//------------------------------//
// A Moment with Dean Cadence 
// Story: Reformation Brigade 
// by Metool Bard 
//------------------------------//

"Now remember, class.  You are not cooking for any old restaurant.  If you wish for good reviews, and a good grade from me, you must create only the subtlest hint of flavor.  That is true culinary craftsmanship.  That is art."

Sunset found herself tuning out most of Professor Gourmand's lecture, not only because she disagreed with her methodology, but due to mental exhaustion.  From Professor Flypaper's engineering class onward, it was nothing but dry lectures followed by pop quizzes and in-class assignments.  While she normally wouldn't have minded the increased workload, coupling it with keeping her eyes on the Sirens and Discord was getting to be too much for her to juggle at once.

"You gonna be okay, dude?" asked Lemon Zest.

Sunset nodded. "Yeah.  I just have a lot on my plate, that's all."

Sonata looked over at the wok Sunset was using to sauté onions and red peppers.   She tilted her head in confusion. "That's not a plate, you silly," she said simply.

Sugarcoat deadpanned. "Do you even know what a metaphor is?"

Sonata blinked. "Why are you asking me that now?  This isn't Language Arts."

Sugarcoat opened her mouth to retort, but found herself unable to refute Sonata's point. "Let's just focus on our work, shall we?  The onions should be almost done."

Aria couldn't help but snicker as she overheard the conversation. "If you think she's bad now, try living with her," she jeered.

"Eyes on your own work, students," Professor Gourmand snapped brusquely. "This is not Canterlot High."

"We're painfully aware," said Adagio, rolling her eyes.

Professor Gourmand turned her attention to Adagio. "Is there something you wish to share, Ms. Dazzle?"

Adagio snorted, ignoring Professor Gourmand as she added a few sprinkles of pepper to her dish.  Gourmand's eyes narrowed.

"I asked you a question, Ms. Dazzle," she stated coldly.

"And if I take time to answer it, I won't get this done," Adagio replied. "Not that it matters.  Not with Discord having free reign to do whatever he wants."

"Way to go, Adagio~!" Sour Sweet cheered. "That was the correct response.  Too bad you had to go and mess it all up by bringing up Discord again!"

"Um, who's Discord?" Fleur de Lis asked, scratching her head.

Sour Sweet did a double take, shifting back to her cheerful demeanor. "Nothing~!  J-just skip it."

Gourmand gave Sour Sweet a stern look. "I suggest you save whatever you were discussing for after class, Ms. Sweet.  I understand you and your little group have volunteered to assist our guests, but try not to drag their private matters into our affairs."

"Y-yes, Professor Gourmand," Sour Sweet muttered meekly.

"And as for you, Ms. Dazzle.  While I appreciate your work ethic, I cannot say the same for your attitude," Gourmand scolded.  Her tone then softened. "Let's see if you can prepare a dish that is truly worthy of a five-star restaurant.  If your hard work pays off, I might just decide not to report your behavior to Dean Cadence."

Adagio scoffed. "Oh, please.  Is that the best you've got?"

There was a series of clatters as all eyes locked on Adagio.  No one in the room could believe she had just said that.  Professor Gourmand bristled.

"Your dish better be perfect, or you're going straight to the principal's office," she warned. "And that goes for the rest of your group, too."

"Thanks a lot, Adagio," Aria growled.

"Yeah, great job!  Y'know, I didn't think this class was stressful enough!  Thanks so much~!" Sour Sweet trilled facetiously.

Adagio didn't respond.  She simply let out a grunt before getting right back to work.  Sunset sighed and palmed her face.

"I don't know what I'm going to do about her," she muttered.

"Don't stress over it too much.  Sour Sweet and Fleur de Lis will make sure she passes with flying colors," said Lemon Zest.

"Mainly because there is no other way to pass at this school," Sugarcoat chimed in bluntly.

Lemon Zest sighed. "Just, let this be a lesson to you all, yeah?  The size of your mouth is directly proportionate to how much trouble you're gonna end up in."

Sonata pursed her lips, shrinking the size of her mouth down as much as possible.  Sugarcoat raised an eyebrow.

"Okay, now I'm convinced that she has no idea what a metaphor is," she stated.

Just as Sunset was about to turn back to her work, there was an announcement over the intercom.

"Sonata Dusk, please report to the Dean's office.  Sonata Dusk to the Dean's office, please."

Sonata yelped, almost cutting her finger as her knife fell to the floor with a loud clang. "What'd I do?!  I don't have a big mouth!" she cried.

"That's debatable," said Aria, rolling her eyes.

