It had been a quiet couple of days, once Aspect was able to quell the Muse-like aura that Realm emanated. Now he and Toola would either be found painting together… or arguing about painting together.

Twilight had once tried to put her two bits in about art and the tirade she received from the pair lasted over an hour.

“So,” Toola hummed as she stared up at the ominous painting of Everfree Castle. “Finally ready to tame this beast huh?”

“First thing I do with my magic when I get it back,” the colt stated as he adjusted his saddlebags. He’d turned a fair few crystals into paint and stored them in jars, to carry it all inside. “The same thing that caused me to lose it.”

“Need a hoof?” the earth mare asked him. “Not sure how much help I can be, but better than going at it alone.”

“No, it’s fine,” the colt said with a wave of one wing. “I’m sure it’s not going to be a big deal at all. I’ll only be walking into a painting that tried to eat me and attempt to tame it. What could possibly go wrong?”

“Right, so in I go then,” Toola nodded and leapt at the painting, diving in first.

“...I don’t know what she thinks she’s going to do there, but…” Realm sighed before walking into the painting as well, appearing on the path to the castle. Inside, he found Toola Roola looking around at the scenery, her mouth ajar with surprise.

“This is a painting?” she murmured, not noticing Realm’s appearance. “Tartarus, now this is something else.”

“Yeah, greatest work yet and it still feels half-done,” Realm replied, shrugging off his saddlebags and pulling out a jar of Spectra paint. He slathered some on his wings and closed his eyes, breathing deeply. With a wave of his wing, it began.

A cloud appeared in the sky, followed by another, and another. Each time he waved his wings, more clouds appeared, soon dotting the artificial sky with enough clouds for any painted pegasus to use as a comfy bed.

“Interesting,” Toola stared up at the sky. Something still felt wrong. But what? It bugged the mare to no end, like an itch you couldn’t quite reach.

Then the colt put more paint on his wings, having used up all that he’d slathered on in making the clouds. And with a mighty effort, he waved his wings, grunted….

And a painted sun came into view above the clouds. Once it did, the feeling of hostility from the world around them all but vanished.

“Mmm, nice and warm,” Toola Roola hummed. “Hey colt, how does that paint work exactly? In here, it seems… different somehow, like an extension of your creativity?”

“That’s how it always works,” the colt replied, putting another jar on his wings. He’d had to use up an entire coating making the sun. “If you hold an image in your mind as to how it should work, what you want to make with it, then it works on that. Physical contact helps as well. Never met a Unicorn Pictomancer who didn’t use his hooves to spread the stuff around.”

“I see,” Toola nodded and closed her eyes to think. What was it that bugged her about this place? The castle was so real, the forest, the trees, the warm sun. She could hear her heart beating in her chest, the paced breath from her muzzle, Realm’s more laboured breathing… Gods, the quiet was almost deafening.

Then she gasped aloud. “That’s IT!”

“What?” the young Pictomance asked. “What is?”

Toola ignored him for the moment, a million thoughts racing through her mind. She walked over to one of the jars and dipped the tip of her tail in, before closing her eyes…

Then, a little grey rabbit appeared, leaping up in front of Realm before scurrying off into the bushes.

“Oh,” the colt replied. “Then again, I’ve not done a whole lot of outdoors paintings before...guess that detail slipped my mind.”

“For a painting that almost cost your life, it certainly… lacks…” Then Toola got an idea.

A crazy one.

“Hey colt,” she hummed. “This paint, is it limited to visual representation?”

“As in, do you have to know what it looks like to make it?” the colt tried to elaborate. Toola shook her head and her manic grin widened.

“Wait here, I wanna try an experiment!” she chuckled and then ran off through the portal, leaving Realm alone. “And don’t move! You get hurt and I’ll kick your flank!” she shouted.

“...Well that bodes well, I don’t think,” Realm muttered. And he’d just been about to make a moon as well…

Luckily, Toola hadn’t taken very long, only about fifteen minutes. And given the way she was panting when she returned, she must have been running non-stop.

Also, she wasn’t alone.

“Um… heya kiddo!” Lyra waved, though her face was torn between her usual joy and slight confusion. “Do you know why Mommapone dragged me in here all of a sudden?”

“No clue,” the colt replied. “We’re busy taming the painting, though. Might have something to do with that.”

“Just… gimme… urgh, getting old sucks,” Toola wheezed as she tried to catch her breath. After a moment, she inhaled and sighed deeply. “Okay. Now, I want to try something.” She looked at Lyra and that grin returned. “Hey Minty, you got that harp of yours?”

“Always, also, it’s called a—”

“Don’t care,” Toola interrupted her. “Gimme.”

Lyra sighed, but handed her the instrument. The mare giggled and she promptly dunked the thing in Spectra Paint.

“Ahhh, what the buck!?” Lyra yelled.

“I have never seen this before,” the colt admitted.

Toola took it back out as the paint seemed to seep into the instrument before she handed it back to Lyra.

“Okay Minty. Now I have a request,” she said, Lyra giving her beloved item an odd look. “I want you to think of… forest sounds.”

“Wut?” Lyra blinked.

“Forest sounds,” Toola repeated. “You know, bird songs, wind rustling the leaves, small critters doing critter things.” Her smile returned and she beamed bright. “I want you to paint with sound itself!”

“That...would be awesome, if it worked,” Realm said, not sure how he didn’t think of it.

“O-Okay… I guess, I could try,” Lyra nodded as she held her instrument. “But, I can’t play that sort of sound…”

“You don’t have to,” Toola nodded. “Just feel it, deep in your heart. Look Lyra, you’re one of the most imaginative and emotional musicians I know. You can do this!”

Lyra’s eyes widened and she smiled, closing her eyes and focusing.

Nothing happened… not at first.

Then Realm’s ear flicked, was that, the… faint sound of a bird call? He looked and a robin had appeared on one of the tree branches, chirping away. Toola’s tail swished and flicked, small animals appearing as Lyra gave them a voice, literally.

