Piecemeal Pupil

by Ice Star

Rating: everyone
Tags: Raven Inkwell, Twilight Velvet, Slice of Life, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Night Light, Other
Length: 9146

Twilight Velvet and her husband Nightlight struggle to build a future for their daughter.

Twilight Velvet is a stubborn pony, and that means the thing she hates most is being told 'no' or anything like it. Unfortunately, when Twilight and her husband Nightlight receive some startling news, they're faced with untested waters. Could their filly still have as bright of a future as her brother, or will their little star never get to shine?

A stand-alone prequel to Her Own Sky. Credit for brainstorming and prereading help goes to I-A-M and TCC56. Contribute to the TVTropes page!

Published 2021-04-30 15:00:02 UTC
Last updated 2023-04-30 01:29:11 UTC

Chapter 1: Everything She Never Counted On

Twilight Velvet blinked, confusion saturating every part of her being. She sat back in the plush chair she was seated in and set her daughter down on the floor gently. “What do you mean you’ve reached a diagnosis? Is my little Sparkle sick?”

Next to Twilight, her husband Nightlight cleared his throat as his eyes widened. “We won’t have to see some expensive witch doctor for whatever she has, right?”

The doctor sighed and smiled. She was a unicorn mare with a gray-streaked mane and a worn, easy smile. A pair of round spectacles rested easily upon her muzzle, but Twilight Velvet watched as she drew them into her pale orange magic and slipped them into the front pocket of her white coat.

“Your daughter is physically a very healthy filly,” Doctor Missing Piece said, her tone filled with a levity that was downright deceptive to Twilight’s ears.

She felt her husband sigh in relief next to her, resisting the urge to elbow him sharply. Did he not notice that omission?

“Well, then what part of her isn’t healthy?” Twilight asked. Something in her tone was enough to get the receptionist to snap her head up, startled. Twilight paid no mind to the mare; she was the only other one in the waiting room. The office’s closing hours were soon, and she and Nightlight had been assured that the only reason that they were not brought into another room for the talk.

“It is my understanding that your daughter has been showing atypical behavior ever since early fillyhood? That she was late to talk and can’t talk around non-family very well?”

Twilight’s withers rolled with the brunt of the frustration she was suppressing. Her lips pursed into a thin line, and next to her, Nightlight was eyeing her with concern. “I’m very aware of this. We were told that she was a mute of sorts by the last whitecoat… something about it being elective?”

“Selective,” Nightlight corrected gently.

Twilight looked in his direction for a moment and gave a tiny nod. “Yes. Barely any talking. No eye contact. Our little Sparkle has been afraid of noises and textures for pony’s sake… we’ve admittedly been at the point where we considering taking her to an exorcist stars-darned zebra doctor next just to rule out some kind of enchantment being placed upon her.”

“We don’t know that much about magic,” Nightlight said, sheepishly scratching the back of his head. “Everypony in our family has always scored above average on Arcane Evaluation Reports and our son — little Twilight’s big brother — has been studying at a guard academy.”

“He shows a lot of promise,” Twilight said dreamily, modestly clasping her forehooves in front of her, “or so we’re told. Military school has been a good choice for him. To hear that our Sparkle is… well, when we had to pull her from the public magic kindergarten after all the meltdowns—”

“—and bullying,” Nightlight said, adding his own whispering interruption with a shudder.

“Yes… I… it was so hard to believe that she couldn’t make any friends or… do anything that other foals her age could. Shiny is a normal colt with such normal interests — oh, and maybe a pinch more than normal magic levels — but we thought Sparkle was going to be so special. You and your other whitecoat folks have been talking to her for a few hours — can’t you see how smart she is? None of us understood how she couldn’t be doing well in school when school used to be the only thing she ever talked about!”

“...Until we enrolled her in our local magic kindergarten,” said Nightlight, shaking his head sadly. “Right after her first day, all her excitement was replaced with refusal and fear. Our little Twilight Sparkle never so much as thought about putting her hoof out of line, and she cried about going to school when she used to cry about not being in school like her brother was.”

Twilight looked to Missing Piece, unable to keep a small measure of pleading in her tone. “Surely you can see why we started to think something was wrong? There aren’t any chapbooks or materials we could find at the library about what could be causing this behavior…”

“And our family physician did assure us that it was purely behavioral,” added Nightlight.

“So,” Twilight said tersely, “what is wrong with Sparkle? What has to be done differently?”

Doctor Missing Piece cleared her throat calmly. She gave the two a distantly reproachful look before finally seating herself across from Twilight and her husband. From the unusually relaxed position she took on the cushioned bench, Twilight was able to see the rainbow of question marks that dotted the mare’s flank. Their arrangement was a lax sort of infinity loop — something that was far too telltale of uncertainty, which was the last thing that Twilight wanted to see on the flank of any whitecoat, let alone a developmental pediatrician.

“Absolutely nothing is wrong with your daughter — that doesn’t mean she isn’t going to struggle, though. There are many adaptations as parents that you two will have to make in order to continue and make sure that Twilight Sparkle is the happiest, healthiest filly that she can be.”

