Ch 12 - A Fresh Clean Slate

----------(MONDAY 9:00 A.M. AT THE SCHOOL OF FRIENDSHIP)----------

It was a fresh new school day for all the relaxed students to get back to their usual class schedules after a nice weekend break from their lecture note taking, assignments, study group sessions and mental/physical sports training. Some creatures were running through the halls with toasted bread, crackers, hay-burgers and other breakfast consumables held onto their mouths, as they hasten to arrive to their classes either on time or a couple minutes earlier. Others were still chatting up with their peers to go over last weeks' course material, review lecture notes or just talk about what they had done in the weekend. As usual, this was a typical everyday occurrence for school mornings, albeit a few exceptions that became apparent after the weekend.

After that terrible accident down by Applejack's memorial park, Twilight Sparkle, the Princess of Friendship (and ruler of all Equestria) had rushed on over to the Ponyville Hospital to check the well-being of both Starlight Glimmer and Sunburst. However, only Starlight was available for a visit with the Princess of Friendship, and to the relief and heart-break for Starlight's best friends, family and most of the student body, she was able to survive the accident, but came down with a major memory loss. While she recovered from her severe mental trauma, Princess Twilight Sparkle was quick to search for Trixie Lulamoon the counselor, so she could quickly had her replace Starlight as the temporary headmare, since the Vice-Stallion Sunburst was nowhere to be found. Though two witnesses claimed he was off with some old school colleagues from the School of Magic for Gifted Unicorns, Canterlot governmental royal guards had interviewed with all of Sunburst's close colleagues and his former classmates in both Canterlot and the Crystal Empire, and their investigation had concluded that they never had even made contact with Sunburst, let alone visit him from the hospital. They didn't even know that he was involved in an accident until they were given the news by the investigators.

Further suspicion of Sunburst's unknown whereabouts only grew when Sunburst's mother, Stellar Flare (also the running mayoral candidate for Sire's Hollow) received news of Sunburst's involvement with the accident from Firelight's telegram and only visited the hospital within six hours after Firelight's visit to see his daughter (due to a political press conference in Manehattan). However, when the hospital could not confirm that Sunburst was at the hospital with Starlight, she thought that the hospital list had encountered a clerical error and messed up with the update on the hospital records. Determined to have this matter sorted out immediately, she wrote a letter to the Princess of Friendship, demanding that they send out a team of federal investigators to look further into any evidence of Sunburst's whereabouts (incidentally, another mare named Minty Mocha was also present in personally investigating Sunburst after she was informed by Stellar Flare about the lack of Sunburst's recorded visit to the hospital, but could not get any further information due to privacy concerns).

Upon reading Stellar Flare's letter about her missing son Sunburst, Princess Twilight Sparkle immediately knew that the absence of the Vice-Stallion from a well-known institution would spell disaster in the hierarchical order within the School of Friendship. In response to a mother's plea, Princess Twilight Sparkle immediately sent a request letter to her old friend Moondancer from Canterlot University to fill in the position as temporary Vice Headmare, while Princess Twilight Sparkle had immediately declared a federal missing Equestrian case for Sunburst and signed a royal search warrant that permitted obtainment of Ponyville hospital visiting records. Sure enough, there was evidence of a yellow-orange coated unicorn with a dark-orange mane that was in the same hospital at the same time with Starlight Glimmer, though his injuries were not consistent of those of a cart crash victim. Though there was no evidence of a cutie mark (as they were badly scraped) or any formal ID, the description of the supposed patient admitted alongside Starlight had matched with the description told by witnesses who saw him leave with a group of suspicious kirin in suits and robes.

Fearing that the missing Equestrian may had been a victim of slave trafficking, kidnapping or forced recruitment, several missing citizen posters of Sunburst (and a promise of a 50,000 bit reward) had been posted around Ponyville and Canterlot (including the School of Friendship), in the hopes that any creature with well-known information of his whereabouts would contact the royal police headquarters in Canterlot to inform them about his recent spotting. As of now, the last reported sighting of Sunburst was around Manehattan, though most of them were false alarms or lead to dead ends in the investigation. This was not surprising, considering that the severity of Sunburst's injuries to his flanks, mane and face made him nearly unrecognizable, and the poster portrait of the original Sunburst was not making it easy for citizens to properly identify the missing victim. However, considering how dire the situation is right now, the authorities will have to make due with any lead that would get them closer to the Vice-Stallion.

As for now, it was Moondancer's turn to be the Vice Headmare and Trixie Lulamoon's turn to be the main Headmare of the School of Friendship, as ordered by Princess Twilight Sparkle. Though both Moondancer and Trixie Lulamoon had never met each other before, they both had met with Twilight Sparkle before, but under very different circumstances. The only difference between these two respectable intelligent figures was that they were influenced by Twilight Sparkle's smart and compassionate influence to become better Equestrians in the near future. In Moondancer's story, it was finding her courage to escape her depressed life as a hermit to make new friends and rekindle old friendships after a failed attempt to hold a surprised party of the very same mare who became Equestria's new princess ruler. For Trixie, it was overcoming her failed past as an egocentric and narcissistic magician, before her newfound humility and willingness to accept help from new friends, that turned her into the heroic mare that saved Equestrian twice from apocalyptic doom. Despite their connections with the Princess of Friendship, both mares had very different ideas on how the school should be run, but considering the dire circumstances of the current situation, they were the only qualified Equestrians that the Princess of Friendship could find on such short notice.

"OH, my dear poor Starlight!" Headmare Trixie sighed as she lamented about her amnesiac best friend. "I was just about to complete my weekend counseling trip in Las Pegasus with my student client, when Princess Sparkle had to interrupt my therapy session at the Las Pegasus strip club! It's a shame me and Auburn had to cut our Sunday trip shortly before we head out for our hotel room with his new escort.."

As the sharpy dressed Trixie sat on the large swiveling comfy chair behind the headmare's office desk, while wearing her starry-patterned purple tuxedo and pants, she placed her lower hooves on the desk and held a silver mirror above her head. The headmare office she was taking charge in had once suffered an unfortunate explosion from Pinkie party's cannon, causing most of the walls to be rebuilt and repainted, new carpet patches laid out and new brass windows to be replaced. As she gazed aimlessly at the newly-rebuilt decor and stared back at her silver mirror, she later continued with her self-indulging monologue

"But FEAR NOT! The Humble and Gratifying Trixie shall take your place as the new Headmare and guide these students to the righteous path towards harmony, just like back in her counseling gig! But alas, this is only a temporary position as my dearest friend struggles to recover from her tragic memory loss...."

