Chapter 8: Bumps in the Road
Sunset rested her head on her forelegs and sighed as Feather Fall brushed her coat.
“Then,” Ruby Ring said, slowly walking through the bath pool towards Sunset, “my mom said it was too good a bracelet for an amateur like me. She asked me to make it again, so I did, and she gasped and called my dad.” She leaned over next to Sunset, placing both forelegs on the bath’s edge. “After that, I spent the rest of the day making all kinds of jewelry, and at some point I got my Cutie Mark.”
Sunset wrote down the story in her notebook, which was a ways away from the bath pool, along with a small drawing of Ruby’s cutie mark. Princess Celestia had asked her to research about Cutie Mark acquisition and report her conclusions, so she decided to ask the maids while they bathed. The maids readily agreed.
Having finished her story, Ruby Ring grabbed a brush with her teeth and began brushing Sunset’s mane.
“I guess it’s my turn now!” Meadow Scent said as she began shampooing another maid’s tail.
Sunset rolled her eyes. She did not care for a mudpony’s Cutie Mark story, but she knew Princess Celestia would not like it if she left them out of her research. So she begrudgingly wrote down what she heard.
But while she listened and wrote, Sunset couldn’t stop wondering what was the purpose of this research. Everypony knew the basics of Cutie Marks. There was no foal in all of Equestria that didn’t know how and why they appeared. She supposed Celestia only wanted to test Sunset’s field research skills, but there had to be something else. Something she was missing.
Maybe she’d figure it out once she started writing the report.
~~~~~~~~
Sunset decided she didn’t like going shopping. She had to try everything that caught her eyes just because the size tags lied. A medium could be a medium or a small or a big. It seemed like the clothes companies did not want people to simply grab their products and leave.
“I think you’d look really good in skirts,” Sunflower said. The girl had nagged Sunset for weeks to go on a shopping trip, and now she wanted to choose Sunset’s whole wardrobe. “How about this one? It’s pretty cute.”
Sunset shrugged and grabbed the blue garment. Dandy had suggested she bought pants until she got more used to her human body because skirts could easily risk exposing her panties. Not that Sunset especially cared, but these humans were really pesky about their taboos.
They tried many skirts and pants and blouses, but in the end, they exited the shop without buying anything. Sunset felt like Sunflower was just wasting her time. They entered several stores, but Sunflower barely got a single blouse. If this was how human girls spent their weekends, then Sunset was starting to regret ever coming to this world.
She gave a bored look to the side, and her eyes fell on something that made her stop on her tracks. She cocked her head and walked up to the display window. Neatly placed on a platform, there were a pair of jet black boots. Sunset had never been the kind to wear anything but formal dresses on special occasions, but those boots were gorgeous.
“They’re really cool,” Sunflower said. At least she had good taste. “I don’t think they’d be my style, but I’m sure they’d fit you well. You have that, uhm… bad girl vibe.”
Sunset raised an eyebrow at that. “Bad girl vibe?”
“Yeah!” Sunflower said. “You know, a leather jacket, tight jeans, black boots, riding a racing bike…”
Sunset didn’t know what ‘leather’ was, but she did picture herself with the clothing combo, and she kind of liked it. The racing bicycle did not exactly match the look, but she supposed humans had a slightly different notion of cool. Sunset shrugged and walked to the store’s entrance.
“Wait, where are you going?”
“I’m getting those boots,” Sunset said. “Duh.”
Sunflower gasped. “But… Wait!” She caught Sunset by the arm before she could enter. “This brand is super expensive.”
“So?”
“So?” Sunflower repeated. “Sunset, those boots are cool as heck, but I don’t think they’re worth spending your lifetime savings on!”
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “What makes you think I can’t afford them?”
“Well…” Sunflower said, then gave a nervous chuckle. “I mean, I don’t want you to think I’m, like, prejudicing you, but your clothes are from the same brand mine are. They’re economic for a reason.”
Sunset looked down at her clothes. She hadn’t stopped to consider. It wasn’t hard to notice Dandy and Trixie didn’t exactly live in luxury, but Sunset, used to hoof-made gowns, didn’t even think that clothes would easily define somepony as poor or rich. She felt stupid, having lived in her own world of power pursuit for the last few years without stopping to study the peasantry’s customes.
