They sat there for a while, their lips connected before finally breaking. Anon's heart felt like it was going to pop out through his chest.
"That was... incredible." Sunset aid
"It was. Thanks for my first kiss."
"It was mine too."
"Care for another?"
"I'd be disappointed if we didn't."
They kissed for a second time
"You're an amazing woman, Sunset."
"You're even more amazing than I am. Most guys are scared of me. I don't blame them. Not many people want to die five years after marriage."
"Hey, Sunset."
"Yes?"
"I might be coming on a little strong here, and forgive me if I'm being too forward but... I would be honored to call you my girlfriend."
A long silence filled the air
"But... the curse."
"If it means being with you, I'd happily bare it's weight. Besides, it's only after marriage right? So we've got quite a few years between us left."
Anon turned his head to find tears streaming down her face
"I-I'm sorry!" Anon said "Did I hit a nerve?"
Sunset hugged him so tight he thought his ribs might crack
"No, dummy." she blubbered "I'm just... so happy."
"So what do you say?"
"Yes, of course, yes!"
He rubbed her back as she cried for a while, her makeup running down her face.
"Well we've got thirty minutes before the dance." she sniffled "I need to go redo my makeup. Meet me at the base of tree near the stage."
"I will." he said "girlfriend"
Sunset began to giggle uncontrollably
"I'll see you in a bit boyfriend"
They both take their leave and Anon makes his way to the stage at the base of the tree. People were already starting to congregate. It was going to be packed. He walked up to the tree. It was even more intimidating up close. He placed a hand against a tree and instantly felt a shock against his back and his vision go dark. He knew this sensation, it was the same one he felt every time he accessed crest memories. The scene opened with him staring at Celestia.
"This is it. The culmination of all my research." Clover said
"Are you sure about this? You know the moment you do this... you're never coming back."
"If it means allowing magic to continue in this world, it's a burden I'm willing to bear."
The two stayed silent for a long while
"And Luna?"
"I can't save her. We had to seal her away, there was no other alternative. She's not Luna anymore... she's Nightmare Moon. Should the seal ever weaken, I have a plan."
"A plan?"
"Yes. I can't say it out loud though. Luna's aura is still strong here. She could be listening. But trust me when I say I have a sure fire plan to stop her should she come back."
"You and your plans..." Celestia said "Do you really have to go?"
"Yes. This must be done." she said "I love you, Celestia."
"I love you too, Clover."
The scene ended and he returned to the present. This really was the last place she was. Whatever she did to extend the age of magic, she did here. Damn visions. They always left him with more questions than answers. Just five minutes before midnight Sunset returned, he makeup flawless once again. Anon walked over and gave her a hug.
"You look amazing."
She smiled brightly
"Thank you."
In quick order a band made it's way to the stage and began to play a quick, energetic song. He twirled Sunset round and round. They danced like they'd never danced before. The rhythm carried through their bodies, making them twist and turn, bounce and bob. The music ended with Sunset being held inches from the ground by Anon's arms, her feet starting to lift in the air. They were both panting like crazy.
"You're quite the dancer." Sunset breathed
"Thank you."
The music rolled out a slow tune and Anon helped Sunset back to her feet. They took position, one had on each other's waist, the other raised and clasped together. As the slow, elegant beat moved, they did as well even throwing in a few pirouettes in for good measure. Just as the song ended, they kissed once more. Sunset hugged him tight.
"Thank you for tonight, Anon. This has been probably one of the best nights of my entire life."
"It was my pleasure, Sunset. And I'd agree. This will definitely be a night to remember."
"Tomorrow I'll have my mom sew a clover on my tunic so I'll never forget it."
"I'm honored."
They break from the embrace, Sunset holding his hand.
"Well all that's left is the give mana to the Great Tree. Honestly I'm not interested. Want to head back?"
"Sounds good. Not like I can participate anyway."
They walk back to the cable cars and hop on. Just as the car was taking off, he looked back at the tree. It was beautiful. With all the mana being poured into it it gave off a beautiful green glow that extended to the forest. It was then he realized that the forest, too, was part of the World Tree. The mage world was truly a sight to behold. Back at the castle grounds, Sunset and Anon gave each other one last kiss.