Sunset suppressed the urge to groan before flashing Sonata her warmest smile. "I'm sure you have nothing to worry about, Sonata.  Dean Cadence is here to help us.  She told me herself."

Sonata blinked. "F-for realsies?" she whimpered.

"I promise," Sunset assured her, patting Sonata on the back. "You'll be alright, Sonata."

"It's not like there's any use arguing about it," said Sugarcoat.

Lemon Zest sighed and shook her head. "Dude, you really gotta work on your bedside manner."

Sonata gulped. "O-okay.  I-I'll see you guys later, I guess."

She quietly shuffled out of the classroom, her head hanging low the whole while.  As Sunset watched her leave, she noticed that her ponytail had taken on a life of its own.  The hair twisted and unfurled, revealing Discord's shape.  Discord winked at Sunset, who simply sighed.

"Just don't go overboard," she muttered under her breath.

The ponytail changed shape, depicting the number seven before disappearing out the door entirely.  Sunset let out a groan.

"And I thought 'I heard that, Sunny' was annoying," she mumbled, turning back to her cooking.


***


"Dean Cadence, if one of those Canterlot High hooligans have done something wrong, Principal Cinch has a right to know."

"Yes, and if there is such a problem, I will be the one to tell her.  That's my job, not yours."

Sonata blinked as she saw Cadence standing outside her office door.  Just like yesterday, she was in the middle of a heated argument with Slitherquick.  Sonata shuffled her feet, unsure of what to say or where to jump in.

"Now, Cadence.  Be reasonable here," said Slitherquick. "You can't expect to keep these secrets from Principal Cinch forever."

"What happens in my office is between me and the students, unless there is a dire threat to the school or the student's safety," Cadence responded.

"And you don't believe there is a dire threat to the school?" Slitherquick inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"I told Abacus I would have the magic situation under control," said Cadence firmly. "She has no reason to distrust me."

"Need I remind you of what happened yesterday?" Slitherquick hissed. "There was no explanation for that catastrophe other than those Canterlot High students abusing their magic powers!  And you're willing to just ignore that?!"

Cadence deadpanned. "To be fair, your presence wasn't required at my meeting with Sunset Shimmer, either."

"You have a clear bias towards those ruffians, Mi Amore," Slitherquick snarled, pointing her cane accusingly. "You've always had."

"Yet Abacus keeps me around despite that," Cadence retorted. "Face it, Fanny.  You don't have a leg to stand on here.  Now stop wasting my time and let me meet with Ms. Dusk in private.  She should be here any minute now."

"Um, excuse me..."

Cadence and Slitherquick turned to see Sonata Dusk, standing awkwardly in the corner.  Cadence blushed and cleared her throat.

"Oh, Sonata.  Thanks for responding to my page," she said. "Don't mind Ms. Slitherquick.  She was just leaving."

"I am doing nothing of the kind," Slitherquick proclaimed. "Not this time.  You're not keeping any more secrets from Principal Cinch, Cadence.  You may have opted out of installing security cameras in your office, but that won't prevent me from—"

She suddenly flinched as one of the floor tiles suddenly sank into the ground.  There was a series of rumbles and shakes that stopped as suddenly as they came.  With a snort, Slitherquick moved to pull her cane from the ground.  Much to her surprise, the cane would not budge.  Slitherquick yanked on the cane again and again, but it remained anchored in place.  During her struggle, she was unaware that the tile itself was starting to hover a few inches off the ground.  When the change in height did register, the floor tile sped off down the hall, carrying a screeching Slitherquick with it.  Cadence blinked before turning to Sonata.

"Did you do that?" she asked.

Sonata swallowed. "N-no, ma'am.  Honest.  Please don't take away my magic."

Cadence's expression softened when she noticed Sonata's fear. "It's alright.  I'll just have to have a word with Sunset later.  Please, come in."

Sonata nodded and followed Cadence into her office.  She sat down across from the Dean, fidgeting all the while.  Cadence smiled.

"Don't worry, you're not in trouble," she said. "I just want to get to know you better."  She gestured to her candy dish. "Crystal berry?"

Sonata smacked her lips, eagerly taking a handful of treats. "Thankies.  I needed real food after that last class."

Cadence let out a small chuckle before leaning back in her chair. "So, tell me, Sonata Dusk.  What do you think about Crystal Prep?"

Sonata blinked and scratched her head. "Um, it's weird.  Not a bad weird, but not really a good weird, either.  All the kids seem so nice, but the teachers are just so scary."  She flinched. "N-not you, of course."

