//------------------------------// // The New and the Review // Story: A Colt's Tale // by my_little_medic //------------------------------// The whole class turned to face me as my ears drooped to their all too familiar resting places. While my visual attention was focused on Miss Cheerilee, I was still very aware of everypony's eyes on me. I swallowed a lump nearly the size of a boulder as my frozen joints finally responded to my unwanted commands. Sliding out of my seat and landing on all fours with a 'clop,' I made my way along the far row of desks to the front of the room. The hollow echo of my hooves on the hard wood was the only noise that broke the silence. My cheeks had taken on a very uncomfortable burn while beads of sweat soaked the fur on my forehead. 'There's no escaping this...' I thought as I took a ragged breath. 'Just get it over with...' I rounded the front corner of desks where Diamond Tiara was sitting, warranting a bored yawn from her as I passed. Sighing in resignation, I took the last few steps to stand next to the overly cheerful teacher. Forcing myself, I brought my gaze up to meet Miss Cheerilee's. She tilted her head to the side and motioned with a hoof towards the rest of the students. "Why don't you introduce yourself to the class!" That unbelievably optimistic tone of voice seemed like it would be my end. I was like a criminal on trial, the faces of the students supplanting those of the jury. Thankfully the only thing missing from this scene was having to swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Another sigh escaped as I turned to face the class, their eyes both accusatory and inquisitive. Some of them wore bored looks with half-shut eyes, while still others were waiting at attention for my first words. My ears were all but glued to the sides of my head from how much I was sweating, they were spending a lot of time in that position after all. "...Uh...I'm...a......Ph-Phoenix..." I managed to spit out, barely through a stutter. Forcing an uncomfortable grin onto my face, I looked back at the teacher, hoping for some kind of cue that I could go back and melt into my seat. However, I should have expected it wasn't going to be that easy. "How old are you?!" A shrill voice called from the front row, startling me and bringing my attention back front and center. Diamond Tiara was leaning forward in her seat, waiting for an answer to her question. "...Wh-what...?" I managed. "Tch! I said... How. Old. Are. You?!" She repeated in a very condescending tone. 'Oh crap! That's one more thing I never thought of ...' My mind raced as it tried to come up with a number, any number, that would make sense. "What's the matter?! Don't you know how old you are?!" Diamond Tiara's mocking voice rang in my head, causing me to lose any concentration I may have had towards answering her. "Now Diamond Tiara, there's no need to be rude to your new classmate." Miss Cheerilee chimed in, giving a stern look with her eyes but never losing her smile. "Well, he's the one being rude!" She whined defensively. "He's not answering my question!" If my cheeks got any hotter, they would have burst into flame, and at that point I would have gladly welcomed it. I needed to think fast, even if only for something to stall with. "...Uh... Well... How old do you think I am?" I managed, followed by a very small grin. "DUH! That's why I asked-" Diamond Tiara started but was cut off by an excited Scootaloo. "OOH OOH!!" She shouted thrusting an orange hoof into the air while her wings buzzed excitedly. "I'm gonna guess you're eight!" "Hey! You guessed it! I'm eight years old!" I said though an uncomfortable grin, mentally relieved that my gambit had worked. "YES!" Scootaloo shouted as she gave a little hoof pump. "You're the same age as me!" I returned a crooked smile as the heat from my cheeks finally started to dissipate. "HMMPH!" Huffed Diamond Tiara, turning towards Scootaloo. "Well if that's the case... Why are his wings so much bigger than yours?! ...Hmmm?!" An evil grin spread across her face. Scootaloo sunk back into her seat, scowling. I watched as she glanced back at her wings, her expression softening into one of dissapointment. While it was nice to have the attention off of me and focused on anypony else, I didn't like the outcome. A frown curled across my muzzle as I squinted towards Diamond Tiara. "At least she HAS wings..." I blurted out. A few short gasps from the children filled my ears as all eyes were once again turned back towards me. The heat in my cheeks began rising again and the gaping mouths and wide-eyed stares from the other children made me realize that I must have said something awful. Diamond Tiara turned her gaze back to mine with a look of absolute shock on her face. The awkward silence was back with a vengeance, if only for a few short moments. They say time flies when you're having fun, but when you're uncomfortable, it may as well be cement. "Now Phoenix!" Miss Cheerilee said in a stern tone. I turned towards her, the once cheerful expression on her face now replaced by one all together serious. 