"Well I have to get back to my House. Thanks again for tonight. Boyfriend."
"I'd do it a hundred more times. Girlfriend."
The two giggles and went their separate ways, Anon returning to his room. Bonbon and Lyra followed soon after.
"Way to go rookie!" Lyra said
Anon smiled tiredly
"She really is amazing isn't she?"
"Look at that Ly. Completely lovestruck." Bonbon giggled
Anon looked around and realized he hadn't seen Wallflower all day
"Do you guys know where Wallflower went?"
The mood instantly plunged
"Did you not know?" Lyra asked
"Not know what?"
"Wallflower told you about the people who worked on the project that spawned Memory Magic right?" Bonbon asked "Well one of the people who went mad from the exposure to the Greater Magic was her mom. Every time a nice event comes up that requires a tunic, she always vanishes. I don't blame her. Poor thing."
Anon wanted to go and help her, but after being awake for nearly twenty hours, he could hardly keep himself awake.
"I'll talk to her tomorrow."
"Go to bed. You've earned it."
Anon climbed into his bed and fell asleep near instantaneously.
The next few days passed relatively uneventfully. It took time, but Anon mastered each of the basic disciplines except for Illusion which he was struggling with. He even managed to learn his first life magic spell, making plants grow from nothing. Things were moving along at a steady pace. Finally the morning of the first day of school arrived and he received a guild list. Guilds were essentially the equivalent to fraternities and sororities in the mortal world only with two key differences: they were related to a specific area of study such a alchemy or insight and there were literally hundreds of them. The list was over ten pages long. All of them had different requirements for entry.
Coloratura joined the Music Guild, Trixie the Performance Guild, and Wallflower the Manifestation Guild. Anon, however, remained undecided. It wasn't required by any means, but he did want to join one. Coloratura looked down from her bunk, her big, D-cup boobs hanging over the edge.
"Hey, Anon."
"What's up?"
"Decided on a guild yet?"
"I haven't. There are just too many too choose from."
"Why not choose one of the more general guilds?" Trixie interjected "You seem to be pretty gifted when it comes to Manifestation. Probably your mana type."
"Are we ever going to find out what my mana type is?"
"I thought your little girlfriend would've shown you." Trixie snickered "There's a test for it. I'll show you tomorrow."
"Well I'm off to get some breakfast." Anon said
"Good luck."
"Thanks."
Bonbon followed him out.
"Hey Bonbon?"
"Yeah?"
"It just occurred to me. How is it that the cafe is stocked with food at all hours of the day despite there being no staff?"
"Good question." she said "But I think you already know the answer."
"You mean you can actually create food with mana? That's nuts."
"It takes a lot of training to make food as good as what the school offers. It's mostly year eights and above who do it. Their training really does show."
"Mana is so versatile. Are there any limits to it?"
"Yes actually." she said "There are things that, while theoretically possible, you could never find the amount of mana to achieve. First one coming to mind being large scale mana dilation."
They walk into the kitchen
"How so?"
"Theoretically you could use this concept to stop time entirely. But I've never heard of a single person being able to do it, even if they have multiple high level mages doing it. And the reason for it is due to the Greater Magic."
They grab some breakfast and sit at a table.
"How?"
"It's due to a principal called the Expansion Effect. I won't get to technical with it, but essentially at a certain threshold of mana expelled, the Greater Magic will actively start to steal mana away rather than passively. The more you move past the threshold, the higher the toll of mana will be."
"How are we able to give mana to the World Tree then? There was so much the tree was glowing."
"It's one of the many mysteries of the World Tree. No matter how much mana is expelled, so long as it's given directly to the tree, the Greater Magic won't intervene."
"What happens if you lose all your mana?"
"Death usually. But you'll feel it long before then. You have to keep your mana level within a certain range. What will happen often is it will first make you deeply sick, then induce paralysis. After that you die."
"Scary."
"You don't have to worry about that though. Since you're using life magic you never have to worry about such things." she said "Your power comes from the plants and trees around you, thus circumventing the need for mana altogether."
The both eat in silence for a bit before Bonbon breaks the ice again
"Excited for your classes?"
"I don't know. I'm not sure what to expect. Something tells me it's going to be a little different from mortal school."
