So, at least in theory, they should know how to deal with each other, right? Or perhaps she got it wrong?
Thunderclap was clearly distressed, even though she was doing her best not to show it. Curious - why was she acting like that, especially if they weren't taught that crying was a punishable sign of weakness? She could just, well... be sad.
"I only wanted to meet with headmare once again, if possible, and that's all. Er... what time is it? Perhaps we could do something with Thunderclap before calling it a day?" she offered.
"Whoa... hey, yeah? You serious?" Clap had been taken by surprise from Obsidian's offer, and the smile that grew in place of the frown said it had been a good surprise.
Cupcake stood up with a grin of his own. "Well, that sounds like a plan! Okay, so we'll head back to the school and see Miss Glimmer, then I suppose it's up to you, Clappie!"
The diamond dog gave a large grin at hearing Obsidian speak so kindly, and his tail began wagging again. He said nothing else, but stuck close and remained attentive, his eyes echoing the smile on his muzzle.
The four of them made their way out of the restaurant (where Cup showed her where trash went for cleanup), down the street and back to the school just as the bell for final class sounded. Students were eager to leave, yet still had one more class for the day, whatever it was.
Why did she do it? Probably because... well, having a sad Thunderclap wasn't working out as well as happy one.
In this situation, an attempt to fix this issue - especially as Obsidian didn't really have any further plans - was the best possible idea. Yes, that seemed to be a good explanation. And the next time Mica would see them, he'd regret that he missed out on all interesting things that would come of it, and would realize that Obsidian is learning how to treat non-royals properly.
... and this milkshake really wasn't bad at all. It was surely much better than the 'punch' beverage... in fact, Obsidian felt almost as full as if she'd had her typical 'lunch' back in the Empire. Perhaps even moreso!
"Gypsy? Is your tail reacting to your mood? And do you possibly know something about the past of miss headmare? I think I've seen her name in the more recent chapters in history books, but I didn't retain as much as I'd hoped to. I borrowed a book about her today as well, but haven't had any time to read it, as of yet." It was her last chance to find something interesting before they met again, after all.
Gypsy looked back at his tail and actually blushed just a bit. "Y-yes, this o-one's happiness is shown in his t-t-t-tail, Majesty. It is a d-d-diamond d-dog's way - tails and ears c-communic-c-cate as well as words to us. And Headmare Glimmer? I know a b-bit, yes... shall I t-t-tell it now?"
Cupcake gave a chuckle. "Why not? En route entertainment!"
Gypsy pondered a moment, then began to speak. "M-M-Miss Starlight Glimmer was first noticed by the Elements of Harmony when they went to a small village in the mountains and found a whole society which had ch-chosen to rid themselves of their Cutie Marks, in a supposed show of equality. However, eventually it was revealed that she had, in fact, coerced them into allowing her to r-remove their marks magically and keep them in the village as willing guests."
"When the Bearers discovered that Starlight had done such a thing - and had hidden her own mark, stating she'd removed it as well - they f-fought her and managed to break her control over the villager's marks, reuniting them with their destinies when her magical hold was b-broken."
Oh, and what was this? She had commanded her own village? Where she was forcing ponies to get rid of their marks? By coercion... and she thought about her reading material... of course! The Bearers of Harmony! That's where Obsidian had noticed her - in the chapters about their many past battles.
She didn't expect, though, that miss Headmare had first appeared to them as an enemy! And yet, she somehow ended up in this position? That was truly curious...
"Later on, she appeared again, a-and this time-"
"Cupcake Sprinkles... well, how do you do?"
The voice that had interrupted sounded slick, smooth and slightly snarky, but Cupcake smiled. However, the same voice that had brought out such a smile in Cup was also apparently a voice that brought fear to Gypsy, and his eyes widened as his mouth snapped shut.
"Jinx? Is that you?" Cupcake asked nobody in particular; he may as well have been speaking to thin air!
"Indeed, my most emphatic fellow! In fact, I've been along for the ride since McDonk's, and I have to say, Thunderclap - you should exercise more, with all those hayburgers you've been eating."
Clap wore a look like she was annoyed. She let out a gruff sigh. "Hello, Jinx."
Gypsy scooted behind Obsidian, and she could feel him shivering behind her. "And this must be the enigmatic Obsidian I've heard so much about, hmmmmm?"
Where WAS this entity?
Wonderful - before Gypsy could finish his story, something had interrupted them. Something that either was invisible, hiding itself with magic or... or... well, something else! Cup was smiling, Gypsy apparently was quite afraid and Thunderclap was merely annoyed... it made for a rather confusing first impression.
"Yes, I am Obsidian... random voice... thing... show yourself, as I don't care much for talking to air," she said dryly, looking around in case this trickster was hiding somewhere and only using magic to project their voice away from them.
"Well, far be it for me to deny the decree of a royal, I suppose..."
