//------------------------------// // Chp 3: Full plate // Story: Bully: Manticore Academy // by the silver-maned pony //------------------------------// The sun’s rays shined on Manticore Academy. It was like any other day. Students were getting their textbooks, teachers were planning their lessons, the custodian pegasai were clearing the sky of clouds, and the lunch lady was making more bizarre, and slightly hazardous, food. And oh yeah, there was a nerd being bullied near the auto shop garages. The nerd was being held up by her collar, her back to the chain-linked fence. She was being held by Berry Punch, with Bon Bon by her side. “Now Sparkler,” Berry said menacingly, “why don’t you apologize, and maybe I will let you go.” “Apologize for what?” Sparkler said, a slight quiver in her voice. Berry smiled and turned her head to Bon Bon, “Isn’t it cute when they play innocent?” “Very.” Bon Bon giggled Berry turned back to Sparkler, “You didn’t stop when I told you to stop. So now,” she raised her fist, “you gotta pay the fine.” “I’m not afraid of you!” Sparkler cried, but the quiver in her voice became even more prominent. Berry laughed, “Look at you, thinking you’re so tough. Well guess what; you’re not. And since your friend isn’t here to help you…” her grin grew and Sparkler closed her eyes, preparing for the pain. As though on cue, one of the garage doors opened with a bang. The 3 ponies turned and saw a disgruntled Rainbow Dash walking out of the garage. She was dusting her hands off and steadied her new blue satchel bag on her shoulder, “Man does this blow.” she thought aloud, “Looks like there was only one radio in that whole garage. Now how am I supposed to get that crazy old pony to teach me?” Dash finally saw the scene that was transpiring by the fence and sighed. “Not again.” She exasperated. “Sparkler, are you O.K?” “I’m currently being held against my will and about to get pummeled by these two brutes. I have never felt better in my life.” Sparkler sarcastically replied, “Do you mind helping me out? There was no need as Berry had just let go of Sparkler. Berry and Bon Bon where now glaring at Dash, their eyes filled with malice and a hint of fear. “O.K girls,” Rainbow said as she dropped her satchel bag, which contained her books and slingshot, on the floor, “there are only two ways this will end. Way No.1 is you just walk away. Way No.2,” She cracked her knuckles and got into her fighting stance, “is a lot more painful.” The two bullies weighed their options; either walk away, or take their chances with a mare that has proven she could take them both. In the end, the mares chose the former. Once they were out of sight, Dash picked up her bag and helped Sparkler to her feet, “Are you O.K?” Dash repeated, “Any bruises?” “Besides the one on my neck and to my sense of security, no.” “So what happened?” Dash asked as the two made their way to morning classes, “This is like, what, the 2nd time this week?” “3rd,” Sparkler corrected solemnly, “I’m beginning to think they have some tracer on me. As for what happened, I was talking to the auto-shop teacher about whether he has some spare parts for a project I’ve been working on. He said I should go check the garages. As I was going, I passed by the two bullies. I tried to ignore them, like you said to, but as you can see, that didn’t end well.” “Yeah,” Rainbow said uncomfortably, “I guess I should say I’m sorry about that.” “Don’t worry about it. Anyway,” she and Dash had made it to the first floor of the academy, “Thanks for the help Rainbow Dash. See ya around.” And she went right while Dash went left. Rainbow Dash had been in M.A for almost 2 weeks now. She met Sparkler in the school bathroom after Dash ‘convinced’ the bully Lyra to stop from giving Sparkler a swirly. After that, it became more apparent on how much bullying was going on in the school. Dash had tried her best to stop it, but it wasn’t going well. She was pretty angry that Lightning Dust, with all of her talk of taking over the school and stop the bullying, had done nothing. Thinking about her seemingly futile effort to stop the bullying. She sighed and entered her morning class. ________________________________________ Art had to be Rainbow Dash’s 2nd favorite subject for 2 reasons. One was the teacher, Ms. Celestia, was a very kind and cool teacher. It also helped that she was an Alicorn, which caused Dash’s jaw to drop when she first found out. The other reason was her grading system. “Art is a wondrous thing,” Celestia had said in their first class, “Art could be thought of as life. Just like life, art cannot just be a drawing of figures and logic. It needs emotions, love, and friendship.” ‘Was this a philosophy class?’ Dash thought as Celestia continued, “I will not grade you on how straight your lines. I will grade you on how well you bring your art to life. I will grade it on how well it expresses a subject. For example, your art could express you.” For the next couple of classes, the students worked on their first piece of art. Back to the present. Class was about to end and Celestia was walking around to see how her students were. “Oh my.” Celestia had stopped and was staring at Rainbow Dash’s drawing. She had drawn a barren battlefield with two steel swords clashing together. Instead of sparks, little rainbows were showering the battlefield. “This is most impressive.” Celestia admired, “I see how the battlefield represents your life and the hardships you had. The swords would then be an inner struggle you are feeling. The little rainbows, no doubt, represent you. Even though the struggle within you rages on, you still come out as yourself. Most impressive.” She repeated and even gave a small clap. “Um… sure. I guess your right.” Dash said, craning her head to see what Celestia was seeing. Rainbow Dash just thought of the coolest thing she could think of and drew it. The bell rang and the students poured out of the classroom. Rainbow Dash made her way through the crowd and exited the school. As part of her plan to do all she can to stop bullying, Dash had begun to patrol the school grounds during lunch. It was either that, or she would have to hang out by herself as she could never seem to find Lightning Dust or Scootaloo during lunch. As part of her regular patrol, she first headed to the parking lot and library. Those places were always hotspots for bullies. After that, she would go and check out if any of the other cliques of the school was bullying. The preppies were, as always, talking amongst themselves. Dash had caught parts of their speech, “…and then I thought, ‘what the hell, I’ll buy them.’ It was an extra 150 bits, but it was father’s money…” “… so I told her, ‘now Aloe, if you eat any more apple pie, you’re gonna turn into a greaseball’…” Dash eventually decided that the preppies weren’t a threat. Were they snobs? Yes. Were they jerks? Of course. Were they bullies? Not so sure. Dash made her way to the auto shops to inspect the greasers. Just like the preppies, she eavesdropped on their conversations. “… So when the store clerk wasn’t looking, I swiped the goods. And that’s how I got my new boots.” “… then she says, ‘What, are you afraid of some dirt? And then I say, ‘I ain’t any preppy.’…” It was no wonder to Rainbow Dash why the preppies and greasers were enemies. Dash had decided to listen to Lighting Dust’s advice and avoid the jocks. After about an hour of patrolling, Dash walked around the school for the final time, thinking if she should suck up her pride and just ask were Dust or Scootaloo hang out, when she collided with somepony. Recoiling slightly, Dash saw that she had bumped into Ms. Luna. Luna quickly shook her head and smiled when she saw Dash, “Why hello Rainbow Dash,” she said loudly, “fair thee well, young maiden?” Dash gave her a confused look and Luna sighed, “How are you, young lady? Honestly, you kids must learn to appreciate language.” “Oh, I’m O.K.” she paused for a bit but curiosity got the best of her, “Ms. Luna, are you O.K?” Dash had noticed that Luna’s cheeks were a hint of a rosy color. It was very similar to Soarin’s. “I’m O.K child. In fact, I’m more than O.K. I’m very excited about your book report.” “Wait, what book report?” “Why Rainbow Dash, don’t you remember?” Luna said in mock surprise, “I assigned it a couple of days ago.” Luna began to recount the events from a couple of days ago. ________________________________________ “Now class,” Luna said as the class was about to end, “For the next week, you’ll all be writing your first book report.” The students let out a groan of misery. “Now now little ones, do not look so wretched. For the report, you will read a classic novel and write not just a summary, but explain the writing style. Explain why the author chose a certain diction or described a scene a certain way. Please take your time and do your best-” Luna was cut off when a loud snoring filled the room. Everypony turned and stared at Rainbow Dash, who was currently in an unabashed nap. Luna cleared her throat, which somehow managed to magnify her voice, "Rainbow Dash, thou will NOT slumber when I am talking!" Rainbow woke up with a jolt, momentarily forgetting where she was. “What?” “Ms. Dash, did you hear anything I have just said?” Sweating slightly, Dash said, “Um… of course I did.” “Oh really,” Luna said in a slightly amused smile, “So you are prepared to turn in the homework next week?” Dash looked down at her desk and saw today’s work. I was a 2 page vocabulary sheet. Luna always assigned the classwork as homework. Thinking this was it, Rainbow scoffed, “Don’t worry Luna, I know the homework. I’m so sure I could finish it, I’ll turn it in tomorrow.” “Really?” Luna said, now very amused by Dash’s cluelessness, “how about we make a deal? I’ll give you four days to finish the assignment. If you complete it, you are exempted from doing book reports for the