Canterlot Academy stood alone in the Everfree forest, no other buildings surrounded it. The campus was enclosed with a twelve foot tall gate made of stone, while the front door was metal. The door had ornately designed sun and moon nearly touching while closed but when it opened the celestial bodies were pulled apart. The outside walls of the building were a deep burgundy and lined with cream outer bricks. It was meant to look inviting while still being stern but to Fluttershy it only looked like prison.

She stood in the main courtyard holding her things, staring at her new home. After the guard dropped her off she didn’t have any energy to explain that she hadn’t heard where to go. And there was no staff in front of the building to ask where to go, so here she stood too nervous to ask for help and too awkward to look for the guard and ask for him to repeat himself. Isn’t social anxiety so much fun! she sighed.

“Hey, are you having a staring contest with the school?” a cheery voice called from out of nowhere.

Fluttershy jumped, dropping her suitcase to floor. A girl appeared from the ether directly in front of Fluttershy. The new girl’s light cerulean eyes gazed quizzically at Fluttershy. Where had she come from, Fluttershy didn’t hear any footsteps. The girl was just as tall as Fluttershy and had pink hair like her. That was about were the similarities ended as the girl’s hair while pink was a few shades darker and was ridiculously curly. It was done up in a low ponytail with some hair left out in a bang compared to Fluttershy’s natural look. She wore short blue jean shorts and long yellow striped white socks that went above her knees, her shirt was a simple bubblegum pink with two blue and one yellow balloons. Another stark difference between the two girls was that the new girl was very curvy, she had wide hips and a generous bust.

“Oooo I wanna try I wanna try!!!” the girl bounced up and down before holding her eyes open trying not to blink.

Fluttershy blushed slightly, realizing she was staring at the girl’s “assets”. The girl’s eyes began to water and turned a very unhealthy red. Fluttershy cleared her throat politely. The girl began shaking violently and groaned in pain still managing to hold her eyes open. Until finally, she blinked.

“Awwwww, so close.” she shook her fist at the building “You win this round building.”

“Umm...”

The girl turned back Fluttershy almost like she forgot she was there. Fluttershy was used to it.

“Um...hi. My name is...Fluttershy.” she mumbled hiding behind her bangs like usual.

“Hi Fluttershy. My name is Pinkie Pie. Well it’s actually Pinkamena Diane Pie but you can call me Pinkie” Fluttershy’s eyes widened, no one ever heard her when she spoke to them for the first time. Pinkie Pie gave her a kind smile.

“I have very good ears.” Pinkie answered, sensing her confusion.

Pinkie suddenly gasped loudly startling Fluttershy for the second time. A huge excited smile spread across her face. She grabbed Fluttershy’s shoulders and shook her in enthusiasm.

“OH. MY. GODDESS. Are you a new student?!?” she punctuated every word.

“Yes.” Fluttershy managed with all the shaking.

Pinkie stopped shaking her and jumped up and down squealing with excitement. She grabbed Fluttershy’s hand and pulled her up the stairs into the building. Pinkie went on like rapid-fire all about the building nearly dislocating Fluttershy’s wrist.

“This the cafeteria, the food here is sooooo good especially the cupcakes. Want one?” she pulled out a cupcake with blue frosting.

“How...where?” Fluttershy stared at the dessert that appeared from nowhere.

The question went unanswered as she whisked away to next stop on their impromptu tour. Pinkie rattled off the classrooms and extracurricular rooms in the school talking a mile a minute. Until the reached the final stop on the tour.

“And here’s the stairs.” Pinkie waved both arms with grandiose, finally releasing her death grip on Fluttershy’s wrist.

“Where do they go?” she massaged her wrist to allow blood to return to her skin.

“The Dorms, we don’t sleep in the classrooms silly.” she giggled.

Fluttershy figured it was a boarding school but she wasn’t fully comfortable with the idea of sharing a room. Even with her parents and her younger brother she always got a room to herself. Being naturally introverted the idea of not getting privacy after an emotional taxing day of school was already annoying her. She groaned and followed Pinkie Pie up the stairs.

