An Earthling Earth Pony at Celestia's School of Magic: Year One

An hour before sunrise, I stood waiting at the mountain entrance. I wasn't feeling great about who my company was. Professor Applebloom was there, which was great, but not one but two of Prim's stuck-up filly friends were with us; both were giving me dirty looks. Their dirty looks were helpful in a small way—they made me irritated enough that I could forget for a moment that we were going out into a densely wooded forest.

"How long do we have to wait?" one of the fillies whined in that Canterlot noble accent.

"The lorekeeper shall be here shortly. Going out into the woods without her is highly inadvisable," Applebloom replied.

"Why?" the other filly asked. "You know everything about the outdoors."

Applebloom glanced towards the entrance. "These woods are unfamiliar to me. I am very familiar with the Everfree. There are many other ponies who are excellent outdoors ponies but if they weren't familiar with the Everfree, I wouldn't recommend them going into the Everfree without a guide familiar with it. The wilderness of Equestria can be dangerous, and it is easy to miss signs of that in underbrush. I wouldn't want us stumbling into a monster because I didn't know their typical prowling grounds. I could probably deal with most monsters, but it is best not to encounter them and risk putting you in danger. We need a guide."

"But if we're ever expected to go out on our own and collect ingredients, shouldn't we be learning about the monsters and how to deal with them too? Aren't there monster parts that go into potions?" one of the fillies asked. I blinked, that was a surprisingly reasonable question, at least, far more reasonable than I expected coming from one of Prim's snobby friends. Nobody at our school was stupid, but I wanted to think Prim's friends were.

Applebloom nodded. "You should learn about them, but not at this stage. You aren't currently capable of properly dealing with a monster, even with instruction. Your focus at this stage should be on botanical and mineral ingredients. As you advance through your combat magic classes, we'll eventually come to where we go out looking for the monsters instead of trying to avoid them, but that is still a few years down the road. It is important to note that unless you are in specific need of something from a monster, it is always best to avoid them, even when you are confident you could deal with them. Encountering a monster always presents a risk to you and those with you, and even defeating a monster can have unforeseen side-effects, as it might cause the monster to move to new grounds, making a previously safe area dangerous or have other impacts on the ecosystem."

"Which the ponies of the mountain appreciate you taking the time to consider."

The lorekeeper walked up to us. She was wearing a black bandana made from some sort of thin fabric. She wasn't carrying any gear or saddlebags.

"No gear?" Applebloom asked.

The lorekeeper shook her head. "We should not be venturing far beyond the treeline. Going deeper into the woods is inadvisable as it is currently hydra season. I only need something to shade my eyes from the sun when it rises. If we encounter a hydra or other creature, it is best to retreat in any case. I am no slouch in close combat if retreat is not an option, and familiar with techniques that dissuade the local beasts from pushing an attack. We also have you with us, an esteemed hero."

Applebloom nodded. "Well, hydras don't typically move too far from water, even to pursue prey. I wasn't aware there were suitable water sources here for them to be a threat."

"The summer melt extends marshes further and thus persists for several months after summer has ended. The season is almost done. The marshes shall soon diminish back to their regular area, and the hydras shall retreat back with them," the lorekeeper explained.

"Marsh? You mean like an icky swamp?!" one of the fillies gasped in disgust.

"Marshes are excellent for growing many ingredients, but we won't venture that far, only into the regular forest. We aren't properly geared for wetland travel, and I am not going to take you right into a hydra breeding ground," Applebloom assured her.

"We shall travel to the south of town," the lorekeeper informed us. "The woods are safest in that direction. It is farther from the marshes than the north or west, and the nearest regular grounds for other dangerous beasts is many leagues away. There are some poisonous plants in the area, so keep close and do not wander from the trail I set."

"What about the east?" one of the fillies asked.

The lorekeeper shook her head. "That is going towards the Hallowed Shades; those lands are rocky badlands, not suitable for your purposes."

"There are some things out there, but not as abundant as in the woods, and not the type of things I had planned for today's lesson," Applebloom confirmed. "Let us be off then."

The lorekeeper pulled her bandana down to cover her eyes. It was thin enough that her eyes were barely visible still just behind the cloth. She started walking out the entrance of the mountain, and we followed.

The town outside was quiet. The stalls for the market were currently closed. No earth ponies were up and about, but there were a significant number of night ponies. Some of them were standing around, chatting, but there were even more in the air. Night ponies were a winged tribe, like their cousins, the pegasi; ponies with wings needed to fly and they certainly did not do that under the mountain—at least, not for a significant time, not in the confines of a cavern. It figured that they would come out of the mountain to fly around where there was more space.

