Star Knight and the Nine-Tailed Fox

by Rakoon1

The Three Great Fairies Preparatory Academy

It passed two years and it seemed that, during this time, the villain activities seemed to have ceased from one moment to the other. In a way, it was a relief to the followers of the Order, but many couldn't help thinking that was the calm before the storm.

Star Knight had also grown and matured during this time. However, the cold stares of the light ponies continued to follow him wherever he looked. This made him take refuge in the only place he felt himself safer: the castle.

His feelings did not go unnoticed by her parents who were immensely concerned about him. They wanted what was best for him and they knew that free him from that anguish was the best way, knowing that probably the time to Star know the truth about being a Jinchuriki was approaching, but they, mainly Twilight, were willing to postpone this moment as much as possible. So they called the other Generals to discuss the best way to deal with this situation. After exposing their problem to them, Twilight asked, sitting on her throne:

"You know of any way to fight this problem?"

"Honestly, I don't know, Your Highness" Golden Paladin said. "It's not that we can force the light ponies to accept Prince Star Knight."

"I can do that" Heartbeat said to his older brother.

"Ok, let me rephrase" Golden Paladin said. "It's not that we should force the light ponies to accept Prince Star Knight."

"But they have their reasons" Purple Smoke said. "Have you forgotten what it was when Heartbeat left Nine-Tails escape?"

"You’ll never go to shut up about that, won’t you?" Heartbeat asked, irritated. "I said it wasn't my fault."

"That's not the point, Heartbeat" Leaf Mane said. "The point is that Nine-Tails can try to escape again."

"Can this happen, Golden Paladin?" Blue asked.

The General of Peace took a few seconds to answer and then said:

"The truth is that even the most powerful sealing spells tend to weaken. Mine is no exception. It can contain Nine-Tails, yes, but the time can weaken it, besides it won't last until Nine-Tails takes advantage of the loopholes to release portions of his energy to try the young prince. The most logical solution would be trying to teach him how to control that power. Of course, for that…"

"No" Twilight said, knowing what Golden Paladin would say. "I don't want Star to know anything, at least for now."

Blue turned to his wife and said to her:

"Twilight, although also it costs me, we can't keep this secret from Star forever."

"I know that" Twilight said. "But I will not allow my son to suffer more than he is already suffering."

"But I think the pain is not just caused by the disregard of the light ponies" Blue said. "It is also caused by the fact of not knowing why they despise him. I know the truth might affect him, yes, but that would be an initial shock. I think what he needs is to know that it's not because of him that the inhabitants of his own kingdom despise him."

The alicorn princess didn't say anything, because she knew Blue was right, but, even so, her mother side prevented her from doing the most logical thing to do. It was then that Mirror Coat said:

"If you allow me, Your Highnesses, I think I have a solution that, while not ideal in all aspects, it seems to me that it's the right thing to do, given the situation in which we are."

"What is it, Mirror Coat?" Blue asked.

"Well, the point is that there is a way to control Nine-Tails’ power" said Mirror Coat said. "Heartbeat, you, more than anypony, know what it is."

"Of course I do" she replied. "Nine-Tails is connected to his emotions and, given that he is so full of hate, we just have to use the opposite feeling: love."

"Precisely" Mirror Coat said. "Although it's not quite my thing, I daresay that, so Prince Star Knight can control Nine-Tails’ power, he has to feel himself loved. Not only for his own family, but also by others. In short, the key is in friendship."

"But Star has a lot of friends" Twilight said. "I urged him to connect with others."

"Maybe, princess, but the fact is that almost all of them live outside the Light Kingdom" Mirror Coat said. "Not to mention that, here, he is surrounded by ponies who reject him because he is a Jinchuriki."

"Mirror Coat is right" Golden Paladin said. "If we continue to limit the young prince to the Light Kingdom, he will never be able to control Nine-Tails’ power."

"So are you suggesting that we let him get out of the kingdom?" Twilight asked. "Have you forgotten that this is the safest place to protect him from the Lord of Chaos?"

"Princess has some reason" Melody said. "It is a fact that the Light Kingdom is the only place in all Pony Reality that the Lord of Chaos cannot penetrate."

