//------------------------------// // Chapter 7 // Story: Textbook Soldier // by Backslasherton //------------------------------// “...It’s what?” Twilight asked, hoping that perhaps she had heard wrong. Sunset stepped forward. “We scanned you. It’s your wavelength.” The teen shook her head and plastered an unconvincing grin on her face. “N-No, it can’t be that. I’m not magical, I don’t have magic. I can’t have magic.” She grabbed the scanner, looking over the screen and hitting it with her hand. “It’s gotta be some kind of mistake!” James gently, but firmly, tried to take the scanner back. The teenager clutched it, looking up at him in fear. His features were set in a grim determination. “Twilight,” he spoke with a tone that left no room for argument, “Give me the scanner, please.” The lavender girl closed her eyes but didn’t let go of the scanner. After a few moments of inner debate, she released the device. “Thank you,” he whispered. Without another word, he shifted so he was standing beside her. Carefully, he took her wrist and brought her hand up. The lavender girl could only watch as the red dot appeared on her hand, and the telltale sound of the scanner doing its work made itself known. With the resounding beep and the displayed results, her heart sank. “Okay, so… I have magic,” she nodded shakily, “And it made your book… do that.” “Are you alright?” Sunset asked. “N-No, not really,” Twilight shrugged nervously, “But we did get answers.” “Twilight, if you want to stop for today, we can.” “I… um...” The lavender girl swallowed nervously as she glanced at James. The man frowned. “Don’t push yourself on my behalf, Twilight.” “I-It’s no big deal! Really!” James looked her in the eye, his height advantage over her becoming apparent, and placed a hand on her shoulder reassuringly. “We don’t need to rush things. I’m not jumping at the chance to get back.” He chuckled. “I mean, you’ve seen what I’ve got going for me when I go home. Now, I like getting shot at as much as the next guy, but I’ll take any time away I can get.” The lavender girl stared back at him. “But it’s my fault.” Of all the responses she was expecting to get, laughing was not one of them. “Oh, Lord, you and Sunset.” James shook his head, “Where do you two come up with these things?” Twilight glanced up at her Equestrian friends for help, but they just shrugged. “Oh, sorry.” James got himself under control, “I just think it’s hilarious that both of you managed to convince yourselves of this insane notion that somehow, you’re responsible for me being here.” “Sunset did what?” The student gawked before looking up at the redhead, “How could it be your fault?” “W-Well, I put the book on the portal,” Sunset explained, “That’s what made the connection happen in the first place.” “And that’s just as ridiculous as your theory of everything being your fault, if not more,” James said to Twilight, “I mean, come on! Even after both of you did all that, I walked through the mirror. I don’t think you or Sunset made me do that.” The two Canterlot High students stared at each other, both realizing the ridiculousness of the situation. Like embarrassed school children, they sheepishly lowered their eyes to the ground. James chuckled and looked at the Princess. “Children,” he shook his head, “When will they learn?” Equestrian Twilight giggled. “James, we’re barely older than these two. Heck, I think Sunset is older than me.” “Well… unless she’s older than 19, I think I win.” “She might be. Age works a little weird with the portal.” “Well… She’s gonna be whatever age she should be on this side of the portal.” “You just want to be older,” Sunset interjected. “I don’t need to explain myself to you.” Sunset shook her head. “You’re an idiot.” James crossed his arms. “Harsh, but probably fair,” he looked around, “So, I guess everything is settled? We’re calling it a day?” “I think so,” Sunset nodded and turned to the princess, “Twilight, if you want to stay again, you’re more than welcome.” “I’d love to, but I’ve gotta get back to Equestria. I told Spike I’d only be gone for the weekend.” “Probably also got that whole ‘princess’ thing to do.” The private grinned. “That too.” Princess Twilight nodded. “Well, it was great seeing you again.” Sunset hugged her fellow Equestrian. “You too.” The two broke off. “It was great meeting you, James, and, um, Twilight. It’s good seeing you, too.” After exchanging their goodbyes, the princess stepped through the portal. The mood sobered quickly as the other Twilight started gathering her things. “I guess I’ll be heading home, too.” “We’ll walk you home.” “Oh. You guys don’t have to do that, Sunset. I’m fine.” “Well we want to.” “And we gotta make sure you actually take a