All of the remaining repressed anger was forced to the back of Twilight's mind as she organised the notebooks and writing utensils in front of her in the usual orderly and methodical fashion. She appreciated the college's generous donation of equipment for her needs greatly; she had originally brought her own tools, however of course these were no longer of any use in their burnt ash form. It was finally here, the day of her first lesson. The excitement factor didn't stem from the idea of learning something new, because after years of intense learning from the princess, she felt as thought she already knew everything there was to know about the subject; no, Twilight's anticipation revolved around being back in a classroom environment, surrounded by other ponies who have the same educational interests as her. This was nothing short of heaven for Twilight and she refused to let her mood get dampened by a certain light blue unicorn. She'd also made sure to factor in an extra few minutes to pay a small visit to Spike and his friends before she had to get to class, which left her precisely two minutes to exit the room and head down. She carefully levitated the books into the also donated saddlebag, then made a break for the door.
"Off so soon, Twilight Sprekklah?" Leered Trixie, laying atop her bed, clearly having watched Twilight through the whole process.
"Oh come on! That one didn't sound anything like my name! How would you like it if I kept doing that to you... err... Brixie!"
"Good one..."
"WHAT DO YOU WANT TRIXIE?" screamed Twilight, slightly humiliated after her own poor excuse of a comeback.
"Oh nothing much, just wanted to make sure the school had officially made you their charity case after you carelessly burned your things" sneered Trixie, grinning to herself.
Twilight started to approach the self indulgent unicorn, "I can't comprehend whether you're just fabricating the truth, or if your ego is so drastically augmented that you actually believe what you're saying!"
"Oooh, looks like Dorklight Spawcul swallowed a dictionary!"
"Forget swallowing one, I'll shove one up your ass if you don't shut the buck up!" Twilight's sudden shift in language had actually managed to silence Trixie for the first time since they met, and she intended to take full advantage of this, "now you listen to me! I know you think that trick you pulled of burning my stuff was an act of dominance, but let me tell you, it wasn't! In no way are you at all superior to me! And you know what else? I WILL get you back! I don't care how long it takes... I will have revenge".
Trixie just managed to regain her composure, back to the level where she could display her false overconfidence again, "oh no... I'm shaking. I'd like to see you try Twilight Spark... errr I mean, Twinloyte Squakkle!"
Twilight was already slowly backing to the doorway, maintaining solid eye contact with the twitchy unicorn, "when you least expect it Trixie... when you LEAST EXPECT IT..." Slamming the door on her way out. The force of the slam sent a strong tension down Trixie's spine.
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"So, how did your morning go Twilight?" Asked Spike, briskly pacing alongside the trotting unicorn, closely followed by Butch and Quackmire.
"Pretty well, let's just say I managed to put Trixie in her place!" Twilight forcibly chuckling to herself,
"That's great Twilight! Do you think this means that she'll start to treat you with more respect now?"
Twilight's grin faded as she thought this over, "well I... err... no" she let out a heavy sigh, "I guess there really is nothing I can do to change her, it's hopeless!"
Spike swiftly pulled his duck friend to the side, out of Twilight's earshot, "dude, she looks like she's becoming depressed again, help me out here, Bill!"
Quackmire once again rubbed the chin under his beak, deep in though, "leave it to me kid, I'm a master at this sort of thing!" He then increased his pace to catch up with the slumped Twilight. "Ok Twilight here's how it is... violence is ALWAYS the answer! You're gonna need to start another fight with her, but this one has to be even wilder, cause more damage and have even more Cthulus than the last one!"
"The last one had NO Cthulus in it!" Objected Twilight.
"Oh really... that's not what Trixie said." Replied the well meaning duck.
"AND YOU BELIEVED HER?"
Spike rushed in to bail Quackmire out and away from the raging unicorn, before scolding the duck himself. "Dude seriously! Why do I even ask you for advice?". So for the second time, Spike had to atone for Bill's error, "look Twilight, just try and forget about her and just concentrate on the positives of your day. For instance, in your next class, you get to see, the wonderful and dreeeeeaamy... err I mean, you get to see your new friend, Rarity again."
