Beyond the Sun's Influence

by Zaki

Exam Day

Saturday was a busy time in Canterlot as the exams for Princess Luna had come at last, ponies moving to and fro through the sea of bodies. Some wore expressions of worry while others simply seemed at ease despite the potential stakes at hoof within the next few hours. If the crowds weren’t any indication, the train station and the Wonderbolt stadium clearly showed that something was indeed happening today.

Twilight exited the train, accompanied by Sunset, Starlight, Rarity, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo. Rarity had agreed that the two fillies could come with her to support Twilight so long as they behaved themselves. The duo was excited to support their former tutor and her friends in the exams, hoping to see if there were any fillies their age taking the tests as well.

Looking around as they exited the train station, Twilight cast another dubious look at Sunset who was wearing a faux leather jacket, courtesy of Rarity as a good luck gift for the exams, and a pair of thick black sunglasses resting on her horn When the group had questioned her about her look, the unicorn had simply responded with a statement about how even though Celestia had forgiven her, Sunset wasn’t sure she had removed her from being on the guard’s watch list.

Now that the day had finally arrived, Twilight found her nerves a lot less wound than she had anticipated. They still had a few hours until the group would be required to check into the stadium thanks to Twilight’s insistence on catching an early train. The lavender unicorn took a deep breath to steady herself, turning to face her companions.

“Why don’t we get something to eat before we go check in? I know we left a bit early and didn’t have breakfast. My treat.” Twilight offered, looking over at Sunset who was yawning widely, covering her mouth with a hoof. “Maybe some coffee or tea…?”

The amber unicorn’s head snapped to the side with a predatory look, her teal eyes widening at the mention of the beverage. Chuckling at Sunset’s expression, the small group headed towards a nearby restaurant that seemed to be relatively empty, exchanging small talk and excitement towards the exams. Scootaloo cast a look over her shoulder at the stadium on the horizon, her wings fluttering slightly at the sight.

“Do you think you’ll pass?” Sweetie Belle asked as they were seated, looking towards Twilight and Sunset, the latter currently engaged with drinking directly from the pot of coffee as their waiter and Rarity looked on in horror. “I mean, you are the princess of friendship and magic and Sunset is a former prodigy of Celestia’s.”

“Well, it might be a bit presumptuous to assume we’ll pass so easily even if Sunset and I are some the more magically inclined ponies of the century.” Twilight pulled the coffee pot away from Sunset, fixing her friend with a pointed look. Sunet wiped the line of coffee off her muzzle and offered an embarrassed grin, apologizing to the others. “I mean, Princess Luna has used magic that I’ve never seen before or even managed to find books on. The only passing references I’ve found has been in the old library of the ruined castle, something about the phases of the moon affecting the strength of the various spells. Its interesting though… I’ve never heard of a magical branch being affected by a celestial body...”

“Twilight, darling. You’re going off on one of your tangents again.” Rarity smiled at Twilight, the lavender alicorn smiling in embarrassment. “While we appreciate your love for the arcane, perhaps you shouldn’t stress yourself overmuch about the exam. You’ve already spent a few weeks burying your head in books in preparation, you’re likely more than prepared for whatever Princess Luna has in store.”

“Yeah, what Rarity said.You need to relax, nerd.” Sunset added, looping a foreleg around Twilight’s neck and pulling her over to ruffle her mane. Protesting as the unicorn gave her a brief but energetic mane ruffling, Twilight managed to pull away with a giggle and fixing her mane as the fillies and Starlight giggled.

“I’ve the utmost faith in you, Twilight.” Starlight offered a nervous smile as the waiter returned to take their orders. “If anypony could pass any kind of test, it’s you.”

Beside Twilight, Sunset raised an eyebrow at the phrasing of that statement.

“Is everypony aware of their tasks?” Night Shade fixed her eyes on the small crowd of ponies in front of her. Blueblood stood by her side, his jacket missing for the day and instead a simple black vest over a white long sleeved shirt was worn in its place. Most of the ponies gathered were wearing something similar alongside a lanyard that indicated they were overseeing the event. Night Shade herself was wearing just the vest to accommodate her wings as she and Blueblood would likely have to move around the stadium with relative ease.

Princess Luna was wrapping up morning court so that she could be there to keep an eye on the event but for the time being, Blueblood and Night Shade were on their own with dealing with nearly 600 applicants. It had proven to be a near logistical nightmare even with Blueblood and herself handling the majority of arrangements as dozens had arrived earlier than anticipated, forcing a lot of last minute adjustments.

