Part 1 - Humble Beginnings
Even before he got out of bed, Dawn Shine knew it was going to be a very special day. It was his seventeenth birthday, and there was only one gift that would satisfy him. Nothing, not even Fluttershy, could shake him of his cheerful mood, as he was sure he would finally earn his cutie mark today. He was dreadfully tired of being a misfit. A pony that passed his foalhood without earning his cutie mark? Unheard of! Well, he was absolutely certain today would be the day he stopped hearing all those comments from other ponies as he walked through town.
Dawn hopped out of bed and quickly descended the flight of stairs that led from the top floor of the small cottage he shared with Fluttershy, the mare who had looked past his bare flank, and instead saw him for the broken, sad pony that he was two years ago. He couldn't wait to see what she had planned for his birthday today! Would she take him out Sweet Apple Acres to let him try applebucking? Or maybe she would try to take him over to Twilight's home to see if she had a spell that allowed pegasi to use magic? As the possibilities raced through his mind, he hadn't noticed that Fluttershy was not home.
"Hey, Fluttershy!" Dawn said, his voice ringing throughout the empty cottage.After a few minutes of no response, he began to grow paranoid with fear. 'Oh no... I'm all alone! What if she left because I'm too much of a burden?! What if she doesn't ever come back?! What if... Oh no... What if she left because my parents are coming to take me away?! What am I going t-' His thoughts were interrupted when the door to the cottage flew open, revealing a rather disgruntled looking Fluttershy.
"Oh, there you are Fluttershy! I was worried that you left, and weren't coming back! Hehe... Now that I think about it, that was kind of paranoid of me..." Dawn said with an embarrassed look on his face. "What's wrong?" The question seemed to catch the mare off guard, as she shook her head and put a warm, motherly smile on her face. "Oh, nothing is wrong, Shine. You don't need to worry about me." Fluttershy cooed, obviously not even convincing herself. "What are you doing up so early in the morning?" Dawn, looking confused, peered at the clock and made note of the time: 6:45 AM.
"Oh! Well, you know... It's kind of a special day for me, being my seventeenth birthday and all. And, I was wondering, do you have anything planned for today?!" Dawn exclaimed. "I mean like, what are you going to do to help me get my cutie mark this year!? Are you going take me to Sweet Apple Acres to try applebucking? Are you going to take me to Twilight's library to see if she has a spell that'll allow me to do magic? Or maybe... Well, that's all I could think of. But are we going to do either of those?!" Fluttershy said nothing in response, but only let out a slight giggle, which only served to make Dawn a bit irritated.
"I'm sorry Shine, but I don't think we can do either of those. You see, not even Twilight's magic is enough to make a pony other than a unicorn able to do magic, and it isn't even applebucking season. But don't worry, I'll make it up to you. Now I need you to go do something for me, that is, if you aren't busy or anything..." Fluttershy said. "I need you to go pick up a package from Sugarcube Corner for me. There's something very special in there, and I have a feeling you'll really enjoy it."
"Okay..." Dawn sighed. "Just stop calling me 'Shine', you know I hate that. Well, I guess I'd better get going to pick up that package. I'll see you later Fluttershy!" And with that, Dawn started to run off to get the package, only to be halted by Fluttershy. "Now Shi- I mean, Dawn, I need you to promise me something. Promise me that you won't open the package until you get back home. I'd hate for the surprise to be ruined before you even got to the best part of your day!" "Fine..." Dawn huffed. "But can I go now?" "Now, now, don't give me that attitude young man!" said Fluttershy, getting ready to initiate her trademarked look, "The Stare." Not wanting to end up like the last pony that faced "The Stare," Dawn quickly replaced his grimace with a cheerful smile and nodded his way of the cottage. "Phew, that was close one..."
And with that, Dawn Shine ran off to Sugarcube corner, completely unwaware of what would soon happen...
Introduction - A Brief Backstory
It was a cool, early spring day, and the sun was gleaming down onto a tired pegasus pony's face, just as he was waking up, through the window to his bedroom. The date was March 23rd, three days after the Equestria-wide "Winter Wrap-up" event, and everypony was still getting into the swing of the newly arrived spring. However, today wasn't just any ordinary day. This was the day of Dawn Shine's 17th birthday, and it also happened to be the day when he would finally earn his cutie mark, yet he did not know it. Growing up was tough for Shine, as he never earned his cutie mark. All the other ponies, like Ringaling and Bittersweet, were busy bragging about their newly formed flank decorations, but Shine was left out.
By the age of 13, his parents we beginning to question the value of having him around. They never much cared for him, as he was regularly abused, both verbally and physically, for fun. Mama and Papa Shine would tell him, "You'll grow up to be nothing." and "You'll never get anywhere in life without your cutie mark!" as they pointed to their matching cutie marks, each representing his parents' roles as lawyers. Those two were the best in all of Equestria. When they teamed up, nopony had a chance of beating them. They always expected Dawn to follow in their footsteps, but when he came to age 15 and still didn't have his mark, they gave up on him and kicked him out of the home. Underaged and all alone, Shine had nowhere to go. A week after being thrown out of his home, he met a gentle pegasus named Fluttershy who, after seeing the poor, beaten, unloved pony, decided that she would take him under her wing and care for him.
Over the next year, Fluttershy had devoted much of her time to taking care of Shine, helping him to have a normal life, despite all the tragedy. She learned much of his past and his early foalhood, and made it one of her personal goals to help him try to earn his cutie mark. Shine, feeling flattered by all the kindness of this mare, realized that he was slowing starting to think of Fluttershy as more of a motherly figure than his own mother ever was. Another year passed, and still no cutie mark was earned. They had tried baking with Pinkie Pie at Sugarcube Corner, which just confused him. They tried racing, which, after granting Shine with a couple new bruises, proved to be fruitless. They had even tried to get him into making clothes, which, needless to say, was not really "his thing." They tried everything, and still, poor Dawn Shine was still a "blank flank." Today, our pegasus hero is feeling extra confident that it will finally be his time to get his cutie mark, and he has no idea how right he is...
