Greetings. I am Vultarian01. This is the second part of the original chapter 40, and it's pretty dialogue heavy, so just a warning. Now... about the final part. The final part has a match in it, but I can't seem to find it. I'm just hoping that I didn't accidentally delete it because there was over 10,000 words in that chapter! And there was a WHOLE TON of stuff in it that I've been working on for so long... I would kill myself if I had to do it all over again! DX (Not really). But even if I do find it, I haven't revised it, and I'm not sure if I'll be available until the beginning of may due to some college crap. Either way, I hope you enjoy this chapter. Danke.

Disclaimer: I do not own MLP or any of its respective characters. Enjoy.

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Chapter 41

Twelve minutes later…

Twilight Sparkle finished setting up her desk with the things required for the meeting: the bingo cage and the stacks of roster and rankings updates. She then proceeded to sit down in her big chair while everyone else loafed around. Unlike last week, however, Fluttershy was sitting with Rarity while Sunset Shimmer was standing in the corner with arms crossed. Twilight gave Sunset a curious look, but decided to shift her attention back to the rest of the group because it looked like they were impatiently waiting for further instruction.

Twilight: "Okay girls, this meeting for show number seven called to order!" Twilight announced, grabbing everyone's attention. "I would like to start out by telling Pinkie Pie how much she's been missed, and that we're glad to have her back."

Everyone vocalized their agreements and Pinkie Pie smiled, knowing that she was missed by her friends.

Pinkie: "Awww, you guys are the coolest!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed before looking around with slight despondency of the situation. "I wish Rainbow Dash were here, though. Then we would all be having fun together."

The group exchanged uncomfortable glances amongst one another.

Pinkie Pie smiled again, seemingly perked up by a thought that entered her head. "Hey! Maybe we're done wrestling, we could all go visit Rainbow Dash! That should cheer her up!"

Twilight coughed and forced a keen smile. "Um, Pinkie Pie? I don't think that's the best idea right now."

Pinkie Pie was surprised by the response, and looked at Twilight in confusion. "Why?"

Twilight resumed. "Well, as you know, Rainbow Dash has been… grounded. Her father probably doesn't want anyone around her until her punishment is over. Anyway, we can worry about that after the show."

Pinkie Pie was a little disappointed, but she nodded. "Okie Dokie Lokie…"

Twilight was appeased. "Okie Dokie Lokie, indeed! Now…"

Twilight's sentence trailed off after noticing Fluttershy raising her hand, but only barely.

Twilight: "Yes Fluttershy?"

Fluttershy: "So, um, what are we going to do about the … boys watching us?" Fluttershy murmured with a shameful blush.

Twilight: "What do you mean? We're going to do what we always do."

Octavia raised her hand in rebuttal to her statement. "I think she is referring to the question of how we feel about males ogling at our bodies as we wrestle."

Lyra: "Yeah, cuz girls touching each other as they struggle for dominance over one another can, uh, *cough* turn certain people on."

Twilight: "Well yeah, but are we really going to let that stop us from doing what we want?" Twilight offered.

Sunset Shimmer, who had reserved herself in the corner of the room, spoke up. "I agree with Twilight. I think that we should give the guys the benefit of the doubt. I mean, as long as we're having fun, who cares who looks at us, right?"

Everybody turned to give her very funny looks.

Vinyl: "No surprise you don't care who looks at you." Vinyl Scratch chimed, getting a chuckle amongst most of the group.

Sunset Shimmer stepped forward. It was time to put her assertiveness techniques to work. "Hey, I don't appreciate what you're implying, Vinyl Scratch. I feel very disrespected, and I have not done anything wrong to you."

Vinyl Scratch ignored her. "Then again … we got some pretty hot guys in the other room waiting for us. Maybe this isn't so bad…" she said with a rather sly grin.

Sunset Shimmer calmed herself down with some deep breathing. "Vinyl Scratch, please allow me to speak-

Octavia groaned. "Vinyl, you are aware that Twilight's brother is already taken, correct?"

Sunset Shimmer grunted with impatience, but forced her irritation back.

Vinyl Scratch nodded. "Yeah, but I was talking more about Big Mac. Tall. Muscular. Pretty handsome too," She said as she giggled. "I wouldn't mind showing him a couple o' moves…"

Applejack stood up from her chair. "Oh yes ya do. Not unless you want to be eatin' yer glasses through a tube."

Vinyl shrugged smugly. "Hey, I can't help that your bro's got nice pecs."

One glare and crack of Applejack's knuckles was all it took to shut Vinyl Scratch up. Vinyl Scratch, of course, didn't show any sign of care, and shrugged.

Rarity rolled her eyes at Applejack. "Oh stop trying to make yourself appear tough, Applejack. It only makes you look more insecure."

Applejack raised an eyebrow at Rarity. "As insecure as someone who takes an hour to fix her hair just to go get her mail?"

Rarity crossed her arms. "A lady with high standards mustn't slack in making any good impression, even when performing mundane tasks." Rarity said with a frown, "Not that you would understand anything regarding standards."

Twilight: "Girls, can we please continue with the meeting?!" Twilight begged in an effort to bring order back.

