The Halcyon Days

by Ivo

Episode 1 - The First Time We Met

“Ouh-ouh-ouh, I am so excited! I am soooo excited! Are we there? Are we?”

The blue stallion laughed. “Easy little filly! If you are going on bouncing like that, you´ll reach the moon where Nightmare Moon would eat you!”
“Oh daddy! That is just an old marestale! And, besides, I can´t jump that high! I´m just sooo excited!”
Regardless to her words, the little filly stopped bouncing around her parents and trotted next to them.

They walked through a long alley, which led to a huge palatial building. Wide meadows stretched next to the alley in a rolling hill till the horizon. The sun shone warm and graceful above the three ponie´s heads, leading their way to the white building with its countless oriels, turrets, golden roofs and ornamentations. Princess Celestia´s School for Gifted Unicorns really was one of the most imposing structures in all Canterlot and, maybe, all Equestria!

“You better watch out, my little sweetie! Some marestales can be true!” a light gray mare with a purple and white mane opined smiling. The purple filly only nodded with an “Okay!” smiling back at her mother and tried to calm herself. If she was honest, she was really nervous about everything. This was her first school day and she asked herself, how her classmates would be. Would they be nice to her? She hoped so.
Of course, she was happy to be princess Celestia´s personal student at school, but would that have any influence on the acting of the others towards her? What if they avoided her! Twilight shook her head and focused her gaze straight on the huge school pile in front of her. Don´t worry, Twilight! Everything is going to be fine, you´ll see! she thought by herself and glanced at her parents.

She was so thankful that they had enrolled her at Celestia´s School, even if she nearly had failed the test. With a bright smile, she thought back at that fateful day. She already had given up hatching that dragon egg when a sudden loud explosion had turned her magic inside out. She slightly shuddered at the thought. She lost control of her own body and magic and the weirdest things had happen. She made the examiners floating, turned her parents in potted plants and hatched the dragon´s egg and instantly let the dragon grow until he broke through the roof.
Finally, Celestia herself helped her to return her magic back under her control and then, she really had asked her, if she would be her personal student! Twilight thought, she couldn´t be happier, but then, Celestia had shown her her cutie mark and she had bounced around them all, shouting “Yesyesyes!” again and again in her boundless joy.

She smiled. All that wouldn´t had happen without her parents and she snuggled up to them.
Slowly, they approached the pile…

“Alright, here we are!”
“I…I´m antsy…”
“Why are you antsy, my little sweetie?”
“What…What, if they don´t like me?”

Smiling, the slight gray mare sat down on the floor to meet her daughter at eye level. “Don´t worry my little Twilight! I´m sure they´ll like you!” she said softly and nuzzled the purple filly in front of her. Normally, Twilight wasn´t a shy filly, but now, in this situation, in this new place with all the other students and her as personal student of the princess, she was really nervous.
Everything just looked so…big!
So impressive…and daunting!

Even if there were a lot of other students around them with their parents, saying good bye to their parents and trotting through the big wooden door into their classroom, she felt lost and alone on this wide hallway with its high ceiling, the cold sky blue walls and the black-and-white marbled floor. The grass-green carpet that led to the countless doors all around didn´t make it better.

“But…what if I am not good enough?” Twilight asked worried again. “They´ll sure all laugh at me!” She imagined herself, surrounded by her classmates. They all laughed and pointed at her because she gave a wrong answer. She shuddered.
Her mother just nudged her and tried to calm her. “Oh Twilight! Nopony will laugh at you! Just be yourself! Maybe you´ll find some new friends!”
“But…”

“Excuse me. Is there a problem?” a deep male voice asked behind them politely. They all turned around, Twilight hiding herself behind her parents. They faced a beige-coated stallion with a straight short dark brown mane. On his nose sat an old-fashioned pair of glasses. With a likeable and friendly smile he looked at the trio.
“Oh, she´s only a little bit nervous and shy, that´s all.” Twilight´s father replied smiling.
“I see…You are the little Twilight Sparkle, am I right?” the stallion asked friendly and looked at the little filly that hides herself behind her mother.

She glanced at him and nodded, making herself as small as possible.
He smiled understanding. “You don´t have to be nervous, young lady.” he said in a calming voice. “I´m sure your classmates are all happy to see you!”
Again, Twilight peeked out from behind her mother. “Do you…really think so?” she asked shyly.
“Of course! They are all really excited to meet the personal student of our princess! They sure would be really disappointed, if you won´t appear! I am sure they´re all looking forward to become your friends!”
Now, Twilight came out of her hiding and looked at the stallion, new hope in her eyes. “Are you really sure?” she asked again and he smiled even wider, encouraging her with every new word.
“Oh yes, of course! It is not often Princess Celestia takes somepony as her personal student! They are sure all really proud to learn together with you!”
Twilight beamed. “Really? Oh thank you!” she said, filled with new hope and courage. She didn´t know how, but the kind stallion had brought back her old excitement.
She turned back to her parents to say good bye. They both nuzzled her and promised to pick her up after school.
With a final encouraging nudge of her mother, Twilight happily entered the classroom.

