A Shining Sunset

by PoniesForever

Rating: teen
Tags: Alternate Universe, Sad, Romance, Tragedy
Length: 7079

Shining armor, soured by his youth, tries to break the world that had broken him.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2015-03-02 07:54:50 UTC

Prologue

Shining Armor, like all colts, began attending Canterlot Elementary School at the age of five.

He was so excited as his parents led him along the stone steps to the massive door of the academy. Normally, such an imposing sight would have frightened him out of his wits, for he had never been a brave child, but on this occasion he had completely forgotten that he was supposed to be afraid of things like this.

His mother gave him an especially tight hug, while his father proudly read the words above the door and beamed down at his son: "Bring to us your children and we will bring to you the leaders of tomorrow." They knew their child was destined for great things, and they couldn't have been prouder.

He had always been a quiet pony, but his smile quickly offset that; he smiled at everyone, even strangers, beaming with a radiance rarely seen out of children. When left alone, he would close his eyes and bump his hooves together to a whatever song he had last heard: when his parents noticed this, they decided he would be a great musician. When he began to count, they decided he must also be destined to be a great mathematician or professor. And while it did take him a while to begin speaking, and get the hang of basic communication, his parents assumed that any genius must have these minor setbacks, and assured each other that they still had the most special pony in all of Equestria.

Tearfully, they told their son that he had to go on without him, and that he would be fine, while he whimpered that he would miss them. After another tight hug and a kiss on the forehead, he was left alone in front of the doorway of his first class. With his mother's comforting presence gone, his fear returned, stronger than ever. Knees shaking, he struggled to move, but found himself paralyzed. His lip started to tremble, and just before he unleashed the impending torrent waiting behind his eyelids, he remembered the smiles that his parents gave him, right before they left. He knew he couldn't disappoint them; he sniffed, blinked back the tears, and strode inside.

He was met with thunderous applause and cheers. There has been a window next to the doorway, where entire class, teacher included, had been watching avidly, wondering if they would be having another classpony or not. He grinned back at them, feeling a similar joy to when he had made his parents proud.

It was a day unlike any other for Shining, where he learned much that he would keep within him for his entire life. He learned that not all applause and cheer was genuine, and that somehow people could laugh without it making him feel good. He learned that ponies could smile in a way that did not look, and wasn't nice or happy at all. He met many ponies that were happy to make friends that ponies that weren't him, and a teacher that decided his failures were a great way to get the class laughing.

As the year dragged on, he studied as hard as possible, and came to the inescapable conclusion that he was different in some way that made him impossible to be friends with. This would be a lesson he would keep within him for a very long time; where he doubted most everything else, he would not question this for years to come.

However, Shining Armor always had his adoring mother and proud father to back him up. For the next few months, though he always walked home in a slump, and came back with his head held high, comforted by his parents praises and care.  While he had yet to make a friend, he knew they would always be there for him.

Years later, when Shining armor was studying the disappearance of rules when the teacher looked away or left the classroom, he was told he would be a big brother. Nothing excited him more; a chance to make a friend, and be looked at as a cool pony (as he had observed in his fellow classponies) was something he had always wanted, and here was the opportunity. Shining Armor and his parents celebrated over their favorite meal of oats and leaves built into little houses, and laughed long into the night. And Shining Armor found himself full of hope for the first time in years.

He was corrected shortly after: his mother began lying around all day, complaining more than Shining himself ever had. He had maintained a near-constant state of despair after school, and while his mother had provided a shoulder to cry on less and less as time went on, she had given him less and less, and now that two years had passed, she would merely give him a pat on the head before returning to cleaning the dishes or washing something or other. However, Shining Armor had reserves of strength within him, and adapted: he grow into himself, depending less and less on her, and thus was able to persist on the few crumbs of affection she would pass out. But now that the announcement had been made, she barely even looked at him anymore, and would swat him away if he came asking for help; the last of her cares faded away, replaced by occasional promises which were, at some point before the comfort, followed by instantaneous transitions to cruelty and rage, which he could not explain. He soon learned that his mother was not a comfort, and began aiming for as much independence as he could muster