She didn’t want to be thought of as ignorant, but she supposed Sunflower had earned some of Sunset’s respect. After all, the girl had been quite serious with her math studies, and Sunset held some appreciation for those who took studies seriously. So she decided to ask.
“So, you’re saying that people can tell my purchasing power and economic value just by the clothes I’m wearing?”
Sunflower took five whole seconds to reply. “Uhm, yes?”
“And thus, people react differently to me because of that reason,” Sunset thought out loud. “In other words, if I change my wardrobe with more expensive garments, people will regard me in a higher light.”
“I think so?” Sunflower said. “Uhm.. So you really can afford to buy this brand?”
Sunset turned to look at the price. The boots were about 600 dollars. She did have the money, but if she got the boots, she would not be able to buy much else until next month. She turned back to Sunflower. “I could, but I’d have to save a bit before that. However, I’d like to get better clothes,” she said, pinching her blue shirt.
Sunflower nodded. “Well, I know a store that sells high quality jeans, and the store in front of it is from the brand most popular girls at school wear.”
Humming, Sunset followed Sunflower to said stores. She’d have to take the girl’s word about fashion. She only hoped she was at least a bit more competent than Trixie.
~~~~~~~~
The bell rang, and students excitedly jumped from their seats to rush for the cafeteria. Sunset just couldn’t understand why kids would just ditch their studies like that. She simply rolled her eyes as she finished writing down the homework assignment. She still was very slow at writing.
Once finished, she packed her things and stood up.
“Miss Shimmer,” the teacher called. “I need to ask you a favor.”
Sunset started, then grinned. Finally! She had been an excellent student so far, it was time already for teachers to start asking her for small favors and such. She did not very much care for being the teacher’s pet, but it certainly came with neat advantages, like being able to turn a paper at later dates in case a misfired spell burned the whole stack or parchments or something.
She walked up to Mister Midnight Moon, the Biology teacher. He was a tall human of dark blue skin, stark white hair and amber eyes.
“There’s a girl your same grade, but from a different group,” Professor Midnight said. “Her name is Fluttershy. I need you to tell her that she needs to return the class’ hamster by Friday.”
“Sure,” Sunset said. “But… I don’t know this girl.”
Professor Midnight produced a small sheet of paper and wrote down something, then handed the paper to Sunset. “This is what she looks like. Just ask around and you’ll quickly find her.”
Sunset took the paper and shrugged. “Alright,” she said. She hefted her backpack and exited the classroom. Might as well start looking before lunch time was over.
She walked down the hallway and noticed some students gave her furtive glances, others outright stared. Turned out Sunflower was right, getting the right clothes made her stand out in the right way. She liked the attention, of course, but she’d rather they all knew her as their academic superior instead.
She lifted the note and gave it yet another quick read. Long, pastel pink hair and soft yellow skin. Sunset was glad it was easy to tell people apart by their colors, but there were many students with that general description, and she barely cared enough to remember the names of her immediate classmates. How was she supposed to find this girl? Sure, she knew they were the same grade, but-
Someone suddenly appeared from around a corner and collided with Sunset. Fortunately, she hadn’t been walking fast, so neither girl fell to the ground. She’d hate her new clothes getting dirty so soon.
“Uhm… sorry,” the other girl said in such a low voice that Sunset thought she was imagining it.
“It’s ok,” Sunset said, then took a look at the girl and blinked. Long pink hair and soft yellow skin. Could it be she’d be so lucky? “Hey, are you Fluttershy?”
The girl looked up at Sunset, then immediately looked down. “Uhm… yes...” Her voice was really low. But Sunset didn’t quite care, she was just glad she wouldn’t have to search the whole school.
Then, without another word, the girl turned around to leave. Sunset took several seconds to react. Why was she leaving? How rude! Sunset stepped over and grabbed the girl by the wrist, making her turn again and look up, wide-eyed.
