//------------------------------// // Friendship Before the Games // Story: Before the Friendship Games: Sour Sweet // by CapNTilfy //------------------------------// Sour Sweet woke up. "Well..." She said. "Today's the day." She got up, then stretched and yawned. "Let's do this!" She said as she changed into her school uniform. Once finished, she ran out of her room, and then the house. She had decided to leave the house early because she knew she'd start to feel antsy if she woke up late. Being late to school was one thing, but being late for school on the day of the Friendship Games is something else altogether! The bus had arrived, and Sour Sweet hopped in and found herself a seat. She leaned back, staring at the ceiling of the bus. She closed her eyes, tuning out the chatter from the students on the bus. --------------------------------------------- Sour Sweet got off the bus and noticed Lemon Zest run into a bush. Sour Sweet raised an eyebrow and decided to see what she was up to. Being as quiet as she possibly could, she snuck into the bush and put her hand over Lemon's mouth. Lemon started and screamed, then turned around. "Hey." Sour said. "What are you doing in here?" "Jesus fucking Christ almighty on a goddamn pogo stick, Sour Sweet! You scared the fuck out of me!" Lemon whispered sharply. Sour smiled sheepishly. She regained her composure quickly. "I'm sorry." she said. "It's okay." said Lemon. "No. It's not." said said Sour. Lemon blinked, then realized what Sour was really apologizing for. "Look, neither of us knew I'd react like that. It's in the past." she said. Sour sighed. "I know, but I still can't help but feel guilty. I mean, we were on the verge of rekindling our friendship, and I had to say those stupid, stupid words!" her voice cracked. Lemon looked at Sour. "Hey now, I know you didn't mean to upset me. It was a total accident. I couldn't help the way I felt...and apparently still feel about you." Lemon said, blushing slightly. "It's like I want to move on, but I can't...like I won't let myself...but I don't want to drive you away." she said, feeling a lump in her throat. "Because I'm scared that if I do drive you away..." she trailed off, sniffling. "You'd feel that you have nothing left to live for." Lemon's breathing hitched. "Lemon..." Sour said, putting her hand to her mouth. "Please don't kill yourself, Sour Sweet!" Lemon began sobbing. "I...I don....I don't know what I'd do with myself if you did!" She shot over to Sour and hugged her tightly. "I want to do everything within my power to prevent that from happening!" Sour smiled, tears of her own flowing. "Lemon...I promise you I won't. I've been having sessions with Radiant Hope ever since the one we had together. That day truly was an eye-opener for me. I never feel like I'm alone as long as I have a guidance counselor like Radiant Hope...or a friend like you." she said as she gently stroked Lemon's hair in an effort to calm her down. Upon hearing Sour Sweet refer to her as a friend, Lemon Zest lost any sense of rational thought and let out all of her emotions. She focused on all that she had been through, mentally and emotionally, over the past week and let out an ear-piercing howl of anguish that could be heard by all outside. Drained, but still crying, Lemon went limp in Sour Sweet's arms until Radiant Hope found them. ---------------------------------------------- Once Radiant Hope brought the pair into her office, Sour Sweet explained everything. Lemon was asleep next to her, as her emotional outburst took nearly all of her energy. Hope gave Sour a meaningful look. "You did the right thing, Sour Sweet." Sour gave Hope a confused look. "I...I did?" Hope nodded. "Lemon's release of emotions was strong, to say the least, but it's a sign that while she'll still feel the pain for some time to come, she's beginning to truly heal." Sour raised an eyebrow at Hope. Hope smiled. "It means that since she let it all out, she had forced herself to accept that you would simply be friends." Sour frowned. "You make it sound bad." "But it's not, Sour." said Hope. "It's all part of the healing process." Lemon opened her eyes and got up slowly. "What...happened?" her eyes shot wide open as everything came back to her. "Oh, shit! What time is it?! Did I miss the Friendship Games?!" Sour smiled. "No, you didn't. You've only been out for like an hour. You've still got two hours left." Lemon took a deep breath and exhaled. "Okay, there's still time then." "Time for what?" asked Sour. "I'll explain later. Thanks, Hope!" said Lemon as she took Sour by the hand and left Hope's office. She took out her phone. Once they reached the bushes, Lemon and Sour stopped. "What the hell is going on?!" asked Sour. Lemon grinned. "I made a wager with Indigo last night." she said. Sour blinked. "You what?" "I made a wager with Indigo last night." Lemon repeated. "Oookay...so what does this have to do with us being in the bushes?" asked Sour. "I bet Indigo that she couldn't humiliate Sunny Flare in public in an absolutely ridiculous manner." said Lemon, grinning widely. "Oh, fuck." said Sour, grinning from ear to ear. "This is gonna be good." "It will be. She said she wouldn't do it for money, just one condition." said Lemon. "And that's why we're hiding in these bushes?" asked Sour. "Yep. The condition was that I record it on my phone." said Lemon. Target's in position!- Sent by Indigo Zap Recording...NOW!- Sent by Lemon Zest Out of nowhere, the sound of airhorns came rushing towards Sunny Flare as she jumped from being startled. The source of the noise was coming from a person in a gorilla suit, throwing sardines at its target, landing an occasional bullseye. Lemon and Sour were howling with laughter as the former managed to record the whole scene despite shaking with mirth. ---------------------------------------------- At long last, the moment was here. Sour Sweet was waiting in line while Dean Cadence was looking over a checklist. Sour Sweet noticed Sunny Flare join the line. The two simply stared at each other, neither one willing to start up a conversation. The silence continued as more students joined the line until both were broken. "Dean Cadence?" said Twilight, cutting in line. "I'm not really sure where to go." Cadence walked away, holding up a finger. "One second, Twilight." she said. "You could try the end of the line." said Sour, causing Sunny to smile slightly despite herself. Twilight turned around and adjusted her glasses. "What did you say?" "Just that someone as smart as you should definitely go first." said Sour. Twilight raised her arms defensively. "I...I didn't mean to. I was just asking." Dean Cadence returned. "This is the right bus, Twilight. Go ahead." "But...I didn't mean to cut in front." Twilight said. Sour folded her arms. "Well it's too late now!" she said. She sighed as Twilight boarded the bus and took her sweet time talking to Indigo Zap. After Twilight moved to the back, Sour Sweet smiled. Ready to kick some ass, Sour Side? Damn right, I am! Thought Sour Side, and Sweet boarded the bus. End of Book Three of The Crystal Prep Chronicles: Before the Friendship Games