Pinkie Pie's cheek is currently fused to the cafeteria table. Along with a stuck cheek, her hair is frazzled and sagging, her eyes are red and shrouded with black bags and her hand feeling like cracking wooden and is unable to move away from the pencil holding posture. This comes as no surprise to anyone who sees the notebook full of notes and textbooks full of more notes. The only solace Pinkie Pie has in her current state is the punk rock music that her headphones are blasting into her ears, thus blocking all outside noise and fueling her thoughts with something other than school work. Like boulevards of broken dreams and holidays.

Pinkie Pie's eyes sluggishly glide over her marked book, taking in each little letter about as enthusiastically as a poor soul stuck in a hospital waiting room. Her focus drifts away from her book and sees her team doing what they are supposed to be doing, and doing it with a little bit more care than she is.

Applejack is reciting questions off of flash cards to Trixie, who appears to be getting more and more annoyed as one stack in particular gets larger, and Rarity is reading and taking notes. After Trixie answers another question and gets a head shake from Applejack, their resident celebrity throws her hands up and screams. Pinkie Pie decides that now is a good time to take off her headphones.

“Why are you being so mean to Trixie?” says Trixie, her voice cracking and face red.

“I ain't being mean,” says Applejack firmly. “You keep answering the questions wrong. That's all.”

“Trixie answered every question correctly.”

“You only answered five questions correctly.”

“Liar!”

Shadows suddenly darken in Applejack's angry, wrinkled face and she slams the stack down and slides it towards Trixie.

“Forget this. I'm done,” says Applejack, turning away from Trixie and folding her arms across her chest.

“What?” Trixie's panicked eyes snap back and forth between Applejack and the cards. “But Trixie needs a study partner! Rarity sucks and Pinkie's a moron!”

Rarity snaps up from her book. “Hey!”

Trixie looks at Rarity. “What?”

“Don't be rude.”

Trixie scoffs. “Rude is my middle name, plebeian.”

Rarity slams her book shut and whips to Pinkie Pie. “Aren't you going to do something about her behavior?”

Pinkie Pie, without taking her head off of the table, looks Rarity. “What do you want me to do about it? Have her do push ups?”

“Something. Anything! Any kind of disciplinary action of any caliber!”

Pinkie Pie sighs, pulls her head off the table with some difficulty, cracks her back, and then walks by Rarity on her way to the vending machine not too far from their table. She can feel Rarity's eyes on her, but in no time at all Trixie says something stupid and she and Trixie start bickering. Applejack's voice drops in seconds later, and by the time Pinkie Pie is by a Mr. Vendor vending machine she can hear the conversation turn into something about a death battle.

“You turn into a ball and spin. That is not cool, that is dumb,” says Trixie.

"I do more than that!" says Rarity.

Pinkie Pie sighs glumly, pulls out Rarity's wallet and slips a few coins into the machine.

“Hey, Pinkie,” says Flash as he walks next to her with his wallet out and body slouching from fatigue. “Having fun with your studies?”

“Oh, yeah, I just love doing school work instead of something more exciting. Like living,” replies Pinkie Pie.

Flash rubs crust from his eye. “Yeah, the extra work is kicking my can, too.”

Pinkie Pie punches the numbers into the machine, and her eyes follow the clangs and thumps down towards the access chute when they echo from the machine. She then pulls out a can of Grapetastic soda and steps back, tossing it back and forth in her hands while Flash slips in the coins.

“Has Thorn given you any trouble, lately?” asks Pinkie Pie.

“No. He only rammed me into the urinal while I was trying to take a leak,” says Flash. He punches in some numbers and adds with a sigh: “And he smashed my muffin. Again... It was blueberry.”

“Oh.” Pinkie Pie tosses the soda in the air, letting it spin sporadically before catching it with one hand, and then she tosses it up again. “I can still talk to him if you want me to.”

Flash pulls out a Dr. Cola and shakes his head. “No, don't worry about it. I got it all under control. Besides, I'm more concerned about failing and getting the boot than an idiot who smashes muffins.”