"Have you forgotten that Pandora managed to get in, sis?" Purple Smoke asked.

"That was because she was a follower of our master… bro" Melody said.

"Please, don't start arguing now" Leaf Mane said.

"I understand your concerns, Your Highness" Golden Paladin said. "However, we cannot overlook the fact that, how your son is right now, he is not able to control Nine-Tails."

"Furthermore, the Lord of Chaos will still take some more time to prepare everything before starting collecting the Tailed Beasts" Mirror Coat said. "Not to mention Nine-Tails has to be the last to be captured, given the large amount of energy it contains, in order to not to overload Ten-Tails’ body."

"They're right, Twilight" Blue said. "Furthermore, we could put some of the Generals watching Star."

Twilight thought for a few moments. As much it was hard for her to admit, they were right.

"And how would that be?" Twilight asked.

"I know a school at the Enchanted Gorest that would be a great place for Prince Star Knight to find new friends that don't judge him by his Jinchuriki condition" Mirror Coat said. "It is situated on the first kingdom after the border between the Enchanted Forest and the Pony World."

"You mean Thicket?" Golden Paladin asked. "The deer kingdom?"

"Yes, the overlord kingdom of the Enchanted Forest" Mirror Coat said.

"Wait, I thought Falancia was the overlord kingdom" Melody said.

"Yes, because that's where the Heart of the Enchanted Forest is" Leaf Mane said.

"If you give to the work of reading in your spare time, dear sisters, you would know that Falancia is no longer the same" Mirror Coat said. "It was taken by the Lord of Chaos, after he made one of the sovereigns perform a terrible curse, some years after the fall of the Light Kingdom. Fortunately, our sister, Bright Night, the General of Portals, was able to prevent the curse from spreading. Falancia is now known as the Dark Forest. Thicket, the second main kingdom of the Enchanted Forest, took control and got access to the power of the Heart to maintain the natural order, so it has been the ruler over the other kingdoms. But that's not important now."

"What school is that you are talking about, Mirror Coat?" Twilight asked.

"It's called the Three Great Fairies Preparatory Academy" Mirror Coat said. "It was created by the three most powerful fairies to educate the children of the Enchanted Forest and other realms."

"Fairies?" Blue asked.

"They are the creatures who take care of the Enchanted Forest" Golden Paladin explained. "Their magic comes from the Lord of Order, so the majority is unconditional his servants."

"The majority?" he repeated.

"Well, what can I say?" Golden Paladin asked. "The whole flock has a black sheep, even among us, Generals. Have you forgotten Scale?"

"How could I?" Blue said sarcastically. "He almost broke my star seed."

"So, this school..." Twilight said. "Do you think it would be a good place for Star, Mirror Coat?"

"Sure" he replied. "It's a good school, located in one of the most beautiful kingdoms of the Enchanted Forest, managed by three good and fair fairies... Furthermore, we are in the end in the summer and about to begin another school year. It is perfect. And I heard that they need staff. It would be a great way for us to keep an eye on the little prince."

"You expect us to accept working in a school?" Melody asked to Mirror Coat. "Mirror Coat, I don't know if you noticed, but I have a studio to manage and..."

"One of the available positions is as Enchanted Music teacher" Mirror Coat said.

That made Melody stop and reconsider. She then said:

"In this case, you can count on me."

"Purple Smoke could be academic advisor" Mirror Coat continued.

"Use my abilities as an expert in talents in a more active way…" Purple Smoke said, in a thoughtful way. "It seems interesting."

"What about me?" Heartbeat asked. "You got something for me?"

Mirror Coat was slightly petrified, but then said:

“I see that later."

Twilight was still thinking about the alternative Mirror Coat had proposed. Golden Paladin then said:

"Mirror Coat’s idea is quite promising, princess. It worth the risk."

"I agree, dear" Blue said. "In this way, we can take our son of pressure that is living here, besides that he will make new friends."

Although she didn't want her child to stay away from her, Twilight knew that was the best solution.

"All right, so be it" she said. "Mirror Coat, can you bring my son?"

Mirror Coat gave her a bow and then came out of the throne room. Golden Paladin followed him and, when the two were outside, asked him:

"You already had this planned, didn’t you?"

