//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 - The excited mare and more bullying problems // Story: Wherever the Light Shines: Part 2 // by MLPSolarDash1907 //------------------------------// It was a long way the Friendship Express had to travel all across Equestria. From Appleloosa, to Manehattan, to Ponyville, to the Crystal Empire, and now Yakyakistan. Just like today, this Friendship Express is on its way from Ponyville to the Crystal Empire. The train driver kept his eyes locked on the tracks as the train continued chugging along, Celestia’s sun just starting to rise over the horizon. Then, the conductor went to check on the passengers. Several crystal ponies sat in their seats while a couple of them chatted with one another. Some fillies were eating some candy the salespony has been offering while a few unicorns from Canterlot read their magic books. As he entered the next part of the train, he saw one pinkish-purplish unicorn reading a magic book with a bright smile on her face, as she straightened her purple main that had a cyan streak in it. “Starlight!” a blue unicorn with a purple cape and hat with star patterns on them came into view as she sat across from the mare, “I’ve got snacks!” Starlight looked up from her book and set it aside with her smile still on her face, the conductor moved on as Starlight looked at the peanut butter crackers and popcorn. She magically grabbed the popcorn and levitated it over to herself. “Thank you, Trixie,” she said gratefully. “What are best friends for?” Trixie asked proudly. Starlight giggled, “Oh, Trixie.” “What? I’m just saying how great of friends we are,” Trixie smirked. “I know, I know,” replied Starlight, eating some popcorn, “I’m glad you came with me on my trip.” “Oh, I wouldn’t miss it!” Trixie proclaimed before biting into one of her peanut butter crackers. “After all, I get to start my tour in the Crystal Empire now!” Starlight giggled again, “And I assure you, your wagon got here safe and sound.” Trixie raised an eyebrow. “You didn’t have to teleport it, we could’ve walked to the Crystal Empire.” “Well, I like the scenery from the train as we travel to the Empire,” Starlight explained. “Take a look, Trix.” Eating another one of her favorite crackers, Trixie did look out the window. Starlight followed her gaze and saw the beautiful expansive meadows with tall grass that waved as if it were saying hello to the two mares. Flowers of yellow, blue, and pink decorated various parts, too. The meadows seemed to head all the way to the Crystal mountains which are beautiful gray and silver, topped off with pure white snow. “Okay, Starlight, you win this one,” said Trixie. Starlight gave a triumphant smirk, turning back to her friend. “I knew you’d love it.” The two friends giggled again, enjoying their girl time as the train continued chugging to the Crystal Empire, the weather began changing some and there were some patches of snow here and there, even though it’s spring. Sometimes snow is around in the summer, too. “Ooh!” Starlight squeed, “I can’t wait to see Sunburst again!” Trixie raised an eyebrow and gave a coy smirk, “That stallion’s got you in a bind doesn’t he?” “Yeah," Starlight spoke in a dreamy smile. Then her eyes widened, "Wait what?!” “Oh, come on,” Trixie teased, “You love seeing him, don’t you?” “We’re best friends, so yes!” Starlight answered sharply, turning her head to hide her growing blush. Trixie giggled, “Right, Star.” She winked, “I get the drift.” “There’s no drift!” Starlight insisted, growing a little more flustered. Starlight could tell that Trixie was basking in her embarrassment. But Trixie was right, Starlight has been hanging out with Sunburst more and was always excited to see him. “And I’ve noticed you’ve been a little more excited than usual,” Trixie inclined her head. What’s going on?” “Oh, just some new magic that we’re going to try and experiment, and don’t worry, Twilight looked at them and said they were fine,” Starlight lied, thinking she can handle the "simple" spells that she’s bringing. A twinge of guilt came to the mare, but she brushed it off. It'll work out, it'll be worth it. She felt her head slightly ache as she felt some desperation beginning to bubble to the surface. “Oh, Twilight? How’s she gonna let you have fun?” Trixie said with a teasing smirk. Starlight rolled her eyes. “She’s trying to look out for me,” she replied in a casual tone. “Ooooh, don’t let her be your babysitter.” Out the window, Starlight saw the towering crystal castle of the Crystal Empire, she held back a squeal and said, “Trixie, we’re here.” “Great! Now to get my wagon and start my tour!” Trixie announced, getting out of her seat, “Just wait until this Empire sees the magnificent Great and Powerful Trrriiiixxieeeee!!!” The train slowed to a stop as Starlight put her books into a bag, slipped it around her body and followed her boastful yet best friend. Starlight kept herself from giggling, thinking of what she and Sunburst are going to do together like old friends, much better than last time she’s sure. She and Trixie both exited the train, when they did, Trixie gasped happily and ran over to her precious magician’s wagon next to the station’s platform. Starlight left a tip for the conductor as crystal ponies boarded the train. When Starlight left the station, Trixie reunited with her (after hugging her wagon) as she pulled it along with her. “Ooh, and I’ll be performing for royalty this time!” Trixie cheered, “Everypony here will love me!” “And I can’t wait to help you with