Pinkie Pie shakes her Grapetastic soda while nodding in agreement. “Oh, yeah, I feel you.” Pinkie Pie takes a deep breath and exhales slowly, and then glances at Flash apprehensively. “Hey, listen, about the whole failing thing, I actually think we should, you know, study together since we're both falling behind. What do you think?”

Flash stares at her soda can uneasily. “Yeah... um, look, you seem nice and all, and-”

Pinkie Pie shakes the can harder without breaking eye contact.

Flash shifts his posture. “Well, I just don't that, um...”

Pinkie's hand and soda can are now a blur, and her eyes are more narrowed, more focused, like a blowtorch ready to slice metal.

Flash steps back. “Okay, what are you doing?”

“Shaking a soda can. Am I getting a yes or a no?” says Pinkie Pie.

Flash seethes. “Not right now.”

Pinkie Pie nods. “Okay. See you some time in the future.”

She then walks back towards her table, still shaking the soda can, which is now inflated and hard like the stones of her family's rock farm, and she stands next to Trixie and takes aim.

“All Trixie is saying is that between all of us fighting in a free for all death match, Trixie would slaughter all of you. So, HA!” says Trixie, meeting the angered looks of her teammates with an arrogant grin.

Pinkie Pie clears her throat and Trixie turns to her, but before a word can be spoken Pinkie Pie pops the can's tab, resulting in a firehouse spray of grape soda splashing all over Trixie. Fizzy, carbonated and sticky fluids goes all over Trixie's face and hair, and she raises her hands to stop it, but only gets the tail end. When the geyser stops, leaving only a few purple droplets to drip to the floor, a soaking wet Trixie is coughing, sputtering and wheezing for air while Applejack and Rarity stare at the scene with wide eyes and sealed lips. Pinkie Pie remains standing besides Trixie and twists her can into a disk, and Trixie flaps her hands, flinging sticky droplets everywhere and she slowly turns and glares at Pinkie Pie through her dripping locks.

“Why?” says Trixie dangerously.

Pinkie Pie tosses the flat can in front of Trixie. “Be nice.” She then tosses Rarity her wallet and falls in her seat like a bag of rocks. “By the way, I owe you seventy five cents.”

Rarity sneers. “Seriously?”

“Yep.” Pinkie Pie slams her face on her book. “Seriously.”

Flash is walking back to his table, sipping his soda, and he looks over his shoulder at Pinkie's table when he hears Trixie screaming. Seeing Pinkie Pie standing above Trixie with the soda can answers enough, so he shakes his head and flops in his seat, rubbing his tired eyes.

“Pay up,” says Octavia.

Flash looks up and sees Rainbow Dash begrudgingly tossing a dollar to Octavia, who then snatches it and shoves it in her pocket without hesitation.

“Um... what?” says Flash with a quirked brow.

“We made a bet to see what soda you would get,” says Rainbow Dash.

“I won,” says Octavia.

Rainbow Dash rolls her eyes. “Yeah, I think he figured that out.”

“I don't care about your bets,” grumbles Flash as he bows his head and runs his fingers through his hair.

“Pay up,” says Octavia.

Rainbow Dash growls and throws another dollar at Octavia, and Flash slams his hands down on the table and glares at the two.

“Seriously?” he says.

“Yeah, we kinda made a bet about whether or not you cared about us betting,” says Rainbow Dash.

“I won,” says Octavia, smiling thinly.

Rainbow Dash rolls her eyes. “Yeah, I think he figured that out.”

Flash groans and buries his face in his hands. “Faust help me. I'm stuck in a time loop.” He takes a long, deep breath, and then presses his hands on the table and looks at his two women warriors in training. “Did you two at least do any studying?”

“Of course!” boasts Rainbow Dash.

Flash and Octavia stare at her skeptically.

“Not,” adds Rainbow Dash meekly.

Flash looks at Octavia. “How about you?”

“I don't need studying. I have resources that will guarantee me a pass,” says Octavia, now flicking her thumb over each bill in a tempting wad of cash.

