//------------------------------// // 9: Repercussion // Story: Rainbow Dash, Please Report to the Principal's Office // by TheGuineaPig45 //------------------------------// To: Bon Bon From: Lyra Heartstrings Yikes. That assembly was just... yikes. I can't think of any other word to describe it. Who knew Principal Celestia could get so vulgar? And who knew people's faces could turn so red? I haven't seen anyone that angry since the cafeteria took red velvet cookies off the menu. Gosh. If we thought those were dark times, then this is the APOCALYPSE! We did this, Bon Bon. We wanted to become heroes, yet all we did was feed into a school-wide conspiracy that destroyed our principal. She believed in us. She trusted us. She wanted to do something nice for us. And we totally let her down! I've never been so ashamed in my life. This feels awful! First, Zephyr uses us, and now this happens... We've really hit a new low. I'm just amazed Celestia didn't punish us. Although, now that I think about, effectively punishing 99% of the student body sounds impossible... And, honestly, this crushing grief might be punishment enough. Seriously, how are we supposed to attend class after all that yikes? Couldn't she have just called an emergency half-day? We really need it. This afternoon is gonna suck. To: Rarity, Diamond Tiara, Sandalwood, Micro Chips, Flash Sentry, Bulk Biceps, +57 others From: Trixie Lulamoon Are you kidding me? A "Welcome to CHS" video? That's what all this commotion was about? Nuh-uh! I refuse to accept that phony explanation! We spent so much time and effort on this! Where's the payoff? Where's the satisfaction of knowing the truth? What was the point of all this drama, if The Great and Powerful Trixie never got to say "I told you so"?! It doesn't even make any sense. If they were working on a "special school project" together, then how come they didn't just say that? Why keep such a normal thing from us? Not to mention, that doesn't explain the excessive amount of time Rainbow Dash spent in the principal's office. Couldn't she have just learned her lines at home? After school? Over the weekend? Why did she need to be in Celestia's office, missing countless hours of class, for such a simple task? Honestly, it seems like most of their work could have been accomplished through an email! And, on top of that, why keep calling Rainbow down on the PA system? One of them had to have realized we'd get suspicious after, like, the fourth time! Why did they keep drawing attention to it? Truly, Celestia's explanation was worse than my disappearing textbook trick. And that's saying something, believe me. I think we've been lied to. Yeah, that's right. I think this "making a video" story is a cover-up! This is a puzzle with missing pieces, people! Rainbow and Celestia must be hiding something bigger than this. A secret relationship, perhaps, like I've been suggesting for days? Or maybe... it's even deeper than that! Regardless, I have every reason to believe we're being fed fake news to satiate our hunger for the truth, and I will not stand for it! The real truth must come out! If we stick together and combat everything the school system throws at us, then we will find the answers we deserve! There's no more hiding, Principal Celestia. The revolution has begun! #RainbowGate To: Captain Planet From: Flash Sentry Wow, Trixie just got called down to the principal's office. Think it was about that ridiculous mass text she sent out earlier? Probably, right? I wonder who ratted her out... Actually, never mind, I don't. My mind has had more than enough drama for one day. To: Micro Chips From: Sandalwood DUDE! Thank goodness you're okay! I've been so worried! When you weren't in homeroom this morning, my brain jumped to the worst case scenario. But, luckily, you were only suspended! That's way better than getting arrested, right? Although, knowing your parents, they probably confiscated your electronics... which means you're probably not going to get this text for a while... whatever. You're a tech wizard. You'll find a way. Being trapped at home must be such a bummer, but I'm sure it's better than what we're experiencing over here. Everyone's vibes are totally jacked up today. Diamond Tiara put all these incriminating photos and secrets on everyone's lockers, and a bunch of fights broke out. Don't worry ⁠— yours was just a baby photo. Of you. In a sink. Naked. Not that bad, right? Other folks weren't so lucky, though. Like Rarity ⁠— she had a mullet in 7th grade? Blegh! The picture is absolutely horrifying. I'll send it to you later, but be warned: once you see it, you can never look at Rarity in the same light. Never. You know what really sucks, though? Diamond Tiara got all those images from us! Our peers exposed each other to keep their own secrets hidden... and now nobody wants to talk to each other. Legit. Since leaving the assembly, I've heard four words spoken aloud and they were, "get away from me". Not exactly the warmest sentiment. And, of course, finding out the truth didn't help matters. Now everyone just feels terrible (except for Trixie, who's still in denial). We besmirched the Wondercolt name, hurt our fellow classmates, and caused Principal Celestia to hate us. Anytime her or Rainbow Dash is in the hallway, everyone else just turns and bolts. Normally I can sense a certain sort of energy surrounding people, but today, all I can sense is shame. Nobody wants to be here. No one can even look each other in the eyes. I feel so guilty. The two of us especially were horrible to Rainbow Dash. Like, you used a security camera to spy on her, while I brought her dad into the mix and egged you on. Everything we did was clearly bad, and yet, we just sat down, laughed, and had a good time watching footage of Bow Hothoof's butt. Seriously, what happened to us? Where did our morals go? We never cared about how Rainbow Dash or her family felt. We only cared about finding "the truth". Do you know how wrong that sounds? Ugh. This is not the person I want to be, Micro Chips. It's just not. We have to find a way to redeem ourselves and make amends with the people we've hurt. I know you're currently suspended, but whenever you get the chance, please call me. Maybe, just maybe, we can make this right together. To: Rainbow Dash From: Sunset Shimmer Wow! Let me tell you, it feels incredible to hear your voice again after all this time! Well, to read a text in your voice, but you get my drift. I've missed you so much, Dash! These past few days have been insane without you. School scandal aside, even simple things like having lunch felt wrong when you weren't there. It was hard to focus in class, hard to hang out with the others... nothing felt right. So, if I've learned anything this past week, it's that all our lives are much better with you in them. That being said, I wish you had given us a hint or something ahead of this. When you ghosted us and then disappeared, we were really worried something awful had happened. Of course, we're relieved you're okay, but a heads-up still would've been nice. I'm not mad ⁠— you've always been one to take your passions a bit too far — just a little confused, I guess? Sure, your experiment might have given you a more heartfelt speech for the video, but at what cost? Look. I am not defending the school in any way when I say this. I think they were so wrong to invade your privacy and turn this whole thing into a massive spectacle. But also, remember, our student body has been through some traumatic times. I turned into a raging she-demon and possessed them, the Dazzlings hypnotized them into hating each other, Twilight turned into another she-demon and almost broke our world, and Gloriosa Daisy trapped them at Camp Everfree. It's been rough! For some reason, things just have a tendency to go wrong with this group of people. And to them, you going to the principal's office was the start of yet another wrong thing. With all the trouble we've faced, I can't exactly blame them for freaking out about this one. Obviously, it escalated and they took it waaaaaay too far, but maybe it wasn't entirely coming from a place of malice. Think about that. Anyway, I gotta go. Rarity and Applejack aren't talking to each other, so Twilight and I are gonna help them. Let's meet in-person later. I miss seeing your face. To: Applejack, Sunset Shimmer, Twilight Sparkle, Rarity, Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, +106 others From: Zephyr Breeze Fellow students of Canterlot High! Listen. I know these are dark times filled with betrayal, deception, sadness, and guilt. I know many of you are questioning who you are and what you've done. And I know I am definitely the last person you wanted to get a text from right now. But please, don't delete this number just yet. I have something to say, and it might just surprise you. I know we're doing the whole "not talking to each other" thing at the moment, and that's cool... Except it's not. It's lame and it's unproductive. Sure, we screwed up (myself included ⁠— see Rainbows, I'm big enough to admit my faults), but that doesn't mean we should be clinging onto all those bad vibrations! No, we should be making the best out of a bad situation! So here's my proposal: tomorrow night, after school, every single person who has received this message comes over to my place. But I'm not throwing a party ⁠— no, no, no, I'm throwing a get-together where we hash out all our problems and find solutions. Think of it as a group forum! We can talk about the locker crisis, how we hurt each other's feelings, and engage in the process of forgiving. We can talk about "the truth", everything we've done wrong, and how we can make it up to Principal Celestia. It's the perfect place to air your grievances with each other (and with yourselves) in front of a live audience! All our problems solved in one night — doesn't that sound great?! Oh, by the way, there will be free pizza. Yeah, it's that serious. So be there or be square! To: Lyra Heartstrings From: Bon Bon Excuse me, did I read that right? Is Zephyr Breeze trying to be the voice of reason?! What?! This cannot end well. You bet I'm going to that party tomorrow.