break,” James added. The girl blushed, adjusting her glasses. “I wasn’t going to do much…” she muttered. “Come on, Twilight.” Sunset shook her head, “Just one day. Take a break.” “I know, I will.” She relented, “I’ve just never been good at that sort of thing.” “It’s easy.” James grinned, “Just pretend this is your bed,” He pointed to the steps of the school, “Get on it like so, and lay down like this,” he laid on the steps of the school stretching out theatrically, “And then stay there until it’s time to eat, then come back to this.” “Um… I guess I can do that?” Twilight said, sounding unsure of herself. “Or you could just watch TV and hang out with your parents,” Sunset added. “A more modern solution, I guess,” James grumbled, “As long as you’re not working on this, I don’t rightly care what you do.” “Didn’t you have TVs in the 30s and 40s?” Sunset asked. “Not like you all do. I’ve seen them around, but no one had them in their living room like you guys do. Definitely not that big, either.” James shook his head, “How did we get to TVs?” “I don’t know. But I think we were going to walk Twilight home.” “Oh yeah.” “I guess I can’t convince you guys not to?” The purple haired girl asked. “Probably not.” James confirmed. “If you really don’t want us to come with you, we’re not gonna force you, Twilight.” “No, it’s fine. I appreciate it, really. It’s just… my dad.” “Your dad?” “He sort of… absolutely loves Their Darkest Hour.” “...Oh.” Sunset blanked. “Ooo, do I have a fan?” “Well… the 36th isn’t his favorite book...” “...Oh.” He frowned. “B-But he still likes your story! He just… likes some of the others more.” “May I ask who?” “The 101st Airborne Division and the 3rd Infantry Division.” “...Does he now?” James said with no small amount of indignation. “James!” Sunset scolded him. “I-I mean, uh, great for him!” the private said with forced cheer. “What do you have against those groups?” “I don’t… well,” James relented, “It’s just... they’re always in the news. Everyone knows about them. America’s golden boys or whatever.” He turned back to Twilight, “Why’d he choose them anyway?” “Their stories were really successful. The 101st Airborne’s was made into a TV series following the main character, Richard Winters, and the 3rd Infantry Division got a lot of movies made based around Audie Murphy.” “...I guess that’s a good enough reason,” James shrugged, “whoever those guys are. Do you think he would recognize me?” “It’s a book, James.” “Well, I don’t know.” “Sunset’s right. And, well, I don’t think he’s read the book enough to remember every detail about you.” “Well, then what’s the problem?” “It’s…” Twilight sighed. “I guess you’ll see when we get there.” “Always bodes well, doesn’t it?” James mused to Sunset. “Night Light’s harmless, I promise you.” Sunset smiled, “I’ve met him a couple of times. It’s nothing bad, I’m sure.” “I guess we’ll see, won’t we?” “Hey, there’s my girl.” “Hi, dad,” Twilight greeted. The trio walked up to the lavender girl’s house and saw Mr. Night Light working on something in the garage. He wiped his hands and stepped out, his shirt stained with black grease and sweat. “Oh, hey Sunset. Good to see you,” he greeted his daughter’s friend before turning to the unfamiliar young man, “I don’t think I’ve met you before. Who’s this, Twilight?” “This is… um...” “Eyes,” Sunset whispered to James. “Eyes,” James repeated as he stuck his hand out, “My friends call me Eyes, sir.” “Ah. Nice to meet you, Eyes.” Night went to return the handshake but paused. “Hey. Is that an M41 Jacket, by chance?” The soldier froze. Oh. THAT kind of weird. Sunset thought. “Y-Yes, sir.” “It looks pretty worn there, son. Do you do events?” “...Events?” “Role-playing events,” Twilight said sheepishly, blushing furiously. “We like to call them tactical simulations, but I guess that also works.” Night Light frowned. “Oh, uh… no, sir.” James inspected his coat, “I’ve just had this jacket for a while.” “Ah, I understand. Does your old man do events?” The soldier glanced at his companions, unsure of what to say. Sunset looked up at Night Light. His attention was still focused on James. She turned to James and nodded at him, mouthing the word ‘yes’. “Uh… yeah, he does. Or used to, I mean. He’s got a bad leg these days, so he’s had to stop. I’ve been wearing his stuff since it fits me better.” Sunset grinned and gave him a thumbs up. “Ah, that’s a shame. Hate to see the old timers have to leave the hobby.” Night Light shook his head, “That’s the… uh. Shoot, I know this.” He stared at the patch, inspecting it for a few moments. “That’s… the 36th, right?” “Yes, sir.” James grinned proudly, relaxing slightly. “That’s pretty cool. Been a while since I’ve read that book, honestly, but