Well ... Je Ne Sais Pas ;~;

by Alwaysthatoneguy


3 ~ Foray to School

Sunset's fingers were unfeeling and her ankles sorely unconditioned to the sensation of cold. It seemed that no matter how fast she walked down the unmarked road toward school, her toes remained numb. The winter solstice was many weeks away yet the air was bone chilling and dull to her.

With the sun only barely risen in the sky and the pace she was motivated to move at, Sunset's earlier thoughts of arriving late turned to ones of arriving too early. What would she do? If she were to arrive before anyone else, it might prove to be an awkward situation -- being alone for any extra length of time with others at the school's rebuilding site. Especially if she was with the principal. Weighing her options, while cresting a familiar hill, Sunset saw the peak of her destination in the distance. Canterlot High School stood only a thousand or so feet away and Sunset stopped with a blink of her eyes.
Am I almost there already? She stood a moment, unsure of how long she'd been walking. Perhaps the taciturn cold of the morning distracted her from the flow of time, for it seemed far earlier than she expected. Curiously she checked the time to find that it was still before nine. Meaning that there was still more than an hour before she needed to be anywhere near this place. Sunset shivered.
For now she would keep walking until she had a greater view of the school area she sought. It had already been easy to see the marble statue in front of the building, as she was just off the main road that would lead to the primary entrance. However, she was on the wrong side to see any parked cars in the lot, and she didn't want to be seen approaching the school if there was anyone to witness her arrival. Hence she decided to get off the paved road and cut through a section of lawn in between two fence-less houses.
Using this unorthodox route, she circled around the school's East wing. Quick, and without straying, Sunset made her way to a small patch of trees far behind the school where she found cover; she stopped at a spruce tree's base and prepared to duck behind two largely-foliated branches that would conceal her from any peering eyes, but first looked back to scan the way she came.
With the quietness of her stop, she was certain she heard nothing and saw no movement. When she was content, she spied toward her goal. Sunset saw no movement in the parking lot ahead either and believed she saw nothing behind the windows beyond. However, she spotted four vehicles and was easily able to identify one as belonging to the principal. Sunset's annoyance grew when this information was discovered and she quickly moved on to examining three other machines.
Two appeared to be forklifts. Sunset guessed their primary purpose was plowing large amounts of dirt, but dehydrated of guesses regarding the last car she saw; It was a small van -- a jaded, polished-black with purple highlights throughout its display. Who it belonged to eluded Sunset, and this complicated things.
She heaved a sigh as she rested her weight against the spruce's trunk and surveyed the sky. Locating the sun, she learned that it was still low above the mountains and buildings on the horizon. More important: a large cloud was going to eclipse it soon. Sunset hummed -- considering options; far as she knew, there were anywhere from four to twenty people at the school -- ignoring anyone using other methods to get there -- so her odds of getting inside unnoticed weren't easy to weigh. Though, as her teeth chattered and her body lightly shook, she knew being motionless outside much longer would be unwise.
Glancing up again to find the sun almost covered completely by the cloud, Sunset chanced another watch of the school ahead. Upon being convinced there was no movement, she made the decision to cross the distance as soon as the sun occluded -- preparing with a deep breath.
The moment arose, she breathed again, and briskly began walking across the yard. Not running but taking care to take the least amount of time she could without moving too much. To bystanders, it would have not been unlike a cat stealthily trotting toward its prey. Gratefully to Sunset, as she approached the parking lot and school, there were no bystanders in the immediate vicinity; she also verified the lack of movement in the windows. Sunset knew though that taking a direct entrance would certainly run her into unwanted attention. Hence she would conscript more discreet measures to enter.
Each second she scanned from left to right and all around as she made her way to the building's Western wing before stopping at the corner. Again she turned around to find no movement or people of any sort. Perhaps her caution was unwarranted as it was so early and cold, but she believed prudence wiser. After all, it is my intention to interact with as few people as possible for as little time as possible today. She silenced her thoughts as she continued the task at hand.
Maybe a centimeter each minute, she inched her eyes passed the corner, and saw no people. There it was even more in the shade and she was sure that the windows were again devoid of human silhouettes. Sunset hastened to her target.