His father had avoided the role of comforter, and had mostly directed him to his mother when he would begin sobbing about his being picked on, or the teachers ' blind eyes, and so Shining did not notice such a major difference in him. They had a weekly game of catch (where they could take turns kicking the ball in the air and seeing if the other could catch it before it hit the ground), and Shining's dad would rustle his mane every time after letting him win, making Shining feel like the most talented colt in the world. But then his father starting coming home much later, and spending all his time at home cooped up in his office, citing something to do with bills or money. When he was free from work, he was avoiding his spouse, meaning he was either working or out of the house. He stopped remembering their weekly games, and, whenever Shining would remind him, administer a hoof to the child's ear and vocal lessons on how he didn't have time to engage in every whim of Shining's. Shining learned not to remind his father of their game, and placed his ball in the closet, where it found its permanent home.

The birth of Twilight finally came about, and with it, Shining Armor's parents disappeared. They now were only preoccupied with work and taking care of the filly, and taught Shining that any noise or complaint from him would be cause for swift punishment for his forwardness. Shining took to his room and stayed there after his lessons in bullying at school, nursing new bruises every couple of weeks (when his classponies had learned about the proper use of hooves). His only respite was that lonely room, left alone by parents who scarcely thought of their failure of a son. It was in his dimly lit room that he began to learn to hate.

At first, his hatred was direct unto his classponies, those who might have been his friends and instead made him a target. But as he grew older he accepted that he was disliked, internalized the knowledge that he would always inspire such in others. But then he reasoned that his fellows were not the only ones to blame: there were those who allowed this to happen; if the teachers and his parents wouldn't have turned away from him, he might have been safe,  left alone at the very least. They were supposed to protect him, but they had turned away when he needed them most. He thought of the parents of his fellow classponies, and of the support they gave their children. He thought of the support he might have been given, but had been denied. He thought about the debt he was owed, and how he would collect.

His rage toward them cooled in a cold, black bitterness, no longer forcing him to cry and scream (which had always landed him in trouble), but making him feel cold and numb, with occasional eruptions of fury, which he was always quick to hide. He had realized that showing how he felt was the quickest way to getting hurt, and soon learned how to act otherwise.

With these new lessons learned, he began to plot. Shining Armor promised that he would not stand for the life he was given, and would give back tenfold that which he had been given.

Shining no longer sought friends in the same way: he knew he would never be able to make the sort of connections he saw within other ponies. But he had held on to something stronger than that need; his hatred. He would teach them the coldness they had taught him; he would show them the closest friend they could ask for, and when he was let in, he would tear them apart. Perhaps it was his bullies that taught him that inflicting pain was good fun, for when he thought of the smoking shells of people that he would be leaving behind, he couldn't help but laugh.

By the time Shining was about to move to Lower Canterlot Middle School, he had perfected his act, drawing in a few potential friends from out of school, but was never able to get past the reputation the school had given him. He had watched the other ponies, and experimented in mimicking their action to other young colts and fillies that did not go to his school, and so far he had been able to sway them to his side. Fortunately, this was around the time his ditsy little sister managed to stumble into the tutorship of Celestia herself; not only would Shining have an indirect connection to the ruling princess, but they would also be moving to an area closer to the capital, meaning Shining would be going to a West Canterlot Middle School.

Twilight had been the shining star of the family since she entered, but Shining's hatred for her would vacillate; once he saw how innocent she was, he found it difficult to pin all the disastrous effects of her existence upon her, but all the same he experienced even more pain from her, and could never entirely get away from a coldness toward her. He knew couldn't blame her for taking attention that belonged to him, when it was the parents that actually chose her over him, and succeeded in avoiding such most of the time. Sometimes he would even have moments of fun with her, rare spots of light that gave him time away from his plans for those around him. But when Twilight brought him into a new district, giving him his perfect scenario, and the chance to meet the princess herself, he found himself feeling grateful for the first time. She didn't understand what he meant when he thanked her, nor did she understand that the kindness he gave in that moment was one of the few genuine kindnesses he would ever give.

