What's Your Story, Morning Glory?

Chapters

That Fateful Night, That Fateful Day
Dark They Were, And Golden Eyed
Station To Station
A Wagon Full Of Cute And Cuddly
Heart Of Gold
Prelude To A Test
Night And Day
A Princess In Mourning In The Evening
Well, That Was Random
Failure To Launch
Auld Lang Syne
The Test Ends When You Open That Door

That Fateful Night, That Fateful Day

It wasn't a dark and stormy night.

It really should have been. A night where somepony performs a deed that will change the life of another forever really should have a few dramatic rumbles of thunder for effect, or at least a heavy rain to imply that the sky itself is saddened by events such as these. However, since this was Cloudsdale, that wasn't going to happen: The weather around the floating city was among the safest and most secure in all of Equestria. It had to be, since a storm cloud colliding with the floating city could have disastrous results. It doesn't rain in Cloudsdale, either, barring that one time where it mysteriously rained upwards for a week. Given that Discord was still in stone at the time, nopony can say for certain how that happened, although given that a grey filly with a blonde mane was born that particular day...

Well, the point is, it was a surprisingly calm and quiet night, in a city that is used to calm and quiet nights. Every pony was asleep in their beds, dreaming peacefully. All save a cloaked mare who was carefully making her way through the city. It was not the careful of a pony who was being unusually cautious in drawing attention to herself, but rather that of somepony who was carrying a delicate burden that she wanted to make sure would not be dropped accidentally. It was the careful of a pony who knew that no one would notice her being up this late, so long as she remained silent. After all, the streets of Cloudsdale were paved with clouds, not dirt or stone, so she could have broken into a flat run and not be noticed, had she wanted to.

But one does not run while carrying this kind of burden. Oh no, definitely not.

The cloaked mare quickly reached a building that was unremarkable, barring the sign which indicated that this was the local orpanage. She carefully set down her burden in front of the building's entrance, but then, the mare paused, then picked it back up, hugged it, and then set it down again. The bundle coo'ed softly as it was set back down.

The figure knocked on the door, loud enough to wake anypony within, then ran away, quickly turning to take cover behind a nearby building. A few seconds later, a plump mare opened the door, and with the sort of experience common to those who run a home for parentless children, looked down and saw the bundle, which had begun crying.

As the cloaked mare watched the crying foal be taken inside, a small sob could be heard, and a few teardrops seen to fall. When at last the foal was out of sight, the mare whispered, "I'm so, so sorry..." Then she stepped out of hiding, and fled into the night.

On a nearby rooftop, a filly watched all of this unfold. She had a coat as white as chalk, and a mane and tail as black as ink. On her flank was a cutie mark of a dark purple flower.

Behind her, a tall figure appeared in a brief flash of light. The small filly froze for moment, then asked, in a voice choked with emotion, "And all this time... you knew?"

Both figures suddenly vanished in another flash of light. It would be a long time before anyone heard the next part of that conversation...

Five years later...

It was most definitely a bright and sunny day...

Morning Glory rode the gondola down from Cloudsdale with a resolute expression, as she struggled to stifle the urge to cower and quiver with fear. It was one of Equestria's most terrible ironies, that an earth pony filly who'd been raised in Clousdale would be terrified of heights. However, the only way down was this gondola. Well, the only safe way down: There were much faster, and much more... final ways down, but Glory was not in that big a hurry. The gondola was safest, especially on a clear day like this one.

Still, it was difficult for her to ride like this, being carried in a basket by half a dozen pegasai. It was a fairly gentle ride, but back at the orphanage, the young filly had been given enough 'Flying Lessons' by her peers that even this was a nerve-wracking experience for her.

It wasn't that she hated the orphanage, really: Miss Butterbean, the mare who ran it, was a very kind, patient, and loving pony, the sort that had more than enough love for more than twenty colts and fillies. However, since there were twenty colts and fillies, and only one Miss Butterbean (And the occasional volunteer worker who came by to help out for a day or two), that meant that there wasn't a way for her to keep track of every one of her charges at all times.

And it can be a terrible thing, being the only earth pony in an orphanage that was almost completely fully of pegasai...

Glory gulped, feeling the familiar weight of her pendant against her throat as she did so. It was the only thing she had that was really and truly hers and hers alone: A small blue gemstone on a silver chain, it had been around her neck for as long as she could remember. It was also heavily enchanted, and was the reason why she could walk on clouds like any pegasus could. Perhaps most importantly, the chain had grown as she had grown, and was literally impossible to remove unless the young filly was on solid ground. Whoever had made it for her had taken every possible precaution to make certain it would keep her safe while up in the clouds.

She'd been told that it was believed to be a keepsake from her parents. She had no way of knowing for sure...

As the gondola gently came to a rest, Glory ran a mental checklist to make certain that she had everything that she'd need.

Note to Miss Butterbean explaining what was going on left thoughtfully on the kindly mare's desk where it would be easy to find when she came back from the store? Check.

Backpack with enough food to last a week, long enough to reach Canterlot on hoof? Check.

Flier detailing when and where the test would be held? Check.

Map, compass, blanket, pillow, and her teddy bear? Check, check, check, check, and check.

Her copy of 'Magic For Beginners', written by Galaxy, the principal of Princess Celestia's School for gifted unicorns, herself? Check.

Certain that she had everything that she needed, Glory exited the gondola quietly, and calmly walked off, nopony questioning where she was headed to. Which was good, since the youngster was uncertain if she could give a lie convincing enough to pass more than the most superficial interrogation. Thankfully, her seemingly nonchalant attitude was more than enough to dissuade investigation, so she was easily able to get well out of sight.

The young filly took a deep breath, looked up at the sky, and recited the sentence of Magic For Beginners, a sentence that had been the inspiration of her life's ambition to learn magic...

"Anyone can be a wizard..."

Looking back to the road, her face took on a determined expression, and she broke into a dead run.

Seven days...

Princess Luna's test for a new student would begin in just seven days. Glory had to be there in time, or all this preparation would be for nothing!

"Can you do that for me, sweetie?"

Flash Sentry nodded, and said, "Sure: Find the filly, then tail her all the way to Canterlot. If she looks to be getting into any trouble, or if she's looking like she might not make it in time, fly in and help her. Otherwise, let her make it on her own."

Miss Butterbean, his aunt, nodded and said, "Thanks, nephew. I hate to ask you this while you're on leave, but..."

The off-duty guard shrugged, and said, "It's no problem. I honestly didn't know what I'd do for a week in Cloudsdale after checking in on the family. It's actually nice to have a chance to spread my wings and do something other than just standing around in my armor and looking intimidating for once." He paused, then asked, "Are you sure you don't just want me to find her, and take her there myself, without all the hiding and spying?"

Butterbean paused, then said, "I thought about it. Honestly, I could get you and her a train ticket to Canterlot easily, and have you both there, safe and sound, but... well, I've done what I can to make it easier on her, but I know the other youngsters have bullied her when I'm not looking, and unlike most orphanages, we don't get many visitors looking to adopt. Thing is, she's an independent little darling, and she likes to try and do things on her own, so even if she never gets adopted, I don't have any worries about what she'll be like as an adult. Still, this is her first time outside of Cloudsdale, and out into the world: If she's brave enough to try and have an adventure out on her own, then why not let her have one? She's only going to be young once, and it might be a good experience for her to go out and see the world on her own... with a little supervision, of course." With a small smile, she added, "Just make sure she gets there, and gets back, safe and sound. And you, too."

"Sure thing, Aunt Beanie," Flash agreed with a smile of his own.

Dark They Were, And Golden Eyed

Five and a half days later, Midsummer's Day...

"Oh dear..."

Morning Glory looked upon the landmark with a sense of impending doom. It was a simple stone, set at a crossroads. From what the map indicated, it was named, 'Tom's Rest', and it marked a milestone on Glory's journey, as well as the last major crossroads between Cloudsdale and Canterlot. In particular, it indicated that Glory was two thirds of the way to her destination. It was noon now, and she was on the sixth day of her journey. The young filly was a couple of years ahead of the rest of her class in terms of mathematics, having graduated all the way to the 'fancy' level, so she could do fractions in her head, plus division and multiplication. Five and a half divided by two was two and three-quarters. Two and three quarters times three was eight and one quarter. At the rate that Glory was going, she'd be more than a day late for Luna's tryouts for a new student!

She'd thought that she was making good time, but it seemed that the way to Canterlot was a lot longer than she thought, or maybe she was just slower than she'd expected. All her life, she'd been walking on fluffy clouds, not hard-packed dirt roads, and walking too long in a stretch made her hooves sore. She really wasn't used to walking for long periods of time like this, either, so she had to take breaks, maybe a little more often than most earth ponies would. Still, to think that she was this far behind...

It was enough to make even a tough little filly like her want to break down and cry.

She was so caught up in her problems that she didn't notice the young colt standing nearby, next to a blackberry bush, until she heard a sudden clicking noise, like somepony biting down on something, followed by the sound of joyous chewing, the kind filled with 'mmmm's'. She turned to look, and saw him.

He looked to be about her age, and his coat was as black as the bottom of a deep well, and his mane, impossibly, seemed even darker. What was most striking about him, though, was his eyes, which were golden, and seemed almost to glow...

But the strangest thing about him was that he seemed to be engaged in a staring contest with a blackberry bush, and his mouth was visibly watering.

Well, her legs were tired from walking, and she needed a break. Sitting down, she studied the colt for a moment, then asked, "Whatcha doin'?"

The colt was so startled that he jumped as if something had stung him. Surprisingly, he was agile enough to spin in midair, and as he landed, he was facing Glory with a shocked expression on his face. "You can see me?" he asked, in a tone of disbelief.

Surprised, Glory asked, "Why wouldn't I be able to see you? You're standing right there."

The colt looked at the filly oddly for a second, then shrugged and said, "I guess it isn't important." He turned back to the bush, and said, over his shoulder, "I'm waiting for one of the berries on this bush to drop. The sweetest, tastiest blackberries in all of Equestria hang from this bush, and if I wait long enough, one is sure to drop off again."

Morning Glory giggled, and walked up to sit next to the colt. After a moment, she asked, "Well, if you want one so badly, why not just pick one?"

The colt scrunched his face up in an almost comic expression of concentration. After a moment, he recited, "Rubi sunt in ceteros insinuatus affectus post messem usque hodie. Nemo pooka eatenus ut aliquem deligeret, nec potest aliquis facere iusserint ad nutum aut possunt dolo decipere, aut violenter cogere aliquem facturum." He paused, and then began to say, "Translated, it means..."

Morning Glory, who had spent two weeks studying a book about Old Equestrian, recited, "The blackberries belong to all other races until after Harvest Day. No pooka may pick one until that time, nor can anyone they command do so at their behest, nor can they trick, deceive, or forcibly coerce anyone into doing so." She paused, then asked, "Is that right?" It seemed a silly rule, but it must have been important, for it to be written in a dead language. And just what was a pooka, anyway?

"Right," the colt said with a nod. If he was surprised that a filly could translate the old words so easily, he didn't show it.

A lot of the older books on magic in the Cloudsdale Library had large sections that had been written in the ancient language that was no longer used, one that was believed to have existed before Equestria had been founded. It had taken her two weeks to become well-versed enough to be able to read, write, speak, and translate it, but she'd considered it time well spent.

No one told her it should be impossible for a filly her age to learn and master an entire language in two weeks, both in written and verbal form. That may, in part, be the reason why she was able to do so.

Morning Glory paused, then pondered for a moment. After a few seconds, she reached forward, and plucked a blackberry from the bush, and handed it to the colt. "Here," she said, with a small smile. At his surprised expression, Glory giggled and said, "It's a gift, so you're not tricking me, or deceiving me, or forcing me to pick it for you. It's just a present, from me to you."

The young colt gently took the berry with the sort of reverence one might give to a holy icon. After a moment of hesitation, he put it in his mouth, and began to consume it with obvious relish. After a few seconds, he swallowed, and gave a satisfied sigh.

"That good?" Morning Glory asked, an eyebrow raised. The colt could only nod.

