Chapter 6: A Friendship Reunited
~Twilight Sparkle woke with the first rays of the sun filtering through the windows. She sniffed the morning air and looked around. To her surprise and consternation, Lightning, Karly and her dog were nowhere to be seen. She scrambled out of her sleeping bag, got changed into her clothes, fresh and clean after Lightning washed them last night, and went through the door as fast as her legs could carry her. Glancing each way, she started looking through every door, hoping and praying that everyone was all right. What if something happened while they were all asleep? Was Sunset Shimmer responsible? She reached the kitchen to find the girls and Spike casually making breakfast. She breathed a sigh of relief. All the stress that's happened over the past hours must have gotten the better of her, she guessed. She shook it off and took a seat next to the island of the kitchen.~
"Morning, Princess," said Lightning.
"Morning," she droned in response.
"Are you feeling alright?"
"What? Oh, uh, Yes. I just...felt a little headache when getting out of bed. That's all."
"Hmm. I get those sometimes. But they clear up after an hour or so, so they're nothing to worry that much about."
"I know."
The room fell into a silence after a while and for the longest time, they just ate. "So, umm...how's the bacon, Spike?" Karly asked, looking down at the dog munching on a few bacon bits in a bowl.
"Delicious!" he muffled. "Lightning made them just right!"
"What can I say? I watch a lot of cooking videos." she chuckled.
"Goodness me, Spike, you're got grease all over your snout." laughed Karly. "You must really like it!"
Twilight began to chuckle as well. "He can be messy with food sometimes."
Lightning smiled. "Hmm…" She looked at her watch. "Oh gosh, school starts in twenty minutes! We better get a move on!"
~Lightning whirled around to the sink and chucked all the pons and pans she used to cook their breakfast inside. She would clean them up when she returns home, she said to herself. Karly gently collected all the school equipment they needed for the day and stuffed them into each of their backpacks. Then, without wasting any more time, they raced out the door. All except Spike who continued to woof down all the bacon in his bowl.~
"Come on, Spike!" called Twilight.
~The dragon/dog quickly scooped up the last pieces of bacon in his jaw and hurried on outside before the girls left without him.~
~They reached the school gates to find the whole place in commotion. It being their second time, they wondered if this was how it always was, unlike the first day, for students were running this way and that, shouting, chatting and calling. It all suddenly quietened down when the principal's voice echoed around the field from the speakers on the walls.~
"Good morning students, and happy Thursday. Just a reminder to pick up your ballots for the Princess of the Fall Formal today. They are due at the time the dance starts tomorrow night, so don't forget to turn them in and make your voice heard."
~The three companions walked across the grass of the front lawn. Lightning looked at Twilight with bright confidence and she looked on with attentiveness at the papers she had in her hands. The princess put her hand to her forehead and thought for a moment.~
"Okay, so, you know what you're going to say?" Lightning asked, breaking her concentration.
Twilight snapped out of her little trance. "Oh! Of course," She nodded. "Fluttershy said I'd need to win over all those different groups if I wanna become Princess of the Fall Formal. So, I've compiled a list of talking points." She held up the few sheets of paper and presented them to Lightning.
Spike began laughing. "You made a list? That's so unlike you!"
"Well, no one asked you, dragon-puppy!" Lightning butted in. She sounded harsh, but really she was light-hearted.
~And Princess Twilight didn't say a word. She threw her backpack off her bag, presented it to her number one assistant, and pointed inside it. Spike immediately regretted his words and laughed nervously as he stepped inside.~
"Uh...please, continue." he gestured.
Twilight obliged. "I'll start introducing myself. Sprinkle in some things I've learned about this world into the conversation, show them how I fit in here."
"Sounds good." Lightning smiled.
"And we will be here along the way." added Karly.
"Thanks," Twilight smiled. She took a deep breath. "Okay, girls. Time to make a good first impression on my fellow students." She opened the front door and looked in the hallway. "The whole world sorta depends on it."
~Twilight broke into a large smile then began to walk through the hallways as casually as she could. Lightning and Karly stood aside and, after holding the door for some students and receiving their thank you's, they accompanied Princess Twilight into the hallway. The students who were standing around stopped chatting and they turned their eyes to the girls. Then, they all began to pull smug grins.~
"Hey, look." one of them muttered.
