//------------------------------//
// Prologue 
// Story: An Exercise in Futility 
// by NeonKitty 
//------------------------------//

I know this letter will one day be hard to read, and you must know, were it not for our circumstances, we would never have abandoned you.

We dare not speak of the events that brought you here, much less of the circumstances leading up to them. I cannot stress the following enough: Do not come looking for us. You may not like what you find.

We have sacrificed so much for you to be free from the chains of your parents. We implore you: live a normal life. Study hard. Stay out of trouble. Make us proud.

We will always remember you.

Love,

Mom and Dad.





'Is it finished?'

'Yes.'

The mare smiled underneath her hood at the sleeping infant below her, wrapped in a shroud of thin linen. Tucking the hastily written note into the child's crib, she kissed the unicorn baby on her forehead. 'Goodbye.'

Settling the child in front of the orphanage's doorstep, out of the snow, the stallion pounded loudly on the thick oak door. The pair waited with baited breath.

Suddenly, a light flickered on in one of the upstairs rooms.

'That's it. Let's go.'

The stallion and mare bolted, the thick night snow swallowing them whole. Within seconds, they were gone.

Time ticked by, punctuated only by the infant's increasingly frustrated wails. Lights flickered on as the awakened pony made their way downstairs. The light behind the door flickered on, and not a second later, the door cracked open.

At first, the mare saw nothing. Then, she heard the all-too-distinctive wails, ones she had heard many times before.





'Well, Sister Blossom?'

'A girl, Mother Superior. A healthy one too. No marks, no bruises, no signs of deformity. I'd say no less than three months old.'

'Did they leave a note?'

'Yes, Mother Superior.'

Blossom passed the hastily-scribbled note to Mother Aurora. As she read further down the note, her nose wrinkled, and she finished it with a sigh.

'More wastrels, probably. Still, at least they had to good sense to give the child a proper home. Let me see...'

Mother Aurora produced a notepad, and began to skim through it. Suddenly, she stopped, and scribbled something down.

'We'll put her in 3B. The older girls should be able to shoulder some of her upbringing. Did she have a name?'

'Not that we know of, Mother Superior.'

'Well, no matter, the other children will likely come up with one.'

Mother Aurora smiled down at the child, brushing a lock of hair from her eyes. 'May the Astrals bless this child. Sister Blossom, see to it that the other girls do a good job, will you?'

'Of course, Mother Superior.'

'Good, good. Well then, take her to her room and get yourself to bed.'