'That couldn't have been that bad... could it?' I wondered as I watched her. "That's a really mean thing to say to anypony! We're all created equally in our Princess's eyes and therefore each other's! It doesn't matter if you're an Earth pony, unicorn or a pegasus; we're all ponies through and through!" My eyes managed to find my hooves as she continued scolding. My ears twitched as I picked up on the giggles from the other students towards the back of the room. "Now... I want you to tell Diamond Tiara that you're sorry." Taking a deep breath I reluctantly let my eyes meet Diamond Tiara's. "Sorry..." I managed with a shaky tone. A one-sided grin grew across her face and she turned her nose up as if to shun my apology. "Hmmph!" "Now Diamond Tiara, I believe that you owe Scootaloo an apology. Don't you?" The teacher pony said while shooting a stern look towards the pink menace. "Tch! What for?!" She replied with a raised eyebrow. "Just because somepony doesn't grow as fast as others, doesn't mean they're any less special than the rest of us." She added, her cheerful demeanor returning. "Now I want you to apologize to Scootaloo for your comment about her wings." Letting out an agitated sigh, the obviously over-spoiled earth pony turned around to face the orange pegasus. Scootaloo still had a hurt look on her face and her wings were drooping, apparently a reflection of how she was feeling. "Sorry I made fun of your wings..." Diamond Tiara stated with a mock sincerity. "...Sure." Scootaloo answered less-than-enthusiasticly. Miss cheerilee's bubbly personality had been restored and she was once again the cheerful teacher she had been when she entered the classroom. "Very good! Now, Diamond Tiara, I want you to write a short essay on pegasus ponies and in it I want you tell us why some of them grow faster than others and why some of them grow just a little bit slower." The stunned expression on Diamond Tiara's face elicited a smug smile on my own. "And Phoenix?" The teacher continued. My attention quickly shifted to Cheerilee, now smiling more out of worry. "I want you to write a short essay on Earth ponies telling us why they're just as special as pegasus ponies." Giving the cheery teacher a little nod, I started to inch my way back to my desk. "Now, does anypony else have any questions for Phoenix?" 'Damn...' Turning back to the class I was greeted with a sight that brought a bit of elation with it. There were no hooves in the air and everypony seemed bored with me now. "Ok Phoenix, go ahead and take your seat." Cheerilee said as she turned and walked over to the blackboard. Complying with the teacher's directive, I hurried back to my desk. As I rounded the corner I couldn't help but look past Diamond Tiara. I was briefly met with a look of disgust that followed me all the way back to my seat. Eventually, she turned her attention back to the blackboard. As for me, while I couldn't do anything about the random stares I was receiving, it felt great not to be the center of attention again. "Okay everypony! Are all of you ready for our math lesson this morning?" Cheerilee asked as she picked up a piece of chalk with her mouth. Several dissatisfied groans were heard from the class as she started etching out different math problems on the blackboard. The squeaks of the white dust stick were one more thing that reminded me of the horrors of my previous days in school. My ears twitched at the sounds of several students shuffling through their bags and back packs. I grabbed my own with a hoof and brought it up to my desk. Fumbling with the zipper, I finally managed to open it with my teeth and pull out my paper. Automatically, I reached into the bag for a pencil before the gears of my mind ground to a halt. I found myself staring at the collection of pencils that had settled at the bottom of my backpack, wondering how I was supposed to write with no fingers. "All right everypony! Does everyone have a fresh piece of paper in front of them?" Miss Cheerilee asked as she set the chalk down. My attention turned to the strange colt sitting next to me. He was a unicorn with a burnt-yellow coat and a lighter green mane and tail. He wasn't necessarily tall compared to the other colts I had seen, but his neck was a lot longer than anypony else's so far. Nonchalantly, I took a glance at his flank noticing that his cutie mark was a...snail? I watched as he retrieved a pencil from his saddlebag with his mouth and then began copying the math problems from the blackboard to his paper, using his teeth to manipulate the implement. 