this big magic show!” Starlight said happily, “This is going to be one of the biggest of your career, Trix!” “Our career,” Trixie said with a wink. “I can’t wait to perform for Princess Cadance and Prince Shining Armor!” She giggled, trotting in place. Both mares walked down the main street and met some friendly crystal ponies who welcomed them to their beautiful city. Soon, they passed by the Spike the Brave and Glorious statue proudly holding the Crystal Heart. Several fillies were in front of it getting their picture taken while their parents watched. Both Trixie and Starlight giggled, knowing how Spike can get when reliving his heroic deeds.. Starlight looked to her left and realized she’s reached her turn. “Hey Trixie,” she said, “I’ll join you at the castle later. Sunburst and I need to catch up.” “Oh, okay,” replied Trixie, “Bring him, too. I’m sure he can be a better audience member for me this time.” Starlight playfully rolled her eyes. “Say hi to Princess Cadance and her family for me,” she said. Trixie nodded and began walking to the castle while Starlight began skipping, yes, skipping down the street, humming a song to herself. She looked at her bag and giggled before she began bouncing down the street like Pinkie Pie. Eventually, Starlight saw the familiar orange crystal house. She stopped her bouncing, slowing down to a trot before stopping at the door. However, she stopped before knocking, catching a glimpse of a scroll poking itself out of her bag. She frowned. her bouncing might’ve knocked it a bit loose. She knew exactly what it was. She had been hoping to talk to Sunburst and experiment with it for some time. However, she knows how Twilight taught her to be careful with new magic. And she has a history with magic, some she used impulsively without thinking. She felt some sadness come to her, recalling something she’d forgotten in the moment. Was this right? Would Twilight lash out at her? Psh! Not if she can handle it! Shaking her head, her determined, excited attitude returned. Taking a deep breath in, she knocked on the door. She waited. She knocked a little louder, then she heard somepony scurrying around. The door opened to reveal an orange unicorn with glasses on, somewhat of a ragged mane and goatee, his head buried in a book. “Yes?” Sunburst asked, not looking up. “Sunburst, it’s me, Starlight,” Starlight said happily. Sunburst perked up and his eyes widened. “St-Starlight!” he stammered out, “Oh, my goodness you’re here!” “Of course, I am, silly! I wouldn’t miss this!” Sunburst closed the book and magically set it aside before the two childhood friends embraced happily. They held on for a few seconds before they let go, Sunburst grabbed the book and held it in front of Starlight. “I’m telling, Starlight, no matter how many times I read it, Houyhnhnm's Guide to Magical Arcana never gets boring.” Starlight giggled, “Oh, Sunburst, isn’t this the twelfth time you’ve read that?” “Seventeenth.” Starlight laughed. “Anyway, mind if I come in, you book nerd?” “Sure! You’re always welcome here!” Starlight entered Sunburst’s house and set her bags aside. “Want some green tea?” Sunburst asked, heading to his kitchen, “I was just about to make some for another day of reading.” “Sure, why not?” replied Starlight. “-and Silverstream jumped on into the rodeo and began juggling apples on top of a ball along with the other clowns!” Starlight finished with a laugh, slamming her hoof onto the table. Sunburst laughed, too. “And you tried to stop her? Awww, Starlight,” Sunburst playfully complained. “We didn’t know how much fun it would be for her, and so the sheriff and organizes of the rodeo allowed the other students to try and be clowns, too,” Starlight explained. Sunburst chuckled, “I bet one called Smolder didn’t jump in?” “Surprisingly, she did.” Sunburst’s eyes widened, clearly not expecting that answer. The table quieted down a little and Starlight sighed. “Even though we’re having some fun, we still have those bullies to deal with,” she said, "Twilight and the others have been under some stress because of them. The School means the world to them." “I remember you mentioning all the details in your letters,” Sunburst frowned. “But I have confidence in Maud and my friends,” Starlight said, smiling brightly, “This trip is going to be exciting!” “How do you mean?” Sunburst asked, returning the smile. “Oh, hold on.” She levitated the magic scrolls she brought out of the bag, levitating them next to Sunburst, “Just some new magic hypothesizes I thought we could try out.” A small bit of guilt returned to her. Sunburst raised a curious eyebrow as he took the scrolls in his own magic and unrolled them. He muttered as he read them with narrow eyes, but then they widened some. He looked at Starlight. “Regeneration spells and bending reality spells?” he asked, surprised. “Just some old hypotheses I found while cleaning Twilight’s library,” she explained, biting down the truth. “They’re going to be on small things like plants and fruit, plus the bending reality thing is on small locations.” “That last one seems a little risky, Starlight.” “Oh, we can worry about that one later.” She pointed at the regeneration hypothesis. “We can start with this one.” Sunburst examined the scroll with his eyebrow still raised. Despite her nervousness, Starlight kept her cool. Then, but then a smile grew across his face. “All right, Starlight,” he said, rolling the scrolls up, “Let’s try and see how we can get this one going.” “Yay!” Starlight chirped, getting up and hugging