//------------------------------// // Hornless Twilight Arrives - Starbloom // Story: Starbloom Chronicles // by L_Wolf //------------------------------// Chapter 1 First day of School         It had been close to a week since Twilight had stopped having her dream and things seemed to have gotten back to normal. Well as normal as things get in Ponyville, but Twilight also seemed to be getting ready for someone. She had cleaned out a spot in her tree house and had an extra bed put in. Though she would not explain too much about it, her friends still helped her get the new room setup.         When a small filly arrived in town, everyone was curious about her. She seemed to be a little younger than Apple Bloom and the other Cutie Mark Crusaders, but she was travelling alone. The most surprising thing however was how much she looked like Twilight Sparkle. She had the same coloring, her mane, eyes and fur color was identical to Twilight. The real difference was that she was an Earth Pony, and she had a patch of gray fur on her flank were her cutie mark would be. She also had a patch of gray fur on her head, were a horn would be if she had been a unicorn.         When the young filly came into town Twilight went to meet her and started to talk with her before taking her back to the library, which shocked all her friends. It wasn't that she was bad with kids, it was that she never seemed to be the type to let one stay with her. The little filly herself seemed pleased with the idea, so no one protested.         "You finally made it," Twilight said to the young filly smiling at her. "How was your trip here?" She asked as she brought the filly up into the library. Spike was away in Canterlot so they were alone for now, he would definitely be in for a surprise when he got back.         "It was good, but there’s it’s a long walk between here and Canterlot though." The filly replied to the question, looking up at Twilight as she walked with her. "I also decided on a new name, so it won’t be so confusing." She looked back at her flank. The lack of her cutie mark still hurt.         "Oh?" Twilight asked looking back at her before frowned a bit. "Don't focus on it. I know it's hard but you have to look forward to the future. You've been given a second chance... we've been given a second chance."         The small filly nods looking back to Twilight, "I know, and I am grateful. It still hurts remembering the past and who I once was." She took a deep breath then smiles at her. "Thank you, for bringing me here from the world I was in. I still don't know how everything went so wrong...." she had a few tears in her eyes biting her bottom lip then looks up at Twilight fighting back the memories and smiles "But the name I picked for myself is Starbloom."         "That's a good name, Starbloom. Calling you Twilight as well would have been confusing for everyone and rather hard to explain." Twilight said taking Starbloom up to look around the room she had gotten ready for the new arrival. Even with the new name, she knew her friends had many questions for her about Starbloom and why she was here. She'd have to decide what to tell them, but that could wait until tomorrow.         Starbloom looked around the room Twilight had set up for her; she could see some of her old friends in the room. Rarity, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie Pie all had helped, she could tell by the decorations. She looked back at Twilight and smiled "This is great, thank you."         "You're welcome Starbloom, but now its bed time. Got an early morning tomorrow," Twilight gave her a small grin. "Tomorrow you start school."         Starbloom blinks at her a few times. "School? I'm the same age as you... oh wait." She looks at herself in a mirror. "That's right I'm a filly again." She blushed a bit having forgotten what had happened to her for a minute. "Luckily I'm young enough where it won’t look weird when I try to write with my mouth."         Twilight smiled at her helping her into bed using her magic to pull the covers over her. "That's right; we never did learn that, always had magic to do all that. Maybe I should teach myself muzzle writing so I can help you learn."         Starbloom didn't answer though, as soon as she had laid down in bed, she was out like a light, the long trip finally catching up with her. Twilight just smiled at her and put the lights out before leaving Starbloom's room and heading downstairs to the main hall of the library. "Sleep well, Starbloom."         She went over to her desk and started to use her magic to get a parchment, instead she stops herself and instead uses her muzzle to get one carefully taking it down and putting it on the desk. Using her hooves to place it, she then gets a pencil and holds it doing her best; she starts to teach herself how to write without using magic. Morning         Twilight had spent most of the night doing her best to learn how to write with her muzzle instead of using magic. It had been hard but before she fell asleep, she was getting better at it. Without Spike around, she almost slept in but she did manage to get up early enough to get Starbloom up and ready for her first day of school in Ponyville.         Starbloom woke up tired but ready to start the day, she was out of bed quick after being woken up and headed down stairs having a light breakfast of sliced fruit and apple juice. They both left the library and started to walk towards the school. "Are you ready for this Starbloom?"         "Yes I am Twilight," she smiled as she walked with her, looking around quietly. This Ponyville was just like the one she was used to, though some things were different, small details like the coloring on Sugar Cube Corner, a few of the trees where different species and a restaurant she frequented was in a different place. She looks back and looking at Twilight's old school saddlebags smiling that was the same as her own in her world.         After reaching the school, they meet with Cheerilee and talk with her about getting Starbloom enrolled into the school. It was simple enough. It was early in the day, so by the time they finished, the fillies and colts started to show up. "Have fun Starbloom, I'll see you after school."         Starbloom smiles at Twilight, "See you later Twilight." she watches as Twilight headed back home. She looked at the other fillies and colts as they got to school. She started to feel a bit nervous until she saw Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle arriving.         