There was an audible >SNAP!<, and a rush of green smoke suddenly filled the air in front of them, with jets of emerald shooting off to the sides, making it quite a spectacle. Suddenly, the ball of smoke was parted down the center like a curtain, and out stepped... stepped...
What in Tartarus was this?
It was somewhat dragon-shaped and was about as tall as one... but that's where the resemblance stopped cold.
It had what looked to be the tail of a lion, a bright red bird's wing next to a dusty moth wing, two completely mismatched horns, arms and legs. It had a wild, flowing mane with pink and black stripes throughout it, and big yellow eyes with green pupils. All of this was topped off with buck teeth and a pair of floppy bunny ears hanging from it's... head. The look in its' eyes was one of mischief... and perhaps not-so-innocent mischief.
The... thing... gave a low, sweeping bow, a monkey's forearm tucked in close to its' chest while gesturing with... a lobster's claw?
"Greetings, princess... please allow me to introduce myself; I'm a girl of wealth and taste..."
It was... female?
"Siddy, Jinx, Jinx, Siddy - now scram, willya?"
Jinx gave a somewhat unsettling grin toward Clap. "Oh, Thunderclap Dash - always sooooo happy to see me, aren't you?" Obsidian could almost hear the pegasus roll her eyes.
"And my dear friend Cupcake - I hope you're still up for you-know-what this weekend, hmmmm? Quite a bit of fun planned out for us, oh yes!"
"Yeah! I-" Cup suddenly looked over at Obsidian, and his features fell a bit. "Awww, wait - no, Jinxy; I got liaison duty, and I gotta be responsible about it, so..."
Jinx lifted an eyebrow. "So, princess... you're delaying Cupcake all weekend? Not even a spare minute?"
Was this one of the so-called creatures of chaos? Obsidian had only ever read about them... but during her time, the memory of Discord's reign of terror was as fresh as crimson blood on the snow. She'd had to learn about them - even if there hadn't been much factual information available, due to how mysterious their powers were. She had to be exceedingly careful about this one.
At least Cup didn't seem to be scared - which might have been a good sign, perhaps?
"That... depends. What is so important for this... 'weekend' thing?"
Both Jinx and Cupcake looked at each other and smiled broadly and answered in unison: "OGRES AND OUBLIETTES!"
Clap facehoofed.
"It's GRAND fun!" Cupcake began to gush. "We have characters and dice and sheets and little stand-ups and... hey..."
"Uh oh..." Clap said, then looked at Obsidian. "Run, Siddy!"
"HEEEEEEYYYYYYY!!! Princess, you could join us for a session!"
"Whoa, whoa, WHOA NELLY!" Jinx said, holding her claw toward him as if to signal a stop. "Now hold your relatives for a moment there, Cup - you can't just invite someone new without consulting the game master first!" She crossed her arms in annoyance... but her little grin said it was possibly all in fun.
"Oh, COME ON! This could be a great opportunity for her to interact with others! She's, like, really new here, so-"
Jinx held up the claw again, and Cup got quiet... though he was still bouncing in place a little bit. Jinx looked at Obsidian.
"Hmmmmmm..." She then moved even closer, pulling out a magnifying glass and scrutinizing Obsidian closely.
"Hmmmmmmmmmmmm... oh, hello Gypsy..." The diamond dog gave a small, mewling sound as a reply, yet stayed cowering behind Obsidian. His quivering redoubled, though.
"Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm..."
Jinx then stepped back, and her eye was comically large through the lens of the magnifying glass... then she put the glass away, and her eye was STILL larger than the other side! With a shake, she set herself right and fingered her lip in ponderance.
"Welllllllll... tell you what, Cupster: bring her on the right night, and we'll see what the whole group says, eh? From there, we'll see what happens - perhaps she'll be allowed, perhaps not. But still," Jinx grinned, "if that's what it takes to get my best gaming buddy to the game, so be it."
"NERD CENTRAL," Clap groaned aloud.
Jinx turned up her nose at Clap... literally; she spun her nostrils upside-down and gave a humph! as she turned away from her... but the umbrage taken was a sham, as the draconequus turned back with a smile. "Awwwww... I can't stay mad at YOU, Clapparino!"
"... I wish you WOULD..." Thunderclap muttered.
Cupcake looked at Obsidian. "Well... are you interested? It's a game where-"
"AH-ah-ahhh! Not around the 'straights', Cupola! Save the surprise for later, hon!" She then turned and, her wings flapping, lifted into the air and looked at Obsidian, leaning on her own hands in midair. "So... what's new, tall, dark and gruesome?"
Jinx was worse than Cupcake - though it should be obvious, she was able to express herself in many ways that Cupcake lacked. Obsidian was doing her best to stand still, even though she'd gladly turn into a shadow and move away. Their description of this 'game' was somewhat lacking as well.