“Wow... Just... Wow,” says Flash. “In case you haven't realized it, we are all being graded and watched constantly. In fact they are watching us right now and listening in, and I will gladly put a hundred bucks on the table right now saying that they heard you say how you are buying test results and that they will kick out your gloomy butt quicker than shit in a cereal bowl!”

When Flash is done his chest is heaving, his eyes are wild and froth has lined his mouth, and his elbows are perched on the table with his hands slightly extended towards Octavia like claws. Rainbow Dash and Octavia both have very different reactions to this. The former's eyes are squinted and her lips are twisted to a confused snarl, whereas the latter has a blank expression.

“So, are you saying I should tie up loose ends?” asks Octavia after a strange moment of silence.

Flash's jaw drops with an explosive, wheezy gasp. “What? Oh... Oh, wow. You know what? You're scary. I'm going to go that way.” Flash jumps up, grabs his drink and books and hurries off without looking back. “And don't look at me!”

Rainbow Dash and Octavia watch Flash leave the cafeteria, and when he is out of sight Rainbow Dash looks at her companion while said person still watches the doorway.

“You really gotta learn how to talk to people,” says Rainbow Dash.

Octavia slowly looks at her, and she smiles nervously and slides back.

“But lessons can wait another time. I, uh, I hear sloppy dogs!”

And then Rainbow Dash zips away in a blur, leaving Octavia alone at the table. She takes a deep breath, looks down and stares at the money in her hand. And then she shrugs and puts it all in her pocket.

Flash Sentry's foot steps are the only things making any noise in the empty hallway. The lights shine down on him in their always warm way, but he still feels cold. A little bit of guilt has infected him for how he reacted to Octavia's statement and how he left Dash with the disturbed girl. Though, from what he has observed, Octavia seems to be mostly harmless and appears to have an odd fascination with their team athlete if her snooping through Dash's dream journal is any indication. It still does not change her creepy personality and careless actions, though.

After a few minutes of walking through the labyrinth of halls, Flash finds his room, which is mostly due to him finding Team PART's room. Unlike the other doors, which have boring numbers and sparse decorations, Team FORT's self-proclaimed sister team has gone all out, leaving no piece of wood showing. Streamers, balloon cutouts, confetti, stars, diamonds and apples of various colors are taped to the door, same with big letters that spell their team name with a “(ie)” added at the end of the T for some reason.

Then there is Team FORT's door. A boring white door with bronze numbers screwed above their peephole. Whoopee-do.

Flash looks at his boring door, then he glances at Pinkie's awesome door, and then he looks back at his door and digs into his pocket, where he finds absolutely nothing but lint. He furrows his brows and reaches into his other pocket, where his fingers graze his brick of a flip phone. He scoffs and mutters as he pats himself all over his pants and jacket, and much to his dismay and increasing annoyance he finds no trace of his keys.

“Great.” Flash's hands flop against his thighs and he shakes his head. “Just great. Way to go, Flash. Way to freaking go! Now Octavia's going to have to lock-pick the stupid door again!”

He growls and kicks the door, and in response a crack of pain spreads across his foot, and he bites his lip, hissing and curling his fingers as he limps in a circle away from the door. He can feel the hot red staining his face, too, and that pain only spreads when he sees Twilight staring at him with her books up against her chest. Twilight. Staring at him. With his teeth digging into his lips, hands curled like claws, eyes bulged at different levels and face red, and his legs appearing gimpy.

He really wants to cry, right now.

“Are you okay?” asks Twilight.

Without breaking face, Flash nods.

“Did you leave your keys on your bed, again?”

Flash's bizarre face shifts back to a somewhat normal state, and he leans against the wall to rub his foot. “Maybe. Where did you run off to, anyway? The rest of us were in the cafeteria studying.”

“I was in the library,” says Twilight.

She pulls out her keycard and swipes it into the doorknob's slot. The doorknob flashes green, a keypad rolls out, and after typing in the password the door clicks and opens just a bit. Twilight then uses her foot to push the door the rest of the way while adjusting her grip on her books and putting the keycard back in her vest pocket. After she walks in their room, Flash follows her in and puts his stack of books on his bed, which is pushed to the far end of the room, away from the other three beds.

