Atychiphobia

by Ice Star


Tall Tale

dear diary

my city
farewell
my home
goodbye

{i will never see you again}

soon i am off to canterlot
Her city that touches the sky!


dear diary

all my toys are put away
my books lined up all nice

my Celestia dolly

{OF YOU! I HAD A DOLL OF YOU!}

all tucked in

with my fishy pillows that have the sequin scales
and my board games all stacked up
like the towers downtown

{AND I NEVER SAW ANY OF IT AGAIN!}

even the map of equestria
from the cereal box contest
with all the little pins in it

{OF PLACES I NEVER GOT TO SEE!}

spread across the walls
can't stop
the big empty feeling only new houses have
before i close the door
and grandmother calls me to the kitchen
our train will be leaving soon

i've never been so far from home before


dear diary

do you think the foals in canterlot will like me?
(i hope my roommate will be nice)
will they want to play games?
(if they snore maybe i can get a new one)
what if i don't get into the school?
(maybe no other magic schools will accept me if i can't get into Hers)
what if my grades are so bad i have to go to public school instead?
(one neighbor said her daughter wasn't able to do good at magic work there)
if my exam is too hard can i request a backup?
(there might be other fillies there who don't have cutie marks going through the same thing)
will grandmother have to visit every day or will i get to pick my own bed time?
(i'll have to ask somepony if only the ponies in the grown-up grades of Her school competing for paper thermometer awards are the only ones that get to do that)


der dary

ican't writ aneemoer traen to fas

yoor frend

sunset shimr


Dear Diary,

Our train stopped Los Pegasus. I can see the cloud city floating above us but not the Applewood sign. It looks so scary in the dark. I can write a little by my hornlight. I have to be careful. If my feather pen jingles grandmother might wake up. I know that Princess Celestia is one of the nicest gods ever but failure is FAILURE! I don't think She would be happy with a unicorn who failed her school tests. I think She would be very sad.

When a goddess is sad how bad are things? If I fail, will I end up like Sunrise Song and Bright Star in grandmother's pictures? Will ponies have to visit a rock with my name on it like I have to visit theirs every year? How will my dreams ever come true if I fail? What if an Ursa eats me?!

I want to be the best mage ever. I want Princess Celestia to make me the super-mage. I can't fail. Please I can't. Please please I can't. Please please please please please! I would rather go to horseapples and tartar sauce than ever fail.

I have to stop writing now, diary. Grandmother might wake up.

I'm still so scared.

Your sleepy friend,

Sunset Shimmer

P.S. Do you think if I ask grandmother super nicely for a pretty new coat when the sun comes up again she will say yes? If I look extra good will Princess Celestia like me more than other unicorns there? Does she even watch the exam?