Chapter 9: Be Yourself
(Tuesday) (Canterlot High)
Flash was… in a bit of a foul mood today. If you asked him why, his answer might surprise you. For one thing his car was totaled. Every piece of it having need replacement or repair which would take weeks if not months. Apparently Equestrian magic and combustible car engines don’t exactly mix that well.
Secondly was his guitar which was also ruined after it was tossed out during the fight. It was recovered of course though it was missing a few strings and a few parts that would take some time to gather. Nothing too major but it still sucked that his prized possession was caught in the crossfire.
And lastly of course was the artifact itself. The super important relic that he was supposed to keep safe was shattered in a blink of an eye. While he was mad to see it destroyed so suddenly he couldn’t exactly blame Adagio for what she did back then.
Her friend’s life was on the line and they didn’t have a lot of time to debate on values. If there roles were reversed the boy would’ve done the same thing with no hesitation whatsoever. Her desire to save her friend outweighed everything and that alone was pretty admirable to say the least.
Sunset and Twilight offered to repair it however they can but he wasn’t gonna hold on to hope at this point. Fixing something as ancient as that bowl was like trying to put a million-piece jigsaw puzzled back in a minute. Flash decided to fool the security by replacing the bowl with something from the kitchen. Thankfully his father seemed a tad bit busy with his new job at Crystal Prep to actually notice. However this ruse can only go on for so long. Eventually the magic curtains will rise and the illusion will vanish. The boy dread what kind of punishment would be in store for him when the time comes. If he was lucky, dad might just cut him off his allowance until he graduates…… from college.
But there was little point dwelling on such things right now. Whatever happens will happen. It’s a philosophy that he learned in Professor Doodle’s class.
“Hey Flash.” The boy perked up from his locker when a familiar voice called out to him.
“Oh… Sunset.” He stuttered her name a bit, smiling. “What’s up? I don’t suppose you managed to fix my uh… arts and craft project.” Her disapproving headshake didn’t give him much hope. “Oh… well I’m sure it’ll all turn out ok. Right?”
“Y… yeah. Somehow.” She rubbed her arm trying to ease things over. “Actually. I was hoping we could talk. Do you have a minute?”
A minute? For her? He’ll skip school if he had to.
“For you? Always.” He added with a warm grin which somehow made her look kind of… guilty. “What’s wrong? Did you find out who’s controlling the shadow monster?”
“No. Twilight’s looking into that.” She answered while they walked through the hallway. “I actually wanted to talk about… well… you.”
“Me?” There really wasn’t a lot to talk about in that subject. Flash was never one to reveal his history other than what people already know about him in school.
“About you… helping us.” She added which narrowed down the subject.
“Did I do something wrong?”
“No! Of course not.” Oh that was a relief. For a moment there he wondered if he screwed up somehow. “Don’t get me wrong here. You’ve been a great help to us these last few days. With our investigation and fixing Applejack’s farm. It was really sweet of you. But I think it’s… um… I think it’s time that you stopped.”
The boy froze on his tracks. “What? I don’t understand. I thought I was helping.”
“You are. Really.” She nodded. “It’s just that… I’m worried that the more you help, the more you might get drawn into this whole mess. And… I don’t want you getting hurt.”
“Are you talking about this?” He pointed at the wound he suffered from the wolf last night which healed up nicely after it was treated. “Pfft. It’s just a scratch. It’s nothing to get worked up about. I’ve had worse injuries with my guitar.”
“Not just that.” Sunset corrected. “Sure it might be small now. But then your car, your dad’s artifact? If this keeps happening, who knows what might happen? The next time, you might get seriously hurt. Doesn’t that scare you?”
Flash scratched the back of his head not really sure what to say. “Well… I guess you could say that. But you girls get hurt all the time too.”
“That’s because we have magic.” That same reason again. It was starting to get irritating. “We can protect ourselves from the monster with our powers. But you on the other hand don’t have those.”
“Just because I don’t have magic doesn’t mean I can’t help.”
“Flash. Listen to me.” She urged him. “We were given these powers for a reason. I don’t know what they are just yet but I want to believe it was to protect people like you.” Sunset gave him a smile, her hand unconsciously moving to his cheeks. “You’re a great guy who deserves a lot better than this. So please… don’t put yourself in danger for our sakes. Leave the magic stuff to us.”