Sunburst. A moment passed before she opened her eyes and realized what she’d done. She pulled away, hiding her blush “But first, we’re going to the castle to see Trixie’s magic show Cadance invited her to do.” Sunburst’s eyes widened again, “Cadance invited Trixie to do a magic show?” “Uh-huh!” she slightly nudged him, “And you get to be a better audience member this time.” She gave a teasing smile. Sunburst awkwardly chuckled while Starlight put the scroll back into her bag. Just you wait, this will be a big payoff. Starlight scratched her head, was that her thinking or her imagination? She had no idea, it felt as if it came out of nowhere. Feeling a touch dizzy, but her stomach growled loudly. She turned back to Sunburst with slightly wide eyes and a light blush. “I guess we’ll be eating out too?” he asked. “Right on the button,” replied Starlight, she headed to the door, “Come on, Trixie’s probably wondering where we are.” Sunburst nodded and straightened his glasses before they both headed out to the streets. Starlight blushed a little as she walked close to Sunburst, looking forward to tonight. She’s always felt comfortable around him, and since their reunion they’ve grown closer than before, she can’t wait for her time with him. A pair of orange hooves stopped at a sign labeled ‘Appleloosa.’ The town wasn’t too far away. The young mare stopped and unrolled her map. No lions were in sight but she had seen evidence of a camp they’d stayed at. The unicorn looked down, seeing clear pawprints on the desert floor. “I don’t want too much attention drawn to myself,” Mystic said to herself. She just wants to get through the land and not cause too much of a ruckus. However, unlike the lands she's been to, this land of Equestria seemed different. Calmer. She shook the feeling off. She turned to leave but then she bumped into somepony. Shaking her head, she looked to see a light gold stallion with a blonde mane, he had a brown vest on and a brown hat. He smiled very brightly at her. “Howdy there!” he said happily, making Mystic slightly cringe, freaking her out a bit, “Are you new around here? Oh, that’s great!” He was talking a bit fast for her. “Actually, I-” Mystic started, taking a step back, an uncomfortable look on her features. “My name is Braeburn and I wanna be the first to welcome you to-” He got on his hind legs, flailing his forelegs, “Aaaaaaapaloosa!” Mystic took another step back. “Look, sir, I’m in a hurry-” “Oh, oh! I can show you Appleloosa mighty quick if y’all are in a hurry!” Braeburn declared before he pushed Mystic to the town while she protested. During this time, Mystic tried to break free but he had a strong push as she was forced into the town. “This here’s the finest town you’ll see for our apple products and hosting mild and wild dances!” Braeburn went on, stopping Mystic in front of the town square. “This here’s our town square,” he pushed Mystic again, stopped, and pointed, “Our local waterin’ hole, the Salt Block.” “Can I get a glass of water?” a pony asked another pony, his tongue covered in salt. “This is-” Mystic started but Braeburn happily moved her along. “Here’s where Sheriff Silverstar’s office is,” he said, moving her along, “And where we have our wild west dances!” He paused and moved her to another spot, “And here’s our mild west dances!” Mystic rolled her eyes, “Mister...” “And here’s our apple festival for all Aaaapploosa! And the buffalo tribe, too!” Mystic looked and saw a bunch of apple ponies feasting on some apple tarts, apple pies, and many other apple-related dishes. The buffalo seemed to be really feasting on the apple pies. Mystic awkwardly turned to Braeburn, “Look, I can’t-” “Oh, and just wait ‘til you see the apple orchard!” “Mister!” “Here we go!” “Mister!” Mystic avoided Braeburn. “Oh, come on, where are yer manners?” Braeburn turned around, still smiling brightly, “Yer gonna love-” “Braeburn!” Mystic shouted desperately. Braeburn stopped and looked at her, still smiling, “Yes little missy?” Mystic sighed, an annoyed look taking form on her features, “First of all, it’s not ‘missy’ it’s Nopony.” Braeburn dropped his smile and tilted his head in confusion, “Nopony?” “Yes, and this ‘Nopony’ was trying to track something down and somepony with a brown hat came in and barged into my business!” “Oh, I just wanted to show you our proud town,” Braeburn sulked a little. “I’m sure you’re very proud,” Mystic replied, stepping away, “I don’t have time for this.” Braeburn sighed as Mystic walked off, the young mare just shuddered because of him and his energetic attitude. Then Braeburn perked up. “Whatcha trackin’?” he asked. Mystic rolled her eyes, “I don’t have to answer to you.” She just wants him gone. “Hey, somethin’ led you here, and I wanna know what.” “Get off my back, freak.” “Oh, now that’s jus’ rude,” Braeburn said, annoyed. “Apparently you can get annoyed. I’m leaving.” Then a little young buffalo stopped in front of her. “Hey, are you tracking something?” “Yes, now get out my way,” Mystic held back a growl. “Hey, I know a thing or two about tracking and I believe I can help you,” she said confidently. “Hey, that’s a good idea, Little Strongheart!” Braeburn said happily, trotting up next to her. “It’s the least we could do fer her.” Mystic raised an eyebrow, “What’s your game?” “No game. Just Appleloosians and buffalo looking out fer one another, even ponies outside of our town.” “More like just showing how great you are,” Mystic said, looking around at all the ponies and buffaloes eating and chatting. “Do you want