And then he heard other ambient sounds, leaves rustling in the wind, the sound of water of a distant, unseen stream. And every now and then, faint music would play, little harp strings plucked in time with nature’s symphony.

The painting was coming alive. And instead of feeling an oppressive atmosphere that hungered...now it was just the opposite. Now it felt bursting to the brim with life and activity.

“It works, It actually works~” Toola smiled, not even noticing the faint shining coming from hers and Lyra’s Cutie Marks. Inspired by the success, the colt put more paint on his wings and swept them in front of him again. He felt rather than saw the moon appear, and smiled to himself. Another application of paint, and he finished off the cloud and storm layer, making sure to make it as varied as it would ever need to be. A flick of his wings saw the cloud layer set to random, while the sun slowly started to move through the sky, in time with the normal one.

And now...now the painting was well and truly tamed, a true masterwork.

“Whoo, I feel… sleepy,” Toola hummed, sitting down rather suddenly.

“Careful,” the colt said, drawing closer to both mares. “You’ve exerted your magic a lot today. You’ll need to get some rest before you wind up like I did, burnt out. Thank you, but you really should get something to eat, some rest.”

“Yeah… sounds good,” Toola murmured. “Iz your painting good now?”

Realm closed his eyes and concentrated, humming softly as he felt out the painting. Thanks to all the work done on it, very little of it’s ‘hungry’ nature remained. He nodded once as he opened his eyes. “It’s perfect now,” he replied to them. “Let’s get out of here before you pass out in here.”

“Sure,” Toola murmured as Lyra propped her up, sighing and chuckling. Still, this had been quite fun for the unicorn mare. Lyra wondered just what other adventures awaited her in the future… and if she'd still be welcome.

Meanwhile, Aspect was having troubles of his own. Namely in the form of the greatest forces of chaos and destruction since Discord.

The self proclaimed Cutie Mark Crusaders. He once toyed with the idea of telling them about the Crusades of earth… Though ponies were a tad too innocent for such tales.

And speaking of tales. The three fillies demanded one from him.

Namely the origin of his Cutie Mark.

“Urgh, I still say we find Rainbow Dash,” Scootaloo muttered. “Nopony will have a story as awesome as her.”

“I’m not too certain my story is meant for young ears anyways,” Aspect replied. “I mean, my duty is quite important, even if I haven’t gotten to exercise it in some time.”

“Oh please?” Applebloom asked, her eyes widening as her bottom lip pouted. This was a pony’s true power. The Power of Cute. And that little filly was at Grandmaster levels. “We want our Cutie Marks, so we’re hearin’ whut other ponies did ta get theirs.”

“All right, all right,” Aspect waved her off. “Fine. But keep in mind, I’m old. Things were different way back then. Let me see...which one to tell you all…”

“Uh, your Cutie Mark one?” Scootaloo deadpanned. “Unless you have more than one Cutie Mark.”

“Can you share if you do?” Sweetie asked quite seriously.

“Fine, the one where I learned what my duty was,” Aspect nodded. “Ages ago, ponies lived in a place called Dream Valley. It was nice there, lush fields, trees ripe with fruit, towns cropping up everywhere. Beautiful place, really. And then one day the magic started to act up, more than usual. The magic of Dream Valley was being wrested from six very important wands by a fiend known as Lavan. Originally he was a Lava Demon. But by the time Wind Whistler and I got to where he was draining the magic from the wands, he’d turned into a being made entirely of crystal, and was attacking the ponies whose job it was to watch after the wands.”

“Minus the monsters, that place kinda sounds like Equestria,” Sweetie pointed out. “We got lots of greenery and fruit and towns.”

“Mm, it was simpler then,” Aspect absentmindedly nodded. “Also a reason I led the ponies here when the Windigoes came, but that’s a story for another time. Where was I? Oh yes, he was attacking the ponies. Well, we were deep in an underground cave, and every time he missed, the terrain Lavan had hit instead became crystalized, like him. So I got an idea. I stood in front of a crystallized cave wall, and the magic bounced off of it and hit him, stunning him. Then the six ponies put their wands where they needed to be to recharge them, and the magic of the land was restored...but there was still the problem of Lavan. While he was stunned, I used my sword to shatter his crystal body, and it broke instantly. He turned to dust that dissipated almost instantly...and it was then I realized my purpose. To find the great evils of the world that were threatening the ponies...and deal with them. And that was when I got my mark, of a balanced set of scales. Because it was my job to rebalance the forces of the world every time they went astray.”

The three fillies sat there, gawping at the tale with wide eyes and wider mouths. A stunned silence filled the room.

“Mmmhmm,” Aspect nodded. “Did that quite a few more times. Squirk, Arabus, Crunch, Grogar...The witches of Mount Gloom, that enchantress that came by, and the Boogeyman. Slew them all, rebalanced the scales.”

“But why?” Sweetie piped up, the first to find her voice again. “Couldn’t you have just… I dunno, talked to them? And if it’s balance, then isn’t too much good a bad thing for you?”

“I was not the Diplomat the world called for,” Aspect sighed. “That was not my role. There once was a fountain...not far from here. Those that drank from it were granted great power and life everlasting, if they drank enough. I drank only a sip compared to the ones that gorged themselves. But it was enough to grant me life unending, and enable me to wield the blade. The world...was in balance, when it was just the world and the ponies in it. But when the great evils rose up to torment the ponies, it became my job to level the playing field for the ponies. And more often than not...they were not interested in talking. And, most troubling of all...there are still some evils in this world, simply biding their time.”

“I guess that makes sense?” Sweetie blinked.

“Of course it does!” Scootaloo beamed. “He’s… like a superhero! I mean, still not quite as awesome as Rainbow Dash, but he’s a close second.”

