Starlight Glimmer was a young pony with a bright future.
A unicorn born to a good family in the city of Canterlot, the capital of Equestria, she was blessed with all the advantages a pony could have.
From as far back as she could remember, Starlight was always fascinated with magic. She wasn't what anypony would call a natural at it but even as a filly, she was dedicated and enthusiastic about learning it.
She spent more time studying and practicing magic than she did playing with her friends. All of that hard work boosted her to the top of the class in the study of magical arts. A fact that her teachers did not fail to notice.
One of the happiest times for young Starlight was when she got her "cutie mark". Being taught, as young ponies were, that your cutie mark was a sign of a pony's "special talent", Starlight was sure that her cutie mark would relate to magic and she was right. Hers was a bi-colored star and what looked like two swirling magical auras.
Encouraged by her mark, she threw herself even deeper into the study of magic and was rewarded one day with an invitation to attend "Princess Celestia's school for gifted unicorns". A school that every young pony dreams of attending.
Life at this point could not be any better for young Starlight but this was all about to change.
You see, Princess Celestia's school for gifted unicorns was for "gifted unicorns", ones who show a special talent in the magical arts. Not unicorns that just study hard.
No matter how much time Starlight spent in the library studying spells or how many sleepless nights she spent practicing her casting ability, the teachers soon came to see that her abilities were not advancing as quickly as the other students.
Because of this, poor Starlight soon became the target of some of the meaner students in her class and having a magic themed cutie mark just made it worse. While many ponies remember how badly it hurt to be called a 'blank flank' when they had not yet gotten their cutie marks, that pain was nothing compared to how Starlight felt when her classmates started asking if she "just painted that cutie mark on" and calling her a "pretender" among many other hurtful names. One especially mean young stallion even went so far as to tap her horn, laughing as he did, asking if she was really a unicorn or if she just made that horn and glued it to her forehead.
She spent many a night crying herself to sleep, cursing what she came to think of as the "cutie mark lie". An empty promise of talent. She often asked her parents "What's wrong with me?"
Her parents, feeling so badly for their daughter, had only consolation and sympathy to give.
"Oh Starlight, there's nothing wrong with you sweetheart. Cutie mark magic is one of the least understood in all of Equestria. It's up to each pony to find out how their cutie mark relates to them. Some ponies understand right away how their mark inspires them and for others it often takes more time to discover it. We wish we had better answers for you."
Though kind and meaning well, Starlight could not take any comfort in her parents words. It's very hard, she thought, not knowing where you fit in.
Then, if things couldn't get any worse for Starlight, on the last day of class before the semester break, she was called into the headmasters office.
He informed her that she was being expelled from the school.
The headmaster was gentle and kind explaining it to her. Although far from one of his favorite duties, he did have a lot of practice. After all, the dropout rate for this school was rather high.
But poor Starlight was unconsolable. She was in shock! She had worked so diligently, studied harder than any pony else in her class. Why was this happening to her? Starlight was so full of emotions, sadness, disappointment and anger, all swirling around in her head, that she felt like she was looking at herself from down a long hallway.
She was startled back to reality by the headmaster who was calling her name and lightly tapping his hoof on his desk. "Miss Glimmer, miss Glimmer, can you hear me?" he called. "I'm sorry, I truly am. I know this comes as a shock to you. I've waited until the end of the semester so you will have some time to adjust.
It's already been arranged for you to resume class next semester in your old school."
Wiping the tears from her eyes, Starlight composed herself as best she could. She then asked the headmaster, "B-But why? H-Have I not studied hard, p-passed all my exams? Why is this happening to me?"
The headmaster, using his magic, removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes with his hoof before continuing.
"I'm sorry miss Glimmer. Although your grades were acceptable academically, it's not enough to just study hard and learn the spells. This school was founded to train the most gifted unicorns in Equestria to focus their natural talents in magic beyond what can be learned just from books.
You see, although you are a good student, you just don't have what it takes to progress to the next level. It's nothing to be ashamed of," the headmaster continued, "some ponies just have a special talent for magic. I'm sure your talent, whatever it is, will become apparent to you in time."
With this, Starlight was dismissed.
Her head low, she cleaned out her locker and went home. You would be hard pressed to find a more dejected pony in all of Equestria.
Returning home, Starlight refused to leave her room for days. Nothing her parents could say had any effect on her. Nopony came to visit her because what friends she did have were not what one would call close. Starlight was a dedicated pony you see, and she spent most of her time with her studies, in the company of books and not socializing with friends like her peers did.
She didn't blame them, it wasn't their fault. Why would anypony want to come see a failure like her?
A week went by before Starlight came out of her room. She was done feeling sorry for herself.
That was not who she was. She had a plan and she was determined to put it into action.
Her cutie mark had set her up for failure.
What was a cutie mark anyway but a brand, a way to make a pony feel special, to single them out from the rest. What good did that do? As far as she was concerned, it did not do a bit of good. In fact, Starlight thought, the root of all trouble in Equestrian society could be traced back to those infernal marks. Individualism, Starlight thought, causes disharmony. In sameness, there is peace.
Where did these marks originate? Did ponies always have them? These questions were at the forefront of Starlight's mind. Questions she was determined to get answers for.
Starlight remembered one of her teachers at Celestia's School For Gifted Unicorns talking about a land far to the west where strange ponies practiced unusual magic. Perhaps she would find her answers there. If nothing else, it was a good place to start.
Her parents were distraught when Starlight told them she was leaving but nothing could deter her from the path she had chosen. There was nothing left for Starlight in Canterlot.
With a tearful goodbye and no small amount of trepidation about the journey ahead, she packed what small supplies she thought she would need in her saddlebags and left the very next day.