The scenery whipped by as Twilight watched impassively through the window. With the side of her face pressed against the glass, she listlessly tapped out a beat with her horn. Spike had fallen asleep almost as soon as the train left Ponyville, leaving Twilight with plenty of time to dwell on the lingering thoughts of the friends and life she had left behind.

It shouldn’t be this hard. It’s not like I’m going to be gone forever. I mean, the train ride between Canterlot and Ponyville only takes half a day.

Twilight was completely lost in her thoughts, staring at the blurred landscape passing by when a pony walked up to the seats her and Spike were occupying. “Tickets please.”

She continued to stare out the window while her assistant snored quietly. Lush green prairies of gently rolling hills were quickly giving way to the rocky ground and pine forests of the foothills of Canterlot Mountain.

The train’s conductor loudly cleared his throat. “Tickets please.”

The contemplative unicorn quickly turned to face the aisle. The same earth pony stallion from the platform in Ponyville stood there waiting.

“Oh, sorry.” Twilight smiled and levitated two small pieces of colored paper from the saddlebag lying on the seat across from her, passing them towards the conductor.

As she held them in front of him, using his mouth he quickly took the punch that was hanging from a chain around his neck and used it to put a small hole in each of the tickets. “Thank you,” he said in a very friendly manner, and then continued his journey towards the rear of the train.

The carriage jolted suddenly as the train began its trek up the mountain and the slack in the couplers between the cars was quickly taken up. Canterlot could be seen looming on the side of the mountain far above the rails that the locomotive was now struggling to navigate. The sun was at such an angle that the glass of nearly every visible window of the city and castle were sparkling in a brilliant show of colorful light. It was an inspiring sight that no matter how many times she had seen it, left Twilight awestruck on every occasion.

Several small groups of ponies were mulling about on the gleaming white stone pavers that made up Platform Three of Canterlot Central Station. Some of the ponies on the platform were quietly conversing, others checking the time every few minutes, and some were quietly sitting on benches, waiting patiently for the arrival of their trains.

A fast clicking noise was heard across the platform as the split-flap message board showing arrival times of the various inbound trains sprang to life. On the line for the train from Ponyville, the status changed from ‘on-time’ to ‘arrived.’ Most of the ponies waiting on the platform all moved around to find a good spot to wait for the ones they were there to meet.

Several minutes had passed when a locomotive pulling six passenger carriages slowly pulled into the station alongside Platform Three. The engine disappeared behind a cloak of white water vapor as the remaining steam pressure was exhausted to the outside air. Two engineers then jumped to the ground beginning their hurried task of greasing the locomotive and replenishing the boiler’s water supply for the next leg of their journey.

As the engineers began making their rounds, the doors on the carriages opened with the quiet hiss of pneumatic-powered cylinders. Ponies began filing out of the train cars; some of the ponies getting off went to meet with their friends and families that were waiting, although many ponies simply walked off the train and straight out of the station. The last to debark were Twilight Sparkle and Spike. Almost everypony was gone by the time they stepped onto the stone platform. Twilight’s eyebrows furrowed as she looked all around.

“What’s wrong?”

“Well…” Twilight looked towards the end of the train one more time before she turned to Spike with a frown. “I thought Princess Celestia would have sent someone to escort us to the castle.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it too much, Twi. You’re a big girl, and besides, you got your big tough dragon bodyguard here to make sure nothing happens along the way. It probably just slipped her mind.”

Twilight’s face became devoid of emotion as she listened to Spike’s rationalization. “Yeah I suppose. She is quite busy… Should we get going then? It’s quite a walk from here to get up to the castle.”

“Can we stop and eat? I’m starving.”

“We ate lunch on the train, Spike. Come on, it’s almost four miles from here and we only have two hours before our scheduled audience with the Princess. You can eat at the castle after we see her.”

“Okay okay, let’s get going then. It’s just that the ‘pony portions’ they served on the train aren’t quite enough for me.”

Twilight and Spike stepped out of the station and onto the cobblestone streets of Canterlot. Far above in the distance the massive figure of Canterlot Castle clung to the mountainside. Twilight looked up to the castle, and then looked to the dragon next to her. “We should’ve asked the Princess for a chariot.”