“Mmm, well, give it time,” Aspect chuckled. “Hopefully I’ll never have to demonstrate the full range of my powers, but for the longest time, I was the weakest, the smallest, of the forces in this world. But I grew stronger with every evil I slew, and most importantly, I sat back, I watched, I learned. I asked questions, I observed what ponies did, and I grew stronger, more sure in my powers the longer I lived among them. These days I’m more of a sleeping Ursa than anything else.”

“Ten bits says Rainbow would still win,” Scootaloo puffed out her chest confidently. Sweetie and Bloom just rolled their eyes.

“Well, thanks for the story,” Sweetie said. “But, I don’t think we’re gonna get our Cutie Marks in monster slaying.”

“Well we haven’t tried it yet…” Scootaloo pointed out and the other fillies started getting a thoughtful look in their eyes.

“Ap, no,” Aspect said, holding a hoof up at them. “Your sisters would kill me if you went into the Everfree to hunt monsters. Or anywhere to hunt monsters. Promise me you won’t go anywhere near any monsters.”

The three looked at one another and sighed. “Fiiiine,” they echoed. “Cross our hearts, hope to fly, stick a cupcake in our eye.”

‘Fooorrreevvveerrrrrr…….’

The stallion wisely chose not to question it. Questioning Pinkie ended up hurting. He simply nodded and smiled at the fillies. “Don’t worry, I’m sure you’ll find your marks one day,” he told them, rubbing them behind the ears.

“Argh, but that’s the problem!” Scootaloo pouted.

“We want ‘em now,” Applebloom sighed.

“Still, thanks for the cool story,” Sweetie added.

“Mmhmm, and remember, no monsters,” Aspect told them. “Go on then, try something. I’m sure you’ll find your marks one day.”

“Okay, can we please find Rainbow Dash now?” Scootaloo sighed. “I wanna hear her totally awesome story!”

“Alright, alright,” Sweetie rolled her eyes. “You wanna come too Mister Aspect?”

“Nah, I have to prepare Realm for his first day of school,” Aspect replied. “Make sure he’s got his magic under control before he goes and all that.”

“We’re gonna have a new pony at school?” Sweetie squeaked, bouncing up and down.

“Assuming he stops having adventures for one day, yes,” Aspect chuckled. “Two, actually. I’m sending them together.”

“Two?” Scootaloo and Applebloom looked at one another.

“Yup, but saying more would ruin the surprise,” Aspect replied. “Go on, go hear your story.”

“Okaaaay, fine,” Scootaloo whined as she jumped onto her scooter, Sweetie and Applebloom piling into the attached wagon. “Later Teach!” And with a buzz of her wings, they rocketed off down the road towards town.

“Cute kids. Could do with more dedicated adult supervision,” Aspect noted aloud. “Still. Nice to have somepony I can tell my old stories to.”

“Feeling nostalgic old man?” Hurricane said from one of the portraits. “Now you can’t complain when I feel like telling old war stories.”

“It’s slightly different,” Aspect replied. “When I tell a story, it’s about one pony standing against the monsters. When you tell a story, it’s about the days the three tribes fought.”

“Yeah, but so much flanked gets kicked. Everyone loves a tale with flank kicking, especially when Hurricane was doing the kicking!” She pumped her hoof in the air. “Oh, you also need to check out the painting Realm did. Before you go and see him, have a look at what your boy accomplished with the help of his friends eh?”

“I’ll put it on my list,” Aspect replied. “Hmm...is there anything to do today besides that?” The stallion mused to himself before shrugging. “Guess not. I can take a look.”

Aspect wandered through his house before finally ending up at the painting Realm had managed to create, and even from the outside he could tell that there was something different about it. It took him actually stepping in to place it.

This...this felt like a real and proper, complete painting now. Like its own little bubble of reality. Sakes, there were even animals in the forest. Which begged the question ‘what would he do if one of them wandered out of the painting’ but...that would be later. Right now he just wanted to soak it all in. His ear flicked as he heard some music wafting in the background, a familiar lyre being plucked.

Seems his boy had a little help with this endeavour. He would have to properly thank Lyra later. Wait a tic, Hurricane had said ‘friends.’ Plural. Hmm. Who else…

Ah yes. Toola. Had she forgiven him for that stint when he was getting his magic under control already?

Aspect popped out of the painting and hummed to himself. He just thought of something to do. Find Artemis first, then put them both together for the news that they’ll be attending school tomorrow. He’d check the library, the pup usually was in there.

And there he was, pouring over some vocabulary books and writing guides. He let out a small growl and tossed his quill, scratching at his head.

“Bones! This is impossible! How do ponies learn this stuff?”

“With a kind, understanding teacher,” Aspect spoke up, looking around. “I see you’ve been busy trying to learn as much as you can before going to school.”

“Well, I don’t want to be the ‘stupid dog’ now do I?” he snapped, before sighing. “Sorry, this is just a little frustrating. Getting used to the topside world is gonna take a while.”

“Hey, like I said, it took me ages to learn how ponies write,” Aspect replied. “Well, more like months. But still, I didn’t want to appear dumb either. I had a nice mare to help me learn the writing system, and it still took me months to learn. Don’t worry. That’s perfectly normal. Plus side, you’re still young. You’ll be able to learn it faster than I did.”

“Harder to teach an old dog new tricks huh?” he smirked back.

“Eh, there was a study done a while back,” Aspect replied with a shrug. “Younger kids learn new languages faster or something like that. I forget the details. Anyways, I wanna bring you to meet Realm. Come tomorrow you both are going to school, so I figured it was time you at least met.”

“Huh, oh um… that weird magic I’ve been feeling?” he asked as he stood up. “The one you told me to stay away from?”

“What about it?” Aspect replied as he began leading the way.

“Is that him?” Artemis asked.

“Possibly, he has developed a new sort of magic,” Aspect replied. “Or to put it another way, he’s mastered the secrets of an old one...and is exploring its depths with some friends. He’s been rewarded for all his hard work. I think you’ll recognize what he is when you meet.”

