Twilight resisted the urge to hug herself as she hurried through the halls. She hadn't even gone to her first actual class yet and she was already wishing the day was over. Glancing at the clock, she realized she still had an extra ten minutes before the bell, so she tucked herself into an alcove. Her phone was in her hand in an instant, and she sent a short message to Sunset, hoping that the other girl might send her something back quickly enough to help her get through the day. Starting a Monday morning off with her parents in a very uncomfortable and prickly meeting with her principal had absolutely destroyed her nerves for the rest of the day and she needed something to ground her. Even if it was just silly texts from her girlfriend.

The dark haired girl rested her head back against the cool stone of the wall, taking several slow breaths and trying to push back the headache already forming in her temples. All throughout the meeting and even now, Twilight felt like she was at war with herself. On one hand, she recognized why her parents were upset on her behalf—she was upset too, given that she had done her very best to keep the confrontation with Polaris calm and friendly, and it didn't seem fair that she had been so severely punished for being forced to defend herself. At the same time, however…there was a part of herself that felt like the whole thing had been blown up way too big and that her family shouldn't have antagonized her school principal so openly. Principal Cinch had earned some measure of respect and trust in her ability to do her job over several decades…hadn't she? It made her feel queasy that none of them—herself included—had given the woman any measure of the respect and deference she was due, even as it rankled her to even think the thought.

It didn't seem to matter much that Principal Cinch had done a great deal of things wrong—the family lawyers had walked both her and her parents through every step of how the administration of the school had circumvented or outright broken the rules, not just in the handling of the altercation the week before, but in many ways over the last three years when it came to Twilight and her education. She still felt, on some deep level, that she needed to be polite and defer to the woman’s expertise, and it wasn't her place…or her family’s…to tell Principal Cinch how to do her job. Twilight was grateful she hadn't told them anything else, not about being picked for the Friendship Games Team, or that Wallflower had been made her project assistant at the principal’s decision. Somehow, the teen knew they would have taken that information and twisted it to suit the narrative the lawyers had settled on.

Deep breaths, she told herself, taking time to draw and release several lungfuls of air as she wrestled with her own mind, trying to reconcile the disparate emotions and perceptions. Why was this so hard? On a logical and rational level, she understood that no one was perfect, and it was reasonable to say that Principal Cinch was not an absolute paragon of education and administration, just as she understood that her parents were correct in their assertion that respect was earned or lost through word and deed. By that metric, Principal Abacus Cinch had lost any respect she had accumulated, and the meeting had reinforced that.

The door opened with a loud sound that shattered the quiet that blanketed the office, and Twilight followed in her parents’ wake as they strode into Principal Cinch’s office, her father as hard and unyielding as she’d ever seen him and a defensive tightness to her mother’s eyes that seemed out of place on someone who was always the picture of love and welcome. While they weren’t marching in lockstep, there was a fluid coordination to their movements all the same, and the light from the hallway seemed to follow them, highlighting in a way Twilight had never really paid attention to just how unpleasantly dim the office was.

In fact, if it wasn't silly and irrational, Twilight might have said that the shadows were retreating from her parents more than the light itself, reminding her of some of the nightmares she’d had…where the darkness had somehow been alive and hungry. She shook her head and pushed the feeling away—it was silly and irrational, after all, and she was more concerned with this meeting. It needed to go well—she didn't want the suspension on her permanent record, but she also hoped her parents did not antagonize the situation so much that she ended up expelled. Principal Cinch was not someone to cross.

Speaking of the Principal…

Seated at her desk, the older woman had been startled when her parents walked in, though she’d quickly hidden that…and Twilight could see the slight tensing of her jaw muscles when her mother and father sat down before the principal could offer them a seat. That made the teen flinch, but she’d already promised her parents she would say nothing unless either of them directly asked her a question, so all she could do was politely remain standing and hope.

“I was not expecting you quite so promptly,” her principal commented, still shuffling through some papers on the desk. “You’ll have to give me a moment while I finish this—important paperwork that cannot be put off, I'm sure you understand.”