“Wait up,” Sunset said. “It’ll be quick, I promise. Listen, Professor Midnight Moon asked me to tell you that-” She yelped as something pushed her from the side, and she fell to the floor with a thud. She hit her elbow, and she cried out. She groaned as she looked up and saw a girl standing where she had been a moment ago. “Hey! What’s the big idea?”
The girl of short, rainbow colored hair placed her hands on her hips. “I’ll ask you the same!”
Sunset stood up, holding her elbow, and stepped close to the newcomer. “You like pushing people around? Are you stupid?”
The girl smirked. “Oh, so you’re gonna cry now, huh?”
Now, Sunset had never been the physical type. She always preferred to use her wits and intelligence to beat everyone in any argument. But this girl’s smug grin sparked something in her, something primal. Without stopping to consider, Sunset used all her might to push the other girl back.
The rainbow haired girl barely gave a couple of steps back, but at least she seemed surprised. Sunset gave a small smile of her own. Bullies never expected their victims to fight back, and Sunset was not going to give this girl the satisfaction of-
The girl moved like lightning, and by the time Sunset realized what had happened, the girl tackled her to the ground. Sunset hit the back of her head with the floor and saw stars.
“You must be new here,” said the blue skinned girl as she painfully held Sunset’s shoulders down. “So let me give you a final warning. Don’t mess with me.”
Sunset’s vision cleared slowly, and all she saw was the raging face of the bully. She gritted her teeth, both for the pain and the building anger inside. This girl was stronger and clearly had infinite more experience in fights. Sunset was at a complete disadvantage. But she was not going to go without a fight.
Being pinned down like she was, Sunset was not going to be able to throw a punch, and she was pretty sure it would not do much with her inferior strength. So, she did the only other thing that came to mind.
She grabbed as much rainbow hair as she could and yanked it down.
The girl cried out and fell to the side. Sunset quickly rolled over and sat above the girl. Unfortunately, by getting the hair into the fight, the other girl took it as fair game and she too grabbed Sunset by the hair and yanked.
Sunset cried out, feeling rage rumble in her stomach. No one messed with her hair! She put her free hand on the girl’s face and pushed while also pulling the rainbow hair. The other girl tried to imitate her, but Sunset was taller, and her arms were longer. The girl’s hand barely touched her face.
But by The Plains was she strong! It felt like her scalp was going to give in at any moment, and the idea of having her hair ruined was giving her the energy to keep pulling.
“That’s enough, you two!”
Suddenly, there were a few people on them, separating them. Sunset was easily held by one teacher, while the rainbow girl required two teachers, one at each arm, to contain her. Sunset breathed deeply, feeling a building sensation of fear at the thought of the girl managing to escape and attacking her while she was being held and unable to defend herself.
Fortunately, it didn’t happen, and the both of them were escorted to the principal’s office. They were forced to sit next to each other, but the presence of not three, but five teachers plus the principal seemed to be enough for the rainbow girl to huff her bloodlust away. Sunset felt she could breath easier now.
“So, mind explaining what happened?” Principal Ink Statement asked. The old man’s beige skin was so wrinkled that Sunset thought he might turn into a raisin.
“Yes,” Sunset said, feeling her head throb where she hit it with the floor. “I was minding my own business when this brute attacked me out of nowhere.”
“She was bullying Fluttershy!” the girl yelled. “She ‘bumped’ into her and when Fluttershy didn’t fall, she started threatening her!”
Sunset huffed. “That’s easily the most idiotic and ludicrous excuse for attacking people.”
“You callin’ me an idiot? You wanna go again?”
“Rainbow Dash, that’s enough!” the principal said, and the girl only crossed her arms and looked away. “Sunset Shimmer, was it?” Sunset nodded. “You’ve been in this school for only a few weeks, and already you’re picking fights?”
Sunset felt her stomach fall. In all her life, a teacher had never questioned her honesty! Her mouth went dry. “W-What? I told you she attacked me!”
“Because you were bullying Fluttershy!” Rainbow Dash yelled.
“Rainbow Dash, another word and I’ll add two weeks of detention to your punishment,” the principal said, then looked back at Sunset. “What were you doing with Fluttershy?”