But something else had been brought forth from the occurrence, a shadow that far overcame any light that surge of gratefulness created in him: Shining had noticed the princess. He had hated his fellows, their leaders, and most everyone, but he did not discriminate much in blame: they were all responsible, and they would all pay. But when Celestia smiled upon him and told him that he was cared for (it is likely that Celestia saw more of Shining than he suspected), he nearly erupted in rage, though his smile did not move an inch. It all came back to her, who spoke of kindness and friendship, who he saw as the root. She had allowed this to happen, he told himself, she who speaks of kindness and friendship but has never suffered. It was pony nature that had flung him out of the comforts of friendship, and it was Celestia who should have protected him. She was the leader of the world, and so she was ultimately responsible for the pain the world had inflicted upon him, he thought.

Every time Shining had made a mistake in his pretenses by which he'd make friends out of class, he could feel their cold eyes burrowing into him. He had been somewhat kind to Twilight (though he could not explain why); but he could tell that she too did not care too much for what he was when he didn't act. It had been made clear in his eyes: everybody would reject and harm Shining, merely for his existing. And Shining would make sure that everybody paid for it, starting with their god.

And so he smiled gently, thanked her for her care, and set himself to considering how to tear down a goddess.

Middle school had been a thrilling success. Shining had had a tough beginning, when he had to establish relations despite having no friendships left over from elementary school, but once the young fillies and colts got used to the new structures of the middle school, they started maturing (or acting like they did; it didn't matter much), and with that, they started looking for new friends. And so, by a little bit of charm and a pretense at whatever clothes or mannerisms a pony thought was mature, he got in.

He didn't have much luck with the rich and the popular, all of whom valued their muscles and money and looks, of which he was lacking. But he had the smile and the charm, and for all the ponies that had been cast out, that was worth more than gold. He ought to know. He almost felt sorry for the ponies he was using, but there were plenty of ponies that were hated less than he was and teamed up with the bullies to gain a little bit of camaraderie; they were no different than the bullies. They just were a little less lucky with their social position. So Shining brought them together in one great group of outcasts, and began considering how he might recruit those beyond the bottom rung.

He began playing the flugelhorn and getting involved in these ridiculous Oubliettes and Ogres games in order to gain support with some of the nerds, a group which had yet to be brought under his spell. In time he found himself actually enjoying the creation of music, the careful orchestrations of the brass giving him the control he had always wanted. But it was more than that: the flugelhorn itself was often rejected as some historical embarrassment, but Shining knew the value of what others discarded, and found a way to make his new classponies stare slack-jawed at him, if only at the strangeness of the sounds he made. His love of creation and control made him an avid music enthusiast, and while he never had the talent to become much more than an amateur, he often dreamed of reenacting some scene he had heard of in history class, where some mad ruler played while his city burned.

He found in Oubliettes and Ogres a love of control he never thought he'd find outside of his manipulations. Here, in broad daylight, Shining found himself able to show his most complicated schemes and plans in the form of a traveler within the maps his friends would create and his ability to set traps and stages within the maps he built. Poindexter, 8-bit, and Gaffer were the three nerds he found himself most associated with, with them being the closest things to friends he had ever known, though his hatred always prevented real connections from occurring. In addition to their use as sounding boards for his plans (which he would merely convey in a magical setting) and sources of ideas he may not have thought of, he also found himself having fun, though he would never have admitted it. Regardless, he found himself feeling lighter than usual in the company of these useful strategists. They weren't as devious as Shining was, but the way they could create situation with a board and couple pieces of plastic showed a cleverness Shining had not expected, especially from these socially inept ponies. They were of a similar mind to him, and in this he found something he might have called friends, had he met them earlier in his life. Furthermore, he was even able to place a few of his difficulties in manipulation on the board by creating a similar situation in more magical terms, and have them come up with the answers for him.

