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Spellbound Open House Extravaganza & Princess Twilight Honoring Ceremony (Open)


Bellosh

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The big night was upon the members of Spellbound. Long excruciating months of renovating their dreary warehouse in the heart of Canterlot have completely changed the identity of the place; into something mimicking the appearance of a Reinaissance-era interior. If one was to trot into the Spellbound HQ now, they wouldn’t see a plain room with naught but cheap walls. They’d see a cozy Guild Hall with all the trademarks of an intellectually-inviting environment. Chandeliers and a roaring fireplaces provided the inside with a warm glowy ambience, allowing ponies to easily see their surroundings without relying on the sterility of more modern lighting. One half of the Guild Hall was devoted to nothing but shelves, filled with an idiosyncratic variety of tomes on magic.

The opposite end? Why, that’s where the plastic fold-out table with the punch and pie goes! Along with a whole bunch of small hay bales to sit on; about enough for a few dozen ponies. Tonight was Spellbound’s big Open House Extravaganza! Now that the new Magic Guild had a proper facility to work from, it could finally recruit a whole slew of new members to fill its ranks. The world of Equestria would also learn that out there, an organization existed dedicated itself to using the wonders of magic for the good of all ponykind.

A flash of magenta exploded in the center of the room, revealing a white-coated unicorn practicing her teleportation moves. Moondancer didn’t need to be a showmare to realize that to impress potential recruits and misc. supporters, she ought to be able to show off some of her cool tricks! Moony figured they’d get a large turnout at the Open House Extravaganza this evening; besides promising free refreshments, the fliers advertising the event heavily promoted the fact that Princess Twilight Sparkle would be named Honorary Guildmaster at a ceremony during the Open House. That obviously suggested that Twilight herself would make a public appearance at Spellbound HQ!

Only thing was, despite previous written communiques between Ponyville and the Magic Guild, Twilight had yet to arrive. Moondancer tried not to worry herself too much, but she glanced at the arched, castle-like wooden door every now and then, wondering if her magic school acquaintance would arrive right this moment, or only once everypony else had already arrived.....

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This was an opportunity to learn more about magic beyond what private tutors offered. While learning about magic and the general limitations of it was helpful, instruction outside the realm of a paid professional offered its own unique reward. Practicality was something Asteria preferred in the real of magic, not a spell to locate the closest bale of hay, a spell of which would clearly serve no purpose in a room that felt flooded by them! A black unicorn mare with a scarlet mane entered the building only a few short minutes after its doors had been opened. Her tall and well toned body was mostly hidden beneath a dark cloak that served as shelter and a means to prevent onlookers from sneaking glances upon the cutie mark that identified her as a courier. She prided herself on punctuality and even managed to show up early, perhaps being the first out of all the new recruits to arrive on the slowly dimming evening.

Her fiery crimson eyes looked over the largely unassuming warehouse that was home to the magic guild as she skimmed over her final thoughts about approaching such a guild. While it indeed might expose her to unwanted eyes, the stoic courier realized that she needed to advance her skills and nearly nonexistent social awareness if she was to attract more clients for her job. She nonchalantly entered the building and gazed over its newly renovated walls. They had a welcoming, albeit fresh feeling about them, the black pony showing no signs of judgement at all while she took in her surroundings as neutrally as possible. The architecture seemed fitting within the accepted norms of Canterlot style, from the extravagant chandeliers to the distinct lack of artificial light that most fancier ponies only seemed to use sparingly. Her quick mental dissection of the style used in the building quickly drifted towards the outer reaches of her conscience, as she decided to search for instructors and other new students. While she was a few years removed from her education in the Royal University of Canterlot, the stoic unicorn was not above describing herself as a student, her distinct absence of pride allowing her to accept new thoughts and ideas, even ones she might presume to be abhorrent.

After a few seconds of searching, a magenta lightly flashed across her vision and revealed white unicorn who seemed to be practicing the advanced art of teleportation. She watched the stranger critically for a moment, not wanting to interrupt her practice, but when her moves seemed to be in conjunction with the arrival of new students, Asteria decided to approach the member and introduce herself. "Hello stranger, I am Asteria Stillheart, honored to meet you. Would I be incorrect to presume that you are a member of this organization. I saw one of your advertisements looking for new members, and I believe that I may meet the criteria of your organization. While I am clearly biased in my own favor, am I open to critical review of my abilities and qualifications," she remarked in a surprisingly serious voice that had a vaguely deadpan Canterlot accent behind it. The dark courier did not realize that this was more of a party than an entrance exam, but that wasn't causing any tension in her body, the odd mare the type to treat all events in basically the same detached manner.

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Java Portrait

The scholarly earth pony known as Java had stood just right outside of the warehouse that was supposed to house the newly arriving guild of magic. While he himself possessed no magical ability, lack of a valid horn, he had been hoping to get assistance with his new line of projects. And it so happened that rumors of this very guild was finally being constructed. Though the pony was indeed unsure if the guild would be willing to assist him, or be snobbish in their ways and shoe away any pony who's not visibly unicorn.

The pony was wearing his usual waist coat, and smelled heavily of coffee. Though it was more of a perfume rather than a terrible stench that clung to him. His mane wasn't disheveled as it usually was, but instead had been partially groomed. The rear portion of his hair had been strung through two large titanium beads. Though it was more more as the stallions own personal taste when ever he does decide to go as far as wearing jewelry.

He had been scrying through his notes in a small black book, double checking the address he had picked up from one the fliers in town. “For a magic guild... I thought this would have been somewhere... I don't know... more castely,” Java commented to himself. His eyes finally lifted away from the book after he clamped it close with his hoof.

He slipped it away into a saddle bag as he started for the door. He began to think of the particular reasons behind the location. He couldn't argue with that a warehouse would have been far cheaper than anything else. Not to mention the large amount of space it gives. Plus it's likely that they don't require their members to stay on the property of the guild. So it's possibly just a meeting hall of some sort.

Though once he stepped inside, he had been utterly surprised by the sudden shift in contrast from the outside to the inside. The interior looked absolutely stunning, and definitely held a castle like appearance to it. Though, perhaps it wasn't medieval, the design choice was arguably for the better of modern charm. Java's own attention span was toying with him as his eyes darted from each bit of décor in the room. And then his eyes settled on the plastic table... the one black sheep in the entire room.

Well, a black sheep that the earth pony could relate too. The table simply did not belong it the atmosphere of the Guild's hall. And the earth pony himself was practically a sliced tomato in a fruit salad. The pony felt his sudden distaste leave him after remembering the fact. He kinda felt for the table, the two of them were alike and yet so different! If it was a creature, he could have probably conversed with it like a brother. The white plastic table wasn't so bad aft- oh well it seems that the pony realized he was getting side tracked.