'That makes sense...' Shoving my head into the darkness of my backpack, I grabbed a pencil in my teeth before letting my bag drop back to the floor. The implement carried with it a taste that I remembered from my previous years in school when I had a bad habit of chewing on my writing instruments. Staring down the length of my muzzle, trying to see the pencil I held, I began to manipulate the item with my tongue. Finally getting the pencil to a position where I could use it I looked up at the board to see what kinds of math problems we were all learning. My heart jumped and I couldn't help it as a chuckle escaped around my otherwise occupied mouth. There on the board were three of the simplest math problems. Eight multiplied by eight, five multiplied by eleven, and nine multiplied by ten. "Would anypony like to solve the problems on the board?" Miss Cheerilee asked. "Miss Cheerilee!" Diamond Tiara exclaimed as she waved a pink hoof in the air. "I think it would be polite for us to let Phoenix go first! Since it's his first day and all!" She ended her announcement and shot a look back at me with a very smug grin of her own. I rolled my eyes as I allowed the pencil to fall from my teeth and threw a hoof over it so it wouldn't roll off my desk. "What a nice idea Diamond Tiara!" Cheerilee announced before asking me, "Is that all right Phoenix? Do you need a little time to work the problems out on your paper?" Not being able to help it, I cocked a grin. "Nah, I'm good! Eight times eight is sixty four, five times eleven is fifty five, and nine times ten is ninety." I announced proudly. "Very good Phoenix!" Miss Cheerilee beamed. Casting a glance to Diamond Tiara revealed a pink pony whose mouth was agape and eyes wide with surprise. Flexing my new level of pride I shot her a wink. Her eyes narrowed as she turned back around in her seat defeated at her attempt at humility. 'Score one for the new kid' I thought as my smile grew a bit. "Let's try something else for just a moment." Miss Cheerilee announced. Once again, my attention was brought back to the now erased blackboard. The teacher picked the piece of chalk back up and began writing out three more problems on the board. As she finished and stepped aside, I had to cast out another snicker. Sixteen times four, eighteen divided by three, and five times two times ten. "Phoenix? Would you like to try these problems as well?" She asked. "Sure! Sixty four, six and one hundred." I announced, my level of cockiness quickly growing. My ears flicked back and forth as I picked up several astonished gasps and whispers from the other students. I could have sworn I heard Sweetie's voice among them, surprised at their newest member. "My goodness Phoenix!" Cheerilee announced with a look of absolute elation on her face. "Okay, one more set of problems before we get back to our normal lesson." Several of the students had once again turned to look at me, the former new kid, now math-genius that graced their humble classroom. Miss Cheerilee quickly erased the blackboard and picked up the chalk once more. She etched out another three problems on the board before stepping to the side again. 'Oooh... Trying to trick me, eh?' I thought with a little snicker. Sixty seven divided by two, five cubed and sixteen times "X" equals one hundred and twenty eight were the new equations. "Wait a minute..." The burnt-yellow unicorn sitting next to me spoke up. "Why is there a letter in that last one...?" "It's just a basic polynomial." I answered absently, his attention turning to me with a raised eyebrow. "A what...?" "A mathematical expression containing variables, which in this case is what the 'X' represents." The unicorn colt cocked his head before slowly turning back to the front of the class. I returned my gaze to the blackboard and caught sight of a confused looking Miss Cheerilee. 