//------------------------------// // Intermission – Walk and Talk // Story: Chromatic Aberration // by Avery Day //------------------------------// So, this morning was total proof that Sunset was still up to her old tricks. Sure, as far as anyone knew, Sunset hadn’t done anything wrong in a while, but that didn’t mean anything. It just meant she was playing the long game. Once everyone bought into her bullshit, that’s when she was gonna strike. She might be fooling everyone else—maybe even herself—but she wasn’t gonna fool me. Still, it all made me so mad. I’d been giving her the cold shoulder for weeks, but with how she kept trying, I thought maybe she really was coming around. But that was dumb. She held out for a long time, but I held out longer. No matter how stupid she thinks I am, she’s even stupider. …That didn't mean I didn't feel stupid, though. My gut had been telling me we shouldn’t trust her from day one, but I was this close to thinking it was wrong. But now she’d slipped up, and I knew better than to doubt my gut ever again. Once a lying she-demon, always a lying she-demon. Walking into the lunch room, this morning played out in my head again. I mean, I’d been playing it over in my head all day—how could I not? I looked awesome, and it wasn’t just me who thought so. Between and in each class, I’d hear other kids talking about what happened, and they were always talking about how cool it was to watch me put that bitch in her place. Still, even with how awesome I looked, I couldn’t help but get mad every time I thought about it. My fists would clench every time I thought about her stupid face, and I’d grit my teeth together when I remembered what she said. She really tried to bait me into hitting her, and I knew exactly why. “Why don’t you go ahead and hit me? I know you want to. Do us both a favor and get it over with.” She was lucky. If I could get away with it, I probably would have punched her so hard, that rainbow laser we shot her with would feel like a poke by comparison. But, just like last time, I knew better. But even if I knew she wasn’t worth it, it just wasn’t fair. She could get up in my face like that, but if I hit her? I’d be the one in real trouble. I mean, she’d probably get expelled, but I doubt she gave a shit. No matter where she was, she always looked so angry and shitty, like she never wanted to be anywhere. Too bad she couldn’t just run away to her magic pony dimension already. She definitely would if she could, if she got kicked out of school. Even if she said going back would be really bad news for her, what could a bunch of magical ponies do to her? Sentence her to a lifetime of being snuggled by hug-demons in the deepest depths of The Cuddle Dungeon? Give me a break. Me, though? I’d be suspended, I’d be kicked off of all the teams I was on, and I’d be banned from rejoining any of them until next year at the earliest. It would kill my future. Sunset knew that, and that was why she tried so hard to get me to fight her. I wasn’t stupid. Pushing her hadn't landed me in any real trouble thankfully, but I shouldn’t have been in any at all, because I didn’t do anything. Vice Principal Luna pulled me out of one of my classes to talk about what happened, and all I got was a day's worth of detention. That was just a slap on the wrist, but it still pissed me off. That meant band practice would have to be postponed, but I guess if it meant I got to put Sunset in her place, it was worth it. I pushed the cafeteria doors open. Aside from this morning, the rest of the day had been pretty boring. I could barely pay attention in class on a good day, but it was really hard after everything. Normally, I'd just sleep through each period until lunch, but I kept getting mad about what happened with Sunset, and that ate into my napping, and that made time drag by super slowly. At least lunchtime had finally arrived, and that meant I could hang out with my friends, which was sure to make me feel better. By now, Fluttershy had probably told all our friends about what happened, and while I’m sure she told them exactly what I told her, I couldn’t wait to tell the story my way. “Hey everyone,” I said, taking my usual spot at the table. “Rainbow Dash,” Rarity greeted before she started eating her lunch again. She seemed tense—like she was mad about something. But that was pretty normal for her, so I just shrugged it off. “Hiya Dash!” Pinkie Pie exclaimed with a wide grin. She seemed normal at first, but then, after she looked off to the side, she stopped smiling and went back to eating her lunch. Both of them were acting kinda weird. Well, Pinkie was always acting weird, but this was different than normal Pinkie-weird. And usually, when Rarity was mad about something, we couldn’t get her to stop talking about it. I couldn’t get a read on either of them. “What’s up with you two today?” Both of them looked in different directions. While I waited for an answer, I noticed