//------------------------------// // Chapter 66: Equation // Story: The Other Journal // by Ganondorf8 //------------------------------// Day: Friday Weather: Rain, sunny later Time: 11:32am The Friendship Games were finally underway, and none of us expected what was required of us for the first event. Despite being told that it focused on the entirety of the CHS curriculum, we had no advantage going into this one against Crystal Prep. First, we had to create a chemical compound using precisely the right mixtures and the right amount of heating to get our compound. Derpy ended up with smoke in her face after her test tube blew up, leaving us one teammate out of the competition. The cooking contest defied expectations when Pinkie Pie showed just how skilled she really was, defying reality by somehow recreating the Mona Lisa in cake form. Woodshop resulted in favour of our opponents with their duplex birdhouse, and the spelling bee eliminated everyone apart from myself and Twilight. All that remained was to solve a mathematical equation. It would be a test of intellect and the desire to win for your school. The Other Journal By Ganondorf8 April 2, 2016 Chapter 66: Equation. " You said that you're the smartest student at CHS, right?" Twilight asked. " Unlike you, who flaunts it about because you desire knowledge, I wanted to keep my intellect hidden from the prying eyes of my fellow students. When I first came to this world, I had no problem showing what I perceived as 'superiority' by deftly overcoming any academic challenges they threw at me. Everyone--including the teachers--were shocked at seeing someone who could solve complex calculations that took the most dedicated of mathematicians months to understand." I answered. " So why did you change?" " Because of my life shattering all around me." " The Fall Formal?" " Yes." " You held back your talents because of that!?" " In Equestria, I was the pride and joy of Princess Celestia. In my eyes, I was better than her other students. They weren't being taught by her personally, and I mocked them as not amounting to anything because of that. Upon coming here, I continued to believe in my superiority, enabling me to bring CHS under my thumb. Deep down in my heart, I didn't care about receiving acclaim for my academic achievements. They were just pointless baubles, while my real prize continued eluding me." I said. " Sunset..." " Once I was exposed for who I really was and tasked with fixing the damage I caused, I began to rethink about my perspective on life. I used my intellect to make student's lives miserable, and not once did I regret those actions until after the fact. It occurred to me that my intelligence had caused so much pain. I chose to hold back and allow others to flourish." I said. Placing my hand on my journal, I began to think back to those first days after the Fall Formal ended. Even though I had to fix the front entrance after breaking it using my dark magic, I still attended classes out of a sense of obligation. Before the Formal, I constantly got perfect scores on assignments and tests. Everyone else around me struggled to have such consistency, yet I made it look too easy, reminding them of my superiority. The idea of me receiving a high school education sickened me back then. I wanted Princess Twilight's crown and to become an alicorn, but I needed to keep my true desire hidden. Attending classes and passing simple challenges gave me the distinction of being CHS's blazing sun, but I didn't care about their opinion of my academic skills. I only did any of that stuff to throw anyone suspicious of me off of my trail. If someone got too close to uncovering the truth, I exposed their secrets to everyone, humiliating them into silence. Things changed after the Formal. I still attended classes like before, but I didn't want to rely on my intellect. I knew that I was still smarter than everyone, but my actions made me want to hide my intellect in shame. My teachers were concerned about my grades slipping so suddenly, and they insisted on me seeing Principal Celestia about whether there was something wrong with me. I remember how it began. It started with a 97%, followed by a 92%, then 84%, 71%, 58%, 43%, until I reached a low grade of just 15%. Some would say that such a slump was normal, but that would happen gradually over the course of several months, and not a few weeks. When Celestia asked me what was wrong, I didn't answer her. I think she knew that I wanted to punish myself in a way no one could stop. " How bad did your grades go?" Twilight asked. " My GPA slipped under a 2.0 within weeks." " That's pretty serious." " Other students continued at their own pace regardless of my own actions, yet they thought I was being pathetic in wanting to act like I was stupid. They thought it was a ploy to ask them for sympathy, but they didn't know what I was going through." I said. " Why hide away your obvious talents?" " I didn't want to hurt anyone ever again." " While that does sound noble, it also sounds illogical, not to mention completely pointless. You are one of the smartest people I know, Sunset. While you've experienced torment no one else can ever understand, by holding yourself back, you became fearful of your own abilities. I would say that what you did was the coward's approach of handling the situation; you ran away from the problem instead of confronting it." Twilight said. " It was Princess Twilight who showed me the truth about my intellect." " That isn't surprising." Her Highness has often assisted me in dealing with my own problems more often than I've attempted to figure out how to solve them myself. She had her own issues to deal with back in Equestria, so taking time out of her schedule just to give a pep talk filled me with guilt. Was I really that bad at understanding my own plight? Or, was I afraid of my intellect becoming another crutch adding onto the ones I already had? The more I thought about it, the more it made