Once upon a long time ago, in a land newly dubbed as Equestria, there lived three tribes of ponies: Earth, Unicorn and Pegasus. Having just defeated the Windigos, the ponies had finally stopped their bickering and agreed to live in peace and harmony. For how long it would last, none of them knew. While the three tribes lived in peace, there was still some disharmony and argument over who should rule the entire land and govern all of the ponies combined.
In the heart of the newly created kingdom was the Everfree Forest. Known for its bewildering and mystical powers, it was here that the three tribes decided to build a castle for their undecided ruler. But as its construction moved on and a the three tribe leaders could not decide who was worthy enough to rule over all of the ponies, fear that the Windigos would return slowly began to spread through the kingdom. For if they could not once and for all put their petty differences aside, they would not survive. Little did they know that the Windigos were soon not the only things to be feared...
In the bustling and small new town of Canterlot, all ponies lived together more harmoniously than most places. Unicorns waved to Earth ponies, and Pegasi shouted hellos to Unicorns. While most circle of friends were still divided between the three, all were civil and polite. Fillies and colts of all ponies sat together in small classrooms before they were divided and sent off to different schools depending on their type.
And it is in such a classroom, a Unicorn classroom to be exact, that our story takes place. The classroom was dingy and small, the windows dirty and covered in cobwebs. Shelves upon shelves of books crammed every nook of wall, and tall stacks of other books took up most of the corners. A small chalkboard stood at the front of the classroom, with a small desk beside it. Pillows for students to sit on were spread out along the floor, with only a foot or so between them. There were only seven students in the class. Canterlot, though a growing town, was mostly new families with small foals. Young adult students were still rare, amongst all of the specified tribe classrooms.
Star Swirl the Bearded stood in front of the chalkboard, his hoof between his eyes. He sighed and cleared his throat.
"Let us try this again, Emerald Bead... Levitate and then transform," he said. He motioned to the chalice placed on the desk beside him and to the young mare who stood in front it. She licked her lips and sweat dripped from her horn and clung to her dark green mane. She glanced over her shoulder and caught her friend's eye. Her friend winked.
"You can do it, Em," Celestia said. Celestia was one of Star Swirl's star students. She and her sister, along with a young stallion, were proving to be his top three students.
Celestia sat back on her pillow and watched her friend struggle. She winced as the chalice barely levitated and then clattered to the ground. She glanced over at her younger sister, Luna. Luna yawned and looked out towards the sky, the sun barely peeking through the dirty windows as it began to set. Luna never seemed able to concentrate in the daylight, even when it was minimal.
Star Swirl frustratingly showed Emerald Bead how to do the spell again and promptly told her she was not leaving the classroom until she had mastered it. He angrily dismissed the other students. Luna eagerly shot to the door. Celestia gave Emerald Bead a sympathetic look and followed her sister out the door.
"It's not that hard of a spell," came a voice from behind them. Celestia turned and sighed.
"There's no need to be mean, Dissonance," she said. Dissonance was the other favored student. Quick magical abilities, fast reflexes, and a sharp mind, it was no wonder that Star Swirl the Bearded had favored him.
"Oh Celestia, don't be such a pill," Dissonance said. Suddenly there was a poof and the chalice that had been in the classroom behind them was bouncing on Dissonance's nose. "She'll learn it eventually."
"She's going to need that if she's to do so," Celestia said. She frowned at Dissonance. Dissonance smirked at her, and Celestia took a deep breath and tried to calm her fluttering heart. Though she herself wasn't into pranks and jokes, there was something about the jokester Dissonance that always had her heart running. She wasn't sure if it was because he was incredibly tall, or because his ashen colored coat was a mix of brown and grey like none she had ever seen, or because he was the only other Alicorn she had ever seen, aside from her sister, but there was something about him that made her want to learn more. To be close to him. Maybe they were just so opposite that it made him attractive.
"You're no fun," Dissonance said with a pout. The chalice disappeared, presumably back inside the classroom.
"And you're not nice," Celestia said. She turned back around and headed towards Luna, who was impatiently waiting for her and tapping her front right hoof.
"If you two could flirt a little less and hurry a bit more up, I can get out of this dingy old dungeon and watch the moon rise," Luna said impatiently. Celestia felt her cheeks grow red at the comment. She quickly trotted over to her sister and the two of them walked up the stairs.
"Luna," Celestia hissed. "Why would you say such a thing?"
"Please," Luna droned, her voice dripping in boredom. "It is obvious that you two have feelings for one another. Stop the charades and do something about it."
"Oh please," Celestia said. She glanced behind her as they exited the dungeon of the crumbly stone building where Star Swirl the bearded taught the young adult Unicorns their magic. Dissonance jumped and flew off in the opposite direction of them, as Luna and Celestia began to walk towards their small, modest home. "Dissonance is mean and cruel. You know I'm all one for fun and games, but he just takes it too far sometimes. Don't misjudge my kindness towards him as anything else."
Luna stopped and gave her sister a look. "Are you trying to convince me or yourself, dear sister?"
"I'm not trying to convince anypony of anything," Celestia said. "I am merely stating the facts."
Luna rolled her eyes and walked ahead of her sister. Celestia knew that Luna knew that she was fibbing. She could never hide something from her sister. Luna could read her like an open book sometimes. And maybe, just maybe, Luna could read Dissonance too. Could he possibly have the same fluttering feeling towards Celestia that she had towards him?
Celestia stopped and glanced back towards the direction that Dissonance flew away. Luna cleared her throat and Celestia turned back to her. She sighed and spread her wings, and took off into the setting sky behind Luna.