I couldn't make out the trees well in the dark. The forest was just one big shadow that extended all around the town. That made it feel a little easier.

"I thought there would be more mountains," I said. "I don't see any mountains in the distance."

"You can see them from the other side of the mountain; the range extends on for many leagues. This is the furthest mountain down the range, though the terrain gets hilly from here on out, but no more mountains," the lorekeeper explained. "Those hilly areas are what cause the marshes to seasonally grow. The rains come, they roll downhill, and they pool between the hills. You go further east and the marshes and forests bordering the mountains disappear, at least on the north side of the range. The mountains block rainfall from reaching that area."

"That seems like it gets dry pretty quickly. Why so quickly?" I asked.

The lorekeeper looked out towards the mountain. "The old capital, the Hallowed Shades. That land is cursed—nothing grows there. It dries the land beyond where the land was already getting less rainfall."

"The shadows have been destroyed," Applebloom said. "My sister was there. She saw them come to an end."

"Perhaps," the lorekeeper conceded. "The land still remembers. The groundwater is too deep, and the stone too thick. The surface above the ruins has been a dustbowl for centuries, with only a few hills guarding our area from getting hit with the dust."

"Your ancestors didn't have the same respect for your environment. They ruined the land where they made their capital. It isn't a curse, it is just environmental degradation," Applebloom said with a sigh. "They hollowed out all the ground in the area. They made it so roots could not grow deep. Trees can't grow above the old city. There was already a rain shadow over the city, so it wasn't getting much rain."

"Grass and shrubs could have returned, but the lingering hatred within the old capital kept anything from growing," the lorekeeper countered. "You all say the shadows are gone. I believe that you have broken their power so they are no longer a threat, but I believe they still linger. A thousand years of animosity does not die in one battle. The grass has not returned, nor do any shrubs grow. When I see those return, then it shall be time for us to reclaim our ancestral home, but not before. We shall not risk the shadows, even if they are diminished."

"Well, hopefully some grass will start growing soon," Applebloom responded, sounding exasperated.

"There is nothing wrong with hope," the lorekeeper said. "Keep close, we head south."

We walked in silence for a minute or two before I decided to break it.

"So, why are you two interested in alchemy?" I asked Prim's friends. "It doesn't seem like a very unicorny field."

The one that I knew was higher in the pecking order raised her nose. "My family has specialized in perfumes for generations. Our family fortune is based on their sale. Perfumes are among the things that can get imported from Earth and we find ourselves suddenly facing new competition in the market. My family decided it would be best if I studied alchemy so I could better devise new perfumes in the future and keep us on top of the Equestrian market."

"Is that what you want to do, or what your family wants?" I asked.

"Does it matter?" the filly replied with a sniff. "I want to maintain my family's importance, and if this is what it takes, then I shall duly do my duty."

The other filly lowered her ears. "My family runs a large chain of apothecaries. Unfortunately, one of our recent medicines had...unfortunate side effects. They told me I need to study alchemy so they can save face and show their commitment to ensuring all future generations are the best when it comes to devising remedies."

That filly didn't sound like she was happy with the instruction and was less enthusiastic about doing what her family told her, but I decided not to push it. I supposed nobles had their own pressures they were under, even noble foals.

"I think I miss teaching at regular schools sometimes," Applebloom said, making me and the two fillies look up at her in surprise as we walked. "Don't get me wrong, teaching at our school is an honor, and I am very happy to be able to teach my craft, but small town schools with younger students had smaller worries. I miss having most of my classes being filled with students whose biggest worries were some petty playground arguments. The stakes are bigger here, and students are carrying a lot more on their shoulders. That makes my role all the more important, but also makes me feel a lot more pressure. Try to remember that whenever you are dealing with anypony at the school, whether they be student or professor, everypony is carrying a burden."

"Do you...do you know where we currently rank, Professor Applebloom?" the filly with the apothecary family asked.

Applebloom sighed. "You are currently number nineteen of thirty in your class. Aroma is currently twenty-first out of the thirty, and Turnip is currently thirteenth out of the thirty."

"I'm in the bottom third?!" Aroma, the perfumist family filly asked in disbelief. "The bottom third gets dismissed at the end of the school year according to Headmaster!"