me realize just how complex I have become since the Formal. If not for Her Highness, my life would still be following a status quo of my own invention. " Do you recall when she and I talked in the kitchen during Pinkie Pie's slumber party?" I asked. " You both felt like you were letting everyone down because of not meeting their expectations?" " I always believed that Princess Twilight had more pressure than me, but I now believe that I had more than she ever did." " What makes you say that?" " She never needed to change who she was. Even when ascending to an alicorn, she still remains as the book-smart, kind, nerdy, and well-mannered girl who, despite having occasional freak-outs, was always there for you whenever you needed her." I answered. " And you?" " I had no choice but to change." " Because of what happened?" " Changing was something I had to do in order to not wind up being alone. Princess Twilight was quite serious when she mentioned that as the consequence were I to not take the opportunity she offered and become much better for it in the future. You above all others know what it's like to be alone for a long time. Even with Spike, you didn't have anyone to actually talk to until meeting us." I answered. " It wasn't easy for you to change, was it?" " The hard part was finding acceptance by my peers, but it was an easy process once I convinced myself that it was worth going for. It was also difficult during the first few weeks, as everyone ridiculed my existence since that I did the same thing to them, but that's what karma does to you." I answered. As a bully, I victimized everyone around me no matter what their position in life was. In my eyes, they were all beneath my notice, insects that I could crush under the heel of my boot. When I began to reform and change my attitude, I became the victim of bullying, and the cycle of hatred shifted in the opposite direction. If I had truly been petty and unwilling to change, my tormentors would've been humiliated after rubbing my name in the mud for so long. They, in turn, would seek their revenge, and I would follow with getting mine until hatred consumed everyone entirely. By choosing not to accept their bullying, I broke a vicious cycle that had been created by my own hands. I had effectively killed a creation that shouldn't have existed in the first place. The pressure was on for me to not regress back to who I was, and there was so much that could've caused me to repent. Only my temper remains as a reminder of my old self. I try to remain calm, but it isn't easy. " Once you realized that holding back didn't do you any good, what happened afterwards?" Twilight asked. " I became a math tutor and helped those who were struggling. You'd be surprised to discover that math is the least popular subject at CHS. Most students want to avoid it entirely, but they know that they require it for postsecondary. It doesn't help them when they find out that the majority of diplomas and degrees need at least high-school-level math." I answered. " Do you like math?" " I'm not obsessed with it like Her Highness, but I do like the subject." " So when we had to solve that math problem, you weren't panicking over the prospect of solving an advanced equation?" " We both knew what was awaiting the finalists of the first event, but we weren't expecting something like that. While it looked like I was concentrating on solving the equation, my mind was struggling to ignore Principal Cinch's words. I just couldn't ignore her attempt at convincing me to leave CHS in order to achieve an education that could only be provided by Crystal Prep. So, I needed a distraction in order to tell someone about my problem with what was happening, and you more than anyone knows what I did." I answered. I knew the first event of the Friendship Games would feature both teams coming out and showcasing their best, but I didn't expect to see so many different surprises. While it was unfortunate that Derpy was eliminated during the chemistry portion, everyone else succeeded in producing the required compound. I actually thought Derpy would be one of the first to actually get it right. Despite some students referring to her as a bubble-head--she daydreamed a lot--she was one of CHS's more prominent students. She made the team, after all, so that had must have meant something, right? Still, she didn't allow elimination to get her down. In the remaining stages, Derpy opted to be our team's cheerleader, but I admit that her choreography could do with a little work. Pinkie and Fluttershy dominated the baking contest, yet I still can't figure out how Pinkie managed to recreate the Mona Lisa in cake form. I knew much about famous works of art through several history courses, with one of them focusing on the Renaissance. The Mona Lisa was famous for how long it took to create--several years--yet Pinkie did the exact same thing in just under thirty minutes. I knew that she could defy reality, but sometimes, her antics were just too incredible to consider being at all possible. Unfortunately, Crystal Prep outdid our team during the woodshop contest. It still annoyed me at how so many students from both teams had no idea what a birdhouse was supposed to look like, but who was I to openly criticize them? I had no skill in cutting wood, so they supposedly knew better. It was the spelling bee that eliminated everyone from the competition, apart from myself and Twilight. I suspected she was going to advance all the way through. She had been labelled as Crystal Prep's best student by Principal Cinch, and that made her the biggest threat among the Shadowbolts. Her lack of physical prowess was understandable, but it was her brains that warranted concern. I was pretty confident with my own intellect, but I lacked proper training compared to what Twilight must have gone through. Crystal Prep was known for throwing students through wave after wave of challenges designed to bring out their best qualities. CHS