Twilight was about ready to bite the inside of her cheek. Their daughter wasn’t able to watch a color-coded stack of blocks be put in a toy chest without bawling her eyes out. When Twilight decided to do some spring cleaning in her daughter’s room to welcome in the grand new year of 989, little Sparkle had stumbled into her newly tidied room, bookshelves, dresser, and desk, what followed had been one of the greatest nightmares of all their lives. Sparkle had what Twilight and Nightlight later learned was called a panic attack at her mother rearranging the furniture and doing spring cleaning for the first time since the littler Twilight had left her crib.

Anything not noted in a calendar or having the predictability of a pendulum’s sway was clearly something that could set Sparkle off. For a mare with two growing foals and a lifelong love of interior styles, this was unthinkable. For Twilight’s little star, it was unspeakable — she had only started working on really verbalizing the year before, and kept her muzzle too stuck in books to articulate what problems she had. While Twilight understood this was the common nature of all foals at that age, the severity with Twilight Sparkle was enough to make a grown mare want to have her own private tantrum sometimes. Shining Armor had never been like this, and it wasn’t in Twilight Velvet’s heart to punish a foal for something that was likely beyond their control.

“What does my daughter need?”

“Well,” Missing Piece began, her tone cautious and more relaxing than Twilight wanted to admit, “it does appear that your daughter is neurodivergent.”

Both Twilight and Nightlight blinked like a moth staring at their first lantern.

“She has two brains?” Twilight asked.

“Oh, good gods!” Nightlight exclaimed, forehooves flying to his muzzle. “Does she need surgery?"

For once, the ever-patient warmth of Missing Pieces fell just a bit. The self-assured way she held her withers sagged with the same momentary sadness that stole her smile. “No, that isn’t what it means. ‘Neurodivergent’ means that your daughter is autistic.”

Twilight cocked her head to the side. “I don’t really think she likes drawing that much.”

Nightlight nodded in agreement. “We did get her an art kit a few Hearth’s Warming Day a few years ago. We thought it would help her exercise her magic and use ways to communicate with us when her words failed her.”

Missing Piece’s ears swiveled back dejectedly. “What I said was autistic Missus Velvet and Mister Nightlight. Autism spectrum disorder is a very misunderstood condition that lasts a pony’s whole life.”

A cold clench immediately gripped Twilight’s chest and she gasped at the sudden pain. Her mind was already galloping with every horrible possibility — hospitalization, mountains of medication, an untold amount of stitches, and gods knew what else. How was their little Twilight Sparkle going to live her whole life with this debilitating, mysterious illness?

“No, no, no,” Nightlight whispered, gulping visibly and letting his ears swivel back. “It can’t be so that somepony like our little Twilight Sparkle is going to be sick forever. You told us that she was physically alright, for pony’s sake!”

One forehoof was raised abruptly before either of them could protest further. “No, she isn’t chronically ill. It is a developmental disorder with a whole spectrum of severity. Twilight does appear to be on the higher functioning side, seeing as her language comprehension is excellent. Her intellectual, magical, and cognitive abilities range from being fine to prodigious, if I do say so myself. However, she is emotionally and socially very, very behind her peers. I would take her to somepony else just to be sure she doesn’t have anything else going untreated alongside her autism.”

Twilight Velvet had been wringing her hooves enough to visibly rub her white coat into a ragged display. “Just what does autism even do? We’ve never even heard of that before, so what can we do to help our daughter if we don’t even know her affliction?”

“We have some pamphlets and other helpful materials to take home,” said the doctor with her usual breezy tone returned. She brushed her Prancian braid away from where its loose strands had escaped their confines. “I'm sure you'll find them much more helpful than the chapbooks about the usual earth-pony-devised methods of 'quiet hooves' hogwash and scolding magical stimming. But I imagine you two would like a little more of an explanation before we bring Twilight Sparkle out from the playroom and send you all home?”

“Yes!” Twilight and Nightlight both hurriedly exclaimed. “Yes! Of course!” By now, both of them were clutching one another in an embrace born of anxiety.

Missing Piece nodded and sat back, readying an explanation she had clearly given so many times before. Twilight spotted the practiced ease in which the doctor returned her spectacles to her muzzle and the calm way she spoke.

“Autism impairs some of the more basic social response a pony can have. Missus Velvet, you said that your daughter often had a hard time understanding your tone and reading the expression of her teachers before you pulled her out of public schooling. This is a common manifestation of autism found across all areas of the spectrum. Autistic ponies are capable of living just as happy and long lives as anypony else, they just need an extra guiding light sometimes in order to help understand themselves and others. This is usually in the form of school accommodations and real therapy, not the kind of stuff they're peddling in Manehattan institutes and other places like them.”

Twilight Velvet drew in a deep breath and unwound herself from the hug of her husband. The cushy waiting room chair welcomed her as she plopped back in one, drawing a deep breath and disturbing the elegant simplicity of the way she rolled up the waves of her mane. “You mean she just might… need a headshrinker?”

“I would recommend a family therapist who specializes in autism to help you two work with little Twilight — and vice versa,” said Missing Pieces with an approving nod. “Twilight Sparkle needs to know that you are there for her. Sometimes, her world is going to feel very strange and scary, and she will want to stick with what is familiar to her more than most foals. Have you noticed any interests she holds more passionately than any other foal her age?”

