//------------------------------// // Chapter 3: School and Protégé // Story: The Other Journal // by Ganondorf8 //------------------------------// Day: Wednesday Weather: Cloudy, possible chance of rain Time: 8:00am So this is Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns? I was expecting it to be so much grander, yet it looks small... insignificant to someone of my talent. Then again, I could just be looking at one part of this place, and that there is more to it than that. Oh well, I have more important things to worry about. Today, my life truly begins anew as I start my first day at the school... The Other Journal By Ganondorf8 October 28, 2015 Chapter 3: School and Protégé. " What do you mean, the school wasn't ready for you? I thought you were looking forward considering it meant moving away from your family." Twilight said, scratching her head in confusion over my choice of words. " Do you remember your first day?" I asked, glaring up from my journal, and looking at Twilight with a curious look on my face. My intent here wasn't to change the subject with regards to my troubled past, but rather it was a sense of curiosity that needed to be quelled. She was so much like her... Princess Twilight, yet their origins are completely different--at least I think so, yet my heart yearned for this knowledge like I were a ravenous beast. " If you mean Crystal Prep, then it went rather well although I quickly learned the hard way what it means to survive in such a prestigious school." Twilight answered, lifting up her skirt ever slightly to show me a scar, but my heart was racing as though my mind were focused on more than that. Shaking my head back and forth a few times, I got such notions out of my head, and waited to hear what she had to say about... that! " I got this as a sort of initiation on my first day... one of the students didn't take too kindly to me being gifted, so she pushed me into a locker where my leg scraped along the side resulting in this scar. Every day, when I see that scar, it's a reminder of the heartache and anguish I endured there because everyone always looked down on me, but I'm sure that didn't happen to you Sunset, so what you said surely isn't what you mean." Twilight smiled before covering up her scar, and her cheery expression made me look down at my journal in shame, for my words were accurate. " No..." I began after hesitating for a moment, "... I never got picked on like that, but my experiences on my first day were different, and would lead me into a path which culminated when Princess Celestia decided to intervene. Her School for Gifted Unicorns was famous throughout Equestria as being the school where young unicorns would be trained in the way of magic. The classes were fairly sized in terms of students, and the instructors all hand-picked by the princess herself, as she wanted the very best for her students. Naturally, I was happy about going there as it meant finally leaving my family of whom I had grown distant with, but that happiness quickly shattered to pieces when I discovered what I perceived as a horrible truth. I... I... I had to interact with other unicorns my age, but I didn't know how to because of my parents neglecting me like they did. I mean, I can walk amongst them, no sweat, but talking to them was a different thing altogether. My first day at the school was meant to be a new start, but my family problems followed me as though I were chained to them. No matter how much I struggled to break free of those accursed shackles, they remained dangling from me like a festering wound that refuses to heal. I wasn't nervous about speaking to the other students--of course not as I had confidence especially after Princess Celestia praised my magical skills... my problem was more emotional, more mental... I couldn't handle being around them as in my mind, their incessant chatter would just drag me down to their level. I wanted to be the best and prove that my family was wrong about me, and to do that, I couldn't afford to make friends, as friendship to me was nothing but a distraction. On the first day, my instructor wanted to do a class orientation where each of us was to briefly talk about ourselves, and what some of the students said made me want to cut my own ears off, as it was just agonizing. " I come from the richest family in all of Canterlot--" " My parents spent a lot of money to have me enroll in this school--" " I'm here so that one day I can become a famous unicorn wizard--" " Hopefully, you'll want to be friends with me--" " I just live down the street, so I can easily walk to this school without any problems--" Then, it was my turn to introduce myself, and provide a brief explanation about my life, but I wasn't about to tell them that I came from a family who ignored me. If I told them that, I would never hear the end of it where everyone offers me sympathy thus making me feel weak! Instead, I had something else in mind that I wanted to say in order to get my point across. I suppose at that moment, I should have rethought my approach, for if I had said something else... well... that's an alternate reality, and not what happened. " I'm here to become the best unicorn, and I'm not about to let anyone stand in my way! Don't expect me to make friends with any of you, as all I care about is being the best!" My response drew nothing but gasps from the instructor, and several of the students began to burst into tears. I know now that I shouldn't have said that, but back then I didn't care about their feelings. All I cared about was myself! I had my own interests to take care of! " My word!" The Instructor immediately stood upright on all four hooves, used her magic to pull me towards her, and took me outside of the classroom where she gave me quite the scolding, but I feigned ignorance as what I said I believed to be true. " This is Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns--the finest institute in all of Equestria! I don't know what made you utter those words, but know that this is your first, and only warning!" Her eyes went bloodshot as though she were about to explode, and the veins protruding from her face made me want to turn away in disgust, yet she made sure I stared deep into her face through using her magic. " I'm willing to give you another chance as I'm sure your little outburst was nothing more than you wanting attention, but know that if you do anything like that again, your time here will end just like that!" " Yes ma'am." I said softly. " What was that?" asked the Instructor. " Yes ma'am!" I answered, using a more louder voice, prompting her to release me from her magical hold, turning around, and walking back into the classroom leaving me to ponder over everything she said... for about less than ten seconds as in my mind, my actions were justified. I was going to be the best unicorn, and no one was going to get in my way, especially other unicorns as they could potentially ruin me! " Why did you stop reading?" Twilight asked, noticing that I had placed my hand over the pages of the journal, and was looking down without showing signs of moving, but I was breathing. This