Night raised an eyebrow at her, then glanced down at his watch. “You have five minutes, Abacus. After that, we will take it to mean our daughter’s health, wellbeing, and future are unimportant to you, and we will be pulling her immediately from this institution to attend a different school.”

Twilight felt frozen to the spot she was standing, an icy chill washing over her as her father’s words, as well as his tone, registered with her. She struggled to remember to breathe, and it made her vision swim; around the principal, the shadows seemed to swarm and thicken. It hadn’t occurred to her until he said the words aloud just how little control she had over the situation, whether she was silent or not. Her parents could pull her from Crystal Prep at any moment if they decided to, regardless of how she felt.

And she didn't want to leave, despite everything. She had put so much effort into succeeding in CPA, in all her projects, in having the highest grade point average out of everyone in the school… Leaving now would mean it had all been for nothing, and to colleges that saw her transcripts, it would look like she couldn't take the pressure of a competitive academic environment. Places like MIT and CalTech would simply reject her rather than waste a slot on a student who couldn't handle the pressure, and she might have to settle for going to a school with lesser credentials, which in turn would affect her job prospects later.

As she felt her future begin to crack and crumble before her eyes, Twilight held her breath, waiting for her principal to react to her father and the words spoken so crisp and cutting, not sure whether she expected the woman to immediately expel her and save them all the trouble, or to become displeased and upset at her father’s tone.

So the teen was incredibly surprised when Principal Cinch looked…taken aback in a way that just didn't happen to the principal of Crystal Prep. Smooth hands began hastily collecting the papers, uncaring about order as she shoved them into a folder and then into a desk drawer. Twilight could even hear the telltale sound of paper crumpling as she closed the drawer.

“…of course, Mr. Light. It will press me for time but I can see to those later…” Each word almost seemed like it was pulled from her, but her expression was carefully neutral. “I…apologize for any…unintended slight. May I offer you both some refreshments before we start this meeting?” One hand slowly gestured to the same crystal pitcher and glasses that she had offered Twilight a drink from weeks prior…and the teen decided she could do with the distraction of a cold glass of water.

Twilight Velvet responded before the younger Twilight could move. “No, thank you,” she said, curt and cold, cutting off any plan her daughter had to pour herself a drink. “I don't believe that will be necessary.”

Once again, the dark haired girl found herself waiting for the outburst that somehow never came, from someone rebuffing the principal’s efforts to be hospitable—something that everyone knew was a quick way to earn displeasure from the woman who took such old world etiquette seriously. Instead of upset, Principal Cinch had an expression that Twilight almost thought meant she was uneasy, shifting a few things on her desk for no reason. “Perhaps then…you would wish to speak first, that we might quickly put this business behind us and Miss Sparkle might return to her day before her schedule is disrupted any further?” Her smile was a little sharp, like an angered predator staring out from the shadows on her face, and the teen found herself actually relaxing at the sign that Principal Cinch was upset, just…mostly concealing it.

It seemed her father was disinterested in any posturing or conciliatory gestures, his tone cold and clipped. “A schedule you disrupted, Abacus, with your preliminary choice of punishing my daughter—the victim—to placate her attacker’s family instead of doing your job as an educator and administrator properly.” He reached into the leather case at his side, and placed a slim object on the normally untouchable, polished expanse of the woman’s antique desk, adjusting it with practiced ease. “Decisions you can begin by explaining and justifying. I trust you understand that I intend to record this meeting so that there can be no…misunderstandings later on either side.”

With a start, Twilight recognized the object on the desk as an item she’d gifted her father, one of her own inventions: a digital audio/visual recording device with two independent cameras that could be trained in two directions. It had been a Mark I prototype of a device she used in her home lab to record experiments and her own observations, and he had made great use of it in recording his lectures in a way that allowed him to display both a board with diagrams and himself with another board of actual notes. She had no idea he’d brought it and intended to record the meeting.

Principal Cinch went unpleasantly pale which made the harsh shadows that seemed as though they were clinging to her even more unsettling. “I—”

“Unless, of course,” Night interrupted her protest, “you would like for the three of us to leave.” The ‘permanently’ was unspoken but it was very clear in the set of his shoulders and frown on his face. Twilight trembled, unseen, behind her parents.