Spike laughed. “A little late for that. Come on, it’s not getting any closer.”

The two began their journey from Canterlot Central up the winding labyrinth of stone roadways to the castle. They made their way through the Lower District where much of the city’s industry was centered.

Spike coughed slightly. “I don’t remember it being so dirty.” He then inhaled through his nostrils before cringing. “Ugh, or smelly.”

His unicorn companion looked to the sky as she continued to walk. Through the haze of dark grey smoke, the sun was nothing more than a faded effigy of its usual glory. “It wasn’t. Just look at how many new factories there are. It’s been a long time since we’ve been to the Lower District.”

Soon the road led them between two factories. Twilight’s eyes darted all around, attempting to absorb the new look of this part of the city. Muffled rhythmic clanks and screeches could be heard through the wall of one of the titanic brick factories as they walked by on the street. Each one of the many factories here was manufacturing goods to be exported to the rest of Equestria and most of the world. “I don’t like this place. The buildings are so tall and close together; you can’t even see the sun from here.”

Spike had nothing to add to this statement and simply shrugged.

Eventually they came out of the manufacturing sector and moved into the residential area of the Lower District. Very old but well maintained apartment buildings overran the area, many of which were owned and subsidized by the Equestrian Government and rented at discounted prices to ponies with little to no means to support themselves. Many of the factory workers lived here with their families, rarely leaving the Canterlot Lower District.

Twilight and Spike continued walking up the steep road where a group of colts and fillies played in front of one of the large apartment buildings. The purple dragon quickly ducked as an errant baseball barely missed the top of his head. Three young ponies went running by after their ball, laughing the entire way.

Rounding a corner that put them onto the much wider main road leading to the Mid District, the two travelers spotted the Lower District Market. Lining the road on both sides were various ponies standing at vendor stalls selling fruits, vegetables and the occasional shiny trinket.

“Look Twilight, a market. Can I get some food now?” Spike pleaded.

“I told you, you can eat after we meet with the Princess.”

Spike stopped walking. “But Twi, I’m hungry.”

“Nope.” She continued trotting towards a nearby granite archway which led to a seemingly endless stone staircase tunneled into the cliff face at the end of the road which led to the next level of the city.

Spike stood looking longingly at a stall with a large sign above it:

“It would only take a minute,” Spike grumbled to himself when he noticed that Twilight was nearly to the stairs. “Hey! Wait for me!”

Twilight squinted her eyes as they exited the stairway. Coming to the crest of the stairs was akin to stepping into an entirely different world. The sun shone here much like it did in Ponyville, the pollution of the factories left behind in the Lower District and the bright blue sky easily visible. Twilight’s eyes had adjusted to the change of lighting when she looked up to the castle ahead. It wasn’t nearly as foreboding as it had looked from the Lower District. With the thick haze gone, the gleaming white marble clad walls and the gold gilded spires of Canterlot Castle glimmered with a magnificence unmatched anywhere in the world.

“Halfway there, Spike, and we’re actually making pretty good time.”

Unlike the Lower District where apartment buildings and factories crowded each other, competing for every inch of ground they could take, the houses and shops of the Mid were spaced at a more comfortable distance with trees and grass filling the gaps between the roads and buildings. The Mid District was very similar to Ponyville in many respects. Sure, a lot more ponies lived here, but everyone was quite friendly and happily going about their business. Ponies moved to and fro; making deliveries, purchasing items, or just out for an afternoon walk to enjoy the warm sun.

Twilight smiled, just being in the industrial sector of the city had her feeling rather uneasy. Now though, walking in the warm sun and in the company of surrogate friends that didn’t know her, her heart fluttered as a new rush of excitement overtook her mind. “I can’t believe I’m doing this, Spike.”

“Yes you can.”

“What?”

Spike stopped walking and Twilight followed his cue. He looked over to his friend. “I said, ‘Yes you can.’ Of course you can believe you’re doing this. This is what you wanted. Twilight, I don’t think you’ve ever wanted anything more than to come back to Canterlot and work with the Princess on a daily basis.”

