Chapter 2

The next morning dawned bright and warm. Twilight Sparkle had long since awoken, eaten breakfast, and now waited alone in the small chamber where Career Day would commence. None of the other Orphans had even gotten their own first meal of the day finished yet, but Twilight did not mind the solitude. She was not sure she could stomach the sight of her fellow Orphans already knowing where they would belong. Dash’s words from the night before once more returned to her mind, taunting her and laughing silently. After all, who is going to want a unicorn mare who spends all of her time studying?

Like she has in the past, Twilight struggled to just let Rainbow Dash’s words slide off her consciousness. The future Wonderbolt was impulsive and spoke without thinking, but Twilight knew that the cyan flier didn’t mean anything by it. Even despite knowing this, it was hard to just ignore what Dash had said. What Master would want her? Sure, she studied a lot, and probably knew more about most types of magic than other mages out there. But she never had any intention of just choosing one branch of magic and making that her course of study. She wanted to learn them all. She wanted to master them all. And no mage in their right mind would allow Twilight Sparkle to expand her knowledge outside what the Master taught. The best she could hope for was to at least be accepted into Luna’s School for Gifted Unicorns and go from there.

The door in front of her swung open slowly, and in marched the other four Orphans. One by one, they took their seats to either side of Twilight, offering small smiles or words of encouragement to the lavender unicorn. At the end of the procession marched Princess Luna’s secretary, Dry Parchment. It would be he who called in the Masters for this Career Day; Princess Luna was undoubtedly busy with other matters, and would not attend. Dry Parchment gave the gathered Orphans a cursory glance, and then proceeded to yet another door to the right of the one he had entered from. Through this door appeared various Masters, all dressed differently and of differing ages and coloration.

“Come on then, Orphans. Line up and let the Masters get a good look at you!” Dry Parchment’s voice matched his namesake, hoarse and cracking. One by one, Twilight and her friends rose and shuffled into a rough four pony line, facing the impassive Masters before them. They automatically lined up in age, from oldest to youngest; while the Orphans were all seventeen now, there were still differences in when they had been born. Applejack was first, being several months older than her Orphan-mates. Rainbow Dash was next, followed by Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, and then Twilight at the very end, who had just turned seventeen today. The air of the room was tense, expectant, and charged with almost visible electricity.

Twilight eyed the Masters, taking in their various appearances. She recognized most of them, having actually grown up in the castle proper. The first in the group of Masters was some noble named Silver Bit. He was a unicorn, which was kind of odd seeing as he was the Supreme Commander of the Equestrian Rangers. How he had gotten a position at the head of a bunch of earth pony farmers Twilight didn’t know; Silver Bit was thin and small, with none of the impressive muscles one might expect. As his name suggested, his coat and mane were silver, with shifty, watery eyes and a trio of bits as his cutie mark. He sniffed slightly as he stared at the Orphans, his mouth curling into a disdainful frown.

Next, standing loosely next to Silver Bit, was the flaming Spitfire, Captain of the Wonderbolts. The fiery pegasus was every bit as sleek and smooth as Rainbow Dash, and looked coolly out of place in her signature Wonderbolt flight uniform. Spitfire wore tinted glasses and held herself loosely, distantly detached from the proceedings. Twilight felt her respect for the flier rise a bit. After Spitfire was Zecora, head of Equestrian Intelligence. To the best of Twilight’s knowledge, the Zebra Zecora was the only foreign Master seen in hundreds of years. With several ankle rings and piercings, coupled with a careless Mohawk, Zecora would be the last creature you’d expect to see at the head of a vast spy network. But her wit was as sharp as her eyes, and the Zebra missed nothing. She had eyes and ears everywhere. Then lastly, there was Shimmer, the lead doctor of the Medic Corps. The pegasus was dressed in a loose white lab coat that clashed magnificently with her maroon coat coloration. A stethoscope draped around her neck completed the classic doctor look.

It took Twilight a few moments of studying the masters to realize that there were no Mages among them. Her heart rate quickened considerably as she studied the Masters before her, and her mouth felt as dry as a desert. There were several she did not recognize, from less important positions, but, without a doubt, there were no Mages to be seen. Sweat started to bead upon her brow, and her eyes darted repeatedly to the exits. Rainbow Dash was right. Not even the lowest of Mages wanted her as an apprentice. She started to hyperventilate, and almost missed what Dry Parchment was now saying. Rainbow Dash glanced over at the unicorn briefly, and nudged her comfortingly. The cyan flier had noticed the same thing, but it would not do for Twilight to completely lose her head. Twilight calmed herself down enough to pay attention.

