//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: Twilight Sparkle and the School of Magic // by mojomcm //------------------------------// Celestia was, by all means, a morning person. Every day she woke up to raise the sun, which in turn, woke the rest of Equestria. This routine had not changed for many millennia, and would stay the same for many more. So when the great alicorn princess rolled out of bed one morning in June, she did not notice anything out of the ordinary. Luna had just flown in from lowering the moon, ready for a good night—Er, day’s rest, when her older sister got up to raise the sun. Celestia smiled as she watched her sunrise; in fact, it was her favorite part of the day. Seeing the sky turn from the dark, deep indigo of her sibling’s night, to the bright blue that greeted the morning, it all seemed like the perfect picture to wake up to, and Celestia had never seen the same sunrise in all the centuries she’d lived. For every single day was as unique as the first, and held the promise of new things and new adventures. "And every adventure is as exciting and unique as the last," Celestia murmured, thinking aloud. "Don’t you think so, Philomena?" The white alicorn tiled her head in the direction of her pet phoenix. She was surprised to see not one, but two phoenixes sitting next to each other. The taller fire bird held a scroll in his beak, which was marked with a school crest bearing four different animals and the words "Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus." For once in her life, Celestia was utterly surprised. She was not surprised in a bad way, for the phoenix belonged to an old and dear friend. "Good morning, Fawkes," the princess said, greeting her guest. "I assume that you aren’t here simply just to visit." Fawkes, for that was the phoenix’s name, nodded politely before dropping the scroll into her waiting magic. Celestia’s eyes darted back and forth as she read the message. The three parchment papers hovered in front of her nose, held in place with the alicorn’s golden magic. "Oh, Dumbledore," Celestia sighed. "What in Equestria are you planning?" Meanwhile, in another castle, two beings faced each other. They were not ponies, nor were they griffons, dragons, or any other creatures of the like. These two were humans; tall, erect ‘beasts’ that, well, you know what humans are. The two humans stood on either side of a desk in the headmaster’s office in the school, for that was what the castle was. "Albus, are you absolutely sure that inviting Celestia’s student was a good idea?" one of the two asked the other. "How in the name of Merlin is she going to arrive in our world, much less fit in?" The man stroked his exceptionally long, white beard. This man was none other than Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, the esteemed headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. "I would expect that she would arrive through the same way that Fawkes left," Dumbledore said after a pause. He gestured to the large mirror that stood behind his companion. It was at that exact moment that the phoenix decided to fly out of the mirror as if it were an open doorway. Fawkes soared over Dumbledore’s head before landing on his perch across the room. Minerva McGonagall shook her head, "You know that I don’t trust using the Mirror of Erised as a gateway. How can we truly trust it when all it shows is wishes and dreams?" Dumbledore simply smiled. "We may not trust it, nor know how it works, but we still have to believe that Miss Twilight Sparkle will arrive and that she will fit in with the other students, whether it be by magic or by fate." "Today, Spike," a certain lavender alicorn said to the baby dragon seated next to her. 'I know that everything is certainly fine." Spike snorted, wisps of green dragon flame becoming visible for a split second. "Don’t you remember the last time you said that? All of your friends’ cutie marks got swapped and that nearly sent all of Ponyville into a panic!" Twilight laughed, "So? It ended up just fine for everyone in the end." "You’re hopelessly optimistic, you know." This only managed to send Twilight into another fit of the giggles. The little dragon shook his head disapprovingly while his friend laughed. She's absolutely lost it, Spike thought. No, I've seen her when she's lost it. This isn't even close. Soon, however, Spike too fell victim to the contagious laughter. The two friends laughed until their sides hurt, a record beat only by the Element of Laughter, Pinkemena "Pinkie" Pie. As with all good things, their laughter had to end. Some things end quietly, simply fading away from existence. Other things go out with a bang and flash of lights. This ended along the lines of the later, stopping with a bright burst of green fire and smoke that simultaneously dropped a scroll onto Twilight's head. Spike blushed and muttered an apology as Twilight grabbed the scroll off of her head and brought it down to eye level. It was an ordinary bit of parchment; a dull, uninteresting tan color that made the letter look absolutely...ordinary. A plain red ribbon held the paper in a tight roll. Celestia's personal seal was marked on the front along with a strange crest that dared to make the ordinary-looking parchment seem somewhat interesting. Twilight shrugged these thoughts off as she broke the seal. Surely whatever Celestia thought needed to be marked with her personal seal had to be important. Twilight only hoped that it wasn't anything disastrous or dangerous. She had saved Equestria enough times that an end-of-the-world situation was simply annoying. "Dear Twilight," said alicorn read. "As you know, the world we live in is not the only one out there. This was proven when you followed Sunset Shimmer through a magical mirror into another world. I have moved that mirror from the Crystal Empire to the palace, here in Canterlot. Since then, I have received a visit, along with a message, from an old friend who resides in yet another world. His name is Albus Dumbledore. I pass on his message; an invitation rather, to you. If you accept, I shall see you, Spike, and Owlowiscious before September. I will give further instruction then. Celestia." Twilight glanced up at Spike, who in turn shrugged. HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore (Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards) Dear Miss Sparkle, We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July. Yours sincerely, Minerva McGonagall Deputy Headmistress Twilight's eyes widened in surprise. She re-read and re-re-read the two letters. The third piece of parchment was a list of school supplies that included several things she had never heard of. Spike smiled as the papers floated away from Twilight's face. "Looks like we're going to Hogwarts, Spike."