Then, Headmare Trixie got off her chair and stood proud at a star-like pose behind her desk, before hollering

"Nevertheless, I shall work twice---NO---THRICE as harder than ever to run this school like clockwork! You will not regret this decision to pick me as the new Headmare, Princess Sparkle! For my name isn't---!"

"Uhhhh, if you're done with your epic monologuing, Your Highness---!", sarcastically interrupted the light beige-yellow unicorn with the long red mane with a violet stripe.

"GAAH, MOONDANCER!! Knock before you enter, all right??!!", shouted the flustered and upset Headmare Trixie.

"I did---three times!", replied Vice-Headmare Moondancer. The triple-D cup unicorn mare was wearing her usual pair of square glasses, her black busty buttoned-up sweater, a short black skirt with a hemline above her knees, a pair of white wool stockings and a pair of black vinyl shoes.

"Just tell me the reason of your rude intrusion, Vice Headmare!", shouted Headmare Trixie as she sat back on her office chair with an upset glare on her face.

Ignoring her morning bad moods, Vice-Headmare Moondancer professionally answered her question

"WELL, as you might already know, classes are almost in session, yet due to the fact that Professor Pinkie Pie's suspension from this school is still in effect under Starlight's orders, we are now without a professor for the party planner course."

"Well, then do the obvious thing and have that rainbow-maned professor substitute for that class!!", ordered the annoyed and impatient Headmare Trixie.

"I can't. I just got a doctor's letter note from the Ponyville hospital that Professor Rainbow Dash had caught spring hay fever yesterday and is now on sick leave, meaning that there is also an absence for the physical education course", replied Moondancer.

"Are you kidding me?! Sick leave over a stupid hay fever??!", shouted the surprised and awed Head Trixie. "I thought this Element of Royalty doesn't back down from a challenging obstacle like that! Meh, I guess I was wrong to assume that...", Headmare Trixie continued as she shrugged her shoulders.

"FINE, guess I'll have to replace her---!", said Headmare Trixie as she was about to get off from her seat.

"WAIT, there's more!", interrupted Moondancer. "Professor Rarity had to excuse herself to fix an important clerical shipping error in her charity packages of free jackets and coats to the griffon slums, so she's also absent for today's historical fashion course."

"SERIOUSLY?!! Are there any more slackers in our teaching staff I should be aware about?", shouted the frustrated and red-faced Headmare Trixie.

Just as she was about to rant, Mr Greenhooves the groundskeeper (and the school's custodian) entered the headmare's officer with a bucket of cleaning utensils, such as a mop, a toilet brush, basic detergent and a squeegee.

"Good morning, Miss Lulamoon and Miss Moondancer", greeted the chipper Mr Greenhooves.

"I'm here to wash your windows! Don't mind me, just doing my job---"

"AH!! Here comes my perfect solution!", interrupted Headmare Trixie as she got up from her desk and walked right up to Mr Greenhooves.

"Mr--uhhhhhh----Janitor!", mumbled Trixie when she couldn't figure out his name.

"How would YOU like to be the new replacement P.E. teacher for Professor Rainbow Dash?", offered Headmare Trixie as she laid her arm around Mr Greenhooves.

"WHAT?!! Are you insane??! He's not even a qualified educator!", protested Vice Headmare Moondancer.

"As much as I hate to agree with her, I really don't see how I am fit to professionally teach a whole classroom. I'm just an old groundskeeper and a custodian", agreed the humble Mr Greehooves.

"LOOK, I'm not asking you to teach them special sports moves, compete with top athletes or---whatever jocks are doing these days! I just need you to keep those students active in playing some buckball, a bit of soccer, score some hoops---anything to get these students distracted from the weekend's incident!", suggested Headmare Trixie as she took the bucket of cleaning utensils from Mr Greenhooves.

"Your class will be at the auditorium, second floor, 9:30 a.m. sharp! Be there and keep them active!", ordered Trixie as she pointed Mr Greenhooves out of the door.

"Of COURSE! Whatever you say, new Headmare!", obeyed Mr Greenhooves as he nonchalantly mentioned Trixie's ephemeral role in this school and left the office.

"SEE?! Problem solved! No need to worry! I got this in the bag!", boasted Headmare Trixie as she smirked.

"YEAH, I'm SURE he's not going to get ganged up by those sweaty yaks, griffons and dragons who may not be afraid to intimidate an old man from his new substitute job!", sarcastically mumbled Moondancer as she stared at Trixie with an unamused attitude.

"WHAT are you still standing around here for, Vice Headmare?! Go find Rarity's class in Room 4-B upstairs and fill in for her! You're the one who wants to learn everything! Surely, you must've read up on clothing history!", ordered Headmare Trixie as she turned her attention to Vice Headmare Moondancer.

"Unlike my old generation, students today complain a lot about their teachers not being present in class! If I were them, I take this as my advantage to ditch school and play hooky!", complained the dramatically whining Headmare Trixie. She later continued on with her little rant

"But on these present days, the EEA would hunt our asses down if even ONE class is without their teacher being punctual on time today!"

"As much as I would, there's still that vacancy in Professor Pinkie Pie's classroom! Who's going to fill in for her while I get stuck lecturing in Professor's Rarity class?", asked Moondancer as she placed her hands on her hips.

"UGGGHH!", moaned the frustrated Headmare Trixie. "FINE! I'll take care with the pink professor's class for now! I've been meaning to let loose my magic tricks on the class anyway! Just head out of my office and do your duty!"

"Very well, Miss Headmare! As you wish...", replied the professionally behaved Moondancer as she head for the exit towards the hallway. As soon as she opened the intricately carved door, out came Master Zhi and Mr Tang, who are waving goodbye to their foster child.

"See ya, Turnip Head! Remember to not give your curry rice to any creature that may had allergies!", shouted Master Zhi as he hollered out for his foster son in the hallway

"HEY, if any critch tries to give you candy---!", shouted Mr Tang in the hallways.

"Give it a rest, old timer!!" barked Master Zhi as he pulled his ear to the headmare's door.

"And who are you two strangers are supposed to be?", asked Vice Headmare Moondancer as she gazed in curiosity of the two eccentric stallions.

