The Crystal Prep Files

by FoxMcCloud7921

Chapter 10

On the bright side, the rest of the meeting went rather pleasantly. Rainbow Dash and Indigo were able to turn their relationship from a bitter rivalry to a competitive rivalry. And, for the most part, the girls seemed to all be on equal terms.

However, Twilight wasn’t happy with this new plan. The kind of parties Blueblood had were typical of those who had a lot of money, and much of it was used for booze and other illegal activities. She knew if her parents found out she even went to such a party they’d probably keel over instantly.

But was there really any other option? Sugarcoat explained that many of the people there, and there was no doubt it would be a huge turnout, especially after finals, would be intoxicated and not paying so much attention to a group of girls searching around the house. But most importantly, Blueblood had to be distracted and he always took pleasure to picking on her of all people.

After everyone had left, Spike had finally decided to come out from his hiding place, worried that a feud was inevitable. “Wow, everything’s still intact,” he said with genuine surprise.

“Way to put your faith in me Spike,” Twilight replied, rolling her eyes. “Looks like I’m going to a party this Friday.”

“One of those?” Spike asked. He didn’t have to specify.

“Unfortunately.”

“Well, you better not be thinking of leaving me behind, I gotta give Blueblood my two cents as well you know.”

Twilight giggled. “Alright, I guess I can’t leave you home by yourself anyway. Just…no permanent damage okay? If it comes to that.”

“No promises,” Spike grinned, happy to show off his canine teeth.

---

Tuesday morning came much sooner than Sunny wanted. She spent about three hours last night doing last-minute studying. Luckily, finals were only going on until noon each day, which was a relief since the cafeteria was most likely still in disarray.

Once she left for school, she met her friends at the school entrance. “So…has everyone said their prayers already?” Indigo asked gravely.

“You didn’t study did you?” Sugarcoat asked.

“Of course I did! I just don’t know if it actually stuck in my head.”

“Well, considering we can’t really do anything til Friday anyway, we might as well focus on finals,” Sunny said. “We should do a group study at home. Indigo, if you really need it, I can help with your math.”

“You’re a lifesaver,” Indigo sighed in relief.

“Alright, then we’ll do it at my place,” Sugarcoat said. “I can have Jacques make us snacks in the meantime.”

“Oh yeah, he’s a talented chef isn’t he?” Sour asked.

“Sous chef, but yes, you couldn’t ask for anyone better,” Sugarcoat replied with a smile.

“Okay it’s settled, I’m going to breeze through this final as quick as I can!” Indigo said, pumping her fist.

“You do know the “every answer is C” method doesn’t work right?” Lemon asked.

“…Of course I knew that! Ya gotta do a pattern!”

Sugarcoat for once looked like she was going to cry.

---

The first final for Sunny today was Modern History, which would be a breeze for her. The only issue she had was dates, and her teacher decided to an entire section of matching dates. Thankfully, the eras were far in between so even someone like Sour could figure it out. Or at least she hoped.

The final started exactly at eight and everyone had two hours to finish, meaning the final itself was about six pages front and back. Once it was over, there was a ten minute break in between and another teacher would come in to supervise. Everyone in the same grade took the same final each day in order to prevent cheating.

Sunny managed to finish with fifteen minutes and she took ten of those minutes to check her work at least twice. Sour wasn’t in her class but she could imagine the poor girl was sweating bullets right now.

The next final on the list was chemistry, which apparently was everyone’s least favorite subject, though Sunny admitted she was interested in all the different compounds and such. Indigo says she only got into it after watching Breaking Bad and she flat out told the teacher that. Needless to say, the final was still quite brutal.

By the time it was over, Sunny was mentally drained, and no doubt her peers felt the same. Some looked content, others looked like they just saw their pet get murdered. It was the same mix of expressions for her friends.

“And it’s only been one day,” Indigo groaned. “I hate school.”

“Thought you were going to ace those exams?” Sour asked sarcastically.

“Ace them!? Ha! I was lucky to finish them on time!”

“If you don’t mind Sugarcoat, I think we all need a respite before delving into our notes,” Sunny said.

“I suppose you’re right.” She then looked down the hallway towards the set of lockers. “Um…actually, you guys go on right ahead, I need to take care of something real quick.” She then walked off, much to everyone’s confusion.

“Okay, that was weird…” Indigo said. “Especially for her.”

“Oh I think I know what’s up~” Lemon said with a grin on her face.

“What? I’m not-” Sunny then paused as she put two and two together. “Oh…right.”

---

She felt as if she had lost her mind. Never in a million years would she do something like this, nor have the guts to do this. But Sugarcoat saw her opportunity and while it may go against the norm, quite frankly she didn’t give a damn.