rest of the semester.” “Awesome!” “However, if you fail,” her smile went from amused to instilling fear, “you must face the consequences.” Shivering slightly from the smile, Dash said, “You got yourself a deal!” ________________________________________ “Wait a second,” Dash said after Luna finished, “you’re saying when I was sleeping- I mean, resting my eyes- you gave the class a book report assignment.” “Yes.” “A book report that I agree to do in four days. “You’re correct.” “A book report that is due tomorrow.” “The very same.” “And if I don’t turn it in, I’ll be facing…” “Dire consequences.” Luna finished with a smile, “Well, I must be going. I can’t wait to read what you wrote.” Stumbling slightly, Luna left Dash to her thoughts. As soon as the English teacher was out of sight. Dash ran with all her strength to the library. Pulling the doors with tremendous force, she quickly made her way to the librarian. As she was passing the shelves of knowledge, she heard somepony, “Excuse me, are you Rainbow Dash?” Turning to the aisles, Dash saw an earth pony with green eyes and dark orange hair. One look from her and Dash knew she was part of the nerd’s clique. “Hi, I’m Junebug.” “Nice to meet you. Now, if you will excuse me, I need to get a book and calm my nerves.” “Wait, I need your help. I have some books to turn in and I’m… well, scared. I know that if I go to my locker on my own, the bullies will get me. I swear, those girls are getting more aggressive every day. But I know that they’re afraid of you. If you just walk me to my locker, I’ll feel a lot safer.” “I’m sorry, really. But I’ve got problems of my own.” Dash could not get the image of Luna’s evil smile out of her head. She began to walk away when Junebug said something that made Dash stop in her tracks, “Wait! I’ll pay you.” Dash turned to Junebug. Dash needed the money. Between the satchel bag she bought and the fact that she has been living off ramen noodles from the school store as she would not eat the cafeteria’s food, her bits bag had become extremely light. Her mom’s advice echoed in her mind, "Get a job!" “O.K Junebug, how many bits are we talking about.” “5 bits.” “15.” Dash bartered. “Um… 7 bits.” “Deal, 10 bits it is. Come Junebug, we better get going.” Before Junebug could protest, Dash had wrapped her arm around Junebug’s shoulder and guided her out of the library and to the school. The trip was a surprisingly uneventful one. Dash didn’t really believe it when Junebug said the bullies were afraid of her, but the little trip proved otherwise. As she led Junebug, Dash noticed that the bullies glaring daggers at Junebug, but after seeing Dash was with her, the bullies didn’t make a move. Rainbow couldn’t help but smile; it seemed she was making an impact on the bullies. After a couple of minutes Dash and Junebug arrived at Junebug’s locker, “Thank you so much Rainbow Dash!” Junebug exclaimed as she pulled out 5 different books. The bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. “Don’t worry about me Rainbow, I can make it back to the library on my own. Here’s your payment.” Junebug handed Dash 10 bits. “Thanks again Dash, see ya around.” She and Dash then departed to their own classes. Rainbow now walked with a new spring in her step. She couldn’t tell if it was from helping another pony, the fact that bullies now think twice before messing with her, or that she may have found herself a new way to make money. ________________________________________ Gym class took place in the school gymnasium. It had to be the class Rainbow both loved and hated the most. She loved it as it focused on the one thing she excels in, sports and exercise. She hated it because the class was by coach Ironwill, who always picked on the physically impaired students. Then there was the fact that half of the class was made up of bullies and jocks. “Alright you gutless tunas,” Ironwill said after the class finished their suicide runs. “I have a special treat for you. Today, we will be playing,” he reached behind his back and somehow produced three red balls, “Dodgeball.” The bullies, jocks, and Dash cheered while the nerds in the class groaned. “You will all be paired in teams of three. We will be playing in tournament form. What are you all waiting for?! Go to your teams!” There was a scramble of students instantly going to their own little group. In the end the bullies were with bullies, the preppies with preppies, greasers with greasers, jocks with jocks, and nerds with the nerds. The only ponies left without a group were Dash, a male earth pony, and female unicorn. Both of whom were nerds. “Wait a minute,” Ironwill checked his roster, “we’re missing some ponies. Let’s see… two of them are currently suspended. You!” he barked at the nerd stallion, who jumped violently, “where’s Drizzle?” “D-Drizzle is sick with hay fever.” He said nervously “Hmph, you kids get bed ridden with every little disease. Fine then, Rainbow Dash, you