Applebloom nodded. "If they fail to impress Headmaster. Believe me, I'm not happy with his policy. I'm not sure anypony among the faculty is, but he makes the decisions regarding that. All I can say is do your best. The rankings are constantly in flux."

Aroma stopped and pointed at me. "How's he doing so much better than us? He's an earth pony!"

Applebloom stopped and looked at Aroma, and Aroma instantly recognized her error.

"Not that there's anything wrong with being an earth pony," Aroma hastily clarified. "But this is a magic school and he can't even do things in most of the classes!"

"Turnip has a specialized program this year where he is taking classes with me and in artifacts, and he will transition to the regular program next year, if he makes it to next year," Applebloom informed her. "You two also have a specialized program, since you are opting out of combat magic and elemental magic—the same classes Turnip currently is opting out of—in favor of classes with me and with whoever ends up being our new dream magic professor, so you are getting equal special treatment. Part of why you two may be lagging behind at the moment is because of the dream magic, given that faculty position is still in flux, making it harder to do well. I hope Headmaster takes into consideration how that is impacting students in that class at the end of the year."

"You have no dream magic professor?" the lorekeeper asked. "I suppose I am not surprised. Few of my tribe would be happy teaching at a day pony school."

"We had Psychic Calm at the start of the year, but he passed away. Princess Luna is currently substituting, but she isn't really available outside of class to help students with anything they are struggling with," Applebloom explained.

The lorekeeper cowered slightly. "The dread princess of the night is instructing them? I suppose that is an honor, but one I would prefer not bestowed on me in their position. I know of Psychic Calm, and am unsure if I could have dealt with him either."

"Why not him?" I asked.

The lorekeeper shook her head and lowered her voice. "Ones such as him and the dread princess are far more dangerous confined sick in bed than a bloodthirsty army at your doorstep. Our ancestors who committed the most egregious sins against Equestria fell long before the capital was breached. You can put walls between you and an army, you can raise spears against the mightiest of warriors, but everypony must eventually sleep. Once you have broken the rules that must never be broken there is no winning against such a foe. The rules protect us from the dread princess...and I suppose now her heirs as well. Our ancestors learned that in blood and terror. Every few generations there is somepony who thinks they can break the rules, and do so with abandon, thinking they can avoid justice; they do not live long after. Even when trapped on the moon, the dread princess was ever vigilant."

"Is there really nopony you can think of that might be interested in teaching at our school?" Applebloom asked as we passed by a hill garden.

The lorekeeper frowned. "Well...there is one...the Earthling night pony running the excavation team."

Applebloom groaned. "Anypony else?"

"No, not really," the lorekeeper answered.

"That's a bust then."

"What's wrong with that pony?" I asked.

"They're an Earthling, probably," Aroma replied with a flip of her mane.

I glared at her. "We already have Earthlings on staff."

"A good point, Turnip," Applebloom quickly interjected. "The fact the excavation leader is an Earthling is probably the primary reason she is even the excavation leader—she lacks the same cultural taboos that the night ponies here have about the Hallowed Shades. The reason she doesn't work for us is that...how do I put this...she doesn't have the right temperament."

"She means that bat is exceedingly rude and tactless," the lorekeeper explained.

"Says the night pony who just used a slur for night ponies against one of her own," Applebloom replied.

The lorekeeper snorted. "She is not one of our own. She is descended from humans. She has no ties to our culture or our heritage, yet she tries to be its caretaker. I would like nothing better than to see her gone and her desecration of our old capital put to an end. She was a ward to Master Krik, so she should be more than adequate to teach dream magic."

"Who is Master Krik?" Aroma asked. "That's a weird name."

"One of Psychic Calm's adopted siblings, another of the ones that Luna gave power over the dream realm on Earth. He was best known for having ordered his own tongue ripped out shortly after he transformed into a pony from being a human," Applebloom explained. "He passed away a few years ago. I don't question that she should know her stuff, but she just isn't good with other ponies. I guess I'll have to report to Headmaster there aren't any good options here."

"W-wh-why would a pony do that?! Why would anypony rip their own tongue out?!" the apothecary filly asked in horror. "That's horrible!"

"I have no idea," Applebloom confessed. "I met the guy once. He was just plain weird. I've never heard of any other pony doing something like that. His title was Warden of Silence. I guess he took that very literally. He used to use some sort of sign language to communicate, but I couldn't make heads or tails of it. He could make five or six quick gestures, and Luna and his ward could somehow get paragraphs of information out of that. He also had this strange laugh that sounded like a mix of a choke and a rasp. It made me wonder if there was more wrong with his voice than just not having a tongue."