Twilight also puts her books down and shakes off her backpack, which shakes the floor when it lands, and she makes a breathy sigh as she rolls her shoulders. Flash, meanwhile, flops on his bed, right next to his keycard. A moment later a shadow goes over him and he looks over his shoulder to see Twilight standing above him, her worried eyes glued to him.

“Yeah?” says Flash.

“I know you're tired, but there is something I want to show you,” says Twilight.

“Can't it wait?”

“It could, but I'd rather it be sooner than later.”

Flash groans and rubs his face in his pillow, loving the flat goodness of its former fluffiness. Though, a few seconds later he reluctantly peeks above the fabric and turns his clock so he can see the digital numbers. It is later than he thought, and he really, really, really wants to enjoy his bed and blankets for a few hours. But one more look at Twilight's puppy dog eyes convinces him to get up. It is a painful process, but he manages to push himself into the sitting position, and he sighs quietly as he rubs his eyes.

“Fine, but let's make it quick,” says Flash.

Twilight cheers, grabs Flash's hand and yanks him out of bed and runs out of the room, dragging him with her and slamming the door shut behind them.

A few minutes later the two are on the roof of their dormitory. The layer of gravel crunches underneath their shoes and a chilling breeze gives Flash the shivers and goosebumps, and his masculinity is put to shame when he sees no signs of Twilight being cold. That said, the view is nice. He can see the whole Academy, from the main tower of the Administration, to the distant arena, various academic structures, the wall blocking the Hollow Shades forest, and the multiple landing pads. There is even an excellent view of the night sky. No clouds interrupt the dark purple sky or its sprinkled, glittering stars and full moon. However, all the serenity of the view comes to a very rude end when a gust of frosty wind slams into him. Twilight's skirt fluttering in the wind is a nice sight, though.

“So,” begins Flash. He blows into his hands and rubs them together. It helps little. “Why are we up here?”

“It has been a rough week for you. A rough month, actually,” says Twilight. “Being a team leader is a lot of pressure, and knowing that your failing is not doing your confidence any favors.”

Flash frowns and rubs his hands again. “Thanks for the lecture, Doctor Twi. Any advice?”

Twilight nibbles her lip and turns to Flash, hesitating before she speaks. “I want to help you.”

Flash stares at her, his tired expression blank and his brain thinking about how warm his blanket will be. As for Twilight, she looks down and twiddles her fingers for a couple of seconds before taking another deep breath and looking at him again.

“I know you're struggling in class and you aren't exactly the best of fighters, so... I want to help you. I want to train and tutor you,” says Twilight. “I can tutor you in our room and I can train you up here where no one will bother us.”

“Are you saying that I suck?” says Flash,.

“No, I'm saying that you need help.”

“In other words, I suck.”

“No! Flash, just please listen to my words,” begs Twilight. “I just want to help you. Everyone needs help from time to time and asking for some is not a bad thing.”

Flash shakes his head. “I don't need any help. I can do this on my own.”

“No you can't.”

“Yes I can! I don't need your help! I don't need anybody's help! I'm fine!”

“You've barely slept all week and its showing. I know I can help you if you'll just let me.”

Flash looks away from Twilight, getting a look at the dark silhouettes of the Academy's buildings and the tiny blocks of light that illuminate bits and pieces of them. Even when he feels Twilight's hand on his arm he does not look at her, instead choosing to keep his eyes on the shadows.

“But-”

Twilight puts her fingers on his mouth, silencing him, and he looks down at her annoyed stare with one of his own, with an added touch of weariness.

“Flash, don't be difficult,” says Twilight.

Flash pulls her hand away. “I'm not being difficult. All I am saying is that I don't need or want your help, but you keep persisting, making it harder for both of us. Besides, you'll be wasting your time on me. I'm a one trick pony. You can't really train me.”

Twilight huffs and rubs her brow, looking down. “I'm trying to help you understand your potential.” She drops her hand and looks into Flash's eyes. “I know you are capable of great things because you got in here. That alone speaks volumes. You just need a little push to get you back on the right track.”

Flash sighs and looks at Twilight shamefaced. “Yeah, about that. I kinda lied.”