His parents had forgotten their assurance of his future greatness, but Shining had picked it up early, and never forgotten. He was going to be somepony: he would hold the strings behind everypony, and cut them all in one fell swoop. The world would fall, and everybody would feel what he felt, even for just a moment. There was just something about playing another pony that thrilled him, made him feel like he was in control of another pony in their entirety, their whole destiny, something that rarely happened in his younger days. Once the final scores of losers began flocking to him, he became addicted to the feeling of being in control, getting lost in the music he created in the minds and hearts of other ponies. It was a beautiful feeling, and he always kept in mind the day he would bring them down in one deafening crescendo.

As he ended the four years he'd spent at West Canterlot Middle School came to a close, Shining Armor had built up a steady following within the greater part of the student body (lacking only the few remaining "popular" cliques, which has been mostly shoved to the side in favor of the new unity of those left out), and established a few close friendships within the gaming community, specifically his group of O&O partners. But with a couple friends, each of which believed they were his right-hoof man, sprinkled throughout every group and potential group, he found himself with power, with the promise of more coming soon. He could not wait until high school.

And although Shining had already made a following he never expected, he had only begun. The family was visiting his sister in princess Celestia's castle, when the goddess herself came up to Shining, just as they were leaving. He was terrified of any contact with her; after all, his work and ultimate goal was a tearing apart of a world that she stood at the top of. But she mistook it for general nervousness around royalty, and he had a chance to pretend to be nervous, and then calmed down. His mother accidentally mentioned Shining, offhandedly that Shining would be going to Canterlot High when Celestia grinned and informed them that her niece Cadence would be attending there too. Apparently she was another alicorn princess, who Celestia intended to give power to. As the adults continued their discussion, Shining began to smile, barely able to keep a laugh from escaping himself.

Chapter One: First Day

Beep Beep Beep!

Shining Armor was pulled from his dreams by the screeching of his alarm clock. Rolling off his bed, he gave a withering glare at the impudent intruder, and stomped the off button.

"Miserable piece of trash..." Shining grumbled, clutching at the fragments of his dreams like a child at a handful of sand. There was laughter in it, his own laughter at something magnificent, but that was the only scrap he held before that particular world exited. He didn't mourn it long; he was happy to hold onto that laughter, which was either triumphant or defiant.

He held onto it as he went about his morning rituals, letting it echo through his head as he brushed his teeth, washed it out, took a cold shower and picked up his bookbag, which he had readied the day before. He walked into the bathroom, the thud of his soft footsteps penetrating the otherwise silent house. He looked at himself in the mirror:

"This is the face that all the new students will see today. This is the stallion that'll walk down the streets and into the school," he said to himself, imagining the new world about to receive him. It also struck him as odd that behind every pair of eyes was a person watching and seeing the world in front of them, and he was just another stallion from those points of view, as they were to him. Such incredibly different perspectives, yet nobody ever notices that disparity, he thought to himself. After setting aside that particular wonder, he began practicing.

"Good morning! Hello! Hi! Gooood morning! Hey there! Me? I'm Shining Armor. Hi, I'm Shining Armor! Oh, hello! My name is Shining Armor, what's yours? Huh. Nice name, I like it! Good to see you again, dude! Oh man, my summer was great! How was yours? I don't think we've met; I'm Shining Armor, from West Canterlot Middle School. Great to meet you, buddy! 8-bit, buddy! How's it going, Poindexter? You're looking great! Mind if me and some friends sit at your table? Great! Oh, that's too bad. Some other time then! Oh guys, mind if I join you? Ok, see you later! Hey, see you tomorrow dude." After he felt comfortable with his preparations for the conversations to come, he worked on his smiles. Criminy, Shining thought to himself, smiles are hard! Not only did he have to scrunch up his eyes, he had to keep it short, or nod his head or something; the two tells of a fake smile were untouched eyes and frigidity of expression, both of which were hard to avoid in the heat of the moment. After that, he got to his laugh. Shining rarely laughed; he had found himself bursting out into laughter at the success of his plans, but the timing made it uncomfortable, not to mention he sounded like a hyena. So he made sure to suppress that mirth into a warm smile, and give a quiet chuckle whenever people expected him. Not as effective as a burst of laughter, but Celestia knows I can hardly fake that. Afterwards, he smiled to himself, a far more menacing and satisfied look than those the mirror had held a moment before. Quiet, charming, adorable, charismatic and humble Shining Armor. Oh, they are just going to love you, he said inwardly.