Sunset felt her rage rumble again. What was going on? “Professor Midnight Moon asked me to tell her that she needed to return the class’ hamster. I don’t know why he asked me, since I don’t know this Fluttershy girl, but I didn’t question it.”
“A likely story,” Rainbow said under her breath.
“Call Professor Midnight,” the principal said, but before one of the teachers could move, another person entered the office. To Sunset’s surprise, it was Fluttershy herself.
“Flutters?” Rainbow asked.
Fluttershy seemed to melt under the stares. Sunset thought she looked like Trixie, except Trixie didn’t try to hide behind her hair.
“Uhm.. I… I want to say…” Fluttershy said, but her voice was so low! How did she expect anyone to hear her? “I-It’s a misunderstanding…”
But apparently, the principal heard her well enough. “What do you mean?”
Somehow, Fluttershy managed to make herself look smaller. “Uhm… T-This girl was… uhm… she really was just, uhm, giving me a message from Professor Midnight…”
“See?” Sunset said, and her voice sounded like yelling in comparison to Fluttershy’s. “I was telling the truth!”
Principal Ink Statement hummed. “Are you sure, Fluttershy?”
The girl only nodded meekly.
“She threatened her!” Rainbow said. “I bet she told her not to tell or else-”
“That’s enough,” the principal said with a tired tone. “Two weeks detention for you, miss. Another stunt like this and I’ll have to suspend you.” Rainbow clicked her tongue, but didn’t argue. “And you, Miss Sunset. Two days of detention.”
“What?” Sunset yelled. “Why are you punishing me?! She attacked me!”
“You attacked her back,” the principal said. “The teachers say you were on her, pulling her hair.”
“So what, you’d rather I didn’t defend myself and become the butt of her bullying?” Sunset asked, out of breath for the sheer rage she felt.
The principal sighed heavily. “You were on her,” he repeated. “There’s a line between defending yourself and attacking back. Two days of detention, and that’s final.”
If only she still had her magic, she would zap this stupid excuse of a principal. Sunset stood up and stomped away. It was outrageous that she’d be punished for something that was not her fault! If she ever met that Rainbow Dash again… Well, she was too angry to think of anything, but once she calmed some, she was going to make a plan to make her pay.
No one messes with Sunset Shimmer’s pristine reputation.
~~~~~~~~
“So… you’re a bully now?” Rainy Days asked.
Sunset raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“I mean… Rainbow hit you, didn’t she?”
“Yes, she did,” Sunset said loudly. “She’s the bully here.”
Rainy Days looked to the other students around Sunset, who had heard the news of their fight. Sunset didn’t understand why they were acting like she was at fault. Was it a human thing?
“I mean…” Sunflower said. “Are you sure you weren’t, like, mean to Fluttershy?”
Sunset groaned loudly. “How many times do I have to tell you? I was just relaying a message to her. Since when is that cause for an attack? My head hurts and I have a bruise on my elbow!”
They kept walking down the hallway to the entrance. With classes dismissed, she was expected to be at the detention classroom. Sunflower, Rainy Days, and Zephyr Skies were accompanying her, although she did not know why the last two.
“Well, Rainbow Dash is kind of famous for beating up everyone who’s ever tried to bully Fluttershy since they were in first grade,” Sunflower explained. “She’s even beaten up eighth graders.”
Sunset rolled her eyes. “Then she completely got it wrong. I literally bumped into the girl as I was searching for her, next thing I know, I’m on the floor.”
Sunflower hummed. “Then it was because you bumped into her. Some students used to do that on purpose just to make her fall.”
“So what, accidents can’t happen?” Sunset asked. “That Rainbow girl has issues, and because of her stupidity, I’m in detention now! I’ve never, in my entire life, been humiliated like this.”
Fortunately, the students around her seemed to believe her story. Hopefully word would spread and she wouldn’t get a bad reputation. Unfortunately, they had arrived at the detention room. They kids bid her farewell and she begrudgingly entered.
There were students already there. Most of them looked older, but Sunset could not put them apart from the other students. She kind of had expected them to look like crazy criminals. Well, it was just one hour after class, so she decided to simply ignore them.
