//------------------------------// // Chapter 1 // Story: The Looney Student // by Teyeson Bee //------------------------------// Crystal Prep Academy. A place of sophistication and higher learning. Well known for its reputation of having the highest GPAs in the state, Crystal Prep holds great pride in having some of the greatest minds in the district. Though the school was unchanging for the longest time, it had gone through quite a drastic change recently. The annual Friendship Games against rival school, Canterlot High, saw to that. The two schools put aside their differences and became friends, and Abacus Cinch, the strict and competitive principal, stepped down. Since then, the much kinder and caring dean, Cadence, took over, and the school had never been the same. Of course, along with the change in authority, there was another big change to the school. The formally highest mind, Twilight Sparkle, had transferred, and another took her place as the smartest student at Crystal Prep. Though some would see that as a double-edged sword. One particular day, everything at Crystal Prep seemed completely normal. Students were going about their classes as usual, teachers prattled on with their lessons in physics or history, and everything, for the most part, was pretty quiet. That is, of course, until Professor Time Turner’s 11:00 Chemistry class. At first, it was quiet. Nothing but the sounds of bubbling beakers and whispered voices instructing each other on the next step of their assignment, and then... BOOM!!! The explosion echoed throughout the whole school and brought every lesson and activity to a grinding halt. Heads of students and teachers popped out of each doorway, frantically looking up and down the hallways for the source of the sound. Before any real panic could begin, Principal Cadence burst out of her office and walked as fast as she could past the muttering students, trying to keep as calm as possible. She wasn’t panicked though. She had a pretty good idea as to what, or more specifically who, was responsible. She soon came up to the door leading into the chemistry lab. The door was closed, and instead of the clear image of the classroom beyond the window, all that could be seen was a dense, black fog. From the inside came the sounds of coughing and shouting. Without wasting a single moment, Principal Cadence turned the knob and flew open the door. Instantly, an onslaught of black smoke poured from the room, intermingled with the retreating students, still coughing and waving their hands in front of them to clear their vision. The last to leave was Professor Turner himself. While normally prim and proper with his pressed suit and combed hair, he now had patches of what looked like soot on his coat, and his hair had been slightly ruffled. Coughing as he leaned against the wall next to the door, he turned to meet Cadence’s gaze, a mix of frustration and exasperation on his face. “What happened, Professor?” asked Cadence, though she felt like she already knew the answer. Professor Turner must’ve felt that too. “Your first guess is correct,” he responded gruffly. Cadence sighed heavily and walked through the door just as the smoke began to clear. Looking towards the back of the room, her eyes fixed upon a feminine figure leaning over a still smoking beaker. The figure was wearing a thick, grey, turtleneck sweater over her Crystal Prep uniform, and had her reddish hair tied in a little ponytail on the top of her head, held together by a beaded scrunchie. Of course, it was hard to see the colors she wore at the moment, for her entire upper body was covered with black soot. Even the safety goggles she had on were coated, covering her eyes from view. She just stood there, frozen, over her blackened beaker, a glass dripper still pinched in between her fingers. Principal Cadence shook her head, her own feeling of exasperation sweeping over her. “Ahem,” she called out. The figure unfroze immediately with a jolt and looked in the direction of Principal Cadence. Slowly, she raised her hands to her goggles and lifted them up, revealing a pair of thick-rimmed glasses held together with tape. The eyes of the smartest student at Crystal Prep, Moon Dancer, met Cadence’s, and an embarrassed smile spread across her still blackened face. “Uh...greetings, Principal Cadence,” she chuckled nervously as she tried to dust off her sweater. “Some...weather we’re having today, huh? So...how are you?” Principal Cadence did not return the smile. Ten minutes later, in the Principal’s office, Moon Dancer was shifting uncomfortably in her seat, looking at Principal Cadence, waiting for the inevitable. After taking the time to calm the rest of