Tension melted away from the room as the awkward laughter of Nightlight and Twilight drowned out the burble of the fish tank. However long it would take to explain autism, they knew that it would take twice as long to explain the odd fixations of their daughter. There was not a pony alive who would not be able to pick up on them after thirty seconds of talking with her — and Doctor Pieces had spent hours with their little Sparkle.

Doctor Pieces smiled more authentically, the gesture as warm as her peachy coat. “It’s good that you two are aware of your daughter’s special interests. They’re going to be a great source of fun and comfort for her, and it is extraordinarily rare that an autistic pony has an unhealthy special interest — and the same goes for their fixation on it. We rarely see anything so dysfunctional that you should be concerned, just make sure that you let her know she gives others space to express themselves too. When you consider how hard it is going to be for Twilight Sparkle socially and the love she has for their special interests, she becomes extra vulnerable to bullies. She is very likely to not know if somepony might be trying to use her with false niceties, even when she is at an age where her peers will learn to have seen past a fake smile.”

“I have been doing homeschooling lessons with her since the kindergarten debacle,” Nightlight chimed. “Vel and I talked… we’re not going to be able to do it forever. I can make spyglasses from home, at least for a while. But we’re never sending her back to public school… I’m afraid we just can’t think of where she might be able to go. The truth is that it is hard to imagine what Twilight Sparkle’s future would be like when she has no friends outside of the family, is not involved in community herd behavior, and refuses to even play in the garden. Neither of us has tried to force anything upon her beyond what is reasonable — eating her veggies, no late-night reading, and remembering to brush her teeth. Past the next few birthdays, the idea of raising her is… so uncertain, Doctor Pieces.”

In response, the doctor’s posture straightened and she nodded somberly. “I understand that, but you are in luck. Canterlot is full of resources once a pony understands what autism is, which is a breath of fresh air. The disorder is actually most common in unicorns, and we know that those considered magical prodigies — regardless of their ability in other areas — are often more likely to be autistic, though not necessarily why. Being able to understand the notable impact autism has on magic beyond splinter spells would be a breakthrough. Unfortunately, we’re barely anywhere different with research into the condition itself than we were seventy years ago. That’s unlikely to change, even if it would be a leap and a gallop in educating parents and teachers about what a crisis under-diagnosis and no autism awareness is doing to Equestria. Unfortunately, you try arguing for the importance of magical-cognitive research in a nation with an earth pony majority and their long-standing ideas about the nature of magic, along with a goddess who agrees with them on the throne.”

Twilight Velvet caught the sound of Nightlight awkwardly clearing her throat and nodding along absentmindedly. She had been rubbing at her hooves again, letting her mind wander to if she would benefit from having bracelets to fidget with. Both her and Nightlight could never comprehend how anypony could be critical of Princess Celestia, especially not if they ever were at the level of education that Doctor Pieces had to be. There wasn’t a doubt in Twilight’s mind that this mare had taken a history lesson at some point in her life, and likely in some grand, polished place instead of the usual array of quaint schoolhouses that Twilight Velvet’s Equestrian art books had informed her were the norm outside of all larger cities — the kind that had neither magic schools nor flight camps. Even though both her and Nightlight were Canterlot natives, they couldn’t imagine such a vastly different educational situation, much less what might be wrong with it.

And still, this mare whose academia experience easily outshone all of Twilight’s own was probably three steps and two leaps for what could sound like heresy instead of venting out of context.

“Thank you,” Twilight said quietly, sincerely as she kept her eyes lowered demurely, ”for all that you have told us. Nightie and I were so scared about what might be happening — and if we would have to find a way to break gods-know what kind of terrible news to Shiny if something had turned out wrong. I… I think we’re ready to see our little star now.”

Chapter 3: To the Current Resident of 690 Starburst Avenue

[One slightly yellowed letter, stored neatly within an old horseshoe box stuffed with notes dated from the spring of 992. The letter is unremarkable in presentation, bearing the approved non-unique formatting sent out to the parents of every unicorn foal who was accepted to Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns from the years of 960-999 of Princess Celestia's reign. Even the faded wax seal it bears is that of the current secretary of the reigning Examining Board of Judges. There is nothing but the address typed at the top to suggest who this letter could have been the recipient of this letter. The address was typed by the secretaries of the Board and approved with the final touches of the wax seal before being sent to the mail ponies. There is little that is more impersonal, yet treasured than these acceptance letters. Even the parchment is standard fare, pulped, sold, and purchased in the most common stores of Canterlot.]

...

To the Current Resident(s) of 690 Starburst Avenue
Old Forte District of Canterlot, Canterhornshire
Equestria

To the guardians of one Twilight Sparkle, one Missus Twilight Velvet of Canterlot & Mister Nightlight of Canterlot
From the Desk of the Board of Judges at Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns

Dear Parents or Guardians,

We wish you the utmost congratulations! It is with great pleasure that we inform you of your foal's acceptance into Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. This opportunity has been granted in light of the resulting information gathered from your foal's test results and final entrance examination, and at this fine establishment aim to provide your foal with the most opportunities to succeed in the magical education that Equestria has to offer, and a place close to our goddess. Your foal is deemed to be outstanding among young unicorns and will be eagerly awaited on campus for the upcoming fall semester. Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns is the only school in the known world to be founded by a god, and it is with great honor that we extend not just this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to your young one, but the assurance that Princess Celestia works even more actively in the curriculum and decisions of her school than she does with any other educational establishment in Equestria. Your unicorn foal will join the ranks of future castle employees, mages, and a world of other fantastic possibilities. Every foal will walk among the most esteemed educators and occupy the same campus as the most heroic, humble, and important unicorns since Equestria's early days. Our establishment is the only one to provide Princess Celestia with her famous Faithful Students, and there is no other like it in the mortal world.