Glory pulled open her pack, and pulled out an empty bag that had been used to hold one of the meals that she had eaten on her way here. "If you've got the time, I could pick some more for you. That way you won't have to wait anymore."

Flash Sentry was positively stunned. When the young filly had stopped in front of the berry bush and started talking, he'd been a bit concerned: The youngster had shown no evidence of having an imaginary friend before now, nor had his aunt indicated anything of the sort. Could Glory have eaten something bad and started hallucinating?

But then, she'd picked a berry, and a moment later, something had taken it from her hoof. Flash could almost swear he'd heard something chew and swallow it after it vanished a second later.

So... not an imaginary friend, but an invisible one? Strange. Of course, there were a few creatures known to either be able to turn invisible, or make it so that they were difficult to others to see. Most of them stayed well away from Equestrian communities, and off the main roads, though...

After Glory finished filling a bag of blackberries, and making sure it was sealed tight, she handed it over to the colt, and said, "Here you go, my gift to you."

The colt gently accepted it, and then said, "Thank you." After a moment, he cleared his throat, then said, "I... I'll need to pay you back somehow."

"You don't need to..." Glory began, but the colt held up a hoof to stop her.

"My dad always says," the colt explained, "that if somepony does you a kindness without asking for payment or reward, it should be repaid threefold. It's a rule." The youngster blushed, then admitted, "I can't remember the exact wording of it in the old tongue, but it is definitely a rule." He paused, then said, "So, if there is anything that you need, and it is within my power to grant, I'll be happy to make it happen for you."

The young filly was about to say that there wasn't really anything that she needed, then paused and thought better of it: She had just determined that, on her own, she couldn't reach Canterlot in time. She couldn't cover the distance fast enough on her own hooves. It couldn't hurt to ask.

"Well," she began, "I need to be in Canterlot by this time tomorrow, but I can't make it on my own..."

The colt pondered this for a second, then said, "I think I can make that happen for you. Follow me."

Author's Note

Pooka: Basically, it's an awesome hornless unicorn with magic powers. They can be good or evil, pretty much like people.

As for the Latin line, in Tales Of The Questor, the author has it set as a rule that, if you want to make a bargain with the fair folk, you do it in a dead language, or as soon as the language changes, the bargain can be twisted. The fair folk live long lives, so yes, they can certainly wait the centuries it can take for that to happen. It's a good rule, so I'm gonna use it here, myself.

Station To Station

"Here we go!'

Morning Glory looked at the spot that the young colt was pointing to. It didn't seem to be anything special, just a ring of toadstools, sitting in the middle of a clear field. While it was certainly odd to see them growing in such a perfect circle...

"This is a faerie ring," the colt explained. "There's one near my home, that let me get here so easily. There's one not far from Canterlot, as well. It doesn't work without one of the fair stepping in with you, but I can get you where you need to be, and a whole lot faster than by walking or flying."

Glory's expression was a combination of suspicion and doubt as she asked, "How does this work? Who are 'The Fair'? And just how close will this get me to Canterlot?"

The colt tilted his head slightly to one side as he seemed to ponder that, then answered, "It's a sort of naturally occuring gateway that goes between different places... and different worlds. As for how it works... I have no idea, but it works. Well, it can only work when one of the fair folk is with you... or if one of the fair wants you to go someplace. So... don't step into one of these on your own, or you might end up someplace you don't want to, and with no way of getting back. The fair folk are a community of magical creatures that aren't... native to Equestria. If I try to explain more than that, we'll be here all day, and we don't have that kind of time. And as for how close..."

He held up on hoof and said, "This is the mountain that Canterlot is suspended from." He held up his other hoof, and then placed it a little underneath the first, "This is the closest fairy ring. It's right near the bottom of the mountain, not far from the main road. Once I've taken you to the ring, you'll still have to travel the rest of the way on your own hooves."

The young filly nodded and said, "I can do that. On hoof, it shouldn't take me more than half a day, and I've heard a lot of carts go into Canterlot. I should be able to hitch a ride."

"That's good," the colt said with a nod. He hesitated, then said, "And, um, I hate to say this, but I need to beg a favor from you."

Glory raised an eyebrow, and asked, "What would that be?"

"Don't tell anypony that you saw me," the colt promptly answered. "My parents didn't know I was out here, and if they find out I was out in Equestria, and ended up owing somepony a favor..." He gulped, then said, "Owing a boon is a really, really big thing among the pooka. Especially the two I still owe you. If my dad finds out, he'll get this really stern look on his face, and say, 'Son, I am disappointed' or something like that, and then he'll take me into his study and give me a really dull lecture about responsibility and the rules, and how important they are, and he'll just go on for hours about it, because he knows how much I hate it!"

Truly, a terrible fate beyond all measure...

Glory giggled, and said, "Your secret is safe with me. But, um.... how will I be able to get in touch with you, when I need another 'boon?"

A pooka seemed to be a much bigger thing than Morning Glory had expected it to be. The fact that this young colt had access to a teleportation network that spanned worlds, and spoke of it so lightly, implied that this was the least of the things he could do for her. Why, he could even...

'No, shame on you, Glory,' she thought to herself. 'If you're going to be Luna's student, you're going to earn it, not cheat. 'Magic For Beginners, Chapter Three, Magic is all about rules, both in the casting of spells, and in life. A wizard who tries to cheat, isn't a wizard at all, whether he succeeds or fails.' If you don't make it, then you can consider what else you could use a boon for: Princess Celestia is currently without a student, so there's that option...'

"I'll be around," the colt said with a little chuckle. "You'll probably be busy for a couple of days, but I'll come find you when you've got some free time." The way he said that seemed to imply that he had plenty of free time of his own. Given that he'd had no problem with standing around, staring at a blackberry bush, waiting for one of the berries to drop, implied that he wasn't exactly burdened with things to do...

With that, he grabbed her hoof, tugged her into the ring with him, and then...

Flash Sentry was not a fool: They don't allow fools into the Equestrian Guard, and they certainly don't assign them to guard princesses. So, when he saw the little filly just disappear, he didn't panic, like some might. Instead, he took in the area where the filly vanished, considered what he knew about the area around Canterlot, and what the filly's goal was...

One thing that pegasai are spectacular at is taking in and memorizing landmarks from the air. It can be easier than one might think, getting lost while airborne, and being able to figure out where one is at via points of reference is a survival trait that can quickly be ingrained into a flier on an almost instinctual level. The few pegasai who don't learn to do so end up being a scare story about how important that skill can be...

And he'd spent quite some time flying around Canterlot during basic training. He knew there was at least one very similar ring of toadstools within a couple of miles of the city.

While he was no Rainbow Dash, Flash was a speedy flier in his own right. As he put some power into his wings, he started making a bee line for Canterlot. He'd find the ring of toadstools, find the filly's hoofprints (Why yes, tracking, recon, and pursuit skills were heavily ingrained into any pony who became a member of the guard, thank you for asking), and make sure she made it to Canterlot. And since Flash was no longer tailing a somewhat slow-moving filly, or having to hide his presence, he could be there in a couple of hours, with the wind at his back...

"And here we are," the colt said, gesturing towards the mountain looming above them. "Canterlot."

The postcards, the photographs, the paintings that Morning Glory had seen all her life... they did nothing to prepare her for the sheer majesty of the city of Canterlot, seen from below. A massive city, seemingly suspended as much on thin air as it was the massive struts that supported the weight of both the city and the palace. It could only become more spectaculr when she got closer to it...

"If you go north about half a mile, you'll hit the road," the colt explained, "and there tends to be a lot of traffic in the morning and evening, including carts carrying goods. You should be able to catch a ride, no problem."

Smiling at the colt, Glory said, "Thank you. Um..." She paused. Some instinct to her this wasn't a good idea, but she had to ask. "My name is Morning Glory. What's yours?"

The colt paused, then said, "The fair folk don't give out our names. It's a major no-no: A lot of the spells some of our kind use require a true name to work, so we keep them a secret." He paused, then said, "...So, just call me Blackberry. Is that okay?"

Glory nodded and said, "Okay. Thank you, Blackberry."

'Blackberry' smiled, and said, "No, thank you." Then, he quickly shot his head forward, and gave her a quick peck on the cheek. Before Glory could say or do anything, the young colt hopped into the fairy ring, and vanished...

Glory stared at the ring for a few seconds, then pulled open her pack, studied her compass, and then after repacking it, and headed for the road. As she did so, she'd raise up a hoof to her cheek, and rub it. It felt... kind of tingly...

A Wagon Full Of Cute And Cuddly

The following day promised, if anything, to be even stranger for Morning Glory.

Traffic was light that afternoon and evening, and Glory didn't have a chance to hitch a ride: Everypony seemed to be leaving Canterlot, rather than going towards it. As the sun set, Glory made camp, ate a short meal, and went to sleep. The following morning, she would see one of the strangest sights in her lifetime.

If you'd asked Morning Glory what the ten strangest things a pony could ever see would be, a changeling pulling a cart loaded with little pink cat-rabbits would be so unlikely that she'd not even think to add it to the list.

And as changelings go, this one was... huge. Not the huge of some mountain-striding giant, but rather the huge of someone possessing great height and an incredibly powerful physique, the kind typically gained by constant hard work and exercise. It could easily have been assumed that somepony had hitched the cart to this unique specimen of the changeling species without his knowing, and he'd not even realized he was hauling its weight behind him.

However, the blue bandanna around his neck with a red heart printed upon it, combined with the little cat-rabbit perched upon his head and posed like some tiny little pirate captain on the deck of his mighty vessel, all seemed to imply that the changeling was fully aware of what was going on, and had not problem with it.

As the wagon came to a gentle stop, the changeling looked the filly up and down, then asked, "Are you on your way to Canterlot?"

Glory nodded.

"If you can stand being hugged by dozens of those little guys, feel free to climb in," the changeling stated. "I'm headed the same way."

Changelings don't often have names, but this one was named Titan, for his tremendous size and strength. Titan was one of the few changelings who, after the abysmal failure of the Canterlot Invasion, and the queen's slow but now inevitable spiral into madness and relentless shirking of her responsibilities as leader, had decided that if there was ever a time to leave the sinking ship that the changeling swarm had become, it was now, and struck off on his own.

It was a short story, but also a heartwarming one: When the changelings had been ejected from Canterlot, they'd ended up in a place that they'd dubbed 'Lovey-Dovey Land', populated by adorable creatures who were so full of love they should have, by all rights, exploded into rainbows, glitter, and glittery rainbows. The queen saw this kingdom where changelings might be able to live, free from having to hunt constantly for love and having to hide from those who might persecute them... and promptly decided it was time to chow down. Queen Chrysalis could see nothing now but her desire for vengeance upon Twilight Sparkle, and now saw her duty to her subjects as a distant secondary concern.

A small number of the changelings, however, did not blindly obey their queen, and decided to do something very brave and very dangerous: They defied their queen, and secretly hid the majority of the cat-rabbits (Or Cabbits, if you prefer) away, where they'd be safe. The rebels' numbers were too few to be able to save all the cabbits, but they could save most of them.

After everything in Lovey-Dovey Land ended, these rebels, who had hidden during all of the events, decided to disband, and find their own way in the world, hoping to perhaps find another place like Lovey-Dovey Land, someplace where changelings could be free, and wouldn't need a queen anymore.

Titan, on the other hoof, had decided that it would be best to find someplace where the cabbits would be safe. Given that the adorable creatures were about as fearsome as they looked, and had all the survival instincts of a slightly concussed lemming, that was harder than one might assume. After weeks of searching on his own, Titan had finally received a hint where he could look for a safe harbor for his charges.

"I'd received a letter a few weeks ago," Titan explained, wrapping up the story, "from one of the other rebels. He'd informed me of how he'd attended a wedding in Ponyville, one also attended by the princesses. After it was over, he talked with Princess Celestia, and he mentioned my mission to her highness. She recommended that I bring the cabbits to Canterlot. She had a few ideas regarding where they'd be safe."

Glory watched Canterlot come into view once again as she listened: The speed with which the changeling had brought her and the cabbits up the mountain was simply astonishing. The weight of the cart, and the somewhat steep incline would have slowed down most ponies, but for Titan, it seemed as if he barely noticed to climb, or the weight of the cart. He wasn't even sweating, if changelings could sweat...

