//------------------------------// // Spring // Story: Four Seasons // by Extradimensional Alien //------------------------------// Four Seasons: Spring "Flash?" "Sunset?" Two persons, a blue-haired male and a fiery-haired female, looked at each other, dumbstruck, while standing in front of the entrance to their former school. "So, er..." Flash Sentry scratched his forehead, trying to break the uncomfortable silence, "...so you decided to come to the graduates' reunion party too?" "Kinda hard not to, considering I Pinkie Promised to the girl that is hosting it," Sunset Shimmer chuckled nervously. "I didn't expect to see you here, though. I thought you were still in the military academy or something..." "No, I actually graduated from it, but I'm still in the army. But it is my day off, though." "Oh. Okay then..." Sunset trailed off, not knowing what to add. It was April, and Canterlot High was indeed hosting a graduates' reunion party. An informal tradition set by some of the students from the time before Principal Celestia was put in charge of CHS, it usually involved a reservation of a class room after hours and typically was a quiet occasion, where former students enjoyed tea and cake and learned about what happened to each other after they closed the school's doors behind them. But when Pinkie Pie got involved in the idea, the "usual" went out of the window and accelerated away with escape velocity. Which resulted in the building of CHS having a banner welcoming the former graduates hanging above the entrance, a massive number of cake-smelling invitations sent by mail and on some occasions (like Sunset's), delivered personally by Pinkie with a song and a dance. Even teachers were invited. Not everyone was able to attend, of course, but the number of people who arrived was surprisingly high. The parking lot was already mostly occupied by cars, bicycles and motorbikes, and Flash had some trouble finding a free space for his car. He was about to turn around the corner where the entrance to CHS awaited, but as he turned around, he almost collided with a person who had surprisingly familiar hair... ...hence the aforementioned surprised exchange of words and the following uncomfortable silence. "So... let's go in, then," Flash said. "Agreed," Sunset replied, and both went on to the building of Canterlot High. As they reached the end of the stairs, Flash opened and held the door for Sunset. "Still a gentleman, I see," she smiled genuinely for the first time. "I try," he gave a smile in return. "Officer's code of honour and chivalry and all that," he finished, coming in after her. "The party is supposed to start at the gym, correct?" "Yes. Will you be so kind as to accompany me there?" Sunset smiled at him again. It was surprising, but it felt so... easy for her to ask the question and smile at Flash. As if they were still school kids. "Of course," Flash offered his arm. It did not hit him until a three seconds later that he actually did that, and by that time, Sunset already took him up on his offer. Immediately, the former rocker and now an officer remembered the times when he and the fiery-haired girl used to walk around like this when they dated. Of course, Sunset was a lot different back then, but the memory for some reason brought him warmth. Probably nostalgia, he decided. The gym was richly decorated by streamers and confetti. It was evident that Pinkie Pie spared no expense in making sure to bring the party spirit, and Flash's trained eye even spotted an infamous party cannon... "HIIIIIIIIIIIII!" ...before he found himself wrapped in a very tight hug. A small "ooof!" told him that Sunset found herself in the same predicament. Then the pressure ended and both of them could properly look at Pinkie Pie. The party girl certainly looked more physically mature, but her expressions were still somewhat child-like, and it appeared that she was barely holding herself in before breaking into constant hopping. "Hi, Pinkie," Sunset breathed out. "One of these days you will break my ribs and I will send you the medical bill." The smile she had betrayed her real feeling on the matter, however, and Pinkie quickly caught on. "Tee-hee-hee, that's never gonna happen, Sunset! I know my limits! And I see you came with Flash! Are you dating?" The sudden question quickly made both of them blush as if someone threw a bucket of red paint at them. "Er, no, we aren't, I mean, we just...!" both of them began to babble excuses while unconsciously putting some distance between each other. This lead to Sunset untangling her arm from Flash's, which he, naturally, regretted. Pinkie seemd to ignore the occurrence in front of her, and declared: "Come on in and join the others, we haven't started yet!" With these words, she hopped back somewhere, leaving two flustered people behind. Sunset and Flash looked at each other, not daring to say a word. Finally, after a minute, Sunset spoke up: "So, um... shall I