//------------------------------// // The Entrance Exam // Story: Magical Radiance // by Prixy05 //------------------------------// Outside in the waiting area for the school, a unicorn filly sat with her parents. She had a pure white coat and was fiddling with her cutesy curled indigo mane as a means of distraction. She had watched the other unicorn fillies leave before her, more often than sporting a look of disappointment. Even despite the filly before her who bounded out in a state of bliss, Rarity felt butterflies in her stomach. She didn't want to be here, she thought to herself, she had planned to do other things like designing the costumes for the school play, which was today! But instead, her parents decided to whisk her away on a surprise trip to Canterlot to apply for some kind of school that they had apparently applied for months prior. Yes, she had become particularly skilled with levitation through her rudimentary design projects, but no more than any other unicorn. Still, they were both so enthusiastic, and Rarity would never want to let them down. All these thoughts only came out as a muted sigh as Rarity glanced up to her dad, who was sitting next to her. "So, Rarity," Hondo Flanks said to his daughter, "You think Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns has a sports program?" Rarity didn't answer, instead turning to look down the hallway to the testing room. She didn't inherit her father's enthusiasm for sports or her mother's love for baking. In fact, she hadn't found any calling at all so far, her white blank flank standing out from its own lack of a cutie mark. Rarity had expressed some interest in design, or maybe gemstones, but nothing had given her that cutie mark click. "Up next, Hondo Flanks, Cookies Crumbles and filly," echoed the bored voice of a teacher through the halls, using some kind of advanced amplification spell undoubtably taught at the school, "Please report to the testing chamber." Cookie clapped her hooves, "Oh my little Rarity's getting into magic school!" Despite Cookie's premature statement, the trio filed down the hall and entered the chamber. Rows of seats laid in front of the presentation area. An area that was currently completely empty except for a cart with some kind of purple egg. In the uppermost room sat four unicorns who looked extremely bored. "Welcome to the entrance exam for Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, Miss Rarity," announced one of the judges. He motioned at Rarity's parents as they walked over to the corner to sit and watch. "Now for this entrance exam, you must use magic to hatch this... egg," he droned as he motioned to the purple egg, "Failure to do so is an automatic disqualification." That statement wrung up strings of panic within Rarity. This isn't what she expected! She had expected to levitate some plates, not this! "Well Miss Rarity?" Asked one of the judges, raising an eyebrow. Rarity nervously laughed to herself as she approached the egg. Rarity concentrated to herself. This performance had to be great. No, not great, exemplary! Perfect! She firmly planted her hooves on the ground and breathed in and out. Beads of sweat began to roll down her face as she concentrated on the egg. Dapples of light began to sparkle at the tip of her horn as the egg began to glow and vibrate. Now breathing heavily, Rarity clenched her teeth as she put all of her energy onto the egg and... Nothing. The light faded from her horn and the egg. The spell, her magic, had failed. No sound came out as her eyes began to well up with tears. The teacher judges merely grumbled amongst themselves, prudently scribbling at their notes. Rarity hung her head as she began to silently cry. She was a disappointment. "Miss Rarity," said the first judge, "It seems that-" BOOM! A loud sound crackled from outside shaking the school at its foundations and making every pony in the room jump. The sound knocked the wind into Rarity, causing something to happen to her. A new feeling that radiated within her, that charged her inside! White light began to emanate from her horn once again, only more powerful, with crackling sparks and beams of light shooting out. Rarity began to hover in the air as white light enveloped the egg as well. A creative surge of energy flowed into the egg, causing it turn red, blue, pink, green; faster and faster until it was rapidly shifting across the entire color spectrum. The judges' eyes widened in amazement as the egg began to change not only in color, but in shape! Spots formed as it shifted into a griffon egg, then lumps formed as it turned into a serpent egg, then it turned into a cuboid egg nopony even recognized, and so on. Everypony was staring at the color changing and shape changing egg, not noticing as beams from Rarity's horn began to shoot out elsewhere. It was noticed when a beam of light hit Hondo Flanks turning the stallion's coat into a shade of blue. Another stray beam hit one of the judges, turning her a shade of yellow with pink polka-dots. The ferocity of the beams escalated as more shot out, changing the shades and patterns of every object and everypony in the room. The glowing filly Rarity was unaware as objects began to float and change their forms as well. The floating judges began to shout in distress and flail helplessly as a chair turned into stone and a potted plant turned into diamond, not wanting to be transfigured themselves. Their cries did nothing to stop the filly at the center of the magical maelstrom. Celestia stood on one of the balconies of Canterlot Castle. She was curiously observing a rainbow halo stretch it way across the sky. Suddenly, the loud sound of a magical transfiguration redirected her attention to below. The school, her school, was still standing, but beams of rainbow light emanated from one of the lecture halls. A pulsing magic was making tiles from the roof float up in the air, several of which had changed to various objects. Could it be? Crying from teachers and parents did little to deter the filly who was surging with uncontrollable magic. Rarity's eyes glowed white as the magic flowed around her. Suddenly, a hoof was placed on her shoulder. Snapping back to reality, Rarity gasped as she fell to the ground. Standing before was the large white Alicorn with the flowing rainbow mane, Princess Celestia. Celestia looked around the room. It was a mess fit only for the spirit of chaos. Floating objects, multicolored ponies, random debris floating about, and what could only be described as an egg rapidly changing like roulette wheel. She looked down to see a filly pleading at her hooves. "Princess! I'm so so so sorry! I- I don't know what happened! Please don't punish me!" Celestia smiled, "Why would I punish you my little pony? I've never seen this kind of raw magic from a filly before." With a flash of her horn, Celestia returned the room to normal. The shaken judges, now in their original shades, slowly floated back down, all of them staring at the egg which had stopped shifting. With a pop, the egg settled onto a black lumpy form. "And it looks like you made a new friend as well," said Celestia as she and everypony else watched as the "egg" began to crack. Out emerged a small black insect-like creature. It chirruped as it fell onto the ground, flittering its shiny black wings. "Now you won't be learning in my school," stated Celestia, making Rarity hang her head in shame, "Instead, I'm offering to take you as my personal protégé and teach you how to hone in your magical abilities." Rarity stepped back in shock. A student of the princess herself? She looked over to her parents, who nodded enthusiastically. "Of course, Princess!" They both said. Recomposing her little self, Rarity firmly answered. "Of course, Princess Celestia, I shall be honored to be your personal student!" Celestia lightly laughed, "I am pleased you made your choice Rarity, and it looks like someone just got her cutie mark!" Rarity gasped as she turned quickly to her flank. Her eyes widened as a cutie mark appeared. It showed a dark blue diamond-shaped star, surrounded by six smaller diamonds in clockwise positions. "Thank you, princess!" she cried, losing all sense of formality and hugging the Alicorn tightly, "I'll never forget this day!" And never forget it she did, for who knows what would have happened if Rarity had never gone to the school?