"I'm here to balance out this genius' weaknesses!", claimed Mr Tang as he pointed to Master Zhi on his right.

"I'm just here to see the new Headmaster today", said Master Zhi as he took off his Qing cap, placed it on his chest and bowed to Vice Headmare Moondancer out of respect.

"She's standing here in this office today! Now if you excuse me, I got some REALLY important substitute teacher work to do", quickly said Vice Headmare Moondancer, before she briskly head out into the hallways. Master Zhi then later put his Qing cap back on his head and spotted the new Headmare standing on a round purple carpet.

As both Master Zhi and Mr Tang both walked up to Miss Trixie Lulamoon, they both greeted the new headmare with a traditional respectful bow.

"Good morning, new Headmare! It's very nice to meet you", said Master Zhi as he bent his hips and head forward.

"You look lovely today, Miss Headmare", complimented Mr Tang as he bent his hips and head forward even further.

"Uhhh, who the hell are you two and what are you doing in my office?", asked the confused Headmare Trixie.

"OH, my name's Young Master Zhi! I once asked for a job from the previous Headmare, Starlight Glimmer. I got rejected after a---very unfortunate incident that made this office room crumbled---but I was hoping that you would give me a second chance to work at this school again to redeem myself!", excitedly pleaded Master Zhi as he placed his palms together.

"And that here is my good friend, Mr Tang!", introduced Master Zhi as he presented his friend on his left side.

"C'mon, dude! Bow some more!!", he shouted as he slapped his palm against the back of Mr Tang's head.

"I did it much more reverently than you before! Hit me again and I'll kill you!!", shouted the frustrated Mr Tang as he rubbed his wrinkly head.

"I'm here to see if there's any unoccupied teaching positions that need filling! I'm here as both a volunteer caretaker AND a friend for Miss Starlight Glimmer, to help keep her school stable as she recovers from her memory loss!", proclaimed Master Zhi as Headmare Trixie stared at the two random men with questioning wariness.

"Ohhh, are you her asylum nurse or something?", jokingly asked Headmare Trixie as she crossed her arms.

"I think it's more safe to say that I'm the polymath jack of all trades who is really the master of everything!", boasted Master Zhi as he pointed the thumb at himself

"Hmmmm! So you're a wannabe show-off who wants to demonstrate to the world that he's got gumption, huh?", questioned Headmare Trixie as her interest began to grow.

"HA, I like your style, weird guy! Reminds me of my old self back in my younger years! I see you still haven't lost that spiritual touch! VERY WELL, you're taking Professor Pinkie's 9:30 A.M. class at Room 3A below you!", ordered the delighted Headmare Trixie as she pointed down onto the ground.

"Thank you, Miss Headmare! Thank you for giving me a second chance!", praised Master Zhi as he bowed down and saluted at her with the utmost respect, before graciously leaping out of the headmare's office.

"HEY, it's what I do! Giving second chances to any troublesome creature is my specialty! That's why they call me the Great and Powerful Trixie!", boasted the self-respecting Headmare.

"HEY, what about me, wise lady?! I still need to find out where my groundskeeper boss is, so I could get started on my next task!", said the grouchy old Mr Tang.

"WELL, since the groundskeeper is too busy teaching gym class, you're going to be the new head custodian boss from now on!", happily praised Headmare Trixie as she laid out her hand towards Mr Tang.

"There will be a student worker waiting for you at the communal washrooms at this hallway! Be there before 9:20 a.m. with your student! You are to guide her in the art of custodian cleaning! You think you can handle that?!", interrogated the stern and demanding Headmare Trixie.

"YES, MA'AM! I am specialized in all times of sanitary work! No job is too shitty for this veteran! You can count on that, lady!", exclaimed the determined old Mr Tang as he gave out a salute to Headmare Trixie.

'Geez, how can such an old man be so rude, yet so adamantly obedient at the same time?', thought Headmare Trixie.

----------(9:25 A.M. IN PROFESSOR PINKIE'S CLASSROOM)----------

Inside the rowdy classroom of many young hippogriffs, dragons, changedlings, fillies and colts, there were some students who were sitting on their own desks or chairs, chatting with each other about what they were about to learn next and what would their next substitute teacher would be like. Though they were saddened that their favourite Professor Pinkie Pie would not be here today, they were still holding onto hope that their favourite teacher will be back very soon. Other young creatures were goofing off with their peers, throwing crumbled paper at each other, shooting spitballs at the ceiling lamps and flying around each other in the air.

Sitting in the front middle of the classroom was Tiny Turnip Head, Smolder and Ocellus, who were discussing about what they had done over the weekend. First up was Smolder's story...

"Me and my bro went out to see the Lava Landsliders compete against the Snow Yetis on the school's hoofball field this Saturday! It was pretty epic seeing the yak players go horn-to-horn against my team! But in spite of our victorious events, I kinda felt bad about hurting the yaks' team pride today...SO, I decided to buy them all 'You Tried' cakes from Sugarcube corner and got myself a calf's honorary yak horn in return!"

Next, was Ocellus' turn to talk about her weekend...

"I went to see the local school theater the other day to see the kindergarten's re-enactment of the battle between the Elements of Harmony and the Villainous Trio. Though the special effects were cheap and low-budget, it was fun seeing those little fillies and colts at the schoolhouse have fun together, in spite of the bad production value!"

After they were finished summarizing their break stories, both females turned their heads to the new tiny white pegasus boy in school. Smolder was the first one to speak to the new creature in town.

"Say, new kid! Tiinnyy---TURNIP Head, right?? Word on the block said you got involved in some hefty shenanigans over the weekend. Was it true that Yona and Gallus got chased by kung-fu karate-chopping kirin??!", asked the excited Smolder.

"C'mon, Smolder! You SERIOUSLY really believe that??! If that were the case, it would already be on the news already!", questioned the skeptical Ocellus after she lifted her eyes from her newspaper.

"Don't believe everything you read on that dumb paper! Nothing but exaggerated lies!", shouted Smolder as she turned her attention to Ocellus.

"I'm not! I'm just stating what is being reported by multiple sources and coming to conclusions from the facts I collected! I don't just read ONE specific newspaper, you know??", back-sassed Ocellus as she continued to read on.