Royal Pin was getting stuff out of his locker and once he closed it only then did he see her. “Oh…Sugarcoat, I didn’t see you there. What’s up?”

Sugarcoat didn’t have an issue talking to boys. She’s been around people such as Jet Set and Trenderhoof, but unfortunately Royal Pin was a different story. “Oh…you know…reeling from that last final.”

“Really? You?” Royal Pin laughed. “You usually breeze through them like they’re nothing. Maybe the teachers decided to give you a challenge for once…at our expense unfortunately.”

Sugarcoat smiled. “Well…maybe it was a bit more challenging this year…” Oh God, she was twirling her hair in her fingers! When has she ever done that!? “A-Anyway, you heard about that party on Friday?”

“Oh Blueblood’s? Yeah, I normally wouldn’t go but considering it may be his last one since he’ll be graduating this year I’ll probably go this time.” Royal Pin then paused. “Are…you going? I mean, I know he kind of has a track record of-”

“I thought about it,” Sugarcoat quickly said. “Not really a drinker though…”

There was an awkward pause. “Well…since we’re on the subject…I thought maybe…we could go together. I mean, as friends of course. I’ll most likely be a designated driver so you won’t have to worry about getting home.”

Sugarcoat felt herself blushing. Well, this isn’t exactly how she thought it would go but… “Well…I suppose if it’s you asking…sure I’ll go with you.”

“Wait…really?”

“Really.”

“Okay…um…I’ll come pick you up around six? It’s dress casual right?”

“I think so, and six sounds good.”

Royal Pin suddenly looked flustered. “Okay then…then I’ll see you at your place at six on Friday. And uh…if I don’t see you before then, good luck on the rest of your exams.”

“Oh…you too.”

Royal Pin then walked off after giving her a small wave as Sugarcoat stood there with a somewhat stunned look on her face. She then smiled and turned around, walking towards the exit. If anyone had been paying attention to her, they would’ve noticed a slight spring in her step.

---

“Ha! I knew it! You owe me twenty bucks Indigo,” Sour said with a wicked smile on her face. Indigo grumbled as she passed over a twenty.

“Normally I would just give you both an evil look but right now I don’t care,” Sugarcoat said with a satisfied smile as she lounged on a leather chair in the great room of her house.

“Wow, I think I kinda like this Sugarcoat better,” Lemon commented as she and the other girls ate sandwiches. As Sugarcoat said, Jacques was a very talented chef.

“Ma’am, would you rather yourself or I tell the news to your mother and father?” the butler asked as he walked back into the room with a platter of desserts.

“No, you will not,” Sugarcoat said. “While my parents would approve of someone like Royal Pin I…can’t tell them where I’m going.”

“Ah yes, they would very much disapprove of underage drinking,” Jacques said with a slight smile. “Even though I know you and Mr. Pin would do nothing of the sort.”

“Uh…he’s not going to rat you out is he?” Indigo asked.

Sugarcoat sniffed. “Jacques is a very loyal man and while I would not ask him to keep secrets from Mother or Father I trust him more than most.”

“Your words are too kind Miss Sugarcoat,” Jacques bowed. “But if it’s alright with you, I will make sure that if Mr. Pin has any…further plans for the night to bring protection just in case.”

He walked off while both Lemon and Indigo snickered and Sugarcoat went quite red. She then rose up from her seat and glared at the door. “YOU WILL DO NO SUCH THING!”

“You know, I like him,” Sour stated as she grabbed an éclair. “Makes me wish we could afford a butler…”

“All jokes aside, I’m happy that he asked you out,” Sunny grinned. “So I guess that means you won’t be coming with us?”

“Oh…that’s right,” Sugarcoat said, looking slightly guilty. “Don’t worry, I’m still willing to go with the plan. I just hope Royal Pin doesn’t…misunderstand anything.”

“Speaking of the plan, how are we going to find that key?” Indigo asked.

“Well, obviously it has to be in his room, so we’ll just have to search through it,” Sunny replied.

“Ah, and that’s why Sparkle’s the bait huh?” Sour said.

“He always did like to tease her,” Sugarcoat said. “It honestly seemed kind of obsessive.”

“Yeah well, even at such a fine school as Crystal Prep there will always be bullying,” Sunny sighed. “So we go in, find it and get the hell out?”

“Sounds good to me,” Indigo said. She then smirked at Sugarcoat. “Don’t worry, we won’t break up your date.”

“Oh I’m so thankful…” Sugarcoat rolled her eyes. She then said in a monotone voice, “I’m not getting drunk and we’re not having sex.”

“Sheesh, not on the first date,” Lemon said. “But hey, who am I to judge?”

Sunny facepalmed. “Alright, enough girl talk. It’s time to study.”

