Yawning while stretching his body, Lone fell into the nearest sofa. He was finally done with all his chores for the weekend: mowing the lawn, taking out the trash, washing the dishes and let’s not forget rebuilding his bookcase, his desk, and his bed, all because he’d moved to Canterlot a few days ago.

“Glad that’s over with,” Lone said to himself, smiling proudly.

Resting with his hands behind his head, Lone looked up at the white ceiling. He thought about tomorrow. Tomorrow would be his first day at his new school. “I wonder what kind of school Crystal Prep will be?” Lone thought. “I’ve heard the school has quite the reputation when it comes to education.” He chuckled at the small rhyme he’d made, but he couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

The boy’s thoughts were interrupted by a voice coming from the street. “Lone Wolf! Come over here and help me unload the car!” screamed an elderly voice.

Sighing, the blue-skinned boy stood up. Running a hand quickly through his short, white hair and made his way to the front door. “Do I ever get a break here?” Lone complained out loud.

“I heard that, you whippersnapper! You better not be laying on the sofa when I enter the house!”

Gulping at the elder’s reaction, Lone ran outside and was at the car in no time. His golden eyes peered at someone who looked similar, except that this person was much much older and had natural green eyes while Lone’s were yellow.

“About time, Lone.” The elderly man grabbed something from the car’s trunk. “Here. Carry this for me and put it in the kitchen, on the counter.”

Carrying three bags in his left hand while carrying two heavy bottles in his right, Lone made his way back inside. “I suppose it’s not all that bad,” Lone mumbled to himself. Then he stopped in his tracks and looked around.

“Something’s wrong Lone?” the elder man asked.

Lone shook his head. “N-no, nothing, Grandpa. I just thought for a second that I was being watched.”

“Yeah, by me, obviously. To make sure you didn’t get lost.” His grandfather laughed.

Giving his grandpa a dry look, Lone shrugged it off and went inside with the groceries.

After everything was unloaded from the car, Lone’s grandfather parked the car back in the garage while Lone started preparing dinner with his grandfather soon joining him.

While he peeled the last potato, Lone checked the clock on the wall. It was almost six pm.

“Grandpa? May I be excused? I promised to call my educator today,” Lone asked.

His grandpa was cleaning some broccoli before he looked at his grandson. “You may go Lone. I’ll make the rest of our dinner.”

Smiling, Lone stood up.

“But before you go, set the table first.”

Sighing again, Lone did what was asked of him. He was almost out of the kitchen when his grandfather called him again. “Now what?!” Lone grumbled in his thoughts.

“You’re washing the dishes after dinner.” His Grandfather smirked at him.

“Aww, come on, grandpa,” Lone groaned in annoyance.

“No objections, Lone.”

A little bothered by the extra chore, Lone walked to his room upstairs and started up his computer and logged onto Skype.

Pressing the ‘call button’ Lone leaned back in his chair, waiting for a response. After a few seconds, the call was answered by a woman in her forties. She had light green skin, spring green eyes, and long, messy red hair.

“Lone Wolf?” the green woman asked. “Is that you?”

Lone shyly waved at her. “Good evening, Miss Rose. Yeah, it's me, I called like I promised.”

Miss Rose smiled and looked closer at him through the webcam. “My, my, you’re looking quite handsome since the last time I saw you.”

He blushed, then quickly spoke up. “Y-yeah, when Grandpa picked me up, he began complaining about how I looked. About how my hair was too long and quite messy and about the type of clothes that I choose to wear. He was having none of it.”

Rose couldn’t help but laugh a little bit. “Haven’t I told you the same things over and over again?”

“H-hey! I liked the way I looked back then,” Lone defended. “Besides, I-I only agreed for a ‘makeover’ because you have to respect your elders.”

Rose gave him a pouting look. “Are you saying that I am getting old? Hmpf! How rude of you, young man.”

Lone waved both his hands at her in panic. “No, no, nooo! I didn’t mean you, Miss Rose!” he quickly said. “I meant my grandfather. You’re young, kind, and beautiful….”

The red-haired woman laughed at the panicking teenager. “Oh, you’re so easy to tease. I was only joking, Lone.”

“Oh.” Lone scratched the back of his head, his cheeks on fire. “Silly me.”

“And don’t worry; I was not offended by you,” she assured him. “It was actually cute to see you blush. You’re also quite the charmer, complimenting me like that.”

“Well, it’s true I mean the things I say…. except when someone makes me very angry.”

Rose chuckled. “Yes, I know. I’m surprised that you haven’t found a girlfriend yet. I hope you find your true love in your new school Canterlot High.”

“Actually, I’m going to Crystal Prep instead, Miss Rose,” Lone corrected her.

She raised an eyebrow at him. “Crystal Prep? I thought I recommended your grandfather Canterlot High instead. What changed his mind?”

Lone leaned back in his chair a bit. “Well, after he picked me up in Vanhoover, we started a conversation,” he explained. “Eventually I told him about Canterlot High, the school you recommended me to go. He knew but he said that I should go to Crystal Prep instead.”