However Obsidian hardly cared about any of that - Gypsy's total fear was interesting, but she didn't like the fact that this creature was scaring him. Besides, without permission to use her Dark Magic, all this tasty fear was just wasted.
"You know, Cupcake... I can just stay in my room all day and read during this holiday or gathering or whatever it is. Or I could simply ask the princess to assign me another liaison for the day..." She found herself glaring daggers at Jinx.
Cupcake looked disappointed. "Awwww... but it's so much fun! And it'll give you the chance to chat with others, and learn teamwork, and-"
"Eh! Tut tut, Cup-Cup. If she doesn't want in, then it's her decision; far be it for me to try to push our fun on anyone else... or don't you recall that particular lesson we learned?"
Cup's ears drooped for just a moment. "Yeah, I remember... butbutbut she could be really GOOD at it!"
Jinx shrugged. "Her choice. Just means more of you for me," and her smile went wide. Then she turned to Obsidian.
"A week consists of seven days; the weekend is technically the days at each end of that week, and they tend to be days most folks have off of work. You might not understand 'days off of work', though... considering where - and when - you're from."
Clap gave Obsidian a determined look. "That's it, mare... fight it... don't fall prey to The Geekness..."
Cupcake looked back and forth between the two, Obsidian and the draconequus, before finally fixing his gaze on Obsidian, a small plea in his eyes. "Are you absolutely sure you don't want to come?"
Days off of work - was that even possible? What were they doing with this time? They should be ashamed, wasting it without an important reason! Or perhaps their work wasn't as important as others, and could therefore go wanting for a while? And this 'more of you for me' statement? She apparently didn't want to eat him... at least, as far as she could tell. Perhaps it was another one of those 'crush' things?
"Small steps, Cup. Or, at least, smaller. I have enough on my mind, and this 'weekend' offer would be a bit much or me to consider, at the moment."
Cupcake gave a long, drawn-out sigh... but nodded and even gave a smile. "You're right, of course... miiiiiiiiight be a bit much after everything else of late. Maybe some time to adjust isn't a bad idea... but you'll consider it when you get more used to things, maybe?"
Thunderclap looked at Jinx with not a whit of affection. "Okay, the question asked, the answer had, now go away."
Jinx just giggled... which sent new waves of fear from behind and beneath her. Good grief, Gypsy was now hiding under her to get away from the draconequus!
"Well, it's all for the best, I suppose... after all, it gives me plenty of time to come up with some new ideas specifically for vous, my dear Dark One. But still," she leaned in close, and Obsidian could smell scorched sugar on her breath, "DO feel free to let me know when you're feeling more... confident, will you?"
Jinx looked over at Cupcake again and smiled... genuinely, in fact. "Same bat-time?"
Cupcake's smile tripled in intensity. "Same bat-channel!"
The earth pony and draconequus shared a brohoof, then she reached into some sort of pocket Obsidian couldn't see... which then proceeded to swallow the entire draconequus, the final ball of flesh vanishing with a >SNAP!<
Cupcake sighed happily. "I'm so glad she and I are friends; she can do the coolest magic!"
"Yeah," snarked Clap, "and annoy the heck out of everyone else around you as well! C'mon - I already have a thing to do in mind, and the sooner we forget that... noodle lizard... the better. C'mon Siddy - let's find you a Headmare!"
While Gypsy's fear was quite tasty, it was only reminding Obsidian that she wasn't allowed to use Dark magic.
"Get out from underneath me - it's embarrassing." She muttered through gritted teeth, getting more and more of a blush on her muzzle from embarrassment. What in Tartarus was that dog thinking?
Gypsy shot out from under her like a bolt of lightning, his eyes wide, looking everywhere for Jinx, presumably.
""G-g-g-g-g-g-g... i-i-i-i-is i-i-i-i-i-it-t-t-t g-g-g-g-g-g.... g-g-g-g-g-g-g..."
Gypsy covered his muzzle with his paws and breathed very raggedly through his fingers, sounding as though he were struggling to get his breathing under control. Cupcake gave him a sympathetic look and slowly came close, gently beginning to stroke Gypsy's back until his breathing began to slow.
"Discord," Thunderclap said, "did a real number on the diamond dogs as a whole, when they insulted him a few years back; nasty stuff - you could ask for an explanation from them as to what he did, but they're scared to death of him - and his daughter - and they'll go through the same thing, every time."
"There, there, Gypsy... it's okay. No worries, no worries..." Cupcake comforted the shaking dog. Gypsy simply nodded, then looked through his fingers at Obsidian.
"Th-th-th-th-th-th... th-th-th-th-th-th-"
"Yeah, we know, 'this one apologizes'... it's okay," Clap said.
The diamond dog nodded, then simply sat there and let Cup pat his back and stroke his head.
Thunderclap Dash looked towards the school, gesturing. "Well? We gonna keep going?"