Applejack: "Ah got standards! Ah just don't go shovin' mah standards down everybody's throat like you do!"

Sunset Shimmer spoke up again. "Hey, can you guys please break it up?"

She was once again ignored when Rarity made her retort to Applejack.

Rarity: "How dare you suggest that I would force my opinions on others! I'm not the country bumpkin who invited her brother without consent!"

Twilight: "Girls!"

Applejack: "Y'all wouldn't be complaining if it were some hunk you can romance!"

Rarity: "That was ONE TIME!"

Applejack: "That was EIGHT TIMES!"

Sunset: "Please, you guys!"

Vinyl Scratch looked back at Sunset. "Hey, why don't you mind your own business? Not like you actually care, anyway."

Lyra joined. "Guess that's why you said all that mean stuff to Rainbow Dash, huh? Calling her a weakling and a loser?"

Bon Bon: "Yeah, that was a low blow."

Sunset: "I do not appreciate this! I agree that I said those things, but she's been verbally attacking me for two weeks! Kind of like all of you! So, I kindly suggest that you-

Lyra: "Kick your butt? I'll be glad to-

Twilight banged her hands on the desk. "Shut the fuck up!"

And so everyone did. All sounds of negative, and possibly positive, outcries were destroyed by the sound of Twilight Sparkle's abrupt spike of rage. She looked around angrily, seeing everyone who had previously hammered her eardrums with excruciating noise look at her with a combination of shock, incredibility, and a little fear. They had never heard Twilight Sparkle tell anyone to 'shut the fuck up' before. Those who knew her, and those just getting to know her, were taken aback by the bold word choices of what they all assumed to be a goody two-shoes who never even uttered the word ass. Even Twilight was taken aback by what she had said, allowing herself to calm down, and hope that Cadence and her brother hadn't heard such evil words escaping her lips from the other room.

Vinyl Scratch lowered her glasses. "Whoa..."

Twilight took a moment to think before continuing. "I'm sorry—NO! Actually, I'm not! Do you realize… how important it is that we get along? At least for right now?"

Applejack exchanged a quick glare with Rarity before she sat down. "Nope."

Twilight opened her mouth, wanting to yell up a storm, but she stopped herself. She pressed her hands down on the desk as she contemplated her explanation. Reluctantly, she conjured one up. She felt dirty for even coming up with it, but it was the only thing that would stop the fighting. "You remember how we all swore not to tell anyone about CCPW?"

Everyone nodded.

Twilight: "Has the thought ever occurred to you that maybe Big Mac, Shining Armor, or even Cadence would tell someone?"

Bon Bon, who was licking on her sugar-free sucker, responded with uncertainty. "Why would they do that? We haven't done anything to them."

Applejack crossed her arms. "Are you sayin' that mah brother would rat us out?!" Applejack asked defensively.

Twilight: "Probably."

Applejack: "No way! Big Mac wouldn't ever tattle on anyone! It ain't even any of his business!" Applejack retorted.

Twilight: "I don't know, but he might, given the circumstances. Cadence and Shining Armor will likely do that as well."

Lyra also chimed in. "But, I thought you said your brother was cool."

Twilight: "Yes, but wouldn't it look bad on us if we were to go out there doing what you guys were just doing?"

Lyra raised her hands. "I didn't say anything!"

Octavia: "What are you trying to get across?"

Rarity: "I agree with Octavia. What exactly is your point, Twilight?"

Twilight: "The point I'm trying to make is that if we don't act on our best behavior out there, they could, and would, easily expose us. They would look at us and think we wouldn't be able to be a part of this without grabbing each other's throats! You think that ethically minded people like them would let us do whatever the heck we want?! No, they would tell on us before we start maiming each other. And due to recent events, that's probably where we're headed."

Sunset: "Understatement of the millennium…" Sunset Shimmer grumbled under her breath.

Pinkie Pie gasped in horror. "You mean that we won't wrestle anymore?!"

Twilight nodded solemnly. "That's a definite possibility, Pinkie."

Pinkie: "B-But I don't wanna stop wrestling! It's so much fun! I love it, especially when we shout stuff into those microphones! And when we put each other in headlocks like THIS!" Pinkie Pie said, grabbing Fluttershy's head and putting it in a side headlock, "It's like hugging, but with a more competitive edge!"

Fluttershy squirmed in the uncomfortable position until Pinkie Pie released her.

Pinkie: "Twilight! WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?!" Pinkie Pie cried, pulling on her hair.

Twilight: "Whoa! Take it easy there, Pinkie Pie! No one's telling on us."

Pinkie Pie's face switched from panicking distress to cheerful optimism in a matter of seconds. "Really?!"

Applejack slumped forward. "And how do ya figure that?" she said flatly, still a little ticked off.

Twilight: "Simple. If we behave ourselves they won't tell. We are going to settle all of our problems in-ring, so Rarity and Applejack, you two save it for the ring. You did say you wanted a rematch with Applejack, right Rarity?"

Rarity looked at Applejack with displeasure. "I would like nothing more."

Applejack: "Yer always wantin' something…" Applejack mumbled to herself.

