Apple Bloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle stood out in the hallway. The trio shuffled uneasily, nervously awaiting their sisters. The expressions from Wallflower and Trixie's faces as the they both left the nurse's office did nothing to assuage their concerns.
Within minutes, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Applejack exited the nurse's office and entered the hallway. The Crusaders ran up to their respective sisters, then bombarded them with questions.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Rainbow held her arms out.
"One at a time, please," Rarity said, gaining the younger girls' attention.
The Crusaders glanced at each other, then nodded.
"Is... is Sunset okay," Apple Bloom asked, wide-eyed.
Applejack hissed through her teeth and looked away for a moment. "She's been better..."
"But don't worry," Rainbow interjected. "She's in awesome hands!"
"Indeed," Rarity said. "We'll make sure she'll be back to her old self!"
"A-Are we in any trouble," Sweetie Belle asked as she wrung her hands nervously.
"Not at all! Wallflower and Trixie told us everything."
The Crusaders heaved a collective sigh of relief, visibly relaxing themselves.
"But if it's all the same to y'all," Applejack said. "We'd like to hear your side of things."
The Crusaders proceeded to tell their sisters everything, from their run-in with Wallflower up to the present. Once they finished, Rainbow smiled warmly and placed a hand on Scootaloo's shoulder.
"Scoots... I get why you did what you did, but sometimes you have to know when to stand up to your friends if you think what they're doing is wrong."
The young daredevil grinned sheepishly as she looked away from Rainbow Dash.
"You could have simply communicated with us rather than conspire with Wallflower and Trixie," Rarity said.
"Yeah," Applejack chimed in. "We woulda understood your feelings. We coulda sorted things out and avoided this whole mess."
Apple Bloom and Sweetie Belle blushed in response.
The door to the nurse's office slowly opened, and out came Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie, then the Crusaders paled as the haggard form of Sunset Shimmer followed.
The rocker's normally vibrant hair had lost its luster, the red and gold colors faded. Her face was as pale as the girls'! She slowly turned her head to gaze at the Crusaders, and the trio flinched upon hearing her scream in their minds.
Sunset grimaced at the sight before her. How many more people was she going to hurt?! She shuddered, then covered her eyes. "I-I'm s-sorry..." she sniffled.
"Don't say that, Sunset," Sweetie Belle exclaimed.
"P-Please!" Sunset backed up until she bumped into a wall. "I just... need some space."
Rarity walked over to her sister and held her tightly. "Do not worry," she said softly, stroking Sweetie Belle's hair. "None of this is your fault. Sunset's been going through a lot lately... and from the looks of things, so have you three."
Apple Bloom and Scootaloo nodded in unison as Sweetie Belle shuddered in her sister's arms.
"If'n ya want, we can call your folks so you can go home early too," Applejack offered.
The Crusaders looked at the farm girl eagerly, and Rainbow Dash took advantage of their distracted states. She turned her head towards her three friends, then mouthed the word "Go.".
Pinkie, Fluttershy and Sunset nodded in understanding, then walked away as the Crusaders each accepted Applejack's offer.
"Great," Applejack said with a smile. "I'll go make the preparations!"
"While you go do that," Rainbow said. "There's something I gotta take care of."
"What are you going to do," Scootaloo asked.
"It's a secret, Scoots," Rainbow said with a wink, then headed down the hallway.
Scootaloo shrugged, then turned her attention back to Applejack. "How soon can they get here?"
----------------------------------------------
Wallflower Blush and Trixie continued holding hands as they walked up to Principal Celestia's office. A bead of sweat fell from the gardener's forehead.
"Y-You aren't thinking about backing out now, are you," Trixie asked as she gazed worriedly at Wallflower.
"No!" Wallflower gasped, surprised at her tone. She then sagged and sighed. "No, I'm not. I'm just scared."
Trixie smiled sadly. "I am, too, Wallflower. I am too."
The gardener took a deep breath, then heaved another sigh. "I've got this nagging feeling that the worst of this is yet to come."
"You and me both."
Wallflower looked at Trixie. "We're in this together. All the way."
Trixie smiled and nodded. "Let's go in already, then."
"Yeah..."
The gardener knocked on the door, then gulped.
"Come in," The weary tone Celestia had only made Wallflower and Trixie feel worse, but they strengthened their resolve, and opened the door...
then shut it behind them.