go and see if someone from my old gang is there?" "OK then, and I'll see if someone from my band is here, then," Flash forced a smile. "See you around." "Yeah, see ya." The two went their separate ways, still feeling the tension from the situation they found themselves in... and silently bemoaning Pinkie's ability to ask unexpected yet very embarrassing questions out of nowhere. Brawly Beats and Ringo did indeed come to the graduates' reunion party. Flash was very happy to see his former bandmates, and the feeling was reciprocated. They spent time talking about their lives after school while other people were arriving; as it turned out, Ringo managed to score a job as a session guitarist, while Brawly Beats became an instructor in drum playing. After some time, they changed the topic to relationships with girls. Flash was surprised to find out that neither of his bandmates were able to enter a stable relationship, and expressed his genuine surprise. "I mean, you guys are practically everything a girl could wish for..." "Haven't you heard that it's the nice guys that finish last in these endeavours, so to say?" Brawly interrupted. "That's BS and you know it. Maybe you haven't even tried? I mean, I am single too, but the military academy does not give much time for that sort of thing..." "Or maybe a certain someone just hogged all of our dating luck," Ringo interrupted him with a grin that belied his snark. "You say you did not try and yet you came here with Sunset on your arm. I smell BS here, man. So how long?" "How long what?" "How long have you been dating?" "Oh come on," Flash barely resisted the desire to facetable, "what is it with you shippers on deck? First Pinkie, then you..." His building-up rant was interrupted, however, by a small screech that accompanied a microphone being tested. Principal Celestia and Vice Principal Luna were standing on stage, both still in their prime. "Welcome!" she exclaimed jovially. "I am very glad to see you here once again!" Flash turned his face to his former principal, but he tuned out the speech she was giving to them right now. Ringo's dig at him, while good-natured, stirred something within him... something related to a certain fiery-haired girl. He remembered the time when they were dating. It was, without a doubt, an interesting experience for him, although the end was not what he had wished it to be. When he decided that he had had enough and did not want to be seen alongside the queen bee of the school, he broke up with her. It... was not pretty. He vividly remembered how Sunset, her face marred and twisted by malicious anger, promised to strike when he would least expect it, and ruin his image and reputation so thoroughly that he would crawl back asking for forgiveness. He laughed, and said that he could not be sullied any further than when he continued dating her even after learning of her nasty side - mainly to insult her, petty of him as it was - and that she was welcome to try. But if he were to be honest with himself, the moments he shared with Sunset before he saw through her manipulations remained in his mind as pleasant memories, if a little painful. Flash snapped out of his trip into the memory land as Principal Celestia finished speaking and ceded the scene to Pinkie Pie, who immediately brought two party cannons to the stage. "Leeeeeeeeet's PARTY!!!" she shouted (so loudly that she did not even need a microphone), and fired the party cannons. Vinyl Scratch immedately turned on the music, and former students began gathering in front of the stage to dance. Flash debated with himself if he wanted to or not. Well, why not? he thought, and joined the crowd. Well, this party is certainly very energetic, Flash thought later, once he detached himself from the crowd. The party was going on for an hour and a half already, and some people decided to take a break and enjoy some punch with snacks while others joined the dancing crowd. The former rocker decided he wanted some refreshments and thus found himself near one of the few remaining empty tables in a somewhat secluded (and less noisy) corner, with bowls of punch and various cupcakes, cookies and sweets. Pinkie went all out, he thought for the umpteenth time. He poured himself some punch and took a cupcake and several cookies and put them on his plate. All of a sudden, Sunset got out of the dancing crowd, looking at it as she stumbled. "Wheeeeew, I'm tired, haven't partied that hard for long... oh, hi, Flash," she said, when she turned around and finally noticed the blue-haired player. "Hi again, Sunset," he replied, and desperately scrounged his brain for a topic, before settling on: "How's the party?" "Great!" Sunset beamed at him. "I haven't been to Pinkie's parties for so long, I forgot how energetic they are. Can you believe that I am feeling tired already? I could party hard non-stop earlier!" "I am a little famished too, and I was in the military academy," Flash