Enclosed with this letter is an information packet. In it, you will find pricing and styles for dormitories, as well as information about our roommate selection and friend assignment models. Foals who are to continue living with their families and commute to their classes are encouraged to have their parents or guardians write to our Residence Coordination Office, whose address is also provided with dorm maps and models. Their friendship assignment process has different information that will be provided by mail to ensure that all students still have 'buddies' to be with them and have an advanced headstart on herd-socialization favored by our educators. We also have included a list of meal plans, student clubs, and our student code of conduct book. A faculty directory, address book, and insurance information for the health centers of each campus are also provided. The list of textbooks assigned to all first-year students will be issued upon enrollment confirmation, but note that in the financial information provided, there is an estimate offered on how many bits should be set aside for such purchases. Most importantly, information about changes in parental involvement and expectations can be found in their own individual envelope. Their instructions are clear, and it is expected that they will be sent with enrollment confirmation by prospective students.

Sincerely,

Doctor Apple Polish, Ph. D. in Conjuration from Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and Judge of Potential Students
Doctor Arpeggio, Ph. D. in Arcane Sciences from Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns
Doctor Crystal Clear, Ph. D. in Celestian Thaumaturgy from Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and Judge of Potential Students
Doctor Top Marks, Ph. D. in General Magical Arts from Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns and Head of the Examining Board of Judges of Potential Students

The Board of Judges at Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns

...

[The following is from the same standard parchment as the former letter and was found tucked under the acceptance letter. Both were mailed at the same time and arrived on the same day. However, they make no reference to one another to the point that they could have been mailed completely separately. Only the wax seal bearing Princess Celestia's icon of the Eternal Crown indicates that Princess Celestia ever saw the letter at all. Everything else bears the distinct hornwriting of Raven, Princess Celestia's mononymous secretary at the time.]

...

Dear Missus Twilight Velvet and Mister Nightlight of Canterlot,

It is with great esteem that I write to you both on behalf of our goddess. Your young daughter is the subject of some of the most important news of this century. While she may have been accepted into Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, the Princess herself has declared that she wishes to see your daughter have only partial enrollment, which means one thing: your daughter has been selected to be the next Faithful Student. This means that her dormitory will be in the castle, and that with little to no exception, all of her classes are to be given by Princess Celestia herself instead of our resident teaching faculty. Her meals will be completely paid for through royal funds, and her tuition fees are waived entirely, as all Faithful Students are. Her textbook supplies, club fees, and all necessary expenses will be covered by the castle. This includes any and all bits that will go towards her health. Please disregard any paperwork mailed to you or sections in the student hoofbook that concern payments. It is with great pleasure and graciousness that Princess Celestia makes such an announcement through me, and there is little in the enrollment process that you are asked to do, save for the following:

Please disregard the standard enrollment confirmation date and instead write back as soon as possible to confirm your daughter's enrollment.

Please write to the address included with this scroll about the parcel of custody modification information specifically reserved for Faithful Student contracts.

Information about dragon care is to be provided to your home without any explicit refusal. Faithful Students often have a famulus, and Princess Celestia expects such a creature to have some familiarity with the family of a Faithful Student in situations where these creatures are procured. Dragon care will alternate with the castle, as our goddess is not inexperienced when it comes to the basic upkeep of exotic creatures.

Disregard anything about the current Faithful Student. Rest assured, the Princess is an expert at matters concerning her pupils, and the matter of Sunset Shimmer will be resolved shortly.

It is with great hospitality that Princess Celestia awaits your visit! Please write to the castle and know that you will soon be corresponding with her personally. She wishes to meet your daughter properly and assuage any concerns of her wonderful parents, and negotiate anything that worries you two. Make sure that Twilight Sparkle is present, as this will be her first chance to tour the castle with your supervision and our goddess's guidance. Her living quarters as a filly and a mare will be presented to you, and she will get to see her future famulus again. Catering will be provided, and the first glimpses of her supplies, expectations, and lessons will be explained. A review of Faithful Student standards and family contact will be offered.

Any other concerns you two may have should be addressed to the castle. The Princess wishes only to provide for the bright future of your daughter.

Your visit is awaited eagerly! Though, one thing must be made known: all these graces come with time. In order to fully resolve both the need to set up your daughter's future place in the castle and resolve the situation surrounding the problem of Sunset Shimmer, we are asking that your daughter be enrolled after a wait of at least one year. She is the youngest pony to ever pass the exams at her tender age. Princess Celestia would like your daughter to tour the castle with you when she is at least seven years old, as she believes that your daughter is still too young to be separated from her parents. She has done her research and is aware that your daughter has a May birthday, and finds it acceptable if you wish for the tour to be arranged as a birthday treat. If this is your choice, please specify in your reply letter, and Princess Celestia will ensure that the castle kitchens prepare a birthday luncheon for you both, and for your daughter.