As it had been, the filly had feared she'd be late. Now, though, it was looking like she was going to be on time, or maybe a little early.

Flash Sentry watched the cart zip on, going so quickly that the pegasus had to rush to keep up. He'd been a bit worried when Glory had climbed into the cart, even if the cart had been filled with perfectly innocent and harmless creatures: While there had been reports of changelings outside the swarm behaving in a civil fashion, this was a much bigger changeling than he'd ever seen before, and if it came to a fight, the pegasus was uncertain if he'd be able to do much more than amuse the titanic creature. However, as Canterlot came fully into view, it seemed things would be fine: If the changeling had intended any harm, he'd have done it well before entering a heavily populated city.

Still, it was about time to step in himself: Glory needed to get to the palace, and there was a whole city between her and her goal, and bad things can happen to a filly in a city if unattended. That cart would be able to move quickly here, on the open road, but city traffic at around this time of day could be ugly, and would probably bring the cart to a stop. The temptation to leave the cart and continue on hoof could be too great for a filly in a hurry. However, the skies were clear, and a pegasus could get a little filly there in minutes...

There was a thump, and suddenly Glory found herself face to face with a pegasus, perched upon the edge of the cart. A very familiar pegasus. Blushing bashfully, the young filly said, "Hi, Mister Sentry."

The pegasus grinned, and said, "Hi, Glory. Funny, seeing you out here, all the way away from Cloudsdale."

Glory could only blush a brighter red. She couldn't help it: While he visited the orphanage rarely, the pegasus in front of the young filly had always been kind to her, so it was only natural that she'd have a teeny-tiny little crush on him...

So if he decided that it was time to go back home, there was no way Glory would refuse him...

"Aunt Butterbean told me you'd decided to go on a little adventure," Flash Sentry said, that smile still on his face. "She wanted me to make sure you got where you were going, and on time." Looking over his shoulder towards Canterlot, then back, he added, "Traffic is always a bit rough in the city, so I thought I'd fly you the rest of the way there... if you don't mind?"

Glory could only nod. Looking over at Titan, she said, "Thank you for the ride up the mountain, Mister Titan."

The changeling gave a surprisingly pleasant smile for someone so big and with a face that would normally give young colts and fillies a lifetime of nightmares, and said, "No problem. Good luck to you, Miss Glory."

"And to you, Mister Titan."

Author's Note

Some of you may remember Titan from my story "The Changeling Who Broke The World". For those of you unfamiliar with the Titan Beetle (Titanus giganteus), it's a massive beetle able to bite through a pencil with its mighty jaws. Big, strong, but also pretty laid back if you don't mess with them.

Heart Of Gold

Three SUPREMELY aggravating hours later...

It really wasn't fair. Seriously. Had Glory been born a unicorn, she was certain that the ponies in the palace would no doubt have held the door open for her when she said she was here to take the test, and given that she'd started out three hours before the test was even scheduled, she'd no doubt have been offered a bath, and maybe even a set of clean clothes. Instead... instead she'd spent the last three hours answering the same questions over and over again, and then pointing out that there was no stipulation stating the test was unicorn exclusive, and then finally stating that the one who ultimately would decide if Glory could take Luna's test was Princess Luna herself. She'd repeated all of it so many times, being passed on from one clerk/attendant/courtier to another that it had almost become a mantra.

If Flash hadn't been there, with his rather significant clout as one of Princess Cadance's personal guards, then Glory might still have been turned away. Instead, it had just turned into a long, frustrating ordeal that could easily have been avoided, and time she could have otherwise spent getting cleaned up and eating something: Those adorable little cabbits had seen Glory take out her breakfast, the last bit of food she had for the trip, and had given her what she would always consider The Face. From a hundred cabbits at once, The Face had an almost physical impact, and left her unable to eat, instead giving her meal to them, in exchange for a seemingly limitless supply of hugs. Sadly, not being a changeling, Glory couldn't eat hugs.

But now she was here, sitting in a chair, in the hallway. It had been made clear that she was going to be the last one to take the test, in spite of having gotten here first. She'd have to let everypony else have their shot, and even then, provided Luna didn't find a student and just called the whole thing off, there was no guarantee that Glory would get her chance since Luna might say no, and nopony was going to 'waste her time' by asking her right off if there was any problem with an earth pony taking her test.

It made Morning Glory want to tear out her hair and scream, but if she wanted to take this test, it was something she was going to have to tolerate. However, she did make it a point to memorize the name of each and every pony who'd treated her this way, for later on....

Regardless of the headaches of the past, she was here now, watching unicorn colts and fillies file in and take seats at the opposite end of the hall. Glory felt a bit out of place, sitting in a chair in this hallway: She was the only earth pony in this herd of unicorns, and all of them had a certain... refined look to them. Naturally, these were probably Canterlot colts and fillies, maybe even the sons and daughters of the fantastically wealthy or politically powerful. They were all dressed in their best, those who were wearing clothes, and all of them were clean, brushed, combed, and primped to perfection... which made Morning Glory, who was dirty, disheveled, and with a mane and tail matted and tangled from the road, feel like a duck in a room full of swans... or maybe peacocks.

Glory had expected some of the colts and fillies here to be talking to one another, but instead, everypony seemed to be... well, for lack of a better word, they almost seemed to be angry at each other. It took her a minute to realize why: Princess Luna would likely only choose one, or maybe two, ponies to be her personal student. This meant that, out of all of the colts and fillies here, only one or two could expect to be chosen. That meant that there weren't likely to be any friends in this hallway, only rivals.

"Hi, my name's Golden Glow, but everypony calls me Goldie! What's your name?"

Glory, surprised, looked to her right, towards the chair reserved for the next-to-last participant, where the voice originated from, and was surprised to see a yellow, no, a goldish unicorn filly sitting next to her. She had a smile on her face and seemed to radiate so much good cheer that it was a hair's breadth from being unnerving, and so much... vivacity that it seemed as if she might start bouncing off the walls at any moment. Her coat was a goldish color, and her blonde mane and tail, while elegantly styled, had a slightly frayed look to it. Given that she seemed to be almost vibrating with excitement, it was easy to see why: Whatever stylist had done her mane today had done an expert job, but the enthusiastic filly was likely to shake it apart within the next half-hour from pure enthusiasm.

Most of the ponies here had a studious air to them, but Golden Glow looked like somepony who, if left alone for thirty seconds, would start climbing trees, splashing in mud puddles, and more or less just run around having adventures, and having the time of her life. Goldie seemed to stick out in this crowd as much as Glory did, if not more so.

Apparently, nopony had told this energetic unicorn that there were no friends here. Well, there wasn't any rule, or a sign declaring this a no friend zone, and Glory was at the back of the line of participants, so there really wasn't any harm in talking to somepony.

"My name's Morning Glory, but you can call me Glory," she said, after a moment's hesitation.

"Nice to meet you, Glory," Goldie said, that almost worrying smile still on her face. "So you're here to take the test?"

Glory nodded.

"Me too," Goldie announced. "I'm a shoe-in for Princess Celestia's student, but my mommy thought it would be a good idea to at least try out for Luna's student first, if for no other reason than the fact that most of the ponies here will be at Celestia's test, too, so it's a good opportunity to scope out the competition."

Glory was uncertain which was more impressive, the fact that Goldie was that blatantly confident that she could announce something like that in a room full of competitors, or the fact that she'd said all of that in just one breath. Or perhaps the fact that she had said it the same way she might have discussed the weather: To her, the fact that she was the top candidate for Celestia's student was completely and utterly unremarkable to her, and trying out for Luna's student was practically slumming for her...

By all rights, Glory should have disliked her for that, but the words were said without any sort of arrogance or pride. They were instead said with such innocence, and yet with such self-assurance, that the young earth pony honestly couldn't doubt her. Besides, what she'd said made sense: The cream of Equestria's next generation of unicorns was gathered here in this hallway. Any pony who would be willing to try for the position of Luna's student would be sure to try for Celestia's next.

...Which heavily implied that the filly with the seeming excess of energy and enthusiasm was 'eccentric', rather than weird. It takes a lot of money and power to be eccentric. About the same amount it took to turn a 'crazy cat-lady' into an 'enthusiastic animal lover'.

"Ummm," Goldie began, seeming a little uncomfortable with bringing up what she suspected was a touchy subject, "aren't you an earth pony?"

"Your powers of observation are simply mind-boggling," Glory replied sarcastically, then immediately regretted it, and not just because Goldie seemed to be a nice, friendly filly. If this filly really was the daughter of somepony wealthy and powerful, then mouthing off to her could be the worst idea in the history of bad ideas...

Her train of thought was derailed when Goldie began giggling. "You're funny," the unicorn said, laughing. She paused, then said, "You know, no one ever said that it was unicorns only, or that Luna would be teaching magic to her student, yet here we are, with nearly all unicorns. I guess everypony just assumed that Luna's student would have to be a unicorn."

Glory gave a half-smile, and said, "I think a lot of ponies are going to be going home disappointed if it turns out that Princess Luna was looking for a pegasus to give flying lessons to... or just an earth pony to teach her secret family recipe for apple strudel."

Goldie burst out laughing again, and asked, "Oh, that would be funny, wouldn't it?" After her giggle fit ended, she asked, "So, tell me about yourself."

And, surprising herself, Glory did. She'd never really had another pony to talk to before: Early on in her life at the orphanage, a small group of the older colts and fillies had decided that Glory was going to be the primary recipient of their petty cruelties, and the others, fearing that they might draw the ire of those tormentors if they tried to be her friend, had kept well away from her. As such, she'd never really had another pony to talk to, asides from Miss Butterbean, and she was often busy with the hard work that comes with being the only mare in charge of twenty colts and fillies, twenty-four seven.

And what truly seemed amazing was that, as Glory spoke, Goldie listened. She was honestly, genuinely interested in everything that Glory had to say. She was the kind of pony who, when you talked to her, you could see it clearly written upon her face that you had her full attention, and that if you asked her to repeat what you'd just said, she could do so from the very start of the conversation, even after an hour.

And before she knew it, Glory had poured out her entire life story, from the difficulties she'd had at the orphanage, to the trek here on hoof from Cloudsdale (Although she kept everything about Blackberry out of it. He had asked her to keep things quiet, after all), and ending with the unbelievable unpleasantness of this morning.

Something happened as she finished her description of those three nightmarish hours she'd gone through. She found she was crying...

Glory was not a pony prone to tears. By the age of three, she'd learned that crying did nothing to stop the other colts and fillies from bullying her. In fact, it often seemed to spur them on. When she'd stopped crying, and just stoically endured the name calling, the pranks, and other humiliations they put her through, they'd become less frequent, Morning Glory had experienced an epiphany: Tears solved nothing. If she wanted to accomplish anything, she couldn't just sit around crying, she had to do something about whatever was happening herself.

To be seen crying like this... it was embarrassing, but the thought that there were adults who could be jerks just as bad, or worse, than some of the colts and fillies at the orphanage, and that adulthood might end up being just as bad, if not worse, than the present, was just too much to bear...

And then, today became another first for Morning Glory: For the first time in her life, she received a hug from a pony her age.

"I'm sorry," Goldie said, sadly, and Glory could feel tears falling upon her shoulder. "Nopony should ever get treated the way you were. When we're done here, I'll have a word with my mommy, and tell her what happened. She'll do something about it, believe you me. In the meantime..."

There was a sudden flash of light, and suddenly, Glory and Goldie were sitting in each others chairs. At Glory's surprise, Goldie giggled and said, "I'm sorry it's only one spot. Normally, I'd be first in line, but mommy pulled some strings to have me at the back of the line so I could keep an eye on the others. Believe me, if I was in first, and you were last, I'd still trade with you. But one spot closer is still better." There was no mistaking Goldie's sincerity as anything other than genuine: Even if the line had been billions long, she'd have still swapped with Glory in a heartbeat.

Glory smiled, wiped the tears out of her eyes, then nodded, and said, "Thank you."