"Earthlings are strange. Why question what they do?” Aroma stated haughtily.

"Hey! We don't go around having our tongues ripped out," I protested.

The lorekeeper held up a wing and brought us to a stop. "We are here. Please, stay close. There may be fewer dangerous creatures here, but there are toxic plants that you do not want to wander into."

I stopped in my tracks and stood as rigid as possible to control the shaking in my legs. It seemed like a solid wall of trees, with no visible path between. Thick bushes were below the trees, masking what lay behind them, and I could only see one or two trees deep because of how thick the vegetation was. How did those bushes grow with the trees suffocating out the light and nutrients? Did rain even reach the ground here, or did the trees guzzle it all down before it had a chance to fall so far?

"I don't see a path," Aroma stated.

"There isn't one," the lorekeeper said dryly.

"We're supposed to walk through the bushes and everything else?!" Aroma asked in disbelief. "I'll get filthy! I'll get leaves and branches stuck in my mane!"

"That happens in the wilderness," the lorekeeper replied. "Keep close so you don't get anything dangerous stuck in your mane. Professor Applebloom, if you would, could you clear us a small path, perhaps five ponylengths." She paused and pointed with a wing. "There."

"The foals won't have the benefit of a strong earth pony in the future, so I prefer they do the work," Applebloom replied.

The lorekeeper rolled her eyes. "Very well. Unicorn fillies, please use your magic to separate the branches where I am pointing. Be careful not to snap them."

"They'll snap back in place if we don't hold them," the apothecary filly replied.

"Are you incapable of keeping them held for five minutes?" the lorekeeper asked.

The filly seemed to consider. "Five seems a bit much. That's a long time to hold my magic, even if I'm not doing anything really complicated."

"Maybe you and I can take turns at it so neither of us wear ourselves out," Aroma suggested. "Whatever it takes to keep those branches off of me. I'm not messing up my mane! They've probably got disgusting bugs crawling around on them."

The apothecary filly nodded and looked at me. "Why are we doing all the work while he doesn't have to do anything? It's a forest; this seems like something earth ponies should be taking the lead on."

"Who said he won't be doing anything?" Applebloom asked. "Trust me, he'll be pulling his weight. As for earth ponies taking the lead in a forest—we have some strengths when dealing with plantlife, but this growth is completely wild and harder to manage, and earth ponies don't typically make our homes in forests—harder to grow a proper crop in the forest, at least, traditional crops. Night ponies are also known as forest ponies; they do better here than earth ponies."

"Although we tend to move through the canopy and only go down to the underbrush as needed. We also don’t tend to cultivate anything in the woods; we only learn where best to gather and know not to overgraze an area," the lorekeeper said. “Come, fillies, open up the underbrush, unless you wish to try climbing trees. I would find it very amusing to watch a day pony try to climb a tree without wingthumbs. It may start raining soon, so we should hurry.”

“You don’t know if rain is scheduled?” Aroma asked in disbelief.

The lorekeeper laughed. “We are far from pur feathered cousins’ settlements. The weather does what the weather wants to do out here. It doesn’t act on a schedule.”

“That’s barbaric!” Aroma squealed.

“Um…that’s normal anywhere but Equestria,” I said defensively. Yeah, hurricane season brought some semi-scheduling to rain back home, but we didn’t exert much control over the weather other than that—some small, localized showers, that was it. The government would pitch a fit if pegasi were doing weather manipulation on a large scale. It had side-effects elsewhere when they did. Come to think if it…that should prove true for Equestria as well. Whose weather was getting disrupted because of Equestria controlling its own?

“Things work differently in different places,” Applebloom insusted. “The weather is wild in places close to home too. The weather over the Everfree is uncontrolled, and is actually highly resistant to pegasi trying to do anything to it. The Crystal Empire’s is the same. It doesn’t matter how many pegasi you throw at those storms; they won’t be turned or break.”

“Hmm,” the lorekeeper grunted. “Bad examples. Both those places the weather is unnatural. Better to speak about the Griffin Empire, the lands far south, or the lands across the sea. That forest we have tales about. It was promised it would be forever free, and it intends to keep itself that way. As for the north, up past the Crystal Empire…that is best left alone. You day ponies already made a mess of that.”

“What do you mean we made a mess of it?” Aroma asked defensively.

“Your ponies remember, if only in fragments. What do you think those Hearthswarming tales are about?” the lorekeeper replied. “We tarry too long. Open the path, fillies.”