Please note that this does not change that Princess expects Twilight Sparkle to wait before enrolling in order to leave no loose ties with Sunset Shimmer, among other things. During this time, the Princess understands that homeschooling is a stressful thing to endure, and wishes to offer her assistance in any way, be it financial or emotional. If this means providing for Twilight Sparkle's lessons, or other expenses, she will do so gladly to ensure only the best for an upcoming Faithful Student and blessing to Equestria. The needs that must be covered during this long wait can be discussed over mail or at the appointed meeting, depending on your comfort.

Sincerely,

Raven, Secretary of Our Goddess on Behalf of H.R.H. Princess Celestia

Chapter 4: Ending the Long Wait

[The following letter is written on an ordinary scroll. It sits in a horseshoe box dated to the year that young Twilight Sparkle would have been turning ten years old. The hornwriting within is one rarely witnessed by the eyes of ordinary ponies, who can only hope that they might catch glimpses of it through library records and other methods of copying such elegant swirls of ink.]

...

To Missus Twilight Velvet of Canterlot & Mister Nightlight of Canterlot
690 Starburst Avenue
Old Forte District of Canterlot, Canterhornshire
Equestria

To My Dear Friends, Twilight Velvet & Nightlight,

I am in a strange position as I find myself writing to you this evening. I am aware that little Twilight Sparkle is now approaching her tenth birthday, and that over the years, she is far from the little filly I first encountered. While I am certain she remains the little daughter you are so proud of, I can only expect a little filly who has grown in magic and maturity. Four years ago, she became the youngest unicorn foal to ever pass the entrance exams to my beloved school... at least, she was the youngest since Sunset Shimmer, my previous Faithful Student. She passed her entrance exam at the same age and was only a few months older. So yes, it was correct when my secretary first wrote to you that your daughter is technically the youngest ever to pass her exam.

I have been pleased with the progress reports that have been sent over the years. The blend of a homeschooling curriculum devised for your daughter, summer classes, and foalsitting enrichment in her life has ensured her development into a talented and curious young mind. I am so endlessly pleased that my niece, Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, was content to limit her foalsitting duties to just Twilight when it became clear that I could not let your daughter's talent go to waste, or else her nurturance of so many other families' foals could have become a distraction. It is only a shame that I was not able to be a personal presence over those years. I would have loved to be a part of Twilight Sparkle's life as early as possible, as there is nothing in your letters to me or her own letters that does not serve to endear her to me completely. By necessity, I must have only one Faithful Student, as the process of sculpting them is one that must be followed strictly, and not over quibbles of mere tradition. It is over this that I am writing to you.

Every foal is unique, and your daughter is more than most ponies. I have found it to be my pleasure that my generosity has allowed your family to remain comfortable and healthy so that your daughter's education can feel much more like leisure. My previous Faithful Student was unique too, however, I found that she was unique in her troubles. Behavior problems may be uncommon in youth, but Sunset Shimmer had many of them, whereas your daughter is ever so lucky to be free from them. A good upbringing is essential in that. Sunset Shimmer had been my Faithful Student since she was no more than nine years old, a very tender age, the youngest of any Faithful Student that I have ever taken on. As I'm sure you realize, despite the remote place I have had in her education until now, I have considered Twilight Sparkle of Canterlot rather than Sunset Shimmer of Tall Tale to be my youngest Faithful Student.

And it is the matter of Sunset Shimmer that has caused me to write to you. Twilight Sparkle, I'm sure is the galaxy of your lives. She is of great importance to me too. Having had such a difficult burden in my life robbed me of much optimism. When you wrote to me in years past of worries about Twilight's future due to her autism and the difficulties you faced in getting her enrolled in school, I shared in your feelings of strife. Over these past few years, I have been going through such a similar experience when it came to trying to straighten out Sunset Shimmer and help her find her place in the world. You have seen on posters, milk cartons, and newspapers that she has been missing. You have written to me letters of sympathy that have brought gratitude to my heart over her ever-so-sudden disappearance. It is now that I may bring my news to you.

There has been no break in finding young Sunset Shimmer. At thirteen years old, she had the negative source of attention she wanted from her disappearance. The castle has been safety-proofed countless times since her absence. A fly could not buzz its wings without me noticing. Your daughter will never come to any harm. But it is now that I must say: months have passed, and there is no sign of Sunset Shimmer. My guards have found not a single shred of foul play or hint that harm may have come to her.

The unthinkable is not that this filly may have encountered tragedy or been ponynapped by it, but rather that she managed something unthinkable for the life of luxury, comfort, cheer, and high-quality education afforded to her. She left of her own accord, through means that no parent or guardian ought to ever worry about their own foal replicating. The posters for her have since been taken down. No more milk cartons will be printed. The search for Sunset Shimmer is to come to an end without ceremony, and her case grows as cold as she grew to me. The heart of such a young filly is quixotic, but Sunset Shimmer's was deeply troubled in ways I had not realized when I took on her education. In fact, her education was on thin ice and ready to be formally discontinued because of her ill-suited ways. One might see her as an ill omen, down to her very name.