Faltering, the principal searched for the right words, gaze darting around the room, and for a minute those eyes locked onto her; Twilight felt even more frozen than before, unable to look away or move or even smile or frown.

“Easy, Sparky. I’ve got your back…” Sunset’s voice whispered in her ear, and she wished beyond measure that the amber fingers at the corner of her vision were real, solid hands resting on her shoulders, supporting her.

A chuckle. “Real enough in the ways that matter, nerd. I won't let this hydra have you without a fight.”

She could see it, in her mind's eye, almost without trying, Sunset standing behind her, pressed up against her back, hands on her shoulders…all while the taller girl glared daggers at her principal and told her exactly what she thought of her in those silly, endearingly funny euphemisms Sunset was prone to spouting instead of actually swearing.

Twilight couldn't help the tiny smile that worked its way onto her face, and she realized that she could breathe again. Even if Sunset’s actions would have been the height of blatant disrespect, the mental image still amused her.

“That’s my nerd. It's going to be okay.”

As she watched, feeling less like she was going to collapse, Principal Cinch jerked her gaze away as if burned. “Of…course…” she fumbled, looking as out of sorts and distressed as Twilight had ever seen. “You have…always been intelligent and devoted parents…I can…respect your wish to…protect…your…progeny.”

The meeting had continued and concluded in the same vein, with her parents refusing to back down and give the principal an inch, leaving Twilight even more agitated than she’d started out that morning. She was half convinced that this wouldn't be the end of the discussion about where she went to school, regardless of what Principal Cinch was willing to promise—her mother was increasingly vocal about her dislike of Crystal Prep, and now her father was of the same mind. They had even instructed her that the only conversations she was allowed to have with anyone who worked at Crystal Prep had to be in direct relation to her project or classwork. Anything more, and she was to say nothing before contacting her parents…and they’d impressed the same thing onto Principal Cinch.

It felt like a noose slowly closing around her neck, and she had no way to get out of it… Twilight shivered at the dark thoughts. This is not the time for that, she told herself. She was headed for the gym, and the teen knew she needed to be on her guard when she entered the locker room.

“Sparkle! Yo! Hold up!”

Twilight was knocked from her thoughts by Indigo racing up to her from a side hall, skidding to a stop next to her, hands on her knees as she panted. “Indigo? I was just about to go get changed.” She indicated the door to the girls’ locker room just a short distance away. “What—”

The athlete put her hand on Twilight’s shoulder, making her flinch back from the contact. “Whoa—easy! Sorry, look, I’m just glad I caught up to you! I've been looking everywhere! You can't go in there!”

Baffled, Twilight studied the girl, anxiety shifting to wariness—though whether it was wariness of Indigo or something else, she wasn’t entirely certain. “…why not?”

Indigo made a face and her eyes darted around the hall, though the students around them mostly seemed to be ignoring them. She leaned closer and lowered her voice, “Because they're waiting on you in there…everyone’s heard about what happened, and Suri and her gang of bitches intend to catch you where there's no teachers to interfere.”

Something settled in Twilight’s guts, a knot of…some kind of emotion that existed somewhere between fear and anger and exasperation, related to all three but somehow distinct in its own right, an emotional taxonomic classification that was strange and new to Twilight. “…of course they are,” she muttered, shoulders slumping. As if dealing with the locker room wasn't already hard enough for her. “I still have to dress for gym,” the dark haired girl pointed out to Indigo.

“Yeah, I know, but I got a solution for you, and me too. C’mon. There's a bathroom down C-Hall that used to be for teachers. Three stalls, and everyone forgets it's there. But it's also right across from one the library, and this is when Mrs. Stacks takes her lunch break, so she’s guaranteed to be right on the other side of the hall.” Indigo’s expression was grim. “I used it freshman year when Sapphire started all those rumors that I was a lesbian. It kept me out of trouble, let me still ace gym, and my dad didn't get called in to school.”

