?”
"“等等，”苹果花转向Rarity问道，“如果你们不想让我们见到斯派克先生，那为啥要把我们从学校叫出来？”"

Rarity opened her mouth to reply, but a softer voice interrupted.
Rarity张嘴正要回答，却被一个更柔和的声音打断了。

“Rarity…?” Fluttershy said, and Rarity couldn’t hold back the grin at realizing Fluttershy had finally noticed the glowing necklace. “Your necklace… You… Princess…”
"“Rarity…？”Fluttershy说道，而Rarity在看到Fluttershy终于注意到那条发光的项链时，忍不住露出了笑容。“你的项链…你…公主…”"

There was a second of silence when the three fillies turned to Rarity wide-eyed before simultaneously throwing themselves at her, nearly toppling her over and drowning her in a barrage of demands to know if Rarity had really found her, how did Rarity break the curse, did breaking the curse hurt, where was Princess Twilight, was she alive or was she still dead, did she miss them, could they see her, and so on and so forth.
三只小雌驹转向Rarity，瞪大了眼睛，沉默了一秒后，同时扑向她，差点把她撞倒，并连珠炮似地追问：Rarity真的找到她了吗？Rarity是怎么破解诅咒的？破解诅咒疼不疼？Twilight公主在哪里？她是活着还是依然死去？她想念她们吗？她们能见到她吗？诸如此类的问题接踵而至。

“Yes, yes! We’re all going to see her!” she reassured, using her magic to pull the fillies away. She glanced at Spike and faltered. “Well, perhaps not all of us… Are you quite sure there’s no way for you to somehow come with us?”
"“是的，是的！我们都会见到她的！”她用魔法将小雌驹们拉开，安慰道。她瞥了一眼斯派克，犹豫了一下。“嗯，也许不是所有人……你确定真的没办法跟我们一起去吗？”"

Spike sighed. “No. There’s no way I can fit inside the forest, and like I said, these trees aren’t going to go down no matter what I do.” He smiled at Rarity hopefully. “But you’re going to come back later and let me talk to her with your necklace, right?”
斯派克叹了口气。“不行。我进不了那片森林，而且我说过，无论我做什么，这些树都不会倒下。”他满怀希望地对Rarity笑了笑。“但你之后会回来，让我通过你的项链和她说话，对吧？”

“Of course she will!” Pinkie exclaimed, now sitting atop his head. “She’s going to let you talk to Princess Twilight until you can’t talk anymore, even if it means being here for days, and months, and years, and—”
"“她当然会！”Pinkie坐在他头顶上大声说道。“她会让你和Twilight公主聊到说不出话为止，哪怕这意味着要在这里待上几天、几个月、几年，甚至——”"

“Now, let’s not get carried away!” Rarity quickly exclaimed. “I do have a life beyond being a highly sophisticated messenger!” She cleared her throat and gestured toward the forest. “Shall we?”
"“好了，我们别太激动！”Rarity迅速喊道，“除了做一个高度复杂的信使外，我确实还有自己的生活！”她清了清嗓子，朝森林方向示意，“我们走吧？”"

Despite the fact she’d broken the curse on herself, she wasn’t altogether sure that she’d be able to guide the others to the library. Elara and Themis hadn’t been able to, after all. However, since nighttime wouldn’t be due for a very long time, the markings would be of no help.
尽管她已经解除了自己身上的诅咒，但她并不完全确定自己能引导其他人到达图书馆。毕竟，埃拉娜和忒弥斯都没能做到。然而，由于距离夜晚还有很长一段时间，那些标记将毫无帮助。

Which is why she’d stopped by a local shop and bought the longest rope they had available. If she tied it to herself and kept away from the others, surely she wouldn’t be in the curse’s sphere of influence. Rainbow Dash’s presence brought her great relief as well, since she was quite confident the pegasus would be enough to help her fight off any timberwolves bold enough to attack the group.
这就是为什么她在当地商店停下来，买了他们那里最长的绳子。如果她把绳子系在自己身上，并与其他人保持距离，她肯定不会受到诅咒的影响。Rainbow Dash的存在也让她感到极大的安慰，因为她相当确信这匹飞马足以帮助她击退任何胆敢攻击队伍的森林狼。

Once she began guiding them through the forest, it wasn’t until she’d been subjected to a fiftieth “are we there yet?” that her heart soared at the sight of the distant oak tree.
当她开始引导他们穿越森林时，直到第五十次被问到“我们到了吗？”，她的心在看到远处那棵橡树时才雀跃起来。

Oh, thank goodness, she thought, doubling her pace. I didn’t get cursed again! Perhaps it’s like the chicken pox and you can only catch it once?
哦，谢天谢地，她一边加快脚步一边想。我这次没再被诅咒！也许这就像水痘，一个人只会得一次？

“This way!” she exclaimed, breaking into a sprint toward the depression.
"“这边！”她大喊一声，朝着洼地飞奔而去。"

Upon reaching the edge, she gleefully jumped into it, only to hear the horrified shrieks of her companions, followed by Rainbow Dash brusquely grabbing her and flying her up.
一到边缘，她兴高采烈地跳了进去，却听到同伴们惊恐的尖叫声，紧接着Rainbow Dash粗暴地抓住她，带她飞了上来。

“Rarity, what the hay is wrong with you?!” the pegasus yelled, holding onto her for dear life before dropping Rarity back with the others. The second she did, though, she fell to the ground on one knee, looking positively sick.
"“Rarity，你到底在搞什么鬼？！”天马怒吼着，拼命抓住她，随后将Rarity丢回同伴身边。可刚一松手，她就单膝跪地倒下，看起来病得不轻。"

“Wh-what’s wrong?” Scootaloo asked, alarmed.
"“怎——怎么了？”小蝶惊慌地问道。"

“Those…” She made a gurgling noise. “Those sinkholes… There’s a bunch of ’em… I saw them last time, and they… just going near them makes me dizzy. I almost fell into one last time…”
"“那些……”她发出咕噜声。“那些天坑……有一大堆……我上次就看到了，它们……光是靠近就让我头晕。上次我差点掉进去一个……”"

Rarity’s heart skipped a beat. Is that how the curse affects pegasi…?
Rarity的心跳漏了一拍。这就是诅咒对飞马的影响方式吗……？

“Rarity, what the hay?!” she said again, standing up and gulping. “Do you want to get killed or something?! This place is already making me feel sick enough without you suddenly wanting to practice your free-diving!”
"“Rarity，搞什么鬼？！”她又说道，站起来咽了口唾沫。“你是想找死还是怎么的？！这地方已经让我够难受的了，你还突然想练习自由潜水！”"

“Heavens, no! That’s the curse! The tree is there!” she explained, pointing toward it. When the pegasus gave her a pointed stare, Rarity sighed and wrapped her in magic, ignoring her protests and whisking her over the “sinkhole” until she was pressed against the tree.
"“天哪，不！那是诅咒！树就在那儿！”她解释道，指向那棵树。当飞马投来锐利的目光时，Rarity叹了口气，用魔法包裹住她，无视她的抗议，将她迅速带过“塌陷处”，直到她被按在树上。"

“Oh,” Rainbow said, knocking her hooves against its rough bark. “Look at that.”
"“哦，”Rainbow说道，用蹄子敲了敲粗糙的树皮，“看看这个。”"

Fluttershy reacted next, flying up and hovering near the edge of the depression until Rainbow Dash flew over and then practically dragged her to the tree. When she came in contact with it, she blinked several times and then gasped audibly, landing on the ground and falling onto her haunches.
Fluttershy紧接着反应过来，飞起来悬在凹陷边缘，直到Rainbow Dash飞过来，几乎是拖着她到了树旁。当她接触到树时，她眨了眨眼，然后明显倒吸一口气，落在地上，跌坐了下来。

“Ooooh, me next!” Pinkie exclaimed, rushing forward and jumping into the depression. However, as soon as her hooves touched the ground, she fell to the ground and groaned. “Ohhhhh, me not next…”
"“噢噢，下一个是我！”Pinkie兴奋地喊道，冲上前跳进凹陷处。然而，她的蹄子刚一触地，就倒在地上呻吟起来。“噢噢，不该是我下一个…”"

“Pinkie!” Rarity shouted, jumping after her and helping her friend up. “Darling, it’s all right, it’s the curse—”
"“Pinkie！” Rarity 大喊着，紧随其后跃起并扶起她的朋友。“亲爱的，没事的，这是诅咒——”"

“No!” Pinkie shrieked suddenly, eyes wide open and hooves clutching the unicorn, her gaze directed at some trees in the distance. “Wh-what do you mean you don’t want me to sleep anymore?! If I can’t sleep, I won’t see you!” Her eyes began to fill with tears. “You d-don’t want to see me anymore?! But, Princess Lu—”
"“不！” Pinkie 突然尖叫起来，双眼圆睁，蹄子紧抓着独角兽，目光投向远处的一片树林。“你、你什么意思，不想让我再睡觉了？！如果我不能睡觉，我就见不到你了！”她的眼中开始涌出泪水。“你、你不想再见到我了吗？！可是，露公主——”"

“No, Pinkie, it’s not real!” Rarity said, and, without wasting a second, enveloped Pinkie in her magic, quickly levitating the horrified mare and pressing her against the tree.
"“不，Pinkie，那不是真的！” Rarity 说着，毫不犹豫地用魔法包裹住 Pinkie，迅速将惊恐的雌驹悬浮起来，按在树上。"

“Oh! Oh, it’s the tree!” Pinkie gasped, her previous horror all but forgotten. She spread her forelegs and hugged the oak. “Oh, tree, I missed you!”
"“哦！哦，是这棵树！” Pinkie 倒吸一口气，先前的恐惧几乎被抛到脑后。她张开前腿，紧紧抱住橡树。“哦，树啊，我想死你了！”"

Once she’d put the mare down, she noticed the three fillies hovering by the edge, and rather than have them go through any dreadful hallucinations, she picked them up in her magic and took them through the same process, placing the ecstatic fillies on the ground next to Fluttershy—without letting them go, of course.
当她安置好母马后，注意到三匹小雌驹在边缘徘徊，为了避免她们经历任何可怕的幻觉，她用魔法将它们抱起，并让她们经历了同样的过程，将兴奋不已的小雌驹们放在Fluttershy旁边的地上——当然，没有松开她们。

“Come on, Rarity!” Sweetie shrieked, trying to wiggle herself out of her sister’s magic grip. “I want to see the princess!”
"“快点，Rarity！”甜贝儿尖叫着，试图从姐姐的魔法束缚中扭动出来。“我想见公主！”"

