Drifting nibbled her eggs, her eyes lowered as she sat across from her mother. They'd both had a good, long cry and she now felt so drained she didn't want to do anything. Her mother's words still echoed in her head and she hoped her mom would keep them.
Her mom had made up some breakfast, though Drifting could only eat it slowly as she waited for the hammer to fall.
“So...” her mother said.
Drifting froze, her breath stopping as she waited for what she'd say.
“I'd... like you to keep going to therapy, once you get back to Canterlot.”
“Not with anypony Toughlove recommends.”
The elder mare nodded. “That's... perfectly understandable. I will see about finding--”
“I want... I want to choose who does it.”
“You? But you need help, and--” The glare Drifting gave made the mare go silent. She finally sighed. “Fine. I... suppose but... dear, are you sure it's not just because you're single? I can understand the desire to have a mare in your life, but there's no need for you to be that mare. You're a cute, wonderful little stallion and--”
“Mom, I'm a mare!” she screamed, glowering at her. “I thought you said you would... support this?”
“Fine, fine,” she mumbled. After a few minutes she glanced up. “Are you sure you're not gay? Because plenty of stallions are into that these days, you don't need to be a mare to--”
“Mom. This has nothing to do with who I... feel attracted to,” she said, her face bright red. “B-besides, I might... ugh.” She double face hoofed. “I just... mom, I just want to be me. This is who I am.”
“Fine, fine, no more questions about it. You're a mare, okay?” she said with a small smile. “Honey? How... ummm, has school been?”
“Good,” she said softly. “My grades are doing well. Really. I've made a few... well, I haven't made any friends, honestly. But I'm happy. I...” She then blinked. “I... met one of the princesses the other day. Princess Twilight.”
There was a clatter as her mother dropped her fork. “You... met the princess? As tha-- err... as... you?”
“As Drifting? Yes. And she was very accepting. I-in fact, she knew a lot about the subject a-and said it was completely natural. She even bought me some dresses. A few. I mean, since her friend owns the Canterlot Boutique, she got me some dresses from there.” She felt a little guilty lying, but she was sure the princess probably knew a little about it by now. After all, she'd tried to make it up after what happened. She doubted the mare knew much by now, though. It'd only been a few weeks.
“I... I see,” her mother said, her eyes wide as she seemed to be struggling to process this information. “So... the princess? Knows?”
“Yes, she knows. And she's okay with it. I ummm... I think she's really awesome. And she has the coolest friends.” Her eyes lit up. “Miss Rarity is just the prettiest pony in the world and she's so cool and awesome. Every word and movement is like silk, she's so refined and smart and lady like and oh my gosh I want her voice soooo bad and she gave me a hair cut and just look at how good she did and she taught me how to put my make up on and fixed my dress so it fit and--”
“She taught you how to put your make up on?”
Drifting sighed. Leave it to her mom to miss everything else. “Yes, she did.”
The elder mare nudged her plate a bit. “It looks... nice. You... did a good job. What, errr, brand?”
“Crystal coat,” Drifting said softly. “I'll need to save up my bits for a while to buy more, but I think I can do it right, now. I don't have to practice any more and I can make myself look so pretty and I actually had ponies staring at me and not in the 'wait, is that a colt' way but in the 'ohhhh, she's hot' way! I was actually being checked out and I got a love letter and...” She paused, frowning softly. The love letter had all been a set up, she couldn't believe she'd fallen for such a thing. “And I'm... really happier than I've ever been, mom. I just wish you could... accept that.”
The other mare took a deep breath, before smiling. “Of... course I can. If this makes you happy, if this is really what you want, I'm fine with it. But you know it won't be easy. Other ponies won't--”
“I know there are ponies who won't accept it, but buck them!” Drifting said, before looking up at her. “I don't need any of them. I don't... need anypony, if that's what it takes for me to be able to be me.”
The elder mare got up and quickly walked around the table, giving her another hug. “Dear, my little Sno... my little Drifting. If... this is what you want, if this is what makes you happy, fine. I'll support you. I... don't understand it and I don't think I'll ever really... like it. But you're my little baby bo... girl. And I will always be there for you when you need me. I promise.”
Drifting laid her head against her. “Really, mommy?”