'Uh oh... Maybe I'm taking this a bit too far...' I thought as my cocky smile faded a bit. "Uh... Thirty three and a half," I clicked my tongue as I substituted for the exponent, "one hundred and twenty five and ... 'X' equals eight." I answered finally. Miss Cheerilee shook her head in what must have been amazement as she looked to the blackboard then back to me. Not entirely sure if what happened was a good thing or not, I slowly began inching my way back down into my seat. "Phoenix... Your math skills are impressive!" The cheery teacher beamed as her puzzled look faded into her omnipresent smile. My uneasiness vanished as I sat back up in my desk, my own smile returning. "Thank you, Phoenix, that's enough for now. Let's go ahead and continue our lesson from yesterday." My ears picked up the dissatisfied groans of the other students as they retrieved their pencils again. ~~~~~ The rest of the lesson was boring to say the least. The problems on the board were so simple and yet Miss Cheerilee was constantly stepping away to work with students one on one as they had trouble solving the problems. My mind had begun wandering and I found myself constantly stepping between my daydreams and the classroom. When I wasn't completely zoned out I saw the teacher moving between students and couldn't help but notice that she was at Diamond Tiara's desk much more than the rest. I picked up many a frustrated groan from Diamond Tiara which made me grin a bit. "Okay my little ponies! It's time for morning recess!" Cheerilee's voice sang. My ears were brought cowering to the sides of my head as the cheering of happy children nearly deafened me. I waited patiently for the stampede of fillies and colts to exit the schoolhouse before sliding out of my own desk and onto my waiting hooves. Being able to stretch each individual appendage out felt wonderful, especially after sitting in the same position for what seemed like hours. I trotted outside, the level of excitement I held for recess was only dismal when compared to how happy I was just getting a break from my desk. Making my way around the front of the schoolhouse, I caught sight of the Cutie Mark Crusaders on the other side of the schoolhouse. They eagerly waved as I trotted up to them. "Wow Phoenix! Ah' had no idea ya were such a brain when it came ta math!" Applebloom teased. "Bleah...!" Scootaloo blurted while sticking her tongue out. "Although, it was really cool to see you put Diamond Tiara in her place!" She added. "Umm... Do you think that maybe you could help me with my math work sometime?" Sweetie Belle asked timidly. Smiling, I released a little chuckle. "Of course, I'd be happy to." Sweetie Belle smiled as she stood up and hoofed Scootaloo in the shoulder. "Well? Are we going to do this or what?" Scootaloo rubbed her shoulder a bit before answering. "Sure!" "I CALL A MONSTER!" Applebloom yelled. "ME TOO!" Sweetie Belle added. "ME THREE!!!" Scootaloo finished. "...huh...?" I managed as my ears unfolded themselves. "We're gonna play monsters in the Everfree! Aaannnddd, since you didn't call out, you get to be the helpless pony!" Scootaloo announced a little too proudly. "W-wait...what...?" "The three of us'll go and hide in that little patch of trees over there." Applebloom explained as she pointed to a staggered bunch of conifers behind the schoolhouse. "Then, we'll count to ten and YOU have to try and make it to the front of the schoolhouse without being caught by one of us MONSTERS!" She finished with an exaggerated inflection. I let out an exasperated sigh at the thought of this game of reverse hide and seek. However, before I could voice any objections, the three excitable fillies had taken off at a gallop into the little patch of woods. I groaned while trotting past the schoolhouse and into the makeshift Everfree. Looking around I couldn't see hide nor hair of the Crusaders. A voice rang out causing my heart rate to spike. "Hurry up and find a place to hide already!" Scootaloo's voice echoed from somewhere. Another groan escaped as I found a fairly large tree stump close by. I walked over and squatted down behind it still looking around for any sign of the other three. "OKAY START COUNTING!" Scootaloo yelled. Reluctantly deciding to humor them, I closed my eyes and silently started counting to ten. 'one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten' "Ready or not here I come!" I said in an elevated voice. My ears flicked to and fro as I caught fleeting sounds of whispered giggles among the rustling trees. 