//------------------------------// // Poor Firsts // Story: Mixed Drinks // by SoralTheSol //------------------------------// Mixed Drinks Chapter 13:  Poor Firsts. “Today we are going to go into some of the more advance theories of magic.  Now can you tell me anything you have noticed over time as you have gotten more used to using magic?”  Twilight asked.  The lavender mare was sitting poised next to a blank blackboard, with a few texts spread about her person.  She was looking eagerly at a young mint foal who was sitting on the floor in front of her.  He had a chocolate brown mane and tail.  Blue eyes shifted from left to right in though.  He fidgeted in the hooded vest Rarity had made for him. “I have noticed that their is a sort of, strain at my forehead.  Just behind the horn.  I have also noticed that,”  At this pause he gave his horn a rap with his hoof, “this has no nerves so the term “Horn-ache” makes even less sense.”  Twilight nodded at him but said nothing so the colt continues to search his memories.  “Umm…  I have also noticed that I can, I don’t know how to say this exactly but, it feels like when I use my magic some times that I am in a lake.” “Okay, that is pretty far along actually.  Each unicorn experiences their magic a little differently.  It is almost as unique as cutie marks.  Many associate their magic with either an aspect of nature, or something they like.  I have met a few who compare their magic to ingredients in cooking to some that view it like formulas in math.  Depending on where your talents lie this may change over time.”  Twilight explained. Her horn ignited with with a magenta glow which then surrounded a piece of chalk.  She didn’t even turn to the board as the chalk traced a diagram onto it.  It showed a growth chart for ponies, the stages from foal to adult and underneath each once was a shape.  The shape stated with a starburst as a foal and gradually evened out into a circle as it got closer to an adult.  “This is a basic chart showing magic progression based on age.  No matter who the pony is, their magic will stabilize following this pattern.”  Twilight began explaining.  “Foals, colts, and fillies all have unstable cores.  This also tends to be the reason they suffer from magical surges.  As they age their magic will begin to settle.  This is a natural process and nothing can really speed it up.  Even for unicorns, all constant practice does is give them more control.  I actually had surges up to a couple years ago.”  The lavender mare admitted. “What can I expect from a magic surge?”  Soral asked.  His ears flicked back as he looked nervously at her. “Oh anything can happen really.  From age changing spells, to transformation spells, to random teleportation.”  Twilight explained cheerily. “I don’t think I like the sound of that.”  Soral muttered while glaring at the floor. “Oh don’t worry.  It is a natural part of growing up as a unicorn.  In fact, a foal's first surge is normally celebrated.  Maybe we could get Pinkie throw a party for you when you have yours.”  Twilight explained, before erasing the diagram. “Now then, you said you’re magic felt like a cool lake right?  That is generally a description given by a unicorn in their teens because they have gotten farther along in using magic.  It is interesting that you reached it so quickly-” “Well, I didn’t have magic before.  Granted it took me a while to find it, but it is rather hard not to pay attention to once you do.”  Soral said interrupting Twilight. The mare looked at him in concentration for a moment before answering.  “That is true.  I suppose there are many new things you have had to get used too.  In that case lets start with a higher tier spell.  What I am about to demonstrate is a simple animation spell.”  With that Twilight sent a small blast of magic at a broom.  The broom stood up straight and then began to make a lap around the room, sweep as it went.  The downside of this was it just scattered and dust it came across instead of cleaning it. Soral was staring at the broom intently.  His eyes glowing blue.  When it stopped he tilted his head to one side.  “That was a three part spell.”  He stated. Twilight’s attention was focused on her student.  “Very good, what else can you tell me about it?” “That part of it was similar to the telekinesis we have been using.”  Soral said, his face was scrunched up in thought.  “I have a hard time telling though.  There are indicators for magic but the ones I thought I recognised were swirling around with a few new ones.” “Fascinating.”  Twilight said as she began to scribble down some notes.  “How were you able to tell it was a three part spell?” “Well there was a band the middle that didn’t do anything except get smaller as the broom made the circuit.  I think that was the power supply or a timer.  Then there was a ribbon of telekinetic magic running up and down the broom making it move.  Finally there was this controll box of magic.  I don’t know what it was but it was telling the telekinetic part what to do.”  Soral described what he saw from when the spell was active. “Yes!”  Twilight cheered while clapping her hooves together.  “To think you can dissect a spell to that level of detail just from looking at it.  Think of all the research we could do.  This would let me figure out so many old spells.”  Twilight began to excitedly scribble down notes using a nearby quill.  She levitated the paper in front of her to check for errors only for all the ink to fade away. “What the?”  Twilight asked, her ears Slanted back and her eyes scrunched in confusion at the event.  That is when the inhabitants of the library heard snickering off to the side and noticed Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie next to an open window.  Soral then saw something he never would have suspected.  Twilight’s horn ignited and several complex bands of magic swirled around the inkwell.  She then transformed it into a blob of water before being hurled at the laughing pair.  Both Mares bolted from the window before it it, only for the water to separate into two blobs and streak out of the winder and perform an impossibly sharp turn and fly out of sight. “What was that?”  Soral asked, a bewildered look on his face. “A transmutation spell, projectile spell, and tracking enchantment.  It will keep chasing them until it hits.”  Twilight smugly stated, a pleased look on her face. Soral backed away from the now slightly more scary mare that was his teacher.  “Umm, I have something to do today… With Apple Bloom!  yeah, so…”  He said, his ears flat against his head as he edged closer to the door. “Wait!  We have testing to do still.”  Twilight said as she Cantered towards the colt, a gleam in her eye that had the colts hair standing on end.  