Rarity ignored Sweetie Belle, trotting toward the trapdoor and only letting her sister free once she’d gone into the tunnel before the filly. She wasn’t trying to be cruel, of course; she simply wanted to make sure she witnessed the upcoming reunions.
Rarity没有理会甜贝儿，小跑向活板门，直到自己先进入隧道，才放开妹妹。她并非有意残忍；只是想要确保自己能亲眼见证即将到来的重逢。

When she hopped off the last step, she lit her horn and couldn’t help but smile at the sight of Applejack and Princess Twilight Sparkle, both of them staring into the tunnel like an overexcited puppy.
当她跳下最后一级台阶时，点亮了角上的光芒，看到Applejack和Twilight Sparkle公主都像过度兴奋的小狗一样盯着隧道，不禁露出了微笑。

“Rarity…? Rarity!” Twilight exclaimed, slamming herself against the barrier and nearly collapsing. “Rarity, it’s you!”
"“Rarity…？ Rarity！” Twilight 惊呼道，猛地撞向屏障，几乎跌倒。“Rarity，是你！”"

“See? Didn’t I tell you she’d be back?” Applejack said, waving at the unicorn.
"“看吧？我不是说过她会回来的吗？” Applejack 一边说，一边向独角兽挥手。"

“Princess Twilight!”  "“Twilight公主！”"

Three fillies and a pink mare sped past Rarity, who lost her balance and nearly fell to the floor.
三只小马驹和一匹粉色母马从Rarity身边疾驰而过，让她失去平衡，差点摔倒在地。

“Girls! Pinkie!”  "“姑娘们！Pinkie！”"

Rarity rushed forward, stepping into the library and feeling her eyes tear up at the sight of the three fillies and Pinkie trying to hug the deliriously happy alicorn, millions of questions bursting out of their mouths.
Rarity冲上前去，踏入图书馆，看到三匹小马驹和Pinkie试图拥抱那位欣喜若狂的天角兽时，她的眼眶湿润了，无数问题从她们口中迸发而出。

Rarity sat down next to Applejack, both of them sharing a smile, before Fluttershy trotted in next, catching the attention of not only Twilight, but the two owls that immediately appeared from within the library and launched themselves at her.
Rarity在Applejack身旁坐下，两人相视一笑，随后Fluttershy小跑着进来，不仅吸引了Twilight的注意，还有两只猫头鹰立刻从图书馆内现身，朝她扑去。

“Fluttershy!” Twilight tearfully exclaimed, teleporting in front of her, clearly torn between wanting to hug her and knowing she couldn’t.
"“Fluttershy！”Twilight含泪喊道，瞬间移动到她面前，显然在想要拥抱她与知道自己不能之间挣扎。"

“Princess Twilight,” Fluttershy said, her own eyes watering with tears. “It is so lovely seeing you again.”
"“Twilight公主，”Fluttershy说道，她自己的眼中也噙着泪水。“再次见到你真是太高兴了。”"

“Oh. My. Gosh.”  "“哦。我。的天哪。”"

Rarity turned back and giggled at the sight of Rainbow Dash standing by the entrance, eyes fixed on Twilight.
Rarity转过身，看到Rainbow Dash站在入口处，目光紧盯着Twilight，不禁咯咯笑了起来。

“Hi!” Twilight greeted the pegasus brightly. “You must be Rainbow Dash?”
"“嗨！”Twilight欢快地向天马打招呼。“你一定是Rainbow Dash吧？”"

“Oh my GOSH!” Rainbow exclaimed, practically zooming toward Twilight. “Oh my gosh, Princess Twilight, I have been waiting for this, like, my entire LIFE. I have so many questions, you don’t even know! Okay, okay, okay!” She took a deep breath, and said nothing for almost an entire minute.
"“天哪！”Rainbow 惊呼道，几乎是一路小跑冲向 Twilight。“哦，我的天哪，Twilight 公主，我等这一刻等了，简直是我的一生！我有太多问题了，你根本想象不到！好了，好了，好了！”她深吸一口气，然后几乎整整一分钟都没说话。"

Twilight blinked, still smiling. “…Yes?”
Twilight 眨了眨眼，依然微笑着。“……嗯？”

“Okay,” Rainbow Dash blurted out, “so, like, are you dead?”
"“好吧，”Rainbow Dash 脱口而出，“那么，比如，你现在是死了吗？”"

Rarity’s hoof went to her face. Oh, for pony’s sake, can’t anypony ask something else?!
Rarity 的蹄子捂住了脸。哦，看在马儿的份上，就不能有谁问点别的吗？！

Twilight frowned. “No, I’m… Actually! You know what? I don’t care anymore!” she exclaimed with a grin. After clearing her throat and, barely able to suppress her giggling, Twilight intoned, “Yes. Yes, I am dead.”
Twilight 皱起眉头。“不，我…其实！你知道吗？我已经不在乎了！”她咧嘴一笑，大声说道。清了清嗓子后，Twilight 强忍住笑意，庄重地宣告：“是的。没错，我已经死了。”

“I knew it!” Scootaloo gasped.
"“我就知道！”小蝶倒吸一口冷气。"

“That’s so awesome!” Rainbow exclaimed, flying up into the air for a moment. “Wait, wait, wait!” She landed in front of Twilight again and stepped back. “Can you, like, walk through me?”
"“那太酷了！”Rainbow 欢呼着，短暂地飞向空中。“等等，等等！”她又落在Twilight面前，后退一步。“你能，比如说，穿过我吗？”"

Twilight giggled. “Would you like that…?”
Twilight 咯咯笑起来。“你会喜欢那样吗…？”

“Of course I would!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed.
"“我当然愿意！” Rainbow Dash 大声说道。"

“Of course she would…” Rarity sighed, playfully rolling her eyes.
"“她当然会…” Rarity 叹了口气，俏皮地翻了个白眼。"

Twilight stepped back, positioning herself, and then promptly trotted toward and through Rainbow Dash, smile turning into a grin at Rainbow’s gasp of excitement.
Twilight 后退一步，调整好姿势，然后轻快地跑向并穿过 Rainbow Dash，听到 Rainbow 兴奋的惊叹声，她的微笑变成了咧嘴笑。

Finally, she came to a stop right in front of Rarity and giggled. “Hi.”
最后，她在 Rarity 面前停下，咯咯笑了起来。“嗨。”

Rarity smiled brightly. “Hello, my darling,” she replied, tilting her head to the side, watching the fillies inspect Rainbow Dash post-ghost walk-through. “I must say, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you quite this happy.” She winked. “I shall take the liberty of pretending it’s because of me, hmm?”
"Rarity 灿烂地笑了。“你好，亲爱的，”她歪着头回答，看着小马驹们检查 Rainbow Dash 幽灵漫步后的现场。“我得说，我从未见过你这么开心。”她眨了眨眼。“我就自作主张地认为是因为我咯，嗯？”

“It is because of you,” Twilight replied, and Rarity could hardly stop several smitten giggles from leaving her lips.
“确实是因为你，”Twilight 回应道，Rarity 几乎抑制不住嘴角流露出的几丝甜蜜轻笑。

“Hey, wait! Where’s the maze?!” Rainbow exclaimed, flying up and gathering everypony’s attention. “I want to see it! It sounds insane!”
“嘿，等等！迷宫在哪里？！”Rainbow 大声喊道，飞起来吸引了大家的注意。“我想看看！听起来太疯狂了！”

“This way!” Scootaloo exclaimed, she and the other Crusaders rushing into the rows of bookcases and toward the end of the library, Rainbow Dash flying after them.
“这边走！”斯科特洛喊道，她和其他十字军成员冲向书架间的通道，朝图书馆尽头奔去，Rainbow Dash 紧随其后飞着。

“Hey, wait!” Applejack called, running after them. “That thing ain’t safe! Apple Bloom! Apple Bloom, get back here!”
"“嘿，等等！”Applejack喊道，追了上去。“那东西不安全！小萍花！小萍花，快回来！”"

“Oh my gosh, Princess Twilight, we have SO much to tell you!” Pinkie exclaimed, stamping her hooves against the floor. “And you too, Fluttershy! And you, Rarity! …Wait, you already know what there is to tell.” She gasped in horror. “Did you already tell her about Princess Luna?! I wanted to tell them!”
"“天哪，Twilight公主，我们有好多好多事要告诉你！”Pinkie跺着蹄子激动地说。“还有你，Fluttershy！还有你，Rarity！……等等，你已经知道要说什么了。”她惊恐地倒吸一口气。“你们已经告诉她关于露娜公主的事了吗？我本来想亲自告诉她们的！”"

“Princess Luna?” Twilight asked, ears perking up. “What about her?! Is she all right? Did you find a way to free her?!”
"“露娜公主？”Twilight竖起耳朵问道。“她怎么了？！她还好吗？你们找到解救她的方法了吗？！”"

Rarity smiled, standing up straight and grinning. “I think we might have, yes.”
Rarity微笑着挺直身子，咧嘴一笑。“我想我们可能确实找到了。”

Rarity didn’t know what time it was when she got back to the library that evening, nor did she care. She’d talked extensively with Twilight about the chaos magic in Hollow Shades, she’d watched the others spend time with Twilight, and then she’d gone out to find Spike and made sure he talked with Twilight for several hours. By the end of it, though the dragon could have gone for hours on end, Rarity felt she’d finally earned some private time with the princess.
Rarity 那晚回到图书馆时，既不知道时间，也不在意。她与Twilight深入讨论了空心树荫的混沌魔法，看着其他人与Twilight共度时光，随后外出找到斯派克，确保他与Twilight交谈了数小时。尽管龙可以无休无止地继续，但最终，Rarity觉得自己终于赢得了与公主独处的私人时光。

Though she did not immediately find Twilight upon stepping into the library, she did find that a comfortable-looking bed of pillows had been prepared for her. It wasn’t her queen-sized bed in Carousel Boutique, and she was certain the pillowcases here hadn’t been washed for months, but oh goodness, she wouldn’t trade being back home for anything in the world.
虽然一踏入图书馆并未立即找到Twilight，但她发现一张看起来舒适的枕头床已为她备好。这不是旋转木马精品店里她那女王尺寸的床，也确信这里的枕套已有数月未洗，但天哪，她绝不会用回到家的感觉交换世上任何东西。

