Perception

The door closed shut.

Starlight Glimmer, while taking the shortest way out of her village, glanced around the rural, wooden-built houses and cottages of her hometown. The intricate details of the scenery and landscape that she observed forced her to a halt, at least for a moment. She gazed down, staring at mere piles of dirt and soil. Waves of memories came and went.

"I give up. I can’t accept this reality anymore," she thought to herself. She witnessed how her only friend vanished through a chain of events that only caused her to be pushed aside, ignored by the rest of society. She saw the excitement on his face, his numerous jumps of joy and him simply leaving her behind in solitude. What was initially mere piles of dirt and soil became forlorn heaps of mud and grime.

Befriending ponies without cutie marks became a no-no for her. What if the exact same situation occur? And there is no way she will befriend ponies with cutie marks too - they are probably going to be condescending to her, with no cutie mark to show for herself, no experience to share with and no common interests to talk about.

After a pause, she continued walking. The buildings of the suburbs faded away into the horizon. She tried to prove herself; she studied immeasurably, surely influenced by the affirmation of her old friend. On the day when she finally got what she always wanted, she firmly believed that she would be able to share her success with others. Wait, but who can she share this experience with?

She squeezed her eyes shut. She wanted that memory erased entirely.

She trotted on countless roads before reaching a huge desert. Other than a dry piece of wood metres away from her, the desert is decidedly plain and desolate. Despite all this time, the past was still deep in her mind. She never regretted her decision to leave the comfort and safety of her home. It was only a cell that trapped her with her aspirations. But then, she just had to orchestrate the plan that she has had in her mind for all this time. All of that effort and time going into the planning and preparation would not be wasted. Her horn shone with a magical aura, commanding control over that seemingly useless stump of wood.

Her perception gave life to her undying persistence to change the norms that she dearly abhorred.

............................

At last, she arrived at her destination. A desolate valley with many caves and ravines surrounding the region. This would be her abode, potentially for the rest of her life.

Activity attracted her attention. A grey pony was looking sad and remorse, hammering on what Starlight Glimmer can only comprehend to be just rocks. A thought immediately convinced Starlight to walk over to that similarly lone pony.

"Psst, do you happen to know a lot about rocks?" Starlight nervously asked. She was awkward; she rarely interacted with ponies even within her hometown. Only her former friend...

"Yes," the grey pony replied without much hesitation, or feeling, for that matter.

"Have you encountered a super-powerful stone that can contain the cutie mark magic of, say a entire village?" Starlight continued her inquiry. She tried to avoid the gaze of that grey pony; it was exceptionally devoid of energy.

"Yes, in the big cave," the grey pony said, emotionless. She pointed at the big cave not too far away from their current geographical location.

That reply did not seem to justify a response from Starlight. She only momentarily bowed and rushed to the cave gingerly.

The cave Starlight entered defied her expectations. It was not to the description of the chapter in an encyclopaedia she devoured on this subject. The cave was not dark at all, it was chock full with a luminescent turquoise mineral that must be what she was looking for all this time. A grin emerged from her face.

The piece of wood that was levitating around with her all this time was dropped purposely on a raised stone dais.

............................

"Everypony, we need to rid ourselves of any distinction that we might have! Doing so, we may progress with equality, happiness and friendship!" Starlight exclaimed with enthusiasm as she stood on a raised platform.

Much time has passed since the discovery of that luminous turquoise rock in the cave. Starlight oversaw the construction of a new settlement. The buildings were simply designed; they were not designed to be lavish. Most importantly, the houses were of the same dimensions and structure. This is to pursue the cause that Starlight envisioned. Despite the simple design, she was satisfied. She accomplished something huge in her mind with her determination and drive.

During the construction of the settlement, ponies arrived from far and wide, evidently shocked by the appearance of a settlement uncharted on curated maps by the cartologists from Canterlot. Many decided to rest at this settlement and eventually leave for their destination past the mountains, but Starlight is now pushing the notion for them to stay.

"Together, we can live a harmonious life without the distinctive cutie marks to discover the meaning of true friendship between all of us!" she proposed, elated that her plans were coming to fruition. Many flocked to her cause, believing that she can help develop them into better ponies with great friends.

............................

The ponies join Starlight into the cave. To their awe and surprise, a huge containment locker was built. In front of them, a wooden staff was resting calmly on the stone-chiseled dais.

"Today will mark a significant juncture in our lives!" Starlight proudly proclaimed. Her horn shimmered and the staff floated to her side.

"With this Staff of Sameness, I will eliminate the distinction between ponies for true friendship to sprout!" Starlight smiled triumphantly and began the ritual described. The cutie marks were removed through the Tolleren spell, executed with the aid of the Staff of Sameness and were attracted by the mineral in each individual locker and were sealed through her Clausan spell. A black equal sign replaced the ponies' original cutie mark through an Imprimiry spell. The magical display depicted in front of every ponies' eyes the mastery of magic Starlight attained.

"Wait, what about you?" a black pony innocently questioned Starlight.

Starlight stopped for a moment, thinking quickly.

"Once everypony is done with the procedure, I will cast it on myself to remove my own cutie mark!" Starlight shouted. It was at this moment, she realised she made a critical mistake.

When everypony was done, she grudgingly did as she proclaimed to all. She felt something was missing from her. That feeling dreaded her.

After they returned to the village, the ponies carried on helping each other construct a new building for their residence. Starlight entered her own house and watched from the comfort of her window. But then, she focused her thought and concentration, causing an instantaneous flash that brought her back to the cave. She reversed the spell and with a concocted dye mixture, carefully stamped the standard cutie mark over the original.