He had snapped back into reality after giving his head a violent shake, and began to spin around on his hooves as if looking for someone he could speak to. Perhaps the guild master him or her self? He had forgotten to completely read the flier for more information from excitement, and only extracted the address which he needed to get here.

“Erm... excuse me,” The pony called out with a curious note, “I could use a bit of help here...”

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Belle could hardly believe this was where Moondancer's guild was located initially, if not for a certain black coated unicorn opening the door and exposing the indoors Belle may never have believed it but that bright magenta flash in the center of the room could only have been produced by one pony she knew of. Moondancer was a student the scholarly duchess from Trottingham knew fairly well, she was a wonderful student and a talented mage who had proven to be one of the most sociable and kind students Silver Belle had ever known. Moondancer's knack for making friends actually had given this noblemare the idea to let her daughter meet her and so far it seemed they were getting along splendidly.

After another pony who looked a bit familiar entered the hall, Belle and her daughter cantered inside and the silver coated unicorn offered the reddish maned mare a bit of applause. "Goodness, Miss Moondancer." started the white maned noble,"You've certainly outdone yourself and I see you've improved greatly in regards to your teleportation dance ... would you mind too much if you had a dance partner?"

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"Ya sure ya won't just throw out yer hip mum?" asked a freckled mare at her side, "Yer not as young as ya used ta be, y'know." After having a mean glare shot at her from the side her mother was on, Presteza cleared her throat as if nothing happened. Soon though the mare's nostrils were met by a very enticing scent... was that the smell of coffee? Sniffing around a few times she closed her eyes and let her nose point her in the right direction, in that of Javasun. Before she knew it she was already beside the coffee scented stallion and smiled slightly awkwardly at her unusual first impression,"Welcome ta the Spellbound Open house mister.... um I don' think I got yer name at Donut Joe's. I'm Presteza."

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lpvqhS8.jpgHoofcourt 'Starswirl' Magic

Through the front door walked an elderly dark blue unicorn stallion with gray mane and beard. The beret he wore on his head accented his glasses. He tried to enter unnoticed, though he is one of the most famous and recognizable magic weilding unicorns in the entire realm. He is Professor Hoofcourt 'Starswirl' Magic, retired Chair of the College of Magical Arts at Canterlot University. His son and daughter in law are the famous magic act "Mighty Magic and Abracadabra'. Their daughter, his granddaughter Misty Magic has much natural magical talent, but lacks control over her powers. Though he was very scholarly, Hoofcourt was a very humble, unassuming pony who enjoyed conversation. After levitating his hat and cape over to a wooden hatrack, Hoofcourt walked over to where the other ponies seemed to be gathering, hoping to blend in with the crowd.

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Though of course it was probably futile to ask for any form of help when the crowd inside the room... was quite small. Even though Java loved the open feel of the renaissance era décor, he couldn't help but to be suddenly disturbed by the sheer openess. The lack of lateral detail on the planer level, the vertical ascents all over the place giving the building a very heavy look! Oh how it all felt like it was going to just cave in on the poor pony. Had the building been much larger, the pony may find himself having a sudden mental break down rather than a nervous fit.

But then he heard something rather odd? The sniff sniff sniff, that was more akin to a dog. The pony's eyes whom were thankfully distracted began to search around the small amount of ponies for a dog. Had some pony brought in a pet? What an odd but fun sounding establishment this would be if this was true! Owls fluttering though the air, and dropping scrolls onto students heads. Two headed dogs acting as a chaperone for their students. If only his own workplace had been this interesting. Then again, it's almost like a playhouse should an outsider look through the doorway at any given time.

Having taken a few steps back, he heard the sound growing louder, and louder. Where was this blasted dog! This dog sounds as if he's closing in on him! Was it invisible? Java was prepared to start flinging hooves through the air if he had been pounced. But to his surprise, the sniffing wasn't coming from a dog.

In fact when he turned around, he saw the familiar face of an artist almost awkwardly pressed against his side. One of Peachy's old friends if he remembered correctly from DonutJoes. His own expression had been warped with a slacken jaw, a tilted head, and a drop of an ear.

“Uuuhwwaaah,” Java uttered intelligibly to the mare with a confused tone. When he spotted the smile, the stallion couldn't help but to suppress a sudden giggle. Instead a small audible puff of air could be heard, almost like a snicker.

He took a few steps back and slowly turned around so he could get a small bit of personal space between the two. After all, can't have other ponies think anything of them. “Yeah, I recognize you. You're one of Peachy's old friends,” he chimed after her introduction. Though the suppressed laughter was now beginning to surface.

Java could admit that it was probably not what she intended to do. But it did show that she was an entertaining character! And, with the messy mane, and coat... he didn't feel to out of place. His own coat was terribly unkempt. And his tail, wrapped and cut short... though it looked like it had been done with a knife rather than by a stylist. Maybe his mane wasn't as messy, he took the time to tie it back in a half-flanked manner to improve his own appearance before setting off on his quest to get here.

Her dialect also reminded him a great deal of Manehatten city.

“Javasun! But just call me Java,” Java quipped at a bizarrely fast pace. He blinked after realizing he was speaking a bit fast, and made a small mental note to slow down.

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It had been quite some time since Fire Heart managed to visit the Spellbound Hall because of her intense studies at Princess Celestia's School. In fact the red unicorn spent several minutes wandering around the same few blocks before finally seeing the familiar emblem that was identical to the one she now proudly fashioned into a necklace.

"Alright, let's see who's here," she said walking through the door. In an instant Fire heart stood amazed at what was before her. The place was no longer the empty and derelict warehouse where the first meeting took place but a guild hall worthy of ponies in their magical pursuits. The place was now full of books, practicing areas, and just places to sit and converse.

Looking around the room she saw many faces that were new, perhaps members that joined. But she was glad to see Moondancer and her new friend Prestezathere greeting the guests.

"Hi there Moon and Pressy. Wow, what a turn out! I can't wait to check this entire place out!"

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The greyish blue unicorn stood in front of the recently christened Spellbound guildhall. A light breeze rustled his silver mane, making the blue highlights it contained move like ripples across a pond's surface. It wasn't to difficult to locate the new-ish guildhall. Volt remembered this old build growing up. A part of him was happy to see it getting proper use, while another part of him didn't really care and tried to quash the thoughts by reminding him that it was just some old dust building from his foalhood. Whatever, it doesn't matter now does it. He thought, looking at the cleaned up structure. It looked better from the outside than it did last year. The stallion could only imagine the work the new guild put in on the interior.