"WHATEVER! I get MY dose of news from the gossips and rambles from the streets and hallways! SO TELL ME, was your weekend just as epic as they say?", asked Smolder as her enlarged gaze was being focused onto Tiny Turnip Head. She held both sides of her cheeks with her claws in anticipation for Turnip's confirmation.

"I wasn't there with Master Zhi and Mr Tang when that happened, as I was hanging out in their rented apartment room! But if I was REALLY there to see it, I bet I could tell you that they fought these bad qilin off valiantly, like those martial arts heroes from those awesome action flicks back home! HIYAH, HOOOYAAAHH, WACHACHAHCHA!!!", shouted the excited Tiny Turnip Head as he flew up and performed his random swing kicks and punches. He was careful to not hit the other rowdy students around him as the whole class waited for their new substitute.

"Woah there, little dude! You're going to give some creature a black eye with those moves!", hollered Smolder as she raised her claws to signal the excited white pegasus boy to relax.

"I'm sorry! I'm just so excited to hear that Master Zhi and Mr Tang actually became heroes as soon as they arrived in Ponyville! He and Mr Tang are the greatest masters to have ever lived!", shouted the elated Tiny Turnip Head.

"So I've heard! My dear friend Yona also told me about how your self-proclaimed 'Master' and his weird old guy friend saved the Headmare and the Vice Stallion after last weekend's accident. It's a shame that the Headmare had lost most of her memories, and even more devastating to hear that the Vice-Head Stallion has gone missing!"

Ocellus later added her part of the conversation as she was reading her newspaper.

"What's even more surprising was that some mayor from outta town decided to invite you to some party for saving the Headmare! And he's the Headmare's daddy!! Small world we are living in, huh?"

"I mean, seriously dude! Your kooky 'Master' and his old geezer just told some officer to bring over a couple peps¹ to the crash scene via call-box! It's not THAT big of a deal!", scoffed Smolder as she crossed her arms.

Tiny Turnip Head later added his thoughts into the conversation in relation to last weekend's events

"Master Zhi and Mr Tang are the best family I ever hoped for! If it wasn't for them, they would've not save her from her horrible daddy and the mean crowd that was trying to take her!"

"Horrible??! Him?! What beef do you have against Starlight's father?", questioned the confused but curious Smolder. She was not angry at Turnip Head for calling Firelight horrible, even though he was the one who went to the hospital to check her well-being. She came from a culture of dragons where parents were more all about that 'tough love' approach and disciplining kids with corporal punishment if it was absolutely necessary. Even still, it was strange for Tiny Turnip Head to have a disdain for a random Equestrian with little reason.

"UHOH, check this out!", hollered Ocellus as she was reading the Squawker Press. "According to yesterday's article, Firelight's daughter, aka Headmare Starlight of the School of Friendship, confessed that her father used to cuddle her into his own home safe space by gas-lighting her about the supposed outside dangerous world. It was this supposed isolation from all the good things in the world that led to Starlight to become the cutie-mark snatching equalist cult leader for a couple years, which lead to many Equestrians losing their self-identity and unique personalities. If the mayoral candidate had been more aware of the signs his child was exhibiting, she would not had pursued a career of forcing victims into isolation in the hopes that they followed her twisted conformist ideology". As Ocellus read through the article, her tone transiently from curiously interested to shockingly horrified.

"Dude, I may not understand some of what she said here, but based on her reaction, you, Gallus, Yona and your weird family must've REALLY screwed things up in Sire's Hollow!", said Smolder as she shuddered a little towards Ocellus' reaction on her face.

"What in Equestria did you do that made Headmare Starlight say these horrible things??!", shouted the shocked Ocellus as she shoved her dark teal bug-eyed face towards Tiny Turnip Head.

"NOTHING!! All we did was bang gongs and drums, had Yona swallow a giant sword and saw Miss Headmare feel so scared of the flashy and clicking cameras in the crowd! She just---shouted that her father used to lie to her and the crowd went crazy!!", confessed the surprised Tiny Turnip Head as he stared at Ocellus' shocked expression.

"Wait, did you just say---Yona swallowed a sword??!", questioned the surprised Smolder. "That's so strange of her to do, even for boastful yaks like her! She never told me about that! Then again---she was running a bit late for class this morning, so---"

Before Smolder could finish her line of thought, Tiny Turnip Head suddenly shouted, "MASTER ZHI??!! IS THAT YOU??!"

As Master Zhi barged into the classroom by slamming his whole body onto the partially-opened door, the sudden recoil of the door bouncing back on the wall caused the door to slam back at Master Zhi's side, causing him to growl and shake his fist at the "attacking" door.

"You have GOT to be shitting me!! HE'S the substitute teacher??!!", cried Smolder as she stood up on her desk.

"ALL RIGHT!!! He's going to teach our class today to look after me!", celebrated Tiny Turnip Head as he jumps out of his seat with hyped-up energy.

"Oooh boy.....this is going to be interesting. Can't wait to see what your foster parent really looks like", muttered Ocellus as she looked onto the eccentric yellow stallion walking to the large teacher's desk.

"大家收聲呀! (Daai Gaa Sow Seng AA!)²", shouted Master Zhi in his loudest voice possible. Though he spoke in a Canternese language, it got the whole classroom's attention nevertheless. The students quickly got back to their seats, before they gaze in awesome curiousity at their new substitute teacher for party planning class. Just who was this crazy young man who thinks he could run this classroom like it was his own?

"As you can see here, your new headmare had assigned me as your new substitute teacher for Professor Pinkie Pie today! All of you shall address me as 'Master Zhi', no more and no less!", hollered Master Zhi as he addressed the whole class.

"WOOOHOOOOO, go Master Zhi!!! Give my classmates the power of KNOWLEDGE!!", cheered Tiny Turnip Head as he clapped for joy.

Soon, all the other hippogriff and dragon students started whispering gossip about the substitute teacher

'Master Zhi??! Is he like supposed to be the boss level of all teachers??'

'I never suspected that Headmare Trixie would find such a genius so soon!'

'Dude, I think I might had seen that guy before when he rocketed out in the sky to save that senior from falling!'

'Isn't he like that over-hyped pegasus' daddy or something?'

"Unless you want me to kick you gossip gals outside for the rest of the whole period, I suggest you keep quiet and only answer when I call out your name for attendance! Oh, and the SAME goes for you, TURNIP!!!", shouted Master Zhi as he took the clipboard list of names on the desk.