All of this information is top secret, but I have every reason to know that two of my most trusted little ponies would not reveal private information concerning a child. The time for Sunset Shimmer is done. That her story has ended this way is a tragedy. Though, that is something we ought to be putting behind us. To endure loss is an unfortunate error that sometimes befalls good ponies entirely undeserving of it. To forget one's loss, to swallow one's heart is to be a pony, for being a pony is about how optimism brightens us, and I have bright news indeed: the news of change being needed. It is your daughter's time to shine. I am in need of a new Faithful Student, and your long wait has ended.

Sincerely,

H. R. H. Princess Celestia

Chapter 2: All The World's Problems Told Through Notes

Twilight Velvet liked to keep things as tidy as could be. This included the small notes that she had always swapped with Nightlight; the ones left on the kitchen table between managing Twilight Sparkle's lessons or the ones tacked to doors in an effort to carry on threads of conversation between errands. Shining Armor was the token extrovert of the family, and two parents employed in jobs requiring space and patience meant that everypony was as familiar with notes left between work times as they were with each other's voices. Their family was strict about some things, and scheduling was one of them. When somepony like Twilight Velvet married a spyglass-maker, it was a match made in Paradise. She felt like the goddess Elysium herself had blessed their wedding — even though they had been married in a temple to Celestia — in finding a husband who understood what she meant when she said that everything that can be measured should. The walls were marked like a ruler to account for the growing height of Shining Armor — before he left for school — and their little Sparkle. Her desk was a mess of planners that nearly had the last second accounted for, and she kept a box filled with folders holding all the most important events and documents of the year.

She didn’t like to admit it, but she was afflicted by what all mothers went through, at least in her experience. Twilight Velvet had the same stirrings in her that compelled her to hoard mementos like a dragon did gold for nothing more than the sake of sentimentality. Some of her keepsakes were not as apparent in the way albums were, where she had the commissioned pictures of her foals and the ever-rarer family photo-portrait reside. She had funneled most of the bits they had into making a brighter future for their foals. What could have been wasted on a silly fad like photographs where more popular means of capturing the sights of the world was put to real use — making sure that her family could continue to live in Canterlot.

One such trinket was a horseshoe box stuffed with brown bags, each carefully labeled with dates. The fancy box with the blacksmith’s name emblazoned in shining foil cradled something just as precious to Twilight Velvet in the colorful tissue paper. She had even learned preservation spell basics just to keep water damage and the barest effects of time from causing her treasures to crumble. In one such weathered envelope were the notes that chronicled when Nightlight had begun to call her Velvet instead of Twilight like everypony in her life always had, starting through small insertions. Each was posted in a flurry during the spring of 992 in the Solar Millenium, shortly after their little star’s diagnosis and when they knew that she and Nightlight had so much to prepare if they were going to be able to finalize enrollment by fall...

…

TV—

Here is a list of private places that are still accepting enrollments for foals starting in the fall:

Her Majesty the Sun’s Magical Prep Academy for Young Minds
Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns
Hallowed Light Magic Kindergarten
Dapple Daub’s Arcane and Arts Academy for Fine Unicorn Foals
Starswirl Starting School for Magical Talents

Is there one that you think we should look at first? I still pray we might get our little star into Her Majesty the Sun's. It was disappointing to have to tell my father about breaking the tradition of every eldest foal from my side of the family going through her doors. The school is wonderful, and they might have a program for Junior. She was saying how much other foals bullied her for us bothering to give her a junior part of her name at all, since that's just not done. But Her Majesty the Sun's has standards, and I don't think that would ever be allowed to happen there. Even if it did, my brother and I have alumni status and kept in contact with some of the teachers there. Nopony will get to even look at her wrong there. She'll love it, and everypony in the family will be able to breathe a sigh of relief, eh?

Love,

Nighty

...

Nighty darling,

I looked over your list. I agree, Majesty's is certainly a school we ought to look into, especially since their religious education programs are as good as a public school. Their lessons on the Pantheon really emphasize devotion to the Princess, which is what our foals ought to carry on. The temple they have on their campus is beautiful. And I know your father was disappointed at first, but look how much better things turned out to be with where Shiny is now. Nopony in my family nor your family ever went to get a more prestigious education since Starcatcher was accepted for postsecondary guard education. He was clearly a good influence on Shiny, getting him started on such a good path so early. There is no mystery behind why he's little Shiny's favorite uncle.

What I don't agree with is having Princess Celestia's personal school on that list. It's the most expensive school in the whole country, even for the junior campus tuition rates. The prices hike even more once foals turn ten, since that's when the Princess will potentially pick a Faithful Student — but she already has one, that Shimmer filly nopony ever sees. Plus, applying before ten doesn't make sense. I don't know if they have any support programs for Sparkle. The kind of foals that get scholarships to that school are once-in-a-generation mages, and those types of scholarships aren't given out when anypony is Sparkle's age. The current Faithful Student being the youngest on record is unheard of, and they don't graduate for decades. That little filly (I keep forgetting her name, just that it was something snappy) will be well around the age I was when I was working on my MFA at Canterlot U by the time she graduates; we simply can't act like Sparkle will stop aging until then.

Love,

Twilight Velvet

...

