Lemon Zest hummed cheerfully as she danced down the hall with a broom in one hand and a dustpan in the other. It was a quarter to four in the afternoon and only a few students remained meandering the halls of Crystal Prep Academy. Those who did gave her wide berth to avoid getting accidentally smacked by either end of the broom.
Every Crystal Prep Academy student was required to fill a certain amount of hours each semester doing volunteer work on or off-campus. Helping to clean up the Academy was Lemon's favorite task since the custodian Mr. Crimson allowed her to listen to her music while she worked. Today, he had tasked her with cleaning up several rooms in the East Wing.
She had just finished sweeping two supply rooms and had now come to the room that once served as the laboratory of her former classmate Twilight Sparkle. She opened the door to find the room completely empty save for a plain wooden desk in the far corner. Save for a very faint smell of fur, she would have never guessed that Twilight had kept a dog down here. Hopefully, the little egghead was doing well at Canterlot High School.
She had just set down the dustpan when a call from her smartphone interrupted the song she had playing. The ringtone, a sample from a classic heavy metal song, told her that it was her friend Indigo Zap. Lemon proceeded to sweep the floor as she took the call via her headphones.
"Hey, Indigo."
"Hey, I'm hitting JoJo's after practice. Want me to get you anything?"
Lemon perked up. She always enjoyed the food from JoJo's Mexican Grill.
"Ooh, can you get me the fajita plate and a chocolate churro shake?"
"Sure thing! I'll come by your room at five."
"See you then!"
Lemon resumed dancing as the song returned. By the time the next track began playing, she had swept the entire floor. All that was left for her to do now was to sweep under the desk.
As she crouched down in front of the desk, she spotted something tucked away in the corner. She used the broom to slide the object toward her. Closer inspection revealed it to be an olive green metal index card filing box (seriously, did anyone use these things anymore?). Curious, she opened the container and found inside a sealed plastic sandwich bag filled to the brim with what appeared to be a white powdery substance.
Lemon's eyes widened as she switched off her headphones. What is this stuff? She wanted to believe that it was just flour or Pixy Stix, but her instincts screamed otherwise. She never in a million years would have figured Twilight Sparkle, of all people, to be a user! Or was the meek, bespectacled nerd whom everybody looked down on actually a cook, maybe even a dealer? That might explain where she got the money for all of those weird devices that she built!
Just then, a gravelly voice called out from the hallway.
"Are you done in there, Lemon?"
Lemon bumped her head against the underside of the desk. She grimaced in pain as she shut the lid of the box.
"Almost, Mr. Crimson," she called back. "Be right out!"
Hastily, she scooped up the box and slipped it into her vest pocket. She could not risk Mr. Crimson or anyone else finding it. Once she had swept up the last of the dust bunnies, she emptied them into the smiling custodian's waste bin. Thankfully, he did not seem to notice the bulge in her vest concealed by the crook of her arm. After returning her tools to the broom closet, she gathered up her bookbag and hastened out the Academy's front doors.
Lemon's mind raced as she strode down the sidewalk. According to the Academy students' code of conduct, she was supposed to turn the bag over to the administration. But what if Principal Cinch thought the bag belonged to her? Or worse, if Cinch did actually believe her and decided to use the bag's discovery to make trouble for Twilight? Lemon would not put it past the witch, considering everything she did during the Friendship Games.
She reached into her vest and pulled out the box. She was not about to give Cinch any ammunition to use against Twilight! She would discreetly dump it somewhere off campus and just forget about it. Whatever issues Twilight may have, they were none of her business. But first, she had to wipe her fingerprints off of the box. And then...
Lemon was so preoccupied with her thoughts that she failed to notice an uneven segment of the sidewalk. She tripped forward, bringing her arms up just in time to keep from landing face-first on the pavement. The box went toppling onto the concrete. She winced as she nursed her scraped elbows.
Dammit!
She looked up to find the box two meters in front of her, on its side, open, and a small amount of powder spilled onto the concrete. Aw crap! Hastily, she glanced about - luckily, there was nobody else around. She had to get rid of that bag fast, and without leaving any more trace evidence!
Just then, a pigeon landed in front of her and began pecking at the powder. Oh man, was that poor bird in for a nasty surprise, she thought to herself. Suddenly, right before her eyes, the pigeon completely faded from sight.
Lemon's jaw dropped. What the hell happened to the bird? She had her eyes on it the whole time and it just...vanished!