I seem to remember it was pretty good.” He clapped his hands together as he seemed to remember something, “Hey, I’m working on something you might like.” And with that, Night Light turned on his heels and all but ran back into the open garage. James shrugged and followed, the girls right behind him. “Do you know what he’s talking about?” Sunset asked as she leaned towards Twilight. “I do,” Twilight sighed, “Just… you’ll see. He’s really proud of it, and I wouldn’t do it justice.” James came up to where Night Light excitedly stood. His eyebrows shot up in shock at what he saw. “Wow. Is that an army motorcycle?” “It’s a near-perfect recreation of the Harley-Davidson WLA.” Night Light said proudly, “I’ve been converting an old Buffalo bike through custom parts. It’s been a pet project of mine for a couple of years now.” “Does it run?” “Not yet,” Night shook his head, “These old Buffalo bikes started getting very popular after people found out that they were the basis for the WLAs. Parts for them are hard to come by. That’s why I’ve had to custom make a lot of the parts for this one. Like these here. This whole saddlebag setup along the tail was made by a friend of mine who has some experience with leatherworking, and the mudguards here were made by another member of our unit in his shop.” “That’s…” James shook his head, shocked, “That’s amazing. I honestly didn’t think people cared that much.” “Oh yeah, definitely. I’ve even seen guys go out and buy decommissioned tanks and convert them into American and British tanks.” “Oh Jesus,” James laughed, “That could not have been cheap.” “Oh definitely not, but the guy was a lawyer who had tons of money to sink into the project. Couple of us donated a bit of money or time to fix it. Ended up taking a year or so and cost us almost thirty thousand dollars.” “Wow. That’s a real labor of love, right there.” “Oh yeah. But when the audience for our shows see that tank rolling out of the woods, their cheers make it all worth it.” James just laughed again in disbelief and covered his mouth with his hand as he turned away. Sunset frowned. Is… Is he crying? “Dad, I think Sunset and James need to get home.” “Oh, right.” Night Light laughed sheepishly, “Sorry, kids. I sort of get a little excited about these things.” “It’s fine, Mr. Light.” Sunset smiled, “It was great seeing you guys again, but yeah, I think we need to get going.” “Alright. Take care, Sunset. And Eyes,” Night stuck his hand out, “It was good meeting you. If you ever want to get into doing shows, and you aren’t opposed to getting some new patches, give me a call.” “I will. It was wonderful to meet you, too, sir.” A few more goodbyes were exchanged and Sunset and James were off down the sidewalk. The suburban sprawl stretched for blocks as they headed back towards the school. Suddenly, the line of houses stopped abruptly and opened up into a large park. Sunset smiled as she looked up at the autumn trees. Most of the leaves were gone, but she still found beauty in the last few flares of color holding out. Her attention was drawn away when the redhead thought saw movement out of the corner of her vision, and looked over to see James rubbing his eyes. “Hey, are you alright?” She asked. “Hm? Oh, uh, yeah.” James nodded, “I’m fine. Just tired.” “James…” Sunset frowned, “You looked like you were almost crying back there. Are you sure you’re alright?” The man cringed. “Was it that noticeable?” “Well… not entirely, I guess. But I’m pretty good at reading people, and I sort of picked up when you tried to hide it.” James sighed. “Alright, yeah, I was getting a little... emotional, or whatever.” “Why?” “It’s just,” he shook his head, “I don’t know. I guess I just never expected people to really care that much about us. We’re just a bunch of idiots from some book that’s twenty years old. When I heard people cared so much that they were willing to spend tens of thousands of dollars and spend years of their time just so they could portray us? It got to me. If people back home care half as much about us in twenty years, then I’ll be blown away.” He shrugged sadly, “I guess it all depends on whether or not we win the war. Either way, if people care this much about us, my hopes for this war are pretty good. Either that or you guys like losers a lot more than you probably should.” “Well I promise you, no matter what happens, there are plenty of people in this world who love the man: ‘James Garrett.’” The soldier laughed. “I’d believe that people love the 36th, but I don’t know if anyone loves me. I feel like I’m just an accessory to the main story.” “Oh come on, James. I promise you, there’s at least one person out there who can force themselves to like you.” “Oh you’re a real comedian, you know that, Ms. Shimmer?” “I try.” Sunset grinned proudly, “But in all seriousness, I promise you, people really do love you.” The private shook his head. “I can’t see why. It’s not like I’m a model soldier or anything.” “Oh come on, you can’t honestly believe that.” “What? How do you not? What have I done other than carry a rifle and prance around Europe?” He chuckled darkly, “That does not make me a hero.” “Really? ‘What have you done?’ Oh, I don’t know, how about leaving everything behind to go fight in a war?” James scoffed. “Are you kidding me? I am not special for doing the bare minimum. Literally millions of other men did that. You wanna call me a hero for that?” “They’re all heroes, too.” “But then why me?” James stopped and faced Sunset, “Why am I so special that I get to live? Why am I the main character? Why do people like me? For being a coward? For being a moron? What is it? Because right now I do not understand why they like me at all.” Sunset reeled back from the man, caught by surprise when the man stopped so suddenly. She frowned. “Why would they not?” Sunset said sadly. The man shook his head, throwing up his arms in frustration. “What kind of hero do you think I am? Captain America?” “...Who?” He shook his head, stepping off the path towards a nearby park bench. With a sigh, he dropped himself down. The redhead followed him, taking the seat next to him. “I don’t deserve this, Sunset. I should be out there on the frontlines, not living it up here.” “James, please. You can’t keep blaming yourself for all this. You are so much better of a man than you realize.” “I just don’t get it, Sunset. Why do you have so much of this undying belief in me? What is it that keeps you believing I’m so great?” The redhead recoiled. She hadn’t expected the question, and now her thoughts were racing on how to answer. A million excuses came up to her head, but she knew only one of them was the real truth. But should she tell him? On the other hand, if his time here was as short as they were thinking, she’d lose her only opportunity to tell him soon. Then she’d have to live on wondering if he felt the same. She was running out of time as it was and now was as good a time as any. She had to tell him. But on the other hand, if he didn’t, then what time he was going to be here for would be very awkward. So, she still herself and took a deep breath. “I… uh… James,” She ran her hands along her jeans, “Everything you did was just... inspiring to me. I went through some tough times of my own not too long ago and… it was hard to think about anything else when all that I had around me were reminders of my failures. When I read about all the things you went through, it just made everything I was going through so much smaller. I thought if you could go through all that and still keep going, then maybe my problems weren’t so big after all. You were a hero to me. You were my inspiration.” “Sunset…” “I just… fell in love with you, I guess.” She cringed, “N-No, I didn’t mean… w-well, I did, but…” She closed her eyes. “I… really like you, James. I think you’re wonderful and I enjoy being around you. And I’m sorry… I… I know you have to leave…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “I just… like you, James.” And then… nothing. She clenched her fists, keeping her eyes shut. The silence was worse than any response he could’ve given. “I’m sorry, James. I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable or anything.” She shook her head, “I ruined everything. I’m sorry.” “Sunset,” James said firmly. She opened her eyes and slowly looked up. His face was set in a stoney line, betraying none of his thoughts. He opened and closed his mouth several times, but every time his words were dead on arrival. The redhead could tell he was struggling to find a response. “I… I understand what you’re trying to say. I’ve felt the same before.” Her heart nearly exploded out of her chest right then and there. “You… you have?” He nodded. Sunset’s smile nearly split her face as she laughed in relief. “Oh thank Celestia. I was worried you… well, that you were going to hate me, I guess.” Her happiness faltered. He still wasn’t smiling. “...James?” “I… I can’t say I like you back.” “O-Oh. Um…” “It’s not you, Sunset, I promise, it’s not you.” He shook his head, “You are an absolute joy to be around and I owe you ten times over for everything you’ve done for me. But I don’t want to start something that I can’t finish…” He cringed, “Not the best way to word it, but… still. What I mean is more that… I don’t want to hurt you when I have to leave. That’s what I meant by I’ve been there before. It’s just… I’m just a visitor here. Just like I was in France and