He moved to open the door, but froze just shy of touching the handle. Was he really guild material? He excellent in his studies at Canterlot's University of Natural Sciences and was inducted into one of the nation's most renown scientific organizations the moment he graduated, but he had always been allowed to work in relative solitude. Joining a guild would mean guildmates and more interaction. It wasn't that he disliked ponies, it was just that such interaction was a drain on introverts like himself. Slapping himself on the cheeks the young geophysicist steeled himself, adjusted his shades, and pushed the door open. He'd never forgive himself if he missed this opportunity.

The interior was... not to his liking... He was a progressive sort. Where many ponies went for the beautiful or the extravagant, Gigavolt preferred functionality. His idea of a space was sharp angles and cold stone or metals. But then again, he was not a designer, nor was he thinking about what sort of area would appeal to the largest crowd. In that regard, it was probably working. Cater to the 70% not the 30%. He snickered, watching other ponies enjoy the decor. He wouldn't take points off for it not being his style, he wasn't quite that petty.

Gigavolt had heard a little bit about this guild called Spellbound from his peers. Apparently, they were still fairly knew and trying to find their place in the guild scene. Normally the unicorn wouldn't be to interested in such a thing as guilds, but the fact that they were focused on magic was a definite plus in his eyes. Not to mention he was always looking to add his to the roster of any prestigious group that could further his career. And if hearsay and the fliers were correct, this open house would soon be graced by Princess Twilight Sparkle. He actually snorted quietly at that, his anarchistic streak rearing its ugly head. He'd never been a bow and grovel sort of pony so thinking about some pony "gracing" a function with their presence was quite amusing to the scientist.

His eyes glided over the newly placed tomes as he chuckled silently to himself. A sudden flash broke his concentration, drawing his attention to the middle of the room. Apparently the source of the light had been a teleportation spell from the white mare. Telepotation was fairly advanced, so she had his attention. He was about to confront her, but a crimson maned mare beat him to the punch. Even though he respected expedience, he could be patient. So he took a position not to far behind her, just to observe their conversation.

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Pocket Change was one very pleased pony! Somehow through grit, determination, and a fit bits, the ponies of 'Spellbound' had turned a boring old warehouse into a rather respectable looking guild hall. Pocket had acquired old furniture with 'character' from his parents home, along with wood paneling for the walls from a recently torn down school building. Super-Arty--Pony Presteza made a couple of the very distinguished looking paintings that were hung on the walls. There was a portrait of famous mages of the past like Starswirl The Bearded and Clover The Clever, to wizards of the present times, like Princess Twilight Sparkle among others. Others, like his very special some-pony Moondancer had brought along old books and furniture of her own. Once the original move in had started, other members of the guild had contributed in their own special way.

In the small backroom they had made into a kitchen, the unicorn stallion finished off his very special 'party punch'. After tossing in the correct fruits and stirring them in all the proper directions, he was rewarded with a splash of red smoke, which smacked him right in the face, this meant he had prepared the drink properly. After taking out a glass and taping a taste sip, he smiled gleefully. The punch tasted of sunshine and happiness! Both the punch bowl and a collection of plastic cups branded with the Spellbound logo floated behind him as he left the room. After dropping off his cargo onto the folding table they had rented from the party store, Pocket Change took time to see who was here.

There was a pretty young mare with a black coat, who the stallion had sworn he had seen before. But where? His mare-friend Moondancer was engaged in a rather interesting dance that involved apparition. Teleportation was still a spell he had yet to master, or even learn, mostly because he was terrified of what could happen to a unicorn who did not properly cast the spell. One could find themselves stuck inside a wall, or even manage to lose a part of themselves, or 'splinched'. While this was rare, he had heard all the horror stories. There was also an earth pony decked out in an waist coat,and was that actually Professor Hoofcourt himself? Pocket had heard about the old teacher and was quiet impressed to see the old stallion here. He could only imagine the stories the old warlock would tell, along with he impressive magic he could pass on.

He caught sight of the youngest member of the guild, little Fire Heart who held great potential. He made sure to wave at the filly. He studied another newcomer, this one was an greyish blue unicorn who was also busy checking the place out. While it was still rather early, the stallion hoped other founding guild members such as Gray Lexis, Razor Gears, and even the mare that had actually founded the guild, Nivial would show up. He had not heard from the mare in quite some awhile and was starting to worry about her.

While Moon and Pressy were busy, Pocket decided to greet the retired teacher, "Professor Hoofcourt, it's great to finally meet you." While not the best student in his school, he had been slightly disappointed when he found out the respected wizard had been forced into retirement the year he would have studied under him. Instead of Hoofcourt, young Pocket had been stuck with a rather poor teacher he also served as the gym teacher.

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"Hello stranger, I am Asteria Stillheart, honored to meet you. Would I be incorrect to presume that you are a member of this organization. I saw one of your advertisements looking for new members, and I believe that I may meet the criteria of your organization. While I am clearly biased in my own favor, am I open to critical review of my abilities and qualifications."

In an exercise of absent-mindedness, Moondancer totally forgot about the door for at least a minute. So absorbed was the girl in her teleportation moves that she didn’t notice the first patron walking in until the newcomer spoke. This mare Asteria... wasn’t quite somepony Moony normally associated with. Or for that matter, randomly encountered during day-to-day life, because most ponies at least pretended to sound upbeat at social gatherings. Asteria resembled an emotionless machine more than a living unicorn, which left an unnerving first impression on Moondancer.

The hostess’s first instinct was to make Asteria feel at home, which couldn’t be too hard since at the very least, the robotic mare expressed an interest in joining the magic guild. Getting past her initial discomfort, the livelier unicorn shot a smile at her guest; “You’ve come to the right pony! Moondancer’s my name; pleased to meet ya-”

"Goodness, Miss Moondancer. You've certainly outdone yourself and I see you've improved greatly in regards to your teleportation dance ... would you mind too much if you had a dance partner?"

Oh cool; Presteza was back from fetching her mother! Duchess Silver Belle ranked as one of Moondancer’s favorite teachers, for it was under the Duchess’s tutelage where Moony began to realize her knack for those sorts of intensive spells requiring an insane knowledge of how molecules worked. Basically, stuff like warping around a place. “Maybe in a little bit Mrs. Belle!” the young mare enthusiastically greeted the teacher; “In the meantime, make yourself at home.”

Moondancer awkwardly turned back to Asteria, leading her towards the refreshment table. “Sorry about that; she’s a visiting professor at Celestia’s School. Anywhere, where were we? ...Oh yeah!” The white-coated unicorn hovered a cup of Party Punch to her darker companion; “This ought to loosen you up a little. My boyfriend made it himself; drinking it will give anypony a PUNCH!” Moony punched the air to get the point across. “Hehehe, get it? Tehehehehe.....” Moony needed a few seconds to recompose herself after laughing at her own amazing pun.