Her saddlebags weighed her down, carrying within them everything she’d need for an extended stay in the library. After dropping it off at a nearby table and taking off her cloak, she made her way to the bundle of pillows and unceremoniously dropped herself on it, closing her eyes and exhaling a contented sigh.
她的鞍包沉甸甸的，里面装满了在图书馆长期停留所需的一切。将包放在附近的桌上，脱下斗篷后，她走向那堆枕头，毫不客气地倒了下去，闭上眼，满足地长舒一口气。

After a minute, her ears flicked when she heard the familiar crackle of teleportation, and a smile swept across her face. She waited for Twilight to speak up, but instead, she felt the distinct sensation of a tendril of magic brushing against her scars. She opened her eyes and looked back, noticing Twilight standing by the pillows, her brow furrowed and her gaze fixed on the unicorn’s disfigured cutie mark.
片刻之后，她的耳朵因熟悉的传送噼啪声而抖动，脸上掠过一抹微笑。她等待着Twilight开口，却感受到一缕魔法轻触她伤痕的独特感觉。她睁开眼回头望去，注意到Twilight站在枕头旁，眉头紧锁，目光凝视着独角兽那变形的可爱标记。

“Sweetheart, don’t look at those,” Rarity quickly said, belatedly chastising herself for having taken off her cloak.
"“亲爱的，别看那些，”Rarity迅速说道，随后又因自己脱下了斗篷而暗自责备。"

Twilight glanced at her, and her ears bent backward and her gaze saddened. “Fluttershy told me about the timberwolf,” she said, returning her gaze to the scars, her magic still brushing against them. “It’s chaos magic, so I can’t fix them.”
Twilight瞥了她一眼，耳朵向后折去，眼神黯淡下来。“Fluttershy跟我提过那只木狼的事，”她说着，目光重新落回伤痕上，魔法仍在其上轻抚。“那是混沌魔法，所以我无法修复它们。”

“You don’t have to fix anything, Twilight,” Rarity said, trying to beckon the alicorn toward her. “I have it on Rainbow Dash’s authority that scars are, as she says, hardcore. It means I’m quite daring,” she elaborated when Twilight arched an eyebrow at the slang.
"“你不需要修复任何东西，Twilight，”Rarity说道，试图召唤天角兽靠近自己。“根据Rainbow Dash的说法，疤痕，如她所言，是硬核的象征。这意味着我相当勇敢，”当Twilight对这个俚语挑起眉毛时，她进一步解释道。"

“I’m not sure if almost getting killed by a timberwolf is daring,” Twilight pointed out.
"“我不确定差点被一只森林狼干掉算不算勇敢，”Twilight指出。"

Rarity sighed theatrically. “You know, this usually would be the part where you swoon over me rather than chastise me for events already past.” She rolled onto her back, placing a hoof on her forehead and lamenting, “Alas, now that I’ve mastered the Star Swirl Decimal System, you shan’t be impressed by anything else I do!”
Rarity夸张地叹了口气。“你知道，通常这时候你该为我倾倒，而不是责备已经过去的事。”她翻身仰躺，将蹄子搭在额头上，哀叹道：“唉，既然我已掌握了星旋十进制系统，我做的其他事就再难让你动容了！”

When she cracked an eye open moments later, she found Twilight intently watching her, and my, Rarity had forgotten how intense Twilight’s gaze could be.
片刻后她睁开一只眼，发现Twilight正专注地盯着她，天哪，Rarity都忘了Twilight的目光能有多炽热。

“Something wrong?” she asked, tilting her head. “Was my assertion shockingly accurate?”
"“有什么问题吗？”她歪着头问。“难道我的断言准确得惊人？”"

“Oh, no.” A smug smile swept across Twilight’s lips. “I’m just concerned that you don’t know what ‘mastering’ something means. It means you’re a skilled practitioner at a specific art or activity, just so you know,” she explained, her smile turning playful when she caught the pillow that flew her way.
"“哦，不。”Twilight的嘴角扬起一抹得意的笑容。“我只是担心你不明白‘精通’某事的含义。要知道，那意味着你在某项技艺或活动上是个熟练的行家，”她解释道，当接住飞来的枕头时，她的笑容变得俏皮起来。"

“We haven’t even been reunited for a day, and already you’re attacking me!” Rarity whined, watching as Twilight levitated the pillow back to the bunch. “Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t leave.”
"“我们重逢还不到一天，你就开始攻击我了！”Rarity抱怨道，看着Twilight将枕头飘回原位。“给我一个不离开的好理由。”"

Twilight didn’t hesitate. “Because I missed you.”
Twilight毫不犹豫地回答：“因为我想你了。”

Rarity could feel her lips curving into a smitten smile, but she quickly did away with it, and half-heartedly slammed her hoof against a pillow. “Drat. Now you’ve said that, I have no choice but to stay here the rest of my life.” She lifted her other forehoof, beckoning Twilight toward her. “How dreadful for you.”
Rarity能感觉到自己的嘴唇不由自主地弯成了痴迷的微笑，但她迅速收敛，心不在焉地用蹄子拍打了一下枕头。“可恶。既然你这么说了，我别无选择，只能在这里度过余生了。”她抬起另一只前蹄，示意Twilight靠近。“对你来说可真糟糕。”

Twilight giggled, walking to her and then bending her head down, and if circumstances were different, their lips would brush together. “Awful,” she whispered, closing her eyes and, like Rarity no doubt, pretending things were different. “Just awful.”
Twilight 咯咯笑着，走向她，然后低下头，如果情况不同，她们的嘴唇可能会轻轻相触。“糟透了，”她轻声说道，闭上眼睛，毫无疑问像Rarity一样，假装一切有所不同。“真是糟透了。”

“So, do tell,” Rarity said when Twilight leaned back, “are you happy?”
"“那么，说说看，”当Twilight向后靠时，Rarity问道，“你开心吗？”"

Twilight eagerly nodded. “It’s a long-term plan, of course, but your idea for Hollow Shades sounds really good.”
Twilight 热切地点点头。“当然，这是个长期计划，但你关于霍洛沙德斯的想法听起来真的很棒。”

“Of course it does! I came up with it, after all!” Rarity said, laughing haughtily. “Princess Luna will be so pleased, she’ll never let me have nightmares like the ones from a month ago.”
"“当然棒啦！毕竟是我想到的！”Rarity 高傲地笑着回答。“露娜公主会非常高兴的，她再也不会让我做像一个月前那样的噩梦了。”"

Concern flashed through Twilight’s eyes. “You had nightmares?”
Twilight的眼中闪过一丝忧虑。“你做噩梦了？”

“Oh, Twilight, they were dreadful!” Rarity exclaimed. “I had some horrific dreams where another mare found you while I was cursed, and you two were keen on each other, and honestly, I was terribly offended.”
"“哦，Twilight，那些梦太可怕了！”Rarity大声说道。“我做了些恐怖的梦，梦见在我被诅咒的时候，另一匹母马找到了你，而你们俩彼此倾心，说实话，我真是伤心极了。”"

A blush tinted Twilight’s cheeks. “I’m sorry?”
Twilight的脸颊泛起了红晕。“我很抱歉？”

Rarity eagerly nodded. “And you should be, but not because you were keen on her! You know what you did? I finally met up with you as an old mare, decades into a no-doubt lavish and fabulous life, and the only thing that occurs to you to ask me is whether I’d practiced my teleportation or not!”
Rarity急切地点点头。“你确实该道歉，但不是因为你对她有好感！你知道你做了什么吗？我终于以一位老妪的身份见到了你，那时你已经过了几十年无疑奢华精彩的生活，而你唯一想到要问我的，竟然是我有没有练习过传送术！”

“And did you practice your teleportation?” Twilight asked, arching an eyebrow.
"“那你练习过瞬移了吗？”Twilight挑起眉毛问道。"

Rarity faltered. “Obviously not, but I did have an incredibly romantic reply, so honestly that makes up for it. It does!” she defended when Twilight rolled her eyes. “You even cried!”
Rarity支吾起来。“显然没有，但我准备了一段极其浪漫的回应，所以老实说这足以弥补了。真的！”当Twilight翻白眼时，她辩解道，“你甚至都哭了！”

“Well, when you find the last book and free me, I promise my first question won’t be about teleportation,” Twilight said, and immediately did Rarity’s heart sink.
"“好吧，等你找到最后一本书并解救我的时候，我保证第一个问题不会是关于瞬移的，”Twilight说道，Rarity的心立刻沉了下去。"

“Ah yes…” she said, taking a nearby pillow and pressing it against her chest, failing at her attempt to nonchalantly look away. She suddenly wasn’t quite sure she was ready for that conversation. “The books…”
"“啊，是的…”她说着，拿起旁边的枕头抱在胸前，试图若无其事地移开视线却失败了。她突然不确定自己是否准备好进行那场对话。“那些书…”"

“What?” Twilight asked, teleporting to the other side of bed, furrowing her brow. “Did something happen with the books?”
"“什么？”Twilight问道，瞬间移动到床的另一侧，眉头紧锁。“那些书出什么事了吗？”"

Rarity hummed and looked to the other side. “Did something happen with the books? That certainly is a question that begets an answer, is it not? But what is an answer, all things said and done?”
Rarity轻声哼着，目光转向另一边。“书是不是出了什么问题？这确实是个需要答案的问题，不是吗？但说到底，什么才是答案呢？”

The alicorn teleported back to the other side. “Rarity, what happened with the books?” she asked again, using her magic to grab Rarity’s chin before the unicorn could look away.
天角兽再次瞬移回原处。“Rarity，书到底怎么了？”她又一次追问，同时用魔法固定住Rarity的下巴，不让这只独角兽有机会移开视线。

“Why, Twilight!” she exclaimed, fluttering her eyelashes. “And you said you couldn’t hold me!”
"“哎呀，Twilight！”她眨动着睫毛惊呼道。“可你刚才还说抓不住我呢！”"

“Rarity.”  "“Rarity。”"

“All right, all right!” Rarity huffed, batting Twilight’s magic away with a hoof. She sat up straight, the pillow falling to the ground, and then she took a deep breath followed by a piteous whine. “Twilight, you must understand that…” She faltered, looking up at the chandelier above and biting her lip. “There’s really no easy way to say this, and—”
"“好了，好了！”Rarity 气呼呼地用蹄子挡开Twilight的魔法。她直起身子，枕头掉在地上，然后深吸一口气，发出一声可怜的呜咽。“Twilight，你必须明白……”她犹豫了，抬头看着头顶的枝形吊灯，咬着嘴唇。“真的很难开口，而且——”"