all the other places I visited back home. I’ve gotta go home at some point. And I can’t ask you to drop everything and come with me.” Sunset’s heart fell. She knew he was right, but there had still been hope. “I understand.” She shook her head, “I just thought… well, we could enjoy our time here and now and deal with the future later.” James stared back at her. Sunset could see the pain and hesitation in his eyes, but there was something else there, she thought. Hope, maybe. But whatever it was, his mind was racing with something. He nodded slowly. “Maybe… maybe. I just… it’s gonna hurt when I have to leave regardless, Sunset. And I don’t want to make it any harder. Things might change, and if they do… maybe. But right now, as things are now… I can’t. That wouldn’t be fair to you.” “Okay.” She nodded weakly. “I understand.” “I’m really sorry, Sunset.” “No, I understand. I promise.” She wiped her eyes and stood, putting on a calm smile, “We gotta get going. I still have to email Principal Celestia about you.” James nodded hesitantly and stood. “Lead the way.” Sunset held the door open as James stepped into the apartment. He walked in and sighed, running his hand through his hair. The redhead felt a stab of pain in her heart as she stared at him. She couldn’t help but think about what could’ve been. She shook her head, pushing it aside. She had her answer, and that was the end of it. But there’s still a maybe… “I’m just gonna send that email to Principal Celestia real quick.” James nodded, letting her pass. Sunset dropped herself into the desk chair and reached over, pushing a button on the front of her computer case. The fans whirred as the machine hummed to life. She stared blankly at the monitor screen. She felt both as if a huge weight was lifted off her chest while also having another put on her shoulders. She’d put her feelings out there, and she got her answer. But, like he said, nothing they did could last. He had to go home, and Sunset could never go with him. “Uh, Sunset?” The girl was roused from her thoughts by James, worry etched on his face. “I think your typewriter’s on.” She looked at the screen, which now displayed a brightly colored landscape as her lock screen. “Oh.” She nodded, “Thanks.” “Look, Sunset... I’m really sorry.” “It’s fine, James.” She didn’t look up, but his silence spoke volumes. “Alright,” he muttered. Sunset shook her head, trying to push the thoughts aside. She had done that a lot recently. Turning her attention back to the screen, she brought up her email inbox and clicked the plus button on the bottom right of her screen to begin composing a new message. Dear Principal Celestia, Recently there was a bit of a hiccup with the portal outside the school. Some things happened that are now under control, but we temporarily have a visitor. His name is James. I can explain more in person, but for now, let’s just leave it at he’s going to be around for a while and I was wondering if he could visit our school in the meantime. As I said, I can explain more in person tomorrow morning. Sorry in advance for any trouble this might cause. Thank you, Sunset Shimmer After giving it a quick once-over, the redhead nodded and sent the message. “Now all we have to do is wait.” She spun her chair around to face James, “...What are you doing?” “...Cleaning my rifle?” “I can see that,” Sunset nodded. “...why?” “It’s dirty. I haven’t had a chance to clean it properly in a while.” James held up a piece of the bolt mechanism, squinting at it, “I mean, look at this thing. It’s got dirt and grime all over it.” He shrugged and set the piece down, “Plus, the bolt started sticking. It doesn’t move as smoothly as I like.” Sunset leaned off the edge of her chair, looking at the various parts strewn about on her floor. She had no idea how they fit together, let alone what they did once they got there. James, on the other hand, knew exactly what he was doing, and it showed. He took every part out of the rifle, inspected them, and then set them somewhere on the floor. “Do you know what all that does?” Sunset asked. “Of course.” James grinned, “I’ve taken apart and put together one of these rifles probably over two thousand times, and I’m not exaggerating. I can do it with my eyes closed in a minute, and about twenty seconds eyes open.” “Right,” Sunset laughed, “Sure you can.” “Oh, you don’t believe me?” “Not really, no.” “Well then, Ms. Shimmer. You willing to bet on that?” Sunset grinned. She knew he was provoking her to get her mind off what happened earlier. Flash had done the same thing whenever they’d fought. She didn’t care, though. Because it was working. He was confident, that much was sure. In her experience, someone as confident as him usually