Twilight twisted the side of her mouth, thinking about what Spike said. “Well, yeah. It’s just that I was so comfortable with life in Ponyville and all my friends are there. It seems strange that over the course of two weeks, I went from town librarian dabbling in my own research on magic and friendship to this—on my way to start my new life as a mage of Celestia’s Court and soon to be Grand Magus overseeing the highest level magical research in the world. It’s kind of overwhelming, you know?”

“I’ll say; it’s like that time you tried dating,” Spike said with mischievous grin.

“What?” Twilight blushed with a strong hue of red. “No, it’s nothing like that. Also, shut up Spike.”

The two friends laughed together and started walking through the upper area of the Mid District. Approaching the Upper District a dull grey stone parapet came into view, although currently unmanned, guard turrets positioned every two hundred feet towered another thirty feet above the massive wall. This acted as the second line of defense for Canterlot Castle, the first being its location high on the mountainside.

Making their way through the perpetually open swinging gates at the entrance to the Upper District, it became clear that this structure was built for the eventuality of a war. Above the two travelers three heavy steel drop gates were tucked into slots at the ceiling of the tunnel, positioned every twenty feet apart from one another with massive spikes clinging to the bottom bars. They hung in waiting for an invading army to attempt to step through the protective wall. Twilight looked up as they walked through the fortification; between each of the gates—two on either side of the pathway—were holes positioned in the ceiling just large enough to possibly fit a head through. “Those spikes are awful.”

“Yeah.” Spike looked up at the holes as well. “And just imagine what sort of terrible things they would drop through those holes once all the gates were shut.”

Twilight shuddered at the thought of ponies hurting one another. “Let’s just get out of here.” Her steps began coming a bit faster.

The new landscape that greeted them on the uphill side of the wall was very similar to what they had just left. The vast contrast between the Lower and Mid Districts was nonexistent between the Mid and Upper.

Exiting the wall, Spike looked side to side at two large unremarkable buildings that didn’t fit with the brightly colored homes, shops, and government offices of the Upper District. Each two stories and built with insipid grey stone. “What are those buildings?”

“They’re the barracks for the guardponies that staff the castle wall.”

The dragon continued to inspect the barracks as they walked. Every window in the building on the left was shuttered and a large chain with a padlock secured the main doors. The rightmost building was in similar condition, save for a few open windows on the main floor and the absence of the chain. “Pretty big barracks for the number of guards around here.”

“Spike, we haven’t taken part in a military confrontation since the Pazyryk Empire attempted to annex Equestria almost three hundred years ago. These building were probably overflowing with soldiers when the Gryphons besieged the castle for three months.”

“Huh… you read too much.”

“History is important, Spike. If we don’t learn from past mistakes, we are destined to live them again,” she said with the same tone a schoolteacher would use with a young student.

Several minutes passed without the interruption of conversation as they crossed the main square of the small town within the walls of Canterlot Castle. Once on the other side of the square they were a mere several hundred yards from the extremely busy main entrance to the castle.

“Here we are, and we even have time to spare,” Twilight said as though she was victorious in a game that no one else was playing.

“That means I could’ve eaten,” her assistant whimpered under his breath.

“What was that, Spike.”

“Nothing… let’s just get this over with so I can eat.”

They began making their way up the colossal white stone stairway to the main door. Being the center of all Equestrian government, the castle was always bustling with activity. Ponies were hurriedly going up and down the stairs; paying no attention to the four pegasi guards that flanked the huge open wooden doors, two on either side. Dressed in resplendent golden armor, the guards silently watched as the day passed.

Passing through the doors, they walked across the cavernous reception area to the desk positioned at the far side of the room from the door where a mauve colored unicorn mare with a light green mane busily shuffled papers around. Twilight had her mouth opened to speak when, without looking up, the receptionist asked the obvious question. “Can I help you?”

“Oh, uh, yes. My name is Twilight Sparkle and this is—”

The receptionist quickly looked up. “Twilight! My goodness it’s been a long time. How have you been?”