Twilight's tone remained the same, "even that is a worry for me now"
"Why would that be a worry for you."
"When she first told me she was studying the same subject as me, she said she didn't think she was very good at it"
"And?"
Twilight placed a condescending hoof on Spike's shoulder, "Spike, you have a lot to learn about young mares, when they say they're bad at something, this actually means they are amazing at it. It stops us from seeming too braggy! I try to stay humble all the time as you could probably tell right?"
"Yeah... sure"
Twilight rose back up, took in several deep breaths, then strode forward, "She'll probably outshine even me! I bet that when I walk into that lecture hall, Rarity will be at the top of the class, she'll be the one answering every question with ease!"
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"Pffft, that's an easy one darling! It's clearly a well pressed garment made from woven, imported, Saddle Arabian silk, touched off with double stitched patterning and frilly lining to support the neck and forehooves" boasted Rarity, reclining back in her seat.
"No Rarity... the answer is 'thirteen'!" Croaked the rather exasperated professor, followed by a roar of laughter from the other students.
Rarity's cheeks blushed as she sunk into her chair. She leaned over to Twilight, the only pony except the teacher not mocking her, "I was close though, right Twilight?"
Twilight's hoof hit her forehead, "sure Rarity... the answer to the question 'how many founding members were involved with the original ministry of magical theory over one thousand years ago?' was obviously an item of clothing".
Rarity hurriedly skimmed through the untouched textbook on her desk, trying to quickly seek out the chapter on this matter, "oh you're right. I guess I knew that one really, but, I can't think about anything except fashion at the moment; I was up nearly all night working on that set of outfits I promised for you!"
"All night? Outfits?" Twilight's earlier prediction of Rarity's advanced ability in the subject had been irradicated, "I thought you were only making me one outfit?"
Rarity placed her hoof on Twilight's shoulder, a similar condescending action that Twilight gave Spike earlier, "Oh come now, we all know a lady can't have just ONE outfit in her life!"
"Rarity, that's very generous, but there's no way I can let you do all that work for me, especially if it's at the detriment of your own studies". Every second that goes by only makes Twilight wish that this was the pony she shared a room with, the contrast in character between her and Trixie was too much to believe. One made new possessions for her, the other destroyed all the ones she already had.
"You don't understand Twilight, I love dressmaking! This isn't work for me, it can't be work when you enjoy it!". Rarity's proximity to Twilight was so close now that they were almost sharing seats.
"But what about your education Rarity?"
"I know, it's a shame but... wait! I have an idea! You know nearly everything about Magical theory right?"
It was Twilight's turn to blush, time for her to exercise her humble side she spoke of earlier, "well I wouldn't say EVERYTHING, but, well I guess I actually would say everything!", this was an exercise she struggled with.
"Good, then since I'm making outfits for you, I was wondering if you could maybe help me out with my studies?"
"YES!" Twilight was immediately hushed by the professor having openly disrupted the class with her outburst. Having been a student under Celestia for most of her life, she'd never experienced how it was to be the teacher before. "I'd love to, Rarity! It'll also give us the chance to spend more time together".
Rarity finally retreated back out of Twilight's personal space, "That's wonderful! Thank you so much!"
Twilight leaned over to snatch Rarity's textbook from her, taking it well out of her reach. "Ok, but before I can start teaching, I just need to ask a few questions so I can get a rough understanding of your knowledge"
"Great idea, let's hear it"
"Alright I'll start with an easy one; 'what were the steps of each of the original models of magical theory first devised by the ministry? Starting with the first preconception of the founders and finishing with Starswirl's most up to date model' ".
Rarity hunched forward, flopping over the desk giving a casual expression, "oh please darling, you could at least try and challenge me... it has something to do with hemming fabric right?"
Twilight's mood fell flat, which was only matched by her body language, " we have a lot of work to do..."