"Hi there Moon and Pressy. Wow, what a turn out! I can't wait to check this entire place out!"

“Glad you made it Fire Heart!” Moondancer called out to the filly from across the room; “Join the party!” Hopefully, some more kids from Celestia’s School would also show up. Her former magic counselor, Ingrid Marie (also a Spellbound member), promised that she’d make arrangements for the older students to earn extra credit points for showing up. Any who took up the magic counselor’s offer would get a chance to meet up with the professionals in the field of magic, which could lead to exciting career opportunities after they graduate!

The outgoing mare once more gave her complete attention to Asteria; “This place is gonna’ get packed quick! So... how’s the punch? You like it???”

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Memory Lane trotted through the streets of Canterlot with a purpose in his step and a map in his face. Like several times before, the somewhat sheltered student had managed to get himself lost in his home city of ten years, and he was not pleased about it. He sighed as he realized he had been walking in a giant circle for the last half an hour, and corrected himself before stuffing the map back into his saddlebag. Whatever this new guild has to offer had best be great, he thought with an irritated frown on his face, oddly meshing well with his dress outfit of a vest, bowtie, and what-was-starting-to-become-his-signature fez, all in bright shade of yellow. He thought he looked alright, and he was immensely glad he had forgone dress shoes today; if he hadn't, he wouldn't have been able to stand when he finally arrived.

The scholar had heard through the grapevine about an up-and-coming magic guild at the School for Gifted Unicorns, and had been instantly curious. The idea of working with like-minded students in the pursuit of magical knowledge and skill without the hefty price tag that usually accompanied arcane lessons set well with Lane, and he had wasted no time in inquiring to Ingrid Marie as per the rumor's instructions. He had been only a little concerned when he learned that there was an extra credit incentive for attending an open house being held today, but that doubt had multiplied when he checked a map and realized their 'guild hall' was smack dab in the middle of the warehouse district!

And yet despite these unflattering impressions, he was here standing before the unassuming Spellbound Hall's front door after over an hour of wandering the streets of Canterlot. It was ajar, and Lane could hear the chatter of ponies within; it looked like a sizable number had shown up today. He sighed and stood up straight, ignoring the heated protests of all four of his legs, and walked inside.

The doubtful student was greeted by the roars of warm fires, freshly redecorated walls, gleaming chandeliers, and a wall full of tomes and books so vast that Lane felt like he just walked into Twilight Sparkle's own home. It was very clear to Lane that someone had put their heart and herculean effort into transforming this warehouse into a bone-fied guild hall. The atmosphere was very friendly, with numerous ponies- students of the university, faculty both current and retired, and some unaffiliated with either group- talking amongst themselves and their host, the alabaster aether-mage that Ingrid had called Moondancer. She clearly knew her way around a spellbook, as well, dancing gracefully around the hall with a dazzling display of teleportation magic. If this was the standard being set around the Spellbound guild, he was certain he would enjoy it here and improve his relatively unimpressive magical ability at the same time.

"This is amazing work, Miss Moondancer; to turn a warehouse into this wonderful hall?" Memory Lane gestured around them with a smile; "My name's Memory Lane, it's a pleasure to meet you."

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Professor Hoofcourt Magic reached the center of the room when the elderly unicorn stallion heard a voice calling his name. Turning in the direction of the voice, Hoofcourt now saw it was a rather young looking white pelted unicorn stallion who had called him. Taking a moment to study his face, the Professor's eyes lit up as he began to greet him.

"Aren't you Pocket Change?" Professor Hoofcourt asked. "I remember seeing your photograph on an application to the University the year I retired! One of my many duties on the faculty was to help evaluate applications for the incoming class of students! As I recall, if my memory is correct, you had quite a strong application. Our committee had no problems in approving your acceptance! How have you been? I hope your experience in our school was a pleasant one."

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Asteria listened patiently to her white counterpart as she politely introduced herself. The black mare tried to formulate an impression of the instructor in front of her, but nothing stood out as particularly unusual. While she was more upbeat than most of her usual clients, Asteria was wise enough to know that she often worked with... eccentric characters. Still, she knew that additional information would be needed to gauge her character.

The courier nodded and bowed before Moondancer in a subservient manner before deciding to properly re address her. "I eagerly anticipate positive interactions in the near future Lady Moondancer," she politely remarked in her usual detached voice that seemed to disagree with her words.

When their discussions were interrupted by the other professor, Asteria went completely silent, taking extra care to be polite as they spoke. She didn't form any opinion, knowing that social protocols weren't as strict in such a casual meeting. She nodded politely in acknowledgement of the mare as they finished speaking. When Moondancer apologized, the stoic courier shook her head in seeming disagreement as she prepared to speak.

"There is no need to apologize, this action was within the norm of the setting." She followed the instructor to the punch table and politely accepted the drink. She normally avoided any sugary drinks, but in these settings she knew it was rude to refuse such offers. "The beverage packs a punch? How strange, I must investigate further," the unicorn remarked in an almost confused manner as she politely drank the entire glass in one quick swig. It was a potent collection of sugar and sweet, as odd as that seemed. She knew that such a drink would be best in moderation because of its potentially high calorie count, the courier making a mental note to avoid it in the future for the sake of her form.

When asked for her opinion, she blinked, almost unsure of how to fairly describe it. "The punch seems to have a potent flavor. If you like such a flavor or are looking for a source of high calories, it is highly proficient, " she explained in an awkward manner, almost seeming to refuse to make an opinion of her own!

An awkward silence shortly followed, Asteria clearly not familiar enough with punch to carry a conversation about it. She decided to shift the focus of their conversation to something they both knew about. "May I ask if you have discovered ways to increase the efficiency of your teleportation spells? I have only managed the basics of magic efficiency for that spell. Allow me to demonstrate, " she politely remarked as her long black horn shimmered a faint red that was unusual for normal magic.

A quick spark of magic light entered the air as she teleported a few feet to her right, now on the opposite side of Memory Lane as he introduced himself to Moondancer. Her spell looked exactly the same as a normal teleport to the untrained eye, the only difference being the smaller red flash that exited the area she reappeared. Asteria had simply managed the cast the spell with a less than normal amount of magic. While not an incredible trick, i was at least a subtle one.