Fluttershy: "But I wouldn't imagine them doing anything like that." said Fluttershy.

Twilight: "Well, they will. Like I said before, I can't say too much for Big McIntosh, but I know Cadence and Shining Armor would rat us out for misbehavior. And I think it goes without saying that the local police force would get involved too." Twilight said, pausing to let her message sink in. "So, unless all of you want to let them get us kicked out, and have nothing to do on the weekends, I suggest you all stop your bickering towards one another and give them a good show. Therefore, everyone will be treated with respect, and I mean everyone."

Bon Bon turned around to quickly glance at an annoyed Sunset Shimmer, and faced the front once again with a pained expression. "Everyone?"

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "Everyone. At least, in front of the audience."

Everybody exchanged glances across one another, a minute passing by before everyone begrudgingly agrees. Sunset Shimmer glanced at Twilight with discomfort.

Twilight: "Good. Now we can get back to business." Twilight said with a cheery tone.

Pinkie: "Hey, can I hand out those pieces of paper, Twilight?"

Twilight smiled, "Sure Pinkie, knock yourself out." Twilight said, as she gave the stack of papers to her friend.

Pinkie: "No thanks Twilight. Got to stay in shape for my match." Pinkie Pie said cheekily as she received the sheets.

Everyone watched nervously as Pinkie Pie folded one of them into a paper airplane.

Pinkie: "Oh-KAY, who wants the first one?!" Pinkie Pie asked before she held the airplane back, one eye closed as she readied to take aim. Everyone freaked out and immediately ducked. Twilight quickly grabbed Pinkie Pie's wrist before the airplane could take flight.

Twilight: "You know what? Maybe I'll just pass them around, and you keep that one." Twilight said sweetly.

Pinkie: "Okay!" Pinkie Pie said as she unfolded the paper to take a look-see of the contents.

---

CCPW Official Roster and Rankings

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Canterlot Diva's Central Champion: Rainbow Dash = Victories: 7 * Defeats: 1 * Shows: 7 * P-Position: 6

1. Applejack = Victories: 6 * Defeats: 2 * Shows: 7 * P-Position: 4

2. Octavia = Victories: 4 * Defeats: 1 * Shows: 5 * P-Position: 3

3. Sunset Shimmer = Victories: 1 * Defeats: 0 * Shows: 1 * P-Position: 1

4. Vinyl Scratch = Victories: 2 * Defeats: 3 * Shows: 5 * P-Position: -1

5. Lyra = Victories: 1 * Defeats: 2 * Shows: 3 * P-Position: -1

6. Fluttershy = Victories: 2 * Defeats: 4 * Shows: 6 * P-Position: -2

7. Rarity = Victories: 2 * Defeats: 5 * Shows: 7 * P-Position: -3

8. Bon Bon = Victories: 0 * Defeats: 3 * Shows: 3 * P-Position: -3

9. Pinkie Pie = Victories: 1 * Defeats: 4 * Shows: 5 * P-Position: -3

10. Twilight Sparkle = Victories: 1 * Defeats: 5 * Shows: 6 * P-Position: -4

---

Twilight walked around the room distributing the sheets of paper. Everyone took a few minutes to look over the updates and, from the looks of it, there really weren't many of them. Near the bottom of the ranks, there were not really any drastic declines or ascensions aside from maybe one switch up, and the top three hadn't changed at all. Most of the ranking shifts were in the middle.

Bon Bon glanced down at the ranks and bit down on her sucker once she saw Vinyl Scratch's spike in rank compared to her own. She was very low in the rank just above Pinkie Pie and Twilight. Rank eight wasn't anything to brag about, but at least she wasn't at the bottom of the barrel. She'd rather keep her current rank than get bumped down. This didn't mean that she appreciated being served a humiliating defeat at the hands of Vinyl Scratch, though.

Bon Bon: 'Who does Vinyl Scratch think she is humiliating me in front of everyone?! She thinks she can insult anyone and get away with it?!' Bon Bon thought angrily, her sucker cracking under her teeth

Beside her, Lyra was looking at her rank and let out another disappointed sigh. "Man, I sure am starting to lag. How about you, Bon Bon?"

Bon Bon's sucker completely cracked under the pressure of her teeth. Her face was bright red, her face puffed up with rage.

Lyra looked back down at her paper. "N-Nevermind…"

Fluttershy, Rarity and Pinkie Pie were sitting together, discussing their positions amongst the ranks.

Pinkie Pie held her paper and beamed with pride. "Will ya look at that?! I went up to nine, and I didn't even do anything! It's like getting paid on a sick day!"

Rarity chuckled. "Yes, I suppose it is."

Fluttershy: "I'm really happy for you Pinkie Pie." Fluttershy said, before shifting focus to Rarity. "What about you?"

Rarity grunted and rested her head on her knuckle. "I'm afraid I'm not doing too well. I just got bumped down my original spot by you, Fluttershy."