~With that, the entire hallway began snickering, and as they began to chatter again, Twilight's smile disappeared. As they continued to walk along, the students' snickering and muttering grew louder, it was clear to the girls now that something was off. And it was about them. Twilight looked over her shoulder to her friends.~
"Why is everybody looking at me funny?" she whispered.
Lightning shrugged her shoulders, she was just as confused as Twilight. "I-I don't know. Did we do something…?"
~She never finished her sentence. A slender arm seized Princess Twilight and she was pulled into a nearby, empty classroom.~
"Whoa!" she yelped in surprise.
~Twilight flew into the room with a sharp bump, almost hitting her head on the nearby teachers' desk. Thankfully, she clutched onto the edge firmly with both hands. She whirled around to face her attacker. Before they could shut the door to which they pulled the princess through, Lightning and Karly quickly leapt inside. They took a stance between them and the pony princess.~
"Hey! What gives?" Lightning demanded.
"Ye-Yeah, what're you…? Why did you…?"
~Twilight stopped when she saw who it was. A light white-skinned girl, with twirly purple hair. She wore golden bracelet cuffs on her wrists, and a simple light blue and purple blouse and skirt with diamonds on the side. As well as a diamond clip in her hair.~
"Rarity?" The princess said her name.
Lightning lowered her fists. "Oh. That's Rarity?"
~Spike peeked out from inside the bag to see what the commotion was. Rarity approached the three girls and dropped a duffle bag right next to them. She didn't say a word as she pulled out a measuring tape and began to measure the girls' size, heads and shoes. She stopped to have a think, then got an idea. She raced to her duffle bag. After a quick rummage around, she pulled out a few outfits then spoke in a classy, refined voice.~
"Perfect!"
~Without any warning, Rarity threw the outfits over the girls' heads and dressed them up into something that made them look completely different. Lightning looked at her reflection in the window. She was pretty impressed. This disguise would fool her own father, she thought. Whoever this Rarity girl is must be a real fashionista. Karly and Twilight looked at themselves, then at each other before turning to Rarity again. They were really confused and wanted an explanation as to why she was dressing them up in these uncomfortable outfits.~
"Oh, yes, this is good. No one will recognise you!" Rarity said proudly.
Twilight raised her brow. "Why wouldn't we wanna be…"
"And we'll need a disguise for your dog," the fashionista interrupted, as she eyed Spike peeking out from the backpack. "Which is too bad. He really is so adorable!"
~She touched the dragon/dog's nose then began to tickle him under his chin with both hands. Spike's pupils began to form in the shape of love hearts as she tickled him, and he felt his heart beat crazily. He leaned forwards and wagged his tail but by the time he did, Rarity stopped and kept on talking. He fell out of the bag and to the floor.~
"You know, with a little work, I think I could make him look like a rabbit instead."
"A rabbit?" Twilight questioned.
~The door from behind her suddenly opened, and Applejack stepped in. She immediately saw that the disguised girls were Twilight, Lightning and Karly, so she smiled at them.~
"There you guys are."
"So much for the disguises." Rarity frowned.
"I've been lookin' all over for ya!" Applejack continued.
"You have?" quired Lightning.
Fluttershy appeared by the door and nodded. "Me too."
"Me three!" Pinkie Pie added cheerfully, dropping down from the ceiling. She examined the girls' 'disguises'. "I like your new look!"
"I do have an eye for these sorts of things. Not that you seem to care." Rarity suddenly said bitterly.
"What?!"
The pony princess pouted. "Why do you think she doesn't care?"
~Princess Twilight, Lightning and Karly turned to the rest of the girls but they all gave them one of those 'don't-even-go-there,' looks while shaking their heads. Pinkie Pie was fuming, Fluttershy had her hands over her mouth, and Applejack clenched her jaw while drawing her hands back and forth across her neck.~
"Never mind," said Lightning, removing the glasses from her eyes. "But why were you all looking for us? What's going on?"
"Oh, they haven't seen it yet." shivered Fluttershy.
"Seen what?" asked Twilight.
Lightning folded her arms. "Alright, What did Karly do?"
"Me?!" the shy spy cried, "Nothing!"
~Karly blushed and turned away angrily, but Lightning Star smiled and put her arm on her shoulder. She knows that she was just joshing. They became serious again when Pinkie Pie pulled out a laptop and opened it up in front of Princess Twilight. All the girls gathered around.~
"Ooh, it's really not that bad!" Pinkie laughed nervously.