go with geek 1 and geek 2. Faust knows they could use all the help they can get.” The nerds hung their head in shame while Dash shot Ironwill an annoyed look. "Jeez," she thought, "there's no need to put them down like that." “Alright,” Ironwill said once everypony was in their groups, “here are the rules. There will be 3 rounds in each dodgeball match. Once you get hit, you’re out. If you catch a dodgeball, the thrower is out. If you hit somepony in the face or below the belt, you’re out. Now, let’s make traumatic moments that will forever be in your minds.” The first round was the jocks vs. bullies. To nopony’s surprise, the jocks trampled the bullies. It was such a beating; even Rainbow Dash had to look away sometimes. Next round was the preppies vs. the greasers. This was one of the times that the two cliques were able to do damage to one another without getting in trouble. Their battle was a fierce and dirty one. The greasers, which comprised of earth ponies, used their raw strength to turn the plastic balls into cannon balls. The preppies, who were all unicorns, fought fire with fire by secretly using their magic to apply more force to their throws. The match was so intense and long that by the third round, both sides had bruises all over their bodies. There was now only one player for both sides. Each player was exhausted and held a dodgeball. Starring daggers at each other, they threw their dodgeballs with all of their might. The balls passed each other and hit both players squarely at their noses. Ironwill blew his whistle, “Alright, that’s enough. The match ends in a draw. We have time for one more match. I want your team,” he pointed at Rainbow Dash, “and your team,” he pointed at a bully, “on the court now!” As Dash lead her team to the court, one of the bullies walked beside her, “I’m really going to enjoy getting payback for what you did to me.” She told Dash. “You mind reminding me what I did? Because you’re not the only bully I pissed off.” “You slammed your textbooks in my face.” She said with malice. Rainbow chuckled, “Oh yeah, that was you. Maybe next time you won’t get in my way.” The bully growled, but Lyra put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, “Don’t worry Daisy; we’ll have our revenge shortly.” “Yeah,” Bon Bon, the last member of their team, said “we’ll show everypony here we won’t be beaten by one wanna-be superstar.” “I don’t have to pretend to be a superstar; I already am.” Dash said, her pride taking over. Both teams went to opposite sides of each court. Dash shook her legs, raring to go. In the middle of the court were the 3 dodgeballs they were supposed to get. Ironwill blew his whistle and Dash sped off. She was the first to the center. She quickly picked up one of the balls and threw it at Daisy. It seemed that bullies were better at dodgeball than fighting because Daisy side-stepped the speeding ball with ease. Dash looked to her sides to see how her teammates were doing. She was surprised to see that she was completely alone. She turned around and saw that they were still at the far end of the court. They seemed to be trying to appear as small as possible. Dash then accepted the fact she would be facing the bullies on her own. She turned back to her opponents, only to have her sight obscured by red rubber. As her head was flung back, Rainbow heard the distinct sound of pain as her teammates were also hit. “Alright,” Ironwill called, “the first round goes to Daisy, Lyra, and Bon Bon.” “What?!” Rainbow Dash cried indignantly, “didn’t you say getting hit in the face was illegal.” “Somepony got hit in the face?” he said with a sly smile, “I didn’t see it.” Under Dash’s livid stare, Ironwill sighed, “Oh fine, both teams get a two minute intermission, but that’s it.” Still unsatisfied, Dash walked toward her teammates, “Thanks for the help.” She hissed The male nerd sighed, “What’s the point? The outcome will always be the same.” “Caramel is right.” The unicorn nerd added, “In academics, we’re the alpha dogs. In physical education, we’re the alpha dogs’ punching bag at best.” “Well not today.” Dash stated vehemently, “Today you two, Caramel and…” “Lemon Heart.” “Caramel and Lemon Heart, you two are going to show those bullies a thing or two. I have a plan that will win us this thing.” They huddled as Dash quickly explained her strategy. Ironwill blew his whistle, signaling the second round. This time Dash, Caramel, and Lemon Hearts, stayed at their end of the court as the bullies charged to the center. They each had a ball and threw them. Dash quickly dodged the one aimed for her and caught the one flying toward Lemon Heart. Caramel managed to fumble and dodge the ball. “Lyra!” Iron will shouted, “Rainbow Dash caught your dodgeball. You’re out.” Lyra stomped off the court. Dash signaled her teammates and they all began to walk toward the center. The bullies didn’t move as they confident they would be able to dodge the balls