“I will?” the pup blinked as he continued to follow his Alpha. “Well, lead on then.”

“Here’s a hint,” Aspect looked over his shoulder with a smile. “He’s like you. In one regard anyways.”

“He’s another dog?” Artemis asked, his tail wagging in hope.

“Nope, but keep guessing,” Aspect chuckled.

“Seriously? You’re really playing this game?” Artemis asked in a flat tone.

“I’m sure you’ll get it sooner or later,” Aspect hummed. “There’s only so many ways someone else could be like you after all.”

“They’re stuck under the same roof as you?” the canine snarked.

“HAH!” Hurricane called out from somewhere in the house.

“Last guess, we’re here,” Aspect chuckled as they reached the door to Realm’s room.

“He’s an Aspect?” the pup hazarded a guess.

“And bingo,” Aspect replied, opening the door and letting the two see each other.

“Whoa, you bought me a puppy?” Realm asked.

“Whoa, you bought me a snack?” Artemis replied back.

“Don’t make me get the newspaper, I will happily use it on both of you,” Aspect told both of them. “Realm, this is Artemis, the Aspect of Earth. Artemis, this is Realm, the Aspect of Art. Play nice you two. You’re both going to the same school tomorrow.”

“Seriously… and wait, is he an alicorn?” Artemis blinked.

“An intelligent dog?” Realm snarked back.

“This is not playing nice,” Aspect observed. “Fine, I guess I can make you both dinner before going over to miss Bon Bon’s for my own.”

Artemis let out a low whine. “Do… you have to cook?”

“If you two aren’t going to at least try to get along,” Aspect nodded. “Then yes, yes I do. Nothing else seems to be getting through to you.”

Artemis sighed and looked at Realm. “For the sakes of our tongues and stomachs—” he held out an open paw. “—Friends?”

“...I can try,” the young alicorn replied, begrudgingly putting one hoof in the dog’s paw.

“Much better. And who knows, you might have more in common than you think,” Aspect nodded at them. “Now you can either talk with each other or not, your choice, but you are going to the same school tomorrow, so—”

“Wait, what?” Realm asked, befuddled. “School? I didn’t sign up for this.”

“You’re in luck then,” Aspect smiled at him. “I signed you up for you. You start tomorrow, now that you’re well.”

“...Oh this bites,” Realm muttered.

“Eh, could be worse,” Artemis shrugged. “At least you’re a pony…”

“I honestly don’t have a problem with you being a dog,” Realm said. “I just...ponies are gonna look at me funny too, you know?”

“Cause you’re a pony princess?” Artemis snickered.

“I am a colt, thank you very much,” Realm sniffed. “That didn’t change.”

“Lucky you then,” Artemis mused. “Well, I guess school won’t be so bad. Lemme guess, we can’t show off our powers though?”

“Oh no, by all means,” Aspect replied, shocking the both of them. “Realm just has to keep his aura under control, and Artemis, no harming anypony, on purpose or accident. Besides that, I have absolutely no problem with you expressing yourself. Just keep in mind, Artemis. If you don’t know if something will harm a pony, err on the side of caution and don’t create a situation where they’d be hurt, got it?”

“I’ll keep it toned down,” the canine promised.

“Art time will be interesting,” Realm mused.

“So, the both of you are on board with going to school with each other?” Aspect asked.

“I guess so,” Artemis said. “As long as Princess here is alright with it.”

“Call me that again and I’ll not be so kind,” Realm replied with a glare.

“With skin that thin, you’d never last as a dog,” Artemis replied. “Well, I always did want a little brother.”

“I’m twelve, and a thousand years ago I’d be close to being a stallion,” Realm replied. “Now I have to wait six more years. It’s unfair is what it is.”

“Shoulda been a dog. We can go the moment we figure out how it all works really,” the canine replied with a small chuckle. “So about your age is when we start having pups of our own.”

“You two better not be getting any ideas,” Aspect warned them.

“Me? Never!” Realm promised with a too-innocent smile.

“Should I introduce him to some Diamond Dog females?” Artemis asked Aspect.

“And now I know you’re getting on too well,” Aspect replied. “Nope, nope, and nope. We will not be having any of that under this roof. Understand? Not until you’re actually of age.”

Artemis lasted all of a about a second before he started laughing. “Ahahaha, oh wow, Miss Tia was right! That worked out great!”

The stallion blinked before facehooving and drawing that hoof down his face. “Tia…” he moaned.

“Yeah, big sis always was a fan of getting one over on dad,” Realm agreed with a chuckle. “Now, about those—”

“No!” Aspect barked out. “I was serious! You get to wait young colt! And believe you me, I will know if you didn’t!”

“Awww,” Realm pouted.

“Ah well, I don’t know any girls anyway,” Artemis shrugged. “None wanted anything to do with the ‘pony pup’.”

“Well this town is just full of mares,” Realm replied. “We’ll explore it one day and I’ll show you.”

“That’s it, I’m out,” Aspect shook his head. “I am not having anything to do with you two anymore.” The stallion turned and left the pair of youngsters to their own devices.

The following day, it was time for the two males to go to their first day of school. Though trying to get them up that early in the morning was a chore in and of itself. Thank god Bon Bon’s hash browns were able to get them up.

And soon, Aspect delivered them to the place of learning.

“Kinda… small for a school isn’t it?” Artemis pointed out. “I mean, is there more than one in this town?”

“Nope, just the one, and Miss Cheerilee takes care of educating all of Ponyville’s foals,” Aspect replied, knocking on the door before opening it and poking his head in. “Ah, hello! Just dropping off the youngsters so that they can start their first day,” he said to the teacher.

“Oh?” Cheerilee looked like she’d completely forgotten that was today. “Well, don’t just stand there, bring them inside.”

Aspect nodded and motioned for Artemis to go in first. The Diamond Dog stood there for a moment, before stepping inside. Most of the foals gasped when they saw him, so he looked down at the ground, refusing to meet their gaze.