Vel—

We don't have many options for schools that might have supportive programs. All the public schools consider this autism thing a magical disorder and a unicorn condition. No school with the Equality For All curriculum is going to make an exception in what they provide for Twilight when all the letters we got back made it clear that it would constitute discrimination against the earth ponies and pegasus foals. They told us we have to look for a private place, and I checked the books at the library to try and find similar cases. We weren't being cheated; unicorns make up 83% of all autism diagnoses according to all the whitecoat publishing. Maybe it is a magical disorder. Either way, Vel, we'd be asking for hoof-outs and illegal overthrowing of the very laws that Princess Celestia put in place after the defeat of Discord to ensure all foals got a proper education. We're apparently 'the special stuff' and that means giving bits.

Remember the neighbor's daughter from our old house? Twinkleshine, I think it was. She goes to PCSFGU. I heard she loved it the last time I wrote to her parents.

Love,

Nighty

...

Nighty,

Darling, I don't want to hear any more about Princess Celestia's school. It's too much. We're not deciding to be choosing beggars to rule out the most expensive school in the whole country. Twinkleshine's parents had to sell their house specifically so they could afford to send their daughter to that school. That filly won't be graduating until 998 and her parents already sold their house for her! She's their only foal, we still have Shiny, and well, that's the kind of place Sparkle might get spoiled. It's a hard school, dear. Not getting in is more common than acceptance, and guessing who will get accepted is honestly probably about as hard as the work there. Almost every foal, even the local ones, lives on campus. The students don't usually get traditional break schedules. There are unicorns from all over the nation in that school, so we won't be able to control whether Sparkle meets the wrong types of colts and fillies for friends. I think it's just going to be too hard on her.

When I'm able to take a break from my next article, I'll start with letter exchanges and applications to Her Majesty's. No matter what, I refuse to send Sparkle to a school without an autism support program. All the library books I've checked out make it sound so doom and gloom: social isolation, inability to connect to a herd, face blindness, odd habits — it's enough to make a grown mare cry at the thought of what might happen to her if we aren't careful.

We can't let her become an exile, loner, or too weird. Some of the descriptions of the ponies I read about just don't sit right with me. A school that piles work on her and is as competitive as Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns is going to break our little star.

Love,

Twilight Velvet

...

Vel—

How is the article coming? And thank you for making lunch, I almost missed it behind the leftover hayfries. We've been ordering out too much since we started homeschooling Sparkle, and all the leftovers are making the icebox too small at this point. We're at risk of rubbing the cooling enchantments on it to an illegible smudge and all the food spoiling.

Ponyfeathers, Twilight, I'm not taking Princess Celestia's school off of the list. We have to try with what little we're given, and she might have enough to transfer in a few years. Shiny has been helping her with all the magic stuff I can't help her with on the weekends and then some. Her only hobby is studying, I'm sure she'll make it. I don't want Sparkle to be too weird for anypony to like her or hire her, and I'm sure she'll have normal herd social development once we can get her out of the house.

I just ask that we compromise and put Princess Celestia's school last on the list, instead of nowhere at all. I know Twinkleshine's parents had to sell their house, but only her father brings bits into the house. He was writing to me over the winter months about how much little Twinkle loves the school, and we had been talking about costs. With my lens-crafting and your articles and short stories being bought up by magazines faster than cider during fall festivals, we'll be better off. She might even get some scholarships when she gets onto the older campuses!

Can we at least talk when you're home from the library? Gods, Vel, I'm worried about these darn-near-apocalyptic prophecies about autism from all these books you're requesting. She's just a filly.

Love,

Nighty

...

Nighty darling,

I'm sorry it was so late last night, and I know you said everything was going to be okay, but thank you again. The talk helped. Maybe I'm too worried, and maybe I'm not worried enough. I just want the best for Twilight Sparkle. Maybe we already ruined things for her by giving her a junior part to her name, and yet, I can't bear to have her as anything else. Nopony in my family that I know of has ever had a condition like this, and everything I find is so confusing. Apparently, this whole autism deal is more common in colts, and it can make foals and grown ponies alike into picky eaters. Everything I keep finding tells me about how other parents find it so hard to have foals like Sparkle. Sweet Celestia, why isn't there anything about how hard it is to understand what my daughter is actually going through?

The article is coming along slowly. I won't be missing my deadline, despite how distracted I've been lately. The letters with Her Majesty's were going well. They told me they do have a supportive program for autistic foals, but that it's only on the colt's side of the campus because they've never had an autistic filly before, but that they'd still do the best to ensure she has lesson help and a mentor. I'm being told that she would have to be walked over to the other half of the campus to get some of her lessons and assistance, and that just sounds so inappropriate to me. Not to mention, the program isn't included with the base tuition. We'd be paying extra for it.

This is the first school we're looking at, and I don't even feel right about a campus visit if this is what our little star would be getting. Just what are we to do? Could you talk later today?

Love,

Twilight Velvet

...

Her Majesty the Sun’s Magical Prep Academy for Young Minds
Hallowed Light Magic Kindergarten
Dapple Daub’s Arcane and Arts Academy for Fine Unicorn Foals
Starswirl Starting School for Magical Talents
Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns

...