with ease. Dash’s team stopped at the center. “Ready.” Dash told the nerds and they readied the balls. “Aim.” They all aimed at one target. “FIRE!” Dash shouted and they all threw the balls at one pony: Bon Bon. She dodged the first one, but the other two connected with her gut. As she fell two her knees, one of the ball bounced back to Dash’s feet. She quickly picked it up and threw it at Daisy, who was confused of the nerds’ sudden willingness to fight back. As the ball hit Daisy in the stomach, Ironwill blew his whistle, “This round goes to Rainbow Dash, Caramel, and Lemon Heart. Quite an impressive and unlikely performance. I’m glad I saw it with my own eyes.” The final round began. This time, the bullies stayed back as Dash’s team rushed toward the balls. They got the balls and repeated the action as before. This time, they aimed at Daisy. She was immediately disposed of and she stayed lying on the floor. Lyra and Bon Bon picked up the weapons and threw them. They tried to copy the technique and both balls were hurled toward Rainbow. Now that she was focusing, Dash easily dodged them both. The third ball drifted back to Dash and now her team was armed. “OPEN FIRE!” she yelled as she threw the ball at Lyra. She dodged it, but Lemon Heart took her chance and shot her ball at Lyra, hitting her in the ribs. Bon Bon scrambled toward one of the balls, but Caramel fired his at Bon Bon, hitting her in the face. “Caramel!” Ironwill shouted. Caramel flinched, but Ironwill smiled, “Nice shot.” The rest of the class clapped politely. They were pleasantly surprised that the new kid and nerds won a dodgeball game. As the class went back to the locker room, Dash walked toward the 3 fallen bullies, “You know,” she said, a sly smile on her face, “the strategy I used, I got it from you girls. I got the idea when you all tried to attack me at the same time. Except this time, it worked.” Chuckling merrily, Rainbow made her way to the locker rooms. ________________________________________ After school was always filled with a strange quietness. However that quiet peace was destroyed when the library doors flew open with a bang as Rainbow Dash sprinted to her dorm to work on her book report. She had just gotten her new library card and pulled a random book of the classic section (The Great Galloway). She hastily placed it in her satchel and ran like the wind. Dash finally made it to the dorms and burst through the door. She quickly made her way to her room, but was stopped by a commotion in the rec room. Since she arrived to the school, Rainbow has gotten used to a number of things. One of them was the constant bickering her two friends, Lightning Dust and Scootaloo, always go through. This time, the bickering seemed to have escalated. Scootaloo was currently chasing Lightning around the sofa. “Give it back!” Scootaloo yelled. “Or what?” Lightning Dust countered, shaking what seemed to be the remote to the T.V in her hands, “Your gonna go cry to a teacher,” “Just give it back! It’s about to start!” Scootaloo ran around the sofa to get to Lightning Dust, but Dust also ran around. “If you want it so much, just take it.” Lightning wiggled the remote over the sofa. Scootaloo jumped for the remote, but Dust simply flew up and Scootaloo dived face first to the ground. “Come on Scootaloo, all you have to do is fly up here.” Dust mocked. Scootaloo flapped her wings and hovered in the air, but she still needed a couple of inches to reach Lightning Dust. As Scootaloo fell to the floor in defeat, Lightning Dust chuckled. Her merriment was cut short when Dash flew up to her. “Stop being a bully and give her back the remote.” Dash said in a final tone. “Oh come now Dashie, we were just having a bit of fun.” “Didn’t exactly look like fun for Scootaloo.” Seeing Dash’s annoyed look, Lightning rolled her eyes, “Dashie, why would I be bullying? Aren’t I the pony who is trying to stop bullies? All I was doing was… toughing up the squirt for when she grows up to real pegasus, or chicken, or whatever she is. After all, it’s survival of the fittest in the real world.” The two drifted back down to the ground. Dust handed the remote to Scootaloo. “Thanks Rainbow Dash.” Scootaloo said as she turned on the T.V. “Now apologize,” Dash told Lightning. Rolling her eyes, Dust muttered, “Sorry squirt.” The squirt was no longer paying attention as she watched a broadcasting from Cloudsdale. The three pegasi were currently seeing a race track made out of clouds. The stands were filled and 5 pegasi were getting ready for the race. “Are those the Wonderbolts racing?” Dash said excitedly, momentarily forgetting her book report. She quickly jumped over the sofa and sat next to Scootaloo. “Yeah,” Scootaloo replied, equally excited, “they’re having a big race today. Are you a fan too?” “Of course! I’ve been a fan since I was a little filly. I used to dream of being a Wonderbolt.” “Dreams,” Lightning Dust interjected, “that have no