“Of course, honey. So... you... still have almost two weeks until you have to go back to school, how about we go out and have a little fun? Just us... girls?”
Drifting blinked a few times. “You're okay being seen with me?”
“If you're okay being seen with your mother, sure.”
The younger mare cringed. “That is true, being seen with my mother will kind of make me an out cast...” she said with a smile. “But... I think I'll get by.”
“Err... do you want me to... help you with your make up?”
“No!” Drifting said quickly, before pausing. She then looked up at her mother, then lowered her eyes. “You... promise... to actually fix it? Not try to take it away, or trash it, or... change it?”
Her mother nodded. “I promise.”
“Then... then just this once. One time,” she said softly. She watched as her mother walked towards the bathroom.
More than anything, she hoped. She knew she shouldn't trust her, that her mother would probably, possibly, do something bad. Maybe try to make her look like a stallion.
But no matter what she said, she knew she wanted to give her another chance. She could still feel those wounds in her heart, raw and bloody, angry at the pain they'd suffered. But she wanted them healed. More than anything, she didn't want to have to keep fighting her on this.
So, nervously, she followed her mother into the bathroom. She sat down by the counter, eying her mother suspiciously as she got out a few small tools and a washrag. “Do... you want me to use your things, or mine?” her mother asked nervously.
Drifting looked back just as nervously. “I'll... get mine.” She quickly trotted out the door, took a slow, deep breath, retrieved her things and then came back. She placed them nervously on the counter. “It... shouldn't be that bad. I didn't cry that bad.” She knew that was a lie, but she stuck by it.
“I know, dear, I know. You're very han... pretty.” Her mother's horn glowed as she began picking things up and began adjusting her make up.
“Mom... what did... Toughlove say? To make you do that?”
Her mother took a slow, deep breath. “A... lot of things. That I needed to stop this foalishness now if I ever wanted to have my son back. Getting rid of the clothes and make up was first, then she suggested I cut your mane and tail. Possibly while you slept.”
Drifting choked, her eyes going wide.
“Careful! I don't want to jab you in the eye,” her mom snapped.
“You... you wouldn't... w-would you?”
“...”
“Mom...”
“I won't, I promise.”
“I wasn't... lying. If you... if you can't... accept me just... let me go then. Please. I'll be happier being me without y--” She froze as the hooves wrapped around her.
“You are my little baby... my little baby. No matter what you decide to be, you always will be. And you will never, ever have to be without your mother. I promise.”
“Mom...”
“You don't have to make that choice, Sno... Drifting. I'll... try. I'll take my little baby girl, okay?”
Drifting nodded, sniffling a little as her eyes started to water. “I-I just... just finished c-crying...”
“Y-yeah, me too... I guess you... g-get it from me.”
“So... you won't... do that?”
“I promise. I won't hurt you like that.” She slowly adjusted her make up, looking over her face. “You are a... really pretty girl, Drifting. I can see why you want to be this.” She took a slow, deep breath. “Are... you getting by okay in school? Any troubles?”
“I'm doing fine, mom. Aside from that one fight, I haven't had any others,” she lied. She'd been in a few minor ones, but as long as she stayed near the teachers, her 'fights' tended to just be a few harsh words, shoves or light kicks to the shins. Nothing to write home about.
“Okay. As long as you're happy.”
“I am happy. Mom, I'm very, very happy. As long as I can be me.”
“Of course.”
“And... if... you can support me in... being me. It'll make it easier...”
“Of... of course. You're my little baby.”
She smiled up at her mom, giving a small smile.
------
The two weeks passed swiftly, to her surprise and delight. Despite her expectations, her mother hadn't tried to do anything to her dresses, hair or make up. In fact, they'd gone out and her mother had even bought her some more make up and accessories. Even let her get her ears pierced, something she really hadn't expected. Two small little rubies were now imparted on her ears, small and cute, though she doubted most could even notice them. But they made her feel pretty and more like herself.
She'd been smart, of course. Left booby traps besides her door whenever she went to bed, but her mom didn't try to sneak in, didn't try to do anything. She could barely believe it, but she felt her mom was really beginning to accept her. To love who she was.
For the first time in years, as she said good bye to her mother from the train station, she felt actual sadness at saying good bye, instead of relief of leaving her.