has the skills to back it up. On the other hand, those numbers seemed a bit exaggerated. “I don’t think you have anything to bet, James.” “I’ve got gloating rights?” He shrugged, grinning. The girl mulled this over. “Okay. Fine.” James smiled knowingly. “Let me clean it first and then we’ll get started.” “I think you’re stalling for time, Mr. Garrett.” “Well, it’s gotta get cleaned before I can start messing around. Besides, I’ve already taken it apart, so I might as well clean it while I’ve got it like this. It won’t take long. If you want to help, it’ll take even less.” “I don’t know how to clean a gun.” “Taking it apart and cleaning it isn’t the hard part. Putting it back together, on the other hand...” Sunset laughed. “Alright, fine. Show me how and I’ll try my best.” The soldier scooted over and patted the spot on the carpet next to him. The young woman stood and carefully stepped around the parts to take the spot at his side. She dropped down, sitting with her legs crossed, and he nodded to her. “Alright. So this is a fully dismantled M1 Garand rifle. To clean it, you grab one of these pieces,” He picked up a small metal part, “And a rag from my kit. Now, watch closely ‘cause this is a real complex concept here, alright?” Sunset nodded studiously. “Alright. Watch close.” The man carefully took the part in one hand, and a rag in the other. Slowly and meticulously, he brought them closer. They touched, and he slowly rubbed the part with the rag for several seconds. Then, he stopped. “...Is that it?” Sunset asked, frowning. “Yep.” “You- what?” Sunset grinned, “Are you messing with me?” “A little bit,” James chuckled, “But in all seriousness, you just need to wipe off any dirt and grime with one of these rags. That’s it.” “I think I can handle that.” “Alright then,” He grinned back, handing her the scrap of cloth, “Here’s your rag, Ms. Shimmer.” The redhead took the rag and grabbed a piece from the ones scattered in front of them. She wiped it down, taking care to ensure she didn’t miss any spots. Once she was satisfied, she showed it to James. “How’s that?” “Hell of a lot more than I normally do.” James grinned, “Looks great. Let me get another rag and we’ll get going.” Once James joined her, the two made quick work of the rest of the small pieces. Sunset wiped her hands and looked over the parts. There was still one more thing to clean. “How do you clean that?” “Clean what?” “The… barrel?” “Oh, that.” James grabbed the item in question, “For this, we’re gonna need the cleaning kit.” He pointed to the wooden stock, “Grab the stock and look at the butt plate. There’s a little door on it that opens a compartment.” The girl picked up the wooden stock in question. She flipped it around and opened up the door in question. Inside, there was a small canvas bag tucked inside along with several other tools she didn’t know the use for. She handed the stock over to James. “Is this what you needed?” “Yes, thank you.” The private set the barrel to his side and took the stock from her. He overturned it and dumped the contents of the compartment out onto the floor. Inside, there was a small green pouch, an oddly shaped metal cylinder with holes drilled in it, a brush with threads on the bottom instead of a handle, a loop with the same threads, and a small jar of a black substance. The soldier took the green pouch and opened it, revealing a set of small metal rods with threads one end. He picked them up and started screwing them together. Next, he grabbed the cylinder and screwed it onto the end, forming a T-shaped handle. Lastly, he picked up the brush and attached it to the end. He ran the brush through the barrel a couple times before setting it back down and swapping the brush attachment for the loop. Next, the man set the rod down and leaned over to grab his pack, dragging it towards him. He dug through it until he found a small bag tucked inside the outer pouch. He set it next to the rod and closed his pack. “Alright,” James nodded, “The way you clean the barrel is simple, but a bit tedious. So all I’ve done just now is run the steel brush through the barrel, hopefully loosening anything that might be in there. Next, I’m gonna take this piece of cloth, which is called a patch,” he held up a small white, square of cotton, “We run it through this loop on the end of the push rod, and wrap it around like this. If I had the proper equipment, I’d put some solvent on the patch to clean it better, but… y’know. Unless my eyesight’s suddenly gotten really bad over the past few days, I don’t think this is an army base.” “If we are, my eyes are just as bad as yours.” Sunset grinned, “I think it’s safe to say we’re not on any sort of military base.” “Well, then I