Starry Night

by Detsella Morningdew

Chapter 5: Things Get Moving

The next day, I decided to start eating with the guards in the newly established mess hall. It was a bit larger than it needed to be, but it had several round dining table that was perfect for small groups of ponies to talk to one another.

I needed to get to know my troops as my friends instead of just my students.

Specifically for today, however, I needed to talk with certain members without putting them on the spot. I gathered Swift Moonlight, a bat pony, Prismatic Ice, a crystal unicorn, Grizelda, a griffon, and Bright Eyes, who was currently pretending to be a unicorn, together.

"First of all," I said. "I don't want any secrets here. Drop the disguise, Bright Eyes."

The changeling reverted in a flash of green light.

There were several gasps. "Changeling!"

"It's just fine!' I shouted back to the offenders.

Bright Eyes was very confused.

I turned back to him. "Forgive the prejudice. Most ponies don't have very good memories of changelings, given recent history. Honestly, you shouldn't have made a disguise at all. All that did was make me more suspicious of you. I knew, of course that you were a changeling all along. I can see magic, remember?"

"You are among friends. I accept you for who you are, and I'm sure that when you get to know the others here, many of them will, too. You don't need to hide, anymore."

The reason I gathered you all here, is because today I planned to have separate classes, each specialized for each pony race. I just wanted to make sure you knew that while you will be assigned to the class that best suits you, I am not going to neglect each of your special abilities. But while you look different, remember that each of your classmates is just as different as you. Each of you have unique abilities and talents. None of you will be neglected."

"Also, notice that the armor enchantment either only partially worked, in the case of Prismatic here, or not at all. Bright Eyes, you can disguise yourself, anyway, but I would rather you not do that, except maybe in espionage missions."

"Why not?"

"Ponies need to get used to seeing changelings around. You are in a respected position, and a changeling that Princess Twilight reusts with her life is one of those things that could change ponies' minds."

"Swift, your colors are so similar to the rest of us, the lack of a change isn't really a problem, but if you want a change, I'm sure I can find a way to arrange that."

"No, I'm fine."

"Prismatic, you look just fine, but I am aware that as a crystal pony, others can see your emotions quite clearly. Your armor can be modified to change that if you so choose."

"I like it the way it is. There's no reason to change what I already had."

"Good. And finally, Grizelda, we modified the original armor to fit you. Is it comfortable enough?"

"It's great. A lot better than I expected, actually."

"Good. So Grizelda and Swift, you'll be in class with the pegasi, and Prismatic and Bright will be with the unicorns. I know that you can fly also, Bright, but I want you with the unicorns first. After that, you can transfer to the pegasi. I know that a changeling's wings are very strong, so that class would be too easy in the beginning. Training with your limited unicorn magic will be good exercise."

"I suppose that makes sense."

"And during class, feel free to practice your disguise ability."

"But I thought you said--"

"I want you to be undisguised for most of the day, yes. But during training, I expect you to practice your skills. I'm not telling you to stop being a changeling. I want you to practice your unique magic. But I don't want you to hide, either. I want ponies to know that being a changeling is just fine."

"Now we should finish eating. Breakfast is almost over."

---

I set the classes on a rotating schedule. I kept the first couple weeks simple, teaching one class at a time, and each pony got two-thirds of the day off, which they could spend either in the castle, or in Ponyville. This was my one exception to the armor rule. No matter how much I wanted to get my guards used to their armor, I didn't want to disrupt life in Ponyville, either. And it gave them a chance to walk around in their original colors again.

The classes had two parts. One was an academic section, in the classroom. The other was practical application. Physical training. In those beginning classes, the academic section was simple, teaching them how to act like real Guard members, immune to distraction, and exhibiting great professionalism. Things like how to hold a weapon. This was the same for all the guards, of course, and I could have taught it in a large class, but this allowed me to teach more individually, and I used these classes as filler until the academic section became really necessary.

The physical section was individualized training, specialized for each race. In the beginning this just meant more exercise, but specialized for race. Unicorns, in addition to their normal exercises, had magical exercise, strengthening their power and endurance. Pegasi, of course, exercised their wings. Earth ponies actually started their magical theory earlier than the others. They were taught how to use their connection with the earth to propel them along, reaching speeds exceeding an average pegasus in flight.

After those first couple weeks, guard duty started. Classes were the same length, but no pony had a class each day. Only four ponies attended each class, allowing me to work with each one individually, and for the first time, Crystal Castle had a guard detail.

I had finally succeeded.

Now, I wasn't finished yet. My Guards were up to basic Royal Guard standards, but I wasn't satisfied with that. There were fewer guards, and in my opinion, that meant they had to be just that much better.

There was still work to do.