Day: Friday
Weather: Night-time, slightly cold
Time: 10:15pmIt's not even been 30 minutes since I came through the mirror, and already I feel miserable about where I am, and what I've become. I mean, I'll get used to this new body sure, but the emotional scars are going to take longer to heal... provided they do. Not only am I experiencing misery, but also hatred towards my now former mentor! I'll never forgive her for her transgressions against me! Anyway, this strange young man who was riding in something he calls a car discovered me wandering outside in the cold dead of night, and decided to help me out of sympathy... like I need anyone's help! Still, this could prove useful as I do need someone to show me the ropes of this world.
The Other Journal
By Ganondorf8
November 4, 2015
Chapter 7: Flash Sentry
" So where did you end up spending the night?" Twilight asked.
" It wasn't a matter of where I ended up, but rather who I ended up with if that makes sense." I answered, reaching into my pocket, and pulling out a wallet which had been given to me as a gift back when I first came to this world. It had certainly seen better days given that it was tattered, about to fall apart at any moment, a decaying front, and worst of all, it had this weird smell which is both musty, and slightly putrid, but not to the point where it would make someone want to throw up. Opening up the wallet, I took out a small picture, and stared at it longingly for a few moments before the tapping of Twilight's finger on the rim of her glasses snapped me out of it. " Huh? Oh... sorry about that Twilight. I was just taking a slightly different trip down memory lane."
" What's that you have there?" Twilight asked.
" It's a small picture of the guy who gave me this wallet when I first came to this world a few years ago." I answered, looking at Twilight closely which made her feel rather uncomfortable, yet I had to remind myself that this wasn't the Twilight that I've come to know... as such, the one in front of me doesn't know who I'm talking about. " Here." I said, handing the picture over to Twilight, " this is someone who at one point sort of meant something to me--"
" I remember seeing him when Crystal Prep came over to Canterlot High to attend both the party that took place the night before the Friendship Games, and during the games themselves." Twilight said, reaching into her bag, and pulling out a small notebook where she began flipping through several pages using her finger before coming to a stop by pressing hard on the page. " According to my research, his name is Flash Sentry, and his occupation is a 'rocker' according to clique names of CHS. Not only can he best described as one of the most popular students of CHS, but he's also someone who can be relied upon whenever you have need of him." Twilight said, my reaction one of complete shock, as she had talked about him in so much detail, you'd think she were some kind of dictionary, and when did she find the time to write down anything about Flash?
Then again, she might have done this for just about everyone else including the faculty. " He supposedly knew me although I suspect he confused me with her... the other Twilight, yet I ignored what people would call 'advances' when it came to his behaviour as I was more focused on understand what I would eventually discover as magic."
" He's a really great guy once you get to know him, but I suppose he does allow his love for music consume his mind." I said.
" So this Flash Sentry was the one who found you when you first came here?" Twilight asked.
" When I said that where I would end up spending the night wasn't what I was expecting, I was referring to Flash Sentry." I answered, taking the photo back from Twilight upon her giving it back, and placing it back into my wallet before putting it back into my pocket again. " My heart wanted me to spend the night on my own because I wanted to be alone with my thoughts, but fate had other plans when his car appeared on the scene."
I guess from the perspective of both Flash Sentry and his father, I was nothing more than a homeless teenager living out in the cold streets, and I suppose they took sympathy on me even though I didn't feel like having any of it given what my current attitude was at the time. It also didn't help that I was struggling to walk because of being new to this world, so when Flash noticed me, I had no say in the matter as his instinct was to help someone in need... even though he had no idea that he was helping a pony who had been changed into a human.
When I began making my way towards somewhere to sleep for the night, it quickly dawned on me that I had no where to go, as this world was new to me, and who in there right mind would accept a stranger? When I heard the sound of something screeching to a stop right in front of me, I had to cover my eyes because of the bright light coming from the headlights, I knew things were about to change relatively quickly.
" Hey! Are you okay?" Flash Sentry asked, having gotten out of his father's car in order to see if I was alright. Even though he was slightly younger than he is right now, he still possessed the same personality then as he does now... wanting to help out those who were in need no matter what kind of person they were. Despite not being able to see his face because those bright lights were blinding me, I could tell from his voice that he was nothing but a fool. Who in their right mind would just come up to someone in the street, and ask if they were okay? Maybe, just maybe... it was my ignorance kicking in, as someone showed signs of concern... I mean, I didn't care about their concerns as I was more than capable of taking care of myself, yet Flash Sentry had a legitimate worry about me. You could say that he had a similar way of thinking like Princess Celestia, yet he was just a weak little boy pretending to be a hero, and I was a powerful unicorn who could easily use my magic to bring him to his knees... except... my magic was gone.