our help or not?” Little Strongheart asked. “Uhm, no but thanks.” “Well, too bad. I’m going with you to help you.” Darn. Mystic thought, not wanting any more of this. She knew she couldn’t make a scene in this town and she didn’t want any more ponies on her case. So, she decided something. I’ll just play along and let them help. Mystic always knew if she couldn’t get out a situation too easily, to just play along until she can get what she wants and make a break for it when she can. It’s how she is. It's most beneficial in her travels. She smirked, swallowing her annoyance and pride, “Okay. I’m so sorry about my attitude, I’ll be happy to let this little buffalo help me.” “Yeehaw!” Braeburn cheered, a triumphant hoof shot into the air while Strongheart smiled brightly, “And as courtesy of Aaaapploosa! We gladly offer you this apple pie!” A larger buffalo gave Braeburn a box containing an apple pie and the young stallion gave it to Mystic. The mare forced a smile and thanked him. “All right, let’s get you on that trail!” Little Strongheart said happily. Gladly. Mystic thought as she nodded. The unicorn and buffalo began making their way out of the town, much to Mystic’s relief. Braeburn waved goodbye and rejoined the festivities. When Strongheart wasn’t looking, Mystic tossed the pie into the trash. It didn’t take long for Little Strongheart to find the tracks, they were a bit blurred thanks to the desert wind, but they’re there. She gazed off into the ever-expanding desert with some cactuses and giant rock formations in the distance. “Oh, mighty tracker,” Mystic faked a fascinated tone, “Where are they heading?” “Oh, let’s go! They’re heading west-northwest!” Little Strongheart took off, and Mystic after her. The little buffalo had a bit of a head start, but Mystic caught up easily. “Where’s your pie?” Little Strongheart asked. “Oh, some child didn’t get to have any, so I gave it to her,” Mystic lied. “Oh, that’s very generous,” Little Strongheart said with a hint of pride in her voice. “Yeah,” Mystic muttered. While running, Mystic thought about the town again, not intentionally, but she did sense something different about it. What was it? And this land? Did the whole place seem to have a different atmosphere to it? She looked to the little buffalo next to her, running with a smile on her face, she seemed to be enjoying it and there was no worry in her eyes, just happiness. Mystic shook her head and continued. Soon, she will ditch this buffalo and get back on her mission that she’s on. It’s a nice warm morning in the little town, ponies went about their daily jobs, foals played with one another, as it’s a weekend now. While they were doing that, a certain yellow pegasus with a pink mane and bluish teal eyes walked through town. She had side bags with some clothing materials in it. Early this morning, she had to take care of several rabbits, one had an injured front limb, two had to have both back legs cleaned and bandaged, and another had to have his ears cleaned. She sighed before unrolling a to-do list. “Okay,” she said to herself, “I’ve helped the bunnies, refilled the bird food supply for the Sweet Feather Sanctuary, cleaned the birdhouses on the inside, and now to drop off some supplies for Rarity.” Fluttershy smiled a little as she rolled up the list, looked at her bag to make sure it was secure and went on her way to Carousal Boutique. When she got inside, she saw Rarity frantically working on a silver dress with gold patterns on it. Opalescence is lounging on Rarity’s fainting couch and Silver Spoon is sitting on it. She just watched Rarity with a slightly amused look and so did Diamond Tiara who joined her friend on the couch. “Is she always like this?” Silver Spoon asked. “Oh, you won’t believe it sometimes,” replied Diamond, “I’ve had to come here to have one of my dresses done for one of our family’s events.” Silver giggled. “She does a great job on all her dresses.” Fluttershy looked to her right and saw Sweetie Belle wearing a silky blue dress with a slightly annoyed look on her face, it still needed stitching and some of it was uneven. Fluttershy walked over to Sweetie, the filly noticed her and smiled. “Oh, hey Fluttershy,” she greeted. “Hello Sweetie,” replied Fluttershy, ever so gently. She looked to Rarity, “What’s gotten into her?” “Oh,” Sweetie rolled her eyes as she dropped her smile, “Some more clients ordered a pile of dresses for the Gala and want to show them off, yadda, yadda, yadda.” She sighed, “You know how things go sometimes.” Fluttershy nodded, “And what about you?” “She’s having me model the basic dress for my friends and I,” Sweetie explained as Rarity came back to her, pulling out measuring tape to measure Sweetie in various areas. “Since we’re growing up, she just wanted us to have dresses only for us.” Sweetie stopped as Rarity went back over to her sketching board. “Plus, Diamond and Silver want their own dresses so she’s getting ideas while working on other dresses to get them done.” “Oh my,” said Fluttershy, looking at Rarity who hadn’t noticed her yet. “Where are your friends at anyway?” “They’re gathering more materials for her at the store,” Sweetie shifted slightly, Rarity immediately turned to face her. “Sweetie Belle!” she cried dramatically, she ran back over and made an adjustment on the dress, “This needs to be exact! We want them to look flawless for the Gala!” “We? I don’t recall that,” Sweetie mumbled, “I just want to look nice.” “Nice?!” Rarity gasped, pulling back, “But Twilight has told me that the Gala is