She scrutinized Indigo carefully, worried that this might be a trap of some kind, and dismissed the thought almost as soon as it formed. Indigo had been…if not a friend, at least friendly and had actively helped Twilight dodge Suri a few times already. “…okay. I know the bathroom you're talking about…but what about our bags? We can't take them into gym…”

Indigo led the way towards the library. “That's the thing. Mrs. Stacks will let us stow them in her office during gym. She…doesn't like bullies. Or people who mess around in the library, so the odds are slim that someone will get at them.” She gave a sheepish grin. “Worked my freshman year, at least.”

Twilight didn't really know the librarian that well—despite her love of books, the library at Crystal Prep wasn’t exactly a welcoming place to read or browse. Many of the books were fancy copies of texts donated by or purchased to appeal to the wealthy elite who sent their children to the school, and what was left was often not on subjects that interested Twilight…or were of a high enough level to be engaging. However, her few dealings with the librarian had shown her that the woman was firm and no nonsense…but not without warmth.

There was a calm silence between them as they ducked into the small bathroom, and she headed into a stall to change…only broken when Indigo asked, from the next stall over, “So what actually happened last week? The rumor mill’s gone crazy, but…I know that most of that is not even close to the truth. I just know Coach told me I wouldn't need to help you again til Monday.”

She was quiet for a minute as she mulled over what she wanted to say and how much detail she wanted to go into. Particularly if the rumor mill had already sunk its teeth into the events. “I…was suspended…for defending myself against a senior,” she admitted in a voice just loud enough to carry into the next stall.

The sound of the other girl moving stopped, an unsettled hush falling over the room. Then, “…oh my God, Sparkle…” Indigo sounded horrified. “Are you okay? He didn’t…?”

It took a second for her to register what Indigo was not able to ask, and she felt cold all over again, just like when Sunset had asked. “No. Not like that…he…was agitated and upset about something else and he…lost it. He grabbed my arm.” Then she exhaled a heavy breath. “That was enough…and I…I reacted…and injured him badly enough that he required medical attention.”

“Holy shit.” Indigo’s voice had gone from horrified to awed. “I can’t believe that part of the rumors is actually true.” She laughed. “Oh man, Sparkle, this is what's gotten you all toned up, isn't it? You’ve been learning martial arts, and you went Kung Fu Panda on a senior!” The laughter became a delighted cackle. “You are full of fucking surprises for a huge nerd! No wonder Suri is so pissed off—with that in the rumor mill, her tactic of getting even by sweet talking boys into harassing someone has a snowball's chance in Hell of working!”

The dark haired girl paled. “She…does that?”

Indigo broke out of her laughter. “…she has before. It's never pretty. Maybe this will make her think twice. Or she’ll just get more creative, and take matters into her own hands.”

Twilight hesitated a moment, before asking quietly, “Is…that what was going on in the locker room? Why you brought me here?”

The stall door unlocked and she could hear Indigo moving into the main part of the bathroom, packing her things into her backpack. “Pretty much—I overheard them in the hall, and you don't deserve to get bullied like that. Suri’s a bitch who gets off on twisting other people up and making them miserable. You're okay, Sparkle, and…well…I know I’m not really your friend, but I couldn't just leave you hanging in the wind like that if I could stop it.”

She could feel the air twist oddly, something prickling at her with the same sensation she felt before a big thunderstorm. It left her with a feeling of expectation but also urgency, like she had forgotten what she was supposed to do.

For the first time since the meeting in the principal’s office, Mental-Sunset made an appearance, interjecting with a tired but pleased sounding voice, “You know, Sparky, for all she might not think you two are friends, she went to an awful lot of personal effort to help you.”

Mental-Sunset wasn't wrong, Twilight realized. Indigo had been hunting for her, to keep her from walking into the lions’ den, and then offered her a safe haven and alternative to it…something that was almost certain to get back to Suri and her cronies.

“She did this at a cost to herself—and it's not the first time, Sparky. For all the belief she isn't your friend, I’d say she’s probably the best friend you’ve got in this Tartarus-touched pit you call a school. She’s trying to watch your back because it's the right thing to do, regardless of the damage to herself—where is that kind of loyalty in your plant loving friend? You can't possibly think someone who listens to gossip like that didn't have any inkling of what those girls were planning. So why didn't she at least text you a warning?”