Gypsy simply nodded, and Cupcake followed suit. Soon, they were all headed to Twilight Sparkle's school once again. The walk there wouldn't be much longer, from the look of it.
It took Obsidian a while to shake off such embarrassment - but even then, she was eyeing Gypsy carefully from time to time, just to be sure he wouldn't try any more ideas that could be socially awkward or uncomfortable.
"If you knew that Gypsy would be that scared, you could have asked to talk with her somewhere else - all this fear felt as if my magic would-"
Wait. Waaaaaaiiiiiiit... did she hear that correctly? "... do you mean... THAT Discord?"
"Eeyup," Clap confirmed, "THAT Discord."
"But... but... he was far older than my father! And he was defeated, yes?" It was unnerving; was modern Equestria infested with chaos? Why was a known tyrant free, even with a spawn of his own? How did he escape and convince them to not blast him with rainbows or some similar fate?
Thunderclap gave a frustrated groan. "Yeah, he was... then Celestia decided to try to rehabilly... rehubba... rebabble..."
"Rehabilitate," Cup added with a grin.
"Yeah, THAT... THAT for him. And, wonky as it sounds, it worked. Sorta."
"Ol' Discy's okay," Cupcake piped up, "did I mention he used to babysit my siblings and I? He's sooooooooooooo much fun, and Jinx is, like, the only one who can completely keep up with me - heck, she can even outdo me, sometimes!"
"And if you're wondering how they did it," Clap said, "it was Miss Fluttershy who got him to change. You met her - does it make sense?"
By the darkness that dwells in the depths of the deepest oceans! Discord, on the Equestrian side of the coin, babysitting foals, having a daughter? Perhaps she could go back to sleep, and wake up in another thousand years - it might be the safest option...
"Yes, it makes perfect sense," Obsidian shuddered slightly when she remembered the mare that was so completely contrary to her father that it was unnerving to her. "yet it doesn't change the fact that I find this entire thing terrifying, even without feeling Gypsy's own fear."
Jinx outdoing Cupcake. Scary, scary, scaaaary.
Thunderclap gave a slight chuckle. "Hey, don't be chicken, now... Discord's more of an annoyance than any sort of villain, anymore... and Jinx puts on a show, but she's REAL insecure-"
"Clap!" Cupcake looked up sharply at her. "That's NOT nice! You don't just start blurting out people's personal stuff!"
She rolled her eyes and sighed, "Okay, MOM - fine."
Cup continued for her. "Jinx... has her issues, yeah... but she's really not all that bad, princess. In fact, she's really nice, once you get to know her..." he looked in Clap's direction, "unlike SOME ponies who keep JUDGING her without KNOWING her."
"Blah blah blah, whatever. She's janky, and I don't care for anything janky." The large pegasus set her firm frown in place, determined to prove how much she disliked the subject matter.
Cupcake pouted a bit, but didn't try to argue; he knew better than to butt heads with her over the subject, it seemed.
Finally, they reached the school just as the last bell went off, and a number of students came out of the front doors like a small river, made up of various critters. There was still enough room to squeeze inside, but Gypsy seemed hesitant to engage such a large crowd. He still hadn't spoken since seeing Jinx, but he seemed somewhat calmer now... probably from Cupcake's comforting.
"Headmare's office, it is," Clap said as she strolled down the hall towards the doorway in question.
Considering that Jinx's mere presence was enough to make Gypsy terribly scared and for Clap and Cup to argue, Obsidian was even more wary of the mishmashed creature. It certainly didn't help that, as a draconequus, she was quite possibly even more powerful than she was... and that didn't sit too well with the Dark Princess. Not at all.
"Truly, I did not care much for how Gypsy was utterly terrified of her," she said quietly when Clap and Cup stopped arguing. Jinx had popped up and interrupted the diamond dog from talking about the headmare's past - and now it was too close for him to continue, at least without delaying the meeting much further.
"So how should I deal with it, Cupcake? Do I simply... ask Bold Verdana if I may visit miss Headmare?"
Cup thought it over for a minute, then nodded. "Sounds like the right way to do it to me!"
"Hey," Clap said, "you want us to come with, or is this a thing where we wait out here while you ask her strange questions?
Either way is fine with me."
"With us," Cup added.
"Yeah, what he said."
Obsidian looked at the doors, pondering the situation. "I do believe I'd like to try to deal with this one myself; I shouldn't rely so much on others... at least, those who are not my most honourable father." With these words she trotted forward, knocked on the door (to prevent another possible accident) and slipped inside.
Hopefully, miss Verdana would allow her that visit.
Bold was behind her desk as before, only this time there was nobody else in the office. She looked up at Obsidian as she entered the room, and she straightened her glasses before she spoke.
"Miss Obsidian, again - a pleasure. I take it you finished the assignments given to you, so... how may I help you?"