She sat in the front row, near the overweight adult that seemed to be overlooking the group. The blackboard behind him had the written instruction of doing as much homework as possible. Sunset shrugged and took out her notebook. If she was going to be there, she might as well do something productive with her time.
“So, you think you can threaten my friend into lying for you, huh?”
Sunset looked up at the familiar voice and found Rainbow Dash in front of her with her arms crossed. She looked to the side and found that the teacher was not in the room any longer.
“Looking for protection?” Rainbow Dash asked. “You screwed up big time, new kid. No one will help you here.”
Sunset sighed. “Look, you got it wrong. I don’t expect your undersized brain to understand the concept of being wrong, so I don’t expect, nor do I care if you apologize for being an ignorant simpleton or not. I will-”
Rainbow suddenly grabbed Sunset by her new blouse and lifted her from her seat. “Stop using your nerdy words on me. You callin’ me an idiot, huh? You think you’ve got guts?”
“All of us have guts,” Sunset said, feeling her anger return. “But it seems you’re lacking neurons. Now, stop touching me or-”
“Or what?” Rainbow challenged. “You’re gonna fight me?”
Sunset frowned. This Rainbow girl was definitely searching for any excuse to attack. Seeing how she couldn’t be reasoned with, and Sunset couldn’t fight such a brute girl, there weren’t many other options that would avoid increasing detention time. Sunset gritted her teeth and pressed her hands into fists. What could she do?
“Maybe you should just drop it,” Sunset said, trying her best not to give in to her primal fight or flight response.
Rainbow pulled her closer. “And maybe you should-”
“Rainbow Dash!” The teacher yelled. Rainbow dropped Sunset and huffed. “To the back of the room!”
Not caring that the teacher was looking at her, Rainbow pointed to Sunset, then dragged her thumb across her own neck. Sunset decided she would not be intimidated, and since the teacher didn’t seem to care about Rainbow’s blatant threat just then, she did what she’d seen other students do.
She showed Rainbow the back of her middle finger.
~~~~~~~~
“So, the Magma River is not actually made of magma,” Sunflower said as they crossed the school’s entrance. “It was discovered and named by scientist Magma Burst. It’s the largest river in the country, but most of it runs underground, that’s why it barely appears on maps.”
Sunset nodded. She had been improving a lot on her grades, but there was a lot of basic knowledge she still lacked. Apparently, huge magma rivers that crossed half the country were not a thing that humans found a natural occurrence.
They made their way through the halls and to their lockers. They still had a good ten minutes before classes started. Sunset had been meeting Sunflower at the school’s entrance every day for quick tutoring before class, and she’d help the girl after school. Sunflower was still amazed at how fast Sunset memorized the information.
Something hit her feet and Sunset yelped as she fell to the floor. Fortunately, she managed to block with her arms, so even though pain shot from them, she at least protected her face. Sunset rolled over, sat up and looked up.
Rainbow Dash gave her a smug grin before turning around. Sunset gritted her teeth. Why was that girl still bothering her? It was as if Rainbow had nothing better to do with her life. Sunset stood up and, rage building in her stomach, thoughtlessly grabbed the empty water bottle she was carrying and threw it at Rainbow.
It hit her right on the head.
Sunset immediately regretted her actions as the rainbow haired girl turned around, murder in her eyes. To Sunset’s great relief, however, a teacher just happened to open a door nearby, and Rainbow Dash, with an odd conflicted face, turned around and left.
“Sunset,” Sunflower said. “I did tell you she’s beaten up boys twice her height, right?”
Sunset could only nod a reply. She herself was the most surprised at what she had done, since the only confrontations she had ever had in her life had been verbal. Heck, even that time she threw a book at Princess Celestia she had barely used any strength. She was taller than Rainbow, but she was very well aware she was just a lanky pipsqueak in comparison.
But there was just something about Rainbow Dash that made Sunset really mad. Something she couldn’t quite comprehend. She had hated the way Princess Celestia had condescended her, but she had not, in any way, hated her. Now, however, she could say that she really did hate Rainbow Dash.