Fluttershy’s seat was empty. That was weird, too. Fluttershy was usually one of the first ones at our table. I might have thought she was just running late, but, since the whole vibe at the table felt off, I couldn’t be sure. “Fluttershy was here a few minutes ago,” Rarity answered. “She seemed… rather upset about something.” Immediately my mind jumped to Sunset, wondering if she had done something to her. “Is she okay? Did something happen?” I asked. Rarity gave a tight-lipped smile, her eyes drifting off to the side. Instead of words, she answered by smacking her lips and sucking in air through her teeth. Pinkie picked up where Rarity left off. “She didn’t want to say at first, but she just told us about what happened between you and Sunset, and she’s reeeeeally not happy about it.” “Huh.” I scratched my head. “That’s weird. She seemed fine when I told her this morning.” “Eheh, right, that's weird,” Pinkie replied, going back to eating a birthday cake out of her lunch box with her hands. I shrugged. “Eh, she’s probably upset because I was right about Sunset. I just hope she’s not taking it too hard.” “Yes, mmm, that’s a… possibility, perhaps,” said Rarity. She definitely knew more than she wanted me to think, and she was doing a really bad job of hiding it. Her reaction didn’t make sense, though. Did she not believe me? Why else would Fluttershy be upset about this morning? “So… if she was here earlier, where is she now?” I asked. “Applejack asked her if she wanted to talk about it alone, so they’ve been off doing that since.” Pinkie gave a strained smile, trying her best to be comforting. "They'll be back soon! I think." That's when I looked to where Applejack usually sat. Her stuff was there, but she wasn’t. Why would Fluttershy suddenly be upset about what happened this morning? Sure, she seemed a little down when I told her about it, but not upset. So what could have changed? When I looked back at Pinkie and Rarity, they were both looking above me. Before I could ask them what they were looking at, I felt a hand on my shoulder. When I turned around, Applejack was standing right behind me, her eyes meeting mine with a deadpan stare. “Hey, AJ,” I greeted. No response. “Uhh, how’s it going?” I asked. No response. “Where’s Fluttershy? Is she okay?” I asked. She just kept staring, her eyes drilling into me. “Are you just gonna keep staring at me or–” “Hope you ain’t comfy yet.” Her hand squeezed my shoulder as she took a couple of steps away. “Come on, walk and talk with me.” A knot formed in my stomach. I hated when she said that. It usually meant I screwed something up, but what? I hadn’t even seen any of the girls since last week. “Wait, what? Why? What did I do? Can you at least tell me where Fluttershy is?” “Come walk and talk with me and you’ll find out,” Applejack insisted. I groaned. “Come on AJ, this is stupid.” Applejack just gave me that stare—the one that told me she wasn’t messing around, but that only made me more confused. I looked at Pinkie and Rarity. Both of them looked away from me awkwardly like they didn’t know what was going on either. Applejack furrowed her brow, her glare intensifying. “Would you just get up so we can get this over with, or am I gonna have to drag your ass outta here?” “What's your problem?” “Why don'tcha come with me and I’ll tell you.” Once again, I looked to Pinkie and Rarity for help, but neither of them spoke up. They’d said they didn’t know what was going on, but I had a feeling they knew more than they were willing to let on. Whatever the case, they weren’t gonna be any help, and I wasn’t gonna get any answers by just sitting there. “Fine, whatever.” Letting out a low growl, I picked up my lunch and followed AJ out of the cafeteria. The whole time we walked, she gave me the cold shoulder, and it drove me crazy. Even when both of us went to our lockers to fetch our hoodies, she refused to say anything. How much walking did we have to do before we finally got to the talking? Unfortunately, no matter how many times I asked, Applejack was adamant about waiting until we were out of the building to say anything. Even when I tried to make small talk, she’d just hold up her hand and tell me to save it. I hadn’t seen her or any of the other girls in three days, and this is how they greeted me? How she greeted me? It’d be one thing if she looked mad, but she didn’t. She’d just look at me like a disappointed parent—like I was in trouble and I should know why. It was degrading and annoying, and all that did was make me angrier. “Alright, there, we’re outside,” I said. “Now can you please tell me why we’re out here wasting our lunch period? I'm still kinda sick, I’ve been having a shit day since this morning, and I don't wanna deal with anything right now.” Finally, Applejack turned around, leaning her back against the base of the school statue. “Since this mornin’, huh?” she repeated. “Why don’t you fill me in what happened this mornin’?” What