“Ahh, you’re Pup, right?” Cheerilee asked, but he shook his head in response.

“N-No ma’am, I’m called Artemis now.”

“Oh, well what a fine name. Well everypony, this is Artemis. He’ll be joining our class today from now on.”

Aspect looked around the room. Several foals looked nervous. The Cutie Mark Crusaders and some of his other magic students looked delighted though.

And then there was that Diamond Tiara filly. He could almost hear the gears in her head turning as she stared at the canine.

“And for student number two,” Aspect said before anypony got too caught up in staring at Artemis. With a little shove, the pinto alicorn was urged into the classroom...where he actually appeared to be a little nervous. He’d not really been around colts and fillies his own age before. It was all about impressing the adults with his skills. He’d never been with an equal in terms of age.

Everypony fell silent, even Artemis looked up, wondering what the fuss was about.

“Well,” Cheerilee asked, getting over her own initial shock quickly. This was Ponyville, she’d seen weirder. She walked up next to him and knelt down. “Care to introduce yourself to the class?”

“I-” Realm started, but stopped when he heard his voice going to a dreadfully high pitch. He coughed and fluttered his wings a little to get it back under control. “I’m Realm,” he said with a more normal tone. “I’m...good at art.”

Then he heard it.

“She’s pretty cute huh?” a yellow-maned unicorn colt whispered to his equally dim-looking friend.

“Snails…” Cheerilee sighed and facehooved. “Realm here is a colt.”

The unicorn blushed and looked down as the class giggled.

“Tho… doeth that make you a printhe?” a red-maned filly called out with a pronounced lisp.

“Unlike some others, Realm hasn’t been coronated,” Aspect explained.

“Don’t want a crown either,” the young artist muttered. “Lotta work for nothin’. I’d rather paint.”

“How boring,” Diamond Tiara sighed loudly. “You seem to be a pony of considerable class. Why wouldn’t you want to be better than everypony else?”

“Dad taught me a phrase, one my sisters seem to have forgotten,” Realm spoke up. “‘Iron bars don’t make a cage, and heavy is the head that wears the crown.’ It means you don’t need to be in a dungeon to be just as trapped as if you were. How many duties and responsibilities do the Princesses have? When do you think the last time they got to be themselves was? I’d rather be free and me than be chained to a throne and denied the right to do what makes me, me.”

Then the unthinkable happened.

Diamond Tiara… fell silent and… oddly pensive. Everypony in class looked more shocked at that than at the dog and pony show going on at the front.

“W-Well, rather insightful for one so young,” Cheerilee said and glanced at Aspect. “Would you like to stay and observe the class Aspect?”

“I could, but I trust you with their schooling,” Aspect nodded. “Just keep in mind. Artemis is from a Diamond Dog colony, so there’s plenty of things he doesn’t know. And Realm trapped himself in a painting for a thousand years and only just got free, so he knows less.” And with that bombshell dropped, the stallion turned away and left with a smirk on his face.

Realm’s expression dropped. Oh brother. He’d really get it now.

“I see,” Cheerilee nodded and turned to face them. “Well, you two will be staying after class so I can catch you up a little mm?”

“Yes ma’am,” Realm replied, not looking directly at her for fear that he’d disappoint her.

“Now now, no need to worry. I know special circumstances surround you both, and I’ll do my best to catch you up in no time alright?” Cheerilee smiled at them and pointed at two free seats. “Also, Artemis was it? We’re having a seat made to better suit your build, but it won’t be ready for a few days. Is that alright?”

“Oh, yes… you don’t have to though…”

“It’s fine, it was something that Aspect arranged ahead of time, but our carpenter came down with the flu.” She led them to their chairs and tapped her chin. “Hmm, well for now. We were learning math yesterday. But given our new students, let’s switch to history for now. We’ll cover highlights of the ‘After Celestia’ era, which is a few decades after the Pre-Unification Era.”

“I sort of missed the end of it,” Realm admitted as he settled into his own seat. “I got a warning from Clover about some sort of terrible darkness and decided to wait it out. Guess I forgot to make sure there was somepony on the other side to pull me out.”

“Pfft, you talk like you were actually there,” Diamond scoffed, already back to her usual self.

“Starswirl always was a stuffy old stallion, and Hurricane loved to boast,” Realm replied without even looking at her.

“Yeah right, you expect us to believe that?” Diamond retorted as Cheerilee sighed. Realm looked up to see a mare that had long since suffered this sort of behaviour.

“Okay, fine,” Realm said, now turning to look at her with a smile. “Without me telling you, name the rest of the founders. I could do it in my sleep, they were such good friends of mine.”

Diamond Tiara blinked as the rest of the class waited with bated breath. It was like watching a lion stare down a cobra.

“Puddinghead, Hurricane, Clover, Platinum, Smart Cookie and Pansy,” Sweetie recited perfectly, earning a round of groans and giggles. “What? I’m right aren’t I?”

“Mmhmm,” Realm nodded. “And Hurricane loved the chocolate pudding the chefs made at the castle. Something Puddinghead actually didn’t like. She’s the one that got Princess Celestia hooked on cake.”

“Are you saying the Founders knew the Princesses personally?” Cheerilee asked.

“Uh, duh?” Realm replied. “They were just getting Equestria started after Discord happened, they needed somepony to tell the Princesses all they could about the three tribes. The Founders made good go-betweens while Celestia and Luna learned what it meant to be rulers. Or at least, that’s what dad told me anyways. Personally, I think they just didn’t want to have to do all the paperwork.”

“Well, I’ll be…” Cheerilee mused as she paced around the front of the classroom. “The history books never stated how close they were to the princesses.” She turned and looked at Realm. “If you’d be so kind, could you tell us other stories?”

“I was twelve,” Realm replied. “I don’t know a whole lot of stories from that time, really. I lost my family when I was six, and then my dad found me and taught me art and how to defend myself. Equestria from a thousand years ago...wasn’t exactly tame.”