However, inside her head, wheels were turning: Glory knew enough about magic to know that teleportation was an extremely challenging spell, and most dedicated students of magic were lucky to be able to manage the most basic of such spells in their teens, if not later. Performing not one, but two, simultaneous teleports, and switching the positions of the two ponies being teleported, was a feat that normally took years of study. So much so that it was to the point that a magic-user might hit middle-age, or later, before they were confident enough to perform such a spell on themselves, let alone somepony else. Golden Glow wasn't kidding when she said she was the top candidate for Celestia's new student: She was only five years old with no cutie mark, and yet she was already casting spells at the level of an adept, if not a master!

Prelude To A Test

It wasn't Morning Glory's fault that she missed something obvious.

She'd spent all of her life around pegasai, not earth ponies, and certainly not unicorns. As such, she took the fact that Goldie seemed less... manic, and no longer vibrating with energy, as a reaction to Glory's story, and nothing else. Most older unicorns would have immediately recognized it for it was, and would have been a bit worried...

Still, while she couldn't put a name to it, some instinct told Glory that something was wrong. Not world-ending disaster wrong, just... slightly wrong, like a portrait hanging slightly crooked, but so slightly that it almost appeared to be straight until you took a moment to look at it. Sadly, that instinct, being an instinct, couldn't be more specific. Instincts are annoying like that.

As the two ponies sat, waiting as unicorn after unicorn filed in and took their places, they talked about themselves. The things they liked, the things they didn't, their lives... and of course, their conversation hit one of Glory's favorite topics.

Books.

In particular, Glory's favorite book: 'Magic For Beginners', written by Galaxy, the principal of Princess Celestia's School for gifted unicorns.

"Yeah," Golden Glow smiled, and said, "my mommy had a lot of fun writing that book."

While her jaw did not quite hit the floor (Glory may have been an earth pony, but she was no Pinkie Pie), the young earth pony's jaw certainly made an admirable effort at trying to reach the ground. "Wait," Glory began, wide-eyed, "your mommy is Galaxy? Principal Galaxy? Former student of Princess Celestia, Galaxy? Three time winner of the Starswirl Award For Magical Advancement, Galaxy? THE Galaxy?"

"Yes, yes, yes, yes, and probably, unless there's another Galaxy out there that I don't know about who is even more famous," Goldie answered with a smile. She didn't look smug. Proud, maybe, but not smug. Goldie was not the kind of pony who would look smug, even if you dumped a bucket full of smug over her head.

'Geez', Glory thought to herself, 'no wonder she's the top candidate to be Celestia's next student. And no wonder she's already so far ahead of other ponies her age: She's probably gotten all kinds of tutoring about magic from her mom that most of the other colts and fillies here could only dream of.'

Glory reached down to her backpack, which she'd set down on the floor beside her chair, and then pulled out her copy of Magic For Beginners. She turned it over to the photograph on the back of the cover, then showed it to Goldie, and pointed to it, mutely.

Goldie giggled, then nodded, and said, "Yup, that's the one."

Glory turned the book back around, and looked at the photo. She'd seen it a dozen times if she'd seen it even once, but it wasn't one that she'd really studied before. She was a pretty mare, with a pink coat that matched her bright pink eyes. Her mane was tri-colored, red pink and white, with a pair of spectacles perched upon her muzzle. Her mark was a set of seven dark pink stars in the shape of a constellation.

While she may not have been a mystical powerhouse on the level of Twilight Sparkle, Galaxy was well-known through much of Equestria, especially for her works in the field of applied magical theory: Until Twilight, there had not been a new magical spell developed in Equestria for more than a thousand years, but that did not mean that magical research was dead. Instead, researchers had dedicated their efforts to finding how to use old spells in new ways.

And Galaxy had been the pony to discover dozens, neigh, hundreds, of new ways that currently existing spells might be used, a record that had not been reached since the days of Starswirl The Bearded himself.

Glory flipped open the book, and read the introduction again, something she'd read a thousand times before...

'Anyone can be a wizard.'

'These were words spoken by Starswirl the Bearded himself, long, long ago. Many fail to actually understand their meaning. He did not mean that everyone can be a wizard. No, sadly, not everyone who embarks on the path of magical mastery will be able to reach their destination: Not everyone has the drive, the focus, or the talent for becoming a wizard. What Starswirl meant was that you can find wizards in the most unlikely of places.'

'Starswirl himself was, in fact, living proof of that: Historians often forget to mention his first nickname, one that many of his peers would use as an insult: The Potter's Son. Starswirl was the son of a peasant earth pony potter and a unicorn seamstress, in an age where such pairings were extremely rare, and those that did occur were often looked upon with distaste by others. Starswirl is often called the father of the amniomorphic spell, but few remember that this spell was something he developed as a colt, to help his father in his work, and make cups, bowls, and sundry other household items faster. However, it was when he began combining this spell with other spells, including ones that allowed for the rapid creation of ceramic materials, that the young colt began to become famous.'

'In those days, it was rare for anypony outside of the aristocracy to become a wizard, and there were many who tried to hinder Starswirl's advancement to that lofty rank. However, when Starswirl presented to the magical community as a whole a combination of spells that could allow a complete fortress to be created in under an hour, and one made of ceramic materials so sturdy that even catapults and cannonfire were hard-pressed to damage it, nopony could deny that he was, even at only sixteen years old, as much a wizard, if not more so, than the most nobly born of the peerage of the age. Dozens of variations to that spell have since been developed, for everything from simple fortifications to building housing quickly in an emergency. Ponies may sometimes boast about their ancestors, about their wealth and status, and that this makes them a superior wizard. They often forget that the greatest wizard in Equestrian history was the son of a peasant, without any sign of real magical power anywhere in his ancestry, and spent much of his early years without two bits to rub together.'

'What makes a pony a wizard is not a noble lineage, nor wealth, nor anything one is born with, but instead the will, the drive to work hard and dedicate one's efforts to the mystic arts. Anyone can be a wizard... including you.'

"You know," Goldie began, a small smile on her face, "if you want, I could get that autographed for you?"

For the second time today, Glory's jaw tried to unhinge itself in order to strike the floor. It kinda hurt. She'd have to watch that...

"I'd love her autograph!" Glory exclaimed, happily. It was a once in a lifetime opportunity, after all: When was she likely to ever have a chance like that again?

Goldie smoothly took Glory's copy of Magic For Beginners, and said, "Okay,I'll go get it signed. I'll get it back to you after the test is over."

Confused, Glory asked, "You're leaving?

"I've seen whose showed up for the test," Goldie said, as the last chair in the hallway was occupied. "I know these ponies, more or less: I've attended enough parties with my mommy to know them all by name. Half of them are only here because their parents are somepony special. The other half... well, I don't expect anything surprising from any of them, but we'll see. The only surprise today was you, and if there's any justice in the world, you'll be Luna's student, and not any of them."

Glory smiled, and said, "Thank you."

Goldie giggled, then gave Glory a hug. "I'll see you when the test is done." With that, Goldie slipped from her chair, and walked out of the hallway.

Goldie sighed internally as her mommy, who had a lifetime's worth of experience with unicorns, and was especially good at reading her daughter, gave that one look that mothers on every world, in every universe, perfect by the time that their first child is three. Yeah, that look, the one that's the equivalent of saying their full name.

"You overreached again, didn't you?" Galaxy asked, an eyebrow raised.

"I... wanted to show off to a new friend," the young filly admitted as her mommy drew her a little bit away from the assembled parents in the room. "I didn't do anything all that difficult, just a double teleport."

"Golden Glow," her mommy stated, her expression stern, "I've told you time and time again, you need to give your body some time to catch up with your talent. You may have the skill to cast high level magic, and the magical energy necessary to fuel it, but your horn is still growing, and it's only barely able to handle spells like that. If you keep using magic above your level, you could crack your horn, or worse!"

This was not the first time that her mommy had voiced that concern, and not without good reason: Young unicorns with strong magical potential had a bad habit of trying to pushing themselves too hard, and until a unicorn's horn has reached its full growth, it may not be up to whatever spell the young unicorn may be trying to cast. It is like trying to fire a cannonball through a cannon whose barrel wasn't wide enough. If the difference was small, then while the cannonball may fire, it can damage the cannon on the way out. If the cannonball is much too large for the barrel... well, a cannon is a lot easier to replace and/or repair than a unicorn's horn, so it was best not to push one's self too far too soon.

"Sorry, mommy," Goldie said, looking suitably ashamed of herself.

After a moment, her mommy nodded and said, "It's alright, just try to avoid doing that again in the future." After a moment, she smiled and said, "Your mother would be so proud of you."

Right. It sometimes confused ponies when they heard stuff like that. Technically, Galaxy wasn't Goldie's mother, but her aunt. Still, mommy was the only mommy Goldie had ever known, so of course she was mommy.

Remembering why she'd come out here in the first place, Goldie said, "Oh, I need you to autograph something, mommy!" Holding up Morning Glory's book, she added, "I made a new friend today, and she said this is her favorite book, so I told her I'd get you to autograph it."

Galaxy chuckled, and said, "Well, if it's for a friend of yours, not to mention a fan, I can hardly say no." Pulling a quill and an inkwell from her purse, she asked, "What's her name?"

"Morning Glory," Golden Glow said, grinning.

Suddenly, Goldie's mother went very still...

Glory watched the first applicant walk into the room where Princess Luna was waiting to administer the test, escorted by a guard. The young colt in question had his head held high, and seemed so full of himself that it seemed almost comical. He stepped into the room and out of sight. After a moment, there was a sound that Glory didn't recognize (Having been born in Cloudsdale, where everything is clouds, she'd never had an opportunity to hear a wooden door be opened before). Within a minute afterwards, the youngster was marched out, an almost exaggerated expression of distress and confusion on his features.

"But I don't understand, what did I do wrong?" he almost whined to the guard.

Glory was only five years old, and while certainly much brighter than most youngsters her age, she wasn't quite jaded enough yet for this all to seem suspicious to her, but, once again, some instinct told her that something wasn't quite right, and that she should pay attention to what was going on here.

Perhaps more importantly, she'd come to an immediate conclusion about the nature of the test: Whatever the test was, it was very easy to fail, given that the youngster had been in the room less than a minute. Maybe it was related in some way to that noise she'd heard before the youth was marched out...

Then in marched the second applicant, as proud and confident as the first. He stepped in, and after a moment, there was that noise again, and then a moment afterwards, the applicant was escorted out, his complaints almost identical to the first.

Glory looked around the room at the other applicants, and saw that not even one of them looked the slightest bit concerned about this display. This was no act: They weren't putting on a brave face to keep from showing weakness to the other applicants, but rather they were all completely unconcerned about the fact that the first two to take the test had failed almost instantly. This wasn't self-assurance like Goldie had, but rather total and absolute arrogance and overconfidence. The unicorns in this room all believed that they were the ones destined to be Luna's student, so of course everypony else would fail, until it was their turn.

They all believed that they were the ones who deserved to be Luna's student, in spite of not having done anything to actually deserve it yet...

Glory sighed, and settled in to watch the other applicants march in and out of the room. It was almost guaranteed now that every other applicant was going to fail. She resolved herself, however, to make sure not to repeat their mistake: There was no guarantee she would pass, but Glory was determined not to fail the same way everypony else was failing.

Two hours later...

After watching the final applicant ahead of her take what Glory had come to consider 'The Walk Of Shame', the young earth pony sighed as the guard looked, first at her, and then around the room, as if searching for other applicants who might, in fact, be ninjas and as such be difficult to see right away. Admittedly, there was always the possibility that there were, in fact, ninja ponies in the room: Equestria was just strange enough for that to happen, but it was unlikely that, if any ninjas were here in this room, they were here to take Luna's test. After all, if somepony was already a ninja, why would somepony want to be a wizard too? Just being a ninja was certain to be a lot of work: Piling that on top of the work needed to become a wizard would just be absurd.

Still, as no prospective ninja-wizards stepped forward, the guard looked back to Glory. Glory, to her credit, didn't say anything, but rather just gave the guard a look that said, 'I know exactly what you're thinking of asking, and if you do ask that question, then you will drop about twenty pegs in my estimation of your intelligence. So please, by all means, ask me if I'm in the right place, and if I know what this test is for. I've only been sitting here two hours, after all.'

