Dance with the Dark

Dim Dawn woke in a happy mood, today she'd get to go to her first day of the School for Talented Unicorns. This meant more then just school though, it meant a chance to show her magical talent and learn to hone those talents. If only she knew what the day held.

After getting out of bed Dawn walked down a set of stairs and into a large room where a low table sat with a few pillows that lay around it. She went into a room off to the side of it, with a large tub and vanity. She turned the water on and bathed, and soon dried and brushed her teeth. As soon as that was done, she skipped back into the large room and sat on a pillow by her dad.

"Sleep well, little Dawn?" He asked taking a bowl of yogurt from the table.

Dawn looked up and responded quickly," Uh huh! I'm so excited for school! I'm gonna make so many friends!" She beamed at her dad, and grabbed an apple from the table, as well as a bowl of daisy petals.

"Good! You're always as bright as the dawn! Now, did you pack your bag last night?" He looked at her expectantly.

"Yep! I can't wait! Tell mom good luck for me!" She jumped from her seat after finishing her apple and ran to her room. Then after a good minute, ran down with a magenta and blue saddle bag, a darker pallet of color's than her own,"I'm off!" She saluted in a funny yet cute manner, then ran out the door. Her father called after her, for she was in such a hurry she had forgotten to brush her mane, leaving it a curly mess.

When she got to the school she was hyped, so hyped she barely noticed that as she walked the halls all eyes were on her. She got to a locker which had the initials D.D. on the front in blue and magenta color shades. She opened it and put several books in it, only keeping the ones she needed. She turned around soon after and noticed the other foals looking at her with smug looks, or giggling quietly. Of course she didn't understand why, so she just walked through the mob of ponies into the bathroom to check what was up.

She looked the mirror and blushed, her mane and tail were a mess. She went to pull a brush from her bag and found it missing, she silently tiptoed through the hall, even though every student was laughing at her attempt to stay unnoticed, and opened her locker, grabbed her brush and scrambled to the bathroom. She silently worked on her mane, making sure every single curl was brushed to perfection, then slipped out of the bathroom to find that the hall was empty, except for a very disgruntled principle.

He walked up to her and took her hoof in his ruffly, and brought her to class. She creeped into the classroom head low, very sure of being scolded for being late. And of course she was.

"Dimmed Dawn. Why are you late?" The teacher asked harshly, glaring at her while the other foals snickered.

"Err.. I forgot to brush my mane this morning so I went to brush it out.. And I guess I didn't hear the bell..." She mumbled, still looking down.

"Alright. Go to your seat. Make sure your not late again," she growled pointing to a chair way in the back. This wasn't going to plan for Dawn at all.

They started class, learning about Dark magic. Everypony took notes, and listened intently, but a few fillies were giggling in one corner staring at a colt in front of Dawn. She continued to take noted despite, then heard a sharp *Piiissst* and she looked back to the giggling fillies. They nodded and one of them with pink mane and white coat whispered to her,"You see that colt in front of you? Can you ask him if he's single?"

She shrugged and went to tap his shoulder gently as to catch his attention. Before she could, the teacher looked back and caught a glimpse of Dawn trying to talk to the colt.

"Dawn! Would you please tell me the reason that love is the only way to counteract dark magic?" She called to Dawn, surprising her, and making the two fillies giggle as well as a light snickering from the rest of the class. It was then she realized that she had just been tricked into getting in trouble.

"I'm waiting." The teacher tapped a hoof of the desk impatiently.

Dawn finally spoke up hoping to be punished less if she confessed she wasn't listening "I'm sorry... I don't know... I wasn't listening.."

"Alright, you didn't lie, but that doesn't mean that I'm not going to punish you, please come to the front." Dawn stood up and trotted over to the front, and the teacher directed her to sit in the center of the room. "Alright, Dawn, love counters Dark magic because Dark magic is made up hatred and fear. Now, I'm going to use a Dark magic spell on you, to fight back you need to think of love shared between anypony or anything in your life." The teacher explained, starting to generate power in her horn.

Dawn sat and felt the dark aura making her cringe, and then began to think about her family and her love of studying magic. It all seemed to become clouded though as she thought for a moment about the morning and how it had all gone wrong. Before she blacked out however, she could see the teacher fall to the ground in agony, unable to control the spell.

The foals in the room were shocked into silence as the teacher lost control of the spell. It began to pour down outside, and it hadn't been scheduled for rain. Dawn lost her footing and acted like she didn't know what had been happening. The air grew frigid and the rain turned to a whipping snowstorm. A dark mist began to flow from the flakes outside, a purple and green bubbling adding to it, slowly shackling it's self around Dawn's back legs and pulled her sobbing form towards the door.

A burst of light flashed into the sky and the snow stopped, Celestia galloped in, her golden aura bursting forth and working to break the bond of the black smoke. A shock from the spell's power hit her making her gasp and seethe in pain. Her wings were black and slowly shrinking making her scream in agony, she still fought, and the black smoke disappeared, shattering like ice.

Dawn felt herself hit the ground.

She felt wet grass under her hoofs, and then she looked up, there was a stone. On that stone were engraved two names. Obsidian Crest, and Healing Magic. She looked up further and above her was an umbrella and a cold rainy sky. She looked back at the stone and began to cry, she didn't know what to do and was so obviously in a grave yard. She felt something pull at her legs and she cried harder calling for help. She cried because she though nopony could, or would help her, even her parents were gone. Gone forever.

A dark form started to emerge from the smoke which had been holding its self to her legs, yet as soon as it formed it dissipated into a bright, blinding sensation.

It all faded to black as she woke. She looked over to her side, there her mother sat in tears, worry stricken on her face. Dawn shifted and her mother looked up. The look on her mother's face was all that was needed to console her. She moved her back hooves in an attempt to move into a more comfortable position. She was struck with pain, her legs had been badly bruised and she wondered if the dream had been real. Yet she knew it wasn't as she looked back to her mother.

"Mo...m... Wha... Wat... What happen..ned?" She mumbled trying to open her mouth to speak, feeling all to tired.

"Dawn! Oh my sweet sweet Dawn!" Healing scattered to her daughters side, holding her tightly and sobbing. Dawn slowly raised a hoof around her mother's' neck hugging her tightly back.

"May I come in?" A melodious voice echoed through the room, and white alicorn, much taller than Healing would ever be, tapped on the door frame, peaking inside. Healing jumped back from her embrace, and greeted her.

"Of course! Dawn just woke up, your majesty." Dawn peaked over at the figure, noting the pony's bandaged sides.

"Oh Dawn, it's good to see you again. And this time on much better circumstances," She spoke, a small painful note in her tone. She looked at Dawn and stepped over to her side, putting a golden horseshoe on her bedside,"you gave your mother and I quite a scare, tell me, what happened?"

"Ummm... Well..." And so dawn recounted what had happened, from her morning to the time she had awoken in the hospital, not leaving out any detail. Celestia listened closely, her expression never changing, though Dawn could tell that she was unnerved by the recounting of her greatest fear, and how the strange smoke appeared to her.

Her mother spoke up,"Well, Dawn should be getting some much needed rest, don't you agree princess?" Celestia nodded, and gave a quick smile. She trotted out and Healing followed behind swiftly.

Dawn could hear the light chatter of their voices outside, but didn't care to listen very close, she had a great deal on her mind to begin with.