"..." I said nothing to him in response to his question.
" What's wrong? Can't speak?" Flash Sentry asked, inching slightly closer to me before I stared at him with such a cold expression, he immediately backed off slightly, yet remained undeterred in his apparent bid to help me. " Okay, I'll take that as a sign that you can talk, but you'd rather just be left alone. Am I right?" He then saw that I was nodding my head in agreement, and he placed his hand onto his chin to indicate that he was thinking about how to deal with the situation. I found it amusing that he assumed I needed his help in the first place, yet I was starting to grow tired of his presence as I really wanted to find somewhere to rest for the night.
"..."
" My dad and I were driving home from this concert which was the most amazing thing I've ever seen, yet we noticed you stumbling about near the Wondercolt Statue, and I thought that you needed help which is why I asked my dad to pull over! I thought you were some kind of homeless girl given how you're outside in the cold, yet your appearance suggests you're more better off than I expected, so maybe I'm just interfering with your personal business." Flash Sentry said, his words starting to mix up a little... a sign that he was having trouble talking to me, and in response this was making me feel annoyed. Why is he struggling to speak to me? What could possibly be his pitiful excuse? At first I thought it was love, but I threw that notion away instantly, and instead concluded that he just didn't know what to make of the situation. " I'm not sure why you came to Canterlot High given it's closed for the night, but maybe you came here based on instinct?" Flash Sentry asked, scratching his head as he really didn't know what he was doing.
"..." For the third time, I refused to answer his questions, so maybe now he will get the hint that I just want to be left alone, but then something occurred to me which didn't register into my mind until just now. He sounded very familiar with this castle as though he lived there, so perhaps listening to what he has to say may prove useful... until I don't need him anymore, in which case he can just go away or something.
" Guess I'll just leave you alone then." Flash Sentry sighed, turning around where he was about to walk back to his father before he came to a stop when something tugged on his jacket, prompting him to turn around. " Huh? What are you doing?" He saw that I had grabbed onto his jacket as an act of desperation, yet that's what I want him to think as in truth, my intentions were much more meticulous in design.
"...shimmer..." I said quietly.
" What was that?" Flash Sentry asked.
" I'm... Sunset Shimmer..." I answered quietly.
" That's a pretty cool name, and it suits you because of your hair. Anyway, my name is Flash Sentry, a freshman attending Canterlot High, the local high-school in this part of town, but I'm guessing you're not from around here given you were stumbling about as though you were lost." Flash Sentry said, and while I ignored that last bit he said, what he said about a "school" proved much more interesting to me. This world also understands the concept of schools, yet I doubt they have no knowledge of magic... which will make this easier to accomplish than I thought. When I was attending Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns, I kept to myself because I wanted to focus on my studies, yet ponies constantly tried to get me to join them in their pointless activities, but there was another side to it... I was often on the receiving end of things despite the Instructor claiming that it was me who was acting as the bully. The other students kept on trying to force me into being their friend, but I wouldn't have any of it, so they chose to tease me because of being different from them. This person... Flash Sentry... he could be the answer I'm looking for.
" What's this school like?" I asked, pretending to act ignorant.
" Canterlot High? It's an amazing place although I wouldn't know too much as I've only been attending for the past month seeing as the semester started a month ago, but the students are really swell once you get to know them, and there are so many different groups such as rockers, techies, eco-kids, and fashionistas. We may have our own cliques where we hang out with other like-minded kids, but we're pretty united regardless." Flash Sentry answered, and I made sure to listen to every word that he said not because of being interested in their feelings, but rather I can use this knowledge to establish a foothold as the dominant "student" as he called them. " You're roughly around my age, so that would make you a shoe-in if you wanted to attend Canterlot High, but I'm not sure if that's possible given how we're already a month into the school year." Flash Sentry said.
" I have quite the expansive education." I said.
" Really? What school did you attend last?" Flash Sentry asked, causing me to freeze up because I hadn't expected him to ask me that. How could I tell him that the last school I was a part of comprised of magical unicorns who studied hard to perfect their magical talent? He'd never believe that in an instant even though he doesn't appear to be all that intelligent given his stumbling of his words earlier. Maybe talking with him wasn't a good idea after all, for already, I'm growing tired of seeing his face in addition to hearing both his voice, and his constant staring at me, so I chose not to respond to his question. " Oh... so you'd rather not talk about that then... that's fine as I'm sure you have a reason for wanting to keep silent about it."
" Are we done now?" I asked.
" Yeah, I think so, but not in the manner that you're thinking of." Flash Sentry answered.
