The grating shriek of the hourly bell interrupts my reading and sours my mood thoroughly. I grumble softly to myself, gather my papers into my blue binder and dog-ear the page of my novel as those around me stand and slouch off towards their next class. I follow them shortly after with no small amount of discomfort from the child sized desk and the position of my bad knee. Out the door and up the stairs I trudge, my legs complaining the entire way and my lips curling into a tight grimace as thoughts of unfinished assignments come forward. I bulldoze through the sea of disgruntled and angst filled teens pushing and shoving until my cubby hole of a locker is in sight. Swears slip loose of my tongue as I fiddle and fight with a rusty and worn out old combination lock. After no less than six failed attempts a well placed kick prompts the slender door open and lets a flurry of papers loose upon the floor at my feet. I toss a few unnecessary items in and kneel to retrieve both the scattered pages and the binder needed for my next class.

Out of the blue a pair of Nikes tear into the rumpled reports clenched in my hands and sends them off to be trampled underfoot of those who pass by without a care in the world past surviving another day in school. I glance up but the leg attached to the slave made shoes and its respective owner have already vanished into the masses and away from me. I roll my eyes softly and turn away from my locker with an armful of notebooks and assorted assignments. With a deft kick my locker’s door slams home and I force a path amidst the final stragglers.

A firm shoulder opens the way into a bleak room whose walls are adorned with positive, peppy, pro-math posters that fail in every conceivable way to improve any student’s mood. My head dips low at the instructor in acknowledgment as the late bells tolls and his lesson commences. The barely completed problems are wrenched from my hands from teacher’s pet as I slump into a lonely seat far from anyone else. Shaky hands push my books aside and I rest my head in the pillow of my folded arms.

I try to stay awake and pay attention. I really do, but my thoughts begin to wonder and soon Y = A times the quantity of X + P plus the quantity of X + Q fades into sheer white noise as my heavy eyelids droop and my mind kicks into high gear.

I dream and fantasize and imagine in my slumber but my rest ends all to abruptly when my instructor shouts out my name and demands an answer.

“X = 42 squared.” I bluff without raising my head.

“Nice try,” he mutters and turns his back to me, “Office. Now.” he commands and I obey.

I abandon my writing utensils and such and head for the door with my head down and a silent smile slathered across my face. I bumble with the knob and escape without a word. Garbled notes waft from my pursed lips as I maunder and skip down the hallways glowering in to the classrooms and gawking stupidly at their occupants just to procrastinate a bit before approaching the main office.

Squeaky hinges alert the secretaries to my existence as I enter and they look at me with an odd mixture of anticipation and apathy. I trot over their desk and lean over.

“Gollum kicked me out again.” I announce, smiling as they frown at my use of my teacher’s nickname. “So what’ll I be doing instead of…” I lose my train of thought and sputter a bit as something outside catches my eye.

“What’s that now?” The rounder of the two secretaries asks.

“Nothing,” I reply carelessly, “I’ll see you later, probably at Saturday school.” I mumble as I turn tail and walk out without the slightest of worries about any possible repercussions. Whatever is outside is certainly more important than school anyhow.

“Well I’ll be...”I mutter incoherently as I march out the doors and into a blustery autumn afternoon and an utterly alien shindy. “And here I thought they were only mythical creatures.” I ramble on as I gaze at the pale Pegasi standing smack dab in the middle of the road. "So what's a Pegasus doing around these parts?" I wonder aloud.

“Pegasus?" The alabaster animal questions me. “Why I’m an Alicorn!” The apperantly female Alicorn drops her head low and brandishes a long, spiraled horn that ends in a wicked point.

“So you are,” I agree with the talking, winged, horned horse. “And do you have a name Ms. Alicorn?” I ask calmly as fear and confusion builds within the forefront of my mind.

“Why of course!” She tosses her head sending her long hair of coalescing colors spilling over her shoulders. “I am Celestia, princess of Equestria and bringer of the sun.” she states quite matter-of-factly and with an air of unabashed pride in her title.

“Sure,” I cross my arms and take in the queer sight before me. Looking past her obviously impossible and mythical features I notice the tattoos across her flesh and the tautness of her half outstretched wings. “I assume you’re not from around here.” I attempt to continue what is assuredly the strangest conversation of my life.

“No,” she admits walking a bit closer to me as she does, “To be brutally honest I haven’t the faintest idea where I am or how I…” A sudden expression of understanding graces her and she sighs heavily. “Twilight…”

“No,” I correct her, “It’ll be light out for another five hours or so.”

“Heh,” she chuckles and approaches my once more leaving only a dozen feet between us. “I’m afraid I meant my pupil, one Twilight Sparkle, not the coming of dusk.”

“Ah, I see.” I lie. “So what does one Twilight Sparkle have to do with your unexpected visit here?”

“She may have been the one who sent me here, she quite talented,” She brags, “But lacks full control over said talent which is most likely how I ended up here before you.”

“Could be.” I tilt my head curiously as Celestia bridges the final gap between us and stands directly before me. Her eyes glowing softly pink and her hair quivering in an ethereal breeze. Standing on all four legs she’s just ever so slightly taller than my six foot frame. “So how will you get back to… Equestria was it?”

“Oh I can easily teleport back,” she answers while looking around at her surroundings. “Hmm, I like it here; I may just have to return one day.” She smiles at me and I swear I see her wink. “Until then…” her horn glows brightly and blinds me. I raise a trembling hand to shield my eyes but she’s already gone. “May this token brighten even the most dreary days and darkest nights.” A hollow, haunting whisper wraps around my head and settles in my ears. I blink away the splotches of black and gasp slightly at the object now in my clenched fingers. A soft smile forms as I look at the miniature sun on a golden chain. I slip the present over my head and feel gloriously uplifted as its solid weight comes to rest against my cold chest. I look around once more for any signs of the celestial creature but find nothing more. With a final glance at the glowing globe hanging from my neck I head back in.

“I’m not sure what just happened,” I mumble as I reenter the educational institution, “but it was certainly worth the impending detention.” A few jumbled notes of a mysterious melody come to mind and I hum them gently as I return to the office and await my punishment.

And to think that had I been paying attention in Algebra none of this would have occurred.

Author's Note

The result of insomnia, borderline insanity, and something or other else I guess.