Twilight’s eyes grew wide as she realized who the receptionist was. “I’ve been… good, Star Dancer. How abou—“

Star Dancer interrupted for a second time. “And Spike, my goodness you’ve grown up!”

Spike grinned sheepishly, not remembering who this pony was.

“Yes, well I’m sorry, but maybe we could catch up later. We have an appointment with Princess Celestia that I can’t be late for.”

“Oh… yes, of course. The Princess will be expecting you.” The unicorn floated a clipboard in front of her face and examined it closely. “My schedule shows that you will be meeting her, Arcana, and Fireshade in the throne room, I assume you remember how to get there?”

“I sure do, thank you Star. I’m going to be staying in Canterlot, so maybe we can get together sometime.”

“I would like that. Bye Twilight.”

Spike and Twilight turned and walked to the grand staircase that connected the reception area to the third floor. They reached the top and began down a long hallway large enough that twenty ponies could comfortably stand side-by-side. Decorating the walls for the entire length were colorful tapestries depicting scenes from Equestrian history; the founding of the nation, the golden age of learning, and the rise and fall of Nightmare Moon, among many others.

“Who was that?” Spike asked in a soft voice.

“Just someone that I know from Celestia’s school. I’m actually surprised she remembered me; I wasn’t really one for having friends back then.”

“And who are Arcana and Fireshade?”

“That I don’t know. I assume we’ll find out shortly, though.”

At the end of the hall stood a very large gilded double door, with intricate carvings depicting the sun and moon, the Sister Princesses and the Elements of Harmony. On either side of the doors, a unicorn of the Royal Guard stood watch. As Twilight and Spike neared the end of their journey, the unicorn on the left shrouded the doors in a blue glow and they effortlessly swung into the room.

Immediately, the ex-librarian saw her mentor, Princess Celestia. Seated on her throne, the alicorn goddess of the sun looked as beautiful as she ever had. Her prismatically-hued mane and tail perpetually billowed to her side in an unfelt wind; her regal white coat and cutie mark of a stylized golden sun were things truly befitting of royalty. Across her chest lay a decorative gold cuirass with a large violet sapphire set in the center.

To the left of Celestia sat her sister, Princess Luna. The indigo alicorn was the polar opposite of her elder sister. Her dark-blue mane and tail waved in the same restless manner with points of glittering star-like light. A piece of chest armor similar to her sister’s hung around her neck, a lustrous piece of black metal with a white crescent moon emblazoned in the middle to match her cutie mark.

The moment the newly appointed court mage and her assistant were clear of the doors they glided shut, the sound of the latching mechanism echoed through the room. The sound alerted the occupants of the throne room to the presence of the pony they had been waiting for. Celestia looked up and smiled gracefully at her student, while a huge smile covered Luna’s face as she waved a hoof at Twilight.

Two ponies at the foot of the dais that the Princess’ thrones sat atop turned around to see the newcomers. An older unicorn stallion with a coat the color of ash and a stark white mane wearing the standard dark maroon robes of the Court Magi stood to the left of the throne dais. Twilight could have sworn he was glaring at her, but it was hard to tell at that distance.

Standing next to the stallion was a unicorn mare about Twilight’s age with a pale yellow coat similar to Fluttershy’s and a slightly disheveled bright orange mane. The yellow unicorn turned in a way that her cutie mark became visible; an orange ring of fire surrounding a coal black circle.

Although no one living now besides the Princesses had ever seen an eclipse, for Twilight, the cutie mark brought forth memories of the disturbing written accounts of the Nightmare Moon insurrection and the resulting civil war. According to the historical records, during the six year war, the New Lunar Republic would often use solar eclipses as a form of psychological warfare in an attempt to wear down the morale of their enemies.

Twilight stopped short of the group and bowed deeply towards the floor, with Spike mimicking her movements. Celestia stood with her sparkling colorful mane and tail billowing to her side, and began stepping down towards the bowing pair. “Twilight Sparkle and Spike, please stand”

The two bowing figures quickly stood up

“Now allow me to introduce you to Head Mage Arcana, your new mentor who will be instructing you on your duties as a Court Mage, and eventually Grand Magus.” Celestia nodded to the grey unicorn.

