The school bell rang, and everyone began gathering their things to go home. Twilight Sparkle was one of the last students to leave the classroom, double- and triple-checking that her notes for the class were in order. Sure, she already knew most of today's lesson, but that was no excuse to be disorganized.
As she arrived at her locker, she was greeted by her new friend Sunset Shimmer. They began chatting as Twilight started grabbing her things.
"Hey, Twilight. How'd you like your first week at Canterlot High?"
"Oh, hello, Sunset. This week was great! No one teased me or bullied me or anything. Everyone was so helpful. Well, mostly everyone. People are still giving me looks for that...incident during the Friendship Games, but for the most part, the other students seem willing to forgive me."
"I wish they were that generous with me," Sunset mumbled.
"What was that?"
"Oh, nothing," Sunset stuttered. They began walking to the school's exit as Sunset tried to think of a way to change the subject. "So, uh, how were the classes? They challenging you any?"
Twilight started fiddling with her hair as she said, "Oh, you know, they're...you know..."
"That easy, huh?"
Twilight sighed and stopped walking. "Yeah; Crystal Prep had a much more advanced curriculum, so I already learned what we're going through at Canterlot High. I just don't want everyone else knowing that. They might think I'm some know-it-all snob."
Sunset smiled warmly as they resumed walking. "I wouldn't worry about that. People here won't think you're a know-it-all, Twilight. If anything, they'll be glad to know that you know all this stuff. It'll give them someone to go to when they need help with their work. In fact, you could tutor, if you want. You'd get to help people learn, and you get a bit of cash."
"I never thought of tutoring. No one at Crystal Prep would go anywhere near me, let alone ask for my help. Or anyone else's, for that matter."
"I'd consider it, if I were you. I tutor every once in a while, and it really is a good way to help students out and make new friends."
"That sounds nice. Thanks, Sunset," Twilight said as they arrived at the school's exit.
"No problem. By the way, the girls and I are getting together at Pinkie's tonight. You wanna join?"
"Oh, uh, no thanks. I have a test this Monday, so I should study. Plus, I have to plan out a tutoring schedule in case I do decide to tutor. Then, I need to study Spike; he's still talking, and I want to study the structure of his mouth and throat. So, yeah, I'll be kinda busy this weekend."
Sunset chuckled, "Wow, you really do remind me of the other Twilight. Alright, if you're sure, I'll see you Monday."
"See you."
Twilight and Sunset parted ways. Sunset went off to join the rest of their friends for another boisterous Pinkie Pie party. Twilight headed towards her home, alone.
It was a nice spring day. The sun was shining, and all was in bloom. Although enough of winter’s cold remained that Twilight slightly regretted wearing a short-sleeved blouse and a skirt, but it was a pleasant chill. It was a pleasant chill for the moment, but Twilight would need to take care to make it home before sunset. Twilight enjoyed the weather as she walked home, taking only a slight detour to go to her favorite coffee shop.
Twilight first found the shop, called Beans & Blends, completely by accident. Rain was coming down hard that day, and she decided to duck in and wait for the storm to clear. She ended up liking the cozy atmosphere, speedy service, and friendly staff, so she came more often. Best of all, the shop was small enough and far enough away from Crystal Prep that she never really saw any other students there.
She walked up to the counter and ordered her usual, a hazelnut latte, and took her customary seat in the far corner of the shop.
As she enjoyed her latte, she started going over her plans for the weekend, thinking about study schedules with students she might tutor and what rates she should charge. She kept this train of thought until she heard the bell over the front door ring. Twilight instinctively turned her head toward the door, and her eyes widened in shock.
Lemon Zest stood in the doorway of the shop, her headphones around her neck, her lime-green hair blowing in the wind as the warmer air of the shop pushed past it to reach the cooler air outside. She looked around for a bit, then started to walk to the counter.
Twilight, in the meantime, did her best to make herself appear as small as possible, hiding behind a textbook she pulled from her backpack. What is Lemon doing here? Beans & Blends is kind of out of the way for Crystal Prep students to be coming here. And besides that, Beans & Blends is my haven. It isn't fair that I have to deal with any of them here.
Twilight watched as Lemon grabbed her drink and turned away from the counter, hoping the whole time that Lemon wouldn't stay long. However, Twilight's dread quickly became a reality; Lemon noticed the weird bookworm in the corner, her eyes widening in recognition.
Lemon walked over to Twilight's table. "Twilight Sparkle?"
Twilight flinched and surfaced from the safety of her book-shield. "Y-Yes?" she stuttered.
"What are you doing here?" It wasn't a demand, just a simple question.
"Oh, you know, I just saw this place as I was walking home and, you know, uh, decided to give it a try," Twilight stammered, trying, and failing, to giggle nonchalantly at the end. Instead, her giggle sounded decidedly nervous. "So, uh, what're you doing here?"