“But Sunset… I want to help.”
“I know you do. But… I want you to do it from a safe distance.” She added. “That means no more stunts like last night. No more risks.”
“But…”
“Please.” The rebel pleaded to him. “The last thing I want to see is you getting hurt because of something we did. You don’t deserve this. Promise me you’ll stay out of this from here on. Promise that you won’t just go running into fire.”
“I…” Flash felt like he was being drawn to a corner. His ex-girlfriend was going out of her way to get to him cut off with them. And there was no way she’ll take no for an answer. He knew that she was the most stubborn out of all the Mane 7 with Rainbow Dash being a close second. With a defeated sigh, he nodded. “I really can’t say no to you.”
Her face lit up slightly. “So you’ll stay out of it?”
“Yes Sunset. I promise I’ll stay out of your adventures from here on.” She pulled him in for a big hug which he hesitantly returned. The boy noted a few classmates eyeing him from afar, some giggling and passing silent judgment with their dagger-like stares.
“Thank you for understanding.” She then pulled away, a shy blush appearing on her cheeks. “I should… probably get to class. I’ll um… see you later?”
“Yeah…” He waved farewell as she left him just in time for the school bell to ring. The boy slumped, his mood going down faster than a popped balloon. “… later.”
(Crystal Prep Academy)
Ok Celestia. Second time’s the charm. You might’ve made a mess of the first approach but you can still salvage this. Just tell him that I was having a bad stomach day. You can restore your integrity by making a good second-impression. And you don’t have to worry because this time you came prepared. A box of brownies freshly baked at the Sweet Shoppe. She didn’t want to sound like a cheeky pun book but this is sure to earn you some brownie points.
Now all she had to do was… uh… wait a second. Where was she?
She was supposed to be at the Principal’s office by now. Dang it! She should’ve paid attention to Cadance’s directions. Now she’s lost!
And it’s not like it was her fault either. All these hallways look all the same. Put a little color code around here or at least have signs or labels. How is anyone supposed to find their way around here without some kind of landmark? You’re more likely to trick them into going in a loop for all eternity!
Now don’t panic. Just find a student and ask for directions. It should be simple, right? No need to be scared. The students here aren’t that different from her school.
Ring!
“Oh crud. Was that the bell just now? All the students are rushing to their classes! Quickly now. Grab one before they all disappear.”
“Excuse…” Nope too late. “… me?” The hallways were deserted a moment later.
Oh boy. This was gonna be one of those days, wasn’t it?
She wanted to cry.
Was the universe fighting against her? Did she do something bad to deserve this? Did the cosmos decided for karma to strike her back after all these years?
Well… better start walking. One way or another she was bound to run into the office eventually. I mean… how big can this school be?
“Celestia?”
“Bwahh!” She galloped forward when a voice snuck up behind her making her spill her box of cake. Thankfully however the owner of the voice was fast and caught the box right before it fell. “I’m so sorry. You startled me and…… and…”
And right then and there she saw him. The face that she hasn’t seen for over 2 decades. It was still the same as she remembered but older, more mature. His hair certainly grew along with those sideburns. That chiseled jaw and those deep green eyes.
“Sombra… I… hi?” Wait that came out sounding like a question.
“Hi back at ya.” The tall man replied giving a knowing smile. He paused for a moment, not really sure what to say until he eyed the box in his hand. “Double cream filling? Again? I thought you’d outgrow those things after college.”
“What? Oh! Right. I was… actually going to share that with… Cadance and… you.” She took the box back, giving a good two steps back.
“No coffee?”
“No. I don’t really… oh!” Her eyes widened in realization. “You mean yesterday? Aheh… again I’m… very sorry.”
Sombra laughed and shrugged. “Don’t be. I know exactly what bad caffeine can do. And you actually did me a favor. I was getting bored of that coat anyway. You gave me a good excuse to change my attire. Something new and fresh and doesn’t reek of rain-forest.”
“I can tell.” She scanned him from top to bottom recognizing the form of her old dear friend. “I see you grew that hair out.”
“Says the girl with the flowing rainbow hair?”
Ah… right. She forgot about that. “You’ve certainly changed since we last met.”
“And you’ve improved. Greatly.”