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Ice Storm was in a rush to get everything unpacked. She had literally just finished getting everything off of the train and back to her new place in Canterlot as she noticed that dusk was starting to set in. It had taken her almost the entire day for her to get everything into her new shop and home. She still hasn't been able to actually unpack any of it yet, and she still needed a bed to sleep on for the evening! Of course, she could always go to the park again, it is supposed to be a very nice night outside, so sleeping under the stars wasn't too bad of a thought. She kept pushing herself more and more until she at least had her bed room set up before looking outside to see Luna's moon rising into the sky. As she did, she just happened to catch a glimpse of something shiny in one of the boxes right on top. It was her spellbound crest. "Holy Ancestors of Luna! How could I have forgotten that was tonight!" Ice said to herself now searching frantically through her boxes until she found the dress that Rarity had made for her so long ago. That being said, Ice was a stickler for keeping it clean to make sure it didn't yellow like whites normally did, having it dry cleaned regularly. Because of this, it still held the perfectly white hue it had when she bought it, and the gems were just as vibrant as the day she bought it, each row outlining one of the skirts of her dress. She quickly put it on and made her way towards the new headquarters that they had.

The travel didn't take her too long, only a couple minutes, but she could clearly see that she was late as there were already many ponies here and it didn't take her long to find Pressy, Moony, and Fire Heart. Three ponies of whom she held close and was planning on making regular visits with in the future. She carefully trotted past some of the others and saw that there were some other ponies speaking with them. "Hey girls! Sorry I was late. I got caught up with moving, and I lost track of time. Hopefully I didn't miss anything that was too important?" she said knowing that she had probably already missed a couple things that would come back to bite her later.

(OOC: This is a pic of the dress she's wearing to help with visuals.

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The white mare, Moondancer, had quite the grasp on teleportation "I'm inclined to agree with Mr. Lane. An excellent display, both of you," Gigavolt said in a level tone. He couldn't help but be a little impressed. Teleportation was an ability he just didn't possess. He knew how the spell worked, but was utterly incapable of performing it, leaving him stuck at a conceptual understanding of the ability. Though, he imagined it to be extremely difficult to coordinate the first few times. He respected all teleporters for the work and dedication they put into mastering their art.

What caught his eyes more was how than the feat itself, was how they performed them. "The average caster would be in a heap on the floor after what you've demonstrated, Ms. Moondancer." Gigavolt's gaze turned to Asteria, his shades hiding his eyes from both mares. "That teleport was impressive. I work with raw energy for a living, feeling its properties is a talent that I pride myself on. Even though this sense is all but abysmal with anything other than electricity, it was still enough to pick up a differences in the expenditure of magic between you two. That coupled a weaker flash tells me you used less energy. That technique is something I'd enjoy learning about."

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Fire Heart turned to see a white stallion waving to her. She waved back not wanting to be rude while wondering again who he was. It had been quite some time since she was thee last, and aside from her friends everypony else danced around her like a blur. Well, maybe she could get to know more ponies during this event.

“Glad you made it Fire Heart!” Moondancer called out to the filly from across the room; “Join the party!”

"Oh yeah, definitely," she replied seeing that her friend already had her hooves full of meeting guests. Such was the life of a hostess. She then spotted an older pony that although she never met intrigued her. He was dressed in a cloak wearing a greyed beard, like some ancient wizard from a book she read.

"Hello," she said, "I'm Fire heart from Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. Not to be prying but you look, familiar, like I saw your face in a portrait or picture. Are you a professor from the school?"

Just then Ice Storm, the third friend Fire had seen come to the grand opening. Although the older filly was a little jealousy still over the recent news that Ice revealed to her and others, she was much better now that she had time to think.

"Oh hi there Ice! Glad you could make it. I know i was just getting to know some ponies here, so I don't think you missed much. How are you with coming back to Canterlot?"

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"There is no need to apologize, this action was within the norm of the setting..... The punch seems to have a potent flavor. If you like such a flavor or are looking for a source of high calories, it is highly proficient."

No doubt about it; Asteria thought on a different wavelength compared to most other ponies. She almost reminded Moondancer of Princess Celestia’s bookworm protégé, in a distant way. Asteria fell under the extreme of looking at everything as analytically and dispassionately as possible. Moondancer though, she keenly understood that even the analytical types made good friends if one recognized that they were just as quirky as everypony else in existence. Ergo, there was no need to press Asteria further about the punch. If she truly enjoyed the punch, she’d just grab another one. Simple as that!

Asteria broke the short silence by asking about teleportation efficiency. Funny how everypony who ever saw Moondancer's abilities always wanted to learn her secrets. Anywho, the aetherology student understood what the other was talking about. The basic principle being that one could learn how to cast a spell using less magical strength than normally required. In Moony's line of work, this usually meant rigorous practice until a certain spell becomes second-nature to use. Once that happens, the unicorn body requires less conscious application of its own magical strength to break the particular laws of physics necessary to cast a spell.

"This is amazing work, Miss Moondancer; to turn a warehouse into this wonderful hall? My name's Memory Lane, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Whoo-hoo; another pony from Celestia’s School made it to the Open House! Memory Lane was a fun student for Moondancer to work with as a volunteer practice hall monitor, being one of the older unicorns around. If the young mare remembered right, Memory was set to graduate this year. “Hey hey, I remember you Laney!” she greeted the stallion; “Grab some punch and pie, and join in on the fun! Fire Heart’s over there if you want to hang out with a fellow student.”

Moony pointed over to where Fire was, right as Ice Storm walked in the door wearing a lovely white dress. Moony was tied down, so she sufficed giving a friendly wave to Icy.

"The average caster would be in a heap on the floor after what you've demonstrated, Ms. Moondancer..... That teleport was impressive. I work with raw energy for a living, feeling its properties is a talent that I pride myself on. Even though this sense is all but abysmal with anything other than electricity, it was still enough to pick up a differences in the expenditure of magic between you two. That coupled a weaker flash tells me you used less energy. That technique is something I'd enjoy learning about."

Moondancer was collecting fans alarmingly fast! At this rate, she might as well enter show business and exhibit her teleportative moves to everypony. The moon-flanked unicorn would be guaranteed crowds of adoring ponies, judging by tonight’s reception. As for this new smart stallion, he expressed interest in learning Asteria’s tricks of the trade. That meant the other mare’s attention would now be divided, but Moony saw an opportunity. “I should check up on the other guests,” she informed Asteria right in the middle of hovering a sign-up form, ink bottle, and quill her way; “Anywho, here’s the form you need if want to join Spellbound. It’s basically like any other sign-up form you’ve ever filled out, so don’t dwell on it too much. When you’re finished, just place everything back on that table over by the bookshelves.” Turning her gaze so she could address the stallion (most likely a scientist) too; “You two can call me if you need anything, and I’ll come a runnin’!”

Winking at the two ponies, Moondancer figured she could leave them to their own devices for a few minutes. That’d give her time to more properly greet Presteza’s mom, whom she kinda brushed off a bit earlier. Fortunately, the time for rectification drew nigh. “Hello again Mrs. Belle!” Moony walked over to the elegant duchess, a mischievous glint in her eyes; “Did you say something earlier about dancing?”