"What are you talking about?" Mirror Coat asked.

"In all schools that you could get to Prince Star Knight it had to be the one that is located in Thicket" Golden Paladin said. "You know that this Kingdom has its own Jinchuriki who can control the power of the Tail Beast perfectly."

Mirror Coat looked to Golden Paladin for a few moments and then he said:

"Guilty. Yes, in part, it was also for that reason. Our prince may have a lot to learn with this Jinchuriki. Of course, this will only be as a last resort. After all, join him with other Jinchuriki when the Lord of Chaos is looking for the Tailed Beasts is pretty risky. "

"You're as amazing as Heartbeat" Golden Paladin said. "The two of you never cease to amaze me."

"Thanks for the compliment" Mirror Coat said. "Now, if you don't mind, I have to go pick the young prince up."

And, having said that, he moved away.

In the library, Star was reading a book sitting at a table, while drinking a cup of ice tea. Then, when he went to take a swig, he noticed that his cup was gone.

"But..." he began.

He then turned to his book and saw that it was gone too. Something strange was happening. It was then that he heard giggling coming from under the table and so Star got it all. Pretending not to have noticed anything, he said:

"That's weird. Where are my cup and my book?"

It was then that he downloaded and confronted his five-year-old little sisters with the cup and the book, saying:

"Gotcha!"

"Star!" the two fillies exclaimed, embracing their brother.

Star took Sunny and Midnight under the table and then asked them:

"Ok, why did you take my stuff?"

"We wanted to surprise you, Star" Sunny said.

"Yeah, because we love our big brother" Midnight said.

"I'm glad you like your clumsy brother" Star said, saying that in a way that made his sisters to laugh. "But next time, try something more... normal. Moving stuff out of the others is not very nice."

"Yes, Star” the twins said at the same time.

"Now, go play" Star said. "Your big brother still has some reading to catch up."

And his sisters went out, while Mirror was coming in, greeting the twins with a nod. He then approached Star and greeted him, making also a nod:

"Good morning, Prince Star Knight."

"Good morning, Mirror Coat" Star said. "You came to read something? It's odd, given that you have a library with all the books there are and a few more."

"In fact, I've come to escort you to the throne room" he said. "Your parents want to talk to you."

That captured Star’s curiosity.

Star then accompanied Mirror Coat to the throne room and, upon entering, he asked his parents, approaching:

"Mom, Dad, is there something wrong?" he asked. "Why do you want to see me?"

"We took a decision about you, Star, and we wanted to tell you" Twilight said.

"What decision?" asked Star.

"Your mother and I realized that you need to expand your horizons, so we decided to enroll you in a school" Blue said.

"In a school?" Star repeated.

"At the Enchanted Forest" Twilight said. "There you'll be able to make new friends, learn a lot... Of course you have to stay there."

"So it's a boarding school" Star concluded.

"I know what you're thinking, son, but you don't have to worry about" Blue said. "It's a good school directed by fairies."

"Star, we know it hasn't been easy for you to be away from your friends" Twilight said. "I just want you to have the life that I had before Princess Celestia sent me to Ponyville for the first time. In this school you will be able to make good friends, believe me."

Star thought about what his mother had said, but he knew that going to that school would mean having to stay away from his family and, probably, the friends I ever had. Golden Paladin said:

"Prince Star Knight, could I suggest that, at least, visit the school with your parents. You may end up liking it."

"Yes, Star, who knows, it might even be fun" Heartbeat said.

The young prince sighed and then said:

"All right, I'm going to see this school."

And so, in that afternoon, the royal family (except the twins who stayed in the castle with the Generals) entered in a carriage pulled by four guards, along with Golden Paladin, and began advancing towards the border between the Pony World and the Enchanted Forest. Star was seeing the landscape through the window. Twilight, who was by his side, noticed his saddened air and said to him:

"I know you're not really excited, but you could do a little smile."

"Mom, I know you all want what's best for me, but I don't know if this is a better idea" Star said. "I mean, my friends and I grew up together. They know me quite well, but I'm just with them occasionally. I think my ability to make friends is not so good."