The dorms were built similar to the rooms of a hotel, with doors going down the hallway. On the opposite side of each room was a separate bathroom, one for each room. The wallpaper was a royal blue with white highlights. Before they got the actual rooms, there was a large common area with a large flatscreen television with a PlayStation and a Xbox, a large couch that seated at least six people and chairs for extra people. Pinkie Pie went on about all the games she owned and how great she was at Super Smash Brothers, had Fluttershy been in a better mood she would have humored Pinkie but she was far too exhausted to be polite.

“And here’s your room.” Pinkie gestured to a plain looking wooden door it was the first one from the common area. Great now she would have to listen to people play around at all hours of the night.

Fluttershy grabbed the door handle and turned it experimentally. It was unlocked oddly enough but it was for the best as she didn’t have her room. She was looking forward to taking a long shower and falling asleep in a comfortable bed. All of the stress of the sudden move had left smelling less than fresh.

“SURPRISE!!!” a chorus of voices shouted at her all at once.

In shock, Fluttershy dropped her suitcase. She jumped backwards, but Pinkie was standing too close and Fluttershy tripped and pulled her down to the ground.

“Oh my goodness, were we too loud.” a purple haired girl asked.

Fluttershy felt the all the eyes in the room on her, making her feel small. She helped Pinkie up from their most recent acquaintanceship with the carpet. She just wanted to crawl into bed and be surrounded in nonjudgmental silence not having a party with complete strangers.

The purple haired girl cleared her throat and tried to alleviate the awkwardness. She was by the best dressed of the girls in the room which wasn’t hard as the girls wore casual clothes. This girl wore a lovely black pencil skirt and a slightly off-white long sleeve shirt with a neckerchief, all complimented with a black pair of heels. She picked up an elegantly wrapped bag from the couch behind her.

“Hello my name is Rarity St. Germain.” She handed off the bag. “Here you go darling, just a few essentials for staying in a new places.”

These “essentials” were a small compact with a large black and blue butterfly on the front, a pair of seafoam jewel earrings, and bottle of perfume. Despite them seeming frivolous in nature, the gifts were highly versatile and could be used no matter the time. Fluttershy was surprised as the objects were strangely personalized.

“Do you like them? We only got your picture recently so I didn’t have time to make you a gorgeous ensemble to compliment your figure.” Rarity looked visibly disappointed at this more than Fluttershy.

Fluttershy gave a polite smile, “It’s okay, these are great gifts. Thank you.”

Rarity flashed a blinding smile and sat back onto the couch. The next girl to give her gift was a tall, strong looking Gaian named Jacklyn Apple, she had blonde hair tied together with a bright red band and wore a brown Stetson. Everything from her orange flannel and blue jeans to her sturdy looking, brown boots just screamed farm girl.

Her gift was a hand stitched quilt. It was surprisingly expertly crafted, every stitch was made with such love and care despite her being a stranger to this girl. She gave her thanks and received a bone crushing hug. The girl by far the most mature one in the room and took the role of big sister to everyone. AJ, as she asked to called, exuded a welcoming and comforting aura, soothing Fluttershy’s anxiety. Also her freckles were just too cute!

Next was a Mage named Twilight Sparkle, she had deep, dark blue hair with a purple and a bright raspberry streak running through it. Her school girl looking outfit told Fluttershy she was the studious type as did her gift.

“Our teacher Ms. Harshwhinny mentioned that you were a fairy so I decided to get you a little reading material on your species.” Twilight levitated an ancient looking tome from her bag. Fluttershy grabbed it with a delicate touch as the book looked older than time itself.

Fluttershy rarely met any Mages, as it was rare for any to be skilled enough to learn a cloud walking spell, but she could tell Twilight was not one. For starters, she used a levitation spell without a wand. All Mages even the immortal Sunbringer had to use a wand or a staff to focus their magic in order to do spells, if they didn’t the magic would an unfocused ball of energy flying around randomly. This was why baby Mages were dangerous to be around and must have their magic suppressed and is only released when they begin training in school.