didn't do anything of the sort, so that gave me a disadvantage. As I stood staring at the mathematical equation before me, I began to think on how best to solve the problem. It looked simple upon first glance, but it quickly became apparent that it was more complicated than appearances suggest. We were given the beginning of the equation along with a diagram to act as a guide. From there, Twilight and I were to figure out everything else. I had no doubt that Cinch knew what the answer was, and I suspected that she had created this equation in an effort to remind everyone that this was the standard at Crystal Prep. She wasn't expecting anyone from the Wondercolts to make it this far, so seeing me coming up to the final challenge must have been surprising for her. And yet, Cinch's words continued to haunt my mind. I knew, alongside Principal Celestia, that she was trying to convince me into transferring over to Crystal Prep. I had a gift of genius that was being wasted in her mind, so she wanted--desired--for me to go to the one place where I could go beyond my own limitations. While it was possible for me to take her up on her offer, I had no desire to betray my friends, my school, and most importantly, my family. I've experienced too much to abandon them now, but why even bring it up in the first place? Surely, there were students from other schools as gifted as I was? Then again, did it have to do with giving Twilight a rival? Whatever Cinch's reasoning was, I had to resist any temptations and focus on beating Twilight. " The final stage of the first event will require our two remaining competitors to solve this mathematical equation." Principal Cinch announced. " Are you sure that's a math problem?" Someone from the audience asked. " This is the kind of equation those with high intellects are capable of solving. It is the kind that one who goes on to postsecondary education must solve consistently in mathematics courses. If these two cannot solve an equation of this magnitude, neither of them will last beyond high school." Principal Cinch answered. " Isn't that being excessive?" " I shall brook no further questions from the audience. If you continue to behave in such an abhorrent manner, you shall be ejected from the gymnasium. Only the two competitors will be allowed to address any concerns, but I am certain that will not be the case. Do I make myself clear?" Principal Cinch asked. I couldn't tell which student decided to speak out, but they quickly went silent, especially when Cinch glared at them with those piercing eyes of hers. " Our competitors have ten minutes to solve this equation. If time runs out, they must stop immediately. Failure to do so will result in an immediate disqualification. The winner shall be determined by who has answered the question correctly." " What if neither of us have finished?" I asked. " Then the one who completed most of the calculations shall be declared the winner." " Ten minutes doesn't seem long enough." " It is a standard requirement for all institutions. I trust that Canterlot High follows this example as well?" Principal Cinch asked. I remained quiet and she took that as a sign that she had proven her point. My teammates looked on in surprise, yet there wasn't anything they could do to speak out against how she chose her words. " I shall assume your answer to that question is 'yes'. I shall be watching both of you closely to make sure that neither of you are cheating. Are there any further questions from you, Ms. Shimmer?" I doubted Cinch believed that I had told her the truth. Principal Celestia gave us free reign over how much time we took to solve a problem, yet what I was facing along with Twilight wasn't an ordinary problem. It was one beyond what our curriculum required, but I felt that is what Cinch wanted. Her student was in her element, but the same couldn't be said for me. I liked solving equations like the next genius, but not anything university-based. I turned my attention towards Twilight, and she simply stood there without uttering a single word. If I didn't know any better, I could swear that she wanted to say something, but was unable to because Cinch had some kind of hold over her. Was she dangling something over Twilight's head? I wanted to ask, but it wasn't my place. Cinch might have assumed I was questioning what little ethics she was using. I had to think of something to ask in order to tell anyone about my opinions of what was happening, and that's when an ideal question popped into my mind. Surely, someone like Principal Cinch would accept a small request as what I had in mind. " Can we ask for some pointers from our respective principals before starting?" I asked. " Why would I allow such a request?" " I thought you and Principal Celestia could impart some valued wisdom on us. You could also question us on whether or not we're up to the challenge. I'm not saying for either of you to hold our hands throughout this challenge, but perhaps give us a brief pep talk instead." I answered. Cinch looked at me as though I were planning something, but my concern was on Twilight, who looked at me with surprise. If my suspicion was right, and Cinch was manipulating her, then I hoped Twilight would forgive me for making her endure more torment at the hands of her principal. " Canterlot High must be worried that their best student cannot compete with Crystal Prep's brightest, but I shall agree to your request. It seems as though you need it far more than Twilight does, so consider this to be a small reprieve." Principal Cinch said. She walked over to Twilight and looked down at her before saying something I couldn't hear. In the meantime, Principal Celestia got up from her chair and approached me with a confused expression. To be honest, I wasn't really sure if my plan would work. I knew I had messed up with my delivery, but at least it worked out. " I'm not sure why you needed for me to give you some advice, Sunset." Principal Celestia