'Crap that's right... It's not hide and seek.' I scolded myself mentally. 'Finding them is the last thing I want...!' Cautiously, I got up from my perch behind the tree stump. I could hear the other children playing around the playground and could just make it out through the trees. Drawing in a deep breath, I started to creep slowly towards the edge of the woods, my eyes sweeping left and right. A twig snapped from behind and I playfully rolled my eyes while turning to see who was trying to sneak up on me. However, as I scanned the area I saw no sign of any of them. Turning back towards the schoolhouse I got a fleeting glimpse of a purple tail vanishing behind a rather large tree. A suddenly wolfish grin appeared on my face and my heart quickened as my adrenaline began to flow. I crouched down as low as I could manage and took several slow steps towards the tree she had ducked behind. As I reached the tree, I sprung into the air to land on the other side. "BOO!" I yelled before noticing that she wasn't there. "RRRRRAAAAAWWWWRRRRRR!!!" Bellowed a scratchy female voice from behind me. I must have cleared over a foot in the air as a high pitched whinny escaped my mouth. Without any further thought, I took off at a dead sprint towards the schoolhouse, towards salvation. Serpentining through the remainder of the trees, I dared a glance behind me only to see both Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle in hot pursuit. Their expressions were that of pure childish ecstasy I couldn't help but mimick as all rational thinking left me and I momentarily forgot I was supposed to be an adult. My attention focused on the schoolhouse stoop as a fit of honest laughter forced its way out. I barreled through the playground at full tilt as a few of the other kids watched us go by. I had just rounded the corner of the playground and was coming around to the front steps when a red maned filly suddenly leaped out from behind a stray tree on my right. There was no time to react as the Apple Bloom shaped projectile landed right on top of me, tackling me to the ground. "GOTCHA!!!" She hollered in her high pitched southern twang. The other two slowed down to a trot and came up to us still laughing. Apple Bloom slowly got to her hooves and stepped off of my much abused form. The impact had knocked the wind right out of me and a fresh pain started to blossom in my injured hind leg. All that aside, I stood up laughing almost hysterically. That was by far, the most fun I had had in years. "That was soooo FUN!" I exclaimed, still trying to get my breath back. "YEAH!" Sweetie Belle chirped. "And you almost made it too!" Scootaloo had tears in her eyes from laughing so hard. Not that she was about to stop anytime soon. "Was it really that funny?" I asked, a smile still plastered on my face. She was having trouble forming words through her laughter. "Y-you ... whinnied ... like a little ... FILLY!!!" She finally gasped out as she rolled onto her back, laughing even harder. "I DID NOT...!" I said defensively while still holding onto my smile. "Actually, you kinda did!" Sweetie Belle stated matter-of-factly, barely supressing a giggle I thought back to when Scootaloo jumped out and startled me, the image of myself in midair howling with fear was clear as day. I bit my lip as I tried to stifle my own laughter but it was of no use. "Yeah... I guess I kinda did, huh?" I admitted. "I wonder where that even came from...?" "Okay my little ponies! Recess is over now, come on back inside!" Cheerilee announced from the school's front steps. The four of us complied with the teacher's request and made our way across the lawn to the front steps. I could really feel the effects that Apple Bloom's tackle had left as we walked. My hind leg ached every time I put my weight onto it and several spots along my ribs had random pains that would come and go with my breath. Apple Bloom had an apparent density to her which rivaled that of a pony sized wrecking ball. "What's our next subject?" I asked. Scootaloo turned around to face me as we kept walking. "Reading, spelling and writing." "Oh..." I answered as I paused next to my desk. Pretty sure I had the reading and spelling aspects down pat. But writing was a whole different topic, at least... without hands it was anyway. ~~~~~ After trying several times and earning a lot of confused looks from my fellow classmates, I decided that trying to hold the pencil in my hooves wasn't going to work. Relenting, I picked up the wooden dowel in my mouth, the taste of the eraser on my tongue causing me to wince a bit. I could feel the drool levels of my mouth already rising in response to the invader. Letting out a sigh, I closed my lips around the utensil and curled my tongue into the back of my mouth as to avoid another rubbery taste invasion. "All right everypony! I want you all to copy the sentence from the board to your papers. Then, I want you to correct it so it's a proper sentence!" She beamed. The fifteen minute recess from her students must have recharged her cheeriness batteries. Looking down at the pad of paper on my desk, one thought kept coming to mind. 