“Bound to be more interesting than Miss Cheerilee’s lesson,” Scootaloo giggled and that earned her a small glare from the earth pony teacher.

“Most of the stories I know are things from when the three tribes fought, anyways,” Realm replied. “Hurricane just did not have an off switch. And they aren’t...stories I would share.”

“Why not?” Applebloom asked. “Yer the same age as us right?”

“I’ve been told ponies in this day are...softer,” Realm replied. “Don’t react well to stories of violence.”

That got them all thinking, and now Scootaloo and Rumble were the only ones still excited to learn them.

“Perhaps another time then,” Cheerilee wisely decided. “Now, let’s move on to the era of the single princess…”

Later that afternoon, the students had all left for the day and that now left Artemis and Realm alone with Cheerilee, who was busy assigning them textbooks on math, history, language and social studies.

“Here is a list of the pages we have covered already,” she said to them. “Now, I’m not expecting you to catch up overnight, but try not to take too long in doing so okay?”

“This...is a lot of reading material,” Realm muttered as he looked at the pile of books.

“You don’t have to read the entire book, just the subjects we’ve already covered this term,” Cheerilee said. “I know it seems like a lot. But the two of you seem quite bright. I’m sure if you applied yourselves and worked together, it’ll take no time at all.” She finished by giving them a sweet smile.

“Oh sure, totally,” Realm replied, poking the pile with a hoof. He could do this. He could absolutely do this. He knew he could.

“That’s the spirit,” Cheerilee nodded as she turned around to find her lesson plans. She’d need to rearrange a few things. “Is there anything else you’d like to ask?”

“Nah, I think I’m good,” the alicorn colt said, still eying the pile of work. This...would probably take a while, but he could do it.

“Psst!” Artemis whispered and poked him. The canine was pointing at something, namely a teacher rummaging around on a low bookshelf.

“She’s our teacher, quitit, she’ll assign us more,” Realm hissed as he looked back at his pile.

Artemis shrugged, maybe Aspect’s tales of the kid were exaggerated? “Well I guess.”

“Alright you two,” Cheerilee got up and dusted her forelegs off. “I think we’re done here. See you for class tomorrow hmm?”

“Yes Miss Cheerilee,” Realm replied, every inch a perfect student. Artemis nodded as she let the two outside and free to return home, though now they were weighted down with many, many books.

On the way, Realm suddenly found his burden lightened, as he books now floated beside him, captured within a magenta aura.

“You know,” Twilight chuckled as she took Artemis’ too. “You do have a horn you know.”

“Give me a break, I got it like last week,” Realm replied, reaching up a hoof to poke at it. “The only magic I can do is a passive aura that inspires artists to paint and bake themselves to death. And I barely have that under control.”

Then Twilight moved into his personal space, her eyes shining brightly.

“Would you like to learn magic?” she asked, excited at the prospect of teaching the young alicorn.

“Eep!” Realm replied, scooting away as his aura flared up once out of shock before dying down again. “Artemis, help! She’s being scary again! Clover was never scary!”

“Pfft, you’re on your own here,” the dog shrugged. “Sorry Miss, but Realm here doesn’t seem to be fond of teachers much.”

Twilight deflated and sighed. “Okay… I guess Aspect would want to teach you anyway.” The fact that he called her ‘scary’ was disheartening as well. With another sigh, she teleported away… though that meant the books she was carrying had their lives reasserted by the harsh mistress of gravity… right on top of the pair.

“Note to self,” Realm slurred out. “Never call her scary again.”

“Yup, you’re a real ‘hit’ with the ladies alright,” Artemis replied dizzily.

“Let’s just go home an’ learn,” Realm said, before shaking his head. “I dun wanna anger any more mares today. Maybe waiting would be good for me…”

“Or stick to your own kennel,” the dog grunted, picking himself up. “Plenty of fillies your own age I’d say.”

“These days, fillies my own age are soft,” Realm replied. “There’s not a mare that would look at me and take me seriously, no matter how long I waited. Ponies in general are softer these days.”

“Well then aren’t you out of luck,” Artemis chuckled as he picked up the books. “Maybe a dragon is more your speed then?”

“Maybe, I dunno, I never met one,” Realm replied. “Aren’t they supposed to be big and scaly and breath fire?”

“Hey…” A small, scaled dragon paused in front of them. “You guys… seen a… purple unicorn?” he panted, looking rather out of breath.

“Yeah, Twilight Clover was just here,” Realm replied, pointing back where they’d been a minute ago. “Blinked away when I declined her magic tutoring lessons. I honestly wouldn’t mind, it’s just...the way she asked...kinda creepy.”

“Twilight offered to teach?” Spike rubbed his chin. “Huh? Well Celestia did teach her, so… eh, she’s prolly back at the library then. Well, thanks guys.” And with that, he waddled off.

“And that,” Artemis said with a small flourish. “Was a dragon.”

“Smaller than I thought,” Realm replied. “And where were the wings?”

“All I know is that he’s still a baby dragon,” Artemis shrugged. “You wanna know more, go ask him yourself.”

“Eh...maybe. He was a guy though, so...anyways. We got a lot of work to do. Better get home and tell dad.” Realm shrugged his books back on his back as he began walking towards the large home on the borders of town.

Upon arriving home, Realm was greeted by a pony he wasn’t expecting. A tall, white alicorn with a gentle smile.

“Hello little brother,” Celestia hummed. “How are you?”

“I’m doing alright,” Realm said as he set his pack down for a moment, sighing in relief. “First day of school went...okay. Keeping my aura suppressed went okay as well. Only one flare up, but that was because I was caught by surprise.”

“Mm, I had heard about that,” Celestia chuckled as she she led them inside. “She sent me a letter actually. Asking the most interesting advice.”

“She got in my personal space and had a manic grin on when talking about teaching,” Realm whined. “Not even miss Cheerilee is so chipper about teaching.”