Fluttershy lowered her head. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I'll try not to win today if it will make you feel better…"

Rarity: "Don't be ridiculous, darling. You do not have to make yourself lose simply for my benefit. I'm just a little dissatisfied with my performance lately. Performance in terms of rank, I mean. I don't want to appear boastful, but I feel I do rather well battling most of my opponents. And if I may be so bold, I was also the closest do defeating Rainbow Dash, the champion, while others barely made it out unscathed."

Fluttershy: "You would have won if it wasn't for me…"

Rarity awed and leaned over to hug Fluttershy from her side. "Darling, darling, it wasn't your fault. You were just frightened for your bat friend. Of course it would have helped if you had counted that pinfall first, but you had to spring into action, so I understand. Stop dwelling on it."

Pinkie Pie looked down at her paper airplane, wearing a regretful frown. "I guess that was my fault too…"

Rarity: "It wasn't your fault either, Pinkie Pie. You couldn't have known what to do. Girls, I'm well over that."

Pinkie Pie perked up. "Yippie!"

Fluttershy: "Hey, Rarity?"

Rarity: "Yes?"

Fluttershy: "You don't have to be so mean to Applejack, you know. I'm sure she was just kidding." Fluttershy said cautiously.

Rarity's smile loosened into a frown. "Fluttershy, Applejack tricked me out of a victory! She beguiled me, making me think her hair was contaminated with her disgusting saliva. I had to sanitize my hands because, for all I know, she probably did, and just told me that to cheat herself out of my finisher."

Fluttershy: "Well… Applejack said that she was using her wit."

Rarity: "Regardless, it's not the honorable way to win a fight. But don't worry. Frankly, I plan on putting her in a more humble position during our rematch." said Rarity.

Fluttershy stirred uncomfortably in her seat. "Oh dear…"

Pinkie: "Hey, watch me make this plane do a loop!" Pinkie Pie said, raising the airplane and throwing it.

Rarity and Fluttershy immediately ducked in cover, as the airplane flew forward, somehow made a loop above them, and flew into another part of the room.

Meanwhile, Vinyl Scratch and Octavia were looking down at the sheets. Vinyl Scratch was more pleased with herself that was for sure. Her rank went up from 7th to 4th in one week. And all she did was win one match against that overly sensitive annoyance, Bon Bon. Not a bad week for her. Not a bad week at all. Concurrently, Octavia didn't have much to look at. She was in the same position as she was previously. She knew that her match performances were excellent, but she still was having a hard time getting that number one contender ranking.

Out of nowhere, a paper plane hit Vinyl Scratch in the face.

Vinyl Scratch clutched her face and started to freak out. "Oh crap, it hit my eye!"

Octavia: "Vinyl. You have glasses on." Octavia reminded her with disinterest, as she continued to scan the paper in front of her.

Vinyl Scratch stopped and rubbed the lens of her tinted glasses. "Oh yeah."

Applejack sat down to join them. "How's it goin' ya'll?"

Vinyl: "It's goin' good. How 'bout you?"

Applejack: "Pretty good. How's bout you Miss Octavia?"

Octavia took an air of exaltation. "I'm doing as well as usual. I'll be even more satisfied if our match for the number one contender becomes actualized."

Applejack raised an eye brow. "Say what?"

Octavia curled her upper lip and stood up from her seat. She then walked around Vinyl Scratch so she could get to the chair on the other side of Applejack. "As you can see…" -Octavia pointed out their names on the paper- "As you can see here, if I was to gain a victory, and you suffer a defeat, I will have the right to challenge you to yet another #1 contender's match."

Applejack nodded understandingly, and chuckled. "That's cute, Miss Octavia. But, uh, Ah ain't gonna lose."

Octavia lowered her eyes. "Your head is getting a little bit big for that hat, Applejack." Octavia stated flatly as she got up.

Applejack smirked as she watched Octavia proceed to her regular seat. "Ain't braggin' if it's the truth. Y'all wanna match with me? Fine, but if yer expecting me to lose to Rarity, then you're the one countin' yer chickens. After Ah whoop Rarity's prissy little tail, Ah got enough room fer yer persnickety little rump too."

Octavia sat down. "We'll see."

Vinyl Scratch picked up the paper airplane and carelessly threw it back. The plane glided across the room until it landed at the corner in between Twilight Sparkle and Sunset Shimmer. Twilight and Sunset shimmer looked down and saw that the origami plane had crashed into the wall near their feet. Twilight groaned and went to pick it up.

Twilight: "Hey, whoever threw this better know that they could have poked an eye out!"

Sunset Shimmer took the plane from Twilight's hand and crumpled it up into a ball, before shooting it into a nearby basket. "Yeah, I hate litter bugs too."

Twilight: "Yep. So you wanted to talk to me?" Twilight inquired with a smile.

Sunset looked over to the rest of the girls before lowering her voice to a whisper. "Do you think… I could ref all the matches?"

Twilight blinked, with no change in expression. She just kept her smile, but her voice. "… Say what?"

Sunset tried again. "Is it okay… If I… be the referee for all the matches?"

Twilight slowly alternated from stunned pleasantness to horrified bewilderment. She glanced over to the group, and turned her backs to them.

Twilight: "Sunset, no offense, but have you completely lost it? You told me earlier that you didn't want to wrestle, yet you want to be referee?" Twilight whispered.