kind of stupid question was that? She had to know. If Fluttershy hadn’t told her, she had to have heard about it from someone else. “Can you not talk to me like I'm five years old?” “How ‘bout you stop actin’ like you are?” “What are you talking about? The thing with Sunset? Is that what this walk and talk is about?” “At least part of it,” she answered. “You done fucked up real bad this time, Dash. Fluttershy’s mad as hell about what you did.” “I fucked up?! What I did?! Why would she be mad at me? I didn’t do anything to her! She was starting shit with me!” Applejack sighed, shaking her head. “That ain’t what Fluttershy told me.” “What do you mean that’s not what she told you? I literally told her that’s what happened this morning!” Applejack nodded. “Yep, you sure did, but you ain’t the only one.” My eyes narrowed. “Sunset…” I hissed. AJ nodded again, glaring at me again. “So what? Are you trying to tell me she believes her word over mine?” I exclaimed, my finger pointed right up to her chest. “Do you believe her over me?” Pinching the bridge of her nose, AJ let out a frustrated sigh as she pushed my hand away. “Why’d you go and lie to Fluttershy?” “I didn’t lie!” I exclaimed. “Really? So y’all just got into a shoutin’ match in the middle of the hallway ‘cause she was antagonizin’ you, and you walked off before anythin’ happened, right? That’s what you told Fluttershy, ain’t it?” “Basically, yeah,” I replied, hiding my nerves. So what if there were some details I didn’t mention? She didn’t need to know everything that happened, and even if she did, it wouldn’t change the fact that none of it was my fault. “Uh huh, and Sunset just happened to bust her head open on her own? You had nothin’ to do with it? You didn’t push her or nothin’ before you walked off ‘cause you was mad?” AJ kept staring at me with that knowing look. “Ugh, okay! Fine! She got up in my face, so I pushed her away. There, happy?” AJ groaned. “Come on, ya can’t be doin’ shit like this!” “Like what?!” I yelled. “Gee, I dunno, startin’ shit with Sunset all the damn time for no reason, nearly gettin’ in fights with her in the hallway, and lyin’ to your best friend?” “It wasn’t my fault! She tried to make me hit her! It was the same shit she pulled last year! You should have seen the look on her face. I’m telling you, she’s still bad news!” “That don’t matter, Dash! You might as well have hit her! Did you not hear me when I said she busted her damn head open? Vice Principal Luna’s already talked to Sunset, so if she ain’t said nothin’ to you yet, she’s gonna be lookin’ to chat with you. You could be in deep shit!” “She already has,” I said. “All she did was give me detention. Besides, she told me Sunset was fine, so what’s the big deal?” Dragging her hand down her face, Applejack groaned. “Okay, fine, if it ain’t no big deal, then why did you lie to Fluttershy about what actually happened?” “I. Didn’t. Lie!” Instead of responding, she just stared. My teeth grit together as she gave me that disappointed-parent look again. Applejack was one of my best friends, and that meant she knew a lot about me. Unfortunately, that meant she knew just the right way to twist my arm to make me admit something. When she wouldn’t budge, I sighed in defeat. “I just… left a few parts out.” Applejack rolled her eyes. “That’s still lyin’, Rainbow Dash! Either way, it don’t matter what you call it, arguin’ with me ain’t gonna fix nothin’. She went and found out all the stuff you didn’t tell her from Sunset, and now she’s mad at you.” “I…” My stomach twisted up like a pretzel before I could come up with a response. Applejack was right. If Fluttershy was mad, then it didn’t matter how I saw it—I messed up. But that didn’t make any sense! Why would she be mad at me? So what if I didn’t mention a few things? That didn’t change the fact that Sunset tried to make me fight her. That didn’t change the fact that she was still a scheming, conniving bitch. All I’d done was make her blow her cover; they should have been thanking me for that. And why was Fluttershy so willing to take her side anyway? After everything Sunset did to her? After everything I’d done for her? Fluttershy was my best friend, and I’d tried to prove that at every opportunity. She meant the world to me, and I’d do anything for her. What were a few little… what was the word? Right. What were a few little omissions, anyway? It’d be worth it in the end. It was only a few months ago when Sunset was bullying her all the time. Now she was trying to weasel her way into our group just so she could do what she did before the Fall Formal. Once she divided all of us, she'd make Fluttershy's life a living hell again. It was completely obvious. I was just trying to protect her and the rest of my friends from Sunset. So why was I the bad guy? It just didn’t add up. Applejack’s hand landed on my shoulder, snapping me out of my runaway train of thought. “Look, I get it better than anyone