Getting back to Diamonds Tiara's house was hard an ordeal. The previous three trips back and forth between the school had been made with the guiding hoof of Ms. Dandelion. Two skinned knees and a dozen or so offers to help later she found herself in the foyer of the Rich house. She was greeted by the stiff lipped cobalt blue unicorn that served the household as the residence as the majordomo,
"Good after noon little miss! What brings you home so early from your studies?" he asked in his gravely voice.
Narci looked at the hazy blue stallion over trying to gage his gullibility,
"I got started to feel sick so with Ms. Cheerilee's permission and the school nurse's approval they decided to send my home to rest," she gracefully lied.
A hoof bushed against her cheek as he looked her over,
"Well if that is the case run on up to your room and I'll send Ms. Dandelion up to check on you shortly," he said flatly.
Narci walked up the stairwell slowly trying her best to act the part of sick filly. After she reached the next floor she cut right and walked down the hallway to her room. Plopping down on the plush bed she raised her hoof up to her muzzle and then ran her tongue over the gash. It was caked over with dried blood but the pain hand long since faded leaving her with just a numb sensation. She sighed as she thanked herself for doing away with the bandage before getting too far from the school. It was too conspicuous and drew to much attention and besides she was playing sick not hurt.
Her ears swiveled forward as the sound of hooves approached from outside. The door slowly opened and Dandelion strolled in balancing a tray on her back. Something about the maniacal grin that adorned the yellow mare's face made Narci suddenly feel very uneasy.
"Diamond Tiara is almost never sick. You don't know how much of a treat this is going to be," Dandelion cooed.
The burning warmth still gripped Narci's cheeks as she understood why Diamond never got sick. Diamond got as sick as any filly but she must have learned to hide it in Dandelion's presence. Most of the maid's diagnostic techniques weren't too extreme. When the thermometer fist came out Narci wasn't too concerned; but when the mare flipped her over onto her stomach and inserted the gadget all of that changed.
She was given a clean bill of health so the mare had concluded the only thing she could, that Narci was just tired so she left the filly in peace. The gray filly shuttered at the traumatic experience the mare had put her through,
"I'm in the fifth grade! Why did that cheerful witch check my temperature the foal way?" she groaned.
The bandages that wrapped both of her skinned knees and the fresh bandage that clung gingerly to her hoof all itched. Laying the bed she tried to force her self to sleep but the sheets had entangled her body and held her prone before her growing guilt. The look on Silver's face and the lack of regard she had for her teacher seeped down into her soul and prodded at her core. A tear slipped from its prison trudging its way across the no ponies' land and down the face of its world eventually splattering on the warm sea of cotton below.
Bolting up right Narci slid off the bed and shook the sadness away with a loud huff. Her eyes darted back and forth looking for her saddle bags when it struck her like a bolt of lightening, that she had forgotten her gear. All of her lies were apparent. If what she had told were true she would have brought all of her stuff home but she hadn't. If the butler and the maid hadn't already discovered her lie they would soon find out.
Peering out her window she cursed herself at her lack of sight. There wasn't an easy way to judge the distance from her second story room and the ground. But, that was the only way she could leave without alerting the staff. Inching the window open she pulled herself on to the window sill and took a deep breath. Coiling she prepared to leap when she heard a trio of voice below.
"Ah still think we should let her rest. Ms. Cheerilee did say that she was sick," Said AB from behind the other two fillies.
Scootaloo wheeled around and eyed the yellow filly, "Sick or not Cheerilee will puck my feathers and use them for stuffing if I don't deliver this not to Mr. Filthy,".
"Ssshh! Be quiet Scootaloo!" gasped Sweetie Belle as she stuck her hoof in Scootaloo's mouth. Tears of pain leaked from Scootaloo's eyes as she pulled the hoof out.
"Yuck!", she spat, "Don't you ever wash you hooves, Sweeite?"
"Yes, several times a day. Which is more than I can say about you." she finished as she suck her tongue out at the orange filly.
"Bwa ha ha!" chortled AB, "Sweeite gets in one fight and suddenly she's brave as a pony with a torch fighting timberwolves."
Puffing her chest out proudly Sweetie gave AB a wide smile. Scootaloo quickly poked the unicorns belly and watched as the pride flowed out like air from a busted balloon, "I'm so scared of Sweetie Belle, the glass cannon."
"I'm not a glass cannon!" spat Sweetie.
"Oh really, the last time we played Stables and Drakes your Spell Song Sorcerer sure ran off screaming like a frightened filly when that goblin knight got close enough to hit you with its plus three long sword," teased Scoots.
"Ah think that was different, Scoots. That was a game. Ah like Sweetie Belle 2.0," said AB as she stepped between the two, "And Ah sometimes think that you live in your head a little too much,".
The two argued back and forth while Sweetie slunk away and knocked on the door.
"Can I help you!" asked the butler loud enough to catch the two bickering fillies off guard. AB and Scoots gave the butler a black stare. The three of them stood their mouth agape at the huge blue stallion.
Backing off the sill Narci sat on the floor, "I'll have to thank Cheerilee for not telling them the truth later. If they knew that I skipped class Sweets wouldn't let me live it down, AB and Scoots would be worshiping the very ground I walk on. I don't think I would like that kind of attention." she thought.
Soon the sound of approaching hooves grew louder and the three fillies entered each wearing I different mask. Sweetie's looked concerned. AB looked like she was going to burst into flames as she violated the inner sanctum of her hated enemy, Diamond Tiara. And Scootaloo? Scootaloo just looked board.
"Hi, girls!" was all Narci could say before Sweetie dived forward and gave her a big hug. "This is getting ridiculous!" thought Narci as she returned the hug.