When nopony raised their hoof, Night Shade dismissed them to begin setting up in the field as Blueblood sagged slightly with relief. She cast a look at the unicorn, the side of her mouth lifting up in a smirk as he tugged at the collar of his vest. “What seems to be the issue, your Highness?”

“Ha. I’m just feeling a bit anxious as this is finally happening and isn’t a fevered dream. It's a little surreal that Princess Luna herself is going to be overseeing everything.” He ran a hoof over his mane, dislodging it slightly from its pristine state. “I just hope we have everything under control before we open the gates. “

“We’ve two hours, twenty five judges, plenty of guards, a beautiful day and a lot of applicants.” Night Shade tucked her quill behind her ear and adjusting her wings to comfortably carry her schedule. “We’ll manage, don’t worry. Don’t forget either: Princess Luna wants the best, worst and mediocre for the written exam tomorrow. So we’ll have to be very careful in our observations.”

“I’m well aware, Shade. It's just going to be an issue with so many ponies. Brilliant and terrible will be easy but mediocre? That’s going to be a difficult task.” Blueblood sighed again, descending from the stage and towards his designated spot. Night Shade followed him with an easy canter, her eyes flicking around as various teachers set up the tests. The threstal stretched her wings and cleared her throat when they reached the stack of equipment, Blueblood’s horn alighting and working on setting things properly.

“It’ll be rather easy actually. We’re looking for basic telekinetic abilities with at least three simultaneous fields active and the ability to generate a light aura. The fundamentals of magic can be expanded from that point but without at least those, magical education will be difficult. While Lady Luna has no problem with teaching the uneducated, those two are things a filly or colt learns as a child, much like a language. It’s still possible to teach them but it’ll take much longer.”

“I suppose you’re right. Still there is one thing that bothers me: do you think Princess Twilight will do well?” Blueblood looked at Night Shade, the threstal biting her lower lip as she mulled over his words.

“I suppose we’ll find out in a few hours, won’t we?”

Dusk yawned and finished tucking her sheets neatly, her eyes narrowed at the sunlight trickling through the curtains. It was also different for her being in a threstal home as they almost universally were nocturnal. Even though she was used to her family’s schedule, her unicorn blood often wanted to be up during the day and for the most part she was able to do just that, attending school and spending time with her classmates. Her brother on the other hand…

She tiptoed into her brother’s room, stifling a giggle at Crescent’s soft snoring. His long blueish grey mane was unkempt and clung to one side of his face, the threstal snoozing away entirely oblivious. Dusk crept up to her brother and raised herself to her back legs, bracing herself against the bed and shaking Crescent gently.

“Crescent~” She sang softly, poking him in the ribs lightly. The stallion opened his eyes and gazed at his sister, his eyes unfocused and it took a few long moments before he recognized her. Shaking his head, Crescent pulled himself up and began rubbing his eyes vigorously, trying to rub away his weariness as Dusk pulled the blackout curtains open to let the late morning light filter in.

Her brother groaned in protest, wincing at the sudden light touching his eyes, but otherwise took it without complaint as he climbed out of his bed. Fixing his sister with a look, he offered a sleepy smile before yawning widely again. Dusk giggled and covered her mouth before prancing out of his room, the telltale sound of her brother following her down the stairs and into the kitchen. Their mother had left early this morning but had been kind enough to fix Dusk breakfast and Crescent dinner respectively. Granted, they were nearly identical as the pair of siblings settled at the table, both stifling yawns as the clock began chirping.

Crescent was still nodding in his chair before Dusk carefully levitated a hot mug of coffee to him, the unicorn filly biting her tongue in concentration as she levitated two bowls alongside the cup, carefully setting the dishes upon the table before releasing her hold on magic. Dusk let out her breath and flashed a smile to Crescent, her brother returning the gesture before turning his attention to his food.

“Thank you, firefly.” He picked up his fork and began stabbing slices of the fruit, his attention shifting to the clock. Taking a bite and chewing thoughtfully, Crescent looked to Dusk who was levitating three separate slices of fruit and alternating bites from each. He swallowed his mouthful of food before raising a hoof and pointing at the clock, which had just finished chirping.

“What time do we have to be at the stadium for you to be checked in?” Crescent asked cautiously, looking at the clock carefully.

“Mama said we should be there no later than twelve thirty because I think that’s when they close entries.” Dusk answered cheerfully, wiping her muzzle after taking a long drink of her juice. “Why?”

