Rainbow, Fluttershy, and Spike stroll out of Mrs. Cheerilee’s classroom in a pack after class, chattering amongst themselves.

“Wow, Mrs. Cheerliee is nice, but dear Celestia she can go on…and on…and on!” Rainbow overemphasizes every “on” as she strolls past an awkward pony trying to ask a mare out. She rejects him with a quick slap of the hoof.

Spike acknowledges the comment about Mrs. Cheerilee with a quick chuckle. Unlike the ponies, he is wearing a backpack, specially made for him by a nice saddlebag crafter down the road from the school.

“She’s like that most of the time,” Spike agrees. “Which is why I spend most of that class slee…I mean, listening intently.”

Fluttershy glares at him. Spike looks away guiltily. Suddenly, Principle Davenport stops in front of the three friends. He seems to ignore Fluttershy and Spike, opting instead to once again harass Rainbow Dash.

“So Rainbow, how was our resident delinquent’s first class at Ponydale? Daventport asks accusingly.

Rainbow hesitates. She had barely learned anything in Ponyology last period, spending most of the period drawing pictures of the Wonderbolts, her personal heroes, on her “notes.” Rainbow had been one of the best fliers in Cloudsdale prior to “the incident,” as she referred to it. Now that Rainbow had escaped her Calling, she was hoping to pick up the shattered pieces of her dream to be in the Wonderbolts.

“It was very…” Rainbow pauses for a moment, searching for the proper word. “Educational. Yeah, educational, that’s what it was. I think I’m really starting to enjoy myself here.” Rainbow slaps a plastic grin on her face, hoping this answer would satisfy his inquisition.

Davenport frowns, secretly convinced that students like Rainbow Dash couldn’t learn anything in school, let alone be of any use in the real world.

“Don’t enjoy yourself too much missy. School is for learning, not pleasure.” He emphasizes the last word with distaste, as though it was rotten milk.

Davenport walks away towards his office, smug in his victory against the unruly student.

“Resident delinquent?” Spike muses.

Rainbow sighs, not quite ready to tell her friends that she had destroyed the gym of her last school and even less ready to tell them the reason she had destroyed it.

“It’s a long story.”

Suddenly, Rarity and her posse stroll past them. Rarity rears and blocks their path. She spies Rainbow with Fluttershy and Spike. She frowns and snorts haughtily at Rainbow.

“Oh, hi Rainbow. I see you’ve started hanging out with the losers. Having a social life too stressful for you?” Rarity sneers.

Rainbow snorts in contempt at the pony that had once been so nice to her. She now realizes Rarity was only being nice to her because she wanted to recruit her into her mean ponies.

“Doesn’t being a bitch ever get tiring, Rarity?” Rainbow retorts.

Rarity is caught off guard momentarily. However, she quickly recovers. She reaches into her saddlebag, a top-of-the-line ruby-encrusted, fine leather saddlebag she had ordered specially made from Canterlot’s finest saddle-maker.

“Speaking of you and losers, it seems you dropped something by your locker this morning.” Rarity pulls a stake from out of her saddlebag. “Look familiar?”

Rainbow quickly snatches the stake from Rarity’s mouth and deposits it in her own saddlebag. She really didn’t need this right now, not from Rarity and especially not in front of her new friends. It’s time for some damage control, Rainbow thinks.

“That’s none of your business,” Rainbow snaps, glaring at Rarity. “Come on, let’s go.”

Rainbow turns and trots away. Fluttershy and Spike follow her, both confused and slightly concerned that their new friend has a stake in her saddlebag.

“Aww, look at Rainbow Crash, sulking off to go stab her next victim,” Rarity laughs.

All of her friends laugh as well. Then, they prance off to find somepony else to verbally torture. Presently, they find their next victim: Scott Ponygrim, an awkward hipster pony who is currently in a band with his two best friends.

“Why do you have a stake anyway, Rainbow? If you don’t mind me asking,” Fluttershy asks quietly as they pass by various other ponies on their way to class.

Rainbow pauses for a moment, and then sighs once more.