As every creature in the class stood still in fear of Master Zhi's suddenly disapproving stare, Tiny Turnip Head sheepishly slouched down on his seat and apologized for his erratic behaviour.

"GOOD!", shouted Master Zhi as he read the names on the attendance list. "Now let's see here..."

"Behemoth!"

"Here!", shouted the shy brownish-yellow dragon boy sitting at the far left side of the classroom.

"Man, how could such a tiny drak³ be called a Behemoth by his parents?", commented Master Zhi as he shook his head while holding the list. Some of the creatures giggled at the substitute's remark for the shy dragon.

"Hey, what the---!? Who in this class is named 'Charley Horse Angel'??!", shouted the amazed Master Zhi.

"That's him!/RIGHT HERE!", shouted the whole class as they pointed at the blue hippogriff girl with pink head feathers, sitting on the far right front side of the classroom.

"HOH HOH HOH, is that so??", responded Master Zhi as he stared at the bashful hippogriff girl.

"You! Stand up straight and tall!", ordered Master Zhi as he pointed his finger at the shy hippogriff.

"Uhhh-meee??", questioned the shy blue hippogriff as she lifted her head and pointed at herself. Every creature in the class started muttering about whether she did something wrong in front of the new teacher.

"YES, pog⁴! I'm talking to you! Stand up!", he shouted with a little more frustration.

Suddenly standing up and nervously looking straight ahead, Master Zhi then approached the shaken hippogriff girl's desk up front and calmly said to her

"Now bend your knees a bit and look straight at me."

Weirded out by his strange request, but not wanting to get into further trouble, she did what he told her to do, albeit a bit more slowly and with agitation to her lower limbs.

"Who the hell gave you that name??! Charley Horse Angel???", harshly asked Master Zhi as he stared at the hippogriff girl with the shaking knees.

"I--uhhh----my parents told me it was from a favourite theatre movie they saw in their vacation in Manehattan...." sheepishly replied the soft-spoken knee-bent Charley. "That's why---they gave me that name----is there something wrong with my name?"

"YES, it's TOO long to remember for me! No way I could call out your name without goofing up", replied Master Zhi with haste, before he started to ponder on a solution.

"Hmmmmm, I KNOW! I'll give you a shorter code name that is easier to remember! From now on, you are known as 'Angels 89'", said Master Zhi before Charley reluctantly nodded in agreement.

"All right, you may sit now!", ordered Master Zhi before Angels 89 quietly sat down with her face staring at the desk.

Then suddenly, there was a double knock at the door and Master Zhi looked to his left to see Headmare Trixie standing by the classroom's exit.

"Miss Headmare?! What are you doing here??", questioned Master Zhi as he approached the door. Headmare Trixie was standing by the door with her arms crossed, staring at Master Zhi with a smirk on her face.

"If you wanted to discuss on my perks and conditions, I would be happy to talk to you outside after---"

Immediately out of sheer panic, Master Zhi saw somepony outside the door that made him scream and run straight to the window on the far opposite side of the classroom, before jumping on the window sill with his back facing against the glass. It was like he had saw a giant spider monster come crawling into the classroom.

In reality though, it was actually the crystal blue-eyed violet-pink-coated unicorn mare, Starlight Glimmer, who was now wearing one of Master Zhi's long blue shirts, his three-buttoned black silk vest (with the buttons laid out horizontally), a pair of Mr Tang's brown business trousers and a pair of black vinyl shoes. In addition, she was also carrying her dark violet vinyl saddle purse over her shoulders.

As soon as every creature suddenly realized their old headmare, every creature started applauding and celebrating loudly and happily for her welcomed return back to the School of Friendship. They all cried out their gratitude and exuberant delight for the legendary Starlight Glimmer

"Miss Headmare is back!!! ALL RIGHT!!"

"Welcome back, Headmare Starlight Glimmer!!"

"We missed you SO much!!"

"No cart crash is gonna put the Headmare out of business forever!!"

"SILENCE IN THE CLASSROOM, s'il vous plaît!!", shouted Headmare Trixie as she banged the door to get the whole classroom to tone down the noise.

"Miss Headmare?! What is she doing here?! I thought you told me she was resting her head in that tall crystal castle nearby!", shouted Tiny Turnip Head as he looked at Starlight Glimmer, before he turned his attention to Master Zhi.

"I did! I did!", shouted Master Zhi as he remained crouched on the edge of the windowsill for awhile, before Headmare Trixie urged the crazy young stallion to come over to the door.

"Well well well...seems that your friend/ex-employer here has finally decided to come back from her healing nap!", smirked Headmare Trixie as she crossed her arms and stared at the disappointed Master Zhi.

Feeling a bit confused and lost for words for a moment, Master Zhi later asked the quirky-dressed Starlight Glimmer

"Miss Starlight, why did you come back to the Friendship School all of a sudden? Please tell me it's not because you remembered about the last time I met you!", Master Zhi sadly asked as he laid out his hands in a begging gesture.

"Headmare Trixie visited me at the Crystal Castle today and read me the friendship journal entry about how I helped Twilight find her own Friendship School. As soon as she mentioned that, everything about this institution started flooding back to me now.", Starlight Glimmer replied back to Master Zhi.

"WAIT a second, wouldn't that mean you remembered about becoming a headmare??!!", shouted Master Zhi as he questioned Starlight Glimmer.

"She's not THAT far into remembering her current position yet.", answered Headmare Trixie. "Apparently, her memory can only go so far as to set her at a time when she was only a counselor. Since she's technically not mentally prepared to be our headmare yet, I decided that she can continue recovering by acting as the new replacement substitute teacher for this class!". Headmare Trixie later turned her attention to the students.

"Thus, I would like every creature here in this school to address her as Miss Starlight Glimmer until she gets her whole memory back!"

"Awwwww, you mean Master Zhi's not going to be our new substitute any more??!!" BOOOOO!!", jeered the upset Tiny Turnip Head as he hooted at Miss Starlight Glimmer and Headmare Trixie.

"Hey, you should at least be glad that I helped Miss Starlight Glimmer hitch a ride on her road to recovery, you ungrateful brat!", barked Headmare Trixie with a tone so harsh and scary, it made Tiny Turnip Head immediately sit back to his seat out of sheer panic.

"Ohhh, don't mind him, Headmare Trixie", said Miss Starlight Glimmer as she approached the teacher's desk. "I promise that I will be the best substitute teacher I can be for Professor Pinkie Pie! It's a good thing I am able to recall some dessert baking recipes from my head...".