When you're angry and have had a pretty bad day, you can say a lot with just a look.

After a moment, the guard said, "Give me a moment while I check with the Princess?"

Glory nodded. She didn't trust herself, in that moment, to say anything.

The guard walked into the room, and after a moment, walked out and said, "Come this way."

Author's Note

I remember reading somewhere that Starswirl The Bearded's character was a sort of obscure shout out to a certain book series: Amniomorphic means Bowl-Shaping, and given that Starswirl was 'Bearded', that made him a 'Hairy Potter'.

Night And Day

Sometimes Celestia wondered if maybe King Sombra had the right idea...

No, not about the whole 'Crystal Slaves' thing. That was stupid. No, what she thought might be right was the fact that, while Celestia was a benevolent and much-beloved ruler of an entire kingdom, Sombra had a reputation that inspired fear in others. This meant that Sombra's word was obeyed without question, and nopony ever dared even raise their voice to him. His word was law, and even implying that you might question that word carried dire consequences, which would obviously mean that he never heard a single word of complaint. Or perhaps just a single word of complaint, one and a half if whoever was speaking was a fast talker, and then... well, then everypony received an object lesson in why it was a bad idea to raise one's voice to King Sombra.

Celestia, meanwhile, being kindhearted, and always willing to listen to the criticism, both constructive and otherwise, of her subjects, had to simply stand and listen without interrupting as anypony with a complaint, no matter how petty or outright moronic it might be, rattled on and on about whatever was on their mind, or the hollow, echoing void that occupied the space between their ears, as the case may be. She was capable of turning someone to stone, curse that statue into a living shadow, then banish that shadow-statue to another planet, and have the shadow-statue thrown into into a prison, then banish that prison to the moon of that other planet, and then bury that planet under a glacier for good measure, but she was far too patient to ever be tempted to do such a thing... most of the time. It had been three centuries since somepony had tempted her to exert that sort of power from pure annoyance, but the complaining mare in question was causing Celestia to invent, in her head, penalties for raising their voice in complaint to a ruler of Equestria. Penalties involving angry badgers, and steaks tied to a pony's face...

The complainer in question was here, with her son, expressing her... discontent with the nature of Luna's test... and had been for the better part of half an hour. Worse, she had a horrific, high-pitched, screechy voice that made Celestia wonder how in the world she'd ever managed to find a husband willing to tolerate her presence for more than ten seconds. Then again, her husband might be deaf...

"...and I have never felt so insulted in my entire life," the mare screeched on, seeming to be able to continue on without the need to breathe. "We went through all the trouble of getting here, and wasted all of that time, and your sister..."

"And I what?" Luna's voice asked softly, yet still cutting through the complainer's screech the way that a chainsaw cuts through a watermelon.

The mare suddenly went very quiet, and like a character from a horror movie, she slowly turned to face Celestia's sister, standing behind her. The significantly smaller mare turned pale, an impressive feat for a mare with an already pure-white coat. Her son took a step closer to his mother, placing himself behind her, yet close enough to touch her leg. Celestia didn't miss the slight twinge that crossed Luna's features: While the ponies of Ponyville now seemed to hold Luna in high esteem, Canterlot was still another matter, and Celestia knew how much reactions like this hurt her younger sister's feelings...

Celestia noticed, standing beside Luna, a small filly. An earth pony, as the reports had mentioned, small and slightly thin. However, she was no longer dirty or disheveled. It seemed that Luna had arranged for the youngster to be bathed and brushed out after the test's completion. When Celestia had heard the news about her sister's student, the solar princess couldn't help but to smile to herself: Ponies often compared the two princess differences, saying things like 'The two are as different as night and day'. At their core, however, the two of them were very much alike, in spite of what some might say about their outward differences...

And so many had forgotten that Celestia's very first student was an earth pony as well.

"You have a problem with my test?" Luna asked, an eyebrow raised. The mare nodded, weakly, but said nothing. After a moment, Luna sighed, then said, "Your son had his chance to pass my test. I went to great lengths to ensure that the test was fair. I even took the additional step of the first applicant being an actor, who would fail the test and show the other applicants that it was very easy to fail the test almost immediately, if they didn't pay attention. Your son, I recall, was next to last, and yet, after seeing dozens of other applicants fail the test, and all of them in under a minute, he succeeded in setting himself apart from the herd not only in failing the test faster than anypony else, but also in having nearly torn a door off of its hinges. I have given him an endorsement for my sister's school, and perhaps with time and training, he may become... worthy. But the way he is now, he does not yet meet my standards for a student."

"But I did everything you said," came a small voice. Luna turned her attention towards the young colt, who, in spite of looking slightly terrified, also looked surprisingly brave and defiant for a five-year-old colt.

Luna smiled, which seemed to comfort the colt slightly. Then she asked, "Did you? What, exactly, did I say?"

The colt hesitated, and then said, "You said I had to open the door."

The filly shook her head, and said, "No, that isn't what she said at all." The colt and the mare looked at the young filly, who said, after a moment's hesitation, "She said, 'The test ends when you open that door'. Opening the door ended the test, but you ended with a failing grade. The test wasn't opening the door, it was understanding what she meant, and asking how you were supposed to pass the test."

The colt mulled that over for a moment, then mouthed a silent 'oh' of comprehension.

The colt's mother, on the other hoof, seemed taken aback. "What does that have to do with magic?" she asked, incredulously.

"Nothing," Luna stated, bluntly. At the mother's shocked expression, Luna added, "I am not my sister. That is something I have been reminded of, time and time again, although I doubt that most ponies realize they are doing so. I have come to accept that fact. I find it ironic that so many who came to take my test, came with the assumption that my test would be for the same qualities that my sister would. I didn't want a student who was powerful, I wanted one that actually listened. One who thought. Somepony who, if told something she did not understand, or did not agree with, she would actually stop and question it, rather than instantly try and obey what she thought I had told her in an effort to make me happy."

Celestia couldn't help but chuckle inside at that: Luna might have been younger, but in many ways, she was wiser than her sister. Twilight Sparkle, Celestia's own student, was brilliant in her own right, and her magical power was prodigious to say the least, but she was so... unquestioningly obedient that the solar princess had nightmares some nights of her misinterpreting a request, and destroying half of Equestria. In truth, the young mare had spent much of her life slightly terrified of somehow failing Celestia without realizing it, to the point that she'd jump to obey any command the princess gave, or thought she'd given...

The establishment of 'Code Lavender', a secret command to be given to the Equestrian guard in the case of a severe magical event unwittingly caused by Twilight Sparkle that might risk all of Equestria, had in fact been the result of a prank by a pair of young colts. They'd thought it would be funny to slip Twilight a note, indicating that Celestia had wanted her to cast a spell from one of the sealed tomes in the great library, the ones with the black covers that had far more mouths and eyes than any book should be allowed, and had ink that was... worryingly red (Celestia was still trying to find a way to dispose of those books, recovered from a deranged warlock's library centuries ago. Trying to burn those books just made them laugh, they came back together if ripped apart to shreds small enough to almost microscopic, and throwing them in a volcano... wasn't something she was prepared to try again, not after the last time). The two colts weren't laughing when Celestia took them to task, after Al'gaj'ag'ag'ag'ac'ka, Defiler of Worlds and Despoiler of the Hopes of Mortals, was banished once again to the voids beyond space and time from which Twilight Sparkle had summoned it. Since then, Celestia had taken steps to ensure that Twilight understood not to believe any 'request' given by anyone other than Celestia herself, or delivered by Spike, her young ward. Of course, with changelings being a thing...

Well, thankfully, Twilight was a princess in her own right now, and was now exercising a great deal more good sense than she had before. So much so that Celestia had secretly used a scanning spell a couple of times to make certain it really was her, rather than a changeling, doppelganger, or just a pegasus with a paper-mache horn having taken her place...

"Your son," Luna went on, "has plenty of magical potential. With proper guidance, he'll certainly become somepony worthy of praise. But magical power was not what I was testing for." She paused, then added, "Now, my young student and I need to be going: She traveled here all the way from Cloudsdale on her own, and I'll need to take care of a few things there before we can begin to get her settled in here at the palace."

The colt's mother paused, seeming to be taken aback. She'd just commented on 'the trouble of coming all the way here', when here was a filly whose difficulty in reaching her destination was far greater. After a moment, she nodded, and said, "Very well." She turned to Celestia, and bowed, saying, "I apologize for taking up so much of your time." With that, she gathered her son and left.

"That was... impressively tactful," Celestia noted with a smile.

With a shrug, Luna admitted, "I expected a few complaints regarding the nature of the test. I'd had much of that rehearsed in advance." Clearing her throat, she added, "Ah, where are my manners? Sister, allow me to introduce my new student, Morning Glory."

The little filly gave an adorable little bow. "Pleased to meet you, your highness."

A Princess In Mourning In The Evening

Nine Hundred, Ninety-Nine Years Ago...

It had been a year ago, today...

Celestia sat, alone in her room, in a deep depression. She'd gotten to know this room very well over the course of the last year. After all, since she never left it, there was very little to distract her, and so there was nothing to keep her from studying it in even the most microscopic detail. She knew every dust bunny, and had given them names. The cobwebs, she'd given deep and moving back stories, and had even invented a tragic romance between one of the more elegant cobwebs and the largest and fluffiest dust bunny under her bed.

And because she was Princess Celestia, and Princess Celestia was incapable of doing anything halfway, that tale would, in the not too distant future, be submitted under a pseudonym (With a few minor changes, of course). Said story would soon afterwards be hailed as Equestria's greatest romantic epic of all time, and would still hold that title a thousand years later.

Celestia wasn't insane. Oh no, not at all. That was all a distraction, you see, to keep her from going mad. She needed something else to think about, so she wouldn't think about the one thing that most certainly would drive her insane...

...That she'd failed her sister. That Luna was gone, and the raving, deranged beast called Nightmare Moon had taken her place. That she'd likely not see her sister for a thousand years, if ever again. And it was all Celestia's fault.

Maybe it was because she'd paid too much attention to everypony else, and not enough time on the most important pony in her life. Maybe it was because Celestia had gotten so much more attention than her sister. Or maybe...

...Maybe she'd not loved her sister enough.

Regardless, Luna was gone. The one pony in the world who was like Celestia, who understood her. The one pony that she had come to rely on more than any other. And now that she was gone, Celestia felt as if a piece of herself was missing. The largest and most important piece.

She looked to a curtained window, and checked the clock on her wall. Sunset was an hour past now, and while each day, she'd toyed with the idea of just not raising the sun one morning, or not lowering it one night, duty kept her from taking that final, terrible step and plunging Equestria into permanent darkness, or horrible, blazing eternal day. Still, since she never went outside, she used the angle of the light coming from the window, and her clock, to make certain that the sun rose and set properly.

A less compassionate pony might have blamed her subjects for her sister's disappearance, and punished them for it. After all, it was possible that her subjects' shunning of Luna was at least partly responsible for the lunar princess' descent into madness. However, even if that was the case, Celestia could never turn her back on her subjects. That simply was not who she was. However, she was unable to look her subjects in the face right now... and she doubted that she ever could again.

Regardless, with this one task done, and done properly, she turned towards her bed...

...And heard a knock on her door.

This was not,in and of itself, strange. There was a knock on her door every day. There used to be much more than just one: When she first shut herself away, her subjects had pounded on the door, but to no avail: Celestia had locked the door, and then reinforced it with magic, so that even a battering ram could not break it down. And they tried. After that, her subjects tried getting in through the floor, walls, and ceiling, to find those places similarly reinforced. Even her window was now reinforced to the point that it could repel a boulder flung via catapult. Thankfully, her subjects had not tried that, likely for fear of either harming their princess, or collateral damage. Either way, it had been six moons since her subjects had tried anything more than a knock each evening. They might have assumed that she'd just starve herself in here, but a... precocious foalhood had allowed Celestia to master the art of cake and ice cream summoning: While she'd put on a couple of pounds, she would not likely starve any time soon.

Still, this knock was special: It was small, soft, and low to the ground. It was the knock of a young filly or colt at her door. And if anypony knows anything about Princess Celestia, it is that she cannot say no to a little colt or filly...