Sunset: "No, I'm serious about this, Twilight. Today I am going to show them how assertive, yet kind I can be. And if I can do that by taking an assertive stance as a referee, maybe they will see that I am a rule follower, and that I can be a team player too! Then we will be that much closer to being good friends!" Sunset Shimmer said with sparkling eyes.

Twilight smiled and put her hands on Sunset Shimmer's shoulders. "Sunset… please don't do this to yourself. I'm sorry, but I don't want to see you being attacked in the ring. This si kind of why I was hesitant of letting you ref since you got here. Despite what other people think, being the referee can be just as dangerous as being a wrestler. You are very vulnerable to attack from anyone, and there's not going to be a referee for the referee. In most wrestling companies, if you're the referee and you get attacked, it will be justified if you don't see them attack you."

Sunset: "But didn't you say in your text that you gave me before I came here, that nobody is allowed to attack the referee?" Sunset Shimmer reasoned.

Twilight: "Well, yes. But even so, I'm not sure if any of the girls will think twice about attacking you."

Sunset frowned. ""Then I'll keep an eye out, but I need it to get on everyone's good side Twilight! This is a good idea! Please?!"

Twilight sighed and folded her arms with a precarious frown. "Sunset, I wouldn't mind, but I would have to let everybody else know that you want to, and I'm not sure if that will go well."

Sunset: "You could at least give it a shot." Sunset pleaded.

Twilight looked at Sunset with a little uncertainty, but she gave in anyway. "Okay, fine. I'll try to persuade them."

Sunset smiled. "Thanks," Sunset Shimmer said before frowning again, "but can I ask you about Shining Armor, Big Mac, and Cadence?"

Twilight looked back at the group. "…after the meeting, alright?"

Sunset cocked her head. "Are you sure? Because what you said kind of bothered me-

Twilight: "After the meeting, Sunset. I think the girls are getting a little stir-crazy." Twilight said with a demeaned expression as she walked away.

Sunset: "Okay…"

Twilight walked around the group of girls until she made it back to her desk. She took another look around to see if anyone was absent from the room before speaking. "Okay girls, it looks like you are all properly informed about your p-positions-

Snickers were heard within the group.

Twilight smiled wryly. "Alright, alright. Very funny. Now let's make headway into the matches for today's show," Twilight said as she pushed the bingo cage forward, "but before we do, it is worth reminding that we give our guests a good performance. We don't want to disappoint them for reasons previously stated."

Lyra: "Stop reminding us. We get it. Let's just skip to the good part!"

Twilight: "Easy there, Lyra. We'll get to it. Rarity and AJ got their match booked, so who wants to come up here and roll the bingo cage?" Twilight asked.

Pinkie Pie shot her hand in the air. "Twilight!"

Twilight: "Yes, Pinkie Pie?"

Pinkie stood up. "I have a terrific idea!"

Twilight smiled, grateful that there was optimism brewing. "What is it?"

Pinkie Pie bounced out of her seat and hopped over to Twilight's desk. Pinkie Pie activated her epic face. "Three girls… three wrestlers… three friends… all had a dream of winning the Canterlot Diva's Central Championship! But alas, they were to be DENIED… the chance to win that title! DENIED… the honor of saying to themselves, 'I am a champion, so says my big belt buckle of championshipness!' DENIED… the coolness of being the bestest of the best! Ever since they had lost… they have been clawing their way to the top… but they just couldn't do it for plot contrived reasons! They've had it tough! They've had it hard! But they never had it fair!" -Without warning, Pinkie Pie leaped on top of Twilight's desk, startling everyone- "But... what if they went… BACK IN TIME?! A time where their destinies were changed… and instead THEY were the ones who were in that three-way championship match. A time where they would get their chance to compete against each other… for the chance to get at title and realize that 'hey! The belt doesn't fit my belt loops!' A time… like… now." Pinkie Pie finished, dropping her knees to the desk in a Shakespearean manner.

Everyone was floored. They did not know how to react to that and, for Pinkie Pie, this was a normal thing. Even Twilight Sparkle, the master of linguistics and speeches, was too stunned to bear any words to match what just happened on her desk. After a moment of silence, a lone person started to clap. Fluttershy.

Fluttershy: "Yay!"

Everyone in the room clapped in approval of Pinkie Pie's random performance. Pinkie Pie beamed brightly as she went to take a bow, but because she was on the edge of the desk, she fell forward onto her back.

Rarity: "A little melodramatic if you ask me." Rarity said with dry amusement.

Applejack: "Look who's talkin'."

Twilight leaned over her desk to see Pinkie Pie on the floor, smiling goofily at Twilight. Twilight was also smiling, but hers was more of a confused smile that had appeared on her face for no particular reason other than to deal with the randomness of one of her best friends.

Twilight: "That was a great speech and all… but what were you talking about?"

Pinkie Pie kipped up to her feet. "We should have another three-way match between you, me, and Fluttershy!"

Twilight brightened up. "That's a brilliant idea, Pinkie Pie!"

Pinkie Pie beamed with Pinkie pride. "I know! I'm super smart like that! What do you think, Fluttershy?"