chuckled. "You'd think I would be able to last longer, but noooo... although maybe I partied too hard." "No parties at military academy?" "You can say that. There were days off, of course, but one could not go wild. Going too far would end up being expelled for "actions unbecoming of a cadet", as the instructors would call it." "Wow, harsh." "Indeed. And, well, I was not a party animal while at the academy anyway." "Have you graduated now?" "Yes, and I have been picked for a special forces unit. I'm currently undergoing advanced training here in Canterlot." "Cool," Sunset smiled at him, "the uniform does look good on you. And it certainly suits you, being the strong and handsome soldier and stuff. I bet I will see you on recruitment posters in a year or two," she smirked, and he rolled his eyes with a faint blush. "Anyway, what have you been up to?" he asked her. "Well, now that magic has become a not-so-unusual occurrence in the recent years, there is now a whole division made at Canterlot University dedicated to the study of "anomalous psionic energies", as it's officially called," Sunset made the finger air quotes. "Honestly, someone out there is a fan of bad science fiction, because, really, "psionic"? This term has been overused everywhere." "So how's the whole thing going?" "Here and there. Magic has its own rules and what we see does not really fit into the usual frameworks. I don't think I've told you what happened when I tried studying magic with the help of my friends?" "No, you haven't. Care to share?" Sunset told him the story behind her unsuccessful attempt at studying magic. By the time he finished, Flash had trouble hiding his mirth at her expense. "Is this how your studies are going now?" he asked. "Not that crazy, mostly actually pretty boring, but unexpected stuff happens," Sunset replied. "I'm sure I'm gonna see your pretty face on a magazine soon, with the "First Ph.D. at magic" caption," Flash gave a sassy smirk, which prompted Sunset to roll her eyes and swat him playfully. "Prat," she said, and failed to hold a laugh. "It's as if we never changed after graduation, you and I." "Well... it certainly does not look like that, does it?" The full implication behind the question hit Flash only after he said it. Sunset came to the same conclusion only several moments before him, and silence reigned supreme between them again. At that moment, Vinyl Scratch changed the tune to a slower one. Immediately, couples began drifting to the dance floor and dance slowly to the jazz tune. Flash and Sunset looked there, and then at each other. "Ahem... so..." the blue-haired young man spent a second composing himself, and then offered a hand to the girl in front of him: "Sunset, may I have the honour of dancing with you?" The question threw Sunset off balance for a moment. She pondered for a second, and said: "Yes." Flash led her to the floor, where she put her hands on his shoulders and he put his on her waist, and began leading her through the tune of the song. For several minutes, none of them said anything, and both swayed to the sounds of saxophone. "This is... just like when we dated, isn't it?" Sunset broke the silence after a while. "It is... but yet a little different. We have grown up..." "...I stopped being a she-demon..." "...and I learnt a thing or two on how to be a real man..." "...and here we are, dancing like a couple," Sunset finished with a small smile. Flash pondered on something, and then said: "Well, I wouldn't mind to make the word "like" an odd one... unless you already have a significant other, Sunset?" "No. You don't have one?" "No." "What, you've become a one hundred percent pony-phile now? Other girls don't compare?" the fiery-haired girl sassed him, to which he replied with an eye-roll. "Ha-ha, very funny. No, I just... I dunno, I never met a girl after you or Twilight who might have..." Flash stumbled upon words, and then snapped his fingers, "for the lack of a better word, "sparked" something in me. Something that would make me think, "I want to be with her" and try to date her." "And do I have the same effect on you? After all these years?" her green eyes bore into his blue ones. No more than three seconds passed before she heard the answer: "Yes, you still do." When the party died down, Flash gave Sunset a lift to her flat, as she arrived to Canterlot High via public transport. As she was about to enter the block of flats, they exchanged some parting words. "So, shall we meet at Sweet Shoppe next Sunday, when you'll have a day off?" Sunset asked. "Sure," Flash said. "Two p.m.?" "Will do," Sunset smiled. "Until later, Flash." "Later, Sunset." The door closed, and Flash turned back to his car, smiling all the time and fighting the urge to imitate Pinkie and hop from happiness. Before sitting inside, he breathed the relatively warm April air in and out. It was spring, the season of birth. And it looked like that their relationship was born, again.