Shoot for the Moon
Seeing the workroom door was already open, Princess Luna slowed her approach from a canter to a trot. She stopped in place in the hallway, peeked into the room, and breathed a nervous sigh of relief.
Kevin had his back turned when Luna stepped into his cramped little office, but he knew that anxious sigh all too well. It sent Ponilovian shivers rattling through his turquoise exoskeleton. He froze in place for a second or two, saying nothing. Then he went right back to packing his things.
Luna waited a few more moments before speaking. "I am glad that I arrived in time. I just received your scroll. I feared it certain that I would miss you," she said.
Kevin turned around, holding a small cardboard box containing most of his work-related trappings: a few books, pens, papers, scrolls, and a couple of posters. His face showed no signs of emotion, but his eyes were lowered to Luna's neckplate. Since only the queens had irises, it was generally impossible to tell where a drone was staring. Nonetheless, Luna somehow knew he wasn't meeting her gaze.
"Oh. You got lucky, I guess. There's not much to clean out," he said. Kevin rested the box on the ground and sat down in a chair. "But you've always had uncanny timing. What can I do for you?"
Luna's brow furrowed slightly. "What can you do for me? This is not about me, Kevin. It is about you," she said. "I sincerely hope that we may continue our friendship, but your resignation letter was unusually terse. At the very least, I would like a chance to say goodbye."
"Okay. Goodbye," he said flatly, then stood back up, with his head tilted down toward Luna's greaves.
Luna's eyes wrinkled with concern. "That is not what I meant, Kevin."
Kevin placed a chitinous hoof over his face and sat back down. "Okay. Well, I... I don't know what else is left to say, okay? I failed, and I'm sorry. That's all that's left."
"What you have endured is far from trivial," said Luna, sitting on the bare floor where she could meet him at eye-level. "You have shown incredible bravery and sacrifice. This is not hollow praise: you should be proud of how far you have come."
Kevin sighed. "Princess, please. Save your pity for the next drone in line, if there ever is one," he replied, slowly raising his head to finally meet her eye-to-eye. "As the first changeling admitted to graduate studies at Celestia's School, my missteps have set a damning precedent."
Luna snorted. "That is preposterous. You have made the path easier, not harder. Ponies will remember you and your work. Due to your sacrifice, they will know that changelings are capable of great things."
"Well, they'll know we're capable of failure," said Kevin, turning his head toward the barren wall.
Luna briefly scraped one of her shoes against the wooden flooring. "Everypony is capable of failure, Kevin. Failure at this level of study is normal. Very few ponies are capable of completing a doctorate in the magical arts. Reaching a master's degree already places you into a select group. Even having a degree at all is an impressive achievement in this field! The fact that you have done so well as the first of your kind is remarkable."
Kevin shrugged. "I suppose. I barely completed the master's degree as it is, though. The qualifying exams weren't hard, but the thesis was like pulling plates off my back," he said. "What should have taken me a year took nearly four. I'm no 'Harry Trotter'."
"That is because you are a real pony, not a fictional character," said Luna. She smiled warmly, and although Kevin wasn't looking, the sentiment in her voice was clear. "It takes great wisdom and courage to realize that leaving may be the correct option. Most students aren't able to make that decision, and must be forced out of the program."
"You might be my mentor, but you don't call all the shots. That's the Board's prerogative, and we both know they weren't about to force me out. I had a moral imperative to act. After all this time, the School was still making exceptions for me," he said, and hissed at the empty wall. "It was never about me, anyway, was it? It was about what I represented. That idea was too important to everypony. The longer I stayed here, the worse it made changelings look."
"It is a noble idea. Nevertheless, you are correct. The faculty looked at you as an icon of progress rather than a student. In this way, the School failed you long before you failed it," said Luna.
Kevin chuckled darkly. "You know what the worst part about it is? I'm pretty sure I never had a chance," he said, dropping his gaze to the floor. "I was accepted into the program on substandard test scores and a weak track record with research. Everypony on the committee knew my deficiencies. I've been waiting seven years for this horseshoe to finally drop."