~She clicked on the laptop and started up a video on the screen. They began to watch it altogether. Firstly, they heard Sunset Shimmer's voice, which was already not a good thing for them to hear.~
"Twilight Sparkle wants to be your Fall Formal Princess," she began. The video showed footage of Princess Twilight in the library, smashing the buttons on the computer keyboard. "But what does it say about our school if we give someone like this…" It then cuts to Twilight picking up a book with her mouth, "such an important honour?" Finally, the footage showed Twilight being startled by the photocopier.
~All of the footage looked so much worse on the camera than it did in reality. The princess and the two spies couldn't believe what they were seeing. Unable to watch anymore, Lightning closed the laptop, and Twilight began to babble uncontrollably.~
"Wha...I…"
"Ah, I take that back," Pinkie sighed, "It's pretty bad!"
"But this all happened yesterday! At the library!" exclaimed the princess.
"Yeah," said Lightning. "Did they secretly record us? How did I not see it? I have a hawk's eye and I'm a- " she froze as she almost revealed her secret. "Very good listener." she breathed, then continued, "They must've been like ninjas for me to not see or hear."
"Has...everyone in the school seen this?" Karly asked. "Is that why they are all looking at us that way?"
~The four didn't answer her. They just mumbled awkwardly and looked the other way. Twilight's hair turned frazzled after shock, and she felt like she couldn't breathe. Lightning was doing her best to assure her.~
"What are we gonna do?" she asked incredulously. "No one's gonna vote for me after seeing this!"
"Not that it'll make any difference, but I'll still vote for you." Fluttershy smiled sweetly. All Twilight did in response was slam her head on the desk. "You were so nice to stand up for me when Sunset Shimmer was picking on me yesterday." the shy girl then added.
"That's nice an' all, Fluttershy, but yeah, it's not gonna make a difference." Lightning sighed. "The voting will be like five to infinity. Which is not a good score for us. We've got to somehow find a way to turn this whole thing around." she began pacing up and down the room.
"If you still wanna run, maybe there's something I can do to help!" Pinkie Pie offered.
~The princess lifted her head. She was about to consider the offer, until Fluttershy leaned in.~
"Word of advice, don't accept her help. She doesn't take anything seriously." she whispered.
"Oh! What do you have to be so awful to me?" scoffed Pinkie, stamping her foot.
Rarity scoffed, spat and stuttered. "Don't play innocent, Pinkie Pie," she said, accusingly pointing her finger at her. "You are no better than she is!" She turned her finger to Fluttershy.
"And what is that supposed to mean?!" Pinkie shrieked.
"I am happy to offer my assistance as well, to someone who would appreciate what I had to offer!"
~That did it. Fluttershy, Rarity and Pinkie felt a flicker of anger flash across their faces and they began to squabble with each other. Twilight and Lightning exchanged an anxious look. They didn't know what to do now or how to stop their new friends from fighting. Spike didn't want to hear it so he hopped back into Twilight's bag and zipped it up to muffle the shouting. Karly wanted to do the same. She clamped her hands over her ears and crouched behind a nearby desk, she wished that they would stop. Suddenly, Applejack yelled, and they all ceased.~
"Listen to y'all carryin' on! Get over it an' move on!"
"You mean like how you've gotten over what happened with Rainbow Dash?" Rarity asked, bitterly.
Applejack told her tale. "She said she'd get the softball team to make an appearance at my bake sale. I tell everybody they're comin', and then not one of 'em shows up! She made a liar outta me! That's different!" she finished angrily.
"Is not!" the girls chorused.
"Is too!" Applejack retaliated.
~And with that, the squabbling started up again, this time Applejack joined in. What happened to these girls over the past few years, everyone thought. Lightning understood now what Twilight meant by when she said about these girls being friends before, and their pony counterparts in Equestria. But now, they hate each other, and they argue all the time. The spies wondered why. Did something happen in the past? It all began to come together.~
At last, Lightning couldn't take it anymore. "ENOUGH!" she shouted. The girls ceased arguing and turned to her. "Please! Jesus Christ, not a moment of joy and peace around here!"
Karly peeked out from behind the desk. "I think we need to show you girls something. Spike, the yearbook, if you please."