She was about to go say hi to them then remembered, she wasn't supposed to know who they are. So she stayed put, watching as they went inside. She went in as well, Cheerilee asked her to wait before taking a seat so she did. Standing by her new teacher as the rest of the students came inside.         "Good morning class, I would like to introduce you to a new student today. Her name is Starbloom; she is from Canterlot, say hello class." Cheerilee said in her cheerful tone, smiling down at Starbloom. Starbloom gave a nervous smile back before looking back at the class. They all said hello to her in a cheerful "Hello Starbloom."         Cheerilee continued speaking, "Now who would like to help our new friend get settled into class?" At first, no one said anything before Apple Bloom raised her hoof "We will Ms. Cheerilee," she said indicating to Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo who gave an enthusiastic nod in agreement. "Alright girls. Thank you so much" Ms. Cheerilee before looking to Starbloom, "Go ahead and find a seat. There is one free over near Twist." Cheerilee nodded her head towards the desk.         Starbloom smiled at her before she headed over to the seat and found a spot for her saddlebags before taking a seat and readied herself for her first day of class in a normal school. Ms. Cheerilee gave her some special help with muzzle writing since Twilight told her Starbloom didn't know how yet. Nevertheless, she picked it up quick, faster than Twilight had the night before in fact. Afternoon         Starbloom had been nervous most of the day, but started to relax as the day went on. She did her very best to hide her true intelligence from the class and Ms. Cheerilee though. She was worried ponies would start to ask questions about it. Soon lunchtime came and she headed outside to enjoy the day and have her lunch. She had thought she'd have lunch alone but soon The Cutie Mark Crusaders showed up at her table and joined her.         "Hi Starbloom!" All three said in unison before joining her at the table. Each putting their lunches on the table Starbloom was at; she watched the three in amusement, finding it hard to remember a time when she was little, having friends like these three.         "So Starbloom, you enjoying yourself here?" Sweetie Belle asked her before munching on an apple slice Apple Bloom had given her.         "Yes it's very nice, different from Canterlot though." Starbloom replied smiling, a bit nervous about the questions but doing her best to answer honestly without giving too much away.         "So you’re staying with Twilight? Isn't that kind of boring living in a library?" Scootaloo asked, between bites of a daisy sandwich.         Starbloom hide her annoyance at the question. "Not at all, I enjoy reading. ‘Specially the Daring Do series of books" She had hoped mentioning Daring Do would make Scootaloo think twice about libraries being boring.         Apple Bloom had actually been quiet during out most of the conversation, but she spoke up now "Hey how would you like to join the Cutie Mark Crusaders?" She asked suddenly and to the surprise of Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Starbloom herself was also pretty surprised by the question, she knew they took in new members like Babs, but that was Apple Bloom's cousin.         Starbloom was just about to answer when she heard two high-pitched voiced from behind her yell "Hi Blank Flanks!" She winced and looked back to see who it was. She recognized the two, Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. She knew them from the cute-ceañera about a year back. The other three looked annoyed until they saw the genuine look of pain in Starbloom's eyes from the comment.         Scootaloo jumped up from the seat fluttering her wings, "Hey! That's not nice," She said to them coming around the table protectively in front of Starbloom. "You should be a lot nicer to our new friend." She flutters her wings again in anger. The Cutie Mark Crusaders was used to comments from Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. However, they had no idea what happened with Starbloom, all they knew was she looked hurt from the comment.         Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle both got up from the table as well, standing next to Scootaloo. "Ya’ll best just leave her alone," Apple Bloom said to them stomping her hoof. Sweetie Belle kept quiet but just looked mad, as much as she could anyways, narrowing her eyes at the bullies.         Starbloom got up and moved around and in front of the three; they were curious about her actions but stayed behind her in a show of support. She had calmed herself enough to do what she felt she had to do; she looked at both of the girls quietly for a moment. Turning so they can see her flank, showing the gray patch of fur, her head lowered for a moment before looking at Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo smiling at them. "I would like to join, yes." She said softly         She then looked back at Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. Shaking her head, she frowned at the antics of the spoiled fillies. "Yes, my flank is blank, but it won’t be forever. Like all ponies, I'll get a cutie mark someday. Also, once I get my cutie mark, I won’t let it define who I am nor how I treat other ponies. Even ones without cutie marks." after she said her piece she headed back into the schoolhouse with the other members of the Cutie Mark Crusaders following after her, leaving the two bullies looking confused and surprised.         After getting back inside the school, she headed to her desk, took a seat resting her forelegs on the top, and rested her head in them. The episode with the bullies had left her feeling drained and she didn't know why. However, she didn't have time to think about it when the other three came in. All three looked at her concerned and Sweetie Belle spoke up first. "Are you okay Starbloom?" to which Starbloom nods at her before Scootaloo spoke up, "Don't let those two get to you, they're always like that.... ouch" Apple Bloom nudges Scootaloo hard "That ain’t helping," she said softly before looking at Starbloom. "Don't worry ‘bout 'em too much. Besides, that li’l speech ya gave ‘em left ‘em frozen as ice cubes."         