"And you think mine was better?" Twilight asked. "When I came to Ponyville, I didn't even know the true meaning of friendship. Practically, I only had Spike. But then I met amazing ponies who never gave up on me and I could see what friendship really was."

"You should listen to your mother" Blue said. "She knows what she's talking about. But, if you're still having doubts, then let me tell you that since you're true and you show interest in connecting with others, you will have lots of friends. Anyway, I met your uncle Shining Armor on our first day of school and, since then, we have been great friends."

Listening to those encouraging words of his parents made Star become more confident and a smile appeared on his face and he said:

"Thanks, to both of you. You guys are the best."

He hugged his mother who hugged him back and Blue hugged both. Golden Paladin smiled upon seeing that touching family scene. He then noticed that they were approaching the border.

"Get ready" he said. "We are about to enter the Enchanted Forest."

When they heard that, Twilight, Blue and Star saw they were approaching a forest that seemed to be different from all the others, because it was radiating different aura. The carriage went into the forest and, in doing so, everypony felt a strange sensation, as if they had passed through a cold waterfall.

"Wow, what was that?" Blue asked.

"We enter in another realm" Golden Paladin explained. "Your Highnesses, welcome to the Enchanted Forest."

Twilight, Blue and Star peeked through the window and were fascinated with what was around them. They had never seen anything like that. The Enchanted Forest trees were tall and strong, in addition they seemed to have inside a strange energy. In addition to the trees, there were also several flowers and wild plants. But the most fascinating were the animals. Squirrels ran on the trees, while some observed the carriage passing, stalked by rabbits which were in their hideouts seeing visitors and the chirping of the birds accompanied them all the time. It was obvious the reason why that realm was called the Enchanted Forest. No forest in the Pony World had such life and charm.

"I'm speechless..." Twilight said.

"Amazing!" Blue said.

Star didn't say a single word. He had read about the Enchanted Forest and knew it had a beauty that surpassed other realms, but he didn't expect something like that.

"So, it seems, that the kingdom of the Enchanted Forest where we are is Thicket" Twilight said.

"Yes" Golden Paladin confirmed. "This is the Kingdom that lies on the border between the Enchanted Forest and the Pony World.

"For sure, how many kingdoms exist in the Enchanted Forest?" Blue asked.

"I don't know for sure, but it has some" Golden Paladin said. "The Enchanted Forest is a place quite... discreet. There are kingdoms that hide among the trees. I think Mirror Coat is one of the only ones of the Generals who knows for sure how many kingdoms there are in here."

After looking carefully through the window, Golden Paladin said:

"We seem to be close. You see, here you can see the academy."

Twilight, Blue and Star looked and saw that the academy was a large castle located on top of a hill. The carriage went up the hill and soon reached the top. They then passed through the arch of the entrance, that had what should be the school's coat of arms: a shield adorned that was divided into three colors that were red, green and blue, where in each was a fairy. From what it could be seen, fairies seemed like ponies, but with butterfly wings, they wore dresses and pointy hats and had a wand.

The carriage stopped in front of the entrance to the academy and Twilight, Blue, Golden and Star came out, looking around.

"This place is really beautiful" Twilight said. "Don't you think, Star?"

"Yeah..." Star said, sounding impressed with what was around.

"Welcome to our school" a voice said.

And the three fairies who were represented in the coat of arms of the academy appeared, flying. They had a small size, but they were quick to increase it to be the size of a normal filly. Their wings were shining while they flapped them, while releasing a powder that glistened in the light. The fairy who had spoken had a brilliant scarlet coat, grayish red mane and moderate scarlet eyes, with her dress and hat being moderate red. The second fairy, who was wearing glasses, had a moderate green coat, moderate emerald green mane and moderate harlequin eyes, with her dress and hat being dark lime green. The third fairy had a brilliant cornflower blue coat, dark azure mane and moderate sapphire blue, with her dress and hat being light sapphire blue.

"It's an honor to have in our school the great Princess Twilight Princess and Prince Blue Sword" the red fairy said.

"You know us?" Twilight asked.

"Of course, Your Highness" the green fairy said. "After all, you are the leaders of the Light Kingdom."

"We also know the General of Peace" the blue fairy said, referring to Golden Paladin. "How are you, Golden Paladin?"