said. " I don't need any advice." I said. " What? Then why ask such a question?" " I needed to tell someone about how I feel about Principal Cinch's actions, and I figured you were the best authority figure to talk to." " You shouldn't allow her to get under your skin, Sunset." " I know, but ever since she mentioned my potential, I knew she wants me to consider transferring over to Crystal Prep. Even you must have felt that she stepped out of line when she said that in front of everyone. It's been gnawing away at me, and I don't think I can concentrate on solving this math problem." I said. " Principal Cinch is known for trying to convince gifted students to transfer to her school, and much of the time, she succeeds; the temptation is too strong. You are the smartest student CHS has, Sunset, yet I know you'd never betray those you view as your family." Principal Celestia said. I backed a single step away from her in response to what she just said, but she simply smiled before enticing me to come back to avoid making a spectacle of myself. " Everything that happens in this school eventually reaches my ears in one form or another. Your friends were concerned with what was happening to you regarding the stress my sister and I placed on you, so they approached me the other day while you needed a moment to be alone." " That's not really--" I said, before Principal Celestia placed her finger over my mouth. " What you were doing during that time is your own business, Sunset, and I have no right to force you into explaining yourself. Whatever kind of stress is currently affecting your mind, do not become consumed by them. All that will do is tear you up inside. Vice Principal Luna and I could never forgive ourselves were that to happen. Despite what you did in the past, you're different now, and everyone at this school knows this. As for what Cinch said, remember that you have a family who greatly cares about you. Her words can never come between such a powerful bond. Now, since you did ask for me to give you some pointers, and we do have to give off that impression, allow me to share one thing: Don't forget to include any remainders. Many students have failed problems like this because of forgetting those." Principal Celestia said. Without saying another word, she walked back to her seat and sat down before smiling at me once again. Even though she wasn't the same as Princess Celestia, she acted like a surrogate mother to me. No matter what kind of difficulty I faced, I knew that she was there to impart her wisdom and guidance. I wished that I could've told her about what happened by the statue, but perhaps it was best that she remained in the dark. Despite accepting magic flowing freely about the school, Principal Celestia probably wouldn't believe that the statue houses a portal that connects to a magical world filled with pastel-coloured ponies. I was more concerned with what she said about not succumbing to my stress instead of the advice she gave me about remainders. If only she could be in my shoes for one day and understand what my stress does to me mentally. While that sounded tempting, I had no intention to tempt fate. Celestia would eventually come to terms with what I have to do to protect this world from the threats that could come through the portal. For now, she would only understand a small portion of what was really happening with me. Turning my attention back towards Twilight, I noticed that she looked nervous after speaking with Principal Cinch. I had a hunch that their conversation wasn't friendly or even professional but a cold reminder of the consequences of failure. " Twilight is prepared to begin the final stage of the Academic Decathlon. Am I to assume that you are ready, Ms. Shimmer?" Principal Cinch asked. " I'm as ready as I'll ever be." I answered. " You may now pick up your pieces of chalk, but do not begin writing until I give you the signal to do so." " Good luck, Twilight." I said, smiling at her, yet she didn't respond to my good gesture. She was either focused squarely on solving this equation or was ignoring me because I brought Cinch down on her in my attempt to speak with Celestia. " There is one last rule that shall be enforced strictly. If either one of you looks at what the other is doing, that shall be seen as cheating, and you will be disqualified. I trust that both of you will keep your eyes focused on your own work and show us just how good you both are. Begin!" Principal Cinch announced, raising her hand to indicate that the final stage had now begun. Both Twilight and I quickly looked at the diagram on our respective chalkboards before we started writing down the start of the equation. If anyone else from the Wondercolts had made it to this stage instead of me, I could imagine them looking at the diagram with a glum expression. The diagram itself was an isosceles triangle that featured several unknown angles labelled with question marks, measurements also with question marks, and five letters indicating which angles and measurements were deemed important. It was a lot for me to take in due to Cinch's words hitting the back of my mind. Was this equation designed to test me to see if she thought me worthy to attend Crystal Prep? I hoped not. After staring at the diagram again to remind myself of where I was in the equation, I continued to write down my solution, the sounds of chalk banging against the chalkboard reverberating all around me. This was also true with Twilight. I could hear her writing down feverishly on her board, prompting me to pick up the pace or else be left behind. I couldn't afford to fall behind, what with the time limit Cinch imposed. Speaking of her, she was watching our every movement closely, and it was unnerving to no end. It was like she was waiting for one of us to make that one mistake that would cost us everything, so I needed to focus on solving the equation. It didn't help that the audience remained dead silent. All of those factors