Fluttershy faked a smile. "I think that sounds great!" Fluttershy said. 'Oh no…'

Applejack: Yah, it'll be like them 'what if' kinda things!"

Twilight straightened out her messed up desk. "I think the audience is going to enjoy seeing it. And, Pinkie?"

Pinkie: "Yep?"

Twilight: "Don't jump on my desk. You could've fallen through it."

Pinkie Pie returned to her seat. "Okay." She piped, swaying in her seat.

After Twilight finally finished getting the desk properly reorganized, she pushed the bingo cage forward once again. "Okay, two matches down, two to go."

Bon Bon: "Actually, no." Bon Bon said, standing up.

Twilight looked at Bon Bon curiously. "What?"

Bon Bon pointed a finger at Vinyl Scratch. "We challenge you…"

Vinyl Scratch: "Again?!"

Bon Bon: "And Octavia!"

Octavia looked up, confusion plastered in her expression. "What?! What did I do?!"

Vinyl Scratch: "Yeah, and what do you mean by we?!"

Bon Bon grabbed Lyra by the wrist and pulled her up next to her. Bon Bon hooked her arm. "Me and Lyra!"

Lyra: "Wait, what?"

Bon Bon: "You and Octavia vs. Me and Lyra: tag team match!"

Twilight blinked. 'A tag team match?'

Vinyl Scratch and Octavia stood from their seats.

Vinyl: "Bon Bon, what the heck?! You can't seriously still be mad about what I said! I was joking! GET OVER IT!" Vinyl Scratch snapped.

Bon Bon's face blushed pink, but Lyra intervened before she could speak.

Lyra: "Hey, stay calm Bonnie." Lyra soothed.

Octavia was anything but calm. "Again. What did I do?!"

Vinyl: "You lost to me in the 'I Quit' match, Bon Bon! Don't you know that 'I Quit' is considered the ultimate tapout? We settled this last week!" Vinyl Scratch complained.

Bon Bon: "Well I don't care. You were being a big mean jerk, and we're going to teach you some manners. Right, Lyra?"

Lyra: "Sure, but why do you need my help? And why a tag team match? Just wondering."

Octavia: "I would like to know the answer to that."

Bon Bon: "Oh. Well. I figured you would want to help me because you love me. Also, Octavia beat you in your last match, and Vinyl

Scratch took your place in Rank 4." Bon Bon explained.

Lyra: "Hey… you're right!"

Twilight tapped her chin with her thumb. "I just realized… we haven't had a tag team match yet, have we? I wonder why…"

Rarity: "If I remember, I think it was because we didn't want to rush into the Canterlot Diva's Tag Team Championship tournament just yet, but that was over a month ago."

Twilight: "Huh. That's weird."

Rarity: "I know, I've been keeping the belts for them, but I was wondering why we never had a match of that type yet." Rarity conceded.

Pinkie Pie bounced in her chair. "Oh! Does that mean we're going to have another tournament?!" Pinkie Pie asked excitedly.

Twilight: "Maybe. But let's save that question for next week," Twilight said as she looked over at the feuding girls. "But I think that it would be a nice change of pace if we were to have a tag team match. Wouldn't you say Vinyl Scratch?"

Vinyl Scratch gawked. "Seriously?!"

Bon Bon put her hands on her hips. "What? Afraid to get beat by two lesbians?" Bon Bon taunted.

Pinkie: "Buuurn!"

Vinyl Scratch gave Bon Bon a body check. "No, because me and Tavi are going to wipe you two off the bottom of our boots! Right,

Tavi?" Vinyl Scratch said as she put an arm around Octavia's neck.

Octavia sighed. "Guess I have to."

Lyra smirked. "Hey, it'll be fun, Octavia." Lyra said holding out her hand. "I'm going to beat you this time, though!"

Octavia smiled dryly and shook the hand. "And I'm going to look forward to trouncing you once more."

Bon Bon: "You're going down, loser lyrics!"

Vinyl: "Can't wait to see you try, yogurt hair!"

Twilight: "Ahem!"

The four looked over at Twilight, who gave them an impatient look as she told them to sit back down. Vinyl Scratch and Bon Bon gave each other one last scowl before they grabbed their respective TAG partners and went back to their seats.

Twilight: "So, we have a total of three matches today, which isn't too bad as long as they are enjoyable to watch, for our sake let's hope so. But that we can save for the actual matches, so let's continue on to match order. Who wants to go first?"

Rarity raised her hand. "I would like my match to have priority."

Applejack smirked. "Ready to lose already?"

Rarity glanced at Applejack briefly. "No. Just eager to drive my knees through your face. And since we were paired first, might as be the first ones to compete."

Applejack lifted the corner of her mouth. "Fine. Set us up for the first one, Twilight."

Twilight nodded and wrote it down on a sheet of paper. "Okay. Who's next?"

Vinyl Scratch and Bon Bon raised their hands simultaneously. "We'll go next!" both of them said in unison, giving each other dirty looks.

Twilight's eyes lowered in an unamused way. "Alright then. In that case, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and I will be the main event."

Pinkie Pie held her hand up again.

