Lucidity - An MLP Fanfiction

Butt Tattoos Are Actually Kind Of Metal

        It had been a few weeks since fifth grade started, and Grenadine was getting tired of being the odd one out. Luckily there hadn't been any history lessons about the Crystal Ponies or Umbrums or Sombra.

Filling her time with regular spells had gotten boring. Grenadine could lift things, teleport items, she could read faster now that she learned an "understanding" spell, all the things that made life easier. She had excelled a little too fast and was trying to backtrack. No way was she skipping a grade. What she needed was excitement. So Grenadine went to the library, researched where to find the forbidden spells, and got to work.

Now, checking the books out took a little trial and error. Grenadine couldn't just ask the library pony to hand over a forbidden spell book, no. She had to give off the impression she had an assignment that required research. Then she had to play the cute card. Then she had to trick her way into checking the book out of the library, and not just using it under the supervision of the mare who insisted she wasn't letting the filly out of her sight, and no, you can NOT cast any of those spells. It took about a week or so, but the peach pony had finally managed to get a spellbook of dark magic into her home.

Grenadine had been studying the spells in the book for a while. There were spells about controlling someone, shape-shifting (that was probably impossible. Only Changelings are allowed to shapeshift), and even crystal summoning. That seemed a little cliche, but it also seemed pretty interesting.

Over one weekend, when Goldie was out getting errands done, Grenadine decided to start on the crystal magic. She focused all her energy on the words in the spellbook, imagined where she wanted to put the crystals, and then shot the spell. Nothing happened. Well, something happened: a tiny little quartz crystal sputtered to life and then dropped onto the carpeted floor. The filly decided to leave the magic on hold.

"Welcome, class. You've been on a little break but today I thought we would go over the syllabus once again and then start our lesson of the day..." The Pegasus teacher began to ramble on about assignments and projects, introducing the daily tasks to the students. Grenadine wasn't listening. She was staring at her desk, trying to recite the spells in her head, hoping something might happen.

Alas, nothing ever occurred that had to do with any magic or crystals. The only thing that happened was the filly getting scolded for daydreaming during class time.

It had been about thirty minutes when the bell for recess rang. The teacher stopped talking and dismissed the students. It was a quick and easy day today, something the children all appreciated.

Sombre hadn't bugged Grenadine in a while. Nor had Sunbeam. But apparently there was no end to their ongoing teasing of the Umbrum.

"Oh, Sunbeam, isn't it sad that someone hasn't earned their Cutie Mark yet?" The grey Unicorn proclaimed loudly, grabbing the attention of some of the other students.

"I'm not sure, Sombre. I mean, there are other ponies who don't have their Mark yet," Sunbeam looked around to make a point. "Oh, wait. There's really not."

Grenadine began to get angry. She had endured years of teasing. How could these be the next princesses of the day and night if they couldn't even be kind to one filly for one whole minute?

"I'll get my mark. It'll be something much better than the sun or dumb, blue fire. You'll be sorry for teasing me when I do," Grenadine threatened. She had been sitting on a bench, reading one of the regular magic books she brought to school when the argument began.

"Oh, is that so?" Sunbeam approached the Umbrum with a smirk on her face. "How could it be that you're so sure your Cutie Mark will be so amazing?" She stopped a few paces away from the bench that Grenadine was sitting on.

Grenadine stood up. "Because. I've been studying. I know what my talent is." There was no doubt in her voice. This was not a suggestion of superiority, this was a declaration.

The princesses looked at each other with a look of disbelief, Sunbeam tossing her yellow, orange, and red braid over her shoulder as she laughed.

"Then show us what your talent is, blank flank." Sombre's words were the final straw before Grenadine finally summoned the courage to use the spell she had been practising.

With an ear-piercing shriek and a large blast of green magic encompassing Grenadine's eyes and horn, she pointed towards Sombre and Sunbeam and blasted their feet, growing crystals from the ground up, trapping the legs of the princesses in a cage of bright red quartz.

As her magic faded, another blast of light surrounded the Umbrum, but much less intense and green, this time. Grenadine's Cutie Mark had appeared. It was a white moon with a light pink spirit floating around the top.

Throughout all the chaos, no teachers had been present to witness it directly. A slam of a door opening changed that fact in seconds.

"What is the meaning of all this racket?" Principal Hoofington shouted, coming outside to the courtyard where shouts of alarm had been originating from. As he approached the princesses and Grenadine, he looked at the crystals, to the alarmed state of the girls trapped in them, to the new Cutie Mark, and then to the crowd of students around the collection of quartz.

"Mister Hoofington!" One of the students called out. "Grenadine used magic! She got her Cutie Mark! She trapped the princesses in the crystals!" He was spouting words, each making Grenadine look worse and worse.

Crystals were only to be summoned in dark magic. That must have meant... "Grenadine Grim," The principal began, walking over to the Umbrum filly. "You're coming to the office with me right now."