guess we’re using a dry patch.” The man shifted his position so he could slide the push rod down the barrel, and it slid in without any trouble. When the handle hit the end of the barrel, James held it up to Sunset. “Look at the bolt right there.” He pointed to an opening on the back of the assembly. Sunset peered into the opening. Inside was the white cotton, but it was now a dark grey as it was covered in black gunpowder residue and dirt. “That doesn’t look good.” “It is what it is.” James shrugged, “You use anything long enough, it gets dirty. Like a car or anything made of brass, it’s gonna get dirty even if you just leave it sitting out.” He pulled the patch out, “Just gotta make sure you give it the love and care it needs.” “So what do you need to do now?” “Well, like I said, I don’t have any solvent, so I’ll just run a few dry patches through to get the big stuff off. If you wanna do that, I can start greasing the bolt mechanism.” “Alright, I think I can do that.” With a nod, he handed her the cleaning rod and bag of patches. Sunset grabbed a patch and looped it around the end of the rod, repeating James’s actions. She replaced the patch every time she pulled it back out. And each time, the patch came out with slightly less grime on it. Eventually, when the cotton came out as clean as it went in, she smiled in satisfaction. “All clean.” She set the rod aside, turning to James. The man nodded as he finished up rubbing a dollop of grease onto the rifle’s long spring. With that done, he turned to her. She held up the clean white patch. “Oh, look at that.” He grinned, “Didn’t think it would get that clean. Nice job.” Sunset grinned proudly. “Although if we’re honest, there’s probably some still in there that we’re not gonna be able to get out without some solvent, but there’s not much we can do about that,” James shrugged, Sunset’s grin fell. He laughed, “I’m just messing with you. It’s great, Sunset. I really appreciate it.” “You’re welcome,” She gestured to the array of parts in front of them, “So now what?” “Now we can reassemble everything.” “Are you going to prove you can actually put it back together as fast as you said?” “In a minute,” James pointed at her, cutting off any potential remark she may have had. “And no, I’m not stalling, I’m just making sure it’s all good before I start messing around with it.” “Sure you are.” James gave her an unamused deadpan, to which she only grinned back in response. He shook his head and began meticulously reassembling the rifle. Like when he took it apart, there was a deliberate intent behind every movement. This was definitely not the first time the man had done this. With a satisfying click, the trigger guard snapped into place. He racked the bolt, and it locked back since there was no ammo in it. He braced the bolt’s hand with his hand and pushed on the spring loaded piece of metal inside, and the bolt came loose. He swiped his hand away, and the rifle gave a satisfying clunk as the bolt slammed back into place. There was then a click as he dropped the hammer, and he held the rifle out in front of him. “And there she is. Ain’t she a beauty?” James smiled at the now fully assembled rifle. “It does look nice,” Sunset nodded. “Alright,” The private shifted, facing Sunset, “I guess now I gotta put my money where my mouth is. Do you have a stopwatch?” “I’ve got one on my phone, gimme a sec.” “...Uh, okay?” Sunset pulled her phone out of her pocket, bringing up the stopwatch app. Peering over at her screen, he raised an eyebrow but otherwise didn’t say anything. “I don’t really understand why you’d have that on a pocket telephone, but alright.” “It’s just one of those things, James.” “Right. Just let me know when you’re ready.” “I’m ready whenever.” “Well then give me a countdown.” “Alright.” Sunset raised her phone, “3… 2… 1… Go!” Taking off like a racehorse, James’s hands flew over the rifle in front of him. He repeated the same deliberate movements from before, but much faster. Before Sunset even realized what was happening, the rifle was completely apart, and she tapped the stop button on her screen. “Wow…” Sunset gaped at her phone, “Ten seconds.” “Told you. “I’m really glad we didn’t put money on this.” “It’s not like I had any money in the first place. You ready for me to put it back together?” Sunset reset the stopwatch and nodded to him. “3… 2… 1… Go!” And once again, James’s hands flew like lightning, repeating the actions in reverse as the rifle came back together. With another click, the rifle was back together. “Ten seconds.” Sunset shook her head, amazed, “Alright, Mr. Garrett, I guess you were right.” James grinned. “And I’m not even the fastest in the unit. There was this guy from Seattle who