[AU]Twilight's life changed as she is granted admission to one of Equestria's top secret schools.
[AU][NOT Anthro]
It was just the other day Twilight had gotten her cutie mark and been taken under Princess Celestia's wing as her personal protégé. It was supposed to be the start of her learning about magic, about the history of Equestria, to do Celestia and her homeland proud.
Be careful what you hope for. --------------------------- 8/22/14 Edit: This story is officially going on indefinite hiatus. I might return to it one day, but that is not the plan at the moment. I'm sorry to all those who liked this story.
I know I said I wouldn't do a story using any canon characters, but after a dream..I couldn't help myself. And despite the cover image, this is not an anthro-pony story. They are regular ponies, just as they appear in the show. This is going to be my first attempt at writing an sort-of action series. Depends on the feedback, so comments are encouraged!
This is loosely based off The Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter. Cover art belongs to Shepherd0821 on deviantART, and is used with permission from the artist. Any and all usage of spy lingo will be referenced from this website.
Sirens pierced the air with their shrill screech. A sturdy pounding of hooves could be heard in the distance. A lone figure, dressed in complete black with a belt around their waist, stood completely still, wings flared in shock. The sound of ponies charging echoed off the walls, and suddenly the pony sprang into action.
Something had gone horribly wrong.
The black-clad pony jumped into the air, though not without catching the eyes of the pursuers. Two more followed, and the chase was on. The pony did maneuvers that were ingrained in her being, so sure that she had gotten away with The Subject. The thing that would determine the fate of life as she knew it. The thing that would make things easier, or harder. The thing that was the most important object in the world at that particular moment. She had to get out of the building with it at all costs. She looked over her shoulder to see her pursuers still giving chase. One was a light pink pony with a blonde mane, and the other was white with a brown mane. What made them alike, however, was that they both wore security uniforms. Turning her focus back to the front, she made a quick turn towards the left and swooped down towards the ground. She knew that, if she were going to escape with The Subject, she was going to have to take down her enemy first.
With precise timing, she dove hoof-first into one, knocking him into his partner that stood behind him. They both barreled into a stack of boxes, which then collapsed on top of them. She turned and faced a unicorn in a security uniform, whose teal-colored horn was glowing with magic. Without wasting any time, she delivered a kick right to her face, sending her foe back. It was then that her ear twitched, as inaudible and rushed talking filled it. She had barely caught on to what it was saying; “—Pega—Above—Move!” When suddenly, the two pegasi that had chased her before tackled and pinned her face first on the ground.
And just as quickly as it started, the sirens went off. The lights came back on. And the pony was helped onto her hooves. She pulled back the hoodie of her black ensemble to reveal a multi-colored mane. Her eyes stared down at the floor in shame as a pair of hooves stopped in front of her. The owner only said two things, her voice a mixture of disappointment and pity.
“Drill dismissed.”
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It was just the other day. The day Twilight Sparkle finally received her cutie mark—while taking a test to get to the School for Gifted Unicorns, no less! And if that weren’t enough, Princess Celestia, the Princess of the Sun, the Goddess who ruled Equestria, had offered her to be her personal protégé. Twilight had been so excited she spent the night packing and excitedly running around the house, much to the loving annoyance of her parents and her elder brother.
There had been a lot of legal involvement that the Princess would take care of Twilight for as long she was in her care, and that she would be staying in a personal wing of the castle. She remembered how her parents ushered her out of the kitchen so they could talk to the Princess in private. She had been so excited that she didn’t care, at the time. She remembered how her parents looked when they watched her ride off in a golden chariot earlier that morning; Distressed, worried. More than they should have been. They didn’t even send her off with a smile.
Now, Twilight was starting to think she didn’t get accepted to the School for Gifted Unicorns. The chariot had made its way for show, flying across the city of Canterlot, allowing Twilight to look down at the townponies and in turn, the townponies to look up at her. But as the guards guiding the chariot crept closer towards the castle, Twilight noticed that they weren’t going to the castle, but rather the mountain behind the castle. She frowned. Surely this was a mistake.
“U-Um…sirs? You’re going past the castle grounds.”
The golden-armored stallions glanced at each other before finally landing on a hidden mountain pass. There, in all her glory, stood Princess Celestia. Twilight jumped out of the chariot the moment it was grounded and ran up to the alicorn.
“Princess Celestia! This has to be some kind of mistake! Where is the school? And the other ponies? Why are we behind the castle!?” Twilight danced nervously and excitedly on her hooves, nervous energy filling her entire being. “Do my parents know I’m here? Am I actually being punished for ruining the roof? Please, Princess, tell me what’s going on!”
The Sun Goddess just gave the purple filly a sweet smile as she leaned down to nuzzle the little one’s cheek. This proved to be a gesture of comfort, for Twilight immediately calmed down long enough to listen.
“Twilight Sparkle. You are not under punishment. You have indeed been accepted, and I have taken you on as a protégé. However…You are not entered in the Equestria School for Gifted Unicorns.” Twilight’s eyes widened.
“You have shown exceptional raw power. I am going to help you shape that power into something controllable, as well as your mind and your body. Twilight Sparkle, you have been accepted to the Elements of Harmony School for Spies.”
The purple filly stood, shocked, at this new information. She was usually prepared for anything, but never this. Only one word came to mind.
“WHAT!?”
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“Twilight Sparkle, please, calm yourself!” “I’m just a filly—I can’t be a spy!”
Celestia sighed inwardly. The first-timers were always tough, whether they tried to run or tried to attack. She looked down at the little filly, who was now hectically running in circles, chattering nonstop. In her own right, she was sort of adorable, as she panicked. She enveloped Twilight in a glow of yellow magic and lifted her so that they were eye to eye.
“Twilight Sparkle?”
“Y…Yes, Princess Celestia?” She sniffed; fear that she had angered the goddess.
“Before you make your decision, will you listen to me? Will you see what I am about to give you?” Her lips spread across her face in a gentle smile.