doubt been crushed by reality. Now come on Dashie,” Lightning lifted up Rainbow by the arm, “we got work to do.” “What work?” “Remember the plans I told you of taking over the school to stop the bullying?” “You mean the plans I have been doing by myself while you did nothing.” “Ha. You think fighting those small fries will stop the bullies?” “How did you kn-” “I have ears everywhere. Now come one.” “Later squirt.” Dash said as she and Lightning left. “Bye Rainbow Dash. Later Lightning Dust.” Scootaloo said, in a slightly sad voice as she watched T.V, alone. ________________________________________ Dash followed Lightning to the school parking lot. She didn’t know why Dust insisted on being so stealthy. The two kept low and hid in the nearest bush at the slightest noise. They quickly entered the parking lot and hid behind a car. “Lighting, what are w-“ “Shhh! Whisper you dolt.” “Why are we whispering?” Dash hissed. Lightning pointed and Dash saw Gilda, the leader of the bullies, leaning against a brick wall. “What are we doing?” Dash whispered, “Are we going to fight her?” Rainbow absently rubbed her stomach, the punch Gilda delivered to her still fresh in Dash’s memory. “Of course not. Even with the two of us, fighting a griffon with serious anger issues isn’t a great idea. My plan is to tail her around school.” “Why?” “What do you think?! If we find out her weakness, any kind of weakness, we could use it against her. Once she falls, the rest of the bullies will fall as well.” The two stayed in their hiding spots for a couple of minutes until somepony, who Dash recognized was Daisy, walked up to Gilda. She couldn’t hear what the bullies were saying, but she could see their facial expression. She saw Gilda’s face go from calm to joy. She was smiling at what Daisy, who had an expression of unease, was saying. The joy, however, immediately left when Daisy finished talking. Gilda’s new expression was livid and she starting yelling. “YOU WHAT? HOW COULD YOU LOSE TO THOSE THREE?” “What do you think those two are talking about?” Lightning said in mock curiosity. “I think I have an idea.” Dash said, a pleased smile on her face. The pegasi then spent the next couple of minutes listening to Gilda call Dash every insult that she could think of. Eventually, Daisy left and was soon followed by Gilda. “So, now what?” Dash asked Lightning as the two left their hiding spots. “We do this again. And we keep doing this until we find her weakness.” On that motivated note, the pegasi made their way to the dorm. ________________________________________ In the library, Sparkler, Junebug, Caramel, Lemon Heart, and another nerd were sitting in a table. They were all discussing the same subject. “We need to do something about the bullies.” Junebug stated. “What do you want us to do? We can’t beat them in a fight, and those idiots are far beyond reasoning.” Sparkler countered. “So do we just give up and let them continue to pick on us?” “Of course not! We just have to think of something.” “I have an idea.” Caramel spoke up, “During gym, Lemon Heart and I were paired up with a student. She must be new, since I have never seen her before. Usually, when somepony is paired with us, they just let us do whatever. But this pony, she helped us, and we beat the bullies. My plan is to fight back the bullies, and she seems to be our best shot in completing our goal.” “Just wondering,” Junebug said, “was this student a pegasus?” “And did she have rainbow-colored hair?” Sparkler added. “Y-yes. How did you know?” The two mares looked at each other and said at the same time, “Rainbow Dash.” The mares began to explain how they met the pegasus. “So we all know Rainbow Dash?” Lemon Heart said, “This is pretty interesting. We all met her because she helped us.” “Most intriguing.” said sompony else. The nerds turned to the head of the table, where a unicorn nerd with midnight blue hair streaked with pink and purple, was reading a book. She put down the book and stared at everypony, “So what you’re saying Caramel, is that we get Rainbow Dash to help us fight the bullies?” “Yeah, pretty good idea. Right, Twilight?” Twilight crossed her arms and pondered the idea. Eventually she said, “I think we should refrain from asking Dash for any help. At least, for the time being.” “What, why?” everypony questioned. “I’ve thinking of not just what Rainbow Dash does, but also of who she keeps as company.” “What, you mean that little pegasus? You think she’s a threat?” Sparkler joked. “I’m talking about that egotistical, self-centered Lightning Dust.” Twilight’s words instantly caused some unease. “I didn’t know Rainbow Dash was friends with…her.” Lemon Heart shivered. “I have some doubts that Rainbow really knows what kind of pony Lightning Dust really is. While I try to decipher what kind of relationship those two have, I think it’s for the best we don’t involve Dash in our plans. Only time will tell if Rainbow Dash can be trusted.”