could do the whole thing, disassemble and reassemble, in ten seconds.” “I don’t understand why it’s that big of a deal,” Sunset shrugged, “Is it just a bragging right to be fast?” “A little bit of that,” James shrugged, “But it’s also a huge tactical advantage. There was this training video they showed us back in the states that summed it up pretty well. The gist of it basically was, something like: say your unit’s holed up in a barn for the night. You’re cleaning your rifle and you’ve got it all laid out on the table. Then some artillery hits, and you’ve gotta move out right then and there. You don’t wanna be sitting there trying to gather up the parts to your rifle. If you’re fast, you can throw it back together and get going. Now you don’t need to mess with small parts, and you have a working rifle to defend yourself with.” “Makes sense when you put it like that,” Sunset shook her head, “I guess everything’s a lot more utilitarian over there, huh?” The soldier nodded. “Different circumstances, but yeah.” James shrugged, “Hey, by the way, has your principal responded yet?” Happy to take the distraction, the redhead stood and walked back to her computer desk. “Let me see.” She sat down and refreshed the screen. Sure enough, there was a new email waiting in her inbox. Dear Sunset Shimmer, I got your email, and I have to say, I do have my fair share of questions. However, that can wait until our meeting tomorrow morning. If your friend needs to attend school at CHS for a bit, we can figure something out. Come to my office tomorrow morning before school and we’ll see what we can do. I cannot guarantee he’ll be put in classes right away, but I’m sure we can find something for him to do during school hours if we can’t. Be sure to bring any legal documents he may have and be ready to fill out some forms. I’ll see you both tomorrow. Celestia Principal, Canterlot High School (202) 555-0167 Confidentiality Notice: This email message, including all attachments, is for the sole use of the intended recipient(s) and may contain confidential student and/or employee information. Unauthorized use of disclosure is prohibited under the federal Citizen Educational Rights & Privacy Act (20 E.S.C. §1232g, 34 CFR Part 99, 19 TAC 247.2, Gov’t Code 552.023, Educ. Code 21.355, 29 CFR 1630.14(b)(c)). If you are not the intended recipient, you may not use, disclose, copy or disseminate this information. Please call the sender immediately or reply by email and destroy all copies of the original message, including attachments. “Jesus Christ, that’s a lot of text there.” “It’s the school district. They always have these ridiculously long footnotes on the end that you can’t get rid of.” “...Why?” “Legal stuff.” James’s eyes scanned over the wall of text, frowning. “God forbid if the United States gets this bad.” James shuddered. “Either way, Principal Celestia is helping us.” “And we’re gonna have to fill out paperwork,” James deadpanned, “Joy.” “It won’t be that bad, I’m sure. It was pretty light when I had to do it.” “You had to do this?” “Yeah? Y’know… the whole unicorn thing?” “...Oh. Right.” “Either way,” Sunset stood, walking over to the couch, “You get to go back to school.” “What are the odds I understand what’s going on?” “History? None. Language, maybe. Math… depends.” “On?” “What was the last level of math you were in?” “...6th grade.” “That… doesn’t help. What were you learning?” “...Multiplication and division?” Sunset deadpanned back. She thought through her years of math in her head and cringed. “Yeah… Seniors are supposed to be learning Pre-Calculus.” “Pre… what?” “Pre-Calculus.” “What is that?” “...Okay, then. You’re gonna have some problems,” Sunset stated. James suddenly looked much more apprehensive. Sunset smiled reassuringly, “Don’t worry, James. I can help you. I’ve taken all those math classes already.” “Aren’t you a senior?” “I tested out of a lot of classes. I learned a lot of math in Equestria. It’s one of my better subjects.” “So… what do you take?” “Differential Equations and Linear Algebra.” James stared blankly. “Sunset, time to be honest with you,” he said after a moment, “I have no idea what any of that is.” The soldier sighed, holding his head in his hands, “This isn’t gonna work, Sunset. Why don’t I just go get a job digging graves or something I actually know how to do?” “It’ll be fine, James. I can help you, Twilight can help, and the rest of the girls, I’m sure, will want to help when they meet you. You’re not doing this alone.” James looked up at her, still hesitant, but nodded. “Alright. It’s only for a bit, right?” “Right.” Sunset nodded. He sighed and leaned back on the couch. “I guess we’re doing this, then, huh Sunset?” “That we are.”