“Rarity!”  "“Rarity！”"

“Finding all the books won’t free you!” she said, finally, trying to maintain eye-contact with Twilight, who in turn backed away, irritation and, frankly, any emotion at all draining from her face.
"“找到所有的书也不会让你自由！”她终于说道，试图与Twilight保持眼神接触，而后者却后退了一步，脸上的恼怒，坦白说，任何情绪都消失了。"

“…What?” she whispered before standing straight and practically burning holes into Rarity with her stare. “How do you know that?”
"“……什么？”她低声说道，随后站直身子，目光几乎要在Rarity身上烧出洞来。“你怎么知道这个？”"

Rarity laughed nervously, idly toying with her necklace as she considered her words. “How do I know that? Well! Apparently, and I am willing to admit that, in retrospect, I shouldn’t have so blindly believed everything a hooded stranger told me, but… you remember how I told you the Book Bringer told me that the books would free you?”
Rarity紧张地笑了笑，一边漫不经心地摆弄着项链，一边斟酌着词句。“我怎么知道的？好吧！显然，我承认，回想起来，我不该盲目相信一个戴兜帽的陌生人告诉我的一切，但是……你还记得我告诉过你，送书者说那些书会让你自由吗？”

“Yes.”  "“是的。”"

“Well,” Rarity said, letting go of the necklace and looking at Twilight, “I’ve been informed that was actually Discord.”
"“好吧，”Rarity松开项链，看着Twilight说道，“我被告知那其实是 Discord。”"

“What?!” Twilight gasped, backtracking again, mouth agape. “Discord isn’t the Book Bringer! That’s ridiculous! Why would Discord bring me books?!”
"“什么？！”Twilight倒吸一口冷气，再次后退，嘴巴大张。“Discord 不是书籍使者！这太荒谬了！Discord 怎么会给我送书？！”"

“Twilight, I’m not saying the Book Bringer is Discord!” Rarity exclaimed. “Well, I am, but that’s because the Book Bringer I met was Discord posing as him!”
"“Twilight，我不是说书籍使者是 Discord！”Rarity大声说道。“好吧，我是这么说的，但那是因为我遇到的书籍使者是 Discord 假扮的！”"

“Who told you that?!” Twilight asked, stamping her hoof against the ground. “The only possible way somepony could even know that was Discord would be… Discord… himself…”
"“谁告诉你的？！”Twilight质问着，蹄子重重踏地。“唯一可能知道这件事的只有……迪斯科德……他自己……”"

Realization dawned upon her, and now Rarity remembered she was faced not with some common pony, but an ancient alicorn spirit. Twilight’s eyes turned to slits, her wings splayed out, and the chandelier hanging above flickered ominously.
她恍然大悟，此刻Rarity意识到眼前的并非普通小马，而是一位古老的天角兽灵体。Twilight的双眼眯成细缝，翅膀猛然展开，头顶的水晶吊灯诡异地闪烁起来。

Rarity moved back on her pillows, grabbing one and pressing it to her chest as though it were a shield. “Twilight, before you overreact, allow me to explain what happe—”
Rarity向后缩进靠枕堆，抓起一个紧紧抱在胸前，仿佛那是盾牌。“Twilight，在你反应过度前，先听我解释发——”

“It’s okay! You don’t have to tell me,” Twilight replied, sitting down and, after a crackle of magic, her necklace floated behind her. “You can show me.”
"“没关系！不必告诉我，”Twilight回应道，她坐下时，随着魔法光芒一闪，项链悬浮至身后。“你可以直接展示给我看。”"

Rarity backed up farther and clutched the faux-shield closer against her chest and necklace. “Show you? Re-really? But, you know, it’ll be much better if I explain it,” she blurted out, knowing very well that the past three months had been anything but exemplary for her. The last thing she wanted was Twilight witnessing her utterly losing her marbles and then some!
Rarity 后退几步，将仿制盾牌紧紧抱在胸前，护住项链。“给你看？真、真的吗？但是，你知道的，让我来解释会更好，”她脱口而出，心里清楚过去三个月自己的表现实在称不上典范。她最不愿的就是让Twilight目睹她彻底崩溃，甚至更糟的样子！

“If we use the communication spell, I’ll know everything you know, Rarity,” Twilight insisted, her narrowed eyes clearly stating Rarity would not be winning the argument so long as she had a say in it. “Civilizations used the art of writing to perfectly preserve events as they happened, because oral transmission is one of the most unreliable forms of storytelling since the storyteller can willfully omit details. You can’t omit details if your mind is my mind, too.”
"“如果我们使用通灵法术，我就会知晓你所知的一切，Rarity，”Twilight坚持道，她眯起的双眼明确表示只要她还有发言权，Rarity就别想在这场争论中占上风。“文明用书写艺术完美保存事件原貌，因为口述是最不可靠的叙事方式之一——讲述者可以刻意遗漏细节。但若你的思想即我的思想，你就无法隐瞒任何细节。”"

Rarity bit her lip until, finally, she relented. “Very well, then…” she said, dropping the pillow. “But it’s…” A blush crossed her cheeks. “It’s not the best side of me, and I don’t want you to think badly of me…”
Rarity咬着嘴唇，最终妥协了。“好吧，那么…”她说着，放下了抱枕。“但这…”一抹红晕掠过她的脸颊。“这不是我最好的一面，我不想让你对我有不好的印象…”

Twilight frowned. “I would never think badly of you, Rarity,” she said matter-of-factly. “No matter what you did, but”—her necklace disappeared—“we don’t have to use the necklaces if you don’t want to, then.”
Twilight 皱起了眉头。“我绝不会对你有不好的想法，Rarity，”她实事求是地说。“无论你做了什么，但是”——她的项链消失了——“如果你不愿意，我们也可以不用项链。”

“No, no, wait!” Rarity blurted out, before swallowing, sitting up straight and lighting up her horn and necklace. “It’s all right. We can use the necklaces. I trust you to take this in stride.”
"“不，不，等等！”Rarity 脱口而出，随后咽了咽口水，坐直身子，点亮了她的角和项链。“没关系，我们可以用项链。我相信你能从容应对。”"

Twilight blinked. “…Are you sure?”
Twilight 眨了眨眼。“……你确定吗？”

“Yes, yes!” she insisted, lying down on the pillows and closing her eyes, intent on at least being comfortable for the act. “Come now.”
"“是的，是的！”她坚持道，躺在枕头上闭上眼睛，至少打算在行动中保持舒适。“来吧。”"

Besides, if anything, Twilight would at least witness firsthoof the extent of Rarity’s devotion to her.
此外，无论如何，Twilight至少能亲眼见证Rarity对她忠诚的程度。

“All right, then,” Twilight said, a familiar crackle of magic sounding off moments afterwards.
"“好吧，就这样吧，”Twilight说道，随后熟悉的魔法噼啪声即刻响起。"

Still with her eyes closed, Rarity waited, and waited, and waited until two pings echoed in the room, and she was again overcome with the now-familiar sensation of new thoughts entering her head.
闭着眼睛的Rarity等待着，直到两声提示音在房间内回荡，她再次被那种如今已熟悉的、新思绪涌入脑海的感觉所淹没。

She lingered on this sensation, fascinated by having thoughts quite literally inserted into her mind, and she could have stayed there for quite some time if an image of Canterlot Castle hadn’t been forcibly brought to the foreground. Yes, yes, I can take a hint, thank you very much, she thought, wishing she could open her eyes just to roll them.
她沉浸在这种感觉中，对思想几乎是被直接植入脑海的现象感到着迷，若非坎特洛特城堡的形象被强行推至意识前沿，她本可以在此停留更久。好吧好吧，我懂你的暗示了，多谢，她心想，巴不得能睁开眼睛翻个白眼。

And so, Rarity went over the worst three months of her life, starting at Rift Shield’s invitation to see the princess while at Heart’s Haven. She felt compelled to explain to herself who he was, and was later surprised to feel a rather intense satisfaction at her rejection of his advances.
就这样，Rarity度过了她生命中最糟糕的三个月，始于在心灵港湾收到裂盾邀请去见公主的那一刻。她感到有必要向自己解释他是谁，而后又惊讶地发现自己对他示好的拒绝竟带来了一种相当强烈的满足感。

Her memories then jumped to the impostor she met in Canterlot Castle, and she had to re-experience the shame at having fallen for Discord’s trap. Oddly enough, she couldn’t quite feel any other emotion, which meant that Twilight was willingly watching her chastise herself! Honestly, where was the sympa—!
她的记忆随即跳转到在坎特洛特城堡遇到的冒牌货，不得不重新体验落入无序陷阱的耻辱。奇怪的是，她几乎感受不到其他情绪，这意味着Twilight正心甘情愿地看着她自我谴责！说真的，同情心去哪儿了——！

“Rarity.”  "“Rarity。”"

With a last mental harrumph, Rarity went on with the mental journey, passing through the tunnel with the bizarre bubbles which were, in fact, chaos quarantine bubbles that Princess Celestia brought to life using a combination of—
随着内心最后一声冷哼，Rarity继续她的心灵之旅，穿过那条布满奇异泡泡的隧道，那些实际上是混沌隔离泡，由塞拉斯蒂娅公主通过某种组合魔法赋予生命——

“Well, well! Now who’s rambling!”
"“哎呀呀！现在是谁在絮絮叨叨呢！”"

Of course, she wasn’t rambling, because Rarity had automatically known all those details, so really, technically speaking, it meant that she was doing it again. She shook her head and forced herself to think about the Princesses’ Hallway, which sent a wave of… homesickness coursing through her, and the more she thought about it, the more she wanted to advance with the memory.
当然，她并非在胡言乱语，因为Rarity早已自动知晓所有细节，所以严格来说，这意味着她又重蹈覆辙了。她摇摇头，强迫自己去想公主走廊，一股……思乡之情涌上心头，越想越渴望随着记忆继续前行。

Oh, drat, what happened next?
哎呀，接下来发生了什么？

She’d explored the castle with the others, seen Princess Cadance’s room, and a warm sensation washed over her at the sight of the foal toys and crib scattered around. After that, she’d seen that statue of Shining Armor, and… and tears formed in her eyes, alongside an overwhelming and crushing heartache which was immediately pushed away and aside and she really simply wanted to know what happened next, thank you.
她曾与同伴们一同探索城堡，见过韵律公主的房间，看到散落的幼驹玩具和婴儿床时，一股暖流涌上心头。之后，她看到了闪耀盔甲的那尊雕像，然后……泪水盈满眼眶，伴随着一阵压倒性的、令人窒息的心痛，但她立刻将其推开搁置一旁，她真的只想知道接下来发生了什么，谢谢。