Celestia stifled a chuckle. “You always had ways with words.”
They stood there for a moment, gazing into each other’s eyes trying to find a hint of lingering emotions hiding within. But instead they shared a laugh, breaking whatever tension they had.
“It’s really good to see you again Celestia. It’s been a long time.” Far… far too long. She wanted to say. “Oh! My congratulations on your promotion. You must’ve worked really hard to get to where you are now. You always said that you wanted to run your own school. I guess your dreams do come true.”
“Y… yes!” She stuttered, trying to get into the conversation, blatantly trying not to spill out other topics. “Well most of it anyway. It’s been a bit of a challenge.”
“Oh? Let me guess. Troublesome teens?”
She opened her mouth to protest but stopped. He wasn’t that far off except for the magical nature of those troubles. “Actually… very close.”
“Ha! It must be hard holding the fort out all on your own.”
“Not really. I mean Luna has been a big help.”
“Luna?” He shot up surprised. “She’s still with you? Wow you two really are inseparable. I figured someone of her personality would land her somewhere on the moon.” He held back a laugh when he noted that she wasn’t joining. “Uh… you know? Because she’s Luna?”
“Oh no. I got it.” She brushed it off. “It’s just that you use that line way too often. Doodles does the same joke all the time. And yes, Doodles is working in my school too.”
“No kidding? Wow. I can’t believe my old gang is in town. We should certainly get together sometime. It’ll be like the good old days.”
Celestia’s smile faltered. “Yeah. The… good old days.”
The good old days before that night.
Sombra stopped when his wrist began to beep. “Oh. Would you look at the time? We’re going to be late for our first meeting. Shall we?”
“Right! Of course. The meeting.” She nodded quickly, brushing the old memories away. “Please, lead the way.”
“Oh no. After you.”
“Oh don’t be like that. It’s your school.”
“Come on. I insist.”
The woman raised her hand up to protest until it dawned on her. She looked to him and stared. “Sombra. Are you lost?”
He chuckled back shyly, rubbing the back of his neck.
(CHS) (Cafeteria)
“Alright guys, listen up.” Twilight opened up calling the gang into order. “Thanks for coming by on such short notice but Sunset and I have an announcement to make.” It sounded official, like a club president performing a rehearsed speech to its members.
Sunset nodded in agreement and stood by her friend as she spoke. “Twilight and I have been digging through the magic at the museum and we came to a conclusion.”
“You found out who’s behind this wolf thing attacking people?” Rainbow Dash deduced though sadly they shook her heads in reply.
“Not exactly.” Twilight answered. “I managed to extract some of the magic from the artifact after… Adagio destroyed it.” She said that last part venomously. “With it I’ve been able to recalculate my detector. So the next time whoever uses that same magic source, my equipment will detect it and send me the data in a matter of seconds. However… that will still take time and there’s no telling what the shadow monster will do in the mean while.”
“Which brings us to our second agenda.” Sunset took this next part nodding to her friends. “Now that we know what this thing is after, I’ve decided that we should take extra precautionary measures to make sure that it doesn’t catch us off guard. So from here on out, effective immediately, I am putting the ban-hammer on all magic. That means no telekinesis, no barriers, no super strength, no explosive pastries, no talking to animals, no mind reading and no super speed.” Somehow they all had the feeling she directed that last bit directly at the owner.
“Aww come on!” Rainbow whined. “No magic? How am I supposed to get home then?”
“Didn’t you used to bike here?” Applejack recalled.
“Yeah but I hardly use that thing at all ever since I knew I could run faster than the city train.”
“This isn’t just for your safety Rainbow.” Twilight explained. “It’s for everyone. We all know what this monster is capable of doing and it doesn’t seem to care who gets in its way. As long as we have these powers and the magic that channels it, we will be putting those around us in danger every time we use them. We can’t afford to take that risk.” She darted at the girls who seemed conflicted about the whole ordeal. While the powers were strange at first they all grew accustomed to it using them on every day chores.
“What if the monster decides to attack the school?” Sunset painted a horrifying picture to all of them. “Or even worse, attack our homes like it did with Applejack? Do you really want to risk any of your friends or family getting hurt?”