"Very well, thank you" he answered.

"Well, let us introduce ourselves" the red fairy said. "My name is Knotgrass."

"I'm Thistlewit" the green fairy said.

"And my name is Merryweather" the blue fairy said.

"We are the headmistresses of this academy" Knotgrass said, while she and the other two fairies made a slight bow.

"It's nice to meet you, headmistresses" Twilight said, responding with a nod. "I was hoping you could help us with our son, Star Knight."

"Of course" Knotgrass said. "We will help in everything we can."

"We can start with a visit to the school" Merryweather suggested.

"It seems perfect to me” Twilight replied.

"To me too" Blue said, turning then to Star. "What do you think, buddy?"

"It can be" Star said. "This place seems to be pretty good."

That made his parents to smile. It seemed that Star was more used to the idea of coming to the academy.

They entered the school and the fairies began to show every room of every floor. It seemed like any other school, but the interior was very well decorated and ornate. They also showed the dance studio, the music room, common rooms and study, the Great Hall where the students had their meals, among other divisions, and indicated where the bedrooms were, where the boys and girls were in different but close towers. At the end of the visit, Knotgrass said:

"And I think we showed everything that there is to show. I hope you have enjoyed."

"Your school is quite nice and functional" Twilight said. "I really like it."

"Me too" Blue said, looking after a window to the practice fields. "And there's plenty of space, not to mention places to exercise."

"Our school is known for helping any and everypony to discover their potential or improve the skills they already have" Thistlewit said.

"In addition, we have created various extracurricular activities that allow students to socialize and strengthen their friendship” Merryweather continued.

"For me, this school is perfect" Twilight said.

"I told you it was a perfect choice, Your Highnesses" Golden Paladin said.

"What do you think, Star?" Blue asked. "Do you like the school?"

"Like it?" Star asked, who had become quite fascinated with the academy. "I love it!"

"Well, I think it's decided" Blue said.

"We can go to our office to take care of registration" Knotgrass said. "Follow us, Your Highnesses."

Before they follow the fairies, Twilight asked Golden Paladin:

"Take care of Star, Golden."

"Don't worry, princess" he replied.

And Twilight and Blue followed the fairies to their office.

After Star was enrolled, Knotgrass said:

"Everything looks in order. Prince Star Knight is officially a student of ours."

"Thank you for having chosen our academy to enroll your son" Thistlewit said.

"In fact, the merit is all yours" Twilight said. "Your school is truly charming. Maybe I will recommend it to my friends. Some of them have children with Star’s age. It would be good for him to have familiar faces around."

"We will be delighted to welcome them, Your Highness" Merryweather said.

There was a pause and then Twilight and Blue traded looks with each other. It was time to talk with the headmistresses about Star’s condition as Jinchuriki.

"If you don't mind, we still want to talk to you about something" Twilight said.

"What is about?" Knotgrass asked.

"It's about Star" Blue. "There's something about him that you need to know."

"Our son, he is..." Twilight started, finding difficult to finish the sentence. "He is... a Jinchuriki."

The fairies were surprises initially, but then they recovered and Merryweather said:

"You don't have to worry, Your Highnesses."

"We already had in our academy other Jinchurikis" Knotgrass replied. "We can assure you that your son will be well guarded."

"Thank you" Twilight thanked. "But I must request maximum description. Star still doesn't know about that."

"We think, at his age, this could be too shocking" Blue continued.

"We understand" Thistlewit said.

"We will be cautious" Knotgrass said. "But, if you allow our indiscretion, we would like to know which Tailed Beast is inside of your son."

"It’s... Nine-tails" Twilight replied.

The fairies shook, hearing that name.

"The most terrifying Tailed Beast" Knotgrass said.

"The Lord of Order ordered that way" Blue said. "I assume you know what is the Lord of Chaos’ new plan."

"We knew that Nine-tails had found a new Jinchuriki, but we didn't know who it was" Thistlewit said.

"And now that we know, we must ensure that nothing bad happens" Knotgrass said.

"Thank you" Twilight thanked. "You don't know how much this means to us."

As expected, Star started getting a little impatient and told to Golden:

"They are taking too long."