“Twilight is… enthusiastic at times,” Celestia chuckled. “I can’t blame her, you are the newest alicorn after two centuries. Not to mention the second male alicorn as well.”

“Yeah, and the only thing I can do is live up to those blasted stories,” Realm muttered.

“Well, that will be a challenge,” the oldest alicorn chuckled. “Especially since you ascended so young.”

“Doesn’t help that I didn’t grow up with this thing,” Realm replied before poking his horn with a hoof. “I can’t even get it to glow.”

“Well, you’ll have all the time in the world now,” Celestia replied. “Father has told you about being an alicorn yes? Such as the immortality and whatnot?”

“I kinda picked up on it when you two were still around after a thousand years,” Realm deadpanned at Celestia.

“Yes well, we were born alicorns,” Celestia pointed out. “For starters, we aren’t limited by the form we are bound in.”

“...So, what?” Realm asked, tilting his head. “You can...do what exactly?”

“Well for one…” Celestia said and sighed. “He told you nothing did he? For one, Luna and I got older, instead of being stuck in the form we ascended in.”

Ah, there was the little hint of panic in Realm’s eyes.

“Well, you don’t mind being twelve years old for an eternity right?” Celestia asked.

“T-That...that can’t be,” Realm squeaked, his voice changing pitch as his aura started to flare. A voice that made Celestia’s ear flick.

“Ah, so that’s started too. I um, well… I’m sure you’ll look pretty in a dress,” she chuckled.

“Y-You’re lying!” Realm pointed a hoof at her. “You have to be! There’s no way I could…”

“Ever wonder why there’s no male alicorns?” Celestia said with a low chuckle. “I’m sure Luna misses that every now and then. And sometimes I wish I still had my little brother.”

“D-Dad,” Realm pointed out. “He’s still a stallion.”

“He is also a shapeshifter,” Celestia reminded him.

“No, no no no,” Realm panicked, breathing heavily. “There’s no way. No no no no no…”

“It’s not so bad,” Celestia said softly. “Besides…” She knelt down and smiled. “I have one more thing to tell you.”

“What could possibly make this any better?!” Realm shrieked, his voice cracking again.

He could almost feel his sister’s smile.

“Gotcha~”

Realm blinked.

Realm tilted his head.

Realm.exe has suffered a fatal error.

“Holey Holes!” Artemis howled with laughter. “That… that was both savage and beautiful.”

“And that,” Celestia said in a serious tone. “Is what you get for upsetting my student. You made her cry. Now fix it, or my punishments will continue.” With a smile and a sisterly nuzzle, she teleported away just as Aspect walked into the room after hearing the squeaky shouts.

“I missed something,” Aspect noted as he looked around.

“It was beautiful,” Artemis chuckled, still on the floor. “That white princess. She broke him~”

“Aaah, well, that might explain why the library was closed…” Aspect mused.

Realm shook his head slightly as he came back to himself, all he knew was that there was a new command in his brain. Patch things up with the Clover clone.

He sighed before walking out of the house on his way to the library. This...would likely not go well.

Once he reached the building, he was surprised to find that he was able to enter quite easily, in fact, he just walked right on in.

What was was weird, was the way Twilight Clover greeted him.

“Oh, hello Realm,” she said, though her tone was… flatter, for lack of a better word. “If you want books on magic or art, you can find them over there.” She gestured with a hoof before turning back to her book.

“Actually, I came to talk to you,” Realm replied, mentally steeling himself for the conversation to come.

“What about?” Twilight replied, closing her book. “Aren’t you scared of me?”

“Well, you’re...enthusiastic, but I suppose that’s better than not caring,” Realm replied. “Look, I’ve had this horn for all of a week, and if you want to try and teach me how to use it...I’d appreciate it. I would like to learn how to do more than just turn my aura off.”

Twilight’s ear flicked, and unbeknownst to him, it took a great deal of self-control to not bounce around the room. “Oh, wouldn’t somepony like Aspect or Starswirl be better… instead of a lookalike?”

“They’re...dated,” Realm replied. “As well, Starswirl’s only a copy. And dad’s more into Sorcery. I might go to him later for that sort of tutoring, but...I need to learn actual, modern magic, to go with an actual, modern education.”

“Then ask Princess Celestia,” Twilight said bitingly. “I’m just the unstable, scary librarian. You’re scared of me, Aspect won’t teach me Sorcery, but considers mere fillies more capable…” She could feel her irritation building, not because of the words, but because she felt they were true. “Well you don’t have to worry, I’m not going to bother you or anypony else anymore. Tomorrow morning, I’m moving back to Canterlot.”

Then she heard sniffling. And when she looked up?

Realm was crying, giving her big doe eyes as he looked at her. “I just wanted to be your friend,” he said, snuffling a little as tears gathered in his eyes. “I just wanted to learn magic from the best unicorn around…”

“I…” Twilight paused. Oh horseapples. She had no idea how to deal with this. She… why was he crying? She was the one that felt like crying! If he kept that up then…

Spike walked in with a platter of tea and biscuits, only to find both ponies bawling.

“What… the…?” the dragon blinked and set the tray down before he rubbed his eyes. “I seriously don’t get ponies…” He quickly scrawled a letter and adjusted his flame, sending it off to a certain male alicorn on the edge of town. He could come and deal with this.

A few moments later, Spike felt a letter returning, and he belched up a short scroll with a simple message on it.

Let them hash it out, Spike. Trust me, it’ll be good for both of them. - Aspect.

Spike groaned and put a hand to his face. “Emergency Ice-cream it is then,” he sighed and waddled back off to the kitchen.

After a few moments, Twilight finally calmed down a little, sniffling and rubbing the tears from her red eyes. “W-Well… that, was foalish of me.”

“Yeah...I mean, there are tales about Sorcery getting out of hoof,” Realm said. “Heck, apparently while you and your friends were away the Sorcery students turned the town inside out with a simple spell gone amok. Took dad yelling at them to fix it. And that was on accident.”