the school down and send them back to their classes, the Principal had returned to her office, and was pacing back and forth behind her desk with a look of stern concentration on her face. Moon Dancer could tell that she was considering what to do next. It wasn’t the first time she’d seen that look, for this wasn’t the first time Moon Dancer had been sent to Cadence’s office. That’s what worried her so much. Once again, she had let her need to know overcome her common sense, and this time, she didn’t know if the Principal’s patience could stretch any further. After what seemed like an eternity, Principal Cadence finally sat down, though she still looked stern. Moon Dancer glanced down at her feet and shifted again before looking back up. Her sweater still had black marks on it, and her face was smeared in some places with soot. Cadence looked at her for another minute, then took a deep, calming breath, and spoke. “Moon Dancer,” she started. Her tone wasn’t angry, but bordering on annoyed and exasperated. “This is the third time this year that you’ve been sent to my office because of one of your science experiments. It’s the same thing every time!” Moon Dancer cleared her throat slightly. “Technically, Principal Cadence, this is the first time I was called down for this chemical result. Last time, I had flooded the Chemistry Lab with some kind of foam-like substance. I don’t even know how I came to that result. Maybe a bad concoction of Chloric Acid and Potassium Ferricyanide, but you know, I think I may have just measured the wrong amount. I mean, in the scientific world, one wrong measurement could mean the difference between a harmless cure for boils or an atomic explosion! I think-” “Moon Dancer!” Principal Cadence snapped, instantly making Moon Dancer shut her mouth. “That is not my point. This is the third time that you’ve been sent down her because of one of your personal experiments! It has to stop! It could lead to something dangerous!” “Ma’am, I assure you,” Moon Dancer said, looking suddenly nervous, “I’m not really working on making an atomic explosion! That was just a little joke! I swear!” Principal Cadence groaned and rubbed her temples. “I know you’re not trying to blow up the school, Miss Dancer. I’m just saying that untested chemical reactions can be both dangerous and expensive! The school’s equipment and the students are not here to be your personal, scientific guinea pigs! Need I remind you of what happened to the last student to whom you tested on?” “That reminds me,” Moon Dancer piped up again, trying to sound a bit more cheerful, “I ran into Sunny Flare just yesterday.” Cadence’s expression softened slightly at these words. “Really? How is she?” “Well, she said that she’s fine and that the bandages should be off by next week.” Moon Dancer responded casually. “Oh that’s-” Principal Cadence stopped and returned to her serious demeanour almost immediately, “Don’t try and change the subject, Miss Dancer! I am tired of the chemical incidents! The fact that you are the brightest student at Crystal Prep does not give you an excuse to play mad scientist!” Moon Dancer looked down a bit apologetically, but tried to hide the blush she had from being called the brightest student. When she lifted her head and spoke again, her voice was confident. “I can’t help it, Principal Cadence! I’ve been working on a long-running project that could change the entire world as we know it. Every time I have a brainstorm about it, I just need to test it out as soon as possible!” Principal Cadence said nothing at first, but raised an eyebrow. Moon Dancer said nothing either as she waited for the principal’s response. Finally, Cadence took a deep, calming breath, and spoke again. “I understand that we all get so excited about something that we look past everything else,” she said in a motherly tone, “but that still isn’t an excuse. Moon Dancer, you really are the top student here at Crystal Prep, and for that I am very proud. You also carry a determination to do your best. However, determination can turn into obsession if you overlook or ignore the well-beings of others, their possessions, or, in some cases, yourself. I want you and your project to be successful, but you mustn’t let your determination become obsession again, understand?” Moon Dancer quickly nodded understandingly. “Now,” Cadence continued as she opened her desk and pulled out a folder labeled Dancer, Moon, “I’m going to give you one more warning, and I’d be grateful for it if I were you.” She took out a pencil and wrote something Moon Dancer couldn’t see onto the paperwork in the folder. “If Cinch were still here, you would’ve surely been suspended.” She then put