Twilight, in an attempt to please her teacher, simply nodded. She was set back down on the ground, and prompted to follow, trotted behind the alicorn as she walked across the mountain path. She looked over her shoulder to find that the two stallion guards had disappeared, along with the chariot she had traveled with. There was no turning back now.
She trotted alongside the Princess, purple eyes scanning the area as they walked around the mountain. The trees were getting thicker along the side, hiding them from any leering eyes that would even see them on the pass. Celestia was the one who broke the silence.
“I bet you would like to know why you have been chosen, am I right?”
The little filly could only nod, and Celestia continued to speak.
“Let’s start from the beginning, then. I cannot tell you everything, but we have had an eye on you for quite a while. You’ve shown an incredible capacity for knowledge, and we are always in need of ponies like that. However, we needed to give a test. Do you recall what happened a week before the entrance exam, Twilight?” Celestia glanced down at the filly, her nose scrunched up in thought.
“Mom and Dad told me they had to go out for a bit, so they left me with a baby-sitter, Miss Cadence. We did lots of things!” Twilight smiled at the memory.
“Will you tell me what you two did together?”
She nodded. “We read books, lots of hard books, but she said I was able to keep up just fine. And then we went to the playground, and she pushed me on the swing. But…” Twilight trailed off as she recalled the events. “The swing suddenly stopped, and I was hurled off the seat. I was able to use a feather falling spell I learned in gym class, and I rolled back on my feet…”
Twilight suddenly put two and two together, and fearfully glanced up at the goddess, who nodded. They finally stopped in front of a wall; a normal, dead end surface upon the side of the mountain.
“That’s correct, Twilight. You had to be tested on your ability to retain knowledge and reaction time before you could be tested on your magical prowess. You passed with flying colors, and that’s why you were granted admission.” The alicorn smiled and gently patted the filly’s mane. “And not every possible recruit gets noticed by the princess. You are special, indeed.”
Twilight could only stare in awe as her mind processed this information. She had been watched over carefully in preparation for this moment. All so she could be…a spy. She had read several spy and adventure novels, but who knew that such organizations, such secrets, actually existed in their peaceful land? She looked up to see Princess Celestia’s eyes closed in concentration, her horn’s magic silently working on the wall that was in front of them. A few moments passed, and the a part of the wall suddenly vanished, as if it were never there at all, and beyond it was a dimly lit path. In the distance, she could see a building that stood out among the solid rock. Celestia lead the way, Twilight right at her hooves.
“This is the…one of the entrances to the academy. There are around thirty-seven, last I checked. Each entrance, excluding this one, is accessible by students once they are officially in the academy records. Not that you will be leaving the campus often, however…this will be your new home as long as you are being trained here. This is a school above all else, and there will be regular classes to take, as well as breaks in teaching periods several times out of the year.” Celestia quickened her pace toward the building, and Twilight followed suit. The closer they got, the more clearly Twilight could see it.
It was larger than she thought was imaginable inside a mountain. Several floors reached the ceiling, causing her to crane her head back just to see where the roof touched the stone. If she had to guess, there were around three or four floors—from what she could see, anyway. There was no way she could guess just how many were under the building, just beneath them. It stretched nearly across the whole width of the cave, with space on one side for what looks like an ordinary shack. Something told her that wasn’t the case. A large staircase let up to the platform the school was leveled on, and the two of them made their way up to the doors.
“First things first…a full-body scan. It won’t hurt and it’ll be over in just a moment. You just need to stand perfectly still. Alright?”
Twilight nodded, and the two of them stopped just in front of the double doors. The glass of the windows and doors were tinted, and the little filly could barely see inside.
“Operative: SUN. Guest: TWILIGHT SPARKLE. Permission to enter the facility.”
Celestia spoke into a small microphone. She motioned to Twilight, and the two of them stepped back as a wave of magic washed over the two of them, searching for any spells or foreign objects that could compromise their operation. Once the search was over, the magic dispelled from their bodies, a voice was heard through the same microphone.
The doors opened, and the Princess and the filly stepped inside. Twilight stood, mouth agape at her surroundings. Celestia chuckled and rested her hoof on her shoulder.
“Welcome to the Elements of Harmony Academy, Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight Sparkle couldn’t help herself, and she started running around the foyer of the school. There were other ponies there, mares and stallions, fillies and colts that walked at a slow pace as they chatted between classes. Some went up the massive spiral staircase, others rounded corners, fewer went down to lower levels. Twilight did her best to avoid the others as best as she could, but it didn’t help that there were so many of them.
She trotted between the bulletin board that hung just on the side wall, to the stairs, and finally to a glass case that sat just to the right of the stairs. It held various plaques and trophies, but one in particular caught her eye. In the middle of it all was a golden crest, an eight-pointed star with six jewels. Red, violet, blue, green, and orange gems surrounded it on five points, while the sixth in the middle was a brilliant pink in color. Princess Celestia noticed her staring and walked up behind the filly.
“That is the Crest of this school. It is the crest of the Elements, each gem representing an important aspect of Friendship. Loyalty, Kindness, Honesty, Generosity, and Laughter are all needed in order to maintain a balance of Harmony.” She listed each aspect as she pointed to the individual gems. Twilight watched her with wrapped interest.
Twilight nodded, turning back to the alicorn. “But Princess Celestia, that’s only five things. What does the sixth one represent?” She pointed a hoof at the pink gem in the center.
She smiled and nodded in approval. “That, Twilight, is the aspect of Magic.”
“Magic?”
“Correct. Magic is formed when perfect harmony is created. That Harmony, Twilight, is what we call Friendship.” A soft smile crossed her lips. “Friendship is the most important thing in the lives in ponies. It’s what keeps us going.” The Princess glanced down at Twilight from the corner of her eyes. “And that is our job. The students and teachers of this school, even myself, we are all the Children of Harmony. And it’s our mission to keep Equestria in a state of balance.”