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"Eh.", The stallion's ears flopped down as he recalled his magical education. "I could have done better. but at the time, I was heavily distracted by an assortment of.", he tried to come up with a word, "Things, and was suffering from a lack of inspiration at the time.", Pocket Change glanced down at his hooves as he spoke, almost as if he was still ashamed before returning his gaze back at the retired teacher, "I passed with decent grades, but my professors generally all agreed that I could have done far better if I put my mind to my studied.", his eyes kept bouncing back towards the mare known as 'Moondancer',"I've been working on my masters degree for Archaeology. I've even been on a few interesting jobs, beyond the usual standard shovel-bum work. I didn't get back into studying magic until I ran into Moonie and we started up this whole guild thing together, along with a few other unicorns of note.", his eyes fell again upon the white coated mare who was chatting with a few of the guests. He let out a dramatic sigh before adding, "With her help, along with the others, I've returned to proper study of my magic studies. I'm hoping to pick up apparition, but the spell itself still terrifies me. And look at her.", he waved a hoof back at the white mare, "Moondancer. She's so bloody gorge...er..clever. Not only did she master the spell, she's thrown in a bit of her style in it as well."

After realizing he was starting to blather, Pocket Change cleared his throat, "I do hope you intend on joining our happy little guild. A unicorn with your skills, talent and experience would be beyond beneficial to Spellbound."

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Asteria could sense that Moondancer was busy, her white counterpart the focus of the crowd of eager ponies. She was quickly presented with the sign up form to join the organization. The robotic mare of course was morally obligated to read over the casual contract, her fiery eyes reading over the document that was more a formality than anything.

"I will accept your terms Lady Moondancer. I don't believe there is a need to negotiate the terms any further. Thank you for the opportunity, and I will attempt to live up to your expectations. Until we meet again, farewell, " Asteria replied politely for her as she signed the document while holding the quill in her crimson magic. She followed up the signature with her customary subservient bow, her scarlet mane covering her face temporarily before she returned to a normal posture.

When Moondancer excused herself, Asteria understood her need to leave, and decided to turn her attention to the more interested stallion at her side. "It is correct to assume this spell uses less magic than normal. On the normal execution of a teleport spell, you envelope your form in a sphere of magic and relocate it elsewhere. If you disregard the sphere and simply envelop your limbs and body in magic, you can reduce the amount of energy by minimizing magical waste. It makes it easier for a spell to fail, be sure to compensate with your control accordingly. This can be applied to all magic use sir. May I ask for your name? My name is Asteria Stillheart, feel free to address me in any manner you feel appropriate, she explained calmly for him as she levitate her cup in front of him. Only the faintest of crimson magic lines traced over its form as she subconsciously minimized her magic use.

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"Duchess"Silver Belle, Magic scholar

“Maybe in a little bit Mrs. Belle!” the young mare enthusiastically greeted the teacher; “In the meantime, make yourself at home.”

The noble silver coated mare nodded to the aetherology student,"Very well then, Miss Moondancer. I shall look around a bit for the time being then. I'll be by the ..." Belle's voice trailed off as she looked around for something that caught her eye. Soon she saw that a mare series of lovely portraits that adorned the wall nearby,"I'll be taking a look at those lovely portraits." Hoping not to take up any more of the young magepony's time she calmly walked off, although she couldn't help but feel slightly sad that she couldn't try showing off some of her own magic aptitude like she did in her younger days. In her time as a student at the school for talented unicorns she'd proved to be exceptionally skilled in many forms of magic and showed to be very creative in it's use. Nowadays she was mostly called in to Canterlot University to give lectures with demonstrations of fancy spells she loved being few and far between.

As the older mare looked over the paintings on the wall she couldn't help but wonder who had made such exquisite pieces...

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Presteza, Traveling Artist

For a moment Presteza could have sworn she heard a faint ringing in her ear... it went away pretty quickly though, and just in the nick of time as the nice (smelling) stallion she had so oddly introduced herself to her apparently recognized her too!

“Yeah, I recognize you. You're one of Peachy's old friends,”

“Javasun! But just call me Java,”

The freckled painter smiled brightly at the stallion before her,"Nice ta officially meet ya, Java! Sorry about my... weird introduction. I have a pretty good sense o' smell and sometimes it just carries me away sometimes." She said with a chuckle before glaring cross eyed at her snout. Even now she had to admit she found her nose ever so slightly distracted by the potent coffee scent that wafted off the stallion. Speaking of the stallion, he seemed like the kind of pony that Presteza could chew the metaphorical rag with. Java had an rather stylish outfit that seemed to compliment the young artists own. That coat was as a certain friend in Ponyville would say was "Fabulous". The Goggles on his head were a lovely touch and the only slightly unkempt look worked very nicely on him.

Thinking for a second the silver maned pony decided to start off the their conversation with a simple question,"So, Mister Java! Wot brought ya ta the Spellbound open house? Ya got an interest in magic too?" As she looked over the coffee scented earth pony she couldn't help but notice he was just that; an earth pony. In Presteza's travels across the world, Presteza had come across a couple non unicorn magic users but they were still few and far between. The one earth pony she remembered from her travels was a very nice stallion by the name of "Bramble Rose" it seemed that he had a great deal of magical knowledge despite seemingly majoring in Botany. The shabby looking artist's nose gave a scrunch as she remembered her visit to that stallion's pollen ridden house and absentmindedly rubbed her hoof to the nostalgic sensory organ.

"Hi there Moon and Pressy. Wow, what a turn out! I can't wait to check this entire place out!"

"Hey girls! Sorry I was late. I got caught up with moving, and I lost track of time. Hopefully I didn't miss anything that was too important?"

Oh! Ice and fire had arrived... for some reason, Presteza got it in her mind that those two should sing together sometime and she wasn't sure why. While Presteza waited for her conversation partner to reply, she waved a hoof to her friends and made sure to talk to them in depth later. Taking a few moments to look her fellow guild members over she couldn't help but feel that Ice storm might have been a tad over dressed for this occasion.

"Duchess"Silver Belle, Magic scholar

“Hello again Mrs. Belle! Did you say something earlier about dancing?”

The grey coated mare's ears perked up a moment, "Indeed I did, Miss Moondancer!" said the duchess with an equally mischievous smile in Moony's direction. For a moment the blue eyed noblemare's gaze drifted towards another light of teleportation, "Well... it seems that teleportation is a popular spell tonight." a chuckle escaped the lovely mare's lips as she looked in Asteria's direction before returning her attention to the ivory mare before her. With a flash of blue light originating from Belle's horn she was in front of Moondancer,"Anyway, I was wondering if you'd be interested in a Teleportation dancing partner."