Not far now, she mused whilst approaching her destination: a bland-gray, metal side door with one small window just up and to the right from a door handle which jutted from the entrance's left (for Sunset). There were eight of these identical doors around the building. Three decorated the Eastern wall in which two were connected as large double doors, two were located along the rear wall, and two were gates through the wall beyond which Sunset sought sanctuary. Finally, there was one to the far left of the front door.
All of these were meant to be inaccessible from the outside, but a few select people through the school knew that three of them have broken locking mechanisms which could be worked open if one applied particular procedures. Being of the vast resources that Sunset once had access to, she was fortunately one of the people that knew this process, and began employing it with speed and mastery.
Numb fingers did not slow her down and she only hesitated at the first touch, as her fingers wrapped around the cold metal of the door handle. Sunset pulled it toward her and -- unlike a door handle should -- it came forward some apart from the door. Next, she pushed it down and forward until there was a faint sound of metal sliding across metal, but she froze her motions when she heard the unmistakable sound of speaking in the distance; it came from her right and she noted there were two of them. Their voices she could not identify, but they neared.
She took a breath and worked faster. With a few more similar manipulations of the door handle, and one last push both inward and down simultaneously, Sunset gladly heard a small click as the door handle turned a little down before snapping to the full open position. However, it created the loud sound of metal crashing together, and Sunset's heart quickened as an unfamiliar voice shouted.
"Hey, who was that!" Sunset saw no one to her right and, assuming they were still in front of the building, she pulled the door open and slipped inside. Quick and careful, she closed the door behind her as softly as possible, flattened against the corner far from the window, and held her breath. Two pairs of feet became faint in her ears as they hurried toward her position. In moments they came to a stop and Sunset heard muffled voices. She only caught the words, "I could have sworn..." from one of them before the footsteps started again in a fading cadence.
When she could no longer hear footsteps, and saw no one was in the hallway she just slipped into, she breathed and relaxed. Sunset was glad to have made it into the building undiscovered but it was not yet time to celebrate; she stalked to the end of the hallway passing all doors on the way, for they were classrooms certainly locked. Upon reaching corners that lead into other corridors, Sunset stopped and listened. Hearing no voices, she peaked down each hall and was again glad to discover not a soul. Now she faced another decision. Going right would take her to the library which would be the best place to hide from anyone, but it would also be heading toward the front office. Meaning there was more chance of running into the principal, and it was possible the library doors would be locked.
However, to the left, the gymnasium and cafeteria were certain to be open, but she would be out in the open if she were to go there. Sunset pondered her options for a spell and soon decided that going left was the least risky choice. Sunset began down the hall swift and silent with a care to listen for any sounds that weren't her own. She slowed to a stop as she came across an alcove to her left.
An option she had not yet considered, but was the music room door locked?
Sunset rarely frequented the room because it usually felt dull and dry to her, but there was little chance of anyone bothering her at least for a time. Uncertain of what she would do, Sunset decided to try the door if nothing more than to appease curiosity. Upon stepping into the alcove and around the wall, Sunset was surprised to see the lights of the room shining. She stepped to the door and looked in its windows to see if anyone was there; just like every other time ... no people. Inhaling, she tried the handle.
Empty of speed, the shiny round handle turned along with Sunset's wrist, and she soundlessly opened the door before entering. Far different was this room from the way Sunset was accustomed to; the windows let in gentle light and the velvet-like textured walls and floors emphasized an atmosphere of peace and quiet. Sunset left the door ajar in the event she need to leave quickly, but as she scanned around she still did not see anyone. With a glance at her phone, Sunset saw it was just minutes before nine. For the first time in a while that morning she felt at ease. Finally she could relax in peace even if only for a short time. She heaved a sigh and was able to -- for the first time since insurrecting the school -- feel what warmth the building provided. That was when she heard the sound of someone clearing their throat.

Ahem.