Twilight stared up at Princess Celestia, eyes wide and starry-eyed. The expression on the filly’s face caused Celestia to chuckle and turn away from the glass case. Twilight got up from her haunches and moved next to her.
“Come now, Twilight. No more talk of history; we should get on with the tour. Would you like that?”
The filly nodded excitedly and trotted beside Celestia as they walked through the school.
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They had a tour of the whole school, with the obvious exclusions of the more Top Secret areas and areas where the little filly did not have clearance. Just as Celestia predicted, Twilight was absolutely in love with the school’s library, which had much more books than even the biggest public library in Equestria held. These volumes having more of the ‘actual truth’ than common ponies would know. It even held Commander Hurricane’s personal journal, something even the Canterlot Archives didn’t have.
She even had a chance to meet some of the teachers while most of the students were in the cafeteria eating lunch. She had a feeling that Countries of the World and Research and Development were going to be her favorite classes. She was impressed as she and Princess Celestia watched the ponies fight each other for the gym class, or as it was called here, ‘Protection & Enforcement’. Twilight had a particular eye on an orange filly with a blonde mane and three apples for a cutie mark, who seemed to have very powerful legs as she sent a stallion flying with one buck.
At the end of the tour, they stopped at an office, and the two of them sat in the chairs that occupied one side while an unicorn mare sat across a wooden desk. From what Twilight could see, the mare had a pale green coat and an equally pale blue-and-white mane, done up with a classic bun. The mare’s green eyes glanced from the Princess to the filly before a smile crept on her face.
“Why! You must be Twilight Sparkle!” Twilight nodded enthusiastically, “My name is Siren Song, and I’m the headmistress of the academy. I’m sure Princess Celestia has given you a wonderful tour of the academy? You know, not many ponies catch her eye. I hear you’re very special.”
Twilight blushed under the instructor’s compliments, shrinking further into the chair. Celestia nuzzled the filly’s mane as Siren Song continued to speak.
“I do hope you’ll enjoy your stay here, Twilight. You’ll be groomed to a fine agent, indeed. Now first…” The mare stood and walked around the desk, only to stop in front of Twilight. “We just need a sample of your DNA. There’s a…complex system involved, and only those registered in the database will not trip the alarms when trying to get access to the campus.”
In one swift movement, Siren Song plucked a single purple hair from Twilight’s mane, causing a cry from the filly.
“Ow!”
The administrator chuckled as she carried the strand between her teeth and over to her desk. With the push of a button, a panel appeared from one of the drawers, and she dropped the hair on top of it. A quick flash of her horn and the stand of hair disappeared, the drawer panel flashing green, and a smile playing on the mare’s lips. She pulled out a crystal and applied magic to that as well, and a screen appeared from it. It had a picture of a smiling Twilight Sparkle, as well as all her information.
“There you go! You are now officially in the system! You are now an agent in training.” Siren Song smiled at the filly, who had now stared at the crystal with curiosity. “I could tell you just how this crystal works, but then I’d have to kill you.”
Twilight averted her gaze in fear, earning Siren Song a stern look from the Princess. She frowned and shook her head, mumbling something about never being able to get away with anything.
“Anyway…” Princess Celestia patted Twilight’s head gently. “I must be off. Important things to do…one of which includes setting the sun.” Her eyes widened for a split second before adding, “And raising the moon, of course.” She suddenly stood up and turned to leave, but not before giving Twilight one last reassuring smile. “You will do great here, Twilight Sparkle. Don’t ever doubt yourself.”
With the Princess gone from the room, Siren Song nodded to the filly sitting across from her. “I’m sure you’ve had a long day, a lot of information to take in. How about we get you settled in to your room?” Glancing at the display the crystal still powered, she pressed a button on her desk and spoke into the microphone.
“Will Rainbow Dash and Rarity, please step into my office?”
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“What do you think Ms. Song is calling us in for?” A blue, rainbow-maned Pegasus filly asked, gliding just above the floor.
The filly she was talking to, a white unicorn with a carefully-styled purple mane, simply shrugged. “I’m not sure, but if it was worth pulling us away from that delightful meal, I just hope it was important. And you know she doesn’t like pegasi flying in the hallways. Remember what she told us at orientation?”
The Pegasus filly recalled the horribly graphic storytelling and grounded herself immediately. “It’s not my fault, Rarity. It’s in my blood; I have to spread my wings!” She flared her wings out for emphasis as if prove a point. This only got an eye roll from the unicorn.
“Either way, I don’t want either of us to get in trouble. I’m sure it’s nothing serious…”
Rarity hesitated as they arrived at the headmistress’ office. It was Rainbow Dash’s time to roll her eyes as she suddenly swung the door open, causing Rarity to jump.
“Miss Dash! We do not slam open doors here!” Siren Song scolded from behind her desk. Where the crystal had been was now replaced with a rather thick book, The EoH Academy Student Guidebook, which caused the Pegasus to wince at the mere thought of reading it all over again. “Now, come on in, you two. There’s a filly here I’d like the both of you to meet.”
Obediently, the two fillies walked inside the office, Rarity closing the door behind her. Their eyes were immediately drawn to the purple filly that occupied a chair, and they mentally went over the possible scenarios for why they were called in, as well as inspecting the stranger. With the possibility of a test and a properly trained spy in disguise eliminated, they both were brought to the same solution.
A new student.
“Rainbow Dash, Rarity, I’d like you to meet our newest student, and your new roommate, Twilight Sparkle.”
The rainbow-maned filly was the first to speak. “WHAT!? But Ms. Song, there’s no room in our dorm! And and—”
“A good operative comes up with their excuses beforehand, not on the spot, Miss Dash. And there is no negotiating this. You two will be Twilight’s guides for this week.”
Rainbow Dash was about to counter with another excuse, but the pale unicorn interjected.