“It’s noon.” Crescent pointed at the clock, his stomach sinking as the duo beheld the clock, both of its hands pointing to the twelve at the apex. For several moments, the siblings were motionless as their minds processed the time before their thoughts caught up, prompting them into action. The filly seized a hoofful of fruit and shoved it into her mouth, leaping off her chair and bolting down the hall to seize her saddlebags while her brother abandoned his bowl, all tiredness gone as he drained his mug as quickly as possible, his tongue protesting loudly from the hasty drinking.

“Dusk!” No sooner than the words had left his mouth when his sister slid to a stop beside him, her saddlebags affixed firmly on her back and looking only slightly terrified of the prospect of being late. Scooping her up with his hooves, Crescent tossed her on his back and sprinted for the front door, Dusk’s hooves wrapped tightly around his neck.

It took but a scant few seconds to be into the city proper, the threstal navigating the crowds with an ease born of years of experience. His eyes flicked left and right as he moved, taking alleyways and side streets when applicable, taking care to make sure to not dislodge Dusk in his headlong sprint. He prayed to the stars that they would make it on time as he vaulted over a parked carriage, earning a few yells of annoyance.

Sunset glanced up at the Wonderbolt stadium, giving a long appreciative whistle. It was one of the new things she had missed during her tenure in the other world, the unicorn impressed with the building that now dominated a sizeable portion of downtown Canterlot. Sparing a glance around the stadium to size up the competition, she found herself unconsciously measuring the ponies milling about.

Twilight had said that a large amount of ponies had applied but she hadn’t expected this many. Unicorns of all ages and genders were talking in groups, some old enough to look like old warlocks with others young enough to look like they were still in elementary school. A vast majority of them looked extremely nervous and glancing at notes levitating by their sides while the overseers of the exam waited patiently behind a roped off area with their clipboards.

As the girls continued to chat amongst themselves, Sunset let her gaze wander and she noticed a dark grey blur moving towards the stadium, weaving through traffic and pedestrians before sliding to a stop in front of the crowd of ponies, a majority staring at the newcomer who was nearly doubled over and panting, his muzzle nearly touching the ground.

“Is he okay?” Rarity asked, curious as the crowd began to return to its conversations although there were a few that kept an interested eye on the gray pony, who had let a tan unicorn filly slide down his back, her face a bit pink from the attention. “He certainly seemed in a hurry to get here…”

Twilight’s face lit up as she beheld the pony and unicorn, her wings flaring briefly and smacking Sunset in the face. Snorting and rubbing her muzzle, the amber pony lightly pushed the offending limb out of the way and looked to the pair as well. Her expression mirrored her peer’s as she noticed the wings clinging to the pony’s sides.

“Is that a… batpony?” Sunset asked to nobody in particular as the two began approaching the table. “I thought they were still living in the south?”

“I think after Princess Luna’s return, they returned to serve her once more. I wasn’t paying too much attention unfortunately because I was dealing with the lifestyle change to living in Ponyville.” Twilight’s eyes were alight with that researching spark that anypony who had known her long enough recognized. “Ooooh, I wonder if I can get him to answer a few questions about batpony culture.”

“You could just check the Archives of Canterlot if you wanted to.” Sunset replied, frowning a bit at Twilight’s words. “It's not like their race is a great national secret. They’re just a nocturnal species is all.”

“But collecting information from somepony is more fun than just reading it from a book.” Twilight pouted as Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo rejoined the group, waving to a group of other unicorns who returned their attention to the books that they had at their sides. “Not everything can be learned from a book.”

The group stared at her for a moment before Sunset reached out a hoof and placed it upon Twilight’s forehead, earning a confused frown from the alicorn. Rarity removed her hat and began fanning Twilight when Sunset removed her hoof, nodding as if she had learned something. Starlight looked just as confused as Twilight, the duo exchanging a glance as the two fillies giggled.

“Who are you and what have you done with Twilight?” Sunset asked seriously, earning a huff and a half-hearted push from her friend that set the group into laughter. “Aren’t you the princess of books or something?”

“Oh, ha ha.” Twilight was about to retort when out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the unicorn filly that had arrived with the threstal standing beside her with an awed look. She turned to face the filly, a warm smile on her face appearing on her face. “Hello there! Can I help you?”

“Oh! I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to stare at your wings but um…” The filly fidgeted nervously, pulling at a loose strap on her saddlebags. “I wanted to ask if you knew the time because they’re not letting us check in…”

“That’s quite all right. Let me see… “ Rarity took a moment to look around, searching for an available clock while Sunset simply rolled her eyes and plucked her watch out of her jacket’s sleeve and glanced at it.