“So I heard,” the mare responded, sitting up and patting the couch next to her.

“And yeah, you may be enthusiastic, but that’s a good thing, really,” Realm continued as he sat on the couch. “At least you still fit in. At least you’re not displaced by a thousand years and have to relearn everything…” He wasn’t bitter, no. Not at all.

“Not everything,” she said. “And to be fair, Princess Luna’s in the same boat, and Balanced Aspect could do with a social etiquette lesson or ten.”

Realm soon found something cold deposited in his lap. A pink cardboard tub and a silver spoon.

“Here,” Spike said as he gave Twilight one and waddled away. Twilight wasted no time in prying hers open and stuffing a spoonful of vanilla ice-cream into her mouth. Realm had been given a tub of chocolate. And it was delicious.

“Yeah,” the colt said between bites. “Dad always was the hack-first ask-questions-later type.”

“I’m sure Bon Bon appreciates his sword skills,” Twilight said between her own munching.

Realm snorted, before shaking his head. “So anyways. Yeah. You have friends. You have ponies that care about you that are your own age. I don’t even have that. You’re better off than me in this town. No running away, okay? Who else will I learn magic from?”

“You’re serious?” Twilight asked him. “About learning magic I mean?”

“Yeah. I mean, at least learning the basics like lifting things would be great,” Realm replied. “I can’t even get a light yet. The most I can do is keep my aura under control.”

“I can do that,” Twilight said and wiped her nose on her foreleg. “And… can I admit a secret to you?”

“Sure,” Realm replied as he reached the halfway point in his tub of ice cream.

“I guess… I didn’t mind the ‘attention’ you gave me,” she said with a small blush. “Nopony… has looked at me like that before.”

“...You know, that kind of takes the fun out of it,” Realm dryly replied. “I mean, it’s one thing to be a supposedly innocent colt getting glimpses. It’s another thing to have the target aware. And a different thing entire to have them not mind.”

“I didn’t… Gah!” Twilight blushed harder and looked away. “I just, well…” She groaned and sighed. “I’m Princess Celestia’s student. Trying to find a colt or marefriend is… impossible. Well, one that cares anyway. They see me… as some sort of stupid prize. All because I’m close to the princess. And, it’s not her fault. I don’t blame her at all.” She stared into her ice-cream bucket, like it held the answers she sought. “But I guess it’s just a game to you too. You’re still a kid after all and now I’m starting to sound creepy…” Twilight was certain she couldn’t be any more embarrassed than she was now.

“Yeah, but I think I’m starting to learn something about mares,” Realm returned.

“Do I want to know?” Twilight asked with a wry smile.

“Don’t mess with mares,” Realm wisely said. “They are complicated, complex creatures that no stallion can hope to understand. Looking is fine, but...anything more is asking for trouble.”

Twilight couldn’t help it. She burst out into a fit of giggles, not stopping for a solid minute or two.

“Ahaha, oh… seems you figured out something that not even grown stallions know,” the unicorn said once she'd caught her breath. “Don't worry though. I'm sure you'll find a nice marefriend eventually.” Then she gave a little wiggle of her eyebrows. “Unless you want a harem like your dad?”

“I mean I wouldn’t say no, but more mares means more problems, and I don’t think I could actually handle one,” Realm replied.

“Well, you’re still a colt,” Twilight chuckled. “Look, just… enjoy life. Love is complicated and you have all the time in the world for that okay? Trust me, you’re in such a rush to grow up that when you do, you’ll wonder where all the time went.”

Realm paused and sighed. “I...don’t know if I know how,” he said. “I come from a...harder time. Where you had to be hard enough to survive and grow up as well. I...don’t know if I can just…”

“Be a kid?” Twilight finished for him.

“Yeah,” Realm nodded. “I...my parents weren’t...around for long that I can remember. Aspect’s the only dad I’ve known for six years. I’m not complaining, but...he didn’t ever turn me down when I said I wanted to learn things.”

“Yeah, he’s quite the teacher,” Twilight said flatly, still sore he wouldn’t teach her Sorcery. “Still, he seems like a good dad.”

“Keeping in mind he’s from the bad old days,” Realm returned. “I’m not sure he knows how to relax and have fun either.”

“Well, guess you're up a river without a paddle huh?” Twilight giggled. “Still, I’m not the best pony to ask about fun. Well, what other ponies consider fun. Unless you feel like reading a good book?”

“I don’t mind reading, but it’s not exactly what I consider the most soothing activity,” Realm replied. “Still...I’m sure I’ll find something.”

“Well you’re in school now right?” Twilight pointed out. “Trust me, if a shut in introvert like me can find friends, then you’ll have no problems at all.”

“Assuming I ever get through my homework,” Realm countered with a roll of his eyes.

“Do you want help?” Twilight’s eyes were sparkling again. She loved homework!

“If you’re willing to come back and help me and Artemis...poor puppy’s really trying to learn how to write,” Realm replied.

There was a blurred movement, Twilight’s ice-cream bucket still hovered in the air as the mare holding it vanished, returning a moment later with saddlebags laden with various quills, books and other study materials.

“...You’re really eager,” the colt noticed.

“I…” Twilight paused and blushed. “Oh shush.”

“No no, it’s good,” Realm replied. “Means you’ll take it seriously.”

“Well of course, homework is important… if you failed, you could get—” she paused and gasped. “—A bad grade!”

“Considering my dad didn’t grade me when he taught me, forgive me if I don’t faint at the thought,” Realm said, snickering afterwards. “Still. Let’s see about lessons for the puppydog and I.”

“Mhm,” Twilight nodded as the two left for Aspect’s home. When Spike returned, he was greeted with an empty library and two empty ice-cream buckets.

“Seriously?” the dragon sighed.

Author's Notes:

Everything works out with ice cream. Everything.

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