Her parents followed her with their eyes and looked back at the stallion. Twilight´s father first began to speak. “Thank you very much, Mister…?”
“Albert.” he introduced himself. “Professor Albert. I am Twilight´s form teacher.”
“Well, thank you, Mister Albert. I am Night Light, Twilight´s father and this is my wife…” “Twilight Velvet.” the slight gray mare introduced herself and they shook hooves with Mr. Albert.
“You seem to know a lot about her worries!” she continued. The beige stallion only nodded and smiled.
“It is a part of the job to know, what makes students tick. Twilight is very much like the children of famous ponies. She thinks the others would avoid her because they may think she is arrogant and deems to be a cut above them. But she isn´t like that and that makes her nervous because she thinks they´ll prejudice her.
The other thing is the stress of being the child, or in her case, the student of somepony famous. She thinks she has to be very good to not disappoint her master and puts pressure on herself.”

“Wow, you´re really knowing a lot about the sorrows of your students!” the blue stallion said impressed. Mr. Albert only smiled flattered.
“Thank you! But, as I said, it comes with the job. Excuse me now. I have a class to teach…”

Twilight still was nervous, but also excited. It was a strange mix of feelings, so she thought. Her gaze turned around the room.

She sat on a place in the second of five rows of wooden desks, an empty place beside her - the last empty place. All the other desks were already taken. Only a few other students chatted together, like the two mares, a pink and a mint-green one, behind her.
In many faces she could see the same nervousness like the one in her face, which calmed her a little bit.
Her gaze wandered to and through the window. The school garden, which could be seen from their classroom, was riddled with flowers in countless forms and colors. The sight dispelled her black thoughts and her nervousness for a short while.

“Um…Excuse me?” a voice behind her asked. She turned around with a start. Twilight had been so lost in her thoughts and the flowers out there, so the sudden voice behind her had frightened her slightly.
The next thing she found, was herself, lost and drowning in a lake, no: an ocean, no: two oceans! Deep, dark-blue oceans! Two shining lazurites looked directly into her eyes and mesmerized her. They were framed by a soft white coat, which shone like stars. Around this white star lake streamed a straight and neck-length mane-river, black as night. For the purple filly, there was no doubt: In front of her stood the most beautiful colt, she had ever seen in her entire lifetime!

But then, waves of a frown appeared over the ocean-eyes and a hoof, rubbing the face, broke the eye contact and its hypnosis. “Have I got something in my face?” the colt´s voice asked and finally brought Twilight back into reality completely.
“Oh…Nonono!” she replied, smiling and slightly blushing with shame. She looked to the ground to not lose herself again in his eyes. “I…just…was lost in thoughts for a moment.” He chuckled in response to her answer.
“This minute was but a looong moment!” he said sassy, wide smirking and cocking an eyebrow. She giggled about his cheek, finally facing him again, hitting back with the same sass.
“Well…it was a looooong delicate thought!”
“Oh, and what exactly was that looooooong delicate thought about?” he asked her back, keeping up his smirk and his raised eyebrow, bringing his face a little bit closer to hers like a conspirator.
A few moments, they just kept up smirking at each other, exchanging glances. Finally, Twilight answered, analyzing the situation of the colt: “Well…this delicate thought maybe was about if I allow you to have the last left seat next to me, but I don´t know…do you always have to be so…” still smirking, she put a hoof on his chest and slightly pushed him back. “…close to fillies?”

Now, he laughed and took a step back, looking over her. “You know what: you´re all right!” She joined his laugh and watched him while he sat down behind the desk next to her. A short moment, they eyed up each other.
“Well…may I ask you what´s your name?” the white colt finally asked her, gently smiling without any sign of waggishness now. Twilight returned his smile. “I am Twilight. Twilight Sparkle.”
“THE Twilight Sparkle?” he shouted out in surprise and some of the other students around them turned around and looked at her. Suddenly, there was the nervousness again. “THE personal student of princess Celestia?” he continued asking.
“Um…Yes?” she answered with a sheepish smile.
“Oh wow! I heard so many things about you! It´s just…it is an honor to learn at your side!”
“Thank you…” she answered shy. His beaming smile disappeared when he saw, that she wasn´t as cheerful about it as himself and turned into a knowing and sympathetic smile.
“It´s…a real burden for you, isn´t it? I mean all that pressure to perform and don´t shame princess Celestia and all…” She nodded. It sounded just as he would exactly know how she was feeling. After several seconds of silence between them, Twilight shook her head to dispel the dark thoughts again and sighed.
“Anyway…” she finally said, already slightly smiling again. “You still haven´t told me, who you are! What is your name?”