else. I know how you feel about her, and I know you wanna protect her, but pickin’ fights and lyin’ about it ain’t protectin’ her.” Her words hardly registered with me as anger and confusion continued to bubble up inside of me. “I just don’t get it!” I shouted. “Why does she even care about Sunset?!” AJ’s hand lifted from my shoulder. “It don’t matter why she does, Dash. All that matters is that she does, and you gotta learn to respect that.” I knew Applejack was trying to reason with me, but it felt like she wasn’t listening to my reasoning at all. “Why?! If I do that, it’s only a matter of time before she tries to split us all apart again! How can she not see that? How can you not see that?!” “That ain’t gonna happen, Dash.” “How can you be so sure? Aren’t you listening to me? She tried to get me to fight her this morning! She’s still trying to screw me over! What more proof do you need?” A frustrated sigh passed through her nose. Applejack looked up for a second before facing me again. “I want you to think about this. That girl’s come to school every day lookin’ as flat as a flitter ever since we put her twenty feet deep in the dirt, and everyone’s been pickin’ at her like a banjo ever since.” Admittedly, hearing that was sickly satisfying. I had to try not to smirk. “Yeah? It’s what she deserves. What’s your point?” Applejack shot me a half-lidded glare. “Dash, pull your head outta your ass for just a sec and really think about this. She ain’t done nothin' in a while, right?” Cocking my head to the side for a second, I nodded. “I guess.” “And why do you think that might be?” “Because she’s trying to make us let our guard down?” “Or—and stick with me here—it’s ‘cause, for the first time in her life, she’s got somethin’ to lose. We’re all she’s got right now. We’re the only ones who ain’t treatin’ her like shit—excludin' you. What do you think she’s gonna do if she loses the only thing she’s got goin’ for her ‘cause we kept pushin’ her away?” I couldn’t help but chuckle as my answer popped into my head. “Fuck off, hopefully.” “Hopefully,” Applejack sternly emphasized. “But more than likely, she’s gonna start actin’ up the same way she did before.” “Exactly,” I said. “People like her don’t change.” “Oh, for fuck’s sake…” Applejack muttered under her breath. “Look, we got more to talk about, and I ain’t got all day to go back and forth with you on this. How you feel doesn’t change the fact that Fluttershy’s been tryin’ harder than any of us to make Sunset feel welcome, and you’re workin’ against her.” “That’s because she’s making a mistake!" "If she feels like this is the right thing to do, then it’s her mistake to make,” she snapped back. “You know you ain’t gonna stop her, so the best thing you can do for her is be there for her in case everything goes south.” I opened my mouth to respond, but couldn’t think of a single word to say. Judging by Applejack’s grin, she could tell she had me cornered. “Look, sugarcube,” she began, placing her hand on my shoulder again, “ain't none of us got more reasons to be wary of Sunset than her. If she thinks it's worth tryin', then I trust her, and so should you. You told me you’d do anything in the world for her, right? So if you won’t try for Sunset’s sake, if you won’t do it ‘cause Twilight told us to, then do it for Fluttershy.” With nothing left to fight back with, my shoulders slumped. Maybe it was because this morning took a lot out of me, but I was tapped out. I didn’t want to, but I had to admit she had a point. Applejack chuckled. “Besides, if you're right, then she’ll come runnin’ into your arms for protection.” She looked up, clasping her hands together. “Oh Dashie, my hero! I shoulda listened to you all along. Hold me and never let me go!” she acted out dramatically. My face burned as I punched her in the arm. “Fuck you, cut it out!” She winked, nudging me back with her elbow. Even if that was embarrassing, I couldn’t help but smile. Throwing my hands up, I let out another defeated sigh. “Okay, fine. You win. I’ll try to play nice,” I said. “But she only gets one chance!” Applejack rolled her eyes but smiled just the same. “Atta' girl. Now, that was the easy part of the walk and talk.” “What?! What do you mean that was the easy part? What else could there possibly be to talk about?” “Come on, take a walk with me.” Applejack motioned for me to follow with her hand as she walked onto the schoolyard grass. "Oh, come on! More walking, too?" "Quit your bellyachin'!" she shot back as she kept walking with her back turned. “We gotta talk about how you’re gonna make this up to Fluttershy." She stopped for a moment, turning to face me with a smirk. "And you ain’t gonna like what I got planned.” My stomach sank as I dragged my feet behind her. I had a feeling I knew what her plan was, and if I was right, I was going to hate it. Still, Applejack’s advice hadn’t failed me yet. If it meant making Fluttershy happy, it’d be worth it. I hoped.