“Hmph, always with the mundane tasks.”
Pen in hand and paperwork on the desk, Principal Celestia of Canterlot High began signing away her daily round of paperwork. As principal, it felt like familiar territory from her days as a history teacher. There were times that she wished to go back to her old occupation but the school board saw her fit to be principal. Still, it gave her something to do and she didn’t want to be a slouch.
Finishing up one stack, she moved onto another but was stopped by a sudden kick from within her. Glancing down, she rubbed her round belly, calming the life within her, no doubt wanting to meet its mother. She began to hum a calming melody as she took a moment away from her work. It was two months away from its arrival and Celestia couldn’t be happier. But, an underlying sadness crept up and changed her smile to a frown.
Celestia sighed. “Chalk it up to a one night stand for a woman to end up like this.” Celestia groaned as she stared out towards the sunlit landscape. “Since that jackass can’t take responsibility, it’ll be just you, me, and Auntie Luna.”
The door creaked open and through it entered Luna, Celestia’s younger sister. Noticing her sister’s unease, she walked over and rested a hand on her shoulder. Ever since their parents died years ago, they were inseparable. They even live under one roof together in some quiet suburb. When it was known to her that her eldest sister was pregnant, she didn’t hesitate to offer her assistance in raising her future niece or nephew.
“Still feeling stressed out, sister?” Luna asked, “All that stress isn’t good for the baby.”
“I know. I just wished that guy hadn’t skipped town and took responsibility. Before you ask, I’m going on maternity leave after next week for sure.” Celestia sighed.
“Well, a little R & R would help calm your nerves.”
“True.” Celestia sighed as she sat on her seat, stressed and tired. “When I found out I was pregnant, I contemplated giving it up when it was born until you stepped in and offered help. After that, I knew that I really wouldn’t give it up for the world.” Without warning, Luna leaned down and gave her older sister a hug.
“I know you’ll be a great mother because you took the reins when mom and dad died in that accident years ago.” Rubbing her hand on her sister’s belly, she felt a kick from the life within. She smiled that possibly knew who she was. “I can certainly tell that it’s eager to meet you.”
“Sometimes, I consider you to be wiser than I am. So, what do you need?”
“Apart from that short scuffle during B-Lunch, that one student got caught napping in class again.”
“Gemini Blaze?” For a while, the principals knew about the senior student. About two weeks ago, he had trouble staying awake during classes. It shocked them because they saw him as a great student with nice grades. Even more so, he's been socially withdrawn, possibly as a result of his fatigue. As of late, it has become a cause of concern for them. “So, you'll be going to bring him here then?”
“No, I've already sent a referral to Mr. Discord about him. Once C-Lunch is over, he'll be sent over here.”
“Good,” Celestia said, laying back in her chair. “Hopefully, we can help him with his issues.”
Several minutes later, the final lunch bell rang throughout the halls. The sounds of the students chattering filled the air. Soon, the doorknob turned and the door opened. Through it entered a male, average build, six foot tall, light-sand colored skin and ocean blue hair in a crew cut. His face looked tired and weary. They knew right away that he was Gemini Blaze.
“Ah, Mr. Blaze, we’ve been expecting you.” Celestia warmly greeted, gesturing at the couch. “Please, make yourself comfortable.” Gemini complied as he sat down. His face was filled with exhaustion and worry.
“Am I in trouble?” He meekly asked.
“Not really,” Luna spoke up. “We’re just concerned that some of your teachers said that they’ve seen you napping during class time for the past few weeks.” Immediately, Gemini’s eyes lit up with shock and visible panic, concerning the two principals. They began to suspect something was up.
“I-I’m sorry!” He stuttered; eyes glancing from side to side. “I swear it won’t happen again.”
“Don’t fret. We’re not mad at you in the slightest.” As the senior student hanged his head in shame, Celestia took a seat next to him and began rubbing his back. It felt calm and relaxing but did little to ease his nerves. “Look, I’m not lying when I say that you’re a great student. You have some amazing grade marks and to jeopardize that so close to graduation worries us. Please, allow us to help you. Could it be something going on at home?”
The last bit made Gemini freeze in place and his heart skip a beat. How did they suspect that it was the case? The fear and shock made him bread a few drops of sweat. He knew that they were right on point but to get his parents involved was the last thing he wanted. It was bad enough that he had to put up with stress on the homefront.