“We’d be happy to guide Twilight around campus. Wouldn’t we, Rainbow?” Rarity shot the Pegasus a glare, who only sighed in defeat and nodded.
Siren Song nodded in approval, and gestured Twilight to go ahead and stand. “These girls are going to show you around. Freshman and sophomore dorms are on the second floor, juniors and seniors on the third floor. Do not go up to the fourth floor. It is off-limits to freshmen. Do you understand?”
Twilight nodded and hopped off the chair to join her fellow freshman. The headmistress smiled to the three fillies and went to join them at the door. “You should show her the dorm room first. Lunch will be over soon, but I will tell your teachers that you will be a little late for class. Twilight dear, why don’t you follow Rarity’s schedule for the rest of the day? You will get your own in your dorm room after dinner.” The mare smiled down at the girls and waved them out, closing the door behind them.
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Twilight, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity walked down the corridor towards their dorm room. Unfortunately, it was towards the end of the long hall. There were doors on both sides of the hall, stretching from one end to the other, with the exception of just at the top of the stairs. Twilight noted various paintings that adorned the walls; she had no doubt that several of them were originals or held secret passages behind them. She concluded that going to a spy school would be a huge life-adjustment.
“Sophomores are on the left of the stairs, freshmen are on the right. It’s the same upstairs, with juniors on the left and seniors on the right.” Rarity explained as they neared their rooms. “Even though colts also attend here, we do not share rooms! That would just be improper! And we are discouraged from seeking to try and go out with one of them. It’s not against the rules, per se…”
Rainbow Dash made fake gagging noises and jumped in front of the two unicorns. “Dating is stupid, anyway! There’s so much to do, so many secrets too keep. A coltfriend would only distract from that.”
Twilight glanced between the two fillies, who seemed to hold an unspoken conversation while she was only able to look on helplessly. Finally, the violet-maned unicorn made a move, and pulled a key seemingly out of nowhere, carrying it with a light blue aura and unlocked the door to her left. Along one side of the wall were three beds, and on the opposite wall a desk and chair, and a little armoire that stood next to it. It was a simple arrangement, but it met all of their needs.
“This is our dorm room, Twilight. My bed is at the back wall, and Rainbow’s is the first bed there. I suppose that means your bed would be…”
All three fillies looked at the central bed on the side of the room. It was covered in an assortment of objects, ranging from textbooks to hairbrushes to the random gadget here or there. Both Rarity and Rainbow Dash laughed nervously before quickly grabbing their respective belongings. Rainbow Dash dumped her things haphazardly on her bed, while Rarity made space for her things on the desk.
Suddenly, the sound of a bell alarmed, signaling the end of lunch. The Pegasus filly looked at the two unicorns and gave the two a mock salute.
“I better go!”
Without even a goodbye, Rainbow Dash zipped out of the room, leaving the two girls alone. Twilight shook her head and turned to Rarity. The pale filly sneered and trotted over to the door, levitating the key to lock the door behind them.
“Come, Twilight. There are only two classes left. Ms. Song told us that we were permitted to be a little late, but we should arrive on time anyway.”
“I completely agree!” Twilight smiled, and the two of them set off. “Which class are we going to right now?”
She was unable to contain her giddiness, and Twilight noticed she almost wanted to squeal with joy. “Fashion!” Rarity suppressed a squeal as much as she could, and danced excitedly on her hooves. “The best class I have!”
Twilight, however, was not amused or as excited. “Fashion? Really? Rarity, no offense, but isn’t this a spy school? I mean, from what Princess Celestia told me we would be taking normal classes we well, but fashion? What does that have to espionage or even general knowledge.”
Rarity scoffed, walking a few steps ahead of Twilight as they descended the stairs, nodding to those who greeted her as they passed. “My dear Twilight, it has everything to do with the art of espionage!”
The purple filly gave her a skeptical look, which prompted a grin from the other filly. They continued on their walk, slowing to a stroll as they approached a class room, students pouring in and out of the open doorway. From what Twilight could see, it looked just like a normal fashion classroom: mannequins, boxes overflowing with fabric, sewing machines.
She just had to ask: “What makes this class so…special?”
Rarity giggled and led the purple unicorn inside. “Because, Twilight…what we learned on the first day is; “Fashion can be the only thing that keeps you safe.”
Rarity giggled as she hopped into the room, a very skeptical-looking Twilight Sparkle following after her. Colts and fillies alike greeted her, turning to each other after to speculate about the new comer in their secret school. The curly maned unicorn guided the lavender filly towards the front desk, where she was met with a mess that could only be described as ‘organized chaos’, the wooden piece of furniture being covered in various fabrics, scissors, needles and pattern sheets.
“Mrs. Lace?” Rarity called, leaning down so she was able to see under the desk, where an orange mare crawled under it, desperately in search of something.
“Oh dear…where did I put that…? It’s not—”
The young filly cleared her throat, causing the teacher to hit her head on the underside of the desk in surprise. She tried to hold back a laugh when the mare resurfaced. She was an earth pony, bright yellow eyes and a red mane that was cropped short. The adult mare chuckled to herself before standing before the two.
“It’s nice to see you again, Rarity.” Her eyes flickered over the new face. “And you must be Twilight Sparkle.”
Twilight nodded, extending her hoof, meeting the teacher’s halfway in a friendly hoofshake.
“Welcome to Fashion class, Twilight. Well, it’s really called Disguise Arts, but ‘Fashion’ sounds so much better, don’t you agree?” Her laugh rang out just as the bell did, signaling the beginning of the session. Students who were up found themselves in their seats, and those chatting soon quieted as Royal Lace prepared to speak. Rarity joined her classmates. “This is our newest student, Twilight Sparkle. For the rest of the day, she’s going to shadow Rarity. So please, be nice to her. We’ll all be working together some day, after all. You don’t want to make enemies at such a young age, right?” As Royal Lace chuckled under her breath, as did her students. Twilight, however, seemed a bit shaken. Catching on to this, she patted the purple filly’s shoulder. “Just a bit of light spy humor. You’ll get used to it. Now, why don’t you take a seat?”
