Making your Mark

by Kipakuta

A helpful hoof

After another carriage ride, the group walked up the steps leading to the LaRoulette mansion. Though Cheerilee had taken them to one of the Canterlot gardens, and the Crusaders had watched a theatre play in Celestia's castle, the fillies were still amazed at the grand building. Though built during the time when ponies were taking a renewed interest in the time between Discord and Nightmare Moon, it was constructed in the elaborate whimsy style that had emerged at the beginning of the 8th century.

Looking at it from the front, the central portion was a tall square column, with bay windows on either side of the entrance. The right wing had noticeably fewer windows than the left, but they were wider, letting in more light into the rooms. At the end of each wing was a broad circular tower with a conical blue roof, separate from the sloped roofs that covered the rest of the building.The outer walls were decorated with inset square panels, rounded edges, and molded plantlike projections around the windows; ornamentation that had been derided in the 800s as needlessly frivolous.

Entering the front parlor, the fillies gazed upon more of the decorative architecture. The twin ramps that led up to the 2nd floor made a broad curve as they spanned between the floors, with the railing made of wood carved and cut in ornate sweeping patterns. The wallpaper was faded white with pastel pink stuttered curves. A few paintings and busts were on display, with plaques underneath providing information about the ponies they depicted.

"Wow. You really live here?" Applebloom was the first to break the silence.

"Indeed I do." Cheerilee replied. "But the property tax is complicated."

"Really? How so?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"It depends on a number of factors." Cheerilee replied. "One of which is because it's considered part of Euzald County instead of Greater Canterlot County."

"That's stupid." Scootaloo said. "Why do grown-ups have to make everything so complicated?"

"Getting back on topic." Cheerilee headed up the ramp. "There's a pony I'd like you girls to meet." She lead them down one of the hallways then into a small parlor. Sitting on a padded chair was a lean blue earth pony stallion, who looked to be about a hoof-length shorter than Big Macintosh. He was dark blue with a red mane and tail, and wore a gold vest with a black tassel attached to one of the pockets. "Lanzenreiter, I'd like you to meet some friends of mine."

The stallion stood up and walked over to the group. "Greetings young ones. I trust that you have been enjoying your time here."

"Oh yeah." Scootaloo replied. "This place is amazing. And Cheerilee's helping us with our Cutie Marks."

"It's a lesson plan that they asked me to design for them." Cheerilee added.

Lanzenreiter smiled. "Education is important. What are we learning?"

"We were learning about Cutie marks, but then we got something about how it's connected to mana." Sweetie Belle replied.

"That's an important step in understanding them." Lanzenreiter replied. "Most of the time, your breed determines what mana flow you're tuned to. Terrans to earth, Merae to water, Pegasi to air, and Unicorns to fire."

"Most of the time?" Scootaloo prodded.

"Yes. You've heard of wild talents, right?"

"Yeah, like Derpy, or Pinkie Pie. They've got talents that would make more sense for unicorns." Applebloom replied. "And Fluttershy's good with animals, which is more of an Earth Pony trait.

"There are exceptions to the general guidelines." Cheerilee said. "It's possible for a pony to attune to a mana type outside of their breed's standard.

"So you mean any of us could learn to use air mana, or water mana?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"You could, but it would take a long time and lots of effort to do so." Lanzenreiter replied. He held out a hoof. "You could always go the other way, and make a deeper connection to your innate mana."

"Mr Lanzer sir." Scootaloo began. "We wanna hear about your Cutie Mark."

The stallion chuckled. "Right to the point." He turned and presented his flank. His mark was a sword with the blade curved back so that the tip touched the hilt.

"Wow, that's a wicked cool Cutie Mark." Sweetie Belle commented. "What's it symbolize?"

"It symbolizes my ability to redirect hostile action back on my opponent." The three fillies rubbed their heads and looked to each other. "I'll make it easy for you. Someone tries to attack me, they end up hitting themselves."

"Oooohhhhhh." All three replied in understanding.

"While that's my talent, I didn't get my mark until I got a job as an equinal bodyguard." Lanzenreiter replied. "Before that, I thought that my talent was in martial arts, so I studied and trained in several. Never made black belt in any of them because I couldn't get through the endurance training."

"Wait, so you became an adult without a mark?"

"That's right." Lanzenreiter replied. "But my studies weren't in vain. I learned some things that were very useful as a bouncer. Like how to dissuade others from attacking in the first place."

"My first attempts didn't work out either." Cheerilee added. "I thought I would be a fiction author."

"You wrote books?" Scootaloo asked. "What kind? Sci-Fi? Adventure? Horror?"

"At first I did stories based on the t.v. shows and movies from when I was a filly. Then I tried a few serious novels. None of them earned me my mark."

"But wouldn't your talent work only when others read your books?" Scootaloo gave her a puzzled look..

"Here is your second lesson, girls." Cheerilee began. She waited until they were ready to write. "Your special talent is one that can be used both at will, and as a reflex."

"So it's not something that requires a lot of preparation and time?" Sweetie Belle asked.

"That's correct." Cheerilee replied with a smile. "And thank you, Lanzenreiter."

The stallion waved her off. "It was my pleasure, Matron." He replied.

As the group headed back into the hall, Applebloom turned to Cheerilee. "How come ponies keep calling ya 'Matron?' That sounds so old fashioned."

"It's because I'm the head of this household now. I'm in charge of the property and all the businesses in it."

"Oh. That makes sense." The filly replied.

Comments

[Listie The Scribe Maid]

(Joke) Alt. Title: School Of Marks: Cum On Feel The Crusaderz
As long as there's no singing in this high school, I'm good.