going to be more important than ever! Think of all the ponies who’ll be silently judging you!” Sweetie deadpanned, “I’m not too worried about that.” Rarity gasped again, but before she could say anything, Fluttershy stepped in front of Sweetie. “Hi Rarity,” she greeted softly, “How is your day going?” “Oh, hi Fluttershy,” replied the seamstress, looking around on what to do next, “I’m kind of in a jam now, and orders just keep piling in! Plus, with Twilight telling me about the creatures from the other lands coming, I don’t know if I’ll get them done in time!” She grabbed the fainting couch in her magic, causing, Opal, Diamond, and Silver to fall onto some soft pillows on the floor, and Rarity began dramatically wailing. Again. “Oh, woe is me!” she cried. Fluttershy sighed and stroked Rarity’s shoulder, “You’ll pull through. You always do.” “Oh, it’s just so much!” Rarity ran her hooves down her face, “This is a historic occasion for all of us!” “Wait, what about the leaders coming?” Sweetie asked, but Rarity didn’t hear her. Fluttershy just looked at her, slightly shrugging, figuring Rarity might’ve given away an announcement Twilight was going to make to her friends. “Rarity,” she said softly, “Look at me.” The seamstress looked at the pegasus, her eyes frantic. “Remember the stress-related exercises we went over before?” Rarity nodded. “Good. Now, take a deep breath.” Rarity obliged and held it in. Fluttershy gave a smile, “Good, now, let it out. And do it a few more times as you count to ten.” Rarity nodded again and followed her friend’s instructions. Rarity sat up, appearing calm but still a little worried. “Whew, thank you,” she said. “No problem,” said Fluttershy, she placed her bag of clothing materials next to Rarity and placed it in the unicorn’s lap. “And I brought what you needed for two of your special clients,” she said. Rarity beamed, “Oh, thank goodness! I didn’t want to waste more time having to buy more material.” “I can tell you’re really putting the work in,” Fluttershy smirked slyly as she slung her bags over her back, “Really putting it in.” Rarity chuckled awkwardly, “I got carried away again, didn’t I?” “Maybe.” “Tell you what, I think we’ll have our weekly get together a little earlier this week, how does that sound?” “Oh, how about now?” Rarity moaned, “Well, not now, but I feel like it.” Fluttershy giggled, as Sweetie moved again, but Rarity didn’t stop her this time. Diamond and Silver joined Sweetie. “It’s looking better,” Diamond commented. “Thank you,” replied Rarity. “When Sweetie Belle told us of your dramatic moments, she wasn’t kidding,” Silver Spoon teased. “Yeah, like a one pony theater,” Diamond added, giggling. Sweetie was about to rebut her, but Rarity chuckled awkwardly saying, “Did she now? That sounds like her.” She smirked at Sweetie, “A one pony theater? That’s something that sounds like it came out of your mouth.” “It didn’t! Diamond said it!” Sweetie insisted. “Oh, did she say it because you did?” Rarity’s smirk grew. Sweetie groaned loudly while Rarity winked at Diamond Tiara, the filly giggled. “Anyway,” said Fluttershy, “I would love to stay here longer, but I’ve got to get the rest of my list done and get to teaching my classes.” “My classes!” Rarity shot up, standing stiff, “I completely forgot! I don’t know if I can make it!” Fluttershy sighed and smiled, “Don’t worry Rarity. Twilight and I discussed it and she decided to let you have all the time you need to get your orders done.” “Wait what?” “I’ve volunteered to do your classes for you.” Rarity’s touched by Fluttershy’s gesture, “Oh, Fluttershy, I don’t know, that’s a lot of work just for your classes alone.” “It’s okay,” Fluttershy assured her, “You go ahead and do your job.” Rarity smiled and hugged the pegasus. “You’re welcome,” said Fluttershy, returning the hug. After hugging for a few more seconds, Rarity turned to Diamond and Silver. “Well, I’ll get the current dress I’m working on and then I’ll get started on yours,” said Rarity. “Finally,” Diamond said with a grin, “Or, we could see the theater again.” “Oh, now you’re being sassy,” Rarity rolled her eyes, slightly annoyed. She walked back over to the dress she was working on and Fluttershy began walking to the door. “Can I take this off now?” Sweetie asked looking at the blue dress. “For now,” said Rarity, levitating the dress off and putting it back on a mannequin, “But when I’m done with these two’s dresses, it’s back into it.” “Great.” Sweetie’s stomach rumbled, “I’m getting a snack.” She trotted into the kitchen. “Fruit and vegetables only!” Rarity cried. “Chocolate it is then!” Fluttershy giggled as she opened the door and went back outside. The pleasant air’s smell hit the mare’s nostrils as always, making her feel good. She’s always loved being outside, especially with her animal friends. She got a whiff of Sugarcube Corner’s baking, she drooled slightly, but she stayed focused on what she needs to do. Looking at the list again, she crossed out her accomplished objective, looked at the bottom and saw that the last thing was to get apple pies for Rarity’s generosity class. She rolled up the list and put it in her bag. Walking through town was always a delight for Fluttershy, she got to see fellow friends going about their daily lives and some even chatted with her when she was on her way. She saw Lyra and Sweetie Drops hanging out at Lyra’s favorite bench and the Flower Ponies selling bushels of flowers to Bulk Biceps who seemed a little too excited to get them. “Fluttershy!” a friendly voice