"And the pressure from knowing that made the process more difficult than it would be for other students, as well as the pressure of seeing yourself as that icon of progress. In situations like these, a student's 'deficiencies' are never entirely internal." Luna reached out and placed a gentle hoof on his shoulder. "Kevin, I need you to know that your efforts have earned my sincere respect. The offer to teach at the School remains open."
The little changeling shook his head and briefly stretched his iridescent wings. "Ah. Maybe another year... I dunno. I'm too ashamed even to think about it right now."
Princess Luna lifted Kevin's chin to look into his beautiful alien eyes. "I suspect that you have more pride than you admit. You could have come here disguised as anypony you like, so as not to attract attention. Yet here you sit before me, your true nature revealed."
Kevin paused for a moment in thought. "I guess that's true. I thought about hiding, but... I needed to be honest with myself when I did this," he said. "Even after everything that's happened, it feels wrong to pretend I'm anypony else."
Luna smiled warmly. "I am very proud of you, Kevin."
"I know you are, Luna," he said, and he shut his eyes tight. "Do you want to know something funny?"
Luna slowly nodded, her magical mantle rippling mesmerically through her mane. But when Kevin opened his eyes, all he noticed was her gentle smile.
He offered his own, weaker smile in response. "Ponies like to joke about starving college students, but in all this time? I've never once been hungry."
The alicorn pulled her former protégé into a warm embrace as he began to cry.
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D'aww. I remember this from the Writeoff. Glad to see it make the jump.
Positives: Luna, Changeling, short and sweet, and a load of other things I'm to lazy to list.
Negatives: ...
I liked this a lot.
Very smooth answer!
Heh, maybe I should try to finish my phd? It's only 5 years too late...
Yeah, probably not.
And that representation can become inflated and unrealistic, leading to higher stakes in the case of failure.
Probably my favorite line in this.
8469637
Oops. Removed that line, thanks.
Originally I had Luna sitting in a chair, but I changed it for multiple reasons.
8469368
Write what you know.
Kevin...
If this is a new theory that the soup-changeling is in reality Kevin, from Matilda's wedding...
...I think that's the smartest theory I've ever heard on this site.
Kevin's last line...
mrwgifs.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Batty-Koda-Crysta-Oh-My-Heart-Gif-In-FernGully.gif
That last line... Rare is the sentence that can so effectively combine sweetness and sorrow. Excellent work.
I am not sure how to take these two. On one side perhaps it is a biological reason so many fail. Some are just not talented or have the ability to get a degree. On the other side it's perhaps a matter of motivation, action and/or time for the students.
Depending on which one it is the meaning will change drastically. Are some just doomed for failure on no fault of their own? Or does the school have a strict time schedule for assignments to be completed in and other requirements? In that case, is this a very subtle comment on the school system?
Nice and short!
8470356
This directly parallels real life, so what is the answer? Perhaps the illusion of free will isn't really the issue. Everypony is capable of failure, and blame isn't always the most important consideration.
8470426
(Oh what have you done. You got me talking)
I am afraid I must disagree with you on that point. I think the cause of failure is one of the most important things to figure out in order to right wrongs and solve problems. Of course, this does not automatically mean "the means justify the ends" and what actually can be called a failure is also something to think about. The reason I think so is because "making and getting better" is something I highly priorities.
In this case: if it Kevin was doomed to fail from the start no matter what he did because of reasons out of his control then he does not need to improve because he can't and his feeling of disappointment is unnecessary. However if it was because of the school (which I do not think it is) that had a system that undermined his efforts then it was the system that "pushed" him out (perhaps he had problems with writing assignments but as great in oral assignments but the school demanded that he write). Finely it could have been his own fault, he was lazy, unmotivated, spend to much time drinking with his classmates and now he regrets he did that. In that case he needed to change his behavior in order to succeed (this also seems unlikely). Or a combination.