~Spike unzipped the bag and revealed the yearbook. Karly took it gingerly. She placed it down on the desk in front of Princess Twilight and, flipping through the pages, she found the picture of the young Mane 5.~
"You were friends once." she said.
Applejack sighed. "Hmm. The Freshman Fair. Y'all remember?" The girls began muttering calmly while smiling, getting the feeling of nostalgia back.
"But something happened..." Karly continued.
"And we think that 'something' is Sunset Shimmer." Lightning said firmly, finishing her best friend's sentence.
"Well, it's a nice theory, darlings, but Sunset Shimmer had nothing to do with it." Rarity sighed, placing an arm on Lightning's shoulder.
"She's right," Fluttershy said, "Sunset Shimmer isn't the one who ruined my silent auction for the animal shelter by bringing fireworks and noise makers." she let out a scoff. "It was supposed to be a serious event, and Pinkie Pie ruined it!"
"What are you talking about?" Pinkie frowned, pulling out her phone. "I got a text from you saying that you didn't want a silent auction, you wanted a big party!"
"I never sent you a text!" Fluttershy replied, sounding confused.
"You didn't?"
"You don't think she's the one who's been sending me those emails, do you?" Rarity quired. "Everytime I volunteer to help with the decorations at a school function, I get an email from Pinkie Pie saying she has plenty of volunteers. And then I find out she's done everything herself!"
"I never sent you any emails!" Pinkie replied. She looked at Twilight, Lightning and Karly, confused.
"Maybe she's the reason Rainbow Dash didn't show up for my bake sale!" Applejack exclaimed.
"Didn't you ever ask Rainbow Dash why she didn't show up?" asked Twilight.
The cowgirl removed her hat solemnly. "Heh. I guess I kinda stopped talkin' to her at all after that."
The princess smiled and put the hat back on her head. "Maybe now would be a good time to start."
~A row of footballs were lined up in a row across the field. Rainbow Dash kicked one of them and it bounced into a goal. She watched it with brim intensity, while the other girls came and watched from the seating area. Except Applejack. She cleared her throat before approaching Rainbow Dash slowly. She lightly tapped her shoulder and began to talk to her. The other girls were too far away to hear what they are saying, but they could read their lips and expressions.~
"They're actually talking," said Rarity first. "That's a good sign!"
~Lightning nodded then motioned everyone to keep silent. Rainbow Dash and Applejack's conversation lasted for another few minutes, then it ended with the two girls hugging. That made everyone's anxious faces contort into big smiles.~
"Hugs! Ooo, hugs are always good!" Pinkie Pie squeaked.
Applejack led Rainbow Dash over to where they were sitting and began to explain what happened. "Somebody, and I think we can all guess who, told Rainbow Dash that my bake sale had been moved to a different day. Dash showed up with all the softball team, and thought I was cancelled out on her!"
"So that's it?" Lightning scoffed. "What a jerk…"
~She got up from her seat and, first, shook Rainbow's hand before introducing her to Karly, Twilight and herself. Rainbow returned the favour and proudly presented herself too. Her hair contained coloured streaks of all the colours of the rainbow, and she wore a thin blue shirt over a white vest with a cloud and three colouured bolts logo on the front. Rainbow also wore a skirt in a magenta and white striped pattern, half-black leggings, wristbands and knee-high matching blue boots. She held a football underneath as her arm as she spoke to Twilight.~
"So you're looking to dethrone Sunset Shimmer and become Princess of the Fall Formal, huh?"
"You bet." Lightning said, giving her a wink and clicking her fingers.
"Well, Twilight here is, not us. We are just here for support." prompted Karly.
"Well, I gotta say, I'd really love to see that happen." Rainbow Dash murmured. "I'll totally help you out! All you gotta do: is beat me in a game of one-on-one."
"What?" Twilight gasped.
"What?!" Both Lightning and Karly repeated.
"First to five goals wins!" Rainbow said, and she sent a backwards kick on the football she had under her arm and shot it into the goal at lightning speed. "One zip!"