caused my friend to start freaking out as she thought that I was suffering a heart attack, so she began rummaging through her bag, her movements both clumsy, and erratic as she struggled to find something to help me out. Twilight's breathing also became erratic where she almost needed to breathe into a paper bag to calm herself down, but she didn't bring any bags, so her breathing went out of control. Upon finding some pills which she found in a small pocket on her bag, she began to feverishly try to pop open the cap, yet her sweaty hands were slowing her down, but when she looked up at me, I was staring right back at her. " I-I-I thought something bad had happened to you! I was panicking and everything--" Twilight said. " Sorry, I just needed to think for a moment." I said. " It would have been nice if you had told me, but I can understand as you have a lot on your mind right now. Still--" Twilight said, putting down the pills before reaching over to me, and slapping me in the face using as much force as possible in her hand. The impact of her slap caused my face to turn to the right where I spat out some spit, my eyes bugging out due to the impact of her palm colliding against my skin, the force almost knocking me over, but I managed to regain my footing despite sitting down. " Sorry... I'm so sorry that I did that to you. I... I... I don't know what came over me!" Twilight started to burst into tears, causing her glasses to become soiled with salty tears tricking down her face from her eyes, and all I did was rub the bruise she left upon slapping me on the left side of my face. " I deserved that." I said, rubbing my bruise carefully while wincing in pain from the impact of the slap. " Sorry!" Twilight said, struggling to wipe away her tears from both her face, and glasses, but then she felt something touch her face, and she looked forward to see me using a tissue to wipe away her sorrows, each stroke of the tissue felt like velvet was pressing on her skin, yet all I was doing was being gentle. " I didn't mean to give off the impression that something had happened to me Twilight, but I needed to think hard for a moment as this next part of the journal is where things take a turn for the worse depending on perspective." I said, sliding back over to where I dropped the journal prior to assisting my friend with her tear problem, and picking it up before flipping through several pages until I found where I left off. Over the next few months, my behaviour at the school remained the same although my attitude did change mainly because I wanted to remain there, and not be kicked out where I'd have no choice but to go back home to my family... I doubted they even missed me as they never noticed me before until Princess Celestia entered my life. My studies became my life... my career... my obsession, and even when asked to have some fun with the other students, I chose to focus on my work as I had much to prove. I chose not to engage the other unicorns out of not wanting to be distracted, and when it came to various field trips, everyone else paired up into groups, yet I insisted on working alone as I felt more comfortable. While my grades were the highest among the class, the instructor who taught me was concerned that my desire to remain isolated from my fellow ponies needed to be addressed, so she asked Princess Celestia to pay a visit to the school in hopes of finding a solution. " Her grades are the highest this school has ever seen which shows how dedicated she is to her studies, and yet, because of how she doesn't interact with the other unicorns, I feel she has grown colder by closing her heart off to them." The Instructor said, taking a sip from a coffee cup using her magic to levitate the cup up to her mouth. " Sunset Shimmer comes from... extenuating circumstances, so the fact that she chooses to isolate herself was expected. I believe this was written down in her records you received when she was first admitted to my school, correct?" Princess Celestia asked. " Yes, your highness. I have the records right here." The Instructor said. " Her choice to isolate herself is not what I am concerned with, but rather I am concerned about how the other students are reacting to her." Princess Celestia said. " They have tried asking her to get involved in their activities, yet she refuses their requests, and even looks down on them by saying that unlike her, they won't amount to anything because all they do is like to have fun, and not take their studies seriously." The Instructor said, taking off her glasses using her magic, wiping them with a cloth, and placing them back on the bridge of her muzzle. " She could become a bad influence on them should she continue with her current attitude, so I am suggesting that maybe she should be dismissed from the school your highness before things get worse." " You make valid points..." Princess Celestia began, "... however, again I must bring up Sunset Shimmer's circumstances being the problem, and one that I intend to resolve personally, for I believe she will become an outstanding unicorn with the proper guidance. All she needs are strong lessons on humility, and perhaps not seeing the other students as inferior to herself." " Are you suggesting?" asked the Instructor. " I shall take Sunset Shimmer under my guidance, and teach her myself." Princess Celestia answered. " Are you sure this is a wise decision your highness? I mean no disrespect to you, or your decisions, but making her your prized pupil could only serve to further evolve her already inflated ego." The Instructor said. If I had been in that room at the time, I would have agreed with the instructor, as I was simply too loose of a cannon to be given such a privilege as being the protégé of Princess Celestia... yet... it also meant moving one step closer to becoming the best unicorn, and being taught personally by the ruler of Equestria would grant me some interesting perks that few others will ever receive. Princess Celestia took the advice of the instructor, one of the best the school has to offer when it comes to teaching unicorns, yet she was determined to stay the course she had chosen. " If anyone can show her the way, it shall be me." Princess Celestia said, with powerful boldness in her voice. " When she comes to the school tomorrow, please inform her that she is to go to Canterlot Castle where I shall be waiting for her by the main entrance, where she shall begin her new role as my faithful student." She then rose from her seat, and immediately left leaving the instructor to ponder over what she had been tasked to do by the edict of the ruler of Equestria. The Instructor at first was hesitant in carrying out such an edict as she knew what kind of pony I was, and feared my ego would just inflate like a balloon, but then she resigned herself for the princess had given her a tasks, and she must see it through even if it meant going against her own sense of judgement. At the time, I assumed tomorrow was going to be another day, but it would become the first day in what can only be described as the beginning of my new position, and my undoing...