As such, she decided to just skip over to Princess Denza in the throne room, to the moment when she was looking over the evidence Rarity had brought, and though she couldn’t very much remember the conversation, she… she was overcome suddenly, the more she visualized the princess, with the sensation that… that something wasn’t…
于是，她决定直接跳到王座厅里的丹莎公主，那一刻公主正在审视Rarity带来的证据，尽管对话内容已记不太清，但……越是想象公主的样子，她突然被一种感觉淹没，仿佛……有什么不对劲……

Ping!  Ping！

Rarity opened her eyes, her mind jolting back to reality at the communication spell having stopped. “What happened? Did you— Twilight?” She sat up straight, her face awash with concern. “Twilight, what’s wrong?”
Rarity 睁开了眼睛，通讯法术的中断让她的意识猛然回到现实。“发生什么事了？你是不是—— Twilight？”她直起身子，脸上写满了担忧。“Twilight，怎么了？”

Twilight was standing up and staring at her, ears pinned back, looking very much like she’d seen a ghost. It wasn’t until Rarity physically got up from the pillows and sat in front of her that she reacted by flinching back, whatever train of thought she’d been having interrupted.
Twilight 站起来盯着她，耳朵紧贴脑后，看起来像是见了鬼一样。直到 Rarity 从枕头上起身坐到她面前，她才回过神来，向后一缩，思绪被打断。

“H-huh?” she blurted, looking visibly shaken.
"“啊——啊？”她脱口而出，明显受到了惊吓。"

“Sweetheart, what’s wrong?” Rarity pressed beseechingly. She wished she could take Twilight’s hooves in hers. “What did you see? What was wrong with Princess Denza? I felt there was something off with her, but—”
"“亲爱的，出什么事了？”Rarity 急切地追问。她多希望能握住 Twilight 的蹄子。“你看到了什么？丹莎公主有什么不对劲？我也觉得她有些异常，但是——”"

Twilight immediately jumped back. “There was nothing wrong with Princess Denza!” she replied, ears shooting upwards, wings flaring, and Rarity recoiled in reply. At the sight, Twilight’s wings lowered and she lifted her hoof, torn between approaching or staying away. “I…” she said, finally, lowering her hoof and shaking her head. “Nothing’s wrong, I just…” She looked at Rarity apologetically, ears flopping down. “I’m sorry, we shouldn’t have used the spell. I should trust your own memory.”
Twilight 立刻向后跳了一步。“丹莎公主没有任何问题！”她回答道，耳朵竖起，翅膀张开，而Rarity则回应般地退缩了。看到这一幕，Twilight的翅膀垂了下来，她抬起蹄子，犹豫着是靠近还是保持距离。“我…”她最终说道，放下蹄子摇了摇头。“没什么问题，我只是…”她歉意地看着Rarity，耳朵耷拉下来。“对不起，我们不该使用那个法术。我应该相信你自己的记忆。”

“It’s perfectly all right, Twilight,” Rarity said, repressing the urge to ask about Princess Denza again. All in due time, Rarity. All in due time, and for now, she was more concerned with Twilight. “Are you all right?”
"“完全没关系，Twilight，”Rarity说道，抑制住再次询问丹莎公主的冲动。一切都会在适当的时候揭晓，Rarity。现在，她更关心的是Twilight。“你还好吗？”"

Twilight relaxed somewhat, sitting back down on the floor. “Yes, I’m fine.”
Twilight稍微放松了些，重新坐回地板上。“是的，我没事。”

Rarity cleared her throat and pressed a hoof against her necklace. Perhaps more information on Twilight’s little incident could be gleaned from sharing minds. “Shall we continue…?”
Rarity清了清喉咙，用蹄子按了按项链。或许通过心灵共享，能获取更多关于Twilight那次小意外的信息。“我们继续…好吗？”

And yet, Twilight shook her head and offered an apologetic smile. “Maybe without the necklaces? We don’t really need them since you’re not hiding anything from me.”
然而，Twilight摇了摇头，露出歉意的微笑。‘也许不用戴项链了？既然你对我毫无隐瞒，我们其实并不需要它们。’

Rarity sighed. A shame somepony else isn’t quite as transparent. Metaphorically speaking, at least.
Rarity叹了口气。可惜其他小马并不那么透明。至少从比喻意义上来说。

“If you insist,” she relented. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and went over what was left to say. If anything, she might as well take advantage of the fact that she could gloss over her questionable acts.
"‘如果你坚持的话，’她妥协了。她深吸一口气，闭上眼睛，回顾了剩下要说的话。无论如何，她或许该利用这个机会，轻描淡写地掩盖那些可疑的行为。"

“In any case, after we got cursed, I spent a few weeks searching for the library in the forest, and after the…” She cleared her throat. “…incident with the timberwolf, I decided I might be able to glean more information from Rift Shield and the princess. Applejack and the others wanted me to stay in Ponyville, but I insisted Canterlot was where the answer awaited!”
"‘总之，在我们被诅咒后，我花了几个星期在森林里寻找图书馆，而在那次…’她清了清嗓子，‘…与木狼的事件后，我决定或许能从裂盾和公主那里获取更多信息。Applejack和其他人希望我留在小马镇，但我坚持认为答案在坎特洛特等着我们！’"

“And were they?” Twilight asked, ears perked up.
"“那他们呢？”Twilight问道，耳朵竖了起来。"

“No,” Rarity replied. “Not at first. Rift Shield hardly said anything useful, but I did meet with the Book Bringer.”
"“没有，”Rarity回答。“一开始没有。裂隙之盾几乎没说什么有用的信息，但我确实遇到了书籍使者。”"

“The Book Bringer?” Twilight asked, excitement ringing in her voice. “Wait.” She narrowed her eyes. “The real Book Bringer? Or…”
"“书籍使者？”Twilight问道，声音里透着兴奋。“等等。”她眯起眼睛。“是真的书籍使者？还是……”"

“The real one!” she replied. “And you can imagine my surprise when he hadn’t the faintest idea who I was. I was thoroughly vexed, so I went off on a little walk, and who would stop me but the Book Bringer himself! I thought he was going to tell me he remembered me, but then I noticed your chaos magic tracking spell had activated and, well…”
"“真的那个！”她回答。“你能想象我有多惊讶，当他完全不知道我是谁时。我相当恼火，于是出去散了个步，结果谁拦住了我？正是书籍使者本人！我以为他会告诉我他记得我，但随后我注意到你的混沌魔法追踪咒语激活了，然后嘛……”"

“Well…?” Twilight asked, making a “keep going” gesture with her hoof.
"“嗯…？”Twilight 用蹄子做了个“继续”的手势问道。"

“Well, I unmasked him as Discord, of course, after which he did the obvious thing on such an occasion and asked me out on a date.”
"“好吧，我当然揭穿了他就是无序，之后他做了这种场合下最显而易见的事——约我出去约会。”"

Twilight nearly choked. “He what?!” she sputtered, practically falling onto her back before jumping to a standing position, wings flared and fire in her eyes. Honestly, Rarity was flattered.
Twilight 差点被呛到。“他什么？！”她语无伦次地喊道，几乎要仰面倒下，随即又跳起来站直，翅膀张开，眼中燃起怒火。说实话，Rarity 对此感到受宠若惊。

“Oh, you heard me. And that’s not even the worst part of it,” she replied.
"“哦，你听清楚了。这还不是最糟的部分呢，”她回答道。"

“Rarity, what could be worse than that?!” Twilight asked, clearly never having read a book in her life where a character asked that very same question.
"“Rarity，还有比这更糟的吗？！” Twilight 问道，显然她这辈子从没读过哪本书里的角色提出过同样的问题。"

“Well, he brought a plus one on the date,” she elaborated. “Which was him posing as you.”
"“嗯，他在约会时带了个伴，”她进一步解释，“那个伴还是假扮成你的他。”"

Twilight didn’t immediately reply.
Twilight 没有立即回应。

In fact, Rarity didn’t get to see whatever reply she had, for the alicorn teleported away nearly instantly after she’d finished her sentence. However, she did hear somepony in the floor below shout quite the expletive, followed by a loud crash she dearly hoped wasn’t Twilight smashing one of her own bookcases.
实际上，Rarity 没能看到她本要给出的任何回复，因为天角兽几乎在她说完话的瞬间就传送离开了。不过，她确实听到楼下有马大声咒骂了一句，紧接着是一声巨响——她真心希望那不是 Twilight 砸烂了自己某个书柜的声音。

After a minute, Twilight returned, looking wonderfully calm and composed. Rarity didn’t dare ask what the source of the noise had been, and instead waited for the alicorn to take the lead.
一分钟后，Twilight回来了，看起来异常平静且镇定。Rarity不敢询问那噪音的来源，只是等待着天角兽带头行动。

“Sorry,” Twilight said, sitting back down and folding her wings against her body. “You were saying?”
"“抱歉，”Twilight说着，重新坐下并将翅膀收拢在身侧，“你刚才说到哪儿了？”"

“Discord took me ‘on a date,’ so to speak, and he…” She drifted off, once again having reached the part of the conversation which promised to become very uncomfortable very fast. “He revealed he’d been the one I spoke with nearly a year ago, and if that stands true, then…” She took a deep breath. “Then it stands to reason that he was no doubt lying about the books being a key to freeing you.”
"“可以说，混乱之王带我‘约会’了，而他……”她的话语渐弱，再次触及对话中即将迅速变得极为尴尬的部分。“他透露自己就是近一年前与我交谈的那位，如果这是真的，那么……”她深吸一口气。“那么，他声称那些书是解救你的关键，无疑是在撒谎。”"

“So,” Twilight said, and how somber her voice sounded, her ears pinned back and her eyes betraying no emotion, “there’s no way to free me.”
"“所以，”Twilight说道，声音低沉，耳朵向后贴伏，眼神不露一丝情绪，“没有方法能让我获得自由。”"

“No, that is not true! That is not what I said at all!” Rarity quickly interjected. “This only means that the books aren’t the solution, not that there is no solution!”
"“不，那不是真的！我根本没说过那样的话！”Rarity迅速插嘴道。“这只是意味着书不是解决办法，而不是说没有解决办法！”"