Hm. Empty. One would think that this office would be always busy. Obsidian bowed slightly to the secretary. "I, uh, would like to talk with miss Headmare - she said before that I could come visit her, and I have a few questions about the school and other such things. May I enter?"
Bold gave a small grin. "She's speaking with the guidance councilor at the moment... but I'm certain they wouldn't mind your presence. Just one minute." She reached over and gingerly pressed a button on a small, beige box.
"Madam Glimmer?" she spoke into it, "Miss Obsidian has returned and wishes an audience with you."
With the guidance councilor present, it meant they would have superiority in numbers; a bad tactical situation to be stuck in right before a battle! Luckily they weren't actually going to fight... right? Still, Obsidian had asked the rest of her group to stay with the hope of a nice, quick muzzle-to-muzzle chat - frankly, this unexpected turn of events was a bit irksome.
After a moment, the box spoke back! And in Starlight Glimmer's voice! "Sure, send her right in!"
That box was interesting... apparently, modern magic was a wonderful thing, indeed. If her father's Empire had access to something like that, the slave overseers wouldn't have to waste their time going directly to the slaves to give them orders; they could hear their orders and obey them promptly - all at the same time!
Bold nodded and gestured to the Headmare's office door. "Go right ahead."
Obsidian sighed deeply at how much her world had changed in so short a time and entered the headmare's office; when she opened the door, happy laughter floated out on the breeze.
Inside, the Headmare and the Councilor were both giggling over something hopefully unrelated, but as she entered, the two of them turned to greet her with amicable looks on their muzzles. The councilor adjusted her necklace - the new one from the package, no less - and used a hoof to straighten her silver mane.
Headmare Glimmer smiled warmly at Obsidian. "I already heard you got those errands done - I very much appreciate it, you lightening my load, even if it was just a few things - every little bit helps!"
"Yeah, and hey," the councilor added, "I appreciate that, too. This means we can get out of here at a more reasonable hour, so we can stop for dinner before we head home. Thanks! No really... thanks!"
Glimmer grinned. "I... take it you wanted to talk about something else?"
Obsidian wasn't used to older ponies at higher positions smiling at her... or frankly any ponies smiling at her at all, for that matter. This place was just too different, too alien from the Crystal Empire of ancient times that she'd known.
She still bowed respectfully to both of them. "I, er... was thinking about that offer to attend the school, miss headmare. You hopefully recall how you offered me the chance... uh, earlier?... that we might start paperwork after finishing today's agenda? Well, I... that is, I decided to inquire as to the, ah... current status of this offer?"
She was getting nervous. She was actually getting nervous! With Cupcake around, she was more or less able to rely on his social charisma... but right now, she couldn't help but think that barging into an official's office with any form of request was wrong; if she'd tried that with her father, it would likely have ended with pain.
Both the Headmare and the councilor's muzzles flashed with smiles. "Well, it's what I offered you, isn't it? I'm glad to hear you're coming around to the idea, actually. Yes, the offer still stands. Trixie," she turned to the other mare, "can you grab me a 17-B form and a 12-Q while you're at it?"
"The Gr-r-r-r-reat and Powerful Tr-r-r-r-r-rixie is not a secretary!" She looked a bit pouty, but then looked at Starlight's grinning face and her expression turned into an embarrassed chuckle.
"But... uh, she thinks they may be in that drawer, by your left?"
Checking the drawer, Starlight said, "Ah, here we are; thanks, Trix. Okay! So, go ahead and fill out what you understand, and when you reach the point you can't figure it out or you've finished, hand it to me and I'll review it, on the spot."
She pointed to the chair next to the councilor. "You don't even have to go anywhere else - fill it out right here, if you like."
Obsidian knew that there was no real reason to worry - but still, deeply, she felt that something was wrong. Actually plenty of things lately were wrong: from the lack of her most honourable father's wisdom and guidance, to the loss of so much time and re-learning of knowledge she once thought to be cold, hard fact, to having to deal with so many words and so many personalities, to the ban on her Dark Magic capabilities, to the fact that for the first time in her life, she found she had the dubious liberty of making her own choices - who wouldn't be stressed out with such a great burden of instant responsibility?
The unicorn's horn flashed, once again showing its' boiling and angry aura, as she levitated the proffered forms closer to examine them more carefully.
"As far as I am concerned, I have nothing; my own money, my own place, my own... nothing. Which is ironic, considering that a week ago, I woud have been considered the second the richest pony in all of the entire Crystal Empire. Sadly, this fact does not hold up well after an entire millenium, so... will finance become an issue?" she asked while starting to fill in the more obvious parts.
'Birthday'. Uh... well. So. Obsidian wondered if there was a little box to write an explanation of how long she'd been technically alive. She then went on to consider what day would have been considered the day of her birth... had she ever even known it; her most honourable Father wasn't into 'birthdays', so he hadn't exactly told her.