made me feel stressed, but I had to remain calm in the face of adversity, or else lose my composure. CHS was relying on me to secure a victory against our rivals, and that was the biggest stress of all. Eventually, I started sweating, my mind slowly melting into jelly. This equation had proven much more difficult than I thought. " If I carry the three, subtract the six, then add the seven, multiply it all by eight, halve it, and finally add the square root I calculated earlier, that should give me something. But, that might not be correct. Gah! I should have no problems solving something like this, yet my mind wants me to give up. Maybe starting with the four will provide a more adequate result." I said to myself, panicking over what was really getting to me. I could still hear Twilight working away on her side, and I suspect she was having similar issues. While I had no problem with being tested, this was just too much for a pair of high school students. " Okay, that part is sorted out, so now I need to apply this to that." I said to myself, quickly looking over what I had done so far. To everyone in the audience, it probably looked like a jumbled mess of numbers, but to me, it was hopefully the solution which would catapult me to victory. " If anyone is feeling the pressure more than me, it's Twilight. She must be a nervous wreck right now, and adding Cinch's harsh words from that pep talk I requested probably didn't do her any good. It's strange, though, that my school cheered for me when I approached the stage for the final equation, yet her school didn't do anything of the sort. Why give her the cold shoulder and no comfort?" I asked myself. It was a question that would be answered within a matter of moments. " Times up!" Principal Cinch announced. " That felt like forever." I said quietly. " Now, both of you please stand back and allow me to look over your respective answers." " Which one of us got the answer right?" " Patience. Give me a few moments to look over both answers and point out the one that is incorrect. Do not assume that I do not know the answer, and do not think that I will be biased toward my own school; since I directed a student to draw the exact same diagram on each chalkboard, no one had an advantage over the other." Principal Cinch answered. Her eyes started scanning both chalkboards religiously, and I grew nervous wondering if what I wrote down was the right answer. On my board, I wrote down thirty as my final answer, while Twilight wrote down twenty. I'm not sure how she got that number, as I made sure to keep tabs on all possible numbers. Then again, my mind was preoccupied by Cinch's words, so I wasn't entirely sure about my own calculations. After a few minutes of looking over both chalkboards without ever taking her eyes off of them, Cinch then pointed a finger at one of them. " Incorrect!" Sadly, the one she had pointed at was the one I had used. My heart felt like it had been shattered, my body felt crestfallen. My efforts had not been enough, and Twilight secured the win for her team. I glanced over towards her and she was ecstatic over having won, but when I looked at the Crystal Prep students, they showed no signs of being happy about it. " Since Ms. Shimmer's result is wrong, she has been eliminated from this event." Principal Cinch said. " That means the winner of the Friendship Games' first event is Twilight Sparkle and Crystal Prep." Vice Principal Luna announced. Suddenly, a camera flash blinded me momentarily and upon regaining my vision, I saw that Photo Finish had taken a photo at the inconvenient time of my loss. Other CHS students glared at her, and she sat back down, but not before blushing out of embarrassment. This wasn't the result any of us were hoping for. We had trained our hearts out to be able to stand up against Crystal Prep, and in the end, I failed to live up to our expectations. Even though several members of the Wondercolts proved themselves to be ineffective through the decathlon, it fell onto me to receive the blame. After all, I had to do the hardest part of the event, with both my intellectual reputation and dignity on the line. I ended up losing both in a single moment. If there was anything that I could take from what happened, it was the fact that Twilight didn't receive the proper ovation from her peers. Was she really viewed differently? I didn't know that answer at the time, so it eluded me for a while. " Sorry for getting you scolded by Principal Cinch." I said. " You did it in order to tell someone, so I'm not going to hold it against you." Twilight said. " And if I had done it just to have a friendly chat?" " I wouldn't be here right now." " Point taken." " Principal Cinch gave me a stern reminder of what was at stake when she gave me her 'pep talk', yet I wish she had kept her distance. She told me that Crystal Prep's reputation hung in the balance, so I had to win in order to maintain the academy's perfection. What was important to me was used as leverage to ensure I would comply. If I had stood up for myself instead of taking her verbal assaults, I could've competed on my own terms." Twilight said. " It was that application of yours, wasn't it?" " Yes. I really wanted to go to Everton at the time and had worked incredibly hard just to get their attention. Principal Cinch knew what she had to do to keep me under control, and no one aside from her even knew what was going on." Twilight answered. It must have been almost unbearable for her to be constantly reminded that her dream could be snuffed out just like that without warning, and all because of a competition designed around a pointless school rivalry. Deep down, I knew something had bothered Twilight during the Games, but it never occurred to me until after it was all said and done. " I know what you're probably thinking, Sunset: Why didn't I tell someone that I was being blackmailed into competing as a Shadowbolt?" Twilight said. " The thought did cross my