How I ever managed to get through that first day back at school, I'll never know. But I was relieved when it was over and Celestia and I walked into her house at the end of the day. The first thing that I did was change out of my gym clothes that Luna had let me put on after lunch. Except for dinner, I spent most of the evening in my room. I guess that I was still trying to hide from the world.
Saturday afternoon Luna took me shopping. Luckily we didn't run into any of the CHS student body. One thing that Luna insisted on buying for me was my own controller for the game systems that she and Celestia had.
Luckily for me, Monday turned out to be a student holiday and teacher workday. I spent the morning being bored in the house. Then I remembered that my guitar was still at the abandoned gas station along with the rest of my few meager possessions. I checked the time on my phone before I wrote a short note for Celestia, then I grabbed my keys and went out the door.
I was able to catch a bus across town. I know that nobody could see me, but I slid down in my seat as the bus passed CHS. I glanced sideways out the window as the bus passed, and I thought that I could make out Celestia sitting in her office.
I'm so dead if I get caught, I thought to myself, but I do want my guitar.
It wasn't long before the bus turned onto the run down street that I had once called home, and I would be lying if I I didn't tell you that part of me relaxed now that I was in a familiar place.
After getting off of the bus I still had to walk about half a mile to the old service station. Since I had spent several days living with Celestia and Luna, I now saw this neighborhood in a whole new light. Most of the buildings were boarded up, and those few that weren't looked like they were being used to sell drugs or for prostitution. I started thinking that coming back here had been a bad idea. I reached into my pocket to grab my phone so that I could let Celestia know that I was alright. I could feel my face go pale, my phone wasn't in my pocket. I had left it on the kitchen counter next to the note I had left for Celestia. I was tempted to immediately turn around and go back to Celestia's house or maybe meet her at CHS, but I had already come this far, and I felt committed to getting my few belongings. Moving quickly I made my way to the rundown gas station. I looked around making sure that no one was watching, I ducked inside. Someone had been here in my absence. Most of my belongings were scattered across the floor. My old laptop computer was missing, as was several or my few t-shirts and my backpack, my school books were had been placed on the counter. Luckily my guitar was still behind the clerk's counter where I had left it. I searched frantically for something that I could carry my things in. Eventually I found some old plastic bags. I began to stuff them with what I owned. I ended up having to double up the bags that I put my books into. I scarcely noticed that the sun was starting to go down as I exited the gas station for the last time. And it was dark by the time I walked inside Celestia's house. I didn't see her van or Luna's car in the driveway and the lights were off, so I had hoped that I had made it home before them. I stepped inside the house and put my belongings on the counter and turned on the lights. I started to breathe a sigh of relief.
"Where have you been," I heard Celestia ask me. She and Luna were sitting in chairs in the living room that were facing the front door, the door that I had just entered through. They had been sitting in the dark quietly waiting for me.
"I'm sorry," I said quietly, "I just got bored today and I wanted my guitar..."
"So instead of calling Luna or I and asking an adult to go to a dangerous part of town, you went yourself," Celestia said, obviously furious.
"I wasn't in any danger..." I started to say but Celestia cut me off again.
"Sunset, people go missing in that side of town," Celestia said, "you could have been kidnapped or worse."
"Sunset, you were lucky that we found your note," Luna said, "but to leave your phone behind."
"I didn't realize that I had left it until I was already there," I said.
"Sunset, I can't let this go," Celestia said, "for this behavior, I'm not going to allow you to participate in the musical showcase, and instead of going home after school, for the next week you will spend your after school hours in my office."
"Ok," I said. Honestly I thought that I was getting off light.
"Oh," Luna said, "we have three new girls enrolling at CHS, I'd like you to show them around."
"Ok," I said, "maybe I can make a good impression on them before everyone tells them about how I used to be."
"Now that we have settled that," Celestia said, "let's order dinner. Chinese food or pizza?"
"Chinese," I said.
"Pizza," Luna said.
Luna looked at me and I could have sworn that she growled at me.
"Rock paper scissors," Luna suggested holding up her fist. I had lived in the human world long enough that I was familiar with the game and held up my fist. Luna threw paper and I threw scissors.
"Chinese it is then," Celestia said as she pulled out her phone, "Sunset what do you want?"
"General Tao's chicken," I answered. To my surprise, Luna ordered the same thing. Celestia ordered Beef and Broccoli for herself.