New Endings, Old Starts

by David Silver

3 - Expanding Student Body

"She knows too much." Starlight sat on her side of her desk, peering at Twilight. "You are way too--"

"I already know that." Twilight waved a hoof at Starlight. "I don't know how, but, yes, she seems to have information about us all."

"Was I in that book? I don't think I was." Starlight folded her arms. "How she could know about you, easy. You published that."

"I did, but..." She rolled a hoof at Starlight. "You're implying she has knowledge beyond that?"

"Way beyond that. Information all of three creatures total, ever, anywhere, should have a hint about." Starlight clopped a hoof down. "She wasn't surprised when I said I destroyed Equestria a few times."

Twilight folded her ears back. "But..."

"Exactly." Starlight hopped down from her seat, circling her desk towards Twilight. "That wasn't written down. That wasn't shared. That was a secret, a super super secret."

"About as secret as it gets." Twilight sank to her haunches. "But she really does seem nice."

Starlight applied a hoof to her face. "Yeah, I got that. Nice enough, just knows... things. Do I have permission to interrogate the hay out of her?" She smiled sweetly. "I'll be nice."

"She's a foal." Twilight rolled her eyes as she turned for the door. "Unless she does something wrong, I don't want her being harassed. She's here to learn. Help her do that."

Comforting smiled nervously at the front of the class. "It's g-good to be here." She blushed at her stutter. That hadn't been the plan, but... "I'm Comforting Shade." She didn't recognize all the students. She hadn't paid enough attention in the later seasons, which was biting her in her new furry bottom.

Applejack waved towards an available seat. "Go on and have ah seat. Now, Comforting may be the smallest of us, but she's a student, same as the rest of y'all. Don't roughhouse too bad, but she's here to learn. Treat her like ya would any other student."

"Hello!" The incredibly large, for a child, yak was beaming at her. "Yona not know such small ponies could join. Must be very smart." She tapped at her head meaningfully. "Not know Yak things. Yona show you. Later."

"She's not that small." There was the other filly in the room, with curly mane that she was puffing up. "Hey there. I'm Co--"

"Ah know yer all excited to meet the new filly." Applejack was smiling at the class. "But we got a class ta get to, so settle in. Let's get started."

Chat in the class died down as the lesson started properly.

Comforting recoiled in surprise, a note landing on her desk. She reached for it, mashing it flat to read it.

Hiya!

Golly, it's nice to not be the only filly in class. We gotta look out for each other. Look for me doing lunch, K?

Big hugs!
Cozy Glow

A sketch of Cozy's smiling face followed after it. Comforting giggled without thinking about it, only to color, mashing up the letter and stuffing it away. It was quite handy that ponies had pockets.

The bell rang through the school. Applejack nodded at the class that was already rising to their hooves and paws. "See ya tomorrow. We're gonna head outside fer some practical-like lessons, so look forward t'that!" The class cheered, but her eyes were on Comforting, who looked less certain.

"Do you know where yer next class is?" Applejack closed with the filly. "We're all new sometime, don't even sweat it. Ah'll show ya the way." She walked alongside Comforting at a slow pace to match the stride of the small filly. "Ya gettin' 'long? Ah know it's yer first day an' all, but ah know I'd be nervous if Apple Bloom came here when she was your size."

"She'd..." Comforting trailed off. She wasn't sure, she realized. "Thanks, Miss Applejack."

"Yer quite welcome." Applejack tipped her hat, only to remove it, sweeping towards a door. "And here we are. Yer next class is with Rarity."

Comforting perked at that. "Oh, interesting." and in she went, in pursuit of further education.

"Nice little foal." Applejack started off back on her own schedule.

Lunch time prompted a rush of eager students, which Comforting was half-washed away in until the tide let her down near the cafeteria. "Huh." Well, that was where she wanted to go anyway, so she trotted the rest of the way to find the school's many students enjoying themselves.

It was at that point that she saw Twilight had not lied. The students came in all shapes and sizes and ages. From teens on up through adults, though no older adults were in view. "Are you lost?" There was an adult, watching her. "You look a little lost."

Comforting shook her head quickly. "I'm alright." She spotted the curled mane she had been seeking. "I was just looking for someone." And off she hurried to join Cozy Glow and other foals of various ages, tending upwards into their teens, gathered around a table, eating. "Hello!"

Cozy flashed a bright smile. "There she is. There's the little unicorn I was talking about." She waved for comforting to come closer. "Behold, a pony competing with me for smallest." That got giggles around the table. "First day, right?"

"Yes." Comforting slid up next to Cozy, sitting down and looking about. "Where's the nice... Yak right?"

Cozy inclined her head. "You aren't, gosh, scared? She's big, and she stomps! She could squish us flat without even thinking about it."

The other students there agreed with the potential threat that being around Yona presented. Comforting didn't seem immediately swayed by that. "I bet she would never do that on purpose."

Cozy rolled her eyes. "Tell that to the doctor. Your ribs were broken, on accident, so they should get better real quick." She and the other ponies laughed at the idea of it.