Arcana took a small step forward and lowered his head. “A pleasure, Mage Sparkle… Master Spike.”

The Princess of the Sun continued, “And this is Mage Fireshade, Arcana’s apprentice. She will be helping you readjust to life back at the castle.”

With wide eyes and a silly grin, the yellow unicorn stepped up directly in front of Twilight and held out a hoof. “It’s great to finally meet you, Miss Sparkle. I’ve heard so many amazing things abou—“

“A-hem.” Fireshade spun around to find the source of the interruption. Arcana was scowling while slowly shaking his head.

“Oh, uh.” She looked back to Twilight with a half-hearted smile as she moved back to her place beside her charge. “Sorry.”

Luna stood from her throne and began making her way to the floor. “Well, now that the pleasantries have been dealt with. How have you been, Twilight?” She walked past her sister and gave Twilight a hug.

“I’ve been very well, Princess Luna.”

The dark alicorn waved a hoof dismissively. “Pfft, Luna is fine, you know we’re better friends than all those formalities allow.”

“Yes, we are all among friends here, Twilight. Formalities are not necessary.” Celestia added.

Twilight released a deep sigh. “Thank you, speaking formally always made me nervous for some reason.”

“Me too!” Fireshade interjected.

Arcana glared at his apprentice. “Yes, well perhaps we can get on with this, then. I have important matters to attend to.”

“And I’m still hungry,” Spike stated.

Celestia laughed quietly. “I don’t believe it is necessary for you to stay, Spike. You remember how to find the kitchens, correct?

Spike nodded quickly.

“Then you should go and ask the cooks to make you something. We will be done shortly; then we will send somepony to fetch you.”

He was out the door at the side of the room before she could finish her sentence.

Twilight silently put a hoof to her face and shook her head as the Princess continued speaking. “Now then, as I mentioned before, Arcana will be teaching you all about your new duties as a mage of my Court. Perhaps you could give her a quick overview, Arcana?”

“Yes, milady.” Luna rolled her eyes at the Head Mage’s response. “As a mage of the Court you will be working primarily in our research facility behind the castle within Canterlot Mountain. You will assist the senior staff and perhaps be assigned a couple of projects of your own. More importantly, apart from working in the facility, you will be training directly under myself to prepare you for your duties as Grand Magus.

“I expect you in my office tomorrow morning at eight o’clock for the facility tour.”

The newest court mage smiled. “That won’t be necessary, I’ve been there many times.”

Arcana smirked, his voice turning to a low menacing tone while he looked at Twilight through narrowed eyes. “Not this part.” The Head Mage turned to the Princesses and bowed. “Now then, if I am no longer needed here, I will be on my way.”

“Yes, that will do. Thank you, Arcana.”

“Thank you, milady.” He raised his head and looked to Fireshade. “You’re assigned to Mage Sparkle for the rest of the evening.” He then turned and walked the full length of the throne room to the main door.

The second the door closed, Luna began giggling. “Blah, Arcana’s always so stuffy. I swear that pony needs to learn to relax.”

“Well, he’s not always that bad,” Fireshade said defending her master.

Twilight was staring at the floor. “I don’t think he likes me.”

“Don’t be silly, of course he does. It just takes him awhile to warm up to new ponies.”

“Regardless of his feelings towards you, he has his assignment and he is a very trustworthy servant of the Court,” Celestia said softly in an attempt to calm the lavender unicorn. “As for his vague comment about the labs, all I will say right now is that I believe you will be pleasantly surprised by what’s in store for the tour.”

Twilight’s right eye squinted down slightly as she tried to make sense of the secrecy of what this ‘tour’ actually was going to be. “Okay…”

“We should take our evening meal. Twilight, won’t you please join us?” Luna said, attempting to divert the conversation.

“I would love to, but I’m pretty tired from the trip. I think I would just like to go to my room now, if that’s okay.”

Luna’s gleeful demeanor immediately deflated. As she opened her mouth to object, her sister spoke to interrupt the attempt. “Of course that’s okay. Fireshade, please show Twilight to her new quarters.”