"It's fine.  I understand what you mean," said Cadence. "You have to keep in mind that above all else, our goal at Crystal Prep is to help students succeed.  For many teachers, that means sacrificing the students' comfort.  And that's usually where I come in."

Sonata blinked before popping a crystal berry into her mouth. "So, what?  You want to make me feel better?"

Cadence couldn't help but grin at Sonata's childlike choice of words. "That's a bit of an oversimplification, Sonata."  Her smile slowly faded, but it didn't disappear entirely. "See, I've been speaking with the teachers of the classes you were taking.  They all told me that you were struggling to grasp the material."

Sonata swallowed the crystal berry involuntarily. "I-I thought you said I wasn't in trouble."

"You're not, I promise," said Cadence. "I simply want to hear what you think."

Sonata furrowed her brow. "Well, yeah.  A lot of the stuff is kinda hard.  Much harder than at Canterlot High.  I don't think I'd be able to grasp half that stuff without Aria and Sunset helping me figure things out."

Cadence arched an eyebrow. "What about that other girl?  Adagio Dazzle."

"Oh, she's just being a big grump about stuff," said Sonata with a sigh. "I wish she wasn't, though.  She doesn't know what she's missing, y'know?"

"I think I can hazard a guess," said Cadence thoughtfully. "So, your friends have been helping you keep up with the work."

"Yeah, I just said that," said Sonata.

"Would you be surprised to hear that this behavior used to be unheard of at Crystal Prep?"

Sonata shrugged her shoulders. "I dunno.  Should I be?  I mean, I've never really heard of this place until the Friendship Games."

Cadence nodded slowly. "Hmm.  Fair enough."  She sighed. "The fact of the matter is that for the longest time, all of the students at Crystal Prep were focused only on their own success.  None of them even really cared about the school's reputation that Principal Cinch likes to go on about.  All they knew is that if the school succeeded, they succeeded."

"But, it's not like that now," said Sonata, scarfing down another crystal berry. "Those Shadowbolt guys are really friendly.  They've been helping me, too."

"And that above all else is a sign that things are changing at this school," said Cadence.

Sonata tilted her head. "And, that's a good thing, right?"

"It depends on who you ask," said Cadence, averting her eyes.  After a pause, she turned back to Sonata. "But, let's not get sidetracked here.  I want to help you succeed and live up to your true potential, Sonata.  And that goes for your friends, too."

Sonata's eyes sparkled. "You mean, you're gonna help us find our true selves so we can use our magic whenever we want?"

"Something like that," said Cadence with a small smirk.


***


As the meeting continued, Slitherquick made the long march from where the rogue floor tile left her back to Cadence's office.  When she saw that the door was closed, she let out a snort.  Ever so quietly, she shuffled up to the door, placing her ear against it.

"So, you guys don't have a No Magic rule," said Sonata, breathing a sigh of relief.

"Don't relax just yet, Sonata," Cadence cautioned. "While I don't know of any such rule being put in place, Principal Cinch doesn't exactly have a positive view of magic."

Sonata's expression deflated. "Oh."

"But I promised her that I would make sure that your magic would be kept under control," Cadence continued. "So as long as you don't try to hypnotize the school or open any holes in the fabric of reality, you should be—"

Slitherquick flinched as a tap on her shoulder broke her concentration.  She spun around to see what appeared to be Twilight Sparkle, but instead of glasses and a Crystal Prep uniform, she wore a blue shirt with purple boots.  Her long hair was also flowing freely, rather than being tied up in a bun.

"It's not nice to eavesdrop," Twilight scolded.

Slitherquick's face went white. "Y-you.  Wh-what are you doing here?!"

"I'm telling you that it's not nice to eavesdrop," Twilight repeated.

Slitherquick sputtered. "No.  I know what you did at the Friendship Games.  Y-you won't infect our school with your witchcraft."

Twilight's face contorted into a thin smile, a dark aura radiating from her back. "Oh, really?  What are you going to do to stop me?"

In a flash, a feathered wing and a bat wing sprouted from her back, and a horn and an antler emerged from her head.  Slitherquick was about to shriek, but Twilight placed an eagle's claw to her lips.

"This is the part where you leave and never come back," she said, her voice sounding a lot more masculine and demonic.

Thoroughly intimidated, Slitherquick fumbled with her cane and lumbered off as fast as her legs could carry her.  When she was gone, Twilight Sparkle had reverted entirely back into Discord.  He thrust his paw and talon into the air, forming two V symbols as he snickered and sank into the floor.


***


"Let me ask you this, Sonata.  What are you passionate about?  What motivates you?"