Nodding, Twilight scanned the rows for an appropriate seat for the first day. It seemed that the further back from the teacher’s desk, the more occupied the desks became. She finally settled on a desk, second row, a bit off to the side of the class. She sat attentively, ready for whatever lesson she would learn for the moment she was in class.
The orange earth pony walked around her desk as she spoke. “We’ll give a little recap of what we’ve learned so far for Twilight. Can anyone tell me what the first rule of Disguise Arts is?”
A colt responded quickly. “Small changes, big differences.”
Royal Lace acknowledged the colt, and proceeded to pace around the room, absent-mindedly looking at the clothes on the mannequins. That week’s assignment had been to create an outfit that would be suited for a party, such as the Grand Galloping Gala, that would be easy to change in and out of and could keep a few things hidden. A particular one she was looking at was a suit, one simple in design that no one would suspect that it could hold a knife just under the flap with ease, and had a small patch for a bug in the bowtie.
“What does a good operative always carry them in the case of a quick change?”
This time it was Rarity who answered. “A miniature sewing kit, and a change of clothes stashed in a discreet location.” She giggled and winked at Twilight, who was just in awe of this new information, and was wishing she had borrowed a quill and scroll while they were in the dorm room.
“An enemy agent is in pursuit while you are at a carnival, what do you do?”
“Oh…you lose them in a crowd, and um…quickly change your disguise.”
“That’s right! Twilight, those are the basics, though I’m sure Rarity would be able to help you catch up, no problem.” Rarity beamed at the compliment, and Twilight was ecstatic to be able to learn.
Royal Lace wandered back to her desk and hopped in the chair behind it, only to yelp out in pain the moment she did. Getting on her feet, she looked down at the chair, seeing nothing, and then craned her neck to see behind her. She walked in circles a bit as she tried to see just what had caused her pain. Twilight, glancing at her future classmates who were giggling at the teacher’s expense, decided to save her the humility and levitate the tiny needle out of her backside, and in front of the mare’s face.
“Oh! So that’s where you went, you stupid thing…” Her face flushed with embarrassment as she took the needle between her teeth and set it down in a sewing kit. She smiled at Twilight and gave her a silent ‘thank you’ for sparing her any more. “Anyway. It’s time to get back to your assignments. Remember, it has to be easy to get in and out of and be able to hide at least one gadget or weapon!”
The once-silent class became lively once again they the students rose from their seats and scattered to all corners of the room, either to mannequins, or to shelves that held supplies, or t their saddlebags to retrieve their own things. Rarity herself seemed more than happy to get back to work her dress.
There was one filly who stayed in her seat, a light yellow Pegasus who nervously played with her hooves. Twilight recognized her as the one who answered the teacher’s final question without the confidence of the other students. Twilight didn’t even see her when she first walked in. Slowly, the purple filly approached the Pegasus.
“Hello there—”
“EEP!” The Pegasus jumped, wings flared in fear as she hovered a bit over the floor. Twilight, in turn, jumped back a bit herself until she was able to compose herself.
“I’m sorry to scare you…My name is Twilight Sparkle. What’s yours?”
The yellow filly hid behind her pink mane, her head lowered so Twilight couldn’t see her eyes. Her mouth moved, but something barely audible came out of it.
“Um…what was that?”
“I’m…”
Twilight learned closer to the curtain of pink, trying to best to hear. “One more time?”
“I’m…Flutter—”
“Fluttershy!” A voice rang out, causing the unicorn and Pegasus to squeal and bump their heads into each other before scrambling back. A cream-colored filly with a two-toned pink and blue mane appeared between the two of them. “Fluttershy, do you have any blue ribbons? I can’t find any in the box, and you were the last one to use it…”
With a nod, the filly Twilight assumed was Fluttershy, dug in her saddlebags and pulled out a roll of shining blue ribbon, and handed it to the earth pony, who nodded graciously before returning back to her project. Fluttershy blushed and avoided eye contact with Twilight, who just smiled as to not frighten her any more.
“So um…are you finished with your project?”
“Oh…no…I’m not…”
Twilight cocked an eyebrow. “Then…why are you just sitting here? Shouldn’t you be working?”
To this, the Pegasus pulled out a sketch of her dress. She pointed to various placed on the paper as she spoke. “I can’t decide whether a blanket stitch or a cross-stitch is better here to hold what it should hold. And here, if it will get too revealing if…” As she talked on, Twilight just started at the paper, confused for she had no idea what she was saying.
“And here, what if…”
“Fluttershy?”
“Oh…Yes, Twilight?”
“I don’t understand a word you’re saying.”
Fluttershy’s cheeks turned a bright pink when she realized she had just been rambling on. “Oh! I’m so sorry…I didn’t…I just…some of the girls think I have a ‘freaky knowledge of sewing’…”
Twilight laid a hoof on her shoulder and gave her a friendly smile. “Don’t worry about it. It’s okay, really.”
“Twilight, darling? Why don’t you come and help me with my dress? I could use an extra set of hooves here!” Rarity called from across the room, glancing over her shoulder only for a moment to see the purple filly before returning full attention to the mannequin before her.
Twilight shrugged and moved away from the Pegasus, smiling a bit. “You’ll do great on your project, I know it.” She then trotted over Rarity, leaving Fluttershy to look after her, and then glance down at her design, renewed confidence flowing through her. She grabbed her sketch, fabric and the start of the dress from her bags, and trotted to the mannequin that was next to Rarity’s.
As they worked, all three girls chatted and enjoyed each other’s company until the bell rang.
----------
“I have to admit, Rarity, I never thought clothes to be…interesting, but that was a very nice class. The possibilities are endless!” Twilight rattled on as she and Rarity exited the classroom side by side. “What’s the next class?”