“N-No, ma’am.” He stuttered, “I swear… it’s really nothing at home, honest.” The teachers took a good look at him and knew he wasn’t telling the truth. His posture, eyes, body language, and speech patterns all betray his words. Having a bachelor's degree in psychology, Luna knew that right away. “I swear it’s the truth.”
“Mr. Blaze, I don’t mean to sound antagonistic when I say that you aren’t being honest.” Luna said, kneeling in front of him and visibly concerned, “Look, we aren’t mad at you in the slightest. We’re just concerned about your wellbeing. I know that you’ve been working jobs on the weekends and I suspect that might be a sign that things at home aren’t going well. Please, let us help you so you’ll be able to graduate.”
Visibly uncomfortable, Gemini began to fidget around. He felt like he was being pressured by the principals to answer truthfully. Though he recognized their intentions were noble, the back of his mind felt that they wouldn’t be able to do anything about his plight.
“Celestia, Luna," Gemini sighed, "I know you all mean well and want to help me.” Gemini said, “It’s just that… I don’t want to put any of you in a position where you all won’t be able to do anything.”
“What? Look, trust us when we say that we have your best interests at heart. We want to do all we ca-”
“LOOK! I UNDERSTAND YOU WANT TO HELP BUT YOU JUST CAN’T!” The outburst visibly shook Celestia and Luna. His face spelled frustration, desperation, and fear. “YOU JUST… can’t.” He hung his head once more before getting up with his backpack in tow. As much as they tried to stop him, Celestia and Luna recognized that further aggravating him would not be wise. “Now, I have to get done with the rest of my day so I can go home and get some rest. I have work tomorrow.”
Neither of them said anything as Gemini walked out, not even a whisper. Why would he act so hostile to offers of help? What did he have to hide?
“I just don’t understand, Tia.” Sighed Luna. “For sure, we now know that it’s a home issue with him. But yet, he’s resistant.”
“Yes.” Celestia agreed with a worried frown, “But in him, I sensed fear and apprehension… like he’s ashamed of something.”
“Well, we might’ve just rendered any opportunities to confront him directly impossible.”
“I can see that. But still, we have to keep trying. We do have that dinner with Dean Cadance at our place tonight. Maybe we can ask her what she’d do.”
“I hope you’re right, Tia. I hate to see that kid’s future crash and burn before it begins.”
Later that night…
*Knock*
*Knock*
*Knock*
A knock was heard to which Celestia answered. Opening the door, she was greeted by a warm smile and embrace from Dean Cadance. Despite running the roost for rival schools, both of them got along outside of work. There were many times where she, Luna, Celestia, and Cinch would find time for a get-together or just to hang out.
“Celestia,” Cadance sang, breaking the hug, “how are you?”
“I’m doing okay,” Celestia replied. “Just ending another busy work week.” As Celestia rubbed her belly, Cadance took notice and rubbed it as well with her friend’s approval. She remembered the first time she became a mother through Flurry Heart and felt the same anxiety her colleague. “I have two months left and I’m just so excited.”
“Hmm, you remind me of when I was pregnant with Flurry Heart.” Cadance giggled, retracting her hand. The gesture made Celestia smile, knowing her colleagues support her as well. “So eager yet anxious, I can see in your eyes that you’ll be a great mother.”
“Thank you, Mia. I wished Cinch would have joined us. It seems that she’s always busy nowadays.”
“Well, you know how she usually is. She honestly needs to take herself away from work and enjoy life. There is such a thing as overworking.”
“True. True.”
“Tia, Mia,” Luna called out from the kitchen. “Dinner is ready!” Coming from the kitchen, Luna carried a pan of spaghetti carbonara bake. Since her youth, Luna was taught by Celestia to cook. The favorite food they like to make was Italian. Since her sister’s pregnancy, Luna took over the cooking duties. “Come on you two! Hurry before it gets cold.”
All throughout dinner, the three principals ate the comforting meal. Celestia, in her pregnancy, had extra helpings. They shot the breeze about various topics such as work and family. Lighthearted and joyful, many laughs were shared. As much as she wanted to enjoy it, Celestia’s talk with the student couldn’t escape her mind. As any principal would, she worried about what was troubling him as did Luna.
“And that’s why Shining refuses to eat shrimp, ever again!” Cadance laughed as she took a sip of her cider. “Now the very sight of it scares him!”