'Oh how I missed my hands...' Reluctantly I touched the pencil to paper, my eyes darting from the blackboard back to my scribbling as I tried to make semi-legible letters appear. It was a battle fought in vain. I had taken up about a third of the paper trying to write my oversized mockery of the English language with my mouth. A four year old who was just learning to write their name would have laughed at my attempt. I gritted my teeth into the wood of the pencil, frustration getting the better of me. Deciding to try again, I touched the utensil to the paper once more. Slower this time, I tried to move the pencil with a bit more finesse. It seemed a tad easier to control the more I concentrated, but once again the sentence came out looking like a Kindergartner's handy work. A sigh of defeat was building from within as I decided to try once more on the little bit of space left on the paper. "Okay everypony! Go ahead and pass your papers..." Miss Cheerilee started before tapping a hoof playfully to her chin. "To the pony to your right!" Looking down at the chicken scratches before me, another round of sweat was starting to wet my forehead. The sounds of shuffling papers filled my ears as I turned to my right and saw the burnt-yellow unicorn handing his paper over to another stubby looking blue-green unicorn. He turned to face me with a paper in his mouth, his half-cocked eyes full of blissful ignorance. Grabbing the paper from him in my teeth, I didn't even have time to stage protest as he leaned his long neck over and grabbed my paper from my desk and brought it back to his own. "Okay, let's start at the beginning!" Cheerilee stated as she picked a piece of chalk up in her mouth. "So, the first thing is that the letter A in this word should be capitalized since it's at the beginning of the sentence." "Pssst...!" My burnt yellow desk neighbor called. Turning my attention to him, he picked up my paper and held it up for me to see. He pointed at the beginning of the supposed sentence. "Uuhh...? Is this capitalized?" He asked in a confused tone. "Umm... Yes?" I answered with an uncomfortable grin. "Oh... It's just.... your writing is really hard to read..." "Snails?" The teacher suddenly interrupted. Both of us turned our attention frontward. "Is there something wrong?" "Uh... I'm just having a hard time reading Phoenix's writing." Miss Cheerilee casually strolled over to see what was so hard to read about my writing. She sure figured it out in a hurry at that first glance though. "Oh my!" She exclaimed. She turned to face me, a shocked expression held on her face. I turned my downtrodden gaze up to meet hers and after a few moments her face suddenly lit up. "I think that for the rest of this class we'll all just check our own work." She added. I raised an eyebrow, unsure of what just happened. One moment she was shocked and appalled, the next she was completely happy. The teacher pony made her way back up to her blackboard and continued to correct the sentence as if nothing had happened. Turning my confused stare back to the paper in front of me, I quickly made all of the necessary corrections that he had missed, ignoring the corrections the teacher was trying to explain. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, we handed papers back to their respectable owners and continued on with the English lesson. I once again found myself daydreaming as familiar material seemed to work as an unofficial sedative for my brain. Of course, that's until Miss Cheerilee made the announcement that it was time for lunch. Looking up at the clock above the blackboard, I made the discovery that it was noon on the dot. Miss Cheerilee stepped over to a rope hanging from the ceiling and gave it a few short tugs, sounding the bell on top of the school. Once more, the classroom was filled with the excited cheers and quick hoofbeats of the students as they filed out the doors. I grabbed my bag and found the paper sack which contained my packed lunch from Fluttershy. Carrying the lunch sack in my teeth, I exited the schoolhouse only to trip over something at the top of the stairs and go tumbling to the bottom. "Haa! So not only do you need lessons in writing, you need them in walking also!" The familiar bullies voice rang. "Nice one DT!" Her little grey lackey accompanied. Sitting up on my haunches and trying to take record of any new injuries, I turned to see the duo trotting away with their heads and tails held high. A few choice words were mumbled under my breath that I didn't feel anypony else needed to hear. Getting back to my hooves was a slow process, the pain in my back leg grew more prevalent after being dumped down the stairs by a stray hoof. Thankfully, my lunch hadn't spilled out of the sack. Picking up my lunch, I limped over to the side of the schoolhouse where my three new companions usually were. Sure enough, they were all lying on their stomachs in the grass, shaded by a large tree. Applebloom was the first to notice my limp. "What happened to ya? Ya weren't limping like that at recess..." "Diamond Tiara tripped me and I fell down the stairs..." I answered with a dejected tone. "GAAHHH!!!" Scootaloo shouted. "Why does she have to pick on us so much!!! Why can't she just be nice for once!" "She thinks she's better than all of us because we don't have our cutie marks yet..." Sweetie Belle explained. "There's a huge difference between thinking your better and just being a bully..." I retorted. I dumped my lunch bag out on the grass, its riches littering the ground. A sandwich, a fresh apple, some celery stalks and a ...juice box? My frown suddenly did a flip and a smile graced my face. It seems being a kid again did come with some perks after all. We ate our lunch on the grass, the conversation changing rapidly between today's new member initiation and what activities we were all going to attempt to try and earn these cutie marks. I'm pretty sure I heard 'base jumping' in there somewhere but decided not to ask. As we finished our lunch, all of us stayed in our shady spot, my back leg was in no condition at this point for me to do any playing. "You guys can go play without me if you want. Don't let me hold you back." I announced. "Nah! We're not gonna leave our newest member all by himself. Besides, it's given us time to plan tonight's activities to earn our cutie marks!" Scootaloo answered. I shrugged my shoulders as the sound of the bell signaled the end of lunch. Slowly, I got back to my hooves and accompanied the others back into the schoolhouse. "What are we learning next?" I asked as we climbed the steps. Scootaloo pushed her body into my left side when she noticed I was having trouble putting weight on my injured hoof. It took me by surprised but did help me steady myself on the stairs. "Geography and history!" She answered. "Yep! Then it's time to head to the clubhouse!" Applebloom added in. Scootaloo and myself were just approaching our desks when the realization hit me. "Wait a second..." I said as I looked up at the clock on the wall. "So, we only have school for five hours?!" Scootaloo raised an eyebrow and exchanged a confused glance with the other two across the room. "Umm... Yeah? What did you expect?" She answered. "Well..." After spending over a decade of school getting up early to be on time for the first class which always seemed to start at eight o'clock sharp, it was just dawning on me that school today started at nine and would be over with at two. "I guess I don't really know." I answered. "Just thought that it would be longer for some reason." "Nope! Last lesson!" Scootaloo answered in an excited tone as she took her seat. I slid back into my desk and watched as the other kids shuffled in and did the same. Miss Cheerilee watched with her usual smile plastered across her face as the last student took their seat. "All right my little ponies! It's time for our history review!" Once again, the sounds of dissatisfied groans filled the classroom. The teacher wandered away from her desk, ignoring the students' protests, and pulled a chart down from above the blackboard. "Does everypony remember where we left off last lesson?" As I focused on the visual aid that now covered the blackboard I could see that the chart contained a timeline with information posted at certain years. No doubt significant pieces of the past here in Equestria. "OOH OOH!" A pony from towards the front called while waving an excited hoof in the air. "Yes Twist?" Miss Cheerilee addressed the student. "The latht lethon covered the founding of Fillydelphia and the protetht of the Griffin Empire!" The curly-maned filly answered. "Very good Twist!" The teacher confirmed. "So, today we are going to finish our lesson on the founding of Fillydelphia and hopefully squeeze in a little review of the Discordian Era for next weeks test." 