Chapter 1: Magic Lessons and an Exploding Golf Ball
I was so frustrated.
"C'mon, Sweetie Belle, I know you can do it!" My mentor, Princess Twilight, encouraged.
But I couldn't. I was extremely irked by the challenge in front of me.
"I don't mean to say you're not smart, or anything similar, but let's just go over it one more time?" Twilight pleaded.
"Okay..." I sighed.
"Now," she began to explain. "Concentrate your magic inside you. Feel it pulsating through your veins. Then, set your horn alight with your aura. After that, connect your aura with another object, and bend it to your will, thus levitating the object."
"I know, Twilight, it's just, I can't connect my "Aura" to anything." I replied.
"Just try again, one more time? Please?"
"Okay." I grumbled.
I concentrated the magic inside of me, telling it what to do, which was to set my horn alight. I felt it travel my veins, pulsating through my very being. Then, for the first time out of thirty-two tries, my horn glowed with my aura.
I concentrated onto the ball with all of what felt like my soul, trying to lift the cursed object. To my surprise, it lifted. And after lifting it up to about eye level, I tried to make it move in the air.
Instead, it charged up with a brighter, more intense green aura. I tried to make it move, only becoming more angry at the ball and intensifying the glow, as well as trying to move it more. I jerked my head around this way and that, my horn's glow becoming more intense all so much I could see it in the outlines of my peripheral vision. Eventually I screamed out in frustration and thought to myself:
If this Celestia-darned ball doesn't move, I swear I'm going to DESTROY IT!
"No, Sweetie Belle, you shouldn't-"
The ball could take no more. It exploded in a flash of light and a loud boom. When the dust finally settled, what remained was a small, circular crater on the floor with the remains of the ball, little white shards and pieces scattered about it. I was panting heavily, trying to regain my composure while staring at the scene before me. The room around me was also covered in ash, dust, and just generically disheveled. A lot of the books were strewn about, knocked off the shelves.
"-perform magic under the influence of anger." Twilight finished.
It was late evening by the time we finished cleaning up the horrendous mess I had created. I waved goodbye to Twilight, and headed home. The sun was halfway below the horizon when I got to Carousel Boutique, covering the sky in a beautiful yet confusing haze of pinks, oranges, and yellows.
I felt more at ease now, the mess was cleaned, and it was time for bed. No more anger. I approached Carousel Boutique, my home with Rarity, my big sister, and opened the door.
"I'm home."
"What took you so long? I was getting a little worried, Sweetie." Rarity came over and gave me a hug.
"I kind of exploded a golf ball and had to clean up a disheveled library, so yeah, took me a bit." I yawned.
"You exploded a gold ball?"
"Yeah. I 'performed magic under the influence of anger' or something."
"Well, you better get your beauty sleep so you can fell rested in the morning. Goodnight, Sweetie."
"Goodnight Rarity." I smiled at Rarity as she smiled back as I trotted sleepily up the stairs to my room.
As I approached my door, I smiled. At least I did some magic, albeit destructive magic. I've never been able to do anything like that before today. I opened my curtains, revealing the beautiful full moon and sparkling stars. I yawned and pulled back my covers before snuggling into bed, pulling them up again. I fell asleep before I knew it, and drifted peacefully into the dream world, having not a trace of a nightmare.
What I failed to notice was the owl flying past my window, a letter encased in it's talons, addressed in emerald green ink.