Lemon Zest raised her eyebrow at Twilight's answer, but answered nonetheless, "I had to go pick up some new CDs, but the only store that carried them was pretty far from home. I thought I'd pop in a nearby coffee shop to get something to drink for the walk home."
They both stayed in uncomfortable silence for a few seconds, before Lemon asked, "Um, can I...sit down here?"
Twilight really didn't want her to, but was afraid of what Lemon might do if she refused, so she reluctantly said, "Uh, yeah, sure."
Lemon mumbled her thanks and sat down, suddenly looking somewhat nervous. "So, uh, how's your new school?" she asked. Twilight noticed how Lemon avoided actually saying the school's name.
"It's great. Canterlot High welcomed me with open arms, which is more than I can say for any single day at Crystal Prep," Twilight replied, perhaps more harshly than she intended.
Surprisingly, Lemon flinched at Twilight's words. "Uh, yeah," she said. "Principal Cinch isn't happy that you left."
"I don't expect her to be," Twilight replied. "After all, imagine the damage it could do to her precious reputation if people knew she lost such a good student," Twilight snapped, for once not worried about singing her praises. By this point, she was getting pretty impatient with Lemon and wanted her to just leave.
"Uh, yeah," Lemon said again. "Listen, I, uh, want to, uh, apologize. I'm...I'm sorry, Twilight."
Twilight was irritated. Now, she was angry. "You're sorry?" she repeated. "You're sorry? Do you have any idea what you and all the others put me through? I used to love going to school. It used to be my favorite part of the day, but because of all of you, I hated school. I hated getting up in the morning, I hated the morning walk to school, and I hated dealing with all the other students, and it was all because of you all!" She glared straight into Lemon's eyes as she finished speaking.
Lemon, who had been shrinking in her seat since Twilight began speaking, decided to risk saying, "I know. I know we've been terrible to you. We should never have done that. But, after we saw what you became after releasing that magic, I don't know, it was like we saw the culmination of all that we did to you floating before us. It was scary." Lemon began tearing up, her voice starting to stutter. "I-I thought I was going to die, and I realized that maybe...it was partly my fault. It's not like I was any easier on you than anyone else. I realize now that I shouldn't have done all I did. Twilight, please, I'm sorry. Please forgive me!" Tears streamed down her cheeks, dampening the earpads on her headphones. Their conversation had gotten the attention of some of the other patrons, but they looked away uncomfortably after Lemon's tear-filled apology.
I don't know what to do here, Twilight thought. On the one hand, I think I should be happy about Lemon being so sad. After all, Lemon and the others really made my life hard. Twilight's expression softened, however, when she really took in Lemon's tears. On the other hand, though, it's kinda hard to stay angry with her like this. Her tears seem far too honest. Making up her mind, Twilight gently put her hand on Lemon's, getting the other girl's attention.
"Uh, Lemon, um, you weren't all bad," Twilight said, trying to comfort the crying girl. "Sometimes, you were kinda nice. I mean, you've always seemed eager to share your music with me, even though it's not really my type," she continued, remembering when Lemon tried to share her headphones with Twilight on the bus to the Friendship Games. That certainly wasn't the first time Lemon tried.
"But, I was still mean to you with everyone else."
"Exactly. You were mean to me with everyone else. When you were alone, you left me pretty much alone, which was fine by me. Trust me, I know all about what peer pressure can do," Twilight said, looking down guiltily as she finished.
They both sat in guilty silence until Lemon spoke up, saying, "So, uh, do you...forgive me?"
Twilight stayed silent for a moment before saying, "I...I think I can give you another chance. Yeah, I forgive you."
Lemon gave her a teary smile. "Thank you, Twilight. Um, so about those CDs I talked about earlier. Do you wanna listen?" She pulled out some CD cases, still wrapped in plastic.
Twilight thought for a moment, when she grinned. "Actually, I think I have a better idea on how best to test those CDs. Do you want to meet the rest of my friends?"
Lemon looked nervous. "But, they're from Canterlot High. I thought they hated Crystal Prep students."
Twilight didn't miss how Lemon used the school's name this time. Smiling, she said, "Don't worry, I'll vouch for you. They're really easy to get along with."
Lemon thought about it, then said, "Yeah, sure. That sounds kinda fun. Just let me tell my folks."
Twilight nodded and did the same. When she was finished, she texted Sunset, typing,
I changed my mind. I am coming over, after all. I am bringing some good news with me.
That finished, Twilight and Lemon left toward Pinkie Pie's house, both noticing how the weather had warmed up during their conversation. Together, they walked side-by-side into the pleasantly warm afternoon.