Rarity rolled her eyes and waved a dismissive hoof. “Nothing that fun. Just Research and—”
“Research and Development?!” Twilight practically flew off the floor in excitement. “Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! Rarity, can I borrow your notes? And your quills? Oh oh! And your textbook, of course!” She bounced around the halls in excitement, much to the chagrin of the students she continuously bumped in to.
Rarity could only stare at the excited filly. “Twilight? Twilight, darling? TWILIGHT!”
Twilight stopped mid-take off, and flushed bright red when she realized what she had been doing. “Heh…Sorry, Rarity. It’s just that the Princess gave me a pre-tour, and that class seemed so amazing, and I just love to study and…” Rarity looked at her expectedly. “…Well, we should go, right?”
She nodded as she levitated her saddlebags on to Twilight’s back. “We actually have a test today, so you can take a look through my notes as we work. I’m sure Mr. Data would like that than have you sit around.”
Twilight nodded, having met the unicorn teacher earlier that day. He seemed friendly enough, stern, but obviously did not tolerate procrastination nor free-time. Twilight squealed as she all but ran inside, Rarity trotting in behind her just as the bell rang.
----------
After hanging out with a spastic and overly-excited Twilight Sparkle, Rarity more than welcomed the break that occurred after classes and before dinner. What she didn’t welcome, however, was an even more spastic Rainbow Dash that greeted them by practicing her P&E exercises on a naked mannequin. Both unicorns screamed and ducked as the model flew through the door and into the hall way.
“Rainbow Dash! Just what in Celestia’s name are you doing with my mannequin!?”
“What does it look like I’m doing? I’m training.”
Rarity growled as her aura enveloped the mannequin as she stomped inside their dorm room, glaring her roommate down. She set it gently down in the corner without even taking her eyes off Dash. “On my model?! I need this for my project!”
“Yeah well, dresses are stupid! Fighting is much more important to being a spy than dressing the part.”
The violet-maned unicorn gasped. “That is NOT true!”
“Is so!”
“Is not!”
“Um, girls?”
“Is so!”
“Is not!”
“Girls?”
“Is so”
“Is not—”
“GIRLS!”
Twilight yelled, causing the two to cease fighting and turn to her in surprise. The filly moved between the two, glancing between them before she spoke.
“I know I’m new, but we all have to get along. You are roommates--We are all roommates. Just how did you two get along before now?”
Rainbow Dash scoffed. “We didn’t.”
This earned a nod from Rarity. “Yes, we tolerated each other but not without fights. Oh you should have seen her on the first day!”
“Rarity…” The Pegasus warned.
“She absolutely had no sense of self-restraint! When given a tour of the school she—”
“Rarity.”
“—And then when we went outside she—”
“Rarity!”
“—It took five teachers just to get her unstuck!” Rarity sighed in pity. “Talk about embarrassing!”
“THAT’S IT!”
The rainbow-maned Pegasus hopped off the ground and lunged right at the unicorn. Rarity held up her hoof in fear, bracing for an impact that never came. Rainbow Dash paused in mid-air, only held by her tail that was in a red-violet glow. Twilight pulled her back and lowered her on the ground.
“I told you, we have to learn to get along, or else this is going to be a really bad experience for all of us. Can we do that?”
The two grumbled in acceptance, and reluctantly gave each other a hoofshake.
“Now that that’s settled,” Twilight trotted over to her bed and climbed on top of it, looking at her roommates. “Tell me what you know about this school.”
The three fillies took up their free time before dinner chatting about the less ‘official’ things of the school. The snow-white unicorn couldn’t help but steer the conversation towards the social aspect of the school, the different cliques, the types of ponies, the overall atmosphere of the students, while the pegasus told of the best classes to take, fighting classes, lessons that showed off skills, gadgets they would get as they progressed. Twilight Sparkle soaked up all this information like a sponge. Though she had no real interest in what her roommates were saying, she mentally and physically noted the information on the chance that it would be needed in the future.
Towards the end of their little discussion, the chime signaling dinner sounded, and together the three of them, along with the rest of the student body, made their way to the cafeteria. Twilight glanced to her left and noticed the shy pegasus pony that had been in the Disguise Arts class. Smiling, she waved her over, only to be met with nothing as Fluttershy lowered her hair across her face and trotted even faster.
Rarity, taking notice, simply put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder. “Don’t worry about her, darling. She’s a shy one, and I’m sure she’s still worried about her behavior in class.”
“But she did nothing wrong.”
“Yes, but since school started she’s always been…a shrinking violet, if you will. You just can’t approach her and expect to be friends immediately, it takes time.”
Twilight could only shrug and rely on the unicorn’s word. She had only been enrolled for a couple of hours and really had no room to argue to doubt anyone. Yet, she reasoned, This is a spy school after all. The amount of security and secrecy…Celestia knows what I’m getting myself in to...
The loud, rainbow-maned pegasus brought her back to reality. “Aw yeah! Chow time!” As they approached a fairly large-by filly standards-set of double doors, she zipped through the crowd, paying no mind to the ponies she bumped in to along the way. All the unicorns could see of her was a blue blur meshed with a multi-colored dot.
The two unicorns could only roll their eyes as they trotted between the doors. While this had become common place for the fashionista, Twilight could only gape in awe at the site of the dining hall. It was large, a little less than half the size of the outside area in the cave front. From what she could see, there were four tables that stretched nearly the length of the entire room, with room to walk in the very center of the room. On the opposite side was a table that followed the width of the room that Twilight assumed where faculty sat due to its position. She could already see Rainbow Dash sitting at one of the tables, filling her plate with the food that was presented throughout the surface. Near her, she could see an orange filly with a blond mane fighting for some of the more desired dishes. Further down the table, at the very end, she saw Fluttershy with her back facing the wall.