---

In Equestria, Princess Twilight was currently cleaning up the mess in the library. She wanted to test Starlight’s reaction times of being able to teleport to avoid an attack. She was getting better and to no one’s surprise they really got into it and made a mess.

Still, Twilight had no reason to be upset. Starlight was already an expert magic user and it pleased her that she was becoming much better at asking questions instead of winging ideas of her own.

As she put the last book onto the shelf, she heard a soft buzzing sound. She looked over and saw it was the journal that she used to write to Sunset. Going over, she opened the book and read the most recent message.

Hey Twilight,

Hope I’m not interrupting anything but I have a question for you. You told me about what happened with the Crystal Empire and I only now started putting the pieces together for what’s happening here. Or at least I think I know.

First thing is, whatever happened to King Sombra? I’m merely hypothesizing at this point but somehow I feel like he or something darkness-related could be behind all this. Second, could something like the Crystal Heart you mentioned exist in this world? With all the parallels I’ve seen, it wouldn’t surprise me if such a thing existed. Sorry for the trouble.

Your friend,

Sunset Shimmer

P.S. The only reason I’m asking this now is because apparently Crystal Prep was just attacked.

Twilight looked through it all and pondered for a moment as she grabbed a quill with her magic. Sunset had told her about the cave at Camp Everfree and it matched up with the Tree of Harmony here. The similarities simply weren’t coincidences.

Dear Sunset,

After what you told me, it would not surprise me if such a thing did exist. The Crystal Heart does have the ability to restore one’s magic and/or stamina, Cadance can attest to that. But it wouldn’t cause spacial distortions…no I think these are caused by thing else. Or someone else.

For your first question, there is no doubt Sombra is gone. I’m not sure whether to say he’s dead only because he didn’t exactly have a body? It’s kind of hard to explain.

I’m not going to lie though, I am getting concerned. If there is some malicious being doing all this, he or she can probably use magic as well. If I may be bold to ask, can I help you out with this one?

Yours truly,

Princess Twilight

She waited a moment and it wasn’t long before Sunset replied, dropping the formalities.

I’ll gladly accept the help! We actually have a plan, but we’ll have to wait til Saturday night unfortunately. Think you can clear your schedule that day?

Twilight smiled in amusement.

I suppose I can do it for a friend. It has been awhile since we worked together hasn’t it?

That it has. I can meet you at CHS beforehand and we’ll make our way to Crystal Prep. For you, it’ll probably be hard to miss.

That was right, Sunset has never stepped foot inside the Crystal Empire has she?

Alright, then it’s settled. I’ll inform Princess Celestia just in case something goes wrong since the last thing we want is to have it come into Equestria. I’ll see you soon!

There was then a knock at the door and Twilight looked up to see Starlight standing at the door. “Sorry, is this a bad time?” she asked.

“Not at all,” Twilight said as she closed the journal. “I was just talking to Sunset Shimmer about something.”

“Oh, Celestia’s former student right?”

“That’s right, she kind of has a situation going on.” Twilight then sighed. “A couple of days from now I’ll have to go there and help her out if I can. Can I task you with keeping an eye on the mirror?”

“Sure, no problem,” Starlight replied. “It’s…pretty bad?”

“I can’t say at this point but…maybe?”

“Then you can count on me,” Starlight nodded. “But uh…just so we’re clear, is this like Chrysalis bad?”

Twilight shook her head in amusement. “Don’t worry Starlight, I don’t think you’ll need to worry about coming after me this time. By the way…Sunset said she’s looking forward to meeting you.”

Starlight’s grin was almost sinister. “Oh yeah? I guess we’ll have to see who the better student is huh?”

“Wow…you two are more alike than I thought…” Twilight said with a slight frown.

Comments

[OmniFox]

Someone's about to be getting smackdown'd for a beating.

[BenRG]

My advice is to keep Starlight and Sunlight out of each other's way until the crisis is over. They really don't need to have their concentration broken by an unspoken competition over who gets to be the better Lancer in their little questing group!

Meanwhile, I do think that Royal Pin's attraction to Sugarcoat is reciprocated. I just hope that the mess at Blueblood's place (because all narrative indications are pointing towards it being a clusterfrak) doesn't mess things up for them.

[FoxMcCloud7921]

7910709

Oh that's going to be a whole different story.

Maybe.

[readsponies]

Actually, the Crystal Empire was where the mirror was when Sunset came through to steal the crown.

[AyanamiRei]

Sunset was TECHNICALLY in the Crystal Empire when she went to steal the crown, though maybe Twilight meant the Crystal Empire Proper?

[InkyPaper]

Oooooh I sniff some Sunset and Starlight competition. I like it