He trotted down the stairs and ate breakfast alone. His father was at work, and had dropped Twily off on his way, because her school started before his own. As for his mother, she rarely awoke before noon. She believed that a mother's work was to bear children, and since she had long ago been found she could not bring Twilight the title of older sister, she had decided her role was fulfilled, and thereby was free to coast upon the efforts of her husband. Shining did not mind much: he had received little from her, and her current lifestyle earned him more time alone than when she had attempted a shot at mothering. She was a better mother now than when she was trying, Shining thought to himself.

Celestia had recently raised the sun, and the milky white glow of the early morning shone through the one window of the kitchen, illuminating Shining's face. This gift of hers was also currently searing Shining's eyes; he grimaced and used his magic to shut the blinds. He was taught to revere the sun, the gift of these ponies' goddess. He was told that the sun illuminates all things, and warms the world. His sneer at this was barely visible in the dim room. The sun merely blinds and burns. He finished his breakfast in the faintest of glows from his own horn, carefully placing it in the sink. He lingered a bit, having a little bit of time before he had to meet Poindexter, with whom he would accompany to the school.

Shining ceased the illuminating spell, allowing the room to fall into total darkness. Holding up his hooves, he found that he could not even see their outline. He sighed contentedly, resting in the dark. Light is the visual form of noise: once I walk out the door, I'll be subject to the most hideous arrangements of colors and shades, all screaming at me at once. And what does it bring, but the eyes of other ponies upon me, mocking and sneering at me? Even those smiles which I've established in my colleague's eyes are farces; the moment I show one ounce of my genuine self, and the hating eyes will return with a fervor. The cruelty in their eyes remains; I have just learned to dodge it.

No, the darkness is my ally. In it, all the other ponies, and their crimes against me vanish. I am alone, with only my beautiful mind and the worlds I create to accompany me. The loneliness with my mind is far more pleasant than loneliness in the crowds of those monsters. The darkness is like silence: peaceful. It is freedom from them; they cannot terrorize what they cannot see. It's too bad that legend about Nightmare Moon hadn't ended with Celestia failing; I wouldn't mind a world of perpetual night.

Shining looked at the clock on the wall; it was time to go. Sighing, he bid farewell to the peaceful darkness, and opened the door to the world beyond. Today was his first day at Canterlot high. He smiled quietly to himself. He was ready.

Knock Knock Knock!

“Dearie! Dearie, are you up?” Poindexter's mother called from the hall outside. “Poindexter, you're going to be late!”

“Mmmmmph. Ahmmupp...” he replied, though the sound didn't make it past his door.

“Dearie, I'm coming in!”

“Mmmmph. I'mup- AHHHHHH!” Poindexter's unheard insistence on his alertness was cut short by the blinding light of the hall pouring into his rooms, scorching his half-asleep eyes.

“You need to get up, Sweetums. You're gonna miss school, and make Shining late too if you don't get up.” His mother continued, sitting on his bedside. Poindexter tumbled out of bed in his well-known lack of coordination. He raised his hooves to yawn when two of his younger sisters barreled into his room, tackle-hugging him. They crawled on top of him, his weak frame being unable to push off the  twin four-year-olds.

“Nerdexter! Come on, you gotta go meet Shiny! Why are you just lying there, Nerdexter!” said one, her pigtails defining her as Polynomial. Her sister Monomial, who bore one small ponytail. Joined in:

“Yeah, Nerdexter! Why ain'tcha getting up!”

Their mother put an end to their squealing and grinning: “Molly and Polly! What did I tell you about calling him that! And get off him; you know he has to get ready.” Then, to Poindexter: “I'm so sorry Snookie-boo, I know you hate that nickname. But you really ought to get ready.”