called out. The pegasus turned and saw Derpy flying to her, she’s dressed up in her mail outfit. The gray pegasus stumbled a bit in the air before stopping just in front of Fluttershy, she managed to hold Derpy to keep her from falling over. “Oh, thank you,” Derpy said softly, she grabbed a few letters, “Here are your letters.” “Thank you,” replied Fluttershy, she took the letters, put them in her bag and gave Derpy a few muffins. The wall-eyed mare’s eyes lit up as she took them and began eating them, completely delighted. Looking at the clock tower, it said 8:45 and that meant Fluttershy had to be at the School quickly. She squeaked in slight fear before flapping her wings and began flying through Ponyville to Sweet Apple Acres. When Fluttershy arrived at Sweet Apple Acres, the smell of apples hit her nose, meaning that they’re nice, juicy and plump, and that meant harvesting season is nearby. She knew Applejack and Big McIntosh looked forward to this time of year as they enjoyed their jobs and lives as apple farmers. Gazing at the big barn and the surrounding farm, she saw Big Mac watering the gardens of carrots, turnips, and lettuce. The pegasus made a beeline to him. She stopped close by and the large red stallion turned his head to face her. “Hello Big Mac,” she greeted. Big Mac smiled and nodded. “I’m here to pick up the apple pies for Rarity’s class,” Fluttershy explained. “I’m taking over for her today.” Big Mac tilted his head but slightly smiled. “So, do you think Granny Smith’s gotten those apple pies ready yet?” “Eeyup,” replied Big Mac. Fluttershy is amazed how Granny continues to do her own chores at her age, that old mare can really get things done, even if it does mean she gets somewhat lost at times. “Well, do you know where she is now?” Fluttershy asked. Big Mac pointed to the barn, where the living room is. Fluttershy smiled. “Thank you.” “Eeyup.” With that, Fluttershy flapped her wings again and made her way to the living room of the Apples’ homestead. Fluttershy arrived at the door and knocked. She waited for a few seconds before knocking again. She heard a familiar pony grumbling and furniture moving before Granny Smith opened the door with an annoyed look, but she quickly beamed when she saw Fluttershy. “Well hi there, Fluttershy!” she beamed. “Hello Granny,” replied Fluttershy, “Do you have the apple pies ready yet?” “Ah sure do! Come on in and Ah’ll get’em for ya!” Fluttershy entered the house as Granny headed to the kitchen. The pegasus noticed the clock and it’s eight minutes until class starts. Feeling slightly panicked, Fluttershy quickly went into the kitchen after Granny. The elderly mare grabbed a few apple pies that have cooled off. Slowly, she walked to the other side of the kitchen, grabbed another, and slowly walked back to the others. Fluttershy knew Granny was doing her best, but she needed to get moving. Wanting to help, she looked to see if there were more pies, but by the time Granny had already spotted them and grabbed them. “Those are th’ last ones apart from the last one in the oven,” said Granny Smith. “It should be about done by now.” The elderly mare opened the oven, grabbed a potholder, and placed the pie onto the countertop. “Oh, good,” said Fluttershy, “I appreciate all this, Granny Smith, but I need to get moving to the School.” “Don’t ya fret none!” Granny assured her, grabbing a basket and slid the pies in one by one, “Ah gotcha covered!” Fluttershy understood but was still nervous. She took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled to calm down, she repeated it a couple more times as Granny put the final pie into the basket. Fluttershy wanted to zoom out of the house, but Granny wrapped the pies into a blanket to keep them warm. Now I know how Rainbow feels sometimes, she thought, remembering how impatient her friend can get when waiting in line, or waiting in general. Granny smiled and gave Fluttershy her basket. “There ya go,” she said. “Thank you,” replied Fluttershy. She turned to leave. “Be sure to tell Apple Bloom she needs to clean out the chicken coops when ya see her,” Granny Smith suddenly said. “I will,” Fluttershy assured her. She was about to take off before “Oh, Fluttershy!” Granny suddenly said again. Fighting the urge to scream, Fluttershy cleared her throat. “Yes, Granny?” “Ah jus’ remembered that the rest of the Horseshoe Gals are comin’ here in a couple of days. Can ya bring some of the fruit they love to eat?” Fluttershy smiled brightly. “Sure.” “Okay, you can go now,” Granny Smith smiled. With that, Fluttershy took off for the School, saying a quick goodbye to Big Mac, who’s now pushing a wheelbarrow of tools back to the barn. It was rare when she has to fly fast, but when she has to, she does it quite well these days. Fluttershy has finally made it to the School and there are only two minutes to spare until she starts Rarity’s class. Clutching the pies close, she flew down the main foyer of the school, catching a brief glimpse of the sealed-off area thanks to water damage. Some plumbers were already on the scene, too. The pegasus turned the corner of the hallway and reached Rarity’s classroom. When she got in, she saw the pony students already there, Smolder, Sandbar and Yona were there too. However, at the back of the class were Starry and Lucky, Fluttershy groaned inwardly, those two have caused her to have a sticky mane thanks to a prank of theirs and haven’t felt any remorse for it, she had to spend hours at the spa to get it all out. She recalled the meetings Mr. Bullion