"Besides, memory loss or no, I still need to be there for my students, no matter how bad things may turn", she later continued in her speech. "It may be troubling for me to remember the students' names and their grade performances, but someday, I will be back to my old original self"

"All right, GO Miss Starlight!", shouted Smolder with encouragement.

"I'm so happy that you decided push forward after that crash!", expressed Ocellus with comforting relief.

Tiny Turnip Head gave out a heavy sad sigh, but remember what he had said to Miss Starlight Glimmer back in the motel room in Sire's Hollow:

💭'HEY, don't give up now! You were able to remember how to sign your name AND draw out your cutie mark before! PLUS, you remembered how terrible your daddy really is! Soon enough, you're going to remember EVERYTHING! We believe in you, Headmare!'💭

"Fiinneee, as long as this will bring back your Headmare...", smiled Tiny Turnip Head as he looked at Starlight's content expression of being back in the spotlight.

"Guess your ingenious services are no longer needed, Master!", snickered Headmare Trixie as she exited the classroom and walked across the hallway

"WHAT, but---GGAUUUGGHH!!!", groaned Master Zhi as he exited the hallway.

As the Headmare and the Master walked across the large arched hallway, they passed by a familiar turquoise-shelled amber-eyed changedling who was standing outside motionlessly in the hallway.

"Late again for class, Cornicle?" commented Headmare Trixie as she passed him by.

"I forgot to rewind my clock again. Sorry, no excuse. Won't happen again, Headmare Trixie", nervously spoke Cornicle as he continued to look straight ahead.

"C'mon, Miss Headmare! Gimme another chance to work at this school!! I beg of you!!", cried Master Zhi as he continued to follow Headmare Trixie along the hallway.

"Look, it DOESN'T have to be something academic!! Just give me something laborious to do!", he continued to plead to the uninterested Headmare.

"Sorry, but we don't have any more budget room for new job vacancies at the moment", apologized Headmare Trixie. She tried her best to ignore the persistent Master Zhi while she continued to walk through the hallway.

"LOOK, I'll work here for free until you are satisfied! You don't have to pay me in money! A share from of leftover food from the cafeteria or free drinks from the teacher's lounge break-room would suffice for me! Once you are 100% satisfied with my work, then I'll take my minimum wage in bits!", Master Zhi conveyed as he tried to negotiate a better working deal with the new Headmare.

"Hmmmm, work here for free, you say??", Headmare Trixie suddenly asked when Master Zhi mentioned his willingness to volunteer his work time at the school. "All right then, if you say so"

"OF COURSE I do say so!! Wouldn't you also agreed to say so too??", asked Master Zhi as he ran up to Headmare Trixie's path and winked at her.

"Riiiigghhhht, you can start your day by doing some cleaning work...", said Headmare Trixie after she teleported past Master Zhi and continued on her way.

"RIGHT, of course! Uhhhh, cleaning what exactly??", asked Master Zhi as he went from excitement to confusion.

"What do you think, Master of All??! My office, the hallways, the toilets in the communal washroom---!!?", shouted Headmare Trixie as she was close to being done with the young stallion brown-noser.

"OF COURSE, MA'AM! I WON'T LET YOU DOWN!", hollered Master Zhi as he stood up to give a salute.

'Geez, this guy would probably risk his own reputation and dignity to wash all the male athletes' jockstraps! Nothing puts this young man down! What's with this nutjob and his old geezer??', thought Headmare Trixie as she looked back at the Far Eastern Equestrian stallion.

----------(10:00 A.M. IN THE SCHOOL'S COMMUNAL WASHROOM)----------

As Master Zhi entered the sea-blue tile-laden washroom, he could see Mr Tang and Silverstream rapidly scrubbing on the walls, ceilings and floors like a crazy caffeine addict. Inside the washroom laid an elongated metal communal sink, where water can be spouted from multiple taps from both sides of the sink. On top of that, a reflective silver mirror strip was completely stretched out onto the long communal sink. On each opposite bathroom wall, there was a row of ten toilets embedded into the ceramic surface and were only separated by wooden slabs between each toilet, giving the students only partial privacy of their toilet business. Fortunately, the communal washrooms were gender-segregated and the distance between the sink and the toilets were wide enough to allow the bulky yaks, griffons and dragons to use the facilities. Some toilets had seats that were large and bulky in volume to support their large derrieres.

"I think I'm finally getting the hang of this custodian work, Mister Tang! The tiles are so clean, I can see my reflection!", shouted the excited Silverstream as she admired the shiny floor she had just waxed. Silverstream was wearing her dark blue shirt and long pants as her custodian uniform.

"You keep this up and I might someday show you how to hunt for hidden treasures within the sewer pipes!", shouted the eager Mr Tang as he rapidly wiped the toilet bowl so fast, it sounded like he was scratching a DJ record in a remix dashboard⁵. Alongside his custodian uniform, Mr Tang was also wearing his strapped bright yellow apron over his front body.

"I'm so GLAD I took this part-time job at this school! I can't WAIT to tell this to Gallus when he's finished with his suspension!", happily cried Silverstream as she held her bucket of cleaning products and tools with her left talon, as well as her wax-soaked towel with her right talon.

"HEY, why are you two guys cleaning the toilets inside the washroom?", asked Master Zhi as he observed both Mr Tang and Silverstream scrubbing the toilet bowls and sinks with their sponges and hog-bristled brushes.

"We have to be IN the washroom to wash the washroom toilets, DUH!", answer Silverstream as she turned around to see Master Zhi. Then she immmediately recognized the stallion that she was talking to.

"HEY, I remember you from that tower incident! You're friends with this old geezer here, right??!"

"Quick as a whip, bogey!", answered Mr Tang as he continued to clean the underside of the toilet.

Silverstream then started to act like a fangirl in the washroom, chatting about the amazing things they had done over the weekend as she squished both cheeks with her wet talons.

"OOOH, it must be SO nice to be recognized as the hero who saved Headmare Starlight and Vice Stallion Sunburst! I read about you two on the paper the other day! Especially that part where you had made a ruckus at some mayor's political rally---!"

"HEY, we're not here to discuss life stories here!! Get back to swabbing and scrubbing, Missy!!", interrupted Mr Tang as he brought the focus back into Silverstream's work.