"Don't worry, young prince" Golden Paladin said, who knew Twilight and Blue were talking with the fairies about Star’s special case. "I'm sure they won’t take longer."

They then heard hoofsteps coming in the opposite direction to the one Star’s parents and the fairies were. To Star’s great surprise, a deer appeared. He had a majestic appearance with a white and pale, light grayish amber fur and moderate chartreuse green eyes. His frame was beautiful with a gold ring with a round sapphire at the base of each horn and, around his neck, was a necklace with some kind of red heart shaped bottle with a bright ruby.

Behind him was a young deer that seemed to have Star’s age. His fur was light gamboge with white underbelly and his eyes were brilliant tangelo. He exhibited tips on his head and around his neck there was also a necklace, but with a small barrel.

The deer, seeing Golden Paladin, stopped and said:

"Am I imagining things or I stand before the General of Peace?"

"In fact, I am the General of Peace" Golden Paladin said. "Golden Paladin. And, judging by the rings you have on the horns, I assume you are the king of this kingdom."

"King Aspen" the deer introduced himself, causing Golden Paladin to answer with a nod. "I'm the King of Thicket and the overlord of the Enchanted Forest... at least while Falancia lies under the influence of the evil Lord of Chaos."

"Yes, I heard about the famous Dark Forest" Golden Paladin said. "Unfortunately, it happened when my siblings of the Light Kingdom and I were in our stone slumber."

The General then noticed the young deer who put himself shyly behind his father and asked:

"And who's this shy young deer?"

"It’s my son, Bramble" King Aspen said. "He is a little shy with strangers."

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Prince Bramble" Golden said to the shy deer prince, who returned the nod cautiously. "Please, your Highnesses, allow me to introduce you to the son of Princess Twilight and Prince Blue Sword, sovereigns of the Light Kingdom, Prince Star Knight."

Star then made a slight bow to the deer king, saying:

"It's a pleasure to meet you, your Highness."

"It's a pleasure to meet the young prince of the magnificent Light Kingdom" King Aspen said. "If you are here is because Princess Twilight and Prince Blue Sword came to enroll Prince Star Knight at the academy, I suppose."

"That's correct, King Aspen" Golden Paladin said. "We are now waiting for them."

"I see" King Aspen said, turning to his son. "It seems that today you'd already met one of your colleagues, Bramble."

Star turned to Bramble and waved him with the hiif. Despite his shyness, the deer prince returned the gesture.

It was then that Twilight and Blue came from the headmistresses’ office.

"Your Highnesses, let me to introduce you to King Aspen, King of Thicket, and his son, Prince Bramble" Golden Paladin introduced.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet the rulers of the Light Kingdom" King Aspen said, while he and his son made a slight bow to Twilight and Blue.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, King Aspen" Twilight said, while she and Blue returned the bow.

"It seems that our children will be colleagues" Blue observed.

"Yes, at least it will be when I enroll my son" King Aspen said.

"Well, don't let us get in the way" Twilight said. "The headmistresses are in their office."

"Once again, it was a pleasure" King Aspen said.

And he and Bramble moved away.

On the way back to the Light Kingdom, Star was silent, while they were abandoning the Enchanted Forest to get back to the Pony World. Twilight turned to him and asked:

"It's everything fine, Star?"

"Yes, mom" he replied. "It's just..."

For a moment, he wanted to talk to her about how, in a way, it would be a relief for him to get away from all the cold looks the light ponies launched to him. But he didn't have the guts to admit it and simply said, with a smile:

"I'm just happy to go study to a school. Thanks, mom."

Twilight smiled at his son and the two turned to watch the landscape, as the carriage advanced.

Author's Note:

The academy is based on Ever After High, while the fairies are based on Flora, Fauna and Merryweather from Disney. I know you may have some questions about what happened to Falancia, as it is the kingdom of the king and queen who adopted Valiant Heart, but that’s a story to another time.

Comments

[ShadowsofEquestria]

Don't know why but I feel like I've been dead for a long time. Anyway, just wanted to say that your writing is getting better (a few mistakes here and there) but over all an ok story.

Also, I keep getting Bambi flashbacks of his mother getting killed after reading about the deer. I know I'm weird