Fluttershy shuddered at the thought of her animal shelter becoming a target for the monster. “Oh dear. I really don’t want to stop talking to all my animal friends. But if it means keeping them safe then I suppose I can keep myself in check.”
“Indeed.” Rarity readily agreed. “We’ll just have to do things the old fashion way. Nothing we can’t handle.”
“Yeah. Watching cupcakes go boom isn’t as fun as it used to be.” Pinkie chimed in, taking a bite off her food. “I’d much prefer to gobble them up. I’m in.”
“Apple season is pretty much over so I don’t really use mine that often now.” Applejack shrugged. “So no complaints from me.”
Their eyes then fall upon the last member of the group who grumpily noted their looks.
“Ok fine!” Dash submitted. “I promise I won’t use my powers. There. You happy now?”
Twilight of course nodded. “Very much. And now we move on to our final agenda for today. The official founding of our very own CIC.”
…
Huh?
“The what now?” The Cowgirl asked for all their sakes.
“The Canterlot Investigation Club.” Sunset explained to them with a knowing look on her face. “It’s an idea that I’ve been running with Twilight for a while now. Seeing as there have been more magic sightings around the city lately, and not all of us have a lot of time for a get together session like this, we thought we could use this whole club thing as an excuse.”
“We wanted to call it the Magic Club but the CMC group already had dibs on the acronyms.” A cough from Apple Bloom who sat a few tables away caught their attention. She eyed them wearily with her friends doing the same. “So we decided to go with the CIC instead. We ran this through with Vice-Principal Luna and she agreed to help out by giving us access to the school grounds on holidays. That way we can use some of the resources without putting others in danger.”
“So… it’s like a club?”
“Not like a club, Dash.” Twilight corrected. “It’s ‘A’ club. Right now it’s just me and Sunset but we were hoping you guys would join up to make it official. We made reservations in the music room to act as our headquarters.”
“Oh! Does that mean we get to wear matching outfits?” Rarity grinned in excitement.
“Uh… sure?”
“Aiii! Please let me do it! No. I demand to be the one to do it! The theme will be: Fantasy Private Investigators! A combination of Sherlock and Wizardry!” The fashionista put her palm forward raising it over in an arc. “I can see it now. We shall wear capes, easy footwear and wizard detective hats! It will be… ingenious.”
Applejack laughed. “Well I’m in. It’ll be nice to hang out even more without looking for a reason.”
“Excellent!” Twilight cheered. “And with that I conclude our first ever CIC meeting. I’ll set up our next meeting once I have more information on our mysterious attacker. Club Dismissed.” She slammed her imaginary gavel on the table earning a weird look from her friends. “Sorry. I’ve always wanted to do that.”
“Well I’d say you nailed it, Vice-President Twilight.” Sunset cooed. “I’ll be sure to leave all the reports to you later on.”
They shared a quick laugh forgetting their woes for a moment.
“Ahem. Now that we’re done with all the serious talk. I’d like to discuss something far more pleasant and less stressful.” Rarity opened up again with her head on her hand. “I believe you’ve all heard of the fashion performance in Canterlot Mall this weekend? Oh what am I saying? Of course you do.”
The girls shared a look with one another clearly not even remotely aware that there was even going to be a show. But instead of denying it they just nod back and put in half-hearted replies.
“Well as you might also know is that dozens of designers from all over the city will be showing off their masterpieces at the catwalk. And you’ll never guess who’s taking the center stage attention.”
“If it’s not you then this is a terrible story!” Pinkie proclaimed.
And of course Rarity simply laughed it off. “Unfortunately it isn’t me. But thank you for the encouragement Pinkie.” The bubblegum girl simply smiled and returned to her food. “It’s actually my boss, Ms. Prim Hemline. We will be showing off our Winter Collection, bedazzling the audience with all of our arts. She was also so impressed with some of my work these last few weeks that she decided to add me as her sideshow performance.”
“Sideshow?” Rainbow noted. “Wait… are you talking about that animal show?”
“Precisely!” The fashionista announced. “I will get to design clothes for all manner of household pets. Dogs, cats, rabbits, birds! Even… pigs too.”
“Oh that’s right.” Fluttershy’s face beamed. “I remember Ms. Cureall saying something about that. Apparently she’s putting some of the animals there to raise awareness and hope that they’ll get adopted too. I didn’t know you’d be the one to put them all in dress-up.” She shied away a tad bit. “I don’t suppose you’re looking for an assistant?”