His twin sisters gave a double “yesmom” and ran out of the room giggling, shortly followed by their mom, calling for them to stop running in the house.

Well, that sure was a wake-up call. Poindexter lifted himself to his hooves, stretched his back, and went to get his glasses. He brushed his teeth, applied mouthwash liberally, and took a quick shower. Before he went to join his family, he stared in the mirror. He adjusted his glasses, admiring the lack of tape required to connect them, and went downstairs, hoping they would last longer than two days this time.

Remembering the hurry, he grabbed his bookbag in his teeth, throwing it over his back, making the papers fly all over. Fiddlesticks! he cursed, carefully pushing them back in with his hooves. Finally ready, he rushed downstairs for a quick breakfast.

He was greeted by a flurry of waffles being thrown back and forth by his two younger sisters as they argued over who was the better juggler. Poindexter grinned at the sight; his little sisters were almost unbearable, but somehow he found himself caring for them and loving their antics. Noticing that neither had caught a single waffle thrown, he trotted over to Polly and gave her a few tips that he had read in a magician's guidebook when he was their age. After carefully explaining how to throw it just right, Polly nodded, drew back her hoof, and launched it into the air.

It would have flopped harmlessly on the front door, had said door not opened at that instant, with a certain unicorn's horn moving through and impaling the waffle, which covered the visitor's eyes.

“What happened!? Who turned the lights out!?” Shining shouted.

Molly and Polly screamed: “Shineee!” and lept up on his forehooves, unable to tackle the burlier stallion as they had their older brother, settling for a hug instead. Poindexter thought that if one ignored the stallion turning this way and that in an obviously faked panic, it would have made a nice picture.

Meanwhile, a grin was threatening to overtake Shining's panicked expression: “I can't see anything! Who's hugging me!? I think I've gone blind!”

Poindexter's sisters giggled and told him it was just a waffle as Poindexter did the honors of removing it. This guy's such a goofball, he thought. “Shining, my homie, what is the haps yo?

Poindexter had been Shining's best friend for years. He'd never known why; Shining was like the underdog of cool kids, nice and accepting of everybody, and everybody but the super popular kids loved him. Poindexter was just a nerd, always with broken glasses and pimples, and unable to make a full sentence to a girl. They both shared a passion for O&O, and Poindexter's grades were only slightly better than his, as opposed to his usual trait of far outsmarting any contender. He supposed that was enough for friendship, but he would still wonder from time to time why such a likeable guy would wanna be the best friend of an egghead like him. Still, the years as such close friends gave them enough inside jokes to laugh about for days on end, one of which was imitating the actual cool kids in the the most exaggerated way possible.

“My main man PoinbroDexbro, I'm fa-rizzlin up in he-yah, just found out I ain't blind yo! How be you, muh bruthuh frumuh nuthuh muthuh?” Shining replied cordially, and Poindexter guffawed while Shining gave his signature chuckle. Polly and Molly just stared confusedly at the duo's purposefully unintelligible greetings, before walking back into the kitchen with murmured accusations of the two friend's weirdness.

Poindexter stuffed a waffle in his mouth and another in his pack and made gestures to get going to Shining. Shining chuckled again at the waffle hanging out of Poindexter's mouth before realizing that Poindexter wanted to get out of the blast zone when his mother saw the mess the twins had made. He opened the door, shouted a hello and goodbye to Poindexter's mom as Poindexter shouted something muffled by the waffle in his mouth, and the two leapt out before the trouble came.

Galloping away from the house, lest Poindexter's mother call him back to account for the mess, the two made their way out of their neighborhood. Slowing down, Poindexter explained his busy morning to Shining, as he chuckled at every happening. Poindexter got so caught up in the story that when his companion shouted for him to look out, he was already plowing into their neighborhood's mailmare, FeatherDuster. They were both knocked to the ground, with the less clumsy smiling and helping Poindexter up.