The councilor got a little nervous when Obsidian fired up the ol' red aura, but Starlight was unfazed.
"I can't even imagine what that must be like for you... but I know what it feels like to have nothing at all. Where've you been staying? I sort of assumed you were at Twilight's palace, since that's where I was told you came here from."
"Maybe she's been staying at the hostel, near Sweet Apple Acres? That place can be fun, but they can sure wear out an entertainer quickly with requests!" Trixie chuckled. "Still... usually ponies with nowhere else to go end up there, so it wouldn't surprise me."
The form wasn't horrible, but it would most certainly require someone to tell her what some of these questions meant! All the same, the majority of them were easily figured out. There was a single line allotted for a birthday; maybe the actual amount of years need not be on there, right?
"I'm currently staying within the Applejack Suite. A place to stay was arranged through Princess Sparkle, and I doubt I would be turned out onto the street so swiftly." Although, come to think of it... there was the matter of her supposed debt.
O tempora, o mores.
"However, shall I assume that attenting the school means some kind of financial restitution... or am I wrong?" She was learning a bit how to become a good imperial administrator, so she was somewhat prepared for these forms... but far less than she'd hoped for, unfortunately.
"No," Starlight answered her earlier question, "the school is free to any and all who want to attend, regardless of social standing, race or disability! Making money off of friendship-"
"... sounds like that fiasco that Flim and Flam tried to make work!" Trixie finished with a smirk.
"Exactly. It's wrong to try to profit on the pursuit of friendship, so Princess Twilight offers the school for free to anyone at all. Because the less others have to spend on their own education, the more likely they'll be able to spend it in other areas they might need to."
"Er... should I explain that, despite being born more than thousand years ago, I'm technically still sixteen?" she pondered to herself.
"Eh," Trixie said, waving a dismissive hoof, "don't worry about the age stuff so much - put sixteen and be done with it. I'm sure that, if it's important, it'll come up... right?"
Glimmer sighed, then put on a smile. "Well, there's a notes section; if you truly feel the need for it, you can make a notation of it there. Shouldn't cause an issue with enrollment, I'd think."
But it was important, so there was need for it. Besides, more information was always useful - she might suffer from amnesia, someday; in this situation, she could at least know why things seemed weird to her. So she made a notation anyway - just to be safe.
"I assume that education here differs from the one I received in the Crystal Empire, especially when it comes to teachers. Students here are grouped together, correct?"
As a princess, she hadn't exactly had any contact with things like 'classes' before. "I, uh... is there any chance that I could join a group with anycreature I already know?"
The two mares exchanged looks, then Starlight gestured to Trixie, who turned and gave a smug little half-grin as she spoke. "Lemme guess - you're already making friends, and you wanna know if you can stick with your buddies, right? That's not a bad idea, especially when you're just learning..."
"... but there's the possibility," Starlight took over, "that if you stay with the same group all the time, you'll never make new friends after those. So we'll have to try to balance things out, but that shouldn't be too difficult."
The two of them regarded her for a moment, then Trixie spoke up. "Well, if you want to get placed correctly, then you mind telling us who your other friends are?"
By Darkness, just how many friends did they want her to have? She already had quite a few, and still didn't even know what exactly it meant! It felt like a form of trade capital, really - as if she would find out that she had to pay some enormous debts...
"Cupcake, Thunderclap, Gypsy, Stalwart... and mayhaps Butter Churn and Licorice Twist, but I barely spent any time with those two." In fact, she almost didn't know Cupcake's brother, but there was something in him that made Obsidian sure he'd be a fine choice...
As she spoke the list of names, the two of them listened raptly. When she was done, they looked at each other, then sat back and started thinking.
"Cupcake Sprinkles... that makes sense. He's a lot like his mother, Pinkie Pie, so he's always trying to be a friend to everyone he meets."
"Except," Trixie added, "when his mood swings show up. He's kinda creepy, how he can go from joyful to sour in a flash."
"Also, like his mother, if you recall." Trixie waved the response away with a hoof.
"Now, Thunderclap Dash? You might be able to help us out, here," Starlight leaned forward, "she's just barely getting by in her classes, but not because she doesn't understand - she's smarter than other people think-"
"She just doesn't really care," Trixie finished. "That, and her attitude can be pushy and abrasive at times, like she's got a chip on her shoulder."
"... or a big ego, like a certain somepony I know?" Starlight teased, looking pointedly at the blue mare. Trixie stuck her tongue out at her, then they both laughed.
"So try to help her get more interested in her classes... if that's possible, of course. Don't force it if you're not comfortable trying."
"Gypsy Rover," Trixie said, "is one of the cases we're trying to set as an example to other diamond dogs. There's only five in the entire school, because they don't know if they trust the world at large yet. Plus, in his case, he's an orphan, and his guardians are very suspicious of ponies in general."