“Consider yourself hired, darling. I was going to ask you anyway seeing as I’ll be taking measurements out of all the animals in the shelter.”
(After school) (Football field)
Flash let out a sigh as he slumped back to his seat watching the football team practice their plays. It was a boring event but at least they were quiet about it. To say that the boy was depressed would be an understatement right now. With his constant sighs, groaning and miserable posture people might think that he was just recently dumped. And sadly they wouldn’t be far off the mark.
When Sunset asked him to stay out of the fight, he could do nothing but agree. It was hard to accept her condition but she had a point. The incident that happened last night was probably one of the most exciting moments of his life. For a second there he was at the top of the world believing that he was some kind of knight that vanquished a demon on his trusty steed not even realizing how close to death he was.
It was his dream to be a part of that world. To be a part of the magic that the girls have embroiled themselves in. And for a brief moment he actually felt like he was there.
And now he had willingly decided to leave it all behind and go back to the ordinary world. He wasn’t gonna lie. It hurt. It hurt a lot. And it was taking everything he had just to keep himself sane.
The world just wasn’t fair. If only he had magic. A way to control magic. He could fight by their side like those heroes he saw on TV. He’d love to shoot rainbow beams out of his hands, cause cake explosions. Heck he’ll take talking with animals. He just wants to be with them.
He wants to help them.
Help them… in any way. Is that so wrong?
Why should the burden of the world fall on the shoulders of those girls? Why should they be the only ones who fight while everyone else stood on the sideline? Flash didn’t want that. He didn’t want to be just another viewer. Someone who just watched while those girls risk their necks in magical duels. There has to be something he could do. Something he could just…
“Well someone’s feeling down in the dumps.” The boy was interrupted from his train of thoughts when a voice chimed in, speaking to him. He looked to the side of the benches coming face to face with a familiar figure holding a mean looking grin. “I can smell your negative emotions for miles.”
“Oh! Hey uh… umm… you…?” He got up only to stumble on her name.
“Adagio.”
“Right right. Adagio. Sorry. I… didn’t really catch it when we met.” The boy patted himself looking somewhat embarrassed to be caught in such a position. “I’m…” He extended his hand forward, trying to smile it off.
“Flash Sentry. I know.” She ignored his gesture allowing the hand to fall as she spoke. “Hard to forget after last night.” The Siren gave out a smirk gesturing to the scar on his head.
“Oh this? This is nothing. Your friend got it way worse than this little bump.” He paused. “Is she…?”
“She’s fine. More or less.” The girl shrugged. “A little weak on the legs but she’ll get better eventually. Aria’s looking out for her. None of us want to hang around the city after dark.”
“And… what about you?” He asked. “Aren’t you afraid of the monster?”
“Like I said: The monster only comes out after dark. It can’t exactly go around while the sun is in the sky.”
“Oh… right. That makes sense.” He bobbed his head lowly. “Are you here to meet with Sunset? I think she’s still inside.”
“That’s the idea.” She gruffly added, darting her eye sideway. “Though I seriously doubt anyone would point me in the right direction if I asked.”
Flash didn’t really understand what she was trying to point out until he noticed some odd whispers coming from the area. He looked around and saw several students looking in their direction. Or… to be more precise, they were looking at Adagio. And he could probably guess why.
“I’m guessing the folks here are still bitter about the Battle of Bands.”
He cringed. “Well… kinda. I mean you did try to hypnotize them all. That’s not the kind of thing that people forget.”
“And you?”
Flash blinked. “What about me?”
“You don’t seem all that surprised to see me. Aren’t you mad about being put under a spell.”
“Ah… right.” He rubbed the back of his head shyly. “Well I’m not really one to hold grudges. Besides, if I have to be honest, it wouldn’t be the first time I got brainwashed by some power hungry girl who tried to take over the school for her own benefit.” A certain redhead came to mind.
“Speaking from experience?” She cocked him a knowing grin.
“Partly. But that’s all in the past now.” He added quickly. “You can start off fresh just like Sunset.”
“Oh please.” Adagio scoffed raising her hand up to his face. “Don’t insult me. Not in a million years would I want to mingle with your kind or be seen as some goody two shoes. We’re perfectly content where we are.”