The pale yellow unicorn quickly stood at attention and made a fast salute. “Yes, ma’am!” She put her hoof back to the ground, and moved towards her new friend. “C’mon Twilight, let’s go—oops, is it okay if I call you Twilight?”

“Yes, that would be just fine.” Before turning to leave, she looked to the Princesses. “Perhaps we could have dinner together tomorrow evening?”

Luna’s eyes lit up at the suggestion. “Yes! That sounds excellent. We shall see thou tomorrow night.” As soon as she realized her slip in speech, the alicorn threw a hoof to her mouth and blushed crimson. It had taken several years of tutoring after her return from the thousand year exile as Nightmare Moon to become comfortable with the modern Equestrian language.

“Yes, I would enjoy that as well,” said the white alicorn while watching her sister and stifling a giggle. “Goodnight Twilight, if you need anything let one of the castle staff know and they will take care of it.”

“Thank you, Princesses. Goodnight.”

Twilight and Fireshade began walking the length of the red carpet that stretched from the thrones to the main entrance of the room. Twilight’s escort was already rambling about the stories she had heard about the Elements of Harmony by the time they had made it halfway to the door.

They made their way up to the fifth floor of the castle, the yellow unicorn continuing to tell Twilight all about Twilight’s life.

“You know, Fireshade… I already know about me, and obviously you do too. What about you? What’s your story? Where do you come from?”

“Oh, well I was born in Manehatten, but I’ve lived in Canterlot most of my life.”

The only sound in the hallway was the hoofsteps of the two unicorns slowly meandering towards the wing that housed the quarters of the Court officials. Twilight waited a moment before pressing for more information about her companion. “Soooo… You moved here with your parents?”

“Nope, I was sent here for school to develop my special talent.”

Silence again. It was becoming obvious that this unicorn was much more comfortable with talking about other ponies lives than her own. “So you went to Celestia’s School for Gifted Unicorns too?”

“Uh… not exactly. I was sent to a—a special school…” Fireshade’s face began to blush as she mumbled the last two words at a barely audible volume. She quickly composed herself and her face perked up with a fake smile as she exclaimed, “For my special talent!”

This time Twilight didn’t wait to ask the next question. “Which is?”

The yellow unicorn stopped walking. “Pyromancy. You know, fire magic,” she said pointing back to her solar cutie mark.

“Why were you sent to a ‘special school’ for that? I didn’t even know there was a school that specialized in pyromancy alone, it’s such a rare talent,” Twilight said, completely oblivious to the gravity of the conversation she had been steering.

Fireshade tried hard to hold back the tears brought on by the memories of her youth. “There isn’t a pyromancy school.” A single tear rolled down her face. She took a very deep breath and continued. “My fire magic isn’t like most unicorns. They can start fires on a fuel source like a pile of wood or a candle wick; maybe direct the flames to a degree. My abilities…” The tears were now coming freely.

Twilight was horrified at what she had done to her new friend. She put a hoof across the crying ponies shoulders and decided that she had heard enough. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, it’s okay.”

“No, we’re going to be working together and I think you should probably hear it from me before you find out through some stupid exaggerated rumor.” She sniffled and wiped her eyes with her foreleg. Squirming out from under Twilight’s leg she turned to look the unicorn in the eye. “Like I said, all unicorns have a very limited ability to use pyromancy. My use of fire magic is far beyond that; I can create fire without anything to use as fuel and I can control the fire completely, I’m able to make it do whatever I want.”

Fireshade’s horn began to glow orange as a spark ignited between her and Twilight. Soon the spark turned into a flame, which in turn became a writhing ball of fire the size of a pony’s head. She closed her eyes to concentrate and several seconds later, the ball suddenly condensed down to the size of a marble, burning with white hot intensity. As Twilight observed this demonstration with her mouth hanging open in wonder, the heat emanating from the intensely glowing object became almost unbearable. Then, just as fast as the flames had come into existence, they again disappeared.