She had always been hotheaded and reacted without considering things first, but this was the first time her reckless acts had turned physical. It both scared her and excited her. But she took a deep breath to try and calm herself. Getting physical was Rainbow’s goal, since she had the utter advantage, so all Sunset could do to counter her was to think with a cool head.
Easier said than done.
~~~~~~~~
“Why don’t you tell a teacher?” Sunflower said. They were at the cafeteria, at their usual spot. Sunset had gotten a salad and mashed potatoes, while Sunflower got her pizza slice.
Sunset huffed. “Because it won’t solve anything,” she said. “What are they gonna do? Give her more detention? Something tells me that doesn’t work on brutes like her.” She didn’t add that she had also thrown something at Rainbow, and she could also see her punishment extended.
Besides, Sunset didn’t want to be known as the kid who ran off to cry to the teachers. Not only because of what it would do to whatever social status she had, but because the teachers themselves would also end up tired of her.
“Well, if she tries to bother you again, I’ll have your back,” Sunflower said, then gave a bite to her pizza. “I mean, not in, like, fighting, but you know… like… a friend?”
“Real reassuring,” Sunset said, but still appreciated the gesture. She poked her salad with her plastic fork. Food cafeteria really was insipid. She sighed and brought some to her mouth. Might as well just-
Something exploded, or at least Sunset thought so. Suddenly, she felt her food on her face, and the fork had been violently stripped from her hand. She didn’t know how long she stood there in silence until the potatoes fell from her face. She opened her eyes and saw Rainbow bucking Dash in front of her, with one hand on a soccer ball that rested on Sunset’s food tray.
“Whoops,” Rainbow said with her smug grin, then retrieved her ball and walked away.
Sunset saw the students around her laugh at her misfortune, but she almost didn’t care. No, the fury that was burning inside her was not only because of the humiliation, but because, despite its tastelessness, she had been hungry, and her food was now ruined.
“S-Sunset?” came Sunflower’s hesitant voice as she handed her some napkins.
Sunset didn’t reply, but accepted the napkins and began cleaning herself. The food had gotten everywhere, her face, her brand new jacket, and… Yes, that was a carrot sticking from her hair. Sunset inhaled deeply as she dropped the napkin on her tray. She heard Sunflower say something, but she wasn’t listening.
The teachers, like the rest of the student body, knew Rainbow was a stupid, reckless, selfish brute, and so her playing with a soccer ball in the cafeteria was not an odd sight despite it being forbidden. Rainbow Dash knew so, and she had taken advantage of it to humiliate Sunset.
She thought herself smart, so it was now Sunset’s duty to show her what a real smart person could do.
She stood up and walked away, Sunflower tailing her nervously.
~~~~~~~~
“I don’t know about this,” Sunflower said. “You could get in a lot of trouble.”
After washing up, Sunset had taken to gather the materials she needed for her revenge. All the while Sunflower kept trying to dissuade her. Sunset didn’t hold it against the girl, as she was most likely the kind to just lower her head and thank it hadn’t been worse when a bully smacked her head.
Sunset was not like that, and she was not going to let Rainbow simply humiliate her.
She leaned back on the edge of the wall, right where the soccer field started. Sunset had just finished setting up her revenge. All in all, she was proud of herself for having worked so fast with her still somewhat clumsy hands.
“And Rainbow Dash will kill you for that,” Sunflower said.
“She won’t know it was me,” Sunset said, showing her hand to Sunflower. She was holding a green string. “This will disappear in the grass. No one will ever know it wasn’t an accident.”
Some voices sounded from the side, and Sunset shushed Sunflower. Today, they had History right after lunch, and Miss Dusty Pages always got ten minutes late. At the same hour, the soccer team would play. And Sunset had learned that Rainbow Dash was the captain of the soccer team.
Sure enough, a group of students wearing the school sports uniform appeared on the field, and to Sunset’s delight, Rainbow was at the very front, wearing her usual smug grin. Sunset allowed herself to smile as her plan was set in motion. And when Rainbow began jogging to the field, Sunset’s grin grew.
This was going to be really entertaining.