'Phillydelphia...?!' I thought. 'No way...' I was hooked on Cheerilee's every word from that point onward. At one point I resumed trying to write using my mouth so I might be able to have some notes to look back on. I couldn't get the fact that this world had a city named Phillydelphia in it out of my mind. The similarity between my world and this one may be some kind of clue as to just what happened to me. ~~~~~ The bell to signal the end of the day nearly made me jump out of my desk. I had my nose buried in my nearly legible notes trying to make some kind of connection with all the information I had taken down during the history lesson. I looked up just in time to see Miss Cheerilee walking away from the bell rope. "All right my little ponies! I hope you all have a fantastic rest of your day and we'll see you next time!" She announced over the sounds of the students laughter and the noise of papers and pencils being shoved into bags. "Awesome! Now we can go crusading for our cutie marks!" Scootaloo beamed. The orange filly already had her bags packed and slung them over her back before approaching my desk. She looked down at the notes I had been taking before raising her eyebrows and looking up at me. "Umm..." She started. "I know... My handwriting is terrible..." I said as I dropped my chewed pencil into my bag. "Handwriting...?" She asked in a confused voice. "Err... Mouthwriting?" I corrected. Her face was locked in utter confusion before she looked back down at my notes. "Uh... You spelled Fillydelphia wrong... I think." "Huh?" I stated before looking down at my notes. "How do you figure?" "Fillydelphia is spelled with an F... not a PH." "An F...?" I asked as I squinted up at the chart covering the blackboard. It confirmed that she was indeed correct. There on the pull-down was the name 'Fillydelphia' in bold letters. 'You've got to be kidding me!' I thought as I looked on at the chart. I stared dumbfoundedly at the letters on the chart unaware that most of the other students had exited the classroom by now. "So... you ready to go crusading or are you just going to sit at your desk all afternoon?" Scootaloo's voice interrupted. A half cocked grin crept across my face as I met her stare. However, before I could enjoy the pleasantries an afternoon away from school would offer, Miss Cheerilee's voice rang across the hustling classroom. "Phoenix and Diamond Tiara!" She called from the front. "Would you two please come see me before you go?" That was never a good sign. I gave a fleeting glimpse to the exit and the other students who were gleefully filing outside. I wondered what this was about. "That can't be good..." Scootaloo said with a concerned look. Rolling my eyes at her I retorted, "Gee thanks..." "We'll wait for you outside okay?" She said before turning and joining the other two who had already made their way to the back of the room. I let a sigh escape as I shoved the contents of the top of my desk into my bag and zipped it shut with my teeth. Stumbling a bit, I managed to get my forelegs through the straps of the bag. Looking up to the front of the now almost empty classroom, I could see Diamond Tiara standing in front of Miss Cheerilee with just as much confusion on her face as I must have had. Both ponies turned to meet me as I approached. The teacher pony was wearing her usual overbearing smile and of course Diamond Tiara had the familiar scowl on her face. "I've got some wonderful news for the both of you!" She announced showing a very proud posture. Both Diamond Tiara and I looked at each other for a moment with raised eyebrows before focusing back on Cheerilee. "I thought this up during our writing lesson today! Since you are so good at mathmatics Phoenix and Diamond Tiara has the best writing in the class...." '...Oh crap!' "You two are going to tutor each other!" She finished with a proud flick of her head. We both cast each other glances at the same time. Our eyes were wide with disbelief. Both of us turned back to Cheerilee before we simultaneously blurted out one word. "...WHAT!!!"