"OH, sorry!", apologized Silverstream. "Sometimes I get REALLY lost in the excited moment meeting the family of a new student! WELL, I better get back to scrubbing these amazingly smooth curvy toilet bowls! Mr Greenhooves won't pay us until EVERY toilet in this school is sparkling white!"

Silverstream then proceeded to poor the dark-blue detergent liquid around the rims of the toilet, before pulling out a hog-bristled brush, dipped it into the toilet water and scrubbing around the toilet rim like a mechanical eggbeater in a mixing bowl.

"You moron!! Your boss needs to see you working hard on those toilets!", exclaimed Master Zhi as the two scrubbed the toilets so fast, their arms looked like vibrating pumping jackhammers.

"So what? You want the Headmare and Mr Greenhooves come over scrub the shit outta these toilets every 15 minutes or so??! BAH, like they give a rat's ass of what we're doing right now!", scoffed the eye-rolling Mr Tang as he went on to the next toilet.

"EXACTLY, they would be too busy on their own work to notice! But STILL, if they don't see us clean these toilets, they won't know we were there in the washroom to begin with! And if they don't know we were the ones working hard in the washroom to clean these toilets, we won't be paid our earned wages on our payday!". shouted Master Zhi as they continued scrubbing left and right, bouncing between two alternative walls to scrub all the toilets as fast as they can. Sometimes while cleaning, both Mr Tang and Silverstream would even stand on the walls, keeping themselves still with their levitation magic and hovering wings, respectively.

"The Headmare and the head custodian may see that the toilets will be sparkling clean, but they would have no idea who made them sparkling clean! You understand what I'm saying??", said Master Zhi before Silverstream answered in response.

"WELL---I guess that kinda makes sense....there ARE a few other student janitors who are working in this school to pay for their textbooks, writing tools and field trips", pondered Silverstream as she scratched her head with the used toilet brush.

"SO whaddya suggest we do, genius??!! It's not like we can bring our workload to the Headmare's office or anything!", sarcastically boasted Mr Tang as be was working on the toilet seat.

"----Actually-----you may be onto something", said Master Zhi as he whispered his plan onto Mr Tang's ear.

As Master Zhi whispered his plan into Mr Tang's head, this at first made Mr Tang question his sanity, but as Master Zhi went further on with his idea, Mr Tang later soon realize that if he were to follow one of his ludicrous friends' crazy ideas, it would mean that he would get these bonus wages he has been yearning for...

----------(11:45 A.M. IN THE HEADMARE'S OFFICE)----------

🚽🎵"Scrub-a-dub there, scrub-a-down-there!"🎵🚽

🚽🎵"Scrub it 'round the rims, 'til it looks all clear!"🎵🚽

🚽🎵"Don't scrub it in there, go scrub it out there!"🎵🚽

🚽🎵"Keep scrubbin', scrubbin', scrubbin' 'til it flashes n' glares!"🎵🚽

Strewn across the dusty violet carpet floor, in front of the headmare's office desk, there were all twenty chipped and cracked toilets that had been ripped off from their washroom walls, all thanks to Mr Tang who lend Master Zhi and Silverstream a sledgehammer and jackhammer from the outdoor tool shed, respectively!

🚽🎵"BRUSH BRUSH BRUSH, brush the grime away!"🎵🚽

In addition to the relocated toilets (and the pieces of broken porcelain debris and dust contaminating the floor), there were also sliced sections of the steel sink that were also ripped off from their tiled floor and were spread haphazardly around the messed-up office. Mops, dust pans, brooms, buckets of soapy water, sponges, hog-bristled toilet brushes and a cordless vacuum cleaner were also littered around the office for the two new eccentric custodians to use in cleaning the separate sinks and toilets. By literally bringing their hard work to the Headmare's office and cleaning those toilets and sinks in close proximity to the Headmare's working space, Master Zhi figured that the new Headmare would be able to truly see her employees putting their backs into their custodian work without having to leave the comfort of her office!

🚽🎵"Wishy-wishy-wooshy, for the naked tushy!"🎵🚽

As the maniacal Master Zhi and the silly Silverstream continued to scrub their finest hard work to their delightful content, their wet cleaning fluids were being soaked by the carpet floor, contributing more to the disastrous mess within the Headmare's office. But that didn't matter much to the two nutjobs. As soon as they were done with the toilets and sinks in the Headmare's office, they would quickly clean up all mess with their vacuum cleaner, dustpans and brooms, before they put all the toilets and sinks back to their original washroom. Then, they would repeat the whole process again with the remaining dirty toilets and sinks from the other washrooms. Just as they were enjoying their love of labor and dreams of being paid a bigger bonus for their hard work...

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU TWO DOING IN THE HEADMARE'S OFFICE???!! Why the hell are there cracked toilets and chopped up metal sinks scattered across the floor??!!", shouted Vice Headmare Moondancer as she barged into the office and ran up to confront the two dim-witted custodians.

"DUH! What does it LOOK like we're doing, ma'am??! We're cleaning the toilets and sinks in the Headmare's office!", shouted Silverstream as she was on her fifth toilet cleaning scrub already.

"Wha----why---BUT----you---??!!", stuttered Vice Headmare Moondancer as she was at a lost for words over the disarrayed entropy state of the entire messy office room. Then she immediately blew up a hot gasket towards Silverstream

"Why can't you two idiots just clean the toilets and sinks INSIDE their own washrooms instead??!! Look at this horrible mess you all made!! How did you even get this many toilets and sinks up there in such short time??!!", questioned the livid red-faced Moondancer who clenched her teeth with infuriation.

"We want Miss Headmare to see us working hard while she works at her office! That way, she'll know who made the toilets and sinks super sparkling clean, so that we may get paid a good salary!", answered the overjoyed Master Zhi as he was scrubbing the sink with another rag.

"WHA---?!! Are you---??!! DON'T BE RIDICULOUS!!", stuttered the angrily confused Moondancer, who couldn't believe what she was hearing. "You're not going to get paid AT ALL if the Headmare finds out you trashed her office AND the washroom!!"

"Not unless we clean all this up after we're done cleaning our hard-earned work!", replied the ecstatic Silverstream as she picked up a cordless vacuum cleaner to demonstrate how she will suck up all the porcelain dust up from the dirty floor. However, as she was picking the vacuum up, she accidentally activated one of the switches that immediately blew a giant blast of air so powerful, it caused Moondancer's short black skirt to be lifted up in an updraft! Her black satin thong with the pink heart at the front became temporarily visible for both Master Zhi and Silverstream to gawk at!