Twilight: "Yes?"

Pinkie Pie turned around and pointed at Sunset Shimmer. "You forgot about Sunset Shimmer, Twilight."

Sunset Shimmer smiled nervously.

Twilight: "No I didn't Pinkie. That's because Sunset Shimmer isn't going to be competing for today." Twilight informed.

Pinkie Pie sulked. "Aww…"

Lyra: "Good thinking. Don't want Sunset Shimmer making us look bad." Lyra said, getting a round of snickers from the group.

Twilight glared at Lyra. "Not quite. She's going to be refereeing all of the matches for this show."

Pinkie Pie lit up. "Yipee!"

Lyra was taken aback. And so was almost everybody else within the office. Some looked at Twilight with the same irrational disbelief when Twilight used profanity. Twilight sensed another brewing of disagreement, and acted quickly.

Twilight: "Please don't make a big deal out of this-

Applejack: "She ain't gonna be reffin' my match!"

Lyra: "Yeah, she'll just get her revenge on us for ragging on her by making us lose our matches!"

Vinyl: "Yeah, and the crap she said to Rainbow Dash doesn't help!"

Rarity: "You have to admit, it's a little biased."

Twilight scowled. "No! I'm letting her ref to show Cadence, Shining Armor and Big McIntosh that we are willing to put aside our petty differences and enjoy ourselves! I know most of you pretty much despise Sunset Shimmer, but now is not the time for this. We all need to work together to keep CCPW alive. She is going to be the referee, and nobody is going to lay a finger on her while she does her job. DO I make myself clear?" Twilight asked sternly.

There were large murmurings amongst them all. They were very hesitant to let Sunset Shimmer ref, but with their three visitors outside, waiting for them to slip up, it was a difficult decision to make. They all, albeit sourly, agreed.

Twilight nodded approvingly. "Good. I'm sorry I had to raise my voice like that, again. Meeting adjourned."

With the meeting finally adjourned, everyone got out of their seats and made a line to the office door because of its narrow opening. Some were unenthusiastic, while others were just glad that they were going to finally get started. One of them, Fluttershy, was admiring Pinkie Pie's speech.

Fluttershy: "OH, Pinkie Pie, that speech was great. I didn't know you had improved so much!" Fluttershy praised.

Pinkie: "Yep, I learned a lot from those Drama classes. And Rarity."

Rarity: "Awww!"

Sunset Shimmer stayed behind, patiently leaning her back against the corner, until the line diminished and the group entered the hallway. Once they were gone, Sunset Shimmer walked over to Twilight's desk where Twilight was putting everything away.

Sunset: "Hey, Twilight."

Twilight looked up. "Hey, Sunset. I guess it was a waste of time putting this bingo cage up, huh?" Twilight said with a dry smile, putting the bingo cage in her bag. "You wanted to talk to me?"

Sunset: "Yeah… listen, I wanted to talk to you about what you were saying before. About Cadence and them."

Twilight sighed. "I figured…"

Sunset: "It's just that… I mean… would they really do that?"

Twilight frowned and hung her head slightly, walking over to her chair again. She sat down with her elbows on the desk, not looking up. "I… honestly don't know. Shining Armor and I made an agreement that he wouldn't tell anyone, but I'm not sure how he would react to us arguing and calling each other names."

Sunset: "And Big Mac? Cadence?"

Twilight looked up. "I don't know, Sunset."

Sunset Shimmer grew worried. "Don't you think that this is kind of wrong? You know, basically telling the others that those three would call the police on us if we did anything bad?"

Twilight bit her lip, more conscience-stricken then before. "I didn't mean to imply that! I just wanted the fighting to stop."

Sunset: "But you basically made Applejack's brother, your brother and Cadence look like the bad guys," Sunset Shimmer said, rubbing her arm, "and you also used that same thing to make me the referee. Twilight, I feel kinda dirty…"

Twilight got up from her desk and went to comfort Sunset Shimmer.

Twilight: "I know, but… I think it's the only way to make sure everyone gets along. It's not the motivator I wanted, but it's better than nothing. Everyone has been lashing out against one another, and I just had to think of something! I mean, with what you said last week, I don't think they would've let you ref. For all I know, they would have let you referee just to attack you. And again, for all I know, Big McIntosh, Shining Armor and Cadence probably WOULD tell the police, or someone. I didn't plan on all of them being here. They just came out of the blue. You think that's worth the risk?"

Sunset looked down at her boots. "No…"

Twilight: "I'm not proud of doing this, Sunset, but it's what's best for everyone. At least for now," Twilight said with a sad tone. "Now let's go give them a good show… and have a good time, alright?"

Sunset Shimmer raised her head and gave Twilight a small smile. "Sure."

Twilight smiled and, with a pat on Sunset's shoulder, she left. Sunset Shimmer put her hands in her pockets and followed suit, but with a little less enthusiasm than her friend.

---

Forty minutes later…

Big McIntosh, Shining Armor, and Cadence sat patiently on the front row of the left side bleachers as they waited for the wrestling show to get underway. They had to push out a few of the stuffed animals out of their way just to get a seat. Shining Armor and Cadence were naturally sitting together, but were a little puzzled at just how many stuffed animals were surrounding them. Big Mac, on the other hand, used this to his advantage, leaning his head back on one of them as a pillow as he napped.