*flash*

The grey coated mare was soon behind moondancer as she continued,"I used to abuse this spell quite a bit with my friends who knew it and we would have a ball making fun poses in between re-appearances." The cloaked pony giggled into her hoof, "Don't tell the other teachers... it could be oh so scandalous."

*flash*

Once again the scholar returned to being in front of the young student and chuckled a bit before speaking in a mock elderly voice,"What do you say, Moondancer... care to let an old mare relive some of her glory days?" Goodness gracious, Belle was loosening up a bit more than she thought she would. Perhaps her little girl was rubbing off on her more than she thought...

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Java Portrait

Java couldn't help but to let his smile grow broader. The mare was actually quite amusing indeed! And furthermore quite likable, and receptively friendly! Though, if he recalled correctly from his eaves dropping back in the donut shop. In thought the pony's eyes glanced back towards her mother as she appears to be observing the paintings. He made note to take the time to appreciate them himself. Her mother was the Dutchess of Trottingham. And quite the rude one at that for chewing out a poor middle class pony, when he was in the process of baking everything fresh! It was quite the heavy contrast between the two. There was a huge clashing contrast between the Dam and offspring.

Java's eyes went back to Presteza as fast as they left. His smile returning after being replaced with a thoughtful exp<b></b>ression. Though his nose did wrinkle for a mere moment after being called “mister”. The pony, sadly wasn't married, nor was he actually dating anypony. Or was that a diifferent varient? The pony could rarely tell the difference. Either way, he did not actually care for being refereed to formally. Nope... the term mister at this point was a dagger straight to the flank. “Well,” Java began in a musical note, “I am in fact! Though my knowledge of Arcane Sciences is a little below average and nearing an asymptote of zero... so... it's nearly non-existing.” The pony's ears laid flat in disappointment. He gave his head a light shake in pity, before returning to his jovial exp<b></b>ression.

“Sad, no? But fully understandable. I am an Engineer you see! Not just that, but also a scholar in Science and Technology! About a month or so ago I have been thinking of joining a different paradigm. A combination of Earth pony engineering, and unicorn arcane science! So I need help. And that's what brought me here!”

Java then lowered his flank down to the ground, and gestured to himself by placing a hoof on his chest. “And, please just call me J-” he paused momentairly after detecting a flash of light. Though much different than the original light he had seen entering the building. He quickly found through another blast of light that it was Presty's mother. She had been saying something about how she abused the same spell, though quite mischiveously.

The pony looked rather dumb founded at first, his original impression of the mare now suddenly shattered. Mmm....k...” Java hummed as he slowly turned back to Presty.

“Please just call me Java! I don't like being referred too with formalities... "

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Asteria could sense that Moondancer was busy, her white counterpart the focus of the crowd of eager ponies. She was quickly presented with the sign up form to join the organization. The robotic mare of course was morally obligated to read over the casual contract, her fiery eyes reading over the document that was more a formality than anything.

"I will accept your terms Lady Moondancer. I don't believe there is a need to negotiate the terms any further. Thank you for the opportunity, and I will attempt to live up to your expectations. Until we meet again, farewell, " Asteria replied politely for her as she signed the document while holding the quill in her crimson magic. She followed up the signature with her customary subservient bow, her scarlet mane covering her face temporarily before she returned to a normal posture.

When Moondancer excused herself, Asteria understood her need to leave, and decided to turn her attention to the more interested stallion at her side. "It is correct to assume this spell uses less magic than normal. On the normal execution of a teleport spell, you envelope your form in a sphere of magic and relocate it elsewhere. If you disregard the sphere and simply envelop your limbs and body in magic, you can reduce the amount of energy by minimizing magical waste. It makes it easier for a spell to fail, be sure to compensate with your control accordingly. This can be applied to all magic use sir. May I ask for your name? My name is Asteria Stillheart, feel free to address me in any manner you feel appropriate, she explained calmly for him as she levitate her cup in front of him. Only the faintest of crimson magic lines traced over its form as she subconsciously minimized her magic use.

"I'll hold you to it, Ms. Moondancer," he replied, nodding to her as she departed. Now he could get more information from the crimson eyed mare.

Truly, Asteria's technique was like nothing he'd ever seen. Of all methods of spellcasting, ways to minimized magic use seemed to be strangely few and far between. The stallion chose to ignore that fact for now and simply focus on her words. As she explained how to teleport with minimal magical waste he couldn't help but to visualize the possible effects of partial spell failure. Everything in his mind said that such a thing would be absolutely horrific, but he quickly quashed those thought so that he could watched her levitate her cup.

After receiving her name and a small demonstration of the skill he asked about, the conversation was now on him. "It's nice to meet you, Asteria. I go by the name Gigavolt, or simply Volt to my small small circle of friends." He hummed quietly, turning her demonstration over in his head several times. Feeling that he had a good understanding of the concept, the unicorn decided to give it a try.

Focusing on his shades, Gigavolt guided his magic carefully along the accessory's contours and carefully managed his magic usage. Slowly, the thin yellow film of his subdue magic started to overtake. This was more difficult than he expected... And not by a little. He was basically ignoring everything he had learned about casting in the past. Inside of just letting it flow, he was reigning his magic flow in to a trickle. He'd almost had it (at least in his mind), but the his hold on his magic slipped, causing a small burst of magic to twist his frames and break one of the lens. A sparkle of electricity ran along the empty rim. Gigavolt could only huff and roll his eyes. "Well, It was worth a try. Simple in concept. In execution? Not so much." He carefully gathered up the tiny pieces of dark glass and the mangle frame, then levitated them over to a trash bin.

"Thank you for sharing that with me." Maybe that failure was a sign that he shouldn't have been wearing shades indoors. "Where'd you learn such a technique or did you create it yourself?" He'd already decided to fill out the paper work and join Spellbound, the interesting company was only solidifying his choice.

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Asteria watched him closely as he introduced himself, he critical eyes watching him for any conflicting signs from his body language. While it might have been vaguely unnerving, she always tried to take in as many mental notes about her contacts as possible. When he was done speaking, she nodded and gave him a subservient griffon style bow, not that anyone in the building was likely to catch on to the masked gesture.

"It is an honor to meet you Sir Gigavolt," Asteria politely replied, the unicorn always weary of alienating herself by speaking too casually with strangers. She watched him tremble slightly as he had to disregard his years of training and pick up his glasses with as little magic as possible. When he failed and dropped the glasses upon accidentally breaking them, Asteria blinked and took in the in silence. Her steely expression might have indicated that she expected failure or simply wasn't startled by the sudden break in his shades. She glanced up to look at the frustrated stallion play off his own failure.