~As Twilight gave a puzzled look, Lightning and Karly exchanged a worried glance. They both had the same thought in their heads: the girl is a pony and a princess! She wouldn't know anything about football or how to play! But, with a heavy sigh and chattered teeth, they watched as Princess Twilight stepped onto the field with shaking legs and started the game. Rainbow Dash came running at Twilight as fast as her legs could go with the football, and dribbled with it beside her feet like a pro. Twilight had no chance. Suddenly, with a swift spin, Rainbow shot the football towards the goal arena at massive speed. Twilight chickened out. She ducked her head into her hands and dropped to her knees as the ball came flying above her and into the goal. Rainbow pounded at the air when she scored, and Twilight got up in a nervous panic. She turned to the ball behind her, then to her friends in the seating arena as they frowned. Pinkie Pie marked two to zero on the scoreboard she had in her hands, and the game continued. The ball was dropped beside Twilight's feet, but before she could make her move, Rainbow drew it back with her foot, kicked it above her head and straight into the netting of the goal once again. She threw her hands in the air and cheered while Pinkie marked the board three to zero. Karly quickly jolted away and lifted her shoulders up to her head in displeasure, like she had felt the pain as well.~
"Ooooh…" she groaned.
"Come on, Twilight!" Lightning encouraged.
~The princess smiled at her friends' encouragement, but she didn't have high hopes. As round four began, she started with the ball and began to run with it under her feet towards the opposing goal. Rainbow Dash was nowhere to be seen. But when it seemed like Twilight was going to be able to score at least one goal, the football disappeared right in front of her very eyes. She stopped in her tracks when she felt that it was gone, and turned to see Rainbow dribbling with it and running towards Twilight's goal. The princess would not be fast enough to stop her, so she just stood in shock and let Rainbow score her fourth goal. Pinkie marked the board four to zero. As the fifth and final round began, Rainbow started to get a little cocky. Instead of running, she was showing off her agile moves and playing with the football by kicking it up and down again on one knee. Twilight was circling her, in an attempt to try and snag the ball. Suddenly, it happened. Rainbow kicked the football and it missed her and hit Twilight in the head. It was a soft ball, so it didn't hurt, much to everyone's relief, but as the ball fell, it landed in front of Twilight's feet. This was it. This was her chance. Even if it was only one goal, it was still an accomplishment. So, the second she recovered, Twilight began to run with the ball. As fast as her legs could carry her to the goal. The girls and Spike rose from their seats expectantly and smiled.~
"Yes, Yes, Yes!" Lightning shouted.
~Their hopes began to rise. But, when they believed that Twilight had it, the worst possible thing happened- The princess slipped and when she went for the final kick, the ball rolled too far away from her foot, so she missed and fell onto her back sharply.~
"No!" Both Lightning and Karly screamed, with Lightning being more louder.
~Rainbow waited for the ball to stop rolling. Then, with all the muscles she had in her legs, she kicked. The shot flew into the sky wildly and the ball arced itself into Princess Twilight's net, scoring the fifth and final point to Rainbow Dash and putting Princess Twilight to shame. Pinkie Pie marked the score five to zero to Rainbow Dash. As the rainbow-haired girl cheered and jumped in the air, Princess Twilight laid on the ground, painting heavily from the exercise she had endured. She did not want to get up.~
"That's the game!" Rainbow exclaimed as she approached Twilight and stared down at her sweating purple face.
~The other girls joined her and they crowded around the broken princess anxiously.~
"I...really thought you were gonna pull it off there in the end! Ha...ha..." Rarity laughed nervously as the other girls gave her a disapproving scowl.
Twilight was still panting on the ground, but as Lightning was about to kneel down and help her to her feet, Rainbow Dash stepped in instead. "So, what's the plan?" she asked the princess. "How can I help you be princess instead of Sunset Shimmer?"
Lightning and Karly were completely surprised. "Huh?" They both chroused.
"But...I...lost!" Princess Twilight exclaimed, still trying to catch her breath.
"Of course you lost, I'm awesome!" replied Rainbow. "But I'm not gonna help just anybody try and beat Sunset Shimmer. The Fall Formal Princess should be someone with heart and determination. You've proved that you've got 'em both!"
~Suddenly, the athletic girl stretched out her arms and flung them around the princess. In return, Twilight looked at Rainbow with her sparkling purple eyes and hugged her right back as everyone cheered around them. Unknownst to them, that they were being watched and recorded. Sunset Shimmer and her boys, Snips and Snails, were hiding behind the seating area. They snickered at the phones in their hands and showed them to Sunset. She smiled a menacing grin as she began to hatch her next plot to expose the princess.~