Sunset had never forgotten her homework before. She stared blankly into her teacher’s eyes, absently scratching her itchy scalp.

“I-I don’t have it. I’m sorry.” She had always done the homework Celestia assigned her, and typically submitted it with pride. As the years dragged on and the proud Princess refused to properly reward Sunset’s hard work and dedication, there were assignments that Sunset kept to herself, unwilling to share the answers she discovered after hours of study and discipline.

Her new teacher raised an eyebrow. “No excuse? That’s a relief, I suppose.” She slapped the desk Sunset had awkwardly fit herself into, causing her to pull her hand from her head to her chest, clutching the warm air around her. The students seated around her had already been watching her curiously, Sunset figuring it had something to do with her frazzled appearance. Now, however, the entire class had its attention on her, and she felt her forehead and the soft pits under her arms begin to moisten.

Perhaps with a sort of pity, the teacher retracted her own hand, standing up straight. “See me after class,” she said.

Though she walked away, the eyes of the class remained on Sunset. It wasn’t until the teacher barked the beginning of her lecture from the front of the room that Sunset was free from attention.

The lesson was a brief overview of the cells in the body of creatures called “humans”, which Sunset learned was what she now was. She was surprised to learn that her current body was made up of the same things that created her pony body. She remembered the birds and cats and dogs that she had seen since coming to this new world, though, and realized that she should have already expected this.

As much as she tried to lose herself in the lesson, the harsh voice of the teacher kept distracting her, reminding her of her appointment after class. Sunset’s heart raced. The moisture under her arms increased.

When the bell finally rang, the other students gathered their books and moved on to their next classes. Sunset tiptoed to the teacher’s desk; she sat behind it, pretending not to notice Sunset until she stood right in front of her.

She looked at Sunset from over her glasses. “High school already getting to you, dear?” she asked.

The sympathetic tone she took surprised Sunset, not to mention the caring nickname.

“A little, I guess,” Sunset said.

The teacher rested her cheek in her palm. “That’s not unusual,” she said. “But believe me, you’ll get used to it.”

She opened a drawer in her desk and rummaged around before pulling out a plain yellow folder.

“Put the papers I handed out today in here, so you don’t lose them,” she said, offering it to Sunset, who quickly accepted it with trembling fingers. As she did what she was told, the teacher continued, “And you’ll be wanting a notebook for later lectures. Pencils and black pens, too,” she added, with a slight eye roll.

“Y-yes! Thank you, ma’am. I’ll have them for next class-”

“Do not call me ‘ma’am’,” she ordered. Sunset zipped her lips, her fingers tight on the folder. “You may refer to me as ‘Ms. Harshwhinny’ and that is all.”

Sunset nodded quickly as Ms. Harshwhinny spoke. She suddenly had a terrible itch on the top of her head, but when her teacher’s sharp blue eyes snapped back to her, she could only grip the folder tighter.

“Now go on,” she said. “Or you’ll be late to your next class, making another poor first impression.”

“Thank you very much, Ms. Harshwhinny,” Sunset said as she backed out of the room. Ms. Harshwhinny ignored her, turning her attention to some papers on her desk.

Outside the classroom, Sunset found a girl from her class standing near the door. Sunset tried to brush this off, turning her back to her, but the girl grabbed Sunset’s shoulder and made her turn around.

“What is it?” Sunset asked, scowling at the unwanted contact. The girl pulled her bright yellow hand back, holding it in her other one. Big green eyes glittered from her delicate face. Sunset thought the girl was pretty, but something about her made her laugh. Maybe it was because she stood about six inches shorter than Sunset.

The girl opened her little mouth as she released a hand to brush back her sky colored mane. “Excuse me for being intrusive,” she began, “but I couldn’t help but notice that your appearance is a little different today than it was yesterday.”

Sunset wrapped her fingers around her own greasy mane. Her heart raced again. “I didn’t have the time to shower this morning.” With her other hand, she stretched out her shirt under her arms, where a considerable amount of sweat had dampened it. “And I guess it was hot in the classroom,” she muttered. Sunset tried to deny it, but the smell which surrounded the two girls simply had to be coming from her. She looked away from the pretty girl and crossed her arms over her stomach.

Suddenly, the girl took hold of Sunset’s hand. She pulled her down the hallway, past students who turned their noses up - searching for the source of the smell as it ran by. The girl dragged Sunset into a bathroom, then stood with her backpack on a sink, searching it for something.

“Look, I don’t know what you think you’re doing, but I have to get to my next class,” Sunset said, her hands on her hips. This seemed to let the odor out more strongly, though, so she wrapped her arms around herself again, but maintained her indignant scowl.

Finally, the girl removed a small, white stick from her bag. She handed it to Sunset, with a gentle smile. Sunset looked at her present with blank eyes. The girl frowned.

“It’s deodorant,” she said. “You use it like this.” She took the stick back and removed a cap from one end of it. A thick powder covered that end, and the girl pulled at the collar of her shirt to allow room for her to rub this powder against the pit of her arm. She did the same to the other side, then handed it back to Sunset. “I hope you don’t mind sharing.”

Still wary, Sunset slowly moved the deodorant toward herself.

“Oh wait,” the girl said. “You might want to wash some of that sweat off first.”

The two moved to the sinks, and the girl helped Sunset clean herself off. Sunset couldn’t help realizing how pleasant the girl smelled.

At last, Sunset applied the deodorant. The cool powder felt very comfortable on her hot skin. She thanked the girl, who replied with another sweet smile.

“Please don’t worry about it. My name is Evening Primrose.” She held out her hand. Sunset wasn’t sure what was meant by this, so she was tentative in offering her own hand. Evening Primrose looked at it for a second, then quickly lifted her other hand and slid her fingers between Sunset’s. Sunset held back a gasp as she felt Evening Primrose’s smooth skin against her oily skin.

“Sunset Shimmer,” she replied.

When they let go, Evening Primrose asked, “So what is your next class, Sunset?” Sunset reached into a pocket of her jacket and removed a crumpled paper she fortunately found on the desk in her room that morning.

After scanning the schedule, she replied, “Looks like it’s English next.”

Evening Primrose’s eyes grew wide. “With Ms. Yearling?”

“Yes?”

A great smile spread across her face. “That’s my next class too! We should hurry, I guess. Don’t want another fiasco like in Biology.”

Sunset tried to smile back, but feared that it came out as more of a smirk. As the two left the bathroom, she attempted to make up for it by thanking her savior once more.

“Please, don’t worry about it!” Evening Primrose said. “I’m just glad I made a new friend.”

With those words, so daintily spoken, Sunset felt that curious feeling again, and a small cackle escaped her lips.