" What do you mean?" I asked.
" We really shouldn't be talking out here in the cold like this, as you could catch a cold at any moment, plus my dad looks to be getting impatient what with me trying to help a complete stranger." Flash Sentry answered, reaching out with his hand in an effort to have me hold onto it in return so as to help me along given my horrible walking. I slapped his hand to indicate that I had no need of his assistance, but when I took a single step forward, I tripped on my two long things where I fell over only to have him catch me in his arms which looked really embarrassing for me, yet something strange came over me.
Why did his action feel good to me? Bah! He's probably trying to earn my respective by him helping someone who he thinks is utterly helpless. " That was a close one Sunset Shimmer, but I'm glad that you weren't hurt. Anyway, why don't you come with me and my dad? You can spend the night at our place!" Flash Sentry said, catching me by surprise regarding his status of having a family. It reminded me of the fact that I had such a miserable upbringing, so the thought of being among another family made me want to throw up, yet if I wanted to get out of the cold, I had no alternative but to go along with him.
" It sounds like a plan." I said, my expression a false smile.
" If you had said no, I wasn't going to accept that because there's no way I was going to let someone as beautiful as you spend the night out in the cold especially during this time of the year when the weather slowly grows colder. " Flash Sentry said, pulling me along gently so that I wouldn't trip over again, and while this was humiliating especially because of how great I am, I was slowly getting adjusted to walking in this world. Now I just needed to figured out how to use this strange little things on the end of what used to be my front hooves...
" Like I said Twilight, Flash Sentry is a really great guy, but he does have his obvious faults." I said.
" He wanted to help you out because he didn't like the idea of you spending the night out in the cold, yet I can't help but suspect that he had an ulterior motive which revolved around the notion of having a small crush on you." Twilight said, her words being the honest truth despite being somewhat wordy and overcomplicated in their delivery thus making it rather awkward. " I'm taking it that you didn't accept his advances?"
" Huh? No, he didn't do anything of the sort as his concern was helping me out. Granted, he would eventually fall in love in me, but that's something that I won't be talking about until later." I answered, blushing slightly in response to her attempt at an interrogation. It did make me think back on how Flash and I were once a couple, yet it wasn't what you would call a two-way street in that sense of the word. In truth, it was a one-way street where he genuinely was in love with me, yet I didn't see that way... a truth which even now I regret immensely as it's a reminder of how horrible I used to be. " Twilight, I'll be sure to explain more about that when we get to that point--" I said, cutting myself off on purpose as just thinking about how I treated Flash made my heart start to cry in emotional pain.
" If that's what you want Sunset, then I won't force the issue on you. In any case, that Flash Sentry certainly is an interesting fellow despite him confusing me for her just because she and I look identical. I mean, how did he not know that I wasn't her? I would have thought my glasses, and Crystal Prep uniform would have been enough for him... for all of you to have figured out!" Twilight shouted, her face slightly contorting as she began to freak out... one of Princess Twilight's more adorable reactions, so it was nice to see that this Twilight had the same mannerism, but she did make a valid point. I don't know why none of us figured out that she wasn't the Twilight we've come to know, as the signs were clearly there what with her choice of attire, and overall appearance. It was awkward for us when we learned the truth, and it must have been just as awkward, if not more for Flash... assuming he figured it out. " Sorry for going off on a tangent like that, but I just needed to vent that out. So, you weren't expecting to spend the night at his place?" Twilight asked.
" No, but he was insistent on it, and because I wanted to know more about Canterlot High as well as how to walk, I ended up going with him and his dad. It was a weird experience... not being around him, but rather travelling around in his dad's car, as such a vehicle doesn't exist in Equestria." I answered.
" Really?" Twilight asked.
" We do have some technological marvels including trains, and helicopters, but mainly we rely on wagons, flying provided you're a Pegasus, trotting, galloping, teleporting provided you're a unicorn, and maybe a boat, but I'm not sure on that one." I answered. It dawned on me that compared to this world, Equestria lacks when it comes to modern conveniences, yet nopony aside from Princess Twilight and myself are aware that this world is the way it is.
" So your first car ride?" Twilight asked.
" I thought I would be ejected for sure as it wasn't what I would call comfortable! I've gotten used to it now seeing as I drive cars, and ride motorbikes every now and then, but at the time it was a new sensation which made me fear for my own life." I answered.
" And when you got to your destination?" Twilight asked.