"The concept is actually highly complex. While it seems easy to just turn down the magic, it is far more complex than that. Enveloping something in magic is relatively simple, but to grab more precisely is magical manipulation. I would suggest you practice manipulation on less valuable things," she remarked calmly, her choice of seeming to indicate seeing potential in him.

When he asked how she had come upon such magic, the stallion had managed to catch her attention, her stiff posture relaxed slightly as she seemed slightly more comfortable. The often humble mare found herself with something to take credit for, not that she was going to gloat. "I developed the idea on one of my trips to Talonopolis. When I embark on one of my expeditions, I always attempt to carry the lightest possible load. I avoid extraneous items and have gone to the extreme to minimize my load. I took that concept and applied it to my body as well. Upon mastering my form, I attempted to apply it to my magic as well," she explained calmly to him, seeming to assert that she carried the bare minimum, something that seemed in contradiction of the cloak that hid her tall form. To better make her point, she used her magic to lightly pull back her cloak and revealed left foreleg to him. The limb was long and well sculpted with long lean muscles that showed no sign of fat, the entire system tightly held together by her jet black coat. Even someone who didn't run, would be able to tell that she was probably some sort of marathon runner. Before too many prying eyes could go her away, she carefully returned the cloak to its normal position, the awkward display seeming even more so when half the ponies in the building didn't seem to be wearing any clothes at all!

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"Dancer!!!!" a shrill voice suddenly called out loudly as a single unicorn mare came stomping ahead, only stopping when she had thrown her forelegs around Moondancer and pulled her into a tight squeeze hug. "I'm here! i decided to join after all."

Dazzle Dawn had been a bit conflicted about the prospect of signing up for Spellbound. Her good friend and schoolmate Moondancer had been involved since the guild first formed and had told her loads about it, but she just hadn't thought it was for her really. She was a klutz and a screw up. She was ranked deal last of her graduating class at Princess Celestia's School. She couldn't see very much at all that was very special or gifted about her. Average and unspectacular in every way. What place did she have to be a part of something like Spellbound? She had known about the guild for so long ago, and though Dancer encouraged her frequently, she just hadn't had the confidence for it.

That changed, however, after a chance encounter just recently. While on vacation with Dancer and another friend, Presteza, in the Corralwood Corral, she happened to meet with princess Celestia herself, and something in that encounter left her feeling encouraged. When it was all said and done, Dazzle had it in her head to just go for it. This would be her first appearance at a Spellbound meeting, but she was eager to get started. She wasn't sure what use she'd really be for anyone, but she'd try her best. No one ever got anywhere without trying. If she hoped someday to convince Arcana she was wrong about herself, she was going to have to find her strength somewhere. Spellbound, with friends would be a good place to start.

Speaking of which, it wasn't just Dancer she recognized in the crowd. She was Teza and Dancer's friend Ice Storm, who she had had a sleepover with once a while back. She waved at them before turning back to Dancer. "I don't know if I'll add much to Spellbound, but I'm looking forward to doing my best all the same!" she started.


Elsewhere in the crowd, Gray Lexis smirking to himself and admiring how in just a short while the little makeshift operation known as Spellbound had grown. His dear ward Spirit Flame was off on an errand at the moment, but would likely be back in time for the ceremony. That left the venerable stallion to himself, looking about in awe at how ponies could still be compelled to take part of something bigger than themselves. It was the proof he needed that this age was not completely lost. No matter what upstarts like his fellow founding member Dr. Razor Gears might think, things had not changed so very much. Greatness could still be found if one thought to grasp at it.

It was quite startling to see how the face of Spellbound had changed since the few of them had first met in this old and decrepit warehouse months back. Why, he was sure he even recognized some well known faces--ponies established in the world of magic and magic research. He grinned a sly grin as he caught sight of the all too lovely and illustrious Duchess Silver Belle. he might have approached her, but she was occupied with others and besides, he happened to spy an even more famous--if less lovely--face in the crowd.

Was Gray seeing things, or was that truly Hoofcourt Magic himself? The outside of Spellbound HQ still was not so discernible from the dusty old warehouse it was, and yet here was one of the most respected scholars of magic still alive. How curious. Gray wondered at once how well the one nicknamed Starswirl might remember him. Their tenures at professor at the university overlapped, but decades before Gray had even taken a course taught by the respected old stallion when he was much, much younger and still a fresher face around the university, but it wasn't like they had ever been the best of friends or anything.

He smirked as he considered that word, "respected". Despite both being former professors at Canterlot U, theirs were quite different stories, he supposed. Hoofcourt had his sterling reputation, his long, illustrious career and was patriarch to a great clan of magically inclined ponies. Gray meanwhile was a lifelong bachelor with no real ties remaining but his elderly mother and young Spirit, and a far murkier standing at the university; most there assuming he had completely snapped completely after two decades spent teaching and his resignation was an attempt to cover some kind of insanity. Gray had never really cared if they thought he was mad. After his epiphany, he rather thought most of them were mad himself, after all.

"Spellbound certainly has come a long way since its earliest days if it's caught the eye of an old fossil like you," Gray started playfully as he approached the elder stallion. "When I founded this guild with the others, I honestly was never expecting to see somepony older and wiser than myself show up. There's something kind of mitigating about it though. Takes a lot of the pressure off." In fact, it was an interesting change to the dynamic; since the start of Spellbound, Gray had found himself mostly surrounded by ponies much younger than himself. Now here was old Hoofcourt with a good couple decades on him making him feel young in comparison.

"Whatever else, it's good to see another old face around who understands a thing or two about showing these youngsters how its done when its come to magic, Hoofcourt. It's the kind of thing that could go a long way to make this Spellbound actually legitimate," he added with a cheerful laugh, straightening his moustache with a hoof.
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Fire Heart wandered the guild hall taking in the sights and sounds. She liked this place, its own little world where learning and magic could be conducted. To her it was like a mini Celestia's School only without the rigor, where she had the freedom to do so. Crowds she found however to be an issue. Although she would pass it off as being nervous, there was another reason, a darker fear of hers that no matter what the amount of studying or practicing she did she couldn't erase from her mind.

Trying to take her mind off the crowds and cool off the older filly went to the snack table filled with many treats. In particular she saw pieces of chocolate, marshmallows and gram crackers. It was then she smiled as an idea popped into her head. Levitating the marshmallow onto a glass plate, she then let a tiny ball of fire drift from the top of her horn to the puffy white snack, toasting it lightly before combining the others together into a s'more. She wasn't sure how ponies would react to her fire magic but her quest for her sweet treat overshadowed that worry for a while.

"Guess my magic is good for something rather than making ponies nervous."

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