mind." " At Crystal Prep, no one ever questioned the ethics of Principal Cinch. This was especially true of the teachers and other staff members. Their jobs were more important than dealing with any problems the students may have had. Only Dean Cadance ever took it upon herself to speak to the students about those problems. After all, it was part of her job as Dean to guide students down the right path." Twilight said. I personally didn't fault the teachers of Crystal Prep for thinking along such lines. After all, they needed their jobs to earn a living, especially considering how bad the economy has been around the world lately. Yet, they lacked courage to stand up to Cinch and tell her she was crossing the line. From what Twilight told me about her meeting with Cinch, she had no choice but to compete through blackmail. Her application was her personal prize, and losing it meant losing everything she had worked so hard for. Even though Dean Cadance was on her side, she wasn't able to help out Twilight as much as she liked. She was still on Cinch's payroll and could easily be terminated were she to question her superior. No matter what ended up happening, Twilight was stuck either way. " Do you think Dean Cadance knew that Cinch had something over you?" " If she did, there wasn't much she could do." " Did Cinch bribe or blackmail other students?" " Not that I'm aware of." " Then why you?" " Because I was the best student Crystal Prep ever had in its entire history. I was practically Principal Cinch's meal ticket who won numerous awards that served more to strengthen the school's image and her reputation than to making me feel good about my accomplishments." Twilight answered. Talk about having a stressful experience. It's like I told myself before, there were others out there who had just as much stress as I did, or even worse. It seems this world doesn't understand the concept of letting things go and living out a peaceful life where you could do whatever you wanted. That's what it was always like in Equestria, unless you happened to be an elected official or one of the princesses. Humans were always in a rush to get things done and only piled on more problems as their days went by. Having so much on one's shoulders is surely risking having a heart attack or something. Ponies were more content and took things at a much slower pace. Some were as hectic as humans, but again, their position warranted that. " I never felt that way myself." " CHS has been very kind to you, Sunset, and I hope to receive the same kindness. Now, you said that you were pretty upset about losing to me in the decathlon. I know that you worked hard to defeat me and prove how smart you were, but you didn't need to put yourself down so much." Twilight said. " Our friends said something similar when we had a brief discussion outside by the Wondercolt statue." My loss at the hands of Twilight continued to sting. I had done everything I could to bring victory to CHS, but instead, I failed to answer the equation correctly. I looked up at the chalkboard I used and gasped in horror at the realization that greeted me. Quickly looking at what Twilight had written down before turning back to my own work, our calculations were completely identical up to a point where I had forgotten to include the remainder in my equation. How could I have missed that!? Principal Celestia even warned me about them while giving me some pointers. Knowing this made me consider slapping myself for making such a careless mistake. I obviously refrained from self-injury, as that wouldn't accomplish anything. Instead, I had to deal with the fact that I let down not only my team but also the entirety of CHS, all because of a single number. Looking back at Twilight, she was still excited over having won the decathlon, but she wasn't as happy as someone in her position ought to have been. It looked like she was trying to entice excitement from her school, but they weren't budging in their stoic presence over her accomplishment. Either they thought she wasn't worth their time to celebrate or they figured they could've done better. Before I had a chance to let it all sink in, I heard footsteps coming from behind me. I turned around to find my friends approaching, Applejack wrapping her arm around the back of my neck, everyone with smiles, Rainbow Dash included. " Truly amazing!" Rarity said. " That was awesome!" Rainbow Dash added. " I can't believe you actually said that." I said. " Why wouldn't I congratulate you for doing so well?" " You mean, you're not upset that I lost the event and allowed Crystal Prep to move one step closer to winning it all?" " Yeah, winning the decathlon would've been sweet, but I can accept the results for what they were." Rainbow Dash answered. I was expecting her to be the most upset given how she wanted CHS to beat Crystal Prep at any cost, yet she appeared totally complacent. Perhaps I had underestimated her ability to recognize that not everything needed to result in a win for it to be considered important. " That was as close to winnin' as Canterlot's ever been." Applejack said. " Really?" I asked. " I'm bein' honest with you, sugarcube. In past Friendship Games, we never managed to get past the second stage of the first event without everyone on our team being eliminated." Applejack answered. " That doesn't sound all that encouraging." " Y'all did your best." " More like I made a mistake." I said quietly to ensure none of my friends heard me. That was when Dean Cadance walked up onto the stage with the five Shadowbolt members who gave me a hard time during the party last night. Twilight had since walked over to join them, but I could tell they weren't thrilled with her being so close. " After a careful tally of the points, we'd like to present the students moving on to the Friendship Games' second event." Dean Cadance announced, waving her hands at both teams, resulting in the audience cheering. I knew my friends and I would easily