“How do you know that?” Twilight asked, staring Rarity down. “I’ve been here a thousand years, and you said that until the books, nopony had ever heard of a way of freeing me. Maybe I can’t be freed.”
"“你怎么知道？”Twilight盯着Rarity问道。“我已经在这里待了一千年，而你说在那些书出现之前，从未有小马听说过能解放我的方法。也许我根本无法被解放。”"

Rarity arched an eyebrow. “Oh? Then, I suppose we shouldn’t try exploiting our discovery in Hollow Shades because clearly you all can’t be freed.”
Rarity挑起一边眉毛。“哦？那么，我想我们不应该尝试利用在幽暗林荫的发现，因为显然你们都无法被解放。”

“That’s different! That’s for Princess Luna!” Twilight protested, again stamping her hoof against the floor. “There’s an obvious influence there!”
"“那不一样！那是为了露娜公主！”Twilight抗议道，再次用蹄子跺地。“那里有明显的影响！”"

Rarity gawked at Twilight. “And there isn’t one here?! One that, may I remind you, personally attacked us?!”
Rarity 盯着 Twilight。“这里竟然没有？！那个，容我提醒你，曾亲自攻击过我们的家伙？！”

Twilight frowned. “The maze…? You think the maze is keeping me trapped here?! Rarity, that’s ridiculous!” she exclaimed. “That’s only here to annoy me! I don’t—!”
Twilight 皱起眉头。“迷宫…？你以为迷宫把我困在这里了？！Rarity，这太荒谬了！”她大声说道。“那只是为了烦我！我才不——！”

“I don’t mean the maze! I mean the chaos magic! Discord said as much!” Rarity interrupted, getting up on the pillows, not intending to go down without a fight. “He said you’re powering it! And did it not attack us when you expressed the desire to leave?!” She trotted toward the alicorn, and shoved her hoof against—or rather, through—Twilight’s chest. “You can’t deny the evidence, Twilight!”
"“我不是指迷宫！我指的是混沌魔法！无序亲口说的！”Rarity 打断道，从枕头上站起来，显然不打算轻易认输。“他说是你在提供能量！而且当你表达想离开的愿望时，它不也攻击了我们吗？！”她小跑向天角兽，用蹄子抵住——或者说穿过——Twilight 的胸口。“你无法否认这些证据，Twilight！”"

Twilight stood up perfectly straight, almost unnaturally so, and opened and closed her mouth several times. Eventually, she let out a long-suffering sigh and spoke in a measured tone which Rarity hardly appreciated.
Twilight 笔直地站起来，姿势几乎不自然，嘴巴开合了几次。最终，她发出一声饱经沧桑的叹息，以一种 Rarity 难以欣赏的克制语气开口。

“Let me make sure I understand what you’re saying because I don’t think you understand what you’re saying,” she said matter-of-factly, and at least Rarity had the decency to withhold her exasperated sigh. “According to you and Discord, who may or may not be lying, the chaos magic from the maze is keeping me here because I’m powering it?”
"“让我确认一下我是否理解你的意思，因为我觉得你自己都没搞明白自己在说什么，”她实事求是地说道，至少Rarity还算有教养地忍住了那声恼怒的叹息。“按你和 Discord 的说法——不管你们有没有撒谎——迷宫的混沌魔法困住了我，是因为我在为它提供能量？”"

Well, if you put it like that.
好吧，如果你这么表述的话。

Before Rarity could reply, Twilight continued.
还没等Rarity回应，Twilight就继续说了下去。

“Why? Why would I do that?” she asked. “It makes no sense! I don’t want to be here, but the barrier is still there!” She stopped herself and deadpanned. “All right, fine.” She teleported next to the exit tunnel. “I want to be freed,” she declared monotonously, and after she lifted her hoof toward the exit and the raspberry-colored barrier pushed it back, she threw Rarity a pointed stare.
"“为什么？我为什么要那么做？”她质问道。“这根本说不通！我不想待在这儿，可屏障还在那儿！”她突然刹住话头，面无表情地说。“行吧，好吧。”她瞬间移动到出口隧道旁。“我想要自由，”她机械地宣告着，而当她抬起蹄子伸向出口，却被覆盆子色的屏障弹回时，她朝Rarity投去一个尖锐的眼神。"

“Well, of course it’s not going to do anything if you say it like that!” Rarity protested, rolling her eyes. “That was the least convincing statement I’ve heard in my life!”
"“哼，你这么说当然什么用都没有啦！”Rarity翻了个白眼抗议道，“这可是我这辈子听过最没说服力的话了！”"

Twilight teleported back to her. “That’s because there is no way to free me! Why wouldn’t I want to be free?! Spike is fine now, and Princess Luna will be fine, and I’m sure you’ll find Princess Celestia and…” She faltered for a moment. “And Cadance and Shining Armor’s descendants are fine, and everypony is fine!”
Twilight瞬移回她身边。“那是因为根本没办法解救我！我怎么会不想自由？！斯派克现在好好的，露娜公主也会没事，我相信你们一定能找到塞拉斯蒂娅公主还有……”她迟疑了一下。“而且韵律和闪耀盔甲的后代都安然无恙，所有小马都好好的！”

“I don’t know, Twilight, but it’s honestly like you don’t even want to figure out a way to free yourself!” Rarity said, harrumphing and looking away.
"“我不知道，Twilight，但说实话，你看起来根本不想自己找出获得自由的办法！”Rarity哼了一声，扭头看向别处。"

“I want to figure it out for myself! I don’t want anypony helping me!” Twilight replied, teleporting in front of Rarity and forcing the unicorn to look at her. “Princess Luna and Princess Celestia are where they are because of me, and I’m not going to waste our time helping them by trying to find a way out of here!”
"“我要自己想办法！不需要任何小马帮忙！”Twilight回应道，瞬移到Rarity面前迫使独角兽正视她。“露娜公主和塞拉斯蒂娅公主落到这般田地都是因为我，我不会浪费我们的时间去帮她们，更不会费心从这里逃出去！”"

“Oh? You don’t want anypony helping you?” Rarity asked, each syllable icier than the one before. Well, then, Princess Twilight Sparkle. Well then. “I see.” She stood up and trotted toward the table where her things were. “If that’s the case, then let me not further waste my time or yours.”
"“哦？你不想让任何小马帮你吗？”Rarity问道，每个音节都比前一个更冰冷。好吧，那么，Twilight Sparkle公主。好吧。“我明白了。”她站起身，小步走向放着她物品的桌子。“既然如此，那我就不再浪费你我的时间了。”"

“Wait!” Twilight teleported in front of her, her magic levitating Rarity’s bags out of reach. “Wait, where are you going?! I just got you back!”
"“等等！”Twilight瞬间移动到她面前，用魔法将Rarity的行李悬浮到够不着的地方。“等等，你要去哪儿？！我才刚把你找回来！”"

The ghost of a smile wanted to creep up Rarity’s lips, but she held her ground. “I wasn’t leaving, Twilight. I intend on staying here as long as you want my presence, but—!” She snatched her bags back with her own magic, making the alicorn flinch and step back like a child caught misbehaving. “Since you, and I quote, find helping you a ‘waste of time,’ then I will do useful things with my hours and try to work on Princess Luna’s predicament. I gather you don’t object, do you, Princess?”
一丝微笑的幽灵试图爬上Rarity的嘴角，但她稳住了立场。“我没打算离开，Twilight。只要你希望我在，我就会一直留在这里，但是——！”她用自己的魔法一把夺回行李，令这位天角兽像做错事被抓的孩子一样退缩后退。“既然你，我引用原话，认为帮助你是在‘浪费时间’，那么我将用我的时间做些有用的事，试着解决露娜公主的困境。我想你不会反对吧，公主？”

“…No,” Twilight said lamely, looking away and falling to her haunches.
"“……不反对，”Twilight无力地说道，移开视线，跌坐在地上。"

“Splendid.”  "“太棒了。”"

Rarity promptly trotted off, head held high even though her irritation had already melted away, replaced instead with aggravation. Of all the possible things she wanted to do with Twilight, arguing was the very last on the list. However, she’d not even taken ten steps before raspberry magic held all four of her hooves in place.
Rarity 立刻小跑离开，尽管她的恼怒早已消散，取而代之的是愤懑，但她依然昂首挺胸。在所有她可能与 Twilight 一起做的事情中，争吵是她清单上的最后一项。然而，她还没走出十步，就被一股覆盆子色的魔法定住了四蹄。

She looked over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow at the forlorn alicorn, who meekly looked back at her, ears pinned back.
她回头瞥了一眼，对那只沮丧的幻形灵挑了挑眉，后者怯生生地望着她，耳朵紧贴脑后。

“…Are you mad?” she softly asked, her gaze piercing Rarity and melting her heart. Curse her! What gave her the right to have perfect puppy-dog eyes?!
"“……你生气了吗？”她轻声问道，目光直刺 Rarity 的心扉，融化了她的心。可恶！她凭什么拥有如此完美的楚楚可怜眼神？！"

Rarity sighed audibly, looking away and wishing her hoof was free to rub the bridge of her nose.
Rarity 大声叹了口气，移开视线，真希望她的蹄子能自由活动，好揉揉鼻梁。

“That depends entirely on what you mean by that,” she said, looking back at Twilight and mimicking the alicorn’s trademark matter-of-fact stare. “Are you asking if I’m mad at you, or if I’m mad about you? Because, frankly, I’m both, so you can imagine the predicament I’m in.”
"“这完全取决于你指的是什么，”她说着，目光重新落回Twilight身上，模仿着天角兽标志性的实事求是眼神。“你是问我生你的气，还是为你着迷？因为坦白说，两者都有，所以你能想象我现在的困境。”"

Like a shining light, a small pleased smile swept across Twilight’s face, her cheeks turning a lovely rosy hue. It did not last long, however, and soon did it disappear, as did her magic grip on Rarity’s hooves. A crackle of magic sounded off, and suddenly she’d teleported next to the unicorn.
如一道闪光般，一抹小小的满意微笑掠过Twilight的脸庞，她的双颊泛起可爱的玫瑰色。然而这笑容并未持久，很快便消失了，她对Rarity蹄子的魔法束缚也随之解除。一声魔法爆裂声响起，她瞬间传送到了独角兽身旁。

“I’m sorry,” she said, bowing her head.
"“对不起，”她低头说道。"

A pang of guilt shot through Rarity’s heart at the sight and she put her saddlebags down. Princesses, hadn’t Twilight been sorry for long enough? Why should Rarity add another shackle to the chains weighing her beloved down?
看到这一幕，Rarity心中一阵内疚，她放下了鞍包。公主们，Twilight难道自责得还不够久吗？为何Rarity还要在她心爱之人的重担上再加一道枷锁？