------
Drifting took a slow, deep breath as she trotted into the school grounds. Barely any ponies noticed her, or if they did, they didn't show it. She slowly trotted towards the principal's office, eyes wandering around. She didn't see any sign of the ponies who had beat her up(and gotten punted, she would never stop being proud of that), so she wondered if they had yet to arrive.
However, after she knocked on the door and stepped into the principal's office, she felt the small edge of dread flow through her. Principal Learning looked annoyed as he glowered at her. “Ah. Drifting. I was wondering when you'd return.”
“M-my suspension ended today, right? I'm not still in trouble, am I?”
“Oh, no, you're in the exact opposite of trouble,” he grumbled as he put a hoof to his forehead. “I would like to... congratulate you.”
“Err... sorry?”
“You are familiar with our esteemed new princess, are you not? A miss Twilight Sparkle?”
Alarm bells went off in Drifting's mind, but all she did was give a little squeak and a nod. “Y-yes.”
“Ah, good. Are you also familiar she was once a student here, in fact she was one of our best? Possibly one of the greatest minds Equestria has ever known?”
“N-no, I wasn't...” she said softly.
“Ah. Well, I'd like to congratulate you. Apparently you've sent all kinds of delightful ideas off in her head.”
“I-I don't wanna get electrocuted!” Drifting shrieked, her hooves coming up to her head.
The principal just stared at her, before shaking his head. “No. Let me make one thing clear, child. We've been willing to... humor your little... perversion. If you wish to go by a different name and wear dresses, fine. We allow ponies to express themselves however they wish. But if you think we're ever going to let a stallion live in the mare dormitories, you're in your own little fantasy world.”
“W-what?” Drifting asked softly.
He then dropped a stack of papers, as thick as a dictionary, onto the desk. “Along with the other... ten thousand or so 'improvements' and 'suggestions' the princess has offered us.”
“W-what?”
“I don't know what you've been telling the princess, Drifting, but you're on thin ice. We are one of the greatest schools in all of Equestria. I will not have this school turn into some kind of... fun house for you ponies to walk around in your stupid getups and make a mockery of all we stand for. Do I make myself clear?”
“Y-yes sir, sorry sir. Won't happen again, sir,” Drifting said quickly. She really wished she had any idea at all what was being asked of her.
“Good. Now, a compromise has been made with the princess about your... lodging situation. She has agreed to give you her old room in the castle, to avoid the... so you can...” The stallion sighed and flipped open the report. “'So you can feel safe and secure without having your... dysphoria put on display for others.' How you managed to convince the princess that any of this is credible I'll never understand. I should have nipped this in the flank the moment you signed up for our school...”
“Sorry sir, I never meant to cause any trouble...”
The principal's glare told her clearly that he didn't believe her. “Of course you didn't. Now, the princess will be here to meet you in a few hours. If you'll go and make yourself scarce and try not to cause any more problems, that'd be wonderful.”
“W-wait, she's coming here? Why?”
“I told you. You're getting a new room. She'll meet you in the library,” he said before giving another sigh and rubbing his forehead.
“Thank you sir. I'll try not to cause any more problems.”
“Of course you will,” he said before looking back at the stacks of paper. “Single spaced, double sided... how does she find the time?”
Drifting chewed on her lip as she made her way slowly through the school. She felt like she was in trouble, but it didn't sound like she was in trouble. She wished she had any idea what it was the princess was actually after. She wanted to say it was a trap, but this was one of the princesses. More importantly, she had been... well, she'd tried to be nice. Even after she'd been tossed out of her room.
Her friend had been really nice too. Drifting sighed when she made it to the library, placing her bags on the table and just sitting there, so confused she felt the world was spinning. Why would the princess want to meet with her of all ponies? She wasn't important. Buck, after she'd left a few weeks ago, she imagined she'd never see her again. But here she was, meeting with the princess again and being--
Offered a room at the castle. The little color that her face held faded. A room at the castle, of all places. With the princess. She'd never even been IN the castle! Not that she hadn't had the opportunity. The school itself was just a gentle trot away and student's were allowed to visit many of the facilities at any time. But that required her to show her ID, which was unfortunately marked with a big S on gender. She didn't want to imagine how the guards would react to that.