"Oh yeah. A bit more flashy. You'll do fine though. Just make sure to take good notes."
"What about you? Don't you have any classes?"
"Yes. You."
"Me?"
"Yep. I'm trying to get my major in being a body guard. You're what mortals would call my senior thesis."
"That's pretty nice. A lot better than what we have to do. Normally we just write long, boring papers."
"It is nice. And I'm certainly getting some valuable experience for sure. I doubt I'll ever have a job with stakes so high. So if I can do this, I can do anything."
The two finish eating and head back to the room. Anon began to pack some of his books in the bag the school gave him.
"You're not actually taking a bag, are you?"
"Yeah? Why not?"
"You are so new it hurts." Trixie snorted
"What's wrong with the bag?"
"It's the ruck sack you got during orientation. You'll like like a newbie."
"Coloratura? Is that true?"
Coloratura put her books in a trunk then shrunk it down so it fit in her pocket
"Don't ask me." she said "I'm a new student too remember?"
"Wallflower?"
"If it bothers you so much." Wallflower said rolling her eyes
She zapped the bag, transforming it into a plain grey backpack
"That spell will wear off after a day so you might want to think about going and getting an actual backpack."
"I will. Thank you Wallflower."
"Happy to help."
They all exit the room and head to the lobby. To their surprise, Headmistress Rarity, who had been seemingly absent the entire week, was seeing the students off.
"Ah Anon,Coloratura, Trixie, and Wallflower." Rarity called out "Wonderful to see you. I hope you have an excellent day. If you need anything, please don't hesitate to ask."
Rarity clearly cared quite deeply about the well being of her House occupants. She was almost like a mom. They say their thanks and walk off in separate directions to their classes. It almost pained him to do so after spending such a fun week with them. Anon pulled out his schedule from his pocket. Alchemy in Tower Five. As he made his way over, Sunset joined him.
"Hey, sweetie." she cooed
"Sweetie?" Anon giggled
"Do you not like it?"
"No I love it," he paused "cutie."
Sunset giggled in return
"So where are you headed?" Anon asked
"I'm going to my first medical class. It'll be a breeze for me I think. You?"
"I've got Alchemy 403, then after the Conjuration."
Sunset got a glint in her eye
"Oh I remember Conjuration! You're going to love the teacher. She's quite the card."
"Who is it?"
"Gusty the Great"
"That's quite the title."
"And she's more the earned it. She has a bit of an odd personality so just brace yourself. You'll like her when you get used to it though."
After walking together for about fifteen minutes, their paths finally went in other directions. They both hugged and went on their merry way. Anon walked into the tall blue tower, making his way to the top. It was a long room with at least five rows of desks, each seating about ten people. There were no windows except for a small open sliver at the front of the room that let some light in. To his surprise, Bonbon and Lyra didn't sit beside him, instead opting to take too adjacent corners of the room. It was pretty smart. Together they could see the entire room, no blind spots.
In a few minutes about forty of the fifty available seats were taken. It was a bit claustrophobic and stuffy. A girl that sat beside him caught his eye. She had red hair done in an unusual style. She clearly had long bangs but opted to tie them with a hair band above her head, forming a odd front bun. She wore a large purple sweater and a red skirt. Anon decided to make some small talk.
"Hey."
"Hi." she responded, rather annoyed
"I'm Anon, a new student here"
Her mood instantly shifted from annoyed to highly interested
"So you're the unusual newbie everyone keeps talking about?" she asked "The one who's the boyfriend of the heir to the Shimmer Family no less?"
"I didn't realize I was so well known."
"You're just an unusual case. The last time a person from a non-mage family came across mage powers was nearly 650 years ago. And they are a very positively viewed character in history. Not to mention you're dating an noble. To say you're an odd case is an understatement. You're weirder than a snow storm in July."
"Oh. Well I hope you don't view me that way. I'm just a normal guy."
"Not at all. Sorry. I thought you were just trying to pick up on me." she said "Boys always seem to think with their dicks."
He stays silent, not sure how to respond to that
"Oh I'm sorry. I haven't introduced myself. Name's Moondancer. I'm a 5th year and deputy headmaster of Magic House."
"Oh really? You must be really gifted then."