Suddenly, she heard an unmistakable cooing directly in front of her. She glanced around again but found no other pigeons (or any other birds for that matter) in the vicinity. Curious, she crawled forward on her elbows and knees. She was within arm's reach of the powder when she heard a flutter of wings, which quickly faded into the distance.
Lemon's eyes drifted to the powder once more. What was this stuff, really? Whatever it was, throwing it away would be wasteful. No longer caring about getting her fingerprints on the bag, she scooped it up, re-sealed it, and put it back in the box. For good measure, she swept her foot across the pavement to scatter the remaining powder. After securing the box within her bookbag, she hurried back to Crystal Prep.
***
Back in her dormitory room, Lemon sat at her desk pondering the bag and its contents. Despite its appearance, the powder within was definitely not some kind of "controlled substance" (unless invisibility formulas had been added to the list). Did Twilight know what this stuff does? Was there a reason she did not take it with her when she cleared out?
Lemon took a plastic spoon from her desk drawer and scooped up a tiny bit of powder. She stared at it pensively for several moments. Could it have side effects? What if its effect on humans was entirely different? Despite her misgivings, it did not take long for her curiosity to get the better of her. She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and swallowed the spoonful. Nothing ventured, nothing gained!
She had braced herself for an unpleasant taste, but much to her surprise, the powder actually tasted like cherry-flavored Pixy Stix. When she opened her eyes a moment later, she found herself looking at the spoon - and nothing else! She gazed down at her arm, where it would have been, and found nothing all the way up to her sleeve. She got up from her desk and walked over to her mirror to find herself staring at a set of headphones floating over a disembodied Crystal Prep Academy girls' uniform.
Lemon squealed with delight. This was too cool! She struck a pose. Then another. And another. She even tried a few elaborate ones from that bizarre Japanese anime she sometimes watched. Then inspiration struck. She removed her headphones, docked her MP3 player, and began dancing to her classic rock playlist.
All the while, she gleefully watched herself - her dancing disembodied clothes anyway - in the mirror. When the second song began playing, she undid her bowtie, shed her blazer, and tied her shirt at her waist. The sight of her belly button ring hovering between her shirt and skirt was surreal, to say the least. This would make for one killer music video! She continued grooving through three more songs when a knock came on her door.
"Special delivery!"
Indigo's voice snapped Lemon back to reality. Was it five o'clock already? Lemon glanced down at her still invisible body. What was she going to do? She had to think fast! Then she got a brilliant idea...
***
Indigo impatiently counted to thirty before knocking again. She knew Lemon could hear her (the fact that she had her sound system playing meant that she was not using her headphones). When no answer came after another thirty seconds, she transferred the drink holder to her other hand and gripped the doorknob (Lemon usually left her door unlocked if she was expecting company).
"Ready or not, here I come!"
Indigo opened the door and poked her head inside Lemon's room. The place was as she had always seen it, perhaps a tad messier than usual. She was rather surprised to find one of Lemon's Academy uniforms, complete with bra and panties, strewn about on the floor. Lemon may not be the neatest person in the Academy, but she was not that big of a slob! Indigo closed the door behind her and placed the takeout bag and drinks on Lemon's desk. She poked her head inside the bathroom only to find it empty.
"Lemon?"
Where is she? Indigo wondered. I told her I would be here at five! Maybe she ran out for a moment. No matter. She can settle for cold fajitas if she wants, but I like my tacos warm!
Indigo returned to the desk and lifted her soft taco plate out of the bag. She was eager to sink her teeth into that heavenly blend of ground meat, cheese, and veggies! She took a seat and removed the plastic cover. She had reached back into the bag for a packet of hot sauce when a tiny high-pitched voice whispered to her.
"Oh please, don't eat me. I've got a wife and three little taquitos at home."
Indigo gazed down at her plate. Did one of the tacos just talk? No, she must have imagined it. She must be really hungry to start hearing things! She tore open the sauce packet and was about to open the nearest taco when its top flap suddenly moved like a mouth.
"Eat me!" it croaked in a deep, guttural voice.
Indigo gasped as she bolted out of the chair. Nervously, she glanced about the room. What the hell was going on here? Was she going crazy? Or was somebody else here, playing a trick on her? Then she heard it - a giggle she would recognize anywhere. As if to confirm her suspicion, a green-haired humanoid form faded into sight two meters in front of her.
Indigo shrieked as she stumbled to the floor. Lemon glanced down at her naked body and shrieked in turn. Eyes wide, Indigo struggled to form words as Lemon hastily snatched up her shirt and pulled it on.
"How...where...w-what just happened?"
A big grin split across Lemon's face.
"Indigo, you are NOT gonna believe what I found!"