What if she was in real trouble? What if the princess was going to tell her she had to be a guy now? What if this was all some kind of mass mind wiping thing? Her mother HAD been very nice. What if Toughlove was in on it? What if she was being imprisoned? A room in the castle! A cell was a room!
She buried her head in her hooves, horrible thought after horrible thought filling her mind as she imagined the great torments that awaited her. What if Twilight thought she had a CURE? She didn't want to be cured! She wanted to be a mare! She hated being a stallion!
“Drifting?” a voice said, making the mare shriek and turn around. She covered her hooves with her face the moment she saw the alicorn.
“Please don't torture me or imprison me or banish me or try to electro-shock me or a-anything like that!”
Twilight blinked a few times. “I'm... sorry?”
“Wow, she's as neurotic as you,” a small purple dragon said as he chewed on a small green gem.
“Spike, that's mean. Drifting, would you come with me?”
“I-I'm not in... in trouble, am I?”
“Of course not!” Twilight said with a grin. “Oh, hold on. This'll be faster.” Her horn glowed and the three of them, as well as her bags, disappeared in a purple bubble. A moment later they appeared in a large room with a big purple bed, a single desk and dozens of book cases, filled to the brim with all manner of books. “Here, my old room in the castle.”
Drifting looked around fearfully. “W-we're in the castle? How did you teleport all of us so... oh. Right. Princess. I guess your magic must be really... strong.”
“I've practiced that spell a lot,” Twilight said with a small chuckle. “Practice makes perfect. Now, Drifting, I wanted to talk with you.” Her horn glowed and a bunch of books popped into the air around her. “I haven't had much time, sadly. Princess duties and I had to spend a week solving a friendship problem near the Badlands, but whenever I had a spare moment I looked into your problem.”
“Err... my... problem?”
“Oh yes, gender dysphoria. It truly is fascinating. There was actually very little about it in the books I had, I had to special ordered a ton.” She said with the biggest grin.
“Oh yeah, she had to,” Spike said with a roll of his eyes.
“Err... okay?” Drifting said softly.
“But I am now quite knowledgeable about your problem and I have discovered there are three possible cures!”
Her blood chilled and she whimpered. She wondered if she could possibly out run a teleporting mare. A princess, no less. Where in the palace was she? “Err... do... go on?”
“Well, the underlying problem seems to be a problem between the brain and the body. Namely, having the body of a stallion, but the brain of a mare. Now, as I'm sure you know there are plenty of differences between how both brains are formed, so having one type of brain in the wrong body isn't impossible. Albeit rare.”
“Errr, that's nice?” Drifting said as she glanced towards the window. She wondered how long she could maintain a bird transformation spell. Twenty, thirty minutes? Longer if she was near a magical leyline.
“So the first, and obvious solution is to fix your brain. Basically change your mind so it's okay with what your body is.”
Drifting gulped and ran. She leaped towards the window, but stopped in mid air and was dragged back to Twilight in the alicorn's telekinetic grip, who sighed.
“I told you she'd run,” Spike said with a shake of his head.
The princess looked into her eyes. “Drifting, please calm down, I assure you--”
“P-please d-don't do b-brain surgery on me, d-don't change my mind, please! I-I like being me!”
“Of course I'm not going to do that!” Twilight said with a shake of her head. “If you'd let me finish.” She dropped the mare, gently, on the bed. “As I was saying, that is a possible cure. HOWEVER, the penalties far exceed the benefits. To put it bluntly, it would change who you are, on a fundamental level. It wouldn't just change what you feel good as, it would change who you were. You'd look the same, but you wouldn't be you any more.” A frown formed on her face. “And... I've seen that kind of thing happen to ponies. Thanks to... a certain spirit's magic. Not to mention... changing cutie marks.” She took a deep breath. “While such a 'cure' would be feasible, it is not practical. It would be akin to murder, effectively erasing who you are and replacing it with somepony else. Such magic is forbidden, even having two ponies switching bodies, the closest realistic spell, is expressly forbidden and immoral.”
“O-oh. Okay,” Drifting said softly, relief flooding into her.