Catching Twilight staring, Rarity chuckled and lead her towards the table. “As you no doubt realized, each table is for the different grades, and one table for faculty and staff.” Finding a spot, the two unicorns sat down with their classmates, colts and fillies alike.
Presented across each table was an incredible spread of food. More food than Twilight even knew of, most of her young life eating her mother’s family recipes or eating out on rare occasions.
“Wow! It’s like Princess Celestia’s kitchen staff made all this food!”
“They did,” Rarity stated matter-of-factly. Noticing Twilight staring at her in shock, she raised a brow, her cup paused halfway to her lips. “What? You thought that Princess Celestia had an entire kitchen staff for herself and—” She paused mid-sentence and gave a small chuckle. “Of course not, dear! Now go ahead and eat, a growing spy needs to eat.”
----------
“That…was the best meal in my life.”
The three returned to their dorm room, the day winding down to a crawl. Rarity sat on haunches behind the desk, a quill pen hurriedly scrawling out words to a report that was due first thing in the morning. Rainbow Dash, being herself, was spread across her bed, her eyes closed and hooves behind her head as if she were sleeping. Twilight, her belly now full, laid content on her own bed.
“Every meal is awesome! Though you do get used to the initial shock after awhile. Still awesome, though.”
“Yes, yes. Though I suppose we do have to get used to such extravagant meals,” Her pen never stopped or slowed as she spoke, “The parties we’ll attend, how deep undercover we’ll be. We can’t act uncivilized and not expect to be under suspicion. You know this, Rainbow Dash.”
“Yeah, yeah…”
A period of silence followed, engulfing the three. For one, it was an excuse to work in peace. She was glad the pegasus had someone else to bother, instead of weighing her down with needless questions and annoying tasks to prove how great she was. For another, she drifted off to sleep, happy that she didn’t have to hear the unicorn’s squeal or laugh when she got ideas. For the third, it was a moment of reflection, nothing keeping her from her thoughts.
She thought of her day. Of her parents. Of her brother. Of her new school—of these ponies that currently occupied the same room she was in.
It was a very good day. The classes, the teachers, the students, the food…but…What about Mom and Dad? I know now why they seemed so worried about me…but will I ever see them again? Did they know what I was getting myself in to? And what about Shining? He’s training to be a Royal Guard for the Princess, did he know about this as well?
She thought back to her arrival that afternoon, that the guards seemed to have known the path, that they didn’t try to calm her when she was visibly confused at their destination. Was it because they had seen it happen multiple times, or just because they didn’t know how? She guessed it was the former.
And this school…as lively as it is and how nice the teachers are, I have to remember it’s not a normal school…it’s a school specifically used to train ponies on how to be spies. I still can’t believe I’m officially enrolled here. I have to treat this like a learning experience! Mom and Dad always know what they’re doing, and they’ve never done me wrong before! I’ll make them proud! Them and Princess Celestia!
With a bright smile on the purple unicorn’s face, Twilight slowly drifted off to sleep, excitedly awaiting what her real classes would bring her the next day.
By the time Twilight and her roommates entered the Dining Hall for breakfast, Twilight had her new list of classes, and had already planned out where they were in the building, how long it would take to get to each class, and what to bring and what to expect. With Rarity and Rainbow Dash's help, of course. And by the time the three fillies stepped through the heavy-set doors, the sound in the dining hall had died down to a whisper, causing great alarm to Twilight.
"A new student, so late in the semester?" A third-year mumbled under his breath.
"I saw the Princess talking to her outside the Elements case. Usually she gives a speech to all newcomers and leaves on royal duties," A second-year told her friend.
"You think it's because she just enrolled? Or because she's special?" The friend responded.
All the fur on Twilight's mane stood on end as she looked around four long tables full of ponies. Her classmates. It had been less then 24-hours and she was already the center of attention, and she could feel dozens of eyes on her as she, Rainbow Dash, and Rarity walked to the Freshman table. As they sat down, the noise rose once again, a strange mix of yelling and talking that was just loud enough to hear the ponies around you, but not ones down the table.
"My, such rude ponies!" Rarity couldn't help but roll her eyes at the onlookers who continued to stare at Twilight.
"I know, right?!" Rainbow Dash glared down the table, and gave a grin once the other freshman turned their heads.
However, Twilight didn't seem to notice. She was too busy studying her schedule, distractedly eating her breakfast. Even though she had spent all morning doing just that, she always double-, triple-, and quadruple-checked when making lists. It was a trait her older brother had taught her; always make sure everything is 100% right, even if that means going over the same thing multiple times.
Rainbow Dash had already taken to eating her breakfast heartily, and even getting into an eating contest with the colt across from her, but Rarity had taken notice to Twilight.
"Twilight, dear, we've already given your schedule an overhaul, what are you looking for? Perhaps you're nervous about your first real day of class?" With a grip of blue aura, she took a sip of water, looking at Twilight over the glass.
Twilight shook her head and slid the paper back into her saddlebags. "I was just making sure, that's all." Just as she was about to take the first bite, a shrieking alarm invaded her ears, and every pony around her had jumped up and grabbed their bags, rushing towards the exit. Huffing, she swiped a bagel from the table and trotted through the large doors towards her first class: History. A beginner class; a class that all Freshman must take in order to graduate into the 'real world' as spies. From what she had read in the handbook, both Rarity and Rainbow Dash did not have the class the first part of the semester. It was a class where you learned the history of the 'business' , of famous spies, failed spies, missions that both helped and hindered the main operation. Organizations, both dangerous and not. It was a way to analyze the past to make better missions and spies in the future.
As Twilight trotted into the classroom, she was met with silence. Except for the faint sound of pages turning, no words were spoken. Every colt and filly had their muzzles in a large textbook, and no one even acknowledged that she had entered the room.
Seeing a motion from the corner of her eye, as quietly as she could, she walked over to the large desk that sat in front of the room. He was elderly, a white coat and blonde mane, with stern eyes as far as Twilight could tell. Her spine straightened by reflex as he stared straight at her. Eventually, she felt so awkward with the silence of the room that she had to speak.