Ok, this is just me reading to much in to it but it was that second thing I quoted that put me in feeling limbo. Either Luna says "You were never meant for this and I am proud you realized that" or "You have made a very mature choice to stop something you realized was not for you and I am proud you decided to act on it".
Now, if it was a bad or good thing he quit is not what I am interested in. But I want to know if everypony were capable of success.
Ok this is just a rant:
An example from my own life. I wanted (and still do) to be a teacher but as I studied I found out that I had no love for math and language but they were mandatory subjects. Then it was this teacher that did not like me because I "just had to" (me not keeping my mouth shut) argue with her about something political. I had a friend that was one year ahead of me, we had had the same teacher, same literature, we got the same assignment were we had to analyze a class were I used his sources that he passed with but I failed. Not because of copying but because of a lack of sources. Then she failed me two more times after that, even as I added more sources. I even compared my number of sources to one in my class that passed and he had less then me. The worst part was that she refused to tell me what I needed sources for only that there were "not enough sources". So I quit. Could I have succeeded? I would say yes. If I had pushed through the boredom and had kept my mouth shut I probably could have reached the end. But I did not want to study what I was not interested in and a teacher did not like me. So with these lessons learned, the next time, I will study something I want to study and be quiet, even if I disagree with the one that grades me.
So short, yet so powerful and somehow so relatable.
I can relate to this; I was passed along in highschool in my French classes up to the last grade before they told us that if I didn't pass it, I wouldn't graduate. I had to get an exception from French in order to pass but I understand in being pushed along.
8470587
Bet that’s fraud and illegal. Should report that woman to the authorities.
This hit me hard.
8471795
I know I should have. But I was afraid and did not have the energy to.
Dang, we've all been in this changeling's shoes before, even if it was under different circumstances. This is a bittersweet fic at that. Take my thumbs-up.
Wow, this certainly hit me in the chest. A fantastic story, simple, realistic, and bitter-sweet.
That was beautiful! A short vignette that tells a whole story, with great dialogue and real, honest emotion. Well done!
8469713
Sorry, I'm not sure I understand what you mean. Is it a some kind of common saying?
Googling it results in epic list of different opinions about it's subtle meaning. My best guess so far is what described in TV Tropes page.
By the way, is analogue with "Aim for the Stars" supposed to go beyond story names?
8478452
It's a common saying. It means that you can't write anything more accurately than something you've experienced personally. There's also an element of psychological catharsis when you write about emotional issues you've dealt with, which serves as a strong motivational force for writing.
In this context, it means I have personal experience with the subject matter of this story.
8478452
I'm not sure I know what you mean about the analogue for "aim for the stars". "Shoot for the moon" is another expression that means roughly the same thing, though it has more of a specific feel (there's only one Moon to try to hit). "Moon shot" and "shoot the moon" are other forms of it. There's also an expression, "shoot for the moon; if you miss, you'll still land among the stars".
Since Luna is the Lunar Princess, it seemed an appropriate subtext.
If you mean there's another story called, "Aim for the Stars", I wasn't referencing anything like that.
8479234
Thank you for the explanation!
8479243
I meant the story "Aim for the Stars". Idea about analogy probably wasn't the smartest one: perhaps I remembered the story just because I've seen that expression there for the first time (yay, classical conditioning)
Pegasi living on clouds of Jupiter may disagree
Sad but sweet. Nicely done.
This was so sad and sweet. I wish we could see Kevin again.
You can has review!
Aww thats so sad but also sweet so Kevin fail the test and Luna wants to see him before he leaves he felt like he failed everything but one door closes another one opens I'm sure he'll find another way to prove himself that he can be better and it happened to me before it hurts but sometimes you just don't want to give up this was a pretty good story
I liked this. It touched on an interesting social issue without losing focus on the emotions of it characters. And it had a fantastic end line.