“The second method of curing you is, well, therapy. You see, you might not be... this at all. There are a number of problems that can lead to such... desires. Discussing them with a therapist may help to uncover those problems and fix whatever is making you feel this way.” She then gave a soft sigh. “Sadly, I hear this is... rarely the case. But it still is a possibility. Unfortunately, if you really are a mare born in a stallion's body, this won't really have any effect.”
“I've tried that. I'd rather... not.”
“The... third option is...” Twilight took a deep breath. “I imagine may be the most beneficial to you.” She moved over and sat besides him. “If changing your mind is impossible, then changing your body is the best cure. You won't look the same, but you'll still be the same pony. And... I'd like to help you.”
Her eyes widened. “W-wait, you can? I-I thought you said there wasn't magic for that! There is magic for that?”
“Sadly, no. Even the most advanced transformation spells have time limits and effects. Most are really just a practice of re-adjusting mass. For example, turning a pony into a bunny doesn't give them the abilities and functions of a bunny, it just makes them take a bunny shape. Or, for a bigger example, if I was to turn a pony into a dragon, they wouldn't be able to breath fire or step in lava, but they would be tougher and able to fly if I gave them wings. Assuming they knew how. Even then, the bigger the transformation, the shorter the duration. Actually changing a pony's gender...”
“O-oh...” Drifting said, lowering her eyes. “R-right. I guess... impossible.”
“Fully, yes. However, there are alternative methods,” Twilight said before her horn glowed. “Now, I wrote a few reports in my spare time.” Drifting yelped and jumped out of the way as hundreds of pages suddenly appeared in mid air, crashing down and nearly snapping the bed.
“S-spare t-time?”
“Yeah, sorry,” Twilight said with a small grin. “I wanted to do more, but I really didn't have time. I hope it's enough.”
Drifting stared at the stacks upon stacks of papers that now covered the bed. “I-I see. A-and... err... alternatives?”
“Well, magically there's no quick fix, but there are slower methods. There are treatments and procedures to turn you into a mare, at least physically. They aren't perfect, but they apparently can get you pretty close. It really depends on how far you want to go. Oh! And I learned a number of things to help you with your... ummm... look.” She paused and teleported a book into her hooves. “The art of cross dressing! There was an entire section on a thing called tucking!”
Drifting's face turned bright red. If ever there was a conversation she didn't want to have with the princess, THAT was it. She was pretty sure she couldn't possibly be more embarrassed.
“It'll probably be a lot easier for you, though. In the book it's an earth pony that does it. With your magic, it'll be a lot easier. See, you just have to reach back and--”
“I-I know what it is,” Drifting squeaked, her face bright red.
“Oh, okay then. Oh, also, I sent a letter to Princess Celestia about your condition.”
Drifting wilted. She had been wrong. “Y-you... t-told the princess?” NOW she was sure she could never be more embarrassed.
“Yes. She actually helped suggest a number of books.”
“Wait, really?”
“Oh, yes. It's not very commonly discussed this day, it seems, but it is becoming more popular.” She flipped through some of the pages. “She says she's known a few ponies in the past who have suffered with varying degrees of it, but regrets to inform she knew very few who had it to the extent you do.” She the glanced up. “But she also said that, no, she doesn't hate you for it. In fact, she is sorry you have to suffer through such feelings and she is very sorry if anything in her time as ruler has left you, or ponies like you, feeling that she would hate you for this.”
Drifting's mouth fell open, then shook her head. “Y-you're joking, right?”
“Nope. Hold on.” Twilight's horn glowed again and then a small letter appeared in front of Drifting. “Now, she had a few other recommendations. Also, Luna had a few of her own as well. Hold on... here!” She dropped a small business card in front of the mare. “This.”
“Who... wuh? Shoemaker? I... need shoes?”
“No no. That's just her last name. Ms. Shoemaker. She's a therapist who specializes in this field. Also, I've found five support groups that meet in the local area, a whole slew of--”
Drifting stared at the mare, her mouth falling open. Two weeks ago this mare had barely even known this kind of thing existed, now she was dumping so much info on the younger mare she felt her head might explode. She sat down and stared. No wonder the mare was a princess. Apparently she knew how to cram ten hours of work into ten minutes.
“I also sent a few suggestions to your principal to help with your time there.”
“Err... what? A few?” she asked.