The door whipped open so quickly that it briefly rattled on its hinges, and Celestia looked down... to see a tiny pink earth pony filly, clutching a book close to her chest. Without a word, she held it up to the princess.

After a moment, Celestia asked, "Do you need somepony to read you a story?"

The filly nodded.

"Alright," Celestia said with a nod, accepting the book. Then, she used a spell to hoist the youngster onto her bed, tucked her into the covers, and then took a seat on the ground besides the bed. She cracked open the book, and began reading.

"Where Is My Cow?"

Chancellor Read Write was roused from his slumber by by a maid, shaking him roughly. He supposed he should have expected it: This had been the grandaddy of all bad days. There'd been a riot earlier today, from ponies demanding to see the princess, not willing to accept that the princess did not wish to be seen. While it had been sorted out, with nopony seriously injured, things were getting bad: Equestria's government was able to run, in no small part, because the ponies trusted and adored her highness, Princess Celestia. The princess not appearing to endorse any new legislation that was necessary made her subjects... suspicious. Especially the recent raise in taxes. Only Princess Celestia could make ponies willingly accept a raise in taxes, and pay it with a cheerful smile and a musical number to boot...

Worse, Commander Overwatch's daughter had wandered off, when her father had not arrived at six in the evening to read her a bedtime story. It wasn't his fault: He was busy defusing the riot situation. The youngster had wandered off, looking for somepony to read to her, he supposed. However, at seven in the evening, she still had not been found, and while Read would normally have been happy to help with the search, he had an early morning tomorrow. He'd had early mornings, every morning, since the day Celestia had banished her sister, and then secluded herself in her chambers...

He worked hard to keep this country running in her majesty's absence, and there might have been three ponies in the world who might have been able to do a job half as good as he had. A few hours of sleep weren't too much to ask for, were they?

Rubbing sleep from his eyes, Read asked, "What is it? Did they find her? Did they find Magnolia?"

The maid nodded enthusiastically, and then added, 'And you'll never guess where!"

"Is that my cow?" Princess Celestia asked, still reading aloud. "It goes, 'No I haven't seen your cow. What does she look like? Where did you last see her?'" She paused, then continued, saying, "That is a pony. That is not my cow."

Read Write watched from the doorway, Commander Overwatch right beside him, as Princess Celestia read aloud from the young filly's favorite book. It was a very silly book, given that it was about a pony looking for a cow, and yet couldn't tell the difference between a cow, a chicken, a donkey, another pony, or even, in the last three pages, a manticore, a hippopotamus, or a dragon (In that order). Still, the young filly loved the story, especially when the reader did the voices.

The chancellor and the commander remained silent as the princess finished the story. When she was done, she gently lifted the sleeping filly off of the bed, and gave her over to the commander. The commander smiled, gave a brief, grateful nod, and carried his daughter off. The princess made to shut the door, but the chancellor was able to delay her by clearing his throat.

"Your highness, I hate to be a bother, but..." He paused, sighed, and then said, "There's a great deal going on that I need to make you aware of. Your subjects need you."

The princess paused, then said, "It's late. Come see me first thing in the morning. And have the commander bring his daughter. A filly her age ought to be able to read to herself." With that, she shut the door.

That was how Princess Celestia first met Magnolia, or Maggie to her friends. The filly who would be her very first student.

Author's Note

Where's My Cow? is a children's book that was written by Terry Pratchett, writer of the Discworld series. It is a very silly book, which Sam Vimes, who reads the book to his son every day at Six O'Clock, comments on.

Well, That Was Random

"My, my, my... color me surprised!"

The here and now...

Everypony looked up in time to see Discord, hanging from the ceiling, his body cycling through every color of the rainbow. To Luna and Celestia, who had grown more or less numb to the master of chaos' antics, it was relatively tame, but to Morning Glory, who'd never seen such a spectacle, it was one of the most magical things she'd ever witnessed, and couldn't help but to applaud.

The draconequus floated down from the ceiling, a jolly smile on his face, saying, "Well, well, well... Luna, I honestly didn't think you had it in you, but here we are: You've surprised me! I didn't think that anypony had it in them to do that anymore." He chuckled, and then added, "An earth pony for a student. You couldn't have surprised me more if you'd painted yourself pink, put on a matching dress, and invited me to the Gala!"

Luna was not amused, as was plain by her expression. "And how did you find out about that so soon?"

A phoenix winged in, and landed on Discord's shoulder. "A little birdy told me," the master of chaos said with a smile, then handed the bird a cookie. The bird took it, and then squeezed its talons just enough to be unpleasant. Discord rolled his eyes, and then handed the phoenix two more, muttering, "Greedy little immortal feather duster..."

Luna gave the phoenix a look, and said, "I'm going to remember that, Philomena."

The bird looked completely unperturbed, which only seemed to annoy the lunar princess further.

Glory, on the other hoof, was giving Discord a look of her own. Discord seemed to take a moment to notice, and when he did, he asked, "Something on my face?" He pulled out an handkerchief, then wiped it on his face, causing it to disappear. Without a visible mouth, he was somehow able to asked, "Did I get it?"

"You're being rude," Morning Glory stated bluntly. "You're supposed to introduce yourself when you meet someone new."

Discord abruptly brought his face down to where he was looking the filly in the eyes, a flat, unfriendly expression on his face. After a moment, he cracked a smile, then said, "You're right, I was being rude." Extending his eagle-clawed hand, he said, "Discord, king of chaos, baron of bedlam, archduke of anarchy, master of mischief, and a plethora of other things besides." Raising an eyebrow, he asked, "And you are?"

Extending a hoof and shaking Discord's hand, she replied, "Morning Glory, an orphan from Cloudsdale."

With a chuckle, the draconequus asked, "And that's all?"

"I'm five," Glory replied, flippantly, "What were you expecting? Queen of Boardor?"

Discord chuckled, and said, "Fair enough." Retracting his claw, he asked, "So... Luna's new student... what did you plan on learning from her royal mooniness, hmmm? Proper planting techniques? How to move heavy objects? Her secret family recipe for apple strudel?"

Glory giggled, and said, "I actually made that joke earlier today." Her expression turned serious, and she said, "But no. I want to learn how to do magic."

Princess Celestia, who until now had watched all of this with an amused expression, looked surprised. Discord's expression was even more so, to the point that he could not have been more stunned if she'd said, 'Turn into an alicorn and fly laps around the moon while yodeling the Equestrian national anthem'.

After a moment, Discord snapped his fingers. Suddenly, Glory was in a dress, holding a bouquet of flowers, and wearing a tiara, with Discord standing nearby wearing a tuxedo and applauding. Over her head, there was a banner with the words 'World's Youngest Pony To Ever Surprise Discord' written on it. "Congratulations," the draconequus said, handing her a trophy, which she awkwardly took with her free hoof. "You've managed to beat Twilight Sparkle and her friends by more than a decade, from when they turned me to stone. Well done."

Glory looked up at Discord for a moment, and almost felt like crying. "Thank you."

His expression confused, Discord asked, "What for?"

"For not laughing," the young filly answered, smiling. "Almost every pony I tell that to does." She paused, and added, "And for the dress. I've never worn one before. And the flowers, oh, and the tiara!" After a moment, she asked, "...Um, can I keep them?"

Discord was old, older than alicorns, older than most countries, and some continents. Nations may rise and fall, but Discord is eternal. Admittedly, friendship was new to him, as was being anything other than... well, than being the way he used to be. He'd experienced many things in his life, and while his new lifestyle had caused him to encounter many things he'd never known before, there was one thing he had not yet experienced, and as such, it was something that managed to completely blindside him...

Honest gratitude.

The stunned silence that followed was broken when Celestia began applauding, saying, "Well done, young lady. I can honestly say that this is the first time I've ever seen Discord at a complete loss for what to say."

Discord shot a look at her that might have been intimidating, were it not for the fact that he was blushing furiously in embarrassment. After a moment, he looked back at the young filly, and said, after a brief pause to collect himself, "Yes, fine, keep them. And you're welcome." After a moment, he snapped his fingers, and a pair of glasses appeared in his lion pawed hand. "An earth pony using magic may be impossible, or it may not be. I'm interested to see what the answer to that question is, myself. And, since I'm in such a good mood, I suppose I can tell you which kind of magic you might be able to use."

Glory nodded excitedly, almost causing the tiara to fall off of her head.

Discord put the glasses on, revealing the lenses to have some sort of spiral shaped pattern to them. He took one look at Glory...

...And the glasses abruptly burst into flames, and then exploded. And then exploded again for good measure.

"Are those supposed to do that?" Morning Glory asked, while everyone looked on in surprise.

As the glasses reformed themselves in Discord's hand, he said, "Normally, only when I say the words, 'It's Over Nine Thousand'." The glasses abruptly exploded again. "It's not a bug, it's a feature," he added, as they reformed a second time.

Looking at the young filly, the draconequus said, "Someone put some manner of protection spell on you, and it is a powerful one. I don't know what it is, or what it does, but it is so... overprotective that I can't even use my magic to determine what kind of magic might work best for you. Probably so that no one can try to figure out a way to bypass it. So, I'm sorry to say I can't even point you in the right direction. At least, not until the protective spell is removed."

"That's okay," Glory said, pushing back the disappointment she felt. "It just means I'll get to be surprised when I find out what it is." It was a bit of a mystery to her, where that protective spell came from, but she didn't mind it much, she supposed. It felt kind of nice, knowing that somepony out there felt she was worth protecting.

With a chuckle, Discord said, "Well, I'd rather be surprising, myself, but that's my preference. And you've proven quite surprising today, yourself" With a bow, Discord said, "Well, young lady, it has been an interesting encounter, but I must be off. Places to go, things to do, and all that." With a wink, he added, "But I do hope to see you again soon."

And with that, Discord vanished in a puff of smoke.

Failure To Launch

"There you are!"

Morning Glory was surprised to hear those words from two different pairs of voices that she knew, and both at the same time. Looking towards the entryway to the throne room, she saw Flash Sentry standing beside Golden Glow, with a pony who could only be Galaxy standing a little ways behind. Both the filly and the young stallion looked at each other with surprise, and then both of them said, at the same time, "Jinx!"

"Jinx!"

They might have spent hours like that, trying to out-jinx the other, but Princess Celestia halted them both by clearing her throat meaningfully. Flash made to speak, then reconsidered, making a 'Go ahead' gesture to Goldie. With a grateful nod, she shot forward, Glory's book in tow. Hoofing it over, she said, "Here you go, autographed and everything. Sorry it took so long to get it to you. My mommy accidentally dropped the inkwell, and you wouldn't believe what we had to go through to get a replacement."

The way she made it sound, there might have been a battle with an army of trolls in that particular adventure. Still, Goldie's good cheer and enthusiasm were infectious, and Glory couldn't help but to smile as she accepted her book back. "Thank you," she said, gratefully.

Glory's instincts gave a small twinge, and she noticed that Galaxy, Goldie's mother, hadn't moved any nearer. Yet at the same time, she seemed to be watching Glory like a hawk, an unreadable expression on her face. There was something strange about that look, but Glory couldn't place it.

'Why do I keep noticing things like this?' Glory thought to herself, 'I was never this observant or insightful before. In fact, I wasn't even this observant or insightful last week!' After a moment's consideration, she wondered, 'Is it because I've got my hooves on the ground now, instead of in the clouds?'

After a moment, Galaxy looked over at Princesses Celestia and Luna, gave a small bow, and said, "Your majesties. Princess Luna, I understand you were planning on journeying to Cloudsdale?"

Celestia nodded, and Luna said, "Indeed. I was planning on departing with Morning Glory in a few minutes, via chariot."

Galaxy cleared her throat, and said, "That may not be the best course of action, your highness. It is already nearing mid afternoon, and even by wing, it can be a long journey to Cloudsdale and back. By the time you conclude your business in Cloudsdale and return, it will be late in the evening... and I doubt you've made any arrangements for your student's room and board yet."