Velvet—

I ran into a secretary for the principal of Starswirl Starting School at Market Square today. We were both on our way to bind book-binding tools after I stopped at the coffeehouse with Starcatcher. We'd been talking about bookshops, but eventually, things turned to our little star. She was very sorry to inform me that they don't have any support programs for autism specifically, only a general support faculty employed with the aim of helping foals with physical and intellectual disabilities. Our little star wouldn't qualify for anything, though the mare said that it was possible to write to the school or bring Sparkle by to see if she qualifies for intellectual disability support. It'd result in her having a faculty mentor assigned just to her, which might prove to be the support she needs, even if they're not accustomed to a foal like her.

What do you say? Do you want to talk about this later?

Love,

Nighty

...

Her Majesty the Sun’s Magical Prep Academy for Young Minds
Hallowed Light Magic Kindergarten
Dapple Daub’s Arcane and Arts Academy for Fine Unicorn Foals
Starswirl Starting School for Magical Talents
Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns

...

Nighty darling,

The open house event for Hallowed Night is this Friday. What do you say to us attending? We should be able to meet somepony there who can answer us. Parents of prospective students are encouraged to take as many notes as possible. I'm positively delighted with how positively my latest article was received. Cosmare said that they've never had anypony submit anything about somepony wondering what the world was like for somepony with autism, and that they got many letters from readers declaring it to be a bold new direction that they'd like to see more of. Going to an event like this might help stave off my nerves about content somewhat. I had honestly expected this to be a slump in readership from ponies that know me. Not only is the Equestrian lifestyle genre free of anything but background mentions of autism or autistic ponies, I've never written anything like this before. It's such a wild departure from creative writing tips, mare's fiction, tourism, housekeeping advice, and the whole kit and kaboodle of homemaking.

Is it just me, or has everypony started to feel more like somepony we don't know since Twilight Sparkle got diagnosed? I feel so strangely alone, and I think I've been talking to ponies more than ever. My own mother, who I've always gone to as a source of wisdom, thinks that her granddaughter is just shy and that we aren't raising her right. I've explained everything I can about autism to her in letters and face-to-face at least ten times. It's like I'm not being heard at all, and this is coming from somepony who always did everything to listen to me. How could this have changed?

Love,

Twilight Velvet

...

Velvet—

Do you remember how the doctor said we ought to look into a therapist for us, as well as one for our little star? What I'm hearing sounds a lot like it's high time we took her advice and started seeing somepony about these thoughts before they cast a shadow over us. I'll start looking in the paper for foalsitter ads and talking to folks. There is to be a delivery of telescope lenses to one of the royal astronomers tomorrow. I was put on delivery duty on top of making some of the lenses, and I'll see if there is anypony in the castle who knows a foalsitter or a good place for daycare. There is always something being said, be it a juicy tidbit or advice, and we're in sore need of some good luck after the open house event. That doctor was a strange mare, but she was right about that applied behavior analysis therapy sounding cruel. 'Quiet hooves and horn' didn't sum up how bad it sounded. I don't care what the Manehattan institutes say, they're magic deniers and frauds and I won't let their ways cruelly dictate our daughter. It's a right shame that a place as esteemed as Hallowed Light bases its 'support' programs on that flimflam.

Love,

Nighty

...

Her Majesty the Sun’s Magical Prep Academy for Young Minds
Hallowed Light Magic Kindergarten
Dapple Daub’s Arcane and Arts Academy for Fine Unicorn Foals
Starswirl Starting School for Magical Talents
Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns

...

Nighty darling,

I've looked into the brochures for Dapple Daub's and I have to say I'm quite pleased to see they listed an autism support program as something they explicitly offer. I also have the application to Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns — I can't believe it finally arrived! I want us to do it together as soon as possible so we can at least secure a spot for testing. I've heard that they only accept so many foals for testing each season, and that testing is multi-phase and cumulates in those dreadful, nerve-wracking final examinations. If we want to be able to see if she has a shot at all, we have to submit it soon. Hopefully, they'll understand that we're looking to do the actual testing and entrance exam when she's ten. At six years old, I think that we'd be testing her far too early. Her magic isn't even through all the normal developmental stages yet, no matter how good her brother thinks she is.

I always wanted to go to Dapple Daub's as a little filly. They would have helped foster my writing talent much earlier than in public school. As wonderful as my teachers and friends were, I think I'm starting to understand what our daughter needing extra help means. They're just so expensive, with all the art programs they have as a default. If their program is as good and robust (and ABA-free) as the brochure makes it sound, we're taking her to their open house. I want her there with us this time. No other school has listed anything about special education or autism in their brochures, and I have a strong feeling that they're on the right hoof. But Nighty, dear, if their program is extra, we'll at least get back to Princess Celestia's school sooner. Dapple Daub's has an unusually late open house compared to anypony else, or maybe we're just that ahead of the game. At least then we'd have something to cheer up our little star with if she doesn't get into Princess Celestia's school because we weren't able to negotiate the testing deadline for when I know she'll be ready.

Love always,

Twilight Velvet

...

Her Majesty the Sun’s Magical Prep Academy for Young Minds
Hallowed Light Magic Kindergarten
Dapple Daub’s Arcane and Arts Academy for Fine Unicorn Foals
Starswirl Starting School for Magical Talents
Princess Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns