When Lightning Strikes

by Necrogen Lord


Chapter 8

The Conduit sat down as the Director chuckled.

"So, I take it the last week has been quite a change of pace?" Charles said.

"Sir," Trevor groaned from his spot on the couch.

The Director examined the Conduit's residence and sighed, shaking his head.

"You know, we wouldn't stop you from going out with her."

Trevor's head shot up, his eyes wide.

"W-what? Sir, I-"

"Of course, you'd need some money to treat her, and we'd have to find a way for you to get it legitimately. After all, we don't have that much funding to go around as is."

"S-Sir, I don't think that it'd be right for me to try," Trevor said.

Charles stopped and looked Trevor in the eye.

"Why not?"

"I just... what if someone finds out I'm a Conduit? What if they tell her and she thinks I'm a monster? What if they think she's just as bad just because I spend time with her? I can't... I can't."

"Ah, alright, I see. You think that you'd ruin her life, not just for school, but overall."

"Y-Yeah. But, I thought you'd be more opposed to the idea. I mean, I'm supposed to be kept hidden, right?"

"You're supposed to blend in like a normal high school student, yes. That means that you should be out there, spending time with friends and get to know someone special. We didn't bring you out here just so you could mope around, Trevor. I suggested bringing you here to help you start over. Find a better life."

"At what cost, sir?"

Silence held an icy grip on the two until Charles cleared his throat.

"Speaking of cost, the Board decided that, as reward for your behavior, they're cutting the number of Escorts around here by half, and are willing to give you something to help you blend in more effectively."

Charles pulled an iPhone 5s from his jacket before tossing it to Trevor, who stared at the reflection.

"We want you to have a better life, Trevor. To make something of your time here. Please, do yourself a favor and live in the moment."

\\\\\\//////

Trevor swallowed in an attempt to try and moisten his throat, despite being nearly void of water on a molecular level. The science and numbers ran through his head hundreds of times over but he couldn't even bring himself to regard any of these with anything more than half a second.

No, his thoughts were utterly dominated by one single person: Sunset Shimmer.

The thoughts of her smiling face, her flowing hair, the softness in her voice and how she was one of the few people at the school who talked to him. Trevor wanted to punch himself in the face for this, but Director Ross-Walker was right, he had developed feelings for this girl. He didn't want to believe that he did, but whenever he tried to focus on anything but her, it always managed to loop back to that one instance they spent together.

"This is ridiculous!" Trevor said, grasping two metal rods. "I can't keep thinking of her! Something like me doesn't deserve that kind of chance!"

His arms glowed and cracked apart as he forced his excess energy into the transformer. The lights above flickered and died as Trevor illuminated the room with his body. A needle wavered on the center of the machine, indicating that Trevor had just unloaded nearly 800 kilowatts in the past few hours."

"No! I have to stop thinking of her!"

As he walked back up a flight of stairs, he pulled on his hair while forcing negative thoughts into his mind.

One small accidental discharge would be all it takes to either disable something vital or outright incinerate her. It didn't matter how he felt, he knew that he shouldn't even try to start anything at risk of Sunset's health. Not only would she be hurt physically, but her identity would essentially be on the verge of absolute coverage if anyone found out what Trevor was. She'd be targeted by so many people, she could get seriously injured by anything Trevor did, and it all hurt his chest to think about it.

Trevor cried as he smashed his forehead into the steel plating of a nearby wall. The impact dented the plate and left a white glowing spot from the intense heat he generated.

"I-I can't do this... I... I-I just have to avoid her, yeah. I can request my classes to be switched if I get there early."

\\\\\\//////

"I'm sorry Mr. Bowick, but I'm afraid all of the class rosters are already full," Principal Celestia said.

"Principal Celestia, please!" Trevor said. "I need to get into different classes!"

"Would you care to explain why, then?" she asked. "Your forms didn't exactly give an adequate reason for the sudden change in schedule."

"It's... because I, uh... I-I don't want to be in the same classes as Sunset Shimmer," he said.

Celestia's eyes widened for a moment before she sighed, shaking her head.

"I see. Has Sunset not been helping you accommodate properly to this environment or have there been... other issues?"

"... Other issues."

"And how would you describe these issues?"

"I... i-it's uncomfortable at best, and... terrifying at worst. I just... I-I don't want to be around her anymore."

"Very well. I'll have to make sure that Sunset is punished accordingly for-"

"Wait, what!?" Trevor said.

At his words, a light bulb in the next room exploded.

"Son of a bitch!"

"Principal Celestia, why would you punish Sunset? Sh-she didn't do anything wrong."

"I thought you said that she was causing you discomfort and is making the environment unpleasant for you?"

"I didn't mean... I-I don't want her to be... why would she be punished? I'm just-"

"It's alright to talk about however she's mistreating you."

"But she's not! Why would you say that?"

"Before you came to CHS, she was... a problem student," the Principal said. "She antagonized and bullied nearly everyone in her class and even in the lower grades. Often times I would receive reports from teachers that she would reduce other students to tears. I thought that, from the way you phrased it, she might be relapsing into her old habits."

"I... I didn't mean to make it sound like that! She's great! She's wonderful and I can't stop thinking about her!"

"Hmm... it sounds to me like you have something akin to a crush on Ms. Shimmer."

"I... I don't know, alright!?" Trevor said, gripping his head. "I think she's great! I can't stop thinking about how no matter how the morning's going, she's always there with a smile! And I... I don't want her to hate me, but more importantly, I can't stand to hurt her in any way. Besides, what would other students think of her if... I-I somehow, I don't know... g-get exposed?"

Principal Celestia sighed as she leaned forward, resting herself on the desk.

"Mr. Bowick, do you have any intentions of hurting Miss Shimmer?"

"W-What!? No! Absolutely not!"

"Then you shouldn't have anything to worry about in terms of your Conduit powers," she stated, leaning back. "I'm not familiar with how Conduit powers work myself, but I can assure you something from a meditation class I once took: don't believe in the worst parts of yourself. Every moment you spend fearing what you might do brings it closer to reality."

Trevor sighed and gripped his head in his hands.

"You sound just like her..."