Glory, listening in, considered what Galaxy was saying: It made a lot of sense, of course: It took Glory a week to make her way here on hoof, and while royal guards hauling a chariot could go quite quickly, it would still take time to complete what needed to be done in Cloudsdale, and make the journey back. If Glory went along, it would mean she'd not have an opportunity to be given anything resembling a tour of the castle, and she doubted that she'd have an easy time finding a glass of water or a restroom if she needed one during the night.

Still, those instincts were trembling now, almost whispering in her ear, 'She's up to something, she wouldn't have brought this up if she didn't already have a solution in mind.'

Princess Luna considered the unicorn's words for a moment, then admitted, "True. While a personal visit would ensure that things could be concluded swiftly, it would still be past nightfall before our business were concluded. I suppose that the journey could be delayed until tomorrow. And it would be a good idea to get a proper room set up for her, rather than just lodging her in whatever might be available at the moment." She pondered a moment, then asked, "But what to do for the young filly's room and board until proper lodging is arranged?"

Celestia raised an eyebrow, looking over at Galaxy. 'Celestia knows that Galaxy has something in mind,' Glory thought, 'but she's playing along, waiting to see where this goes...'

"I would be happy to provide a place for the young lady," Galaxy offered, smiling. "We have a guest room that has been well kept, and I suspect that Goldie would be glad to host a sleepover."

Glory's instincts didn't whisper, shout, or even ring alarm bells: They marched a parade, complete with floats and a marching band, inside of Glory's head. 'This is what she was after! This! This! THIS!!!'

'That's great,' Glory thought, 'but any idea why?'

Her instincts abruptly shut up, apparently unable to provide an answer.

Golden Glow grinned cheerfully, and said, "Oh, it'll be great! We'll have so much fun! And I'll introduce you to Cuddles! Oh, you'll love Cuddles!"

"A splendid idea," Luna agreed with a nod to Galaxy. "Very well, she can stay with you and your daughter for a day or two, while I arrange her quarters, as well as a few other minor issues."

Goldie squee'd, and Glory nearly did, herself. It was her first sleepover with her first real friend! How could she not be excited?

"Ah, before you make travel plans," Flash Sentry said, interrupting, "I have something to deliver that might save you a trip." He pulled out a parcel, and unwrapped it, showing a set of files and documents. "My aunt Butterbean runs the Cloudsdale orphanage, and she asked me to keep an eye on Glory while she made her way here. She also had these delivered to me here in the palace, via messenger. They're, um, adoption papers, and copies of Glory's files. She figured that odds were good that Glory'd end up being adopted by somepony by the end of the day." He cleared his throat and added, "Although I doubt she expected it to be royalty." With a small chuckle, he added, "But she wanted me to make sure that whoever adopted her got these. All you have to do is fill them out, have them notarized, and then take them with you when you go to Cloudsdale."

While Luna thanked Flash for the delivery, Glory couldn't help but notice that Galaxy had gone very still, and had an almost pained expression on her face...

"What IS that?"

An hour later, Glory stood in the doorway of the home of Galaxy and Golden Glow, staring at the creature that had met the trio at the door. It was a lizard. A fairly big one, four-and-a-half hooves long, from the tip of its nose to the tip of its tail, and colored black and white all over its scaly body.

"That's Cuddles!" Golden Glow said, cheering merrily. "He's my black and white tegu!"

"That is a lizard," Glory said, eyeing the creature with apprehension. She'd seen lizards in books, of course, but this was her first encounter with one, in the flesh, or scale, rather. She'd really wished that her first encounter with a lizard of any type had been with one that was smaller... say one that wasn't longer than she was tall, and heavier to boot. "How can a lizard be called Cuddles?"

The lizard abruptly sprung, latching on to Glory, and... began nuzzling against her, giving a noise that sounded suspiciously like a cat's purr. "That's how," Goldie said, giggling. "Black and white tegus are really smart, and really friendly. We're working on training him. He'll come when he's called, but he hasn't gotten roll over or fetch yet."

Glory was glad to have had taken off her dress and tiara, and had it put in a suitcase: The lizard's... affections might have torn the fabric. Still, while strange, being cuddled by a lizard wasn't a bad feeling...

After a moment, the lizard detached itself from Glory, and started on Goldie. Clearing her throat, Galaxy said, "Well, if you'll follow me, Glory, I'll show you where you can place your things, and then I'll give you the grand tour."

Author's Note

The Black And White Argentine Tegu. A lizard that is docile, friendly, and intelligent. They actively seek human attention, and are known to make good pets. Think of it as the Anti-Gummy.

Auld Lang Syne

"Who's that?"

The thing that most ponies forget, when it comes to colts and fillies, is that they have a tendency to notice things. Like adults on just about any world, they think that a child is incapable of noticing something that that is not brought to their attention, and that they cannot see details. Anyone who has spent any amount of time with the young will tell you that this is not the case, and that the young are actually almost disconcertingly aware of their surroundings.

Galaxy was the principal of a school, one that catered almost exclusively to small colts and fillies, so she really should have expected young Morning Glory to see the photo on the older unicorn's desk. Had she thought about it, she'd have tucked it away and hid it when she came into the room, but now it was too late.

For Glory was examining, with great interest... the photo. It was a photo of an easily recognizable filly, given that the older version was right here in the room. She was standing there, grinning, with another young filly hugging her. The other young filly had a bright pink coat, and a long, blond mane and tail, with a bouquet of roses as her cutie mark. She was also, quite clearly, an earth pony. And there was, to anypony who had eyes, a strong family resemblance between the two.

"That is," Galaxy said, after a moment's pause, "myself and my sister, Floral Bouquet, when we were your age."

There is an event called an epiphany, a moment of startling, stunning realization that can change how one sees the entire world. In that moment, Morning Glory had such a moment.

'That's why she's been acting so weird,' Glory thought to herself, as she looked at the photo, her own face reflected in the glass of the picture frame. She saw her own face, and then the face of the young filly in front of her, and could clearly see the resemblance. In fact, were it not for the different color schemes, the two could practically be twins. Seeing it in front of her, with her own eyes, there was only one conclusion she could make...

Morning Glory was Galaxy's... niece. She was very obviously Floral Bouquet's daughter.

"Where is she now?" Glory asked, trying very hard to steel herself for the answer she expected.

"I didn't always live the peaceful life I do now," Galaxy said, as she used a spell to pick up the photograph. "Like Twilight Sparkle, and many before her, I had my share of adventures, and friends who shared them with me... and sad to say, I made my fair share of enemies during those escapades. My sister was with me for all of them... up to the end."

Oh. Glory asked, quietly, "What happened?"

"I'm sorry to say that I can't tell you," Galaxy stated, seeming to form her words very carefully. "Not every adventure I went on with my friends were ones that could be discussed openly. For some of them, my friends and I were sworn to secrecy for at least the next ten years. When you're older, though, I could tell you... if you wish."

Glory turned, and then nodded. "I'd like that."

So many things suddenly made sense to Glory: Why she'd been kept in Cloudsdale, even though she might have had relatives still among the living? Because whatever craziness had gone on in Galaxy's life had come with terrible consequences, and by her own admission, left her with enemies. Enemies who might come back, looking for revenge... and might be willing to use a filly to get it. So what better, safer place to hide a filly than in Cloudsdale, a city accessible only to pegasai and those with the spells that allow them to cloud walk. Cloudsdale, a city that held both the main bases of the Equestrian air force and the Wonderbolts, not to mention more on and off-duty guards, per capita, than even Canterlot itself. The only way she'd be safer... is if she was under the wing of one of the princesses. That was why Galaxy was acting so weird: She wanted to tell her niece everything, but doing that would mean that Princess Luna wouldn't be able to foster Glory, since she already had family. So... to keep Glory safe, she had to keep quiet, even if it hurt her inside.

It all made so much sense...

Glory took a deep breath, and then said, "Okay, so this is your study. Can I see the rest of your house?"

"Hey mommy!"

As the tour of Galaxy's well-kept home concluded, Golden Glow walked up, holding a newspaper. "Look! Look!"

Galaxy studied the newspaper, as well as the photograph on the front page. Glory snuck a peek as well. The words and picture were... surprising, to say the least...

"Excelsior, The Final Superhero Of The Golden Age, Announces His Intention To Retire At The End Of The Year," Glory read aloud. The stallion in the picture wore what could only be a superhero's costume, complete with a cape and mask. Since it was a black and white photo, it wasn't possible to say what the color scheme might be. Confused, she asked, "Superhero? Like in the comic books?"

Goldie giggled, and said, "No, you've got it exactly backwards: The heroes in the comic books are just like the ones in Manehattan."

Fair enough. "Okay," Glory admitted, after a moment, "I can't argue with that. But what did they mean about 'The Golden Age'?"

Galaxy explained, in a tone that reminded Glory of her teacher back in Cloudsdale giving a lesson, "Nearly one hundred years ago, there was a comet that was about to collide with Equestria, on a direct course for Manehatten. Fortunately, Princess Celestia was visiting the city at the time, and was able to use a spell to destroy the comet. However, like the Secretariat Comet, which causes spectacular increases in the latent powers of magical creatures when it nears Equestria, this comet also possessed powerful magical energies. The destruction of the comet showered the city with waves of magic, as well as fragments of itself. Since then, individuals possessing abilities well above and beyond that of the average pony, colloquially known as 'Superheroes' and 'Supervillains', have regularly appeared. The term 'Golden Age' refers to the first generation of those 'heroes' and 'villains'."

"So... why aren't they out and about, doing stuff?" Like say, fighting Lord Tirek, or Discord?

Galaxy smiled, and gave a brief nod to Glory, saying, "An excellent question, and the answer is simple: 'Superheroes' and 'villains' only have powers while in the presence of the magical energy of that comet, much like the energy generated by the Secretariat Comet. Since the city is still, even now, soaked with the energy of that comet, those with powers are able to use them within the city limits. However, outside of the city, those powers vanish very quickly. Which is fortunate: As I mentioned, there are villains inside of the city, as well as heroes, so they are just as bound within the city limits as the heroes are."

Looking over at Goldie, Glory asked, "And why are you so excited about Excelsior retiring?"

Goldie stuck out her tongue, and said, "I'm not excited about him retiring. I'm a huge fan of his, and normally, I'd be sad, but I'm excited because he's going to be making a major public appearance next week, and he'll be signing autographs!"

Glory put two and two together, and asked, "And you're expecting to be in Manehattan next week?"

Galaxy nodded and said, "Indeed. I have a conference to attend in Manehatten in a week's time. And we should be able to visit the event while we're there."

Glory looked at the paper again, and asked, still a little puzzled, "But if the first generation is called 'The Golden Age', what is the current generation called?"

"The Silver Age," Goldie and Galaxy answered, simultaneously. They didn't try and jinx one another, though.

"Why's that?" Glory asked, surprised. It sounded almost like an insult.

Galaxy gave a small chuckle and admitted, "It is kind of a funny story..."

Author's Note

Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
and auld lang syne?

Funny thing about epiphanies: They aren't always dead on.

The Test Ends When You Open That Door

"And what might your name be, young lady?"

Morning Glory looked up at the alicorn in front of her, Princess Luna, one of the most powerful beings on the planet, and ruler of Equestria... smiling cheerfully at her. It was a very nice smile, the kind that is all the more precious because it was from someone who didn't smile very often, and didn't think she was very good at it, so she put all of her heart into it...

All of that flashed through Glory's mind in an instant as she said, "Morning Glory, your highness."

Luna nodded, and asked, "So, Morning Glory, you're here to take the test for becoming my student?"

Glory nodded and said, "Yes, your highness." She was proud of being able to keep the sarcasm out of her voice: After all, Luna likely didn't know anything about all of the frustration that Glory had gone through today...

"Before we begin, may I ask why?" the princess asked, her tone curious.

"I want to learn magic," the filly answered immediately.

"You do?" Luna asked, seeming to be surprised by that response.

Glory couldn't help rolling her eyes as she recited, for the one hundredth eighty-seventh time today, "Yes, I do. Yes, I know I'm an earth pony, not a unicorn. Yes, I know that every other applicant is a unicorn. And yes, I know that earth ponies aren't known for being able to do magic." She cleared her throat, then added, "But I love magic. I can't give you a reason why, I just do. I've read every book that I can on magical theory and application, as small a supply of books like that as there are in Cloudsdale. It's all unicorn magic, though, and it doesn't really tell me anything I can use. If I want to learn magic, I need a teacher, and if there's anyone who might be able to teach an earth pony how to use magic, it would be you or your sister... your highness."