Dry Parchment was motioning Applejack forward impatiently. “Come on, now. Step forward, Orphan. State your name and preference, and we shall see if the Masters have a spot open for you.”

Applejack hesitated a bit, eyeing Silver Bit hesitantly. She lifted a hoof and took a half step forward. “Ah’m Applejack, Ah’d like to head tah the Equestrian Rangers.”

Silver Bit barely glanced at Applejack before nodding. “We’ve got space for her.” His voice was as watery as his eyes. Silver Bit turned to leave, clearly expecting Applejack to follow. The earth pony mare did, casting a slight frown at the back of her new superior.

“Jerk,” Spitfire muttered, barely audible. A smile twitched at the corner of Twilight's lips. Spitfire then promptly turned her attention to Rainbow Dash, who was next in line and starting to inch forward.

“Accepted, Cadet,” Spitfire said, before Dash even had a chance to state her name. “I expect to see you in the Wonderbolt Mess Hall bright and early tomorrow. Am I understood, Cadet?”

Dash snapped off a salute. “Yes, Ma’am!”

“Good,” was the only reply. “You might make a good Wonderbolt yet. Dismissed.” Rainbow Dash proceeded out the main doorway. Spitfire turned and promptly launched herself out the large, open window. Fluttershy tripped forward next, hiding behind her long pink mane.

“M-my name is Fluttershy,” she mumbled, her voice even further muffled by her hair. “I-I’d like to apply for Medic Corps.” Fluttershy cringed slightly at the end of her statement, clenching her pale eyes. Shimmer stepped forward softly, taking care not to startle the shy mare.

“Hmm,” the doctor hummed, studying Fluttershy carefully. “I can see the mark of a Whisperer in you, child, as well as your willingness to help those in need. You’ll go far in the Corps. Come, Fluttershy. Let us get you settled in.”

Fluttershy's eyes shot open to see Shimmer watching her with an encouraging smile. With a small smile of her own, Fluttershy began to follow Shimmer out of the room, leaving Pinkie Pie and Twilight Sparkle behind. Pinkie Pie bounced forward already introducing herself.

“Hi, Zecora! I’m Pinkamena Diane Pie, but everyone calls me Pinkie Pie! The Equestrian Intelligence is right up my alley!”

The Zebra raised an eyebrow as Pinkie suddenly stopped hopping and appeared in Zecora’s Mohawk, looking upside down into the mare’s eyes. “Well, Pinkie Pie, it appears that you have a knack for surprise. I’ll take you under my wing, little one, and see how well you do with my network of spies.”

Without pausing a beat, Pinkie leapt out of Zecora’s mane and began bouncing out the door. “Oki doki Loki,” the pink mare sang. Zecora followed the little pink ball of energy out of the door, which closed with a booming finality.

Twilight Sparkle was left alone with a hoof-full of Masters she did not recognize. Her heart sank as she confirmed that not a single Master still in the room was a Mage. Still, the unicorn resolutely stepped forward and spoke in a soft voice with barely a quaver:  “My name is Twilight Sparkle. And, well, I’d hoped to find a Mage Master…”

Hot tears began to well up in Twilight’s eyes as the reality of it hit her. There was no Mage here willing to take her under their guidance. It looked like Twilight had two choices now; she could choose a blacksmith or storeowner to become an apprentice to, or she could settle down with some grimy stallion from another noble House. If she were honest with herself, number two was starting to sound like the best choice. At least she’d still be able to read and study a small bit of magic. Before she could open her mouth again, a new voice interrupted.

“I shall account for this little one,” the voice said. Twilight went rigid in shock, as did Dry Parchment and the remaining Masters. She turned around so quickly she almost lost her balance and fell over. There, emerging from a hidden servant doorway was Princess Luna. The Equestrian Princess looked oddly comfortable, her silver regalia shining in the light of the midmorning sun. A small smile was tugging at the edges of her mouth as every pony present immediately dropped into a bow. Twilight Sparkle did the same, slightly later than everypony else. The Princess of the Night approached the young mare and laid a gentle hoof upon her shoulder.

“Rise, Twilight Sparkle. So, will you accept? Will you become my personal protégée?"

Twilight heard all of the words, but her mind stuck at one particular part. That simple word bounced ceaselessly inside her head. Protégé. Princess Luna wanted to be Twilight’s teacher. Princess Luna, the pony responsible for raising both the sun and the moon, wanted to become Twilight Sparkle’s mentor. Twilight slowly stood up, her face pale and clammy. Her breathing was harsh and ragged, sounding over loud in the sudden silence. After a few seconds of stunned silence, Twilight finally found her voice again.