Sonata munched on another crystal berry, mulling over Cadence's question. "Um, I care about Aria and Adagio.  And music, I guess.  Ooh, and tacos.  And Sunset's nice, too.  And also Discord, though he can be kinda weird.  Oh, and friendship.  That's a big one.  That's what my magic runs on, y'know.  Oh, and I like swimming, too.  Though Rainbow Dash says I'll get in trouble if I swim without my bathing suit.  Y'know, I've been in this world for so long, but I will never understand why—"

"Okay, I get the point," said Cadence, raising her hand. "Let's focus on music for a second.  Why do you like music?"

"Huh?  Oh, well, back when I was evil, I would sing, and my songs would convince people to do what I wanted," said Sonata. "Stick with what you know, y'know."

"Can you sing now?"

Sonata sighed. "I wish.  After the Battle of the Bands, the Rainbooms took away our singing voices.  I mean, it's fine now, because Discord gave me a trumpet, but none of us can sing anymore."

Cadence knitted her brow. "Well, what if you learned to sing without using magic?"

Sonata gave Cadence a blank stare. "That's crazy.  You're crazy."

"It's how it works here in the human world," said Cadence with a shrug. "We aren't born with magical talents here.  We develop those talents over time.  If you truly feel passionate about music, maybe that can be an avenue we pursue."

She turned to her desktop and started typing. "The Crystal Prep Drama Club is meeting tomorrow in the auditorium.  They're still holding auditions for parts, if I'm not mistaken.  I suggest asking Sunny Flare about signing up."

Sonata scratched her head. "But, what about my other classes?"

"Oh, don't worry about that," said Cadence. "The schedules aren't set in stone.  I can shift things around if need be."

Sonata thought for a moment. "And, you think this'll help me get my magic back."

"It's worth a shot."

Sonata beamed. "Sunset was right.  You are here to help us.  Thank you so much, Dean Cadence!  I can't wait to tell the others!  We're gonna get our magic back!  Hurray~!"

Cadence chuckled. "Okay, calm down, Sonata.  Bear in mind you still have plenty of work to keep up with.  You can't let that slide.  I'm glad your friends are supporting you, but if you need additional help, you know where to find me."

"You got it!" said Sonata with a nod. "Thanks again!"

"Take care, Sonata Dusk."

Sonata pranced out of Cadence's office in incredibly high spirits.  Cadence watched her leave, a small sigh escaping her lips.

"It never hurts to help," she said.  Before she could close the door, Sonata stopped in her tracks and turned around.

"Um, Dean Cadence?  I forgot where my next class is," she said.

Cadence couldn't help but laugh. "It's lunchtime, Sonata.  You should be heading to the cafeteria."

"Oh yeah.  Doy~!" Sonata chirped, slapping herself in the forehead.  She then continued on her merry way.  Cadence let out a small chuckle before closing the door to her office.


***


"If this is a joke, Slitherquick, it is in very poor taste."

Slitherquick shivered, bowing her head before Principal Cinch.

"I-it's true.  Twilight Sparkle has returned," she said.

Cinch shook her head. "I already checked the records Dean Cadence provided for me.  Twilight Sparkle has no desire to return to Crystal Prep; she would certainly not take part in the student-exchange program."

"I know what I saw, Abacus!" Slitherquick insisted. "That demon has snuck in and is planning to ruin us all!  What's worse, Dean Cadence refuses to do a thing about it!"

Cinch's face darkened. "Dean Cadence has her own priorities, Slitherquick.  Perhaps you should let her tend to them."

Slitherquick blinked. "But, I thought you wanted to keep tabs on those Canterlot High hooligans."

"I can do that just fine without interfering with Dean Cadence's job, Slitherquick," Cinch said sternly. "I applaud you for taking initiative, but please, don't overstep your bounds."

She then turned to Professor Flypaper. "And how was the workshop, Professor Flypaper?"

Flypaper shook his head. "I'm afraid none of the students could replicate Twilight Sparkle's groundbreaking work.  Though that Sunset Shimmer girl did come close."

"Do the other devices still work?"

"They can detect energy sources, but they cannot extract them."

Cinch nodded. "Have Lockdown install the devices around the school.  Keep the one made by Sunset Shimmer.  I want you to use that as a foundation for replicating the real thing."

"Of course, Principal Cinch," said Flypaper with a bow.

"Both of you, dismissed."

Slitherquick and Flypaper shuffled out of Cinch's room, leaving her alone to her thoughts.

Even my own secretary won't follow directions, she mused.  She clenched her fist. The sooner these precautions are put in place, the better.  I'm still in control...