“Amusing,” Luna replied, taking another bite from her plate, “here I thought that Shining Armor would be normally stoic.”
“Well, he is but he isn’t completely that way. But, I still love my Shining.” As Cadance took a sip of her drink, she noticed Celestia looking down at her plate, twirling the remaining pasta with a frown. She grows concerned about her colleague’s mood. “Tia, why are you upset? Is something bothering you?” Having been wanting to talk about the issue with her, Celestia let out a sigh and nudged her plate away.
“Well Mia,” Celestia started, “have you ever dealt with problem students who would refuse help, even though they show that they need it?”
“I’ve dealt with that a few or so times. Sometimes, it takes a bit of perseverance but they’ll eventually relent. Why?”
“There’s this student of mine named Gemini Blaze. As of late, his teachers have seen him dozing off in class.”
“I see. Did you try talking with him personally?”
“We did.” Luna continued. “However, he was adamant on not telling us. When we asked him if it had something to do with his home life, he snapped at us and left, saying something about work. From there, we knew the root of the issue was at home.”
“Are you going to talk to him again tomorrow, Tia?”
“I think that’s going to be out of the cards, I’m afraid. We both agreed that we’ve scared him off from us.” Celestia sighed with exhaustion, “We’ve figured that since you’ve had more experience in that regard, you would give us some advice on how we can help him.”
Taking a momentary pause, Cadance pondered their situation. Having been the Dean of Crystal Prep for some time, she got familiar with some of the behaviors a student would exhibit. However, she recognized that one would need to resort to some less than appealing methods to get stuff accomplished. If it’s for the sake of a student, she wouldn’t fret about drawbacks.
“Tia,” Cadance spoke up, “There’s a Latin phrase that my grandfather would often quote: “Extremis Malis Extrema Remedia”. It roughly means “Desperate times call for desperate measures”.”
“Mia, what are you hinting at?” Celestia asked.
“Well, I’m saying that you might have to resort to some ‘unconventional’ methods if he’s spooked as you say. Since his problem lies at the homefront, start from there.” Right away, Luna knew what Cadance implied. Never would she consider such a thing.
“Mia, you’re talking about spying, aren’t you!” Luna gasped in shock.
“Yes, Luna. I’m not going to sugarcoat it either. If the issue with the student lies at the homefront, you’ll need to start with his parents, follow them around for a day.”
“Be that as it may, I just find the idea to be wrong. Tia, what do you think?” On many occasions, Luna relied Celestia for guidance. For things that pertained to emotional or occupational issues, she would be there with some pearls of wisdom. While her mind objected to such an idea, her heart compelled her to do the right thing, even if it meant resorting to amoral methods. She was torn and didn’t know what to do.
“Luna, Cadance might have a point.” Celestia said to her sister’s astonishment. “We know that confronting Gemini would be too difficult now. Though it’s morally gray, I honestly see no other option. I want to see that student graduate.”
Luna sighed internally as her sister said her piece. Like her sister, she too held the same concern for the student. Though she’s more orderly than her sister, her heart would sometimes override her judgement. After a moment of thought, she concluded that it was the only way they’ll find out what was wrong. For her, the welfare of a student held greater importance than her morals.
“Okay, Tia.” Luna conceded to her sister’s smile, “I would say that starting midday Monday would be the most optimal time to start.”
“Okay, Luna.” She replied with a hand on her sister’s shoulder, “You’ve made the right decision. I’ll be be absent from school tomorrow so I-”
“Tia, no!” Luna interrupted, “I’ve checked his file. The part of town he lives in is not among the nicest places to live. It’s a high crime area. In your condition, I much rather not have you put yourself and your unborn child at risk.”
“But I-”
“But nothing, sister! Though we’re doing this, this is one condition I’m not going to compromise on.”
“Fine, you win.” Celestia sighed with a frown, “I’ll go into work on Monday while you trail his parents. I hope you can handle it.”
“You don’t need to worry about me, Tia. Of all the times I was picked on during high school, I’ve learned to defend myself. Just go to work and I’ll report to you if I find anything. I assure you that I can take care of myself.”
“Luna, thank you for your help.” With a sisterly embrace, Luna and Celestia bid Cadance farewell as dusk fell upon the town. With the weekends to begin, it would be a good time for the sisters to calm their minds and prepare for their investigation. The one thing they hoped for was that whatever they’ll find would be something in their power to help with.