"M-My name is--"
"Twilight Sparkle. A new student as of yesterday, hand picked by Princess Celestia herself. Seems to be exceptionally well at magic."
She stood dumbfounded. "I-- How--"
He only chuckled under his breath, slightly masked by the chime of the bell. "I have many sources, Miss Sparkle." His expression changed once again. "Mr. Flare. And you need to find a seat."
With a slight nod of her head, she turned and found the first available desk at the front of the class. Mr. Flare rose from his desk, his eyes causing some of the students to shift uncomfortably in their places as he paced the room.
"Who can give me a quick recap of what was discussed yesterday for Miss Sparkle?" With a sudden turn, he locked eyes with a glasses-wearing colt.
The colt, swallowing his nervousness, spoke up. "We talked about...Rosy Camellia, she was an agent of the Manehattan Service, and she was the one who...who lead the mission EXPORT, researching the alleged exportation of artistic forgeries, as well as supposed forgeries of elected officials."
He held his breath, expecting to be chastised for getting information wrong...only to let out a breath once he turned away with a nod.
"Good, good." Mr. Flare walked over to a shelf, pulling out one of the large books that made its home there. Twilight jumped as he unceremoniously dropped the large tome in front of her. "This is your textbook, Ms. Sparkle. I suggest getting caught up on the first five chapters before the end of the week." His attention turned back to the class as a whole. "And don't forget, your papers are due in two days."
----------
As the day went on, Twilight took as many notes as she could. Terms, names, formulas, ponies that were retired, still in operation, or long gone all went over the filly's head, but if there was one thing she was good at, it was studying. By the time it was lunch, Twilight had one notebook for History, one for English, and one for reminders. By the time lunch rolled around, she had already read one chapter for each class, just from walking between classes; unfortunately for the other students, she couldn't exactly see where she was going.
The cafeteria was as lively as usual. She and Rarity compared and contrasted their days and classes, while Rainbow Dash entertained herself by engaging in a little food contest with a nearby pink pony. Twilight could only groan as she watched the two argue over who could eat the most of what, and then promptly stuff their faces.
Her last two classes, a shared class of Magical Artifacts with Rainbow Dash, and then P&E (A class Twilight had hoped she wouldn't get after taking a tour the previous day. She was a filly of the mind, not the body). The teacher was harsh, yet forgiving, urging that each colt and filly pushed themselves to the best of their ability. She noted--as her hooves were aching and she was struggling to breathe--that Rainbow seemed particularly good, and that she really enjoyed herself, and made a mental note to ask for help later.
Once the bell rang, signaling the end of classes, Twilight gathered her saddlebags and, slowly but surely as to not put anymore unneeded stress on her body, made her way back to her dorm room. Though she paid no more attention to the surrounding students, one in particular caught her eyes. The sight of a pink tail that trailed behind three pink butterflies quickly disappeared behind a set of doors.
"...Huh. Was that Fluttershy?"
Shrugging, she took the first step towards the second floor...Curiosity took over, and before she knew it she was opening the doors to he academy's rather extensive library. While it was only one floor, the room was enormous, which both terrified and excited the young filly. The walls were lined wall-to-wall with journals, encyclopedias, mission plans, and historical documents that was mainly believed to be housed in the Canterlot Archives, deep under the castle.
Spotting the yellow Pegasus in a secluded corner, she trotted up behind her. In as soft a voice she could muster, she spoke. "Fluttershy?"
The next moment, she was met with a face full of feathers as Fluttershy's wings sprang out in surprise at the sudden noise.
"O-Oh! I'm sorry! I'm sorry, I'm sorry! Are you alright?!" Fluttershy stood up suddenly, sending the book she was looking at tumbling to the floor. She paid it no mind, worrying more about the filly she had just inadvertently slapped.
"Oof...I'm fine...Really, I'm fine. Fluttershy--Fluttershy!" Twilight took a step back and put a hoof on the other filly's shoulder. "I'm fine, really."
A slight blush spread across the pegasus's cheeks. "Oh...that's good..."
The two of them stared at each other awkwardly, wondering what they should say.
"So...um...you like reading?" Twilight asked, levitating the small book and holding it between the two of them.
"Oh! Um...Y-Yeah..." She took the book from the purple aura, setting it back down on the table. "It's a book about animals...I love animals. We didn't really have them in Cloudsdale...well, except for birds. Not that I don't like birds either! I love them! But..." She turned so her side was now facing the other filly, motioning to her cutie mark. "I got my cutie mark when I was around animals! It was an amazing night for me! I was so happy!"
Twilight couldn't help but smile, seeing her enthusiasm and watching her come out of her shell, even if it was for a moment.
Fluttershy's expression changed, showing confusion and sadness, as her mind went elsewhere."But...soon after, I was invited to this school. My mom thought it might be nice, because I'm not that strong a flier, you see, and she thought I wouldn't do anything that would be of value in Cloudsdale. She wanted to send me to a ground-based school when I was a little older, but when a scroll saying that Princess Celestia wanted me to come here, well...;she said she didn't want to turn down the princess."
Her words shocked Twilight. An invitation to the school, but to someone who had just gotten her cutie mark? And for animals, of all talents?
"Now that I think about it...Rarity's talent seems to be something relating to gems, and Rainbow Dash's for...whatever a rainbow lighting cloud stood for. What does a school like this need with talents like those?
And now that I think about it, there are only so many talents a spy could ever use, but why go into other talents? Is there a reason?"
She didn't even realize that she had been thinking to herself until Fluttershy spoke. "W-well...I guess I better go...I'll see you at dinner, Twilight."
"Hu--Oh, alright." She nodded and smiled to the retreating Pegasus before returning to her thoughts.
"Maybe I should ask Ms. Song about it"
With newfound curiosity, she made for the exit, and toward the Headmistress Office.