And then, the most magical thing in Glory's entire life happened. It was a single, magnificent moment that came so unexpectedly that anypony else might have missed it, but to Glory, it was a moment that seemed to last a lifetime, and was more wonderful than words could express: Princess Luna took a moment to digest what Glory had just said, and actually considered what the young mare had said, instead of instantly dismissing it as impossible.

Glory had, since she was two and a half years old, and had watched a performer named 'The Great And Powerful Trixie' put on a show, been fascinated by magic. Less than half a day after seeing that magnificent performance, Glory had immediately begun studying magic, and had made no secret of her desire to become a wizard...

...And not a single pony, not even Miss Butterbean, had really took her one hundred percent seriously. Adults considered it a filly's fancy, to eventually be forgotten. Other fillies and colts considered it a reason for mockery and derisive comments, if not out outright physical bullying. Nopony believed it could be done, never even considered that an earth pony could learn magic.

And yet here was a pony, maybe the only pony in the entire world asides from herself, who actually considered that maybe, just maybe, it could be done.

It took all of Glory's self-control not rush over and hug Princess Luna in that moment, hug her so hard that it might break something.

"Very well," Luna said, after a moment, "I will give you the same test that I have given every other applicant. If you pass it, then we will discuss your future as my student. If not, well, we'll see what else might be done."

That, if anything, was even more incredible to Glory: She'd wagered so much on this test, and deep down, the thought of failure terrified her after coming so far. The idea that failing the test might not, in fact, be the end of her dream, made her heart soar. As she said, "I'm ready when you are," Glory began wondering if the super-hug, or perhaps even the turbo-hug, had been invented yet. If not, Glory would need to do so herself...

With another magnificent smile, Luna said, "Very well. I will warn you, not a single applicant has managed to pass this test to my satisfaction. Do you think you can succeed where dozens have failed today?"

With a level of bravado that she didn't necessarily feel, Glory replied, "I don't know if I can, but I'll do my best."

"Good," Luna said, and then, with a more formal tone, she asked, "Do you see the door behind me?"

Glory looked at the door in question, needing to tilt to one side to see it past the tall alicorn, and then said, "I see it, your highness."

Luna gave a regal nod, and announced, "The test ends when you open that door."

What.

That was the test? Glory couldn't believe it. Tilting her head to one side, she asked the lunar princess, "Seriously?"

The alicorn nodded and said, "Seriously." And somehow, the tone she'd said it in almost seemed to imply that she was congratulating Glory on having asked just that one, brief question.

Opening a door? It couldn't be that simple, could it?

And then, a dark, ugly suspicion came to Glory's mind, and she asked, "You're not going easy on me just because I'm an earth pony, are you?" If the alicorn was, Glory would walk out the door right then and there: Like just about every Earth Pony on the planet, Morning Glory had her pride, and if she was going to be treated as less of a pony just because of a lack of wings or a horn, she'd rather march home than accept an 'easier' test than everypony else...

Luna immediately shook her head, and said, "I assure you, I am giving you the exact same test that I have given every other applicant." And her tone was such that Glory could not help but believe her.

"And they all failed the test?" Morning Glory asked, an eyebrow raised. Somehow, the test seemed so simple, and yet every single pony who'd taken it had failed so quickly? There was something going on here...

"Every last one," Luna stated bluntly.

"Right," Glory said aloud, then added, repeating what Luna had said before: "The test ends when you open that door." There was more to that sentence than it seemed, and Glory was beginning to suspect what might be going on. Still, before she jumped in, she needed to rule out the other possibilities.

Glory formed a checklist in her mind, and began ticking off things one by one with the princess.

"If I try to open the door, will you do anything to stop me?" It was a serious concern: Maybe the test involved trying to figure out a way to outsmart Princess Luna. It was unlikely that she expected somepony to overpower her, but cunning might be something that the alicorn was looking for in a student.

"Not at all," the princess of the moon answered, "not at all."

"Is the door locked in any way, magically or otherwise?" Morning Glory asked, studying the door again. It didn't seem to be, but what did she know: She was from a city made of clouds, after all.

"No," Luna answered, a small smile forming on her face.

Morning Glory gave this a moment of thought, then inquired, "Is there some sort of monster that tries to eat me if I try to open the door, or tries to stop me from opening it in any way?" It seemed highly unlikely, but given how little had actually been revealed about the nature of this test, it was still a possibility.

"A guardian? No," Luna answered, then chuckled, seeming to find the idea funny.

Glory turned her head to the right, and asked, "What IS on the other side of that door?" Somehow, it didn't seem important, but it might be worth asking...

"It's a broom closet," the alicorn stated immediately. "If you like, I could show you."

"I... don't think that will be necessary," Morning Glory said after a moment's thought. If it was that unimportant, then it wasn't worth seeing. Then, after a sudden thought entered her head, she added, "Would I pass the test, or fail the test, if you opened the door for me?"

"Neither," Luna answered, then added, "The test ends when you open that door. Not when I open the door."

Right, and that was what it kept coming back to: The test ends when Glory opens the door, but the test ending is not the same as Glory passing the test. The other applicants, so certain of their victory, had immediately opened the door, and had instantly failed the test almost as soon as it began, Glory realized. That was what everypony had done wrong: They'd acted without thinking about what Luna had said had actually meant. Verbalizing that realization, she asked, "But opening the door doesn't necessarily mean I pass the test?"

"True," came Luna's reply, followed by a chuckle, and somehow, without a noticeable change of expression, the princess seemed much more... enthusiastic about the test. Glory had hit upon something important, it seemed, and Luna was now eager to see if the young filly could manage to grasp the answer.

"If I opened the door right now," Glory began, "would I pass or fail the test?" It didn't hurt to ask, given how the princess seemed more into the test than before.

"I wouldn't say you'd pass, exactly," the princess admitted, "but you'd come a great deal closer than all the other applicants have." Somehow, the way she said it implied that the word 'combined' could have been tacked to the end of that sentence, but good manners prevented her from doing so.

"Fair enough." It rarely hurts to ask, after all. After a moment, Glory decided to test the limits on this particular test: "May I ask the guard a few questions?"

"Feel free," Luna responded, after a moment's thought. Glory had anticipated that response: It seemed that the only rule to the test, thus far, was that it ended when Glory opened the door. Anything else was probably made up as they went along...

Turning to the guard, Glory asked, "This is the same test she gave all the other colts and fillies?"

The guard nodded.

"You promise?" Glory asked, wanting absolute certainty before she continued.

"If I lie to you here and now," the captain announced with formality, "may my wings fly off without me, and never return."

That was not an oath to make lightly, as it had a bad habit of coming true.

Satisfied, Glory moved on to the next question: "Okay. Do you know how to pass the test?"

"No," the guard admitted, "but I can tell you how all of the other applicants failed, if you like."

Now that might be useful information. "How?"

"They opened the door," the guard stated with a smile. Glory had the good grace to ignore the stifled chuckle from Luna, behind her. The filly supposed that it was kind of funny.

"Thank you for your help," Morning Glory said, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. Just a hint, though: The stallion had confirmed more or less everything that Glory had suspected, after all.

"My pleasure," the guard replied.

Turning back to Luna, the filly asked, "Just what is the purpose of this test?"

That seemed to really make Luna's day: She smiled and said, "After the test is over, I'll explain it to you, pass or fail."

"Promise?" Morning Glory asked, unable to keep the skepticism off of her face and out of her voice.

"Cross my heart, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye," Luna immediately answered.

Somehow, those words seemed to have more power and meaning behind them than even the oath that the guard had made, just moments ago. Some instinct told Glory that breaking that particular promise would have consequences far more dire than simple loss of wings...

Bringing her thoughts back to the moment at hand, Glory formed a new mental checklist and asked, "So, is there a special way of opening the door that will guarantee that I pass?"

"No," Princess Luna answered immediately.

"Any sort of secret knock or password?" Glory asked, tilting her head to one side again.

"No," came the alicorn's prompt response.

Tilting her head the other way, the filly asked, "And if I open the door, right now, I'll still fail the test?"

"Yes," Luna said, then paused, and said, "Although you're a lot closer to passing the test than you were before."

Glory stopped, and considered that. She had gotten closer to passing than before? How? Glory sat perfectly still, and pondered. She did nothing but think...

All she'd done is ask questions, and yet she seemed to be so close now that Luna seemed almost on the verge of volunteering the information herself. And yet...

If she'd been gotten more sleep and on an actual bed, instead of sleeping out in the open and starting at every noise (And it is just amazing how noisy the 'Great Outdoors' can be on any given night) for a week, maybe it would have come to her, but the secret to passing the test eluded her. It wasn't just on the tip of her tongue, but on the tip of her brain as well, but it refused to come out, no matter how much she wanted to...

Finally, after three minutes, she did something she only ever did when she was really and truly frustrated, an embarrassing habit that she just couldn't seem to get rid of: She blew a breath through her lips with a distinct 'pbpbpbpbpbpbp' sound, threw her forelegs in the air, and admitted, "I don't get it: Just what is the point of this test? I mean, you're asking me to do something any pony could do. I mean, even you could do it, and a lot easier than I could! You're taller than me, so you wouldn't even need to stretch to reach the knob, and you wouldn't have to strain to open it, even if you didn't use magic!" Finally, frustration nearly bringing her to tears, Glory asked, "How am I supposed to pass the test?!"

And even as she said it, Glory realized that she had found the answer: Luna had never once said that Glory couldn't ask for that one piece of vital information. In fact, Luna had answered every question readily, and without any sort of deceit, without condition or admonishment. The test was, at its core, about realizing what it was Luna was actually saying, and asking what needed to be done to pass the test, instead of just blindly doing what Glory had thought that Luna was asking.

Luna, confirming Glory's realization, replied, "By asking how you're supposed to pass the test, and then opening the door." Glory knew she couldn't keep the look of surprise off of her face, but it wasn't because of Luna's announcement. Instead, it was an image that suddenly passed through the filly's young mind...

An alicorn with a coat as black as the darkest night, with blue, cat-slit eyes, her mane and tail a blue nimbus filled with stars, and wearing blue armor, stood before a crowd of trembling ponies, all of them visibly terrified of the mighty being before them. The reason for that terror might have had something to do with the fact that Princess Celestia lay prone before this vision of darkness, with one of the black alicorn's hooves resting upon the defeated princess' neck. With a mad grin, Nightmare Moon proclaimed, "The night will last... FOREVER!!!" She burst into deranged laughter, as a great wail of lamentation filled the crowd of ponies, so loud that Glory almost missed the fact that there were two ponies laughing wickedly...

That was when Glory saw it: A smaller pony, little more than a filly, with a coat as white as chalk, and a mane and tail as black as ink, who stood beside Nightmare Moon, perched upon Celestia's flank, posturing and gloating as if she'd had an equal share in the solar princess' defeat, and was laughing along with the mad alicorn. Her laughter just as mad and twisted as her mentor's, if not more so...

And that filly was very, very familiar. After all, even if the coat, mane, and tail were a different color, she still had a face that Glory saw every day.

Every time she looked at her own reflection, in fact.

'This is what the test is really about, even if she'll never admit it out loud,' something inside Glory told her. 'This is what she fears more than anything else in the world: That she'll become like this again, and that whoever her student is, they'll follow her down into darkness with her, if they're just as loyal as 'Celestia's loyal student'. She doesn't want a student who obeys, she wants a student who THINKS!'

As quickly as it was there, the image and voice vanished, and Luna said, "Congratulations, by the way. If you will kindly open the door, we'll begin discussing your future as my student."

While it was embarrassing to admit it, Glory had to stretch and strain a little to do so.

Author's Note

You know, whenever I hear Nightmare Moon say that one line, I can't help but remember that Powerpuff Girls episode where The Boogie Man proclaims 'We're gonna make this night last forever!' I wonder if anyone has shipped those two yet.