“Yes I know that, but why did he want you to go Crystal Prep?” Miss Rose clarified

“From what my grandpa told me. Crystal Prep takes education very, very seriously and gives more opportunities for the future.” Lone explained. “I’ve heard some politicians, celebrities, athletes and other important people graduated there. So I-”

“Lone!” his grandfather called from downstairs. “Dinner’s ready.”

“I’ll be right there!” Lone called back and looked back at Miss Rose. “As I was saying, I thought to give the school a chance.”

Miss Rose nodded at him. “Still, Lone, be careful. It may be a school with many opportunities but not everything is what it seems.

Lone leaned a little closer to his computer screen. “What do you mean?” he asked.

Miss Rose furrowed her eyebrows in a little worry. “I’ve heard their principal can very stern and some of the students there aren’t very friendly. Nor are they interested in friendship.”

Lone had a look of concern. “What are you saying?”

The young woman sighed. “I’m saying that you need to be careful with who you befriend and who you trust. You’re a very kind and helpful boy, Lone. Sometimes you’re too kind, which makes you a target for the wrong people who will use you to do their dirty work.”

“Lone!” his grandfather called him again. “Are you coming or what?!”

“One minute!” he replied back. “I gotta go now, Miss Rose. But I’ll keep in mind what you told me.”

Miss Rose smiled again. “I know, Lone and be careful on your first day tomorrow, okay?”

“I promise!”

“Call me if you ever needed to talk to me. Okay? Bye!”

“Bye Miss Rose.” They both ended the call and Lone quickly made his way downstairs.

After eating dinner, Lone washed the dishes while his grandfather cleaned the rest of the kitchen.

Finishing his task, Lone decided to end the day by either watching a movie or playing a video game on his computer. His grandfather, however, had other plans for him.

“Just where do you think you’re going, sonny?”

Lone sighed and turned around. “I’m heading upstairs to my room,” he replied. “Why? Do you need me for something else?”

“As a matter of fact, I do,” his grandfather said. “We have to check if you fit your new uniform.”

“My uniform?” Lone asked, a little confused.

“For your new school. All the students of Crystal Prep wear a uniform," his grandfather further explained. "By the way, do you know how to tie a tie?”

The young man shook his head.

Lone’s grandfather pinched the bridge of his head. “Can’t believe this,” he mumbled. Seventeen years old and he doesn’t know how to tie a tie. In my day I learned it when I was only eight years.

Lone looked at him with a confused expression.

“I was mumbling to myself, wasn’t I?” Lone nodded. “Well, anyways! Head upstairs and get dressed. You’ll find your uniform in the bathroom. Once you’re dressed, call me and I’ll teach you how to tie your tie.“

“Okay, grandpa.” as Lone made his way to the bathroom.

It took nearly an hour but Lone finally knew how to tie his tie inside and out.

“There, now you’ve got it,” his grandfather said, relieved. “Now what’s the last thing you need to do?”

“I need to tighten the knot carefully to the collar by holding the narrow end and pulling the knot up,” Lone explained while also showing it.

“Correct! Well, sonny, you’re ready for tomorrow.” He patted his grandson on the back.

Lone smiled at him and then looked at himself in the mirror. His grandfather did the same and smiled as well before he left the bathroom, leaving his grandson to himself. Though there was one thing that made Lone wandering about.

“Grandpa Wise?”

Wise leaned his head back inside the bathroom. “Yes Lone?”

“Did my father go to Crystal Prep too?”

His grandfather nodded at him. “Yes, he did, and graduated there and went to college after.”

“What about my mother?”

Wise waited a few seconds before he spoke up. “She… went to Canterlot High. The rival school of Crystal Prep.” For a second Wise’s face became sad, only to change into a smile real quick. “But that is a story for another time, Lone.”

Nodding, Lone looked at himself one more time in his uniform. A light blue shirt with a dark purple tie, wearing over it a dark Bordeaux blazer. Slim fitting pants that fit with the color of his tie and some dark grey, leather shoes.

Before he went to sleep he looked at a picture frame on the small nightstand next to his bed. In the picture were a man and a woman. The man looked a lot like Lone in almost every way except for his eyes—they were dark green. He was holding his left hand onto the woman’s left shoulder. The young woman had pink skin, yellow eyes, and long silver hair with a white highlight in it. They both were smiling at the camera.

Lone smiled back at them. “Goodnight, Mom, and Dad….” he said before he crawled into his bed and turned off the lights.

Across the street lived Lone’s neighbors. Their house was split into two different colors and was built in a musical shape. The chimney had the design from pipes of an organ.

It was now early in the morning, a couple left the house and locked the door behind them. They walked together-hand-in-hand towards a Panzer IV tank that was parked in front of the house.

The girl had long and dark gray hair, light gray skin and lavender eyes. She wears a pink bow around her neck, a purple waistcoat with a white blouse under it and a pink skirt with a treble clef symbol on it. She also wears black, open shoes with long, white stockings.