Spike spread his arms apart and mouthed 'tons'.
“Oh, yes. Just a couple that came to mind. He didn't seem very pleased by that, but they were just suggestions so I can't imagine why.”
Drifting nodded. Suggestions from a princess. She doubted many would count them as 'suggestions'.
“Now, he refused to bend on the whole lodging with the mares thing, even though it would likely stunt your emotional development, so we compromised. If you want to stay here in the castle, you may. I've already talked with the princess, you can be a live-in guest while you're attending the school.”
“O-okay,” Drifting said, so overwhelmed she couldn't really think of anything else to say.
“Wonderful! Now, once we solve your problem, we can move onto the next phase!”
“Next... phase?”
“Yes! Finding you some friends!”
“Friends?”
“Well, I am the princess of friendship, aren't I?”
“Right. I ummm... so... I live here now?” she looked around and then noticed her boxes were stacked up by the closet. “You got the stuff out of my room?”
“Of course. Oh, I hope that wasn't a problem?”
“Err... no. I ummm... honestly... I'm... kind of tired. Can I uhhh...”
“Have a bit of rest? Sure,” Spike said quickly, before glancing to Twilight. “Twilight?”
“What? But I still have forty five flow charts, three presentations, sixteen reports--”
“How about you leave them here for her to... study on her own time?”
“Well, I suppose self study is good,” the alicorn said before her horn glowed again. Drifting yiped as four more boxes filled with books and papers landed on the ground. “Now, if you need any help with anything, just send a message. One of the guards will ensure it gets to me. Have a nice night.”
Then, just like that, the princess was gone.
Drifting stared at the place the alicorn had been standing, now just empty carpet.
“The... buck... just happened?” she asked, her mouth open as she stared. She slowly picked the papers off her bed and put them to the side, before collapsing onto the bed.
It beat electro-shock therapy at least, though it was kind of a shock. She wondered how in Equestria a pony like that existed. Didn't she ever burn out? Her cheeks turned red as she remembered the first time they'd met. She'd been so angry, shoving the princess out. So hurt, too. Yet the princess had done all of... this for her.. How could she ever thank her?
Her eyes widened and a grin spread across her face. If she lived in the castle... that meant she'd never have to run through the halls of the Starswirl Wing again! “Eeeeee!” She kicked her hooves out.
Then she sat up, her eyes widening. “Wait. Did she say there were... treatments to turn me into a...” She glanced towards the stacks and stacks of papers on the ground. She then looked out the window.
“... Well, it's still early.” She pulled up the top layer and started skimming through. She had heard a little bit of such methods, but had mostly ignored them. After all, she never imagined her mother would okay them. At least, not before.
------
Drifting groaned as she woke up, looking around blearily. Where in Equestria was she? Near her bed an alarm was going off, but she had no idea why. She didn't even have such a fancy crystal alarm clock. Why was it by her--
Why was she in a big purple--
The last day flooded into her mind, with one thought in the forefront. “I'm late!” she shrieked, jumping to her hooves. She trotted in place, looking around in a blind panic. She had no idea where she was or, more importantly, where the bathrooms were. They were--
Relief started to flood through her when she realized one of the doors of her room was attached to a bathroom. She trotted over and pushed it open, glancing inside. Her mouth fell open as she just stared. The tub was made of ivory, she was sure. Or maybe pearls. Or time frozen snow. Something super white and super expensive, she knew. It probably cost more than everything she owned. Nervously, she walked over towards it, stripped down and slid into the tub. She let out a light eek as it came on and the water was ice cold, making her recoil across the tub, hugging herself and shivering.
“R-r-really? E-even s-such a fancy tub?” she muttered to herself.
At least now she felt awake and after a few minutes she felt good and clean, allowing her to get ready. With the bathroom being right there and not having to race through the halls, she found she wasn't late at all. In fact, she might actually be early. Her mood darkened slightly as she pulled out her dresses.
As much as she hated to think it, she almost regretted Rarity fixing her dresses. She had a few others, but now none of them fit her right, at least not like the other three. Just the thought of putting on the non-fitting ones made her shudder. With two of them ruined, that meant she only had the one left to wear and it had been ALL she was wearing. Her mother had bought her a few others, but she had no idea how to do the padding properly.