Darkness quickly took the place of the searing white light as Twilight’s pupils struggled to readjust to the dimly lit hallway. The latent heat of the fireball hung in the air as a bead of perspiration trickled down her forehead. “That. Was. Amazing! Why is that something to be ashamed of? I’ve never seen anything like that. Heck, I’ve never even heard of anything like that!”

“Because the school I was sent to isn’t really a school. It’s an institutional facility for ponies that are a danger to themselves and those around them. I-I lived there for ten years. Then I was sent here.”

The purple unicorn looked apprehensively at her companion. “How did you end up in a place like that? For that matter; places like that exist?”

“Yes they exist, and I ended up there because of what got me this—” She turned to look at her cutie mark, “—this thing. What I just showed you took me over a decade to master, when I was young I couldn’t control it.” The tears were forming tiny rivulets down her cheeks now. “It was an accident. I-I d-d-didn’t mean to hurt anypony, I didn’t know what I was doing. It... it was. An accident...”

Fireshade was breathing heavily, trying her best to not completely break down. “I was five, practicing my levitation. I was lifting rocks in my backyard. I don’t know what happened, they told me it was a tornado made of fire. I don’t remember any of it... I-I razed three houses to the ground in less than a minute. I seriously injured one pony and... four died.” She finished, merely breathing out the last few words.

Twilight couldn’t even think at this point, let alone speak. She understood why Fireshade would want to have this out in the open, rather than allow the rumors to run rampant. “I’m so sorry, Fireshade. I... I don’t even know what to say. I’m sorry I pushed you to talk about your past.”

The yellow unicorn wiped the last of the tears off her face and smiled, her earlier happy-go-lucky attitude quickly returning. Returning uncomfortably fast for Twilight. “It’s okay. You shouldn’t be sorry, and you certainly shouldn’t feel sorry for me. What happened happened, and there’s nothing to be done about it now. So, I got my cutie mark for killing and two days later two unicorns from Equestrian Social Services picked me up from the orphanage I was placed at and now I’m here.”

“Wait... Orphanage? What happened to your parents?”

“Oh, well, they died in the accident,” she stated in a cold matter-of-fact manner.

Twilight’s mouth fell open again. She was having a hard time deciding how to react to the wild mood swings that were presenting themselves in her new friend. “I see. Maybe we should get going to my room.” Attempting to defuse the situation seemed to be the best option.

“Sure thing!” Fireshade exclaimed and started trotting up the hall. “Come on!”

The lavender unicorn followed, keeping more distance between the two than before.

After several minutes of wandering the labyrinthine hallways of Canterlot Castle, they turned the last corner that led to Twilight’s new home. As they were walking along the final stretch of the stone floor, Fireshade sighed loudly. “Ah, shit.”

Trotting towards them from the opposite end of the hallway was Arcana. The three ponies met directly in front of the door to Twilight’s room.

“Well, here you are, Twilight.” Fireshade smiled to the purple unicorn.

“Fireshade, please excuse us. I need to have a word with Miss Sparkle.”

“Yes, sir. See ya later Twilight!” She then began moving back the way they had come, nearly at a run.

Arcana waited, glaring at the unicorn left standing in front of him. The moment Fireshade rounded the corner at the end of the hall, he moved so that his face was inches from Twilight’s.

“I trust the Princess's judgment with my life, and I understand that you are her personal student and extremely talented.” The old unicorn paused for a moment as though trying to find the right words. “I was ordered to train you and help you grow into your role as Grand Magus and I will follow those orders, but I. Do. Not. have to like it. I have been working in the service of our Princess since before you were born, child, and the second you screw up or step out of line in any way, I will be right there, ready to take your place.”

He took a step back, turned and began walking down the hall. “Goodnight, Twilight. Better get some sleep, big day tomorrow.”

Twilight stood watching him walk away, unsure of what just happened. She sighed, and opened the door to her room. Sitting at a table in the middle of the main room was a familiar purple dragon.

“Hey Twi! Look at this place, it’s like a house inside the castle!”

Twilight walked into the massive suite and backed up into the door until it latched. Letting her rear slide down the door until she was resting on her haunches, she looked at Spike with a tear rolling down her face. “I think I want to go home.”