With a startled yelp Soral desired to be anywhere but in the library at that moment.  He felt his magic shift on it’s own but he was too focused on getting away from twilight to try and stop it.  The room was filled with a bright flash of blue, when the glare cleared Soral was gone. Twilight blinked the spots out of her eyes and looked at the new scorch mark on the floor.  She began to cast several detection spells to figure out what just happend.  The results she got had her baffled though.  “He teleported?  How can he teleport!?”  Yelled the baffled mare. *-*-* Soral was disoriented as he traveled through the aether.  He tried to make sense of what was  going on, but soon was forcefully ejected out of the streaming magic into the real world.  He tumble head over hooves once, then twice, and came to a stop on a dusty patch of land. “Owwie.”  The little colt whined.  He tried to stand on shaky hooves only to stumble to the ground each time he tried to rise.  “Unnff…”  Soral groaned out as he fell to the ground again. “Are you okay?”  A voice asked.  At least he thought that is what the voice asked because it was really soft and he was still kinda dizzy.  Looking up he noticed a blob of pink and yellow which reformed into a concerned looking Fluttershy.  Soral opened his mouth to respond, before snapping it back shut and shaking his head no. “Umm…  Do you need a lift back into town?”  Fluttershy asked?  She was suddenly rather close to him.  He felt as her hooves moved his head up, then down, then to both sides.  It seemed she was checking him over for injuries. “Y-yes please.  Dizzy, tired.”  Soral managed to get out.  His eyes widened when he felt Fluttershy pressed her muzzle under her side.  With a brief feeling of vertigo he fell from the air to land on the timid mare’s back.  Soral made a note to stop thinking of Fluttershy as timid.   Fluttershy moved him to where he was positioned between her wings, raising them just a bit to create a firmer hold.  After that she turned around and for the first time, Soral notice there was a gaggle of goslings.  Well they were ducklings, but you get the idea.   “Alright little ones, let’s go.  We need to make it to pond across town now.  So stick close.”  Fluttershy announced.  She was answered with a chorus of chirps.  Fluttershy turned around and began humming a simple marching tune that had the ducklings following along right behind her.  They wove their way up the road toward Ponyville, passing through White Tail Woods.  They would have likely continued on if it weren’t for a specific interruption. “I can’t believe you got us lost.” “It’s not my fault!” Soral and Fluttershy turned to look in the direction the voices came from.  The bushes parted and out of the woods came two griffons.  The pair looked similar to each other, like mirror images.  Looking closer, Soral realised that they were mirror images of each other.  They both had black beaks.  Their feathers were mostly white with the spotting on the breast.  The feathers on the top of their curled over and to the side.  Though where on curled and covered the left eye on one, it curled to cover the right eye on the other. “Yeesh.  Here, there is somebody we can ask for directions, happy now?”  The griffon on the right snarked at it’s companion.  Soral notice that the voice seemed to be a bit feminine. The griffon on the right gave the other a glare before turning towards us.  H It gave a smile before speaking.  “Hello there, my name is Gabriel.  Would you be kind enough to show us the way to town?” Fluttershy curled in on herself, but she did keep her back level so Soral didn’t get disturbed.  The little mint colt decided to respond for her. “Town is just up the road.  We were just heading there.  I have never seen a griffon before, are you two related?”  The colt asked the last bit out of curiosity. “Uh, yes we are.  Brother and Sister.”  Gabriel explained. Soral’s eyes slowly widened in surprise before he leveled a hoof at the speaking griffon..  “You’re a boy?!” “Hey!”  Gabriel shouted, glaring at the ponies in front of him.  He heard his oh so loving sisters collapse to the ground behind him, laughing. “So what is your sisters name?”  Soral asked, deciding a different question might be a good idea. “Her name is Gabrielle.”  He responded as he glared at his sister. “Wow, two griffons named after a Christian Archangel.”  Soral said aloud.  He found it rather odd that he would come across such a thing in equestria.  Maybe it was a common griffon name.  He looked up to ask more questions only to notice that both griffons were giving him rather odd looks. “And just how would you know where that name come froms little pony?”  The female Gabrielle said as she made her way over.   Soral found that he suddenly wanted to hide inside of Fluttershy’s mane until the giant bird went away.  “Umm… lucky guess?” “How about you spill the beans before a feed you to my Chucky doll.”  The griffon said menacingly. This proved to have an effect as the colt was left staring at the griffon in shock for several moments. “Well?”  Gabrielle asked again. Soral looked at her, and then tears began to form at the edges of his eyes.  He made a few sniffling sounds. Both griffons looked surprised at this and the girl quickly began trying to fix it.  “W-wait.  Don’t cry, it was just a joke!”  she said holding her claws up in a placating gesture. “Haku-chan!  Anko-chan is being mean to me!”  The little cried out.  Shortly after that his eyes were completely dried. However the griffons were now the ones with the stunned expressions.  They both raised a claw and pointed at the colt.  “Kiddi?”  They asked simultaneously. Soral was about to answer when everyone began to be filled with a sense of dread. “HOW DARE YOU!”  The siblings were now clinging to each other while looking at the fiery eyed pegasus who was now glaring at both of them.  “How dare you threaten a little colt like that!  you both should feel ashamed of yourselves.”  Fluttershy scolded her captive audience.  Soral knew he should stop her, he really did, but you try doing anything when Fluttershy is like this and see how far you get. “Now I want both of you to apologize to him right now!”  Fluttershy said, finishing up her scolding. “But-” “No buts!”  The motherly pegasus cut them off.  They sat in silence for a few more seconds before both griffons let out a quiet apology.  “There, now if both of you still need to get to town you can follow us.”  She told them and then turned and started walking towards Ponyville.  The rest of the trip was looked like it was going to be in silence.  Not even the ducklings deared to let out a single peep.