He looked at her with his ocean-blue eyes, wide smiling.

“Just call me Bleach…”

The rest of the day was simply great for the little filly! Well, maybe excepted the PE-lesson…

Twilight had never been the most sportive type and favored the theoretical subjects like math, chemistry or physics, especially magical physics. Her new friend Bleach though seemed to be very intelligent AND sportive!
They had played dodge ball today and Bleach really had ruled the game. He had an elegant slight figure and moved like a dancer, when he had avoided the balls. Not one single one had hit him! Maybe is dancing his hobby? she asked herself and decided to figure that out. At the end of the lesson, they had played ‘tag’ and also there, it was impossible to tag him! She had tried it, but regardless how surprisingly she had appeared, he always made it to avoid in the last second!

“That was a great first day, wasn´t it?” the young colt next to her suddenly asked while they headed for the school´s exit. Twilight nodded cheerful.
“Yes, it was! I was so nervous this morning…”
“Me too! I mean: everything was new for me: the classmates, the teachers, the lessons… I felt, kinda…lost.”
“I felt the same. I didn´t know how the others would act towards me because I am Celestia´s student and all and I was really nervous about that. But then…”
“We met!”
She nodded, beaming at him. “Yes!”
“What was your favorite subject today?” he asked with curiosity.
“Magical Physics!” she answered. “And yours?”
“PE!” he beamed.
“Of course…” she laughed and rolled her eyes. “I´m asking myself all the time: Are you some kind of hobby-dancer?”
He laughed and shook his head. “No, I am no dancer! Did it really look like that? Cool! Anyway, one of my favorite stories is ‘The Three Maresketeers’ and I just like the way they move! Elegant and graceful, but deadly at the same time with their rapiers!” He rose to his hind hooves and acted as if he was one of the fighters in the story with an imaginary rapier.
He was right, it looked elegant and graceful! Twilight realized that she was staring at him, shook her head and blushed slightly. The white colt noticed this but interpreted it wrong. “Did it look that awkward?” he asked, lowering back to all four hooves.
“Oh, nonono!” she reassured him. “It looked really good! Like one of the Maresketeers, really!”
He quizzically cooked an eyebrow but didn´t say anything.

Together they left the school pile and searched for their parents like the many other young fillies and colts around them. Bleach found his parents first.
“Found!” he beamed, pointed at his parents and turned around to say good bye.
Twilight took a short look at his parents.
She saw a great white unicorn-stallion with a short dark-blue mane and tail with a muscular but still slight build next to a wide-smiling gorgeous pale pink mare with a long straight black mane and tail.
Twilight frowned.
“Tell me…your dad…isn´t that our PE-teacher?”
Bleach smiled sheepish. “Yes…Yes he is…But that´s not why it´s my favorite subject, if you ask yourself this now. It´s sheer coincidence.”
She nodded smiling.

“So…” he began, pawing the ground. “…I think, we´ll see us tomorrow, right?”
She nodded again. “Right!”
“Or…do you have some time this afternoon? Maybe we could meet at the playground at the park…if you want…”
“Oh, I´d love to! But I can´t today. I have to report Celestia about my first school day. And furthermore she wanted to give me my first personal lesson today…What about tomorrow?”
“I´m sorry, but I can´t tomorrow…”
“Oh! Pity…And the day after tomorrow?”
He chuckled. “We´ll see. Well, I have to go now. My parents are getting impatient!” he said with a side-glance to them and began to trot over to them. “Good bye, Twilight! See you tomorrow!”
“Good bye!”

She watched after him. His parents greeted him nuzzling and together they trotted off.
Now, she also looked for her parents. She instantly found them watching at her. With a wide smile, she trotted over to them.
“Hi!” she greeted them.
“Hey, my little sweetie!” her mother greeted her back and nuzzled her. “How was your first school day?”
“Great!” she beamed and told them about the today’s lessons and their nice form teacher Prof. Albert.
“And? Have you found some new friends?” her father asked between two of her sentences.
She nodded enthusiastic. “My desk neighbor: Bleach!”
“Bleach?” the blue stallion questioned her.

Twilight beamed and on their way home, she told her parents every single detail about her first day at school and her new friend…