Oh, so Gypsy was an orphan... that made some sense. Obsidian hadn't been sure whether his talk of not having parents had been some diamond dog social decision - as in, they didn't nominate birth-givers as 'parents' - or perhaps they had wildly different ways to reproduce, or that he just existed... like her. At least it meant she didn't have to ask him for clarification on that subject.
"However," Starlight countered with a grin, "he's also gifted in historical studies, and his academic grades are among the best in the entire school! Plus, he's very sweet, and he has a genuine interest in learning about friendship..."
The headmare paused, then looked at Obsidian as if she was trying to recall something particular.
"Wait... did you say... Stalwart Stance?" Starlight's jaw hung open for a moment. "Stalwart doesn't make friends easily; if you managed that..."
"Starlight," Trixie said with a bored drawl, "she's royalty, remember?"
The Headmare's eyes lit up with understanding. "Ohhhhhhhhhhh... that's right. Well, that makes more sense, then. Still, if she wants a loyal friend, she could do worse."
Trixie looked at Obsidian seriously. "You realize she's waaaaay to short to qualify for the Equestrian Royal Guard, right? We've even told her that, but she refuses to believe it. She thinks she'll have a chance simply because she wants it bad enough."
"Well... maybe she will. You never know, Trixie," Starlight shrugged before she went on. "Butter Churn? Well, she's not bad friend material at all, and has her mother's honest streak-"
"Yeah, to a bigger fault than Applejack ever did," Trixie chuckled. "Careful what you tell that one; she won't lie for you, not one bit."
"Trixie," Starlight said with slightly forced calm, "not lying is a good thing."
"Really?" Trixie turned around in her chair to look at her friend with a wicked grin. "So, who was that stallion I saw you with last Saturday, hmmmmmmmm?"
Starlight's eyes bulged for a moment. "Ah-heh-heh-heh... ummm... sooooooooooooooooooooooooo... Licorice Twist, did I hear you correctly?"
"Licorice?" Trixie looked at Obsidian closely for a moment, then a slow smile spread across her muzzle. "Oh... ohhhhhhhhh, I see. That makes sense, too. Maybe you can get him to let go of that little black stormcloud he seems to carry over his head when he's trying to impress the fillies?"
"Licorice," Starlight interjected, "is a good student, and I'm sure his habits will rub off on Obsidian, Trix."
The blue mare's smile widened. "I don't think it's his habits she'll want to be rubbing with..."
Starlight looked back and forth between them for a moment, then gasped and blushed a bit. "Trixie Lulamoon! Behave yourself!"
Trixie only laughed. "There's nothing wrong with having a little crush; she'll be fine..." She leaned forward with a smirk. "Especially if they share some classes together."
It was interesting that she was able to learn more about the rest of her group; not everything was new, as she obviously already noticed Cupcake's admirable intimidation tactics - his meeting with the griffons being the best example, and Princess Twilight had already told her about Stalwart's size situation.
However, Thunderclap being smarter than she looked? That was new.
However, Guidance Councilor Trixie was trying to tease a mare that only recently discovered that it was possible to engage in an heir-producing relationship without it being arranged by her father - Obsidian was completely oblivious to the prod and stared blankly at miss Trixie.
"... Crush? I... do not believe that is the case."
The two mares looked at each other and smiled knowing smiles. "Let's just say that we'll see what happens, okay? Well," Starlight went through a drawer and pulled out some folders, then floated them over to Trixie and plopped them into the guidance councilor's lap.
"Wha-" Trixie began, eyes widening in surprise.
"She's wanting to have her friends with her during this experience, Trixie - with this list, it would probably be best if she had, say, one or two friends per class; this way, it won't disrupt the other's schedules too much. As that's the case, then she needs somepony to help figure out which classes to take, and who to have with her in each one. Or, to put it bluntly, she's asking for guidance... councilor." She giggled.
Trixie glared daggers at Headmare Starlight, then gave a heavy sigh and picked up the paperwork with her magic. "Great. Thanks. SO what I wanted to do..."
Starlight smiled kindly, then turned back to Obsidian once more. "The paperwork should be complete by tomorrow, just in time for you to attend. First Bell is at 8 in the morning; make sure to be in class by then, and you should be fine. Your friends should be able to help you with where to go."
Trixie sighed, then looked back at Obsidian with much less of a sour face than before. "Show up at my office when you get here tomorrow morning, and I'll give you your schedule; when the semester changes, we'll discuss what you want to take, but for simplicity's sake, I'll... I'll assign the right classes for you, don't worry."
Starlight nodded. "Trixie's been at this for a good while - she won't let you down."
"A vote of confidence is nice," she grumbled as she went out the door with her paperwork, "but The Great and Powerful Trixie would rather have help going through all these papers!" Her magic closed the door behind her.