When Rainbow got to the right point, Sunset yanked the string with all her might. Using simple pulley logic, the string moved throughout the field and to the far spot where Rainbow was. It tensed and caught both of Rainbow’s feet. The girl lurched down and forward. Now, it had been a dry couple of days, so the grass was dry as a rock. Or it would’ve been, had Sunset not emptied a large bucket of water on it.
Sunset smiled gleefully as Rainbow hit the mud with a splash. She dropped the string, and the rest of the team hurried to their fallen member, never knowing what had really happened.
“And done,” Sunset said, signaling Sunflower to follow her back inside. Rainbow would believe she had finished their squabble at the cafeteria, and Sunset would have the satisfaction of having beaten the bully without getting in trouble.
The best part was that it all had happened sooner than expected. Why, not all classes were in session yet, so there were still many students hurrying this way or the other, while others were hanging out by their classrooms’ doors. There was plenty of time for Sunset to get some reading done before Miss Dusty Pages arrived.
There was a sudden change on the students’ faces. They seemed to be looking at… something behind her? With a feeling of dread, Sunset dared to look back.
And she soon found herself thrown through the air. Before her brain could process what was happening, Sunset hit the floor and skidded a few feet. Her stomach churned, and her vision spun. What had happened?
“You’re dead!” Someone yelled.
Sunset didn’t have to look up to see who had said that. She did so anyway.
Rainbow was covered in mud, but that did not stop her deadly glare from sending shivers down Sunset’s spine. She did her best to stand up as Rainbow quickly made her way to her. She tried to run, there was no way she was facing this girl like that! But her legs felt like jelly, and she could only helplessly see the fuming bully getting nearer by the second.
But before Rainbow got too close, Sunflower collided with her and sent her tripping to the wall. Rainbow didn’t fall, to Sunset’s surprise, but looked quite disoriented.
“Don’t you hurt my friend, you moronic bully!” Sunflower yelled.
For some reason, Sunset felt proud at Sunflower’s use of the word ‘moronic’. It was something she had learned during their tutoring sessions! That sense of pride disappeared, however, when Rainbow turned her raging gaze to Sunflower and began advancing on her.
Sunset had been thinking she was becoming more reckless since she had met Rainbow the day before. Somehow, she was still surprised to find herself running towards her, instead of away. She took advantage of Rainbow being distracted and tackled her to the ground.
Placing her weight on Rainbow’s belly and her hands on her shoulders, Sunset had her perfectly pinned down! She huffed and panted as she saw Rainbow blinking in surprise.
“Now,” Sunset said between pants. “Just shut up and listen. I don’t want us to keep annoying each other. So, let me just expl-”
Rainbow hit her in the face. Hard. Sunset felt the crack of her nose as she fell to the side. She barely had time to moan at the pain when Rainbow quickly pinned her down and punched her in the eye.
Sunset quickly shot her arms up to cover herself, but didn’t do much to protect her. Rainbow simply punched them. The pain of her bleeding nose and her swollen eye throbbed, but the succession of punches in her arms and sides were becoming unbearable. She couldn’t remember a time where she had been in so much pain all over, not even when she fell down a well as a filly.
The punches stopped, and Sunset dared sneak a peek. Sunflower was grabbing Rainbow from behind.
“Stop!” Sunflower yelled.
But Rainbow was stronger, and she easily shook Sunflower off with an elbow to the stomach. Sunflower fell to the floor, clutching her stomach. Rainbow turned to Sunset again and lifted a fist.
Somehow, Sunset found the strength to stretch both arms up, counting on their superior length to keep Rainbow Dash at bay. She miscalculated, however, and ended with both hands around Rainbow’s neck.
Rainbow’s eyes grew angrier and pressed her weight down. But Sunset held her arms stretched, even though she knew they weren’t going to last long. She didn’t need to win this fighting match, she just needed to hold on.
But Rainbow Dash was not about to give her an easy time, and she began throwing punches at Sunset. Most missed due to the distance, but some managed to graze Sunset’s face. Sunset shut her eyes and gritted her teeth, then pressed her fingers as much as she could. This only seemed to infuriate Rainbow further, and she again pressed her weight on Sunset’s arms and kept throwing punches.
Sunset felt tears run down the sides of her face. The pain of her nose was too much, and her arms quivered under the pressure. She knew that, as soon as they gave up, she would not be able to cover from the onslaught.