There was still quiet from Indigo, and Twilight hurried out of the stall, fixing her hair into a ponytail. “Indigo…” she started, waiting until the athlete turned towards her. “…I…know I’m not exactly the greatest at friendship—it's hard for me a lot of times, because I miss things about people unless I know what I’m looking at—but…you’ve done a lot for me you didn't have to. Today and before this. Things that have made you a target too, now, because we both know Suri will hear about you stopping me from walking into her trap.” She straightened her shoulders, meeting Indigo’s eyes and remembering the same look in a pair of blue-green ones what felt like a lifetime ago. “That…that makes you a pretty good friend in my book.”

There was a sharp intake of breath, and honey colored eyes stared at her, searching. “…Don't be so quick to say that, Sparkle,” she retorted. “I don't have the slightest idea how to be a friend to a genius like you. I’m just a meathead jock that’s smart enough to study.”

“Last I checked, Intelligence isn't one of the primary virtues of friendship,” Mental-Sunset joked. “If it was, some of my…closest companions would be out of luck. Loyalty’s a pretty good one though.”

So was selfless sacrifice, the dark haired teen told herself, almost picturing the wink and nod Sunset would give her. Twilight offered a smile. “You don't have to be a genius to be a good friend, Indigo. You cared about me, enough to do something kind to help me when you didn't have to. That matters more than whether or not you can do calculus or understand the theory of relativity.”

“…you think so?”

“I know so,” she said, feeling herself straighten under her conviction. “I’d be honored to call you my friend….if you’d let me.”

The other girl stared at her, as if she couldn't quite believe what she was hearing, then shook her head and laughed. “Anyone ever tell you that you're insane, Sparkle?”

“Me,” Mental-Sunset drawled in Twilight’s ear. “Turns out though, that I like your kind of crazy. It's hot.”

It took everything in her not to react to the fact that her subconscious was now having her mental construct of her girlfriend flirt with her. Twilight really needed to address this with her therapist.

Clearing her throat, Twilight replied as levelly as possible, “My best friend. The day after we met. So I suppose that puts you in decent company.” Then, before Indigo questioned that too much, she asked, “You don't have to consider us friends if you don't want to, but it's not going to change my mind.”

Laughing, the other teen shook her head. “You really are nuts…but you know what? Sure. It might be totally batshit, but it would be nice to have an actual friend in this Hellhole.” She stuck out her hand. “Friends?”

Twilight shook it firmly. “Friends,” she agreed, before shouldering her bag.

“C’mon then, Sparkle. Lets hide these with Mrs. Stacks and get to gym. I kinda want to see the look on Suri’s face when she comes out of the locker room and sees us.” There's a hint of cocky smugness to Indigo’s grin.

“Once more unto the breach then,” Twilight managed with a laugh, following the other girl to the door. “And Indigo?”

“What’s up, Sparkle?”

“My friends call me Twilight.”

So yeah. Things are getting iiiiiinteresting, arent they?

Mental Sunny doesnt seem to like Cinch, but she likes Indigo well enough. Wonder what real Sunset would think of her.

Also, its so refreshing to see Cinch on the back foot, isnt it? Crazy fae bastard.

And yes, now the Mental-Sunset has graduated to being flirty. I know you can all hear her voice and see the eyebrow wiggle she gives Twilight in that bit of conversation. (...I know I can. Character voices live rent free in my skull.)

Things are slowly coming together.

Also, once again, I apologize for the delay. Our idiot cat is fine, if walking a little funny and clearly feeling a tad violated. Thankfully, the string didnt catch on anything during its passage through his body, and the vet got it out without too much issue.

And no, to answer the question some one asked, he's not an orange cat with the communal braincell. He's a cute tabby--the one my spouse rescued after someone dumped him in the Walmart parking lot on a wet and frigid october night as a six or seven week old kitten. He's very sweet, and normally at least moderately intelligent, but he has this...want for eating trash. Dunno why. He eats plenty and is a healthy weight (according to the vet) at almost 13 pounds. Its...a lot more like living with a toddler than our last kitty, and makes me once again glad I didn't have kids, lol.

Anyway! Thanks for your patience, everyone, and hope you enjoyed this week's update! *rubs paws evilly.*