"Something like that. I just have a rather peculiar and rare style of magic that isn't practiced often."
"What magic?"
Just as he asked a woman bursts into the door. The teacher no doubt.
"Shh. I'll tell you later." Moondancer said
The teacher spoke in an extremely monotone voice
"Greetings everyone. My name is Maud Pie and I'll be teaching you Alchemy this year."
Anon sighed. If she talked this boring she'd probably bet suited teaching dream magic.
"Now if you would please open your books to page three."
The class was about exciting as Maud's voice. They learned about basic metals and properties they had. Yawn. Not only was the subject matter dry, but Maud's perfectly monotone voice made him want to take a nail and drive it through his eye socket, just to make his heart hadn't been gotten bored it stopped beating. he hour long class felt like it took over forty years. Finally they were let loose, Moondancer by his side.
"God that was so boring. I thought I was going to die."
Moondancer giggled
"That's professor Maud for you."
"You've had her before?"
"She teaches all the Alchemy courses here. She is unbearably dull."
"So what is your magic?"
"It's something called Memoir Historia. When's your next class?"
"In an hour. Why?"
"Would you care for a demonstration?"
"Absolutely."
Lyra and Bonbon trailed closely behind, hands close to their weapons. The look in Lyra's eyes showed distrust.
"Let's go to the old oak."
He follow her through the castle, eventually stumbling on a large oak tree with glowing pink leaves near the wall.
"Now, watch and be amazed."
Moondancer lifted her wand into the air and a myraid of glowing multi-colored lines branched out, forming what almost looked like a complex web of branches. Then, as if something from above let out a single drop of light on top of the branches, a single bead of light traveled down the intricate array and into her wand. The branches vanished and a beautiful beam of pink light shot into the air.
"Historia is a lost magic handed down from Luna Moon." she said "It allows me, or my wand rather, to communicate with the Greater Magic at no risk to myself. It pulls a random spell from within the Greater Magic and allows me to cast it with perfect mastery."
There was that name. Luna. Was it the same Luna that became Nightmare Moon?
"That's incredible. How are you able to do it?"
"It's not a perfect spell. But essentially it transfers the information directly to my wand rather than me, preventing mental degeneration. But, since my wand has no consciousness and can't pick and choose, that also means the spell is completely random."
"You should really think before using such a powerful magic so frivolously." Bonbon said
"Yes, mom." Moondancer mocked
"How did you get a spell that belonged to Luna?" he asked "Wasn't Luna one of the mages that traveled with Clover the Clever?"
"It's been in my family for generations. My family was on of the few survivors of the the Magic Ancient Age that have made it this far. Only three did. Us, the Shimmer family, and the Sombra's."
Anon paused for a while
"How well can you keep a secret?"
"Why?"
"Because if this spreads around, I could get killed. It's why I have these two."
"I can keep a secret. But if you really don't believe me, we can make Oath Pact."
"What's that?"
"It's a tool practiced by ancient mages, one of the few tools commonly used today. It's a contract that's upheld by the Greater Magic itself. When the two parties enter an agreement it binds their souls, to the point where not even death will allow them to break the contract."
"Alright, that seems fair."
Moondancer flicks her wand and a silver scroll made of light comes into existance
"It specifies that you are to share with me everything you know regarding the secret you intend to tell me. If I tell this secret to anyone else in any way, including hints or be secondary means, my ability to do that will be burned before I complete it."
"What does that mean?"
"Say I try to tell someone this secret. Before I am able, all memory of what you're about to tell me will be completely burned out and erased."
Anon turns to his two bodyguards for conformation and they both nod.
"Alright. I accept."
They both sign the pact and it vanishes into thin air
"I'd start talking quick if I were you. If you don't then you won't be holding your end of the deal and will combust into flame."
He explains to her that he inherited Clover's Crest and how she seemed extremely interested in the Greater Magic as a solution to extending the age of magic. Moondancer could hardly believe her ears.
"Wow. That is... a lot. I don't know what to say. I knew you were an unusual case but this is a whole new level of crazy."
"Is there any resources you might have to help? Any books? Anything?"
Moondancer thought hard
"Tonight at ten o clock meet me at the school gate. I think I have something that could help you. But it's at my home and I've never actually cared to look at it until now."