“Twilight?” she whispered softly, and when the alicorn looked up, she offered a smile, wishing she could actually physically comfort her. “You have nothing to be sorry about. I simply…” She sighed and waved her hoof in a circle. “I simply don’t understand your reasoning. Haven’t you considered that if you’re free, it will be that much easier for us to help the others?”
"“Twilight？”她轻声细语地唤道，当天角兽抬起头时，她露出一个微笑，多希望能实实在在地安慰她。“你无需感到抱歉。我只是……”她叹了口气，用蹄子画了个圈。“我只是不明白你的理由。难道你没想过，如果你自由了，我们帮助其他人才会更容易吗？”"

“But Discord said the books don’t work,” Twilight weakly protested, her eyes watering. “I can’t be freed.”
"“但无序说那些书没用，”Twilight无力地反驳，眼中噙着泪水。“我无法被解救。”"

“Yes, you can, Twilight. No, don’t look away! Look at me, Twilight,” she insisted, and when Twilight did as much, she stamped her hoof against the ground. “Twilight Sparkle, mark my words, there is a way to free you, and we will work together to find it.”
"“不，你可以的，Twilight。别，别移开视线！看着我，Twilight，”她坚持道，当Twilight照做时，她重重地踏了一下蹄子。“Twilight Sparkle，记住我的话，一定有办法解救你，我们会一起找到它的。”"

Twilight looked uncomfortable now, chewing on her lip. “But what if…?” She sighed and stood up straight. “What if I mess up?” she asked severely, eyes fixed on Rarity. “What if that’s why Discord suddenly helped you? Why he supposedly told you how to free me? What if it’s because he knows I’ll make a mistake again?”
Twilight 此刻显得局促不安，咬着嘴唇。“但如果…？”她叹了口气，挺直身子。“如果我搞砸了呢？”她严肃地问道，目光紧盯着Rarity。“如果这就是 Discord 突然帮助你的原因呢？为什么他告诉你如何释放我？如果是因为他知道我会再次犯错呢？”

Rarity stamped her hoof again. “First of all, Twilight, you’ve done nothing wrong! Secondly, you—”
Rarity 再次跺了跺蹄子。“首先，Twilight，你没有做错任何事！其次，你——”

“Yes, I have!” Twilight interrupted, but immediately she tapered off, groaning and pressing her hooves to her face. “You don’t know what— You don’t get it, Rarity.”
"“不，我有！”Twilight 打断道，但随即声音渐弱，呻吟着用蹄子捂住脸。“你不知道——你不明白，Rarity。”"

Rarity sighed. If there was ever a moment to let the cat out of the bag, it seemed as though it had finally arrived.
Rarity 叹了口气。如果有什么时刻该揭开秘密，似乎现在终于到来了。

“I do get it, Twilight,” she said, bracing herself for whatever consequence her confession would bring. “Princess Luna told me about what happened a thousand years ago, from how you—” She paused. “All four princesses fooled him into thinking they’d won, how he supposedly reformed, all the way up to the fifth Peace Treaty.”
"“我确实明白了，Twilight，”她说着，为自己即将因坦白而面临的任何后果做好了心理准备。“露娜公主告诉了我一千年前发生的事，从你们——”她停顿了一下。“四位公主如何联手让他误以为自己赢了，他所谓的改过自新，一直到第五次和平条约的签订。”"

Rarity felt very much as though her heart had been stabbed at the sight of Twilight’s reaction. The alicorn stepped back, a single hoof hovering over her open mouth. To say she looked as if she’d been slapped twice would be putting it mildly.
看到Twilight的反应，Rarity感觉自己的心仿佛被刺了一刀。这位天角兽后退了一步，一只蹄子悬在张开的嘴边。说她看起来像是被扇了两记耳光都算是轻描淡写了。

“…She told you…?”  "“……她告诉了你……？”"

“Yes, but it’s all right, Twilight!” Rarity reassured, taking a step toward her. “It’s all right, and I’m glad she did because now I’m even more driven to find Discord and give him a piece of my mind for everything he did!”
"“是的，但没关系，Twilight！”Rarity安慰道，朝她迈近一步。“没关系的，而且我很高兴她这么做了，因为现在我更下定决心要找到无序，为他的所作所为好好教训他一顿！”"

Twilight shook her head, still gaping at Rarity. “No, yo-you don’t understand! I did it! I messed up for everypony! It’s my fault that everypony is trapped somewhere except for Cadance and Shining Armor, and now that you know you think that too and you’ll probably never come to the library again, and that’s why you came here because you wanted to say goodbye before you left forever and—”
Twilight 摇着头，仍然目瞪口呆地看着Rarity。'不，你-你不明白！是我干的！我把一切都搞砸了！所有小马被困住，除了韵律和闪耀盔甲，这都是我的错，现在你也这么认为了，你可能再也不会来图书馆了，所以你才来这里，是想在永远离开前道别，然后——'

“Twilight.”  "“Twilight。”"

At the sound of Rarity’s voice, Twilight teleported away, leaving Rarity to do nothing but sigh a very deep sigh.
听到Rarity的声音，Twilight瞬间传送离开了，只留下Rarity深深地叹了一口气。

Come, Rarity, put yourself in her shoes.
来吧，Rarity，设身处地为她想想。

“Twilight,” she said, looking around for the alicorn. “Twilight, please come back. I give you my word I am not planning on leaving the library forever.”
"'Twilight,' 她环顾四周寻找那天角兽说道，'Twilight，请回来吧。我向你保证，我并没有打算永远离开图书馆。'"

A moment of silence followed, after which Twilight teleported back in front of Rarity, teeth gritted and tears wetting her eyes.
一阵沉默过后，Twilight 传送回 Rarity 面前，紧咬牙关，泪水湿润了她的双眼。

“Twilight,” Rarity began, “you can’t just tele—”
"“Twilight，”Rarity 开口道，“你不能就这样传送——”"

“Rarity, why can’t we just be happy you’re here? What’s the point of talking about this? Or you knowing? It’s over. It already happened. Princess Luna shouldn’t have told you.”
"“Rarity，为什么我们就不能开心你在这里呢？讨论这个有什么意义？或者让你知道？一切都结束了。事情已经发生了。露娜公主本不该告诉你的。”"

“She told me because it’s haunting you, Twilight,” Rarity insisted, practically pleading, stepping forward and reaching out a hoof. “Maybe that’s why you can’t—”
"“她告诉我是因为这件事一直困扰着你，Twilight，”Rarity 坚持道，几乎是恳求地向前迈了一步，伸出一只蹄子。“也许这就是为什么你不能——”"

“Please,” Twilight whispered, peering back at Rarity. “Not now. Please.”
"“求你了，”Twilight低声说道，回头望向Rarity。“不是现在。求你了。”"

Finally, if begrudgingly, Rarity relented. “All right, then. I won’t press the issue today,” she said, picking her saddlebags up from the floor and trotting toward the bed of pillows. “But we will talk about this, sooner or later.”
最终，尽管不情愿，Rarity还是让步了。“好吧，那今天我就不再提这件事了，”她说着，从地上拾起鞍包，缓步走向那堆枕头。“但迟早我们会谈这个的。”

“Rarity?”  "“Rarity？”"

She stopped and looked back, finding the alicorn looking at her much like before. Forlorn, meek, apologetic. It only made Rarity want to find Discord and blast the living daylights out of him even more.
她停下脚步，回头望去，发现那只天角兽正以与之前无异的眼神注视着她——忧郁、温顺、充满歉意。这只会让Rarity更想找到无序，把他轰得魂飞魄散。

“What Princess Luna told you… You don’t think I’m a…” She petered out.
"“露娜公主告诉你的那些……你不会觉得我是个……”她的声音渐渐弱了下去。"

“I would never hold you accountable for a choice—not a mistake, Twilight, a choice—you were forced to make because of horrible external circumstances,” Rarity firmly replied.
"“我绝不会因为一个选择——不是错误，Twilight，而是你在恶劣外部环境下被迫做出的选择——而责怪你，”Rarity坚定地回答。"

She waited a moment for Twilight to reply, but when Twilight did not, she exhaled and continued toward her bed. She dropped the saddlebags next to it, intending to devise more ideas on how to free Luna, but the moment her body hit the pillows, the exhaustion of not having slept for two days washed over her.
她等了一会儿，期待Twilight的回应，但见Twilight沉默不语，便轻叹一声，继续走向床铺。她把马鞍袋丢在一旁，本想再构思解救露娜的计划，然而身体一沾枕头，两天未眠的疲惫感便席卷而来。

Oh dear, maybe she ought to worry about Luna after a long sleep.
哎呀，或许她该先好好睡一觉，再操心露娜的事。

“Rarity?”  "“Rarity？”"

Suppressing a yawn, she looked up and found Twilight standing beside the pillows. “Yes?”
强忍住哈欠，她抬头发现Twilight正站在枕边。“怎么了？”

“Can you bring Princess Denza here?” Twilight asked.
"“你能把丹莎公主带到这里来吗？”Twilight问道。"

Rarity stared at her. “Pardon?”
Rarity盯着她。“什么？”

“Can you bring Princess Denza here?” Twilight repeated, because clearly fetching the monarch of Equestria and bringing her to a library inside a crazed forest was a thing ponies often requested.
"“你能把丹莎公主带到这里来吗？”Twilight重复道，显然，请求将小马国的君主带到一片疯狂森林中的图书馆里是小马们常有的要求。"

“No, dearest, I heard what you said. I’m just not certain you heard what you said,” Rarity replied, sitting up. “You want me to bring Princess Denza here?” When Twilight nodded, she hummed and wished she knew what in Equestria had brought that about. “I suppose I could? I have done away with her curse, after all, and now she’d have no excuse whatsoever to not come and see you. I’ll try to arrange it for next week.”
"“不，亲爱的，我听到你说的话了。我只是不确定你是否听清了自己说的话，”Rarity回答着，坐直了身子。“你想让我把丹莎公主带来这里？”当Twilight点头时，她轻声哼着，希望自己能知道小马国里是什么导致了这样的请求。“我想我可以？毕竟我已经解除了她的诅咒，现在她没有任何理由不来见你。我会试着安排在下周。”"

“Can you do it sooner?” Twilight asked. “This week.”
"“你能早点完成吗？”Twilight问道。“就这周。”"