“S-S-Sorry, F-F-FeatherDuster!” Poindexter apologized, mortified at both his inattentiveness and proximity to a mare. “I wa-wasn't l-l-looking where I was g-g-going.”

“Oh, it's no problem at all,” the cheerful mare responded, “I wasn't really looking where I was going either. I met the princess today!”

“Princess Celestia?” the two stallions responded, their jaws hanging open.

“No, but I saw her in the window. No, it was Princess Cadence, her nephew. She told me she was new in town, and was asking me about the town.” She looked back regretfully, “ I only wish I didn't have all this mail to deliver, so I could've kept talking to her. She was just the nicest mare I've ever met.”

Poindexter and Shining stared at each other; “I completely forgot that we had a princess in our class!” said Shining, while Poindexter remained dumbstruck at the thought of being in the same building as a princess.

“I forgot you two were gonna be in her class,” said the mailmare, “Make sure to be nice to her. She deserves it!” And with that, she was off.

The two began moving toward the school again. Poindexter still couldn't believe he might meet an actual princess. It played out just like a lot of his fantasies, actually, though he would keep that secret to his grave. He began thinking about how they would meet, and how how they would hang out and how he would-

“Poindexter? You there?” Shining tapped his hoof on Poindexter's forehead.

“Oh, uh, yeah. You know, just thinking about the Princess. What do you think she'll look like?

“Fat and fulla warts.”

Poindexter was horrified: “You can't mean that!”

“Yeah, I was just joking. I don't really know. Guess we'll find out, eh?” He said as they arrived at the gates of Canterlot High.

“Yeah, I guess we will,” smiled Poindexter. Maybe this day will be alright. I got the coolest best friend, and I'm gonna see a princess today, maybe even share some classes with her.

For the past week, Poindexter had been worried about school, how he would fit in, and if he would remain the smartest kid in class, even the whole school; he had always been the first, and generally became the second quickly. He worried that Shining armor might abandon him for cooler friends, but based on his seeming indifference toward meeting a princess, the ultimate in cool kids told him that he was safe. Shining had always had Poindexter's back, and he had always returned the favor.

Poindexter gazed up at his new school and smiled. He had his insurmountable intellect and the best best friend in the whole world. Whatever today threw at him, he was ready.

Tweet Tweet Tweet!

The sound of carefully rehearsed songbirds awoke Princess Cadence from her slumber. She had been dreaming of dancing in a meadow with her new friend Twilight amidst a choir of birds playing their favorite songs; the transition caused by the carefully taught royal songbirds had been seamless, and as she stepped out of bed, she still felt as if she were in that magical world.

With delicate and graceful hoofsteps, she trotted over to the windowsill, where her winged entourage continued the melody of her dreams. She whistled along with them for a minute, her half-closed eyes gazing at the world now illuminated by her aunt's gift. What a beautiful sight. I can't believe I get to see this every day, she thought to herself, as her wake-up song finished, and her companions now flew back to their home in the castle zoo. She closed her eyes for a minute, just feeling the sun warm her face, grinning in the feel of it.

Then, remembering what day it was, she hurried into her private bathroom. It was almost as big as her bedroom, with a mirror towering far above her. The blue tiles were all scrubbed spotless, and reflected the pinkness of her form. She entered the ivory shower, and relaxed there for what seemed like hours. After a quick brush, she set to her makeup and hair. She decided to go with a minimal amount of the first, and after going through seven different potential hairstyles, she decided the third -a regular ponytail- was most befitting of a princess attempting humility. After all, I don't want to make anybody feel intimidated, she thought to herself, remembering the experience she had had when meeting people on the streets of her hometown.

Every time she had gone out in public, every head that turned toward her would hurriedly turn toward the ground in deference, among murmurs of praise and appreciation for the crown. All she had wanted to do was make friends, but the local populace had refused to see her as anything other than a haughty monarch. She had started a friendship with a mare in a coffee shop, but once that mare found out, she immediately genuflected, apologizing for assuming equality, despite Cadence's assurances that it was all fine and she still wanted to be friends. The only solace she had was in foals who hadn't been taught the proper and unfortunate methods of interacting with royalty. That had been why she started up a foalsitting service; parents leapt at the chance to have a princess take care of their offspring, and the children were too young to hold on to the instructions of respect placed upon them for long.