the folder back in the desk and looked sternly again at Moon Dancer. “I mean it, Miss Dancer; no more personal experiments on school grounds. Save those for home, ok?” “Yes, ma’am!” Moon Dancer said, placing a hand over her heart. “You won’t hear any more explosions from me! I’ll just…write down my brainstorms and do them at home. I promise!” “Very well,” Cadence responded with a soft smile. Just then, the bell rang and the sounds of students in the halls could be heard from a distance. “You may go.” Moon Dancer bid the principal farewell and hastily left the office. A strong sense of relief that she was not going to be suspended welled up inside of her as she turned a corner. The feeling was short-lived however, and was quickly replaced by the experiment. Her failed concoction buzzed around in her head like a nest of angry hornets. She had been working on her formula for months now. Months of studying, planning, and testing, going through one crazy result after another. She was so certain that she had cracked it this time, only to wind up at another block. If she could just figure it out, her formula would change everything. It would even beat anything that former student Twilight Sparkle had ever come up with. If she could only get the right mixture. “Hey, Moonie!” Moon Dancer’s train of thought was interrupted by a familiar voice. She turned around to see the source walking down the hall toward her, to which she smiled and waved. “Hi, Sketch,” she greeted back. Sketch Pad was Crystal Prep’s resident scruffy-haired, geeky, but good-hearted, artist. He also happened to be Moon Dancer’s oldest and dearest friend. They had known each other since they could talk, and were still as close as peanut butter and jelly. Moon Dancer lingered a bit to allow Sketch to catch up. When he did, the first thing Moon Dancer noticed was his thick, colorful sketchbook that stood out like crazy amidst his dull-colored schoolbooks. Similar to herself with experimenting, Sketch couldn’t help but doodle at least once in his classes, especially when he had an idea. “So,” said Sketch with a coy smile, “I’m gonna take a wild guess and say that the explosion was your doing. Correct?” A blush spread across Moon Dancer’s face as she smiled embarrassingly. “Yeah. Sorry about that.” “For what?” Sketch replied smiling. Moon Dancer raised a curious eyebrow to him as the two continued down the hallway. “Your explosion got me out of doing a speech I wasn’t prepared for. You just earned me another night! Thanks, Moonie!” Moon Dancer just shook her head and chuckled. “Maybe you’d be more prepared if you weren’t so busy drawing when you’re supposed to be working,” she said. “Um, hello?” Sketch retorted, putting a hand up to his ear like he was holding a phone. “Mr. Kettle? Mr. Pot called. He says you’re black!” Moon Dancer laughed and nudged Sketch playfully. The two stopped when they reached Sketch’s locker, and he opened it before saying, “So, what were you working on anyway?” Moon Dancer looked up and down the hall to see if anyone was coming before responding in a hushed tone, “My secret project. The one I’ve been working on since summer!” “Ah,” Sketch nodded, transferring some of his books from the bag to the locker, of course leaving the sketchbook right where it was. “Another dead end, eh?” “Unfortunately,” Moon Dancer responded with a sigh. “I was so close, and yet once again, the answer has slipped from my grasp. Every single attempt just leads to another failed concoction.” “Don’t beat yourself up about it, Moonie,” Sketch said as he closed his locker with a CLANG! “At least this time the end result wasn’t the worst that has happened. Remember when you burned a hole right through the lab table?” Moon Dancer shuttered slightly. “Don’t remind me. I thought Principal Cadence was going to start releasing steam from her ears.” “Any more steam, and she would’ve started whistling that her tea was ready,” Sketch added with a smile. Moon Dancer chuckled a bit, but the smile was short-lived as thoughts of her failures hit her again and she hung her head slightly. She then felt a comforting hand on her shoulder, and looked back up at Sketch, who was wearing a warm smile. “You’re a smart girl, Moonie,” he said softly. “The smartest girl I know! If there’s anyone who can come up with the solution, it’s you! Don’t let a few hiccups stop you from trying Just give it some time. After all; a work of art can’t become a masterpiece without some rough sketches first.” There he went again. Maybe it was just from how long they had known each other, but Sketch always knew the right words for cheering Moon Dancer up. Slowly, her mouth spread into a smile. “Thanks, Sketch,” she