Starbloom looks up at them and smiles "Thank you, Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo. It means a lot to hear you say that." She smiles at Scootaloo, "Even what you said helped. I'll try not to let it bother me too much." She would have to try and not be so sensitive about not having a cutie mark. This was a new life, and she would earn a new mark someday. She just had to find out what she was good at, besides magic of course.         A sudden realization hit her and her eyes went wide. The other members of the Cutie Mark Crusaders looked at her worried for a moment "Are you alright?" Apple Bloom asked noticing the look of panic in Starbloom's eyes. Starbloom tried to calm herself back nod and she nods slowly closing her eyes "Y... yeah I'm okay." She was glad to hear the bell ring and the girls going back to their seats without asking anything else, the rest of the class coming in from lunch along with Ms. Cheerilee. Who after getting the class settled, went on the rest of the day's lessons.         Starbloom wasn't able to concentrate though, as her mind raced with the new thought in her mind. What if I don't have any other special talents? What if magic was it for me? She fought back the emotions swelling up in her so she wouldn’t disrupt the class, and tried to keep her mind focused on Cheerilee’s lessons.         She almost slipped when Cheerilee asked a question she shouldn't have known the answer to, but managed to catch herself and give the wrong answer after raising her hoof. Which got a good laugh out of the class until Cheerilee got them to settle down. However, Sweetie Belle, who was nearer to Starbloom than Apple Bloom and Scootaloo, had noticed Starbloom had looked distracted since lunch.         After class, Cheerilee dismissed them and Starbloom got up from her desk and put on her saddlebags. The other members of the Cutie Mark Crusaders following her. "Hey Starbloom, want us to walk home with you?" Sweetie Belle asked when they had caught up with her.         "Mm? Oh no, that's okay it's across town and I don't want you to be late getting home." She said smiling at them, who didn't look convinced. "You can if you want to though." she quickly added.         The three smile at back at her "Good ‘cause we were gonna follow you home anyways." Scootaloo said before grunting when Apple Bloom nudged her. "Ouch, cut it out"         Starbloom just giggled softly at the two and smiles again. "I figured that," started to walk with the three to the library. She knew they would want to ask her questions and she wasn't sure how to answer them.         "Are you feeling alright?" Sweetie Belle asked after a few minutes of silence. "All through class you looked distracted."         "I'm alright Sweetie Belle, just had a lot on my mind," she answered before adding. "Twilight will want to know about how my day went, not sure how to explain what happened with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon is all."         "I understand, that can be tough to explain to a grownup" Apple Bloom nodding at her before pausing "Wait, how’d ya know their names?" She asked, not remembering any of them mentioning Diamond Tiara or Silver Spoon's name to Starbloom.         Starbloom almost froze as she quickly thought up a reason. She looks over at Apple Bloom, "I remember hearing it from attendance this morning." She quickly said which was true.         "Ohhh, ya' got a good mem’ry Starbloom." Apple Bloom said and Starbloom smiled at her, glad they bought the excuse. She hated to lie, but she didn't want to try to explain the truth to her new friends. The rest of the walk to the library was uneventful, the girls just making small talk and getting to know Starbloom better. Luckily, none of the questions got too personal or too much into her past. After getting home, she said good-bye to them and headed inside. Evening         After coming inside, Starbloom let out a huge sigh of relief and flopped down "Thank goodness that’s over." She groaned a bit, startling Twilight who was working at her desk.         "Rough day?" Twilight asked getting up and using her magic to get the saddlebags off Starbloom and putting them away. "Care to tell me all about it over some tea?" Both of them began walking into the kitchen. Starbloom took a seat and explained what had happen that day, Twilight listening quietly while fixing some tea and putting a cup in front of Starbloom.         "Sounds like an eventful day, but also sounds like you handled yourself well." Twilight said with a smile as she took a sip of her tea. "If you want, I can speak to Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon's parents for you. However, I want to get back to this thought you had, and I must say it does raise an interesting question. Can somepony who has lost their cutie mark get a new one...?" Twilight considered the idea quietly.         "No, that's ok you don't need to speak to their parents, I can handle them." Starbloom said taking a drink of her own tea, before looking back to Twilight and nodding at her slowly. "I don't ever remember hearing about anyone losing a cutie mark before. Other than special cases with prisoners like myself... and from what I know about those cases, they never earned a new one..."         Twilight nodded slowly as she thought about that, thinking carefully what to say. "True, but in those cases the prisoners are confined to prison so they don't have the ability to experience things to gain a new cutie mark either. Therefore, there is a very real chance you will earn a new one in time. In addition, I'm sure, as a new member of the Cutie Mark Crusaders, you'll have plenty of different experiences to learn from. Just try not to get into too much trouble." She said grinning softly at Starbloom.         They spent the rest of the evening talking about school, and how things went. Starbloom showed off her muzzle writing, much to Twilight's embarrassment of her own lack of progress. After dinner, Starbloom did what homework she had from school that day before going to take a good long shower and relaxing. The day had been stressful but also good. She made new friends and despite everything that happened with Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon, she had fun. As she got into bed she hoped tomorrow would be better, or at the very least, less stressful.