“It’s a long story.”

“Everything’s a long story with you, isn’t it?” Spike comments.

Rainbow nods.

“I think I might hide in the library next period. Rarity has probably told everyone in school that I kill ponies by now,” Rainbow sighs.

As they walk by another group of ponies, the ponies all turn and glare at Rainbow suspiciously. Rainbow notices them glaring at her and turns to them. The group of ponies breaks eye contact and quickly continues on their way.

“Do you, you know, kill ponies?” Spike asks.

Rainbow glares at Spike.

“No, of course not, Spike. Don’t be thick,” Rainbow snaps.

Momentarily, they arrive at a set of shiny wooden double doors conveniently labeled “Library.” They stop in front of the library.

“Do you want us to come with you, Rainbow?” Fluttershy asks, and then adds, “Morale support.”

Rainbow dismisses the idea.

“You two go to class. Davenport might think my delinquency is rubbing off on you two if you start skipping classes as well.”

Fluttershy and Spike nod and head off towards their next classes. Rainbow opens one of the double doors leading to the library. The library is empty. Good. It is a perfect place to hide from her judging peers and Principle Davenport. Rainbow approaches the main desk of the library and leans on it. The library is pretty pathetic compared to the library she had at Cloudsdale High. Not that she ever visited it on her own. There is a large open space near the front of the library, with only a small round table between two circular staircases leading a few feet up to an elevated section of the library. The back section of the library has four columns of bookcases with an extra column of bookcases on each wall. Each wooden bookcase has five shelves on it. The bookcases stretch five rows back with the last row lined up against the wall. At the very back of the library, there are a few tables for students to study without disruption. They were very rarely used. In fact, the library itself was very rarely used, as the ponies of Ponydale High were usually too busy socializing and hanging out at Sugarcube Corner to bother studying. As a result, Ponydale High has the lowest average GPA of any school in Equestria.

Suddenly, a large book lands on her hoof.

“Ow!” Rainbow exclaims.

Rainbow pulls her hoof away quickly. She cradles it and looks towards the library’s front desk and source of the projectile. A purple pony wearing black-rimmed glasses is standing behind the desk. The pony’s mane is dark blue with two stripes down the middle: violet and pink, respectively. The purple pony snorts haughtily at Rainbow.

“I’m sorry, but this library is for reading, not the leisurely skipping of classes.” She eyes Rainbow, studying her as if she were merely one of the many books in the school’s library.

“Who are you?” Rainbow asks, rubbing her hoof one last time.

The purple pony puffs an air of authority. She stands up on her back hooves and places her front hooves gently on the desk.

“I am Twilight Sparkle, the librarian. However, you may call me Ms. Sparkle or Librarian Sparkle or the Almighty Keeper of the Books,” Twilight says. That last name was meant as a joke, however the joke doesn’t register with Rainbow who is still annoyed that Twilight dropped a heavy book on her hoof.

“I think I’m just going to stick with Twilight,” Rainbow says. She spies the large, dusty volume that landed on her hoof. It reads Vamponie. “And, really, an “ie”?”

Twilight gives Rainbow an agitated frown, annoyed at her ignorance of Pre-Classical spelling.

“It’s how they spelled it back in the Pre-Classical Era,” She explains. “You would do well to study this book carefully.”

“Why would I want to do that?” Rainbow asks, playing dumb.

Twilight levels with her, seeing right through her act.

“I think you know why.”

Rainbow bites her lip for a moment, but then puts on a brave face. She still has a horrible feeling that something bad is about to happen. She had this exact same feeling once before in Cloudsdale. That day.

“Elaborate,” She challenges.

Twilight Sparkle sighs.

“You’re a vampony slayer, Rainbow Dash,” Twilight says matter-of-factly.

Rainbow rears back in shock. Oh no, this is exactly like that day. The day that a mysterious stallion approached her and told her that she was a vampony Slayer. How could this be happening again? Rainbow thinks. How do these ponies keep finding me and ruining my life?

“How did you-?”

Twilight interrupts her.

“Because I’m your new Watcher.”