dragged the Mane Six into, causing them to nearly lose their cool. Celestia is fully aware of things going on, but she can’t do anything about it, and Mr. Bullion is growing more and more unsatisfied with the School as time marched on. This fiasco has been going on for far too long since those colts entered the school months ago. Maintaining her kind tone and look, Fluttershy got into teacher mode. “Good morning, everycreature,” she said, and all the students turned to look at her, “I’ll be filling in for Professor Rarity today since she’s busy with very important things today.” “For the Gala I presume,” said Sandbar. “Yes,” replied Fluttershy, “And I know what happened yesterday was terrible, but I assure you, we have ponies on the job.” “Let’s just hope things stay together,” Smolder grumbled, “The workers seem incompetent.” “Smolder, watch your words,” Fluttershy sternly warned, the dragon sighed. “Hey, I’m just tired of all this nonsense.” “I know, but let’s stay positive and get on with class.” Annoyed, the dragoness looked out the window as Fluttershy continued. “Rarity wanted to share these apple pies with you all and see how well you’d share them with each of your friends,” she said as she uncovered the pleasantly smelling pies made with love by Granny Smith. “Ooooh,” all the students cooed as they eyed the treats. “Who knew this class would be such a delicious one?” asked a pony student. “Aside from Professor Pinkie’s class huh?” asked another student, giggling. “They are delicious, and you won’t have any quite like these,” Fluttershy explained as she pulled out the pies and placed them on Rarity’s desk. She turned to the students, “First, I’ll cut you out all a piece, then you’ll eat it.” Everycreature seemed happy to hear that. They waited as their substitute professor cut out a piece from each of the pies, their mouths watered, growing impatient but staying put in their seats. Finally, Fluttershy finished cutting the pies and walked over to the students and gave them their pieces of pies. Starry and Lucky took theirs but they had annoyed expressions. Fluttershy made her way back to the desk. “All right,” she said softly, the students raising their forks, “Eat up everycreature!” Nocreature hesitated and began eating their pie, their tongues practically exploded as they tasted the pie, sweet, sugary, apple goodness nearly overwhelmed some of them but they finished and Fluttershy giggled at some of their excited expressions. “Fantastic pies!” Smolder declared. “Yeah!” a pony student agreed. “Best pie!” Yona shouted, but then quickly said, “After Yakyakistan pies of course.” When all of the students finished, Fluttershy spoke again. “Now, I’ll hand each of these pies to each of you, and I want you all to remember what Professor Rarity’s been teaching.” The students nodded as Fluttershy grabbed more pies and began to pass them to each of the students, each student passed pie by pie to one another until they all had one. “Okay, let’s see what all of you will do now,” said Fluttershy, sitting in the chair. “Hey, Yona,” said Smolder, “Want a bite of my pie?” “Yes!” replied Yona, “Smolder take bite of my pie too!” The dragon and yak both exchanged pie pieces with one another while Sandbar gave his entire pie to another student. “Here you go, have all of mine,” he said. The student giggled, “Well, I’ll give you half of mine.” Some students exchanged only one piece of pie while others didn’t share and began chowing down. Clearly, some still had to learn how to be generous but it was always fun to teach the students. Fluttershy heard a loud groan and it was Starry who had not even touched his pie. “Common food and not the eloquent stuff,” he said. “Yeah,” Lucky added, tossing his pie aside, “This is a really lame class.” Fluttershy loudly cleared her throat, “Lucky, Starry, is there something wrong?” “Yeah,” replied Starry, “Can we get some real food? I didn’t know we’d be having such incompetently cooked food with a bunch of loser classmates.” The other students gasped, Fluttershy’s eyes slightly widened, though Starry and Lucky haven’t been good students by any means, they haven’t openly insulted anycreature while in class before. “Excuse me,” Fluttershy in a stern tone but trying to stay calm. “But these pies are made with time and effort, even if you don’t like them, you should not be so insensitive to the pony who made them.” “What? The old elderly hag?” Fluttershy slightly gasped and glared, “Don’t you talk about Granny Smith like that!” “I can speak any way I want!” This was ridiculous, Fluttershy kept trying to be friendly with these two colts, but lately, they’ve been pushing her buttons very hard, it’s taken a lot of her to stay calm. “Okay,” she said as she let out a small cough. “Since you two are the ones talking now, how about you head up here and tell us what this class’s lesson is meant to be about?” “Fine, whatever, the lessons are lame anyway,” Lucky commented. Fluttershy bit her lower lip to keep herself controlled. The other students watched with slightly concerned eyes as the two colts begrudgingly got out of their seats. They slightly pushed other student’s desks as well before they reached the teacher’s desk. “Now,” said Fluttershy, “All of the students have either shown something or not. What are we going over?” “Generosity as always,” Lucky replied spitefully. “Good. And what was the purpose of this lesson?” “To exchange very dirty apple recipes?” “No,” Fluttershy said, almost losing her cool, “What did we do in order to show generosity?” Starry