Three years before the Conversion War, a group of pony students studied under Professor Jacque Dubois in Maine. Although most of the ponies have long since dropped out, five remain in the program as relationships between Equestria and Earth sour. Some of the ponies involved have come away with the same ideas and ideals as they did before the program began, eight years prior to the War. But not all.

It is now 2050. Equestria has lost the Conversion War. Princess Twilight has surrendered to the combined nations of Earth. Professor Dubois has been a soldier for three years.

And now he comes face to face with some of the students who came back to Equestria.

(No, this is not one of those creepy professor-student relationship stories. This is an attempt at a good look at a proper relationship between students and teachers/professors, even when some of them were on the other side of a war. The romance tag is for a straight - and clean - pony x pony relationship within the story. Alternate universe because some stuff in the Negotiationsverse happened differently than in the prime timeline.)