The other reason why was that her magic aura was bright raspberry color instead of the violet color of her eyes. She didn’t what she or the other girls were but she was afraid to bring it up. What was she supposed to say, ‘Hey let’s go around the room and each say one interest you have and what your heritage is’ that would be ridiculously intrusive.

Fluttershy thanked Twilight and asked if she would be willing to help her study the book. Twilight’s eyes light up like a Heart’s Warming tree and she agreed with a huge giddy smile. She was happy that Twiligh agreed to help because the book was so large and written in old English it would take at least three archaeologists to comb over it and understand even a sentence.

Next was Pinkie Pie, who was nearly bursting from excitement wanting for her turn. She practically threw her gift at Fluttershy. It was a stuffed white rabbit, Fluttershy cooed affectionately hugging the toy close to her chest. She thanked Pinkie and named the toy Angel because of its pure white fur. Pinkie Pie’s smile larger than the one of the girl who's being celebrated.

The final gift belonged to Rainbow Dash, who Fluttershy just recognized much to the rainbow haired girl’s disdain.

“Thanks for standing up for me.” Fluttershy blushed.

Rainbow Dash chuckled, ”Nah it was nothing. I kinda owe you one anyway, that race got me my cutie mark and put me down in the history books.”

“What do you mean?” Pinkie took the bait.

“Oh I just me proving those old stories and making a sonic rainboom, you know. No biggie.” Rainbow checked her nails, trying to sound cool and detached.

No one in the room reacted.

“What in the hell is a sonic rainbow?” Jacklyn questioned.

“A Sonic Rainboom!” Rainbow urged, dropping the cool act.

The girls continued staring at her with confused expressions.

“You know the old story about a Skyling flying fast enough to break the sound barrier and create a huge rainbow that can be seen from anywhere.” She went on, looking exasperated.

“I think I remember that story. That’s so amazing that you can do something that unbelievable.” Fluttershy lied, hoping to spare her feelings.

Rainbow Dash puffed out her chest with pride and handed Fluttershy her gift. It was a pair ankle weights much to her dismay. She hoped to escaped the exhaustion of flight training. Fluttershy gave a fake smile and thanked Rainbow.

After the gift exchanging, the girls sat in an awkward silence. Taking this opportunity, Fluttershy ducked away into her room to finally put down her things. They ate snacks while she placed her suitcase under her new bed. No one spoke other than polite conversation, even Pinkie was quiet (well quieter than normal). Fluttershy recognized this silence as she used it many times before, it was the silence of trying to avoid an elephant in the room.

“Okay, ah’ll say it.” AJ exclaimed, tired of the waiting.

“We’ve been cooped up in huge school like a bunch of hens for dinner. Ah wanna go home already.” AJ threw her arms up in frustration.

“We all want to go home, but Queen Celestia asked that go to this school.” Twilight explained.

“Why should we suffer because we’re a little different.” Rarity demanded.

Twilight sat in stunned silence before regaining her composure. “Her majesty has deemed this to be the safest place for us in the land.”

“Funny, I don't recall the guards mention that this was prison instead of a school.” Rarity added bitterly, earning a glare from Twilight.

“Well it’s not like all of us are forced to be here.” Twilight shot back venomously.

“And there it is, I was beginning to wonder when you would bring that up.”

“You act like you trapped here but Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy and I are the only ones who can’t leave.”

“I-i... can’t leave.” Fluttershy asked, tears welling up in her eyes.

“Nice job, Twilight. Make her cry on her own party.” Rainbow announced breaking up the argument. Pinkie walked over to crying girl and rubbed her back.

“It's not my fault, Jacklyn brought it up.” She pointed accusingly.

“Don’t drag me into this, you decided to be a sour apple.” AJ put her hands on her hips.

Twilight glared and stormed out of the room. She telekinetically opened the door and slammed it shut.

“That little stuck-up bookworm, she practically kisses the very ground the Queen walks on. It’s my fault I have dark magic.” Rarity ranted at no one in particular.

“But Goddess forbid anything have the gall to not fit into the black and white status quo she decided the world is in.”

No one disagreed with Rarity, but Twilight was not the only one as even their Queen decided to hide them away from the world. If the millennia old ruler had decided that they were rejects to society then anyone could share in the opinion. The grief really hit Fluttershy as lay in Pinkie’s arms letting out her sadness. This her new reality, she was trapped her. She didn’t have the comfort of being amongst her kind as half of the girls could leave whenever they wanted. Even surrounded around four other people, Fluttershy had never felt more alone.

“Your majesty, the council is ready for you.” a young maid curtsied.

Celestia adjusted the golden belt that cinched her flowing white dress. A golden crown sat above her ever-flowing pastel multicolored hair. She inhaled slowly, calming herself before appearing in front of her subjects. They looked to her for strength and stability, if there was even a crack in the facade tabloids would on her be on her like sharks to blood. Putting on her most friendly smile, Celestia used her golden magic to open the great doors to the meeting room.

All conversations came to a stop as Celestia made her way to her seat at the head of the great table. The table was surrounded with six members of the three race from the various cities of Magicka. In the past the only nobles allowed in the room were Mages and the occasional Skyling but this was one of the various backward practices she and her sister abolished when they came into power.

“Good Morning, everyone. I hope you’re all had a good trip here.” Celestia greeted pleasantly.

“Let’s not waste each other’s time today, Princess.” the Mage representative from Canterlot answered curtly.

Celestia took a sip of tea, looking unfazed from the comment. The nobles in the latter years of her rule had taken to calling her Princess. To an outside listener it was a simple slip of the tongue but to a citizen they would be horrified by the very concept of speaking this way to their Queen. Calling her princess was a very subtle way to disrespect the crown it was like saying that she will always have someone more powerful than her or insulting her for going without a husband for the entirety of her rule.

“According to an outside source, you moved six girls into a secret location without the knowledge or permission of the council.” Chairman Fancy Pants interrupted the standoff.

Celestia placed her cup onto the saucer soundlessly.

“I had no idea I had to answer to you all for every decision I made. Should I have contacted you all before I ate breakfast this morning?”

“With all due respect, Princess,” a Gaian from Manehattan spoke up, “When it comes to the safety of all Magicka you do.”

“Harboring those creatures will put us all danger, you should have let us know before...”

“I have watched over this land for millennia and I have to make difficult decisions before, this was one of those times.” she raised her voice, the peaceful facade cracking.

“Right because that turned out so well before.” the man shot back venomously.

The great matriarch stood silent. Her fist clenched under the table but her mouth maintained a constant neutral line. She stood to her feet.

“This meeting is adjured, my decision stands. The girls will remain there and none of you are to bring this to the public.” Celestia declared with a tone of finality.

Not looking at the members of her council, Celestia turned a heel and exited the room barely holding the burning fury she hid under a neutral face. She was certain had she been younger that man would be a pile of tackily dressed cinders. Celestia couldn’t deal with the council like this, Luna was better at this than her. In the past, Luna could silence an entire room with just a look and if things got too boisterous she could call everyone’s attention with the royal Canterlot voice. Just one thing on a long list that her sister excelled at that she was awful with.

Celestia felt the stab of loneliness and walked the cavernous halls of her palace alone. But hopefully this be the last year she would face immortality alone. Funny, despite the fact that her palace was filled to brim with guards, maids, and the occasional dignitaries she was terribly lonely.

Author's Note

I decided to no longer use the original cover image, it is completely unfair and rude to use another person’s art without their knowledge or consent. I wouldn’t want my story to be copied to another source and not be given the credit I deserve. I apologize to the artist and to all readers for doing something so insensitive and ask that you check out FuyusFox on deviantart, her work is amazing and deserves to shared.