But now she was going to be among ponies her age, who would undoubtedly want to treat her like royalty, which was her least favorite treatment. She had been homeschooled to this point, tutored by the finest minds in Equestria, before finally asking to be placed with the other students so she could make some friends. It had taken a lot of convincing on her part, and now she was doubting her position. What if they don't like me? What if none of them actually wants to be friends with me? What if-

She was interrupted by a soft rapping on her door. It was her aunt, who'd been kind enough to let her stay in her castle during the next four years.

“Come in!”

Princess Celestia entered, beaming. “First day of high school! Are you excited?”

“More like terrified,” admitted the younger alicorn, directing her frown to the floor.

Celestia gave her an even brighter look, raising Cadence's head with her hoof so their eyes met: “You've got nothing to worry about, dear. They're going to love you.” As she said this last bit, she pointed to Cadence's cutie mark. “Your cutie mark is one denoting love; I'd say it's impossible for anyone to hate you.”

At this, Cadence began to smile back: “I guess you're right, Aunt Celestia. Thanks.”

“Anytime, dear. Now, you better be heading off soon. The royal guard are waiting to accompany you.”

“Of course! Just give me a few more minutes.”

At that, Princess Celestia smiled again, nodded, and left the room. I'm so lucky to have her as an aunt, she reflected, I need to get her a thank-you gift for letting me stay here. After another ten minutes of preparations, she flew outside, where two guards were waiting. Originally, there would have been four, and there would have been a chariot involved, but Cadence had managed to convince her aunt to only send two, and have them fly alongside her. After all, showing up in a chariot was a surefire way to give people the idea that she thought she was above them, which couldn't be further from the truth.

As they set off, she began imagining how this day would go. She thought of the sleepovers she'd read about, the mares she would befriend, the parties she would go to, the stallions she might even date- As she considered this last one, she blushed and covered her face with her hooves. Unfortunately, she did this right as a busy pegasus was looking over letters in her mailbag, and slammed right into her. The two airborne mares managed to set themselves upright just before they hit the ground, each scared out of their wits.

The two guards moved threateningly toward the mailmare, awaiting a sentencing by the prisoner. What they received instead was an order to stop.

“Stop!” the princess ordered, seeing their preparation to harm the innocent mare. She looked into the mailmare's terrified eyes: “I'm so sorry. That was completely my fault. Can I make it up to you?”

The mailmare just hovered there, slackjawed, without a single clue of how to act in this situation. Cadence interjected again, also unsure, this being her first interaction with the local ponies in Canterlot, “uh..I could give you some bits? Or an autograph?”

The mailmare was finally coming to grips with the fact that an alicorn princess was right in front of her, offering an apology for bumping into her, not demanding such for herself. “Oh, no no, that's perfectly fine, princess, I mean, uh, your highness. I mean, I, uh, wouldn't mind an autograph if you're offering though...” the words spilled out haphazardly.

Princess Cadence smiled cheerfully at the still semi-awestruck mare. At least she wasn't smashing her face into the ground, like so many other ponies were wont to do. “Absolutely. I see you already know who I am, but I don't know you. What's your name?” she asked, as she pulled out a pen and paper with her magic.

“Oh, I uh, I'm FeatherDuster. I'm just a mailmare. You know, mailing and sending mail...” she trailed off, still trying to regain her ability to hold a basic conversation.

“Well, it was lovely to meet you, FeatherDuster,” the princess replied, finishing the autograph, “Here you are. I have to leave, but I hope to see you again sometime!” And with that, she called her guards and began flying away, realizing she was going to be late. She heard a faint, stuttered goodbye from behind her. She smiled; I just made my first good impression! And if that's any indication of the day to come, things are going to go great for me!

And with that, she swooped down, and began her first day of high school.