😱"AAAHHHHH!!!", screamed Vice Headmare Moondancer as she immediately push down onto her skirt to hide her black racy panties from being viewed by the two perverts.

"WHOOPS, sorry sorry sorry!!", apologized the screaming Silverstream as she tried to work around with the controls on the cordless vacuum. Unfortunately, due to her bad interpretation of symbols on the control dial and her brash panicking, she accidentally set the vacuum to suck up all the air in front of the vacuum. Since it was still stuck at a very high setting, the vacuum ended up sucking up and ripping Moondancer's black skirt out of her hemline!

😱"WAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!", shrieked the flustered and rosy-faced Vice Headmare as she saw her own skirt being eaten up by the cordless vacuum.

"AAAHH, sorry sorry sorry!!!", screamed Silverstream as she saw the vacuum malfunction and short-circuit from the black skirt blocking its opening.

As soon as Silverstream and Master Zhi realized that Vice Headmare Moondancer's black racy thong with the pink heart was completely exposed in the wide opening, the rosy-cheeked and sweaty Vice Headmare immediately shoved her hands between her legs to hide her embarassingly lewd panties.

"Silverstream, what the hell??! You sick pervert!!", shouted the upset Master Zhi as he berated Silverstream.

"GAAAHHH, I can fix this, Master Zhi!! Don't you worry!!", yelled Silverstream as she punched the controls on the cordless vac, before the vacuum started to reboot and immediately started spitting Moondancer's tattered black skirt and a charging cloud of dust towrds Moondancer's crotch.

"What the hell is going on in here??? Look at this mess!", shouted Headmare Trixie as soon as she entered her office to see what all the commotion was about.

"That is IT, Trixie!!", shouted the upset Vice Headmare Moondancer as she approached Headmare Trixie. As she was quickly marching towards the Headmare, she was desparately holding her tattered skirt around her waist, trying to cover up her large exposed cutie-mark butt cheeks (with the violent crescent moon and three triple-point pink stars).

"If you don't get these two airheads outta this school RIGHT NOW, I'm not gonna work with you anymore!!", protested Moondancer as she wagged her finger at the Headmare.

Unphased by Moondancer's threats to quit her post and leave the Headmare to run the school on her own, Headmare Trixie nonchalantly showed Moondancer out the door with her thumb and said to her,

"By all means, quit while you're ahead..."

Realizing that the Headmare couldn't care less about her dignity, well-being and working conditions (and that the Headmare was a total witch who wants to run the school in her own style), Moondancer frustratingly shook her pointing finger at Headmare Trixie as the Headmare stoically nodded in agreement, thereby confirming the Headmare's willingness to get rid of Moondancer's high-ranking position.

"You wouldn't-----UUGGGHHH!!!!!", screeched the bemoaned Moondancer before she stormed out of the office with her tattered skirt around her hips, never bothering to say her final farewell to her boss.

As Silverstream was starting to get the hang of her cordless vacuum and Master Zhi resumed his job in cleaning the sinks in front of his new boss, the disappointed and upset Headmare Trixie went up to the two responsible hooligans and said

"What in Celestia's name is this garbage?"

"OH, Miss Headmare! Now that your partner has decided to quit her post, shall I now go fill in for her?", asked Master Zhi as he raised his cleaning brush into the air.

"OH, don't mind her! She's a redundant Vice Headmare anyway!", scoffed the unamused Headmare Trixie who had her hands planted onto her hips.

"She's only here because my former rival, aka Princess Twilight---", Trixie sneered as she shoved her head back and forth, "---wanted me to hire her long-time childhood school friend as a courtesy gift! I really didn't approve of that nerd nagging harsh criticisms over how I was running the school, so I've been meaning to get rid of her without the princess raising any suspicion from me."

As Master Zhi and Silverstream stared in silent awe over Headmare Trixie's disdain for her former Vice Headmare, the upset Headmare suddenly shouted at the two airheads

"WELL, why are you gawking around like pigeons for??!! Clean up this filthy mess in my office and put these damn toilets and sinks back to where they belong!!"

"Awwww, but aren't you going to tell us how much of a great job we did to cleaning these toilets??!", asked the sad pleading Silverstream.

Without saying a word, Headmare Trixie left her office and left the two confused custodians to wonder about whether they will get their extra wage credit for displaying their hard work.

----------(OUTSIDE THE HEADMARE'S OFFICE)----------

"WELL, it looks like she ain't gonna be working here anymore, right Miss Headmare??! Man, if only I was been there to see that skirt get ripped off her waistband!", said Mr Tang as he stood idly by the headmare's door.

"DON'T push it! Thanks for warning me about these two crackpots...", replied the gratified Headmare Trixie, before she then handed Mr Tang her 500-bit check.

"Thank YOU for rewarding me with that bonus!", thanked Mr Tang in return as he grabbed his loot.

"It's the least I could do for helping me force that annoying nitpicking mare off my back! I really couldn't believe your nutcase of a friend would pull off such a ludicrous feat!", wondered Trixie as she laid back against the headmare officer door to take a vape break with her peanut-flavored e-cigar.

"What can I say? He IS the Master of All, even though may come off as an idiot...", complimented Mr Tang as he examined the contents in the money bag.

"Hmmmm....perhaps I SHOULD keep him in this school---just in case things get awry", snickered the vaping Headmare Trixie.

"Don't push it too, Headmare! He may be a fool, but he's no brainless half-wit!", snapped back Mr Tang after he abruptly stopped counting his money.

"I'll try to remember that the next time I need him", joked the relaxed Headmare Trixie, before Mr Tang replied back in response

"GOOD! Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to fetch myself a shit-ton of caulking glue and a wheelbarrow! I got a lotta plumbing and tile work to do!"

---END

Author's Notes:

1. Peps (or 'peppers'/'peppies'): Based on the acronym "Ponyville's Equestrian Police Service"

2. Cantonese for "Everybody, shut up!"
https://www.bing.com/translator?ref=TThis&&text=Everyone%2C%20shut%20up!&from=en&to=yue

3. Drak: Corrupt pronunciation of "drake" (dragon)

4. Pog: Hippogriff (other slang terms: "pock", "bogey" or "herb")

5. https://youtu.be/TB4OIa0nnDg?t=100