“Now, remember, Opaline,” Amaryllis chirped, straightening the fourteen-year-old alicorn’s starched white shirt, “you must be on your best behavior today; Princess Celestia will be in your class!” Opaline smiled and began to prance excitedly.
“Do you think she’ll like me?” the little aubergine-colored pony asked her governess. Amaryllis nodded confidently, and Opaline giggled.
“The princesses were homeschooled up until this year,” the matronly red unicorn told her young charge. “As you know, they are distant cousins of yours; their parents passed away about six months ago, and their nannies insisted on enrolling them at Skyros High. I’m sure that you and Princess Celestia will get along splendidly.” She smiled warmly at Opaline and patted the filly’s head affectionately.
“What about Princess Luna?” Opaline asked. “You’ve told me so much about Princess Celestia, but I don’t really know anything about her sister.” Amaryllis’ lips tightened as she set her jaw, and her emerald green eyes flickered downward. A twinge of guilt tugged at Opaline’s stomach, though she wasn’t really sure why she felt guilty at all; she had only asked an innocent question. She cocked her head slightly, her small, delicate ears flickering with curiosity. Amaryllis studied the filly for a few seconds, then sighed.
“Not much is known about Princess Luna,” the mare replied. “She is much more reserved than her older sister. I’ve been told that Celestia, on the other hoof, is quite friendly and outgoing, so I’m sure that you two will become the best of friends in no time at all.” She tossed her glossy crimson mane and motioned toward the door.
“Tick, tock, Opaline,” she sang, pointing a hoof at the clock. “You have exactly twenty minutes to get to school, and you don’t want to be late on your first day.” The middle-aged unicorn levitated a blueberry muffin and passed it to the waiting filly, who devoured it greedily and washed it down with a glass of orange juice. After she had finished eating, Opaline galloped to her bathroom, brushed her mane and teeth, and grabbed her backpack. Sparks flew from her hooves as she took off out the door, only pausing for a fraction of a second to wait for Amaryllis. This was going to be the greatest day of her life!
Skyros High School was situated between two old oak trees a few miles from the castle in which Opaline lived. Originally built a hundred years earlier for foals whose parents worked on the castle grounds, the modest red brick school building was now open to all young ponies. Opaline spotted a bunch of ponies who seemed to be about her age chatting in the courtyard adjacent to the school, and excitement began to bubble inside her once again. She didn’t even hear Amaryllis when the mare left. Her home room teacher, Miss Willowmist, was a pretty and sweet young unicorn who had just graduated from college.
As she trotted into the courtyard, Opaline was greeted by a herd of friendly Earth ponies, unicorns, and Pegasi, all of whom were intrigued with the idea of having an alicorn in their class. Opaline blushed, unaccustomed to so much attention, but everypony seemed genuinely nice and welcoming.
Just before the teacher called the class to go inside, two more alicorns landed gracefully a few feet away from Opaline. Miss Willowmist’s eyes widened as she bent into a deep curtsy and motioned for everypony else to do the same. Opaline did as she was told; these alicorns were her distant cousins, though she had never met them personally. The larger alicorn trotted forward confidently, her long, pink mane flowing in the warm August breeze. Her magenta eyes sparkled in the sunlight as Opaline’s classmates began to whisper excitedly.
“That’s her! That’s Princess Celestia!” a salmon-colored unicorn filly gasped. All at once, everypony flocked around the two alicorns. Opaline turned her attention to the smaller alicorn by Celestia’s side, who had a blue coat and a lighter blue mane and tail. Luna’s turquoise eyes were wide as she took in the scene around her and tried to keep up with her older sister, much to Celestia’s subtle irritation. The pink alicorn’s voice was syrupy as she spoke to her new teacher and motioned for her sister to leave her alone. Luna’s shoulders slumped slightly, but she quickly tossed her head, lifted her chin, and trotted off toward the playground, trailed by five or six other fillies.
Opaline trotted into the classroom with the rest of her classmates and quickly found her seat right behind Celestia, who was organizing her desk. The princess glanced absentmindedly in Opaline’s direction, then continued to pull a bunch of erasers out of her pencil box. Opaline’s ears perked up.
“Wow, cool erasers,” she said to Celestia. The pale pink alicorn turned in her seat and shot a megawatt smile at Opaline.
“Thanks,” she replied. “They’re all embossed with my cutie mark. You must be Opaline; our nanny said another alicorn would be in my class. I know we’re going to be great friends. Hey, cool notebook!” She pointed at Opaline’s purple spiral notebook, which had a pink dolphin on the front.
“Th-thanks,” Opaline stammered softly, blushing. She turned to chat with a baby blue Pegasus colt who sat at the desk on her left.
“Hi, I’m Lucky Star,” the colt said with a smile that made the young alicorn blush even more. “You’re Opaline Arcana, aren’t you? I’ve heard about you. I’m so sorry about your parents.” He bowed his head in respect, and Opaline smiled kindly at his gesture.
“There’s no need to apologize,” the filly replied. “It’s been over six months; my parents would have wanted me to move on with my life.”
“So, what’s your favorite subject?” Lucky Star asked, peering over at Opaline’s desk to look at her class schedule. “I like math and Equestrian history.”
“Literature,” Opaline answered immediately. “My books have been my only friends for as long as I can remember.” The colt’s eyes softened a bit.
“Well,” he said, “not anymore; I’m your friend now.”
For the first time in a long while, a genuine smile crossed Opaline’s face.