make it given how well we did, but I secretly hoped that the lesser known Shadowbolts had moved on instead of their best. It was unfortunate that the rest of the Wondercolts were permanently eliminated from the Games. They deserved some kind of recognition for all their hard work and dedication to preparing themselves. " I would also like to make another announcement. Originally, we planned on having the second event later today, but the construction workers needed more time, so we will now be having that event tomorrow instead. I'm sorry for the inconvenience in addition to the fact that the Games will conclude on a Saturday, but we don't have much of a choice." The cheers from the audience suddenly changed to moans over the announcement, yet I was feeling mixed messages about it. On the one hand, I could redouble my efforts and do much better in event number two. On the other hand, I had more time to blame myself over making the mistake that cost CHS. Since there was nothing more to do, my friends and I proceeded to leave the stage. I looked over my shoulder and saw Twilight leaving with her teammates, but it was the gathering of the principals that intrigued me the most. Principal Celestia, Vice Principal Luna, Principal Cinch, and Dean Cadance appeared to having a deep discussion--most likely related to what Cadance had announced. Whatever they were talking about, it seemed serious given their finger-wagging. About ten minutes later by the Wondercolt statue, Rainbow Dash was pacing about, trying to come to terms with the delay. " I can't believe they delayed the Games until tomorrow!" " This is a most unexpected twist." Rarity said. " I was all psyched to get back out there and do my part to win it for us, but how can I now that they've gone and done this?" " Perhaps they truly did need more time in order to ensure that the playing field was properly prepared." " What in the world are they doing back there?" " I'm sure that whatever it is, darling, they are working diligently to rectify the situation, post-haste. Although, I have to admit that it could make whatever the next event is become even more difficult. I am certain that the Shadowbolts are more than prepared when it comes to adjusting their game plan, but our team doesn't have that same luxury. We certainly did a lot of training, but only in the last couple of weeks. They have no doubt been training for months." Rarity answered. " Way to kill the mood!" " There's no point in worryin' about somethin' that's beyond our control anyway. We can take this free time to plan out our next move. Half of our team got eliminated in the first event, so that just leaves the six of us to take on the best Crystal Prep has to offer. Granted, they lost half o' their own in the same manner, so it's not like they have an advantage. We just need to buckle down and do our best." Applejack said. " I guess you're right." Rainbow Dash said. " 'Course I'm right." Applejack said. She then turned her attention towards me when she noticed that I had been looking down at the ground since coming out here. I didn't want to get involved in the conversation due to still feeling bad over how I let the team down. If only I had paid attention to my calculations instead of worrying about Cinch's words and my own commitments. I could've at least tied and forced a sudden death situation to occur instead of what happened. " You okay, sugarcube? You've been mopin' like that for some time now, and I reckon you oughta speak your mind." Applejack said. " I've been thinking about what happened when I was writing down the answer to that equation." I said. " You still did remarkably well." Rarity said. " Even though you lost, you did better than the rest of us could've done." Rainbow Dash added. " That's just it, though! I could've won had I remembered the remainder." I said. Without giving my friends any warning, I dropped down onto my knees and pounded my fist into the ground several times, stopping short of causing it to bleed. My knees weren't doing any good either given that they collided with the hard concrete surrounding the statue, but I needed to vent out my frustration in the only way I knew how. " If I had listened to Principal Celestia's advice and not allowed my problems to mess with my head, I could've gotten the same answer as Twilight! Instead, I let CHS down by making such an amateurish mistake!" I had the urge to pound my fist into the ground again, but I refrained. It would've done me no good to hurt myself with such a pathetic display, so I stood back up and rubbed my bruised hand. Looking up at my friends, they were concerned with what they had just witnessed. " Sorry about that. I just felt this urge to vent out all of the anger I had built up inside me over how stupid I was for making that mistake." " You made one mistake and freaked out that much about it!?" Rainbow Dash asked. All eyes then looked in her direction, Applejack giving her a cold stare as though she knew what she was about to say next. " Well, it's actually a lot better than what the rest of us would've done. We'd have made at least several mistakes, and I would've made about a dozen. Math isn't my best subject, so if anyone could've done what you did, Sunset, I'm glad it was you." Her words, while commendable, didn't make any sense. Rainbow was trying to be nice without coming off like an egghead, and all it did was make her sound incoherent. " I think what Rainbow was tryin' to say was that you don't need to beat yourself up over what happened." Applejack said. " Yeah! Those are the words I needed." " Like I said, Sunset, that was the closest CHS has gotten to winnin' the first event. Be proud that y'all accomplished somethin' the rest of us have never done before. Even if other students in the future achieve what you did, you'll still have the distinction of bein' the one to do it first." Applejack said. " There is no need for you to mope about." Rarity added. " What would I do without you