Comforting stood up on her seat. "I'll take my chances." She hopped down and walked away, looking around slowly. A dull thud that shook the ground was the hint. There was Yona, with other students, smiling and bouncing in place. Each time the yak hit the ground, it trembled with the force. Yona had a lot of mass, Comforting had to admit. That part wasn't off.

"Hey, it's that new filly." A blue griffon had spotted her, and was eyeing her with some skepticism. "Why aren't you with the other students more your age?" He hiked a thumb at the table Comforting had just left.

A pony, the only one there, beckoned Comforting closer. "Hay, if she wants to hang out with us, cool."

"Thanks." Comforting climbed up, not next to the pony, instead next to Yona. "Your name is Yona, right?"

"Yes." Yona nodded eagerly. "Nice meet little Comfort." She patted Comforting perhaps one step too hard. "Hungry? Good food here. Not as good as Yak food, but close?" She shrugged as she pointed to the front where the food was served.

"Sandbar," offered the pony.

"Gallus." The griffon hiked a thumb at himself.

"Smolder." They had a dragon, and she was grinning, her fangs on display. "You don't act like a little kid your age."

"Silverstream!" The hippogriff girl was waving super eagerly. "Nice to meet you. What's your whole name again?"

"Comforting Shade." Her ears fell a moment before they sprang up. "And I am a little hungry, but that looks like a crowd."

"Ocellus," offered the... Comforting wasn't sure what a reformed changeling was, so she had no idea. "And I got it." She lifted on her buzzing wings and flew towards the front.

Sandbar poked the new pony. "We're all dying to hear your story. Tell us you're more talkative than Cozy is."

Gallus rolled his eyes dramatically. "Ugh, she didn't tell us a word about where she's from. What about it, kid? Up to sharing?"

Ocellus had returned, announced with a tray slipping in past Comforting to land in front of her, burdened with food.

"Ooo!" Comforting leaned in, eyeing the bounty. "Thank you so much." She took a big bite out of something like bread, but so much more interesting in flavor. "As for... my story, it's complicated a little, but, to keep to the basics... Celestia gave me to Fluttershy to take care of."

All eyes were on her, a few jaws hanging loosely.

"And... she, Fluttershy, brought me to Twilight, who said I could go here." She tried her best smile.

Smolder ribbed the new little filly. "Wicked. Not many can just casually name drop the head horse like that." That got her a snort from Sandbar, not that this stopped her. "Now, me?" She hiked a thumb at herself. "I was brought here by the dragon lord, ha. So we both got vetted by the highest we got." She offered a hand.

Comforting met it with a hoof, as close to a high five as they could get. "You are a nice dragon."

Smolder's smile dimmed a little. "What, you expect me to be some kinda jerk?" But then she shrugged, a smirk on her face. "Yeah, most of us are. Gallus, and me are the 'we're not jerks like them' club."

"Not like yaks." Yona nodded sagaciously. "Yaks are best at dip... diplom..." She frowned. "Diplomacy!" There was the word.

Gallus rolled his shoulders. "Well, this is the school of friendship. If everycreature knew how to be friends, we wouldn't need it, right?"

Ocellus waved a hoof eagerly. "I know how to be friends, um, but I want to know more... There's a lot changelings don't... get, me included."

Comforting blinked. That was not how changelings looked! At least the ones she knew... "Aren't changelings black?"

Ocellus blushed brightly. "Oh, no... Unless they want to be?" She waved at herself. "Most of us are pretty bright colored, since we stopped working for Chrysalis."

Sandbar inclined his head at Comforting. "You didn't hear about that? How?"

Comforting realized she had failed a current events skill check, shoot... "I've been trying to read more newspapers." That only got odder looks. "Is there a better place to look?"

Yona burst into deep laugher, grabbing up the little pony and hugging her. "Yona like this one, she's funny." She set the frazzled Comforting back down on her bench. "Not know many creatures our age that read papers a lot." The others nodded with soft uh huhs. Reading the news was not high on their to-dos.

Gallus fired a wink from across the table. "Don't worry about it. I like a good newspaper once in a while. You're new in town, right?" As soon as she nodded, he went right on, "I'll show you where you can read the paper without even payin' fer it, if you're a fast reader."

Sandbar snorted at that. "Don't pay attention to him. Ask Fluttershy and she'd get you a paper, I'm sure."

Yona nodded quickly at that. "Fluttershy is very nice. Is what she teaches." As if that just made it all come together. "And animals."

Comforting brought her hooves together. "When is her class?"

Smolder chuckled softly. "Eager to see your mom? Let me see your schedule." Out came a slip of paper that Smolder snatched as soon as it was visible. "Let's see here... Oh, she's next, ha! What luck is that? I'm in that class too." She thrust the schedule back at Comforting. "Let's learn how to be nice, together."

Comforting's expression brightened. "That sounds great. Can you show me the way?"

"Ain't a problem." Smolder pointed at her food. "But you should eat before you run out of time."

"Oh!" Reminded, Comforting got back to chomping down her food with happy little noises at the discovery of each new Equestrian taste, most of which clearly agreed with her.

Gallus watched Comforting a moment before shaking his head. "Don't get it."

Yona stuck out her tongue. "Not up to us to 'get'. We help." She set a hoof on Comforting's head. "Help friends."