said. “I feel a little bit better now.” “Glad to hear it,” Sketch responded. “I’m just sad you won’t be able to get me out of any more of my classes in the future.” “Nope,” Moon Dancer giggled. “You’ll just have to learn to study!” “Curses! My one weakness!” The two laughed just as the bell rang again, signalling the beginning of the next period. “We better get to lunch,” Sketch said, hiking up his bag and turning toward the cafeteria. “You go on,” Moon Dancer responded, turning the other way. “I have to get some stuff from my locker.” Sketch waved and hurried down the hall in the opposite direction. Moon Dancer started toward her locker, feeling more lighthearted than before. She was almost halfway there when she felt two pairs of hands suddenly clasp tightly onto her shoulders and pull her sideways. Before she could even know what was happening, she found herself dragged into the bathroom and her back slammed against the wall. Facing her were fellow classmates, Uppercrust and Suri Polomare, both with scowls plastered over their faces. And there, standing behind them, was Fleur de Lis, the prettiest and most popular girl in school. She, unfortunately for Moon Dancer, did not look happy. “Uh…” Moon Dancer smiled awkwardly as she tried to find the right words, “Hello, Fleur. Nice weather today, isn’t it? Though I think it might rain later today judging by the direction the wind is blowing and-” she caught sight of Fleur slowly advancing with a scowl, “-then again, I’m not a meteorologist, so what would I-” “Shut it!” Fleur snapped. Moon Dancer instantly clamped her mouth together. “Word has it that you are the one who caused that explosion. Is that true?” “Um...yes?” Moon Dancer replied with a weak chuckle. Fleur did not smile back. “Do you know what I was doing at that time?” Fleur asked with a quiet anger. Moon Dancer shook her head so jerkily, that it made her momentarily dizzy. “I was in the middle of making myself look beautiful. I mean,” she brushed her hair back, “even more than I already am, by trimming up my eyebrows a bit. Then, your explosion made my hand slip.” Her eyes narrowed as she leaned toward Moon Dancer so closely, that she was an inch from her face. “Do you know what happened then?” “I...can’t say that I do,” Moon Dancer responded shakily, trying her best to sound unfazed, but failing miserably. “This!” Fleur spat, and raised a finger to her left eyebrow. At first, Moon Dancer didn’t know what she was supposed to be looking at, but after squinting a little, she did notice something. Fleur’s eyebrow as a bit shorter than the other one. “Oh,” Moon Dancer nodded, seeing Fleur swell with anger. “Well, it’s not that noticeable, you know. Eyebrows actually can grow back rather rapidly, depending on the health of your skin cells. As long as you don’t draw any attention to it, you should be-” She trailed off as she saw the look on Fleur’s face. “Not. That. Noticeable!?” she shrieked. “It’s atrocious! Because of your eggheaded stupidity, my eyebrow is a whole centimeter off! It ruins my perfect face!” “Technically, that looks more like half a centimet-” Fleur growled menacingly, making Moon Dancer shrink back against the wall, her courage failing her yet again. “You cost me my eyebrow,” she hissed, “so it’s only fair that you repay in full. As they say,” she then reached into her purse and pulled out a small, electric eyebrow trimmer, “‘an eyebrow for an eyebrow!’” Uppercrust and Suri smiled and moved to grab each other Moon Dancer’s arms as Fleur turned on the trimmer, which started to hum, and began to advance again, an unsettling smile spreading across her face. All the blood felt like it had drained out of Moon Dancer’s head as horrible comprehension dawned over her. “N-n-now, Fleur,” she stammered nervously, her eyes widening with fear. “I-I’m sure we can think of a more p-peaceful understanding, right? M-maybe sitting down for some tea or something? You don’t like tea? It could be s-sparkling water if you want! I’m not picky!” Fleur did not respond, but continued to move the trimmer closer toward Moon Dancer’s face. Moon Dancer tried to struggle, but Uppercrust and Suri’s grip on her was too strong. She never really was one for displaying upper body strength. She couldn’t even climb the rope in gym class. As if in slow motion, Fleur’s hand started to descend upon Moon Dancer’s forehead, the trimmer’s hum sounding much more threatening. “Oh c’mon, Fleur!” Moon Dancer pleaded when the trimmer was so close to her eyebrow that she could feel the tip of it graze her. “Let’s be sensible about this!” “Oh I am,” Fleur responded with a smug grin. “After all, you’ve got enough eyebrow for everyone! Don’t be greedy!”