girls?" I asked. " Probably continue moping around for a really, really, long time until you either get fed up with it and do something to occupy your time or embrace it until it becomes second nature and consumes you from the inside out." Pinkie Pie answered. That wasn't one of her better random responses, but at least she was consistent. My friends were right about me not allowing my mistake to dictate my life. I needed to focus now more than ever on helping the team to win the next event tomorrow. " Why don't we all go to the cafeteria and gorge ourselves on some food? That should take Sunset's minds--and ours, too--off of what happened earlier." Pinkie Pie said. Her suggestion won immediate approval from everyone except for Fluttershy, who seemed nervous about something. " If it's okay with you, I, um, will stay here." Fluttershy said. " Why not come with us?" Pinkie Pie asked. " I, um, need to take of something really important. I think you know what that is." Fluttershy answered, patting her backpack a few times. It didn't take a genius to understand why she did that. We all knew Fluttershy brought several pets with her to school and hid them in her backpack, yet none of us ever informed any of the teachers about it. School policy said pets weren't allowed on the premises, but who were we to deny Fluttershy one of the few joys she loved. We all nodded our heads and began to head back inside, Pinkie having jumped down from the statue like a monkey. I didn't know why, but I felt that leaving Fluttershy on her own was going to cause trouble. I should have at least stayed behind to keep her company, but my friends insisted I go with them to calm my nerves. My premonition was getting the best of me, but I ignored it in favour of hanging out with my friends. Sure, it looked like Fluttershy would be fine taking care of her pets, but I would soon add her to the list of my friends having had her magic drained. If there was one positive to come from Fluttershy losing her magic, it was that she found out what was going on by witnessing her magic being drained. Even though I suspected Twilight of having done something to the portal, I had no actual proof. The next time I saw Fluttershy, I would start piecing together everything that was happening regarding the missing magic. " Right after all of you left Fluttershy, I decided to follow her in order to see what she was up to." Twilight said. " Fluttershy told me that the two of you had something in common." I said. " We both snuck our pets into school, although I was surprised that she was able to fit several into one backpack. Of all of the pets she had brought with her, it was her bunny that proved to be the most effective in making me feel better." Twilight said. From what I recall, Fluttershy's bunny Angel--or Angel Bunny, sometimes--was very sweet and enjoyed being cuddled but on rare occasions displayed a mischievous streak perhaps grown out of regret. I'm not surprised that he would be amongst Fluttershy's pets. In fact, she was almost never seen without Angel in her arms. At least the version of him in this world is adorable and easy to get along with. Princess Twilight once told me about the other Angel, the one from Equestria. That version of him constantly abused Fluttershy into doing everything he told her, and he knew exactly how to make her bend to his will. I thought it was fascinating that a bunny could possess so much free spirit yet lack any compassion. It certainly wasn't a good relationship. On only a few occasions did Angel do exactly what Fluttershy asked of him; most of the time, he did whatever he wanted. I'm no expert when it comes to pets, even if I do help out at the animal shelter, so I don't know how a bunny could exert so much control. " You were feeling upset?" I asked. " Fluttershy was curious as to why no one from Crystal Prep was happy about the fact that I won the decathlon for them. I believe I mentioned this to you before, Sunset, but students from Crystal Prep don't care about anything they didn't do themselves. In their eyes, they had to have been the one to achieve greatness. Everyone else was just an obstacle." Twilight answered. " So she offered you kindness, something you rarely experienced?" " It felt like she and I were kindred spirits." " One of Fluttershy's more endearing qualities." " Did she explain how my version of Spike suddenly talked?" " The rest of our friends didn't know what to say about it, but I knew what happened." I answered. Of course I would know the answer. After all, her pendant had stolen a magical portal that connected to Equestria and began creating those portals at an uncontrollable rate. Every time Twilight stole some magic, it resulted in the creation of several portals that connect to unknown locations in Equestria. According to Fluttershy, a rabbit with antlers--a jackalope--popped out of one of the portals, and Spike began chasing after it in typical dog-like fashion. Both went in and out of several portals, until Spike came out of one alone and right into the magical energy leaving Fluttershy's body. No doubt that caused him to be capable of speech, yet I suspect his visit to Equestria also played a part. I'm not entirely sure how it works, but briefly experiencing my home world contributed to his new ability. Fluttershy's magic resonated with animals--she ponied up of her own volition because of hamsters--so Spike talking relates to that. " I'm curious as to what happened after I ran away." Twilight said. " You ran away from Fluttershy?" " No, from Spike when he suddenly answered my question." " Makes sense you'd react like that. After all, it was a sudden surprise to you." " Still, I want to know what happened." " We discussed what Fluttershy experienced after we left her, and I started piecing things together. However, I came to realize that there was something I hadn't taken into consideration, and it could have made things a lot worse had I not thought about it." I answered.