Cadence looked around at the large gymnasium, admiring all of the lighting equipment and the general layout of everything here. It looked pretty well designed, probably due to Rarity. But knowing Twilight, it was probably her that organized the whole thing. It wouldn't surprise her. Even when she was little, Twilight was always eager to get everything down to an exact science or formula. She would sometimes tease Twilight about it, but Twilight would usually just give her that cute smile that always made her laugh.

Shining Armor was letting Cadence rest on her shoulder, and noticed that she was giggling. "Hey, what's so funny?" he asked with a smile.

Cadence giggled. "Oh, just some good memories coming back to me."

Shining: "Any of those memories involve me in some way?" Her boyfriend inquired with noticeable excitement.

Cadence tapped her chin and hummed cutely. "No, I don't think so." she joked.

Now it was Shining Armor's turn to play along. "Awww, you're breaking my heart…" Shining teased in a pained tone.

Cadence turned her head to look up at her man. "Oh, I'm so sorry honey. Don't worry. I know what'll make you feel better." Cadence giggled as she puckered her lips and closed her eyes. Cadence waited for Shining Armor to swoop down, but after a little waiting she opened her eyes to notice that he was looking behind her. Cadence turned around and saw a girl with crimson and yellow hair. She was looking at them in a strange way.

Shining: "Oh, um, hey Sunset."

Cadence: 'Sunset?! As in Sunset Shimmer?!' Cadence thought to herself in disbelief. She had heard that name a lot when she used to roam the halls of Canterlot High School. Sunset Shimmer was the name of a serious bully who tormented everyone, including some of the upper classmen. She remembered days when Twilight would let out some rage about a girl picking on other people, and her not being able to do much to stop her. She must not have noticed her when she entered the building earlier.

Sunset: "I hope I wasn't interrupting anything." said Sunset Shimmer.

Shining Armor sniffed. "Yeah, Kinda."

Sunset Shimmer frowned. "Oh, I'm sorry! I just came by to tell you that the meeting's over, and we're going to start setting up."

Cadence looked around, and she was right. Almost everyone was already re-entering the gymnasium. As she would have expected,

Twilight was giving some people orders and they were basically going along with them. One of them was going up the stairs with a strange remote device, and a few were near a table for two located next to the ring.

Sunset: "And I'm going to be the referee for the first match." Sunset said before she noticed Cadence. "Oh, hey! You must be

Cadence. I'm Sunset Shimmer. You're Twilight's old babysitter, right?" Sunset Shimmer asked as she stuck out her hand for a handshake.

Cadence looked at the hand and pondered what to do. She didn't want to shake the hand of a bully, but she didn't want to be rude either. So she met herself halfway and shook the hand, but didn't smile. "Yes, that's right."

Sunset Shimmer frowned at her response. "You've heard about me, haven't you?" She said as she sat down next to Cadence.

Cadence sighed as she sat up from Shining Armor's shoulder. "Well, yeah. Twilight's been telling me about how you've been mistreating other people and taking their lunch money. Also what you did to some of her friends. Including Fluttershy." Cadence said with honest anger.

Sunset Shimmer hung her head. "I know. I'm really sorry about all that. But I'm not that same person anymore."

Cadence crossed her arms. "And how can I trust you?"

Shining: "I think you should give her a shot." Shining Armor chimed.

Cadence looked back at shining Armor with a curious look. "What?!"

Shining: "I'm not saying what she did was right. I'm just saying that if Twilight believes that Sunset Shimmer's turned over for the better, then I'm not going to question it. Otherwise Sunset Shimmer wouldn't even be here." Shining Armor reasoned.

Cadence looked back at Sunset Shimmer, who looked pretty relieved to hear Shining Armor's say on the subject. "I don't know. I mean, I do trust Twilight's judgment, but I don't know you very well."

Sunset: "We can get to know each other if you want." Sunset suggested.

Cadence looked at Sunset Shimmer's body language, and it was clearly reeking desperation, from her nervous smile to her jittery hands. She seemed harmless enough, and she didn't look like she was lying.

Cadence: "Alright." Cadence said mildly.

Sunset Shimmer smiled. "Thank you for giving me a chance. Not many people seem to."

Twilight: "Hey, Sunset! You need to change for the match!" Twilight called from across the room.

Sunset stood up and put her hands on her hips. "Looks like I better get going. I hope you guys enjoy the show." She finished as she left the bleachers to proceed for the curtains.

Cadence: "Hmm…"

---

Did you enjoy this chapter? Either way, I would really appreciate a review and/or comment. *sigh* I REALLY hope that I don't have to rewrite Applejack vs Rarity because I'm not sure how much of a 10,00 word chapter I could remember. But... I'll still try. But I bet it will be worse than the original. We'll just have to see. :(

Also, I'm a bit if-ey about this chapter's title. Comment if you think it should be changed.

So, until the next chapter (Applejack vs Rarity), or until May (Whichever comes first), arevoir.