“Really? Sounds kind of… lonely.”
“We’re creatures that thrive off the negative emotions of others. Making friends isn’t exactly our forte.”
“Point taken. But still…” He smiled warmly at her. “It never hurts to try new things.” His eyes then cast over to the school where he noted the magic girls coming out in pairs. “Hey, there’s Sunset. You should probably get to her before she gets on the school bus.”
Adagio eyed them from afar sighing. She really didn’t want to talk to those girls. But then she noted that the boy who directed her wasn’t following. “Aren’t you coming?”
“Me? No. I’m… I’m not part of the group.”
“Why not?” She raised a brow, curious. “After what I saw last night I figured you were much a part of this as any.”
“Heh… well I’m glad someone thinks so.”
“Don’t tell me you’re afraid after what happened.”
“No! Of course not.” That was far from it. “It’s just that… I promised not to get involved anymore.”
“And why is that?”
“Because… I don’t have magic.”
Adagio’s face frowned deeply. “And your point being?”
He sighed. She definitely wasn’t going to drop this. “Sunset doesn’t want me helping.”
She followed his gaze to the girl in question and immediately put two and two together. “Oh I see.” A mean grin showed itself on her lips. “Big red over there doesn’t want her precious little human pet getting hurt. After she saw you get a little boo-boo, she must’ve freaked out like an overprotective mother.”
“That’s not… how I would’ve phrased it but… yeah.”
“And like a puppy you obeyed without question.”
“I’m not really…”
“Let me give you a piece of advice, boy.” Adagio laughed evilly as she snaked her hands around the boy’s face cupping his cheeks meeting little to no resistance. She then took him by the collar, gripping it tightly, her eyes brimming with anger. “Never… Ever… Let anyone dictate what you can or cannot do in this world. Why do you care what she thinks and what she wants? Does she knows what’s best for you? You think she’s little Ms. Perfect and you should obey every word she has on a whim? You are your own person. Be a man and grow some self-respect.”
“Gah! Ow! Hey! What are you doi…?”
“You wanna stay on the sidelines forever? Are you going to just sit there and let people walk over you? Are you just gonna stand by while those girls put themselves in harm’s way?”
“What? No! Of course not.”
“Then what is it you want?”
“I want to help!” He blurted as she pulled him closer with their nose just barely touching.
“And you think you can keep doing this without getting hurt?” Adagio breathed out shoving the boy down to the ground. “In the world of magic, you can’t afford to be soft. What if your friends over there get attack right now? What if one of them gets injured because you refuse to lift a finger? Is that what you want?”
No… that’ll never happen. Not while he was around.
“Never.” The boy rose up, pangs of anger and rage suddenly flaring from the pit of his stomach. His hands balled into fists while his nostrils flared like a bull ready to go on a rampage.
Adagio didn’t even flinch at his expression, instead cocking her head down to meet his anger with a satisfying grin. She looked pleased.
“Well now. I guess you can be a man after all.” She said smugly which somehow deflated the boy’s wrath. “Don’t let a little pain stop you from doing what you want. Because I… never do.” She added menacingly as she held out a familiar cellphone.
Flash looked and his eyes widened in realization. He patted his jacket noting a bulge missing from one of his pocket. “How did you…?”
She ignored his question and dialed a number before tossing it back. “Here’s my number.”
Huh?
The boy tilted his head, confused.
Adagio added brushing her hair with an expression that looked like a mixture of equal part shyness and irritation. “For your car and… your guitar and that bowl thing. They looked pretty expensive and… you did technically save my friend. And I don’t like owing others. So if you need anything, give me a call.” She turned around and walked away leaving a very confused boy behind. “Oh and one more thing.” The boy looked up at her. “Thanks… for last night. I wouldn’t be here without you.”
And just like that she was gone.
Flash wasn’t really sure what just happened. There were so many mixed signals in their interaction that he hardly remember them all. One moment she was all wise, sassy, then she was angry and then she was shy and solemn? Are all women this confusing or just the ones he know? He wasn’t sure anymore – and even less so when he looked down at his phone seeing a number printed on screen. Why did she add herself into his favorite contacts?
And… why in the world did she put a heart emoji on her name?