The boy next to her had black hair, silver-white skin, and deep blue eyes. He wears a black chef's coat with gold embroideries, vertical white-black striped chef pants, and black chef shoes.

“The beginning of another week…. at school.” The girl sighed.

“Come on, Octy, it’s not that bad.” The boy moved to comfort her. “Just one more year after this and we graduate.”

The girl looked back at him with a smile. “Oh, it’s not that, Mise,“ she replied. “I’m just not a fan of Mondays. That’s all.”

“Still tired from practicing last weekend?” Mise asked. “You, Vinyl, and Artemis have been practicing way too much for the Fall Festival.”

Octavia yawned and rubbed her eyes before she answered. “I know, I know… But Artemis has something special planned for Aria,” she said. “So that’s why we were practicing so long.”

Mise nodded in understanding and helped his girlfriend into the tank. Just when he was about to close the lid and start the engine, his attention was drawn across the street. A boy and a much older man were chatting with each other in the garage.

“Now who’s that?” Mise thought. “He must be new around here.”

“Mise? What’s taking you so long?” Octavia asked while poking her head out the tank.

“It seems that we have someone new living in the street, Octi.” Mise pointed to Lone.

Octavia looked at Lone as well and after a few seconds, she widened her eyes in surprise. “Oh, no.”

“What’s the matter? Something wrong?”

“He wears a Crystal Prep uniform,” Octavia replied. “He’s a Shadowbolt.”

Mise raised an eyebrow in confusion. “A Shadowbolt?”

“A Shadowbolt is a student that attends to Crystal Prep Academy. Close to the city,” Octavia explained. “They are our school greatest rivals. Especially now with the Friendship games coming. They’ve never been very friendly to us.”

Leaning back a little against the tank, Mise spoke up. “Do you even know him, Octi?” The girl shook her head. “Then how do you know if he’s also like the rest of them?”

“….”

“That’s what I thought,” Mise replied. “Look Octi, I’ve met a lot of people before I came here and I have a big family living all over the globe. Yes, some of them can be a pain sometimes but that doesn’t give me the right to judge my family as a terrible one just because of them. The same goes for this one Shadowbolt who lives across the street from us.” He pointed at Lone.

Octavia looked down with furrowed eyebrows. Mise was right. “Ok, but what do you think we should do then?”

Mise tapped his chin. “When we have time, maybe after school or later on this week, we’ll go meet him. Of course, some of our friends might disagree with this because of the rivalry. But I think it’s worth it if we can get to know him better.”

“And what if he is like most of the other Shadowbolts?”

Mise sighed before he answered. “If he is, we’ll stay polite to him and his family no matter what. Sooner or later we’ll find the reason why these Shadowbolts are so mean to us. If we find the reason we’ll do our most damn best to try and show them a better way and what it means to have true friends at your side.”

“You’re very wise for your age, Mise.” Octavia leaned closer to him. “I’m glad that I have met you.”

Mise smiled back at his girlfriend. “And I am glad that I met you, Octi.” They both kissed each other but they soon got interrupted by a loud cracking noise coming from their home.

There now was a large hole in the roof and the last thing they heard from the sky was: “To infinity and beyooooond!!!”

The couple glanced at each other before they looked back at the roof. “TREBLE/VINYL!!!!” They screamed.

“Sorry guys! Treble forgot to read the manual of these jetpacks. We’ll get it fixed after school. Promise!” screamed a female voice from inside the house.

“Oooow Vinyl….” Octavia groaned while massaging her temples. “What she sees in him I’ll never understand.”

“As long as they are happy and fix that roof of our home, they can do whatever they want,” Mise said and went down in the tank to start the engine.

After witnessing the exploding sound from the neighbors and the giant Panzer IV tank parked at the front, Lone said goodbye to his grandfather and went off to Crystal Prep on his bike. The ride went smoothly until a driver who hadn’t been paying attention almost missed a red light and nearly hit Lone.

But despite his shaky legs, Lone managed to arrive at Crystal Prep in one piece and finally got a good look at the school. It was a rather majestic place: the gates were decorated with crystals, as were some parts of the roof from the school buildings. There were also two crystal towers on each side of the main building.

Lone kept looking at the building while making his way to the entrance. Some other Shadowbolts were looking at him oddly. Instead of smiling or saying hello, they just ignored and glared at him.

He stood now in front of the entrance of the school. He took a deep breath to relax. “This is it. First day in my new school. Hopefully, I don’t get into trouble.” Shaking that thought off, Lone opened the door of Crystal Prep and went inside to meet his fellow students.

Author's Note

And that's the first chapter of my reboot. Let me know what you think about it.

Also, I've decided to end each chapter with a song or a soundtrack that could fit with the chapter itself. Enjoy!

P.s: Yes, I am a Code Lyoko fan.

P.p.s: The chapter is now edited thanks to Jarvy Jared, a fellow PoME author. Thanks man! You're the best.