Starlight turned back to face the princess. "Anything else? Don't be afraid to ask questions."
So, she just had to come early tomorrow to get her schedule of activities, and then she would just have to attend classes.
Everything seemed to be fine, and the school's guidance was at work for her benefit. After all, her father had told her many times that she was too inexperienced and ignorant to know what was best for her. School wasn't exactly the best equivalent of her father's brand of education... but it seemed to be the only option left.
"I... ah, also thought..." she hesitated a bit, "... that perhaps, with all this debt thing, doing chores from Lemon and so on... is there possibly any more *ahem* permament work I could be doing... perhaps in the library? Miss Tome seemed to be duly satisfied with my work, so I thought that, maybe..."
Ugh, to think that a princess would be worried about work and money... like a peasant!
Starlight lifted an eyebrow. "Really? Wow, you sound like Twilight..."
She stood up and came around her desk, coming muzzle-to-muzzle with Obsidian... or nearly so, as the princess was a bit taller than the headmare.
"I think I can take a look into something more permanent... and less Lemon-filled, so to speak." She gave a slight chuckle. "Personally? I also think he's a bit of a jerk... but really, he's got some good points, too."
She began to pace the office as she spoke. "He was the youngest entrant into the Equestrian Intelligence and Espionage Information Offices, and he was the one who organized the resistance to The Great Parasprite Flood. He worked hard to get through those things, and he wouldn't have done so if he didn't care at least a little bit."
She smiled. "Not saying you have to make him a friend, mind you - just making a point that there's something worthwhile about everyone, and you just have to learn how to keep your eyes open for it. And that is part of what this school is for."
Why did she sound so much like Twilight? Well, they were both princesses, but of different kinds... so to speak. And frankly, she didn't care about Lemon; keeping him away would be just a nice bonus.
Come on - even his own brothers didn't seem to like him.
"I just think it's a rather nice library, and it wouldn't hurt to try to get a more stable and secure position, would it?
Especially as back home, I wasn't even able to visit our library without escort - and my father's expressed permission." The fact that her most esteemed father usually was her escort wasn't important.
Starlight gave a thoughtful look for a moment, then nodded to herself. "I can look into it, sure - Tome certainly doesn't seem to need help, but that doesn't mean she doesn't want help. I'll put in an inquiry, and I can get back to you whenever she gets back to me."
Starlight stood up and made her way over to a filing cabinet, shuffling through papers. "I know there's a lot going on for you right now, but you have to keep an open mind about how things will go in this day and age; you'll be experiencing a LOT of changes, and not all of them will be fun. But whatever happens, I hope you know you can talk to me, or Trixie, or just about anypony on staff here."
She pulled a paper from the cabinet with her magic, then floated it over to Obsidian. "Here's a map of the school, for tomorrow. Wouldn't want you to get lost getting to classes on your first day, right?"
Frankly, though her encounter with Miss Tome had been a bit strange, working in the library could give Obsidian a good reason to stay near her - she surely knew a lot, could become quite a font of knowledge... and, of course, Obsidian needed a job. One that would have her surrounded by books sounded like the kind of job she wouldn't mind at all.
"Thank you, miss headmare," Obsidian said; with both a map and a promise of inquiry, it seemed that everything was going to be OK. "And I've already found quite a lot of changes. Mind-breaking ones. I think I'm doing fairly well, all things considered."
She had her falling out with Mica, mayhaps, but that was all. Everything else she'd tried had come to very acceptable conclusions. She'd even managed to get her own small entourage, with the loyal Stalwart and the knowledgeable Gypsy as probably the most useful of her assets.
Obsidian was curious to ask miss headmare about her rather, er... 'villainous' past, but Thunderclap was waiting for her to go do the promised activities, and Obsidian still felt she didn't know enough to ask any proper questions - courtesy of Jinx, who'd scared Gypsy in the middle of an info dump.
"I do believe that's all for now, miss headmare; I'll do my best to avoid any problems as a student."
Starlight smiled. "Glad to hear it - the fewer issues, the better, I say. If you're sure there's nothing else, then at least I hope things get easier for you. Trust me," she gave a half-smile, "I know what it's like to be a proverbial 'fish out of water', but you're doing great so far. Keep it up, and you'll be a part of things here in no time."
She then moved back around her desk, plopping into her chair with a heavy sigh. "Now, if you'll excuse me - I have a lunchroom budget to balance. One I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy."
Balancing a budget didn't sound that bad - if anything, it was one of the more calming, relaxing things her father had been instructing her on; her lack of mistakes had meant it was more likely that punishment would be minimal, if at all.
"Then I bid you a goodbye, miss headmare." Obsidian bowed once again and began to make her way out of the room, feeling a small sense of relief. Maybe it hadn't been her father... but meeting ponies in a position of power was still more stressful than she'd thought it would be.
Even if they were clearly doing their best to help her.