“I would be honored, Princess, but I do not feel that I deserve such an honor as this.”

“Oh, posh, Twilight Sparkle. I have watched you since you first appeared as an Orphan. I have seen you ceaselessly studying; devouring books that even more advanced magicians would have troubles with. You are gifted, Twilight Sparkle, and I would help you learn to control your powers. Now, come, my new apprentice. We have much ground to cover in just today alone.”

Walking in a daze, Twilight Sparkle tripped after her new mentor, out the door and down yet another hallway.

________________________________

The first thing Twilight was assaulted with as she stepped into Princess Luna’s study was a wall of pristine white and a high, yet familiar voice. “Twilight, darling! It has simply been too long since I’ve last seen you!”

The wall of white detached itself from Twilight’s vision and formed itself into Rarity, another unicorn a year older than Twilight and the other Orphans. Rarity had once been an Orphan just like Twilight and the others, but, being a year older, the white unicorn had partook in Career Day just last year. Twilight had always wondered where her other friend had been accepted into; judging by the looks of things, Princess Luna had chosen Rarity as an apprentice as well.

“This is a surprise, Rarity! I’ve not seen you since your Career Day!”

“I know, darling! But Princess Luna wanted me to be kept a secret, so she could surprise you when she chose you as her protégée. I think she thought having a familiar face around might help you with your studies.”

“Indeed, that had been my intention,” Princess Luna stepped fully into the room. “I promise that I shall let the two of you catch up later, but at the moment, I need to assess Twilight and determine how I should go about instructing her. Rarity, why don’t you take the rest of the day off of your studies? I believe that some congratulations are in order for your other friends.”

With a un-lady like squeal, Rarity bounded out the door. Princess Luna closed it with a tendril of black magic. The Princess then turned to the still semi stunned Twilight Sparkle. “I am sorry to have scared you like that, Twilight Sparkle. I expressly forbid any Mage Masters showing up for today’s Career Day. I wanted you all to myself, without interference from other mages or nobility.”

“Its okay, Princess.” Twilight’s answer was automatic, her voice distant.

Princess Luna scowled sharply. “Please, Twilight, just call me Luna. I do not like hearing "Princess" all the time. First of all, let’s start with some basics. How familiar are you with the different branches of magic?”

Twilight considered her question carefully. “Well, Princ—Luna. There are ten different areas of magic. To my knowledge, the most common is the magic of Friendship. This branch is also the least studied, as Friendship usually manifests on its own. A good group of friends can often overcome any odds. After that, there is both the Light, and the Night. Light magic is simply there. Any magician can harness and use it, so long as they have the willpower. Night magic is a little different. You have to ask Night for its power, and usually have to give it something in return. Even a brief glimpse into the thoughts of a Night caster is enough to meet most requirements. Nature magic is often confused with the Light. Nature focuses on life and wellbeing, whereas Light gives strength and courage. Then there is also Love. Love is often tricky to handle, as it requires a user to be… intimate… and sexually active with another. These five together are often known as Accord Magic.

“The other five are known as Discord Magic. Animosity is probably the most common, and is practically the polar opposite of Friendship. Animosity can drive a caster to greater lengths to achieve his or her goal, without the help of others. After that comes Destruction, and Hatred. Destruction is just that, purely destructive. I have read that Destruction is designed solely to obliterate, using a casters inner disquiet. Hatred usually only comes to casters of sharp mind, and it also acts slowly with more precision. The last two are the fields that are the least studied, requiring recommendations from the most important ponies in Equestria before they can be studied. The less foul of the two is Chaos. This branch is unruly, uncivilized. It does not care who uses it or for what purpose, so long as it causes plenty of problems, big or small. The very last area of magic is… Necromancy. Nopony has studied Necromancy for years and years. The dead are more unpredictable that Chaos, and the dead should remain so.”

There was a small silence after Twilight finished. “Very good, Twilight,” Luna said, warmth coloring her tone. “Very few could name them as accurately as you just did. As my protégér, you will learn to tap into each and every branch of magic. From Friendship, to Necromancy, you will learn them all.”

“A—all of them?” Twilight stuttered. Her slight trepidation colored her tone.

“Yes, all. Do not worry so, Twilight. I will be here to teach you, and to guide you. Even Necromancy is not nearly so terrible when taught by one who knows what they are doing. Now, come. Let us grab some luncheon and prepare for your studies."