“It’s eleven o’ seven. The registration opens up at noon and closes at twelve thirty.” Sunset replied, noting how the filly’s face fell before an embarrassed tinge touched her cheeks. The threstal from earlier cantered over and the filly looked at him with a small smile, the grey batpony giving her a quizzical look. As the two began conversing with hushed chirps and hisses, Sunset could feel the excitement radiating off of Twilight at a new language to be learned and she simply cleared her throat to gain everypony’s attention.

“Sorry to interrupt but why did you need to know the time?”

“Well… I guess the clock in our home was never turned back to match the season change so we may have panicked and thought we were late…” The stallion chuckled and looked to the side where the filly was staring at the ground, mumbling under her breath. “We live on the other side of Canterlot, just shy of the suburbs and with how crowded the city is, there was no chance of catching a taxi.”

“Oh, I’m sorry! I’ve forgotten my manners. My name is Crescent and this is my little sister, Dusk Everglow.” Crescent offered them a smile as Dusk offered a tentative wave before fishing a book out of her bag, burying her muzzle in it. “We’re very appreciative for your help in clearing up the matter of the time.”
“Of course, we’re happy to help..” Twilight smiled at him before gesturing to her companions. “These are my friends: Rarity and sister Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, Starlight Glimmer, and Sunset Shimmer.”

“A pleasure to meet you.” Rarity smiled at Crescent and nudged Sweetie Belle who merely offered a simple hello in response.

“H-hi.” Starlight offered, hiding a bit behind her mane.”

“Yo.” Sunset raised a hoof before levitating her paper cup of coffee to her lips and taking a drink.

"If you live on the other side of Canterlot, why didn’t you just fly here?” Scootaloo piped up, looking at Crescent’s wings with longing. “You guys would have made it here even faster.”

Dusk immediately looked up, biting her bottom lip and looking up at Crescent. The rest of the group noticed his expression and he seemed to be chewing on his words before he finally formed an answer. “I can’t fly. Well, I can fly but not any length of distance without serious discomfort or pain. It’s unlikely I’ll be ever to fly normally due to my father’s unicorn side.“

“O-oh.” Scootaloo looked down, her own wings fluttering slightly. “I’m sorry…”

Crescent looked at her diminutive wings and glanced at the others around him, most sharing expressions of sympathy and concern. Kneeling down so that he was more or less at eye level, he offered her a comforting smile. “You didn’t know and that’s alright. Now, if you’re worried about your own wings, chances are you’re just a late bloomer. And even if you end up not being able to fly, you can still find something worthwhile to do in the world.”

“Like what?” Scootaloo looked up at the threstal, her embarrassment still evident on her cheeks. “What can a flightless pegasus do?”

“Well, I’m sure you can use your imagination. I’m training to be a Lunar Guard so I’m sure you can find something even better.” He smiled again before straightening up and bowing his head to Twilight, Dusk hastily copying him and returning her book to her bag. “We’ve taken up enough of your time as it is. Thank you again for your help and best of luck on your exams.”

As the two walked away, Sunset spared a glance towards Rarity who was watching Crescent and his sister with a dreamy smile on her face. She’d seen that smile once before and she knew it meant one of two things. Either she was imagining designing clothes for the threstal or… she was smitten. The amber unicorn prayed it was the former as she took another drink of her coffee.

“Well, he’s a charming sort, isn’t he?” Rarity mused out loud, the group looking to her in concern. Sunset rolled her eyes, raising her sunglasses to cover her eyes so the group wouldn’t notice.

“You know, Twilight…” Starlight spoke up. “You might want to run after him if you want your questions on batpony culture.”

“You’re right, Starlight! Come on!” Twilight immediately came out of her reverie and galloped after the duo, dragging a startled Starlight behind her in a magical field. Rarity looked to Sunset who merely shrugged, taking intermittent sips of her coffee and watched Twilight speaking excitedly to the threstal.

“Only forty nine minutes to go. Woo.”

Author's Note:

Welp. I'm a week late. My bad.

Fight me.
So I'm now working on doing a new chapter every two weeks. ALSO FIRST DISLIKE.
WHOOP WHOOP.

Comments

[Fresnor]

*pokes* Hmm, another story afflicted by the not registering on tracking bug.

[Zaki]

7613492 The whaaaaat?

[Fresnor]

7613772 It's that thing where it's on the tracking lists but doesn't actually show up on the unread list when a chapter comes out. Have had some stories go 5+ chapter updates before I notice them again.

[Grekoy]

I like this story. There aren't many Luna student stories out there. Most of them are in stage one incomplete.

[Zaki]

7865855 I'm climbing out of the slump currently. I hope to update this soon.

[DatGuy1st]

Rest in Peace

[Rose1453]

I really like this story. I hope you choose to finish it someday.