Suddenly, the punches stopped, and she felt sweet relief as the weight on her arms disappeared. She brought her arms close to her face again, in case Rainbow had decided to lure her into a false sense of security.
“Let go!” Rainbow yelled, and Sunset dared open her eyes and look past her arms.
Two teachers were holding Rainbow Dash by the arms as they pulled her away. Sunset huffed and breathed through her mouth, feeling her whole face going numb, but still throbbing. A hand touched her shoulder, and she looked up to see Nurse Heartstrings kneeling beside her.
“Can you stand up?” the nurse asked.
Sunset nodded and took the hand to help her to her feet. She saw various teachers usher the curious students to their classrooms. She groaned at the pain in her arms, but at least she was able to follow the nurse to the infirmary.
It took her a good couple of minutes of straight up Tartarus in the form of alcohol and peroxide before Sunset noticed that Sunflower was there too. The girl had only gotten a hit to the stomach, so she was there probably just to make her company. Sunset didn’t know how to feel about that. Sunflower had helped her against Rainbow Dash, after all.
When Nurse Heartstrings finished, the pain from her broken nose had completely disappeared, replaced by complete numbness.
“You should be able to return to class now,” the nurse said. “If you feel pain later today or tomorrow, you can ask your parents to give you one, maximum two painkillers.”
Sunset nodded absentmindedly. For the first time in years, she did not want to return to class.
As she began gathering her bearings, the infirmary’s door opened, and in came Principal Ink Statement. Sunset groaned silently. She had hoped he’d at least wait until classes were over to scold her.
“Miss Shimmer,” the principal said. “Why should I not suspend you for fighting in school grounds again?”
Suspend her?! Sunset bleached. But Rainbow had been the one who had attacked her!
“But it was that Rainbow girl who attacked her!” Sunflower said. “Sunset was only covering herself!”
Principal Ink Statement looked at Sunflower, as if just now noticing her, then back at Sunset. “She says you made her trip in the mud, and that you tackled her.”
So Rainbow had realized Sunset was behind her ‘accident’. How? Had Rainbow found the string and pieced things together, or had she just assumed correctly? In any case, it seemed Sunset would be punished again, so she simply lowered her eyes.
“Of course she tackled her,” Sunflower said, crossing her arms. “But Rainbow pushed her to the ground first. Then I tried to stop her, but Rainbow was going to hit me. That’s when Sunset tackled her. She was protecting me!”
Sunset blinked and looked up at Sunflower. What? she thought.
“And even then,” Sunflower continued. “Sunset tried to talk to her, but then Rainbow punched her in the face and broke her nose. Then she got on her and started punching her!”
Principal Ink Statement looked behind him, and Sunset saw Mister Midnight Moon for the first time. The teacher looked up to the principal. “The students who witnessed said the same,” he said in a loud whisper.
“And what about Rainbow Dash’s claim of you making her trip?” the principal asked Sunset.
“That’s complete bull- Uhm, I mean, that’s a lie!” Sunflower said. “We were on our way to class! And by the way, Rainbow Dash purposely kicked a soccer ball on Sunset’s food! I’ve been trying to convince her to tell you, but she didn’t want any more troubles!”
Sunset blinked in surprise, flinching at the pain of her black eye. Sunflower was lying for her. She was actively risking being punished just for a chance to save Sunset. It was… a weird thing to do.
Principal Statement scratched his jawline thoughtfully. “I see… Well, I want a word with you after class. I’ll see you at my office, then I’ll decide what to do with you. Nurse Heartstrings, a word, if you please.” The adults promptly left the infirmary and closed the door, but Sunset could hear their hushed voices discussing something.
“Thanks for not telling them about the string,” Sunset said.
Sunflower smiled. “I told you, I got your back. Besides, Rainbow’s at fault here, isn’t she?”
Sunset smiled. She was still hurting, and she knew Dandy was going to ask her a lot of questions, but she appreciated having someone who would lie for her, who would at least try to stop the big bad bully from beating her up.
It appeared that Sunset appreciated, for the first time, having a friend.