She glanced towards her purse. She had a few bits now, though. Maybe she could visit Rarity and pay her to fix all of them. She made a mental promise to herself to do it immediately, once class was over.
But for now, she had to go. She pulled open her door and looked right into the eyes of a guard. Her calm evaporated as she stared up into those big, tough eyes. “I-I was t-told I could be here, t-the princess said I could. I-I swear! I have a letter!”
The guard blinked. “Of course, Miss Petal. Do you require an escort to your classes?” he asked, staring down at her with a calm expression. If he thought anything was amiss, there was no sign from him.
“Miss Pe...” She blushed. “N-no. I'm fine, thank you.” She then turned and quickly started jogging down the hall. She made a mental note.
Princess Twilight, best princess of all time. She was having the absolutely best week ever. She wasn't looking forward to finding out what it was that was going to end up ruining it. There was no way she was allowed to be this happy, the rules of the universe just couldn't allow it.
She still practically eeeeee'd the entire way to school, skipping as she went.
------
Best first day back to school EVER! As she'd walked into the school grounds, she noted a few ponies eying her. Some were the standard 'wait, is that...' looks, but a few she swore were looking her up and down. It had been two weeks, so she supposed it made sense. After all, they hadn't seen her or her dresses in ages AND she was feeling more confident than ever. Without having to go to the Starswirl Wing, she wasn't constantly being reminded of her unfortunate physical defect. Not to mention she was getting far better at hiding it.
Then she'd run into the three ponies in the halls, the ones who had beaten her up. They'd taken one look at her before running away, the one she had punted in the lead. She had enjoyed that far more than she should have and had struggled to keep her giggles as feminine as possible. With a little bit of a cackle thrown in.
However, the crème de leh crème of it all was breakfast.
Today they had DONUTS for breakfast. With cream in the center. She knew she shouldn't, but she was in too good a mood to deny herself the treat, getting one and taking her seat, shuddering with delight at the delicious snack. Calories be bucked. She'd just go for an extra long walk later.
Ohhhhh, she could go for late night walks now without being scared of getting to her room. “Eeeeeee!”
“Are you okay?” a voice asked, making her jump and look up, across the table. A red mare with a silver mane stared back at her.
“E-errr, yeah. Sorry. I ummm... I'm just having a really good day. Can I help you?” she asked nervously. The other mare sat across from her, chewing her lower lip.
“I... I just wanted to ummm... I wanted to say I'm sorry...”
“Sorry? Sorry for--” Alarms went off in her head and she looked around, expecting somepony to be behind her. While there were ponies behind her, none of them were near enough to be a real threat. More importantly, there were no signs of buckets, itching powder or spray bottles filled with some nasty dyes. “For... ummm, what?”
The other mare looked off to the side. “About... the letter. I... I meant to meet you there, really. But... then when those stallions showed up and started... fighting, I ummm... I had to go get a teacher. I never... saw you after that...”
Drifting stared for a moment, cocking her head to the side as she tried to understand what the mare meant. 'What letter? I--' Her grip failed, her donut falling to her tray as her mind remembered exactly what letter.
This mare had been there that night.
This mare had been WAITING for her.
This mare had LEFT HER THE NOTE!
It HADN'T been a trap.
She just stared, her mind struggling to reboot with this new information before her. Finally, she slowly managed to speak. “O-oh,” she said, her face going red as her voice cracked midway through.
“Sorry. I didn't realize anypony else would be there. I thought I'd just meet with you and ummm... we could talk.”
“O-oh...”
“...”
“...”
“...”
Drifting gulped and opened her mouth, before closing it again. She then opened it again, closed it, before finally opening it one last time. “W-what's your--”
A bell went off, making her jump in her seat and hit her knees on the table. She let out a hiss of pain, grabbing them and whimpering. When she looked up again a few moments later, the mare was gone. Her cheeks flooded red.
Had she imagined the whole thing?
“I'm Branding. It's nice to meet you. Maybe... talk after class. By!” the mare said from behind her before galloping off.
Drifting just stared. She then eeed a little bit more, her hooves wiggling in the air.
Best! Back to school day! Ever! She took one last bite of the donut before tossing her tray with the others and galloping off towards her class.