The car ride was horrendous, yet Flash Sentry and his father laughed at my expense, and that caused inner turmoil to swell within me. They were laughing at me! I was going to teach them a lesson they wouldn't soon forget, but then I remembered that I had no magic, so my attempts at threatening them would just be nothing more than a temper tantrum where I was throwing a fit because I couldn't have my way. Once we arrived at his place, I got out where I breathed a sigh of relief as it was an experience I didn't want to go through again any time soon... Flash Sentry's home looked rather plain and boring, nothing compared to the majestic flow of Canterlot Castle, but I knew that this world was different, so I had to curb my tendencies by simply accepting that this world was home challenged. The interior wasn't any better... everything looked plain where nothing stood out as impressive... was this world really that bad when it comes to showing off majestic beauty? Have I really gone from splendour to squalor?
" Mom's not home from work yet, but you can settle yourself down on the couch." Flash Sentry said, pointing to an ugly looking couch which made me cringe, but I forced myself to sit down on it where it proved to be really comfy despite appearances. " We've got a spare room upstairs which you can use for the night, but I don't know how long you'll be allowed to stay here if you needed more time to get yourself back on your feet." Flash Sentry said, his words bringing up another valid point. I can't stay here every night for who knows how long as I'd rather not sink down to the level of these creatures, so I need to make some other arrangements and fast! Surely there was somewhere I could go without anyone caring about it.
" Tell me more about this 'Canterlot High'." I said.
" You seem to be really interested in it, but who can blame you seeing as it's one of the best schools around... apart from that fancy school located in the city... Crystal Prep, a fancy prepatory school where everyone is so serious when it comes to preparing for their college and university careers." Flash Sentry said. It sounds like this other school is much better when it comes to aspiring to be the best, but I doubt this fool would even know where to find it, and I doubt I'd even make it given my lack of knowledge of this world, so it looks like Canterlot High will have to do. " I didn't mention it before because of the cold, but you should talk to Principal Celestia, who runs the school, if you want to register there as an official student."
" What did you say?" I asked, my eyes burning with the fires of rage.
" Principal Celestia..." Flash Sentry answered meekly. No way! Impossible! Did Princess Celestia follow me through the mirror in an attempt to reconcile with me? Was he trying to pull a prank on me? If he was then I was about to unleash all of my fury upon him, but then he doesn't know where I'm truly from, so this is most likely sheer coincidence... which means I need to pay a visit to this Principal Celestia, and perhaps find out much more about this new world in the process. " Are you okay?" Flash Sentry asked, " you seem to have taken her name pretty badly as though she wronged you or something."
" It's just... the name surprised me." I said, cursing under my breath as I couldn't let on that this principal had the same name as my former mentor.
" Oh... okay." Flash Sentry said.
" Have you met her before?" I asked.
" I've only seen her on a few occasions, but she did welcome us all to CHS with a pep rally on the first day." Flash Sentry answered. I couldn't be sure based on this one statement alone, but it sounds as though Principal Celestia may slightly differ from Princess Celestia, but I won't know for sure until I speak to her face-to-face. " If you'd like, my dad and I can drop you off at the school in the morning, and you can speak to her in order to register."
" That would be just fine." I said, smiling an evil smile.
" I... I could take you to her office as I don't think you'll be able to find it." Flash Sentry said.
" You think I'm too incompetent?" I asked.
" No... it's just you're new in town, so you could do with someone to help show you around." Flash Sentry answered. He was right about me needing someone to show me how this world operates, and considering he's thrown himself out there... this Flash Sentry is going to be very useful to me... yet I don't quite understand why he is blushing right now whenever he stares at me. I'll just ignore it as all it does is distract me from my true objective which is to become a princess... yes... that goal is still one that I desire, and despite this current setback, I will achieve my goal no matter what! " If you want, I can maybe show you how to walk properly, yet it doesn't make sense as someone of your age should have known how to back at the age of two at the most!" Flash Sentry said, offering his hand once again. I'll have to humour him by accepting his proposal, for I can learn how to get used to my new body by following some of his acceptable mannerisms. By this time tomorrow... things will definitely get interesting...
" I'm not surprised about you freaking out about Principal Celestia being someone who is familiar to you... I had a similar reaction when I saw Princess Twilight, and she was just as surprised given what she said about seeing me was the strangest thing she had ever seen." Twilight said.
" Princess Twilight has seen human versions of her friends, mentors, colleagues, and more who live in Equestria, yet she somehow manages to maintain control of her reactions." I said.
" So you were going to register for Canterlot High?" Twilight asked.
" Crystal Prep would have been my preferred choice at the time because the way Flash Sentry described it, it was a school where I could focus on my studies, and become the best student among them, but my restrictions prevented me from going. Canterlot High would prove itself to be a worthwhile place to attend given what you've seen of it, but when I first went there to meet with Principal Celestia, I saw much in the way of opportunity..." I answered.