sighed, “To show how generous everycreature in here can be when given something that’s to their liking.” “Good. Did everycreature show generosity?” “No. All of them need work.” “More like you need work on your attitudes,” Smolder mumbled. Starry glared at her, knowing she wasn’t trying to hide it from him, she glared back. “And some other students have shown good generosity,” Fluttershy explained. “What? Your lucky pets?” Starry asked the students gasped, “The ones who’re dangerous creatures that think that can show they know friendship by saving our land supposedly?” Fluttershy glared, “All right if you keep up this attitude, you both will head straight to the headmare’s office.” “Oh, whoa, sorry Miss temper,” Lucky said sarcastically. “I don’t know what in Equestria has gotten into you two,” Fluttershy commented. “Our dad’s the most important pony around and you’d be lucky if he liked this School and your friends!” “Hey, Starry, calm down,” Lucky said, placing a hoof on his brother’s shoulder, the blue colt did calm down some, but maintained his glare. “We should be more considerate.” He walked over to a pie that was barely touched, “In fact, why don’t we both show Professor Fluttershy how generous we can be?” Starry sighed, “All right.” He walked over to his brother. Fluttershy’s look softened a little. “Good,” she said. “Show us what you’ve got.” The brothers nodded, and then... SPLAT! Lucky had thrown the pie right at Fluttershy’s face. “Stupid school! It’s just silly with all these lessons and other nonsense!” Lucky shouted, he pointed at Smolder and Yona, “And you two, you think you can just come into our territory and try to take something that’s clearly the ponies’ from the get-go?!” “That! Is! It!” Fluttershy screamed. The other students looked at their professor in wide-eyed shock, the fuming pegasus leaped over her desk and grabbed both Lucky and Starry by their collars. “I have had it!” she screamed, “You two have been nothing but trouble since the day you’ve arrived! We’ve tried everything to get you to accept our School! So, what if your dad is a powerful pony?! You have no right to treat us in this manner! Especially after what my friends and what others have been through as well!” She began dragging them out of the classroom. “I’m taking you to the headmare’s office now!” As she dragged them out, she looked to the other students, “Class will continue when I get back.” The students just sat there with wide eyes as their usually calm, kind professor dragged the students out of the classroom while still fuming. The two bullies squirmed some in Fluttershy’s iron grip as she dragged them through the hallway, but they didn’t even say anything. Some students in the hall saw Fluttershy and they looked shocked at the sight. They finally arrived at the headmare’s office and Fluttershy practically barged in, startling Twilight as she looked up from her paperwork. Her eyes widened when she saw Fluttershy. “Fluttershy? What’s going-” she started but was cut off when Fluttershy plopped the two colts into the seats in front of Twilight’s desk. “I have had it with these two!” she cried, making Twilight’s eyes widen even more, “They threw an apple pie at my face and called the School and its lessons ridiculous!” Despite her surprised look, Twilight glared at the two colts. “You two are going to get a serious lecture and friendship lessons as detention after you help mop the floors in the school kitchen today,” she said. “Oh joy,” Starry said sarcastically. “And I’m seriously considering suspending you altogether from the School, clearly you’re being antagonistic to all of the students and teachers.” “You’ll regret that eventually.” “Oh, I’m sure I won’t, because if there is another incident like this, I am going to make sure you get what you need in order to stay in this school,” Twilight continued, “And I know who your dad is, but that doesn’t give you an excuse.” “That’s what I told them before I dragged them in here,” Fluttershy said in a sharp tone, wiping the rest of the pie off her face. “And I will have a talk with him, but for now,” Twilight said before turning to Fluttershy, “Fluttershy, you may go, I will deal with them.” Fluttershy nodded and left the office. “Spike! Get in here please,” Twilight called. Then, the young drake entered. “Yes Twilight?” he asked. “I’ll be having a meeting with these two colts’ father; can you send a letter?” Spike saw Starry and Lucky. He looked back at Twilight and saluted, “Yes ma’am!” Spike grabbed a quill and ink and began writing for Mr. Bullion to come to the School after it was over, Twilight just cast a disappointed look at the two annoyed colts. And to top it off, she still hasn’t found anything on what could be causing the plumbing and electrical problems. She kept her eyes open in case any more lights decided to blow out or if the power went out. “Dealing with us won’t solve the other problems,” said Starry, as if knowing her thoughts. “I know,” replied Twilight, “One problem at a time.” She shook her head, “I’ve never been more disappointed in a pair of colts your age.” They said nothing as Spike finished up the letter and used his magical fire to send it. “Well, now that’s taken care of,” said Twilight, standing up, “Let’s head to my special lecturing room and lay down extra, extra homework for you to do before school’s out for the day.” The two bullies groaned as they begrudgingly followed their headmare to another room with Spike grabbing a bunch of scrolls and followed behind the two menacing colts.