“This week? But, Twilight, Seeking Night is in less than six days, and a trip to Canterlot would take me at least two days! Especially if you want me to get Princess Denza here! Why do you suddenly want to see her?” She narrowed her eyes. “Is it because of what you saw in my memories?”
"“这周？但是，Twilight，寻夜节不到六天就要到了，去坎特洛特至少得花我两天时间！特别是你还想让我把丹莎公主带过来！为什么你突然想见她？”她眯起眼睛。“是因为你在我记忆里看到的东西吗？”"

“I didn’t see anything!” Twilight said quickly, too quickly. She pouted for a moment, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath. “I think she can help with Princess Luna, but I need to talk with her myself. Please?”
"“我什么都没看到！”Twilight迅速回答，快得有些反常。她撅嘴片刻，闭上眼睛深吸一口气。“我觉得她可能对露娜公主的事有帮助，但我需要亲自和她谈谈。求你了？”"

Rarity hummed. “Only if you tell me the real reason.”
Rarity沉吟道。“除非你告诉我真正的原因。”

“Rarity! That is the real reason!” Twilight protested, ears flicking in irritation.
"“Rarity！这才是真正的原因！”Twilight抗议道，耳朵恼怒地抖动着。"

“…Darling. I do love you, but lying is not your strong suit.”
"“…亲爱的。我确实爱你，但撒谎可不是你的强项。”"

Twilight grimaced. “Rarity… I… Please. I promise I’ll explain after you’ve gone to see her. It might be nothing, and I’d rather not have to think about it until I have to think about it. Okay?”
Twilight做了个苦脸。“Rarity…我…求你了。我保证等你去见过她后我会解释的。可能没什么大不了的，我宁愿在不得不面对之前不去想它。好吗？”

Rarity frowned but decided to let it go. The last thing she wanted was to make Twilight even more uncomfortable or further spoil their time together. Twilight would tell her in due time.
Rarity皱了皱眉，但决定不再追究。她最不希望的就是让Twilight更加不安或进一步破坏他们共处的时光。Twilight到时候会告诉她的。

“Well, all right. I’ll do what I can to go see her,” she said, taking a blanket out of her saddlebag before lying back down on the pillows, covering herself and closing her eyes. “But I shan’t concern myself with that until I’ve actually had some amount of beauty sleep.”
"“好吧，行吧。我会尽力去看看她，”她说着，从马鞍包里取出一条毯子，重新躺回枕头上，盖好自己并闭上眼睛。“但在我真正睡个美容觉之前，我可不想操心那些事。”"

Truthfully, she also wanted to see the princess. With her and the royal guard, freeing Princess Luna and finding Princess Celestia would take no time at all.
说实话，她也想见见那位公主。有了她和皇家卫队的帮助，解救露娜公主和寻找塞拉斯蒂娅公主根本不在话下。

Maybe then she’d have time to focus on Twilight’s own prison.
也许到那时，她就有时间专注于Twilight自己的牢笼问题了。

“Star!” Twilight called out, and a pleased smile graced Rarity’s lips when she felt the light dim.
"“星星！”Twilight喊道，当感觉到光线暗下来时，Rarity的嘴角浮现出一抹满意的微笑。"

Unfortunately, the smile left rapidly once she opened her eyes and saw Twilight reading at a table that was offensively far away. It wasn’t that Rarity had anything against tables or the like, not at all, but for months now, whenever she went to sleep in the library, Twilight always lied down and read next to her.
可惜的是，她的笑容很快消失了，因为她一睁开眼睛就看到Twilight坐在一张离得远得离谱的桌子旁看书。Rarity并非对桌子之类的东西有什么意见，完全没有，但几个月来，每当她在图书馆睡觉时，Twilight总是躺在她旁边看书。

Well, it seemed as though she’d have to take some initiative, then.
好吧，看来她得主动采取些行动了。

“Twilight?”  "“Twilight？”"

Twilight looked up, ears perked. “…Yes?”
Twilight 抬起头，耳朵竖了起来。“……什么事？”

“Would you mind ever so terribly reading next to me?” she asked, moving a few pillows away and patting the ground beside her. “Please?”
“你介意在我旁边读一会儿书吗？”她问道，挪开了几个枕头，拍了拍身边的地面。“可以吗？”

“Uhm…” Twilight hesitated before eventually levitating her book and walked toward Rarity, doing a poor job at hiding her reluctance. When she reached her and without a word to Rarity, she lied down and stared intently at her book.
"“呃…”Twilight犹豫了一下，最终还是让她的书飘浮起来，走向Rarity，掩饰不住内心的不情愿。当她走到Rarity身边时，一言不发地对着Rarity躺下，专注地盯着她的书。"

Rarity hummed. “Shall I venture a guess and say you’re still upset about what Princess Luna did?”
Rarity轻声哼道。“我猜，你还在为露娜公主的所作所为感到不快吧？”

A telling silence followed in which Twilight’s ears folded back.
接下来是一阵意味深长的沉默，Twilight的耳朵向后折起。

Rarity hummed again, positioning herself so she’d be facing Twilight. “Shall I venture another guess and say you’re still concerned over what I think of you?”
Rarity再次轻哼，调整姿势让自己面向Twilight。“我再猜一次，你还在担心我对你的看法吗？”

“Weren’t you going to bed?” Twilight asked, and when Rarity giggled, she looked up, irritated. “What?”
"“你不是要去睡觉吗？”Twilight问道，当Rarity咯咯笑起来时，她抬起头，显得有些不悦。“怎么了？”"

“You are a rather silly pony, aren’t you?” she asked, delighting at Twilight’s positively outraged expression.
"“你可真是个傻乎乎的小马驹，不是吗？”她问道，对Twilight那明显愤慨的表情感到乐不可支。"

“I am not!” Twilight protested.
"“我才不傻！”Twilight抗议道。"

“May I ask a favor of you?” She levitated Twilight’s necklace, dropped it on top of the book, and after a spark of magic, Twilight’s necklace began to flash.
"“能请你帮个忙吗？”她用魔法悬浮起Twilight的项链，将其放在书本上，随着一道魔法光芒闪过，Twilight的项链开始闪烁起来。"

Twilight’s eyes darted back and forth between the necklaces, and though she opened her mouth to no doubt protest, Rarity was faster.
Twilight的目光在项链间来回游移，尽管她张嘴无疑是想抗议，但Rarity更快一步。

“I won’t go anywhere you don’t want me to,” she assured. “I only want to show you something. As you said earlier, this is the best way of doing it without omitting or tampering with a single detail.”
"“我不会去任何你不希望我去的地方，”她保证道，“我只想给你看些东西。正如你之前所说，这是在不遗漏或篡改任何细节的情况下，最好的展示方式。”"

Though she gave Rarity a concerned look, Twilight closed her eyes and cast the spell. As soon as the connection was established, Rarity felt a certain amount of foreign trepidation, but she quickly did away with it and simply contented herself with gazing at Twilight.
尽管Twilight向Rarity投去了关切的目光，她还是闭上眼睛施展了法术。连接一建立，Rarity便感受到了一丝异样的忧虑，但她迅速将其驱散，只是满足于凝视着Twilight。

Nothing more, nothing less.
不多不少，恰到好处。

No thoughts of Discord, or princesses and choices made thousands of years ago. She simply focused on the alicorn before her, and the more she looked at her, the more she wanted to look at her, because goodness, she’d missed her. Her and her silly habit of teleporting away, her endless insistence on Rarity learning everything, her little ways of thinking she was so discreet when sneaking glances, and how she’d so easily stolen Rarity’s heart.
心中不再有关于纷争、公主或千年前所作选择的杂念。她只是专注于眼前的天角兽，越看越想看，因为天哪，她太想念她了。想念她那些瞬移离开的傻习惯，她无休止地坚持Rarity学习一切，她自以为偷偷瞥视时很隐蔽的小心思，以及她如何轻易地偷走了Rarity的心。

Thought after thought coursed through Rarity’s mind, and she could hardly stop the endlessly smitten grin at the sight of the fierce blush crawling its way up on Twilight’s face, and how fascinating it was to actually feel Twilight’s shamefully pleased embarrassment.
思绪如潮水般在Rarity脑海中涌动，看到Twilight脸上蔓延的浓烈红晕，她几乎无法抑制那抹痴迷的笑容，而能真切感受到Twilight那种羞怯却愉悦的尴尬，更是令她着迷。

And she honestly thought that Rarity’s opinion of her had changed.
而她真心以为Rarity对她的看法已经改变了。

It was as though Rarity hadn’t spent the past months completely focused on finding Twilight again!
就好像Rarity过去几个月里完全没有全神贯注于再次找到Twilight似的！

“Okay, okay! Stop!” Twilight squeaked, burying her flushed face through her hooves, and Rarity valiantly fought the alicorn’s urge for her to look away. “I get it! I get it!”
"“好了，好了！停下！”Twilight尖声叫道，将泛红的脸埋进蹄子里，而Rarity则勇敢地抵抗着天角兽让她移开视线的冲动。“我懂了！我懂了！”"

“Why, Twilight! Stop what? Am I not allowed to look at you?” Rarity asked ever so innocently.
"“怎么了，Twilight！停下什么？难道我不能看着你吗？”Rarity故作天真地问道。"

Unfortunately, as much as she delighted in teasing Twilight, sleep came knocking back, ready to take her within its embrace.
不幸的是，尽管她很喜欢逗弄Twilight，睡意再次袭来，准备将她拥入怀抱。

“Go to sleep,” Twilight said, her flush fading. “You’re barely…” Both ponies yawned. “Holding on…”
"“去睡吧，”Twilight说道，脸上的红晕渐渐褪去。“你都快…”两只小马同时打了个哈欠。“撑不住了…”"

For a moment, Rarity considered complying with her other self’s desire to end the spell, but instead…
有那么一瞬间，Rarity 考虑过顺从另一个自己想要结束法术的愿望，但最终……

“In a minute…”  "“再等一会儿……”"

She closed her eyes, snuggled up against the pillows and then, still maintaining the spell, placed one of her forehooves on top of the other. She vividly felt it, her own soft touch, and a warm splash of affection washed over her, which she knew wasn’t entirely hers.
她闭上眼睛，依偎在枕头上，同时仍维持着法术，将一只前蹄轻轻搭在另一只上。她清晰地感受到了自己那温柔的触碰，一股暖流般的爱意涌上心头，她知道这并不完全源自她自己。

It seemed Twilight Sparkle did not really need her body back to hold Rarity, now did she?
看来 Twilight Sparkle 其实并不需要取回身体才能拥抱 Rarity，不是吗？