Twilight blinks. “What?”

“I lied. I faked my transcripts to get in here, but right now I am really regretting it.”

Twilight pulls away, her eyes wide and hands held up to her chest. “What? But why would you do that?”

“I don't know,” says Flash, shrugging and his eyes lowered. “Maybe its because I wanted to be somebody special for once. My dad, my grandpa, my uncles, they were special. My sister is special, my mom is special, my grandma was special. Everybody is special and get all the love just for existing and what do I get? A fake ticket to a place where I don't belong.”

“But you do belong here.” Twilight gently grabs his hands and tries to look into his eyes. “Don't you remember when we were in the forest, how you organized us and helped us get out?”

Flash pulls away, quivering. “Pinkie did most of the work. I just got tossed around. You know that.”

Twilight steps forward. “You did more than you think you did. I know what I saw and I saw someone special doing something great in that forest, and I see that same person in front of me.”

“Then you don't see me,” says Flash, his voice wobbling and his feet taking him back. “You see what you want to see and it is not. Me.”

Twilight swallows and looks down, rubbing her arm and blinking tears out of her eyes, and Flash exhales though his nose and looks at the dark scenery again.

“Please leave me alone,” says Flash quietly.

Twilight looks up. “But-”

“No. Just... I want to be alone.”

Twilight opens her mouth, but says nothing and lowers her eyes, nodding and rubbing her arm, and without saying a word she leaves the rooftop. Once the door closes, Flash looks over his shoulder and sees that he is all alone in the dark, but when he looks at the Academy again he sees none other than Thorn climbing up on the roof, chuckling like a predator who has trapped their easy prey.

“Well, that was a nice talk you had with your girl,” says Thorn.

Flash's blood freezes, and his face pales as he steps back, now regretting that he didn't leave with Twilight.

“How the heck did you hear all that?” says Flash.

Thorn jabs his thumb over his shoulder. “My window was open, plus I cleaned my ears.”

Flash yells in frustration and rips at his hair. “You have got to be kidding me!”

Thorn scoffs. “I hate jokes. But, funny story, I was thinking about you and me and the kind of relationship we have, and I think there is a lot of room for improvement.”

He lunges at Flash and traps him in a headlock before he can block, and as Flash struggles and swears to no avail, Thorn drags him over to the edge of the building so he can see the sixty foot drop. It makes Flash sick to his knotted stomach and his pupils shrink to tiny dots as his hands now dig into Thorn as tight as they can get, which does not phase him in the slightest.

“I was actually thinking that we can be friends if we work together,” says Thorn. “Think about it. Both of us are falling behind in Caballeron's class and we basically got to do the same thing, so why not help me out? Kind of like a you scratch my back and I scratch your back kind of thing.”

Flash gulps for air. “I don't think that's the proper phrase for that.”

“Oh it is,” says Thorn. He makes a dramatic sigh and leans just a bit farther over the edge, dangling most of Flash over while planting his feet firmly into the roof and wall. “After all, we wouldn't want your secret getting out, now would we? I'll keep your secret safe from Faustsend and as payment you get to do my work. How does that sound?”

Flash gaks and desperately digs his feet into the roof and wall while trying to pull his head out of the lock. “Terrible! It sounds terrible, you damn psycho!”

Thorn squeezes tighter, forcing Flash to wheeze for air. “Do you want to go back home to your sister and mommy in disgrace and blacklisted from every school and academy there is? Or, hell, we can send you back after a little accident on the roof. But I don't want to do that since I like you. So, what do you say, buddy? A little teamwork between struggling students?”

Flash's eyes roll back and his vision bleed to black, and Thorn snickers over his wheezing and slowly beating heart.

“Good. I'll keep in touch,” says Thorn.

The releases Flash, grabbing him by his collar just before he falls and throws him towards the door. Flash slides backwards, leaving a trail of pushed gravel and thin dust, and he pushes himself on his side, coughing and wheezing and rubbing his bruised neck. His vision is swimming in and out of focus, but he does manage to make out Thorn climbing back over the edge and flashing him one last smile and two fingered wave before disappearing over the edge.